Michael Adam Warren's Blog, page 11

Fincher Directed Mindhunter (2017-Present) Season 1 Released Today on Netflix

Although Netflix's latest original drama Mindhunter (2017) was created by Joe Penhall, his collaborator and fellow producer David Fincher looms large over the production and directed four of the first ten episodes himself. Mindhunter is the perfect opportunity for Fincher to flex his directorial muscles and lend this true-life FBI story but with far more breathing room and opportunities
The series is based on the book Mindhunter (1995), which was written by the central FBI Agents portrayed in the new Netflix series, John Douglas and Mark Olshaker. Of the two original authors, John Douglas is still alive and has been a creative consultant on the series. As for the TV adaptation itself, it looks like a realistic and honest look at some of the first FBI profilers who attempted to collect scientific data on the nature of serial killers.Honestly, I think David Fincher's interest in his other Netflix series House of Cards (2013-Present) has waned a bit after his initial powerhouse first season of that show. But all that creative joie de vivre he felt in that show's initial run seems to be on full display again in Mindhunter's first season. And in spades.
David Fincher is at the forefront of intelligent entertainment, having stunned film audiences since his earliest films in the early 1990's, particularly with Seven (1995) and Fight Club (1999). If he is not the best director currently working in Hollywood, then he at least has a shot at that title. And honestly, no insult to Tom Hooper's excellent film The King's Speech (2010), which I also love dearly, but David Fincher should have won the Oscar that year for The Social Network (2010). It was the case of a good film with a lot of Oscar buzz trumping
And interestingly, David Fincher seems ready to leave behind the faulty "tortured genius serial killer" premise that spurred on The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and helped launch his own career with Seven (1995), and acknowledge in this series that the sad truth is that most serial killers are severely abused and dysfunctional individuals who do not obsess with the fine arts and opera.
From the promotional interview with Charlie Rose above, David Fincher also mentions that he realized that his attempt to squeeze so much character development and story into the theatrical cut of Zodiac (2007) was essentially a bridge too far to cross and film audiences deserve a little more closure in their movie-going experience.
So David Fincher feels far more comfortable taking his time with Mindhunter (2017) and giving a long-form story to people in more manageable bites that they can watch in the comfort of their own home at their own pace and schedule. I admit, I think David Fincher is one of the best directors in the world and I look forward to all his new projects, but I think this story is probably one of the most personal and important for him in his career and I will look forward to watching and analyzing it in a future article.
And aside from not being able to direct every single episode and frame of the story himself, David Fincher still treats his TV show like one of his films. He is directing the first two and the last two episodes of the season, which I think is a great way to leave his seal on the proceedings. Fincher is a forward thinking visionary and I hope Quentin Tarantino and some of the other great film auteurs should consider following suit and creating more content for television, too. This is the time.

KCRW David Lynch Interview

Early yesterday, Oct. 11, Jason Bentley on KCRW Radio interviewed the venerated director David Lynch for a fascinating 40 minute interview to help promote the Festival of Disruption 2, which plays over this upcoming weekend in Los Angeles. You can listen to the entirety of the interview, including originally unaired segments, in the embedded audio player below.
David Lynch is his typical charming self as he starts off the interview lamenting that he had to dress up rather than look like a bum, as he usually prefers. They delve into a lot about music and sound design, particularly David Lynch's choices for Twin Peaks: The Return's soundtrack. Overall, I would recommend this to any and all David Lynch fans and for people interested in sound design and music.

The Man in the High Castle (2015-Present) Season 3 Sneak Peek

Phillip K. Dick's premise for the original book that Amazon's The Man in the High Castle (2015-Present) is adapted from, may seem simple enough to the naked eye, "What would the world be like today (in the 1960's) if the Nazis had won World War 2?" But is fascinatingly complex when applied to the practical day-to-day life of the typical American. What is it like to live under a fascist-socialist-racist government where all human beings do not have inalienable rights any longer?

Trailer for The X-Files Season 11

When The X-Files (1993-2002, 2016-2018) first aired, it was hot on the heels of David Lynch and Mark Frost's Twin Peaks (1990-91), where the FBI investigating the paranormal first began permeating the zeitgeist. And honestly, it was a great premise that needed to be explored and The X-Files frequently lived up to the premise and provided an invaluable gateway science fiction show for an entire generation of TV viewers.
When The X-Files made its way to the big screen, much of the audience hoped the show would step things up and carry the serialized conspiracy to the forefront. The stakes were upped and the game changed, but unfortunately The X-Files was partly the victim of its own success and the studio did not want to see their golden goose go away.
Annabeth Gish and Robert Patrick Did Their Best, But Could Not Really Replacethe Smoldering Onscreen Chemistry of Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny Fox was earning unprecedented ratings, and so like The Simpsons, Fox did not want the showrunners to devise an endgame strategy for the show and the story just kept deteriorating in evermore convoluted ways. For that reason, the show meandered for a few seasons and at one point near the end of its original run, did not even star the iconic leads Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny any longer. It was adrift.
So when it was announced a few years ago that The X-Files were returning for a six-episode run in 2016 with the original stars, fans of the original series were naturally excited but also hopeful that the show would hunker down and lay out a final endgame. And in some ways, Season 10 did, with some fascinating intertextual twists and turns that will be fascinating to follow through with in the upcoming Season 11.
Barbara Hershey Will Play a Significant New Role in Season 11But in other ways, the show seems stuck in its eternal conflict between serialization and episodic formulas. It still feels a little bit like Chris Carter and gang do not have a strategy for an endgame yet and that the show could try the patience of its audience and cast once again if it does not ramp up to a satisfying conclusion.
Gillian Anderson is allegedly going to depart after Season 11, probably in the hopes that Chris Carter and Co. finally wrap up her character's arc in a satisfying way. If the showrunner and writing team are willing to do the same for all his main characters and storylines and limit themselves to five seasons, then this X-Files revival will be a worthwhile endeavor and a good excuse for the show's continuation now.
It is not like there are not a lot of options for spinoffs and continuations for other intellectual property connected to this franchise, including its former spinoffs Millennium (1996-99) and The Lone Gunmen (2001). And these new seasons of The X-Files have the chance to set up other new series, too. But give David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson something special to send off their characters with. Something that honors their time and devotion to this story. Ultimately, these types of decisions are up to Chris Carter and his trusted team of talented collaborators, but these are my two cents. For all I know, there is some brilliant way to keep the show going strong longer than I, or Gillian Anderson, could have anticipated. But in my opinion, they should learn from their mistakes the first time around and ensure The X-Files goes out in a bang, not a whimper.

Trailer for Castle Rock (2017-Present) Based on the Work of Stephen King

About three years ago, I said to my family at a gathering that if Hollywood was going to become obsessed with creating a bunch of new cinematic universes in the wake of the success of Marvel's The Avengers (2012), then why not make an interconnected story universe for Stephen King's Castle Rock centered novels, novellas, and short stories? Luckily, someone else was having the same idea and J.J. Abrams is helping produce the series for Hulu.
The idea of Castle Rock existing as a constant setting, almost a real town backdrop for the recurring characters crossing over the different town's stories was an innovative idea by Stephen King back in the 70's, 80's, and 90's when he was first writing his Castle Rock novels and stories, but the idea of the same actors playing the same characters from story to story has not been fully taken advantage of until now.
Interestingly, Castle Rock's trailer comes hot on the heels of the trailer of another similarly conceived science fiction anthology series adapting the work of Phillip K. Dick for television, Electric Dreams (2017-Present), which I just wrote about yesterday. Although, it would appear there are no significant crossover characters in that particular anthology, unlike what is planned for Castle Rock.
I have to confess to being seriously impressed with the cast of both these anthologies. Castle Rock features some of the most talented actors around the block, both old and young. From Scott Glenn's patriarchal Sheriff Pangborn to Terry O'Quinn's "pillar of the community" Dale Lacy, André Holland's Henry Deaver to Sissy Spacek's Ruth Deaver, we have a healthy representation of classy Hollywood gracing this series.
And from the younger generation of performers, we have the exceptional Bill Skarsgård, who terrorized movie audiences as Pennywise the Clown in another recently celebrated Stephen King adaptation It (2017), and Jane Levy, who has turned in some spectacular performances in film and TV in her short career, notably in the horror sleeper hit Don't Breathe (2016).
And, of course, Melanie Lynskey's character Molly Strand will be the only one to appear in all ten episodes of the first season, leading me to suspect she will probably provide some dramatic connective tissue to all the stories in the first season.

Sneak Peek Clip & Trailer for Mr. Robot (2015-Present) Season 3!

The first season of Sam Esmail's Mr. Robot (2015-Present) stunned the world with its scope, and is one of the few TV programs to earn a Best Drama Emmy in its first year! The second season treaded water a little in comparison, but now Mr. Robot is back with a bang in its third season beginning tomorrow night, October 11, 2017. Watch the sneak peek and trailer Season 3 below!
And even though Mr. Robot is practically an arthouse TV program its aesthetic, it still remains bizarrely entertaining and accessible on a surface level, too, for even the most casual viewers. It is literally must-see TV and will likely be one of the most talked about shows this year. So watch early to avoid getting spoiled for what is sure to be a season filled with twists and turns.

Trailer for Electric Dreams (2017-Present) Based on the Work of Phillip K. Dick

Phillip K. Dick is a game changing science fiction author who was way ahead of his time. Ever since his untimely death in 1982, Hollywood was been trying to catch up with Phillip K. Dick's dark, yet remarkably human works of science fiction literature. Hot on the heels of their ongoing, successful adaptation of Dick's The Man in the High Castle (2015-Present), Amazon Studios has developed  and acquired a brand new anthology series based on Dick's short stories that have yet to be adapted to screen.
Even the less successful Phillip K. Dick adaptations have always contained a plethora of fascinating concepts and ideas, making even the weakest adaptations of his work well worth a visit on film. And those adaptations when done well result in some of the most entertaining and thoughtful science fiction films of the past four decades.
And you know the showrunners are taking this seriously with the all-star cast they gathered, consisting of greats like Bryan Cranston, Steve Buscemi, Essie Davis, Geraldine Chaplin, Anna Paquin, Greg Kinnear, Terrence Howard, Richard Madden, Holiday Grainger, Liam Cunningham, and Timothy Spall, to name a few.
And no, this anthology series for television has nothing to do with the gloriously cheesy 80's B-movie romantic comedy marvel that is also called Electric Dreams (1984). Although it has nothing to do with Phillip K. Dick's work, the old-school Electric Dreams is all sorts of corny fun as a mild-mannered everyman's computer develops sentience and starts interfering in his owner's love life.
The unrelated 80's Electric Dreams is so absurd and ridiculous that it crosses over the cheese threshold into something oddly entertaining. Definitely worth a watch when you're in the mood for something light, which might come in handy after encountering the downer endings of some of Dick's stories about to be showcased in the other Electric Dreams.

Book Delays, But Getting Back on Track

I appreciate everyone who has pre-ordered and ordered early Volumes I - IV of 40 Years of David Lynch. Thanks for your support and patience as I have been getting the books edited into proper order. I promise, I am busy at work to get all the Volumes ready with the revised releases by the time the Holiday season rolls along. I am getting a workable rough draft of Volume IV ready for early beta publish on October 10th, but then I am going into hyper editorial mode and perfecting all the Volumes in order, with Vol. I through IV getting the works and hopefully in quick succession. Please excuse the delays, but your patience will pay off soon with the completed final draft copies soon, no later than Christmastime, at the latest.
I will post regular updates here on www.BlueRoseEpics.com and make a announcement when each volume has been finalized and completed, updated with the revised final draft, and finally getting its paperback release, too. Thanks again for your patience. It has been a particularly rough patch, recently, but I am happy with my progress and you will not have to wait long before enjoying the finished books for yourself. And for those of you who have been interested in getting a little more perspective on Twin Peaks: The Return (2017), Mark Frost's follow-up novel to The Secret History of Twin Peaks, is his latest novel Twin Peaks: The Final Dossier , which is getting its official release on Halloween! Support the site by ordering from this page!

Kyle MacLachlan on Conan

Beloved Special Agent Dale Cooper's real-world alter ego Kyle MacLachlan was interviewed this week by Conan O'Brien on the TBS Talk Show Conan and the result is a charming, fun, and touching conversation that is as interesting as it is hilarious. And check out the first time Kyle and Conan shared the small screen together in their unforgettable SNL sketch from 1990 in the clip below!

First clip involves MacLachlan's fans sending him coffee art.

Second clip involves MacLachlan's love of Halloween and creating a spooky environment at his home.

In the third clip, Conan and Kyle reminisce over their Saturday Night Live sketch of Twin Peaks from 27 years ago, all the way back in 1990. Kyle was Agent Cooper, Chris Farley was Leo Johnson, Mike Meyers was the LMFAP, Kevin Nealon was Sheriff Truman, and Conan played Deputy Andy!
Here is the Saturday Night Live skit! It is brilliant. Be sure to watch it, especially if you never have before!

In the fourth clip, Kyle MacLachlan discusses channeling William Shatner for his characterization as the Mayor of Portlandia. And Shatner's reaction to hearing that.

The fifth clip focuses on Kyle MacLachlan's return to Twin Peaks 25 years later. And Kyle says he thinks the fans writing about Twin Peaks and mentioning its window for a 25 year return probably helped inspire David Lynch and Mark Frost to re-examine the show and see if they felt inspired to continue the story a quarter century later. Thankfully they did!
As the writer of an influential David Lynch blog at the time Kyle as talking about, I cannot help but feel thrilled to hear Kyle MacLachlan's genuine appreciation for all my efforts and the efforts of the rest of the David Lynch and Twin Peaks fan communities back then at about 2010-14. We are thrilled with Kyle MacLachlan's nuanced  triple (perhaps quadruple) performance in Twin Peaks: The Return (2017). You can watch the full Conan episode here.

Lucky (2017) with David Lynch in Supporting Role Released Today

The last remarkable leading role by a true Hollywood legend, Lucky (2017) arrives in theaters today in the U.S. September 29, 2017. The film follows the titular Lucky on a journey of accepting his impending death near the end of his life, while exploring and ruminating what (if anything) life and death means to him. Made all the more poignant by the star's recent death, watch IMDb's "No Small Parts" video essay commemorating Harry Dean Stanton's standout posthumous performance.