Category: Reviews

Review: ‘Dexter’ Episode #305

Review: ‘Dexter’ Episode #305

Note: Click here for last week’s victim!

The Crime Scene: “Turning Biminese”
From [[[Showtime]]]: “While Dexter struggles with how to handle Rita’s desire for them to move in together before they get married, Miguel tells Dexter about a husband who has gotten away with killing two of his wives for financial gain. For Dexter, this seems like the perfect candidate to satisfy his dark urge and his need, like every man under relationship pressures, to get away. Dexter tracks the murderer to Bimini. While on the hunt, Rita has a medical emergency and he is nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, Debra works with Anton, her confidential informant to track down one of Freebo’s criminal confidants. But Debra finds herself oddly (and disgustingly) attracted to Anton.”

Blood Spatter Analysis
“Turning Biminese” is a weirdly unfit title for one of the most defining moments in [[[Dexter]]] history. The whole hour focuses on just how drastically Dexter’s life has and will continue to change by the impending birth of his child and his newfound engagement to Rita, among a whole slew of other things. By episode’s end, it’s very clear that Dexter’s life is about to get very, very different.

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Review: ‘The Godfather: The Coppola Restoration’ DVD

Review: ‘The Godfather: The Coppola Restoration’ DVD

The Godfather is one of those films that creates an immediate sensation but then slowly seeps its way in the American consciousness. Like the immigrant families it depicts, the Mario Puzo novel was a potboiler, his third book after a career of writing for the men’s sweat magazines.  It arrived on the bookstands in 1969 and Puzo merely hoped it was something for the masses so he could support his five children. Instead, it generated some noise, enough to entice Paramount Pictures to option the film.  Then, after many trials and failed attempts to assemble a team, the right mix was found and a movie was made.  The American Dream in microcosm.

Francis Ford Coppola took the basic story of the Mafia, at the time, a criminal entity that people were only just getting familiar with as a reality, and set it against grander themes.  He was very collaborative and Puzo was heavily involved from the beginning which helped tremendously.

The first film was a mammoth success which required a sequel that many argue surpasses the original.  Despite pressure for a third film, it took Coppola until 1990 to finally complete the cycle. In the intervening years, the film’s archetypical characters were embraced and imitated, catch phrases entered the lexicon and have endured. And to be fair, the third installment has aged better than you would imagine now the bitter taste of disappointment has been washed away with time.

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Horror Review: No Man’s Land – Rise of The Reeker

Horror Review: No Man’s Land – Rise of The Reeker

Synopsis:

In this sequel to 2005’s [[[Reeker]]], a sheriff and his son try to apprehend bank robbers on their way to Mexico only to find that they are being stalked by a far more deadly enemy – the fire-wielding Grim Reaper known as The Reeker. Things start to get weird when the group—both good guys and bad—realize that they may not be on this plane of existence anymore, let alone the rest stop in Nevada.

Lowdown:

Ever since [[[LOST]]] hit the airwaves, writers of both television and film have tried to capture the essence of an ensemble cast brought together, seemingly for a reason, to fight some big mysterious element. It’s a disorienting concept, meant to confuse and fool you, but in the end, it all comes across as a bit trite. [[[No Man’s Land]]] walks that line but is able to fall back on the idea of not taking itself as serious as a story like LOST.

Taking place after the 2005 film Reeker, a group of strangers try to survive after being trapped in a travel hotel in the desert and strange things seem to happen, like a creature with a flamethrower chasing them. While this is a sequel, it isn’t necessary to be caught up on the first film in order to enjoy this one. The background of this film’s characters are explained in the beginning of the film, keeping this story pretty self-contained. If you had seen the former, the ending may come across as a bit predictable, seeing as how it is almost the same movie.

The special effects in the film are pretty impressive, seeing as how they are meant to give the feeling of complete confusion and intensity, such as a disembodied pair of legs running away, or a bird on fire flying though the air. Of course, the antagonist running around with a flame thrower added a nice touch, (and even a bit scary, too), and there is certainly plenty of blood and feces in the film for you to squirm in your seat.

Obviously, the story doesn’t take itself too seriously, given the fire-wielding baddie and the fact that since they are in purgatory, nobody can really die (this explains the torso-less legs running around in the film). There are some fun campy moments from the sassy casino robbers, and even a fight scene with a resurrected fried chicken (yup!)

Overall, film did have it’s dragging moments in the story, but the twist ending made it all a bit worth it, leaving us clues strategically placed throughout the film. Fans of mysteries and horror will enjoy this, if they enjoyed the twists and turns of any given Saw film.

Overall Rating 6/10

Scare Rating: 4/5

Review: ‘The Good Neighbors Book One – Kin’

Review: ‘The Good Neighbors Book One – Kin’

The Good Neighbors: Book One – Kin
By Holly Black and Ted Naifeh
Scholastic Graphix, October 2008, $16.99

Holly Black made her name with [[[The Spiderwick Chronicles]]] and following that enormous hit, the pressure was no doubt on to follow it with something equally compelling.  Fortunately, [[[The Good Neighbors]]] may well be that second hit.

Once more, Black delves into the world of the supernatural, but rather than make up her own bestiary, she is inspired by the traditional world of the faerie. She also delves into a different set of family dynamics and clearly is using characters her readers can relate to.

Book One introduces us to Rue Silver just as her life begins to be irrevocably altered.  Rue is a high school student whose mother has gone missing and her father, a college professor, is accused of murdering her.  When one of his students is found dead, he’s arrested for both crimes.

Rue, though, has larger issues preoccupying her mind.  She’s seeing the world through new eyes so people suddenly have taken on different shapes, and nature seems to be responding to her presence. Her friends are sympathetic but uncertain how to react.  Then, she meets the ageless man who introduces himself as her grandfather and explains she has faerie blood and is ready for a new world.

Rue’s entry into this realm and her tortured emotions form the spine of the 117-story.  Black does a nice job with the characterization and I’m especially impressed with the circle of friends who support her.  They are individualistic and react in ways the readers can identify.  Friendship proves to be as important as family, as we discover.

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Review: ‘I Remember The Future’

Review: ‘I Remember The Future’

For more than a decade, writer Michael A. Burstein has been publishing tales of speculative fiction in the anthology magazine [[[Analog]]]. Several of these stories have been nominated for various Hugo and Nebula awards, including Best Short Story, Best Novella and Best Novelette. In 1999, his short story “[[[Reality Check]]]” was nominated for the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award. “[[[TeleAbsence]]]” won the 1995 Analytical Laboratory Award for Best Short Story and “[[[Sanctuary]]]” won the 2005 Analytical Laboratory Award for Best Novella.

These works and more have now been collected into one large volume from Apex Publishing entitled I Remember the Future: The Award-Nominated Stories of Michael A. Burstein. The book will be published on November 1, but you can pre-order at Amazon.com  if you so wish.

The stories collected here cover a wide range of topics and emotions. There’s the murder mystery involving a killer who targets students while they’re online. There’s the deeply emotional tale concerning the dying wish of the last living holocaust survivor. There is the “[[[Broken Symmetry]]]” series, a trilogy of short stories concerning the consequences that occur when a breach opens between two parallel universes and the events that grow out of it.

Even if you’ve read these works before, this collection offers you new insight into old favorites. Every single story has an afterword by Burstein as he explains what went into it and what may evolve from it in the future. He also discusses changes made in editing, such as when he presents an alternate ending to “Kaddish for the Last Survivor.”

Along with these tales are two brand new stories. There is “[[[Empty Spaces]]]”, a continuation of the aforementioned trilogy, and the titular tale “I Remember the Future”, which gives us a present tense narration from a retired writer who fears that humanity has forgotten how to truly dream.

These stories are all heartfelt and entertaining and each one appeals to a different taste and preference. If you enjoy science fiction, pick it up. If you don’t normally go for sci-fi, hey, still pick this up. These stories are, at their core, about people and the world we all deal with. And who can’t find something to enjoy about that?

Alan “Sizzler” Kistler has been recognized by mainstream media outlets such as the New York Daily News as a comic book historian, and can be seen in the “Special Features” sections of the Adventures of Aquaman and Justice League: New Frontier DVDs. His personal website can be found at: http://KistlerUniverse.com. One of these days he’d love to write for DC, Marvel or Doctor Who.

Horror Review: [[[Dance of the Dead]]]

Horror Review: [[[Dance of the Dead]]]

dance-boxDance of the Dead Synopsis

On the night of the big high school prom, the dead rise to eat the living, and the only people who can stop them are the losers who couldn’t get dates to the dance. Filled with a plethora of high school stereotypes, the group takes on a town for of brain hungry zombies and vow to save what’s left of the town from the adjacent power plant that seems to be the cause of the recent resurrections.

Lowdown

Those in the mood for a great zombie flick should pick this one up. Other critics have been quoted saying this film “makes [[[Carrie]]] look like [[[Pretty in Pink]]]”, though if you were to truly classify it, it’s much more like [[[Shaun of the Dead]]] meets [[[Breakfast Club]]]. Any fan of film who has seen dozens upon dozens of zombie movies knows the feeling of “how much ass they would kick if zombies were real”. Well, this movie does it for you, bringing out the Sci-Fi nerd in all of us as a group of high school freaks and geeks take on a town full of zombies.

The group is filled with just about everybody you would need in a zombie uprising: the Jackass-style bad boy, the heroic yet sassy wiseass, the ditzy cheerleader, the know-it-all class president, the stoner rock band, the militant gym teacher, and of course the pack of nerds. Each member has their fifteen minutes as a hero, and then dies off or becomes second banana to the main love story between the wiseass and the class president. That’s right: the zombie comedy has a romantic twist, and you’ll enjoy it.

The actors in the film do a pretty good job of playing the high school outcasts. Though there are a few “[[[90210]]] moments” where a few supposed teens look to be in their late twenties or early thirties rather than high school ages, but they all play their parts well. There were a few moments when the wiseass of the group was doing his schtick, and didn’t come across as very funny, but he was the hero, so we let it slide. The hardest thing is trying not to think of the preexisting characters that a few of the nerds are trying to portray. One actor feels like he watched [[[Napoleon Dynamite]]] a few dozen times before squeezing into his role, and it only distracts from the zombie kickassery.

dance-promoThough the movie takes itself about as serious as anything produced by Troma in the last 30 years, there is a bit of story inconsistency throughout the film. Strictly looking at this like a zombie movie, the fact that certain zombies are the infamously slow-moving Romero creatures, while others are literally jumping from the grave and chasing down teens is a bit hard to swallow. At least in Shaun, all zombies were lurching monsters, which they used to their advantage. Outside of this, the movie is loads of fun to enjoy.

The camp factor is just off the charts for this film, which, thankfully, is what they were going for. Fans of the genre get everything from zombies driving cars, to a zombie sex scene, and even the ever loved line “BRAAINS!” Of course, the most important rule taken from the film is that zombies are intoxicated by rock music. That’s right, next time you are plagued by zombies, just throw on some Zeppelin and you can waltz right out of danger. This film has got “cult classic” written on it from the get-go. This is the kind of movie that friends in a dorm room will gather around and enjoy years from now, which could be a good or a bad thing.

The special effects are on the better side of most other flicks in the genre. There’s lots of ripped flesh, and some nice effects with eyes going cloudy. Probably the most expensive scene is in a graveyard when the undead literally leap out of the graves. This was pretty well done, and the movie as a whole doesn’t skimp on any of the effects or attempt things that are outside of the budget.

This movie is certainly worth a watch, and probably worth buying if you are a fan of the genre. I expect good things to come out of this team after this, and if the end of the film is any indicator, that could be very possible. You may not be scared more than once or twice, but you will laugh out loud in the times you didn’t.

Scare Factor: 3/5

Overall Rating: 8/10

Review: ‘The Vertigo Encyclopedia’

Review: ‘The Vertigo Encyclopedia’

The Vertigo Encyclopedia
By Alex Irvine
DK Publishing, September 2008, $29.99

There are few ways to produce a traditional encyclopedia, usually beginning with an alphabetical listing.  Most come with illustrations and are written in an academic style with little in the way of adjectives let alone opinions.  Graphic presentation may be the key difference between one publisher and another.  The role of illustrations grew in importance largely when Microsoft introduced [[[Encarta]]].

Leave it to [[[Vertigo]]] to show how things can be done in another way entirely.  The DC Comics imprint was a natural evolution from a line of titles, largely edited by Karen Berger, in the late 1980s as writers such as Alan Moore, Jamie Delano and Grant Morrison began taking fresh looks at the occult and many of DC’s more offbeat creations.

Once the line was on its own, it quickly found its voice and thanks to DC’s design department, the covers certainly looked less like standard DC fare and more like paperback books.  The subject matter also moved away from just looking into the shadowy corners of the DC Universe but pioneered a lot of creator owned material that began in the realm of the occult but also examined super-heroes, families, and even the search for God.  The line has now become its own mini-publishing empire with comic books, original graphic novels and the just canceled Minx line of black and white digests for tweens.

DK’s [[[Vertigo Encyclopedia]]] examines the line’s output from its inception through today and as written by Alex Irvine, makes some of the tougher to comprehend titles, more easily digestible.  Irvine is an accomplished novelist and major fan of the Vertigo line and his enthusiasm surprisingly comes through on many of the entries. The writing is clear and detailed and the significant titles that deserve the most space (Sandman, Preacher, Transmetropolitan) get it complete with significant events identified.

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Horror Review: Dark Floors

dark_boxSynopsis

A father, concerned for his autistic daughter’s health, sees her immediate removal from the hospital as her only option. An elevator break-down prevents a smooth exit and renders them trapped with others. This is only the beginning of their descent into hell. When the doors finally open, the hospital appears mysteriously deserted. As mutilated bodies are found, creatures from a dark world start a frightening attack. It soon becomes clear that the survival of the group may rest solely on the little girl.

Lowdown

The one thing that needs to be known before watching [[[Dark Floors]]] is that this film is primarily a showcase for the Finnish metal band Lordi. Those unfamiliar with the band should consider them like Rob Zombie meets [[[GWAR]]]. The international subtitle for the film is even “[[[The Lordi Motion Picture]]]”. The band, along with the leader Mr. Lordi, came up with the idea for the film, and star as all of the “monsters” in the film (in quotes because if you see a picture of the band, you know that this is what they normally look like, professional makeup and all). The members of the band are essentially playing themselves in the film. This film is to the members of Lordi like Moonwalker is to Michael Jackson, without anybody turning into a car. Sadly, this is probably the coolest part of the film. The plot takes itself a little too seriously, and with a weak and confusing resolution at the end, it really should have just been about the band members.

The effects are pretty well done, and just about on-par with a music video, which makes sense, seeing as how the director has also directed all of Lordi’s videos. The film is currently the most expensive movie made in Finland, weighing in at 300,000 Euros (which is about $390k). The monster makeup is great, but if you ever seen images of the band itself, this is pretty much how they look 24/7. Not knowing that the film is about the band makes for a confusing ride. You’ll find yourself asking why the monster has a goatee and dressed like Meatloaf circa 1984.

Being written by a Finnish metal band and directed by a Finnish director makes it pretty hard to take place in the United States. The leads of Noah Huntley ([[[28 Days Later]) and Dominique McElligott are both from the UK and they begin to lose their American accent about halfway through the film. The brooding band members do a great job brooding and Skye Bennett does a great job as the precognitive-but-creepy little girl, Sarah.

lordiThe fact that the film takes itself serious while the primary antagonists are members of a metal band should show how campy the movie is overall. If you are in on the joke of this film, it can be pretty funny, like “Hey look, the guitarist is chasing that lady down a hallway, he must be terrible!”. So beware: if you watch this film without that knowledge, you may fall into the trap of taking it too seriously.

Overall, the film looks gorgeous and will keep you entertained with a “time loop” plot twist. Though the main plot comes off as a little pretentious, the fact is that this is essentially from the mind of a Finnish metal band about the characters they portray, so you’ll be scared as much as you’d laugh if it where the Hall & Oats chasing you around an abandoned hospital.

Scare Factor: 3/4

Overall Rating: 6/10

Review: ‘The Mammoth Book of Best Crime Comics’ edited by Paul Gravett

Review: ‘The Mammoth Book of Best Crime Comics’ edited by Paul Gravett

The Mammoth Book of Best Crime Comics
Edited by Paul Gravett
Running Press, August 2008, $17.95

Every genre or medium has a great schism – the thing that practitioners and fans argue about when they can’t think of anything more substantive. For “speculative fiction,” it’s the battle between science fiction and fantasy. For “crime fiction,” the battling parties are cozies and hardboiled novels. [[[Manga]]] is divided shonen against shojo, and romances are contemporary or historical (with select ninja bands fighting for particular historical periods or contemporary subgenres, like the Regency or the prairie romance).

For comics, the essential question is: writing or art?

Oh, sure, we’re all supposedly grown up now; we don’t fight over that anymore. We can have both! we say, whether we’re indy geeks or Marvel zombies. But during those late nights at convention bars, and on obscure message boards, the knives come out, and we rumble.

At times like that, I always come down on the writing side. That’s my tribe; I came to comics from the SF/Fantasy world, and even now I read more pages of words without pictures than with. And the editor of [[[The Mammoth Book of Best Crime Comics]]], Paul Gravett…well, I suspect him of running with the art crowd.

Maybe I’m wrong – it could just be the material that gives that impression. But [[[Best Crime Comics]]] has a total of five of its stories (out of twenty-four) credited to an unknown writer, a suspicious number. And Gravett’s story introductions always list the artist first.

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Review: ‘Fringe’ Episode #106

Review: ‘Fringe’ Episode #106

Note: Click here for the last mystery!

Autopsy Report: “[[[The Cure]]]”
From Fox: “After weeks of being reported missing, a woman with a rare disease resurfaces in suburban Massachusetts and inexplicably causes excruciating pain and subsequent death to those she encounters. As the gruesome scene is investigated, dangerous levels of radiation are detected, and unusual circumstances surrounding the case point to illegal human drug trials and possibly something even more sinister. Meanwhile, Walter obsesses about cotton candy, Peter strikes a bargain with Nina Sharp and a startling piece of Olivia’s past is revealed.”

Doctor’s Notes
Last week’s [[[Fringe]]] was a remarkable letdown. Fresh off the heels of “The Arrival,” the season’s greatest episode, Fringe turned in “Power Hungry,” a colossally boring hour of television and certainly the worst installment in the series. This week, things get back on track in “The Cure,” offering excellent development in terms of plot and character.

In “The Cure,” a woman walks into a diner in suburban Massachusetts and has a radioactive freak out resulting in the very bloody deaths of herself and everyone around her. Olivia and her team investigate the incident, learning that the woman had a rare disease shared by another woman named Claire, and the disease was being combatted with an obscure radioactive treatment. Olivia discovers that they’d been kidnapped by Intrepus, Inc., a rival corporation to Massive Dynamic, where they were experimented on and essentially turned into human weapons of mass destruction. Olivia naturally saves the day, but sacrifices are made in the process that are sure to haunt the team in the future.

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