FOR THE FUN OF IT:

 

I SAW WHALEFALL

Whalefall is directed by Brian (No One Will Save You/The Babysitter 2017) Duffield, who coscripted with Daniel Kraus, author of the bestselling novel of the same name, in what works as a modernization of Jonah and the Whale. 

The variant centers on scuba diver Jay Gardiner, portrayed by the identifiable everyman, Austin (Resident Evil 2026) Abrams, who searches for his father (Josh Brolin)'s remains at sea, only to get himself consumed by an eighty-foot sperm whale. Jay only has an hour to live or else meets an oxygen-deprived demise within the beast's belly.  

During his harrowing stay, Jay recalls the harsh lessons that his mean and sickly father taught him, and as upsetting as these interludes are, they hold the reflective favor to prompt the young man's perseverance. (For the record, Elisabeth Shue portrays Jay's mother, Zara. Jane Levy and Emily Rudd portray his sisters, Eva and Nan. John Ortiz portrays family friend, Huey. They fill their wraparounds with warmth and encouragement, working in contrast to Mitt's wafting severity.)  

Jay's introspection is welcome, since the tale is, for the most part, a claustrophobic nightmare. This situates Whalefall as more of a Fantastic Voyage-meets-Evil Dead than Moby Dick, In the Heart of the Sea, Orca - the Killer Whale or Pinocchio 1940 (remember that nifty, whale segment?). In other words, though the story may be taken as a sea fable, it offers abject horror through its design, becoming a full-blown monster movie in the process.  

It only goes to reason that Jay should escape his organic trap, but it's his struggle getting there that draws one in. In a purging way, that struggle is metaphoric, for it allows Jay to reconcile with his ethereal father, healing himself as the clock ticks.

Whalefall ascends because of its calibrated tension and pathos. These elements will secure it a strong fanbase, if not during its theatrical run, then down the line, where quality material has a fortuitous knack of being found.🐋

FOR THE FUN OF IT:

 

TULSA KING #4 IS COMIN'!

One of my favorite shows is returning: Paramount+'s Tulsa King, created by Landman's Taylor Sheridan and starring good ol' Sylvester Stallone as Oklahoma capo Dwight Manfredi. 

For Season 4, Manfredi's empire is expanding, and yet he could lose it all if certain vexing variables don't even out. That he's combatting an old foe, James Russo's Quiet Ray, doesn't help matters much, though there are other opponents waiting in the wings, just as threatening. Oh, and for the record, Neal McDonough's Cal Thresher is back to act as Manfredi's bureaucratic friend and foe. (The sardonic interaction between those two is always so captivating.)

I've faith that Manfredi will weather any storm tossed at him, but I'm posting here not to speculate on the new season's direction, but to let folks know that, if you haven't leapt on the Tulsa King train yet, this is as good a time as any. The prior seasons are accessible through Paramount+, and the next ten episodes will start on October 16, with each dropping every Friday at 3 am.  

For those who like their entertainment tough, rough and pulpy, Tulsa King supplies the ideal blend. Give it a shot. Believe me, you'll be hooked within seconds and damn grateful for the addiction.  

WISE WORDS:

 

I SAW BELOW

Writer/director/showrunner Jesse McKeown's six-part miniseries, Below, now streaming on Netflix, is a spinetingling saga about a giant squid. On the other hand, it's not just about a giant squid, but rather the dark, symbolic impact the creature has a little, Canadian town. 

The series stars genre favorite Josh Hartnett as fisherman/iceberg tracker Calvin Penney, who lost his father during his youth to a mysterious force in the water. He still blames himself for that death, even as the town becomes plagued by an ineffable sickness. Other citizens, meanwhile, are snatched from sight, though we, of course, know that whipping tentacles are the frightful cause. To stain the situation further, a company wishes to move the inhabitants to another location, but why? What makes the land so valuable? Has greed prompted this horrid kraken's rise? 

The performers make the mystery flow. In addition to Harnett, the prime line consists of Charlie (Stranger Things/The New Mutants) Heaton, MacKenzie Davis, Rohan Campbell, Ruby Stokes, Mary Walsh, David Wenham, Matthew Worko, Alexander Karim, Sean Doyle, Willow Kean, Kaleb Horn, Joel Thomas Hynes, Frank (Rabid) Moore and Natasha (Species) Henstridge.

For the most part, the astute McKeown keeps the episodes on thematic track, presenting a progressing reveal of its titanic specimen, similar to 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954), It Came from Beneath the Sea, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1961), Tentacles and Peter Benchley's Jaws, The Beast and Creature. A later episode, however, "Little Pot Rock," takes an off-kilter turn, though its results create solid, character-driven psychedelia, while establishing (pardon the spoiler) its Gorgo-geared motif, which by default taps Jaws 3-D and Star Trek's "The Devil in the Dark," with a little Alien applied. (There are also moments when the plot grazes Mako: The Jaws of Death and Jaws: The Revenge, without pushing a wall-to-wall commitment to their behavioral mysticism.) 

Below isn't a redefining entry in the sea-creature genre, but it does captivate. It's a monster fable, and on that basis should interest and satisfy those who appreciate such things. I know I did.🦈

PINUP TIME: YVONNE DE CARLO IS LILY