“Vampires vs the Bronx” / Z-View

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Vampires vs the Bronx (2020)

Director: Oz Rodriguez

Screenplay:  Blaise Hemingway (story by Oz Rodriguez)

Starring:  Jaden Michael, Gerald Jones III, Gregory Diaz IV, The Kid Mero, Sarah Gadon, Method Man, Shea Whigham, Chris Redd and Zoe Saldana.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Four young friends discover a vampire nest in their neighborhood.  Who would believe that?  No one.  So it falls to the kids to wipe out the blood suckers.

Vampires vs the Bronx is much better than you might think.  That’s due to a combination of the casting, the direction and right mix of horror/humor.  The four lead kid actors are well written and just plain likeable.  The same can be said for the neighborhood adults.  The kids parents don’t come off as adults typically found in kid comedies.  The director provides some cool touches such as a vampire’s hand slowly reaching unseen for a kid, a vampire slowly rising up behind a victim,  There’s a subplot about people moving out of the neighborhood thanks to a corporation buying up property that works well with the story.

I thought that Vampires vs the Bronx would be fun based on the trailer, but I was surprised at how much I liked it.  If they could get the cast, writer and director back, I’d love to see the kids in a sequel with more monsters.  Vampires vs the Bronx earns 4 of 5 stars.

Letters / Postcards for George Perez!

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On December 7, 2021, the news broke that legendary artist George Perez had inoperable stage three pancreatic cancer.  Mr. Perez, 67, is known for his amazing art on titles such as The Teen Titans, Crisis on Infinitive Earths, The Avengers and so many more.  George Perez released the following at that time:

“I have Stage 3 Pancreatic Cancer. It is surgically inoperable and my estimated life expectancy is between 6 months to a year. I have been given the option of chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy, but after weighing all the variables and assessing just how much of my remaining days would be eaten up by doctor visits, treatments, hospital stays and dealing with the often stressful and frustrating bureaucracy of the medical system, I’ve opted to just let nature take its course and I will enjoy whatever time I have left as fully as possible with my beautiful wife of 40 years, my family, my friends and my fans.”

Since the announcement, Mr. Perez has posted regular updates on his Facebook page.  George Perez has displayed amazing grace, peace of mind and love of live.  Shelton Drum, owner of the Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find comic store and creator of HeroesCon, is collecting letters/postcards for George Perez that he will personally deliver.  All must be received by February 20th.  If you’d like to participate the address is:

Letters To George Perez
c/o: Heroes Aren’t Hard To Find
PO Box 9181
Charlotte NC 28299

RIP: Howard Hesseman

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Howard Hesseman, actor and comedian, has died at the age of 81 of complications from colon surgery.  Best known for his starring roles on WKRP in Cincinnati and in Head of the Class, Mr. Hesseman has over 150 credits on his acting resume.

Howard Hesseman alternated between roles on television and feature films.  In addition to the tv shows mentioned, some of Mr. Hesseman’s major television appearances included roles on The Andy Griffith Show, Sanford and Son, The Bob Newhart Show, Soap, One Day at a Time, The New WKRP in Cincinnati, That ’70s Show, Boston Legal and Fresh Off the Boat.  Some feature film appearances include: Billy Jack, The Sunshine Boys, Silent Movie, The Jerk, and Heat.

Surprisingly, I never watched WKRP in Cincinnati or Head of the Class.  I still enjoyed seeing Howard Hesseman whenever he appeared in a tv show or movie.  I first saw (and remembered him from) Billy Jack.  Mr. Hesseman always made whatever show or movie he was in funnier.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Howard Hesseman’s family, friends and fans.

“The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms” / Z-View

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The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953)

Director:  Eugène Lourié

Screenplay:  Lou Morheim, Fred Freiberger (based on a short story by Ray Bradbury)

Starring:  Paul Hubschmid, Paula Raymond, Cecil Kellaway, Kenneth Tobey  and Lee Van Cleef.

Tagline:  They couldn’t believe their eyes! They couldn’t escape the terror! And neither will you! 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

When a nuclear blast frees a prehistoric monster, the terror mounts as the dinosaur makes its way to New York City!  The true star of The Beast of 20,000 Fathoms is Ray Harryhausen’s Rhedosaurus.

There are a couple of surprisingly frightening scenes when the dinosaur devours some folks!  I was also impressed when a bazooka wounds the Rhedosaurus and its blood releases a prehistoric virus that is fatal to humans! That’s a plot twist I wasn’t expecting in a movie made in 1953. A military sharpshooter (played by Lee Van Cleef) with a radioactive shell is humanity’s last hope.  The final scenes at a amusement park’s wooden roller coaster are still pretty impressive.

The Beast from 20,000 has some fun moments and rates 3 of 5 stars.

The Sunshine Boys (1975) / Z-View

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The Sunshine Boys (1975)

Director:  Herbert Ross

Screenplay:  Neil Simon

Starring:  Walter Matthau, George Burns, Richard Benjamin, F. Murray Abraham and Howard Hesseman.

Tagline: For the price of a movie, you’ll feel like a million!

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

At one time Lewis & Clark, aka The Sunshine Boys, were the Kings of Vaudeville.   Audiences loved their routines and the comedy duo had a long, successful run.  Sadly, when Lewis & Clark broke up, they’d reached the point that neither could stand the other.  They haven’t talked in years.

Now an opportunity to perform together on television has appeared.  Will The Sunshine Boys be able to put aside past differences and catch lightning in a bottle once again?

As I watched The Sunshine Boys I couldn’t help but think how our perception of the elderly has changed.  When Lewis got lost, couldn’t open a door and yelled at people, audiences in 1975 probably thought, “This old guy is quite a character.”  I couldn’t help but think, I wonder if he has onset dementia.

I was expecting more laughs from The Sunshine Boys.  The best scene is when Lewis & Clark first get together to rehearse the routine they’ll perform on tv.  Sadly the rehearsal is funnier than the actual performance.  Also Lewis comes off as a real jerk.  It’s no wonder Clark didn’t want to perform with him any longer.

Still The Sunshine Boys does have it’s moments.  George Burns is a joy and it’s no wonder he won an Oscar for his performance (which was the first movie he’d made in over 30 years)!  The scene of Lewis auditioning for a potato chip commercial is funny.  The interactions of Lewis & Clark are the heart of the movie and I wish we had more of them.

The Sunshine Boys earns 3 of 5 stars.

Howard Chaykin Vintage Conan Art!

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When you think of titles associated with Howard Chaykin, names like American Flagg, Cody Starbuck, Dominic Fortune, Black Kiss, The Scorpion and Monark Starstalker probably come to mind fairly quickly.  Then Chaykin’s work on comics like Star Wars, Wolverine, Nick Fury, The Punisher and Avengers may be next.  You’d have to go pretty far down the list before you get to Savage Sword of Conan.  But that’s what we have today.

Howard Chaykin isn’t an artist most folks think of when talking Conan. (Myself included.)  Perhaps we should though since Chaykin created the cover to Savage Sword of Conan #31 shown above.  I’ve always liked it.  I hope you do as well.

“The Cursed” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

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The Cursed has a cool poster and trailer.  Deal me in.

US Release Date: February 18, 2022
Starring: Boyd Holbrook, Kelly Reilly, Alistair Petrie
Directed By: Sean Ellis
Synopsis: In rural 19th-century France, a mysterious, possibly supernatural menace threatens a small village. John McBride, a pathologist, comes to town to investigate the danger — and exorcise some of his own demons in the process.

Flu (2013) / Z-View

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Flu (2013)

Director:  Sung-su Kim

Screenplay:  Young-jong Lee, Sung-soo Kim (from a story by Jae-ho Jung)

Starring:  Jang Hyuk, Soo Ae, Min-ah Park, Hae-Jin Yoo and Ma Dong-seok.

Tagline:  Death goes viral.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

When a fatal airborne virus runs rampant in a suburb of Seoul, a cure must be found before the government resorts to the ultimate solution to end the outbreak.  With the clock ticking, a female doctor working on the cure has a personal reason to find it — her daughter is infected.

Ma Dong-seok from Train to Busan fame shows up as a bad guy!

Flu takes time to set everything up, but once the virus begins to spread unrestrained, the stakes are raised.  The internment disposal area is mind-blowing.  Min-ah Park is an excellent little actress.  Although Flu was released in 2013, the subject has never been more relevant.  Flu rates 3 of 5 stars.

Jack the Ripper – 10 People Suspected of Being the Killer!

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Vince Guerrieri at Mental Floss came up with a list of 10 People Suspected of Being Jack the Ripper.  It ranges from the highly unlikely (Lewis Carroll) to the probable (Aaron Kosminski).

Patricia Cornwell has DNA evidence that Jack the Ripper was Walter Sickert.

My guess is that the Ripper was Kosminski or Sickert.  I’d be interested in hearing who others think Jack the Ripper may have been.

“Nobody” / Z-View

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Nobody (2021)

Director: Ilya Naishuller

Screenplay: Derek Kolstad

Starring:  Bob Odenkirk, Aleksey Serebryakov, Connie Nielsen, Christopher Lloyd, Michael Ironside and RZA.

Tagline:  Never underestimate a nobody.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Hutch Mansell lives a mundane life.  He has a wife (they are drifting apart), a son and daughter.  His job is routine and he’s in a rut.  Things get worse when burglars break into his house to rob it and Mansell does nothing to stop them.  His son sees him as a coward, and the rest of the family looks at him with pity.  What they don’t know is that Mansell used to worked as a CIA “auditor” who was sent in as a last resort to “clear the books”.

As Mansell’s anger builds he goes looking for the two thieves.  When five thugs on a bus begin to terrorize a young lady, Mansell takes out his rage on the would-be tough guys, hospitalizing all of them.  Unfortunately one of the mooks is the brother of a crazy Russian crime boss who will bring the full weight of his organization down on Mansell and his family.

Let the good times roll!

Nobody can be described as John Wick light.  Bob Odenkirk is surprisingly effective as the former CIA auditor and Nobody shows how talented he is.  To go from Sal Goodman to Hutch Mansell is more than a stretch.  The scene on the bus is fun and surprisingly violent.  I referred to Nobody as John Wick light and the humor is what takes it down a notch.  Plus when Mansell’s dad (Lloyd) starts blowing away a Russian hit squad you know we’re in a different universe.

I really enjoyed Nobody.  It was a fun ride with plenty of action and humor.  It rates 4 of 5 stars.

“Alter Ego” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

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I like the looks of Alter Ego, but I think the poster might give away a bit too much.

Detective DiBiasse (Eric Roberts) goes to his last crime scene at the Mansion of a wealthy, paranoid recluse named Alan Schaeffer (Dylan Walsh). He brings with him a new detective and starts explaining the strange story of Alan Schaeffer. A man who recently insisted that one of his creations was coming to kill him, but had no evidence to back up his claim. Surrounded by security that reportedly sees nothing, nobody can help Alan Schaeffer and so the police moved on. Now the Detective is back at this mansion with a horrible, brutal crime scene and no suspect in sight.

“Hellblazers” (2022) / Z-View

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Hellblazers (2022)

Director: Justin Lee

Screenplay: Justin Lee

Starring:  Adrienne Barbeau, Greg Beaton, Crash Buist, Bruce Dern, Meg Foster and Billy Zane.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

When a satanic cult summons a demon the residents of a very small southwestern town must band together to survive.

Hellblazers is a low, low budget film set in the 1980s.  It would have fit right in on a drive-in triple feature from the same time period.  If you go in knowing you’re going to get a chance to see older stars in a film that requires you to put your brain on hold to enjoy the ride, you just might (enjoy the ride).  Hellblazers makes attempts at humor but never totally commits to comedy.  There are a couple of jump scares but isn’t really scary despite being about a satanic cult and a demon from hell killing off the population of a small town.

With that said, I watched with my wife and we found it an okay way to pass the time.  Therefore Hellblazers rates 2 of 5 stars.