As you have probably already noticed, our coverage of Comic-Con 2008 in San Diego spilled over well into the following week. And now, a full 7 days removed from the heart of the event, we are finally bringing our coverage to a close. As it is with every event we do around here, it is a mixed bag of emotions. On one hand, by the end of the event we were all tired, worn down from long days and sleepless nights, transcribing interviews and trying to dig news out of sometimes extremely news-less press conferences. But we made it, all together. And for the most part — at least in my mind — we delivered some damn good coverage. 

Yes, thanks to the hard work of Brian Gibson, Cole Abaius, Robert Fure, Rob Hunter, Kevin Carr and Cody Miller, otherwise known as our Comic-Con Attack Squad, I’d say we gave you what we set out to give you, some of the best damn Comic-Con coverage on the web. Seriously, these fine gentlemen worked their asses off to make Comic-Con 2008 our best event in the history of FSR. Then again, I’m a little biased. It’s my nature.

On the final night of the Con we headed out to dinner with the entire team in tact (with the exception of Rob Hunter, who had to leave earlier in the day). And as luck would have it, the person planning the operation picked a quaint little restaurant in downtown San Diego, a little steakhouse that didn’t seem like much of a challenge. So there we joined our friends from Slashfilm.com, FirstShowing.net, ScreenRant.com, GeeksofDoom.com and our own Kevin Kelly (who was covering the even for Spout.com) to have a nice meal. And as “the boss,” I was going to get stuck with the check.

The only problem was that after perusing the menu a bit, we decided that any establishment that sells $27 meat loaf that doesn’t even come with a side order of mashed potatoes must be out of their mind. So we ordered some appetizers (one single crab cake went for $15, but it was delicious), socialized with the good people of the movie blogosphere and headed out early. And in true Reject fashion, we stopped to pick up some pizza, some beer and some cigars on our way back to the hotel to get some work done. In the end, the Rejects conquered Comic-Con… We laid down the law in the land of the Geek. Or at least, we hope so. Either way we got some great pictures, including the following candid shots from our final victory dinner:

Brian Gibson and Kevin Carr

Kevin and the Robert Fure

Cole Abaius and Cody Miller

That’s me… Probably still working… Okay, maybe not…

A room full of movie geeks… A truly dangerous and altogether wonderful thing.

And finally, one last treat from our Comic-Con 2008 arsenal. This is a little video that the FSR team has been waiting for since we left San Diego. The following video is the gag reel from all of the footage that was shot. And just like any good B-movie, you won’t believe how it ends…

This video is also available on Daily Motion and YouTube. Feel free to spread the love.

Until next year, you stay classy, San Diego…

As you already know, the staff here at Film School Rejects had a damn good time at Comic-Con International last weekend in San Diego. We saw some cool footage, met throngs of great people, talked to some people who are some-bodies and we drank… a lot. And in order to bring our coverage to a close, I asked the attending staff to put together a list of the 12 things that made it all worth while. These 12 things made the lines, the painful crowds and the sometimes difficult world of being press at such an event worth it. So lets have a look and see what they had to say. Note: Each author’s name appears below the items that they wrote for this piece.

12. Learning Some Lessons about Twilighters

We learned that not all Twilighters are whiny little girls (and their boyfriends angling for handjobs) who attack anyone with an opinion that differs from their own. Some are intelligent, funny, and reasonable human beings (and a few are actually pretty damn cute too.) So thank you Natalie and the unnamed girl we met in Hall H on Thursday before the 20th Century Fox panel, and thank you two unnamed girls I met in line outside on the patio waiting for Joss Whedon on Friday. I still think Twilight (the movie) looks lame, but I won’t be generalizing the fanbase any longer. Well, I’ll try not to anyway… - Rob Hunter

11. Watching Other Journalists Embarrass Themselves

It seemed that this year, there were alot of rogue outlets that slipped through the cracks of the con. I had been using the fake domain “www.PuppiesandKittens.com” as an example all throughout the event to vent frustrations. There was a journalist who got too caught up in his own narcisistic sense of self importance to realize that he was mistaking one acrtress for another during an interview. There were several “legitimate journalists” who acted ignorant and belligerent throughout the Con, acting as if their press badge was indicative of some secret society membership. When you could stop laughing at their behavior and sneak a peak at their badge, you would find that they were reporting for PuppiesandKittens.com. When G4 can’t get access, neither can you… shut up and wait like everyone else. Normally something like this would bother me, but it was really funny to see how important other people make themselves out to be. - Brian Gibson

10. The RocknRolla Presentation

“While some panels at Comic-Con are full of actors and actresses smiling blindly and claiming they “just totally had to do” a certain movie and that it’s “just so, so awesome” with as much enthusiasm as toilet bowl cleaner, Guy Ritchie and the rest of the gang of RocknRolla – Jeremy Piven, Gerard Butler, Idris Elba, and Ludacris – seemed genuinely electric about the whole thing.” – as reported by Cole Abaius

9. A Photo Opportunity with Katie Morgan

After a panel on Zack and Miri Make a Porno, I suddenly found myself on the wrong side of the security door, sharing the same patio with the likes of Judd Apatow, Seth Rogen, and Jason Mewes. A few other stars from different movies were also out, mulling around and sipping on what looked to be Coke, but no doubt probably had some rum in it. It was at this moment I realized I had an opportunity I would never have again. In that moment I had a chance to do what every red blooded fan longed to do. I ignored Apatow, Rogen, and the rest and cozied up to porn star Katie Morgan, slipped an arm around her and asked for a photo. Great success. - Robert Fure

8. Watching Alex Billington Get Ejected from Hall H

First off, who is this Alex Billington guy, anyway? I love Alex, and his site (His Bob Stencil coverage is priceless), but this is a case of press vs. fans. When there are almost 4,000 press badges given, versus the 100,000+ fans… you don’t want to go up against 25:1 odds. This is also a lesson in self humilty. Maybe only if Alex would have shown more love to Twilight, he wouldn’t have had to miss the Wolverine trailer. Alex, if you are reading… when the world cried out for more seats, you should have whispered… yes. (Editor’s Note: In Alex’s defense, he didn’t actually get ejected. You can see him talk about it over on Slashfilm…) - Brian Gibson

7. Interviewing the Cast and Producers of Friday the 13th

As a huge horror fan, I can’t really describe how awesome it was to talk to these guys. They were really fantastically nice and friendly, as well, and the producers knew my alma matar was well known for doing blow. For people who are out to make a Hard-R rated blood splatterfest, they’re really the nicest guys you know. Derek Mears is a complete gentlemen and didn’t even press charges when he found out I’m the guy trying to jump his security fence. - Robert Fure

6. Meeting Comic Legend Dave Gibbons

Despite my geek tendencies, I was only really excited about the Watchmen events. There were a lot of awesome things that took me by surprise, but meeting Dave Gibbons was still the best thing that happened during the week. Shaking the same hand that created one of the most influential novels of my life is definitely an experience I won’t forget. To think – just over 25 years ago, that same hand was drawing Rorschach – pretty incredible. And to top it all off, he was a really nice, bright guy. - Cole Abaius

5. The Awe Inspiring Size of the Con

he incredible feeling of being in awe. As an adult I don’t often find myself being impressed, surprised, or ‘wowed’ like I did when I was a kid. But Comic-Con is actually the closest thing I know to a fountain of youth, bringing all those feelings back on an almost daily basis. From the pleasant surprise of how incredible a certain movie looks (Terminator Salvation, Ninja Assassin)… to the nerdy joy of playing footsie with Simon Pegg beneath the interview table… to the awesome accomplishment of suggesting a potential DVD feature to the Pineapple Express gang and seeing them seriously consider it… to being alternately impressed and aroused by the creativity of some fans’ costumes… to the utterly surreal feeling of petting and playing with Ron ‘Hellboy’ Perlman’s dog (while someone else threatens to fuck it.) You can’t find these experiences anywhere else. - Rob Hunter

4. Meeting Fellow Geeks (and hot ladies) on the Show Floor

On the Comic-Con show floor it didn’t matter who you were, who you worked for, what you looked like, what you were dressed up as, what you could buy, everyone just came together to share the entire experience. It was like being surrounded by the largest group of geeks, but no one cared because they all knew they were in the same boat. Everyone got along, even the free hug gangs didn’t seem worn down on the last day. I think the Banana said it best, “We are all rejects.” Oh, and all the hot ladies of Comic-Con. - Cody Miller, Photographer

3. The Rejects, the Wrath of Con and other Camaraderie

For me, the guy who came away from the Con with no real swag to speak of and nothing but a bill to pay, I still found it all to be a thoroughly enjoyable experience. What makes it such a wonderful time, and the reason we keep coming back each year, is the people behind-the-scenes; all of those friends who run other websites that we got to hang with at the Wrath of Con party. And of course, having such a large chunk of the FSR team in one place, working together and having plenty of laughs was worth more than any collectible off the show floor. Needless to say, we all deserved those victory cigars on the last night. - Neil Miller

2. Watching the Watchmen

“Throughout these conversations it became clear that I wasn’t sitting down to talk to actors who had been hired for a job, but true “Watchmen” fans – whether they had even read the novel before signing on or not – who invested a huge amount of themselves into creating beautifully rounded, intensely human characters. After seeing the extended footage earlier, and hearing the way these actors approached this film – like a passion project that happened to be backed by millions of dollars – this fan is even more sold on how fantastic Watchmen is going to be.” - as reported by Cole Abaius

1. The Terminator Salvation Presentation

“… after the Hall H presentation forTerminator Salvation, the movie is looking incredible. Spirits weren’t high after McG was announced as director, with fans feeling the series was doomed to extinction in a cheese-fest of nuclear holocaust proportions. I was one of those fans, but now I’ve seen the light, or the McG in this case. The new footage looks slick, epic, and breathtaking, and the crowd absolutely loved it.” - as reported by Rob Hunter

For more of our coverage, check out our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

Last year at Comic-Con we needed photos to prove that we were part of the in crowd. We displayed these photos in a feature that we called We Know People. This was our way of showing all of you who we met — you know, to back up all the stories we would tell later and to make you think that we were cool.

Now, you would think that all of that insecurity would go away after another year’s worth of working in the business they call show-business. It didn’t. So of course we are back this year with another round of We Know People. And this year, we went all out…

Brian caught up with Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg

… and accosted producer/director Judd Apatow (Nice Shirt, Judd)

… and Judd’s lovely wife, actress Leslie Mann

… and one of Judd’s favorite stars, Seth Rogen

Robert Fure and Brian with Katie Morgan (Not familiar with her work…)

Fure also got just as excited about John Cho and Kal Penn

Meanwhile, I partied with Ron Perlman (Note the idiots in the background — Rob Hunter to the left and Cole Abaius to the right.)

… and I had a few drinks with the ladies of Bitch Slap

Meanwhile, our photog Cody went in search of a date…

But was held up by a visit from Master Chief…

… and he had to battle some Spartan Warriors …

… but he went ultimately back to looking for the ladies

… including, but not limited to Wonder Woman

… and the last time we saw him, he was leaving with this one

And finally, Kevin Carr found his own date for the weekend…

For more of our coverage, visit our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

When Neil asked me to wrap up my Con experience, I immediately thought about love. By now hopefully you’ve seen my brand of love – face punches. But there are times, notably around very beautiful women, when I stop punching faces with my fist and start punching hearts with my… Well with my heart. They’re heart punches together. And they equal sign love. Just look at that photo of Paris Hilton as we catch eyes across the room at the Lions Gate Panel. I could feel it. So could she.

Now, somehow I ended up with the moniker of the “Ladies Man” at the Con, despite the fact that our photographer Cody set a record for most photos featuring a partially exposed breast.

While I didn’t fully understand the title at the time, I figure once I touched a legitimate porn star, the title was rightfully mine. So, spying Katie Morgan, I immediately decided she needed some help standing upright as she appeared structurally unstable but amazingly hot. Mission accomplished.

But being a ladies man bears a great deal of responsibility. A lot of these women have boyfriends or husbands. Who am I to wreck these happy homes? No, not in good conscience could I try to bed these women, so I stayed my distance.

When Elizabeth Banks was asked if there was anyone in the room she’d really like to make a porno with, our eyes met. She giggled. The mood in the room got real sexy real fast.

Just the thought of us leaving together nearly ruined the interview. It was hard to keep it together on both sides of the table. Luckily, my willpower remained strong and I decided not to woo her – her career is really taking off. The last thing I wanted to do was take her away from that.

The same went for Julie Benz. This girl is having a tremendous year. At Comic Con she was on the panels for Dexter, Punisher: War Zone, and Saw V. To make her fall in love with me now would be crueler than anything Jigsaw could ever do. But that didn’t stop us from locking eyes. Oh no, Julie. We will always have San Diego.

I did my best to keep some distance between myself and these lovely ladies. My scent has been known to drive women and some large predatory mammals insane. There’s no telling what they may do. But sometimes, you just have to get close. Amanda Rightetti and I share a moment while discussing the best way to cleave a man in two:

Strong, sexy women and I get along great. There’s that raw attraction that comes with power. Ever since I face punched a gorilla for making lewd gestures in a zoo, women could sense in me that I was Alpha. Rhona Mitra felt it and I felt I could do no wrong.

I thought Kevin had turned the camera off. I started talking about leather, whips, and chains. I figured we’d known each other for 45 seconds, whats the worst that could happen?

Alpha Male or not, there are some things a girl just won’t do on the first date.

Here we are as Paris stood by waiting for me to take her by the hand. I knew I shouldn’t, but the allure was there.

At the Repo! panel, I had seen what she could do. There was a sexy music video that had the audience stirring in their seats.

I could feel her undressing me with her eyes. I could feel myself undressing with my hands.

I stopped and decided to take it easy.

As the press conference ended, we locked eyes again. She was hitting poses for the guys begging for her attention. Me? I couldn’t lose it. She was waiting.

My eyes said everything she needed to know. I wasn’t going with her. I spoke “We’ll always have the tape.” She responded that we never made a tape together.

I told her – “I meant I’ll always have your tape.”

I’ll always remember this Comic Con for all the love. It was everywhere. Next year I’ll probably mask my scent to blend in better. Body Odor seemed to be a popular smell, though I’m not sure that I could pull it off.

What stuck with me also was the contempt of the men. Oh Naruto, you young fool. How hard you try.

One man, however, did not feel contempt for me. There is only one emotion that Seth Rogen knows when I am in the room – love. The subtle twinge of jealousy on his face as Elizabeth and I laughed off reports we’d be heading off to the Marriott to make our own tape. Seth, forgive me. I’ll always be there for you.

So looking back on my time in San Diego, my heart is full of the joys I have known. I long to return to that magical world, perhaps next time to fully embrace the kindred souls I had to push away. Pardon me if I’ve become sappy, I shall return to breast jokes momentarily. It is only now, recollecting, I can see why I was selected as the Ladies Man. I was a magnet. It was a gift and a curse. I can not turn it off. I had always thought my role on the team was for Punching Faces, but maybe I should have been handing out hugs all along. Or at least Free Ass Grabs to hotties.

So long, Comic Con and thank you for the memories. Oh and one last picture of Amanda Righetti, because this is my article and I will do what I damn well please.

As you know by now, the FSR video attack squad was all over the place at Comic-Con last weekend, interviewing Con attendees and celebrities alike. Whilst there, they got a chance to chat with Kal Penn and John Cho of Harold and Kumar fame, as well as the cast of Underworld: Rise of the Lycans and the cast and producers of the upcoming Friday the 13th remake. And on top of that all, our video squad cornered some of the principal talent behind the upcoming Focus Features release Hamlet 2, including writer/director Andrew Fleming (Nancy Drew), writer Pam Brady (Team America: World Police) and star Steve Coogan (Night at the Museum). Their mission: figure out what all this “Sexy Jesus” tomfoolery is all about.

Have a look at their report below.

Hamlet 2 hits theaters on February 13, 2009.

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

The San Diego Comic-Con is many things. A haven for geeks, a place for gawking at nearly naked women, playing video games, buying memorabilia, and a great place to market your goods. Generally with the help of a nearly naked woman. I had the opportunity to sit down with Michael Trachiotis, a writer who was taking around an interesting proposal bridging both the comic and the movie world.

His project, Dante’s Inferno, is one example of how concurrent releasing is really making a strong push in the advertising world. We’ve all seen McDonald’s market toys to coincide with a movie and comic adaptations come out later, but what’s interesting about Inferno is the way the two media are being used to supplement each other. A screenplay has already been written for the film and it has already inspired a concurrent release of a comic version. What I have in my hand and you can download from the official site (link below) is the first chapter of a graphic novel that introduces us to the story and can be used as a marketing tool to prime the market for the rights to the film. What’s cool about this, says Trachiotis, is that you can begin marketing for the film long before your standard advertising would kick in. Many properties, I think, are being written with the hopes of one day becoming a feature film – this one has set that as a prime reason for existing. This also allows the creator to own the comic rights and sell the screenplay, maintaining a large degree of control over the future of the property.

This was the second person I had spoke with who talked about the internet being part of the future of marketing, which I think we all know about, but the many varied ways you can utilize the internet have yet to be fully uncovered. For example, one could simply take a number from Google Analytics, or any hit counting software, and show the number of unique visitors to a site. Take an online comic, show them 100,000 visitors a month and a built in international audience (the internet apparently exists outside of America!) and you’ve got yourself a sit-down meeting. When you’re in that sit-down and they ask you what you’re bringing to the table, you can dramatically slide the graphic novel across his desk.

The story itself follows the disastrous San Francisco earthquake of 1906 which ravaged the city and sparked a sweeping firestorm that virtually destroyed the city and turned it into hell on earth. Into this real world, the comic dives with a mixture of fictional characters (our hero, Dante Zuchelli) and real ones (reporter Jack London) as they chronicle and experience the events from different perspectives. The story makes great pains to remain as realistic as possible, from names to actual fire houses and real accounts. Trachiotis says he spent over six years of doing exhaustive research, followed by a long writing process for the screenplay. After that was completed, he embarked on the 2 year journey of bringing parts of the story to life on the page. In a move that more movie/comics should embrace, there are differences between the two. This is not a straight retelling of the screenplay, so the movie and the book would each contain various surprises regardless of whether or not you had already experienced one tale or the other.

Tormented and guilt ridden fireman Dante Zuchelli gives us the eyes for the story as we follow him as he puts his life on the line over and over again by entering the fire in an attempt to cleanse his soul. The story also delves into the world of corruption and follows various other story lines, all of which you can get a taste of by downloading the free “eco-friendly” e-book at the official site. The second part of the story will soon follow and be on sale for the planned price of $1.50.

I’ve read through the book and thought it was pretty cool. There are some great splash pages like the one I’ve posted above (a scene from a premonition/nightmare) which make me want to see this come to life on the big screen. Trachiotis, the creator and writer, is currently shopping the book around to various studios. Provided the picture receives funding, it may end up competing with Brad Bird’s 1906 a la Armageddon vs Deep Impact. Do yourself a favor and go download the free e-book because free is good and fire is sexually addictive. I mean cool looking. We’ll no doubt keep you updated on the film prospects of this flick.

Visit the ‘Dante’s Inferno’ Official Site

What is your favorite example of “inventive marketing?” If you’ve read the comic, what are your thoughts?

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

Yes, we know that Comic-Con happened last weekend. And yes, we know that we have allowed our coverage to spill over into the entire following week — but what would we be if we weren’t a little behind. Would that be the Film School Rejects way? I think not. Besides, I must say that we’ve covered a lot of what happened at the Con. And there is still more to come.

This particular update follows our own Robert Fure as he got a chance to talk to the cast and producers of the upcoming horror franchise reboot Friday the 13th. He spent some time talking to producers Andrew Form and Brad Fuller, as well as hottie Amanda Righetti and Jason Voorhees himself, Derek Mears. Have a look at what they had to say below.

Friday the 13th hits theaters on February 13, 2009.

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

And speaking of Watchmen goodness, here are the high resolution versions of the character posters released at Comic-Con in San Diego just last weekend. Enjoy the big versions by utilizing the clicking feature of your mouse on the images below.

Which Watchmen character are you most looking forward to watching?

While scouring the Comic-Con show floor, I found some things that fit pretty easily into the Officially Cool Category. One of which were this pair of Team Zissou Sneakers. You might remember these famed sneakers from the Wes Anderson film, The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. If so, I’m thinking that these are for you. At the $50 that I found them for, I think they are a deal. I love the film, and I’d sport these in a heartbeat. After buying these…you are just one red beenie away from being that much closer to Bill Murray.

You may have already seen earlier this week that we got a chance to sit down with the MST3K guys and the two stars of Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay, but did you know that we weren’t done there? Of course you didn’t. As you experience in his first field report, our Robert Fure is very sneaky. This time, he snuck onto the press line for Underworld: Rise of the Lycans and scored a few moments with stars Rhona Mitra and Bill Nighy, director Patrick Tatopoulous and writer/star Kevin Grevioux. See what they all had to say below:

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans hits theaters on January 23, 2009.

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

On Friday of Comic-Con, I was lucky enough to sneak back into Hall H just in time to catch the panel for The Wolf Man, presented by Universal Studios. There, make-up effects legend Rick Baker took the stage along with stars Benicio Del Toro and Emily Blunt to show off footage from the upcoming film. I will admit that I was pleasantly surprised at what I saw. And now, thanks to the guys over at Trailer Addict, you too can be surprised — at least, I hope so. Check out the Comic-Con footage below:

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

FSR Editor Cole Abaius reports in from the show floor at Comic-Con International 2008 in San Diego. He went out in search of celebrity interviews and scoops… He came back with this:

This video is also available at Daily Motion and on YouTube. Please feel free to share it with everyone you know.

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

The most successful horror franchise of all time is slicing its way into theaters again this year on October 24th, because if its not Saw, then its not Halloween. Though technically Halloween is the 31st. This year’s Con panel included the writers, Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, director David Hackl, and members of the cast, notably the man himself Tobin Bell, new member Julie Benz, and repeat customers Scott Patterson and Costas Mandylor.

They promised that in this installment of the popular franchise we would find more inventive traps and delver deeper into Jigsaw’s psyche while exploring the “aggressive puzzle within itself.”  The Saw franchise, according to those present, still continues to move along simply because there is more story to be told (and presumably money to be made).  In keeping the stories tightly connected, the cast and crew behind the franchise has remained fairly consistent – assistant directors, editors, directors of photography and other crew members have come back for each installment, helping to keep that Saw style.  On the new guy side of things, the writers of the fun flick Feast have written the latest installment, as Patrick Melton puts it, to “kick your ass back in the seat and turn you white.”  Nice.

Another consistent element to the Saw franchise is premiering some footage at Comic-Con.  This year, they revealed the Teaser trailer, which you can see below.  Actor Scott Patterson is the guy with his head in the box and described the filming of the scene as making him feel legitimately terrified to the point of hyperventilating.  He went on to say he had never been that scared before and described the whole thing as scary and “fucked up.”  Newcomer to the series Julie Benz also described the experience as terrifying and confessed to having nightmares on the set.  Everyone seemed to agree that Saw V is going to knock the collective audiences’ socks off.  I’m excited to see what surprises they’re packing.

Another clip revealed showed a so-so trap where a man was chained down to a metal tab while a bladed pendulum slowly descended upon him.  To escape the trap he would have to destroy his hands, the instruments which he had used to take the life of another.  While the tattooed man may have evaded justice in sentencing due to a technicality, there is no getting away from Jigsaw, who’s cause is described as “righteous.”  Survive his test, and the gift is life.  These scenes seemed to keep everything close to the chest as what we saw was literally teasing – no real payoff shots.  The clip shown did have some crushed hands, popping sounds and blood, but not to the levels we know and love.

Saw V hits theaters later this year because if it’s not Saw, then it’s not Halloween.

Does the Saw franchise still excite you?

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

During the press conference for Zack and Miri Make A Porno, a very enthusiastic cast made it clear that this is a film to run out and see on opening weekend. The talent piled in and told their views on Zack and Miri, past and future projects and Kevin Smith.

We sat with Seth Rogen, Elizabeth Banks, Traci Lords, Jason Mewes, Katie Morgan and Ricky Mabe. Everyone seemed pretty enthusastic about being there, Katie Morgan joked about this being her first mainstream press event and Traci Lords was videotaping us interviewing the cast. If she thinks she can turn the tables like that, well she can think again. I digress. Questions were fielded cleanly by the talent and replies were quick to the punch, possibly giving an indication of what to expect on screen from the newest Kevin Smith film.

Seriousness was at a minimum, as questions like “what is your favorite porn genre” were fielded by Rogen and company. Rogen laughed and said “what a weird question,” then followed up after the laughter with “…Gonzo POV.” The cast was open about their thoughts, and didn’t hesitate at making jokes about their beloved director Kevin Smith. Rogen joked about the film’s script and Smith’s obvious grasp on the porn genre by saying that he thought Smith might have written the script with one hand. Another bit of candor came when Jason Mewes, more famous for his role of Jay opposite Silent Bob, was asked if it was different being directed by Smith and not playing Jay, “No, it wasn’t different at all.”

It was really refreshing to talk with Rogen, because I like many people are becoming pretty burnt out on seeing or hearing him in so many films in such a short period of time. So to find out that Rogen is actually a naturally funny guy and quick witted, gave me a reason to want to see him in more projects. Rogen himself addressed his repeated appearance in recent films by saying “I’ve tried to not set up anything more…I try and do good stuff.” I was more curious about how polarizing his roles have become, starring in raunchy R-rated comedies like Zack and Miri, Superbad, Knocked Up and The 40 Year Old Virgin but then taking voice roles in family films like The Spiderwick Chronicles, Horton Hears a Who and Kung Fu Panda. When asked about doing the voice work in family films he said “I actually do it in the nude…it’s not much different. Think about that the next time you watch The Spiderwick Chronicles!” I’d rather not, and now Rogen has officially ruined that film for me.

I love when you can talk to a cast or director and you can really feel their enthusiasm. It is infectious, their excitement makes you want to see the film even more. Personally I could have never pictured someone like Elizabeth Banks in a Kevin Smith film, she just seemed too sensible. What i found however, is that a director like Smith can embrace his cast and show them why they were chosen to be a part of the film. With a cast as fun as this, I am even more looking forward to Zach and Miri Make a Porno due out in October.

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

Allow me to begin by explaining the photo above. That lucky, somewhat handsome devil in the middle is myself, and I am as you can see surrounded by gorgeous women. And these aren’t any gorgeous women, they are Erin Cummings, America Olivio and Julia Voth, the stars of Bitch Slap. If you haven’t heard of it yet, then I am glad to introduce you to it. I had a chance to hear all about it at the Wrath of Con party in San Diego from these three beautiful ladies, as well as director Rick Jacobson.

Basically, Bitch Slap is an homage to the sexploitation films of the 50s, 60s and 70s, mixing hot girls, fast cars, big guns and plenty of eye candy with outrageous action. It follows the story of three bad girls (a down-and-out stripper, a drug-running killer and a corporate powebroker) as they “arrive at a remote desert hideaway to extort massive booty from a ruthless underworld kingpin.” As you can imagine, things generally spin out of control from there.

Releasing sometime in December, this completely independent production promises to deliver an experience that would kick Quentin Tarantino’s version of Grindhouse cinema square in the balls. As well, the film uses two different methods of structure to tell its story. One is the forward moving main plot of the film, which is set in the present. The other is along the lines of what Christopher Nolan did with Memento, a series of flashback scenes that take place in reverse; so by the end of the film the audience has a full understanding of what drove these ladies off the deep end and why they are behaving in such naughty ways.

Part of me is very interested in seeing how they pull of the two interweaving storylines, both going in different directions; and part of me is not interested in the story at all — bring on the guns, the tight outfits and the gratuitous mixture of sex and violence. That is exactly what I will need around December, right in the middle of heavy Oscar-bait season. Count me among the excited for Bitch Slap.

If you are not completely excited yet, have a look at the film’s trailer below:

Also, our friends over at Cinematical released this little gallery of posters for the film. There is one for each main character, including one for a character named Hot Pocket, who looks like all kinds of fun. The film also stars Lucy Lawless, Zoe Bell and is narrated by Karen Austin. 

As well, you can see a great interview with these fine ladies over at The Movie Blog. That damn John Campea got to do a little in-bed interview with the ladies. And finally, I would highly suggest you check out the film’s official website, which contains a lot more information about the film and a very interesting menu bar. Of course, we will keep you updated as things progress with the production of Bitch Slap.

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

With Comic-Con 2008 here and gone, it is easy to look back and see that everyone and their illegitimate brother came down from Tinseltown to promote their upcoming projects. And one man that always seems to have a great presence in San Diego on the final weekend in July is long-time comic junkie and pop-culture hero Kevin Smith. Last year his panel was one of the highlights of the Con, even though he didn’t have any movies coming out.

This year he does have a film in the works, the much ballyhooed Zack And Miri Make a Porno. The film marks Smith’s continued commitment to giving his fans what they so deeply desire: raunch. So in order to give the fans a first look, Smith turned up at the Con with a large percentage of his cast to chat about the film, take questions from fans and even hold a little press conference with press. And in that press conference, the cast of Zack and Miri took on the topic of their favorite Kevin Smith films.

When asked about their favorites, the cast responded as follows: Katie Morgan loved Dogma, Seth Rogen was particular to Clerks, Elizabeth Banks was taken aback by Chasing Amy and Traci Lords said Chasing Amy or Zack and Miri, to which Jason Mewes joked “because she was in it.”

When talking about Kevin Smith’s work on Zack and Miri, star Elizabeth Banks commented that he “writes women well” and is “very respectful” to the female characters. And even though he is putting them in some interesting situations in Porno, it is clear that he “loves the ladies.”

What is your favorite Kevin Smith movie?

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

During the San Diego Comic-Con, FSR’s resident angry dude Robert Fure took to the floor of the Exhibit Hall to brave the crowd and experience the con at ground zero. Searching for the die-hard fans, he had a chance to talk to independent comic book writers, interview superheroes, check out some costumes and get his ass rocked by the Sexy Jesus gang.

The video can also be viewed over on Daily Motion and YouTube.

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

“You should make a weed action movie,” Judd Apatow said to Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, and thus was birthed Pineapple Express. The description is as apt as any, even if the words seem slightly counter-intuitive when combined (much like “legitimate online journalist.”) Apatow and company succeed gloriously on both counts with Pineapple Express, providing plenty of weed and action, both laced with highly potent comedy… until the delicate mash-up falters in the third act with a heavy and uneven tilt towards excessive violence.

Dale Denton (Seth Rogen) is a bored, pot-loving process server who looks forward to the end of the day (as well as the beginning and the middle) when he can sit back, relax, and smoke away the tedium. Saul Silver (James Franco) is his constantly baked dealer desperate for a meaningful friendship. When Dale witnesses a murder, his panicked disposal of the titular ganja puts the two of them into the middle of a drug war. Their comedic misadventure finds them getting high, running from both the law and the bad guys, getting high, bonding between the bullets, and getting high. The action culminates in a barn shootout that would make Quentin Tarantino cream his chinos (which is fitting as Apatow credits the idea’s genesis to a late night viewing of True Romance… he remembers wishing Floyd, the stoner played by Brad Pitt, was the character being chased instead of Christian Slater.)

Pineapple Express is the funniest film I’ve seen this year (he said, having yet to see Tropic Thunder or Twilight), and the credit goes to pretty much every one involved. The script by Rogen and Goldberg is chock full of stellar dialogue and one-liners. David Gordon Green’s first genre picture is a far cry from his character dramas and indie roots, but he proves quite adept at comedy both broad and subtle. Franco surprises as a deft funny man equally capable of inducing laughter with an expression or a throw away line, “Fuck the police!” being a prime example. Danny McBride as Saul’s fellow dealer, Red, is getting a lot of well-deserved praise. His voice somehow manages to lilt and drawl simultaneously, and some of the best dialogue is his (much of it reportedly improvised on-set… the anal beads comment in the bathroom is perfect.) A fight scene at Red’s house midway through the film between Dale, Saul, and Red is an instant classic. In the spirit of They Live, the brawl seems to go on forever and manages to be both brutal and hysterical.

The film’s problems are few, and most are more of an annoyance than anything else. Rogen is Rogen, and while he’s a funny guy on screen and in person, part of his acting style is to yell a lot in a guttural and grating voice that promises to launch sputum at you any second. The mucous-laden threat never reaches fruition, but it annoys all the same. A sub-plot involving Dale’s high school-aged girlfriend never goes anywhere, and while pairing Rogen with a hot blond was part of the plot in Knocked Up, here it seems gratuitous and wholly unbelievable. And then there’s the film’s final half hour. Language aside, this is where the movie earns its R-rating with a constant stream of bloody carnage and comedic brutality. There are still some laughs to be found in the big finale, but it’s mostly an onslaught of frenzied and ridiculous action. I love cinematic violence, but the entire third act seems excessively out of step with everything that preceded it.

A scene at the end, reportedly improvised by the actors, is the saving grace of the shootout. The survivors sit in a diner recapping the events of the film with incredulous awe. They voice thoughts shared by the audience, and in doing so make the preceding absurdity acceptable. Rogen has said the scene is actually longer than what made it into the final cut, so here’s hoping the DVD features the entire conversation running alongside the end credits or as an extended/deleted scene. Pineapple Express is a laugh out loud funny movie, and on the Apatow-meter I’d place it closer to Superbad than Knocked Up. (That’s a good thing.) It’s going to make tons of cash, so why not add yours to the Apatow coffers?

Pineapple Express opens in theaters on August 6, 2008.

The Upside: Funny as fuck for most of its running time; Franco and McBride are comedic revelations; if the DVD includes a “how-to” feature on rolling a cross-joint I’m bragging to everyone I know that I suggested it during an interview; Bill Hader cameo in the beginning is priceless.

The Downside: Rogen’s constant yelling in his acid-reflux voice; gratuitous hot chick Heard does not have a gratuitous nude scene; action goes overboard in the third act at the expense of the comedy.

On Saturday evening of the San Diego Comic Con International at 10pm, there was a special screening of this steam-punk game inspired flick with stars Thomas Jane, Devon Aoki, and Ron Perlman in attendance, alongside director Simon Hunter and producer Edward Pressman. Now, 10pm on a Saturday at the Con, pretty much everyone is starting to feel worn down and tired, but that didn’t stop myself and hundreds of others from filing into the room to catch the first glimpse at this new edit.

It’s important to note that this isn’t a full review – the film was not finished. According to Jane, they’re going to shave some time off of it and go through and tighten up the special effects shots. The movie doesn’t feel long by any stretch, though I think it could be tightened up a bit in a few scenes in the first 30 minutes. The effects in the movie, I’ll agree, do need some work as well. The CGI in a few areas could be cleaned up and refined. This doesn’t seem to be a big deal to me though for a few reasons – number one, the effects weren’t totally horrible to begin with; I’ve seen effects in far worse shape go to print (Ultraviolet, I’m talking to you) and secondly, there isn’t a lot of CGI. Computers helped put the scenes together in some places it seemed and there are a few things handled in CGI (some blood, explosions, etc) but a lot of the effects were done practically. There are a lot of matte paintings, which I absolutely love, and miniatures, which are awesome.

The art of the matte painting seems to be falling by the wayside, but if you watch the original Star Wars movies and John Carpenter’s The Thing you’ll see that a modern audience can be both wowed and fooled by matte paintings. Miniatures have a look all their own and when they’re done right, they’re fun and cool, even when you’re aware that they’re miniatures.

What’s really unique about The Mutant Chronicles is the look that comes together out of the effects choices and the production design. This is probably the first live action film in awhile to really take the idea of steam-punk and just go all out with it. We get steam-powered spaceships and the weapons let out bursts of steam when they fire, or at least a lot of smoke, and the world, despite being 2707, fights as if it were 1917. Gigantic artillery canons are used and the rifles, though looking wildly outdated, pack massive punches with fully automatic fire and explosive rounds. The different factions go at each other from trenches and still have to go ‘over the top’ and take the fight to the enemy.

The world in Chronicles has lost much of its natural resources and the land has been divided up amongst four constantly warring factions that are headed by corporations: the Bauhaus, the Mishima, the Capitol and the Imperial. The two that we get to see fight each other are the Bauhaus, who resemble World War II Germans in look and style and the Capitol, who are modeled off of the Allied forces of World War I. Thomas Jane stars as Mitch Hunter, a disillusioned soldier of the Capitol who is recruited by Brother Samuel (Ron Perlman) of The Brotherhood, to lead a small team against the Mutants. The real badness all starts when, in the middle of a pitched battle between Capitol and Bauhaus, a massive artillery shell unearths and unlocks a tomb that long ago captured “The Machine,” the device responsible for the creation of the mutants. The Brotherhood exists solely to safeguard The Mutant Chronicles, a telling of how the Machine came to Earth and what was needed to defeat it. Samuel joins Hunter on his quest to destroy the machine and stop the mutant army, which grows exponentially by converting the dead and wounded to their side. Fairly quickly, much of the Earth is overrun by the Mutant horde and those that can afford it flee to the safety of a Martian Colony, leaving the poor behind to suffer.

So that is a lot of back story to digest, but what you’re probably wanting to know is – does the movie have promise? The answer is yes, it does. It’s not for everyone and might end up being a “love it or hate it” flick because of the style they go for, but there is definitely an audience out there for this. The crowd I saw it with was pretty vocal – when heads got slashed and faces got stabbed there were cheers and screams. A lot of ass gets kicked, and a lot of people die. The opening battle sequence is awesome. It starts out as an artillery barrage, then steam-powered armored units advance, then its man against man and soon, man against mutant. There are lots of fireballs and bodies plopping down everywhere. Its a really cool steampunk version of World War I. The look of the movie really needs to be seen to be understood. It channels a little bit of the Sin City look, with the sets being created by artists but may have more in common with something like Metropolis in terms of the scale of the mattes being used and how characters interact with their surroundings. Make no mistake, you can tell that these things aren’t physically there but, because the movie embraces that style, it’s not distracting (to me, at least) and I thought it was cool and helped establish the film.

In summation, this is a pretty unique flick that packs in a lot of ass whooping. It’s a guilty pleasure type film, mixing old school effects, a dystopic world, mutants, guns, and sort of a B-Movie Horror styled plot, but done up a notch. The flick also takes some very unexpected chances at various parts of the storyline, which caught me off guard, but they were welcomed moves. The film is currently looking for distribution and some companies are interested, at least two big ones according to producer Edward Pressman. If the film tightens up in places and goes in and fixes certain CGI effects (some explosions and blood splatters need some work), it could really end up being a fun and unique monster bashing party. Also, Jane’s Hunter gives a line that is worthy of a T-Shirt: I’m not paid to believe, I’m paid to fuck shit up.

I’ll be paying attention to find you all a set release date and get a look at the finished film as soon as I can. When the time comes and you want a bloody and unique style of filming, The Mutant Chronicles might just be your cup of tea. The fans I saw it with had a good time (several of them were even dressed in steam punk attire) and queued up to ask questions of the stars afterward, who stuck around to indulge the fans. Stay tuned for more updates, but in the mean time take a look at the trailer to get a glimpse of the films visual style and the awesome gruffness that is Tom Jane and Ron Perlman co-starring in a film.

Visit the film’s Official Site here

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.

Yes, I was in love at that moment, in love with a project I could never have dreamed of.  A 30 foot long green wang tearing into Mothra, Powell promised that himself.  Posehn had started work on 12 issues already.  Finally, finally, finally.  But no, it was not to be.  Soon Garant and Lennon had torn of matching jumpsuits to reveal their priestly garb.  Then excised the demon that had taken control of Powell and steam rose towards the heaven.  Only then did they realize – what about the smoke detectors?  The doors were opened and soon they fled the stage, leaving behind an only slightly buzzed Powell to declare that’s all they had for us.

As you may have guessed, that was all just a funny skit, though I’m still down for reading about Godzilla plowing Ghidora.  Powell invited a few fans of the book up on stage and they talked and answered questions.  The movie news that was confirmed was just this:  The film will be true to the comics, it will be CGI, Blur Studios will co-produce, and the story will mix some origin with some all new material.

Following the panel, this poster was displayed at the Dark Horse booth.  Aren’t you sad you missed Comic-Con now?  In regards to The Goon, it’s a really good comic full of ass kickings and inappropriate humor.  I definitely recommend it.  Where else can you read a story entitled Satan’s Sodomy Baby?  On the internet I would guess, but this one has pictures.  The Goon kicks ass because he is a big brute who beats the piss out zombies, monster, spiders, robots, apes, hell anything you put in front of him, he’ll destroy it and make it dead.  Please excuse the camera flash, Cole Abaius was yelling at me as we were tracking down some hot vampire twins we’re pretty sure were of legal age.

Are you excited for a Goon movie?

Stay tuned all this week as we bring you coverage from Comic-Con International. Not only will we be roaming the floor in search of love, but we will have the latest news Live from Hall H, great interviews with some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and random convention shenanigans, courtesy of our Comic-Con Attack Squad! To keep tabs on all of the happenings, just head over to our Comic-Con 2008 Homepage.