After being taken down weeks ago to prevent furthur cyber attacks on it’s systems, Playstation Network is planning to return this week with an all new system full of new goodies as well as a few gifts to make it worth your while when you return. Personally I can’t wait to see what they have in store. Info below…

SOME PLAYSTATION®NETWORK AND QRIOCITY™ SERVICES TO BE AVAILABLE THIS WEEK
Phased Global Rollout of Services to Begin Regionally;
System Security Enhanced to Provide Greater Protection of Personal Information

Tokyo, May 1, 2011 – Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) and Sony Network Entertainment International (SNEI, the company) announced they will shortly begin a phased restoration by region of PlayStation®Network and Qriocity™ services, beginning with gaming, music and video services to be turned on. The company also announced both a series of immediate steps to enhance security across the network and a new customer appreciation program to thank its customers for their patience and loyalty.

Following a criminal cyber-attack on the company’s data-center located in San Diego, California, U.S.A., SNEI quickly turned off the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services, engaged multiple expert information security firms over the course of several days and conducted an extensive audit of the system. Since then, the company has implemented a variety of new security measures to provide greater protection of personal information. SNEI and its third-party experts have conducted extensive tests to verify the security strength of the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services. With these measures in place, SCE and SNEI plan to start a phased rollout by region of the services shortly. The initial phase of the rollout will include, but is not limited to, the following:

• Restoration of Online game-play across the PlayStation®3 (PS3) and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) systems
  -This includes titles requiring online verification and downloaded games
• Access to Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity for PS3/PSP for existing subscribers
• Access to account management and password reset
• Access to download un-expired Movie Rentals on PS3, PSP and MediaGo
• PlayStation®Home
• Friends List
• Chat Functionality

Working closely with several outside security firms, the company has implemented significant security measures to further detect unauthorized activity and provide consumers with greater protection of their personal information. The company is also creating the position of Chief Information Security Officer, directly reporting to Shinji Hasejima, Chief Information Officer of Sony Corporation, to add a new position of expertise in and accountability for customer data protection and supplement existing information security personnel. The new security measures implemented include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Added automated software monitoring and configuration management to help defend against new attacks
• Enhanced levels of data protection and encryption
• Enhanced ability to detect software intrusions within the network, unauthorized access and unusual activity patterns
• Implementation of additional firewalls

The company also expedited an already planned move of the system to a new data center in a different location that has been under construction and development for several months. In addition, PS3 will have a forced system software update that will require all registered PlayStation Network users to change their account passwords before being able to sign into the service. As an added layer of security, that password can only be changed on the same PS3 in which that account was activated, or through validated email confirmation, a critical step to help further protect customer data.

The company is conducting a thorough and on-going investigation and working with law enforcement to track down and prosecute those responsible for the illegal intrusion.

“This criminal act against our network had a significant impact not only on our consumers, but our entire industry. These illegal attacks obviously highlight the widespread problem with cyber-security. We take the security of our consumers’ information very seriously and are committed to helping our consumers protect their personal data. In addition, the organization has worked around the clock to bring these services back online, and are doing so only after we had verified increased levels of security across our networks,” said Kazuo Hirai, Executive Deputy President, Sony Corporation. “Our global audience of PlayStation Network and Qriocity consumers was disrupted. We have learned lessons along the way about the valued relationship with our consumers, and to that end, we will be launching a customer appreciation program for registered consumers as a way of expressing our gratitude for their loyalty during this network downtime, as we work even harder to restore and regain their trust in us and our services.”

Complimentary Offering and “Welcome Back” Appreciation Program
While there is no evidence at this time that credit card data was taken, the company is committed to helping its customers protect their personal data and will provide a complimentary offering to assist users in enrolling in identity theft protection services and/or similar programs. The implementation will be at a local level and further details will be made available shortly in each region.

The company will also rollout the PlayStation Network and Qriocity “Welcome Back” program, to be offered worldwide, which will be tailored to specific markets to provide our consumers with a selection of service options and premium content as an expression of the company’s appreciation for their patience, support and continued loyalty.

Central components of the “Welcome Back” program will include:

• Each territory will be offering selected PlayStation entertainment content for free download. Specific details of this content will be announced in each region soon.
• All existing PlayStation Network customers will be provided with 30 days free membership in the PlayStation Plus premium service. Current members of PlayStation Plus will receive 30 days free service.
• Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity subscribers (in countries where the service is available) will receive 30 days free service.

Additional “Welcome Back” entertainment and service offerings will be rolled out over the coming weeks as the company returns the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services to the quality standard users have grown to enjoy and strive to exceed those exceptions.

SNEI will continue to reinforce and verify security for transactions before resuming the PlayStation®Store and other Qriocity operations, scheduled for this month.

For more information about the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services intrusion and restoration, please visit http://blog.us.playstation.com. or http://blog.eu.playstation.com/

About Sony Corporation
Sony Corporation is a leading manufacturer of audio, video, game, communications, key device and information technology products for the consumer and professional markets. With its music, pictures, computer entertainment and on-line businesses, Sony is uniquely positioned to be the leading electronics and entertainment company in the world. Sony recorded consolidated annual sales of approximately $78 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2010. Sony Global Web Site: http://www.sony.net/

About Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
Recognized as the global leader and company responsible for the progression of consumer-based computer entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) manufactures, distributes and markets the PlayStation® game console, the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, the PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) handheld entertainment system and the PlayStation®3 (PS3®) system. PlayStation has revolutionized home entertainment by introducing advanced 3D graphic processing, and PlayStation 2 further enhances the PlayStation legacy as the core of home networked entertainment. PSP is a handheld entertainment system that allows users to enjoy 3D games, with high-quality full-motion video, and high-fidelity stereo audio. PS3 is an advanced computer system, incorporating the state-of-the-art Cell processor with super computer like power. SCEI, along with its subsidiary divisions Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc., Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Ltd., and Sony Computer Entertainment Korea Inc. develops, publishes, markets and distributes software, and manages the third party licensing programs for these platforms in the respective markets worldwide. Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, SCEI is an independent business unit of the Sony Group.

It’s Monday morning and you know what that means, It’s time to find out what movie’s you spent your money on this weekend. This weekends big winner for a second week in a row is “Hop” who continued it’s strong run with a 21 million dollar take. Despite it’s 42% drop from last weekend it still had enough to take out the Russel Brand vehicle “Arthur”. The remake of the 1981 comedy pulled in 12 million dollars for a rather anemic second place. This puts Brand in the rare position of having the two top grossing movies of the weekend, a feat that hasn’t taken place since Decaprio did it in “Man in the Iron Mask” and “Titanic” in 1998.

The two big surprises of the week got to the number 3 and 4 spots with “Hanna” and “Soul Surfer” posting strong debuts.Positive reviews for Hanna and a nearly 80% female audience for Soul Surfer drove these movies to strong positions and word of mouth may keep them there for a while.

The biggest disappointment this week was the stoner comedy “Your Highness”. The action/adventure/weed comedy failed to find it’s audience after it was mistakenly marketed as a movie starring Oscar award winners instead of marketing it to the people that drove Pineapple Express and Half Baked out of the red. Look for this film to disappear from theaters rather quickly much like Sucker Punch who has now dropped out of the top ten after just two weeks.

Over the next couple of weeks we are going to take a look at some of the talented comic writers and artists we spent time with at Staple-Austin over the past weekend. We had a great time meeting and interviewing these guys and girls and want to give you a chance to check out some of their work.

Paul is an Austin based artist and writer whose work has been featured by Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Heavy Metal, Ubisoft, Metro, Image, Criterion and Mirage Studios. You can find his work in book stores everywhere or for more info visit paulmaybury.com. You can also read his original webcomic Party Bear for free here. So make sure you check out his stuff and support artist who are out there doing good work. I’d recommend Strange Tales #2: Little Lies. Classic art style, good stories, Definitly worth checking out…

Here’s a quick peek at some Captain America: The First Avenger footage that was shown on Entertainment Tonight last night. Lots of action and even some shield tossing in there. The trailer will premiere tonight on ET…
Captain America: The First Avenger will be released in 3D on July 22.

This week on Noob Radio Richard and Christian return from their busy week of wedding festivities (not to each other, that’s not legal here) for a jam packed show. This week the guys discuss why the new Conan trailer sucks, Can David Slade save Daredevil, as well as take on a super sized edition of The Comic Break brought to you by www.comicbreak.com. All this and much much more on this episode of Noob Radio…

Intro,welcome back

Free comic book day party, May 7th

The Beverage Bar

2950 Thousand Oaks Dr.

San Antonio, TX

Sponsored by

Comic Break.com

Free Comics!
Come meet local comic book writers and artists!
Face painting!
Plus, comic themed Live Art Show!

Come meet us and hang out…

Follow us on facebook, twitter, listen on itunes, mediafly.com, and stitcher (talk about stitcher)

Quick Hits…

Movie news…

Conan trailer hit, didn’t like it, not interesting at all to me, general consensus was”meh”. Thoughts? Thoughts on the original?

20th Century Fox is looking to bring on 30 Days of Night director David Slade to develop the studio’s reboot of the Marvel’s Daredevil. For those of you not really familiar with Slade’s work he also directed Hard Candy, The Twilight Saga: Eclipse and is going to be directing the new Dracula story The Last Voyage of the Demeter. Can david slade fix this mess? Why did the first version not work? I didn’t like the bad guy character, too campy for me.

Alec Baldwin drops out of mib 3…

Baldwin had been set to star as the head of the 1969 era Men in Black agency. His portion is currently being rewritten and production is scheduled to start at the end of March. At least he’ll be starring and singing in Rock of Ages, opposite Tom Cruise and Julianne Hough. With all the setbacks will this ever get made? Did you like the other mib’s?

Television news…

Steve carell’s last day on the office is official
It looks like Steve Carell’s final appearance on “The Office” will take place on April 28, the first day of May sweeps. He will be joined on that episode by Will Ferrell as his temporary replacement. This looks to be the culmination of a season long plot in which the relationship status of Michael Scott and Holly Flax will finally come to a head. Thoughts? What will he do now? Are you interested in his future show idea for a mailman style sitcom?

No ordinary family looks to be dead. Both lead actors are shooting pilots for other networks. Deadline Hollywood reports exclusively that julie Benz is starring as a hot ghost in an untitled CBS supernatural drama. Michael Chiklis is also at CBS, shooting the sitcom pilot “Vince Uncensored.” Did you watch? That’s probably why it was canceled…

The premiere of Steven Spielberg’s time-traveling Fox dinosaur adventure “Terra Nova,” originally targeted for midseason then delayed until May 23, has been delayed again. The premiere is now headed to autumn. It s blames on the ambitious special effects. If the show is so effects heavy, will they be able to keep up with it once full time productions hits?

Video Game News
Home front hit this last Tuesday to mixed reviews. Takes place in future America with allied korea taking over US. Not a big fan of FPS but ill take a look at this one. Written by same person who wrote Red Dawn.

Mortal Kombat Demo dropped last week on PS3, is it still relevant? Did you play the original? I bought a sega just to play the version with blood…

Rovio’s own “Mighty Eagle” Peter Vesterbacka is out ruffling feathers again. Following his jovial-turned-contentious talk at the Game Developer’s Conference, Vesterbacka came loaded for bear at South by Southwest Interactive in Texas this weekend. At a panel moderated by Venture Beat, Vesterbacka continued his thread of mobile games being an exciting place, full of innovation, which is something tough to argue against. However, Vesterbacka went on to declare that console games are “dying” and the idea of paying $50 for a game is going the way of the dodo. Angry birds has been downloaded over 100 million times…

The Comic Break
sponsored by www.comicbreak.com

Marvel Zombies supreme 1 of 5
Frank Marrafino writer, Fernando blanco artist

Ronin Wolverine 1 of 5
Written by peter milligan, art tom coker,

Annihilators 1 of 4
Writer dan abnet, andy lanning, art tan eng huat

Venom 1
Writer rick remeder, artist tony moore

Iron man 2.0 #1
Writer nick spencer, art barry kitson

Astonishing Xmen 36
Written by Daniel way, art by Jason pearson

Movie of the week

Vanishing on 7th street…

When a massive power outage plunges the city of Detroit into total darkness, a disparate group of individuals find themselves alone. The entire city’s population has vanished into thin air, leaving behind heaps of empty clothing, abandoned cars and lengthening shadows. Soon the daylight begins to disappear completely, and as the survivors gather in an abandoned tavern, they realize the darkness is out to get them, and only their rapidly diminishing light sources can keep them safe

Stars hayden Christianson, john leguizamo…

Hits dvd on 5 17 11

Planet HULK
The Incredible Hulk, ejected from Earth in a spaceship, crash lands on a planet ruled by a tyrant, who forces him to fight in a coliseum against other powerful creatures. The Hulk reluctantly befriends the combatants on his team.

Wrap up, thank sponsors bye…

This “gem” slipped by my collective awareness as it apparently hit the internetz on Monday. I don’t have a lot to say about it other that it looks pretty awful. Like a mix between those terrible Garfield and Alvin and the Chipmunk movies. Just bad…

Of all the remakes, reboots, and comic imaginations coming out this summer, this is probably the least interesting to me. I grew up knowing of Conan the comic but never really watched the movie version starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. It just wasn’t my cup of tea. After watching this teaser I’m not sure I’m gonna be going out of my way anytime soon to check this version out either. Enjoy your spooky dark Conan trailer…

This from somekindofawesome.com.
Apparently Beck recorded some mini version of songs for Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World that have now been released and you can check them out here. I love Scott Pilgrim, its a real representation of what I thought the world would be like growing up, full of power ups and 1 up block. Apparently it is not. I’m still waiting. Either way here are some very cool unreleased clips from Beck and Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World…
Indefatigable

No Fun

Disgusting Rainbow

Gasoline Eyes

I’ve been super excited to see this film since the early teaser from last fall. Abrams has really captured the 80′s Spielberg vibe here. I think a lot of it may have to do with the music and the whimsical bit of childhood nostalgia that seems to run throughout the trailer. Either way I can’t wait to see this when it hits June 10, 2011. This summers starting to look like its gonna be a big one after last years disappointments…

Set in 1979 Ohio, a group of six young children use a Super 8 camera to make their own zombie movie. One night while filming near a remote stretch of railroad tracks, the children witness a truck collide with an oncoming train leading to a catastrophic derailment. Amidst the fire and destruction, something inhuman emerges.

Set in 2014 along the Iraq-Iran border, Fault Line Episode 1: Bad Part of Town follows a marine Staff Sergeant as he deploys with his four-man squad. Another crew has gone missing while on the hunt for a chemical weapons site, and Staff Sergeant Blackburn’s men are tasked with the rescue mission.

[shockmansion]

This week on Noob Radio Richard and Christian are joined on location by friends of the show and contributors for Geek Weekend 2 and the semi-annual geek roundtable for a rowdy discussion of all the days news involving comics, video games, movies and television. It was a wild and rowdy time so check it out on this episode of Noob Radio!

Intro:

Quick Hits
Sponsored by: Provenance Media

Movie news.
Lots of first looks this week…
First looks at planet of the apes, only a pic of franco but it is a start.

First look at the hangover 2. Short teaser went up yesterday. Are you excited by the potential of this movie?

First clip of battle los angeles, very action packed, any digging the marketing of this movie with the fake websites and viral history marketing?

Finally why does Bill Murray hate ghostbusters. If not why would he have the script and not read it? Does he really not want to do this movie?

Video game news…
Killzone 3 dropped this week, did anyone else play it?

Ubisoft plans to release the game We Dare in Europe but not is us. Has a lot of sexual content, they don’t think it will sell here. Why is that?

Gearbox wants to thank everyone who ever worked on the long delayed duke nukem forever, ever. So if you’ve contributed in some way to this game, ever, you can contact them and get your name on the game.

Television news…

CBS finally pulls the plug on 2 and a half men after Charlie sheen went to the media and called out the shows main producer. This last ever episode of this show may have aired last week when the final produced episode was shown.

Comic Break Comics for 2/25/2011

sponsored by

Booster Gold #41

Written by KEITH GIFFEN & J.M. DEMATTEIS

Art and Cover by CHRIS BATISTA & RICH PERROTTA

A new threat from another time attacks Booster again – for the first time! Unfortunately, this threat catches Booster in Rip Hunter’s lab, and the bunker takes enough of a beating to put everybody out of time-traveling commission for a long while!

Justice League of America #54

Written by JAMES ROBINSON

Art by BRETT BOOTH & NORM RAPMUND

Cover by BRETT BOOTH

1:10 Variant Cover by DAVID MACK

“The Rise of Eclipso” begins here as the dark energies that have surrounded Earth are harnessed once more to usher in the great Lord of Darkness! And it looks like the corruption of all mankind starts with the members of the Justice League! When things go dark, which teammate poses the greatest threat to mankind – Obsidian or Jade?

The Legion of Super-Heroes #10

Written by PAUL LEVITZ

Art and Cover by YILDIRAY CINAR & WAYNE FAUCHER

The Durlan plot against the United Planets comes to a very deadly conclusion, as Chameleon Boy must dive into battle with one of his own kind! And what this final assassin reveals will stun the shape-shifting Legionnaire!

Silver Surfer #1 (of 5)

Written by Greg Pak

Pencils by Stephen Segovia

Cover by Carlo Pagulayan

A new beginning for the SILVER SURFER! The sentinel of the spaceways walks the Earth once more, a stranger feared by many. Only the HIGH EVOLUTIONARY understands his true potential, but the Evolutionary’s mysterious grand design may cost the Surfer everything and change the cosmic balance forever! He’s traded blows with Thor and matched wits with Mephisto, but can the herald of Galactus survive the judgment of NORRIN RAND, the man within the Silver Surfer? It’s a character-defining epic showing the Silver Surfer as you’ve never seen him before.

Hulk #30

Written by JEFF PARKER [Soft Break]Pencils & Cover by ED McGUINNESS

THE ORIGINAL RED HULK ARTIST RETURNS! Ed McGuiness draws a special (and especially insane) issue of HULK! A classic Hulk enemy returns, and can only be defeated by…THE?COMPOUND HULK! Guest-starring XEMNU, THE IMPOSSIBLE MAN and WOODGOD (yes, Woodgod)!

Main Event

Oscar Chat

Picks for Oscar winners

Movie of the Week (2/25/2011)

Christian’s:

Six-Sting Samurai

Richard’s
I Saw the Devil

Chad’s
Hard Boiled

Dave
Terrorvision

Austin Rogers
Gymkata

Kevin Minke
Red Cliff

Wrap it up, thanks sponsors, bye bye…

Sponsored By…

Rockstar released box art for one of it’s most anticipated games of 2010 and now 2011 today and I’m not super impressed with it. It’s pretty basic fare with nothing special going on. Certainly wouldn’t grab my eye if I was perusing the game stores and came across it. Then again it’s whats under the hood that counts and this one looks pretty good. check out the trailer below.

Set amid the violence and corruption of post-World War II Los Angeles, L.A. Noire is a crime thriller that seamlessly blends crime-solving, clue-finding, car chases and shoot-outs with revolutionary new interrogation-based gameplay that will allow players to read characters’ emotions in order to reveal the truth. Players will take on the role of Cole Phelps, a decorated war veteran, who rises through the ranks of the LAPD by solving a series of gruesome murders and other crimes that bring him face-to-face with the dark heart of Los Angeles during Hollywood’s Golden Age.

• Published by: Rockstar Games
• Developed by: Team Bondi
• Genre: Adventure
• Release Date:
  US: May 17, 2011
• Release Date:
  Europe: Q2 2011
• Release Date:
  Australia: May 20, 2011
• MSRP: $59.99
• RP-T+ for Rating Pending
• Also Available On: PlayStation 3

Comic Break Review: Sweet Tooth # 18

Sponsored by: www.comicbreak.com

Written by JEFF LEMIRE

Art and Cover by JEFF LEMIRE

After the explosive conclusion of “Animal Armies,” Jepperd and his new traveling companions begin a long trek north in search of answers in this stand-alone issue. But as the first snowfall of the year hits, mistrust and fear threaten to tear the group apart before they even get started!

There is often a strange disconnect when picking up a comic for the first time, especially when you’re jumping in 18 issues deep. With no real sense of where the story is headed or where it’s been I often find myself grasping at the smallest detail hoping it will lead me to a connection with a character that will draw me into the story and begin that relationship I was looking for in comics to begin with. With some books it’s a struggle to find my footing and if I reach the staples with out finding that connection, I’m pretty sure it’s a lost cause and time to move on but occasionally I come across that rare comic that grabs you with nothing but the cover itself and won’t let go. It’s just a little peek into what’s in store but it grabs me none the less and I can’t help but delve into it and that was the case with Sweet Tooth #18.

Sweet Tooth #18 picks up with Gus (The Boy) and Tommy Jeppard (The Big Man) leading a group of survivors along a desolate road in search of the mythical place called Alaska in the hopes for a better life in post apocalyptic America. There was a terrible plague at some point in the past leaving the world a cold and dangerous place and these characters are looking for a sliver of hope in this dark world. As the travel the road searching for this land of new hope, there is a lot of tension between the characters of the group. Past acts of betrayal have left many in the group  scarred and looking for revenge but there are hints of goodness in them as well which prevents them from becoming savages like the monsters moving in the shadows of the world around them.

As they travel the lonely highway and begin to experience what it’s like to live as a group and rely on each other to survive we see that in even the worst of situations there is joy and goodness to be found. There is hope for tomorrow for even the most damaged of the group but the only way they will ever experience that wonder is to never let their guard down and stick together no matter what.

I don’t know where this comic is headed but if you are looking to get into a story and go along for the ride I would certainly recommend this one and this is a perfect issue to do it. Sweet Tooth #18 is a bit of a recap story and a bridge between story arcs. A lull between storms and the perfect opportunity to jump on before the next ride begins.

I’d also like to point out that this issue of the comic also comes in a special horizontal  format that gives it a very cinematic feel. The beautiful artwork of Jeff Lemire is striking in this format and really unlike anything I’ve ever experienced in a comic. The wide aspect ratio of the frames really show off the desolate landscape they now inhabit and when it goes back to the traditional formatting on a few pages it makes what’s just off screen all the more impactful in you mind.

The combination of the artwork and the story telling in Sweet Tooth #18 is wonderful and I highly recommend you pick this comic up and tell all your friends about it. If they’ve got any heart at all, they’ll thank you because this is the type of comic that makes you want to go online and look for back issues just to find out where this story has been and where it is headed.

This review has been brought to you by:

This week on the noobnews podcast, Richard and Christian discuss Joseph Gordon Levitt joining the cast of The Dark Knight Rises, the new segment “The Comic Break” brought to you by comicbreak.com, as well as all the Superman casting news you can fit in a pair of red tights. All this and much much more on this episode of The Noob News…

Here’s this weeks rundown…
Quick Hits…

movie news…

Joseph Gordon levitt signed on to Dark Night rises, who would you like to see him play? no riddler or joker in this movie, i could see him as a young dick grayson perhaps?.

television news…

Will ferrell will be doing a 4 episode stint as a saber manager helping to fill in for michael scott when he exits the show
later this season,  Steve Carell is leaving and apparently will farell will provide levity as the focus of the show shifts
from Carell’s exit to the new Sabre Manager. who should be the new manager? a cast member or an outside hire? can this show survive without steve carell?

I say hire todd packer as the new manager and give him a full time role… todd packer is a occasional character played by David Koechner also know as Champ Kind of Anchorman, if you don’t know who that is you can suck it…Whamooo

game news…

PS3 is coming out with a silver version looks very cool…

On March 10th Sony will release the PS3 Slim in a shiny silver color but in limited quantities. The shiny console will come in two versions; 160 GB for about $365 and the spacious 320 GB for $427
is it worth the money? if you had the cash would you buy it just for the looks?

Comic Break Time!
Sponsored by: ComicBreak.com

See Christian’s Review of Star Wars: Darth Vader and the Lost Command Here

Comic Break is brought to you by:

The Main Event

Lets talk superman, in a bit of a surprise choice, Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures announced earlier this week that Henry Cavill has been picked for the much sought after role of Superman. What we know about him… He’s on Tudors, showtime network show, He’s played parts in HELLRAISER: HELLWORLD, TRISTON + ISOLDE, STARDUST and he’ll beplaying Theseus in the upcoming IMMORTALS. He was up for consideration for several big roles including superman for bryan synger, James Bond, as well as batman whereNolan who is producing saw him and kept him in mind for future roles. He’s british, does that hurts him playing superman? it hasnt hurt batman, also spiderman is also british now so i’ll let thatslide…

netflix movie of the week…
Invader Zim

The Shining

Thanks to the sponsors…

goodbye…

So apparently the White Stripes have decided to call it quits. They left this note on their website…

The White Stripes would like to announce that today, February 2nd, 2011,
their band has officially ended and will make no further new recordings or perform live.

The reason is not due to artistic differences or lack of wanting to continue, nor any
health issues as both Meg and Jack are feeling fine and in good health.

It is for a myriad of reasons, but mostly to preserve What is beautiful and special about
the band and have it stay that way.

Meg and Jack want to thank every one of their fans and admirers for the incredible
support they have given throughout the 13 plus years of the White Stripes’ intense and
incredible career.

Third Man Records will continue to put out unreleased live and studio recordings from
The White Stripes in their Vault Subscription record club, as well as through regular
channels.

Both Meg and Jack hope this decision isn’t met with sorrow by their fans but that it is
seen as a positive move done out of respect for the art and music that the band has
created. It is also done with the utmost respect to those fans who’ve shared in those
creations, with their feelings considered greatly.

With that in mind the band have this to say:

“The White Stripes do not belong to Meg and Jack anymore. The White Stripes belong
to you now and you can do with it whatever you want. The beauty of art and music is
that it can last forever if people want it to. Thank you for sharing this experience. Your
involvement will never be lost on us and we are truly grateful.”

Sincerely,
Meg and Jack White
The White Stripes

It’s the kind of nice breakup letter you always left your ex in the hope that you could “still be friends” but in all honesty you really just wanted to bang other people and didn’t want to have to explain that to your now ex. I have no problem with The White Stripes breaking up, actually I was pretty sure they hadn’t been together for quite some time. Jack had been touring with The Dead Weather and The Raconteurs and producing records with so many people that I’m sure he really didn’t have time to play house with Meg anymore anyway.

I’m not a huge White Stripes fan but I can certainly appreciate what they have brought to the world of music in the past 13 years. I had never heard of Jack White before he smashed in the face of the Von Bondies frontman Jason Stollsteimer in 2003 but the ensuing media circus and exposure following that event left me with a firm grip on who Jack and Meg White of The White Stripes really were. They were one of the greatest American rock bands to come along in a long, long time.

Other than their color coordinated red and black instruments and clothes, there was very little pretense involved with The White Stripes. Their music was stripped to its core, consisting of emotion, energy, passion, and little else. Hell, they didn’t even feel the need to have a bassist in the band. The dynamic combo of Jack White and Meg White on stage was pure chemistry in it’s sloppiest,passionate, and most intimate form.

When it was all said and done The White Stripes discography consists of six studio albums, one live album, two extended plays (EP), one concert film, one tour documentary, twenty-six singles, and fourteen music videos. Their last three albums each won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.

Awards and success may have come to The White Stripes but it never seemed to go to their heads. Instead of doing what most good band do and get soft in their old age and rest on their laurels, they did what only the great bands have done and that’s go out on top. We may never again hear The White Stripes play live again but the legacy of music they have left over the years has created a spot that won’t easily be filled anytime soon.

Oh, and we also have the numerous Jack White projects that once filled his time between The White Stripes tours but will now take center stage in many a White Stripes fan’s heart.

Long live The White Stripes…

It looks like Stephen Kings (IMO) best work is finally gonna get the Hollywood treatment it’s fans have always clamored for. Hollywood Reporter is reporting that the book will make its way to the big screen via a Warner Bros. and CBS Films co-production. What’s yet to be seen is the size and scope of the story to be told. Stephen King’s “The Stand” is a monster of a book that could probably be turned into a 24 episode tv series. There are a ton of characters that come and go as well as major story arcs that just couldn’t be told in even a trilogy of  movies.

From Hollywood Reporter

“The Stand is a story of good vs. evil after a virus wipes out most of the American population. While it features dozens of characters (such as the Trashcan Man and Mother Abigail) and overlapping story lines running over many years, the struggle boils down to a group of survivors fighting the Antichrist-like Randall Flagg.

The novel was originally published in 1978, but by the time it was re-released in 1990 with King adding and revising portions of the story, it has achieved cult-like status.

George Romero and Warners separately tried in vain to launch a movie adaptation in the 1980s, and a tone-downed version was produced as a six-hour miniseries by ABC in 1994. In recent years, Marvel Comics has been adapting the story to great acclaim.”

I enjoyed the miniseries when it was on but watching it now really dates it and shows the limitations that were put on it by censors and time restraints. I would be surprised to see anything different out of a modern take on it. Times have changed but not that much. This book is just too big to fit on the big screen. Bring it to AMC and let them do a series like they have done with The Walking Dead and then I’ll have a little more faith in this.

A few years ago I stumbled across the small spanish horror movie [REC]. It was a verite style horror movie, filmed from various helmet cameras and television cameras to capture the action taking place in a small apartment complex as a zombie/demon/rabies outbreak happened. It was awesome, I loved it, I couldn’t wait to see the sequel [REC] 2 when it was announced and I was not dissappointed when I did see it. Now I’m equally excited to see that they are moving forward with two more films that will fill in the gaps between the first two films as well as spread the story to the world outside the apartment building. Let the awesomeness ensue…

Via geektyrant.com

Blooding-Disgusting has reported that Leticia Dolera has been cast alongside Diego Martin for [REC] Genesis. Paco Plaza and Jaume Balaguero will split directing duties for the final two films in the franchise, [REC] Genesis and [REC] Apocalypse.

Plaza will direct [REC] Genesis, which will return to the origin of the original infection that caused humans to turn into zombies and is scheduled to hit in the fall. [REC] Apocalypse will be directed by Balaguero and will end the [REC] series with the pandemic spreading to unknown proportions and is scheduled to hit in the fall of 2012.

Plot:

The action in [REC] GENESIS encompasses the events of the first two films and after the sense of claustrophobia previously experienced. The action now takes place miles away from the original location and partly in broad daylight, giving the film an entirely fresh yet disturbing new reality. The infection has left the building. In a clever twist that draws together the plots of the first two movies, this third part of the saga also works as a decoder to uncover information hidden in the first two films and leaves the door open for the final installment – the future [REC] Apocalypse.

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It looks like Dame Judi Dench will reprise her role as M in the upcoming James Bond Sequel. Dench announced the news at the South Bank Sky Arts Awards  last night not saying much in the way of details but relaying that she was looking forward to starring opposite Daniel Craig and to working with Director Sam Mendes again…

Dame Dench has appeared in every film since GoldenEye. The only other actors to play M were Bernard Lee  in nine films (Dr. No through Moonraker) and Robert Brown who appeared in four of the films (Octopussy through License to Kill).

Bond 23 begins production soon and has a release date of November 9, 2012.

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This week on thenoobnews podcast Richard and Christian are joined in studio by Matt Jones to discuss why Christopher Nolan wasn’t nominated for best director, why  video game versions of movies suck, as well as all the fallout from Kevin Smith’s big announcement from Sundance. All this and much, much more on this episode of thenoobnews…

Here’s this weeks outline…
quick hits

movie news…

christopher nolan not nominated for best director, how is that possible?

does toy story3 belong in the lsit of best picture?

Best Picture nominees
“Black Swan,” Mike Medavoy, Brian Oliver and Scott Franklin, Producers
“The Fighter” David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman and Mark Wahlberg, Producers
“Inception,” Emma Thomas and Christopher Nolan, Producers
“The Kids Are All Right,” Gary Gilbert, Jeffrey Levy-Hinte and Celine Rattray, Producers
“The King’s Speech,” Iain Canning, Emile Sherman and Gareth Unwin, Producers
“127 Hours,” Christian Colson, Danny Boyle and John Smithson, Producers
“The Social Network,” Scott Rudin, Dana Brunetti, Michael De Luca and Ceàn Chaffin, Producers
“Toy Story 3? Darla K. Anderson, Producer
“True Grit” Scott Rudin, Ethan Coen and Joel Coen, Producers
“Winter’s Bone” Anne Rosellini and Alix Madigan-Yorkin, Producers

best director nominees

Black Swan,” Darren Aronofsky
“The Fighter,” David O. Russell
“The King’s Speech,” Tom Hooper
“The Social Network,” David Fincher
“True Grit,” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

television news…

wonder woman is going to pilot

GE’s NBC didn’t like David E. Kelley’s “Wonder Woman” project earlier this month, but Comcast’s NBC just ordered it to pilot.

Based on the iconic DC Comics superheroine, Kelley’s potential series has Diana Prince as a costumed crime fighter by night and a successful Los Angeles corporate executive by day.  Elements carried over from the comics include Diana’s lasso of truth, her bullet-deflecting bracelets and her plane.

game news…

Disney Interactive lays off 200 as video game unit shifts focus
Co-Presidents John Pleasants and James Pitaro announce a sweeping reorganization of the group’s money-losing digital media division, including the closure of a development studio.

After sales of the Tron: Evolution video game failed to crack the 1-million mark, Disney this month closed the studio responsible for it. (Disney Interactive Studios / January 26, 2011)

comic news…

The Main event.
sundance news…

netflix movie of the week…

goodbye…

Jonathan Liebesman’s Battle: Los Angeles will be dropping soon and the posters just keep getting better. I was thinking this movie was gonna be on a smaller scale but things are looking bigger and bigger with each bit of info we get.

The action epic stars Aaron Eckhart, Michelle Rodriguez, Michael Pena, and Bridget Moynahan and hits theaters on March 11th, 2011.

Synopsis:

For years there have been documented cases of UFO sightings around the world – Buenos Aires, Seoul, France, Germany, China. But in 2011 what were once just sightings will become a terrifying reality when Earth is attacked by unknown forces. As people everywhere watch the world’s great cities fall, Los Angeles becomes the last stand for mankind in a battle no one expected. It’s up to a Marine staff sergeant (Aaron Eckhart) and his new platoon to draw a line in the sand as they take on an enemy unlike any they’ve ever encountered before.

Poster courtesy of The IMP Awards