Netflixorama: Vincent Priceapalooza!

I've been away for quite some time from my daily Netflixorama article, not because of lack of film watching (actually I've been watching more films than I have for awhile) but because of the dreaded writer's block that many people speak about. I've had small bouts of it in the past, but this time around it's come full force. You'd think with a lack of job that it would come out easier but instead it's been tough to get out of this fun.

But something came over me a few weeks ago, a little bit of inspiration in the form of Vincent Price. The grand thespian, art lover and forgoer of all things Gothic macabre got my attention in a film that actually is one of his dramatic acting chops. It's sad because people tend to not think of the man as more than a horror icon. Don't get me wrong, I'm in love with his Corman and AIP run. His Edgar Allen Poe adaptations were steady viewing with my grandmother growing up and I love to show The Abominable Dr. Phibes to as many people as I can in this lifetime.







But then, about 10 years ago, I caught the film Laura which changed my whole outlook on the man. It made me realize that he was sadly typecast in the horror genre (which he never truly got out of). It also started my love for film noir, which at my tender age of 17 was sadly ignored by my 'peers', if you can call them that. I always tended to stay away from trends growing up, and film was no exception. I wrote a lengthy review (12 pages) on Arsenic & Old Lace in 5th Grade, so it goes to show you where I'm coming from.

I didn't have many friends back then.



So where am I going with this episode of Netflixorama? It's on a film that was sadly taken down on Netflix and I was lucky enough to catch it before that occurred. Which is another reason why my writer's block has plagued me. I can't get the information out to the masses as fast as I'd like to. So that changes with today's article. The particular film I'm speaking of is the 1950 film The Baron of Arizona, one of Samuel Fuller's early works of cinema. It tells the story of James Reavis, a conman in the 19th Century, who somehow plans out the swindling of the entire territory of Arizona from the U.S. Government. It's loosely based on a real man named James Reavis, but reading up on him showed a sad man who was always found out and died penniless.



This is Hollywood, people! In Hollywood, you don't have boring endings where nothing at all is resolved. Instead you showcase Vincent Price's acting chops and show him dominating the screen in every single scene he's in. It's all around the world for him too. How else is he going to convince everyone that he has been taking care of the "rightful heir" to Arizona, Sofia de-Peralta. Of course it's all an elaborate lie, which only Price knows the ins and outs of. An intriguing little movie, with some amazing cinematography by James Wong Howe, who had been working nonstop in film since 1923 (The Prisoner of Zenda in 1937 being one of my absolute faves).



Samuel Fuller, who is one of the most off-kilter directors who had ever lived, does an admirable job here. Of course it's no Naked Kiss or his later exploitative films Shark! or White Dog, but he gives it that little flavor which shows he was behind the camera calling the shhots. It's hard to explain at first glance, considering Vincent Price is such a force to be reckoned with in front of the camera, he sometimes overshadows the subtle nuance in the background or with the other players on the screen. Luckily Fuller knows this to be true and reigns Price in every so often, giving Price the chance to exude his known charm but with more of an emphasis on his inner struggle of the lie that's eating away at not only himself, but the people of Arizona and his bride, who he truly loves now, The Baroness de Peralta-Reavis.



I should also take a moment to give some credit to Ellen Drew, who had to keep pace with Price on screen and does a more than admirable job at it. She shows grace, beauty and empathy for the people of Arizona but is also angry at them and the U.S. government for calling her husband a liar and a cheat and that she will never leave her husband's side. Even when she finds out the truth and Reavis is being strung up to be hung, she never leaves his side. Now that's what I call devotion to your significant other.



If you want to check it out as soon as possible, Criterion has put out a DVD collection via their new Eclipse line of films. More affordable compared to their premier line, primarily due to lack of extras on these other films. Check it out on Criterion's website. It's well worth the price, especially for another film in the collection, I Shot Jesse James. Yes, there's been movies before the grand Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford. Trust me.



Tune in later for a second Netflixorama. Vincent Price was just all over me these past few weeks. Now that sounds intriguing!

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Guillermo Del Toro Getting Some Love On DVD

If anyone knows me well enough, I'm a huge Guillermo Del Toro fan. Anytime a release of one of his films comes out I have to buy it right away. It's a bit of an addiction that I'm proud to have. There's one film of his that I don't have on DVD because the edition that came out previously was of the suckage level. That movie is the little horror cockroach monster movie Mimic.



Thanks to Twitch Film for posting this news up on their site. And yes, I realize the Mimic news is the April Fools joke kind. But down below is the real meat of the matter.


What's pretty exciting is that it's a director's cut of the movie. I remember seeing this film when it came out and liking it (not loving it) but could tell there was a bit more to it. What I find funny is that it's the 12th Anniversary edition (which is almost as funny as The Jerk's 26th Anniversary Edition DVD). It just seems like a weird time to make an anniversary edition, but I'll take it nonetheless. Even more exciting that Del Toro does commentary and there's a making of going through the terrible tale of what went wrong with his first foray in Hollywood film making.

An even more intriguing tidbit of a Del Toro film being re-released on DVD in the fall came in my inbox today from Criterion's update email I get every so often. It had the following picture listed at the end of the email, which for this film geek made my pants a little tighter.



For anyone out there not in the know about his Spanish Language Trilogy, the film Cronos was the first of the three films (the others being The Devil's Backbone and Pan's Labyrinth). As opposed to the latter two films taking place during the Spanish Civil War, Cronos takes place in Mexico. It was his first feature film and showed right from the get go that he was a force to be reckoned with. So what it looks like in the fall is that we should be expecting a new Special Edition DVD from Criterion, which is a big deal to film aficionados around the world. They tend to put the most work into their DVD releases (but Warner Bros. has stepped up in the last few years with their special editions) and find the coolest special features for their releases. I'll be featuring a best of special features with Criterion in the coming weeks.

So it's an exciting time for Del Toro fans out there. Even with his directing gig right now with The Hobbit (which rumors becoming a trilogy itself), he still takes the time to develop grand editions for his films, no matter how small or how critically panned they might be. He is a film maker and an artist, which he loves to share with his fans and I for one appreciate it. I can't wait for these two DVD releases this year.

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Where the Wild Things Are Trailer

Bask in its brilliance.



This is the trailer for Where the Wild Things Are, the new film by Spike Jonze (who's been absent from filmmaking for quite some time now) from the classic children's book by Maurice Sendak. It's one book I remember vividly reading when I was a kid and always loved its darkness and humor. I always said more kid's book should be a bit dark, just to get the point across, if need be.

Thanks to First Showing for having the only trailer I could find online that actually worked right away. For that, you get the thumbs up.

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Pharrell denied at McDonalds

I'm a bit confused as to whether or not the McDonald's staff was in on this but what does it matter? Any ultra-millionaire douche who's willing to sing and dance their praise for Big Macs and apple pies is definitely worth 78 seconds of my time watching them on YouTube.

Click below for the video.

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I Heart Lori

The woman above is a personal friend of mine who I adore. Her name is Lori.

Her television career began on a show on ESPN2 called Funkmaster Flex's Car Wars. The show features four contestants who must customize a car within a certain period of time and whoever has the best car wins.


On Season 1 of Car Wars, Lori was a standout character. She stole every scene she's in and was by far the most interesting person on the show. I guess that's why they officially made her a judge in Season 3.

My opinion may be biased but I don't care... she's a fucking champion.

Anyway, I've been editing clips from her stint on the show. I'm still cutting up Season One but I've released the clips I've finished so far on a new YouTube Channel: "YouTube.com/LoriCrystalAuto".

Because I recognize that most of you don't want to go clicking around unless it's absolutely necessary, I decided to post my favorite video so far. Watch closely as Lori shows you the definition of pwn.

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Cat Shit One

All I can say is, "Wow." I saw this trailer today and at first didn't know if it was a joke or not. It wasn't because I thought it was funny. It was because it looked really good. An Iraq war film/series... but with animals? So of course I did some digging around and found out a bit about this series.



Cat Shit One, or as it is called in America, Apocalypse Meow (pretty clever) was a 1998 manga series from Motofumi Kobayashi published by Softbank Publishing. It originally depicted the Vietnam War in three volumes, and the soldiers fighting against the Cats (Vietnamese), their daily lives and how they come to grips with the world around them. And they say comics are for kids?

Each animal depicts a different nationality. Rabbits are Americans, Pandas are Chinese, Rats are British and so on and so forth. It mainly follows three characters, Bota, Perky and Rats who are in the reconnaissance group Cat Shit One and their battles with the evil Cats. Now all I need to do is track down all three volumes and read them back to front as fast as possible.



It looks as though they changed the setting of the story to the deserts of Iraq, which makes a bit of sense. Give it that 'now' factor that's missing from a lot of war films (and I'm being extremely sarcastic there). But not to gripe with their decision, it still looks like some great violent action. Almost reminds me a bit of We3, which I'm still waiting for to be made into a film.

So hopefully sometime soon we can see more of this action. For now, let's appreciate animals getting blown away by one another. That's always a fun time.

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Moments in Filmery: Nic Cage + Jared Leto = Cold Embrace?

This is a still from a guilty pleasure of mine, Lord of War. I consider it a guilty pleasure mainly because it's against my nature to regard any Nicolas Cage film after 1999 as a quality film worth watching.

Nicolas Cage (left) plays an arms dealer. Jared Leto (right) plays his drug addict brother. This is a scene where Jared's character obviously needs 'help' and Nic's character is supposed to look "concerned". But, with the dialed-in aura that Mr. Cage brings to the table, this moment can be viewed in a couple of different ways.

Let's explore the plausible options:

1. Jared loves Cages' tie.
   
2. Cage is not impressed by the cotton blend Jared's zip-up hoodie is made out of. Apparently, 20% polyester should only be used for Cage's hairpieces
3. Product placement for AXE body spray proves that even hot chicks like Jared Leto can't resist the scent. ...
   ....
   ..He's a dude?
   But.. the eye liner?
   .... ok.
4. Cage's subliminal way of protesting gay marriage in America.

There are many other concepts that may arise from this one frame of pseudo-homo-erotic glory. Share some of your own.

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Netflixorama: French Parkour Action Film Edition

For all of you who are new to the site, Netflixorama is my excuse to catch up with movies I never had the chance to see or haven't seen in quite some time. It's a fun little exercise in my movie intake and maybe a good way for all of you out there to see what you should be checking out or trying to stay away from.

Today's entry is a fun action film that I somehow missed to see it every chance I had. The film is Banlieue 13 or District 13 to American movie goers out there. It heavily uses the activity of parkour (l'art du déplacement or the art of movement) in many of its stunt and action sequences, which in turn means there is no wire or CGI effects. For an action film fan like myself, it's a fantastic change of pace from today's standard fare.





David Belle, a co-founder of parkour, co-stars as Leïto, a street wise youth who rules over his own apartment building in District B13, which is a suburb of Paris, in the year 2010. It's been overrun by gangs and it's become a feudal system of sorts between all the gang factions in B13. He hates drugs in his neighborhood and has been waging a war against neighboring gang lord Taha Bemamud. He's just stolen a 20kg of heroin which is worth one million euros, which incites Taha to send his goons to Leïto's building to get the drugs back. He sends his main grunt K2 (which you can tell by having it shaved in the back of his head) with a little army but they're too late; Leïto has destroyed the drugs in his bathtub with bleach and evades the group with his parkour skills in a thrilling opening chase.

K2 brings the bad news back to Taha, which then prompts him to ask if they have any ideas on how to get back his one million euros. Everyone is quiet, so he starts shooting goons one by one until he gets to K2 who screams out that they should have Leïto pay... by kidnapping his younger sister Lola and holding her up for ransom. They go to the supermarket she works at and take her hostage back to Taha's stronghold. And this is where the film gives me a bit of a surprise. Instead of the usual 'How's the hero going to get in?' type of story, Leïto just jumps in through the window and takes Taha hostage in a matter of seconds. It was a good change of story structure, which told me that this film would be a bit different.



He and his sister take Taha to the border of B13 and to the police, who are packing up to leave the walled up district behind for good. He shows them proof of Taha's drug trafficking and instead of the police taking Taha in custody, they take Leïto instead and lock him up and let Taha go with Lola. This enrages Leïto to the point of grabbing the police chief and breaking his neck with a knee stomp.



It then goes to 6 months later and we focus on undercover police captain Damien Tomaso (Cyril Raffaelli), who infiltrates a crime boss' underground casino and attempts to arrest only the boss. Of course an insane fire fight begins and Damien, with a fun fight scene, using parts of the casino to fight off the goons. I apologize for the above video being dubbed. For some reason people don't like subtitles, which boggles my mind.



Of course he triumphs but that doesn't mean he gets time to be congratulated. He's called in by the chief and Defense Secretary of France, Mr Krüger, and is assigned with a vital mission to get into district B13 and to disarm a neutron bomb stolen by Taha's men. He also has to somehow convince Leïto, who is still in prison, to help guide him in B13. Did I mention that he also has less than 24 hours to disarm the bomb? This makes for some great character work. Character work within an action film like this? You'd be surprised, but sometimes you just need to look deep down within an action film.

Damien and Leïto meet in a police truck transferring them to another prison, where Damien is pretending to be a fellow prisoner. Damien breaks free, gets rid of the two cops up front and befriends Leïto, or so he thinks. Leïto isn't that stupid, suspects everyone of trying to screw him over, and handcuffs Damien to the steering wheel. He tells him to keep driving, even through the police barricade and with the tires, steering and brakes destroyed, he crashes into some gang member's brand new sports car. Leïto tells him he knows he's a cop and tells him to figure his way out.



The film deals with a lot of heavy issues, most of which going on in France and the rest of the world, especially when it comes to class struggles. District 13 is a ghetto to the rich and citizens of Paris would rather see it wiped off the face of the Earth than see any change occur there. They've gotten rid of the schools, the police, even the post office from there, shutting it out from the rest of France. It's basically kill or be killed beyond those walls and barbed wire, which is why you have all these hardened killers and criminals who are in charge while people like Leïto try to fight the evil with their own style but feel as if the law has turned their backs on them. Which in this alternate future timeline, it has. There's a lot of twists and turns and it's all spelled out for the viewer very easily in the eyes of Leïto, who finds it a bit suspicious that a neutron bomb was so easily robbed and left in district B13.

I realize I'm going through the whole basic storyline, so I'll stop right there. I'd rather you all just rent it or buy it (which I'll be doing soon) but I'll speak about a few of the things that you wouldn't know by just watching the film. The film was co-written and co-produced by Luc Besson, of Leon, La Femme Nikita and The Fifth Element fame. He's had a great career of producing and writing films that he doesn't direct as well, with The Transporter franchise films being a few of his hits. He also hired Pierre Morel to direct the film, who was the cinematographer of The Transporter and Unleashed (also produced and written by Besson). Morel has gone on to direct a hit film here in the States, Taken, so I'd like to see what else he has up his sleeve in the near future.

Parkour is the other thing that has been adopted in many action films as of late. A lot of you know it from the opening chase scene in Casino Royale and one of the main bad guys used it in the sub par sequel to Die Hard, Live Free or Die Hard (remember when it was supposed to be called Die Hard 4.0? Remember when it was supposed to be a good movie? Well, not sure about that one...). The funny thing is Cyril Raffaelli was said henchman in the film, showcasing his style to American audiences (which I have to say was the only thing that got any cheers in the film).



I'm not sure if parkour has been beaten to death yet. I've seen it in plenty of commercials, a few movies and even was the central point of the video game Mirror's Edge. It's a cool concept though, which I can see many more stuntmen using in the repertoire, especially with action films trying to up the ante every time. That's a good thing though. Innovation tends to make me a happy camper and I'm always pleased when a good thing becomes... the norm, I guess.

The first film I ever saw it used in was the French film Yamakasi in 2001 (another film co-written by Besson... he's a busy guy). It was a fun little film that I thought nothing else about until I started hearing all these stories of traceur's doing these death defying stunts so fluidly, you wouldn't dare believe it. But now, it's become a way of life for plenty of people who study parkour, and I hope to see it in more film but not used strictly as a gimmick, but more as an enhancement to a film's story and/or action.

So go check out District B13, but with subtitles only. It loses any feeling with the dubbed version. It's a fun action film that won't disappoint. And to people who don't care about story, it's got some cool action sequences which won't bore you in the least. I just can't wait for the sequel, District B13 Ultimatum which came out already in France and comes out here in the States in July. It will have David Belle and Cyril Raffaelli reprising their roles from the first film. I have a feeling they have thought up new ways to thrill the audience with some crazier stunts and action sequences than the first one.

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Netflixorama: Get Carter, Caine Edition

He's cold, amoral, calculating, cool under pressure and despicable. And he's the hero of this story. At least, after watching it again for the first time in many years, Jack Carter is the centerpiece of Mike Hodge's Get Carter. Michael Caine stars as Jack Carter, an English gangster whose brother has died and he wants to get to the bottom of things, so he drops everything in his cozy life in London and goes back 'home' to Newcastle to find out the truth.





Where to begin? Well, it should all begin with the whole British Gangster genre of film, a fun little genre that young people today only know because of Guy Ritchie's films, such as Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch and RockNRolla. Also, to a lesser degree, Matthew Vaughn's fun romp Layer Cake. Don't get me wrong, I like all those films but it had to begin somewhere, and it was back in the late 60's/early 70's that the British Gangster film started to gain steam and become lucrative business. In 1971, Get Carter came out and was helping along Michael Caine's career as a leading man, especially after iconic roles in both Alfie and The Italian Job. (Is it just me, or do they always poorly remake Michael Caine films. Think about it, Alfie, The Italian Job, Get Carter and Sleuth are the four films that come to mind, all subpar remakes).

The film is a simple one. Jack Carter's brother supposedly drunk drives into a canal and drowns to death in the process. According to Jack, this isn't something his brother would do, so he takes the train back to Newcastle to see what the true story is. He arranges his brother's funeral (in the smallest coffin ever, but that's just my observation) and asks his brother's daughter why this would happen. She seems distant but says she doesn't know why.



I don't really want to ruin all the little twists and turns throughout the film. It's weird, it's not like I have to put a spoiler alert on a film that's almost 40 years old, but at the same time I battle with giving away too much of the plot away, becoming a Cliff Notes version for these films. So I should give you a bunch of positives as to why you should either own this film or rent it right away.



1) Michael Caine as Jack Carter is worth it alone for everyone to see this film. You see, he was on fire at this point of his career, just delivering very cool roles that are now looked upon very highly in the film aficionado's eyes. In this role, he's just so cool even though when you look at what he does throughout the film, he's a despicable man who is really in it for just himself. Yes, he does care about his dead brother and his niece, but ultimately it really is all about Jack Carter. He just kills everyone in his way or sleeps with them. And sometimes kills them too. Or leads them to death. He throws people over ledges, injects someone with drugs to make it look like an OD, stabs someone to death, beats up a guy and shoots someone dead. But you need to realize the people he's violent too are despicable people too. But when does it all end? Watch the movie and you'll find out. Just remember that Caine will slap the shit out of you.



2) The direction of Mike Hodges. A very stylized directorial effort by Mike Hodges, Get Carter is one film in a very varied career. Films like Flash Gordon and The Terminal Man are guilty pleasure films for me and two of his most recent films, Croupier and I'll Sleep When I'm Dead (both starring Clive Owen), are fine examples that he hasn't given up yet (well, maybe he has with the abysmal Murder by Numbers being his last directorial effort back in 2004). But we're here basking in his fine effort in Get Carter, where he showcases not only fine actors, but the town of Newcastle is a character of its own. People that look worn down, varied scenes throughout the film (such as a dance club, a mansion, a car park and the beach). He also wrote the script from Ted Lewis' novel, Jack's Return Home, and does a good job at reminding you throughout the film that Jack Carter isn't to be trusted but you can't help but like the bloke.



3) The editing of John Trumper, who has had some great genre flicks under his belt (such as The Freakmaker, Circus of Fear and The Face of Dr. Fu Manchu. The way he can juxtapose a love scene with a car ride and not have it look ridiculous is something most films could benefit from today but would probably think it'd confuse too many film goers. Sadly that's a truth I've noticed in speaking with people about film in any way besides them drooling while loving the same tripe they tend to go after.



4) The cinematography of Wolfgang Suschitzky. A name not many people would know or care about. Some of the shots in this film, where it's a distant shot and he'll slowly pan toward the center of attention, is phenomenal. If you want to know what I'm speaking of, check out the opening scene below. Gets me every time.



5) Roy Budd's theme for Get Carter. Don't believe me? Check out Mr. Budd playing the theme below.



A great film that deserves to be seen by more people today. Get Carter was also remade Blaxploitation style with Bernie Casey and Pam Grier the following year in Hit Man.

Want a good crime film instead of the likes of Pride and Glory or We Own the Night? Check this film out with another fine example of the crime film, Point Blank with Lee Marvin. It was also remade, but into a pretty good Mel Gibson starring role in Payback. That's a fine double feature right there.

Oh, Michael Caine would like to thank you all for reading this article as well.



Until next time, the 360 is shutdown.

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Gobstopper: Why the F*** Not?

Before I begin my shpeel, I'd like to give a special thanks to James for allowing me to "do my thang". This is my first of many posts for Combinations Follow and hopefully my warped point of view will be appreciated by all.

Now that I've taken care of that, let's get down to business.



If you can't recognize the man above, than you should seriously consider neutering/spaying yourself with rusty surgical equipment. He is Christopher Allen Lloyd a.k.a. Dr. Emmett Brown from Back to the Future.

I'll assume you know what Back to the Future is because if not than some sort of inhumane euthanasia is in order. I wish nothing but the worst on you and your worthless family whose genes you share. Your souls will not be spared in the afterlife.

Anyway..

I stumbled across a "trailer" for a movie with endless promise. It's a distorted version of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The original story was about a group of 5 separate children who won a contest by finding gold tickets in their Wonka Bar wrapper and the prize was a trip to the factory where the scrumptious bars were made. (Not to mention a lifetime supply of chocolate which to me would be a dream come true. Yes, I'm a fat slob who can't enjoy a day without chocolate.)

Gobstopper adds a sweet demented twist on this story and makes Wonka out to be a sick f*ck of a candy maker who's sole intention is to lure these children into his factory for a torturous display of psychosis induced hi-jinx. I've done you the favor and posted the video below.

Please watch prior to reading further...



I don't know about you but every time I watch this trailer, my nether-regions throb nearly explode with excitement at the idea of teenagers dropping "boner"-bombs, chocolaty bars, bloody-thirsty jackass Oompa-Loompas, and Christopher Lloyd at his very best playing a hysterically deranged candy-creating genius. The only downside is being subjected to the chick from Superbad's creepy grill. Her face inspires a non prick friction bathroom break.

As the trailer ended, I went to IMDB.com to check for a release date. I type in "Gobstopper" and find nothing. My heart stops... I type in the name "Christopher Lloyd" and review his upcoming work.

Jack and the Beanstalk...Food Fight...Call of the Wild...SANTA BUDDIES!?!?! WTF.. Where the SH*T is Gobstopper?

I go back to the trailer and noticed what I should've noticed in the first place: the FUNNYORDIE.com link in the bottom left hand corner.

Are you kidding me? This isn't real? What kind of jack-off sadist would drop a trailer of this magnitude in my lap and not follow through with the potential horror flick of everlasting glory?
I WANT TO SEE WEE MAN EAT PEOPLE GODDAMNIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok look. Let's face it. The movie scene right now for me is like taking a stroll through the Sahara desert with no oasis on the horizon. I look forward to seeing horrible movies like "Knowing" just so I can bask in its inadvertent comedic splendor. Don't we all deserve to be entertained by movies with cannibal midgets? Why are we deprived of a film that features horny teenagers walking into a chocolate factory of doom? This is the type of sh*t I live for.

Christopher Lloyd's career must be saved and this is the perfect vehicle to make that happen. I'm ready, willing, and able to begin petition for the production and release of a possible instant classic.

I want to make Gobstopper a reality... WHO'S WITH ME???

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