Month: March 2019

To Wax Philosophy or Sociology in A Silent Voice, Where Forth Art Thou?

The motley crew in Ōima’s A Silent Voice manga gets greater study in the seven-volume series and the 130-minute film is just as impressive.

A Silent Voice The Movie PosterSpoiler Alert

A Silent Voice is coming to home video in North America on April 2nd courtesy of Shout! Factory. This movie based on Yoshitoki Ōima’s manga of the same name arrived at Japanese theatres back in late 2016, toured film festivals the subsequent year and took a rest period before getting a localized release. The extras in the region one issue are the same as the Japanese, meaning music videos and trailers (no directors commentary was made). I would love to hear about the challenges of adapting the longer printed material to film, and that can still be offered if a special edition release is being considered for later.

Life was tough for young Shōya Ishida. As he looks ready to commit suicide, other forces are at work to show life is not completely hopeless. He made mistakes. He realizes how they have affected the lives of others and himself. He seeks amends. Back in elementary school, he had a cadre of pals–Naoka Ueno, Miki Kawai, and Kazuki Shimada–but he never fully understood what friendship entailed. When his class gets a new student, Shōko Nishimiya, her disability made her a target for jokes, and he was amongst those who bullied her. They made her life difficult because she is deaf.

Continue reading “To Wax Philosophy or Sociology in A Silent Voice, Where Forth Art Thou?”

A Scary Way to Cap off the Week with Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark!

This list compiles everything that’s related to the cinematic creation of Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.

Scary Stories in the Dark PosterIt’s been a busy week for Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. Teaser products have been released in the past five days and herein lies a complete list. I’m excited about this work because of the talents involved in bringing the work of Alvin Schwartz to life. First off, Dan and Kevin Hageman (Tales of Arcadia: Trollhunters, LEGO Ninjago) wrote the screenplay based on the treatment by Guillermo del Toro, Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan. Also, André Øvredal (Trollhunter) is directing.

Plus, the teaser trailer shows how the terror comes together. A book is discovered, and in what Sarah Billard penned, the creatures found her stories come alive. While the concept feels similar to Goosebumps, this take is more on authentic paranormal instances than Nickelodeon style. Perhaps that tome is worse than The Necronomicon from H.P. Lovecraft‘s world!

This movie is headed to the big screen August 9th, and the release of the trailer shows all is not good in the small town of Mill Valley. The Red Spot and Pale Lady images show what the Bellows family may have to face!

Posters:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Teaser Trailer:

Official Synopsis:

It’s 1968 in America. Change is blowing in the wind…but seemingly far removed from the unrest in the cities is the small town of Mill Valley where for generations, the shadow of the Bellows family has loomed large. It is in their mansion on the edge of town that Sarah, a young girl with horrible secrets, turned her tortured life into a series of scary stories, written in a book that has transcended time—stories that have a way of becoming all too real for a group of teenagers who discover Sarah’s terrifying home.

Daring to Defy the Odds; Dumbo, a Movie Review

Had the story diverted to finding Dumbo’s herd and capturing more, I would be hooked. Technically, this era was one of exploration and such practices were not unheard of.

Dumbo Movie PosterDisney’s film entertainment division really need not turn all their past animated hits to live-action spectacles. That said, Dumbo is the latest and while it looks terrific in a post-World War I America setting, none of the backstories matters. Holt Farrier (Colin Farrell) comes home to his two kids, Milly (Nico Parker) and Joe (Finley Hobbins) who have been living at the circus. Prior to being sent off to fight for his country, the father was part of a circus act–a headliner.

Before anyone can yell, “It’s showtime!” enter the elephant’s mother and the birth of a big-eared baby pachyderm. The CGI is decent, but the emotional performance is hit and miss. Unlike Gollum, and other animated critters, who have graced cinema in the past, to convey fear and grief is only as good as understanding the creature itself.

Continue reading “Daring to Defy the Odds; Dumbo, a Movie Review”

How to Train Your Dragon: Hidden World Home Video & AR Game Release Revealed

How to Train Your Dragon The Hidden World Blu-Ray + DVD Nearly ten years after the first movie wowed audiences around the world, Hiccup and Toothless are back. How to Train Your Dragon: Hidden World concludes the trilogy and it’s slowly making its way out of theatres and into home video. The best is being saved for last as this physical release comes with a bevvy of extras! The release is coming to Digital on May 7, 2019, and to 4K Ultra HD, Blu-Ray™, DVD, and On Demand May 21, 2019, from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

The physical release features over an hour of exclusive behind-the-scenes bonus content including an alternate opening, two DreamWorks animated shorts, deleted scenes and more.

Continue reading “How to Train Your Dragon: Hidden World Home Video & AR Game Release Revealed”

After Capital City Comic Con, What’s Next for Victoria, BC?

 

Image result for comic booksBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

After Capital City Comic Convention, what’s next? Some fans cannot wait for the next show but that will be a year away. In the meantime, Vancouver Island has enough shows making the fun last month after month. On the list are:

Whether this list is too much or too little, the local fandom community have more than enough to keep going. Those interested in coming to the garden city of Victoria, BC from afar will have to arrange their own travel and accommodations.

Continue reading “After Capital City Comic Con, What’s Next for Victoria, BC?”

The Epic Book Tour: Gareth Hinds with Homer’s The Illiad

The IlliadBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Gareth Hinds is a prolific illustrator who worked in the video game industry for over ten years and still found the time to self-publish. Technically, that’s before Candlewick Press discovered him, and when they called him up to offer a deal, it was one he could not pass up!

Some fans know him for the cult hit, System Shock 2, and others may recall his earlier works, namely his adaptation of Beowulf. His artistic interpretations of literary classics are simply spellbinding. He has published ten books in all, including The Odyssey. As the recipient of Boston Public Library’s “Literary Lights for Children” award, his works can be found in use in classrooms across the country. Reading some of these classical works is not always easy, and to have the right kind of art to have young minds interested in the original material makes the process of learning how to read easier. Perhaps, one day, he may attempt Milton’s Paradise Lost.

Personally, I’m quite drawn to his works which looks at classical antiquity. In Poe: Stories and Poems, my taste for the macabre gets satisfied. His latest work is Homer’s The Iliad which took more than two years to produce! When this book clocks in at 270 pages and 95% of it are illustrations, the wait is certainly worthwhile. It is now available through bookstores like AmazonThe Illiad. To coincide with the release is a book tour. The remaining dates can be found at the end of this interview.

Continue reading “The Epic Book Tour: Gareth Hinds with Homer’s The Illiad”