Peter Mayhew, the actor who played Chewbacca in the first three Star Wars films, has been posting a bunch of set photos for the past few days on his Twitter.  It’s always nice to get a glimpse behind the scenes of films so cherished as these are. Whenever I pick up a DVD I’m hoping for some outtakes or a blooper reel but since they didn’t have those back in the 70’s, what we do have are photos taken behind the scenes. It seems like the actors got along really well and the only diva appears to be Billy D’s Lando.

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Acceptance.  Truths’ ugly cousin.  The world around us becomes this flower embedded leisure and comfort.  The true beauty of ignorance hovers over us like a summer sky, making one believe the squishy clear padded world we live in.  However at times we catch a glance out of that bubbly globe and hear the muffled sound of the voice of reason, that almost yells the sanity back into us, Get Out!  You cannot continue to live this fantasy any longer.  You must accept the truth.  You must rip of the bandage off the extremely contagious case of the Me! Me! Me’s!  …

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One quick glance at the list of film releases for 2014 and it becomes immediately apparent how extensively nerd culture has melded in with the fabric of society in the US. Where previously we would be lucky to have one sci-fi or comic book film released in a year, 2014 is promising a veritable plethora of film fodder for young and mature nerd alike.

One sure sign of this convergence is the appearance of today’s A-list actors in sci-fi films. In the past, virtual unknowns were cast in these roles as top box-office draws gravitated toward works considered more “safe” and …

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Images of ourselves can often be a misconception.  Single handedly, we pave a clear path to where we think we want to go and then… bam!, steamrolled by a simple distraction.  If only we paid closer attention, we might avoid entrapment by what seems to be an attractive desire.  But as many have crashed and burned before, we want what we want.  However be careful what you wish for, as in this short film, Alma by Rodrigo Blass, we may think that the most attractive desire is in fact, ourselves.  Be free, I say, like flying birds.    After all, flying birds, …

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I’ve always enjoyed the Fast & The Furious franchise.  Big reason for that is the banter between Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O’Conner (Paul Walker).  It’s full of cheese but it’s also a lot of fun.  The anti hero vs. the good cop.  Fast & Furious 6 followed that tradition.  This time, the gang is working with Hobbs (The Rock) as they try to take out Euro trash versions of themselves.  The movie isn’t as fun as part 5 but it’s still a well made and fun.  The fight scenes in this movie was the highlight.  Sure, the car action …

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Underground: The Julian Assange Story is a biographical film based on the early years of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange as he rises in the ranks of a budding hacker to infiltrate major military computer databases and wreak havoc on nuclear missile test launches. It also stars Rachel Griffits (Muriel’s Wedding) and Anthony LaPaglia as an investigator who works day and night to bust Assange, all the while exhibiting some underlying fascination and perhaps even admiration for the kid.

When he was in high school, Assange would help his mom with her anti-nuke protests. At one point he becomes angry …

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There has been a lot of recent speculation on the possibility of a big  screen Wonder Woman  movie.  Various sites and fans are discussing this in detail. They all return to one basic problem: Hollywood does not seem to think that a female lead could successfully  carry a superhero film.  But a recent post on  sci-fi site I09.com  contradicts this idea. It provides a list of action movies in which  female characters not only starred, but often led their films to box office success.

With this in mind, I offer my own list of cinematic favorites with an action heroine rather …

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The best way I can describe The Wolf of Wall Street is, if you ever wanted to see the business guys from Mad Men lose most of their humanity and become some of the richest douche bags ever mixed with some of the funniest dialogue and situational humor in a long time you get the Wolf of Wall Street. Martin Scorsese easily could have tried to humanize the main characters of this story but thankfully he didn’t and the results are both funny as all hell but pretty dark and depressing as well.

Jordan Belfort, played by Leonardo Di Caprio, is …

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The latest film in the Hobbit trilogy has been praised by many as a vast improvement over the original which was faulted for its poor CGI, use of 48 FPS and serious pacing problems. I myself thoroughly enjoyed it and the additions to the many story-lines which filled in the gaps of the book. “Desolation of Smaug” can indeed be classified as a superior sequel for the first two acts because the CGI is better, the new frame rate technology is vastly improved and the film moves along at a brisk pace. But remember, this only lasts for the first two …

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Man Of Steel didn’t live up to the great trailers but it’s still  worth owning on blu-ray.  After the disastrous Superman Returns, WB decided to reboot Superman’s mythology.  Just like Christopher Nolan’s Batman movies, this one is dark and brooding.  Zack Snyder of 300 fame directs Man Of Steel so you know it’s going to look badass.  Just like 300, the action scenes and cinematography is great but the story feels disjointed.  The movie starts with Krypton in turmoil.  General Zod is in revolt and the planet is about to blow up.   Then there’s Kal-El, the first baby born naturally in …

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