• Michael Bay’s Rejected ‘Dark Knight’ Script
This took a lot of time and care to pull off, and boy does it. Hilarious in all the right ways.

• 30 Seconds With Mr. Freeze
While drinking in the inevitable greatness of Nolan’s second, I think it’s important to remember the travesties of the past. Never forget.

• A Look Back At ‘Begins’
iFanboy takes a hard look at Nolan’s first Batman film. I agree with everything their crew has to say both pos/neg but would add that the first needed more action. Early word says we are getting that with TDK. Huzah!

• Joker -vs- Joker
Not as good as Battle of the Batmans, but I see what you did there. [via]

• JoBlo Interviews ‘Dark Knight’ Director Chris Nolan
It’s loading a little slow at the moment, but well worth the wait.

• More Cowbell
Vaguely related.

• ‘Dark Knight’ Casts Oscar Record
Impressive. I don’t think I realized until just know how deep Nolan’s cast really is.

• WTF?!
The ‘Dark Knight’ trailer on a budget. You gotta love Youtube. Or not.

• Why ‘Dark Knight’ Might Not Break Records
Just for arguments sake.

• The Origins of ‘Dark Knight’
Our link of the week. Vh1 (of all places) links the actors performances in Dark Knight with their comic counterparts. Influences, inspiration? It’s all explained (or hypothesized - depending on your point of view) within.

Also, Knowles alert!

Lionsgate, despite their horrendously un-updated website, looks to be the first Hollywood studio to really get the whole YouTube thing. Google (who owns YouTube) recently announced a deal with the studio that will place and share the revenue for ads added to videos the studios uploads, as well as user-uploaded videos that feature their films. That’s right - while other studios are busy trying to figure out how to get around that pesky “Fair-Use” thing that keeps them from suing the Internet giant, Lions Gate has decided to play nice - and make a little bit of money off the enthusiasm of fans of their film catalog…

Talks about the revenue-sharing deal emerged after Lions Gate[sic] worked with YouTube to remove pirated copy from the site, Marvis [Lionsgate's president of digital media] said. Some unsanctioned “Dirty Dancing” clips on YouTube have generated more than a million views.

“The idea here is not to alienate fans of particular movies or TV shows,” Marvis said. “We just want to make some money out of it.”

Between this and Hulu, there might just be hope for Hollywood yet. Link.

That is, if you’ve been subject to the kind of films I’ve been attending lately (read: Summer effects extravaganzas).  I don’t want to overdue the setup here, I’ll just say that these select few were picked for one reason - and one reason only… POTENTIAL.  Click the posters above, put on your optimistic hat (you know, the yellow one with ugly net in the back that reads “Irony is for P*ssies” on the front), and enjoy.  Your personal trailer recommendations are welcome in the comments.  Assume I haven’t heard of it yet, I probably haven’t!

I sure hope R. Lee Ermey was paid in more than beer for this one…

No doubt attempting to capitalize on the good will Christian Bale is collecting over the the upcoming The Dark Knight, Warner Bros has “leaked” a teaser trailer for next summer’s tentpole Terminator Salvation.  The film stars Bale (yeah!) as a future John Connor and is directed by action-hack McG (boo!).  Peep the trailer unofficially on Youtube below, or here at Yahoo! Movies, whose leak sources magically provided HD versions.

Also, WB has started an official production blog (McG is posting - sadly, no comment areas) so fans can keep up with the action as it is created.  It’s pretty sparse thus far, but does reveal a nice peak at some preliminary production art.

Check out Two-Face from The Dark Knight!  Clickety click the phonecam pic below, don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Also, I heard there’s a clown in drag over here.

I have fond memories of playing the original Max Payne on my old circa-1999 E-Machine desktop (w/ 15inch monitor!), despite the 12 frames-per-second and stuttery audio.  The game had a perfect mixture of mood, Woo-style action and Matrix-like effects (although the game was in production well before that film entered the public conscience), all set in gloomy realistic city in the dead of winter.  The game also diverts a bit here and there into some truly psychologically frightening dream sequences.  I can’t say I’ve had high hopes for the film adaptation, directed by John Moore (Behind Enemy Lines) and starring Mark Wahlberg and 70’s hottie Mila Kunis - but then again - I have no faith whatsoever in any video game adaptation these days.  Sadly, despite being burned more times than a McDonald’s fry cook lifer, this trailer gives me small ounce of hope.

And on a Marky Mark related sidenote: Those of you that hated The Happening are full of crap.  There, I said it - it’s out there now - I enjoyed it.

The horror. [Possibly NSFW]

This vid isn’t technically film-related but it is brilliant…

Now I’m no hippy, but the mix of classic animation styles mixed with a bit of modern visual style is very effective at getting the point across. [via]

Unrelated (but also brilliant in a different kind of way): I’m Not Here to Make Friends