Thursday, October 07, 2010

SUPER MARIO BROS. COLLECTION OF ALL-STAR GAMES

7th October 2010 – If you needed another reason to celebrate 25 years of Super Mario, how about a Super Mario All-Stars – 25th Anniversary Editioncontaining four of the original most famous Mario games of all time from the NES, as well as a bunch of extra collectables, launching across Europe now on Wii from 3rd December 2010.

Super Mario All-Stars – 25th Anniversary Edition will include a Super Mario All-Stars Disk case containing Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels all on one disk, giving Mario fans four reasons to relive the excitement of these classic games on Wii.  And if you missed out on them the first time round, now’s the time to discover four of the reasons why Super Mario has become one of gaming’s most loved series’ of all time.

This new collection will also include a special booklet detailing the full history of Super Mario as well as a real treat for fans of the series – an audio CD containing music from Super Mario games spanning the last 25 years, from the original 1985’sSuper Mario Bros. to 2010’s Super Mario Galaxy 2, with classics such as Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine along the way.

In the quarter of a century since Nintendo game designer Shigeru Miyamoto’s team put the finishing touches to his first major adventure, Super Mario Bros. for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), Mario has become one of the most globally recognised characters in the world of entertainment.  The Super Mario Brosseries is now the best-selling video game series of all time, with more than 240 million units sold globally.

Join Mario’s 25th Anniversary celebration in style, with Super Mario All-Stars – 25th Anniversary Edition, available across Europe on Wii from 3rd December 2010.

BBC SWITCH LAUNCHES BRAND NEW SITCOM


‘Popatron’ premieres on Saturday 23rd October at 12.50pm on BBC Two
 
 
Set behind the scenes of a daily fictitious celebrity gossip show, Popatron follows the ups and downs of the production team working the weekly show.
 
Each week the storyline revolves around the team’s desperate attempts to fire-fight a variety of disasters involving that particular week’s celebrity guests.
 
The action takes place on both sides of the studio cameras. The show’s guest bands and interviewees are real celebrities, but the production staff and the show’s presenters are played by some of the UK’s best new comedy actors.
 
Each episode will feature cameo performances from the UK’s hottest bands and celebrities that will interweave with the sitcom’s storyline. And there will be up to the minute topical gags and references, as the show records right up to the day before transmission.
 
The story will be spontaneous as the cast will be given the scene outlines, but the dialogue is improvised as they go. The result will be unpredictable, fresh and very funny.
 
In the first episode of the new series, Scouting for Girls and R&B sensation N-Dubz are due in the studio and the production team are busy preparing for that day’s show. Runners Lottie and Bex experience their first day on the job, Producer’s Claudia and Devon are desperately trying to source a new co-host while Presenter Toby is doing his best to sabotage their efforts. And why does the new Mail Boy look suspiciously like former Big Brother winner Brian Belo?
 
Popatron is Executive Produced by Ben Caudell and Neil Webster, Creative Directors at Zeppotron. The storyline has been created by Jon Purkis. Popatron has been commissioned and co-executively produced by Head of BBC Switch Geoff Goodwin and Ruby Kuraishe.

BBC Switch is a mix of radio, TV and online shows, including The Cut, The 5.19 Show, No Hats No Trainers, and more. It airs on BBC Radio 1, BBC Two and the web.

ONLINE GAME SET IN RUINED SAN FRANCISCO


Multiplayer Action Fuses with Advanced 3D Graphics and Rich Audio to Create High-End Browser Gaming Experience

GDC ONLINE – Oct. 7 2010 – Bigpoint Inc., the US-based subsidiary of Bigpoint GmbH (www.bigpoint.com) – a worldwide leader in online gaming – today unveiled its first browser game developed in North America. Set in a post-apocalyptic San Francisco, Ruined Online (www.ruinedonline.com) is a fast-paced, arena-style combat game that includes high-end features common to traditional console games.

“We came to the United States to extend and optimise our existing portfolio of games and to create new titles specifically for this market,” said Heiko Hubertz, CEO and Founder, Bigpoint. “With Ruined Online, we believe we’ve taken a huge step forward in producing a game that looks and feels like something you get with console and PC games, but requires nothing more than a browser to play.“

While still in early development, Bigpoint is showing-off a playable demo at the Game Developers Conference Online in Austin, Texas this week. In its current form, the game includes two arenas based on well-known San Francisco landmarks. Players can select one of three characters and engage in a death match against other live players.

In developing Ruined Online – which is being built atop the Unity 3 engine – Bigpoint has partnered with dSonic Inc., an award-winning audio production company, and Cinematico Inc., a full service 3D design, animation, and motion capture studio. Bigpoint selected these firms to achieve a high-calibre experience for hardcore gamers.

Bigpoint is planning to release an open beta of the game this winter. At that time, three more characters, additional San Francisco-inspired arenas, and multiple game modes will be available. In addition, the game will include 3D positional and stereo sound, including voice chat.

For more information about Ruined Online, including character back-stories and 3D scenes from the game, and to sign-up for the game newsletter, please visit: www.ruinedonline.com.

La signora di tutti (Everybody's Lady)

La signora di tutti, a film by MAX OPHULS is released in the UK on DVD on 15 November 2010

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SYNOPSIS:

With the Nazi terror on the ascent, master filmmaker Max Ophuls fled to Italy in 1934 and made La signora di tutti [Everybody's Lady] — an exuberant, desperate melodrama that, although arriving early in Ophuls' body of work, ranks comfortably alongside Letter from an Unknown WomanThe Earrings of Madame de..., or Lola Montès in the hierarchy of the director's achievements.

Isa Miranda, one of Italy's greatest stars, plays the role of a star (in the part that made her a star) pressed to revisit the entire history of her lovers to the present moment through an inexorable web of flashbacks... brought on by the anaesthetic following a failed suicide attempt. From the record revolving on a turntable in the picture's opening moments, Ophuls sets into motion one of those roundelays with fate that he alone could pull off with such eminent elegance.

A precursor to the romantic themes that would culminate in Lola Montès, Ophuls' vertiginous La signora di tutti serves brilliantly as both a critique of one grande dame's own powerful narcissism, and an elevation of her glacial femininity to the level of sublime fetish.

The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present La signora di tutti [Everybody's Lady], the stunningly beautiful '30s masterpiece by famed auteur Max Ophuls (Letter from an Unknown WomanThe Reckless MomentLa rondeThe Earrings of Madame de...Lola Montès) starring the legendary Italian actress Isa Miranda. Released for the first time on DVD in the UK on 15 November 2010.


SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Beautiful new transfer from pristine film materials in its original 1.37:1 aspect ratio
• A new and exclusive video essay about the film by film scholar Tag Gallagher
• Optional English subtitles
• A lengthy booklet containing a new and exclusive essay on the film by filmmaker and critic Luc Moullet; and newly translated excerpts of an interview with star Isa Miranda, and remarks by director Max Ophuls.
  

DETAILS:
Label: Eureka!
DVD Catalogue No: EKA40327
DVD Barcode: 5060000403275
DVD RRP: £19.99
Release Date: 15 November 2010
Certificate: TBC
Run Time: 86 min
Format:  1.37:1 OAR/ B&W
Genre: World Cinema
Director: Max OPHULS
Year: 1934
Country:  Italy
Language: Italian
Subtitles: English (Optional)

FACCIA A FACCIA (Face to Face)

 FACCIA A FACCIA, a film by Sergio SOLLIMA is released in the UK on DVD & Blu-ray on 15 November 2010

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SYNOPSIS:

One of the best films from Italian genre master Sergio Sollima (The Big Gundown), Faccia a Faccia (Face to Face ) is a gangbusting western saga and a gripping parable of the rise of fascism. Upstanding history professor Brad Fletcher (played by the incomparable Gian Maria Volonte) is forced into retirement by his poor health and moves west for the warmer climate. Almost as soon as he arrives, however, he is taken hostage by famed bandit Solomon Bennett (the great Tomas Milian) in an accidental confrontation, and by necessity is forced to take up with his cohorts. But the learned man's growing identification with the gang encourages him to stage a takeover from Bennett, and a new crueller system of leadership is put into place.

Produced by Sergio Leone's longtime partner Alberto Grimaldi, featuring stunning Techniscope cinematography, and a pounding score by il maestro Ennio Morricone, this long-requested Italian western makes its first appearance on Blu-ray anywhere in the world from a beautiful high-definition master, with both English and Italian soundtracks. 

Faccia a Faccia (Face to Face ) is released on DVD & Blu-ray in the UK on 15 November 2010.


SPECIAL FEATURES:

- Beautiful 1080p high-definition presentation
- Original English dubbed audio
- Optional subtitles (SDH),
- Original Italian audio with newly translated
 English subtitle

DETAILS:

Label: Eureka!
DVD Catalogue No: EKA40324
DVD Barcode: 5060000403244
DVD RRP: £15.99
Blu-ray Catalogue No: EKA70020
Blu-ray Barcode: 5060000700206
Blu-ray RRP: £19.99

Release Date: 15 November 2010
Certificate: TBC
Run Time: 92 min
Format:  2.35:1 OAR/ Colour
Genre: Spaghetti Western
Director: Sergio SOLLIMA
Year: 1967
Country:  Italy/Spain
Language: Italian OR English
Subtitles: English SDH (Optional)