American Mary

Jen and Sylvia Soska are fucking brilliant, and American Mary is an intriguingly original genre entry that is more art flick than many people are probably willing to give it credit for.  I went into this film knowing almost nothing about it and rented it because it was there, and couldn't find anything else at the time that was screaming out to me. 

Katharine Isabelle (from Freddy vs Jason and the criminally under seen Ginger Snaps) gives an amazing performance as Mary Mason, a medical student who after having her entire world view perverted tries to find a place for herself in the world, with the skills she has. 

She becomes involved in the world of modification after a chance meeting with Beatress Johnson as played by with gentle nuance by Tristan Risk. This represents one of American Mary’s greatest strengths, the developed supporting cast around Mary.   

If you are a can of Croenberg’s classic body horror flicks, this is a natural successor.  Why not try a little art flick in your horror?  You might be glad you did.  

Antoine Dode, interviewed by me at Ravenous Monster

 

This one is pretty cool in my mind, as I have been a huge Crow fan since my Dad told me I couldn't see the movie. (In his defense I was in 5th grade)  Click either image to read the full interview.

Were you a fan of The Crow franchise before your work on The Crow Curare?  If so which incarnation or elements struck you the most?

I think I was 16 when I saw The Crow. I loved the Alex Proyas movie with Brandon Lee straight away. I went to see it twice at the theatre. The comic was released in France after the huge success of the film.

Working as an artist on a Crow story written by James O’Barr is a dream come true. Actually, the first comic I did, Armelle et l'Oiseau (Armelle and the Bird), which was inspired a lot by The Crow. That’s not the same kind of story. It’s more like a kind of fairytale; it’s about a little girl who loses her mom, and ends up befriending a strange bird.

How did you come to work on The Crow Curare?

What happened is I met the artist Miran Kim in Anougleme a few years ago (during the biggest comic convention in France). She used to do some Crow covers in the late 90s (she also painted that amazing variant cover for the first issue of Curare). I told her I was planning to do some Crow fan art, and she suggested that I send some to James O'Barr. I was crazy lucky because...

Messenger Edward Lee

Overview;

A demon takes over a post office, leaving unsuspecting victims with a surprise when they open their packages.

A little bit of Hell has just come to earth.

Would you like to become someone else? Well, someone else is about to become you. He will share your heart and your mind, he will seep into your body, he will feel all your ecstacy...

And then he will take you on a slaughterfest.

Occult rites. Ritualistic murder.

You have become possessed.
But not by a ghost.
Not by a demon.
It's something much worse.

Just as God has a messenger, so does the devil, and that messenger is here, now, in your town. He has a message to send...

The Messenger.

A diabolical novel of ultimate erotic horror...

Review;

Edward Lee’s Messenger combines the classic gory excesses that Lee is known for, a small town murder mystery and the investigation of cult activity.  Overall this is a solid horror novel.  The mystery elements are well developed, leading logically from one clue to the next.  The cast populating the small town  of Danelleton, Florida is overall well drawn, but the few characters that are not are the novel’s major weakness. 

While Lee never gets as much credit as he should for character development, this novel has far too many fodder characters who are introduced and slaughtered within a single chapter.  While the intent seems to be the ratcheting of tension for our main players, knowing what they are being threatened with, Lee shows his monsters too much and they lose some of their bite. (Think Freddy in his first flick to the campy figure he became.)  These chapters seem like filler, and I feel this would have been a much stronger work at a shorter length.  The narrative centers around widow Jane Ryan, as she works through the evil around her, and Lee even manages to create a nice romantic subplot for her, she was strong enough to carry the book without fodder victims. 

The supernatural and mystery elements were well conceived and introduced.  The book’s climax was solid and fulfilling as well, with a nice series of well-earned reveals.

In the End;

Messenger has all the elements I like in my horror fiction; A cult, a supernatural entity, brutal splatter, a strong well drawn lead, and Lee’s signature bravado.  However the fodder chapters/characters really killed the momentum.  This is a strong novel,  that feels like it could have been more.  

The Crow: Curare #2 Review

The Crow: Curare #2
Written by James O’Barr
Illustrated by Antoine Dodé
Colored by Antoine Dodé
Lettered by Shawn Lee
IDW Publishing
Release Date: July 24, 2013

I was pleasantly surprised at how strong an issue The Crow Curare #1 was, and was pretty eager to pick up the second issue in this three book arc.

The second book gives readers an extensive background on Detective Salk and shows us exactly how the man broke down, both professionally and personally.  The scenes with his family are particularly strong.  They perfectly contrast where he is both physically and emotionally compared to his wife and children.

We also see Carrie's abduction, though not the man who took her.  The initial kidnapping from a playground is a haunting work of minimalism.  Dode's art images capture this perfectly.  They are the type of pages that make me want to buy a second copy to get them framed.  

While it was nice to get a fully fleshed out background on Salk, the book leaves off at nearly the same point as the first.  One month later I still don't know whats going to happen next.  Readers are treated to the emergence of the Crow though..

Overall this is a strong book, that feels like a bit of a let down because it doesn't advance the plot very much, and because the first issue was nearly flawless.  Dode's mesmerizing images though make this book a must buy, as it works almost like a tone poem.  I am very curious to see how this is all wrapped up in the last issue.

Army of Darkness vs Hack/Slash #1

Army of Darkness vs Hack/Slash #1 written by Time Seeley and drawn by Daniel Leister begins a six issue arc that picks up directly Hack/Slash's end (spoilers are present) and references the current Army of Darkness run at Dynamite.

Putting Ash and Cassie Hack together is going to seem like a gimmick, and it is.  But that doesn't mean its still not fun.  Much like Tim Seeley's Hack/Slash Re-Animator or Chuckey cross over his talent is impossible to miss.  Seeley crafts a solid premise and writes Ash as well as he did Herbert West, capturing the rhythm of Campbell's performance.

Daniel Leister's art captures the actions heavy movement well, allowing the reader to easily follow blow as it transpires, and has two very fun splash pages.

In the end this isn't the greatest horror comic (though much more violent than the teen rating would suggest) but for fans of these characters its a solid read, and I'll be looking forward to the next issue.

Click here for more on Ash and Cassie and how awesome they are.

Solomon Kane Movie Review

Completed in 2009 Michael J Bassett's Solomon Kane sat on a shelf and was recently dumped on to Blu Ray and DVD, as a long time Robert E Howard fan I was pretty curious about this R rated and decently budget flick.

I enjoy Robert E Howard's writing, his characters, and most importantly, his stories.  And this is the movie's greatest weakness.  It is an origin story, based on the hints of Kane's background that Howard wrote.  I just don't care for origin tales all that much, especially when I know the outcome.  Solomon Kane will become the noble puritan avenger.

Writer/Director Michael J Bassett's screenplay and direction are strong and his affection for this material is clear.  He plays it straight without a wink at the audience creating an impressively dark and foreboding tone.  The fight sequences are extremely well choreographed, with much more brutal blade violence than most will be used to.  You don't take a man's head off with a single blow, it takes some hacking.  Blades are also stuck in dying bodies and difficult to pull out after a person is stabbed.

James Purefoy does well as Kane, but just doesn't have the charisma to compensate for some of the slower and weaker story elements.  Like every Conan adaption Bassett (and or the studio and producers) miss the key element that defined Robert E Howard's tales.  Howard was an incredibly depressed man who killed himself.  In nearly everything he wrote you could feel the contempt he had for society's corruption and inability to live up to its ideals.  Howard wrote of wandering noble savages, searching for a society that would meet its promise.  Their noble savagery was contrasted against the "civilized."  While Bassett nails most of the dark fantasy elements the story of an evil wizard misses this crucial element that was the reason Howard is still timeless.  

Shark Night (3D)

I had a thought that made me feel uncomfortable so I decided to punish my brain by watching Shark Night(theatrically released as Shark Night 3D)

The movie feels like a decent enough shark flick that was edited for television because of the PG-13 rating.  One of the most interesting elements is the justification for the sharks being loose where there are people.  While far fetched it was an idea I haven't seen played out before.

At a brisk 90 minutes the film is neither good or bad enough to be terribly memorable.  Ultimately it seems like a wasted opportunity.  You come up with a fairly decent premise, and its the shark action that is bland and sub par...but never bad enough to turn the flick off.

The cast is decent enough, while being utterly forgettable.  My favorite bit of casting though is Joel David Moore (who was 34 when this was shot) playing a college kid.

So if neither good or bad, but simply blandly forgettable is your bag I recommend Shark Night, which doesn't really take place much at night but sounds better than Shark Day and a Half.