A new documentary follows comedian Tig Notaro (pictured) after her cancer diagnosis and double mastectomy; 'True Detective' is shot in Southern California, but avoids the usual postcard locales; Comic-Con teased audiences with some of the most anticipated films in nerd culture.
The films that stuck out at this year's Comic-Con
Comic book fans packed up their capes, weapons and superhero costumes after Comic Con wrapped up Sunday in San Diego.
The four-day convention covers comic books, TV shows and previews the most anticipated films in nerd culture. The trailer for "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice," which was presented to fans at the San Diego Convention Center, has been viewed more than 20 million times on YouTube.
Kyle Buchanan, senior editor at Vulture.com, was one of the 130,000 people in attendance at this year's convention and breaks down the films that were hits and misses:
Interview Highlights:
Hall H, for those who don't know, is where about 6,000 of the most diehard comic book fans like to hang out, see previews for upcoming movies, and hear from filmmakers and actors who are part of the panels. We know that people camped out for days to see the "Star Wars" presentation. Was that you I saw sleeping overnight in your Hello Kitty sleeping bag?
That was me with the red lightsaber. The "Star Wars" faithful were amply rewarded. Harrison Ford was there. It's pretty marvelous to see him alongside Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill, the original stars of the trilogy — especially because Harrison Ford seemed genuinely moved to be there. He has sometimes a contentious relationship with that franchise. It's very rewarding for the fans to get to see that.
Star Wars Behind The Scene
After the panel, they actually brought us to an open air concert of John Williams music and passed our free lightsabers. It was this really ecstatic moment for the fans to sort of exalt in their fandom.
The director of the film, J.J. Abrams, is very famous — if not infamous — for keeping things very close to his vest. I think if it were up to him he'd never even show his movies. He likes to keep them so under wraps. Did they show anything new or reveal anything about the movies?
Well, the thing is they showed a behind-the-scenes video that they immediately put on the Internet right after they showed it in Hall H. If it had only been that that they had showed, I think the fans would have had a case to build against this like, Come on you should have done more for us. But that concert was sort of a master stroke. It was a you-had-to-be-there-in-the-flesh moments.
Another movie that I'm really excited about is Quentin Tarantino's "The Hateful Eight." Did you get a look at that panel?
Yeah. He showed about seven minutes from the film, which is pretty significant. Tarantino is sort of an interesting figure at Comic-Con. He brought "Django Unchained" there a few years ago. You can hardly find a bigger movie geek than Tarantino, even if Westerns don't necessarily suggest Comic-Con. But his enthusiasm, his excitement for everything that is happening, and the fact that the first question was asked by someone dressed as Uma Thurman in "Kill Bill" suggests that he has found his home there.
So there are some movies — for people that have been going to Comic-Con long enough to remember — where they arrive and they are basically dead on arrival. I'm think of "Catwoman" in 2004. Was there any movie that didn't play very well [this year] in Hall H?
Considering the budget I think the makers of "Warcraft" should be worried. This is a big humans-versus-ogres fantasy epic and it's based on the massively huge computer game. Now, if everybody who plays that game goes out and buys a ticket, the movie could be one of the biggest video game blockbusters of all time. Honestly, the footage they showed was sort of impenetrable. It's one of those things where they really drilled down and left people sort of baffled. When the geek faithful are confused by what you're showing, that is cause for concern.
One of the other issues that has come up this year and in past years is that so many leaks happen with footage and trailers that Comic-Con ends up not having the exclusive sneak peek. Was that an issue this year?
Oh, more so than ever I would say. They're showing a lot of these trailers, scenes and clips very far in advance of when they plan to release them to the public. This year almost all the major significant trailers — the "Deadpool" trailer, the X-Men trailer, the "Suicide Squad" trailer, big Warner Brothers and DC properties — they all went online within maybe about hours after debuting at Comic-Con. I think it has got studios, who already worry about spending too much to preach to the people who will be seeing these movies anyway, thinking that they really don't need to go to this expense anymore.
By your count how many hours did you spend in Hall H? And how long does it take to recover from all that?
An absolute eternity, and I'll tell you when I have recovered — it hasn't happened yet.
Tig Notaro documentary follows the comedian's life after a breast cancer diagnosis
In July of 2012, after a series of personal tragedies, comedian Tig Notaro was diagnosed with cancer in both breasts.
She responded to that life-changing event with another one: she told her story on stage at Largo, a venue in L.A., and the resulting performance became legendary, practically overnight.
That brutally honest set catapulted her career, as fellow comedians like Louis CK — who distributed a recording of that show — spread the word via social media.
"Tig," a new Netflix documentary about the comedian that premieres on July 17, chronicles her life and career following her breakout moment.
When we spoke with Notaro in January at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, we asked about her iconic Largo performance, the importance of the audience at that show and how she feels about her legacy — whatever that might be.
Interview Highlights:
On the events that led to her performance at Largo:
There was a four-month period of time where I had pneumonia and I contracted this potentially deadly bacteria called C. Diff. I got out of the hospital and my mother tripped and hit her head and died, and then I went through a breakup, and then I was diagnosed with cancer.
So I didn't go to the doctor until the day before that Largo show, and when I called to cancel it, the owner of the venue said, "Let's not cancel it, we'll just move it to the next week in case you feel like performing." And I said, "Did you not hear me? I have cancer." But he said, "I know. Let's just move it, and if you want to back out the second before you walk onstage, that's fine."
I went and got my prognosis and spoke with the doctors, and I walked out devastated, crying on the sidewalk. I got a text asking if we were doing the show [the next night], and I just wrote, Yes. I wanted to do standup one more time, and he was right to keep the date.
On the importance of the audience at Largo that night, particularly one audience member who, mid-performance, yells, "This is f**king amazing":
I say it all the time, that those were the exact, perfect people in that show. It's so hard to picture how things would have gone otherwise, but that was a moment that really launched me into [feeling], Wow, they really are with me. Because the show was very up and down, and it was awkward — there were belly laughs, there were people crying.
I almost started crying several times in the show myself, When I walked out and said, "Hello, I have cancer," my voice was shaky and I almost cried. I almost cried when he yelled that out in the middle of the show, and then I almost cried when I got a standing ovation.
On listening back to the Largo show:
I don't listen to it. [laughs] I'm not a fan. I don't like listening to myself, so I listened to it one time through before it was released. When I've done interviews and stuff, people will grab little moments from it and there are moments in the movie, but I cannot imagine sitting down and listening to it.
On a scene in "Tig" in which her doctor tells her, "Sometimes in life we don't always get what we want," after Tig had been contemplating hormone treatments for pregnancy:
It was [a confrontational thing to say], but I really like my doctor and I appreciated, actually, that she was confrontational. I needed to know that it was serious and that it was a true risk, but I also wanted to weigh that against what I felt inside.
Hearing that, it was very devastating and scary, because it really raised the bar to high alert. It's definitely true that we don't always get what we want, and it's frustrating, to put it mildly, especially since I was wanting to have a child. But I appreciated that she was that blunt about the level of concern there, because my cancer is fed by hormones. So getting pregnant or doing the IVF treatment increases my hormones.
I had been on such a route in life — I wanted kids, I wanted to have kids. I was just a kind of stunned...I just always assumed I would have my own children. I'm interested in adoption as well, but I just knew I was going to have my own kids. So I was stunned. That was my reaction.
On whether or not she's concerned about being known as "that cancer comedian":
I really don't care what I'm known for — people can call me the worst comedian in the world. Call me whatever you want. I truly don't feel like a female comedian, I don't feel like a cancer comedian, I don't feel like any of that. I just feel like a comedian, so call me whatever you want.
"Tig" premieres on Netflix on July 17.