In the world of television, first impressions are everything. A great pilot episode is a promise to the audience, telling them what the show is about and how it will go about it, in the hopes that people will be so impressed that they'll tune in every week. If you don't grab them early, you might lose them altogether.
Case in point: If you watch the first episode of Rod Serling's "The Twilight Zone" you'll find that it is one of the most striking TV series debuts in history. The disturbing standalone tale "Where Is Everybody?" stars Earl Holliman ("Police Woman") as a man who finds himself in a town without any people in it. It's completely deserted from top to bottom, or is it? He keeps coming across signs that people were here, and he only just missed them. Trapped in a completely open world, alone in a...
Case in point: If you watch the first episode of Rod Serling's "The Twilight Zone" you'll find that it is one of the most striking TV series debuts in history. The disturbing standalone tale "Where Is Everybody?" stars Earl Holliman ("Police Woman") as a man who finds himself in a town without any people in it. It's completely deserted from top to bottom, or is it? He keeps coming across signs that people were here, and he only just missed them. Trapped in a completely open world, alone in a...
- 11/4/2023
- by William Bibbiani
- Slash Film
The United States had been at war a little over a year when the 15th Academy Awards were presented on March 4, 1943. It was the last year that the awards were celebrated at a lavish banquet; they would be moved to a theater setting in the ensuing years. The impact of World War II can be seen in the films honored, as well as the ceremony itself.
Popular musical star Jeannette MacDonald sang the National Anthem, and newly enlisted military privates Tyrone Power and Alan Ladd unfurled a flag that listed over 25,000 film industry members who had joined the armed forces. Bob Hope hosted the event, which saw one big winner, numerous patriotic choices and the first win for one of the industry’s biggest record-makers. Let’s flashback 80 years to the Oscars ceremony of 1943.
SEEOscar hosts: Performers who have hosted the Academy Awards
Ten movies made the cut for a Best Picture nomination.
Popular musical star Jeannette MacDonald sang the National Anthem, and newly enlisted military privates Tyrone Power and Alan Ladd unfurled a flag that listed over 25,000 film industry members who had joined the armed forces. Bob Hope hosted the event, which saw one big winner, numerous patriotic choices and the first win for one of the industry’s biggest record-makers. Let’s flashback 80 years to the Oscars ceremony of 1943.
SEEOscar hosts: Performers who have hosted the Academy Awards
Ten movies made the cut for a Best Picture nomination.
- 2/6/2023
- by Susan Pennington
- Gold Derby
The world was at war 80 years ago. The United States was grieving over the attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941 by the Japanese military and the defeat of our forces that month at Wake Island. And then the beloved Carole Lombard, her mother, servicemen and the crew perished in a plane crash west of Las Vegas on January 16, 1942. She was returning to Hollywood after raising 2 million in a war bond drive in Indianapolis.
How would Hollywood and audiences respond to World War II? They certainly didn’t shy away from the war. If you look at the top 10 films of the year, there are some escapist films but also movies dealing with the global conflict.
In fact, the No. 1 film of the year William Wyler’s “Mrs. Miniver” broke records at Radio City Music Hall in New York playing 10 weeks. Production began on the stirring, sentimental drama about a British...
How would Hollywood and audiences respond to World War II? They certainly didn’t shy away from the war. If you look at the top 10 films of the year, there are some escapist films but also movies dealing with the global conflict.
In fact, the No. 1 film of the year William Wyler’s “Mrs. Miniver” broke records at Radio City Music Hall in New York playing 10 weeks. Production began on the stirring, sentimental drama about a British...
- 9/18/2022
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Never heard of Wake Island? Its fall terrified Americans at Christmas of 1941. The war’s just begun, we’re definitely not winning, and the assignment was to make a movie about a tragic defeat that might be the first of many tragic defeats for the U.S.A.. Paramount’s careful morale-builder doesn’t exaggerate or sentimentalize the brutal fall of a tiny atoll in the Pacific, and stands as an example of filmmaking reaching for hope in the face of disaster.
Wake Island
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1942 / B&w / 1:37 flat Academy / 88 min. / Street Date August 18, 2020 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring: Brian Donlevy, Robert Preston, Macdonald Carey, William Bendix, Albert Dekker, Walter Abel, Mikhail Rasumny, Rod Cameron, Bill Goodwin, Damian O’Flynn, Frank Albertson, Hugh Beaumont, Barbara Britton, Hillary Brooke, Dane Clark, Frank Faylen, Mary Field, Alan Hale Jr., Richard Loo, James Millican, Jack Mulhall, Keith Richards, Phillip Terry, Mary Thomas,...
Wake Island
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1942 / B&w / 1:37 flat Academy / 88 min. / Street Date August 18, 2020 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring: Brian Donlevy, Robert Preston, Macdonald Carey, William Bendix, Albert Dekker, Walter Abel, Mikhail Rasumny, Rod Cameron, Bill Goodwin, Damian O’Flynn, Frank Albertson, Hugh Beaumont, Barbara Britton, Hillary Brooke, Dane Clark, Frank Faylen, Mary Field, Alan Hale Jr., Richard Loo, James Millican, Jack Mulhall, Keith Richards, Phillip Terry, Mary Thomas,...
- 8/4/2020
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
The war’s just begun, we’re definitely not winning, and your assignment is to make a movie about a tragic defeat that could be the first of many tragic defeats for the U.S.A.. Paramount’s careful morale-building war drama doesn’t exaggerate or over-sentimentalize the brutal fall of a tiny island in the Pacific. John Farrow directs a fine group of actors who knew the film ‘had to say the right things.’ It stands as a fine example of filmmaking reaching for hope in the face of disaster.
The first WW2 Hollywood combat film based on an actual battle is the beautifully made Wake Island. It’s even more beautifully conceived to achieve multiple public relations aims in a time of great crisis. Until 1941 Wake Island had been little more than a stop for Pacific-hopping Pan-American clipper ship airplanes; Japan bombed it a few hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
The first WW2 Hollywood combat film based on an actual battle is the beautifully made Wake Island. It’s even more beautifully conceived to achieve multiple public relations aims in a time of great crisis. Until 1941 Wake Island had been little more than a stop for Pacific-hopping Pan-American clipper ship airplanes; Japan bombed it a few hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
- 8/2/2020
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
By Patrick Shanley
Managing Editor
With Mad Max: Fury Road in a great position to earn the most Oscar nomination of any film this year when the Academy announces its nominations this Thursday, director George Miller and crew look to join the long legacy of Aussies at the Oscars.
In addition to Miller, the film’s producer Doug Mitchell, co-writer Nico Lathouris, and cinematographer John Clement Seale all hail from the land down under and have high Oscar hopes when nominations are announced this Thursday as the film has been a massive success with critics and audiences alike and earned two Golden Globe nominations for best picture and best director.
Miller and company would hardly be the first Aussies to be noticed by the Academy. Massive stars such as Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman, and Cate Blanchett all call Australia home and have taken home Oscars, and Blanchett seems likely to...
Managing Editor
With Mad Max: Fury Road in a great position to earn the most Oscar nomination of any film this year when the Academy announces its nominations this Thursday, director George Miller and crew look to join the long legacy of Aussies at the Oscars.
In addition to Miller, the film’s producer Doug Mitchell, co-writer Nico Lathouris, and cinematographer John Clement Seale all hail from the land down under and have high Oscar hopes when nominations are announced this Thursday as the film has been a massive success with critics and audiences alike and earned two Golden Globe nominations for best picture and best director.
Miller and company would hardly be the first Aussies to be noticed by the Academy. Massive stars such as Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman, and Cate Blanchett all call Australia home and have taken home Oscars, and Blanchett seems likely to...
- 1/11/2016
- by Patrick Shanley
- Scott Feinberg
'The Beginning or the End' 1947 with Robert Walker and Tom Drake. Hiroshima bombing 70th anniversary: Six movies dealing with the A-bomb terror Seventy years ago, on Aug. 6, 1945, the U.S. dropped the first atomic bomb over the city of Hiroshima. Ultimately, anywhere between 70,000 and 140,000 people died – in addition to dogs, cats, horses, chickens, and most other living beings in that part of the world. Three days later, America dropped a second atomic bomb, this time over Nagasaki. Human deaths in this other city totaled anywhere between 40,000-80,000. For obvious reasons, the evisceration of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has been a quasi-taboo in American films. After all, in the last 75 years Hollywood's World War II movies, from John Farrow's Wake Island (1942) and Mervyn LeRoy's Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944) to Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan (1998) and Michael Bay's Pearl Harbor (2001), almost invariably have presented a clear-cut vision...
- 8/7/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Teresa Wright: Later years (See preceding post: "Teresa Wright: From Marlon Brando to Matt Damon.") Teresa Wright and Robert Anderson were divorced in 1978. They would remain friends in the ensuing years.[1] Wright spent most of the last decade of her life in Connecticut, making only sporadic public appearances. In 1998, she could be seen with her grandson, film producer Jonah Smith, at New York's Yankee Stadium, where she threw the ceremonial first pitch.[2] Wright also became involved in the Greater New York chapter of the Als Association. (The Pride of the Yankees subject, Lou Gehrig, died of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in 1941.) The week she turned 82 in October 2000, Wright attended the 20th anniversary celebration of Somewhere in Time, where she posed for pictures with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. In March 2003, she was a guest at the 75th Academy Awards, in the segment showcasing Oscar-winning actors of the past. Two years later,...
- 3/15/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Review by Sam Moffitt
With Memorial Day, Fourth of July and most importantly, another June 6th, (the 70th anniversary of the landing in Normandy called Operation Overlord but always referred to as D-Day) approaching, I thought it appropriate to shine a light on one of the greatest war movies ever made, if not the greatest, which details the invasion of Europe, step by step; Darryl F Zanuck’s super production The Longest Day.
Firstly I have to say, as I’ve said before, I am against war, being a practicing Nicheren Buddhist , a member of the Soka Gakkai International, I do not believe war is necessary. But even before taking up the practice of Buddhism I have questioned every war the United States has become involved in since Vietnam. Yet I also served four years in the Us Navy, in peacetime, true, but I did serve my time and was honorably discharged.
With Memorial Day, Fourth of July and most importantly, another June 6th, (the 70th anniversary of the landing in Normandy called Operation Overlord but always referred to as D-Day) approaching, I thought it appropriate to shine a light on one of the greatest war movies ever made, if not the greatest, which details the invasion of Europe, step by step; Darryl F Zanuck’s super production The Longest Day.
Firstly I have to say, as I’ve said before, I am against war, being a practicing Nicheren Buddhist , a member of the Soka Gakkai International, I do not believe war is necessary. But even before taking up the practice of Buddhism I have questioned every war the United States has become involved in since Vietnam. Yet I also served four years in the Us Navy, in peacetime, true, but I did serve my time and was honorably discharged.
- 5/26/2014
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Planes
Directed by Klay Hall
Written by Jeffrey M. Howard
USA, 2013
The story goes, per a five-part PBS documentary back in the early 2000s about the history of the Broadway musical, that when Andrew Lloyd Webber was shopping around Cats to be performed and produced in the United States, he reached out to iconic producer/director/Stephen Sondheim collaborator Harold Prince. Webber pitched Prince on Cats, inspired by T.S. Eliot’s book of feline-centric poetry, and when he was finished, Prince admitted to not grasping the deeper metaphor. Were the cats representative of the English class system? Was one of the cats a member of the royal family? What piece had Prince not figured out yet, he wondered. Webber paused, then said, “Hal. It’s about cats.”
One imagines that, if he was forced to provide details about the so-called “World of Cars,” John Lasseter would answer similarly. Does it...
Directed by Klay Hall
Written by Jeffrey M. Howard
USA, 2013
The story goes, per a five-part PBS documentary back in the early 2000s about the history of the Broadway musical, that when Andrew Lloyd Webber was shopping around Cats to be performed and produced in the United States, he reached out to iconic producer/director/Stephen Sondheim collaborator Harold Prince. Webber pitched Prince on Cats, inspired by T.S. Eliot’s book of feline-centric poetry, and when he was finished, Prince admitted to not grasping the deeper metaphor. Were the cats representative of the English class system? Was one of the cats a member of the royal family? What piece had Prince not figured out yet, he wondered. Webber paused, then said, “Hal. It’s about cats.”
One imagines that, if he was forced to provide details about the so-called “World of Cars,” John Lasseter would answer similarly. Does it...
- 8/9/2013
- by Josh Spiegel
- SoundOnSight
When it comes to film distribution, "Domestic" is usually defined as the U.S. and Canada, as well as their possessions, territories, commonwealths, protectorates and trusteeships. For the U.S., these include the U.S. Virgin Islands, Saipan American Samoa, Guam, Wake Island and Puerto Rico.
However, many domestic deals also encompass the Bahamas, Bermuda, Saba Island, St. Eustatius Island, St.Kitts Island and St. Maarten Island. These are not affiliated with either the U.S. or Canada. So why are they considered part of the Domestic territory? Simply because certain television channels have satellite footprints that cover these areas, and buyers demand these rights be included.
Producers need to be careful in defining the scope of territories granted to distributors. It is customary for independent producers to enter into separate foreign and domestic deals. If the filmmaker assigns Bermuda to an international distributor, that could prevent their domestic distributor from making a lucrative deal with HBO. Indeed, it may deter a domestic distributor from acquiring the title. Thus, to maximize revenues a producer has to make sure they don't sacrifice a beneficial deal because they thoughtlessly assigned away rights to a small territory.
The term "distributor" is so broad that it encompasses many different types of companies. The major studios such as Paramount and Sony typically distribute pictures directly to theaters, license them to television channels like Showtime, and manufacture their own packaged media (i.e., DVDs) for sale to mass merchants and video rental outlets. Major studios may also distribute their pictures in selected foreign territories and contract with local distributors elsewhere.
Smaller independent distributors exploit movies in a variety of different ways. Some book films into theaters and then assign television and home video rights to third parties. Others are basically home video labels that manufacture and market DVDs. Some of these companies license directly to television while others use intermediaries. However, a home video label may decide to build awareness by releasing a film in theaters, which may require the assistance of a third party. Filmmakers pursuing this type of release may have difficulty determining what kind of distributor they are dealing with.
Filmmakers pursuing this type of release may have difficulty determining what kind of distributor they are dealing with.
Theatrical releases help the distributor persuade filmmakers to make a deal even if it is unprofitable by itself. If a smaller distributor attempts to theatrically release an indie film, they face stiff competition from the majors. Major distributors can demand the best theaters and dates because they have a steady flow of desirable movies; independents are left to choose from the leftovers.
Some home video companies even deal directly with mass merchants like Wal-Mart,while the others have to go through intermediaries like Anderson Merchandisers, that ship and pack product from numerous companies for delivery to mass merchants.
The point is that distributors operate differently and filmmakers need to do their homework before making commitments. If multiple companies in the chain of distribution deduct significant fees and expenses, the revenue stream that goes to the filmmaker/investors can slow to a trickle. So when a distributor says they distribute to theatrical, home video and television media, you should ask: "O.K. Exactly how you do that? What intermediary companies do you use, and what kind of fees and expenses do they deduct?"
One type of home video deal is known as a sub-label deal. Here two companies split the responsibilities for acquiring, marketing and distributing titles. Typically one company, such as Lionsgate, handles the physical distribution of titles and collection of revenue. The other company, the sub-label, is responsible for acquiring titles and creating the key art and marketing materials. The two share revenue.
There is nothing inherently wrong with a sub-label deal if the filmmaker understands how distribution fees are collected, expenses are recouped, and the amounts are reasonable. However, in many of these deals the filmmaker thinks they are sharing in the wholesale price remitted by buyers like Blockbuster or Wal-Mart. The filmmaker is unaware that he or she is really receiving just a share of what is remitted to the sub-label from the parent company.
In these deals, "Gross Receipts" has been defined and calculated on the revenue received by the sub-label after the parent company has deducted its fees and expenses. The cumulative effect may be that little or no revenue flows down to the filmmaker. The filmmaker thinks he or she is receiving 25 percent of the wholesale price of each DVD sold, when actually he or she receiving 25 percent of the funds remitted to the sub-label. A well-drawn contract will carefully define "Gross Receipts" as the wholesale price which is the amount remitted from the home video buyers, and not the amount remitted to the sub-label. Filmmakers need to ask specific questions when selecting a distributor in order to avoid unpleasant surprises.
These days, almost all distributors try to acquire so-called ancillary and new media rights so they can license movies to such companies as iTunes, Netflix, Hulu and Amazon. Many of these new media buyers don't like to acquire individual titles and prefer to deal with aggregators who can license them bunches of films at a time.
About Mark Litwak: Mark Litwak is a veteran entertainment attorney and Producer’s Rep based in Beverly Hills, California. He is the author of six books including: Reel Power: The Struggle for Influence and Success in the New Hollywood, Dealmaking in the Film and Television Industry, Contracts for the Film and Television Industry, and Risky Business: Financing and Distributing Independent Film. He is the author of the CD-rom program Movie Magic Contracts, and the creator of the Entertainment Law Resources website at www.marklitwak.com. He can be reached at law2@marklitwak.com...
However, many domestic deals also encompass the Bahamas, Bermuda, Saba Island, St. Eustatius Island, St.Kitts Island and St. Maarten Island. These are not affiliated with either the U.S. or Canada. So why are they considered part of the Domestic territory? Simply because certain television channels have satellite footprints that cover these areas, and buyers demand these rights be included.
Producers need to be careful in defining the scope of territories granted to distributors. It is customary for independent producers to enter into separate foreign and domestic deals. If the filmmaker assigns Bermuda to an international distributor, that could prevent their domestic distributor from making a lucrative deal with HBO. Indeed, it may deter a domestic distributor from acquiring the title. Thus, to maximize revenues a producer has to make sure they don't sacrifice a beneficial deal because they thoughtlessly assigned away rights to a small territory.
The term "distributor" is so broad that it encompasses many different types of companies. The major studios such as Paramount and Sony typically distribute pictures directly to theaters, license them to television channels like Showtime, and manufacture their own packaged media (i.e., DVDs) for sale to mass merchants and video rental outlets. Major studios may also distribute their pictures in selected foreign territories and contract with local distributors elsewhere.
Smaller independent distributors exploit movies in a variety of different ways. Some book films into theaters and then assign television and home video rights to third parties. Others are basically home video labels that manufacture and market DVDs. Some of these companies license directly to television while others use intermediaries. However, a home video label may decide to build awareness by releasing a film in theaters, which may require the assistance of a third party. Filmmakers pursuing this type of release may have difficulty determining what kind of distributor they are dealing with.
Filmmakers pursuing this type of release may have difficulty determining what kind of distributor they are dealing with.
Theatrical releases help the distributor persuade filmmakers to make a deal even if it is unprofitable by itself. If a smaller distributor attempts to theatrically release an indie film, they face stiff competition from the majors. Major distributors can demand the best theaters and dates because they have a steady flow of desirable movies; independents are left to choose from the leftovers.
Some home video companies even deal directly with mass merchants like Wal-Mart,while the others have to go through intermediaries like Anderson Merchandisers, that ship and pack product from numerous companies for delivery to mass merchants.
The point is that distributors operate differently and filmmakers need to do their homework before making commitments. If multiple companies in the chain of distribution deduct significant fees and expenses, the revenue stream that goes to the filmmaker/investors can slow to a trickle. So when a distributor says they distribute to theatrical, home video and television media, you should ask: "O.K. Exactly how you do that? What intermediary companies do you use, and what kind of fees and expenses do they deduct?"
One type of home video deal is known as a sub-label deal. Here two companies split the responsibilities for acquiring, marketing and distributing titles. Typically one company, such as Lionsgate, handles the physical distribution of titles and collection of revenue. The other company, the sub-label, is responsible for acquiring titles and creating the key art and marketing materials. The two share revenue.
There is nothing inherently wrong with a sub-label deal if the filmmaker understands how distribution fees are collected, expenses are recouped, and the amounts are reasonable. However, in many of these deals the filmmaker thinks they are sharing in the wholesale price remitted by buyers like Blockbuster or Wal-Mart. The filmmaker is unaware that he or she is really receiving just a share of what is remitted to the sub-label from the parent company.
In these deals, "Gross Receipts" has been defined and calculated on the revenue received by the sub-label after the parent company has deducted its fees and expenses. The cumulative effect may be that little or no revenue flows down to the filmmaker. The filmmaker thinks he or she is receiving 25 percent of the wholesale price of each DVD sold, when actually he or she receiving 25 percent of the funds remitted to the sub-label. A well-drawn contract will carefully define "Gross Receipts" as the wholesale price which is the amount remitted from the home video buyers, and not the amount remitted to the sub-label. Filmmakers need to ask specific questions when selecting a distributor in order to avoid unpleasant surprises.
These days, almost all distributors try to acquire so-called ancillary and new media rights so they can license movies to such companies as iTunes, Netflix, Hulu and Amazon. Many of these new media buyers don't like to acquire individual titles and prefer to deal with aggregators who can license them bunches of films at a time.
About Mark Litwak: Mark Litwak is a veteran entertainment attorney and Producer’s Rep based in Beverly Hills, California. He is the author of six books including: Reel Power: The Struggle for Influence and Success in the New Hollywood, Dealmaking in the Film and Television Industry, Contracts for the Film and Television Industry, and Risky Business: Financing and Distributing Independent Film. He is the author of the CD-rom program Movie Magic Contracts, and the creator of the Entertainment Law Resources website at www.marklitwak.com. He can be reached at law2@marklitwak.com...
- 12/10/2012
- by Mark Litwak
- Sydney's Buzz
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Battlefield 3: Armoured Kill is the third Dlc for 2011′s megahit shooter by Dice and EA, and swears to be the polar opposite to June’s Close Quarters. Whereas Cq offered tight hallways and gun to gun combat, Armoured Kill gives BF3 owners the largest maps ever created for the series, giving us epic jet and tank battles across 64 player, 7 flag battlegrounds. While Ak doesn’t have any of the new weapons that Cq and Back to Karkand gave us, it does give us 4 maps, 5 vehicles and few more goodies.
The first of the new maps is Bandar Desert, advertised as the biggest map in Battlefield history. The map features everything from tight building to building fights to massive open warfare. The map is absolutely massive, almost too massive. While it never gets boring, you are often killed from no where and left scratching your head as to what happened.
Battlefield 3: Armoured Kill is the third Dlc for 2011′s megahit shooter by Dice and EA, and swears to be the polar opposite to June’s Close Quarters. Whereas Cq offered tight hallways and gun to gun combat, Armoured Kill gives BF3 owners the largest maps ever created for the series, giving us epic jet and tank battles across 64 player, 7 flag battlegrounds. While Ak doesn’t have any of the new weapons that Cq and Back to Karkand gave us, it does give us 4 maps, 5 vehicles and few more goodies.
The first of the new maps is Bandar Desert, advertised as the biggest map in Battlefield history. The map features everything from tight building to building fights to massive open warfare. The map is absolutely massive, almost too massive. While it never gets boring, you are often killed from no where and left scratching your head as to what happened.
- 9/16/2012
- by Ryan Musker
- Obsessed with Film
Battlefield 3's first map pack 'Back to Karkand' is now available on Xbox 360. It is released alongside the latest title update, which requires a download in order to play the new downloadable content. The 2.07Gb patch offers numerous changes throughout all modes of the game. The single player will see many bug fixes and Achievement delays during cutscenes. In multiplayer, respawns will now be further apart in Deathmatch modes, grenades will drop to the ground if shot before thrown, and console specific crashes and freezes are fixed. Finally, mini-guns and cannons fired towards infantry units have been rebalanced, while numerous weapons have been tweaked. 'Back to Karkand' features new weapons, vehicles, the return of Conquest Assault and four classic maps from Battlefield 2 - Strike at Karkand, Wake Island, Gulf of Oman and Sharqi Peninsula. It (more)...
- 12/13/2011
- by By Matthew Reynolds
- Digital Spy
The holiday season has begun and while new releases are light there are still a few gems to check out spread throughout December. Mario Kart 7 hits the 3Ds this week as one of the biggest 3Ds releases to buy this holiday season. Nintendo’s rounding out the week with one more Wii release before the New Year in Fortune Street. Core gamers will want to check out the latest Dlc for Battlefield 3. Back to Karkand hits the PS3 this week, giving PS3 gamers the classic map Wake Island on the Frostbite 2 engine. One of this year’s biggest animated film releases, The Adventures Of Tintin, also gets a video game adaptation. It’s definitely a slow week for new titles. What games are you playing? Still knee deep in Skyrim and Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword? I know I am. This is a great time to catch up on these...
- 12/7/2011
- by Bags H.
- BuzzFocus.com
Battlefield 3's 'Back to Karkand' map pack headlines this week's Us PlayStation Network update. The map pack features new weapons and vehicles, the return of Conquest Assault, and four classic maps from Battlefield 2 - Strike at Karkand, Wake Island, Gulf of Oman and Sharqi Peninsula. Download it for $$14.99. Also available this week are Wanted Corp, Dragon Age II, Need For Speed Hot Pursuit, Final Fantasy VI, the Resistance 3 Brutality Pack and a demo for GoldenEye 007: Reloaded. > Read last week's PlayStation Network update The update in full: Full Games (PS3)
Wanted Corp ($$9.99)
Dragon Age II ($$29.99)
Need For Speed Hot Pursuit ($$29.99)
Full Games (PSP)
Lego Harry Potter: Years 5-7 ($$49.99)
PSOne Classics (PS3/PSP)
Final Fantasy VI ($$9.99)
Game Demos (PS3)
GoldenEye (more)...
Wanted Corp ($$9.99)
Dragon Age II ($$29.99)
Need For Speed Hot Pursuit ($$29.99)
Full Games (PSP)
Lego Harry Potter: Years 5-7 ($$49.99)
PSOne Classics (PS3/PSP)
Final Fantasy VI ($$9.99)
Game Demos (PS3)
GoldenEye (more)...
- 12/7/2011
- by By Scott Nichols
- Digital Spy
Electronic Arts has released an amazing new trailer for Battlefield 3, showcasing some of the upcoming Dlc that will be made available in the Back to Karkand expansion pack.
The Back to Karkand expansion pack will include four classic, fan-favorite Battlefield maps – Strike at Karkand, Wake Island, Gulf of Oman and Sharqi Peninsula. In addition to the re-imagined levels, the Dlc will also include five new dog tags, five new trophies/achievements, ten additional weapons and three new vehicles that include as a Btr-90 Armored Personnel Carrier, F-35B Stovl fighter jet and a desert patrol buggy.
The Back To Karkand Expansion back will be available in December for free for those who pre-ordered Battlefield 3 prior to the game’s release and will only cost $14 for those who did not.
Battlefield 3 is now available for Windows, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 platforms.
via [YouTube]...
The Back to Karkand expansion pack will include four classic, fan-favorite Battlefield maps – Strike at Karkand, Wake Island, Gulf of Oman and Sharqi Peninsula. In addition to the re-imagined levels, the Dlc will also include five new dog tags, five new trophies/achievements, ten additional weapons and three new vehicles that include as a Btr-90 Armored Personnel Carrier, F-35B Stovl fighter jet and a desert patrol buggy.
The Back To Karkand Expansion back will be available in December for free for those who pre-ordered Battlefield 3 prior to the game’s release and will only cost $14 for those who did not.
Battlefield 3 is now available for Windows, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 platforms.
via [YouTube]...
- 11/6/2011
- by geekmaster
- GeekRest
Gamers always love a good war between developers and publishers. Who could forget such moments as the battle between Sega and Nintendo in the early 90’s, culminating in the infamous slogan ‘Sega does what Nintendon’t’. Jumping forward to 2011, a similar war of words is underway between EA and Activision, with the companies dueling over the launches of the latest entries in their hugely popular online Fps franchises.
EA have been nothing but explicitly outward in their attack of Infinity Ward’s blockbuster franchise. Earlier in the year, EA boss John Riccitiello accused the series of jumping the shark as well as actually saying he wanted the series to “Rot from the core”. Along with mocking the new subscription Elite service, it was embarrassingly discovered recently that the domain name Modernwafare3.com was directing to EA’s own Battlefield site.
Activision on the other hand have been a lot more laid back,...
EA have been nothing but explicitly outward in their attack of Infinity Ward’s blockbuster franchise. Earlier in the year, EA boss John Riccitiello accused the series of jumping the shark as well as actually saying he wanted the series to “Rot from the core”. Along with mocking the new subscription Elite service, it was embarrassingly discovered recently that the domain name Modernwafare3.com was directing to EA’s own Battlefield site.
Activision on the other hand have been a lot more laid back,...
- 10/20/2011
- by Stephen Leigh
- Obsessed with Film
EA has released three images showing maps included in the Back to Karkland map pack for Battlefield 3. The images show fan favorite maps Wake Island, Gulf of Oman, and Sharqi Peninsula. Back to Karkland will be offered free of charge to anyone who pre-orders Battlefield 3. Battlefield 3 leaps ahead of the competition with the power of Frostbite 2, the next installment of Dice's cutting-edge game engine. This state-of-the-art technology is the foundation on which Battlefield 3 is built, delivering superior visual quality, a grand sense of scale, massive destruction, dynamic audio and incredibly lifelike character animations. As bullets whiz by, walls crumble, and explosions throw you to the ground, the battlefield feels more alive and interactive than ever before. In Battlefield 3,...
- 5/27/2011
- by Joey Cole
- The Daily BLAM!
They shall beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks;
One nation shall not raise the sword against another,
neither shall they learn war any more.
Isaiah 2:4
War is a nation’s ultimate commitment of blood and treasure. As such, the stories a people tells about its wars – and don’t tell – and the ways it remembers its wars – or chooses to forget them – tells us much about the kind of people they consider themselves to be at different times in their history, as well as the kind of people they really were…and are.
For most of the 20th century, the war film was a Hollywood staple. From one era to the next, war movies documented the nation’s conflicts, reflected the national consciousness on particular combats as well as on thinking going far beyond any one, particular war. They’ve been propagandistic and revisionist,...
and their spears into pruning hooks;
One nation shall not raise the sword against another,
neither shall they learn war any more.
Isaiah 2:4
War is a nation’s ultimate commitment of blood and treasure. As such, the stories a people tells about its wars – and don’t tell – and the ways it remembers its wars – or chooses to forget them – tells us much about the kind of people they consider themselves to be at different times in their history, as well as the kind of people they really were…and are.
For most of the 20th century, the war film was a Hollywood staple. From one era to the next, war movies documented the nation’s conflicts, reflected the national consciousness on particular combats as well as on thinking going far beyond any one, particular war. They’ve been propagandistic and revisionist,...
- 5/22/2011
- by Bill Mesce
- SoundOnSight
Pre-orders for Battlefield 3 Limited Edition will receive the free Dlc pack Back to Karkand, it has been announced. Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand will include four of the most played maps from the Battlefield series' past: Strike at Karkand, Wake Island, Gulf of Oman and Sharqi Peninsula. The four maps have been played for a combined 25,000 years, a number that will only grow (more)...
- 5/17/2011
- by By Scott Nichols
- Digital Spy
All pre-orders will receive the map pack Back to Karkland free of charge. The map pack contains four of the best Battlefield maps from Battlefield 2, including fan favorite Strike at Karkland. EA is also speaking about why they've decided to market the game so early. Included in the map pack are four maps that debuted in Battlefield 2, Strike at Karkand, Wake Island, Gulf of Oman, and Sharqi Peninsula. In a post on the Battlefield blog, Lead Designer Niklas Fegraeus answered some questions regarding the choice to bring back four maps from Battlefield 2. "It’s pretty simple, really. These are evidently some of the very best maps we have ever built. We have unquestionable data and feedback from the community saying so. You would be crazy turning down the chance to boost your game with...
- 5/10/2011
- by Joey Cole
- The Daily BLAM!
"Battlefield 3" is out later this year and it is looking super sweet in its newly released trailer. Those who pre-order the Limited Edition version of the game will nab themselves the Rod to Karkand Dlc map pack. While there's been no official press release, a Dice rep confirmed the contents of the pack on the game's forums.
Wake Island, Strike at Karkand and Gulf of Oman och Sharqi Peninsula are the map locations, writes forum member zh1nt0, the global community manager for "Battlefield." That's all though, no more comment than that. The pack will also bring in weapons and vehicles from "Battlefield 2," map-specific rewards and the always-enticing exclusive achievements and trophies, as was previously reported.
All three maps come from "Battlefield 2," a PC-only release. Wake Island is originally a "Battlefield 1942" map, updated for "BF2" and locked at 64-player matches. Gulf of Oman is a coastal environment, with lots of...
Wake Island, Strike at Karkand and Gulf of Oman och Sharqi Peninsula are the map locations, writes forum member zh1nt0, the global community manager for "Battlefield." That's all though, no more comment than that. The pack will also bring in weapons and vehicles from "Battlefield 2," map-specific rewards and the always-enticing exclusive achievements and trophies, as was previously reported.
All three maps come from "Battlefield 2," a PC-only release. Wake Island is originally a "Battlefield 1942" map, updated for "BF2" and locked at 64-player matches. Gulf of Oman is a coastal environment, with lots of...
- 2/25/2011
- by Adam Rosenberg
- MTV Multiplayer
Some lucky people are getting out of town for Memorial Day 2010. But some of us are staying at home. Luckily, all your favorite channels are doing mega marathons of all your favorite shows.
Zap2it is the one-stop shop for all your Memorial Day programming. From delightfully bad reality TV like "Real Housewives" and "Jersey Shore" to the quirky 1990s dramedy "Twin Peaks" to the serious TCM salute to war movies, there's something for everyone on TV this weekend. All times Eastern, but check your local listings for times and channel numbers.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
A&E (11 a.m. - 6 p.m.): Flip This House
Animal Planet (1 p.m. - 7 p.m.): River Monsters
BBC America (8 p.m. - 8 a.m.): Doctor Who
Bet (10 a.m. - 7 p.m.): Everybody Hates Chris
Biography (8 p.m. - 3 a.m.): Celebrity Ghost Stories
Bravo (9 p.m. - 2 a.
Zap2it is the one-stop shop for all your Memorial Day programming. From delightfully bad reality TV like "Real Housewives" and "Jersey Shore" to the quirky 1990s dramedy "Twin Peaks" to the serious TCM salute to war movies, there's something for everyone on TV this weekend. All times Eastern, but check your local listings for times and channel numbers.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
A&E (11 a.m. - 6 p.m.): Flip This House
Animal Planet (1 p.m. - 7 p.m.): River Monsters
BBC America (8 p.m. - 8 a.m.): Doctor Who
Bet (10 a.m. - 7 p.m.): Everybody Hates Chris
Biography (8 p.m. - 3 a.m.): Celebrity Ghost Stories
Bravo (9 p.m. - 2 a.
- 5/29/2010
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Zap2It - From Inside the Box
A Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks TV series about the second world war's brutal Pacific campaign begins tomorrow – a story surprisingly little told because, for years, the public has preferred to turn away from its dark undertone of racism and savagery
When Tom Hanks was making Saving Private Ryan, the writer Nora Ephron sent him a book that weighs in at almost 2,000 pages: the Library of America's Reporting World War II. It was a thoughtful gift, appropriate to his then role as an infantry captain on D-Day. But when Hanks began dipping into the collection, he remarked earlier this month, what gripped him the most was not the war in Europe but the other great Us campaign of the second world war – the battle for the Pacific.
There was an irony in his interest. Hanks is the son of a naval mechanic who served in the Pacific, but when he first picked up the book,...
When Tom Hanks was making Saving Private Ryan, the writer Nora Ephron sent him a book that weighs in at almost 2,000 pages: the Library of America's Reporting World War II. It was a thoughtful gift, appropriate to his then role as an infantry captain on D-Day. But when Hanks began dipping into the collection, he remarked earlier this month, what gripped him the most was not the war in Europe but the other great Us campaign of the second world war – the battle for the Pacific.
There was an irony in his interest. Hanks is the son of a naval mechanic who served in the Pacific, but when he first picked up the book,...
- 4/3/2010
- by Peter Beaumont
- The Guardian - Film News
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