Weird Mind News Room Episode 56: March 18th - 24th

 *music makes me feel good in this deathly chill*

Hello everyone and welcome to the 56th episode of the weekly series of Weird Mind News Room where this week seems to be a very jam packed one as we have a lot of new releases this week as well as a endless supply of trailers and top with a variety of news stories, so lets not waste too much on introductions and lets get to talking all that has come out of this week

A chilly selection of new releases

Movies

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

So we start off this week with the big blockbuster film release of the week when we ask that when you are feeling a chill and it does not look good, we ask who are you going to call? why it is the ghostbusters of course as we have recieved the all new 5th film but canonically 4th entry in the series with Frozen Empire. Now this will follow on from Afterlife that will see the Spengler family returning to the big apple to take on the role of the new Ghostbusters. But when a mysterious artifact causes the dawn of a 2nd Ice Age (not the animated kind), it will see the Ghostbuster young and old team up to save the world from an icy grave. Now the reception on this film has not been the most well recieved as while some of the concept and action in the beginning as well as the newer cast have garnered praise, the full is bloated with too many characters, too serious of a tone that comedy felt it may have been needed and a bit too much on Nostalgia to make it feel a little all over the place. But if you are up for busting some ghosts then you catch this new film in cinemas.

Road House Remake

Now the next film will be taking us down to the coast for a bit of action and hard hitting punches and drinks as we have recieved the all new reimagining of the classic 80s film of Road House. Now this follows Elwood Dalton, a former UFC Middleweight fighter who is given a job at a road house bar on the Florida Keys that will discovers things are not as safe or as easy as they seem. Now the reception on this has been modest at best with praise to its performances of Gyllenhall and surprisingly McGregor (a casting I still think as odd) and a decent respectful update to the 80s classic, though the use of CG in the fight scenes has been critiqued a heavy amount, but if you want to get a drink then you can check this one out now on Amazon prime.  

Immaculate

Now it is time to confess your sins with a actress that has become a bit of appealing eye candy actress as of late as we have gotten the all new Horror of Immaculate. Now this will Sydney Sweeney play an American Nun who is invited to a remote covenant in the Italian countryside but her warm welcome soon turns to a nightmare when she discovers her new home harbours a sinister secret and many unspeakable horrors. Now reception on this has garnered a little mixed to a bit more of a positive outcome with praise to Sweeney's performance who help save the films concept from feeling all too familiar and generic and worth a watch and if you want to see the horrors of a religious motive, then you check this film out in cinemas.

Late Night with the Devil

And wrapping up the films from this week and also dipping its toes into the horror genre, this one appeared on my radar only 2 weeks ago from this trailer releasing and this comes to us in the form of a new found footage style horror of Late Night with the Devil. Now this film, told in a form of a found footage vhs tape will follow a recording of a late night talk show from the late 70s and its host of Jack Delroy, who trying to boost ratings of his show makes a very special Halloween show to remember that may turn a bit more sinister and bring terror into the homes of millions of Americans. Now the reception on this has been universally praised as of writing for its concept, its scares and its performances especially from the lead of David Dastmalchian and if you want to see why it became a lost tape in the first place, then you can catch this new horror in cinemas now. 

tv shows

X-Men 97

as for tv, it is time to get your nostalgia at the ready as we are returning to the series that was a staple of 90s superhero cartoons as we have recieved the follow on continuation with the series of X-Men 97. Now this will be set after the events of the original series and will see the team of Mutants work together to keep the planet safe and from danger while dealing with the loss of their mentor of Professor Xavier. Now the reception on this series so far has been very well recieved with being well made, finely written, full of action and a great successor to the original, and also to bring up the point, ever since the trailer dropped, this series has garnered the usual stigma of "ThIs Is WoKe TrAsH" as per usual with anything from any franchise or company when I believe this was never the focus and seems to have gone quiet online, but if you want to return to the bygone era of 90s animation, you can catch the first 2 episodes now on Disney+

3 Body Problem

As for our other tv series of the week is coming to us from the guys that gave us Game of Thrones, and also the end of Game of Thrones as they have taken a new novel series and given it the adaptation treatment as we have recieved the new sci-fi series of 3 Body Problem. Now this series follows a scientist of Ye Wenjie who after witnessing her fathers murder, soon becomes conscripted by the Military to help in their scientific research in a secret radar base where her fateful decision will beam across time and space to the present day scientests who now have to face humanity's greatest threat. Now the reception on this series so far has been decently recieved as a well made adaptation of a series of books that originated from China and made for the western audience and if you want a new Sci-fi escapade to check out you can do so now on Netflix.

Twisted Metal

Now for some clarity on this series was that this initially released all the way back in late July in the US last year but it took this long to release here and now it is all available to stream as we have gotten the new video game adaptation series of Twisted Metal. This series is set in the distant future where the world suddenly one day went to shit and soon cities were walled off due to anarchy and other concerning elements and this series follows John Doe, a milkman with amnesia who is tasked with delivering an important package across the country while surviving against a barren wasteland, a crazy lady who becomes his partner in this journey and dealing with some unhinged lunatics including a sadistic clown and his ice cream truck. Now the series has garnered some decent reception for the faithful use of some of the characters from the original video game series and for the likeable cast and enjoyable story and if you want to check this out, it is available to stream on Paramount+.

Video Games

Alone in the Dark Remake

The first in the video games of the week is taking us back to the days of the horror series that helped shape the franchises of Resident Evil and Silent hill with a new fresh coat of Paint as we have recieved the all new edition to Alone in the Dark. This new game will have you playing as either Emily Hartwood (Jodie Comer) or PI Edward Carnby (David Harbour) as they travel to Derceto Manor, a home for the mentally fatigued, to investigate the disappearance of Emily's uncle of Jeremy Hartwood. Now the reception for this game is decent to mixed at best with the praise to the performances of the leads, the story elements and the puzzles, though some of the combat, replay value and the elements of scares were a bit more critiqued. But if you are up for a bit of a twisty mystery in a big old manor, you can play it now on Xbox Series X/S, PS5 and PC. 

Princess Peach Showtime

Now we have seen many characters in the Mario universe get their own games from Luigi's Mansions, Toad finding treasure and Wario striking it rich and one character that had recieved one 2 decades ago is finally getting her chance in the title role once again as we have the all new adventure game of Princess Peach Showtime. This will have you playing as the Princess herself as she helps to save the Sparkle theatre from the evil Grape and the Sour Bunch and using the theatre Guardian of Stella and a wide variety of outfits and stages to get through to save the day before the curtain falls on the show. Now the reception on this game has been well recieved with many praising the concept, powerups, story and designs of characters, with some critiqued aimed at some performance issues and some mixed opinion on replay value, but if you are up for a show then you can get this new title now on Nintendo Switch.

music

TWRP Digital Nightmare

And wrapping up the overly extensive list of new releases for this week is with a bit of some new music as around the time those boys of Danny and Brian were releasing their new Album of These Nuts to the world, their backing back and the Groove Crusaders of TWRP were back with their own new original album in the form of Digital Nightmare. This will be a full new album after the release of a small EP in the late summer that consists of songs like the desire of a human Touch, the love that no matter what will never leave my coding of never stop loving you and of course bowing down to the greatest form of creation in the form of Grobb (praise be to the mighty Grobb). Now if you are interested and I think you should check them out then you can listen to the new album on where you listen to your music and can get a physical album on their official site (I know I will as well as the other boys fresh selection of savory goods)

Trailers for all of your tastes

Rebel Moon Part 2 The Scargiver

So we will start the endless stream of trailers from this week with the foray into the world of sci-fi that wants to be a lot like the sci-fi that I will be talking about next and this is with a return to the world of the film that will not leave my social feed for the last 3 months of those that praise his work and this is with the 2nd part to the new space saga from Zack Snyder with Rebel Moon Part 2 The Scargiver. This will follow from the events of the original and will see Kora and her new formed team return to her home planet and form an army to fight against the impending invasion of Motherworld from destroying their livlihoods and restore peace to the universe. Now I have mentioned in the past that I have watched part 1 and will say found that part underwhelming, it was a bit too most of meeting new characters that we do not know too much about and then do not feel anything if they are killed off or much of their ordeal as we have not basis of development besides very minimal backstory and trying to fly through extensive set up that feels too quick (even in a film that has slo-mo in slo-mo) but hopefully this one may improve it but it is hard to say and we will find out soon as it will be releasing about a months time on April 19th on Netflix.

Star Wars The Acolyte

Now on the other side of things with a galaxy far far away as we are going way back to before even the events of discovering a small boy with powerful levels of midichlorians to the age of the republic as we have recieved a trailer for the newest series from Star Wars with The Acolyte. This series is set a century before The Phantom Menace and will follow a respected Jedi Master investigate a series of deaths and crimes that will lead him to coming into contact with a former Padawan learner and will learn and reveal some sinister forces are beginning to rise. Now the likes of Star Wars has been intriguing to me as of late and the concept of this series in general has sounded really cool of a mystery element and this has the feeling of the dawn of the Sith or more action based of force use and hand to hand combat looks enticing and I looking forward to checking this one out and you can as well when this series drops with a 2 episode premiere on June 4th on Disney+

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga

If a sci-fi in the cosmos not your style and rather a action film in a post apocalyptic wasteland more your taste then you are in luck as we have recieved a new trailer for the upcoming release of the newest spin off prequel in the Mad Max saga with Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. Now this will tell the story of the fan favourite character from Fury Road in this played by Anya Taylor Joy and set about 2 decades before that films events as we learn of her past from being taken from the Green Place of Many Mothers and into the hands of Warlord Dementus (Chris Hemsworth) and his Biker Horde and must fight through the armada, two warlords clashing and find a way for her to get back home. Now I am excited for this as I have enjoyed the Mad Max films and Fury Road kicked ass and hopefully it will be worth a wait to see this film play out and turn out great and we will find out soon when this film releases on May 24th.

The Fall Guy

So now it is time for a new look at a film version of an action tv series from the 1980s with 2 of the biggest stars in the industry today on the concept of a piece of filmmaking process often overlooked as we have recieved a new trailer for The Fall Guy. Now this will see Ryan Gosling play Colt Seavers, a stuntman past his prime back on a film as the extra for famous actor of Tom Ryder for the film of his ex's Jody Moreno directorial debut, but when Tom goes missing and the film is in threat of being shut down, Colt must become the hero, find tom and save her debut film. Now I have seen plenty of press and excitement for this film and has garnered some strong reception so far from the premiere at SXSW last week and I am looking forward to checking this one out and you can too when the film drops on May 3rd in cinemas.

Harold and the Purple Crayon

Now we have a bit of a new take on a classic children's book getting the film treatment as we have recieved a trailer for the film of Harold and the Purple Crayon. Now the film follows Harold, all grown up and has used his magical crayon fused with the power of creativity to enter into the real world and cause hijinks with it there, but when the crayon falls into the wrong hands, it will be up to Harold and his friends to save his world and the real world from total destruction all by the power of Imagination. Now I have never read this book and when I initially saw the poster and seen Zachary Levi as the main character I was wondering if this was a Shazam situation again or a weird studio decision but after the trailer it made a little more sense and it seems like a harmless film and if you want to check it out it will be available from August 2nd.

Alien Romulus

And now we are going back into the deep confines of Space as we have the next trailer that will show that no one will hear you scream as we have recieved our first look at the next film in the long running franchise with Alien Romulus. Now this film will be set in between Alien and Aliens and see a a group of young space colonizers who while scavenging a derelict space station will come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe. Now in amongst all of the extensive amount of trailers shown this week and came across watching this small teaser, everything to me looked like familiar territory of recent memory and this turns out to be set on the Sevastapol station of Alien Isolation and is in tangent with that games narrative then I am excited but this looks unnerving and violent and am excited to see how this plays out in cinemas on August 16th. 

Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra

Now this is surprisingly the only game trailer for this weeks trailers (that I am aware of or appealed to me) and it is taking us to the world of Superheroes as we have recieved a new war time game of Marvel 1943: The Rise of Hydra. Now this game will have you take on the role of Captain America or the Black Panther as well as another US soldier or a Wakandan Spy as they must team up while not trying to kill one another as they liberate the forces of Hydra from the occupied city of Paris. Now the basis of this game I have no idea if this will be a strategy, action adventure or other form but visually it looks amazing on Unreal Engine 5 from the tech demos and tech presentation from a couple days ago and this does look very enjoyable and I will be giving this game a go soon as it will be releasing sometime next year.

House of the Dragon season 2

Now we did not just receive one but 2 different trailers at the same time for an upcoming new season to the newest entry in the story of conflict, bloodshed and Dragons as we have recieved trailers for the 2nd season of House of the Dragon. Now this will follow on from the end of the 1st season where the late king is dead and his wife of Alicent has made her son the reluctant king of Westeros when that honor was meant for his daughter Rhaena and from betrayals and murder will lead to a deadly game where all will be left is fire and blood. Now after the end of the original series left people with a bad taste, this new series has brought back appeal to the saga and this season does look really exciting and now we have confirmation we do not have too much longer to wait as the new season will be releasing new episode from June 16th (most case on HBO in US and Sky Atlantic from where I am from).

The Monkey Man

Now another film releasing very soon and also been garnering some very strong praise from last weeks SXSW as we have received another new trailer for Dev Patel's Directorial debut of The Monkey Man. Now this will follow Kid, an anonymous young man who set out on a journey of revenge and built up trauma to hunt down a group of corrupt leaders who were responsible for the death of his mother and in the process becomes the saviour of the poor and the powerless people who were also tormented by the corrupt leaders. Now it is definitely one of those films that is similar in style of the Wick genre with that series and stuff like Sisu and from the strong positive reception and footage shown I am very excited for it and you can check this out when this film releases on April 5th.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (Beetlejuice 2)

Now initially I thought this was the last of the trailers for the week (there is one more after this) but this one is going to get a little bit crazy and wild as his waiting is up as we have finally received a trailer for the sequel to Beetlejuice. Now the film will see the 3 generations of the Deetz family unite following an unexpected tragedy. Still haunted by the demon, Lydia life is turned upside down again when her rebellious teen daughter Astrid, discovers the model version of the town in the attic and accidentally opens a portal to the afterlife and when trouble starts to happen in the real world and afterlife, its only a matter of time before the mischievous demon of Beetlejuice returns to cause more mayhem. Now I think from the very small snippet we got of this film it looks like we may be in for a bit of a treat with the demon himself and looks like it could be a bit of fun (but not to a level that a certain politician got up to during the musical version of the original) and the demon will be seeing you real soon on September 6th. 

The Penguin

and now finally we come to the last trailer of the week (unless some other ones drop in which case they will be next week) as a new look at something I was expecting a bit of time before they would've shown this trailer but out of nowhere we have recieved a proper first look at the upcoming series of The Penguin. Now this will be set in the same universe as the most recent Batman film and see Colin Farrell back as Oswald Cobblepot back again and see his rise to becomes the new powerful head of the crime syndicate in the city after the death of Falcone and how it may lead to him clashing with the caped crusader. Now I love The Batman film and am very excited for any of the projects in the pipeline for the likes of this universe and this so far looks really exciting and will be checking this out when this series releases sometime in the fall.

News to give you the spooks

When there's trouble you know who to call: a version of the teen titans

Now we will finally get to the small selection of the news stories from this week and this is a story that was announced late last week but forgot to mention it at that point but we have recieved some news of another new edition to a slowly growing franchise. Now as we are well aware we have known since the beginning of last year that the DC universe was being rebooted and being helmed by James Gunn and Peter Safran where we were given some ideas of expecting from Part 1 known as Gods and Monsters which include some projects likes shows based on Creature Commandos, Amanda Waller and the Amazonians as well as some films on Superman (currently filming), Batman and Supergirl and now it looks like another project is on the way and may be more on the younger side of things. It was announced on Friday evening last week that we are getting the first film on a team up for the planned universe and it is not with the Justice League or Justice Society but rather it is much younger as we will be getting a film based on the Teen Titans. Now this team is usually consisting of Robin (Dick Grayson), Raven, Beast Boy, Starfire and Cyborg with some other known members of the team and they have seen their share of projects over the years including a beloved animated series from the 2000s, a reboot that went too meta and has been a little divisive and a more darker live action series update with mixed reaction so giving them a film in live action form is a good choice. Now not much is known on this project but it already has a writer in the form of Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow writer Ana Nogueira penning the project. It is also unclear of who will be playing the cast of adolescent superheroes (with most fancasts already just getting the most used cast of actors as the characters) or even when we can expect a release but once we do hear anything I will update in a later piece.

But what are your thoughts on this announcement and are you excited to see a teen titans film coming out and who do you see playing each of the characters for this new reboot universe? Let me know down in the comments of what you think should play who.

Pooh and Friends have created a universe

Now from one planned new building universe to one that I did not expect to see being made into a universe but we are talking on a project that supposedly is releasing in cinemas in the US next week and this releases to the sequel of one of the films in my horror most bore peace and that is with Winnie the Pooh Blood and Honey. Now it was known since a short while after the first film that Pooh and his murderous friends were coming back for a follow up with some new editions of Owl and Tigger joining in the killing spree and what I thought would be the end of the series after that or even from concluding with a trilogy but how wrong I was of my innocent little anxiety inducing thoughts were as it was not the end but rather the beginning of a much bigger universe as it was announced earlier this week that we are about to see the dawn of what they like to called the cursed childhood universe that will consist of these 2 films as well as 3 other confirmed projects in the form of Bambi: The reckoning, Peter Pan's Neverland Nightmare and Pinocchio Unstrung that may all be coming out over the course of the next year (so likely horror most bore part 2 will be the cursed childhood universe saga this year). But it is not ending there as we thought Infinity was the most ambitious crossover well let me introduce the big build up film in the form of Poohniverse Monsters Assemble that will see all of the characters of those films as well as characters from the universe of Alice in Wonderland and Sleeping Beauty crossover with one another and clash against each other and soon team up to take down those characters from the films that have wronged them or other means until they are dead. Now it does seem ambitious and could all end up sucking which in most case could happen, but on the other, this is essentially a much better established cinematic universe and already is ahead of the quickly ended Dark universe from Universal so unless this does not fall apart and end very quickly this could be the dawn of a new dark universe but it really is hard to tell.

But I want to know your thoughts of this planned cinematic universe of screwed up childhood characters and will you watch these films and what are your thoughts on the ones that have already come out? Let me know what you think of all of this down below in the comments.

who has eaten all of my damn spinach

Now the next story that has been discussed this week is with an announcement of another new attempt of giving a classic project or piece of media a bit of an update and this is based on an all classic cartoon comic character that has a fond appetite for a particular type of green vegetable as it was announced on Wednesday that we are getting a new live action version attempt on the classic cartoon character of Popeye the Sailor Man. Now not much else is known on what the project is about but the film is being written by Michael Caleo who has also done work on the popular tv series of The Sopranos and this will be the 2nd update in live action form of the characters following a film version starring the late Robin Williams back in the 1980s. Now while the concept of this could be interesting, there is a part of me that wished that this was actually more of an animated film instead of live action and it was a case we were supposed to get an animated Popeye from Sony a long while ago. There was some test footage of a scene of Popeye saving Ms Olive from a gang of giant thugs on a boat and it seemed to be well into production, animation and voice recording and had potential but it was shelved and instead the film made in its place instead went to The Emoji Movie. There is hope it could work out but I also hope that the animated one has its chance at some point soon but I guess we will find out sometime soon enough when more updates on the project begin to emerge.

But what are your opinions on a new Popeye movie and who would you see take on the role of a character with weird muscle arms for the film role? Let me know what you think down in comments. 

His name may soon be Bond..... James Bond

and the final story of this week is with some news of some possible speculation and discussions talking about one of the famous names in espionage. Now as we have been well aware for years we have known of many types of spies and one that shines above them all is of course James Bond and we haven't seen 007 in action since Daniel Craig's final outing as the spy in No Time to Die in 2021 and it has been many a speculation as to who may be the newest agent to put on the suit, drink the shaken martinis and drive off with the gadgets in the Aston Martin and many had predicted some choices like Ildris Elba, Henry Cavil or even the likes of a Female bond, but now it seems the search may be coming to an end and the announcement of the new Bond may be imminent and this is in the form of actor Aaron Taylor Johnson. Now some have seen him as a potential as he has a good build for the character, some well recieved performances and some even say the process of a James Bond was seen with his performance in the 2022 film of Bullet Train so I can definitely see a decent performance in this with this choice. Now it has not been fully finalized and yet to be announced from the studio and there could be others that may get the announced moniker but as soon as I hear anything, I will let you know in a later piece.

But what are your thoughts on this choice as James Bond and who else do you see as a potential candidate for the role? Let me know what you think of all of this down below in the comments.

And now with all of this, this brings me to the end of the very extensive 56th episode of Weird Mind News room and I do hope that you have enjoyed me talking what nearly felt endless from everything that came out this week. Let me know your thoughts on all that was announced and discussed this week and as always I hope you all stay being wonderful people and have a great day everyday and I will see you all in the next piece :)

Take Care, keep being you, signing off

Sam H