I saw Cowboys and Aliens on Friday night and thought it was a great adventure western mashed-up with a sci-fi. I’ve never read the graphic novel, so I don’t know how true it tracked to the original book, but it was an entertaining evening and my two boys thought it was awesome.

MTV has posted how the graphic novel got to the silver screen. Here’s a big hint – the graphic novel didn’t come first.

Alan Gasmer, an agent at WMA, relates how, while reviewing concept art in pitch meetings, they first recognized the potential of “Cowboys & Aliens.” “[Rosenberg would] flip over a poster, and then another and another. When he got to the third one, I said, what’s that? He said, it’s ‘Cowboys & Aliens.’ I said, that’s your movie. Even though he had nothing written down, I grabbed Rob [Carlson, another WMA agent], who pitched it to his client Steve Oedekerk [director of 'Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls,' and writer of 'The Nutty Professor']. Steve immediately said he was in, and that he would figure out the movie. We went out basically with an illustration and Steve, and we had five offers right away from Disney, Fox, Sony, Universal and DreamWorks until the latter two joined together and bought it. That’s how business was done back then.”

Head over to MTV for the full story. Kind of interesting.

Here’s one of my favorites from the list by Chris Uminga.

Other include: Olly Moss, Tyler Stout, pnutink, Skottie Young, Konjour, Mattia Sensi, John Drogalis, Eric Tan, Ed Foychuk, Danny Wake, “wlkr”, Z-Control, martegodpop, and Thomas Boatwright.

Here’s the official trailer:

I’m kinda burned out on the super-hero genre. I’ll pick this up on Netflix/Redbox when it goes to DVD.

Green Lantern is not the only superhero offering to suggest that interest in men-in-tights in waning. Kenneth Branagh’s Thor opened with $66 million last month, a satisfying result for Paramount and Marvel comics but no match for the $115 million pocketed by the 2002 Spider-Man reboot in its first days.

Matthew Vaughn, director of the X-Men: First Class reboot, which took $55 million on its opening weekend this month, predicted that his effort could be one of the last superhero films for some time.

“The genre is going to be dead for a while because the audience has just been pummeled too much,” he said before the film opened. “It’s been mined to death.”

I think a $66 million opening weekend is pretty good and comparing it to a $115 million opening (which is rare) is a bit unfair. Certainly we’re not done mining the genre. Marvel is laying the groundwork for introducing their whole Marvel universe and other studios still have films in the works to cash in on the trend.

I know I am starting to get fatigued, but apparently as I’m getting older, I’m getting pickier and grouchier.

The LA Times wasn’t that impressed

Art museums often have a tough time with shows about popular culture. After all, the actual art is made to be seen in a multiplex, on TV, at the shopping mall or in a similar public or private place. (LACMA’s film department is screening a retrospective of Burton’s movies.) So the museum is limited to showing objects at least once or twice removed — drawings and studies, say, or plans and commercial souvenirs. “Tim Burton,” in addition to hundreds of sketches, has lots of movie memorabilia, much of it made by other hands according to the director’s specifications.

I wouldn’t call myself an ardent Tim Burton fan, but I’m always interested in seeing the original art/sketches that inspires scenes of movies.

Click thumbnails below for larger view:

Other comic/animated related films still in the top 10 include Rango (#5) and Mars Needs Moms! (#10)

From Bloomberg:

The actor said he started filming a Dick Tracy television special on Nov. 8, 2008, beating a Nov. 20 deadline. Tribune, based in Chicago, claimed the special wasn’t a stand-alone independent television program and didn’t meet the terms of the agreement.

The judge felt the special fulfilled the requirement.

I’m not a lawyer, but that seemed pretty flimsy.

Tribune Co. is reviewing the ruling and looking at their options.

Michael O’Sullivan of the Washington Post wasn’t that impressed:

The problem doesn’t really lie in the acting but in the writing. There’s too much effort expended on making the kids cute and cuddly, instead of plausible. As my 11-year-old son (and expert focus group) put it, you end up feeling sorry for Greg, when you should be laughing at him.

Robert Abele, special to the Los Angeles Times, was favorable:

This is unfailingly modest comedy fuel for 12-year-olds, adapted by screenwriters Gabe Sachs and Jeff Judah with plenty of gross-out humor (chocolate stain, meet seat of Greg’s pants), the most threadbare of plots — anchored by Greg’s crush on a popular new girl (Peyton List) and rock drummer Rodrick’s talent show dreams — and easy-to-swallow life lessons. Director David Bowers keeps things peppy and brightly lighted, but the movie’s swiftest pleasures come from moment-seizing cast members: Gordon’s cocksure mug melting in the face of indignity, Bostick evoking devilish ennui, Robert Capron’s dorky hanger-on Rowley beaming with hopeless naivete, or Rachael Harris and Steve Zahn — as the parents — giving comic spin to their put-upon boy wranglers. Who needs special effects?