Halloween Top Twelve

 With today being Halloween, and we're all celebrating all things scary, I've put together a quickie list of my Top Ten Horror Movies. These are completely my personal favourites. Come up with your own list and let me know what your scary movie favourites are.

12. Hellraiser
11. Let The Right One In
10. Quarantine
09. The Exorcist
08. Ju-On
07. The Asphyx
06. The Woman in Black
05. The Changeling (1980)
04. The Evil Dead
03. The Shining
02. Alien
01. The Thing

What's your Top Twelve?

Disney Buys Lucasfilm for $4.05 Billion

The big news for geeks this morning is the acquisition of Lucasfilm Ltd. by the Disney Corporation. George Lucas signed over the rights to all Lucas properties yesterday, including the money making Star Wars franchise. Lucas, who announced his retirement in June has given the deal his greatest confidence, "It's now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation of filmmakers," Lucas said in a statement. "I've always believed that Star Wars could live beyond me, and I thought it was important to set up the transition during my lifetime."

Even more mind boggling, Disney CEO Bob Iger announced plans to release a new Star Wars film every two to three years, beginning with Star Wars: Episode VII in 2015. "We have a pretty extensive treatment of the next three movies," Iger told a conference call of analysts and journalists late Tuesday afternoon. No director or stars have been announced.

Happy Halloween!

Empire Strikes Back Documentary Lost Footage

 After all these years it's pretty amazing to learn there's actually behind-the-scenes footage from the original Star Wars trilogy that we haven't seen, but here comes 15 minutes of an untitled documentary pieced together by filmmaker Michel Parbot, who was given full access to the set of The Empire Strikes Back. The finished doc never saw a commercial release, and Parbot went on to work on another doc about the film called SPFX: The Empire Strikes Back.

This doc, however, remained hidden, though 15 minutes of it was unearthed via an old Dutch TV documentary that must have aired it a long time ago because this sucker is dirty. The video begins in Dutch, but switches over to English 45 seconds in. According to MintinBox.net (via Open Culture, who first posted the footage), this doc is known as "one of the most lost documentaries about the Empire Strikes Back."



 They explain: "Why is that story so mysterious? Well, because it was broadcasted only once on TV, then it disappeared anonymously. It was time to rediscover it, to reveal again its existence and its contents. Let's start the story where it starts…

September 22, 1980 on FOX Television: the Americans were able to discover a documentary named "SPFX: The Empire Strikes Back," with a voice-over and it was dedicated to the special effects of the Empire Strikes Back, though it didn't contain that many interviews. On IMDb, it is referenced here and Michel Parbot is credited as the cameraman in the part Camera and Electrical Department. This documentary can be watched today, as it is part of the Saga's Extras on the Blu-ray discs. Contrary to the "SPFX" documentary, it is especially focusing on interviews (actors, technicians, director and producer). Even George Lucas appears time to time and very briefly. The "making of" documentary is in four parts: Introduction, Norway, Characters, Special Effects."

The site includes a lengthy article about the doc, including stills from each of its four parts. Hopefully someone will be able to dig up the rest of it, specifically part four which focuses on the special effects and the score. Thanks to /Film for the discovery.

Article written by Erik Davis for Movies.com.

New Movies: Friday, October 26, 2012

Silent Hill: Revelations 3D

Heather Mason (Adelaide Clemens) and her father (Sean Bean) have been on the run, always one step ahead of dangerous forces that she doesn't fully understand. Now on the eve of her 18th birthday, plagued by horrific nightmares and the disappearance of her father, Heather discovers she's not who she thinks she is. The revelation leads her deeper into a demonic world that threatens to trap her forever.

Cloud Atlas
Cloud Atlas explores how the actions and consequences of individual lives impact one another throughout the past, the present and the future. Action, mystery and romance weave dramatically through the story as one soul is shaped from a killer into a hero and a single act of kindness ripples across centuries to inspire a revolution in the distant future. Each member of the ensemble appears in multiple roles as the stories move through time.

Fun Size
A teen comedy centered on a sarcastic high school senior, Wren (Victoria Justice), who is eager to distance herself from her dysfunctional family by going off to college. Before that can happen, Wren's mother, Joy, insists that she watch her little brother Albert on Halloween night. When Wren gets distracted by an invitation to the party of the year, Albert disappears into a sea of trick-or-treaters. Frantic to locate him before their mother discovers he's missing, Wren enlists the help of her sassy best friend April, as well as Peng, an aspiring ladies man and co-captain of the debate team, and Peng's best friend, Roosevelt, a sweet nerd whose crush on Wren clouds his better judgment. This unlikely foursome embarks on a high-stakes, all-night adventure to find Albert, crossing paths with outrageous characters every step of the way.

Pusher
Follows street dealer Frank (Richard Coyle) through a hellish week as his life completely unravels. Naively believing that he's got a sure thing on his hands, Frank borrows money from his supplier, Milo (Zlatko Buriæ, reprising his role from the Danish trilogy), in order to get in on a big drug deal. When things don't go according to plan, Frank has to scramble to come up with the cash on his own to pay back Milo. Frank risks losing not only his life, but his humanity.

Horns: A Novel

I’m a little late to the game but I’ve been reading a great novel called Horns, written by Joe Hill. His full name is Joseph Hillstrom King and was born June 4^th, 1972 in Bangor, Maine. He is the oldest son of horror master Stephen King. He changed his name to Joe Hill early on to avoid being compared to his famous father. Once the secret was found out he had already published 2 critical hits, 20th Century Ghosts and Heart-Shaped Box. He can certainly stand on his own reputation even though his father usually enters the conversation. They have collaborated on 2 short stories. Joe began writing for comic books and his acclaimed series Locke & Key, which began in 2008, continues to this day.

In 2010, Hill published Horns. I have read 20^th Century Ghosts prior to picking this novel up. It’s a great read. It starts off a bit weak, but when it delves into the main characters back story it shines. It follows a character named Ignatius Perrish, Ig for short, in his search for answers to “what happened last night?” Ig woke up one morning after a night of drinking with a pair of horns growing from his forehead. Devil’s horns actually. While looking for help from various members of his family and the girl he’s sleeping with, Ig finds out his horns come with an interesting side effect. People are compelled to tell their dark secrets to Ig when they see him. Ig can even influence those people into doing acts they may not have thought of. He makes the unfortunate discovery that members of his family are disappointed in him and even wish he would never come back. However, it’s the confession from his older brother Terry that starts a whirlwind search for truth.

Joe’s writing style is Spartan. Many of his chapters contain 1 paragraph. He has an ability to build up suspense without relying on overblown descriptive prose. The concept is original and Ig is a likeable character though he is in an unlikeable position. He’s an everyman, someone who isn’t the famous son, or the talented son. He’s not the perfect boyfriend but loves with all his heart. His flaw is he trusts too much, and he hangs on too tightly to childish dreams. Ig is bound to be used horribly and in that he is left scrambling for answers, using a part of his nature – his darkness – to come to grips with a heartbreaking situation.

Horns is being adapted for the movie screens, currently filming with Daniel Radcliffe in the lead role. It’s due out in 2013, and from the early promo shot of Radcliffe it looks promising. Well, I guess we’ll see what they use from the book and what they leave out. It will be a different role for the former Harry Potter.

In 2013 Joe Hill will release his latest novel NOS4A2, which Amazon says is about a "‘vicious country rube’ named Charlie Manx that happens to be 140 years old. Says Hill, ‘He's a very bad man with a very bad car. Bad things happen to the children who get in the car with him. These children wind up being driven to a place called Christmas Land, and if Disney Land is the happiest place on Earth, Christmas Land is the unhappiest place NOT on Earth. It's partially about people who have unnatural powers that they derive from vehicles’”

Fiction Factory: Cilla Ambrose (Part 3)

Cilla felt around under Ray’s bed, she couldn’t feel anything. She laid on her stomach and crawled right under and finally found what must be his secret. It was a box. She grabbed it and squirmed her way backwards out from under the bed. It was a wooden box, about the size of a shoe box but crafted from a light wood and a dark wood. It was very pretty. It had a brass hinge, and a dull brass latch on the front. Of course, through the latch was a lock which could prove a problem. There were symbols on the outside of the box, scratches roughly made with something sharp, of different shapes and letters. Well. If they were letters Cilla couldn’t read them. Some of the symbols were the same as the tattoos on Ray’s wrist.

She shook the box, there was rattling inside. A loose rattling like marbles or a lot of small somethings inside. She put it down and tried to think of a solution to get inside.

A spark of light flickered on the wall. A pinkish light.

Cilla noticed it out of the corner of her eye. She looked but the flickering stopped. A couple seconds later it started again, faster.

Cilla looked and saw the light dancing around the wall. It stopped as a point of light. She raised her palm against it and the spot shone on her palm. She turned and looked behind her to the source of the light coming from under Ray’s bed. Cilla crouched down and peered beneath into the darkness. A small spot flashed. She crawled on her stomach under the bed. She reached her hand out to touch the light. Under her fingers she felt a tiny glass object. It shone with a bright pink light. She reversed out from under the bed and cupped the object in her palm. It was a crystal, not a smooth shaped crystal but a rough crystal from the ground. It a light pink and as she turned it in her fingers it sparkled in many points of light. It was slightly warm too.

Cilla sat and stared at it for a while. She glanced from the box to the crystal and suddenly panic gripped her. She’d been too long in Ray’s bedroom, she forgot the time and he would be returning soon.

The crystal began to spin. It spun slowly at first. Cilla picked it up in her fingers and felt the gentle vibrations through her skin. It vibrated so forcefully she dropped it on the floor and it bounced across the carpet. Cilla grabbed it and stared at it closely. It began to heat up and shake worse. She dropped it but it hung in the air in front of her. It slowly rotated in its suspended animation. Then it shot forward and hit Cilla oin the chest, it began to vibrate again to drill its way through her shirt and into her chest. It started to burn and Cilla began to cry out. It hurt. Hurt like a doctors needle hurt. She swatted at it, trying to get it off her. She had to run, to get away but just as she stood up to run and get help it slipped in. She stopped and hitched her breath. The crystal entered her chest and a burst of heat spread through her body and out through her fingers. She was frozen, couldn’t move. For a moment her thoughts were stopped and Cilla was trapped in her body. She couldn’t feel the floor, the carpet on her feet. For a moment life paused.

With a small sigh she crumpled to the floor and life restarted.

Cilla lifted the front of her shirt and saw a small red spot fading from the centre of her chest.  She couldn’t believe what was happening to her. Panic began to rise again.

Ray!

She scrambled to get out of his room, she grabbed the box with the intentions of replacing it under his bed but as she grabbed the outside of it, it began to glow. She saw through it like an xray, at the many crystals inside the box. Ray had a collection of them. She looked down at the warm spot on her chest and saw a muted light coming out from her skin. The lock on the latch popped open and all the crystals came flooding out of the box and collided with Cilla.  Time stopped, each crystal entered her in many areas, each a spot of heat and pain. Each brought new feelings and exhilaration. She loved this. The crystals brought something to her life she hadn’t felt before: love.

Say It Ain't So OJ

Add this to the "Seriously??" file.

According to the National Enquirer, OJ Simpson is selling the knife "he" used to kill his wife, Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman.

Here's an example of some of the Enquirer's latest headlines:

EVIL MOM WHO SUPER-GLUED TOT GETS 99 YEARS

LEATHERNECK HUNK SAYS NO TO GAY KINGPIN CASTING COUCH 

TASTY EATS! CANNIBAL CHEF SLOW BROILED WIFE TO DEATH

So, it's "grain of salt" time here at the Blabber and you will take it.

From the Toronto Sun:

O.J. Simpson is secretly selling the knife used to kill his former wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman, according to a report from the National Enquirer.

According to a source the newspaper is quoting, Simpson is asking $5 million.

"(O.J. is) looking for a strictly cash deal so that the money can be deposited in offshore accounts and can't be traced directly to him," the National Enquirer reported a source close to the ex-football star and actor told the paper.

Simpson has long denied owning the knife, having been found not guilty of the murders of Goldman and his wife, who were slashed to death outside Nicole's Los Angeles home on June 12, 1994. His "trial of the century" was one of the most sensational in U.S. history.

A civil jury in 1997 found Simpson liable for the deaths and ordered him to pay $33.5 million in damages to the murder victims’ families.

The Enquirer reported - again from a source close to Simpson - that the knife is presently stashed in the Bahamas, where it awaits the highest bidder.

"It's not just about the money," the source reportedly told the paper. "O.J. will get sick satisfaction from putting one over on the cops and Ron Goldman's family. He'd love to think he's outsmarted them."

Simpson is currently serving up to 33 years in prison for a 2007 armed robbery in which he claimed he was trying to recover his own sports memorabilia.

In the style of lazy journalism cultivated the world over, I've just relayed a story from a paper who is relaying a story from another paper. See how fun that is?

New Movies: Friday, October 19, 2012

Alex Cross
Follows the young homicide detective/psychologist (Tyler Perry), from the worldwide best-selling novels by James Patterson, as he meets his match in a serial killer (Matthew Fox). The two face off in a high-stakes game of cat and mouse, but when the mission gets personal, Cross is pushed to the edge of his moral and psychological limits in this taut and exciting action thriller.

 

Paranormal Activity 4
The story takes place in 2011, five years after Katie killed her boyfriend Micah, sister Kristi, her husband Daniel and took their baby, Hunter (now named Robbie). Story focuses on Alice and her mom, experiencing weird stuff since the new neighbors (Katie and Robbie) moved in the town.

 

The Sessions
Based on the autobiographical writings of California-based journalist and poet Mark O'Brien, this movie tells the story of a man confined to an iron lung who is determined--at age 38--to lose his virginity. With the help of his therapists and the guidance of his priest, he sets out to make his dream a reality.

 

Citadel
Tommy Cowley (Aneurin Barnard) lives a quiet life in a decaying apartment complex with his highly pregnant wife. The couple is attacked one day by a group of hooded young thugs, and after a shocking act of violence, Tommy is left to raise his newborn daughter alone.

So shaken by the events that he’s developed extreme agoraphobia, Tommy alternates days hiding out indoors in his new flat from imagined threats and intense therapy sessions aimed at bringing him back to normalcy.

When the same hooded gang, seemingly intent on kidnapping his daughter, begins terrorizing his life again, he’s torn between his paralyzing fear and protective parental instinct. With the help of a vigilante priest who has uncovered the genesis of this ruthless, potentially supernatural gang, Tommy must overcome his fears and venture into the heart of the abandoned tower block known as the CITADEL to save his family.

Winner of the Midnighter Audience Award at the 2012 SXSW Film Festival, CITADEL brings a fresh take to classic horror by raising the question: How can you protect your family from evil when you’re afraid of everything?

Bigfoot: The Lost Coast Tapes
Sean Reynolds, a highly acclaimed investigative journalist (who strongly believed in paranormal phenomena), destroyed his career when the most watched episode of his reality show, based on paranormal phenomena, turned out to be a hoax. Sean saw a news report on a "Bigfoot Hunter" (Carl Drybeck) who claimed to possess the body of a dead Sasquatch. He believes Drybeck is a phony and decides to create a new show that reveals people's paranormal claims as hoaxes. Sean assembles his old film crew and heads to Northern California's "Lost Coast" to meet with and interview Drybeck. Obsessed, Sean is staking his comeback, his life and the lives of his documentary film crew on proving Drybeck's claim to be a hoax.

Fiction Factory: Cilla Ambrose (Part 2)

Cilla found a box under Ray’s bed, she’d been snooping she knew that, but she was trying to find Ray’s “stash”. Ray spent many hours shut up in his room, he would go in one Ray and come out a different Ray all together. Cilla was afraid of Different Ray. Her mother tried to understand and tried to live with Ray’s moods, with his chalk and cheese transformations night after night. There was something in that room, something illicit, which Cilla meant to find to prove she was not being childish.

“Cilla, stop being ridiculous!”
“Mom, I’m telling you he’s weird. He’s constantly looking at me. He creeps me out.”
“Okay, I’ll talk to him …”
“NO! I don’t want you to! It’s bad enough without him knowing I’m talking to you.”
“How are you supposed to feel comfortable around him if we don’t sort this out?”
“Forget it, just forget it!”

Cilla stormed out of her mother’s room. Ray was walking down the hall, all smiles.

“Hey kiddo, what’s the problem?”

She ignored him and shoved her way past. She burst into her room and slammed the door behind her. Flopping down on her bed, she stared at the ceiling and listened to Remy in the cage beside her. Remy was the only one who would hear her complaints and not laugh at her. Not treat her like a child. Remy was a rat of course and not able to help her out, but he was a being she could vent her frustrations on.

“She didn’t believe me.”

Remy rustled his wood chips, searching for a pellet to munch on.

“Wouldn’t even consider it.”
Remy ran up the ramp to the top level of the cage. He squirmed into his wooden box and watched her through the large hole cut into it. Sometimes she thought Remy could understand her. In the way he squeeked or the way he looked at her. It makes it easier to talk to him if she believed he was listening. It made a difference.

“I’m finished being treated like I’m a freak, like I’m crazy.”

Cilla leaned over the edge of her bed and pulled out the scissors she kept there. She opened them and looked at the two blades. She’s sat with them everyday for about a month. Since she decided she couldn’t take much more of Different Ray. She was afraid. She just couldn’t deal with the stress anymore, no one believes her. Different Ray was going to kill Cilla before her mother would believe her stories. She wasn’t going to let that happen, not like that. If Different Ray was going to kill her, then Cilla would do it for herself before he got the chance.

She ran a finger along one blade of the scissors. Not really sharp. It will have to do.

Remy began to run around his cage, up and down, up and down.

Cilla ran the edge of the blade along her wrist, the edge was dull it would take more work. It was worth it.

Remy began to squeek over and over. Cilla looked up at him, for a second paused to wonder what the problem was. She realized these things weren’t important now. Only escape mattered.

Cilla began to saw her way through the top layer of skin on her wrist, blood blossomed under the blade and began to flow. The pain burned through her hand, but she continued. She pressed harder and harder, trying to rupture her skin and hopefully the artery below.

Remy began to squeal fiercely but Cilla ignored him.

Almost through, her rescue was at hand.

Remy threw himself against the side of the cage with a clatter. Cilla, startled, stopped cutting and stared at the rat. He was staring at her, with conviction. It was crazy but she actually saw fear in his eyes. Worry over what she was doing. She turned and raised the blade again …

“Would you stop being an idiot and put those bloody scissors down!”

Cilla dropped the scissors and stared at Remy.

Fiction Factory: 3 Weeks, 7 Days (Part 2)

Two figures were climbing out of the darkness, Taylor could barely make them out in the dust. He felt around for some landmark to give him an idea where he was. The ground was dirt and broken concrete. Above him a small speck of light shining down. To his left, Taylor felt a flat object, he pulled it out of the silt and brought it in front of him. Feeling with his hands, the best he could estimate was an object resembling a sextant. The two figures slowly skulked their way forward.

“Mr. Langan? Mr. Langan, we’re here to help you?”

One voice, distorted through a speaker. Taylor assumed he was Mr. Langan but he had no recollection of his identity. One figure placed a hand on the shoulder of the other and came closer on its own.

“Mr. Langan, I’m Bruce. We were sent here to retrieve you on re-entry. Are you ok sir?”

Taylor tried to speak, his throat was dry. He waved his hand in response. Bruce came closer and offered a bottle to Taylor.

“Here sir, drink this.”

It was water, cold and refreshing. Taylor felt his throat easing up.

“Who are you?” Three words that passed like broken glass.

Closer, Taylor could make out the figure dressed head-to-toe in a respirator suit. Like a dusty Michelin Man, the figure shone a light in Taylor’s eyes.

“Good. Good. Your eyes seem to be functioning. Don’t worry sir, you’ll acclimatize and your functions will return. Nice to see you.”

“Where am I?”

“You’re right where we left you. 20 years ago.” Taylor could tell by the figure’s posture that this was all matter-of-fact, and quaint to him. The figure reached across Taylor and plucked the sextant from his lap.

“You don’t wanna be fooling with that now sir. You’ve only just arrived.”

Impatience rose in Taylor, “Who the hell are you?”

“Me? I’m your son. Come on, we’ve got to get you inside. They’ll have noticed the splashdown point and be sending out Grifters to retrieve you. Up, up let’s move!”

Bruce grappled the collection of concrete and stones scattered across Taylor’s legs, then pulled him to his feet. Slowly, the circulation returned to Taylor’s legs and he felt those familiar pins and needles running up his lower extremities. The second figure came over to help Bruce move Taylor through the dark.

“Hi,” a female voice, small and timid, “I’m Trish.”

She giggled, and they made their way.

Jackie Earle Haley

From 70's child actor to Oscar nomination, you would be pressed to remember him by name.

He's Jackie Earle Haley.

Born on July 14, 1961 in Northridge, California, Jackie Earle Haley began his career in commercials at age six. Throughout the 70's Haley became known for playing sarcastic kids like Kelly Leak in the Bad News Bears series. At 17 he played Moocher in the Peter Yates' film"Breaking Away" opposite Dennis Quaid, Daniel Stern and Dennis Christopher. He also reprised the character in the short-lived tv adaptation of the same name.

He made various guest appearances on TV shows such as Marcus Welby, M.D., Planet of the Apes, MacGyver, The Love Boat and Murder, She Wrote.

"I started acting when I was 5 years old. And I was pretty well known for a while. Your self-esteem and your identity start to become wrapped up in that celebrity, and when that starts to fade away, your self-esteem and your identity start to fade away with it. Those roles that I played and the success that I had, that is not who I am. It's part of who I am, but it's not everything. So when it drifts away and you start to feel increasingly insecure, it's kind of a long battle out of that."

During the 90's and 2000's Haley wasn't seen very much in front of the camera, he started his own production company, JEH Productions. It was in 2006 when friend Sean Penn convinced Steven Zaillian to hire him for the role of Sugar Boy in the remake of "All the King's Men." That role led to his Oscar nominated role as a paroled sex offender in Todd Field's "Little Children." Haley was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for this portrayal and in 2007 was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

"[Getting back into acting after so many years away] I was starting to reach this pretty cool place in life where I was emotionally the most accepting of where life had taken me, and financially, finally, not behind the eight ball -- far from rich, but at least not late on stuff. I met this beautiful lady who is an awesome life partner, and we're on our honeymoon in France, and life is good. And out of the clear blue, Steve Zaillian [the director] calls and he wants me to audition for this part in "All the King's Men." When I got back from the honeymoon, I got a shooter and an actor and a sound guy and we did this audition tape and sent it off to Steve. It had been a long time since I did this. But there was this feeling inside. Over the years, people had called about a movie here, a TV show there, and it never really panned out. There was something about this; it felt different and, I don't know why, but it kind of felt like, "Hmm, this could actually happen." The way this whole thing went down, it almost seems like kismet, karma, divine whatever. It felt like this was supposed to happen."

In 2009, Haley played the role of Rorschach in Zack Snyder's "Watchmen", a live action adaptation of Alan Moore's seminal graphic novel. The role earned Haley praise from critics in an otherwise unimpressive showing at the box office. (Note: I loved the movie but a lot of people didn't.) From there he went on to play Freddy Kruger in the remake of "A Nightmare on Elm Street". This year he is signed up for a role in Steven Spielberg's historical film "Lincoln"


Quotes provided by: IMDB.com

Pinocchio Says Goodnight

Dalton McGuinty has resigned as premier of Ontario.

"It is my great honour and privilege to serve you as premier," McGuinty said as he delivered the shocking news to an emergency, dinnertime caucus meeting Monday.

"It's time for renewal. It's time for the next Liberal leader."

McGuinty said he had visited the lieutenant governor earlier in the day and had asked for the legislature to be prorogued. He said he'd also asked Liberal party president Yasir Naqvi to schedule a leadership convention as soon as possible.

That's the best news the Toronto Sun has ever reported …

Image: QMI Agency

New Movies: Friday, October 12, 2012

Hear ye, hear ye!  It's Friday, and I'm nursing a wrenched back. However, with the advent of laptops I am able to communicate from a semi-upright position in my bed. So, let's have a look at what's new to the theatres today:

Argo

Based on true events, Argo chronicles the life-or-death covert operation to rescue six Americans, which unfolded behind the scenes of the Iran hostage crisis--the truth of which was unknown by the public for decades. On November 4, 1979, as the Iranian revolution reaches its boiling point, militants storm the U.S. embassy in Tehran, taking 52 Americans hostage. But, in the midst of the chaos, six Americans manage to slip away and find refuge in the home of the Canadian ambassador. Knowing it is only a matter of time before the six are found out and likely killed, a CIA exfiltration specialist named Tony Mendez (Affleck) comes up with a risky plan to get them safely out of the country. A plan so incredible, it could only happen in the movies.

Rated: R






Seven Psychopaths

Written and Directed by Oscar®-winner Martin McDonagh, the comedy Seven Psychopaths follows a struggling screenwriter (Colin Farrell) who inadvertently becomes entangled in the Los Angeles criminal underworld after his oddball friends (Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell) kidnap a gangster’s (Woody Harrelson) beloved Shih Tzu. Co-starring Abbie Cornish, Tom Waits, Olga Kurylenko and Zeljko Ivanek.

Rated: R

Sinister

Sinister is a frightening new thriller from the producer of the Paranormal Activity films and the writer-director of The Exorcism of Emily Rose. Ethan Hawke plays a true crime novelist who discovers a box of mysterious, disturbing home movies that plunge his family into a nightmarish experience of supernatural horror.

Rated: R

Grave Encounters 2

While researching the events depicted in the original film and the subsequent disappearance of its lead ”actor” Sean Rogerson, Alex Wright received a bizarre video from a mysterious blogger named “DeathAwaits666." Appearing to show Rogerson still alive but trapped inside the Collingwood Psychiatric Hospital from Grave Encounters, Alex and his friends agree to meet the blogger at the infamous hospital in hopes of learning what really happened. To their horror, they quickly find themselves face-to-face with unspeakable evil. Realizing that they must be smarter and faster than Rogerson and his crew to avoid suffering the same fate, they use their knowledge of the original film to do whatever it takes to survive.

Rated: NR








Synopses and images: Movieweb.com

Fiction Factory: Cilla Ambrose (Part 1)

So, when I was in highschool and early in my University life, I wanted to be a writer. Time, humility and the realization that nothing could come from such desires forced me from that path onto something quicker and easier. Lately, I've felt like I want to find that place again, to wander back to some old thoughts and a different way of viewing my life. I need to find a map first, I've lost my way. What I'm going to do is dabble, skip stones if you will and explore what I've put behind me.

I didn't say it would be good, but if you're feeling adventurous you may join me on this trek …

First up, a small beginning that stems from a camping trip, a roaring fire and a young girl's laughter:

Cilla Ambrose & The Crystalline Caves

 PART ONE: The Escape

She kept running. Running for her life.

Through the trees of the back woods. Over the rocks and through the creek. She ran for her life and away from the horror of her home. She kept running so he couldn't find her.

“You have to stop! You've been running for an hour.”

“I can't stop. He'll find us if I do. Have to get far away.”

“How far?”

“I don't know.”

It was only the two of them now. Cilla and Remy. Long time friends, now partners in this flight. Cilla turned 9 in February. Remy was 2. As a rat 2 was pretty old. He was Cilla's best friend, the only friend she had in her world. They argued sometimes but they adored each other.

“Where are we going exactly?” Remy asked from his perch on her shoulder, his wirey tail wrapped around her neck.

“Forward.”

“Cilla, you have to stop. It's getting dark and you can barely see the trres in front of you. Just stop. For a minute.”

“Do you wanna get caught?” She cried.

“We're away child. We can rest for a minute.”

Remy was right. They were a good ways from the house. Cilla had ran them deep into the woods that spread out beyond the property. Father would need awhile to find her. If he's looking.

Cilla slowed and sat down on a fallen tree to finally catch her breath.

“Good girl,” Remy said, “Take a moment.”

“Just a moment. We have to keep moving.”

“Do you really think your Father will be looking very hard, child?”

I will beat you until no one recognizes you, her Father's voice echoed.

“He's looking,” she said.

The light was fading fast. It was near November and the long summer nights were far behind them. It would be dark very soon and Cilla didn't know what to do.

* * *

The door slammed. She heard his heavy footsteps just like every day. She felt a tingle of fear rake the back of her neck. Flee.

“Cilla?”

His voice was loud; cannon fire.

“Where are you? Cilla, got a few questions for you! Where. Are. You?”

She was not going to answer him, not today. Never again. No way. The crawlspace was cramped but he couldn't get her. Ray was too fat to get in here. Ray was always too fat. Too mean. Ray liked to take his problems out on Cilla. Smack here. Kick there. Broken bones and bloody lips. Ray was a real humanitarian.

“Cilla?” Constant Remy, always by her side. His tiny voice the support she needed, “We need to leave. He's not going to let it go this time. He's never going to let you go.”

“CILLA!” His voice at the top of the stairs.

Run, flee, escape. All of the above. There was something, or someone she needed to take care of first. Before it can all be done. Finally. Done and forgotten. She needed to settle a score with Ray. A very old score, for her and her mother.

* * *

“His name's Ray.”

“Ray?”

“Yeah, Ray. You'll like him Cilla. Please give this a chance.”

“Ray. Ok, but if he calls me kiddo I will not be happy.”

Ray walked into Denny's at three o'clock on a Sunday afternoon and Cilla knew what he was. His pressed jeans, white dress shirt tucked in. Black leather belt, simple silver buckle. Hair parted to the side with a small amount of brylcreme, and a modest moustache. Cilla could see in his blue eyes, and white smile. Everything he was, everything he wasn't. Ray may walk the walk, but he would never be Cilla's father. Not if she had anything to do about it.

“Cilla? This is Ray.”

Ray put out his hand.

Cilla noticed the triangle tattoos on his wrist.

“How's it going, kiddo?”

Cilla looked at her mother with a blank stare.

The first time Ray hit Cilla was two months later.  

Rovio Announces Angry Birds Star Wars Release Date November 8, 2012

Angry Birds creators Rovio are going to a galaxy far, far away with their latest installment melding George Lucas's space opera with the piggie/avian feud that has gripped imaginations and touch screens since 2009.

November 8th, 2012...May the bird be with you!

Fiction Factory: 3 Weeks, 7 Days (Part 1)

Cripes it's been far too long since I last posted here.

Maybe that should change?

Ok, I'm gonna start working on something fictional - I might not keep up with it, but here's the starter:

It took them 3 weeks and 7 days to wipe us out.

They came while we squabbled with one another over fossil fuels and religious beliefs. They came while we voted on a new leader, and the world watched reality television. They came and destroyed us before we saw them coming.

Sunday, November 12, 2017 : Week One 

Taylor awoke with dirt in his mouth, and a pain in his head. He tried to move but there was a heavy weight on his legs. It was dark here, dry and it smelled like the attic when he found that dead bird. 

"Hello?"

Well, that's a start...not sure where or if that will go anywhere. A post-apocalypse story...so original!

Here's a few inspiration images I've pilfered...none of them are my property.