Sequels to Arthur and the Invisibles

It seems that Luc Besson has all-but completed the first of two sequels to “Arthur and the Invisibles”, the 2006 movie based on the book of the same name. Freddie Highmore and Mia Farrow return in this year’s “Arthur and the Revenge of Maltazard” (due to be released in the US on December 18 but elsewhere in the world at earlier dates). Freddie and Mia will also co-star in 2010’s “Arthur and the Two Worlds War”.

Arthur is the grandson of a great explorer, Archibald, who discovered the means of visiting a very tiny, magical race of beings called the Minimoys. When Archibald has been missing for several years and his wife is about to lose their house, Arthur rescues his grandfather and finds a small fortune in gems that saves the farm.

Luc Besson gave us “The Fifth Element” and the three “Transporter” movies among other projects so his work is well-established and of the highest quality (in my opinion). I saw “Arthur and the Invisibles” in the theater and was pleasantly surprised by it. I think I may have the DvD somewhere.

Sequels have a hard time living up to the standards set by the first movie in any franchise, but we’ve seen a few superior sequels show up from time to time. I hope people will enjoy the next two “Arthur” movies. I hope I do.

Harvard offering second Tolkien class January 2010

Dr. Marc Zender, Research Associate, Peabody Museum, Lecturer on Anthropology, Harvard University contacted me to let me know he has a second class on J.R.R. Tolkien that starts up in January. I wrote about his first Harvard Tolkien class in May of this year. Here is what Dr. Zender sent me:

Starting January 27th, 2010, I will be offering ANTH E-164 “Tolkien as Translator: Language, Culture and Society in Middle-Earth” through Harvard’s Extension School. On-campus lectures will be held on Wednesday evenings, 5:30-7:30pm EST, but the course will also be videotaped, and the lectures can be accessed by enrolled students from pretty much anywhere with a reasonably fast internet connection. An online forum will also allow students to regularly engage with the teaching staff and one another. As before, the focus is squarely on the role of Tolkien’s invented languages in communicating the complex cultures of Middle-earth, but this time I’ve also managed to attract a couple of guest lecturers I’m sure you’ve heard about: Dick Plotz and Bob Foster. These grand gents will visit the class on March 31st and share some of their early work on Tolkien’s languages, correspondence and meeting with Tolkien, etc. …

In case you folks have not heard about Dick Plotz and (Robert) Bob Foster, I HAVE. Holy mackeral! I thought these guys were dead (sorry Dick and Bob — I really did).

Robert Foster wrote The Complete Guide To Middle-earth. Dick Plotz was heavily involved in Tolkien fandom and research in the 1960s and 1970s — a time when Tolkien research was not taken seriously.

Here are some links for interested people:
Website: Tolkien as Translator: Language, Culture and Society in Middle-Earth

Syllabus (pdf):

I saw Dr. Zender on television last night, by the way. He was one of the experts they used for an episode of Lost Worlds called “Indiana Jones and the Ultimate Quest”. Seems like a pretty cool guy.

Fringe gets a recurring villain

The Hollywood Reporter says Sebastian Roche will play a recurring villain on Fox’s hit drama Fringe. Roche’s character is a soldier from the alternate dimension where William Bell has apparently trapped himself.

The storyline has settled down a bit as viewers now understand that all the bizarre scientific experiments covered or hinted at in first season episodes were developed to prepare a defense against an invasion from an alternate reality. Now the writers will have to shift their focus from setting up the landscape to fleshing out the characters and convincing the audience that the story is something worth caring about.

J.J. Abrams is the talent behind Fringe but his involvement with the show seems to be diminishing. Joshua Jackson, Anna Torv, John Noble, and Lance Reddick lead an ensemble cast that includes a cow.

Twin Peaks was never this bizarre. I hope Fringe lasts more than two seasons.