TERRIFIC TEAM-UP IMAGE: BATMAN & PENGUIN

 

An Alternate Reality: I saw Megalopolis

Francis Ford Coppola's enterprising, alternate-reality venture, Megalopolis, has been brewing over several decades (much like Kevin Costner's Horizon) and now manifests in a time where it may or may not parallel current events. It's reminiscent of Fritz Lang's Metropolis, but once the cards are dealt, it feels like a verbose and open-ended retelling of Fellini Satyricon: more surreal than concrete.   

As constructed, Megalopolis reminds us that those in power determine our lives, whether we like it or not, and among the unqualified stakeholders, there's always a tug of war. The sad thing is, those in power don't do a lot of good within their perimeters, and who gets hurt in the long run? Yep, the little guy, though this is never explicitly stated within Coppola's mythology.  

In the garrulous fight to do what's right on the populace's behalf, Adam Driver's architect/playboy Cesar Catalina (who's fashioned a vague, reality-altering/time-stopping device called the Megalon) combats Giancarlo Esposito's Mayor Cicero regarding how things should be run (or revamped): the former wanting to overhaul the Gotham-geared New Rome into a blessed utopia, and the latter seeing the attempt as impractical whimsy. I suppose one could argue that Catalina represents Coppola butting heads with a studio honcho, in this case, the stubborn Cicero. (In a way, though, hasn't this allegory been covered in a more upfront way? Consider Paramount+'s The Offer, the melodramatic making of The Godfather.) 

Each power faction has its members, some swindlers and others friendly pawns, who speak in awkward tongues and bounce off Catalina and Cicero like walk-on pinballs with intermittent, relationship-crossing segues. They're portrayed by Jon Voight, Dustin Hoffman (how's that for a Midnight Cowboy, under-the-same-banner reunion of sorts?), James Remar, Shia LeBeouf, Talia Shire, Jason Schwartzman, Grace VanderWaal, Nathalie Emmanuel, Kathryn Hunter, Laurence Fishburne (the fable's narrator) and sexy Aubrey Plaza, who as the power-hungry journalist Wow Platinum, brings much needed levity to the many brooding sequences, the majority of which are weighed by circling discussions and translucent, hallucinogenic imaginings that appear plucked straight from ancient Rome, Greece or, dare I say it?, the Third Reich. (Also, as a showmanship extra, a local actor is assigned to appear at the theater of one's choice to interact with Catalina, positioned below the screen, scribbling away for a quick, Zoom-inspired exchange, summoning shades of Rocky Horror and The Room: a neat, come-and-go gimmick, really).   

So, do any of these movie's exchanges prove that any one ideology or character is right? Such is never defined (any more than the Megalon and its powers), leaning on audiences to decide. (I guess it all comes down to one's socio-political position ... maybe). I, for one, can see the appeal in the long-term, artistic path, but where's the guarantee that all will turn out for the better? On this basis, perhaps the "populist" view is the wiser track (i.e. to serve the downtrodden here and now instead of making that demographic wait), and yet ...

It's safe to say that Megalopolis abides by a huge, consuming, subplot-anchored question mark (the type that Ed Nygma might dangle if only he knew the answer). The philosophical ambiguity is, therefore, its distinction, which is sometimes its weakness and sometimes its strength, but the erratic tottering, no matter how precocious, could steer it to sink. 

Megalopolis is one of those misapprehended creations that, even if it fails now, is destined to be reconsidered (if only by Coppola's association), perhaps prompting affluent scrutiny in a future still unborn. Will this eventually place Megalopolis on the same shelf as Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, Frank Herbert's Dune and Ayn Rand's complementing set, Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead? Per Megalopolis' insinuation, that all depends on where our pietistic bureaucrats succeed or fail. 

FOR THE FUN OF IT:

 

Collection Recommendation: Mr. Lobo's Cinema Insomnia Presents A Naughty X-Mess Special (Silent Night, Bloody Night)

Mr. Lobo's Cinema Insomnia's 2023 Naughty Christmas Special is presently available on Blu-ray, with 1972's Silent Night, Bloody Night (aka Night of the Dark Full Moon/Death House) as its prime feature!

Produced by Troma's Lloyd Kaufman and directed by Theodore Gershuny, who cowrote with Ira Teller and Jeffrey Konvitz (author of The Sentinel), Silent Night, Bloody Night is revered not only as a pioneering Christmas, horror picture, but one that sports a noteworthy cast, which includes John Carradine, Patrick O'Neal, Astrid Heeren, Walter Abel, Philip Bruns, Jay Garner, James Patterson and sexy, cult-film sensation, Mary Woronov. 

Along the Yuletide way, the movie takes shameless stabs at Psycho (with an arguable, Empire Strikes Back catch), bumping off a couple of its leads during its early phases in an old mansion/former asylum where madness and carnage prevail, thanks to a shadowy fiend who flaunts the moniker, Marianne. Why does Marianne murder? Well, the answer lies in that age-old motivator ... back-story revenge!

To wrap the carnage in ample, sardonic joy, Mr. Lobo (equipped with a Grinchy Necronomicon) leads an all-star, Cinema Insomnia roster, featuring Miss Mittens, Countess Bloodsuger (Jessie Seeherman), Sally the Zombie Cheerleader (Nicole M. King), Yella Fever (Eric Sabo), filmmaker (and Silent Night, Bloody Night connoisseur) Michael Verrati and the laser-disc-loving puppet with a super-huge heart, Igor (Ben Stansbery), who sprinkle enough cynicism upon the proceedings to make any unreformed Scrooge sigh in sadistic respect. 

No ifs, ands or buts about it, Cinema Insomnia's Naughty X-Mess Special: Silent Night, Bloody Night is a gruesome, "misunderstood" gift to open any time of the year. 

https://osi74.square.site/product/blu-ray-backer-pre-order-cinema-insomnia-silent-night-bloody-night-with-credit/176?cp=true&sa=false&sbp=false&q=true

PIN-UP TIME: MADELINE SMITH

 

SUPERBABES #17 & #18: SHE-CAT, TARA & NIGHTVEIL, FRONT & CENTER

AC's all-color Superbabes #17 & #18 have hit shelves in a simultaneous explosion. 

The (backordered) #17 kicks off the two-fold adventure, presenting a She-Cat/Tara-based extravaganza, where the feline exemplar disguises herself as the towering Ms. Fremont to face a shifty "philanthropist," but can she withstand the colossal onslaught? (Guest spots from Stardust, Synn and the Black Phantom add to the amazing exploit.) 

Issue #18 continues #17's high-stakes shenanigans, but shifts gears to center on Nightveil and a maddened attack by Valkyra. Can Femforce strike her down? Ah, that might prove easier said than done, even as She-Cat leaps in for the "kill." 

This AC, double whammy works with complementing charm, thanks to super-talented contributors Bobby Ragland, Mark and Stephanie Heike. 

These action-packed issues appear to be hard to find, so keep your eyes peeled and grab 'em before they're gone. (I was fortunate to purchase my copies thru Steve's Comic Relief on Quakerbridge Road, Village Commons in Lawrenceville NJ: one's ideal hub for all things superheroic!)

And don't miss out on Superbabes #19, which promises to dispatch zombie-fied terrors galore!

FOR THE FUN OF IT:

 

BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN: REVISED EDITION (A CLASSIC MONSTERS OF THE MOVIES TRIBUTE)

In sync with their revised, Classic Monsters of the Movies editions of Tod Browning's Dracula and James Whale's Frankenstein, Nige Burton and Jamie Jones deliver a loving upgrade to their acclaimed, Bride of Frankenstein tribute.

Whale's extravaganza is considered one of the greatest sequels made, and all for good reason, as Burton and Jones detail through their informative, 36 pages. Whale's direction is brisk and invigorating, as he grants a lighter tone to Henry Frankenstein's peril. Franz Waxman's score is hands down one of the most sweeping imaginable (so grand, in fact, that it was used in the Flash Gordon serials). And then there's that amazing cast: Boris Karloff (who this time bestows the Monster a voice), Elsa Lancaster (as Mary Shelley and the Bride), Colin Clive, Valerie Hobson, Ernest Thesiger, Una O'Connor, Dwight Frye, Gavin Gordon, Douglas Walton, E. E Clive and O.P. Heggie. 

Burton and Jones not only document the movie's fascinating production, but present biographical rundowns and a generous serving of their "Quotable Quotes" and trivia snippets.

I love Universal horror and rank Bride in the studio's top five. This special, Classic Monsters of the Movies, deluxe re-issue is one that every film library should include. After all, Bride is an immortal classic that only grows more endearing with each passing year. 

Order at 

https://www.classic-monsters.com/shop/product/bride-of-frankenstein-1935-ultimate-guide-new-edition-magazine/

HAPPY NATIONAL GHOST HUNTING DAY 2024 (9/28)

I saw Never Let Go

Director Aja (Piranha 3D/Crawl/The Hills Have Eyes 2006) Alexandre's Never Let Go, rendered from a script by Ryan Grassby and Kevin Coughlin, would be ideal for a double bill with Benjamin Brewer's Arcadian, in that both cater to single parents with two boys and a dog in a rustic setting, on a razor-edged watch for unusual intruders.

In Never Let Go's case, Halle Berry's heedful Mama and her sons, Sam (played by Anthony B. Jenkins) and Nolan (played by Percy Daggs IV), are surrounded by reputed evil. Their sacred cabin is their fort, though Mama gives the boys permission to travel beyond their abode to collect their daily sustenance, but only if they do so with cabin-bound ropes around their waists. This, she says, allows them to stay linked to the purity of ancient wood that comprises their house. 

The situation may sound out of whack, and that's the point, in that it allows Nolan to question Mama's mythological claim. Then again, the trio does seem to detect odd goings-on in the woods, but are they imaginative figments or of explainable circumstance? (Mama also requires her sons to pray and perform a trap-door ritual to ensure their safety, but does such in any way ensure their survival? Maybe, maybe not.)

Never Let Go's need to identify the truth plays straight into The Twilight Zone's socio-psycho installments, and therefore, the fable's emphasis isn't just on potential, demonic activity, but rather the value of faith and trust, and moreover, when to cling to, and when to let go of, a parent's beliefs, as well as one's own. (Some have stated that the story is an allegory for COVID, and I can appreciate the comparison, but it doesn't strike me as the overriding point.) 

Not to spoil the ending, but it's in tune with a few others that have accompanied horror-suspense pictures over the past, couple decades, but to name those productions would reveal too much. No matter the catch (and all the suspicions leading up to it), there's enough intrigue in Alexandre's stealthy approach to keep matters gripping. (Credit must also be given to those who designed the cabin's craggy interiors, Maxine Alexandre's smoky photography and Robin Coudert's Robert Cobert-ish score, for they, too, embolden the mounting unease.) As such, Never Let Go demonstrates that it's not so much a story's conclusion that makes it click, but the journey toward it.