Weird Mind News Room Episode 187: Sept 21st - 27th
*Music for surviving the Wilderness
Well hello again to every single one of you very wonderful people once again, my name is Sam and as always I like to welcome you once again to the latest episode of my weekly series of Weird Mind News Room where we are back once again for a focus another batch of the New Releases, Trailers and News Stories that you may have missed from the week of media that you may not have known to have released this week, but lets not waste time on the usual introductions and lets get to talking on all things media for this week.
Heart of the Release
Movies
Heart of the Beast
On the first of the new releases for this week will be bringing the focus of a story of survival and how the bond from the battlefield to the wilderness will still be seen in many ways between man and man's best friend as we have the release of the newest film from David Ayer with the release of Heart of the Beast. The film will follow special forces officer James Belmont (Brad Pitt) and his retied combat dog Odin after a plane crash in Alaska. Stranded deep in the wilderness, they will face a lot of harsh weather conditions and dangerous wildlife, and show the dedication to survival and the strong bond between man and dog. Reception on this new title has been seen as very well recieved with praise on its performances and bond between Pitt and the canine costar, narrative and cinematography and has been labelled as Pitts best reviewed film and if you are ready to survive in the wilderness then you can catch this film now in cinemas.
Hope
The next film for this week was a title that for a bit of time had slipped under the radar for me as I am usually a bit more aware of these titles but has been hearing more from some that saw this release a few weeks back that is showing that we may have seen the ideals of small little towns may be seen as the picture of peace and tranquility, but what happens in the regards of the peace being twisted in the process and goes much deeper then at face value as we have the release of the new south Korean Sci-Fi title known as Hope. The film will focus on a police chief, a Policewoman and a group of hunters who try to track down and kill and mysterious creature that's laying waste to a small Korean Portside town. Reception on this title has been well recieved as well with praise on its narrative, performances, themes, visuals and entertainment value, even if there is a bit of a mixed outcome on the 2nd half going a little extreme and the runtime being a little excessive but seems like a surprise sleeper hit in focus and if you want to check it out for yourself then you can also check it out in cinemas.
Sense and Sensibility
The last of the films for this week will be once again bringing back to the world of the narrative adaption and in this case there has been many attempts of this one book in particular that there is no point in giving a focus in being elaborate of explaining it as we are here with a release of an all new take on the classic piece of literature of Sense and Sensibility. Based on the novel by Jane Austen, it will tell the tale of three sisters who experience love and heartbreak as they're forced to leave their family estate with their widowed mother and move to a humble cottage. Reception on this new take on the novel similar to other takes is well recieved with praise on its performances, cinematography and adapting of the classic novel of Jane Austen being a worthy take once more and if you are up for a new take on the story then you can check it out also in cinemas.
TV Shows
Wonka's Golden Ticket
For the sole tv show for this week will be the focus of being a new perspective to a classic story that we have been in some form or another been told to us as a younger age and we have all dreamed about finding a special ticket that will whisk us away to a land of delectable confectionary. Well it looks like that ideal is becoming a reality for a select few as we have the release of the new reality based competition known as Wonka's The Golden Ticket. Akin to other recreations of popular films and shows into reality shows, it will see twelve pairs with a pre-existing relationship enter into a recreated chocolate factory with a partner and compete in a series of challenges and games for a chance at what is described as " a lifetime supply of Money" (which is about $3 Million paid over the course of 30 years). Reception on this new series however has been very much panned akin to some other shows like ones on Squid Game or by Mr Beast that the idea in theory seems like a good idea but the execution is a mess in outcome with a heavy focus on Melodrama, people that seem like decent pairs getting walked all over and a reliance on nostalgia and other means (not to mention possibly controversy over AI usage to recreate Gene Wilder Voice for the show), but if you want to see the outcome of this title then you can watch the first 7 episodes now with the last 2 episodes releasing next Wednesday.
Video Games
Silent Hill Townfall
Moving over to the games for this week and the first of the titles will be bringing us back to a place that seems like something familiar but seems to have been lost from the memories of out mind but in this instance it will be set in a bit more of a new location but the horror that await beyond a sudden dense fog may be the answers to what is missing from our memory as we have a return to this long running horror IP with the release of the new title of Silent Hill Townfall. Set in 1996, the game will follow Simon Ordell, a man who repeatedly finds himself waking up in the water next to the docks in the town of St Amelia in Scotland, where he will need to explore this eerily foggy and deserted town in order to discover the fragments of his past in order to understand the connect to this town. Reception on this new entry of the series seems to be very well recieved with praise on its story, puzzles, characters and atmosphere and scares, though some of the gameplay elements has been hit with a little bit of a mixed outcome in some forms but it looks like the IP of Silent Hill is making a comeback after years of silence and mixed outcome of entries and if you are ready to head back to this mysterious town then you can play it now on PS5 and PC.
Control Resonant
As for the 2nd game release of this week will be seeing a return to a twisted and strange world found beyond out own that the ideals of this reality may be warped by the perception that a massive corporation has shown and will look for a way to take it all down and return back to the realm of reality as Remedy has returned to us with the release of a follow up to a beloved IP with Control Resonant. The game will follow and have you play as Dylan Faden, a paranaturally abled "Parautilitarian" from the original first title as he battles an invasion of Hostile entities while searching for his estranged sister Jesse Faden and find a way to escape this twisted reality. Reception on this new entry has also seen some very well recieved reception with praise on the visuals, gameplay and continued narrative, even if the later part of the game can be a little tedious but still a worthy entry and if you are ready to being order back to this twisted world then you can play the digital release now on PS5, XBOX Series X/S and PC with a Physical release on October 15th and a Mac version releasing later this year.
Trailers to Resonate with
Helluva Boss Season 3 Part 1
On the first of the trailers for this week is one that technically came out at the end of last week but given the abundance of trailers from last week and it dropping on Sunday (that I am aware of) I pushed it to this week instead and in this case when there is a job that need to be done that did you wrong in the mortal world, this group of demons of the underworld will help get the job done, even with the concept of some personal matters starting to make more of a major presence, as we are returning to the offices of the IMP's as we return to the Helluva verse with the trailer for the 1st Part of season 3 to Helluva Boss. This new season will see the high octane continued narrative of this corporation as well as some major developments with the team from a possibility of Millie being Pregnant, some of the other 7 rings of Hell with Envy and the tumultuous relationship of Blitzo and Stolas, all in the focus of being just another day at the office. So its been a case that between this and Hazbin, I have not been fully up to date with this series in particular but I have been meaning to get around to it as there is a sense of appeal of seeing some other aspects of the world in development for the underworld itself and I have seen a few episodes and there is some interest to it but it looks like there is quite a development in a much deeper narrative that I need to check on as I am not one that complains on Vizziepop as I enjoy there work so I am sure I have some time to check this out and will be worth giving a look when the new season begins on Amazon Prime on October October 14th, with Part 2 of the season dropping early next year.
The Continued Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth
Heading to the first of the film trailers for this week will be in a focus to a title that I was surprised in the approach of being a follow up to a title from a renowned director that has the ideals of many approaches to it all but in this case while it may have the same actor and the same character name in focus, the person behind the camera is a whole lot different as after a bit of a gap since that first teaser, we finally gotten an official trailer for the all new follow up to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood with The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth. While plot details have not been fully given, the film is set about a decade after the Tarantino film and will follow Cliff Booth, a former stuntman for Rick Dalton who after saving his life from some of the Manson cult turns into a Hollywood studio fixer. Now working in the shadows he will soon handle the industry's darkest secrets from scandals to blackmail and showcase a more grittier side to Hollywood's golden Era. So I recall when I first initially watched the first film that it had a lot of potential but came out a little underwhelmed but I guess I was a little confused on the overall bigger picture, but there was a lot of it I enjoyed with one being the characters and I like the approach that while it was more the focus of Hollywood stars that seeing more the perspective of the stuntman and fixer appeals in this capacity and being set in the grimy underbelly of 1970s America really gives it a tone that could have a lot of themes and ordeals that will bring something to it all and maybe this could be the title I like more over the Tarantino title but I guess we can see in due time as the film will be fixing its way into cinemas for a limited run from November 25th before debuting on Netflix on December 23rd.
Ray Gunn
The next trailer for this week will be the sole animated affair for this week and this is on that I have been hearing for a fair bit about and its coming to us in the perspective of a titan in the animated film industry that gave us beloved titles in the last 2 decades and it looks like this new mystery being unfolded will solve the case to a possible new big hit as we have finally gotten a trailer for Brad Bird's long in development Passion Project with the first look at Ray Gunn. Set in Metropia, a gigantic city in an alternate future, private eye Raymond Gunn is drawn into a case involving Aliens, Murder, and a multimedia star named Venus Nova. Now it has been said that the animation studio that is in focus to making this can be a bit of a question mark as Skydance studios filmography has been a mixed outcome but it seems that as new ones release that they do improve and it feels with this title that we could have their best title right here especially with Bird in the directing duties after giving us some iconic animated titles from Iron Giant, Ratatouille and The Incredibles and I will have to say from the small images and then this footage being revealed that this looks visually stunning and giving this has been a passion project he has been working on for decades I do hope this will be a massive success and be an entertaining title and I am looking forward to checking this case out when the title drops in a limited cinemas release from December 4th before releasing on Netflix on December 18th.
Madden
The next trailer for this week will be bringing the one biographical film focus of the week and will be once again be in the focus to a name in the sports industry that while we have seen names that were an athlete in the field or for a major reason of recognition was for a scandal, this one will be more in the focus of the man that wrote the rulebook in creating the greatest play in the high octane sport of American Football as after being teased a little while back we have finally gotten a trailer for the all new film known as Madden. The film will be inspired by a true story on the life of John Madden (Nicholas Cage) the man known for the greatest playbook in NFL history, the dedication to the sport and his career in their involvement in the creation of the video game series of the same name. SO in this case of things that I have heard of the man in focus of this title which is quite a surprise to me, but I know it from the gaming perspective as well as seeing a fair few clips and interviews and it really seemed that the man had the eye for knowing how to run the game properly and proved his win streak over his long career. The ideal of Cage himself taking on this role seems like a strange one but you are going to get that with this actor but I am interested to see what he will do with this iconic name and it could be worth a watch itself when the plan of action will be unveiled by its release on Amazon Prime from November 18th.
Clayface
For the focus of the one superhero area of this week and one of the more horror based titles for this week, we have all heard the perspective about young actors being molded into becoming a big star or find a way to make it in the industry and shape you into a star and while this character may already have reached that level, after an accident will take that means of molding himself back to a star will take quite a turn, as we will soon be looking fear in the face with the release of the final trailer for the upcoming new horror of Clayface. The film will follow Matt Hagan (Tom Rhys Harries), an u-and-coming actor whose face is disfigured by a Gangster. As a form of last resort, Matt turns to a scientist, Dr Caitlin Bates (Naomi Ackie) who transforms his body into clay with some sense of unforeseen consequences. I know there is a bit of a discussion and debate about the ideals of the DCU being a little lost in the substance according to some people online, but I feel there is a bit of an interesting plan and approach to this all and if anything this stands out to me of giving another more unknown character a chance to have a focus as we could be stuck with the rotating few names of the Dark Knights rogues gallery of the man of riddles, two faces, flightless birds and clown princes that seeing a creature made and molded into a monsters intrigues me and some of the simple visuals teased in this trailer looks really inventive or interested to see what they will do with it and will hopefully have a stomach to sit through the film that may be a bit of a graphic ordeal but hopefully won't be too bad but I am sure we can see when the film is molded to completion and release in about a months time on October 23rd.
Wild Horse Nine
For something that's a little more lighter in tone for the next title will still have a sense of darkness to it but done in the approach of some comedy that will be an all out caper with the perspective of this job having some setbacks and one of them may be their own partner in crime assigned for this task which will be interesting to see what the outcome of this will entail as we have recieved a trailer for the new film from acclaimed director of Martin McDonagh with Wild Horse Nine. Set in 1973, shortly before the Chilean Coup D'état, CIA bureau chief MJ (Steve Buscemi) sends officers Chris (John Malkovich) and Lee (Sam Rockwell) from Santiago to Easter Island. Among the islands iconic statues, the longtime partners wrestle with their dark pasts and present conspiracies, while Chris's newfound bond with a pair of rebellious students threatens to send everyone's trip to this remote paradise island sideways. I always feel sometimes with these films that when you hear the name or some of the plots that you feel there is no way there is an appeal to this title, but once you hear the name of the director then it becomes a whole different story that makes sense from McDonagh's sharp eye and wit for these types of films. I can say there is an interest to this and I can see this as being a solid title that has all the makings of being another major presence at the awards circuits, given it won big at the Venice Film Festival and garnering some great reception too and I feel it will be well worth giving this a watch itself to see all the hype is about and its not too long from release either as the title will be releasing into cinemas from the 6th of November.
Werwulf
The last of the trailers for this week will be giving us a return once more to the realm of the Horror scene but instead of it being more of a superhero focus or the usual affair we see of the modern times, we will be seeing more to the days of the past with a focus on the side of folklore that becomes more apparent at the light of the full moon in the sky, as Robert Eggers has returned and timed well with the presence of the most recent full moon as we have recieved an all new trailer for the upcoming folklore horror of Werwulf. Set in Medieval Britain, a mysterious creature becomes tale that stalks a small foggy countryside, that will soon transform local folklore into a terrifying reality as the villagers face an ancient supernatural threat. It can definitely be a case that from many names in recent memory with directors in this genre, Eggers has proven himself in the genre of the folklore horror (and even the likes of the action side with the Northman) that he has such a flair and makes every new title of their that much more anticipated and seen alongside Creggar, Jordan Peele and the Phillipou brothers as some of the names making a wave in this genre. The ideals and imagery in this trailer and film just give such a haunting atmosphere and the approach to it all is such a tone that has you unnerved by a small glimpse alone that I am sure the full transformation, creature reveal and everything else will be worth the wait for it all (and probably explains that after making 2 dark gothic horrors that making a 3rd one back to back took a toll to now he making an adaption on Romeo and Juliet as his next film) that I am interested to check this out and it will be a bit of a festive one as the title will be unleashed into cinemas from Christmas day in the states and New Years day in the UK and Ireland.
News not to see the fall of a town
The ordeal of news to amaze
So the last few weeks we have seen a selection of dual stories over the last while in a focus of some stories to gaming conferences and award show roundups but we will be focused to one story of this week and this is of course with the focus of the now weekly roundup of a hodgepodge that will consist of items from release dates, project announcements, opinions and reveals of some other items and a few other little bit and pieces in there to sample and think upon so lets delve into and see what you may have missed and what was in focus for this week.
so I will start off on the updates or announcements to some projects and we will start with one that is a bit of a bump in the outcome when the hope of this return seemed like it had a strong chance to improve as the narrative goes on but it looks like the man without fear will have a limit as it was announced that the upcoming 3rd season to the Daredevil Born Again will be its last as it will be coming to a conclusion come that next seasons conclusion. Now the case of this that it will be coming to an end is a bit of a disappointing announcement as there was a sense that the project was on the right track in a focus of improvement from what I have been told and have seen from some of the footage (and not from some that will complain on everything and say that the show is the worst thing ever conceived when that is a bit of a stretch) and I guess it makes sense to build it to a big final story that will now reportedly have the rest of the defenders making a return and a possible appearance of another long demanded hero return with Moon Knight but that latter one may be some overblown rumour but it would be an interesting appearance. I do hope in this case that it will end in a satisfying conclusion or see more of the Devil of Hell's Kitchen making more of a presence in the film side of things going forth but I guess we will see. I am sure then we will see how they will wrap up this season but I guess we can see close to its release sometime in the new year but I guess we will see by then.
But where that first story is more of a sad bit of news about the wrap up of the recent revival of a hero, where one revival comes to an end, another hero will rise up in a new revival and when there is a sense of trouble then to call DW as on Monday of this week, there is another classic cartoon making a revival and that is with the character of Darkwing Duck. Now the original was a classic of animation back in the 80s or 90s that focused on Drake Mallard a duck on a mission to fight crime and protect the city that was done and voiced by the great Jim Cummings, who seems not to be the voice this time around as a neww array of names will be helming this project with the lead now done by Luke Skywalker himself of Mark Hamill and some other big names like Seth Rogen. Lizzy Caplin, Dan Stevens, Kathryn Newton and a few others brining this iconic crimefighter back into the spotlight in this alternate world that has never heard of his superhero exploits and I feel with this narrative will be an interesting one to follow from the original. Now I feel I have not been well versed in the original series but it sounds like it could be worth a watch and we can hope this could be another successful revival of a classic akin to the Ducktales and X-Men reboots but I guess we can find out as development gets underway on the series and will eventually see the shows release in the future that is currently unknown but once I hear anything new I will let you know in a later episode.
The last of the project updates or announcements is one that we have seen many variations of explaining the concept of the outcome that while the idea can be something a little confusing to digest, I am certain that with a good focus of a small spoonful of sugar will help make its medicinal form go down as it was announced on Thursday or Friday of this week that we will be getting an all new tv series adaption of Mary Poppins being developed. Now in the basis of this new take will be going more away from the dual films from Disney that starred Julie Andrews and Emily Blunt, but rather with this series will be heavily more focused in adapting it from the vast pages of the book series that has spanned across 8 novels and will see a bit more of a strange and colourful world that they have provided as well as a bit more of some darker tones found amongst those pages. This could be more to being a more faithful adaptation of the character and her world and personality that will differ heavily from the films as while the original is a classic and was award winning, the original author was very critical of the project which we saw heavily shown in the well recieved film of Saving Mr Banks back in 2013 so it will be interesting to see what names and developers will be approached to give this a proper adaption to it all and I am interested to check this out. Now at the moment this is only the early announcement to this project and no word has been given on who will be running the series or when we will see this in particular, but once I hear anything I will let you know in a later episode.
So moving over to casting or project lead announcements, the first of the 2 we have for this week is one that has been a question on whether or not we wanted to play a game once more or if we have run out of those game in focus and may be time to set that last trap. Well it looks like there is one in the form as there has been a bit of an update to the initial 11th movie in the long running Saw Franchise and it was announced this week this new film has a director and this is in the form of Mike P Nelson (Wrong Turn, Silent Night Deadly Night). Now this entry has had a bit of a lengthy development as the title was initially planned in concept to release either a year or 2 years after the last entry of X from 2023 which in all sense of the word was the most acclaimed title in the series and it looked like they were all in to keep that momentum going but in the process saw it delayed out of the release calendar and replaced with the first entry of the Strangers trilogy (which was a modest disaster) and the likes of the titles with this director that mostly focuses on horror seems like a solid idea to approach this new title of Jigsaw and his twisted traps once again. Now as things stand at the moment there is no indication as to when we will see this new Saw movie and if there is any known names attached to star into it but once I hear anything new I will let you know in a later episode.
But for the 2nd story in this section of focus it will making a return to the realm among the pages of comic books and while we anticipate the counting down to Doomsday and the bright light of the lanterns shines on as the season continues, we will be more looking ahead past both of them and staying on the side of DC as after some reports and rumours we have gotten an official update and casting confirmation for the upcoming new film of Dynamic Duo as its confirmed with 4 names portraying different variations of the Boy wonders and what some of them may become with it confirmed that Mason Thames (Black Phone) will be voicing Dick Grayson / Nightwing, Logan Kim (Ghostbusters Afterlife) as Jason Todd, Lee Pace as Red Hood 1 and Steve Buscemi as Red Hood 2 all set to provide their vocal talents to this new upcoming title. The choice in here is interesting and I feel for the age and tone of the voice that their is an interesting approach and I have to wonder if this will be a final lock for these characters or if one or 2 of them is a red Herring and will be portraying some other characters in this universe (or even if we will see an appearance of a voice for the Caped Crusader himself) but I am sure we will see come its release in 2028 and if there is any change to the voices or of any other new additions, then I will let you know in a later episode.
For the one sole release date for the week is one that I was unaware for the time was actually initially set in stone with a release date and thought this was the first confirmed outcome, but just like the rules to caring for these creatures, it can be confusing on how it all works out, but besides all of that it now looks like these little creatures are back to cause a whole lot of trouble once more as we have gotten an all new release date for the long in development 3rd Gremlins movie with it now set for release on October 6th 2028, after also having been delayed from its initial October 2027 release date. I was unaware of when it was confirmed for next year but it seems with the likes of the writing being done long in advance and it being quiet on the likes of the filming side of things that maybe it was a reason it slipped under my radar, but I can appreciate that its alive, its got a release window in mind and the other bit of good news is that it will also be confirmed the Gremlins and Gizmo will be back as Puppets and not be overly done with VFX and CGI so there is an appeal of the practical over the physical so I am interested in seeing how they will be pull this off, but I am sure we will get an idea to what chaos will be unleashed when it makes it way back to the big screen in 2 years time.
Now this last story of this week is more akin to not being a title or project announcement, but rather in this approach that this is a more physical item that has had a lot of heavy discussion and thoughts to it including myself. Now over the years we have seen with the like of games that more often then not we would see something akin to the likes of various editions from a standard edition, a gold that comes with extra expansions included and in a sort of once in a blue moon format we would see them go all in with a collectors edition that would normally come with a select few items from little accessories, apparel, posters and even the odd statue or item just to name a few and we've seen it with many different games over the years, but there is one that some expected to see get unveiled but with how its turned out many are right to be disappointed as of course the biggest game of the year will be jumping in on this format and announced their own collectors edition known as the Leonida item that leaves a lot to be desired. Now the item had been rumoured and hinted at for a few weeks now but was unclear on what was in the item but earlier this week they unveiled the edition and its contents which include a special leonida gator figure, a double sided poster with one side being the map of Leonida or Vice City, a pair of Oakley sunglasses, a Vice City snapback hat, a decal designed mirror, a vice city stirring spoon, razor blade keychain, a collection of badges / magnets in a special tin, a bunch of decal stickers, a Shot glass and a body bag (not human size). Now you may be wondering that's all well and good but where is the important aspect of the edition which is the game..... well that's the thing it does not come with the game at all and even worse is with the price they are trying to charge people for this box with it coming in at an eye watering €400. Now the response to this has not been the most glowing as it has been criticized to all end of feeling extortionately stingy from Rockstar in a lot of ways and like I said before they feel like they won't make their money back with this title when I am pretty sure the pre-orders have already done that and the value does not feel akin to this price at all is worth it especially the contents of the box. Many compared to some of Rockstars other collectors editions with the pricing being more tolerable like the GTA 5 one for €150 that came with the game, a snapback cap, steelbook, special map and a few other elements that was worth the money or the Red Dead 2 box that while it didn't have the game it made up for it in some great items and only cost about €100 which I would be fine with buying alongside a copy of the actual game cause I love that title. If say this box was a whole lot heaper and came with the game I would be fine with it (but if it was the only way you can get a disc version of the game I would be more pissed) but I really don't see a reason for buying this at all (and like clockwork there is already scalpers selling it online for double or triple the price) and I hope this will be a bit of a wake up call about this and make me concerned on it being a wonder if Rockstar is getting too much of an ego but I guess we will find out what the outcome of those that buy it by its release on the same day as the game
But what do you make of these stories, are you disappointed that Daredevil is wrapping up with the next season and do you think it will wrap up well, will you be watching the Darkwing Duck revival, how do you see the approach of a Mary Poppins tv series more akin and faithful to the books will turn out, do you see this director making another successful entry for the Saw franchise, what are your thoughts on that films casting for the dynamic duo, do you think the 3rd Gremlins film will keep that release date and will it be good and what are your thoughts about that collectors edition and what special edition for a game do you recall as your favourite? Let me know all about them down below.
And with all of that this brings us to the end of the 187th edition of my weekly series of Weird Mind News Room and I hope you enjoy the probably shorter ramblings of this week. Let me know your thoughts on all that was discussed down below 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 episode :)
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