NanoWrimo 2012

I have relunctantly put this blog on hiatus due to school and more importantly: NANOWRIMO!!! If you would like to become my writing buddy, my writing name is : dragonprincess. toodle-loo!

Evil Dead 2 : Dead by Dawn Original Theatrical Trailer

Evil Dead II (1987)

Yikes! Life has once more taken thrall of me and sucked into its mediocre hustle! Busy Busy Busy.. That is the life of a person.

Well it's October!!! Whooo!!!!! Scary season time!! Costumes!! Excuses to buy costume accessories! I love Halloween and I am one of the biggest weenies in the world. I am terrified of anything scary. Yet being the hypocrite that I am, I am fascinated by the genre. I squeal, shriek, my heart pumping out of my eyeballs but I still go back for more. Weird? Oh yeah

Lets start off October with one of the most referenced movie in Geekdom. A movie that I long believed to be gory beyond humanity. A movie that has spawned a HUGE cult following. And it stars one of the best ham actors of all: Bruce Campbell.


You must know that I am referring to "Evil Dead 2" (I'm assuming you read in the title. As for "Army of Darkness"? I will watch that soon enough. Relax).

I've known about "Evil Dead 2" for a very long while now. A memory pops up: walking through a VHS rental store that my mother's friend managed, I always challenged myself to walk through the horror section. As my mom chatted up in the fast talking gossip cloud, I would wander away from the saccharine covers of children's movies to the dark aisle filled with terrifying covers. I would muster enough courage to pick up maybe 1 or 2 VHS covers before jerking my fingers back, I always felt this overwhelming sense of doom emanating from the boxes. As if by touching them, I was slowly corrupting myself (Eh, it wasn't that far from the truth). I remember almost touching the "Hellraiser" box before freaking out and accidentally knocking over other covers. One of the covers I picked up was "Evil Dead 2". I remember staring at the cover. A smirking skull with eyes peering at me. I remember wondering why it looked so funny yet scary. Then my mother yanked the cover away from my hands and placed it back on the shelf. In an instant, another "Land Before Time" movie was in my hand.


It took many, many, many years to be convinced to watch this movie. It took a stubborn horror buff boyfriend and a food coma induced by his delicious cooking to plunk me down into the futon and pop in the DVD.

WHAT THE HELL WAS I AFRAID OF?!?!? THIS WAS THE FUNNIEST HORROR MOVIE I HAVE EVER HAD THE COURAGE TO WATCH!!!

Ok lemme back up and explain the movie. "Evil Dead 2" is a sort-of-but-not-really re-make of "Evil Dead". Which I haven't seen nor am I interested in watching it. As far as I'm concerned, this is a stand alone movie.
We are following the horrific adventures of Ash, played by Bruc Campbell. Who is hot beyond compare!!! Chiseled jaw and everything!! Ash and girlfriend are about to have a romantic outing in a lone cabin when they accidentally invoke demon that possesses everything and some zombies.

That is all I'm gonna say on the plot. This movie is something that has to be experienced. It uses very clever camera angles, techniques, gimmicks, and gadgetry to create this amazing horror atmosphere. I am really impressed with how complicated and crazy these puppets were. Growing up in a time where 3D manipulation is touted as evolutionary, it was with bittersweet feelings that I wish more movies like this existed. Everything about the production spoke of passion and appreciation for genre. You have to be a huge fanatic to spend that much time and energy to obsess over a detail like a how head being flung over a log should look. Sam Raimi is just an absolute genius.Bravo!!

Bruce Campbell. What can I say that hasn't been said? Watch this movie and you'll see why he's so loved in the geek community. He's such a great facial actor and an unbelievable stuntman. There is this amazing scene where he is fighting his possessed hand. He is thrashing himself all over the kitchen smashing his body in such a way that you truly believe he is possessed. And to top it off, he manages to flip himself over. No mat, no wires, no nothing. He just grabs himself and flips him over. And the flight through the car? Wowza!

There are definitely some good scary moments. I jumped so many damn times. I was genuinely terrfied of the evil mists. I can tell it's fake but the atmosphere was so well done that  my heart was pumping everytime Ash tried to run or fight the evil. For an evil that wasn't throughly established other than being summoned from the book of the dead and possessing people, it was freakin' scary!!! And the zombies??! Or vampire zombies? Or whatever they were?!?! Scary!!!! It's amazing how many people die in this movie....

The movie ends kinda odd involving some time travel that was foretold earlier in the movie. This ultimately leads to "Army of Darkness" which I will get around to watching.

How much more can I gush about this movie without making you vomit? All I can end with is : Watch this movie if you haven't already!! And it's October so if your available to catch it at a midnight showing, do so! I will definitely be keeping my eyes out for a showing!!

 
Ok folks, The countdown for LONG BEACH COMIC CON has begun! This is a great comic convention to go to! It's manageable, the area is awesome, and it has great atmosphere! Plus a very special artist that is important to me is exhibiting that everyone should check out!

Dorian Gray (2009)

Word that best describes this summer : UGH.
 I have been the gauntlet of pain, surgery, heat, and anxiety. And I don't seen an end in sight. So I will take the words of my favorite inspirational speaker: Andrew W.K.: You Gotta Keep Up...You Gotta Keep Going.

But damn, it's hard to focus on anything when you live in the freakin' valley.It's HOT.

So I guess it would make sense for me to watch a movie with a really HOT actor. Ahh...ah....see what I did there...

I almost passed this movie up. I couldn't remember why I added this movie. At all. Thank goodness I was in my marathon of sewing. Actually this movie wasn't good for my sewing. I didn't get that far in it.

What comes to your mind when you see "Dorian Gray"? Is it:
1. The classic story written by Oscar Wilde
2.  That guy in League of Extraordinary Men
3. Something about a picture...

Guess what? That's as much as I know  of it too! I will embarrassingly admit that I completely gave up on the novel after about 10 pages. I gave up after the twentieth time that Dorian Gray was beautiful. Sheesh. This movie adaptation was much more entertaining to swallow. I truly apologize Mr. Wilde. I am not as sophisticated as I would like to  be in classic literature.

The story (as explained by the movie):
    A young, impressionable man named Dorian Gray (played by the delectable Ben Barnes) arrives in England to take over his deceased fathers estate. He is befriended by an artist and a corrupted aristocrat. As the beauty of Gray becomes established thanks to the art of his friend., Gray finds a dark way to retain his youth. The consequences of a satanic bargain bleeds through Gray and everyone around him.

I had no idea that the story was a compelling, horror story. This may be in large part to the movie but daaaaaaamn. I was hooked. On top of that, COLIN FIRTH is in it!!! I was so happy to see him play the corrupted friend. Firth is sexy when he's being manipulated.

Ben Barnes really sealed the movie for me. Dorian Gray was able to do all his immoral deeds because of his immortal beauty. It wasn't hard for me to believe that Gray could do all this because Barnes just did it so damn well. I believed his innocent eyes, his grin at his new power, and his SEXINESS.

Oh there is ALOT of sex in this movie. Immoral, threesomes, multi-partners, same sex partners, and dancing. Omigosh my jaw dropped. I could not tear my eyes away. It's hard to sew a straight stitch when your seeing some hardcore action.....hoorah for the stitch ripper.






Oh...um...Ben Barnes is PRINCE CASPIAN. From Narnia.....Yeah...the religious subtext series. The one with the lion and the streetlight. It didn't even hit me because he was so....dimmed in Narnia. All that sexy hiding underneath chain mail. How dare you Aslan. How dare you.

Not only was this movie great eye candy but it was just damn compelling to watch. Easily has become one of my favorite adaptions of a classic novel. That I haven't read....

Every year, it gets a little bit harder. Every year I lose a strength and I gain a weakness. I just have to keep finding what makes me step away and just relax. Thank goodness for books and movies.

Enjoy everyone!

Monkey Business (1952)

Sorry for the long delay. I've just had surgery and I finally feel well enough to just sit down and write. 

One of my pet peeves right now is seeing classic movies being packaged with huge pictures of Marilyn Monroe and she really doesn't carry that much weight in the movie. Sigh. This was the victim of such packaging. The main force and comedy power is Cary Grant and Ginger Rodgers.

Yeah, Cary Grant was pretty funny in this one. He did some great comedy stunts and was pretty likable. I will credit all that to the amazing Ginger Rodgers. Not only can she keep up the dancing guru Fred Astaire but she has amazing charisma and comedic timing.

"Monkey Business" is a simple,comedy movie. Grant plays an absent-minded scientist intent on finding the solution for youth. Rodgers plays his loving wife  who puts up with him. Monroe just plays a secretary...

Anyhoo, a monkey mixes some chemicals together that actually becomes the tonic for youth. First Grant drinks it and becomes this crazy youthful guy and then it wears out.Rodgers then drinks it for good measure and then they both drink. The movie follows their silly regression into youth and what they learn from it.

It's such a romantic movie. The antics that this married couple endured should have broke them apart once they come into their senses. But they still find reason and come to love each other even more. That's a huge comparison between "Youth and Old Age" that the movie makes. Youth does stupid things, adults are more reasonable. That's too simplistic and definitely begs alot of arguments but sometimes it's true. Sometimes.





This movie is littered with wonderful lines and scenes.The regression begins slowly and then wham! They're crazy teenagers! Grant is driving like a maniac and dressing stupidly. Rodgers is jealous and overly emotional.Combined,they chase each like little kids all over the board room.


This movie was just so much fun to watch. A simple, comedy between two great stars.


I would write more, but i'm starting to feel some more pain coming on. Toodles!

The Pure Hell of St. Trinian's (1960)

It was pure hell to try to watch this. Something about a sheik wanting the girls.

The only part I watched was the opening sequence. The girls burned down the school.Why? WHY?! This is their stronghold. This is they're base. Their headquarters. Why would they burn it down?!?!?

I was pissed.

Then I fell asleep.

I was that bored.

Blue Murder at St. Trinian (1957)

Onward to the next installment of the St. Trinians hellions!


To be honest, it's been awhile since I watched this one so my memory may be a little spotty.

The movie played out like an extension of the first movie except for a few major changes.For some, undisclosed reason the headmistress is jailed.In order to maintain some resemblence of order, the education department is sent to "guard" the girls. Unsuited for war, the education dept is left ragged and wounded as they defend themselves from the office. The second change is that Flash Harry has a more guardian role in this one.He was introduced as a shadowy but lovable side character in the first. Now  it seems that he has begun to swell into his role as the girls only line to the outside. For in the beginning of the movie, he is chattin' it up with an Italian Prince by advertising the older girls for marriage. Flash was pimpin' out the girls in pin-up style photo book. For some reason, I was thinking of Grace Kelly. I have no idea why.


Strangely enough, the girls are ecstatic with Flashs return and are eager to hear news of the Princes reaction. This was pretty boggling. I would think the girls would chafe at having some guy pick a wife from mere photos. Or that they would even want to be a  wife. These were established to be naughty, crazy, as females armed with wit and guile to suit their own selfish needs. I guess they just wanted to establish some royal money or take over a country. Or maybe they're just hopeless romantics...


Meanwhile, a seemingly pointless introduction of a jewel thief  grabs the attention of the police chief and the sad but annoying undercover policeman on the train. As the chase gains way, it is connected that the thief is the father of the one the St Trinian girls. As the father hides out in the girls dorm, the police quickly figure out the obvious connection and surround the place.

Well since they're under "house arrest" (how is it that they bodily harm large groups of people but they can't fight their way through weak cops?). Now they are truly stuck. How can they ever get to Italy?

Ahh, the introduction of a plot point in the guise of an essay contest with an Italian trip as the main prize. So....get this....they are unable to leave the school but they are ABLE to break into the Ministry of Education to rig their essay as the winning essay.

Right.

Although I can dismiss that bottomless plothole by mentioning one of the wackiest sequence I've seen so far. In an attempt to get the results, the girls drill a hole from the floor above. They stick an umbrella through the hole and open it to catch the debris. They switch the essays. They're almost caught but the police are called elsewhere. They cover the hole with a carpet and scamper off. The Ministry of Education discover the horrific "winner" of the contest. As they wonder who could've done it, they step...right...into..the...whole...

No wonder these girls can get away with anything. Everyone is an imbecile.

Are you with me so far? Ok..onward with the crazy.

Way to get to Rome? Check! Way to get out of the school? However will they manage? Ahhh....blackmail the father into dressing up as the New headmistress and lead them to Italy. Once again, another wacky scene:
  The new headmistress has driven off. She walks away from the car bewildered and wary at the large number of St. Trinian girls that have come out to greet her. And they're singing. They're parting ways for her and singing oh so sweetly. As the headmistress walks up the stairs, a secret panel slides open from the wall and yanks her in. In a few moments, the father emerges as the new headmistress and the girls continue to sing on. That was just pure diabolical fun to watch that segment.

So pretty much, they end up in Italy. Something about the dad trying to run. One of the girls being married off. Jewels being the ball. Honestly, the rest of the movie became forgettable to me.

The movie felt more like an extended episode than a movie . I enjoyed seeing more of Flash Harry but his grand important role among the girls is starting to feel more disturbing. Almost like a pimp looking over his harem.

I hate the inclusion of the undercover woman cop now. Am I supposed to feel happy that she spurns away the love of reasonable men for the one man who would rather do battle than marry her? I am becoming seriously irritated with the way her character is handing this. There is a pretty diverse plot where she, Flash Harry, and some other guy have been stranded in the ocean. The policeman is shown that not only does she have romantic appeal but handiness in dealing with situations. She was so strong. Then she sees that worthless shit and she goes stupid.Is this supposed to be a nod towards how women can be? A contrast between her and the girls? A possible difference in what happens when one takes control of the situation? Pis posh.

There was also alot more focus on the older girls. Who are sexier, cunning, and intelligent. I could see inspirations of this in the modern version.

Except for the scenes I mentioned, this version fell pretty short of meeting the atmosphere and fun of the first movie. Why did they take out the headmistress Alistar?  I don't get it. It's not great. It's ok. I was able to watch it all the way through. If I stopped screaming "WHAT? WHY?" at the screen then I was able to enjoy it somewhat.


Oh....and why the hell was it titled "Blue Murder at St. Trinian"!?!??!There was no murder!!