One of television’s busiest and best directors is going to be bringing Godzilla to the small screen for AppleTV+. Matt Shakman, known for his work directing all of “WandaVision,” more than 40 episodes of “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” and the pilot of “The Great,” will be helming the first two episodes of the upcoming Godzilla […]
Continue readingWhenever Roland Emmerich comes up in a film discussion, talk turns to his entries in the disaster genre. Sometimes it’s with fond remembrance, especially when it comes to discussing “Independence Day.” Other times it’s with scorn, especially when it comes to his take on Godzilla and that “Independence Day” sequel. However, Emmerich’s sci-fi epic “Stargate” […]
Continue readingTakarada Akira, best known as a star in the early “Godzilla” films and Toho’s other kaiju (monster) and sci-fi movies from the 1950s and 1960s, died on Monday. He was 87. The cause of death has not been announced.Born in 1934 in Japan-occupied Korea, Takarada came with his family to Japan in 1948 as a […]
Continue readingJapanese actor Akira Takarada, best known for his role in Toho’s “Godzilla” movie series, has died at the age of 87. Takarada received top billing in the original 1954 “Godzilla” film, in which he starred as Hideto Ogata, a sailor for the South Seas Salvage company and one-third of the movie’s central love triangle. His character had to liaison with […]
Continue readingYou’ve heard of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the wide, ever-growing interconnected stories that come along (and are still coming along) with its creation. Now it’s time for the Shin Japan Heroes Universe (Sjhu), described as a “miracle project” in which four iconic works — “Godzilla,” “Ultraman,” “Kamen Rider,” and “Evangelion” — will be brought […]
Continue readingLet’s get something straight: Godzilla, Marvel, and that tough guy who drinks martinis only have some of the most extensive cinematic universes because J.R.R. Tolkien’s material has been taking the scenic route to the screen. The journey to shepherd and destroy the One Ring in the fiery pits of Mordor took three books and three […]
Continue readingGary Whitta has been knocking about Hollywood for many years, having received his first screenwriting credit for “The Book of Eli,” the 2010 Hughes Brothers film starring Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman. Whitta co-wrote “After Earth” with M. Night Shyamalan, helped conceive the plot for “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” and wrote several episodes […]
Continue readingI long for the days when the public perception of conspiracy theories was based in nonsensical fun like whether or not Bigfoot is real, and not this current timeline where people gather en masse at Dealey Plaza awaiting the “return” of the very dead JFK Jr. so he can become the vice presidential running mate […]
Continue readingReviewing a lavish new Hollywood musical in the Sept. 29, 1968, issue of The New Yorker, Pauline Kael wrote, “Barbra Streisand arrives on the screen, in ‘Funny Girl,’ when the movies are in desperate need of her. The timing is perfect.” I’m tempted to say the same thing about Lady Gaga. Suddenly, she’s ruling the […]
Continue readingWhen Legendary Entertainment debuted its “MonsterVerse” with “Godzilla” in 2014, you stuck it out through the generic family drama and the two MUTOs for the promise of seeing the big G. You reveled in the “Apocalypse Now” Vietnam War-era vibes of “Kong: Skull Island” in 2017, and you basked in seeing titans like Mothra, Ghidorah, […]
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