Which summer blockbuster are you most looking forward to?

[The Ü™]

I enjoyed the first Hulk because the effects were awesome. It was overall an interesting experiment.

 

[Colors]

I didn't know X Files 2 was coming out this summer.. quick turnaround! (Aren't they still filming it?) I've been a casual fan, so I might check it out. Hopefully I won't be too lost.

I enjoyed Hellboy (1), even though I thought it got a little melodramatic at the end parts- but it was fun and rewatchable. Though I heard the "rookie"-guy from the first film won't be back?

The first Christian Bale Batman film sucked, so I have no doubt the sequel will be able to improve on it.

Voted for Get Smart because the trailer is really funny and I like Steve Carell.

 

[The Ü™]

Apparently, the X-Files sequel is being kept under wraps, rather hush-hush, but its release date is July 25.

The thing that turned me off about Batman Begins is that it was considerably less fantasy-oriented than the other films. I think what I would have liked better was to make a Batman 5 following Batman and Robin and having Robin and Batgirl killed right at the beginning to ease the franchise out of the hammy route it was going in. I really never liked all this "reboot" nonsense. It's something they didn't have to do with James Bond, either. However, Casino Royale ended up being very good, but still, it didn't have to be a reboot. James Bond is timeless and should not even exist on a timeline.

The visual effects supervisor for the movie Hancock, starring Will Smith, is John Dykstra. He is famous for his work on the original Star Wars and Star Trek: The Motion Picture, where he worked alongside Douglas Trumbull, another visual effects guru. However, it's funny, because after Star Wars and Star Trek, Dykstra went on to work on Caddyshack, where his task was to design the gopher for the film. Dykstra also worked on both of the Schumacher Batman films as well as Stuart Little and the first two Spider-Man movies (he sat Spider-Man 3 out). The point is that Dykstra is known for groundbreaking effects work, even though some of the projects he landed on were sub-par in terms of movie making quality. Still, I am rather hyped about Hancock, it might be more groundbreaking effects-wise than anticipated.

As for The Incredible Hulk, I am skeptical about the digital Hulk being as amazing as what was seen back in 2003. The CG Hulk in 2003 was handled by ILM, which was one of the most amazing achievements at the time. But this new one, with digital characters being created by Rhythm & Hues, I doubt will be nearly as amazing. Even though Rhythm & Hues has a great movie effects track record, they're not really as ahead of the game as ILM.

Still, ILM is working on Iron Man, which kinda looks like Transformers 2, along with Indiana Jones 4, Speed Racer, and The Happening, all coming out this summer. And they're also working on Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Miracle at St. Anna (Spike Lee's WWII joint), which are coming out this fall, and Star Trek XI, which was postponed to next year. And with the Star Trek films, it did seem that the ones ILM worked on were the good ones...or at least the films I really liked.

 

[The Ü™]

I dunno.. the special effects to make Sarah Jessica Parker not look 80 will have to be pretty amazing.

Ah, I believe that was applied in 2006 with X-Men: The Last Stand and even sooner. But here's the X-Men: The Last Stand article that talks about digital cosmetics, done by Lola Visual Effects -- they specialize in that.

 

[Colors]

You know a lot about special effects. I don't see that many super-effects driven movies.. in fact the only recent one I saw in which I really noticed the special effects was The Spiderwick Chronicles. (Possibly not that difficult because they weren't supposed to be too realistic, but I thought they were used well in the film. I guess I just like consistency, whereas I found the effects in The Golden Compass to not really gel with the live-action parts- like Lyra stepped from the real world into a video game Arctic landscape.) Is Hancock the movie in which Will Smith is a (blind?) superhero? The effects I've seen for that *are* really good, in the non-cheesy way.

I didn't like Batman because: a)the first part went through a long list of bad cliches- dead parents (check), cheesy traumatic experience (check), mysterious organization of white people training in an abandoned Buddhist temple in the mountains (check), b)the "romance" was tepid, c)and you're absolutely right- the movie tried too hard to be "real"- there's nothing really "real" or "gritty" about Batman's car being less shiny or the movie being filmed with fewer colors visible.

 

[The Ü™]

You know a lot about special effects. I don't see that many super-effects driven movies.. in fact the only recent one I saw in which I really noticed the special effects was The Spiderwick Chronicles. (Possibly not that difficult because they weren't supposed to be too realistic, but I thought they were used well in the film.

I really loved Spiderwick. I thought the effects were really well-done. ILM and Tippett Studio collaborated on that film.

I guess I just like consistency, whereas I found the effects in The Golden Compass to not really gel with the live-action parts- like Lyra stepped from the real world into a video game Arctic landscape.)

Yeah, I outright slammed the movie when it won the Oscar for Best Visual Effects. Rhythm & Hues, Framestore-CFC, Digital Domain, Cinesite, and many other effects shops worked on that movie. Rhythm & Hues designed the daemons, Framestore-CFC did the polar bears, Digital Domain did the Arctic bridge sequence. Pretty much the only things that impressed me in the movie were what Cinesite did, which was the cityscapes and the blimp.

Rhythm & Hues is working on The Incredible Hulk.

Is Hancock the movie in which Will Smith is a (blind?) superhero? The effects I've seen for that *are* really good, in the non-cheesy way.

Yes, though he's not blind, he's like a misanthropic superhero who "accidentally" saves lives and so forth -- it's a comedy.

I didn't like Batman because: a)the first part went through a long list of bad cliches- dead parents (check), cheesy traumatic experience (check), mysterious organization of white people training in an abandoned Buddhist temple in the mountains (check), b)the "romance" was tepid, c)and you're absolutely right- the movie tried too hard to be "real"- there's nothing really "real" or "gritty" about Batman's car being less shiny or the movie being filmed with fewer colors visible.

I'm with you there.

 

[MacGuffin]

Well, to be clear, I didn't actually VOTE for it- I voted for Indy. But I AM excited about it. I'm kind of interested in Iron Man, mostly to see how RDJr. does after his many ups and downs with addiction. I'm glad to see him on screen again.

Iron Man looks like fun.

He's been in some other things since getting sober, see Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Hilarious movie.

 

[The Ü™]

Well, after viewing the trailer for The Incredible Hulk, I must say that this one looks devastatingly unimaginative. And the CG Hulk was better in the 2003 version.

 

[The Ü™]

Well, here's the new Indiana Jones poster (that is not a teaser):

 

[INTJMom]

Well, here's the new Indiana Jones poster (that is not a teaser):

OOooohhhh!
Harrison Ford is going to be in it?!
That's definitely going on my list of movies to see - though I may wait for the DVD.

 

[The Ü™]

Harrison Ford is going to be in it?!

Harrison Ford was in the other films, too!

 

[INTJMom]

Harrison Ford was in the other films, too!

Yes. I knew that. I'm a big fan of Indiana Jones. I think I just assumed he was too old and wrinkly to do another one. I figured some young buck would take his place, and it's just not the same. I'm very glad to hear he's back for another one. It's been a long time, hasn't it, since the last one?

Is it gonna be a Spielberg again? That really what makes it great!

 

[The Ü™]

Is it gonna be a Spielberg again? That really what makes it great!

Yes. And George Lucas. And ILM. They will also be returning.

However, Pat Roach will not be returning in an anonymous cameo role or as the stunt coordinator...my guess is because it would be extremely messy and unsanitary.

(He played the big Nazi in Raiders -- the one who gets ground up by the airplane propeller -- and he had cameos in the other two, as well.)

 

[Falcarius]

I don't even know what half of these so called 'summer blockbusters' are. Maybe I should get back under that stone.

 

[The Ü™]

I don't even know what half are these so called 'summer blockbusters' are. Maybe I should get back under that stone.

IMDb is your friend.

 

[The Ü™]

Oh, and here's the trailer for The Incredible Hulk. Forgot the link in the other post, where I just merely stated my opinion after I saw it.

 

[EffEmDoubleyou]

Yes. And George Lucas. And ILM. They will also be returning.

However, Pat Roach will not be returning in an anonymous cameo role or as the stunt coordinator...my guess is because it would be extremely messy and unsanitary.

(He played the big Nazi in Raiders -- the one who gets ground up by the airplane propeller -- and he had cameos in the other two, as well.)

I wish they had written John Rhys-Davies' character into the new one. I thought he was a nice comic foil and I enjoyed him in the other films.

 

[The Ü™]

Oh right, and Denholm Elliot won't be returning as Marcus Brody, presumably for the same reason Pat Roach is not returning, however, I was looking at one of the screenshots of filming, and noticed a Brody's Barber Shop.

Yeah, I was disappointed that John Rhys-Davies wasn't returning, too. He just had to work with Uwe Boll on that Dungeon Siege movie. :rolli:

 

[swordpath]

Looking forward to The Dark Knight the most, by far but I'm pretty stoked about a new Indiana Jones. I'm in support of a new Hulk movie as well, especially because Ed Norton is playing Bruce Banner.

 

[The Ü™]

I'm in support of a new Hulk movie as well, especially because Ed Norton is playing Bruce Banner.

I liked ILM's CG Hulk in the 2003 movie better than the Rhythm & Hues CG Hulk in this movie.

Oh, and I hope that the actual movie Iron Man doesn't have any music by Black Sabbath.