IFC Center to Show Wes Craven Horror Classics

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October 6, 2015

Hey folks! In-case you missed it, Wes Craven‘s classic horror films are coming to the Independent Film Center (IFC) this October thru December 2015 in honor of this horror master..and just in time for HALLOWEEN!!! So spread the word and spend several nights of gore and popcorn with your special someone, or even with someone you just like, and snuggle during those scary moments.

The month of October is my favorite month of all. Not only does my birthday fall squarely within it, but so does my favorite holiday: HALLOWEEN! I mean, what more could you ask for from one month? A birthday and a reason to dress up in costume without judgement. Well, except last Halloween when I was off to attend a wedding in Ohio and people with their judgmental eyes kept staring at me because I was dressed like Sally from The Nightmare Before Christmas. It was Halloween for Pete’s sake! Live a little.

Anywho, the great part about this month is that so many networks jump on the bandwagon and show lots of horror and thriller movies for all of us ghoulies out there – AMC is leader in that arena. Halloween for everyone! There’s even films out there for the kiddies – don’t forget Halloween Town! But these films are not for the kids or the faint of heart. The IFC Center will be bringing us his best offerings. The series is entitled, “Wes Craven’s Nightmares,” and will be sure to scare and entertain all that attend. The Craven film tribute schedule is below.

It’s not shocking how good Wes Craven can be…

October 9-10: The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988)
October 16-17: Red Eye (2005)
October 30-31: The Hills Have Eyes (1977)
November 6-7: Scream (1996)
November 13-14: Scream 2 (1997)
November 20-21: Scream 3: (2000)
November 25-28: A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
December 4-5: Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (1994)
December 11-12: Shocker (1989)
December 19-19: The People Under the Stairs (1991)
December 24-26: The Last House on the Left (Uncut) (1972)

Happy viewing to all you ghouls and ghoulettes out there. We miss you Wes Craven!

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Drax The Avenger? Dave Bautista Wants Avengers/Guardians Crossover

By

Darcy Reddan

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October 6, 2015

Drax the Destroyer may be reserved on screen but his real life counterpart, Dave Bautista, could not contain his excitement when the idea of a Guardians of the Galaxy/Avengers crossover was brought up.

In an interview from Yahoo!, Bautista was ecstatic and showed just how big of a geek he is (he is obviously enormous) when asked about Drax joining the Avengers.

“Yeah, come on, man,” he said. “Hell yeah. Yeah, of course I would. At the core of me is the biggest geek you’ve ever met. I’m a superhero fan first and foremost, and…of course, man, I want that to happen.”

While nothing has been confirmed, it seems as though both super squads are destined for some form of on-screen coalition. The Avengers are on a collision course with Thanos, who was the driving force in the plot of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1, as well as the father of Gamora.

“It’s rumors right now,” he said. “But, you know, I pray every day…and night, and afternoon, and after you walk out the door I’ll go pray and say, ‘Please let Drax be in The Avengers’,” he laughed. “Yeah, I hope it’ll happen.”

The rumors he is referring to is that of the current Marvel landscape which seems to be poised for a period of friction before all heroes must fight a common enemy in the ‘Infinity Wars’ which has been confirmed as a two part finale to the Avengers saga. That common enemy would be Thanos who will presumably wield the Infinity Gauntlet.

While some actors may shy away from portraying such an involved character in a film where they won’t command the spotlight, it is awesome to see that Bautista’s love for the Marvel cinematic universe transcends a hefty work schedule that comes with portraying Drax on screen.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 has been confirmed for May 5, 2017.

What are your thoughts on a potential crossover between the Guardians of the Galaxy and The Avengers? Sound off in the comments section below!

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FRIGHT FEATURES: On ‘The Monster Squad,’ and It’s Badass Prince of Darkness

By

Larry Taylor - Managing Editor

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October 6, 2015

The Monster Squad will forever be linked to The Goonies, perhaps even dismissed by some as a Goonies ripoff. True, the films have their similarities; both center on young a pre-teen boy’s club, both with their fearless leader, their cocky sidekick, and a lovable, overweight comic relief. But The Goonies was a big, bold, star-fueled creation from the minds of Steven Spielberg and director Richard Donner. It was conceived and executed as a rousing childhood adventure, full of pitfalls and pirate ships best suited for a young boy’s innocent imagination.

Meanwhile, The Monster Squad had different aspirations: to scare the shit out of twelve-year olds.

Fred Dekker’s quintessential “kids” movie goes where no kids movies would dare to go these days, to a dark and sinister world of real fright and intense, threatening danger. It could have been light on its feet and played nice with it’s versions of Universal’s Horror Canon. It opted out. The Monster Squad goes full throat to the dark side, creating some of the best, most frightening versions of these iconic characters. At least they are more unsettling than to what any sort of kid’s movie should aspire. True, Frankenstein’s Monster is a lovable lug who befriends the children, as he should be; but The Mummy is grotesque, The Creature From the Black Lagoon shockingly realistic and reptilian, The Wolf Man a ferocious and sharp creation from Stan Winston Studio.

And then there’s the film’s badass Prince of Darkness, the best, most frightening rendering of Count Dracula in the last 30 years. And it isn’t even close.

Canadian actor Duncan Regher plays The Count with such verve and commitment, it seems almost criminal to have him filling the villain’s shoes in a kid’s flick. But that’s part of the allure of The Monster Squad, it’s dedication to the monsters themselves. Especially Regher’s Dracula. He is a physically imposing Dracula, not lurking in the shadows playing up his sex appeal, but tossing dynamite like a boss and racing around town in his black hearse with chrome skull hood ornament. The Count should be cold and threatening, no matter the situation, and here Regher delivers more than what should be expected.

I can’t imagine a modern remake of The Monster Squad would have the film’s most iconic scene (outside of that classic “Wolf Man’s got nards” moment). I mean honestly, what 2015 studio version of this film would have Dracula approach a 6-year old girl, lift her off the ground by her chin, call her a bitch, and hiss out those razor teeth? It is the seminal moment in the film, near the end, underlit by that sickly green glow from the amulet, and the final confirmation that this kid’s movie isn’t going to give an inch. Regher’s Dracula is the baddest of the bad, a real threat to these pre-teens. He is the most crucial element in setting The Monster Squad apart from what it might have been.

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Old School: Chris Pratt Versus Darth Vader

By

Matthew Sardo

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October 6, 2015

Monkeys Fighting Robots was not around in 2012, but this Xbox Kinect Star Wars commercial needed to be on our website. Who knew just a few short years later Chris Pratt would be a dancing fool in front of an Infinity Gem and have velociraptors as pets.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

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F. Gary Gray To Direct ‘Fast and Furious 8’

By

Matthew Sardo

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October 6, 2015

Vin Diesel updated the cover of his Facebook page with a photo of him and filmmaker F. Gary Gray Monday night. Could this be a sign that Gray will direct Fast and Furious 8.

On Monday, Variety reported that there was a short-list of directors that included Gray, Adam Wingard, Louis Leterrier and Will Eubank.

Gray’s most recent success Straight Out of Compton has earned almost $200 million worldwide, he also directed The Italian Job. It was rumored that Gray was in the running for Marvel’s Black Panther.

Fast and Furious 8 is set to begin pre-production next month.

Posted by Vin Diesel on Monday, October 5, 2015

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Why ‘Freeheld’ Is The Most Important Movie To Come Out This Fall

By

Dewey Singleton - Film Critic

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October 5, 2015

As I was leaving the theater Thursday night, I became immediately affixed on a group of elderly ladies who were leaving alongside me because of the scowls they were wearing. We had just finished seeing a very advanced showing of Freeheld, which stars Julianne Moore and Ellen Page. Moore plays Detective Laurel Hester, who is diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer, and must fight for equality for her partner, Stacie (played by Ellen Page), in order for her to have her access to her benefits after she dies.

I immediately had this notion that somehow, they were going to bitch about the context in the film; what I did see transpire was nothing short of astonishing. The ladies approached the wonderful studio representative and told her that they loved the movie so much that it had changed their views on Gay Marriage and equality of same-sex couples. Now, I’m not going to sit here and tell you that this movie is the best movie of 2015, but I will say to you that Freeheld is the most important movie to come out thus far.

It’s a realistic look at the heart of the equality debate in America. – Peter Sollett directed Freeheld, and the final product is a compelling glimpse into the equality debate. Take a minute to think about all the movies that center around Same-Sex Couples, and how many times you have seen that stereotypical gay character just feeding into the misguided stereotype. I’m sure some critics will point towards movies like The Kids are all Right as a film that doesn’t feed the stereotype. The Kids are all Right is more Hollywood, less of what is currently transpiring today.

When you check out Freeheld, what you see is a middle-class look at what truly is going on in America. Couples are often just trying to lead a normal existence, being ridiculed either directly or indirectly by people who, quite frankly, don’t know they’re even offending anyone. Freeheld shines a spotlight on this issue. Some may think this movie is simply about Gay Marriage, but that’s too marginalizing. This movie asks, are we truly equals in 2015? My favorite line in the film comes from Stacie when she addresses the board, who has rejected them time and time again to get what married people would take for granted: “Guys we are just normal people … who live in a house… not a great house.. kind of a fixer-upper… we are not perfect… we fight .. we are just people.”

It starts a discussion that quite frankly is overdue. – In our current world, people are more willing than ever to avoid making tough discussions. When it comes to equality, you would be hard-pressed to find anyone to say men and women aren’t entitled to equal rights. But if you tossed in the caveat that those men and women were gay, you wouldn’t nearly have the same result. In Freeheld, we are left to discuss whether or not we live a in truly equal world. Are we treating everyone in an equal and loving manner no matter what their sexual orientation? Does it even truly matter what your sexual orientation is or does love matter more? In the end as the board is fighting behind closed doors, one of the board members is shouting, “Well, I can’t compromise my religious beliefs” and the other members retorts “what about your belief in the human race?”

So, yes we will have plenty of excellent movies to discuss this year, and I would imagine some of them will surpass Freeheld. Remember, there is an enormous difference between the best movie of the year and the most important movie of the year. The most important movie of the year is no question, Freeheld.

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Fear the Walking Dead: All I am Saying is, Give ‘Fear’ a Chance

By

Khuwailah Beyah

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October 5, 2015

Fear the Walking Dead is a show worth watching and The Walking Dead core audience should really give it a chance.

We, meaning the modern viewing audience, are so accustomed to having things right now. Immediate gratification is the name of the game, but what ever happened to anticipation? The build-up, the waiting to for something good or unexpected to happen in good solid story line the makes us all go, “DAMN!”

Fear the Walking Dead has a slower pace than its cousin, but I think it is a pretty solid show. It’s solid in the sense that we have only seen the aftermath of the what this virus, this epidemic has done to the human population, but we don’t see the root of how Rick, Daryl, Carol, Glenn, Maggie, Carl, or the rest of the group got to that point of running on raw instinct and doing whatever they need to do to survive. We only have part of the story with The Walking Dead series and Fear the Walking is there to fill in the blanks.

Where The Walking Dead is pure energy and a high level of people trying to live to see another day, Fear the Walking Dead shows the humanity that was lost in the wake of the spread of this horrible virus. People still believed in the government and its ability to protect us, but no one is immune from this fate. And it very interesting to see this take place and we see how the hordes of scavenger clans came to be. We see how a place like Terminus could, and did, happen. We see what survival or the need to survive will do to some human beings.

AMC may be worried a bit about how the ratings are going, but they shouldn’t be. I would hope that the powers that be at AMC will let this show play out for while. I believe that if they cancel it now it would be a detriment to their network. So many great shows have been cancelled before they have really had an opportunity to catch on, before they had chance to come into their own. And I think Fear is one of those shows.

A prime example of a show that was not given the opportunity to grow into its own is Firefly. Fox Network canceled the show before it had a chance to be seen by a wider audience – sometimes it takes some a little more time to appreciate greatness – and when they are discovered people wonder why their were not more episodes. At comic/fantasy convention Nathan Fillion, Summer Glau, Alan Tudyk, Gina Torres, and the rest of the Firefly casts are huge draws. People stand in line for hours just to meet the actors from the show and to cosplay as their favorite character.

Damian Lewis, possibly the next James Bond, and Sarah Shahi starred in the 2007 NBC drama, Life, about a cop that was falsely accused, convicted, and sentence to murder. Twelve years later he was exonerated through DNA testing and rewarded a VERY large undisclosed sum and is given his job back as a LA police officer. It was smart quirky show and it wasn’t give the time to flourish. The same can also be said about ABCs cop drama Life on Mars (2009). We must be very careful not to let Fear go the same way of those series.

Last night on Talking Dead Chris Hardwick made a good point. He said, “The civilization has to crumble. You have to get to know the characters first and then it can all, then it can all happen.” I actually agree with him. We are creating a culture that puts more importance on the “now” than quality entertainment and really understanding and getting to know a show and the characters. We are a “show me, show me, show me” kind of viewing audience. QUALITY matters!

For me The Walking Dead became a better show when we had the opportunity to learn a little more about the individuals in our core group BEFORE the “walker” apocalypse happened. In Fear we see the characters’ – Travis, Maddie, Liza, Daniel – and their humanity first, and then we will see it slowly fall away to the baser instinct to live.

So folks, just because Fear the Walking Dead is taking a little time to get to gore doesn’t mean it’s not coming. Humanity is not lost overnight, it takes time and experiences had by the living to get it to that place.

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Seth Grahame-Smith To Direct ‘The Flash’ In DC Cinematic Universe

By

Matthew Sardo

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October 5, 2015

Filmmaker and author Seth Grahame-Smith, who is best known for Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and Dark Shadows is in talks with for Warner Bros. to direct The Flash, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The Flash will be introduced in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and then be part of the ensemble cast in Justice League Part 1.

Ezra Miller has been cast as Barry Allen and Phil Lord and Christopher Miller worked on the story but have since departed the project.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice will be in theaters on March 25, 2016, Justice League Part 1 is set for a November 17, 2017 release, and The Flash will be in theaters the following year on March 3, 2018.

This is an interesting choice for Warner Bros., what do you think?

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NYCC: Dress Like Marty McFly And Get Free Pepsi Perfect

By

Matthew Sardo

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October 5, 2015

October 21, 2015 is quickly approaching and Pepsi has jumped on the Back to The Future II celebration bandwagon with a pricey bottle of Pepsi.

PepsiCo announced the promotion through USAToday:

“Fans have always been a little crazy about it,” said Lou Arbetter, PepsiCo’s senior director of marketing, about the scene in the film where a Pepsi Perfect is delivered to Michael J. Fox’s character through a futuristic pneumatic tube, “and so we wanted to take advantage of the fact that Marty travelled to the future, to this month, and wanted to actually come out with the product.”

The Pepsi Perfect bottle is a limited edition collectible — Pepsi is planning on only making 6,500 bottles. You can purchase the bottle online for $20.15, Pepsi recommends fans check out the company’s social media pages closer to the October 21 launch date to know exactly where they can purchase.

Pepsi will also be distributing 1,500 Pepsi Perfect bottles ahead of its general release during New York Comic Con this week to fans dressed as Marty McFly.

10.21.15 #TheFutureisNow #PepsiPerfect https://t.co/DCcND4SlDU

— Pepsi™ (@pepsi) October 5, 2015

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Keanu Reeves Gives Some ‘John Wick 2’ Story Details

By

Larry Taylor - Managing Editor

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October 5, 2015

Keanu Reeves recently spoke to Collider about the upcoming John Wick 2. The original film hit theaters October of last year, and was an immediate success both financially and with the critical masses. A sequel and potential franchise became inevitable, and the creatives involved are moving quickly to get this next chapter to fans.

Reeves dropped some very cryptic, Keanu-like hints regarding John Wick 2:

“I think we have a really good premise, and it’s an organic premise. It’s basically — to me there’s John Wick and then there’s John. You know, John is the married guy whose wife just died, and that five years of his life. Then there’s John Wick, who’s the mythical assassin. In this, John Wick’s past comes and infiltrates John’s life and John Wick, in a way, has to fight for John.”

That is a decidedly open-ended interpretation for John Wick 2. Directors Kolstad and Stahelski are privy to the fans and their admiration for the Hotel Continental, this magical assassin-friendly hotel where seemingly anything goes:

“Chad and the writer, Derek Kolstad, they’ve really listened to what people have enjoyed about the work and how they speak about it. So there’s definitely that influence of the other world, the Continental world, the look, the feel, what it is about the movie, what made people like it; is definitely being paid attention to and the world opens up in this chapter.”

Reeves also said filming should begin sometime at the end of this month, and he wasn’t entirely sure what the future of the franchise will bring. While the interview delivered no concrete details, it definitely gave an interesting glimpse as to direction. It should be just as badass as the original, but John Wick 2 also needs to feel new and fresh. That’s a tough high-wire act, one that derails a lot of sequels and franchises.

You can read the extended interview over at Collider.

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