Like Bugs Bunny the Washington Natioal Opera and Wagner are struck down

Sometimes you have to wonder what Odin would have thought. Specifically about Wagner’s The Ring of the Nibelung a version of the Nibelungenlied. Now some readers may wonder what this opera is and why they might care.

The thing is that far more people know this famous opera than think they do. It has been the subject of multiple stroylines (including an interesting take in the anime Cyborg 009) in film. The music from the various operas have lasted over a century now, and can be heard in fare as diverse as a Bugs Bunny cartoon



to Apocalypse Now – a great scene in the film.



So it’s worth just discussing for at least a moment. And this all came up because the Washington Natioal Opera has just decided to cancel the performance of all 4 operas that make up the Ring. They are doing so because of the current financial difficulty that we all are expereincing. And that is a shame.

To see the full opera is to understand the full story of the Norse Gods and their demise. In total the 4 parts can take up to 4 nights and 15 hours in total. The sheer magnitude of the entirety is unmatched, and perhaps the only medium and story that comes close to the same degree of enormity would be Star Wars (though elements of the story seem to have inspired parts of the Lord of the Rings). Yet this has no special effect, and has been performed long before film existed.

Thus to hear that Washingon National Opera was planning this was a joy. Plácido Domingo would have had his work cutout for him no matter the economy. To hear that Odin, The Norse and Midgard have been destroyed yet again by mere money is sad in a manner.

This means that likely the only way to see the complete Ring cycle will have to be in Seattle in 2009, unless the economy ends that as well. For an opera that has inspired and touched so many for so long, I was hoping for better.

Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and Star Trek all from a different perspective

There’s been a huge hustle and bustle of news and events of late and the tone to many posts I’ve written has been a bit darker than usual. So today I decided to slow down a bit and look at things from a different perspective.

Perhaps the best way to get a different perspective is to view things from a new way of seeing an old idea. So I sought out Youtube and checked out some of the mashed up movies there. I present you a couple of great ideas that Hollywood will never think of, done quite well by people just like you and me (actually I admit I don’t have the knowledge and perhaps the talent to do the videos you see below).

The Universe is big, so what would happen if some of the galactic travelers of sci-fi met up?



What if the culture of the Spartans never died, or at least in a galaxy far away a long time ago? How could they not be the forefathers of the greatest forces in the galaxy?



And for something completely different – and one of my favorites – what if JRR Tolkein wasn’t always a stand up guy?

Hints on the movies of 2009

So since I was recently talking about the start of the summer movie season I thought I might also mention a few movies that will be out in a year or so. Luckily there are 2 that should be interesting, though I’m not sure if that means a good movie or not.

The first is news that the sequel to The Lord of the Rings (in fact it’s actually a prequel and the first book about Middle Earth), The Hobbit will be directed by Guillermo Del Toro. He’s a great director and has a very unique vision. His movies are usually quite entertaining, and he gets a lot out of his actors.

As good as he is, and the bonus that he is one of the very few Hispanic/Latino directors in Hollywood, I have reservations. The bar was set extremely high by Peter Jackson’s version of Lord of the Rings. His ability to translate the words of J.R.R. Tolkien into the visual experience was remarkable and believable. I severely doubt anyone’s ability to duplicate that, even if Jackson were still at the helm.

Yet one positive for the film is that Sir Ian McKellan will be returning in his role as Gandalf the Grey. Well at least they are talking about the pay, so excluding the studio getting cheap, he’s in. Another bit of good news is that Peter Jackson will be producing the film.

Now what other people will be involved is unknown. There are many dwarves and men in this film. And of course there is who will be Bilbo – the original Hobbit on the go. And then there is a huge amount of work for the CGI team in trying to bring to life the central character of Smaug. And a return of Gollum.

The challenges will be daunting. But we will see once the trailers start appearing in about a year and a half or so.

In other movie news there is this other item.

The Terminator is back. But it won’t be the Guvernator on the screen. This time out the story will be advancing to new territory. Or more accurately traveling further into the post-nuclear Skynet controlled future.

In this new movie expect to see Christian Bale and Moon Bloodgood (that has to be a stage name – who would name their kid that?). I have no idea who Bloodgood is, but some may recognize the name from the television series Journeyman. I never saw that so it doesn’t help me. As for Bale, well he has done exceptionally well as the Dark Knight and several other movies so that gives me hope.

And of course there is the other side of the news. It’s a big negative too. The director at this moment is McG, the same person responsible for Charlie’s Angels. That was a horrible television show to movie creation. While it may have made money because of Lucy Liu and Drew Barrymore (Carmen Diaz is just not cute and way too skinny) it was a miserable film. Be honest, you know it was.

Considering the news for the upcoming films in 2009 it’s anyone’s bet on what will be worth the time. Until that time there are a few good things to keep you entertained. As I’ve already mentioned, Iron Man is definitely the movie to see. The new Hulk film with Ed Norton looks appealing and should erase any memory of Ang Lee’s version. WANTED looks to be a major hit with Angelina Jolie, and Morgan Freeman.

The Take with John Leguizamo, Tyrese Gibson, and Rosie Perez sounds like it will make it straight to DVD – a shame since I like Leguizamo and think his ability as an entertainer is severely underestimated.

War, Inc. looks to be the first anti-war movie that will do well and be entertaining. Unlike every film so far that has been a poster-child for the ultra-liberal left wing loons (all 10 of them that collectively went to those films), this film uses humor and a well rounded cast. John Cusack leads the film in a role similar to his hitman in Grosse Point Blank (a really fun film). His sister Joan is also in a similar character. There is a bunch to say about this, but I will wait til I get the trailer. Oh, Ben Kingsley has a small role, and the scary part is so does Hillary Duff.

Of course Indiana Jones is going to be a hit. So far trailers look great and I have to imagine that Harrison Ford doesn’t need the money, and his reputation doesn’t need a flop, so it should be good if not very good.

I’d avoid Speed Racer, and Hellboy might be worth the cost. And the Love Guru seems like it will redeem Mike Meyers for doing The Cat in the Hat.

More on those movies and the rest soon.

Everquest the movie

**this can also be seen at Video Gaming Blog, where I am a contributing author.

Age has its benefits. Besides the wisdom, experience, and more than a few grey hairs there is the chance of plans working out. This is true in life and apparently in virtual life as well. When I say virtual life I mean MMO (massively multiplayer online), and in this case in particular I mean the granddaddy of the modern gaming systems, Everquest.

Now I’m sure that most any casual gamer has heard of Everquest. The first to create a stable, visual MMO which spawned a whole genre in video gaming. There were issues of course, dial-up was horrendous, you had to cue to kill virtually anything, trains were plentiful and devastating. Not to mention the occasional crash. But there was nothing else like it and millions had to play this new wonder.

Of course the genre matured, technology improved, and new themes were introduced. Books, comic books, and movies have all lead to newer MMO’s and several are planned for the near future. The leadership has changed from the original to the latest big thing, WoW (World of Warcraft). And a huge amount of respect has been garnered with this growth in interest and viability.

One of the benefits of this maturity is that other entertainment formats are now available. Rather than movies inspiring MMO’s the process is now going towards MMO’s inspiring a movie. And of course if there is going to be a movie, which game would be better to feature than… Everquest. Yep, not WoW but the granddaddy.

Sony seems to finally be looking seriously at developing an Everquest movie, targeting a 2009 or 2010 release date. They even have, reportedly, Avi Arad to produce. That would be a great sign since he was the man behind the recent transition from comic books to movies for several of the better Marvel comic book series. Add to that the fact that the writer from 300, Michael Gordon, may also be attached to this story and you can have a good movie.

The inherent problems are the lack of interest since Everquest stopped being the leader years ago, and the story as well. If this is done badly you can expect another version of Dungeons & Dragons the movie. Awful is to kind and glamorous a term for that dren.

But if it’s done right, like maybe the first X-Men movie or, if we were really lucky, the Lord of the Rings then we can see several other films and really get to enjoy the alternate lives in a grand scale. Now tell me that wouldn’t be of interest?

Expect to hear more soon. This isn’t over by a longshot.