Sharp Backs 3-D Format

Source: Blu-ray.com

It seems that everybody has been sipping the 3-D Kool-Aid, and Sharp is no exception. They have just announced that they are developing a new TV for their AQUOS series touted as the “Worlds First Four-Primary-Color 3-D LCD TV” which promises increased picture quality and is supposedly 80% brighter than anything else currently on the market. 80% brighter? I guess the 3-D glasses are both for your viewing pleasure and retina protection.

What does all of this mean for you? Unless you are living in the Land of the Rising Sun not a whole lot, as the initial release this summer will be Japanese exclusive. But what happens in Japan has a knack for infiltrating into the rest of the world and Sharp predicts that by 2012 (barring the Apocalypse) over ten million 3-D TV sets worldwide and their goal is to be a large part of that.

Nota Bene: If you can tell me what is supposed to be on that 3-D TV screen I will be impressed. My money is on a Lady Gaga music video.

iFlix? There's an App for that!

Source: Netflix

Those of you that went out and got yourself a shiny new iPad are in luck! Netflix has announced that they will make their content available through a Netflix application starting at $8.99 a month but with no extra charges for current Netflix subscribers.

iPad users after downloading the Netflix application will be able to stream content straight to their laps, hands or wherever you are supposed place an iPad. There will be an intuitive touch screen interface that will allow you to make selections from the vast array of movies and shows. The users will have the ability to also create queues just like a regular Netflix subscriber.

This is of course good news for all iPad owners out there, but many of you are probably wondering, “What the hell about my iPhone or iTouch?!” Well as Steve Swasey, Netflix V.P. of Corporate Communications, so eloquently put; “We wouldn't invite you to dinner without planning to serve dessert. In other words, we're working on it so stay tuned.”

World Cup in the Third Dimension?!

Source: PR Newswire

Didn’t get tickets to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa? Well that sucks. Thankfully FIFA has teamed up with Sony to make you feel less left out and more like you are right there in Soccer City, Johannesburg when ball meets foot. That’s right, this summer an unprecedented global 3-D event will be going down, and if you get your hands on the right technology you can participate.

The plan is to film over 25 of the games in 3-D and create a feed to be broadcast on special 3-D channels. According to FIFA TV they already have found a partner in the US with ESPN and in Spain, Sogecable and they expect more networks to follow. A live feed is also in the works, with the possibility of public theater screenings for select matches.

If you have a 3-D capable TV by the time this summer roles around (and who won’t!) you should have the opportunity to partake what Hiroko Saito of Sony proclaims as a “entirely new viewing experience”. Don’t plan on having a 3-D TV in time for the World Cup? You will still have the chance to visit one of the over 4,000 Sony stores worldwide in which Sony, tenaciously on the forefront of 3-D technology, will use this as a promotional tool for their new 3-D Bravia TVs.

In case you thought that was all, Sony has also has revealed that they will be releasing an official 3-D FIFA Blu-ray later this year. For more information and a preliminary schedule of what games will be in 3-D visit PR Newswire.

Nota Bene: Personally, I just can't wait to experience a real soccer riot without the messy side-effects like being trampled to death.

Seen that Scene?

Source: Wired Magazine, April 2010

It is alright, it happens to the best of us. You are sitting there and you start to think
of that scene from that movie and then it occurs – you draw a blank. Fear not, for
now there is help for all you would be Dirty Harrys and halftime pep-talkers in a
couple of curious little sites that specialize in knowing who said it, what they said and
what film it the words were immortalized in.

The first of these is Movieclips.com, still currently in beta this site provides the invaluable service of covering your ass when your memory fails you. It features a clever search
engine that allows you to input the little information that you can recall about the scene in question, such as production dates, directors and actors along keywords and in return it sifts through its database of over 12,000 movie clips to find the one that will allow
you to move on with your life.

Feeling non-conformist, there’s a site for that! If you have a flair for independent or just dig public domain flicks Anyclip.com is right up your hipster alley. This site features a more eclectic collection of fare, from late night classic Reefer Madness to Elf it has the dialog you crave.
It features a more simplistic search engine but very effective none the less. You can enter
events, titles, actor names and partial quotes and it will hunt through over 2,000 movies now cataloged and return with that quote, by that one dude in that film.

Nota Bene: I tried to fool the system by searching for popular misquotes, and both sites caught my mistakes and directed me to the correct movie any way ... impressive.

Wii would like to watch!

Source: Netflix

Good news for Wii owners, Netflix will be coming your way soon. The service that has been available to both the X-Box and PS3 will now finally available for all three videogame consoles. The Netflix brass assure us that they are in the final phase of getting ready for the launch, and initial feedback was all positive.

So what does this mean? It means the Wii will now be able to stream movies and televison shows straight to their home and all for nothing more than the $8.99 a
month Netflix Unlimited account, an internet connection and a software disc provided by Netflix. Finally; some good news to all of you Wii faithful out there that have been dying to watch The Super Mario Bros Show but didn’t have access to it until now.

Welcome to the Netflix club Wii, better late than never.

And You Thought it was a Gimmick!

Source: Wired.com

3-D may be seeping into the home theater market sooner than you thought! While there have been various attempts to bring the home viewer into the next dimension for years it is safe to say the powers that be didn’t back the format with full force. That has changed with Sony’s next generation of Bravia TVs.

Due out this summer the Sony Bravia 3-D TVs, combined with a special set of glasses equipped with lenses will flicker in synchronization with what is being seen on screen, promises an un-paralleled visual experience for home viewers.

This news may not come as a huge shock to you, but 3-D is a format that will be sticking around for awhile for better or worse. And Sony has placed itself on the forefront of implementing new technology to support new formats such as Blu-Ray and even though the home 3-D push may be gamble Sony CEO Howard Stringer vows “I’m going to get 3-D right, one way or another, and then I can make life miserable for the competion.”

Nota Bene: Sony also promises to offer consumer grade 3-D cameras, just the extra punch my home movies need!

The Saga Begins:

So here is the deal. I like movies ... no I love movies, and just about everything about them. Film history is a hobby (read: addiction) of mine and I am constantly gobbling up what tidbits I can manage to get my hands on. While I find much enjoyment out of looking into cinemas rich past I also know that there is only one way for film to go, forward. To go forward in today's film industry invariably means to test and embrace new technologies, most will sink, some will float and others will soar but one thing is for certain film is ever evolving.

My hope, my mission, with this blog is scour the web and bring to you the cream of the crop and inform you on what is just on the horizon. It may be eclectic at times, I will not discriminate between different film mediums. I will discuss everything from movies, tv, home theaters, Blu-rays, 3-D ... and just about whatever else I am compelled to tell you.

I hope for a long and successful journey, and I would be honored if you decided to join me.