Showing posts with label Robert Englund. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Robert Englund. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 17, 2023

Review: "MASTERS OF MAKE-UP EFFECTS" is a Century of Practical Magic in One Magical Book

MASTERS OF MAKE-UP EFFECTS: A CENTURY OF PRACTICAL MAGIC
WELBECK PUBLISHING

AUTHORS: Howard Berger and Marshall Julius
DESIGN: Russell Knowles; Darren Jordan
EDITORS: Ross Hamilton and Roland Hall
ISBN: 978-0-80279-001-6; hardcover – 9” x 11” (September 20, 2022)
320pp, Color, $39.95 U.S., £30.00 U.K.

Forward by Guillermo Del Toro; Afterword by Seth MacFarlane

Masters of Make-Up Effects: A Century of Practical Magic is a film history and art book from authors Howard Berger and Marshall Julius.  Berger is a special make-up effects artist with over 800 feature film credits.  With Tami Lane, Berger won the “Best Make-up” Academy Award for their work on the 2005 film, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the WardrobeJulius is a London-based film critic, blogger, broadcaster and author, whose previous books include Vintage Geek (September Publishing, 2019) and Action! The Action Movie A-Z (Batsford Film Books, 1996).

Masters of Make-Up Effects: A Century of Practical Magic is an illustrated oral history of the art form of make-up effects, celebrating the make-up artists and acclaimed make-up effects masters from the world of both film and television  The authors take their readers into that fascinating world via untold stories from the sets of both popular and cult films and television.  Read the tales behind the make-up and effects on such films as An American Werewolf in London, Star Wars, Pan's Labyrinth, and The Thing, to name a few.  Visit the sets of such TV series as “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Doctor Who,” “Star Trek,” and “The Walking Dead,” to name a few.

THE LOWDOWN:  In Masters of Make-Up Effects: A Century of Practical Magic, there are 293 stories over 15 chapters.  I counted.  That made Masters of Make-Up Effects one of my most difficult book reviews – if not the most difficult.  There is just so much good stuff for film fans and movie buffs that reading it can sometimes feels like sensory overload.

First, I'll mention something that absolutely delighted me.  Co-author Marshall Julius pens an introduction that recounts an interview he conducted with his then-future co-author, Howard Berger, in 2006.  It ended with Berger applying his make-up effects magic on Julius, and the result of that magic...  Well, you have to buy Masters of Make-Up Effects to find out what it is.  [If you are a movie fan, you really should already have this book.]

Masters of Make-Up Effects contains hundreds of photographs, a few of which I was familiar.  However, the vast majority were new to me – these photographs of actors, directors, and, of course, the make-up and effects artists who are the stars of this book.  Yes, I have seen make-up special effects legend, Tom Savini (Dawn of the Dead, Creepshow), in film and on television for decades.  However, the other photographs put faces on these make-up effects and make-up artists I only knew as names on screen, on the Internet, and in books.  This includes masters such as Rick Baker, Rob Bottin, Greg Nicotero, Dick Smith, David White, Kevin Yagher, and Louis Zakarian, to name a few.

Seeing a photo of Stuart Freeborn and another of the members of his Star Wars “creature crew” was almost a religious experience.  Thank you, Howard and Marshall, for that.  Freeborn and company were the people behind Chewbacca and the creatures of the “Mos Eisley cantina sequence” in the first Star Wars.  In 1982, I saw Star Wars in a pre Return of the Jedi re-release.  That Saturday afternoon, I followed Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan “Ben” Kenobi into that “wretched hive of scum and villainy” and movies were never the same for me after that.  So finally seeing the artists behind it is a big deal.

While trying to find a way to talk about all these photos, it was then that I realized that Masters of Make-Up Effects: A Century of Practical Magic is not only a book of photographs, but it is also a book of stories.  If you like science fiction, fantasy, and horror films and television, this book of stories is for you and the fans in your life.  The storytellers include the great Robert Englund, Rick Baker, Doug Bradley, Bruce Campbell, Nick Dudman, Toni G, Doug Jones, John Landis, James McAvoy, Greg Nicotero, Sarah Rubano, and Tom Savini, to once again name a few.

One does not need to be a fantasy film fan to love this book.  After all, film and TV dramas also require make-up effects and make-up artists.  Chapter 13 is entitled “Reel Lives” and focuses on the make-up work behind films based on real-life figures.  Actors have to be made up to resemble historical figures like Alfred Hitchcock (Anthony Hopkins in 2012's Hitchcock); Judy Garland (RenĂ©e Zellwegger in 2019's Judy); and Margaret Thatcher (Meryl Streep in The Iron Lady), to name a few.

I bought this book almost a few months ago, and I find myself repeatedly returning to it.  I can't get enough of the photographs or the stories.  Howard Berger and Marshall Julius have created an important book in Masters of Make-Up Effects: A Century of Practical Magic, both for what it is and for what it may mean in the future.

As more people discover this book, some because of a second printing, they will realize that it is a gem.  Over time, it will become an important resource for reference and scholarly research.  Movie and television fans, put those unused gift cards from Christmas and the holidays to use and buy Masters of Make-Up Effects: A Century of Practical Magic.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Readers who are fans of the magic that is movies will want a copy of Masters of Make-Up Effects: A Century of Practical Magic.

A+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://www.welbeckpublishing.com/
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The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.

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Saturday, October 20, 2018

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from October 14th to 20th, 2018 - Update #23

Support Leroy on Patreon:

SPORTS - From Deadline:  NFL owners would like Amazon's CEO Jeff Bezos to purchase the Seattle Seahawks.

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AWARDS - From Variety:  2018 Gotham Awards nominations announced.  Based in New York City, the Gotham Awards honor independent films and also television.

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COMICS-STREAMING - From Variety:  Netflix has cancelled Marvel's "Luke Cage" a few months after its second season debut.

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MOVIES - From YahooEntertainment:  Jamie Lee Curtis calls the 1998 reboot film, "Halloween H20: 20 Years Later," a paycheck film, but says that she still loves it.

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CELEBRITY-SPORTS - From YahooCelebrity:  Amy Schumer vows not to film in commercials for Super Bowl 53 (Feb. 3rd, 2019) in support of the "take a knee" protests among NFL players.  Schumer wonders why more white players are not taking a kneeling.

From Vulture:  Grammy-winning singer and actress Rihanna said that she turned down the Super Bowl LIII halftime show in support of Colin Kaepernick and his "National Anthem" protests of "taking a knee" during the playing of the Anthem.

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MOVIES - From TheWrap:  Liam Hemsworth and Vince Vaughn join "Arkansas," the directorial debut of Clark Duke, the former child actor ("Hot Tub Time Machine").

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TELEVISION - From WashPost:  How Julia Louis-Dreyfus quietly became the most successful sitcom star ever

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MOVIES - From BleedingCool:  Chris Hemsworth has finished filming his part in the "Men in Black" reboot/sequel.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Michael B. Jordan will star in and produce the assassin story, "The Silver Bear," for Lionsgate.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Idris Elba joins Taylor Swift in the film adaptation of the classic Broadway musical, "Cats."

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MOVIES - From YahooEntertainment:  Robert Englund says he fought for Freddie Krueger to wear a fedora.

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MOVIES - From TheVerge:  An article about Gareth Evan's ("The Raid") latest film, the Netflix drama-thriller, "Apostle," and it how it extends the legacy of Robin Hardy's "The Wicker Man."

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ANIMATION - From SlashFilm:  New "Tom & Jerry," "The Flintstones," and "Scooby-Doo" films are in the works.  Some will be animated; some will be live-action/animation hybrids.

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BOX OFFICE - BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 10/12 to 10/14/2018 weekend box office is "Venom" with an estimated take of $35.7 million.

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COMICS-FILM - From Thrillist:  How Venom's crazy tongue comes to life in "Venom."

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MOVIES-POLITICS - From Truthout:  Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 11/9” Shows Democrats' Complicity in Electing Trump

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CELEBRITY - From Deadline:  Bryan Singer slams an upcoming "Esquire" magazine profile of him is a rehash of false accusations about him.

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COMICS-TV - From TheWrap:  Jack Bannon will star as "Alfred Pennyworth" in "Pennyworth," a 10-episode Batman prequel TV series to premier on Epix.

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MUSIC-POLITICS - From TheRoot:  The estate of the late music legend, Prince, asks President Trump to stop playing Prince's song, "Purple Rain," at his political rallies.

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RELIGION - From YahooNews:  Pope Francis has canonzied Oscar Romero, the late archbishop of San Salvador, El Salvador.  On March 24, 1980, Archbishop Romero was murdered by a right-wing assassination while performing Mass in the chapel of the Hospital of Divine Providence.  Pope Francis also canonized Pope Paul VI (1963 to 1978).

OBITS:

From ESPN:  NFL Hall of Famer (Class of 1976), Jim Taylor, died Saturday, October 13, 2018 at the age of 83.  Taylor played for the Green Bay Packers from 1958 to 1966.  He was the NFL MVP in 1962, and was on the Packers 1961, 1962, and 1965 NFL Championship teams, as well as being a member of the team that won Super Bowl I.  A native of Louisiana, he played football at Louisiana State University (LSU).

From CNN:  Billionaire Paul Allen has died at the age of 65, Monday, October 15, 2018.  Allen was the co-founder of Microsoft.  He also owned two professional sports franchises, the NBA's Portland Trailblazers and the NFL's Seattle Seahawks.

From YahooHuffPost:  Brothel owner and celebrity pimp, Dennis Hof, has died at the age of 72, Tuesday, October 16, 2018.  Porn movie acting legend, Ron Jeremy, reportedly found Hof's body.  At one time, Hof owned as many as four brothels, including the "Moonlite BunnyRanch" in Nevada.  He had an HBO series, "Cathouse" (2002 to 2014) and a bestselling autobiography.  Hof was running for Nevada state office.


Saturday, October 15, 2016

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from October 9th to 15th, 2016 - Update #28

Support Leroy on Patreon.

MOVIES - From TheWrap:  91-year-old veteran actor defends Nate Parker and "Birth of a Nation."  Concerning rape allegatiosn - get over it, he says.

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MOVIES - From YahooMovies:  President Barack Obama lists his all-time favorite science fiction flicks and a few TV show.

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TELEVISION - From TheWrap:  Delroy Lindo joins the cast of "The Good Wife" spinoff series, which will air on CBS All Access - a streaming service.

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ECO - From Time:  Robert Redford - "Climate change affects every issue."

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OBIT - From BleedingCool:  Michiyo Yasuda, an animator, artist, and colorist for anime films, has died at the age of 77.  She worked for Studio Ghibli and worked on such Hayao Miyazaki films as the Oscar-winning "Spirited Away" and "Ponyo."

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MOVIES - From TheWrap:  J.K. Rowling's "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" film series will be five film long.

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MOVIES - From ThePlaylist:  Quentin Tarantino is researching the 1970s for his next project, although that project might not be a film...

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MUSIC - From Variety:  Bob Dylan wins the Nobel Prize in Literature.  He is the first American to win the award since Toni Morrison in 1993.

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ECO - From TheGuardian:  Climate change deniers should not hold elective office.

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COMICS - From TheVillageVoice:  "Ms. Marvel Will Save You Now"

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CELEBRITY - From THR:  Mel Gibson is back - hot and bankable.

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OBIT -  From TMZ:  The actor Tommy Ford has died at the age of 52, Wednesday, October 12, 2016.  He was best known for playing "Tommy" on the 1990s Fox television comedy, "Martin" (starring Martin Lawrence).

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ECO - From EcoWatch:  Shailene Woodley and 26 others are arrest protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL).

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MOVIES - From CinemaBlend:  The original Freddy Krueger, Robert Englund, has a really good idea for the next installment of "A Nightmare on Elm Street."

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MUSIC - From YahooCelebrity:  Miley Cyrus is "pansexual."

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COMICS-FILM - From BleedingCool:  Marvel's "Captain Marvel" movie will be an origin story.

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MOVIES - From TheWrap:  Clint Eastwood has lined up his next film.

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MOVIES - From TheWrap:  "Chronicle" screenwriter Max Landis thinks "Mighty Morphing Power Rangers" looks like Chronicle.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Uber-talented Michelle Williams in talks to star in a Janis Joplin biopic.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Guy Ritchie is in talks to direct a live-action remake of Walt Disney's "Aladdin."

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BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 10/7 to 10/9/2016 weekend box office is "The Girl on the Train" with an estimated take of $24.7 million.

From Variety:  "Finding Dory" surpasses $1 billion in worldwide box office.  This is the third Disney film to do so this calendar year, following "Captain America: Civil War" and "Zootopia."

NEW YORK COMIC CON 2016:

From EW:  John Wick goes to NYCC '16 with Keanu Reeves vs. Common sizzle reel.

From ScreenRant:  At NYCC '16, Jeph Loeb talks about the FX and Marvel connections in the two studio's FX television series, "Legion."

From YahooTV:  At NYCC '16, Marvel introduces "The Defenders," who will appear on Netflix at some point.

From FlickeringMyth:  Marvel's animated "Avengers Assemble" became "Avengers: Ultron Revlutions" and will now become "Avengers: Secret Wars."  That is where Haley Atwell will reprise her role as "Peggy Carter" in voice form.

COMICS-FILM - From IGN:  2017 will see a new animated Spider-Man series from Disney, entitled "Marvel's Spider-Man."  The current series, "Ultimate Spider-Man" ends in January.

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TELEVISION - From DemocracyNow:  Rosario Dawson and Norman Lear among stars exploring "America Divided."

TRAILERS:

From YouTube:  Third official "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" trailer.

From TheVerge:  First full trailer for Marvel-Netflix's "Iron Fist" series.


Thursday, February 11, 2016

Thor's Chris Hemsworth Headed to Wizard World Cleveland


Chris Hemsworth Powers Into Wizard World Cleveland, Saturday, February 27

Star of 'Thor,' 'The Avengers,' Upcoming ‘Ghostbusters’ Headline Event Which Already Features Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, Robert Englund At FirstMerit Convention Center

CLEVELAND - Millions of fans flocked to theaters to see him as the “God of Thunder” in the Thor and Avengers franchise blockbusters. Later this month, they can meet Chris Hemsworth in person as he headlines Wizard World Cleveland on Saturday, February 27, 2016, at the FirstMerit Convention Center of Cleveland, Ohio. Hemsworth will sign autographs, pose for photo ops and conduct a Q&A panel, as announced today by Wizard World, Inc. (OTCBB: WIZD), a leading producer of comic con, gaming and pop culture events.

One of Hollywood's fastest-risers, Hemsworth was first introduced to U.S. audiences in Star Trek in 2009. Three years later, Hemsworth also starred in Universal’s big revisionist fairy tale Snow White And The Huntsman opposite Charlize Theron and Kristen Stewart and in the horror feature The Cabin in the Woods.

As prolific as 2012 was for the Melbourne, Australia, native, 2015 was even bigger, with four feature films including The Avengers: Age of Ultron, In the Heart of the Sea, Vacation and Blackhat . He also will play the lead in the sequel The Huntsman Winter's War and a key role in the reboot of Ghostbusters, both scheduled for release this year.

“We are extremely excited to be adding a Hollywood heavyweight like Chris Hemsworth to what was already shaping up as a massive second-year show in Cleveland,” said John Macaluso, Wizard World President and CEO. “He is one of our most requested guests, and is the kind of superstar celebrity fans have come to expect to meet at our events.”

Wizard World Cleveland will mark Hemsworth's third Wizard World appearance.  He was a huge hit in Sacramento in 2015 and in Philadelphia in 2012, and this year joins an already star-studded celebrity roster in Cleveland, as the “Doctor Who” duo of Matt Smith and Karen Gillan, “The Walking Dead” tandem of Chandler Riggs and Michael Rooker , Robert Englund ( A Nightmare on Elm Street) and Frank Grillo (Captain America: The Winter Soldier) are the early commitments to one of Wizard World’s most popular comic con events.

Wizard World comic and gaming con events bring together thousands of fans of all ages to celebrate the best in pop-fi, pop culture, movies, graphic novels, cosplay, comics, television, sci-fi, toys, video gaming, gaming, original art, collectibles, contests and more. The third event currently scheduled on the 2016 Wizard World calendar, Cleveland show hours are Friday, February 26, 3-8 p.m.; Saturday, February 27, 10 a.m.-7 p.m.; Sunday, February 28, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Wizard World Cleveland is also the place for cosplay, with fans young and old showing off their best costumes throughout the event. Fans dressed as every imaginable character – and some never before dreamed – will roam the convention floor and participate in the famed Wizard World Costume Contest on Saturday night.

For more on the 2016 Wizard World Cleveland, visit http://wizd.me/ClevelandPR .


About Wizard World (OTCBB: WIZD)
Wizard World, Inc. (www.wizardworld.com ) produces comic, gaming and pop culture conventions across North America that celebrate the best in pop-fi, pop culture, movies, television, cosplay, comics, graphic novels, toys, video gaming, sci-fi, gaming, original art, collectibles, contests and more. A first-class lineup of topical programming takes place at each event, with celebrity Q&A's, comics-themed sessions, costume contests, movie screenings, evening parties and more. Wizard World has also launched Wizard World Store ( www.shopwizardworld.com), CONtv, a digital media channel in partnership with leading independent content distributor Cinedigm™ (NASDAQ: CIDM), and ComicConBox™ ( www.comicconbox.com), a premium subscription-based monthly box service. Fans can interact with Wizard World on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and other social media services.

The Wizard World 2016 schedule is available at: http://wizardworld.com/searchby/city/ .

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Saturday, September 26, 2015

Negromancer News Bits and Bites for the Week of September 20th to 26th, 2015 - Updated #21

Support Leroy on Patreon.

NEWS:

From Hitfix:  Apparently, someone is plotting to remake "The Exorcist."

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From SlashFilm:  Matt Damon reveals more info on his fourth Jason Bourne film (the fifth overall).

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From YahooMovies:  Aaron Sorkin rips into Apple's Tim Cook over the movie, "Steve Jobs."

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From TheWrap:  There is a huge controversy about the "white boy hero" of "Stonewall."  I have mixed feelings about this.  I understand why the filmmakers would feel the need for this character, but I understand why some are angry that the real-life leaders of that event, people of color, are secondary characters.  I guess we need to keep in mind that his is a fictional account of a real-life event.

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From TheWrap:  Sigourney Weaver will be in the "Ghostbusters" reboot.

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From YahooMovies:  As preparations move forward for a second "Men in Black" trilogy, news breaks that Will Smith is unlikely to return.

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From ThePlaylist:  Steven Soderbergh has an intriguing new project, entitled "Mosaic," with Garrett Hedlund and Sharon Stone.

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From YahooNewsRobert Englund, famous for playing movie monster, Freddie Krueger," believes that a remake of "A Nightmare on Elm Street 3" is being planned.

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From TheWrap:  "Empire" has a second season debut with 16 million viewers.

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From YahooNews:  The title of "Prometheus 1" is Alien: Paradise Lost?

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From TheGuardian:  Leo DiCaprio joins $2.6 trillion fossil fuel divestment movement.

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From THR:  You'd think that after a $1.5 billion grossing seventh installment, Furious 8 would be easy sailing.  But no...

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From BleedingCool:  Clive Barker's "Weaveworld" headed to The CW.

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From ThePlaylist:  Ridley Scott says that it might not be until Prometheus 3 or 4 that the franchise will formally connect to Scott's 1979 film, "Alien."

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From Variety:  Jack Reacher 2's villain might be played by Patrick Heusinger.

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From Deadline:  When Viola Davis won "Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama" for "How to Get Away with Murder," she made history by becoming the first African-American woman to win that award.  Two others Black women also won at the 67th Primetime Emmys:  Regina King ("American Crime") and Uzo Aduba ("Orange is the New Black").

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From Deadline:  With its four wins at the 67th Primetime Emmy Awards and eight wins at last week's Creative Arts Emmy, "Game of Thrones" set a record with 12 Emmy Award wins in a single year.

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From Deadline:  "Modern Family" had won the "Outstanding Comedy Series" Emmy five years in a row, a feat also achieved by NBC series, "Frasier" in the 1990s.  In fact, no series has won "Outstanding Comedy Series" more than five times.  At the 67th Primetime Emmys, "Veep" won the "Outstanding Comedy Series" Emmy and kept Modern Family from winning a record sixth in that category.

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From BoxOfficeMojo:  "Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials" won the 9/18 to 9/20/2015 weekend box office with an estimated haul of $30.3 million.


COMICS - Books and Films:

From THR:  Ta-Nehisi Coates will apparently write the first 12 issues of Marvel Comics' upcoming "Black Panther" comic book series.  I am not as excited by this news as I thought I'd be. - Leroy


TRAILERS:

From YouTube:  New "Peanuts" trailer (9/21) from 20th Century Fox and Blue Skys.


OBITS:

From Deadline:  Jimmy Olsen has died.  The actor, Jack Larson, who played Olsen in the "The Adventures of Superman" 1950s TV series, died Sunday, September 20, 2015.  Larson was 87.


Saturday, May 1, 2010

Second Elm Street, "Freddy's Revenge," Poor Follow-up to Classic

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 127 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux


A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985)
Running time: 87 minutes (1 hour, 27 minutes)
DIRECTOR: Jack Shoulder
WRITER: David Chaskin (based on the characters created by Wes Craven)
PRODUCER: Robert Shaye
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jacques Haitkin and Christopher Tufty
EDITORS: Bob Brady and Arline Garson

HORROR

Starring: Robert Englund, Mark Patton, Kim Meyers, Robert Rusler, Clu Gulager, Hope Lange, Marshal Bell, Melinda O. Free, and Tom McFadden

With Freddy Krueger, the boogeyman of the A Nightmare on Elm Street films, set to arise again in the upcoming Freddy Vs. Jason, I thought I should see one of the two “Elm Street” films that I hadn’t seen, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge. In this the first of many sequels, Jesse Walsh (Mark Patton) and his family move into the home that Freddy’s (Robert Englund) evil spirit haunted in the original film. Freddy’s uses Jesse’s body as his new conduit into the real world where he can get at a fresh batch of Elm Street teens. You see it was the parents of those Elm Street kiddies who, in an act of vigilante justice, murdered Krueger, a child killer who’d evaded the law. Years later, Freddy, the embodiment of evil, comes back as a malevolent spirit who haunts the dreams of his murderers’ offspring and kills them in their sleep.

Freddy’s Revenge isn’t so much an entire movie as it is part of a movie. As an entry in a long running series, it’s barely a chapter. The movie begins with a lot of poorly constructed setup. It’s boring because we don’t need to know the history of Elm Street. The audience knows Freddy will come; drop the bull and bring on the bad guy. Instead, we get a lot of scenes of Jesse having difficulty adjusting to school and to life as a teen, although he does have a girlfriend. Jesse’s role as a teenage misfit is mostly boring, and I couldn’t care less about the rest of the cretins who populate his high school world. The show doesn’t really start jumping until you-know-who shows up, but by the time Freddy really busts out, the movie is about over.

Clearly the writer and the director of Freddy’s Revenge didn’t have a grasp of the character like original writer/director and Freddy creator Wes Craven did. They did keep Freddy carefully cloaked in the inky darkness of night, his face mostly hidden in shadows, a creepy and convincing bogeyman (gleefully played by Englund), but they didn’t let Freddy run amuck enough. The great thing about the original was that Freddy really got to let loose. He was a truly frightening monster, especially when we couldn’t see him, but we knew he was there. There are some interesting moments here, mostly to do with Freddy. I must say that this film isn’t as bad as I expected it to be, but it’s really a clunky film. It’s feels like what it is – a sequel the studio rushed out to catch some of the good buzz left over from the first film. It’s cynical, cheap, and sad, because if they’d taken their time, the filmmakers had enough good ideas to at least make a really good scary movie.

3 of 10
C-


Original "Nightmare on Elm Street" IS a Classic

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 28 (of 2010) by Leroy Douresseaux


A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
Running time: 91 minutes (1 hour, 31 minutes)
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Wes Craven
PRODUCER: Robert Shaye
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jacques Haitkin
EDITORS: Pat McMahon and Rick Shaine

HORROR

Starring: Heather Langenkamp, John Saxon, Ronee Blakley, Amanda Wyss, Nick Corri, Johnny Depp, Charles Fleischer, and Robert Englund

Originally released in 1984, A Nightmare on Elm Street was a film written and directed by legendary horror auteur, Wes Craven (Scream). A low-budget horror flick, A Nightmare on Elm Street launched a film franchise, a television series, merchandising, and imitators, but the film is a classic scary movie because of its penchant for blurring the border between dreams and reality. Most importantly, A Nightmare on Elm Street introduced one of the very best screen villains ever, Freddy Krueger.

Tina Gray (Amanda Wyss) has a dream in which she is stalked by a mutilated man with a second distinctive feature, razor-sharp knives attached to the fingers on his right hand. Her friend, Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp), has experienced a similar dream involving the same sinister figure. Even Tina’s estranged boyfriend, Rod Lane (Nick Corri), has dreamed of this creepy man.

After Tina is murdered and Rod is blamed, Nancy discovers that Fred Krueger (Robert Englund), a child murderer killed by a mob of angry parents, is the man in her dreams. Krueger has returned to haunt the children of his killers, using their dreams to get his revenge from beyond the grave. When local teens fall asleep, Krueger attacks and kills them in their dreams, which also kills them in the real world. Nancy and her boyfriend, Glen Lantz (Johnny Depp, in his screen debut), hatch a plan to drag Krueger into the real world, but will that help them or make things worse?

In spite its low budget, A Nightmare on Elm Street delivers the thrills, chills, and scares of a movie with many times its budget. This first installment of the franchise has a high creepy factor because the narrative muddles reality with surreal moments in which imagination and the dream world intrude on everyday reality. One could make an argument that all or most of the movie is a dream, and that neither the narrative nor its characters are reliable.

Plus, in Fred (eventually Freddy) Krueger, A Nightmare on Elm Street has a villain who can terrorize his victims in their dreams and occasionally wreak havoc in the real world, which strengthens this story’s unsettling atmosphere. He is a bloodthirsty demon with a wicked sense of humor, and his glove, with its sharp knives, is one of the great weapons in horror movie history and in cinematic history, in general. Practically all the credit for Freddy Krueger’s fame belongs to character actor, Robert Englund, who achieved a rare feat – creating movie monster whose fame spans generations and who has international appeal.

The film’s target audience – the audience that first saw it back in the mid-80s – and likely many that see it now, can identify with Nancy and her friends. Adults don’t take them or their fears and concerns seriously, leaving them at Krueger’s mercy, which is ironic considering that the adults killed Krueger in order to protect their children. The teens are on their own, unable to discern the shifty reality that has become their existence. Like them, we are left alone to figure out this crazy, scary dream world, and A Nightmare on Elm Street delivers. It is the real deal in scary movies, and Freddy is a fictional serial killer who seems almost real.

7 of 10
A-

Saturday, May 01, 2010

Friday, April 30, 2010

Freddie Vs. Jason Simply Bad

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 128 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux


Freddy Vs. Jason (2003)
Running time: 97 minutes (1 hour, 37 minutes)
MPAA – R for pervasive strong horror violence/gore, gruesome images, sexuality, drug use and language
DIRECTOR: Ronny Yu
WRITERS: Damian Shannon and Mark Swift (based upon characters created by Wes Craven and Victor Miller)
PRODUCER: Sean S. Cunningham
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Fred Murphy (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Mark Stevens
COMPOSER: Graeme Revell

HORROR/FANTASY/ACTION/THRILLER

Starring: Robert Englund, Monica Keena, Ken Kirzinger, Kelly Rowland, Jason Ritter, James Callahan, Brendan Fletcher, and Lochlyn Munro

There’s little reason to say a whole lot about the long-awaited film showdown between two venerable movie maniacs, Freddy Krueger of the A Nightmare on Elm Street films and Jason Voorhees of the Friday the 13th films. It’s not simply a question of loving or hating it; when you get down to the bare bones, Freddy Vs. Jason is a truly awful film.

Freddy (Robert Englund) is in hell, fuming because he can’t get at the children of Elm Street in the town of Springwood. The parents and town leaders have found a few ways of keeping Freddy from the minds and dreams of their children. Thus, Freddy resurrects Jason (Ken Kirzinger) in hopes that Jason will scare up memories of Freddy. Of course, a plot, even a silly one, between two undead, homicidal maniacs is bound to fall apart. Jason gets out of hand, taking all the kills for himself, so Freddy decides to take him out of the equation.

Ronny Yu, who breathed new life into the Child’s Play series with Bride of Chucky, can’t do a damn thing for Freddy Vs. Jason, and I totally blame the manically lame script. Whereas Bride was perverse, funny, and perversely funny, Freddy is clunky, dull, and painfully dry. I think the writers, Damian Shannon and Mark Swift, instead of telling a good story, used too much of their script to shoehorn into this new film all the continuity and characteristics of the two original series. Because of this, more than half of Freddy Vs. Jason is without a story beyond what amounts to preflight commentary. There are quite a few good moments in the film, but everything else is, to speak plainly and crudely, crap.

Although the film as some imaginative effects, it’s not nearly as imaginative as the original Nightmare films, which all surely had smaller budgets than this film. Oh, it does have its moments, but it’s cursed by all the things that typically make horror movies bad: poor acting, weak plot and script, and lack of imagination. As far as horror films goes, most fans are willing to overlook all those problems if the damn thing is scary, and Freddy Vs. Jason isn’t, not even close. It’s just vile and violent, mostly a self-parody that exudes an air of cynicism about itself and the audience.

We, who loved the originals, were programmed to come, despite the misgivings we had from the moment we first heard of that “they” were making a Freddy Vs. Jason movie. Some of us just can’t resist, so we deserve the occasional cow patty thrown squarely in our mugs. The real tale will be told when we see how many of us come back for more, because in the end we deserve a much better film than this.

2 of 10
D