Google has announced that it has certified a number of PCs and Macs to run ChromeOS Flex, a version of ChromeOS that runs on standard computers. The company touts the operating system as a way for businesses to increase security and avoid e-waste by installing it on older computers.
Irrespective of the improvements Apple has made to the M2 MacBook Air because it sports a fanless cooling solution, the redesigned notebook is unable to control the internal temperatures most of the time. According to a test run that mimics a sustained workload, the new MacBook Air loses around 25 percent performance compared to the M2 MacBook Pro.
M2 MacBook Pro Does Not Throttle Under the Same Sustained Workload, but Luckily, the M2 MacBook Air Throttles Less Than the M1 MacBook Air
A video review done by The Verge reveals that the M2 MacBook Air throttles to keep its temperature under the recommended limit. Despite the new M2 touting improvements over the M1, it cannot flex its muscles properly if there is inadequate cooling, and according to the test that was run, the end result shows precisely that. Running a benchmark like Cinebench R23 does not net you accurate readings since the test only lasts for a few seconds, which is not sufficient to properly showcase how the chip would perform if it was stressed for a longer time.
Thankfully, The Verge ran a 30-minute loop in the multi-core test run, painting a clearer picture as the M2 MacBook Air is put through a workload that lasts longer. Unfortunately, where the M2 MacBook Pro does not throttle in the same test since it sports a single cooling fan, the new MacBook Air is unable to keep pace with the other machine, losing around 25 percent performance in the multi-core test, despite sporting the same silicon.
Luckily, the M2 is said to be more power-efficient than its predecessor, and where the M1 MacBook Air loses 21 percent when running a 30-minute loop of Cinebench R23, the M2 MacBook Air performance drops by only 13 percent. Also note that not all countries experience the same climate, so depending on the ambient temperature, the new MacBook Air could lose more or less performance overtime.
Another drawback of owning the M2 MacBook Air is its slow SSD speeds, which Apple has likely done to reduce manufacturing costs. Check out the review video below to see how the machine’s performance was tested and let us know what you think down in the comments.
YouTuber PRO Hi-Tech recently posted a video showcasing a custom modification of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 graphics card with various memory configurations. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 officially comes with 24 GB of memory but the modder showed how well the card performs when limited to 20 GB and 12 GB capacities.
PRO Hi-Tech tested two custom BIOS settings for the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 graphics card, one featuring 20 GB of capacity with a 320-bit memory bus and the second with 12 GB of capacity and a 192-bit memory bus. The memory speed was the identical set for the two different BIOS options at 19.5 Gbps. The maximum bandwidth of the GPU is limited to between 468 (192-bit) or 780 GB/s (320-bit) from the initial total of 936 GB/s (384-bit).
Using the 3DMark TimeSpy and Port Royal synthetic benchmarks and a selection of AAA games, PRO Hi-Tech tested the two custom BIOS settings on the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 GPU. To start, the stock NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 24 GB scored 18388 points in the Time Spy Graphics test. The next model, sitting at 20 GB, only produced 17686 on the same test, and then limiting it further to 12 GB sits at 13996, losing a total of close to 24% reduction.
The 3D TimeSpy and Port Royal benchmark tests concluded that the 12 GB BIOS configuration had the most considerable effect on performance, even with the 20 GB only being five percent slower than standard settings. The BIOS that offered 12 GB with a 192-bit memory bus saw a drop of 76 to 85 percent in performance, while the 20 GB with a 320-bit memory bus saw a loss of as high as 96 percent in commission. This shows the massive memory bandwidth demand that is required for a flagship GPU such as the AD102. The RTX 3090 Ti, RTX 3090, and RTX 3080 Ti are all spec'd with a 384-bit bus interface and it may explain why no cut-down bus interface was featured on the high-end graphics cards.
In another test by PRO Hi-Tech, the tech outlet used an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 custom BIOS that usually arrives with 12 GB of GDDR6 memory and a 192-bit bus. The custom BIOS limits the graphic memory to 4 GB and shrinks the bus to 128-bit. The GeForce RTX 3060 also sees a reduction in GPU performance with 18% lower FPS in games but also consumes better power due to disabled VRAM dies, same is the case with the high-end cards. These custom BIOS can be found in various Russian and Chinese forums but I don't know why someone would use them just to see lower performance in games.
Today, Square Enix shared many details on the upcoming Trials of the Dragon King DLC for Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin.
Trials of the Dragon King is the first of three planned expansions for the game, and it's planned to launch on Wednesday, July 20th. According to the information shared by Square Enix, it won't be available as a separate purchase, so players will need to purchase the full Season Pass (which also includes two upcoming expansions) at $24.99.
Read on to find out all about Trials of the Dragon King, including a new trailer (although it's only available for viewing on YouTube due to age restrictions).
After countless deaths, countless cycles, a man assumed the mantle of the dark god of chaos and seized the very power of creation for his own. All this was according to plan—a meticulously orchestrated scheme to shatter the shackles the Lufenians had placed upon the world and free Cornelia from their grasp. His first task complete, he set the wheels of a new design in motion.
Across time eternal, he and his allies would nurture and guide heroes worthy of the title of warriors of light—just as a friend had once guided him and his comrades. For in the end, it is only the light that can sever the fetters of the past and lead the world to a brighter dawn.
New Trials of the Dragon King Characters
Bahamut
The king that rules over dragonkind, Bahamut sets trials for the brave and awards them titles.
Taking an interest in Jack and the others, it lends them its counsel and strength.
Warrior of Light
Warriors of Light who appear in Cornelia. They fight to restore the light to the crystals and save the world.
New Trials of the Dragon King Jobs
Summoner
Summoners can use their job action, summon, to call Bahamut into battle.
While Bahamut is active, the summoner's MP and max MP will continually decrease. In exchange, the summoner can control Bahamut and gains access to its powerful abilities. In accordance with the amount of maximum MP that has been consumed, Bahamut will be able to use megaflare, gigaflare, and exaflare. All of Bahamut’s attacks whilst summoned are extremely powerful, with a wide area of effect, making them highly effective when you’re surrounded by enemies. Additionally, you can increase the duration of the summon by attacking enemies to restore MP.
Evoker
Evokers can use their job action, evoke, to summon a spirit to aid them in battle. The spirit will
automatically attack your foes and can also unleash special abilities on command. It will
provide backup as you fight – for example, blast wave staggers enemies, shackle seals enemy
movement, interrupt delays enemy actions and heal restores your HP and the HP of nearby
allies.
Pilgrim
Pilgrims can perform their job action, assault hook, which changes the length of the staff and grabs an enemy. Depending on how you wield the staff, you can leap toward the enemy and strike or draw the enemy in. It all starts with setting up an advantageous situation in battle, for example, by closing in on enemies from a distance or by pulling out a specific enemy from a crowd.
New Trials of the Dragon King Weapon
Staves
Staves are striking weapons that can attack enemies over a wide area by adjusting the length of the
weapon. During a normal combo, you can perform thrust attacks or gain distance while unleashing an upward attack. The thrust attack closes distance, while the upwards strike increases distance between you and your enemy. This means that you can turn the battle to your advantage by using the strike best suited for the situation.
New Trials of the Dragon King Mechanics
New Equipment Category: Accessories
One accessory can be equipped to each battle set. Accessories may grant special abilities that cannot be obtained by weapons or armor. By boosting weaker stats or granting special abilities, accessories add even more options for customizing your equipment. Equipping some accessories even allows you to use specific abilities, such as enemy skills.
Chaos Equipment
Equipment found while playing on HARD or higher difficulties may be imbued with powerful special abilities: chaos. These grant effects such as increased damage against specific enemies and are
stronger than regular special abilities. The higher the difficulty level, the greater the chance to obtain chaos equipment.
Changing Classes
You can change classes from the job tree screen under battle settings. Two different classes are available to choose between, each of which can empower certain job actions in different ways – evocation and ultima. Using a rat tail on the class tree screen will allow you to learn new abilities.
New Trials of the Dragon King Difficulty
The first Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin DLC also adds the so-called BAHAMUT difficulty setting. When enabled, players will see the following three options in the menu:
Trials of the Dragon
During a trial, you will be forced to fight under a variety of disadvantageous effects, but you will earn dragon treasures once you complete the trial. In addition, raising your trial rank makes it easier to obtain powerful chaos equipment.
Exchange Shop
Dragon treasures earned in a dragon king trial can be traded for items and equipment at the exchange shop. The exchange shop’s stock can be refreshed, and clearing a certain number of missions will increase the amount of times you can refresh the exchange shop's stock.
Conversations with Bahamut
New conversations with Bahamut will be unlocked as you complete dragon king trials.
Conversations with Bahamut will unlock new missions and progress the main story.
An AMD Ryzen 7000 CPU, most likely the Ryzen 5 7600X, has appeared within the Basemark benchmark with 6 Zen 4 cores.
AMD's Mid-Range Ryzen 5 7600X "Zen 4" CPU Spotted In Benchmark: Features 6 Cores, 12 Threads & 4.4 GHz ES Clock Speeds, Up To 11% Faster Than Ryzen 9 5950X
The AMD Ryzen 7000 CPU appeared within the Basemark Benchmark database and was spotted by TUM_APISAK. According to the information available, the chip is an engineering sample with OPN id '100-000000593-20_Y'. The benchmark provides information such as the CPU cores & clock speeds.
This seems to be a 6 Core and 12 Thread chip based on the Zen 4 core architecture. The CPU will carry 32 MB of L3 cache and 6 MB of L2 cache for a total of 38 MB combined cache. That's about 9 percent more cache than the existing Ryzen 5 5600X CPU which features the same 32 MB of L3 but has 512 KB of L2 cache per core. This has been bumped to 1 MB of L2 cache per core on the Zen 4 core architecture. As for the clock speeds, the chip has a 4.4 GHz clock but it is not mentioned if its base or boost. It is likely that this was the highest frequency the chip was operating at and since the part is an engineering sample, we can expect close to or over 5 GHz clocks in the retail sample.
AMD Ryzen 7000 'Raphael' Desktop CPU 'Preliminary' Specs:
CPU Name
Architecture
Process Node
Cores / Threads
Core Clock (SC Max)
Cache
TDP
Price
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X
Zen 4
5nm
16/32
~5.5 GHz
80 MB (64+16)
105-170W
~$750 US
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X
Zen 4
5nm
12/24
~5.4 GHz
76 MB (64+12)
105-170W
~$600 US
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X
Zen 4
5nm
8/16
~5.3 GHz
40 MB (32+8)
105W
~$450 US
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X
Zen 4
5nm
6/12
~5.2 GHz
38 MB (32+6)
65W
~$300 US
Based on the specifications alone, it looks like this is our first look at the AMD Ryzen 5 7600X CPU which should be a hot-seller in the mainstream range, priced at around $300-$350 US. Basemark does provide benchmarks but they are solely GPU results that relied on the NVIDIA RTX A4000 graphics card.
Based on performance metrics provided by Harukaze5719, it looks like the Zen 4 ES CPU offers up to 11% higher performance than the Ryzen 9 5950X based on 16 Zen 3 cores. This is a substantial increase considering the Zen 3 part runs at much higher clock speeds and has 16 cores but the benchmark. Expect even better performance with the final retail variant.
AMD's Zen 4 6 Core ES CPU at 4.4 GHz is up to 11% faster than Ryzen 9 5950X In Basemark benchmark. (Image Credits: @Harukaze5719)
With that said, the AMD Ryzen 7000 Desktop CPUs including the Ryzen 5 7600X should make their way to retail by September 2022 as indicated in previous rumors. The motherboard it was tested on, the Gigabyte X670E AORUS Master has already been announced and you can find more info here.
A survey commissioned by cybersecurity company Xage shows that zero trust is on track to being implemented in many operational technology (OT) environments, particularly in critical infrastructure organizations.
NVIDIA Support now offers a new version 516.79 GeForce Hotfix Drivers for Windows (thanks VideoCardz). These include more changes than one would typically expect from a hotfix: "GeForce hotfix...
Fallout 4 mods are infinite, transforming Bethesda’s seminal, apocalypticRPG in myriad large and small ways. You want more realistic blood effects? No problem. Cleaner building and settlement mechanics? Done. Final Fantasy 7’s Midgar, dropped right in the middle of the map? Easy. But for our caps, the best mods are the ones that make subtle but vital improvements to fundamental mechanics – that keep the base game intact, but just make it, well, better. And that’s what we have here, a new Fallout 4 mod that overhauls the whole sneaking and detection systems, and makes the nuclear dystopia feel more like a Dishonored-style stealth game.
Stealth and Enemy Behaviour by Urania is built to address a few very specific -- and highly frustrating -- issues in Fallout 4’s “sneaking” mechanics. We say “sneaking” because like anyone who’s tried to play Fallout the Metal Gear Solid way, we’ve found ourselves constantly wrong-footed by arbitrary and unfair enemy AI. “If one enemy hears a little noise you make, instantly they all know your exact location”, Urania writes. “With these changes, it’s at least possible to clear enemy areas now, stealthily”.
Security researchers at Checkmarx are warning of a new supply chain attack technique that relies on spoofed commit metadata to add legitimacy to malicious GitHub repositories.
The NPD Group has released their full North American sales data for June 2022, and it was another somewhat down month for the industry. Overall, players spent $4.3 billion on games, additional content, and hardware in June, representing a year-on-year decrease of 11 percent. On the hardware front, the Switch came out on top in terms of unit sales, while the PS5 was top in terms of dollar sales due to its high asking price. It seems the Xbox Series X/S has ended its brief run atop the charts.
Turning to the software side of things, Elden Ring continued its impressive run, once again topping the charts (which its done in 4 of the 5 months since it launched). As for new games, it was a mixed bag – Mario Strikers: Battle League came in at #3, the only debut in the top 10. F1 22 came in at #12, although that can be explained by the fact that only those with early access got to play in June. Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes (#16), Sonic Origins (#17), and The Quarry (#19) do not have similar excuses for their low debut numbers.
Here are June’s top 20 games according to NPD:
1) Elden Ring
2) Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
3) Mario Strikers: Battle League
4) MLB The Show 22
5) Overwatch
6) Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
7) Nintendo Switch Sports
8) Kirby and the Forgotten Land
9) Final Fantasy VII Remake
10) Minecraft
11) Call of Duty: Vanguard
12) F1 22
13) Monster Hunter Rise
14) Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - The Hiokami Chronicles
15) Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
16) Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes
17) Sonic Origins
18) Pokemon Legends: Arceus
19) The Quarry
20) Spider-Man: Miles Morales
And here are the top-10 best-selling games of 2022 thus far:
Intel has finally shared its official performance benchmarks of the high-end Arc A750 graphics card based on the Alchemist GPU architecture.
Intel Arc A750 Limited Edition Graphics Card Official Performance Benchmarks Show Up To 17% Faster Performance Than NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 3060
The Intel Arc Limited Edition graphics card was teased by the blue team in early Q2 2022 when they announced their Alchemist GPU lineup along with the mobility variants. Since then, the Arc lineup is only launched in certain markets, first rolling out in entry-level laptop solutions and now rolling out to higher-end laptops. The desktop lineup has only seen one variant that's available for retail & that is the Arc A380 which is not offered by Intel themselves as a reference variant but a custom design by AIC, Gunnir.
Now Intel has started to share performance numbers and information regarding its high-end Arc Alchemist GPUs too. The first of these designs is the Intel Arc A750 Limited Edition which was also teased back at IEM 2022. The performance benchmarks shared by Intel include five games which include F1 2021, Cyberpunk 2077, Control, Borderlands 3, and Fortnite. All of these games were tested at 1440p resolution using the high preset and the Arc A750 graphics card was compared against NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 3060 which it beat by delivering up to 17% performance.
Intel Arc A750 Limited Edition Performance Benchmarks in Games:
Intel Arc A750 Limited Edition Performance Demo In Cyberpunk 2077:
As you can see in the disclaimers below, both graphics cards were tested on the same system configurations comprising of an Intel Core i9-12900K CPU and the latest Windows 11 version. In terms of drivers, the RTX 3060 used the 516.40 version while the Arc A750 used an engineering driver. You can also see a more detailed performance breakdown (FPS) in the slide below:
In an interview with GamersNexus, Tom Petersen of Intel stated that their focus of Arc graphics drivers is to first optimize performance in games, applications & APIs (Such as DX12 / Vulkan) that are most widely used nowadays. After the priority list is complete, only then Intel can start focusing on the other games based on older APIs such as DX11, DX9, OpenGL, etc. It makes sense since Intel is fairly new to the discrete graphics game and if they were to spend their time optimizing graphics performance for all AAA titles, that would mean further delay of their Alchemist graphics cards.
Performance results shown here are from a small subset of the games, that work very well with Intel® Arc and the Alchemist architecture. I’m not asserting that ALL GAMES will show these results, but it’s a view of what Intel Arc A-series cards are capable of with the right software and engineering enablement.
Currently, Intel's Arc drivers only support the ACM-G11 GPU, the one powering the A380 graphics card, on the desktop platform. We aren't given an exact date of when these Arc graphics cards will be available to consumers but Ryan once again reiterates that end of Summer is when they will be targetting the first Arc graphics cards including the A750 Limited Edition. What we do know is that the winners of the Intel Xe-HPG scavenger hunt will be one of the first to get hands-on with an Arc graphics card such as the high-end Arc A750 and Arc A770.
The specs for the Intel Arc A750 Limited Edition graphics card include a cut-down ACM-G10 GPU with 384 EUs, 3072 ALUs, and 12 GB of GDDR6 memory running across a 192-bit bus at 16 Gbps, and a TGP around 200W.
The graphics card is powered by an 8+6 connector configuration which means a maximum board power of 300W (150W+75W from connectors & 75W power from the PCIe interface). It is likely that the Limited Edition may come in both A770 and A750 variants. It will come with three DisplayPort connectors and a single HDMI connection. Intel has confirmed that the ARC Alchemist graphics card will support the newest DisplayPort 1.4a & HDMI 2.0b interfaces.
Both the Intel Arc A750 & A750 graphics cards are expected to launch later this summer with pricing around the $300-$350 US market range.
Watch the first piece in a series of content talking performance, price, architecture and tech features. In this one, @ryanshrout reveals the #IntelArc A750 Limited Edition graphics card with benchmarks and stats accompanying it. Watch the full video here. https://t.co/oaRjQf66mmpic.twitter.com/fMmDAHOxt2
The PC market is currently experiencing its sharpest revenue decline in almost 10 years, that's according to the findings of a new report compiled by the number-crunchers over at analysis website Gartner.
During the second quarter of 2022, PC hardware and software shipments declined by a little over 12% year-on-year with the European, Middle East, and African markets (EMEA) dropping by a huge 18% in PC shipments and 20% in laptop shipments. Almost every major player in the industry has seen losses, including HP, Dell, Acer, Lenovo, and Asus. Only Apple saw any recent growth, with a 9.3% sales increase over the same period in 2021.
Gartner's analysts have pointed to numerous global factors in decreasing the production, distribution, and purchase of PC products.
"The decline we saw in the first quarter of 2022 has accelerated in the second quarter, driven by the ongoing geopolitical instability caused by the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, inflationary pressure on spending, and a steep downturn in demand for Chromebooks," writes Gartner research director Mikako Kitagawa. "Supply chain disruptions also continued, but the major cause of PC delivery delays changed from component shortages to logistics disruptions."
In addition to the invasion of Ukraine, ongoing woes involving scaled-down production of components, and distribution issues due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. These factors have also impacted the console market, resulting in decreased sales for both PlayStation and Xbox platforms. Unfortunately, Gartner believes that the PC market's solution to decreasing sales will be to raise selling prices across the industry, offsetting the lost profit in any and all forthcoming sales. PC purchases are, of course, hardly the cheapest of buys, and with an increasing cost of living crisis, brand new GPUs are unlikely to be sitting at the top of a lot of people's shopping lists. Quite understandably.
Of course, this is not any sign that the PC market is "dying." The industry still shifted over 72 million hardware and software units in the past quarter, and PCs, laptops, notebooks, and other devices will remain an essential part of both the gaming industry and the working environment for decades to come, but it certainly seems that the technology industry, in general, is smarting from the ongoing stresses of the past several years.
For more details and figures pertaining to the market share, check out Gartner's full report.
If it’s been years since you’ve broken out the first aid kit, let me congratulate you on your long string of good fortune. But in an attempt to help your good luck streak continue, let me also say this: You should go check your kit and make sure none of its items have expired. Several products in a standard first aid…
This story contains major spoilers for "Westworld" season 4.
We're almost at the halfway point of one of the internet's favorite mystery box shows, "Westworld." If the first episode of this season didn't convince everyone the show was back to basics, the second seemed to pull everyone back into the beautiful vibe of season 1. There's the potential for multiple timelines, hints of different realities, and all kinds of mysteries begging to be solved. A popular theory for this season involves season three newcomer, Caleb (Aaron Paul), and whether Caleb's body has been replaced by that of a host.
There's a lot of reasons to poke around wondering who is and isn't a host. The first season's biggest reveals were surprise twists about who was really a robot disguised as a human, and it flowed through the next two seasons mixing together reveals of hosts who have always been so, and humans who had been replaced by hosts. In fact, it was even already speculated whether Caleb was himself a host, since pieces of his backstory revealed he had been shot in the head and experimented on in the military. So it stands to reason that audiences would be picking apart hints and clues to see which character is next to be revealed as a pearl-run cyborg. But we just don't think it's Caleb.
The biggest piece of evidence that Caleb is no longer alive (in the human sense) comes from Maeve's (Thandie Newton) flashbacks. In one of her flashbacks (or that's what we assume they are, subject to some revelation that she is viewing Rehoboam's future simulations), Maeve is seen with Caleb during an explosion where he is injured. She's then shown carrying what appears to be a lifeless Caleb through a desert. This suggests, of course, that the human Caleb is dead and, therefore, he must have been resurrected as a host. While compelling, it would mean Maeve would have to be aware that Caleb had died and been replaced by a host, and we're just not convinced that's the case.
Maeve Doesn't Seem To Think He's One Of Them
In the third episode, Maeve and Caleb return to a Delos park and break their way into the basement, assuming that's where the park is being controlled from. After realizing they're in the wrong place, Maeve notices that the basement is an extension of the park where Delos is allowing guests to relive the "Westworld Massacre," where Dolores/ Wyatt (Evan Rachel Wood) attacked and shot up that area of the building. As they dodge gunfire, Maeve notes that the guns aren't real and won't work on Caleb, because they, of course, don't work on humans. In the melee, Maeve is shot. For this interaction to make sense, Maeve would have to be unaware that Caleb had died and been replaced, but she seems very set that he's a human and invulnerable to the gunshots.
Next, there's Caleb's family. The Caleb of this season is seven years removed from the revolution with Maeve, and he has a partner and a seven-year-old daughter. Of course, this makes for a pretty tight timeline, but it seems only a human could father a child. It was initially possible that Caleb's family was his cornerstone (the false memories implanted in hosts to make them behave more human) when it seemed like they were interacting independently from others. However, since he hit the road with Maeve, Caleb's family has had independent scenes and interactions which wouldn't make much sense if they only existed in Caleb's mind. Later in the third episode, Caleb sees who he assumes to be his daughter, who turns out to be a host that launches Charlotte Hale's (Tessa Thompson), or, Haleoris, if you will, mind control flies at him. The assumption is she is a phony host who is just recognizable enough to trap Caleb, and not the real girl who we see fighting her potential captor in a flashback.
Fidelity
Replacing humans with host copies has thus far been impossible, as the hosts with ported memories have not been able to achieve fidelity. Seasons were spent on fidelity tests as Delos tried to achieve immortality through hosts and repeatedly failed. Sure, Hale has successfully been replacing humans with hosts, but the hosts are just convincing copies that are operating under her control, not humans who have had their consciousnesses successfully ported to an immortal frame.
So what does Charlotte want with Caleb? The answer to that question could support either side of the argument. Hale, thus far, seems to have treated Caleb as a human. Caleb was unable to hear the spooky (probably mind control) sound that Maeve could, and he seemed vulnerable to the flies which have been seen just to control human minds. If Hale wants Caleb, it's maybe because he is a successful human-to-host build with fidelity. But more likely, it's something to do with how Caleb was part of the Solomon reconditioning project and was successfully controlled by Rehoboam after being identified as an outlier.
That Doesn't Mean We'll Never See A Caleb Host
Though the Caleb that's been bouncing around the season with Maeve doesn't appear to be a host, that doesn't mean we won't see a host Caleb this season. With the mysterious Christina and no clear timeline reveals just yet (and we know "Westworld" won't let us have a fourth season without a timeline twist, right?), we can only speculate. It's possible that Hale succeeded in her plans and has either infiltrated The Sublime to set up shop or to get the data needed to create a new world. If Christina is, in fact, a product of that success, she could be living in a real-world future controlled by Hale which would explain why she is so completely familiar and seems to be stuck in a loop reminiscent of both Westworld and Rehoboam's control. Maybe a host Caleb will arrive in the future which will address the questions raised about the character's possible death and prove the speculators right.
So if Caleb is still alive, what happened in "the lighthouse"? The simple answer is probably an intimate moment between our new favorite duo that changed their trajectory. Sure, there's a version of this story where Caleb is, in fact, a host and is some sort of next-generation version that achieves fidelity based on the Solomon experiments and whatever happened after the supposed fall of Rehoboam. But for now, let's conclude Caleb is just his same old likable human self and a stellar counterpart to Maeve, making them the most untouchable and loveable dynamic duo taking down big-bad-Hale.
Why exactly has post-launch content for Halo Infinite been so slow to arrive? Seasons have been spaced six months apart, instead of the industry-standard three months, and fans haven’t exactly been buried in content when they do arrive. Players have rightfully wondered why 343 Industries, a major studio with hundreds of employees, can’t get new stuff out the door quicker.
Well, a recent report from Windows Central may shine a partial light on what’s going on. According to the report, 343 Industries was relying heavily on Russian studio Sperasoft, a support studio which has quietly worked on everything from Halo Infinite, to Rainbow Six Siege, to Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Of course, with most publishers cutting ties with Russian companies after the country’s invasion of Ukraine, 343 no longer has access to Sperasoft’s labor. Per Window Central, Sperasoft was responsible for the base design, or “blocking out,” of new maps, which would then be “arted out” with finished assets by 343.
Microsoft has declined to comment on this report, so perhaps take it with a grain of salt, but according to Windows Central a loss of access to Russian support studios is proving to be a problem for multiple developers. We already know CD Projekt Red had to delay the next-gen version of The Witcher 3, which was in development at Saber Interactive’s St. Petersburg studio, and it’s reported the delay of The Quarry’s online multiplayer was due to a similar issue. Per Window Central, some publishers are quietly moving their Russian support workers to neighboring countries such as Georgia.
We here at Wccftech hope for a resolution to the conflict and the safety of all Ukrainian citizens. If you wish to donate to the International Committee of the Red Cross to support humanitarian efforts in Ukraine, head to this page.
There is a lot of mythology baked into drinking culture. You might believe, for instance, that once you pee during a night out, you’re doomed to make nonstop trips back to the bathroom because you “broke the seal,” but that’s not true. You might also believe that the “hair of the dog” will help you get over a…
Director Marco Brambilla has spent most of his career involved in ambitious artistic video installation projects, often mixing recognizable pieces of pop media into abstract and self-aware metanarratives that invite the viewer to reconsider the way said media is consumed and perceived. Brambilla has made an installation named after Michael Cimino's "Heaven's Gate," made a supercut of cinematic war scenes called "Evolution" in 2010, and was one of the filmmakers featured in the 2006 sex-themed anthology film "Destricted." Brambilla has spent his career delving into new media frontiers and was an early adopter of concepts like living online and moving into the metaverse.
It's curious, then, that Brambilla's feature film debut should be something as boldly commercial -- and as slickly exciting -- as the 1993 sci-fi actioner "Demolition Man" starring Sylvester Stallone, Wesley Snipes, and Sandra Bullock. "Demolition Man" was a high-profile, big-budget studio tentpole that opened at #1 at the box office and made over $159 million worldwide. It was a notable film for its stars, showcasing Stallone's and Snipes' penchants for action, and offering blockbuster visibility for Bullock, still on the rise in 1993.
"Demolition Man" took place in a future where crime had been brought to an end, and society had evolved -- or devolved -- into a clean and ultra-polite semi-utopia wherein people no longer touched, everyone spoke in a concise and gentle fashion, and nearby machines would issue fines to anyone nearby who let slip a cuss word. Toilet paper had been replaced by a mysterious device referred to as the "three seashells," and sex had been replaced by a strange VR helmet that could simulate touching without having to come into actual contact.
In a notable scene, Stallone and Bullock employ such helmets.
A Little More On 'Demolition Man'
The premise of "Demolition Man" is excellent B-movie fodder. Stallone plays John Spartan, a cop in the near future of 1996 who has gained a reputation -- and the film's titular nickname -- for causing a great deal of collateral damage on his S.W.A.T.-like stings. In the film's opening operation, Spartan confronts his rival, Simon Phoenix (Snipes), who kills a group of hostages in response. Both of them are arrested and placed in a new state-of-the-art "Cryo-Penitentiary," wherein they will be frozen in blocks of ice and subliminally fed an in-brain mental rehabilitation program. Spartan wakes up in the year 2032 to find L.A. has become San Angeles that now functions as the above-described ultra-polite, touch- and cussing-averse society. Naturally, Simon Phoenix will also be thawed into this society unprepared for his brand of mayhem, requiring Spartan to apprehend him.
Bullock plays Lenina Huxley -- named after author Aldous Huxley -- a future cop who will serve as Spartan's liaison to the future. Huxley, a history buff fond of the 1990s, will provide the bulk of "Demolition Man's" exposition, explaining to Spartan that salt is illegal (because it's bad for you), the only remaining restaurant leftover from his time is Taco Bell (it was the last survivor of the great Franchise Wars), and that sex is now enjoyed safely and sanely without the pesky bother of undressing or touching.
Following a Taco Bell date, Huxley and Spartan fit computerized devices over their heads, close their eyes, and enjoy ... well, it might be sexual, but it's hard to tell.
The Sex Scene
The sex scene is awkward from the start. Huxley invites Spartan, in a very dry fashion, if he'd like to engage in intercourse. Spartan, a little taken aback, agrees. Huxley exits the room and reenters with the headpieces, and wearing a robe. They sit on chairs facing one another, Huxley's eyes closed, breathing heavily. Nothing sexual appears to be happening. When Spartan closes his eyes, he sees strobing lights, hears echoing noises, and catches a few fleeting glimpses of a nude body. He panics. Huxley assures him this is how sex looks now. A lot of physical activity is banned in 2032, and having sex the old-fashioned way is now considered "gross." Huxley and Spartan part ways.
The non-touching sex scene in "Demolition Man" speaks to its criticisms of a polite society run amok, pushed headlong into prudishness. Brambilla's comment seemed to be against a certain kind of political correctness that would eventually lead to a vital disconnect from what is real. These themes certainly play into Brambilla's larger body of work that explores the relationship humans have with media technology, and how human connections have slowly mutated into the virtual as a result of that relationship. Brambilla seems to be arguing that VR technology, despite being invented to facilitate communication, is actually eroding our ability to connect organically.
Brambilla's criticism is highlighted by additional scenes of a functioning underground in the world of "Demolition Man" where the impoverished long for meat, vice, and human connection. Comedian Denis Leary, best known in 1993 for his hit comedy album "No Cure for Cancer," has an energetic rant about how society has fallen apart and adherence to a strict code of polite conduct has robbed people of their ability to pursue their own happiness.
Satire Of Televangists
It will also be revealed in "Demolition Man" that the future's media-savvy Messiah figure, a man named Raymond Cocteau (Nigel Hawthorne), has been manipulating public behavior for years as part of a larger criminal scheme. It won't take the viewer too long to realize that Cocteau may be up to something shady. Cocteau, depicted as a smiling, robed, liturgical figure, evokes a generation of sweaty, bigoted televangelists like Jerry Falwell and Jimmy Swaggart. Cocteau, with his placid-faced judgment, serves as a satire of the blunt moralizing of right-wing American TV churches. "Demolition Man's" future, possessed of an allergy to sexual touching, springs from a lot of rhetoric heard from televangelists and politicians of the time.
Huxley's sex helmets play like a humorous aside in the moment -- the awkward scene between her and Spartan is played for laughs -- and will lead to a character-building opportunity where the two cops will have to carry that discomforting moment with them moving forward. But the sex scene ultimately serves as a clever criticism of certain political and sexual attitudes prevalent in American media in 1993. A future wherein sex has been removed from human interactions is a dystopian detail ripe for dissection.
"What is dead may never die," as one particularly rambunctious family in "Game of Thrones" memorably put it. Though not their official house words, the Greyjoy characters could oft be heard reciting this pledge throughout the series as a reference to their seafaring culture's religious beliefs. (Spoiler: It involves intentionally drowning each other in the ocean and resuscitating themselves, coming back "harder and stronger.") However, even the most diehard fans of the epic fantasy series couldn't have anticipated how much that phrase would apply to "Game of Thrones" itself.
The supremely divisive series finale may have seemed as if it would kill off the live-action property forever, forcing HBO to shy away from any potential follow-ups they may have wanted to pursue, but the reality couldn't have been more different. With the blessing and creative involvement of original author George R.R. Martin, several spin-off projects have been ushered into various stages of production (along with one Jon Snow-centric sequel series that's currently in the works). First up, "House of the Dragon" will attempt to expand the story of its parent series and hopefully put any lingering memories of a disappointing conclusion behind it.
But that's easier said than done, especially when the actors involved have had strong feelings about what went down in the years since. One example of that is Aidan Gillen, who played Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish on the series -- though his response may be considered somewhat unpopular (yet quite difficult to argue with, if you ask me).
'I Was Really Taken Aback'
The cast and crew of "Game of Thrones" tried their best to ride the wave of backlash as best as they could during the immediate aftermath of the series finale back in May of 2019, but over time, many have weighed in on how the acclaimed series came to a close. Actor Aidan Gillen was one of them, speaking up in support of the final season only a few months after airing and even going so far as to reprimand the more vocal fans who took their jilted feelings way too far. Honestly, the man made some pretty compelling points!
In a Q&A appearance at the University Philosophical Society at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland (via Winter is Coming), Gillen expressed his frustration with how fiercely and suddenly the fanbase turned against their favorite show.
"I was astounded ... the mentality that there is nowadays. People get on Twitter and all of these things and just slag the f*** out of everything; I really hate it ... it's this really nasty strain of behavior ... For people to turn on the writers of something that people had adored for seven seasons in such a nasty fashion, as they did, I was just taken aback. I really was."
Boy, for someone who isn't actually on Twitter, Gillen rather succinctly encapsulates the predominantly negative tone of the social media platform -- especially when it comes to discussing movies and shows. Admittedly, I disliked the final episodes as much as the next fella, but it's easy to tell that Gillen is specifically calling out the most extreme, vitriolic responses. There's a place for reasoned and levelheaded criticism, of course, but significantly less room for just pure nastiness.
'They Ended It The Only Way That They Could End It'
Gillen doesn't stop there, however. As the conniving character of Littlefinger, the actor was able to bring a brilliant air of duplicitousness and scheming to the fraught politics of "Game of Thrones." As a fan of the show himself, Gillen offered up a refreshingly positive and honest assessment of the final season overall. He went on to say:
"I thought that some of the best scenes, the best sequences, of 'Game of Thrones' were in the last season. I don't have any doubt about that. They ended it the only way that they could end it, which was strangely reminiscent of how it began: There's people sitting in a land which seems to have some kind of stability, but there's also uncertainty and threat, which is, I suppose, that's kind of what the world is like all the time."
For all the most highly-debated decisions the creative team made in that final stretch of episodes, many fans would have to admit that sequences such as The Long Night and the final battle in King's Landing were some of the most spectacular feats of filmmaking in the entire series. That's not to say that Gillen himself is entirely without some (light) criticisms, however.
"There was a part of me that wanted it to end about 20 minutes before it did. It's just that it was an image that was so fantastic: A dragon flying away, carrying Daenerys Targaryen -– that was stunning."
Given that Littlefinger meets his untimely end in the penultimate season of "Game of Thrones," it says a lot that the actor was so appreciative of the only season without his presence. Still, something tells us the debates will continue to rage for years to come.
Ah, the "Twilight" saga. Has there ever been a more willfully, aggressively misunderstood cultural phenomenon? Back when the Temple Hill-produced film adaptations of the Stephenie Meyer novels were all the rage, it often seemed as though people — from film critics to media figures to online jesters — were making an active effort to ignore the elements that made the franchise so seismically successful among its target audience. "The 'Twilight' movies are cheesy," we'd hear, or, "they're fixated on lame romance," "no one in them behaves like real people," "everything in them is so soapy and over-the-top," and so on.
Yes, and? At its heart, "Twilight" and its sequels were a fantasy of teen validation, films in which a young woman's feelings of disconnect and nameless yearning were duly noted and given room to be everything they ought to be: reckless, fastidious, and apocalyptic, outsiders' judgment and mockery be damned. It's no wonder that, a decade and change on, "Twilight" is still being rediscovered by newer generations, with more and more angsty girls and boys taking to its campy gloom, deliciously unhealthy romance, and bonkers nu-metal-Gothic aesthetics.
If you count yourself among those fans, newer or OG, you've come to the right place: As derided as it was for its supposed deviation from the vampire movie canon, "Twilight" actually shares a lot of DNA with other entries in that storied, definitionally over-the-top genre. Watch these films next, and see what we mean.
Dracula (1979)
The first guy we go back to when we think "vampire," be it in movies or literature, is, of course, the count who started it all. Although vampires have been part of the cosmovisions of countless cultures throughout world history, Bram Stoker's 1897 novel is largely responsible for codifying our "modern" understanding of vampires. And, to the same tune, its countless (ha!) film adaptations have come to define what archetypal "vampire cinema" looks like — to the point where one might look at this entry and think, "Just how 'underrated' can a 'Dracula' movie be?"
As it turns out, quite a bit. John Badham's 1979 take on the dreaded Transylvanian is not only frequently overshadowed by its better-known 1931, 1992, 1958, and 1922 (if you count "Nosferatu") counterparts, but it's also deprived of the credit it deserves for being arguably the adaptation that best understands one essential aspect of Count Dracula: his hopeless romanticism. Retooled to focus more intently on the morbid attraction between Dracula (Frank Langella) and the human Mina Harker, here renamed Lucy Seward (Kate Nelligan), this "Dracula" is every bit as campy, lurid, and keyed in on the life-and-death quality of doomed romance as "Twilight," as well as a likely influence on the latter's moody red-and-gray palette.
Love Bites
"Love Bites" — full title, "Love Bites: The Reluctant Vampire" — gained some notoriety in 1993 for the fact that it stars Adam Ant, then a rockstar at the height of his solo fame. Otherwise, though, this unique little vampire comedy has been mostly left by the wayside. As such, to modern viewers who happen upon it, its similarity to "Twilight" may come as a bit of a surprise.
Written and directed by Malcolm Marmorstein, who made his fame as one of the masterminds behind the classic TV series "Dark Shadows" and only seldom worked in film, "Love Bites" channels Ant's glamorous, larger-than-life persona into the role of Zachary Simms, a man born in 1660 who has been living as a vampire throughout the centuries, only to find himself suddenly awakened in our time after an accidental 100-year nap. Emerging from his coffin into what is now the home of Kendall Gordon (Kimberly Foster), Zachary begins to explore the modern world with the young woman's help, and finds himself increasingly smitten by her. So, he decides to somehow tame his urges in order to be her boyfriend. Where "Twilight" explores the aching melodramatic contradictions of that task, "Love Bites" mines it for kitschy, delightful romantic comedy. The film's pleasures don't stop there: As square-jawed English goth dreamboats go, '90s Adam Ant is way up there with Robert Pattinson.
The Hunger
The images of carnality in the "Twilight" films are, for a supposedly wide-audience-oriented franchise, rather startling: mouths gliding over necks, kisses pushed to sensory extremes by harsh weather, slo-mo dances with the specter of orgasmic doom. The intentions of Stephenie Meyer's text may be ultimately conservative, even sex-negative, but there's no denying her work's keen eye for the eroticism of the forbidden. In "Twilight," passion, be it in the form of bloodlust or sex, is a force to be reckoned with in all its sweet danger.
"Twilight" was not, of course, the first film to grapple forcefully with vampirism as a function of earthly delight. There are plenty of reasons to give a shot to 1983's unfairly maligned "The Hunger" (this write-up could just as well consist of nothing but "David Bowie. Catherine Deneuve. Susan Sarandon. Tony Scott."), but, for Twihards, that thematic commonality may be chief among them. Focusing on a tragic love triangle between two longtime vampire companions (Deneuve and Bowie) and a research gerontologist (Sarandon), "The Hunger" is all metaphorically charged erotic imagery, all of the time. It's like a version of "Twilight" stripped down to nothing but its purest sensual jolts and given a timely queer twist. If that doesn't make you run to watch it, I don't know what else to say.
Vamps
Even though she directed two of the most legendary teen movies of all time — "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" and "Clueless" — Amy Heckerling doesn't have a whole lot of other mainstream hits to her name. That's a shame, because, if "Vamps" is anything to go by, her back catalog is very much worth reappraising.
Starring Krysten Ritter and Alicia Silverstone as vampire roommates living in present-day New York City, "Vamps" is a female friendship horror-comedy in the vein of classics like "Death Becomes Her" and "Jennifer's Body," with all the gaudy delights that implies. Much like "Twilight," it derives a lot of its appeal from the 21st-century update it gives to traditional genre tropes, with Goody (Silverstone) and Stacy (Ritter) as reformed vampires who work night jobs, refuse to drink human blood (those poor mice), and attend an organization named Vampires Anonymous. Also like "Twilight," "Vamps" starts out as a piece of attentive world-building, almost a hangout movie of sorts, only to tread into darker, plottier, emotionally headier waters as it progresses, with assistance from a very game Sigourney Weaver as the villain. Basically, it's a whole lot of unapologetic fun.
Only Lovers Left Alive
One of the most unique vampire flicks ever made, Jim Jarmusch's "Only Lovers Left Alive" is a movie that'll make you forget time and fall into the arms of an endless night out. Jarmusch, a premier figure in American indie cinema with a sense of rhythm and composition all his own, approaches the subject of vampiric life with a deep curiosity about character and texture. Our impossibly cool heroes are Adam (Tom Hiddleston) and Eve (Tilda Swinton), a centuries-old couple of bon vivants who have seen and done it all, and learned to endure life in this world by cherishing its art, its music, and its chance late-night encounters.
When the movie starts, Adam is going through a depressive funk in an emptied-out post-downturn Detroit, while Eve enjoys the gorgeous nightlife of Tangier, Morocco. During one of their periodic catch-up calls, she realizes that he's in the doldrums, and so she travels to the USA to lift her lover's spirits. From then on, the movie plays out unhurriedly in gorgeous chiaroscuro tableaux, dense philosophical talks, morbid debacles, memorable run-ins with fellow vamps (played, in apposite casting, by John Hurt and the great Mia Wasikowska), and shows of deep, unabiding, transcendental love. If you're charmed by the wistful us-against-the-world romanticism of "Twilight," rest assured, you're gonna love these two kooks.
Once Bitten
Bella Swan is not, as it turns out, the first hapless teenager to have been drawn unwittingly by a dashing stranger into the world of professional hemophagia. All the way back in 1985, one Mark Kendall from Los Angeles, CA was already getting a taste of adulthood-by-turning — and he was played by, of all people, a 23-year-old Jim Carrey.
Carrey, then still a long ways away from his meteoric '90s rise, had one of his first successful Hollywood forays when he played the protagonist of "Once Bitten," Howard Storm's critically reviled but commercially successful teen movie about a 400-year-old Countess (Lauren Hutton) who must procure a healthy dose of virgin blood in order to retain her youth. The Countess sets her sights on Mark, who's been unsuccessfully trying to convince his girlfriend Robin (Karen Kopins) to go all the way with him. And so begins a thrilling love triangle caught somewhere between the domains of '80s romcom and '80s horror — as much a time capsule of the teen sensibilities of its time as "Twilight" was for the late-millennial, early-gen-Z contingent.
Byzantium
Out of all the films on this list, "Byzantium" may be the one that's most tonally and conceptually similar to "Twilight" and its sequels, to the point of having been inevitably compared to it (sometimes favorably, sometimes not) by critics and viewers at the time. Here, too, the players in the star-crossed vampire-human romance are then-rising actors who later went on to even greater success: Saoirse Ronan (herself a staple of the Stephenie Meyer-verse, as fans of "The Host" know) and Caleb Landry Jones.
Instead of a chilly Pacific Northwest town, this forbidden courtship unfolds in a chilly town off the English coast, with the movie dividing its time between that present-day timeline and period flashbacks that explain how Eleanor (Ronan) and her mother Clara (Gemma Arterton) got there and what they're running from. For those (yours truly included) who think mood-setting is the "Twilight" franchise's strongest cinematic suit, "Byzantium" offers ample rewards thanks to director Neil Jordan's ability to evoke simmering sorrow, mounting dread, and wintry melancholia like nobody's business.
Blood And Roses
Here is a romantic vampire film that assumes the point of view of the vampire herself, taking stock of her senses and ideations as she looks for something like love through her increasingly bloody rampage. Although historically classified as a horror movie, Roger Vadim's French-language 1960 classic "Blood and Roses" would really be best described as a cinematic fever dream, a disconcerting trip down the depths of subjectivity reminiscent of Michelangelo Antonioni's seminal art films from the same period — only considerably girlier and gayer.
Based on Sheridan Le Fanu's notorious lesbian vampire novella "Carmilla," "Blood and Roses" paved the way for the Gothic-kitsch revival that would eventually lead to "Twilight" 50 years later. From jealousy to devotion to flusteredness, Vadim zeroes in on the purest feelings felt by Carmilla (Annette Stroyberg), who is possessed (or is she?) by the ghost of a vengeful vampire ancestor and sets out to find someone who will reciprocate her bottomless craving for flesh-slash-affection. All the aspirational, fussily aestheticized passion we now associate with vampire cinema was a novelty back when this movie came out; on some genealogical level, we have it to thank for all the vampire AU fanfiction of the last decade.
The Addiction
If you're among the readers or viewers who related particularly strongly to Bella's process of understanding her new self as a vampire and her grappling with the attendant existential questions in "Breaking Dawn," the inner soliloquy of "The Addiction" lead Kathleen Conklin should scratch a similar itch. Brought to life by Lili Taylor in one of the all-time great vampire performances, Kathleen is a rarity in genre cinema: A protagonist who meditates, candidly and openly, on the transformation she's going through and the way she feels about it.
The premise of "The Addiction" is relatively simple: A woman in New York City gets bitten by a vampire (Annabella Sciorra), and struggles to fight her ensuing "addiction" to human blood. The twist, here, is that our heroine is a philosophy graduate student. Naturally, Kathleen makes all manner of valiant efforts to rationalize her sudden capacity for animalistic cruelty, but no amount of reading could have prepared her for the physical, unfathomable depths of her thirst. Filmed in grungy black and white by quintessential New Yorker provocateur Abel Ferrara, "The Addiction" overflows with intellectual stimulus, whether you read it all as a metaphor for drug use, AIDS, the trappings of academia, the nature of evil, or something else entirely. But mostly, "The Addiction" is a horror film, one in which the comfort of drama teeters ever on the brink of being torn to shreds by a darkness beyond anyone's comprehension.
A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night
Sometimes, two films made with completely different budgets with theoretically distinct target audiences can converse with each other in ways not necessarily intended by anybody involved. As a case in point, take 2014's "A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night," the feature film debut of director Ana Lily Amirpour. A black-and-white Persian-language indie shot in California (via Daily Bruin) that's set in a fictional Iranian city, "A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night" gained notoriety in very different circles from the ones where the "Twilight" franchise was big at the time. And yet, watching either work feels like being reminded of the other's cardinal points, both aesthetically and emotionally.
Sure enough, the lo-fi vibe of "A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night," in which the titular (and unnamed) girl roams dark streets and desolate suburbs while looking for potential victims and striking up a tentative romance with a pretty young man, often scans like a bizarro arthouse rendering of the same sense of aestheticized drift that made "Twilight" famous. The vampires in both films are similarly charming in a mysterious-yet-inviting way, from their silent longing stares to their impossibly cool taste in music (both soundtracks go ridiculously hard, too). But even more importantly, both "A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night" and the "Twilight" series run on the same potent metaphor: vampire love as the ultimate test of devotion — of a predator's ability to hold back and care without consuming, and of the prey's willingness to understand and forgive in totality.
Near Dark
Most of the recommendations on this list are based on little more than critical opinion, but in the case of "Near Dark," there actually is concrete evidence of its similarity to "Twilight." In 2008, the year the first "Twilight" came out, a long-gestating remake of the Kathryn Bigelow cult classic was canceled, with producer Brad Fuller telling Empire, "I'm concerned that, conceptually, that 'Near Dark' and 'Twilight' are too similar in terms of a vampire movie. For now, that movie is on hold."
Hollywood caginess aside, the conceptual proximity Fuller was referring to really is on full display in the original "Near Dark." The milieu — a gang of leather-clad vampire outlaws traveling through the American deep south — is decidedly un-Forks-like, but the film nonetheless anticipates the "Twilight" series' core idea of the outsider drawn into the clan by a perilous love affair, in this case one between poor Caleb Colton (Adrian Pasdar) and Mae (Jenny Wright). The real attraction, however, is Bill Paxton's incomparably unhinged performance as Severen, one of the most memorable figures in '80s horror cinema. A less commercial outing than "Twilight," "Near Dark" became legendary for the headlong dive it takes into its gruff, ugly, abrasive fantasy subculture.
Lips Of Blood
I mentioned a few entries above that Roger Vadim was partly responsible for the inauguration of romantic vampire cinema via "Blood and Roses," so let's continue to give due credit and acknowledge another, later French auteur as the untouched king of that subgenre: Jean Rollin.
A legend among horror fans the world over, Rollin dipped his feet into everything he could, from zombie flicks to gore flicks to ghost stories to scandalous erotic thrillers (not to be confused with the straight-up pornographic films he begrudgingly helmed for some time to make a living). But his heart always belonged to bloodsuckers; the "Jean Rollin vampire" — beautiful, stony-eyed, beguiling — became a conceptual entity unto itself in films that called back to the literary genre of the fantastique with their hallucinatory imagery and loopy fairy tale logic.
Really, you could throw a dart at Rollin's filmography and probably hit some kind of precursor to the sexy vampires of "Twilight," but if you have time for just one, make it 1975's "Lips of Blood," which marries Rollin's trademark dreamy sensibility — complete with moody teal-tinted photography and delightfully off-kilter costume design — to a clearly-defined, deeply lovesick narrative. As in "Twilight," the bloodletting isn't the point, so much as the vehicle for an account of first love lost that's sure to rattle any hopeless young romantic.
Let The Right One In
In 2008, the history of vampire films had its course forever altered by two buzzy fall releases that galvanized horror and romance audiences alike. One of them was "Twilight," which grossed over $400 million worldwide and launched one of the most wildly successful film franchises of all time. The other, considerably less financially gainful but every bit as successful in its own right, was "Let the Right One In."
American audiences may be more familiar with the 2010 English-language remake "Let Me In," directed by "The Batman" helmer Matt Reeves and starring Chloë Grace Moretz and Kodi Smit-McPhee, but the Swedish Tomas Alfredson-directed original is mandatory viewing for anyone who's serious about their love of contemporary vamp cinema. Set in the '80s and starring Kåre Hedebrant as a downtrodden 12-year-old boy from the Stockholm suburbs who befriends the mysterious, nocturnal girl next door (Lina Leandersson), "Let the Right One In" is an astonishing, snow-coated love story for reasons both very similar to and very different from "Twilight": its unabiding and all-pervading undercurrent of loneliness, its genuinely stunning use of violence, and its emotional rawness.
In 1994, Universal Pictures released the thriller "The River Wild" starring Meryl Streep and Kevin Bacon. It was the story of a couple, their kid, and a dog who are white water rafting on the Salmon River in Idaho. They ultimately run into some criminals and find out that the rapids are the least of their worries on this dangerous family outing.
Directed by Curtis Hanson, "The River Wild" also starred David Strathairn, John C. Reilly, Benjamin Bratt, Joseph Mazzello, and a very good dog named Maggie. (At least, that was the dog's name in the film, and its real name isn't in the credits.) It did well at the box office, earning $94.2 million worldwide. Streep and Bacon were both nominated for Golden Globes for their work in the film.
Now the film is being remade with Leighton Meester, Taran Killam, and Adam Brody, according to Collider. It's not going to be exactly the same movie, but the DNA is there.
What We Think The River Wild Will Be About
According to that Collider story (which contains a first look image of the cast), the vacationers in question aren't a husband, wife, and child in the new film. This version of "The River Wild" will have a brother and sister, and their childhood friend going on the trip together. However, once they start traveling, they realize "that their childhood friend is more dangerous than he seems." Glenn Ross, General Manager and Executive Vice President at Universal 1440 Entertainment said of the film:
"We are excited to announce a thrilling new 'The River Wild story,' with fresh characters and a story that brings the universe to new audiences and fans of the original. The production features a talented cast, and we think movie lovers will be excited by director Ben Ketai's modern take on the popular classic film."
I like the idea of the "modern take" making the dangerous person in the group someone the characters know. It would be hard to imagine vacationers who just trust a group of strangers they meet in the wilderness in 2022. It's been a very long time since I saw the original, but I remember thinking it was odd even then that a couple with a young kid in tow would just agree to take some random men -- whose friend left because of an "argument" -- on their family vacation, no matter what the circumstances were.
What We Know About The Cast And Crew Of The River Wild
The film comes to us from Universal 1440 Entertainment. Leighton Meester ("Gossip Girl") and Taran Killam ("Saturday Night Live") star as the brother and sister, with Adam Brody ("Promising Young Woman"), as the childhood friend. The film will be directed by Ben Ketai who co-wrote "30 Days of Night: Dark Days" and "The Strangers: Prey at Night." Ketai tackled the script with Mike Nguyen Le ("Patient Zero"), and Ogden Gavanski is set to produce.
This film will re-team the three actors who worked together on the short-lived ABC sitcom "Single Parents." It's also a family affair in another way, as Meester and Brody are married in real life.
"The River Wild" has recently begun production in Hungary. All we know about the release date so far is that it will come out sometime during 2023 on digital "and other non-theatrical platforms," but we'll keep you updated as news breaks.
Everyone loves a good surprise! Well, almost everyone. Audiences definitely do, particularly when it comes to horror movies. Some of the most memorable moments in horror history were completely unplanned, either improvised by the cast at just the right time or carefully (and stealthily) orchestrated by select crew members for maximum impact. The best reaction, after all, is usually an honest one, and if you're going for scares, there's really no better way than the sneak attack. The same is true of laughs, which often tend to overlap in the genre.
Here we have the best of the best, some of the most iconic improvised moments in horror movie history. Whether they make you laugh, feel nostalgic, or jump out of your skin, they've left an indelible mark on film history and pop culture.
Ed Cheers Shaun Up In Shaun Of The Dead
Horror comedies are exactly the type of film that lend themselves to the possibility of unscripted moments, with comedic minds frequently finding new bits and funnier line deliveries while in the heat of the moment. Edgar Wright already had a Western comedy called "A Fistful of Fingers" and multiple television credits, including the cult hit "Spaced," under his belt before he exploded in popularity with 2004's "Shaun of the Dead." The film was the first installment in his "Three Flavours Cornetto" trilogy (or "Blood and Ice Cream" trilogy, depending on who you ask), which was followed by "Hot Fuzz" and "The World's End." All three scripts were written by Edgar Wright in collaboration with trilogy star Simon Pegg, who plays the titular character in the ultimate zombie bromance film.
After Shaun is dumped by his longtime girlfriend Liz (Kate Ashfield), he meets up with his best friend Ed (Nick Frost) at The Winchester, their favorite bar, in an attempt to cheer him up. As the two throw back pints, Ed begins making up backstories for all of the "rich, interesting characters" that frequent The Winchester. At one point, he sees a woman dressed in conservative, academic attire and spouts, "Ooh! C**k-a-cidal maniac. She's an ex-porn star. She's done it all..."
Turns out, this line was not in the script, but actually an improvisational comment from Frost. The actress in question was the mother of Edgar Wright's girlfriend at the time, and knowing Wright wanted a natural laugh out of Simon, gave Frost free range to come up with new lines to try and elicit the perfect reaction. Well, it looks like calling her a "c**k-a-cidal maniac" did the trick. (BJ Colangelo)
The Chestburster From Alien
The chestburster sequence in Ridley Scott's 1979 sci-fi horror masterpiece "Alien" is one of the most shocking moments in movie history, and that's in large part because the cast's reaction to the horrific event is genuine. In the scene, John Hurt's character has become infected by a face-hugging alien, which impregnated him with a baby xenomorph. No one on the ship knows this yet, however, and they're all shocked when he doubles over during mealtime and then begins to seize. As they try to restrain him, the baby alien shoves its head through his ribcage.
The only actor completely in on the whole thing was Hurt because he had to go through special effects prep and set-up. The rest of the cast, however, was kept in the dark beyond the fact that something would come out of his chest. They didn't know what it would look like or how it would happen, and they definitely didn't know that real animal organs and gallons of fake blood were going to be shot out in their direction. The screams, gasps, and horrified faces of the cast are all very real, which sells the shock of the scene in a truly visceral way.
While the cast was clearly surprised by the fountain of blood and guts that sprayed their way, they did at least have a bit of warning that things might get messy. When they arrived on set that day, they noticed that the cameras were covered in plastic and the crew were all wearing raincoats. Clearly, there was going to be some kind of splash zone, but after a false start with only a tiny bit of blood and a not-too-threatening burster, the actors let down their guard. That's when Scott struck and made truly terrifying movie magic. (Danielle Ryan)
Phone Assault From Scream (1996)
When Wes Craven's slice-and-dice game-changer "Scream" hit the scene in 1996, it shook up the old slasher movie conventions of the decade prior with its acerbic approach to all of the rules, from its non-virginal final girl Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) to its hip-to-the-genre teens, who threw the barbed insults of screenwriter and "Dawson's Creek" creator Kevin Williamson as their peers became cannon fodder, one by one. One of the film's funnier moments comes amid the chaos of the climax; on the "Scream" blu-ray commentary, Williamson states that the character of Stu Macher was "underwritten," but it was no problem for Matthew Lillard, who ad-libbed several of Stu's lines throughout the runtime.
Williamson explains that Stu (played by Matthew Lillard) and Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich) have revealed to Sidney that they're behind the spree of killings, but she slips away, calling to taunt Billy on the phone from elsewhere in the house. At this point, Ulrich is supposed to rage-throw the phone at the nearby kitchen countertop but because of the slippery theatrical blood covering his hands, the handset goes rogue and lands squarely on Matthew Lillard's head, prompting the ad-libbed but hilariously slurred in-character response: "You f***ing hit me with the phone, dick!"
It's a great moment of levity in the eye of the storm, sweetened further by the satisfaction of seeing Sidney dispatch two psychopaths with little more than household items just moments later. Keep an eye out for references to both killers in the year's latest, mega-meta installment of the franchise, the poorly-titled "Scream" (2022). (Anya Stanley)
'Here's Johnny!' From The Shining
There are quite a few scary moments in the 1980 Stanley Kubrick movie "The Shining," but the vast majority of them are in the script. Kubrick was an exacting director who pushed his performers to the limit, even when it hurt them, so it's surprising that he allowed an improvised line in one of his films. Kubrick required dozens of takes for every scene, and that sheer amount of repetition led to one of the greatest improvised lines in cinematic history.
During the climax of the film, writer-gone-mad Jack Torrance (played by Jack Nicholson) is chasing his wife Wendy (played by Shelley Duvall) around the empty Overlook Hotel. She locks herself in a bathroom and he hacks his way through the door with a hatchet before peering in through the hole. Nicholson plays the part as completely unhinged, and he taunts Wendy as he attacks the door, growling "little pig, little pig, let me in" like the Big Bad Wolf of fairy tale legend. When he manages to cut through enough to reveal his face, he sticks his head into the hole in the broken wood and shouts "Here's Johnny!"
The line was improvised, referencing late-night talk show host Johnny Carson, who would be introduced the same way every night by co-host Ed McMahon. It was an easy-to-catch reference for Americans in 1980 that makes the film feel more lived-in and of this world despite its supernatural story. The quote has gone on to be referenced far more from "The Shining" than its original usage on "The Tonight Show," and it's all because of Nicholson's need to change things up after so many takes. (Danielle Ryan)
Meeting Dr. Hannibal Lecter From Silence Of The Lambs
Sir Anthony Hopkins only spends 24 minutes of "Silence of the Lambs" on screen, but his gripping performance as Hannibal Lecter earned him an Academy Award and has made him one of the most recognizable figures in horror history. Playing a brilliant forensic psychiatrist who also happens to be a serial killing cannibal is enough to creep out audiences, but Hopkins made the character his own, providing multiple unscripted moments that helped make the film so memorable.
When Lecter delivers his famous "I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti" line, he follows up with an inhaled breath slurping sound, one that was not in the script. As Hopkins tells it, it was an odd sound he was making on set and figured it would be a creepy addition to his already unsettling line. However, one of his greatest unscripted contributions didn't require any sound at all.
When Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) first encounters Dr. Lecter from his cell, Ted Tally's script describes the moment as "Dr. Hannibal Lecter is lounging on his bunk, in white pajamas, reading an Italian Vogue." On-screen, however, Hannibal Lecter is standing in the middle of the cell, staring directly at her with a curious expression on his face. In an interview between Hopkins and Foster as part of Variety's "Actors on Actors" series, Hopkins shared that it was his decision. "I said, 'I'd like to be standing there, I can smell her coming down the corridor,'" he confessed.
"Silence of the Lambs" would still have been a controversial success, but Hopkins' unscripted moments continue to stand the test of time. (BJ Colangelo)
'You're Gonna Need A Bigger Boat' From Jaws
One of cinema's most iconic lines (no, really) was actually a cheeky in-joke among its film crew. Steven Spielberg's 1975 adaptation of Peter Benchley's novel "Jaws" sees its principals — Amityville police chief Martin Brody (Roy Scheider), oceanographer Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss), and seasoned shark hunter Quint (Robert Shaw) — in pursuit of a great white shark responsible several attacks in the area. Having found said shark, an absolute unit that later takes the pithy fishing vessel down with ease, Brody delivers the line with gravity to the ship's captain: "You're gonna need a bigger boat."
Don't call it an ad-lib, though. Carl Gottlieb, both a co-writer of the adapted screenplay and bit actor in the film (as reporter Ben Meadows), told The Hollywood Reporter that production on the set of "Jaws" was notoriously stingy, with producers Richard Zanuck and David Brown overloading the boat and crew to such exasperation that "You're gonna need a bigger boat" became a go-to catchphrase behind the scenes for everything from a delayed lunch to technical issues — any situation that finds its people poorly equipped for the mission.
While the line was unscripted, Roy Scheider infused the haggard crew's frustration into the story, sprinkling the phrase into his performance as it seemed fit; the one that stuck (after Brody gets within chomping distance of the beast for the first time) is the one that lives on the big screen today and in the mouths of anyone woefully unprepared for the task before them. (Anya Stanley)
'Jesus Wept' From Hellraiser
The last line in a movie has a tendency to stick around in audiences' minds long after the credits roll, but few have quite the staying power as the final line in Clive Barker's 1987 horror film "Hellraiser." When the movie's hero, Kirsty (played by Ashley Laurence), manages to outsmart her devious uncle Frank (played by Sean Chapman, Oliver Smith, and Andrew Robinson) and send him back to hell, courtesy of the demonic Cenobites. Chains with hooks begin to impale his body and pull him in all directions, ripping his flesh in a way that's truly horrible to look at. When his skin can stretch no further, he delivers one final line before being yanked apart: "Jesus wept."
In the original script, Frank was supposed to look at Kirsty and say "f*** you," angry with her for condemning him to eternal damnation and suffering once more. Robinson was allegedly not a fan of swearing, however, and wanted to change the line to something a little less vulgar. He opted for "Jesus wept," which is both a line from the Bible and a phrase used to express exasperation. The line has a kind of fun double meaning because Frank could either be making a serious Biblical reference about loss and pain, or he could just be letting out a little frustration with the whole situation.
Barker found the ad-lib to be brilliant and ended up using it for the finished film. It's a perfect ending, combining pitch-black humor and abject horror to create something totally unique. There are plenty of fun stories about actors ad-libbing clean versions of lines for censored television versions, but it's pretty rare that one makes it into the theatrical cut. (Danielle Ryan)
Nada's Most Memorable Line From They Live
"Rowdy" Roddy Piper (real name Roderick George Toombs) was one of the greatest professional wrestlers in history, with fellow WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair describing Piper as "the most gifted entertainer in the history of professional wrestling" upon his induction in 2005. Before John Cena and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson proved that wrestlers could be bonafide Hollywood superstars, wrestlers weren't often known for their acting chops. The biggest exception, however, was Roddy Piper. He had a recurring role as a dangerous wrestler named "Da' Maniac" on "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," and starred as Sam Hell in the cult hit "Hell Comes to Frogtown." His biggest cinematic claim to fame, however, is starring as Nada in John Carpenter's masterpiece, "They Live." As Nada realizes that Earth has been taken over by aliens that are hiding in plain sight to manipulate the masses, he goes on a crusade to free humanity from their mind control.
Nada is the ultimate everyman if the ultimate everyman was also a talented professional wrestler who could easily fight Keith David for nearly six minutes straight and dish out clever and cutting insults to formaldehyde-faced aliens. In the film's most memorable moment, Nada enters a bank with a gun and delivers the line, "I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass ... and I'm all out of bubblegum." It has since become a pop culture staple, with people who've never even seen "They Live" knowing the reference. The line was later famously referenced in the video game "Duke Nukem" and became a popular meme for newer generations.
Incredibly, the line was improvised by Roddy Piper and was not a part of John Carpenter's original script. Sooner or later, everybody pays the Piper! (BJ Colangelo)
'Game Over, Man!' From Aliens
In space, no one can hear a rage-quit.
When people quote James Cameron's 1986 sci-fi action classic "Aliens," the line that comes up the most often is a desperate one. Stranded on a desolate, hostile moon teeming with acid-blooded xenomorphs who mean to cocoon, impregnate, and otherwise slaughter all humans on sight, Colonial Marine and fan favorite Private Hudson (played by the late Bill Paxton) surveys the situation and utters the iconic line, "That's it, man! Game over, man! It's game over!"
Cameron, who had previously helmed "The Terminator" and knew a thing or two about memorable but doomed characters, encouraged the sizeable cast of "Aliens" to develop backstories for the people they play. Some actors had enough experience to handle that individual worldbuilding, but for Paxton, who only had a few (still formidable) film credits to his name at the time, the task proved daunting. That said, Paxton could see his character's jumpy, less-than-mature demeanor and decided that Hudson was, like many service members, an avid gamer, prone to hysterics when he fails to overcome the combat simulators he and his fellow Marines train on.
What better syntax to capture utter defeat than the near-universal "Game over?" The phrase was a pop culture grenade, good enough for the Jigsaw killer to repeat when a victim failed to pass his survival tests in James Wan's "Saw" and its numerous sequels, nearly two decades after "Aliens" hit box office gold. For his performance, Paxton earned a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor and the undying devotion of horror fans worldwide. (Anya Stanley)
Some things bring their own damn guarantees, and one such is Alice Krige -- as in you can guarantee that anything she shows up in she will be worth watching in it, every time. And so it goes again with IFC Midnight's new horror flick out this week called She Will, which has our Krige playing a sick actress reflecting on her past as she recovers from surgery in the isolated, perhaps-haunted, woods of Scotland. I reviewed this movie over at Pajiba -- click on over for my thoughts, and the trailer's down below. It's in theaters and on demand right now!
One of the first things people learn about driving is how important it is to pay attention to what you’re doing. This means not only keeping your eyes on the road (and the vehicles around you) and watching your speed, but also being aware of how a particular vehicle normally feels when you drive it. (Is it a smooth…
In a similar fashion to Nintendo, the team behind the project announced the release of the new version via a special Direct episode, detailing the new features. You can check out that broadcast down below.
New additions coming with this new version include a special Nintendo 64 mode for those who want to re-experience this classic as it was on Nintendo’s console back in 1998. In addition, the ‘Rachael Alfa’ update now offers support for framerates up to 250fps and packs an item randomizer, various cheat codes, as well as a camera mode for the game. Also, this new version of Ocarina of Time on PC, Ship of Harkinian, is now compatible with Wii U and Mac OS. Quite the update for this native PC port and a must-download for fans of the game (or for those who just want to try it out).
Aside from this magnificent native PC port, there’s another unofficial Ocarina of Time PC port, called ‘Open Ocarina’ – this port supports framerates up to 60FPS.
Originally released for the Nintendo 64 back in 1998, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, is considered one of the best games ever created.
Growing up with the television serving as my window to the world, babysitter, best friend, and Senesi, my memory of 90s nostalgia is pretty rock solid. This isn't uncommon for Millennials. We were the first true generation of "indoor kids" that had to be coaxed out of the house to go play. — Read the rest
You may have done your planting in the spring, but that doesn’t mean the work in your garden is finished. In fact, now’s the time for some mid-summer maintenance. To make things as simple as possible, here’s a checklist to walk you through some essential midseason tasks.
A senior systems administrator at the Free Software Foundation points out that they're running free software in two data centers and over a hundred virtual machine — each and every one with "a freedom-respecting BIOS."
But the "how" is surprisingly intricate:
[E]arlier this week, we replaced "Columbia", the last of any FSF-run machines running a nonfree BIOS....
At FSF, our current standard is ASUS KGPE-D16 motherboards with AMD CPUs 6200 series CPUs released in 2012. For the BIOS, we install Libreboot, the easy-to-install, 100% free software replacement for proprietary BIOS/boot programs, or a version of Coreboot that is carefully built to avoid including any nonfree blobs. They are fast enough for our needs, and we expect this to be the case for many more years to come. They are also very affordable systems. We are also working toward supporting Raptor Computer Systems' newer and more powerful Talos II, as well as Blackbird motherboards that use IBM POWER9 CPUs. The POWER9 CPU architecture is called "PowerPC 64-bit little endian," abbreviated "ppc64el...." The Raptor motherboards come with entirely free firmware — and even have free hardware designs!
However, this type of migration has its challenges. For example, the first thing we needed to address before using these motherboards is that the main operating system we use, Trisquel GNU/Linux, didn't previously run on pp64el. So, earlier this year, we set up a Raptor POWER9 computer running Debian (without using any nonfree parts of Debian repositories) and loaned it to the maintainers of Trisquel for as long as needed. And now, we are proud to say that the upcoming Trisquel 11 release will support POWER9...!
Before I decommissioned Columbia, I ran a dmidecode, which told me that the BIOS program fit within a single megabyte of space. Often, very simplistic firmware becomes more complicated in later models, and that also usually means it has a growing significance for a user's software freedom. Some newer nonfree BIOSes have grown into operating systems in their own right, sometimes with large programs such as a full Web browser.
There is no fully-free BIOS available for x86 Intel and AMD CPUs released after about 2013. The key blocking factor is that those CPUs require certain firmware in the BIOS, like Intel Management Engine. Those CPUs will also refuse to run firmware that hasn't been cryptographically signed by private keys controlled by AMD and Intel, and AMD and Intel will only sign their own nonfree firmware. At the FSF, we refuse to run that nonfree firmware, and we applaud the many people who also avoid it. For those people who do run those Intel or AMD systems, running Coreboot or Osboot is still a step up the Freedom Ladder for the software freedom of your BIOS.
The road to freedom is a long road. We hope our dedication to achieve milestones like these can inspire the free software movement.
