Sci-Fi Tech That Will Kill Us All (2)

Meet Heart Robot, the creepiest new addition to the ever growing race of robots that will one day overthrow our society and enslave us.

The Age has the full article, but here's their quick description of the little tyke:

Heart Robot has a beating heart, a breathing stomach and sensors that respond to movement, noise and touch. Cuddle him and he seems to soak up the affection. His limbs become limp, his eyelids lower, his breathing relaxes and his heartbeat slows. But if given a violent shake or shouted at, he gets upset. He flinches, his fists clench, his breathing and heart rate speed up and his eyes widen.

And if given a command by his robotic overlords, he will throttle you in your sleep. Seriously, who looks at this thing and thinks, "Just what I've always wanted, the needy skeleton of an infant"? But if you've always wanted to cuddle a character from The Nightmare Before Christmas, this is for you. Just picture this: an army of these little guys, silently marching down your street. Less cute now, huh?

Robots. The only thing worse than Zombies.

Universal nabs "Basterds"

According to Variety, Universal Pictures will team with The Weinstein Co. to co-finance Quentin Tarantino's next film, the WWII epic Inglorious Basterds.

This is quite the coup, as the script is rumoured to be brilliant, if unconventional. Tarantino was shopping the script at five major studios, and seems to have settled on Universal. The writer/director has been talking about the script since the mid 90's, and it's been set to be his "next" project since Jackie Brown. How long does it take to strip-mine exploitation flicks and foreign films for plot and style elements anyway?

This time out, even the title comes from another film. Now in re-release is 1978's Inglorious Bastards, starring a bunch of actors that Tarantino would probably cast in an ironic "comeback" capacity.

All kidding aside, even if Tarantino does mine other sources for his films, the result is always totally unique and refreshing, so I'm excited to see this flick in a couple of years. Will he land Brad Pitt for the lead?

Seacrest, DSV

This just in: Ryan Seacrest has been attacked by a shark.

He was swimming in Mexico when a shark bit him, and then swam away. Here's the story.

Wow, proof even sharks can't stomach Ryan Seacrest.

Coming Soon : Sports Night DVD set

So, on September 30, 2008, Sports Night will be re-released on DVD!

I have a man-crush on Aaron Sorkin that borders on the unreasonable. The West Wing is one of the best television shows ever. Ever. Do not argue with me. It's literally the only show that I can watch in its entirety once every year. I'm talking all 7 seasons, my peeps.

Sports Night was a show Sorkin created just before Wing. In fact, it actually ran concurrently with it. Where Wing was feted and an immediate smash, Sports Night struggled along, and despite being critically beloved and possessing a strong fan following, it was cancelled.

That being said, it is still awesome, with a brilliant cast, superb writing and all the talking while walking down corridors that you could ask for. It was released in a depressingly bare bones edition before (which I managed to obtain before it went out of print), but now for its tenth anniversary it's getting a deluxe version from the good folks at Shout! Factory.


Here's a link to some product details, while here's some of my favourite quotes from the show:


Casey: [Reading a party invitation] “October eighth, nineteen-hundred and ninety-eight A.D.” A.D. They’re worried I might accidentally show up 2000 years before the birth of Christ.


Isaac: Danny, I need to talk to you.
Dan: Good, 'cause I need to talk to you too. Who should go first?
Isaac: Since I don't really care what you have to say, I think it should be me.


Isaac: Dana, the things that I say in my office stay in my office.
Dana: Natalie's my second-in-command, she's the only one I told.
Natalie: Jeremy's my boyfriend, he's the only one I told.
Jeremy: I told many, many people.


Casey: Ugh... How can I be cool again? I'm a newly divorced man, I'm young, I used to be cool, I need to be cool again. Help me... be cool again.
Dan: (pause) Well, first I would have to disabuse you of the notion that you were ever cool before.

The Dark Knight continues to rake it in...

It's only been in theatres for 10 days, but The Dark Knight's domestic box office total now stands at $300 million, the fastest a movie has ever reached that total.

Ka-zam.

Yep, it's safe to say that this will be the movie business story of the year. What's most interesting to me is that an almost opressively dark and uncompromising film connected this much with audiences. Looking at it on its face, it would seem to be a tough sell to an audience from a studio's point of view.

First, it's long. At 152 minutes it's quite a bit longer that studios like. Shorter run times means more showings per day, yes, but studios also point to market research that says that audiences don't like long movies.

Second, it's grim. The story line takes itself and its chracters very seriously. It's clear that Nolan wanted to tell this story with as real stakes as possible, namely; if a guy in costume was working as a vigilante in your city, and a psychotic criminal with no scruples whatsoever became fixated on said vigilante, very bad things would happen and it would be a good idea to move. Not cartoony things, but actual bad things. The film doesn't shy away from this in any way. The Joker may be entertaining, but he's also honestly terrifying. Part of it is certainly the performance, but a lot is in the writing. You actually have no idea what he's about to do next.

Finally, its complex. It has a deliberate commentary to make on escalation of force, on the cost of an orderly society, on terrorism and the world we live in.

God, it makes Iron Man (which I enjoyed a lot) look like a kid's cartoon.

So, why has it clicked? Well, because of two reasons, IMO. First, contrary to the beliefs of the studios, audiences aren't dumb. They know quality when they see it. If a movies' good, they'll accept 152 minutes of grim, complex stuff. Second, Nolan and company didn't completely go art-house here. There are still some great action sequences throughout that are customary for a big summer blockbuster, and these sequences are exceptional.

Will The Dark Knight change the way blockbusters are done? Probably not. The main ingredient to its success has been its quality. The buzz, fanboys, and Ledger's death may have gotten people in the door, but it's massive success is due to its quality. That's much harder to replicate.

(and on a lighter note: I believe the poster above is a fake. So much for trusting my veracity)

Image Search: "Homemade Superhero Costumes"

This is an idea for an ongoing feature that I wish was originally mine. Nope, I swiped it from Erin Bradley's fantastic blog I Need This Like a Third Armpit , which is an awesome blog that people should check out.

Anyway, credit has been given, so here goes:

I don't know what's sadder: the expression on this gentleman's face, the fact that I know it's a Count Nefaria costume, or the fact that someone would actually make a Count Nefaria costume.

I have no idea who this character is or is supposed to be. What makes me most uncomfortable is the fact that he appears to be standing in my rec room circa 1979. It should also be noted that the maker of this costume is the same fellow who made the Count Nefaria suit above. This time, he wisely chose to hide his junk a little better.

Ah, Harley Quinn. Perhaps this costume is the one you will see most often at conventions, although most of the wearers will not be wearing this look of abject shame on their face. It's clear that she was forced to wear this after her boyfriend insisted she help him complete his Joker fetish.

No. Just.........no.

Awwwwwww! To the cute-mobile!

Wolf Parade....

So, the new Wolf Parade album is out. It's called At Mount Zoomer, and it is five stacks of awesome with maple kick-ass poured over it.

For those of you who don't know Wold Parade, they are a great band from Montreal, where incredible Canadian bands go to make it big, apparently. The odd thing is that pretty much every member is originally from BC.

Anyway, their 2005 album Apologies to the Queen Mary has been on my playlist since it came out. I think it (along with Arcade Fire's Neon Bible and Metric's two albums) is one of the best Canadian rock albums of the last decade or so. So pick up either of Wolf Parade's albums and give a listen. They are great.