Tagged: wrong

Michael Davis: Be Careful What You Wish For… If You Suck

Ever see a movie or read a comic book that just sucked? Ever wonder how that god-awful piece of shit came to see the light of day?

I have. Not only have I wondered how something so terrible can get made, I’ve done stuff and wondered how in the hell I managed to pull it off something so bad and someone paid me for it.

I vowed never to make that mistake again, which is why all my current projects are at least two years in the making. I just signed a deal to write another novel and my first novel has yet to come out. I could write any book in three months but I’m smart enough (now) to take the long road when it comes to content. My latest book deal calls for me to deliver the first draft in a year. Do I need a year? Nope. Will I take the year? Yep.

I’ve learned the hard way that just because you can do a thing in five minutes does not mean you should do that thing in five minutes. Ask any woman, if you get my drift.

Some creative people do as much as they can as fast as they can for a variety of reasons, chief among those reasons, particularly for new creators, is money.

Money is the reason, in my humble opinion, that some new creative people find themselves with a wonderful opportunity and completely fuck it up. Case in point…

Some time ago someone called and told me of the sweetheart deal he had made with a major entertainment company. Frankly I was very surprised because the idea (in my opinion) was just horrible and all the work this person had done that I knew of was just not professional enough to warrant the sort of deal he was talking about. But what do I know?

I have no right what so ever to judge what anyone creates or what some company wants to pay for. My opinion as to what is published or made into a TV show or movie means nothing except to me in reality.

But… as a person who is in the position of green lighting projects for the various production and publishing companies, my opinion matters if you bring something to me. Even then I may not the final decision maker depending on the type of deal I’m in with what company. All that said, the project I’m talking about I would not pitch to anyone I have a relationship with. Besides, the person who has the project somehow secured a deal with a major player and they don’t need me anyhow.

The way the project is being handled it’s only a matter of time before the company writing the check will either pull funding or replace the creator who brought it to them. The project is ripe with production problems and personalities that will cause the funding company to bail or take away all the decision making from the creator who sold his rights to the funding company.

Why has this not happened already? Because the company writing the checks is new to the comic book business and they don’t know what’s bullshit and what’s not. But no one can keep up a smoke and mirror con job forever, eventually someone in the funding company will not give a fuck about the potential of the idea. They will start to wonder why the creator and his team have missed every deadline and call someone outside of the creator’s team to see what the fuck is up.

Sensing he was in trouble, the creator called me and asked me to be involved. I listened to the pitch because the company they had the deal with is huge. After the pitch I took a meeting with the team putting it together and realized that these guys were way out of their league. I explained to them where I saw real problems and cautioned them that the funding company would eventually see the same problems as I and grasp that the business plan and projections the creator and his team presented were unattainable at best and just bullshit at worst.

My comments were met with scorn and disbelief. Who was I to criticize them? They were the people with the deal. They were the people who were now in business with a major entertainment company. Who was I to rain on their parade?

I was the guy the entertainment company called a few weeks later and asked to take over the project.

I declined. It’s just too much trouble, I don’t have the time and working with the creator whose days are numbered would be a nightmare.

This really is a dream project for the creator and rather he listened to me or not I do so wish it works out. I hope that the funding company does not get to a point of no return and decide because they already spent X amount of money they have to publish to recoup at least some of that money back.

That, by the way, is one of the reasons you see shitty product in the entertainment marketplace. Corporate decides that although the product is shit someone will buy it and instead of losing one million dollars they lose nine hundred thousand.

I hope I’m wrong and as bad as the project is it does gang busters in sales. I hope if that happens and the creator is still involved with the project he will count his blessings and not make the same mistakes again.

I also hope for a threesome with Salma Hayek and Angelina Jolie while Jennifer Lopez makes me a egg sandwich and Kim Kardashian feeds it to me. I think that has a better chance of happening.

WEDNESDAY: Mike Gold Takes On The Fish… Again

 

 

Kick “Molly Danger” by Jamal Igle off right!

Kick “Molly Danger” by Jamal Igle off right!


Jamal Igle’s new creator owned graphic album series is about the world’s most powerful 10 year old superhero — but it’s not going to happen without your help, and there’s less than two days to make it happen and there’s still time to get in on the ground floor!

Molly Danger is the story of the world’s most powerful 10-year-old girl. A seemingly immortal, super strong hero, Molly has protected the city of Coopersville for the last 20 years. Kept in constant isolation and watched closely by D.A.R.T. (The Danger Action Response Team) an organization created to assist in her heroic deeds and monitor her movements, Molly battles the Supermechs. A team of cybernetically enhanced beings with unusual powers, Molly always defeats them and yet they always managed to mysteriously escape. Molly longs for a real life, with a real family, something she’s been told she can never have. She believes she’s an alien, whose family died when their ship crash-landed on Earth and before the atmosphere could fully alter them. She also believes that she’s alone, the last of her kind.

Everything she knows is wrong…

Taking Down “The Dark Knight Rises”

The Dark Knight RisesOuch, ouch, and more ouch.

FADE IN:

EXT. AIRPLANE

After DC COMICS reminds everyone of their shitty new logo, HANS ZIMMER plucks a couple strings until HOODED TOM HARDY and nuclear scientist ALON ABOUTBOUL are taken on board CIA AGENT AIDAN GILLEN’S PLANE.

AIDAN GILLEN

We were only expecting the scientist, who the fuck are you?

TOM HARDY
(in 5.1 surround)

Remember how the lasht villain was introduced in a full-head mashk, only revealing hish true face ash he pulled off an overly elaborate plan that involved shacrifiching hish own underlingsh?

(removes hood)

WE’RE DOING IT AGAIN, WITH NO SHURVIVORSH!

via If ‘Dark Knight Rises’ Was 10 Times Shorter and More Honest | Cracked.com.

And just for good measure, we have the folks at How It Should Have Ended weighing in:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLyoog562x4[/youtube]

Sadly, I can’t find much wrong with their critiques.

Then we have word that The Dark Knight Rises passes $900 Million in worldwide box office, while at the same time selling fewer tickets than Tim Burton’s Batman. Amazing, ain’t it?

ERROR 451: This Page Has Been Burned

It’s just another average day of internet browsing. You’re doing your thing, checking the news, maybe taking a detour to your favorite webcomic. Then, WHAM (or rather, the internet version of said sound effect).

ERROR 451.

What happened? Did the servers overload? Did the connection crash? Is the address wrong?

No; this page has been burned.

Error 451 is a new HTTP Error status code proposed by Google developer advocate Tim Bray. The code would pop up the same way an Error 404 code does — except instead of being told a page could not be found, a viewer would be informed that the site is being censored.

The number is an homage to Ray Bradbury‘s Fahrenheit 451, which takes place in a dystopian future in which firemen burn books because the government has declared reading illegal.

According to Wired’s WebMonkey blog, the biggest advantage of the 451 code is that it would explain why content is unavailable — such as which legal authority is imposing the restriction. This would let visitors know that the government, not the Internet Service Provider, is the reason for the page’s malfunction.  Currently, 403 errors are most often used when blocking access to censored pages.

Error code 451 would pop up in situations such as the Indian government’s censorship of the site Cartoonists Against Corruption, which was blocked because its critique of the government was deemed “defamatory and derogatory.”

The biggest problem with the code, Bray admits, is that many governments are not fond of the idea of transparent censorship. So, if we’re lucky — or not? — this code may be popping up in our browsers in the future.

Please help support CBLDF’s important First Amendment work and reporting on issues such as this by making a donation or becoming a member of the CBLDF!

Becca Hoekstra is studying journalism in San Francisco, California.

 

John Ostrander: What is True?

One of the primary rules for writing is “Write what you know.” As I’ve discussed before, the corollary question becomes “what do you know?” I can write characters that, on the surface, are totally unlike me because underlying there are elements that true for both of us. Granted, I need to get the details of those lives correct but the essentials – the feelings, the doubts, everything that makes us human – are the same. I just have to find out where that is in me and what it looks like.

So, for me, the more important rule is “Write what is true.” That will vary from person to person, from character to character. The corollary question then becomes “What is true?” I’m not asking “What is The Truth?” because I don’t think that The Great Objective Truth exists or, if it does, it can be perceived as such by each of us through the lenses of our own existence. What I’m asking is “What is true?” for each person, be they a living and breathing reality or a fictional creation.

Socrates famously said “The unexamined life is not worth living.” I would add: “The unquestioned belief is not worth having.” As kids, we’re all given a set of beliefs, be they about God, country, family, love, values and so on. That’s fine; we all have to start off somewhere. Parents have their beliefs about what is right and wrong, good and bad and it is both their job and their duty to instill those in their children. As the children grow and come to adulthood, it is their job to examine those beliefs and see if they are true for them. Do you believe something because your own experience, your own questioning, has brought you to that place or are you there because someone told you that is true and it’s what you must believe?

That’s my problem with dogma. It tells me that this is the truth and this is what I must believe whether my own experiences agree with it. It may be that my own experiences and my own questioning will bring me to the same place, the same conclusion or belief and that’s fine. I will have then earned that belief; it’s not a hand-me-down. It’s mine.

Dogma, whether religious, political, social or what have you, is easier. Questioning takes time, takes effort and may take you to places that you’re not comfortable to visit. It can shift your foundations. My questions about the existence of God made me feel like I was on a trapeze in the dark. I had just let go of one bar but I couldn’t see if there was another trapeze swinging towards me or if there was a net below. It’s still that way. I’m on a boat in the ocean but I don’t know which port is the destination or how long it will take to get there. The voyage, however, is necessary.

Where I wind up may not be your truth, and that’s fine. I accept that what is true for you is your truth and valid. It just may not be mine. Our truths could be opposite and we both may feel compelled to act on our truths and that may bring us into conflict. That’s also fine. I can oppose you and respect your truth without accepting it for my truth.

As for us, so with the characters we write. The best stories challenge the characters on a deep level, on what they regard as true. The situation challenges or shatters the character’s beliefs. They must find out what is true. If you as the writer have never done that yourself, how can you write it? First you must live it and understand the process and then it becomes useful to you as writer. Aside from talent, aside from skill, all you have to offer as a writer is who you are as a person and your own strengths and weaknesses as that person will become your strengths and weaknesses as a writer.

MONDAY: Mindy Newell

 

I’m going to try a little “Super Best Friends Forever” experiment here…

Super Best Friends Forever

Warner Bros. have put out some fantastic shorts during their DC Nation programming block on Cartoon Network. They are evolving one of those into a series – Teen Titans Go! It’s almost a continuation of the old Teen Titans animated series but either way, sounds like fun. I know a lot of folks were hoping SBFF would also move on to a half hour series as well but from what I’ve been hearing, it’s not likely and my question is – why?

Warner Bros. don’t believe a “girls” show has the same selling power as a “boys” show and I’d like to prove them wrong. I’d point them to the huge successes that were Lauren Faust’s Power Puff Girls (EDIT for clarity, I know Craig McCracken created PPG, Faust also worked on the franchise. Sorry if I confused anyone!) and My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic were, I’d tell them women make almost all the purchasing decisions for their household (specifically entertainment), that they are seriously underestimating how much parents spend on their daughters, and that children aren’t the only consumers of animated TV shows and their related products. I could do that but what I’d like to see right now is all of YOU do that.

Reblog or like this post if you’d not only watch a Super Best Friends Forever television show but buy products based on it. (Money talks, remember?) Add your own commentary or not but let’s see what the numbers say.

(Originally posted at The Bird And The Bat, whatcha think about that?)

Dennis O’Neil: Modern Times

Dennis O’Neil: Modern Times

Don’t believe the trash talk. I am really a religious guy. Let me elucidate.

It began with long phone conversations. Very, very long. Several of them. How many technical support people did I talk to over the last three days? Five? Six? I lost track. And then there were the trips to the computer store in the mall. Two of those. The first had us at the “genius bar” for two hours-plus. The second – today’s – went much quicker. Home again, home again, lickety split.

The weekend shot. Maybe I’ll get this column to Mike Gold reasonably promptly (and maybe not) but the book proposal I’d hoped to finish? Forget about it.

What was wrong? Good question nobody seems able to answer. A virus? Could be. Something else? Wouldn’t rule it out. Anything I can do to prevent recurrences? Well, if I don’t know exactly what the problem was…

I wish there was such a thing as an anxiety-o-meter and I wish I could buy one. At the mall, maybe. (Doesn’t the mall have everything?) Because I’m curious; I’d like to calibrate the amount of angst dealing with this, ahem, labor saving technological miracle has produced since Friday the way the MD calibrates my blood pressure. (And while we’re at it, can we have measurements for frustration, anger, and feelings of helpless inadequacy, too?) Bet the reading would be off the chart – depending, f course, on the chart

I used to write my comic book scripts on portable typewriters and once in a while, one of them would break down. Plenty annoying, let me tell you. But I don’t recall these mishaps causing much anxiety, maybe because I could understand them. I could wrap my primitive brain around the problem. I could see it. The little thingy that attached to the other thingy’s come loose. Or: my gosh, the letters on the page are blurred because the keys are so dirty… The dirty keys I could, me, myself, fix, with a toothpick. The other stuff would probably require a trip to the typewriter shop. But I knew what the problem was and I knew there was an algorithm that would right the wrong. (Step 1: Take the machine to the repairman. Step 2: Come back in a day or two and give the nice man some money. Et cetera.)

I spent much of the past weekend doing…I don’t know what. Phone pressed to (slightly defective) ear, or looking at a pleasant young man across a counter, I obeyed instructions. I had no idea why I was doing what I was doing, or what it was, or what to expect from it, or if it would solve anything. Finally, the pleasant young man did a cyberversion of Sherman’s march to the sea: offloaded, uploaded, reinstalled and home again, home again…

And back, when I couldn’t download the app the pleasant young man suggested I use. Stand. Wait. Another pleasant young man who seemed eager to help, and did. And now, having just watched a brilliant episode of Newsroom on HBO, I’m at the keyboard trying to honor a commitment.

Am I angry/bitter/frustrated? Do I feel I didn’t deserve this grief and that maybe, just maybe, we were all better off back in the day when electronic brains were the stuff of pulp sci-fi?

Or how about going back further, to when hunters and gatherers offered sacrifices to the beings – call them gods – that they knew must be out there because their lives were constantly disrupted by things they couldn’t understand, much less control and somebody had to be responsible. So they gave the gods livestock or grains or maybe cousin Matilda, the one who smelled bad. The calamities didn’t stop happening, but at least the sacrifices gave the tribesman a feeling of doing something.

Okay. So what I’ve been up to, recently, is offering sacrifices. There’s not a lot of livestock or plant food lying around the house, and heaven only knows where Matilda has got to, so I’ve sacrificed commodities I do have: patience and time.

Told you I’m religious.

(Editor’s Note: As usual, Mr. O’Neil delivered this column right on time, despite the technological distractions.)

FRIDAY: Martha Thomases Talks Dirty

 

Men Arrested in India for E-Mailing Cartoon

Men Arrested in India for E-Mailing Cartoon

When Jadavpur University professor Ambikesh Mahapatra e-mailed a cartoon mocking an Indian politician to friends, he probably didn’t expect to be arrested by local police in a midnight raid. Appallingly, Mahapatra and neighbor Subrata Sengupta were arrested in such a raid in April, and their case comes to trial in September. In response to the arrests, the West Bengal Human Rights Commission has asked authorities to take disciplinary action against the arresting officers and to compensate the men for their discomfort.

The Times of India shared the story, writing:

The duo got bail the next day, but the uproar caused by the arrests led to the WBHRC taking up the case on its own. The recommendations, which came on Monday, are, however, not binding on the government. Neither will they have any bearing on the ongoing case, which will come up for hearing at Alipore court on September 27. The three-member WBHRC is headed by Justice (retd) Asok Kumar Ganguly, who was part of the two-judge Supreme Court bench that delivered the 2G verdict earlier this year. Its other members are Justice (retd) N C Sil and S N Roy.

Quoting Jawaharlal Nehru, the commission said, “Nehru once said ‘it is good to have the veil of our conceit torn occasionally’. Referring to veteran cartoonist Shankar, Nehru also said, ‘Don’t spare me’”. Wondering why Mahapatra and Sengupta were victimized when “even during Emergency, when pre-censorship of the press was imposed, pre-censorship on cartoons was lifted after the first the first three months”, it found additional officer-in-charge Milan Das and sub-inspector Sanjay Biswas of East Jadavpur police station guilty of wrongful detention.

The Times further described the “crime” the men were accused of:

“At the time of their arrest, only allegations… were that they circulated by email a cartoon which was derogatory to hon’ble chief minister… Our constitution protects every citizen’s fundamental right of free speech and expression… No law in our country prevents criticism against ministers of chief minister however popular they may be or even a door-to-door critical campaign against ministers,” the WBHRC order said.

The commission found nothing wrong with the spoof. “This cartoon obviously referred to the recent political events in the aftermath of removal of Mr Dinesh Trivedi … and the appointment of Mr Mukul Roy. No one can attribute even remotely any suggestion which is lewd or indecent and slang … in respect of the subject. Therefore the case against those persons under Section 509 IPC prima facie does not lie,” it observed, questioning the grounds for framing of charges.

Mahapatra believes the arrests were retaliation ordered by someone superior to the arresting policemen and is protesting the arrest to prevent future harassment by officials. For more details on the case, visit The Times of India website here.

 

 

Few countries protect Free Speech as adamantly as the United States does, and censorship has a chilling effect worldwide. Please help support CBLDF’s important First Amendment work and reporting on issues such as this by making a donation or becoming a member of the CBLDF!

Betsy Gomez is the Web Editor for CBLDF.

REVIEW: Whatever Happened to the World of Tomorrow?

Whatever Happened to the World of Tomorrow?
By Brian Fies
208 pages, $14.95, Abrams ComicArts

The future never turns out like people predict. Nostradamus was wrong. Authors, philosophers, painters, and clergy have all been wrong about what the world of tomorrow will turn out to be. Depending upon when you were born and where you were raised, the future is either shockingly surprising or deeply disappointing. Brian Fies’ Whatever Happened to the World of Tomorrow? falls into the latter category.

The 2009 book is now out in softcover and a personal essay on what the world has become since the 1939 World’s Fair, which also parallels the development of geek culture since, after all, that was the first place Superman made a personal appearance as his popularity was just beginning to soar. The sky was the limit, it seemed, and the World’s Fair promised peace and prosperity at a time that war was already being fought in Europe and Asia. The fair seemed to be willing to war to stay away from our shores.

The promise of space adventures, which first appeared monthly in the pulp magazines, took off at this same period thanks to adventure serials in newspapers, radio exploits doled out in fifteen minute installments and then fifteen chapter serials shot on a shoestring but told at a such a breakneck pace you just had to come back next week to learn what happened next. At the same time, war shook America out of the Depression doldrums and forced manufacturing, technology, and science to stay one step ahead of the Axis powers.

Whatever Happened to the World of Tomorrow?, the long-awaited follow-up to Mom’s Cancer, is a unique graphic novel that tells the story of a young boy and his relationship with his father.

Spanning the period from the 1939 New York World’s Fair to the last Apollo space mission in 1975, it is told through the eyes of a boy as he grows up in an era that was optimistic and ambitious, fueled by industry, engines, electricity, rockets, and the atom bomb. An insightful look at relationships and the promise of the future, award-winning author Brian Fies presents his story in a way that only comics and graphic novels can.

Interspersed with the comic book adventures of Commander Cap Crater (created by Fies to mirror the styles of the comics and the time periods he is depicting), and mixing art and historical photographs, this groundbreaking graphic novel is a lively trip through a half century of technological evolution. It is also a perceptive look at the changing moods of our nation-and the enduring promise of the future.

Fies, best known for his award winning Mom’s Cancer, followed up with this look back at the promises of the past and the failure of the future to deliver. The story stretches from the World’s Fair to the final Apollo mission in 1975 and is told entirely from the point of view of Pop and Buddy and thanks to the miracle of comic book storytelling, the two age incredibly slowly while the world moves ahead in real time. It’s a conceit, using them as metaphors not actual characters, that doesn’t entirely work despite an Author’s Note up front, but it’s at worst a minor annoyance.

Interestingly, the book also tells the story of American society by showing the mindset as world events changed around us, going from the anything is possible 1940s to the disillusioned 1960s. Also reflective of this evolution are a series of faux comics featuring Commander Cap Crater and the Cosmic Kid. Imitating the styles of the 1940-1970s, these stories also show how comic books have grown ever more sophisticated in reaction to the changing readership. Fies does a terrific job matching the bad color registration and subtly adjusts the paper yellowing to reflect the ages as well as the ever more complex indicias.

The book also nicely integrates actual photography from space or of the fair along with images taken from the great futurist artist Chesley Bonestell. The storytelling, artwork, layout, pacing, and color are terrific and does a nice job taking us era to era even as our main characters oh so slowly grow and age. Dad remains representative of an American society whose time has passed and maintains his conservative stance which ultimately causes conflict with Buddy, who yearns for the future to be here now.

It’s the 1960s when everything changes as the Russians reach space before the Americans and it has become clear that the promises of the 1930s will not be kept. There’s a sense of anger and loss at this realization which also makes the 1970s a sad period when there’s little to believe in.

Still, Fies offers up an optimistic ending, pointing out the current technology boom of the last 10-15 years has once more awakened the endless possibilities offered in the years ahead. We may not be getting jet packs and interplanetary travel any time soon, but we are reminded there is a lot to look forward to.

REVIEW: Forever Marilyn

forever-marilyn-300x405-5595065Given her enduring appeal fifty years after her death, it can easily be argued that Marilyn Monroe was the signature pop culture icon of the 20th Century and her allure is lasting well into the next century. Last year, I read Max Allan Collins’ take on Marilyn’s death before watching Michelle Williams portray her in My Week with Marilyn. Her career has become the spine for the NBC series Smash. Her image is found in commercials, artwork, music videos, calendars, and on and on. While her appeal and persona don’t grab me, I respect her impact on America and the world.

Out this week form 20th Century Home Entertainment, in time for the morbid memorial, is the seven-disc Blu-ray set Forever Marilyn. Included in the set are the recently released Blu-ray editions of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), How to Marry a Millionaire (1953), River of No Return (1954), There’s No Business Like Show Business (1954), The Seven Year Itch (1955) and the Blu-ray debut of Some Like It Hot (1959) and The Misfits (1961). The cardboard packaging does not properly serve a collection of this magnitude. Similarly, there’s a paucity of extras to codify just how special Marilyn Monroe was as a personality, performer, and woman.

It’s not a comprehensive collection of her films and afficianados are upset over the deletions but in the grand scheme of things, this collection is a pretty solid sampler of her greatest works. If you’re feeling selective, they are also now available as individual releases. The reason has as much to do with the material as it does with the performer. Monroe was well situated, placing herself in the hands of directors Billy Wilder and Howard Hawks along with some very smartly written roles. While she might have been a wreck in her personal life, her choice of parts was pretty spot on as witnessed in this septet of films.

Of the films included, the only special feature love was showered on The Seven Year Itch which includes Audio Commentary by Billy Wilder Biographer Kevin Lally, Isolated Score Track, Deleted Scenes, Still Galleries, Theatrical Trailers, “The Hays Code: Picture-in-Picture with Sexual Innuendo Meter”, Marilyn Monroe Interactive Timeline, “Monroe & Wilder: An Intersection of Genius”, Fox Movie Channel presents “Fox Legacy with Tom Rothman”, “Hollywood Backstories: The Seven Year Itch”, and “Fox Movietonews: The Seven Year Itch” Given that the film gives us the iconic shot of Marilyn and the upblown skirt and a statue of that image is entitled Forever Marilyn, this is all very fitting.

The transfers to Blu-ray are fairly excellent and uniform, looking and sounding very impressive. And it’s fun rewatching the classics because they hold up nicely. You can enjoy them as film fare, recognizing Marilyn added to their luster and was not the cause. Credit has to be given to the writer, director and costars, which includes some fine work by Ethel Merman, Jane Russell, and Betty Grable. and Lauren Bacall.

Most of these are slight fare compared with other works of the time, but they remain marvelously entertaining starting with Gentlemen where Marilyn and Jane sing and dance in search of husbands. A variation on that theme is in the non-singing Millionaire with Marilyn, Betty, and Lauren as models (back when models had some meat on them). Merman is the focal point of Show Business, of course, but the story of The Five Donahues is nicely told. You can’t go wrong with a supporting cast including Donald O’Connor, Mitzi Gaynor, and Dan Dailey.

More dramatic fare is River where Robert Mitchum is a widower taken advantage of by gambler Rory Calhoun. When Calhoun’s wife Marilyn nurses him back to health things grow complicated. Director Otto Preminger shot this at the Jasper and Banff National Parks a so the scenery rivals Marilyn for beauty.

The two Wilder films remain the strongest in the set starting with Itch, a story of temptation in the form of Monroe as the sexy next door neighbor. She helps herself to Tom Ewell’s air condition while his wife and son are away and it’s all he can do to honor his vows. While entertaining, it treads a fine line between comedy and betrayal but it merely was a warm up to Some Like it Hot, one of the funniest films of the century. Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis were never sharper as men in drag, performing with Sweet Sue and Her Society Syncopators, an all-girl group, so as to avoid mobster George Raft. Monroe took all her screen personas and poured them into “Sugar” Kane Kowalczyk, a memorable character. A lovesick Joe E. Brown steals the film with the immortal last line.

The Misfits is remembered best as her final film, but it was also Clark Gable’s last screen appearance as he died within two weeks of wrapping production. Written by Arthur Miller, it’s a somber story to begin with and was given added weight for the bookend it provided her screen career. As their marriage was unraveling, Miller continued on rewrites which led to some autobiographical material seeping into the story which was conceived to put Monroe’s dramatic chops on display. Legendary John Huston oversaw a troubled shoot, drawing what he could from an ailing Gable and a drug addicted Monroe. Despite the credentials of director and writer and the talent of the cast, the finished film is uneven and never quite achieves its lofty goals.

Whether you’re eternally infatuated with Marilyn or not, there plenty of reasons in this collection as to why she captivated one generation after another. In Blu-ray, these dazzle and delight, offering you a good reason to sit down and enjoy these all over again.