Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
Matt Ferguson is an amazing artist who created the Predator print above. I love everything about it from the line art to the colors to the subtle way we Schwarzenegger hiding. You can see tons more of Matt Ferguson’s art at his website. I’d plan to stay awhile. ; )
End of the Year lists are fun and so I decided to compile a few of my own. I hope you enjoy them. Below is my Best Of list for 2021…
Movies and Limited Series
In 2021, I watched 372 movies. Most were streamed. The only film I saw in a theater was Rocky vs Drago, Sly Stallone’s Director’s Cut of Rocky IV. Although the total movies watched was less than last year, it was still nearly double of what I saw prior to retiring. My favorite films and limited series released in 2021 included:
Books
In 2021, I read 39 books (5 more than last year). Prior to retiring I usually read about 20 – 24 per year so the increase is a good sign that I’ll some day make it through my book cases of “to be read” books. My favorites from this year included:
My Most Popular Posts of the Year
I continue to find some surprises in what became my most popular posts each year. Here are the top ten for 2021 and some thoughts for each…
10. Michael Biehn Talks “Tombstone” – broke into the top ten. I’m not surprised due to the continuing popularity of Tombstone.
09. Jack Benny in “Casablanca” – dropped from the 7th spot to the 9th. I love that Jack Benny is still popular enough to make the top ten for the year since I consider him very under-rated.
08. Gadot & The Rock Strike a Pose – Two of the most popular movie stars in the world together? Yep and that’s why they came in at #8.
07. Top 10 Most Iconic Horror Movie Villains – dropped from #5 to #7 for the year. Horror movie posts remain popular but maybe a bit less this year than last year.
06. The Girl Who Didn’t “Flinch” Trailer is Here! – This one surprised me more than any other post. A crime film from a director and cast I didn’t know and it not only made the top ten most popular posts of the year but also nearly made the top 5.
05. Rare “Batman” Screen Tests: Lyle Waggoner & Peter Deyell and Adam West & Burt Ward – I love that this one got a lot of love this year.
04. Dracula Through the Ages – was our 4th most popular post last year. Horror movies always get love and Dracula counts (see what I did there) as horror.
03. Louis Meyers: Evidence He was the Zodiac Killer – came in the #2 spot last year. Real life horror trumps fictional this time.
02. Schwarzenegger in “King Lear” & Robin Williams in “Jack and the Beanstalk” – was our most popular post last year and clocks in at #2 this year.
01. The TWILIGHT ZONE New Year’s Eve Marathon is Coming and the Full Schedule is Out! – was the most popular post of the year and surprised me almost as much as The Girl Who Didn’t “Flinch” Trailer is Here!
My All-Time Most Popular Posts
There weren’t many changes on the All-Time Most Popular Posts list. One post managed to break through while the others mostly stayed in their same spots. Let’s see how things shook out…
10. Dracula Through the Ages – made it into the top ten!
09. Gadot & The Rock Strike a Pose – was in the 9th spot last year and remained there this year.
08. Real Clown or Horror Movie Clown? – was in the 7th spot last year and dropped to 8.
07. Joel Osteen in Jacksonville – dropped one spot from 6th to 7th.
06. TOP 10 MOST ICONIC HORROR MOVIE VILLAINS! – moved up 2 spots from 8 to 6 this year.
05. Steve Reeves as Superman – was the #5 all-time most popular post last year and continues to be this year.
04. New Billy the Kid Photo Discovered – was the #4 all-time most popular post last year and continues to be this year.
03. Zodiac Killer Code Cracked? – was the #3 all-time most popular post last year and continues to be this year.
02. Louis Meyers: Evidence He Was the Zodiac Killer – was the #2 all-time most popular post last year and continues to be this year.
01. Schwarzenegger in “King Lear” & Robin Williams in “Jack and the Beanstalk” – was #1 last year and continues to be our most popular post of all-time.
It’s always interesting to see which topics resonate with fans and continue to be popular long after their initial post.
Crime Scene: The Times Square Killer has at it’s core the story of a serial murderer who tortured, sexually abused and butchered school-age girls and prostitutes. How the police came to understand that they were dealing with a serial killer (he reportedly killed between 80-100 women) in a time when police departments from different cities didn’t coordinate information, didn’t have access to the internet or DNA makes for an interesting documentary.
Sadly that is not the focus of Crime Scene: The Times Square Killer.
Unfortunately more time is given to the pornography in Times Square aspect. The pornography tie-in to the case is that several of the serial killer’s victims were prostitutes who worked Times Square. So we learn how Times Square in the 70s and 80s morphed from movie houses to porn shops and peep shows. We hear from folks in the porn industry who have no direct ties to the murders. Short shrift is given to how police captured the killer, the trial or events that led to learning there were many other unsolved murders that he committed.
As I said, Crime Scene: The Times Square Killer has at it’s core an interesting story of the capture of a serial killer, there’s just too much filler you have to go through to get there.
Joshua Meyer at /Film decided he would come up with his list of Every Alien Movie Ranked From Worst To Best. Using just his list (he considers Aliens vs Predator a “side-series”), here are my rankings and thoughts on each…
1. Aliens: is my choice for the best of the series. I won’t argue against Alien being #1 though. Either of these two films are heads and shoulders above all that followed.
2. Alien: will be the #1 choice of many and there is a strong case for it to be first. Without Alien we’d have no Aliens (or all that followed), even if no sequel(s) were ever made, Alien would still be considered a great film.
3. Alien Resurrection: as my third choice will probably surprise a lot of folks. I’m a fan. I like the supporting cast (Winona Ryder, Ron Perlman, Gary Dourdan, Dominique Pinon, Michael Wincott and Dan Hedaya). There’s a comic book feel to the film (I say that in a good way). Alien Resurrection is a fun ride (that I’ve taken many times and look forward to again in the future).
4. Alien3: was a let-down. While it wasn’t an Alien or Aliens, it did have Sigourney Weaver back and David Fincher as the new director. I need to rewatch Alien3 to see if it has improved with age.
5. and 6. Alien: Covenant and Prometheus: Neither of these films resonated with me. They didn’t feel like Alien films to me (if that make any sense). I definitely need to give them another viewing.
I’ve never read the short story but this teaser for Vincent D’onofrio’s adaptation makes me want to see Night of the Cooters.
George RR Martin Presents – Howard Waldrop’s Night of the Cooters. Lumenscapes and Trioscope Studios have teamed up to present Vincent D’onofrio’s film adaptation of the classic short story in glorious “Trioscope”.
NIGHT OF THE COOTERS tells the tale of townsfolk in Pachuco Texas in the 1800’s rallying around one cause, survival against the unwelcome visitors from “up there”.
Join the townsfolk on their journey to figure out what the hell is going on in the big hole at the edge of town.
With a screenplay by the one and only Joe Lansdale, and music by the prolific Ramin Djwadi get ready for a ride like no other through the mind of the great Howard Waldrop.
Starring – Vincent D’Onofrio,
Supporting cast – Hopper Penn, Harrison Page, Martin Sensmeier, Luce Rains, Cristin McCleary, Elias Gallegos, Jazzy Kim O’Brien, and Darius Eteeyan.
The Twilight Zone New Year’s Eve Marathon has been one of our family traditions for decades. Sometimes we binge watch. Other times we just check in on favorite episodes. Shadow & Substance (an excellent Rod Serling fan site) has this year’s full schedule. Before you click over to check it out, let me suggest some favorite Twilight Zone episodes…
Friday, December 31, 2021
7:40pm – Time Enough At Last
8:55pm – The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street
11:00pm – Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up?
11:25pm – The Shelter
Saturday, January 1, 2022
8:30am – Third From the Sun
8:45pm – The Howling Man
9:10pm – Eye of the Beholder
11:00pm – The Midnight Sun
Sunday, January 2, 2022
12:00am – To Serve Man
1:30am – Nightmare at 20,000 Feet
The Twilight Zone and quite a few other folks will be live-Tweeting during the marathon. If you watch, please join in!
On November 26th we took a look at the first poster and trailer for The Silent Sea. I didn’t care for the poster but the trailer had me interested. Today’s poster is a bit of an improvement and I like the trailer even better!
During a perilous 24-hour mission on the moon, space explorers try to retrieve samples from an abandoned research facility steeped in classified secrets.
A deadly mission will uncover the darkest secrets of the moon
With a 10% survival rate, will the crew survive?
Let the mystery behind the abandoned lunar base unfold
Winter 2021, an intense sci-fi mystery thriller
The Silent Sea | December 24, only on Netflix
Today we have the poster and trailer for War Hunt starring Robert Knepper, Jackson Rathbone with Mickey Rourke. Man, oh man, War Hunt would definitely be a second feature at our local drive-in back in the day.
The poster would have been better if they used the title and everything below for the entire image. The trailer looks okay for what it is. What does it say about the movie when Rourke’s eyepatch switches eyes in the trailer!
With all that said, I’d probably give it a try on streaming.
I don’t care too much for the poster but the trailer and synopsis for The Silent Sea has me interested!
A mission with a 10% survival rate
One by one, crew members end up deadSci-fi mystery thriller
The Silent Sea | December 24, only on Netflix
The poster and trailer for Mother/Android are here. The poster is okay, but I like the looks of the trailer. I’ll give Mother/Android a shot.
A young woman and her boyfriend go on a treacherous journey of escape as their country is caught in an unexpected war with artificial intelligence. Days away from the arrival of their first child, they must cross a stronghold of the android uprising, in hopes of reaching safety before giving birth. Stream starting December 17, only on Hulu.
Death Valley would probably be the second feature at a drive-in, but I have a feeling I would enjoy it. Unfortunately I don’t get Shudder otherwise I’d check it out.
Two hired guns, commissioned to rescue an imprisoned scientist from a secret facility, are hunted down by a terrifying creature of unknown origin.
Premieres December 9 on Shudder
I like the look of Encounter and since it is on Prime, I’ll be sure to check it out.
A decorated Marine goes on a rescue mission to save his two young sons from an unhuman threat. As their journey takes them in increasingly dangerous directions, the boys will need to leave their childhoods behind.
Directed by: Michael Pearce
Written by: Joe Barton, Michael Pearce
Starring: Riz Ahmed, Octavia Spencer, Rory Cochrane, Lucian-River Chauhan and Aditya GeddadaIn theaters December 3rd, 2021 and on Prime Video December 10th, 2021
Rob Hunter at Film School Rejects shared 31 Things We Learned from Wes Craven’s ‘Scream’ Commentary. Before you click over, here are three of my favorites and thoughts on each…
Sidney types her distress call out to the online 911 system, and she enters 34 Elm Street as her address — but it was cut for time. (That’s too bad it was cut. Fans would have loved it! – Craig)
Joseph Whipp plays the sheriff here, and he plays a cop in A Nightmare on Elm Street too. “So the backstory there that I put in is that he was so upset by the events in Nightmare on Elm Street that he moved to a small town in Northern California.” (That’s funny and probably goes unnoticed by 99% of the viewers. – Craig)
Craven is pleased by his addition to the end credits acknowledgements ending a list of thanks with “No thanks whatsoever to The Santa Rosa City School District Governing Board.” (Read Hunter’s item #10 and you’ll know why! – Craig)
I am diggin’ the look of both the poster and trailer for Morbius! Deal me in.
US Release Date: January 21, 2022
Starring: Jared Leto, Michael Keaton, Matt Smith
Directed By: Daniel Espinosa
Synopsis: Biochemist Michael Morbius tries to cure himself of a rare blood disease, but he inadvertently infects himself with a form of vampirism instead.
Polaroid is an excellent example of a creepy, scary movie short done without a huge budget or special effects.
It’s the things we can’t see that terrify us the most…
CAST:
Alex – Ethan Mikael
Monster – Kevin Michael ShileyCREW:
Writer | Producer | Director | Editor | Score – Joey Greene
