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I’m All Abuzz with Bumblebee the Movie

6 Jan

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

* Spoiler Alert

Anyone who played the Transformers War or Fall of Cybertron games will be in for a treat in the opening act of Bumblebee. I heard about the buzz and still had a bit of trepidation with the designs. I’m glad I was wrong and when I found time to see this film, not only did it take on familiar tones from How to Train Your Dragon in the relationship of a troubled young girl and her “pet” car but also, the nostalgia play was bang on. Anyone who saw Transformers: The Movie (1984) will know what I am talking about.

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Transformers: The Movie (G1) Gets Special Engagements & Preview Starting Sept 27th!

9 Sep

Transformers-movieposter-westFans of the original Transformers cartoon (affectionally called G1) living in Canada should mark their calendars. The animated film where [spoiler tape censored] will screen at select Cineplex cinemas beginning Sunday, September 30 at 3:45 p.m. (local time). In the States, it will begin on September 27th. For showtimes, please check local listings or online here. This beloved classic has been meticulously remastered, restored from the original film elements, and transferred in HD.

I will be present quite simply because I still remember Starscream giving the finger in an early cut when I first saw this film long ago. It has since burned into my memory, and whether a print still survives with these scenes put back in, my hope is that this screening shall offer it. Either way, I just need this affirmation that what I saw in my youth was not a figment of my imagination.

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The Pros & Cons of the Five Anticipated Films of 2018

1 Jan

solo-a-star-wars-story

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Not every upcoming movie for 2018 will get fully embraced. To make a top five list is more challenging because the interest for these films is just not quite solid.

Whether the film involved is plagued with production problems or franchise fatigue is setting in, the reasons can vary. The worry with this first film is not because the principal directors were let go, but can reshoots fix a film? In this case, it’s the actor who defined the role than casting someone younger to take the mantle. I feel shades of Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull will be on the thoughts of many considering going to see this movie.

Han Solo (May 25, 2018)
Nobody can replace Harrison Ford as Han Solo. Nobody. Not even the actors who played younger versions of the characters he made famous get remembered for these roles. Okay, Sean Patrick Flanery is wonderful in the Young Indy series when he was a teen and he put a lot of effort in the role to not only sell the show but also become quite the sex symbol himself. The age difference from a young teen on television to an adult in cinema helped make this transition work.

Alden Ehrenreich is an okay substitute to show when this scoundrel was at his best. Whether the masses will accept him is the big question. The secondary issue is when this story will take place. Since the idea is to spotlight a younger version of the character, the hive mind is most likely not going to have this film lead out to Solo travelling to Tatooine  anytime soon. Rumours suggest this movie will be a Western, and this idea can work to see this scoundrel turn saviour for the day. However, to follow up on the heels of The Last Jedi is going to be tough. Expectations will be very high, and if this film does not deliver, perhaps Disney / Lucasfilm will have to reconsider if these side-stories are needed at all.

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King Arthur Never Met Transformers: The Last Knight

23 Jun

imax-new-2

By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)
* Spoiler Alert

Only morbid curiousity motivates me to continue watching the live-action version of Transformers. The fifth film, subtitled The Last Knight, offers opportunities to explore the world in new ways. To watch vehicles morph into bipedal form gets the kid in me giddy in delight. But as anyone who love the original animated material and toy lines will tell you, they will not be seeing this film because it’s not their Transformers anymore. I know folks vehement in their disdain of this cinematic (i.e. Michael Bay) treatment. Despite my longing to simply loathe it because of the people involved or how terrible the ideas get executed, I have to observe how far gone this universe is.

At the same time, as an enthusiast of King Arthur‘s literary and historical legacy, I wanted to see if this film has any redeeming factors. Pairing the Transformers with this legend has been done before (“A Decepticon in King Arthur’s Court”), and I hoped part of this movie will see this warrior’s messianic return to save the day. Instead of mighty robots, a human (or ancestor of) can certainly turn the tide.

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