So, a couple of days ago, I was watching the trailer for Predators, and something occurred to me. I'm not sure if it's been in a comic or a novel or somewhere, but I wonder what the Predator home world is like. Think about it.
Do they call themselves "Predators?" I mean they're not like lions or t-rexes or something. They hunt for sport. Which would make it a hobby. Does the entire species share the hobby? They have interplanetary ships and high-tech weaponry, which would signify that they have some kind of intelligence or science.
So, what's their planet like? What else do Predators do when they're not hunting? Are there Predator doctors trying to cure Space AIDS? Are there Predator politicians trying to pass health-care bills? Are there hippie Predators that think hunting is wrong?
These are the things that I want to know. I probably wouldn't watch that movie, but then again, I probably won't watch this one either.
Growing up as a child in the 80's was a pretty unique experience. The decadence and excess that appeared in nearly every aspect of the culture seemed normal. The horror movies of yesteryear evolved into blood-drenched slasher flicks. At the height of special effects and animatronic technology, the films went from being about fear suspense to the spectacle of on-screen death. Sequels after sequels got churned out of any movie that could become a franchise. A new generation of monster kids were born, worshiping characters that generally referred to by their ordinary first names. And no one was cooler than Freddy Krueger.
If you're like me, and still have an affinity for these movies, I can't recommend this documentary enough. It came out a couple of months ago (in conjunction with the remake). It's a comprehensive four-hour retrospect of the original eight movies, the television series, and New Line Cinema. It's got interviews with just about every actor, director, writer, and producer that isn't too famous to be in a Freddy Krueger documentary.
It's really interesting. Some of it I knew. Some of it I didn't. But I watched it all in one sitting (apart from pauses for drinks, bathroom, phone calls, etc). There's a really cool stop-motion intro with scenes form the first movie. I got it from Netflix, so I can't comment on the bonus disc.
Watching the documentary also made me realize that I probably haven't watched many of these movies since they were first pressed on DVD eleven years ago. There's a lot of stuff that I forgot from these movies that I used to spend many a late night (and sometimes sit through an afternoon; remember when television wasn't so conservative?) watching. I once even watched them all at once (consecutively, not simultaneously). I don't know if I'd recommend that, but I'm proud to say I've done it.
Anyway, I'm going to go back and watch them all to see if they still hold up. I'll get some reviews up in the next few weeks. Since my box set predates Freddy Vs Jason, I have to rent it, so we'll have to see how motivated I am to do that. I didn't see the remake (something else I wanted to but couldn't motivate myself to do; I really hate Platinum Dunes, and can't bare even the aesthetics), but maybe I'll get up a review when that's on DVD. Anyway, here's how I remeber the films. We'll see how my newer reviews compare:
Nightmare on Elm Street: Genuinely scary, well made movie.
Freddy's Revenge: Some cool sequences, but an overall failure.
Dream Warriors: Really cool and fun. A little goofy. Very close 2nd after the original.
Dream Master: Like 3, but less story and more death.
Dream Child: Not bad, but boring. I think there was a body count of 3. Unacceptable.
Freddy's Dead: Really weird and silly, but still really enjoyable. Alice Cooper. Alice Cooper.
New Nightmare: I give credit for trying something new, but it didn't work. Some really cool and creepy moments.
Freddy Vs Jason: To be fair, it's the only one I first saw as an adult, but just terrible.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 and The Passage are two things that were recently released with unbelievable unanimous positive praise. I picked up both about a month ago, but have unfortunately been way too busy to really put a dent in either of them. However, I figured I'd post early reviews while it would still be relevant, mostly because I feel very early on that both items live up to the hype.
I'm on the third world in Galaxy 2, and I can say that it is already much better than it's predecessor (which I loved and thought had the most imaginative use of 3-D in any video game I've played). The game play is a bit smoother. The power-ups are cooler. It's more challenging. The objectives are clearer. All in all, its a lot like the original, but with improvements where you didn't realize that they were necessary.
I'm only a little over 100 pages into Justin Cronin's The Passage, and early on, I'm really liking this book. I was sucked in right from the first chapter. The characters are great, and the story (which is still being set-up at this point) is really interesting.
Really, both are way better than my progress suggests. I might get up actual reviews when I'm done. As of right now, I give strong approval.
I mentioned Joe the Barbarian a few months ago when it first started. We've just passed the halfway point with issue 5, and while I don't want to talk too much about the story, I will say that this comic is still amazing.Morrison and Murphy work terrifically together. The story is mostly told through beautiful artwork. You really should be reading this.
Everyone's talking about this, so I figured I mention it: Last week, The Melvins, for the first time in their 26 year career, have placed on the Billboard Top 200. Take that, record industry.
Congratulations to Da Chicago Blackhawks not only for winning The Stanley Cup, but also for disgracing Philadelphia in a sports championship for the second time in eight months. Suck it, Philly!
Just kidding. See what I just did? I went the other way this time. I'm actually going to do a Book of the Week. Serious, this time. Here we go:
Book of the Week or International Incident 2: Electric Boogaloo
5-12-10
I mentioned this a while back when it was first announced, and I'm happy to say that Booster Gold 32 lived up to my expectations. In true Giffen and DeMatteis fashion, this book is hilarious.
The humor counter-balances surprisingly nicely with some real serious, heart-breaking moments. Being a time traveler, Booster (mistakenly) jumps to Daxam in the midst of The Great Darkness (for those of you who don't know, we're talking about genocide).
Anyway, its a great start and seems to leading into some great stuff. I should also mention that Chris Batista's artwork is great.
On the other side of that coin, I feel like I should mention Justice League: Generation Lost, the twenty-six issue miniseries written by Giffen and Winick starring the JLI kicked off the same day. Unfortunately, this book isn't nearly as good as Booster Gold. It's played serious, and Maxwell Lord is like the most dangerous villain in the DCU, and I just don't think the characters work well like that. Bummer. I guess you can't win them all.
This week, my pick is The Bride Sreamed Murder, the fictional book mentioned in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. Why did I pick it? Because titling things after obscure Scorsese dialogue is cool.
This song is totally badass. I know this is hardly news and you probably already know this, but I figure some people may be at work without their Bride Screamed Murder and might want to listen to the song now.
