Cinematical

In Monday's Wall Street Journal, Sarah McBride reports that Tuesday's release of Brokeback Mountain on DVD will not only herald its viewing by a gaggle of fans who got to hear all about it during award season, but a slew of folks who are into the whole "I got a copy online - legally" thing, too. While this will apparently be a pricey proposition for those who choose to go with the broadband-downloaded version -- the expectation is that "newer" films on Movielink will be between $20-$30, according to the article -- the big story here is really that the studios are getting with the program, and realizing that downloaded versions, whether legal or not, are the way things are going, and a preferred method for a lot of people.

Will this bring a little bit more positive light towards Movielink and the studios? Maybe a little, but probably not that much if the pricing is going to be out of whack. A lot of people who like having a digital version would still know how to get around most of the security features of whatever they have purchased above the board, and the extra step might be worth a 50% bounty on having that digital version. Let's just realize that for the big biz folks, it's all about baby steps.

On Thursday evening, my local AMC Theatre was having a big showing for the premiere of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, with seven of the 16 screens showing the film. Before I even purchased my tickets - about three hours before the showtime - two of the screens already registered sellouts online, but I was still a bit skeptical. As we know, it's still a Thursday night, most schools in the area don't have Friday off for any holiday or teacher conference, and something that gets out in the area of 3 a.m. is going to turn away some people. Boy, was I wrong.

The particular showing I was in was probably about 75% full, but I think four of the shows ended up registered as "sellouts" for the theatre. The mix of people varied in ages. I didn't see as many adults/parents as I would have expected, but there were quite a few people from the local university, and a ton of junior high and high school-aged kids there, and not just from our town. The dress-up was in full effect, even for the older people there. I saw a lot more prop glasses than at previous premieres for this series, and the scarves were everywhere - probably because of the 30 degree temperature drop in the 24-hour period before this film hit the scene.

Never fear, Quidditch lovers. Even with the Triwizard Tournament pre-empting the sport's season at Hogwarts for Goblet of Fire, we should be privy to some great scenes from the World Cup event, featuring mascots and cheerleaders of all shapes and sizes. In celebration of what has to be one of the best things that's come out of the Harry Potter series (in my opinion, at least), we here at Cinematical would like to share some possible rule changes we would add to Quidditch, were we on the game's development committee. So without further ado...

1. Fake snitches: What could be more amusing than having our hero, heroine, or bad guy chasing after a Golden Snitch that wasn't even the winning one? The potential for Bludger-ing is compounded with this change, one that would take away the easy win for those who deftly chase the little bugger.
2. Moving goalposts: I mean, c'mon - there are three goalposts on each end, and they're 50 feet tall and just standing there. Make 'em spin or at least swing back and forth, even slowly. Let's see how magical you really are, flyboys and girls.
3. "King Me" - a la checkers or getting a queen in chess, we'd come up with a novel way to make it so, at least for a short time, there could be multiple seekers. And heck, with more than one snitch, you'd need them.
4. Penalty shots: Whacking someone with your club without hitting a Bludger first gives a free shot to the whackee. What's that you say, there are already penalty shots? Oh, yeah - we forgot. You have to use a blindfolded goaltender - they're magicians after all - if Luke Skywalker could do it, then some half-blood could too.
   
5. Bludger Reversi: For every five Quaffle-based goals a team scores, the next Bludger shot will immediately return to the person who smacked it - even if it's the goal scoring team.
6. "You're it": Adding a fourth type of ball to the game (making it five altogether) that no one has control over. It just sits down on the pitch, and proceeds to randomly go after a player for some amount of time, with similar effects to a Bludger. Interfering with the "it" ball results in a penalty shot for the other team.
7. Power Play: Not like the hockey rule with the same name, this is an extra 10 point bonus that a team receives if it can throw two Quaffles through the goal posts simultaneously.

What do you think? Any good ones in there, or can you one-up these with your own?

Jericho's Echo, a documentary about the punk scene in Israel, isn't so much all about the actual punk music, but how Israel's punk rock bands view society. The film offers a glimpse at the sights, sounds, and points of view that those of us not in Israel would never get to see. While I don't view a ton of documentaries, I wanted to see this film for two reasons: first, to get an idea of how Israeli punk rock music compares to the same music here in the U.S.; and second, to find out more about the actual politics of the musicians, and how their political beliefs influenced their music.

"I'll be back," was a line Arnold Schwarzeneger is well known for - and it's also apparently what a lawsuit against Terminator 2 director James Cameron would be saying, could lawsuits talk. The AP is reporting that a suit has been filed against Cameron for allegedly stealing a "shape-shifting" character (the T-1000, played by Robert Patrick) from a concept developed a few years earlier than Cameron's film was released.

It'll be interesting to see if they can prove that the writer actually showed this particular script to Cameron or not - there are only so many ideas out there, so overlap does happen.

Will the overlap between the fans of the Harry Potter book series harm the popularity of the Charlie & The Chocolate Factory movie debut this weekend? The Wall Street Journal suggests that this could be the case, with people certainly making their way to bookstores in the pre-midnight hour on Friday night instead of going to the movie theater as they await their pre-ordered Half-Blood Prince.

It is interesting, as Warner Bros. is the studio behind both the Potter films and Charlie, so you might have thought they'd realize the impact a film of this size could have, especially with the popularity of some of today's recent remakes. So howabout you, fair Cinematical readers (okay, the tanned ones too) - will you be doing double duty this weekend, or choosing Wonka bars over Muggles?

Friday night, another one of 2005's expected "blockbuster" movies hit the scene as Fantastic Four made its way into theaters, apparently in a big way. It's not tough to see why the numbers came out like they did, considering the normally fairly overcrowed multiplex I attend was pretty much a fire hazard from start to finish in the lobby - although I'm surprised that anyone at the later screenings actually went to see the flick, considering what the crowds were stating on the way out the door, passing in front of the theatergoers-to-come.

This was one of those movies that if you go to see it realizing that it's just sci-fi meets action meets comic book heroes, then you weren't too disappointed. It had all the requisite special effects, had a decent amount of stardom in Jessica Alba, Michael Chiklis and company, and was enjoyable if you dig comic book stories. Unfortunately, if you've watched the three trailers and any number of television commercials, then you've probably seen a good portion of the jokes and action. But don't let that shy you away from hitting the stadium seating or anything.

For those of you who weren't really fond of the first two prequels in the Star Wars saga, The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones, have we got the suggestions for you. Defective Yeti's Matthew Baldwin provides a second-by-second list of pointers on what to fast forward through while watching the DVDs at home so you don't have to see anything you don't really need to suffer through see with your own eyes.

First off, he provides a way to chop over 42 minutes off of Phantom Menace, providing you with details in super-witty format of what you missed and why you might have wanted to watch those sections, if you were to feel up to it. Interestingly enough, he even comes to the conclusion that Return of the Jedi could be referring to Anakin/Darth, rather than Luke Skywalker, like the rest of us thought. Interesting idea. Finally, we get the doings on how to do this with Clones, scarily saving about 41 minutes this time - either that's a scary coincidence, or George Lucas plans in 2/3 of an hour of "garbage time" for us NBA fans. See - and you thought blogs were only a time-suck - now you'll have more time to read additional blogs.

In preparation for its upcoming 2005 Movie Awards presentation, MTV has decided it was time to do something different to promote the event. Of course, that means bringing in some of the best competitive eaters in the world to find out just how much popcorn they could wolf down in 12 minutes.

In the wake of this bright idea, we have MTVEatMovies.com to play with for our eating reading pleasure. Here, you can find out more about Crazy Legs Conti, Eric "Badlands" Booker, Carlene Lefevre, and Richard Lefevre and their culinary abilities. Additionally, the "Movie Taters" option offers the fun and excitement of seeing "Donald the office dork" play with his tater tots at his desk at work, bringing to life movie scenes like never before. And if that's not enough fun for you, make sure and check out the "Categories that didn't make it" section of the site, featuring "Best Almost Topless Scene" and "Best Man in a Pirate Hat."

It's rare that you get to have a peek into the mind of an interstellar power, let alone when that mind is in the body of Darth Vader. Thankfully, we have an opportunity to see what the Dark Lord of the Sith is thinking on his new blog, the Darth Side.

Vader is absolutely full of pain and harsh tones, but does offer a glimpse into his softer side, when thinking of "her" - presumably his fave lady, Queen Amidala. He also apparently has a bit of humor in him, somewhere beneath that cape and helmet. "Sometimes it just feels good to get a little warm sun on my helmet," he states when going out to lunch with his crew. Who knew?