Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
Sylvester Stallone is cover-featured and the subject of an “hours-long” interview at Variety. Check out Sylvester Stallone Feels Robbed of an Ownership Stake in ‘Rocky’: ‘I Was Furious’ By Claudia Eller, then head out and get a copy!
Dark Duet by Eric Beetner
TPB: 224 pages
Publisher: Down and Out Books
Dark Duet consists of two crime novellas, White Hot Pistol and Blood on Their Hands. You get two Eric Beetner yarns for the price of one!
First sentence of White Hot Pistol…
Nash remembered the first time he escaped this town.
The Overview of White Hot Pistol: Beware of Spoilers…
Nash had a plan. He was going to sneak back into the town that he’d left years before. He’d then get his sister, Jacy, out and away from her abusive step-father. It was supposed to be easy…
It should have been easy despite the fact that Nash was wanted for questioning in a homicide and her step-father was the town sheriff.
It could have been easy had Nash and Jacy not stumbled onto a drug deal gone bad.
On the run from the cops and the drug dealer’s crew, with bodies piling up and no hope for help, now nothing would be easy.
—
First sentence of Blood on Their Hands…
Garrett had no idea breaking and entering would be so easy.
The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…
Garrett, against his better judgment, joins his two high school buddies when they break into the Smart Mart late one night. The plan is to scarf some beers, grab some snacks and slip back out.
Things go sideways when the men who own the store show up with the body of the guy they just killed. As the killers discuss how to dispose of the stiff, the boys make a run for it. Unfortunately, they’re seen and the chase is on.
What chance do high school kids have against grown killers? Not much. Blood on Their Hands takes place in the same town as White Hot Pistol and features a few of the same characters. Bravo to Beetner for a couple of twists that were logical but totally surprising.
If you like pulp, noir and stories that move, then Dark Duet is for you.
Rating: 4 of 5 stars.
I absolutely love this Rambo Last Blood fan poster by Stallone fan and StalloneZone member Branden Hafiz! You can see more of Branden’s art here! Hopefully we’ll also see more of Branden’s art here in the future!
Source – Stallone: Action Icon.
Point Blank (2019)
Director: Joe Lynch
Screenplay: Adam G. Simon based on characters created by Fred Cavayé
Stars: Frank Grillo, Anthony Mackie, Christian Cooke, Teyonah Parris and Marcia Gay Harden.
The Pitch: Let’s do an old-fashioned action-buddy movie where the buddies are thrown together and don’t get along.
Tagline: A Hell of a Day. A Hell of a Pair.
The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…
Let me say from the start I liked Point Blank more than I thought I would and way more than most folks probably do.
An emergency room nurse (Mackie) finds himself teamed with an on-the-run thug (Grillo) in an effort to save the nurse’s kidnapped wife. If you enjoy movies like 48hrs, Lethal Weapon and Tango & Cash, then you should be good to go. I loved Point Blank and look forward to viewing it again.
Here’s a Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark poster. Don’t know about you, but it does get my vote for success in the scary monster department. If you’ve got the nerve, you can see a bigger version at IMPAwards.com.
Here’s the 21 Bridges ComicCon Trailer. I like the looks of this one.
If you’re a fan of short (super short) horror stories, then have I got a site for you! I’ve posted an example above.
You can read 22 others at Cheezburger.com, where I discovered the site or just head on over to Two-Sentence Horror Stories.
The It: Chapter 2 trailer is below and it looks good, even better than the original.
Here’s the Top Gun: Maverick poster and trailer. I wasn’t the biggest fan of Top Gun. I liked it but it doesn’t come up in my list of favorite movies, or even my favorite Tom Cruise movies. But I have to say, I really like the Top Gun: Maverick poster and trailer!
The painting above is from one of Howard Chaykin’s Cody Starbuck portfolios. Hard to believe that this portfolio was released 40 years ago, and I’ve been a Chaykin fan for even longer.
If you’d like to see the complete Chaykin portfolio and some of his other portfolios and art posts check out Ungoliantschilde.
The Killerman poster is here and I like it. Hope the movie is as good or better!
The Far Empty by J. Todd Scott
Hardcover: 448 pages
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
First sentence…
My father has killed three men.
The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…
J. Todd Scott pulls us in from the first sentence and proceeds to unfold his story from the perspective of believable characters with a slow burn to a dramatic conclusion that leaves us satisfied and yet hoping for more. (Rest easy, more stories are coming about those who survive.)
The Far Empty is a modern day western-noir wrapped around a mystery (mysteries) with enough action and suspense to satisfy the most critical reader.
When Chris Cherry, a new deputy in Murfee, Texas, finds the handcuffed, skeletal remains of a body in a remote area not far from the Mexico/Texas border, he starts an investigation. It’s an investigation that will uncover secrets best left hidden and may cost him his life.
The Far Empty hooked me from the first sentence. I loved every page and give it my highest recommendation. J. Todd Scott is the real deal.
Rating:
Stephen Verona died on Saturday after a year and a half long battle with lung cancer. Readers of this site probably know Verona best as the Producer, Co-Writer and Director of Lords of Flatbush, but Verona was much more than that.
Verona got his start creating commercials. He met and became friends with John Lennon which led to Verona getting to animate the Beatles song I Feel Fine. Next came a music short with Barbara Streisand. He went on to work with Natalie Cole, Chicago, Simon & Garfunkel and many others.
Verona was a screenwriter, an award-winning director of feature films, television episodes and specials, an an award-winning painter and photographer. A renaissance man, indeed.
The Hollywood Reporter posted that “When Stallone learned that Verona was ill, he sent him an email saying that his career would not have been the same without him.” The same could be said for many other celebrities.
Had Stephen Verona only been known as the talent behind Lords of Flatbush, it would have been worth noting here, but I hope fans know he was so much more.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to Stephen Verona’s family, friends and fans.
If a zombie apocalypse breaks out, are you living in a state that provides a good chance of survival? If you want to find out, CableTV.com has the answers. They looked at each “state’s agriculture, weapon ownership, solar energy, and climate.” They then ranked states from 1 (most likely to survive) to 4 (least likely to survive).
Since I live in Florida (ranked a 2), my odds are pretty good. If I went back to my birth state of Indiana (ranked a 1), they’d be even better.
If you click over to The 10 Best States for Surviving a Zombie Apocalypse at Mental Floss, you’ll get even more info.
Here’s the trailer to The King’s Man.
In 2020, they will become kings. Watch the new teaser trailer for The King’s Man now. See the film in theatres February 14, 2020.
As a collection of history’s worst tyrants and criminal masterminds gather to plot a war to wipe out millions, one man must race against time to stop them. Discover the origins of the very first independent intelligence agency in The King’s Man.
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Based on the Comic Book “The Secret Service” by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons
Produced by: Matthew Vaughn, David Reid, Adam Bohling
Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Gemma Arterton, Rhys Ifans, Matthew Goode, Tom Hollander, Harris Dickinson, Daniel Brühl, with Djimon Hounsou, and Charles Dance
