Stardust and Layer Cake director Matthew Vaughn and Mark Millar screened these clips at Comic Con, showing how Vaughn has tweaked the source material to give it a slightly funnier, more traditionally comic book-ish feel. But the live-action superheroes share their on-paper counterparts' propensity for misadventure, as in this intro, which mirrors the book's, but adds a tributary musical cue to comedic effect:

In the second clip, Kick-Ass takes on his first mission, with disastrous consequences:

Here, we get our first look at Nicholas Cage's creepy, sing-songy Big Daddy, engaged in a moment of questionable child-rearing with an uncostumed Hit Girl:

And, in the most violent sequence of the screened footage, we finally get to see Hit Girl in all of her purple-wigged, plaid-skirted, PVC-suited glory:

Yes, the trailer pretty much covers all the bases: Small lumps of fur make quips, that guy from The Hangover does a "oh no, here we go again!" face and then Will Arnett shows up for a minute in a black suit and scowls. Sounds like the formula for the perfect summer movie, right? Well, the most baffling thing about G-Force is probably the stellar talent Jerry Bruckheimer (yes, you read that correctly) accumulated. Sam Rockwell just blew me away a few weeks ago in the subdued, creepy Moon comes back as Darwin, the oh-so very generic leader of a group of high tech guinea pig spies that seem to be a splinter group of homeland security.

Ben (Zach Galifianakis), or as I like to call him "Beardy", has been secretly training animals for black ops missions (Cause they totally did that in WWII, you guys) and leeching money for the experiments from the government. So, since the U.S. is all about cutting back on frivolous spending nowadays, Will Arnett shows up to figure out where Richard Gere's pet collection went.

Arnett's surprised and agitated to find Darwin, Juarez (Penelope Cruz), Blaster (Tracy Morgan) and Speckles (Nicholas Cage) doing the best Arrested Development chicken impression they can muster. Just Kidding. They talk, make jokes and you know what Arnett says? He doesn't get caught up on the fact that Beardy-er, I mean Ben, has figured out a way to talk to animals and do his evil bidding, no — Arnett's mad because now the Guinea Pigs can spill government secrets. Secrets, I say! And then in the films cleverest line, Arnett tells Ben that he should treat Guinea Pigs like, wait for it, Guinea Pigs. Wait, I thought that's what Beardy was doing in the first place. Has G-Force just gotten all meta on us?

There's a strangely bountiful amount of weird B-plots in this film like Darwin, Blaster and Juarez involved in a love triangle. And Darwin finding his long lost brother and realizing that he's not the great genetically altered beast Ben told him he was, but in fact, the runt of his litter. I kept expecting to see some sort of montage in which Darwin walks through the rain while seeing his brother's silhouette in shop windows with Nickelback playing in the background, or something. Oh, by the way, it's worth noting that Jon Favreau plays the brother, Hurley. I guess Iron Man isn't giving the guy enough to do, because I've seen him in a few rather mediocre bit parts this year.

Back to the A-plot. Saber, played by Bill Nighy, is the film's red-herring bad guy (because what is a Disney Bruckheimer film without him? Oh yeah, a good Pirates movie). I was told that they used some leftover CG from the third Pirates film to produce his acting in G-Force. Bruckheimer calls that ‘cost effective, movie-making'. Anyway, he's got a plan to have a monopoly on the appliance market and there's some sort of Doomsday clock in each microwave, coffee maker, telephone and other things that aren't really appliances, in the world. The G-Force (G-FORCE!) discovers that they're really deadly robots.

Things that look normal but turn into deadly robots… This was easily my favorite part of the film because of the unique story element pasted onto the ending. I mean, kick ass robots in camouflage? I wish someone would really make a whole movie of just that. Out of left field, the audience discovers that Speckles the mole is actually the bad guy. Which you can pretty much deduce when he says "you can TRUST me, Darwin" cackles and subsequently twirls his mustachio. Then there's a giant Transmorpher (trademark pending) fight at the end.

In short, if you and your kids have seen Harry Potter eight times in the last week, well, go make it a ninth time this Friday because G-Force is barely fit for an original Disney Channel Movie of the Week.

Variety reports that Cage is in talks to play a "gangster villain" in Gondry's film adaptation of The Green Hornet, starring funnyman Seth Rogen as a bumbling superhero. Presumably, this is the same villain Gondry described in earlier interviews: a "horrible" fellow with a double-cannon gun that lets him "shoot people in both eyes with one shot."

Cage's previous foray into comic-book films (the ill-conceived Ghost Rider) was anything but a success, and it is possible that, with Stephen Chow's departure from the role of popular sidekick Kato, the studio is looking to bring bigger names to the project (like Cameron Diaz, rumored to be playing the film's love interest). But I suspect that we're actually getting a glimpse of Gondry's Green Hornet master plan.

The central theme of this version of The Green Hornet is that the eponymous hero is severely outclassed by his more competent – and popular – sidekick, and Gondry might well be expanding that idea of mismatched characters across the entire cast. If Cage's particular brand of strange intensity seems at odds with Rogen's earnest persona, that's probably the point. Gondry may well be deliberately casting actors who normally wouldn't share screen time to create his won unique flavor of superhero stew.

It does seem a risky balancing act for Gondry, one made even more complicated by the difficult job of recasting Kato. But I, for one, am looking forward to watching him try to pull it off.

[Variety]

Cage plays Damon aka Big Daddy, the "redneck superhero" father of Mindy, the wannabe superhero who goes by Hit Girl. "It's like the Punisher, but with a daughter, and more extreme," explains Millar in an interview with Newsarama. And posting on his own message board, Millar talked about watching Cage, as Big Daddy, in action:

Coincidentally, the first scene shot on the movie was the first scene I wrote on the comic (now the opening to issue six) and it's Hit-Girl in her secret identity, wearing a Hello Kitty T-shirt and a kevlar vest as her Dad pumps round after round into her chest so she knows how a bullet feels. I loved the scene in the comic, I loved the scene in the screenplay, but Nic just took it to a whole new level with his delivery, the genuinely mental glee and beautiful comic timing as we see this little kid in pink clothes and a pink hat blasted back into mud in an abandoned factory. The scene in the swing park the following day is even better, but I don't want to spoil anything. All I'll say is that nobody is going to be prepared for this movie when it opens late Summer 09.

Millar told Newsarama it's true that director Matthew Vaughn had trouble raising money because of some of the film's underage violence, like a little nine-year-old girl who goes around decapitating people. But the stories have been exaggerated a bit, and anyway it's lucky that Vaughn is wealthy and has lots of wealthy friends.

Meanwhile, the film has put out a call for high-school-aged extras. If you're goth/emo kid with lots of facial piercings, or a clean-cut all-American jock type, in the Toronto area, this is your chance to be immortalized.

More pics at the first link. [TheBadAndTheUgly and Millarworld and Newsarama]

Star Wars: Clone Wars:

Here are a couple of new stills from Star Wars: Clone Wars. Check out the sexy new look for Master Plo Koon. [IGN]

Iron Man 2 (and various other movies):

Samuel L. Jackson says he could be playing superspy Nick Fury in Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America and The Avengers, plus any other Marvel movies that may come out in the next few years. (This could just be actorly wishful thinking.) [MTV]

Knowing:

And here are some new stills from Knowing, the Nicholas Cage movie about a guy who finds a decades-old time capsule that predicts future events — including an apocalypse at the end of the week. Whoa. [IGN again]

Push:

More details about the psychic-kids movie Push. Chris "Human Torch" Evans plays Nick Gant, a telekinetic "mover" and the son of another "mover." An evil government agency, the Division, aims to control people with abilities, and the Division killed Nick's dad in front of him when he was eight, because the dad's TK powers were too powerful. Nick is hiding out in Hong Kong, keeping to himself and not trusting anyone. He uses his TK power to cheat at dice. [Sci Fi Wire]

Star Trek:

Zachary Quinto says the Star Trek movie sees Spock on "a collision course with himself," and trying to remain separate but being pulled towards humanity. We see Spock "at a time when he is not as in control of his balance" (between his human and Vulcan sides, presumably) and this leads to heartbreak. [MTV Movies]

Heroes:

Quinto also said that in Heroes season three, it's not so much a question of Sylar turning good, as it is a matter of him possibly restraining his "instinctual desire to kill." Sylar will be more conflicted this year (between his monster and nice-guy sides, presumably). And he'll also be in a lot of fight scenes, getting thrown around and flying around a lot. [MTV again]

The superpowers that Mohinder displays at the end of the first episode are just the beginning of the story. Eventually, his superpowers will look more Spider-Man-esque. (Hence the pic of him hanging upside down?) [E! Online]

And here are some cool-looking stills. More at the link. [Heroes Spoilers]

Lost:

Wondering what's going to replace flash-forwards and flash-backs in Lost season five? Apparently, the new structure will be incredibly confusing, and somewhat similar to the structure of the Jin/Sun episode in season four. But the good news is, it'll allow all the characters to share adventures together even as the Oceanic Six are off the island and various others are still stuck there. [E! Online]

Battlestar Galactica:

Reading between the lines of this Sci Fi Wire article, I sort of gleaned that Lee Adama doesn't die in the end of BSG. Actor Jamie Bamber refers to the final episode as "an ending and a beginning" for Lee. [Sci Fi Wire]

The BSG crew and their new Cylon allies strand Three (Lucy Lawless) on the wrecked Earth when they haul ass away from there. [E! Online]

Doctor Who:

Because somebody demanded it, here's your daily Doctor Who spoiler. Apparently this year's Christmas special, a "Gothic Cyber-chiller," has a three-word title that is a "dead giveaway" as to the plot. But we don't know the title yet, similar to the way the title "The Stolen Earth" was kept under wraps for a long time. Oh, and wow. The "Proms" mini-episode really is totally insanely demented. Just completely mad. Might do a post about it later. [Blogtor Who]

The Middleman:

When I interviewed Middleman creator Javier Grillo-Marxuach the other day at Comic-Con, he actually thanked me for including his show in morning spoilers so often. (And yes, I'll post the interview soon.) I was surprised that he wasn't annoyed at the spoiler-mongering, and he said it's all in the execution. Around that same time, he posted two photos from upcoming episodes on his Middleblog. One is the inside of the android Ida's brain, from "The Clotharian Contamination Protocol." And the other is the evil alternate universe versions of Lacey and Noser, from "The Palindrome Reversal Palindrome." (I should point out that that title is not a palindrome.) [Middleblog]

And here are the plot descriptions for episodes 9 and 10:
"The Obsolescent Cryogenic Meltdown," August 11:

In 1969, The Middleman had an arch nemesis named The Candle. When the dastardly villain disappeared, the 1969 Middleman took a drastic step by cryogenically freezing himself with the strict instructions to be unfrozen when The Candle should ever return. Thirty-nine years later, The Middleman and Wendy stumble across a new case that seems eerily similar to The Candle’s M.O. While researching how to handle the old foe’s return, Ida drops the bomb on them about her instructions to unfreeze the 1969 Middleman (Kevin Sorbo). With a 40-year vendetta and a ‘60s mindset, will the old Middleman be able to work with The Middleman and Wendy to catch The Candle, or will their differences get in the way of justice? Meanwhile, worrying about her “perfect” relationship with Tyler and how her job may interfere with it, Wendy goes to 1969 Middleman for advice.

"The Vampiric Puppet Lamentation," August 18:

When artifacts from Vlad the Impaler go up for auction, Wendy and The Middleman prepare to acquire them all in effort to stop a possible vampire resurgence. But things go horribly awry when the last artifact, Vlad’s beloved ventriloquist puppet Vladdy, takes over the soul of the auctioneer and gets away. Now The Middleman and Wendy must stop Vladdy from reuniting with his puppet bride and bringing on an eternal night of blood. Things only go from bad to worse when the demonic puppet learns about The Middleman’s feelings for Lacey and uses her to force our hero to make a dangerous decision. Will Wendy be left on her own to face the unnatural wooden forces of evil or can The Middleman come up with a plan to save the world from vampire restoration and the woman he loves? Meanwhile, when Noser mysteriously disappears, Lacey joins forces with Pip to track down their missing friend, much to The Middleman’s chagrin.

[SpoilerTV]

Eureka:

Crazy science-town show Eureka returns to the Sci Fi Channel tonight. We're not sure when Henry Deacon will get out of jail. But when Jack's rebellious sister Lexxie shows up, she'll annoy Jack by instantly becoming friendly with everyone in the town, which is something that it's taken Jack two season to do. Meanwhile, Jack's daughter Zoe will become more independent and will get a job at Cafe Diem. She'll also have more of a voice in the town, thanks to Lexxie. Also, we'll find out what Jack looks like in a towel, and Jack and Allison will be naked together. We may learn more about Kevin's father due to Henry's meddling. We'll learn more about Deputy Jo Lupo's background, and she'll be the focus of an episode. Beverly the psychiatrist won't come back this year, but Jim Taggart will have a recurring role during the second half of the season.

And this season's big arc will involve newcomer Eva Thorne, a corporate shark who comes to Global Dynamics, and the secrets about Eureka that she uncovers. [TV Squad]

Chuck:

The same-sex kiss you might have heard is happening on spy-nerd show Chuck this season? The good news is, it involves Adam Baldwin. The bad news: it also involves star Zachary Levi. Meanwhile, it won't be all sunshine for Captain Awesome and Ellie, and it's not certain if they'll make it to the altar. Captain Awesome will turn to the "most and least likely person" for advice on Ellie. (Morgan, maybe?) [E! Online]

Smallville:

In addition to the rather low-fi Justice League that rescues Clark at the start of the season, we'll meet more future Leaguers later in the season. Green Arrow will have a new love interest, but will also still continue his romantic tension with Lois. And we'll see a ton of Green Arrow's past in the form of flashbacks. Also, Green Arrow gets more hesitant about embracing his heroic destiny just as Clark gets more gung-ho about his own. [KorbiTV and E! Online]

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles:

Brian Austin Green will "burn up the sheets" with a sexy female resistance fighter. [E! Online]

Next Avengers:

The direct-to-DVD saga of the children of Marvel's superteam defeating the robot that killed their parents, Ultron, got shown at Comic-Con, and Newsarama has a review. The Avengers were retired when they reunited one last time to fight Ultron — and lost. Their kids, raised in safety, grew up thinking of their parents as legends more than parents, until they confront the legacy they're inheriting. The son of Captain America has an energy shield, and the still-alive Hulk looks sort of like the Maestro, the future Hulk from the comics. Ultron keeps a huge trophy case of all the schwag he got from the heroes he's defeated. [Newsarama]

Astro Boy takes place in futuristic Metro City. A robotics scientist creates Astro Boy to replace his recently passed little boy, but Astro Boy's cold robot love isn't enough for the scientist. He leaves to find a love of his own and ends up in a seedy robot underworld and back where he started, a little older and a lot wiser.

[Animated News and Imagi]

In Knowing, Cage digs up a time capsule that contains uncanny predictions about the future, which start coming true — and they culminate in the end of the world! And I guess the predictions are in the form of a numerical code, and the numbers 9/11 turn out to be significant. Says USA Today:

Cage acknowledges that 9/11 remains a fresh wound for American moviegoers, and films that touch on the terrorist attacks have suffered their own curse. "I know that number jumps out at people," he says. "But that's just a beginning point for the movie. And that doesn't mean you can't mention it. It's time for a return to dark thrillers that are relevant. We're already living in a world where up is down."

Director Alex Proyas (I, Robot) says that although film should never lose its aim to entertain, "there's still a need to address what's going on in people's lives. Hopefully, we do it in a light that's a positive experience but still responsible."

Meanwhile, ComingSoon has a set report and pics from that big plane crash scene, which recalls the 9/11 atacks so vividly. In the scene being filmed, Cage's character causes a traffic jam, wearing a hoodie in the rain. The cops are trying to talk to Cage to find out what's wrong, but he's struggling with one of his uncanny pieces of knowledge of the future. Then Cage looks at the sky, and reacts to a jet crash — then the jet crashes on the ground nearby. Cage runs to the jet engine while it's still running on the ground, and a woman is crying for help from the plane's tail section as there are explosions all around. There are pics at the link. [Coming Soon and USA Today]

Our heroes on Lost break up into two opposing teams at the start of season four, led by Locke and Jack. Sawyer joins Team Locke, but reading between the lines, it sounds as though Kate joins Jack's squad, but Jin and Sun stay neutral. Meanwhile, Ben stays a step ahead of everybody else, including the crew of an incoming vessel. And the show is casting a group of "fluent Franco-Tunisian actors" for episode eight or nine.

Here are some pics from Lost season four, which don't seem to reveal much. And don't forget, season four will feature "flash forwards" instead of flashbacks. [E! Online]

Meanwhile, ABC is having a dispute with its affiliates over whether to air Lost at 9 (a better ratings slot) or 10 (when it can help local news broadcasts). And the show's producers want ABC to hold off on airing it at all, since they weren't able to finish the season. Apparently, the last script they have ends with a cliffhanger that would be fine for one week, but would drive the fans crazy if it lasted months. [SyFy Portal]

Nicholas Cage will star in the spooky-ass Knowing, about a teacher who unearths a prophetic time capsule at his son's elementary school. The capsule, buried long ago, predicts events that have already happened. And it says the world will end that week, and Cage and his son are somehow involved. Alex Proyas (i robot) will direct. In other words: save the kindergarten, save the world. [Variety]

The live-action Jetsons movie will be (maybe excessively) true to the TV show, with lots of cute little plots like George Jetson inventing a dog-walking helmet and Elroy getting space-bullied at school. And lots and lots of in-jokes involving futuristic micro-ipods and MySpace in virtual reality. The Jetsons is still stuck in development, with no director or stars yet. [IESB]

Finally, Batman seems to be overcompensating for his new brassiere by zooming around on a really small motorcycle. [Slashfilm]

Jeffrey Dean Morgan photo by INF/Goff.

If nothing else, the press release smacks of desperation. The Weinstein Company's announcement says the fog coated the LA area "in preparation for the opening of the highly anticipated Thanksgiving release The Mist." Then it says: "A publicity stunt? Or a eerily timed Stephen King-style wake up call to moviegoers? You be the judge!" [IESB] More news:

• Nicholas Cage will provide one of the voices for G-Force, Jerry Bruckheimer's live action/CGI project about a group of super-intelligent animal commandos. Cage will be a mole named Speckles. Steve Buscemi will provide the voice of Bucky the hamster, and Tracey Morgan (Saturday Night Live) will be a guinea pig named Blaster. [Moviehole]
• Stop ragging on my Batman movies, Tim Burton pleads. They were cutting edge, but they never got the respect they deserved. And they still don't. "Nobody really acknowledged the fact that ['Batman'] was slightly different at the time from other comic book movies. So lay off, will you?" [MTV Movies Blog]

• The two biggest SF magazines struggle with declining circulation numbers, says SF/comics author Warren Ellis. Ellis' post touched off a blogstorm about how (and whether) Analog and Asimov's can be saved. Apart from Charles Stross and Tim Pratt, few important writers have launched their careers in either magazine, argues John Scalzi. Not surprisingly, most bloggers think the Internet is the future of short fiction publishing. [Lou Anders]
• The fictional drink that stars in the viral marketing campaign for monster movie Cloverfield showed up in the latest Heroes episode. There are also many behind-the-scenes photos of various Heroes actors vamping with cups of Slusho!, which also appeared in an episode of Alias. At what point does "random" become the operative word in "random clues"? [Slashfilm]