Another Star Wars fan film

OK, despite the fact that Papa George is still trying his hardest to ruin Star Wars for my generation, my last two posts have been Star Wars-themed, fan-created video clips. That tells me two things: 1) the fans still get what makes this whole Star Wars thing great, and 2) maybe it’s time for Lucas to let somebody else make the decisions.

This short, fan-created film tells the story of the dumped cargo shipment that earned Han that famous price on his head from Jabba the Hutt. In under 6 minutes, this production crew manages to out-do anything in the prequels and give the Clone Wars cartoon a run for its money. Special bonus points for finding a voice actor who’s a dead ringer for Harrison Ford circa 1977. More, please.

Lando’s not a system, he’s a man.

Lando Calrissian FTW. I would so watch this movie.

Hello Helvetica

I have to admit, Jay-Z took a long time to grow on me (I think it had something to do with his use of the most annoying hook in the history of rap), but the longer he sticks around, the more respect I have for the guy. Talk about a master of personal branding. From the moment he decided to go with this whole hip hop Rat Pack thing, he’s projected such a fully-developed, well-thought-out image, from how he dresses to who he collaborates with to how his videos look. I’ve definitely got a soft spot for well-done typography motion graphics, but this video works especially well because the Helvetica fits perfectly with Jay’s back-to-basics classic style, as well as nodding to the New York public transit signage prominently featured all over Brooklyn. Given his attention to detail, I’ve got to think Jay had something to say about that choice as well.

Jay Z - "Hello Brooklyn" from Gregory Solenström on Vimeo.

Like chocolate and peanut butter

Two great tastes that taste great together: words by Nick Hornby, music by Ben Folds. For fans of either, mark Sept. 28 on your calendars.

We Got This

Just a friendly reminder to all the English fans out there that a little less than one year ago, the US beat the best team in the world. Saturday is gonna be like my birthday and Christmas all rolled into one.

Adidas’ World Cup commercial

Star Wars™ Cantina 2010 / adidas Originals from Dominic Prevost on Vimeo.

I love soccer. I love Star Wars (well, at least the original trilogy). And I’ve invested so much money into adidas products, I should have a spot on the board of directors by now. So, on paper, this should have been the perfect ad. There’s even a cameo by Noel Gallagher, for cryin’ out loud. It’s like they tapped directly into my brain. But for some reason, the whole thing just kind of falls flat.

Maybe Snoop Dogg ruined it for me. Maybe soccer players and musicians are 100% the wrong people to ask to act in front of a green screen (I mean, Daft Punk have no lines, and they still look uncomfortable). Or maybe a mashup of so many of my favorite things could never live up to my expectations. Nike’s Write the Future ad works because it sticks to soccer. This adidas ad just feels like the creative team tried to cram a whole mess of crap into the pot, and it became a big steaming plate of WTF?

I can just imagine the meeting. “We got access to the cantina scene! The fucking cantina scene! Lucas never lets anybody mess with his stuff (other than himself, of course). What else we got? How about cameos from a California rapper and two English rock stars whose biggest hits were in the early 90’s! And, let’s get Daft Punk! They sort of look like they’re Star Wars characters. And Beckham’s injured, he’s not going to the World Cup, maybe we can throw him in there! And then let’s sprinkle a few more random people in the background and badly edit the scene to make sure this thing isn’t 8 minutes long. Perfect!” Ultimately, what does any of this mish-mash have to do with the World Cup? In the end, it just turns out to be a whole lot of wasted potential. Sorry, adidas. FAIL.

Still Lost...

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

So, that feeling of wasting 6 years of TV viewing that I had immediately following the Lost finale is starting to fade away, but I still feel like I could have used a lot more answers. College Humor does a pretty good job of summing up the insane amount of loose ends, although they didn’t quite come up with 108 questions, which would have been a much better conceit. And they managed to leave out the most important question that remains unresolved. In the immortal words of Charlie Pace, “Guys, where are we?”

Nike’s Soccer Ads

I may not always agree with everything Nike does as a company, but there's no denying they have a long history of amazing soccer ads. From the very beginning of my love for televised soccer, Nike has been producing great little mini films that reflect a lot of care, style, intelligence, and knowledge of the game, and this latest, “Write the Future” is no exception. Anybody who’s ever played a competitive match has had dreams of glory or fear of goathood flash though their head, but Nike takes this one to another level. After watching this, I’m really fired up for the start of the World Cup.

Here’s a few more classics from previous Nike campaigns:



Good vs. Evil is the first Nike ad I remember, and is also responsible for my love of Eric Cantona. The overall look may be a little dated, but that little "Au revoir" coupled with the collar flip could come off incredibly cheesy. Cantona makes it about as bad-ass as anyone would think possible.



The Brazilian squad with a little ”Jogo Bonito” in the airport. It’s funny to see some of these guys at their peak (Ronaldo) and some of them who dropped off the face of the earth soon after starring in this commercial (Denilson). Also, Cantona ges a cameo.



Guy Ritchie’s first person masterpiece puts you in the head of a lower division player whose free kick goal gets him a spot on Arsenal, superstardom, the Champions League and then eventually, the World Cup, all in 3 minutes. Genius.

The Roundup

Nintendo mashups are cool.

The first look at Thor is, um, disconcertingly plastic. Maybe they plan to make it all shiny in post?

Letting a sick kid be a superhero for a day is heartwarming (and maybe, possibly, makes me a little bit misty-eyed).

Joss Whedon to Direct The Avengers?

That sound you hear is a million geeks’ heads simultaneously exploding. I won’t fully believe it until it’s official, but if this really happens, I might as well start camping out at a theater now.

For the non-geeks among us, allow me to translate. Joss Whedon is the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse, and the totally underrated Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. He’s also had successful stints writing comics for Marvel, most notably on Astonishing X-Men. (Why, yes, I am a fanboy. Why do you ask?) The Avengers is a superhero team made up of Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, and a rotating cast of supporting players (sometimes including the Incredible Hulk). The solo movies for those characters (Iron Man 2 comes out in a few weeks, Thor and Cap next summer) are all building to an Avengers movie in 2012.

Island Getaway

As much as I love Lost, I’m still not totally sold on this final season. Where last season’s time travel storyline went too far into the sci-fi realm for a lot of viewers, this season feels a little too dumbed-down to me. All the creepy, mysterious fun has disappeared from the show, partly because we’re finally getting the answers we’ve all been demanding (prompting one of the little voices in my head to remind me to be careful what I wish for), and partly because this season seems to be yet another confusing reinvention of the format. To me, the writing is really suffering as a result of the departure of Brian K. Vaughn, but maybe I’m biased. I do love me some Y: The Last Man. I really wanted to be blown away by this season, and so far, it’s just not happening. Or maybe it’s just that I’m just sad that the show is ending and I’m preparing myself to be disappointed by the final episode. Either way, I guess I’m still watching.

That said, I still enjoy Lost-related media, and this is an extremely cool idea. An illustrator named Michael Myers (no relation to the comedian or the mass murderer of Halloween fame) did some Saturday morning cartoon-style drawings of the Losties for a made-up Lost: The Animated Series. I like it, although I couldn’t help wondering what they’d have to change Sawyer’s signature “Son of a bitch!” line to for the kiddies.

Illustrations by Michael Myers.

300 For Emo Kids

Hi. I know, it’s been a while, but I’m back from my year of wandering in the desert that is Facebook. Frankly, that place sucks. Nothing but Farmville updates, Mafia Wars, and reminders that I forgot someone’s birthday.

Besides, I was just waiting for the right bit of pop culture to come along and give me a reason to start blogging again, and oh, wait, here’s something that combines two of my favorite things to write about... a preview for a comic book movie: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World.

If you've read this blog at all, you know I love me some comic book adaptations, but this one’s not exactly your standard superhero fare — more like a romantic hipster animé-inspired Nintendo game brought to life. And despite the fact that the trailer begins just like every other Michael Cera movie you’ve ever seen, this is not your typical rom-com. Just watch it, you’ll see.

Buzz has been building for this movie in geek circles for a while now, enough to get me to hunt down the source graphic novels/manga books (which, of course, I totally dig). I recently read a review of an early screening that said, “This movie is so true to the feel of the comics, it’s like 300 for emo kids.” Needless to say, I will actually be going to the theater for this one. And that doesn’t happen much anymore, especially since the theater chains are quietly raising prices this weekend. Way to make people want to stay home with their Blu-Rays even more, idiots.