“Furry Vengeance” movie review
Brendan Fraser in "Furry Vengeance."
In “Furry Vengeance,” developer Dan Sanders (Brendan Fraser) finds himself at the mercy of a horde of forest animals as he attempts to turn their home into a housing edition.
While Sanders is sympathetic to a point (he originally doesn’t want to move a beaver dam), his boss, Neal Lyman (Ken Jeong), isn’t. While his company claims to be green, the only green he truly cares about is money. Moving the animals, killing the animals — that’s not his concern.
Jeong, who was hilarious in “The Hangover,” has some good moments here, playing his typical role of entitled and angry.
Dan’s family isn’t thrilled that they’ve relocated from Chicago to Oregon for this project. His wife, Tammy (Brooke Shields), has taken a job as the science teacher at the local school and gets roped into putting on the forest festival. His son, Tyler (Matt Prokop, “High School Musical 3”), is disappointed that he’s been dragged away from all his friends, but he begins to see the beauty of the forest after first noticing the beauty of classmate Amber (Skyler Samuels).
Dan becomes caught in the middle of his family’s wishes and his boss’s wishes and, even worse, finds himself at the mercy of a bunch of vengeful animals, led by a crafty raccoon. Dan is beset by bees, boulders, bears and dozens of other threats from the forest. Were the animals not cute, this would be a horror film, as no matter how hard he tries, Dan is continually thwarted in his efforts to escape the animals. The film uses what appear to be trained animals, occasionally assisted with some computer-generated imagery.
Fraser, who also is the executive-producer, throws himself into the comedy, not being afraid to be humiliated in any number of ways for a laugh. While the film’s obvious target audience is kids, there are a few laughs for Mom and Dad along the way. Well-meaning fathers may find themselves more sympathetic to Dan’s situation than that of the raccoon’s, though in true family film fashion, it’s all tied together by film’s end.
— Matthew Price
MOVIE REVIEW
“Furry Vengeance”
PG
1:32
2 stars
Starring: Brendan Fraser, Brooke Shields, Ken Jeong, Angela Kinsey, Matt Prokop.
(Rude humor, mild language and brief smoking)
“Saturday Morning Cartoons: 1980s, Vol. 1” DVD review
Saturday Morning Cartoons of the 1980s vol. 1
Warner Home Video’s “Saturday Morning Cartoons: 1980s, Vol. 1” makes me want to pour a big bowl of sugary cereal and sit down for a few hours of relaxation through questionable animation.
The shows included on the DVD aren’t the best of the 1980s, though they are nostalgic fun for those who grew up in the era. Included are 11 episodes of mostly short-lived cartoons:
“The Biskitts”: These were the Smurfs of CBS (though not nearly as successful) as cute, tiny dogs attempted to keep the king’s treasures safe from the king of a rival land.
“The Completely Mental Misadventures of Ed Grimley”: Based on Martin Short’s “Saturday Night Live” character, the dorky Ed Grimley had a 13-episode animated run in 1988.
“Chuck Norris: Karate Kommandos”: This 1986 five-episode run inspired a comic-book series and an action-figure line. Oklahoma-born Norris introduced each episode in a live-action segment, then wrapped it up at the end.
“Dragon’s Lair”: Based on the fantasy video game that featured art by former Disney animator Don Bluth.
“The Flintstone Kids”: Like the Muppet Babies, only here it’s the Flintstones as kids.
“Goldie Gold and Action Jack”: A socialite and reporter have adventures.
“The Kwicky Koala Show”: One of the final shows directed by Tex Avery.
“Mister T”: An animated version of the “A-Team” star coached a gymnastics team and solved mysteries. The live-action Mr. T provided introductions and wrap-ups.
“Monchichis”: Cute monkey-like creatures starred in this show based on the Mattel toy line imported from Japan.
“Thundarr the Barbarian”: Popular with comic-book fans, as the show was created by Steve Gerber (“Howard the Duck”) and featured production design from Jack Kirby and Alex Toth. Thundarr was a Conan-inspired adventurer in a post-apocalyptic world.
There’s also a bonus featurette in the DVD set called “Lords of Light!: Thundarr the Barbarian.”
— Matthew Price
Chris Hemsworth as Thor!
Marvel has released this first image of Chris Hemsworth as Thor, from the upcoming film “Thor,” based on the Marvel comic book. The movie is set for release on May 6, 2011.
From Marvel:
The epic adventure “Thor” spans the Marvel Universe from present day Earth to the realm of Asgard. At the center of the story is The Mighty Thor, a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth and forced to live among humans as punishment. Once here, Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth.
More in the link.
- Matt Price
Yancy Butler: Nerdage’s #11 actress
Yancy Butler on the DVD cover to "Witchblade."
Yancy Butler is best-known to comics fans as Sara Pezzini/Witchblade in the TNT TV series by the same name. This year, she returned to films based on comics with a role in the movie “Kick-Ass” as Angie D’Amico. She comes in at #11 on Nerdage’s list of actresses with geek appeal. In 2009, she appeared on Syfy’s “Wolvesbayne” horror film, and she’s set to appear in “Lake Placid 3,” also for Syfy.
At the Dallas Comic-Con in Richardson, Texas in 2009, she compared working in television to working in film:
“You have a lot more time to prepare everything for a film. The role, the script, the costumes,” she said. “In television, I liken it to the ‘I Love Lucy’ episode with the chocolate conveyor belt, and they’re shoving chocolate in their mouth as quickly as they can … that’s television. It can’t go fast enough, it’s just this beast that goes so quickly because if you don’t have something you can put on the air, you’re looking at dead air space.”
- Matt Price
Jackie Earle Haley: Nerdage’s #11 actor
Jackie Earle Haley in "Nightmare on Elm Street"
Star of this weekend’s “Nightmare on Elm Street” remake Jackie Earle Haley comes in at No. 11 in Nerdage’s top 25 list of actors with geek appeal. He plays the slain murderer Freddy Krueger, who then haunts people in their dreams. Haley also appears on “Human Target,” based on the DC comic book, and starred as Rorschach in “Watchmen,” based on the Alan Moore-Dave Gibbons graphic novel.
In a 2009 interview with Nerdage, Haley said the vigilante character Rorschach was created by a neglected upbringing.
“He’s a victim of his mom’s own self-centeredness. … He ended up in a home at age 11 only to discover they weren’t much better at raising him than his mom was,” he said. “And I think he finally reached this point in life where he needed this black and white sense of the world. Because he was such a victim of the grey complexities.
“His whole life was falling through the cracks. And if it weren’t for becoming a masked vigilante, this guy would have no purpose in life.”
Haley broke into acting as a child, and was best-known for his role in “Bad News Bears.” His comeback as an adult started in “All the King’s Men” with Sean Penn, and was cemented with his Oscar-nominated role in “Little Children,” in which he played a paroled sex offender.
- Matt Price
Free Comic Book Day review roundup
Bookgasm has reviewed several of this weekend’s Free Comic Book Day books. Get an idea what the high points are before stepping into the comic shop on Saturday.
According to the site, “YOW! Drawn & Quarterly Presents a John Stanley Library Grab-Bag” is the weekend’s best choice. Writer Rod Lott also has positive words for “War of the Supermen” No. 0, which kicks off DC’s upcoming miniseries:
WAR OF THE SUPERMEN #0 — On New Krypton — a planet full of people just as powerful as Superman — Gen. Zod has ordered his residents to attack a little planet called Earth. Superman swoops in to stop him, but he’s too late, in this prequel to DC’s four-issue miniseries, written by James Robinson and Sterling Gates. This ballsier-than-usual Superman tale is so well-written that it’ll hook many into the storyline; even I’m curious to see how the Man of Steel is going to save us this time.
For Lott’s take on other titles, including Iron Man/Thor, Iron Man Supernova, Doctor Solar/Magnus, Mouse Guard/Fraggle Rock and more, check out the whole article at Bookgasm.
- Matt Price
Jonah Hex trailer
Yahoo shares the first trailer from “Jonah Hex,” which stars Josh Brolin as Jonah Hex, John Malkovich as Quentin Turnbull and Megan Fox as Leila, Jonah’s love interest.
Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments!
Free Comic Book Day, Iron Man 2, and reviews of Last Stand of New Krypton 3, Invincible Iron Man 25 and New Avengers 64 at Planet 46 Comics Podcast
Free Comic Book Day is this weekend! Plus, Batman is on his way back, and Superman’s at war in this week’s Planet 46 Comics podcast.
In movie news, Planet46.com will kick off a week of “Iron Man 2” coverage on Monday.
Iron Man 2 opens in theaters May 7, and in the run-up to the film, Planet 46 will feature interviews from Jon
Favreau, Sam Rockwell, Scarlett Johansson, Don Cheadle and Robert Downey Jr.
What other Marvel heroes could soon see a silver screen? Edgar Wright’s long-in-the-works adaptation of “Ant-Man” could finally begin production at the end of this year.
Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige told Superhero Hype that once Edgar Wright finishes promoting “Scott Pilgrim,” he’d like to get him on to “Ant Man,” maybe at the end of 2010 or beginning of 2011. But he’d expect the film wouldn’t come out until after “The Avengers.”
COMICS SURGE
Batman, the original that is, is on his way back, starting in Return of Bruce Wayne. The first issue comes out May 12. Writer Grant Morrison says a time-hopping Bruce Wayne will move to various sequences of time throughout the series.
“For me, the time thing is to take Bruce Wayne to the limit of what he is as a character, because he’s thrown back into prehistory with no memory and no uniform and no tools apart from the fact that he’s got his belt,” Morrison told Comics Alliance. “I like of the idea of exploring Batman with this time travel story, but to do it quite convincingly and realistically so that he’s really at the edges of what Batman can possibly be.”
This Weekend is Free Comic Book Day! For the ninth time, you can go to your local comic-book store and pick up selected comic books absolutely free! Mouse Guard/Fraggle Rock, GI Joe, Shrek, Toy Story, Iron Man/Thor are among the comics available. Check out Nerdage or FreeComicBookDay.com for a complete list.
Perhaps the most anticipated book is “War of the Supermen” No. 0 by James Robinson and Oklahoma’s Sterling Gates. Following up on “Last Stand of New Krypton,” war is on the way between Earth and New Krypton. This series continues with a new issue each Wednesday throughout the month of May.
In the review file this week, Kyle Roberts and Matt Price look at Superman 699, Last Stand of New Krypton 3, Invincible Iron Man 25 and New Avengers 64. Click past the cut for more from “Iron Man 2″ and a preview of “Last Stand of New Krypton” #1.
Free Comic Book Day preview: Iron Man: Supernova
Marvel Comics has provided the following preview of their Free Comic Book Day comic, “Iron Man: Supernova,” featuring Iron Man and Nova. It’s written by Paul Tobin with art by Craig Rousseau.
The solicit info reads:
What happens when an armored billionaire teams up with a hot-headed, cosmic-powered teen to fight a trio of massively-powered super-apes? Find out when Iron Man and Nova take on Red Ghost and The Super-Apes! Out-numbered, the Golden Avenger and the Human Rocket will have to trust an apparent traitor in the gorillas’ midst if they are to survive and save an entire city. Will they succeed or are they being played? Find out in this all-new, action-packed adventure, which happens to be FREE!
Elektra in Shadowland promo
Things don’t look good for Daredevil in the fourth “Shadowland” promo from Marvel Comics. Elektra is seen clutching the gravestone. of Daredevil, in an homage to Daredevil 182, in which Daredevil was clutching Elektra’s gravestone. The miniseries, set to start in July, is written by Andy Diggle and drawn by Billy Tan.
- Matt Price
- Matt Price
