CODEX: NEW (2ND) EDITION RELEASE

 

"We have such sights to show you!"

Hello, Seekers of the Forbidden: The CEO/curator of Eighth Tower Publications, Raffaele Pezzella, has reissued his Dark Fiction edition, Codex of Pleasure and Pain: Stories Inspired by Clive Barker's Hellraiser.

The Faustian contents were composed by Eighth Tower's devoted regulars, Chris McCauley (also the curation's editor), Edwin J. Buja, Michael F. Housel, Nora Peevy, Paolo L. Bandera, RDJ Armstrong, Scott J. Couturier and Simon Bleaken.

At this point, the second edition is available only as an Amazon paperback exclusive and is printed in a way that's far sturdier and more luxuriant than what came before. 

Even if one purchased the limited-release, first edition, Codex's refurbished submission is a must-have for all "hellbound" completists.👺 

Order at

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GL8BQ6GS?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

WISE WORDS:

R.I.P. BUD CORT

You made quirkiness contagious, forging oddball characters who always had the peculiar penchant to please, no matter if they won, lost or landed somewhere in between. 

I think it's safe to say that Harold and Maude (with spunky ol' Ruth Gordon) is your biggie in that uncommon respect, but there are many other obtruding productions that beam a comparable shine. 

These include Brewster McCloud, M*A*S*H, Brave New World 1980, Brain Dead, Invaders from Mars 1986, Electric Dreams, Out of the Dark, The Traveling Executioner, Gas-s-s-s, Sweet Charity, The Strawberry Statement, Hallucination Strip, Theodore Rex, Dogma, The Secret Diary of Sigmund Freud, Pollock, Son of Hitler, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, Bernice Bobs Her Hair, Why Shoot the Teacher?, Up the Down Staircase, Die Laughing, Hysterical, She Dances Alone, Love Letters, Love at Stake, Girl in the Cadillac, I Woke Up Early the Day I Died, Sweet Jane, Going Under, Heat, Made, Telephone, The Big Empty, The Little Prince 2015, But I'm a Cheerleader, The Chocolate War, South of Heaven/West of Hell, The Million Dollar Hotel, And the Band Played On, Dogma, Coyote Ugly, The Number 23, Pumping Iron (restored edition), Ted & Venus (as star, writer and director) ... and then there's The Twilight Zone-ish pilot for 1987's Bates Motel, which would have led Psycho's mythology in a bold, mystical direction, if only it had been extended. 

You also became part of the 1980s, Twilight Zone revival (in "The Trunk"), Tales from the Darkside (in "Snip, Snip"), Tales of the Unexpected (in "Nothin' Short of Highway Robbery") and The Hitchhiker (in "Made for Each Other"), plus Room 222, Columbo, Sledge Hammer!, Batman: The Animated Series, Superman: The Animated Series, Justice League Unlimited, The Mask: The Animated Series, Static Shock, The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries, Eagleheart, Arrested Development, Ugly Betty and Criminal Minds. 

Your uniqueness made a long-lasting impression, and that impression projects nothing but quality, Mr. Cort. As far as character actors go, you'll always remain at the top, and as far as legacies go, yours has no recourse but to grow...to grow, that is, by living. Now, shouldn't that make the enduring Harold and Maude mighty proud?   

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY 2026, FROM LILY & HERMIE

I SAW SHELTER (2026)

I'm late on the latest, Jason Statham, action-thriller, due to a monumental, snow storm and the inconsiderate lack of cleanup that followed. A mailed, screening copy saved the day; thank goodness I received it, considering the problems I've been facing with mail. 

Shelter, coproduced by Statham, directed by Ric Roman (Greenland/Angel Has Fallen/Snitch) Wahl and written by Ward (The Shattering) Parry, deals with a former, government assassin (of the Black Kites) named Michael Mason, who's on the lam with is dear dog, doing the lonesome, Omega Man thing, hiding on a Scottish island. As he tries to eschew his past (harboring knowledge that may, for some, bring to mind Patrick McGoohan's The Prisoner), Mason comes upon a young lady, Bodhi Rae Breathnach's Jessie, who's been injured in a stormy sojourn.

To get her medical help, Mason shelters her (yeah, get it?) and risks drawing attention to himself. The chase is then on, with our valiant lead focusing full-force on the one in need, as others intervene, which includes Bill (Pirates of the Caribbean/Underworld) Nighy, as Mason's M16, ex-handler and now Gerard-minded tracker, Steven Manafort; Naomi Ackie as Manafort's curious auxiliary/replacement, Roberta; Daniel Mays as Mason's pal, Arthur Booth; Bryan Vigier as the relentless mercenary, Workman; and Harriet Walter as Prime Minister Fordham. 

Indeed, certain plot elements do mirror those of Statham's Safe and Homefront, in which he protected other young ladies, but Shelter gets into an intrinsic, survivalist perspective, where the situation references Shane, with Mason teaching Jessie techniques she wouldn't learn in school, like handling a gun, but she, in turn, summons his humanity.

Shelter's later segments hold evident nods to Bond, Bourne, John Wick and Ethan Hunt, most of which are highlighted by the Mason/Workman melees. Even if one should be apathetic about the character progression, the fast, two-fisted pace will more than compensate. (I can only imagine how breathtaking some of the sequences would have been if I were to have seen them on a theater screen, but ah well...)   

Sure, this movie isn't meant for everyone. For those who turn away from life's problems, whether big or small, succinct or allegorical, Shelter won't mean a thing. So be it. Those sorts can visit the boring-as-hell Heated Rivalry and pretend its sanctimonious bull is the be-all and end-all. Shelter, however, is pure, unaffected, hero fare, which always makes quality entertainment in my book. It was just what I wanted, and by golly, it's just what I got. 

TERRIFIC TEAM-UP IMAGE: PLANET OF THE APES TOYS/CORNELIUS IN PERSON

 

TWO WEEKS LATER ...

It's two weeks after a crushing, snow/ice storm hit my area. Contrary to what the bureaucrats first claimed, no plowing was done. No salt was spewed. The side streets remain neglected, with only minor melting occurring, as record-low temperatures prolong the agitating process. 

I've made phone calls to City Hall and the State House, expressing my angst and frustration (demanding a little help is all), but have been told, in the usual, babbling fashion, that I'm overreacting, that most citizens aren't even employed in my downtrodden sector, so there's no need for a prioritized cleanup to get vehicles on the road. (And yet I ask, what of the school busses? When will they run again, or is the State fine with kids lounging at home as they did during COVID? Silence ensues ...)

The thing is, some of us do, indeed, need to travel in my subjugated realm and for significant distances that would be hard to accomplish by foot. We're required to occupy our places of employment, no matter what. Also, some of us have doctors' appointments or must tend to family members who do, but that doesn't seem a concern of our "elected" despots. 

The meteorology mystics now foresee another storm approaching, maybe worse than the one before. I can only image how horrible it'll be, piled atop the prevailing, frozen monstrosity.

If worse comes to worse, I'll try to dig more paths to initiate my journeys, as lazy residents peer from their windows, anxious to critique my lackluster gains. I'll likely hear from the same rationalizing neighbor about her adolescent Potterhead, who could help, except that he's a sensitive sort whose feelings would be hurt if asked to raise a shovel. (Ah, what I wouldn't give to live near a rough, resilient Ringer!)

It's the same ol' nonsense again and again, and so I'll keep forking over my taxes to get nothing in return. I'll push myself to the physical extreme, attaining the same tired, dissatisfying results, because, well, I'm the indurated type who deserves (and welcomes) such strife. 

Yeah, it's all so grand and righteous here in snow-bound Jersey. Oh, well, perhaps I'll move away some day to a respectful place where diligence and responsibility are revered, but until that desired escape, I'll have to lean on my old, behavioral standby and gripe, gripe, gripe.