Frank Miller Talks “Cursed”

Posted on by

I’m not particularly a big fan of young adult novels or the King Arthur legend, but I may just have to get on board when Cursed by Frank Miller and Thomas Wheeler comes out later this year.

Cursed…

…approaches the legend of King Arthur from a very different angle, focusing not on the destined King of the Britains, but the “Lady of the Lake” herself, Nimue. Featuring color and b&w illustrations from Miller, its an all-ages tour de force not to be missed!

You can learn more and see additional art at the PREVIEWSworld Q&A With Frank Miller.

The “Midway” Poster and Trailer are Here!

Posted on by

I like the old time feel to the Midway poster.  They trailer isn’t bad either.

Midway — In theaters November 8, 2019. Ed Skrein, Patrick Wilson, Luke Evans, Aaron Eckhart, Nick Jonas, Etsushi Toyokawa, Tadanobu Asano, Luke Kleintank, Jun Kunimura, Darren Criss, Keean Johnson, Alexander Ludwig, with Mandy Moore, Dennis Quaid and Woody Harrelson.

Coffin Bound by Waters, Dani, Simpson and Bidikar

Posted on by

Coffin Bound by Dan Waters (writer), Dani (artist) and Brad Simpson (colorist) is a new series coming from Image Comics.  It doesn’t look or sound like a typical comic…

Chased by an unstoppable killer, Izzy Tyburn has decided that if the world won’t have her in it, it can have nothing of her at all. She’s retreading her life, leaving nothing but burned rubber, ash… and the sun-scorched bones of those who get in her way.

“This is a book all about the inevitability of death, and the choice each of us faces between coming to terms with it, or trying to deny it,” said Watters. “This is a book drawn beautifully by Dani, with Brad Simpsons’ filthy bright colors. This is a book about cars, guns, and sex—and how each of those things does little to stave off the bottomless void waiting just beyond the veil of our known existence. What was the question again?”

Image has an eight page preview that you can see here.  I’m on board.

Things Learned from Tim Burton’s ‘Batman’ Commentary

Posted on by

Film School Rejects presents 26 Things We Learned from Tim Burton’s ‘Batman’ Commentary.  Here are three of my favorites and some of my thoughts at the end…

3.  People expected him to take a goofy tone with the film, “but that was the furthest thing from my mind.” He wasn’t a big comic book fan, but he loved Batman and the psychology of the character meaning he knew he wanted to stay true to that idea.

5.  He met with numerous actors for the title role who fit the traditional “square-jawed” and heroic look, but he eventually realized “there’s a reason why a guy dresses up as a bat, he’s trying to create a menacing persona.” Michael Keaton has the crazy eyes, but physically he’s someone who would need costuming to make him seem scarier.

24.  He took older films like The Man Who Laughs (1928), vampire movies, and the work of Val Lewton as inspirations for Batman.

I wasn’t a fan of Michael Keaton being cast as Batman.  I get now why Burton went with MK after reading #5 above.

The 50 Best Zombie Movies of All Time

Posted on by

Jim Vorel at Paste came up with his list of The 50 Best Zombie Movies of All Time.  Vorel’s list is a good one.  Here’s his top ten and mine (using just the films on his list).

The 50 Best Zombie Movies of All Time

Jim Vorel

Craig

10.  Dawn of the Dead (2004) 

10.  Day of the Dead (1985)

09.  Zombi 2 (1979) 

09. Planet Terror (2007)

08.  Night of the Living Dead (1968)

08.  28 Weeks Later (2007)

07.  Evil Dead 2 (1987) 

07.  Shaun of the Dead (2004) 

06.  Shaun of the Dead (2004) 

06. Zombieland (2009)

05.  Day of the Dead (1985) 

05. Dawn of the Dead (2004)

04.  28 Days Later (2002)

04. Train to Busan (2016)

03.  Re-Animator (1985) 

03. 28 Days Later (2002) 

02.  Return of the Living Dead (1985) 

02. World War Z (2013)

01.  Dawn of the Dead (1978) 

01.  Night of the Living Dead (1968)

Although it didn’t make the list, I’d have added The Crazies.

Neal Adams’ Savage Sword of Conan Painting and the Theft That Didn’t Happen

Posted on by

The cover above is to the Savage Sword of Conan #2 and was created by the legendary Neal Adams.  It’s always been one of my favorite Conan and Neal Adams’ covers.

I had the good fortune to see the original painting at an OrlandoCon. The year was 1978 or ’79 (to the best of my memory). Mike Kott, a  buddy of mine, had it on display for sale.  He was asking $10,000.00 for it.  Although that was a ton of money back then (and is still a lot today), the painting in person was so nice, it had more than one person saying, “If I was a rich man…”

I’d see Mike Kott on a fairly regular basis.  He’d come into Jim Ivey’s Cartoon Museum or over to my apartment (we had a weekly card game) or I’d go by his place.  It was on one of those get-togethers that Mike said his house had a break-in and thieves had made off with some cash (not a lot).  Nothing else had been taken.  Mike said that they had to have seen the painting but obviously hadn’t known the value of the art.  Not long after that Mike sold the painting.

$10,000.00 was a small fortune back then.  As to what the painting is worth today… I won’t venture a guess, but I will say that Neal Adams gets $50 for his autograph and fans line up all day long.

Deep Silence by Jonathan Maberry / Z-View

Posted on by

Deep Silence by Jonathan Maberry

Hardcover: 480 pages
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin

First sentence…

“We’re coming up on it,” said the pilot.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

A series of earthquakes rock the eastern seaboard and are accompanied by outbreaks of temporary madness causing people to attack each other or commit suicide.  Joe Ledger and his team soon learn that terrorists using advanced technology are behind the strikes. The terrorist have plans that will leave the United States and much of the world helpless unless they can be stopped and the clock is ticking!

Maberry’s latest outing for the DMS team is perhaps their toughest yet and will lead to the end of the Joe Ledger series as we know it.  As you can imagine, series regulars (who survive) will be forever changed.

Deep Silence is another great Joe Ledger tale and like all of the others in the series is highly recommended.

Rating: 5 of 5 stars.

The Best On-Screen Duos

Posted on by

Nate Williams and ComingSoon came up with their list of The Best On-Screen Duos.  Here’s their top ten…

  1. Paul Newman and Robert Redford in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
  2. Brad Pitt and Edward Norton in Fight Club (1999)
  3. Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in Hot Fuzz (2007)
  4. Mel Gibson and Danny Glover in Lethal Weapon (1987)
  5. Steve Martin and John Candy in Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)
  6. Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly in Step Brothers (2008)
  7. Jonah Hill and Michael Cera in Superbad (2007)
  8. Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams in The Notebook (2004)
  9. Tom Hanks’s character Woody and Tim Allen’s character Buzz in Toy Story (1995)
  10. Mike Myers and Dana Carvey in Wayne’s World (1992)

Williams’ list is a good one.  Click over and check out his comments for each choice.

If I was going to make an addition to the list I’d put in one or both of the following…

  • Sly Stallone and Carl Weathers in Rocky III
  • Sly Stallone and Talia Shire in Rocky

Who’d I miss?