Jack Lord Ain’t Got Nothin’ on Me!

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Today’s my birthday. It’s a milestone. My 50th. The Big Five-Oh.

Normally, I would write something like I don’t feel fifty years old [I don’t], or that you’re only as old as you feel [a cliche that I believe] or that age is just a number [another cliche], but I don’t think I’ll resort to that today.

Instead I think I’ll just show some maturity and say, “Hey!! Where are my presents???”

The Shield: "Parricide"

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As the final season of The Shield heads to a conclusion, I find my self wondering how it will all end. Whatever happens, the main characters aren’t walking away happy. Two of the characters in the photo above, from the first episode of season one, are already dead. Mackey’s family is falling apart, his job and pension hang by a thread and his best friend has become his worst enemy.

Another Strike Force Team member could die in tonight’s episode which Capone over at Ain’t It Cool News calls the best and most gripping installment yet. And that’s saying a lot. Maybe too much in fact. And for once I refused to read Capone’s invisatext spoiler warning on how the episode ends.

Do Call It a Comeback

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An article on CNN.com [that is no longer available] brought back a flood of great memories. When I was a kid, mom [and sometimes dad] used to load my brother and sisters up in the car and off to the drive-in we’d go.
It wasn’t unusual for us to make a stop at a little stand that sold the best popcorn and candy. The place was hardly bigger than a phone booth. [What’s that? You’ve never seen a drive-in or a phone booth?] That little shop was where I first experienced flavored salts for popcorn. Celery salt was my favorite. Sounds pretty mundane now, but back in the 60’s that was a big deal.
We’d get to the movies early so we could go down to the playground [all drive-ins had a playground consisting of some swings, teeter-toters and that octagon shaped thing that you’d push around as fast as possible with the hope of getting someone dizzy]. Parents would just send their kids down to the playground without supervision. It was a different time then. We’d head back to the car before the movie started. Usually my sisters and brother would be pretty tired and fall asleep before the second movie. Me, I was there until the end.

When I was old enough to drive, drive-ins were still popular. I loved the fact that you could always count on at least a double feature and sometimes you’d get real lucky and there’d be a marathon of sorts. Usually it was monster movies [who doesn’t like those?] or comedies, or even a mismash of genres. I hit the drive-ins [we had two in our town] almost weekly and since we lived in Florida at this point, we could go year round.

It’s said that video killed the radio star. I don’t know about that, but I do know that video killed the drive-in theater. According to some reports, drive-ins have been making a comeback the last few years. I hope that’s true because, man, I miss those days.

French Headshot

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On Wednesday, SlashFilm.com reported that Warner Bros had acquired the rights to a French 3 issue graphic novel series called “Headshot.” It’s about a hitman and cop who, when their partners are killed, form an uneasy alliance to get revenge on the powers that set them up. You just know this story sounds like something I’d dig. And I the art, by Alexis Nolent, looks to sweeten the deal. I’d love to see an English edition… and plan to keep an eye out on the movie’s progress.

ST Covered by EW

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I’ll bet it’s not to hard to guess what will be the cover story of next week’s issue of Entertainment Weekly. That’s right, ZONErs, the new “Star Trek” movie will get the EW main feature treatment. The issue hits newsstands this Friday and will contain exclusive set visit photos.

I’m a huge fan of the original “Star Trek” in whatever form, tv series, cartoon or movie. I never gave any of the other incarnations of “Star Trek” more than a occasional glance. I am looking forward to the new movie though. It’ll be interesting to see if the magic can be recaptured. Perhaps the Entertainment Weekly cover story will give us a hint.

Do You Believe in Magic?

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Tonight, my son, Chris and I are heading over to Orlando to watch the Magic play a pre-season game against CSKA Moscow. Chris is a huge sports fan and the Magic are his favorite B-Ball team, so when I was able to score free tickets, it was a given that we’d go. It’s always a blast to see a game live… even if it is pre-season.

 

Empire’s 500 Greatest Movies of All Time

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Empire Magazine recently posted their list of the 500 Greatest Movies of All Time. 500 is just too big a list to deal with… so, using just THEIR TOP 50, I made a list of MY TOP 10 of EMPIRE’s TOP 50. Without further adieu, here they are in alphabetical order:
  • Aliens (James Cameron, 1986): Took the Alien concept and made it a franchise… and the best movie of the series.
  • Casablanca (Michael Curtiz, 1942): Bogie at his best.
  • Die Hard (John McTiernan 1988): Redefined the action genre and turned Bruce Willis into a star.
  • Dr. Strangelove (Stanley Kubrick, 1964): “There’s no fighting in the war room!” — Need I say more?
  • Godfather, The (Francis Ford Coppola, 1972): Perhaps the best cast movie of all time.
  • Godfather Part II (Francis Ford Coppola, 1974): One of the rare movies that is as good as the original… especially when the original is as good as The Godfather.
  • Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, The (Sergio Leone, 1967): Classic title + classic theme + Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Eli Wallach, and Sergio Leone = All Time Greatest Movie
  • Matrix, The (The Wachowski Brothers, 1999): Redefined the action genre. If only the sequels had been as good.
  • Pulp Fiction (Quentin Tarantino, 1994): Made Tarantino a star… and rightly so.
  • Terminator 2: Judgement Day (James Cameron, 1991): Like Godfather II and Aliens, a sequel that was as good as the original.