Joseph Mallozzi's Blog, page 45

July 12, 2024: Coming Soon!

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July 11, 2024: The Twilight Zone rewatch continues with episodes 17-20!

Episode 17, “The Fever”

This episode was originally broadcast January 28, 1960.

This episode was inspired by Rod Serling’s own protracted battle of wills with a one-armed bandit on a trip he took to Vegas with his wife to celebrate the show’s pick-up.

In the 1960 “Stories From the Twilight Zone” collection, Serling added the following to the end of this story: “Flora Gibbs flew back to Elgin, Kansas, to pick up the broken crockery of her life.  She lived a silent, patient life from then on and gave no one any trouble.  Only once did anything unusual happen and that was a year later.  The church had a bazaar and someone brought in an old used, one-armed bandit.  It had taken three of her friends from the Women’s Alliance to stop her from screaming and get her back home to bed.  It had cast rather a pall over the evening.”

No Vegas casinos assisted in the production of this episode. The exteriors were all stock footage.

The production used real slot machines that had been confiscated by the LAPD. An officer stood guard on set to ensure no one tried to make off with them.

The role of the frenzied Franklin Gibbs was originally intended for actor Lloyd Nolan, but ended up going to actor Everett Sloan best known for playing Mr. Bernstein in Citizen Kane. In fact, Sloan had many collaborations with Orson Welles – until he walked off the production of Othello in frustration over delays. Welles never forgave him. Sloan, who had worked with Serling four years earlier on the t.v. and screen versions Patterns actually wrote the lyrics and theme song for The Andy Griffith Show. But they were not used in favor composer Earl Hagen simply whistling the theme.

This episode isn’t as highly rated by Twilight Zone fandom, but I quite enjoyed it. And, as someone who knows more than a few gambling addicts, I saw a lot of truth in Sloan’s descent into madness. It reminded me of a story my father once told me about a trip to Vegas with friends. On the first night, one of his traveling companions refused to come out of his room for dinner, claiming he was tired. The next morning, he turned down their offer to hit the buffet. My father quickly realized this guy had blown all his money on the first day of the trip. So my dad and a buddy chipped in some cash and gave it to the destitute fellow traveler so he could buy food. Only to have the guy blow it all on the second day. As they wrapped up their trip, they were passing through the duty free shop at customs and my father offered the guy some cash so he could pick up a souvenir for his wife and kids. The guy was enraged, insisting his family didn’t deserve anything because they had gifted him the trip and were thus responsible for his bad luck.

The high point of the episode for me was Al Lewis’s cameo as the drunk who manhandles Gibbs into playing the slots – and winning! I rewatched the exchange three times and laughed every time.

A few things didn’t work as well for me. That backwards fall out the window was, in a word, lame. You could see his progress stopped by the mat lying beneath the window. Also, wasn’t a fan of the somewhat overwrought beat of the silver dollar rolling into the shot and settling down beside his corpse at the end. Nor did I think much of that final shot of the flashing one-armed bandit since the assumption all along was this thing was a figment of his addled imagination and should have ceased to exist after his death. So, while certainly not place it amongst my favorites, I still diid enjoy “The Fever” and would rank it higher than the average Twilight Zone fan.

Episode 18, “The Last Flight”

This episode was first telecast February 5, 1960.

This was the first episode Rod Serling had no hand in writing.

Richard Matheson’s initial pitch about a WW1 soldier landing in the present day was accepted, but: “I didn’t have a story, I didn’t know where it was going to go.  I had to figure that out, but because the image was so vivid, they said “Yeah, go ahead.”  I had been published and they knew, more or less, what I could do.  It wasn’t as if they were taking that big [of a] chance.” He was contracted to write the outline with the understanding that if he did a good job, he would get a shot at the teleplay. Which he did. And that eventually ended up landing him a role as a regular writer on the series. I can’t help but note similarities to my journey to Stargate. My writing partner and I pitched an idea they liked, we were contracted to write an outline with the possibility of a script if they were happy with the outline. They were, so we proceeded to script – “Scorched Earth” – which landed us staff positions on the show. The original title of the episode was “Flight” but it was changed after production.

According to Matheson, the title refers to both our protagonist’s physical journey as well as his “departure from cowardice”.

“The Last Flight” was filmed at Norton AFB, San Bernardino, California which subbed for Lafayette Air Base in Reims, France. The various drafts of the script were forwarded to Captain Damon Eccles of the US Air Force in the hopes that he, as a constant, would help facilitate production. Again, I’m reminded of my time on SG-1. Every script was vetted by the U.S. Air Force and their assistance on many aspects of production proved invaluable (see Stargate: Continuum). Two acting Chiefs of Staff, Generals Jumper and Ryan, guested on the show.

An authentic 1918 Nieport biplane was used for this episode, on loan from a collection of some 16 vintage aircraft belonging to actor/stuntman Frank Tallman.

English actor Kenneth Haig, who plays the wayward Lt. William Terrance Decker, broke out in a big way playing Jimmy Porter in the 1956 play “Look Back in Anger”, a role he reprised on Broadway. He would later see success as Joe Lampton in the t.v. series Man at the Top and its spin-off film. In 2003, he choked on a chicken bone while dining at a restaurant in Soho and suffered brain damage due to lack of oxygen. As a result, he was confined to a care home until his death in 2018.

I found this a thoughtful, well-written episode bolstered by Haig’s powerful yet restrained performance. There were a few frown-worthy instances – like the fact that, in the good old days, it would only take a single punch to fold someone in two or send them toppling over a desk, incapacitated. Also, if I was Decker and heard that the guy I’d abandoned all those years ago was still alive, my first thought would not be “I’ve got to go back and save him to ensure this future happens” but rather “Well damn, glad it all worked out!”

Episode 19, “The Purple Testament”

This episode originally aired February 12, 1960.

Rod Serling drew on his own WWII experiences for this episode, as he did for a number of scripts and stories.

The eerie glow on the faces of the doomed soldiers was achieved by overexposing the film.

Actor William Reynolds was a last minute replacement for actor Dean Stockwell who had originally been cast to play the role of Lieutenant Fitzgerald but had to drop out due to a scheduling conflict. Reynolds ended up having to shoot the very next day yet, when all was said and done, had nothing but high praise for the show and Serling: ““Rod Serling was great.  He was hands-on on the set and kinda gagged around with Dick York and me, keeping people loose.  But he was a pretty intense guy.  His narrations were indicative of the kind of intensity he projected.  A chain smoker, a very creative and dynamic kind of guy, obviously, and remarkably prolific.”

Commenting on the episode, Reynolds would add: “The Purple Testament was quite a personal experience for me, because of what had happened to my brothers in World War II and Korea.  And I found out how personal it was for Rod Serling.  Rod was one of the real giants of our industry, very Jack Webb-like in the way he changed the business and the whole genre of the theater of imagination.  It was his thing and he was totally dedicated to it.  We filmed the whole episode on a soundstage at MGM; the eerie light you see on the faces of my men was an effect they added later.”

While flying back from Jamaica after shooting the pilot for The Islanders, Reynolds’ plane went down and effected an emergency on water. Reynolds suffered sever injuries to his legs and several broken ribs but survived the crash alongside episode director Richard L. Bare. According to Reynolds, the Twilight Zone production “heard a news flash that our plane had crashed and they didn’t know whether I had survived.  I guess they were sensitive to the fact that I had a daughter who was a year and a half, and two week old baby, and a wife, and they knew that it would have been a little macabre to show The Purple Testament, an episode in which I see my own death, on the day that i had perhaps died in a plane crash.  So out of respect for the feelings of my family, instead of taking advantage of what had happened, they took the show off the air that night.” It is, however, uncertain whether the episode was, in fact, removed from the schedule.

The part of Captain Phil Riker is played by actor Dick York who would later land the role of Darrin Stephens opposite Elizabeth Montgomery in the series Bewitched, a role originally slated for actor Dick Sargent who had to bow out due to prior commitments. York held the role for four seasons until suffering a seizure on set in 1969 after which he was replaced by Dick Sargent. York had been suffering from a chronic back ailment, the result of an injury he suffered while shooting the 1959 film They Came to Codura, an injury plagued him throughout his time on the show that necessitated special furniture be used on the set to accommodate him. His condition would eventually lead to an addiction to painkillers. In 1976, York lost his life savings in a failed real estate venture. He spent his later years as an advocate for the homeless. A three-pack-a-day smoker, he developed emphysema and died from complications of the disease.

Barney Phillips, who plays Captain E.L. Gunther in this episode, would go on to make several more Twilight Zone guest appearances. Prior to The Twilight Zone, he had portrayed Sergeant Ed Jacobs on NBC Radio’s “Dragnet”, leaving after the first season. The departure led many, including several friends, to believe he had died, forcing him to take out an ad in a Hollywood newspaper assuring everyone he was still alive and available to work. Later in his career, he would play Judge Buford Potts in The Dukes of Hazzard.

Writer-Director Paul Mazursky has a small role as an orderly in this episode. The co-creator of The Monkees, Mazursky wrote and directed features like An Unmarried Woman, Harry and Tonto, and Bob & Carl & Ted & Alice.

Not even the great Rod Serling was immune to the haters and one particularly critical piece of fan mail he received about this episode prompted him to write back: ““I regret we were unable to please.  Of the several hundred letters received commentative on The Purple Testament, yours was in the distinct minority through I must say none of the other letters, pro or con, came even remotely close to the hysteria of yours.  why not Robert Taylor’’s The Detectives?  They’re on at the same time, and I rather imagine they would please you more.”

Another solid outing with some great performances and an eerie and prevailing sense of dread and doom that would typify many a future episode. The ending feels a foregone conclusion and our protagonist feels a little passive, all things considered, but my biggest bump is the ending. The scene of them hearing the distant explosion and commenting on it felt like (literal) overkill to me. The mere fact that Fitzgerald drives off knowing his fate (as surely as the viewer knows) is an incredibly effective conclusion to this story. The additional scene just belabors the point, detracting from the whole.

Episode 20, “Elegy”

This episode’s original broadcast date was February 19, 1960.

The episode was based on a short story by Charles Beaumont published in the February 1953 issue of Imagination: Stories of Science and Fantasy.

Director Douglas Heyes swapped out a motionless car race sequence from the original short story in favor of the beauty pageant, much to writer Charles Beaumont’s dismay. And yet many fans consider the beauty pageant one of their favorite moments.

The caretaker, Wickwire, informs the astronauts that the mortuary was established in 1973. In a dark coincidence, this turned out to be the year actor Cecil Kellaway (Wickwire) passed away.

The background noises in the spaceship, first heard in the episode “Third From the Sun”, would be re-used for the classic Star Trek series. The ship’s interior, meanwhile, built for Forbidden Planet, appears in several Twilight Zone episodes. Other re-uses include the staircase and lower landing (depicting a scene where a group of people are celebrating a Mayor) which made an appearance in “The Sixteen Millimeter Shrine” as well as the hospital scene in “The Purple Testament”.

According to director Heyes: “The big trick was to use these crowds of thirty or forty people – motion picture extras – and not have them move. I decided that this was impossible, that they would have to move a little if they were human. You just don’t take people off the street and expect them to totally freeze. But they could stand reasonably still so I decided that the camera had to move while these people were standing still. That way, if you saw any slight movement, you’d think it was the camera’s fault, not theirs. You never had a chance to analyze whether these people were standing absolutely still. That was why I took that episode – to see if it would work.” Shades of my experience on Stargate: SG-1’s “The Quest, Part 1”!

To be honest, I was on the fence about this episode. I don’t recall watching it way back when (In fact, this may have been my first viewing) and I suspected it would all be explained by a temporal distortion similar to what Star Trek did in “Wink of an Eye”. In the end, I was pleasantly surprised to be surprised – and to have my big question about that beauty pageant sequence answered. On the other, I didn’t love the actual reveal, especially as the whole was accompanied by a kooky/comedic score I found annoying. BUT what saved this one for me was the dark turn at episode’s end. As the “eternifying fluid” started to course through their veins, I was fully onboard. And that final scene of them, back in their ship was the chef’s kiss.

So, what were your thoughts on these four episodes?

The post July 11, 2024: The Twilight Zone rewatch continues with episodes 17-20! appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.

July 10, 2024: Amazing Covers!

A few that caught my eye this week…

Get Fury #3 – cover art by Dave Johnson

Giant-Size Silver Surfer #1 – cover art by Paul Renaud

X-Men #1 – cover art by John Tyler Christopher

Action Comics #1067 – cover art by Ben Oliver

From the DC Vault: Death in the Family – Robin Lives #1 – cover art by Mike Mignola

Green Lantern #13 – cover art by Ariel Colon

Kill All Immortals #1 – cover art by Oliver Barrett

Vampirella: Dark Reflections #2 – cover art by Lucio Parrillo

So, which were YOUR favorites?

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July 8, 2024: The Twilight Zone rewatch continues with episodes 13-16!

Episode 13, “The Four of Us Are Dying”

This episode was first broadcast January 1, 1960

This episode was based on an unpublished short story by George Clayton Johnson. Originally titled “All of Us Are Dying”, John’s agent changed it to “Rubber Face” before submitting it to The Twilight Zone for consideration. The production ultimately ended up changing the title to “The Four of Us Are Dying”. Johnson sold another story to the show, Season 1’s “Execution” before going on to script five episodes including the seminal “Kick the Can”. His screenwriting credits would include 1975’s Logan’s Run and the first episode of the original Star Trek series, “Mind Trap”.

The episode’s jazzy score was composed by the great Jerry Goldsmith who would go on to score many notable t.v. and film productions including several Star Trek series and features. His son, Joel Goldsmith, was an equally successful composer for film and television, notable for his tremendous work on the Stargate franchise.

The original plan was to use a single actor for the role of the shape-shifting Arch Hammer, but the transformative make-up was deemed too time-consuming so four different actors were cast, all with the same approximate build.

Harry Townes, who plays the role of Arch Hammer, eventually retired from show business, entered the priesthood and settled down in his hometown of Huntsville, Alabama. Apparently, Townes played a strikingly similar role in an episode of The Incredible Hulk, a story in which a man who is able to change his appearance to resemble others plans to run away with a woman only to be shot and killed at episode’s end.

Actor Ross Martin who plays the persona of musician Johnny Foster found fame opposite Robert Conrad in the ground-breaking Wild, Wild West t.v. series. He and Conrad were in the planning stages of a series reboot when Martin suffered a fatal heart attack. One of Martin’s most memorable roles is opposite Peter Falk in the Columbo episode “Suitable for Framing”. The two played off each other well, and no wonder. Martin was Falk’s acting teacher. I quite enjoyeed this episode.

A great premise, some wonderful performances, a terrific jazzy score by Jerry Goldsmith, and some fun directorial flourishes from John Brahm (Similarly, loved his work on Time Enough At Last but wasn’t quite as enamored of his less successful Judgment Night). This one came together well for me. What did you all think?

Episode 14, “Third from the Sun”

This episode was first broadcast January 8, 1960.

This episode is based on Richard Matheson’s second published short story that appeared in the first issue of Galaxy Science Fiction. Matheson earned $50 for the initial sale of the story, then another $1000 for the film and television rights. There is no conniving Carling character in the original story which is a little more straightforward: the two families get in the car, drive to the launch pad, board the ship and leave.

The flying saucer used in this episode also appeared in Forbidden Planet. The ship’s ambient (background) noise was also used in the Star Trek t.v. series.

The production took pains to introduce futuristic props in the episode including an Ericofon, a then new, state-of-the-art Swedish-designed phone than never really took off. In a similar vein, their getaway car is a modified 1951 Buick Riviera dubbed the Blue Danube, created by designer George Barris for The Time Machine (1960).

The opening scene of the various employees exiting the Ministry of Science was shot on location at the Southern California Edison substation.

The two female characters, Anne and Judi, were named after Rod Serling’s daughters.

On the unique camera angles and the atypical way he shot this episode, director Richard L. Bare said: “Now, these are things I’m against; I would never do that on a straightforward [script], but I had a reason to make the audience wonder what’s going on.”

This was actor Fritz Weaver’s first experience on film and he was in a little over his head those first few days. According to Weaver: “I had to learn the behavioral rules of filmmaking, and I learned them in a hurry.  For instance, I had recklessly chosen to smoke a cigarette during one scene.  And as I puffed away madly during the masters shots, I had no understanding that I would have to repeat the mad puffing in the close-up [so the shots would match].  So when we went to close-ups, the continuity lady came to me and said, “You had your first puff during the words “the” and “was”.”  I told her I couldn’t have possibility done that, and she said yes I did.  I quickly learned.  And after a harrowing afternoon of doing it many, many times, with many many redos – “You took another puff there, you took another puff there” – I remembered Eddie Andrews, who was my colleague on the show, saying to me after it was all over and I was limp from exhaustion, “Now you know why Gary Cooper keeps his hands in his pockets.””

When speaking at the 1984 Rod Serling retrospective at the Museum of Broadcasting, Weaver had this to say about Serling: “I have vivid memories of Rod Serling during the making of The Twilight Zones I was in. [He was] hanging around like a kid on the set, radiating excitement, having fun.  He was generous to performers; he listened, he took suggestions, he gave everybody a free hand.  His wide-ranging imagination allowed him to experiment, to take chances, and this was unique.”

This was, apparently, one of the best received episodes to that point if the fan mail they received was anything to go by.

A June 20, 1983 newspaper article cited this episode as Stephen King’s favorite.

I really liked this one – for its clever and weird visual cues, its slow burn suspenseful build, and its out-there twist. Also, Edward Andrews gives an absolutely brilliant performance as their devious co-worker Carling. I mean, who of us hasn’t experienced the duplicity of a Carling in our own work environments? Overall, this one was a rousing success for me. What did you all think?

Episode 15, “I Shot an Arrow into the Air”

This episode was first telecast January 15, 1960.

Rod Serling’s script for this episode was based on an idea pitched to him at a party. Madelon Champion proposed a story about astronauts who crash land on what they assume is an asteroid only to learn, much later, that they are just outside Vegas. For the idea, Champion received a payment of $750 and a brand new refrigerator. Although Serling encouraged outside ideas, this was the only time he ever bought one.

The classic Twilight Zone theme returns for this episode’s opening!

“I Shot an Arrow into the Air” was filmed in the same Death Valley location as previous season 1 episode, “The Lonely”. This time, the crew was better prepared. They were served salads on set while lunch was served poolside back at the hotel, much to their delight.

This was the first episode that Serling was not present on set for shooting.

The episode’s final “It was Earth all along” twist echoes the previous episode’s twist as well as the final revelation in the 1968 Planet of the Apes movie that Rod Serling co-wrote.

Serling’s mid-episode narration (one of only four times it happens in the series run) was added after the final cut because it was felt the sequence needed it. I am of the opinion that it did not and felt unnecessary.

“I Shot an Arrow into the Air” is an underrated episode in many ways with a memorable final twist that really doesn’t make much sense under careful scrutiny. “We never left the Earth,”says Corey. “That’s why nobody tracked us.” Wait, what? Quite the opposite actually. The fact that they never left Earth would have made it far more likely that they would have been tracked. The fact that these intelligent, trained astronauts all conclude that they must be on an asteroid orbiting the sun with atmosphere and an Earth-like gravity somewhat stretches credulity. Finally what a sense of relief in a surprising yet feel good ending…for the bad guy. All in all, a solid episode with a pretty good twist that really forces you to suspend credulity more than your typical sci-fi outing of the era.

Episode 16, “The Hitch-Hiker”

This episode was first broadcast January 22, 1960.

This episode was based on a radio script by Lucille Fletcher. The production beat out Alfred Hitchcock Presents for the television rights, securing them for $2000. Fletcher apparently got the idea for the story while on a road trip with her husband in 1940. On the first day of their trip, she saw the same odd-looking man on the side of the road on two different instances and the experience struck her as strange, and somewhat eerie.

In the original story, the protagonist is a man. Orson Welles voiced the ill-fated driver in the radio version. Rod Serling, however, felt the television adaptation would work better by making the driver a woman.

Swedish-born actress Inger Stevens played the role of Nan Adams. She had been under contract with Paramount but, after turning down several roles, she was put under suspension by the studio. As a result, she switched her focus to the small screen, ultimately landing a part on The Twilight Zone. Stevens had a troubled life, complicated by the various relationships she had with her numerous onscreen co-stars. Bing Crosby, James Mason, Anthony Quinn, Harry Belafonte, Dean Martin, and Burt Reynolds were a few of the romances that ended in heartbreak. At the time of her death, it was revealed that she was secretly married to actor Ike Jones. Her brother supported Jones’s petition to be named administrator of her estate and received half her estate. The other half, Jones gave to children’s charities and mental health organizations.

Inger Stevens’ breakout performance was playing Kathy Holstrum, the Swedish Governess in the 1963 comedy series The Farmer’s Daughter for which she won a Golden Globe and an Emmy nomination. She lost out on the role of Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany’s to Audrey Hepburn. In 1970, she signed on as the lead in a mystery series, The Most Deadly Game, but passed away less than a week later.

Before taking her own life, Stevens had survived several near-death experiences: a suicide attempt in 1959 just prior to her Twilight Zone appearance, a fiery plane crash in 1961, and an on-set accident while filming the movie Cry Terror! that almost saw her and co-star Rod Steiger succumb to carbon monoxide poisoning.

The circumstances surrounding Stevens’ tragic life cast a dark shadow on what is already a very dark episode of the series. Even though we know Nan’s ultimate destination (the clues along the way are hard to miss), the reveal – and her surrender to fate – still delivers a disturbing final punch. Given what I now know about Stevens, Nan’s ultimate resignation becomes all the more haunting. As much as I love The Twilight Zone’s sci-fi-themed tales, I also adore the surreal stories just as much. The occasional forays into fantasy or descents into horror are always a welcome and unexpected change of pace. I liked this episode a lot and I imagine that, at the time of its first airing, it triggered more than a few sleepless nights.

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July 8, 2024: Cookie Monster reviews The Beekeeper!

What if John Wick was a beekeeper?

What if you tie someone to a SUV and drive it off bridge?

What if Hilary had won?

Dese are de thought-provoking qwestions dis movie seek to answer!

Our hero is “beekeeper”.  Beekeeper, of course, be code word for super special secret CIA Agent.  Hero also aktual beekeeper, which mean he look after bees.  Coincidence?  (Spoiler: Yes)

One day, his friend commit suicide after losing life savings to online scam, so Beekeeper decide to get payback by visiting guilty call center, beating up security guards, and blowing place up.

Dey say revenge best served cold like summer udon, but Beekeeper like it piping hot like pre-1994 McDonalds coffee – and he feeling munchy!  Munchy for Crime Boss who it turn out, in surprizing twist (surprizing becuz it so ridikulous), be son of female President of de United States!  Crazy to imagine son of president taking advantage  to get rich, but dat beauty of Hollywood.  How dey come up wit dese crazy ideas?

CIA find out and send other “beekeeper” (dat not really beekeeper) to kill hero.  She show up at gas station dressed like Purple Rain-era Prince and get torched.

Beekeeper attack other call center.  Everyone know he coming, but he stroll in thru front door anyway, beating up bunch of FBI agents and killing CIA agents, some in pretty cool elevator sekwence.

Oh, Monster almost forgot.  In other coincidence, Beekeeper’s dead friend’s daughter be FBI agent.  She very conflikted.  One de one hand, Beekeeper killing people responsible for mom’s death.  On other hand, she an FBI agent and her job be to do what her bosses tell her – like arrest Beekeeper.  Her charakter pretty bland and serve no purpose but Monster suspect mebbe she won contest to be in movie so dey find way to squeeze her in.

Everybody worried beekeeper going to kill President!  Can he be stopped?  (Spoiler: No).  Dere be sense of inevitability to Beekeeper dat both extremely unsuspenseful and very comforting.  Beekeeper crash White House party for TikTok influencers.  President’s security detail consist of Secret Cervix agents and randos in Cowboy hats.  Beekeeper kill dem AND one-legged blond Aussie cowboy.  And… well, Monster not want to spoil ending for you but let’s just say some charakters not coming back for sekwel.

So what happens to President? What happens to Beekeeper?  Will FBI agent charakter finally do something to make a difference?  (Spoiler: No). Check out movie to find out!

Monster not hate dis one.  Pretty dumb and cliche and make no sense, it lack John Wick world-building, mythology and humor, but aktion scenes veeery satisfying.

Verdikt: 5 out of 5 for action sekwences/1 out of 5 for everyting else = 3 out of 5 chocolate chippee cookies.

The post July 8, 2024: Cookie Monster reviews The Beekeeper! appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.

July 7, 2024: Sharky Sunday!

Sharky celebrated his first Canada Day…

Sharky gets a special treat: Australian Wagyu!  Lip-smackingly good!

Sharky is a big fan of feet…

Out and About with Sharky: Sharky hits Ossington!

Akemi picked up this “dog comb” online.  I dunno…

It’s the weekend!  Time to set up the Treats Box for the neighbor-dogs…

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July 6, 2024: Cookie Monster Movie Review – Boy Kills World!

Every few yearz, movie come along dat defy expectashuns, taking tired old formula and completely reinventing into someting fresh, ekciting and unekspected. Monster really wish me had seen dat movie. But instead, Monster watch Boy Killz World, movie dat feel like it written by A.I. script robot trained by 14 year old boyz raised on video games and repeated viewings of Kick-Ass 2.

In alternate world dere exist a society unlike any you ever seen before – unless you read or watched Hangry Games, Maize Runner, De Selekshun series, De Giver, De Ugleez, De Matched trilogy, or all of deir ripoffs…like dis movie. Rulerz be people who dress up like villains from old Dick Tracey comic strip, give speeches, and kill deir enemiez. As such, hero boy escape after family shot by older looking Jean Grey.

He den spend 18 yearz training wit mystery Shaman. It remind monster of time me train for MMMA (Mixed Monster Martial Arts), learn Krav Maga, Tie Chi and both Muay and Pad Thai. Master classik moves like “nad slap”, “nut grabber”, and always popular “skrotum swing”. Anyway, along de way, hero boy lose ability to speak so audience have to rely on irritating inner monolog narrashun by cartoon voice aktor who ramble on like Grover dat time he accidentally try limited edition Merry Meth Snapple.

Rest of movie be boyz kwest for revenge against family dat kill his family. Lots of over-de-top violenz wit lots of annoying qwippy voice-over make Monster tink writers REAAAAAALLLY wanted to work on next Deadpool movie, but had to settle for dis one instead. As matter of fakt, star of movie, Bill Skarsgaard remind Monster a bit of Ryan Reynolds becuz once me see Ryan eating Icelandic yogurt at Planet Fitness wit brand name very similar to Skarsgaard. And dats about it.

Anyhoo, heads crushed, hands cut off, feet chopped. Meanwhile, humor about as funny as time Bert try stand-up comedy (“What de deal with parasols? Dey just fancy umbrellas!”).

Late in movie, dere be big twist likes of which not seen since Misterio revealed to be aktual villain not just helpful guy in Spiderman Fa Fa Home. Movie also inklude tired social commentary on entertainment industry dat done much better 37 years ago in Running Man.

Verdict: Boy Kills World killz Monster’s brain cells. 2.5 out of 5 chocolate chipped cookies.

The post July 6, 2024: Cookie Monster Movie Review – Boy Kills World! appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.

Cookie Monster Movie Review: Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024)

Cookie Monster Movie Review: Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024)

Monster loved first movie, Mad Max: Furry Road, despite clear lack of furries. Still, plenty of aktion, Max as Mad as advertized, and it all end up being 2 hours well spent in dark theater hiding out from Grover looking to beat Monster up for dating his sister.

Director George Miller had plan for sekwel – Mad Max: De Waistland – to shoot right after Furry Road, but brilliant producers say “No. Let’s wait ten years, replace Mad Max, and make it half hour longer. Also, let’s make it prequill so it even less interesting!”. And so, Monster now have to review Furryosa, a movie dat, at end of day, still be lacking in furries.

Movie begin wit little girl who get kidnapped by Chris Hemsworth as Thor as evil gang leader DeMento. He play de part like he doing SNL parody sketch of dis movie. Goofy yet sadisticky wit touch of catnip high. Great villain for a Marvel movie, but terruble bad guy for dis film since our heroin driven by revenge, but me not feeling it becuz Thor-DeMento so charming. Sure, he a touch homicidal, but not any worse den some muppets Monster know.

Mother save girl but Thor-DeMento steal her back and kill mom, den threaten rival gang and get ass kicked, den attak gas truck, den take Gas Town, den close deal wit rival gang, den attak gas truck, den go back on deal wit rival gang, den attak gas truck, den attak rival gang. Monster may have missed a few attaks on gas trucks. Also, monster may have missed Furryosa charakter who in dis film too. For some reazon.

Anyway, movie more about world building, repeditive action sewkwences, and cartoon cgi that replace cool practikal effekts from first film. Me not going to spoil ending for you, but fakt dis movie be a prequill already pretty much do that.

Rating: Overall, Monster like Furryosa – but only in de last Mad Max movie. Not so much in dis one. 3 out of 5 chocolate chippee cookies.

The post Cookie Monster Movie Review: Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024) appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.

July 4, 2024: The Classic Twilight Zone rewatch continues!

Episode 9: “Perchance to Dream”

This episode was first broadcast November 27, 1959.

It’s the first episode not written by Rod Serling. It’s also the first episode to feature the iconic Twilight Zone theme.

The episode is based on a short story of the same name by Charles Beaumont who also wrote the script. Serling was very keen that the script remain true to the spirit of the original work (Which is almost unheard of nowadays). Beaumont delivered an episode that is beat for beat the short story down to the fantastic final line: “I guess there are worse ways to go. At least he died peacefully.” Beaumont was very pleased with the production. According to Beaumont: “It was filmed exactly as written.  I know because I was on the set, watching, unable to believe that any of this was truly happening.  An author was seeing his work treated with respect.” He also had high praise for director Robert Florey: “He rooted out the meanings of certain lines, frequently surprising me with symbols and shadings I’d neither planned nor suspected.” Beaumont was credited on 22 episodes of the original Twilight Zone although a few near the end of the series run were purportedly ghost written for him by friend and fellow screenwriter Jerry Sohl.

Beaumont was a prolific writer of short fiction, novels, television and film, but he was plagued by a mysterious brain disease that affected his ability to speak and concentrate, a condition some suspect was either early onset Alzheimers or Pick’s Disease. As a result, friends like Sohn and author William F. Nolan stepped up and ghost-wrote some of his later works in order to help him maintain his health coverage. Charles Beaumont died on February 21, 1967 at the age of 38.

Actor Richard Conte, who plays the fatigued and frustrated Edward Hall who is convinced he will die of a heart attack if he falls asleep ironically died of a heart attack at age 65. In one of his final roles, he played Don Barzini, a rival to Don Corleone in The Godfather. He had apparently been on the short-list to play Brando’s role.

John Larch, who plays Dr. Eliot Rathmann, was a professional baseball player before embarking on an acting career. He made a name for himself on radio as Captain Starr of Space. Toronto-born

Suzanne Lloyd played the dual roles of Maya the Cat Girl and the receptionist. A trained dancer, she reportedly worked hard to get her character’s maniacal laugh just right. Loyd retired from acting at the age of 40.

“Time Enough at Last” is an incredibly tough act to follow and while “Perchance to Dream” doesn’t reach its lofty storytelling heights, I really did enjoy the atmosphere of its creepy, lurid black and white carnival sequences (that reminded me of one of my favorite horror movies, Carnival of Souls) as well as the borderline lunatic desperation of our protagonists exhaustive unwillingness to fall asleep. Overall, another solid outing, again buoyed by a clever story and top-notch performances.

Episode 10, Judgment Night

This episode was first broadcast December 4, 1959

In a late 1999 interview with Mike Wallace, Rod Serling said, in reference to this episode: “…in 18 scripts [in the 1st Season], Mike, we’ve had one line changed, which again was a little ludicrous but of insufficient basic concern within the context of this story not to put up a fight. On the bridge of a British ship, the sailor calls down to the Galley and asks – in my script – for a pot of tea, because I believe it’s constitutionally acceptable in the British Navy to drink Tea. One of my sponsors [General Foods] happens to sell Instant Coffee and he took great umbrage, or at least minor umbrage anyway with the idea of saying ‘tea’. Well, we had a couple of swings back and forth – nothing serious – and we decided to ‘ask for a tray to be sent up to the bridge’! But in 18 scripts, that’s the only conflict we’ve had.”

Patrick Macnee, who plays First Officer McLeod, would land the role-of-a-lifetime playing John Steed on The Avengers. He was born into an eccentric family, gambled away the family fortune, was almost expelled from Eton for running a gambling ring, and served in the Royal Navy before finding firm footing on stage and screen. In his heyday, he purportedly smoked 80 cigarettes a day and drank a bottle of scotch every night.

Nehemiah Persoff, who played the part of the cursed U-boat commander Carl Lanser tells of how he asked his stand-in, a German fellow named Freddie, to help him with the pronunciation of his one German line: “Fuel Frei” (“Fire at will”). After repeated attempts, Freddie still wasn’t happy with Nehemiah’s delivery but there was no time for further rehearsal. As they rolled into the scene, Nehemiah-as-Lanser delivered his line, at which point someone shouted “Cut!”. Except it wasn’t director John Brahm yelling cut. It was stand-in, Freddie, who was still not happy with the delivery. Brahm apparently responded with great patience and kindness, talking Freddie down before the next take.

Rod Serling was not happy with the way the episode turned out. “Judgment Night in its original script form was a better than average flight of fantasy,”he said after reviewing the final cut.  “It’s filming left it so considerably less than that.” And I would have to agree. Again, a great idea, but everything is so heavy-handed, from Persoff’s maniacally over-the-top performance to the over-wrought direction. This episode is my least favorite to date.

Episode 11, “And When the Sky Was Opened”

This episode was first broadcast December 11, 1959

This episode is an adaptation of a short story by Richard Matheson titled “Disappearing Act” in which our narrator begins to question his sanity after friends and family begin to disappear, literally ceasing to exist as they are wiped from everyone’s memories except his. The story concludes with “I’m having a cup of”, ending mid-sentence, thereby implying our narrator’s erasure as well. According to Matheson, he first submitted the story to an agent only to have it returned ripped to pieces. He finally succeeded in selling it to the Magazine of Science Fiction and Fantasy.

The crash of the X-20 was scripted but ultimately deemed to expensive to produce so, instead, the event is covered in the opening narration.

The moment where Forbes jumps through the bar window wasn’t scripted but suggested by director Douglas Heyes. Serling loved the idea.

Rod Taylor, who plays Lieutenant Forbes in the episode, is better known for roles in The Birds, The Picture Show, and countless westerns and action movies. He apparently refused to screen test for James Bond, deeming the role beneath him – and later came to regret that decision. He came out of retirement to play Winston Churchill in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious Bastards. In the early 70’s, he saved the Australian Open with a 250k donation.

The February 27, 1960 TV Guide gave the episode – and Rod Serling – high praise: “Serling’s gifts as a narrator are easily recognizable.  Serling’s point of view here is a little obscure, but as pure horror the episode can stand right up there with best of Poe, Bierce, and Sheridan LeFanu.”

I am a sucker for these sci-fi-themed stories and this one really delivers on multiple levels, exploring the notions of existence, identity, and memory in effectively eerie fashion. In a way, I wonder whether Serling was commenting on the impressions we leave behind after we’re gone, on our surviving loved ones and, in some small way, perhaps those we’ll never truly know. Definitely a firm favorite.

Episode 12, “What You Need”

This episode was first broadcast December 25, 1959

This episode is based on the short story, “What You Need” by writing husband and wife team Henry Kuttner and C.L. Moore but credited to their pseudonym Lewis Padgett. It originally appeared in an October 1945 issue of Astounding Science Fiction and was adapted for television seven years before the Twilight Zone in a 1951 episode of Tales of Tomorrow.

Kuttner and Moore met as members of the Lovecraft Circle, a group of writers who corresponded with H.P. Lovecraft. Kuttner contributed numerous stories to the Cthulhu lore. Ray Bradbury referred to him as a neglected master and a “pomegranate writer: popping with seeds—full of ideas”. Kuttner used no less than a dozen pseudonyms over the course of his career and several fellow authors believed that doing so deprived him of the fame he may have well enjoyed.

C.L. Moore was among the first women to write science fiction. She retired from writing prose fiction in 1963 and switched to television screenwriting. She was nominated to be the first woman Grandmaster of the Science Fiction Writers of America but the nomination was withdrawn at the request of her then husband, Thomas Reggie, who felt the award would be confusing for Moore who was suffering from Alzheimers at the time.

“What You Need” apparently inspired the song of the same name by British post-punk band The Fall.

Actor Steve Cochran who played the part of tough guy Fred Renard in this episode, made a name for himself playing onscreen heavies. He also had a bit of a reputation off-screen. In 1965, he hired an “all-girl crew” to accompany him on a sailing trip to Guatemala but died of a lung infection enroute. The three distraught young women onboard were rescued ten days later when the ship finally drifted to shore. Actress Merle Oberon pushed for a police investigation in to Cochran’s suspicious death, but this was never pursued by officials.

Actress Arlene Martel who plays the role of Arline Sax, the girl at the bar, is better known to Star Trek fans as Spock’s girlfriend, T’Pring, from the 1967 Stark Trek episode “Amok Time”.

As for the episode itself – Woof. Great idea, but atrocious execution. This was one of the worst directed outings to date. The scene where Renard gets his scarf “caught” in the elevator door and is almost strangled was particularly reprehensible. I mean, come on. Surely the director could have come up with a better staging. Not quite as clunky, but still pretty egregious because it’s the episode’s twist, is the “slippery shoes” sequence that results in Renard getting hit by the car. Apparently, that slight shuffle caused the car to barrel straight down on him. Not even the cute comb gag that buttons the episode was enough to save it from ranking down there with the equally directorially-deficient Judgment Night.

So, what did you all think?

The post July 4, 2024: The Classic Twilight Zone rewatch continues! appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.

July 2, 2024: Amazing Covers!

A few that caught my eye this week…

Dr. Strange #17 – cover art by Alex Ross

Spider-Man: Reign 2 #1 – cover art by Leinil Francis Yu

Red Sonja: Empire of the Damned #3 – cover art by Joshua Middleton

Batman #150 – cover art by Jorge Jimenez

Wonder Woman, Vol. 1: Outlaw – cover art by Stanley “Artgerm” Lau

1949 – cover art by Dustin Weaver

So, which were YOUR favorites?

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