Category: Movies

15 Not-So-Simple Facts About “Blood Simple”

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Garin Pirnia and Mental_Floss present 15 Not-So-Simple Facts About Blood Simple.  Here are three of my favorites…

1. ITS TITLE WAS INSPIRED BY DASHIELL HAMMETT’S RED HARVEST.
“It’s an expression he used to describe what happens to somebody psychologically once they’ve committed murder,” Joel Coen told Time Out. “They go ‘blood simple’ in the slang sense of ‘simple,’ meaning crazy. But it’s left up to the audience to ponder the implications; they’re never spelled out in the film itself.”

3. THE COENS—AND MANY OF THE CAST AND CREW—HAD NEVER BEEN ON A FILM SET BEFORE.
Joel Coen admitted in My First Movie, “The first day of shooting on Blood Simple was the first time I’d ever been on a feature movie set in any capacity, even as a visitor.” Coen had previously worked as an assistant editor on horror films, including 1981’s The Evil Dead. Coen mentioned how Sonnenfeld would throw up after looking at the dailies, because he was so nervous working on the film. “Everyone was in the same boat,” Joel said. “The gaffer had never gaffered a feature. The sound guy, the mixer on the set, had never mixed a feature.”

4. THE COENS CHOSE TO MAKE A FILM NOIR BECAUSE OF THE GENRE’S PRACTICALITY.
The Coens liked hard-boiled fiction authors James M. Cain, Dashiell Hammett, and Raymond Chandler, and used them to their advantage in writing the script. “It’s certainly a genre that is entertaining, and we also picked it for very practical reasons,” Ethan said. “We knew we weren’t going to have a big budget. The financing would not allow it. We could build something on the genre and the appeal it has.”

“It’s also a genre that allows you to get by rather modestly in some ways,” Joel added. “You can limit the number of characters, put them into a confined set. There’s no need to go for large-scale effects or scatter them through the film, and those cost a lot of money. So it was a pragmatic decision that determined what film we would make.”

High Sierra (1941) / Z-View

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High Sierra (1941)

Director:  Raoul Walsh

Screenplay: John Huston and W.R. Burnett from a novel by W.R. Burnett

Stars: Ida Lupino, Humphrey Bogart, Alan Curtis, Henry Hull and Cornell Wilde.

The Pitch: “Raoul Walsh. John Huston. WR Burnett. Ida Lupino. Bogart.”

Tagline: “The Blazing Mountain Manhunt for Killer ‘Mad-Dog’ Earle!”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Roy Earl [Bogart] an infamous bank robber [think Dillinger] is sprung from prison by an old crime boss who wants Earl for a big robbery.  Obligated for his freedom, Earl drives west to check out the set up.

Once he meets up with his old boss, Earl discovers the robbery plan is good and the money is right, but his partners are young, inexperienced thugs looking to make a name for themselves… plus they have a woman [Lupino] with them and everyone knows women weaken legs and crime plans don’t work out.

Before it is over there will be a robbery, people killed, double-crosses and a manhunt for the “Mad Dog Killer” Roy Earl.

Rating: 4 of 5 stars.

11 Complicated Facts About “Shaft”

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Kristin Hunt and Mental_Floss present 11 Complicated Facts About Shaft.  Here are three of my favorites…

1. A WHITE NEWSPAPER REPORTER CREATED SHAFT.
John Shaft made his debut in Shaft, a novel by Ernest Tidyman. Tidyman was a reporter for The Cleveland News, The New York Post, and The New York Times before he began writing the Shaft series, which included seven detective stories. Along with John D.F. Black, he adapted his first Shaft book into the screenplay for the first film. He would later go on to write the screenplays for The French Connection (1971) and High Plains Drifter (1973) as well as Shaft’s Big Score! (1972) and the Shaft TV series (1973-1974). His work earned him an NAACP Image Award.

3. SHAFT’S MUSTACHE WAS NON-NEGOTIABLE.
The Los Angeles fiasco was behind him, but Parks immediately faced another scare when he spied his star, Richard Roundtree, heading to the bathroom with a towel and razor. Producer Joel Freeman had asked him to get rid of his soon-to-be legendary mustache. Parks told Roundtree emphatically, “Shave it off and you’re out of a job.” And with that, the ‘stache stayed in the picture.

11. THERE’S A SHAFT COMIC BOOK SERIES.
There hasn’t been a new Shaft movie since the 2000 reboot starring Samuel L. Jackson, but Dynamite Entertainment began printing a Shaft comic book series in 2014. The comics are penned by David F. Walker, who also published the first Shaft novel in over 40 years this February. The latest comic series finds Shaft as a part-time consultant on a blaxploitation movie; Walker intended this meta subplot to be a commentary on “clueless producers who think they have their finger on the pulse of blackness.” And yes, that was an intended slam on the upcoming remake.

The Car (1977) / Z-View

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The Car (1977)

Director:  Elliot Silverstein

Screenplay: Dennis Shryack & Michael Butler & Lane Slate from a story by Dennis Shryack & Michael Butler.

Stars: James Brolin, Kathleen Lloyd, John Marley RG Armstrong and Kim Richards.

The Pitch: “Let’s make a horror movie about a murderous car that may be possessed!”

Tagline: “There’s nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, no way to stop… The Car.”

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

A mysterious black car is running down town folk in a small western town and it’s up to the sheriff to figure out a way to stop it!

The Car would have been the third or fourth feature at a Drive-In.

Rating:

15 Out-of-this-World Facts About “Men in Black”

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Garin Pirnia and Mental_Floss present 15 Out-of-this-World Facts About Men in Black.  Here are three of my favorites…

9. MEN IN BLACK IS THE HIGHEST-GROSSING ACTION BUDDY COMEDY OF ALL TIME.
Rush Hour 2 almost dethroned Men in Black from the top spot in 2001, but with a gross of $250 million, Men in Black held onto its position. 22 Jump Street comes in third, and Men in Black II and Men in Black 3 rank fourth and fifth on the list, respectively. On the sci-fi comedy chart, the Men in Black movies corner the top three positions.

11. WILL SMITH CAME UP WITH THE PLOT FOR MEN IN BLACK 3 WHILE FILMING MEN IN BLACK II.
One night while on the set of Men in Black II, Smith told Sonnenfeld his idea for a third film. “At the beginning, something has happened and Agent Kay is missing and I have to go back to the past to go try to save young Agent Kay,” Sonnenfeld recalled to CNN. “In doing so, myself and the audience find out all sorts of secrets about the world that we didn’t even know were out there.” All Sonnenfeld could muster was, “Can we just finish this one?” Over a decade later, the plot to Men in Black 3 did revolve around time travel and saving a young Agent Kay, played by Josh Brolin.

15. THE RAY-BAN GLASSES WORN IN THE MOVIE ALMOST DIDN’T GET A SHOUT OUT.
The sunglasses Smith and Jones sport in the film are Ray-Ban Predator II glasses. According to a 1997 article in Promo Magazine, a special coating was applied to the glasses to limit reflection, which meant removing the logo. Without the logo, nobody would know what type of glasses they were (Sonnenfeld edited out a previous line in the movie where Jones says “that’s why they call them Ray-Bans”). Ray-Ban tried to convince the studio to reinstate the logo, but they refused. After some coercing, Smith compromised and name dropped the company in the “Men in Black” song: “Black tie with the black attitude / New style, black Ray-Bans, I’m stunnin’, man.” The popularity of the movie and the song’s music video gave the $100 Predators a four- to fivefold increase in sales, and a boost to Ray-Ban’s entire catalog of shades.

Hush (2016) / Z-View

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Hush (2016)

Director:  Mike Flanagan

Screenplay: Mike Flanagan and Kate Siegel

Stars: Kate Siegel, John Gallagher Jr., and Michael Trucco.

The Pitch: “Let’s make a woman in isolation stalked by a mad killer movie, but with a twist — the woman is deaf!”

Tagline: “Silence can be killer.”

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Maddie is a deaf writer who decides to head up to her cabin to do some writing.  She believes the isolation will help.  Of course she wasn’t counting on a mad serial killer deciding to make her his next victim.

Clever twist on what could be a played out genre.  Contains some truly creepy scenes.

Rating:

10 Huge Facts About “Big Trouble in Little China”

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Roger Cormier and Mental_Floss present 10 Huge Facts About Big Trouble in Little China.  Here are three of my favorites…

7. THE STUDIO DEMANDED THAT THE BEGINNING OF THE FILM  BE CHANGED.
Barry Diller felt that Jack Burton wasn’t heroic enough, so after production wrapped, Carpenter went back and shot an introductory scene where Egg Shen (Victor Wong) says Jack is a courageous man. Had Diller not said anything, the film would have begun with Jack driving. Carpenter didn’t necessarily want Burton to be seen as the hero; he wanted both leads to be considered the film’s heroes.

9. KURT RUSSELL WAS LED TO BELIEVE IT WOULD BE THE BIGGEST MOVIE OF 1986.
Russell had never, before or since, been asked by so many members of the press what it was like to be in the biggest movie of the year than when he was promoting Big Trouble in Little China. After the test screenings went really well, Russell said he “kept waiting to see ads and things that just didn’t happen.”

10. THE ROCK WANTS TO REMAKE IT, WITH CARPENTER.
Carpenter said he’s “ambivalent” about the idea. New movie or not, there’s been a comic book series that picks up from where the movie ended. And if you can find it, there was a Big Trouble in Little China video game released in 1986. A secret screen on the DVD contains images from it.

West of Zanzibar (1928) / Z-View

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West of Zanzibar (1928)

Director:  Todd Browning

Screenplay:  Elliott J. Clawson

Stars: Lon Chaney, Lionel Barrymore and Mary Nolan .

The Pitch: “Let’s make a movie with Lon Chaney directed by Todd Browning!”

Tagline: “A story of love and revenge in the African jungles!”

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

A magician named Phroso [Chaney] discovers his wife has been having an affair with a man named Crane [Barrymore].  Phroso confronts Crane, and during their fight is thrown over a rail, breaking his back and leaving him paralyzed and alone.

Later his wife returns only to die a short time later.  Before she dies Phroso learns that she had a daughter and Crane is now an ivory dealer in Africa.  Phroso heads to Africa with the child and plots his revenge.  First his makes sure that his wife’s daughter is raised in a brothel so that she grows up to be a drug-addicted prostitute.  Then he  takes on the persona “Dead Legs” and over the course of nearly two decades builds his criminal empire.

Once the time is right, Phroso brings the grown daughter to him so that he can extract his final revenge on her and Crane.  Dark stuff, indeed and with a twist [although easily seen coming] worthy of the Twilight Zone.

Rating:

Badlands (1973) / Z-View

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Badlands (1973)

Director:  Terrence Malick

Screenplay: Terrence Malick

Stars: Martin Sheen, Sissy Spacek, Warren Oates and Emilio Estevez, Charlie Sheen and Terrence Malick.

The Pitch: “Let’s make a movie based on the killing spree of Charles Starkweather and Caril Fugate.”

Tagline: “In 1959 a lot of people were killing time. Kit and Holly were killing people.”

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Kit [Sheen] is a twenty-something garbage man with a lot of swagger.  Holly [Spacek] is a fifteen year old school girl who falls for Kit.  They see each other secretly until her father  [Oates] discovers the affair and forbids Holly to see Kit again.

Kit comes to take Holly away and ends up killing her father.  Holly decides to run away with Kit.  This begins their cross-country killing spree.

Rating:

The Franchize Has an Escape Plan for Sly!

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Jerry Gaylord aka The Franchize returns with his take on Sly from Escape Plan.  

Jerry is one of my favorite sketch artists.  He always gives collectors more than they’re expecting and he is just plain good!

I highly recommend Jerry to all sketch collectors. He quickly responds to e-mails, his turnaround time is fast and he packages the art to ensure it arrives safely.

To check out more of Jerry’s art, head here. – Craig

Tell (2014) / Z-View

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Tell (2014)

Director:  J.M.R. Luna

Screenplay: Timothy Williams

Stars: Milo Ventimiglia, Katee Sackhoff, Jason Lee and Robert Patrick.

The Pitch: “Let’s make a crime movie with supporting players!”

No Tagline.

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Ethan Tell [Ventimiglia] reluctantly joins in on a big heist and ends up in possession of a million dollars.  Now that he has the money, how will he keep his crime partner, his wife [Sackhoff], his parole officer and a couple of corrupt cops from killing him and taking the money.

I was expecting more.

Rating: