The upcoming "Snakes on a Plane" movie from New Line (spoof poster which sums it up quite well, left), which has been gaining more and more attention online, will not be open to preview by the media. "Understanding that they [the fans] would be the driving force behind the film, we decided early on they should be the first to see it," the mini-major said. "They will have the opportunity on Thursday evening, Aug. 17, at 10 p.m. shows across the country. We are not planning any advance media or promotional screenings prior to that."

Of course, it has nothing to do with the fact that if the film is crap any pre-release reviews would spread around just as fast as the same internet that has thus far made Snakes a noteworthy film, potentially killing it. It's a tactic used in the video game world as well - games will mysteriously go missing in the post until after a magazine deadline and the reviews hit weeks after the game has been sold to thousands of unsuspecting gamers.

Of course this is harder for publishers to pull off in the internet age - online publications can simply post a review as soon as the reviewer is finished writing it, but that just tends to make those darned postal delays all the longer. Dirty tricks used by an industry in which PR and hype is king.

I had one of the single greatest experiences of my 10-year career as a
journalist last week at Comic-Con 2006 in San Diego. While wandering around the
autograph pavillion at the convention center, I stumbled upon Al White and
Norman Gibbs, also known as "the Jive Dudes" from the classic comedy "Airplane!"

For those that aren't familiar, White and Gibbs played small but memorable parts
in "Airplane." Gibbs played the role of "First Jive Dude," and White was "Second
Jive Dude" -- the running joke is that Gibbs and White speak incoherent but
humorous "jive" that no one can understand. They really only appeared in two
scenes in the film, but as far as many people are concerned, those two scenes
are the best parts of the comedic masterpiece.

In their first scene, Gibbs and White talk to one another while
hilarious subtitles translate their jive talk. In their href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbYyqRt5Zn8&search=Airplane%21">second
scene, White is suffering from stomach pains as a result of bad airline food.
The duo ask a stewardess for help, but she has no idea what they're saying, so
an elderly woman, played by Barbara Billingsley (the mother on TV's "Leave it to
Beaver"), that speaks jive lends a hand and the three end up in a contentious
argument.
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src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7876/3296/320/JiveDudes.jpg" border="0"
/>

I spoke with Gibbs and White during the show, who were amazed at how popular
they are after more than 25 years. Both men were extremely friendly and gracious
about the attention they were receiving at their first Comic-Con event. Of all
the celebrity sightings at the big event, my meeting with Gibbs and White was
the best.

However, I did miss one of my two movie heroes, the immortal Bruce Campbell (see
the very first post of this blog), because I had to fly back home to the wife.
If you think that was an easy decision -- my wife or Bruce Campbell -- then you
don't know me at all...

It's called Comic-Con, but the geek convention is pretty much dominated by big blockbuster films these days. Sure, there are rows upon rows of comic books and graphic novels on the exhibit floor and icons like Stan Lee and Frank Miller roaming the halls. But in terms of news and star power, it's a movie event.

And when it comes to the type of movie that usually dominates the show, well, does it even need to be said? Sci-fi epics, horror flicks, comic book adaptations, action films, and glorified B-movies like "Snakes on a Plane."

For example, a great deal of attention for directed at "Saw III," the third installment in the horror-gore series. Actor Tobin Bell (pictured above, who plays the notorious "Jigsaw" serial killer in the films, showed up at the event with fellow star Shawnee Smith (above, left), who plays his protege "Amanda," to promote the new film, hobnob with fans and media members, and to screen an exclusive sneak peak of the upcoming film (which comes out around Halloween, of course). The scene was kind of gross -- it showed an ex-con who finds himself in one of Jigsaw's traps; he's got chains pierced through various body parts (no, not there)lke his hands, feet, chest and lips, and he must rip them out of his body before time expires and the trap kills him. Yuck.

Anyway, the preview went over quite well; the ballroom was packed with fans that erupted with applause, the sick freaks. Some Comic-Con attendees sported "Saw" T-shirts while one fan even wore a "Jigsaw" costume. I not sure what was more disturbing -- the preview footage or the fact that someone wore a costume of a grisly serial killer.

Speaking of serial killers, remember this guy (pictured right)? It's Edwin Neal, who played "the hitchhiker" in the 1974 low-budget horror classic "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." Neal was signing autographs at Comic-Con, and depite his claim to fame, he's a pretty cool dude. For example, he was awarded the Bronze Star for his service in the Vietnam War; he has one of the largest movie poster collections in the world; and in addition to horror flick roles, Neal has also done voice-acting for some animated films and video games like Deus Ex: Invisible War. Now that's pretty cool.

Russell will play the a killer called "Stuntman Mike" in Tarantino's segment,
titled "Death Proof," which is said to be Tarantino's take on slasher films.
"Death Proof" will also star Rosario Dawson (see more on href="http://www.twitchguru.com/2006/07/25/the_jive_dudes_at_comic/page4.html">T
witchGuru) and Rose McGowan. Meanwhile, Rodriguez's segment, titled "Planet
Terror," will also star McGowan as well as Naveen Andrews (TV's "Lost"), Michael
Biehn ("Aliens," "Terminator"), and Josh Brolin ("Goonies," "Flirting With
Disaster").

Personally, I'm thrilled that Russell is taking on an edgy role in this unusual
project. Ever since I saw him as Snake Plissken in "Escape From New York," he's
been one of my favorite actors of all time. After a rough stretch a few years
ago -- "Solider," "3,000 Miles to Graceland," and "Vanilla Sky," which were all
awful -- he rocked the house as Herb Brooks in "Miracle" and as a corrupt cop in
"Dark Blue." I'm still waiting for Kurt to reteam with John Carpenter and make
another Snake Plissken movie. In the meantime, I'm starting a "Plissken for
President" campaign.

I swear, I'm not making this up. I've seen the headlines. I'm hoping and praying
this is all an elaborate hoax but it looks like it's real. According to a report
from Adult Video News (AVN.com)Van Halen has committed to writing and recording
two new songs for the upcoming porno "Sacred Sin." According to AVN.com, Van
Halen is friends with the director, Michael Ninn, who refers to himself as
"adult film's greatest director." It seems Van Halen agrees, since he told
AVN.com that Ninn is "like a [Steven] Spielberg to me."

I see. How far the mighty have fallen. And to think that people complained about
Jimmy Page doing the "Deathwish III" soundtrack. Ah, the good ole days...

A while back, an old co-worker of mine told me that an early death is a belssing
for rock stars because they often falter as they get older and become parodies
of themselves. If a rock star blows his or her brains out or overdoses on pills
at a young age, he or she suddenly because an icon, a martyr and a hero all at
once. Just look at Jim Morrisson and Jimi Hendrix. Dead rock stars never give
people a chance to see you sell out and make crappy albums while getting fat and
bloated (well, except Elvis). All the fans have are idealized memories of them
at their absolute peaks. If Axel Rose choked on his vomit, died in car crash or
had a bizarre gardening accident 15 years ago, he'd be worshiped like Kurt
Cobain. And if Cobain hadn't decided to eat a shotgun back in '94, he'd be
writing pop songs for the "Pirates of the Caribbean" soundtrack and while
working on "Nevermind: The Musical!"

So, I went to see Miami Vice this evening. They say that the success or failure of this movie will be the success or failure of that eejit face of Ireland in Hollywood. Well I do hope they're not talking commercial success, as the movie knocked the record breaking Pirates of the Caribbean film off the top box office spot. In terms of critical success however, this movie is crap. Really crap.

It's like it doesn't know what it wants to do with itself. Apart from the fact that a lot of the stuff in the trailer didn't make it into the movie proper (ever a bad sign of indecision on the cutting room floor), the movie is heavy on crap dialogue, predictable story, the usual clich馘 Columbian drug crap... and sex. Lots and lots of wannabe sex scenes that don't drive the story forward and which look like they were shoved in after a test audience grew so weary of the film that the producers decided that a bit of titillation every fifteen minutes is required to keep the theatres from emptying before the movie reaches its rather dull and generic gun battle for an ending.

I say said nudie scenes are half-assed as basically that's about all you get - half a bare female rear, the flash of a nipple, a bit of groping and bobs your uncle. It doesn't move the story forward, it's just thrown in for the sake of it.

I'd suggest that instead of going to see this movie you should go out and rent a good action thriller about the drugs trade, preferably with camp Columbian accents featuring apace, and an even better porno flick. Watch them one after another, or stop and start each at the appropriate moments to blend them in. You now have the entire story of Miami Vice done better and with more interesting sex scenes.

If you must go to see this then find a showing that's not packed and go with somebody who has a dark enough sense of humour to be capable of playing wisecrack tennis with you all the way through. This is one of those films that can only really be enjoyed if you have the opportunity to rip it apart with some good old fashioned wit and dry humour.

Check out the YouTube clips below.

href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syzNXZPv65k">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=syzNXZPv65k

href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Frp0e3j_b8g">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=Frp0e3j_b8g

The orgy that will be Star Trek's 40^th Anniversary in September is cooking up quite nicely, with Mad Doc pitching in their part by roping in some of Trek's biggest names for the development of Star Trek: Legacy.

The latest news is that all five captions, Kirk, Picard, Sisko, Janeway and Archer, will feature as voice actors, playing themselves, in the upcoming RTS which bears a striking resemblance to Bethesda's previous Trek outing, Armada. Well, we'll hope it has a little more polish than that.

Also on the Legacy team is legendary Trek writer D.C. Fontana, the woman who started out as Gene Roddenberry's secretary before becoming one of The Original Series' most important scripting figures; acting as script editor and submitting many of Trek's most memorable episodes along the way.

Well, we'll see what happens. We took a look at Legacy back during E3, for your viewing pleasure.

Bethesda really knows how to please the fans. With the 40th anniversary of Star
Trek just weeks away (the first episode of the original series, "The Man Trap,"
aired on Sept. 8, 1966), the game developer wipped out the big guns for the
ailing franchise. And they don't get much bigger than this, as Legacy will mark
the first time the stars of all five Star Trek series have appeared in the same
game. The game, which puts players in the role of a Starfleet admiral who leads
a task force of ships, is being developed for the Xbox 360 and the PC and is
scheduled for take off this fall.

But perhaps even better than having all five captains is the news that acclaimed
Star Trek writer Dorothy "D.C." Fontana is co-writing Legacy. Fontana penned a
number of notable episodes for both the original series, The Next Generation and
Deep Space Nine. In addition, Fonanta wrote the script for the cancelled PC game
href="http://www.twitchguru.com/2006/07/20/the_best_games_never_published/page2.
html">Star Trek: The Secret of Vulcan Fury, which was a heavily hyped and
anticipated title that focused on the wars between the Vulcans and Romulans.
There are few details, however, about Legacy's story. But with all five captains
at the helm for the upcoming game, that's about all that's missing.

But Star Trek is going to need more than just a PC/video game to help bring back
the franchise. Poor scripts and unispired writing, coupled with a puzzling lack
of direction from former producers Brannon Braga and Rick Berman, has left Star
Trek in worse shape than the Enterprise at the end of of The Wrath of Khan
(speaking of, is that the U.S.S. Reliant in the photo above?). It's been pretty
much all downhill since Deep Space Nine concluded in 1999 (and what a conclusion
that was); Voyager was pretty much a disgrace and Enterprise has some good
moments (mmmmm, T'Pol...) but wasn't able to pull it together before being
cancelled during Season 4. And please, don't get either Aaron or I started about
Star Trek: Nemesis -- that made Star Trek V: The Final Frontier look like
freakin' "Hamlet."

So currently, we're left with no Star Trek TV series other than the fan-created
series Star Trek: New Voyages. Right now, we're left with the rumor-filled Star
Trek XI (that's eleven for all you non-Romans). All that we know is that J.J.
Abrams (TV's "Lost," "Mission Impossible III") is produced the film and may
direct as well. Everything else -- Matt Damon as Kirk? Philip Seymour Hoffman as
Bones? BEN AFFLECK as SPOCK!!!!!! -- is a bunch of Internet rumors.

I'll say this -- if they can get all the captains together for a game, then by
God, they should be able to get a decent TV series back on and make a good Stark
Trek XI.

There was one surprise over the weekend. According to news reports, someone
smuggled two live rattlesnakes into a movie theater in Phoenix during a
screening of "Snakes on a Plane" and let the reptiles loose among the audience.
Panic ensued, but luckily no one was hurt. The culprits, however, have yet to be
identified or apprehended. Now, I'm not saying that the rattlers were a
publicity stunt and that New Line is responsible. I'm just saying I wouldn't be
surprised; the movie's called "Snakes on a Plane," for crying out loud.

Hey, it's Michael Bay. What did you expect?

Anyway, href="http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?category=0&id=37687">SciFi.co
m snatched a few details about the forthcoming film, some of which I find
depressing and sacrilegious (the film will show head Decepticon villain Megatron
as a plane instead of a giant, menacing gun).

Again, it's Michael Bay. Not only is he ruining film as we know it, but he's
also f---ing with my apartment search. And that simply will not do.

Anyway, I'd like take this opportunity to declare the 1986 film "Transformers:
The Movie" as one of the greatest animated features of all time. You simply
cannot beat what was then top of the line animation and a voice acting cast that
featured Orson Welles (in his last role), Leonard Nimoy, Judd Nelson, Eric Idle
and Robert Stack, coupled with a sountrack that features Weird Al yankovic's
"Dare to be Stupid" and Stan Bush's immortal power ballad "The Touch." I'm
getting goosebumps just writing about it.

You got the touch...you got the power....

It was one of those seminal events to which you can pinpoint exactly where you were when you heard the news. I recall waking up early on Sunday morning, switching on the TV and flicking through the breakfast programs. They all seemed to be talking about someone in particular, but I couldn't figure it out at first, between the sleepiness and all the mentions of "She was..."

Then, I think it was on ITV, they said it. "If you're just joining us, we have some terribly sad news. Diana, Princess of Wales, has died in a car crash in Paris." Talk about a ton of bricks falling on your head.

The week that followed was quite an interesting one. Whether you believe the outpouring of national grief that followed the death of Diana was sincere or not, it sure was a spectacle. It had everything: A fairytale that had gone wrong, ending in tragedy, flowers building up outside of palaces and then - to cap it all off - what appeared to be an icy Queen sitting on her Scottish estate refusing to say or do a thing about the whole affair.

The Queen is a film about this week in history, exploring the British Monarchy in one of its darkest moments since the abdication of King Edward VIII to marry the American divorcee Wallis Simpson. It explores Her Majesties mindset, her duties and the role of government - the very earliest days of Tony Blair's, for that matter - in one of the worlds older and more formal institutions.

I have to say that, for me, The Queen has marked the ending of the summer blockbuster season (of which there were few this year) into the Autumn season of thought provoking, interesting pictures. The only thing this film asks of you is that you know something about the death of Diana - not a whole lot more than just about everyone in the western world who lived through those events would happen to know.

The film is not biased - not Royalist, not Republican in its outlook. You bring to the table your own views on the monarchy, and if they happen to change during the portrayal then so be it. The only facet of society to which the film is really cynical is the British press - portraying Diana as a manipulative bimbo one day, hounding her to her death in that Paris underpass and then putting her up on a pedestal after her death.

Bottom line: Go see The Queen. It's out in Britain, and will be out in the US of A at the end of September. It's funny, it's thought provoking and you leave the picture house with something for your mind to chew over.

Is Sony running out of material? It certainly seems like it. A keen observer at the blog Gaming Edge picked up on a striking similarity at the recent Tokyo Game Show. Ken Kutaragi, president and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment and the father of the PlayStation, delivered a highly anticipated keynote address at TGS. While most of the buzz was about Kutarag announcing an unexpected price cut in Japan for the 20GB version of the new PlayStation 3, Gaming Edge's Rod Oracheski had a bit of deja vu and discovered that some of Kutaragi's speech was recycled -- word for word, apparently -- from a speech he gave in 2000 prior to the PlayStation 2 launch. Here are some excerpts of the speech:

"We need an open system. Like an internet. People can have a first hand experience: the network world of the game has to be open to everyone."
"Sony has Sony's agenda. But (I) want a very open platform, equal for every person."
"For instance: for movies. You looked at the [..] you can jack in and watch the new world. We are very lucky to live in this era. We try to open the door for the future."
"You can communicate to a new cybercity. This will be the ideal home server. Did you see the movie 'The Matrix'? Same interface. Same concept. Starting from next year, you can jack into 'The Matrix'!"

First off, let me just say that Oracheski has got one hell of a memory. You have to have a sharp eye (or ear) and a whole lotta video game industry knowledge to make that connection. Kudos to Gaming Edge!

Second, "The Matrix" was, like, 10 years ago.

Third, if this doesn't indicate that Sony is coasting on the remarkable success of PS2, then nothing will.

Children of Men is the second great film that I've seen in as many weeks, the first having been The Queen, which has been released in the UK & Ireland before the US of A (it's usually the other way around.) The film basically concerns itself with a slightly futuristic (but still highly recognisable) Britain (and world, in general) in which women can no longer have babies. Let's not concern ourselves with the premise (whether you believe it or not, or are inclined to quake with fear or scoff it off doesn't matter). The meat of the film is more than satisfactory.

At its most basic level, this is a thriller. Pregnant girl is found, must be taken to the coast to be picked up by great scientists, all sorts of fascist government types and crazy, uncivilized rabble in the way. Kind of like Half-Life 2, actually. Well, anyway. On a deeper level, this is a social commentary. It may be set in the future, but still within many of our lifetimes (2027) and concerns itself with how humanity would react to a slow-burning but inevitable end of humanity, which in this case is preceded by the end of civilization as we know it.

It's chilling stuff, and perfectly plausible - as my cinema going colleague (slash drinking buddy slash cell mate, etc) put it to me, the film looks at what has happened in human history before now when we are confronted with great troubles, and uses the good old mantra that history is usually prone to repeating itself. In Children of Men we get a good mix of history - think post World War One, leading into World War Two, the End of Empire, War on Terrorism and good old fashioned xenophobia (a timeless concept, really.)

Of course as a straight up-and-up thriller, this movie will have you on the edge of your seat from start right until the credits roll. Then, when you've left the cinema (or, as you sit there in silence), it will provide you with much to think about.

Cynics might say that Michael Caine is in the movie as a headliner, and he probably is, but never the less he gives a memorable performance which provides some light relief in the midst's of the depression; as well as acting as yet further social commentator, with a rather amusing take on marijuana legalisation.

Poor American's won't be able to see this one in the picture houses until Christmas. Wah wah wah. Consider it revenge for ruining who shot Mr Burns all those years ago. Bastards. In the meantime, anyone more local should go and see this movie. It's another one of what is turning out to be a fine Autumn/Winter crop in 2006.

"It is true. Robert Downey Jr. is Tony Stark. I am about as excited as I can be.
I saw what he can do and he is extremely enthusiastic about playing Stark. I can
say with absolute certainty that there is no better choice. The humor and
emotional dimension he brings truly raises the bar on this project. Get ready."

Yeah! Right on, Favs!!!

Personally, I love Downey. Troubled as he may be, he's fantastic actor, maybe
even a brilliant one. "Natural Born Killers"? Brilliant. "Chaplin"? Outstanding.
"Kiss Kiss Bang Bang"? Superb. And he was great on "Ally McBeal," too.

Oh God, did I just write that?

Sure did. Moving on. I'm intrigued to see what Downey can do as a superhero in a
comic book movie. It's about time he gets a leading role in a movie that can be
a bog hit and showcase his talent. Maybe this will be Downey's "Pirates
of the Caribbean," I don't know (personally, I always Downey was better than
Johnny Depp, but anyway). Not to make light of Downey's past struggles with
substance abuse, but I can't think of a better actor to play Stark, the
alcoholic billionaire and industrial genius who becomes Iron Man (if you recall,
the longstanding rumor was that Tom Cruise would play Stark). Plus, I think that
Favreau is the kind of director that can make it all work -- the acting, the
action, the humor, the CGI and the character drama. "Made" is one of my favorite
films, and "Elf" was susprisingly funny.

Of course, I'm a little worried that we won't see enough of Downey because he
may be hidden behind CGI armor for a lot of the film. And I don't like the fact
that Favreau has said the current "Iron Man" script won't really deal with
Stark's personal demons, which is part of what makes Iron Man such a compelling
superhero (an orphaned boy genius with a damaged heart who become a an alcoholic
billionaire weapons developer for the U.S. government). In any event, kudos to
Paramount, Favreau and Downey for pulling this one together. It could be the
best casting decision of the year.

Ohh dear, it's that 11am Monday morning feeling - all you've done is drink coffee and reply to emails. So, let's be productive for a bit and tell you about the good and the bad films I've come across this weekend.

First up, the bad. If you haven't gone to see "The Devil Wears Prada" then it might be best not to buck the trend now. It's a feel-good, predictable "comedy" (I use the term only to apply to the script writers original intentions, not the end result) which sees a down-to-earth aspiring journalist heading off to work as a PA to the frosty editor in chief of a top fashion magazine.

Cue haw-haw moments as Andrea Sachs (Anne Hathaway) rushes about to fulfil the demands of Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep), the inevitable depressing downturn, love interest (not with Streep, let me assure you) and trouble with the boyfriend. I'll let you guess the ending. The movie is a half an hour too long, at around 106 minutes you feel bored as we enter into the final act in Paris, and the only performance worth mentioning is, of course, that of Meryl Streep.

To be honest, I can think of better things to do with my evenings than watch another generic comedy with a big name attached to draw in punters. One of them is to watch a Sofia Coppola movie.

Daughter of Francis Ford, Sofia has only actually made three feature films of her own to date - "The Virgin Suicides" in 1999, "Lost in Translation" in 2003 and "Marie-Antoinette" in 2006, which I'm keenly awaiting the release of to these shores. "Lost in Translation" is obviously her best work, having won many high accolades, but before that came the less-awarded but not less-acclaimed "Virgin Suicides", which I picked up over the weekend.

Adapted from the book of the same name, the story is the narrated tale of the suicides of five sisters in a well-off part of Michigan suburbia in the 1970's; told from the point of view of the neighbourhood boys who became obsessed with them. It's an emotional, intriguing and sometimes quite funny look at teenage life, womanhood and the intricacies of suburbia (the nosey neighbours discussing the Lisbon family over chatty telephone calls and doorstep ruminations.)

What always amazes me about Sofia Coppola, apart from her quite unique style and a taste in music that I don't disagree with, is her ability to pull in half-decent casts. Bill Murray gave her the performance of his then waning (to be kind) career in "Lost in Translation", and Scarlett Johansson became the apple in everybody's eyes after it. "The Virgin Suicides" brings onboard James Woods in the role of Mr. Lisbon, the father and math teacher quite thoroughly whipped into place by his staunchly Catholic wife, Mrs. Lisbon (naturally) played by Kathleen Turner, who is quite probably the best casting in the movie.

Danny DeVito delivers his dry, smoking performance as a doctor looking after the youngest daughter, Cecilia Lisbon (Hanna Hall); Scott Glen plays the Irish priest reminding us of the important distinction between a "suicide" and an "accident" where Christian burial is concerned; and the movie is a great introduction to modern-day Hollywood starlets in Kirsten Dunst (Lux Lisbon) and Josh Hartnett (Trip Fontaine).

If you have any interest in decent, thought provoking movies; enjoyed "Lost in Translation" and intend to go and see "Marie-Antoinette" then this is an essential and enjoyable primer for Sofia Coppola's work.

It turns out that I'm of two minds about it, which is why I say you should
reluctantly go to see it - if even just so that you can bear witness and make
your mind up. It's such a politically charged picture that it would have to be
absolutely dire, on top of not sitting with my personal political convictions,
to attract a "Don't bother" rating from me.

Early into the final act of the film I was ready to give you an unabashed "Don't
bother" for "Death of a President", as it seemed to be turning into a
politically clich馘 piece of claptrap in which the main suspect is essentially
jailed in a put up job and the real shooter goes unrecognised.

It is not an implausible scenario - the British proved it when the likes of the
Guildford Four, Maguire Seven and Birmingham Six were all falsely convicted of
IRA bombings on mainland Britain via a conspiracy involving police officials,
eventually to be exonerated after some had died in prison. The way in which
"Death of a President" presents this scenario at first riled me up, but then
tempered this with some interesting twists.

Ultimately I don't like "Death of a President", for its politics more than
anything else. I would not discourage somebody from spending an hour or two of
their lives digesting it however, as it is interesting and at the least, thought
provoking.

To the issue of US cinemas refusing to show the film and politicians such as
Hillary Clinton terming it "despicable" and "outrageous", I would say two
things: Firstly, you're playing into the marketing hands of the film makers,
well done. People who are going to go and see this film are probably going to
feel more inclined to do so now, and you've introduced it to a wider audience;
whilst those who were not going to see the film in the first place might drum up
a bit more PR for the movie if they, I dunno, burn down a movie theatre showing
it or something.

Secondly, don't be so uptight. If this were a film endorsing the assassination
of a world leader (which, among many things it is, it is not) then I'd have a
different standpoint, but to be frank the assassination of the President of the
United States is a valid political catalyst and, let's face it, it's always a
distinct possibility that somebody will make an attempt upon a President's life.
I hardly think that such people will gain their motivation or training from
watching this movie, and as to the content, so be it.

Decide if you want to go see this movie or not. I daresay your personal politics
will dictate what impression you come out of it with even before the opening
credits roll.

* 2002: "28 Days Later" redefines the zombie genre, thanks to director Danny
Boyle and writer Alex Garland, and establishes itself as one of the scariest
movies I've seen in quite a while.

* 2003: Image Comics publishes "The Walking Dead," a new series from comic book
writer Robert Kirkman and artist Tony Moore, to much acclaim and popularity.

* 2004: "Dawn of the Dead" is remade by director Zack Snyder, and to the
surprise of many, it's excellent. In fact, it's about the only good horror movie
remake.

* 2004: The brilliant "Shaun of the Dead" spoofs the zombie genre with sharp
humor and also throws in some pretty serious scares. All hail Simon Pegg, Nick
Frost and Edgar Wright.

* 2005: The old grandmaster himself George Romero returns with "Land of the
Dead." Not remotely scary, but it's got Romero's trademark social commentary and
plenty of action.

* 2006: Capcom's Dead Rising game is released in August and earns stellar
reviews while selling more than 500,000 copies in its first two weeks.

* 2007: Robert Rodriguez revisits the zombie genre with "Planet Terror," which
is his half of the low-budget double-feature project "Grind House" with Quentin
Tarantino. Scheduled for April 6.

* 2007: Another Romero remake, "Day of the Dead," is slated for release, though
it's unclear how much the film will resemble the original "Day of the Dead" from
1985.

* 2007: "28 Days Later" gets a sequel, dubbed "28 Weeks Later." Danny Boyle
isn't directing, so it could be totally lame. But still...it's got zombies.

That's a lot of zombies. And I'm not even counting crap like "House of the Dead"
and the "Resident Evil" movies. In any event, in the spirit of the coming
Halloween holiday, I give you quite possibly the greatest zombie movie list ever
from the great minds at retroCRUSH. While there are some movies I'd probably
bump out (Peter Jackson's "Dead Alive" and "Return of the Living Dead") and
throw in a couple omitted films (2004's "Dawn of the Dead" and Lucio Fulci's
gore-fests "City of the Living Dead" and "The Beyond"), but it's still a great
list, complete with some nice YouTube clips. Check it out:

The Best
Zombie Films of All Time

This year's guests also includes Academy Award-winning writer William Goldman
("Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" and "All the President's Men"), Brad Bird
(creator of "The Incredibles" and "The Iron Giant"), David Ayer (writer of
"Training Day"), Tony Gilroy (writer of "The Bourne Identity" and "The Bourne
Supremecy"), and writer and director Neil Labute ("Nurse Betty" and "In the
Company of Men"). Past guests have included Paul Attanasio ("Donnie Brasco" and
"Quiz Show"), "Buffy" creator Joss Whedon, David Koepp ("Jurassic Park" and "War
of the Worlds"), John August ("Big Fish"), Andrew Kevin Walker ("Se7en"), and
story guru Robert McKee, just to name a few.

What is Screenwriting Expo 5 (now in its fifth year) all about? Basically, the
event is for aspiring screenwriters and includes classes and networking events
as well as wise words from leading Hollywood scribes such as Stone, Goldman and
others. TwitchGuru's writer David Konow, who has contributed to Creative
Screenwriting, explains:

Yes, you will hear some of the biggest scribes in the biz tell you how good
screenwriting has gone down the toilet (Goldman says every year is the worst
year yet for storytelling, and he's said it every year he's attended), and
you'll get the impression that no matter how high up the Hollywood food chain
you are, getting a good movie made is pretty damn hard to do. As Attanasio said
at the 2004 Expo, when he got his first major screenwriting assignment for Jerry
Bruckheimer, "It was hard, I didn't know what I was doing. It's hard now and
supposedly I know what I'm doing!"

But don't let it discourage you. If you have good ideas and want them to one day
reach the screen, take it as a call to arms. Shane Salerno was one of the
youngest writers to speak at the Expo in 2004 at 31 years old. He'd already been
a professional writer for close to a decade (his credits include "Breakdown,"
"Armageddon," and the remake of "Shaft"). "You can really do this," he told the
audience of screenwriting hopefuls during his Q&A session. "I didn't go to a
major college [actually, Salerno didn't go to college at all], I didn't
have family in the business, I was raised by a single mom, and we were not in a
high income situation. I didn't know anyone in the city of Los Angeles, so don't
allow that to be a barrier for you. There are wonderful undiscovered writers out
there writing in garages and basements that are better writers than the best
writers in this business. I hope you don't let anything stand in your way
because there's a lot of bad movies out there. We need you, we need your voices
very badly."

TwitchGuru will be in attendance to see what some of the top writers and
directors have to say about the current state of film and television.

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