Tag: L.A. events

“Super” failed to find a large audience because it defied traditional Western genres, the film’s star Rainn Wilson and writer-director James Gunn told the audience at the Hero Complex Film Festival. The Q&A — at LA Live in downtown Los Angeles — followed Saturday night’s screening of the film, about a man (Wilson) who loses his wife (Liv Tyler) to a drug-dealing creep (Kevin Bacon), and dons a superhero suit in his quest to save her. In the process, he picks up a sidekick (Ellen Page) and brutally attacks many people, some of whom might be innocent. It’s the kind of character that demanded a versatile actor, Gunn said. “I really needed somebody who could do the acting part, who could do the comedic part, who was a big enough goof that he could think he’s getting picked on by ...

Special makeup effects wizard Rick Baker surprised Hero Complex Film Festival attendees Saturday afternoon, dropping by to answer questions about his prolific career, and carrying an alien head in a garbage bag. Baker, 61, is a seven-time Oscar winner whose credits include “Planet of the Apes,” “Hellboy,” “Ed Wood,” Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” music video and dozens more. The Q&A — at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles — followed a screening of a featurette about Baker’s work for “Men in Black III,” which hits theaters next weekend. The audience oohed appreciatively as Baker pulled an alien mask from the bag he was toting — one of 127 alien creations for “Men in Black III,” he said. “The aliens are just kind of glimpsed in the background many times, so rather than putting people through the makeup process, a lot of ...

Movies today lack the “morality” found in 1987′s “RoboCop,” the film’s star Peter Weller told the audience at the Hero Complex Film Festival on Saturday afternoon. The Q&A — at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles — followed a screening of the director’s cut of Paul Verhoeven’s film, in which Weller plays a police officer who is transformed into a cyborg to patrol the streets of a dystopic Detroit. “RoboCop” topped the box office when it opened, eventually earning more than $53 million domestically. Hero Complex writer Geoff Boucher, who moderated the chat, asked Weller, 64, his thoughts on a possible remake of the film. “I could give a …,” Weller said. “I say God bless ‘em, man, go make another ‘RoboCop.’ … I don’t know, you can throw a lot of CGI at it and so forth. The morality ...

Simon Pegg, co-writer and star of “Shaun of the Dead,” surprised Hero Complex Film Festival attendees Friday night, joining director Edgar Wright on stage. The Q&A — at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles — capped a zombie-themed opening night, which included a screening of “Shaun of the Dead” as well as Zack Snyder’s 2004 remake of “Dawn of the Dead,” a highlights reel of “The Walking Dead” Season 2 and a Q&A with Snyder and “The Walking Dead” creator Robert Kirkman. Wright would not discuss his Marvel “Antman” film project, only saying “there might be” some new developments. “I have to give a spectacularly vague non-answer,” Wright said, but credited Marvel producer Kevin Feige for having the courage to build “The Avengers” franchise from the ground up. Wright and Pegg did talk briefly about “World’s End,” the upcoming third installment ...

Zack Snyder, the director of the upcoming “Man of Steel,” remained tight-lipped about the 2013 Superman film, despite persistent teasing from “The Walking Dead” creator Robert Kirkman during a Q&A Friday night at the Hero Complex Film Festival. The Q&A — at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles — followed a screening of Snyder’s 2004 remake of  “Dawn of the Dead” during a zombie-themed opening night, which also included a highlights reel of “The Walking Dead” Season 2, a screening of “Shaun of the Dead” and a Q&A with Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg. “I’m only here to ask him about the Superman movie,” Kirkman joked when he was introduced to the festival audience. But Snyder would only say he is in the editing process for the film. “It’s going really good, actually. I’m just cutting right now,” Snyder said. ...

Hero Complex Film Festival attendees might want to give themselves some extra time to park their Batmobiles, Helicarriers and Invisible Jetplanes at the event this weekend. The festival — which kicks off at L.A. Live on Friday night with screenings of “Dawn of the Dead” and “Shaun of the Dead” — coincides with several events at Staples Center sure to draw a lot of downtown traffic. The Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder face off in the NBA playoffs at 7:30 p.m. Friday. On Saturday at 12:30 p.m., the Clippers face the San Antonio Spurs, and at 7:30 p.m., the Lakers face the Thunder again. On Sunday, the Kings play the Phoenix Coyotes in the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs at noon, and the Clippers and Spurs play at 7:30 p.m. Additionally, the AMGEN Tour of California bicycle race will result ...

Stan Lee has canceled his Monday appearance at the 2012 Hero Complex Film Festival, according to Theo Dumont, a spokesman at Lee’s POW Entertainment. Lee, the 89-year-old comic book icon, was the centerpiece of the final night of the festival, which was also to include video-taped greetings from industry peers and Hollywood elite as well as a screening of “X-Men,” the movie that 12 years ago ushered in the new era of superhero cinema. The festival, in its third year, will now end on Sunday night. Lee is distraught and depressed about the recent death of business associate Arthur Lieberman, according to Yuka Kobayashi, another staffer at POW Entertainment. While Lieberman died on May 1, Kobayashi said the collective fatigue of multiple appearances tied to “The Avengers” release have made it necessary for Lee to clear his upcoming schedule. Lee will be appearing Saturday at ...

Our “Super” screening on May 19 just got even more, um,  super. James Gunn, the writer and director of the crime-busting, bone-cracking and (at times) heartbreaking film “Super,” will reunite with the 2010 indie project’s star, Rainn Wilson, on stage  at the Hero Complex Film Festival. The pair will share the stage during a Q&A session following the 8:30 p.m. screening of “Super,” which dresses like “The Greatest American Hero” but runs off the road of sanity like a hipster version of “Taxi Driver.” “Super” follows a short-order cook named Frank (Wilson) who is gripped by rage and despair after his wife (Liv Tyler) leaves him for a  manipulative dope merchant (Kevin Bacon). At his most vulnerable moment, a cosmic message arrives and shoves Frank down a  new path – he dons the mask of the Crimson Bolt and swings a wrench at evil. Gunn made ...

Author and illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi’s latest, “A Hero for WondLa,” hits shelves today with plenty of fanfare — a glowing review from Wired, a CNN appearance and a signing appearance tonight in Santa Monica that kicks off his spring book tour. “The Spiderwick Chronicles” co-creator splits his time between Massachusetts and Florida but he was born here in Los Angeles so the event tonight is a  homecoming of sorts as he delivers the second installment of his planned “WondLa” trilogy. The story follows the ongoing journey of Eva Nine, a girl raised by machines in an underground sanctuary; when that refuge is attacked, Eva begins a quest in a strange, dangerous world to find a place where she belongs. We caught up with DiTerlizzi to talk about the particular challenges that come with the middle installment of a trilogy. HC: ...

2012 HERO COMPLEX FILM FESTIVAL It might be a good time to work on your cricket swing  – Edgar Wright is bringing “Shaun of the Dead” to the 2012 Hero Complex Film Festival. The always-witty British filmmaker will be on stage at 10 p.m. on May 18 to look back on the 2004 cult comedy that marked his feature-film directorial debut and opened doors that led to him to “Hot Fuzz,” “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” and Marvel’s planned “Ant-Man” project. “Shaun of the Dead” also introduced many American fans to Simon Pegg, the title star, Wright’s co-writer on the movie and an actor with ramping popcorn prominence these days thanks to the “Mission: Impossible” and “Star Trek” franchises. The film grossed $30 million worldwide, and its mix of the daft and the diabolical had a lot of bite with critics such as Nev ...