Tomer Hanuka is an Amazing Artist

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Tomer Hanuka created the piece above.  The art, of Rocky Balboa in battle with Apollo Creed as Adrian looks on, appeared recently in The New Yorker accompanying a preview of Rocky on Broadway.

I liked Hanuka’s art a lot and decided to do a search.  I discovered Mr. Hanuka’s website and spent a good amount of time checking out all the art he had on display. Hanuka not only shares his art, but often breaks down his process in creating a piece.

Recently my friends started e-mailing me links to the piece below. Tomer Hanuka created it as a limited edition silk screen print, for Mondo.  The Rambo piece wasn’t at Tomer’s sitewhen I first checked, but it is now.  What a beautiful poster!

Tomer Hanuka is an amazing artist and I look forward to seeing what he does next.

Z-View: “The Evil of Frankenstein”

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The Pitch: “Hey, I think Frankenstein is in the public domain.  Let’s make a Frankenstein movie!”

“We can but Universal has a copyright on the look of the monster.”

“Oh well.  Let’s do it!”

The Tagline:  “He’s never been more shocking! shocking! shocking!”

The Overview: Dr. Frankenstein is at it again.  He creates a monster that he can’t control.  So Frankenstein gets an assist from a carnival hypnotist.  The sideshow mentalist hypnotizes the monster and then secretly sends it in to steal from the townspeople.  This does not sit well with either the townspeople or Dr. Frankenstein.

The Good:

  • Minute 85.  [The movie runs 84 minutes.]
  • Actually, if you’re watching with the right crowd, this is a great movie to goof on as it plays.  MST3K, anyone?

The Bad:

  • The story.
  • The look of the monster.
  • Dr. Frankenstein and his partner wearing masks that make them look like cosplayers.
  • The carnival hypnotist’s name is Zoltan.

The Ugly:

  • Have you seen the monster?

Rating: 2 out of 5

Rare “Thing from Another World” Photos

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One of my favorite sci-fi movies/monster movies is The Thing from Another World.

Jame Arness (who would later go to fame as Marshall Matt Dillon in the long-running western series Gunsmoke) played the Thing.  Arness is seen in a rare photo above without full make-up as they prep him for a shot.

The photo below is Arness in full Thing make-up (and in a shot clearer than any ever seen in the movie)!

Source: Vic’s Movie Den and Classic Horror Movies.

“Devil” / Z-View

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The Pitch: “M. Night Shyamalan has an idea for a story about 5 people trapped in an elevator and one of them is not what they seem.”

“What is this person who isn’t what he/she seems?”

“Well, let’s just leave it at the movie will be called ‘Devil.'”

“Let’s do it!”

The Tagline:  “Five strangers trapped. One of them is not what they seem.”

The Overview: Five people find themselves trapped in a high-rise elevator.  Help is on the way, if they can live long enough for it to arrive.

The Good:

  • The concept.
  • The movie starts off immediately with action.
  • The movie has some creepy/scary moments but isn’t a gorefest.
  • One person almost immediately figures out what is going on, but no one believes him.
  • The way suspicions constantly shifted.

The Bad:

  • Being stuck in an elevator is bad enough, but stuck with the devil someone who is not what they seem really stinks.
  • Be stupid enough to step in water with a live wire sparking.

The Ugly:

  • Being able to look behind yourself while facing front.

Rating: 3 out of 5

All Time Top Ten Best Film Noir

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Recently The Guardian posted their choices for the Top Ten Film Noir.

Their list is a good one and included:

10.  They Live by Night
09.  Kiss Me Deadly
08.  Blood Simple
07.  Lift to the Scaffold
06.  The Third Man
05.  Out of the Past
04.  Double Indemnity
03.  Touch of Evil
02.  Chinatown
01.  The Big Sleep

Yeah, that’s a nice list.  I’ve seen 8 of the 10 [missing out on They Live by Night  and Lift to the Scaffold].

If I were to quibble, I’d move Double Indemnity  to the #1 spot and move something out to bring in The Postman Always Rings Twice  [original version, thank you].

Have You Seen Goran Parlov’s Art?

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I have to admit I am really late to the Goran Parlov party.

I was cruising the web and came across the drawing above.  I liked it and decided to do a search for more of Goran’s work.  The sketch below came up next.

Then I remembered that I had seen Goran’s art in the Punisher story “Welcome to the Bayou” written by Victor Gischler (#71-74, 2009).    Why I didn’t follow-up on what Goran did after that story, I’m not sure.  Thankfully it’s not too late.

Paul Walker – R.I.P.

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Paul Walker, the actor best known for his role in the Fast and Furious movie franchise died today in a car crash.  He was 40 years old.

Although best known as Brian O’Conner in the Fast and Furious series, I thought his best work was in Running Scared.  Walker played a low-level criminal given the task of disposing of  a gun used in the murder of a dirty cop.  Things go terribly wrong and Walker finds himself in a race against time, the cops and the mob.

Walker had just left a charity event when the crash occurred.  He had been home for the holidays on a break from filming Fast 7.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Paul Walker’s family, friends and fans.

Z-View: Pulp by Holt and Peterson

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Pulp  a one shot self-published
Writer: Jeremy Holt
Artist: Chris Peterson

Pulp is a 24 page one shot comic written by Jeremy Holt and illustrated, lettered and colored by Chris Peterson. It’s a ‘film noir’ type tale of solitude and how obsession plays on the psyche. Includes pinup by Brian Level.

Pulp is the tale of John Merchant, an obsessed writer [is there any other kind] and how he achieved his fame.  The writing and art meld perfectly.  The story is a simple one, but told with a level of complexity that makes it all the more surprising as the reveals become clear.  I’ve read it three times so far and appreciate it more with each reading.  Pulp  could have easily been titled Noir because it represents both genres so well.

Jeremy Holt and Chris Peterson are creators that I am going to watch.  They’ve created a comic more than worth the price of admission. I look forward to seeing what they cook up next.

Pulp  gets my highest recommendation with the understanding that this is a comic for mature audiences and not kids.  If you’re a fan of crime comics, pulp fiction, and noir, then Pulp  is for you!

Rating: 5 out of 5

“Sin City” TV Series Coming?

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According to this article in the New York Times, Bob Weinstein is…

…hoping to quickly follow the August release of the film “Sin City: A Dame to Kill For,” directed by Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez, with a “Sin City” television series from Mr. Miller and Mr. Rodriguez.

Man, I hope that comes to pass.  A Sin City  television series, especially if overseen by Miller and Rodriguez could be so cool.

I’d hope that the series would be an anthology of overlapping stories and characters rather than just follow one or a couple of the characters.  This would open up the series which already has so much potential.

I’ll post more news as it becomes available.

Source: Coming Soon.

Kings. Queens. Soldiers. Bikers. War.

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“Hey Craig, do you think Cymberline will be any good?”

I don’t know.  What’s Cymberline about?

“Kings.   Queens.   Soldiers.   Bikers.   War.”

Ok, you’ve got my interest.  Tell me more.

“It’s an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s play Cymberline.”

Huh?  Really?  Ok.  It has a good cast.  Let’s see the trailer.

You still have my attention.  I’m still interested.  My guess is Cymberline will show up on Netflix. I’ll check it out.  Then I can give a more definitive answer.