Off the Shelf — Rat Queens Volume 1: Sass and Sorcery

Posted on January 25, 2015 by Denise

rat-queens-vol-01-releases

Nutshell: Inappropriate, raunchy, with dialogue that’s borderline NSFW?  Yes please. Gorgeous art, an addictive story, great dialogue and lovely letters.  Leaves you wanting more, which is the highest compliment I can give a series.  If this is the new face of fantasy comics, I’m all in. Grade: A

Story: Four badass fighters for hire have to clear the forest of goblins.  Think D&D, but with way more cursing and booze.  And I don’t know about you, but my D&D days were filled with cursing and booze.  Filled.

Best Lines:

“Did you seriously pack candy and drugs for dinner?”
“What’s with men and tentacles?  Sick of this shit.”
“You put an arrow in my favorite boob, fuckwit!”

Thoughts:  I used to play D&D.  Didn’t we all?  *crickets*  Anyway, if I were to play nowadays, this is how I’d want to play it; a gang of whipsmart gals who are into sex, drugs and violence, and give zero fucks if you’re down with that or not.  This is the D&D you wish you could play, with characters that’ll launch a thousand cosplays come Comic-Con.  Rat Queens are what Xena, Warrior Princess would be if she had a gang of galpals, no edit button, and a predilection for illicit substances.  Yeah, definitely awesome.

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AMC does it again: missed Oscar pics? Best Picture Showcase arrives February 14th and 21st!

Posted on January 25, 2015 by Denise

showcase_hero

I love me some awards shows.  And I love to catch the movies that get tapped for Best Picture.  This year’s crop is a good one too: The Grand Budapest Hotel, Whiplash, Birdman, Selma, Boyhood, The Theory of Everything, The Imitation Game and American Sniper.  So when I was asked if there’d be a Best Picture marathon this year, I began to snoop the interwebs.  And bingo!  February 14th and 21st at AMC theaters y’all.  Here’s the deets from AMC:

See the Best Picture nominees before the Oscars® and predict the winner like a pro.

We’re splitting the movies into two-consecutive Saturdays, so you can attend one day, or both days. Or, enjoy all the films in one day with the 24-hour marathon in select markets.

So, if you’re busy on Valentine’s Day, get your marathon on on the 21st.  Security Square, Owings Mills and White Marsh will have both the two-day fest and the 24 hour marathon.  Personally, I’m dying to hit DC for the Uptown marathon.  Megascreen!  And also, balcony seats.  Balcony seats rock y’all.  Grab your tickets — and if you’re going on Valentine’s Day, an aisle buddy — and get your Oscar on!

Anyone else just wanna show up to the theater in a onesie, with blanket and pillow?  Just me?

And if there’s any info on the Oscar nominated short films — usually shown at The Charles each year — I’ll letcha know.

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Off the Shelf — Frankenstein (Dover Graphic Novel Classics)

Posted on January 25, 2015 by Denise

Frankenstein Dover Classics

Nutshell: A quick refresher for fans of the story, though grown-ups may wish for a tale they can really dig into.  A perfect intro to the story for kids ready to get their classic scare on. Grade: B

Story: A man in the arctic collapses while on a search for “a demon”.  As he recuperates, he tells the sailors who rescued him a strange tale of how he tried to play god and create life.  To nothing but disastrous results, naturally.  You know the deal.

Thoughts: Only 50 pages?  Sweet!  Er, I mean seems like it’ll be a cool abridged version.  The intro even tells readers they can color the pages if they’d like.  (The book is described as for readers 8 and up.  So don’t expect gore y’all.)  Green’s artwork has that coloring book/woodblock print vibe, with plenty of space for your own personal colors, without too much worry about coloring outside the lines due to intricacies.

As far as the story goes, it actually benefits from Green’s edits, moving the pace forward quickly, serving the panel format perfectly.  Victor Frankenstein is still a douchebag that abandons his creation as soon as he realizes that it’s not just a pipe dream, and The Creature’s pain and thirst for vengeance against the “father” that slighted him is palpable.

The story ends rather abruptly, but what do you expect for 50 pages?  Still, the main storyline — man vs. creature he created, themes of overreaching, longing for family/acceptance, and vengeance — are all here.  As a grown-ass woman, I’d have liked a more in-depth graphic interpretation of the tale.  But this Frankenstein is perfect for young readers.  Violence is off-panel, and though the characters are all shades of grey, children will most likely see “moster bad, victor good”.  That’s a decent start; let ’em pick apart narrative later.

Publication 411: TPB published 11/19/2014.

[NOTE: I received a copy of this title pre-publication via Netgalley.  I received no compensation for my review.]

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First pics: Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant

Posted on January 24, 2015 by Denise

More January movie drops, but with a twist; this time it’s The Revenant, based on a true story and starring Leonardo DiCaprio.  NO trailer or poster yet, but as this is a January 2016 release that’s not a surprise.

Here’s the synopsis:

Deep in the uncharted American wilderness, trapper Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) is severely injured and left for dead by a traitorous member of his team, John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy).  With sheer will as his only weapon, Glass must navigate a hostile environment, a brutal winter, and warring Native American tribes in relentless quest to survive and exact vengeance on Fitzgerald. Based on a true story, THE  REVENANT is directed and co-written by renowned filmmaker Alejandro González Iñárritu (“Birdman,” “Babel”).

Any DiCaprio fans looking forward to this?  ‘Til next January, feast your eyes…

THE REVENANT THE REVENANT

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Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza: The DUFF

Posted on January 24, 2015 by Denise

the duffLike teen comedies like She’s All That, Mean Girls, Princess Diaries, or any other film where there’s a bunch of gorgeous girls and one that seems pushed to the side?  Wonder what would happen if that girl got the spotlight?  The DUFF plans on giving you a look. Here’s the synopsis:

Bianca (Mae Whitman) is a content high school senior whose world is shattered when she learns the student body knows her as ‘The DUFF’ (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) to her prettier, more popular friends (Skyler Samuels & Bianca Santos). Now, despite the words of caution from her favorite teacher (Ken Jeong), she puts aside the potential distraction of her crush, Toby (Nick Eversman), and enlists Wesley (Robbie Amell), a slick but charming jock, to help reinvent herself. To save her senior year from turning into a total disaster, Bianca must find the confidence to overthrow the school’s ruthless label maker Madison (Bella Thorne) and remind everyone that no matter what people look or act like, we are all someone’s DUFF.

Interested?  Of course; so read on for how to score passes…

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Desert Dancer images and poster

Posted on January 23, 2015 by Denise

desert_dancer_ver3

Here’s a new film for the US that’s been out and about in Europe for awhile.  Sounds like a very compelling story.

Here’s the synopsis (from Wikipedia):

Set in Iran, this powerful and unbelievable true story follows the brave ambition of Afshin Ghaffarian. During the volatile climate of the 2009 presidential election, where many cultural freedoms were threatened, Afshin and some friends (including Elaheh played by Freida Pinto) risk their lives and form an underground dance company. Through banned online videos, they learn from timeless legends who cross all cultural divides, such as- Michael Jackson, Gene Kelly and Rudolf Nureyev. Afhsin and Elaheh also learn much from each other, most importantly how to embrace their passion for dance and for one another

Desert Dancer should be coming to local theaters soon, but I haven’t seen any word on Baltimore release dates as of yet.  The images look amazing though, don’t they?

Frieda Pinto and Reece Ritchie

Freida Pinto and Reece Ritchie

(Photos: Desert Dancer Productions Ltd.)

(Photos: Desert Dancer Productions Ltd.)

Reece Ritchie and Frieda Pinto

Reece Ritchie and Freida Pinto

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Off the Shelf — My Little Pony: Friends Forever Vol. 3

Posted on January 23, 2015 by Denise

MLPFF vol 3Nutshell:  Is the wait for Season 5 of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic killing you?  This group of four stories should  help ease the pain.  There’s some so-so art in spots, but overall the Mane Six trot out some wonderful fun and friendship.  Grade: B

Stories:  The Apple family head to Apple Con, where Granny Smith runs into the Flim Flam brothers.  Iron Will needs Fluttershy’s help to find his “inner pony”.  Rainbow Dash must help Spitfire with a very important mission: teaching.  And Pinkie Pie’s favorite – and most fearsome – treat comes back to town.

Thoughts: Y’all know I’m a pony fan.  Big.  Huge.  So when I got my grubbies on this I was psyched.  Not just because poneeez, but because I’d never had the chance to grab a Friends Forever issue ’til now.  (I’ve been reading Friendship is Magic for awhile, though.)  What’s the diff between the two series?  Friendship is Magic deals with story arcs, while Friends Forever are single-issue stories where everything is wrapped up nicely by the final page. (FF takes over single-issue story duties from the My Little Pony Micro Series that wrapped in 2013.)  As a horror comic anthology addict, I love me some one-shots and single-issue stories.  So Friends Forever filled a need in me for quick and easy pony tales, and Vol 3 hooked me with excellent storytelling and on-point characterizations.

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Movie Review: A Most Violent Year

Posted on January 23, 2015 by Denise

most violent year final

Nutshell: I’d give A Most Violent Year an F.  Painful to sit through, horrendously dull.  Choppy performances from top-notch actors gives the feeling that director J.C. Chandor didn’t have a good bead on his vision.  What could have been a vibrant, intelligent look at a rough time in NYC’s history is instead a snoozefest of bickering and tedium.

Okay I’ll admit it; I’m one of those folks that doesn’t heart NYC.  Oh, I enjoy visiting.  Love Broadway.  And some of the best mochi I’ve ever had is right around the corner from 30 Rock.  But I’d never live there.  I just don’t feel the click.  Not a judgement call, but a bit of 411 before I dig into this film.  I’m not in love with the city, so if you’re going to tell me a tale, make me care.  Don’t be lazy and just assume I’ll give a shit simply because it’s New Yawk Cit-tay!

Director J.C. Chandor (Margin Call, All Is Lost) takes the lazy way out, assuming folks not only care, but know exactly what went on in the NYC oil trade. In the 70s and 80s.  Yup, I’m coming up with zilch too.  Let’s peek at the Wikipedia synopsis:

Set in New York City during the winter of 1981, statistically one of the most violent years in the city’s history, the film centers on the life of an immigrant and his family trying to expand their business and capitalize on opportunities as the rampant violence, decay, and corruption of the day drag them in and threaten to destroy all they have built.

I know, right?  Sounds awesome!  But where’s all the violence?  Why are we only seeing oil trucks stolen, and people in the oil business getting beat up?  Well kids, that’s because this is a bait-and-switch; say the film is about the uber-violent 80s in NYC…and then focus on one family and how it’s Paterfamilia is trying to make it big in the NYC oil delivery biz.  Yep.  Teamsters, mob guys and cop investigations are all cool, except for in this movie where they’re not.

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Elsewhere Review: Mr. Turner

Posted on January 23, 2015 by Denise

Nutshell: I give Mr. Turner an A-. I hate this movie, and I applaud the hell out of it. An amazing, disgusting, warts-and-all performance shot as if every frame was it’s own work of art. And it is.

(As always, clicky for the original piece!)

Movie Review: Mr. Turner

mr turnerTwitView: a beautiful look at a beastly man.  Pope’s cinematography is glorious, and Spall’s lived-in performance is a wonder. A-

I enjoy art, but I don’t know much about it other than what I like to look at, and what I don’t.  The art of J.M.W. Turner is alive with color, shadows and emotion.  But Turner himself was a hard man to stomach, if the film Mr. Turner is to be believed. [And it seems as though he may have been much colder and brutish than this film allows.]  For folks like me who are new to the particulars of this artist, Wikipedia sums up his massive contribution to the art world nicely:

“Turner was considered a controversial figure in his day, but is now regarded as the artist who elevated landscape painting to an eminence rivalling history painting…. He is commonly known as ‘the painter of light’ and his work is regarded as a Romantic preface to Impressionism.”

Unfortunately, while his work is undeniably beautiful, the life he lived was anything but.  A libertine, he cared little for rules of the day, or “proper decorum”.  And director Mike Leigh shies away from none of it, giving us a look at a man who may have been a brute, but created beauty.
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Off the Shelf — Hack/Slash: Son of Samhain

Posted on January 22, 2015 by Denise

hackslashsamhain-tp-01-11633

Nutshell:  It’s great to see Cassie Hack back in action, and her new crew of creators have done a good job throwing her into the ol’ mix.  If you’re looking for Slashers, you’ll be disappointed, but if monsters are your thing you’re in luck.  If there’s more coming I’m up for it, but more Ocky backstory, ‘kay? He’s a character I want to know better. Grade: B+

Story: Cassie Hack has done her best to save the world from “Slashers”, or what we’d call serial killers (both living and dead.)  But it’s taken a helluva toll (seewhatIdidthere), and she’s out.  Now a bounty hunter nabbing lowlifes, she meets Delroy, a man who asks for her help.  And Cassie needs to figure out whether or not she’s ready to get back to what she does best. Because an old god is ready to be reborn, and it’ll take someone to Kiss It and set things right.

Thoughts:  Son of Samhain is a very tempting title for folks already invested in the H/S universe. But those who hope to see Cassie reunite with…well, the survivors of her former hunting days will be disappointed. Don’t worry, it’s not 100% new; there is a Poochy sighting, thank goodness.  But to quote writer Michael Moreci, “there’s no going back”.  So while Georgia may still be on Cassie’s mind, readers not up on their H/S history will have no trouble following along.

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