Shmee.Me

February 26, 2016February 26, 2016

Who Can Catch James Bond?!

Something very interesting is happening to James Bond, and it is not who will play the character next, but who will get to distribute the next set of films. Sony distributed the last four films which have all raked in over $500 Million a piece with the last two each taking in well over $800 Million, so lets just say every major studio wants a crack at the franchise. I don’t think there has been an opportunity for a studio bidding war for distribution rights as big as this one in the history of film.

Disney has been smart snapping up all the low hanging franchise fruit, but this time I don’t think the other studios will stand by and let them have 007 as well. Universal has been on a tare recently with three films crossing the $1 Billion worldwide mark last year so they will have some extra cash to throw at lucrative franchises. Meanwhile Sony doesn’t have a lot going for it right now in the way of mega-IP, so I am not sure they can afford to loose James. Lionsgate and Legendary both recently received major Chinese financial backing, and Bond does very well in Asian markets, so they both could make a play. Not to mention I am sure Warner Brothers will put in some kind of offer, even if just to make the other studios write bigger checks.

I can’t wait to hear how this turns out, and how many Millions ($$$) it took to get the famous spy back on screen. My guess is that Sony bends over backwards to keep the British double-agent in their corner, but that Universal, Lionsgate, and Legendary really make them pay for it. Disney and Warner have a lot going on right now, so I am not sure they could guarantee the commitment to the franchise that MGM no doubt wants. Whatever happens 007 will have plenty of gadget and tuxedo money.

February 24, 2016February 24, 2016

Is Sony Going To Be The Savior Of VR?

Preorders for Valve and HTC’s Vive came out yesterday, and the news for proponents of VR was not good: The Vive with controllers and sensors will set you back $799. Plus you will need a $300 video card. I have a mid-range gaming machine, so for giggles I ran the Steam VR Test Tool, and it said I could run the Vive, but all my settings would have to be on low. However, at least Vive comes with the motion controllers, those will be extra with Facebook’s Oculus Rift. For now it just comes with an Xbox One controller. Though the Rift will ‘only’ set you back $599, but with the Rift not only will you need that $300 video card, but three dedicated USB3 ports, so I would have to buy an extra card making my total around $950 (still not including their controllers which I am sure will not be cheap).

I am sorry, but if a consumer needs to spend around $1000 to properly use your product, it is DOA. Especially considering I am a least starting with a decent gaming desktop, so for most people the price of entry may be as high as $2000. That is bonkers. People rightly mocked Microsoft for launching the Xbox One for $500, so double to quadruple that price is almost insane.

VR as I see it has one hope left, Sony’s Project Morpheus.

Why Morpheus you may ask? Because a lot of people already own the PS4, so they will not need to beef up their machine. The initial hardware cost is built in. If Sony can launch Morpheus under $500 they may have a hit on their hands. $500 is still a lot, but it is well within the price range of first adopters, and it is a price that the average consumer can save up for. Not to mention the best part, I am sure it will be much easier to setup and configure than either Rift or Vive.

I am not sure VR is something I want, but I know I that I don’t want it for $1000 or more. If Sony can launch Morpheus at a reasonable price it might be something to consider. Especially considering the initial hardware cost is whatever deal you can find on a PS4, and there are some good ones out there. Plus I am sure Sony will have a Morpheus bundle that shaves a few bucks of the base price of the console. If VR has any shot at mainstream appeal Morpheus might be its only hope.

February 23, 2016February 23, 2016

Deadpool Is On Its Way To Being The Biggest X-Men Movie Of All Time And That Scares Me!

Deadpool’s amazing success has been a surprise to just about everyone. As of right now it has made almost $500 worldwide in just its second weekend. It only needs about $250 million more to pass X-Men: Days of Future Past to become the largest grossing X-Men movie ever. Since the movie only cost $58 million to make it has already generated about $150 million in profit just two weeks in. That is almost unheard of for a movie. This is a scary situation.

I think studio executives are going to try and create more ‘Deadpool’ movies, and I don’t just mean sequels (though we are sure to get tons of them). I mean cheaply made ‘R’-rated ‘funny’ superhero flicks. I bet they are going to pull out all the weird dudes out of the closet. I am sure Lobo has been greenlit without a script. What they should be taking from Deadpool’s success isn’t that people want raunchy superheroes, but that they want original superheroes.

People love comic book heroes right now, but they don’t want to see the same movie over and over again, and Deadpool was a great relief to the never-ending Avengers storyline. With Deadpool we got to see a ‘hero’ unlike any other, so superhero movie houses should be looking for more original heroes, or at least be looking for ways to change up their storylines, not just to recreate Deadpool. I am worried because I am enjoying the superhero movie golden age, and I would hate for greedy executives to bring it to end with a glut of bad ‘R’-rated flicks.

February 19, 2016February 19, 2016

Blade Runner 2 Gets A Release Date, But Why?

Blade Runner 2 is coming out January 12, 2018, but why do we need one? I didn’t always like Blade Runner, but now that I finally get it I am sort of upset they are making a sequel. I mean Blade Runner was so influential it changed the way we see the future. Not only in our minds, but almost every movie that takes place in a technologically advanced future copies its style in at least some way. I am not sure that a sequel will be able to add anything to its story or lore in any meaningful way. It is bound to be a disappointment.

Blade Runner may have been one of the few movies that got better with re-edits, but it was always still the same movie, just a slight different view of it. A sequel will have to come up with something totally new while not trampling all over the movie that came before it, and I am not sure that will be possible. For one thing it is going to answer the question of whether Rick Deckard is a Replicant or not, and that alone will make the first movie less fun because arguing about that fact is one of the reasons Blade Runner is still talked about today.

Blade Runner 2 is now officially happening, and I am very grumpy about it. All I can do is hope that it is good, but the track record of movies that make sequels decades after the original is less than stellar. Granted I will probably see it, so I am part of the problem, but sometimes I wish they would let classic Sci-Fi movies be. They aren’t going to get any better than perfect.

February 18, 2016February 18, 2016

Of Course Warner Brothers Is Worried About Batman V Superman!

So the good folks over at HitFix posted a story about the people at DC Films/Warner Brothers being worried about how Batman v Superman is going to do, and what they are going to do if it fails. My response? Of course they are! This film cost well over $200 Million to make plus marketing, so it probably needs to make at least $1 Billion worldwide to see a profit, but there is more at stake than that. If this movie is successful there will be a multitude of other films to follow it up, but if it fails then what? They will have to cancel or move dozens of tent-pole films around, all costing well over $100 Million each. It would be a massive loss to the studio and no number of new Harry Potterverse films will fill that void.

If I was an investor in Warner Brothers I would be worried too, and I would be upset if the people running the studios weren’t planning for the worst. This movie will either be a major win or a massive loss. There isn’t a lot of in between for them. For the record, I am hoping this movie is going to be great. I will be there Thursday night ready to see DC’s big three on screen for the first time. Even if the movie is bad it will be an event worth seeing! Maybe I will see you there. For all you Warner Brothers executives, do what you can to stay calm, maybe take up yoga, it is going to be a rough month for you guys.