“Better Call Saul” If Done by Disney Pixar – The Trailer!
Did you ever wonder what Better Call Saul would look like if done by Disney Pixar? Wonder no more.
SLOWER BEAR by Anthony Neil Smith is Available Now!
Anthony Neil Smith has a new book out. It’s a sequel to Slow Bear titled, Slower Bear. Here’s the lowdown…
Micah “Slow Bear” Cross returns in another breathless slice of pitch-perfect pulp from noir legend Anthony Neil Smith.
After successfully faking his own death, we catch up with Micah “Slow Bear” Cross standing in a field in Nebraska with his boot on the neck of a Ukranian human trafficker.
So far, so Slow Bear.
After handing out some of his trademark summary justice, Micah finds himself the temporary custodian of two very young, and very scared victims of trafficking.
Along with his latest one-night stand Abeline, Slow Bear and the girls launch themselves into a desperate fight for survival as they do all they can to escape the clutches of the ruthless trafficking gang who are out for revenge and restitution.
What follows will absolutely delight fans of Anthony Neil Smith and pulp-noir lovers everywhere…
I’m a Anthony Neil Smith and am happy for the return of Micah “Slow Bear” Cross. Slower Bear sounds like another winner. My order is in. If you’d like to get on board…
Slower Bear Paperback
Slower Bear Hardback
Slower Bear Kindle
Day Shift (2022) Starring Jamie Foxx / Z-View
Day Shift (2022)
Director: J.J. Perry
Screenplay by: Tyler Tice, Shay Hatten from a story by Tyler Tice
Starring:
Jamie Foxx, Dave Franco, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Meagan Good, Karla Souza, Steve Howey, Scott Adkins, Oliver Masucci, Snoop Dogg and Zion Broadnax
Tagline: Some Jobs Really Go for the Throat
The Overview: Beware of spoilers…
Bud Jablonski (Foxx) is separated from his wife who plans to move to Florida with their little girl due to mounting bills. Bud convinces his wife to give him until the end of the week to raise the needed several thousand dollars. She agrees.
Although his wife thinks he’s a pool cleaner, Bud is actually a vampire killer. The trouble is, Bud was kicked out of the vampire-killing union due to multiple rules violations. In order to get a chance at raising the kind of money he needs, Bud gets Big John Elliott (Snoop Dogg), a legendary vampire killer, to vouch for him and is reinstated in the union. In order to make sure that Bud follows the rules, he’s paired with a nervous union desk clerk (Franco) with no field experience. Now all Bud has to do is kill enough vampires to raise the needed cash — little does Bud know that a vampire queen has him and his family in her sights.
If you’ve read this far, you might enjoy Day Shift. It has it’s moments, but is so far from reality that there’s little tension. We never really fear for the deaths of any of the stars, and when we’re surprised that one does die, the post credits scene reveals what we thought happened, didn’t. The lack of tension would be okay if the comedy really hit home, but again, there are moments but not enough to make it a laugh fest. My favorite scenes involved the Nazarian brothers (Howey and Adkins) who are vampire hunters extraordinaire. Day Shift isn’t terrible, but I was expecting better.
Day Shift earns 2 of 5 stars.
Samaritan – First Look | Amazon Studios
Samaritan – First Look | Amazon Studios
25 years ago, the world’s greatest hero vanished. Sylvester Stallone stars in Samaritan, coming August 26 only to Prime Video.
“Hell Creek” – The Poster and SciFi Short is Here!
Hell Creek is an excellent short film that’s well worth a watch.
A time traveler is hunted by a dinosaur.
“Hell Creek”
Written and Directed by Danny Donahue
Starring Danny Donahue
Cinematography by Paul Houston
Visual Effects by Danny Donahue
Music by Paleowolf
Special Thanks to Casey Fichtner, Michael Matzur, Ryan Godoy
“Master of the World” (1961) / Z-View
Master of the World (1961)
Director: William Witney
Screenplay by: Richard Matheson based on two novels by Jules Verne: Master of the World and Robur, the Conqueror
Starring: Vincent Price, Charles Bronson, Henry Hull, Mary Webster, David Frankham and Vito Scotti
Tagline: The fabulous adventures of the man who conquered the earth to save it!
The Overview: Beware of spoilers…
While investigating a volcanic crater, Prudent (Hall), his daughter Dorothy (Webster), her fiance Phillip (Frankham) and US agent John Strock (Bronson) are taken aboard a flying machine! Robur (Price), the genius who invented the flying warship, plans to create world peace by destroying all ships of war in every country. Refusing to release his captives, they watch helplessly as Prudent orders the destruction of war ships and all crew aboard. Safe in the sky out of range of any weapons from below, Prudent strikes at will. Despite the odds, the captives decide to try an escape attempt or bring about the destruction of the flying fortress even at the cost of their own lives.
Charles Bronson was still several years away from becoming an international star when Master of the World was made. Vincent Price is great as the crazy genius who believes to stop wars he must destroy armies. Vito Scotti provides comic relief for most of the film, but at the end gets to go for a tear or two.
Master of the World earns 3 of 5 stars.
Behind the Scenes on the Making of “Tulsa King” with Sly Stallone and Tyler Sheridan
I am so stoked for Tulsa King. Everything that we see makes the show look great.
TULSA KING follows New York mafia capo Dwight “The General” Manfredi (Sylvester Stallone), just after he is released from prison after 25 years and unceremoniously exiled by his boss to set up shop in Tulsa, Okla. Realizing that his mob family may not have his best interests in mind, Dwight slowly builds a “crew” from a group of unlikely characters, to help him establish a new criminal empire in a place that to him might as well be another planet. The series also stars Andrea Savage (“I’m Sorry”), Martin Starr (“Silicon Valley”), Max Casella (“The Tender Bar”), Domenick Lombardozzi (“The Irishman”), Vincent Piazza (“Boardwalk Empire”), Jay Will (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”), A.C. Peterson (“Superman & Lois’) with Garrett Hedlund (“The United States vs. Billie Holiday”).
The series will be executive-produced by Sheridan, Winter, Stallone, David C. Glasser, Ron Burkle, Bob Yari, David Hutkin and Allen Coulter. Braden Aftergood is also set to executive-produce.
Stream the new series on November 13, exclusively on Paramount+.
“The Mysterious Island” (1929) / Z-View
The Mysterious Island (1929)
Director: Lucien Hubbard, Benjamin Christensen (uncredited), Maurice Tourneur (uncredited)
Screenplay by: Lucien Hubbard based on Jules Verne‘s novel, The Mysterious Island
Starring: Lionel Barrymore, Jacqueline Gadsdon, Lloyd Hughes and Montagu Love
Tagline: METRO-GOLDWYN-MAYER’S Dramatic Spectale Based on Jules Vern’s Immortal Novel!
The Overview: Beware of spoilers…
Count Andre Dakkar (Barrymore) is a brilliant scientist and beloved ruler of an island kingdom. Dakkar along with his daughter Sonia (Gadsdon) and her fiance (who is also Dakkar’s right hand man) have invented two ships that can go undersea. Just as they are about to test the first ship, the island is attacked by the evil Baron Falon’s (Love) army. Falon wants the island country and undersea ships for his own!
The attack damages the first ship which sinks to the bottom of the ocean. The crew realizes they have no way to surface and will die at the bottom of the sea… if they are not killed by the strange creatures and gigantic monsters that live on the ocean floor. Meanwhile, Sonia hopes to use the second ship to save the crew of the first vessel. Little does she know the horrors that await…
The Mysterious Island has some cool special underwater effects, but truth be told, I was enjoying the less scifi aspects of the film more. Still, you cannot go wrong with Lionel Barrymore in a Jules Verne adventure!
The Mysterious Island earns 3 of 5 stars.
“The Nice Guys” (2016) / Z-View
The Nice Guys (2016)
Director: Shane Black
Screenplay by: Shane Black, Anthony Bagarozzi
Starring: Russell Crowe, Ryan Gosling, Angourie Rice, Margaret Qualley, Keith David, Gil Gerard, Murielle Telio and Kim Basinger
Tagline: They’re not that nice
The Overview: Beware of spoilers…
Holland March (Gosling) is a sketchy private eye trying to earn enough dough to support himself and his daughter. So when he’s offered money by Misty Mountain’s aunt to find Misty, March takes the case (and the cash) even though everyone knows the porn star is dead. March thinks he’ll spend a couple of days “earning” the advance and then he’ll let the old lady down easy. That all changes when Jackson Healy (Crowe) puts a beating on March and tells him to drop the investigation. Rather than take another whoppin’, Healy agrees.
When Healy gets home, two thugs are waiting for him. They rough him up in an effort to get information about the Misty Mountain case. Fortunately he has nothing to give them. After the roughnecks split, Healy goes back to March and convinces him that they should team up to solve the case. Soon they’ll find that they’re way over their head with hired assassins and government officials wanting them dead.
The Nice Guys has it’s moments. Crowe and Gosling’s characters are mismatched enough that there’s humor and chemistry in them working as a team. Angourie Rice is excellent as Gosling’s young, but smart-beyond-her-years daughter. Basinger has a small but important role. The plot was a little more convoluted than needed, but that’s a small nit to pick. I’m surprised The Nice Guys didn’t warrant a sequel.
The Nice Guys earns 3 of 5 stars.
RIP: Wolfgang Petersen
Wolfgang Petersen, the German filmmaker who gained international fame with Das Boot (which he wrote and directed), died August 12, 2022 from pancreatic cancer. Mr. Petersen was 81.
Das Boot aka The Boat told the story of a WWII, German U-boat crew. The film was nominated for six Academy Awards (including Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay). After that Hollywood called and Wolfgang Petersen would go on to direct crow-pleasing movies for the rest of his career. Some of his feature films include: The Never-Ending Story; Shattered; In the Line of Fire; Outbreak; The Perfect Storm and Troy.
My favorite Wolfgang Petersen films are In the Line of Fire and Shattered (which he wrote, directed and produced!).
Our thoughts and prayers go out to Wolfgang Petersen’s family, friends and fans.
“The Creature from the Black Lagoon” by Art Adams!
Gotta love Art Adams take on The Creature from the Black Lagoon!
“Wild Oranges” (1924) / Z-View
Wild Oranges (1924)
Director: King Vidor
Screenplay by: King Vidor based on Joseph Hergesheimer’s novel Wild Oranges.
Starring: Frank Mayo, Virginia Valli, Ford Sterling, Nigel De Brulier and Charles A. Post
Tagline: She taught him to love her-this world wanderer who sailed the seas to escape women’s lures and the one he couldn’t forget!
The Overview: Beware of spoilers…
When John Woolfolk’s (Mayo) wife dies in a tragic accident, he sets sail around the world on his small sailboat with no specific port in mind. One night Woolfolk drops anchor in a remote inlet. When he goes ashore he meets a Millie (Valli), young woman who lives with her grandfather (De Brulier) in an old house in the woods. Woolfolk learns that an escaped homicidal maniac lives in the swamp nearby and has been terrorizing them. Woolfolk plans to get Millie and her grandfather away to safety… but is unaware that the maniac knows of his plan!
King Vidor created a silent film with modern sensibilities. Charles A. Post plays the homicidal maniac, but his character isn’t just a mustache-twirling villain. I won’t go so far to say that his character is misunderstood, but I did like that there were layers to Post’s performance. Wild Oranges has one of the most realistic, brutal and extended fight scenes I’ve ever seen in a movie from that era. While there is silent movie melodrama and exaggerated poses in some scenes, Wild Oranges turns the corner into more realistic filming/acting choices.
Wild Oranges earns 4 of 5 stars.
“END OF THE ROAD” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!
The poster and trailer for End of the Road looks better than I thought it might. Since it is on Netflix, it’ll be a no-brainer to check it out!
Queen Latifah and Chris Bridges star in this road trip thriller about a mom of two kids who relocates across the country with her kids and brother. The family’s move to the southland is thrown into complete chaos when they witness a murder on their road trip. Now, the murderer will stop at nothing to find them.
GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S “CABINET OF CURIOSITIES” – The Trailer is Here!
GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S “CABINET OF CURIOSITIES” – The Trailer is Here!
Guillermo Del Toro – The master of horror – gives a First Look at some of the twisted nightmares and violent delights from his new anthology series.
Guillermo Del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities is a collection of sinister stories, told by some of today’s most revered horror creators – including the directors of The Babadook, Splice, Mandy, and many more.
“Bandit” Starring Josh Duhamel, Elisha Cuthbert and Mel Gibson – The Poster and Trailer are Here!
The poster and trailer for Bandit starring Josh Duhamel, Elisha Cuthbert and Mel Gibson are here!
Gilbert Galvan Jr (Josh Duhamel), a charming criminal, escapes from prison and assumes a new identity. After falling in love with Andrea (Elisha Cuthbert), a caring social worker he can’t provide for, he turns to robbing banks and discovers that he’s exceptionally good at it. Addicted to the rush and money, he turns to loan shark and gangster Tommy Kay (Mel Gibson) for bigger opportunities.
Based on the true story of The Flying Bandit.Cast: Josh Duhamel, Mel Gibson, Elisha Cuthbert
Available in THEATERS, on DIGITAL and ON DEMAND, September 23rd, 2022
