“I’m running this monkey farm now Frankenstein!”

(Warning this post contains spoliers)

There is no doubt about it; in my eyes George A. Romero is the godfather of zombie horror regardless of his quality now, although I am interested to see how Survival of the Dead turns out. From the late 60’s to the mid 80’s his (first) trilogy of the dead (night/dawn/day) is an example of the pure classics of the zombie and horror genre. Politically charged gore epics revered by critics and fans; they will always have a place in film culture and horror history. I personally think all three are fantastic in the own rights, each one bringing something new and different equally representing that era, with Night of the Living Dead it was paranoia and fear of the unknown. With Dawn of the Dead it was an epically violent metaphor on American consumerism with hordes of the undead and a great screen presence in Ken Foree. And with Day of the Dead it concerned cabin fever and the effect this epidemic had on the remaining living individuals trying to study the zombies, but there is something instantly watchable about Day which allows me to rate higher then the first two cult classics (what can I say it is a more polished and more rounded film). Below I have listed my top five reasons why I absolutely adore this film and why I rate it above the first two, personally I think it is criminally underrated and just gets better with each and every viewing. Dare you walk with me as I encounter Day of the Dead?

“Doctor Frankenstein I presume”

The character of Doctor Logan (played with an extremely campy craziness by the late Richard Liberty) is just one of the highlights of this classic, his constantly positive attitude and naïve sensibility is oddly endearing much to the cairn of the soldiers and even his colleges. He really is a deranged horror professor and mad genius, he honestly relishes experimenting and is often seen in bloodied medical clothes, but even though he looks absolutely crazy he is just engrossing to watch and behold, the little quirks he has such as his ability to look over the rim of his glasses like a medical professor giving a lecture, the fact his glasses have a massive bit of tape attached to the arms of the specs to keep it together (I am not going to go all film student on this but you could well read a lot into this). His constant ability to see the positive and continue to smirk and laugh to himself make him all the more affable and finally he has some of the most fantastically quirky and offbeat quotes such as: “I call him Bub. That’s what the lodge fellows used to call my father. Can you imagine a surgeon called Bub?”.

Check out this clip and see this loon respond to an aggressive confrontation, it is certainly unique, note the overly blood splattered medical coat…..what has he been up to??

The Godfather of Gore

It has often been cited that Day of the Dead is Tom Savini’s gore soaked make-up masterpiece and I am inclined to agree, granted he has done some fantastic work on other iconic horror films and inspired a generation of budding make-up artists to out do him. But for sheer visceral gut wrenching; vomit inducing terror twenty four years on, it still holds up nothing is held back and you get the feeling that Savini (and a then young Greg Nicotero of KNB effects) went as far as could possibly be acceptable to go to as nothing is left to the imagination with every little detail seen in all its blood soaked glory. This was how great horror films where made through imagination and a lot of latex prosthetic make-up, absolutely 100% horror film fried gold, Savini has yet to better himself but this films legacy will continue to hopefully inspire countless generations.

“Who died and made you fucking king of the zombies?”

Day of the Dead is a unheralded classic and as I have previously mentioned just get better with each viewing, but if there is two particular ingredients that make this melting pot of a movie work even better that would be the characters of Captain Rhodes (more on him later) and the crowing glory of a sympathetic zombie (yes there is such a thing) in the form of Bub. Romero went out of his way in this instalment to show a different side to his zombies and that being previously alive meant that they where able to learn, which he explored with the character of Bub (portrayed by character actor and voiceover artist Sherman Howard) a fast learning but non-violent zombie being trained by Doctor “Frankenstein” Logan. I can not explain just why this character is so engrossing to watch but he has made such an impact on horror culture (and to an extent other media such as South Park) he is even referenced through a perfect impersonation by Simon Pegg at the start and towards the end of Shaun of The Dead. He is for all intensive purposes Romero’s king zombie, he is shown to be loyal and heartbroken over Doctor Logan’s outcome. The characterisation is pure emotion you really feel as though he is different from the other blood thirsty flesh eaters, and you genuinely feel sorry for him as you end up rooting for him as a anti-hero of sorts. Romero tried to expand a little on this with Land of the Dead and the character of Big Daddy but it never really felt as fresh or as emotional as Howard’s portrayal of Bub.

Holy Rhodes

This brings me neatly onto my favourite aspect of Day of the Dead, the irrepressible and unashamedly evil Captain Rhodes this guy is bottled evil, he has his motives but through a skewed vision of blinding hatred. Rhodes spits bile filled psychosis with every sentence uttered and like the best screen villains does not so much as chew the scenery but violently pummels it into rubble. But at the same time you come to revel in this bastard and his psychotic ways, he is not as affable as Doctor Logan nor as likeable and sympathetic as Bub but the complete polar opposite and yet you still will him through the film waiting for that moment where he meets his end uttering his classic last words. Over the top this villain might well be but you can not always have classy bad guys like Hans Gruber all the time.

By George I think he’s done it…..and the rest

There are so many other elements to this film which make it more and more pleasurable with each and every viewing such as: The use of dream sequences depicting the main protagonist Sarah’s claustrophobic feelings and fears, this really shows Romero in his element by providing surrealist moments with in this tightly bound gore package. While the use of a classic 80’s synthesizer score by John Harrison perfectly balances these surreal sequences and the claustrophobic feel of the rest of the film, with the odd nods and quick use of a few beats from Goblins Dawn of the Dead score rewarding the fans of the series. Lori Cardille’s portrayal of Sarah is tough yet vulnerable you feel as though she can handle herself and at times shows herself to be more mentally strong then men who are deteriorating quicker with their sanity. And finally you have Romero’s direction which I still believe to be his best to date, his other films are fun and enjoyable but this feels perfect tonally. It is tightly paced with some fantastic technical shots not to mention the use of several accomplished shots (the emergence of the films titles springs to mind with the image of a decrepit zombie walking into a low angle shot, symbolism a plenty there) and managing to get the best performances from his actors successfully bringing it all into a bullet riddled, blood gushing and zombie stumbling final third act. It shows Romero as “the” zombie auteur and which as, in my opinion being the first Romero film I saw late at night on BBC2 at the tender age of thirteen, yet to be beaten in terms of an all round complete gore epic

All hail the king of the underrated zombie epics!

“Well Kick my Ass and call me curious!!”-UPDATED

After waiting for months finally Kick-Ass has a distributer (and to be honest I have seen clips and could see why film companies where worried about putting their name on it its going to be one hell of a film), so in April of next year we will finally see Matthew Vaughn’s adaptation of Mark Millers as yet unfinished Kick-Ass comic series run. Vulgar , violent , funny and self referential the comic is a highly enjoyable read , and regularly sought after for which I have had much trouble trying to get my hands on the first few issues. Below is my top 5 reasons why I can not wait until next years film release (Vaughn’s Layer Cake was top class as was Stardust so Kick Ass is looking highly promising) it is not going to be a pc film experience as it has some pretty questionable subject material which no doubt will cause British tabloids to be crying bloody murder, but if anything, that makes it all the more refreshing and different compared to yet another blockbuster from Hollywood. Rejoice the underdog of 2010 cinema, well the first of many at least.

Mockney Rebel:

After producing Guy Riches first films Mathew Vaughn finally showed the Mockney auteur up and played him at his own gangster game with his adaptation of J.J Connelly’s “Layer Cake”. It was highly polished , adult , brutal and engrossing  it was light hearted in places but not at the expense of the overall feel of the film (unlike Richie’s almost comic book characters). His take on Neil Gaiman’s “Stardust” was a fun adventurous throwback to 80’s fantasy films and while at times was a little “spot the British TV personality” it had an instantly likeable charm, while very much being in the vain of “The Princess Bride”. What all of this adds up to is high hopes and much excitement for Kick-Ass to which it is hopefully that Vaughn can (and this is on previous evidence) achieve something both adult and light hearted while being enjoyable and shocking, it is no mean feat but I have faith that he has outshone his humble Mockney producing origins.

By Goldman! :

Another reason to be excited about this is down to the good news that Jane (Mrs Jonathan Ross) Goldman is again scripting which means at the very least means it will entertain at a better level them most comic book flicks. But because this is completely different source material to Stardust it interests me to see how she will cope with transferring the uber-violent and profanity strewn structure onto the big screen. Knowing that the film has had issues with distributors due to its material (and having seen a few scenes, I can vouch for it being utterly un-pc yet well balanced but this is based only on a few snippets) I have confidence that Goldman has grasped the core concepts and hopefully expanded on them. She is certainly carving a niche out for herself as a competent screen writer so because of this, I am more excitable about her involvement. Actually thinking about who she is married to , un-pc and publicity shocking should be the forefront of Kick-Ass success, there certainly will not be anything like it.

“Oh God, this is excellent. Oh, bravo. Bra-fucking-vo”:

A lot of people I know absolutely 100% hate Nicolas Cage , I for one grasp him as a guilty pleasure but in fear mainly for being either frowned upon or even burnt at the stake for admitting that I have a passing interest in enjoying his splendidly ridiculous wigs and over the top performances. But with this clip as the character “Big Daddy” part of me feels that A) this is becoming more a film to watch out for and B) Cage is channelling an almost creepier version of Castor Troy from Face/Off. Check out the clip if you can hopefully I am not too off the mark, word of warning though if you are easily offended or can not appreciate a darkly comic situation, give this clip a wide birth.

The Nowhere boy VS McLovin:

In the title role of Kick-Ass / Dave Lizewski is British newcomer Aaron Johnson about to be seen in The Nowhere Boy (John Lennon the early years). From the first trailer and the clips that where screened at comic-con there seems to be a general amicable feeling towards is portrayal of the title character (not to mention a spot on American accent) he seems to be a talent to watch, and seems to portraying Dave and his alter-ego spot on to the comics with the delusions of grandeur in tow. Add to this McLovin himself as another vigilante superhero Red Mist and there is the possibility for some lighter moments to even out the ultra violence.

Yum….Bananna Splits:

Having only seen a brief and quite frankly poor quality clip from comic-con (one of the four that where shown) there is a certain underlying quirkiness to the film, this particular quirk being a remixed version of the Bananna Splits theme tune, used to camp and ludicrous effect during Hit-Girl’s slice n’ dice drug dealer killing spree. When I heard this piece of music I was grinning like The Joker, it amazingly fitted the scene and helped to distract from the violence of what Hit-Girl was doing to her aggressors. Add to that her suddenly profane use of the word c**t which had me burst out laughing along with Kick-Ass firing a tazer into a guys face, all of which add up to a unique viewing experience. If the final product is anywhere near to the enjoyment of these first tasty tit bits, this could be a uniquely different independent film.

Roll on 2010 the year of the delusional comic book geek / superhero

UPDATE:

Here is the brand new “Red Band” trailer for Kick-Ass, seems the film makers want has to have a very cheerful and excitable christmas, and as a great highlight there is a clip of the Bananna Splits remix theme tune that I mentioned before enjoy.

Where The Wild Things Are…..or How Spike Jonze Learnt to Love His Inner Wild Thing

With impending release of Spike Jonze’s adaption of where the wild things are finally arriving on our cold and frostbitten shores of old blighty this week, I thought I would list my reasons as to why I have been eagerly anticipating  this almost 80’s throw back film, hope you enjoy it and don’t forget to go see the film!

Spike’s  Jonze:

All of his music videos and other two films have had a great visual style to them, which has slowly matured over time take his video for daft punks Da Funk which still impresses me some 10 years on, even though it is basically futile as anything other then a music promo/short with a no ending but has a distinct visual style. While his videos for Weapon of Choice, It’s Oh So Quiet and Sabotage (by Fat boy slim, Bjork and The Beastie Boys respectfully) all contain elements of immature playfulness but in the best possible sense. So it seems apt that he is the one to make the film version of Maurice Sendak’s cult childrens tale / art book

Muppets god damit! :

With amazing full body suits made by The Jim Henson Company it as realistically as possible brings the Wild Things to life, in a why that a whole generation saw them do with films like Labyrinth and Dark Crystal , well in a fantastical sense that the audience and fans could associate to these living creatures. So it’s a typically old school approach given a bit of spit and polish with newer techniques (the faces are altered with CGI) which should allow the previous generation to have fond flash backs while the newer generation can marvel at something real onscreen ,for there is a reason Sesame Street is still going 30 something years on.

I don’t remember that part:

Considering it is based on what is essentially a 48 page childrens art book there had to be some additions to make it a bit longer then a few minutes, so its exciting to see how Max’s character is going to be fleshed out with his escapes to the Wild Things land down to his home issues, it could well work for the structure (and Jonze seems to base a lot of his work around dysfunctional families much like Wes Anderson). There is also the fact that Max’s encounter with the sea monster and the growing forest in his room  is apparently absent from this adaption which again could possibly allow the story to stay more character driven instead of descending (like most childrens films) into spectacle or an overly playful tone, every element of this seems to be aiming for a focused narrative instead of something which is designed to get the audience from one sent piece to the other, and first indications seem that it is more a focused film which makes me highly excited.

Yeah, yeah, yeah:

I am not really a fan of Karen O , so when I heard that she was doing the whole of the films soundtrack ( a la David Bowie , the Labyrinth references keep coming) to be honest I was not that keen on hearing. But has I type this current post I am listening to the soundtrack and can quite confidently say it is a playful soundtrack and a genuinely feet tapping eclectic mix of styles possibly echoing Jonze’s past musical collaborations on his promos. It also seems to invoke a child-like angst which is pretty much Max’s motivation for going to the Wild Things land, so it is at moments joyous , sad , melancholic and frightening it really does give a very good taste of what is to come with the film, and only went to rise my excitement level through the roof, on top of which Karen O has a rather unique vocal quality one which draws you further into the music much like the labyrinth soundtrack it complements the images (and hopefully) not distracting from it (labyrinth reference again , honestly I am trying to avoid them).
Left , Right , Here , There and Everywhere:

This has got me particularly excited as every thing I have seen through set stills and images contains a certain rough and surrealistic vibe to each of the different structures and sets (see pic) and pushes the books dream like quality that much further which can only be a good thing but then it could be a case of too much, hopefully that will not be the issue. But it all looks suitably grand (especially the desert sequences) and dreamy while almost (film student alert!!) symbolising Max’s own grand personality and inherent loneliness as a young boy seeing an adult world (while its probably Jonze himself who is the adult man seeing the child-like world), or it could be that I am looking forward to a film that I am reading too much into, which is probably the case.

These are just a few reasons why above most of the films out in December (and this includes Avatar) this is what I am looking forward to the most, a film which can appeal across generational gaps as well as reliving the heydays of 80’s film making and that genuine sense of wonder for tangible (non-CGI) characters with emotion, its nice to enjoy something retro once in while methinks, on top of which the main actor playing max is called Max Records, its just an amazingly odd name. Hopefully this lives up to at least half of my expectations.

His mother called him “WILD THING!”

And Max said “I’LL EAT YOU UP”

So he was sent to bed without eating anything!