DOUBLE BARREL BLUFF by Lou Berney is Coming!

Posted on by

DOUBLE BARREL BLUFF by Lou Berney looks to be a winner…

Multi-award winning and USA Today bestselling crime writer Lou Berney returns to his critically acclaimed thriller series starring former mob wheelman Shake Bouchon, who finds himself dragged into a high-stakes hostage rescue, among the mighty temples and shadowy underground of Cambodia.

During his years as a wheelman for the Armenian mob in Los Angeles, Shake Bouchon didn’t think of himself as the settling-down type. But now he’s happily married to Gina, the love of his life—and former adversary—in Indiana, of all places.

The great thing about Bloomington, for two people with checkered pasts, is that everyone is nice and no one knows them. Until the day a brutal Armenian thug who has always hated Shake shows up in his backyard. He demands that Shake help him find his missing mob boss, the pakhan—the dangerous and beautiful Alexandra “Lexy” Ilandryan, who also happens to be Shake’s ex-girlfriend.

Shake’s got a lot of history with Lexy, so he reluctantly agrees to travel to Siem Reap, Cambodia, where she was last seen. Once there, he finds himself tangled in an underworld of Cambodian gangsters, mob politics, and opportunistic expats, where the stakes aren’t clear and everyone is looking to score. With only the help of a clairvoyant hippie and the Armenian thug, Shake becomes involved in a high-stakes negotiation for Lexy that might cost him his own life.

But perhaps most threatening of all is Gina’s wrath when she arrives in Cambodia intent on saving Shake from himself—and from all the people trying to kill him.

With Lou Berney’s trademark wit, flawless plotting, vibrant locale, and memorable characters, Double Barrel Bluff is another unputdownable, globe-trotting adventure.

Preorders now for a November 5, 2024 release.

“Lifeboat” (1944) directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Tallulah Bankhead, John Hodiak, Walter Slezak & William Bendix / Z-View

Posted on by

Lifeboat (1944) 

Director: Alfred Hitchcock

Screenplay: Jo Swerling, story by John Steinbeck

Stars: Tallulah Bankhead, John Hodiak, Walter Slezak, William Bendix, Mary Anderson, Henry Hull, Heather Angel, Hume Cronyn, Canada Lee and William Yetter Jr.

Tagline: What happens when six men and three women are alone in an open boat ?

The Plot…

During a World War II a submarine sinks a passenger ship, but is also sunk.  There are only eight survivors. They end up in the same lifeboat.  Introductions show they’re from diverse backgrounds.  There are three ship workers, a famous columnist, a rich man, and three ship passengers (one a mother whose baby was killed in the attack).

When they see another man attempting to get in the lifeboat, they assist him.  The last survivor turns out to be a German soldier from the submarine.  The initial thought is to kill him.  Luckily for him, the vote is to spare his life.

Lost at sea, with little food or water, the odds of survival are slim.  What none know is one of them has secrets that could get them all killed.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Lifeboat was nominated for three Academy Awards…

  • nominee Best Director – Alfred Hitchcock
  • nominee Best Writing, Original Story – John Steinbeck
  • nominee Best Cinematography, Black-and-White – Glen MacWilliams

It was a rough shoot completed in a gigantic water tank.  The actors were in a free-floating boat constantly sprayed with water and a mist concoction of water/oil/dry ice.  Twice production had to be stopped due to actors’ illnesses and injury.

Lifeboat has no musical score which was unusual for the time.

Alfred Hitchcock originally wanted his cameo to be a dead body floating in the water.  It was changed and Hitch’s image appears in a newspaper ad.

William Bendix steals every scene he’s in.

Lifeboat (1944)  rates 5 of 5 stars.

“The Old Man”: Season 2 starring Jeff Bridges – The Teaser is Here!

Posted on by

If season two of The Old Man matches season one, we’re in for a fun ride.

The stakes couldn’t get any higher. Don’t miss the two-episode premiere of FX’s The Old Man, 9.12 on FX. Stream on Hulu.

In FX’s The Old Man Season 2, former CIA agent “Dan Chase” (Jeff Bridges) and former FBI Assistant Director “Harold Harper” (John Lithgow) set off to recover “Emily Chase” (Alia Shawkat) after she is kidnapped. As the stakes rise and secrets are uncovered, Emily finds herself in an identity crisis with dire implications, and “Zoe McDonald” (Amy Brenneman) makes surprising moves into Chase’s world.

FULL TILT by Jason Copland / Z-View

Posted on by

FULL TILT by Jason Copland (letters by Troy Peteri)

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Two hundred years in the future five crime families control New Manhattan.  With trouble in paradise a sitdown was arranged for the boss of each family and his/her adviser.  It did not end well.

An assassin appeared. It was a massacre. Massimo Miller, the consigliere of the Chessa family was the only survivor.  Massimo was wounded, but barely survived.  The cops and new crime bosses (even for the Chessa family) believe that Miller was the executioner.

Now badly inured and alone, Massimo has one thing on his mind: vengeance.  To get it, Massimo will have to travel across the city with the soldiers of the five families and cops on his trail.  How can one man, even one as formidable as Massimo have a chance?  There’s only one way… go full tilt.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Jason Copland’s FULL TILT is a masterpiece. The mobster storyline in a sci-fi setting is perfect for Copland’s world building. He’s developed interesting, original characters built using genre troupes. Copland’s story and art raise the bar.  I’m sad for the folks who missed out.

Rating:

Below are examples of unfinished/unlettered pages used to promote FULL TILT.

“Life” (2017) starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson & Ryan Reynolds / Z-View

Posted on by

Life (2017) 

Director: Daniel Espinosa

Screenplay: Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick

Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, Ryan Reynolds, Hiroyuki Sanada, Ariyon Bakare

Tagline: Fear life. Not death.

The Plot…

An unmanned probe returns to the International Space Station with soil samples from Mars.  The six astronauts aboard the station are surprised to find a single cell organism in the soil.  As they experiment with the sample it begins to grow exponentially.  It escapes it’s container and devours a lab rat. Then the creature turns its sights on the astronauts.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Director Daniel Espinosa said the twist ending is in the spirit of The Twilight Zone and Night of the Living Dead.

I hate it when movie characters repeatedly make stupid decisions.  Especially when they’re supposed to be intelligent.

Life (2017)  rates 3 of 5 stars.

“Gladiator II” – The Trailer is Here!

Posted on by

Except for the music, I think that the Gladiator II trailer works.  I’m not expecting the sequel to be as good as the original, but so far I like what we’re seeing.

From director Ridley Scott, watch the new Official Trailer for #GladiatorII starring Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, Denzel Washington, Connie Nielsen, Joseph Quinn, and Fred Hechinger – Only in theatres November 22.

“Interview with the Vampire”: Season 2 (2024) starring Jacob Anderson, Sam Reid, Eric Bogosian, Delainey Hayles & Assad Zaman / Z-View

Posted on by

Interview with the Vampire: Season 2 (2024)

Directors:  Craig Zisk (eps. 1, 5); Levan Akin (eps. 2-4, 8); Emma Freeman (eps. 6-7)

Teleplay: Hannah Moscovitch (ep. 1); Jonathan Ceniceroz & Shane Munson (ep. 2); Heather Bellson (ep. 3); Coline Abert & A. Zell Williams (ep. 4); Jonathan Ceniceroz & Hannah Moscovitch (ep. 5); Hannah Moscovitch & Shane Munson (ep. 6); Kevin Hanna & Rolin Jones (ep. 7); Rolin Jones (ep. 8)

Stars: Jacob Anderson, Sam Reid, Eric Bogosian, Assad Zaman, Delainey Hayles, Ben Daniels, Esme Appleton, Christopher Geary, Khetphet Phagnasay, Andrew Van Wilpe, Jan Hofman, Ben Bradshaw, Roxane Duran, Luke Brandon Field, Elander Moore, Justin Kirk, Blake Ritson, Stanislav Callas, Ed Birch, Roxane Duran and Bally Gill

Tagline: None.

The Plot…

Interview with a Vampire is an adaptation of Anne Rice’s novel, Interview with a Vampire.

Through a series of interview flashbacks we learn that in World War II’s final years Louis (Anderson) and Claudia’s (Hayles) search for other vampires lead to Romania and Paris.  They are discovered by a vampire coven in Paris.  All is not what it seems.  Jealously, lies and betrayals abound.  Most will not survive.

Daniel Malloy (Bogosian) discovers government agents are aware of the vampires.  Malloy also determines that he’s not being told the truth throughout the interview.  Malloy realizes with increasing certainty that his life is in danger.

When the interview concludes lies will be uncovered, truths revealed.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Interview with the Vampire Season 1 was a tour de force.  Season 2 meets and exceeds the bar that it set.  The series continues to be well written with wonderful actors joined by top notch directors.

Delainey Hayles who replaced Bailey Bass as Claudia does an excellent job.

There are more twists and surprises in season two.

I love the idea of a coven of vampires hiding in plain sight.  The vampire pretend to be human actors playing vampires on stage nightly.  The audience has no idea that the victims killed on stage are not actors.

Ben Daniels as Santiago provides a riveting performance as Santiago.

I have no idea how season 3 can live up to, let alone surpass season 2… but I’ll be ready to find out.

Interview with the Vampire: Season 2 (2024) earns 5 of 5 stars.

“The Killing” (1956) directed by Stanley Kubrick, starring Sterling Hayden / Z-View

Posted on by

The Killing (1956) 

Director: Stanley Kubrick

Screenplay: Stanley Kubrick; dialogue by Jim Thompson; based on CLEAN BREAK by Lionel White

Stars: Sterling Hayden, Coleen Gray, Jay C. Flippen, Ted de Corsia, Marie Windsor, Elisha Cook Jr., Joe Sawyer, James Edwards, Timothy Carey, Kola Kwariani, Dorothy Adams, James Griffith, Joe Turkel, William ‘Billy’ Benedict, Charles Cane, Robert B. Williams and Vince Edwards

Tagline: These 5 Men Had a $2,000,000 Secret Until One of them told this Woman!

The Plot…

Johnny Clay (Hayden) has been a crook his whole life.  Now he’s ready to settle down and marry Fay (Gray). Johnny has planned one last score.  It will be big.  Two million dollars big. He’s going to knock over a race track.

Johnny has put together his team: two race track workers in need of cash, a cop on the take, a sniper and a pro wrestler.  Johnny has planned for every contingency… except one.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

The Killing is arguably Stanley Kubrick’s best film.  Kirk Douglas loved it so much, he got Kubrick to direct Douglas’ next film, Paths of Glory.  Two years later, when Douglas fired Anthony Mann early in the filming of Spartacus, Douglas turned to Kubrick to finish the film.

The studio didn’t like the non-linear structure of The Killing.  Re-editing only made things more confusing. So it was released in the non-linear form Kubrick wanted.  Quentin Tarantino claims The Killing is a huge influence on the format of  Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction.

Kola Kwariani (the chess playing pro wrestler) and Stanley Kubrick would often play chess in a chess/checker lounge as shown in the film.

In a film full of memorable co-star performances, Timothy Carey stands out for his uniquely strange acting.

The Killing (1956)  rates 5 of 5 stars.

“Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” (2024) starring Eddie Murphy / Z-View

Posted on by

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F (2024) 

Director: Mark Molloy

Screenplay: Will Beall, Tom Gormican, Kevin Etten; story by Will Beal; based on characters created by Danilo Bach and Daniel Petrie Jr.

Stars: Eddie Murphy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Taylour Paige, Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Paul Reiser, Bronson Pinchot, Kevin Bacon, Luis Guzmán, Christopher McDonald and Steven Berkoff

Tagline: None.

The Plot…

When Detroit police detective Axel Foley (Murphy) receives a call from his old pal P.I. Billy Rosewood (Reinhold), Foley learns that his grown estranged daughter’s life is in danger.  Foley arrives in Beverly Hills. He discovers that an attempt on his daughter’s life was made and Billy is missing.

As Axel digs into the case, he uncovers a conspiracy going to the highest levels.  Now both Axel and his daughter are targets.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Will Beal, who came up with the story and co-wrote the screenplay, is a former L.A. cop turned writer.  Beal’s L.A. REX is excellent.

Steven Berkoff, who played the villain in the original film, has a brief uncredited cameo as a motorist.

This is director Mark Molloy’s first feature film.

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F hits all the right beats for fans of the series.  It has a plausible reason for Foley to return to Beverly Hills.  It brings back characters in a way that works.  It gives Foley a daughter (that wasn’t mentioned in Beverly Hills Cop III, although she would have been born).  It references the past films, even going so far as to say that Foley’s third case in Beverly Hills wasn’t his “finest hour”.  Beverly Hills III was easily the least favorite of the series.  It uses the famous Axel F theme from the original Beverly Hills Cop by composer Harold Faltermeyer.

For some reason Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F works when it shouldn’t.  When we see Axel driving a snow plow through the city, destroying dozens of vehicles, we ignore the fact that this would probably injure or kill pedestrians as well.  We accept the fact that he is able to keep his job.

When he gets his “partner” to steal a helicopter and fly down Beverly Hills Streets the only damage is to vehicles.  People are never hurt. That’s why Axel and Bobby walk away from a helicopter crash without even a limp or bruise.

The same is true when there is a shoot-out on a crowded Beverly Hills Street.  Only the bad guys die.  I guess it is because in a Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F shootout, the bad guys fire dozens of shots and always miss.  Later when Axel is hit, the bad guy was shooting at his daughter and Axel jumps in front of her.

The fact that we are able to ignore these things is evidence that Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F works.

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F (2024)  rates 4 of 5 stars.