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09 Aug

The ’90s CGI Movies That Changed How We Looked at Film

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Film historians agree that computer-generated imagery (CGI) was first used in a motion picture as far back as Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo (1958), which utilized abstract computer animation under its opening credits. Of course that’s not immediately what comes to mind when we think of CGI (or just plain CG) today: the earliest, crude instances of the kind of CG that dominates modern filmmaking were first seen in Westworld (1973), Star Wars (aka A New Hope, 1977), Looker (1981), the groundbreaking Tron (1982), Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), and The Last Starfighter (1984). But the first genuine leap…

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08 Aug

It’s Time to Do Alien vs. Predator Again (and Right)

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“Whoever wins, we lose,” read the famous tagline for Alien vs. Predator. Ask most critics in 2004, and they would insist that we did indeed lose. “The title alone betrays an entire Hollywood mindset of rehash, reheat, recombine. Re-please,” wrote Jessica Winter of Time Out. “A movie based on a video game based on two entirely separate sci-fi horror series—so whatever was interesting in the originals has long been bred out, like double-jointedness,” lamented Ty Burr of the Boston Globe. These samples captured the general tenor of the critical response, which decried AvP as an unholy diluting of two venerable…

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07 Aug

Hellboy: The Crooked Man Cast on Creating a New Version of One of Hellboy’s Best Stories

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When asked to describe his take on one of the most well-known comic book characters ever, Hellboy: The Crooked Man star Jack Kesy has a simple answer: “I enjoy to smoke and Hellboy enjoys to smoke.” To some movie fans, Kesy’s statement may sound flippant. After all, Kesy is stepping into some big shoes. Ron Perlman knocked it out of the park in the two much-loved Hellboy movies directed by Guillermo del Toro. Neil Marshall’s 2019 Hellboy reboot has lots of problems, but none of them involve star David Harbour, who had his own likable energy. But to those who…

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07 Aug

Deep Blue Sea and the Lost Art of Wonderfully Bad Rap-Up Songs During the End Credits

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The 25th anniversary of Deep Blue Sea is generally not seen as a significant cultural event. In the grand context of a world spinning wildly off its axis, finding time to remember that movie where scientists use shark brains to cure Alzheimer’s can be difficult.  Yet Deep Blue Sea deserves to be remembered. Not for the events of the film itself—though it is, remarkably, still one of the best shark movies ever made—but rather for the incredible original rap song that plays over its end credits, “Deepest Bluest (Shark’s Fin).” In that rousing ballad, rapper and Deep Blue Sea co-star…

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07 Aug

The Den of Geek Weekly Quiz! Movie & TV Quizzes

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On what US TV quiz show, in which contestants are given answers and respond in the form of questions, did Rosie Perez’s character Gloria appear on in Spike Lee movie White Men Can’t Jump?JeopardyWho Wants to be a Millionaire?Cash CabFamily FeudWhich two future Marvel movie stars played Brian and Patrick in 2006 British comedy film Starter For Ten, themed around TV quiz show University Challenge?James McAvoy and Benedict CumberbatchTom Hiddleston and Idris ElbaAnthony Hopkins and Dominic CooperPaul Bettany and Martin FreemanWhich 1980s US movie family win fictional game show “Pig in a Poke” to go on a European vacation that…

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06 Aug

The Sixth Sense: The Brilliant Horror of M. Night Shyamalan’s Sound Design

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When one thinks of the great sounds in M. Night Shyamalan’s breakout movie, The Sixth Sense, iconic lines probably leap to mind. And none stand out more than the confession scene, in which young Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment) agrees to tell child psychologist Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis) his secret. “I see dead people,” Cole explains, laying out the rules of the afterlife for the audience and for Malcolm, who doesn’t realize that the boy’s describing him. It’s a powerful moment, one that deserves to stand the test of time. But it relies upon more than just the dialogue. The…

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05 Aug

M. Night Shyamalan Movies Ranked

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This M. Night Shyamalan article contains spoilers. You are currently in the middle of the Shyamalanaissance, which is not some kind of B-movie supernatural occurrence, but the return of M. Night Shyamalan to the forefront of filmmaking. After a few big budget flops, this cult-favorite director went back to his low-budget roots for the 2015 found-footage film The Visit, an excellent thriller with a twist that will undoubtedly remind movie viewers of his earlier thriller masterpieces, such as The Sixth Sense and Signs. Since then, Shyamalan has released the surprising slasher film Split and the Unbreakable superhero sequel, Glass, twisty…

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05 Aug

Alien: Romulus Continues a Tradition Ridley Scott Established in the First Movie

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“There should be things in the last 20 minutes of the movie that you never see coming,” teases Alien: Romulus director Fede Alvarez, in an exclusive interview with Den of Geek at SDCC 2024. That’s a very ambitious goal for someone helming the ninth movie in one of the most iconic and revered franchises in sci-fi horror history. But based on the trailers we’ve seen so far, Alien: Romulus‘ mission is two-fold: not only is it trying to bring something fresh to this heavily-explored universe but it also wants to recapture what made the franchise’s most beloved installments—Alien (1979) and…

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03 Aug

The Best Horror Movies Set in Broad Daylight

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Things that go bump in the night, fears of the dark, nights of things like The Demon, The Living Dead, The Hunter and… err… The Lepus (big rabbits), are mainstays in horror. Something half glimpsed in the gloom when everything is quiet and people are sleeping is innately creepy. So it can sometimes be extra special when a horror movie manages to scare the bejesus out of us despite being set in the cold light of day. Or indeed, as is the case with many of the following movies because they are set in broad daylight.  So let the sun…

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02 Aug

The Pulpy B-Movie Shyamalan of Trap Is the Best M. Night Shyamalan

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This article contains light spoilers for Trap. It’s no spoiler to say that M. Night Shyamalan makes a cameo appearance in his latest movie Trap. After all, Shyamalan shows up in all of his movies, a tribute to his hero Alfred Hitchcock. But as much as he wants to follow in the footsteps of the master of suspense, Shyamalan has the heart of an ’80s schlockmeister. For evidence, look no further than Trap. Yes, the film has a Hitchcock-worthy premise, in which suburban dad Cooper (Josh Hartnett) finds the pop concert he’s attending with his pre-teen daughter interrupted by police…

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02 Aug

What Are Movie and TV Twists For?

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Warning: contains spoilers for…well, loads of stuff. Before we start this article, we need to deliver possibly one of the most comprehensive spoiler warnings in the history of the site, as this article will contain spoilers for Doctor Who series 14, The Twilight Zone episodes “Five Characters in Search of an Exit”, “To Serve Man”, “Nothing in the Dark”, “Death Ship”, “Judgement Night”, “The Hitch Hiker”, “Eye of the Beholder”, the Black Mirror episodes “Playtest” and “Hang the DJ”, and the movies, Existenz, Vanilla Sky, The Thirteenth Floor, The Usual Suspects, Planet of the Apes, The Village, Citizen Kane, Memento,…

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01 Aug

The Best Star Trek Time Travel Stories Ever, Ranked

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Star Trek is always about boldly going and exploring the final frontier. But who said that frontier had to exist in the present? Many times, the voyages of the USS Enterprise and its sister ships in Starfleet go back to the past and sometimes to the future, where they get new perspectives on what has been and what could be. With few exceptions (looking at you, Picard season two), Trek‘s time travel stories are often entertaining romps or thought-provoking adventures. But a few stand above the rest, outdoing even favorites like “Time’s Arrow” or “Trials and Tribble-ations.” This list ranks…

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01 Aug

Link Tank: Sean Wang Explains True Story of Didi

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After picking up both the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award and the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Best Ensemble at Sundance, Didi is coming to wide release on Aug. 16. Earlier in the year, writer-director Sean Wang stepped into the Den of Geek studio to discuss how much of the film is based on his life. “It’s a very personal story, but it’s not autobiographical. There’s a distinction there… I’m definitely him in the broad strokes. I was 13, 14 years old during that time. His birthday in the movie is my birthday in real-life. I was a skater around…

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01 Aug

M. Night Shyamalan Thinks Audiences Are Ready for ‘90s Movies’ Originality Again

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On a humid and muggy evening in New York City’s Soho neighborhood, filmmaker and genre maestro M. Night Shyamalan seems particularly giddy while standing in front of a room of assorted press. A major reason is probably that tonight is also the birthday of his leading man and collaborator, Josh Hartnett. The pair apparently have plans for a nice dinner upstairs. However, he also seems genuinely curious to see what a group of journalists are going to think about his and Hartnett’s latest movie, Trap—a serial killer thriller told from the point-of-view of the killer. According to Shyamalan, it felt…

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01 Aug

Netflix New Releases: August 2024

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August is a big month for Netflix with lots of new originals hitting the streamer. The Umbrella Academy returns for its fourth and final season with the Hargreeves siblings forced to save the world one last time. Part one of Emily in Paris season 4 arrives this month as well, and Emily’s (Lily Collins) love life is as complicated as ever. The director’s cuts of Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon: Part One and Rebel Moon: Part Two will also be available to watch from Aug. 2, both offering an even more hardcore, bloodier version of the director’s sci-fi saga. There will…

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01 Aug

HBO and Max New Releases: August 2024

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The HBO series Industry returns for a third season on Aug. 11, with Game of Thrones‘ Kit Harington joining the cast. The series follows a cast of characters caught up in the cutthroat world of high finance in London as they determine whether they will thrive or crumble under the pressure. Rick and Morty: The Anime will be available on Max this month for fans looking for something to tide them over until Rick and Morty season 8. Another notable new release this month is the documentary Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes. Formulated with newly recovered interviews and unprecedented access…

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01 Aug

Amazon Prime Video New Releases: August 2024

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Prime Video is the place to be in August with an incredible month of new releases. The month kicks off with the premiere of the animated series Batman: Caped Crusader on Aug. 1. The series was produced by J.J. Abrams and The Batman‘s Matt Reeves. We also return to Middle Earth this month with the premiere of The Rings of Power season 2 on Aug. 29. As far as movies go, the Amazon original Jackpot! arrives on Aug. 15 starring Awkwafina and John Cena. This comedy is set in a world where Lottery winners have to survive until sundown in…

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31 Jul

The Den of Geek Weekly Quiz! Movie & TV Sports

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What popular retro toy, now with its own Dreamworks animated movie franchise, topped the Geller Cup touch football trophy in Friends?Troll DollMy Little PonyTransformersGI JoeMadonna played 'All the Way' Mae Mordabito in which 1990s US sports movie?A League of Their OwnJerry MaguireHappy GilmoreCool RunningsFX American sports documentary series Welcome to Wrexham, following Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenny’s soccer team, is set in which country of the United Kingdom?WalesScotlandNorthern IrelandEnglandReportedly the only breed of dog mentioned in the Bible, what is the team nickname of AFC Richmond in Apple TV+ comedy Ted Lasso?GreyhoundsHuskiesBeaglesBulldogsThe title of which US sports TV drama was followed…

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31 Jul

Bruce Campbell Is Writing the Parts He Always Wanted, and They’re Not Ash

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On the set of his next movie, actor, filmmaker, and pop culture legend Bruce Campbell is in the midst of an epiphany. It’s the first week of his latest directorial feature, and his first dealing with a subject matter as elegiac as that of a widower fulfilling the final wishes of his wife. It’s delicate stuff, and the earliest batch of dailies have just come in. So it of course has to be right now that the obvious potential problem hits him like a thunderbolt. “Ah shit, my leading guy is 66 years old,” Campbell grumbles to himself. As soon…

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31 Jul

Appreciating the Pre-MCU Superhero Movies of the 2000s

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Like anyone else who’s enjoyed a superhero movie in the last 25 years, Ryan Reynolds is having a moment this week. Only for him, it is obviously much more so. An actor who appeared in multiple iterations of the genre’s earliest days in the 21st century—being at one time pegged as Green Lantern, Wade Wilson, and of course vampire hunter extraordinaire Hannibal King in New Line Cinema’s Blade franchise—Reynolds has seen the highs and lows of superhero cinema, and was rewarded for that enduring affection via the biggest hit of his career. Deadpool & Wolverine is indeed a bemused, somewhat…

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