Home Blog Page 19

‘Heat’ Director Michael Mann Confirms Follow-Up Movie

The 1995 crime thriller ‘Heat’ is one of the most celebrated movies to come out of the nineties. Director Michael Man as well as the cast, Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Jon Voight, Ashley Judd, Diane Venora, Val Kilmer, and more were praised for their performances in the cat-and-mouse game of LAPD detectives trying to catch a violent gang of thieves.

After the release of his novel ‘Heat 2’ with co-author Meg Gardiner in August 2022, speculation circulated if Mann would direct a film sequel which Mann confirmed in an interview with Deadline.

“Yes. Meg Gardiner and myself wrote the novel Heat 2, which came out right when we were shooting Ferrari. It did very well. I plan to shoot that next,” he explained at the Contenders London event.

When asked if Adam Driver would be tapped to play a younger version of De Niro’s character in the movie, Mann downplayed that.

“Perhaps,” he said. “We don’t talk about that yet. Let me put it this way: Adam and I got along like a house on fire [on Ferrari]. We have the same work ethic – which is pretty intense. We like each other, and we had a great time working together artistically.”

Man wrote, directed, and co-produced ‘Heat’ on a budget of $60 million. It would make over $180 million at the box office.

When the novel ‘Heat 2′ was released to bookshelves, it became number one on the New York Times’ bestseller list.

Mann first developed the script for ‘Heat’ as a television show titled ‘L.A. Takedown.’ He filmed a pilot for it and it was not picked up as a series, though the pilot would be released as a television movie on NBC in 1989. It starred Scott Plank (The In Crowd, Holes) as Vincent Hanna, who was portrayed by Pacino in ‘Heat.’

Dr. Stone Season 3 Cour 2 Gets A Release Date And English Dub On Crunchyroll

0

‘Dr. Stone: New World’ cour 2 is returning to fans in both the United States and Japan on October 12, 2023. The continuing adventures of Senkuu Ishigami and his quest to build the Kingdom of Science will be available to stream on Crunchyroll for fans in North America and other regions.

Along with this announcement, Crunchyroll added that they were also debuting an English dubbed version of the second part of the third season on the same day.

They revealed the cast list on their website:

  • Senku voiced by Aaron Dismuke (Chigiri in BLUELOCK)
  • Kohaku voiced by Felecia Angelle (Suzune in Classroom of the Elite)
  • Gen voiced by Brandon McInnis (Milo in SABIKUI BISCO)
  • Ryusui voiced by Clifford Chapin (Bakugo in My Hero Academia)
  • Suika voiced by Sarah Widenheft (Charmy in Black Clover)
  • Soyuz voiced by Aaron Roberts (Tetsuo in My Home Hero)
  • Taiju voiced by Ricco Fajardo (Kotaro in ZOMBIE LAND SAGA)
  • Ginro voiced by Justin Briner (Izuku in My Hero Academia)
  • Amaryllis voiced by Leah Clark (Kobayashi in Miss Kobayashi’s Maid Dragon)
  • Oarashi voiced by Jarrod Greene (Moguzo in Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash)
  • Ibara voiced by Larry Brantley (Spinner in My Hero Academia)
  • Kaseki voiced by Kenny Green (Jango in One Piece)
  • Otsubone voiced by Colleen Clinkenbeard (Hibana in Fire Force)

You can check out the trailer below:

‘Dr . Stone: New World’ is produced by the Japanese animation studio TMS Entertainment and directed by Shūhei Matsushita.

MyAnimeList described the synopsis of the third season as follows,

“With the ambitious Ryuusui Nanami on board, Senkuu Ishigami and his team are almost ready to sail the seas and reach the other side of the world—where the bizarre green light that petrified humanity originated. Thanks to the revival of a skillful chef, enough food is being prepared for the entire crew, and the incredible reinvention of the GPS promises to ensure safety on the open sea.

Preparations for the upcoming journey progress swimmingly until Senkuu receives an eerie message from a mysterious source. More driven than ever, the scientist sets out to explore the new world and discover what it can offer for his scientific cause. Though the uncharted territories may hide unkind surprises, Senkuu, with a little help from science, is ready to take on any challenge.”

The anime is based on a manga written by Riichiro Inagaki, illustrated by Boichi, and published in Shonen Jump.

Netflix’s Live Action Yu Yu Hakusho To Air In December 2023

Netflix’s next anime and manga adaption Yu Yu Hakusho was just announced to air on Netflix on December 14th. There will be a special pre-screening event held on December 13th in Tokyo with to-be-announced guests in attendance. The live action adaption was first announced back in December 15th, 2020.

Here is a sneak peak. There is another sneak peak currently only available to watch, as of this typing, directly on the Yu Yu Hakusho Netflix Page by clicking here.

The original manga was created by Yoshihiro Togashi, serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1990 to 1994. An anime series spanned 112 episodes from 1992 to 1995 and several OVAs and specials. Yoshihiro Togashi is married to follow manga creator Naoko Takeuchi, creator of one of the most well-known series Sailor Moon. They’ve been married since 1999 and have two children.

The live action adaption is directed by Shô Tsukikawa (live action adaptions of both I Want to Eat Your Pancreas and My Little Monster). Ryo Sakaguchi serves as the VFX supervisor. Sakaguchi is the first Japanese citizen to win the Academy Award for Science and Technology, as well having previously worked on numerous Hollywood films such as Tron: Legacy, How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Jim Carrey), Speed Racer (2008), and Game of Thrones. In addition to Scanline VFX, which has worked on numerous Hollywood films, a global team of CG and VFX technologies from Canada, Australia, Korea, and other countries worldwide is participating.

Aside from Japan and the United States working together, an international team was also assembled to bring the epic tale to the screen, tapping into the most advanced CG and VFX technologies from around the world. Known as “the most innovative VFX studio in the world” and lauded for their work on major Hollywood productions, Scanline VFX was instrumental in giving life to all the characters, both human and yokai (spirits), while delivering realistic battle action sequences.

According to Netflix, this project took five years to complete, with the team “painstakingly ensuring that the subtleties of every character’s emotions were accurately depicted in the adaptation. The fusion of state-of-the-art technology and a passion for staying true to the source material promises to make this adaptation a standout in the world of live-action anime.”

The actors playing the four main characters are Takumi Kitamura as Yusuke Urameshi, Jun Shison as Kurama, Kanata Hongo as Hiei, Shuhei Uesugi as Kazuma Kuwabara.

Yusuke and Kuwabara
Kurama and Hiei

IMDB has the episode count listed as 3 episodes, without specific titles or the length of each.

The summary of the story is:
From cutting classes to brawling in the streets, Yusuke Urameshi is not your typical role model. In fact, this kid’s nothing more than a fourteen-year-old delinquent with a talent for trouble. But in a single selfless act Yusuke dies while saving another. For such noble sacrifice he is given a second chance at life, but it’s to be a life far different than the one left behind. Now a Spirit Detective, the young man must track down demons and humans alike who desire to rule over the three realms of reality.

So what do you think of this? Will you be checking out this live action adaption when it airs on Netflix? Let us know in the comments below!

Source: Netflix

YouTuber Ashens Is Making a Horror Movie!

0

Stuart Ashen, better known as ‘Ashens’ on YouTube, is ready to make another movie. Following his previous gaming-centric films Ashens and the Quest for the Gamechild and Ashens and the Quest for the Gamechild, the entertainer wants to take a stab at the horror genre.

As a long-time horror fan and genre journalist, I’m thrilled. In fact, Ashen and I spoke briefly about this during our interview earlier this year!

So far, the Kickstarter campaign for the horror movie Turn Back has amassed over $125,000 with 1k+ backers. It has exceeded its $122k goal, but we all know that filmmaking is not an easy or cheap process. The more help, the better.

So, what’s the story? Here it is in Ashen’s own words:

I really don’t want to give too much away and spoil things, but obviously you’re not going to back something if I don’t tell you anything about it!

I’m based here in Norwich in the East of England, and part of our local folklore is the infamous “Black Shuck’. It’s an archetypal demon story with a deep mythology, and with a personal connection to me – perfect to base our horror plot around. The legend goes that Black Shuck is a huge ghostly demonic hound that roams the east anglian countryside, and laying eyes on it can be an omen of impending death. If you hear its howl, whatever you do, close your eyes.

The myth dates all the way back to the 12th century and I want to bring it up to date, and bring Black Shuck into the modern world.

And as I said, we’re going to do it all in reverse! The first scene in the film will be the last scene in the narrative and so on, in a similar way to films like Memento or 500 Days of Summer. But trust me, you won’t ever have seen it quite like this. This will not be a gimmick, it is fundamental to the story. Our hope is that once you get to the end, it’s the kind of film you’ll be thinking about for days afterwards and want to watch again. I’m seriously so excited about it.

There are still 29 days left to back Turn Back. The various pledge goals include things like copies of the film via digital or Blu-ray. However, the top donation of £200 will capture you a genuine, certified GameChild!

Be sure to check out the Ashens YouTube channel for many sofa-based tat reviews and more. You can also follow the creator on Facebook.

[Source: Kickstarter]

Crunchyroll Launches 24-Hour Anime Channel

Anime has become incredibly popular among young adults over the last decade. While anime series and films have been around for much longer, those growing up with iconic anime series will tell you how widespread it’s become. Crunchyroll is one of the biggest streaming services with a wide assortment of anime to watch on demand. For many, it’s their go-to service for most shows, with dubs and subs, that offers a lot more than the competition. Luckily for anime fans, something extra is launching in October 2023.

Crunchyroll has launched a 24-hour, ad-supported anime channel in the United States, starting today (October 11th, 2023). The channel will be available for everyone with access to LG Channels, the Roku Channel, and Vizio WatchFree+ on their devices. At the same time, the service will come to Amazon Freeverse on October 17th, 2023, a short time after the initial launch. The Crunchyroll channel will have popular anime shows and a lineup of older series with English dubbing for viewers to watch and enjoy.

Some of the series that will play with the service at launch include the following anime…

  • Horimiya
  • Ranking of Kings
  • Moriarty the Patriot
  • PSYCHO–PASS
  • Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest
  • Sugar Apple Fairytale
  • To Your Eternity
  • Code Geass

Crunchyroll president Rahul Purini talked about the channel in a statement sent to multiple outlets. “The Crunchyroll channel is a gateway to the world of anime where we will guide viewers to discover new worlds, new stories, and new characters… Thanks to our distribution partners at launch, millions of fans have easy access to the medium that is taking the world by storm.”

The Crunchyroll channel is a collaboration between Crunchyroll and GSN. EVP of Distribution for GSN, Tim Carry, also commented on the launch of the channel. “GSN is thrilled by the massive response from our platform partners for this channel, which is a testament to Crunchyroll’s brand and library.”

What do you think of a 24-hour anime channel from Crunchyroll? What anime series would you want to see on there? And what is your favorite anime to watch overall? Share some of your thoughts about everything in the comments below!

Robotech Partners With Ghost X Ghost For New Merch

Harmony Gold, the team behind the hit television show Robotech, is partnering with the brand Ghost X Ghost to bring some merchandise for fans of Veritech.

“GHOST X GHOST is excited to announce our licensing agreement with HARMONY GOLD for the classic anime series, ROBOTECH! GXG will be producing limited edition apparel, posters, pins, and skate decks based on both original art and classic imagery from the legendary series,” GXG said on their website.

Robotech is an American adaption of three Japanese mech anime series including ‘Super Dimension Fortress Macross,’ ‘Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross,’ and ‘Genesis Climber MOSPEADA.’ The series ran for eighty-five episodes across three seasons.

GXG continued, “ROBOTECH is a sweeping science-fiction anime epic of humans defending their home world against alien domination. The saga is told through the eyes of characters caught up in a series of wars that erupts when a mysterious spacecraft crash-lands on Earth at the turn of the millennium.”

“The secrets of alien knowledge aboard this vessel were unlocked, leading to the development of “Robotechnology” and the creation of a vast arsenal of robotic ‘mecha’ to defend the Earth against the alien threats that would eventually strike to lay claim to the mysterious power source known as ‘protoculture,'” they added.

So far two graphic tees have been announced. One features the “VF-1S” mech and the second features the “VF-1J.”

The merch was teased on an X post by GXG:

Robotech continued its story in ‘Robotech II: The Sentinels,’ a pilot that was combined into a television film and ‘The Shadow Chronicles,’ a second film that continued to the story of the third season.

Titan Comics currently has the rights to publish a comic book series based on the show. They previously did a series “Remix” that ran for four issues but it was put on hiatus after four issues. A new series set in between seasons one and two titled ‘Robotech: Rick Hunter’ has begun publication.

HiDive To Stream Dark Fantasy Anime ‘Chained Soldier’

0

Sentai Filmworks has announced that it has acquired the streaming rights to the upcoming anime for mature audiences ‘Chained Soldier.’ The series is being developed by the Japanese animation studio Seven Arcs and will debut in January 2024 with Sentai streaming it to the HiDive platform.

HiDive President John Ledford said in a statement, “We’re thrilled to host the North American premiere of Chained Soldier at this year’s Anime NYC in November.”

“This highly anticipated new show based on the popular manga series by Takahiro and Yohei Takemura is sure to be a hit and we’re excited to offer it exclusively to our subscribers during our Winter 2024 season kicking-off this coming January,” he added.

‘Chained Soldier’ is a dark fantasy that is being directed by Gorō Kuji and Junji Nishimura. Yasuhiro Nakanishi is handling the series composition, Ryota Kanō and Akira Kindaichi are writing the scripts, Hiroyuki Yoshii is illustrating the character designs, and musician Kohta Yamamoto is composing the music.

You can watch the trailer below:

The voice cast includes:

  • Akari Kitō as Kyōka Uzen
  • Yūya Hirose as Yūki Wakura
  • Hina Tachibana as Nei Ōkawamura
  • Maaya Uchida as Tenka Izumo
  • Mari Hino as Shushu Suruga
  • Nene Hieda as Yachiho Azuma
  • Reina Ueda as Sahara Wakasa
  • Rina Hidaka as Naon Yuno
  • Sayaka Senbongi as Koko Zenibako
  • Tomori Kusunoki as Aoba Wakura
  • Yume Miyamoto as Himari Azuma

Anilist describes the synopsis as follows,

“Decades ago, gates to an otherworldly and dangerous dimension known as Mato—the “Demon City”—appeared across Japan. Those who partook in the “peaches” growing there gained unique abilities—but only if they’re girls. When down-in-the-dumps high school boy Yuuki Wakura finds himself caught up in a gate, he’s saved by Kyouka Uzen, the beautiful commander of the 7th squad of the Demon Defense Force, who…orders him to become her(s)…?!”

The anime is based on the manga ‘Mato Seihei no Slave’ written by Takahiro and illustrated by Yohei Takemura. It began publication in 2019 through Shonen Jump.

New PlayStation 5 Slim Model Launches in November

The PlayStation 5 has had a lot of success on the market, with multiple hit games being released for it since the console first launched. Many players were able to jump into the new Sony ecosystem, despite multiple issues involving shortages and scalping being a major hurdle. But it looks like those looking for an upgrade will have a new PS5 model to look out for. Sony plans on launching the newest PlayStation 5 as early as November.

In an announcement shared by Sony in multiple places, the company is releasing a newer model of the PlayStation 5 for the 2023 holiday season. The rollout for the console will begin in November 2023 and will have two models at different prices. The console will be a little smaller and come with a 1TB hard drive, with a digital edition that has the option to add an Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive to it.

Sid Shuman, senior director of SIE content communications, wrote on the official PlayStation Blog about the new PS5 model. “The new PS5 has been reduced in volume by more than 30%, and weight by 18% and 24% compared to the previous models. There are four separate cover panels, with the top portion in a glossy look, while the bottom remains in matte.”

The new model has more hard drive space than the current PS5, which has around 825GB in total memory. There is little to no big differences as far as the inside of the console goes, making this less of a big jump when compared to the PlayStation 4 and the PS4 Slim. The new version of the console will also come with a horizontal stand, and there will be a vertical stand sold separately at retail. In 2024, different color console covers will be released for the new PlayStation 5, giving owners more customization options for the console. The colors that will be made available include an all-matte Black colorway, Volcanic Red, Cobalt Blue, and Sterling Silver. They will be priced at around $54.99 USD.

Additional specifications about the new PS5 model are listed on the blog post, with more details on both versions. The PlayStation Blog also goes on to say that the new model of the PlayStation 5 will only be available once the inventory of the previous PlayStation 5 model has sold out. Sid went on to end the post with some words about new and upcoming releases for PlayStation 5. “We are ten days away from the launch of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, with additional games including Alan Wake 2 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 launching shortly after. With these fantastic games coming, in addition to recent releases such as EA Sports FC 24, Assassin’s Creed: Mirage, and Baldur’s Gate 3, there’s plenty for gamers to play on PS5 this holiday season…”

What do you think of the new PlayStation 5 model? Will you be picking up this version of the PS5 during the holidays? What games would you play first on the new PS5? Tell us everything in the comment section down below!

The Marvels New Teaser Focuses on Carol Danvers

The next upcoming movie for the ongoing Marvel Cinematic Universe is the sequel to the 2019 movie, Captain Marvel. Only this time she won’t be alone in a cosmic adventure for The Marvels. Both Monica Rambeau and Kamala Kahn will show up in the sequel and help Captain Marvel. The three superheroines will find themselves tangled up with their powers as a new enemy threatens Earth in a very big way. With the movie about a month away from release, marketing for the film has begun to ramp up in many places.

A brand new teaser trailer for The Marvels was released by Marvel Studios which focuses on Carol Danvers. The teaser is titled “The Return of Captain Marvel” and highlights some big moments from the past appearances of the character in other Marvel projects. This includes quick shots of Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury using a cosmic pager in the post-credits for Avengers: Infinity War to contact Captain Marvel. We also revisit other parts of the first film, including many shots of Carol using her powers, and some of her interactions with The Avengers during the events of End Game.

The rest of the teaser gives audiences a glimpse at various points during The Marvels with Carol interacting with many characters. Most of the footage is recycled from previous trailers and teasers of the movie, with little to no other new looks at the film. But just like before, the teaser emphasizes the phrase that Carol and her allies repeat together. Higher, further, Faster.

While the first Captain Marvel film took place mostly in the 90s, everything that happens in The Marvels will occur in the present day for the MCU. An event that takes place during the film will cause the light-based powers of Captain Marvel, Monica Rambeau, and Ms. Marvel to go haywire and constantly switch places with each other. Previous trailers for the film revealed that the trio will come together in a comedic way, but will end up working together as they face a new villain named Dar-Benn. The Marvels will see Brie Larson reprise her role as Captain Marvel, with Lashana Lynch as Monica Rambeau and Iman Vellani as Kamala Kahn.

Are you looking forward to the release of The Marvels in theaters? Did you enjoy the first Captain Marvel movie? What do you think the story in The Marvels will do for the rest of the MCU going forward? Let us know your thoughts about everything down below in the comment section!

The Film May Be Lost, But NECA Resurrects Lon Chaney’s London After Midnight Character

The legendary lost Lon Chaney movie London After Midnight may never be recovered. Still, the actor’s iconic Man in the Beaver Hat has lived on in pop culture for almost a century.

Now, NECA has announced that it will add the actor’s “vampire” character to its line of ‘Ultimate’ 7″ tall action figures. The Man in the Beaver Hat comes with three head portraits, a hat, a lantern, five interchangeable hands, and a winged cape.

Sadly, the figure will not arrive in time for Halloween this year. Lon Chaney’s Professor Edward C. Burke, disguised as the Man in the Beaver Hat, will arrive in February 2024.

Pre-orders are open now at Entertainment Earth. He is priced at $36.99. For more horror icons, check out the recently announced Mars Attacks Martians!

London After Midnight (1927)
Image Credit: NECA

Image Credit: NECA

Image Credit: NECA

 

Despite all copies being destroyed in a vault fire, the 1927 silent horror film London After Midnight has remained a cult classic! Lon Chaney plays a dual role as Professor Edward Burke and the Man in the Beaver Hat in a tale of murder and inevitable justice. This Ultimate action figure from the classic silver-screen movie is highly articulated and comes with lantern, removable hat, extra hands, three interchangeable heads, and attachable winged cape. The 7″ scale figure comes in collector-friendly window box packaging with opening flap.

Copies of London After Midnight were consumed by a fire in 1965 that occurred in MGM’s vault. Since then, the movie slipped into legend, with little aside from some promotion photographs and theatrical posters circulating in collectors’ circles.

Very little of Tod Browning’s original film has survived. Several stills have been recovered, but it is unlikely we’ll ever see the complete movie resurface. However, much of the film’s production and legacy have been documented. Check out the videos below for more info.

[Source: NECA]

Close Subscribe Card