Author Archives: Arleigh

Double Feature Trailers for Predator: Badlands and Predator: Killer of Killers

Posted on by Arleigh

When Prey was released straight to streaming on Hulu in 2022, there were many who thought that the film was going to be another Predator franchise entry that would lead to major disappointment. I mean, if it was good, it would’ve had a theatrical release. So, it was a pleasant surprise when it was well-received by most critics and audiences, alike.

Director Dan Trachtenberg had earned much goodwill from those same people as with the executives who ran 20th Century for Disney. That goodwill has allowed Trachtenberg to work on two projects for the House of Mouse both of which are two different ideas to expand the Predator franchise.

The two projects in question are the 3-part animated series for Hulu, Predator: Killer of Killers and the one set for a full theatrical release this November, Predator: Badlands.

The animated series will be about following the stories of the titular hunter set in three different eras (Viking era, Feudal Japan and World War 2). Predator: Killer of Killers may be animated but from the trailer it doesn’t skimp on the gore and violence. The series is set to premiere on Hulu on June 6, 2025.

The feature film Predator: Badlands is set for a November 7, 2025 release and will take a coming-of-age route but from the point of view of a young Predator seen as an outcast from his clan and teaming up with an unlikely ally played by Elle Fanning.

Predator: Killer of Killers Trailer

Predator: Badlands Trailer

Fantastic Four: First Steps (Official Trailer)

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Since Iron Man first hit theaters in the summer of 2008, especially with the post-credits scene of Nick Fury asking Tony Stark if he knew anything about the Avengers Initiative, comic book fans have always been hoping that all the Marvel Comics properties would soon interact with each other. X-Men and Fantastic Four characters were controlled by 20th Century Fox.

This began to change in 2011 with the massive hack of Sony servers which gave the public behind-the-scenes info on Sony execs worried about the Spider-Man film franchise and how it was lagging behind Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe under the control of uber-producer Kevin Feige. In just a few years after this hack rumors of Spider-Man being loaned out to become part of the MCU became fact.

The next major shift in fans wanting all of Marvel properties becoming part of the MCU was Disney’s purchase and merger with 20th Century Fox in 2017 and completed in 2019. With just a few small restrictions here and there (Universal still hold the rights to the Incredible Hulk character but allowed Disney to the character), the MCU was now pretty much complete.

The first thing fans wanted was a new take on Marvel Comics’ first family: The Fantastic Four.

There’s been several attempts to put the Fantastic Four on the big-screen. From the 1994 unreleased Roger Corman low-budget film to the three films when 20th Century Fox was still a separate studio, fans never really bought into those iterations. But now that the first family was back under Marvel Studios control, especially with Kevin Feige as producer, fans were once again hopeful.

The first official trailer is now out and it looks like it will lean heavily on the Fantastic Four’s 1960’s origins right down to the retro-futuristic design and theme. How the film will explain where the team has been during the MCU timeline will be a narrative that a team of screenwriters and director Matt Shankman will have to navigate.

Fantastic Four: First Steps arrives in theaters on July 25, 2025.

Scenes I Love: Apocalypse Now

Posted on by Arleigh

“I’ve seen horrors… horrors that you’ve seen. But you have no right to call me a murderer. You have a right to kill me. You have a right to do that… but you have no right to judge me. It’s impossible for words to describe what is necessary to those who do not know what horror means. Horror… Horror has a face… and you must make a friend of horror. Horror and moral terror are your friends. If they are not, then they are enemies to be feared. They are truly enemies! I remember when I was with Special Forces… seems a thousand centuries ago. We went into a camp to inoculate some children. We left the camp after we had inoculated the children for polio, and this old man came running after us and he was crying. He couldn’t see. We went back there, and they had come and hacked off every inoculated arm. There they were in a pile. A pile of little arms. And I remember… I… I… I cried, I wept like some grandmother. I wanted to tear my teeth out; I didn’t know what I wanted to do! And I want to remember it. I never want to forget it… I never want to forget. And then I realized… like I was shot… like I was shot with a diamond… a diamond bullet right through my forehead. And I thought, my God… the genius of that! The genius! The will to do that! Perfect, genuine, complete, crystalline, pure. And then I realized they were stronger than we, because they could stand that these were not monsters, these were men… trained cadres. These men who fought with their hearts, who had families, who had children, who were filled with love… but they had the strength… the strength… to do that. If I had ten divisions of those men, our troubles here would be over very quickly. You have to have men who are moral… and at the same time who are able to utilize their primordial instincts to kill without feeling… without passion… without judgment… without judgment! Because it’s judgment that defeats us.”

My latest “Scenes I Love” Monologue Edition comes courtesy of the great Marlon Brando as Col. Kurtz from Francis For Coppola’s magnus opus, Apocalypse Now.

The scene is the Kurtz monologue describing the horror he has seen and how it has shaped his thought process and concept on how to fight the enemies he has been tasked to fight and also condemned for the methods he has used to achieve results.

Shot and framed with Brando’s face half in shadows as he describes how the horrors he has seen and committed is just a reflection of the war they’re fighting and how emotions and judgment from those who have not experience and committed such horrors is the path to defeat.

Brando’s time in front of the camera is not very much in the whole runtime of the film, but from beginning to end his shadowy presence looms over everyone and this 5-minute monologue becomes the exclamation mark that succinctly explains the entire theme of the film: “In an insane world, the mad men are the ones who are sane”.

Great Film and TV Monologues

Song of the Day: Eruption (by Van Halen)

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Time to get back to our “Greatest Guitar Solos” series with a short but awesome rock instrumental from the one and only Eddie Van Halen.

“Eruption” was part of the band Van Halen’s self-titled debut album in 1978 and announced the arrival of one of rock’s guitar gods in Eddie Van Halen. Just like Jimi Hendrix’s “Little Wing”, this track was short (less than two minutes) but was very influential with future musicians.

The song itself has Eddie Van Halen mixing it classical music structures and cadences (he uses a section of “Etude No. 2” by Rodolphe Kreutzer in the beginning of the track. Eddie’s use of classical musical theory and melding it with the face-melting technique of hard rock will usher in an era of rock guitarists from all genres from hard rock to black metal where classical music is not seen a stodgy music, but a strong basis and foundation to create of the great rock songs for the next half-century.

Great Guitar Solos Series

Trailer: Havoc

Posted on by Arleigh

Chad Stahelski has gotten a large share of kudos for reinvigorating the action genre the last ten years (deservedly so). Yet, one director seems to have been forgotten despite having directed two of the most action-packed and brutal action film of the last 15 years.

I am talking about Welsh-filmmaker Gareth Evans of The Raid and The Raid 2 fame. His work on these Indonesian martial arts action films have been celebrated for years, yet Evans hasn’t really been given a chance by the major studios with any major projects.

Since leaving Indonesia and going back the UK, Evans has made one film (The Apostle) and an action series (Gangs of London). The former was distributed by Netflix and its through them that Evans returns to the scene with another film that looks to be as brutal and action-packed as any he has made in the past.

Havoc stars Tom Hardy who may be competing with Gerard Butler for anti-hero of the 2020’s as he sports such a grizzled and beaten down look as a detective who must navigate his through the corrupt underworld and politics of the city in order to save a politician’s son.

The official and final trailer for Havoc is now out just weeks before it premieres on Netflix on April 25, 2025.

Trailer: M3GAN 2.0

Posted on by Arleigh

M3GAN in 2022 was a surprise hit that no one saw coming. What would’ve been a a nice little horror film from Blumhouse that would’ve come and gone with little fanfare suddenly became a major hit due to the viral marketing of the titular character’s dancing shown in the initial trailer becoming a huge internet meme.

Now we are back with the sequel (I don’t think anyone was surprised that Blumhouse quickly greenlit a follow-up) and it looks like the original team of director Gerard Johnstone and writer Akela Cooper are back to headline M3GAN 2.0.

The sequel looks to be bigger and a bit more ambitious with more than just a bit of a Terminator 2 vibe with the title character looking to be more of the savior and not just an overprotective killing AI doll.

Will M3GAN 2.0 be able to replicate the viral success of the first film? We shall find out on June 27, 2025.

Song of the Day: Live to Tell (by Madonna)

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Jedadiah Leland wrote and very good review on the 1986 crime drama At Close Range (dir. by James Foley) that brought up some nostalgic memories growing up as a teenager during the 1980’s. Pretty much every teenage boy had a crush on Madonna when she first debut and the years following. I wasn’t immune to such a crush.

The latest “Song of the Day” is Live to Tell”, a song that Madonna co-wrote and co-produced with songwriter and film composer Patrick Leonard for At Close Range who also happened to star her-then husband Sean Penn. “Live to Tell” was a major departure for the pop-centric Madonna in that it was a bluesy, torch ballad that evoked feelings of regret and the scars of childhood tragedy.

Even Madonna’s look in the accompanying video shows her in a much more toned-down and mature image that brought to mind singers and actresses of the 1940’s and 50’s. Ironically, while the song itself was one of Madonna’s least controversial releases during her early years, her performance of the song during 2006’s Confessions Tour was seen as controversial by the Roman Catholic Church due to her hanging from a cross on stage.

Live to Tell

I have a tale to tell
Sometimes it gets so hard to hide it well
I was not ready for the fall
Too blind to see the writing on the wall

A man can tell a thousand lies
I’ve learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell the secret I have learned till then it will burn inside of me

I know where beauty lives
I’ve seen it once
I know the warmth she gives
The light that you could never see
It shines inside you can’t take that from me…

A man can tell a thousand lies
I’ve learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell the secret I have learned till then it will burn inside of me…

The truth is never far behind
You’ve kept it hidden well
If I live to tell the secret I knew then
Will I ever have the chance again?

If I ran away
I’d never have the strength to go very far
How would they hear the beating of my heart…?
Will it grow cold?
(will it grow cold?)
The secret that I hide
Will I grow old?
How will they hear?
When will they learn?
How will they know…?

A man can tell a thousand lies
I’ve learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell the secret I have learned till then it will burn inside of me…

The truth is never far behind
You’ve kept it hidden well
If I live to tell the secret I knew then
Will I ever have the chance again…?
A man can tell a thousand lies
I’ve learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell the secret I have learned till then it will burn inside of me…

Scenes I Love: Jaws

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“You know the thing about a shark, he’s got…lifeless eyes, black eyes, like a doll’s eye. When he comes at ya, doesn’t seem to be livin’. Until he bites ya and those black eyes roll over white.” — Quint

People have blamed Spielberg and his breakout film, Jaws, as the cause of the blockbuster mentality that studios have had since this film came out. Studios and producers wanted to recreate the ultra-successful box-office numbers of Jaws. Despite the fact that this film was modestly budgeted, people nowadays who think they’re film experts point to it as the culprit. They’ve called it the film that begun the dumbing down of Hollywood when creativity was sacrificed for profit.

Why did I pick a scene from this film as a favorite? I picked this particular scene because it’s one reason why the film succeeded and made people come back again and again. It’s a scene that perfectly captures one reason why we love to see films in a communal setting. We want to share the same experience and emotions this scene brought up from the pit of each audience’s psyche.

Jaws didn’t ruin the creativity in filmmaking. I like to think that this one film was a filmmaker at his most creativie (shark wouldn’t work properly so Spielberg kept it off-screen which just added to the terror and tension in the film). This very scene goes down as one of the greatest film monologues. It sets up the danger the trio faces with some anecdotal evidence from the very person who survived the experience, but who might have become unhinged because of it. I love the look of frozen terror on the face of Richard Dryefuss’ character as he listens to Robert Shaw tell the story of the ill-fated journey of the U.S.S. Indianapolis.

This latest “Scenes I Love” is why I consider Spielberg one of the best filmmaker of his generation and probably beyond that.

Scenes I Love: Newsroom

Posted on by Arleigh

No matter what side of the ideological aisle one stands on this speech should be watched, debated and studied not just for the powerhouse acting throughout the monologue but as to its content.

There’s opinions and discussion to be had about differing takes on the first half of the speech, but it’s the latter half when Will McAvoy (played with an equal amount of life-earned cynicism and hope by Jeff Daniels) explains why we as a country has lost its way and how we’ll never get back on track until we realize there is a problem and a problem to be solved not through hate and fear but through understanding and hope.

“We sure used to be. We stood up for what was right! We fought for moral reasons, we passed and struck down laws for moral reasons. We waged wars on poverty, not poor people. We sacrificed, we cared about our neighbors, we put our money where our mouths were, and we never beat our chest. We built great big things, made ungodly technological advances, explored the universe, cured diseases, and cultivated the world’s greatest artists and the world’s greatest economy. We reached for the stars, and we acted like men. We aspired to intelligence; we didn’t belittle it; it didn’t make us feel inferior. We didn’t identify ourselves by who we voted for in the last election, and we didn’t scare so easy.

And we were able to be all these things and do all these things because we were informed. By great men, men who were revered. The first step in solving any problem is recognizing there is one—America is not the greatest country in the world anymore.”

I’m sure there’ll be those who will disagree vehemently about the scene’s message and content. Yet, no one seem to be able to find a strong argument as to why they disagree or debunk what was said in the monologue.

The decade since Newsroom aired it’s final episode we see more and more the truth in Will McAvoy’s words and it may take a decade or decades to right the ship.

Song of the Day: Plush (by Stone Temple Pilots)

Posted on by Arleigh

My latest pick for “Song of the Day” takes me back….way back to those early days post-high school. Only a couple years removed from graduating high school and maneuvering my ways through the turbulent seas of what would be my college years, it was only typical that music would be one of the few things that would anchor things for me during my Adrift Years.

Stone Temple Pilots is part of what I consider as the Big Four of alternative rock of the 1990’s or as some would label that particular sound as “grunge”. Alternative rock, grunge or just plain old hard rock, Stone Temple Pilots made their mark in the early 90’s rock scene with the second single off of their 1993 debut album Core.

“Plush” has always been one of my favorite songs of that era. I played that song on repeat and was one of my go-to Stone Temple Pilots track until “Interstate Love Song” a year later came along. The song was carried by Scott Weiland’s iconic vocals and its dark lyrics. I never knew how dark a song “Plush” was until finding out from a Weiland interview that it was based on a true story of a girl who had been kidnapped and murdered in the early 90’s.

Whether a song inspired by a true-crime story or a metaphor for a failed relationship (as Weiland has said the lyrics represented), “Plush” will remain one of those songs from my young adult years that I would revisit every year to reminisce.

Plush

And I feel that time’s a wasted go
So where you goin’ ’til tomorrow?
And I see that these are lies to come
So would you even care?

And I feel it
And I feel it

Where you goin’ for tomorrow?
Where you goin’ with the mask I found?
And I feel, and I feel when the dogs begin to smell her
Will she smell alone?

And I feel so much depends on the weather
So, is it rainin’ in your bedroom?
And I see that these are the eyes of disarray
So would you even care?

And I feel it
And she feels it

Where you goin’ for tomorrow?
Where you goin’ with the mask I found?
And I feel, and I feel when the dogs begin to smell her
Will she smell alone?

When the dogs do find her
Got time, time to wait for tomorrow
To find it, to find it, to find it
When the dogs do find her
Got time, time to wait for tomorrow
To find it, to find it, to find it

Where you goin’ for tomorrow?
Where you goin’ with the mask I found?
And I feel, and I feel when the dogs begin to smell her
Will she smell alone?

When the dogs do find her
Got time, time to wait for tomorrow
To find it, to find it, to find it
When the dogs do find her
Got time, time to wait for tomorrow
To find it, to find it, to find it

To find it
To find it
To find it