Updates

I have plenty to write about, but I am currently compiling the materials to do so...


Coming Soon:

The Adventures of the
S W A S H B U C K L E R
On the West Coast
Part IV



Through the
SAN GABRIEL MOUNTAINS
and Beyond...

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Lester Swing

John Neder has written the following:

Ladies & Gentlemen:

It gives me great pleasure to announce that Lester Swing will be
playing at Kenny's Castaways on Bleeker Street in good 'ol NYC this
Friday night. The show begins at 10:30pm. Don't be afraid to let
them know who you're there to see when you get to the door. This
promises to be one electrified night of energy, as we quickly
approach the record release party, which is slated for August 28th.
Come one...come all...you will NOT be disappointed!

Kenny's Castaways
Bleeker Street (between Thompson and Sullivan)
NYC
7/30/04 @ 10:30pm

...and as always

Peace, love and all that falls between...

Art informed me about this bad news*:

The DVD Changes

Episode IV: A New Hope

* Light Sabers changed for Vader versus Ben Kenobi Death Star duel.
* Tractor Beam control now in Aurebesh.
* Han and Greedo scene slightly changed (everyone's seen this).
* Jabba the Hutt redone from Special Edition Jabba.
* Boba Fett still mugs camera.
* Han still steps on tail - "You're a wonderful human being" - still there.
(The scene is an improvement over the SE - however, still not great.)

Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back

* Emperor replaced with Ian McDiarmid.
Dialogue in this scene has been slightly modified, indicating either that the Emperor knows it was Luke who nuked the Death Star, or that he is Vader's son. Maybe both. Otherwise, dialogue remains in tact. Emperor's theme from Jedi also added into the scene.

Episode VI: Return of the Jedi

* Hayden Christenson has replaced Sebastian Shaw only in the Force Ghost shot.

* Line about Leia remembering her mother while talking to Luke on the Ewok Village veranda has either been omitted, or modified.

* Naboo has been added to the final planetary celebration montage at the end of the movie. It is a shot very similar to the helicopter shot of Theed in TPM when AATs are moving up the street towards the palace.

* This is all unconfirmed.

Who cares, anyway, because...


The Trilogy That Doesn't Suck


There is some damn good news, however. A trailer of the extended version of The Return of the King has been produced and shown at the San Diego Comicon, and it is getting rather rave reviews.

The highlights include: the final confrontation with Saruman, Sam seeing the star of Earendil in Mordor, and Gandalf's eagerly anticipated showdown with a certain Witch King of Angmar.

Here are some highlight images:


Éowyn and Gothmog


The Witch-King of Angmar's sword of flame


Éowyn and Aragorn

A really crappy camcordered edition of the trailer, with the audience going bananas, can be found here in WMV format.

Audience reaction was, on the whole, rather positive.

Of course, now we have to wait until December for the damn thing.




I got the rare chance to compare the Universal Studios IMAX presentation with the Manhattan one. I have to say that I was appalled at the projection quality. There was dirt and hair in the gate throughout the presentation.

Furthermore, I found the sound to be somewhat less powerful in the Universal Studios IMAX theater.

So, while I would definitely recommend the IMAX presentation to everyone, remember that not all IMAX theaters are created equal, it seems...

IMAX is supposed to be a flawless presentation, but I have never seen so much dirt get in the way of a presentation. They ought to be ashamed of themselves.

That said, it's still a pretty damn good movie.




Aliens Vs. Predator is going to suck so much ass. I've finally seen a commercial for it, and it just looks awful.