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"Star Trek" has endured for decades as a beacon of hope as we try to strive toward a future where humanity has allowed bigotry and prejudice to become relics of an antiquated past. Gene Roddenbery's sci-fi adventure series presented a world that has embraced the thrilling concept of new discoveries just waiting to be found in the cosmos. With just three seasons, the original run of "Star Trek" became one of the defining shows of the '60s, one of those reasons being the diverse casting aboard one of Starfleet's most famous vessels.

On July 30, 2022, the U.S.S. Enterprise lost its Chief Communications Officer in Nichelle Nichols, who passed away at the age of 89. Her tenure as Uhura left a considerable impression in the hearts and minds of Trekkies, but most importantly, she set a trailblazing example as one of the first major recurring roles given to a Black woman on television. Nichols was also front and center with the small screen's first interracial kiss with co-star William Shatner.

If you really want an idea of how vital her legacy aboard the Enterprise was, it was none other than Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who convinced Nichols to stay on after she expressed doubts about remaining on the show. It was the endorsement of a lifetime, and she knew it.

It can't be understated how revolutionary it was to see a Black woman in a meaningful role on television. And while "Star Trek" will continue to define her legacy, Nichols' work off-set effectively changed the space program as we know it.

Space. What's In It For Me?

It wasn't enough that Nichols pretended to live among the stars -- she had the spirit and determination to reach for them too, or at least make them accessible to people who never would have been given the opportunity. 

"Woman of Motion" is a wonderful documentary that chronicles Nichols' from her days aboard the Enterprise to the future that she envisioned all those decades ago. Within the film, Nichols speaks about the complications of watching a national event like Apollo 11 landing on the moon. She was in absolute awe of the achievement, but was dispirited by the sea of white men that made it happen. People had looked up to her because she provided the kind of representation that didn't exist on television, and now she was in a place where she wanted to see women and people of color celebrating these victories .

Of course, the notoriety of her time on "Star Trek" allowed Nichols the chance to make her thoughts known on the inequalities happening at NASA through a series of articles highlighting the systemic oversight of the predominately white male participants. In 1977, Nichols was appointed to the Board of Directors for the National Space Institute, which ultimately set the stage for a speech that would set the wheels of change in motion.

As she explains in "Woman in Motion," Nichols addressed over 3,000 members at their annual board council meeting, asking the entire room of white men, "Space, what's in it for me?" She saw impossibilities become possible, and wondered why women and applicants of color were being shut out of the chance to experience these miracles. NASA heard Nichols, and wondered where to go from there.

Nichols Forged A New Frontier Of Her Own Making

In affiliation with her inclusive production company, Women in Motion, Nichols became a recruiter for NASA. There were a slew of discrepancies in their system, and she was going to correct them. According to Nichols in "Woman in Motion," applicants of color didn't apply because they didn't believe NASA was serious in giving them a fair shot." She made it explicitly clear that if her role conjured no new results from within the program, she was going to rip them apart by any means necessary:

"I will bring you so many qualified people, you will have no choice. And if I have done my work and it's still an all-white male Astronaut Corps, I will be your worst nightmare because I will file a class action lawsuit against you. I will go and speak before Congress, and I will expose what I have done."

After going through the astronaut training program herself, Nichols set out to recruit as many applicants as she could throughout every corner of the United States. She was also involved in a bunch of recruitment videos. Even when the Pentagon tried to play the intimidation card, saying she couldn't interfere with any of their recruitment, Nichols hilariously fooled them into confirming a loophole, which allowed her to seek out potential recruits that weren't already on their list. It just made it easier for her to find the kind of people she was looking for, as she could advise them to apply directly to NASA.

Applications went from 1,500 to 8,000, with over 2,649 of them being from the applicants she'd been fighting for.

Legacy Of A Trailbalzer

It's spectacular how Nichols not only set the path for fellow "Star Trek" alum such as Whoopi Goldberg, LeVar Burton, and Sonequa Martin-Green, but also true space pioneers. Without her, Guion Bluford wouldn't have become the first Black man in space. Frederick Gregory wouldn't have been the first Black man to pilot a space shuttle. Sally Ride and Judy Resnik, who became a close friend of Nichols, wouldn't have set the stage as some of the first women in space.

Nichols' presence at NASA came full circle in 1992 when Dr. Mae Jemison became the first Black woman astronaut ... and also appeared in a brief cameo in an episode of "Star Trek: The Next Generation." Of course, Nichols was there on set to see it all unfold.

Nichols' recruitment tour may have only lasted about four months, but if you look at the legacy she left behind for the future of NASA, it's hard to see anything but a trailblazing effort on her part. Nichols got to play pretend within a much more inclusive vision of the future, and in turn, make her own.

In the event we can pull ourselves of this dark hole we, as a species, are currently trapped in, the potential Starfleet of our world will have an origin that can be directly traced back to a kind-hearted and determined woman who wanted to be the first Black ballerina, and instead, embraced the prospect of a better future. She will be dearly missed. Live long and prosper.

"Woman in Motion" is currently available to stream on Paramount+, Peacock, VUDU and Kanopy.

Read this next: Every Star Trek Show And Movie In Chronological Order

The post After Star Trek Ended, Nichelle Nichols Went To Work For NASA appeared first on /Film.

Fans made sure to circle last night's episode of "Better Call Saul" on the calendar well in advance, especially after the title was first revealed and implicitly teased our long in-the-making returns of Bryan Cranston's Walter White and Aaron Paul's Jesse Pinkman, our "heroes" from "Breaking Bad." As promised, however, their appearances didn't unfold quite as expected. Rather than dedicating an entire episode set in a previously-unseen moment of the peak Heisenberg years, the latest episode charted its own course altogether -- although only after a cold open set in that beloved, ramshackle Winnebago RV (excuse me, properly known as the "Crystal Ship") in one of Saul Goodman's (Bob Odenkirk) first and most memorable appearances.

In another bold move, one that rivals last week's inspired choice to fully immerse us in the black-and-white world of Gene Takovic, episode writer/director Thomas Schnauz brought us right back to that post-"Breaking Bad" timeline to check in with our favorite Cinnabon manager. You see, in quintessential "Better Call Saul" fashion, even the most fan-servicey hour yet served an important narrative purpose as we approach the final two episodes of the series. The end result was yet another brilliant episode in one of the show's best-ever stretches in its entire run.

Because "Better Call Saul" has always understood one crucial truth: It's more important to give viewers what we need rather than what we want ... even when we think we're getting what we want. More so than its ingenious protagonist with a penchant for flawlessly executed cons or the tightly-wound cartel plots that gave us some of the most tense moments in either series, that's the main reason why this series remains the smartest show on television as it rumbles towards its inevitable conclusion. 

Fan Service ... With A Twist

Back in the early days of "Better Call Saul," it's clear that even the creators mistakenly assumed that the transformation from Slippin' Jimmy McGill to the immoral monster Saul Goodman would happen as soon as the end of the first season. This understandable instance of putting the cart before the horse felt prevalent even among the larger "Breaking Bad" fanbase at the time, many of whom weren't fully convinced of the wisdom behind this spin-off series in the first place. Sure, maybe there was some drama to mine out of the person who would eventually turn into the over-the-top criminal lawyer we all loved to hate ... but the quicker we get to the fun Saul stuff, the better -- or so the conventional wisdom at the time would've had us believe.

Fast forward several years later, and the prolonged journey of Jimmy's downfall has packed far more tragedy and pathos than any of us could've anticipated. Jimmy's fractured relationship with disapproving brother Chuck (Michael McKean), his unexpectedly sweet and emotional romance with Kim Wexler (Rhea Seehorn), and the parallel journey of Jonathan Banks' Mike Ehrmantraut have all added up to a rich, compelling story of good intentions spiraling into something much darker and much deeper than the "Breaking Bad" origin story many of us assumed this would be.

By the time "Better Call Saul" finally brought Walt and Jesse into the proceedings, we should've known that this would prove far more interesting than merely a Marvel-like nostalgia tour. The specific way this episode used such familiar faces only further highlights why this series is ending on such a strong note.

It's All About Jimmy

Episode 11 of this sixth and final season will make headlines for the Walt and Jesse of it all, but its real magic comes from how purposefully the script juxtaposes Saul Goodman's obsession over the promising meth cooks with Gene Takovic's alarming insistence on his self-destructive cons -- no matter the cost.

This final disgrace for Cinnabon Gene kicks off in earnest after a misguided phone call to the Florida workplace that Kim (still alive!) now resides. Frustratingly, we're not privy to whatever conversation upsets Gene so much, presumably robbing him of the reunion (or at least reconciliation) he so desperately wanted after Kim walked out on him. But driven by his same refusal to confront the pain that turned him into Saul in the first place, Gene embarks on multiple identity theft cons to reclaim some of that old Saul Goodman magic.

Throughout it all, however, we're treated to multiple edits where Saul's interactions with Walt and Jesse feed directly into Gene's ongoing crisis. That ominous grave dug out in the middle of the New Mexico desert neatly transitions into Gene in his bed, plotting his next move ... yet framed as if he were actually in that ditch and already dead. Later on, after Gene is so poisoned by that phone call (the creative team has promised we'll learn more about it in the final episodes, rest assured!), his choice to step out of the cab and cross the line into breaking and entering is paralleled by Saul Goodman stepping out of his car years earlier, defying Mike's warnings to stay away from troublemaking Walt and search him out instead.

Effectively, "Better Call Saul" used its most fan-servicey episode yet to further chart Jimmy/Saul/Gene's slow-motion free-fall. Even Saul would appreciate that sleight-of-hand trick.

Read this next: The 19 Greatest Movie Couples Of All Time Ranked

The post Better Call Saul's Most Highly Anticipated Episode Reminds Us Why It's The Smartest Show On TV appeared first on /Film.

When an actor signs onto a TV series, it can be a leap of faith. The threat of cancellation in an ever-increasing unpredictable media landscape hovers over ensemble casts like the Sword of Damocles. On the flip side, for a popular TV series like HBO's "Game of Thrones," the series can last for an incredibly long time. When this happens, it introduces a new dilemma: characters outlasting their narrative purpose.

In the case of Natalie Dormer's Margaery Tyrell, the character was killed off at the right time. That isn't to say that viewers wanted her to meet a tragic end; Margaery was a fan favorite for her beauty, cleverness, and likable personality. But by season 6, there wasn't much more that could be explored with her character after she became Queen Consort. With Cersei Lannister still alive, Margaery's fate was inevitable. 

Showrunners Dan Weiss and David Benioff crafted a fiery send-off for Margaery and several other characters in the "Game of Thrones" season 6 finale. Outmaneuvered by Cersei, Margaery is killed alongside her brother, father, the High Sparrow, and others when the Great Sept of Baelor is destroyed by wildfire. The execution of this particular moment stills sends chills up and down the spine, and wraps up the life of a character who had always aimed to outmaneuver those around her, but — ultimately — lost the game of thrones. 

For Dormer, though, this exit from the award-winning series ended up being a godsend.

A Golden Exit

Natalie Dormer had been itching to be released from "Game of Thrones" long before her demise in season 6. As she revealed during an interview with Entertainment Weekly, she had prompted the discussion with showrunners Dan Weiss and David Benioff while in the middle of shooting season 5. With a variety of different projects calling her name, she didn't want any opportunities to pass her by. She wasn't let go immediately, but Weiss and Benioff did let her know that she would be available to pursue other opportunities soon. 

By the time season 6 rolled around, the timing of Margaery's departure felt right. "I got the golden ticket, the perfect length of time," Dormer shared with Variety. "I watched season 1 as a fan, came in the second season, did a good solid five years just as the show had this incredible explosion, and then I got out in time to watch the end and sit on the couch again."

By leaving when she did, Dormer avoided the infamously negative fan reaction to the show's final season. While the end of "Game of Thrones" wasn't for everyone, Dormer's reaction to its conclusion was amicable. "It was almost going to be the impossible task," she shared with People. "Regardless of what [Weiss and Benioff] had done, to satisfy a third act for everyone in the time that they had." 

Since her departure from "Game of Thrones," Dormer has kept busy. Of particular note are her appearances in the limited series "Picnic at Hanging Rock" and the mini-series spinoff "Penny Dreadful: City of Angels". 

Read this next: The Best TV Shows And Movies Coming To HBO Max In August 2022

The post Natalie Dormer Thought Her Game Of Thrones Death Was A 'Golden Ticket' appeared first on /Film.

The first time "Futurama" audiences saw Scruffy the Janitor, he was standing in the background, quietly doing his job in the episode "My Three Suns." Later, in "Anthology of Interest I," Scruffy was brought into the building's Accusing Parlor (a room specifically built for whodunnit scenarios) where he and Leela (Katey Sagal) both admitted to never having seen each other before. Initially, Scruffy was a background character, only speaking to provide a quick giggle; he couldn't fix the building's boiler because of a "schedule conflict," and a more intense interest in this month's issue of Zero-G Juggs. 

Scruffy was voiced by comedian, writer, and actor David Herman, who broke out in the mid 1990s on "MADtv" and played Michael Bolton in the 1999 comedy "Office Space." He has starred in many, many TV shows and movies besides -- his filmography is too vast to list here. On "Futurama," in addition to Scruffy, Herman played the characters of Larry (Mom's middle son), Morris (Leela's dad), New York Mayor Poopenmeyer, the crazed robot Roberto, Professor Farnsworth's smug rival Dr. Ogden Wernstrom, and many others. One has to admire cartoon voice actors whose credits include "Various" or "Additional Voices."

Scruffy, as it turns out, was meant to be a background "gag" character, and it was Herman's performance that saved Scruffy from being repeatedly crushed to death. "Futurama" co-creator Matt Groening explained the whole story at a San Diego Comic-Con panel back in 2011. 

Life And Death Are A Seamless Continuum

There was a fun running gag in early episodes of "South Park" wherein the character of Kenny dies in every single episode only to mysteriously return the following week. Groening, possessed of a similar dark sense of humor, thought it would be funny to have a similar gag in "Futurama." Early in the production of the show, "Futurama" was intended to be something a skosh darker and dystopian. While it does take place in a world with suicide booths on every corner, Groening wanted the hopelessness to be even more pervasive. Less "Star Trek" and more "Brazil." Scruffy, as "Futurama" co-creator David X. Cohen pointed out, was one of the first characters designed for the show.

Scruffy, a mere janitor in an uncaring future, was a cog in a machine. A faceless life meant to be disposed. As such, as Groening explained at Comic-Con, Scruffy was meant to die. Again and again. He said:

"Well, the original idea of Scruffy was that every time the spaceship landed, he was gonna get crushed and killed. And then David [Herman] appealed to my sense of compassion. We love Scruffy because we use him so little. I would imagine that there's probably some future with him and mop bucket."

Scruffy went on to appear in over 40 episodes of the show and all four "Futurama" movies. Like many background characters in "Futurama" -- and on Groening's "The Simpsons" for that matter -- Scruffy expanded into his own man, providing gruff commentary, but also interesting bits of backstory. At one point, Scruffy points out that prison isn't so bad, in that you can "make sangria in the terlet. O' course it's shank or be shanked." Scruffy was in prison? For what? When? Quelle intrigue.

'The Prisoner Of Benda'

The cryptic "future with mop bucket" that Groening refers to is from the sixth season episode "The Prisoner of Benda." In that episode, Professor Farnsworth (Billy West) invents a body-swap machine, and every cast member eventually swaps bodies at least once with another person. Amy (Lauren Tom) switches bodies with Bender (John DiMaggio) who, for complicated plot reasons, switches bodies with Scruffy's robotic talking wash bucket (Tress MacNeille), a vessel not previously used on "Futurama." 

Later that night, the bucket, now in the body of a human woman, approaches Scruffy and admits that it has been in love with him for years. Scruffy reluctantly rebuffs the bucket's advances. "It would be sweet for a while, but in the back of our minds we'd know that I'm a man, and you're janitorial equipment." The bucket announces that they could run away. In another city, they could be whoever they want. Scruffy tearfully pushes her away. "Go now. Before I beg you to stay."

The romance between Scruffy and his wash bucket was never resolved. The two presumably had to continue to work together, tormented by their feelings. Groening, in a fit of compassion, wanted to give Scruffy what he deserved. Perhaps when "Futurama" is revived -- again -- Scruffy's romantic life will be more deeply explored. Perhaps the wash bucket will move to that other city and find love with another janitor. Or perhaps Scruffy will begin dying on a regular basis. "Futurama" in unpredictable that way. 

Read this next: Every Time Futurama Predicted The Future

The post How Scruffy's Voice Actor Changed His Fate On Futurama appeared first on /Film.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Gizmodo: Data centers have caused skyrocketing power demand in parts of London. Now, new housing construction could be banned for more than a decade in some neighborhoods of the UK's biggest city because the electricity grid is reaching capacity, as first reported on by the Financial Times. The reason: too many data centers are taking up too much electricity and hogging available fiber optic cables. The Financial Times obtained multiple letters sent from the city's government, the Greater London Authority (GLA), to developers. "Major new applicants to the distribution network... including housing developments, commercial premises and industrial activities will have to wait several years to receive new electricity connections," said one note, according to the news outlet. The GLA also confirmed the grid issue to Gizmodo in an email, and sent along text from one of the letters, which noted that for some areas utilities are saying "electricity connections will not be available for their sites until 2027 to 2030." Though the Financial Times reported that at least one letter indicated making the necessary electric grid updates in London could take up until 2035. [...] "Data centres use large quantities of electricity, the equivalent of towns or small cities, to power servers and ensure resilience in service," one of the GLA letters seen by the Financial Times reportedly said. [...] Developers are "still getting their heads round this, but our basic understanding is that developments of 25 units or more will be affected. Our understanding is that you just can't build them," said David O'Leary, policy director at the Home Builders Federation, a trade body. Combined, those sections of London contain about 5,000 homes and make up about 11% of the city's housing supply, according the Financial Times. A spokesperson for the London Mayor told Gizmodo in a statement: "The Mayor is very concerned that electricity capacity constraints in three West London boroughs are creating a significant challenge for developers securing timely connections to the electricity network, which could affect the delivery of thousands of much-needed homes...The increased demand for electricity capacity in the area is believed to be largely due to a rapid influx of batteries and data centers."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The Call of Duty franchise was central in Sony's response to the Brazilian government's request for information on the Microsoft/Activision Blizzard deal. Sony shared a detailed explanation of why the series is irreplaceable in its genre and would be able to influence console purchases if it became exclusive.

Activision's Call of Duty is an essential game: a "blockbuster," a game AAA type that has no rival. According to a 2019 study: “The importance of Call of Duty to entertainment in general is indescribable. The brand was the only video game IP to enter the top 10 of all entertainment brands among fanatics, joining powerhouses like Star Wars, Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, and Lord of the Rings.” Call of Duty is so popular that it influences users' choice of console and their network of loyal users is so ingrained that even if a competitor had the budget to develop a similar product, it would not be able to rival.

Activision employs vast resources to develop Call of Duty. Each annual Call of Duty release takes approximately 3-5 years to be developed. As Activision releases one Call of Duty game per year,
this equates to an annual investment of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Annual AAA releases are developed by four rotating studios (Activision, Infinity Ward, Treyarch, and Raven Software), each supported by several satellite studios. Other studios work on “battle royale” Warzone and Call of Duty: Mobile. Approximately 1,200 people work in the development of each version, and another 1,500 are involved in the publication and distribution. Thus, Call of Duty alone has more developers than most game companies employ across their development portfolio, even AAA studios. No other developer can assign the same level of resources and expertise in game development. Even if they could, Call of Duty is heavily entrenched so that no rival – no matter how relevant – can achieve it. Call of Duty was the biggest game sale for almost every year in the last decade and, for its genre, it is overwhelmingly the best-selling game. It is synonymous with first person shooter games and essentially defines that category.

Unsurprisingly, out of all the parties contacted by the Brazilian government, Sony is the most critical regarding the acquisition. When Microsoft announced its intention to purchase Activision Blizzard for nearly $70 billion, the company behind PlayStation quickly said it expected previous contractual agreements to be respected, hinting mainly at the marketing deals it had struck for upcoming Call of Duty titles. Those should be active for another three years, but Microsoft's Head of Gaming Phil Spencer has since suggested the franchise will stay on PlayStation even afterward.

This year will see the release of Modern Warfare 2, due to launch on October 28th. Activision also reiterated yesterday that some premium paid content will be released in 2023, too, though it is unclear whether that's going to be a new game or an expansion.

The post Call of Duty Is Irreplaceable in the Shooter Genre and Could Influence Console Purchases If It Became Exclusive, Says Sony by Alessio Palumbo appeared first on Wccftech.

The curse of winning the lottery includes family feuds, lawsuits, crooked money managers, bad investments, drug addiction, gambling debt, extortion, people begging for handouts, loss of privacy, public harassment, and media intrusion. Fun! The Daily Beast presents several case studies of people who won big in the lottery but lost everything else important in their life. — Read the rest

Comic book fans can be real sticklers for accuracy, and the casting announcements for the Netflix adaptation of "The Sandman" had some fans getting their "Swamp Thing" undies in a twist. Some of the characters had been gender-swapped, including the fallen angel Lucifer (played by "Game of Thrones" star Gwendoline Christie) and the Dreaming's librarian, Lucienne (played by "The One" star Vivienne Acheampong). Fan theories regarding the casting of Jenna Coleman ("Doctor Who") as Johanna Constantine began cropping up all over the internet. 

Johanna Constantine appears in "The Sandman" comics at one point, but so does her descendant, John Constantine. In fact, John pops up in the first "Sandman" comic book run, "Preludes and Nocturnes," so fans were a bit boggled: Why Johanna and no John in this adaptation? The magician and exorcist is a beloved DC Comics character. He's a bisexual, chain-smoking, extremely cursed individual with a bitter sense of humor, and his fandom is fierce. So where did John Constantine bugger off to in the Netflix series, and why is Johanna there instead?

I had the chance to talk to "The Sandman" comic series creator Neil Gaiman at a press event covering the upcoming series, and he had a very surprising answer to that question. It turns out that sometimes the reasons for casting changes or swaps are much simpler than fans might think.

'It Was The Economy Of Filmmaking'

When it came to the matter of John and Johanna Constantine, the fan theories ran wild: Some fans accused the series of "woke casting" and pointed to other gender-swapped characters, while others assumed that there were rights issues with John Constantine since the character is currently being used in other DCEU properties. While there were some complicating factors that Gaiman was unaware of, he was more concerned with the storytelling:

"It was economy. It was the economy of filmmaking. We started 'Sandman' going -- anybody watching 'Sandman,' we are going to go, 'You are starting here. This is the first place. You are not expected to have brought any knowledge with you.' When I wrote 'Dream a Little Dream of Me,' 'Sandman' issue 3, I knew everybody knew John Constantine. He had his own comic, 'Hellblazer.' I wanted to bring some of his readers into 'Sandman.' Later on, I had an enormous amount of fun creating Johanna Constantine, his ancestor, and having her appear a couple of times, and it was really nice and solid."

While John Constantine isn't Gaiman's creation, Johanna is, and that gives him a bit more creative control. It also helps separate the character and series from other adaptations of Constantine's comic misadventures, including the 2005 movie starring Keanu Reeves and the television series starring Matt Ryan.

One Performer, Two Parts

Instead of casting a John and a Johanna, since they would eventually need both, Gaiman and series screenwriter Allan Heinberg thought it might make more sense to just have the same performer play both parts:

"When we looked at what we were going to do in this whole series, we knew that we were going to have Lady Johanna Constantine meeting Dream in a pub. And if we're going to do that and we want a really classy actress to portray her, then we're going to have to give that actress more to do than just meet him once in a pub. Given that there really weren't many women in the beginning, the idea that we could find one person and have them do both, just seemed nice and straightforward. "

Instead of casting a new John Constantine and dealing with all that would entail, Gaiman and the rest of the team behind "The Sandman" decided to just make John into Johanna instead, so Coleman can portray both ancestor and descendant. There aren't a ton of female characters in the first four issues of "The Sandman," either, so the gender swap provides a tiny bit more diversity until the rest of the cast shows up around episode 5. A gender swap doesn't really impact Constantine's story, either, since the comics version is bisexual and any romances can stay exactly as they are. 

Beautiful But Deadly

Gaiman went on to explain that while there actually did end up being some restrictions on John Constantine that he was initially unaware of, the decision to cast a woman was made very early on:

"Later on, I was told there were all sorts of restrictions about using Constantine and that J.J. Abrams had brought these things in, and people were going, 'Ah! You must be doing that because of this,' and I wish I could say, 'Well, yes, we wanted John Constantine,' but no. But actually, the truth was, we talked about that [during] the initial -- sitting and having dinner before we pitched it to Netflix and everybody, that was one of the things that just sort of seemed to make sense. It was big and obvious that we were going to [cast a woman]."

The creator had nothing but praise for Coleman, calling her "brilliant" and noting that he thinks she's the best version of Constantine, "including Keanu Reeves, including Matt Ryan." Both Reeves and Ryan have their fans and detractors, but Gaiman shared what makes Coleman so special:

"I think Jenna is the best Constantine on screen so far, and weirdly somehow the truest, because she both has the humor, and the attractiveness, and that sleazy, doomed quality. You know that if you fall in love with her, you are dead and demon-fodder. And you also know that you can't help falling in love with her."

Constantine is a tragically doomed romantic character, so it's important to have someone who is lovable but also has a bit of darkness to them. Coleman has plenty of experience dealing with the otherworldly from her time on "Doctor Who," so hopefully it's enough to help her figure out one of comic history's most complicated characters and win over the frustrated fanboys. 

"The Sandman" premieres on Netflix on August 5, 2022. 

Read this next: The 15 Best Netflix Original Series Of 2021 Ranked

The post Why The Sandman Transformed John Constantine Into Johanna Constantine appeared first on /Film.

Google is launching a new effort called "Simplicity Sprint" in an effort to improve efficiency and improve employee focus during an uncertain economic environment. From a report: The Alphabet company had its regular all-hands meeting last Wednesday, and the tone was somewhat urgent as employees expressed concern over layoffs and CEO Sundar Pichai asked employees for input, according to attendees and related internal documentation viewed by CNBC. Google's productivity as a company isn't where it needs to be even with the head count it has, Pichai told employees in the meeting. "I wanted to give some additional context following our earnings results, and ask for your help as well," Pichai opened, referring to the company's second-quarter earnings report Tuesday. "It's clear we are facing a challenging macro environment with more uncertainty ahead." He added, "There are real concerns that our productivity as a whole is not where it needs to be for the head count we have." He asked employees to help "create a culture that is more mission-focused, more focused on our products, more customer focused. We should think about how we can minimize distractions and really raise the bar on both product excellence and productivity."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

With popular actor Cillian Murphy in the lead role as gangster Tommy Shelby and a formidable ensemble cast backing him up, "Peaky Blinders" has never shied away from star power. From the series premiere in 2013 to this year's grand finale (an upcoming feature film will continue the adventures of the Shelby clan), every season has featured a name-brand star or well-known character actor taking on the role of the main villain. That impressive list includes such esteemed names as Sam Neill, Noah Taylor (of "Game of Thrones" and "Preacher" fame), "House of the Dragon" star Paddy Considine, Sam Claflin ("The Hunger Games") as the fascist Sir Oswald Moseley, and even Adrien Brody chewing the scenery for everything it was worth.

But of all the famous faces to have taken a stroll through the smog-choked streets of early 1900s Birmingham, perhaps none managed to make as much of an impact in as little screen time (relatively speaking, of course) as Tom Hardy's Alfie Solomons. While that certainly applies to the actual nuts and bolts of the show's plot -- though at one point presumed dead, the rival gangster has almost singlehandedly swayed the balance of power for (and against!) the Peaky Blinders on several occasions throughout the seasons -- it has also come true among the actual cast and crew of the series during filming, as well.

As it turns out, Tom Hardy's ever-busy schedule had a major effect on the production of "Peaky Blinders."

'He Comes In A Whirlwind, And Leaves In A Whirlwind'

Ask anyone in the business (or those who cover this business!) to name one of the more eccentric actors currently working, and chances are you'll end up with Tom Hardy near the top of quite a few lists. Of course, that's also exactly the quality that has turned the "Star Trek: Nemesis" (never forget!), "Bronson," and "Mad Max: Fury Road" actor into such an in-demand star in the first place. When cast on the recently-concluded BBC series "Peaky Blinders" as Alfie Solomons, many thought it was an absolute coup. What fans couldn't have known, however, was just how difficult it would be to continue maintaining his appearances as the gangster while balancing his many, many other commitments.

In an interview with Interview Magazine, casting director Shaheen Baig spoke up about what the experience was like of having Hardy visit the set briefly to film all his scenes in one go:

"We get a few days with Tom. He comes in a whirlwind, and leaves in a whirlwind. Those days are packed because we've got to get all his stuff done. It's wonderful because suddenly you get a bigger audience tune in and it's a real thrill. He's a 100 percent movie star, and him and Cillian going toe-to-toe is an absolute joy. We've got Adrien Brody this season. A movie star will rock up and do a couple of weeks, and then off they go again. It's fun. We feel pretty happy about that."

'There Is A Lot Of Improvisation That Is Very Exciting'

In addition to working around his understandably hectic schedule, the crew of "Peaky Blinders" also had to become experts in massaging egos and learning to collaborate smoothly with a performer as prickly as Hardy has been known to be. As charismatic and entertaining as Hardy is in the role, particularly in his many blow-ups and team-ups with Murphy's Tommy Shelby over the years, it would appear that the actor's behind-the-scenes process brought just as much to the table.

In an interview with the BBC, series creator Steven Knight elaborated more on Hardy as an actor and how he helped shape the direction of the character beyond what was necessarily in the script:

"On the page is the 'stuff'; the stuff he's got to do and he has to make it from A to B and with Tom in particular, almost exclusively, there is a lot of improvisation that is very exciting. But the most important thing is that Tom arrives with the character and the character is so manufactured in the moment that it is fantastic to watch his performances unfold."

Thanks to Hardy's work, the sometimes grating (yet always compelling) character of Alfie Solomons has gone from a low-level supporting character who was constantly at Tommy Shelby's throat to a major player in England's (and, as of the final season, America's) gangster landscape, having developed a grudging mutual respect with the show's main character. Here's hoping the upcoming film finds plenty of room to bring Hardy back as one of the most fascinating characters in the entire story.

Read this next: The 15 Best TV Shows Of 2021 Ranked

The post Tom Hardy's Tight Schedule Puts The Screws On Peaky Blinders appeared first on /Film.

If the name of a product tells you how it’s meant to be used, you can usually take it at face value. Dog leashes restrain dogs. Garlic keepers hold garlic. We all know what car washes tend to wash. But when it comes to my spice cabinet, I’ll put those spices on whatever I damn well please. It’s time to free steak…

Read more...

In this Last Word segment, Lawrence O'Donnell lays out the cold hard truth that no one wants to hear. Donald Trump will likely never hear the sound of prison bars closing in on him. It would be unprecedented for a former president (with his large Secret Service detail) to be sentenced to serve time behind bars. — Read the rest

Park Chan-wook's "Oldboy" is a film that goes to some disturbing places. We're not just talking about the infamous scene where protagonist Oh Dae-su (Choi Min-sik) bites the head off a live octopus and scarfs it down raw, its tentacles still wiggling and wrapping around his nose and hand. That's a movie moment rooted in the real culinary tradition of san-nakji, a Korean dish that usually consists of cut octopus pieces served with sesame oil on a plate. They only squirm because their nerves remain active, but watching "Oldboy," the viewer might start squirming right along with them and find their nerves the opposite of calm, too.

The ending of "Oldboy" renders some previous scenes even more discomfiting on a rewatch, as it upends what we know about Oh Dae-su and Mi-do (Kang Hye-jung), the sushi chef who serves him that octopus and takes an immediate liking to him — so much so that she brings him back to her apartment after he collapses at her restaurant counter. Adapted from a manga series by the Japanese writer-and-artist team of Garon Tsuchiya and Nobuaki Minegishi, "Oldboy" is the middle chapter of Park's thematically linked "Vengeance Trilogy," which begins with "Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance" and ends with "Lady Vengeance." This is notably the one entry that doesn't feature the word "vengeance" in the title.

Revenge is certainly a driving force in the plot of "Oldboy," as Oh Dae-su and Mi-do set out to find the person responsible for imprisoning him in a hotel room for 15 years, with his only link to the outside world being a doggie door for meal deliveries. Yet the ending, which we'll be discussing here with full spoilers, puts more focus on living with one's own wrongs instead of taking futile revenge on those who have wronged you.

'Too Much Wrongdoing'

Before he escapes his hotel cell, goes on a dumpling-tasting tour, and picks up a hammer for an influential, one-take hallway fight, Oh Dae-su is left to rack his brain for who might bear him a grudge big enough to put him in confinement for so long. He makes a list of all the people he's ever offended — and it's longer than he thought it would be. "It was both my prison journal and the autobiography of my evil deeds," he says. "I thought I had lived a normal life, but there was too much wrongdoing."

This invites the viewer to consider their own life, since Oh Dae-su is the main character and we're trained to identify with him. "Oldboy" alludes to Oh Dae-su's womanizing and shows him to be a bad father who misses his daughter's birthday and gets arrested for drunk and disorderly conduct. On the surface, this pales in comparison to the sins of his captor, who is revealed to be Lee Woo-jin (Yoo Ji-tae), a rich man with a personal vendetta against him that goes back to when they were in high school and Oh Dae-su witnessed Lee Woo-jin engaged in an incestuous act with his sister.

Incest is tough subject matter, but while it may add to the overall shocking effect of "Oldboy," it serves the narrative purpose of being taboo across cultures. This enables Park to use it as a kind of universal signifier for something that's wrong, insofar as it's socially unacceptable, if not outright illegal, and can lead to genetic disorders. It attaches a stigma to Lee Woo-jin, who also orchestrates the murder of Oh Dae-su's wife and frames him for it. However, the ending turns the tables and shows that Oh Dae-su has unknowingly committed incest as well.

'An Unforgivable Sin'

"Oldboy" proffers the quote, "Be it a rock or a grain of sand, in water they sink as the same," which suggests, in the context of the movie, that one form of guilt is the same as another in its power to condemn. By holding Oh Dae-su captive long enough for Mi-do, his own daughter, to grow up, and then programming them for mutual attraction with a post-hypnotic suggestion, Lee Woo-jin forces Oh Dae-su to walk a mile in his shoes. Now, Oh Dae-su likewise bears the shame of incest, and any judgment he might make against Lee Woo-jin is a judgment against himself.

It's a way of making Oh Dae-su reckon with the hypocrisy of human nature: how people are all too quick to find fault in others while turning a blind eye to their own faults. The terrible knowledge of his misdeed — and the fear that Mi-do might find out she, too, has been an unwitting party to incest — leaves Oh Dae-su humbled and truly, violently penitent, willing to abase himself at Lee Woo-jin's feet and ask for mercy. He acknowledges, "I have committed an unforgivable sin against your sister. And I also did you wrong."

Oh Dae-su couldn't have known the ripple effect of his words back in school, that his loose lips and the simple bit of gossip they uttered would destroy the life of Lee Woo-jin's sister, prompting her to commit suicide. In fact, Oh Dae-su does not even remember her or Lee Woo-jin in his initial inventory of people he's wronged. That doesn't change the fact that she became a casualty of his carelessness, the same as if he had caused someone's accidental death. From Lee Woo-jin's perspective, his sister's death is as unjust as the severity of Oh Dae-su's punishment.

Oh Dae-Su Rex

Both Oh Dae-su and Lee Woo-jin are fueled by a desire for revenge, and after he carries his out, Lee Woo-jin has nothing left to live for. For his part, Oh Dae-su remains torn between threats of reprisal and a contrition so heavy that it causes him to cut out his own tongue so that it will never wag again.

This unthinkable action is one of several things that aligns "Oldboy" with Greek tragedy, specifically, the Sophocles play "Oedipus Rex" or "Oedipus the King," in which the king of Thebes cuts out his own eyes after learning that he's inadvertently married his mother after killing his father in the fulfillment of a prophecy. While shooting "Thirst," his vampire movie about a Catholic priest, Park gave an interview (via Ikonen) where he said he "named Oh Dae-su in 'Oldboy' to remind the viewer of Oedipus." He described Lee Woo-jin as a "godlike figure" and explained that the yoga pose he strikes is meant to convey the image of the Greek god Apollo.

Lee Woo-jin calls himself an "Oh-Dae-su-ologist," an expert on Oh Dae-su, and by looking and listening in with surveillance photos and bugging devices, he's able to be all-seeing and all-knowing in a way. The hypnotist also has quasi-divine powers in that she can make two people fall in love with each other like the goddess Aphrodite, while Mi-do could be seen as corresponding roughly to Antigone, the daughter of Oedipus, who remains unwavering in her support of him.

No Film School observes in its "Oldboy" discussion that Greek tragedy hinges on cause and effect, a unity of action where one thing leads to another. Like Oedipus, Oh-Dae-su learns the hard way that actions, even those in the distant past, have consequences.

'Life In A Bigger Prison'

Whether intentional or not, "Oldboy" also manifests a very Catholic sense of guilt, in keeping with Park's religious upbringing, and one can see in it a continuance of the idea of original sin and non-judgmentalism: removing the beam in one's own eye before the speck in someone else's, per Christ's Sermon on the Mount. When Lee Woo-jin turns his back, Oh Dae-su tries one last time to retaliate by activating the remote that is supposed to shut off Lee Woo-jin's pacemaker, but this would-be act of vengeance only amplifies his own sins — literally — as a loudspeaker comes on with a recording of him and Mi-do having sex.

Before he shoots himself, Lee Woo-jin gives Oh Dae-su a second chance at life with Mi-do with the parting words, "My sister and I knew everything but still loved each other. Can you two do the same?" Earlier, he described the world outside Oh Dae-su's hotel cell as "life in a bigger prison," and that's the world we all inhabit.

The real question is whether Oh Dae-su can overcome his guilt and enjoy a twisted sort of happy ending with Mi-do. He started a rumor that snowballed, but the whiteness of the final snowy setting in "Oldboy" hints at the idea of a blank slate. "Even though I'm no better than a beast," Oh Dae-su asks rhetorically, "don't I have the right to live?"

He enlists the hypnotist to do a number on his head again, this time splitting his psyche into two, with only the monstrous half of his dual nature conscious of the incest secret. Park leaves it open to interpretation as to whether the hypnosis really worked as Mi-do reiterates her love for Oh Dae-su, and he smiles, then winces.

Read this next: The 14 Best Noir Movies Ranked

The post Oldboy Ending Explained: Be It A Rock Or A Grain Of Sand, In Water They Sink As The Same appeared first on /Film.

The latest Windows 11 update targets a tool that's been around since 1985, and the changes could signal the end for the iconic component. While the OS is worlds apart from ancestor operating systems, every version of Windows comes with its own Control Panel, but the familiar interface now appears to be on borrowed time.

RELATED LINKS: Best SSD for gaming, How to build a gaming PC, Best gaming CPU

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It would appear the Earth has sped up a little bit, and we may need some "negative leap seconds" to keep our artificial system of measuring "time" in order. The folks measuring the speed with which our planet rotates have some ideas, but no conclusions, as to why this may be happening. — Read the rest

The chief executive officer of Pearson, one of the world's largest textbook publishers, said he hopes technology like non-fungible tokens and the blockchain could help the company take a cut from secondhand sales of its materials as more books go online. From a report: The print editions of Pearson's titles -- such as "Fundamentals of Nursing," which sells new for $70.88 -- can be resold several times to other students without making the London-based education group any money. As more textbooks move to digital, CEO Andy Bird wants to change that. "In the analogue world, a Pearson textbook was resold up to seven times, and we would only participate in the first sale," he told reporters following the London-based company's interim results on Monday, talking about technological opportunities for the company. "The move to digital helps diminish the secondary market, and technology like blockchain and NFTs allows us to participate in every sale of that particular item as it goes through its life," by tracking the material's unique identifier on the ledger from "owner A to owner B to owner C," said Bird, a former Disney executive.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

A LockBit ransomware operator or affiliate has been abusing Windows Defender to decrypt and load Cobalt Strike payloads during attacks, according to endpoint security firm SentinelOne.

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Microsoft have justified their $68.7 billion ($56 billion) purchase of Call Of Duty publisher Activision Blizzard by telling regulators that the company doesn’t produce “must have” games. If that’s making you ask why they’d stump up more than any other tech buyout in history for the privilege of owning a company that doesn’t have any killer apps in its stables, then you can line up right behind me, bosmang.

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Brutal Doom Extended Edition is a mod based on Brutal Doom and Dox778's personalized Addon.

The Man of Steel & Geralt of Rivia himself, Henry Cavill, has decided to choose Noctua's & NZXT's cooling solution for his PC to tackle the recent heat wave.

The Man of Steel Himself, Henry Cavill, Upgrades His PC With Noctua's & NZXT's Cooling Solutions To Tackle The Recent Heat Wave

As a huge fan of Henry Cavill's portrayal of the Man of Steel in the DCEU & his superb performance as the Geralt of Rivia, this is a huge fanboy moment for me. Henry Cavill is known for being part of the PC Master Race, he built his own PC and he's an avid PC gamer himself.

On Instagram, Cavill posted a picture of his PC in which he states that his older PC gave up on him during the recent heat wave. So as an upgrade, Henry Cavill went with a brand spanking new NZXT Kraken series cooler but surprisingly, he didn't go with the stock NZXT fans. The Man of Steel went full-DIY with some Noctua fans which are known for their amazing performance while running real silent. Another plus side is that they don't feature RGB at all which is great for LED heathens.

Due to excessive transit over the years, and no doubt the recent heat wave, my AIO cooler decided to give up on me (which is a computer thing for those scratching their heads right now). Soooo while replacing it I decided to upgrade my fans as well. These little beauties run niiiiice and quietly. I still have 2 more on the way to complete the set, but I became enormously impatient and installed the ones I had anyway.

And for those in the know, don't worry, those temps are in game.

via Instagram

With his whole setup upgraded, Henry reported peak temps under 70C while gaming which is the sweet spot for any PC. Surely, being a PC writer and a PC gamer myself and following Henry for such a long time, this is definitely exciting stuff to report. Cavill also has more fans coming in to complete his set since he got space for 1 more Noctua fan on the front of the chassis and he will also be replacing the rear exhaust fan with his new Noctua breezers!

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Henry Cavill (@henrycavill)

The post Henry Cavill, The Man of Steel & Geralt of Rivia, Chooses Noctua & NZXT Cooling For His PC To Tackle The Heatwave by Hassan Mujtaba appeared first on Wccftech.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 & AMD Radeon RX 6000 series graphics card prices continue to fall in the international retail market as reports 3DCenter.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 & AMD Radeon RX 6000 Graphics Card Prices Fall Further Below MSRP

The AMD Radeon RX 6000 & NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 series graphics card prices have been on a decline since the start of 2022. The leading factors were the Crypto Crash, a huge GPU dump in regards to GPU inventory, and manufacturers trying to clear their stock prior to the launch of the next-gen graphics cards.

According to 3DCenter, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 series graphics cards are now available at -9% below MSRP while the AMD Radeon RX 6000 series graphics cards are available at -14% below the MSRP. Following is the full breakdown.

AMD Radeon & NVIDIA GeForce Graphics Card Price Trend (Image Credits: 3DCenter):

US MSRP vs Street Price	RX 6000	Difference	NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series	Difference	Relative Performance	Difference
December 12, 2021	+83%	N/A	+87%	N/A	+106%	N/A
January 2, 2022	+78%	–5PP	+85%	–2PP	+100%	–6PP
January 23, 2022	+63%	–15PP	+77%	–8PP	+88%	–12PP
February 13, 2022	+45%	–18PP	+57%	-20PP	+67%	–21PP
March 6, 2022	+35%	-10PP	+42%	–15PP	+56%	–11PP
March 27, 2022	+25%	-10PP	+26%	–16PP	+39%	–17PP
April 17, 2022	+12%	–13PP	+17%	–9PP	+28%	–11PP
May 8, 2022	+7%	–5PP	+13%	–4PP	+23%	–5PP
May 29, 2022	+2%	–5PP	+6%	–7PP	+17%	–6PP
June 19, 2022	-8th%	-10PP	+2%	–4PP	+5%	–12PP
July 10, 2022	–12%	–4PP	-3%	–5PP	+1%	–4PP
July 31, 2022	–14%	–2PP	–9%	–6PP	-2%	–3PP

AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series Graphics Card Prices (RDNA 2 GPUs) via 3DCenter:

The AMD Radeon RX 6000 series graphics cards have seen the biggest drop in prices. The top-tier Radeon RX 6900 XT lineup is currently priced over -20% below MSRP while the entry-level RX 6600 and RX 6500/6400 series range between -10 to -25% below MSRPs. The RX 6800 is the only variant that is priced 2% higher than its MSRP.

	MSRP	Geizhals Pricing	Lowest Price	Difference	change	availability
Radeon RX 6950 XT	$1099	1143-1300€	from 999€  (case king)	from –22%	–15PP	★★★☆☆
Radeon RX 6900 XT	$999	885-1100€	from 885€  (Mindfactory)	from –24%	–4PP	★★★★☆
Radeon RX 6800 XT	$649	749-900€	from 749€  (Mindfactory)	from -1%	–2PP	★★★★☆
Radeon RX 6800	$579	659-900€	from 659€  (Mindfactory)	starting at 2%	–2PP	★★★☆☆
Radeon RX 6750 XT	$549	559-700€	from 559€  (Mindfactory)	from –13%	–3PP	★★★★☆
Radeon RX 6700 XT	$479	469-550€	from 469€  (Mindfactory)	from –16%	–7PP	★★★★★
Radeon RX 6650 XT	$399	399-470€	from 399€  (Mindfactory)	from –14%	–2PP	★★★★☆
Radeon RX 6600 XT	$379	379-500€	from 379€  (Hardwarecamp24)	from –14%	-1PP	★★★★☆
Radeon RX 6600	$329	289-350€	from 289€  (Mindfactory)	from –25%	–2PP	★★★★☆
Radeon RX 6500 XT	$199	189-230€	from 189€  (case king)	from –18%	+9PP	★★★★☆
Radeon RX 6400	$159	166-200€	from 166€  (Amazon)	from 10%	+4PP	★★★☆☆

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series Graphics Card Prices (Ampere GPUs) via 3DCenter:

For NVIDIA cards, the top GeForce RTX 30 series lineup is available at -25 to -40% below MSRP. the rest of the lineup is available around or within 10% of their MSRPs. The card that has seen the biggest price drop is the RTX 3090 Ti which is now selling for less than -40% below its MSRP.

	MSRP	Geizhals Pricing	Lowest Price	Difference	change	availability
GeForce RTX 3090 Ti	$1999	1398-1800€	from 1398€  (Mindfactory)	from -40%	–21PP	★★★★☆
GeForce RTX 3090	$1499	1299-1400€	from 1299€  (ESD direct)	from –26%	–14PP	★★★★★
GeForce RTX 3080 Ti	$1199	1049-1200€	from 1049€  (case king)	from –25%	–3PP	★★★★★
GeForce RTX 3080 12GB	($849)	849-1000€	from €849  (notebooks cheaper)	from –14%	–8PP	★★★★★
GeForce RTX 3080 10GB	$699	829-950€	from 829€  (Mindfactory)	from +2%	–2PP	★★★★★
GeForce RTX 3070 Ti	$599	679-800€	from 679€  (Mindfactory)	from 3%	–3PP	★★★★★
GeForce RTX 3070	$499	589-670€	from 589€  (Mindfactory)	from +1%	–2PP	★★★★★
GeForce RTX 3060 Ti	$399	489-580€	from 489€  (ESD direct)	from +5%	–2PP	★★★★★
GeForce RTX 3060	$329	395-480€	from 395€  (Mindfactory)	from +3%	-1PP	★★★★★
GeForce RTX 3050	$249	319-380€	from €319  (notebooks cheaper)	from +10%	±0	★★★★★

 

GPU Retail Sales Week 30

AMD: 1345 units sold, 39.39% (+0.9%), ASP: 501.43
Nvidia: 2070, 60.61%, ASP: 679.39

AMD Revenue (Euro): 674428.25, 32.41%
NVIDIA Revenue: 1406334.6, 67.59%

RT if you like this work #AMD #Nvidia #Radeon #Intel #Intelgraphics #NvidiaGeForce pic.twitter.com/S8DFDyFBY8

— TechEpiphany (@TechEpiphany) July 31, 2022

In the latest GPU market statistics shared by TechEpiphany (from Mindfactory), NVIDIA GPUs amount to 60% of the sales while AMD GPUs amount to 39% of the sales. The revenue split is similar too but the key thing to note is that AMD's ASP has been on the rise which means big margins in terms of profits for the red team. it is likely that this downward pricing trend for NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 30 and AMD Radeon RX 6000 series graphics cards won't stop here & we expect more price cuts to happen soon since we are inching towards the launch of the next-gen cards.

The post AMD Radeon & NVIDIA GeForce Graphics Card Prices Fall To A New Low, RX 6000 14% Below MSRP & RTX 30 9% Below MSRP by Hassan Mujtaba appeared first on Wccftech.

DOSBox, an x86 emulator with DOS


Windows 2000に DOS エミュレータを入れてみたよ
これを使うと古い DOSゲームとかが動作するようになるよ･ω･


使い方は DOSBOX 起動後 config -writeconf c:\dos\dosconf.conf などを実行して設定ファイルを書き出した後、設定を書き換えてインポートする

インポートは  DOSBox.exe -conf "c:\dos\dosbox.conf" の様にすればよい



フォルダをマウントしたら、DOSアプリを起動するだけ ･ω･

Just about everyone in Britain can do a Michael Caine impression. With that voice, why wouldn't you throw a random "You're only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!" or "Don't throw those bloody spears at me!" into conversation from time to time? Those lines have become so famous, they've almost become separate entities from the films they appeared in ("The Italian Job" and"Zulu," respectively).

Caine is also a pretty good actor, too. While younger audiences probably know him best as Christopher Nolan's go-to man for a little elder statesman gravitas, he had a long and varied career spanning over 50 years before he stepped into Alfred Pennyworth's immaculately polished shoes in "Batman Begins."

With approaching 200 films under his belt, Caine has done it all, sharing the screen with everyone from Sir Laurence Olivier in "Sleuth" to Kermit the Frog in "The Muppet Christmas Carol," and working with directors as varied as Woody Allen, Sidney Lumet, Brian De Palma, Oliver Stone, and Alfonso Cuarón. His roles in "The Ipcress Files" and "Get Carter" are legendary, and he has proven just as adept at comedy, as he demonstrated in "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" alongside Steve Martin.

He has made plenty of dross too; a career as long as his has its ups and downs, and he is refreshingly unashamed to admit he starred in some movies just to pay the bills. Yet after a fallow period, there has always been a comeback that reveals Caine in a new light, with added wrinkles to his unmistakable screen persona. He's a bona fide national treasure and one of the country's most beloved performers. But which movie inspired him to start acting in the first place?

Michael Caine's Favorite Movie And Actor

Michael Caine has often stated the film that inspired him to become an actor was "Casablanca." He explained further (via Far Out):

"I'm probably one of the few people here who saw this film when it came out. I was a young man who wanted to be a young actor, and Humphrey Bogart was, and still is my favourite actor of all time. I'd seen many Bogart movies, and even at the time, I thought this is one of the greatest movies I've ever seen. And to this day, it still is."

It makes sense: You can often see a hint of Bogart in some of Caine's toughest performances, a trace of warmth and humanity beneath a hard-bitten, cynical exterior. After Caine hit the big time after almost two decades of grafting, he got the chance to emulate his hero when John Huston offered him a part in "The Man Who Would Be King." Huston, who had collaborated with Bogie on several classic movies including "The Maltese Falcon" and "The African Queen," told Caine his role was originally intended for Bogart back in the '50s, but the silver screen legend passed away before he could get the project off the ground. Caine said:"I was going [to] play a part that Bogart was going to play and I was going to be directed by John Huston!" Caine said before accepting a script from Huston (replying, "It's okay, I'll do it, don't worry").

Caine did Bogart proud; paired with his lifelong friend Sean Connery, "The Man Who Would Be King" was a rollicking Boys' Own adventure with a surprising amount of humor that ranks alongside both actors' best films.

Michael Caine's Influence

Peter Sellers popularized the Michael Caine catchphrase "Not many people know that" in the early '70s, though Caine never actually said the line. His distinctive voice has proven a goldmine for comedians and impersonators ever since, but there is much more to it than that. 

Coming from a working-class family in South London, Caine proudly retained his accent throughout his career. It was a brave choice at a time when many British actors switched to Received Pronunciation. He thought sticking to his guns would help young actors from similar backgrounds break class barriers (via the New York Times). Caine's international success took the cockney accent to a wider audience, and it's hard to imagine Ray Winstone talking to Indiana Jones in his native dialect without him breaking down those barriers first. Arguably Caine's most influential film was "Get Carter," which casts a huge shadow over every British gangster movie that followed. Quentin Tarantino named it as one of his favorite British movies and one that inspired him to become a filmmaker. Meanwhile, Edgar Wright even got his actors to use Caine's close-up technique in "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World." 

While James Bond is the most obvious point of reference for "Austin Powers," he borrowed Harry Palmer's glasses from "The Ipcress File," and it made total sense when Caine showed up in "Goldmember" as Austin's dad. People are still writing articles about how to dress like Palmer, too (via The Rake). 80 years after "Casablanca" was released, it is fitting that the young lad inspired by its lead actor went on to have such an influence of his own.

Read this next: Batman Movies Ranked From Worst To Best

The post The Classic Film That Inspired Michael Caine To Be An Actor appeared first on /Film.

Many within the DFIR community make use of virtual systems for testing...for detonating malware, trying things within a "safe", isolated environment, etc. However, sometimes it can be tough to get hold of suitable images for creating that testing environment.

I've collected a bunch of links to VirtualBox VMs for Windows, but I cannot attest to all of them actually working. But, if you'd like to try any of them, here they are...

MS Edge developer virtual machines (Win7 - 10, limited time)
Windows 7 Image, reports no activation needed
Win95 virtual machine
Various MS virtual machines (MS-DOS, Windows, etc.)
Windows 11 Dev Environment (eval)
Use Disk2vhd to create a virtual machine from an existing installation
ReactOS - clone of Windows 5.2 (XP/2003)

There's no shortage of Linux and Unix variant OS VMs available. For example, you can find Solaris VMs here. For MacOS Big Sur, you can try this site.

Back in 1994 and '95, while I was in graduate school, I went to Frye's Electronics in Sunnyvale (across the street from a store called "Weird Stuff") and purchased a copy of OS/2 2.1. I did that because the box came with a $15 coupon for the impending OS/2 Warp 3.0. If you'd like to give the OS/2 Warp OS a shot, you can try this v4.52 download, or try this site for other versions of OS/2.

If you're a fan of CommodoreOS, you can give this site a shot. For AmigaOS, try here, or here. How about Plan9?

General Download Sites
OSBoxes
SysProbs
VirtualBoxes
DFIRDiva

Hope that helps!

It's extremely important to include representation and diversity in mainstream media. I could say this every day of my life and it still won't be enough for some people to understand, but sometimes a good story can better illustrate the point. One of the most famous examples of how integral it is for everyone to see people that look like them in the movies, shows, and literature that they consume involves legendary comedian and actor Whoopi Goldberg and "Star Trek."

The story (as told by Nichelle Nichols) goes that a nine-year-old Goldberg came across an episode of "Star Trek: The Original Series" on TV one day. When Nichols appeared onscreen as Lt. Nyota Uhura, the future star of "Sister Act," "The Color Purple," and "Ghost" ran to her mother and said, "I just saw a Black woman on television, and she ain't no maid!" From that point forward, she was inspired to become a performer that could be a positive force for representation as Nichols was for her.

Eventually, Goldberg received the opportunity to do just that while also being a part of the franchise that started it all for her. However, when it came to landing a role in "Star Trek: The Next Generation," it wasn't very easy for the bonafide movie star. But that's only because Gene Roddenberry thought that people were joking about one of the highest-paid actresses of the 1990s wanting to be on his show.

Pay It Ten Forward

During an appearance on "David Tennant Does A Podcast With ..." from 2019, Goldberg recounted to the once and future "Doctor Who" star her story about being inspired by Nichols' "Star Trek" character. She had indeed been inspired by the existence of Uhura, and expanded on the significance of this milestone event by explaining that Black people weren't represented in science fiction up until that point. It was the first time she'd seen science fiction even acknowledging that they were going to be a part of the future. So when she got word that "Star Trek: The Next Generation" was coming together, she was determined to be a part of it.

"When LeVar Burton told me that he was doing the new 'Star Trek,' I said, 'Will you tell them that I want to be a part of it because ...' and I explained the whole thing about Lt. Uhura. I didn't see him for a couple of months, then I see him and say, 'Did you tell them?' And he said, 'Yeah ... and they didn't believe me.' So we call Gene [Roddenberry] and I said, 'My name is Whoopi Goldberg. I would like to come in and explain to you why I want to be part of this.' He said, 'Why do you want to do this?' I said, 'Because do you not know that before Lt. Uhura there were no Black people in the future? I'm telling you, before this character, there was no representation of a person of color in the future.' ... I just want to be part of that thing that says, 'Yes, we will be in the future.'"

As another layer of how important Guinan was for her, Goldberg went on to share that her sagely bartender might have been the last character that Gene Roddenberry wrote before he passed away. With the groundwork laid by the "Star Trek" OG himself, Goldberg has since become an inspirational figure for others, just like Nichols was for her. And thanks to trailblazers like both of these iconic women, fans can feel seen and reassured that they are and will continue to be a part of this universe for generations to come.  

Read this next: Every Star Trek Show And Movie In Chronological Order

The post Whoopi Goldberg Was Determined To Get A Role In Star Trek: TNG Because Of Lt. Uhura appeared first on /Film.

Prolific French filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard once said of the filmmaking process, "The cinema is not a craft. It is an art. It does not mean teamwork. One is always alone on the set as before the blank page." It is a belief in cinema known as the auteur theory, an assumption that the director of a film is essentially its author and the sole person responsible for the overall look and style of a film.

The auteur theory is, pardon the pun, a novel concept. But it's also inherently flawed. The theory doesn't account for the necessary collaboration that takes place during a film's production. One can look to Alfonso Cuarón's 2013 film "Gravity" as a perfect example of a movie that exposes the faults in the auteur theory. 

The gripping science fiction thriller explores loneliness and the will to survive after an accident aboard a shuttle leaves two astronauts (George Clooney and Sandra Bullock) stranded in space. "Gravity" won seven Academy Awards and was nominated for another three, including Best Picture. Even if we forget the crew responsible for all those accolades, "Gravity" director Alfonso Cuarón will tell you that he needed even more help to pull off the most pivotal scene of the movie.

Cuarón Couldn't Perfect A Key Moment In The Movie

If anyone was a candidate to prove the auteur theory correct, it would be Alfonso Cuarón. "Gravity" producer David Heyman told Indiewire, "He [Cuarón] has a deep understanding of every aspect of the filmmaking process. He was a first assistant director, he knows cameras, lenses, and lights, writing, editing, he has an incredible knowledge of music and so much more."

But even with all that knowledge, Cuarón struggled when it came to crafting the scene that was integral to Dr. Ryan Stone's (Bullock) character arc. The moment in question is a long, single-shot scene when Stone realizes that the Soyuz spacecraft has run out of fuel and shuts off the craft's oxygen supply so she'll slowly die in the ship.

Cuarón, who co-wrote the film with his son Jonás, explained to Vulture why it was the most difficult scene of the movie to write. "It was a hard chunk of the screenplay to write because so much needed to be conveyed and you only have one character," Cuarón said. "The challenge was to reconcile this sudden will for life with the backstory we developed about Ryan's dead daughter."

That's when collaboration became key and the film's co-star, George Clooney, stepped in to save the scene.

'He Completely Unclogged Us'

The Cuaróns struggled through multiple drafts of the scene until George Clooney, who plays veteran astronaut Matt Kowalski, got involved. Alfonso Cuarón said:

"[Clooney] really helped us figure out this scene. He saw that we were struggling, and he sent me an e-mail: 'Here are some ideas. Take whatever you want and throw away the rest.' He'd written a draft of the scene, and that opened the door to what we ended up writing. He completely unclogged us."

This is the moment of the film's production when the auteur theory completely falls apart. Jonás Cuarón called both Clooney and Bullock "fundamental collaborators" in the scene. "We had plotted the harmonies that we wanted for this film," Jonás Cuarón said. "But it wasn't until we started collaborating with them that we were able to draft the melody."

The scene paid off huge emotional dividends and launched the narrative towards the film's memorable climax. Bullock would earn an Oscar nomination for Best Actress and Alfonso Cuarón won Oscars for Best Director and Best Editing (with Mark Sanger).

"Gravity" was considered a technological achievement and grossed more than $720 million worldwide. And while much of the credit goes to writer and director Alfonso Cuarón, he'd be the first to tell you that plenty of others helped make it happen.

Read this next: 12 Awesome Sci-Fi Movies That Never Got Sequels

The post George Clooney Helped Alfonso Cuarón Craft One Of Gravity's Most Pivotal Scenes appeared first on /Film.

As a follow-on to my earlier blog post, I've seen a few more posts and comments regarding EDR 'bypass' and blinding/avoiding EDR tools, and to be honest, my earlier post stands. However, I wanted to add some additional thoughts...for example, when considering EDR, consider the technology, product, and service in light of not just the threat landscape, but also the other telemetry you have available. 

This uberAgent article was very interesting, in particular the following statement:

“DLL sideloading attack is the most successful attack as most EDRs fail to detect, let alone block it.”

The simple fact is, EDR wasn't designed to detect DLL side loading, so this is tantamount to saying, "hey, I just purchased this brand new car, and it doesn't fly, nor does it drive underwater...". 

Joe Stocker mentions on Twitter that the Windows Defender executable file, MpCmdRun.exe, can be used for malicious DLL side loading. He's absolutely right. I've seen EXEs from other AV tools...Kaspersky, McAfee, Symantec...used for DLL side loading during targeted threat actor attacks. This is nothing new...this tactic has been used going back over a decade or more.

When it comes to process telemetry, most EDR starts by collecting information about the process creation, and many will get information about the DLLs or "modules" that are loaded. Many will also collect telemetry about network connections and Registry keys/values accessed during the lifetime of the process, but that's going a bit far afield and off topic for us.

There are a number of ways to detect issues with the executable file image being launched. For example, we can take a hash of the EXE on disk and compare it to known good and known bad lists. We can check to see if the file is signed. We can check to see if the EXE contains file version information, and if so, compare the image file name to the embedded original file name. 

Further, many EDR frameworks allow us to check the prevalence of executables within the environment; how often has this EXE been seen in the environment? Is this the first time the EXE has been seen?

However, something we cannot do, because it's too 'expensive', is to maintain a known good list of all application EXE files, their associated DLLs, as well as their hashed and locations, and then compare what we're seeing being launched to that database. This is why we need to have other measure in place in a defense in depth posture. Joe goes on to mention what he'd like to see in an EDR tool, so the question is, is there an available framework that allows this condition to be easily identified, so that it can be acted upon?

DLL side loading is not new. Over a decade ago, we were seeing legitimate EXEs from known vendors being dropped on systems, often in the ProgramData folder, and the "malicious" DLL being dropped in the same folder. However, it's been difficult to detect because the EXE file that is launched to initiate the process is a well-known, legitimate EXE, but one of the DLLs it loads, which if often found in the same folder as the EXE, is in fact malicious. Telemetry might pick up the fact that the process, when launched, had some suspicious network activity associated with it, perhaps even network activity that we've never seen before, but a stronger indicator of something "bad" would be the persistence mechanism employed. Hey, why is this signed, known good EXE, found in a folder that it's not normally found in (i.e., the ProgramData folder), being launched from a Run key, or from a Scheduled Task that was just created a couple of minutes ago?

The point is, while EDR frameworks may not directly identify DLL side loading, as described in my previous blog post, we can look for other phases of the attack cycle to help use identify such things. We may not directly detect the malicious DLL being "side loaded", but a good bit of activity is required for a threat actor to get to the point of DLL side loading...gain access to the system or infrastructure, create files on the system, create persistence, etc. We can detect all of these activities to help us identify potential DLL side loading, or simply inhibit or even obviate further phases of the attack.

Kevin had an interesting tweet recently about another EDR 'bypass', this one involving the use of WindowsTerminal (wt.exe) instead of the usual command prompt (cmd.exe). I've been interested in the use of Windows Subsystem for Linux (wsl.exe) for some time, and would be interested to see how pervasive it is in various environments. However, the point is, if you're able to monitor new processes being created via the cmd.exe, are you also able to do the same with other shells, such as Powershell, wt.exe, or wsl.exe?

Finally, something that I've seen for years in the industry is that it doesn't matter how many alerts are being generated by an EDR framework if no one is listening, or if the alerts are misinterpreted and not acted upon. In this blog post on history repeating itself I shared an example of what it looked like well before the advent of EDR when no one was listening for alerts. Not long after that event, we saw in the industry what happened when firewall (or other device) logs were generated but no one monitored them. This is something that we've seen consistently over the past 30+ years.

I was once on an engagement where the threat actor had accessed a Linux-based infrastructure and been able to access the corporate Windows network; two disparate infrastructures that were not supposed to be connected at all were actually a flat network. The threat actor collected data in an unprotected archive and copied (not "moved") it to the Linux infrastructure. We had both copies of the archive, as well as corresponding netflow that demonstrated the transfer. One of the other analysts in the room offered their insight that this threat actor was not "sophisticated" at all, and was, in fact, rather sloppy with respect to their opsec (they'd also left all of their staged tools on the systems).

I had to remind the team that we were there several months after the threat actor had taken the data and left. They'd completed what they had wanted to do, completely unchallenged, and we were here looking at their footprints.

I've seen other incidents where an external SOC or threat hunting team had sent repeated email notifications to a customer, but no action was taken. It turned out that when the contract was set up, one person was designated to receive the email notifications, but they'd since left the organization. In more than a few instances, alert emails went to a communal inbox and the person who had monitored that inbox had since left the company, or was on vacation, or was too overwhelmed with other duties to keep up with the emails. If there is no plan for what happens when an alert is generated and received, it really doesn't matter what technology you're using.

"Lunar scientists think they've found the hottest places on the Moon," reports Live Science, "as well as some 200 'Goldilocks' zones that are always near the average temperature in San Francisco." Long-time Slashdot reader fahrbot-bot shared their report: The moon has wild temperature fluctuations, with parts of the moon heating up to 260 degrees Fahrenheit (127 degrees Celsius) during the day and dropping to minus 280 F (minus 173 C) at night. But the newly analyzed 200 shaded lunar pits are always always 63 F (17 C), meaning they're perfect for humans to shelter from the extreme temperatures. They could also shield astronauts from the dangers of the solar wind, micrometeorites and cosmic rays. Some of those pits may lead to similarly warm caves. These partially-shaded pits and dark caves could be ideal for a lunar base, scientists say. "Surviving the lunar night is incredibly difficult because it requires a lot of energy, but being in these pits and caves almost entirely removes that requirement," Tyler Horvath, a doctoral student in planetary science at the University of California, Los Angeles and lead author on the NASA-funded research published online July 8 in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, told Live Science.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Underrated doesn't begin to describe the Ninth Doctor's tenure in the Tardis. Christopher Eccleston's time as the Doctor often gets overlooked when fans discuss the best modern version of the character. Eccleston's task of modernizing a character that- while firmly entrenched in British cultural memory- hadn't been relevant in a decade was a steep one. — Read the rest