Morpheus Tales is a quarterly magazine dedicated to Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy. This month sees the publication of their third issue, which just so happens to include my short story, ‘Snow Like Lonely Ghosts,’ as well as great stuff by Joseph McGee and an interview with Michael Laimo.
Continue reading Morpheus Tales magazine publishes short story by WAMG editor
One of my most anticipated movies since 2007 has been ‘Machete’, which originally was done as a fake trailer for ‘Grindhouse’. Since then Robert Rodriguez has talked about doing a direct to DVD release, and then it changed to be a theatrical release. I interviewed Danny Trejo a few months ago and he said some pretty interesting stuff about it. Here is some recent news that has come out about it:
“Danny Trejo has announced that the Weinstein brothers are intending to quickly, and with the collaboration of Robert Rodriguez, make a real Machete movie. Or, rather, a trilogy of them, intended to go direct to DVD.â€
I got this info from Slash Film who got it from somewhere else, who got it from somewhere else. Honestly I just want to see this movie come out, especially if its going to be a trilogy, and direct to DVD would be even better so I can instantly buy them. We will see, but I will keep you tuned in..
For those of you that do not know what Twitter is, you are living in an alternate universe, because if you aren’t on twitter, following people on twitter, or posting your own tweets then you are being left behind in the fastest growing web applications since the Myspace and Facebook revolution.
Twitter is a microblogging platform that you essentially lets you post little “updates” about anything you want. Similar to the Facebook/Myspace status updates, only with Twitter you can reply on your twitter to other people’s update. Example of one I replied to from @gmanreviews(I edited out a curse, family friendly always):
Twitter is especially great if you are into movies, movie news, or want to see a bunch of movie geeks fight/discuss movies. Here is a little snippit of Pete from Slashfilm taking a stab at Alex from FirstShowing:
If you haven’t already you can check out my twitter http://twitter.com/moviegeeks, where I post things about this site, live blogged Sundance, kept in communication with the condo dudes(@rejects, @slashfilm, @firstshowing) and generally just talk about crap, but of course it is interesting crap.
If you want to just stay up to date on movie stuff make sure you follow these guys aka “The Heavy Hitters”:
@rejects, @slashfilm, @firstshowing, @latinoreview, @geektyrant, @elmayimbe, @colliderfrosty, @gmanreviews, @screenrant, @horrormovies, @traileraddict, or go to my page and look at who I follow.
Here are a few celebs that I follow: Kevin Smith, Henry Rollins, Ondi Timoner, Sean Patrick Flanery, Darren Bousman. There are a ton of other celebs that I don’t follow, but you can check out a HUGE list of celebrity twitters here.
To follow them is easy just sign up at twitter.com. Visit their page and click on follow, then after you go to your homepage you will see all their updates/tweets.
Some of the first footage of the ‘G.I. Joe’ teaser trailer appeared on EW, and thanks to Alex Billington, the man and the myth, we are able to show you this:
The footage looks pretty badass if you ask me, and you obviously do because you are here to see what I have to say about things. I cant wait to see the full teaser! Dont get me wrong, there isn’t THAT much footage above but what is there will make you stop thinking “why are they making a GI Joe Movie”, and start thinking “Are they going to have a midnight screening of this!?”.
2 more days until the ‘Monsters vs. Aliens’ Superbowl spot, which is the first commercial to be completely in 3D. If you havent already go out and get your 3D glasses at your local grocery store, they have distributed 125 million of them! Here is the press release:
DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. (NYSE: DWA) and PepsiCo’s SoBe Lifewater today announced that they have joined together with Intel Corporation and NBC to create a first-of-its kind, nationwide ‘Monstrous’ 3D event for Super Bowl XLIII. This first-ever all 3D Super Bowl commercial break event will mark the debut of DreamWorks Animation’s premier 3D movie trailer for its upcoming feature film, “Monsters vs. Aliens,†which comes to theaters in the U.S. on March 27th.
In addition, the timeslot will feature a 60-second 3D SoBe Lifewater commercial marking the return of the ultra-hip SoBe lizards, who made noise during last year’s Super Bowl broadcast with one of the most talked about spots. DreamWorks Animation’s history-making 3D movie trailer was animated using Intel’s latest, high-performance processing technologies and will be broadcasted along with the SoBe television spot at the end of the second quarter of the game, which airs on NBC on Sunday, February 1, 2009. Viewers will have the opportunity to re-use their glasses for a special 3D episode of NBC’s hit comedy “Chuck,†airing Monday, February 2, 2009 (8-9pm ET.)
Intel has produced over 125 million pairs of 3D glasses, which are being distributed by PepsiCo through the SoBe Lifewater brand. The glasses will be disseminated via 25,000 SoBe Lifewater retail displays in grocery, drug and other retail venues beginning in early January and will be FREE to consumers. Should a display’s supply of glasses run out, consumers can call 1-800-646-2904 in order to obtain a pair.
NBC viewers will be alerted to the SoBe Lifewater Super Bowl Displays via a series of tune-in spots airing beginning on January 19th. Displays and tune-ins will instruct viewers to use their 3D glasses on Super Bowl Sunday, with additional messaging, “Don’t Chuck Your Glasses,†prompting viewers to re-use them during the special 3D episode of “Chuck,†which will feature a special guest appearance by NBC Spo
rts analyst and Super Bowl champion Jerome Bettis.
The 60-second SoBe Lifewater spot, directed by Super Bowl commercial veteran and brand architect Peter Arnell, will mark arguably the first ever Super Bowl ad cross over event – with the SoBe Lizards sharing the screen with characters from the upcoming DreamWorks Animation film that will be showcased in the pod’s preceding spot. The SoBe Lizards and stars from DreamWorks’ “Monsters vs. Aliens” will dance alongside current NFL stars in what promises to be among the most highly-anticipated commercials on Super Sunday. The spot features a modern interpretation of the famed ballet Swan Lake, and the rhythmic effects when the players and creatures are infused with the refreshing and re-invigorating impact of SoBe Lifewater.
Let me know what you all think of the 3D spot after the Superbowl!
Source: Official Site
“Jija†Yanin Vismistananda plays a young autistic girl, Zen, who grows up next to a Muay Thai boxing studio. Through observation, Zen absorbs the teachings and the techniques of Muay Thai. When her mother’s hospital bills start escalating, Zen and her cousin set out to collect debts from the gangsters that owe her mother money, which leads to an escalating series of death-defying fights.
I am a fan of James Gunn’s movies. And his hair.
He keeps an interesting blog on Myspace. His latest concerns itself with the aforementioned list of movies you should – but probably haven’t – seen. There are some great, obscure films on his list:
Continue reading 25 Movies You Should Have Seen And Probably Never Have
Before even sitting down to watch ‘The Uninvited’, I had a feeling the main credits for the film would be at the end. DreamWorks has been doing everything in their power to keep from the public that this film is a remake of an Asian, horror film. It is. The original was Korean, it is called ‘A Tale of Two Sisters’, and it is exponentially creepier than this remake. Perhaps it would have been better off to exploit the fact that this film is a remake. It would have justified, to an extent, the “been-there-done-that†feel ‘The Uninvited’ gives off.
Even the original, 2003 film didn’t tell a highly original story. There’s an accidental death. There’s a troubled, teenage girl. There’s a ghost who is trying to reach the girl to tell her the accident as no accident at all. There’s a twist ending. All the chilling trappings of an Asian, ghost story are found here infused with the type of Hollywood glossiness that has become a staple on these recent, horror remakes.
The story follows Anna (Emily Browning) who has recently been discharged from a sanitarium. A year earlier, she witnessed her mother dying in an explosive accident, and the girl promptly tried to slit her wrists. The events of the night her mother died are locked away somewhere in Anna’s unconscious mind, and, throughout the course of the film, you know everything will be revealed one piece at a time.
When Anna returns home, she is welcomed by her sister, Alex (Arielle Kebbel); her father (David Strathairn); and his new love interest (Elizabeth Banks), who also served as the deceased mother’s nurse. Alex and Anna cannot stand their father’s new lover. Before too long, though, Anna begins seeing ghosts who lead her to believe the new woman in her father’s life may have more sinister plans for the family.
‘The Uninvited’, directed by The Guard Brothers (Charles and Thomas) and written, doesn’t try anything that could be construed as offensive or daring. It rests comfortably on its laurels of banality, taking the viewer from point A to point B to point C and never deviating from the path of commonality. If you think something is going to jump out from underneath the dark counter, you’re probably right. If you think there’s something lurking behind the opened, closet door, there’s nothing here to prove you false.
The film tries to throw in a twist ending. In the original, the ending just seemed unnecessary. Here, it comes off as completely nonsensical. In the moment, it seems chillingly logical enough, but don’t think about it too hard. Once you try to go back over the film and piece the events that lead up to the ending together, you realize just how absurd the whole thing is.
For all of its unoriginality and cliche-ridden plot points, the execution on the film is better than your typical, Asian, horror remake. The film looks fine. The Guard Brothers don’t instill much ingenuity in their camera work, but given the screenplay they are dealing with, it doesn’t really matter.
The acting is top-notch. Everyone in the film is doing a fine job. Banks plays the love interest/villainess with a great, bitchy, smirky attitude. Kebbel is great as the less-than-innocent, older sister. Browning does a really good job playing the victim role throughout, first of spectral attacks then of human. All three actresses turn in absolutely solid performances giving the film a very feminine sensibility. The way the directors shoot these actresses help this idea along. After seeing ‘The Unborn’ and the way David Goyer shot Odette Yustman, it’s a nice change of pace to see a film that respects its lead actresses.
Strathairn does a fine job, as he always does, as the concerned father who is just trying to move on and be happy. He gets lost in the background more often than not, and he flat-out disappears from the film’s climax. He isn’t given much to do, but the guy is a consummate actor who plays every role, big or small, with the utmost sincerity.
From the predictable opening to the middle-of-the-road middle to the preposterous ending, ‘The Uninvited’ is a horror film without much horror. Not nearly as scary as the original or as most of the recent, Asian horror remakes, it’s a film that is saved from complete awfulness by the acting. It will surely be forgotten ten minutes after viewing. It’s just a shame that so much effort got put into it by the actors and the directors involved.
[Overall: 2.5 stars out of 5]
Another mediocre horror film. It seems that I haven’t really been that impressed by a horror film in some time. At least not the new ones that have been coming out. Jeremy does a pretty good job with explaining the movie so I will just get to my review of it.
Emily Browning, the character of Anna, is a very like-able character. There is something very angelic and beautiful about her. They did a pretty darn good job of casting her. I have nothing bad to say about Elizabeth Banks either. I have liked her in all of her movies, and in the past year she has had five movies come out, yet she still hasn’t quite reached the household name status. She can play just about any role though and I really believe that we will be seeing and hearing a lot more from her. Arielle Kebbel, who plays Alex, Anna’s sister, does a great job as well. There is something very like-able about her on screen. She plays the typical teenager very well.
If it is not the cast, then it must be the storyline that made this movie so middle of the road. The movie itself was not scary. It had a couple little jumps in it but no thriller moments. I think that they could have done a much better job with Anna not remembering what had happened to her mother and the signs that were appearing before her.I don’t want to just give it away, but the majority of the movie either didn’t tie in well together or was just plain predictable. Even the ending. The ending didn’t really make much sense, especially about the pearls. I can make a couple guesses about them, but nothing is ever really said to explain it so it leaves the audience, myself included, slightly confused.
I feel like they went too much off of The Grudge and The Ring with this one. The horror and the design of it, along with the scenery has all been done before. It could have been done in a way that at least made audiences thinking that it was cool instead of instantly saying “What a rip off!”. Quit ripping off Asian horror films and trying to make them cooler! It doesn’t really work!
[Overall: 2.5 stars out of 5]
Here’s an interesting, if not concerning, first look at a batch of official identification card photos from ‘GI Joe’… courtesy of our friends at /film. All I can say is that I truly hope the movie, characters and make-up turn out looking better than they do in these photos!
[source: /film]
