The variety of weather we get here is one of the only reasons remaining for me to actually enjoy living in Philadelphia.
This weekend we were hit with upwards of 17 inches of snow. I love that. And this pretty much assure us of a white Christmas because there is no way all of this will melt before Friday.
Although, it may be more of a murky, grey Christmas if the snow becomes that mushy, slushy crap that heavy traffic and rock salt usually turn it into.
Eh, oh well. For now, I'm enjoying staying inside and watching movies.
As I've mentioned before, I usually listen to music that has little or no lyrics when I write. It's something that I've learned works for me through a lot of trial and error. Whether it's jazz or classical, bluegrass or a soundtrack-- instrumental music is just what I prefer when I sit down to do some work.
Lately, almost all of my writing time has been accompanied by the trademark musical stylings of Philip Glass.
I first came to know of Philip Glass through his score to Godfrey Reggio's now-famous "Quatsi" trilogy. I especially enjoy the score to Koyaanisqatsi, but he has tons of other work that is equally impressive. Last week I came across his album "Solo Piano", which is comprised of five variations of his piece Metamorphosis, as well as two shorter pieces.
The song I've included here is Metamorphosis #2, which happens to be my favorite. It's a haunting piece that I've been able to listen to on repeat for the past few days.
Give it a listen. Even if Philip Glass is not necessarily your bag, it's hard to argue that this isn't a beautiful piece of music.
P.S.-- I've included his piece Pruit Igoe as well. Originally written for Koyaanisqatsi, you may also recognize it from the extended trailer for last year's Watchmen.
As a child of the VHS generation, I love-- LOVE-- retro VHS cover art. I can remember walking around the video store as a kid studying the cover boxes, especially those that were for films that I would never be allowed to see at that age. Two that stick out in my mind were Ruggierio Deodato's Cannibal Holocaust and George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead-- both of which I didn't get to see until I was in my twenties. Gee, perhaps that's why I have a somewhat unhealthy obsession with 1970's-80's horror?
Portable Grindhouse showcases a solid selection of cover boxes-- both well-known titles and some of the more off the wall titles. And I love the subtitle (The Lost Art of the VHS Cover Box), because that's what it was-- an art form. Looking at much of the shamefully bad cover art for DVD releases these days really makes you miss the days of Drew Struzan covers, replete with rippling muscles and oversized breasts on cartoonish versions of the movies stars of the day (Romancing the Stone, anyone?)
Needless to say, this book is a great Christmas gift for the film geek in your life. And if you don't have a film geek in your life, feel free to consider me the film geek in your life, because I would love to unwrap this book on Festivus.
Anyhow, watch the awkwardly silent video below for a better idea of what to expect.
This past weekend I was fortunate enough to catch the penultimate stop in Rob Zombie's tour for his upcoming album, Hellbilly Deluxe 2. I went to the show by myself and, well... you may think that's kind of odd. Perhaps-- but I couldn't give a damn because it was one hell of a show.
Zombie's live performances are a throwback to the theatrical rock shows of the 1970's. And he certainly isn't not shy about wearing his influences on his sleeve-- specifically Alice Cooper. The two of them share a similar gruff singing style and I'm actually surprised Zombie's never covered any of Cooper's hits.
But I digress...
This song (What?) is the first single off of his oft postponed new album which is set to finally be released on February 2. There is no official video, so I've posted a live version that is very similar to what I saw the other night at the Electric Factory.
Enjoy the song.
And if you ever get the chance to see Rob Zombie live, by all means go.
You'll have a great time. And if you've got nobody to go with, hell-- drop me a line. Lord knows I've been there.
P.S.-- If you like the song, you can also hear the regular album version here, or download it on iTunes.
So, I went to New York yesterday to catch up with a friend. I got into town rather early, so I decided to walk around and perhaps do some shopping.
Then I found this guy.
Now, the two of us are best friends.
And yes, his catchy jingle was in my head all day.
P.S.-- This was the first time I was able to really try out my Kodak Zi-8. I have to say, it's pretty incredible considering the price and size. Certainly recommended for bloggers/vloggers.
In the age of the crappy horror remake, it's nice to get some news about a true classic being sent back to theaters-- in its original form. Grindhouse releasing seems to have secured the rights to mount a nationwide re-release of Sam Raimi's seminal 1981 horror flick Evil Dead.
Perhaps Raimi is testing the waters for another Evil Dead sequel? It's possible, considering the success of his recent throwback hit Drag Me To Hell. While I'm not totally convinced that this would be a true barometer of how another evil dead film would play, I'm certainly not complaining.
Also-- I seem to be in the minority among Evil Dead fans in that I prefer the first film to the pseudo-sequel, Evil Dead 2.
So far there is no screening planned for the Philadelphia area, but I'm confident that will change very soon. If not I may just have to embark on another road trip to catch this on the big screen.
Let's face it, from Halloween to Christmas is the greatest time of the year. It's full of parties, food, booze and loads of chances for us all to act like kids (read: idiots) again. Personally, I still go out for Halloween... with my nieces and nephews, of course. But it's still an opportunity to dress like a jackass and not only get away with it, but in some cases actually have it make you the life of the party.
Another great thing about this time of year is the number of horror films playing on cable at any given moment. Now, watching horror films is certainly not a seasonal even for yours truly. However, Halloween is the only time that I can usually convince others to join me in the terrifying fun.
So my question is this...
When you are perusing cable channels or looking at the DVD shelf, which video nasties catch your eye? Personally, I am partial to classic 1980's horror. Carpenter, Fred Dekker, Romero, Argento, Coscarelli... these are the guys I look to for some real Halloween fun. How about you?
So, It's been a little while since I've posted anything. I've been writing something new that's taken up a lot of my time, and with getting ready to teach my first college course, I've been a little busy. However, I didn't want to just make up some stupid nonsense to post-- so I figured instead I'd post one of my all time favorite poems.
It's a Shel Silverstein piece that means a lot to me, and was a constant source of inspiration while I was writing my last screenplay. Anyone who has had the chance to read that script will understand why.
The poem is called The Little Boy and the Old Man.
Within minutes of his passing, the keyboards of bloggers worldwide were clacking away with attempts at witty, kitschy ways to deliver this news-- Patrick Swayze has succumbed to pancreatic cancer.
Never quite an A-lister, Swayze made some decent movies (Roadhouse, Red Dawn, Ghost) and his fair share of junk (To Wong Foo, anyone?)
Of course his most famous role was that of Johny Castle in the classic 80's film Dirty Dancing. While not exactly my cup of tea, the film was an undeniable pop culture phenomenon.
However, all things considered, I think his most memorable piece of work came when he was the guest host of Saturday Night Live. The genius sketch is embedded below and, sadly features two guys that have now both passed on before their time.
Enjoy, in memoriam, the terrific Chippendales sketch.
As a kid there were some VHS cover boxes on the shelf at the video store that just always really creeped me out. One of those creatively marketed titles was Tobe Hooper’s 1981 thriller The Funhouse.
Capitalizing off of the success of his underground hit The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, director Tobe Hooper crafted this film’s story very much in the same mold. Where it differed greatly was in the film’s execution (pardon the pun), which undoubtedly left fans of Massacre wondering when the other bloody shoe was going to drop.
The set-up is a simple yet effective genre staple: four pot-smoking teens looking for some excitement at a traveling carnival that stopped in their town. One of the incorrigibly horny guys has the great idea that they should hide in the funhouse and stay over when all the carnies have called it a night. Amazingly, the others agree and, just like that, we have a horror movie.
Once inside, the teens witness a murder at the hands of one especially demented Carnie (who is essentially a carbon-copy of Chainsaw’s Leatherface.) The rest of the night (and the film) is spent with the teens, as they attempt to escape the creepy killer and his equaly deranged father. The teens are, of course, picked off one by one before the break of dawn.
There is no denying that The Funhouse is a slow film, even compared to other 80’s horror. You can tell that Tobe Hooper really took his time with this one. If you look closely, you can tell that he did put great care into the film—the cinematography is tight, the creature effects are solid and there are a few legitimately impressive long-take crane shots. He even managed to slip in an homage to both Halloween and Psycho, as well as some gratuitous nudity—all in the opening 5 minutes!
And, for what it’s worth, Tobe Hooper turned down a film that was offered to him by Steven Spielberg in order to make The Funhouse. The film he turned down? E.T.
Ouch.
Overall, the film was a satisfying little thriller, with some decent scares and is definitely worth a look if you enjoy 80’s horror.
Score: 3 out of 5
(ALSO: Word on the street is that Eli Roth has been tapped for a remake. Could be interesting...)
Let it snow.
