Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
Cliffhanger and Cobra are probably the two movies that Stallone fans would most love to see get a sequel. While I don’t have news of a sequel for either, I can tell you about Derek Draven’s post at ScreenRant: 10 Facts About Cliffhanger You Didn’t Know.
Because almost everyone here is a Stallone fan, you will probably know most if not all of the facts. Still they’re worth a look.
Matthew Jackson at Mental Floss posted 14 Fascinating Facts About The French Connection. Reading some of these facts it becomes clear that The French Connection was a longshot to be made let alone win five Academy Awards including Best Picture. Here are three of my favorite facts and my thoughts. Check ’em out and then click over for all the facts and details!
THE FRENCH CONNECTION WAS TURNED DOWN BY ALMOST EVERY STUDIO. (Dick Zanuck at 20th Century Fox said he’d bankroll the film if it could be done for 1.5 million. Luckily for film fans, it could be. – Craig)
GENE HACKMAN WAS NOT THE FIRST CHOICE FOR POPEYE DOYLE. (The film’s director, William Friedkin, wanted Jackie Gleason (?) or Jimmy Breslin (??) for the lead. Another star considered was Rod Taylor. Ultimately it came down to take Hackman as the lead or risk losing the movie. Friedkin agreed to Hackman. – Craig)
FERNANDO REY WAS CAST BECAUSE OF A MIXUP. (Friedkin told the casting director “let’s get that French guy that was in Belle de Jour…” The casting director thought Friedkin was talking about Fernando Rey — but he wasn’t! Friedkin signed Rey, sight unseen and it wasn’t until they met on the set that Friedkin realized the mistake and it was too late to make a change! – Craig)
Megan Summers at ScreenRant posted The 10 Best Razzie Winning Movies (According To IMDb). I thought this was an interesting idea especially after I found three movies on the list that I really like.
Rocky IV won five Razzies for Worst Actor, Worst Director, Worst Supporting Actress, Worst New Star, and Worst Musical Score. When R4 was released it was my least favorite of the Rocky films. Over the years my affection for it has grown, especially since R4 played such an important part in making it possible for Creed.
Con Air won won a special Razzie for Worst Reckless Disregard for Human Life and Public Property. I loved Con Air. It was over the top fun and yeah, the ending did involve a plane crash landing in Vegas but did that deserve a special Razzie? Oh, why not?
Interview with a Vampire tied for a Razzie in the category for Worst Screen Couple. The IwaV couple was Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. Who did they tie with? Sly Stallone and Sharon Stone from The Specialist. Interview with a Vampire is a movie that I have liked more with each viewing. I’m not alone in that opinion – the movie was a box-office success and earned Oscar and Golden Globe nominations.
Yesterday we looked at the best movie Dracula. Today we’ll answer who is the most evil Dracula. The answer is, of course, the real person Dracula was based on: Vlad III aka Vlad the Impaler, the Prince of Wallachia (now known as Romania).
Most folks know that the real-life Vlad III was infamous for killing his enemies by impaling them, but that’s just one of the many evil things he did. Eli Nixon at Listverse details much more in 10 Fascinating Facts About The Real Dracula. Normally, with posts like this, I list my three favorite facts, but here there were no favorites. Vladd III was truly a horrible human being and much worse than any movie Dracula.
Kayleigh Donaldson created a ranking of her choices for the best movie Dracula in her post BATTLE OF THE DRACULAS: WHO IS KING OF THE VAMPIRES? at Syfy.com. Her list is a good one although our top three choices are different. Christopher Lee did make both of our lists (coming in second on her list and third on mine).
Here are our top three with my final thoughts following…
|
Kayleigh Donaldson |
Craig Zablo |
| 1. Gary Oldman – Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) | 1. Claes Bang – Dracula (2020) |
| 2. Christopher Lee – Dracula (1958) | 2. Bela Lugosi – Dracula (1931) |
| 3. Zhang Wei-Qiang – Dracula: Pages From a Virgin’s Diary (2002) |
3. Christopher Lee – Dracula (1958) |
1. Claes Bang – Dracula (2020): Until this year Bela Lugosi was the definitive Dracula for me. Claes Bang changed all of that with his performance in Dracula (2020). Bang’s Dracula is truly terrifying, seductive and powerful. Like Lugosi’s Dracula, it’s a movie that I will enjoy revisiting.
2. Bela Lugosi – Dracula (1931): Lugosi was perfectly cast as Dracula and until this year his performance had risen above all others in playing the Count. I still love his performance and find it sad that he was never able to shine so brightly in another movie.
3. Christopher Lee – Dracula (1958): It’s only been in recent years that I’ve come to appreciate Lee’s Dracula. The Hammer films didn’t resonate with me when I was younger. I guess I was spoiled by the Universal Monsters. Christopher Lee’s Dracula is the favorite of many folks and it’s hard to argue against him because he was great in the role.
Click over and check out how your favorite Draculas faired in BATTLE OF THE DRACULAS: WHO IS KING OF THE VAMPIRES?.
The folks at Film School Rejects decided to Rank The Movies Directed By John Carpenter. This sounded like fun, so I decided to play along. Below are my rankings and thoughts…
The Ward (2010)
Village of the Damned (1995)
Memoirs of an Invisible Man (1992)
Prince of Darkness (1987)
In the Mouth of Madness (1994)
The films above I haven’t seen.
15. Dark Star (1974) I don’t know if I have ever seen the whole thing. It just didn’t resonate with me. Most folks really like it.
14. The Fog (1980) I saw this on its theatrical release and it left me flat. Which surprised me because I was expecting a lot.
13. Someone’s Watching Me! (1978) Watched this before I knew who John Carpenter was. It was good.
12. Vampires (1998) I thought James Woods was miscast.
11. Elvis (1979) Who knew Kurt Russell could impersonate Elvis (and later Clint Eastwood)?
10. Christine (1983) Saw this at the theater and thought it was well done.
9. Ghosts of Mars (2001) Sci-fi action directed by Carpenter. What’s not to like?
8. Escape from L.A. (1996) I was so excited about the return of Snake Plissken under the creative team of Carpenter and Russell. Sadly the film played up the camp more than I would have liked.
7. Big Trouble in Little China (1986) My wife and I along with another couple saw BTiLC on its opening weekend. I really liked it. No one else in the group did. Kurt Russell steals the show.
6. They Live (1988) Surprisingly good. Roddy Piper was the perfect lead. I felt the ending was a bit off but not enough to really matter.
5. Starman (1984) Big budget and big stars. Perhaps my wife’s favorite Carpenter flick because it’s a good one.
4. Halloween (1978) Another Carpenter classic. I first saw it in a drive-in and had sound problems through part of the film. The movie still worked. That is a sign of great direction!
3. The Thing (1982) I saw it on it’s initial theatrical release in a nearly empty theater. Reaction from fans and critics wasn’t good. Over the years that has all changed. I thought it was a mistake remaking a classic but Carpenter pulled it off.
2. Assault on Precinct 13 (1976) This is the movie that made me a John Carpenter fan. Thank God for VHS. Low budget but man, does Carpenter make it work. Darwin Joston was perfect casting. I always thought we’d see more from him.
1. Escape from New York (1981) I saw EfNY several times on it’s first theatrical release and loved it. I still do.
Stephanie Williams at Syfy.com posted 53 Thoughts We Had While Watching Demolition Man. She’d like to share her thoughts with you. Click over if you’re interested. ; )
Joblo.com brings Rocky and First Blood to their Face/Off feature where they rate each movie in several categories and determine a winner. Do you agree with their outcome?
Sylvester Stallone’s two most popular cinematic characters, Rocky Balboa and John Rambo, debuted in between 1976 (Rocky) and 1982 (First Blood) and went on to generate a number of sequels (and even spinoffs in Rocky’s case with the Creed films) that have lasted for decades. But, one of the most common debates is which was the best of the original iterations of these characters, Rocky or First Blood?
In this series we explore the pros and cons of each, while taking a look at things like box office, awards accolades, most-quotable lines, supporting cast and so much more to determine which film is the winner in the never-ending debate when two movies Face/Off!
Edited by Damion Damaske
If you’re a fan of the original Twilight Zone, then you’re going to get a kick out of 15 Tiny, Fascinating Details You Never Noticed in The Twilight Zone presented by the fine folks at MeTV. I feel pretty knowledgeable about the TZ but there were a few things that were new to me!
Jordan Peele’s Us displays a master attention to detail at a nearly unparalleled level. Like his previous horror film, Get Out, there is much more to be discovered on repeat viewings, especially in the production design. In this case, his book choices all align with the film’s themes, and are great additions to the movie. For this video essay, I point out some of the hidden books, as well as other clues and details hidden in plain sight you may have missed when you saw the movie. Edited by H. Nelson Tracey http://www.hnelsontracey.com/
Christopher Fudiccia and ScreenRant posted 10 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Creature from the Black Lagoon.
The Creature from the Black Lagoon is one of my favorite horror films and perhaps the one that is most deserving of an new movie. Fudiccia presents ten fun and informative facts. Below are three of my favs and my thoughts on each. Click over the article for all the facts and the full details.
The Film Was Originally Presented In 3D. (I’ve seen Creature from the Black Lagoon many times, but never in a theater and never in 3D. There’s money to be made if Universal ever decides to do a 3D re-release! – Craig)
Glenn Strange Almost Played The Creature (I did not know this. Given the fact that Strange played Frankenstein in several movies, he seems like a natural choice… if he was a better swimmer. Ha! – Craig)
The Gill-Man Wasn’t Really A Monster (This is an argument I’ve heard from fans. See the rationale Fudiccia presents. I’d agree except for the fact that the Creature kills two native workers at the start of the film. – Craig)
Ben Sherlock and ScreenRant posted Yo, Adrian!: 10 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About The Rocky Franchise.
Most regular readers here will know the majority of the trivia posted, but there may be a few that surprise you. Below are three of my favs and my thoughts on each. Click over the article for all the facts and the full details.
Thanks To Rocky, Sylvester Stallone Has An Oscars Record Tied With Charlie Chaplin And Orson Welles. (Sly was the third person to ever receive Academy Award nominations for writing and acting in the same film! Since Sly earned this honor, Woody Allen, Warren Beatty, Billy Bob Thornton, Matt Damon and Roberto Benigni have joined this elite group. – Craig)
Rocky Balboa Was The First Rocky Film To Use Real Punches As Sound Effects. (Most folks know Sly and his co-stars traded real punches at times during the fight scenes, but how many knew that the real punch sounds weren’t used until Rocky Balboa? – Craig)
The Original Film’s Script Was Tweaked To Accommodate Production Errors. (While not technically a production error, the skating scene with Rocky and Adrian originally was supposed to take place with the skating rink full of people. The budget wouldn’t allow it, and I think the film is better for it! – Craig)
Jake Rossen and Mental Floss present 8 Surprising Facts About Cary Grant. Grant appeared in over 75 films (including two of my favorites, Arsenic and Old Lace and North by Northwest).
Cary Grant lived an interesting life. Here are my three favorite facts and my comments on each. Click over to the article to get all the details.
3. CARY GRANT WAS OFFERED THE ROLE OF JAMES BOND. (While I really like Grant’s acting, I can’t see him as James Bond. Well, maybe he’d have pulled off a Roger Moore-type Bond if he had been younger. All in all — good pass.)
8. CARY GRANT RETIRED EARLY. (Grant did something that many stars talk about doing but don’t. Most stars retire and then make a comeback. Grant did it right. He retired from acting and never came back.)
4. CARY GRANT REALLY LOVED LSD. (I include this fact not because I like Grant’s drug use, but because it is so surprising. It goes to show, you never know about people. Who’d have thought Cary Grant would be into LSD? Not me.)
Phil Pirrello at Syfy Wire posted his choices for The Twilight Zone’s 10 Most Shocking Twist Endings. His list is a good one.
I’ve posted how I’d rank his top ten below. Click on the link above to get the entire Pirrello piece. If you click on the links in my ratings, you’ll get my Z-View for the individual episodes.
|
Phil Pirrello / Syfy Wire |
Craig |
| 10. “The Silence” (Season 2) | 10. “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” (Season 5) |
| 09. “Five Characters In Search of an Exit” (Season 3) | 09. “Five Characters In Search of an Exit” (Season 3) |
| 08. “The Masks” (Season 5) | 08. “The Masks” (Season 5) |
| 07. “Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up” (Season 2) | 07. “The Silence” (Season 2) |
| 06. “The Invaders” (Season 2) | 06. “I Shot an Arrow Into the Air” (Season 1) |
| 05. “To Serve Man” (Season 1) | 05. “Eye of the Beholder” (Season 2) |
| 04. “I Shot an Arrow Into the Air” (Season 1) | 04. “Time Enough At Last” (Season 1) |
| 03. “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” (Season 5) | 03. “Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up” (Season 2) |
| 02. “Time Enough At Last” (Season 1) | 02. “The Invaders” (Season 2) |
| 01. “Eye of the Beholder” (Season 2) | 01. “To Serve Man” (Season 1) |
ComingSoon posted their choices for The 25 Best Movie Posters of 2019. My favorite of their picks was the Alex Ross poster for Glass shown above.
Although a John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum poster did make the ComingSoon Top 25, the version they selected wasn’t one of my favorite posters of the year (which probably surprises a lot of you).
I would have also included this poster, this poster, this poster and this poster all for Rambo: Last Blood. (Which probably surprises nobody.)
