Messed Up Puzzles Announces New NEKROMANTIK 1 & 2 Jigsaw Puzzle Double Header in Collaboration with Cult Epics (PLUS: Jörg Buttgereit is entombed in select boxes). The Messed-Up Puzzle’s site can be found HERE
Romance is dead! Messed Up Puzzles and Cult Epics bring you the first ever series of jigsaw puzzles for necrophiles. NEKROMANTIK and NEKROMANTIK 2: THE RETURN OF THE LOVING DEAD join the Messed Up family as Nos. 7 and 8 respectively. Each one features 1000 corpse-riding pieces cut from the original art by Andreas Marschall.
For the uninitiated, NEKROMANTIK concerns the ménage a trois between Rob, his girlfriend, and the corpse he brings home from his job cleaning up after grisly accidents. This doesn’t end as well as one might think. In NEKROMANTIK 2, a beautiful, grave-digging nurse explores her necrophilia and has to choose between the living and the dead with regard to her love life. Banned in Germany upon their release, Jörg Buttgereit’s NEKROMANTIK films can now be proudly assembled in your home without being in violation of German penal code section 131.
Like this summer’s MANIAC release, this line of puzzles is a treasure hunt. 1 in 50 of each title is signed by director Jörg Buttgereit (randomly distributed), only to be revealed once the puzzle has been assembled. And those who love the dead enough to order NEKROMANTIK + NEKROMANTIK 2 bundles will receive a Limited Edition Exclusive: All bundled orders will ship with a never before seen glossy print of Buttgereit by photographer Jan Willem Steenmeijer. Pre-Order season kicks off in November, with puzzles shipping in time for the Holidays. This is a limited run of only 300 of each title, so order now before they’re back in the grave.
Created by horror fans and jigsaw puzzle junkies, MESSED UP PUZZLES makes NSFW boxes of DIY horror art featuring 1000 pieces of Just Plain Wrong; gouged from horror, grindhouse and exploitation classics.
” There is an old proverb which says: Don’t try to do two things at once and expect to do justice to both. This is the story of a boy who tried it. While employed as a moving picture operator in a small town theater he was also studying to be a detective.”
SHERLOCK JR. (1924) starring Buster Keaton will be screening at Webster University’s Moore Auditorium (470 E Lockwood Ave) on November 15th at 7:30pm as part of this year’s St. Louis International Film Festival. The film will be accompanied by The Rats and People Motion Picture Orchestra. It will be shown with the 22-minute short industrial filmWON BY A SWEET from 1929. Tickets are $20 and can be found HERE
St. Louis’ Rats & People Motion Picture Orchestra — a longtime fest favorite — returns to SLIFF with original scores and live accompaniment for not one but two silent films: a classic Buster Keaton comedy, “Sherlock Jr.,” and a bizarrely amusing industrial short, “Won by a Sweet.” In “Sherlock Jr.,” the Great Stone Face plays a movie projectionist and wannabe detective alienated from his girl’s affections by a sneaky romantic rival, who lifts a watch from the father of their mutual love interest and pins the theft on innocent Buster. Falling asleep in the projection booth, disconsolate Buster dreams himself into the film he’s screening, where he assumes the mantle of the great Holmes and solves the crime. Time magazine, which named the film one of its All-Time 100 Movies, writes: “Is this, as some critics have argued, an example of primitive American surrealism? Sure. But let’s not get fancy about it. It is more significantly, a great example of American minimalism — simple objects and movement manipulated in casually complex ways to generate a steadily rising gale of laughter.”
WON BY A SWEET – This loopy, hallucinatory 1929 industrial film, which promotes the positive health effects of candy, tells the story of a track coach who implements a no-candy rule to disastrous effect. The film was preserved by Washington U. Libraries’ Film & Media Archive through funding by the National Film Preservation Foundation.
By popular demand, Fathom Events and Warner Bros. will bring director Peter Jackson’s remarkable World War I documentary THEY SHALL NOT GROW OLDback to movie theaters nationwide for three days only this December, offering audiences another chance to see it on the big screen and in 3D.
THEY SHALL NOT GROW OLDwill play on Saturday, Dec. 7, as well as Tuesday, Dec. 17, and Wednesday, Dec. 18, and these special encore presentations (also available in 2D in select locations) will include both an introduction to the film by Jackson as well as a post-film exploration of how it was made. Tickets are available now at the Fathom Events website or at participating theater box offices.
One of the most acclaimed and highest-grossing documentaries ever made, “They Shall Not Grow Old” is director Peter Jackson’s extraordinary look at the soldiers, the events, the sounds and the sights of World War I. After hearing from moviegoers nationwide who wanted to relive this unique cinematic experience in 3D, Fathom Events and Warner Bros. will bring “They Shall Not Grow Old” back to movie theaters across the country for three days only this December. The film will also be available in 2D in select location
On December 7, 17 and 18, more than 800 cinemas throughout the U.S. present the film the New York Times called “a brisk, absorbing and moving experience,” and about which Rolling Stone wrote, “You won’t believe your eyes.” Initially released by Fathom Events and Warner Bros. in December of 2018, “They Shall Not Grow Old” has become one of Fathom’s most successful and most requested titles. The December presentations will include both an introduction to the film by Jackson as well as a post-film exploration of how the film was made.
For generations, World War I has only been experienced through grainy, silent black-and-white footage. With unprecedented digital restoration, meticulous colorization and revelatory use of sound, “They Shall Not Grow Old” was nominated by BAFTA and the Critic’s Choice Award for Best Documentary, and won the Motion Picture Sound Editor’s Golden Reel Award. “They Shall Not Grow Old” opens a window to the past in a way that has never been seen or heard before.
* Saturday, December 7, 2019 – 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. (local time) * Tuesday, December 17, 2019 – 7:00 p.m. (local time) * Wednesday, December 18, 2019 – 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. (local time)
Tickets for “They Shall Not Grow Old” can be purchased at www.FathomEvents.com or participating theater box offices. For a complete list of theater locations visit the Fathom Events website (theaters and participants are subject to change).
The Toyman Toy Show in St. Louis has been going strong for almost 30 years now and just keeps getting bigger and better! The fun now takes place nine times a year at The Machinists Hall 12365 St Charles Rock Road in Bridgeton, MO 63044. There are over 120 vendors at the Toyman Toy Show spread out over 220 tables. all selling vintage toys, comics, dolls, diecast cars, movie memorabilia, and more as well as cosplayers and artists. It’s an unbelievable amount of fun for only $5! A Facebook invite for the event can be found HERE
The next Toyman Show is Sunday, November 3rd from 9:00a to 3:00p andLegendary Model Kit Sculptor Randy Bowen will be a special guest.Randy started as a garage kit creator and throughout the years became a well-known sculptor in the industry. Currently, Bowen Designs consists of many more people and often employs freelance sculptors and prototype painters due to the large amount of product being released. Bowen Design’s produces mostly statues and busts based on heroes and villains of the Marvel Universe.
Other guests at the November 3rd Toyman Show include:
LORENZO LIZANA – (Toy Designer & Comic illustrator/Creator)if you have seen VOLTRON, TRENDMASTER toys or even LION FORGE COMICS then you have seen his work. Come check out what he is working on next.
Over 125+ Vendors on 225+ tables of Toys, Comics, Games, Movie posters, Barbie, Hot Wheels, Die-Cast, Models, Pop Culture and a TOTALLY OPEN BALCONY.
Adult Admission at the Toyman Show: $5.00 – Children 16 & under free. Sunday: 9:00am – 3:00pm. Early Bird @ 8:00a – $12.00 – * FREE PARKING *
Stormtroopers, The Emperor and Chewbacca! This will be an epic final chapter.
Watch the final, exciting trailer for STAR WARS; THE RISE OF SKYWALKER that debuted during halftime of ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” NFL game between the New England Patriots and the New York Jets.
Lucasfilm and director J.J. Abrams join forces once again to take viewers on an epic journey to a galaxy far, far away with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the riveting conclusion of the seminal Skywalker saga, where new legends will be born and the final battle for freedom is yet to come.
The film stars Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Anthony Daniels, Naomi Ackie, Domhnall Gleeson, Richard E. Grant, Lupita Nyong’o, Keri Russell, Joonas Suotamo, Kelly Marie Tran, with Ian McDiarmid and Billy Dee Williams
STAR WARS; THE RISE OF SKYWALKER is directed by J.J. Abrams and produced by Kathleen Kennedy, Abrams and Michelle Rejwan. Callum Greene, Tommy Gormley and Jason McGatlin serve as executive producers. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker was written by J.J. Abrams & Chris Terrio.
Tickets to STAR WARS; THE RISE OF SKYWALKER are now available everywhere tickets are sold.
STAR WARS; THE RISE OF SKYWALKER releases in U.S. theaters on December 20.
John Boyega is Finn and Naomi Ackie is Jannah in STAR WARS; THE RISE OF SKYWALKER.Scene from STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKERDaisy Ridley is Rey in STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER
Bloodshot (Vin Diesel) in Columbia Pictures’ BLOODSHOT.
Based on the bestselling comic book, Vin Diesel stars as Ray Garrison, a soldier recently killed in action and brought back to life as the superhero Bloodshot by the RST corporation. With an army of nanotechnology in his veins, he’s an unstoppable force –stronger than ever and able to heal instantly. But in controlling his body, the company has sway over his mind and memories, too. Now, Ray doesn’t know what’s real and what’s not – but he’s on a mission to find out.
BLOODSHOT is the first movie based on a Valiant Entertainment hero. Directed by Dave Wilson (Love, Death & Robots), Sony’s BLOODSHOT stars Vin Diesel, Eiza González, Sam Heughan, Toby Kebbell, and Guy Pearce. The comic book character was co-created by Kevin VanHook, Don Perlin, and Bob Layton. http://valiantentertainment.com/comics/bloodshot/
Steven Soderbergh’s The Laundromat makes a damning case for why the filmmaker is starting to become outdated. Slick, cool, and progressive in 1989, Soderbergh broke onto the scene with sex, lies and a videotape. That film is a fantastic work, one that stood out with a risque but honest view of sexuality. Nowadays, it’s still effective but the veneer of that honesty has worn slightly thin. Maybe part of Soderbergh is stuck in 1989.
Now, of course we can’t just blame him. The Laundromat, written by Scott Z. Burns (responsible for a few good Soderbergh movies and this year’s The Report) is ill conceived from the get go. Following a mystery that never gets solved, Meryl Streep does her best to give life to Ellen Martin, a woman whose husband died on a cruise boat. The aftermath lead her to an offshore scheme that bled her of any of the settlement money that could give her some type of closure. The managers of that scheme? Jurgen Mossat (Gary Oldman) and Ramon Fronseca (Antonio Banderas), two Panama lawyers keeping many billionaires money safe.
Where The Laundromat goes wrong is that for all the talk of the meek inheriting the earth and the importance of financial reform, the view of the filmmaker and writer seems to be on the side of the wealthy that have put us in this position. Ellen is a wealthy woman who never suffers the consequences of what happened. Mossak and Fonseca, are framed charmingly and straightforward. The film upon multiple occasions tells you, “This is simply the way the world works”…and yet there never seems a shred of empathy for anybody. Nobody actually gets out of this unscathed…not even the director. Oldman and Banderas smile and tell us that, “…the director of this film has 5 (offshore) type accounts,” and expect us to be fascinated. I’m not. You just gave me the middle finger and asked me to clap for you.
This is exacerbated by the scope of the script. Burns and Soderbergh frame the financial woes of the world through certain vignettes: one taking place in a small island firm, one taking place at the villa of an adulterous millionaire, and one taking place in China (the implications of which are even more disturbing when you see how nationalistic it seems). Each of these are nihilistic exercises, showing the horrible nature of man, but not are engaging or ironic in anyway. Soderbergh’s (Peter Andrews and Mary Ann Bernard) dryest photography and editing in ages assures that everything is presented as flatly as possible, adding no nuance to the proceedings. By the time the movie is over, it’s like somebody has but a bag over your senses wiping them out.
…and that’s before you get to the call to action. The ending of the film is Streep stripping out of brownface and asking us to accept the artifice of the movie. She says to the camera that financial reform must come to the country and that we’ll all suffer if it doesn’t. She then assumes the pose of the statue of Liberty, holding a copy of the script.
This sequence is the biggest middle finger of them all. The creatives first show us their capacity for racism, then tell us their intentions are good…but their not. Afterall, Soderbergh has, “…five of these accounts.” Is this satire? I suppose. It sat wrong with me though and made me rethink the flawed legacy of Steven Soderbergh.
He might have been slick, cool, and progressive then…but the hollowness of his approach is starting to show.
1/2 of 1 Stsr out of 4
THE LAUNDROMAT is playing in St. Louis exclusively at The Hi-Pointe Backlot
“I didn’t bring your breakfast, because you didn’t eat your din-din!”
‘Classics on the Loop’ continues at The Tivoli next week with WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? Screenings happen on Monday October 21st at 4 pm and 7 pm . Admission is just $7.The Tivoli is located at 6350 Delmar Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63130. A Facebook invite can be found HERE
The 1962 shocker WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? blended PSYCHO with SUNSET BOULEVARD to compelling effect. One of the great movies about the movies, (and the best movies about the movies bite the hand that feeds them), and the best of director Robert Aldrich’s ‘women’s pictures’. It’s about a couple of self-loathing sisters hauled up together in a decaying Hollywood mansion, a too-close-to-home study of the real life rivalry between stars Bette Davis and Joan Crawford or even as a veiled study of homosexual self-depreciation with the sisters as aging drag queens. But these are the very things that make the picture great. It is precisely because it can be read in this way that makes WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? such a perversely enjoyable, subversive piece of work.
As the sisters, Davis and Crawford pull all the stops out and then some. What makes Crawford’s performance great is that she is never sympathetic even when Davis is feeding her dead rat or quite literally kicking her when she’s down, while Davis is simply astonishing. With her face painted like a hideous Kabuki mask and dressed up like a doll that’s filled with maggots it’s an unashamedly naked piece of acting, as revealing as her work in ALL ABOUT EVE and almost as good. After the success of WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE?, every actress of a certain age got to star in their own ‘Hag Horror’ film including HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE(Davis with Olivia DeHavilland), WHAT’S THE MATTER WITH HELEN (Shelley Winters and Debbie Reynolds), WHATEVER HAPPENED TO AUNT ALICE (Geraldine Page), DIE DIE MY DARLING (Tallulah Bankhead), THE NANNY (Bette Davis again), and more, some better than others, but this bitch-fest is the real McCoy.
“You fools, this man is plotting our doom! We die at dawn! He is Caligari!”
THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARIwill screen at Webster University’s Moore Auditorium (470 East Lockwood)Thursday October 25th at 7:30pm. Austin, Texas’ most adventurous band, The Invincible Czars, will provide live music.The band encourages fans and attendees to dress for the Halloween season at these shows.Tickets are $12. A Facebook invite for the event can be found HERE
Considered by some to be the first horror film, THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI is thought by many film buffs to be the most influential of all silent films. With the Grandfather of all Twist-Endings, the film is the most brilliant example of that dark and twisted film movement known as German Expressionism, THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI is a plunge into the mind of insanity that severs all ties with the rational world. Director Robert Wiene and a team of designers crafted a nightmare realm in which light, shadow and substance are abstracted, a world a demented doctor (Werner Kruass) and a carnival sleepwalker (Conrad Veidt) perpetrate a series of ghastly murders in a small community.
Trivia: Tim Burton’s 1990 film EDWARD SCISSORHANDS used the aesthetics of THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI in creating the look for the main character of Edward Scissorhands
The 28th Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival (SLIFF) — held Nov. 7-17 — provides St. Louis filmgoers with the opportunity to view the finest in world cinema: international films, documentaries, American indies, and shorts that can only be seen on the big screen at the festival. SLIFF will screen 389 films: 81 narrative features, 63 documentary features, 227 shorts, and 18 film programs exclusive to the Cinema for Students program. The fest also will feature 12 special-event programs, including our closing-night awards presentation. This year’s festival has 63 countries represented.
SLIFF will present our usual array of fest buzz films and Oscar contenders, including “The Apollo,” “Atlantics,” “The Chambermaid,” “Clemency,” “Cunningham,” “A Faithful Man,” “Frankie,” “A Hidden Life,” “Just Mercy,” “The Kill Team,” “Little Joe,” “Marriage Story,” “Nomad,” “Olympic Dreams,” “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” “Premature,” “The Report,” “The Rest,” “Seahorse,” “The Song of Names,” “Sorry We Missed You,” “Synonyms,” “A Tramway in Jerusalem,” “The Traitor,” “The Truth,” “The Two Popes,” “Waves,” “The Whistlers,” “The Wild Goose Lake,” and “Zombi Child.”
The festival will honor a trio of significant film figures with our annual awards:
Josh Aronson and Brad Schiff with Charles Guggenheim Cinema St. Louis Awards
Lisa Cortés with a Women in Film Award.
The festival will kick off on Thursday, Nov. 7, with the local premiere of the much-lauded “Marriage Story,” starring Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver, and directed by Noah Baumbach. A 6:30 PM reception precedes the film and features complimentary wine and Urban Chestnut beers.
As part of the fest’s ongoing response to the Ferguson uprising, SLIFF again will feature a major stream of programming entitled Race in America: The Black Experience and offer a fourth edition of Mean Streets: Viewing the Divided City Through the Lens of Film and Television, which addresses the persistent issue of segregation.
The fest schedule, ticket and venue information, and a complete list of films (with descriptions) are available at the Cinema St. Louis website (cinemastlouis.org).
For more information, the public should visit cinemastlouis.org or call 314-289-4150.
Program Overview
SLIFF’s stellar lineup features a constellation of cinema’s brightest lights (see the SLIFF section of the CSL website for full info):
Major awards to significant filmmakers:
Women in Film Award: producer and director Lisa Cortés
Charles Guggenheim Cinema St. Louis Awards: director Josh Aronson and animator Brad Schiff
Free events: SLIFF continues its tradition of offering a large selection of free events to maximize its outreach into the community and to make the festival affordable to all. This year, we offer 64 free events, which are detailed on our website. In addition, for the 16th year, we present the Georgia Frontiere Cinema for Students Program, which provides free screenings (often with filmmakers in attendance) to St. Louis-area schools. Films are offered both at our venues and for in-school presentation. Busing reimbursement is also available.
Show-Me Cinema Showcase (films with St. Louis and Missouri roots or connections), including a special program focused on the much-praised short “St. Louis Superman.”
Mean Streets: Viewing the Divided City Through the Lens of Film and Television: SLIFF offers a fourth edition of this program, which addresses one of the most persistent and vexing issues in urban studies: segregation.
Race in America: 19 programs that address the black experience from multiple perspectives.
Human Rights Showcase: A selection of 14 documentary programs focused on human-rights issues in the U.S. and the world.
SLIFF/Kids Family Films, including four free programs.
Festival award-winners and critically lauded international films.
Well-regarded American indies.
Nearly 230 shorts from around the globe, including free family and documentary-shorts programs and two selections of the best films from the St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase.
Major documentaries, including 10 documentary-shorts programs.
A strong selection of animation, including two dedicated animated-shorts programs.
Revivals and restorations.
The New Filmmakers Forum (NFF), a juried competition for first-time American-independent filmmakers, with all films accompanied by their directors.
Venues
Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, 3750 Washington Blvd.
Missouri History Museum’s Lee Auditorium, Forest Park, 5700 Lindell Blvd.
Plaza Frontenac Cinema, Plaza Frontenac, Lindbergh Boulevard and Clayton Road
St. Louis Public Library’s Central Library, 1301 Olive St.
Stage at KDHX, 3524 Washington Blvd.
Tivoli Theatre, 6350 Delmar Blvd.
Washington University’s Brown Hall Auditorium,, Forsyth Boulevard and Chaplin Drive
Webster University’s Sverdrup Complex’s Room 123, 6300 Big Bend Blvd.
Webster University’s Webster Hall’s Winifred Moore Auditorium, 470 East Lockwood Ave.
Ticket Info
Ticket Prices
Individual tickets are $14 each or $10 for Cinema St. Louis members and students with current and valid ID, except for the following special events (discounts do not apply and passes are not accepted):
Opening-Night Reception with Marriage Story $25
The Rats and People Motion Picture Orchestra with Sherlock Jr. $20
In addition to paid shows, SLIFF offers 64 free programs.
Advance-Ticket Sales
Online and phone sales are limited to full-price tickets only; Cinema St. Louis member and student discounts can only be obtained in person because ID is required.
KDHX: Advance tickets for programs at this venue are for sale online through Brown Paper Tickets. In the “Search Events” box, enter either the name of the film or SLIFF. There is a service charge of approximately $1.69 per ticket. Print your receipt and present it at the box office to obtain tickets.
Plaza Frontenac: Advance tickets for programs at this venue are for sale at the Plaza Frontenac box office. Box-office hours are 11 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday. No phone sales. For tickets online, visit Landmark Theatres website. There is a $1.75-per-ticket service charge. Pick up your tickets in advance using your confirmation number or credit card, or show the e-mail confirmation with scannable barcode to the usher.
Tivoli: Advance tickets for programs at this venue are for sale at the Tivoli box office. Box-office hours are 4-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday and noon-10 p.m. Friday-Sunday. No phone sales. For tickets online, visit Landmark Theatres website. There is a $1.75-per-ticket service charge. Pick up your tickets in advance using your confirmation number or credit card, or show the e-mail confirmation with scannable barcode to the usher.
Webster U./Moore: Advance tickets at this venue are for sale online through Brown Paper Tickets. In the “Search Events” box, enter either the name of the film or SLIFF. There is a service charge of approximately $1.69 per ticket. Print your receipt and present it at the box office.
Day-of-Show Ticket Sales
KDHX, Plaza Frontenac, Tivoli, and Webster U. will open a half-hour before the first show.
The free events offered at Contemporary Art Museum, Cortex’s Innovation Hall, KDHX, Missouri History Museum, St. Louis Public Library, Washington U., and Webster U. require no ticket. Admission is first come, first served on day of show.
The free events offered at the Tivoli require a complimentary ticket that should be obtained at the box office on the day of show; advance tickets to free shows at the Tivoli can be obtained online, but a $1.76 service charge applies.
Festival Punch-Passes
Festival Punch-Passes are available at two levels: 6-ticket pass for $75 or 10-ticket pass for $120. Festival Punch-Passes are not valid for the Opening-Night Reception with “Marriage Story” on Nov. 7 and the screening of “Sherlock Jr.” with the performance by the Rats & People Motion Picture Orchestra on Nov. 15.
Festival Punch-Pass-holders are required to obtain a ticket for each film attended, either in advance or day of show; a hole will be punched in the pass for each ticket purchased.
Festival Punch-Passes can be used to purchase multiple tickets for the same show and to obtain tickets for screenings at all venues.
