San Andreas (2015) / Z-View

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San Andreas (2015)

Director: Brad Peyton

Screenplay: Carlton Cuse from a story by Andre Fabrizio & Jeremy Passmore

Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Carla Gugino, Alexandra Daddario and Paul Giamatti.

The Pitch: “Let’s make a movie with the Rock.”

The Tagline: “ A rescue pilot survived an earthquake, this is what happens next…”

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

The San Andreas fault has triggered a series of major earthquakes causing buildings to fall, tsunami waves and an ever-increasing series of dangerous situations.  Think collapsing super-structures, electrical fires, panicked crowds and more.  Ray Gaines is a rescue pilot trying to get to his estranged wife and teenage daughter and nothing is going to stop him.

San Andreas takes us back to a time when disaster movies were the rage – think The Poseidon Adventure, Earthquake, The Towering Inferno, well, you get the idea.  Now add in modern special effects and The Rock and I think you smell what I’m cooking.

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Triple 9 (2016) / Z-View

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Triple 9 (2016)

Director: John Hillcoat

Screenplay: Matt Cook

Stars: Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Anthony Mackie, Woody Harrelson, Aaron Paul, Kate Winslet, Gal Godot and Norman Reedus.

The Pitch: “Let’s make a gritty crime movie — look at the cast we have lined up!”

The Tagline: “A deadly heist needs a killer distraction”

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

A crew of dirty cops are being blackmailed.  In order to get out from under, the cops plan a huge heist during a Triple 9 (that they will manufacture).  A triple 9 is code for “cop down” and the cop going down is the rookie not in their crew.

I was hoping for more [look at that cast!], but I did like Triple 9.

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The Revenant (2015) / Z-View

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The Revenant (2015)

Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu

Screenplay: Mark L. Smith & Alejandro G. Iñárritu (based in part on Michael Punke‘s novel)

Stars: Leonardi DiCaprio and Tom Hardy.

The Pitch: “Alejandro G. Iñárritu and Leonardo DiCaprio want to make a movie together.’”

The Tagline: “Revenant: (n. One who has returned, as if from the dead.)”

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

An 1820 expedition into the frontier for beaver finds itself under attack by Indians.  While making their escape, scout Hugh Glass is savagely mauled by a bear.  Fearful that they will be found by the marauding Indians, the Captain of the expedition leaves Glass and his young son in the care of John Fitzgerald [Hardy] who promises to stay with Glass until Glass dies.  Fitzgerald will then catch back up to the expedition.

When Glass doesn’t die, Fitzgerald decides to help things along.  He is caught by Glass’ son burying Glass alive.  Fitzgerald kills Glass’ son and leaves Glass for dead.  Glass slowly recovers and must make his way across the frontier fighting Indians, and the elements with his goal of revenge giving him a reason to live.

I liked The Revenant quite a bit, but probably not as much as most.  The action scenes were amazing.  The cinematography was beautiful.  No complaints with the acting or direction.  I did feel that a bit too much time was spent looking up a trees and with Glass’ visions.  The ending was unexpected and didn’t quite ring right with me.  Still, I really liked The Revenant and all the awards it won may be an indication that I’m picking nits.

Awards Won:

  • Academy Award: Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role – Leonardo DiCaprio
  • Academy Award: Best Achievement in Directing – Alejandro G. Iñárritu
  • Academy Award: Best Achievement in Cinematography – Emmanuel Lubezki
  • Golden Globe: Best Picture [Drama]
  • Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama – Leonardo DiCaprio
  • Golden Globe: Best Director – Motion Picture – Alejandro G. Iñárritu

Another 70 wins & 156 nominations.

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Bone Tomahawk (2015) / Z-View

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Bone Tomahawk (2015)

Director: S. Craig Zahler

Screenplay: S. Craig Zahler

Stars: Kurt Russell, Patrick Wilson, Matthew Fox, Richard Jenkins, Lili Simmons, David Arquette, Sid Haig, Michael Pare, and Sean Young.

The Pitch: “S. Craig Zahler is a writer/director to watch.  Let’s give him the 1.8 million he needs to make ‘Bone Tomahawk.’”

The Tagline: “May the Lord have mercy and grant you a swift death.”

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

A raiding party of cannibalistic Troglodytes are led to farm on the outskirts of a small western town.  The cannibals kill some settlers and kidnap others.  The town folk are too frightened to go after them except for the Sherriff [Russell], the injured husband [Wilson] of the woman kidnapped [Simmons],  the old deputy [Jenkins] and a gunfighter [Fox].

What begins as almost a character study turns into one of the most tense, frightening and violent movies in recent history.  The characters are so well written/played that I loved their interactions and the pace leading up to the action.  It was also fun seeing name actors in smaller roles.  Jenkins as the old deputy is a joy!

S. Craig Zahler moved to the must-watch list with Bone Tomahawk.

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13 Thrilling Facts About The Original “House of Wax”

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Mark Mancini and Mental_Floss present 13 Thrilling Facts About The Original House of Wax.  Here are three of my favorites…

8. IT COMES WITH AN INTERMISSION.
Prior to the late 1970s, “epic” films would often treat their viewers to a built-in bathroom break. Midway through screenings of Gone With the Wind and other, extra-long classics, the action would pause, the theater lights would brighten, and the word “Intermission” would appear onscreen. Ordinarily, this practice was reserved for movies with bladder-testing runtimes of two and a half hours or more. By comparison, House of Wax flies by with its breezy 88-minute runtime. Yet, unconventionally for a short picture, it contains an intermission. Why? Screening the 3D film required two projectors running simultaneously. The respite was necessary because it allowed theater employees to change both reels an hour into the movie.

9. A FUNCTIONING GUILLOTINE WAS USED IN THE CLIMAX.
Toward the end of the film, Igor gets into a big fight with Sue’s boyfriend, Scott, played by Paul Picerni. From the get-go, there’s no doubt about which one has the upper hand, as Igor seizes poor Scott and shoves his head under a guillotine in the museum’s French Revolution display. Luckily, the police arrive in time to rescue our hero, pulling him out of harm’s way seconds before the blade comes crashing down.

Just like his character, Picerni came dangerously close to getting his head chopped off, Louis XVI-style—because this guillotine was 100 percent real. Rather than film the scene in segments, de Toth wanted to shoot the whole thing in one take. With blithe nonchalance, he told Picerni to go and stick his head under the razor-sharp blade of this death device.

Naturally, Picerni objected. At a 2006 House of Wax Q&A, the star reminisced at length about the argument that followed. “I asked de Toth, ‘How are you going to control the blade?’ He said the property master was going to sit on top of the guillotine, holding the blade between his legs, then let it drop after my head was removed.” When the actor opined that this sounded dangerous, de Toth replied, “What are you, chicken sh*t?” In the end, Picerni agreed to do the scene in one take, on the condition that a metal bar be inserted under the blade to keep it from falling prematurely.

11. BELA LUGOSI ATTENDED THE PREMIERE—ALONG WITH A GUY IN A GORILLA SUIT.
Although the star of Universal’s Dracula (1931) did not appear in House of Wax, he did help promote it. The film’s world premiere was held at the Paramount Theater in Los Angeles on April 16, 1953. As a publicity stunt, Lugosi was invited to attend the big event. Clad in a vampire cape, he emerged from his limousine with a chain link leash, which was attached to an actor in an ape costume—a clear homage to the 1952 comedy Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla.

Werewolf of London (1935) / Z-View

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Werewolf of London (1935)

Director: Stuart Walker

Screenplay: John Colton (based on a story by Robert Harris)

Stars: Henry Hull, Warner Oland and Valerie Hobson

The Pitch: “Monster movies are making dough.  Let’s make a werewolf movie!”

The Tagline: “Beware the Stalking Being – Half-Human – Half-Beast!”

 

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

While on a expedition to Tibet, botanist Dr. Glendon [Hull] is attacked and bitten by a strange beast.  Although he survives and returns to his home in London, Glendon turns into a werewolf each night of a full moon.

Will Gelndon find a cure before he kills again or he is discovered to be the werewolf terrorizing the city…

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Promising Anti-Aging Drug Ready for Human Trial

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I’ve always said, “If you can live long enough, you can live forever.”

A compound called nicotinamide mono nucleotide (NMN) has been shown to slow down the aging process and extend the lifespans of mice. We’re about to find out if it does the same thing to humans.

A planned clinical trial devised by researchers from Washington University in St. Louis and Keio University in Japan is set to test the effectiveness and safety of the compound. Starting next month, about 10 healthy people will be administered NMN to see if can improve bodily function and stave off the effects of aging. Should it work, it would become the first bona fide anti-aging intervention available on the market.

Can you imagine if this drug (or another like it) works on humans.  Our first thoughts are probably how cool it would be… but if we deleve a bit deeper, my guess is the drug would create more problems than it would solve.  Could we deal with the extra (longer living) mouths to feed?  Would there be enough jobs?  Who would get access to the pills?  Would the extra years be quality?

I guess if we live long enough, we’ll find the answers to those questions and more.

Source: Gizmodo.

Otis Frampton and a Rhinestone Cowboy

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Otis Frampton did his take on Sly from Rhinestone way back in 2009 when every Sunday [okay, ALMOST, every Sunday], Otis had a live UStream broadcast that he called the 7×7 Sunday.

Lucky fans could get a head sketch of ANY character drawn live by Otis on a 7X7 inch bristol board for 7 bucks postage paid. It was the best deal going.  Watching Otis drawing live and interacting with fans kept me up even if I wasn’t a sketch winner.

Good times!

 

13 Kooky Facts About “The Addams Family”

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Stacy Conradt and Mental_Floss present 13 Kooky Facts About The Addams Family.  Here are three of my favorites…

3. JOHN ASTIN WAS ORIGINALLY CONSIDERED FOR LURCH.
Though John Astin auditioned for the role of the butler, it’s no wonder casting directors assigned him to Gomez, instead—the actor and the character apparently share a lot of similarities. “My brother said that Gomez is the clearest extension of my personality than anything else I’ve done,” Astin said. “That’s really who I am.”

5. LURCH WAS INTENDED TO BE MUTE.
But then actor Ted Cassidy ad-libbed the line, “You rang?” and Lurch was given a voice. He still wasn’t one for much conversation, but he did spit out a few words here and there—and even had a brief side career as a rock star.

12. THE NEW YORKER REFUSED TO RUN THE CARTOON WHEN THE SHOW CAME OUT.
Despite the fact that Charles Addams had been illustrating the creepy characters for The New Yorker since 1938, the esteemed publication didn’t want to be associated with the television show. Still, Addams was occasionally able to sneak them into other cartoons he drew for the magazine.

 

Kill Switch by Jonathan Maberry

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Kill Switch by Jonathan Maberry

What do you do when the power goes off?

 

  • Terrorists have acquired a terrible new weapon that can crash the power grid and plunge America into a new dark age. A coordinated attack is planned to shut out all lights and emergency services to ten major cities. Planes will fall, hospitals will go dark, no help will come.
  • And in that terrible darkness, a dreadful plague will be released. If the lights go off, nothing can stop the bioweapon from killing millions.
  • At the same time, the intelligence services are being torn apart from within by a plague of betrayal, murder, and suicide. Even the Department of Military Sciences is stumbling in its response to the growing threat.
  • Time is running out, and Joe is being hunted by a terrifying new kind of assassin. A team of remote viewers have the ability to take over any person and turn ordinary citizens into killers. Where can you turn when there’s nobody left to trust?
  • Joe Ledger faces his deadliest challenge as friends and allies become enemies and all of the lights begin to go out…

Maberry puts the DMS in the worst place yet against perhaps their toughest adversaries.  The clock is ticking down to an bio-weapon attack on ten cities.  The terrorists have the ability to take over the minds of anyone to do their bidding and the DMS has been ordered to stand down by the President.

You know that’s not going to happen.  Sadly people we have grown to know and care for are going to die trying to save our country.  Maberry creates characters that feel real so when we lose them (and we do throughout the course of the series) it hurts.

Kill Switch mixes just the right amount of actions (tons), suspense (much), and humor (as needed) to propel you to the bloody climax.  I can’t wait for Ledger’s next mission!

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