The Fandango Movie Blog

As a kid in the late '70s, early '80s, I loved stuff like Voltron, Marvel comics (especially Iron Man, Captain America and the Avengers), the comic book G.I. Joe and later the animated movie and t.v. show, and early on, Speed Racer (Racer X in particular) and the cartoon Submariner. It's great to see how some of these childhood favorites are starting to translate into full-fledged, multi-million dollar blockbuster enterprises. Done right, as with Iron Man, and I'll say it, Speed Racer (despite the naysayers, I cast my lot with the Cinematical and Aint-It-Cool-News reviews that defend it as fun, effective family entertainment), they become great movies for the masses that can stand on their own regardless of any sort of nostalgia factor. Done badly, they're about as memorable as both the Dolph Lundgren and Thomas Jane versions of The Punisher. Next year, we'll all be able to cast our votes on the big-screen version of Joe, but for now, we just have a lot of cool character photos. Here are some of my favorites...

Star Wars fans -- at least those with cable -- can catch the new trailer for the upcoming big-screen animated flick Star Wars: The Clone Wars on all the Turner networks (TNT, TBS, CNN, Boomerang, Cartoon Network) starting Thursday at 7:58pm in all U.S. time zones. We'll see how the cartoon actually fares as a feature film in August (it's a prelude to an animated show that will run next fall on the Cartoon Network), but if you just can't ever get enough from Lucas' galaxy far, far away, be sure to set your TiVos. Below is the new, official poster for the movie, and the latest production photo.

From Stacie Hougland: Cult movie fans will want to snap up the sharp little horror film Teeth, which serves up an ancient myth about female sexuality and male fears in the form of a darkly campy black comedy.

"People are squirmy about the V-word," says the film's costume designer on the commentary, and few movies could incite the squirm as much as this one. Jess Weixler makes an extraordinary debut (one that, I might say, rivals Ellen Page's in a far less--well, family-friendly--role) as Dawn, a high school girl determined to hang on to her virginity until marriage. Dawn's the kind who wears unicorn sweatshirts to school and crayons wedding dresses in her notebook, and enjoys leading abstinence discussions at her Promise Ring group meetings. With a dimpled, wide-blue-eyed innocence, she suffers her predatory lunkhead stepbrother (Nip/Tuck's John Hensley) and copes with her mother's cancer, presumably caused by the nuclear energy plant nearby that we surmise is also behind the root of all Dawn's problems--a phenomenon called vagina dentata. Dawn's always known she was different, but doesn't find out exactly how different until she meets Tobey (Hale Appleman), the first guy to awaken feelings she's never had before to disastrous results.

One can only imagine the results of this subject matter in the wrong hands, but writer/director Mitchell Lichtenstein's film brilliantly walks a line of straight comedy that never wavers for the sake of mugging actors, tossed-off one-liners or potty jokes, and his cast takes the ridiculous plot so seriously Teeth comes off almost like a 1970s after-school special warning against sleeping around. As a satire about men's and women's fears about sex and female empowerment, it's almost perfect. As a horror movie, it's cover-your-eyes gory. My only beef with the film would be some aspects of its final act.

Extras: Director commentary, five deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes featurette.

Overview: Teeth is a cleverly told, well-acted tongue-in-cheek horror comedy about "doing it" that goes way beyond anything in American Pie.

Also on DVD This Week:

P.S. I Love You - Hilary Swank, Gerard Butler
First Sunday - Ice Cube, Katt Williams
Over Her Dead Body - Eva Longoria, Paul Rudd
Bella - Eduardo Verástegui, Tammy Blanchard

Now that Iron Man is a bona fide blockbuster ($102+ million over the weekend, second best non-sequel debut opening ever, more than $201 million worldwide), expect more from the house that is Marvel Comics. Iron Man was the first movie produced fully in-house by the legendary comic imprint (and then distributed by Paramount Pictures), and it definitely will not be the last. Marvel today announced release dates for its upcoming pictures (previously rounded up in our 'Marvel'-ous New Movies spot). Besides The Incredible Hulk this summer, look for Iron Man 2 on April 30, 2010, followed by Thor on June 4, 2010. The following year will be another one-two punch, with the release of First Avenger: Captain America (working title only) on May 6, 2011, and the ultimate superhero group, The Avengers in July, 2011. If these projects can live up to the benchmark set by Iron Man, then we're all in for several big-screen treats. Hulk is looking better by the minute, since it does boast an A-list cast, a cameo from Tony Stark and is finally receiveing some better buzz with the release of its latest trailer. Hopefully, helmer Louis Leterrier has brought his A-game. Other than Robert Downey Jr., I attribute most of Iron Man's high quality to its director, Jon Favreau (maker of Elf, writer-star of Swingers).

At a screening yesterday on the Santa Monica promenade, we ran into Favreau, who was attending the afternoon matinee with just his young son. It was great to have him sit alongside us all through the end credits to see the special clip at the very end. When we congratulated him afterwards, he seemed as humbled and grateful for the film's success as we were to finally see a deserving summer spectacle. His approach -- that of a true fan -- are exactly what's needed for the rest of Marvel's projects.

It's official. Summer movie season, with the opening of Iron Man last night, has begun, and it's quite the kickoff. The movie's currently the top-rated movie of 2008 on Rotten Tomatoes, and while forecasters have warned that the release of Grand Theft Auto IV may cut into this weekend's box office, the movie industry should relax a little. Last year's box office was one for the record books, but the May product itself left something to be desired. This year, we're opening with a new popcorn franchise that actually works. It may not open to Spidey numbers, but it will have legs. Long, long legs.

There's more good news. There's something for everyone this summer, especially if you're a "movie geek" (more on this in our sister site Fancast's The Summer of Geek). Yes, we're still going to have some sequel-itis, but they're highly anticipated films from big guns like Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford with Indy 4, and the much anticipated Heath Ledger-Christian Bale match-up in The Dark Knight. I'm also excited to see how Angelina Jolie and Morgan Freeman fare in the comic book actioner Wanted, and Pixar should be counted on for quality again with Wall-E. You can never dismiss Will Smith on the Fourth of July, and his dramedy Hancock looks like an interesting, different take on the whole superhero genre. Steve Carell, too, has been milking a lot of deserved laughs from the Get Smart previews. Take a look at what else is coming out in our Summer Movie Calendar, and let us know, what do you think of this year's summer slate?