This is freakin' brilliant...

Boston in the movies

For roughly 15 of my 38 years I lived in the greater Boston area - Sudbury, East Cambridge, The Fens, Brighton, and Watertown - these were the places I lived. I used to hang out at The Druid in Inman Square, Donohue's on Bigelow Ave in Watertown, Watch City Brewing in Waltham, The Sunset Grille, and the Kells, just to name a few of my favorite places.

I enjoy watching films that feature Boston for a number of reasons (we WILL NOT discuss the abomination that is Blown Away), not the least of which is the fact that I like seeing the places I know. At the same time it makes me feel both homesick and a little less homesick.

There have been some decidedly average films that I enjoyed - The Matchmaker, From the Hip, and sure, there have been some dogs in there - Blown Away, Fever Pitch (I really wanted this to be so much better), Celtic Pride (I am sad to admit, I sort of worked on this film - my wife and I helped to keep the crowd in the Boston Garden entertained between takes of crowd shots) - but there have been some spectacular successes.

For my money, the best films shot on the streets of the Hub - even peripherally - include...

Field of Dreams
The Departed
Good Will Hunting
The Verdict
Mystic River
Monument Ave.
Glory
The Brinks Job
Southie
The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)

I bring all this up because I recently watched Gone Baby Gone. It was a good film, and I enjoyed it, yet I was still a little disappointed in it.

I made the mistake of reading the Dennis Lehane novel from which it was adapted first. The novel was far superior, and I likely would have enjoyed the film more had I not read the book first, but having read it first, there were a number of problems.

Like I said, I did think this was a good film, and I would recommend it, but here are some of the issues (many of which come from having read the book) -

Ben Affleck and his co-hort Aaron Stockard short-changed the character of Angela Gennaro, detective Patrick Kenzie's partner, making her a one dimensional character that was little more than a foil for Casey Affleck's Kenzie. The two also completely removed any hint at Kenzie's background as an abused child, something that in the books (there are five) is part of what drives the character. In this book it's part of what drives Kenzie to take this case against his better judgment.

While there were complaints from some critics that Morgan Freeman was miscast, my issues were with the people playing Cheese (and this one stems from the scripting choice), and Bubba.

In the book Cheese is of Nordic descent and likes to think he's black. A much more interesting character than the movie's version, and in reading the book, no one outside of Ben Affleck would come away with their image of Bubba meeting the one he portrayed in the film - that of a rap wannabe. Bubba was described essentially in the book as Vincent D'Onfrio's character from Full Metal Jacket - except he wasn't slow or dumb, and was a weapons savant.

The movie felt a little rushed, and could actually have stood to be a half hour to 45 minutes longer. There were certain scenes that would have benefited from a little more exposition, as would the character development - particularly of Angela.

There is a lot to recommend this film - the performances of Ed Harris, Amy Madigan, Titus Welliver and Amy Ryan were excellent, and Morgan Freeman was solid. Casey Affleck was even okay in a roll that didn't really suit him. The visuals of Dorchester were nice, and big brother Ben seems to have a good eye from behind the lens.

As I previously noted, I would recommend the film - just watch it before you read the book.

Where this film ranks among Boston films, I would probably rank them roughly in this order -

1. The Departed
2. Mystic River
3. Good Will Hunting
4. The Verdict
5. Field of Dreams
6. Glory
7. Monument Ave.
8. Southie
9. The Brinks Job
10. The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
11. Gone Baby Gone

The Fives

My wife believes that Dave over at Dave's movie corner/The Coffin Corner may very well be my doppelganger. I disagree - he's way more prolific than I, and he's better about keeping his entertainment blog updated. That said, there are a lot of parallels, including our tendency to try to rank films.

Well, with a little extra time on my hands this evening, I decided to start a new feature that I'm calling The Fives - five capsule lists of top five films, not necessarily related, and just because one film makes one list, it does not preclude it from making another list.

These are solely my opinion, and none of these lists are set in stone.

In the immortal words of Jackie Gleason, "and awaaaayyyyyy we go....."

The top five comic book adaptations (keep in mind, this is not just super heroes, this is comic books in general)

5. The Crow - I don't know how much attention this movie would have received were it not for Brandon Lee's untimely death, but it deserved all the attention it received. I might be ranking this higher on the list than it deserves, but Lee easily gives the best performance of his career, showing actual range, and the movie does a good job of capturing the spirit of Jame's O'Barr's sometimes too lachrymose prose. If anything, I would argue that the film was superior to the comic.

4. Akira - Adapted from the hit comic back in 1988, Akira was not only a revolutionary piece of animation, pushing the limits of non-computer generated animation, but it was also a complex storyline that also provided a look at how the Japanese were impacted by the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on a cultural level.

3. A History of Violence - Just see it. If you haven't, you need to. It will give you a whole new perspective on Aragorn.

2. The Dark Knight - I have to say, if I didn't know that the Joker was played by Heath Ledger, I wouldn't have known it was him. That's how good his performance was. The movie itself was much darker than Batman Begins, and borrowed heavily from story-lines in the series including Frank Miller's "Year One" story arc. Fully worth the price of admission.

1. American Splendor - While DK might net an Oscar nomination for Heath Ledger, Paul Giamatti should have received a nomination for his portrayal of AS author Harvey Pekar. While I will concede that 2003 was a difficult year with great performances from Sean Penn (Mystic River), Johnny Depp (Pirates of the Caribbean), Ben Kingsley (House of Sand and Fog), Bill Murray (Lost in Translation), and Jude Law (Cold Mountain), but Giamatti was as good, if not better than several of those. If you have not seen this - rent it, buy it, find someone who has it...just see it. I'm not even a Pekar fan, but this might be the best adaptation of a comic book ever shot.

Honorable mentions - Iron Man, Superman (1978), The Rocketeer

Top five most influential comic book adapted films

5. Batman and Robin - The 1997 release had the potential, particularly combined with the failure of Spawn and Steel in the same year, to completely kill comic books as source material for Hollywood's studios.

4. Sin City - Visually stunning, the film, while lacking a little in the way of plot (as does the comic book), the film was designed to look like the comic on screen. The director has gone on, using the same method, to bring Miller's 300 to screen in the same way, and will soon see The Spirit, Sin City II, and Watchmen all come to screen in the same way.

3. Ghost World - The critical success of this 2001 release led the way for other non-super hero adaptations such as American Splendor and A History of Violence.

2. Blade - The low budget film about a fringe Marvel Comics character put out by indie giant New Line Cinema came out little more than a year after Batman and Robin. While it had a smaller box office take than Batman and Robin, the profit margin was considerably larger, and once again made executives look at the graphic forum for film ideas.

1. Batman - As bad as this 1989 release really was, it was well received at the time, and a blockbuster that paved the way for any number of the super hero adaptations that have been produced since the beginning of the 1990's.

Top five coming of age films

5. American Graffiti - Easily the best film ever made by George Lucas, this nostalgic look at that final night before leaving for college should be noted for everything from the performances of Ron Howard and Richard Dreyfuss, and a killer soundtrack to truly skilled writing. If for nothing else, watch it again if just to be reminded that Lucas once showed an enormous amount of potential as a young filmmaker.

4. Almost Famous - This was a helluva film. Like American Graffiti, this is both a nostalgic look at the 1970's, the teen years, and even where popular music was in its development. But more than that, it was Cameron Crowe's telling of his own coming of age story with a gentle humor, and, very likely, through somewhat rose-colored glasses. None the less, it is a well told story about a teenager finding his place in life.

3. Stand by Me - Wil Wheaton's moment of greatness, this adaptation of Stephen Kings' short story "The Body" is the second film on this list with Richard Dreyfuss, only this time Dreyfuss is telling the story, flashing back to a key time in his life. One of Rob Reiner's best films, Stand by Me features some great performances from the likes of a young River Phoenix, Jerry O'Connell (yeah, the pretty boy was then the chubby kid - who'da thought?), Kiefer Sutherland, and Corey Feldman showed why people thought he was destined for big things.

2. Breaking Away - Not only one of the great sports films of all time, but a great coming of age tale about some Indiana boys in an Indiana town. Like American Graffiti, this tale took place after high school graduation. Unlike AG, it's over the the course of the following summer and fall as the four friends begin to find their path in life.

1. The Graduate - "One word...plastics." Interestingly enough, this might be the only one of the films on the list where the main character, the one that made Dustin Hoffman a star, might be as unsure about his place in life at the end of the film as he was at the beginning. However, as confused as he may be, he has figured out at least one thing. If you haven't seen it, I'm not telling.

Honorable mentions - Saved!, Angus, The Breakfast Club, Big, Dead Poets Society, Juno, Au revoir Les Enfants, Good Will Hunting, American Pie

Top five buddy films

5. Rosencrantz and Guidenstern are Dead - Brilliant movie, and probably not a choice to make most people's list. The only existentialist buddy film to make the list, it is a comedy - but not exactly a belly-laugher.

4. Shaun of the Dead - By the film school definition, this one is a borderline buddy film (a strong argument can be made that the focus is on Shaun, and that everyone else is supporting), but I feel that there's a reason that the movie goes out on Queen's "You're My Best Friend" while Shaun is playing video games with former flat-mate Ed.

3. The Odd Couple - Jack Lemon and Walter Mathau in the Neil Simon classic. 'Nuff said.

2. The Blues Brothers - One of my favorite movies of all-time, not only is it a great comedy from John Landis' heyday, but it had some absolutely brilliant cameos. This movie was amidst a stretch from Landis that started in 1977 with the often raw and erratic but also at times extraordinarily funny Kentucky Fried Movie and ended with 1985's Into the Night before a variety of films that received mixed reviews. That eight year stretch included Animal House, An American Werewolf in London, Trading Places, and Twilight Zone: The Movie. This was among the three best, and deserves all the kudos it gets.

1. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid - Ironically, one of the elements of this film for which BJ Thomas won an Oscar, I feel is one of the weakest points of an otherwise great film, and top ten Western. The song "Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head," while not an inherently bad song, is both jarring (there's no other music like this in the film), and grounds the film in its time period - there's nothing else about the film that does so, it easily could have been shot today. The movie, while remembered for its now oft honored and parodied ending, has an equally great opening - Robert Redford as the Sundance Kid playing poker, accused of cheating by one of the fellow players. If you haven't seen it, I won't write any more about it right here. See it for yourself.

Honorable mentions - The Sting, Fight Club (didn't think that would come up here, didja?), The In-Laws (1979), The Man Who Would Be King, Some Like it Hot, Monsters Inc.

Top five Stephen King adaptations

5. The Mist - Sometimes a little erratic with the special effects, this monster movie can be viewed as an allegory for the growing schism between the conservatives and liberals in this country. The performances are top-notch, as is the direction by Frank Darabont. It is at times overwhelming, brutal, and unforgiving.

4. Stand by Me - The second time this film hit the (Five's) list, it's a surprisingly gentle coming of age story from the master of horror well crafted by the same guy that gave us Spinal Tap, The Sure Thing, and The Princess Bride.

3. Misery - Maxim had the greatest line about how disturbing Kathy Bates is as Annie in this film, and it's all you need to know..."she made Sonny Corleone cry." If you haven't seen this, see it. Now.

2. The Shawshank Redemption - The second of Darabont's films to make this particular corner of these lists, Shawshank deserved every accolade it received, and deserved much greater box-office than it did. This is one of those films that was a critical success that lasted in the theaters for a month, tops. Nothing short of amazing for a film that most everyone is now familiar with.

1. The Shining - One of many great films from Stanley Kubrik, hated by Stephen King. Visually stunning, this remains one of the top five horror films of all time. Jack Nicholson is at his psychotic best, and there's a creep factor that cannot be denied. People that don't like this film don't know how a horror film should be made.

Honorable mentions - Creepshow, Dolores Claiborne, The Dead Zone. Admittedly, I have not yet seen Apt Pupil, The Green Mile, or 1408.

The Greatest Legs Ever passed on to that great stage in the sky

Cyd Charisse passed away today in her home. She was 87 years old.

I'm not big into musicals, never have been, but I first saw Charisse as a kid in the skit she did as part of Singing in the Rain - and I have to say, I went through puberty then. By all accounts, an extraordinarily classy woman, Charisse exuded sex appeal.

Just as famous for her screen presence as her legs that stretched from New York to Idaho, Cherise was honored by Fred Astaire in his autobiography with the following line, "That Cyd! When you've danced with her you stay danced with."

Rest in peace.

The missing comedies

So, I was discussing my list of 100 comedies with my wife last night. I knew before discussing it with her that we would have some differences as to what should be on the list and where - though probably not as significantly as my differences with Bravo's list. Talking with her, though, I remembered a number of other films that slipped my mind. I would like to present the following list for consideration and would love some feedback as to what the readers here feel should make the list, and what should be eliminated. As I mentioned in the previous post, I expect this list to evolve as I re-watch and remember films...

The Addams Family

Addams Family Values

Bringing Up Baby

Broadway Danny Rose

Cold Comfort Farm

Delicatessen

Duck Soup

The Hudsucker Proxy

The Gods Must Be Crazy

Kung-Fu Hustle

Little Shop of Horrors (musical)

The Muppet Movie

My Fellow Americans

Parenthood

Play It Again, Sam

Radio Days

Scrooged!

Take the Money and Run

Thank You for Smoking

The Thin Man (series)

Happy Ninja Day!

Today is the second annual Ninja Day. In honor of the national holiday, I wanted to talk martial arts and...well, ninjas.

First, check out these links -

The search engine Ninja.com and the info site askaninja.com and of course a Wiki on the subject. And of course, check out the following...





The day has inspired me to talk martial arts, a subject near and dear to my heart.

I have been involved in the martial arts since I was twelve, starting with Ryu Renshi-Dan Karate. I am ranked in that, Shotokan, and modern Wushu. I have trained under Yao Li, and Hoy K. Lee (Jow Ga Kung Fu), and dabbled in Aikido and Tai Chi (what can I say...I get around).

Growing up, I used to watch the old Shaw Brothers films. Most were trash, and I knew that back then, but there are a number of great martial arts films and a number of names starring in those films now with whom many Americans have become familiar.

Here are some of my favorites -

10. Jackie Chan's Police Story - Based loosely on a true story about a cop protecting a witness for the state in a corrupt Hong Kong, this is among the best of Jackie Chan's films which tend to be entertaining, but cliched. This is as much police drama as it is martial arts action film.

9. The Crow - I suppose you could make an argument that this isn't technically a martial arts film. I, on the other hand, would argue that it is. Brandon Lee, Bruce Lee's son, died in a tragic on set accident when the residual remains of a bullet left in the barrel of a gun acted like a projectile when the blank behind it was activated, pushing the cartridge remains out like a bullet, and into Lee's gut.
It was, by far and away, Lee's best film and would likely have led to other roles. That said, there are some great action sequences, and the fights, while raw and lacking the precision of most martial arts films, are well choreographed.

8. The Legend of Drunken Master - Jackie Chan, the clown prince of the martial arts, starred in this humorous and entertaining look at Wong Fei Hung, China's hero of legend. Some great fight sequences featuring drunken fist.

7. Once Upon a Time in China - One of Jet Li's earliest historical martial arts epics surrounding the stories told of national hero Wong Fei Hung. A very different look at the same martial artist that inspired the previously noted Jackie Chan comedy. Directed by legendary Chinese director Tsui Hark.

6. Fearless - Billed as Jet Li's final martial arts epic, this film goes back to the roots of the international Wushu Federation. There is a definite similarity in the story to Fist of Fury in that it deals with Japan-occupied China, and the hero of the story ends up in combat with a Japanese champion at the end of the tale. There is also something of the tale of the prodigal son to the story. Beautifully filmed piece.

5. Kung Fu Hustle - From the writer/director/star of Shaolin Soccer, this cleverly covers just about every cliche from every martial arts film ever. To top it off, it's well written, fun, silly and tense all at the same time. If you haven't seen this, you need to.

4. Unleashed - Also called Danny the Dog overseas, this might be the best acting you will ever see from Jet Li. The supporting cast includes Morgan Freeman and Bob Hoskins. This is one hell of a film.

3. Ong Bak: The Thai Warrior - Tony Jaa, quite simply is one of the most impressive martial artists I have ever seen. I will pop this one into the DVD player just to skip from one fight sequence to the next. One of the best ones in this film starts and ends in about four seconds.

2. Fist of Legend - A Jet Li remake of the Bruce Lee classic Fists of Fury. The climactic fight sequence was one of my favorite fight sequences in any martial arts film ever.

1. Enter The Dragon - The Bruce Lee classic. The best film he did, and the one that was supposed to launch his American career, cut tragically short by what is believed to be a aneurysm. The movie itself was supposed to give the world an Asian super-spy, James Bond without the gadgets. It even inspired the great parody "Fist Full of Yen," in the John Landis comedy Kentucky Fried Movie.

Honorable mentions (ie: depending on my mood, many of these could bump almost anyone of the above off the above list) -

House of Flying Daggers
Jet Li's Hero
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Shaolin Soccer
Fist of Fury
The Big Boss
The Bodyguard (Tom yum goong)
Magnificent Butcher
Wheels on Meals
Black Mask
Batman Begins
Equilibrium

For those of you not familiar with the last one, a Christian Bale movie, I give you the gun kata...

Not your child's cartoons...

Outside of fans of the genre and the Japanese, animation has long carried the stigma of being a category of film that caters only to kids. I bring this up, because I was recently watching Ralph Bakshi's opus to this nation's popular music, American Pop, and it had me thinking - what are the best animated films with an adult target audience.

Honestly, I found the list difficult. For some reason, the animated sitcom seems to bear greater appeal for adults than feature length - The Simpsons, South Park, Family Guy, Robot Chicken, The Critic, and Futurama all came to mind quickly and easily. And for whatever reason, when these shows have attempted feature length film versions, all have been weak (I know a lot of people liked Bigger, Longer, and Uncut, but I found it to be a half-hour episode with a lot of boring filler that made it closer to 90 minutes - I was highly disappointed).

I noticed as I worked on this list that half of films that came to mind were foreign, and that the more recent it got, the more likely the piece was foreign.

10. Fantasia - When you really think about it, this is really nothing more than a really pretty music video for classical music. There is no overlying nor underlying storyline, just a lot of animation that was years ahead of its time. A pretty strong argument can be made that this is targeting children, however, I have to admit, I gained a greater appreciation of the film as I got older.

9. Wizards - Fascinating piece done by American animator Ralph Bakshi. Bakshi is clearly making an editorial statement about war, and propaganda with a heavy reliance on Nazi imagery to make his point. Inconsistent and sometimes slow, this movie is definitely worth watching.

If you're an animation fan and you have missed this one, find it.

8. Heavy Metal - Flawed, but fun. More promising than it delivered, this anthology took stories from the earliest issues of the magazine and linked them with the common element of the "lochnar," an ancient artifact of evil. The movie featured art and stories from the likes of Moebius and Richard Corben.

Heavy Metal suffers from a problem common to anthologies: inconsistency. The Moebius and Corben pieces are pretty to look at, but lack the substance and entertainment value of some of the other pieces.

Unfortunately, the movie's sequel, Heavy Metal 2000, was lacking in the promise of the first.

7. Wicked City - This mid-1980's Japanese horror-noir piece is often acknowledged by fans of manga and anime genre as a seminal piece of Japanimation, influencing everything and everyone from films like Urotsukidoji and La Blue Girl to Todd MacFarlane's Spawn. Demons and cops - how can you miss?

6. Cowboy Bebop: The Movie - From the Japanese series of the same name, the movie follows bounty hunter, or cowboy, Spike and his co-horts on the trail of a terrorist on a bio-formed moon of one of the solar system's other planets (at one point in the series Spike asks one of his cadre who is returning to Earth why she would want to go to "that pit.") More a thriller than an action film, this is not for those looking for a shoot 'em up action-fest. Think taut detective drama with action.

This easily could have been done as live action, as could several of the films on this list, however, I really believe that any of these done as live action would have lost something.

5. Akira - One of the first feature length pieces of Anime that I ever saw, and (from my own stand-point) a fascinating study on the deep seated lingering cultural impact of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on the Japanese psyche. Adapted from the comic book of the same name, Akira was revolutionary when it came out.

At the time, the leading American animation house (Disney) utilized three-layer animation (three cells to create the effect of depth). Akira used five. It created a richness and depth of motion not previously seen in American animated films.

As for the story - that's a little more difficult. Let's just say that the government is messing with forces they don't completely understand.

4. The Incredibles - This one making the list I see as the most likely to create arguments, as I think this is the only one that people might view as a kids film. That said, the movie borrows heavily from Alan Moore's Watchmen and deals with a number of adult themes, including the concept of sacrifice for the greater good.

Death is not treated with kid gloves in this piece - although it is at times treated comically ("no capes!"). Nor is the mid-life crisis of Mr. Incredible which nearly destroys his family.

3. American Pop - In my opinion, the best of Bakshi's films, American Pop follows four generations of the same family and its relationship with American popular music from the early part of the 20th century until approximately 1980. In typical Bakshi form, the man utilized his patented roto-scoping technique to integrate live action with his animation to great effect.

If you haven't seen this one, find it.

2. Princess Mononoke - The Miyazaki environmental masterpiece is beautiful, violent, bloody, and gentle all at the same time. It is a story with a hero, but no true villain - unless ignorance is counted as a villain. It is as much about preserving and honoring the past, as it is about accepting the change that the future brings.

Like Akira, this film is touched by the cultural impact of the atomic bombs, but with a less bleak outlook for humanity.

I have probably watched this film a half dozen times and it never gets old.

1. The Triplets of Belleville - Were it not for this piece of French animation, Mononoke would have garnered the top spot. Belleville is strange and wild, as much an homage to the animation of the 1920's and 30's as it is a nod to those who ride in bicycling's biggest race - the Tour de France.

A deserving winner of the Best Animated Feature Oscar, this film is fascinating not only for its beautiful animation and story, but for the fact that through the course of the entire film there might be a total of five lines of dialog.

Not to be missed.

I spent a lot of time considering other films - The Simpsons Movie, Beavis and Butthead Do America, even hybrids like Cool World and even The Wall - but either the movies themselves fell short, or, in the case of The Wall, really lacked enough animation to be considered animated. Other pieces like The Animatrix, and Titan AE were filled with promise, but the creators' ambition failed to live up to the promise.

Granted, I have yet to see Beowulf, and recent attempts at the adult audience with films like A Scanner Darkly, but this is my list, and I am sticking by it until I see better.

Bourne again, and other observations

Over the last month I have managed to catch Live Free or Die Hard, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and The Bourne Ultimatum (in addition to DVD releases Hotel Rwanda, and 300 - neither of which I will address here). The three that I caught in the cinema were thoroughly entertaining. Surprisingly, I think the best of the three was the fourth installment of Die Hard.

Don't get me wrong - all were entertaining summer fare, and none were without problems - but the issues I had with LFDH didn't jar me out of the film, or force me out of the moment the way the issues with Potter and Bourne did.

Here it is in a capsule - would I recommend all three films? Yes - they were all well paced an highly enjoyable, and I would recommend them in the order in which I listed them in the first paragraph.

LFDH is arguably the best Die Hard film since the first one. Justin Long as the sidekick in what is essentially a buddy-action flick was a great addition as he and Willis play well off of each other. The addition of John McLane's college-age daughter was a pleasant surprise considering my expectation that it would be one of the movie's weaknesses.

Kevin Smith, on the other hand, I would say was one of the movie's weaknesses, and there were some minor plot issues. Beyond that, the movie was solid.

Order of the Phoenix was fairly well done for the most part, however, the movie lacked character development of the new characters it introduced like Tonks who will become more relevant in subsequent movies and there were moments that the special effects regressed to the looks of those in Sorcerer's Stone - particularly in the case of Grawp, Hagrid's brother. Grawp was rendered in a cartoonish manner that I have not seen since the troll in the bathroom.

It was jarring to say the least.

However, we were introduced to Dolores Umberage as played by Imelda Staunton. Staunton couldn't have been any more perfect for the roll.

The final installment of the Bourne films is the weakest of the three - mostly based on the following - the story line lacks the meat of the first two films as Jason Bourne continues to search for his past, the chases are not as well shot as in the previous films, and fight sequences are also not as well filmed - often coming across as chaotic and confusing. In spite of the problems, it's still an enjoyable 111 minutes worth of action and intrigue and worth the price of admission.

Faaabulous

A brief word about the adaptation of Frank Miller's 300 which I recently watched on DVD.

As bad as it was, I am glad I saw it, if for no other reason than to be able to give the film the following one sentence review -

It is the best unintentional comedy to hit the screens since Showgirls.

That is all.

And everybody was Kung-fu fighting...

Them cat's were fast as lightning.

Just caught Live Free or Die Hard today. It was a pretty entertaining romp through the mid-Atlantic region of the Eastern Seaboard. But I'm not really here to talk about that.

What I do want to talk about is the trailer for War, due out August 27.

For those of you who don't know me, I used to teach at the Boston Kung-fu/Tai-chi Club up in the Bay State. I started training in the martial arts when I was 13 in New York, learning Ryu-Renshi Dan and Shotokan Karate. I moved on to modern Wu-shu, tinged by Hun-gar, and dabbled in Aikido and Jow-Ga. I get geeked up for good martial arts films.

Honestly, they don't even have to be that good - they just need to be entertaining.

Jet Li is one hell of a martial artist, and Statham isn't shabby, particularly for someone who first learned it, by some reports, for the movies (hell, I'd known a few who had trained for years who don't look as sharp as he does). I'm hoping it's a decent script. Even if it's not, I'm probably going to see this one. After a number of poor choices that I will write off to a lack of familiarity with the English language, Li has rebuilt his reputation with movies like Hero, Fearless, and Unleashed.

Statham was entertaining in The Transporter, and its weaker sequel, not to mention the weak scripted adrenaline-rush, Crank.

So, yes, I realize there is potential for all sorts of badness here, a-la Kiss of the Dragon, but I've already got my Martial-Arts geek on, based on the trailer I saw in front of Live Free or Die Hard. And if it sucks, come fall, I'll wash the taste out of my mouth with Balls of Fury, due out August 30.

Wait...that sounded gay, didn't it?

Comic books, the movies and the last 17 years...

The better part of the last two decades have seen probably the most successful marriage of the comic book and film industries ever. Sure, there were adaptations for film and television of some of the biggest names in the comic book industry that predate 1990 - most notably the Adam West Batman series and films and the early Superman serials and the George Reeves series, not to mention the reinvention of the character in 1978 with Christopher Reeve.

Since 1990 and Tim Burton's popular butchering of Batman, we have seen everything from the cerebral American Splendor, to the heroic X-Men, to the heroic Goth tragedy The Crow (boy, there's a mouthful). Some have been excellent, others less so.

For my money, the ten best have been (the order is pretty much subject to change on my whim, but this is pretty much how I see it) -

1. American Splendor - How Paul Giamatti didn't get at least a best actor nomination out of this is beyond me. The movie may deal with many more serious issues than other comic book adaptations, but this little slice of Harvey Pekar's life is absolutely fascinating, in part because of how it was filmed, but in larger part because of Giamatti.

2. A History of Violence - Admittedly, I am coming from only one side of this, having never read the graphic novel, but for a movie, it was pretty damn good. Worth watching, if for no other reason than to see the performance of William Hurt.

3. The Crow - Honestly, I enjoyed Brandon Lee's swan song more than the comic book itself. Dark and moody, this is the movie that Burton's Batman should have been. Even Michael Wincott who played the villain in The Crow was a better villain than Jack Nicholson's Joker.

4. Blade - Very nice adaptation of one of Marvel's fringe characters. Good action, decent acting, and nice development of their very own mythology surrounding Vampires.

5. Batman Begins - Finally, a Batman movie that was shot right, cast right (Katie Holmes notwithstanding), and scripted right. Ironic though that it took pretty much a British cast to get the American super hero right.

6. Spider-man - Outside of making the Green Goblin look like some sort of nouveau sports mascot, I was impressed with the adaptation's faithfulness (in spite of certain liberties, such as the biological webbing) to the comic book, and personally had no issue with Kirsten Dunst as Mary Jane as many fans do. The character itself is kind of innocuous, so why would I be bothered by any vaguely competent actor in the roll?

7. X-Men - An entertaining action film well done from beginning to end.

8. Heavy Metal - This animated piece, dated by today's standards, is a personal favorite, and I know, not to everyone's taste. I never understood the need to string the vignettes together, as most of the stories probably would have stood on their own. Like the magazine, the stories varied from the comic, to the tragic, to the melodramatic...and it always reminds me of college, but that's a different story.

9. Sin City - Frank Miller's homage to the noir detective stories of the 1940's. If you go into it expecting a deep and meaningful film, be prepared to be disappointed.

10. The Rocketeer - Reminiscent of the 1940's serials, upon which the comic book was based, this was just fun. Pay particular attention to Timothy Dalton and Alan Arkin who appear to be enjoying their parts more than anyone else in the picture.

There are plenty of others that I would consider - Akira, Men in Black, The Mask are all worthy, and on another day, one of them might bump one of the above. For today, though, that's my list.

I would love to hear what others have to say about their favorites, or what you might disagree with that made my list.

Super Teams, the new frontier for Hollywood...

The dominoes appear to be falling.

With the The Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer about to be released, rumors that the Watchmen is floating into the casting stages, additional rumors about an Avengers movie, a script in the can for the Justice League, and three X-Men movies, and The Fantastic Four, not to mention The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen under the belts of Hollywood studios in recent years, it looks like the movie mill is really just now ramping up its foray into the world of super teams. But how many could they do, and how successful will they really be?

Hollywood is two for five in quality entertainment with the super groups, producing decent films in only the first two X-Men films.

We have yet to see Hollywood produce a decent product from an Alan Moore work, so I have relatively low expectations on the long-rumored Watchmen movie, particularly considering what is leaking about casting choices which include Keanu Reeves as the favored actor to play Dr. Manhattan.

As for the Avengers, there is no script yet, although there is a writer who has discussed working on an Avengers movie.

The Justice League is another matter.

Even though, according to reports, a script has been turned in, with DC tied up in Superman and Batman projects, this could either be a long wait before we see anything made, or it could be that there will be several re-writes of the script which is said to include both of DC's heavy hitters.

This is one of those projects that I would love to see made, but doubt it would be done right (anyone who has seen clips of the ill-fated and never aired pilot of the Justice League television show shot in the late 90's on youtube knows of which I speak). I first really got into the JL while reading Batman in the mid-1980's. I thought highly of Keith Geffen's writing and enjoyed many of the satellite characters like Blue Beetle, Guy Gardner, and of course J'onn J'onz.

The title itself was not terribly popular, getting canceled after a 10-year run (although not terribly unpopular, either), but, as always, was reincarnated as the Justice League of America. The JLofA was more serious, leaving behind some of the humor that laced the pages of its 1980's counterpart. One of the questions becomes, what incarnation of the league will the movie tackle?

Without Batman or Superman, the major characters, probably in order of recognition for the non-comic book fan become Wonder Woman, The Flash, and Green Lantern. That begs the question of marketability with the general public in the eyes of the producers.

I leave you with this question - can a Justice League film without Superman or Batman be worth the investment of cash into big name actors if the Superman and Batman are written out of the script?

Braaaaiiiinnnss

A quick revisiting of current poll standings in regards to Zombie films - I have had additional sentiments expressed to me or outright voted at the WiredFrederick site. The current standings are as follows -

1. Night of the Living Dead (19 points)

2. Tie
Dawn of the Dead (2004 - 15 points)
Dawn of the Dead (orig - 15 points)

4. Shaun of the Dead (12 points)

5. 28 Days Later (10 points)


6. Tie
Evil Dead II (5 points)
Army of Darkness (5 Points)

8. Night of the Living Dead (1990, 4 points)

9. Dead Alive (3 Points)

Also receiving votes, Ed and his Dead Mother, Zombi 2, Grindhouse: Planet Terror, Night of the Creeps and Return of the Living Dead.

What is it about these films that attract us? Or are you one of those who dislike this genre? If so, why?

So, over at Wired Frederick...

I have had a poll running regarding what the best zombie movies of all time are (that would be www.wi-fred.blogspot.com). So far I only have three votes, and would like to see a few more.

As it is, weighting each place (5 points for 1st, four for second, and so on), and number of votes received acting as the tie-breaker, here are the rankings -

1. Dawn of the Dead (2004) - 10 points on 3 votes
2. 28 Days Later - 9 points on 2 votes
3. Shaun of the Dead
Evil Dead II - 5 points on 2 votes (each)
5. Night of the Living Dead (original) - 5 points on 1 vote
6. Dawn of the Dead (original) - 4 points on 1 vote
7. Army of Darkness - 3 points on 1 vote
8. Dead Alive - 2 points on 1 vote
9. Ed and his Dead Mother
Night of the Creeps - 1 point on 1 vote (each)

C'mon people, I know there are other zombie fans out there. I want to hear from you - your top 5 zombie films in order, best to worst.