Bobbylands

Of all my many and varied reactions to the BORDERLANDS trailer (summary: looks like fun), the image I’ll be thinking about the most is this one. Bobby Lee not only appears in the film but manages a split-second of WTF in the trailer. Impressive.

Hmm...

Reached into my dryer and the sheets were so hot I almost scalded myself.

Is that a problem with the dryer, or am I getting more brittle as I close in on 60?

BILLION DOLLAR BRAIN (1967)

Ken Russell work-for-hire? Michael Caine winding down on the famous Harry Palmer character? A plot so goofily byzantine you might understandably be confused? Sure…but that cast, and that score (by Sir Richard Rodney Bennett)…those are aces. Twist your spy thriller expectations inside out and enjoy.

WWJCD?

Every time I see an indie film that seems to be trying too hard, faltering, all those attempts at real behavior feeling so, so forced, I ask:

“What would John Cassavetes do?

I came to Cassavetes’ films later in life, and for me that may have been the best possible time, having some (sort of) emotional maturity and life experience on top of that foundation of cinema appreciation, that made observing his characters so much easier, and so very relatable, but mostly, being able to embrace how admirably life-like and un-forced they felt.

HIGH AND LOW Remake? I'm Listening...

Normally I get irritable when someone remakes a film, especially one from a master craftsman like Kurosawa. But I would be interested to see this one: by Lee, starring Washington? They do have a pretty excellent record together. To be continued…

Noah Hutton's LAPSIS (2020)

Just a brief note about one of my favorite surprises from the year of COVID: a rare science-fiction film that has a surprising and yet thoroughly relatable view of making it in the modern world. I love this one.

"Problems Worth Solving"

Well, I finished Baldur’s Gate 3, for the first time. And it was the best possible end, and I loved it.

Baldur's Gate 3: It Makes Me Sad (Minor Spoilers Included)

There is a lot of thrilling stuff in Baldur’s Gate 3, a game I’m currently working towards my second attempt at completion. But there are also plenty of emotional moments that hit hard. Gods, for example, are mostly dicks, leaving previously ardent followers to feel embittered and filled with loss and uncertainty. The game is not particularly kind to the faithful.

But let’s talk about Arves and the fucking House of Grief.

The House of Grief is seemingly a clinic where you can have painful memories removed, though it’s really just a front for another shitty sect. Before you go in, you meet a man names Arves, who is staring off at a tree or the sky or something, fumbling about, unsure why he’s even there. You start asking him questions and he seems like someone who’s had their mind largely wiped.

So you go in and (if you’re like me) lay waste to the House of Grief. Fuck ‘em up, but good.

When the quest is done, however, Arves is left standing outside, a shell of a man, feeling something akin to loss but uncertain as to why. No additional dialogue options. And it seems he’s likely to remain their…forever.

And that just breaks me a little.

CEMETERY MAN Is Coming Soon

I may be wrong, but when the magnificent 1994 Italian horror film CEMETERY MAN (Dellamorte Dellamore) shows up on Shudder on February 12, it will be the first time the film has streamed anywhere. I’m kind of thrilled; finding a good copy of the film over the years has always been difficult. Severin Films only just released a beautiful looking multi-disc package in November, which I found out about while writing this…and just bought.

The film is touching, funny, sexy, and full of great horror moments, in lovingly stylish form. And if I may be so bold, it is Rupert Everett’s best film, hands down. If you are a Shudder devotee, check out Michelle Soavi’s wonderful film this month.

R.I.P. Carl Weathers

So sad to hear that Carl Weathers has passed. He was in some favorites (and I almost posted the image of Chubbs in heaven with the alligator and Abe Lincoln from HAPPY GILMORE, and either discretion or the fact that I couldn’t find a large enough image in a good format won over), and from everything I’ve seen was an all-around beloved guy. He will be missed.

In My Day, Part 87

I grew up during an era when that dam was going to break. It was just a matter of time and poor decision-making on the part of local businessmen cutting costs on materials, foremen who didn’t believe you might know more than them, and/or politicians with questionable side deals. Sure, sometimes acts of nature were to blame, but there were always the aforementioned issues making things worse.

Cute Cinema Couples, Part 47

In Robert Mandel’s terrific F/X (1986), cops Brian Dennehy and Jossie DeGuzman are perfectly adorable together in, what, one scene? Missed opportunities…

Lars von Triers' NYMPHOMANIAC

For when you like your protracted horny escapades to be rife with dark comedy and depression. Kudos.

"Jesus and His lawyer are coming back."

I can tell you from experience that having a gastroenterologist with equal senses of kindness and humor is a wonderful thing.

(The lyric in the title has nothing to do with my doctor; I heard Eels’ “Novocaine for the Soul” on the radio today and it made me feel good. I am currently listening to my favorite of their albums, SOULJACKER, while typing this.)

(And this image from A LETTER TO MOMO also has nothing to do with it, I just know that text-only posts can seem dull.)

Philip Glass Solo

A few months back the rare giddiness arrived with the news of a new Peter Gabriel album; today it took hold again, as I learned of new Philip Glass. Philip Glass Solo, just the man and his piano. And it’s everything you’d want it to be.

Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle

I’ve gone back and watched the full “Childhood” episode from the 4th series of Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle, and it’s locked in: this is one of the best comedians I’ve watched in my 59 years.

Now, the trick is: where do I find Region 1 or region-free DVD’s of the show…because I will pay good money for more of this stuff.

Stewart Lee

Last night I stumbled across a clip of a comedian chastising his audience for not getting a joke, then going on a rant about the vast body of dead comedians for whom the audience was to blame. It was kind of genius, and not just because it seemed completely off-the-cuff.

That was Stewart Lee.

So I searched him and found a 2004 special called STAND UP COMEDIAN, which was one of those shows where you realize you’ve found something really special…only I was 20 years late.

But I loved it. You can find it on YouTube.

Val Guest's THE DAY THE EARTH CAUGHT FIRE

I'm pretty sure I saw this film as a small child, when weekly sci-fi programs had my rapt attention. But admittedly, I was too young to fully grasp the horror on display.

Director Val Guest’s 1961 entry is, from this now-59-year-old’s POV, a *fucking banger* of a film. An almost constant stream of banter, often between newspaper reporters and editors working through their latest stories, as a global nightmare unfolds. In fact, it's a great example of journalism cinema. At once urgent and uncertain, the film lays down an unexpectedly thrilling and engaging foundation for all that follows in just a matter of minutes. And with it, an undercurrent of truly horrific proportions. When the ultimate truth comes to the surface, an editor's office filled with newspapermen stare drop-jawed as a worse-becomes-worst development is announced, and the film attains that level of brilliance that few science-fiction films have.

I'm not fully familiar with Guest's work...I've only seen five of his films (well, 4 1/4 if you count CASINO ROYALE appropriately). But if this one is any indication, I have, perhaps, been missing out.

A masterpiece. Log it, five stars, Letterboxd.

(I viewed the film as part of January's influx of great programs on The Criterion Channel. I highly recommend seeking it out.)