Cool Stuff: Hot Toys’ Iron Man and The Dark Knight

Hot Toys’ 1/6th-scaled Ion Man, Batman, Batpod and Tumbler were on display at the 2008 Tokyo Toy Show. No word on street dates or price, but boy are these sweet. I’m amazed at the incredible detail. Even the replaceable sculpts of Christian Bale and Robert Downey Jr are incredibly accurate. And if you aren’t impressed with the figures, look closely at the Batpod scaled replica below. WOW.

And I’m not exactly sure which company made this early Batman concept. I’m not even sure if this is a tie in with The Dark Knight (doesn’t appear to be). But it certainly looks cool.

Check out more photos from Tokyo Toy Fair 2008 on onesixthwarriors and new-akiba.

Cool Stuff is a daily feature of slashfilm.com. Know of any geekarific creations or cool products which should be featured on Cool Stuff?

VOTD: 300 With Lightsabers

300 With Lightsabers by inlineskater666

The Pitch: What if George Lucas made 300? This fan made video mash-up proves that anything is better with lightsabers. Thanks to /Film reader Oscar for sending this in. One more from YouTube below.

Watch More Cool Videos Here!

Video of the Day is a daily feature of /Film showcasing geekarific video creations. Have a video we should be feature on VOTD?

Eagle Eye: Eight New Photos

Eight new photos from DJ Caruso’s Eagle Eye have hit the net. Click on the images above and below to enlarge.

In the fast-paced race-against-time-thriller “Eagle Eye” Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan are two strangers who become the pawns of a mysterious woman they have never met, but who seems to know their every move. Realizing they are being used to further her diabolical plot, they must work together to outwit the woman before she has them killed.

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Eagle Eye will hit theaters on September 26th 2008.

New Transformers 2 Autos Revealed

Okay, sure, we don’t REALLY know which new Transformers will be appearing in Michael Bay’s Transformers 2. But we do have photos of new concept cars running around the TF2 movie set.

So lets take a look at the alt modes of some of the autobots and decepticons you might be seeing on the big screen come June 2009.

A red/orange 2009 Chevy Trax was spotted driving down Front Street with Bumblebee and the Chevy Beat that has been previously seen at the Smithsonian set. Since they have been seen at multiple locations traveling with the Autobots, I’m guessing they are part of the team.

In our first Transformers Secrets Revealed article we told you about a new set of Autobots featured in the opening sequence. An old beat up ice cream truck split in two to form two smaller Transformers called The Twins. But we haven’t seen the Ice Cream Truck back in action since the Bethlehem Steel shoot which leads us to believe that The Twins might have found a new auto form, possibly as the Chevy Trax and Chevy Beat. But then again, that might take away from the coolness of two Transformers which combine together into one vehicle. Its also worth mentioning that there is one more car in the Chevy line of concept cars that hasn’t yet made an appearance, The Chevy Groove. The photo from the set comes from jalopnik.

Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins Teaser Trailer Description

Ladies and gentlemen, buckle yourselves in as we journey into a teaser trailer description. Just minutes ago, AICN confirmed a spy’s rundown of the Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins teaser that will be attached to The Dark Knight next month. Slashfilm is divided in our anticipation for this one, but I’ll admit that the primary focus on Christian Bale, his fittingly epic, doomsayer voice-over and the Terminator appearance sound quite agreeable, and more importantly, faithful to canon. Here’s the capper…

“We then get the big money shot of the trailer. Its Bale on a motorcycle with some girl on the back. They speed through a door of what looks like a warehouse toward us. As soon as they pass the screen, a huge terminator on wheels, a lot like the one they battle in the first one, smashes through the wall, chasing them. It looks awesome.”

According to the spy, Bale’s John Connor looks very similar in build and general appearance to his Bruce Wayne, possibly with noticeable battle scares and combat wear-and-tear. So, yeah, he looks like Christian Bale. The teaser reportedly has glimpses of several survivor camps, a war chest of firearms, quick shots of a helicopter, a “huge truck” and notably the foreboding Terminator theme is present throughout. Again, Connor’s voice-over sounds particularly spot-on: “I always knew it could happen…They told me I could stop it…That I could save us…I was wrong.”

Sure, it’s not much, but we’ve all seen enough blockbuster previews to develop a pseudo Spidey-sense. Hopefully it impresses on screen. If so, it will be a suitably dark and enticing primer for Nolan’s Batman sequel, the movie that looks to rule Summer ‘08, and a solid preamble for a risky new PG-13 Terminator trilogy from the director of Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle.

Sneak Preview: Pixar’s Presto

Pixar has released a 30 second preview of Doug Sweetland’s computer animated short film Presto, which you will see in front of WALL-E. I’ve seen it and will tell you that it’s probably the best Pixar short since 2000’s For the Birds. Very reminiscent of the old Warner Bros cartoons.

Official Plot Synopsis: Dignity. Poise. Mystery. We expect nothing less from the great, turn-of-the-century magician, Presto. But, when Presto forgets to feed his rabbit one too many times, well, there’s really no telling what to expect! This latest comical short film from Pixar Animation Studios follows the escalating high jinx of the amazing Presto, his rabbit Alec, and what happens onstage when a star magician’s ego provokes some clever revenge from his neglected costar.

WALL-E hits theaters on June 27th 2008.

Cool Stuff: Electric Zombie’s Stay Tuff Ghostbusters T-Shirt

Electric Zombie is selling this cool Stay Tuff t-shirt, a call back to our favorite giant Marshmallow Man, as seen in Ghostbusters. Available in white, from Small to XXL for $20. Now if only they made the same design on black tees… Thanks to /Film reader Double J for sending over the tip.

Cool Stuff is a daily feature of slashfilm.com. Know of any geekarific creations or cool products which should be featured on Cool Stuff?

The Wackness Red Band Movie Trailer

The Wackness is one of those movies which is almost impossible to market in a PG world. It’s about a teenager drug dealer’s last summer before he heads off to college. And while that’s the one sentence breakdown, I’m sure you can already tell, it’s much more than that. I’ve given this movie rave after rave, and have seen it four times on the festival circuit. So there is no point in telling you it’s one of my favorite films of the year.

Until today, the teaser trailers have been rather weak. Every time something new has been released, I’ve found myself defending the movie that can’t be represented in a green band movie trailer. Sony Pictures Classics have finally released a red band trailer on IGN, and you’ll immediately see the difference. No, it’s not filled with swears or nudity. It does what the best red band movie trailers do best, and sells the movie accurately. If you watch this trailer and tell me you’re still not interested then maybe The Wackness isn’t for you. But I assure you, if you grew up in the 90’s, then you’ll probably digg this film.

It’s the summer of 1994, and the streets of New York are pulsing with hip hop and wafting with the sweet aroma of marijuana. The newly-inaugurated mayor, Rudolph Giuliani, is only beginning to implement his anti-fun initiatives against “crimes” like noisy portable radio, graffiti and public drunkenness.

Two people, however, are missing out on the excitement. Luke (Josh Peck) is a socially uncomfortable teenage pot dealer with no friends, issues with his parents, and a whopping lack of confidence with girls. He trades weed for sessions with his therapist, Dr. Squires (Sir Ben Kingsley), whose much-younger wife (Famke Janssen) is slipping away from him. Squires, a drug-addled shrink with a hairline retreating to the back of his neck and a state of mind slouching back to adolescence, is an unlikely role model—but the two of them forge a friendship based on a mutual need: neither one is getting laid.

Propelled by an exuberant hip hop score, “The Wackness” captures the spell of 1994–a time of pagers, not cell phones; a time when Tupac and Biggie were alive but Kurt Cobain had just died. Funny and moving, “The Wackness” is an offbeat tale of two lost souls stumbling towards maturity.

The Wackness hits theaters on July 3rd 2008.

Max Payne Set Photos

/Film scooper Christopher M sent over set photos from the upcoming big screen adaptation of Max Payne.

In the film, Mark Wahlberg plays Max Payne, a former NYPD Detective with internal and external conflicts in a dark, sinister New York City. Three years after the murder of his newborn daughter and wife by a group of junkies, Max is now undercover agent in the DEA and embedded in the Punchinello Mafia family. The video game series is known for its Matrix-like bullet-time, graphic violence and profanity.

Cool Stuff: LEGO Wall-E

Joe Meno, editor of the BrickJournal magazine, created this cute LEGO version of Pixar’s Wall-E

“A few months ago, I decided to build Wall-E, from the Disney movie that is just around the corner. Meant for a display in July, I finally was able to focus on the model and build it within three weeks - with lots of down time.”

“Wall-E uses 2 Power functions IR controllers, so he can move and move his neck up and down. Also, his arms are on ball joints, so while not motorized, they can be posed. A mount is on the side for the arms to rest, but can be replaced with grill plates to be more accurate.”

Check out more photos of Meno’s LEGO WALL-E on Flickr.

Cool Stuff is a daily feature of slashfilm.com. Know of any geekarific creations or cool products which should be featured on Cool Stuff?

First Look: Leonardo DiCaprio in Martin Scorsese’s Ashecliffe

The Boston Herald has a first look at Leonardo DiCaprio in Martin Scorsese’s Ashecliffe. The big screen adaptation of Dennis Lehane’s 2003 novel Shutter Island, which tells the story of a U.S. Marshal (DiCaprio) who travels to Shutter Island, a small island in Massachusetts’ Outer Harbor, home of Ashecliffe Hospital for the Criminally Insane, to find an escaped murderous patient in the Summer of 1954. The above photo shows DiCaprio running around with a rifle behind an electrified fence near the lighthouse on Nahant’s East Point.

First Look: Thomas Jane as Jonah Hex?

FilmSchoolRejects has gotten their hands on a concept photo of Thomas Jane as Jonah Hex in Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor’s announced adaptation of the DC comic book. And while both this photo and Jane’s casting have not been officially (or even unofficially) confirmed, it seemed too juicy not to pass along. I wasn’t a big fan of Jane’s Punisher (or any of the big screen Punishers for that matter — so it’s likely not his fault) but I think this role could really suit him.

Created by writer John Albano and artist Tony DeZuniga, Jonah Hex is a former Confederate officer turned gun-slinging bounty hunter anti-hero whose face was horrifically scarred on his right side. The comic book, which was introduced in the 1970’s, and Neveldine/Taylor have said that they don’t plan on “making a straight-ahead Western but plan to develop the character with some of the supernatural overtones in the hopes of creating a franchise.”

Discuss: What do you think? Would Thomas Jane make a good Jonah Hex?

Spike Lee’s Time Traveler

Spike Lee will co-write and direct an adaptation of Ronald Mallett’s memoir Time Traveler: A Scientist’s Personal Mission to Make Time Travel a Reality. Spike Lee describes Time Traveler as a “fantastic story on many levels (and) also a father and son saga of loss and love.” Kirkus Reviews called the book a “hokey but inspiring blend of personal narrative and scientific exploration.” Basically, it’s a time travel movie without the time travel.

Mallett (pictured right with a model from the movie The Time Machine) is actually a very interesting living subject for a feature film. Co-written by best-selling author Bruce Henderson, the memoir tells a story of Mallett’s rise from poverty to becoming a distinguished academic, one of the first African Americans to earn a Ph.D in theoretical physics. As a child, he became obsessed with developing a working time machine after reading a comic-book version of H.G. Wells’s science-fiction classic, The Time Machine. His goal was to travel back in time to save his father who died prematurely when he was 10-years old.

And he is still trying at age 63, working as a professor of physics in the University of Connecticut, while raising funding for his Space-time Twisting by Light project. His time travel research has been featured in an hour-long TV special, “The World’s First Time Machine,” as well as publications as diverse as The Wall Street Journal, Rolling Stone, New Scientist, The Village Voice, The Boston Globe and Pravda. Mallett’s time machine concept uses a ring laser and the theory of relativity. Check out the illustration below.

Firefox 3 final este gata

Reprezentantii Mozilla, firma producatoare a cunoscutulu browser de internet Firefox declara ca astazi vor dobori recordul pentru cele mai multe downloaduri de pe internet in acelasi timp.
Motivul este unul foarte simplu, data de 17 iunie a fost anuntata ca data oficiala de lansare pentru versiunea finala a Firefox, acum ajunsa la versiunea 3.0.
Mozilla afirma ca noua versiune de Firefox va fi de pana la 7 ori mai rapida la navigarea pe internet decat concurenta de la Microsoft ( Internet Explorer), si de pana la 4 ori mai rapida decat versiunea Firefox 2.0.xx.

Intre alte avantaje ale Firefox amintim, bookmark cu un singur click de mouse, un nou download manager, imbunatatiri la capitolul stocare a parolelor, zoom pe toata pagina, etc.
Oricum, momentan, probabil din cauza multiplelor downloaduri site-ul www.mozilla.com este la pamant…

Sursa: DailyTech, Hit.ro

AMD pregateste contracandidat pentru Intel ATOM

In aceasta perioada se inmultesc firmele care doresc sa produca procesoare si platforme dedicate mini-calculatoarelor.
Dupa VIA si Nvidia, ambele avand cate un produs care sa se lupte cu Intel ATOM, a venit si randul contracandidatului clasic al Intel sa-si anunte intentiile razboinice fata de acesta din urma.

Este vorba de AMD, care a produs un procesor cu consum foarte scazut de curent, bazat pe arhitectura clasica AMD64, si care are un controller de memorie integrat, Hypertransport, 256Kb memorie cache L2 si o frecventa de 1GHz.
Momentan nu sunt aratate si performantele acestui procesor, insa suntem siguri ca le vom afla in cel mai scurt timp, si tot in cel mai scurt timp va fi si pus in vanzare, pentru ca AMD doresc sa profite de stocurile scazute ale Intel ATOM (situatie care va dura pana la sfarsitul celui de-al treilea trimestru al anului).

Sursa: DailyTech

Film Quoted on Eagle vs. Shark DVD

/Film reader Daniel C passes along word that /Film is quoted on the Australian release of Taika Waititi’s Eagle vs. Shark, which was one of my favorite films of 2007. Unfortunately Miramax Films didn’t know how to market the film, and the movie went virtually unseen by mainstream audiences. It was also passed by indie audiences because it came at the end of the tidal wave of way-too-quirky indie films, that were released in the years following Napoleon Dynamite. And yes, I was probably laying it on a little thick by declaring it the “best indie romantic comedy of all time”, but to be honest, few true indie romantic comedies exist, and this is my favorite.

Transformers 2: Weapon Modes Confirmed, Arcee Details, Possible Trailer Dates and More

It has been a few days since our last Transformers 2 update, so lets get to it.

A description of a Transformers 2 video game leaked onto the web yesterday:

The key line is “A new transformation system gives you more detailed control as you can switch between Robot, Weapon, and Vehicle modes” Recently screenwriter Roberto Orci revealed that there will be Transformers that transform into weapons in the sequel. But could this mean that all of the Autobots and Decepticons will have a third weapon mode in the new film?

The photo above gives you an idea of what Arcee might look like in alt mode. Will Kenefick tells the Ventura County Star the he created six custom motorcycles (three hero bikes and three stunt bikes) for Transformers. This pretty much confirms that three motorcycles will combine to form Arcee. According to Kenefick, 2309 hours were put in and each bike cost over $40,000, with $10,000 spent on paint alone. I’ve herd the actual bikes feature the pink and black paintjob seen in the unused concept art from the original Transformers below.

IESB explains what exactly happened in the Jonah Hill situation. Apparently Jonah was offered the part, but walked out of Michael Bay’s office after reading 20-pages of the script. Apparently the character he was to play was Shia’s chubby sidekick named “Jonah”.

And many people are wondering when we might possibly see the first teaser trailer. The mars rover teaser spot was released on June 29th, almost a year to the day of the release of the first film. Transformers 2 is scheduled to hit theaters on June 26th 2009, could that mean a new teaser trailer will hit by months end? Screenwriter Roberto Orci responded on Don Murphy’s message boards saying “Probably in fall — maybe late summer…” Eagle Eye, also starring Shia and produced by Speilberg, is the next big Dreamwork/Paramount release that fits in the same genre. If I had to guess, I would say the studio is shooting to release a trailer attached to Eagle Eye. But who knows…. I also can’t see Bay and company going to Comic Con in July empty handed.

The photo below above is our first look at Ramon Rodriguez who plays Leo in the sequel. He was spotted filming a scene at the Richmond Power Plant on Saturday with Megan Fox and Bumblebee. Is MEgan Fox on Ramon’s lap? Could this be confirmation that Sam (Shia) and Mikaela (Fox) are no longer an item in the second film? It would further explain the frat party scenes that Shia filmed opposite Isabel Lucas. Or maybe Leo is Mikaela’s brother?

And meanwhile, a scale model of an F-22 Raptor (Starscream) was spotted being unloaded from a trailer.

District B14

A sequel to the 2004 French parkour action film District B13 is set to begin production in July. Written by Luc Besson, and directed by Patrick Alessandrin (Mean Spirit, August 15th), the sequel will be titled Banlieue 14 (or District B14 in the states). No plot details have been released, we only know that an open casting call for parkour practitioners has been put out on the official blog. The first film is best known for it’s intense parkour chase sequences.

For those that might not know what parkour is, wikipedia defines it as “an activity with the aim of moving from one point to another as efficiently and quickly as possible, using principally the abilities of the human body. It is meant to help one overcome obstacles, which can be anything in the surrounding environment—from branches and rocks to rails and concrete walls—and can be practiced in both rural and urban areas.” The most mainstream use of parkour in film is probably the opening chase sequence from Casino Royale. You can watch a chase sequence from the first film below.

New Dark Knight Video Clip: Enter Two-Face!

/Film Reader Dave sent over news that a new clip from The Dark Knight is now available on the Joker viral site WhySoSerious.com. The new clip gives us our first real glimpse/tease of Aaron Eckhart as Two-Face. Watch the clip below (or in High Definition on the WhySoSerious site) and tell me what you think in the comments!

Tehnologie noua de fabricare pentru senzorii CMOS

Sony a dezvaluit presei detalii despre noua tehnologie pe care o dezvolta in acest moment legata de fabricarea senzorilor CMOS. Aceasta foloseste luminarea din spate (back-illumination) fata de tehnologia standard ce foloseste luminarea din fata (front-illumination).

Sony precizeaza ca noua tehnologie va oferi aproape de doua ori mai multa sensibilitate fata de senzorii CMOS existenti in acest moment pe piata.

Pentru a exemplifica, compania a construit un prototip cu luminare din spate de 5mpx si capabil de a prelua pana la 60 de cadre pe secunda. Se estimeaza ca acest tip de senzor va echipa generatia urmatoare de camere foto si video de la Sony si Konica Minolta.

In imagininle de mai jos puteti vedea diferentele dintre un senzor CMOS standard (front-illuminated) si unul CMOS back-iluminated.

Sursa: Sony

JK Rowling’s New Harry Potter Mini-Movie

J.K. Rowling has penned a brand new story featuring the characters in her fantasy best-selling Harry Potter book series. According to the Sunday Mirror, the story is being adapted into a mini-movie which will be shown at Universal Studio’s The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter in Orlando, Florida. The report says that all of the regular cast, including Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, are said to be involved. They will shoot the mini movie, and additional sequences and clips which will be included in the rides in Leavesden, Hertfordshire UK.

The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter is expected to open next year or early 2010 at Universal Studios Islands Of Adventure in Orlando. The 20-acre island will feature attractions, shops and restaurants set inside locations such as the Forbidden Forest, Hogsmeade Village and the iconic Hogwarts castle (concept art seen above).