sci fi channel Tagged Articles at Cinematical

The Sci-Fi Channel plays a lot of really crappy new genre movies. We know it, they know it ... and yet still the assembly line of cinematic detritus continues unabated, peppered with titles like Anaconda 3, Monster Ark, and Kraken: Tentacles of the Deep. Most of the "Sci-Fi Originals" are films that they bought or bankrolled at a low price -- and yeah, they're generally perfect for bored Saturday night viewing, provided you have a beer or a bong close by.

But according to Fango, the network just signed a deal to air three (slightly) more well-known properties. The first will be Simon Hunter's The Mutant Chronicles, which stars Thomas Jane and Ron Perlman. (I've seen this one. It's ... not great.) Then we'll get a nifty little gimmick thriller called 100 Feet, in which Famke Janssen is harassed by an evil spirit while she spends time on house arrest. Lastly, Magnolia's slick monster movie Splinter, which got a cursory theatrical release last month, will also play on Sci-Fi. Looks like we're holding until about June of next year though...

...which kinda stinks because I want to add Splinter to my DVD collection.

You only have to visit one horror convention to understand why, twelve years after Pumpkinhead 2: Blood Wings hit the scene, we're now getting a pair of seriously unnecessary sequels. (Pumpkinhead 4: Blood Feud aired last month.) It's because horror fans are painfully loyal patrons, and they've agreed that the Pumpkinhead character is pretty damn evil, vicious and slick-looking. I suppose we can blame thank director Stan Winston for creating a low-budget 1989 monster movie that the fanbase really embraced, and (as always) those loyal fans are being summarily punished for making the original Pumpkinhead an underground hit on home video. (I actually have kind of a soft spot for Pumpkinhead 2, mindlessly entertaining trash that it is.)

Speaking of trash, Pupmkinhead 3: Ashes to Ashes is every bit the infantile, obvious and amateurish affair that one would expect from a project bankrolled by the Sci-Fi Channel. I hate to say it so callously, but I'm fairly certain that the Sci-Fi Channel guys are well aware of how rotten their "original programming" movies actually are. Sure, Sci-Fi sometimes airs some really solid titles (Dog Soldiers, for example), but when you're dealing with their own stuff, you're generally dealing with the bottom of the genre barrel.

Although I never got into Stargate SG-1 (despite a strong interest, I just never managed to watch enough of the show to get caught up), I really enjoy it's existence. There is something nice about knowing there is a popular, long-running sci-fi show on television, and I could always think "maybe I'll start watching next season." Unfortunately, as we all know, my "next season" plans are no good any longer, as the show is finishing up a ten year (wow, ten years?) run and will not have a "next season" after this spring. Oh well, there are always DVDs.

However, fans will get one final treat according to the Sci Fi Channel's website, as MGM has okayed funds to bring about two low to mid-budget films, most likely in direct-to-DVD form. Essentially, a small budget on direct-to-DVD means they'll be able to make two extra-long episodes on DVD to wrap up the series in fine fashion. According to producer Brad Wright, the first film will wrap up loose ends and such, while the second will be a "time travel" flick of some variety. The cast is very excited for both projects. It is nice to see a long-running show get a proper, well-planned goodbye, instead of a sudden cancellation. Maybe I'll get into it next year ...

So the famous Ambassador Hotel, which has graced the screen in many a flick during the course of its proud and haughty history, has been torn down- but not before it got one last co-starring role. It is nice that the handsome old place will be used once again...it's just a shame that it has to go out on a made-for-TV sequel to one of Uwe Boll's worst films (and that's quite a distinction). House of the Dead 2: Dead Aim (I swear that's the real name of it) will premiere this Saturday, Feb. 11th, on the Sci-Fi channel. The movie culls together the acting talent of two upcoming made-for-tv comic book series Painkiller Jane and Blade, as both Emmanuelle Vaugier and Sticky Fingaz have co-starring roles along with a collection of less notable others (this is also quite a distinction). Oh, and Sid Haig.

That's right, the building where Robert Kennedy was killed gave its final bow as the home to a made-for-tv movie with a terrible pun for a name. On the bright side, at least the sequel to House of the Dead seems fully aware of what it is intended to be, a bad shoot-em-up with big guns and as little acting as possible. The original was kind of painfully fun in that "I can't believe this is so awful" sort of MST3K way, and that seems to be just what the sequel is attempting to recreate. And really, who among us doesn't love a good cheesy zombie flick every now and then?

[via sci-fi wire]

Before I start writing anything, I always jot down a few notes about the subject first. When I wrote my little 'note to self' about this article, I only put down one sentence, and I stand by it. "I can't decide if this is awesome or scary."

Here's the story. Sci-Fi Channel has teamed up with comic's biggest living legend, Stan Lee, to produce a reality television series called...you guessed it..."Who Wants to be a Superhero?" It will be a six episode, one hour show, and the stars will be picked by a process wherein hero hopefuls will get on stage in their very best superhero duds, and explain to the judges who they are, what their powers are, and what their hero's creed is. From this performance, Stan and Co. will pick eleven lucky heroes to be whisked away from their everyday lives and sequestered in a "secret lair," as they take on their super-personas "24/7." Here's a taste of the planned style from that point:

Each week, our aspiring heroes will be challenged with competitions designed to test their true superhero abilities. It's not all just leaping tall buildings in a single bound, a true Superhero will be tested for courage, integrity, self-sacrifice, compassion and resourcefulness.

The winner, of course, gets to star in a new comic written by Stan the Man himself.

So...who wants to venture an opinion on this?

 

[via superhero hype]