Chris Hardwick's Blog, page 2234

Family Switches Sides in Full THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS Trailer and Poster

If you were wondering how Charlize Theron would pose a suitable threat to the combined forces of the Rock and Vin Diesel, now you do. She’s playing them against each other, and pretty much everyone in the audience is probably rooting for a bigger and better Rock-Diesel fight than Fast Five gave us. The new poster, also revealed today, plays this aspect up:

But The Fate of the Furious–a punny title based on it being the eighth film in the Fast and Furious franchise, or “F 8”–doesn’t just tease a possible “heel” turn for Vin. Like a savvy wrestling promotion, and any smart series of films that has big names under contract, it looks like Fate will force Jason Statham’s villainous Deckard Shaw to fight on the side of justice…or, at least, the side of Kurt Russell, which is not necessarily the same thing. (Just kidding–in our world, it totally is.)

The trailer literally comes in with a wrecking ball and does not let up; if you’ve ever wondered what the nerd appeal of this series of movies is, it’s that the lead characters are basically indestructible mutants and their cars superheroes, with colorful “costumes” and abilities real cars just don’t have. And with forays into Iceland and Cuba this time around, the globe-trotting scope of a James Bond film is again established.

Are you revved up for a fast fate? Who will win, before they inevitably team up again (we hope)? Will Furiosa break up the Furious? Tell us your thoughts below.

Images: Universal

 

And Now, Here’s More Vin Diesel:

Why James Gunn Used Baby Groot in GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 2

While Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is still six months away, the first trailer was greeted by nearly universal acclaim and it appears that Baby Groot may be the breakout character of the film. However, there are cynics who have suggested that Baby Groot’s inclusion was part of a marketing scheme to sell toys. Director James Gunn is now pushing back against that claim, and he’s not only explained why he left Groot as a baby, he’s revealed that the original plan was for Groot to once again be an adult!

In a post on his Facebook page, Gunn wrote “when I was first working on the script for Vol. 2 I was planning on it being years after the first movie and for little Groot to be a grown Groot. But there was something missing. First of all, I thought there was a lot of development the group needed to go through as a group – and it would be a shame for the audience to miss it. And, secondly, for whatever reason, Groot just wasn’t working. It was then I came upon the idea of having Vol. 2 take place very shortly after the first film and for Groot to still be Baby Groot, with quite a lot to learn. Even though I had already long-ago-decided on the other characters involved, this change opened up the whole movie for me and it suddenly all came together. I fell in love with the script for Vol. 2, and I felt like we were creating something very special.”

Gunn added that “All that said, I’m not an idiot. I knew if Baby Groot worked, the world would want Baby Groot toys and figures and plushies. But that certainly didn’t seem like a certainty when I was alone in my office conceiving of a story, and it most definitely was not the driving force of the decision. I, like so many of you through the trailer alone, had fallen in love with the little dude – even though at that point he was only in my head.”

It should be noted that Gunn didn’t come up with the idea for Baby Groot. That notion took root in the Annihilation: Star-Lord miniseries by Keith Giffen and Timothy Green II, in which Groot sacrificed himself for the team and was reborn as a sapling. Obviously, that carried over to the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie and it led to that very crowd pleasing mid-credits scene with Baby Groot and Drax the Destroyer. Despite the comic book history of Baby Groot, Gunn appears to be the first one to really take advantage of using a younger Groot for an entire story. But don’t get too used to this version of Groot: Vin Diesel has been hinting that Groot will fight the Hulk in Avengers: Infinity War, and he can’t do that as a baby! We expect that Groot will once again go through a metamorphosis in the sequel, and he will probably be his old self again by the end of Vol. 2. They grow up so fast!

Do you want Groot to remain Baby Groot, or should he quickly reclaim his adult form? Shout “I am Groot!!!” in the comment section below!

Image: Marvel Studios

Now, Mr. Gunn, we have some other things to ask you about:

SPECTRAL Is Not Based on a Video Game, but It Sure Feels Like It (Review)

I had to pause the new Netflix action/sci-fi flick Spectral two separate times to make sure it wasn’t based on a comic book or (more specifically) a video game, and that’s because, well, it plays exactly like a video game based on a comic book would play. And in this case, the end result is actually pretty amusing. Make no mistake: Spectral combines military action, supernatural horror, and high-tech sci-fi craziness into a broad, familiar, and generally entertaining genre film–but let’s just say this flick isn’t exactly what we’d call Oscar bait. It’s a B-movie that knows it’s a b-movie, and if it happens to have (considerably) better special effects than your standard B-movie, then let’s just consider that a small bonus and move on.

The basic gist of the plot: a bunch of American soldiers on a peacekeeping mission in Moldova are being slaughtered by creatures that sure as hell act a whole lot like ghosts: mean, aggressive, seemingly invincible ghosts who can kill a person simply by sweeping through them like a cold breeze. Eventually the brass (Bruce Greenwood, adding his standard dosage of class to a potentially goofy concept) calls in Dr. Clyne (James Badge Dale), the science nerd who designed the special goggles required to actually see the evil apparitions….

Anyway, the scientist starts to investigate and then all hell breaks loose and it’s a pretty fast-paced series of chases, escapes, and kinetic action sequences for the next (appreciably well-paced) 90-some minutes. Mr. Dale acquits himself nicely as a smart yet ass-kickin’ action hero, Emily Mortimer is on hand as a secret agent who (obviously) has a few secrets, and we even get a little bit of Stephen Root at the beginning (that’s always a good thing). Some of the soldiers even get a small dash of personality, and little touches like that often help a whole lot.

Originally produced for theaters but snatched up by Netflix instead, Spectral isn’t the kind of unapologetic B-movie that usually rakes in tons of cash at the box office, so what may have been a one-week run in theaters turns into a surprisingly entertaining feather in Netflix’s cap. Like most genre mash-ups, Spectral does occasionally get too goofy for its own good (like a scene in which our super-genius hero builds an entire arsenal of high-tech weapons seemingly overnight) but it also earns points for leaping into its action, sci-fi, and horror tropes with both feet. The ghost effects are pretty excellent, and several of the action bits are shot with a nice sense of energy/attitude, so while Spectral is most assuredly composed of several components we’ve all seen before, it still earns some credit for being entertaining while being vaguely, perpetually, perhaps even comfortably familiar.

Written by George Nolfi (The Adjustment Bureau) and directed by first-timer Nic Mathieu, Spectral probably won’t win many awards for originality, but if you’re down for a “ghosts vs. soldiers” action flick that doesn’t take itself all that seriously, moves at a nice pace, and boasts a rousing Tom Holkenberg (Junkie XL) score, then Spectral will probably fit the bill.

And I’m still not entirely convinced that this movie isn’t based on a video game. A few hero shots all but scream Halo, Gears of War, or Call of Duty.

3.5 seemingly invincible undead burritos out of 5

(Image: Netflix)

Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a part of Legendary Digital Networks, a subsidiary of Legendary Pictures.

ASH VS. EVIL DEAD’s Ashy Slashy Puppet Will Get an Official Release Next Year!

Tonight, the second season finale of Ash vs. Evil Dead will arrive on Starz, and it will bring TV’s bloodiest comedy to a temporary conclusion. There’s already a third season in the works for next year, and that’s not the only good news: NECA is going to release an Ashy Slashy puppet in 2017!

The news was announced on NECA’s official twitter account in the following post:

Tonight the season finale of @AshvsEvilDead I’ll be watching w this vulgar little bastard. He can be yours in 2017!!! #ashyslashy pic.twitter.com/2w75QanAud

— NECA (@NECA_TOYS) December 11, 2016

Within the world of the show, “Ashy Slashy” is the unfortunate nickname given to Bruce Campbell‘s Ash after the events of the first two Evil Dead movies. The Ashy Slashy puppet made its debut this year in an episode in which Ash was seemingly made to believe that the past three decades of his life had been a delusion. Campbell’s interactions with the puppet were also some of the funniest moments this season, but we particularly loved Kelly’s wild fight with Ashy Slashy in the eighth episode.  This series is so delightfully insane that we wouldn’t be too shocked if Ashy Slashy shows up next season as well.

The Ashy Slashy puppet had an even more vulgar and hilarious personality than Ash himself, so we’re kind of hoping that this NECA release will include a few lines of Jeremy Dillon’s Ashy Slashy dialogue.

Are you excited to have an Ashy Slashy puppet of your own? Put some words into his mouth and leave a comment below!

Images: Starz/NECA

Super-Cut Of All the Questions In WESTWORLD Just Leaves Us With More

It’s already clear that Westworld has captivated audiences in ways we haven’t seen before. The minds behind the HBO show have hooked into something in all of us that keeps us coming back for more and they’ve done it in a very interesting way by positing dozens of questions and never really getting around to answering them.

The super-cut champs over at Burger Fiction are back again with their cut of mysterious questions asked throughout the first season of Westworld. Going back to the beginning, it strikes me as odd how what we know now that the season is over answers (to some degree) questions asked in some of the very first scenes of the very first episodes. The cryptic nature of how questions are asked, the connection to Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland stories, and even the nature of how they’re are answered with more questions is something I find rather ingenious.

To me, it seems the show’s creators were deliberate in having characters ask so many things. I don’t believe it was to necessarily answer them all but, instead, to train us to constantly ask our own. While watching a world where hosts don’t know they’re robots and question the world around them, we as the audience began to question what we’ve learned and witnessed along the way. Ostensibly, Westworld bled out into our world having us question the “reality” of the show itself and the story we were watching.

While other super popular shows like Game Of Thrones, The Walking Dead, and Better Call Saul seem to build up to shocking reveals that can change the entire course of their respective shows leaving us breathless now knowing for sure what happened or what’s going to happen, Westworld’s shocking reveals cause us to immediately ask more questions and doubt what we just saw.

A show that revolved around questions of reality has turned its audience into detectives questioning the same. I think a big part of why so many people love Westworld is that every answer we’re given doesn’t satisfy us like most television does but, instead, fuels our desire to continue to poke and prod at what could be.

What are you favorite Westworld theories? Will we ever get an answer of why the maze is tattooed under people’s scalps? Can you get a day pass? What are the parking lots like? Let’s discuss in the comments below!

Image: Burger Fiction/Westworld HBO

This totally not-fake, NSFW scene may or may not answer anything:

Scream at a Wall: Give the Gift of Hardcore and Heavy Music

It’s the season of giving; that time of year when we gather with friends and family to share the spirit of the holiday through the time honored tradition of buying stuff. After all, how will the most important people in your life know you really love them if you don’t spend lots of money on gifts for them? Stop being such a cheap-ass and open that wallet.

With that in mind, we present our guide to the best holiday inspired hardcore, heavy metal, and punk rock! Show that special crust punk just how much you care with the gift of some new thrash vinyl! Grandma would look awfully sharp in some new Neurosis gear! Uncle Jimmy is a jerk and doesn’t really deserve anything, but since you’re nice you can get him a Deathwish Inc. enamel pin. The family who gets in the pit together, stays together.

 

Deathwish Inc. Holiday Guide

Our pals at Deathwish Inc. have assembled a super classy Holiday Guide over at their online store. You can pick up copies of new releases like Oathbreaker’s utterly amazing Rheia and Planes Mistaken for Stars’ first album in ten years, Prey. There’s also the repress of the Converge classic Jane Doe, which is a must-own record. The best part is you get 10% off of everything in the guide, so order the fam a copy of Deafheaven’s Sunbather on vinyl. It’s the perfect record to spin on Christmas morning. Deathwish Inc. absolutely killed it on releases this year; there’s so much great stuff to chose from.

Prey by Planes Mistaken For Stars

 

Descendents Christmas Sweater

It’s become tradition for the Descendents to release a new Christmas sweater every year. They’re always awesome plus the band is even donating part of the proceeds to charity. You can feel good about buying this thing for yourself. You are helping do good in the world with your selfish purchase! It’s a beauty, for sure, so I’m sure your mom will understand you spending the cash on this instead of some junk for her that she’ll throw away the second you leave your parents’ house on Christmas Eve.

 

Dillinger Escape Plan – Dissociation Holiday LP Bundle

Dissociation is a masterpiece. The Dillinger Escape Plan may be calling it quits, but they are going out with one hell of a bang. They’re even releasing the album in a Special Holiday Edition that features Hanukkah themed vinyl. Just look at that thing! It’s gorgeous and will not doubt lead to eight days of hard and heavy thrashing. They are only printing up 100 of these, so go order one now.

 

Neurosis Wolf Mug

http://nerdist.com/wp-content/uploads... first cup of hot chocolate this winter will taste so much better when it’s sipped out of a Neurosis branded mug. Featuring the wolf from the album Times of Grace, this mug is a real stunner. Impress your coworkers when you return from the holiday break with this bad boy. The moment your boss sees you confidentially sipping your morning coffee out of this thing you’ll get promoted for sure!

While you are at it, check out the band’s superb new album, Fires Within Fires. It’s brilliant stuff.

 

Magic Bullet Records Vinyl Assortment Box

This is a great way to surprise a friend (or yourself if you are a dork with no friends). You go to the Magic Bullet Records webstore and order one of these mystery boxes and it’ll show up packed full of vinyl. The boxes are categorized based on your listening preference–I’d order the “Heavy” box, but that’s just me–so you can make sure that everything in there is right up your alley. Plus, this thing is super cheap: $15 bucks will get you a box filled with awesome records. Really, you could buy a couple boxes. Just something to think about.

COLISEUM & DOOMRIDERS “Not of this World” 7″ by Coliseum & Doomriders
Red Fang Enamel Pin

Enamel pins are the coolest. Remember when we used to wear regular buttons and pins? We were idiots. Enamel pins are slick and sophisticated. They show the world “Hey, I’m here and I have class and style!” Red Fang is a band that just oozes class and style, so of course they offer an awesome enamel pin. It’s rad looking and makes a perfect stocking stuffer.

Okay, that’s it for us this week. Spread some holiday cheer and listen to heavy metal. The world needs heavy metal now more than ever.

We’ll be back soon with a roundup of our favorite releases from 2016. If you have any suggestions, leave them in comments below. \m/

 

Image: Descendents

Benjamin Bailey writes for the Nerdist and can be found on Twitter talking about Godzilla, comic books, and hardcore music.

 

SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE’S Karate Kid Parody Makes John Cena the Bad Guy

For all you wrestling fans tired of John Cena being an indestructible hero, and wishing he’d do a “heel turn” (i.e. play the role of a villain), Saturday Night Live last night had you covered. And Cena’s not just any villain in “The Karate Teen.” He’s the quintessentially ’80s villain–the high school bully with blond, headbanded hair and the skills to kick the nerd’s ass and take his girlfriend.

Mikey Day’s Ralph Macchio-esque hero, Jeffy Le’Hart, has an ace up his sleeve: a special karate technique based on catching coins thrown into the air by his unlikely version of Mr. Miyagi: Kenan Thompson in  white beard. Does it work? Let’s just say that the skit, while over-the-top, is in some ways more realistic than either The Karate Kid or a typical John Cena WrestleMania match.

Still, short of the obsessive-compulsive, neat freak version of “himself” that Cena portrays on the reality show Total Bellas, this is probably the closest you’re going to get to seeing the pride of West Newbury being the antagonist in a fight with a predetermined finish. Unless the Rock comes back to make their ‘Mania main event series a best of three. But it proves he can be entertaining as the jerk, and makes us hope that at least in a movie, maybe he will be inclined to do more than just play hero to kids. His Trainwreck and Sisters cameos were good starts.

Can Cena win you over as a comic actor? “We can’t see you” unless you comment below with your thoughts!

DIRK GENTLY S1 Finale Recap: “Two Sane Guys” Turned Out to Be Exceptional

I was hoping for and expecting a lot of things from the season one finale of Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency from BBC America, all of which I got, and moe. Would all of the different plot lines come together in satisfying fashion? They did. Would the absurd and complicated story somehow make complete sense by the end? It did. Might the innocent Lydia at the middle of everything be saved? She was. But what made this final episode, “Two Sane Guys Doing Normal Things,” so exceptional, and as a result the whole season as well, was something I never hoped for because I was never expecting it, and that was just how emotional it all turned out to be.

Considering the convoluted (in the best way) story about a band of men that had come into possession of a time machine/soul-swapping device, by the time all of the different aspects of the story came together–in truly impressive fashion–in that basement, we were surprisingly overcome with emotion at Todd and Dirk’s success in saving Lydia, and in her reunion with Farrah. And that was already after Bart and Ken’s touching scene when he told her he wasn’t leaving her, after she had just discovered (much to her surprise) that sometimes the universe doesn’t make sense and we can’t always know what is coming next.

And that hilarious shrug between Ken and Todd was a quiet moment of perfection.

It was easy enough to appreciate just how coherent the whole, massive plot really was from the get-go, when Bart and Ken showed up just in the nick of time, proving that everything truly is/was connected (seriously, try and make a graph of everything that took place this season–including a timeline–and see how that goes). However, the real impressive work was making that entire story resonate so much on a personal level. For all of the awful things that happened (and were/are yet to happen), there was a beauty to it that transcended the silliness of the story, as well as its darkness. We always knew that the disparate events and character would come together, but this episode didn’t work so well because it made sense; it worked because it meant something.

Part of that was due to the truth about the whole story, that the time loop itself could/can never be closed, because to close it would be to wipe out Lydia Spring’s very existence. Patrick Spring was right: it always ends this way, because it has to. To try and erase our mistakes would be to erase who we are. In this case it was literal, but it was a powerful message from a show that managed to have insightful things to say amid an entertaining and totally insane story. There are far more “serious” and boring shows on television that have tried and failed to say something half as meaningful, all while using a heavy hand, instead of the lighter-tone Dirk Gently employed. And those shows don’t even have a band of murderous bald guys with electrified crossbows.

It’s especially great that the (first) ending didn’t wrap everything up nicely, because life doesn’t work like that. Amanda didn’t forgive Todd, and Patrick Spring will always die in that hotel to save his daughter. The second “ending,” where the new idiot in charge of rounding up the subjects of Project Blackwing was out hunting Dirk and his ilk, was really more prelude to season two than a conclusion to this story, but even that led to poor Estevez’s death, adding to the uneven resolution of season one’s story. The characters barely got to enjoy a job well done before the next, connected job, showed up. That’s perfect.

There was a little lull in the middle of this eight-episode season, where character motives and histories got repeated and the furious pace came to a disappointing halt, but ultimately this first year was completely crazy, totally complicated, and wholly entertaining.

Before it started I hoped all of those things would be true, but what ultimately made it great was the unexpected part. Everything was connected, and that turned out to include connecting us to all of it personally.

What did you think of the finale? What did you think of this first season? Talk about it with us in the comments section below.

Images: BBC America

STAR WARS REBELS Recap: Maul Returns in “Visions and Voices”

Warning: This recap contains spoilers for the Star Wars Rebels episode “Visions and Voices.” Jump into hyperspace and away from this page if you haven’t watched the episode yet.

It’s been a minute since Star Wars Rebels visited with Maul, and it was long overdue. The former Darth comes back into the picture because he’s found Atollon and wants to merge his mind with Ezra’s so they can each get the complete information they sought from the Sith holocron. But does Maul do the polite thing and send a note first or simply knock on the door of the Rebel base? No, he gets in Ezra’s head in “Visions and Voices.”

Ezra started sensing Maul’s presence before he saw him. The kid was more or less having hallucination-like visions. He became so convinced one of his fellow Rebels was Maul that he was this close to killing him before Kanan intervened. It was unnerving to see Ezra lose control to such a degree. When Ezra told Kanan what was happening, Kanan listened and they went to Bendu.

I’ve missed Bendu. Ezra told the wise being what happened when he and Maul looked into the holocron and Bendu gave his frank opinion: “That’s not good.” Ezra and Kanan didn’t have time to discuss it further because Maul showed up. Insert ominous music cue here. He proposed to Ezra, whom he keeps calling his apprentice, the idea of melding their minds to share what they saw when they opened the holocron together. Maul could find out where the person he’s looking for is, Ezra could learn the answer to what will help them defeat the Sith.

Before we continue, I want to point out the difference in their questions. They have the opportunity to more or less discover anything they want to know. Maul makes a personal, selfish request, while Ezra goes a more selfless route. It’s classic dark side and light side and gives me hope for Ezra maybe not crossing over.

Ezra goes along with Maul’s plan because he’s curious and also because Maul threatened to reveal the location of Chopper base. Major points to Kanan here, because he let Ezra make up his own mind and also reassured him having to find a new base for the Rebels wasn’t the end of the world. He was an ideal mentor in this situation, and I’ve enjoyed watching Kanan get to this point.

Where does Maul take Ezra to perform this mind meld? Dathomir. Yes, Dathomir, guys! Exciting, right? Well, it’s exciting if you watched Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Maul explained he was the last survivor on the planet because the Empire viewed the Nightsisters as a threat and wiped them all out. Damn. Pour one out for the Nightsisters. Their use of the Force combined with the magic of their planet made them interesting but apparently too powerful.

Maul’s lair was filled with artifacts from his past to help him find the answer he was looking for. Clone Wars fans will recognize the portrait of Satine Kryze (if you haven’t watched Clone Wars, I won’t spoil what her relationship with Maul was) and Pre Vizsla’s darksaber. I got chills seeing both of these items.

While I was gaping over Maul’s walk down memory lane, he prepared the potion to combine his and Ezra’s thoughts. They both drained it and saw what they were looking for. Maul was indeed looking for Obi-Wan Kenobi because said “it will end where it began.” Tatooine is where he first met the Jedi, and Maul’s never let go of his vengeful feelings toward Obi-Wan.

And hey, Obi-Wan was the answer to Ezra’s question, too. Ezra doesn’t have the history to know the desert plan with twin suns is Tatooine, so it’s a race to beat Maul to the Jedi. I’m beyond excited about the possibility of seeing Obi-Wan in Star Wars Rebels. Given Ewan McGregor’s enthusiasm to return to Star Wars and how he returned to voice the character in The Force Awakens (during Rey’s Force vision at Maz’s castle), I wouldn’t rule out him doing the voice. But yes, I would miss James Arnold Taylor (he voiced Obi-Wan in The Clone Wars and at the beginning of Star Wars Rebels) if that’s the case.

Before leaving Dathomir armed with information, Ezra and Maul were attacked by spirits of the Nightsisters. Sabine and Kanan arrived because they followed Ezra, and they were possessed by said spirits. As Maul and Ezra ran away from the spirits, Maul pleaded with Ezra to join him in going after Obi-Wan. Maul’s voice had a hint of desperation and emotion; it unexpectedly grabbed me—he told Ezra they could be brothers. Aww, Maul misses Savage.

Ezra, of course, declined and figured out how to free Kanan and Sabine from the spirits; he destroyed the altar that gave the spirits their power. It felt symbolic, like a final destruction of the old magic of Dathomir. As they left, Kanan said this adventure was really, no for real, the last time they were going to trust Maul and Sabine scooped up the darksaber. Acquiring the weapon more than makes up for her jetpack loss.

Who do you think will find Obi-Wan first, and when do you think we’ll see him? Tell me in the comments.

Images: Disney XD

This is starting to make more sense now…

This Guy Made an “Airzooka” Airgun and It Can Blow Holes in Car Doors

It’s difficult to rank the highlights of The Slingshot Channel’s “Airzooka” videos, but if some of the more wonderful things had to be listed, they’d include the host’s thick German accent, his slightly demonic belly laugh, the name “Airzooka,” and of course, the Airzooka itself: a ridiculously high-powered airgun–possibly the world’s largest according to The Slingshot Channel–that makes swiss cheese out of car doors and presumably anything else in its path.

The Airzooka obviously uses compressed air to fire its projectile, but the pipe on this thing is massive, which means massive thrust. Massive thrust for what? A gigantic “arrow” made of a metal tubing with a roughly 2.55-inch diameter and a “you’re gonna die just looking at this thing” needle tip.

The shoulder-mounted airgun–let that sink in: shoulder-mounted airgun–weighs roughly 33 pounds, and when The Slingshot Channel’s host, Jörg Sprave, fires it, it literally blows him away. Surveying the damage done by the massive “arrow” (really, it’s a small office building), Sprave notes that the result of the Airzooka is [insert Arnold Schwarzenegger voice] “Pure destruction.”

While the above video of the Airzooka is great, it’s also impossible to get enough Airzooka. Which is why it should be considered a true blessing of the Anemoi that we have more Airzooka action in the video below:

What do you think about the monstrous Airzooka? Do want one for a Christmas present? Do you want to arm yourself with one against Robot Santa Claus from Futurama? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

Images: JoergSprave