Hey, Darth Vader Needs Lovin' Too

From geekology, I'd definitely do the one on the left, but I don't know about the other. I mean, what the hell are those things on his chest?

Godfather films restored to glory

By Mike Snider, USA TODAY

The Godfather is remembered as a dark picture. But over the years it has become less dark than intended.
The opening scene of the best-picture Oscar winner is the ultimate example. Emerging from shadow is the face of Bonasera (Salvatore Corsitto), the father who asks Don Corleone (Marlon Brando) for a favor on the day of the Don's daughter's wedding.

But when director Francis Ford Coppola saw the 1972 film on a screen for its 25th anniversary, he thought, "Gee, the picture doesn't look like I remember it looking. This very, very beautiful photography of (cinematographer) Gordon Willis over the years had faded."

The movie is back to its inky finest — thanks to an assist from Steven Spielberg — on The Godfather: The Coppola Restoration, available today on a new five-disc DVD collection with all three Godfather films and two discs of bonus features, as well as a four-disc Blu-ray set ($73 and $120, respectively; each film on individual DVDs, $20).

The Godfather was a victim of its own success. It earned $135 million in the USA, which in modern terms would make the film the No. 21 box-office earner of all time, according to boxofficemojo.com.

To meet demand, Paramount quickly made large numbers of copies to ship to theaters. As a result, "the negative was ultimately destroyed through the practice of printing it so much," Coppola says from Buenos Aires while editing the film Tetro.

A decade ago, Paramount stored all its Godfather film elements in a cold vault to help preserve them until a full digital makeover was possible. "No matter how seriously the studio wished to solve the problems at that time, it would not be possible until digital technology provided the tools," says Robert Harris of The Film Preserve, which eventually handled the restoration of both The Godfather and The Godfather: Part II (1974).

Fast-forward to 2005: Coppola, looking to renew the preservation effort, wrote to Spielberg when DreamWorks was acquired by Paramount. Could Spielberg, who had been involved in restoring Lawrence of Arabia, spur on the project? It was an offer Spielberg could not refuse. He took the request to studio chairman Brad Grey, who set into motion the two-year process, overseen by Paramount post-production executive Marty Cohen and done at Warner Bros. Motion Picture Imaging in Burbank, Calif.

No single usable Godfather negative remained that was suitable as a source. In the end, Harris and the preservation team gathered a bunch of backup film elements and an Italian-subtitled print used as a color reference.

Over months, the restoration technicians carefully scanned the material and then began cleaning up the footage in its digital form, 4K files (meaning the video is made up of 4,000 lines of horizontal resolution, more than four times the quality of HDTV).

In addition to digitally removing scratches and repairing damage — more than 1,000 man-hours of dirt removal was performed on The Godfather— the technicians were able to fix errors that were more than three decades old. The restaurant scene in which Michael (Al Pacino) shoots Sollozzo (Al Lettieri) and Capt. McCluskey (Sterling Hayden) had been filmed over two nights. But one night's footage had been incorrectly processed, resulting in less detail and a washed-out look — an error that has been corrected digitally.

"Without those innovations, we would not have been able to move forward with the same results," Cohen says. "This is about rebuilding to some degree and putting new paint on the house."

Coppola and Willis consulted on every step of the restoration, which is detailed in a documentary on the new collections. Thanks to the restoration, Willis has regained his title "Prince of Darkness," Coppola says.

"So much of his art was to have the blackness of the black be so vividly black that everything else stood out from it," he says. "The restoration achieved that again."

No more 'Bond, James Bond'

From usatoday, Don't you love to hear the words "Bond, James Bond" in a James Bond movie? Well, you won't be hearing them in the new Quantum of Solace film, out in November. For the first time in his 22 screen outings, Britain's super cool secret agent will not utter the words of introduction that have been a tradition for 46 years. He also won't say another classic one-liner – "shaken not stirred" – when ordering his martini, according to director Marc Forster in The Independent.

"There was a 'Bond, James Bond' in the script," he said. "There are several places where we shot it as well, but it never worked as we hoped. I just felt we should cut it out," he says, and the producers as well as star Daniel Craig "agreed."

Graham Rye, who edits an online 007 Magazine says that Craig is much closer to author Ian Fleming's original vision for the character. "The Bond films had become tired and needed reinvigorating," he said. "Rather than going away from Fleming I think the producers have gone back to him." Rye added, "His announcing of himself had become a bit corny."
What do you say?

S. Hawking Unveils Scary $1.8 Million Clock

From geekology, Stephen Hawking recently unveiled this $1.83 million clock at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. The frightening timepiece took seven years to build and is a tribute to John Harrison, allegedly the world's greatest clockmaker.

The bizarre Corpus Clock visually explains that it relies on grasshopper escapement to function, and to let you know that time can never be regained once lost, that beast on top actually gobbles down time every 60th second. Oh, and every hour, on the hour, the sound of a "chain dropping into a wooden coffin" is played to really pound home the "time is a destroyer" concept.
Wow, creepy. Can you imagine this thing hanging on the wall in your house? I can -- I'm rich as hell!

See it inaction here

Experts 'solve' mystery of Stonehenge

LONDON, England (AP) -- Two British archeologists declared Monday that they have uncovered the core reason behind the construction of one of the world's best known and least understood landmarks.

The stone circle at Stonehenge has stood for thousands of years -- and bred endless debate over whether it was a temple for ancient sun-worshippers, a sacred burial site, or even a kind of massive prehistoric astronomical calculator.

Professors Geoffrey Wainwright and Timothy Darvill argued their own explanation for the mysterious monument: Stonehenge, they said, was a kind of primeval Lourdes, drawing prehistoric pilgrims from around Europe.

"We found several reasons to believe that the stones were built as part of a belief in a healing process," Wainwright told journalists assembled at London's Society of Antiquaries.

Wainwright and Darvill, the first to excavate the site in more than 40 years, said the key to their theory was Stonehenge's double circle of bluestones -- a rare rock known to geologists as spotted dolomite -- which lie at the center of the monument.
iReport.com: Have you ever been to Stonehenge? Share travel snapshots

Dragged or floated on rafts from Pembrokeshire in Wales to Salisbury Plain in southern England, he said the bluestones were prized for their healing properties -- as evidenced by the small mountain of flakes the scientists uncovered during their dig.

Pieces ended up buried in tombs across the area, a testament to people's fascination with the rocks, Wainwright said.

The proof was not only in the stones -- but also in the bones. Skeletons recovered from the area showed signs of serious disease or injury.

"People were in a state of distress, if I can put it as politely as that, when they came to the Stonehenge monument," Darvill said.

The evidence, they said, pointed to a kind of shrine where people from across the Europe would go to seek healing. But they cautioned that that did not rule out alternative theories for Stonehenge's uses.
iReport.com: Stonehenge among top travel destinations for journeying Eeyore doll

"It could have been a temple, even as it was a healing center," Darvill said. "Just as Lourdes, for example, is still a religious center."

Unbreakable 2?

Just two or three years ago, the news that M. Night Shyamalan was considering making a second Unbreakable would have sent me into paroxysms of uncontrollable glee. It still think it’s one of the most underrated movies of the past ten years, and by far the best work M. Night Shyamalan has ever done. Now though, I’ve endured The Village, suffered through The Happening, and it’s hard not to wonder if the guy who made Unbreakable even still exists.

Let’s hope he does, because Night tells MTV that Unbreakable 2 may be on his radar. Shyamalan says, “I genuinely just asked this question the other day — should I make Unbreakable 2?” As for why he hasn’t already done it, Night claims he got caught up in obsessing over some of the negative reviews the movie received from people who, well, went in expecting the wrong thing. Now that Night has made two truly awful films, I guess he’s gotten used to being hated.

Whatever the reason, he sounds like he’s ready to do it. Says Night,“I do love the [comic book movie] genre, I just wanna make sure that I’m able to express who I am, I don’t want to get so lost in the subject that I have to neuter everything that’s me in it, so maybe Unbreakable is the comic book thing I should do — I keep coming back to that.” I guess if none of your new ideas work, that’s what you do. Start cannibalizing the old ones which did.

You can’t do an Unbreakable 2 without Bruce Willis though, and who knows if Willis would still be open to doing it. Shyamalan will have to hope he didn’t see The Happening. Samuel L. Jackson however, says he’s up for it. He played the villain Mr. Glass in the first movie.

Let The Right One In looks great!

Rarely does a film transcend its genre in the way that Tomas Alfredson’s Let The Right One In does. Based on a novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist, this must see Swedish coming of age vampire film is about a twelve year old boy who befriends a girl in the apartment next to him. But little does he know, she’s actually a vampire. Don’t let that scare you away. The movie is not a traditional horror film, it’s a relationship story about an introverted girl who teaches a shy bullied kid how to stand up for himself. It’s sweet in every way you wouldn’t expect. Beautiful and haunting, Let The Right One In is a film you must see.

The film is currently making the film festival rounds, but I’m not sure the extent of its theatrical run. I’m guessing it will be released in a few art houses. I know that it will be playing in New York City on October 24th. Magnolia’s genre arm Magnet owns the distribution rights, so it will eventually be released on DVD. I’ll try to update the site when the information becomes available, so that everyone will have a chance to see this film. Stick it on your netflix list RIGHT NOW!

See trailer here

Horrorthon 101

This year’s Horrorthon is shaping up to be the most interesting yet. We have new participants and I can’t wait to read the reviews. Given that many don’t necessarily watch a lot of horror movies the question was raised about some movie suggestions. I consulted with JSP and we felt that anyone dipping their feet into the horror genre might start with the following list of films (in no particular order).

Halloween (1978)

The Ring (2002)

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

Dawn of the Dead (1979)

The Exorcist (1973)

The Omen (1976)

The Evil Dead (1981)

JU-ON (2003)

Dracula (1931)

Hellraiser (1987)

Suspiria (1977)

The Shining (1980)

The Wicker Man (1973)

Jaws (1975)

Rosemary's Baby (1968)

Silence of the Lambs (1991)

Friday the 13th (1980)

Nightmare on Elm St. (1984)


This list is by no means comprehensive, but it's a fairly good representation of the sub-genres found in horror (e.g., ghosts, witches, slasher, etc.)and a good place to sample some of the classic stuff out there.

Owen Wilson in a Dracula Buddy Comedy? Ha! Oh, You're Serious

From iwatchstuff, There's a new Owen Wilson movie coming out that should be the movie you joke Owen Wilson would make, but instead is the real movie Owen Wilson is making: a buddy comedy with him and a dracula.

Spyglass Entertainment is prepping a new horror-comedy after the good buzz surrounding their latest effort, GHOST TOWN, which hits theaters tomorrow. Entitled Blood Brothers, the film is set to star Owen Wilson in a buddy comedy involving a man and a vampire.

Jackie Chan, Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, and/or Eddie Murphy, expect calls.

Universal Says "No" To Spielberg & Jackson's TINTIN! Paramount Responds "We've Got This!"

From aicn, It's always news when someone says "No" to Steven Spielberg, but it's frankly a bit of a stunner when that "No" comes from Universal Pictures. Universal has always been Spielberg's safe haven; it's where he got his start in Hollywood (under the tutelage of Sid Sheinberg), and it's probably the studio that will distribute most of DreamWorks' product now that Spielberg's company has effectively split from Paramount. And, yet, there was Universal standing athwart TINTIN's mo-capped path to production yesterday bellowing, "Halt!"

And, less than twenty-four hours after Claudia Eller's story hit the Los Angeles Times' website, there was Viacom screaming (per Nikki Finke), "We're already on the hook for $30 million in pre-production costs; Oh, hell, we'll eat this!"

I'll admit to being firmly in the "stunned" camp when this news broke yesterday, if only because a two-way split on a (proposed) $130 million picture directed by Steven Spielberg (and produced by Peter Jackson!) doesn't sound at all like a gamble. Obviously, there's the fact that TINTIN is not a hugely recognizable character in the U.S., but I've got to think that the names "Spielberg" and "Jackson" would go a long way towards generating some kind of audience interest. Still, there's this to consider (from Eller's story):

Spielberg and Jackson, who would also produce both movies, would together grab about 30% of the studio's total gross revenue from box-office, DVD, television and other sales. Under that scenario, the pair would walk away with more than $100 million before Universal and DreamWorks could make a profit.

This means, according to Eller's sources, that TINTIN would have to gross $425 million worldwide to break even. That's a lot of coin for a movie that doesn't directly appeal to teens and twentysomethings. Then again, Pixar's RATATOUILLE pulled in close to that amount in foreign $$$ alone; if TINTIN is mostly an overseas phenomenon, I don't see why Spielberg's film can't approach that number (provided it's good). And while this isn't your typical Spielberg film, I somehow can't see the rigors of mo-cap production kicking his ass; the Beard's got a fairly above-average track record when it comes to blending storytelling and nascent technology.

I should note that Finke's story has yet to be confirmed by the Times or the trades, but she was the first to the Universal half of this story, so I'll trust her sources on this. Expect Spielberg's TINTIN to start shooting this October.

RIP Chewy, best cat ever

This post'll get buried in an avalanche of news and horror movie recommendations tomorrow morning, which is fine by me. I just wanted to notify the blog that our dear cat Chewy is no more. We had a nightmarish day Friday with vet and emergency animal hospital visits, and after thinking Chewy was going to be OK, found out his condition was worse than we thought. Given his age and other medical issues we decided against putting him through a major surgery (with no guarantee he would either survive or be better off afterwards) and told the animal hospital to euthanize him Friday night. We are very sad, of course. The only silver lining is the prospect of eventually being able to sleep through the night (Chewy didn't approve of human sleep patterns) and maybe there will be less inappropriate urinating around the apartment. Chewy was remarkable for his cuddly and affectionate nature and strong belief that not only was he human, he was the alpha human. He was talented at tennis (could bat a crumbled piece of paper right back to the server 4 times out of 5; the 5th time he'd catch and retain the paper ball) and at knowing who was right in a domestic argument (he would sit on the lap of the person he agreed with, and was permitted to provide the final word in arbitration of such domestic disputes). He ate people food including corn on the cob and other veggies, and, as can be seen above, was highly photogenic. Chewy, you will be missed!