PIN-UP TIME: YVONNE DE CARLO

 

I SAW CRYSTAL LAKE

Peacock/A24's Crystal Lake, envisioned by showrunners Bryan (Hannibal) Fuller and Brad Caleb (Welcome to Derry) Kane, has premiered. 

The 1970s-based, Friday the 13th prequel deals, of course, with Pamela Voorhees (aka Pamela Wittering), played by Linda (Scooby-Doo 2002/The Curse of La Llorna) Cardellini (and prior to such, by Betsy Palmer and Paula Shaw), who cares for her timid, malformed son, Jason, played as a child by Callum (Chucky)Vinson and as a young adult by Jonathan Tison and Zachary Branch.

As in the movie franchise, Jason's "drowning" wracks Pamela's brain, but we now learn that the lad was a Bellflower Chemical Corporation, nuclear-survival experiment, overseen by Jeffrey Beam's mellifluous Dr. Valentine. 

Pamela has made a point of sticking close to her softspoken, seizure-prone son, working the kitchen at New Jersey's idyllic Camp Crystal Lake, where he takes time to bond with Gwendolyn Sundstrom's empathetic Grace. When Jason disappears, Pamela blames the camp's counselors and seeks her misplaced revenge on anyone who might reflect the same neglect. 

Police Chief Levon Brooks (William Catlett) and his Star Ledger-journalist sister, Briana (Devon Kessler), investigate the camp's mounting deaths, which some attribute to bears. This prompts the legendary Crazy Ralph (Nick Cordileone, assuming the role from Walt Gorney) to commence his prophet-of-doom deal, though now with a survivalist/war-veteran thread. Pamela, meanwhile, roams the camp's outskirts, with a penchant to slay, and if her dear, sequestered Jason should help, well... Jason's estranged dad, Elias (Hamish Linklater), of Bellflower's mutant-making Project Argonaut, does some roaming, too. The curious connection to his wife and child is treacherous, to say the least. 

Of additional legacy note, Cameron Scoggins plays Officer Dorf, a character played by Ron Millkie in the Sean Cunningham/Victor Miller classic. Dan Thompson portrays a younger version of Steve Christy, the lead counselor who was played by Peter Brower. Victims Barry and Claudette, who were played by William Adams and Debra S. Hayes, are reenacted by Phoenix Parnevik and Danielle Koch. Bernadette Quigley plays waitress/hostess Trudy, who was played by Dorothy Kobs. (Alas, Adrianne King, who played the intrepid Alice Hardy in Friday the 13th 1 & 2, as well as the fan film, Jason Rising, was scheduled for a recurring role, but for whatever reason, such was scraped.😞) 

I found the series' dark poignancy fulfilling. It's easy to identify with poor Pamela, to feel her lingering pain and savor her spurts of empowerment, as when she goes through regression therapy with Nathan Darrow's arrogant Wilhelm. However, Crystal Lake never makes its beleaguered aggressor an avenging heroine. Regardless of the circumstances, Pamela has no right to kill. (Luigi Mangione's clueless ghouls should take note!) 

It was great (if not essential) that the episodes adhered to the franchise's founding ground, even inserting Harry Manfredini's iconic music, in addition to using episode titles that referenced the movies'. The combination shined even more when it served its Rosemary's Baby/It's Alive allusions, interwoven, as they were, in the casual manner of Fuller's Hannibal and Kane's Derry, but also Carlton Cuse/Kerry Ehrin's Bates Motel. 

I consider this coinciding platform a good cause for expansion. (The series' ending does imply more.) I trust that Peacock/A24 furthers the exploration, but if it doesn't, Crystal Lake could work as a springboard for another Jason-helmed/hockey-masked movie, which many would agree is long overdue.🪓

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 negotiating with an old foe, James Russo's Quiet Ray, makes things a bit dicey, though there are other problems waiting in the wings. Oh, and for the record, Neal McDonough's Cal Thresher (now governor) is back, acting as Manfredi's bureaucratic friend and foe (with a reputed surprise in store), as is Frank Grillo's ardent-to-the-core Bill Bevilaqua, who sure faced a heap of anguish last season, but is set for a big-time comeback and perhaps with ample deceit attached. 

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: