Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Dissertation update
I need to send my supervisor the first draft of the first chapter and the second draft of the second chapter of my dissertation on Monday, so, this afternoon, I sat down and cranked out chapter numero uno. It's still missing a catchy quote to open it, but other than that it's pretty much done, so if you want to read it, let me know. It's basically just an introduction and literary review, though, so I'm not convinced that it will reveal anything particularly earth-shattering.Blu-Ray bargains at DVD Import
DVD Import, a Region 1 Canadian DVD supplier with a somewhat scuzzy reputation (they took five months to refund me for my damaged copy of Airplane!, when in fact what I'd wanted all along was a replacement!), is offering various Blu-Ray titles for pre-order at absolutely crazy prices. There are titles there that work out at under £8 - excellent value when you consider that they don't charge for shipping. Of course, the one thing that prevents me from splashing out with them is the knowledge that they and the deplorable DVD Soon, who went belly-up and ran off with several millions of dollars in pre-orders, are now one in the same. Still, I've ordered Resident Evil: Apocalypse from them (well, technically Lyris has, since he's the one who's buying it, but I pressed the buttons so yay for me), and at least you can now cancel outstanding orders and have the payment refunded to your credit card, so they seem to be a somewhat safer option than they were not long ago.The power of Christ compels you!
A bit of personal history first: I first saw The Exorcist during its first broadcast on British television in 2001 after being banned by the British Nanny State Board of Film Censors for over 25 years, and, in all honesty, I wasn't particularly won over by it. I found it rather plodding, and, if I remember correctly, by the time the big exorcism scene came at the end, Lyris and myself indulged in some less than good-natured heckling. In mid-2003, I bought the "Version You've Never Seen" release (it was my 100th DVD), partly wondering if the re-insterted elements would cause me to look upon the film more favourably. To cut a long story short, they didn't, and I ended up selling the thing on eBay shortly afterwards.
Recently, though, I decided to give the film one last go. After all, many people consider it the greatest horror movie of all time (that's right, horror movie, not "supernatural thriller" as some people who are scared of the word "horror" have taken to calling it), so I decided that I must have been missing something. In any event, while I initially assumed that the film's lack of effect on me was due to my lack of belief in the mythology espoused by the film, that doesn't explain why the similarly themed The Omen is one of my favourite films, or why I can watch The Lord of the Rings despite not believing in elves and goblins. In any event, third time's a charm, as they say.
And do you know what? Watching it for the third time round, I was much more impressed by it. Watching it alone in the darkness of my bedroom in the middle of the night, with headphones on, staring at my tiny, grotty little LCD monitor, I found it much more effective than on my previous two viewings. No, I didn't find it remotely scary, but that's no big deal as I never find films scary anyway. But this time round I found myself appreciating it much more on a thematic level. The juxtaposition of medical and supernatural solutions is intriguing, and I love the irony of the medical men giving up and recommending spiritual intervention while the priest, Father Karras, instead initially advocates the medical route. Additionally, the first half of the film, which I originally found boring, struck me as working much better this time round, particularly with regard to what we don't see. (For example, when Chris mentions that Regan has "changed", this comes as news to us as we haven't seen any evidence of it yet. I also noticed the distinct lack of dwelling on Father Karras' mother's death: it's mentioned in passing by another character some time later, which I can only assume is to underline the fact that he wasn't there for her.) Oh, and I love the theme music - much better than Halloween, if you ask me.
Still, I can't deny that there are stil some elements of the film that don't sit well with me. The effect of the possession on Regan is so overdone as to be comedic - the old "less is more" is constantly espoused in discussions of horror films, but for some reason this doesn't seem to apply to The Exorcist. In a film like Suspiria, overblown gloop and gore is thematically appropriate given the film's supernatural, fairytale-like setting, but in The Exorcist, which attempts to ground itself in reality, the image of a young girl speaking with the overdubbed voice of an older man while vomiting pea soup and twisting her head 180 degrees somehow doesn't ring true. I appreciate what director William Friedkin may have been going for
The message of the film seems to be that science is all very well, but faith is ultimately what is needed. Well, sorry, but that doesn't work for me. Like I said before, I can appreciate what the filmmakers are trying to do, but it's a little hard to buy into a movie whose entire system of belief is so diametrically opposed to my own. Then again, perhaps I'm missing the point. I was rather surprised to learn, recently, that Friedkin is in fact agnostic - something you probably wouldn't have thought given his video introduction at the start of the film.
So, The Exorcist: better than I originally thought, but I'm still far from ready to proclaim it a classic and sing its praises from the rooftops.
8/10
Next I'll be tackling Exorcist II: The Heretic. A total disaster or a misunderstood classic? We shall see.
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Buffycast
I've been listening to the Buffy the Vampire Slayer podcasts at Buffycast, and I have to say that they really are very good, and well worth a listen for people that are interested in the show. The fellow who performs these audio shows, "Revello", is a knowledgeable individual, and unlike some Buffy fans is not afraid to dissect the show, analysing its shortcomings and pointing out how it could have been better. Of particular interest is the third, which is concerned with the character arc (or lack thereof) of Xander, and the eighth, which pokes all manner of holes in the character of Angel and his storyline in Buffy (it ignores the character in his own series, pointing out, quite rightly, that they might as well be completely different characters). Oh, and number 12, on the controversial character of Dawn, is also excellent.Kingdom of Heaven
I ordered the R1 4-disc director's cut edition of Kingdom of Heaven from DVD Pacific.This is, in fact, the first DVD I've actually bought since the middle of April, when I ordered the Australian release of The New York Ripper. Since then, I've been surviving on my review copies of the three Enzo G. Castellari poliziotteschi releases, but now that they're out of the way, I feel I could do with picking up something new. I wasn't particularly enthused by the theatrical cut of Kingdom of Heaven (I watched my parents' copy of the 2-disc DVD release), but I've read a number of reviews claiming that the directors' cut, which adds around an hour's worth of new material, transforms it into a completely different film and elevates it to a new level. In any event, I'm a fan of Ridley Scott's visual style and outrageously in-depth bonus materials, so I'll probably get a kick out of this even if I don't end up thinking the new cut is much better than the previous one.
Monday, May 29, 2006
Official Mother of Tears news
Source: Dark DreamsDirect from critic and all-round Argento expert Alan Jones, author of Profondo Argento, comes the first truly official news on the script for the upcoming Mother of Tears. His entire report bears repeating here (hope no-one minds!), although readers should be warned that it contains spoilers:
Set in modern-day Rome, it begins with the church grave of legendary occult fighter Oscar de la Vallee being unearthed by bulldozers. Chained to the coffin by crucifixes is an urn that is sent to Rome museum art restoration student Sarah Mandy (Sienna Miller in talks to play the part according to Cannes hype).
Unsealing the urn with her friend Giselle she finds a red satin robe encrusted with jewels, a golden dagger and three demonic terracotta figures. They all belong to the Mother of Tears (Mater Lachrymarum as per De Quincey, spelt Lachrimarum in the script) reborn through Giselle cutting her finger while opening up the urn. The three deformed demons spring to life and eviscerate Giselle, garrotting her with her own intestines, in a spectacular set piece clearly meant to rival the Suspiria opening.
This puts Sarah on the run from occult forces through a panic-stricken Rome, awash in a rash of crime and suicides, to uncover the truth about her mysterious spiritual past, and face the cruellest Mother of all at the vast Palazzo Varelli. The story is full of marvellous moments (the Mother of Tears bleeds jewels that scorch the skin), outrageous gore (one character becomes a demonic buffet while still alive, someone gets chopped pieces, assorted deaths by medieval torture instruments) and terrific special effects (the Mother licking the tears off crying faces with a giant tongue, Sarah’s guardian angel appearing in powder blown from a compact).
It connects to Suspiria and Inferno in very intriguing ways – the Tanz Akademie students, ornate wall decorations revealing secret passages, and the pivotal clue "What you see doesn't exist and what you can’t see is truth". And there's even a crazed Phenomena monkey too!
What really scares me about the picture is its sheer scale. Although it's now an Italian Medusa and Myriad Pictures co-production (the latter American company made Jeepers Creepers 2 and the current Factory Girl – with Sienna Miller), it's going to need a lot of money behind it. There's an elaborate animated ancient text sequence for a start, not to mention the huge Cinecitta sets, and many (Sergio Stivalettii?) scenes that will require extensive CGI augmentation – psychic hallucinations, the demons, a flaming telephone cable stretching for miles, the number of extras involved from the covens of witches gathering in Rome to the ultimate orgy.
None of this is going to be cheap and it will all have to look as epic and gorgeous as the two prior films in the trilogy. Despite a rather formula narrative – every time Sarah is given vital information the informant is horrifically killed in the next scene – the set pieces are just incredible. My favourite being the MOT walking down a wall as her bejewelled robe casts primary colour reflections on her amassed worshippers. Oh dear, I'm getting quite excited about the Mother of Tears. All the material is definitely there, lets hope Dario can pull his long-awaited sequel off.
Call me crazy, but I'm starting to get really excited about this. I just hope the American co-production deal will result in Argento having an adequate budget to pull this off.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 2, Episode 8: The Dark Age
Written by Dean Batali & Rob Des Hotel; Directed by Bruce Seth Green(a.k.a. In Which Buffy Learns That Librarians Are People Too)
A surprisingly good episode from the usually unimpressive dynamic duo of Rob Des Hotel and Dean Batali. The insight into Giles' past life is great, and the tone of the entire episode is impressively grim and dark (although not in the oppressive manner of Seasons 6 and 7). A couple of moments don't really ring true - I'm not a fan of the demon's makeup or the blue slime it leaves whenever it leaves one body for another, for example - but overall this is a strong installment that continues the show's upward spiral.
8/10
Next time: The two-parter What's My Line?. I'll probably watch both parts at once, the same as I did for Welcome to the Hellmouth and The Harvest in Season 1.
The Heroin Busters
At 93 minutes, The Heroin Busters is a good 10 to 15 minutes shorter than Castellari's other crime films, and the result is that its pace is maintained much more effectively, even if the plot does feature some rather unneccessary diversions that don't really go anywhere. In terms of the three Castellari films released by Blue Underground on DVD, this one falls somewhere in the middle, lacking the sheer intensity of Franco Nero's performance in Street Law but being considerably tighter and more engaging than The Big Racket. This may have been the director's final crime film of the decade, but he certainly goes out in style.
I've reviewed The Heroin Busters, a high-speed, action-packed crime thriller from Enzo G. Castellari starring Fabio Testi (The Big Racket), David Hemmings (Blow-up) and Sherry Buchanan (Zombie Holocaust). Blue Underground's R0 US release of the film also includes an excellent audio commentary with the director.
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Possible good news regarding Italian Lizard release
Source: DVD TrashAfter the disappointing reports that the upcoming R2 Italian release of Lucio Fulci's A Lizard in a Woman's Skin would be as cut as its US equivalent, some better news has emerged. The release has apparently been delayed to the middle of June because Federal Video (the division of Cecchi Gori in charge of this release) have got their hands on a better quality uncut master.
Hopefully there will be more news on this soon. For the time being, I'm going to be cautiously optimistic that we'll finally see a decent, uncut release of this film.
Saturday, May 27, 2006
Blu-Ray delay?
Judging by the Sony Style web site, the Blu-Ray player I ordered, the BDP-S1, has had its release date delayed from June 30th to August 15th. If that's true, then it's a major bummer, as I was really looking forward to getting one in time for my birthday. I've fired off an email to MovieTyme, asking them to confirm whether or not they will be able to honour the original ship date, but I'm not hopeful.Heh, originally, I thought I might end up with a player and nothing to play it on. Now, it looks as if it's going to be the other way round.
Friday, May 26, 2006
Upcoming Blu-Ray releases
Courtesy of the list of announced titles at High-Def DVD Digest, these are titles that I already own on DVD, some of which I would potentially rebuy on Blu-Ray. Note that I doubt I would upgrade all of them, as there are certain films in this list that I'm not wild enough about to consider buying again. Still, the line-up is looking considerably better than I had initially feared, although most of them don't actually have official release dates yet.- Blade
- Braveheart
- A Clockwork Orange
- The Devil's Rejects
- Eyes Wide Shut
- Final Destination
- Flightplan
- House of Flying Daggers
- Kill Bill: Vol. 1
- Kill Bill: Vol. 2
- Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
- The Matrix
- North by Northwest
- Resident Evil: Apocalypse (announced for June 20th)
- Se7en
- Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
- The Spongebob Squarepants Movie
- Underworld: Evolution (announced for June 20th)
- Vanilla Sky
I also notice that Million Dollar Baby is on the list of announced releases. I was planning on getting the DVD, but if it's going to see a Blu-Ray release then I'll just wait for that.
Original Star Wars trilogy DVDs to get LaserDisc masters
Source: MobiusWhen it was recently announced that LucasFilm would be releasing the original, unaltered editions of the Star Wars trilogy on DVD, there was much cause for jubilation for sci-fi nuts the world over. Well, you can calm down now, as it turns out that, instead of creating proper hi-def masters for these releases, they'll simply be using the non-anamorphic masters from the 1993 LaserDisc releases. According to George Lucas' speilbots:
As you may know, an enormous amount of effort was put into digitally restoring the negatives for the Special Editions. In one scene alone, nearly 1 million pieces of dirt had to be removed, and the Special Editions were created through a frame-by-frame digital restoration. The negatives of the movies were permanently altered for the creation of the Special Editions, and existing prints of the first versions are in poor condition.
So many fans have requested the original movies, we wanted to find a way to bring them to you. But since these movies do not represent George's artistic vision, we could not put the extraordinary time and resources into this project as we did with the Special Editions. The 1993 Laserdisc masters represented the best source for providing the original versions as DVD bonus material. Although these are non-anamorphic versions, they do preserve the original widescreen composition of the movies.
We want you to be aware that we have no plans – now or in the future – to restore the earlier versions.
Lucas took the time to explain the "logic" behind this decision.
What a crock! I didn't enjoy Star Wars enough to particularly care, but I can absolutely understand the anger of the fans. Apparently these LaserDisc masters are in better condition than the various prints that have been struck for the films over the years. Excuse me, but I think I know horseshit when I smell it!Let's put it this way: pretty much no-one except George Lucas likes the "special editions" he created for these films, so why doesn't he just play ball and give his fanbase what it actually wants? Instead, he seems intent on playing power games and denying the obvious. What a petty and vindictive little man!
Book bonanza
Italian Masters of Horror series coming soon
Source: MobiusEncouraged by the success of Showtime's Masters of Horror series, the Film Commission of Turin has established a regional film fund whose first project will be an Italian variation of the show.
The four-movie series will employ veterans of the Italian genre-film scene, though the names they’re currently negotiating with have yet to be revealed (more details will be made public in June). One of the producers is Luciano Martino, who served that function on several fright features helmed by his brother Sergio (All the Colours of the Dark, The Case of the Scorpion's Tail, Island of the Fishmen, Big Alligator River, etc.).
It sounds promising. I wouldn't be averse to seeing a new film from Sergio Martino (which I suspect will be the case if his brother is involved in the production), although by all accounts his post-giallo offerings have not exactly been stellar.
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Early adopter feels the burn
I've well and truly bitten the bullet. My bank account, right now, is smarting from this decision (although I don't actually pay till it ships). And, of course, there's the distinct possibility that I've just bought into a doomed format. But no matter! Knowing how picky I am about image quality, there was just no way I was going to sit back and wait with a vastly superior format available. (Plus I've had Lyris on my case.) I've opted to go for the technologically superior format and the one that has the most studio backing, so time will tell if this was a good move.
Oh, and so my new player will have more to do than just sit and look pretty (and take up a lot of space), I've ordered a BD disc to play on it: Underworld: Evolution, a film I wanted to see at the cinema but never got round to. The first Underworld, despite its faults, was a fine-looking film, and the R1 Extended Cut release quickly became one of my 10/10 demo discs, so it'll be interesting to see how its sequel looks in 1080p (although for the time being we'll be restricted to 720p or 1080i, given the limitations of the current crop of consumer HDTVs).Either myself or Lyris will probably also be picking up Resident Evil: Apocalypse (hooray for early Schitty Movie releases!) and The Devil's Rejects at some point too. Hopefully some animated titles will be announced soon. Live action is all well and good, but it takes pretty cartoons to really show off the capabilities of a format.
The Big Racket
It has its faults, and it's probably the weakest of the three Castellari films released by Blue Underground in the last month, but there is still plenty for fans of the poliziotteschi cycle to appreciate in The Big Racket. With its ruthless portrayal of mob violence and vigilante justice, it makes up for its narrative shortcomings with its sheer lack of restraint and is a solid addition to the genre.
Hot dang! That crazy basket Captain Whiggles ends up in the diddly when he reviews The Big Racket, another 1970s poliziotteschi offering from that son of a gun Enzo G. Castellari.
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Hitchcock and Jenifer in August?
Source: Dark DiscussionDeep Discount DVD is apparently listing Region 1 releases of Argento's TV productions Do You Like Hitchcock? and Jenifer with a release date of August 16th, from Anchor Bay.
Loaded247 to cease trading R1 titles
I've been reliably informed that Loaded247, the supplier of most of DVD Times' Region 1 review copies, are to stop selling US DVDs within the next couple of months. That leaves DVD Times in a somewhat awkward position regarding coverage of the US releases, and is sure to be a great disappointment to anyone like me who uses them to source titles that will be over the customs limit. Therefore, if you intend to pick up any such titles from them in the next few weeks, I'd advise you to do it sooner rather than later.If you live down south, they're having a massive clear-out at their UK headquarters at 5 Canterbury Road, Sittingbourne, on Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th May between 9am and 6pm. It's of the "everything must go" variety, apparently, and the prices look pretty desperate.
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
In which I talk about the TV show I'm NOT watching
If you live in the UK, it probably hasn't escaped your notice that the latest series of the televisual year's biggest joke, Big Brother, has started. And, so far, I haven't watched a single episode. Bully for me! I'd like to say it was because I exercised incredible self-restraint, but in truth it's actually because, for the last week, we've been without a TV. (Lyris returned his new Sony KDL32V2000, which had one dead pixel, and received the replacement today.) I do, however, consider it to be extremely promising that I've managed to miss the first week, which will hopefully mean that I will have no reason to watch a single episode of it at any point over the next 16 weeks (or however long it's running this time round). Hey - I don't even know who any of the contestants are, although I suspect that they will be comprised of the usual clowns, cunts and social misfits. Oh, and I'm sure at least 75% of them will be bisexual or (I love this word) "bi-curious". And we all know why that is: because all bisexuals run around having sex with everything that moves. It's a statistically proven fact.Monday, May 22, 2006
Asterix and the Vikings
In comparison with the slipshod Asterix Conquers America, the art and animation in this film are absolutely magnificent, looking for the first time like the whole thing was drawn by Uderzo himself (no small feat given that it was animated at various studios around the world). The characters, backgrounds, props and colours have all been transferred pretty faithfully from the original books (although the design of Chief Vistalstatistix has been simplified somewhat through the removal of the stripes on his trousers, something that none of the other films did).
It's not a flawless film, though. Specifically, the inclusion of a number of pop songs, at least two of which are actually supposed to be taking place within the narrative, comes across as pretty jarring, while the constant foregrounding of the character of Vitalstatistix's nephew, Justforkix, takes the focus away from the true protagonists, Asterix and Obelix, often relegating them to the status of secondary characters (which didn't happen in the original book). Also, a running gag involving a carrier pigeon who delivers text messages sticks out like a sore thumb. Anachronistic jokes have always been a staple of the Asterix series, but I have a hard time imaging Goscinny writing a joke like this if he'd lived long enough to see the invention of mobile phones. (At the very least, I suspect he'd have done a far subtler job of it.)
7/10
Note: I version I saw was a French dub, which actually worked very well. To be honest, I actually suspect that the English original will turn out to be inferior, judging by the names that have been attached to it, and the way Asterix Conquers America went. For me, as for most people, Roger Carel is the voice of Asterix (and Dogmatix), not... Paul Giamatti (???).
Adding to the Mother of Tears rumour mill...
Some more (unverified) gossip on Argento's upcoming The Mother of Tears for you today, courtesy of Dark Discussion:- Sienna Miller will be the female lead
- The visual effects will be created by a Turin-based company
- Argento was unhappy with the screenplay as written by Adam Gierasch and Jace Anderson and rewrote the whole thing himself back in December
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 2, Episode 7: Lie to Me
Written and Directed by Joss Whedon(a.k.a. In Which Buffy Learns That Life Contains Shades Of Grey)
I'm giving this episode a very high rating, and the reason for this is all contained in the final act. Were it not for Giles' "lie" speech in the graveyard, it would be rated a lot lower. Don't get me wrong, it would still be a decent episode, but the character of Ford, and the performance of the actor playing him, get on my nerves a bit, and in most regards he is nothing more than yet another bland potential love interest for Buffy, although this time round there is the slight twist of him wanting to become a vampire. I get the impression that this was one of those episodes that was built around the central "message", and while it threatens to get a little heavy-handed at times, Joss Whedon, who as I'm sure I've said before tends to write all the best episodes, manages to reign it in.
Unlike last week's episode, there are no real howlers in the dialogue this time, although nervous Willow is always a good thing.
9/10
Next time: The Dark Age, an episode of which I have virtually no memory at all.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Dissertation update
My dissertation presentation on Friday afternoon went fine, although I was slightly disappointed that not many people asked me questions or offered feedback (the department's other resident Euro horror fan and my supervisor both came up trumps, but unfortunately no-one else ventured to comment). Anyway, I'm currently working on Chapter 1 and a redraft of Chapter 2, the structure of which will be radically altered at my supervisor's suggestion, for a theme-based rather than chronological overview of Argento's gialli. It makes sense in retrospect, although at the time going through each of Argento's 1970s gialli (and Tenebre) seemed to be the way to go. Judging by the way my outline has gone so far (and pending feedback on it from my supervisor), I'll probably also be referring to Argento's later films this time round, instead of restricting myself to his 1970-1975 (and 1982) period - which is probably a good thing, since it'll allow me to delve into the weird world of Opera's sadomasochism and The Stendhal Syndrome's unique approach to the rape-revenge sub-genre.New section: TV Checklist
I've added a new section to Whiggles.com: the TV Checklist.Much like its partner, the Movie Checklist, this section will serve as a record of all the TV shows I watch, whether live or on DVD. I won't be counting programmes such as the news, so this will mainly be restricted to drama series and the like. I've started cataloguing shows I've watched as of yesterday, but, naturally, I can't remember every single piece of television I've watched in the last year, so the section will only contain data for May 19th onwards.
Saturday, May 20, 2006
Alex Infascelli's HATE 2 O/H2Odio - web site, trailer and stills
Some more goodies are now available for the latest horror film from Alex Infascelli (Almost Blue, The Vanity Serum), which was released in cinemas in Italy on May 3rd. Entitled HATE 2 O, or H2Odio in Italy (I'm not sure which is worse), there's not a great deal of information available on the plot, but it is, according to Twitch, this is the synopsis:Five girls travel to a remote mansion in the middle of nowhere for a purifying water fast. Seven days. No food, no electricity, no phones. With water as their only means of sustenance. Their days will tick away in a crescendo of mysterious happenings, until they come to believe they might not be entirely alone inside the gloomy cottage. Just as water gives life, it is water that will gruesomely take life away....
It's not much to go on, but the trailer looks suitably cool, and the official web site gives some indication of the film's tone. According to Twitch, the international distribution rights are being offered for sale at Cannes, while the film itself was screened on the 18th (no word on how it went down).
There's also an image gallery at La Repubblica/L'Espresso.
Update, 20:04: As MCP pointed out in the Comments section of this post, the film has in fact not been released in cinemas. Rather, it has been made available as a downloadable WMV9 file which, thanks to the miracle of DRM, lets you watch the film six times for a fee of €4.90. The only problem is that this option is only available to residents of Italy. How do you like that? I was actually going to pay good money for something I would only be able to watch a limited number of times, and they won't even let me do that! Let it be known, however, that there are plenty of other ways of watching films, and far less wholesome ones than paying money to the distributor...
It's their choice.
Thursday, May 18, 2006
Mother of Tears cast and crew rumours
Source: Cinematografo.itSome rumours have surfaced regarding possible cast and crew members of Argento's upcoming The Mother of Tears. I've translated the Italian text with the aid of Babel Fish:
The filming of the new Dario Argento film, The Mother of Tears, will begin in June, completing the cult "Three Mothers" trilogy that began in 1977 with Suspiria and continued in 1980 with Inferno. According to Variety's report from Cannes, where the plans were announced to the press, the film's plot will be a tale of witches and suicide in modern Rome. The trilogy is based on a book written by the alchemist Varelli [well, not really] according to which the Three Mothers - Mater Suspirorum, Mater Tenebrarum and Mater Lacrimarum - each inhabit one of three cursed houses in three different cities: Freiburg, New York and the Italian capital. The Mother of Tears will take up from where Inferno left off, with one of the witches who survived the destruction of the New York house watching an inspector in charge of investigating a series of mysterious murders at a university. Written by the director, with Jace Anderson and Adam Gierasch, and produced by Medusa with American co-funding, the film will star Ennio Fantastichini in the role of the detective, Chiara Caselli as a psychiatrist, Max Von Sydow as a university professor with a mysterious past, and the young Giordano Petri as the investigator who takes charge of the inquiry when Fantastichini's character is killed.
Bearing in mind that this information is unconfirmed at the moment, a lot of really interesting stuff is unveiled here. I can now understand the comparisons to Dan Brown's Angels and Demons, having read that synopsis, and the news that Chiara Caselli and Max Von Sydow (who both starred in Non Ho Sonno) may be re-entering the Argento world is intriguing indeed. The latter, especially, would be welcome indeed, and would hopefully give the film the same heart and gravitas that he lent to Non Ho Sonno.
Additionally, it has been suggested at Dark Discussion that Frederic Fasano may be the cinematographer. This seems to be even less substantiated than the casting decisions, however, and I would hope, if it turns out to be true, that the vastly increased budget for this film will mean that the results are more impressive than the previous film he shot for Argento, Do You Like Hitchcock?
All in all, though, it's great to see that the ball is really rolling on this project. After over 25 years, it seems to finally be coming to fruition.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Au revoir, suckers!
Tomorrow is the first of a two-day Postgraduate Symposium at the Theatre, Film and Television Studies department of Glasgow University. Attendance for the entire thing is mandatory, and each session runs for pretty much the entire day, so please forgive me if I basically disappear for the next couple of days. I'll still try to check in during the evenings, and maybe head over to the library to take a gander online during the lunch breaks, but it's going to be pretty hectic by the sounds of it. My 20-minute presentation is, annoyingly enough, in the last slot on Friday (at around 4.30 pm), so I'll have that little treat to look forward to hanging over me while everyone else is getting on with theirs. I'm not sure which is worst - going first or going last. At least, when you go first, you have the chance to set the tone, and the chances are that everyone will be suitably interested. My fear is that, when it comes to my turn to present, everyone will be on the verge of falling asleep.Apple does it again
Head over to Lyris' web site for an analysis of Apple Computer, Inc.'s latest little scam. These fellows really piss me off sometimes.Death Walks on High Heels score coming soon
Source: DigitMoviesThose who were disappointed that the Stelvio Cipriani compilation CD accompanying NoShame's recent Luciano Ercoli Death Box Set didn't feature any of his music from Death Walks on High Heels (one of the two films in the set) will no doubt be pleased to hear that DigitMovies will be releasing the entire score as a stand-alone CD on June 6th. The CD, released under the film's Italian title, La Morte Cammina con i Tacchi Alti, will feature 18 tracks, no doubt with the usual array out outtakes and liner notes.
Be prepared for a good laugh
Melodramatic, much?
World Trade CenterYeah, it took them a bit longer than I was expecting, but someone finally made a movie out of the events of 9/11. That someone is Oliver Stone, and the distributor is none other than Paramount. Visit the site linked to above and be prepared to have a good laugh as they turn a real life disaster into a maudlin melodrama - a movie of the week with an inflated budget and a theatrical release.
It's, er, exploding into cinemas on August 9th (quote © Lyris).
Another Third Mother announcement
Source: Bloody DisgustingWith an announcement long overdue, Italo horror maestro Dario Argento is set to shoot The Mother of Tears, a tale of witches and suicides in contempo Rome being billed as episode three of the helmer's cult "Three Mothers" trilogy, according to Variety. U.S. scribe duo Jace Anderson and Adam Gierasch (Toolbox Murders) are co-penning with Argento. Casting is being finalized for "Tears," which is skedded to start shooting in Rome in June. Italy's Medusa is co-financing with a U.S. partner to be announced here at Cannes. Claudio Argento and Giulia Marletta will produce. "This is going to be vintage Argento. Pretty strong stuff," said Medusa topper Giampaolo Letta.
More info soon, hopefully.
Update, 14:19: Whore to the industry, Harry Knowles, has also posted the news. It doesn't reveal anything new, besides the fact that Harry seems to have enjoyed Do You Like Hitchcock?
Update, 22:50: The Mother of Tears seems now to be the official title, according to The Horror Channel. Thank god Argento ditched "Exhumed".
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Tango parodies Sony BRAVIA commercial, lands itself in hot water
Most people have probably seen the TV commercial for Sony's BRAVIA range of LCD displays by now - you know, the one with the thousands of bouncing balls. Well, those crafty foxes at Tango, makers of the tasty orange drink, are up to their usual tricks again and have filmed a parody to advertise their new Tango Clear range. The only trouble is, the residents of Swansea, who were subjected to Tango's barrage of fruit, are less than thrilled by the damage caused to their neighbourhood.If you head over to the Swansea North Residents Association web site, you can see pictures of the destruction and watch eyewitness testimony from some rather irate locals. Yes, I would imagine that I would be a bit nonplussed if my windows and garden gnomes were smashed by an unexpected cascade of apples and watermelons, but when you see the ridiculous level of hyperbole in some of the comments on the site (OAP Eileen Edwards, for example, "survived both wars with the utmost composure, but couldn’t contain her anger when her home was bombarded by kiwis and citrus fruit"), it's hard not to laugh.
And yes, when all said and done, it's an extremely well-done parody.
Update, 14:04: The site is actually a fake set up by the advertising company, according to Lyris. I know when I've been Tango'd.
Street Law
Blue Underground have brought a highly regarded example of the poliziotteschi genre to DVD, with the studio's usual mediocre image quality slightly marring the experience, but the insightful bonus features going some way towards making up for this shortcoming. Highly recommended for veterans of Italian crime cinema, as well as those looking for an antedote to the comparatively more moralistic American variants of the genre, Street Law has lost none of its edge.
I've got down and dirty in the crime-infested streets of 1970s Genoa and reviewed Street Law, the first of three releases from Blue Underground of poliziotteschi helmed by Enzo G. Castellari. This 1974 offering stars the inimitable Franco Nero and includes an interesting commentary and featurette.
Monday, May 15, 2006
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 2, Episode 6: Halloween
Written by Carl Ellsworth; Directed by Bruce Seth Green(a.k.a. In Which Buffy Learns That Clothes Don't Make the Man, the Man makes... well, maybe not)
Hey! They ripped off Goosebumps... er, I mean, what a fun episode! After two clunkers in a row, it came as a pleasant relief to learn that Halloween was as enjoyable as I'd remembered. No, it's not a classic by any stretch of the imagination, and it's a tad obvious in terms of its overarching message (which, in true Buffy fashion, is undercut by the fact that, in an episode that's all about what's on the inside being what counts, the characters turn into the types they dressed up as for Halloween). Lots of good moments for Willow and Giles in this episode, as well as some absolute howlers from 18th century damsel in distress Buffy - "It's not my place to think. I was brought up a proper lady."
By the way, the writer of this episode, Carl Ellsworth, is these days better known as the screenwriter of Wes Craven's Red Eye.
8/10
Next time: Lie to Me, another goodie.
Friday, May 12, 2006
Just when you thought Disney couldn't sink any lower
The Fox and the Hound 2"Ever since you've joined that band you've changed."
Oh. My. God. John Lasseter, please put a stop to this. The original wasn't exactly that great to begin with, but this cheapquel makes it look like The Godfather.
Back to the drawing board
As you may or may not be aware, Ren & Stimpy creator John Kricfalusi has been maintaining a highly informative blog, filled with theories, historical information and groovy drawings. Recently, in conjunction with ASIFA-Hollywood, he set up a series of lessons based on the instructions originally printed in top animator Preston Blair's book (which has been printed in a variety of iterations under a number of different titles over the years).Frustrated by my lack of any proper training in the field of drawing, I've decided to join in this communal exercise and, to that end, I've created a new blog, The $100,000 Animation Drawing Course (name coined by Mr K), which will be reserved only for my drawings as I follow the various lessons. I've already posted a few pages - it's amazing just how difficult it is to draw an egg with the most rudimentary facial features.
John Lasseter interview
Source: MobiusPixar's latest movie, Cars, had its French premiere yesterday at the Cinémathèque in Paris. Director John Lasseter was on hand to introduce the film and take questions from the audience, the responses to which can be viewed here (the text is in French, but his answers in the accompanying videos are in English). Animation fans will no doubt be pleased to hear his response to the question of whether Disney will ever do another 2D film.
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Someone get those Beaumonts some anger management!
"I say!" remarks Richard. "It appears that this dang cartoon has made Baby Orson zany in the brainy!"
"What the devil's got into you, Richard?" demands Abraham. "Cartoons improve the mind and the body!"
But this only hardens Richard's resolve to do something about Percival Pig - the world will go to pot with children watching his show every day - and the next day, at school, he is horrified to discover that all his classmates have done very badly in their most recent test...
"Poor David!" wails Richard, as he walks home from school that day. "Teacher just does not understand that the work is too hard for him. What can I do to help?"
Stay tuned for more!
First review of Anchor Bay's Dellamorte Dellamore DVD
Source: DVD ManiacsAs expected, nothing worth caring about.
Jesus Christ, that's a big TV!
Come in, Flash Beaumont!
I'm not a fan of the "Flash look" that's been inundating cartoons ever since John K and Spumco showed that the software could be used for things other than creating annoying ad banners... but I can't deny that, if done properly, it gives a very nice, smooth line style that can actually pass for professional hand-inking. Of course, I don't claim to have come anywhere close to doing it properly, as my wobbly lines with their varying thicknesses will attest. Basically, I'm useless with a Wacom tablet - for me, it's like trying to draw with my right hand. Still, I'm actually quite pleased with the end result, which feels slightly more "solid" than my usual Photoshop jobs.
And yes, I realise that there are some pretty major mistakes with this drawing, including one of his eyebrows being way too far back and the monocle being a complete mess, not to mention some very odd gravity in the lower half of his body, but unfortunately I didn't notice these until it was too late.
A brief dissertation update
This morning, I finished the first draft of a chapter of my dissertation, which pertains to the films of Dario Argento and their treatment of gender. This will actually be the second chapter of the finished piece - I'm holding off on writing this first, which will be an introduction to the subject matter and a review of existing literature, because I've not finished all my intended reading yet.Anyway, something that I forgot to mention is that the book Tenebre by Xavier Mendik finally arrived on Tuesday. This was actually a second copy, since the first failed to materialise (I assume some sticky-fingered postie pinched it), but the good people at Inkt sent another copy out to me at no extra charge.
At 47 pages of actual text (excluding notes, bibliography, index and film credits), it's not a particularly strenuous read, but the themes Mendik deals with are quite complex, and I suspect would have phased me completely if I hadn't read some of his other essays on Tenebre before. As it happens, it seems that everything he's ever written on this film is essentially the same piece, with various instances of rewording, restructuring and expansion or reduction. Fittingly, this published book is the most complete of the bunch (whereas his video essay on the British DVD is the most abridged). Mendik, it should be pointed out, is probably guilty of over-analysis to some extent, and his book was not of as much use to my dissertation as I had been hoping (largely because his areas of interest are not the same as mine), but I must confess to finding his interpretation of the film preferable to that of Chris Barber and Stephen Thrower in Art of Darkness: The Cinema of Dario Argento, who often seem to be fumbling in the dark in an attempt to provide a hidden meaning for every single shot.
Anyway, my 2,666 word overview of Argento's portrayal of gender (a good 666 words longer than I had intended, but I'm not going to edit it down at this stage) is split pretty evenly across The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, Four Flies on Grey Velvet, Profondo Rosso and Tenebre. In some respects, Tenebre actually feels a little out of place in this line-up, partly because it is a product of the 1980s rather than the 1970s, but also because it is thematically extremely different from its predecessors. Still, hopefully I've managed to put together a fairly coherent argument, which will provide the basis for digging into the non-Argento gialli and exposing their conservatism and hypocrisy. If anyone is interested in reading my draft, be sure to let me know.
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Blizzard announces live action Warcraft movie
Source: Blizzard EntertainmentBlizzard Entertainment, Inc. and Legendary Pictures today announced that they have entered into an agreement to develop a live-action film based on Blizzard Entertainment®'s award-winning Warcraft® universe. Based on the terms of the agreement, Legendary Pictures has acquired the movie rights for the best-selling game universe, and both companies are now focused on translating the high-quality Warcraft entertainment experience to the big screen.
Humph. Well, I'm not against game to film adaptations per se (although there haven't exactly been all that many good ones), but something about this news just fills me with dread. I suppose it's because I have a feeling it's going to turn out to be something incredibly pompous, filled with bare-chested muscle-men wielding improbably large swords as they slay hundreds of badly-rendered CGI monsters. Hopefully it won't sully my appreciation of the games too much.
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 2, Episode 5: Reptile Boy
Written and Directed by David Greenwalt(a.k.a. In Which Buffy Learns That Alcohol is Bad)
It's funny - back in 2003, when I watched Season 2 for the first time, I decided that this episode was by far the worst of the season, and indeed the worst I'd ever seen (of course, at that point, I still hadn't seen Doublemeat Palace or The Killer in Me). That said, watching it again today, I could hardly remember any of it - I must have put it out of my mind. I've come to the conclusion that it's still pretty bad, but not as bad as I'd thought. It's actually a step up from last week's episode.
There are some nice ideas here. These fraternity things that they have in American universities have always struck me as being incredibly disturbing, so having the one portrayed in this episode actually be a front for a sacrificial cult seems like a fairly natural extension. The execution, however, is pretty bungled, thanks to first-time director David Greenwalt's less than stellar camerawork and some really, really clumsy writing (despite a few decent lines thrown in here and there). One thing that's becoming clear to me as I make my way through the series again is that these filler episodes can be an incredible chore to sit through the second time round. There's some character development that pertains to the issues at large, but for the most part episodes like Reptile Boy seem just to be treading water. This is one element that I suspect will make the later seasons (well, 4 and 5, really) infinitely more rewatchable when I get round to them.
PS. In case you didn't notice, alcohol is very evil. It leads to orgies, demon sacrifice and god knows what else.
4/10
Next time: Halloween. Yay! Ghastly Ghost!
New Hellgate: London site
Sunday, May 07, 2006
The Third Mother news
Source: Dark DreamsThere's finally some big news regarding Dario Argento's upcoming The Third Mother, or Mater Lachrymarum, or The Mother of Tears, or Exhumed, or whatever the hell it's called at the moment.
On May 16th Dario will be back in Rome ready to start working on The Third Mother whose pre-production work starts on June 1st.
This movie is a big budget feature, produced by Medusa along with a major American company. It's a sort of diabolical sequel to Suspiria and Inferno set in Rome, with eerie creatures and a race against time in the way of Dan Brown's Angels and Demons.
Immediately after finishing work on The Third Mother, Dario has been signed by another major American company to start shooting another big budget movie.
If the film is being produced in conjunction with an American studio (who?), then it probably goes without saying that this film's impending production is more or less set in stone. Over the last two decades, Argento has hinted at making it at various points, but never before has any sort of deal like this one been announced. Shooting will apparently take place between July and September, according to the article on the web site for Argento's Profondo Rosso shop.
