Ferris Bueller Spends His Next Day Off Driving A Honda

Looks like we won't have to wait till Superbowl Sunday on March 5th to see Matthew Broderick, for all intents and purposes, finally reprise his role of Ferris Bueller over 25 years later.

A vague teaser spot for the mystery ad featuring Broderick channeling Bueller hit the web like wildfire last week, and now the full version can be viewed in its entirety.

In the ad for Honda, Broderick plays himself in many scenes taken straight out of 1986's Ferris Bueller's Day Off, several of them set to Yello's "Oh Yeah," the bass heavy 80's pop synth song made famous in the film's soundtrack.

While it's cool for us retro pop culture fanatics to see Broderick finally fully embrace his iconic teen role again, most of the credit for this spot needs to go to the late John Hughes, who wrote and directed Ferris Bueller.

In addition to heavily borrowing dialogue, many of the sequences in this car ad are literal re-creations of Hughes' work, including the Star Wars opening scene parody, the parade sing along (minus the "Danke Shoen" and "Twist & Shout" of course), the trip to the museum, and breaking the fourth wall by directly addressing the audience, which are some of the most popular scenes in the beloved 80's movie.

We'll have to see how the masses ultimately feel about Ferris trading in Mr. Frye's red 1961 Ferrari to hock the 2012 Honda CR-V. There will be stiff competition from VW on game day, they teased their Super Bowl spot with The Bark Side, featuring a group of dogs' note for note rendition of Darth Vader's theme, "The Imperial March."

DC's Captain Marvel Is Now Simply Shazam!

DC Comics' iconic superhero Captain Marvel will now be known as Shazam, the name of the wizard he summons his mystical powers from.

"We're going to call him Shazam," DC Comics Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns told Newsarama about renaming the character also known as "The World's Mightiest Mortal." 

Most loyal comic book fans know that young Billy Batson becomes Captain Marvel by summoning a magical lightning bolt when he calls out the name Shazam! But to passing fans, he is often know, or mistakenly referred to, as Shazam. The change will come in March starting with a new ten page series, Curse of Shazam!

"Well, there are a lot of reasons for the change," Johns explained.

"One is that everybody thinks he's called Shazam already, outside of comics. It's also, for all sorts of reasons, calling him Shazam just made sense for us. And, you know, every comic book he's in right now has Shazam on the cover. So I think just by embracing that and calling him Shazam."

DC started from scratch last August with their entire universe by revamping all their popular characters histories including Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern in The New 52 re-branding. So the time is right time to make this change for Captain Marvel, who first appeared in 1940's Whiz Comics #2.

There are also legal issues involved. Marvel Comics actually owns the name Captain Marvel for an unrelated character of their own. DC has never been able to use the name as a title of a series or movie, and had to make Shazam synonymous with their version.

The Marvel Family

Freddie Freeman and Mary Batson also joined Billy over the years as Captain Marvel Jr, and Mary Marvel to battle evil together as the Marvel Family. Johns confirms that many familiar faces are all part of the plan. 

"Billy, Mary, Freddie, Sivana, the Wizard, Black Adam. You'll see some other familiar faces. You'll see a lot of new faces too — new concepts, new characters," he said. How these characters get revamped is yet to be seen. 

Johns also confirmed that the Shazam movie is still in the works, despite many delays in the script process. "There's always talk about Shazam. And I can't get into the specifics on that, but yeah, there's hope for Shazam," he revealed.

Dwayne Johnson has been rumored and expressed enthusiastic interest in playing the big screen version of Black Adam, a villain with the equivalent mystical super powers as Shazam. "I haven't let it go," Johnson told MTV last March.

Shazam versus Black Adam

"I've always loved the idea of playing Black Adam. A lot of the time in Hollywood when something is in development it takes a lot of time.  So who knows what's going to happen with that. Maybe maybe not, but I'm always here," he said.

Curse of Shazam!, written by Geoff Johns with art by Gary Frank, will debut as an ongoing monthly supplement series in Justice League, beginning with issue #7. The issue hits comic book shops and digital platforms in March.

SOURCES: Newsarama, MTV News

Elijah Wood Talks Frodo's Role In 'The Hobbit'

Straight from the Sundance Film Festival, Elijah Wood shared a few Shire secrets from his recent trip to the New Zealand set of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. The actor talked up his experience shooting scenes in the film and reuniting with some old friends over a decade after filming The Lord of the Rings.

Talking to Access Hollywood's Tim Vincent, Wood revealed he personally had little to worry about when it came returning to the role of Frodo Baggins.

"There is no pressure on me, I have a tiny piece in it," he revealed in the video interview to promote the film Celeste & Jess Forever.

There has been speculation on exactly what role Frodo will play in The Hobbit, since the character is not in J.R.R. Tolkien's 1937 novel, and takes place decades before The Lord of the Rings trilogy. It has been widely presumed there would be bookend scenes at the beginning of the first Hobbit installment (due in December 2012) and at the end of the second film (due in December 2013) to cleanly segue into the blockbuster original three films in the series.

Wood confirms in what context he (and probably Ian Holm, reprising his role as the older Bilbo Baggins) will appear in the movie. "I'm in the first film. Frodo is not alive during the time of The Hobbit. It's a little flash forward," he said about his part. "So I have no pressure at all. Its a totally new experience."

"It was like going back in time, like a family reunion. So many of the same crew members and department heads are working on it. A lot of the same cast, [Ian] McKellen is still there," Wood said about reuniting with old friends on the set, including his co-star who reprises his role as Gandalf.

"It's magical, I can't wait to see the movie," he told Tim.

"What's beautiful is I'm totally objective. I had a little piece and know nothing else, I can just watch it as a fan," Wood said with a relieved laugh.

Check out the entire interview here:
 

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the first of the two-part prequel, is set to hit theaters in 3D on December 14, 2012. Peter Jackson returns as director, producer, and screenwriter. Martin Freeman stars as Bilbo Baggins alongside returning cast members Ian McKellen (Gandalf), Andy Serkis (Gollum), Orlando Bloom (Legolas), and Cate Blanchett (Galadriel).

SOURCE : AccessHollywood.com

J.J. Abrams Remains "Hopeful" For 'Fringe' Fifth Season

“We remain hopeful that Fringe will be able to continue,” executive producer and co-creator J.J. Abrams told TVLine about extending the life of the mind bending sci-fi show.

The cult FOX series is currently in its fourth season with a loyal but small audience tuning in on Friday nights. However ratings have not been nearly strong enough to guarantee a renewal for next year.

"I share the passion for the show that the fans have," FOX president Kevin Reilly said at the FOX TCA earlier this month.

"We lose a lot of money on the show. At that rating, on that night, it’s almost impossible for us to make money on it. That’s been the case now, over the last season. We’re not in the business of losing money. So, we really do have to sit down with that entity as well, and figure out if there is a number at which it makes sense, or will this be it?" Reilly said about the deciding factors involved in the show's renewal or cancellation.

Executive Producer Jeff Pickner does have some plans laid out for the show's next step, some of which do not rely solely on FOX's final decision to continue forward.

“Worst case scenario, if this were the last aired season of Fringe — and as we’ve said before, there are other outlets where we could continue our stories, be they graphic novels or webisodes — we know what the end of this season is going to be, and it can function as a series finale,” he told TV Line.

The good news for fans is that the writers have an end all set to roll. This season's complicated multi-dimensional storyline has core Fringe fans hooked in, but does prevent any new viewers to jump in at any given point.  But these days there are other places cult shows can find a new lease on life beyond network television.

If Warner Bros Television, who produces Fringe, can lower the fees it charges to license the show to FOX, the likelihood of renewal looks better. A budget cut on Joss Whedon's cult FOX show Dollhouse was instrumental in that series coming back for a second season in 2010. Additionally, extending Fringe to season five is also in the best interest for all parties involved so it can reach 100 episodes, and secure the necessary number of shows for syndication where the show can live on in reruns for years to come.

SOURCE: TVLine

DC Comics Reveals Its New Identity

DC Entertainment unveiled the redesigned logo for its comics line, with a peel back effect going from the D to reveal the C underneath. This follows the company's re-branding of their entire line of comics under The New 52 banner, which not only revamped the origin stories for all their iconic superheroes like Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern, but reset the issue numbers odometer back to one. Considering Action Comics has been an ongoing title since 1938, and recently hit milestone issue #900, that was a lot of back story to kick to the curb.

“It’s a new era at DC Entertainment and the new look reflects a dynamic, bold approach while at the same time celebrates the company’s rich heritage and robust portfolio of characters,” said John Rood, EVP of Sales, Marketing and Business Development for DC Entertainment in a released statement.

The CW Gives 'Green Arrow' A Shot

Good news for comics fans, according to the The Hollywood Reporter, The CW has given a pilot order for Arrow, based on DC's legendary archer Green Arrow.

The superhero was a featured mainstay on Smallville, which ended its ten year run last season and chronicled the younger pre-flights and tights years of Superman. Played by Justin Hartley for several years, reportedly the actor will not be a part of this version which probably dashes any hopes of this being a sequel series set in the same continuity. More likely Arrow will start from the ground up, going back to the original comics source material.

Although from seeing how Green Arrow was portrayed in the long running CW show, as a rich playboy using his vast resources to fight crime without any superpowers, he was an easy DC television substitute for Batman. I'm sure behind the curtain Warner Bros. wanted to keep any live action version of Batman solely on the big screen, and safely in the hands of director Christopher Nolan and star Christian Bale.    

Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim are set to executive produce. Their last superhero outing was 2011's big screen debut of Green Lantern starring Ryan Reynolds, which was viewed as a disappointment by fans and critics alike.

Justin Hartley as Smallville's Green Arrow

Following the poor receipts and receptions for both The Green Hornet and Green Lantern in multiplexes last year, The CW has wisely omitted the emerald association with their potential new show.

The costumed superhero translated to television is a tough game these days with intense fan and internet leak inspired scrutiny. NBC unsuccessfully tried to reboot Wonder Woman with an hour long pilot last season under the watch of producer David E. Kelley. Early looks of star Adrianne Palicki in full costume met with harsh immediate criticism across the web. NBC eventually passed on the reboot. Whether Arrow gets a series pick up is another thing altogether.

SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter

What To Watch Tonight: ALCATRAZ

Tonight on FOX, the J.J. Abrams produced supernatural mystery thriller Alcatraz makes its two-hour broadcast premiere. Following his success with Lost, Alias, and Fringe, Abrams presents the latest addition to his TV resume.

The series stars Sam Neill (Jurassic Park, Event Horizon), Parmider Nagra (ER), Sarah Jones, and reunites Abrams with his Lost alumni Jorge Garcia.

'Total Recall' Gets A Total Official Synopsis

The Total Recall reboot now has an official synopsis on record.

Taking over for Arnold Schwarzenegger as Douglas Quaid is Colin Farrell. This new version promises to stick closer to Philip K. Dick's original short story "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale" than the '90s version that made the line "Get your ass to Mars" a pop culture catch phrase. Though the prospect of not seeing Quatto emerge from a man's stomach to eerily inspire Quaid to "release his mind" will take some getting used to.

Farrell turned in a fine performance last August in the reboot of Fright Night, so hopefully there will be as much to look forward to with this remake.

New Posters For 'Phantom Menace' 3D Hit...

Say what you will about Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. We all have something to say about 1999's first of three prequels to the classic Original Trilogy. But you have to admit at least that the five new teaser posters revealed at Kinogallery for the upcoming re-release of Phantom Menace in 3D sit pretty high on the cool quotient. And notice, not a trace of Jar Jar Binks in sight. George Lucas plans on putting one chapter back on the big screen in episode order annually until the saga is complete... In 2017.  Episode I hits theaters on February 10.

Film Review - THE DIVIDE ★★☆☆☆

You have to hand it to The Divide for possibly presenting us with some of the most intense indie film moments we will see this year (yes, I know its only mid-January). This post-apocalyptic mind bender starts off with a bang (literally) and keeps captive in your throat a lump of impending dread. Dark, violent, and disturbing, you could call this a “Lord of the Flies” experiment in an age of third world nuclear threats.

Featuring a cast with a lot of genre street cred including Michael Biehn (Terminator, Aliens, The Abyss), Milo Ventimiglia (Heroes), and Lauren German (Hostel, Part II), the script allows them to dig deep into areas of the human condition one would rather not visit, much less be trapped underground with. I am not entering spoiler territory in revealing that New York City is vaporized by nukes in the opening moments of the film (the scene is viewable below), and it is a test of survival from that point on as violent tensions simmer in the bunker.

The plot follows nine tenants of a New York City apartment high rise who find shelter in the building’s underground safe house, which is lord and mastered by Mickey the superintendent (played by a tough and gruff cigar chomping Biehn). Quickly the burning question presents itself. Which will prove to be the greater immediate threat: The nuclear fallout or the survivors themselves?

50 Years of James Bond Coming To Blu-ray

MGM announced at the Consumer Electronics Show on Tuesday that all 22 James Bond films will be released together for the first time on Blu-ray by 20th Century Fox Home Video.  This year marks the 50th Anniversary of Dr. No, starring Sean Connery as 007.

The box set, Bond 50, will not only include the entire film collection encompassing 1962's Dr. No to 2008's Quantum of Solace, but also have 130 hours of bonus material. No release date has been set, but is available for pre-order.

In case you're keeping score, absent from the collection will be 1983's Never Say Never Again. That film, a remake of Thunderball, was produced independently of United Artists and takes place outside of the Bond continuity. Despite getting Sean Connery back into the role after Roger Moore succeeded him, it is not considered an "official" James Bond film.

Additionally, this year will also see the release of the 23rd film in the series on November 9th, Skyfall, starring Daniel Craig and directed by Sam Mendes.

Check out the preview below. While a bit short with images from the Sean Connery and Roger Moore years, it is still without a doubt an impressive body of great espionage action.

New Images Revealed From 2012's Hot Film Slate

©Paramount/Marvel Studios

USA Today revealed new images from some of 2012's most anticipated films, including a first look at Jeremy Renner taking the spotlight in The Bourne Legacy, and additional glimpses from The Hobbit, Prometheus, The Avengers, and Men In Black III.

The Nerdy Rotten Scoundrel 2012 Movie Survival Guide

2012 is here and Nerdy Rotten Scoundrel has a preview of what we can look forward to seeing on the big screen (some more than others) with this breakdown of some upcoming geektastic films. The new year will see the return of Batman, James Bond, the Hobbits, the Men In Black, and Spider-Man, lots more unnecessary 3-D, and a few sequels that fans probably really didn't demand...