MR. LOBO'S CINEMA INSOMNIA: CREEPERS (AKA PHENOMENA) ON TWITCH

This Saturday, April 5, commencing at 10pm on Twitch (as well as OSI74/Roku and Amazon Fire), Mr. Lobo's Cinema Insomnia presents one of the creme de la creme: Dario Argento's Creepers, aka Phenomena.

Though it may not be a favorite among snobby critics, serious, horror fans hold Creepers in high regard. Its cast alone seals its upper-echelon status, with Jennifer Connelly, Donald Pleasance and Daria Nicolodi as its headliners. 

The Friday the 13th-aimed plot is simultaneously simple yet unique: A pretty, American student (with a penchant for sleep walking and insect magnetism) enters a Swiss academy, around which young women are being slaughtered by a mysterious culprit, with a free-roaming chimp standing as the likely, Rue Morgue-ish suspect. Ultimately, the lass befriends a disabled entomologist to unravel the carnage, which is fought through the unexpected help of assailing insects.

Argento's jolting style ensures the movie's fast-paced atmosphere, which is hard to shake once it gets rolling, spiced as it is by vibrant cinematography by Romano Albani, an electrifying score by Goblin and disturbing effects by Sergio Stivalletti. 

Mr. Lobo shares his anticipated playfulness for the giallo's interludes, with insect-infested slapstick, simian-oriented commercials, weird, Italian and bug-based trailers, with special appearances from Dixie Dellamorto as Kogarella and Emily Manka-White as a spacey, Connelly surrogate.  

This is one not to miss, so be sure to join the "misunderstood" creepiness this Saturday night!

https://www.twitch.tv/cinemainsomnia

TERRIFIC TEAM-UP IMAGE: BLACK WIDOW & DAREDEVIL

LARRY JOHNSON'S HORSEMAN #7: THE SPLENDOR OF CARNY MECHANICS

I have a thing for carnivals and things mechanical. I also have a thing for Larry Johnson's Horseman. An overlap of the three is nothing short of Heaven to me. 

Actually, Horseman #7 drives home the fact that carnivals are, by and large, mechanical wonderlands, with carousels, trains and motionettes. For this issue, Horseman gallops among such commodities, bringing to light the sort of spectacles that too many of us have come to take for granted. 

Of course, with this being a Horseman adventure, matters do get ever stranger as the pages progress, with our lead encountering a jack-in-the-box counterpart, which is soon replaced by a colossal, robotic Horseman, only then to be joined by a helpful clone. There's a time when our hero appears endangered within the carnival's complexities, but through Johnson's Dali-esque mirror, things do flip to his benefit. 

Like the issues that precede it, Horseman #7's amazing, 36 pages are abstract yet fun and easy to follow, like one's most memorable dreams. I found myself lost within each of its panels, and I plan to lose myself to their mystical draw again and again. 

Try Horseman #7 on for size by sending $7 to Mr. Johnson through Paypal at LewBrown1@verizon.net. Believe me, you'll be forever glad you did.  

PINUP TIME: NASTASSJA KINSKI

 

POSTERFIX: RESTORATIONS TO CHERISH

I discovered a wonderful, YouTube channel and a related, site source called Posterfix (a company located in Brooklyn, NY), led by craftsman Chris Cloutier.

The meticulous Cloutier and his equally meticulous wife, Oki, present poster restorations from a number of subjects from a number of global venues, which include circuses, magic shows, concerts, soft drinks, Disney characters, Buck Rogers, Tom Mix, Bruce Lee, Stanley Kubrick, Alfred Hitchcock, Quentin Tarantino, George Romero, Dario Argento, Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles, KISS, Universal Monsters, King Kong, Godzilla, Mighty Joe Young, Forbidden Planet, Invasion of the Saucer Men, Earth vs the Flying Saucers, Back to the Future, Star Wars, Planet of the Apes and many more (with a good number yet to come). 

The old, creased/tattered posters are placed on linen backdrops and where need be, pasted, plugged and repainted. 

Coltier gives historical details regarding the movies' releases, as well as the posters' anomalies, which are more common than not if they're foreign or were pulled before distribution. As he and his spouse work away, music from the featured movies is heard, along with interspersing quotes. 

The Posterfix episodes, which run from 5-20 minutes each, are relaxing, informative and pleasing to behold.

The Posterfix channel can be summoned through a basic, YouTube search, but it would also prove rewarding to visit the company's store site where restored examples and a pricing queue are featured. The results are certain to blow one's aesthetic mind!

https://posterfix.com/

WISE WORDS:

 

POPCORN & PINCHERS: A CLASSIC MONSTERS OF THE MOVIES SALUTE

 

As of late, I've been re-dipping into the otherworldly flicks of the 1950s, and a great, companion source for these ambitious submissions is Classic Monsters of the Movies: Popcorn and Pinchers (An Anthology of Classic 1950s Sci-Fi Cinema).

Thanks to writers/researchers Nige Burton and Jamie Jones, Popcorn and Pinchers covers the grand gamut of the celluloid staples that once reigned supreme at matinees and drive-in theaters, ranging from Robot Monster to The Quatermass Xperiment. 

Beloved, classic specimens from the Creature from the Black Lagoon trilogy, It Came from Outer Space, This Island Earth, The War of the Worlds, Invaders From Mars, Earth vs the Flying Saucers, Invasion of the Saucer Men, Plan 9 From Outer Space, It Conquered the World, The Thing from Another World and The Blob conquer the pages, as well as experimental mishaps that include The Alligator People, The Fly, Return of the Fly, The Indestructible Man, Donovan's Brain and The Colossus of New York. 

Gigantic intruders are also revealed: The Cyclops, The Amazing Colossal Man, War of the Colossal Beast, Attack of the 50 Foot Woman, Attack of the Crab Monsters, Them!, Tarantula, The Deadly Mantis, The Black Scorpion, 20 Million Miles to Earth, It Came from Beneath the Sea, The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, The Beast of Hollow Mountain, Godzilla and Rodan.  

First-time and revived, Gothic examples also crawl their way forth, including The Black Sleep, Bride of the Monster, The Son of Dr. Jekyll, Frankenstein 1970, The Curse of Frankenstein, The Revenge of Frankenstein, I Was a Teenage Frankenstein, I Was a Teenage Werewolf, How to Make a Monster, in addition to Abbott & Costello's continuing, mega-monster meet-ups. 

Then there are the allegorical narratives that audiences found ever so profound, headlined by Invasion of the Body Snatchers, 1984, The Day the Earth Stood Still and The Incredible Shrinking Man; as well as those entries that looked to space to sustain the human race, emblemized by Destination Moon, When Worlds Collide and Forbidden Planet. 

No matter the category or niche, Burton and Jones document and delve, referencing not only the directors, writers and producers who made these movies so captivating, but their powerhouse stars. 

Through its comprehensive, eighty-four, photo-garnished pages, Popcorn and Pinchers delivers what one needs to know about the era: an encyclopedia of both big and small proportions, which will transport one to a simpler time that dared to consider the strange, scientific possibilities that hovered on the horizon.  

Classic Monsters states that supplies on this essential anthology are running low; so it's wise to move fast!

https://www.classic-monsters.com/shop/product/popcorn-and-pincers-1950s-sci-fi-movie-anthology/

FOR THE FUN OF IT:

 

FAREWELL, VAL KILMER

It's tough to choose a favorite among your roles, with Doc Holiday in Tombstone and Bruce Wayne in Batman Forever riding high on the list.

There's also Tom "Iceman" Kazansky in the top-earning, Top Gun set; Jim Morrison in The Doors, Simon Templar in The Saint, Dr. Montgomery in The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996); and how can we forget Mr. Bonney in TNT's Billy the Kid? 

Of course, the list continues with portrayals in Willow; Red Planet; The Ghost and the Darkness; Twixt; The Murders in the Rue Morgue (1986); The Traveler; Dead Girl (1996); The Fourth Dimension; Mindhunters; The Man Who Broke a Thousand Chains; Standing Up; Kiss Kiss Bang Bang; Blind Horizon; Bloodworth; True Romance; Wonderland; Comanche Moon; Wyatt Earp's Revenge; A Soldier's Revenge; Thunderheart; Heat; Felon; Gun; Spartan; Columbus Day; Double Identity; Palo Alto; The Thaw; The Missing; The Super; The Real McCoy; The Bad Lieutenant; Paydirt; Alexander; 5 Days of War; Masked and Anonymous; At First Sight; Hard Cash; Port Call of New Orleans; Streets of Blood; Summer Love; The Birthday Cake; The Salton Sea; The Snowman; Wings of Courage; MacGruber; and Top Secret!.  

You also loaned your voice to KITT in the 2008, Knight Rider revival, as well as General Bogardus in animated Delgo and as God and Moses in the animated The Prince of Egypt.

As the media was quick to share, you were known for contention, though at other times, considered playful, but when the camera was on you, Mr. Kilmer, you were always a quintessential actor, with a valuable tendency to redefine any role. Now, the stage of Paradise awaits, where your artistic prowess will continue to spread without care of fault, without fear of end.