Good Comic Books | The Day of Chaos is fast approaching, what can we expect? Apart from there being some sort of chaotic day… Will it be a good place for new readers to cut their teeth on Judge Dredd?

John Wagner | I’d like to think so.  It does involve characters regular Dredd readers will be familiar with, but it’s important to make any story accessible to new readers. Not perhaps if you jump on in the middle, but if you’re there from the start. In this the format of Day of Chaos should help – a lot of shorter stories, some of which may seem at first only obliquely connected to the bigger picture – building up to an electrifying and violent conclusion (at least, that’s what my PR guy is saying). A similar structure to Tour of Duty, in fact, though the matter at hand is totally different.

GCB | What exactly constitutes a mega-series? Has there been pressure to write stories that can compete with DC & Marvel ‘events’?

John | Matt Smith (2000AD editor) never pressures me in that way. I’m sure he’s happy to be having another mega-series, if that’s the word, but he didn’t hassle me or get on my back about it, though I could, I suppose, sense an unstated preference from him. And I was pleased to go along, though it took a lot of time and no little agonising to come up with. I’ve done so many short Dredds now that I feel a bit played out on them. A multi-part story makes my task more difficult in some ways, of course. Putting all the pieces together is always testing. That’s what it is, though, a multi-part story. I don’t think I’d call it a mega-series.

Image ©Rebellion A/S www.2000adonline.com

GCB | How easy do Dredd story ideas come to you after so many years of writing the character?

John | Like I said, not that easy. Think of an idea and it’s probably been done. It’s best when they just pop into your head – and you have the presence of mind to write them down. I’ve probably forgotten more good ideas than I’ve written.

GCB | Do you ever start a story before realising you’ve done it before?

John | On at least one occasion I wrote the complete story before I realised in all essential details I’d written it before… How I laughed.

GCB | You’ve been an incredibly influential figure in the comics industry for years, what is your view on how the market is changing? What are your thoughts on DC’s big reboot thing?

John | I have no idea what Marvel are up to but from what little I’ve heard about the latest DC stunt I can’t say I’m that enthused. Maybe readers will love it, what do I know? I used to take more of an interest but these days I know nothing about comics.

Image ©Rebellion A/S www.2000adonline.com

GCB | How do you feel about the guys working on the new Dredd film? Are they up to it? How does it feel having strangers let loose on a character you created, like… Sylvester Stallone?

John | Alex, the writer, has been determined to keep Dredd true to character. The Mega-City One he portrays is one side of the multi-faceted city we know, a frightening, dystopian view of the future. Stallone I won’t criticise. The first movie wouldn’t have been made if it hadn’t been for him. Many would say that would have been for the best, but – if you exclude the script – there were a lot of good things about it. And at least it has set the stage for next year’s film.

Image ©Rebellion A/S www.2000adonline.com

I’ve never felt that possessive about Dredd. So many writers and artists have added detail to the city and the judges that it was no wrench when the movie guys got hold of it. A character like Button Man, that’s different. That’s only ever had my hand on it, mine and Arthur Ranson’s. It feels more personal. But when you sign away film rights there’s not generally a lot you can do about what comes out the other end. All you can do is hope they understand what makes the story tick and get it right.   Dreamworks, I’m glad to say, are being very particular about getting the right screenplay.

GCB | What inspires you to tell these stories?

John | Beats working.

GCB | Does Judge Dredd sleep with his armour on?

John | He usually only gets ten minutes in the sleep machine, hardly time to disrobe.

Make sure to check out 2000AD on the 29th July to catch Dredd in the first bit of the mega-series, and keep checking back at Good Comic Books for updates on the Dredd film, which I’m now incredibly excited about…

Only a true fan could have made this film and director Steven Spielberg completely indulges himself in the world of Tintin and Herge. He often keeps the shot wide or medium which lets the audience view and admire the beautifully animated landscapes and locations. Spielberg must have known the weight of expectation on his shoulders when making the movie, and he never diverts from Herge’s original M.O; adventure, mystery and thrilling action. If you’ve read our interview with Tintinologist Michael Farr, then you’ll know Herge (back in the day) named Spielberg as the man to bring Tintin to the big screen, and it’s done with a huge amount of love and passion.

The Adventures of Tintin is surely the pinnacle of motion capture, and Spielberg treats the technology like an over-excited child with a super 8 camera and a toy set; he fluidly moves the action across scenes and locations and the action set pieces are pure spectacle. In a scene in which Captain Haddock recounts the story of the Unicorn, Spielberg cuts the action between Haddock recounting the story and the actual events in the past. The frame whizzes around at high speeds and cuts effortlessly between both locations, it’s stunning, and the action sequences on board the Unicorn are truly magical, I was in effing awe.

Screenwriters Moffat, Wright and Cornish have freely taken story points from across the Tintin volumes and have created a patchwork quilt of a script, which perfectly matches up to any Herge story. The cast all fill their roles well, and the animators have done a great job re-creating the characters on screen. When it comes to Tintin himself, considering that Herge’s drawings of the boy hero lacked any great amount of detail surrounding his facial features, I thought he looked pretty good in the film. Pegg and Frost also shine as Thompson and Thomson, and Andy Serkis is brilliant barging his way across the scene as Captain Haddock (even if his accent does sometimes drop).

The Adventures of Tintin starts not with a shot of the hero himself, but brilliantly begins with a shot of his creator Herge drawing a portrait of Tintin in a busy market square. The film is littered with little in jokes and trivia, and I will need to see the film again to catch them all. Tintin is pure old school fun, full off adventure, mystery and action. I already know when I will be seeing the film again upon its release, and I cannot wait.

Will Pond.

Also on a side note, Tintinoligist Michael Farr (who we did a recent interview with HERE) will be giving a talk all about Tintin at the Wigmore Hall in central London on October the 22^nd in aid of charity, to apply for tickets and for more information head to www.justgiving.com/sdftintinlecture.

Will Pond.

Everything looks super sized; the cast, the sets and even the explosions, the wide shot 18 seconds in is particularly impressive. Director Joss Whedon is keeping his cards pretty close to his chest, and the trailer shows less than it feels like it does; but he does introduce the main characters and the villain, so it’s enough to get me excited.

Oh, and if your wondering where the hell is the Hulk, just wait to the end. Check out the trailer below and get back to us with your thoughts.

It suits Serge Gainsbourg well that director Joann Sfar chooses not to just follow the usual plodding linier line of events that create the narrative structure of most musical biopics, but opts to instead make his debut directorial feature as unique, eccentric and unusual as the man it is inspired by. Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life is an ambitious film; as Sfar attempts to blur the line between myth and fact and reality and imagination, and in doing so creates a well-formed portrait of the man behind an icon.

Sfar strings together a fractured narrative drawn from important and influential moments from Gainsbourg’s life, using the women and relationships in his life as tent poles upon which the rest of the film hangs (You may notice on the poster Gainsbourg is framed by his two great loves, Bridgett Bardot and Jane Birkin). Sfar skilfully paints Gainsbourg at times both boastful and full of confidence but also manages to give the character a hidden shyness and shows an internal conflict between his natural urges and artistic desire. Sfar ingeniously does this by creating a physical representation off Gainsbourg’s own mind, which follows him throughout the film, changing its appearance reflecting the protagonist’s emotional state. Genius.

As a child hiding from Nazi’s in the French countryside (Gainsbourg was Jewish) he is followed by a huge round figure twice his size and at least three times his width, impossible not to see! As an adult a stick thin Ghoul with large ears and a long nose advises and, well quite frankly berates him into decisions. Doug Jones playing the Ghoul almost wraps his thin body around Gainsbourg’s and exaggerates his movements for full creepiness! Sfar draws upon his own graphic novel (which served as the source text for the screenplay) and blurs the line between reality and imagination, having characters talk to both Gainsbourg and the Ghoul at once, its mind-boggling!

The is a great film to look at; the particularly fine lighting and camera work perfectly compliment the production design, I can’t think of a single frame that wouldn’t look beautiful as a framed photograph. Of course Gainsbourg was a musician and Sfar is obviously a big fan of his music, often when a song plays the film stops dead in its tracks and just admires the musicianship. Eric Elmosnino gives one of those ‘throw yourself completely in’ performances as Gainsbourg; apart from closely resembling the musician, his performance is incredibly well judged, a scene in a police van after his Father’s death is particularly fine.

As I am writing this review I am listening to the best of Serge Gainsbourg, which I bought within about 10 mins of finishing the film. Sfar’s direction is impressive for a debut feature and I feel his cinematic career may be one to watch, the leap from comic book artist/writer to film director has proven tricky in the past (hello Frank Miller!) but he has managed it successfully. Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life paints both paints a vivid portrait of the French legend, and at the same time is loads of fun.

Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life currently has a limited North American Release, and is available on DVD elsewhere.

Will Pond.

In preparation for the home entertainment release Warner Bros’ UK distribution arm have released the details of the Blu-Ray and 3D Blu-Ray extras and the cover art for both Blu Ray release formats and the DVD release. And yes, it does come in a green case!

Both the Blu-Ray and 3D Blu-ray will come with a DVD and digital copy of the film. The Blu-Ray extras will include:

• MMM and Picture in Picture Focus Pods
• The Art of Green Lantern
• Weapons Hot: The U.C.A.V. Dog Fight
• Reinventing the Superhero Costume
• Ring Slinging 101
• We Are the Corps
• Acting Under 10 Pounds of Silicone
• Guardians Revealed
• When Parallax Attacks
• The Universe According to Green Lantern
• Ryan Reynolds Becomes the Green Lantern
• Deleted Scenes
• Justice League #1 Digital Comic
• Preview of Green Lantern: The Animated Series

The Blu-Ray release will also include an extra 8 minutes of footage, get back to us with your thoughts on where this extra footage could fit and check out the cover art for all three releases below.

The comparisons between Super and last years Kick-Ass are pretty obvious and have already been explored by a plethora of reviewers, I’m sure Gunn must have been more than a little cheesed off that Miller and Vaughn got there first. The differences between the films though are pretty big, whilst Kick-Ass still embraced the Hollywood aesthetic, Super completely throws it off and bears a much larger resemblance to reality. Gunn cleverly plays with the basic concept of what is right and wrong, and although Frank does everything with the best of intentions there is a huge sense of naivety to the character, and his actions would still mostly be deemed as criminal in the eyes of the law.

This film is proper Indie cinema; I would loosely describe Super as a black comedy, although the black far outweighs the comedy, by like, a metric ton. The film is incredibly violent and quite often I found myself wincing, for instance before hitting the streets Frank researches super heroes without powers and the weapons they use but eventually he just settles on hitting people very hard with a wrench.

Rainn Wilson really makes this film work, and it’s pretty difficult not to feel sympathy for him even as he is seriously hurting people for often trivial reasons. He is funny without ever cracking a joke or changing his facial expression from a resigned melancholy stare, and he really provides an emotional centre for the film. Kevin Bacon is great as the evil drug lord and Ellen Page is a load of fun as The Crimson Bolt’s sidekick Boltie, although we do not get to see enough of each.

There’s a really touching story in Super, but you just have to get past a huge amount of often-horrific violence to get to it!

Will Pond

Super is available on DVD and Blu-Ray now.

So, does that chin live up to the legend? Get back to us with your thoughts and keep checking back to GCB for more Dredd updates.

The story so far… first director Darren Aronofsky was all signed on, the script was coming together (Logan was heading to Japan) and shooting was set to begin around spring this year, but then due in part to the environmental crisis in Japan and Aronofsky’s worries about being away from his family for a long period of time, he pulled out and the production was back to square one. Loads of potential names were then thrown around as a replacement, including Duncan Jones (Moon) and Mark Romenak (Never Let Me Go) but now Fox have revealed that neither of them will take the director’s chair, that honour will be taken by James Mangold.

Mangold has worked in a variety of genres including action adventure (Knight and Day), character drama (Walk the Line) and even Stallone action (Copland… it’s a genre!) so I will be interested to see what he brings to the table. Also, Jackman has let slip that production is going to begin this autumn, so the film will most likely be hitting cinema screens late summer 2012.

I wasn’t a massive fan of the first Wolverine spin off so I’m hoping Mangold and Jackman will really up the game for the sequel, keep checking back to GCB for all the latest Wolverine 2 news.

Oh and since I couldn’t find any related photos to go with this news piece, I attached a photo of Jackman looking ripped whilst preparing for the role back in February.

LOOK AT THAT NECK!

Will Pond.

Publicity for Cap’ will be heating up in the run up to August so keep checking back for further developments.