Writer/Director/Star Jordan Firstman's short The Disgustingsspends time with the kind of gay men we all know... and hopefully avoid: Elitist haters who pretend to be above everyone else and who can take no real joy in life.
Co-starring and co-written by Drew Droege (best known for his hilarious YouTube videos where he parodies Indie actress Chloe Sevigny), The Disgustings is a dead-on look at the kind of narcissistic, self-hating gay men we've all encountered (and wanted to smash in their faces with a trendy cocktail). Judgmental, crass and completely unaware, Jordan and Drew hit every note about what is wrong with modern gay culture in this biting satire.
Hilarious and sad at the same time, yes? Uncle P (as have many of you, I'm sure) has met his fair share of guys like this. It's no wonder they're taking selfies alone. I hope I never wind up as one of these sad queens who hate everyone and everything, just because I hate myself (which I don't). Thankfully, some exceptionally good friends, my amazing sister and some very affirming recent experiences (does Uncle P have a new Beau? Stay tuned to find out...) have convinced me that no matter how cynical and jaded I may become, I will never be as awful as these two. If you see yourself in this movie, don't bother to look me up. And get some help, bitch.You need it.
I love finding new works from new filmmakers. While Australian director Michael Spiccia's 2012 short Yardbird may not exactly be new, it's relatively new to the States, having played at last year's Tribecca Film Festival. I had never heard of it, but thanks to the good folks over at Neatorama, I discovered it today.
Written by Julius Avery, Yardbird is about a young girl named Ruby, who lives with her father on a remote Australian junkyard. After saving a cat from being tortured by a trio of young thugs, Ruby and her father find themselves under attack. Unfortunately for the chief instigator, Ruby is... special. Taking cues from Stephen King's "Carrie" and employing some extraordinary SFX, Yardbird should be a lesson to all those who would be bullies. You never know who you're screwing with, so don't screw with anyone.
Ruhlman, in a silent role, gives an extraordinary performance for such a young actor. Without saying a single word, she manages to convey every thought and emotion she's experiencing simply by letting us read her exceptionally expressive face. A remarkable short film by a team from which I hope to see more. Take 11 minutes to watch Yardbird. You won't regret it (a few NSFW F-bombs):
Not exactly a horror film (though certainly containing elements of the genre), Yardbird is a perfect example of the power of 'quiet' film making. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I and hope you'll share it. It certainly deserves to be seen.
A while back I posted about a short film starring and co-directed by a young man I met on a very odd Friday night, not too long ago in New Hope. Adrian Colon is a standup comedian from my hometown of Trenton, NJ and The Joke's On You is short documentary about his struggle to make it inan exceptionally difficult field.
One way Adrian supplements his income is by bar-tending at New Hope's (in)famous Raven Inn. He is funny and adorable and pours my perfect martini, perfectly (Sapphire:* up; in & out; no fruit). At home, I keep my gin in the freezer, so it doesn't get diluted by the ice. Same thing with my vodka, but I digress.
Uncle P is excited and pleased to announce that The Joke's On You has been chosen to premiere on Friday, September 12th as part of the NJ Film Festival's Fall Schedule! I am lucky enough to have seen the entire film and thought it was just terrific. Adrian's likeability comes across so well and his stand-up is very funny (peeks into his family help explain why).
I love promoting new talent (especially local talent who also happen to be menches) and I truly hope this award-nominated short goes on to bigger and better things and brings Adrian that much closer to his dream. If you can, please check out The Joke's On You.
A short post about a short film. I'm not sure which Facebook page led me to this, but Spanish director Aritz Moreno's short horror film Colera (via) is actually quite impressive on several levels.
Shot in a single take (I wonder how many takes it took to get it right), Colerea is reminiscent of so many great 'long-takes.' You know you've seen them: The opening sequence of The Bird Cage or the amazing battle scene near the end of Children of Men*or the brutal slo-mo fight scene in Park Chan-wook's Old Boy (*Some links in this post contain NSFW language).
I'm not sure how they managed to get all of this in one take, especially given some the angles Moreno managed to capture. It's chilling, disturbing and creepy all at once and could even serve as a prequel of sorts to Eli Roth's insanely funny debut film, Cabin Fever ("Pancakes!")*. Add the gruesome makeup effects and you have just under 7 minutes of brilliance.
Colera has plenty to say about mob-mentalities; fear of those who are different and the spread of disease, among other things. It's brutal and disturbing and exceptionally well-made. I can't wait to see what Moreno does with a feature length film!
Sorry for the very generic graphic there on the left. The short documentary I am about to talk about doesn't have any logo or poster on line, that I could find.
This is actually a very overdue post about a stand-up comic I met at the end of May. I had a date in New Hope and thought I'd been stood up (I wasn't, and it's too long a story to go into, now). The bartender, Adrian and I struck up a conversation and discovered we knew many of the same people who were working out of the theatre which JMTF had used. He also told me he was moving to L.A. soon, because he had a short documentary about to hit the festival circuit. We exchanged emails and I honestly didn't expect to hear from him, but he has kept in touch and the film, The Joke's On You has apparently already won an award. Now living in L.A., Adrian is posting lots of fun stuff on Facebook and it looks like his career is moving the way he wants.
Anyway, here is the teaser trailer for The Joke's On You, about and starring Trenton-born gay comedian Adrian Colon:
I don't know about all the hyperbolic 'trailer' language, but I do know and like Adrian (a genuine, sweet, funny and fierce cutie-pie with a good ear and the right things to say) and I want to support him and hope he succeeds. So if The Joke's On You is playing at your local LGBT film festival this summer, check it out!
No, I'm not talking about the Billy Joel song, as much as I love it and everything on 'The Stranger.' I'm talking about the award-winning horror short from director Dominik Hartl for Glaciar Films. Spitzendeckchen (Vienna Waits for You)is a take on a trope that's been around a long, long time. Living Places/Buildings show up all throughout literary history. 20th Century versions include Tom Tryon's Harvest Home, Robert Marasco's Burnt Offerings and Stephen King's The Shining, all three of which were turned into films of varying financial and critical success. While none of the three examples I've sited end happily (and what true horror story does?), Vienna Waits for You at least ends appropriately. It's well worth the 27 or so minutes:
It's no secret that I live in the Philly suburbs of Southeastern PA. It's also no secret that I am enamored of the Steampunk movement. Hell, this blog started with me posting about my Steampunk-inspired production of "The Skin of Our Teeth." I've always wanted to attend one of the big Steampunk events, most of which were held in cities far away and/or at times inconvenient for Uncle P to travel. So imagine my excitement when I discovered that Bucks County's very own arts community of New Hope was holding their first ever 'Steampunk Fantasy Faire.'
My college friend Deb, her husband Jon and their daughter Caitlin immediately jumped aboard; equally excited to attend our first real Steampunk event. We bought our tickets and were very psyched for the vendors, performing artists and events promised. We even arrived about an hour early to make sure we were able to both park and get in, spending about half an hour at a nearby McDonald's, nursing coffees and soft drinks.
Finally, it was time. We made our way back up the hill to where the main events were being held. According to the brochures and the website, there were going be vendors; circus acts; comedy troupes; musicians and much more. Well, there were vendors (about 2 dozen or so) and a 'comedy' troupe that was funny by default. I bought a small picture frame (while coveting some other amazing items) and we watched a short, unoriginal and completely predictable film. Among the costumed participants was a rather imposingly large man dressed as Jason Vorhees. While his costume was spot-on, I had no idea what he had to do with Steampunk. The band we saw was quite good, though technical problems and noise from the vendors' area right behind made them hard to hear at times (I didn't understand a single lyric). The jugglers who accompanied them were in obvious need of more practice. They were followed by a 'comedy improv' group who were meant to be Steampunk Pirates of some sort, though it was quite obvious that none of them had spent enough time working with one another to present any sort of coherent act (much to the ironic amusement of my companions).
After a few hours we made our way into town proper, where we had an excellent lunch at Triumph Brewery and I ate what may well be the most delicious Turkey Melt I've ever had. After lunch, we headed down to the shops along Main Street, many of which were empty. I was actually saddened to see New Hope's halcyon days gone, with many of my favorite stores shuttered and/or replaced by inferior retailers.
Truth be told, this is the kind of entertainment we were hoping to find (as promised in the event's brochures):
Sadly, this was not the case. It seems that New Hope, once a cutting-edge, gay-friendly arts town has gone the way of Philadelphia's South Street. The once exciting and intriguing shops are gone (or on their way out), replaced by corporate retailers, Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts. Ugh! Hopefully, the Steampunk World's Fair in Piscataway, NJ (also within driving distance of Uncle P) this May will prove to be a more satisfying event. Who wants to join me?
To be fair, this was the first time New Hope hosted such an event. And despite being rather disorganized and small, we all managed to have a good time. Let's see what they come up with next year...
University of Missouri defensive lineman Michael Sam, almost assuredly a draft pick for the NFL next season, has come out. It is my fervent hope that Michael Sam is the gay Jackie Robinson. What a scary position to put oneself in. And how courageous and loved Mr. Sam must be. And the great thing is, if he's not drafted, then the NFL proves itself the bastion of homophobia that Chris Kluwe claims (undoubtedly so), it is.
Regardless of whether or not Sam is drafted, the good news is that more and more high-profile LGBT people are coming forward, refusing to be silent and refusing to deny who they are. The world over, athleticism and physical prowess are celebrated far more than scientific. literary or artistic achievements. And while that hardly makes me happy, it's good to know so many high-profile athletes are stepping up for young fans to know that being gay is not a bad thing. Sam joins my personal list of sports heroes, which includes Greg Louganis; Orlando Cruz; Jason Collins; Martina Navratilova;Chris Kluwe; Brendon Ayanbedjo and British Rugby Bear Ben Cohen, among others.
Speak out. Speak up. Visibility and Familiarity are the keys to Equality.
So, sociopolitical rant over, here's a video by The Perez Brothers called "Weigh In." It's hardly surprising or unexpected but then, that's hardly the point. Enjoy the possibly NSFW short, below (via):
Started my new film year with a short film from 2013 called Proximity, an 11 minute thriller from director Ryan Connolly and co-writer Seth Worley that is well worth the watching. My last stage boyfriend, Chino Cougar Devine (yes, he spells it that way), a hot little Latino with an adorable fiancee, shared it on Facebook and after watching it, I knew I had to share it with you.
Intriguing from the outset, Proximity starts as two men unload a truckload of bound and hooded men in a remote area. They cut their bonds, remove their hoods and wait to see what happens. What follows is a smart, intense Sci-Fi take on The Defiant Ones that's loaded with action and surprises. If this is what Connolly and company can do in 11 minutes (and reportedly shot in only 10 days), just imagine the feature they could make, given the budget. You can watch the film below, along with the trailer for 1958's The Defiant Ones, starring Tony Curtis and Sydney Poitier.
Now that I have Netflix, I plan on seeing and reviewing more films than I had last year. I still haven't gotten to the movies since Gravity, I think, and that makes me sad, especially with holiday gift cards in my wallet. Dear D owes me at least two... Anyway, enjoy Proximity and look for more from Connolly on his YouTube channel.
I posted Bimbo's Initiation and commented briefly on Facebook, but I had to expand on it and the work of producer and animator Max Fleischer. The ever Happy Mutants at BoingBoing posted the video earlier today, describing it as Fleischer's 'darkest short' or something to that effect. Go to BoingBoing to see exactly what they said. Anyway, it ended up inspiring tonight's Forgotten Gems post.
Fleischer was a contemporary of Walt Disney and released his own animated feature Gulliver's Travels in 1939, two years after Snow White and the Seven Dwarfsproved an animated feature could be successful. To be perfectly honest, Fleischer's film is technically superior to Disney's, using rotoscoping techniques that wouldn't surface in quite the same way again until Richard Linklater's 2006 adaptation of Philip K. Dick's A Scanner Darkly (albeit in an entirely different artistic interpretation).
Fleischer and his team were certainly more experimental in their animated films than Disney, catering to a more adult (if not exactly more sophisticated) audience. Most famous for producing the original Betty Boop and Popeye cartoons, the writers and animators at Fleischer's studio were undoubtedly influential on any number of animators to come after, including Friz Freleng; Tex Avery; Ralph Bakshi and modern animators like John Krikfalusi and director Joe Dante for his segment of the notorious Twilight Zone: The Movie.
So here's the bizarre, surreal and rather nightmarish Bimbo's Initiation in all it's weird glory:
And here is Dante's take on the style:
"Run, Ethel! Run!" Indeed.
Of course, Fleischer's Popeye cartoons could be just as dark (Sea Hag, anyone?). He also produced a series of simply gorgeous Superman shorts:
Still, I think Fleischer's masterpiece and a true forgotten gem is Gulliver's Travels. If you've never seen it, you should seek it out. Gorgeously rendered with a message of tolerance and forgiveness and a very clever score, every animation fan (or film fan) owes it him or herself to see it. The full movie is available on YouTube. The trailer is below:
Animated films aren't just for children. I promise. And while Fleischer's movie is hardly a definitive version of Swift's satirical novel, it is a good start in introducing kids to a classic while enjoying the artistry of the piece, itself. Hell, I've even referenced Fleischer's work in my screenplay 'Comatose Joe.' And there's no doubt in my mind that his creative team was a bunch of stoners and trippers, long before it was cool.I'm just sayin'...
As promised, I went and took a look at the remaining Oscar-nominated Animated Shorts and was truly delighted by what I found. Story seemed to be key this year, though clever and voiceless had their place, as well. I've already shared Head Over Heels and the trailer for Disney's CGI/Hand Animation combo, Paperman. I haven't seenThe Simpsons: The Longest Daycare (in which Maggie spends a day at the Ayn Rand School for Tots), though I believe Fox is planning on airing it this coming Sunday.
That leaves Adam and Dog, a sweet mythology about the first man's first best friend:
And Fresh Guacamole, an absurd little stop-motion cooking lesson, of sorts:
And in case you missed it, here's the full version of Paperman:
While I do have a favorite of the four, I'll wait to name it until I've seen The Longest Daycare.
The older I get, the less I care about entertainment awards shows. When I was a kid, there were only five: The Oscars; The Tonys; The Emmys; The Grammies and sometimes The Golden Globes. It was a big deal when Rita Moreno became the first person ever to win the all of the Big Four. Then came MTV and it all went haywire. Of course, it still seems to me that awarding prizes for art is just silly. How does one maintain objectivity in such a subjective field? But since we do so award arts and entertainment, and since I'd like to consider myself to be primarily an 'Entertainment' blogger, I guess I should at least comment on them, no?
The Grammys were tonight, hosted by hot rapper/actor LL Cool J. The bastard step-child of awards shows, no one really cares about the Grammy awards anymore (if they ever really did). The general decline in the quality of popular music in the last 30 years makes me sound like my parents complaining about music in the 80's. Of course, we knew enough to appreciate how what came before influenced those who were popular at the time. Today's popular music is boring, repetitive and unoriginal crap. This year's Grammy broadcaster CBS issued a much-reported dress-code memo to invited attendees. I honestly can't wait to see the response.
The Oscars finish the season in a few weeks, and while I've seen several of the nominated films, I haven't seen enough of any of them to make any sort of truly informed opinion,. Curiously, I have now seen two of the films nominated in the Best Animated Short category. The first is from Disney, combining traditional hand-animation with CGI for the sweet and romantic Paperman:
Also nominated is Head Over Heels, a striking stop-motion film about a middle-aged couple who are separated by so much more than just gravity.
I know there is a live-action Sci-Fi-Romance coming out with a similar idea, though I doubt it will have the same emotional impact and commentary as that surprisingly delightful short. I think I need to seek out the other nominees in this category. I'll let you know what I find.
Like any art lover, I'm always on the lookout for new and interesting artists and their works and I like to share them with you (assuming you actually read my nonsense).
Anyway, I was perusing the often amusing Neatorama and came across this fascinating Sci-Fi CG short film R'ha from German film student Kaleb Lechowski. There is, according to Neatorama, much buzz about turning this short into a feature, though we know buzz doesn't always mean very much. Personally, I really would love to see R'ha expanded to feature length. Lechowsky certainly has some interesting ideas and creates rather stunning futuristic city-scapes. And I love that there are no human characters, a true rarity in the genre (at least on film and TV).
See for yourself. I recommend watching full screen, especially if you have an HD monitor.
I've posted before about shorts with potential to become features, which never seem to pan out. R'ha is different, if only because of it's lack of humans. The four-armed organic protagonist reminded me of the stop-motion demon in Stephen Dorf's 1987 film debut, The Gate and the hydra-like A.I. character was nothing we haven't seen before. Machines rising against their organic creators is hardly a new Sci-Fi theme nor are bands of determined rebels fighting for their (usually) humanity. And while the plot and dialog are hardly groundbreaking, Lechowski's visual (especially those astounding alien skylines) acumen cannot be denied. I honestly want to see what happened before this scene and what happens after. And I have to wonder, can machines lose their "minds?"
What do you think? Is R'ha something you'd want to spend 90 - 140 minutes watching? I'm pretty sure I would.
Oh, I do hope you got to check in on tonight's "PUD" notification... Oh, dear. That doesn't sound right, does it? Maybe this will help: Because I have a tiny bit of a weird sort of OCD, I strive to post a blog entry before midnight every day (and actually get a little stressed when I miss an unscheduled day off). And because I usually start them later in the evening, readers who check Caliban's Revenge between 10:00 PM and 1:00 AM ET, usually find the post's title and an occasionally, cryptically relevant image accompanied by the words "POST UNDER CONSTRUCTION."
Now, stick with me here, and if you get to end of the post, I'll tell you what it said instead if the usual, tonight (the first variation ever).* Of course, that's all to do with tonight's post, anyway.
With me, so far? Good. Not for long, I bet...
Those who risk their sanity to regularly check in on what Uncle P has to say (and hey - who the heck knows what the hell I'm going to talk about on any given day, anyway? -- I rarely know myself, until I sit down to write) know how much I truly adore Nonsense. And no, I'm not talking about the ridiculousness of every day existence (though that usually plays a part). I'm talking about what some refer to as "High Nonsense" or "Smart Nonsense." Lewis Carroll. Edward Lear. The Pythons. Early Zucker Brothers. We laugh at these folks' works not only because it's silly, but because it is so with a usually intelligent, winking eye.
So, bearing all that in mind... I had made plans with a 'friendly acquaintance' (a talented, attractive and very funny actor/musician who has made appearances in two JTMF shows). I met (and cast) Mike thanks to D. Tonight, Mike and I got together for the first time in over a year and we very quickly managed to go from 'Friendly Acquaintances' to 'Friends' in one of those rare and surprising evenings when such things happen. And I love when such things happen. Q can attest to how she and I bonded in much the same wayone night,while in college.
And as if that weren't enough to raise my endorphin levels, I logged in to check out my usual haunts after getting home and came across the particularly hilarious bit of nonsense embedded below (via). Please take the time to read the often outrageously absurd credits which follow the 'film.' I haven't actually snorted at a YouTube video in a very long time. I lost count at seven.
Ladies and germs, I give you "Shortest Film:"
*Please don't cheat and go right to the end. Santais watching, and every naughty thing you do goes in his book! Every. Naughty. Thing.
Now it's going to be anti-climactic, especially since you probably ignored everything I asked and you jumped right to the end of the post without even an iota or guilt or remorse...I hope you can live with yourself.
So, today's "PUD" notification read: POST UBDER NUNSTRICTION.
Sad, isn't it? I'm going to stand in the corner and think about what I've, now. And if you laughed at any of this, you might consider doing the same. Or not. I don't care. I'm not really going to, anyway.
'Your mother was a hamster and your father smelled of elderberries.'
'Hey! There's a great dictator on the gramophone, tonight! Let's all go to Venezuela and smell it!'
I know... you don't get it. But those who do, know exactly what I'm talking about. Well, a bit. We did do the nose. And the hat. But she 'as got a wart.
Writer/Director/Producer Guillermo del Toro has a pretty good track record when it comes to genre films (despite the fairly crappy 2010 remake of Don't Be Afraid of the Dark). His next directorial effort is the Kaiju vs Giant Robots epic Pacific Rim, which looks like it's going to be a sort of Godzilla vs Transformers through the eyes of a mad Mexican genius. And while Blade II was amazing; both Hellboy films were visually stunning and Pan's Labyrinth was absolutely devastating, del Toro hardly has a perfect track record.
Well before Pacific Rim is released, del Toro produced the forthcoming ghost movie Mama.Based on a short film from brother/sister team Adres and Barbara Muschietti, Mama is the story of two young girls who witness their parents' murder and spend the next five years not-quite-alone in the woods. Returned to civilization under the care of their uncle ("Game of Thrones" alum Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and his wife (recent Academy Award nominee Jessica Chastain, looking very different with short, brunette hair), the girls may have brought 'something' along with them...
Traditionally, early-in-the-year films aren't the best of what the studios have to offer. Invested in their late-year Oscar hopefuls, most studios dump the movies in which they have the least faith off in late January and February, hoping to make a quick buck off of opening weekend receipts. And while I fear this may well be the case with Mama, the short on which it is based gives me some hope:
While Chastain may have proven herself in films like The Helpand Zero Dark Thirty, that doesn't mean everything she's in is a gem. And del Toro (best known for the 2006atmospheric fantasy Pan's Labyrinth) has made and/or produced some of the genre's recent best films (The Devil's Backbone; The Orphanage), flops like Don't Be Afraid of the Dark give me reason to pause. Personally, Uncle P will probably wait to see Mama either OnDemand or on cable, unless Dear D or one of my other horror-loving friends wants to see it on-screen.
Any real writer familiar with the English language knows that "unexplainable" isn't a real word. "Inexplicable," however, is. But then, I may just be a picky a-hole...
I imagine this is how most babies and toddlers see Santa
So here we are, as of this writing, 36 minutes into December 22nd and as
every rational human being knew, nothing happened. Of course it is
inevitable that many people died today, making it the end of the world
for them. But if you are reading this, then congratulations! You have
survived the Nonpocalypse. Again.
I keep wondering if there will ever be
a time when everyone realizes "You know what? There probably really
isn't any truth in the vestigial, superstitious beliefs of our mostly science-less ancestors." Probably not. Nonetheless...
Many years ago, I played Santa at the department store where I was a manager (talk about a smooth segue). As the actor on staff, many such jobs fell to me. No pictures or throne or anything like that. I just walked around the store and gave out candy canes and talked to kids briefly. A quick tour of the store and I was done for a couple hours. One afternoon a young mother called to me, "Santa! Please come say hello!" I looked over to see a sleeping baby in a stroller and thought, 'Oh, please save us from screaming.' But the mother looked like she really wanted me to, so I headed over.
"Are you sure?" I asked her.
"No, I promise, he loves Santa."
"Okay, but let me get down so I'm not towering over him." So I squatted down (those were the days when my knees still worked well enough to squat) and smiled.
"Sean," Mom called. "Sean, wake up! Look who's here!"
The baby Sean, certainly less than a year old, roused and opened his eyes and looked around and then landed on me. 'Here it comes!' I thought. The baby Sean opened his mouth in surprise... and started to smile... and smile... the single most beatific baby smile I have ever seen in my life. That moment... that amazing smile... that was Christmas. Twenty-five years later and that moment always comes to mind when I most need some Holiday Spirit.
Of course, it took this post about about nightmarish Christmas things to get me there. All this Apocalypse nonsense; that dreadful business in CT (not to mention the idiocy of the NRA's response) and the seeming interminable week before the holiday vacation had me cranky today, and when BoingBoing shared some strange Christmas videos, I had to talk about them and find a few more. And even though I had a very nice evening tonight, I still wanted to share some weirdness.
This first goodie is called Santa in Animal Land and features a goose (?), cat, dog and frog (?) who are sad that there is no Animal Santa, so the goose (duck?) and the cat head off to find the most horrifying Santa in Puppetland. PeeWee would probably not approve:
I really have nothing else funny or snarky to say about that truly horrifying piece. It's evil speaks for itself.
This next treasure is a short from Castle Films, which I'm guessing is from around the late 30's or early 40's. Merry Christmas isn't overtly nightmarish (well, not most of it) as much as it cries out for the MST3K treatment:
Joel and his bots did take on a Castle short, which while having nothing to do with Christmas, is certainly nightmarish (not to mention probably the funniest short they've ever done, which was paired with one of the funniest features they ever did). If you've seen Here Comes the Circus before, you know you can't wait to watch it again. If you're seeing for the first time, enjoy. If you are Dear D (i.e. coulrophobic) DON'T watch it at all:
This next (also via) drek-tacular nightmare apparently got the Riff-Trax (sort of the Son of MST3K) treatment, but is certainly hilarious and weird and nightmarish all on its own. And it isn't just the sub-amateur acting, mid-century suburban locations, crappy stock footage and terrible camera work. There's actually something very 'Funny Uncle' about the whole thing. Both the Narrator and Santa even sound like child-molesters. Honestly, Ed Wood made better movies. Here's 1963's A Visit to Santa:
"Every doll must have a head. And also, a body!" Was this thing written by a young Thomas Harris? Then there's this gem: "For little girls, a doll is fun to warsh and dress and spank!" My head nearly exploded from that single line alone. Only to be followed by this: "How Ann enjoy these pretty dolls and Dick...(inappropriate and ill-placed pause)... shows no delight." And then even more incoherence: "She'll cook and scrub the whole day long and serve a TV dinner." What? WHAT!?!? TV dinners? What the hell was she cooking all day, Soylent Green? Oh, and the reason for Christmas? "...to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, hundreds of years ago." The underlining is mine. But I suppose that Santa is correct. I mean if the Earth is only 4,000 years old, then Jesus must have lived in 1763 or something. Right? In fact, he gave George Washington a ride across the Delaware on the back of his stegosaurus.*
There, that's better. Tonight saw a lovely dinner with some very dear friends, followed by a fond Christmas memory and some creepy holiday nonsense. Why wouldn't I feel better? Well, the citrus vodka spritzers I had while writing this post didn't hurt.
I am off from the Day Job for the next ten days and am looking forward to sleeping in, spending time with most of the people I love most in the world and maybe venturing out for a day trip or two. I have many gifts to wrap (and just a few left to get) and lots of cleaning to do in the next few days, but that's okay. I'm finally actually looking forward to my very secular version of Christmas, in which I choose to celebrate those I love with gifts, food, laughter and good times.
And that is Christmas, too.
More, anon.
Prospero
*Art challenge. Submit your artistic interpretation of Jesus giving
Washington a ride across the Delaware on a stegosaurus (or any dinosaur)
and the best entry will win a piece of show biz memorabilia.
The photo on your left has only a little bit to do with tonight's post.
One of my daily haunts is the Science/Art/Maker/Sci-Fi/Steampunk/Zombie loving BoingBoing. Today, the Happy Mutants (specifically author and site founder Cory Doctorow) at BoingBoing posted about an IndieGogo* project from two Australian brothers who want to make a mashup movie of Mad Max and Zombies. The 7 minute clip from Wyrmwood he included got me very excited. You all know by know how much Uncle P loves a good, original Zombie movie. After watching the clip below, I kicked in a few bucks and encourage you to do so, as well. Personally, I can't wait to see Wyrmwood as a feature film.
The nearly dialogless clip works brilliantly as a short and I can't wait to see where the rest of the story goes. Here are the brothers making their personal appeal for funding:
*IndieGogo is a crowd-funding site similar to KickStarter, which encourages donations for artistic and altruistic projects which might not find money through traditional resources. I've been thinking about starting an IndieGogo or Kickstarter account to fund a trailer for Army of the Dead, but I think I need to find an illustrator to do some storyboards, first. In the meantime, I hope you'll help make Wyrmwood a reality and chip in a few bucks. I'd be first in line to see it.
Before I start tonight's post, I just want to go on record and say that I hate Blogger's new posting format.
Anyway, I visit Gizmodo's SciFi, Fantasy and Horror blog i09 fairly regularly. They're a good source of movie and TV news and occasionally offer up some rather exciting content. I also subscribe to their email updates and received a link from them the other day that I just now got around to checking out. It was titled "A downright gorgeous short film about doomed astronauts after a spaceship crash."
I wasn't sure what to expect, but when I finally got around to watching Kevin Margo's 8 minute film Grounded, I was left... confused. Watch it and then we'll discuss:
So... I imagine I'm not the only confused viewer, yes?
First, the cinematography; the effects and Ken Andrews' gorgeous score are all amazing. And yes, I get all the themes about life, death, aging and desperate loneliness. But I didn't understand why the 'Traveler' (Derron Ross) was so desperate for a new helmet at the beginning. There were clouds and there was fire, which mean atmosphere and oxygen. He should have been able to breathe with no problem. And he obviously did so, eventually becoming (I must assume) the old 'Tender' (Brent Meeker). And speaking of the 'Tender,' where did he get those seeds? Did he bring them with him? Were they there all along, just waiting to be cultivated? And just how many incarnations of the 'Traveler' fell to the same planet over the years? It looked to me as though at least three astronauts ejected from the craft in the very beginning. What happened to the other two? Was the 'Traveler' in purgatory? Or maybe even hell? Was he actually assumed into heaven, or transported by unseen aliens? I have no idea.
The filmmaker's own description on Vimeo says: "Grounded is a metaphorical account of the experience, inviting unique
interpretation and reflection by the viewer. Themes of aging,
inheritance, paternal approval, cyclic trajectories, and behaviors
passed on through generations are explored against an ethereal backdrop."
Okay... That's an awful lot of territory to cover in just 8 minutes. Kubrick spent 141 minutes exploring many of the same themes in 2001: A Space Odyssey, with similarly confusing results. Or maybe I'm just over-thinking both films. I'd like to think that I'm smart enough to understand complex films with multiple meanings. And while I do enjoy a good puzzle, it's still nice to have some definitive answers on occasion.
Don't get me wrong - I really liked Grounded. I thought it was beautiful, enigmatic and just weird enough to keep me intrigued and I look forward to seeing other films by Kevin Margo. I'd like to know what he can do with a feature-length movie.
What do you think Grounded was about or had to say? You know I love your comments.
Over the years I've had my share of pets. Three dogs; three cats; a dozen or so gerbils; tropical fish; anoles and my very funny (though occasionally very noisy) current pet, Skye. I suspect that most of us, at one time or another, has or has had a pet. And we eventually come to realize that (with the exception of a few of the larger parrot breeds), we will outlive our pets. It's part of life and often how most children first learn to deal with death.
But what if the Zombie Apocalypse took place tomorrow? What would happen to our beloved non-human family members? Filmmakers Andre and Diego Meza-Valdez attempt to answer that question with their very amusing and just a bit disturbing short film, Play Dead. Set in Miami, Play Dead is a story about survival, camaraderie and why dogs hate cats.
You may have seen the video from Google about their newest in-development hardware/software combo package called "Project Glass," which is basically computerized eye-wear that allows it's user to interface with everyday reality and their personal Google accounts.
As someone who has worn eyeglasses and/or contact lenses from a very young age, I find the concept both intriguing and frightening at the same time. It's bad enough that we have so many distractions on a fairly regularly basis as it is. Now imagine that everything you see is connected to the web. Everyone you know; everything you read; everything you eat; everything you do... shared with everyone you know and everyone they know. Sort of a live-feed Facebook (or in this case, Google+). In case you missed it earlier this spring, here's Google's video about the project:
Yikes! As much as I love the Internet and the connectivity it gives me to people literally all over the world, there's something decidedly Orwellian about Project Glass. I don't share everything I do online with everyone to whom I'm connected. Like most of you, I share only things of common interest with selected friends and family members. Just imagine sharing everything with everyone. No thanks.
Young filmmakers Erin May-raz and Daniel Lazo take it a step further and imagine a not-too-distant future in which everyone is connected by an implanted device called 'Sight' in their short film of the same name (via):
Of all the possible futures Science Fiction can imagine, this may be one of the worst. Of course, using technology for personal gain is nothing new. But we have to draw the line, some where. And please don't lie to yourself - everyone has a secret they wouldn't want to share with anyone, let alone online, for all the world to see. The alternative? Unplug yourself.
