ComicBookMovies

Looking for something good and geeky to watch? Check out this week's sci-fi DVD releases:

Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths (DVD and Blu-ray)
You can always count on DC's animated DVD flicks to deliver solid superhero action, but early word says Crisis packs brains and brawn. A superstar cast (James Woods, Mark Harmon, Gary Cole, Firefly's Gina Torres) voices the classic comic characters as they battle with their evil doppelgangers in a parallel dimension.

The Box (DVD and Blu-ray)
Director Richard Kelly's latest mindfrak isn't quite as ambitious or as messy as Southland Tales, nor is it as compelling or as charming as Donnie Darko. Instead, The Box offers a tense genre tale that spirals out of control as Kelly packs on his trademark mix of dark wit, absurd moments and outlandish surprises.

Flash Forward: Season One Pt.1 (DVD)
It looks like this ambitious ABC drama didn't turn out to be the next Lost after all. Still, the first half of Flash Forward's season one offers a compelling mystery, some genuinely thrilling moments, and even some dark humor in almost every episode. Catch up in time for its return to TV on March 18.

The Crazies (Blu-ray)
Catch George Romero's original '70s pandemic creepshow before the remake hits the big screen. The director does commentary on the Blu-ray.

Less than a year ago it was made known that a new adaptation of the ongoing dystopian action comic Judge Dredd was in the works, which I think is fair to say came as a surprise to most everyone. Not that the comic property became a poisoned well to return to after Dredd's first trip to the big screen, the bulky 1995 critical and commercial flop starring Sylvester Stallone and Rob Schneider in arguably his most annoying role ever. But you gotta admit it takes cojones to willingly associate millions upon millions of dollars with a title that is most often remembered in jest. Yet comic owner Rebellion and the production company DNA Films exhibited no signs of embarrassment in making the announcement last December that they were bringing the lawgiver back.

Now, thanks to the planet's newest and most reliable source of unimpeachable news, Twitter, we know just why those two British studios are comfortable wrestling Dredd's film credibility away from the lampooning panelists of an I Love the '90s VH1 special. Comic artist Mark "Jock" Simpson laid out the good news quite simply in a tweet, "working through script visuals for JUDGE DREDD movie. Alex Garland writes a great script."

Sure, it's just a tweet, but it's still bellied with information. One, it implies the script is not only great but completed. Two, the film is in active pre-production/pre-visualization, which is farther along that most thought. Three, with The Beach, 28 Days Later and Sunshine screenwriter (and DNA Films co-founder) Alex Garland on writing duties, there is a high chance that Danny Boyle (another DNA founder) will be the director bringing the police-state vision of Judge Dredd back to life. Four, with Garland involved there's an even higher chance that, if there is an annoying Rob Schneider sidekick character, they most likely will die an agonizing death.

Universal is reportedly developing the Dark Horse sci-fi adventure comic Fear Agent for the big screen. The Risky Biz Blog tells us the studio is close to picking up a spec script for the project by Air Force One producer Jonathan Shestack. If you've ever read the comic, then you know this could turn out to be one batsh*t crazy film.

Fear Agent is no Star Trek, meaning it's not a space opera about professional and rational space explorers battling evil alien threats. It's an action-packed adventure book with tons of violence and crazy plot twists. The book's main character, Heath Huston, is a borderline alcoholic redneck astronaut. He's the kind of guy who would call Jim Kirk a "candy ass" right after breaking his nose for the millionth time and drinking him under the table. Rick Remender's comic follows Huston as he fights bizarre aliens (Space spiders! GIant octopoids!) as the last of Earth's fear agents, a dwindling breed of hardcore spacemen bent on protecting human life and kicking the ass of everything else.