It's probably not a big gamble to say that the last two Harry Potter movies are going to be smashing hits destined to set new records in highest grossing rankings. This epic ending to bestselling fantasy saga, that movie producers decided it needed two movies instead of one, is claimed to be "The motion picture event of a generation". This may very well be true.

And for the taste of things to come we get to see a brand new trailer to the two part ending story of Harry Potter. Take a look below at Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Trailer!

Today, with heavy heart I've marked almost 1,000 posts in my RSS feed "as read". Who knows what great fantasy news were there. I don't. I knew though that there is no chance in hell that I'll be able to read through the backlog. The most I can hope for is that I'll be able to stay up to date with everything new that comes into my mailbox. Being a parent really takes a lot of time, that's all I'll say. :-)

I'm not here though to complain about parenting, quite the contrary, I'm enjoying it very much! I do want to share some fantasy related news (well, not really news, since it's not very new since it premiered on 26 March 2010, but still could be interesting to some of you). I'm talking here about an animated movie "How to Train Your Dragon". I haven't seen it yet, but trailer is very promising and everything I've heard so far about the movie really wants me to watch it. Take a look at the trailer below!

With second season of Legend of the Seeker nearing end I thought it would be good to take another look at this fantasy TV series. Let me remind those of you who have not read the review of the LotS we have posted a year ago (read it here), Legend of the Seeker is a TV series based on The Sword of Truth novels by Terry Goodkind, produced by Sam Raimi and Robert Tapert, two stars behind the legendary fantasy series "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys" and "Xena: Warrior Princess".

Being a fan of the show I was thrilled when I was contacted by Craig Horner's (actor playing the leading role: Richard "The Seeker" Cypher) publicist with a question if I would like to interview him for Fantasy Fan. Needless to say I agreed and after few days of planning (13 hour time difference makes things difficult) I was able to have a chat with him. Here it is then, Fantasy Fan's interview with Craig Horner.

This does not come as surprise. After amazing success of James Cameron's Avatar (read Fantasy Fan review here) other big studio's are jumping in on the 3D train. The Hollywood Reporter's Heat Vision Blog posted information regarding upcoming Harry Potter movies. Apparently both parts of the Harry Potter saga ending will be made in 3D technology.

"Early 3D-conversion tests on Warners' remake of 'Clash of the Titans' have gone so well that -- combined with boosted enthusiasm for 3D in the wake of the 'Avatar' tsunami -- the Burbank studio has decided to release not only 'Titans' but also the two-part 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows' in 3D."

The information is not confirmed yet, but I find it highly believable. It looks like 3D technology is here to stay with new movies being released and ported to 3D ("Clash of the Titans" will be a 3D production as well). On top of that, TV manufacturers already started a race towards mass producing 3D ready displays. It's only a matter of time when it's going to become a new standard.

You can read the original Heat Vision Blog here.

It wouldn't be a good year if we didn't have a new Shrek movie, so, not surprising, we do. Shrek 4, otherwise known as Shrek Forever After, continues the story of our favorite ogre. This time Shrek has to find a way to overcome a terrible curse that apparently changed the course of history. In this this twisted alter-universe Shrek, Fiona and Donkey never met, and the guy who brought this on them is ruling Far Far Away.

Shrek Forever After will come to a theater near you on May 21 2010. You can watch the trailer below, or find it directly on YouTube.

Following my review of Avatar movie I decided to put something in that theme on my desktop and went for a hunt for some good hi-res widescreen Avatar wallpapers. Here is the result of my search, seven images from the movie. Enjoy beautiful Pandora, Jake's Avatar and Na'vi princess Neytiri.

And I have to decide if it's worth going to see the movie in the cinema again or not. :-)

Ever since I heard that creator of Aliens (my all time favorite sci-fi movie) was working on another production I was excited like a kid on Christmas. Today I finally had the opportunity to see the movie and although it's by no means related to fantasy genre I had to share my thoughts on it. Here's my review of James Cameron's Avatar!

In a star system far away from Earth there is a planet more beautiful than you may dare to imagine: Pandora. It's special not only because of the breathtaking sights (and atmosphere). Pandora holds two wonders: some kind of rock, which is incredibly valuable for Earthlings and more importantly, a race of intelligent species: the Na'vi. Those blue-skinned giants are living not much unlike the native Americans, when European colonists first arrived. They live in harmony with nature and have no interest in anything civilization has to offer.

There is a place, like no place on Earth, some say to survive in, you have to be as mad as a Hatter. Alice in Wonderland (also known as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland) by Lewis Caroll is coming to the big screen, which you probably already know as we wrote about it before: Alice in Wonderland movie. What you don't know, is that there already is a trailer for it!

Disney is going all out with fantasy movies next year. We already told you about The Sorcerer's Apprentice and Prince of Persia, two big budget productions. Alice is the third project, where big names (Depp, Burton) are almost a guarantee of success.

And the trailer (see below or on YouTube) is absolutely fantastic!

Is there a single fantasy fan, who has not heard, in one form or another, the story of the Sorcerer's Apprentice? The stories are plenty, however most of them follow a simple pattern: sorcerer takes a boy to teach him, puts a ring on his finger that prevents him from running away and puts him to slave work instead of teaching him. The apprentice has enough and finds a way to outwit the evil mage.

The latest Walt Disney production bears the same title (The Sorcerer's Apprentice), but the plot is a bit different, at least based on what's displayed in the trailer. There is the dragon-ring on boy's finger, however the apprentice is not chosen at random or forced to slavery, he's chosen to be a great sorcerer one day, when he's ready. The teacher (played by Nicholas Cage) also doesn't seem to be evil, mad - maybe, but not evil. The two of them (master and the apprentice) are facing dragons, demons consisting of mostly bugs and some kind of mechano-eagle. Sound interesting? Take a look at the trailer below!

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince DVD has finally arrived! Warner Bros knew what they were doing releasing the trailer for the next Harry Potter movie just before the DVD of the Half-Blood Prince. People excited about the new movie are more likely to buy the previous movie just to refresh the memory! Very clever. As for the DVD, for those of you not already familiar with what it contains, here is the summary of the additional materials.

So off you go, order the movie on Amazon.com! :-)
Blu-Ray | Two-Disc Special Edition | Single-Disc Edition

There are people who hate remakes of old movies and there are those who don't care. I'm the latter. :) I don't mind watching a remake if it's a good movie and especially if I haven't seen the original. Clash of the Titans is, as you have probably already guessed, a remake. The original was published nearly 30 years ago (1981), so I don't think the remake is premature. And while I agree with the army of whiners who say that Hollywood should try coming up with some original ideas I don't mind seeing a good old story revamped.

For those of you who are not familiar with the story told in Clash of the Titans, it's a film version of the myth of Perseus and his quest to battle both Medusa and the Kraken monster in order to save the Princess Andromeda. See the trailer here.

I'm especially thrilled about this movie because I'm a big fan of ancient Greek culture and mythology. I used to read Greek Myths when I was a child and traveled to Greece to see the Oracle and Thermopylae when I was older. I don't mind revisiting the old passion in the movie.

This is not exactly elves-and-dragons, but it's definitely fantasy. Prince of Persia, the title that was associated with a great series of video games is coming to the big screen and it's coming with a bang! Just take a look at the trailer, it will knock your socks off! :-)

Set in medieval Persia, the story of an adventurous prince who teams up with a rival princess to stop an angry ruler from unleashing a sandstorm that could destroy the world. Which is why after the prince was tricked by a dying Vizier to unleash the Sands of Time that turns out to destroy a kingdom and transforms its populace into ferocious demons. In his effort to save his own kingdom and redeem his fatal mistake, it's up to the prince and the princess to return the sands to the hourglass by using the Dagger of Time, which also gives him a limited control over the flow of time.

Full title of the movie is "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time". You can find out more about it by visiting it's IMDB page.

It's been a long while since we reported anything on the long awaited movie based on Blizzard's Warcraft universe. There still is little we know about movie, directed by Sami Raimi, however there is one important bit of information that leaked through MyGaming website:

It would appear that the Sam Raimi directed movie will bear the title ?Warcraft: The Rise of the Lich King?, and will be based on Christie Golden?s novel which goes by the same name. Golden?s novel heavily references Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos as well as The Frozen Throne.

I'm not sure what to make of it myself. As much as I like Arthas, I'm not sure that his story is the best suited for the first Warcraft movie. And I say first movie, because I can bet any money on the fact that it's going to make a lot of money (10+ million WOW subscribers!) thus securing a sequel.

Read more about Arthas: Rise of the Lich King here.

There are among Fantasy Fan readers those who put werewolves and vampires above elves and dragons, who prefer dark fantasy over heroic. For those of you, here is a sneak peak at a very promising movie! Wolfman is a movie still in production, it's not going to be released until 2010, but it's definitely worth keeping an eye on. It has a great cast (Anthony Hopkins, Hugo Weaving, Benicio Del Toro) and from what I can tell from the trailer, the direction is going to be really good as well. Not to mention special effects. If you don't believe me, take a look yourselves, here is a link to the trailer and below you can read plot summary.

Lawrence Talbot, a haunted nobleman, is lured back to his family estate after his brother vanishes. Reunited with his estranged father, Talbot sets out to find his brother... and discovers a horrifying destiny for himself. Talbot's childhood ended the night his mother died. After he left the sleepy Victorian hamlet of Blackmoor, he spent decades recovering and trying to forget. But when his brother's fianc?e, Gwen Conliffe, tracks him down to help find her missing love, Talbot returns home to join the search. He learns that something with brute strength and insatiable bloodlust has been killing the villagers, and that a suspicious Scotland Yard inspector named Aberline has come to investigate.

I'm adding this one to my "movies to watch" list! :-)

After watching the new Batman movie (The Dark Knight) with amazing performance of Heath Ledger I felt the need to refresh my memory and watch Knight's Tale again. For those who haven't heard of it, Knight's Tale is also a Heath Ledger movie, in which he plays the main character, a peasant squire, who after his master dies decides to pursue a dream of becoming a knight. Not exactly a fantasy movie, but set in a medival world, so if you overlook the fact that no magic or dragons were involved, it should fit here quite nicely. :-)

Not too long ago we wrote about a new fantasy book: The Warded Man (known as The Painted Man in the UK). We mentioned that the book (by PetervBrett.com) was smashing success and got stellar reviews from many people who know their fantasy books. Now we have even more exciting news, Painted Man is going to be a movie!

Hollywood Reporter errr... reports:
Filmmaker Paul W. S. Anderson and longtime producing partner Jeremy Bolt, the duo behind the moneymaking "Resident Evil" franchise, have picked up film rights to Peter V. Brett's debut fantasy novel "The Warded Man."

The book is set in an undetermined future where mankind is beset by nightly attacks from demonkind and has been thrown back into a feudal state. Three young people emerge with the potential power to turn the tide, including the title character, a man who has wards (spells) tattooed on his body.

I honestly don't think I've seen a book move so quickly from a debut hitting the shelves, to spreading like a plague throughout the world and being adapted into a movie. Big kudos Mr. Brett!

Few weeks ago we mentioned the new Alice in Wonderland movie, made by Tim Burton and graced by the great presence of Johnny Depp. Today we're happy to present you with the trailer to this production!

After watching the trailer I have to say that the movie looks like another great Burton experience. As long as they don't ruin the story (read more about the script here).

You can watch it on YouTube or Apple. Enjoy!

Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. and Legendary Pictures announced today that Sam Raimi has signed on to direct the eagerly-anticipated major motion picture based on Blizzard Entertainment?s award-winning Warcraft? universe. Raimi, acclaimed director of the blockbuster Spider-Man series, will bring the forces of the Horde and the Alliance to life in epic live-action film.

This is exciting news for all Warcraft fans. Sam Rami is a very skilled and experienced director, who in combination with Blizzard's cinematic team should ensure that Warcraft movie is a film everyone will remember.

I'm just a bit disappointed that the work on the movie is still in so early stages. I have been looking for news on this production for well over a year now and to learn that the director has just come on board is disappointing. I was hoping for a sneak peak or a trailer already. But I guess being a fan of Blizzard games I should have learned patience by now. Oh well...

To see entire press release read below or visit Blizzard website.

I think it's safe to say that HP: Half-Blood Prince is the most awaited fantasy movie of this year. And it's finally coming to the theater near you! After the Red Carpet premiere in London Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is opening this Wednesday.

So far the Half-Blood Prince has been praised even more than the previous movies. It was called "the most satisfying book-to-film transfer" and "a phenomenon, as powerful as any Hogwarts love potion". On top of that RottenTomatoes.com gives it the stunning score of 98% !

Whether you're a Harry Potter fan or not, you probably don't want to miss this movie.

The Wertzore reports that producer and director of The Golden Compass, Chris Weitz expressed interest in developing Scott Bakker's The Prince of Nothing into a TV mini-series. Adam reports that "currently the project is on hiatus but will be revisited in 2010, presumably after Weitz's current project, the Twilight sequel New Moon, is released."

This is excellent news. If HBO picks up the Game of Thrones adaptation we will finally have a choice in the fantasy TV series category. The Legend of Seeker will finally have some competition! :-)

It's not exactly a classic fantasy, but it's definitely something worth mentioning here. Alice in Wonderland (also known as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland) by Lewis Caroll is one of the greatest fiction novels of all time. The tale plays with logic in ways that have given the story lasting popularity with adults as well as children. It is considered to be one of the most characteristic examples of the genre of literary nonsense, and its narrative course and structure has been enormously influential, mainly in the fantasy genre.

And now it's going to be a big movie. I stress the word BIG, because the book has been adapted before. This time though Hollywood is going all the way. We have big time producer (Tim Burton), big time cast (Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway) and special effects that will make your eyes water (look at the images below). Aussie actress Mia Wasikowska was cast in the title role of Alice. Mia is best known for HBO's In Treatment.

Dave Brendon recently posted on his Fantasy & Sci-fi WeBlog information regarding the future of Peter V Brett's "Painted Man" (see Fantasy Fan article on "Painted Man" here). Looks like Peter already has a deal with the movie producers, so we will see his book brought to the big screen! Congratulations Peter!

Read the article on Dave's blog here and if you want to get to the source, here is the information on Peter's website.

I'm usually very skeptical of the fan-made movie productions. While very commendable they rarely offer entertainment on par with the multi-million dollar titles brought by the big time movie studios. The reason for that is simple, movie making is expensive. Limited budget makes many complex things impossible and changes the simple ones into real challenges. Seeing a group of enthusiast filmmakers create a non-profit movie that can even challenge the "big" movies is a thing unheard of. And yet it has been done!

Winter Is Coming is reporting on the announcement of the first role officialy cast for the HBO's production of A Game Of Thrones. The first actor announced to take the part was Peter Dinklage (see the picture on the right), who's going to play the role of the Imp, Tyrion Lannister.

I know I'm not speaking only for myself when I say that I can't think of a better actor for the role. In fact, George R.R. Martin commented this news on his Not A Blog that Dinklage was his "dream cast". Lets hope that the rest of the cast is just as good!

If you want to discuss this news I invite you to join the Game of Thrones HBO adaptation topic on Fantasy Fan forum.

I don't know how that happened, but I found out about this project only few days before the release. The Hunt for Gollum is an unofficial not for profit short film by a group of enthusiast filmmakers. The story of the movie follows the Heir of Isildur; the "greatest huntsman and traveller in Middle Earth" as he sets out to find the creature Gollum. The creature must be found to discover the truth about the Ring, and to protect the future Ringbearer.

I've seen the trailers for the movie and I have to say that it looks like it can compete with multi-million dollar productions. It's absolutely amazing that this kind of production was possible as a non-profit project. No money is being made from this film, and no one was paid to make it. It will be freely available for download on May 3rd 2009.

To see the trailers and learn more about the movie visit the website www.TheHuntForGollum.com .