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One of the things that always amazes me about Science Fiction films -- the truly good ones -- is how they end up sitting around in some producer's bin for quite some time before getting made. Granted, not every director has the clout of a Steven Spielberg or a George Lucas -- two who might be able to get a new project off-the-boards quickly and into production -- but when the finished product is a grand a realized vision as Paul Verhoeven's Total Recall you have to wonder, "What took so long?"
I've read that Philip K. Dick's 1996 story wasn't even picked up for consideration for about eight years after its publication, and then Verhoeven's flick didn't see the light of 'projected' day until 1990. If I'm doing the math right (and you folks are always quick to point out when I haven't, curse you!), then that means the project took an incredible 24 years from conception to projection. Now, that's clearly not as long as Walt Disney's John Carter took, but you catch my drift: that's nearly two-and-one-half decades we waited for some quality cinema goodness.
That, my friends, is a Hollywood shame.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
I've read that Philip K. Dick's 1996 story wasn't even picked up for consideration for about eight years after its publication, and then Verhoeven's flick didn't see the light of 'projected' day until 1990. If I'm doing the math right (and you folks are always quick to point out when I haven't, curse you!), then that means the project took an incredible 24 years from conception to projection. Now, that's clearly not as long as Walt Disney's John Carter took, but you catch my drift: that's nearly two-and-one-half decades we waited for some quality cinema goodness.
That, my friends, is a Hollywood shame.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
- Published on
I'll admit it: I have a vicious love/hate relationship with movie trailers.
On the one hand, I love them. Generally speaking, they carry with them an innate sense of optimism, even if it's only promoting that there's entertainment to come. When they're done right, they can catapult a release's desirability into the stratosphere, practically daring folks to look away, to not experience the adrenaline rush that comes with the images. They pump us up. They throw us down. They tempt us to come back for more.
On the other hand, I hate them. How many of us are lovers jilted from the over-promise? Curse you, Hollywood: you promised us something special -- something truly extraordinary -- and you gave us this?! Why, God, why? Why couldn't you have just left us with the trailer?
However, let it be known that movie trailers are rarely composed by folks involved with the actual movie. Media 'specialists' craft them -- usually with some modest input from the filmmaker -- and, as a result, they can be uneven, sometimes even promising something that the finished product never delivers.
As I said, we've all been there ... and one who is such a fan of the Bill and Ted films was expecting a bit more from the trailer for Bill & Ted Face The Music which dropped online this week. Instead of giving me a look into what should be the defining moment of this franchise's mythology, these media 'specialists' delivered something flat, unimaginative, and -- dare I say? -- derivative of jokes the previous two films already spun?
Now, take heart: these media 'specialists' are young enough that they probably have little to know awareness of the original Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure and Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey. They possibly have no concept of the warm-hearted place these films have earned in the hearts of many. We live in dark times, and no doubt this trailer is the product of children brought up in this dark era ... so let's hope Face The Music lives up to the righteous potential these two lovable knuckleheads have always portrayed.
For those interested, here's the trailer below:
On the one hand, I love them. Generally speaking, they carry with them an innate sense of optimism, even if it's only promoting that there's entertainment to come. When they're done right, they can catapult a release's desirability into the stratosphere, practically daring folks to look away, to not experience the adrenaline rush that comes with the images. They pump us up. They throw us down. They tempt us to come back for more.
On the other hand, I hate them. How many of us are lovers jilted from the over-promise? Curse you, Hollywood: you promised us something special -- something truly extraordinary -- and you gave us this?! Why, God, why? Why couldn't you have just left us with the trailer?
However, let it be known that movie trailers are rarely composed by folks involved with the actual movie. Media 'specialists' craft them -- usually with some modest input from the filmmaker -- and, as a result, they can be uneven, sometimes even promising something that the finished product never delivers.
As I said, we've all been there ... and one who is such a fan of the Bill and Ted films was expecting a bit more from the trailer for Bill & Ted Face The Music which dropped online this week. Instead of giving me a look into what should be the defining moment of this franchise's mythology, these media 'specialists' delivered something flat, unimaginative, and -- dare I say? -- derivative of jokes the previous two films already spun?
Now, take heart: these media 'specialists' are young enough that they probably have little to know awareness of the original Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure and Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey. They possibly have no concept of the warm-hearted place these films have earned in the hearts of many. We live in dark times, and no doubt this trailer is the product of children brought up in this dark era ... so let's hope Face The Music lives up to the righteous potential these two lovable knuckleheads have always portrayed.
For those interested, here's the trailer below:
As always, thanks for reading, live long and prosper, and party on, dudes!
- Published on
Today's HubbaHubba Alert: Sharon Stone.
It takes a bit of cunning and bravery (so I've heard) for any woman to grace the pages of Playboy Magazine (Millennials, go and ask grandpa), and that's what this lovely leading lady did near the time of Total Recall's theatrical release ... she dropped trousers and went full commando in print.
No doubt, some of you will be Googling later today just to check out the actress's 'credentials' when she was near the height of her screen popularity, and who can blame you? She wanted mankind to see her goods on full display, so there's nothing wrong with it.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
It takes a bit of cunning and bravery (so I've heard) for any woman to grace the pages of Playboy Magazine (Millennials, go and ask grandpa), and that's what this lovely leading lady did near the time of Total Recall's theatrical release ... she dropped trousers and went full commando in print.
No doubt, some of you will be Googling later today just to check out the actress's 'credentials' when she was near the height of her screen popularity, and who can blame you? She wanted mankind to see her goods on full display, so there's nothing wrong with it.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
- Published on
As promised for the month of June, I'll be sprinkling a handful of trivia I've discovered involved the entire production and release of Paul Verhoeven's SciFi/Classic Total Recall -- which turns thirty years young this month -- and here's the first: an incredible nugget of compassion between two incredible Thespians.
It's a bit dark in the world outside these days, folks. I won't wax on philosophically about discrimination and whatnot -- I do try to keep politics out of this space as much as is humanly possible, though sometimes I'll take the necessary jab (I am 'human,' after all); but when you watch television and see folks looting, rioting, and hurting, I think it becomes incumbent upon each of us to be better stewards of those around us, not necessarily the world-at-large. Do what you can -- control the controllable -- and make a difference to those nearest you when you can. As it's been said millions of times before I'm typing this: "You only get one life."
And that's why I thought it appropriate to share this incredible act of kindness from Arnold Schwarzenegger to Michael Ironside: it's inspiring, and it shows how two men came together for a brief time and truly impacted one another's existence. Profound.
As always, thanks for reading, live long and prosper ... and get your @ss to Mars!
It's a bit dark in the world outside these days, folks. I won't wax on philosophically about discrimination and whatnot -- I do try to keep politics out of this space as much as is humanly possible, though sometimes I'll take the necessary jab (I am 'human,' after all); but when you watch television and see folks looting, rioting, and hurting, I think it becomes incumbent upon each of us to be better stewards of those around us, not necessarily the world-at-large. Do what you can -- control the controllable -- and make a difference to those nearest you when you can. As it's been said millions of times before I'm typing this: "You only get one life."
And that's why I thought it appropriate to share this incredible act of kindness from Arnold Schwarzenegger to Michael Ironside: it's inspiring, and it shows how two men came together for a brief time and truly impacted one another's existence. Profound.
As always, thanks for reading, live long and prosper ... and get your @ss to Mars!
- Published on
I've always been amazed with the phenomenon of how some particular well-made films just don't resonate with me.
Now, don't get me wrong: I'm not some highbrow intellectual who likes to pontificate about the good, the bad, and the ugly of filmdom. (Well, not every day, any way ...) Film as art is a highly personal experience, meaning that one work is never naturally going to mean the same thing to two different people ... but I've always been kinda/sorta 'on an island' when it comes to what most mainstream audience members see in a flick. I can't tell you the number of times I've been encouraged to go and see the latest blockbuster only to come back home and tell those who loved it that it was only 'meh' for me. It's safe to say that it's happened so many times that most who know me know to avoid asking me what I thought of a particular release; and about ten years or so back I just completely stopped recommending films to those I know because I rarely, if ever, agreed with their taste.
I won't go into the who's, what's, and why's of that because at the end of the day that isn't what matters: rather, what matters is the film -- the art -- and it's quality to create a life beyond its original release date and beyond.
Paul Verhoeven's 'interpretation' of Philip K. Dick's Total Recall is one such example.
The feature was produced at what was perhaps the cinematic peak of Arnold Schwarzenegger's popularity. (No, this isn't to say that he hasn't starred in more popular flicks because he clearly has. It's just an observation that Arnie was 'the king' at the time, and it's natural that audiences would embrace his next picture.) It brought together Verhoeven not long after he truly cracked onto the scene with the controversially-violent RoboCop (1987) and the muscleman for what turned out to be yet another somewhat violent motion picture ... but also the tale was draped in a kind of mystical, fairy tale quality 'what if' that audiences have also greeted favorably. Add to that the emerging star power of a young Sharon Stone and what could possibly go wrong?
But Verhoeven's casting genius didn't stop there. Genre fans were already familiar with Michael Ironside, a true scene-chewing young buck who made a name for himself aboard David Cronenberg's Scanners (1981), the 3D B-movie gem Spacehunter: Adventures In The Forbidden Zone (1983), and TV's alien invasion V franchise. (How this thespian hasn't scored more acclaim is beyond me.) The director brought Ronny Cox over to this new picture even after the man had basically already staked out cinema villainhood in the aforementioned RoboCop, a risky move that paid off dearly. And he brought in Robert Picardo, Dean Norris, Rachel Ticotin, and Marshall Bell, character greats who knew precisely how to make big business out of even the smallest roles.
This veritable popcorn SciFi/Thriller upped the ante of a great cast with an already solid foundation of a winning script, one that had floated around Hollywood for some time with a wealth of big names coming and going through the rumor mill. But it was Schwarzenegger who was eventually blessed with bringing it to life ... and the end result still resonates with those discovering decades after its first blush.
If you haven't seen it, then add it to your Bucket List. If you have? Well, maybe it's time for a repeat viewing. I know I'll be checking it out again sometime soon.
Also, I've researched some trivia blurbs that I'll be sprinkling throughout the MainPage over the course of June, so watch for those if you're interested.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
Now, don't get me wrong: I'm not some highbrow intellectual who likes to pontificate about the good, the bad, and the ugly of filmdom. (Well, not every day, any way ...) Film as art is a highly personal experience, meaning that one work is never naturally going to mean the same thing to two different people ... but I've always been kinda/sorta 'on an island' when it comes to what most mainstream audience members see in a flick. I can't tell you the number of times I've been encouraged to go and see the latest blockbuster only to come back home and tell those who loved it that it was only 'meh' for me. It's safe to say that it's happened so many times that most who know me know to avoid asking me what I thought of a particular release; and about ten years or so back I just completely stopped recommending films to those I know because I rarely, if ever, agreed with their taste.
I won't go into the who's, what's, and why's of that because at the end of the day that isn't what matters: rather, what matters is the film -- the art -- and it's quality to create a life beyond its original release date and beyond.
Paul Verhoeven's 'interpretation' of Philip K. Dick's Total Recall is one such example.
The feature was produced at what was perhaps the cinematic peak of Arnold Schwarzenegger's popularity. (No, this isn't to say that he hasn't starred in more popular flicks because he clearly has. It's just an observation that Arnie was 'the king' at the time, and it's natural that audiences would embrace his next picture.) It brought together Verhoeven not long after he truly cracked onto the scene with the controversially-violent RoboCop (1987) and the muscleman for what turned out to be yet another somewhat violent motion picture ... but also the tale was draped in a kind of mystical, fairy tale quality 'what if' that audiences have also greeted favorably. Add to that the emerging star power of a young Sharon Stone and what could possibly go wrong?
But Verhoeven's casting genius didn't stop there. Genre fans were already familiar with Michael Ironside, a true scene-chewing young buck who made a name for himself aboard David Cronenberg's Scanners (1981), the 3D B-movie gem Spacehunter: Adventures In The Forbidden Zone (1983), and TV's alien invasion V franchise. (How this thespian hasn't scored more acclaim is beyond me.) The director brought Ronny Cox over to this new picture even after the man had basically already staked out cinema villainhood in the aforementioned RoboCop, a risky move that paid off dearly. And he brought in Robert Picardo, Dean Norris, Rachel Ticotin, and Marshall Bell, character greats who knew precisely how to make big business out of even the smallest roles.
This veritable popcorn SciFi/Thriller upped the ante of a great cast with an already solid foundation of a winning script, one that had floated around Hollywood for some time with a wealth of big names coming and going through the rumor mill. But it was Schwarzenegger who was eventually blessed with bringing it to life ... and the end result still resonates with those discovering decades after its first blush.
If you haven't seen it, then add it to your Bucket List. If you have? Well, maybe it's time for a repeat viewing. I know I'll be checking it out again sometime soon.
Also, I've researched some trivia blurbs that I'll be sprinkling throughout the MainPage over the course of June, so watch for those if you're interested.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
- Published on
With today's news-at-your-fingertips society, it's hard for young'uns to imagine what a narrative wallop George Lucas and company served up with that big, big reveal near the end of The Empire Strikes Back. You know the one I'm talking about? That whole "who's your daddy, Luke?" moment?
In any event, I've heard this one before, and though I've heard it debunked I've never read a definitive explanation saying it didn't happen. Thus, I'm sharing it today for folks to enjoy.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
In any event, I've heard this one before, and though I've heard it debunked I've never read a definitive explanation saying it didn't happen. Thus, I'm sharing it today for folks to enjoy.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
- Published on
Ach ... so much talent ...
The venerable Richard Herd was probably not one of the busiest actors in genre circles. In fact, I recall much of my seeing him on the small screen as being in mainstream projects like 80's favorite T.J. Hooker (alongside William Shatner) and the 90's sitcom classic Seinfeld. But the truth is the actor had a long history in Science Fiction for those of us who follow it, including work aboard the original V; Star Trek: The Next Generation; SeaQuest/SeaQuest 2032; and Star Trek: Voyager. The man even had a solid role helping to launch the online Renegades, a Trek-branded web project that had to drop Trek from its moniker after Paramount balked.
Still, no matter where Herd turned up, he was always a kindly voice of authority, never brusque or belligerent. His characters appeared to be thoughtful yet persuasive in a way one might hope a captain, commander, or any other leader would be; and I've always believed much of that characterization is owed to the actor as it is the screenwriter who crafted it. I loved his turn aboard Star Trek: Voyager in particular where -- as an admiral -- he reached out across the vastness of space hoping to make contact with his estranged son Tom at the helm of the starship; it was the kind of character beat every son would hope from every father.
Alas, he's left us know as The Hollywood Reporter announced today, but his legacy in Trek and beyond will forever burn bright.
The venerable Richard Herd was probably not one of the busiest actors in genre circles. In fact, I recall much of my seeing him on the small screen as being in mainstream projects like 80's favorite T.J. Hooker (alongside William Shatner) and the 90's sitcom classic Seinfeld. But the truth is the actor had a long history in Science Fiction for those of us who follow it, including work aboard the original V; Star Trek: The Next Generation; SeaQuest/SeaQuest 2032; and Star Trek: Voyager. The man even had a solid role helping to launch the online Renegades, a Trek-branded web project that had to drop Trek from its moniker after Paramount balked.
Still, no matter where Herd turned up, he was always a kindly voice of authority, never brusque or belligerent. His characters appeared to be thoughtful yet persuasive in a way one might hope a captain, commander, or any other leader would be; and I've always believed much of that characterization is owed to the actor as it is the screenwriter who crafted it. I loved his turn aboard Star Trek: Voyager in particular where -- as an admiral -- he reached out across the vastness of space hoping to make contact with his estranged son Tom at the helm of the starship; it was the kind of character beat every son would hope from every father.
Alas, he's left us know as The Hollywood Reporter announced today, but his legacy in Trek and beyond will forever burn bright.
- Published on
I grew up in an era where there wasn't nearly as much money in the Superhero business. Essentially, producers would have to put a reasonably known actor or actress in a role to draw a crowd, and then they'd have to rely on some fairly rudimentary special effects (if any at all) in order to tell the story. The big budget Marvel and DC films of today just hadn't come into the realm of possibility, but boy oh boy television audiences still looked forward to watching the lovely Lynda Carter do her twirl -- an athletic, almost ballerina-like move that allowed her transformation from Diana Prince to Wonder Woman -- and deliver her own brand of Amazonian justice.
As can happen when these franchises get hot -- what with the new Wonder Woman coming out sometime after these quarantines get lifted -- Warner Bros. has dug deep into its archives to prepare a modern era Blu-ray release of the complete series run from the 1970's. The press release over at Bluray.com reports that the episodes have been fully restored, and they've even ponied up a few commentaries with Ms. Carter herself. The price (per Amazon.com) is a bit steep for my tastes -- it's early, and the SRP generally comes down a bit the closer the release date comes -- so I'll keep my eye out for a bargain.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
As can happen when these franchises get hot -- what with the new Wonder Woman coming out sometime after these quarantines get lifted -- Warner Bros. has dug deep into its archives to prepare a modern era Blu-ray release of the complete series run from the 1970's. The press release over at Bluray.com reports that the episodes have been fully restored, and they've even ponied up a few commentaries with Ms. Carter herself. The price (per Amazon.com) is a bit steep for my tastes -- it's early, and the SRP generally comes down a bit the closer the release date comes -- so I'll keep my eye out for a bargain.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
- Published on
I do so love a good monster movie. Sadly, the U.S. doesn't make films like this much any more; not sure why, but I suppose that Hollywood would rather spend their production dollars elsewhere as opposed to re-invigorating the movie houses with something they feel is beneath their talents.
From what I've been able to ascertain, Monstrum was a 2018 Korean release that never found U.S. distribution until now: it'll be offering as a motion picture release to the Shudder outlet (not familiar with it, but, then again, the wifey and I don't stream much). It's also being billed as a Shudder Original, which may or may not be a good thing: putting one's name on something generally indicates that the service believes in the quality, and this one's preview looks very solid. The release is posted at FirstShowing.Net, but the details are fairly slim.
Check out this preview, though. Pretty slick.
From what I've been able to ascertain, Monstrum was a 2018 Korean release that never found U.S. distribution until now: it'll be offering as a motion picture release to the Shudder outlet (not familiar with it, but, then again, the wifey and I don't stream much). It's also being billed as a Shudder Original, which may or may not be a good thing: putting one's name on something generally indicates that the service believes in the quality, and this one's preview looks very solid. The release is posted at FirstShowing.Net, but the details are fairly slim.
Check out this preview, though. Pretty slick.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
- Published on
The trivia strikes back!
What with Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back turning an incredible forty years young this month, I'd thought I'd let slip yet one more piece of trivia involving the film's production; and today we learn that -- once production wrapped on the Space Fantasy film -- none other than producer Gary Kurtz's wife arranged for the film's cast and crew to get together on the Dagobah set for a picnic.
How utterly quaint ... but definitely inspired!
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
What with Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back turning an incredible forty years young this month, I'd thought I'd let slip yet one more piece of trivia involving the film's production; and today we learn that -- once production wrapped on the Space Fantasy film -- none other than producer Gary Kurtz's wife arranged for the film's cast and crew to get together on the Dagobah set for a picnic.
How utterly quaint ... but definitely inspired!
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!