Cinefex (1980-2021) comic books 2013

In this issue: Director Peter Jackson returns to J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth with The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, a prequel story of young hobbit Bilbo Baggins' quest to reclaim a lost dwarf kingdom and his fateful meeting with Gollum. As he did for the epic The Lord of the Rings trilogy, the New Zealand-based Jackson collaborated closely with the visual effects team at Weta Digital and the practical effects wizards at Weta Workshop to bring the beloved 1937 fantasy novel to the screen, the first of a planned trilogy of films devoted to Tolkien's dense and intricate narrative. Also covered: Cloud Atlas, Life of Pi and Beasts of the Southern Wild. Softcover, 9-in. x 8-in., 122 pages, full color. Cover price $12.50.

In this issue: Director Sam Mendes has James Bond hunting a sinister cyber-terrorist through Istanbul, Shanghai, Macau, London and the Scottish highlands in Skyfall. Special effects supervisor Chris Corbould collaborated with visual effects supervisor Steven Begg to energize the film with a brawny blend of practical, miniature and digital effects. Plus: Jack the Giant Slayer, Oz: The Great and Powerful and Les Miserables. Softcover, 9-in. x 8-in., 130 pages, full color. Cover price $12.50.

In this issue: Star Trek Into Darkness - J.J. Abrams returns with cast and crew for a second tour of duty aboard the starship Enterprise, reprising characters from Gene Roddenberry's beloved television series, and this time tasking Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) with an intergalactic manhunt of an enigmatic villain (Benedict Cumberbatch); Iron Man 3 - director Shane Black deftly picks up the reins to deliver a third film in Marvel Studios' popular franchise; Oblivion - Tom Cruise stars as court-martialled soldier Jack Harper, sent to destroy an alien race on a distant planet; White House Down; and HENRi. Softcover, 9-in. x 8-in., 130 pages, full color. Cover price $12.50.

In this issue: Man of Steel - producer Christopher Nolan and director Zack Snyder bring to the screen the first major retelling of the Superman origin tale since Richard Donner's classic 1978 Superman; Elysium - in his follow-up to District 9, filmmaker Neill Blomkamp presents another dystopian future, when Earth's cities have degenerated into giant slums patrolled by robot militia, and droid repairman Max De Costa (Matt Damon) attempts to escape to Elysium, a gleaming orbital space station; World War Z - Brad Pitt stars as a United Nations worker who combats a zombie invasion in this long-anticipated film from director Marc Forster; and Pacific Rim - giant monsters, known as Kaiju, emerge from a subterranean crevice beneath the Pacific Ocean in director Guillermo del Toro's new sci-fi thriller. Softcover, 9-in. x 8-in., full color. Cover price $12.50.