Forget Superman, we need a miracle to save our school system – and this documentary might just convince you to be it.

This one’s making the rounds all over daytime television including an exclusive hour on Oprah with fellow education reformer Bill Gates.  Just like “An Inconvenient Truth,” this documentary needs to be seen.  Be warned, similar to ‘Inconvenient Truth,’ this film will make you think and potentially act to make a change in your state, your district, maybe even your government.  Even if you don’t have children of school age, you’ll see the same school system you yourself grew up in.  This movie takes a poignant look at the hierarchy of the educational system, the plight of children to learn and excel, and an exhausting view inside the politics of education which has befuddled both everyday man and President for over a hundred years.

You can’t dissect the education system without a solid injection of politics and political figures so come prepared for some bashing from the ‘left’ and the ‘right.’  Former President Bush ‘haters’ will love one scene in particular (no spoilers), but later the ‘left’ is smacked as Kennedy & Bush are in a bipartisan stance with the “No Child Left Behind” initiative during their political runs.   You get a solid message that Democrat or Republican, every president and Congress has tried; and all have failed to deliver better education.

Waiting For Superman follows the lives of five children and their families as they attempt to matriculate into various school programs and systems; each child with a unique understanding of schools known as ‘failure factories’ and how the current standard for learning is based more on the needs of the educators than those seeking to be educated.  I was extremely angry at how rife the system is with archaic reward systems.  Michelle Rhee (currently embattled Washington DC Chancellor of Schools), explains an offer made to the teacher’s union in an effort to strengthen children’s education:  Double their salaries for a school year and base their re-up on merit and learning objectives with children, in exchange for no more tenure and the system can release you if you’re underperforming – the union flat out declined it.  Where is the sense of ownership with these teachers as it pertains to educating children?

The families, Hill – Esparza – Black each seem to handle the ebb and flow of trying to work their children through a system that constrains and detains children’s abilities.  The message of education reform plays out interspersed with each child’s foray into the system.  You are barraged with fact after fact about the fallacies that exist and each representation will force you to listen, question, ponder and even react.  The message gains credibility as you watch these kids and how senseless it is that the graduation ceremony is denied for one of them, even though they’ve earned the diploma…they simply can’t finish paying the bill for it, so no pomp and circumstance for you.  At one point, you start to feel a bit of despair, even questioning what you could do if you were willing to get involved and work towards change.

Filmmaker Davis Guggenheim (An Inconvenient Truth) uses tight visuals to support the documentary.  Like his previous work, the genius is in the editing.  The stories each move and transition juxtaposing the current struggle for the child followed by a political motion or movement in education reform.

The takeaway message is we ALL need to do something and do it fast.  Our children are being ‘left behind’ and lottery systems that draw children to better schools should not be needed; the good schools should be the standard.  One word of caution to parents of young children – unless your well enough off to afford private education, you might be tempted to organize a gathering in front of the schools in your district to start the reformation in your town.

No matter what your political affiliation, stay through the end of the film for some touching results of the educational lottery.  They serve as a call to action no matter which side of the aisle you sit on.

Waiting For Superman is rated PG for some thematic material, mild language and incidental smoking.  Running Time: 102 minutes.

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

Okay, this is starting to get confusing. Reports began swirling about a month ago that Batman Begins an d The Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan was being brought in as a producer to oversee the next Superman film, and both movie and comic fans alike rejoiced. Shortly after, DC Entertainment president Diane Nelson outright rejected the rumors, leaving those fans feeling slightly cheated. It seemed like such a great idea that the man who wrangled the Batman franchise into one of the most lucrative and acclaimed series in history would step in to aid with the “Big Blue boyscout.”

Luckily, Nelson’s statements were apparently just meant as misdirection, as Nolan himself opened up to the LA Times about his involvement and the high hopes and plans he, his screenwriter brother Jonathan, and his producer wife Emma Thomas have for Superman.

“It’s very exciting, we have a fantastic story. And we feel we can do it right. We know the milieu, if you will, we know the genre and how to get it done right…[it] is a way of approaching the story I’ve never seen before that makes it incredibly exciting. I wanted to get Emma and I involved in shepherding the project right away and getting it to the studio and getting it going in an exciting way. We’re approaching it in a not dissimilar way [to the Batman films] in terms of trying to find an incredible story in a way that audiences can engage with it the way they engage with contemporary action films.”

The best guess as far as who will helm the project seems to be that Begins writer and Dark Knight co-plotter David Goyer will handle the script, with his sights set on also directing. This will leave brothers Chris and Jonathan free to tackle the third Batman picture, on which Chris claims Jonah is now “doing the hand work.”

Christopher spoke a little about the approach they are taking for the next installment:

“The key thing that makes the third film an great possibility for us is that we want to finish our story. And in viewing it as the finishing of a story rather than infinitely blowing up the balloon and expanding the story…I’m very excited about the end of the film, the conclusion, and what we’ve done with the characters. My brother has come up with some pretty exciting stuff. Unlike the comics, these thing don’t go on forever in film and viewing it as a story with an end is useful. Viewing it as an ending, that sets you very much on the right track about the appropriate conclusion and the essence of what tale we’re telling.”

So there you have it, straight from the horse’s mouth. Nolan will be overseeing Superman while working on Batman. Pretty exciting stuff for fans. So we want to hear your thoughts. How do you feel about Nolan taking the reins as DC’s golden boy?

It’s been four years since Superman last graced the big screen in Superman Returns, and it’s looking like the superhero might be taking to the skies once again.

Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures have just signed David Goyer to write the screenplay for Man of Steel (working title), the next Superman film. Goyer has worked with Warner Bros. before as a co-writer of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, and is no stranger to the world of comic book hero-based films. In addition to the Batman films, Goyer served as writer and producer of the ‘Blade’ franchise, and executive producer of Ghost Rider.

Goyer joining up with the Superman project comes right as Warner Bros. is starting to hit crunch time in getting another Superman movie going. Once 2013 rolls around, the heirs of the creator and co-creator of Superman will take possession of the Superman copyright, which means that Warner Bros. will have to pay millions to the heirs in order to continue with any subsequent Superman movies.

With a writer now in place for the film, Warner Bros. is much more likely to be able to get the new movie rolling by 2011, meaning the film has a better chance of being finished and into theaters before the 2013 turnover.

So far, Goyer’s idea for the Man of Steel would give audiences a more action-based film, including battles between Superman and Lex Luthor, and between Superman and Brainiac.

Brandon Routh, who played Clark Kent/Superman in Superman Returns is not expected to return for Man of Steel; neither is Superman Returns writer/director/producer Bryan Singer.

Good morning all. Welcome back to the Atomic DVD Shelf.

Last week we kicked off the column with a look at Halo:Legends, Black Dynamite and more. If you missed it, check it out. This week, there’s an even greater number of new films, and overall the quality is better.

There are some definite disappointments here and a few that never stood the chance of being good, but amidst that, there’s more than a few gems hiding out in this week’s lot. Let’s begin shall we?

The Box

Nate’s rating:

Rating: ★★½☆☆ 

When I reviewed this one for AP back in the fall, I was accused of giving away the film’s secret; whether or not Cameron Diaz and James Marsden pushed the button. Well, it’s no secret to tell you that this concept, which drove the short story it was based off, isn’t the big revelation The Box has in store. We know from the beginning what will happen and in the first 30 minutes that question is answered. Unfortunately, all of the  best bits are in that first hour and tied to the very basic premise. Once the button is pushed (gasp!) Kelly’s story spirals out into insanity. This one feels like a real missed opportunity, and it’s going to infuriate some and intrigue a few who will pursue it begrudgingly. I gave it a passing grade back then because I liked more  than I disliked. However, now that its hit dvd, I’ve got no real desire to revisit it.  For those that refuse to give up on Richard Kelly and think Donnie Darko was more than a fluke, there a few good special features provided for your diligence.

Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant

Nate’s rating:

Rating: ★½☆☆☆ 

I’m a pretty forgiving guy when it comes to fantasy adventure films. Especially ones aimed for the family audience; for my taste, there simply aren’t enough good ones. So it  takes a lot for me to admit when one falls flat. However, that’s exactly what happens with Cirque Du Freak. The story is tragically thin and relatively lame and John C. Reilly, usually so good, is horribly miscast. There are a ton of cameos in the film, which is apparently based off a reasonably popular children’s book series. All of them are wasted and fail to generate any interest. There’s not a single character to root for, and not one supernatural ability that makes sense or causes us to consider what we ourselves would do if we had it. The plot details are also suspect; there’s an ancient clan of bloodsucking beings called Vampinese? Really, Vampinese? Yes, really. The best I can muster for this is that it isn’t as bad as Twilight.

Check out Marco’s AP review of the movie over here.

Crude

Nate’s rating:

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

Joe Berlinger’s Crude is a captivating, frustrating and sometimes legitimately sad documentary. I bow to Berlinger’s ability to be both even handed and indicting while evoking imagery that is haunting and sickening. The sequences that show the Amazon forests of Ecuador reduced to sludgy waste by corporate drilling will stick with you even you don’t happen to be an environmentalist. The rest of the picture follows a court battle between the Ecuadorians who have filed a lawsuit against Chevron for the hazardous by-product of their oil drilling. It isn’t the destruction of nature alone they are arguing against; it’s the fact that the water they drank and bathed in was contaminated by oil spillage. This legal stand-off is still going on today and Berlinger’s camera is privy to both sides. Get ready for a pensive but provocative look at a people trying to make their voice heard in the shadow of a giant.

Sorority Row

Nate’s rating:

Rating: ★★☆☆☆ 

Sorority Row is exactly 10 years too late to be worth regarding. Back in 1999, it still would have come off as late to the party, following up Scream, I Know What You Did Last Summer, and even Urban Legends. This movie, whose best feature is a haggard Carrie Fisher as an axe toting sorority mother, is a hodgepodge concoction of all those other flicks. It throws in a few 80′s sensibilities, but mostly any signs of intelligence or individuality have been drained from it. It could have been much worse than it is, though. The proof of that is in last week’s Cabin Fever 2 which featured flesh eating viruses at the Prom and was far more indigestible than this. Here, the directors are at least sensible enough to keep it to a college campus with the tried and true slasher. There’s something to be said for tradition sometimes. Watchable, especially if you are a horror fan with a free Red Box rental.

The Informant!

Nate’s review:

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

AP rating:

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

I love this movie and it’s mostly thanks to a really versatile and nuanced performance by Matt Damon. It isn’t just that Damon disappears completely into the role of Mark Whitacre, a hapless biochemist who wants to help the FBI blow the lid on the shady company he works for.  No, it’s as much what Damon does with Whitacre once he’s nailed all the character quirks and banal personality traits. He subtly and perfectly calibrates the change this man goes through over the course of the film. And if you think this is a stuffy affair concerned only with attacking big business, you’d be wrong. It’s really funny, with a nice dose of honest-to-goodness sarcasm floating right there on top. The supporting cast is also off-kilter but really effective. I enjoyed Scott Bakula’s agent the best of the second tier players. This is Soderbergh in a lighter tone, but not so light that we’re talking Ocean’s Eleven. If you ask me, it’s his best work since Traffic. Well worth seeing.

Read Marco’s take right here and John’s here.

Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths

Nate’s rating:

Rating: ★★★☆☆ 

I’ve given myself over to the fact we will probably never see a live action Justice League film in my lifetime. I had hope when George Miller was linked to the project, but these days it’s probably better off that the idea is languishing in development hell somewhere. Until then, the comic-collecting 8 yr old inside will have to make due with DC’s direct-to-dvd animated features. That, as it turns out, isn’t such a bad thing. The last Justice League movie was actually a lot of fun, with clear, crisp animation that brought back fond memories of Fleischer’s Superman shorts and the 1990′s Batman animated series. Crisis on Two Earths is just about as good as the first one, this time focusing on the crime fighters tussle with warriors from an alternate dimension.The villains there are Batman and Superman, and their greatest weapon against their counterparts is the fact they will do what the originals cannot; kill. Perfectly fun, with a less violent story than the previous outing. If you’re a DC fan, a comic fan, or even a passing fan of any of the heroes featured, give this one a whirl. Among the really good special features is an absolute gem; a short animated film about The Spectre! Easily the best bit on the disc.

Nate’s Pick of the Week: The Damned United

Nate’s rating:

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

This isn’t strictly speaking, just a sports/soccer/football movie. Granted, the football scenes are realized in a wonderfully kinetic and gritty style, but they are not the lifeblood of this picture or it’s focus. That’s for the best, because without the centerpiece being the sport or the team or the formula, Damned United is freed up to just be a damned good movie. Michael Sheen goes ahead and gives another really strong performance as Brian Clough and Timothy Spall as his assistant and Colm Meany as his rival ground and support him. There’s a ton of ego flying around on the field and when Clough and Taylor start to turn on one another, United is nothing less than riveting.

Thanks again for joining us as we pick through the cinema jungle of home entertainment. Next week, we get to go Where the Wild Things Are, and visit Ponyo, Cold Souls, and Alice.

Recently I asked you who your favorite big screen werewolf was and that got me thinkin’ about some other popular characters portrayed by multiple leading men in the movies. This discussion must always start with the character of agent 007 James Bond, best played by Sean Connery. Other popular Bonds were Pierce Brosnan and Roger Moore while Timothy Dalton and George Lazenby aren’t

remembered so fondly for their portrayal of the famous secret agent. Currently carrying the torch and ordering shaken martinis is Daniel Craig who seems to make a lot of people happy; I prefer him on the other side of the law as he was in Layer Cake and Road to Perdition.

Then there’s Dracula, or vampires in general. The list of actors who have played a vampire on film is a long one. So here are a few that come to mind, please remind me of any as I’ll most definitely leave some out – Leslie Nielsen (Dracula: Dead and Loving It), Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise (Interview with the Vampire), Willem Dafoe (Shadow of the Vampire),  Robert Pattinson (Twilight), Bela Lugosi (Dracula), Gary Oldman (1992′s Dracula), Frank Langella (1979′s Dracula), Christopher Lee (1970′s Count Dracula), and Kiefer Sutherland (The Lost Boys). Needless to say, all of these guys suck, but who is your favorite?

Second in big-screen adaptation popularity to Dracula is  Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes who, along with Dracula, has been in the movies since the very beginning. Personally I’ve got a John Barrymore’s Sherlock Holmes (1922) waiting for me on my DVR, which I recorded after seeing Robert Downey Jr. play the part this past Christmas. I also watched a slew of Sherlock films from the late 1930s into the 40s starring Basil Rathbone, the man most of us think of when we imagine Holmes. Robert Stephens played the part of Holmes in what I consider to be one of the worst Holmes films The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes. Probably the most popular Holmes story The Hound of the Baskervilles has seen many leading men including Peter Cushing (1959) and Peter Cook (1978) in the role of Holmes. My favorite Holmes adaptation is Disney’s The Great Mouse Detective (1986) starring Barrie Ingham’s Basil of Baker Street as a Holmes-like mouse.

Another Hollywood mainstay that’s been around almost as long as Sherlock and Dracula is Robin Hood. Russell Crowe will be slinging arrows this May in theaters as Robin Hood. My favorite Hood is a tie between Kevin Costner’s Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and Disney’s foxy 1973 adaptation voiced by Brian Bedford. Douglas Fairbanks first wore the tights and feathered cap in 1922′s Robin Hood followed by Errol Flynn in 1938′s Robin Hood. Mel Brooks didn’t play the part but he did direct Cary Elwes as he had fun with the part in Robin Hood: Men in Tights. One Hood adaptation that I’ve not seen and as a native Texan am dying to see is Gene Autry’s 1947 Robin Hood of Texas! I can only imagine…

Honorable mention goes to Batman and Superman, both qualify for this discussion but I really don’t think either are very interesting as the best/worst in each case are pretty black and white. Don’t agree with me? Say so!

Well, this is unexpected — Bryan Singer, the director of X-Men and X2 who abandoned the series to embrace the failed Superman reboot and direct Valkyrie, is considering a return for X-Men IV. This is great news for everyone who sat through the mediocre X-Men: The Last Stand and the abomination that is Wolverine.

According to The Hollywood Reporter:

“‘I’m still looking to possibly returning to the X-Men franchise. I’ve been talking to Fox about it,’ Singer said at a talk at South Korea’s Pusan International Film Festival. He said he likes to ‘trick audiences into thinking they’re seeing fireworks, but they’re learning about themselves and listening to what I have to say.’”

This is far from a commitment from Singer, but nevertheless is a great sign for fans who adore the comics. If it does happen, though, The Last Stand will forever be a weird black sheep for the series, which is always annoying to me. After Wolverine last summer, Singer is just the shot in the arm that the series needs.

However, I’d take it with a grain of salt until he signs a contract — Singer’s a busy guy, with projects in development ranging from Excalibur to Jack the Giant Killer and a potentially unnecessary reboot of Battlestar Galactica.

A few weeks ago DC Comics and Warner Brothers got together and realized that they need to fix their broken comic book to movie formula. Except for 5 movies in 30 years, they have had tons of problems with the rest. Superman: The Movie (1978), Superman II (1983)Batman (1989), Batman Begins (2005), and The Dark Knight (2008) are the only movies to really make money in the box office and do well. Superman III and IV were garbage. Batman Returns, Batman Forever, and Batman & Robin were not nearly as well received as the first. Add to the fact that the last two featuring Robin didn’t have any chemistry between Batman and Robin. Catwoman bombed during the trailer process of the movie. And Steele had a decent plot but with the likes of Big Daddy Shaquile O’Neil as the leading man, you knew this wasn’t going to be a big box office draw.

So over the Summer Marvel Comics made this movie called Iron Man and followed that up with a new take on the Incredible Hulk. Both were leading down the path toward an Avengers movie in the not to distant future.  DC Comics and Warner both realized that this was the coures they wanted to take and the first thing they did was scrap the poorly received Justice League of America film that George Miller was working on.

Why is it that today it comes out that unknown actor Armie Hammer is still saying that he is going to be Batman in the JLA movie?  Dude, get a clue…the movie is dead, done, finished before it started. I know you’re upset that you won’t get to be Batman but move on already. The project is FINISHED! Is that so hard for you to understand?

Here is a quote from Armie to E! Online regarding his future as the next Caped Crusaider.

I would spend hours training with actual guns to prepare me for this stuff. It was very intense. Our workout regimens were so rigorous that most of us would vomit. We weren’t trying to get ourselves aesthetically good looking. We were trying to get ready for the demands of shooting.

The story even goes on to mention that the Batman suit was a workable costume ready for him to step into.

He’s already been fitted for the superhero costume, which he says features functioning equipment, including trademark Batman weapons like spring-loaded titanium Bat-erangs. “I was looking down, and I was thinking, This is the best,” Hammer said of the first time he put on the entire ensemble. “Then I stood up, and they turned me around, and I faced a mirror—there was Batman. But then it hit me like a ton of bricks—it’s not just Batman, it’s me!”

The bottom line is this…the project is dead. Stop trying to drag up a role that won’t get filled till after the Christian Bale movies are finished. The first things fan said when the project was announced last year is the same thing being said now…you can’t make a movie starring a Superman and a Batman while other Superman and Batman movies are in production. Having two actors playing different takes on the same character will make it harder for the average fans to connect to AND will confuse a lot of people as to which version of said character is the one they should follow on the big screen.

Let’s focus on getting a Green Lantern, Flash, and Green Arrow movie out there before we start to build a team movie. Let the audience get to see how the characters came to be before you group them into one big “blockbuster” battle.

Why cook the goose that is laying the golden eggs?

Hopefully if you are a return reader, you have noticed the unbelievable header Kirstin has made for us. She is a great graphics designed and really an all around awesome person. More to come on that announcement shortly.

As for the Monday Morning Link Love:

Here it is…

It seems that Kevin Smith has again seen a movie before anyone else. Lucky little bastard sort of reviews “Star Trek” for us. “Star Trek” is due out May 8th 2009 and I will be there to see what this early hype is all about.

The opening scene from Guy Ritchie’s “RockNRolla” is on the web. This looks like its going to kick some serious ass. Can’t wait to see it!

Shia LeBeouf’s drunken mishap a few weeks ago, seems to of made it into the script of “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” Personally I think its crap to do this but I guess you have to do what you have to do when you are cool as Michael Bay is.

For all of you “Smallville” fanboys – it seems that Clark Kent will actually fly this season! About damn time “Superman” learns how to fly.

Seems like Enik from “The Land of the Lost” is making an appearance next to Will Farrell. I hope Farrell doesn’t screw this one up. Check out the photos at the link.

There is always more on the net than posted here. I just like to highlight what I find to be “news”

See you fine folks soon.