“Lawmen: Bass Reeves” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

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It’s cool that Bass Reeves is getting a series.  I first posted about him back in 2013: The Life and Times of Deputy U.S. Marshall Bass Reeves.  I ended the post with…

I’m somewhat surprised Bass Reeves’ life story hasn’t been turned into a movie or tv series.

Now eight years later we’re getting a Bass Reeves series.  I always said, we’re ahead of the curve here.  ; )

From Executive Producers Taylor Sheridan and David Oyelowo comes the untold story of the most legendary lawman in the Old West: Bass Reeves. Lawmen: Bass Reeves, follows the journey of Reeves (Oyelowo) and his rise from enslavement to law enforcement as the first Black U.S. Marshal west of the Mississippi. Despite arresting over 3,000 outlaws during the course of his career, the weight of the badge was heavy, and he wrestled with its moral and spiritual cost to his beloved family.

Stream the series premiere of Lawmen: Bass Reeves on November 5, exclusively on Paramount+.

The Twilight Zone’s Best Twist Endings!

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Devin Meenan came up with a list of The 6 Best Twist Endings In Twilight Zone History, Ranked. The list is a good one. Before you click over to read Devin’s rankings and rationale, below is how I’d rank them.  I also included three that didn’t make Devin’s list and my rationale for each.

Beware of spoilers!

06. Eye of the Beholder
05. A Nice Place To Visit
04. Time Enough At Last
03. The Midnight Sun
02. The Invaders
01. To Serve Man

  • Nightmare at 20,000 Feet:  We know there really is a creature on the wing of the plane. THAT isn’t the twist.  The twist is when we realize that if Shatner’s character hadn’t taken drastic action, the gremlin would have crashed the plane killing everyone! We learn this as Shatner’s character is strapped to a gurney to go back to a mental institution.
  • The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street: This episode has one of the great twists of the series.  Neighbors have turned on each other resulting in at least one murder.  Each thinks the other could be the “alien”.  The things leading to this are mundane.  Lights going on and off.  A car starting.  In the midst of the mayhem the camera pulls back and we see the two aliens causing the events.  The aliens realize it doesn’t take much to get humans to turn on each other.  A world takeover will be easy.
  • Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up?:  This episode contains a double twist.  We’ve spent the episode wondering who is the alien (if there really is one).  The reveal is that one of the passengers is indeed an alien.  He/It brags to the counterman that an invasion to take over the earth is coming.  Then we get the 2nd twist.  The counterman reveals that he/it is an alien as well.  His race is aware of the other aliens’ plan to take over the earth.  His “people” have intercepted and wiped them out.  The earth will be theirs!

“The Adjustment Bureau” (2011) starring Matt Damon & Emily Blunt / Z-View

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The Adjustment Bureau (2011)

Director: George Nolfi

Screenplay: George Nolfi based on “Adjustment Team” by Philip K. Dick

Stars: Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Michael Kelly, Anthony Mackie, Terence Stamp and Pedro Pascal.

Tagline: Your Future Has Been Adjusted

The Plot…

David Norris (Damon) was the leading candidate for a Senate seat.  A foolish college prank that Norris pulled years ago blew up on Social Media and cost him the race.  As Norris, thinking he’s alone, goes over his concession speech he meets Elise Sellas (Blunt).  There’s an instant attraction between the two.  He gets her first name and phone number before she has to run off and he has to give his speech.

The next day, Norris plans to call Elise.  He’s surprised to discover that a group of well dressed men are going to do everything in their power to keep the two apart.  Norris is told that if he and Elise get together it will ruin “the plan”.  As crazy as it sounds, this plan will change the world.  Norris sees enough to realize he’s not dealing with humans.  He also realizes that he’s got to see Elise again… no matter the cost.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)

The Adjustment Bureau crosses into several genres (sci-fi, romance, drama) and works well in each. 

The Adjustment Bureau will leave the viewer thinking about free will, destiny and how far would he/she would go to be with someone… even at the expense of the “greater good”.

Matt Damon and Michael Kelly are excellent. Emily Blunt, Anthony Mackie and Terence Stamp give performances that take the film to another level.  Watch for Pedro Pascal.  He has a cameo as a Maitre D’.

The Adjustment Bureau (2011) rates 4 of 5 stars.

TOO MANY BULLETS by Max Allan Collins / Z-View

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TOO MANY BULLETS by Max Allan Collins

Publisher: Titan Books

First sentence…

At the end of this narrative, certain guilty people go free.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

When Robert Kennedy asks Nate Heller to be his bodyguard, Heller agrees.  How could he refuse?  Nate and Bobby had been friends for years.  Plus security is a service that Heller and his agency provides.  Nate agreed even when Bobby’s demands made protecting him nearly impossible.  “No guns” and Nate as the only bodyguard. That’s how Nate Heller came to be present when Robert Kennedy was assassinated.

Of course the conspiracy theories started almost immediately.  The same people who killed John Kennedy got to Robert.  It was the mafia, the C.I.A., the… you fill in the blank.  It was a conspiracy.  There’s no way it was a lone gunman.  Heller didn’t buy into any of it.  He was there.  Hell, he was one of the first to grab Sirhan Sirhan as the little murderer was still firing.  No, they got the right guy.

Then Heller begins to hear things that don’t add up.  The number of bullets for instance.  By almost every account, there were more bullets fired than Sirhan’s gun could hold.  There were witnesses who saw more than one gunman.  Their reports were dismissed without merit.  Plus Sirhan Sirhan’s lawyer didn’t present evidence that could have brought doubt as to if he acted alone.  Then there were the questionable characters all around the periphery of the assassination.  Even though Nate was there, he was starting to have questions.

So Nate Heller decides to do his own investigation.  What he discovers isn’t in any history book and just might get him killed.

+++++

I’m a huge fan of Max Allan Collins’ Nate Heller series.  Heller is a fictional detective who finds himself in the middle of real crimes.  Heller ages in real time as the series progresses. His tales are fiction mixed with extensive research and historical fact. Heller has been in the mix on everything from the Lindbergh baby kidnapping/murder to the suspicious death of Marilyn Monroe and much more. It’s fun watching Heller interact with famous (and infamous) folks right out of our history books. Equally enjoyable is Collins’ take on the crimes and what may have really happened.

TOO MANY BULLETS is another great addition to the Nate Heller legacy.  It gets my highest recommendation.

Rating:

“GEORGE A. ROMERO’S RESIDENT EVIL” – The Poster & Trailer for The (NEW 2024) Documentary is Here!

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George Romero directing a Resident Evil movie was announced.  It should have been a no-brainer to combine Romero with the Resident Evil property.  Yet, it never happened.  I’m looking forward to this documentary to find out why.

Deal me in.

In 1998, Constantin Film set out to adapt the greatest horror video game franchise of all time, hiring legendary film director George A. Romero. Now, Key 13 Films, in association with Point Five Films and director Brandon Salisbury set out to uncover the mystery behind why Romero’s vision was never produced.

George A. Romero’s Resident Evil is a stylized documentary, utilizing archived footage, unearthed documents, and newly filmed interviews with a wide variety of personalities. The documentary combines elements from Capcom’s hit video game series and the raw, visceral style of George A. Romero to full immerse the audience in a cinematic horror aesthetic.

Now, audiences everywhere will experience the “darkest day of horror the world will never know”, as they uncover the unrequited vision of… George A. Romero’s Resident Evil

DIRECTOR: Brandon Salisbury

“Strays” (2023) starring Ashley Madekwe / Z-View

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Strays (2023)

Director: Nathaniel Martello-White

Screenplay: Nathaniel Martello-White

Stars: Ashley Madekwe, Samuel Paul Small, Maria Almeida and Justin Salinger.

Tagline: None.

The Plot…

The movie opens with a Cheryl, young bi-racial woman, discussing concerns about racial discrimination and finances with her sister.  Cheryl places a note for her husband on the refrigerator and leaves. Later we see her ignore calls from her husband.

We then shift forward several years.  Neve is a bi-racial woman married two a white man.  They have two bi-racial high-school aged children.  The family is well off.  Neve works as the Deputy Headmistress at the elite private school her children attend.  Neve is very high strung. Her world seems to be coming apart.  Neve has issues with “blackness”.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)

Strays is described as a horror thriller. I gave up looking for horror or thrills after 32 minutes.  The movie moved at a snail’s pace.  It was obvious that Cheryl and Neve are the same person.  Neve’s character is unlikable and that didn’t help.  Ashley Madekwe was excellent in the role.  I look forward to seeing her in better productions in the future.

Strays currently has a 4.8/10 rating on IMDb.  It has a 2.1/5 audience rating.  As for me…

Strays (2023) rates 1 of 5 stars.

“Day of the Dead 2: Contagium” (2005) / Z-View

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Day of the Dead 2: Contagium (2005)

Director: Ana Clavell, James Dudelson

Screenplay: Ryan Carrassi, Ana Clavell

Stars: Justin Ipock, Laurie Maria Baranyay, John F. Henry III.

Tagline: Every day has a beginning

The Plot…

In 1968, the Ravenside facility was a military hospital.  A biological experiment there accidentally turned soldiers into zombies.  Immediately things were out of control.  A private stole one of the vials and placed it in a thermos.  The soldier was killed trying to escape but the thermos was never found.  Thankfully the zombie uprising at the facility was contained. Word of it never leaked out.

Now Ravenside Memorial Hospital serves people struggling with mental illness. When one of the patients finds a thermos, you know what is about to take place.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)

This movie was titled in an effort to cash in on George Romero’s success with zombie films.  It has NO relationship to Romero or any of his movies.

Day of the Dead 2: Contagium’s tagline is “Every day has a beginning.”  The same can be said for the movie.  It had a beginning and it began badly.  I hoped it would get better.  It didn’t. I tapped out after 41 minutes.

Day of the Dead 2: Contagium currently has a 2.3/10 rating in IMDb.  

Day of the Dead 2: Contagium (2005) rates 1 of 5 stars.

“Gemini Man” (2019) starring Will Smith, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Clive Owen & Benedict Wong / Z-View

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Gemini Man (2019)

Director: Ang Lee

Screenplay: David Benioff, Billy Ray, Darren Lemke from a story by Darren Lemke, David Benioff

Stars: Will Smith, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Clive Owen, Benedict Wong, Ralph Brown, Ilia Volok.

Tagline: Who will save you from yourself

The Plot…

Henry Brogan (Smith) is an assassin for a secret US government agency.  He’s the best in the business, but the kills are starting to weigh heavy.  Even though he’s “taking out” really bad people, it’s getting harder to pull the trigger.  So after his last kill, Henry retires to a cabin by the sea at Buttermilk Sound, Georgia.

Soon after, Henry is contacted by a former partner.  Henry learns that he was given bad intel for his last hit.  The guy Henry assassinated wasn’t the threat to our government that Henry was led to believe.  When Henry’s former partner is killed, Henry knows he’s next.

What Henry doesn’t know, is that one of the agents sent to kill him is his clone.  If Henry’s the best assassin ever, how can he beat a younger, stronger version of himself?

Henry better figure it out and fast.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)

Gemini Man has an interesting plot.  The technology of 2019 is good enough to make a young Will Smith acting/fighting with his older self work. 

Will Smith makes a good hero.  He’s matched by an equally good villain in Clive Owen.  Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Benedict Wong are standouts.  Winstead is believable in the quiet moments as well as when the action revs up.  Wong provides restrained comic relief.

The action scenes come at a rate that allows you to go with the flow instead of thinking, this is a pretty by-the-numbers story. 

Where the movie goes off the rails is the last battle between old Will, Winstead, young Will and a large number of heavy armored and armed agents.  Despite the fact that they’re outnumbered and outgunned, Will and Winstead leave cover repeatedly to move forward. They kill agents by shooting them in the neck. Since the agents are wearing bulletproof helmets and armor, that’s the one shot that will take them out. 

Then if you can accept that 51 year old Will has repeatedly battled 21 year old Will to a standstill, you also have to buy that 55 year old Clive Owen who has spent the last few decades behind a desk can also hold his own in a fight with the best assassin in the business.  If your suspension of disbelief is still hanging in, wait until they bring out an even younger clone of Will Smith to kill the 21 year old clone and the original. 

I was tempted to rate Gemini Man a “2” but until that last battle, it was a solid “3” so I’m going with that.

Gemini Man (2019) rates 3 of 5 stars.

“Your Lucky Day” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

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I love the poster for Your Lucky Day.  The trailer gives away a lot, but it looks good.

Deal me in.

YOUR LUCKY DAY | In Theaters November 10, On Digital November 14 |
After a dispute over a winning lottery ticket turns into a deadly hostage situation, the witnesses must decide exactly how far they’ll go—and how much blood they’re willing to spill—for a cut of the $156 million.

Directed by: Daniel Brown
Cast: Angus Cloud, Elliot Knight, Jessica Garza, Sterling Beaumon, Mousa Hussein Kraish, Jason Wiles, Sebastian Sozzi, Spencer Garrett, Jason O’Mara

RIP: Dick Butkus

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Dick Butkus died yesterday in his sleep.  Mr. Butkus was 80.

Dick Butkus was born in Chicago.  He played his entire football career in Illinois.

Dick Butkus attended Chicago Vocational High School.  On the football team he played fullback, linebacker, punter, and placekicker.  He averaged 5 yards per carry as a fullback, but preferred to play defense.  He became the first junior to earn the Chicago Sun-Time’s high school player of the year award.

Mr. Butkus attended the University of Illinois, where he played center and linebacker.  He had a stellar college career.  In his freshman year, he made the 1962 All-Big Ten Conference football team.  The following year, he was named the team’s most valuable player. Dick Butkus also earned the Chicago Tribune Silver Football as the Big Ten’s most valuable player.  He was also a unanimous choice as center for the 1963 College Football All-America Team,  In 1964, Dick Butkus was named Co-Captain of the team.  UPI named him college football’s Lineman of the Year.  Mr. Butkus was named the Player of the Year by the American Football Coaches Association and The Sporting News. He was also named his college’s most valuable player for the second year in a row. Dick Butkus also earned a spot on the 1964 All-America team.  Although he didn’t win, he was in the running for the Heisman Trophy (as the best college football player) which is extremely rare for a defensive player.

Dick Butkus was the third overall pick in the 1965 NFL draft.  He played his entire 9 year career with the Chicago Bears.  Mr. Butkus was named the AP’s NFL Defensive Player of the Week four times in his career.  He came in 3rd place for the NFL’s Rookie of the Year Award (again, rare for a defensive player).  His rookie year he made the AP’s first-team All-Pro as well as a spot in the Pro Bowl (the first of eight straight).  Dick Butkus was named the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year in 1969 and 1970.

Dick Butkus’ pro career was cut short due to knee injuries.  He is credited for redefining the middle linebacker position. Some of his honors include:

  • His college jersey number, 50, was retired by the Illinois Fighting Illini.
  • ESPN named Dick Butkus the 70th greatest athlete of the 20th century
  • Pro Football Hall of Fame voters named Dick Butkus to the NFL’s 1960s All-Decade Team
  • Pro Football Hall of Fame voters named Dick Butkus to the NFL’s 1970s All-Decade Team
  • In his first year of eligibility he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979
  • He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983.
  • The Bears retired Dick Butkus’s No. 51 jersey in 1994
  • NFL Officials & media personnel named Dick Butkus to the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1994
  • Named to the Walter Camp Football Foundation’s All-Century Team in 1999
  • The Sporting News named Dick Butkus the 9th Best Player Ever in the NFL in 1999
  • A sculpture of Dick Butkus premiered at Soldier Field among other Chicago Bear greats in 2004
  • Mr. Butkus was inducted into the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame in 2008
  • Dick Butkus was named the 10th best player ever by the NFL Network in 2010
  • The NY Daily News named Dick Butkus the 8th best NFL player ever in 2014
  • Mr. Butkus was inducted to the Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame in 2016
  • Mr. Butkus was named a laureate of The Lincoln Academy of Illinois in 2018
  • Mr. Butkus was awarded the Order of Lincoln, the state’s highest honor, by the Governor of Illinois in 2018
  • NFL Officials & media personnel named Dick Butkus to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team in 2019

Dick Butkus created the Butkus Foundation to support charitable causes.

After retiring from professional football, Dick Butkus became a broadcaster, actor and was in demand by advertisers to endorse many products.

Some of Dick Butkus’ television appearances include: Brian’s Song; Emergency!; McMillan & Wife; Police Story (2 episodes); The Six Million Dollar Man; The Rockford Files; Rich Man, Poor Man; Wonder Woman; Taxi; Fantasy Island (2 episodes); Vegas; Magnum PI; Matt Houston; The Greatest American Hero; Simon & Simon; Blue Thunder (11 episodes); The Love Boat; Murder She Wrote; Half Nelson (7 episodes); Night Court (2 episodes); Matlock; Growing Pains; My Two Dads (27 episodes); MacGuyver (3 episodes); Coach (2 episodes); Hang Time (52 episodes) and The Bernie Mac Show.

Some of Dick Butkus’ feature film appearances include: Mother, Jugs & Speed; Gus; Johnny Dangerously; Gremlins 2; Necessary Roughness; The Last Boy Scout and Any Given Sunday.

Dick Butkus was my favorite football player when I was a kid.  I was a Chicago Bears fan and Mr. Butkus is a big reason for that.  I loved his style of play.  When he retired, I enjoyed seeing him in the broadcast booth or popping up in a movie, television show or commercial.  You can imagine the smile I had when I watched ROCKY for the first time and saw that his dog was named Butkus.  I also appreciate that Mr. Butkus backed several charitable causes.  What a life he lived.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Dick Butkus’ family, friends and fans.

“Hard Boiled Mahoney” (1947) starring Leo Gorcey, Huntz Hall, Dan Seymour & the Bowery Boys / Z-View

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Hard Boiled Mahoney (1947)

Director: William Beaudine

Screenplay: Cy Endfield, Edmond Seward, Tim Ryan

Stars: Leo Gorcey, Huntz Hall, Gabriel Dell, William ‘Billy’ Benedict, David Gorcey, Dan Seymour, Pierre Watkin, Bernard Gorcey, Patti Brill and Noble Johnson.

Tagline: DEFECTIVE DETECTIVES!

The Plot…

A woman mistakenly thinks that Slip (L. Gorcey) and Satch (Hall) are detectives.  She hires them to find her sister.  The clues lead to Dr. Rolfe Carter (Watkin).  Slip and Satch arrive at Dr. Carter’s office just as he’s being murdered.  Slip is knocked unconscious.  He awakens to find that he’s been set up to take the fall.

Slip escapes.  Now Slip, Satch and the rest of the Bowery Boys need to find the real killer.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)

This is one of the Bowery Boys better outings.

Dan Seymour is a welcome addition to the cast.  He plays the main bad guy.  You may know Seymour from his appearances in To Have and Have Not, Key Largo, The Big Heat, or another of his over 100 acting credits.

Patti Brill is in only a few scenes as Slip’s girl, but she makes an impact.

Heads up: There is a scene where two of the Bowery Boys are disguised as a shoe shiner and customer.  The shoe shiner is in blackface.

Hard Boiled Mahoney (1947) rates 3 of 5 stars.

“Night Swim” starring Wyatt Russell & Kerry Condon – The Trailer is Here!

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Night Swim

Coming Soon to Theaters

No running. No diving. No lifeguard on duty. No swimming after dark.

Atomic Monster and Blumhouse, the producers of M3GAN, high dive into the deep end of horror with the new supernatural thriller, Night Swim.

Based on the acclaimed 2014 short film by Rod Blackhurst and Bryce McGuire, the film stars Wyatt Russell (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) as Ray Waller, a former major league baseball player forced into early retirement by a degenerative illness, who moves into a new home with his concerned wife Eve (Oscar® nominee Kerry Condon, The Banshees of Inisherin), teenage daughter Izzy (Amélie Hoeferle, this fall’s The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes) and young son Elliot (Gavin Warren, Fear the Walking Dead).

Secretly hoping, against the odds, to return to pro ball, Ray persuades Eve that the new home’s shimmering backyard swimming pool will be fun for the kids and provide physical therapy for him. But a dark secret in the home’s past will unleash a malevolent force that will drag the family under, into the depths of inescapable terror.

Night Swim is written and directed by Bryce McGuire (writer of the upcoming film Baghead) and is produced by James Wan, the filmmaker behind the Saw, Insidious and The Conjuring franchises, and Jason Blum, the producer of the Halloween films, The Black Phone and The Invisible Man. The film is executive produced by Michael Clear and Judson Scott for Wan’s Atomic Monster and by Ryan Turek for Blum’s Blumhouse.

“Horizon: An American Saga” starring Kevin Costner – The Poster & Trailer are Here!

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Deal me in.

In the great tradition of Warner Bros. Pictures’ iconic Westerns, “Horizon: An American Saga” explores the lure of the Old West and how it was won—and lost—through the blood, sweat and tears of many. Spanning the four years of the Civil War, from 1861 to 1865, Costner’s ambitious cinematic adventure will take audiences on an emotional journey across a country at war with itself, experienced through the lens of families, friends and foes all attempting to discover what it truly means to be the United States of America. RELEASE DATE: June and August 2024