First popularized by Hitchcock, Merriam-Webster defines a ‘MacGuffin’ as “an object, event, or character in a film or story that serves to set and keep the plot in motion despite usually lacking intrinsic importance.” Basically it’s the thing that makes the movie go. For example, R2-D2 is considered by George Lucas to be the MacGuffin of the Star Wars films. But what of human MacGuffins? Anyone can be a hostage or damsel in distress, so lets look at some of the less than conventional living beings that have propelled a plot.

There are two reasons a movie might re-use a prop: because they have to or because they want to. Sometimes you love a movie so much you want to use or recreate a piece of it to show that love, or – if your budget is in the dumps – you just need something from the prop warehouse to re-paint and use as your own. Whatever the case, iconic is iconic, so if you are watching close enough you just might catch these one-of-a-kind props in films you wouldn’t expect them to be in.

So you’ve been shot/stabbed/eaten/burned/dismembered/amputated/face melted by an ancient artifact, what are you going to do next? If you answered, “go into shock while screaming like an asshole” then you’re probably on track. In the movies, of course, that’s a different story – people like to do cool stuff while dying in movies, act all badass for our amusement. Let’s look at 20 such fallen heroes. Spoilers should go without saying. But we said it. Right there. So no one can complain.

It seems like Robert Rodriguez has been promising us a sequel to Sin City since the day after the original came out in 2005. His adaptation of Frank Miller’s gritty, stylish world was unique among comic book movies at the time in how closely it stuck to being a panel-to-panel adaptation of the original graphic novels (even going as far as to bring Miller on as a co-director), and though it contained a bit too much shoddy Robert Rodriguez cheesiness, it also had enough unabashed cool that it blew the hair of comic book fans back all over the world. News of the sequel becoming official has been long-awaited. And today is the day we’ve all been waiting for. According to a press release put out by Dimension Films, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For is finally on its way with both Rodriguez and Miller back in the director’s chair(s) as the main creative forces. Alexander Rodnyansky and his AR Films are the ones fronting the dough, so the film will be a co-production between his company and Rodriguez’s own Quick Draw Productions, with Dimension handling the distribution. And, of course, Harvey and Bob Weinstein have managed to get their names attached as executive producers.

There is nothing like the hope that springs eternal for cool movie projects. The first Sin City was noir perfection with different kinds of eye candy (technical and biological) and a tapestry of a script that flew right off the pages of Frank Miller’s saturated graphic novels. Talk of Sin City 2 has gone on for far too long. It’s gone on so long that new information about it came with an Arrested-Development-Movie-sized-grain-of-salt, but the storm clouds seem to be lifting to reveal new light shining down on the sequel. Robert Rodriguez made a big noise about it at Comic-Con, claimed that funding had been found, and now The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that The Departed screenwriter William Monahan has signed on to do some work on Miller’s latest draft. That’s quite the pedigree for a polish. On the one hand, it’ll be great to have a pair of eyes like Monahan’s on the work, but it’s unclear as to whether this is uncredited doctoring or whether he’ll have the go-ahead to make significant changes if needed. Even if it’s a smaller role in shaping the story, there are still plenty of reasons to be excited for a sequel. Chief among them is Rodriguez claiming that the characters that survived the first film will make it to the sequel, and on that front, his track record of getting the talent he wants speaks for itself. Hopefully all of this comes together with relative speed, and we get a sequel worthy

Comic-Con regular Robert Rodriguez had an intimate Hall H presentation Thursday evening to talk about his newest venture, Quick Draw Productions. If you’re familiar with Hall H, you’re probably questioning my use of the word “intimate” as it’s a big venue, generally stuffed to the bathrooms with people and big events. Not so, this night, as Robert Rodriguez appeared on stage himself to start slowly unveiling three partnerships, but nothing was that ground shattering. If the ground had shattered, few people would have fallen in, as the voluminous Hall was only about a quarter full for the casual, talky presentation. Before launching into the what and the when of his new production company, Rodriguez ran down the list of things he’s always asked about – namely Machete, Sin City, and Spy Kids 4. To find out what he said about this, and his future in animation, keep readin’ on.

This week, on a very special episode of Reject Radio, movie slave monkey for UGO.com Matt Patches shows up to give us hell. After some witty banter, he and Cole discuss the finer points of racial tension, bring Jan de Bont to a gun fight, and take a look back on our entirely appropriate relationship with Robert Rodriguez. Plus, we find time to review Machete, The American, and Going the Distance.

Jack Nicholson has reportedly been offered the role of a womanizing playboy in LASt Vegas, the geriatric version of The Hangover. I wonder if he can pull it off?

Last week I wrote about the history of the auteur theory and its strengths and weaknesses when applied to actual film practice. Regardless of the theory’s apparent problems, it’s clear that the idea of the auteur still holds great weight in framing the way even the most casual of filmgoer goes about experiencing cinema.

It has been a long year for Blu-ray releases, and one that has seen some great gems and some major disappointments. But in the end, we have ten honorable mentions and ten best releases, all of which should be in your collection.

The Clueless actress was rushed to the hospital this morning after having a heart attack.

So it looks like the rights to Sin City 2 are on the market after all. Unless they’re not.

Don’t call it a come back on the account of the Blu-ray Report charging in with awesome recommendations, call it a comeback because Mickey Rourke is making his comeback in HD this week.

He’s been a huge name in Hollywood…for the past month…can the actor make it stick or will his meteoric rise turn out to be a flash in the pan?

In a Nostradamus-like move, Frank Miller is using the press tour for The Spirit to talk a little bit about that Sin City follow-up, telling the gents at IGN UK that it is ready to roll.

If there is one complaint that I have been hearing over and over from folks about Frank Miller’s upcoming film The Spirit, it is that it feels like a knock-off of Sin City. And it appears that with the release of a new poster, the folks at Lionsgate are taking note…

It doesn’t take detailed instructions to understand why we’ve got the hots for Carla Gugino — in fact, we only really need the opportunity to post a few images…

It is safe to say that many of you are fans of Sin City, or at least warm-blooded enough to be interested in the scintillating ladies that graced it’s posters. As well, we have all grown up with such Disney classics as The Little Mermaid, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast and Snow White. So when I tell you that someone, namely artist Curt Rapala, decided to combine the two into a set of six posters, you should all be just a little interested. I know that I was. Below you will find his entire gallery, six posters taken from the exact posters for Sin City, but this time with popular Disney femmes in place of the real life actors. My personal favorite is the one pictured above as well, in which Ariel from The Little Mermaid stands in for Jessica Alba as Nancy. As Rapala explains on his website, this is one of those projects that really has a unique appeal: I loved the idea from the moment I thought it up, so I had to pursue it. There’s just something so incredibly awesome about the idea of juxtaposing something brutal, harsh, sexy & violent, like Sin City, with something wholesome, fun, and child-friendly, like Disney. Have a look for yourself at some of the brilliant posters below, and be sure to visit Rapala’s website NotAFishingLure.com for the high resolution versions and other cool art.

Would Brandon Routh’s Superman stand a chance against the green giant? What about Christian Bale’s Batman? Here who we think might actually stand a chance against the Incredible Hulk from the new film.

Gearing up for this year’s New York Comic-Con, it seems that alot of merchandise is getting pumped out for all the upcoming comic to film adaptations.