My Thoughts On. . .

Moon Mourning

Undergoing drastic life changes – or should that be ‘dead’ changes – don’t fill Samantha Moon with dread anywhere near as much as the thought of being an unfit mother. Regardless of the changes happening to her, she’s determined to stay a real mom to her kids, even if it does feel like she’s being burnt at the stake every time she takes Tammy to pre-school.

At least she has the support of her husband, right? Someone who is the cheese to her chalk. The up to her down.

However, as her ‘symptoms’ develop, Samantha sees the doubt beginning to enter Danny’s eyes. Yes, despite her best efforts the bond they had is being eroded and the ‘normalcy’ she’s working so hard to maintain seems to be slipping away. For one thing, it’s a marathon effort just to stay awake in the day when the sun comes up; to take the kids to school; to get to the office; to operate as one of the most effective officers on the team. And when her partner is badly wounded because she’s too slow to react, Samantha knows she has to do something to prepare for the inevitable

Forbidden Planet

Shakespeare's The Tempest is transformed in this 1956 “Granddaddy of them all” landmark science-fiction film with – for its time – groundbreaking special effects.

A military starship crew is sent to investigate the silence of a once thriving colony on Altair-4, a faraway planet. When they arrive, they are stunned to discover two survivors: Dr. Morbius (played by Walter Pidgeon) and his daughter, Altaira (Anne Francis), who are protected by a futuristic robot – Robby.

Morbius has gained knowledge way beyond human ken, and wants his would-be rescuers gone from the planet. However, Altaira is rather taken with Commander Adama, the leader of the expedition, and after talking with the naïve girl, the commander becomes suspicious of the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the rest of the colony. Thus, the monster of the ID is unleashed, and the crew discover to their cost the true power the human mind can wield if it’s boosted by arcane alien technology.

I’m sure many of you have seen this film over the years. It was released in 1956 after all, and contained a number of innovated aspects that were later adopted into the bread and butter bulwark of its genre: It was the first science fiction film to depict humans traveling in a faster-than-light starship of their own creation; it was also the first to be set entirely on another planet in interstellar space; and finally, Robby was one of the first film robots depicted as having his own distinct personality and sense of humor. What’s more, his character was integral to the plot’s development.

Watching Forbidden Planet yet again reminded me how positively epic it is, especially as it concentrates on the terribly frightening specter of how rebellious the human mind can be, even among the most principled of individuals.

After 60 years – it’s still a wonderfully weird adventure.

Ahh classics. You’ve gotta love them!

Hot off the Pressed Lips!

Lovers in Hell

Have you embraced the latest release from the Heroes in Hell Universe?
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Only fools fall in love, and hell is filled with fools. Our damned lovers include: Christopher Marlowe and Will Shakespeare, Napoleon and Wellington, Orpheus and Eurydice, Hatshepsut and Senenmut, Abelard and Heloise, Helen and Penelope, Saint Teresa and Satan's Reaper, Madge Kendall and the Elephant Man, and more . . . all of whom pay a hellish price for indulging their affections.

Shakespeare said "To be wise and love exceeds man's might," and in Lovers in Hell, the damned in hell exceed all bounds as they search for their true loves, punish the perfidious, and avoid getting caught up in Satan's snares. In ten stories of misery and madness, hell's most loveless seek to slake the thirst that can never be quenched, and find true love amid the lies of ages.

Featuring The Devil's Trull: Satan's Reaper discovers all's unfair in love & war. . .

AND an excerpt from Hell Gate, Grim's next full-length adventure

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Go on,  indulge yourself. You know you want to

Looking Back On. . .

Dying for a Vacation

In this latest adventure set in an alternate present, one in which the Roman Empire maintained its iron grip on world events, we find change is in the air for our dynamic investigating duo, Dai and Julia Llewellyn. While Dai and his team are run off their feet investigating an empire wide theft and smuggling ring, he receives a callous threat against his wife in an effort to deter his efforts. The thing is, Julia is now pregnant with their first child. Beside himself with worry, Dai orders her away from their home in an effort to keep her safe.

Not used to being cosseted, Julia rebels against Dai’s overprotective attitude and takes a break from all the pressure by journeying to faraway Aegyptus. Little does she realize, however, doing so places her in a direct line of fire.

If that wasn’t bad enough, someone makes accusations against Dai’s family tantamount to treason. Something that if proven, could lead to a one-way ticket to the games and death!

Needless to say, the atmosphere created places our favorite crime fighting team under a great deal of stress. How on earth are they going to cope?

You’ll enjoy this latest mystery from Dai and Julia. With a clever, involved storyline, a progressive pace and littered with plots and counterplots, you’ll be rooting for the bad guys to get their comeuppance long before the arrest warrants are issued.

A welcome addition to the series.

Silence of the Lambs

I think you’ll all know this film. I loved it when it first came out and I’ve watched it a good half-dozen times since then. In this multiple Oscar-winning thriller, Jodie Foster stars as Clarice Starling, a top student at the FBI's training academy whose shrewd analyses of serial killers lands her a special assignment: the FBI is investigating a vicious murderer nicknamed Buffalo Bill, who kills young women and then removes the skin from their bodies. Jack Crawford (Scott Glenn) wants Clarice to interview Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins), a brilliant psychiatrist who is also a violent psychopath, serving life behind bars for various acts of murder and cannibalism. Crawford believes that Lecter may have insight into this case and that Starling, as an attractive young woman, may be just the bait to draw him out. As we all know by now, it works, and Lecter starts to offer up information . . . at a price! Lecter has spent years in specialized solitary confinement and barters for a change of venue, some place with a view. More disturbingly, he wants Clarice to detail certain events from her life and skillfully digs into her psyche, forcing her to reveal her innermost traumas and putting her in a position of vulnerability when she can least afford to be weak.

One of the few films to remain true to the novel’s plot, Foster and Hopkins act their socks off, introducing a slow boil to the story that is part psychological thriller, part menacing horror. It’s mesmerizing witnessing how the pair acts. So much so, that even when you’re watching it for the sixth or seventh time and know what’s coming, it still sends a tingle up your spine. Diabolically delicious and immorally intelligent, it pits the innocence of a young and inexperienced woman against the predatory lusts of a pathological killer who eats every detail as if it were an appetizer for the main course. (Even the way he wears his prison uniform – as if it’s bespoke tailored – smacks of the dominance he is still able to command from his prison cell).

But not all is well, for another dares to profane his kingdom, the deranged transvestite Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine), who places a moth's chrysalis in his victims' throats after first killing and skinning them.

Skillful direction; clinical but compassionate; expertly executed; and mouth-wateringly menacing. Without a doubt one of the most superbly crafted films you’ll ever see.

This week's thoughts on...

Convergence

Solstice Winters is an intrepid photojournalist for “The Spiritualist” a respectable up market tabloid devoted to news of a more ‘metaphysical’ nature that most people still dismiss as hocus-pocus.

The thing is, the stuff that Solstice reports on is usually true. She knows. She’s gifted that way. So gifted, in fact, that even the FBI call on her talents from time to time to assist in their investigations when the need arises. And that need becomes ever more compelling after an accident at the CERN laboratory which opens a rift, allowing a clutch of magical creatures from another dimension to run rampant in our world.

And the kicker? Though she doesn’t realize it, Solstice is one of them!

Yes, life takes a turn of the supernatural kind – and for better or worse – Solstice has to get to the bottom of a mystery that threatens the future of everything she holds dear.

With liberal doses of urban humor, great one-liners, Men in Black and evil doomsday occultists running rampant, lots of nudity . . . and a talking cat – Convergence is a thoroughly enjoyable little tale, detailing how quickly your world can turn upside down when you leats expect it.

I loved it, and look forward to more of this series.

Once Upon a Time in the West

Once Upon a Time in the West is a good old-fashioned Spaghetti Western film co-written and directed by Sergio Leone. Screened in 1968, it stars Henry Fonda as Frank, a cruel killer – Charles Bronson as his nemesis, Harmonica – Claudia Cardinale as a newly widowed homesteader – and Jason Robards as Cheyenne, a bandit. And really, it’s a story that was very nearly never told.

After directing The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Leone decided to retire from Westerns altogether, and desired to produce his film based on The Hoods, which eventually became Once Upon a Time in America. However, Leone accepted an offer from Paramount Pictures to provide access to Henry Fonda and to use a budget to produce another Western film. Inspired, he recruited Bertolucci and Argento to devise the plot of the film in 1966, and, after researching other Western films, produced the classic we see.

Note: Did you know the part of “harmonica man” was originally offered to Clint Eastwood? He turned it down, and that’s how Charles Bronson ended up in the iconic role.

Plot:

To get his hands on prime railroad land in a deserted, out-of-the-way dot on the map – Sweetwater – a crippled railroad baron, (Morton) hires a bunch of killers, led by startlingly blue-eyed aforementioned sadist, (Frank) to scare a widowed property owner – Brett McBain – into giving up his land. Frank takes things further and wipes McBain and his family out in order to reclaim the land.

However, it transpires McBain remarried a month earlier, and when his new wife Jill (Claudia Cardinale), arrives, she inherits everything instead, not realizing the future fortune she is sitting on.

For reasons that aren’t clearly explained, both Cheyenne and the lethally mysterious Harmonica take it upon themselves to look after Jill and thwart Frank's plans to seize the land. As the plot slowly develops, not only do alliances and betrayals come and go, but we’re given the impression that Harmonica guy wants Frank all to himself.

That impression is confirmed in an epic stand-off at the end where it’s revealed in flashback exactly why Harmonica has worked so hard to get Frank alone. And the music?

At times, the harmonica music is a little annoying. But during the shootout, it’s perfect. Veiled hostility. Micro-drama. Tangible suspense. The tension builds until . . . Bam! The blink-of-an-eye climax that answers all your questions.

 Innovative camera angles and attention to detail puts you right in the middle of the action too, and helps you experience the mood of what it must have been like during those brutal frontier days when the wide open expanse of America was being tamed.

Operatic. Masterful. Genius. Once Upon a Time in the West is all this, and worthy of its legend-making title

This Week's Reviews on...

Cruiser Dreams

Following on from Dream Dancer, Cruiser Dreams explores the continuing story of Shebat – Earth brat, outsider, and adoptive daughter and heir to the Kerrion Empire – and of the ongoing struggle she endures in the face of familial backbiting, intergalactic political intrigue and cosmos spanning dynastic aspirations.

But as we soon discover, it’s also a story about perspective: about embracing change or welcoming stagnation; choosing right or wrong; promoting rejection or acceptance. It’s a story where what “is” needs to be recognized, while what “might be” must still be brought into being.

Cruiserkind is evolving into more – much more – than the sum of their component parts and supremely advanced AI. The addition of the human mind and its freedom to express itself in any way it desires adds a hitherto unknown dynamic to the greater holistic “self” enjoyed by/between the ships that draws them into an entirely new narrative. One that encompasses a symphonic unity ushering them toward a higher and more complete kind of “being” than ever before.

But how to tread the minefield of this dawning new age?

Employing richly descriptive and meaningful prose, Morris is able to encompass a depth of understanding and expression that allows the reader to explore – and then savor – the full nuance of the symbiosis experienced by those brave pilots risking insanity, and their increasingly sophisticated, near sentient ships, and how that burgeoning relationship almost brings an empire to its knees.

Ethical and philosophical dilemmas abound. Is loyalty and love enough to win the day?

Find out in a superbly entertaining space opera that is as astute in its insight as it is disturbing

Upgrade:

Directed by Leigh Whannell, the screenwriter who co-created the Saw and Insidious, Upgrade is new science-fiction cyber-punk thriller about how to exact bloody revenge with cybernetic implants.

The premise:

Imagine an existence where everything – from people to houses - is fully integrated into an artificial intelligence run digital net. Enter Grey Trace, played by Logan Marshall Green, an unapologetic stick-in-the-mud who ekes out a living by repairing and restoring muscle cars for the rich and famous).  He’s the kinda guy who when his wife Asha (Melanie Vallejo) suggests they order a pizza, suggests they make it themselves from scratch instead.

Asha works for a company that makes advanced prosthetics for combat veterans. Their worlds are far apart, but she means the world to Grey. Or she does until the moment she’s shot in the head by a group of anonymous mercenaries who leave Trace paralyzed and without a clue as to their motive.

Three month after the attack, Grey goes home to an entirely different situation. This once proud “hands-on” man is incapable of doing anything for himself and is completely at the mercy of techno-nurses to cater to his every whim . . . a living nightmare. Especially as the police haven’t managed to get any further in the hunt for his wife’s killers.

However, it appears good fortune is about to shine on Grey’s gloomy world. It just so happens his last job was for a reclusive technological genius named Eron (Harrison Gilbertson). Eron has a brand new invention: STEM, a cybernetic implant capable of reconnecting the nerves in Grey’s spine and – as Grey is shocked to discover – can not only speak directly into his brain, but enhance his autonomous and motor functions as well.

Alas, Grey has to be careful. Nobody can know he got this technology inside him. And it’s here that Upgrade starts to turn dark. You see, Logan Marshall Green portrays a man who has sunk into a pit of despair remarkably well. You really do feel for him as he seethes in a pit of boiling rage at his helplessness to do anything to right a terrible wrong. It’s no wonder, then, that he succumbs to the lure of what Stem’s other enhancements can offer, by accepting its help to hunt his wife’s assailants.

The thing is, once activated, Stem is capable of acting independently of Grey’s will, and it goes on a martial arts ninja rampage while Grey – who is a decent guy – can only watch, aghast, as people are torn limb from limb in front of him by his own hands. Logan Marshall Green sells this aspect perfectly, with just the right balance of grim satisfaction at seeing the bad guys get it, and macabre repulsion at what he is capable of doing to another human being. And the one liners . . . ? Outstanding!

Inevitably, things start to snowball away from Grey and the noose tightens.

And that’s when Whannell plays his trump card. Upgrade has the ending of a quality whodunnit, concluding its narrative on a high, and catching you completely by surprise. I’m sure I’m not the only one to think, “Did I really just see that?”

Bravo – an upgrade of a move to what’s out there at the moment.

Take a Bite From This Week's Thoughts On. . .

New Moon Rising

I’ve been a fan of Samantha Moon for some years now. In an overused genre swamped with blood, J. R. Rain has managed to inject a fresh perspective into the world of vampires that carries a recognizable familiarity that appeals to us all. Samantha Moon is a devoted mom and wife; family means everything to her; her work as a Federal Agent at HUD is a somewhat humdrum affair, but hey, it brings in a steady income while her husband’s new business is finding its feet. She leads a normal life. One that’s instantly relatable. And if anything threatens the sanctity of that world, watch out, for she’s a kick-ass, pint-sized package if she has to be.

You could say, “life is good” for Samantha Moon. She’s on the track of a gang of criminals taking advantage of those in need; she survives being shot at twice within the space of a few days; everyone at work and at home has her back . . . It’s almost as if she has a guardian angel watching out for her to ensure life doesn’t get too hectic.

Well, here at last is the story describing the night her life – or is that unlife – was changed forever. Watch out underworld . . . of the criminal and paranormal variety. Things are about to get interesting.

An amusing, fast-paced little drama with bite!

Let Me In

Let Me In tells the story from the perspective of twelve-year old Owen, a boy who is relentlessly picked on at school and neglected at home as his parents are going through the process of a divorce. Desperately lonely, he spends his time plotting revenge on his middle school tormentors and during the evenings, spies on his neighbors living in nearby apartments.

A dark and moody film, Let Me In is disturbing as it portrays the very real rage and frustration youngsters can feel at being isolated. He’s easy bait for the bullies and compensates on this helplessness by shutting himself away in his room to stuff on candy and spy on the neighbors, living out a series of sadistic serial-killer fantasies in front of the mirror. In particular, he’ll brandish a knife at his reflection and hiss, “Are you scared little girl?”  (Which is what the thugs say to him in the locker rooms).

A poetic setting of the stage, for a little girl does arrive in Owen’s life: Abby – who moves in next door into an equally shabby apartment – with her single guardian.

Abby is eerily self-possessed, and despite the fact she initially tells him they can’t be friends, the two form a unique bond. When Abby's father disappears, she is left to fend for herself. Attracted to her circumstances, Owen offers to help and is still rebuffed, leading him to think she’s hiding an unthinkable secret.

She is, of course, and as the story continues, the two become allies, determined to protect each other at all costs. Trust is implicit . . . or so you think, for the film reveals Abby is a skilled manipulator – and  Own is letting himself in for a whole world of woe!

A mesmerizing performance by both youngsters, creating an intensity and sensitivity sorely lacking in other films of this genre.

In my opinion - One of the best Vampire films you will ever see!

This week's Thoughts on:

In Smoke and Mirrors we’re treated to a collection of short stories Gaiman compiled at the behest of editors, literary agents, friends, and of course, the leadings of his own personal muse, inspired as it clearly is by various events from his life.

Having now read it, I can appreciate why he’s such a fountainhead of creativity.

The introduction near the beginning explaining how each story came about helps you appreciate the diversity and scope of his ingenuity. I mean, who else do you know of who could devise a witty and enchanting tale about the Holy Grail, triggered by an academic paper of feminist language theory and its comparison/contrast to chivalry? 

Seriously!

It’s like me phoning you up out of the blue and saying, “Write me a scary story about a light bulb.” Then the next day, “I want one about a sock that never smells of cheese.” Or “Give me something sexy on the subject of global warming.”

Somehow, Gaiman does this. He takes a smorgasbord of eclectic and incongruous subjects, and blends them together into a collection that reeks of mad scientist genius, while remaining quintessentially English enough that you can forgive his eccentricity. The whole book is a rollercoaster ride of the strangely ethereal; the repulsively perverse; the sadly melancholy; and the spine-tinglingly personal – “it’s behind you” noir déjà vu.

Bizarre. Scary. Humorous. Chilling. Smoke and Mirrors gives us a startling insight into the mind of a storytelling maestro. The perfect recipe for a spot of light reading.

As many people who know me understand, I’m a sci-fi/fantasy buff. I love the genre. It affords writers one of the broadest mediums in which to tell their story. And while it’s true there’s a lot of material out there I extend the benefit of the doubt in the name of all things geek, I still don’t like putting up with crap. Talking of crap . . . in recent years, I’ve started to get a gutful of the ever-expanding entity that is Marvel.

The world used to be simpler when I was a boy and our superheroes came in comic book form. You ought to have seen my mint condition library (Including both Marvel and DC): Superman. The X Men. The Fantastic 4. The Silver Surfer. Spiderman. Thor. The Green Lantern. The Hulk. Batman. The thing is, in those days, each hero could take on a life of their own and evolve. They had the time and the spectrum to establish their own unique footprints in a superhero crowded universe and stand out.

Nowadays, you can’t turn on a TV or go to the cinema without something Marvel–ous being thrown at you. And all that history gets condensed down into two and a half hours long force-feeding bonanza . . . with the statutory appearance by Stan Lee thrown in.

Needless to say, quality suffers–as evidenced by the countless reboots. So it’s put me off seeing some of the latest offerings–Infinity Wars included–for some time.

 At my son’s insistence, I finally got around to it, and . . . ?

We have to accept the Disney-Marvel combination for what it is. A behemoth engineered for variety and inclusiveness, within a set of very distinctive parameters. They aim to please everybody, and if we don’t like it . . . well, tough!

So, I tried to pick through that. I put up with the predictable ‘Bang – crash – wallop’ action scenes sprinkled with witty, politically correct dialogue and exposition, and tried to see why my son might think I’d enjoy this latest in a long line of outings.

As most of you know, the premise of the film centers on the character of Thanos, a guy who wants to wipe out half the life in the universe. 

Whoa! Hold your horses matey! Why on earth would anyone want to do that?

Well, there’s a lot of back story you won’t know. So take a deep breath . . . I shall be brief:

Thanos is a Titan, the son of the Eternals, Mentor and Sui-San. Due to his complex heritage, he carries what’s termed, the “Deviant gene’ within him, and during his adolescence, became fascinated by nihilism and death, actually falling in love with a physical embodiment of death, “Mistress Death.”

Basically – and this cuts a lot of history down – he wants to prove his love for death by the aforementioned mass culling, reasoning it will give the universe a fresh start. He holds an advantage in this regard, because he is able to augment his great physical strength and power through advanced scientific knowledge. He starts with his own race, wiping millions out, before expanding his conquest into the universe at large. To help him fulfill his quest, he needs to collect the infinity gems.

With me so far?

Of course, the Avengers and Co all set out to stop him, with the aforementioned “Bang – crash – wallop” I mentioned. (I’ll leave those aspects to you, the viewer, because the visual effects are stunning and stupendous to behold).

Don’t get me wrong, some of it is entertaining. I especially loved Thor’s dialogue / relationship with Rocket Raccoon who he insists on calling Rabbit. (Superb).

But the Avengers and friends have their work cut out.

If you knew the back-story, you’d know Thanos is virtually unstoppable. He not only possesses abilities common to the Eternals, they’re amplified to a higher degree through a combination of his mutant–Eternal heritage, bionic amplification, mysticism, and power bestowed by the abstract entity, Death. He has superhuman strength, speed, stamina, immortality and invulnerability, can absorb and project vast quantities of cosmic energy, and is capable of telekinesis and telepathy. He can manipulate matter and live indefinitely without food, air or water, cannot die of old age, is immune to all terrestrial diseases, and has high resistance to psychic assaults. Thanos is also an accomplished hand-to-hand combatant, having been trained in the art of war on Titan.

Basically, he’s a supergenius in virtually all known fields of advanced science and has created technology far exceeding that which is found on Earth.

But the Avenger’s and friends try and stop him anyway – and fail!

And THAT’s what really appealed to me about this film. Not only do our heroes get their asses handed to them on a plate, many of them die when they are effaced from existence. (Oh yes, did I say spoiler alert?) Here you go – SPOILER ALERT!

The thing is, Thanos doesn’t sing and dance about it. Oh no! At the end, we see him rest from his labors in an isolated, reflective and melancholy mood, for his victory has cost him dearly, at a profoundly deep and personal level. And that was one of the best ‘chill up the spine moments’ I’ve seen in a long time.

If only Marvel would incorporate that sort of intensity into their films more often, the superhero world would be a better place.

Of course, there’s still part 2 to come.

(A more in-depth review will follow soon in Amazing Stories)