Author Archives: Doc

The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)

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Recently, the Top 10 Show Re-List had a list of Coming-of-Age movies as its topic.  I compiled my list, but one of the films that appeared on the list of the shows turned out to be The Perks of Being a Wallflower.  I had never seen this movie and Matt Knost specifically raved about it. He said that he did not expect to like it as much as he did and that it was a film that people should watch.

This was a film that I had never seen and had not had any interest in seeing.  I saw it on the streaming platforms around the web but just had not interest.  When Matt gave it such a glowing rave, I added it to my summer to watch list.  It was on Netflix and it was going to be easy to see.  Now I just had to find the mindset to watch it.

It wasn’t about time.  I have the time.  It just felt like a film that I had to get into the right head space to watch it.  I was still afraid that I would be bored and that I would not like the film.  I had always liked Emma Watson from the Harry Potter franchise and Logan Lerman had been a young actor I liked.  Even still, I was not sure if I wanted to watch it.

I am so glad that I did watch this today because I just found it to be so brilliantly done and totally compelling.  The film was filled with amazing young characters, brought to life by some talented young actors and it tugged on the heart strings.

It also was able to catch me off-guard in ways of story, which I did not expect.  I do not usually get shocked by movie scripts so when it happened here, it made me all the more impressed by what they had done.

Logan Lerman was amazing as Charlie, the freshman boy who is befriended by a group of seniors.  Charlie had his own troubles but I had not expected them to be more than what I expected.  Charlie did not fit in at high school and finding this group of people who also was outside the norm of the school was a blessing for him.

Each of them had major issues.  Ezra Miller’s Patrick is quirky and bold, but his own secret has emotional stakes for him and another.  Emma Watson’s Sam was a sweet girl with a bad reputation for making bad choices.  These two helped Charlie find his way through high school even though they did not have a real clue about the depth of the pain he was in.

The film had fantastic music and did a memorable job of interweaving the music into the plot.  Set in 1994, there are some great moments from the Come on Eileen dance scene to the David Bowie Heroes driving scene.  The music made every scene better.

This movie truly does show the gamut of emotions that young people go through during these uncertain times of their lives.  One only hopes that they can find people who are as important to themselves as these friends turned out to be.

It would have certainly made my own Coming-of-Age top 10 list had I seen it before.  It was a wonderful movie.

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The Crow (1994)

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Ah, what could have been.

A film shrouded in tragedy, The Crow is one of the greatest revenge films ever made and one of the earliest films that was based on a comic book to be quality and well-done.

Eric Draven (Brandon Lee), a rock musician, and his fiance Sarah (Rochelle Davis) were murdered on the eve of their wedding by a band of dirtbag criminals. Eric thrown out of the sixth floor window and Sarah, raped and beaten, dies later at the hospital.

A year later, a black crow arrives on Eric’s grave, tapping on the tombstone.  This causes Eric to pull himself out of the grave.  Discovering that he had returned from the dead, Eric, with his face covered in white makeup, started his path of revenge.

Of course, The Crow was marred by the tragic death of its lead star Brandon Lee, son of the legendary Bruce Lee.  With eight days of shooting remaining, Brandon was accidentally injured by a malfunctioning round of blank ammunition.  He died later during surgery.  Producers rearranged certain scenes and used tricks to finish the scenes they still needed to make sure that the film was released.

The Crow was a great film.  Lee was spectacular here.  This could have easily been a massive breakthrough for the young actor.  His charisma, his presence, his aura stood out on each image.  The character was compelling and easy to root for.

Ernie Hudson played police officer Albrecht and worked very well as the supportive cop, the man who is the audience’s eyes, his wonder for what was happening was the same as what we felt.  Hudson brought a true gravitas to the role and his very appearance gave a credibility to the film.

The story is very simple, but the key to the film is the imagery in each scene.  There are beautiful shots in the film, a visual cornucopia of violence and style.  The images tell the story and help set the tone of this film better than most of the words.  It is like a comic come to life.  There were several moments where I was watching the film where I thought, “That looked like a splash page from a comic.” It was bathed in darkness as well, with color used sparingly.  It created something wonderfully dark.

Yes, the film is very violent, but I do not think that it is gratuitous.  It has cinematic element to it and it works so well.

The only issue I had while watching The Crow was that I kept thinking about professional wrestler Sting.  Sting took a “Crow-like” gimmick after the film came out and he looked quite a bit like Brandon Lee.  It was distracting for me, but that was not the film’s issue.  It was mine.

The Crow was a great film.

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Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)

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Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016) - IMDb

I have been a fan of Taika Waititi and his work over the last few years.  What We Do in the Shadows, Thor: Ragnarok, and Jojo Rabbit are three of the great films that I found remarkably entertaining and touching.  However, there was always one film missing from the movies I have watched.  Today, I filled that gap by watching Taika Waititi’s Hunt for the Wilderpeople.

In New Zealand, troublesome foster kid Ricky (Julian Dennison), who had been pulled out of several foster home, is dropped off with Bella (Rima Te Wiata) and Hec (Sam Neill), an older couple who live just outside of the bush.  Ricky was withdrawn and protective of himself and did not want to get too close.  However, Bella won the boy over with her kindness.  Sadly, she dies suddenly.

When it sounded like the child service agent Paula (Rachel House), who was over the top, was coming back to take Ricky away, he ran away into the bush.  Hec went to find him but hurt his ankle.  The two of them stayed in the bush as Hec’s ankle imporved.

The social services arrive and start a nationwide search for the pair of them.

This movie is great.  It is funny, beautifully emotional, and poignant as can be.  You can see how Waititi will create a film like Jojo Rabbit.

Hunt for the Wilderpeople has so much ridiculousness going on around it, but the whole thing is anchored by the relationship between Ricky and Hec, and it is not a relationship that is typical.  It is shaky as both individuals have lived lives that prevented them from truly connection with others.  They were brought together by Bella, and, when she was gone, left them floundering.  The social services, led by Paula, the police, the hunters who kept being involved, were so unrealistic, but you buy it immediately because of the strength at the core of the pairing of Ricky and Hec.

You can see the beginning of Taika Waititi’s own little band of actors that he will be dipping into as his movies continue.  Rachel House appears in Thor: Ragnarok.  Taika himself is here, as he is in his other films.  Rhys Darby was Anton in What We Do In The Shadows.  Mike Minogue had a cameo in that film too.  It is starting to feel like Wes Anderson, who has a group of regular actors to appear in his roles in his films.

Julian Dennison would go from here to be Firefist in Deadpool 2.  He was a great find here as he and Sam Neill have amazing chemistry and make for the heart of this movie.

I am very happy that I took the time to watch this film.  It only makes me even more of a fan of Taika Waititi’s work.  Knowing he is working on the next Thor movie and a future Star Wars film really provides me with a lot of hope and excitement.

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Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016) - IMDb

2020 Eisner Award Nominees

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Found congratulations to Daredevil’s 2020 Eisner Award nominations while on Twitter today so I went to Comic-Con web page and got the full list of nominees.  There are several here that I collect and I am very exciting about.  There are some notable creators missing, but it is hard to argue about the people and publications here.
The website indicates that the voting will go on until June 18th and the winners will be announced some time in July.

 

Monsters Dominate 2018 Eisner Award Nominations

Best Short Story
  • “Hot Comb,” by Ebony Flowers, in Hot Comb (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • “How to Draw a Horse,” by Emma Hunsinger, The New Yorker
  • “The Menopause,” by Mira Jacob, The Believer
  • “Who Gets Called an ‘Unfit’ Mother?” by Miriam Libicki, The Nib
  • “You’re Not Going to Believe What I’m About to Tell You,” by Matthew Inman, The Oatmeal
Best Single Issue/One-Shot
  • Coin-Op No. 8: Infatuation, by Peter and Maria Hoey (Coin-Op Books)
  • The Freak, by Matt Lesniewski (AdHouse)
  • Minotäar, by Lissa Treiman (Shortbox)
  • Our Favorite Thing Is My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, by Emil Ferris (Fantagraphics)
  • Sobek, by James Stokoe (Shortbox)
Best Continuing Series
  • Bitter Root, by David Walker, Chuck Brown, and Sanford Greene (Image)
  • Criminal, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)
  • Crowded, by Christopher Sebela, Ro Stein, and Ted Brandt (Image)
  • Daredevil, by Chip Zdarsky and Marco Checchetto (Marvel)
  • The Dreaming, by Simon Spurrier, Bilquis Evely et al. (DC)
  • Immortal Hulk, by Al Ewing, Joe Bennett, and Ruy José et al. (Marvel)
Best Limited Series
  • Ascender, by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen (Image)
  • Ghost Tree, by Bobby Curnow and Simon Gane (IDW)
  • Little Bird by Darcy Van Poelgeest and Ian Bertram (Image)
  • Naomi by Brian Michael Bendis, David Walker, and Jamal Campbell (DC)
  • Sentient, by Jeff Lemire and Gabriel Walta (TKO)
Best New Series
  • Doctor Doom, by Christopher Cantwell and Salvador Larocca (Marvel)
  • Invisible Kingdom, by G. Willow Wilson and Christian Ward (Berger Books/Dark Horse)
  • Once & Future, by Kieron Gillen and Dan Mora (BOOM! Studios)
  • Something Is Killing the Children, by James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera (BOOM! Studios)
  • Undiscovered Country, by Scott Snyder, Charles Soule, Giuseppe Camuncoli, and Daniele Orlandini (Image)
Best Publication for Early Readers
  • Comics: Easy as ABC, by Ivan Brunetti (TOON)
  • Kitten Construction Company: A Bridge Too Fur, by John Patrick Green (First Second/Macmillan)
  • The Pigeon HAS to Go to School! by Mo Willems (Hyperion Books)
  • A Trip to the Top of the Volcano with Mouse, by Frank Viva (TOON)
  • ¡Vamos! Let’s Go to the Market, by Raúl the Third (Versify/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
  • Who Wet My Pants? by Bob Shea and Zachariah Ohora (Little, Brown)
Best Publication for Kids
  • Akissi: More Tales of Mischief, by Marguerite Abouet and Mathieu Sapin (Flying Eye/Nobrow)
  • Dog Man: For Whom the Ball Rolls, by Dav Pilkey (Scholastic Graphix)
  • Guts, by Raina Telgemeier (Scholastic Graphix)
  • New Kid, by Jerry Craft (Quill Tree/HarperCollins)
  • This Was Our Pact, by Ryan Andrews (First Second/Macmillan)
  • The Wolf in Underpants, by Wilfrid Lupano, Mayana Itoïz, and Paul Cauuet (Graphic Universe/Lerner Publishing Group)
Best Publication for Teens
  • Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass, by Mariko Tamaki and Steve Pugh (DC)
  • Hot Comb, by Ebony Flowers (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • Kiss Number 8, by Colleen AF Venable and Ellen T. Crenshaw (First Second/Macmillan)
  • Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me, by Mariko Tamaki and Rosemary Valero-O’Connell (First Second/Macmillan)
  • Penny Nichols, by MK Reed, Greg Means, and Matt Wiegle (Top Shelf)
Best Humor Publication
  • Anatomy of Authors, by Dave Kellett (SheldonComics.com)
  • Death Wins a Goldfish, by Brian Rea (Chronicle Books)
  • Minotäar, by Lissa Treiman (Shortbox)
  • Sobek, by James Stokoe (Shortbox)
  • The Way of the Househusband, vol. 1, by Kousuke Oono, translation by Sheldon Drzka (VIZ Media)
  • Wondermark: Friends You Can Ride On, by David Malki (Wondermark)
Best Anthology
  • ABC of Typography, by David Rault (SelfMade Hero)
  • Baltic Comics Anthology š! #34-37, edited by David Schilter, Sanita Muižniece et al. (kuš!)
  • Drawing Power: Women’s Stories of Sexual Violence, Harassment, and Survival, edited by Diane Noomin (Abrams)
  • Kramer’s Ergot #10, edited by Sammy Harkham (Fantagraphics)
  • The Nib #2–4, edited by Matt Bors (Nib)
Best Reality-Based Work
  • Good Talk: A Memoir in Conversations, by Mira Jacob (One World/Random House)
  • Grass, by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, translation by Janet Hong (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • Kid Gloves: Nine Months of Careful Chaos, by Lucy Knisley (First Second/Macmillan)
  • Moonbound: Apollo 11 and the Dream of Spaceflight, by Jonathan Fetter-Vorm (Hill & Wang)
  • My Solo Exchange Diary, vol. 2(sequel to My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness), by Nagata Kabi, translation by Jocelyne Allen (Seven Seas)
  • They Called Us Enemy, by George Takei, Justin Eisinger, Steven Scott, and Harmony Becker (Top Shelf)
Best Graphic Album—New
  • Are You Listening? by Tillie Walden (First Second/Macmillan)
  • Bezimena, by Nina Bunjevac (Fantagraphics)
  • BTTM FDRS, by Ezra Claytan Daniels and Ben Passmore (Fantagraphics)
  • Life on the Moon, by Robert Grossman (Yoe Books/IDW)
  • New World, by David Jesus Vignolli (Archaia/BOOM!)
  • Reincarnation Stories, by Kim Deitch (Fantagraphics)
Best Graphic Album—Reprint
  • Bad Weekend by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)
  • Clyde Fans, by Seth (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • Cover, vol. 1, by Brian Michael Bendis and David Mack (DC/Jinxworld)
  • Glenn Ganges: The River at Night, by Kevin Huizenga (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • LaGuardia, by Nnedi Okorafor and Tana Ford (Berger Books/Dark Horse)
  • Rusty Brown, by Chris Ware (Pantheon)
Best Adaptation from Another Medium
  • Giraffes on Horseback Salad: Salvador Dali, the Marx Brothers, and the Strangest Movie Never Made, by Josh Frank, Tim Hedecker, and Manuela Pertega (Quirk Books)
  • The Giver, by Lois Lowry and P. Craig Russell, (HMH Books for Young Readers)
  • The Handmaid’s Tale: The Graphic Novel, by Margaret Atwood, adapted by Renee Nault (Nan A. Talese)
  • HP Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness, vols. 1–2, adapted by Gou Tanabe, translation by Zack Davisson (Dark Horse Manga)
  • The Seventh Voyage, by Stanislaw Lem, adapted by Jon Muth, translation by Michael Kandel (Scholastic Graphix)
  • Snow, Glass, Apples, by Neil Gaiman and Colleen Doran (Dark Horse Books)
Best U.S. Edition of International Material
  • Diabolical Summer, by Thierry Smolderen and Alexandre Clerisse, translation by Edward Gauvin (IDW)
  • Gramercy Park, by Timothée de Fombelle and Christian Cailleaux, translation by Edward Gauvin (EuroComics/IDW)
  • The House, by Paco Roca, translation by Andrea Rosenberg (Fantagraphics)
  • Maggy Garrisson, by Lewis Trondheim and Stéphane Oiry, translation byEmma Wilson (SelfMadeHero)
  • Stay, by Lewis Trondheim and Hubert Chevillard, translation by Mike Kennedy (Magnetic Press)
  • Wrath of Fantômas, by Olivier Bouquet and Julie Rocheleau, translation by Edward Gauvin (Titan)
Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia
  • BEASTARS, by Paru Itagaki, translation by Tomo Kimura(VIZ Media)
  • Cats of the Louvre, by Taiyo Matsumoto, translation by Michael Arias (VIZ Media)
  • Grass, by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, translation by Janet Hong (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • Magic Knight Rayearth 25th Anniversary Edition, by CLAMP, translation by Melissa Tanaka (Kodansha)
  • The Poe Clan, by Moto Hagio, translation by Rachel Thorn (Fantagraphics)
  • Witch Hat Atelier, by Kamome Shirahama, translation by Stephen Kohler (Kodansha)
Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips
  • Cham: The Best Comic Strips and Graphic Novelettes, 1839–1862, by David Kunzle (University Press of Mississippi)
  • Ed Leffingwell’s Little Joe, by Harold Gray, edited by Peter Maresca and Sammy Harkham (Sunday Press Books)
  • The George Herriman Library: Krazy & Ignatz 1916–1918, edited by R.J. Casey(Fantagraphics)
  • Krazy Kat: The Complete Color Sundays, by George Herriman, edited by Alexander Braun (TASCHEN)
  • Madness in Crowds: The Teeming Mind of Harrison Cady, by Violet and Denis Kitchen (Beehive Books)
  • Pogo, Vol. 6: Clean as a Weasel, by Walt Kelly, edited by Mark Evanier and Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)
Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books
  • Alay-Oop,by William Gropper (New York Review Comics)
  • The Complete Crepax, vol. 5: American Stories, edited by Kristy Valenti(Fantagraphics)
  • Jack Kirby’s Dingbat Love, edited by John Morrow (TwoMorrows)
  • Moonshadow: The Definitive Edition, by J. M. DeMatteis, Jon J Muth, George Pratt, Kent Williams, and others (Dark Horse Books)
  • Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo: The Complete Grasscutter Artist Select, by Stan Sakai, edited by Scott Dunbier (IDW)
  • That Miyoko Asagaya Feeling, by Shinichi Abe, translation by Ryan Holmberg, edited by Mitsuhiro Asakawa (Black Hook Press)
Best Writer
  • Bobby Curnow, Ghost Tree (IDW)
  • MK Reed and Greg Means, Penny Nichols (Top Shelf)
  • Mariko Tamaki, Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass (DC); Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me (First Second/Macmillan); Archie (Archie)
  • Lewis Trondheim, Stay (Magnetic Press); MaggyGarrisson (SelfMadeHero)
  • G. Willow Wilson, Invisible Kingdom (Berger Books/Dark Horse); Ms. Marvel (Marvel)
  • Chip Zdarsky, White Trees (Image); Daredevil, Spider-Man: Life Story (Marvel); Afterlift (comiXology Originals)
Best Writer/Artist
  • Nina Bunjevac, Bezimena (Fantagraphics)
  • Mira Jacob, Good Talk (Random House); “The Menopause” in The Believer (June 1, 2019)
  • Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, Grass (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • James Stokoe, Sobek (Shortbox)
  • Raina Telgemeier, Guts (Scholastic Graphix)
  • Tillie Walden, Are You Listening? (First Second/Macmillan)
Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team
  • Ian Bertram, Little Bird (Image)
  • Colleen Doran, Snow, Glass, Apples (Dark Horse)
  • Bilquis Evely, The Dreaming (DC)
  • Simon Gane, Ghost Tree (IDW)
  • Steve Pugh, Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass (DC)
  • Rosemary Valero-O’Connell, Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me (First Second/Macmillan)
Best Painter/Digital Artist
  • Didier Cassegrain, Black Water Lilies (Europe Comics)
  • Alexandre Clarisse, Diabolical Summer (IDW)
  • David Mack, Cover (DC)
  • Léa Mazé, Elma, A Bear’s Life, vol. 1: The Great Journey (Europe Comics)
  • Julie Rocheleau, Wrath of Fantômas (Titan)
  • Christian Ward, Invisible Kingdom (Berger Books/Dark Horse)
Best Cover Artist
  • Jen Bartel, Blackbird  (Image Comics)
  • Francesco Francavilla, Archie, Archie 1955, Archie Vs. Predator II, Cosmo (Archie)
  • David Mack, American Gods, Fight Club 3 (Dark Horse); Cover (DC)
  • Emma Rios, Pretty Deadly (Image)
  • Julian Totino Tedesco, Daredevil (Marvel)
  • Christian Ward, Machine Gun Wizards (Dark Horse), Invisible Kingdom (Berger Books/Dark Horse)
Best Coloring
  • Lorena Alvarez, Hicotea (Nobrow)
  • Jean-Francois Beaulieu, Middlewest, Outpost Zero (Image)
  • Matt Hollingsworth, Batman: Curse of the White Knight, Batman White Knight Presents Von Freeze (DC); Little Bird, November (Image)
  • Molly Mendoza, Skip (Nobrow)
  • Dave Stewart, Black Hammer, B.P.R.D.: The Devil You Know, Hellboy and the BPRD(Dark Horse); Gideon Falls (Image); Silver Surfer Black, Spider-Man (Marvel)
Best Lettering
  • Deron Bennett, Batgirl, Green Arrow, Justice League, Martian Manhunter (DC); Canto (IDW); Assassin Nation, Excellence (Skybound/Image); To Drink and To Eat, vol. 1 (Lion Forge); Resonant (Vault)
  • Jim Campbell, Black Badge, Coda (BOOM Studios); Giant Days, Lumberjanes: The Shape of Friendship (BOOM Box!); Rocko’s Modern Afterlife (KaBOOM!); At the End of Your Tether (Lion Forge); Blade Runner 2019 (Titan); Mall, The Plot, Wasted Space (Vault)
  • Clayton Cowles, Aquaman, Batman, Batman and the Outsiders, Heroes in Crisis, Superman: Up in the Sky, Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen (DC);Bitter Root, Pretty Deadly, Moonstruck, Redlands, The Wicked + The Divine (Image); Reaver  (Skybound/Image); Daredevil, Ghost-Spider, Silver Surfer Black, Superior Spider-Man, Venom (Marvel)
  • Emilie Plateau, Colored: The Unsung Life of Claudette Colvin (Europe Comics)
  • Stan Sakai, Usagi Yojimbo (IDW)
  • Tillie Walden, Are You Listening? (First Second/Macmillan)
Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism
  • Comic Riffs blog, by Michael Cavna, www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/comics/
  • The Comics Journal, edited by Gary Groth, RJ Casey, and Kristy Valenti(Fantagraphics)
  • Hogan’s Alley, edited by Tom Heintjes (Hogan’s Alley)
  • Inks: The Journal of the Comics Studies Society, edited by Qiana Whitted(Ohio State University Press)
  • LAAB Magazine, vol. 4: This Was Your Life, edited by Ronald Wimberly and Josh O’Neill (Beehive Books)
  • Women Write About Comics, edited by Nola Pfau and Wendy Browne, www.WomenWriteAboutComics.com
Best Comics-Related Book
  • The Art of Nothing: 25 Years of Mutts and the Art of Patrick McDonnell(Abrams)
  • The Book of Weirdo, by Jon B. Cooke (Last Gasp)
  • Grunt: The Art and Unpublished Comics of James Stokoe (Dark Horse)
  • Logo a Gogo: Branding Pop Culture, by Rian Hughes (Korero Press)
  • Making Comics, by Lynda Barry (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • Screwball! The Cartoonists Who Made the Funnies Funny, by Paul Tumey (Library of American Comics/IDW)
Best Academic/Scholarly Work
  • The Art of Pere Joan: Space, Landscape, and Comics Form, by Benjamin Fraser (University of Texas Press)
  • The Comics of Rutu Modan: War, Love, and Secrets, by Kevin Haworth (University Press of Mississippi)
  • EC Comics: Race, Shock, and Social Protest, by Qiana Whitted (Rutgers University Press)
  • The Peanuts Papers: Writers and Cartoonists on Charlie Brown, Snoopy & the Gang, and the Meaning of Life, edited by Andrew Blauner (Library of America)
  • Producing Mass Entertainment: The Serial Life of the Yellow Kid, by Christina Meyer (Ohio State University Press)
  • Women’s Manga in Asia and Beyond: Uniting Different Cultures and Identities, edited by Fusami Ogi et al. (Palgrave Macmillan)
Best Publication Design
  • Grunt: The Art and Unpublished Comics of James Stokoe, designed by Ethan Kimberling (Dark Horse)
  • Krazy Kat: The Complete Color Sundays, by George Herriman, designed by Anna-Tina Kessler (TASCHEN)
  • Logo a Gogo, designed by Rian Hughes (Korero Press)
  • Madness in Crowds: The Teeming Mind of Harrison Cady, designed by Paul Kopple and Alex Bruce (Beehive Books)
  • Making Comics, designed by Lynda Barry (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • Rusty Brown, designed by Chris Ware (Pantheon)
Best Digital Comic
  • Afterlift, by Chip Zdarsky and Jason Loo (comiXology Originals)
  • Black Water Lilies, by Michel Bussi, adapted by Frédéric Duval and Didier Cassegrain, translated by Edward Gauvin (Europe Comics)
  • Colored: The Unsung Life of Claudette Colvin, by Tania de Montaigne, adapted by Emilie Plateau, translated by Montana Kane (Europe Comics)
  • Elma, A Bear’s Life, vol. 1: The Great Journey, by Ingrid Chabbert and Léa Mazé, translated by Jenny Aufiery (Europe Comics)
  • Mare Internum, by Der-shing Helmer (comiXology; gumroad.com/l/MIPDF)
  • Tales from Behind the Window, by Edanur Kuntman, translated by Cem Ulgen (Europe Comics)
Best Webcomic
  • Cabramatta, by Matt Huynh
  • Chuckwagon at the End of the World, by Erik Lundy
  • The Eyes, by Javi de Castro
  • Fried Rice Comic, by Erica Eng
  •  reMIND, by Jason Brubaker
  • Third Shift Society, by Meredith Moriarty

 

 

List of nominees found at this link:  https://www.comic-con.org/awards/2020-eisner-awards-nominations

EYG Top 10 Female Directed Movies

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EYG23

We have a new Top 10 Show this week that perhaps the Academy should listen to because this week’s show is Top 10 Female Directed Movies, and the Academy has been reticent to seemingly nominate very many female directors.

But that is an article for a different day.  Today, we are looking at a group of movies directed by women.  I specifically did not include any movies where a woman directed as a co-director with a man.  I also tried to keep one film from any female director’s oeuvre, but I will admit to letting one director have two movies.  Those were just two really dang good movies though and I did not want to cut either one.

I listed off several films and so there is a healthy list for the honorable mentions.  Lots of these movies are more recent ones which shows that hopefully Hollywood is slowly making progress.

 

Inside the Horror Pop-up Book in 'The Babadook' - The New York Times10.  The Babadook, Jennifer Kent.   This was the spot where I struggled because there were literally 4-5 others that could have gone here.  I have not seen the Babadook in quite  awhile, but I remember being quite impressed with it as a horror movie and also as a film with some interesting ideas to say.  There were some great creepy moments here and it is worth the watch.  Jennifer Kent has done another film recently that was just too powerful, too painful in The Nightingale that, while I could not get through it, showed how powerful of a filmmaker she is becoming.  The Babadook shows that as well.

 

Can You Ever Forgive Me? review – horribly hilarious odd-couple ...#9.  Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Marielle Heller.  A great true story featuring Melissa McCarthy as a down on her luck author who started forging letter written by literary writers to help make money.  She became quite effective at the forgeries before eventually being caught.  Melissa McCarthy gave one of her best performances, as did Richard E. Grant, both of whom were nominated for Academy Awards.  Getting great performances from your actors is a key component of a director.

 

Dee Rees's “Mudbound”: A Shocking Story of Racism, Told in a ...#8.  Mudbound, Dee Rees.  I found this one on Netflix and did not expect much.  I mean the Netflix movies are mostly average to below average.  This one stood out and was just totally beautiful.  This would be another effective movie to watch these days with the issue of racism being so prevalent in the world.  You can see the mastery of Dee Rees in every frame of the film.

 

RBG, a Documentary about Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Has Become an ...#7.  RBG, Betsy West & Julie Cohen.  One of the most entertaining documentaries from a few years ago, this film gave us a closer look at the “rock star” RBG, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second female ever appointed to the United States Supreme Court.  Ginsburg’s life history in some of the most engaging and interactive ways I had ever seen.  I actually saw this documentary at the theater and I was completely thrilled with the film.  It made me fall in love with RBG.  Long live RBG!

 

Little Women' Review: This Movie Is Big - The New York Times#6.  Little Women, Greta Gerwig.  I had to decide which Greta Gerwig film to include.  I did like Lady Bird, but I did not love it as much as so many others did.  However, I was remarkably impressed with the newest adaptation of the novel, Little Women.  Gerwig presented the material that has been seen in several films and other mediums in such an original and compelling manner than you could not help but be impressed.  There was a real chance that this film would be boring or repetitive, and neither situation happened.  She does a wonderful job creating this period piece and pulling out some amazing performances from the ensemble.

 

Weekend Box Office: 'Edge Of 17' Bombs, 'Bleed For This' Bleeds ...#5.  The Edge of Seventeen, Kelly Fremon Craig.  A coming of age film focusing on one young girl, played brilliantly by Hailee Steinfeld, and her problems at school, at home and with relationships.  She has a wonderful, funny and realistic connection with teacher Woody Harrelson and has issue when her best friend starts dating her brother.  It is funny and full of life.

 

Film Review - Honey Boy (Second Take) | The MacGuffin#4.  Honey Boy, Alma Har’el.  The pseudo-biographical film of the life of Shia LaBeouf  featuring one of the best child actor performances I have seen by Noah Jupe is a film from Amazon that has been overlooked to easily.  The film deals with the relationship between child star Otis and his ne’er-do-well father James.  If you have missed this one, you can see it on Amazon Prime.  It is well done.

 

The Influence of 'Big'#3.  Big, Penny Marshall.  A wonderful look at the world of adults through the eyes of a child, Big sent Tom Hanks into the stratosphere.  There were so many moments of magic in this movie, including the utterly charming and epic fun moment on the toy piano/keyboard between Hanks and Robert Loggia.  You never once doubted that the adult Tom Hanks was actually a 12-year old boy.  His embracing of that role made this film special.

 

I Saw Wonder Woman With My Boyfriend - Couple Reviews Wonder Woman#2.  Wonder Woman, Patty Jenkins.  The massive DC Comics hit that helped save that franchise, Wonder Woman was brought to the screen beautifully by Patty Jenkins.  Starting off with young Diana on Themyscira, this film built your lead character with a careful precision which helped the audience see Diana as more than just an Amazon warrior.  Of ocurse, the whole No Man’s Land section is some of the best film making in any comic book movie.

 

 

25 Fun Facts About A League Of Their Own | Mental Floss#1.  A League of Their Own, Penny Marshall.  Here is the one director with a repeat movie in the top 10 and I could not drop Big out, because this one was going to be my number one as soon as I heard the topic.  One of the best baseball movies ever made, A League of Their Own creates a group of characters that you love to watch, who are funny and who are very easy to root for.  Even the lesser characters in the ensemble receive their moments in the limelight and they all knock it out of the park (sometimes literally).  Tom Hanks is here again and delivers some of the best dialogue in any movie.  The entire scene of the “No Crying in Baseball” is a hoot, especially after he asks the umpire, who has taken time to chastise Jimmy on his handling of his players, if anyone told him he looks like a penis with a little hat on.  Even better than that, and I wonder if this was an ad-lib, was when Jimmy, after he was thrown out of the game for that comment, saying “You misunderstood me!”  LOL LOL LOL!  Brilliant work.

 

Honorary Mentions:  Okay, starting off was a film that was on Matt and John’s list, but not on mine.  Zero Dark Thirty is on my list to rewatch this summer because I found it boring in the theater and I even fell asleep a couple of times.  We’ll see if that is a film that I’ll like more the second time around.  Others I considered for the Top 10 list included another Kathryn Bigelow film, Point Break. This is another that I do not love as much as the rest of the world seems to.  Selma from Ava DuVernay was all about Martin Luther King Jr and showed him in one of the more realistic lights than we have seen before.  Chloe Zhao’s The Rider was well done and full of emotion.  Marielle Heller‘s most recent A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood featured Mr. Rogers.  Booksmart from Olivia Wilde, was another that lots of people utterly loved and I thought was okay.  The Farewell from Lulu Wang had amazing performances and a lot of powerful moments.

EYG23

Batman/Superman #9

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BATMAN SUPERMAN #9

Batman/Superman #9

“Atomic, Part One”

Writer:  Joshua Williamson

Artist:  Clayton Henry

Cover Art:  Clayton Henry & Alejandro Sanchez

I had gotten the Batman/Superman series originally because of two things.  One, I liked the Batman Who Laughs villain that started the first story arc.  Two, I thought it was just a mini-series and that once that Batman Who Laughs story was over, the series would be done too.

That has turned out to be not the case.

Then, I have to say, that the last couple of issues of Batman/Superman have been fairly unimpressive, if not boring.  I did not like #8 at all.  Even though I have always enjoyed these two iconic characters together in whatever medium I saw them in, I was most likely preparing to let this series go.

Then I read issue #9.

I am back in.  Big time.  I loved this issue.

The arrival of the Atomic Skull was not that big of a deal to me.  I do not think I have ever seen this character before.  But the way this story began, with this Skull looking for Batman.  The interactions with Batman and the surprise (and gorgeously drawn) two page splash at the very center of the book.  I was already invested with the mystery, but this just was jaw dropping.

Loved how Superman is used here.  Dropping in from an attempted date with Lois, he and Batman have immediate chemistry with one another and work so well together.  The comic has done an admirable job of showing the contrast between the two of them.

Then with the appearance of the main villain for this story arc was unexpected and welcomed.

Superman/Batman was heading toward me dropping it.  Now, I am really looking forward to the next issue.

Awesomeness

BATMAN SUPERMAN #9

Dead Day #1

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TOP 5 NEW COMICS FOR 05/27/20 - DEAD DAY & ROGUE PLANET - Fox ...

Dead Day #1

“Chapter One”

Writer:  Ryan Parrott

Artist:  Evgeniy Bornyakov

Cover Art:  Andy Clarke & Jose Villarrubia

Here is another book that I snatched today with there being no Marvel books released.  This was from a comic company called Aftershock, a company I legit never heard of before.

Dead Day #1 is a new take on the zombie story and I have to say it was interesting.  It was kind of like The Walking Dead meets The Purge meets This is Us.

In this issue, we are introduced to Dead Day, a new holiday where deceased people return from the grave from sunset to sunrise and return to see their loved ones.  However, there was a distinct mood of the story that makes you feel as if there is more nefarious activities were going to happen than just a happy family reunion.

The also show us that some people are called Revivalists and have something to do with the whole Dead Day stuff, though it was, as of yet, unclear exactly what was their role.  They are referred to as cultists at one point of the comic, so clearly, there is more to come on this.

This is another of those type of futuristic books that may lead to a dystopian future.  There have been a bunch of those recently.  Perhaps it is just too much with the way the world is right now, but I was interested in what was happening.  I liked the characters I was being introduced to, but they did seem pretty typical.

This one I am torn on.  I might like to see a few more issues to see where this is going.  I do like the set up .

tryit

TOP 5 NEW COMICS FOR 05/27/20 - DEAD DAY & ROGUE PLANET - Fox ...

Nancy Drew & The Hardy Boys: The Death of Nancy Drew #1

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Comic Book Preview - The Death of Nancy Drew #1

Nancy Drew & The Hardy Boys:  The Death of Nancy Drew #1

“Part One”

Writer:  Anthony Del Col

Artist:  Joe Eisma

Cover Art:  Joe Eisma

No Marvel Comics this week and a limited number of DC Comics (or at least, limited in what I purchase). so when I found this one on the shelf, I grabbed it.

I was a fan of the Hardy Boys when I was a kid.  I read most of their novels and even watched the TV series.  I was not as much of a fan of Nancy Drew, but I did read her too.  I always enjoyed the crossovers.  I was actually excited seeing the cover of the first issue.

The Death of Nancy Drew Part One?  Cool.  I love a good mystery.  I have to say, without spoiling, my first thought was that there was no way that Nancy was actually dead.  I will not reveal any specifics shown in this issue that may or may not answer that query, but my own doubt came through.

The ambiance of the comic stands out above all else.  The feel of the issue, following Joe Hardy on his grief-induced investigation into the seemingly accidental death of Nancy Drew works very well.  Joe narrates the story, providing us with glimpses into his own mind and his feeling of loss.  Through this we see the relationship with his brother Frank Hardy, and we get glimpses at how this character is now being portrayed.

I liked the way these characters are shown and I hope this book continues to deliver as much as this first issue does.  I was fully invested in the comic and I am anxious to see where it takes this story next.

The art is great.  It fits the tone of the book perfectly and the cover of issue #1 is a beautiful piece of art from Joe Eisma.

I hope this series can continue to grown and not just play upon my feelings of nostalgia from three characters I grew up reading.

excelsior

Comic Book Preview - The Death of Nancy Drew #1

#BlackoutTuesday

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Anna Deavere Smith Previews 'Notes From the Field' – Variety

On Tuesday, I participated in #BlackoutTuesday, an online movement I saw Monday night.  Kristian Harloff had posted that shows on his YouTube network, including SEN Live and the Movie Trivia Schmoedown, would go dark Tuesday out of respect for what was going on in the world over the last week.  Upon further investigation on my behalf, I discovered that there were plenty others joining in on #BlackoutTuesday.  

I decided to join in.  I have been watching in horror the events unfolding in Minneapolis and across the U.S. in response to the death of George Floyd and I thought this was a good way to join in.

Tuesday would see me go silent on social media for the day.  That meant no Twitter, Facebook, EYG, Snapchat, TikTok or Hero Games FOrums for twenty-four hours.  That is a chunk of what I do on a normal day.

NOTES FROM THE FIELD – ANNA DEAVERE SMITH PROJECTSHowever, going silent on social media, despite how much time I may spend there in a typical day, means very little.  It meant I couldn’t see the latest insane Donald Trump tweet or the newest TikTok dance.  So what?  The fact was that going social media silent did nothing.  Instead of being silent, I needed to expand my knowledge.  I needed to educate myself.

As a white guy, I would never claim to understand the fears and horrors faced by the black community on a daily basis.  The idea of having to explain to your children about ways that you need to speak to the police, not out of respect but out of fear for your life, is completely foreign to me.  So it was important that #BlackoutTuesday was not just a day off from social media, but that I would spend my day learning.  But how?

That Tuesday morning, I was watching Morning Joe on MSNBC and they had a guest named Anna Deavere Smith, an actress whom I remembered from the movie The American President, speaking about the re-released of an HBO documentary/one-woman-show from 2018 called Notes from the Field.  It was based on a play written and performed in 2015 by Smith.  It discussed issues of race with Smith adapting a series of real-life characters during the show.  Morning Joe host Mika Brzezinski said that the award-winning show would be back on HBO and available on VOD.

Playwright and Actress Anna Deavere Smith's 'Notes From the Field ...And I found my way.

I went to Vudu this afternoon and found the video and rented it.  It was an amazing film.  Anna Deavere Smith was just astounding, showing great range embodying each real life character in each section of the story.  Through her singular monologues, Smith revealed the tragic circumstances of each story.  The presentation of the stories were aided by a stand up bass, some artistic background sets and some horrifying pieces of video featuring the real life people involved in each story.

The stories included examples of police brutality with black suspects.  It spoke about the School-to-prison pipeline and the struggles of children within the classroom.  The story included the tale of Rep. John Lewis and a powerful experience of forgiveness.

Notes from the Field was emotional, powerful and devastating.  It also showed the humanity and empathy of the human beings that Anna Deavere Smith portrayed.  It truly is a must see film.

We cannot let this point in history get away from us.  This must lead to changes to our system, a chance to begin the healing, not just closing our eyes and hoping that everything goes back to normal.  We must not let it go.  This must be a time for the history books.

I should specify that I know that every police officer is not racist.  My best friend for 35 years is a police officer.  There are plenty of good men and women in the police.  It is the system that is the problem.  It must be fixed from within.  This feels like the moment.

 

EYG Top 10 Coming of Age Movies Re-List

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relist

The final Re-List episode by the Top 10 guys was loaded up this morning.  It is a sad day as I have truly enjoyed these and I desperately wanted to participate.  Sadly, that was not to be.

The final episode list for the Re-List (re re re re-list!) was Top 10 Coming of Age Movies.  This was clearly a loaded category as 3 films in my top 5 were not even mentioned by either of the two participants on the Re-List this week.

According to Wikipedia,  “a coming-of-age story is a genre of literature, film, and video that focuses on the growth of a protagonist from youth to adulthood (“coming of age”).” There could be some arguments over when some movies are considered coming of age movies or not.  For example, Star Wars: A New Hope was included on one of the lists on the Re-List, but I have eliminated that as a possibility.  I could see an argument for it as Luke was certainly childish when we first meet him on Tatooine.  I just do not think there is enough of a focus on that to classify the film as a coming-of-age movie.  E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial was another included that I just did not think worked for the list, despite the fact that I think it is a beautiful film.

So… for the final Re-List….

 

The Way Way Back (2013) - Rotten Tomatoes#10.  The Way, Way Back.  I saw this in the theaters and did not expect much from it.  However, it was such a great film.  Starring Liam James, Sam Rockwell, Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Allison Janney, Amanda Peetm Rob Corddry and Maya Rudolph, among others.  The story focuses on the young boy who is struggling to find his voice over a summer where he goes with his mother and her new boyfriend at a beach house.  He goes to work at a local pool and he meets Sam Rockwell, someone he ends up looking up to.  It is a very enjoyable film with some funny moments.

 

Ferris Bueller's Day Off movie review (1986) | Roger Ebert#9.  Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.  This film would be higher up the list, but I had some questions about how much of a coming-of-age movie it actually was.  Maybe if you are looking at Cameron as your protagonist it fits.  However, this John Hughes classic was on the show’s list and I found it on many lists during my research, so I decided to include it.  No doubt that it is an absolute awesome movie.

 

Slice of Southern life#8.  Mud.  Two young boys meet up with Mud, played by Matthew McConaughey, who is hiding out on an island in an old, broken down boat.  Being chased by bounty hunters, Mud needs the help of the boys to get away and accomplish what he had come to the area to do.  Great performances, especially from young Tye Sheridan as Ellis.

 

Tom Hanks' 'Big' is returning to theaters for 30th anniversary#7.  Big.  Penny Marshall’s classic film about a 12-year-old boy who wishes to be “big” and he magically gets turned into a 30-year-old man.  The coming of age here is seen as the man, played brilliantly by Tom Hanks, goes about grown up life through the mind and the eyes of a little boy.  A movie full of charm and magic.

 

Elsie Fisher | Movie Reviews Simbasible#6.  Eighth Grade.  A powerful movie that, as a middle school teacher, found completely relatable and realistic.  The first time I saw the scene of Elsie Fisher in the backseat with that teen boy, I was totally frightened for her.  I had so much anxiety and tension… proving how effective this movie was in setting up its situations.  Amazing how much director Bo Burnham got inside the mind of 8th grade kids.

 

Karate Kid" (HD) -- Best scene -- 'Crane Kick' (1984, original ...#5.  The Karate Kid.  The story of Daniel LaRusso, an East coast kid who, because of his mother’s job, had to move out West to California.  He had trouble making friends and wound up on the opposite side of a group of bullies.  The answer?  Karate tournament, of course!  The relationship between Daniel and Mr. Miyagi is the cornerstone of this movie and the performances of Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita carry this film right up until that crane kick to the chin.  Banzai, Daniel-san! Banzai!

 

Sing Street - NYT Watching#4.  Sing Street.  Another movie that caught me completely off-guard with how utterly brilliant it was.  Stemming from money problems, Cosmo had to go to a new school and he had trouble blending in.  In order to impress a beautiful girl, he said that he was in a band.  The problem?  He was not in a band.   The creation of the band and the relationship he had with the girl was beautiful and deep.  The music was criminally overlooked too.

 

IT Movie Producer on Chapter 2, Beverly, and Stephen King | Collider#3.  It.  Though it is known as a horror movie, the Stephen King classic focuses on the Loser’s Club, a group of outcasts teens who have to band together to fight off a killer clown.  The key element to the success of this film was the interaction of the group of kids.  They were real and relatable, even when they are doing supernatural things.  The key to the movie is the relationship with them and how they have to bond together and unite to stop Pennywise.  The sequel was just nowhere near as good as this film.

 

Into the Spider-Verse” Is Comic Book Perfection | The Cornell ...#2.  Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.  Miles Morales gets bitten by a radioactive spider and winds up in the same place as this dimension’s Spider-Man, just as he is fighting to the death with the Kingpin.  Miles has to face the new powers that he is discovering and has to become the hero within to step up and save his world.  The hero’s journey that Miles goes on is beautifully written and perfectly punctuated by another Spider-man, Spider-Gwen, Spider-Ham, Spider-Man Noir and Penny Parker.  Such a beautiful animated film.  I love Spider-Man and I love this version.

 

62. Stand by Me (1986) | Wonders in the Dark#1.  Stand By Me.  One of the greatest Stephen King adaptations around and a film filled with fun, emotional beats and kids going through some powerfully dramatic moments.  Even still, they are able to view these moments through the vision of teenage boys.  The four actors involved in this film are perfectly cast and make such an amazing group that they play off each character brilliantly.  Each boy brings something different to the group and each boy has his own distinct character.  No time was skipped to develop each kid and the film benefits from that.  There are several moments here that bring tears to my eyes and the ending is both tragic and uplifting at the same time.  Stand By Me is a classic.

 

Honorable Mention:  As I said, there were a bunch that were fighting for that final spot.  Love, Simon is a wonderful story from a couple of years ago.  Edge of Seventeen had a great performance at its lead (plus Woody Harrelson is a too-relatable teacher role).  The Breakfast Club was one I wanted to make the list, but I just had to cut it.  The Sandlot is another one that is so great but just came up short.  The surprisingly good Good Boys was considered.  Disney’s Moana was wonderful.  There could be many Disney animated films considered, which was part of the reason why I eliminated Moana.  Lady Bird was a film a lot of people loved, but I thought was just okay.

relist

The Social Network (2010)

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The Social Network movie poster #706038 - MoviePosters2.com

One of the online movie pundits I like made a comparison of The Social Network to Citizen Kane, format-wise.  I made that decision that I wanted to watch them together to see how I felt about that idea.

I had seen The Social Network before, but I had never seen Citizen Kane.  Touching on the idea of the comparison, I do see some connection between the way the story is told with the non-linear storytelling format (though honestly, the flashbacks feel more like the main story than flashbacks), the main protagonist having negative qualities, and Rooney Mara (who played Erica Albright in Social Network) is comparative to Rosebud in Citizen Kane.  There are other connections, but it would take me diving deeper into both movies to really do that analysis justice.

The Social Network is the story of Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) and the founding of Facebook.  We meet Mark as he is breaking up with the aforementioned Erica (Rooney Mara).  Actually, it was Erica who did the breaking up and it sent Mark on this path toward Facebook.  He went back to his room and started blogging negative things about her, showing his true troll side.  This led to an idea to compare other female students at Harvard.

The comparison website had a huge response and that drew the attention of Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (both played by Armie Hammer), rowers and legacy students at Harvard.  The brothers approached Zuckerberg with an idea about a social network and they wanted him to write code.  Zuckerberg agreed, taking the idea to another level.

With the monetary investment of his best friend Eduardo (Andrew Garfield), Marc went to town.

Directed by David Fincher, The Social Network just pops with the writing of Aaron Sorkin.  The combination of these talented individuals really provided an amazing product that gave these great actors some fantastic material.  Performances here were just astounding as well.  Jesse Eisenberg, Armie Hammer, Andrew Garfield were all great and it is most likely the best performance in the career of Justin Timberlake.

The film does a great job of showing the character of Mark Zuckerberg and how he was desperate for a connection, yet unable to connect.  The irony of having a person who has so much trouble with the relationships in his life being the driving force behind a platform that is meant to connect to other people is unbelievable.

I did not think originally that this would be a great movie.  I felt that this would be dull, but it is anything but.  I liked it the first time I saw it and this time was even more as I appreciated the technical aspects of the film this time more.  The Social Network is an exceptional film.

vintage

The Social Network movie poster #706038 - MoviePosters2.com

 

Citizen Kane (1941)

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Citizen Kane - Regular | Mad Duck Posters

Universally recognized as one of the greatest movies ever made, Citizen Kane is, as movie pundit Scott Mantz might say, the Citizen Kane of movies.

Citizen Kane is one of those experience movies that anybody who considers themselves a cinephile must experience.  Starring the director Orson Welles, Citizen Kane is a movie that has an amazing relevance to today’s world, almost 80 years later.

Charles Foster Kane (Orson Welles) was a newspaper magnet and one of the country’s richest men.  Upon his death, he became even bigger news, and journalists searched for a hook for their audiences, in their attempt to discover something new about the millionaire.  A group of reporters focused in on a riddle… the last word spoken by Kane was “Rosebud” and no one knew why.  This mystery sent the reporters on a journey into the past of Charles Foster Kane searching for a clue to the true meaning of that allusion.

I had never watched Citizen Kane before, but I knew the answer to the riddle of :What was Rosebud.”  It is one of the most iconic movie images ever put to screen.  I knew about that allusion for decades.  Heck, the first place I ever heard of it was from the Dr. Demento Show and the song “The Homecoming Queen’s Got a Gun” by Julie Brown.  It was a pop culture symbol that everyone knew.  That speaks to the successful nature of the film.

This movie was filmed in ways that would inspire directors and creators for years.  In fact, many of the styles used to film here may not seem special when viewed today, but were, in actuality, influential to the film industry when Orson Welles did it.  Techniques such as “deep focus” which is a technique that allows the filmmaker to keep objects in the foreground and in the distant background in focus at the same time.  Images in the film are utter masterpieces of composition and imagination. They literally teach classes on the imagery found in Citizen Kane.

The story telling of the film was ahead of its time as well.  The film starts off with the death of the main protagonist in Charles Foster Kane, setting up the film’s main mystery with the “Rosebud” utterance.  Then the film is told in flashbacks to the different stages of Kane’s life, and it was not even chronological at this point.  Yet the story is so well constructed that you are never confused about where in the story you are and what place in Kane’s life you are watching.  The use of the news reel right after Kane’s death provides us with exposition in a manner that is both effective and entertaining.

I also found a disturbing comparison between Charles Foster Kane and another of our major public figures in today’s world.  Another multi-millionaire narcissist with delusions of grandeur.

I avoided Citizen Kane for the longest time because I thought I might be bored by it.  Au contraire… I found it completely compelling and fascinating.  The tale of the life of this man and his hopes and his desires, along with a longing for what was and what could have been.  Devastating.  This is an amazing debut from Orson Welles and it had to be difficult for him to manage expectations after the first film you make is one of the most revered films in movie history.

A true masterpiece.

paragon

Citizen Kane - Regular | Mad Duck Posters

The Vast of Night

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The Vast of Night” Poster and Trailer are Here! – Craig Zablo

I found a new film that appeared on Amazon Prime today called The Vast of Night.  That was a title that was intriguing and I was not sure what it meant.

It is the 1950’s in a small town in New Mexico.  The young teenager Fay (Sierra McCormick) went to her job at the telephone switchboard, walking with local radio DJ Everett (Jake Horowitz) on the way.  As she was switching calls, Fay hears a strange noise come across the radio.  This same sound came across the phone lines.  Curious, she called Everett at the radio station and they began an investigation into the mysterious sound.

I was really engaged in the story.  There was not a lot of action, so there are going to be people who think it is boring.  However, I found the dialogue and the monologues spoken by the characters to be compelling and thoroughly entertaining.  The monologues are delivered with a remarkable mood that creates a wonderfully creepy tone.

The film has an independent feel that, while may make the third act revelation a tad cheap looking, work for most of this movie.  The low budget look adds to the aura of the film and gives us the tone of the 1950’s movies.

Performances are solid from a group of actors who I had never seen before.  Jake Horowitz was a standout as the DJ.  These actors delivered strong performances and created their specific and developed characters mostly through their dialogue.

There was also a fascinating framing mechanism used in the film where the film made it look like it was a Twilight Zone-like show.  The use of the old fashion TV screen as a transition technique helped make this feel like that anthology show.  It fed right into the mood of the film.

If you are into old time movies and are nostalgic for the old sci-fi films of the 1950’s, you’ll probably get a kick out of this.  It is a slow burn, but it is worth the time.

4 stars 

The Wretched

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Movie Review - The Wretched (2020)

This is the number one movie in the U.S. Box Office this week.

Strange, I know.  This is a horror movie that is being shown in a few of the drive-in theaters and the handful theaters of brick and mortar that are open.  I heard about this film being top of the box office from Dam Murrell’s YouTube show Charts with Dan.

Now, of course, we are not talking about massive amounts of money here.  Most of the theaters in the country are still closed down.  According to the last Box Office Mojo website, last week The Wretched made $216, 000.

Then, I found the film on Vudu and I rented it.

In The Wretched, a troubled teen Ben (John-Paul Howard) goes with his father Liam (Jamison Jones).  His parents were getting a divorce and it was causing serious problems for him.  However, it is not long after when he realizes that something strange was happening at their neighbor’s house.  There is a 1000-year old witch posing as the mother next door and making people forget about children.

I liked this movie for the most part.  The young actors are all solid and there is a tension in the plot that creates a anxiety in the viewers minds.  They play upon the uncertainty of what was happening and the creepiness of the witch.

There are some horror tropes that are in heavy use here.  One is the father who does not believe his child.  I can understand why he may not, but it is something that happens regularly in horror.  Now, to be fair, Liam actually comes around pretty quickly after Ben tells him about the witch, and, at least, there have not been a ton of mysterious things happening that the father just ignores.  Still, it is something that happens regularly.

I was very disappointed with the ending of the film too.  The last scene of the film truly takes the film off its rails and wastes everything that came before it.  Again, the twist end is a horror trope that this film applies.  I did not like the ending.

The rest of the film was pretty decent.  I have seen better horror movies, but for a small film, this is much better than many horror movies.  Despite the by the numbers plot, if you can find it, it is worth a watch, especially if you enjoy horror.

3.1 stars

The Amazing Spider-Man #43

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Amazing Spider-Man (2018-) #43 - Marvel Comics

The Amazing Spider-Man #43

“True Companions Part Three”

Writer:  Nick Spencer

Artist:  Ryan Ottley

Cover Art:  Ryan Ottley & Nathan Fairbairn

The third part of True Companions has finally come out after weeks of waiting and the story has added something to the lore of Spider-Man.  A pet?

Nick Spencer’s current run on The Amazing Spider-Man has been solid, especially with the use of the Spider-Man secondary crew.  The increased role of Boomerang in Spider-man/Peter Parker’s life has been enjoyable to watch.  The return of Mary Jane to the narrative has been extremely welcome (though I worry about what is to come for the pair) and the use of Mayor Fisk, who has been all over the Marvel books lately, trying to get on Spidey’s “good side” is a cool bit of juxtaposition.

Now we bring on Gog.  We had an entire origin issue dedicated to Gog, which tells you that there may be some plans for Gog.

The best part of this issue is how the Spider-man character shines through every moment of the book.  Spencer does a great job of showing us what Spidey would do in each situation, and how the character would react.  This was one of the first times since the switch that I really felt as if Spidey was done right.  Not taking anything away from the rest of the run, but, after Tom Taylor, most would be seen as lesser.

However, this really gives me hope that there are great things on the horizon for Peter Parker and his alter ego.

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Amazing Spider-Man (2018-) #43 - Marvel Comics