"Pan" The Oscars

Guillermo Del Toro's brilliant fantasy "Pan's Labyrinth" won't up on these shores until the end of the year, but that'll be just soon enough for it to qualify to compete in the "Best Foreign Language" category for next year's Academy Awards, for which Mexico is submitting the film as its official entry into the race. With "Return Of The King" having swept the ceremony a few years back, perhaps the middlebrow old cranks who vote for these things are slowly coming around on their opinion of the genre, which for too long has been dismissed as juvenile FX fodder. Del Toro's new film--nothing less than a career legacy work--is a deeply personal and heartfelt work mixing Lewis Carroll with the grim realities of Franco's Fascist Spain. Plus--if I can appeal to your juvenile senses here (and god bless 'em)--it's got the coolest monsters since, well, Del Toro's "Hellboy" adaptation. Don't miss it.

Happy Birthday, Adam West!

Adam West turns 78 today, and say what you want about the campy William Dozier series and the alleged "damage" it did to the legend of the Dark Knight, for most of us of a "certain age", West was Batman until Neal Adams and Denny O'Neil came along to set us all straight. I had the chance to meet him once in the 80s when I was a film student, and then again in the late 90s as a fledging "pro" on the TV series "Goosebumps", where he wore the outfit I helped design for his character "The Galloping Gazelle" (the episode was superhero-themed "Attack Of The Mutant", for which I also created the comic book art). I last saw West in a brief role in Mario Van Peebles' "How To Get The Man's Foot Outta Your Ass" aka "Badassss", and hope he never retires.

TIFF 2006 Review: "The Host"

I've posted a new review up at Movieforum--this one for the superb South Korean monster movie "The Host", which is a big hit in its native country and deserves to be an international blockbuster. The creature--essentially a giant mutant tadpole--is one of the finest CG creations you'll ever see and ranks with Weta's "King Kong" and "Gollum" and ILM's "Jurassic Park" reptiles (in fact, ex-ILMers and Weta contributed to the FX). Read the review here, and don't miss this unique take on a tired genre should you get the chance.

TIFF 2006 Reviews: "End Of The Line"

TIFF 2006 has come to an end, and I'm exhausted. But, while the 25+ films I caught are still fresh in my head, I'd better get at the reviews. The first one--for the Montreal-shot horror film "End Of The Line"--is up now at the Movieforum blog, which you can access here (be sure to scroll on down to the bottom!).

From Piper's Pit: The Real John Nada!

That's me and Lidia at at this past weekend's annual Fan Expo, which has grown (well, seemingly...) exponentially in scale each passing year. Unfortunately, the venue--Building 2 of the Metro Convention Centre--has not expanded to accomodate the crowds, or the growing roster of guests, and this year's was the worst organized event yet. Insane lineups and a lack of oxygen aside, there was a lot going on to keep an aging fanboy suitably bedazzled--"Hellboy" creator Mike Mignola, Marvel scribe Brian Michael Bendis, Carrie Fisher, Karen Black, and presumably, no shortage of suckers who'll pay 300 bucks to have their photo taken with William Shatner and/or Leonard Nimoy.

For a mere $20, we got our photo taken with the one and only John Nada--Rowdy Roddy Piper (in actuality, Roderick Toombs from Winnipeg, Manitoba), and got him to sign some memorabilia. I told him about this here "Nadaland" site and Roddy, ever the smooth pro, swore he was "honoured" (and I almost believe him)! We chatted about Norstar B-pictures we each had worked on (Roddy starred in "Jungleground" and "No Contest 2", both shot in Toronto) and Roddy talked about how he improvised the "I'm all outta bubblegum" line on the set of "They Live" only minutes before Carpenter called for lunch (and I almost believe this wasn't the 10,000th time he's told this story). It was a thrill to meet one helluva nice guy who obviously digs his fans. Check out Roddy's official site here.

FanExpo 2006: Hellboy-Zapoppin'

"Hellboy" creator Mike Mignola was one of the main attractions (for me) at this year's FanExpo combo sci-fi/comics/horror/anime/gaming convention held at Toronto's Metro Convention Centre. I first discovered Mignola's unique drawing style in the early 90s comic adaptations of Coppola's "Bram Stoker's Dracula" film and in Epic's limited series based on Fritz Lieber's "Fahred And The Gray Mouser" swashbucklers--and I've been copying him ever since . These days Mignola writes more than he draws, which is a great loss to comics fans but since he hand-picks such great illustrators as Guy Davis and Richard Corben to substitute for him, we really can't be too sorry.

During a Q&A Mignola fielded the predicted questions on the Hellboy movie sequel, solo, since his announced co-host (director) Guillermo Del Toro had to cancel his appearance due to a scheduling conflict with the Venice Film Festival. Basically, it is coming, with Universal on board after Revolution Studios bailed. Its current title is "The Golden Army", and the story isn't based on any particular published "Hellboy" comic, but rather an original concept by Mignola and Del Toro that will incorporate more of the pan-cultural folklore aspects that Mignola felt were downplayed in the first film. So expect a returning Ron Perlman to battle Malaysian ghosts and European baddies in their combined efforts to reclaim magic's reign over the mortal world. I liked his comparison of his supernatural baddies to displaced Native Americans, deciding to reclaim their land as their own, and that when writing, he always strives to identify with his antagonists' point-of-view and never truly sees them as evil.

Mignola said that there is an ending planned for his Hellboy saga, and that in future stories the "working stiff" aspect of the character will be downplayed and that Hellboy will undergo a change due to his recent death and increasing fatigue with his role as supernatural savior now that years have passed. He admitted that he didn't care for the romantic subplot in Del Toro's adaptation as prefers to see the male/female relationships in his comics as more "brother/sister" than anything romantic--as will be depicted in an upcoming story with a young, 80s-era Liz Sherman and Abe Sapien.

He also mentioned that at one time, Nicholas Cage was pegged to play "Hellboy", but then again, he's been attached to just about every comic book project imaginable at one time or another.

Mignola acknowledged that a "Hellboy" video game is in development (platform unannounced)--one that will be modeled more on the film's design and universe, but will feature "flashback" levels that will incorporate unique folklore elements.

The "Hellboy" cartoon will debut soon, as will a new series of spin-off novels in which he's allowed the authors free reign. Mignola himself has co-written and illustrated a novel, entitled "Baltimore", which is about vampires and which he describes as "very Roman Catholic". It's due next year.

Mignola stressed that for all the movie, animation, game, and prose spin-offs, he regards only his own "Hellboy" comics from Dark Horse as "definitive". An official Hellboy Encyclopedia was due to be published by now, but since he keeps adding material to it, its publication date can't be predicted.

His favorite story of his own? A recent collaboration with daughter Kate in Dark Horse's "Happy Endings" anthology, entitled "The Magician And The Snake", which she told to him on a ride home from school (and has since won an Eisner award).

RIP Pa Kent (Glenn Ford)

Damn--another great one gone. Glenn Ford, the respected character actor who embodied stoic American decency during his long career (in fact, he was a Canadian, born in Quebec in 1916), was found dead today at his Beverly Hills home at the age of 90. Foul play is not suspected--Ford's health problems were well-known ever since he suffered his first in a series of strokes in the 1990s. He was too ill to attend his birthday bash this past May 1st, and had to appear via a taped message.

Ford acted in approx. 85 features in all genres, from the western ("The Desperados") to the drama (the original movie version of "The Courtship Of Eddie's Father") to even the execrable 80s slasher flick (the Canuck-shot "Happy Birthday To Me"), but is perhaps best known for the Rita Hayworth classic comedy "Gilda" (his breakthrough role into leading-man status), the once-controversial "Rock Around The Clock", and Fritz Lang's essential noir "The Big Heat".

For me, Ford embodies the definitive Jonathan Kent, with his brief screen time in Richard Donner's "Superman: The Movie" accounting for some of the film's most resonant and unforgettable moments--if you can watch him deliver "you are here for a reason" speech to teenaged Clark (Jeff East) with his unforced homespun gravitas and not get a lump in your throat, then you've got a heart made of black kryptonite. Here's a nice fan site devoted to Ford's life and career (and what's the delay on that Order Of Canada?)...

RIP Joseph Stefano

Sad news that one of the genre's greats has passed away: screenwriter (and songwriter!) Joseph Stefano died last Friday at the age of 84. Now considering that this is the man who brilliantly adapted a nasty little paperback novel into a certain chiller called "Psycho" and who also produced the innovative anthology series "The Outer Limits", I would've expected at least a mention in the major news outlets (as of today, the IMDB still lists him as living). I'm certainly not going to underplay Hitchcock's involvement in the conception of his esteemed (and once loathed) 1960 horror classic, but it was writer Stefano who altered Robert Bloch's structure to focus the first act on Marion ("Mary" in the novel) Crane, extend her shower murder into an excruciatingly brutal slashing (a swift decapitation in Bloch's book), refashion Norman Bates as an amiable nerd (he's an overweight, sweaty creep as created by Bloch), and bravely stage the denouement in the form of Simon Oakland's lengthy academic treatise on sexual schizophrenia.

Stefano revisited the Bates character in writing Mick Garris' underrated TV movie "Psycho IV: The Beginning", which featured Henry Thomas a young Norman and Olivia Hussey as "Mother" in a flashback drama that is surprisingly moving and far less cheesy than you'd expect (certainly, it was an improvement over Anthony Perkins' dismal "Psycho 3", but then what wouldn't be?). In honour of Stefano's legacy, you might want to track this one down. He shares his thoughts on "Psycho" in a 1990 interview here.

Happy Birthday Maggie (One Year Old!)

One year ago today (at approx. 11 pm), Lidia and I were returning from my (belated) fancy birthday dinner at Lee's when we happened upon our neighbours searching our yard for their cat's misplaced litter of kittens. We joined in and found them just three doors down, under a tarp: three shivering mini-felines in total--one orange, one gray, and the other a tortie like her mother, who was quite vocal despite the fact that she couldn't open her eyes or hold up her head. We'd just lost Molly, our beloved tortoiseshell cat of 11 years, and her sister Minnie was clearly lonely without her, so we relented to the cosmic signs and asked humbly if the rowdy furball could be ours. A few weeks later, on Thanksgiving Day, "Maggie" joined our household and has been keeping us on edge and constant alert ever since. So Happy 1st Birthday "Madame"--not like every day isn't your birthday in this house!

"Brick" Auteur Blossoms..."Blooms"...

If you haven't seen Rian Johnson's brilliant debut "Brick" (one of the year's best films IMHO, if not the best so far...), it's out this week on DVD, so now you have no excuse for denying yourself the pleasure of one of the most original and gripping murder mysteries since season one of "Twin Peaks". Don't be put off by what seems like its gimmicky conceit--"hard boiled" dialogue ala Chandler and Hammett spoken by teens at a modern California high school--what could have been a "Bugsy Malone" for the Larry Clark set is a mournful and surprisingly moving drama that embraces--rather than mocks--the conventions of detective fiction without ever deteriorating into camp.

Johnson is now prepping "The Brothers Bloom", and while there have been few details made available, its official website is already up (here). Johnson told Cinematical: ""It's about these two guys who grow up in and out of foster homes as kids and they learn to survive by becoming con men." And despite the fact that the illustrations show period garb, Johnson says it's a modern day piece.

Otherwise, details are minimal and cryptic--some sketchy storyboards, a quote from Jung, and an excerpt of the song "Paper Moon". What can I say? I'm already there...

"I Shall Not Walk So That A Child May Live!"

My friend in PA introduced me to Adult Swim's utterly demented "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" series a few years ago (pre-official DVD releases, he'd send me episodes on VHS and VideoCD because no one in Canada was running them) and I became hooked on the cheap-ass, Dadaist misadventures of Master Shake, Frylock, Meatwad, Carl et al. While few people I know have even heard of the series--let alone seen it--obviously, it's got enough of a following to have spawned an alleged feature film, which I've been reading about for eons now. My PA friend insists it's all a meta-ruse from William Street Animation, but according to a bit from AICN today, it's not. "Aqua Teen Hunger Force: The Movie" has had a few test screenings and it sounds like they've done the impossible--to sustain the insane, anything-goes spirit of the 11 minute shorts for 90 minutes. The Mooninites, MC Pee Pants, Abe Lincoln--all that and a vocal cameo from Bruce Campbell! Read the review here. And is it too late to get this thing booked for The Toronto Film Fest?

When You're Broke From All Those DVD Reissues, You Gotta Make Your Own Toys

Yes, that's Han Solo encased in carbonite--and he's made of Lego! TechEBlog has posted "The Top Ten Strangest Lego Creations", but IMHO, most of them are pretty cool, from an iPod case to a harpsicord to a (working?) knitting machine.

I never really got past making a dog from the stuff myself (two pieces)--and if I had this much free time to concoct something so epic I'd probably devote that concentration and mechanical prowess to building irrigation systems for starving villages or something. Who knows, maybe this is just a warmup to the next big thing, after all, our last Great Hope--"Ginger"-- turned out to be nothing but a scooter...

If He's Really Sorry, He'll Grow Back His "Lethal Weapon" Mullet...

Mel, Mel, Mel....

The last time you got picked up for DUI, it was right here in Toronto in 1984, when you were shooting Gillian Armstrong's "Mrs. Soffel" with Diane Keaton (I know, a U.S. film shot in Canada by an Australian...) I remember catching a CityPulse bit showing your oh-so-photogenic self being marched down the steps of the city's historic Old Court House to an adoring throng of (mostly female) cineastes. You probably made some young traffic cop's day, being the then-"Mad Max" pulled over for a traffic infraction (not to glamorize drunk-driving in any way)...

Well, it's 20+ years later, and the whole world knows you got picked up in LA last weekend on the same charge but today, you're no longer The Road Warrior and star of cool Peter Weir films. Nope, sadly, Mad Mel's pulled back the curtain and shown himself to be just another irresponsible, belligerent drunk who could have a promising career as a director if he wasn't such an obvious unhinged lunatic livin' La Vida Apocalypto.

So as a long-time fan who championed you from "Gallipoli" and your first hookup with George Miller and even "Attack Force Z" for chrissakes and praised you in "The Bounty" and thought "Payback" was one of your best films and who has forgiven you time and time again for sorry-ass crap like "Bird On A Wire" and "Lethal Weapon 4", let me say "thanks"--thanks for making me feel like a complete idiot now in front of some of my workmates, with whom I sparred majorly when your "Passion Of The Christ" was being labeled an anti-Semitic screed. I defended it on terms of possible accuracy--if not historic, then at least human and thus dramatic (without opening that whole can of grief, my basic position was that there were likely a great many who relished Christ's torture and eventual death, and yes, some of them were possibly Jewish) and that I felt that much of the venom being spat was reactionary and fueled by the same knee-jerk hysteria that called for the destruction of Scorcese's "The Last Temptation Of Christ" more than a decade earlier. Maybe it was just the booze talkin', but your well-documented rant has clued me in that maybe some of your critics had a point...

But, alas, it's not the Jews, nor Dionysis on the vine, nor a corrupt LAPD to blame for your problems. It's the whole damned "world gone mad" by your own sorry "official" explanation (which can be read right here). "Life fades" and "the vision dims" after a few vodka gimlets, right mate?

In the meantime, I hope Parker and Stone are immersed in their Flash animations slapping together that much-needed followup to "Passion Of The Jew"...you got off easy in that one.

Royal Cinema Saved

Toronto film buffs were dealt a harsh blow last month when three of the city's oldest and most beloved vintage repertory theatres were shut down: The Kingsway, The Revue, and The Royal.

I live near the Royal Cinema (just a few blocks' walk from Little Italy, but close enough) and while I never got out to it nearly as much as I'd like, I think it's a great place for its nostalgic facade (dig the marquee), elegant art deco interior (with reclining seats), and eclectic range of films. The Royal is a typical rep house in that it operates primarily as a second-run venue, but it's also hosted cool speciality programmes like "B Movie Thursdays", which afforded me the chance to see the likes of "The Evil Dead", "Flash Gordon" (1980), "Shivers", and "Dark Star" on the big screen. As well, the venue has hosted the Toronto runs of such offbeat Asian offerings as "Sympathy For Mister Vengeance", "Dead Or Alive", and "Uzumaki".

Good news, then, with the announcement that the recently-closed Royal has been saved from conversion to a big box store by the owners of "Theatre D Digital" on Mt. Pleasant Ave, who converted the vintage Regent Cinema into a combination post-production facility and public theatre and plan to do the same here, possibly as early as September.

Molly

Happy Birthday, Molly (you would have been twelve today).

"Help Me Make The Music Of The (Dark) Knight..."

Believe it or not, the concept of "Batman: The Musical" was not a Jonathan Crane-induced hallucination. I'd heard rumour of it over the years, but then again, I also once read that Garth Drabinsky's Livent planned to mount "Raising Arizona" on the Toronto stage.

Jim Steinman--rawwwwk n' roll's would-be Wagner behind the successful Meatloaf collaborations, the "Streets Of Fire" soundtrack, and--kreegah!--latter-day Celine Dion warbling, was to compose the song score, with David Ives writing the book. In 1998, Warners officially announced that none other than Tim Burton would direct the stage incarnation of the franchise he'd successfully (and how!) reinvented for a generation nearly a decade earlier. Unfortunately, Steinman's vampire-themed musical (with former "Phantom" Michael Crawford, perhaps biding his time for "Condorman: The Musical"?) proved to be a flop and the studio's momentum for "Batman" dwindled.

Jim Steinman, however, managed to record what came to be known as "The Batman Demos" at the historic (and now gone) The Hit Factory in New York, with vocals from Rob Evan as Batman, Karine Hannah as Catwoman, Elaine Caswell, and Steinman himself. According to a fan-site, Warner's theatrical wing is considering resurrecting the property (no doubt thanks to the success of "Batman Begins") so who knows? I hear there's a stage free in Toronto, now that "Lord Of The Rings" has folded. Take your time, fellas--remember that "Superman" musical from the mid-70s?

In the meantime, you can listen to Steinman's "The Joker's Song", here.

"Beowulf And Grendel" Now On DVD In Canada

Indulge me in some shameless self-promotion: Sturla Gunnersson's "Beowulf And Grendel" was released on DVD in Canada today, from Warner Home Video. The single disc edition features a nice transfer that preserves Jan Keisser's lush cinematography and the requisite director's commentary (with Sturla joined by screenwriter Andrew Rai Berzins). Extras include deleted scenes, a costume design gallery, on-set stills, and most importantly, and a too-brief sampling of storyboard art from yours truly.

Regrettably, the gallery features only two scenes--Scenes 1 and 15--which were already posted on the official site with the former never truly completed to my satisfaction (like the Icelandic weather, the scene's specifics changed often). I drew an insane amount of boards for this project, and the best of them didn't end up on the disc. You can check out Grendel's berserker rampage through Heorot on my still-under-construction online portfolio here.

And of course, if you're so inclined, you can order a copy of the DVD here.

Don't Miss "The Vader Sessions"

"Star Wars" fan spoofs have gone beyond merely "viral"--the sheer volume of them has arguably spawned an Internet pandemic. While I support the efforts of these youngsters, the sad fact is that most of these shorts aren't half as fun to watch as I'm sure they were to make--I hope that some of these crazy kids got ILM intern gigs for their troubles and obvious passion.

But this one is that rare killer-diller: the riotous "The Vader Sessions", which works in audio clips from some of James Earl Jones' other films (mostly "The Great White Hope", "Coming To America", and "Field Of Dreams") into "Vader" footage from the 1977 original. The whole thing manages to work--impressively ("most impressively"..) as a compressed "A New Hope" for the attention-span impaired.

But can someone explain to me what's up with all the Billy Joel tunes?

An Animated Life...

...and how! Stop-motion master Ray Harryhausen--arguably the special effects industry's only true auteur (other than, say, Georges Melies?)--celebrates his 86th birthday today. Ray's still going strong despite having not worked on a film since 1981's "Clash Of The Titans"--a new book ("The Art Of Ray Harryhausen"), a new DVD compilation of early shorts (including the newly-finished "Tortoise And The Hare"), audio commentary on the long overdue special edition DVD of the original 1933 "King Kong", and a recently-announced teamup with Mindfire Entertainment to produce merchandise from his amazing filmography, as well as oversee some new films based upon some of his unrealized fantasy projects (maybe he'll get his aborted "Beowulf" off the ground, too?). Happy birthday, Ray--and thanks!

"My Friends, You Know Me To Be Neither Rash, Nor Impulsive...Nor Alive..."

Bryan Singer's "Superman Returns" turned out to be a damn good film--not quite perfect (its leads are a little too baby-faced to have had all their "history", and what will they do now with Superkid?!)--but a soulful and handsomely produced ode to Richard Donner's still-definitive take on the character that will--hopefully-set things up for a series that will look to the comics, specifically, the the revamped "Superman" universe streamlined by John Byrne in the 80s, and avoid Big Blue's supersonic slide into mediocrity with "Superman 3" and "4".

Considering the advance hoopla and shroud of secrecy, I was disappointed by Brando's promised digital "resurrection" as Jor-El--which amounted to a mere few seconds of screen time with a dialogue take not terribly different than the one from the 1978 classic.

Still, it's a mean feat of digital wizardry, and Ain't It Cool New is still hosting the demo on how Rhythm And Hues pulled it off. You can check it out here.