Sunday, December 5, 2010

The Thing Prequel

At first the first thing I thought here that I see as wrong is the fact that someone thought was a good idea to do a prequel. Then I thought HOLY SHIT!! Are there no writers left in Hollywood? But then I thought about it and said to my self, self haven’t you ever wondered about the story of the Norwegians who were chasing the dog at the beginning of John Carpenter’s The Thing. Anyhoo, I got off my high horse and opened myself to the idea of a good prequel.


Matthijs van Heijningen Jr's The Thing prequel had confirmed release date of April 29, 2011 and images were surfacing online.

But due to unexplained circumstances The Thing prequel has been slapped with a "to-be-determined" date by Universal Studios and thus leaving us all in the dark. Maybe they are getting a bit afraid of the competition as Scream 4 is released next April as well. What?! Oh crap I just realized that if I’m gonna do this blog I will have to see Scream 4. NOOooooooooo! (in my best James Earl Jones screaming NOOooooooo!)

So some producer of hack prequels is afraid of some other producer of hack sequels? Oh my bad, maybe The Thing Prequel is not a hack job. We shall see.

Here is the layout of the flick. Of course it is Antarctica, home to an isolated outpost where scientists screwing around wake up an evil, ancient alien which has the ability to turn itself into a perfect replica of any living being. It can look just like you or me, but inside, it remains a vicious, flesh eating, gluttonous, freak of extraterrestrial nature. Kind of like the people at the department of motor vehicles.

Paleontologist, and chronic shlimazl, Kate Lloyd (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) has traveled to the desolate region for the expedition of her lifetime. Joining a Norwegian scientific team that has stumbled across an extraterrestrial ship buried in the ice, she discovers an organism that seems to have died in the crash eons ago. But it is about to wake up. When a simple experiment frees the alien from its frozen prison (OOPSIE), Kate must join the crew's pilot, Carter (Joel Edgerton), to keep it from killing them off one at a time. And in this vast, intense land, a parasite that can mimic anything it touches will pit human against human as it tries to survive and flourish. "

The Thing prequel is directed by Matthijs van Heijningen Jr and stars Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Joel Edgerton, Dennis Storhøi, Trond Espen Seim, Jørgen Langhelle, Jonathan Walker, Eric Christian Olsen, Jo Adrian Haavind, Stig Henrik Hoff, Jan Gunnar Røise and Kristofer Hivju.

Usually I hate the idea of prequels but I guess I will go out of my way to see this one.

Throw me some opinion rich comments about this and prequels in general.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Paranormal Activity 2

WOW!! I just went and saw Paranormal Activity 2. It is a rainy Sunday afternoon and the crowd was just right for this kind of movie. Not so much a sequel as an accompaniment, the original, this movie packs quite a punch. I do not usually get scared when watching horror movies. Maybe I am desensitized, but I will tell you that Paranormal Activity 2 had me rockin on the edge of my seat.


Todd Williams does a great job as director of this tale a family besieged by an unknown terror. The tension builds a little slowly in the beginning then takes the viewer on pretty cool roller coaster ride of jumps and thrills.

A Family welcomes a new baby into their house. Soon after strang things begin to happen. When they return home one day to find the place has been trashed from top to bottom, they decide to have a security camera system installed. We as the audience get to view the odd and sometimes dangerous activities as voyeurs via the cameras.

I have seen some reviews that say Paranormal Activity 2 is just a rehash of the original. Not True, this movie has a whole different feel and underlying creepiness to it. The audience was audibly frightened and one couple had to leave. I think it was the girl who wanted to leave since I didn’t hear that screem from behind me anymore.

Anyhoo…I got scared, it shook me up, and had me thinking about it all the way to the parking lot. Paranormal Activity 2 stands on its own. If you haven’t seen the original, no problem! You can easily watch this one then go rent the original. Both flicks are worth your time and money.

Fright Night, An American Werewolf in London and The Evil Dead

Hey Y’all, I went to the Midnites for Maniacs show at the Castro Theater in San Francisco California. What a freakin' Blast this was. If you’ve never been to the Castro Theatre then you are missing out. It is a classic old time movie house ornately decorated with tall pillars, frescos. An organ rises up and an old guy, name unknown, who plays wonderfully before and in between the films that are shown.


The show was hosted by Jesse Hawthorn Ficks who I know nothing about except that he is an instructor for my friend Drew Nevis. Oh Yeh, and Drew was at the show also, way cool.

The first Movie shown was Fright Night written and directed by Tom Holland and produced by Herb Jaffe. It stars Chris Sarandon, William Ragsdale, Amanda Bearse, Roddy McDowall, Stephen Geoffreys and Jonathan Stark.

Charley Brewster, average teen aged boy with average teenage girlfriend and freaky not average at all friend, discovers that his new next Jerry Dandridge, played by Chris Sarandon door neighbor is a blood sucking vampire. Upon discovering this new fact, Charley tries and turns every which way he can for help. As these situations usually go, no one believes him and he must turn to Peter Vincent, Movie Show host and alleged vampire hunter. Hilarity ensues as the body count rises and Charley plays a deadly cat and mouse game with the Vampire Jerry Dandridge and his evil carpenter/gayer, Billy Cole.

The next flick, after a whole bunch of gruesome old trailers was An American Werewolf in London. Directed by John Landis and staring the former Dr. Pepper dude David Laughton as David Kessler. David and his friend Jack, played by Griffin Dunne, are attacked in the English moors by a werewolf, Jack dies but David is not so lucky. He wakes up weeks later just before the next full moon. Even though he meets and sweets his nurse Alex, played by Jenny Agutter, he goes all werewolf. Oh yen let’s not forget that he is haunted by Jack and his victims all urging him to kill himself so that they can rest in peace.

If you have never seen this flick then you should go rent it, grab a pal. Buddy. Babe or whatever. Sit back on a dark night and get ready for jumps and scares galore!!

Last on the evenings showcase was an old favorite. It’s the Movie that after I made my grandparents watch it with became convinced that there was something wrong with me. That movie was THE EVIL DEAD.

Written and produced by Sam Raimie, this movies tag line is The Evil Dead, the Ultimate Experience in Grueling Horror. With the use of CGI this movie uses old school lighting, animation, Claymation, makeup, and an atmosphere provided by deep Tennessee woods in the winter to create a truly frightening movie. Never again after watching this movie will you feel alone in the woods again.

Ash Williams and his friends go to a remote cabin in the woods only to find that the woods themselves are haunted by demons raised by an archeologist who has translated the book of the dead. As the party falls prey the evil forces around them it becomes a battle for survival not only of life and limb, but for their souls.

This whole night was a blst and the movies were fun. If you haven’t seen these I sugeest you go rent them and sit back for a night of frights.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Remember THE EVIL DEAD?

YO-
Ever wonder where new movies come from? Well they come from writers, directors, producers, and money. Well the writers and directors come from (in most cases) film schools. Producers kinda go hand in hand with money.
Remember the Evil Dead, 1981? Little known film makers, Sam Raimi, and Bruce Campbell, old high school friends, made that film on a shoe string. As a matter of fact, the film ran out of money and only half of it was completed in the Winter of 1980. In order to complete it, Sam Raimi, 'Robert Tapert' and Bruce Campbell did everything they could to complete the film. From taking out high interest bank loans, borrowing money from friends and family and even making cold calls to businesses around their hometown state of Michigan. The cold calls worked in that they actually got catering, gasoline and other necessities that the cast and crew needed.
Well Andrew Nevis, film student, writer, and director is working on a new movie. It is called “The Worst Action Hero”. Only problem is that he aint got no money. Can ya say “Hey Fadda, Can ya help out and old altaa boy?” Name that horror flick flicksters.
Anyhoo, you can help Drew out by contributing to The Worst Action Hero here at Andrew Nevis’ INDIEGOGO page.
I know yer like “wow, why would I want to contribute to Andrew Nevis’ film?” Because it’s guys like Drew that get that bump they need in the beginning, and then go on to produce great films, and TV classics like Spiderman 1, 2, and 3, Drag Me to Hell, American Gothic, XENA the Warrior Princess, Hercules, The legondary Journies, Thirty Days of Night, The Grudge, and the Grudge 2. OK that last one kinda sucked, but you get my drift; The guys Like Sam Raimi, Francis Ford Coppola, Ridley Scott etc. all had to start out somewhere. And it was probably knocking on doors and asking for money. In this case we are Knocking on your Cyberspace Door.

So please contribute to a new MOVIE PRODUCING SENSATION here at INDIEGOGO today!!

Sunday, October 3, 2010

CREEP

The first of two great flicks I watched this weekend was CREEP.
While inspecting the sewage system of London, two workers are attacked by a weird creature. Later, while heading home late one night after a party, Kate (Franka Ptenta), falls asleep while waiting for her train. She awakens to find herself trapped in the London underground, with all the doors locked for the evening. While being attacked by a co-worker who has followed her, a mysterious unseen creature drags him away and kills him. While trying to find help for her potential rapist, Kate meets the homeless underground, battles the Creep and makes a friend.
It’s a lovely tale of cruel experiments, what happens when playing house goes wrong, and why it’s a bad idea to do drugs in London’s underground. The overall tone is hopeless, creepy and demented. If you don’t pay too much attention to the plot holes and implausibility of the whole thing, you will really enloy yourself. Oh yeha nd lots of rats creeping around in pools of blood. Cool Man!

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Heroes done for Good!!

Well I just heard some screwed up news. NBC has dashed any plans for a 2, or 4 hour movie to wrap up Heroes. I am still watching season 4, I am almost to the end, but now I don’t know. Should I watch it through? Should I just say screw it and leave off where I am now? From what I hear there are a lot of plot lines just left hanging. This blows!!
What is it with these world class A-HOLES in the networks just ending shows and not even bother to tying up the stories? Maybe it is us; The people who allow ourselves to get caught up, time and time again just to be let down in the end. We watch and h=get involved, share at the water cooler at work about how” oh she did that”, or “do you think he really…” Then it is just over.
Personally I think the best way to combat these idiots is to stop watching their shows. I had my DVR set to record The Event but I will not be watching it. Screw NBC and their idiot programming. Everyone there should be fired for being A-HOLES.
I will sleep tonight in case you wondered, but it still pisses me off. No more NBC!!!!

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

The Walking Dead

Hey I just heard about The Walking Dead being Released on Halloween Night On AMC. Yes I know they were showing the trailer at Comicon, but I had to work helping the real walking dead remember their passwords and how to print. Anyhoo here is the trailer, I will be keep tabs on this and you can get any updates here from me, really, please read my blogs so that I can get rich quick. Yeh right...

Saturday, August 21, 2010

Piranha 3D

After seeing this last night I pondered as to how I could right a review about this flick free of spoilers. Then I realized that wait, there are no spoilers. The name its self, Piranha, pretty much spells out the whole movie even if you never saw Roger Corman's (rip off of Jaws ) original back in 1978.

So here I go with the recipe that makes Piranha 3D work:
Take a Silly Script, predictable plotline, predictable scenes, Characters we have all seen before, FANTASTIC 3D special effects, Boobs, more boobs, narly looking prehistoric peranha fish with personality, bikini clad girls dancing around in the water, blood, blood and more blood, a film style that reminds you of Miami CSI, a fast paced hip hop music score, add in a splash of corny suspensful tactics, followed by lots of gory special effects, then you add in a pretty strong cast including Elisabeth Shue, Jerry O'Connell, and the grandson of Steve McQueen, Steven R. McQueen. Plus there a couple of other cast surprises I was not expecting.

Anyhoo, you take all of these things and toss them together and you get a movie that works. Piranha 3D was everything I would expect from a movie named Piranha 3D. Blood, gore, boobs, floating body parts, laughter, suspense, a and a scene I will simply dub "The Frenzie".

I tried to count things like dead people, boobs, body parts, but I lost count. Cool Huh?

If you go see this movie expecting a social statement on the evils of teen sex, or an artistic look at the evolution of mans folly, then you are not paying attention. Not even to the title.

I give Piranha 3D 4 out of five free floating boobs.

Oh and a note to the girl who left her guy sitting in the movie because it was "Ewe Gross": You wern't paying attention were you?! And to the guy, Good for you for not leaving with her.

Friday, August 20, 2010

"Alien Trespass" Definately Not Horrific But A Lot of Fun



Eric McCormack stars as Ted Lewis, an astronomer whose body plays host to an intergalactic bounty hunter named Urp after a spacecraft crashes into a mountain. But Urp isn't the only survivor: A ravenous monster is now roaming the California countryside. With the help of a local waitress (Jenni Baird), it's up to Ted -- or rather, his alien alter ego, Urp -- to save the planet from total annihilation. This movie pays homage to 1950s-era alien invasion flicks and completely captures the tone and feel of the classics we used to watch late on Saturday nights in Cleveland.
This movie has a great campiness to it. The sets are fantastic and if you love old cars you won't be disappointed. The "Monster' affects are cheesy on purpose and they meet their goal which is to create the look and feel of the 50s B Movie.
I first saw Alien Trespass in a little beat up movie house in Berkley last year. And I just talked my poor family into watching it again last weekend. This is great Flick so Get your popcorn ready, snuggleup with your best girl and enjoy.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

It's Alive

The original, the horrific "It's Alive" written, produced, and directed by Larry Cohen in 1974. The movie, in which the Davie's infant child turns out to be a vicious mutant monster that kills when frightened, when hungry, or just when ever.

I love this movie. I first saw it in about the 7th grade (uh oh, age hint here) and it has not lost any of it's original charm. Um, I mean harm.

If you are into camp, bad acting, bad writing, really bad special effects, then spend a saturday evening revisiting this classic. This is one of those movies so bad it is good.

Scene of NOTE (little spoiler here) Mr. Davies leaves the Hospital after his now missing son has slaughtered the entire delvery room staff. With apparently nothing else on his mind, Mr Davies decides to get a newspaper and catch up on the days events HUH?! Really WTF?!

You be the judge here but I found plenty reason to laugh.

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

I had to come back

Well guys and gools it’s been a while but I had to come back. I just watched DayBreakers with Ethan Hawk and Sam Neil.
Wow!! What can I say but Wow what a Horrific Movie this was! I loved the style, I loved the creepiness, but the writing and execution just left me hanging going HuH??
Ethan Hawk plays a guilty vampire in a world where humans are becoming extinct. Vampires are devolving into sub creatures who feed on Vampires. Ethan Hawks Character, Ed, finds a cure for vampirism but Sam Neil his boss wants nothing to do with it. Wilem Dafoe, who I really like just kind phones this one in. He plays Elvis, a mechanic who some years before accidentally found the cure for vampirism but just needed a trust worthy vampire to help him recreate it. He is there, but underutilized, they could have stuck anyone in that part and it would have had the same onscreen impact.
Daybreakers is a kind of a corporate scandal, greed, zombies among zombies flick that just never really coagulated for me. I almost think that some producer got in there and said “Ok lets wrap this up, it’s starting to cost too much money.”
I will however be watching for other works by Michael Spierig the writer and director. I think he has great potential!!