Bladerunner courtesy Warner Bros.
I was dazzled by Blade Runner from the first time I saw it on the day it opened in 1982 The cute n cuddly ET killed it at the box office and reviews were mixed everybody agreed that it was visually dazzling but most critics were underwhelmed by the story but over the years Blade Runners reputation has grown from cult classic to widely recognized masterpiece its often called the best science-fiction film ever made and its unquestionably one of the most influential Theres a new version of the film Blade Runner The Final Cut coming to DVD on Dec 18 following a limited theatrical re-release it was shown at the New York Film Festival last weekend But Blade Runner is great in any versionThe first movie based on a novel by sci-fi visionary Philip K Dick Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep Blade Runner is set in a decaying future Los Angeles where humanoid replicants do humanitys dirtiest jobs from fighting wars to staffing bro
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Renaissance courtesy Miramax
DVD Tuesday The animated Renaissance unfolds in gorgeous black-and-white and if it owes a debt to Blade Runner well borrow from the bestSend your movie questions to FlickChickSee Maitland McDonagh and Ken Fox review this weeks new flicks on the Movie Talk vodcastHear Maitland on the weekly podcast TV Guide TalkI can never get too much of Blade Runner 1982 but until the next absolutely positively definitive DVD edition comes out which would be Dec 18 with a theatrical preview starting Oct 5 Im recommending Renaissance a black-and-white animated science-fiction feature that owes Blade Runner a deep debt without being a rip-off The year is 2054 and Paris is in thrall to a company called Avalon whose animated billboards promise health beauty and longevity rather than old-fashioned liberty equality and fraternity Brilliant Avalon researcher Ilona Tasuiev has been kidnapped and Barthelemy Karas who rose from the streets to become a top cop is as
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Blade Runner courtesy Warner Home Video
Ridley Scott is at work on Blade Runner: The Final Cut, a "definitive" version of his 25-year-old sci-fier remastered from original elements and containing never-seen and extended scenes. Per the Reporter, the film hits select theaters Oct. 5, then DVDs Dec. 18.... Tim Blake Nelson has joined The Incredible Hulk in the role of scientist Samuel Sterns aka The Leader aka he of the oversized brain.... Per Variety, DreamWorks has grabbed film rights to the comic-book series The Damned and Courtney Crumrin.... Guy Ritchie plans to direct a film version of his Gatekeeper Virgin Comics series.... Brad Pitt may reunite with Gwyneth Paltrow for the Watergate-themed Dirty Tricks, says the New York Post.
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La Jetee courtesy Criterion Collection
Could La Jete -- the original Twelve Monkeys -- just be the most perfect science fiction film ever madeSend your movie questions to FlickChickSee Maitland McDonagh and Ken Fox review this weeks new flicks in Movie TalkThis is the shortest movie Ill ever feature in DVD Tuesday and its the ultimate vindication of the saying that good things come in small packages Chris Markers 28-minute 1963 science-fiction jewel La Jete which Terry Gilliam reworked into the film many fans consider his masterpiece Twelve Monkeys 1995 La Jete is also the most unconventional film Ive featured to date Its composed almost entirely of black-and-white still images and has no sync sound just a narrator Its Markers only fiction film And its mesmerizing thought-provoking and utterly haunting I like Twelve Monkeys but I love La Jete It begins in Orly airport where a boy on a family day-trip to watch planes take off instead sees a commotion on the ground Allo
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The Best of Chappelle's Show: Uncensored, offering the Comedy Central series' 25 most memorable moments, arrives on DVD June 5.... MTV's Jackass on Sept. 24 will incarnate itself as a next-gen video game, allowing players to interact with likenesses of Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera, Steve-O, et al.... Blade Runner, Bonnie and Clyde, Cool Hand Luke, Magnum Force and Sudden Impact have been selected for hi-def restoration, with Blade Runner set for a DVD re-release later this year, in time for its 25th anniversary.
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William Sanderson, Deadwood
On HBO's Deadwood, which premieres its third season this Sunday at 9 pm/ET, amid all the badasses and noblemen, weasely E.B. Farnum does his best to stay out of Swearengen's crosshairs while keeping watch over (and occasionally swindling folks at) the Grand Central hotel. William Sanderson, who plays Farnum, spoke with TVGuide.com about adding the daft Deadwooder to his résumé; and teased what's ahead in the new season.
TVGuide.com: I had to laugh at the pitch your publicist e-mailed over, talking about your career playing "simpleminded backwoods men and snide ne'er-do-wells."
William Sanderson: Well, there is a reason for that, a
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Question: The premise of The Island reminds me of a very bad and cheesy '70s movie that was used in an episode of MST3K. Am I right, and is it a remake of this horrible film?
Answer: The Island (2005) is not a remake of Parts: The Clonus Horror (1979), but it "borrows" shamelessly from this low-budget sci-fi film's premise: that a colony of healthy, pampered people living in a tightly supervised community because the rest of the world has supposedly undergone some calamity are actually clones bred to serve as spare parts for rich people. And yes, Clonus was lambasted on TV's Mystery Science Theater 3000. While I wouldn't go so far as to say Clonus is a good movie, I would argue that it deserves credit for dealing with issues that are even timelier now than they were 25 years ago, even if it owes its o
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