The Dumb Are Mostly Intrigued By The Drum

Hmmm, so far, it seems like I'm not missing much from this years E3 except for a big letdown (last years was pretty bad, too). Sure, it'd still be nice to be dining on free booze as I play some of the latest games but this mornings press conferences from two of the industry's giants proved very much uneventful. Not a single damn thing excited me from Nintendo and the PS3 price cut was the only "meh" moment of Sony's presentation. 'sigh' Maybe next year, huh? Check out Joystiq for more thorough recaps on today's events and the upcoming days as well.

And it happened. As if I needed any more reason to stay in and watch movies, having them instantly available to watch via my Xbox 360 is only going to further hurt my "going out" streak. True, streaming films from Netflix isn't anything new but the ability to use my 360 instead of shelling out $100 for the stand alone set top is cool with me. Oh yeah and by "free" they mean you have to be a Netflix subscriber PLUS you have to have an Xbox Live Gold account, which will run you $50 a year. Still, not too bad. Sure the content won't be HD but they're hinting at it going that way in the near future. Life is good. The service is tentatively on schedule to go live this fall along with a redesigned Dashboard. Check out Engadget here for more info. I love E3 time....

I know a lot of people that be loving teh Rock Band. Me, not so much. To me, it's just a more complicated Guitar Hero (of which I own, twice) but I'm totally for the "audience involvement" it brings to parties. But those drums just rock my ass every time. A case of no rhythm, I guess. Anyways, EA has revealed the set list for the upcoming sequel and there are some good stuff there. Always down for some Rage, Beck and Chili Peppers. And I'm sure the fact that there will be a Guns N' Roses track off there super hyped, oft delayed Chinese Democracy album will undoubtedly move a few more units. Check out the whole list over here at IGN and see if your favorites made it. Let us know who you think is missing from the list and which entries don't really deserve to be on there.

So the weekend has come and gone and sprinkled throughout, once again, were films. But besides that, I actually got a chance to exit my cave of solitude and gained some street cred this past Sat. night as I prowled the street called Shaw. Who knew that Fig Garden had some shit going on there not old people related? That's how out of it I am, I guess. Sure, I felt the urge to smash everyone in sight (yes, even the hot chicks) as it was if I had just teleported into an episode of The Hills but what are you gonna do, just not my scene. I'll leave the "human interaction" stuff to the professionals around the Fresno blogosphere. But back to the other nerd events of the weekend:

• As I sit here typing this lamenting the fact that this is the first Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) that I won't be attending in the past 6 years, Joystiq will be having live updates from the floor show all week, including the press conferences which will be occurring today and tomorrow. But you don't want to support those Hollywood blogs, swing by local blog The Married Gamers as they will also be having constant E3 updates. We'll post some of the major announcements here, too. Fingers crossed for streaming movies over Xbox Live for Netflix subscribers....

• It seems Marvel Studios have decided to do the right thing and give Jon Favreau what he deserved as Deadline Hollywood is reporting that he's coming back to helm Iron Man 2 after some initial cold shoulderin'. Now, let's see if we can get some better action set pieces together in time for the scheduled ridiculous 2010 release date, okay Jon?

• So this week is the week: The Dark Knight is finally coming out and the hype is off the scale. Tickets are being sold at an insane rate so if your planning on seeing the film this weekend, I suggest you buy your tickets soon. I've got mine....for a 6am IMAX showing Friday morning. Yup, 6am. Add that time to the planned screening at midnight and 3am and it's gonna be a very Batman Friday this Friday (poor theater workers). So who's up for the 6am screening?

• Ever play Clastlevania back in the days? Well the video game has a script by film virtuoso Paul W.S. Anderson and guess what? It sucks! The best part? Instead of the trademark whip, Belmont gets a sword. Ugh...read the script review over at CC2K here and see for yourself. Isn't it bad enough you bagged Mila Jovovich now you have to continue destroying everything else? Damn yooz, Anderson!

I've always said, It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia is one of, if not the best, shows on TV right now. Although I do have to say the last season dropped off slightly from the first two, but the laughs were still greater than most of the other stuff out there. And this promo just adds to the hype. A play on the classic LL Cool J video Going Back To Cali the gang returns in full stride. And they even brought Jeru The Damaja along. Thanks to Jay for the link!

UPDATE: So the deadline (which was originally August 1st) has been pushed back a couple days to August 3rd, in order to give everyone an extra weekend to work on their stuff. Can't wait to see it!

Aight, so it's been a while since we put our swede out there for you all to see. We got some positive feedback from people wanting to do their own but as of yet, no one has stepped up (I'll attribute that to that fact that only my mom and 5 other people read my blog; and my mom can't even use a computer) Well, now here is a more officialer gauntlet being thrown down. We've teamed up with Corridor 2122 (located in beautiful downtown Fresno) to offer an official venue to hold Fresno's very first Swede Film Festival as part of the gallery's SPLASH Show on Saturday, August 9th at 2pm (BYO Popcorn—it's a gallery, not a theater). We're trying to make this very simple for everyone so once you have your swede ready, upload it to YouTube and send the link to info@corridor2122.com or to us here at thedumbdrum@gmail.com. Please be sure to include your name and contact information in case your swede is chosen and we need to get a hold of you. There are some rules, though. We need to have all entries by August 1st (pressure makes all productions better) and they musn't be over 5 mins. in running time. Also, the films must not use any abusive, obscene, vulgar, slanderous, hateful, threatening, sexually-orientated or any other material that may violate any laws (so you can axe that planned swede of that one snuff film....maybe next year). So here's you opportunity, Fresno. Get off your ass, jump into that blazing sun and get cracking! If you need inspiration, go rent Be Kind Rewind, get some friends together and start a list of films to do. Embedded after this post is a little overview of what swedeing is all about coming from the horse's mouth: Michel Gondry. Enjoy and hope to see Fresno come out swinging on this one.

What can you say about videogame to film adaptations? They suck. No matter how much hope you have, they always suck. This one probably will too. But for now, lets enjoy the cool images bestowed upon us in the form of the trailer for Max Payne starring Mark Wahlberg, Ludacris & Chris O'Donnell. What do you guys think?

Fresh Prince and Jazzy Jeff reunite... from MickBoogie on Vimeo
Classic. This song is the very definition of Summer for me. Awesome!

With Tropic Thunder getting more and more press as of late, the studio has dropped this little gem to hold us over until the film's ultimate release. A play on the documentary Hearts Of Darkness, which chronicled the making of Coppola's Apocalypse Now, it's not really clear if this ever going to actually be released (maybe a DVD special feature?) but it just adds fuel to the flame that is the hype for the film. Can't get enough of Downey, Jr. man...Head on over here to get the HD version from Apple.

Maybe, if all goes well, one of these days we'll all be able to make it in Hollywood. The reality is that it's probably not gonna happen but in case you do make it, how are you going to survive? Well here comes the Summer Arts program at Fresno State to answer that very question with their panel Surviving Hollywood. The panelists will include:

Michael Berlin — A screenwriter and playwright. He has written, produced, or consulted on more than 150 television episodes, for series ranging from Miami Vice, MacGyver, Hunter, Cagney and Lacey to Sisters, Murder She Wrote, Diagnosis: Murder, The Commish, Beauty & The Beast, The Outer Limits, and many others

Alan Jacobs — A founding trustee of the Sundance Institute, an original board member of the Independent Feature Project, and a former trustee of the American Film Institute. His independent film and video production company, The Film Foundry Inc., is a signatory at the Writers Guild of America.
Matthew Jacobs — Screenwriter, director, and producer. His credits include Mothertime (BBC), Lassie (Paramount), Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (Lucasfilm), Dr. Who (Fox), The Emperor's New Groove (Disney), and more.

John Schimmel — Producer and Vice President of Development, Ascendant Pictures. His credits include Collateral Damage, Only Hope, Outlander, The Big White, and more.

Jule Selbo — Professor at California State University at Fullerton and professional screenwriter. Her credits include: Hard Promises, Hunchback of Notre Dame II, Cinderella II, Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, Melrose Place, Life Goes On, HBO's Women Behind Bars, and more.

Never heard of any of these people but their resumes look mighty impressive! I've always wanted to attend the Summer Arts stuff but it always becomes a time issue (the whole "full time job" thing kinda gets in the way) but this event is open for everyone and is late in the evening. The panel is this Wednesday, July 9th at 7pm at the Wahlberg Recital Hall and should be the perfect place to get your learn on about all the Hollywood mumbo jumbo. Tickets are $7 for students and $10 for general. For more info, head on over to the official site for the Summer Arts program here & hope to see some of you there!

Here at Dumb Drum, we don't like to promote hate in any manner.

But as a wise man once put it, there is always an exception to the rule. And so we bring you the 1st Weekly

Things That Are Ok To Hate On

1. The Socs
We're going old school with this one. I'm talking Bobba Fett with the actual rocket launcher action old school. The Socs are what you kids now would refer to as Jocks. Bunch of rich kids with their penny loafers, Mr. Drummond sweaters, poofy hair, cheerleader banging, Top 40 rockin dudes. Not only was this reason enough to hate on but as portrayed in Susan E. Hintons novel The Outsiders, they were plane old arrogant, pedantic, douchebags. And this was before
they tried to pick a fight with Ponyboy and his crew. Ponyboy was just minding his bidness, hollering at the rich girls when they had to come spread there haterade. First they threaten Ponyboy and his pal the Karate Kid, then start a rumble and then almost drown Ponyboy, forcing The Karate Kid to kill one of the Socs in order to save his pals life. Sniff, fuck I hate the Socs. Stay Golden Ponyboy.


2. That One Guy
You know that one guy at work/school/neighborhood/spa/gym/anywhere that just rubs you the wrong way? You have tried everything imaginable to pinpoint what it is that just makes you not trust him and want to expose him in front of everyone? He has absolutely done nothing that you can call him on, but screw it. Gas is $5 Dollars a gallon, go ahead and hate.



3. The California Headset Law
We all understand this law is for the betterment of this great state. But man, did the Government forget we are all broke as hell from paying $5 Dollars for gas? We offer you some alternatives based on brokelevels. A being the "I ate from the trash can" brokelevel, and C being the "I read the Wall Street Journal, Consuelo is my salad ready" best.

This awesome story comes from Engadget and it answers my question of what would happen if I were to stick my hand in one of those laser etching machines. So I've always said that I'm too fat and too hairy to get a traditional tattoo. But this, this is something I can get behind...if I weren't so much of a pussy about trying untested method of body manipulation. I'll give it a couple of years and if everyone involved is still alive and no appendages have fallen off due to this method, I might consider doing this. Imagine: clean, vector crisp lines. Exact artwork to your very own liking. Yeah, that's dope...what do you think? Would you consider getting one of these? Check out the video below before you answer.

So the past weekend was a three-day one. What did I do during those free days? Mostly sleep (a bloggers life is one of constant inaction don't you know?) but I did watch movies and the whatnot so rather than do individual posts of all the stuff that went down, I've created this: the UberPost! A recap of all the cool stuff that went down these last couple of days so sit back and enjoy the info overload:

• Trailer Addict has released The Dark Knight trailer that was first previewed about a year ago at Wizard World. A lot of footage in this one so if you want to avoid seeing half the film before the release, steer clear.

• Wu-Tang Clan's abbot The RZA is finally moving ahead with very first film titled The Man With The Iron Fist, which will be directed by the man himself & produced by Eli Roth (director of Hostel) reports Aintitcoolnews. Huge fan of RZA, but lately his music been off point. Maybe he's been focusing on writing the script which Roth describes as "amazing". Fingers crossed Bobby Digital comes through ont his one!

• The Wackness was released this weekend in limited release and the numbers are good! What does that mean? Well, it's going to expand to more theaters pretty soon and you know what that means: Fresno. And it's happened! Slash Film (via FirstShowing) has the list of the cities in which the film will open up this month and we're on the list! The film will tentatively open here in town on July 25th! No word on which theaters will carry it but as soon as I find out, I will post it here!

• Were you hoping for a Superbad sequel? Well keep dreaming as Seth Rogen has recently shot down any hope of that ever happening, reports Slash Film. But Rogen does say that a Pineapple Express sequel is possible. Crazy Hollywood....

With last years I Am Legend and now this. December is quickly becoming the month for all end of the world films. Not too sure about this remake (I'm always not sure about remakes, though) but the trailer looks cool, Jennifer Connelly is in it and I'm always down for some action films during the holiday's. Hopefully Neo won't swoop in and destroy this film as he usually does. His robotic acting should fit perfect with his role as an alien, though. Check it out and let us know what you think!

A little different flavor this week as the man with no breath takes on the ever burgeoning industry that is web comics. Outta Fresno, there's only one for me, but the internetz are blessed with a plethora of fodder...some good, some not so good. Ahhh, it's good to hear people complain....as long as it's not about me!

I'm digging this campaign! It reminds of what Sacha Cohen did with his Borat character when he did all the press junkets for the film as the star of the film. Brilliant! This might not be as complex as that feat (much props for that, Mr. Cohen!) but it's still pretty fun to see the big red guy chatting with James Friggin' Lipton! Boo-Ya!

No matter what you thought of last week's #2 film in the box office, Wanted is a success. Raking in over $50 million in the box office (and that's going up against the Pixar juggernaut named Wall-E), creator Mark Millar has gain even more Hollywood clout. In the past Millar had spoken about his dream project: writing a Superman film. With the commercial failure of 2006's Superman Returns, the future doesn't look very bright for Millar. Pile that on top of the fact the Millar has, in the past, said some very no so nice things about the people over at DC Comics. But with his new found "power" can that be changing? Well, Slash Film has a real good write up on the latest on Millar's quest to get the ball rolling on Superman in which the writer talks that the film is pretty much a go with a director already attached and an announcement to come before Christmas. Awesome. Even if it is more of Millar's hype machine, it's always good to dream. Maybe, we can finally get a Superman film that is on par with what Christopher Nolan has done with the Batman franchise. 

As a graphic designer by trade (can't you tell by my awesomely unique designed site?), it's kinda a big news story when one of the most recognized corporations decides to change their identity and risk skewing the image that has brought them instant recognition and in turn buckets of money. I knew it was only going to happen sooner or later, especially when Target is beginning to eat into their profits with their "pretty" logo. So what do you guys think? You like? Leave us your thoughts on the redesign in the form of comments and check out more info on the story here and here.

It's always bad news when anyone passes away. And as we mentioned in our lastest podcast, the month of June has been an especially bad one with the passing of George Carlin, Tim Russert & Stan Winston. And now word comes down the artist Michael Turner has passed from complications of his cancer. I was never the biggest fan of his artwork but he was still pretty talented and I know he held weight in the community and was very talented. It sad to go back and see that he will never pencil another cover or draw another panel. But at least he's got his legacy in the community. Check out the full story over here and here at Newsarama. RIP Michael Turner