Behind the Scenes – Sweeney Todd
Yesterday I had the opportunity to see Tim Burton‘s latest film, Sweeney Todd. You’ll have to wait until the 21st for the review, but here’s a little behind the scenes fun. First up here’s cast members Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter and Alan Rickman discussing the film. Larger version inside the Full Diagnosis along with Burton sittng down to discuss the film prior to an advanced screening.
Sweeney Todd
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Behind the Scenes – The Walker
Here’s an interesting Q&A with writer/director Paul Schrader discussing how the character of his new film is a continuation of the characters he wrote for Taxi Driver and American Gigolo, and dicussing the shooting of his new film in the UK. Larger version available in the Full Diagnosis along with a featurette of the film. And make sure you check back tomorrow for our review!
The Walker
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Behind the Scenes – The Golden Compass
You’ll have to wait until tomorrow for our review of The Golden Compass, but to wet your appetite here’s a short behind the scenes look at one of most important group of characters in the film, the Daemons. Larger version available in the Full Diagnosis. Enjoy and remember to stop by tomorrow for our review!
The Golden Compass
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RazorFine Presents – Animal Man
Welcome to yet another issue of RazorFine Presents Comic Spotlight as we take a look at comic heroes, villains, and everything in between. This week we shine the comic spotlight on one of the “lesser” heroes of the DC Universe, Animal Man. For over forty years he’s fought for truth, justice, and the rights of the furry (think Manimal in spandex, well, kind of). Peaking in popularity during the 1980’s during an exceptional run by Grant Morrison, our hero is currently back in action in a DC mini-series as a tie-in to Countdown to Final Crisis.
Animal Man
Name: Bernhard “Buddy” Baker
1st Appearance: Strange Adventures issue #180
Currently Appearing: Countdown to Adventure
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Created by Dave Wood and Carmine Infantino way back in 1965 Animal Man has had a long, and mostly troubled, history. Mostly a minor character and guest-star for the first 20 years (always a bridesmaid…) Animal Man found new life during the revamp of the DC Universe following Crisis on Infinite Earths. A young writer named Grant Morrison asked for and was given the opportunity to update the character. Animal Man became a big hit as a result, and the rest, as they say is history.
Animal Man has the power to mimic the abilities of any animal (living or dead) by tapping into “The Red” a Lifeweb of all animals who have ever existed. Over the years he has shown many examples of this including super-strength (T-Rex), flight (bird), camouflage (chameleon), electricity (eel), breathe underwater (fish), regrow lost limbs (worm), and use a sonic blast (pistol shrimp) among many others. Not usually, but sometimes he mimics appearance of animals including once having his hands become the claws of a wolverine. He also has the ability to commune and empathize with animals.
It was Morrison’s fresh take on the character and comic heroes in general that garnered interest. Under Morrison’s eye Animal Man became an everyman in a world of heroes who dealt with both real and supernatural issues including his struggle to be a good husband and father. The series is also noteworthy for its many mentions of the DC Multiverse, promoting animal rights and vegetarianism, and Morrison’s willingness to break the fourth wall (even writing himself in as God), and play with both the reader’s and the character’s expectations (including a terrific send-up of Willie E. Coyote in issue #5 entitled “The Coyote Gospel”).
Given the higher visibility of the character he was given a spot on the new Justice League spin-off Justice League Europe, but only stuck around for 12 issues due to he brutal murder of his wife and children at the end of Morrison’s run on Animal Man.
After Morrison’s departure the comic struggled with Buddy’s search into totems and the meaning of his powers. Starting with issue #57 the character was moved to the Vertigo line in what would become more of a horror book with the super-hero aspects of the character removed.
And then history repeated itself as the character returned to his roots. Animal Man once again became a periphery character popping up from time to time as a guest star or a member of the larger DCU in crossovers like Infinite Crisis. Finally the character was given new life in 52 and is currently part of the Countdown tie-in mini-series Countdown to Adventure along with other cast-off characters including Starfire and Adam Strange.
I’d recommend Morrison’s run on Animal Man to everyone. All 26 issues are available in three graphic novels (check them out here, here, and here). I’d also recommend his short stint with Justice League Europe for fans of the funny and absurd.
I’m a huge fan of Cartoon Network’s Justice League (as you, our longtime readers know- read reviews here and here). One of my few criticisms of the series was their incorporation of both B’wana Beast and Vixen (both who found larger readership in Animal Man as recurring characters) but not Animal Man himself. Although the character has struggled mightily over the last decade another huge crossover has given him new life and I’m glad to see him back in costume and hope DC has a place for him in the future.
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Ghost Hunt
Enjoy ghouling ghost stories? I know I do, and I loved the series Ghost Hunt. It starts with a simple school girl named Taniyama Mai and her fellow classmates telling chilling ghost stories in their class after school. They are interrupted by another classmate, Kuroda, who claims she can see spirits and that they haunt the school. Little did they know, telling their stories lead to serious consequences at an abandoned school right beside theirs. The stories brought spirits back from the after life to the abandoned school, where they haunted it. A team from Shibuya Psychic Research Center (SPR for short) came to investigate and Mai is thrown into a world full of crazy phenomenons and ghosts.
Ghost Hunt
4 & 1/2 Stars
Mai and her friends peeked in a dusty window at the abandoned school to find video cameras placed everywhere. Mai walks inside, and is instantly attacked by a ghost who tries to drop a shelf on her. She is saved by one of the SPR workers, Koujo Lin. He gets injured and Kazuya Shibuya, the teenage director of SPR, forces her to take his stead.
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They work as a duo for awhile, observing the school for any ghosts with sophisticated cameras and scanners. They later teamed up with other psychics that are called in to help with the exorcism. Houshou Takigawa, or Buo-san as everyone calls him, is a Buddhist monk from Mt. Koya. His main job however is a bass guitarist for a big band in Japan. Another exorcist that joins the group is Ayako Matsuzaki, a head strong self proclaimed priestess that seems to fail at every turn and appears to be a sham. Also the famous spirit medium that has a show about speaking to ghosts, Masako Hara, joins the SPR force. Then finally, the team is completed with a nineteen year old Catholic exorcist from Australia named John Brown.
The SPR group is followed by Kuroda as she insists that there are spirits that haunt the school. Despite that the medium, Masako, claims that there are no evil spirits, and the tests conducted by Naru (aka Kazuya Shibuya the SPR director). They conduct numerous of exorcisms and tests, but they could not find the answer to the problem. Naru then used his clever means of implanting a thought to the the team and see if they acted on it. He discovered that Kuroda, had some spiritual powers and rigged the entire school for attention
With that case solved, Mia is allowed to work part time with the SPR. They solve very dramatic cases and put their lives on the line many times to seek the answers as to why these spirits will not leave. Mai is taught to do minor exorcisms as well and tries to aid as best as she can. Although her knowledge is some what lacking in the phenomenal arts, she tries her best to please Naru to be a worthy asset to the team.
Starting out, I was a little nervous that this series was going to disappoint me. Seeming like some school girl drama show toward the begin was a big let down. Once the show got rolling however, I found it more chilling then some of the big Hollywood Horror hits! The writer was really thorough in his use of Ancient Japanese and even Ancient Chinese rituals and beliefs.
Another interesting character in this series is Mai. She is a orphan school girl that is very head strong and voices her thoughts and opinions a lot. She doesn’t have any special skills like the other psychics at first, but then she discovers that her sleep is a form of telepathy that shows her what spirits feel and even their memories. She becomes a big asset for the group, because her telepathic dreams lead to the solutions of the hauntings.
Overall, this is a great series filled with tons of scary stories ranging from devestating heartbreaks to vengeful spirits seeking retribution. A must see for ghost enthusiasts and anime fans a like.