While the original story may occasionally fight its way - kicking, clawing, punching, screaming, scratching, bleeding and bawling - to the silver screen, Hollywood loves it some sequels and prequels. Case in point: Ridley Scott plans to direct a new version of the 1982 L.A.-based futuristic sci-fi flick, Blade Runner, reports Deadline NY. more ›

There are two movies that are being scandalously left off the year-end best lists. The first, is pure, guilty goodness. more ›

Despite early expectations that it would top $20 million in its opening weekend, when I was twelve! more ›

Considering its initial mixed critical reception and middling box-office performance, it's sort of amazing how is a movie that needs to be seen on the big screen and not on DVD. Tickets are on sale now. more ›

Horror movies seem to come and go in cycles. Just as the wave of Japanese re-makes tapered off, so-called “torture” porn began its ascent. Given that, it’s refreshing to watch a horror film like The Wizard of Gore that doesn’t fit neatly into any category. It certainly has its share of gore (wonderfully specific and gruesome, by the way), but the bloodletting never overshadows the psychological war that is at the heart of the film’s story. more ›

If you want a dose of smartness on Saturday, what could be better than the Science Matters panel on The Science and Ethics of Reproductive Cloning? The 2-hour discussion starts at 1:30pm at the California Science Center at Expo Park and is absolutely free. Smart, lively Geoffrey Cowan — Dean of the Annenberg School for Communication at USC — will moderate, which is a good sign. The panel will talk about hard science, perhaps explaining how you clone a cat, and then talk about implications of cloning humans. Would a ban work, or is human cloning inevitable? Would it be ethical to clone humans for health reasons? For offspring? Where do we draw the line? more ›

Mark Vallen has been making art in Los Angeles for more than 30 years. A native Angeleno, Mark has integrated the city's residents and landmarks into his work since his teens, when he worked on seminal LA punk publication Slash Magazine and captured the early punk scene in a series of sketches, drawings, and paintings. Mark continues the DIY spirit by supporting LA's contemporary art scene, advocating for change against the status quo and sharing his opinion about the current state of painting and culture on his blog, Art for Change. more ›

Today, as we're sure you know, is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Perhaps his "I Have a Dream" speech is what inspired the LA Times to ask a bunch of local activists and entertainers what they would dream up for an imagined Los Angeles. To our surprise, nobody invoked Blade Runner. Instead, people are thinking along the lines of transportation (TC Boyle, Mike Watt) and graffitti (Robbie Conal). more ›

"Kinetic advertising" seems to be on a roll in Los Angeles over the past few years. Hollywood and Highland, Sunset Boulevard at Kings Road, and the Aroma Wilshire Center have adopted the advertising medium that makes us wonder if Blade Runner wasn’t entirely so far-fetched after all. more ›

Ever nearly rear end someone while staring at those Blade Runner-esque dynamic digital billboards that dazzle and daze passing motorists at numerous intersections around town? Those same devices that might push drivers to dangerous distraction are now urging us to mind the road. Go figure. more ›