Filed under: Literature, Preview | Tags: childrens book, fantasy, Preview, spike jonze, where the wild thing are
Max is the King
I’m sure lots of kids have read the wonderful book Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. It’s a classic story of imagination and fantasy that has just been waiting to be made into a great film. Soon hopefully that great film will be hitting a theater nearby since it is now in post-production after filming started in 2005. Spike Jonze is directing this live action feature the screenplay of which he co-wrote with David Eggers. The basic storyline is as follows:
“One night Max dresses up in his wolf suit and does all kinds of things he shouldn’t, like chasing the dog with a fork. His mother scolds him and calls him a “WILD THING!” Max is so mad he shouts back, “I’LL EAT YOU UP!” As a result, his mother sends him to his bedroom without any supper. Max’s imagination transforms his bedroom into an extraordinary setting, with a forest and an ocean and a little boat that Max sails in until he comes to a land full of “wild things.” Although they look and sound very fierce, Max is able to tame them with a single glance. They all realize Max is “…The most wild thing of all” and make him their king. Max and the wild things have a fine time creating a rumpus until Max begins to want to be “…where someone loved him best of all.” Max’s fantasy ends when he smells his dinner. Despite the wild things’ protests, Max sails back to his own room where he finds his supper waiting for him. ” Via about.com
The images that have emerged of the film’s characters (some being up to 8 feet tall) are amazing and bring back warm memories of The Labyrinth and my love for Jim Henson. The Jim Henson Company who was also responsible for the Labyrinth’s creatures are responsible for the Wild Things and I cannot wait to see how the film turns out. I have a feeling it will be great, even without David Bowie in tight pants.
Beautiful Sunset
Filed under: hateraid, Preview | Tags: horror, john carpenter, Preview, Sci-Fi, the thing
So I have previously shared my objections to hearing that there is a remake of the classic horror Sci-Fi film The Thing (John Carpenter 1982) in the works. I have just learned a bit more about the production and I have to say I am still extremely skeptical about it. As I stated before, it’s going to be based on the Norwegian Research Team that first encounters the mutating alien being and meets their demise before Kurt Russell’s team gets introduced. Sure, that may have sounded like a decent idea over soy-decafe lattes but realistically is it really worth spending time and money on?
Classic to Craptastic
The writer of the film gives it a bit of a chance since Ronald D. Moore has signed on (New Battlestar Galactica Series) to the project. That might make it worth while but to counteract that goodness apparently a commercial director by the name of Matthijs Van Heijningen has gotten on board to direct this feature. Okay, so I know he’s also signed on to the new Army of the Dead project, but a commercial director? Really Hollywood? Well this is still in the early development stages so I will keep hoping that things start sounding better. Oh and by the way, would the film be in subtitles and if not then how would they get away with it?
Filed under: hateraid, Preview, remake | Tags: board games, candyland, clue, monopoly, movie news, previews, remake, Ridley Scott
With the recent (and not so recent) wave of Comic book movies that have been flooding theaters apparently Hollywood has decided to switch gears a little and start a new fad. Quite a few board game movies will soon be coming to a big screen near you and I can’t help but ask…why? Sure, most people have played some kind of board game in their lives; these games might even have been enjoyable as a kid but to really make them into a film seems a bit silly and ironic since most kid’s movies these days are made into board games.
Acclaimed director Ridley Scott is set to direct a film version of Monopoly, which seems like a waste to me. There are so many wonderful scripts and stories out there that would make for much better material but who knows, maybe Scott is just a really big fan of the game itself; I however tend to throw the tiny houses at people when I loose.
Board Game Movies: Who Really Wins?
Then there’s Candyland. With director Kevin Lima (Enchanted) and awesome writer Etan Cohen (Tropic Thunder) getting the production started it might be interesting especially if they try to put Gloppy (evil chocolate monster thing) in the mix. It would make for an interesting 3D film too I think. Not necessarily for the adult crowd but kids would love it and of course so would any other person on hallucinogenics.
It's Rainbow-rific
Last and at the very least is Clue. I am a big fan f the original Clue film which was released in 1985 with Christopher Lloyd, Tim Curry and the hilariously wonderful Madeline Kahn. I don’t see any reason why this movie needs a remake but then again, with the swarm of remakes happening all over Hollywood, I’m not that surprised. Gore Verbinski is set to helm the project. The 1985 version had somewhat of a small following and didn’t do well in theaters so the chances of a revamp doing well are slim to none.
Dream Home
Man, what I wouldn’t give to have the money to purchase this amazing Cave-dream home in Festus, MO. The Sleeper Family is unfortunately facing foreclosure on their uniquely fantastic home and has put it up for sale on none-other than Ebay(where they originally found the cave itself for sale). The home is equipped with 3 Bedrooms/2 Bathrooms, full kitchen and a massive party room in the furthest interior chamber. It is amazing to watch the transformation here on one of their sites full of pictures documenting the construction. I am totally going to look for cave’s for sale now on EBay!
Choke
DVD Review: Choke
Starring: Sam Rockwell / Anjelica Houston / Kelly Macdonald / Clark Gregg
Director: Clark Gregg
Rating: Major R
Writer: Based on “Choke” by Chuck Palahniuk
Released Date: February 17, 2009 DVD
One writer who is not exactly known for subtly would be Chuck Palahniuk. His novels are abrasive, offensive and yet completely hilarious. It’s a guilty pleasure I guess you could say and Choke is probably one of the worst as far as out-right repulsiveness of all his works. I knew this movie was going to be funny but I also watched it with a bit of apprehension due to how uncomfortable the novel of his I am currently reading has been so far. I was prepared to be shocked and possibly nauseated by its content from the beginning.
I was not disappointed by the gross-out factor but like his books the movie had a deeper meaning behind the unabashed crudeness of the character’s behavior. The basis for the story is surrounding Victor (Sam Rockwell): a self proclaimed sex addict who is completely incapable of having a meaningful relationship due to his unconventional and perhaps emotionally abusive upbringing by his mother played by Anjelica Houston.
The backbone of Colonial America
Victor spends most of his time as a “tour guide” at a colonial park and has a habit of fake choking on food in restaurants in order to have wealthy sympathetic individual feel that they have saved his life. Once these strangers have “saved” him from choking he depends on their charity financially for the rest of his life as a sort of responsibility he feels they have for rescuing him. The money he receives allows him to pay for a private hospital for his mother who suffers from severe dementia barely knowing who he is when he visits her.
There is a pretty even balance of shock-humor, witty dialogue and drama in the film that gives it meaning and makes it somewhat identifiable. It is full of metaphors and sucessfully pulls of visually projecting the writing technique of Palahniuk. I was horrified at times by the events that take place but like whenever I watch WifeSwap I just can’t look away no matter how bad it gets. The ending ties up things rather well and still leaves a bit of mystery to the story which I think is good. I enjoyed it but I wouldn’t watch with many people because it’s rather offensive.
Bottom Line: VERY DARK DRAMEDY W/ MAJOR SHOCK VALUE
Filed under: Bad News Bears, hateraid | Tags: bailout, banks, congress, craptastic, government, northern trust
The Rich Get Richer
Okay, so by now most people have heard about these God-awful bailouts that congress is just throwing at banks. Most people know that the only people benefiting from these bailouts are the stinking-rich executives that need a good ass-kicking from each and every person who they’ve casually laid off.
Well I’ve just found out about one particular scum-bucket bank who decided to not only take a 1.6 billion dollar bailout that they claim they didn’t even request, but to add insult to injury they just recently threw a HUGE bash in L.A to celebrate the Northern Trust Open at the Riviera Country Club for the PGA.
There are no words for how completely horrible this is. The bash lasted most of the week following the PGA and included performances by Sheryl Crowe, Chicago and Earth Wind and Fire (who are all on my crap list from here on out). Guests dined on fillet and seared salmon and the ladies received gift bags from Tiffany & Co. We can only hope that they all got horrific food poisoning…
The cost of all these INSANELYexpensive treats for the filthy rich? Millions…I can’t even imagine a punishment bad enough for these people. There has to be some kind of repercussions for these banks who WASTE OUR MONEY! So much for “Change”. I am incredibly disappointed in our congress who probably got some kind of kick-back for these bailouts.
Oh and I forgot to mention, this bank who threw the lavish cash burning bash laid off 4% of their workforce in December of last year. That’s 450 working class folks who most likely wouldn’t have even been on the guest list to begin with. As they say, The Rich get Richer, and the Poor get Poorer.
I have just found this awesome website with all these neat little items for geeks and nerds alike. It’s called Perpetual Kid.com and it has some of the most creative and interesting items for any scenario or setting. These are a few of my favorite things that I have found.
Gno-moon
These two are a combo of a great Book Clock that would look just perfect in my office and of course what good is a lawn if it isn’t offensive? Right? Everyone needs a vulgar gnome for the neighbors. They have also a gnome that’s taking a visit to the loo but I liked this one better. No one wants gnome poop in their yard.
Sweaty palms need not purchase
Then there’s the Tattoo To-Do-List. Who hasn’t been shopping and totally forgotten what they left the house for? I mean, I do it all the time. And carrying around a little piece of paper with a list is just too much of a hassel, so problem solved: Tattoo it!. Added Plus: Saves paper, save trees!!
yay for new toner!!
Last but not least there are these adorble little office stickers. I could think of a few places to put these little treasures. And yea, I do like the smell of Markers, got a problem with that?
This is a prime example of how NOT to spend your Valentines Day this year:
brought to you by my spam folder
Honestly, does anyone actually buy this crap? I mean really, how could you possibly find anyone attractive in that hideous thing? Which, on closer inspection, were these people really that attractive to begin with?
Possession?
Starring: Carice Van Houten, Jenn Murray
Writer Director: Agnès Merlet
DVD Release: February 10, 2009
Origin: Ireland
I watched this movie last night with my wonderful Mom (HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!) and was a bit apprehensive about it because the cover of the DVD described the film as “A Modern Version of The Exorcist“. Now that is quite a claim to begin with. The Exorcist is widely believed to be one of the most horrifying films ever made, so to make that kind of comparison and advertise it is not necessarily something I would recommend. But still I had read a few decent reviews of Dorothy Mills from my favorite horror sites around the web and wanted to see what it was about.
The movie starts out a bit slow and honestly doesn’t really pick up much from there. It’s an interesting and somewhat unique concept for a plot line but not at all in any comparison to The Exorcist. Basically Jane is a psychologist who is hired to evaluate a teenage girl named Dorothy Mills in a small town who is accused of molesting and injuring an infant. Jane travels to the town where it’s occupants are extremely strange and uncooperative from the get go.
Jane's Freaking Out
About 30 minutes into it I was totally sure that the plot was going down a certain line with Dorothy having DID or Multiple Personalities. But of course, that is what the writer and director want you to think until it is revealed that her personalities are those of dead teens who are seeking vengeance on the town’s secrets. That gives away some of the plot but not enough to keep you from seeing it because there is a lot more to the story than just ghosts.
Unfortunately not the entire story gets explained in the end and it leaves you with a lot of questions. And to me it seemed pointless to try so hard to make an audience see things one way for half of a film only to have it completely flipped and in the end still not make sense. It was worth the rental but I think that it could have been done better. The acting by Jenn Murray (Dorothy) and Carice van Houten (Jane) is excellent even if the story line was a bit lacking.
Bottom Line: WORTH THE RENTAL
Filed under: Preview | Tags: 3D, graphic novel, horror, monster, Sci-Fi, supernatural, vampire
So it’s no big secret that I am a huge fan of the horror genre. Whether it be in film, game, or novel form I guess you could kind say I am a bit addicted. So here in this little post I will divulge some information on upcoming horror films that I have heard about and can’t wait to see. I haven’t gotten much information on most of these so far so this is just my preliminary estimate of each one:
The Haunting in Connecticut: I had previously reported on this one being on my Must See list and have just found out that the release date has been changed from much later in the summer to March 27, 2009. I am totally thrilled to find this out since the horror genre has been quite lack-luster lately (ahem…Friday the 13th/My Bloody Valentine). Now I don’t have to wait as long to check this supernatural thriller out.
A Sequel with Potential
Sequel – 30 Days of Night 2: I thought the first 30 Days of Night was great and am a big fan of the graphic novel’s by Steve Niles so when I heard that a sequel was in talks with Niles as the screenwriter I got really excited. The graphic novel’s second installment follows Stella as she continues to track down the vamps and destroy them. I will however be very disappointed if Melissa George doesn’t reprise her role as Stella. That would just make the film seem DVD-release worthy.
The Hole 3D – This film is set to be released in 2010 and will have Haley Bennett (Haunting of Molly Hartley) playing the female friend of a pair of brothers who stumble upon a mysterious hole in their basement that will take them to a nightmarish place where their fears supposedly come to life. Now, I hope this film isn’t one of those 3D movies that wouldn’t have even been distributable had it not been given the 3D edge. It sounds more interesting than say other 3D “horror” films like My Bloody Valentine so I will be keeping up with its progress.
After.Life: Releasing just in time for Halloween of this year, this film is a bit iffy to me. Not that I don’t think the cast is great, I mean with Liam Neeson, Justin Long and Christina Ricci it couldn’t really be all that bad I would think. It’s just that the story line is so overplayed that it might just fall flat. Plot-wise it’s about a woman who is stuck between life and death and has to convince the funeral director not to burry her alive. It was originally set to star Kate Bosworth but I am much happier to hear that Ricci has taken over the role. And maybe Justin Long will even throw a little humor into the film which never hurts honestly.
Sci-Fi-Creature-Feature
Splice- Set to release in 2009 (sometime in September) this sci-fi horror film revolves around two geneticists who while experimenting with DNA and gene-splicing decide to throw some human-DNA-goodness into the mix with who knows what other creatures. This of course isn’t the best idea and leads to some pretty horrific consequences. The images I have seen of the “creature” are pretty amazing and I am really looking forward to seeing it. It is starring Adrien Brody and Sara Polley with Vincenzo Natali directing (Cube) and non-other than the wonderful Guillermo del Toro as executive producer. I would rate this one as a can’t miss.
Sequel – The Host 2: The original of this film was a South Korean monster movie that reminded me of a B-Horror film with expensive special effects. It had humor and all the emotional elements to make it more than just a CGI monster movie. The sequel is a joint production with China and South Korea with Chinese director Ning Hao on board and a reported 12-million dollar budget. It will follow the river where the monster dwells and will have more than one monster making an appearance. Hopefully this one is be worth seeing and make it to the states.
