Chris, Author at Chris Ullrich dot net - Page 13 of 93
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Chris

Scooby Doo Walking Dead

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More often than not, you come across things on the Internets that are lame and not worth the time it took you to see them and decide they were lame. Things like that are a waste of time and that time is something you will never, ever get back.

But then, once in a while, you find something that is really cool, worth the time and makes you smile. That’s right kids, this is one of those times.

I won’t say too much more about these images, created by the very talented Jeff Zoet, except to say that I wish I’d thought of this. It’s really quite clever and makes perfect sense. Combining Scooby Doo with The Walking Dead (sorta) is a brilliant concept and a is deftly captured in these images.

Jeff has got plenty more great concepts, videos and photos at his website, so be sure and check them all out. Hey, maybe you’ll even hire him to do some work for you? That would be a nice thing to do. And no, before you ask, I don’t know Jeff at all.

I just like what I like.

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D&D Players Can Be Ruthless In This Trailer for ‘Zero Charisma’

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Long ago, when Dungeons & Dragons was just called D&D and about the time the first edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons arrived, I started playing the game. Back then it was a group of like-minded friends who gathered around the ping pong table in my parent’s garage and had adventures.

It was a simpler time and I don’t remember the games ever getting violent, or even very confrontational, except when we were engaged in epic battles for our band of adventurers very survival. In the game, of course.

So when I saw this trailer for the indie film Zero Charisma (a title which works for me on several levels), I had to think if I ever had these kinds of problems as a young D&D player. I was pretty sure I didn’t, but perhaps I was remembering it wrong? Or, was I just lucky that none of the people I played with back then were bona fide sociopaths as, unfortunately, the character of Scott (the terrifically creepy Sam Eidson) seems to be.

I like to think we were all just good friends brought together by our love of role playing games, the desire to use or imaginations and because we liked to have fun. I really hope it wasn’t that other stuff. I don’t like to think that I can’t remember things or that I could have misjudged people’s character so badly back then.

As I still keep in touch with most of the guys I played with “back in the day,” I guess I can just check with them and see if my recollection of events jives with their own. I’m pretty sure it will.

You can call a prison directly, right? I kid, I kid.

Check out this trailer for Zero Charisma and some scenes from the movie. It looks like a lot of fun and I look forward to seeing it when I get a chance.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRRCt0tbQvw?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgbLhDUqAXM?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

New Trailer for Season Four of ‘The Walking Dead’

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I read The Walking Dead back when it was just a comic book and not a hugely successful tv series. Even then I was hooked on it and devoured each new installment the moment I could get my hands on it.

Then, it became a tv show. And of course, I watched it. And each week it delivered a solid bit of tv drama complete with all the characters and situations (for the most part) that I’d loved from the comic. It also became a mega success.

Sure, it got kind of bogged down when the show decided to spend a lot of time searching for Sophia and living at the farm. But then things got really great again after they reached the prison and met the Governor.

It hasn’t gone exactly like the comic, but that’s okay. It doesn’t have too. It’s a tv show adapted from the comic, and that’s all the loyalty it owes to the source material.

Fortunately, what they’re doing with the show lately is really paying off and I’m very much looking forward to the next season. Speaking of that, there’s a new trailer for Season Four that’s just come out.

Check it out and let me know whart you think. I know what I think.

I. Can’t. Wait.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSi2fJALDyQ?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

How ‘Man of Steel’ Should Have Ended

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I’m not sure I agree with everything in this video. However, I do appreciate the time and effort that went into making it by the folks at HISHE.com and it does raise some very good points.

So, if you’re one of the people who thought Man of Steel should have gone a bit differently, this just might be for you. Okay, who am I kidding, it never would have ended this way, especially not for a big Hollywood blockbuster. It’s just for fun.

But heck, it’s still pretty funny.

Also, while we’re on the subject of comics and movies (as we often are), I’ll be in San Diego later this week for Comic-Con. So, if you’re going to be there, be sure to say “Hello” if you see me.

I will also be posting some stuff here and over at The Flickcast during the show so be sure and look out for that. You don’t want to miss it.

Enjoy the video.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjSNLmb0Ndw?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

A ‘Blade Runner’ Speedrun for a Sunday

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If I was going to make a list of my all-time favorite sci-fi movies, on that list would have to be Ridley’s Scott’s 1982 masterpiece Blade Runner. As I mentioned in a previous missive, the film made quite an impression on me as a young man.

I first saw it at a screening in San Diego in May of 1992, after having won tickets from a local radio station, and was treated to a version somewhat different from the finished product released to theaters the following month. It was an amazing experience.

I’ve watched it many time since that day and each time I enjoy it more. It’s definitely a movie worth seeing again and again.

Of course, not everyone has the time to watch entire movies. People have lives and schedules to keep. For those with limited free time, the Speedrun was invented.

Simply put, a Speedrun is an animated version of a popular film told in sixty seconds made by the talented folks at 1A4 Studio. This one is Blade Runner, as if you couldn’t guess.

Enjoy. Oh, it has some adult language, so be advised it’s probably NSFW.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ILbDz7tTqU?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

Think ‘Pacific Rim’ Is Total Fantasy? Meet Atlas

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Yes, the movie Pacific Rim is out today and yes, it features giant monsters called Kaiju who we humans fight with giant, mechanized, human-piloted robots we build called Jaegers. And sure, the idea that monsters come from wherever they come from (no spoilers here) and we need to build giant, mechanical creatures to fight them may seem far-fetched and relegated to the world of fantasy and the movies.

And really, I can’t vouch for the likelihood of giant, alien monsters coming to destroy humanity. That does seem rather unlikely. However, I do believe we’re not that far away from being able to create the mechanical robots that would fight them if they did come.

Don’t believe me? Meet Atlas in this video and maybe you just might change your mind.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkBnFPBV3f0?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

LEGO Super Star Destroyer Timelapse

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I’ve been into LEGO since before it was cool. Back when the blocks were bigger and they only had a few basic colors. In fact, I still have some of my original sets of blocks. One day I will get them out, take a few pics and post them here. But that’s for another day.

Moving on I’m also, surprise, a big fan of Star Wars. Or, in this particular case, The Empire Strikes Back. I’ll wait while you recover from the shock of that revelation.

So, when these things are combined, as they are in this pretty awesome video, I take notice. What is this video you may ask? Well, it’s a timelapse recording of Jeff Needles, who works at TWiT, assembling a LEGO Super Star Destroyer.

I think it’s pretty cool. Perhaps you will too.

Now to scrounge up an extra $300 to get one for myself.

The First Trailer for Spike Lee’s ‘Oldboy’

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As with many things in life, I don’t like change. Change to me isn’t something to embrace, it’s something to resist. That being said, change can occasionally brings good things.

In fact, I’ve had some changes of late that have been very good and very positive. So, perhaps, I may have to rethink my “No Change” policy. Maybe.

Until then, this brings us, in a roundabout way, to Spike Lee’s remake of Park Chan-Wook’s film Oldboy. At first, of course, I resisted the notion that Oldboy needed a remake at all. The original is a complex, gripping thriller that if you haven’t seen, is definitely worth watching.

I also wasn’t sure Spike Lee was the right guy for the job of bringing the film to mainstream American audiences. I don’t know why, exactly, I just didn’t think he necessarily had the requisite mindset to get the film right. Park Chan-Wook, on the other hand, that guy has a mindset, in spades.

Anyway, as I’ve heard and seen more of Lee’s vision for Oldboy, Ive started to become convinced he may, indeed, be on to something. This new trailer, a redband of course, helps push that hypothesis even further.

The short version is I like what I see so far and I want to see more. As with many thing, your mileage may vary.

Oh, one more thing, this trailer is a redband for a reason. Please exercise appropriate precautions before watching it at work or something. Unless you work at a really cool place which, let’s face it, you probably don’t. Not this cool anyway.

David Fincher’s New Calvin Klein Ad

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This new ad for Calvin Klein is directed by David Fincher and features an actress he likes to work with quite a bit: Rooney Mara. Gotta say, it’s pretty impressive.

To me, this is an almost perfect ad. I say this as a person who doesn’t really watch commercials anymore unless I have to (I don’t really like most of them) and also as a person who used to make commercials.

It’s beautiful to look at and evokes just the right mood. Plus, the message is very clear amongst all the visuals.

I also have a fondness for black and white, so that might have something to do with how much I like this too. Still, that doesn’t mean it isn’t a great ad. It is. David Fincher definitely knows what he’s doing.

Check out the ad below.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0JMFIVzo9c?rel=0]

It’s Saturday, So Here’s a Trailer for ‘Yakuza Weapon’

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I can’t keep putting things away in the new house and not take a break. So, during one of said breaks, I came across this trailer for the movie Yakuza Weapon.

If you’ve followed this site for any length of time, you know my fondness for movies and TV shows out of the Hollywood mainstream. I think Yakuza Weapon qualifies.

I won’t bother trying to explain the movie except to say it involves transformation, the fight between good and evil and the question of what it means to be human. Oh yeah, there’s lots of action and stuff blows up too. Of course.

It was directed by Tak Sakaguchi (who also stars) and written by Sakaguchi and Yūdai Yamaguchi. It’s based on the manga by Ken Ishikawa. Check out the trailer below and enjoy.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTs-mM4A6TQ?rel=0&w=560&h=315]