Bigger and better

As much as I enjoyed X-men First Class, or quietly waiting in anticipation for David Fincher's remake of Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, their success will continue the trend of franchise material. With a great deal of bandwagon jumpers joining the buzz surrounding HBO's Game of Thrones or AMC's Danish remade series: The Killing, my interest has slowly ebbed and I've been sniffing the air for something new.

It's a dangerous road attempting a well loved classic, most remakes flourish when the original's shadow has long faded. There will be another Wizard of Oz, a few Snow White interpretations, numerous Vampire spinoffs, and invariably a flood of zombie pictures (Walking Dead, World War Z, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies...). The more that people feel out of control, the greater the need for a way to escape.

If Hollywood wanted to attempt a comic/anime translation, why not veer toward the lesser known? Darker than Black, Mushi-shi, Baccano!, Fullmetal Alchemist, or Samurai Champloo all have in-depth story lines (Not to mention some of them do not feature Japanese protagonists). Taking a cue from the break out success of Game of Thrones there is the impeccable twin novel epic adventure by Guy Gavriel Kay, The Sarantine Mosaic. Or perhaps the lesser Disney spun tales such as Rumpelstiltskin or even Robert Munsch's Paper Bag Princess? For now, we'll have to be content with board games ... wholly original storyline and famous in name only.

Movie Exhibits

Shortly after the Lord of the Rings explosion there was a visiting exhibit that came to Toronto... twice! Presented inside Casa Loma and later in the Royal Ontario Museum/Planetarium, costumes, sets, props and production drawings from the trilogy were displayed in a clever and original fashion for all to enjoy.

This year, a travelling Harry Potter exhibit has been moving between cities. Debuting in the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago from April until September 2009, it is now on the move to the Museum of Science in Boston from October 25 to February 21, 2010.

The upcoming touring cities are updated on the Harry Potter Exhibition website along with ticket sales and hours. http://www.harrypotterexhibition.com/

MacGyver

Most of the younger generation will probably stare blankly at anyone who references the hit show in the 80s/90s, and I can't help but think they are missing out.

With highly ridiculous spy story scenarios, the American action/adventure show catered to the public with a mix of clever solutions done with low tech improvisations. A departure from the over the top espionage gadgets of James Bond, the show sparked a renewed interest in applied sciences all over the globe. Using his trusted Swiss army knife, duct tape and other household items, MacGyver always found a way out of the stickiest situations by his knowledge of chemistry, physics and outdoorsmanship.

With the abysmal amount of effort put into film projects lately, the resurgence of recycled ideas will at least lead to the feature film remake of MacGyver on the big screen (New Line). My guess is that the Swiss Army company will have their marketing team plugging their newest products as much as possible.