There is only one title worth noting at the movie theaters this week: Kick Ass. The critics are going nuts, and the trailers are excellent, so this movie is on the top of my watch list for the big screen this weekend. Except for Saturday night of course, when I will be watching the US Premiere of the New Who. In fact, over at TOR, they are doing a week long countdown to Who with a new nifty posting every day, and a friend just tweeted this Who-Inspired Picture that has nothing to do with the official program, but I didn’t mind. Hey, there is even an official countdown clock:
The live action feature film selection for this week is Defendor, and no, spelling is not one of his super powers. A comic book super hero (and his shrink) movie that should go very well with this weeks theatrical release, Kick Ass. This was in very limited release in theaters, so this is your chance to see it.
The one that could have been a documentary but wasn’t is Pirate Radio. It also could have been science fiction, but wasn’t, since this kind of radio was a central part of the evolution of Rock-N-Roll in England, accompanied by its US equivalents in the form of Underground Radio during those same years. As a former DJ at one of those stations, I enjoyed every moment of this film, even the painful ones which sometimes had the highest percentage of truth in them.
The one that actually was a documentary is Digital Nation, a PBS special out this week on DVD. Part of an ongoing Frontline report, this one investigates what it means to grow up digital, and presents it in a format that the digitally impaired (predominantly parents) can relate to. Not genre, but definitely geek friendly.
There seems to be a bit of confusion about Sex Galaxy, with some sites reporting it comes out this week. You missed the target, folks, that was last week, but if you don’t have it already it is silly fun you should add to your collection.
Space Ranger: Complete Collection is a live-action offering from Japan that may be on a par with Power Rangers (it is a bit hard to tell, as no one seems to want to talk about them). I won’t be tracking this one down until I learn a bit more about it, and will wait for Venus Ranger later in the month… or perhaps not.
The live action import from the orient I will be tracking down and adding to the permanent collection is Three Kingdoms-Resurrection of the Dragon. The Three Kingdoms period of China’s history generated some of the best sources of heroic struggle known to man, and with the backdrop of such a large canvas (the land the history took place in, and the people who lived there) the epic nature of the tales combined with the wide screen cinematography it takes to tell such epics has produced some wonderful movies.
On the animation front Living for the Day After Tomorrow – Complete Collection also becomes available this week. Fans of Big or Freaky Friday should enjoy this one; a young girl who hates being treated like a child and a young woman who longs for simpler times get to exchange ages.
The rather more mature animation Rei Rei (OAV) also becomes available this week, for the first time in a while.
Here is a short segment from a new film from Ridley Scott crew member Carl Erik Rinsch. He calls it Small and/or The Gift, and I can’t wait to see the feature version of this; it looks like it could be a monster!
The Hugo Award nominees for this year have been announced, and you can find the full list at Tor Dot Com. You can also find links there to read a number of the stories online, including Charles Stross’s Overtime, another tale of the Laundry that so far has only been published online.
This one is a bit silly, and very Otaku. Van Von Hunter rolls with the tag line “Putting the Van in Vanquished“, and is a live-action comedy mocumentary. It takes place in Hollywood and Tokyo, with a hero who is out to vanquish evil and save the world… sort of. Watch it now at Crunchyroll.
Some interesting things from the realm of Doctor Who are available this week, with others coming soon. In the Classic Who category there are two audio treats that you still have a few days to get in on, as part of the ongoing 7th Dimension audio series on BBC7. Both of these are fun, starting with Tom Baker reading from the first 4th Doctor adventure, Doctor Who and the Giant Robot. And yes, they even include the bit where Baker chose his costume for his version of The Doctor in this Big Finish production. You should hit it now, as of the point I am writing this you only have 5 days before the first episode is no longer available. You only have 4 days left to catch episode two of Barry Letts Who & Me, in which The Doctor Who TV producer from 1969 to 1974 recounts his career. There are some wonderful behind the scenes bits about Patrick Troughton and Jon Pertwee in this one. So while I am really looking forward to the new series, it is good to know Classic Who still has some new things to offer.