Thursday, May 28, 2009
Reboots and Luaus
7:19 PM | 
Posted by
Batboy
Holy shit! It's been almost a month since I've posted... i'm quite the busy p
rick these days. More on that in a bit, but first, I wanna talk about REBOOT.
Nah, not those cheap ass CGI turds. Reboots. Hollywood style. I remember first hearing that dreaded word during the filming of Batman Begins. Back then, the concept seemed new and exciting, and for the most part, reboots have worked. Batman, Casino Royale, and Star Trek have all been hugely successful both commercially and financially. But like with all good things, eventually Hollywood's gotta milk that sow's tits dry.
I kinda knew things were going downhill when they announced a "reboot" of Friday the 13th. Scratch your heads along with me folks, because you probably thought what I did - EVERY fucking Jason movie is essentially a reboot. I mean, Jesus H. Crisco, we've had 8 actors or something playing Jason, and Jason in various states of decay and usually in different clothes in every flick. He always winds up sunk and the bottom of Crystal Lake, yet he always emerges in the next flick in a fresh set of shambles. Perhaps Momma Voorhees threw his armoire in the lake after he drowned.
Anyways, the point is that a reboot was pointless. Every movie was the same... Jason rises from the grave, and starts cleaving guys from neck to nuts (or for the ladies, mouth to muff). It's the same fucking plot. Yet, brand it a reboot, and suddenly its all new again. Bullshit.
Now comes word out of those patient, artistically inclin
ed geniuses at FOX (insert sarcastic prick emoticon here) that a "reboot" of Alien is in the works. First off, WHY? It's a FUCKING ALIEN MOVIE! Here's the jist of it for you guys at Fox, in case you're reading: the alien gets in your chest, bursts out, grows up, and eats your ass. Add slight variations in both the number of aliens and Sigourney Weaver's hair, and that's pretty much it. Sequel? Why yes please. You don't even have to get Siggy back, just find a new group to be terrorized. Reboot? Fuck you.
"Reboot" has become the new catchphrase for coke-addled knuckleheads in Hollywood to add to their cliche dictionary - the one that includes words like "downsizing" and "Synergy" and "thinking outside of the box".
The Alien franchise doesn't need a reboot or a reimagining. It just needs a) a good director. Not some music video directing flake either, and b) a studio willing to let that director bring their vision to life free of studio heads buggering the shit out of it. Then, Mr. Fox Rothman Dude, you'll have a successful movie. Oh, and put this baby in it. He rocks.
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ZOMBIE LUAU!
Back to the reason for my lack of blogging goodness... I've been prepping what I hope to be one kick ass, ghoultastic, flesh ripping, poi-tastic party - our Zombie Luau!
In case you haven't heard, on Saturday, June 13th, DEDfest: Hellberta's Horror Festival, is screening Lucio Fulci's tropical gut-busting, eye-popping grindhouse classic "ZOMBIE" at Metro Cinema. In glorious pristine 35mm courtesy of our good friends at Media Blasters.
But no, we're not just showing the movie... we've got loads of shits and shenanigans. Luau contests, trailer reels, and prizes galore are in store for you folks, along with (as Kev calls it) SWEET SWEET ALCOHOL. And if you wanna win prizes, you gotta get zombified. But we don't want just any old ordinary zombie costumes; we want you going Luau style! Dress up those flesh wounds with a sexy grass skirt. Add a groovy Hawaiian shirt to compliment that exposed brain. Have fun, and the more creative the better.
Advance tickets will be on sale at the Lobby VERY SOON! Stay posted to our DEDfest, Zombie Luau, and Welcome to dEdmonton pages for info.
rick these days. More on that in a bit, but first, I wanna talk about REBOOT.Nah, not those cheap ass CGI turds. Reboots. Hollywood style. I remember first hearing that dreaded word during the filming of Batman Begins. Back then, the concept seemed new and exciting, and for the most part, reboots have worked. Batman, Casino Royale, and Star Trek have all been hugely successful both commercially and financially. But like with all good things, eventually Hollywood's gotta milk that sow's tits dry.
I kinda knew things were going downhill when they announced a "reboot" of Friday the 13th. Scratch your heads along with me folks, because you probably thought what I did - EVERY fucking Jason movie is essentially a reboot. I mean, Jesus H. Crisco, we've had 8 actors or something playing Jason, and Jason in various states of decay and usually in different clothes in every flick. He always winds up sunk and the bottom of Crystal Lake, yet he always emerges in the next flick in a fresh set of shambles. Perhaps Momma Voorhees threw his armoire in the lake after he drowned.
Anyways, the point is that a reboot was pointless. Every movie was the same... Jason rises from the grave, and starts cleaving guys from neck to nuts (or for the ladies, mouth to muff). It's the same fucking plot. Yet, brand it a reboot, and suddenly its all new again. Bullshit.
Now comes word out of those patient, artistically inclin
ed geniuses at FOX (insert sarcastic prick emoticon here) that a "reboot" of Alien is in the works. First off, WHY? It's a FUCKING ALIEN MOVIE! Here's the jist of it for you guys at Fox, in case you're reading: the alien gets in your chest, bursts out, grows up, and eats your ass. Add slight variations in both the number of aliens and Sigourney Weaver's hair, and that's pretty much it. Sequel? Why yes please. You don't even have to get Siggy back, just find a new group to be terrorized. Reboot? Fuck you."Reboot" has become the new catchphrase for coke-addled knuckleheads in Hollywood to add to their cliche dictionary - the one that includes words like "downsizing" and "Synergy" and "thinking outside of the box".
The Alien franchise doesn't need a reboot or a reimagining. It just needs a) a good director. Not some music video directing flake either, and b) a studio willing to let that director bring their vision to life free of studio heads buggering the shit out of it. Then, Mr. Fox Rothman Dude, you'll have a successful movie. Oh, and put this baby in it. He rocks.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ZOMBIE LUAU!
Back to the reason for my lack of blogging goodness... I've been prepping what I hope to be one kick ass, ghoultastic, flesh ripping, poi-tastic party - our Zombie Luau!
In case you haven't heard, on Saturday, June 13th, DEDfest: Hellberta's Horror Festival, is screening Lucio Fulci's tropical gut-busting, eye-popping grindhouse classic "ZOMBIE" at Metro Cinema. In glorious pristine 35mm courtesy of our good friends at Media Blasters.
But no, we're not just showing the movie... we've got loads of shits and shenanigans. Luau contests, trailer reels, and prizes galore are in store for you folks, along with (as Kev calls it) SWEET SWEET ALCOHOL. And if you wanna win prizes, you gotta get zombified. But we don't want just any old ordinary zombie costumes; we want you going Luau style! Dress up those flesh wounds with a sexy grass skirt. Add a groovy Hawaiian shirt to compliment that exposed brain. Have fun, and the more creative the better.
Advance tickets will be on sale at the Lobby VERY SOON! Stay posted to our DEDfest, Zombie Luau, and Welcome to dEdmonton pages for info.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
A Classic Gets Reanimated...
“… an unreviled orgy of sadism…”
This was from Variety Magazine’s review of George A. Romero’s 1968 film “Night of the Living Dead”. Thankfully, few people listened to the review. The film has gone on to become not just one of the most acclaimed horror films of all time, and one of the most acclaimed films period. Its shrewd blend of B-movie thrills, unprecedented gore, real chills and a political undercurrent reflective of its time made it a box office hit and secured the film’s place in cinema history.
What many people don’t know is that the picture lapsed into the Public Domain because the distributor, the Walter Reade Organization, neglected to put a copyright indicator on the prints. US copyright law at the time required such an indicator. That’s why if you throw a rock in Best Buy you’ll likely hit a copy of NOTLD, usually piss-poor transfers with crappy cover done by shady looking DVD companies. And even worse, one of our finest filmmakers got royally screwed. But there’s an upside…
The public domain status has allowed curator Mike Schneider to bring about one of the year’s
most interesting film projects – Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated. Keeping the existing audio track and painting over the video, Schneider put out a call to artists and animators across the world to put their own stamp on the horror classic. The result? The classic tale of terror is now told through a variety of fine arts and animation techniques – traditional animation, CG, stop motion, oil painting, watercolor, ink – even sock puppets, tattoos, t-shirts, and Barbie dolls – all synched up to the original audio track.
The project had its last call for entries just a few weeks ago, and is now in post production. I got the chance to grill Schneider on this cool new film project.
How’d you come up with the concept? And what were your next steps after that in getting the project off the ground?
"I'm a conceptual artist and a film geek. I wanted to bring them together. I love the freedoms and expressive qualities of art but it's so esoteric that it alienates people outside of the art community. You have these really complex languages which are already foreign to most of the audience and then the artwork speaks in colloquial expressions, idioms, and abstract poetic metaphors about largely intangible ideas. How the heck are people who aren't raised/ trained in that language supposed to be able to get anything from the gallery?
I had a peanut butter in my chocolate moment. My thought was if I take a film and treat that as an art space... then we have a place that more people will feel comfortable walking into and as a result a space where artists could show their work to this larger audience. What this would do is give the audience a way to enter into the work and then they can appreciate the freedom and expressive nature of it all instead of trying to figure out what the heck its suppose to be.
So I started this thing off doing Last Man on Earth as a solo project. Great idea but flawed... pretty soon I was as trapped, isolated and overwhelmed as Price was in the film. By best
estimates, it would have taken me about 15-20 years to fill an entire film with my own artwork. I soldiered on but was watching other films in between working to keep my mind bringing new ideas into the work. Anyway, one day I popped in my battle wary copy of Night of the Living Dead. Then I came to this line: 'That's my point! There's not going to be five, or even ten! There's going to be twenty, thirty, maybe a hundred of those things, and as soon as they find out we're here, this place'll be crawling with them!' - Harry Cooper (NOTLD '68). I realized that I was approaching it all wrong. Artist's aren't meant to be the ones trapped... they are the creatures banging on the windows trying to 'get into your head'. Artists like those things have strength in numbers and so this project shouldn't be a solo art show... it should be a group show... plus with a whole bunch of artists and animators involved it was a hell of a lot more realistic on top of everything else. So I changed horses and reframed the project as a mass collaborative. Thus Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated was underway.
I wrote up a blurb I passed around to artists/ animators I knew. Largely the response was, 'Why would you do that?' The split seemed to be between the people who didn't get the poin
t of making a film out of art and those who didn't get the point of why it needed to be a film which already existed.
I then started throwing blurbs on Craigslist... again the response seemed more of people questioning the few things I established as controls then experimenting with everything else I left opened. It dawned on me that there were fan artists on youtube and deviant art who were already doing NOTLD work. I thought if I started by getting some of them on board then we'd have work to show. In the mean time, I started working on my own segments so I had something to show for myself as well. We were a group of maybe a dozen artists but even then there was enough artwork that it started to make sense to other people. We had our first press coverage about a month into the idea and from there the group and collection of work kept growing. The rest is history."
What was the initial reaction to your pitch?
This was from Variety Magazine’s review of George A. Romero’s 1968 film “Night of the Living Dead”. Thankfully, few people listened to the review. The film has gone on to become not just one of the most acclaimed horror films of all time, and one of the most acclaimed films period. Its shrewd blend of B-movie thrills, unprecedented gore, real chills and a political undercurrent reflective of its time made it a box office hit and secured the film’s place in cinema history.
What many people don’t know is that the picture lapsed into the Public Domain because the distributor, the Walter Reade Organization, neglected to put a copyright indicator on the prints. US copyright law at the time required such an indicator. That’s why if you throw a rock in Best Buy you’ll likely hit a copy of NOTLD, usually piss-poor transfers with crappy cover done by shady looking DVD companies. And even worse, one of our finest filmmakers got royally screwed. But there’s an upside…
The public domain status has allowed curator Mike Schneider to bring about one of the year’s
most interesting film projects – Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated. Keeping the existing audio track and painting over the video, Schneider put out a call to artists and animators across the world to put their own stamp on the horror classic. The result? The classic tale of terror is now told through a variety of fine arts and animation techniques – traditional animation, CG, stop motion, oil painting, watercolor, ink – even sock puppets, tattoos, t-shirts, and Barbie dolls – all synched up to the original audio track.The project had its last call for entries just a few weeks ago, and is now in post production. I got the chance to grill Schneider on this cool new film project.
How’d you come up with the concept? And what were your next steps after that in getting the project off the ground?
"I'm a conceptual artist and a film geek. I wanted to bring them together. I love the freedoms and expressive qualities of art but it's so esoteric that it alienates people outside of the art community. You have these really complex languages which are already foreign to most of the audience and then the artwork speaks in colloquial expressions, idioms, and abstract poetic metaphors about largely intangible ideas. How the heck are people who aren't raised/ trained in that language supposed to be able to get anything from the gallery?I had a peanut butter in my chocolate moment. My thought was if I take a film and treat that as an art space... then we have a place that more people will feel comfortable walking into and as a result a space where artists could show their work to this larger audience. What this would do is give the audience a way to enter into the work and then they can appreciate the freedom and expressive nature of it all instead of trying to figure out what the heck its suppose to be.
So I started this thing off doing Last Man on Earth as a solo project. Great idea but flawed... pretty soon I was as trapped, isolated and overwhelmed as Price was in the film. By best
estimates, it would have taken me about 15-20 years to fill an entire film with my own artwork. I soldiered on but was watching other films in between working to keep my mind bringing new ideas into the work. Anyway, one day I popped in my battle wary copy of Night of the Living Dead. Then I came to this line: 'That's my point! There's not going to be five, or even ten! There's going to be twenty, thirty, maybe a hundred of those things, and as soon as they find out we're here, this place'll be crawling with them!' - Harry Cooper (NOTLD '68). I realized that I was approaching it all wrong. Artist's aren't meant to be the ones trapped... they are the creatures banging on the windows trying to 'get into your head'. Artists like those things have strength in numbers and so this project shouldn't be a solo art show... it should be a group show... plus with a whole bunch of artists and animators involved it was a hell of a lot more realistic on top of everything else. So I changed horses and reframed the project as a mass collaborative. Thus Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated was underway.I wrote up a blurb I passed around to artists/ animators I knew. Largely the response was, 'Why would you do that?' The split seemed to be between the people who didn't get the poin
t of making a film out of art and those who didn't get the point of why it needed to be a film which already existed.I then started throwing blurbs on Craigslist... again the response seemed more of people questioning the few things I established as controls then experimenting with everything else I left opened. It dawned on me that there were fan artists on youtube and deviant art who were already doing NOTLD work. I thought if I started by getting some of them on board then we'd have work to show. In the mean time, I started working on my own segments so I had something to show for myself as well. We were a group of maybe a dozen artists but even then there was enough artwork that it started to make sense to other people. We had our first press coverage about a month into the idea and from there the group and collection of work kept growing. The rest is history."
What was the initial reaction to your pitch?
"At first, artists wanted to question the few things I established instead of playing with 
everything that I hadn't, filmmakers and animators didn't seem to get why it had to be a film that already existed and people already knew and the fans seemed outraged that we were 'messing with Romero's classic'. Once we had some work in, artists started to come around to the idea (though they still wanted to question the rules), as did film makers/ animators (though they wanted add and change things about the film), and even the fans started to take it all with a grain of salt as they started to see things in the collection of work which interested them. It took a bit more work before the visuals really had a presence to themselves. Once it started to look like an impressive project it became more attractive to other artists. The more work and artists involved, the more fans saw things they liked and started to come around. Now the arguments and counter points never really went away but as the amount of work keeps growing it starts to take on a life of its own and where as people will always still have their 'what if's' they can appreciate the fact that our project has become much more then just a hypothetical idea. I'd say as far as the overall tone we've come a really long way. I'm really starting to feel like there are people who 'get it' and from there I hope they enjoy the works they like and appreciate that there are other people who are enjoying the works they don't."
What was your reaction when the first entries started coming in?
everything that I hadn't, filmmakers and animators didn't seem to get why it had to be a film that already existed and people already knew and the fans seemed outraged that we were 'messing with Romero's classic'. Once we had some work in, artists started to come around to the idea (though they still wanted to question the rules), as did film makers/ animators (though they wanted add and change things about the film), and even the fans started to take it all with a grain of salt as they started to see things in the collection of work which interested them. It took a bit more work before the visuals really had a presence to themselves. Once it started to look like an impressive project it became more attractive to other artists. The more work and artists involved, the more fans saw things they liked and started to come around. Now the arguments and counter points never really went away but as the amount of work keeps growing it starts to take on a life of its own and where as people will always still have their 'what if's' they can appreciate the fact that our project has become much more then just a hypothetical idea. I'd say as far as the overall tone we've come a really long way. I'm really starting to feel like there are people who 'get it' and from there I hope they enjoy the works they like and appreciate that there are other people who are enjoying the works they don't."What was your reaction when the first entries started coming in?
"Honestly, I was split. The works which followed the idea and artists who did their own thing with it were great but others seemed to miss the point. When I tried to illustrate thing with filters and/ or the first artworks coming in but then there were people who latched onto the visuals instead of the concept.
It took me back to teaching. If you don't show the class examples most of them will be lost. If you show them one or two examples they will copy those examples verbatim. It isn't until you show them a board full of examples that they start to find their own ideas in between the other works.
A project like this really has the same set of circumstances... once we had a website covered with artwork online suddenly the group started to grow overnight and as we go the artists are all feeling the freedom to try new things and take chances in their artwork. The project has become even stronger for it."
Do you have a favourite entry/segment so far? Or if not a favourite, which one’s been the most surprising?
It took me back to teaching. If you don't show the class examples most of them will be lost. If you show them one or two examples they will copy those examples verbatim. It isn't until you show them a board full of examples that they start to find their own ideas in between the other works.
A project like this really has the same set of circumstances... once we had a website covered with artwork online suddenly the group started to grow overnight and as we go the artists are all feeling the freedom to try new things and take chances in their artwork. The project has become even stronger for it."
Do you have a favourite entry/segment so far? Or if not a favourite, which one’s been the most surprising?
"No on both accounts. I entered this project without any expectations visually so there isn't any chance of something which will really surprise me because I've openedly requested everyone to bring what they do to the party. As far as favourites, there are some works which are more appealing to me visually and others more appealing to me conceptually but in reality no individual work speaks to me as much as the juxtaposition of all these things sitting next to each other under the frame of the same project."
What stage is the project in now, and when can we see the finished film?
"We are in post production. We are filling spots between artwork with more artwork and then are all going to critically review the timeline offering up alternative work for anything which feels like it's bringing the quality down. We're shooting for festivals and independent theaters in the fall and a DVD by winter. It's a long way to go but considering how far the project has come over the last 11 months, I think we can do it."
What’s been the most challenging part of the process?
"Our biggest challenge is the unforeseeable circumstances which have been plaguing the artists and everyone else. Between the skyrocketing job lost, wide spread illnesses, deaths in their families, and just Murphy's law, a lot of our artists have had to face a lot of hardship throughout this project. We solider on but I know these circumstances have made the work slower developing and have caused many artists who desired to participate forced to back out of the project because their lives were too trying. The work which is being done by these artists even through these hard times is a testament to their passion and their love for the original film. Still it's been a challenge because as an artist and fan myself part of me wants to extend things to allow all of these people time to get their lives back together while part of me feels that it would be a disservice to the fans and artists who have been pushing themselves so hard not to move forward. As John Lasseter once put it, 'Animation is never done, it's just released.' So though we are working to finish the film for release... should the climate change and the clouds part... who knows what the future holds."
There’s a lot of public domain flicks out there… any you’re thinking of tackling next?
"Actually, the next pass through we're taking another step forward with this idea and will be working with old time horror radio dramas instead. Before there was a home movie market or much in the way of independent film, if a story wasn't mainstream box office material it never received the green light to become film. So not to be completely wasted, they found themselves a home in our homes as radio dramas. Well written and aptly performed by the masters of the horror genre, theses stories have fallen into obscurity because they lack the visual stimulation needed in our ever growing visual culture. By pairing our artwork and animation with these radio dramas, our next project 'Unseen Horror' will give these stories the screen time they deserve and help them find a home in the DVD collections of horror fans everywhere. Anyone who might be interested in participating in that next project is advised to sign up for more information here : http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/unseenhorror/"
Have you spoken or had contact with Romero on this? Has he offered any feedback? What about the film’s surviving cast and crew?
Have you spoken or had contact with Romero on this? Has he offered any feedback? What about the film’s surviving cast and crew?
"This is a complicated question which I'm going to attempt to answer very carefully. We have presented the materials and received some acknowledgement that it has been heard about and seen. In respect and restraint, I will not be making any statements on their behalf. Should they at some point wish to publicly comment on our project either in the form of praise or criticism, they do so with my blessing. Also for what it is worth, I do not wish for our project to be considered as an alternative to their film but rather as a supplement for fans of their original work to see the responses which other artists have had to this cult classic. A true fan tries to support the art, not exploit the artists and so I encourage everyone to do the same."
Friday, May 1, 2009
FREE COMIC BOOK DAY
Happy Fuckin’ May Day.
We’ve had a shit spring here in Dedmonton, but things are finally looking up. In addition to some decent weather, Happy Harbour Comics has a shitload of fun planned for their annual Free Comic Day celebration this Saturday May 2. In addition to free fucking comics, they’ve got giveaways and tons of special guests, including ED THE SOCK!! Ed and Liana K will be taping their show from the HH 124th street location at 7:30PM. Also, the E-Ville Roller Derby girls will be holding a couple of matches in the street behind Happy Harbour’s Whyte Ave digs at 11AM and 3PM.
We’ve had a shit spring here in Dedmonton, but things are finally looking up. In addition to some decent weather, Happy Harbour Comics has a shitload of fun planned for their annual Free Comic Day celebration this Saturday May 2. In addition to free fucking comics, they’ve got giveaways and tons of special guests, including ED THE SOCK!! Ed and Liana K will be taping their show from the HH 124th street location at 7:30PM. Also, the E-Ville Roller Derby girls will be holding a couple of matches in the street behind Happy Harbour’s Whyte Ave digs at 11AM and 3PM.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Laid to Rest - Review
Sure, Bruce Campbell is God. Sam Raimi, George Romero, and Dario Argento are royalty. But the makeup FX artist… he’s 
the fucking rock star of the horror world. Winston, Savini, Bottin, Nicotero and Berger – these are the guys every genre geek wants to be. So it’s only natural we’ve had a few of them venture into the world of directing. We’ve had the late Stan Winston’s modestly successful Pumpkinhead, and Savini’s NOTLD remake, but as cool as these movies are, when you put an FX guy behind the lens its usually going to be all about the FX. Rob Hall’s Laid to Rest (now available at The Lobby DVD Shop On Whyte) is no exception – and it’s a fucking beautiful thing.
Hall, previously known for his effects work on Buffy, Angel, Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles, and films like Quarantine, previously directed 2004’s indie drama (yes that’s right… drama) Lightning Bug. That may explain why despite the blood and mayhem of Laid to Rest, there’s some meat on them there bones. And I’ll get around to beating that meat shortly.
The plot is simple. Girl wakes up in coffin, escapes,
but can’t remember where she is, why she’s there, or even who she is. Worse yet, some dude with a metal skull face and two of the most pimpin’ knives you’ll ever see is chasing her. One impalement and a gouged eyeball later, and she’s fleeing for her life. And that’s before the title card even rolls. From there, it becomes your typical slasher movie, with said girl being chased by ol’ nickelface and him killing everyone that gets in his way.
The good? Some pretty solid performances. We’ve got some cameos from Terminator’s Lena Hedley (who rocks her all-too-brief role) and Thomas Dekker, and genre steadfasts Johnathon Schaech and Richard Lynch, but the weight of the movie rests on leads Bob
bie Sue Luther (who bumped uglies with Cousin Andy in "Curb Your Enthusiasm") and Kevin Gage. Luther was a little off-putting at first, playing her amnesiac more like a b-movie bimbo version of Nell, but as her character toughens up, damn it if she didn’t have me cheering her on (although she didn’t pull out the twins at all, and spent a good chunk of the film in a bulky flannel shirt). Gage is extremely likeable and stoic in his role as well.
But if we were really interested in the craft of acting we’d be watching James Lipton. We’re here for the kills, baby, and boy does this nasty little sucker deliver. While the killer, Chromeface, looks mildly interesting at best, it’s the way he kills that makes him such a memorable badass. Hall’s company Absolute Human Inc. pulled out all the stops – we’ve got head skewerings, face cleavings, impalements, some acid face-eating, death by tire sealant and beheadings gruesome enough to make Iraqi insurgents flinch. And the makeup effects are good… spooky good. This movie has more than it’s share of “holy fuck” moments.
The bad? The usual suspects – poor editing and cinematography. Not to rag on the people behind the camera, its just disheartening to have a film with so many great elements look crappy because of budget restraints. As much as I loves me some indie horror, this movie would have been so much better with a tighter pace and a slicker look. Also, Hedley, Dekker and Schaech were completely wasted. Hell, it took more time to figure out how to pronounce Schaech’s name than his actual screen time. (Remember when that guy used to work with Tom Hanks? Yeah, neither did I.)
But despite some annoying flaws and some poor pacing, LTR is a great throwback to the old slasher flicks of yesteryear. Pop this on with Adam Green’s Hatchet, crack open a sixer of stubbies, and bask in the sweet rancid smell of nostalgia.
the fucking rock star of the horror world. Winston, Savini, Bottin, Nicotero and Berger – these are the guys every genre geek wants to be. So it’s only natural we’ve had a few of them venture into the world of directing. We’ve had the late Stan Winston’s modestly successful Pumpkinhead, and Savini’s NOTLD remake, but as cool as these movies are, when you put an FX guy behind the lens its usually going to be all about the FX. Rob Hall’s Laid to Rest (now available at The Lobby DVD Shop On Whyte) is no exception – and it’s a fucking beautiful thing.Hall, previously known for his effects work on Buffy, Angel, Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles, and films like Quarantine, previously directed 2004’s indie drama (yes that’s right… drama) Lightning Bug. That may explain why despite the blood and mayhem of Laid to Rest, there’s some meat on them there bones. And I’ll get around to beating that meat shortly.
The plot is simple. Girl wakes up in coffin, escapes,
but can’t remember where she is, why she’s there, or even who she is. Worse yet, some dude with a metal skull face and two of the most pimpin’ knives you’ll ever see is chasing her. One impalement and a gouged eyeball later, and she’s fleeing for her life. And that’s before the title card even rolls. From there, it becomes your typical slasher movie, with said girl being chased by ol’ nickelface and him killing everyone that gets in his way.The good? Some pretty solid performances. We’ve got some cameos from Terminator’s Lena Hedley (who rocks her all-too-brief role) and Thomas Dekker, and genre steadfasts Johnathon Schaech and Richard Lynch, but the weight of the movie rests on leads Bob
bie Sue Luther (who bumped uglies with Cousin Andy in "Curb Your Enthusiasm") and Kevin Gage. Luther was a little off-putting at first, playing her amnesiac more like a b-movie bimbo version of Nell, but as her character toughens up, damn it if she didn’t have me cheering her on (although she didn’t pull out the twins at all, and spent a good chunk of the film in a bulky flannel shirt). Gage is extremely likeable and stoic in his role as well.But if we were really interested in the craft of acting we’d be watching James Lipton. We’re here for the kills, baby, and boy does this nasty little sucker deliver. While the killer, Chromeface, looks mildly interesting at best, it’s the way he kills that makes him such a memorable badass. Hall’s company Absolute Human Inc. pulled out all the stops – we’ve got head skewerings, face cleavings, impalements, some acid face-eating, death by tire sealant and beheadings gruesome enough to make Iraqi insurgents flinch. And the makeup effects are good… spooky good. This movie has more than it’s share of “holy fuck” moments.
The bad? The usual suspects – poor editing and cinematography. Not to rag on the people behind the camera, its just disheartening to have a film with so many great elements look crappy because of budget restraints. As much as I loves me some indie horror, this movie would have been so much better with a tighter pace and a slicker look. Also, Hedley, Dekker and Schaech were completely wasted. Hell, it took more time to figure out how to pronounce Schaech’s name than his actual screen time. (Remember when that guy used to work with Tom Hanks? Yeah, neither did I.)
But despite some annoying flaws and some poor pacing, LTR is a great throwback to the old slasher flicks of yesteryear. Pop this on with Adam Green’s Hatchet, crack open a sixer of stubbies, and bask in the sweet rancid smell of nostalgia.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
OFF THE RAG!!
If you're bored tonight and want to catch a flick with some great folks, head down to Happy Harbour Comics for a double bill of My Name Is Bruce and Repo! The Genetic Opera. Yeah, you can rent these and watch them at home, but these movies are meant to be seen with a rowdy crowd of geeks like me, so head down and check it out.
And they have, as Kevin from The Lobby so eloquently says, "sweet sweet alcohol".
Movies start at 7:00PM. All proceeds go to support the Pure Speculation Fair.
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OFF THE RAG!! - Dracula 2000
And they have, as Kevin from The Lobby so eloquently says, "sweet sweet alcohol".
Movies start at 7:00PM. All proceeds go to support the Pure Speculation Fair.
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OFF THE RAG!! - Dracula 2000
There are loads of unsuccessful horror movies littering the cinematic landscape. Most of these movies are unsuccessful because – simply put – they suck hind tit. However, every once in a while, there comes a movie that undeservedly gets ragged on by the horror community. I’m here to take the dirty rag off and reveal a previously unseen gem that deserves a second look. The bloody clot I plan on dislodging this week is, fittingly, a vampire movie – Dracula 2000!
Also fittingly, the film is directed by Patrick Lussier, the man at the helm of this year’s My Bloody Valentine 3D. I hadn’t been this excited about the release of a mainstream
Anyways, back to Drac. I caught this film on it’s opening weekend (the last week before 2001 - nothing like leaving it to the last minute, Weinsteins) with a theatre maybe a third full. It’s a shame, because this reimagining of the Dracula legend w
The flick starts out in Victorian London, where Van Helsing (played by the ever-hammy Christopher “Starcrash” Plummer) had finally caught Dracula (Gerald “300 Abs” 
We got vamps in
Problem #2: the Scream connection. Bad marketing made this seem like yet another of those shitty Kevin Williamson clones. Did you see the poster? The marketing guys musta busted out the ol’ “I Know What You Did” template in Photoshop.
What did the movie do right? First off, as much as
But by far, the best thing about Dracula 2000 was his origin story – such a brilliant stroke of genius and by far the best reimagining of a character I’ve seen in a long time. See, Drac ain’t just Vlad the Impaler… he’s (SPOILER NOTE!!)
…Judas Iscariot! The backstabbing bastard himself! By expanding his legend, the writers have crafted such a cool origin for the Prince of Darkness that you’ll slap yourself on the forehead and exclaim “why the fuck didn’t I think of that!” All of Drac’s little quirks, like the aversion to silver and crosses, all suddenly make sense.
Stylish with a little bit of brains thrown in, Dracula 2000 should have found a bigger audience than it did, especially with the shit that came out that year. Strangely, it was enough of a success to merit two craptastic straight-to-dvd sequels. Go figure.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Freddy Vs. Rorschach
The big movie news this week: Jackie Earle Haley IS Freddy Krueger. Haley, last seen as the psycho vigilante Rorschach in Watchmen, will strap on the rusty razor glove and pizza-cheese face in Platinum Dunes’ remake of A Nightmare On Elm Street. This is inspired casting; I just wish Michael Bay would be as inspired in his choice of directors. Almost every single fucking remake done by Dunes has featured a music video director at the helm, including ANOES’s Samuel Bayer. To Bayer’s credit, he’s actually got a pretty extensive resume, which includes the classic Nirvana video Smells Like Teen Spirit, but does this mean he’s qualified to remake one of the most seminal horror movies of all time? Furthermore, if you’re going to remake a classic Mr. Bay, why not grow some brass balls and allow an established director to put his own spin on it? Or let someone from the amazing new crop of international directors (including those from the “new wave” of French horror) take a crack at it.After watching Martyrs this past week, it was a no-brainer that director Pascal Laugier is the perfect choice to helm the upcoming redux of Hellraiser. But for Bayer, I find it hard to believe that Bay and co. sat down, watched a couple of Cranberries videos, and said “Fuck Craven! This is our guy!” I’d like to believe the producers at Platinum Dunes see something in these directors that we don’t, because the alternative – that these guys are hired because they’re cheap, glossy, and willing to tow the company line – is a pisser.
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In splatter news of a different kind, the Paintball Warriors of Classic Terror (sponsored by The Lobby DVD Shop on Whyte) have some vids up on YouTube of their last tournament in which they scored 3rd place! Also, they’ve been undefeated for 8 games straight… way to kick ass for us gorehounds, boys!
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
April Foolishness
“Let’s All Go to the Lobby…”
If you’re bored as fuck tonight, in a movie-watching mood, or just a sick bastard in general, Kevin at The Lobby DVD shop on Whyte has something special for you.
First up, Martyrs, the most controversial horror film of 2008, hits DVD today, (a month earlier than the US!). This French film reputedly made audience members pass out during several screenings last year due to its extreme nature. The plot? I can’t even begin to describe it… from what I understand it goes from revenge fantasy to spiritual torture porn, with strong religious overtones. To give you an idea of what to expect, director Pascal Laugier has been tapped by the Weinsteins to direct the upcoming Hellraiser remake.
With titles like Haute Tension, Inside, Frontiere(s), and now Martyrs, it seems like this new wave of French horror (it even has a wiki entry: the “New French Extremity”) is running roughshod over anything Hollywood has to offer.
Also out this week is Lucio Fulci’s Cat in the Brain. Long before Adaptation or Being John Malkovich came Fulci’s whacked-out movie-within-a-movie. Director Lucio Fulci (Zombie, The Beyond) plays himself, tormented by strange visions while filming his latest gore opus. If you like this one, DEDfest has a Fulci-related surprise for you this summer… stay tuned for details!
And last but not least – The Sinful Dwarf. I never knew there were Dwarfsploitaion movies until now. Mere pointless words can’t do this justice, so here’s the trailer:
If you’re bored as fuck tonight, in a movie-watching mood, or just a sick bastard in general, Kevin at The Lobby DVD shop on Whyte has something special for you.
First up, Martyrs, the most controversial horror film of 2008, hits DVD today, (a month earlier than the US!). This French film reputedly made audience members pass out during several screenings last year due to its extreme nature. The plot? I can’t even begin to describe it… from what I understand it goes from revenge fantasy to spiritual torture porn, with strong religious overtones. To give you an idea of what to expect, director Pascal Laugier has been tapped by the Weinsteins to direct the upcoming Hellraiser remake.With titles like Haute Tension, Inside, Frontiere(s), and now Martyrs, it seems like this new wave of French horror (it even has a wiki entry: the “New French Extremity”) is running roughshod over anything Hollywood has to offer.
Also out this week is Lucio Fulci’s Cat in the Brain. Long before Adaptation or Being John Malkovich came Fulci’s whacked-out movie-within-a-movie. Director Lucio Fulci (Zombie, The Beyond) plays himself, tormented by strange visions while filming his latest gore opus. If you like this one, DEDfest has a Fulci-related surprise for you this summer… stay tuned for details!And last but not least – The Sinful Dwarf. I never knew there were Dwarfsploitaion movies until now. Mere pointless words can’t do this justice, so here’s the trailer:
Kev will be doin’ his thing ‘til 9PM tonight, and he’s got shitloads more on the shelves, including Timecrimes (another TIFF favourite), a few releases from this year’s After Dark Collection, and Frankenstein the Rapist. Yes, you heard that right.
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ATTACK OF THE SWEET TRANVESTITES
See Rocky Horror the way it was originally meant to be seen – live onstage. Dylan “the Vylan” Caddy has informed me that this is the final weekend for the Odd Lot Theatre Company’s presentation of the cult classic musical. It’s rare we get a piece of live theatre this cool, so head out and support these guys while you can. Tickets are available at Tix on the Square.
See Rocky Horror the way it was originally meant to be seen – live onstage. Dylan “the Vylan” Caddy has informed me that this is the final weekend for the Odd Lot Theatre Company’s presentation of the cult classic musical. It’s rare we get a piece of live theatre this cool, so head out and support these guys while you can. Tickets are available at Tix on the Square. ----------------------------------------------------------
BUCKLE OF DOOM
In other news, our friends at Rue Morgue have found yet another way to suck those sweet, sweet dollars out of my pocket: a new pewter belt buckle designed by the amazing Ghoulish Gary Pullin. Here’s the pic (click on it to hit the Rue Morgue Shoppe of Horrors):
In other news, our friends at Rue Morgue have found yet another way to suck those sweet, sweet dollars out of my pocket: a new pewter belt buckle designed by the amazing Ghoulish Gary Pullin. Here’s the pic (click on it to hit the Rue Morgue Shoppe of Horrors):
Also, I just picked up my copy of issue #88 dedicated to the 
late Lux Interior of The Cramps. Lux passed away from heart failure earlier this year. Only the gang at RM has enough of a don’t-give-a-fuck attitude to put Lux on their cover and give him the props he deserves, so props to them.
late Lux Interior of The Cramps. Lux passed away from heart failure earlier this year. Only the gang at RM has enough of a don’t-give-a-fuck attitude to put Lux on their cover and give him the props he deserves, so props to them.
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