Friday, September 30, 2011

Dolphin Tale 3D Review


The idea of this movie intrigued me for a couple of reasons. First, I grew up in the Tampa Bay area and remember going to the Clearwater Marine Science Center / Aquarium as a teen, and since I think that the TB area has not been represented nearly enough in movies, I am always curious what kind of production will choose to represent the area. The other big reason is probably the fact that both Morgan Freeman and Harry Connick Jr. are in the same movie together. Both are very likable individuals. Throw in a dolphin and it's like: "how is this all gonna work?" Well, I can say that they elevate this movie to a much higher ranking than it would have likely been without them.

Monday, September 26, 2011

3D Strikes Back!


And they said it was a dying fad... That's what I've been hearing anyway, for about the past month and from what seemed like a whole lot of folks. (CNN, Gizmodo, Slate)   From the dropping of RealD's stock to the finger-pointing at big summer blockbusters not earning as much in 3D as their 2D counterparts. Looking at you Harry Potter. It looks like the re-release of The Lion King (3D) has far exceeded expectations to the tune of  $61,676,000 by its second weekend, spending 2 weeks at the #1 box office spot, even beating out Contagion in only its second week. Not bad for a movie already released 17 years ago.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

RED, creators of the amazing line of professional-grade digital movie cameras, teases new laser-powered projector, plans on continuing to drop jaws in newer ways

In 2007, when Red founder Jim Jannard decided to sell off his Oakley eyewear and clothing empire that he started out of a handgrip line for BMX and motorcycles at $2 billion, he decided to start a revolution in a different field involving optics... digital movie cameras. These aren't just any cameras though, the company known as RED makes something different, technologically, as well as aesthetically. They are meant to be modular and upgradeable, as well as bleeding-edge. They range from the more modest pro-sumer budget range to big studio productions of "epic" proportions. They even have a modular DSLR still camera that is upgradeable. Their emerging flagship motion picture camera is in fact called the RED Epic, and some of the movies coming soon will surely impress. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (RED One/Epic), The Amazing Spider-man, and The Hobbit (parts I & II) should make people believe why this company is so special, as the camera is capable of 5K resolution, as well as capture speeds up to 140 frames a second. Whether or not the movie being filmed maxes the specs out or not, the picture quality is said by some to be the best ever seen from any movie camera ever made. (sans 70mm / IMAX, I would guess)

So when the Steve Jobs-like Jannard decides to start making a super-bright laser illuminated projector capable of 4K, (most theater projectors are still 2K) people should have their ears perked! There is also talk of a home version for folks that could afford well, a home front projector from RED.

Welcome to Nuscreen Cinema

I'm happy to announce the launch of Nuscreen Cinema blog website. I have been itching to do a website/blog like this for years. Starting with sort of a soft launch, I will begin writing about cinema technology as well as maybe doing some movie reviews, after which I will slowly evolve the website into something more pleasing to the eye. Please enjoy.

Gordon Dewey