Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
When I saw that Giovanni Valletta, an artist on the John Wick comic series was taking commissions, I jumped on board for a couple of head sketches (John Wick and Jack Carter). Because it took a little longer than expected to get the art to me Giovanni added more to the art and threw in some prints as well. That’s customer service!
The Dirty Dozen is a classic. If you agree, then you’re going to want to check out Slaughterhouse Twelve: Robert Aldrich’s The Dirty Dozen at Cinephilia and Beyond.
Click on the link and you’ll find…
If you’re of a certain age, then the photo above of Jonathan Frid as Barnabus Collins will bring back a lot of great memories. Frid became a cult hero playing a vampire on a soap opera called Dark Shadows.
What’s interesting is that Dark Shadows started out as a typical soap opera. Because the series was facing cancellation, Curtis decided he had nothing to lose and brought in a vampire! Ratings soared and the series spawned two movies, comic books, novelizations, trading cards and more.
Two new Hellboy posters came out today. My favorite of the two is above. You can see a bigger version of it and the other new Hellboy poster at IMPAwards.
Here’s the teaser and what may or may not be an official poster for The Irishman. I love the simplicity and cleverness of the trailer. If the poster is fan-made, the fan who made it sure did a great job.
The US international trailer has additional scenes and creepiness!
The photo above comes from Sly Stallone’s Official Instagram and is one of a series of photos from the set of Sly’s next film, Rambo V: Last Blood.
Sly has several films in development and is busier than ever. Here’s what’s in the works:
Sylvester Stallone and Balboa Productions have also acquired the rights to…
Source: ComingSoon.
Rob Hunter and Film School Rejects present 28 Things We Learned from Michael Cimino’s Year of the Dragon Commentary. Here are three of my favorites…
8. While set primarily in New York City, much of the film was shot in North Carolina including the sequences on the streets of Chinatown. They recreated streets with attention to detail up to and including the angled grade of their Mott Street — the “main” street in NYC’s Chinatown — which is not actually flat. They took plaster casts of curbstones and recreated the grade for authenticity, something he says most NYC reproductions on film don’t achieve. “If you look at Ragtime, it’s flat, and that’s why it doesn’t look like New York [City]. It’s a very rocky little island.” He’s proud of their accomplishment as it even fooled Stanley Kubrick. The legendary director was given a screening in London where he told Cimino that “Chinatown looks so great.” Cimino told him the truth, and after a little bit of back and forth Kubrick realized he’d been duped. “If you can fool Kubrick, who had the best eye in the world, you can fool anyone.” The sets have been reused in dozens of films in the years since.
12. He feels Lone and Mickey Rourke compliment each other well and achieve his goal of confusing “the good, the bad, and the ugly.” He says the bad guy is attractive and likable, the good guy is neither of those things, and viewers are ultimately forced to like the good guy because of what he does.
18. He credits Clint Eastwood with his career. Cimino’s debut as writer/director, 1974’s Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, only got made thanks to Eastwood’s belief in him. The contract gave Eastwood the right to fire him after the first three days of shooting, and thankfully he never felt compelled to do so.
The Kid Poster and Trailer are Here!
Peter Tork died today after a long battle with cancer at the age of 77.
Born Peter Thorkelson on February 13, 1942, Peter was, of course, better known as Peter Tork a member of The Monkees.
The Monkees [Peter, along with Davy Jones, Mickey Dolenz, and Michael Nesmith] took the world by storm in 1966. The group was hand-picked by Screen Gems in an effort to create a tv show about a group of young musicians. Lightning struck and the group not only had a hit tv series but became one of the biggest selling bands of the 60’s. In 1967, The Monkees sold more albums than The Beatles and The Rolling Stones combined. The Monkees even appeared in a feature film called Head that was co-written by Jack Nicholson!
I was a huge Monkees fan like many kids my age [7]. I collected their albums, trading cards, comic books and magazines. I had a model of The Monkeemobile. I even followed The Monkees after Peter, then later Mike, quit the band. Sadly, I never got to see them perform live when they reunited for several reunion tours.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to Peter’s family, friends and fans.
The Dragged Across Concrete Poster and Trailer are Here!
Grzegorz Domaradzki is an amazing artist and graphic designer as you can see from his Game of Death poster. Check out a bigger version by clicking on the photo above.
Source: Movie Poster Movement.
The Highwaymen poster and official trailer are here!
The Triple Frontier poster and second official trailer are here!
Fans of Jack Benny and/or Humphrey Bogart probably know that they appeared together on an episode of The Jack Benny Show. But for years there has been a rumor that Jack Benny made an uncredited cameo appearance in Casablanca.
BookSteve’s Library takes a look at the rumor, finds newspaper articles and contests indicating that Benny did make an appearance in Casablanca and comes up with a conclusion that may surprise you. If this interests you, check out Jack Benny in Casablanca.
