Category: Z-View

The Making of The Lords of Flatbush by Stephen Verona (2008) / Z-View

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The Making of The Lords of Flatbush by Stephen Verona (2008)

Paperback: 155 pages
Publisher: Creative Book Publishing International; First Edition ~1st Printing edition (June 15, 2008)

First sentence…

When I was single and dating I would regale girls with these stories of my childhood and the guys I hung with.

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Stephen Verona, the writer and director of Lords of Flatbush, takes us on the amazing trip to get Lords of Flatbush, one of the first truly independent films made.  Along the way, we’ll learn how Verona got started (becoming friends with John Lennon and working with Lennon to animate the Beatles song I Feel Fine) and the long process to get Lords of Flatbush made.

Verona worked with many big names [Lee Strasberg, Janet Leigh, The Beatles, Chicago, Barbara Steisand, etc.] prior to writing and directing Lords of Flatbush and those stories are fun but the heart of the book is of course getting LoF made.  Verona provides many anecdotes and behind the scenes photos and trivia.  (Did you know that Richard Gere was originally to play Perry King’s role? Stallone and Gere had a falling out and one had to go!]

Verona writes in a conversation style that’s easy to read.  Fans of LoF will love the behind-the-scenes peek and prospective film makers will learn from the mistakes Verona as a first time film-maker made.

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Diablerie by Walter Mosley (2007) / Z-View

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Diablerie by Walter Mosley (2008)

Hardcover: 192 pages
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA

First sentence…

The apartment reeked from the acrid odor of roaches – a whole colony, tens of thousands of them, seething and unseen in the walls and under the dull, splintery floorboards of the vacant apartment.

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Ben Dibbuk is a middle aged computer programmer with a successful wife and a daughter headed to college.  Life should be great… but it’s not.  His wife has become distant and may have a lover which would only be fair since Ben has a young mistress.  Ben knows that he’s at a crossroads and needs to sort things out.

That becomes more complicated when a woman from his past approaches him with the knowledge that years ago he killed a man in a drunken stupor.  Ben is a recovering alcoholic and remembers much of what the woman tells him but not the murder.  Did he kill a man?  Why is the woman approaching him now?  And why is his wife having him investigated?

Craig says: While Mosley is probably incapable of writing a bad book, Diablerie isn’t in the same league as his Easy Rawlins novels.  I enjoyed the story but didn’t hate to see it end.  Be aware that this is one of Mosley’s “erotic” novels.

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The Demented (2013) / Z-View

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The Demented (2013)

Director: Christopher Roosevelt

Screenplay: Christopher Roosevelt

Stars: Kayla Ewell, Richard Kohnke and Ashlee Brian.

The Pitch: “Let’s make a cheap zombie movie with some good looking kids.”

No Tagline:

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Three college aged couples decide to spend the weekend at their rich friend’s parents’ getaway house.  A terrorist attack turns the locals into zombies.

Craig says: If you’re a die hard zombie fan then this might be for you.  Of course you’d have to enjoy zombies that for no reason will freeze in strange positions and sleep until awakened by a noise.  You’d also have to like characters that make really stupid decisions, are loud when they should be quiet, bad special effects and an ending that will really tick you off (at least it did me).

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Night Monster (1942) / Z-View

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Night Monster (1942)

Director: Ford Beebe

Screenplay: Clarence Upson Young

Stars: Bela Lugosi, Lionel Atwill, Leif Erickson and Irene Hervey.

The Pitch: “How can we go wrong with people stranded in an old, creepy house with mysterious murders?”

Tagline: “NIGHT MONSTER with Mystery’s Greatest Thrill Team: Bela Lugosi, Lionel Atwill.”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Dr. King [Atwill] gets three doctors out to his secluded, remote mansion under false pretenses.  King has been left paralyzed and blames the doctors he invited.  Dr. Lynn Harper  [Hervey] is also there but for another reason.  When one-by-one doctors begin turning up strangled, Harper and her new friend, Don, must figure out who is doing the killing and how they’re able to do it before they become the next victims.

Craig says: This one just didn’t work well for me.  Low on humor, suspense and when all is said and done, not that convincing of a killer aka Night Monster.  It was fun seeing Leif Erickson at such a young age.  It seemed to me that Bela was there just to throw suspicion his way.  I may be in the minority on this one…

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Step Brothers (2008) / Z-View

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Step Brothers (2008)

Director: Adam McKay

Screenplay: Will Ferrell & Adam McKay from a story created by Will Ferrell & Adam McKay & John C. Reilly.

Stars: Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly, Mary Steenburgen, Richard Jenkins, Adam Scott, and Kathryn Hahn.

The Pitch: “What if Ricky Bobby and Cal Naughton, Jr. were middle-aged losers who didn’t race and were forced to become stepbrothers?”

Tagline: “They grow up so fast.”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

When Brennan Huff’s [Farrell] mom [Steenburgen] marries Dale Doback’s [Reilly] dad [Jenkins] the two boys become stepbrothers and are forced to share a room.  Of course the “boys” are actually middle-aged men who have never been forced to grow up.  That all is about to change…

Craig says:  Ferrell and Reilly are spot on.  If you go with the set-up and you don’t mind that it is Rated R for crude and sexual content, and pervasive language then you’re in for a fun ride.

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Heist (2015) / Z-View

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Heist (2015)

Director: Scott Mann

Screenplay: Stephen C. Sepher

Stars: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Robert De Niro, Gina Carano, Dave Bautista, Kate Bosworth, Morris Chestnut and D.B. Sweeney. 

The Pitch: “Oceans 11 meets Speed.”
Tagline: “Never make a bet you can’t afford to lose.”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Vaughn [Morgan] is a dealer in his old crime partner’s casino.  They separated ways when Vaughn went straight.  Now his old buddy [Deniro] is an infamous gangster known as The Pope.

When The Pope refuses to loan Vaughn enough money for a life-saving treatment for Vaughn’s daughter, Vaughn risks it all by joining in on a robbery of The Pope’s casino.  Things go from bad to worse when Vaughn and crew find themselves trapped on a bus with The Pope’s crew and the cops hot on their trail.

Craig says:  Excellent cast in a throwback action movie with a couple of nice twists.

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Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) / Z-View

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Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)

Director: Michael Curtiz

Screenplay: Don Mullaly & Carl Erickson from a story by Charles Belden

Stars: Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray and Glenda Farrell

The Pitch: “If you liked Dr. X…”

Tagline: “Another Lovely Woman Vanished from the Earth!…Another Beauty Molded to His Desire!”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Sculptor Ivan Igor [Atwill] was nearly burned to death when an arsonist destroyed his London wax museum years earlier.  Now living in New York, Igor is ready to open a new wax museum.  Although badly burned and confined to a wheelchair Igor has trained his apprentices to create masterpieces close to his abilities before the fire.

When a spunky reporter notices how much one of Igor’s wax statues looks like a missing model, she decides to sneak back into the museum and see what gives.

If you liked Dr. X, then you should enjoy Mystery at the Museum since it is almost the same movie made with the same director and stars.

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Star Trek Beyond (2016) / Z-View

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Star Trek Beyond (2016)

Director: Justin Lin

Screenplay: Simon Pegg & Doug Jung based on the Star Trek television series created by Gene Roddenberry 

Stars: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Anton Yelchin, Idris Elba and Sofia Boutella.

The Pitch: “It’s time for a new Star Trek movie!”

No Tagline

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

The Enterprise crew is ready for a little well-earned R& R when they are chosen to respond to an SOS.  The SOS turns out to be a terrible trap.  The Enterprise is destroyed.  Kirk and crew (those that are left alive) find themselves separated and stranded the planet of those that attacked them.

Their mission now becomes a way to get back to Federation territory to warn of the coming invasion, to stop the coming invasion or both… but first they will have to survive.

Of the new Star Trek films I rate this the second best.  I loved the new Jaylah character, was extremely happen with the expansion of McCoy’s [Urban’s] role and was impressed with the new and unique way the attacking aliens boarded the Enterprise.

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Doctor X (1932) / Z-View

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Doctor X (1932)

Director: Michael Curtiz

Screenplay: Robert Tasker & Earl Baldwin based on a play by  Howard Warren Comstock & Allen C. Miller

Stars: Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray and Lee Tracy

The Pitch: “How about a horror-comedy set in a creepy mansion?”

Tagline: “Mightier than words can describe!”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

A sadistic cannibalistic murderer known as The Moon Killer has been busy earning his name.  When the trail leads to Dr. X [Atwill], the cops give him 48 hours to figure which of the scientists working at creepy mansion is the killer.  Wisecracking reporter Lee Taylor [Tracy] sneaks into the mansion and is soon part of the story.

Dr. X is one of the few films shot in two-strip Technicolor which registers colors in only shades of red and green. [Check out Nitrate Diva’s review to learn more about the process and Dr. X.]  This process along with the sets really give the film a unique feel and adds to the atmosphere.

If you like your horror with a bit of comedy, hidden rooms, panels that open to reveal eyes watching or hands reaching to strangle, then Dr. X is for you!

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Blood Ties (2013) / Z-View

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Blood Ties (2013)

Director: Guillaume Canet

Screenplay: Guillaume Canet & James Gray 

Stars: Clive Owen, Marion Cotillard, Billy Crudup,  Mila Kunis, Zoe Saldana, James Caan and Noah Emmerich.

The Pitch: “How about a gritty crime movie set in the 70’s — one brother’s a cop and the other is an ex-con?”

Tagline: “Crime runs in the family.”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Chris (Owen) is a recently released ex-con who’d been in for murder.  Frank (Crudup), his brother is a New York City detective who places his job on the line to help Chris make a new start.

Chris gives it a go, but soon enough circumstances have him involved in crimes that will place him at odds with his brother (who has another man out to kill him).

An excellent cast in a gritty crime story set in the 1970’s.  What’s not to like?

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Cloverfield (2008) / Z-View

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Cloverfield (2008)

Director: Matt Reeves

Screenplay: Drew Goddard

Stars:  Mike Vogel, Jessica Lucas, Lizzy Caplan and Theo Rossi.

The Pitch: “Blair Witch in the City with Monsters!”

Tagline: “Some Thing Has Found Us”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

An explosion in the city that isn’t too far away interrupts a going-away party.  When the guests go outside to investigate it becomes clear that there are monsters in the city.  Five friends from the party join together in an effort to survive.

I first saw Cloverfield in a theater in 2008.  As my review here shows I left the theater disappointed.  I hated the shaky camera work and the fact that you never got a clear view of the monster(s).

I recently watched Cloverfield at home.  I liked it much better.  The shaky camera work didn’t bother me as much and the smaller screen made the monster’s appearances clearer.  It also didn’t seem to take as long to get to the action.  I’m revising me rating to…

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The Lineup (1958) / Z-View

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The Lineup (1958)

Director: Don Siegal

Screenplay: Stirling Silliphant

Stars: Eli Wallach, Robert Keith and Richard Jaeckel.

The Pitch: “Hey, if it works on tv…?”

Tagline: “The Manhunt They Had To Put on the Giant-Sized Movie Theatre Screen!”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

A criminal organization gets heroin into the US by hiding it in tourists’ luggage (without the tourists’ knowlege).  A psycho hitman and his partner then retrieve the heroin (by whatever force needed).

Two police detectives investigating a murder discover what is going on.  As the bodies pile up they learn that a woman and her little daughter are next on the psycho’s list!

I was expecting a lot more than a by-the-numbers police procedural from director, Don [Dirty Harry] Siegal, writer and Sterling [Route 66] Silliphant.  There’s a lot of potential here but only Eli Wallach rises above the material given. 

Perhaps my rating is a bit tough because I was expecting so much more.

 

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Captive Wild Woman (1943) / Z-View

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Captive Wild Woman (1943)

Director: Edward Dmytryk

Screenplay: Griffin Jay and Henry Sucher

Stars: John Carradine, Evelyn Ankers, Milburn Stone, Martha Vickers and Paula Dupree.

The Pitch: “Hey, isn’t about time for another turn a gorilla into a pretty woman movie?”

Tagline: “STRANGEST OF SIGHTS… The brain of an animal… the form of a woman!”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

An insane scientist [Carradine] develops a transfusion that will turn a gorilla into a beautiful woman named Aquanetta [Dupree] but the process kills the human giving the transfusion.

While visiting the circus it is discovered that Aquanetta has a mysterious power over the animals.  Soon she is part of the act.  All goes well until Aquanetta becomes jealous and begins reverting back to gorilla form…

It was fun seeing the male lead, Fred Mason played by Milburn [Doc on Gunsmoke] Stone.

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Spectre (2015) / Z-View

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Spectre (2015)

Director: Sam Mendes

Screenplay: John Logan and Neal Purvis & Robert Wade and Jez Butterworth based on character created by Ian Fleming

Stars: Daniel Craig, Christoph Waltz, Léa Seydoux, Ralph Fiennes, Monica Bellucci, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris and Dave Bautista.

The Pitch: “Hey, I’ve got an idea on a new James Bond movie!”

Tagline: “The dead are alive”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Bond [Craig] discovers SPECTRE, a mysterious worldwide organization behind many terrorist activities. As Bond follows clues in the field, the new head of National Security in England has decided to shut down the MI6 division of National Security.  Bond is alone and without backup when SPECTRE turns their sights to Bond.

I really like Daniel Craig as Bond and much of Spectre was fun, but I found myself wanting more — more from the opening action sequence and more from the main fight between Craig and Batista.  Perhaps Casino Royale just set the bar too high…

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Invisible Agent (1942) /Z-View

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Invisible Agent (1942) 

Director: Edwin L. Marin

Screenplay: Curtis Siodmak based on a character created by HG Wells 

Stars: Ilona Massey, Jon Hall and Peter Lorre.

The Pitch: “Hey, I’ve got an idea on a new Invisible Man movie!”

Tagline: “Today’s most amazing sensation!”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Frank Raymond [Hall], grandson of the man who created the invisibility formula is approached by Nazi and Japanese agents who want to buy the formula.  Raymond refuses and escapes.  Soon enough Raymond is an Invisible Agent for the US of A behind enemy lines!

Invisible Agent is more of a comedy than horror film and works well enough.  Who doesn’t love to see Nazi’s looking foolish?

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