Though I didn't have a chance to see the teaser for Iron Man before Paramount had it taken down, many people I've talked to really liked it. They also showed--briefly, I believe--the Iron Man armour. Plus, they had RDJ and Terrence Howard there--which would have had me in line were I there.

On a side note, while your reviews are well-written and engaging, your dismissiveness of certain movies (Iron Man, American Gangster, 3:10 to Yuma) without having seen them (or in the case of IM, not even seeing the trailer) is really rankling me.

When have I dismissed Iron Man? I'm nearly as excited about that film as I am for The Dark Knight. I just didn't need to stand in line for hours to see a trailer I easily had the chance to see on the net the next day. And starfucking isn't my thing, so I didn't need to see Howard or Downey. Though, again, the material was available later on the net.

Same with American Gangster. I'm pretty excited for that film. I just don't consider it a big awards contender...yet. When have you seen me dismiss it??

As for 3:10, yeah, that one I'm not huge on. I have a problem with James Mangold, I'm not quite sure what it is yet. I also have an issue with remaking a western rather than creating a new one when the genre is so plush and vibrant. But I don't think I've "dismissed" it, other than to say I didn't see it as an awards contender. Doesn't mean I'm not looking forward to it.

What I meant was dismissing something as "not award worthy" before having seen it. As Sasha Stone's site Awards Daily reminds: nobody knows anything. Plus, 3:10 has been receiving postive feedback from the screenings, so I would not count it out. BTW, it's less of a remake of the original than an alternative adaptation of the Elmore Leonard short story.

BTW, what do you mean by "star****ing"? I'm not a star-struck person either (though i've never met any--no one comes to youngstown or columbus). i just thought that it would be cool to meet the cast/director in person, even if they didn't have much to say (Although I'm certain RDJ would say something to make it worth my while, had I gone).

Re Iron Man, that post about bailing on the con was the first mention I'd seen of it on your site, compared to multiple ones for the Dark Knight.

Lastly, as a gesture of goodwill (I did not mean any disrespect, just getting some things off my chest), I will point out that there are even more Joker pics on the JoBlo forum for TDK (might be other sites, so one could probably google them).

Yes, we're all aware of Sasha's (borrowed) slogan. We also all call them as we see them. It isn't as if I'm leaving no room for a change of mind, but from the materials we've seen I believe what I believe and you believe what you believe.

On the starfucking, suffice it to say being in a room full of 6000 people all looking at a stage isn't exactly "meeting" a star, but I guess my point is I don't NEED to meet a star to have an opinion about his or her work...sure it'd have been interesting, but, again, it's all on the net hours later anyway.

The bailing on the con post had nothing to do with Iron Man. I simply stated that there'd be "no Marvel panel for me," which frankly was written in disappointment. I had just had my fill of the convention and the hordes and, sadly, would miss a panel that included two films I'm looking forward to. But the bit about "sanctimony" I stand by as well. Most of those panels really are just empty rhetoric. I couldn't believe how flimsy the Watchmen panel was (though they were supposed to reveal the cast that day, rather than bebing clumsily scooped by the media). Others as well. It's really just a PR showcase, nothing with meat on its bones.

I saw those Joker pics on JoBlo, thanks for pointing them out. But on that front, you can expect more multiple posts about The Dark Knight. It's clearly an anticipated film around these parts.