At Comic-Con: Humans Are Corruptible but Machines Are Not in ‘RoboCop’

After a supposedly tumultuous production process and getting bumped from its summer 2013 release and pushed to February 7, 2014, RoboCop finally rolled into Hall H and, despite those rocky times, everything sounds and looks relatively promising.

The Highlights

— Director José Padilha explained, “We didn’t try to redo the same RoboCop because it was perfect the way it was. We just took the concept of RoboCop… and we brought it to the present.” He also pointed out, “We’ll soon be seeing robots being used in war as you’ve seen in the footage. This is gonna become a big issue.” He added that he thinks the introduction of robots to the warfront will go down as we see it in his film – first we’ll use the machines abroad for foreign policies and interventions, and then we’ll bring them home.

— Michael Keaton described Raymond Sellars as “a complex dude.” He further explained, “He sees a bigger picture and he simplifies everything. He’s the ultimate pragmatist.” If Sellars asks someone if what he’s doing could make the world a better place and that person says yes, then Sellars insists that that’s what they need to do, regardless of the finer details. Keaton also highlighted that Sellars isn’t really a villain, but rather an antagonist.

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Review: Safe House

Proper pacing is a wonderful thing, especially when you’ve got a movie about a hyper intelligent rogue CIA agent wreaking havoc with some potentially devastating information. Move too slowly and you run the risk of bogging moviegoers down with details that could ultimately become too cumbersome to sort out. Then again, move too quickly and you might not leave enough time for an audience to absorb all the necessary details. No, Safe House doesn’t nestle itself near the happy medium, rather veers towards the quicker side, but leaves just enough breathing room to give the story some weight and still solidify it as a thrill ride.

Working for the CIA sounds like a pretty cool gig, right? Well, apparently before you get to the secret agent stuff, you’ve got to babysit a safe house and Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds) has been stuck with that dull duty one month too many. Meanwhile, the CIA’s most notorious traitor, Tobin Frost (Denzel Washington), puts an end to his decade-long hideout and is sent to Matt’s Cape Town safe house.

Matt’s shocked and honored when one of the most brilliant and illusive men in the world is put under his care, but is caught even more off guard when his facility is ambushed by men after Frost. The two narrowly escape and it’s up to Matt to get Frost to a new secure location. However, Frost may be turned, but he still retains all the ability that made him one of the CIA’s best and his manipulation tactics slowly eat away at Matt’s steadfastness.

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Review: The Darkest Hour

Tell us an alien invasion movie is on the way and, regardless of who’s in it or what it’s about, it sparks intrigue. Not only am I particularly guilty of this in general, but upon hearing the concept backing The Darkest Hour, I fell head over heels for what should have been a wildly original dose of ET destruction. However, perhaps test screenings didn’t go as planned, because as the film’s Christmas day release approached, its marketing campaign fizzled out, warning us of what’s to come. Is it all that bad? No, but it’s certainly not worth a promotional push especially with the high quality fare it’s going up against.

Longtime buddies Sean and Ben (Emile Hirsch and Max Minghella) head to Moscow for a business venture, the opportunity to develop their smartphone social networking application, The Globe Trot. It’s too bad their Swedish partner, Skyler (Joel Kinnaman), decides to steal their idea and present it as his own. Now abroad and with nothing to do, the boys turn to booze and drown their sorrows in a night out. That’s when they meet another traveling duo, Natalie and Anne (Olivia Thirlby and Rachael Taylor).

It’s all fun and games until the power goes out. When the partygoers head outside to investigate, they come face-to-face with the culprit, an invading alien race. The foursome and Skyler manage to barricade themselves in the club basement for the initial onslaught, but, even after emerging days later, the streets are still overrun with invaders, invisible balls of electricity with the power to turn their victims to dust.

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SDCC 2011: All Good Things Must Come To An End … With A Giveaway!

I can’t believe it, but this is officially it; my coverage of San Diego Comic Con 2011 has come to a close. For five incredibly long days, the experience went by in a flash. The action was non-stop from the moment I touched down in San Diego and while it was extremely exhausting and probably one of the most trying working experiences I’ve ever gone through, it was beyond worth it.

So, what’d you think? Did you like my coverage choices? Were the formats I chose to report in effective? Do let me know because I’m thrilled to say, it looks as though I’ll be returning to Comic Con next year!

I do know I learned quite a few things for myself while out west. First off, I need to pack more food than a box of granola bars, or at least make time to pick up some items at a local supermarket. Between running around collecting coverage and then writing it up, there’s little to no time to grab a bite. Second, if I want to cover a panel, I’ve either got to get on line at about 5am or hunt down a press pass. I arrived for The Walking Dead panel over three hours early and the line to get into Ballroom 20 was already about 10,000 people long!

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SDCC 2011: Saturday Wrap Up And Photos

I can’t believe it, but I’ve reached the finish line. Saturday at San Diego Comic Con 2011 has come to a close. While I’m certainly looking forward to a long day’s rest and not having to lug my hefty laptop around everywhere I go, my coverage schedule wrapping up is a bit sad. At least it all ended on a high note.

Today was another non-stop adventure beginning with Summit Entertainment’s The Darkest Hour presentation. Unlike the big panels in Hall H, this was far more intimate, Summit inviting a group of reporters to a suite in the Hard Rock Hotel to check out some concept art, stills and the film’s trailer. Cast members Emile Hirsch, Max Minghella and Joel Kinnaman were in the house as producers Timur Bekmambetov and Tom Jacobson walked us through the event.

With a little time to kill before The Vampire Diaries press room, I hit the convention center floor to check out the action and snap a few photos one last time. However, some of my favorite images come from the point during which I made my way from the floor to the press room, the photos of the Game of Thrones house banners hanging in the second floor halls.

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SDCC 2011: The Darkest Hour Presentation And Trailer

How many alien invasion films can we handle? This year alone we’ve already had Battle: Los Angeles, Super 8, Transformers: Dark of the Moon and both Attack the Block and Cowboys and Aliens are on the way. Sure, I can’t drape a sense of negativity over all of them, but, let’s face it, ET’s taking over the Earth is a bit, well, overdone. However, after checking out Summit Entertainment’s The Darkest Hour presentation this morning, I can assure you that at least one of the upcoming alien takeover films is worth keeping an eye on.

A group of reporters hit a specially outfitted room in the Hard Rock Hotel, decked out in concept art and stills from director Chris Gorak The Darkest Hour. After a little schmoozing and some coffee consumption, Gorak and producer Tom Jacobson kicked things off by summing up the plot of the film. The film stars Emile Hirsch and Olivia Thirlby as two members of a group of Americans vacationing in Moscow, Russia. “And that’s when the invasion happens. It happens early in our story,” Gorak explains. “Through a frantic escape, they manage to hide and avoid the initial wave of attack.” After taking cover for a few days, the group resurfaces to find that Moscow is completely destroyed.

A prime element of the story to Gorak is “moving through this apocalyptic world through the character’s perspective and taking this journey with them and discovering the powers of the alien and eventually how to fight back.” As for those invaders, they’re a pivotal part of what makes The Darkest Hour so unique and particularly visually stimulating, too. Gorak explained, “We learn through their powers that they are made up of a lethal wave of energy and basically eliminated any modern technology that you can image.” My personal worst nightmare.

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