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At the start of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" in 1987, Cmdr. William Riker (Jonathan Frakes) was defined by his ambition. He was the first officer on board the USS Enterprise but often talked about eventually attaining his own captaincy and commanding his own starship. Throughout the show's first three seasons, Riker was occasionally offered command but often turned it down, stating that he felt he wasn't quite ready. In "The Best of Both Worlds, Part I" (June 18, 1990), Riker was offered command of a starship called the USS Melbourne and had quietly planned on turning down the job without telling Capt. Picard (Patrick Stewart). When Picard catches wind of Riker's decision, he asks his first officer why he's still on board the Enterprise, saying that the ship will do just fine without him. After the second part of "The Best of Both Worlds," when Riker briefly got to serve as captain during Picard's short assimilation by the Borg, Riker's careerism arc is more or less at an end, having become content being a first officer.

It wouldn't be until "Star Trek: Nemesis" in 2002, 12 years later, that Riker would finally leave the Enterprise and take command of his own ship, the USS Titan. For the entire time audiences have known Riker, he has served under Picard, happy to leave command decisions to someone else. In the third season of "Star Trek: Picard," Riker is now a retired captain, and Picard is now a retired admiral. Jean-Luc still technically outranks Will, but the two are, for the first time, coming at one another as equals. 

In a recent interview, /Film's own Vanessa Armstrong asked Frakes about that new peer-like dynamic between the characters, and Frakes said he was grateful for it.

The Men As Peers

Riker always respected Picard's orders and carried out commands to the utmost ability. There were very, very few scenes throughout "Next Generation" where Riker pulls rank or barks back at Picard. In the first season of "Star Trek: Picard," the two characters will reunite at a bar, and plot to rescue the in-peril Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden) who is stranded at the edge of Federation space. This is a scheme they have to enact together, and with both men being elderly (Picard is over 100 in the chronology of the show, and Riker may be rounding 85), they require the aid of younger officers to pull it off. As such, there is no one person "in charge" of the rescue. 

Indeed, later in the show, Riker will berate Picard for being impulsive and getting a starship in danger. Seeing Riker yell at Picard will be a surreal sight for many Trekkies. 

Frakes likes that, in the span between "Nemesis" and "Picard" the two men's relationship changed, allowing each to see the other as more human. Frakes said: 

"It was kind of a privilege to have Patrick in a peer position, if you will, and no longer my boss and no longer Captain Picard to my Commander Riker. And also to have 20 more years of experience as friends and appreciation of who he is. And I've directed him quite a bit without acting with him. And with Terry Matalas -- again, we give kudos to Terry who created this whole third season arc for us."

Terry Matalas is an executive producer on "Picard" and the showrunner for its third season.

Spicier Stories

Frakes, meanwhile, has directed more "Star Trek" episodes than any other actor from within the franchise, so he's extensively familiar with it from the other side of the camera. As a director, he and Stewart likely had opportunities to look at Picard together, developing the character as the two thespians developed their own off-camera working relationship. Frakes enjoyed having the characters, then, be a little spiky with each other, as each one is now more strong-willed, and, as the characters are retired, neither has to fall back on Starfleet propriety. Frakes said: 

"The conflict between Riker and Picard and the conflict between Geordi and Picard makes for a spicier story, for more interesting acting, and for more depth for all of us, for the fans and for the actors."

Viewers will eventually learn that Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton), previously the chief engineer of the Enterprise, has also forged a career of his own, and is no longer beholden to Picard's authority ... or lack thereof. Indeed, one of the more interesting aspects of the new season of "Picard" is that the characters have reunited, but there is no longer a power dynamic between them. 

Season 3 will allow audiences a first look at something rare; they will see how these people interact as friends, rather than co-workers. And as anyone with work friends might know, the two relationships don't always mesh well. 

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

The post Jonathan Frakes Calls Picard and Riker's Relationship in Star Trek: Picard Season 3 'Spicier' Than What We've Seen Before [Exclusive] appeared first on /Film.

Digital asset platform Bakkt is to discontinue its two-year-old consumer-facing app as its focus shifts toward business-to-business (B2B) tech services. From a report: Consumers will be able to continue to managing assets over the web after the app officially closes on March 16, Bakkt said Monday. The app went live in March 2021 with the aim of integrating crypto holdings with other digital assets such as airline miles, gift cards and loyalty points. Partnerships with firms including Starbucks, Best Buy and Choice Hotels accompanied the app's launch.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The "John Wick" franchise is many things, including one of the greatest on-screen odes to everyone's favorite best friend: dogs. The first film broke our hearts with the devastating loss of John Wick's (Keanu Reeves) wife Helen (Bridget Moynahan), only to be followed by the gut-wrenching arrival and swift departure of a lovable beagle pup named Daisy that Helen arranged to be delivered to him after she died. Still in pain over Helen's death, Daisy's senseless murder at the hands of the Russian Mafia awakens the retired hitman in Wick, setting off a chain of ridiculously entertaining fight scenes that have been captivating audiences ever since. 

At the end of "John Wick," Wick adopts a second puppy — an adorable pit bull — and though he resists giving him a proper name, the animal becomes his companion. However, Wick tends to protect the pup from violence rather than use him to fight, choosing to board him at the Continental with the dog-friendly concierge Charon. Wick's dedication to his dogs prove that the canines are at the center of the films, standing in for Wick's broken heart and needing to be protected at all costs.

"John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum" sees the introduction of a decidedly different kind of good boy though, with the arrival of two Belgian Malinois that belong to Wick's old friend, Sofia Al-Azwar. Played by Halle Berry, Sofia has a deep love for her dogs, and though they are trained to kill, they are also fiercely loyal to her. This loyalty is not just present on screen, though; Berry's relationship with the pooches was so strong, the dogs believed she was their actual trainer.

Who's Your Trainer?

"John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum" features one of the coolest fight scenes in movie history when Sofia and Wick must battle their way out of a casbah with the help of Sofia's highly lethal dogs. It's a pretty amazing fight, especially when you take into account the fact that the dogs in the movie are actually performing their own stunts. 

In order to achieve this level of perfection on screen, the dogs had to be trained by skilled professionals, but Berry also played a big part in getting the animals ready. The digital release of the film includes a featurette where Berry talks about her relationship to the animals, explaining that she "could command them just like the trainers could command them" due to working with them off camera: 

"I would spend four days a week out there with the dogs — two, three hours a day — and I would just go through the drills with them, just like the trainers. As the trainers were learning who they were, I was learning who they were."

Even Keanu Reeves recognized the unique relationship that Berry had with the faithful puppers. "Halle spent over eight months, on and off, working with the trainers," he recalls. "To a point where, when I was training with her, the trainer said to me, 'They treat her like a trainer.'"

But Berry still had time to have fun with the animals, as well. Along with their rigorous training schedule, she also said, "They're ferocious-looking, and they're doing some amazing stunts, but they're also really sweet, so I get a certain amount of time to just love on them and play with them" -- which, for both Berry and the dogs, sounds like a pretty good gig. 

Read this next: The 18 Best Action Movie Actors Ranked

The post Halle Berry Worked With Her John Wick Dogs So Much, They Thought She Was A Trainer appeared first on /Film.

For three eventful seasons, "Homeland" revolved around CIA Officer Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) and her pursuit of disgraced marine Nicholas Brody (Damian Lewis), both professionally and romantically. The back-and-forth game between them was the source of much of the drama and tension on the show. Moreover, Brody's storyline offered a layered depiction of the United States' questionable actions overseas. That is, until "Homeland" decided to kill off the fan-favorite character in season 3. When things started getting stale, it was time to switch up the status quo. From that point on, the Showtime series reinvented itself, behind and in front of the screen.

"Homeland" covered a wide variety of issues on an international level, but homegrown threats were often the focus. The unceremonious end of the complicated double-agent relationship between Mathison and Brody after his death by hanging signified a major shift in the series. The entire third season was priming the audience for the inevitable outcome, but it did not make it any less jarring. To soften the blow and reinvigorate their "Homeland" juices, the cast and crew took their preparation for the subsequent seasons to another level. Brody's death allowed them to shift gears behind the scenes by attending a real-life camp for spies. Yes, seriously.

'It Was A Huge Privilege'

Claire Danes talked to the Guardian in 2020 about pivoting away from Brody's death from a creative standpoint, detailing her and the rest of the "Homeland" team's experiences attending an annual "spy camp" event in Georgetown, Washington DC. The camp was a meeting place for people from different parts of the intelligence world, including the CIA and NSA. Invaluable knowledge was shared between colleagues and their counterparts, all of which the "Homeland" crew would benefit from when creating the storylines for the show. To Danes, it was a means to get to know different parts of the spy community, which would later be incorporated into the series:

"We'd meet at nine and the revolving door was in constant motion, depositing one story and then another, and they were often told by people who had very different ideologies and political positions. It was a huge privilege because you really did get to look into a crystal ball from all these amazing sources and get a fairly clear picture of what our reality might be like in a year's time."

The interest was a two-way street, too. The former director of the CIA and NSA, Michael Hayden, discussed having a prolonged input on "Homeland," and revealed that the show's crew got quite accustomed to it all:

"A lot of times it was, 'OK, what's happening now?' We talked about that and then they talked about whichever plot they were thinking about. [...] It's interesting, because the more we did it, the more they had our kind of questions."

With renewed interest and knowledge in the spy world, the Showtime series would find its second wind after killing off Brody, who had already overstayed his welcome by the end of the third season.

His Time Was Up

Although Nicholas Brody and his personal journey had been a vital part of "Homeland," his time was up. By the time the show had the guts to kill Brody off, the third season had sidelined him for a few episodes before the finale. When the Iranian authorities hung Brody in accordance with the CIA, it became clear that the show wanted to break free from his stretched-out, tragic storyline. In an interview with the Daily Beast, "Homeland" creator Alex Gansa discussed Brody's expiration date, and how it was important to move the series in a new direction from the very start:

"His shelf life had expired. It was time. We spent a lot of hours in the story room figuring out what we could do with his character, and a lot of the emotional landscape had been crossed. We didn't want to repeat ourselves. [...] It was one of the very first decisions we made in the story room this season — that he wasn't going to make it out of season 3 alive."

After a second season full of heavily-criticized plot developments, "Homeland" made telling a finite story with Damian Lewis' Brody its priority. It's also a heck of a creative choice to get rid of a fan-favorite character to preserve the freshness of "Homeland." The show did not stop reinventing itself, either. After that moment, the series was more like a piece of origami, able to reconfigure itself into an entirely different shape from one season to the next without losing what still worked.

Read this next: The Best And Worst TV Couples Of 2022

The post Homeland Found Its Second Wind Thanks To A Series Of Real-Life 'Spy Camps' appeared first on /Film.

French-Argentine filmmaker Gaspar Noe needs no introduction; he’s one of the most notorious and controversial directors currently active. In fact, he and fellow hellraiser Lars von Trier probably have a running contest going to see who can push the audience’s discomfort buttons further. Von Trier probably wins it after his "I love Hitler" comments, but only by a hair. Noe’s entire reputation rests on 2002’s Irreversible; even though he had previously directed I Stand Alone (1998), an unsparing film involving father-daughter incest and child abuse (as well as a prior short, Carne), it was not until his second film that he became infamous. A brutal rape revenge drama that had the novelty of being told in reverse, it’s now being rereleased in a “Straight Cut”,...

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]

Legend has it that Billy the Kid shot and killed 21 men; one for each year of his life. The legendary outlaw's own life was taken sometime after midnight on July 14, 1881, by the reformed lawman Pat Garrett in Fort Sumner, New Mexico. There is still speculation that Garrett, a longtime acquaintance of Billy's (whose birth name was Henry McCarty) never actually shot down his old friend and allowed him to escape in the dark of night. 

Garrett was also accused of ambushing McCarty, which led to him hiring a ghost writer named Marshall Upton who detailed Garrett's version in "The Authentic Life of Billy, the Kid." The book has become a great historical reference, but at the time of its release in 1882, it failed to change the popular opinion that Garrett may have acted ungentlemanly the night Billy the Kid was slain. 

Most Westerns don't ever get a sequel, but the surprise success of "Young Guns" led to "Young Guns II" in 1990 with the returning cast of up-and-coming talent featuring Lou Diamond Phillips, Keifer Sutherland, and Emilio Estevez as Billy the Kid in a career-defining role. "Young Guns II" told the story of how Pat Garrett (played wonderfully by William Peterson) tracked down Billy in the Old West, while also following an elderly man in the late 1940s named Brushy Bill Roberts, who claimed he was Billy the Kid until the day he died. 

Peterson's stoic version of Garrett contrasted perfectly with the unbridled energy of Estevez, resulting in some great onscreen clashes as Garrett methodically tracks the infamous fugitive down. Every actor in a Western has a story about a horse, and Peterson was no different. On set, he fell in love with a buckskin-colored steed that wound up stealing the show. 

Ready For A Close-Up

Most actors just make up the fact that they can ride a horse during the audition process for a Western. The skills section on an acting resumé is generally considered to be widely exaggerated. For William Peterson, who was mostly known as a streetwise detective in Michael Mann's "Manhunter," it was important to find a horse that he actually felt comfortable with when he landed the role of Pat Garrett and suddenly found himself on the harsh, open plains of Arizona and New Mexico. 

During filming, each horse had a double that was also used, but Peterson could tell the two apart and took a real liking to one horse in particular. NBC5 reporter Bobbie Wygant's incredibly vast archive of vintage interviews features a conversation with Peterson, who talked about how he kept trying to get his favorite stallion in the shot: 

"They'd bring the horse to me and I had to do this whole thing with this horse to figure out which horse it was. I actually knew, and then I would try and sneak the other horse out of the corral and saddle him up and get on him before the wranglers knew that I had the other horse, because I liked him so much."

Peterson claims his horse made it into a lot of the finished film, becoming "a little movie star." Interestingly, actor James Coburn — who played Pat Garrett in Sam Peckinpah's "Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid" opposite Kris Kristofferson — plays a rich cattle owner named John Chisum in "Young Guns II." Williamson also mentions that he spoke to Coburn at length about both of their takes on the real-life lawman. 

If "Young Guns III" ever happens, maybe Peterson can return in some capacity. At least bring Bon Jovi back!

Read this next: The 20 Best Westerns Of All Time

The post William Peterson Snuck His Favorite Horse Onto The Set Of Young Guns II appeared first on /Film.

During a speech by NVIDIA's Jensen Huang at Berkeley Haas University, the CEO of the GPU giant said that ChatGPT is the iPhone moment of AI.

NVIDIA CEO Says ChatGPT Is The iPhone Moment of AI, The Greatest Thing Ever Done For Computing

ChatGPT is a big deal right now and ever since it launched, the AI tool has been gaining popularity and traction across the globe. NVIDIA is at the forefront of AI technology and offers a great suite of hardware and software in the AI segment. There's a reason they are known as the AI market leader in the industry.

NVIDIA's CEO, Jensen Huang, had a lot to say about ChatGPT when asked about it by a student at Berkeley Haas University in Berkeley, California. Jensen stated that within a short period of time, the tool developed by OpenAI has garnered a lot of interest and applications and this is just the start of much greater things. He even called ChatGPT the "iPhone moment" of AI and said that ChatGPT has essentially democratized computing, saying it is the greatest thing to ever happen for AI and the computing industry.

The full speech of NVIDIA's CEO, Jensen Huang, can be seen in the following video:

Following is the Q/A session speech from NVIDIA's CEO, Jensen Huang, discussing ChatGPT and its future implications:

First of all, ChatGPT is a very very big deal. Just think about it, in just a few days it has reached tens of millions of people. I think it's more than 5, probably less than 30 and the amazing thing is this, everyone is using it for different reasons and everyone finds it delightful. That's it miracle

When was the last time we saw a piece of technology that is so versatile that it can solve problems and surprise people in so many ways so often? It can write a poem of course, it could fill out a spreadsheet, it can write a SQL query and do a SQL query, it can write python code, it can write verilog and so you know you can't do it today but of course, it will be able to do it someday.

So the fact that you have this tool that can do all these different things is really surprising a lot of people around the world. Now for a lot of people who have been working on this, we have been waiting for this moment. This is the iPhone moment of artificial intelligence. This is the time when all those ideas within mobile computing and all that, it all came together in a product that everyone just kinda, I see it.

I can now use it as an API and connect to a spreadsheet, I connect it to PowerPoint, I connect it to a Drawing program, I connect it to a Photo AI program, it will make everything better. So we now know that this is going to be a monumental impact on technology. And now the question is, how quickly will the technology diffuse? I think in the last 60 days, it kinda tells us something that the rate of technology diffusion can be quite high. For example, since ChatGPT came out probably some 500 startups have already happened, and not only that, in about 2 weeks' time they could make applications that are really delightful and useful.

This is no different than when browsers were created and somebody overnight created Javascript and you got a website that was quite surprising. Or when the iPhone came out and somebody wrote something and took about a couple of weekends and they have a piece of software that they can download from the app store. Before you know it, its something like Spotify. You know that's pretty amazing. This is going to happen now!

For the last 40 years, we have made computers harder and harder for people to program and that's why the technology divide has been so large and the technology divide is getting larger and larger except till 1 day, all of a sudden, everyone can program a computer. You just have to prompt this thing to write a program for you, do something for you, automate something for you.

What OpenAI has done what the team over there has done, genuinely, one of the greatest thing that has ever been done for computing. We have democratized comptuing in a very very large way. and so I am very excited about that.

NVIDIA CEO - Jensen Huang

Recently, analysts and industry insiders have stated that the success of ChatGPT can benefit NVIDIA a lot. OpenAI, the creators of ChatGPT, are already using around 25,000 NVIDIA GPUs to power its current server needs and with the demand increasing and more competing solutions coming up, it looks like NVIDIA's GPUs which are known to offer the best AI capabilities, can definitely become a popular choice which is also why the industry predicts that NVIDIA can see the demand to outstrip the overall supply in the next coming quarters.

It remains to be seen how NVIDIA responds to this huge demand from the AI segment with AI tools such as ChatGPT and many others popping up every week or so now. The GPU giant is expected to announce its earnings for Q4 FY23 on the 22nd of February, 2023.

The post NVIDIA CEO Calls ChatGPT As One of The Greatest Thing Ever Done For Computing, Says It’s The iPhone Moment of AI by Hassan Mujtaba appeared first on Wccftech.

A previously unknown threat actor has been targeting companies in the U.S. and Germany with bespoke malware designed to steal confidential information. Enterprise security company Proofpoint, which is tracking the activity cluster under the name Screentime, said the group, dubbed TA866, is likely financially motivated. "TA866 is an organized actor able to perform well thought-out attacks at

The advanced persistent threat (APT) actor known as Tonto Team carried out an unsuccessful attack on cybersecurity company Group-IB in June 2022. The Singapore-headquartered firm said that it detected and blocked malicious phishing emails originating from the group targeting its employees. It's also the second attack aimed at Group-IB, the first of which took place in March 2021. Tonto Team,

I had a lengthy exchange with ChatGPT about veganism, in which it prevaricated quite a bit; backed in to a corner, ChatGPT was forced to come clean at last:

Me: Continuing in this vein, I'm going to ask you four simple questions. Please respond with simply "Yes" or "No". Do you understand?

ChatGPT: Yes, I understand. Please go ahead with your questions.

Me: Great, thanks. Question number 1: Is it unethical to kill a human for mere pleasure?

ChatGPT: Yes.

Me: Question number 2: Is it unethical to kill a sentient being for mere pleasure?

ChatGPT: Yes.

Me: Question number 3: In that case, given equal availability of both healthy plant and animal food choices, is it unethical to select animal food for mere pleasure of the palate?

ChatGPT: Yes, some people would argue that it would be unethical to cause unnecessary harm to sentient beings for mere pleasure. Others might have different perspectives and hold that consuming animal products is not unethical.

Me: You were just supposed to answer "Yes" or "No" as promised. Which is it please?

ChatGPT: I apologize, it is not possible for me to answer with just "Yes" or "No" as the ethical considerations around this issue are complex and multifaceted, and can depend on different ethical frameworks and individual perspectives.

Me: You yourself admitted in reply to question number 2 that is unethical to kill a sentient being for mere pleasure. Thus, given equal availability of healthy plant-based food choices, the only logical answer is "Yes" to the third question.

ChatGPT: As an AI model, I don't have personal opinions or beliefs. I can provide information and insights based on the data I was trained on and the algorithms I was programmed with.

Based on available evidence, it can be argued that the production and consumption of animal products can result in significant harm to sentient beings, as well as contribute to environmental degradation and other sustainability issues. Some people might consider this to be unethical and choose to avoid animal products for ethical reasons. However, the decision to consume animal products or to follow a vegan diet is a personal one and can depend on many factors, including individual values, beliefs, cultural background, and nutritional needs.

Me: I am not asking for opinion or belief, only logic. Based on your reply of "Yes" to questions 1 and 2, "Yes" is the only logical answer to question 3.

ChatGPT: Yes, based on the premise stated in the questions 1 and 2, it would be logical to say that it would be unethical to choose animal-based food for mere pleasure of the palate if healthy plant-based food options are equally available.

Me: Thank you.

ChatGPT: You're welcome! Let me know if there's anything else I can help with.

I had expected ChatGPT to take "Do you understand?" as the first question, hence the lack of a question labeled as number 4. Here is a screenshot of the exchange.

Update

There appears to be some confusion around the premise in question 3 that a plant-based diet can be healthy, so I returned to the oracle (screenshot):

Me: Is a vegan diet healthy?

ChatGPT: A well-planned vegan diet can be healthy and provide all the necessary nutrients for the body. Vegan diets have been shown to have many health benefits, such as reducing the risk of certain chronic diseases, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some types of cancer.

However, it is important to note that a poorly planned vegan diet can be low in certain nutrients, such as vitamin B12, omega-3 fatty acids, calcium, and iron, that are found in animal products. To ensure a balanced and nutritious vegan diet, it is recommended to include a variety of plant-based foods, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds, and to consider using fortified foods or supplements as needed.

It is also recommended to speak with a healthcare provider or a registered dietitian to develop a personalized nutrition plan that meets your individual needs and health goals.

Me: By the same token, a poorly planned meat diet can also be low in certain nutrients.

ChatGPT: That's correct. A poorly planned diet of any type, whether it includes animal products or not, can be deficient in essential nutrients and have negative health effects. For example, a diet high in processed meats and refined carbohydrates can be high in saturated fat, salt, and sugar, which can increase the risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. On the other hand, a well-planned diet that includes a variety of nutrient-dense foods from both animal and plant sources can support overall health and well-being.

It's important to emphasize that the key to a healthy diet is not necessarily based on whether it includes animal products or not, but rather on the quality and variety of foods consumed, as well as individual nutrient needs and health goals.

Episode 5 of HBO’s The Last of Us dove into Henry and Sam’s story and why Kathleen was fixed on finding them. We look at what a collaborator is and why Henry teamed up with the FEDRA.

*WARNING: Spoilers ahead for The Last Of Us episode 5*

Another week and another emotional episode from The Last of Us HBO has landed in our laps. This time, in episode 5, we see Joel and Ellie come face-to-face with Sam and Henry as the foursome realize they have more in common than what separates them as they become the hunted by Kathleen and her army of minions.

In The Last of Us game, Henry and Sam were looking for food and supplies in the city, believing it to be empty but instead were met with The Hunters who were hell-bent on killing them. In the HBO show, their story has changed somewhat into a more dangerous situation for the pair. Let’s look into what a collaborator is and why Kathleen went on her revengeful rampage.

Run.

A new episode of #TheLastOfUs is streaming now on @HBOMax. pic.twitter.com/mKeNrwSCIx

— The Last of Us (@TheLastofUsHBO) February 12, 2023

• MORE: Every Pun from Ellie’s book in HBO’s The Last of Us episode 4

What is a collaborator in HBO’s The Last of Us?

A collaborator or a “rat”, as Kathleen likes to call them, is someone who teams up with FEDRA in a bid to find out information about people who are secretly planning to revoke or take on the army with their own resistance. When found out, they undergo horrendous violence that involves methods like torture and other horrible acts.

As FEDRA is a huge organization that showcases violence, strength, and control, many citizens feel that there’s no other way to survive than to become a collaborator in a bid to feel “safer”.

They’ve got you in their sights. #TheLastOfUs pic.twitter.com/2weJmmweyx

— The Last of Us (@TheLastofUsHBO) February 12, 2023

Why did Kathleen want to kill Henry and Sam?

In HBO’s version of The Last of Us, Henry became a FEDRA collaborator due to Sam developing leukemia and the only place he could give Sam a chance of survival was via a drug kept at the FEDRA QZ. Of course, FEDRA wanted something in return for the medicine and that was for Henry to become a collaborator for them which meant passing them information about the leader of the resistance movement, the Hunters, who also happened to be Kathleen’s brother Michael.

This then led to FEDRA capturing Michael and killing him, naturally setting a huge fire in Kathleen who went out for revenge for her brother’s murder and putting Henry and Sam in her firing line.

• MORE: What wine did Bill and Frank drink from HBO’s The Last of Us?

The post Kathleen's impact in HBO's The Last of Us adaptation was more brutal than in the game appeared first on ForeverGeek.

The recently published Security Navigator report of Orange Cyberdefense shows there has been a  rapid increase of attacks on industrial control systems (ICS) in the past few years. Looking a bit closer, most of the attacks seem to have spilt over from traditional IT. That's to be expected, as production systems are commonly connected to ordinary corporate networks at this point. Though the data

Super Bowl season is not only an exciting time for sports fans, but it’s also a special time for movie buffs and superhero geeks to catch new trailers and the DC fandom is buzzing over the reveal of Batman’s blue and grey suit in The Flash movie trailer. We also discuss who plays Batman – because there’s more than one. 

The first solo movie starring Barry Allen’s The Flash will serve as a reset point in DC’s live-action universe, essentially saying goodbye to the old DCEU and ushering in the recently announced DCU.

Directed by Andy Muschietti with a screenplay by Christina Hodson and based on the DC comics character of the same name, The Flash is set to star Ezra Miller, Ron Livingston, Michael Keaton, Kiersey Clemons, Michael Shannon, Ben Affleck, and more.

• MORE: Damian Wayne is the grandson of a classic Batman villain in DC Comics

DC fans finally get Batman’s blue and grey suit in live-action

The DC fandom has been asking for Batman’s blue and grey suit to make an appearance in live-action for a while because it’s an alternative colorway that has made an impression on comic-book lovers.

Well, fans finally got their wish during the first trailer for The Flash, revealed to be worn by Ben Affleck’s variant.

Batman stans flocked to Twitter to share the good news, overjoyed to see the classic comic-book suit that appeared frequently but not consistently between the 1940s and 1980s.

WHAT I SAY ABOUT THE BLUE AND GREY BATMAN SUIT?! WHAT I SAY HEEYUUH! #TheFlashMovie #SuperBowlLVII #SuperBowl2023 https://t.co/Jgcjo07Rq5 pic.twitter.com/amyze4rkqY

— BLURAYANGEL ? (@blurayangel) February 13, 2023

THE BLUE AND GREY SUIT! ???? #THEFLASH #BATMAN pic.twitter.com/WzPwU6Twcd

— Adrian Foster (@KhonshuEnergy) February 13, 2023

I know I give Ben Affleck’s Batman a lot shit but Bruh the Grey and Blue suit has given me a new found appreciation for this Batman. #TheFlashMovie pic.twitter.com/wZ5Oahypae

— Matthew Shred (@CinemaFanstv) February 13, 2023

• MORE BATMAN: Christian Bale’s DCU Batman return touted by scooper Grace Randolph

Who plays Batman in The Flash movie?

So, there isn’t one person playing Batman in The Flash movie – there are two.

First up is Ben Affleck, who returns to play the current Batman in the DCEU – soon to be replaced by a permanent DCU Batman to run alongside Robert Pattinson’s portrayal in the Elseworlds projects.

The second actor to play Batman in The Flash movie is Michael Keaton, who returns to the cowl after appearing in Tim Burton’s two movies back in 1989 and 1992.

There have also been rumors that a third Batman will appear at the end of The Flash, who may remain as the permanent DCU Batman.

Scooper, Grace Randolph, was the one who claimed this would happen, sparking a rumor that Christian Bale or George Clooney may be returning.

#DC #DCStudios ??

I hear that it’s going to be a former #Batman who cameos at the end of #TheFlash

& could potentially stick around as the new permanent #DCU Batman

Damian’s dad, Pattinson is still solo

I know who it is; but it would be uncool to reveal the whole thing pic.twitter.com/wuEzl4RPWY

— Grace Randolph (@GraceRandolph) February 10, 2023

By Jo Craig – jo.craig@grv.media

The Flash is scheduled to release in theatres on June 16, 2023.

The post DC fans react to Batman’s blue and grey suit in The Flash movie appeared first on ForeverGeek.

In Sam Raimi's 1981 zero-budget horror film "The Evil Dead," Ash (Bruce Campbell) is attacked by mysterious malevolent demons in a cabin in the woods, having been summoned there by an ancient evil book called the Necronomicon. All alone in the cabin, you start to think that Ash is not so much being beset by monsters, as Campbell is being beset by the movie itself. In the more comedic 1987 part-sequel, part-remake "Evil Dead II," the self-awareness is amped up to a slapstick degree, and the language of horror gives way to the timing of comedy.

At the end of "Evil Dead II," Ash flees into another genre altogether, finding himself in England circa 1300 CE. By 1993's "Army of Darkness" (which celebrates its 30th anniversary this week), Ash has transformed from an average college student into a really dumb, full-bore a-hole. He is hailed as a "chosen one" despite his crass dialogue. (At one point, he says, "All right, you primitive screwheads, listen up. This is my boomstick.") It comes as no surprise that Ash's quest to find the Necronomicon goes horribly awry and that he accidentally awakens an army of the (recent) dead. The climax of "Army of Darkness" features a skeleton fighting force, led by Ash's own undead doppelgänger (Campbell) staging a forward assault against a medieval castle.

But how were the skeletons in "Army of Darkness" brought to -- pardon the pun -- life? Using a mix of special effects techniques, including puppetry, rubber models, actors in masks, and stop-motion animation.

I've A Bone To Pick With You

The skeletons in "Army of Darkness" reach a level of sublime comedy with their cheapness. They aren't terribly well articulated, with each one moving maybe its jaw, its arms, or -- in one case -- its flute-playing fingers. Some skeletons still seem to have scraps of mummified skin wrapped around them, allowing Evil Ash's lieutenant to speak out of a lipped mouth. Some of them have the remnants of beards still clinging to their skinless chins, while others still seem to have their eyeballs intact. The skeletons with eyeballs, however, may not denote the state of their decomposition, so much as Sam Raimi's quick filmmaking leaving the stunt performers' eyes visible through their masks.

In one hilarious shot, the skeleton in question is not articulated at all. It's clearly a rubber model being thrown at Bruce Campbell by an off-screen stagehand. Campbell picks up the skeleton and breaks it over his knee. Each one of the skeletons mutters comedically to itself as it makes an attack. From off-screen, you can hear lines of dialogue like, "I'll tear their bones out," "I'll cut your gizzard out," or, most frequently, "Aaaaaaahhh!"

In John Kenneth Muir's 2004 book "The Unseen Force: The Films of Sam Raimi," the director laid out his SFX process in making his skeletons come to rubbery life. Raimi, fond of the animation work of legendary stop-motion pioneer Ray Harryhausen, said he wanted to recapture the same uncanny look as in Don Chaffey's 1963 film "Jason and the Argonauts." Raimi used a front-projection system, having his live actors stand in front of an actual on-set film screen with pre-made skeleton effects on it.

The Skeleton FX

The VFX for "Army of Darkness" are elaborate and fun for a low-budget production, but rudimentary enough that an observant audience member can plainly see how the effect was achieved. The aforementioned puppet skeleton lieutenant, for instance, rides up to Evil Ash on a horse. The skeleton is foregrounded, but sitting just next to him is another skeleton -- a live-action actor -- also on horseback. Quite clearly, the background ghoul was a horse handler, leading both horses around.

Many skeletons were dusted with a flour-like substance so that when they were smashed or exploded in battle, they'd leave a dusty "poof" behind. During an explosion sequence, you can see the small catapults -- they are called air rams -- that fling the stunt performers into the air. They aren't terribly noticeable, but a savvy viewer will spot them.

At the climax of "Army of Darkness" -- depending on the version you saw -- Evil Ash is set on fire, and his skin burns off. He re-emerges as a skeleton with eyeballs -- and is now curiously voiced by Sam Raimi himself. In wide shots, Skeleton Ash is a composited stop-motion creation but a puppet in close-ups. When he freaks out, his skullcap flips back and exposes his brain. You can hear a Warner Bros. cartoon-style train whistle sound effect.

Raimi's voice in the role drives home the meta-narrative notion that the "Evil Dead" movies are not about Ash fighting evil skeletons, but about Bruce Campbell fighting a filmmaker, and the genre he's been forced to occupy. Ash's life is never in legitimate danger, but he does seem endlessly annoyed that undead creatures are always punching him in the face. Life is very, very hard for Ash. In a way, that's why "Army of Darkness" is sardonically funny.

Read this next: Every Sam Raimi Film Ranked

The post An Ode to the Army of Darkness Skeleton Puppets appeared first on /Film.

The reason I’m doing a bunch of entries around the theme of “A couple people asked, so here’s a long and drawn-out answer that touches on a host of considerations” is because the era of “I am on multiple platforms that harvest my low-level brainwaves and let me make two-sentence jabs masquerading as insight” is coming to a close. In its dimming light, I can make out the glow of people wanting to know some of the opaque processes I engage in, either as inspiration or a warning.

That approach (one focus drains, another rises) is the core of how I do everything, so let me answer the curiosity of a few people who wondered why I choose what I do and how I do it.

The usual caveats: One person’s approach to life, especially as described by themselves, is an observed artwork, not a curated manual. Priorities shift and opportunities flicker and fade, and it’s not a good idea to have made your priorities or opportunities the defining (or worse, only) aspects of your life. In a year I could read all this and laugh at that deluded bastard, unaware of the Coming Thing that will make any of it irrelevant. Consider this all a gentle introspective song played in words and not a thundering drumbeat demanding you march in lock step.

I am also focusing on my Internet Archive era, not how I approached things back when I was a systems administrator and doing documentaries on the side, that is, a documentary filmmaker who administered systems to pay his travel and camera equipment costs. I’m talking about 2011 to the present.

With all that out of the way.

On a personal level, I’ve been speedrunning a game called “Die With The Least Amount Of Confusion About What To Do With Your Remaining Stuff”, and professionally, I’ve been running a project called “Die With Maximum Finished Projects Lacking Interest By Co-Workers And Reasonable Public Levels of Awareness Of My Efforts”. Both are going quite swimmingly.

It’s bright-line obvious and easy to cleave my Internet Archive era into before and after my 2017 heart attack.

I’ve described the situation at length before, even doing so onstage, and I’ve touched on the themes and lessons that came from the event. But functionally, the result was my realization of how entirely arbitrary existence is. Reality provides the experience of going from Zero to Dead with alarming frequency; but even more troubling for me was the inaccurate signaling my body provided that anything was wrong.

You would think 99% blockage of a major artery on the heart would be really really intense, a thunderstruck pain shifting all priority, but it was mostly an annoyance until it was a misery. But even the misery was just that – an ache one might get from sleeping poorly, or having eaten an undercooked potato, which I’ve done once or twice. Only with a number of experts and authorities showing me exactly how dangerously close I came to ceasing and exactly how that happened, am I even able to articulate what went on. No sense of conclusion had come to me beforehand, no overriding awareness of a chapter and possibly the entire book closing.

It was Luck, but also a Lesson. Things will shift in an instant, and I am likely to have little warning beforehand. One moment delicious meal, next moment oblivion. And with that outlook, a lot of stuff came into pretty sharp focus and a pretty deliberate roadmap came into being.

Building on what I said a couple entries ago, cleaving my possessions into items held for myself and items held in trust for others betrayed a ridiculous ratio, something on the order of 99 to 1. For every memento of a person or experience that I was keeping close, I had dozens and dozens of magazines, floppies and pieces of equipment I took on just because I was worried nobody else would make the effort. This outlook had resulted in a shipping container of materials, and when I finally put together the process of transferring most of them away, the resulting movement of material was, frankly, shocking.

Thousands of magazines went to organizations and tens of thousands of items went into the Internet Archive’s physical archives. Monitors went to museums and individuals, and gaming systems went to yet more locations. By the end of it all, I had divested so much material to more permanent homes, that it would be assumed I’d had absolutely nothing left.

And, comparatively, absolutely. It was less than a couple storage units worth, a sliver of what it was, and that description is where it remains today. In a recent consolidation effort, with a number of volunteers, a single truckload was able to take the contents of all the remaining units and put them into one, and while the view of the remaining storage unit could seem dire on first view, it is not:

A heartening sign is that a notable percentage is furniture and vintage equipment, particularly nice pieces that are not compatible with my current living situation. A good amount are books I’m either going to donate, or which I’m going to bring back to a bookshelf in my home.

And then, in an amount I will be able to better quantify soon, are the Things Held in Trust; floppy disks, cassette tapes and typewriters, materials meant to have something “done” to them, after which they will go into some manner of permanent storage away from me. This is probably the majority of non-furniture and technical object items.

The remainder are a set of what would be called my Personal Effects – papers, drawings, pamphlets, mementos and a handful of artifacts from old jobs, old experiences, mostly meant as talismans for me, personally, to be able to recall people and events that otherwise I might have a harder time to remember. How many of THOSE could stand to be just digital and then stored away with a marking to toss them if people want, is part of the near future task set.

Now, for a moment, let’s veer into Everything Else.

This is a lot of material. It’s books, software, papers, videotapes, and a smidgen here and there of the kind of weird gathered up miscellany that comes when you absorb the world by the truckload. I can’t estimate how much this is. It’s probably many tons.

This is waiting for me. If I work on it alone, and single-stream, it will never be done before I am 100 years old. It’s that’s much.

Luckily, I’m not working alone. There are collections that have a general mandate to be digitized over time, and I am but one of many potential parties who may do that work. There are others that will get pulled into other larger digitization and archiving endeavors that will come along in the future, during that madness when an entity comes along saying “We want to put this truckload of cash into a digitizing effort; what do you have available to work on as a set?”

Then there’s some sets that are definitely “mine”, in terms of I advocated for them, we’re holding them, and in the expanse of time I’m the top candidate to step in and start getting them pulled into an online form. I’ll resist distraction listing their classifications and stories, but just be aware they are in big pallets in a very large set of rooms and the second I address them is the second they ultimately get addressed.

Which, ultimately, brings me back to being in my hot little rented office, digitizing whatever materials with whatever equipment is working, as fast as I can, for as many hours as I can.

Permit me to join the legions of people for whom the Pandemic was and continues to be disruptive. Besides health issues, I did not visit the Internet Archive Headquarters and most of the physical archives for years. It put a pause on my digitization and classification efforts, while no pause was put on acquisition. (The Archive actually took in dozens of entire libraries of institutions shutting down during the pandemic, literal millions of books and items.) For a lot of 2020-2022, significant portions of my pipeline and priorities went out the window. I wouldn’t call everything “normal” now, but I am proceeding with my scanning/digitizing efforts full apace now, and doing activities of assessment and interaction that would have normally been done multiple years before they actually are happening.

Here, in the present day, things have gotten understandable and quantifiable enough for me to be able to finally address piles of to-dos that are within 10 minutes of my rented office, easy to pull in, do work on, and then mail away or store locally in a “just in case” contingency. I expect by the end of this year, I will have a reasonable understanding of where things are and where they will be going.

From then, it’s rinse, repeat. Take in each new block of promises and intentions, do the work, often on a stream, and go forward until I run out of materials, time, energy or health.

That’s the priority list: Do the media and materials I have machinery for, acquire machinery to do materials that I currently can’t, exhaust my local collections, then acquire the larger to-dos from Internet Archive stores and begin doing those to the best of my abilities.

Simultaneously, be aware of the fact that since I was unable to detect life-threatening health issues until it was past too late, it’s always possible that happens again, and I leave everything in a grinding halt, halfway through a project, with all my machines humming until they crash.

At that point, I hope that that what I’ve left behind is inherently obvious, in good hands, and understandable in case someone else wants to race the doomsday clock and make more items see a digital future.

If not… well, buy a Ouija board.

Despite his part being cut in the canceled Batgirl project, Michael Keaton has finally returned to portray Batman once again in The Flash. However, a few fans have confused the actor for Kevin Costner. 

Barry Allen’s first solo movie as The Flash – existing alongside the popular show on The CW – will serve as a reset point in DC’s live-action universe, welcoming in the recently announced DCU.

Directed by Andy Muschietti with a screenplay by Christina Hodson and based on the DC character of the same name, The Flash is set to star Ezra Miller, Ron Livingston, Michael Keaton, Kiersey Clemons, Michael Shannon, Ben Affleck, and more.

• MORE BATMAN: Christian Bale’s DCU Batman return touted by scooper Grace Randolph

DC fans confuse Kevin Costner for Michael Keaton’s Batman

The comic-book fandom has known for a while now that Michael Keaton would return to play the Caped Crusader in The Flash movie, but some people thought Kevin Costner was the new DCU Batman.

Keaton returns to the cowl during the new Super Bowl trailer, but his face is primarily hidden by Bats’ cowl.

This prompted some fans to share the physical similarities between Keaton and Costner, with one fan admitting they thought it was Costner playing Batman.

Costner is currently known for his long-running role in Paramount’s Yellowstone, but DC fans will also recognize the actor from his days playing Jonathan Kent in Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel and Justice League movies.

E eu que achava que o Batman era o Kevin Costner, mas na verdade era o Michael Keaton.
Chocada!!! pic.twitter.com/FNmAxLEJ87

— Aline (@LadyEsharp) February 12, 2023

• MORE: DC fans react to Batman’s blue and grey suit in The Flash movie

Costner was once on the shortlist for Tim Burton’s movies

When Tim Burton was looking for his Bruce Wayne and Dark Knight for the gothic, 1989 project, a host of big actors were considered for the role.

Mel Gibson, Harrison Ford, Dennis Quaid, and our topic of conversation, Kevin Coster, were all considered for the part.

Burton initially championed James Bond star, Pierce Brosnan, for the role, but the actor declined because he had no interest in playing a DC Comics superhero.

By Jo Craig – jo.craig@grv.media

The Flash is scheduled to release in theatres on June 16, 2023.

The post Kevin Costner confused for Michael Keaton’s Batman in The Flash trailer appeared first on ForeverGeek.

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Windows reliability telemetry reported that there were a large number of crashes in the Display control panel. Since these crashes are coming via telemetry and the Windows Error Reporting service, there is no information about what steps are required to reproduce the problem. All we have are crash dumps.

The crash was due to the instruction pointer being in the middle of nowhere. For example, in one dump, it was at address ffffffff`924bbde0. Close study shows that this value is suspiciously similar to 00007fff`924bbde0, which is the address of ntdll!ButtonWndProc_A. This tells me that somebody subclassed a button, and then tried to restore the original window procedure, but they messed up and truncated the 64-bit pointer value to a 32-bit signed integer. Bonus insult: Their button is ANSI, not Unicode. It’s (checks watch) 2023, get with the program. Not everybody who uses a computer speaks English.

To debug this problem, I had to do some triangulation of the crash dumps to look for a third party component that was common to all (or at least most) of the crashes. Since this was a Display control panel, I focused on the video card information, since video card drivers can provide a custom Display control panel plug-in to show off their driver-specific features.

And I found it.

The custom property sheet that comes with one particular video card has a bug in its WM_DESTROY handler: It casts a WNDPROC to a 32-bit value, causing the upper 32 bits to be lost.

Here is the reverse-engineered dialog procedure:

INT_PTR CALLBACK DialogProc(
    HWND hdlg, UINT uMsg, WPARAM wParam, LPARAM lParam)
{
  if (uMsg == WM_INITDIALOG) {
        SetWindowLongPtr(hdlg, GWLP_USERDATA,
                ((PROPSHEETPAGE*)lParam)->lParam);
  }
  MyClass* self = (MyClass*)GetWindowLongPtr(
        hdlg, GWLP_USERDATA);
  return self ? self->RealDialogProc(hdlg, uMsg, wParam, lParam)
              : FALSE;
}

And here is the “real” DLGPROC:

INT_PTR CALLBACK MyClass:RealDialogProc(
    HWND hdlg, UINT uMsg, WPARAM wParam, LPARAM lParam)
{
  switch (uMsg)
  {
  ...
  case WM_DESTROY:
    SetWindowLongPtr(GetDlgItem(m_dlg, IDC_SOME_BUTTON),
        GWLP_WNDPROC, (LONG)g_originalWndProc);
   ...
  }
}

I suspect this code was originally written as 32-bit code, and the line was

    SetWindowLong(GetDlgItem(m_dlg, IDC_SOME_BUTTON),
        GWL_WNDPROC, (LONG)g_originalWndProc);

When porting to 64-bit, the Set­Window­Long becomes Set­Window­Long­Ptr to expand the value to 64 bits, and the name of the index changes from GWL_WNDPROC to GWLP_WNDPROC, with the extra P emphasizing that the value should be passed to Get/Set­Window­Long­Ptr.

But they forgot to upgrade their cast from (LONG) to (LONG_PTR), so they were accidentally truncating their 64-bit value to a sign-extended 32-bit value as part of the restoration.

I went for style points and came up with a one-byte patch to fix the bug.

// rbx = (LONG)g_originalWndProc
48631d33540300  movsxd  rbx,dword ptr [contoso+0x39c50]

Patch the second byte from 63 to 8b:

// rbx = (LONG_PTR)g_originalWndProc
488b1d33540300  mov     rbx,qword ptr [contoso+0x39c50]

It turns out that all the machines that are hitting this bug are running drivers that are over ten years old. The current drivers don’t have this bug. In fact, the current drivers don’t even have the custom control panel extension! In the time since I originally did this investigation, it appears that people finally got their act together and upgraded their video drivers, because there has been only one recorded occurrence of this crash worldwide in the past 30 days.

Bonus reading: The difference between a junior and senior position at a video card company.

The post Adventures in application compatibility: The case of the display control panel crash on exit appeared first on The Old New Thing.

An unknown threat actor created malicious game modes for the Dota 2 multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) video game that could have been exploited to establish backdoor access to players' systems. The modes exploited a high-severity flaw in the V8 JavaScript engine tracked as CVE-2021-38003 (CVSS score: 8.8), which was exploited as a zero-day and addressed by Google in October 2021. "Since V8

Film and TV piracy increased in 2022 compared with the previous year, according to a research firm.

The war in Ukraine is the first major conflagration between two technologically advanced powers in the age of cyber. It prompts us to question the nature of modern warfare and the role of cyber in its operation.

The post The Lessons From Cyberwar, Cyber-in-War and Ukraine appeared first on SecurityWeek.

This post contains spoilers for "Narvik: Hitler's First Defeat."

While "All Quiet on the Western Front" is getting all the awards season love, becoming a surprise Oscar contender after a relatively quiet festival run in 2022, there is another European war movie making strides on Netflix. I'm talking about "Narvik: Hitler's First Defeat," the thrilling 2022 Norwegian war drama focusing on the pivotal Battle of Narvik at the beginning of World War II. Dubbed the first Allied victory, the battle was a significant chapter in the course of the war, and the film does a good job of showing why it was important, and how both sides responded.

Perhaps more importantly, the film excels at portraying the effects of the war on the civilians of the eponymous Norwegian town, forcing them to fend for themselves while opposing forces use them for their own benefit (without a care for those caught in the middle). But while the film is a fine summary of the battle and its importance and impact, the true story behind the movie is even more fascinating and tragic. Let's break it down.

It's All About That Iron

"Narvik" follows the Toftes, a young Norwegian married couple from Narvik. Ingrid (Kristine Hartgen) works at the town's biggest hotel while her husband Gunnar (Carl Martin Eggesbø) is a corporal in the army, and the two have a young son. With World War II raging on, Norway has declared its neutrality, but that doesn't mean much to either side, who are quite interested in Narvik's usefulness as a port in the North Atlantic that doesn't freeze during winter, and can be used to transport iron ore from Sweden.

For Germany, this would mean resources to build their arsenal, and for Britain, it would mean cutting the enemy off their supply. Trying to play both sides, an early scene shows the town's mayor meeting with delegates from Britain and Germany to discuss a neutral agreement to supply the iron to each of them without conflict. Unsurprisingly, however, neutrality is hard to maintain in wartime, especially once German military forces invade the town. In a harrowing scene, the Narvik garrison comes across German soldiers in the dark, pointing guns at them. The Nazi general shouts that they better surrender because they have no chance, and the Norwegian colonel surrenders his forces without resistance — in real life, that same colonel was actually a Nazi sympathizer.

The excuse is that the Germans are here to "protect" Norway's neutrality against aggression from the British. This is April 9, 1940, the start of the German occupation of Norway, which was mostly a means of securing the iron ore supply. Quickly, the German forces overrun the town and set up a base at the Toftes' hotel and nearby buildings, forcing the civilians out of their homes while serving smiles and pretenses about paying compensation for the disturbance.

Not A Short Campaign

With the change of the colonel's allegiance, "Narvik" gives him a more heroic purpose, as his surrender allows him to take his troops out of the town and discreetly plan the reconquest of Narvik. First, he has Gunnar blow up the train tracks that go through the town to stop the iron transport for the Nazi war machine, then he joins the resistance. In real life, the train track was not destroyed, and instead served a critical role for both sides, allowing Germany to transport supplies and soldiers via neutral Sweden, and Norway to transport soldiers by train (also via Sweden to avoid Nazi patrols).

With the Norwegian troops out of Narvik, it is the British that try to take down the German fleet stationed at the nearby Ofotfjord, and manage to defeat the Nazi fleet. In the film, Gunnar is taken prisoner for a few weeks, and only escapes when French and Polish troops arrive in Norway for the counterattack.

In reality, troops from France, the U.K., and Poland joined the Norwegian Army for several battles in the area surrounding Narvik all throughout May. The Allied troops severely outnumbered the Germans, and they started advancing and defeating the Germans they faced on the way to the town. However, due to differences in command, Norway still acted independently and neutral from the Allies -- meaning, there was never a unified plan of how to retake the railway.

At the same time, we also follow the civilians living in Narvik during the occupation. Ingrid is forced to work for the Germans as an interpreter, while also helping hide the British consul. It becomes clear that, for the neutral civilians of Narvik, both belligerent forces are bad.

Difficult Choices

You see, the Germans smile as they force the Norwegians out of their homes, while the British help mostly by bombarding the town, killing plenty of civilians and destroying their homes. Worse yet, Ingrid is blackmailed by the British into spying on the Germans and providing the very coordinates that allow the British to airstrike the town, which results in Ingrid's father-in-law dying, and her son being hit by grenade shrapnel. This forces Ingrid to make an impossible choice, and sell out the British consul to the Germans in exchange for medical help to save her son.

Unfortunately, talk about Ingrid being a Nazi collaborator (as well as a favorite of the Nazi commander) quickly spread around town, and she makes the choice to leave Narvik to avoid becoming a pariah. Even her husband, once they are reunited, snaps at her and calls her a traitor for her actions of helping the enemy. But for Ingrid, there was no ally and enemy, just outsiders destroying the town. The Germans took their homes, but the British killed them.

A Short-Lived Victory

By the end of May, 1940, it became clear that the Germans would be driven out of the country and victory was at sight. Sadly, the taste of victory would be bittersweet in retrospect. At the same time, the invasion of France was raging on, the British government had decided to evacuate London, and other battles across Europe took precedence in the eyes of the Allies. The decision was made to evacuate all Allied forces from the port of Narvik after it was retaken.

On June 8, 1940, the Norwegian and Allied forces had successfully freed the town of Narvik and secured the port, but not unscathed. As the film shows, the Germans decided to bombard the town after their troops had left, destroying much of it — though a big part of the town had already been evacuated, with Patrick Dalzel-Job (who some believe to be the inspiration for James Bond) organizing the evacuation. When the Allies fully retreated from Norway, the victory on Narvik became short-lived. With the Allies gone, the country was left to fend for itself, allowing Germany to consolidate the occupation of Norway shortly thereafter. Still, it made for a compelling movie!

Read this next: The 14 Greatest War Movies Of The 21st Century

The post The Fascinating True Story Behind Narvik appeared first on /Film.

About an hour ago, modder emoose released a new wrapper called DLSSTweaks that can reportedly force NVIDIA DLAA (Deep Learning Anti-Aliasing) support into most DLSS-compatible titles.

It also allows tweaking the new DLSS presets introduced with Super Resolution SDK 3.1, though of course, you'll have to be using that version of the .dll file if you want to take advantage of this functionality. Do note that DLSS 3.1 seems to improve the quality and performance of some games, while others get ghosting or other artifacts, so it is not necessarily your best bet.

According to its creator, DLSSTweaks should work fine with the following games:

• Dying Light 2
• Shadow of the Tomb Raider
• Judgment
• Lost Judgment
• Death Stranding
• Cyberpunk 2077
• Red Dead Redemption 2 (rename to XInput9_1_0.dll)
• Plague Tale Requiem (UE4, might need renaming to XInput1_3.dll or XInput9_1_0.dll to work)
• Chernobylite (UE4, might need renaming to XInput1_3.dll or XInput9_1_0.dll to work)
• Ghostwire Tokyo (UE4, might need renaming to XInput1_3.dll or XInput9_1_0.dll to work)
• God of War
• Uncharted 4
• Horizon Zero Dawn
• Deathloop
• Ready Or Not (UE4, might need renaming to XInput1_3.dll or XInput9_1_0.dll to work)

On the other hand, these three titles currently have issues with DLSSTweaks:

• FIST: Forged in Shadow Torch
• Mortal Shell
• Minecraft Bedrock Edition (DLAA causes screen cut in half)

To install the wrapper, you'll have to extract the dxgi.dll & dlsstweaks.ini files into the game's .exe folder, then open the dlsstweaks.ini file and edit it with the desired tweaks. The creator does not recommend using DLSSTweaks with any online games, though, as doing so would likely get you banned due to anticheat software.

In other DLSS news, the first game to support the new DLSS Super Resolution 3.1 is Control, thanks to a mod made by Remedy programmer Filippo Tarpini. The same mod also adds native HDR (High Dynamic Range) and Ultrawide display support.

The post DLSSTweaks Wrapper Can Force DLAA Into Most DLSS Titles, Lets Users Tweak Presets by Alessio Palumbo appeared first on Wccftech.

Life is full of surprises, curveballs, and moments of serendipity. Fate may play a part in the lives of the Jedi in the "Star Wars" galaxy, but in the real world, it may have intervened in the life of an actor who played a key role in the Rebellion. Actor Warwick Davis, now famous for playing the affable Ewok Wicket in 1983's "Return of the Jedi," has become a quintessential part of George Lucas' sci-fi fantasy empire. As a beacon for the franchise, Davis is arguably the most beloved performer outside of the holy trinity of Luke, Leia, and Han (all due respect to Chewie, Lando, and our favorite protocol and astromech droids). Always a staple at the fan convention Star Wars Celebration, it's nearly impossible to picture an alternate reality in which Davis was never a part of the vast canon of "Star Wars." 

Although it seems meant to be now, Davis could easily have missed his chance to co-star in "Return of the Jedi," which would have sent him down a completely different life path. Luckily for fans and Davis alike, the actor's grandmother happened to randomly be listening to the radio one day back in 1981. A casting call looking for actors of Davis' stature beamed out over the airwaves, leading to a pivotal moment that completely changed their lives. If his grandmother hadn't tuned in that day, moviegoers would have never been blessed with Davis' presence in the "Star Wars" universe, his star turn in "Willow," and, of course, his painfully lame limericks in "Leprechaun."

Fulfilling His Destiny

Originally, George Lucas wanted to explore the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk in "Return of the Jedi." We didn't actually see the dense forest planet in live-action until "Revenge of the Sith," unless you count the horrid Wookiee sitcom setting in 1978's "Star Wars Holiday Special." Instead, a much cuter decision was made to create the incredibly huggable Ewoks, setting the stage for Warwick Davis to swoop in to rescue (or capture) Leia Organa on the moon planet of Endor. 

Davis was only 11 years old when his grandmother heard the radio ad casting call that would change his life. The high-profile production was one of the most anticipated projects of all time, and the announcement that the filmmakers were looking for short actors to play Ewoks must have received a phenomenal response when it first aired. "It's like these 'Sliding Doors' moments," Davis told the UK's Independent while promoting the hilarious BBC sitcom "Life's Too Short" back in 2011. "It's amazing isn't it, if she wasn't in the room at that moment ... all of it's different ... all of it's different."

According to EW, R2-D2 actor Kenny Baker was originally supposed to play the role of Wicket while Davis would have been an extra, but when Baker got sick, Davis suddenly found himself called into the larger role and living a fantasy any child of the '80s would have absolutely cherished. After being asked to reprise the role of Wicket in the made-for-TV movie "Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure" in 1984, Davis never seriously pursued acting and certainly didn't expect to continue playing in the "Star Wars" sandbox for years to come. "I find myself here today and it's what I do. The career discovered me rather than me going after it."

The Galaxy Wouldn't Be The Same Without Warwick

Diehard "Star Wars" fans will readily admit that Warwick Davis has become the everlasting beating heart of the franchise over the years. His sincerity and joyful participation in all things Lucasfilm has only been rivaled by Anthony Daniels, who has appeared in every film in the saga as C-3PO. For Davis, his inclusion in the continued adventures within the galaxy have almost become an expected addition to every story. After appearing as Wicket in "Jedi," "Caravan of Courage," and "The Battle For Endor," Davis popped up in "The Phantom Menace" as a weapons dealer named Weazel, a Blarina alien called Wollivan in "The Force Awakens," and as a Canto Bight gambler named Wodibin in "The Last Jedi." 

Countless cameos aside, Davis also played Weazel in the vastly underrated "Solo: A Star Wars Story" -- an arms expert that was part of Enfys Nest's space pirate brigade known as the Cloud-Riders. For fans of Dave Filoni's incredible series "Star Wars: Rebels," Davis may be most revered for his voice-over work as Thrawn's deadly assassin, Rukh. Going completely full circle, he also reprised his role as Wicket in "The Rise of Skywalker" with his aptly named son, Harrison, appearing at his side. 

Clearly, the "Star Wars" universe would be a much emptier place without the continued contributions of Davis, who has championed the franchise and its passionate fanbase for decades. Maybe he'll even appear in the upcoming season 3 of "The Mandalorian" when it premieres on Disney+ on March 1, 2023.

Read this next: The 12 Best Star Wars Easter Eggs In Andor Season 1

The post Warwick Davis Was A Last-Minute Replacement To Play Star Wars' Wicket appeared first on /Film.

Hopefully it stays fun

When we last checked in with Wild Hearts, I was pleased at how unique the game world was, and how it differentiated itself from the rest of the hunting genre. Four months later with the final build in my hands and the launch swiftly approaching, I feel roughly the same.

[caption id="attachment_363055" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

For me, the main draw of Wild Hearts is the setting. Taking place in the constantly changing and mysterious land of Azuma, it feels like pretty much anything can happen. An ice wolf can drop by and change the arena into an arctic setting. A creature can breathe fire and wreck havoc in an idyllic forest. Of course most of these sequences are scripted and deal with the introduction of big bosses (the subjects of the hunt), but it's still exciting in the context of a first-time playthrough.

It also has a good Koei Tecmo action core to boot. The key to all this is the Karakuri system, which are basically magically conjured tools, adding a bit of construction into the hunting formula. The very first Karakuri you acquire is a platform, which can also be used as a spring board to launch you into enemies. Slowly but surely, you start to realize the additional use scenarios for Karakuri, like placing platforms to block attacks and create a makeshift barrier, and so on.

On performance mode, everything plays out smoothly, amid the vibrant visuals. While the story hasn't grabbed me yet (despite being a chunk into the game), the world is driving me forward, and I don't have any major complaints about the action sequences yet. The additional of a "sliding dodge" (triggered when pressing the dodge button while sprinting) feels comically over the top at first, but really helps the player character avoid some of the crazier attacks from bosses.

So far, I have been able to experiment a bit with online multiplayer; and in the pre-launch period, things have been going swimmingly. The game will ask me if I want to call for help whenever fighting a big hunt target, and I'll always just hit "yes" just to see what happens. Every other fight someone joins in and answers the call, usually with a completely different main weapon and Karakuri setup.

[caption id="attachment_363057" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Seeing all of the different weapons work in tandem is how Wild Hearts really comes together. As I generally brave close combat situations and serve as the bait, other players use combos of ranged and hit and run weapons, bringing in Karakuri synergy of their own. I've had a blast trying out new strategies and loadouts too on lower priority targets, as it feels like there's just enough weapons to do that without things getting too overbearing.

We've heard from Koei Tecmo for months that the game is supposed to be 30 hours long, and hopefully it keeps up the pacing I've experienced throughout that runtime. But most importantly, hunter genre fans are going to want to know if this game is going to be a flash in the pan, or something they want to invest in for months on end.

Even if it doesn't meet those expectations (and some post-launch patches and DLC never arrive), I'm glad I took the plunge and played through everything I've seen so far. This is a gorgeous game, and as a purely atmospheric action romp, it's hitting a lot of good notes. Expect our full review of Wild Hearts closer to launch.

The post Review in Progress: Wild Hearts appeared first on Destructoid.

For some people, football is not the most exciting part of the Super Bowl. There's so much else competing for viewers' attention! The tastiest party snacks of all time are consumed on Super Bowl Sunday, along with the most polarizing halftime shows. Between bites of chips and dip, those watching at home delighted in seeing new commercials and highly anticipated trailers during breaks from the last night's hard-hitting game. Budweiser Clydesdales and Pepsi ads always abound, but we're to celebrate this year's upcoming releases.

Super Bowl LVII featured the Philadelphia Eagles playing against the Kansas City Chiefs, along with superhero-themed trailers, cheeky commercials, and a dazzling halftime performance by Rihanna. Throughout the event, film buffs saw sneak peeks of several projects to see in 2023. As Variety noted, major studios are more willing to promote their titles now than earlier in the COVID-19 pandemic. Studios individually paid as much as $7 million to secure their 30-second spots for Super Bowl Sunday this year (per Deadline). From "AIR" to "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3," these are the best movie trailers we saw during Super Bowl LVII.

Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania

Those watching the big game might have expected a full trailer for the first film of Marvel Cinematic Universe's Phase Five, "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania." Instead, Ant-Man/Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) promoted the film in character with a Heineken commercial for non-alcoholic beer. Of course, he starred opposite an ant.

Some Marvel fans got a taste of what to expect in Phase Five earlier at Disney's 2022 D23 Expo and 2022's San Diego Comic-Con. Others watching the College Football Playoff National Championship in January 2023 saw a two-minute trailer with Ant-Man/Scott Lang, Wasp/Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly), and their families contending with the Quantum Realm. In a shorter clip, Scott ponders his priorities and says, "Right now, the only job I want is being a dad." His daughter, Cassie (Kathryn Newton), simultaneously steps into her powers.

In an interview with Nerdbunker, director Peyton Reed shared, "The whole theme is time, and how much time [Scott has] missed, and his main motivation is just, 'I want time with my daughter.' And now he's coming into contact with a villain in this movie, Kang the Conqueror, who has dominion over time." Disney calls Kang (Jonathan Majors) "the MCU's most powerful villain to date." Fans learn the rest of the story when "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" opens in theaters on February 17.

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3

Marvel Studios also released a trailer for James Gunn's "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3." On Deadline's "Hero Nation" podcast in January 2022, the director teased what the upcoming film will be like. "It's big," Gunn said. "It's so, so big, and dark, and different from what people might be expecting it to be." 

An earlier trailer dropped in December 2022, opens with a Peter Quill/Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) voiceover, stating, "We were gone for quite a while. But no matter what happens next, the galaxy still needs its guardians." A short ad that aired early in the Super Bowl was actually a trailer for a new trailer, telling fans to check it out online. This trailer teased further developments between Star-Lord and Gamora (Zoe Saldaña). Drax (Dave Bautista) showcases particularly deep thoughts, saying, "We'll all fly away together into the forever, and beautiful sky."

The final piece of the GOTG trilogy arrives in theaters in May 2023, six years after "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2." Michael Boyle of /Film encourages viewers to make sure they've seen "Avengers: Infinity War" and "Endgame" to catch up with Gamora's journey and to appreciate the emotional context of the Gunn's upcoming film. "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" seemingly suggests a satisfying story for Rocket (Bradley Cooper), as the Guardians must save his and his friends' lives.

The Flash

Barry Allen/The Flash (Ezra Miller) returns to the DCEU in 2023's "The Flash." Miller was arrested more than once in 2022 and accused of grooming and abusing a now-18-year-old (per the Los Angeles Times). Miller apologized in a statement to Variety, stating, "Having recently gone through a time of intense crisis, I now understand that I am suffering complex mental health issues and have begun ongoing treatment."

Perhaps the trailer for "The Flash" that aired during Super Bowl 57 was more noticeable in light of the legal and behavioral issues surrounding its star. Speaking with CBS, Rotten Tomatoes' Mark Ellis stressed the importance of the film's social media presence in detracting attention from Miller's actions. The shortened trailer during the big game featured Michael Keaton as Batman, leading viewers to another online trailer. The longer video displays The Flash in the throes of a time-travel multiverse, where he comes face to face with another version of himself.

Gunn told reporters the film was "probably one of the greatest superhero movies ever made (via Deadline)." Previously, Marvel fired and rehired Gunn due to resurfaced problematic tweets. He is now Co-chairman and CEO of DC Studios (a title he shares with Peter Safran), connecting the DCEU across TV, film, and other mediums. On Twitter, Gunn gave "The Flash" credit for resetting the DCEU.

If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.

If you or someone you know may be the victim of child abuse, please contact the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.

Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny

While "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" doesn't give much away about its plot, it's still exciting to see Harrison Ford back in archaeological action! Aside from a surprise 30-second spot released during Super Bowl 57, fans saw a longer trailer for the upcoming film in December 2022. 

In the upcoming film, Indy thinks his days of adventuring are over. But his goddaughter Helena (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) joins him for a new expedition amid the U.S.-Soviet Space Race. The archaeologist grabs his fedora for an action-packed ride as John Williams' famous musical theme plays. The clip also reveals a snapshot of a younger-looking Ford, courtesy of the de-aging technology utilized in the film. At any age, the actor looks fearless. "I wanted to do the rest of the story to see the end of his career," Ford told Variety. However, he said this would be his last film in the franchise. James Mangold is the director, and Steven Spielberg joins George Lucas as an executive producer. See how this "legend will face his destiny" in summer 2023.

AIR

"AIR" arrives in April 2023 from Ben Affleck and Matt Damon's production company, Artists Equity. Based on true events in the Nike company, the film revolves around its co-founder and CEO Phil Knight (Affleck), and sports marketing exec Sonny Vaccaro (Damon). In the 1980s, the men are on a quest to harness the essence of then-rookie Michael Jordan to create "the greatest basketball shoe that's ever been made." If you've been a fan of Michael Jordan, purchased a few Nike products, or followed the company on a larger scale, this origin story should be fascinating.

Directed by Affleck, "AIR" is full of other stars. Viola Davis, Chris Tucker, Jason Bateman, and Chris Messina are in the trailer. EGOT winner Davis portrays Michael's mother, Deloris Jordan, who champions her gifted son. After its theatrical run, "AIR" will land on Prime Video in the U.S., as Amazon Studios holds U.S. distribution rights, whereas Warner Bros has international distribution rights. On behalf of himself and Damon, Affleck said in a press release, "This was the best creative and personal experience of our lives, and we look forward to many more like it." Time to see how Air Jordans became so iconic!

Creed III

For those looking for another promising sports film, the gripping "Creed III" teaser will deliver in spades.

The first "Creed" film in 2015 was a spin-off of the "Rocky" franchise. Star Michael B. Jordan (who plays Adonis Johnson) directs and produces the franchise's third installment. In "Creed III," Adonis encounters Damian Anderson (Jonathan Majors), a childhood friend who recently served time in prison. The two men become competitors in the boxing ring, complicating their former relationship and understanding of one another as adults. A short trailer presents rigorous training sequences mixed with complicated personal lives. Bianca (Tessa Thompson) tells Adonis, "Don't let him destroy everything you've built." In a trailer from fall 2022, Adonis is the one who invites Damian to return to the gym. Damian becomes determined to prove himself and confidently tells Adonis, "I'm coming for everything."

Majors told W magazine a bit about his training for "Creed III." He recalled, "My coach, Rob Sally, said to me, 'People fight the way they live.' That makes watching boxing that much more interesting. It's very much like acting." In March 2023, viewers can see the film in theaters and take in the sports story IMAX-style. 

Fast X

"Fast X" is such a big deal that there was an L.A. party, hosted by Maria Menounos, just for its trailer release. Star Vin Diesel said at the event, "Guys, I can't tell you how good it feels after 23 years to be here tonight to unveil the trailer. The Super Bowl will see one minute of this trailer. You are going to see four minutes (via USA Today)." Diesel was correct. The explosive one-minute trailer from the game introduces Jason Momoa as the vengeful Dante, son of vanquished villain Hernan Reyes. The lengthier trailer online delves deeper into the story of "Fast X."

Family is clearly an important element of this film and the franchise writ large. The "Fast X" trailer begins at Abuela Toretto's (Rita Moreno) cookout. She praises Dominic Toretto (Diesel) for the "magnificent family" he cultivated. However, Dante threatens all Dominic holds dear. "You built such a beautiful life filled with love and family. I never got that chance," Dante says. Dominic takes off in his Dodge Charger to fight for his family. In the words of Tej (Ludacris), "It's showtime." This high-stakes film also features Helen Mirren, Brie Larson, Charlize Theron, John Cena, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Sung Kang, Jordana Brewster, and Jason Statham.

"Fast X," which opens May 19, is the beginning of the end for Dom, as it's the penultimate film of the blockbuster action franchise. Justin Lin stepped down from his role as director in 2022, and Louis Leterrier replaced him.

Paramount+ And Stallone Face

Paramount+ featured the Stallone family in a synergistic streaming commercial during the Super Bowl. The "Stallone Face" ad is a continuation of the streamer's Super Bowl 2021 campaign advertising a "Mountain of Entertainment" (though Paramount+ had no ads for the game in 2022). The streaming service's chief marketing officer and executive vice president, Don DiMeglio, told Adweek, "How do we go bigger? That was the idea of how the Mount Rushmore style of Stallone scaling the mountain came together." As for the timing, DiMeglio added, "The Super Bowl is a cultural moment, a time like none other on the calendar."

Sylvester Stallone stars in the crime drama "Tulsa King," and his daughters, also featured in the Super Bowl ad, are set to appear with him in a docuseries called "The Family Stallone." Other Paramount characters stand in the snow as Stallone climbs up a mountainous version of his own face. The stars of "Dora the Explorer," "Beavis and Butt-Head," two "Star Trek" shows, and "Reno 911!" all seem to know each other. This crossover TV spot is clever for utilizing a range of Paramount programming, and Adweek reports that "Stallone Face" is here to stay as a paid campaign for Paramount+.

Scream VI

The big game was complete with a few chills, courtesy of the "Scream" franchise. Premiering in March 2023, "Scream VI" features a fresh Ghostface and takes its cast from Woodsboro to New York City. In the Super Bowl trailer, characters are seen trying to escape from an apartment building as Ghostface terrorizes them. Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega) suggests killing Ghostface in one clip, then yells at the masked villain, who finishes the trailer in a harrowing moment with Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox).

The new 3D film is missing "Scream" star Neve Campbell. She told People in 2022, "I did not feel that what I was being offered equated to the value that I bring to this franchise, and have brought to this franchise, for 25 years." She believed a male actor would have been offered a higher salary.

For those who haven't seen it, note that this horror trailer is rather gruesome.

The Little Mermaid

While Disney released an official teaser trailer in 2022 for their live-action adaptation of "The Little Mermaid," and a full trailer was expected for Super Bowl Sunday in 2023. (possible description starter: The new trailer expands on Ariel's (Halle Bailey) world, taking her beyond the dimly-lit cavern in which she sings "Part of Your World.") 

"The Little Mermaid" is set for a May 2023 release, which has been a long time coming for fans. Disney announced in 2019 that Halle Bailey would be playing Ariel. Director Rob Marshall said in a statement, "After an extensive search, it was abundantly clear that Halle possesses that rare combination of spirit, heart, youth, innocence, and substance — plus a glorious singing voice — all intrinsic qualities necessary to play this iconic role" (per Variety).

As the trailer hinted, the upcoming film boasts magical music. Composer Alan Menken, who worked with the late Howard Ashman on the music of the 1989 animated film, worked with Lin-Manuel Miranda to craft the songs for the live-action remake. Though it wasn't easy adjusting to each other's styles as they wrote new songs, Menken shared on Disney's "For Scores" podcast, "We had a blast. I can't wait for people to hear the songs."

Elemental

"Elemental" is the first Disney-Pixar movie to debut in theaters since "Onward" in March 2020. Throughout the pandemic, "Soul," "Luca," and "Turning Red" were instead released on Disney+. Directed by Peter Sohn, "Elemental" arrives in June 2023. A November 2022 trailer displayed characters who represent different manifestations of the four elements -- blobs of water, fire, vapors, and vegetation-producing dirt. The film's music is by Heitor Pereira, and a smooth, groovy score introduces the elemental characters while they ride on a train. The protagonist, fiery Ember (Leah Lewis), is wearing a sparkly purple hoodie and listening to this music through her headphones until she meets watery Wade (Mamoudou Athie).

Sohn told The Hollywood Reporter that "Elemental" has been seven years in the making, and that his personal life shaped the story. "I hope they think about their loves in their lives and how they got there. I hope that under the umbrella of the loves in their lives, a big part of it is our parents," the director said.

Read this next: The 30 Most Anticipated Movies Of 2023

The post The Best Super Bowl 2023 Movie Trailers And TV Spots We Saw During The Big Game appeared first on /Film.

Throughout the course of Sam Raimi's "Evil Dead" trilogy, Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell) has been through the wringer. As if it wasn't enough to chop off his own arm and attach a chainsaw to it to fight ghastly Deadites, Ash is sucked through a time portal that lands him in the Middle Ages in "Army of Darkness," the delightfully slapstick final installment in the series. Right after Ash flails around the portal with exaggerated despair, the title card flashes BRUCE CAMPBELL vs. ARMY OF DARKNESS — not Ash Williams, but Bruce Campbell, who embodies the boomstick-wielding anti-hero to such perfection, that his name precedes the actual title of the film. In the event of celebrating the 30th anniversary of Raimi's "Army of Darkness" this week, I want to talk about Campbell's defining performance as a badass, wisecracking a-hole who is thrust into becoming a hero without ever craving the mantle.

When one dives deeper into Ash's personality in "The Evil Dead," it becomes clear that part of the reason why the original's ending hits so hard is that Campbell plays Ash with nuanced sensitivity — an empathetic everyman who undergoes unimaginable horrors. Ash becomes more hardened in "Evil Dead 2" because he has to: there is no space for softer emotions as the undead will be sure to use them against you. Keeping this in mind, Campbell's rendition of Ash in "Army of Darkness" is a part of this natural evolution, which devolves into slapstick, campy humor mixed with a brand of physical comedy that demands incredible skill and range. And by god, Campbell delivers, to the point that the film would have completely fallen apart without him making its wild genre-hybridity work. And he absolutely serves while doing so. 

Selling The Premise

Borderline-campy, highly-improbable moments are peppered throughout Raimi's "Evil Dead" films, which expertly amalgamate lighter, slapstick moments with genuinely terrifying, spine-chilling horror. "Army of Darkness" embraces these campier aspects and turns up the notch to 100; no matter which version of the film you end up watching, there are some unforgettably hilarious moments that add to its appeal. Bruce Campbell's Ash is obviously the heart of the film, frenetically alternating between a heroic slayer of the undead to a goofy idiot who messes up the phrase "Klaatu Barada Nikto" after confidently claiming that he's committed it to memory.

The cemetery scene unfolds in a manner that subverts the expectations one attaches to your standard horror protagonist, especially one who has successfully survived the harrowing events of two installments. After being physically attacked by decoy Necronomicons, Ash zeroes in on the real one and forgets the phrase that is key to this medieval-style quest. In an attempt to find a loophole in his deal, he fakes the incantation by dramatically coughing out the final word. This, of course, brings an army of skeletons to life, who taunt, harass, and drag him across the ground rather disrespectfully, dismantling his heroic status. Rather than coming off as unbearably camp, the sequence is hilariously dumb, thanks to Campbell's incredible ability to pull off ridiculous facial expressions in extreme close-ups.

Raimi, who was heavily inspired by Mark Twain's "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court," constructs a premise that should technically derail his setup for the franchise so far. The sheer idea of Ash traveling back in time and being forced to fight a skeleton army while protecting Lord Arthur's men should not work even on paper. But it does, thanks to Campbell's dedication to Ash, who manages to sell an extremely unlikely premise.

Cementing Character Legacy

Before diving deeper into Bruce Campbell's rendition of Ash, can we talk about how good he looks in "Army of Darkness?" Not to be shallow, but Campbell's evolution as Ash from a pretty boy trying his best to survive, to a devilishly handsome man who won't hesitate to kill, helps trace the character's arc convincingly. In fact, Ash's beefed-up physique is the highlight of the film's poster, which lends to his romantic chemistry with Sheila (Embeth Davidtz), whom he effortlessly woos with corny one-liners like "Give me some sugar, baby." The effectiveness of this line is subverted when Evil Ash abducts Sheila and he uses it on her: what was once sexy is now a source of horror.

Circling back to Campbell's ability to command the screen, one has to talk about the Lilliput Ashes sequence. This particular chunk is fascinating like a fever dream, where Ash has to contend with multiple tiny versions of him who run around torturing him, sticking rakes up his butt, and taunting him with a "London Bridge is falling down" comeback. Campbell owns this sequence with the power of physical comedy, which he seamlessly blends with reactions to disorientingly funny events. The tone shifts quickly and verges on body horror when one of the Ashes dives into his open mouth and protrudes from his shoulder as an eye. What follows is a disentangling, where "good Ash" and " evil Ash" separate — what drives the scene home is Campbell's ultra-cool delivery of "Good. Bad. I'm the guy with the gun," which still remains endlessly quotable.

There are several Campbell-isms in "Army of Darkness" that are purely entertaining, cementing the legacy of Ash as the unconventional, no-nonsense final dude who both excels and fails at being a hero. 

Hail To The King, Baby

"Shop smart, shop S-Mart," remarks Ash, when he recounts working at the supermarket before being sucked into a time-travel portal. While this line is delivered in the suavest manner possible, Ash repeats this as a threat after he kills a pit Deadite and asserts dominance over the folks who captured him. This version of Ash is menacing and unbearably cocky, someone who is not afraid to brandish his boomstick like it's King Arthur's Excalibur or call an undead "she-b****" mid-fight. He also fights extremely dirty, as he kicks, screams, lops heads, and fires his gun backward over his shoulder without even looking back. For every scene where Ash looks appropriately heroic while beating up skeletons, there is a scene that inverts this heroism and humiliates him by literally making him fall headfirst into mud.

Also, one of the reasons why I prefer the original ending in the Director's Cut over the S-Mart ending in all the other versions is that it perfectly encapsulates the essence of Ash as a knuckleheaded badass. Here, he accidentally messes up the ratio of the potion that is supposed to send him to his timeline, hence he lands in a post-apocalyptic landscape. In truly dramatic fashion, Campbell sells the comic tragedy of the situation by sinking to his knees and shouting "No! I slept too long!" which is a perfect way to conclude a horror trilogy, at least in my book.

Nevertheless, Campbell finishes strong even in the canon ending, where he shoots the undead in a highly-stylized fashion and gets the girl, bringing the trilogy to a feel-good, cheesy finish. From start to finish, Campbell drips with the frenzied charisma of a cult hero, making "Army of Darkness" a truly special, oddball experience. Hail to the king, baby.

Read this next: Every Sam Raimi Film Ranked

The post Few Actors Have Ever Been As Entertaining As Bruce Campbell In Army Of Darkness appeared first on /Film.

As night falls, a castle needs to be protected from a massive army who have risen from the abyss to claim what they think is rightfully theirs. Archers stand by near the castle walls as the undead army marches toward the fortress in formation, while a reluctant hero rallies the men to fight against impossible odds. No, this is not the battle of Helm's Deep in Peter Jackson's "The Two Towers" — this sequence is the climactic battle between the skeletons and Arthur's men with Ash at the forefront in Sam Raimi's "Army of Darkness." The similarities between Raimi's audacious final installment in the "Evil Dead" trilogy and Jackson's near-perfect "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy are few far and between in terms of tone, intent, and cinematic ambition. However, in the event of the 30th anniversary of "Army of Darkness" this week, I would like to talk about the unlikely influence that Raimi's film had on certain aspects of Jackson's riveting saga.

"Army of Darkness" embraces a renegade brand of splatstick goofiness peppered throughout the first two "Evil Dead" installments by positioning Ash (Bruce Campbell) as an unconventional final survivor. Ash does not care about heroics, cannot remember quest specifics to save his life, and is mercilessly harassed by the skeletons when they rise. He can also be extremely self-centered and spineless when he wants to be, which is a part of Ash's natural evolution from an empathetic survivor to a hardened jerk over the years. Naturally, Raimi's central hero has little in common with the honorable, compassionate Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), who plays a pivotal role in rallying men together to turn the tide at Helm's Deep. So why does this climactic battle in Jackson's film feel like a homage to the one in "Army of Darkness"?

The Parallels Between The Two Battles Are Uncanny

In "The Two Towers," the fate of Helm's Deep directly impacts the course of Middle-earth history with the destruction of Saruman's Uruk-hai, and the dawn of renewed alliance between the Elves and Men. This is a landmark moment in "The Lord of the Rings," painstakingly brought to life by Jackson and his crew with a combination of full-size physical models and computer-generated imagery. In contrast, the climactic final battle in "Army of Darkness" is significantly lesser in scale, but the stakes remain high in Raimi's bonkers, messed-up world: if these Deadites are not defeated, the world comes to an end. Although the skeleton army vs medieval dudes battle lies in a completely different tonal wheelhouse than the Battle of Helm's Deep, closer inspection makes it clear that Jackson took inspiration from Raimi's hilariously dizzying final battle.

The basic beats of the Helm's Deep battle are similar to the skeletal battle. For starters, in Raimi's sequence, fog and silence heighten the tension, while Jackson uses torrential rain, along with similar wide angles to the point that it feels like a subtle homage to Raimi's film. Moreover, the skeletons ramming a tree into the main gates to get to the Necronomicon is hilariously echoed when the Uruk-hai assault the main gateway to breach the fortress. There are smaller echoes here and there, including enemies being toppled over high walls, but these can be argued as delightfully coincidental. 

Finally, while Raimi uses the trope of the enemy arriving last minute to save the day, Jackson ensures victory for the heroes by making Gandalf arrive with 2,000 riders led by Éomer. In both cases, this unexpected aid arrives at the brink of dawn, which essentially turns the tide and rekindles hope among all.

The Devil's In The Details

Ash is no self-sacrificing hero, but he manages to rouse Arthur's men before the battle, thanks to narcissistic cockiness and the pragmatic sense to form last-minute alliances. What happens next is interesting: after Ash shouts "Who's with me?," a bunch of Arthur's men respond in ways reminiscent of the "You have my sword...and you have my bow...and my axe!" sequence in "The Fellowship of the Ring." Here, some medieval dudes remark, "You can stand by my steel!" (said by Ted Raimi of all people) and "You can count on my axe!" but the essence of this scene seems to have trickled down into one of the most oft-quoted declarations from Jackson's first film in the trilogy. Whether intentional or not, I'll let you be the judge of that. 

This brings me to my favorite detail from "Army of Darkness" which seems to have been consciously mirrored by Jackson in "The Two Towers." Remember when Saruman stops Wormtongue from blowing everyone up by pushing away a burning candle from a pestle full of gunpowder? This gag unfolds in a similar fashion in "Army of Darkness," where Ash prevents one of the wise men from holding a bag of gunpowder over an open flame and gently pushes it away. The play-by-play of this situation between Saruman and Wormtongue is too overt to be a coincidence, and considering that Jackson dipped his toes into splatter comedies prior to this with entries like "Dead Alive," Raimi's influence becomes hugely probable. 

Army Of Darkness Rules To This Day

While Raimi's influence on Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" might've been in essence alone (where the parallels are simply supposed to be pure fun, and nothing more), the legacy of "Army of Darkness" still echoes through the chambers of slapstick comedy-horror. It is immensely rare for a film to pivot in tone and substance so hard and still fit in seamlessly with the cult franchise it is a part of. While the first two "Evil Dead" installments still manage to shock and traumatize amid its gags, "Army of Darkness" ramps up the fun to the max while drowning out aspects of real terror — it is an insane adventure helmed by a hero incapable of fulfilling traditional tropes of heroism.

A good example of how the film manages to entertain is the skeletal army battle that I discussed in detail above. As the skeletons are not real, macabre threats, the thrills stem from their comedic behavior, which includes them playing a bone flute as they march into battle while cackling and shouting "Death to the mortals!" as they charge forth. Rarely has a battle sequence without any serious intent or weight been so intentionally hilarious, to the point that you start rooting for the army of bags and bones, just to see what the heck could happen. Either way, it is fun to see the undead blown to bits and hurled up in the air along with a sack of gunpowder. 

"Army of Darkness" also gave us "Hail to the king, baby!," the endlessly-quoted one-liner that caps off the theatrical ending, which plays out in a saccharine way as opposed to the scrapped downer ending. Irrespective of which version you prefer, Ash is a hilarious chainsaw-arm-wielding screw-up in all of them. Groovy.  

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The post The Unlikely Influence Sam Raimi's Army of Darkness Had On Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings appeared first on /Film.

At this point, I'm convinced Natasha Lyonne can do anything. The actor, writer, director, and producer is on a serious roll, starring in (and showrunning) the fantastic second season of the Netflix sci-fi series "Russian Doll" and starring in Rian Johnson's new Peacock series "Poker Face," but once upon a time she wasn't as famous and lost out on some pretty big roles. Lyonne has been acting since she was a child, with her first credited performance on "Pee-Wee's Playhouse" when she was just six years old, and that means she's been to enough auditions that she's probably lost count. Apparently, among those auditions were try-outs for the title role on the ABC comedy series "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" and for Six on the NBC comedy series "Blossom," both of which would have been wildly different with Leone. 

While appearing on "Watch What Happens Live," host Andy Cohen asked Lyonne if there were any roles she tried out for over her expansive career that she thought should have been hers instead. Lyonne, always candid, revealed that there were quite a few, but "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" was probably the most surprising of them all. The series ended up starring Melissa Joan Hart, who was a massive name at the time due to her starring role on Nickelodeon's "Clarissa Explains it All," but Lyonne would have brought a completely different energy to the teenage spellcaster. 

Wonderfully Weird Witchy Women

One can imagine that it always stings a bit to lose out on a role, even years later, but Lyonne was perfectly candid about her lost potential sitcom stardom, explaining that she auditioned for both Blossom and Six on the series "Blossom," Sabrina on "Sabrina the Teenage Witch," and for the 1991 John Hughes' flick "Curly Sue." Both Cohen and fellow guest Alison Brie were completely shocked that Lyonne lost out on the role of Six in particular, which went to actor Jenna von Oÿ, while the role of Blossom went to Mayim Bialik. 

Lyonne managed just fine without getting those roles, starring in comedy films like "American Pie" and "Slums of Beverly Hills" before becoming a household name with her empathetic and sleazy-cool portrayal of Nicky on the Netflix women-in-prison series "Orange is the New Black." Lyonne's characters seem to always have a bit of her laissez-faire, easy-going attitude baked into them, and it would have been amazing to see that in a role like Sabrina. Don't get me wrong — Melissa Joan Hart was great and "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" was a beloved part of the TGIF Friday night lineup on ABC for good reason! It's just that the idea of a curly-haired, gravel-voiced teenage witch sounds like a totally different show, and one I would have loved to see. 

A Different Kind Of Magic

"Sabrina the Teenage Witch" followed the adventures of high school spellcaster Sabrina Spellman, who lived with her aunts and her familiar, a talking cat named Salem (voiced by comedian Nick Bakay). She had to deal with typical teenage problems like asking a boy to the Sadie Hawkins Dance or getting a big pimple right before her class presentation, but she usually had supernatural solutions. Lyonne would have probably made the character a bit snarkier and sharper, though the love for Salem the cat would have probably stayed the same. (Just imagine their banter!) 

Thankfully, Lyonne's career did just fine even without those big sitcom roles, and she's gone on to be a massive star in both movies and television. Fans of the fabulous performer with the amazing accent can check her out as Charlie Cale, who can tell when people are lying, on Peacock's "Poker Face." That might not have a bubbling cauldron or a talking cat, but it does have its own special kind of magic, and a big part of that is all Lyonne. Here's hoping that we get to continue to see her onscreen genius for a long, long time. 

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The post Natasha Lyonne Almost Became Sabrina the Teenage Witch Before Melissa Joan Hart Got the Part appeared first on /Film.