Clint Eastwood, Frank Frazetta and “The Gauntlet”

I’d be surprised if any regular visitor to this site didn’t recognize the guy on the left.  It is, of course, Clint Eastwood.  My guess is that a high percentage of folks also know the guy on the right… especially if they look at the art between the two.  The hard case on the right is the legendary Frank Frazetta.

Frazetta was commissioned to create the poster for Eastwood’s movie, The Gauntlet.  I like the movie and the poster.  Love must be in the air, because I’m a fan of both gentlemen as well.

You can see larger versions of both photos as well as a detailed shot of the painting at Frank Frazetta Art.

The “Briarpatch” Poster and Trailer are Here!

I’m diggin’ everything about the poster and trailer for Briarpatch.  I hope the series is as good.

BRIARPATCH follows Allegra Dill (Dawson), a dogged investigator returning to her border-town Texas home after her sister is murdered. What begins as a search for a killer turns into an all-consuming fight to bring her corrupt hometown to its knees. The season celebrates the beloved genres represented by Thomas’ book — a stylish blend of crime and pulp fiction — while updating his sense of fun, danger and place for a new generation.

The season also stars Jay R. Ferguson (Mad Men, The Romanoffs), Brian Geraghty (Chicago P.D., Ray Donovan), and Edi Gathegi (StartUp). The first season will shoot in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Barry Windsor Smith’s Monsters are Coming!

Wow!  This came out of left field.  Legendary artist (and one I thought who had retired) Barry Windsor Smith has announced he plans to publish a new graphic novel in 2020!

Monsters is a 250-plus page story about “two disparate American families fatefully connected by an abandoned Nazi project in genetic engineering that has been covertly revived by the U.S. government.”

If this interests you, click over to NEWSaRAMA for full details.  I’m looking forward to more info about this one!

The “VFW” (“Assault on Precinct 13” Meets “The Wild Bunch”) Trailer is Here!

VFW, directed by Joe Begos and staring Stephen Lang, William Sadler, Fred Williamson, Martin Kove, Sierra McCormick and David Patrick Kelly is like something you’d see at a drive-in back in the day.  And you know how much I loved drive-ins.

VFW looks like Assault on Precinct 13 meets The Wild Bunch. That can’t be a bad thing, can it?

Jim Gillespie’s Director’s Cut of “Detox” Part of “Eye See You” Special Edition Release!

Stallone fans are going to love this:  Eye See You is getting a special edition Blu-ray release from MVD Collector’s Brands.  What makes this release especially special is that in addition to the theatrical Eye See You release, the disc will also contain director Jim Gillespie’s cut known as Detox!

From MVD Collector’s Brands’ release (bold text is my doing)…

EYE SEE YOU – Update!

It’s with great pleasure that I am able to report that director Jim Gillespie (the guy that made “I Know What You Did Last Summer”) took time and energy to dig up and locate a copy his original cut of “Eye See You”, known as “Detox” (that’s how it’s spelled on his cut of the film). While I personally have not seen this version yet (it’s being used to author the disc right now), I’m told that it’s a “darker” and more horror-ish in tone (Fincher’s “Seven” was what I think they were going for here) version of the film, which was his original intention before the film was recut, re-titled and changed.

“Detox” is being included on this disc as a bonus feature. It is not in HD. The quality is VHS. It is in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio and had time code under the letterbox (see image for reference). We will be reformatting the image for 16 x 9 which should eliminate most (if not all) of the time code. I don’t know what the audio quality is but given the quality of the video I would say manage your expectations accordingly.

We’ve included all of the previous available bonus features and we’ve also adding a new photo gallery (see list of “final” bonus features below). I have also made the decision to create a LIMITED RUN SLIPCOVER for the first pressing (as you know we really don’t do slips for Marquee titles anymore but I’m making an exception for this one) so if you want to guarantee a slipcover, I would suggest pre-ordering this title. After street it’s hit or miss.

I’m really excited to have produced this new “Special Edition” Blu-ray release of ‘Eye See You”. I’ve always considered this to be an underrated title. In my opinion, it’s the closest thing to a horror movie Sylvester Stallone has ever done (at least up til now) and hopefully this alternative cut will finally give everyone a chance to see what director Jim Gillespie had intended.

STREET DATE = April 14, 2020

You can pre-order using this link.

SURVIVAL IS A KILLER.
A brutal serial killer is targeting cops, and detective Jake Malloy is on the warpath. But now the killer is making it personal, and this dedicated agent is twisted in an emotional nightmare. Time is running out, and so are the options, as Malloy engages in an extreme game of cat-and-mouse with a killer who won’t be stopped.

I’m on board!  Who’s with me?

The New “Underwater” Poster is Here!

Today we have a new poster for Underwater.

When I was a kid, in the years before the dawn of the internet, easy access to trailers and movie news, a movie poster was often THE thing that made folks want to see a movie.  If the poster was good, if it made you want to see the movie, you did.  Often the poster was better than the movie.

I’m getting that vibe for Underwater.  I really like this poster.  I’m not sure I’m going to feel the same about the movie.

Robert B. Parker’s Angel Eyes – A Spenser Novel by Ace Atkins / Z-View

Robert B. Parker’s Angel Eyes by Ace Atkins

Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons

First sentence…

“Whoever said, ‘It never rained in Southern California lied.”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Gabby Leggett left her wealthy Boston family and went to Hollywood to become a star.  Beautiful, talented and after making a popular commercial Gabby’s star was on the rise.

Then Gabby Leggett disappeared.

Spenser is hired by Gabby’s family to find her.   In Hollywood the suspects include 1) Gabby’s ex-lover (and her current agent), 2) a powerful womanizing movie producer, 3) a “self-help” sisterhood some would call a cult led by an ex-con scam artist and 4) Armenian gangsters.  Spenser does what he does best, irritating all suspects until his life is threatened.  Then things get even more interesting.  Gabby may or may not be dead, but many are going to die before Spenser finds out.

Ace Atkins creates another welcome Spenser tale.

Rating:

Rage by Jonathan Maberry / Z-View

Rage by Jonathan Maberry

Paperback: 462 pages
Publisher: Griffin

First sentence…

If the world is on all four wheels and nothing is burning, you’ll never hear from guys like me.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

A bio-weapon released on a small island off the coast of Korea turns men, women and children into raging killers.  Making things worse, a video shows what appear to be US soldiers behind the terrorist attack.

As North Korea, China, and the US begin to posture for all out war, Joe Ledger leads the newly formed Rogue International team to the island.  Finding himself commanding elite soldiers from North and South Korea along with members of his old squad, Ledger will learn that there is a traitor among them.

As the clock clicks down, the virus spreads and rumors that the US was behind the bio attacks leaks to the media.  Rogue International must find the source of the Rage attacks and prevent further terrorist actions before its too late.  A mission like this comes with a high cost — and hats off to Maberry because he has the reader worried about one thing and delivers something more surprising and equally as devastating.  And then hits the reader with something even worse.

Jonathan Maberry’s Joe Ledger novels never disappoint.

Rating:

Pulp by Ed Brubaker & Sean Phillips

Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips are coming back strong with a new graphic novel titled Pulp.

Max Winters, a pulp writer in 1930s New York, finds himself drawn into a story not unlike the tales he churns out at 5 cents a word – tales of a wild west outlaw dispensing justice with a six-gun. But will Max be able to do the same, when pursued by bank robbers, Nazi spies, and enemies from his past?

One part thriller, one part meditation on a life of violence, PULP is unlike anything the award-winning team of BRUBAKER and PHILLIPS have ever done. A celebration of pulp fiction, set in a world on the brink. And another must-have hardback from one of comics most-acclaimed teams.

Pulp premieres May 26, 2020.  I cannot wait.