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Comic Con 2013: Maggie's favorites
Well. Seeing as my nerdy side usually conquers all others, this fine day has been spent sifting through Comic Con panels of my favorite movies and TV shows. There are probably too many to list here that I am looking forward to, so I’ll stick to four: Divergent, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, Catching Fire, and The Vampire Diaries.
Divergent
First of all, I have never watched any footage of Theo James (who plays Four/Tobias) before and am now pleasantly surprised by how funny and charming he is. He kind of seems like the underdog of the whole project, only being asked a few questions when paired with Shailene Woodley. He manages to get his funny lines in there, though including when asked about changes in the movie versus the book and his response is: “I play a small Chihuahua. Four because I have four feet.”
Shailene was beyond professional and I enjoyed hearing her responses the most—she got me most excited about the movie. I know many Divergent fans had their doubts about Shailene as Tris, but she seems to have a good grasp on the character and understands and appreciates the things that make her tick. “I really admire Tris’ sense of selflessness… I think that is a trait we could use a lot more of in the world today. And I think that, coupled with the bravery that she’s forced to call upon, makes for a very profound, complex human.”
Director Neil Burger reassured fans that the movie was staying very true to the book and even had author Veronica Roth backing him up stating that she couldn’t think of any big scenes that were cut from the movie thus far. Veronica talked about having her own panel two years prior when she first discovered that her book would be turned into a movie and described how different things are now. “Man it’s crazy. Two years ago I did a very brief little press conference and I was scared out of my mind. But this year it’s just so exciting to have something to share with people and to have that something be so awesome. “
And the lucky Comic Con attendees did get to see some awesome footage that I’ve scoured the internet in hopes of finding (no luck yet, I’ll post if/when I do). But, some recent stills from the movie set have come out and they’re brilliant and magical and here:
See the full panel discussion here:
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones
Now these books truly hold a special place in my heart. While I was on vacation a summer in middle school my dad told me about a book (I think it was called Map of Bones?) that a college of his recommended. In my mind when I went to the bookstore later that day, City of Bones was the title that he shared. It was the best mistake I’ve ever made.
I completely fell in love with the Mortal Instruments world that Cassandra Clare created and quickly recommended all of the books to my friends, their mothers, etc. This was pre-Hunger Games time, ya’ll. Let that sink in.
Figuring out that these books would be made a movie was probably one of the best days ever. While I do love Divergent (as I stated above) I read the book because of the movie. But I do quite love when books I’ve decided to read on my own come to fruition on the big screen.
Their panel included a majority of the cast, author Cassandra Clare, and director Harald Zwarts. While I’m a big Lily Collins fan, my fangirling peaked when Robert Sheehan (Simon) came out. If you don’t watch him in the British comedy Misfits, you’re truly missing out. He never fails to brighten my day.
One thing I’m especially loving about Divergent and The Mortal Instruments is that the authors seem very involved in making their world translate correctly to the screen, which I appreciate as a reader and dedicated fan.
Watch the full panel here:
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
I think the trailer speaks for itself. So much greatness. Liam, you look as beautiful as ever. Josh, what a cutie. And Jennifer Lawrence, you are always a treasure. She described Katniss’ situation in Catching Fire as, obviously “very different now. She has post traumatic stress from the games, she kind of has a new life where she never has to worry about food anymore… she lives in Victor Village. She feels kind of useless in an odd way. She has to adapt to this new life.”
I think the trailer shown at Comic Con speaks for itself in all of its magnificence. The new Catching Fire Theatrical Trailer, ladies and gents:
Watch the full panel here:
The Vampire Diaries
Damon and Elena are finally together, and TVD writers compared their future happiness to that of Meredith Grey and Derek Shepherd. So I’m pretty stoked in that respect. Though Ian Somerhalder (Damon) did make a good point. “It is Mystic Falls and essentially you can’t be that happy for that long.” I do hope you’re wrong, sir. Us Delena fans have been waiting all too long to see your eternal happiness play out every Thursday night.
See the full panel here:
July 21, 2013
