Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
In addition to being one fine artist, Matthew Childers is also an Edgar Allan Poe fan. As such, he recently posted a print he created of Poe (above) as well as 10 Mind-blowing Facts About Edgar Allan Poe. Although you can see the print here, it’s available for purchase at Matthew’s site plus you can check out the Edgar Allan Poe trivia… and other pieces of his art.
The Most Dangerous Animal of All is going to be must-see TV! Check out the trailer below!
Based on The New York Times best-selling book of the same name, The Most Dangerous Animal of All is a four-part documentary series on FX that explores one man’s search for the father who abandoned him, only to uncover the worst: he believes his father is the Zodiac killer, one of the most infamous serial killers in American history.
It’s no secret portrayals of real people are often glamorized in movies and TV. Well, way back in 1960, when westerns were king of television air waves, Cracked magazine had John Severin create drawings showing the differences between Real and TV western heroes.
Above we can see the differences between the real and TV versions of Billy the Kid and a Bounty Hunter. If you click over to BookSteve’s Library you can check out Real vs TV… Lawmen, Cochise, Wyatt Earp, Wild Bill Hicock and Jim Hardie.
Herman Mudgett took the name Henry Howard Holmes when he moved to Chicago to begin work as a pharmacist. He took on the new identity because he was on the run from as a suspect in some unexplained murders. Rather than start a new uneventful life, Holmes instead continued his killing spree, which earned him the title of America’s First Serial Killer.
Holmes famously built a rooming house that has been called a Horror Hotel and Murder Castle. He hired workers and fired them after they completed sections of the building. This was so none but Holmes would know the layout and the horrors hiding within. There were secret passageways, spots to spy on unsuspecting guests and rooms designed for murder.
The year was 1893 and the World’s Fair was in Chicago. Rooms were at a premium and Holmes had new potential victims arriving daily. After he was caught Holmes confessed to 27 murders but some folks put the actual number closer to 200.
Cheish Merryweather at Listverse posted 10 Horrifying Facts About H. H. Holmes’ Hotel. If you’ve read this far, you’ll probably want to click over.
I also recommend The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson. It’s an award-winning novel chock full about facts about you know who and his horror hotel.
Quentin Tarantino, Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie and the filmmakers showcase the artistry that went into creating this story of an enduring friendship in a time of change. A special look at Quentin Tarantino’s acclaimed 9th movie, #OnceUponATimeInHollywood.
Quentin Tarantino’s ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD visits 1969 Los Angeles, where everything is changing, as TV star Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his longtime stunt double Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt) make their way around an industry they hardly recognize anymore. The ninth film from the writer-director features a large ensemble cast and multiple storylines in a tribute to the final moments of Hollywood’s golden age.
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.
Desperate men do desperate things. What a great tag line!
On June 4th, 2004, a sixty-three-ton bulldozer, fortified with steel and concrete, systematically destroyed numerous businesses and homes in the small mountain town of Granby, Colorado. The rampage lasted over two hours and resulted in more than eight million dollars in damage. State and local police were incapable of even slowing the machine. Though it was armed with three high-powered firearms, no one but the driver was killed. His name was Marvin Heemeyer. TREAD explores the polarizing perspectives on this man, his motives, and what drove him to the breaking point.
I remember the event but didn’t realize that Heemeyer had fortified the bulldozer.
The photos above, of the beautiful young woman and the scary looking hag are sadly the same person. Blanche Monnier was a wealthy aristocratic woman who was reported as dead by her family and then kept prisoner for 25 years. The mystery isn’t why they did this, but who finally tipped off the police.
This is just one of the Top 10 Unsolved Mysteries Involving Celebrities you’ll read about if you check out Jamie Frater’s interesting post at Listverse. Others include:
The Irishman (2019)
Director: Martin Scorsese
Screenplay: Steve Zallian based on the book by Charles Brandt
Stars: Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, Harvey Keitel, Ray Romano, Bobby Cannavale, Anna Paquin, and Jesse Plemons.
The Pitch: “Martin Scorsese wants to do a new gangster movie!”
Tagline: His story changed history.
The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…
On his deathbed in 2003, Frank “The Irishman” Sheeran, a former bodyguard and alleged mob hitman confessed to a killing that if true would resolve a mystery that has remained unsolved for decades. Sheeran’s confessions (of that murder and more) became the basis of I Heard You Paint Houses: The Inside Story of the Mobsters, the Teamsters & the Last Ride of Jimmy Hoffa by Frank “The Irishman” Sheeran and Charles Brandt. That book became the inspiration for The Irishman.
The Irishman re-teams Scorsese, De Niro, and Pesci, then adds Pacino for good measure. De Niro plays Sheeran who accidentally meets and becomes friends with mobster, Russell Bufalino (Pesci). As the years pass Sheeran works his way into Bufalono’s inner circle because of his willingness to take care of business. Sheeran’s choices take him down a road that leads inevitably to the loss of his family, friends and the betrayal of those he cares about.
The Irishman is getting almost universal praise. It should. Scorsese is in top form and gets the best performances from De Niro and Pacino that we’ve seen in years. Pesci gives his best performance ever. Pesci deserves all of the awards he’ll receive for this role. I was worried that Pacino would be too over the top for his role as Hoffa, but he reined it in and pulled it off.
Now to the two nits, many are picking: 1) The de-aging CGI and 2) the length of The Irishman.
I’ll admit that at first the CGI is distracting. As the film went on it became less so. Scorsese has said that a lot of attention was paid in the de-aging scenes to make sure the main actors (all 70+) moved age appropriately for their scenes. (“Uh, Al, let’s do that again. Remember when you’re getting out of the chair in this scene, you’re 45.”) There were a couple of scenes where the faces look younger but the body movements don’t have the same snap as a younger man. Minor distractions in my opinion, but some folks are complaining big time so your mileage may vary.
The second nit some are picking is the length of The Irishman which clocks in at 3 hours and 29 minutes making it the longest movie Scorsese has directed, and reportedly the longest mainstream film released in decades. I thought the film moved at the right pace. I was never bored. I never checked my watch. It didn’t feel like a three hour plus movie. Again your mileage may vary.
I loved The Irishman.
Rating:
Ellen Gutoskey posted the true story of The Time Harry Houdini Tricked Theodore Roosevelt. If you check out Gutoskey’s article, you’ll learn how Houdini laid the groundwork to lure Roosevelt into asking Houdini to perform a seance (Roosevelt thinking it was HIS idea), and how Houdini pulled off the trick.
Well done Houdini and well written Gutoskey.
Here’s the final trailer to The Irishman. Scorsese, Pesci, Pacino and Keitel. I cannot wait for November 27th.
The Hell on the Border poster and trailer are here! With this cast, I wish it looked better. Maybe it will surprise me.
This epic, action-packed Western tells the incredible true story Bass Reeves (David Gyasi), the first black marshal in the Wild West. Having escaped from slavery after the Civil War, he arrives in Arkansas seeking a job with the law. To prove himself, he must hunt down a deadly outlaw (Frank Grillo) with the help of a grizzled journeyman (Ron Pearlman). As he chases the criminal deeper into the Cherokee Nation, Reeves must not only dodge bullets, but severe discrimination in hopes of earning his star—and cement his place as a cowboy legend.
Shannon Quinn says, Meet Aaron Kosminski—AKA Jack The Ripper; 10 Reasons We Know It Was Him, in her post at Listverse. Here are my choices for her three strongests arguments that Kosminski was the Ripper…
The DNA Evidence
A shawl that belonged to Jack the Ripper’s fourth victim, Catherine Eddowes, was purchased by a man named Russell Edwards in 2007. He was so determined to figure out the identity of the killer, that he had the shawl tested for DNA in 2014. This genetic material was traced back to one of Aaron Kosminski’s living relatives. Edwards was also the author of a book called Naming Jack the Ripper, where he lays out his analysis of the case over decades of research.However, there were claims that the scientist who analyzed the DNA, Jari Louhelainen, made a mistake in his analysis. Critics refused to recognize the DNA evidence until it was scrutinized in a peer-reviewed journal by other scientists who had nothing to gain from the results. In 2019, the data had, in fact, been published in The Journal of Forensic Sciences. It was confirmed that the DNA did, in fact, belong to Kosminski. However, critics still refuse to believe that accurate DNA evidence could exist on the shawl without contamination for over 100 years.[1]
He Had a Deep Hatred Towards Women
In modern studies of serial killers, one of the common threads is a deep-seated hatred towards women. This comes from a percieved notion that women are withholding sex from them after a string of female rejections throughout their life. They also may have had a terrible relationship with their mother. Jack the Ripper chose sex workers as his victims, and he removed the organs of these women. One of his victim’s faces was brutally savaged, showing that he was full of an irrational rage against this woman who he did not know.Aaron Kosminski was 23 years old at the time of the first murder. He never married, and had very bad luck socializing with ladies. According to Meville Macnaghten, the chief constable of Scotland Yard, Kosminski was known for having a deep hatred towards women. Macnaghten wrote, “This man became insane owing to many years indulgence in solitary vices. He had a great hatred of women, especially of the prostitute class, & had strong homicidal tendencies.”[4]
Kosminski Was Put Into An Insane Asylum
In 1891, Aaron Kosminski was confined to the Colney Hatch Asylum. The 5 “canonical murders” which have been officially credited to Jack the Ripper stopped soon after. Cambridge University has copies of Aaron Kosminski’s psychiatric records from the time he spent in the facility. According to the records, he heard auditory hallucinations that told him to do things. “He declares that he is guided and his movements altogether controlled by an instinct that informs his mind.” The documents also state that Kosminski grabbed a knife and threatened to slit his sister’s throat. It was clear to everyone, even his doctors, that he hated all women.Modern doctors have diagnosed him with paranoid schizophrenia. Some people have tried to claim that Aaron Kosminski was not a violent person, and that he was more inclined to act out in self-harm. He also refused to eat, for fear of being poisoned. So he would pick scraps of food out of the gutter, instead. However, according to Cambridge University, the references to “self-harm” were actually talking about frequent masterbation. And while he may not have been violent towards the other men in the asylum, he still has a record of violence towards women.[8]
Kosminski is just one of several suspected of being Jack the Ripper. It’s hard to argue with DNA evidence… but then again, Patricia Cornwell’s theory that Walter Sickert was Jack the Ripper also had DNA evidence!
Click over to Quinn’s post, read the rest of the evidence and let me know in the comments your thoughts!
Wow! I like this new trailer for The Irishman!
I saw The Cotton Club on it’s initial theatrical release and at least once again several years later — both times I felt like the movie was good, but not as good as expected. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola and featuring an all-star cast that included Richard Gere, Gregory Hines, Diane Lane, Bob Hoskins, James Remar, Fred Gwynnne and Nicholas Cage, The Cotton Club should have been much better than it was.
Now The Cotton Club will get another chance at greatness when The Cotton Club Encore is released. This newly edited version will contain…
… an extended Gregory Hines & Maurice Hines tap performance, Lonette McKee’s brilliant rendition of “Stormy Weather,” the originally envisioned ending, and more…
Here’s the trailer below. You can catch The Cotton Club Encore in limited theatrical release in October or when it comes to Blu-Ray and DVD. One piece of trivia before the video: Did you know that Sly Stallone was originally up for the Richard Gere role, but turned it down? He was. It’s an interesting story that I’ll save for another post.
