Last Saturday the DC Stunt Coalition, some friends, and myself went out to see “The Expendables 2”, starring Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, (not) Jet Li, Jean Claude Vann Damme, Scott Adkins, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Bruce Willis. Dolph Lundgren provided comic relief, and Terry Crews and Randy Coutoure did the only real awesome stuff. PLUS! Chuck Norris solidifies his legend once and for all.
Here’s our VIDEO REVIEW:
More to come!
I got an unexpected call from Rob Moroney last night, telling me he had an extra ticket to the Red State Tour in DC. I had no idea it was happening. Red State wasn’t a movie I was sure I had much interest in, but I knew Kevin Smith– a hero from my teenage years– would be there. And I also knew that Rob Moroney and I had a track record for hunting down famous people and getting pictures with them. Among other things…
So…OFF WE WENT- taking the metro down to DC again to the Warner Theater, where we had last tackled Denis Leary in a back alley and forced him to sign cigarettes for us, to meet one of the most well known progenitors of the Indy Cinema scene. Oh, and see his newest, most shockingly different movie yet.
Before the show began, Kevin came up on stage to give us in the audience some intel and backstory on the project. While I had heard Kevin Smith was making a horror movie, I had never really read much into it, figuring that, like most of his last few movies, I’d end up seeing it on DVD at some point in the comfort of my own home. Not in this case- I was amidst a sea of maybe two thousand or so Kevin Smith fans, hungry for his second to last project, and certainly his most diverse and unique film in his collection.
So I didn’t know a lot going in. I didn’t know that the badguys were essentially a cartoonized version of the Phelps clan of Everybody Haters, turned into Yosemite Sammites, out to purge the world of everything that used its genitals for non-procreation. Based on Smith’s opening words to the audience, and the final result of the film, it felt like he created this family of yahoos by imagining what it would be like if the Phelps family played too much Grand Theft Auto 3. But more about that when I get to my short review.
Now that we’ve released a couple of really cool flicks, Strike a Pose!!! Films is getting more traffic than ever! Please keep up the fan support by posting a link to one of your favorite movies on Facebook! We already provided the button to do so for you!
On the other side of the plate, here’s a couple of quick personal updates about my life in the field:
Personal Work:
I’ve been putting a bit of effort into filming this little documentary for my martial arts school, Self Mastery Systems. Already over 10 hours of footage have been filmed and logged, including interviews, training, and various conversations. The project is super exciting and hopefully will come to fruition by the end of Summer 2010!
I’ve also been interning at the awesome Foreign Language video company, Peanutbutter. I’ve been working with another local filmmaker from Towson, who’s great music videos you can check out here. As for myself, I’ve been learning a lot of green screening and animation. Here’s a couple of video links to let you see some of the demo work the company has done:
Video Temporarily Down
Finally, this month’s slated film is going to be the FINAL version of Jasper Conroy: Salisbury Bounty Hunter, with fully-featured FX, thanks to John Ianuzzi (System Shock 2 SFX) and new music. Be sure to see the final cut here sometime by the end of this month!
Hopefully we have a couple of new scripts coming our way thanks to the uber-talented Tom Murphy. You can see some of his work on Youtube here. We’re looking to cast some new talent in these new projects, and speaking of which…
Contacts and Adventures:
So let’s say I’ve been scouting. A lot. Lot’s of new talent has been added to our contacts list, and if you’re reading this chances are you’re one of them. The game show I was on, Silver Screen Test, has provided me with a lot of great contacts in Montgomery Public Television, not to mention the other really cool two contestants I met (and matched considerable wits with!).
Also scouted some locations. I ended up wandering around in DC, trying to get home one night after an awesome performance witnessed by myself and Rob Moroney. The performer? Christopher Titus, a personal hero of mine, supplying not only his new standup, NEVERLUTION, but also his now-classic Love is Evol. It was tubular. I got in trouble with him cause I was in the first row and started speaking lines from the show before he could…oops. Here’s an embarrassing picture!
It was a great meeting and Titus was a cool dude. Hopefully someday we can get cast in one of our flicks. Who knows?!?! (/shameless shoutout).
I have also been INCREDIBLY fortunate to get on board a project for ValDean entertainment, the brilliant minds between Johnny B. Homeless and Lennox Ave., starring Al Thompson. Here’s a link about these conquistadors of the internet medium! They’re shooting a new series in Ocean City in late April, and I’ll be down there to help out as an “Assistant Producer”. Excitement, hooooo!
Here’s a trailer for Johnny B.:
Finally, here’s a list of movies I’ve recently watched, and some quick words:
IN THEATERS:
Book of Eli— Excellent Post Apocalyptic Sci Fi actioneer with an ANTI ORGANIZED STUPIDITY story. Definitely check it out. Thoughts?
Shutter Island— Best thriller I’ve seen in ages. Even though you know the ending that is coming, it still wallops you with its dramatic reveal and realization that maybe, sometimes the truth is so bad you don’t want to know it after all.
How to Train Your Dragon (3D)— A charming kids movie that ends like Final Fantasy: Advent Children. Do NOT waste money on seeing this in 3D. This is purely a great 2D spectacle with a few charming moments and video game like ending.
ON DVD:
Frost/Nixon— I kinda put this one aside during last years Oscar’s, and I really wish the Academy hadn’t. This is the kind of movie that would have gone up well against The Hurt Locker this year.
SO much going on! It’s hard to keep up with it all. If there is anything you think I missed, lemme know, and I’ll put it up in the next post!
So I recently watched Melville’s “masterpiece” LE SAMOURAI, a film about a hit-man in France that is either “betrayed” or caught or something while performing a hit. His plans go askew, and he has to avoid the cops for a while, not only reconfiguring his alibis but also snaking his way out of a suspect line up by doing seemingly nothing. He eventually is pursued through the city streets by the police, also while dealing with his untrustworthy employers and a couple of lovely dames. Although, as an unusual turn for the crime drama with the noir-ish anti-hero, he never calls them “dames”, let alone anything I can remember.
A REVIEW
Please be sure to read more under the cut, or go to our forums thread to join in the discussion!
We don’t normally review games on this site, but I felt this one merited some attention. Silent Hill is an amazing, cinematic series, typically filled with film-like mise-en-scene and suspenseful camera work. It’s a series that plays games with your head, just like a good David Lynch film.
This is a re-post of my review on Gametrailers.com, the same place where System Shock 2: The First Encounter, premiered. I am reviewing this game because the series has had a huge influence on not only my taste in video games but also my feelings towards film as a narrative tool of subjective perspective and reality-bending. If you wanna see what movies I’m talking about, just look at either Car Trouble or the recently released Clarity. Anyways, here’s the review! Read behind the cuts for more information. Very limited spoilers.