alice

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Keira Knightly lands A Role in Syfy Channel’s Neverland

by Bruce Simmons on March 10, 2011

It was just announced that Keira Knightly will be joining the cast of the Syfy channel TV movie production of Neverland. Neverland is a prequel / origin story to the classic, Peter Pan story what was written by J.M. Barrie.

In Syfy‘s Neverland, Keira Knightly will be playing Tinker Bell and she’s joining those already in the cast: Rhys Ifans, Anna Friel, Bob Hoskins, Charles Dance, Raoul Trujillo and Charlie Rowe.

The project is being directed (and was written) by Nick Willing whose resume includes The River King, Alice and Tin Man. All wonderfully envisioned projects by Willing.

About Neverland:

Peter (Rowe), along with his pals of young pickpockets, have been rounded up by their mentor Jimmy Hook (Ifans) to snatch a magical orb which transports them to another world – Neverland. Filled with white jungles and imposing cities formed out of trees created by Dr. Fludd (Dance) and inhabited by a colony of tree spirits led by Tinker Bell (Knightley), this mysterious realm welcomes unknown friends and enemies snatched from time. These include power-mad Elizabeth Bonny (Friel) and her band of 18th century pirates who search for the answer to eternal youth, a secret guarded by a Holy Man (Trujillo). As the fight to save this strange and beautiful world escalates, Peter and his crew consider that growing old somewhere in time could be less important than growing up—right here in their new home called Neverland.

Neverland is being produced by Dublin-based Parallel Films on behalf of MNG Films in association with Syfy and Sky Movies HD and distributed by RHI Entertainment.

[Syfy Channel Press Release]

Neverland a Peter Pan Prequel Planned by Syfy with Rhys Ifans

by Bruce Simmons on October 28, 2010

Neverland

In case you haven’t heard, the Syfy Channel is plotting to bring to light a prequel, or origin story of Peter Pan titled Neverland. We finally get to see how he got so flighty!

Production will take place in Genoa, Italy & Dublin, Ireland and the tele-movie will star Rhys Ifans (Pirate Radio, Notting Hill) as James Hook, Anna Friel (Pushing Daisies) as Captain Elizabeth Bonny, Bob Hoskins as Smee (Hook), Raoul Trujillo (Tin Man) and Charlie Rowe (Pirate Radio) as Peter Pan.

Nick Willing (Alice, Tin Man, The River King) will direct. He also wrote the script and the four-hour project will air on Syfy sometime in 2011.

Synopsis:

Raised on the streets of turn-of-the century London, orphaned Peter (Rowe) and his pals survive by their fearless wits as cunning young pickpockets. Now, they’ve been rounded up by their mentor Jimmy Hook (Ifans) to snatch a priceless—some believe, magical—treasure which transports them to another world. Neverland is a realm of white jungles and legendary mysteries of eternal youth, where unknown friends and enemies snatched from time welcome the new travelers with both excitement and trepidation. These groups include a band of 18th century pirates led by the power-mad Elizabeth Bonny (Friel), and the Native American Kaw tribe led by a Holy Man (Trujillo), which has protected the secret of the tree spirits from Bonny and her gang for ages—and that has meant war. But as the fight to save this strange and beautiful world becomes vital, Hook, Peter, and the ragamuffin lost boys consider that growing old somewhere in time could be less important than growing up—right here in their new home called Neverland.

[NBC/Syfy Press]

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SyFy Network To Make Real Saturday Night Movies

by Bruce Simmons on February 5, 2010

The SYFY CHANNEL

First, you should know that the title is not a massive typo brought on by any outside influences or brain farts.

Yes, the Syfy Channel has a history of creating “B-” movies and airing them on Saturday nights. With heads that roll like bowling balls and blood that squirts out in bucket loads, Syfy actually intends for them to be popcorn-like, B movies. They aren’t mistakes, they’re calculated marketing tools. They’ve consistently brought in almost 2 million viewers each Saturday night that they air. Of course on occasion, they surprise me with a real movie that plays on Saturday night, but come on, who can beat giant sharks leaping out of the ocean to bit airliners in half?

Now it seems as if Syfy is going to try and capitalize on real movies with stories that darken up classic stories or fairy tales.

They’ve done fantastic jobs with their twisted takes on Alice in Wonderland, aka Alice and The Wizard of Oz, aka Tin Man. Now we’re going to get some reworking done to a few more classics from our past!

Andrew Lee Potts – Past, Present and Future Time Threads

by Bruce Simmons on January 9, 2010

This is a Cinema Static Personality Focus on Andrew Lee Potts. Andrew Lee Potts is someone who caught my attention in the science fiction UK TV series Primeval.

I enjoyed his portrayal of the quirky Connor Temple and his frustrated woes of love. Primeval focused on scientists chasing odd time anomalies that pop up between past and present, dumping dinosaurs and the such in the middle of modern day England.

I then caught him in a 2nd television fantasy mini-series titled Alice, on the Syfy Channel. An adaptation / sequel to Alice in Wonderland. A most interesting take, if I do say so myself.

Andrew surprised me with an apparent versatility by coming off with a different personality for his character of Hatter in Alice. Some actors just seem the same across any and all projects they work in, so it’s refreshing to this versatility.

Before either of these projects, he was in the popular UK comedy show titled Ideal, as Lee.

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TV Series Midseason Premiere Listings for 2010 [Cinema Static]

by Bruce Simmons on January 8, 2010

Update (2/15/10) We may very well be in the midst of the season, but we do still have several shows kicking it in gear coming up in March and April. Not to mention Supernatural and The Vampire Diaries taking yet one more Olympics induced break, looking to return on March 25th! (end update)

E!Online put out a pretty comprehensive listing of the midseason TV 2010 series premiere schedule! The original list is sorted by date and takes us right on through to April! Here we see when our favorite shows either return from their winter breaks or when shows that have been put off are starting their late 2009-10 season.

I’ve listed the shows in both alphabetical and chronological order! (Note: If it starts with ‘The’, like The Bachelor, I put it under T. Sorry.)

PS: This is a really great time to let me know if you want Cinema Static on SoB to cover anything here. Let the comments pile on. I’d like to think you guys think of this place as your own, so feel free. I just rant about things I like but you can be the bosses!

MIDSEASON TV 2010 PREMIERE LISTINGS:

Show, (Net) Time, Day, Date

24 (Fox), 9 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 17
Accidentally on Purpose returns (CBS), 8:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 11
Alice (Syfy), 9 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 6
American Dad returns (Fox), 9:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 31
American Idol (Fox), 8 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 12
Archer (FX), 10 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 14
Better Off Ted (ABC), 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 8
Big Love (HBO), 10 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 10
Bones returns (Fox), 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 14
Burn Notice returns (USA), 10 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 21
Caprica (Syfy), 9 p.m. Friday, Jan. 22
Chuck (NBC), 9 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 10
Criminal Minds returns (CBS), 9 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 13
CSI returns (CBS), 9 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 14
CSI: Miami returns (CBS), 10 p.m. Monday, Jan. 11
CSI: NY returns (CBS), 10 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 13
Damages (FX), 10 p.m. Monday, Jan. 25
Family Guy returns (Fox), 9 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 31
Fringe returns (Fox), 9 p.m. (for four weeks, then off until April) Thursday, Jan. 14
Fringe returns (Fox), 9 p.m. Thursday, April 1
[click to continue reading…]

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I Survived Alice on Syfy [Cinema Static]

by Bruce Simmons on December 14, 2009

Yesterday was a slow day on TV for me. Because of that, I ended up watching Tin Man and all 4 hours of Alice on the Syfy Channel on Sunday.

As I may have stated in a previous article, Tin Man was a smartly done, visionary take on The Wizard of OZ. (OZ: Outer Zone)

Alice, starring the wonderful Caterina Scorsone as “The Alice,” Andrew Lee Potts as Hatter, Matt Frewer as the White Knight, Kathy Bates as the Queen of Hearts, with Colm Meaney, Tim Curry and a slew of others, turned out to be quite the extension to the Alice in Wonderland mythos, where the first Alice had come and gone and done her damage to Wonderland.

Again, smartly done and inventive are the words I use for this, if I dare call it, sequel.

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Stargate and Other Ratings From Syfy Channel 12-8-09 [Cinema Static]

by Bruce Simmons on December 8, 2009

If you’re wondering how some of your favorite Syfy Channel shows did last week in the ratings gamut, here’s a quick short list of the more notable shows. (I said notable. Not to be confused with fantastic, popular, etc..)

Show: Viewers in the millions

Alice: 2.54
Ghost Hunters: 2.44
Ghost Hunters Academy: 1.64
National Treasure movie: 1.4
Stargate Universe: 1.34

Stargate Universe’s mid season finale probably had its best ever episode, but the showrunners have alienated the installed fan-base for the show and others aren’t quite catching on because they think it’s Stargate, when in fact, it’s another beast altogether!

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Syfy's Alice Doesn't Make a Huge Ratings Splash [Cinema Static]

by Bruce Simmons on December 8, 2009

Did anyone tune into Syfy Channel’s take on Alice this weekend? I know the same folk that did Tin Man, did Alice, and they did a bang up job with Tin Man. But I wasn’t so compelled to watch a martial artist try to exist in an acid-induced experience. At least it seems that way to me, but I’m not knocking it. I’m just being snarky.

Turns out that Alice only pulled in 2.54 million viewers in the overnight ratings category for the first 2-hour part that aired on Sunday. Sunday can be a rough night I think. I’m out of steam from all my weekend activities and I sort of don’t care by 9p.m. on Sunday nights.

Oddly, Alice was Syfy’s most watched program from the week! Eesh.

source: TV By The Numbers.

Through The Looking Glass up for Auction on Dec 16 [Cinema Static]

by Bruce Simmons on December 7, 2009

There are days I wish I could win the lottery and buy some cool things. Every time I get one of these press releases, I think I say that every time.

THE REAL ALICE’S COPY OF THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS, AND WHAT ALICE FOUND THERE AND BEATRIX POTTER’S COPY OF THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT HIGHLIGHT $1,000,000 AUCTION OF RARE LITERARY TREASURES

Two of the most important books in childrens literature to hit the auction block on December 16th, 2009!

Profile in History’s Holiday Sale Will Also Include A First Edition Copy of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The Inscribed Dedication Copy of Goldfinger, and A.A. Milne Signed Limited Edition Copies 1/20 of Winnie The Pooh, The House At Pooh Corner and Now We Are Six, and More, All Part of The 101 Lot Pat McInally Collection of Children’s Literature

The “real” Alice’s* copy of Through the Looking Glass, and What Alice Found There ($100,000-$150,000) and