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Graphics: 8/10—The graphics for Mario Strikers Charged are crisp and sharp, and still typical Nintendo fare.
Music/Sound: 8/10—The sound effects are great, and you'll really feel the power-shots.
Gameplay: 9/10—Mario Strikers Charged has some of the most hectic, frantic gameplay you'll ever experience, but you wouldn't have it any other way.
Longevity: 8.5/10—The single player modes are difficult enough that you'll find playing them easy, but mastering them will push your gaming skills.
Overall score: 8/10—This is the most frantic fun you'll have in a while.
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BITS & BOBS
... we found while scouting around in an effort to avoid work.
Anyone who's spent the past few months living under a rock might not have heard the word ‘Cloverfield'. Rest assured that you'll be hearing it a lot before 1-18-08, the release date touted on an unnamed trailer (nicked Cloverfield) that preceded Transformers in the US and caused an unprecedented frenzy on the web. The trailer itself shows handicam footage of a farewell party for a bloke named Rob, which erupts into chaos as a series of explosions rip through the skyline to the tune of some of the most unearthly roars we've heard on ... well, earth. All this culminates in the head of the Statue of Liberty taking a spectacular tumble through the streets of New York, sending screaming girls fleeing for cover. The already epic viral campaign for The Untitled JJ Abrams’ Project (that's Abrams as in the two-time Emmy winner and producer of Lost, Six Degrees and Alias, as well as the writer of Armageddon), has spawned puzzle sites, tons of youtube postings, heated media debate and a global quest for the identity of the unseen (but very memorably heard) monster (can you say Cthulu?). IMDB says it, “Revolves around a monster attack in New York as told from the point of view of a small group of people.” We can tell you it stars a host of unknowns, is written by Drew Goddard (Lost, Alias, Angel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer), directed by Matt Reeves (Felicity, The Yards), and backed by Paramount Pictures. The official website is 1-18-08.com. Have fun with the few pics they've posted as the only truly reliable clues, and we'll see you at the movies in January.
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For a long time there was a rumour going around that ex-pat Neill Blomkamp (acclaimed director of the short Alive in Joburg—check it out on somethingwicked.co.za/movies) was set to direct the long-awaited Halo movie—well it was true. Unfortunately production on the big-screen adaptation has stopped.
According to an interview with Creativity Online, Blomkamp has put the rumours to rest.
"The film is entirely dead. Whatever happens with that movie, assuming that movie gets made, [it] will be a totally different configuration."
Blomkamp added, “It's not so much me as the entire vessel sank. Basically, it was a combination of; there were two studios involved that weren't getting along in the process of making it. That kind of stuff happens, it's a fragile industry. So the film collapsed at the end of last year, and it has been dead ever since then. I'll be curious to see what happens."
And so are we. With Halo 3 pretty much outselling any game ever made we're guessing it won't be long before someone picks up the slack and turns it into a Gazillion Dollar movie—we just hope it doesn't suck.
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The Hellbound Remake.
Yes, you guessed it, Hollywood's obsession with Karaoke movies has reached Hellraiser. ("There was absolutely nothing wrong with the original film, for fuck sakes!!!” “Shut up Joe.")
According to Bloody-Disgusting.com, Dimension films is in talks with directors Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury, to direct the remake of Clive Barker's Hellraiser.
For those of you who don't know, Hellraiser is based upon Barker's novella The Hellbound Heart. The original film was Barker's first big hit as a director and he did a damn good job of creating some of the most vicious bastards ever committed to celluloid. It follows the story of a man who gets more than he bargained for when he solves a Chinese puzzle-box that opens a door to hell. When his ex-lover finds a way of bringing him back she drags the Cenobites out into our world—kind of like hell's police—angels to some, demons to others, whose greatest pleasure is the greatest pain.
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Pratchett and Gaiman seek Gilliam.
It has recently come to the fore that Gaiman, Prattchet and Gilliam are currently seeking funding to shoot a film-adaptation of Good Omens. Now that sounds like fun. At the recent premiere of Stardust, Gaiman also revealed to Empire magazine that he would love Gilliam to direct The Sandman.
"I would always give anything to Terry Gilliam, forever, so if Terry Gilliam ever wants to do Sandman then as far as I'm concerned Terry Gilliam should do Sandman,” said Gaiman. “But Terry's busy trying to get Good Omens made.
"I hope that if we ever see Sandman made into a film that it will be made by someone who has the same love for the material that Peter Jackson had for The Lord Of The Rings and Sam Raimi had for Spider-Man,” Gaiman continued. “Zach Snyder's doing Watchmen at the moment and he knows what he's doing and I hope it's good."
He added, “...I hope if ever it happens, it's done with integrity and passion. I would rather have no Sandman movie than a bad Sandman movie."
In other Gaiman news, BBC World Service has recently recorded a compressed version of Anansi Boys, with Lenny Henry as Spider and Fat Charlie, Matt Lucas as Graham Coats and Tiger, Rudolph Walker as Anansi, Dona Croll as Mrs Noah and the Bird Woman, Tameka Empson as Mrs Higgler, Petra Letang as Rosie, Jocelyn Jee Esien as Daisy, and Ben Crowe as Cabbies and the extra voices.
It will broadcast on the World Service on 17 November 2007.
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And now filed in the “Holy Crap” department...
According to RottenTomatoes.com Paul Giamatti is up for a starring role in Bubba Nosferatu, the prequel to the unbelievably strange, funny and weirdly touching Bubba Ho-Tep in which the King of Schlock, (Bruce Campbell) plays the King of Rock, (Elvis. Duh!).
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Finally, just for fun—the Top Ten Horror Movies as voted by RottenTomotoes.com:
#10—Repulsion (dir. Roman Polanksi, Starring Catherine Deneuve, Ian Hendry, Yvonne Furneaux)
#9—Evil Dead 2 (dir. Sam Raimi, Starring Bruce Campbell, Sarah Berry, Dan Hicks)
#8—The Bride of Frankenstein (dir. James Whale, Starring Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, Valerie Hobson)
#7—Evil Dead (dir. Sam Raimi, Starring Bruce Campbell, Ellen Sandweiss, Betsy Baker)
#6—28 Days Later (dir. Danny Boyle, Starring Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston)
#5—The Devil's Backbone (dir. Guillermo del Toro, Starring Marisa Paredes, Eduardo Noriega, Federico Luppi)
#4—Rosemary's Baby (dir. Roman Polanksi, Starring Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes, Ruth Gordon)
#3—Shaun of the Dead (dir. Edgar Wright, Starring Simon Pegg, Kate Ashfield, Lucy Davis)
#2—King Kong (1933) (dir. Merian C. Cooper, Starring Fay Wray, Bruce Cabot, Robert Armstrong)
#1—Psycho (1960) (dir. Alfred Hitchcock, Starring Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh, Martin Balsam)
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Something Wicked SF and Horror Magazine #5 Page 14