Bullet Points: A Journey Across America

Luckily, today's Bullet Points have a pretty good theme.  So, relax as we take a journey across continental USA.

North by Northwest - When I was watching the blu-ray special features,  it included a personally filmed "Guided Tour with Alfred Hitchcock" across America.  With his "road map of film clips," it was a neat and inventive way to promote the film rather than your typical movie trailer.  Anyways, this story is the classic wrong man mixed up in the wrong situation. Carey Grant is a "Don Draper" mistakenly confused as CIA attempting to stop the smuggling of secret information out of the country.  Although Carey Grant is drugged behind the wheel, chased by a crop duster, and almost thrown off Mount Rushmore, he maintains his witty charm and gains access to the beautiful Eva Marie Saint.  Filled with lots of suspense, North by Northwest definitely makes way for the ultimate cross-country action-adventure thrillers of today.

Hell on Wheels -  When this show first premiered a year or so ago, I predicted Westerns would be the new zombie flick.  Even though this trend hasn't really taken off  (we'll have to see the influence of Django Unchained), this show is still pretty awesome.  The show is comprised of lots of little storylines, but the main focus is on Cullen Bohannon - A southern man who lost his entire family in the Civil War.  This season, Bohannon must regain status of foreman on the first transcontinental railroad while battling Indians led by the evil (and creepy) Swede.  With the grittiness expected from someone in the old west times, Bohannon is a character we can truly root for.  He has the rough exterior and resourcefulness of a Clint Eastwood character, but has a soft spot for Lily Bell whose husband was killed by Indians while surveying the railway last season (Lily is played by Dominique McElligott, a blonde who I find on par with Yvonne Strahovski ).  His relationship with the freed black slave Elam Ferguson (played by Common) is quite interesting and has a lot of parallel with Tarantino's Django and Dr. King Schultz.

Paul - Whenever you see Simon Pegg and Nick Frost paired together, you assume Edgar Wright is helming the project.  However, this is a rare case where he isn't.  Directed by Greg Mottola, this wacky film is a nerdy road trip across America.  With tons of pop culture and comic con puns, this film is tied together by an alien who likes to get high (and voiced by Seth Rogan).  This isn't the funniest movie I've ever seen, but there were quite a few scenes that made me laugh out loud.  The funniest character by far is the one played by Kristen Whig, a newly corrupted ultra conservative Christian.

Lost Highway - Granted I've only seen this movie once, Lost Highway makes no sense to me.  That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it, but in typical David Lynch fashion, this is just a mind f*ck of a movie.  A story exists, but its hidden between a sequence of crazy images: Videotapes, jazz clubs, death by electric chair, Robert Blake's pale face, and even porn being projected onto a mansion wall.  To summarize this movie in one sentence (which is a challenge), here's what I'd say:  Through twists and turns involving murder, crime, and sex, two men's lives are supernaturally intertwined by a beautiful pair of twins.  If not to watch this film again for a better understanding of the story, it's worth a re-watch just to see the voluptuous beauty of Patricia Arquette who hasn't looked this good since her role as Alabama in True Romance.  Accompanied with eerie sounds (similar to the ambient noise from Paranormal Activity) and a unique soundtrack, David Lynch's crazy sensibilities is truly a journey spanning the Lost Highway spanning across America.

Tarantino Comics - Issue 27

Merry Christmas!  Today is truly a day to celebrate!  Not only has Santa come to visit, but it's the release of the most anticipated film of 2012 - Django Unchained!  To celebrate the awesomeness from the Master of Genre himself, here's an issue of Tarantino Comics from regular cover artist Amanda Rachels:

Drawn at C2E2 2012, Tarantino Comics #27 features Captain Koons' infamous monologue of the golden watch from Pulp Fiction.  Amanda once again captures the essence of the scene and magnificently transforms Christopher Walken from a memorable actor into a coloful EC comic character.  I love the tagline and can't image the tales Amanda could draw in the interiors of this issue.

Anyways, support Amanda as she continues to grow into an even better artist and storyteller.  I know she has some work coming from Arcana Studios, but in the meantime, you can follow Amanda and writer Kevin LaPorte at http://www.inversepress.com/

Tarantino XX - Reservoir Dogs Screening

Even though I barely survived the worst class of my entire educational career (Materials for Optical Systems just in case you're curious), I managed to escape to my local movie theater and see the most important film in cinematic history: Reservoir Dogs

Without Reservoir Dogs, we wouldn't have masterpieces such as Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill.  True Romance and Natural Born Killers may have defined Tarantino as a writer, but it was Reservoir Dogs that defined him as a director.  Using a funky soundtrack and iconic film shots, Tarantino proved his chops and transformed cinema with his witty dialogue and ultra violence.  And because of it, he created a cult following and at least one super duper fan...

To celebrate Tarantino's 20 years of film making, they created an awesome bluray box set containing all his films (including True Romance).  Even though I already own each disc on their own, one day I will have to buy this collection.  It has some exclusive special features and some beautiful box art (I have to find this artist and get him to do an issue of Tarantino Comics).

Also to celebrate the 20 years, they showed Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction for 1 day only at Fathom Events movie theaters.  I was able to catch the Reservoir Dogs screening, but unfortunately missed Pulp Fiction because of exams.  Luckily I saw Pulp Fiction earlier this year at the Garden Theater (see here).

Before showing Reservoir Dogs, they had about 10 minutes of interviews showing the influence of the movie on other filmmakers such as Eli Roth.  Also to make the showing unique, Tarantino provided three trailers from his own personal collection:

If you don't see the common bond, its Harvey Keitel.  Of these three films, the only one I've ever seen is Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets.  And although I would love to see Ridley Scott's The Duellists , Mother, Jugs and Speed is a film I have to find!  With a funny Bill Cosby and a gorgeous Raquel Welch, I can definitely see how this "black and busty" comedy fits Tarantino's sensibilities.

Halloween 2012

A week has gone by since Halloween, but to continue last year's tradition (click here), I needed to share my favorite part of the holiday:  Pumpkin Carving!  

This year I went a little overboard and carved three pumpkins.  The first two are inspired from Steven Spielberg:  Jaws and ET

I tried to find a pattern to complete the  Spielberg theme, but had to settle with a Joe Dante character instead.  However, I'm not displeased because Gizmo is definitely a crowd favorite.

 

Here's one last group shot, including two pumpkins carved by my brother and sister:  The Wolfman and Wonder Woman.  So next year, if you're looking for some cool patterns, be sure to check out http://www.zombiepumpkins.com/

Bullet Points: Monstrous Beasts

Since we're getting close to Halloween, I'm in the mood for some creature features.  Literal monsters can been pretty scary, but sometimes the psychological ones can be downright terrifying. So to try and make a theme, here's some of the monstrous things I've recently watched:

• Black Moon:  Lately I've really enjoyed collecting films from the Criterion Collection.  If you subscribe to their Facebook page, you can really benefit from some deals such as 50% off sales.  At times, these films can be a little too artsy for me, but I definitely appreciate Criterion for making some of the best film transfers, commentaries, and supplements to ever be seen.  For this particular case, Louis Malle's Black Moon didn't make a lot of sense (then again, I don't think it's supposed to), but this film has some beautiful and unforgettable moments.  To sum up my stream of conscience (and I'm sure it won't make much sense to you either), this is what what I experienced from the movie:  A military war between men and women, talking plants and animals, an ugly unicorn, naked children beating up a pig, incestuous sibling care-takers, and breast-feeding absurdness... What's not to enjoy!?!?

• Jaws:  I really don't think I need to go into depth, but this is one of the most influential horror masterpieces in cinematic history.  To continue celebrating Universal's 100th Anniversary, Jaws was remastered frame by frame.  I always thought the film looked awesome from the transfers I've seen, but if you compare screenshots of this blu-ray to others, it's superior.  I would also like to point out Jaws recently made Tarantino's Top 10 List for the 2012 Sight and Sound Poll.  Although other film makers exploited Steven Spielberg's vision of unknown natural terrors (such as Grizzly), Tarantino would make an exhilarating monster flick.  

• Godzilla:  Before there was even Jaws, the Japanese made the original giant monster - Godzilla!  I truly enjoyed watching this film and appreciated how the film makers used a guy in a rubber lizard suit to cause so much destruction.  Although the suit itself is terrifying (I think the original design is my favorite), there are some dark and horrific moments where Godzilla isn't even seen... And too think, is it pure coincidence these moments take place near the ocean?  I rewatched this classic from the Criterion blu-ray.  Included with this print are some documentaries of how Godzilla actually came to fruition.  I always just thought Godzilla was created for sheer entertainment.  However, the monster was supposed to be a social commentary for the disaster created by atomic weapons.  Besides the atomic bombs drops during WWII, there was also some nuclear testing that caused death to a crew of fisherman coined the Lucky Dragon Incident.  It's amazing how these messages can be hidden in film.

• The Brood:  I've been searching for this film for a long time.  I finally saw it at my local Movie Stop and I immediately picked it up.  Being one of David Cronenberg's earlier films, The Brood is pretty terrifying.  In hindsight, I actually laugh at myself, but there's a certain part in the film where I had to actually pause the movie and get a drink of water so I wouldn't be so freaked out.  The story is about a father who is trying to keep his daughter away from her mother who is locked up in a mental institute.  However, there are some supernatural forces causing horrific murders near the little girl - all believed to be linked to the isolated mother.  With images of body horror associated with the Cronenberg name (including some frightening "little people"), The Brood is a hidden horror gem more people should recognize.

• Dexter: The only reason I subscribe to Showtime is so that I can watch Dexter (and now Homeland, but we'll discuss that at some later time).  If you watch the show, you know why this season is so intriguing (the Deb and Dex debacle).  However, if you have no idea what I'm talking about, do yourself a service:  Watch the finale of Season 6.  I'm extremely excited to see how the sibling's relationship progresses.  Plus, this season guest stars Yvonne Strahovski (the hot spy from Chuck), my favorite blonde on Television (sadly an actress unknown to a lot of people I know). 

Silver Screen Awesomeness: Spielberg / Hitchcock Double Feature

Ever since I've watched Pulp Fiction at the cinema, I've kept my eyes open for other classics to appear on the big screen.  Recently, I've been fortunate enough to see two awesome films at Regal Cinemas:

Raiders of the Lost Ark:  To celebrate the release of Indiana Jones on Blu-Ray, Raiders was recently projected on the big screen.  Having only seen the "Cold War Era" of Indy at the movies, it was truly a privilege to see the original film the way it was meant to be seen.

The Birds:  As much as I love Indiana Jones, I've seen the film hundreds of times and know the story by heart.  However, for Alfred Hitchcock's thriller, I've never even seen the film on my TV.  With a brief discussion with Robert Osborne prior to the film, The Birds was presented by TCM and Fathom Events to Celebrate a 100 years of film making by Universal Pictures.  To continue this year-long celebration, other classics such as Frankenstein and The Bride of Frankenstein will be shown later this year.

Although these two films are completely different from each other, they were both crafted by masters of the art form.  They are often discussed by fans and scholars alike.  Since so much analysis has already been performed on these films, I want to note some similarities that make these movies so fantastic:

• The Sound:  Maybe my audio system at home sucks, but I definitely noticed the sound effects at the movie theatre.  In Raiders, the gunshots cracked and whizzed across the entire theatre while the thud of a punch cracked pain into my lower jaw.  As for The Birds, the piercing screams of the feathery animals truly hurt my ears, making it hard to watch the chaos spawned across the town.  Especially in the final scene where Tippi Hedren is attacked in the attic, I literally had to cover my eyes and ears from a sensory overload of terror.

•  Fierce Women:  Harrison Ford and Rod Taylor play the stereotypical heroes of their films, however they are not accompanied by the typical damsel in distress.  Both Karen Allen and Tippi Hedren are strong willed  women who can carry their own (and who doesn't like a strong female character).  Just for fun, if I had my choice of either woman at their prime, I'd have to go with Karen Allen.  It's a hard decision, but Karen has the edge because I love seeing her in that white dress (and she's a brunette).

• Supernatural Sensibilities:  Raiders is definitely an adventure flick while The Birds is definitely a thriller.  However, they both deviate from their typical genre with some sci-fi twists.  Raiders contains Nazi's searching for supernatural power to speak to God.  While in the Birds, well... there's man-eating killer birds.

Tarantino Comics - Issue 26

The last 40 minutes of Death Proof contain the most thrilling-on-the-edge-of-your-seat-action that has ever appeared in cinematic history.  I don't care who you are:  You fear for Zoe Bell's life as Stuntman Mike tries to ram her clinging body from the hood of the Dodge Challenger.  When the audience finally gets a moment to breathe, it's this scene depicted in Tarantino Comics #26 that transforms the audience's nail-biting fear into joyful yelps of revenge:

Drawn by Nathan Wiedemer, Tarantino Comics #26 was drawn at Megacon 2012.  Done in an animated style, this cover is jam packed with so much awesomeness.  The caricature of Kurt Russell is spot on and shows his comedic agony after being shot.  And although Zoe is carrying a wooden plank rather than a metal rod, I love each girl's expression of sweet revenge.

Nathan is a very talented artist and cartoonist.  But don't let his cartoony style keep you away because all of his illustrations are filled with richness, detail, and colors.  Nathan previously drew an awesome Zorro piece for me that carries the same artistic sensibilities shown in this Death Proof scene.  So if you ever see Nathan at a convention, be sure to grab up his artwork.  He's an extremely humble guy and does terrific work.  But in the meantime be sure to checkout his website at: http://nathanwiedemer.blogspot.com/