“Star Wars : The Force Awakens” — Or J.J. Abrams, Reanimator


Ryan C. (fourcolorapocalypse)'s avatarTrash Film Guru

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The late 1960s/early 1970s were a tumultuous time for the “Big Two” comics publishers — with Jack Kirby having taken his creative genius back over to DC, then-Marvel head honcho Stan Lee quickly decided that putting his name on other peoples’ work was too much hassle for him to bother with, and so turned the reigns of the future billion-dollar business over to the youthful Roy Thomas, who had first come to the Smilin’ One’s attention for running the ahead-of-its-time Alter Ego fanzine. Thomas was eager to do any number of things at the self-described “House Of Ideas,” but rocking the boat wasn’t one of them. Having grown up on the Kirby/Ditko/Everett/Wood/Burgos/Heck/Trimpe/Lee brand of super-heroics, his primary concern, creatively speaking, was to keep on serving up more of the same to an eager public, and to that end, his first wave of hires came largely from the same fandom ranks…

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CLEANING OUT THE DVR Pt. 5: Fabulous 40s Sleuths


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It’s time again for me to make room on the DVR! This edition features five Fabulous 40’s films of mystery and suspense, with super sleuths like Dick Tracy and Sherlock Holmes in the mix for good measure. Here’s five capsule reviews of some crime flicks from the 1940s:

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WHISTLING IN THE DARK (MGM 1941, D: S. Sylvan Simon): The first of three movies starring comedian Red Skelton as Wally Benton, aka radio detective ‘The Fox’. Skelton is kidnapped by a phony spiritual cult led by Conrad Veidt to devise “the perfect murder”. Ann Rutherford and Virginia Grey play rivals for Red’s affections, while Eve Arden is her usual wisecracking self as Red’s manager. Some of the jokes and gags are pretty dated, but Red’s genial personality makes the whole thing tolerable. Fun Fact: Rags Ragland (Sylvester) was once the Burlesque comedy partner of Phil Silvers.

Basil Rathbone (Sherlock Holmes) Lionel Atwill (Professor James Moriarty) Basil Rathbone (Sherlock Holmes) Lionel Atwill (Professor James Moriarty)

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PSA and a little Bio of me.


A PSA:

I know this might not be acceptable, but I am going to post it anyway.

As a life long sufferer of depression and self harming thoughts. I truly know how awful this season can be. Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and the days after are difficult.

Self medicating, Self stimulating….dealing with loss. Remembering what I tried to forget…forgetting what I tried to remember. Grasping for answers and never knowing what the question ever was.

I have been there, not going to lie, I am still there. This is something I suffer from every day.

But one day I decided to reach out and ask for help. *Ring Ring* “Hello, My name is Rachel, are you ok?” Those words changed my life (or saved it) Just one person asking if I was ok. That is all it took.

I don’t want to get away from the fact that depression is a real disease. It most certainly is, and should be treated that way. With a little help and self discipline mine is under control.

I apologize for telling my story so much, but I know how I feel this weekend…and if I can help one person, including myself, I have done my job!

Call 24/7: 800-SUICIDE (784-2433) 800-273-TALK (8255) Text Telephone 800-799-4TTY (4889) Trans Lifeline 877-565-8860

A Tugboat Christmas


Ok, very few people here probably know that I, pantsukudasai56, am a rough and tumble sailor.  12346436_1086624831368893_8501589540086335528_n

Well, fact is, I am.  I may not be the most active of sorts, but I do try now and again to post up something for special occasions.  Well, Christmas is one of those special occasions, and for that, I have a little Christmas story to share that a sailor can appreciate.  I know this is a little off from the usual content that this site provides, but I hope that it can still be appreciated.

Twas the night before Christmas
And all through the tug,
Only the deckhand was stirring
The tea in his mug.

The dock lines were hung
By the fiddly with care
In hopes that crew change
Soon would be there.

The tug’s crew was nestled
Safe in their beds
All thankful the pilots
Had taken their meds.

Me, out of my float coat,
And warm woolen cap,
Had just settled in for
A short off-watch nap.

When down in the galley
There arose such a clatter
I rolled right back over-
didn’t care what’s the matter.

While the moon on the breasts
Of the calendar girls
Gave luster to New Year,
They twinkled like pearls.

When what to my wandering eyes should appear?
But a rusty old crew boat
Approaching, too near.

With a little old driver,
All Cajun and thick
I could tell right away,
That he wasn’t too quick.

More rapid than eagles
His curses, they came
As he yelled at his deckhand
And called out bad names.

Go faster!
Get moving!
He was boozed up and drooling!
He had a pistol!
The kind used for dueling!

He was dressed in his besties,
From his head to his testes
Three coonskins, a gator’s hide
And 2 robin’s nesties.

His eyes, they were bloodshot-
His dimples, all hairy
His hair smelled like onions,
His nose was quite scary.

Then up to the wheelhouse
The drunk Cajun flew
With reckless abandon,
Like he’d been sniffing glue.

And then with a clinking
A clunk and a shutter
He flew to the stacks
And slid down like butter.

But he spoke not a word
And went straight to his work
He ate all our junk food
This guy was a jerk!

No gumbo? He asked
Nay Nay, he demanded
For a spontaneous rampage,
It seemed like he’d planned it.

And laying his finger
Beside of his nose
He emptied its contents,
As if blown from a hose.

As I watched from my room
With great confusion,
I couldn’t make any sense
Of the midnight intrusion.

Then he sprang to his crew-boat
Still belching black smoke-
I know I’m up early
But this must be a joke!

And I heard him exclaim
As he steamed out of sight
“I drive boats by day,
And I pillage by night!”

Then up from my nap
I was suddenly wakened
It was all just a dream—
But why am I naked?

The Husbands of River Song: Christmas Jolly Fun! Spoiler free Doctor Who Preview!


I got a screener of this years Doctor Who Christmas special, all I am going to say is, “Spoilers Sweetie” And Whovians will know what I mean!

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And as much as ‘Melody Pond‘ says that…. I won’t spoil the episode for anybody with my preview!

Ok, let me first get this out of the way: watching, writing and reviewing at the same time….

I despise Steven Moffats’ writing of Doctor Who, and I am not the only one, but his Christmas episodes do bring something to the table.

Alex Kingston is back as ‘River Song‘; complete with ‘sonic trowel‘ and all! But, there is a catch, She is now married to the HUGE cyborg King Hydroflax.

River, trying to pull off another hoax, gets caught by The Doctor. She doesn’t recognize him and he gets to play around with that, reversing their roles before.

 

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The Doctor going back into the TARDIS was a beautiful scene! Alex and Peter manage to pull off a heart felt and kindred feeling. Literally, this was the best scene between The Doctor and a “companion” since Rory and Amy.

Got to give props to Greg Davies and Matt Lucas, their performance was enthralling as well.

I have never warmed up to Peter Capaldi as “The Doctor“, just do not like the way he portrays him. But I will admit, this is one of the best Doctor Who Christmas specials ever! Give me a season with Peter Capaldi and Alex Kingston and I will take it forever!

I felt this season of Doctor Who was one of the worst of the modern version; but this Christmas episode might be one of the best episodes ever! Heart-warming, laughable and engaging. I actually loved it!

Definitely Christmas night viewing with the family worthy. I laughed and got teary-eyed all at the same time!

Here is the trailer and you can watch the Doctor Who Christmas Special, The Husbands of River Song, Christmas night on BBC America at 9pm.

 

A CHRISTMAS CAROL is a Christmas Classic (MGM 1938)


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Out of all the myriad movie permutations of the Charles Dickens classic over the years, this 1938  production still remains my favorite. The MGM treatment is in full effect, putting their glossy stamp on Victorian Era London and giving the production a high-polished look. Director Edwin L. Marin brings Hugo Butler’s tight script to life in just over an hour, keeping the story moving along swiftly  with no overblown padding. Marin was a competent storyteller whose steady hand guided everything from Bela Lugosi mysteries (THE DEATH KISS) to MGM’s Maisie series with Ann Sothern to Randolph Scott Westerns. A CHRISTMAS CAROL was produced by a 28-year-old tyro named Joseph L. Mankiewicz, later to become an Academy Award winning director ( A LETTER TO THREE WIVES, ALL ABOUT EVE), who did his own take on the story with 1964’s Carol for Another Christmas.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock since 1843 you already know the…

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Christmas Confection: HOLIDAY AFFAIR (RKO 1949)


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On September 1, 1948, movie star Robert Mitchum went to a house party with an acquaintance and two young women. The quartet was raided by LA police and arrested for possession of marijuana.  Local cops were out to clean up the Hollywood “dope scene”, and Mitchum was used to set an example. Sentenced to 60 days in jail, Mitchum and his bosses at RKO figured his career was over. But during all this hubbub, the studio reluctantly released RACHEL AND THE STRANGER, a Western with Loretta Young and William Holden that Mitchum finished before the bust. It was a hit with audiences, who cheered at the sight of the laconic pothead on-screen! Mitchum did his time, then went on to make THE BIG STEAL with his Out of the Past costar Jane Greer. It looked like all was forgiven, but RKO was still unsure, and tried to soften Mitchum’s image by casting…

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Ho-Ho-Horror!: SILENT NIGHT DEADLY NIGHT (TriStar 1984)


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Deck the halls with slaughtered bodies, fa-la-la-lala, lala-la-la!

What better way to spend the Yuletide Season than with SILENT NIGHT DEADLY NIGHT, a movie about a psycho Santa running amok in Utah? This 1984 slasher shocker was directed by Charles E. Sellier, Jr., usually associated with wholesome family fare like THE LIFE AND TIMES OF GRIZZLY ADAMS, IN SEARCH OF NOAH’S ARK, and ANCIENT SECRETS OF THE BIBLE. But Sellier occasionally dipped his toes into exploitation (THE BOOGENS, THE ANNIHILATORS), and hit the bloody nail on the head with this one. The movie was considered controversial in its day, and TriStar actually pulled it from theaters a week after its release due to protests from national PTA groups. Today, SILENT NIGHT DEADLY NIGHT is regarded as a classic of the slasher genre and holds up quite well next to fright films like FRIDAY THE 13TH and NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET.

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We begin our tawdry…

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Attack Of The Clones : “Star Odyssey”


Ryan C. (fourcolorapocalypse)'s avatarTrash Film Guru

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By 1979, Italian director Alfonso Brescia (or “Al Bradly,” as the credits would have it) was an old hat at doing cheap, quick Star Wars knock-offs — but it wasn’t until this, his fourth foray (in two years!) into the sub-genre one could argue he actually created (along with his financiers at Nais Film), that he decided to blatantly clone as many of George Lucas’ characters as he possibly could. His previous attempts at replicating the Star Wars “magic” on roughly 1/100,000th the budget had essentially been confused and nonsensical space operas that bore little to no resemblance to film that “inspired” them, but with Star Odyssey (or Sette Uomini D’Oro Nello Spazio as it was known on its home soil — English-speaking territories also saw it released under the alternate titles of Captive PlanetSpace Odyssey  and, believe it or not, Metallica) he was going for as…

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Reinventing Dickens: CAROL FOR ANOTHER CHRISTMAS (Telsun Foundation 1964)


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You’d think with a cast featuring Sterling Hayden, Ben Gazzara, Peter Sellers, Eva Marie Saint, Robert Shaw, and other notables, a script by Rod Serling, score by Henry Mancini, and direction from Oscar winner Joseph L. Mankiewicz that CAROL FOR ANOTHER CHRISTMAS was a long-lost big screen spectacular, right? Wrong. It’s actually a made-for-TV movie produced by the Telsun Foundation, Telsun being Television Series for the United Nations. That’s right, the UN (funded in part by the Xerox Corporation) once produced a series of television specials with big name artists in an attempt to promote brotherhood and world peace (or to create a New World Order, depending on which way you lean in the political spectrum).

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The first entry was a take on Charles Dickens’ classic A CHRISTMAS CAROL. Sterling Hayden starred as Daniel Grudge, filling in for Scrooge. Grudge is a wealthy industrialist whose son was killed in World War II , and who…

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