The most talked about movie of the year is the one nobody has seen … yet!
Check out the new trailer for THE HUNT:
Twelve strangers wake up in a clearing. They don’t know where they are, or how they got there. They don’t know they’ve been chosen… for a very specific purpose … The Hunt.
In the shadow of a dark internet conspiracy theory, a group of elites gathers for the very first time at a remote Manor House to hunt ordinary Americans for sport. But the elites’ master plan is about to be derailed because one of The Hunted, Crystal (Betty Gilpin, GLOW), knows The Hunters’ game better than they do. She turns the tables on the killers, picking them off, one by one, as she makes her way toward the mysterious woman (two-time Oscar® winner Hilary Swank) at the center of it all.
From Jason Blum, the producer of Get Out and The Purge series, and Damon Lindelof, creator of the HBO series Watchmen and co-creator of the TV series Lost, comes a timely and provocative new satirical thriller that has already ignited a national conversation. Now, it’s time to decide for yourself.
The Hunt is written by Lindelof and his fellow Watchmen collaborator Nick Cuse and is directed by Craig Zobel (Z for Zachariah, The Leftovers). Blum produces for his Blumhouse Productions alongside Lindelof. The film is executive produced by Zobel, Cuse and Steven R. Molen.
Destroy the Brain‘s monthly ‘Late Nite Grindhouse’ film series is back in its new location! Head to the Marcus Des Peres Cinema (12701 Manchester Rd, Des Peres, MO 63131) this Friday and Saturday (February 14th and 15th) at 10pm for David Cronenberg’s 1077 biological-horror sagaRABID. Since this is a Marcus Theater, you’ll need to reserve your seats ahead of time HERE. There may (or may not be) Tickets available the nights of the screenings, but they may be going fast! Tickets are $8. A Facebook invite for the event can be found HERE
I saw David Cronenberg’s 1977 classic RABID at The Hi-Pointe when it was new in 1977 double-featured with Larry Cohen’s GOD TOLD ME TOO (then titled DEMON). The Destroy the Brain‘s guys ran GOD TOLD ME TOO at theirmonthly ‘Late Nite Grindhouse’ film series a few years back (at the Hi-Pointe again)and now they’re finally showing RABIDthis weekend.
RABID is the story of Rose (Marilyn Chambers), who ends up in a nasty motorcycle accident. Fortunately for her, she has a surgery performed on her that saves her life. Unfortunately for her, she’s in a horror movie, so it was an experimental surgery. Said operation has left her with a parasitic growth on her armpit that has causes her to develop a thirst for human blood. Also, her victims become rabid with a form of murderous rage, and the infection is spreading…
RABID is a must see for Cronenberg fans. Former porn star Marilyn Chambers actually pulls off a fine performance,s a great mix between the predatory and sympathetic. It’s also a grim and gory little offering that from the opening to it’s nihilistic conclusion portrays a world ravaged by disease and murder without any hope or safety. There’s also the trademark Cronenberg bursts of grisly violence and sexual body horror, and though it doesn’t have the same impact of SHIVERS and VIDEODROME, there’s still plenty of the ‘new flesh’ to celebrate. In particular is the orifice that hides the parasite. It looks very sexual, and is an effective precursor to what the director would offer in the future.
Now you can catch RABID on the big screen when it plays 10pm this weekend ( February 14th and 15th) at the Marcus Des Peres Cinema
Tsui Hark’s PEKING OPERA BLUES (1986) screens February 13th at Webster University’s Moore Auditorium(470 E Lockwood Ave). The film starts at 7pm. A Facebook invite for the screening can be found HERE
Described by the Village Voice as a movie that “out-Spielbergs Spielberg” and cited by Quentin Tarantino as one of the greatest films ever made, Tsui Hark’s Peking Opera Blues remains criminally underseen in the West. Set in 1920s Beijing and focusing on a trio of women prone to falling into adventure—chief among whom is General’s daughter Tsao Wan, played by Brigitte Lin of Chungking Express in one of her many cross-dressing roles.
In Cantonese with English subtitles.
Admission is:
$7 for the general public $6 for seniors, Webster alumni and students from other schools $5 for Webster University staff and faculty
THE DOORS: BREAK ON THRU – A CELEBRATION OF RAY MANZAREK Screens at Tivoli Theatre February 12th at 7pm. Ticket information can be found HERE. A Facebook invite for the event can be found HERE
The Doors: Break on Thru – A Celebration of Ray Manzarek is a hybrid concert and documentary capturing a 2016 performance in Los Angeles by surviving Doors members John Densmore and Robby Krieger to honor fellow Doors member Ray Manzarek on what would have been his birthday on February 12. The Doors were born when Ray Manzarek met Jim Morrison on Venice Beach in 1965. Ray became the beating heart of The Doors and the architect of their intoxicating keyboard sound. Manzarek’s evocative playing fused rock, jazz, blues, bossa nova and an array of other styles into something utterly, dazzlingly new. The setlist from the concert consists of Doors songs performed by John and Robby alongside a cast of all-star guest musicians including Taylor Hawkins and Rami Jaffee (Foo Fighters), Robert DeLeo (Stone Temple Pilots), Stephen Perkins (Jane’s Addiction), Exene and John Doe (X), Warren Haynes (Gov’t Mule), Brian Ray (Paul McCartney), Andrew Watt and more. The film also includes rare archival footage of the band, conversations with Jim Morrison and Ray Manzarek, and esteemed music journalist Ben Fong-Torres, as well as new interviews with John and Robby. Note: This screening contains a sequence of flashing lights which might affect customers who are susceptible to photosensitive epilepsy.
Robby Krieger, John Densmore, Taylor Hawkins, Robert DeLeo, Stephen Perkins, John Doe, Exene Cervenka, Warren Haynes, Rami Jaffee and is directed by Justin Kruetzmann
Okay, the IMAX poster for Blumhouse Productions’ THE INVISIBLE MAN is pretty cool. The rated R horror film will be released by Universal Pictures in cinemas and on IMAX on February 28.
What you can’t see can hurt you. Emmy winner Elisabeth Moss (Us, Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale) stars in a terrifying modern tale of obsession inspired by Universal’s classic monster character.
Here’s a look at the brand new trailer giving an unnerving glimpse into the upcoming thriller.
Jason Blum, our current-day master of the horror genre, produces The Invisible Man for his Blumhouse Productions. The Invisible Man is directed and executive produced by Leigh Whannell, from his screenplay and screen story. Whannell is one of the original conceivers of the Saw franchise who most recently directed Upgrade and Insidious: Chapter 3. Benjamin Wallfisch (It, Blade Runner 2049, Shazam!, Hidden Figures, Annabelle Creation) is the film’s composer.
Trapped in a violent, controlling relationship with a wealthy and brilliant scientist, Cecilia Kass (Moss) escapes in the dead of night and disappears into hiding, aided by her sister (Harriet Dyer, NBC’s The InBetween), their childhood friend (Aldis Hodge, Straight Outta Compton) and his teenage daughter (Storm Reid, HBO’s Euphoria).
But when Cecilia’s abusive ex (Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Netflix’s The Haunting of Hill House) commits suicide and leaves her a generous portion of his vast fortune, Cecilia suspects his death was a hoax. As a series of eerie coincidences turns lethal, threatening the lives of those she loves, Cecilia’s sanity begins to unravel as she desperately tries to prove that she is being hunted by someone nobody can see.
The film is also produced by Kylie du Fresne (Upgrade, The Sapphires) for Goalpost Pictures. The executive producers are Whannell, Beatriz Sequeira, Charles Layton, Rosemary Blight, Ben Grant, Couper Samuelson and Jeanette Volturno. The Invisible Man is a co-production of Goalpost Pictures Australia and Blumhouse Productions, in association with Nervous Tick, for Universal Pictures.
Searchlight Pictures announced today that it has acquired worldwide rights to David Bruckner’s psychological thriller THE NIGHT HOUSE following its world premiere in Park City as part of the Sundance Midnight program of the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. Based on an original screenplay by Ben Collins & Luke Piotrowski (STEPHANIE), THE NIGHT HOUSE follows a widow (Rebecca Hall of THE TOWN) who begins to uncover her recently deceased husband’s disturbing secrets. Bruckner returns to Sundance with this film, having most recently premiered his first solo-directorial feature, THE RITUAL, at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival. THE NIGHT HOUSE was financed and produced by Sébastien Raybaud’s company, Anton. David Goyer’s Phantom Four developed the script, and also produced. The producers are Phantom Four’s David Goyer (THE DARK KNIGHT), and Keith Levine (47 METERS DOWN), and Anton’s John Zois (HOTEL ARTEMIS). Executive Producers are David Bruckner, François Callens, Ben Collins, Rebecca Hall, George Paaswell, Luke Piotrowski, and Anton founder Sébastien Raybaud.
“THE NIGHT HOUSE instantly drew us in,” said Searchlight Pictures Chairmen Nancy Utley and Steve Gilula. “David Bruckner’s masterful direction creates an unrelenting suspense thriller anchored by an astonishing performance by Rebecca Hall.”
“Searchlight is a beacon of quality and inspired curation. To be working with them on THE NIGHT HOUSE is nothing short of a dream come true,” said Bruckner.
“This is the perfect home for this film. Searchlight’s exemplary taste and their global campaigns are masterful,” added Anton’s founder Sébastien Raybaud.
“For a challenging, layered and lingering film like THE NIGHT HOUSE, we couldn’t be in better hands,” said Phantom Four’s Keith Levine. “We are thrilled to bring the film into the Searchlight family.”
THE NIGHT HOUSE features a musical score by Ben Lovett (THE SIGNAL), editing by David Marks (THE LAST BLACK MAN IN SAN FRANCISCO), cinematography by Elisha Christian (COLUMBUS) and costumes by Samantha Hawkins (JONATHAN). The deal was brokered by Searchlight Pictures’ EVP Business Affairs Megan O’Brien, SVP Acquisitions Chan Phung and SVP Legal Affairs Ben Wilkinson, with Endeavor Content and Sébastien Raybaud of Anton. THE NIGHT HOUSE is scheduled for a theatrical release in 2020.
Searchlight Pictures recently released Radio Silence’s hit horror-comedy READY OR NOT, which grossed nearly $60 million worldwide, and will soon unveil Scott Cooper’s supernatural horror thriller ANTLERS starring Keri Russell on April 17, 2020. With THE NIGHT HOUSE, the trio of films mark a return to acclaimed genre filmmaking hearkening back to the company’s 2002 breakout hit 28 DAYS LATER, directed by Danny Boyle.
On Valentine’s Day, Issa Rae (HBO’s Insecure, Little) and LaKeith Stanfield (FX’s Atlanta, Sorry to Bother You) connect in a romance where a woman must learn from the secrets in her mother’s past if she is to move forward and allow herself to love and be loved.
When famed photographer Christina Eames unexpectedly dies, she leaves her estranged daughter Mae Morton (Rae) hurt, angry and full of questions. When a photograph tucked away in a safe-deposit box is found, Mae finds herself on a journey delving into her mother’s early life and ignites a powerful, unexpected romance with a rising-star journalist, Michael Block (Stanfield).
From writer-director Stella Meghie (The Weekend, Jean of the Joneses) from her original screenplay comes a sweeping love story about forgiveness and finding the courage to seek the truth, no matter where it may lead you.
The Photograph is produced by Will Packer, blockbuster producer of Girls Trip, the Ride Along franchise, and ten movies that have opened No. 1 at the U.S. box office, including Night School, No Good Deed and Think Like a Man, and by James Lopez, president of Will Packer Productions. The film is executive produced by Meghie, Erika Hampson (co-producer Late Night, Life Itself) and Rae.
The film also stars Chanté Adams (Roxanne Roxanne) as Mae’s young mother Christina, Y’lan Noel (HBO’s Insecure) as Christina’s secret love, and Rob Morgan (Mudbound) as Isaac Jefferson, a New Orleans fisherman with a mysterious connection to Mae’s mother.
Genre: Romance
Cast: Issa Rae, LaKeith Stanfield, Chanté Adams, Y’lan Noel, Rob Morgan, Lil Rel Howery and Courtney B. Vance
Director: Stella Meghie
Writer: Stella Meghie
Producers: Will Packer, James Lopez
Executive Producers: Stella Meghie, Erika Hampson, Issa Rae
Before the over-the-top mayhem and dark humor of Amazon’s The Boys, before the post-apocalyptic nightmare of The Walking Dead, before the sprawling space adventure of Avengers: Endgame, there was MARS ATTACKS! The original pulp sci-fi card set, released by Topps in 1962, influenced them all.
Now nearly six decades later, The Topps Company has licensed Mars Attacks to SideKick Lab, who will develop, produce, and publish a new series of Mars Attacks trading cards, which is currently crowdfunding on Kickstarter. This campaign was fully funded in just over an hour!
“SideKick was a critically important partner behind Topps’ earlier Kickstarter-funded Mars Attacks: Occupation, which was beloved by fans, and we are pleased to have them return to the series,” says Topps’ VP of Global Licensing Ira Friedman. “SideKick makes products Mars Attacks fans want and we are happy to work with them to produce new content and carry forward the brand’s indelible legacy.”
The new set, Mars Attacks: Uprising, is a followup to the 2015 series Mars Attacks: Occupation, which funded on Kickstarter with a total of over $250,000 raised between the campaign and the followup survey to backers.
Uprising will include all new art by illustrators Ed Repka, William Skaar, Carlos Valenzuela, Paolo Parente, and other amazing talent. It will continue the story of an army from Mars that has invaded and enslaved the Earth, and show humanity’s struggle to rise up to defeat their alien overlords! The set will feature all-new story cards, unique chase cards including a crossover with the 1988 Topps series Dinosaurs Attack; creator autographs, hand-drawn original art cards, collectible parallel sets, and so much more! Filled with over-the-top action, twisted dark humor, and classic pulp-inspired art, Uprising will delight long-time fans and newcomers alike.
From complete sets to a la carte options, master bundles and hot packs, Kickstarter is offering collectors the chance to get what they want, how they want it. Specialty reward levels will allow fans the rare opportunity to be painted into the series itself; to receive unique one-of-a-kind rewards, and even original cut signatures from creators of the original series, including visionary artists Wally Wood and Bob Powell!
About SideKick Lab Founded by Tom Lichtman, SideKick Lab specializes in recreating trading card products from the past! The only manufacturer of wax pack trading cards, SideKick has produced cards for The Topps Company (Mars Attacks, Garbage Pail Kids), 20th Century Fox (Bob’s Burgers), Skybound Entertainment (Outcast), Fright-Rags (Evil Dead, Child’s Play), Buff Monster (Melty Misfits), and many more. For more info, visit www.sidekicklab.com.
About The Topps Company, Inc. Founded in 1938, The Topps Company is the preeminent creator and brand marketer of trading cards, collectibles and distinctive confectionery. Topps’ leading sports and entertainment products include MLB, WWE, Star Wars, Garbage Pail Kids, BattleTech and Mars Attacks, among many others. For more information, visit www.topps.com.
” I just met the swellest dame… She smacked me in the kisser. “
THE GLASS KEY starring Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake screens at Webster University’s Moore Auditorium(470 E Lockwood Ave) screens Tuesday February 11th. The film begins at 7:00pm. This is the second film in a 3-film ‘Lake and Ladd’ series that continues February 18th with THE BLUE DAHLIA. A Facebook invite can be found HERE.
Fast-tracked into production on account of Ladd’s rising stardom, The Glass Key is an adaptation of Dashiell Hammett’s (The Maltese Falcon, The Thin Man) 1931 bestseller, previously adapted just seven years prior as a George Raft vehicle of the same name. Here we have Ladd playing Ed Beaumont, something of a fixer for corrupt politician Paul Madvig. Ed falls into a dangerous love triangle with Paul and Paul’s political rival’s daughter, Janet Henry (Lake). Things get even more complicated when Janet’s brother turns up dead, and Paul is the prime suspect.
Admission is:
$7 for the general public $6 for seniors, Webster alumni and students from other schools $5 for Webster University staff and faculty
Dyanne Thorne, star of the groundbreaking exploitation classic ILSA, SHE-WOLF OF THE SS, (1975) has died. According to the IMDB, she was 77, though she may have been several years older. My first encounter with Ms Thorne (and the twins) occurred in 1977 when I was 15 and my bother and cousins and I traveled to Piggot, Arkansas from our grandparents home in Malden, Missouri to see ROLLING THUNDER. The theater (I wish I could remember the name of it) had a special ‘Adults Only’ show at 11pm. When ROLLING THUNDER ended about 10:45, we ducked down behind our seats so the usher wouldn’t see us, then popped back up at 11 to see what we were sure was going to be some glorious fun sex film. The ‘Adults Only’ movie turned out to be ILSA, SHE-WOLF OF THE SS. My life was never the same. To this day, ROLLING THUNDER and ILSA, SHE-WOLF OF THE SS is the greatest theatrical double-feature I’ve seen. I recall going to school back in St. Louis and trying to describe ILSA SHE-WOLF OF THE SS to my friends, who couldn’t believe what they were hearing. Finally in 1982, Landmark’s The Tivoli Theater in St. Louis showed a double feature of ILSA, SHE-WOLF OF THE SS and its first sequel ILSA, HAREM KEEPER OF THE OIL SHIEKS, so I knew it had not all been a dream.
In 1975, Legendary exploitation producer David Friedman and director Don Edmonds gave us the taboo-busting cult classic ILSA, SHE-WOLF OF THE SS about a sexy but evil Nazi Commandante who gleefully performs sadistic experiments on (mostly female) prisoners and has a nasty penchant for castrating potential lovers who fail to satisfy her. Ilsa was based in part on an actual person, Ilse Koch, who tortured death camp prisoners and collected skin from those who had tattoos. Dyanne Thorne was a busty red-headed 33 year old (?) former Vegas showgirl who had toiled around in the low-budget sexploitation biz since the mid-60s with roles in films like Joe Sarno’s SIN IN THE SUBURBS (1964) and THE SWINGING BARMAIDS (1973). Working as a chauffeur driver at the time, Thorne was tapped to portray Ilsa and the rest is exploitation cinema history (reportedly Phyllis Davis of BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS and the Vegas TV show was Friedman’s first choice).
With her bleached blonde hair, piercing eyes, evil scowl and Marlene Dietrich accent, Thorne made Ilsa a frightening, cruel and ferocious villainess as well as an icon for fans of films depicting bondage and domination (recurring themes in the Ilsa series). Despite its infamous reputation as tasteless debased schlock, ILSA, SHE-WOLF OF THE SS is actually very well-made entertainment, grim and compelling and, though rated X (rare for a non-porn film in 1975), it was a grindhouse and drive-in hit. Released by Cinepix Productions it was influential as well, setting the standard for the whole Nazisploitiation sub-genre of the late ‘70s, knockoffs (mostly Italian) such as SS HELL CAMP and LAST ORGY OF THE THIRD REICH that sexualized the holocaust.
Ms Thorne quickly reteamed with Friedman and Edmonds the next year for ILSA, HAREM KEEPER OF THE OIL SHIEKS, a worthy sequel that toned down the sadism a bit and added more humor. In 1977 Thorne traveled to Spain to star in Eurotrash legend Jess Franco’s women’s prison opus GRETA THE MAD BUTCHER playing basically the same character (but back to being a redhead). It was retitled ILSA, THE WICKED WARDEN and ILSA, ABSOLUTE POWER for U.S. video release to tie it back to the Ilsa series and these first three Ilsa films are available on DVD in a superb box set put out many years ago by Anchor Bay. There was a fourth Ilsa film, the Canadian-lensed ILSA TIGRESS OF SIBERIA (1978), the final film in the series and the only one still not available on DVD. Dyanne’s post-Ilsa film credits include CHESTY ANDERSON U.S. NAVY, the women’s prison opus HELLHOLE, and REAL MEN.
For more information on the Ilsa movies, I recommend the book The Ilsa Chronicles by Darrin Venticinque and Tristan Thompson published by Midnight Media. I finally met Dyanne Thorne in 2008 at one of the Cinema Wasteland Conventions in Cleveland and she looked much the same as she did 30 years earlier! In her first convention appearance in 12 years she claimed that at times she felt like distancing herself from the Ilsa character but there she was at age 66 (more or less) posing with fans leather-clad and whip in hand (she even brought her Russian Cossack hat from TIGRESS)! Dyanne Thorne and her husband Howard Maurer (who had small parts in two of the Ilsa films) ran a wedding chapel in Las Vegas where she would, for a price, marry couples wearing her Ilsa Nazi uniform ! (she also performed Star Trek weddings having had a role in the second season episode A Piece of the Action in 1967).
Dyanne Thorne (in black) in the Star Trek episode A Piece of the Action
Dyanne signed stack of movie paper for me including a photo that was inscribed “To Tom – I Will Punish You – Gladly!” RIP Ilsa!
