FOR THE FUN OF IT:

 

I SAW THE VAMPIRE LESTAT

AMC's The Vampire Lestat has concluded, and so, you ask, how did the culmination of its seven episodes strike me, or should that be, bite me (tee hee)? 

It drained me. That's what it did, and that's not a bad thing. I believe that was the intent. In that raucous regard, it tapped Stephen Herek's Rock Star as much as it did Anne Rice's novel. Sam Reid's bloodsucker needn't have been an eternal parasite to demonstrate the dangers of excess. All the same, the saga's ironic, audio-book confessional, "The Failures," was the ultimate anthem of unbridled, vampiric, Dionysus heedlessness. (Its "One More Pallbearer" finale only strengthened it.)

On this basis, the AMC version was sprung as an indisputable, hyperbolic impression (at best and most), with many impudent liberties taken. That's not a bad thing, either. It is what it is, in any event. I can't change that. Should I even wish to, considering (for one) how effective that witchy, left-field, Regina/Claudia angle was? Such also goes for Eric Bogosian's Daniel Molloy and his overbearing though absorbing modification, induced by Assad Zaman's manipulative (ordained-to-behead) Armand (a turn that only came toward the end of the Queen of the Damned novel, mind you). 

Indeed, these tweaks weren't Rice-ian in any loyal sense, but then nor has been Jacob Anderson's not-so-sensitive Louis de Point du Lac, a reinterpreted, discontented entity who lamented his outcast state far, far less than in his fledgling, pop-cultural years (and his outspoken angst even prevailed in a Brain That Wouldn't Die state). Blasphemous or ingenious? That's for the audience to decide and in that ambivalence, "Ay, there's the rub." 

The supporting (new-to-the-queue) cast is what won me over, as its recruits rattled the cage in ways I'd never dreamed: Christopher (Twilight/Hell on Wheels) Heyerdahl as Marius, Damien (Take This Waltz) Atkins as Magnus and Jennifer (John and the Hole) Ehle as Gabriella, Lestat's incestuous mom, and then there's the grandmommy of 'em all, Sheila (Mufasa: The Lion King) Atim's Akasha. 

Now, don't get me wrong. I do consider Aaliyah's take in Michael Rymer's movie to be closer to the book (or at least she was closer to the way I envisioned the character based on my disposition at the time), but Atim's version is a hyper-kinetic one that situates the Queen on a ferocious level, much more in tune with a horror semblance than the one introduced in the novel or the 2002 movie, where amatory, ancient enchantment is the rule of the day or, uh, make that, the night.

I believe it's Atim's facial quirks and her wild vocalization (full of frantic rhythm and rhyme) that sets her Akasha apart. I realize, too, that (as with the three-season jaunt so far) such may not meet everyone's approval, but then the same could be said of so many (re)visions pulled from a page, including Lugosi's debonaire countenance and Karloff's flat head and electrodes, and yet those results have plucked an iconic chord. I think Atim's deviating persona does the same or at least will, given time.

So, enough (for the moment) of Atim's Akasha. The show is Lestat, and Reid has soared high as the tyrannical de Lioncourt, more this time than before, which is saying a lot, considering how he excelled within the layering seasons. For his titular blast, his conniptions came straight from the bowels, and his impassioned (Theatre des Vampires-inspired) stage presence (so shameless and defiant) did an uncanny job channeling INXS' Michael Hutchence, with a few unavoidable nods to Jim Morrison. (It's odd that I'd never considered Hutchence as Lestat until this AMC incarnation, but I can see how he would have worked in the part, but why press the notion? For the here and now, it's not here nor there.) 

Overall, I believe the AMC Lestat was A-okay, even if long delayed. As I said in my June, warmup post, a Vampire Lestat movie should have been greenlit on the heels of Neil Jordan's Interview with the Vampire (and if that wasn't to be the case, due to Tom Cruise's reluctance to reprise the role, then the tardy Queen of the Damned should've at least spawned The Tale of the Body Thief, with Stuart Townsend continuing his flaxen-haired reign), but again, it is what it is, and it can't be changed. The AMC adaptation now paves a path for a new Queen of the Damned (one that's not missing certain, bridging precursors), and if Lestat's incensed psychedelia is instilled, I do believe all will be well with the allegorical, amoral world.🧛

FOR THE FUN OF IT:

 

SO LONG, FREDDY "BOOM BOOM" CANNON

You brought a heap of joy with your catchy tunes, including your most noted, "Palisades Park," composed by none other than Chuck (The Gong Show) Barris. 

There were other tracks that attracted audiences, as well, including "Cha-Cha-Do," "Way Down Yonder in New Orleans," "Tallahassee Lassie," "Humdinger," "Sweet Georgia Brown," "Muskrat Ramble," "Everybody's Rockin Tonight," "Twisting All Night" (with Danny and the Juniors), "The Sox are Rockin'" and the sprightly "Svengoolie Stomp."  

To perpetuate your musical career, you even contributed to The Food of the Gods knockoff, Village of the Giants. Pretty darn colossal in my book. 

There's no question that you fueled our pop-cultural dreams, uplifting our everyday lives with cannon-booming jubilation. You leave this mortal coil, Mr. Cannon, having touched our hearts with pure, rock-n-roll swing, and for that, we give our abiding, gyrating thanks.

FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE: THE ODYSSEY 1997

For your convenience, I've posted the YouTube links for Part 1 & 2 of Andrei Konchalovsky's Hallmark, 1997 miniseries adaptation of Homer's The Odyssey. Armand Assante portrays Odysseus, accompanied by a quality, supporting cast that includes Greta Scacchi, Christopher Lee, Isabella Rossellini, Eric Roberts, Venessa Williams, Nicholas Clay, Bernadette Peters, Irene Papas, Michael J. Pollard, Peter Woodthorpe and Geraldine Chaplin.  

Perhaps I'm remembering it wrong, but I believe this adaptation was as polarizing in its time as Christopher Nolan's remake is now, at least in regard to its big budget and hampering, TV restrictions. It's since become quite favored, and one can find more than a few respectful reflections on it in reviews for the 2026 redux. 

Anyhow, if you have the time ... Enjoy!

WISE WORDS:

 

THE ODYSSEY: A PAGEAU-IAN PERSPECTIVE

I came upon an interesting, video essay by Jonathan Pageau, of The Symbolic World, regarding Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey and how the adaptation is a ruse for a succession of cloaked motives. If anything (and above all), it made me realize that Homer's staggering account (The Iliad and The Odyssey combined) uses deceit as a means to an end.

For example, entering another's home, another's land, uninvited (perhaps by passing its border via a Trojan Horse) and assaulting its citizens for personal gain, is selfish, dishonest and therefore, criminal. In a similar vein, for Penelope's father-less (guideless) suiters to assume the right to besmirch her kingdom, to disrespect the queen and her prince with cruelty and disdain, is another such treacherous case in point. And lest we forget Odysseus and his men trespassing on Polyphemus' turf. (Odysseus even blinds the poor, colossal oaf.) Do these examples mirror (if only to an allegorical degree) practices and concerns within our modern backyards? Is that what Nolan hoped we'd catch or am I seeking a means to mend a politically-correct (mis)interpretation to my liking?

Since Pageau's bipartite theory haunted me, I was prompted to re-watch The Odyssey (not an easy task, mind you, considering its length and my extreme, time constraints). I'm still uncertain if Pageau's notion does, in fact, uncover a veritable, furtive purpose, whether by Homer or Nolan (or even if my subjective speculation holds viable weight), but I'm presenting it here, nevertheless, for one and all to ruminate.