Recappin’: Adios, Gang Related. And what I’m watching now.

Posted on June 26, 2014 by Denise

I can’t y’all.  I just can’t.  I tried to watch Gang Related.  But it’s just so bad.  Even with Terry O’Quinn.  If you can’t deliver a lead character that has me caring about what he’s gonna do next, or if he lives?  See ya.  There are two episodes on my Hulu queue, and they’ll stay there ’til they disappear.  I could be wrong — I did the same thing with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and ended up getting completely addicted hooked when I jumped back in at episode 10.  But I’m betting Related ain’t gonna go that way.

So what have I been watching lately?  Sadly, I missed the leak of the Flash pilot episode, but I’m ever hopeful that a screening/screener will come my way.  Instead, I’ve been main-lining Penny Dreadful (hooray for FWC — Friends With Cable!) and the first season of The Bridge (all eps on Hulu.)  My thoughts right now?

Image: Showtime

Rose, you look peaked. Image: Showtime

Penny Dreadful

Premise: Think League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, but twisted all to hell.  In some cases, quite literally.  Sir Malcolm Murray (Timothy Dalton) tries to find his daughter Mina, but things aren’t going well because vampires.  Meanwhile, American Ethan Chandler (Josh Hartnett) comes to London to ply his Wild West schtick, but ends up signing on as muscle for Murray and his … friend? aide? Vanessa (Eva Green, as wickedly stunning as ever).  Chandler meets beautiful consumptive Brona (Billie Piper!  Rose!), the hooker with a heart of gold and a mouth like a bloody sewer.  Oh, Dorian Gray, Victor Frankenstein and his creation, and a Renfield-like fella area also around.  Take storylines, hit frappe.  Enjoy.

So far: I’m into Episode 5, still getting over a minor character getting ripped apart (literally), wondering if Piper’s Brona will make it through the season…alive, and trying to figure out of the vampires here are scarier than those in The Strain.  Jury’s still out.

Nutshell: I’ll be watching every single episode I can get my grubby paws on.  It’s sick, twisted and fhttps://atomicfangirl.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post-new.phpascinating stuff.  There’s plenty — PLENTY — of gore, and not a little premium grade ho-yay.  (New Now Next has the perfect summation of the “subtext” of this series, and you need to read that whenever you get the chance.)

 

 

Image: FX

Image: FX

The Bridge

Premise: A body is found right smack dab on top of the border line between the USA (by way of Texas) and Mexico.  Weird-ass Texas cop Sonya (Diane Kruger) and laid-back but talented Mexican detective Marco (Demian Bichir) must join forces, because all is not what it seems.  Cut to folks trying to cross the border, and a creepy guy who seems to be slaugtering young women just because he lives in a trailer.

So far:  I’ve only gotten to Episode 3, but that’s because sleep called.  Dammit.  I’m a sucker for cop shows, and this one — based on a Swedish show I now need to see — looks like a winner so far.  Just enough twists and turns to keep things interesting without making it seem as if the show runners are trying too hard.  Bonus: second season just started.  I can haz more episodes!

Nutshell: I absolutely love the look at “real life” in Mexico, and the back-and-forth between Bichir and..well, anyone he’s sharing the set with, is awesome.  (Seriously though, love the scenes with Marco and his wife.  It’s a look at how cops can live, as opposed to the usual “good guy bad mariage” trope.) And a Matthew Lillard sighting!  What?  I’ve crushed on him since Scream.  Sue me.  But Kruger’s Sonya is grating; I read that the character is supposed to have Asperger syndrome, but I’m sick to death of “colorful” cops.  I had my fill at Monk, so unless you’re Matthew McConaughey in True Detective?  Just stop it y’all.  Even with her obnoxious character, I’ll keep watching because the story is fascinating, and Bichir’s Marco is awesome.

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President Snow addresses Panem with propaganda that echos real history

Posted on June 26, 2014 by Denise

Image: thecapitol.pn

Image: thecapitol.pn


Gotta love the marketing for the Hunger Games series.  It’s insidious, creepy and harkens back to old-school propaganda like WWII posters, Communist Russia, and now the good ol’ southern USA.

Check out the latest “message” from President Snow (Donald Sutherland, playing it straight and sinister) as he echos George Wallace’s speech from 1963.  “Panem today, Panem tomorrow, Panem forever.” Cue the chill down your spine. Well played, Hunger Games. Well played. I only wish Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) was given more to do than to stare off into space. Yes, I’ve read the books and understand what’s going on. But it could have been done better. Otherwise, an A+ spot.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 opens November 21, 2014.

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Gear up for Mockingjay: Part 1 with the Heroes of Panem

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Denise

Fuck yeah Hunger Games!  And while you’re awaiting November’s Mockingjay: Part 1, take a look at these beautiful but very unsettling “insparational posters” from the Captiol Ministry of Information.  Makes you glad you’re not a citizen of Panem.  Right?  *looks around nervously*

Here’s the word from the studio Capitol:

In honor of our brave brothers and sisters of Panem, we’re pleased to share the DISTRICT HEROES COLLECTION.

Yesterday, The Capitol, under the authority of the Capitol Ministry of Information, released seven District Heroes across Yahoo and Tumblr. Please take a minute to reflect and learn more about these esteemed district citizens at the links below.

We also strongly encourage you and your readers to register for updates from Capitol TV. Remember, we are #OnePanem.

These posters are absolutely breathtaking, but also call up propaganda posters from last Century.  What really gets me is the District 7 poster, with Elias’ “For Brother” tattoo.  What happened?  I’m betting it was nothing good.  Reaped, perhaps?

Check out the write-ups and more at http:thecapitol.pn.  Or else.  Ulp.  Er, enjoy?

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Matthew 18; a horror movie that’s not what you’d expect

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Denise
(Images; Matthew 18 FB page)

(Images; Matthew 18 FB page)

Gotta admit; when I saw that Faizon Love and Luenell were starring in a horror flick?  My first thought was; ah, another spoof.  But this time the joke’s on anyone who’s thinking that; Matthew 18 is playing it straight-up, and means to scare you witless.  Calling itself a “Modern-Day Horror Film”, Matthew 18 looks like it’ll have tons of supernatural scary.  Take a look at the trailer….

Boo! But really, they had me at the press release tag line; “Unlike the average horror flick, in Matthew 18, the Black guy is not the first to die!”

Matthew 18 is slated for a special screening in Hollywood on June 27th. And man do I wish I was going! Read on for the full press release, with tons of info on what looks like a cool, creepy flick. For more info, visit the film’s Facebook page.

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Elsewhere Review: Jersey Boys

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Denise

 

Nutshell: I’d give Jersey Boys a B+. A quartet of (mostly) stage stars provide spot-on Four Seasons numbers, while Clint Eastwood keeps the story from getting too fluffy or too dark. Bonus points for being able to enjoy the show without ever seeing the play, though that’s totally on my bucket list. But get comfy; this is a movie that feels like a play, and whose run time is damn close to one too.  My advice; more popcorn.

As always, clicky the hyper-title for the original piece!

Movie Review: Jersey Boys

TwitView: A fascinating, fun film that shows the rough edges around those smooth melodies. B+

The Four Seasons. Mostly, I knew of ‘em thanks to the overuse of some of their 70s hits at the neighborhood pool where I grew up. Then there’s the fantastic 1994 remix of “December 1963 (Oh What A Night)” that is still rockin’. In 2005, there’s the Broadway peek into the inner workings of the band, a little musical called Jersey Boys. Seems like everybody and their mother (especially their mother) headed out to see that, everyone but me. So this is a long-winded way for me to say that I’ll be reviewing this film as a stand-alone entity.

Jersey Boys sometimes feels like a “Behind The Music” episode, with it’s ups-and-then-downs storyline. But director Clint Eastwood steers clear of the maudlin and instead goes straight for the jugular more than once, giving Boys more heart than VH1 could ever muster. This isn’t a gloss job to blow smoke on Hall of Fame rockers, it’s a fictionalized look at real people with tons of true tales mixed in. That means there’s the good (Number 1s! Fame! Fortune!) and the bad (financial irresponsibility, relationship problems, and death). Eastwood’s a smart cookie here, casting performers from Jersey Boys’ Broadway and touring cast (Michael Lomenda, Erich Bergen, and Tony winner John Lloyd Young; Boardwalk Empire’s Vincent Piazza is the only non-stage Season here), and keeping much of the “book” (storyline structure, for non-theater nerds out there) from the original musical.

jersey-boys

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Elsewhere Review: The Rover

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Denise

Nutshell: I’d give The Rover a B+. It’s the type of film that had me watching, completely hooked, from the get-go (granted, it’s a heckuva start). But the bleak, unforgiving style of the film may put some off. If you’re up for doom, despair and agony on me? Check it out.

As always, clicky for the original piece!

Movie Review: The Rover

TwitView: Fascinating & dark. Existential & bloody. A creepy slice of our possible future. B+

Wasting away ‘til the next season of The Walking Dead?  Dying for some post-apocalyptic action?  Well, The Rover probably won’t soothe your need for braaaaaaaains, but it’s a fascinating look at what life could really look like if our global economy went boink. And it’s a film where you may try your best to figure out what will happen, or what the end game will be, and you’ll have no idea.  Gotta give this film mad props for blowing up the usual tropes, and doing it in a way that left me with no other choice but to watch.

Okay, lemme get this straight; there’s a global economic collapse, and ten years later the AMERICAN DOLLAR is the strongest currency around?  Man, I worry about the human race.  But there you have it, and Eric (Guy Pearce, Memento) is just a man trying to take a load off out of the harsh Australian Outback sun.  But three bad guys steal his car, and instead of shrugging, Eric goes stalker and tries to get his car back.  Along the way he runs into Rey (Robert Pattinson, recovering sparklevampire), a brother of one of the guys that ripped off Eric.  And that’s the story.  Things go from bad, to worse, to kinda okay but still sucky, and then all over the freakin’ map as these two try to get Eric reunited with his car.  Before you pull out the Ashton Kutcher jokes, know this; that car, and the search for it, is a Macguffin; it’s the journey these two take that draws you in, not whether or not the car will ever be found.  And no, I’m not telling you.

TheRover_One-Sheet

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Baltimore screening! Tammy! Come get some!

Posted on June 19, 2014 by Denise

image

Road trip! Oh, you can’t swing it? No problem, I can fix that. Or at least get you in to watch somebody else trip. Y’all know what I mean. Passes for the Baltimore screening of Tammy everybody!

Here’s the synopsis – a nice in-depth one too – from our lovely and talent PR folks:

Synopsis:

Oscar® nominee Melissa McCarthy (“Bridesmaids”) and Academy Award® winner Susan Sarandon (“Dead Man Walking”) star in New Line Cinema’s comedy “Tammy,” marking Ben Falcone’s directorial debut.

Tammy (McCarthy) is having a bad day.  She’s totaled her clunker car, gotten fired from her thankless job at a greasy burger joint, and instead of finding comfort at home, finds her husband getting comfortable with the neighbor in her own house.

It’s time to take her boom box and book it.  The bad news is she’s broke and without wheels.  The worse news is her grandma, Pearl (Sarandon), is her only option—with a car, cash, and an itch to see Niagara Falls.  Not exactly the escape Tammy had in mind.  But on the road, with Pearl riding shotgun, it may be just what Tammy needs.

The film also stars Allison Janney (“The Help”), playing Tammy’s world-weary mom, Deb; Gary Cole (TV’s “VEEP”) as ladies man Earl; and Mark Duplass (HBO’s “Togetherness”) as his son, Bobby; with Dan Aykroyd (“The Campaign”) as Tammy’s dad, Don; and Academy Award® winner Kathy Bates (“Misery,” “Midnight in Paris”) as Pearl’s fun-loving cousin Lenore.  Rounding out the cast are Sandra Oh (TV’’s “Grey’s Anatomy”) as Lenore’s partner, Susanne; Oscar® nominee Toni Collette (“The Sixth Sense”) as Tammy’s neighbor, Missi; and Nat Faxon (“Bad Teacher”) as Tammy’s husband, Greg.

The screenplay is by Melissa McCarthy & Ben Falcone.  Will Ferrell and Adam McKay produced the film with McCarthy.  Rob Cowan, Falcone, Chris Henchy, Kevin Messick, Toby Emmerich, Richard Brener and Michael Disco served as executive producers.

The behind-the-scenes team included director of photography Russ Alsobrook (“Paul Blart: Mall Cop”), production designer Jefferson Sage (“This is 40”), and editor Mike Sale (“Bridesmaids”).  The music is by Michael Andrews (“Bad Teacher”).

          New Line Cinema presents a Gary Sanchez/On the Day production, “Tammy.” The film will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment company.

This film has been rated R for language, including sexual references.

Here’s how to get your passes….

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Wonder what that comic is worth? Baltimore Comic-Con’s got you covered.

Posted on June 19, 2014 by Denise

BaltimoreComicCon_logo_nodate

It’s already Summer Solstice this weekend?  Wait, how’d that happen?  But then again, all the more closer (roll with me y’all) to Baltimore Comic-Con!  And if you’re like me and put off Spring Cleaning ’til June, you probably found a few things that have been sitting on your bookshelves.  You know, a few old comics that you’re sure are worth something maybe, but probably aren’t, though who knows?  This year, you can find out once and for all.  Baltimore Comic-Con (or as I like to call it, The Comic-Con That’s Still Actually About Comics) will have Certified Guaranty Company (CGC) at the ‘con to help you suss out what that issue is worth!

Personally, I’ve had an old Zap Comics I picked up at a yard sale back in high school, and I’ve wondered what it’s worth.  I’m not giving it up for love or money, but I’ve always been…so curious.  You got something your curious about too?  Join me!

Remember: Baltimore Comic-Con is this September 5-7 — yeah, three days this year baby! — and it’ll be at the Baltimore Convention Center.  Or, as I like to think of it, the big building across the street from Pratt Street Ale House.

Read on for the full details from the press release!

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Wayback Review — Buffy the Vampire Slayer Volume One: The Long Way Home

Posted on June 17, 2014 by Denise

Hello Summer lazytimes!  While I slog away at new comics that have crossed my Kindle (workworkwork), here’s a peek at a li’l something I wrote for Green Man Review awhile back.  It was re-blogged at Sleeping Hedgehog, and now it’s here.  Quite the mover and shaker, this review.

Happy New Comics Eve y’all!

Joss Whedon and Georges Jeanty: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Volume One: The Long Way Home

BY DENISE KITASHIMA DUTTON, ON AUGUST 3RD, 2011

First printed on Green Man Review.

If you’re a fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer like I am, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Volume One: The Long Way Home is something you’ve been looking forward to for a few years now. If you’re only generally aware of this series –or only know the title from the so-so practically unrelated movie that preceded it — this collection of the first five comic books that takes Buffy’s story past the ending of the TV series is a good place to get into the mix. Also called “Buffy Season Eight” (and officially subtitled “Joss Whedon’s Season Eight” starting with comic book #6), it’s intended to be the offical follow-up to the series. The first collection of this Dark Horse collection serves as evidence that Joss still has it in spades.

How’s Buffy doing since we saw her last? Well, she’s got over a thousand other slayers covering her back, and a host of other supernatural do-gooders (witches, seers and the like) helping out too. Plus, the Watchers Council is lending aid, and if you think that’s a whole lot of help . . . it ain’t. It’s looking like the Big Bad this season will need every last one of them. What’s the Big Bad, the folks not as fannish as I? Well, it’s what Buffy fans call the thing/things that Buffy and her friends (the Scoobies, à la Scooby Doo) have to deal with and ultimately vanquish each season. They’ve dealt with big-dude vampires, an evil goddess with a shoe obsession, army mutants, their own mayor, the First Evil ever, old boyfriends and even a best friend.

The Scoobies are here too, although some are more present than others. The TV series had that too; you can’t have everyone on camera all the time, can you? Or it sure gets crowded. But the players are exactly where they need to be — for the most part — when the story calls for them, and that’s the important part. Plus, there’s lots of Willow magic and there’s even a point where Xander gets to be a little butch (It’s the eyepatch.) Meanwhile, I have a not-so-secret love for Giles (It’s the glasses.) He’s here too, holding down the fort in London. Yeah, they’ve gone global, and that has it’s pluses and minuses.
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Movie Review: How to Train Your Dragon 2

Posted on June 13, 2014 by Denise

how to train your dragon 2

Nutshell: I’d give How To Train Your Dragon 2 an A. An intelligent film that not only entertains without pandering to it’s audience, but manages the Empire Strikes Back-like superpower of being better than it’s already fabulous predecessor.  Grab some popcorn, swoon over Toothless, and don’t forget some Kleenex.  No spoilers, but you may need ’em.

What a difference 5 years makes, amirite?  When the Viking town of Berk — and more specifically, the chief’s only son Hiccup — first discovered that dragons could be freakin’ awesome instead of freakin’ terrifying, it took some time for things to settle in.  I like to think that the absolute adorableness of Toothless the Night Fury had a good bit to do with that. (And if you think he kinda resembles Stitch, you’re not wrong; director Dean DeBlois also helmed Lilo & Stitch.  Perhaps the two creatures are related?)

Anyway, How To Train Your Dragon 2 gives fans of the first film more of what they love; dragons, dragon riding, moments of anthropomorphic bliss, and a boo-hiss-able bad guy that Our Gang manages to overcome by the film’s end.  (What, did you think a kids film would let the bad guy win?  You don’t get out much, do you?)  New dragon types are introduced, love is in the air, and Dreamworks manages to top itself yet again in the animation department.  If you’re looking for a summertime film to enjoy with the little ones in your life, this is it.  The storyline in this film makes sense, and is more than just an excuse to trot out more dragons.  Not that I’m hating on dragons, but after the first film’s home-run, it would have been disappointing if HTTYD2 suffered from sophomore slump.  Luckily, it’s just as good as the first, if not better.  Better?  A’yup more dragons + more powerful story = more better.  Yeah, I’m that easy.
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