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.
Through the Wall
Movie Review: Coraline 3D
Starring: Dakota Fanning, Teri Hatcher, Keith David and many more
Rating: PG (Not for Sensitive Kids)
Release Date: February 6, 2009
Original Novel: By Neil Gaiman
I went to see this last night since this past weekend I was a total lazy bum and pretty much did nothing but sleep and watch episodes of The Tudors. I had been kind of following it through rumor to release since I am a huge fan of anything and everything that Neil Gaiman does. Not to mention the fact that Henry Selick (director) is a freaking genius. I mean, have you seen The Nightmare Before Christmas? Anyways, so obviously I was very excited to see Coraline and the 3D part of it made it even more appealing.
I hadn’t read the book even though I had bought it when I heard the movie was going into pre-production. I will most likely read it now just to compare the two. The beginning of the film is a bit bleak and even the color scheme is very monotone to emphasize the ordinary attributes of Coraline’s new home that her Mom and Dad move to. Both her parents are writers and seem to have very little time for her which is unfortuante for Coraline who obviously wishes they were more involved with her life. She appears to feel neglected especially by her mother who isn’t exactly the nurturing type.
The Wormhole
She begins to explore the new house which is actually an apartment type building with the attic rented to an eccentric Russian gentleman who trains mice for a circus. The basement is rented to two older british ladies who seem just as strange and who appear to have at one time been actresses or performers. Coraline meets all of these characters along with her nearby neighbor Wybe (short for Why Born) who visually reminded me of the trick-or-treat kids from TNBC. He becomes what you might consider her friend mostly because he is the only one around that’s her age. Wybe also introduces her to his cat who is played by Keith David.
After the first day of exploring in the new home, Coraline resigns to bed and is quickly awakened by a tiny mouse who like Alice & the Rabbit leads her to the tiny door in the living room which is now open to a whole new world. This is where the 3D effects get really cool in the film. Coraline discovers on the other side of this wormhole a different life that mimicks her own but instead of being boring and ordinary it’s beautiful and exciting. Her “other” parents seem to adore her and make her the center of attention.
Mouse Circus
She wakes up the next morning back in her own real world with her real parents and this nightly escape into the “other” world continues until she discovers that what may seem to be the perfect life isn’t at all. It’s a classic lesson of the grass isn’t always greener on the other side (of the wall) and teaches kids to be happy with what they have even if it isn’t perfect. Once Coraline discovers the truth about the “other” world and the “other” mother she must play to win back her life and the souls of those that came before her.
Now, you might be saying to yourself “souls of other children?”. I have to say that some of the themes and images are definitely a bit grown up for a PG movie. Even the sowing of the buttons on a child’s eyes is a bit of a scary scenario for a little kid, but I think that the audience for this kind of film is not necessarily for young children. Sure it’s something that a 12 year old could handle but not kids much younger than that. The “other” mother eventually turns into a very freaky looking spider like creature that might give the little ones nightmares. Not to mention the scene of the “other” downstairs actress neighbors who lets just say have a very adult look.
In the end I really enjoyed this movie and can’t wait for it to come out on DVD so I can see the special features on how it was made. The credits showed that there were stop-motion and CGI techniques used so I’d love to see how they merged the two. I highly recommend it for anyone who loved either The Nightmare Before Christmas or James and the Giant Peach. It’s a great movie even if the audience for it is a little different than one might think from the commercials.
Bottom Line: EXCELLENT FANTASY FILM
Filed under: Preview, remake | Tags: birds, hitchcock, Preview, remake, suspense
Oh the Horror!
So apparently there are rumors going around that a remake ofAlfred Hitchcock’s (1963) “The Birds“ is coming to the big screen. Now this is simply a rumor of course but it’s been reported that this rumor has been confirmed by Naomi Watts who is set to star as Lydia which was previous played by actress Jessica Tandy. Now I am not a big fan of birds in general, all that freaking noise and the fact that they like to relieve themselves all over my car (which I am sure they laugh about amongst themselves) make them less than like-able so a thriller/suspense classic like this could produce a decent remake.
Of course it will be near impossible to really re-create the definition of suspense like Hitchcock did, I think that with a director like Martin Campbell on board (Casino Royale) it might not be half bad. Not to mention I am a big fan of Naomi Watts. I will be keeping up with where this goes for sure.
No Ghosts
My literature consumption has been limited lately due to lack of time and energy. I have been reading Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk, who also wrote Fight Club & Choke. I haven’t read either of those but I loved the Fight Club film adaptation and the summary of Haunted seemed very interesting to me. This is the basic summary given by Amazon.com:
“Haunted is a novel made up of twenty-three horrifying, hilarious, and stomach-churning stories. They’re told by people who have answered an ad for a writer’s retreat and unwittingly joined a “Survivor”-like scenario where the host withholds heat, power, and food. As the storytellers grow more desperate, their tales become more extreme, and they ruthlessly plot to make themselves the hero of the reality show that will surely be made from their plight. This is one of the most disturbing and outrageous books you’ll ever read, one that could only come from the mind of Chuck Palahniuk. “-product description
I am currently about halfway through the book and the description “stomach-churning” is right on point. Chuck Palahniuk has a gift for giving in depth scenarios of some of the most sensitive subjects of our time. This book is neither for the squeamish nor for those who are offended easily. I have found myself disgusted and shocked many times thus far yet I can’t seem to put it down because the author makes the story itself so compelling. I will write a full review once I have finished it, if I can that is. Last night’s reading session was almost more than I could take so hopefully it won’t get any worse, although I’m doubtful on that one.
So just incase this literary adventure with Haunted doesn’t pan out I have a few others on my list that I am anxious to read. Most of which are horror novels (of course) but a few of them are more general fiction based. (No particular order)
Classic Zombie
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Classic Regency Romance – Now with Ultraviolent Zombie Mayhem!: By Jane Austen & Seth Grahame-Smith: From the information I have read on this novel/rewrite it pretty much can be described in the title itself; the classic novel plus zombies and gore. It’s a great idea and I can’t wait to read it. It hasn’t been released just yet but as soon as I can get it at my local B&N I will start reading. But I will say this, as cool as this idea sounds I would be greatly disappointed if more authors had the same idea and it turned into a rewrite fest like the Asian-horror remake fest that is being experienced in the US now.
Deeper by James A. Moore: My main interest in this book is it’s resemblance to the H.P. Lovecraftian fiction that has become more popular as of late. As a huge fan of anything Lovecraft, this aquatic monster tale is probably worth checking out. I have read other fan-fiction type short stories and even novels regarding Lovecraft’s creature Cthulhu and have enjoyed many of them so this one is probably my most favorite of this list, that is of course once it is released in May.
Ulrik by Steven E Wedel: This one is a little less interesting but still worth the read I’m sure. It revolves around the werewolf mythology and folklore by telling the story of a particular pack and it’s impending prophecy. I use to read a lot of werewolf books when I was younger so this will be interesting for me to somewhat reminisce and compare. It might be next on the list since it’s already available.
Professional Vamp
Fangland by John Marks: I bought this book before Christmas and was planning on reading it as soon as I got the chance but have been putting it off a bit. It offers a different reading style than most books with more of a documentation approach with e-mails, diary entries etc. It is a vampire novel of course but it also gives a glimpse into the business world and I am interested in seeing how the two can actually come together in a novel. Hopefully I won’t get bored with it.
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson: A true classic in horror literature, this has been on my list of books to read for a while now and I really need to buckle down and get to it. I have read many a haunted house novel and quite a few ghost stories so this probably won’t be anything new to me but still the fact that it’s written by a woman in 1956 makes it worth my time. I just hope it’s not too similar to Matheson’s Hell House.
I am sure by next week there will be others to add to this list but for now this is what I’ve got. I will continue to pursue Haunted and try not to be too disturbed by it. But with short stories about everything from disembowelment by swimming pool to cross-dressing ex-military vigilantes, I’m sure the second half will be at the least interesting.
This is one of the coolest merchandise sites I’ve seen in a while. The statues and artwork on DesignToscano.com are really unique and creative. If I had a garden, I would totally include some of these great items in it to freak out the neighbors. The weirder they think you are, the less they want to borrow stuff.
I knew there were sharks in my Pool!
Truly and awesome site. They have indoor stautes too as well as artwork and even office decor. Great Gargoyles too! Oh and since my birthday is coming up (sort of) check out the book ends…hint hint.
Harry & Roswell's Secret
The Uninvited
Starring: Emily Browing / Arrielle Kebbel / Elizabeth Banks / David Stratharin
Rating: PG-13 (Teens Admitted)
Release Date: January 30, 2009
Okay, I can admit when I might have judged a movie too soon. I was truly upset when I heard that this movie was even being made due to the fact that it is a remake of one of my top 5 favorite films of all time. Understandably still I had to see this remake to make my own conclusion of how American filmmakers would put their spin on it. Janghwa, Hongryeon (2003 South Korea) aka A Tale of Two Sisters, is an amazing film and my predetermined assumptions on The Uninvited had been based on previous remakes that aren’t even worth referencing here.
The original basically focused on two sisters. Having just recently come home from a stay in a mental institution the sisters return to find her father having remarried. The sisters encounter frightening apparitions and nightmares while at home but bond to one another against their stepmother whom they believe to be capable of harming them both aswell as being the possible suspect in the death of their mother. One particular sister, whom the main focus of the film is on, closely protects the other and slowly the real story begins to unravel through the flashbacks and haunting experiences until you see the truth.
The remake would have been a great deal more enjoyable had there not been 20+ tween/teens in the audience who were completely and totally annoying. One of whom I even knew. And the worst part was the management of the theater had to even escort a few of them out of the theater because they were talking and getting up constantly. One of the kids who was taken out of the theater was the kid sister of a couple of friends of mine. I came so close to just yelling her name and telling her to shut up. But that would have just added to the noise.
I have to say, NOTHING is more annoying when watching a movie in a theater than selfish little brats who have no idea how to act in public. This brings me to my main issue with the remake: its PG-13 rating. Had this film been rated R I wouldn’t have had to deal with these over-sized toddlers acting like they just went off their ADD meds.
I guess the filmmakers wanted to appeal to a larger audience so they could make more money off the film but it took away from the film in the end. The acting and casting I thought were great although it was a bit odd seeing Elizabeth Banks in a negative role. I honestly wouldn’t have casted her as the father’s girlfriend but I guess it wasn’t that bad of a choice. I would have chosen someone like Famke Janssen, who I am a big fan of. She would have been able to pull off the more sinister character a great deal more successfully.
There were a few changes to the story from the original but the basic ending plot twist remained the same, which was a relief for me. That plot twist makes the whole film not only make sense but it makes it worth watching. I just knew the Americanized version would ruin the ending but I was pleasantly surprised. The more intense scenes were even pulled off well and of course the special effects were more graphic in this version although the cinematography may have lacked a little. This was one of those VERY rare cases where a remake actually adds to the original rather than takes away from it. Though some of the story line was different it still was worth seeing and may even encourage more people to watch the original.
Bottom Line: A DECENT REMAKE
TwiCon09
ALERT: If you happen to be an tween/teen Twilight fan who is prone to emo/hystarical behavior please read no further. You have been warned.
Okay, as I’ve stated before I don’t particularly like to make negative comments about other sites but I have come across something that is honestly so ridiculous that it must be spoken out against. Ladies and Gentlemen I present to you: TwiCon. (btw the site is spectacularly slow probably due to the mass amount of prosti-tots trying to get to it). I know the atrocious nature of such an event may have your head spinning but I assure you, it’s real. This shocking obscenity came to my attention by browsing the Tag Surfer through wordpress and coming across a Twilight blog (twiblog if you will) the likes of which are popping up all over the net.
Some of TwiCon.org’s features: Get Cullenized. This feature basically gives those little scene-kid jerks some Photoshop eye color to make them look even more emo (or like “vampires”). The convention itself is in Dallas, TX July 30- August 2 of this year. The cost you ask? Well tweenz and teens alike will be asking their folks to cough up a nice chunk of change for these silly shenanigans. The conference itself is $255 to get admission and that doesn’t include hotel stay, food and travel expenses. Geez Ed Cullen, you aren’t a cheap date.
Oh and speaking of Edward Cullen, he won’t be there. No kiddies, the only “special” guests that will be appearing are the secondary characters that probably have nothing better to do. Ed and Bella apparently are not fan friendly enough to show. But can you really blame them? When I saw Twilight the movie (yea I admit it) the theater was FULL of 13 year olds who talked & texted through the whole thing. If those were your main fan base as an actor, would you want to indulge them further? I didn’t think so.
Perhaps I am a little bitter against the whole TwiPhenom but to be frank, I just don’t see the merit in making it such a staple in vampire fandom. Being a big fan of the whole vampire folklore and media trend I was hugely disappointed by this installment for two reasons. Personally I think Stephanie Meyer’s writing is like 5th grade reading material. At least with JK Rowling’s Harry Potter mania the literature itself attracts mature audiences due to the fact that it is actually well written. And furthermore the “vampire” creatures in her work (if you could even call them that) are so lame and boring that the mere idea that they are vampires at all is just a marketing gimmick to get teens to read the romance aspect of it. I guess I just like my vamps dark and creepy, call me old fashioned.
