YouTube has a sneak peek at the upcoming magical thriller “The Prestige,” which you may recall me getting excited over some time back. I tried embedding the video, but Wordpress was having none of that. Instead, here’s a direct link to the clip. Try to tune out Mary Hart’s tooth-grinding vociferation as best you can.
All I have to say is, where the hell is Bowie? No, that’s not all I have to say. This looks good. Where the hell is Bowie?
I’d like to take this opportunity to urge you, if you have not done so already, to check out the Hong Kong horror film The Eye. It’s the story of a young woman who has an experimental eye operation, and, shortly thereafter, begins to see… strange things. Though wildly uneven in places, it contains one of the best “shock” moments I’ve ever seen in horror cinema, and I’ve seen quite a bit. I jump every time.
Why now, you ask? Well, because Jessica Alba’s been picked for the inevitable American remake.
The script has also been modified; the story is now the horrific tale of a young woman with nice cans who loses all ability to act. So, take this opportunity to see the “pretty good” Hong Kong version before the “undoubtedly terrible” version hits the States. (In case you think I’m merely being curmudgeonly about this, there is lengthy historical precedent regarding the quality of American remakes of Asian horror films — Dark Water, The Ring, The Grudge, etc. I’m pretty sure I’m on solid ground here.)
It could have been worse, though. Their first pick was Renee Zellwegger. An entirely different kind of horror! (I know, it’s a bit careworn to pick on poor Renee Zellwegger, but have you seen her lately? Yikes.)
Super Hero Hype has another article on — yes, Paul Giamatti and Amazing Screw-On Head. I realize that this is rapidly becoming my fanboy fetish, but too bad. I’m excited about this.
Paul Giamatti spoke exclusively to ComingSoon.net about providing the voice for the title character in the SCI FI Channel’s upcoming internet cartoon “Amazing Screw-On Head,” based on the one-shot comic by Mike Mignola (”Hellboy”):
“It’s a beautiful looking comic book,” he told them. “It was so strange to me, because I’m not a comic book guy, but I was aware of its existence, I’d read it and really loved it. They came to me with it, expecting that I’d have no idea what it was, and I actually know what this thing is. It’s kind of obscure, I know, but the animation is really beautiful, and it’s very much the animation that it is in the comic book. David Hyde Pierce did Emperor Zombie, the villain in it. It’s obviously fleshed out a lot and given a lot more humor. Now they’re going to come up with original stories, and I don’t know who does that.”
So the plan is for this to eventually be a regular series? “That’s the idea. It would be really great if it was. The guy who is the head of the SCI FI Channel, a very wonderful interesting guy, it’s very much a pet project of his because he loved that comic book. They’re very interested and they’re going to sort of put it on the internet to create some culty interest in it, and hopefully, people will be interested in it. It’s an interesting idea, and if they pull it off, it would be really fun to do.”
I’ll admit, I didn’t exactly envision David Hyde Pierce as the voice of Emperor Zombie — I always imagined a deeper, more throaty Vincent Price-like character — but I guess it could work. And a series? Well, if the pilot is as good as the comic — slim chance, perhaps, but if it is — well, sign me up for the series. I just thank God it’s not on Fox.
As a big fan of Hellboy and Mike Mignola’s work in general, I found this interesting. Even though I’m wary of Sci-Fi channel adaptations, I’m holding out hope that their take on Amazing Screw-On Head will be good.
SCI FI Pulse, SCIFI.COM’s broadband channel, will premiere two original programs, the animated Amazing Screw-On Head and Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace, on July 13, two weeks before the shows debut on SCI FI Channel. SCI FI Pulse viewers will have the chance to affect the future of the Amazing Screw-On Head, based on Mike Mignola’s comic book, the channel said.
Amazing Screw-On Head features the voices of Paul Giamatti, David Hyde Pierce and Molly Shannon in a story about a robot secret agent (Giamatti) working for the U.S. government under President Lincoln. After watching the pilot of Amazing Screw-On Head, SCI FI Pulse viewers will be asked to fill out an online survey crafted by the NBC Universal research department. The results of the online survey will help SCI FI executives decide whether or not to green-light the pilot to series. Produced by Kickstart Productions, the pilot was written by Bryan Fuller (Dead Like Me, Wonderfalls). Fuller and Jason Netter serve as executive producers, with Mignola as art director. Chris Prynoski directs.
So, go vote for Screw-On Head, if you watch it and it doesn’t suck. And, if you haven’t already, do your self a favor and pick up the comic. It’s short, cheap, and oh so wonderful.
Normally, I wouldn’t suggest spending any time wading in the miry, fungus-topped pool of self-loathing nerds and tired jokes that is Slashdot, but today they have an interview with Billy West, the star of Futurama. It’s worth a look. Just don’t scroll down to the comments, unless you still get a chuckle from Zero Wing references.
