If you, like me, were just the other day sitting in the bath wondering, "What in the hell ever happened to that dude who played Bill in Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure? What was his name? Yeah! Alex Winter." So I wondered that to myself, but then after my bath I went to bed and forgot to IMDb his name to find out what he was up to. Then tonight, I was sitting here on the couch in my Theraflu haze half-watching Pokemon (don't ask) and there was a commercial for the new live-action Ben-10 movie, which I totally did not even know they were making, and guess who's directing it? Bill S. Preston, aka Alex Winter, who looks almost exactly like he did 18 years ago, only 18 years older.

Ben 10, in case you aren't in the know, is this cool kid's show about a boy, Ben S. Tennyson, who finds an alien watch that turns him into different alien creatures. Ben, his cousin Gwen, and their grandfather (who, lucky for Ben, used to belong to some alien protection squad) spend the summer traveling around in grandpa's tricked-out RV, while Ben uses his superpowers to kick the asses of various alien bad guys. It's a pretty cool show from a kids' standpoint -- a big fave in our house, where we also have a bunch of Ben 10 action figures and a couple of Omnitrix (the watch that Ben wears), including a version with this cool voice changer that makes my 4YO sound like Darth Vader on mushrooms.

Remember that incident a few months back involving the city of Boston and a marketing idea gone wrong? In case you're totally oblivious or have a bad memory, it consisted of a silly stunt to promote Aqua Teen Hunger Force that accidentally caused a terror alert. In the end, the mistake resulted in two men facing felony hoax charges, the head of Cartoon Network resigning, Turner Broadcasting paying out $2 million in restitution and Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino hating the surreal animated series forever. Unfortunately for Menino, the cinematic spin-off of the series, Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters, opens this Friday around the country, including in two theaters in his city. Menino has made attempts to convince these locations to boycott the film, "out of respect to the people of Boston," but obviously the theaters are not willing to meet his demands. The thing Menino doesn't appear to realize, which doesn't take an expert in marketing communication to point out (though the Boston Herald quotes one, just to go with an official perspective), that any negative attention he can give the movie will help in its appeal.

In unrelated news, Menino has also attacked the marketing of another film this week. He has ordered the removal of advertisements for Fracture, which contain written in big letters the phrase "I Shot My Wife" superimposed over Anthony Hopkins' face. The fifty posters, which are part of a reported $52,000 ad campaign, have been on display in bus shelters for nearly a month, and apparently they have caused a lot of complaints. A statement from the mayor's office claimed the ads promoted a negative and violent message, which makes me wonder what Menino would have thought if Boston had been included in the controversial campaign for Captivity. He might have gone and banned all movie marketing within city limits for good. Well, except for maybe those promoting seemingly harmless Tim Allen comedies. After all, in case anyone thinks that the mayor has a thing against Hollywood in general, recall how much love he showed to Wild Hogs last month.

Each and every time I read about the purchase of yet another young-adult fantasy novel by yet another major studio, I can't help but feel they're all one in the same -- insert some kid (or kids) into a world that's kind of like ours but different, give them some magical powers, then send them off on a quest to find something important. That description alone pretty much sums up every single fantasy project currently filming or in development.

Of course, that's not stopping folks from continually snatching up more and more -- this time around, Universal Pictures has acquired Simon Bloom, the Gravity Keeper -- the first book in a potential series (what else is new) written by newbie Michael Reisman -- as a possible directing vehicle for Gary Ross (Seabiscuit, Pleasantville). Story surrounds three kids who discover a magical physics book that somehow gives them the powers to alter gravity, along with other physical properties of the world. Hey, if this doesn't officially make physics the "cool" subject to study in school, then I don't know what will.

Reisman, a script reader for Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network, was first inspired to write the Gravity Keeper after reading the Lemony Snicket books. Even though he now has a book and movie deal, the dude has not yet left his job ... because someone has to discover the next Zoey 101.

If you're still not convinced that Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters will be one of the funniest films this spring, then I should note that it's also from "the 1st Assistant Director of the 2nd unit of Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth." Now, if that doesn't get you all pumped up, I don't know what will. The first full-length trailer for the pic has just hit the net, and it's absolutely out of this world ... not to mention, there's a flaming chicken. A flaming chicken! Does it get any better?

For those of you who don't stay up late to watch those wacky cartoons on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim (and, trust me, if you are one of those Adult Swim junkies then there's a good chance you dance to a slightly different tune than everyone else), you're probably not all that familiar with the show Aqua Teen Hunger Force (or ATHF). Basically, a wad of meat, a milkshake and a box of fries bumble around throughout a series of memorable adventures. Each episode is only 15 minutes long (a perfect amount of time for a show like this), which certainly begs the question: Will their shtick be able to handle the feature-length format?

Heck, hardcore fans should just be happy the thing is getting some sort of theatrical release, albeit on only 800 screens this March. However, the DVD should follow soon after, and I'm sure it will be packed with all kinds of extra coolness. (I don't know about you, but perhaps they can pack a real milkshake and bag of fries into some sort of Special Edition DVD -- after watching this show, a severe case of the munchies always follows.)

If you have never seen Aqua Teen Hunger Force, the idea of a trio of talking food products -- a meatball, a milkshake, and a box of fries -- would probably not sell you on the show. The animated series was created by Matt Maiellaro and Dave Willis, and had been originally intended as a segment for Space Ghost Coast to Coast on the Cartoon Network. Seven years later, the show has slowly achieved cult status and has been available on DVD for a while now. I have to admit, it's provided me with few giggles, but most of the time I was just kind of confused.

MTV news reported that the website for Aqua Teen Hunger Force posted a teaser for the upcoming feature Aqua Teen Hunger Force: The Movie. The story follows Meatwad, Master Shake, and Frylock in a battle over a piece of mystical exercise equipment. Willis did provide some other hints as to what to expect, "A personal story? Oh, like a journey? Like learning? No, no, no. They don't learn anything. It's really just 90 minutes of them bickering over their gas bill." Willis also mentioned some celebrity cameos in the film; although the strangest tid-bit was that the soundtrack would include new music from Phil Collins -- that's right, Mr Sussudio himself.

So is anyone excited about Aqua Teen Hunger Force The Movie? Or is it just one of those late-night shows best enjoyed in a cloud of bong smoke.

[via VH1.com]