What To Look For In 2012

Just a few things to look for in 2012:

TV: Howard Stern begins as a judge on America's Got Talent in the summer. The "King of All Media" will finally return to Television, this time judging people. The Parents Television Council objected to this, but I say screw 'em. Stern will bring a new life to this show, and he doesn't need to be raunchy to be funny. If the PTC doesn't like it, change the channel. Smash, premiering in February on NBC and executive produced by Steven Spielberg, is supposedly one of the strongest new shows of the year. Can NBC make a comeback with this and The Voice?

Film: 2012 should be a big year for films. The Dark Knight Rises leads the pack, along with The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Avengers, and The Amazing Spider-Man as the big action/adventure films. Titanic & Finding Nemo will be re-released in 3D. Classic novel The Great Gatsby gets a modern film version. Finally, look for a possible dark horse film of 2012 in November - Gravity by Alfonso Cuaron and starring Sandra Bullock & George Clooney who are astronauts that survive damage to a space station and need to figure out a way back to earth.

Sports: The London 2012 Olympics of course! Michael Phelps returns for his final Olympic games, and be on the look out for the women's soccer matches on the heels of the successful 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup.  Maybe a rematch between Brazil-USA and/or Japan-USA? And in the NFL...what will the Colts do with Peyton Manning if they get the #1 pick and draft Andrew Luck?

Music: Madonna will perform at the halftime of the Super Bowl, and release a new album following that. Nicki Minaj is rumored to join her on stage for a song, and will also be releasing new music. Aerosmith returns as well following Steven Tyler's return to American Idol, with an album that will be reminiscent of 1970s Aerosmith. There is about a 50/50 chance of a new album from U2, and No Doubt will supposedly be releasing their first new album since 2001's Rock Steady. Also expect new albums from Cher, Taylor Swift, Paul McCartney, Green Day, Wu-tang Clan, Christina Aguilera, Paramore, Willow Smith, Bruce Springsteen and the reformed Black Sabbath (with Ozzy Osbourne) and Van Halen.

Lindsay Lohan: Will she make a comeback in 2012? Besides an appearance in the 2010 film Machete, she hasn't been on the big screen since 2007. She was rumored to be in the Gotti movie, but who knows. Will she make it to 2013? Will she get any new outstanding mugshots? And how many clubs will she frequent with her mom Dina?

Sophia Grace & Rosie at the Grammy Museum

Sophia Grace and Rosie, everyones favorite energetic children from Essex, England are back! For those who have been living under a rock, they are the latest and youngest members of the British Invasion, following in the footsteps of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Spice Girls and David Beckham. They performed a spot-on version of "Super Bass" by Nicki Minaj on YouTube, and quickly caught the attention of Ellen DeGeneres. Well, Sophia Grace performed it, with Rosie acting as her "hype girl." They appeared on the Ellen Show and since then, captured the attention of people all over. Here's the first Ellen Show appearance and when they met Nicki Minaj: 

Now they have their own YouTube channel and recently visited the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles for their "Sophia Grace and Rosie Show." Admit it, you want to see them running around the Grammy Museum. Sophia Grace makes her own rap song, and does a great job, as well as spontaneously bursting out into performances of "Thriller" by Michael Jackson, "All My Loving" by The Beatles and "Firework" by Katy Perry. Oh, and she tells Slash to eat his heart out! Dear Ellen, please bring them back on your show in 2012!

Watch The Dark Knight Rises Trailer!

The official trailer for The Dark Knight Rises starring Christian Bale, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine and Juno Temple (great cast!) has been released online. So watch Batman, Bane and Catwoman here in glorious HD!

I posted a preview before it hit theaters here, but now with the HD version it is even better. Notice the pearls Catwoman/Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) is wearing in the mirror. They look like the exact same ones Bruce's mom was wearing in Batman Begins. Did she steal them from Wayne Manor? Did Bruce give them to her symbolically? Or just a coincidence and the costume department didn't notice? Guess we'll find out on July 20, 2012.

I'm most looking forward to finding out more about Catwoman/Selina Kyle. She seems to be the most complex and well written character of the film. And with such a rich comic history, plus Christopher Nolan's great job adapting these legendary characters, I'm sure we will all be pleased with the end result. Anne Hathaway nails it in this epic trailer.

Preview of The Dark Knight Rises Trailer!

It's almost here! The first full trailer for The Dark Knight Rises will be released before Sherlock Holmes on Friday December 16th. It probably won't be officially released online until Monday the 19th, but will most certainly pop up around the internet. Don't read if you want to wait until Friday to watch it.

Well, I caught some of the trailer early...and it's epic! They manage to not give away any major plot points and show tons of action. There is one scene that takes place in a packed football stadium, during a football game...let's just say you've never seen anything like it before. (Okay, explosions trigger off and the field collapses behind into the ground as a player is running with the ball.) Bane (Tom Hardy) is the culprit of course.

We get a scene at what looks like some ball/party/masquerade with Selina Kyle/Catwoman (Anne Hathaway) and Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale). She tells him: "you think this will last? There is a storm coming, Mr Wayne. You and your friends better batten down the hatches." She then whispers in his ear, "cause when it hits, you're all gonna wonder how you could live so large and leave so little for the rest of us." So it seems as if Catwoman/Selina isn't too fond of Bruce in the beginning. I think she ends up helping him though. But it also makes it sound like Catwoman will in fact start out as a thief, or cat burglar. And maybe she will even agree with Bane until she sees how insane he is, thus joining Batman. Her line also makes it seem like a little "Occupy Wall Street" vibe in the story. (As well as Bane getting the criminals and poor of Gotham to rise against the rich.) This script was written years ago though, but still manages to be very timely. Christopher Nolan must see the future!

I also felt this scene of Selina and Bruce dancing at a masquerade/ball with some tension seems similar to the masquerade scene with the two in 1992's Batman Returns. Maybe they did that as a little callback to that great film.

One final thing, we get a brief glimpse of Marion Cotillard as Miranda Tate and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as John Blake. I really believe they will actually be playing two League of Shadows members. Marion as Talia al Ghul and Joseph maybe as Black Mask? I can't see those two great actors just playing random Gotham people. I have a feeling Catwoman will take one of these two out while Batman battles with Bane for an epic finale. Just some speculation!

This movie is going to be one of the best of 2012 already.

HBO: Please Renew Enlightened

Enlightened, the HBO dramedy Starring Laura Dern, Luke Wilson, Diane Ladd and Mike White, just had it's first season finale. And it's one of the best shows you're probably not watching. Dern (Jurassic Park, Little Fockers, Recount)  plays Amy Jellicoe, who has a complete and crazy breakdown at her office. She had an affair with her former boss Damon (Charles Esten) which crashes and leads to the meltdown. Amy is then sent on a spiritual retreat and comes back with a new outlook on life...though not everyone can accept it. Old habits die hard. Dern does a fantastic job in the role and makes it all believable, and you really want to pull for Amy, who has been beaten down and doesn't seem to have anything go right for her in the beginning.

The finale changed that. Damon and Amy's former co-workers up top (she now works in the basement of the office) allow her to present some information to them about company practices. They only do it to have a laugh at her expense though, and she hears them making fun of her on her way out. Amy gets the last laugh though when she storms in and reminds Damon she knows all about how they receive kick backs and double dip at the expense of other workers. She then gets back downstairs and manages to get a hacked password from her co-worker Tyler (Mike White), so she can now have all their e-mails. Will Amy take down those at the top and transform their company, Abbadon? That is one of the cliffhangers, along with if her drug addicted ex-husband Levi (Luke Wilson) will get the same help that she did.

Enlightened didn't bring in huge ratings, but there is a chance it will get renewed. Reviews have been solid, HBO seemingly likes the show, and since HBO is premium and not ad-supported, ratings don't matter quite as much (though still important). But please HBO, let this show have more episodes. A great show like this deserves the chance to increase it's audience. It has happened before.

And people, go watch it however you can! When the DVD comes out, On Demand, reruns, however. You won't regret it. Enlightened is one of the most satisfying new shows of the season. And speaking of Laura Dern, I wonder if she will be in Jurassic Park 4?

Universal Orlando closing JAWS; Harry Potter expansion

It was announced that the attraction JAWS, built in 1990 for the opening of Universal Orlando, will be closing January 2, 2012. The ride has had some technical difficulties over the years due to the use of water obviously for the mechanical sharks. With everything being underwater, it takes a lot of work to maintain all the equipment, so cost may be a factor as well. It's probably sad to see an original ride go, however ET is still around and should be for a long time.

The good news is that they may be replacing this with the expansion of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. The area has been a huge success, and Universal confirmed the expansion plans. Since it's located in Islands of Adventure and the JAWS spot is in Universal Studios, one rumor is they may connect the two parks with a Hogwarts Express train ride. Obviously this means you might need a ticket for both parks, which may be how you get on the train. Everyone goes to both anyway.

Genius idea in my book. As of now it seems like this new area will be London with King's Cross & Platform 9 3/4 as well as Diagon Alley. Another rumor is that the big new state of the art ride will be an indoor coaster that takes place inside Gringott's bank. In Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Part 2 we saw quite the wild ride inside Gringott's...so maybe that is where the inspiration comes from? There may also be yet another ride. We'll have to wait and see.