San Diego Comic Con 2012

Posted in Celebrity, Diane and Josh, Film, Television by nlcorner

It’s my favourite annual event, and it’s the one that realistically I could never afford to go to, not unless my Master Plan succeeds…

San Diego Comic Con is so popular amongst bloggers, reporters, film buffs, fanboys, actors, actresses, directors, writers, producers etc etc because it is seemingly one of the only events where the line is crossed between fans and those we are fans of.

Twitter was alive last weekend with stars of (mostly US) television shows excited to get to Comic Con and meet the fans, because as the majority always say its the fans that keep their shows going, its the fans that buy the movie tickets and keep cinema alive and this is the reward.

Teasers, trailers, spoilers and the fun factor make Comic Con an amazing event. I mostly followed The Hollywood Reporter’s Comic Con coverage this year, as well as Michael Ausiello at TV|Line, plus #SDCC on Twitter proved a great point of reference for those bloggers and writers for websites there and in the action.

Fringe

The cast of Fringe take a bow (image via fringebloggers.com)

It was a bittersweet panel for Fringe in the massive Hall H, as it was the show’s final appearance. Due to start filming the final season soon the cast, Josh Jackson, Anna Torv, John Noble, Lance Reddick, Jasika Nicole and show runner Joel Wyman, had a pretty emotional time during their panel. The Season 5 trailer was shown before the panel sat down, released by Joel on Twitter afterwards, and it satisfied fans questions about whether this final season would be set in the same future as shown in episode 19 in Season 4 with Joel confirming shortly after.

The funniest moment of the panel happened aside from the Mighty Ducks reference, when answering the question what have you most learnt from your characters and Anna Torv replies: “What I’ve learnt is to come…” cue pause, cue absolute guffaws of laughter from Josh Jackson and the rest of the cast as Anna realises what she has said.

Most emotional moment is when the cast are asked by the moderator, TVGuide’s Damien Holbrook, about their favourite moving scenes that they are not in, Jasika Nicole starts off the waterworks as she describes her favourite with Anna Torv and Lance Reddick following suit with the tears.

It really will be sad to see this unique and original show go, and I’m thankful that Fox gave Fringe those 13 final episodes to close the story. The plight from the fans was too much to ignore and I think there would have been huge disappointment if it had not been renewed so late in the game. There is a lot to come in the final season, which obviously will be fantastic if the previous four seasons have been anything to go by.

Once Upon a Time

I think this show ended up being a surprise hit during it’s first season, well for me anyway. The shortened version of what it’s about is a bunch of the most well-known fairy tale (and more familiarly as Disney) characters live in a small town by the name of Storybrooke who have no clue who they really are due to a spell they are under cast by the Evil Queen/Mayor Regina. She cast the spell to rid Snow White, her step daughter, of her true love Prince Charming.

There is only one person who believes (or knows the truth) they are fairy tale characters and that is the adopted son of the mayor, Henry, who happens to be the biological son of Emma Swan the ‘saviour’, she is the only one who can break the curse and save the people of Storybrooke and restore them to their true selves by simply believing.

The show continually played between the two worlds, showing the audience how the stories in the fairy tale world impacted on the characters in the ‘real’ world.

As Season 1 came to a close it was very clear that (SPOILER) the curse was broken, and the each character now knew who they were. What do we now expect of Season 2 now that the people of Storybrooke have been ‘rescued’, what will they do once they know they have spent many years as normal people with their true lives abandoned?

The show producers at the Comic Con panel said that in the first season the two worlds were “kind of touching” and now we will see how that affects whether they will merge together. Henry’s father will be revealed, this could be a major factor or a nonentity but the fact it’s taken so long to be revealed it must be the former. Other teasers include the introduction of several new characters including the big tease of Hook in the footage that was released. Other characters include Mulan, already cast and will be played by Jamie Chung, Sleeping Beauty played by Sarah Bolger, as well as Jack of the Beanstalk fame.

This really is a show that could go on for the long run and the writers obviously have a lot of source material to work from!

The Vampire Diaries

It was time for Elena to change in the final episode of TVD last season, and by change I obviously mean into a vampire. Her character has been through enough scrapes and it was about time that she actually died. Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec made the right decision, if it had been delayed again I think the show would definitely have suffered, even though the delay was the fantastically brilliant Joseph Morgan playing a deranged original vampire by the name of Klaus.

Nina Dobrev, joined by cast members Ian Somerhalder, Paul Wesley, Zach Roerig, Steven R. McQueen, Michael Trevino and executive producers Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec, spoke about how it’s going to be a challenge making vampire Elena different from doppelganger vampire Katherine: “It’s always been fun to make Elena and Katherine different… How do you make Elena the vampire version of herself and different from Katherine? That’s [going to be a challenge for season four]. I think that’ll be defined from her experiences.”

We know Elena never wanted to be a vampire, it was never an option she would chose (the stand out difference from Twilight may I add) so now she has to deal with being made one against her will and the teaser trailer for Season 5 suggests that she will refuse to feed which means her transition will not be complete and she will truly die.

Dexter

Two minute sneak peek at Season 7 of Dexter, super exciting if you are a fan of the show:

Elysium

Elysium

Onto movies, Elysium is Neill Blomkamp’s follow up to District 9 starring Matt Damon. THR’s report said it was “arguably the most impressive thing screened in Hall H so far”. Rough footage was shown exclusively to the Comic Con audience, so I haven’t seen anything yet but the hype is already there especially when it involves people living in space.

Superman

Superman

A teaser clip has been released (thank god because I was annoyed my Cineworld screening of TDKR didn’t show it!) today of Zack Snyder’s Superman, and I must say it looks suitably dark and gritty. The main pull for me to this film is the Nolan name attached as a producer, his input is easily clear from the clip and that is a good thing if the ending to the Dark Knight Trilogy is anything to go by!

Pacific Rim

I wasn’t familiar with Pacific Rim, but by the sounds of it’s big $200m budget and Guillermo del Toro at the helm it promises to be more than just a Michael Bay robot versus alien movie. Well I hope so anyway. Robots and aliens have been done again and again but Guillermo del Toro says that all the aliens in Pacific Rim are completely original: “There will be sea monsters, flying monsters — we got monsters up the wazzu”.

Other tidbits:

Joe Mangienello pretty much confirmed there would be a Magic Mike sequel. Saying if the first one makes money there will be a sequel.
Even though I don’t watch the show (contemplating starting) Breaking Bad was a massive hit at Comic Con, with the two stars Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul turning up in their show hazmat suits.
DC had a Batmobile display outside the grounds of the San Diego convention centre showing every version of the vehicle right up until Nolan’s most recent Tumbler.
Robert Downey Jr made an unscheduled appearance at the Marvel Studios panel upon announcing Iron Man 3 with John Favreau not returning to direct. The titles for the next lot of Marvel movies were revealed; Thor 2: The Dark World, Captain America 2: The Winter Soldier, Guardians of the Galaxy, Iron Man 3 and still very much in production Ant-Man.
Godzilla is coming back in 2014.
At the Big Bang Theory panel an audience member won a TRIP TO SPACE. Yes you read that right.
I predict the CW’s new show Arrow will get cancelled. I’ll see the pilot but I doubt it will be any good. Cult however, will be great.
Stars of two of my favourite shows shared birthday celebrations over the Comic Con weekend; Steven R. McQueen and Colton Haynes of Teen Wolf. Teen Wolf has just had a Season 3 pick up with a mahoosive 24 episode count.

Colton Haynes and Steven R. McQueen

19Jul2012

The Definition of EPIC: Dark Knight Trilogy Trailer

Posted in Film by nlcorner

Could there be anything else at the minute that doesn’t give you shivers like this epic Dark Knight Trilogy Trailer not to mention the flying Batmobile!

I am at Inception excitement level for 8pm tomorrow evening…

17Jul2012

Kate Upton wants to enjoy life and eat

Posted in Celebrity, Front cover, Magazine, Models by nlcorner

Kate Upton has had plenty of column inches since her illustrious swimsuit cover for Sports Illustrated.

Kate Upton on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition

And nearly every article written has labelled her sexy and curvy.

It’s that word again – curvy – I use it myself I admit, but it’s the way the media uses it to describe a woman who isn’t a rake thin model but a healthy sized woman that doesn’t have bones jutting from her collar bone. The way they imply the word curvy seems to be a nicer way of saying fat.

Am I reading too deeply, or does anyone else agree?

Kate Upton has a banging body and amazing boobs I do not deny and even if some say she is just another American blonde, why does a pro-anorexia site feel the need to attack her claiming she is “thick, vulgar” and “almost pornographic”, as well as “piggy”, “lardy” and “well-marbled”?

Even Victoria’s Secret have had their say over Kate Upton claiming she wasn’t the right image for their famed Angels: “She’s like a footballer’s wife, with the too-blond hair and that kind of face that anyone with enough money can buy.”

Ouch. If I’m not mistaken Victoria’s Secret have plenty of blonde girls on their roll call and it would be a step in the right direction for the American brand to employ someone like Kate when they are so well-known for their stupid photo-shopping errors to make their girls as skinny as possible. We all remember what Candice Swanepoel looked like last year…

Candice Swanepoel (centre) flanked by Adrianna Lima (left) and Alessandra Ambrosio (right)

Kate, 19, hit back at her online bullies telling The Sunday Times: “I’m not going to starve just to be thin. I want to enjoy life and I can’t if I’m not eating and miserable.”

A fantastic response from the size 8 model, but what worries me is not so long ago another young woman who burst onto the scene in 2006 and enjoyed tons of success as a plus-size model has in the past couple of years shrank to a shadow of her former self.

Crystal Renn then and now

Crystal Renn, was scouted at the age of 14 in her hometown of Mississippi but was told she would need to lose weight to be considered as a serious model, and thus developed anorexia nervosa. It was not until several years later Crystal reemerged onto the model circuit marketed as a plus-size model (US size 12, UK size 14) and was hailed for her comeback.

Even after publishing a book ‘Hungry: A Young Model’s Story of Appetite, Ambition and the Ultimate Embrace of Curves’ and seemingly embracing her figure, she appeared a few years later in 2010 as a US size 8, claiming hiking and yoga for her weight loss. Someone who was so applauded for walking the runway had shrunk to become a ‘regular’ model.

As much as Kate Upton claims she wants to eat, will she be strong enough to carry on with her success and not bow down to fashions ideals of what models should look like?

17Jul2012

Real vs. Not Real apparently

Posted in Celebrity, Fashion, Front cover, Magazine, Models, Musings, Quote by nlcorner

**I wrote this last year and never got round to publishing it.

I’m back here again, at that point where I cannot decide between “real” women and models.

They are two completely different categories and it frustrates me no end that “real” women are deemed this when they are curvy and plus size. Why are they “real” and those below size 10 not?

They are real, they exist, women have natural figures that are just simply that slim. I look at models on the front cover of magazines and I enjoy seeing their gorgeous figures, lithe, toned, sexy and fit. It’s exactly what sells millions of copies.

But then Franca Sozzani editrix of Vogue Italia chose to feature three plus-size models on a cover last year as part of an ongoing campaign against pro-anorexia websites. WHAT? I’m sorry but I’m not an expert on anorexia or any related eating disorder and will never claim to be, but why are plus-size models the opposite of anorexia sufferers as it seems Sozzani is saying.

She says: “A growing number of readers are now asking to see – even in fashion magazines – a real world, made of real people who are not obsessed with staying thin, but are able instead to naturally accept and respect their bodies as they are.

“Fashion has always been blamed as one of the culprits of anorexia, and our commitment is the proof that fashion is ready to get on the frontline and struggle against the disorder.”

So instead those who are suffering from a serious illness should aspire to pile on pounds and become curvy some would say overweight because that is what is “real”? But wouldn’t gaining a smaller amount of weight to be a healthier version of yourself be much better, so say aspire to be like Brooklyn Decker or Kim Kardashian, curvy but slim women? Is this my warped version of a perfect figure or is that what I have been programmed to see as normal, as “real” to me?