- Published on
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the show’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Truths are unearthed and motives are revealed as Maggie, Negan and the others travel further into the city’s depths.”
Ahem.
Folks, I’ve had the privilege of taking some creative writing classes.
While I’m honestly no fan of writing classes (I think more if accomplished on raw talent when it comes to writing than ever is functionally taught), I think there are some basic rules and tenets that every writer should learn if for no other reason than to put that understanding to work in whatever bag of tricks he and she amasses. In other words, learn the basics about how stories are told, how they’ve evolved, and maybe even a little bit of the bad ideas others have put to use. This helps to give the creative mind a foundation upon which to weave whatever tales he or she is ultimately inspired to tell; knowing a good degree of what’s come before might very well save some time wasted on futile attempts. Given that time is our most precious and most perishable resource, this foundation could serve anyone very well.
For example, knowing that Trick X (whatever Trick X may be) opens the door to some storytelling problems, then a reasoned mind can take steps to avoid those shortcomings. This doesn’t mean that a writer needs to eliminate using Trick X; rather, the scribe can take an honestly informed look at how to circumvent the obstacles inherent in the undertaking and make for a stronger composition that can withstand critical scrutiny. Hell, a good writer – one with some magical gifts – might be able to even turn a weakness on its head, creating an all-new style out of trickery that has vanquished lesser prose that’s come before. That’s the potential awaiting those who try.
Still, I think that The Walking Dead: Dead City’s writing room might need a refresher on some of those basic constructs.
Aboard “Stories We Tell Ourselves,” screenwriter Brenna Kouf spent the better part of the episode’s 47 minutes in the head of Maggie (Lauren Cohan). Escaping through Manhattan Island’s sewer city, our series’ lead is suffering the aftereffects of heavily breathing in methane that was alleged pumped into the system following mankind’s collapse. Now, a simple Google search can assure anyone that continued exposure to inhaling methane can cause such side effects as mood changes (which we see), vision problems (which we also see), and memory loss (which is not even suggested) among other things. But in the universe of The Walking Dead, apparently Maggie’s experience is that it crystalizes both who she is as a person – bringing out the very best survival instincts – and helps her recover memories that she’s repressed … all for the purposes of some (cough cough) compelling storytelling.
Hmm.
What a difference reality makes.
From the show’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Truths are unearthed and motives are revealed as Maggie, Negan and the others travel further into the city’s depths.”
Ahem.
Folks, I’ve had the privilege of taking some creative writing classes.
While I’m honestly no fan of writing classes (I think more if accomplished on raw talent when it comes to writing than ever is functionally taught), I think there are some basic rules and tenets that every writer should learn if for no other reason than to put that understanding to work in whatever bag of tricks he and she amasses. In other words, learn the basics about how stories are told, how they’ve evolved, and maybe even a little bit of the bad ideas others have put to use. This helps to give the creative mind a foundation upon which to weave whatever tales he or she is ultimately inspired to tell; knowing a good degree of what’s come before might very well save some time wasted on futile attempts. Given that time is our most precious and most perishable resource, this foundation could serve anyone very well.
For example, knowing that Trick X (whatever Trick X may be) opens the door to some storytelling problems, then a reasoned mind can take steps to avoid those shortcomings. This doesn’t mean that a writer needs to eliminate using Trick X; rather, the scribe can take an honestly informed look at how to circumvent the obstacles inherent in the undertaking and make for a stronger composition that can withstand critical scrutiny. Hell, a good writer – one with some magical gifts – might be able to even turn a weakness on its head, creating an all-new style out of trickery that has vanquished lesser prose that’s come before. That’s the potential awaiting those who try.
Still, I think that The Walking Dead: Dead City’s writing room might need a refresher on some of those basic constructs.
Aboard “Stories We Tell Ourselves,” screenwriter Brenna Kouf spent the better part of the episode’s 47 minutes in the head of Maggie (Lauren Cohan). Escaping through Manhattan Island’s sewer city, our series’ lead is suffering the aftereffects of heavily breathing in methane that was alleged pumped into the system following mankind’s collapse. Now, a simple Google search can assure anyone that continued exposure to inhaling methane can cause such side effects as mood changes (which we see), vision problems (which we also see), and memory loss (which is not even suggested) among other things. But in the universe of The Walking Dead, apparently Maggie’s experience is that it crystalizes both who she is as a person – bringing out the very best survival instincts – and helps her recover memories that she’s repressed … all for the purposes of some (cough cough) compelling storytelling.
Hmm.
What a difference reality makes.
But because she’s suffering these symptoms, she becomes in the world of mythmaking as a potentially fraudulent point-of-view, a suspect narrator. In writing class, we’re educated to be extremely cautious of investing in suspect narrators because what they’re seeing and, subsequently, sharing cannot be trusted by the audience. They could be experiencing, say, some hallucinations; or that medically-suggested loss of memory might make them both see things and recall things with errors. Instead of giving your viewership an authentic recounting of events, you instead might be unintentionally serving them an entirely manufactured bill of goods, one that doesn’t in any way resemble reality.
And – as I said above – what a difference reality makes.
Now, I believe that Kouf didn’t engineer these circumstances to either cheapen Maggie’s status as a small screen hero or to make her guilty of delivering an accounting of her time beneath the city that’s full of narrative errors. Specifically, I say this regarding the – ahem – four- or five-headed walker she encountered in that stinking deep. As Hercules faced his own Hydra, I firmly accept that Maggie faced hers; but I can’t simply ignore the possibility that her monster could very well have been one of her own imagination. Such is the chance storytellers’ risk with the potentially fraudulent narrator.
Yet, couple that realization with the visual confession – that Maggie has been, in fact, lying to audiences and Negan about exactly why she brought his unusually tame ass into this violent nightmare – and I can’t help but question whether any of this is going to turn out real or just the figment of a character’s feverish dreams.
Setting that issue aside, we also learned that ‘The Croat’ may not, in fact, be the very heavy this show has both advertised and promised him to be. Actress Lisa Emery has stepped into the shoes of what IMDB.com identifies only as ‘The Dama.’ For those unaware (I wasn’t, so don’t be insulted), ‘Dama’ in Mexican translates to lady, but the word in Sanskrit apparently also means ‘punishment.’ Given her gender appears to be female (you never can tell these days, what with all of those self-identifiers), I’m working on the assumption that female is what was intended, but – again – you never can tell. In any event, ‘The Croat’ appears to have been acting on her beck and call in this frenetic spin-off of the wider Dead universe. Might she secretly have some tie-in to Negan that we don’t as yet know? Only time will tell.
Sadly, none of these developments have gone all that far toward beefing up my general impression of Dead City. Thankfully, the hour did smooth out a good degree of wrinkles I think many of us watching saw in the previous episode – why the rescue mission went south so quickly, what the actual idea behind the rescue mission was, why in the Holy Hell was such a small strike team split into even smaller groups, etc. – but that’s still not saying all that much. Apocalypses and allegiances never go all that well together, and TWD has gotten great dramatic mileage out of how alliances can shift and change over time. You can almost count on each installment either hinting at or exploring some duplicity, and Dead City has shaped up to be no different.
As I hope I’ve made abundantly clear in the previous episode reviews, I’m finding all of this iteration a bit jumbled and confused. Rules and alliances are never quite spelled out – a risky proposition whenever it’s tried, especially without significant pay-offs, which don’t look likely to be coming – and I’m still at a loss to understand its core premise. Based entirely on “Stories We Tell Ourselves,” Maggie has evolved from being on the TV’s worst mothers to now gaining the title of least trustworthy compatriot, apparently lying in order to damn near bring about Negan’s death – her alleged co-star. Granted, their history is complicated – he’s gone to great lengths in attempting to smooth out waters she’s obviously only interested in rocking – but, at some point, characters need to evolve if not for the sake of the mythology then for any chance at their own fictional survival. Negan has. Maggie hasn’t.
Aboard Dead City, the lady’s proving herself to be little more than a one trick pony, and I would’ve hoped for better when she assumed the lead.
In the interests of fairness, I’m thrilled to disclose that – like so many of you – I’ve simply recorded and watched The Walking Dead: Dead City’s “Stories We Tell Ourselves” (S01E05) as it aired on AMC, so I’m beholden to no one to provide a review other than myself.
-- EZ
And – as I said above – what a difference reality makes.
Now, I believe that Kouf didn’t engineer these circumstances to either cheapen Maggie’s status as a small screen hero or to make her guilty of delivering an accounting of her time beneath the city that’s full of narrative errors. Specifically, I say this regarding the – ahem – four- or five-headed walker she encountered in that stinking deep. As Hercules faced his own Hydra, I firmly accept that Maggie faced hers; but I can’t simply ignore the possibility that her monster could very well have been one of her own imagination. Such is the chance storytellers’ risk with the potentially fraudulent narrator.
Yet, couple that realization with the visual confession – that Maggie has been, in fact, lying to audiences and Negan about exactly why she brought his unusually tame ass into this violent nightmare – and I can’t help but question whether any of this is going to turn out real or just the figment of a character’s feverish dreams.
Setting that issue aside, we also learned that ‘The Croat’ may not, in fact, be the very heavy this show has both advertised and promised him to be. Actress Lisa Emery has stepped into the shoes of what IMDB.com identifies only as ‘The Dama.’ For those unaware (I wasn’t, so don’t be insulted), ‘Dama’ in Mexican translates to lady, but the word in Sanskrit apparently also means ‘punishment.’ Given her gender appears to be female (you never can tell these days, what with all of those self-identifiers), I’m working on the assumption that female is what was intended, but – again – you never can tell. In any event, ‘The Croat’ appears to have been acting on her beck and call in this frenetic spin-off of the wider Dead universe. Might she secretly have some tie-in to Negan that we don’t as yet know? Only time will tell.
Sadly, none of these developments have gone all that far toward beefing up my general impression of Dead City. Thankfully, the hour did smooth out a good degree of wrinkles I think many of us watching saw in the previous episode – why the rescue mission went south so quickly, what the actual idea behind the rescue mission was, why in the Holy Hell was such a small strike team split into even smaller groups, etc. – but that’s still not saying all that much. Apocalypses and allegiances never go all that well together, and TWD has gotten great dramatic mileage out of how alliances can shift and change over time. You can almost count on each installment either hinting at or exploring some duplicity, and Dead City has shaped up to be no different.
As I hope I’ve made abundantly clear in the previous episode reviews, I’m finding all of this iteration a bit jumbled and confused. Rules and alliances are never quite spelled out – a risky proposition whenever it’s tried, especially without significant pay-offs, which don’t look likely to be coming – and I’m still at a loss to understand its core premise. Based entirely on “Stories We Tell Ourselves,” Maggie has evolved from being on the TV’s worst mothers to now gaining the title of least trustworthy compatriot, apparently lying in order to damn near bring about Negan’s death – her alleged co-star. Granted, their history is complicated – he’s gone to great lengths in attempting to smooth out waters she’s obviously only interested in rocking – but, at some point, characters need to evolve if not for the sake of the mythology then for any chance at their own fictional survival. Negan has. Maggie hasn’t.
Aboard Dead City, the lady’s proving herself to be little more than a one trick pony, and I would’ve hoped for better when she assumed the lead.
In the interests of fairness, I’m thrilled to disclose that – like so many of you – I’ve simply recorded and watched The Walking Dead: Dead City’s “Stories We Tell Ourselves” (S01E05) as it aired on AMC, so I’m beholden to no one to provide a review other than myself.
-- EZ
- Published on
Good morning and Happy Monday, gentle readers!
Welcome to the start of a new week!
I know, I know, I know. Yes, it's Monday. And, yes, it's still Monday, even after you've read this. While I can't do anything about that -- I've no means presently to flash us forward in space and time so that we find ourselves on a Friday yet again -- I can provide you with only the best and brightest trivia from the worlds of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror for you to enjoy on this Monday of Mondays, if ever there were a Monday. Sometimes, all we can hope for is to get lost for a few minutes from the humdrum of our collective reality, and if that's all I can give you then please please please reach out and seize this opportunity for what it is: a brief respite from the daily grind.
It was a quiet weekend here at the SciFiHistory.Net news desk. No real developments, and I've honestly very little further to add at this juncture. I'll likely be posting a review or two later today -- I do try to commit my Mondays to crafting a few of those -- so keep your eyes peeled for that and maybe a bit of other goodness in the hours ahead. With a cat on my lap presently, I'm struggling to just reach the keyboard; hopefully she'll mosey along in a few moments and give me greater accessibility to attack the day.
In any event, please please please click on the link below, and please please please feel free to share and like as it always helps me to build a wider readership. Much appreciate.
Welcome to the start of a new week!
I know, I know, I know. Yes, it's Monday. And, yes, it's still Monday, even after you've read this. While I can't do anything about that -- I've no means presently to flash us forward in space and time so that we find ourselves on a Friday yet again -- I can provide you with only the best and brightest trivia from the worlds of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror for you to enjoy on this Monday of Mondays, if ever there were a Monday. Sometimes, all we can hope for is to get lost for a few minutes from the humdrum of our collective reality, and if that's all I can give you then please please please reach out and seize this opportunity for what it is: a brief respite from the daily grind.
It was a quiet weekend here at the SciFiHistory.Net news desk. No real developments, and I've honestly very little further to add at this juncture. I'll likely be posting a review or two later today -- I do try to commit my Mondays to crafting a few of those -- so keep your eyes peeled for that and maybe a bit of other goodness in the hours ahead. With a cat on my lap presently, I'm struggling to just reach the keyboard; hopefully she'll mosey along in a few moments and give me greater accessibility to attack the day.
In any event, please please please click on the link below, and please please please feel free to share and like as it always helps me to build a wider readership. Much appreciate.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
-- EZ
- Published on
Folks, believe it or not, but yours truly is often hammered by observations that -- ahem -- I enjoy a bit too much schlock in my diet.
Now, don't get me wrong: I have entertainment needs -- serious entertainment needs -- that are probably very much the same as all of you. Some franchises tickle my fancy just fine, and there are others -- maybe ones frowned on by some here and there -- that still manage to find favor in a little corner of my brain or my heart. Despite having some of the web's strongest opinions of what makes for a good film, I've always argued on behalf of many forgotten gems precisely because I think they deserve your time and attention. You don't have to agree -- much like I don't have to agree with your opinions -- but some of my fondest memories involve sitting around with a soda in hand, a tub of popcorn, and allowing the glow of a TV screen filled with something screening from a VHS player to give me whatever warmth I can find. Good movies, bad movies, and ugly movies ... I think each and every one has something to offer, though you may have to look closer to find that diamond in the rough.
That's why I was so surprised this past Spring. I was serving time as a voluntary judge for the state's Speech and Debate circuit when -- lo and behold -- some young high schooler got up and announced he was doing a Humorous Interpretation of what he said was an old film titled The Toxic Avenger.
Before he got into his routine (I'm not allowed to interrupt them once they've begun, you understand), I quickly asked, "Wait ... wait ... wait ... the 1980's film The Toxic Avenger?"
Honestly, the young man was dumbfounded that I'd heard of it. "You've seen it?"
I smiled and confessed that I'd seen it several times.
You see, this young Turk -- as it were -- was used to being greeted with utter confusion. Teens today are all transfixed with the Tik Toks, their Instagrams, and their video game consoles; so here was a young male actually jazzed to know that he was performing his humorous speech to someone actually familiar with the source material. I even mentioned that I'd interacted with the film's producer -- schlockmaster Lloyd Kaufman -- on Twitter on more than one occasion. Not only was this young scholar making my day but I was making his ... and that's the beauty of film.
For whatever reasons, each of us likes what we like, and when we find someone who shares in that adulation we're downright giddy ... especially when the title might be a little 'something something' as obscure as the mid-1980's Horror/Action/Comedy send-up like The Toxic Avenger.
Well, I'm glad to share that I recently received an email announcing that Troma would be preparing that oozing franchise for an all-new 4K Ultra HD release, so I wanted to do the obligatory copy-and-paste of the deets for my readership. Yes, yes, and yes: I know that the quality of the films might vary with some highs and lows, but doesn't Toxie deserve your attention once more? In glorious high definition? Is a little love for a forgotten hero too much to ask? I think not ... and I'm sure there are those of you out there who'll agree.
Now, don't get me wrong: I have entertainment needs -- serious entertainment needs -- that are probably very much the same as all of you. Some franchises tickle my fancy just fine, and there are others -- maybe ones frowned on by some here and there -- that still manage to find favor in a little corner of my brain or my heart. Despite having some of the web's strongest opinions of what makes for a good film, I've always argued on behalf of many forgotten gems precisely because I think they deserve your time and attention. You don't have to agree -- much like I don't have to agree with your opinions -- but some of my fondest memories involve sitting around with a soda in hand, a tub of popcorn, and allowing the glow of a TV screen filled with something screening from a VHS player to give me whatever warmth I can find. Good movies, bad movies, and ugly movies ... I think each and every one has something to offer, though you may have to look closer to find that diamond in the rough.
That's why I was so surprised this past Spring. I was serving time as a voluntary judge for the state's Speech and Debate circuit when -- lo and behold -- some young high schooler got up and announced he was doing a Humorous Interpretation of what he said was an old film titled The Toxic Avenger.
Before he got into his routine (I'm not allowed to interrupt them once they've begun, you understand), I quickly asked, "Wait ... wait ... wait ... the 1980's film The Toxic Avenger?"
Honestly, the young man was dumbfounded that I'd heard of it. "You've seen it?"
I smiled and confessed that I'd seen it several times.
You see, this young Turk -- as it were -- was used to being greeted with utter confusion. Teens today are all transfixed with the Tik Toks, their Instagrams, and their video game consoles; so here was a young male actually jazzed to know that he was performing his humorous speech to someone actually familiar with the source material. I even mentioned that I'd interacted with the film's producer -- schlockmaster Lloyd Kaufman -- on Twitter on more than one occasion. Not only was this young scholar making my day but I was making his ... and that's the beauty of film.
For whatever reasons, each of us likes what we like, and when we find someone who shares in that adulation we're downright giddy ... especially when the title might be a little 'something something' as obscure as the mid-1980's Horror/Action/Comedy send-up like The Toxic Avenger.
Well, I'm glad to share that I recently received an email announcing that Troma would be preparing that oozing franchise for an all-new 4K Ultra HD release, so I wanted to do the obligatory copy-and-paste of the deets for my readership. Yes, yes, and yes: I know that the quality of the films might vary with some highs and lows, but doesn't Toxie deserve your attention once more? In glorious high definition? Is a little love for a forgotten hero too much to ask? I think not ... and I'm sure there are those of you out there who'll agree.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Troma Entertainment Celebrates 50 Years with the Return of Toxie
in an Epic New 4K Restoration of the Entire Toxic Avenger Series!
[4K Ultra HD + Special Edition Blu-ray]
8-Disc Tox Set
8/29
Troma Entertainment Celebrates 50 Years with the Return of Toxie
in an Epic New 4K Restoration of the Entire Toxic Avenger Series!
[4K Ultra HD + Special Edition Blu-ray]
8-Disc Tox Set
8/29
Troma Entertainment, the longest-running independent movie studio in North America, celebrates their 50th anniversary this year with the release of all four of their groundbreaking Toxic Avenger films, presented in TROMAzing Ultra High Definition.
The Toxic Avenger Collection comes to home video on August 29th, and features a new 4K scan and restoration of each film from the original camera negatives, presented in the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio in HDR with English DTS 2.0 stereo audio; new introductions for each film from the President of Troma Entertainment and creator of The Toxic Avenger, Lloyd Kaufman; and a collectible Toxic Avenger postcard, all compacted into one MONSTROUS, TROMArific 8-Disc TOX SET oozing with TOXIC bonus features!
Melvin (Mark Torgl) lives the regular life of a 98-pound janitor at a gym, constantly bullied by the meathead members. The gym and Tromaville, NJ will never be the same when Melvin – after falling into toxic waste – becomes the Toxic Avenger! Toxie, armed with justice on his side, keeps the residents of Tromaville safe from the crime and evildoers that would tarnish the town he loves.
Featuring cameo appearances by award-winning actors Marisa Tomei, Michael Jai White, Julie Strain, and Corey Feldman, and A-listers including Hugh Hefner, James Gunn, Stan Lee, Kevin Eastman, and Eli Roth. Of course, no Troma-venture would be complete without musical legend Lemmy!
THE TOXIC AVENGER COLLECTION’S BONUS FEATURES INCLUDE:
THE TOXIC AVENGER [Unrated Director's Cut] 4K Ultra HD
Prologue by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with cast members Robert Prichard, Gary Schneider, and Dan Snow; and audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman.
THE TOXIC AVENGER [Unrated Director's Cut] Blu-ray
Introduction by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with cast members Robert Prichard, Gary Schneider, and Dan Snow; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; interviews with cast members Jennifer Baptist, Robert Prichard, Mitch Cohen, and Dan Snow; interview with co-Director Michael Herz; a "Mark Torgl Talks About The Toxic Avenger" featurette; Behind the Scenes; Photo Gallery; Trailers.
THE TOXIC AVENGER PART II [Unrated Director's Cut] 4K Ultra HD
Prologue by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman.
THE TOXIC AVENGER PART II [Unrated Director's Cut*] Blu-ray
Introduction by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; "At Home with Toxie" Mockumentary; an interview with cast member Lisa Gaye; Japanese news report on the filming of The Toxic Avenger Part II; "Radiation March," a short film directed by Lloyd Kaufman; The American Cinematheque Honors 40 Years of Troma; Trailers.
THE TOXIC AVENGER PART III: THE LAST TEMPTATION OF TOXIE [Unrated Director's Cut] 4K Ultra HD
Prologue by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with cast member Joe Fleishaker.
THE TOXIC AVENGER PART III: THE LAST TEMPTATION OF TOXIE [Unrated Director's Cut] Blu-ray
Audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with cast member Joe Fleishaker; Behind the Scenes of the "Return to Nuke 'em High Vol. 1" screening at MOMA; The American Cinematheque Honors 40 Years of Troma; "Make Your Own Damn Horror Film" - Behind the Scenes of Old 37 with Kane Hodder and Bill Moseley; "A Halloween Carol" short film; Infomercial for "Rabid Grannies" Blu-ray Release; "Radiation March," a short film directed by Lloyd Kaufman.
CITIZEN TOXIE: THE TOXIC AVENGER PART IV [Unrated Director's Cut] 4K Ultra HD
Prologue by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with editor Gabriel Griedman; audio commentary with cast member Trent Haaga.
CITIZEN TOXIE: THE TOXIC AVENGER PART IV [Unrated Director's Cut] Blu-ray
"Apocalypse Soon: The Making of Citizen Toxie" Behind the Scenes Documentary; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with editor Gabriel Friedman; audio commentary with cast member Trent Haaga; Tribute to Lemmy Kilmister; The American Cinematheque Honors 40 Years of Troma; Trailers.
The Toxic Avenger Collection comes to home video on August 29th, and features a new 4K scan and restoration of each film from the original camera negatives, presented in the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio in HDR with English DTS 2.0 stereo audio; new introductions for each film from the President of Troma Entertainment and creator of The Toxic Avenger, Lloyd Kaufman; and a collectible Toxic Avenger postcard, all compacted into one MONSTROUS, TROMArific 8-Disc TOX SET oozing with TOXIC bonus features!
Melvin (Mark Torgl) lives the regular life of a 98-pound janitor at a gym, constantly bullied by the meathead members. The gym and Tromaville, NJ will never be the same when Melvin – after falling into toxic waste – becomes the Toxic Avenger! Toxie, armed with justice on his side, keeps the residents of Tromaville safe from the crime and evildoers that would tarnish the town he loves.
Featuring cameo appearances by award-winning actors Marisa Tomei, Michael Jai White, Julie Strain, and Corey Feldman, and A-listers including Hugh Hefner, James Gunn, Stan Lee, Kevin Eastman, and Eli Roth. Of course, no Troma-venture would be complete without musical legend Lemmy!
THE TOXIC AVENGER COLLECTION’S BONUS FEATURES INCLUDE:
THE TOXIC AVENGER [Unrated Director's Cut] 4K Ultra HD
Prologue by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with cast members Robert Prichard, Gary Schneider, and Dan Snow; and audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman.
THE TOXIC AVENGER [Unrated Director's Cut] Blu-ray
Introduction by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with cast members Robert Prichard, Gary Schneider, and Dan Snow; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; interviews with cast members Jennifer Baptist, Robert Prichard, Mitch Cohen, and Dan Snow; interview with co-Director Michael Herz; a "Mark Torgl Talks About The Toxic Avenger" featurette; Behind the Scenes; Photo Gallery; Trailers.
THE TOXIC AVENGER PART II [Unrated Director's Cut] 4K Ultra HD
Prologue by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman.
THE TOXIC AVENGER PART II [Unrated Director's Cut*] Blu-ray
Introduction by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; "At Home with Toxie" Mockumentary; an interview with cast member Lisa Gaye; Japanese news report on the filming of The Toxic Avenger Part II; "Radiation March," a short film directed by Lloyd Kaufman; The American Cinematheque Honors 40 Years of Troma; Trailers.
THE TOXIC AVENGER PART III: THE LAST TEMPTATION OF TOXIE [Unrated Director's Cut] 4K Ultra HD
Prologue by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with cast member Joe Fleishaker.
THE TOXIC AVENGER PART III: THE LAST TEMPTATION OF TOXIE [Unrated Director's Cut] Blu-ray
Audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with cast member Joe Fleishaker; Behind the Scenes of the "Return to Nuke 'em High Vol. 1" screening at MOMA; The American Cinematheque Honors 40 Years of Troma; "Make Your Own Damn Horror Film" - Behind the Scenes of Old 37 with Kane Hodder and Bill Moseley; "A Halloween Carol" short film; Infomercial for "Rabid Grannies" Blu-ray Release; "Radiation March," a short film directed by Lloyd Kaufman.
CITIZEN TOXIE: THE TOXIC AVENGER PART IV [Unrated Director's Cut] 4K Ultra HD
Prologue by Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with editor Gabriel Griedman; audio commentary with cast member Trent Haaga.
CITIZEN TOXIE: THE TOXIC AVENGER PART IV [Unrated Director's Cut] Blu-ray
"Apocalypse Soon: The Making of Citizen Toxie" Behind the Scenes Documentary; audio commentary with Director Lloyd Kaufman; audio commentary with editor Gabriel Friedman; audio commentary with cast member Trent Haaga; Tribute to Lemmy Kilmister; The American Cinematheque Honors 40 Years of Troma; Trailers.
- Published on
Creating and sustaining an entirely fictional world is always a delicate balance.
A number of years ago, I had a good friend who swore on the written works of Harlan Ellison like they were Biblical scrolls. This friend raved about anything and everything the master had written, and he was always passing along photocopies of his favorite stories here and there for me to explore as well. Me, I wasn’t as enamored with Ellison. Undoubtedly, the author had incredible talent; but where I struggled with what few of his works I had read was that the guy had a penchant for employing a bit of narrative trickery that always seemed to break the spell of what he had otherwise crafted. It’s one thing to create this fantastic universe, and it’s another thing to keep me firmly planted in it from start-to-finish. This is where I had quibbles with his skills.
For example (and I’ll apologize in advance as I don’t remember the name of this particular short story), Ellison had penned this wonderful kinda/sorta time travel yarn. Essentially, it was a series of vignettes involving this do-gooder who – day-by-day – was recounting an event that he/she participated in on each individual day of a certain month as he/she bounded across the eons. June 1st was one adventure, followed by a different one on June 2nd, and so on and so forth. Well, I was captivated by these smaller adventures – one after the other – until the writer broke the spell by setting a next in a series of escapades on June 31. A thinking person will tell you, “There is no June 31.” Then, Ellison went on with June 32nd. June 33rd. June 34th. See the trend? What was an otherwise fabulous and intoxicatingly sweeping journey was now clearly fictional as no days of the calendar have such numbering.
Yes, yes, and yes: I get that maybe I’m kinda/sorta splitting hairs here or perhaps expecting too much of an author. For me, good fiction transcends reality, allowing me to escape within its words, sentences, paragraphs, passages, chapters, and more. When there’s such an obvious break in existence – such as introducing a day that, quite frankly, couldn’t have been – I’m forced out of the otherwise vicarious universe with the reminder that this is all fiction, after all, and that just kinda/sorta kills the mood. For me. Most definitely. With the spell broken, I lose interest. Such is life.
All of this brings me to Black Mirror’s sixth season finale, “Demon 79,” a reasonably effective and modestly clever yarn right up until the screenwriter shatters that fourth wall with a reality that couldn’t possibly have taken place.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the episode’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Northern England, 1979. A meek sales assistant is told she must commit terrible acts to prevent disaster.”
It’s exceedingly easy for an audience to care for a character so desperately ‘put upon’ as is Nida Huq (as played by Anjana Vasan). The mousy salesclerk goes about her day job always the butt of the joke from her coworkers and the department store’s management staff. Marginalized and ostracized – perhaps in part owed to her ethnicity – Nida bites her tongue instead of lashing out at those around her because she likely learned long ago that speaking up would only bring more of the same. Instead, she’s accepted this forced status as a secondary human being, and she goes about her business hoping that her efforts will speak loudly and well enough to eventually earn her the measure of human decency each of us is owed.
A number of years ago, I had a good friend who swore on the written works of Harlan Ellison like they were Biblical scrolls. This friend raved about anything and everything the master had written, and he was always passing along photocopies of his favorite stories here and there for me to explore as well. Me, I wasn’t as enamored with Ellison. Undoubtedly, the author had incredible talent; but where I struggled with what few of his works I had read was that the guy had a penchant for employing a bit of narrative trickery that always seemed to break the spell of what he had otherwise crafted. It’s one thing to create this fantastic universe, and it’s another thing to keep me firmly planted in it from start-to-finish. This is where I had quibbles with his skills.
For example (and I’ll apologize in advance as I don’t remember the name of this particular short story), Ellison had penned this wonderful kinda/sorta time travel yarn. Essentially, it was a series of vignettes involving this do-gooder who – day-by-day – was recounting an event that he/she participated in on each individual day of a certain month as he/she bounded across the eons. June 1st was one adventure, followed by a different one on June 2nd, and so on and so forth. Well, I was captivated by these smaller adventures – one after the other – until the writer broke the spell by setting a next in a series of escapades on June 31. A thinking person will tell you, “There is no June 31.” Then, Ellison went on with June 32nd. June 33rd. June 34th. See the trend? What was an otherwise fabulous and intoxicatingly sweeping journey was now clearly fictional as no days of the calendar have such numbering.
Yes, yes, and yes: I get that maybe I’m kinda/sorta splitting hairs here or perhaps expecting too much of an author. For me, good fiction transcends reality, allowing me to escape within its words, sentences, paragraphs, passages, chapters, and more. When there’s such an obvious break in existence – such as introducing a day that, quite frankly, couldn’t have been – I’m forced out of the otherwise vicarious universe with the reminder that this is all fiction, after all, and that just kinda/sorta kills the mood. For me. Most definitely. With the spell broken, I lose interest. Such is life.
All of this brings me to Black Mirror’s sixth season finale, “Demon 79,” a reasonably effective and modestly clever yarn right up until the screenwriter shatters that fourth wall with a reality that couldn’t possibly have taken place.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the episode’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Northern England, 1979. A meek sales assistant is told she must commit terrible acts to prevent disaster.”
It’s exceedingly easy for an audience to care for a character so desperately ‘put upon’ as is Nida Huq (as played by Anjana Vasan). The mousy salesclerk goes about her day job always the butt of the joke from her coworkers and the department store’s management staff. Marginalized and ostracized – perhaps in part owed to her ethnicity – Nida bites her tongue instead of lashing out at those around her because she likely learned long ago that speaking up would only bring more of the same. Instead, she’s accepted this forced status as a secondary human being, and she goes about her business hoping that her efforts will speak loudly and well enough to eventually earn her the measure of human decency each of us is owed.
But …
(And in the world of Fantasy, you always know there’s a ‘but’ coming, don’t you?)
While eating her lunch in a basement stockroom, Nida stumbles across an old totem that – when tainted with her blood from an accidental cut – releases the demon named Gaap (a surprisingly convincing Paapa Essiedu). Despite the fact that her activating this spell was entirely unintentional, Nida is still required to fulfill her responsibilities of said activation, namely that being she’s given three days with which to murder three people or her failure to meet the terms will result in the annihilation of all life on planet Earth. The script from Charlie Brooker and Bisha K. Ali does suggest that the potential victims should have earned a bit of notoriety in their past or future – Gaap has the singular ability to see both ways in time, and he largely uses such learned information to convince Nida that she’s actually doing mankind a favor by removing folks who’ve perhaps abused the gifts of life – but as you can imagine none of this lessens the emotional weight the young woman feels over the prospect of becoming a cold-blooded murderer.
In one regard, it’s clear that Demon is about the pursuit of balance.
Nida – a rather obvious social outcast not necessarily of her own choice – struggles to both fit in privately as well as socially, never quite comfortable in her own skin for a variety of reasons. Gaap and his dark pronouncement figuratively suggests that deeds must be performed in order to maintain a measure of equilibrium; either one agrees, or the fate of mankind might fall victim. Even the store manager tries (and fails) to find working solutions to accommodate the wishes and desires of all his staff; while he doesn’t mean to insult Nida, her race, or her way of life, his obsession with maintaining the assumed comfortable middle ground – finding that elusive sweet spot between courtesy and offence – might actually risk the loss of our humanity even though he personally believes he’s achieving – ahem – world peace.
However, where I struggled with the installment is that in the final scenes the fourth wall is demolished, leaving no question whatsoever that what the audience just spent 70+ minutes investing in is nothing more than the figment of a screenwriter’s imagination. Nida and Gaap’s fates – and our world’s as a consequence – couldn’t have happened because this way precisely because … because … well, everyone knows how much I hate spoiling any ending, so I won’t do that here. Let’s just say that things don’t end rosy, and because they couldn’t have ended this badly jerked me out of the story to the point of shattering the narrative possibilities.
The M. Night Shyamalan movies are all built around some twist ending. Whether the audience sees them coming or not isn’t necessarily a bad thing (though I suspect M. Night disagrees). What matters to me – as a viewer – is that I can both watch what evolves organically and accept the consequences within reality as presented. When that presentation suggests that life as we know it may very well have ended for all of us back in 1979 but yet life as we know it never in fact ended, there’s a kind of cognitive dissonance the audience may not be able to reconcile. This audience member couldn’t, and, yes, that kinda/sorta spoils the finish.
Mildly recommended.
“Demon 79” has a solid retro feel to the length of its presentation. It looks and sounds very much like the late 1970’s, bolstering the visceral appeal to those of us who’ve been around and seen a good number of Horrors, Chillers, and Frights from that bygone era. Also, Vasan and Essiedu make for one of the finer small screening pairings as of late, with the two parts making one incredible cohesive whole that elevates even the small moments to something special. Alas, what doesn’t work here – at least so far as this reviewer is concerned – is an entirely fictionalized fate of the world, slamming the door to a reality so much so that I knew it was no longer possible in the slightest. Sad. But it’s still worth a single watch.
Black Mirror’s “Demon 79” (S06E04) was produced by Charlie Brooker and company in cooperation with Netflix. The episode is currently available for viewing on the streaming giant. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert, I thought the accompanying sights and sounds were exceptional from start-to-finish.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the entire sixth season of Black Mirror is presently available to me as a current Netflix subscriber, and I was provided absolutely no advance screening of any episodes in exchange for a complimentary review.
-- EZ
(And in the world of Fantasy, you always know there’s a ‘but’ coming, don’t you?)
While eating her lunch in a basement stockroom, Nida stumbles across an old totem that – when tainted with her blood from an accidental cut – releases the demon named Gaap (a surprisingly convincing Paapa Essiedu). Despite the fact that her activating this spell was entirely unintentional, Nida is still required to fulfill her responsibilities of said activation, namely that being she’s given three days with which to murder three people or her failure to meet the terms will result in the annihilation of all life on planet Earth. The script from Charlie Brooker and Bisha K. Ali does suggest that the potential victims should have earned a bit of notoriety in their past or future – Gaap has the singular ability to see both ways in time, and he largely uses such learned information to convince Nida that she’s actually doing mankind a favor by removing folks who’ve perhaps abused the gifts of life – but as you can imagine none of this lessens the emotional weight the young woman feels over the prospect of becoming a cold-blooded murderer.
In one regard, it’s clear that Demon is about the pursuit of balance.
Nida – a rather obvious social outcast not necessarily of her own choice – struggles to both fit in privately as well as socially, never quite comfortable in her own skin for a variety of reasons. Gaap and his dark pronouncement figuratively suggests that deeds must be performed in order to maintain a measure of equilibrium; either one agrees, or the fate of mankind might fall victim. Even the store manager tries (and fails) to find working solutions to accommodate the wishes and desires of all his staff; while he doesn’t mean to insult Nida, her race, or her way of life, his obsession with maintaining the assumed comfortable middle ground – finding that elusive sweet spot between courtesy and offence – might actually risk the loss of our humanity even though he personally believes he’s achieving – ahem – world peace.
However, where I struggled with the installment is that in the final scenes the fourth wall is demolished, leaving no question whatsoever that what the audience just spent 70+ minutes investing in is nothing more than the figment of a screenwriter’s imagination. Nida and Gaap’s fates – and our world’s as a consequence – couldn’t have happened because this way precisely because … because … well, everyone knows how much I hate spoiling any ending, so I won’t do that here. Let’s just say that things don’t end rosy, and because they couldn’t have ended this badly jerked me out of the story to the point of shattering the narrative possibilities.
The M. Night Shyamalan movies are all built around some twist ending. Whether the audience sees them coming or not isn’t necessarily a bad thing (though I suspect M. Night disagrees). What matters to me – as a viewer – is that I can both watch what evolves organically and accept the consequences within reality as presented. When that presentation suggests that life as we know it may very well have ended for all of us back in 1979 but yet life as we know it never in fact ended, there’s a kind of cognitive dissonance the audience may not be able to reconcile. This audience member couldn’t, and, yes, that kinda/sorta spoils the finish.
Mildly recommended.
“Demon 79” has a solid retro feel to the length of its presentation. It looks and sounds very much like the late 1970’s, bolstering the visceral appeal to those of us who’ve been around and seen a good number of Horrors, Chillers, and Frights from that bygone era. Also, Vasan and Essiedu make for one of the finer small screening pairings as of late, with the two parts making one incredible cohesive whole that elevates even the small moments to something special. Alas, what doesn’t work here – at least so far as this reviewer is concerned – is an entirely fictionalized fate of the world, slamming the door to a reality so much so that I knew it was no longer possible in the slightest. Sad. But it’s still worth a single watch.
Black Mirror’s “Demon 79” (S06E04) was produced by Charlie Brooker and company in cooperation with Netflix. The episode is currently available for viewing on the streaming giant. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert, I thought the accompanying sights and sounds were exceptional from start-to-finish.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the entire sixth season of Black Mirror is presently available to me as a current Netflix subscriber, and I was provided absolutely no advance screening of any episodes in exchange for a complimentary review.
-- EZ
- Published on
From time-to-time, I find it necessary to clarify why I might use this space in SciFiHistory.Net – of all places – to review things that are fundamentally not Science Fiction, Fantasy, and/or Horror on the face of it.
First off, it’s my website. As such, I’m free to do with it as I will.
Second, it’s still my website. If I choose to cover something beyond the scope of the core communication, I usually do it to either refresh my own brain (it helps to think outside the usual box occasionally) or because I’ve been offered an opportunity by a friend, fan, or colleague that I think is a worthwhile endeavor.
Lastly, I think the subject – if even in a small way – coincides thematically with what I already do in this space.
For example, today I finished reading Bart Sibrel’s exceptionally interesting Moon Man: The True Story Of A Filmmaker On The CIA Hit List. For those unaware, Sibrel explores entirely the foundation behind why he alleges (if not proves) that the Apollo moon landings were faked by agents of the U.S. government, and – whether you ultimately agree with his premise or not – he presents each and every one of his arguments in an entirely cogent fashion, so much so that I challenge folks to read it and not become a believer.
Now … for the haters and general charlatans …
No, no, and no: in no way, shape or form am I casting my own judgment on the veracity of Sibrel’s scholarship by covering it on the MainPage. Of course, I realize that this part of my site has been dedicated over the years to reviewing works of fiction and/or publishing my own bits of commentary about the state of fandom, SciFi, Horror, Fantasy, etc. As I often caution readers, I don’t exist to change your minds: if you do see things the way I see them after reading some of my humble works, then that’s grand. But it isn’t my intent to convince you one way or another on any such topic: you do you, I do me, and should we meet? All well and good. But my review in this space is not meant to disparage Sibrel’s positions at all: I’m merely promoting his efforts with a bit of my own.
For what it’s worth, I’ll go to my grave arguing that Fox TV’s stellar serial The X-Files is one of the greatest intellectual properties to ever grace the Boob Tube. The show played both the long game (with its central mythology stories) and dozens of short games (with its monster-of-the-week format); and it did both surprisingly well. Of course, I say this to a degree because I’ve lived a life fascinated with so much subject matter that the FBI Special Agents investigated and/or debunked; and it’s because of my affinity for conspiracies – be what they may be – that I think Sibrel’s book is worth whatever bit of light I can shine upon it. Fans of the show – and similar fare – will likely find a good deal of interest in Sibrel’s efforts, as well. They might even see the author as a professional inspiration.
For those who’ve never heard of the author, I encourage you to first take a gander at his website – Sibrel.com – so that you can effectively be brought up to speed. A great deal of what he discusses in the book gets a fair amount of coverage in no small fashion there, but what I found particularly captivating in the book is the highly personal recounting of the man’s journey. Both as a hunter and as the hunted, he’s an Old School journalist who knows how to ask questions in such a way that a non-answer is as good as a deliberate choice of words; and that’s something so shockingly in short supply in what accounts for the mainstream media today I shudder at where we’ll be ten, fifteen, or twenty years from now. Indeed, that institution – culturally – needs to be entirely re-invented, and that’s even the subject the author discusses in the book’s closing chapter (among other things).
But the method to Sibrel’s madness is – dare I say? – entirely convincing.
He makes a compelling case, one that should definitely have readers thinking about what was scientifically possible decades ago and how the loss of such technology (if not outright destruction, mind you) requires an explanation. Why is it we accept certain events blindly when they seemingly cannot be replicated? How could NASA – or any government agency, for that matter – systematically destroy evidence of mankind’s greatest achievement unless they wished to avoid probing eyes from uncovering the truth? What would be gained in such demolition? How far up the authoritarian Food Chain must one go to get what should be an easy answer and, yet, none are forthcoming? His is a journey few have undertaken, and it shouldn’t be dismissed casually or lightly. If nothing else, the truths exposed in here should set you free … if not encouraging you to seek out and explore your own career in like-minded research.
Highly recommended.
-- EZ
First off, it’s my website. As such, I’m free to do with it as I will.
Second, it’s still my website. If I choose to cover something beyond the scope of the core communication, I usually do it to either refresh my own brain (it helps to think outside the usual box occasionally) or because I’ve been offered an opportunity by a friend, fan, or colleague that I think is a worthwhile endeavor.
Lastly, I think the subject – if even in a small way – coincides thematically with what I already do in this space.
For example, today I finished reading Bart Sibrel’s exceptionally interesting Moon Man: The True Story Of A Filmmaker On The CIA Hit List. For those unaware, Sibrel explores entirely the foundation behind why he alleges (if not proves) that the Apollo moon landings were faked by agents of the U.S. government, and – whether you ultimately agree with his premise or not – he presents each and every one of his arguments in an entirely cogent fashion, so much so that I challenge folks to read it and not become a believer.
Now … for the haters and general charlatans …
No, no, and no: in no way, shape or form am I casting my own judgment on the veracity of Sibrel’s scholarship by covering it on the MainPage. Of course, I realize that this part of my site has been dedicated over the years to reviewing works of fiction and/or publishing my own bits of commentary about the state of fandom, SciFi, Horror, Fantasy, etc. As I often caution readers, I don’t exist to change your minds: if you do see things the way I see them after reading some of my humble works, then that’s grand. But it isn’t my intent to convince you one way or another on any such topic: you do you, I do me, and should we meet? All well and good. But my review in this space is not meant to disparage Sibrel’s positions at all: I’m merely promoting his efforts with a bit of my own.
For what it’s worth, I’ll go to my grave arguing that Fox TV’s stellar serial The X-Files is one of the greatest intellectual properties to ever grace the Boob Tube. The show played both the long game (with its central mythology stories) and dozens of short games (with its monster-of-the-week format); and it did both surprisingly well. Of course, I say this to a degree because I’ve lived a life fascinated with so much subject matter that the FBI Special Agents investigated and/or debunked; and it’s because of my affinity for conspiracies – be what they may be – that I think Sibrel’s book is worth whatever bit of light I can shine upon it. Fans of the show – and similar fare – will likely find a good deal of interest in Sibrel’s efforts, as well. They might even see the author as a professional inspiration.
For those who’ve never heard of the author, I encourage you to first take a gander at his website – Sibrel.com – so that you can effectively be brought up to speed. A great deal of what he discusses in the book gets a fair amount of coverage in no small fashion there, but what I found particularly captivating in the book is the highly personal recounting of the man’s journey. Both as a hunter and as the hunted, he’s an Old School journalist who knows how to ask questions in such a way that a non-answer is as good as a deliberate choice of words; and that’s something so shockingly in short supply in what accounts for the mainstream media today I shudder at where we’ll be ten, fifteen, or twenty years from now. Indeed, that institution – culturally – needs to be entirely re-invented, and that’s even the subject the author discusses in the book’s closing chapter (among other things).
But the method to Sibrel’s madness is – dare I say? – entirely convincing.
He makes a compelling case, one that should definitely have readers thinking about what was scientifically possible decades ago and how the loss of such technology (if not outright destruction, mind you) requires an explanation. Why is it we accept certain events blindly when they seemingly cannot be replicated? How could NASA – or any government agency, for that matter – systematically destroy evidence of mankind’s greatest achievement unless they wished to avoid probing eyes from uncovering the truth? What would be gained in such demolition? How far up the authoritarian Food Chain must one go to get what should be an easy answer and, yet, none are forthcoming? His is a journey few have undertaken, and it shouldn’t be dismissed casually or lightly. If nothing else, the truths exposed in here should set you free … if not encouraging you to seek out and explore your own career in like-minded research.
Highly recommended.
-- EZ
- Published on
Folks, I struggle with watching Horror films because -- and I mean this honestly -- I just find them all that scary.
When you can't participate in the visceral thrill that goes hand-in-hand with any terrifying experience, then it can become difficult to find something appreciative to say about pictures of this type. This isn't meant to say or imply on any level that I don't get frightened all that much because -- probably like many of you -- nothing could be further from the truth. But for me watching, analyzing, and talking about film is an intellectual exercise; so I can go through some fits and starts in trying to conceptualize both how a Horror film works as well as what it might've communicated to me on any level. If I wasn't scared, then how else could it possibly have spoken to me?
Flash back to just a few years ago, and I had woken up from a nightmare. This wasn't a casual wake-up. This was one of those full-bodied 'Holy Crap What Did I Just See' fests that had me lightly sweating, gulping for air, and the whole nine yards. It was such a shocking moment that the wifey -- lying beside me -- sat right up in bed, too, and she asked, "Are you okay? You were dreaming, and then you started whining and I wasn't sure if I should wake you!" (For the record, I've always cautioned her to not wake me because I have so much trouble falling to sleep to begin with.) "What did you see?"
So I told her what I had seen, that being I was being chased by a Xenomorph.
And, yes, it scared the crap out of me.
As nightmares go, that's the chief element that I've always always always respected about James Cameron's Aliens (1986), a project that turns an incredible 37 years young today. The yarn is crafted in such a way that -- in the early reel -- the audience is treated to the very personal nightmare Ellen Ripley is living. Like me, she woke up from a sound sleep entirely owed to visions of a dark fate at the hands of one of filmdom's seminal monsters. (Granted, this one was inside her, but you catch my drift.) Then -- in the flick's second half -- she isn't so much forced to go face-first into all that carnage as she deliberately chooses to confront that nightmare head-on. It's a brilliant narrative juxtaposition -- first, we see it, and then we live it through her -- and it's probably one of the very best times such a concept has ever been captured on film.
So, yes, yes, and yes: I think Aliens lives on even to this day precisely because of the direction Cameron took the property (after picking up the hand-off from the original's Ridley Scott). The film did phenomenal box office, and it truly established the director as one to watch in the field of Science Fiction for the years ahead. To this day, he's still dabbling in that arena, and we should all be thankful for that.
When you can't participate in the visceral thrill that goes hand-in-hand with any terrifying experience, then it can become difficult to find something appreciative to say about pictures of this type. This isn't meant to say or imply on any level that I don't get frightened all that much because -- probably like many of you -- nothing could be further from the truth. But for me watching, analyzing, and talking about film is an intellectual exercise; so I can go through some fits and starts in trying to conceptualize both how a Horror film works as well as what it might've communicated to me on any level. If I wasn't scared, then how else could it possibly have spoken to me?
Flash back to just a few years ago, and I had woken up from a nightmare. This wasn't a casual wake-up. This was one of those full-bodied 'Holy Crap What Did I Just See' fests that had me lightly sweating, gulping for air, and the whole nine yards. It was such a shocking moment that the wifey -- lying beside me -- sat right up in bed, too, and she asked, "Are you okay? You were dreaming, and then you started whining and I wasn't sure if I should wake you!" (For the record, I've always cautioned her to not wake me because I have so much trouble falling to sleep to begin with.) "What did you see?"
So I told her what I had seen, that being I was being chased by a Xenomorph.
And, yes, it scared the crap out of me.
As nightmares go, that's the chief element that I've always always always respected about James Cameron's Aliens (1986), a project that turns an incredible 37 years young today. The yarn is crafted in such a way that -- in the early reel -- the audience is treated to the very personal nightmare Ellen Ripley is living. Like me, she woke up from a sound sleep entirely owed to visions of a dark fate at the hands of one of filmdom's seminal monsters. (Granted, this one was inside her, but you catch my drift.) Then -- in the flick's second half -- she isn't so much forced to go face-first into all that carnage as she deliberately chooses to confront that nightmare head-on. It's a brilliant narrative juxtaposition -- first, we see it, and then we live it through her -- and it's probably one of the very best times such a concept has ever been captured on film.
So, yes, yes, and yes: I think Aliens lives on even to this day precisely because of the direction Cameron took the property (after picking up the hand-off from the original's Ridley Scott). The film did phenomenal box office, and it truly established the director as one to watch in the field of Science Fiction for the years ahead. To this day, he's still dabbling in that arena, and we should all be thankful for that.
Indeed, Cameron and his merry band of cast and crew produced a SciFi gem that garnered an incredible seven Academy Awards nominations back in 1987, and -- think what you will -- this was still a time wherein it was reasonably rare for SciFi, Fantasy, and Horror to kinda/sorta squeeze out the intellectual competition during awards season. The film took home two big wins -- Sound Effects Editing and Best Effects -- but I think it's safe to say that Cameron's work was starting to draw the kind of attention our genre both needed and deserved. That's a rare thing, indeed.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
-- EZ
-- EZ
- Published on
Woof!
We've made it, folks, so welcome to another Friday morning! Ahhh, the weekend awaits, and I'm here to let you know that it's right around the corner!
Not much else to pass along this morning. I've been tinkering behind-the-scenes, mostly, and I might work on a review or two that I have to finish up (and would like to do before the weekend). If I get 'em up, then I'll be happy to post them here on the MainPage; if not, well ... it is what it is.
I do have a busy afternoon schedule -- one of our stray cats is ailing, so I have to get her to a nearby vet for an exam -- so I probably won't have any updates later today. If you're the prayers and wishes type of person, please say a prayer for our kitty Jo as she's definitely struggling with something that looks to be rather serious. Hopefully it's a little 'something something' that's treatable. I do so much enjoy my cats.
In any event, here's the link below. Be sure to tell all of your friends and family to check out the day, as it has a good deal to offer even a casual reader.
We've made it, folks, so welcome to another Friday morning! Ahhh, the weekend awaits, and I'm here to let you know that it's right around the corner!
Not much else to pass along this morning. I've been tinkering behind-the-scenes, mostly, and I might work on a review or two that I have to finish up (and would like to do before the weekend). If I get 'em up, then I'll be happy to post them here on the MainPage; if not, well ... it is what it is.
I do have a busy afternoon schedule -- one of our stray cats is ailing, so I have to get her to a nearby vet for an exam -- so I probably won't have any updates later today. If you're the prayers and wishes type of person, please say a prayer for our kitty Jo as she's definitely struggling with something that looks to be rather serious. Hopefully it's a little 'something something' that's treatable. I do so much enjoy my cats.
In any event, here's the link below. Be sure to tell all of your friends and family to check out the day, as it has a good deal to offer even a casual reader.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
-- EZ
- Published on
Longtime readers of SciFiHistory.Net know all too well of my fondness for practical Special Effects.
In fact, some folks have accused me of downright hating CGI, but that's far from the truth. My issue with computerized imagery is that -- often times on some level -- it's very easy to spot, and this forces me to be pulled out of the experience. Practical effects work -- when done well -- just feels a bit more natural and organic to the whole storytelling palette. Yes, yes, and yes: I realize that to a certain degree this is most likely owed to the fact that I'm a bit older than most who sound off about film and television these days. Still, I think that the craftsmen and women who've been somewhat forgotten in the history of filmdom deserve far more credit than they've ever received, so I'm thrilled at the opportunity to help right that ship, as it were.
Not long after I published my review of 1989's Robot Jox (from Empire Pictures), one of the technicians who worked on the project reached out to me with the Information Superhighway: James Belohovek's resume includes a solid handful of features near and dear to many of us who cherish the film's from the 1980's -- The Thing, Dreamscape, The Wraith, Evil Dead II to name but a couple -- and I was thrilled at the prospect of swapping emails with him over the course of a few weeks. He graciously accepted my offer, and I wanted to share some of the reflections from a life lived at a time when quite a great deal of the industry was transitioning from work being done by hand into the era of computer graphics.
In fact, some folks have accused me of downright hating CGI, but that's far from the truth. My issue with computerized imagery is that -- often times on some level -- it's very easy to spot, and this forces me to be pulled out of the experience. Practical effects work -- when done well -- just feels a bit more natural and organic to the whole storytelling palette. Yes, yes, and yes: I realize that to a certain degree this is most likely owed to the fact that I'm a bit older than most who sound off about film and television these days. Still, I think that the craftsmen and women who've been somewhat forgotten in the history of filmdom deserve far more credit than they've ever received, so I'm thrilled at the opportunity to help right that ship, as it were.
Not long after I published my review of 1989's Robot Jox (from Empire Pictures), one of the technicians who worked on the project reached out to me with the Information Superhighway: James Belohovek's resume includes a solid handful of features near and dear to many of us who cherish the film's from the 1980's -- The Thing, Dreamscape, The Wraith, Evil Dead II to name but a couple -- and I was thrilled at the prospect of swapping emails with him over the course of a few weeks. He graciously accepted my offer, and I wanted to share some of the reflections from a life lived at a time when quite a great deal of the industry was transitioning from work being done by hand into the era of computer graphics.
Q: How did you get started in the entertainment industry?
In 1979, I went to Cal Arts College to see if they could train me on the optical printer. Once I got there, I found out they didn't have a strong teacher who knew anything about blue screen (special effects). So I tried to make a short film – a commercial – of a space movie I had in mind. While preparing for it, I was making a good handful of models and miniatures to shoot. My roommate at the time was attending the animation school. One of his friends was Joe Ranft (writer, actor, and special effects). It was Joe who suggested that I should be a model maker. I have always had a fascination with miniatures, from Irwin Allen shows to Towering Inferno. Two other people in the same school arranged a meeting with a friend of theirs, John Van Vliet, over at Disney studios. We all had lunch together, and he looked over my very poor portfolio. He thought my work was very good. So I went home and prepared to build better models.
Later that evening, John called. He referred me to Susan Turner at VCE Inc. as he knew she was presently looking for a model maker. And Susan hired me to work on a saucer from John Carpenter’s The Thing.
Q: Have you always been fascinated with miniatures?
Making props and miniatures was never a ‘job’ with me, and I was having lots of fun doing them. I loved how working on and with them challenged my creative thinking. The payoff was seeing them on the big screen. I was proud to have brought my contribution to the movie. Of course, having my name in the credits was the icing on the cake.
I did find that building a miniature was only 1/3 of the challenge. Painting was the next 1/3, and finally lighting was the last 1/3. If I built a great model but it was filmed wrong or someone painted it wrong, that would destroy the illusion. Thank goodness I had a wonderful friend – Jim Aupperle – who lit and shot most of my models.
Q: Did you have a personal favorite project you were ever involved with?
The best one was James Cameron’s Aliens (1986). I put in a lot of effort knowing it was going to be a great portfolio piece. It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me. Doug Beswick let me run with it, and I had to quickly change creative gears. I started making the arm parts out of hobby plywood, but I learned quickly that using plex was the only way to go.
Each film had its interesting memories. The Thing was my first film. I was so excited to work on a real movie, and it was a space saucer to boot! I had a rough start on it. I made all the vents, but I rushed myself. At first, Susan wasn't happy with them. Instead of her firing me, she had me do most of them over and pace myself. She must have liked what I did because she hired me to help build the ice cavern featured at the end of the movie. We built it at Universal Hartland way in the backstage area where they filmed the original Battlestar Galactica and Buck Rogers In The 25th Century. So I got to sneak around there, see the models for those shows up close, and see how real model makers made those models. What a great introduction into movies!
After that, I went on to other projects like Dreamscape, and I even expanded my skills after finishing the miniatures I helped out doing ink and paint. Some of the cells I painted were from Return Of The Jedi (1983), Gremlins (1984), Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom (1984), Children Of The Corn (1984), and a couple Japanese movies. After working at VCE Inc. for three years, I went out on my own.
In 1979, I went to Cal Arts College to see if they could train me on the optical printer. Once I got there, I found out they didn't have a strong teacher who knew anything about blue screen (special effects). So I tried to make a short film – a commercial – of a space movie I had in mind. While preparing for it, I was making a good handful of models and miniatures to shoot. My roommate at the time was attending the animation school. One of his friends was Joe Ranft (writer, actor, and special effects). It was Joe who suggested that I should be a model maker. I have always had a fascination with miniatures, from Irwin Allen shows to Towering Inferno. Two other people in the same school arranged a meeting with a friend of theirs, John Van Vliet, over at Disney studios. We all had lunch together, and he looked over my very poor portfolio. He thought my work was very good. So I went home and prepared to build better models.
Later that evening, John called. He referred me to Susan Turner at VCE Inc. as he knew she was presently looking for a model maker. And Susan hired me to work on a saucer from John Carpenter’s The Thing.
Q: Have you always been fascinated with miniatures?
Making props and miniatures was never a ‘job’ with me, and I was having lots of fun doing them. I loved how working on and with them challenged my creative thinking. The payoff was seeing them on the big screen. I was proud to have brought my contribution to the movie. Of course, having my name in the credits was the icing on the cake.
I did find that building a miniature was only 1/3 of the challenge. Painting was the next 1/3, and finally lighting was the last 1/3. If I built a great model but it was filmed wrong or someone painted it wrong, that would destroy the illusion. Thank goodness I had a wonderful friend – Jim Aupperle – who lit and shot most of my models.
Q: Did you have a personal favorite project you were ever involved with?
The best one was James Cameron’s Aliens (1986). I put in a lot of effort knowing it was going to be a great portfolio piece. It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me. Doug Beswick let me run with it, and I had to quickly change creative gears. I started making the arm parts out of hobby plywood, but I learned quickly that using plex was the only way to go.
Each film had its interesting memories. The Thing was my first film. I was so excited to work on a real movie, and it was a space saucer to boot! I had a rough start on it. I made all the vents, but I rushed myself. At first, Susan wasn't happy with them. Instead of her firing me, she had me do most of them over and pace myself. She must have liked what I did because she hired me to help build the ice cavern featured at the end of the movie. We built it at Universal Hartland way in the backstage area where they filmed the original Battlestar Galactica and Buck Rogers In The 25th Century. So I got to sneak around there, see the models for those shows up close, and see how real model makers made those models. What a great introduction into movies!
After that, I went on to other projects like Dreamscape, and I even expanded my skills after finishing the miniatures I helped out doing ink and paint. Some of the cells I painted were from Return Of The Jedi (1983), Gremlins (1984), Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom (1984), Children Of The Corn (1984), and a couple Japanese movies. After working at VCE Inc. for three years, I went out on my own.
Q: What can you tell us about the variety of projects that you worked on?
Making the cabin for Evil Dead 2 (1987) was fun. Building ‘Johnny Cab’ on Total Recall (1990) was also fun. Working on the gun/arm for RoboCop (1987) was fun. The miniatures on Beetlejuice (1988) were also fun. That got me to work at VCE and Doug Beswick’s shop. And the Addams Family 1 & 2 (1991, 1993) miniatures were also fun.
There were projects I did have lots of fun on because of the people I worked with. For example, House (1985) was a lot of fun working with all the creature effects guys. Everything from the silly jokes, the crazy music, and having clay throwing contests against the walls. It was fun, but most of the time, it was serious business.
I loved working for Doug Beswick because he had a very professional way of doing things. I felt like I was working at ILM. When I worked on Dreamscape (1984), I met Jim Aupperle. Both of us became real good friends, and we had the chance to work together on Troll (1986), Evil Dead 2, Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987), and Beetlejuice. Jim was a great referral for me when it came to working on Aliens at Doug's shop since both of them had made a movie together called Planet of Dinosaurs (1977). At Doug's shop, I also worked on Drop Dead Fred (1991).
Q: How have you watched the industry evolve over the years? How have these changes impacted effects technicians?
Back in the 1980's, models were still being made by hand, not CGI like today. But all of us model makers could see the writing on the wall: either invest in a computer and 3D program, or your prospects would eventually die.
Personal computers back then were way too expensive for many of us, so working at WDI (Walt Disney Imagineering) was about the only place to go. I found myself doing that as well for several years. During that time, I had friends like Ron Thornton let me play around with his first 3D computer he bought for Babylon 5. Eventually, I chose to go into drawing in 3D for laser cutting and 3D printing. A friend that I had met way back on Addams Family 2 was going to hire me over at Wet Design. So I left WDI to go work over there and bought a 3D program called Rhino. While at Wet Design, I got to learn how to use it which was the best move in my life – to learn 3D printing.
If anyone wants to be a model maker in film, I would tell him or her to invest in a 3D program and small printer. There are so many of them out there now. And to break into film? If you're young and can work a 10-to-12 hour day, seven days a week for a few months, then it's a job for you. I don't wish to dash anyone’s hopes, but the film industry has changed so much with the producers calling the shots. The working conditions are grueling at best.
But get a good portfolio of your 3D stuff. Go to Sony or Walt Disney Studios 3D Animation Department. If you go to college like I did (California Institute of the Arts), then it's easier to break in since many of those schools have contacts in the industry. That’s how I did it. I had a couple of friends in the animation school introduce me to a guy at Disney Studios who, in turn, gave me a number to call up for my first job. Another guy in my class went to work for Greg Jein on Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979). When he came back to school, he gave me Greg's number. So it still helps to make contacts.
Q: Hollywood can be infamous for its behind-the-scenes stories. Making movies can be exciting, but it can also be challenging. Do you have any memories about such challenges you can share?
When I worked on House, I met up with another friend – James Cummins – who was in charge of the creature effects. I met Jim at Cal Arts’ Halloween party back in 1981. He was wearing a face hugger and costume at the party. Also, we both worked on The Thing at Hartland. Jim had heard that I was looking for work, and he needed someone to go around and finish up some of the props. He had set up his makeup building in an empty doctor’s office on the second floor in the old town of Burbank. It’s now a shopping mall. Anyway, we were so rowdy that the owner of the store below us turned us into the fire dept! We were raided and ordered to get out because the building wasn't rated for all these chemicals that we were using. Jim convinced them to give him another day while everything was moved into his garage and backyard. What a mess! Their poor dog in the backyard had cured foam latex on his fur.
At the last shot of the show, the original contract hadn't been signed approving all our salaries and the creatures to be built. So we arrived at the soundstage but refused to do anything until the contract was signed. That was real tense for sure.
Q: I recently had the good fortune of watching and reviewing Stuart Gordon’s Robot Jox included as part of Arrow Films’ Enter The Video Store: Empire Of Screams collection. Do you have any memories about that project you can share?
On Robot Jox, I was the second model maker hired that day only by an hour. I had just come off of working on Aliens, and I was accustomed to making models like ILM would have. Doug Beswick was very professional at his approach to any job he got. So, with that in mind, I could see right away that the guy in charge of Robot Jox construction of both robots – a guy named Dennis Gordon – wasn’t very experienced at this. Originally Dave Allen asked me if I wanted to be the lead model maker because of working for Doug, but I declined. So I let Larry Bowman – who was hired first – be the lead. Larry worked for Sessoms and Sleagles (SIC) making 1/8th scale cars and trains. He was a great model maker.
Dennis's idea was to have a wood carver make the wood patterns, and we would detail the parts. I don't know the name of the wood worker, but he worked out of his trailer behind a gas station in Burbank.
So I started finishing off the first parts I got, the first being the leg pieces for Achilles. I was told to take the wood pattern and score panel lines and apply bits and pieces of styrene to detail it out. This is where I suddenly saw an iceberg of a disaster coming. I knew not to use wood for any kind of machine-looking thing. You can't score into the surface of wood, only plex. ILM uses wood to only frame and box in a model, then it’s covered with styrene. But that isn’t how they were doing it on Robot Jox.
Making the cabin for Evil Dead 2 (1987) was fun. Building ‘Johnny Cab’ on Total Recall (1990) was also fun. Working on the gun/arm for RoboCop (1987) was fun. The miniatures on Beetlejuice (1988) were also fun. That got me to work at VCE and Doug Beswick’s shop. And the Addams Family 1 & 2 (1991, 1993) miniatures were also fun.
There were projects I did have lots of fun on because of the people I worked with. For example, House (1985) was a lot of fun working with all the creature effects guys. Everything from the silly jokes, the crazy music, and having clay throwing contests against the walls. It was fun, but most of the time, it was serious business.
I loved working for Doug Beswick because he had a very professional way of doing things. I felt like I was working at ILM. When I worked on Dreamscape (1984), I met Jim Aupperle. Both of us became real good friends, and we had the chance to work together on Troll (1986), Evil Dead 2, Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987), and Beetlejuice. Jim was a great referral for me when it came to working on Aliens at Doug's shop since both of them had made a movie together called Planet of Dinosaurs (1977). At Doug's shop, I also worked on Drop Dead Fred (1991).
Q: How have you watched the industry evolve over the years? How have these changes impacted effects technicians?
Back in the 1980's, models were still being made by hand, not CGI like today. But all of us model makers could see the writing on the wall: either invest in a computer and 3D program, or your prospects would eventually die.
Personal computers back then were way too expensive for many of us, so working at WDI (Walt Disney Imagineering) was about the only place to go. I found myself doing that as well for several years. During that time, I had friends like Ron Thornton let me play around with his first 3D computer he bought for Babylon 5. Eventually, I chose to go into drawing in 3D for laser cutting and 3D printing. A friend that I had met way back on Addams Family 2 was going to hire me over at Wet Design. So I left WDI to go work over there and bought a 3D program called Rhino. While at Wet Design, I got to learn how to use it which was the best move in my life – to learn 3D printing.
If anyone wants to be a model maker in film, I would tell him or her to invest in a 3D program and small printer. There are so many of them out there now. And to break into film? If you're young and can work a 10-to-12 hour day, seven days a week for a few months, then it's a job for you. I don't wish to dash anyone’s hopes, but the film industry has changed so much with the producers calling the shots. The working conditions are grueling at best.
But get a good portfolio of your 3D stuff. Go to Sony or Walt Disney Studios 3D Animation Department. If you go to college like I did (California Institute of the Arts), then it's easier to break in since many of those schools have contacts in the industry. That’s how I did it. I had a couple of friends in the animation school introduce me to a guy at Disney Studios who, in turn, gave me a number to call up for my first job. Another guy in my class went to work for Greg Jein on Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979). When he came back to school, he gave me Greg's number. So it still helps to make contacts.
Q: Hollywood can be infamous for its behind-the-scenes stories. Making movies can be exciting, but it can also be challenging. Do you have any memories about such challenges you can share?
When I worked on House, I met up with another friend – James Cummins – who was in charge of the creature effects. I met Jim at Cal Arts’ Halloween party back in 1981. He was wearing a face hugger and costume at the party. Also, we both worked on The Thing at Hartland. Jim had heard that I was looking for work, and he needed someone to go around and finish up some of the props. He had set up his makeup building in an empty doctor’s office on the second floor in the old town of Burbank. It’s now a shopping mall. Anyway, we were so rowdy that the owner of the store below us turned us into the fire dept! We were raided and ordered to get out because the building wasn't rated for all these chemicals that we were using. Jim convinced them to give him another day while everything was moved into his garage and backyard. What a mess! Their poor dog in the backyard had cured foam latex on his fur.
At the last shot of the show, the original contract hadn't been signed approving all our salaries and the creatures to be built. So we arrived at the soundstage but refused to do anything until the contract was signed. That was real tense for sure.
Q: I recently had the good fortune of watching and reviewing Stuart Gordon’s Robot Jox included as part of Arrow Films’ Enter The Video Store: Empire Of Screams collection. Do you have any memories about that project you can share?
On Robot Jox, I was the second model maker hired that day only by an hour. I had just come off of working on Aliens, and I was accustomed to making models like ILM would have. Doug Beswick was very professional at his approach to any job he got. So, with that in mind, I could see right away that the guy in charge of Robot Jox construction of both robots – a guy named Dennis Gordon – wasn’t very experienced at this. Originally Dave Allen asked me if I wanted to be the lead model maker because of working for Doug, but I declined. So I let Larry Bowman – who was hired first – be the lead. Larry worked for Sessoms and Sleagles (SIC) making 1/8th scale cars and trains. He was a great model maker.
Dennis's idea was to have a wood carver make the wood patterns, and we would detail the parts. I don't know the name of the wood worker, but he worked out of his trailer behind a gas station in Burbank.
So I started finishing off the first parts I got, the first being the leg pieces for Achilles. I was told to take the wood pattern and score panel lines and apply bits and pieces of styrene to detail it out. This is where I suddenly saw an iceberg of a disaster coming. I knew not to use wood for any kind of machine-looking thing. You can't score into the surface of wood, only plex. ILM uses wood to only frame and box in a model, then it’s covered with styrene. But that isn’t how they were doing it on Robot Jox.
Q: How did that affect your work?
The job was supposed to last a month. Trying to score wood took the model shop three months! After a week of trying to get a good score line in wood – the grain of the wood wasn't giving us good straight lines – Dennis had a special tool made up to put rivets across the surface of the wood pattern. I tried to warn Larry that this was a ridiculous idea, but he said do what Dennis wanted. Meanwhile, we were getting parts from the wood worker, and I received the top torso and upper shoulders of Achilles. It was another disaster because the parts didn't fit together! It was then I told Larry that we should check all the parts with each other to see if they fit together or another disaster would happen.
After a week of trying to punch rivets in the leg pattern, I gave up and told Larry that I’d fill them in give them over to the mold maker. I said Dennis can fire me if he wants to. Well, I disappointed Dennis, but I had the other model makers and Larry stand behind me. So I spent my time mostly on Achilles making the legs and most of the upper torso and arm pieces.
Then, another disaster took place: it seems that the mold maker who was making fiberglass pieces was making the parts way too thick! On Aliens, we had Tony Gardner make fiberglass pieces of the power loader parts that were potato-chip thick. It had to be light, or the cables inside wouldn't move the parts. The parts we were getting on Robot Jox were about 1/8 inch thick. These were large pieces to begin with, so this was going to make the model very heavy. After the demonstration, Larry demanded thinner pieces. The mold maker said he would try.
Once the wood worker finished making the patterns for Achilles, he began making the patterns for Alexander robot, and more model makers were hired. I was too busy trying to cut and prepare the fiberglass parts and repair any details that were lost. Honestly, I can't remember most of the order of things, but I believe this is when Ron Thornton and his English model maker buddies were hired. It seemed whatever part you worked on, you got the fiberglass part and finished it off. Then when that was done, you got the smaller version of your part that was for the animation puppet, and you finished that off.
Q: Did the production problems finally ease up?
I know that Dennis was very upset that the parts were taking way too long to do, and I think he let Ron Thornton’s crew make most of their patterns out of plex like it should have in the first place.
Around the same time we were finishing up the fiberglass pieces for Achilles, they brought in a guy to make all the aluminum skeleton and cabled joints for both robots. He started bringing in parts – the first was Achilles arm – it weighed a ton! He hooked up the cables and tried to move it, and the cable broke. Another disaster! I could see from the power loader that this armature was way too heavy and would never work. Well, word got back to the guy building the armature, and it got him really steamed up. So I backed off from trying to help with the job and did my work, just looking for a time when I could quit.
Once the armature was done, I then had to attach the fiberglass parts I had finished using the techniques I had on the power loader. I finished up doing my parts and was then asked to attach the fiberglass arm pieces onto Alexander. There was so much going wrong one day that David Allen came in and told us we should all go home. It seemed that the studio financing the project had no payroll for us. If we wanted, we could continue to work, but there was no guarantee of getting a paycheck. We all agreed to continue working, and we eventually got paid. But when it happened again, Dave ordered us home so that he could show that we were not in the building. Well, we finally got paid.
The next phase of the project was going out to the desert where they filmed the robots fighting. You had to drive out there yourself, get your own place to stay, and pay for your own food. After what I had been through up to this point, there was no way I was going out to the desert. Most of the shop quit, and the producers hired a whole new crew to build the remaining sequences and the transformation scenes. I had a lot of responsibility on the job, but some of the key people had no idea how to approach solving the problems and refused to listen to my warnings.
For me, the film was one huge frustrating event. The good thing about the job was meeting Dave Allen, making good friends with Ron Thornton, Rick Kess (another model maker), and Paul Gentry (associate effects director). I also met Ron Cobb (conceptual designer) and saw an old school friend in Steve Burg.
The bad thing was we lost a great model and prop maker, Danny Chambers. We were all working for a real low wage, but for Danny it was devastating. He was late on rent, utilities, and food. It was also very cold in the rented shop, and he caught a cold which worsened. He couldn't afford to go to a hospital, and I believe he died of pneumonia and a broken heart. I miss him very much.
Q: What advice would you give anyone trying to make a start in the business of special effects today?
I can only hope for the best for anyone wanting to be a model maker in movies. Models are still being made but few and far between in films these days so it’s hard to make a living at it now. But always have something to fall back on when there is no effects work. Everyone in the field does that.
As Super Chicken used to say: "You knew the job was dangerous when you took it.”
-- EZ
The job was supposed to last a month. Trying to score wood took the model shop three months! After a week of trying to get a good score line in wood – the grain of the wood wasn't giving us good straight lines – Dennis had a special tool made up to put rivets across the surface of the wood pattern. I tried to warn Larry that this was a ridiculous idea, but he said do what Dennis wanted. Meanwhile, we were getting parts from the wood worker, and I received the top torso and upper shoulders of Achilles. It was another disaster because the parts didn't fit together! It was then I told Larry that we should check all the parts with each other to see if they fit together or another disaster would happen.
After a week of trying to punch rivets in the leg pattern, I gave up and told Larry that I’d fill them in give them over to the mold maker. I said Dennis can fire me if he wants to. Well, I disappointed Dennis, but I had the other model makers and Larry stand behind me. So I spent my time mostly on Achilles making the legs and most of the upper torso and arm pieces.
Then, another disaster took place: it seems that the mold maker who was making fiberglass pieces was making the parts way too thick! On Aliens, we had Tony Gardner make fiberglass pieces of the power loader parts that were potato-chip thick. It had to be light, or the cables inside wouldn't move the parts. The parts we were getting on Robot Jox were about 1/8 inch thick. These were large pieces to begin with, so this was going to make the model very heavy. After the demonstration, Larry demanded thinner pieces. The mold maker said he would try.
Once the wood worker finished making the patterns for Achilles, he began making the patterns for Alexander robot, and more model makers were hired. I was too busy trying to cut and prepare the fiberglass parts and repair any details that were lost. Honestly, I can't remember most of the order of things, but I believe this is when Ron Thornton and his English model maker buddies were hired. It seemed whatever part you worked on, you got the fiberglass part and finished it off. Then when that was done, you got the smaller version of your part that was for the animation puppet, and you finished that off.
Q: Did the production problems finally ease up?
I know that Dennis was very upset that the parts were taking way too long to do, and I think he let Ron Thornton’s crew make most of their patterns out of plex like it should have in the first place.
Around the same time we were finishing up the fiberglass pieces for Achilles, they brought in a guy to make all the aluminum skeleton and cabled joints for both robots. He started bringing in parts – the first was Achilles arm – it weighed a ton! He hooked up the cables and tried to move it, and the cable broke. Another disaster! I could see from the power loader that this armature was way too heavy and would never work. Well, word got back to the guy building the armature, and it got him really steamed up. So I backed off from trying to help with the job and did my work, just looking for a time when I could quit.
Once the armature was done, I then had to attach the fiberglass parts I had finished using the techniques I had on the power loader. I finished up doing my parts and was then asked to attach the fiberglass arm pieces onto Alexander. There was so much going wrong one day that David Allen came in and told us we should all go home. It seemed that the studio financing the project had no payroll for us. If we wanted, we could continue to work, but there was no guarantee of getting a paycheck. We all agreed to continue working, and we eventually got paid. But when it happened again, Dave ordered us home so that he could show that we were not in the building. Well, we finally got paid.
The next phase of the project was going out to the desert where they filmed the robots fighting. You had to drive out there yourself, get your own place to stay, and pay for your own food. After what I had been through up to this point, there was no way I was going out to the desert. Most of the shop quit, and the producers hired a whole new crew to build the remaining sequences and the transformation scenes. I had a lot of responsibility on the job, but some of the key people had no idea how to approach solving the problems and refused to listen to my warnings.
For me, the film was one huge frustrating event. The good thing about the job was meeting Dave Allen, making good friends with Ron Thornton, Rick Kess (another model maker), and Paul Gentry (associate effects director). I also met Ron Cobb (conceptual designer) and saw an old school friend in Steve Burg.
The bad thing was we lost a great model and prop maker, Danny Chambers. We were all working for a real low wage, but for Danny it was devastating. He was late on rent, utilities, and food. It was also very cold in the rented shop, and he caught a cold which worsened. He couldn't afford to go to a hospital, and I believe he died of pneumonia and a broken heart. I miss him very much.
Q: What advice would you give anyone trying to make a start in the business of special effects today?
I can only hope for the best for anyone wanting to be a model maker in movies. Models are still being made but few and far between in films these days so it’s hard to make a living at it now. But always have something to fall back on when there is no effects work. Everyone in the field does that.
As Super Chicken used to say: "You knew the job was dangerous when you took it.”
-- EZ
- Published on
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the show’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Maggie and Negan carry out an attack, but not everything unfolds according to plan; Ginny and Armstrong each make unexpected contact with others.”
Sometimes, the best a writer can do is play with the expectations of an audience.
In fairness, such a writer might do this for any number of reasons. Perhaps he’s kept his own eyes on the end game; knowing precisely where a journey is heading allows him the opportunity to engage in what might look narrative craziness or even the occasional character development. Perhaps he’s really already played his cards, and now he has to pad the running time in order to make the entire affair last the entire six-episode run when, say, four hours was more than enough. Or maybe he’s got very little left in the creative tank, resorting to storytelling trickery that he hopes might elevate his work to untold heights in the minds of whoever’s watching at this particular time and place.
Well …
Scribe Eli Jorne (along with whoever else has been dabbling in this incarnation of The Walking Dead) spent the larger part of the previous three episodes building up to what we were lead to believe was going to be a monumental showdown between the program’s two chief baddies: Negan – whom we know – and ‘The Croat’ – whom we really don’t know all that much about. But because the audience has some working familiarity with Negan I think it’s safe to say that – with all of this build-up – the expectations should’ve been reasonably high. After all, we did see (in Episode 2) that our much beloved bad-guy-turned-somewhat-good was willing to intestinally gut a man right before our very eyes as a threat to what was in store, so – yes – I do think it’s safe to say we were promised something big, bold, and brash.
Well …
Ahem.
The big moment arrived. Negan and ‘The Croat’ finally came face-to-face in the seminal showdown titled "Everybody Wins A Prize." Granted, they weren’t exactly close enough to make physical contact with one another, but words were exchanged.
Dare I say that I was … underwhelmed?
From the show’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Maggie and Negan carry out an attack, but not everything unfolds according to plan; Ginny and Armstrong each make unexpected contact with others.”
Sometimes, the best a writer can do is play with the expectations of an audience.
In fairness, such a writer might do this for any number of reasons. Perhaps he’s kept his own eyes on the end game; knowing precisely where a journey is heading allows him the opportunity to engage in what might look narrative craziness or even the occasional character development. Perhaps he’s really already played his cards, and now he has to pad the running time in order to make the entire affair last the entire six-episode run when, say, four hours was more than enough. Or maybe he’s got very little left in the creative tank, resorting to storytelling trickery that he hopes might elevate his work to untold heights in the minds of whoever’s watching at this particular time and place.
Well …
Scribe Eli Jorne (along with whoever else has been dabbling in this incarnation of The Walking Dead) spent the larger part of the previous three episodes building up to what we were lead to believe was going to be a monumental showdown between the program’s two chief baddies: Negan – whom we know – and ‘The Croat’ – whom we really don’t know all that much about. But because the audience has some working familiarity with Negan I think it’s safe to say that – with all of this build-up – the expectations should’ve been reasonably high. After all, we did see (in Episode 2) that our much beloved bad-guy-turned-somewhat-good was willing to intestinally gut a man right before our very eyes as a threat to what was in store, so – yes – I do think it’s safe to say we were promised something big, bold, and brash.
Well …
Ahem.
The big moment arrived. Negan and ‘The Croat’ finally came face-to-face in the seminal showdown titled "Everybody Wins A Prize." Granted, they weren’t exactly close enough to make physical contact with one another, but words were exchanged.
Dare I say that I was … underwhelmed?
What screenwriter Jorne delivered after all that promise was a curiously lovestruck Croat who instead of delivering Negan his walking papers gave a bit of a bad guy’s pretty typical soliloquy about how it was great that they were reunited, back together, and could join up forces to establish joint custody over Manhattan Island. (Is there now someone else that they have to steal ownership from?) Forgive me for pointing out that it doesn’t quite look like The Croat truly has much of an army, does he? I mean, maybe there was a dozen or so ‘soldiers’ running about here and there; but it didn’t look to be that much of an organized force to be reckoned with. At this point, I find myself asking just how it is that he’s managed – with such a slim army – to not only establish himself as a New York Napoleon but also travel with his forces to territories beyond the island to wreak havoc on Maggie’s clan?
Dead City doesn’t seem to be all that interested in answering questions. Instead – as I’ve pointed out in previous reviews – the show looks entirely invested in using the same bag of tricks that, sadly, got its predecessor shows (i.e. The Walking Dead, Fear The Walking Dead, and Walking Dead: World Beyond) into the storytelling mire each of them has enjoyed respectively. (No, folks, that’s not an insult, and it’s just a statement of fact.) It’s almost as if everyone involved in crafting these installments is given a checklist, instructing them to have X number of flashbacks and/or callbacks every so many minutes, or nothing else will get to broadcast. Some might suggest that’s TWD’s branding; I say it’s a pretty shallow existence … which it is, being that it’s pretty much ‘dead,’ right?
So the outcome of being where we are at this point in TWD’s wider mythology is playing with the expectations of the audience.
Bet you didn’t expect Simon (played by Steven Ogg) to make a return after being killed off so many seasons ago?
Bet you didn’t expect Negan and ‘The Croat’ to verbally hug it out?
Bet you didn’t expect Maggie and Negan would change places, requiring her to protect Negan’s surrogate daughter Ginny (Mahina Napoleon) while her son remains missing?
Bet you didn’t expect that Negan would have to save one of his other mortal enemies – Marshal Armstrong (Gaius Charles) – only have the man turns the tables on him?
Bet you didn’t expect our merry band of rebels would have to take refuge inside Madison Square Garden’s caged octagon at the eleventh hour?
Bet you didn’t expect Tommaso (Jonathan Higginbotham) would somehow miraculously survive the all-out zombie assault we saw him suffer onscreen to show up and save the group?
Now, mark my words: I’m not trying to suggest in any way that there’s anything wrong with incorporating welcome surprises with one’s storytelling. Surprises – in the real world – are often used to great effect, giving audiences some delightful moments to gasp and reflect over, and they can also provide a second or two of relief if not to get us cheering from our cheap seats. But when it appears that all a program has left in the tank are surprises – some predictable, some not – then maybe it’s time to really ask how much of this is truly worth the expense?
Characters deserve better … as do watchers.
In the interests of fairness, I’m thrilled to disclose that – like so many of you – I’ve simply recorded and watched The Walking Dead: Dead City’s “Everybody Wins A Prize” (S01E03) as it aired on AMC, so I’m beholden to no one to provide a review other than myself.
-- EZ
Dead City doesn’t seem to be all that interested in answering questions. Instead – as I’ve pointed out in previous reviews – the show looks entirely invested in using the same bag of tricks that, sadly, got its predecessor shows (i.e. The Walking Dead, Fear The Walking Dead, and Walking Dead: World Beyond) into the storytelling mire each of them has enjoyed respectively. (No, folks, that’s not an insult, and it’s just a statement of fact.) It’s almost as if everyone involved in crafting these installments is given a checklist, instructing them to have X number of flashbacks and/or callbacks every so many minutes, or nothing else will get to broadcast. Some might suggest that’s TWD’s branding; I say it’s a pretty shallow existence … which it is, being that it’s pretty much ‘dead,’ right?
So the outcome of being where we are at this point in TWD’s wider mythology is playing with the expectations of the audience.
Bet you didn’t expect Simon (played by Steven Ogg) to make a return after being killed off so many seasons ago?
Bet you didn’t expect Negan and ‘The Croat’ to verbally hug it out?
Bet you didn’t expect Maggie and Negan would change places, requiring her to protect Negan’s surrogate daughter Ginny (Mahina Napoleon) while her son remains missing?
Bet you didn’t expect that Negan would have to save one of his other mortal enemies – Marshal Armstrong (Gaius Charles) – only have the man turns the tables on him?
Bet you didn’t expect our merry band of rebels would have to take refuge inside Madison Square Garden’s caged octagon at the eleventh hour?
Bet you didn’t expect Tommaso (Jonathan Higginbotham) would somehow miraculously survive the all-out zombie assault we saw him suffer onscreen to show up and save the group?
Now, mark my words: I’m not trying to suggest in any way that there’s anything wrong with incorporating welcome surprises with one’s storytelling. Surprises – in the real world – are often used to great effect, giving audiences some delightful moments to gasp and reflect over, and they can also provide a second or two of relief if not to get us cheering from our cheap seats. But when it appears that all a program has left in the tank are surprises – some predictable, some not – then maybe it’s time to really ask how much of this is truly worth the expense?
Characters deserve better … as do watchers.
In the interests of fairness, I’m thrilled to disclose that – like so many of you – I’ve simply recorded and watched The Walking Dead: Dead City’s “Everybody Wins A Prize” (S01E03) as it aired on AMC, so I’m beholden to no one to provide a review other than myself.
-- EZ
- Published on
Good God, I do so love a good Western.
And that’s the thing? Westerns don’t have to be epic in scale to, simply, be good.
Not each and every film of the genre need approach the greatness of Sergio Leone’s The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly (1966) to merely be watchable. Not every flick need to have the crowd-pleasing goodness of Rio Bravo (1959) to be entertaining. Not every experience must seek out and deliver old school justice (and vengeance) in the manner that Unforgiven (1992) did to be embraced by audiences around the world. Because these productions are understandably formulaic in nature, all they need to accomplish in order to be good is to show up, have respectable production values, hit their marks, and ride off into the sunset. Yes, it would be a grand, grand world if every attempt to explore these wild days gone by could be exceptional at each opportunity; but – in the scheme of things – I’ve always found that even the category’s color-by-numbers attempts to have something to offer by just being G-O-O-D.
With that preamble out of the way, I’m thrilled to mention that the good people at Arrow Films have provided me with a complimentary copy of their Blood Money: Four Western Classics – Volume 2 that will be released to the home video marketplace on July 25, 2023. The collection includes four spaghetti Westerns – Romolo Guerrieri’s $10,000 Blood Money (1967); Giovanni Fago’s Vengeance Is Mine (1967); Giuliano Carnimeo’s Find A Place To Die (1968); and Cesare Canevari’s Matalo! (Kill Him) (1970). Knowing what I do about spaghetti Westerns – and the highs and lows of films in general – I don’t expect all of them to be fantastic. I do, at a bare minimum, go in hoping for simply goodness; and this helps me find balance in the process of being a critic. Hopefully, I’ll not be disappointed.
First up: $10,000 Blood Money is a Django-inspired showdown that pits one of the Old West’s most revered gunslingers in pursuit of a hardened criminal. Before all is said and done, our enemies will turn frenemies until reaching for the respective six-shooters and taking aim – finally – at one another, deservedly so. It’s a tale best told in bullets – thankfully in ample supply here – so long as there’s one more in chamber worth firing.
And that’s the thing? Westerns don’t have to be epic in scale to, simply, be good.
Not each and every film of the genre need approach the greatness of Sergio Leone’s The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly (1966) to merely be watchable. Not every flick need to have the crowd-pleasing goodness of Rio Bravo (1959) to be entertaining. Not every experience must seek out and deliver old school justice (and vengeance) in the manner that Unforgiven (1992) did to be embraced by audiences around the world. Because these productions are understandably formulaic in nature, all they need to accomplish in order to be good is to show up, have respectable production values, hit their marks, and ride off into the sunset. Yes, it would be a grand, grand world if every attempt to explore these wild days gone by could be exceptional at each opportunity; but – in the scheme of things – I’ve always found that even the category’s color-by-numbers attempts to have something to offer by just being G-O-O-D.
With that preamble out of the way, I’m thrilled to mention that the good people at Arrow Films have provided me with a complimentary copy of their Blood Money: Four Western Classics – Volume 2 that will be released to the home video marketplace on July 25, 2023. The collection includes four spaghetti Westerns – Romolo Guerrieri’s $10,000 Blood Money (1967); Giovanni Fago’s Vengeance Is Mine (1967); Giuliano Carnimeo’s Find A Place To Die (1968); and Cesare Canevari’s Matalo! (Kill Him) (1970). Knowing what I do about spaghetti Westerns – and the highs and lows of films in general – I don’t expect all of them to be fantastic. I do, at a bare minimum, go in hoping for simply goodness; and this helps me find balance in the process of being a critic. Hopefully, I’ll not be disappointed.
First up: $10,000 Blood Money is a Django-inspired showdown that pits one of the Old West’s most revered gunslingers in pursuit of a hardened criminal. Before all is said and done, our enemies will turn frenemies until reaching for the respective six-shooters and taking aim – finally – at one another, deservedly so. It’s a tale best told in bullets – thankfully in ample supply here – so long as there’s one more in chamber worth firing.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Django has become a bounty hunter who is asked to chase a villain who has kidnapped a young girl. Because he is not offered enough money, he decides to join forces with the bandit but he’s double-crossed by the ruthless villain.”
In order to fully appreciate the goodness inherent within $10,000 Blood Money, I find it necessary to provide a brief education on two key points: (1) the Spaghetti Western, and (2) Django.
First, the Spaghetti Western is a term applied to classic oaters shot, largely but not exclusively, in Italy. More often than not, these films were produced and/or directed by Italians; and this is chiefly why the ‘spaghetti’ has been added. No, this was never intended in any way as a slight; rather, it was simply to establish that – from both narrative and aesthetic standpoints – there were fundamental differences beyond geography that kinda/sorta distinguished traditional American Westerns from their European counterparts. Though there could be considered more variations – trust me when I say a pretty good deal has been written about them including tricks and tactics filmmakers employed that may or may not have been used to dupe audiences into thinking one was the other – this foundation is truly all that’s needed for my purposes in this space.
Second, the Wild West character of Django was introduced to all of filmdom in the 1966 Spaghetti Western of the same name. Played by Franco Nero, this former Union soldier takes to the plains in what was said to be one of the most violent films to emerge from the 1960’s, establishing the drifter firmly as one of the screen’s signature anti-heroes. Indeed, so popular and profitable was this singular creation that – as of today’s date – Wikipedia.org reports that there have been over thirty official and/or unofficial sequels exploring the further tales of the gunfighter … and this brings us to 1967’s $10,000 Blood Money.
Directed by Romolo Guerrieri (who happens to be the uncle to genre auteur Enzo G. Castellari), Blood Money establishes that Django (played by Gianni Garko under the name of ‘Gary Hudson’) has taken up the business of bounty hunting, one uniquely profitable for those who do it well in the days of old. As fate would have it, the job is custom made for the man: he’s risen to the level of proficiency wherein he can turn down lesser rewards not worthy of his time, attention, and skills to instead focus on capturing or killing (he prefers the latter) bandits’ whose heads offer the higher price tag. In the case of released prisoner Manuel Vasquez (Claudio Camaso), Django can reap the benefits of a $10,000 windfall … only the fact that he shares a kinda/sorta secret admiration for the outlaw might get in the way.
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Django has become a bounty hunter who is asked to chase a villain who has kidnapped a young girl. Because he is not offered enough money, he decides to join forces with the bandit but he’s double-crossed by the ruthless villain.”
In order to fully appreciate the goodness inherent within $10,000 Blood Money, I find it necessary to provide a brief education on two key points: (1) the Spaghetti Western, and (2) Django.
First, the Spaghetti Western is a term applied to classic oaters shot, largely but not exclusively, in Italy. More often than not, these films were produced and/or directed by Italians; and this is chiefly why the ‘spaghetti’ has been added. No, this was never intended in any way as a slight; rather, it was simply to establish that – from both narrative and aesthetic standpoints – there were fundamental differences beyond geography that kinda/sorta distinguished traditional American Westerns from their European counterparts. Though there could be considered more variations – trust me when I say a pretty good deal has been written about them including tricks and tactics filmmakers employed that may or may not have been used to dupe audiences into thinking one was the other – this foundation is truly all that’s needed for my purposes in this space.
Second, the Wild West character of Django was introduced to all of filmdom in the 1966 Spaghetti Western of the same name. Played by Franco Nero, this former Union soldier takes to the plains in what was said to be one of the most violent films to emerge from the 1960’s, establishing the drifter firmly as one of the screen’s signature anti-heroes. Indeed, so popular and profitable was this singular creation that – as of today’s date – Wikipedia.org reports that there have been over thirty official and/or unofficial sequels exploring the further tales of the gunfighter … and this brings us to 1967’s $10,000 Blood Money.
Directed by Romolo Guerrieri (who happens to be the uncle to genre auteur Enzo G. Castellari), Blood Money establishes that Django (played by Gianni Garko under the name of ‘Gary Hudson’) has taken up the business of bounty hunting, one uniquely profitable for those who do it well in the days of old. As fate would have it, the job is custom made for the man: he’s risen to the level of proficiency wherein he can turn down lesser rewards not worthy of his time, attention, and skills to instead focus on capturing or killing (he prefers the latter) bandits’ whose heads offer the higher price tag. In the case of released prisoner Manuel Vasquez (Claudio Camaso), Django can reap the benefits of a $10,000 windfall … only the fact that he shares a kinda/sorta secret admiration for the outlaw might get in the way.
The script (as reported by IMDB.com) shows credited to Franco Fogagnolo, Ernesto Gastaldi, and Luciano Martino – with Sauro Scavolini also given a nod as collaborator – and with so many hands at the typewriter it does feel more than occasionally jumbled. The team has fashioned a serviceable oater that, at times, convolutes the friend and enemy relationship with an all-too-predictable double-cross in the last third; but it’s a necessary evil when dealing with a world wherein justice is dispensed in lead. There’s a bit of back-and-forth wherein Django, Manuel, and his band of evildoers keep swapping dominance – first the bounty hunter’s in charge, then they are, then Django is again – and the pacing suffers a bit here and there as the end result. Still, all the parties keep the action moving – bullets are never far off from being fired – and director Guierrieri and cinematographer Frederico Zanni capture it all in widescreen glory so well and convincingly that, maybe, you just won’t notice the shortcomings.
In customary Western parable fashion, Blood Money does give viewers something to mull over in between its bouts of violence.
Django has grown so accustomed to the business of killing others, he never thinks twice about whether or not he could be bringing them back alive; instead, he’s resigned himself to a life of isolation. But a near-death experience at the hands of one of Manuel’s henchmen finally gives him pause, so much so that he agrees to hang up his guns (to a degree) and ride off to San Francisco and settle down with the lovely Mijanou (Loredana Nusciak). How does the universe reward the man’s newfound desire for civility? Why, his beloved ultimate suffers the fate – death by the gang’s bullets – he avoided when she nursed him back to health.
The themes of family always played a bit thicker than water in the days of the Old West, and Blood Money explores that concept albeit only tangentially. Because the established bounty on Manuel isn’t large enough to draw Django’s attention initially, the hunter is ultimately lured into heated pursuit when the wealthy Mendoza (Frank Little) dangles a $10,000 payday for bringing back both his estranged daughter Dolores (Adriana Ambesi) alongside the wanted criminal. (I guess it’s safe to say that even family has a price!) Also, Manuel’s father – Stardust Vasquez (Fernando Sancho) – winds up serving as a key contributor to the second half of the film, inspiring his son to keep up with his life in crime whenever destiny might call him in another direction. It’s only after Stardust meets his own fate at the business end of Django’s pistols that Manuel loses his stoic composure before attempting to secure the ‘blaze of glory’ he oft imagined he was capable of. Still, family matters … if only in fleeting moments.
In customary Western parable fashion, Blood Money does give viewers something to mull over in between its bouts of violence.
Django has grown so accustomed to the business of killing others, he never thinks twice about whether or not he could be bringing them back alive; instead, he’s resigned himself to a life of isolation. But a near-death experience at the hands of one of Manuel’s henchmen finally gives him pause, so much so that he agrees to hang up his guns (to a degree) and ride off to San Francisco and settle down with the lovely Mijanou (Loredana Nusciak). How does the universe reward the man’s newfound desire for civility? Why, his beloved ultimate suffers the fate – death by the gang’s bullets – he avoided when she nursed him back to health.
The themes of family always played a bit thicker than water in the days of the Old West, and Blood Money explores that concept albeit only tangentially. Because the established bounty on Manuel isn’t large enough to draw Django’s attention initially, the hunter is ultimately lured into heated pursuit when the wealthy Mendoza (Frank Little) dangles a $10,000 payday for bringing back both his estranged daughter Dolores (Adriana Ambesi) alongside the wanted criminal. (I guess it’s safe to say that even family has a price!) Also, Manuel’s father – Stardust Vasquez (Fernando Sancho) – winds up serving as a key contributor to the second half of the film, inspiring his son to keep up with his life in crime whenever destiny might call him in another direction. It’s only after Stardust meets his own fate at the business end of Django’s pistols that Manuel loses his stoic composure before attempting to secure the ‘blaze of glory’ he oft imagined he was capable of. Still, family matters … if only in fleeting moments.
There’s more – actually, there’s quite a bit more squeezed rather efficiently into this 100-minute running time – and I’d strongly encourage folks who like a good Western – not a great Western – to check out Blood Money. Camaso simmers a bit too much as a bad guy, allowing his steely glares to do more business than his pistols; that’s a strength or weakness – depending upon one’s perspective – of the best of the Spaghetti Westerns, and I’ve always thought it gets in the way more than it aids good storytelling. Fidel Gonzáles – in the guise of Fidelius the photographer – is along for the bloody ride as a kinda/sorta faithful sidekick to Django; and he gives the film what few comic moments this world allows in passing. Nusciak is quite good as the love interest, though one could argue that her character is used more as a plot device than anything more substantial in what screen time she’s given. At least, she’s awarded more substance than is Ambesi; the somewhat taciturn squeeze is so criminally underwritten here that one should never be certain where her allegiances lie until she actually shows up and chooses.
Without a doubt, however, Blood Money belongs to Garko.
His miles walked in Django’s weathered boot might not be as storied as Nero’s (from the original film), but I thought his work was pretty special. Like his villainous adversary, he accomplishes more in a single glare than is probably humanly possible, and whenever he struts onscreen there’s no doubt who owns the place. Even under the bright noonday sun, he rarely sweats, choosing instead to maintain the precise level of cool only afforded the silver screen’s better leading men. Looking like the genetic mold of Butch Cassiday and the Sundance Kid, he shoots first and never asks questions later – probably much to the chagrin of those who prefer due process – and blazes a path few could follow. His IMDB.com profile shows that he suited up in a few more Westerns after this one (the Sartana films and others), so I might have to invest some extra time into checking out how well he fared in other pursuits.
$10,000 Blood Money (1967) (aka $10,000 For A Massacre) was produced by Zenith Cinematografica and Flora Film. DVD distribution (for this particular release) is being handled by the good people at Arrow Films. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert, I thought that the sights and sounds – reported in published materials to be an all-new 2K restoration from the original 35mm camera negatives – were exceptionally good. Lastly, if you’re looking for special features? Along with the theatrical trailer, the disc boasts an audio commentary from historian Lee Broughton and a few interview pieces with the producer and screenwriter. (Viewers beware: Broughton’s commentary – while informative – I found to be a very dry affair. There was a wealth of stuff in there, but go in knowing that it’s a largely academic experience and you’ll be fine.)
Highly recommended.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Arrow Films provided me with a screener Blu-ray copy of $10,000 Blood Money (as part of their Blood Money: Four Western Classics – Volume 2 collection) by request for the expressed purpose of creating this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
Without a doubt, however, Blood Money belongs to Garko.
His miles walked in Django’s weathered boot might not be as storied as Nero’s (from the original film), but I thought his work was pretty special. Like his villainous adversary, he accomplishes more in a single glare than is probably humanly possible, and whenever he struts onscreen there’s no doubt who owns the place. Even under the bright noonday sun, he rarely sweats, choosing instead to maintain the precise level of cool only afforded the silver screen’s better leading men. Looking like the genetic mold of Butch Cassiday and the Sundance Kid, he shoots first and never asks questions later – probably much to the chagrin of those who prefer due process – and blazes a path few could follow. His IMDB.com profile shows that he suited up in a few more Westerns after this one (the Sartana films and others), so I might have to invest some extra time into checking out how well he fared in other pursuits.
$10,000 Blood Money (1967) (aka $10,000 For A Massacre) was produced by Zenith Cinematografica and Flora Film. DVD distribution (for this particular release) is being handled by the good people at Arrow Films. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert, I thought that the sights and sounds – reported in published materials to be an all-new 2K restoration from the original 35mm camera negatives – were exceptionally good. Lastly, if you’re looking for special features? Along with the theatrical trailer, the disc boasts an audio commentary from historian Lee Broughton and a few interview pieces with the producer and screenwriter. (Viewers beware: Broughton’s commentary – while informative – I found to be a very dry affair. There was a wealth of stuff in there, but go in knowing that it’s a largely academic experience and you’ll be fine.)
Highly recommended.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Arrow Films provided me with a screener Blu-ray copy of $10,000 Blood Money (as part of their Blood Money: Four Western Classics – Volume 2 collection) by request for the expressed purpose of creating this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ