Produced by Guillermo del Toro, J. Miles Dale
Screenplay by Guillermo del Toro, Vanessa Taylor
Story by Guillermo del Toro
Directed by Guillermo del Toro
Starring Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon,
Richard Jenkins, Doug Jones,
Michael Stuhlbarg, Octavia Spencer

Guillermo del Toro has always had a unique style as a filmmaker, and his love of monsters has continued to give cinema-goers colorful and nuanced portrayals of the creatures and stories he holds dear, ensuring that his films stand out compared to the more one-dimensional and disposable paranormal offerings that tend to populate the contemporary cinematic landscape. While del Toro is no stranger to passion projects as evidenced by a significant number of his previous works, it is clear from the onset that The Shape of Water is the very definition of an unadulterated labor of love.

Much like Jean-Pierre Jeunet has always had his own style in terms of visuals and narratives, it was not until Amélie that he truly managed to engage viewers outside his usual target audience. Jeunet’s 2001 film became a darling among critics and audiences alike because it continued to be true to Jeunet’s aesthetic, however, while he did not compromise the essence of his style in order to execute his vision for Amélie, there was a different kind of depth and sweetness to the story, which resonated exceptionally well with viewers. Similarly, del Toro has had a dedicated following for years, and while he has become increasingly well-known outside dark fantasy and horror circles, just like Jeunet until the release of Amélie, the Mexican auteur has been considered too much of a genre-specific filmmaker to create something that could appeal to a broader audience without compromising his artistic integrity.

Arguably, on paper, The Shape of Water has an undeniably del Toro-esque appeal, as the story can essentially be described as what would happen if the Creature from the Black Lagoon did not have to kidnap his love interest, but instead found reciprocated love. However, while del Toro has dismissed any speculation as to possible connections between his latest effort and his Hellboy films, what truly makes the The Shape of Water work beyond the appeal of the fantastical elements, is that the story at its core is deeply human and relatable. Brimming with a sincere sweetness and maintaining an exquisite tonal balance that serves to perfectly suspend the viewer’s disbelief, most audiences will be hard-pressed to not fall in love with the story and the characters that inhabit it.

Having insisted on casting Sally Hawkins and Michael Shannon for the roles of leading lady and callous villain respectively, it is abundantly clear that their parts were written specifically for them. Hawkins brings her radiance and warmth to the character of Elisa, making it another noteworthy addition to Hawkins’ already impressive résumé of thoroughly engaging performances. Shannon takes another turn as a menacing antagonist, once again reminding us that the intensity he can bring to a character without making it feel like he is merely reprising past turns as other baddies, is an integral part of what makes him such a unique talent.

The supporting characters portrayed by Octavia Spencer, Richard Jenkins and Michael Stuhlbarg add additional depth to the story and help further build the world of the film. Having once again written the part specifically for the actor, del Toro enables Spencer to deliver her trademark, love-fueled sass in the role of Elisa’s colleague, Zelda, with great potency. Richard Jenkins also takes another turn as a likable, yet insecure and slightly bumbling supporting character in the role of the gay bachelor Elisa shares an apartment with. Lastly, Michael Stuhlbarg impresses as a secretive scientist with a highly compelling character arc. While this could all be considered typecasting, by giving the actors such well-written characters to portray, del Toro has ensured that the cast both individually and as a whole are absolutely pitch perfect for the story, and thereby increase the viewer’s ability to invest in the film.

Needless to say, the visual aspect of the film is as stunning as one has come to expect from del Toro’s hand. The score further emphasizes the sweet, heartfelt tone of the film’s style and narrative, however, do not be fooled; this is still very much a del Toro vessel. Thus, the filmmaker has playfully sprinkled elements of unsettling body horror throughout the film. These elements are genuinely unpleasant, but they never feel out of place and do therefore not detract from the overall sense of the film being an enthralling fairytale for adults.

What Guillermo del Toro has always done well is world-building. His fascination with dark fantasy and his ability to bring the figments of his imagination to life with such vibrancy attests to the greatness of his talent. However, what really makes his films stand out is the amount of heart that is poured into the stories and characters. Easily his strongest film since Pan’s Labyrinth, The Shape of Water has more in common with del Toro’s 2006 effort than mere stunning visuals and excellent special effects work, as he once again uses the historical tension of the era wherein the film is set to emphasize its emotional depth; in Pan’s Labyrinth it was post-Civil War Spain, here it is Cold War era America. This adds an additional sense of gravitas to the characters’ motivations and emotions, which further emphasizes that sometimes the strange and unusual is in fact deeply human rather than monstrous, just as humans are often the real monsters.

Verdict: 10 out of 10

Show business has had a long-standing tradition with the gimmick.  Cemented in the 1959 musical Gypsy – “you gotta have a gimmick, if you wanna have a chance,” the song could have easily been describing the attempt to get folks back in cinemas when television came into play.  Moviegoers were being lured back to the big screen by a number of gimmicks, from 3D to Cinemascope and Stereophonic Sound.

Today, the widescreen of Scope remains, but ironically still lingering is the option of nearly every major blockbuster in 3D, not to mention the upgrade to Imax.

Arguably, the most immersive experience you can get in today’s cinemas comes in the form of South Korean company CJ 4DPLEX’s 4DX technology.  Initially rolling out in cinemas in Asia, Mexico, Russia, and parts of the Middle East, in recent years the option to experience select films in 4DX has made its way to North America in New York, Toronto and Los Angeles.

4DX is an augmented viewing experience that combines seat motion, wind, water, fog, lighting, and, because why not, scents.  All of this is programmed specifically to the events unfolding on the screen, enhancing the standard video and audio settings of the film itself.  Seats are grouped into units of four, to allow for more natural movement wherever you’re located in the audience.

Besides the constant movement of seats, 4DX also features occasional air cannons to simulate passing bullets or explosions, vibrating seats to enhance bass, and some fairly harmless thumps to your back during fight scenes.  That’s of course provided you don’t cover the back of your chair with your winter coat.

My first foray into 4DX accompanied Ron Howard’s Inferno last year.  It made an otherwise insufferable snooze-fest a giddy, over-the-top thrill ride.  Oh, yeah, and randomly Dan Fogler (Fantastic Beasts) sat to my left during the mid-afternoon screening, hooting and hollering back at the screen with equal delight.

After having tested it out on Inferno, I convinced some friends to see Rogue One in 4DX opening weekend.  A film more suited to the experience, the Star Wars story’s crescendo of space-set dogfights was a wild ride.  It’s not the same sophisticated level of tech in Star Tours at the Disney Parks, but the motion-matching of 4DX to on-screen tilts and pans is effective.

I’ve always tried to balance my slight issue of motion sickness, and I’ve found myself unable to handle some amusement rides as my equilibrium zonks out of norm with age.  So, for me, twice seemed to be enough to claim my “been-there-done-that” stance on 4DX.

As mentioned on the latest episode of our podcast Oh No They Didn’t, I was given a ticket to experience 4DX with Justice League.  Luckily, the third time’s a charm, and it may or may not have inflated my review of the film.

By my third 4DX film, I hold to my initial theory about two things…

It’s way better with the water turned off (an option on your hand-rest that you’ll thank me later for).  Some of the water effects are so literally splashy that you’ll get enough drops from your neighbor.  Combined with 3D, you’ll need to dry your glasses to continue watching in focus.

Secondly, and this applies to everyone, it takes a good 20 minutes to really get used to 4DX.  It’s an initially distracting experience that grows with you.  Granted, the three films I’ve seen in 4DX have great finales that match with the full-throttle use of all effects, but they’re more merged with your senses by the end.

So, is this all worth the additional price tag?

I say yes, especially since you’re guaranteed that rare movie-going experience where some care has gone into the presentation. But consider the film you’re seeing.  Films like Geostorm or Kong: Skull Island are natural matches with 4DX, and the majority of programming goes along with blockbuster Action releases from major studios.

Personally, I’d love to see some classic films in 4DX, such as The Poseidon Adventure or even Jurassic Park.

Perhaps even 1974’s Earthquake, initially designed in the literally disastrous Sensurround by Universal, can at last be experienced without actual damage to the theater.

Alice (Reese Witherspoon), a recently separated mother of two, finds her life upended when three young, charismatic filmmakers move into her guest house. Alice’s unlikely new family and a budding romance comes to a crashing halt when her ex-husband shows up, suitcase in hand. A story of love, friendship, and the families we create, Home Again is a modern romantic comedy with one very big life lesson: starting over is not for beginners!

Produced by Nancy Meyers, who brought us beloved films including Something’s Gotta Give, The Holiday, and The Intern, Home Again is filled with a talented ensemble cast including Michael Sheen (Midnight in Paris), Lake Bell (What Happens In Vegas), Nat Wolff (The Fault in Our Stars), Pico Alexander (A Most Violent Year), Jon Rudnitsky (“Saturday Night Live”) and Candice Bergen (Miss Congeniality).

And we’re giving away a copy on Blu-ray!

To enter, send an email with the subject header “HOME AGAIN” to geekcontest @ gmail dot com and answer the following question:

Reese Witherspoon and Candice Bergen also worked together in this 2002 film?

Please include your name, and address (U.S. only. You must be 18 years old).

Only one entry per person and a winner will be chosen at random.

Contest ends at 11:59 PM EST on December 17th, 2017.

Executive Produced by Chris Ferguson,
Brian Kavanaugh-Jones, Daniel Levin, Al Sebag
Produced by Marlaina Mah, Jesse Savath
Written and Directed by Scooter Corkle
Starring Dianna Agron, Rachelle Lefevre,
Shawn Ashmore, Jared Abrahamson

In a one mill town with a secret, everyone has something to hide.

Scooter Corkle’s feature debut is a strong narrative about tragedy, love, pain and revenge. Scooter Corkle’s life is a cool story in his own right. For over a decade he worked as a gaffer, lamp operator and best boy, bringing the technical side of storytelling to life.

To persevere for ten years, observing and waiting for the opportunity to make his own films is something to applaud.

Resilience is a skill that is hard to teach.

This is a small town story, written by a small town guy and you can feel the connection between the film maker and the film. He even chose his home town of Castlegar, British Columbia as the shooting location.

The story itself is not unique, but it is very interesting and well executed. Dianna Agron leads a professional cast as Alison, the de facto parent for her brother. Their father is imprisoned for a drunk driving accident and their mother has disappeared. Alison works at the local pulp mill and her brother is an angry and hard to control high school student. When he lands under suspicion for a homicide and disappears, Alison is forced to do her own investigating in a desperate attempt to save her brother.

The plot unfolds quickly.

Corkle should be applauded for his pacing throughout. I was never bored. Nothing in the film seemed gratuitous and there was definite opportunity. Dianna Agron’s character is lesbian and she is in a relationship with Charlene (Rachelle Lefevre). There was an opportunity for a shower sex scene between the two of them that would have been both gratuitous and totally out of place in the film. Corkle either shot it, recognized it didn’t make sense in context and cut it, or didn’t shoot it. Either way, leaving it out was absolutely the right choice and should be taken as an indicator that we are dealing with a strong storyteller.

A lot of the film is shot in the evening or at night and the lighting is tough. Speculatively, Scooter Corkle grew up in “the business” on the electrical side and I think he was trying to play with different lighting techniques and effects because he has a lot of experience with them. This hurts the film in a couple of places because I was more focused on trying to see than really enjoying the view. However this is a minor concern and did not detract from my overall enjoyment.

The cast is strong from top to bottom. One standout is Brent Stait as Len. Len plays a friend of Alison’s from the mill and puts in a strong performance, passionate and earnest. He isn’t on screen much, but each time leaves an impression. Dianna Agron is raw and real throughout conveying frustration, desperation, anguish and anger as her story arc unfolds. The film isn’t shot in the first person, but almost every scene is from her point of view. The performance proves Agron is talented enough to carry a film from beginning to end.

Hollow in The Land is a professionally made and enjoyable film. It has some nice twists and turns, great suspense and leaves you satisfied. If this shows up on Netflix in the indie film section, take the time to watch it. You won’t be disappointed.

4 out of 5 stars

Hollow in The Land arrives in theaters and Digital HD on December 8th.

After the monster success (pun intended) of Dawn of the Dead (1978), George A. Romero could pretty much direct anything he wanted. He had made in Dawn, a sequel with social commentary which not only satisfied an intellectual bent, but redefined zombie horror, eclipsing his own groundbreaking first film all while being an international smash. So what movie did Romero choose as his next entry?

Knightriders.

Knightriders is a perfect title. In one word it encapsulates the entire plot of the movie about a traveling group of medieval reenactors living their lives by an Arthurian code who joust on motorcycles instead of horses to the delight of drunken crowds in Western Pennsylvania. Their group is under fire by bloodsucking entertainment promoters, crooked cops, and a King played by Ed Harris in his first starring movie role, who might just be losing his mind. It’s about honor, glory, and a motorcycle movie all wrapped in one.

Unfortunately right around the same time Romero was making his Dawn of the Dead, a TV show wanted use the same title and actually paid Romero for the privilege of sharing it. It was a smart move, they were in different mediums, and after all who’s ever going to watch a TV show about a talking car anyway?

Second strike against it, was it was made by a master of monster movies and it had no monsters. Although Romero does a masterful job of setting up the films modern day mythology the magic isn’t real. It lives inside all in the characters hearts and minds. The dragon King William chases is purely metaphoric, and his crown is simply a prop. So anyone rushing to the theatre to see the grand majesty of Camelot ended up seeing a strange motorcycle club playing dress up. But that is the beauty of Knightriders and why it’s so truly amazing. This isn’t a story of misfits playing pretend, it’s a story about living by a code in a world no one understands or respects. Or better put (like the movie’s marketing campaign): Camelot is a state of mind.

The film lives and dies by Harris’ King William or Billy as he’s affectionately known.

Billy’s belief in their chosen life is the strongest which is why he’s the obvious choice for King. He sleeps outside, bathes in the local steam, and is haunted by visions driving his passion for the renaissance faire lifestyle. His code is so strong he refuses to sign an autograph for a young fan at a match, or payoff a local cop, both things those around him find nuts. When confronted by his Queen for refusing to sign the boy’s autograph, he rails “I am not trying to be a hero! I’m fighting the dragon!” Harris’ line reading is just south of melodrama but somehow makes it work. The entire film could be seen the same way. Every chance the movie could easily become camp or over-the-top, it doesn’t. Romero grounds us firmly in this crazy world and we go along for the ride.

Romero liked to work with his friends. He created in his nearly all of his productions a work family that loved, and were loyal to him. And what a work family it was. Romero assembled a cast and crew for Knightriders of both past and future regulars including Ken Foree, Scott H. Reiniger, John Amplas, Warner Shook, Christine Forrest, and Tom Savini.

Even Ed Harris, despite his rising star, would return to Romero for a segment in Creepshow a year later. To this day Harris still speaks fondly of his time working with Romero and of his first starring movie role.

In a wild but true piece of movie trivia, future Academy Award Winning Best Actress Holly Hunter, and recent graduate from Romero’s Alma Mater Carnegie-Mellon University, worked as a production assistant on the film. Christine Forrest, who does a masterful job playing the grease monkey mechanic Angie, would go on to marry Romero after the movie wrapped. In another wild but true piece of trivia, Stephen King, who along with his real life wife Tabitha, appear in cameo’s as “Hoagie Man” and his lady, named his horror novel Christine after her.

In one of the longest relationships in movie history Tom Savini and Romero are a pair that exemplify the best. Savini, who’s most widely known for his amazing and groundbreaking special makeup effects work, appears here in front of the camera as Morgan, the black knight boyfriend to Angie and all around thorn in the side of Billy.

Despite Savini’s successes in the realm of gore makeup and horror film directing, it’s notable to say his acting in Knightriders is really very good. His character is far and away the most flashy in the group but Savini never uses it as an opportunity to chew the scenery like you’d expect.

He plays a foil to Billy without being a villain and his arc back from the trappings of fame to his roots is heartfelt and believable. Savini also has a great look. He rocked the thick black goatee way before it ever became hip to do so. Most people’s first introduction to Savini as an actor is as “Sex Machine,” the biker fighting alongside Clooney and Tarantino, in the Robert Rodriguez Vampire thriller From Dusk to Dawn. But his work here as Morgan is so good it makes one think why he couldn’t have followed along the same path as Harris.

Whether or not Romero was aware in 1968 when he made the original Night of the Living Dead of the groundbreaking social commentary in casting a black male lead, is oft debated conversation.

However, by 1981 he was not only aware, he embraced it. Knightriders, to this day, remains one of the best examples of diversity, feminism, and LBGT acceptance ever put on film. What Hollywood still sometimes awkwardly attempts by casting the “black best friend” or the “gay friend with the funny one-liners,” Knightriders took head on with ease and without apology.

One of the side-stories in the movie is that of Pippin played by Shook. Pippin, the troupe’s show announcer, lives the life of an “out” man but can’t quite seem to verbalize it, even to his best friend Angie. She gives him crap about it telling him as her best friend she doesn’t even know. The larger point of the scene was Angie’s friendship was a safe place for Pippin, this whole group, bikers included, was. It’s fair to point out in 1981 this was not something people discussed openly.

In terms of feminism the women of Knightriders are all strong voices of respect and authority. The aforementioned Angie, is a spunky no-nonsense mechanic who not only excels in what is traditionally a man’s job, but is the perfect compliment to her wandering boyfriend Morgan. Amy Ingersoll playing Linet, the Queen to Harris’ Billy, takes over and defies Billy’s express orders to stay put when he’s arrested.

She shows strength and independence putting the groups needs above her boyfriend the King. And then there’s Cynthia Adler’s kickass Rocky. Rocky is one of the best bikers in the troupe and is so unflappable a skinhead literally throws himself off a bike in fear of her. Today’s audiences may marvel at the casting of Gwendoline Christie playing Captain Phasma the female stormtrooper, but Romero did this with Adler’s Rocky back in 1981.

In terms of diversity Romero had been doing this in his casting for years. People of color all have equal prominence in Knightriders. Racism doesn’t exist inside the troupe. Brother Blue, in what would be his only real film appearance, plays Merlin. Brother Blue, an African American Yale trained actor and Harvard Divinity student, spent his entire life as a living storyteller. He would take his stories everywhere from street corners, to prisons, to school libraries throughout the globe.

On a personal note I saw him perform once when I was in middle school and he was amazing. The fact this man never acted in more projects is a crime. This is all the more reason to embrace this wonderful movie.

The Camelot homage runs throughout the film. The Lancelot/Guinevere love triangle is hinted at, the fighting for the honor of the King is a constant, and there’s even a lady-in-waiting side story of a teen runaway played by another terrific Romero stalwart, Patricia Tallman, later of Babylon 5 fame.

The film has so many great scenes but there’s one I find to be hauntingly beautiful. During some downtime in the camp King William finds another member of his troupe playing guitar while singing softly to himself. Upon approaching him he stops. When Billy presses him to continue he gets shy and professes the song isn’t finished. The scene is so realistic it looks like something that happened between takes while Harris was roaming around. He tells Billy over and over politely he can’t continue. It’s not until the end of the film do we hear the entire song and it’s beautiful. This is the essence of the entire code of Billy’s life. He couldn’t hear the rest, because his journey was still unwritten.

To dismiss this as simply an action film, or motorcycle movie would be a mistake. Having said that it has a lot of action and boasts some incredible motorcycle stunts. One stunt in particular is so gnarly you’re certain you just watched a man die only to see him pop up and smile. It’s safe to say Romero dodged some OSHA bullets on that one.

I think it’s okay not to have heard of Knightriders. It had a lot going up against it. It’s easy to confuse with the Hasselhoff TV series and also to dismiss it as another horror film based purely on Romero’s name. Another Arthurian film, Excalibur, by John Boorman was released on the same day, and if that weren’t enough of a challenge, the entire country was still reeling from the recent assassination attempt on the life of President Ronald Reagan.

If Knightriders were made today it would most likely be an amazing 10 or 13 episode series on a pay network like Netflix or HBO instead of a feature film, but I must add, it does NOT need to be remade. It’s fine all on its own. Finding gems like Knightriders is one of the best things about being a lover of cinema. It also boasts one of the best movie posters of all time painted by the renowned Italian fantasy artist Boris Vallejo.

Knightriders is available on DVD and Blu Ray with plenty of extra features and commentaries by Romero, Savini, and many of the other cast members. It’s a great legacy to the late George A. Romero and a must for any film library.

Welcome back to Graphic Breakdown!

I hope everyone had a nice holiday! We are back to review some comics! And here we go!

Batman #36
Written by Tom King
Illustrated by Clay Mann

The last three issues of this title were totally excellent. Tom King has found his stride and now he’s just rocking it l!

This issue is particularly great because it shows Batman and Superman teaming up for a tale called “Superfriends!”

Superman joins Batman trying to solve a crime.

Yet, in the hands of King, it’s anything but a standard story. King pushes the boundaries here to the limit and it shows the two heroes relationship from a different light. It feels new.

I loved King’s writing on this issue. He knows how to handle Batman and has now he proved he can handle Superman as well.

The art by Mann is superb. He is one of the best artists currently not on a monthly book.

Pick this up. It’s a great story that is also visually dynamic.

RATING: A

Deathstroke #26
Written by Christopher Priest
Illustrated by Carlo Pagulayan

This is an awesome start to the new storyline entitled “The Fall Of Slade.”

Priest always writes a good comic book. Here, he kicks it into overdrive to make for one awesome comic book!

Team Defiance is convinced that their leader, Slade Wilson, has gone missing. As they start digging deeper, they start to discover they may have bitten off more than they can chew.

Deathstroke, meanwhile, finds himself mixed up in a bunch of unwanted hijinks as well.

The writing is incredibly tight here. Priest rocks it every issue. The art is sharp.

The cover choices are from Shane Davis or Ryan Sook and both are fantastic. This is a superb book.

Keep them coming!

RATING : A-

Bane: Conquest #8
Written by Chuck Dixon
Illustrated by Graham Nolan

This nutty, over the top comic book has been a bit of a guilty pleasure for me.

The plot doesn’t get very deep at all but man is it fun. Dixon writes a bombastic action tale and you can’t help but smile a bit.

Bane has made a big enemy! It’s the villain named Kobra!

Kobra won’t stop until Bane is dead! This leads to a global manhunt for Bane!

This issue focuses on Bane trying to find himself sanctuary and a way out of this mess.

The art by Nolan is good. He knows how to deliver a solid action book and doesn’t disappoint here.

Pick this book up if you want to turn your brain off for ten minutes and want to have a good time.

RATING: B

Batman: White Knight #3
Written and Illustrated by Sean Murphy
Published by DC Comics

A lot of people have been talking about this book.

They totally should! It deserves all of the hype it’s getting.

Murphy had spun the Batman mythos on it’s head and writes one hell of a unique tale.

In this issue, the Batman family is having a hard time.

The public is turning against them. The Joker is cured and hunting them down. Harley may throw a wrench in things as well.

There are twists and turns galore!

The art stands tall with the writing here. Murphy has a way with graphic storytelling that is just amazing. I am blown away with his work.

Pick this up. It’s a surefire classic.

RATING: A

Injustice 2 #15
Written by Tom Taylor
Illustrated by Mike S. Miller

I love this series unabashedly. It’s an awesome alternative take on the DC Universe and it works.

You should pick this up if you haven’t delved into it. It’s a total blast.

This issue is about trying to bust Wonder Woman out of a Themysciran prison!

What’s more fun than that?

Kara Zor-El has been charged with this task!

Can she accomplish it? Read it and find out!

Taylor is a fine writer. My only issue with this is that it’s rather short.

Still, the story is good and the art is decent. What more do you need than that?

RATING: B+

Bombshells United #7
Written by Marguerite Bennett
Illustrated by Siya Oum

Siya Oum has been making the rounds lately.

I love her art. It’s something new in the landscape of comics. I love her work on Lola and I love her work here. It really energizes the book.

This issue focuses on a new threat from the fascist forces!

His name?

Black Adam!

The Bombshells have to save the planet from this dastardly villain. But he may prove to be too powerful.

Bennett keeps the writing fast and loose on this title.  There are twists and turns everywhere. It’s exciting to read. Give this book a chance.

You’ll be happy you did for sure.

RATING: B

Deadman #2
Written and Illustrated by Neal Adams

Well, this is a bit of a disappointment.

I wish Adams would leave this character alone and that somebody else came in and took the reins over on him. Adams decided to “add” onto the classic stories and comes up short here.

The book shows that Deadman was possibly killed for a bigger reason than we originally thought. It may have something to do with the League of Assassins!

What is the mystery?

What will Boston achieve if he figures it out?

Sadly, it’s not a compelling enough story.

The art by Adams is what makes it worth it.

He will never be the star he was during the 1970s, but who cares?

The man is still working and still trying. That’s at least to be commended. He should hire a writer at this point though. The strength is in his art.

RATING: C

Black Lightning: Cold Dead Hands #2
Written by Tony Isabella
Illustrated by Clayton Henry

Tony Isabella is back writing Black Lightning and all is good in the world once again.

This story is very captivating and I’ve been enjoying it immensely.

Black Lightning hasn’t been utilized well in years and it’s good to see him back.

Black Lightning has been accused of killing a gang of robbers. He now has to dodge the police while trying to be a do-gooder. There are high tech weapons on the street and he’s trying to get rid of them.

Problem is, the public may be turning against him.

Isabella is doing amazing writing on this series! And Henry may be the best artist for this title! His art here soars. They have found the potential in this character and are making some great comic books.

Pick this up for sure!

RATING: B+

Batman/ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II #1
Written by James Tynion IV
Illustrated by Freddie Williams III
Published by DC Comics and IDW Publishing

The first series was a pretty silly book and this follows suit.

Tynion writes a tale that isn’t too brainy. Maybe it doesn’t have to be but I wish it had more meat to it. Ah, well, the art is amazing at least.

Donatello is looking for new skills. He opens up a doorway that brings Bane to New York City.

What a dope.

Bane becomes the new gang boss. Donatello then has to bring Batman to New York to stop Bane. Chaos and fighting ensues.

The art in this book is the reason to buy it. Williams knocks it out of the park with his Illustrated work. He kicked butt on the previous series and he kicks butt here as well.

It’s super energized and just plain awesome. With a better story, it could be an A Plus book for sure.

RATING: B-

DC Holiday Special 2017 #1
Written and Illustrated by Various

The DC Holiday special is a little better than most.

That’s because they actually have some real talent behind the book here. Creators like Tom King and Denny O’Neill.

That makes it go beyond the usual holiday special dreck we usually get.

There are a few instant classics. The Denny O’Neil Batman tale that teams him up with artist Steve Epting. It’s wonderful and works well.

The other one is the Tom King Sgt. Rock tale where he teams up with one of my favorite artists, Francisco Francavilla. It’s a great tale which I read twice. It was also good to see Phil Hester draw Green Arrow again.

So, in summary, I liked a lot of this issue. There is a lot of good in here and definitely worth the purchase.

Give it a shot!

RATING: B+

We’ve got magic rhino horn, body swapping, and a dog with thumbs.

The word for today’s gaggle of comics is definitely strange.

Cyborg # 19
Words – Kevin Grevioux
Pictures – Cliff Richards, Ivan Nunes

When is a rhino’s horn a monkey’s paw?

Victor (Cyborg) and Sarah investigate the strange phenomenon of meteorites pelting a small African village. They find they’re hollow and packed like nature’s most expensive pinatas with billions worth of rare metals and diamonds.

In perfect story set-up fashion Vic once again wonders about his man-machine dichotomy before an armed terrorist group (GUR) attacks the area. Vic protects the locals and finds a hollowed Rhino horn (and attached Jinn) in the fracas.

Like any genie worth it’s salt he tricks Vic into wishing out loud to be human, but it’s not that hard a task Vic is many things but especially clever is not one of them (sorry dear, I’ve read you since Teen Titans).

The GUR is a bit ticked off to lose the MacGuffin (I mean magic cursed rhino horn). They were using children to make wishes on it (as well as for child soldiers, a resource IS a resource) to fund their illegal reign of terror.

So now a fully fleshed Victor is trying to take them on, with minimal backup no firepower and no travel vaccinations (no spoilers, but remember how War of the Worlds ended? >wink<).

I’m intrigued to see how this gets resolved. Victor is the type to want to save everybody and it’s not hard to root for him there but he’s completely forgotten how squishy being a normal person can make you. Cursed items are a fun story element.

Dastardly and Muttley #4
Words – Garth Ennis
Pictures – Mauricet, John Kalisz

Back to our heroes on the run Richard Atcherly and the very doggish Muller as they chase down War Pig the marauding drone to clear their names and hopefully reverse the effects.

Oh boy, the effects that cartoonish gas is having are starting to become very evident.

Atcherly is becoming more “Dastardly” in appearance and will fall into villain monologue without seeming to realize it.

Their surprisingly bloodthirsty pursuer has been equally bent by the technicolorish gas that this drone (which seems to not run out of any resource and has a mind of it’s own)is continuing to spew, and it’s not unfair to call the stakes world warping.

Garth Ennis is obviously having a blast on this book.

The artists Mauricet and Kalisz do a wonderful job of keeping it mostly realistic to highlight when the dangerously goofy cartoonish events intrude themselves (like in the middle of a Senate hearing on the matter). You want them to pull it out in the end and be the heroes the source material never had room for them to be.

Green Arrow #35
Words – Benjamin Percy
Pictures – Juan Ferreyra

I give this the high compliment that it has the artistic feel of an Elseworlds book. There’s a painterly manner and freedom of page layout to further that vision that you forget you miss until you see it again.

The story’s simple but enjoyable to read.

Ollie is helping his newly re-discovered mother recover information and gold so far below the ocean that the pressure itself could be a death sentence.

Luckily for him and for us the Green Arrow universe is populated with many friends and foes to expand the story (and help him when the trip inevitably goes wrong).

I was just as into the Law & Order-ish drama with Spencer (his lawyer) and Shuffleton (an honest cop) happening on Ollie’s behalf while he was away.

Green Lanterns #36
Words – Tim Seeley
Pictures – Ronan Cliquet, Hi-Fi

Our two Lanterns, Jessica Cruz and Simon Baz, complete the story from last issue from the perspective of a week after it happened, so at least we know they got out ok.

It seemed like everything was going fine until his lawyer (yeah, I guess the pale dangerous alien lady Singularity Jain was his lawyer) is just there next to Bolphunga’s ship. She shows off her black hole-like eating abilities, by eating said ship and Baz’s Green Lantern light right off the ring.

The fight (which takes up a lot of the story) is alright, we get a bit of character development for Bolphunga but it feels like an afterthought. Bolphunga’s story was only given as a device to introduce Jain their new badass boss-level villain.

Jess’s life is threatened but since we knew she survived, there’s no bite to it.

A character dies (but no one we knew for more than two issues) to reinforce how amazing the new character is and I hope next issue is better.

Harley and Ivy Meet Betty and Veronica #3
Words – Paul Dini, Marc Andreyko
Pictures – Laura Braga, Adriana Melo, Arif Prianto

After the killer party last issue all four main characters find themselves in unfamiliar territory. Selena (Catwoman to you) dropped Harley and Ivy off at Pamela Isley’s (Poison Ivy) place in Gotham. Betty and Veronica wake up in Veronica’s room – or at least it appears that way.

Sabrina and Zatanna’s spell slinging switched the ladies around, Betty Harley and Veronica Pamela! We get fun high school hijinks from the two felonious females (so lucky Veronica had botany and Betty had gymnastics class that day).

The reader wonder if Pamela wants to stay a bit longer not just to foil Lodge’s anti-environmental plans, but also because she’s enjoying being a teenager with her best friend.

Back in Gotham, Betty in Harley and Veronica in Pam aren’t taking it as well.

Besides Veronica freaking out over their sudden boost in age (hard eye roll there) neither know how to be incognito and the fruit-headed gangster that’s been in the b-story of this catches up with them.

If only a Chekhov’s gun they set into motion last issue dressed in 1989 cinematic style could show up and save them!

The details are worth savoring in here folks (Selena was at the party to see Josie play, my weebism was happy) and we’re only half way through. I get the feeling these miniseries are less the usual faire of assigned story and (dare I hope?) the stories these creators are excited to tell? We’ll continue to read and wish for the best.

Justice League #34
Words – Christopher Priest
Pictures – Pete Woods

It’s called “The People vs. Justice League… Part 1: Three Rooms” but it occurs in more locations than that, maybe the next part will make the title make more sense? For my bad sense of punnish humor you could think of it as “A Hard Night’s Bat”, because we follow a bad day that Bruce is just too exhausted to keep up with.

Three emergencies pop up, the level of severity only known as they happen. Bruce tries to coordinate the resolution of two them, while heading the attack of the third all highly sleep deprived. It’s sad and thoughtful.

One of the threats looks dangerous and frightening but was a misunderstanding.

One goes horribly wrong at no fault of the League, and the third had minimal losses.

As the story starts we find Bruce passed out on the stairs, and it ends with him passed out on the stairs and blaming himself for all the mistakes in between.

No one ever said he was a healthy role-model, it’s the interpersonal relationships that make the character human and the story worth reading.

Nightwing #34
Words – Tim Seeley
Pictures – Javier Fernandez, Chris Sotomayor

This story was a nice introduction to Dick’s extended circle of support and why he fights so hard for a city that seems to be on it’s last legs on a good day.

Nightwing, Defacer, Orca, Mouse, Thrill Devil, the Squirrel, Grimm, Stallion, and an uneasy alliance with Roland Desmond are all that stops two crazy people from dosing Blüdhaven with their knock off Blockbuster serum. Those two (Raptor and The Pigeon) are using birds to tear the town apart for the best/worst reason – for love. For the love Pigeon demands of him and that Raptor wishes for from a lost lover.

The struggle is fun (to read) in a mission impossible everyone plays a part way, the power of friendship with science and lots of punching. Even Police Captain Svoboda gets a chance to join in.

Boundaries are tested, broken and reset between characters between punches. The guy doesn’t get the girl, the girl doesn’t get the guy, but the city lives on and gets a chance at another day.

Superman #36
Words – Patrick Gleason, Peter J. Tomasi
Pictures – Doug Mahnke, Jamie Mendoza, Wil Quintana

This was a good, big, throw all your action figures together in a pile drag out fight. Everyone the heroes helped is on their side here.

There’s an adorable panel with the Apokoliptian puppies protecting a prone Lex Luthor. Even Lois gets her moment to shine using fits and logical argument to beat the Furies (their narrow minded views are easily translated to modern discussion still sadly), and I cheered at her triumph in all it’s comicy-goodness glory.

The cute reconnection of Lois and Clark a panel later was just a cherry on the cake, Mahnke and Tomasi have a good handle on writing people in a relationship.

Apokolips does not get what they think they need, but steps are taken towards freedom, liberty and democracy. If I was cynical I’d say it gets reversed as soon as someone finds Darkseid. The Apokoliptians are struggling with the new concepts but they’ve attained hope (and Superman’s cell number).

Now I want this sandcastle to last as long as possible, don’t let me down folks!

The Jetsons #2
Words – Jimmy Palmiotti
Pictures – Pier Brito, Alex Sinclair

I want to like this more than I do.

The art is competent, but flat and there’s no life or energy to the images. Even when it’s something as dramatic as George being electrocuted by chameleons or Elroy hanging on for his life, everyone is at most somewhat perturbed. Faces stuck on to the head like decals, overly-long limbed jointed doll bodies not adding anything more than being there.

The story, (which a good one can boost the art we have) is… overly complex yet obvious. It starts with Judy having a prophetic dream. Rosie exposits with her about it. In this incarnation she has the consciousness of George’s mother which explains her attachment to the family but makes other things awkward.

Future machinery is failing and the only one Spacely ever sends out to fix it is George. After that hilarious accidental electrocution happens (well it was meant to be), Jane is called away to help the government with an impending meteor.

Elroy is good friends with and maybe dating Cogswell’s daughter Lake (oh my goodness the wackyness!) and their picnic is interrupted when their floating campus upends. Don’t worry though named characters don’t fall in the ocean, but a huge thing underwater wakes up among the old past (to us modern) skyscrapers.

George is tapped to investigate the disturbance on the same mission his wife is on and… please let this get better next issue.

The Mighty Crusaders #1
Script: Ian Flynn
Art: Kelsey Shannon, Matt Herms, Jack Morelli
Published by Archie Comics/Dark Circle
Available 12/6/17 / $3.99

As a kid in the ‘60s, one of my very favorite comic book issues was Archie Comics’ Mighty Crusaders #4.

The story was entitled “Too Many Super-Heroes,” and was a campy romp, written by Superman creator Jerry Siegel, that brought back nearly all of the MLJ Comics superheroes, most of whom hadn’t been seen in 20 years by that point. The regulars in that title up until that time had been Fly Man and Fly Girl, the Black Hood, the Shield (son of the original although that was a secret) and a goofy-looking restyled version of the Comet who looked like David Niven in a spelunking helmet.

Yeah, in retrospect, it wasn’t really such a great series. But many of those older characters looked surprisingly cool!

Steel Sterling! The Web! The Hangman! Mr. Justice! The Fox! There was a half-hearted effort at keeping them around but the timing was poor.

The high camp era in entertainment was giving way to relevance and Archie chose to simply drop all their superhero titles instead of going down that route.

A stillborn effort at doing a dark, serious version of the Black Hood a decade later went nowhere but he popped up again when the early ‘80s comics boom led to a full-scale revival of The Mighty Crusaders concept, headed up by Rich Buckler. Although this effort got off to a promising start with work from, among others, veterans Steve Ditko, Jim Steranko, and Dick Ayers, behind the scenes politics and in-fighting led to a slow collapse.

A half-dozen or so attempts at revivals followed over the years, some getting fan press but no actual published results. The characters and concepts were actually leased, sold, or otherwise licensed by DC on two separate occasions but they took everything too far afield and readers simply lost interest.

In the meantime, with the rise of the Internet, we fans that still cared were able to find and read scans of the original stories of the Web…ON the Web! And The Shield and The Black Hood and all the other MLJ superheroes who had gotten left behind in the wake of the success of America’s favorite perpetual teenager, Archie Andrews.

In recent years, there have been yet more fruitless revival efforts including an updated online only series at one point. I lost track and frankly, after all this time and failed efforts on the part of some talented folks to make these characters work in any way, I lost interest.

But things change. My interest is back.

So here we are with a brand new The Mighty Crusaders #1, written by Ian Flynn and drawn by Kelsey Shannon. I’ve never heard of them but they may have finally found the right mixture of old and new to make The Mighty Crusaders a viable concept nearly 80 years after MLJ debuted its first superhero, The Shield.

That Shield is here, too, now the head of a corporation that runs the new Crusaders, a celebrated commercial superhero team. They’re sponsored by a government organization known by its initials, the M.L. J. Nice touch!

The only original active member in this first issue is the seemingly ageless Steel Sterling. He works for the new, young, female version of The Shield. Newer versions of The Comet, The Web, and The Jaguar are also in the group, as is Darkling, whom I seem to recall as a holdover from the ‘80s version, and Firefly, daughter of Fly Girl.

There’s a lot of confusing backstory even just to these recent versions of the characters and I haven’t been paying a lick of attention to it. Didn’t matter a bit as far as the story. You’re thrown right into the good, old-fashioned superhero action and then later on get what exposition you need in a well-written section where the old and new Shields discuss/argue their respective situations as to the team.

That confusing backstory comes up again in an end of issue Data File on “the Broken Shield” where what should be explaining things to the reader just confused the heck out of me. Is this guy the original Shield or not? It seems to say he is and yet also that he isn’t.

The ‘80s version of The Mighty Crusaders was published by Archie’s imprint, Red Circle. This one is from Dark Circle. I hope that isn’t a sign of things to come. As I stated above, this first issue is a good, old-fashioned FUN comic book with superheroes. That’s something that one hasn’t been able to count on from Marvel or DC on any kind of regular basis for ages. I’d hate to see this latest promising revival go the way of all the other promising revivals of The Mighty Crusaders.

Booksteve Recommends…for now.

This holiday season, you may be home, but you’re not alone… In this fresh and gleefully twisted spin on home-invasion horror, babysitter Ashley (Olivia DeJonge) must defend her young charges (Levi Miller, Ed Oxenbould ) when intruders break into the house one snowy night – or so she thinks.

And we’re giving away three copies!

To enter, send an email with the subject header “BETTER WATCH OUT” to geekcontest @ gmail dot com and answer the following question:

What’s your favorite non-traditional Christmas film?

Please include your name, and address (U.S. only. You must be 18 years old).

Only one entry per person and a winner will be chosen at random.

Contest ends at 11:59 PM EST on December 17th, 2017.

There was a great disturbance in The Force three weeks ago when the highly anticipated Star Wars: Battlefront II was released to an angry reaction from consumers.

November 14th’s pre-release of the game thrusted fans into EA’s pay to win system via micro-transactions. Earning accomplishments takes such a long time, that paying little by little for characters and weapons upgrades is more enticing to those with lots of cash and little patience. Gamers were getting slaughtered in the multiplayer setting right out of the gate by those who spent hundreds of dollars to upgrade to the ultimate ground commando or nearly indestructible starship.

Fans unleashed their anger in unprecedented numbers on social media and Reddit, prompting a response from EA that infuriated fans even more. Soon after, the price of microtransactions was lowered by 75%, which still didn’t satisfy fans because the pay to win problem still existed. EA then went on to completely eliminate microtransactions on the eve of the game’s wide release. The gaming community scored a major victory over EA, with a lot of damage already done to Battlefront’s reputation.

I don’t fancy myself a gamer by any means. I get killed almost immediately in multiplayer settings, but that doesn’t stop me from trying. I got my eye on you GloryToCory and AdamBaconBurger.

The single player campaign is what made me spend eighty dollars on the PS4’s Elite Trooper edition of the game.

Why?

Because the story is canon! Plus, I ponied up the extra twenty dollars for extras that are super useless. Hey, you live and you learn, right?

A canon story in a video game presents enormous opportunities in terms of storytelling. DLC (downloadable content), along with filling in certain gaps that don’t leave casual fans out of the theatrical loop, would make for a more immersive experience.

The story follows Imperial Special Forces commando, Iden Versio, as she leads Inferno Squadron to battle the Rebel Alliance immediately following the Battle of Endor. Different types of levels from stealth missions to first-person shooter action and starfighter assault will give players a well-rounded list of things to accomplish.

If you are a Star Wars fan who is all about that multiplayer life, you will enjoy this game. If you only bought this game for the single-player campaign, you will be disappointed in the story, despite being fun to play. Playing as the Empire is a fun concept and the promotional material leading up to the game positioned Iden Versio as someone who has an unwavering faith in the Imperial way of life. Versio starts off that way until she’s not, which made no sense considering the kind of person she is supposed to be. The campaign takes a detour from Versio’s journey as some of our favorite Rebel heroes take center stage.

Playing as Lando Calrissian makes for some shoot ’em up fun.

Still, when a campaign that is supposed to cover the thirty-year time frame between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens takes four hours to complete, narrative time jumps are a given.

In fact, the story jumps so far in time that we really only get to play a time frame of up to one year after Endor, skip 29 years, and are thrust into a mission right before Episode VII. It is essentially false advertising that is fun to play. Still, the narrative is too short and leaves a lot to be desired.

This pains me to say as a fan of all things Star Wars, however, Battlefront II was designed to be the ultimate multiplayer cash grab with everything else coming in a distant second place. The heart and soul of the game lies in the vast array of multiplayer features.

Gameplay is smooth, imagery goes from stunning to absolutely gorgeous and if you’re able to “earn” a wide variety of star cards, you will be nearly indestructible, eliminating old fogies like me with ease. The single-player campaign, on its own, is not worth the price of admission.

Still, if you’re down with The Force like I am, most likely, you will want to play this game. Make no mistake about it, this game could have been so much more…damn your greed, EA!

In theaters everywhere on December 15th, Star Wars: The Last Jedi continues the story, picking up where The Force Awakens left off.  Written and directed by Rian Johnson, the film stars Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie, Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern and Benicio del Toro.

And to celebrate the release, we’re teamed up with our friends at Film Jackets to give away a Star Wars: The Last Jedi Black Zip Up Hoodie!

To enter, please send an email with the subject header “JEDI HOODIE” to geekcontest @ gmail dot com and answer the following:

Please include your name, size (Adult XS-XXXL) and address (U.S. Residents only. You must be 18 years old).

Only one entry per person and a winner will be chosen at random.

Contest ends at 11:59 PM EST on December 17th, 2017.

Welcome to the first Precursor To Dystopia column.

What started as a little feature on the Instagram moodboard for my novel Marlowe Kana has become a full-blown column. And to start it, here’s a shameless lead image of Chrissy Tiegen’s boobs (It’s relevant, I promise):

Chrissy Teigen

…What the hell do Chrissy Tiegen’s boobs have to do with Dystopia? Well, to answer that, I want to first start with a simple overview: What is dystopia?

Let’s consult Merriam-Webster:

Dys·to·pia: A place where people lead dehumanized and often fearful lives.

…Sounds awful. And it also sounds an awful lot like today. Here. Now.

But I think this definition, while accurate, isn’t necessarily what we all have in mind when we think of a Dystopia. Most immediately, comparisons to the worlds of George Orwell’s 1984 and Aldus Huxley’s Brave New World are made when the topic of dystopia comes up. So for the purposes of this column and all future episodes of it, we will define dystopia like John Joseph Adams did in his piece on Dystopian Fiction:

In a dystopian story, society itself is typically the antagonist; it is society that is actively working against the protagonist’s aims and desires. This oppression frequently is enacted by a totalitarian or authoritarian government, resulting in the loss of civil liberties and untenable living conditions, caused by any number of circumstances, such as world overpopulation, laws controlling a person’s sexual or reproductive freedom, and living under constant surveillance.

…Wow. Still sounds like now. But the good news lies in that first bit: we’re not under the control of a totalitarian and/or authoritative government…Yet.

There’s constant surveillance, but we bring it upon ourselves. And it’s not by the government, it’s by the corporations who benefit from knowing every little detail about you. Vizio and Samsung “Smart televisions” listening in when they shouldn’t be. Apple and Google collecting all of your travels via GPS, even when you’re not using your map. Literally thousands of apps that have some form of “beacon” tracking software running 24/7, to determine if you’re near a location broadcasting high-freqency tones to see what kind of shopper you are — because the game, makeover simulator, or social app they’re embedded in are fun and FREE!

It’s ubiquitous to a point of normalization. And the general consensus is “eh, so what? I don’t do anything all that interesting anyway.” Except it IS interesting to the advertisers, device builders, app developers, marketers, and other folks who are slowly but surely gaining complete control of the very ways we communicate day in and day out.

It’s nothing new, though. Television and Radio have been doing this since a week after each was invented. Soap Operas are called “Soap Operas” because they were invented to promote sales of dish, laundry, and hand soap. Your favorite radio station played the music you liked for 3-5 songs in a row to get you to stick around for a few ads. But what was the harm? You got free stories and free access to tunes, and all you had to pay was a little attention when the music stopped and a little jingle for a car dealership or that local restaurant came on.

But these days, it’s gotten downright sinister. In 2014, Facebook was caught deliberately manipulating users’ news feeds to manipulate their emotional state to see what effect depression and/or happiness had on buying and ad interaction. And since then, there is no denying the role that social networks and network carriers have played in your everyday life. Companies like Palantir and Cambridge Analytica profit from this, specifically dealing in information gleaned through data mining of social networks to sell to companies, political campaigns, and other organizations to market to you.

This is the point that Zeynep Tufekci makes in her stellar TED Talk on machine learning, artificial intelligence, and ethics in computing:

 
The algorhythms have even become so smart, they can unintentionally out sex workers, predict your mental health and tendency toward depression, and even predict potential riot outbreaks based on sociopolitical densities and news events. Target cleverly sent ads for baby clothing and nursery items to women who might be pregnant based on their predictive analytics, outing a teen girl who hadn’t told her family yet.

They can even detect any “boob” or bra photo you have on your phone. And that’s where Chrissy Teigan’s boobs come into the conversation:

Chrissy Teigen

Your phone knows more about you than you can possibly know. It’s not conspiracy. It’s fact.

We live in a society where the vast majority of communication takes place via text through a tiny screen, littered with happy-looking hieroglyphs meant to bring intimacy and emotional meaning to a cold medium. According to a much-cited Gallup poll from 2014, Texting and mobile messaging made up over 64% of all communications among Americans under age 60. Fast-forward to 2017, and the number of mobile handsets in use across America has increased by 27% since then. 98% of Americans over the age of 14 own a cellphone of some kind. So, in three years, given that there have been no large-scale EMPs which have crippled a massive number of devices, cell towers, or networks, it’s safe to assume that texting has increased from a majority to even more of one. And that’s not even counting instant messaging, email, Twitter, Facebook, or Reddit threads. That’s just good “old fashioned” mobile handset texting.

Add them together, and you account for 91% of all communication in the United States of America. And every single one of those above mentioned platforms mine every post, statement, comment and picture you send for intel about how best to market to you… They know you better than you know yourselves.

Every single tech vendor in Silicon Valley and around the world is vying for your attention through your mobile device, 24/7, 365. They don’t just want it. They need it, because without it, they die. Long ago, they figured out that the most effective way to get your attention is to literally hack your brain to make you think it’s all about you.

It’s not that the police are going to march down your street in riot gear and demand your subjugation. The government — including the police — have no interest or need to go door to door to control you. They simply use the existing platforms that DO control your daily flow of information.

And that’s how Facebook and Twitter sold over a million dollars worth of advertising to Russian-linked firms in the 2016 election. Facebook literally built an advertising blueprint based on political leanings and support for advertisers to use when buying ads against those interests:

Buzzfeed, via Facebook

When questioned about it, Facebook denied this at first. Evidence was presented, proving that targeted ads were in fact bought by Russian organizations with Kremlin ties. Their reaction was to immediately scrub the platform of as much content as possible in groups, accounts, and pages tied back to Russia.

Finally called on the carpet by no less an entity than the Untied States Congress, Twitter, Facebook, and Google have been a little more forthcoming to the exact breadth and reach of the Russian disinformation campaign during the 2016 election.

Of course, it’s too late now. The damage has been done. Now, we get at most a very South-Parkian Exxon executive style “We’re sorry.”

Not to get all Black Mirror “What if phones, but too much?” esque, but folks… We’re headed to dystopia. And the intent of this column is to keep track of the little breadcrumbs we leave along that path.

More Precursors To Dystopia for the week of October 24-31:

• Google is literally building a city, owned, run, and financed by the tech giant themselves. In my new novel Marlowe Kana, Imagen Corporation is a massive entity that employs, houses, feeds, governs and polices every citizen in the United American State. It’s Apple-buys-Google, who then buy XE (Blackwater), which is then all bought by Amazon. I imagine this city to be the blueprint that it used.
• While living in your Google city, your Google Home Mini will be sending them everything they could ever want to know about you.
• And their algorithms will know exactly what photos they need to take of you, because they’re now that smart.
• But, good news: You can avoid facial recognition thanks to CV Dazzle Camo and Hyperface Camo.
• Buzzfeed argues that the police state of Dystopian fiction is already here.
• A drugged society is a dependent, and thus easily controlled society. Easy access to “prescription” opioids has created an addiction crisis that is now a literal epidemic. And you better believe there are people profiting from it. Meet The Sackler Family.
• And finally, no matter what you hear or how it looks, believe Mark Zuckerberg when he swears he’s not running for President. No, really. He’s just a nice guy who wants to see Iowa (and Puerto Rico, but via a digital avatar of himself?)

That’s it. Have any comments or insights you’d like to share? Please comment, I’d like to hear them and discuss.

Produced by Lucy Summer, Alex Needles,
Brent Stiefel, Greg Stewart
Written and Directed by Adam Bhala Lough
Featuring Cody Wilson, Amir Taaki

The New Radical follows the story of two young men with very different ways of addressing an idealism for truth and freedom with a cynicism about the structures of government and society while exhibiting a youthful exuberance and cocky pride about being right and proving that to the world.

Are these guys heroes or villains? They can’t give you the answer.

Adam Bhala Lough, whose previous documentaries have focused on subjects as varied as skateboarders and the musician Lee “Scratch” Perry, gives us a look at young anarchists and libertarians and their search for meaning in our post-media-saturated world.

We are first introduced to Cody Wilson and his quest to create a 3-D printer-based gun. A law school drop-out who had to learn and hack together his plans against the wishes of even the 3-D printer manufacturers, Cody is the essence of a self-assured righteousness that doesn’t allow for doubt about whether he should be doing this or not. He has a mixture of the joy of figuring things out and the defiance of “How dare you tell me I can’t do something.” His quest and legal troubles are the focus of most of the film.

There is an extensive interview with Julian Assange that is spread throughout the documentary to provide some context. Other experts and individuals on all sides of these issues are tapped for opinions that flesh out what is going on and how it fits into a broader discussion of First Amendment, Second Amendment, national security, and internet information issues.

At some point Cody is invited to England to speak at an anarchist conference on disruptive acts organized by the other main subject of the film, Amir Taaki.

Amir is a whip-smart programmer and avowed anarchist who squats in abandoned buildings and “liberates” what he needs from the powers that be oppressing society. He makes news as an advocate for the virtual currency BitCoin (in the news recently as its “value” has skyrocketed). That BitCoin is used as a money laundering tool or to purchase illegal drugs and other things online is of little concern to Taaki. He loves it for the unregulated freedom unchained by any physical governing body.

Wilson and Taaki join to push the buttons of society by creating a project that protects the privacy of BitCoin transactions but, by their own admission or rather bragging, could be used by criminals to avoid detection. Before this becomes reality though, Taaki disappears. Wilson doesn’t know if he’s dead, incarcerated or what happened.

In the meantime, Wilson has finally decided that making money is also a good thing and is manufacturing gun parts for an aftermarket to modify semi-automatic rifles to do things the government would rather you not do. This plays directly into Wilson’s ego and love of the “poke-you-in-the-eye” style of dealing with society’s conventions.

The documentary seemed like it went on a bit too long but was broken up into several chapters that could give its target audience, Millennials, a chance to pause and get more munchies before continuing. This stacks up well alongside shows from the Vice network and the works of Louis Theroux. You won’t get an answer to the question of whether these guys are heroes or villains but you will get enough information that you’ll know which side you’d place them on.

The New Radical is now playing in theaters and On Demand

Produced by Guillermo del Toro, J. Miles Dale
Screenplay by Guillermo del Toro, Vanessa Taylor
Story by Guillermo del Toro
Directed by Guillermo del Toro
Starring Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon,
Richard Jenkins, Doug Jones,
Michael Stuhlbarg, Octavia Spencer

Communicating is easier than ever in this day and age. Yet with every new innovation, it seems as if we are actually heard less and less.

Such is the dilemma for The Shape of Water protagonist Elisa Esposito, a mute custodian who works in a high-security U.S. Government research facility circa 1962.

At the height of the cold war, Elisa leads a relatively invisible life, relying only her co-worker Zelda (Octavia Spencer) and roommate Giles (Richard Jenkins) for friendship and support.

Esposito, brilliantly portrayed by Sally Hawkins, struggles to connect with just about anyone (or anything) else in her life. But her luck is about to change, as she and Zelda become privy to a new arrival at the facility; a half-man, half-fish creature (Doug Jones) from the Amazon. A rare and exotic creature that is considered to be a deity by the natives.

It’s too bad that his captor, company man Strickland (Michael Shannon), is hellbent on exploiting this deity to punch his one-way ticket to the top of the American Dream. He and his bunkermates have plans to do some half-assed autopsy on a fish (credit Murray Hamilton’s Mayor Vaughn in Jaws) so that the Russians can’t get information on his amphibious breathing techniques or healing properties.

While Strickland counts the days down to his victorious vivisection, Elisa bonds with the creature during after-hour cleanings. She brings him food, introduces him to music, culture, and teaches him sign language. It’s a lovely yet heartbreaking juxtaposition when paired with the cruel beatings Strickland inflicts on the creature.

Once Elisa learns about the fatal plans for the creature, she formulates a plan with Giles and compassionate lab scientist Robert Hoffstetler (Michael Stuhlbarg) to extract the “asset” from the facility and house it at her apartment until it can be returned to the ocean. Their well-hatched plan becomes a comedy of errors, but ultimately the joke is on Strickland as Elisa makes her anonymous escape with the creature in tow.

This is where the film makes a hard turn from time-period fantasy to what can best be described as an interspecies romantic drama. It’s as if Writer/Director Guillermo del Toro actively challenges the audience to take the plunge off the deep end and suspend all disbelief. It’s a fair request and one I’m certainly prepared to do when considering del Toro’s impressive resume.

Yet, what prevented me from taking this full-on triple-lindy was that the first half of the film effectively establishes the perils of the cold war era; rampant paranoia, imperialism, jingoism, racism, sexism, cultural appropriation and sexual harassment in the workplace (…we’ve come a long way, baby). The love story between Elisa and fish-man, while believable as two souls longing to be understood in a chaotic and strange world, gets really silly, really fast.

Nevertheless, del Toro keeps the viewer guessing at the end of the film as to whether he’s really going to tear your heart out or simply leave you breathless. And a film as beautiful as The Shape of Water deserves all of your attention and respect, even if it’s not the best interspecies sex drama released in 2017.

Produced by Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, James Biddle,
Katherine Keating, Anthony McCarten,
Lisa Bruce, Douglas Urbanski, Lucas Webb
Written by Anthony McCarten
Directed by Joe Wright
Starring Gary Oldman, Kristin Scott Thomas,
Stephen Dillane, Ben Mendelsohn,
Ronald Pickup, Lily James, Samuel West

Before I begin, I would like to just say, “Can we just give the Best Actor Oscar to Gary Oldman and be done with it?”.

Now that that is out of the way, Darkest Hour is the riveting film about the first month of Winston Churchill’s tenure as the Prime Minister of Britain during the March of Hitler across Europe.

Set during the first month of his appointment, May 1940, Darkest Hour shows the struggles and the triumphs of those first 31 days he became the resident of 10 Downing St.

He struggles with a split and unsupportive Parliament while not having the complete confidence of the King.

It is firmly on Churchill’s shoulders whether to fight the Nazi war machine or kowtow to his party and begin the process of negotiating a peace treaty with Hitler possibly costing him and his nation the freedom they cherish.

Brilliantly directed by Joe Wright, Who’s previous films, Atonement (2007), Hanna (2011), and Pan (2015) showed us a very adept filmmaker who’s skill at storytelling is matched by his visual style. He has made a film that is not only thrilling, but the most exciting film about old men talking since 2011’s Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.

More kudos to Mr. Wright, still, because I know how this story ends and yet, I was still gripped in its clutches.

Wright’s camera never wavers from showing you the dank, smoky bleakness of WWII era Britain. Grey and desaturated, the visuals are set to allow the performances shine. Oldman’s Churchill is sublime. Lost into the character under amazing prosthetics, Gary Oldman, who is never not 1000% amazing in whatever role he plays.  Whether or not the film is good or bad, Oldman is always phenomenal. He allows Churchill to be human and flawed. He also shows us what made him a force to be reckoned with as well. In Darkest Hour he gives one of the performances of his career. I am serious when I said they should just hand him the Best Actor award right now.

Not just Oldman, the supporting cast are at the top of their form here as well. Lilly James (Baby Driver) as Winston’s personal secretary, Elizabeth Layton; Kristen Scott Thomas (The English Patient) as Churchill’s loving though understandably frustrated wife, Clementine; and Ben Mendelsohn (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) brilliantly portraying King George VI lead a veritable who’s who of excellent British character actors bringing the tension and the fear and ultimate triumph to life.

In the race to the Academy Awards, it is that time of year, after all, Darkest Hour should stand tall amongst the crowd as it is an entertaining watch with some of the best performances I have seen this year.

Produced and Written by Jeff Miller,
and Christopher Lawrence Chapman
Directed by Christopher Lawrence Chapman
Starring Danielle Harris, Jeff Denton,
Katie Keene, Chris Hahn

Genre darling Danielle Harris (Halloween 4 and 5, Rob Zombie’s Halloween, Stake Land) stars as Amy, a woman who gets stuck in a traffic jam and then suddenly wakes up in hospital.

Everything at the hospital seems…off.

Then the location turns dangerous. Amy decides to get the hell out, runs around the place getting into scrapes, stepping on hypodermics, etc., until –

She suddenly is back in her car, in the same traffic jam, at the same time as before she woke up in the hospital.

This trajectory repeats itself over and over as Amy tries desperately to seek an explanation – and an escape – before it’s too late.

Yes, it’s the second Groundhog Day-inspired horror film to come out in the past few months. And while the similarly-structured Happy Death Day was a modestly-budgeted film, it had a wide release and became a surprise hit.

Inoperable, on the other hand, is a micro-budgeted affair and is destined to be all but forgotten by year’s end.

I wish that weren’t so, as I always look forward to anything in which Harris appears, and I’m a sucker for time travel/manipulation movies. It’s not the film’s fault it is being released on the heels of Death Day, and I think the Groundhog Day formula can be manipulated and expanded upon in various ways and in different genres (as evidenced by Happy Death Day, a movie I thoroughly enjoyed).

The big problem is that Inoperable just doesn’t make interesting use of the premise and structure it apes, settling for Harris running around the hospital’s hallways ad infinitum, running into sub-sub-Jacob’s Ladder sights and situations, and encountering recurring characters and events that, unlike Groundhog Day or Happy Death Day, feel half-hearted and almost arbitrary.

With this kind of premise, grounding the audience in the repetitive nature of the story, then tweaking it slightly and, gradually, significantly, is truly key. Inoperable seems almost uninterested in audience participation; instead, it appears they just wanted to perfunctorily cover the bare minimum of expected touchstones for this type of story, yet without ensuring comprehension or any sense of urgency in the filmmaking.

For example, Amy doesn’t begin the repetition of her experience after dying or falling asleep, it just seems to happen at a whim (there IS an explanation at some point, but it’s not especially dramatic or illuminating), and the “restart” moments are, for the most part, filmed with all the dynamism of an industrial video. There’s no “I’ve Got You, Babe” from Groundhog Day, no brutal murder from Happy Death Day, just time running out, then back in the traffic jam.

Harris does well under the circumstances, but even her appeal wears thin as we spend an inordinate amount of the film’s running time watching her flit around the hospital over and over, leading to a revelation that would have landed like a lead balloon even at the conclusion of a five-minute short.

Director/co-writer Christopher Lawrence Chapman does try to inject some style into the proceedings here and there, but the overall impression one takes away from this tedious exercise is that Chapman secured a hospital location and quickly wrote a story around it and, beyond the basic premise, never found the right hook – or resolution.

Inoperable is now playing in select theaters

When you walk past the Prince Charles Cinema in the heart of London’s West End, you may notice that the marquee above the entrance has a small, permanent sign that boasts that this is the home of Tommy Wiseau’s The Room. Like a miniature version of his infamous Los Angeles billboard, Wiseau eerily glares down on passersby, but Tommy Wiseau and Greg Sestero can also be witnessed in person at this location, as they visit the cinema at frequent intervals. Here, Wiseau and Sestero introduce the film that brought them cult fame, take questions from the crowd – albeit Wiseau rarely answers any – and throw footballs back and forth to fans in the Leicester Square side street outside the cinema.

As a result, the cinema has become particularly famous for the wild energy that fills it when The Room audiences let loose with endless, heckling roars and a monsoon of spoons – mostly plastic ones, however, cinema manager Paul Vickery does recall a few unfortunate incidents involving metal spoons – which requires the staff to take swift action to get it all cleaned up before the next flock of cult film fans fill the room for yet another of the frequently sold out screenings.

This has clearly not escaped James Franco, as he and his brother Dave take the stage after a special preview screening of their new film The Disaster Artist has just finished to a standing ovation from the sold out screen.

“Tommy and Greg – the real ones – say that this is the best theater to show The Room in the world!”

As James’ icebreaker causes significant cheering from the ecstatic crowd, the Francos begin to go into more detail about the production of their new film, which has not only opened to wide critical acclaim, but has also won several awards already. While James simply states that he found it to be an incredibly fun experience, younger brother Dave elaborates.

“This was the first time the two of us have worked together in a substantial way. My wife and some of my best friends were also in the movie, and it was as fun as you’d expect. As an actor, when you’re working with people you know, you feel comfortable taking risks that you wouldn’t normally take, knowing that no one is going to judge you, so I’m glad I finally said yes to one of my brother’s movies.”

Considering how well they work together in the The Disaster Artist, it may come as a surprise to some that Dave and James have previously avoided working together, but Dave has always had a very specific reason for not sharing the screen with his older brother.

“Without going too far into it, when I first started my career, I just wanted to distance myself from him in the work arena because I wanted to pave my own path and stand on my own two feet, but after a while I just thought ‘fuck it’; he’s my brother, I love him, we have a lot of similar sensibilities and are attracted to projects that are slightly outside the box, and this definitely falls into that category!”

James and Dave Franco on stage at the Prince Charles Cinema in London, England.

While the subject matter of The Disaster Artist is indeed very eclectic, the sheer absurdity of The Room inevitably begs the question how the Francos became acquainted with The Room in the first place. As the ringleader of the adaptation of Sestero and Bissell’s book, James recalls how he was introduced to Wiseau’s magnum opus.

“Unlike a lot of people, I didn’t see the movie for a long time; it came to me through the book, strangely. People like Jonah Hill, Kristen Bell and Paul Rudd were all early The Room fans, but I never got in on it, not until the book came out four years ago. I started reading it and it was incredible, so before I was half way through it, I ordered the DVD and watched it with friends; after being primed by the book and it’s incredible story, seeing the film was amazing. I knew it would be fun to recreate those scenes, but I also knew it wouldn’t be enough without the incredible backstory of these two friends and their dreams; everybody that comes to Hollywood dreams, and that universal appeal of the story would make this a movie that we could really hang a story on.”

Soon after, James went to a screening of The Room in Vancouver – which he applauds for its impressive amount of spoons – and here he met Sestero and told him that he wanted to make a movie based on his book. After falling in love with The Room and the story behind it, next on James’ agenda was to get Dave to participate in his project, but Dave was skeptical at first.

“He texted me one night and said ‘if you haven’t seen this movie, watch it immediately; we need to make our own movie about it!’ At the time, I was working in Boston and I watched The Room for the first time by myself in a hotel room, and that’s not the way to watch this movie; you want people to turn to and say ‘what the hell is going on?!’, so I finished that viewing feeling very unsettled and not knowing how to feel. But then soon after, I went to one of the midnight screenings and immediately understood the cult status of the movie, and since then we’ve both seen the movie 25-30 times.”

With his brother on board, the next step for James was to unlock how to become Tommy and channel his essence. Finding the book to be a great starting point, James would soon draw an unlikely parallel between Wiseau and one of Hollywood’s most iconic legends.

“Nobody knows Tommy better than Greg Sestero. In the book, Greg and Tom Bissell, the other writer, go into Tommy’s past a little bit, and they start to equate coming to America and escaping his surroundings with breaking into the movies. In that sense, that reading of the story was so powerful to me because it’s actually the story of James Dean in a way; James Dean lost his mother at age eight and his father sent him away to live with his aunt and uncle, and as a result he had this huge hole in his heart and soul and thought ‘if I make it into the movies, then I’ll be worth something, I’ll be loved’. And it was somewhat the same way with Tommy, that’s how I understood him.”

Greg Sestero and Tommy Wiseau outside the Prince Charles Cinema in London, England.

One of he many theories regarding the bafflingly odd plot of The Room suggests that the film may be a paraphrasing of Wiseau’s own life story in terms of how Tommy and The Room’s main character of Johnny are both seeing their lives and dreams fall apart.

“In our film, we get a little into the sense that Tommy kind of hits a bottom after just being completely rejected by the town, but in the book it gets even darker; Tommy was leaving messages, he might even have been suicidal right before he showed up with the script to The Room. When you think about it that way, it’s so moving to me because he is channeling this incredibly dark place and his feelings and bringing it into his film, where he commits suicide at the end. What that showed me was that not only did he take The Room very seriously when he made it, it may have saved his life.”

Putting all of his energy and a substantial chunk of his mysterious fortune into his film speaks volumes of Wiseau’s commitment, which is inspiring regardless of how terrible The Room turned out to be. Equally, Wiseau’s choice to embrace the infamy is a deeply fascinating example of adapting to circumstances out of one’s control, and the importance of these aspects was not lost on James.

“I have to say that I think Tommy’s done everyone a service by then rewriting history and saying that he intended The Room to be a comedy, because what he’s allowing us to do is laugh. He’s giving us permission to laugh because it is a kind of arrogance; the Tommy that is affably arrogant and claims that he intended to do it that way allows you to laugh at The Room, and that’s what’s so beautiful and very smart about Tommy. He’s capitalized on this ironic success, and when he comes to screenings like this, the energy is different, the laughter isn’t cruel, people love to see Tommy and it’s actually a very communal thing, and that’s an amazing gift that’s been given to all The Room fans.”

While Wiseau is the enigmatic force that draws most people to The Room, Greg Sestero is an equally important part of the cult surrounding the 2003 film, not least because he is the mastermind behind the book that added additional nuances to the bizarre nature of it all. He may seem normal compared to Tommy Wiseau – and who wouldn’t – but Dave assures the audience that while Sestero may appear normal on the surface, he is actually quite weird in his own right.

“The hardest part was the fact that Greg is making really poor decisions throughout our entire movie, and it was my job to try to justify all of those decisions and make the audience understand why he’s staying on this journey with this madman. I sat down with Greg a few times before we started filming and asked him about everything – basically, I wanted to know why he stuck it out with Tommy and why he was drawn to him in the first place. He talked a lot about how when you are a young actor – especially in his case and for a lot of actors – everyone in his life was telling him that he couldn’t do it, that it was not a possibility. But then he met Tommy, and as weird as he was, Tommy encouraged him, he was his ally, and that’s invaluable as a young actor.”

Greg Sestero getting spooned during a midnight screening of The Room.

Having gotten a good sense of what served as the foundation for Sestero’s friendship with Wiseau, Dave hoped to also gain insight into Sestero’s genuine thoughts about The Room when it was being shot.

“I really was curious if during production of The Room he ever thought that it could be a good movie. He claims that he didn’t, but I don’t fully believe it; as a young actor, there’s nothing more exciting than just getting on set, and once you’re there, you just give it everything you have. You have this blind ambition and think that everything’s going well, even if everyone from the outside recognize that what you’re doing is objectively bad. I’ve been in these scenarios where I’ve been on set and I thought everything was going great, people on set were talking about awards for the movie, and I bought into the hype, but then when the movie came out, not only was it not good, it was a full on piece of shit. It’s just one of those things where you’ll have these moments throughout your career where you’re giving it everything you have, and you still question if what you’re doing is actually good or a total mess, and I could really relate to Greg in that way.”

Once The Disaster Artist began filming, the production was not only tasked with creating a compelling visual style for the overarching story of Wiseau and Sestero’s friendship, they also had to give the faux behind-the-scenes footage a distinguishable, almost documentary-esque style without losing any of the necessary dramatic quality. Then there was of course the remakes of the iconic scenes from The Room, and recreating the bad filmmaking of Wiseau’s original film proved to be quite challenging.

“Seth Rogen and I had inadvertently practiced this kind of thing because we had recreated Kanye West’s Bound 2 video shot-for-shot a few years ago, but I remember that Brandon Trost, the cinematographer, approached it like a science experiment; he spent just as much time – if not more time – trying to match the really bad lighting of the original movie, and it was the same for all the other departments. It was a challenge, and at the end of the day, we knew we needed the key scenes that are always quoted and spoofed for the premiere scene in our movie, but it became so fun that we ended up having as much as 20-25 minutes of recreated scenes – definitely more than what you see anywhere in the movie!”

As anyone who has seen The Disaster Artist knows, recreations of The Room scenes is not the only element that has been taken directly from the original film, as Wiseau himself also makes an appearance in the film in an end credit sequence. However, while Wiseau had made appearing in the film a big contractual point, he and James were not on the same page.

“Tommy clearly hadn’t read his contract very well, as that said that all we had to do was shoot a scene with him, but we didn’t have to put it in the movie. I actually did want him in the movie, though, as I thought it would be a cool kind of Hitchcockian thing to have him in the background. So we originally had this whole storyline where Greg was doing another movie called Retro Puppet Master in Romania, and we had shot a couple of scenes in Romania and were gently suggesting to Tommy that maybe he’d fit in…”

As the crowd laughs heartily at James’ tongue-in-cheek attempt to persuade Wiseau to allow him to poke fun at his suspected Eastern Bloc heritage, he soon reveals that Tommy had very different plans for his cameo. Insisting that he would only do a scene for the film if he got to play opposite James, explaining to Wiseau that appearing together with his doppelgänger would be utterly nonsensical fell on deaf ears. Thus, James gave in to Tommy’s demands, but he also prepared to tell him that the scene might not end up in the final cut of the movie.

“We wrote this scene where my Tommy is at a party with Greg, and he’s realized that Greg has all these friends that my Tommy doesn’t, so he’s pouting in a corner when Henry – the real Tommy’s character – comes over. Then Tommy texted me from a glasses shop three days before we shot the scene to ask me if I thought his character should wear glasses… but he’d also drawn on a mustache and goatee with Bic pen, and he said that if I liked it, he’d draw it on better for the shoot.”

Tommy Wiseau and James Franco at Toronto International Film Festival.

Having had very limited exposure to Wiseau’s well-documented weirdness at this point, James was initially somewhat alarmed about what would happen once the eccentric was unleashed on set. Nonetheless, the team went ahead with Wiseau’s wardrobe suggestions, substituted the Bic pen for more believable fake facial hair – and then everyone was won over by Wiseau.

“He was incredibly sweet, but it was a surreal night; I interviewed him in character and he didn’t bat an eye – it was like being interviewed by himself was the most natural thing in the world! Then we shot his scene – which was all improv – and it doesn’t really play or read in the scene, but he was hitting on me! Only he wasn’t hitting on me – he was hitting on himself! It was like the ultimate version of picking yourself up, which was so bizarre. We did put it in the first assemblage of the cut, but both me and my editor looked at each other and immediately agreed that it was too insane to remain in the final cut.”

Alas, when James decided that he wanted to feature side-by-side comparisons of his recreations of certain The Room scenes alongside the originals in the end credits, the contractual loopholes that had seemed as a fail-safe to leave Wiseau on the cutting room floor were rendered useless. Thus, with renegotiation being unavoidable, the aforementioned scene ended up being saved from fading into bonus material obscurity.

“Those recreated scenes were covered by the original contract, but we hadn’t negotiated for Tommy’s The Room footage because we didn’t know we were going to use it. In the middle of the renegotiation, he asks someone how his scene is coming along, and he ends up insisting that we put his scene in our movie in exchange for his footage. We’d thought that he wasn’t going to touch our movie, but he got his way in the end. I’m actually so glad that he pushed us to do it because we figured out we could just do it Marvel-style with an end credit sequence, and that that would be perfect for audiences like the one here in London, so it all worked out.”

With all the awards buzz The Disaster Artist has already generated, not to mention the thunderous applause it received from the select group of devotees on the cold November eve of this particular preview screening at the London home of The Room, it seems safe to conclude that James Franco’s adaptation of Greg Sestero’s book is a success in terms of its appeal as a slice of cinematic artistry. However, does Wiseau’s opinion of The Disaster Artist mirror the general consensus about the film? Dave shares his recollection of Wiseau’s first impression of their film.

“Tommy made the choice not to see our movie until we premiered it at SXSW, so he watched it for the first time with a thousand people. We were nervous about what he would think, but we figured he’d like it, just because we make him very sympathetic and human. During the screening, we were trying to look down the aisle to see what he was thinking, but he has his fucking sunglasses on, completely blank face, so I didn’t know what he thought, but the rest of the audience seemed to be liking it.”

Seth Rogen, Tommy Wiseau, James Franco, Greg Sestero and Dave Franco at SXSW.

Afterwards, the brothers anxiously approached Wiseau to ask him what he thought about their film. As numerous interviews have since revealed, Wiseau did indeed approve of The Disaster Artist – well, at least 99.9% of it. Initially claiming that the 0.01% he disliked about it was the lighting in the beginning, suggesting that it was a little too dark – which Dave points out may have had something to do with the fact that Wiseau was wearing sunglasses – Wiseau has since confronted James about how he has recounted their conversation.

“I told that story a bunch and he decided he didn’t like how he came off, so when we saw him at TIFF in Toronto, the first thing he says to me is that he never said it was the lighting. I told him I had no reason to make that story up, but he insisted that he’d never said that, and that the 0.01% he disliked was because of how I threw the football… You know, because he’s all-American and grew up throwing footballs…”

As the Prince Charles Cinema audience once again erupts in laughter at James’ sarcastic jab at Wiseau’s rather absurd nitpicking and questionable claims to be born and bred in America, James goes on to recount a recent interaction with Tommy that not only reaffirms how much of a labor of love making The Disaster Artist truly was to him, but also how endearing he finds Wiseau.

“Last week, we had some press with him in LA and then Greg texted me after, saying that he and Tommy were at Canter’s, the deli they read the script in and actually did hang out at. He says I should come and surprise him, so I showed up, and I call it ‘Honest Tommy Day’ because the first thing he said was that The Room wasn’t exactly the way he intended to be, but that he gets a reaction from audience and that that’s all he could’ve hoped for.”

Startled by this admission, James continues to talk about the meeting at Canter’s, sharing that Wiseau confided in him that he had seen The Disaster Artist three times at this point, and that he finds it very moving. This reaction may seem biased, but the film has indeed been commended for how it manages to be moving in between the laughter it constantly provokes, and keeping this balance was always at the forefront of James’ mind to ensure that Wiseau was done justice.

“Tonally, there was always a fine line to walk with this movie; the intention was to make it funny, but we didn’t approach it like an out-and-out comedy. Stopping short of Tommy saying he was going to commit suicide was a way of keeping that tonal balance and still making you really feel for him and understand that he was somebody whose dreams were being crushed.”

Maintaining this balance also stretched towards what the film was supposed to convey about the three questions Wiseau is always asked and always avoids to answer – how old he is, where he is from and how he made his money.

“As far as his past goes, we realized we wanted to maintain the mystery surrounding him because that’s one of the beauties of Tommy. We did touch on the three mysteries, but the point of the movie was not to unravel those mysteries, it was to actually reaffirm them because they are such a huge part of Tommy’s persona. What we did want to reveal is the emotional inner life of Tommy that you don’t necessarily get to experience when Tommy comes and does these Q&A’s himself; he’s everybody that has a dream, he’s everybody that is an outsider, and everybody that wants to break into an incredibly hard business like Hollywood, he understands what it’s like to struggle and face rejection… And that’s what The Disaster Artist is about – keeping the mystery and revealing the emotion.”

The Disaster Artist is in theaters now

It’s here! It’s here! It’s Here! The movie all Psych-o’s have been waiting for – Psych: The Movie.

It’s 2017 – Shawn, Juliet and Gus are settled in San Francisco. Gus has obtained a job, Karen Vick is up for the role of Police Commissioner and Juliet O’Hara has settled into the role of a hardened seasoned detective on the force.  She’s the cop behind the driver’s wheel – Lassie would be so proud.  Shawn and Juliet are not engaged yet, or are they? Chief Vick’s daughter Iris is mixed-up with some bad girls at school and oh yes, someone’s trying to kill Juliet.

The story is winding and fraught with all the comedic twist and turns of a great Psych episode, and played like an extra long Christmas special that never got old. I was a little disappointed in the ultimate villain reveal though. I was expecting someone of Despero’s caliber, and to discover who the dastardly evil mind lurked behind the scenes was a bit of a letdown.

That being said, this movie was Choco bock full of all great pop culture references that we psych-o-fants are counting on and are looking forward to. Pokémon Go, Turkey Jerky and Gus being “the tender sweetness of a seasick crocodile”.  We find out that Gus’s left eye is name Lisa, the constant breaking out into song and the new Psych office aptly named “Psychphrancisco” – was located in the shop where the first Gremlin was purchased.

Zachary Levi plays the immediate villain foil to the detectives. He was nigh unrecognizable with his blond locks and cockney accent. He along with his eclectic Hench-folk were somewhat menacing but not as terrifying as I would expect for a movie-length Psych episode.

A great part of the movie was catching sight of all the other characters who had been in the series all along. Some were very blatant like Jimmi Simpson’s Mary Lightly.  Others like Mark Archeson may only be recalled by hard-core fans who would recall that he was the very first crime suspect in the Psych pilot.  Carlos Jacott, Ralph Macchio and Julianna Guill return to fill small but memorable bit characters in the movie.

Cons

1. The energy between Juliet and Shawn is broken. Think of the chemistry or lack thereof that existed between Natalie Portman and Hayden Christiansen in the Star Wars prequels. It’s no secret that James Roday and Maggie Lawson are no longer a couple. And as a result, Shawn and Juliet’s chemistry suffered.
2. There was no Lassie. Timothy Omundson had a stroke while the movie was in production, so there was a massive re-write to accommodate for that.
3. Hippy Henry – yeah… that didn’t work. Henry Spencer as a grouchy retired detective works. Henry Spencer back as a grouchy police consultant works. Henry Spencer as a bongo-drum playing free-spirit felt weird. There was not enough of a Serious Shawn to counter-balance a tweed scarf wearing Henry. It felt forced and unnatural. It was funny, but not believable.

Pros

1. There are plenty of pop culture references to make all Psych-phanatics giddy.
2. Gus getting “Gus-ed”. Jazmyn Simon, Dule’s co-star from HBO’s Ballers was magnificent as Selene. She made moves on Gus than he only dreamed about. It was glorious to watch.
3. Kurt Fuller – everyone’s favorite Coroner shows up in San Francisco. All scenes are made awesome by Woody.
4. The sub-story with Robert LaSardo as El-Proveedor was quintessential Psych. Telling and making El-Proveedor’s future come to fruition was Shawn at his best.

All in all, Psych:The Movie was a great watch. The only thing I didn’t get to do was find the ever present, ever elusive Pineapple.

Merry Christmas Psych-Os.

Ice dragons, adorable demodogs, gossiping housewives, clashing red robes with white bonnets, monsters named Bob born of nuclear holocaust and the nevering jokes at Trump’s expense. These are a few of the TV trends that have marked 2016 as a stellar year of television.

And while previous year have had similar bows of originality and accomplishment both behind and in front of the camera, 2017 was the year that the TV viewing audience took more than a mere passing interest in its small screen entertainment.

But what set 2017 apart from that the last handful of years before it was not just the endless hours of genius that poured from cable and streaming services filled with irreverent humor, astounding sci and well-written drama. But it that was escapist television at its finest and man, we needed the escape.

As headlines began to mount, entertainment became less of a window and more of a portal for those of use that needed a break from the neverending stream of breaking news.

2017 was the year that wouldn’t stop.

It made 2016 look like a hazy Indian summer filled with sweet memories, and that was the year when all your favorite people died?

Remember that? Never thought you would miss that, right?

In a year when politics was turned inside out and backwards, folks turned to the small screens in their living rooms, desks and pockets to find comfort and escape the terrible news they were bombarded with on a daily basis by the exact same gadgets.

Among that many hours spent lost among the storylines in an effort to hide from real life, there have been many standouts. Here is a short list of those who have done their best to keep us sane by offering rescue from the daily news:

5.  Stranger Things

The Netflix drama is more than just a bunch of ‘80s references and adorable kids on bikes chasing aliens. It is more than a flash of a Trapper Keeper and a Duran Duran song. It is a sci-fi horror series with complex performances from its entire cast with a well-written and witty script.

If last Halloween everyone donned a pink dress and a Eggo waffle, this year everyone will sport a well-coiffed head of hair and a baseball bat will with nails as folks turn in their Eleven costume to go as Steve, the season’s MVP.

4.  The Handmaid’s Tale

Perhaps the scariest entry on the list because somewhere in the back of every viewers mind is that find that the terrified totalitarian society created in the Hulu series is becoming closer to fact than fiction.

Winning the streaming service a best series Emmy, as well as Emmys for best writing and acting nods, this adaptation of the Margaret Atwood page-turner had viewers holding their breath with each episode, afraid to reflex. As if it was a glimpse into events yets to come.

3.  Legion

There have been many Marvel’s X-Men adaptations this year, and this one is not only the best, but it stands on its own as surrealistic art meets horror fantasy.

To create an atmosphere of a world that lives between the decades, on the edge of modern times while hinting at shades from the past is a skill on its own. But to add the layered performances of its cast, especially Dan Stevens and Aubrey Plaza is absolutely mesmerizing.

Never before as schizophrenia been so accurately portrayed for the small screen, adding to the haunting nature of the David Haller and his tragic past…present…and future.

2.  Twin Peaks

After a 26 year wait, David Lynch’s was able to continue with primetime art piece with the return of Showtime’s Twin Peaks.  And it was glorious.

It was a joy — a confusing joy as times, but a joy nonetheless to revisit with old friends at the Double RR over a piece of cherry pie, or to find James crooning at the Roadhouse, or to just sit mystified with what can only be described as the single most beautiful hour of television ever constructed.

It didn’t have all the answers, but if anyone was expect that from David Lynch, they probably need to find a new fanbase.

1.  Game of Thrones

In its seventh season, all the storylines have finally began to meld as characters enter their final metamorphosis. Lost princesses become warriors while bastard sons become kings. And all the while, all hell’s breaking loose in Westerose.

In this one season alone we go changes dragons laying waste to the Lannister army, armies of the dead flocking in a hellish blue swarm, the death of Little Finger by the wolf pup pack and the birth of an ice dragon.

In the end, it came down to a love story…and a battle that has yet to come.

I was traveling around Japan recently and within a day of being there, I started to notice that practically every person on public transport was playing a mobile game. On one occasion, I gazed down the train and found myself watching each individual flicking their thumb or tapping on their screen in almost perfect unison (in silent mode of course, because anything else would be disrespectful to fellow passengers and incredibly rude in Japan).

Japan’s excellent transport etiquette aside, the number of passengers playing games on their phones really shouldn’t have surprised me as I’ve always known they were absolutely huge in Asia, yet I was taken aback by the number of commercials I saw on Japanese television or on billboards.

Wanting to immerse myself in the culture while I was there, I decided to download a mobile game of my own to play. I had been playing Final Fantasy Brave Exvius and Pokémon Go at home but that was really the extent of my mobile gaming experience prior to what happened next.

My phone was advertising a genre of games to me in Japan that I hadn’t ever given a second thought to. These games were, as far as I could make out, visual novel dating simulators, otherwise known as otome games. The word “otome” in Japanese means maiden which displeased me a little, after all, as every girl knows, games aimed at the female of the species must include romance, pretty clothes and lots of pink. LOTS!

In recent years however, the word has taken on a newer connotation and is now the female equivalent of the word “otaku” which is a term for those obsessively interested in pop culture such as anime, games and manga. Well, that certainly sounds like me!

Personally, I’d rather there was one word to describe both sexes but sadly, Japan is still stuck in the dark ages when it comes to perceived gender roles and gender fluidity. Hey, it can’t be as perfect as it’s trains. Despite my initial hesitance and reservations towards these games for their blatant casual sexism, I was still intrigued and in the interest of…science and morbid curiosity, I wanted to see what exactly was being advertised to girls and women in these games.

I downloaded one, however it was set in feudal Japan so it’s attitudes towards women were that of the historical period so I decided that I had to download another more modern title. In doing so, I realised the right thing to do was download a few more examples of each to make my experiment less biased, as well as downloading one meant for male gamers, a sort of control test if you will. It definitely had nothing to do with becoming addicted to them.

After playing them for three weeks in Japan and a continued two weeks afterwards, my (loosely) scientific findings yielded a very interesting result and not one I hypothesised. I, Emma-Jane Corsan, female human being of planet Earth, staunch believer in equality with an intense dislike of gender based stereotypes was addicted to otome games.

I had played one or two dating sims before, most recently Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator (published by Game Grumps) which was popular earlier in the year for turning the genre on its head, representing the gay dad community and generally being excellent.

I’d also heard positive things about Christine Love games especially her most recent, Ladykiller In A Bind (full title of which is *takes deep breath* My Twin Brother Made Me Crossdress As Him And Now I Have To Deal With A Geeky Stalker And A Domme Beauty Who Want Me In A Bind!!).

However, Japanese dating sims are very different. They are unfortunately a lot less progressive and solely focused on heterosexual relationships (at least, the ones I played were). You choose one of around eight characters to experience your story with. So, as someone fond of anime, I found myself picking the most anime looking men to court, paying little attention to their character descriptions.

One I downloaded was called Ikémen Sengoku: Romances Across Time published by Cybird. It begins in modern day Japan and the main character you play is excited to start her new job in the fashion industry and begin her career. A freak accident involving lightning transports her back to feudal Japan, where she is trapped for three months until the ‘accident’ can be replicated again (I appreciated the pseudo sci-fi explanations and usual time travel tropes).

The character I chose, was Nobunaga Oda, mostly because I’d heard of this famous Japanese warlord. I liked the concept of being able to date historical figures too, plus it was way more appealing than dating a vampire (there are so many dating sims about vampires *eye roll*).

The fact the main character in this is from modern times means she is somewhat feistier than other otome game protagonists, she refuses to be quiet when told to, talks back and wants to get back home to start her career. However, the men in this game are awful and Nobunaga finds her more of an amusement, using her for entertainment until he falls for her unusual, future ways.

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t eventually enjoy this story, it was more sexually charged than I thought it would be. It was safe for work as it was barely erotic but had a few twists and turns that had me raising more eyebrows than The Rock.

For example, your character has a choice of being locked away (therefore losing the chance to get home) or to engage in games of Go with Nobunaga until she wins and is released. There is one catch however, each game he wins, he claims a part of her…yeah, a choice between being trapped in the past or playing strip Go, it’s not exactly a consensual choice.

Ordinarily, I’d have stopped playing and burst into flames of anger but I hadn’t expected the sexual undertone and found it interesting, I mean, it was no worse than the terrible romance novels my aunt used to read. You know the ones, often with a woman standing in the Scottish highlands embraced in the arms of a topless man wearing a kilt on the front cover.

As the game progressed, so did my enjoyment and I found myself smiling whenever a famous battle happened or one character betrayed another (just like in actual history). I became fond of this fictionalised Nobunaga Oda and was genuinely invested. Don’t get me wrong, this was no Mass Effect romance (my heart still lies with Kaidan Alenko) yet I was eager to see where the story would take me next.

Unfortunately, like all of the other visual novels I had downloaded this one was free, you only got to read a few chapters a day and in-between, in order to progress had to do mindless mini game activities like ‘Princess Lessons’ which were incredibly dull and lacked actual gameplay. Alternatively, you could choose to pay to buy special items to advance. Er, no thanks, I’ll keep my money.

Another title I tried was Shall We Date: Love Tangle, I played a few of the Shall We Date games but this one was definitely one of the more interesting alongside Ninja Shadow (where you play as a ninja impersonating her dead brother to save her village) which was the game that started me on this crazy binge. I chose the ‘love tangle’ between a calligraphy artist and a celebrity chef….yeah, yeah, I know but I needed to play a game vastly different in tone, style and theme to Ikémen Sengoku.

I ended up choosing the calligraphy artist, Naoki, an introverted character with a passion for his art and while I liked the character design, the story in this particular route became unbelievable (and yes, I know the whole thing is) but when the plot revealed he was heir to the Yakuza, forgive me for losing interest.

Additionally, the mini game in this revolved around making food for your man or dressing up in clothes he might like…*vomits*. You might think my experience would turn me off playing any more titles but I persisted, I’ve played multiple feudal Japan otome games (clearly, feudal Japan is my jam), one where I’m a witch dating a vampire, a ninja in the Edo period looking for revenge, a computer programmer and a wizard.

I know these games are not without their faults but they’ve surprised me and I’ve genuinely enjoyed this style of gaming. It’s proven to me that no genre is off-limits to me and I shouldn’t assume I won’t enjoy a game because of its genre…except sports games…and maybe driving simulators. So, um…thanks Japan!

Have you ever been surprised by a game you wouldn’t ordinarily play? Or do you have an otome game recommendation for me? Let me know in the comments below.