On what would be his 100th birthday, Marlon Brando remains synonymous not with acting, but great acting — even if this ranked list of all his performances represents what may be the most wildly uneven filmography for any talent of his caliber. But that’s the power of Brando: A handful of his performances are so great and influential they shook up the art of acting forever. Even among his lesser performances, there’s compelling work deserving of rediscovery.
In order to best exemplify what made him such a singular onscreen presence, we ranked all 39 of his films (and one TV appearance), reflecting a spectrum as wide as the man’s broad shoulders. Based on the quality of Brando’s performances rather than the overall films themselves, there are some placements that may surprise you; for example, as great as Brando is in “The Godfather,” it’s still just the fourth-best...
In order to best exemplify what made him such a singular onscreen presence, we ranked all 39 of his films (and one TV appearance), reflecting a spectrum as wide as the man’s broad shoulders. Based on the quality of Brando’s performances rather than the overall films themselves, there are some placements that may surprise you; for example, as great as Brando is in “The Godfather,” it’s still just the fourth-best...
- 4/3/2024
- by Wilson Chapman and Noel Murray
- Indiewire
Stars: Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe, Mark Ruffalo, Vicki Pepperdine, Ramy Youssef, Jerrod Carmichael | Written by Tony McNamara | Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos
Ever since he made a splash with 2009’s Dogtooth, Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos has been considered an exciting voice in cinema, resulting in accolades and award nominations for his disturbing and absurdist works. That does not change for Poor Things, an adaptation of Alasdair Gray’s 1992 novel which sees Lanthimos and writer Tony McNamara on fire once more after their previous collaboration with 2018’s The Favourite.
After committing suicide, Bella (Emma Stone) is resurrected by the scarred and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe) – who Bella refers to as God. Initially naïve, Bella’s eagerness to learn more about the outside world clashes with Godwin’s desire to keep her safe. Bella rebels by running away with slick lawyer Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo), as their continent-spanning journey leads...
Ever since he made a splash with 2009’s Dogtooth, Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos has been considered an exciting voice in cinema, resulting in accolades and award nominations for his disturbing and absurdist works. That does not change for Poor Things, an adaptation of Alasdair Gray’s 1992 novel which sees Lanthimos and writer Tony McNamara on fire once more after their previous collaboration with 2018’s The Favourite.
After committing suicide, Bella (Emma Stone) is resurrected by the scarred and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe) – who Bella refers to as God. Initially naïve, Bella’s eagerness to learn more about the outside world clashes with Godwin’s desire to keep her safe. Bella rebels by running away with slick lawyer Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo), as their continent-spanning journey leads...
- 3/21/2024
- by James Rodrigues
- Nerdly
Two-time Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins has signed on to star in Eyes in the Trees, a reimagining of H.G. Wells’ The Island of Dr. Moreau, which is co-written by “The Bay” and “Days of Our Lives” actor Mike Manning.
According to Deadline, Hopkins will portray a geneticist who has been isolated after the government stopped funding his research following the violent outbreak of one of his test subjects. Later, two renowned filmmakers and their crew embark on a journey of discovery, only to find their excursion turned into a fight for survival for themselves and the entire human race.
First published in 1896 by Wells, several adaptations of “The Island of Dr. Moreau” have since followed, including 1932’s “Island of Los Souls” and the a 1977 film “The Island of Dr. Moreau,” which starred actor Burt Lancaster. More recently, Marlon Brando and Val Kilmer starred in a 1996 film version heavily...
According to Deadline, Hopkins will portray a geneticist who has been isolated after the government stopped funding his research following the violent outbreak of one of his test subjects. Later, two renowned filmmakers and their crew embark on a journey of discovery, only to find their excursion turned into a fight for survival for themselves and the entire human race.
First published in 1896 by Wells, several adaptations of “The Island of Dr. Moreau” have since followed, including 1932’s “Island of Los Souls” and the a 1977 film “The Island of Dr. Moreau,” which starred actor Burt Lancaster. More recently, Marlon Brando and Val Kilmer starred in a 1996 film version heavily...
- 3/16/2024
- by Errol Lewis
- Soap Opera Network
The classic H.G. Wells story The Island of Dr. Moreau has been adapted multiple times in various different ways over the years – I’d personally like to recommend Island of Lost Souls, the classic 1932 adaptation starring Charles Laughton and Bela Lugosi – and Deadline reports that Anthony Hopkins has just come on board to star in the latest adaptation.
Hopkins will star in Eyes in the Trees for director Timothy Woodward Jr., being described as a “reimagining of the classic H.G. Wells novel The Island of Dr. Moreau.”
“In the film, Hopkins portrays a geneticist who has been isolated after the government stopped funding his research following the violent outbreak of one of his test subjects. Later, two renowned filmmakers and their crew embark on a journey of discovery, only to find their excursion turned into a fight for survival for not just themselves, but the entire human race.”
B. Harrison Smith...
Hopkins will star in Eyes in the Trees for director Timothy Woodward Jr., being described as a “reimagining of the classic H.G. Wells novel The Island of Dr. Moreau.”
“In the film, Hopkins portrays a geneticist who has been isolated after the government stopped funding his research following the violent outbreak of one of his test subjects. Later, two renowned filmmakers and their crew embark on a journey of discovery, only to find their excursion turned into a fight for survival for not just themselves, but the entire human race.”
B. Harrison Smith...
- 3/6/2024
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
The 1996 version of The Island of Dr. Moreau, which was directed by John Frankenheimer (who replaced Richard Stanley after half a week of filming), is a well-known disaster, but that was just one of many cinematic adaptations H.G. Wells’ 1896 novel has received over the years. That novel has inspired the 1932 classic Island of Lost Souls, 1959’s Terror Is a Man, 1972’s The Twilight People, a 1977 film that actually kept the The Island of Dr. Moreau title, the Full Moon production Dr. Moreau’s House of Pain, and more. Now we can add another title to the list, as Deadline reports that Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins has signed on to star in the The Island of Dr. Moreau reimagining Eyes in the Trees.
Timothy Woodward Jr., who most recently directed the horror comedy Til Death Do Us Part, will be directing Eyes in the Trees from a screenplay by...
Timothy Woodward Jr., who most recently directed the horror comedy Til Death Do Us Part, will be directing Eyes in the Trees from a screenplay by...
- 3/6/2024
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
Exclusive: After taking on Sigmund Freud in Sony Pictures Classics’ Freud’s Last Session, Academy Award winner has been set to star in Eyes in the Trees, a reimagining of the classic H.G. Wells novel The Island of Dr. Moreau, from director Timothy Woodward Jr.
In the film, Hopkins portrays a geneticist who has been isolated after the government stopped funding his research following the violent outbreak of one of his test subjects. Later, two renowned filmmakers and their crew embark on a journey of discovery, only to find their excursion turned into a fight for survival for not just themselves, but the entire human race.
A seminal work of science fiction published in 1896, The Island of Dr. Moreau has inspired numerous screen adaptations over the years, including 1932’s Island of Lost Souls and 1977’s The Island of Dr. Moreau starring Burt Lancaster. Most famous among them is the 1996 film of the same name,...
In the film, Hopkins portrays a geneticist who has been isolated after the government stopped funding his research following the violent outbreak of one of his test subjects. Later, two renowned filmmakers and their crew embark on a journey of discovery, only to find their excursion turned into a fight for survival for not just themselves, but the entire human race.
A seminal work of science fiction published in 1896, The Island of Dr. Moreau has inspired numerous screen adaptations over the years, including 1932’s Island of Lost Souls and 1977’s The Island of Dr. Moreau starring Burt Lancaster. Most famous among them is the 1996 film of the same name,...
- 3/6/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
[Editor’s Note: This list was originally published in May 2016 and has since been updated.]
So…what is sci-fi? It’s not the easiest question to answer when “sci-fi elements” permeate so many of the biggest blockbusters: thought-provoking genre concepts flattened into one-size-fits-all franchise fodder that make countless titles “feel” and, on occasion, even look the same.
Yes, science fiction is rooted in profound origins, examining humanity’s deep-seated fear of itself and the intimidating possibility of worlds unknown. But the last two decades have seen a metaphoric rush on sci-fi storytelling that’s left the once niche subgenre a supersaturated movie market. On the one hand, that’s produced an onslaught of sci-fi(ish) titles that aren’t always up to snuff. But on the other, it’s prompted some of the best sci-fi films ever made. Masterworks like “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and “Nope” both arrived in the past two years, and top our list at number five and number eight respectively.
So…what is sci-fi? It’s not the easiest question to answer when “sci-fi elements” permeate so many of the biggest blockbusters: thought-provoking genre concepts flattened into one-size-fits-all franchise fodder that make countless titles “feel” and, on occasion, even look the same.
Yes, science fiction is rooted in profound origins, examining humanity’s deep-seated fear of itself and the intimidating possibility of worlds unknown. But the last two decades have seen a metaphoric rush on sci-fi storytelling that’s left the once niche subgenre a supersaturated movie market. On the one hand, that’s produced an onslaught of sci-fi(ish) titles that aren’t always up to snuff. But on the other, it’s prompted some of the best sci-fi films ever made. Masterworks like “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and “Nope” both arrived in the past two years, and top our list at number five and number eight respectively.
- 3/5/2024
- by Wilson Chapman
- Indiewire
Scream Factory has announced a fresh new wave of upcoming releases today, with the new collection being led by a Collector’s Edition Blu-ray for the 2009 fan favorite Orphan.
Bring Esther home when Orphan hits Blu-ray May 14. Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman) is taken in by the loving Kate (Vera Farmiga) & John (Peter Sarsgaard) in the twisty thriller.
Scream Factory also announced infamous 1996 film The Island of Dr. Moreau for Collector’s Edition Blu-ray release, with the release date set for May 21, 2024.
“On a remote island in the South Pacific, Dr. Moreau uses the key of science to unlock the gates of Hell.” Val Kilmer, David Thewlis, Fairuza Balk & Marlon Brando star.
The Osgood Perkins-directed Gretel & Hansel (2020) is coming to 4K Ultra HD on May 21 as well. In the arthouse take on the classic tale, “A young girl leads her little brother into a dark wood in a desperate search for food and work,...
Bring Esther home when Orphan hits Blu-ray May 14. Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman) is taken in by the loving Kate (Vera Farmiga) & John (Peter Sarsgaard) in the twisty thriller.
Scream Factory also announced infamous 1996 film The Island of Dr. Moreau for Collector’s Edition Blu-ray release, with the release date set for May 21, 2024.
“On a remote island in the South Pacific, Dr. Moreau uses the key of science to unlock the gates of Hell.” Val Kilmer, David Thewlis, Fairuza Balk & Marlon Brando star.
The Osgood Perkins-directed Gretel & Hansel (2020) is coming to 4K Ultra HD on May 21 as well. In the arthouse take on the classic tale, “A young girl leads her little brother into a dark wood in a desperate search for food and work,...
- 3/4/2024
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
Italy’s Torino Film Festival will celebrate the centennial of Marlon Brando’s birth with a 24-title retrospective of films featuring the groundbreaking two-time Oscar winner, known for his naturalistic acting style and rebellious streak.
The Brando retro will be “the backbone” of the fest, according to its new artistic director, Italian actor/director Giulio Base. Accordingly, an image of Brando – photographed when he was shooting Bernardo Bertolucci’s “Last Tango in Paris” – is featured on the poster for the fest’s upcoming 42nd edition, which will run Nov. 22-30.
Torino is Italy’s preeminent event for young directors and indie cinema, and is where Matteo Garrone and Paolo Sorrentino screened their first works. The festival’s lineup will be announced at a later date.
“As an actor, Brando has always been my guiding star and I had been wondering for a while – since way before being appointed at Torino...
The Brando retro will be “the backbone” of the fest, according to its new artistic director, Italian actor/director Giulio Base. Accordingly, an image of Brando – photographed when he was shooting Bernardo Bertolucci’s “Last Tango in Paris” – is featured on the poster for the fest’s upcoming 42nd edition, which will run Nov. 22-30.
Torino is Italy’s preeminent event for young directors and indie cinema, and is where Matteo Garrone and Paolo Sorrentino screened their first works. The festival’s lineup will be announced at a later date.
“As an actor, Brando has always been my guiding star and I had been wondering for a while – since way before being appointed at Torino...
- 2/27/2024
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Like most movies, The Invisible Man travelled a long and winding road to the silver screen, and perhaps longer and more winding than most. As biographer James Curtis put it in his book James Whale: A New World of Gods and Monsters, “The gestation of The Invisible Man was the lengthiest and most convoluted of all of James Whale’s films. It involved four directors, nine writers, six treatments, and ten separate screenplays—all for a film that emerged very much in harmony with the book on which it was based.” It was first suggested as a possible follow-up to Dracula (1931), perhaps as a vehicle for new star Bela Lugosi, but was dropped in favor of Frankenstein (1931) due to the complicated special effects it would require. After Frankenstein was an even bigger success, both director James Whale and star Boris Karloff were immediately attached to The Invisible Man and several...
- 12/21/2023
- by Brian Keiper
- bloody-disgusting.com
Fan favorite comics author Scott Snyder is jumping back into the horror field, this is time with a three-issue mini-series for upstart publisher Dstlry.
Titled White Boat, the comic will reteam the writer, who became a superstar thanks to his Batman work for in DC in the 2010s, with artist Francesco Francavilla. The two collaborated on a horror mini-series titled Night of the Ghoul, which is now set up for adaptation at 20th Century Studios with 21 Laps producing.
According to the publisher, the boats in White Boats are the mega-yachts that the super-rich use to traverse the globe. They are floating islands where your every desire can be fulfilled. Getting invited on board should be a dream come true…that is, until the crew traps and transports its guests to a remote island where secret cults have existed for millennia, working on something called “The Human Project.”
“I’ve always...
Titled White Boat, the comic will reteam the writer, who became a superstar thanks to his Batman work for in DC in the 2010s, with artist Francesco Francavilla. The two collaborated on a horror mini-series titled Night of the Ghoul, which is now set up for adaptation at 20th Century Studios with 21 Laps producing.
According to the publisher, the boats in White Boats are the mega-yachts that the super-rich use to traverse the globe. They are floating islands where your every desire can be fulfilled. Getting invited on board should be a dream come true…that is, until the crew traps and transports its guests to a remote island where secret cults have existed for millennia, working on something called “The Human Project.”
“I’ve always...
- 12/18/2023
- by Borys Kit
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Stars: Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe, Mark Ruffalo, Vicki Pepperdine, Ramy Youssef, Jerrod Carmichael | Written by Tony McNamara | Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos
Ever since he made a splash with 2009’s Dogtooth, Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos has been considered an exciting voice in cinema, resulting in accolades and award nominations for his disturbing and absurdist works. That does not change for Poor Things, an adaptation of Alasdair Gray’s 1992 novel which sees Lanthimos and writer Tony McNamara on fire once more after their previous collaboration with 2018’s The Favourite.
After committing suicide, Bella (Emma Stone) is resurrected by the scarred and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe) – who Bella refers to as God. Initially naïve, Bella’s eagerness to learn more about the outside world clashes with Godwin’s desire to keep her safe. Bella rebels by running away with slick lawyer Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo), as their continent-spanning journey leads...
Ever since he made a splash with 2009’s Dogtooth, Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos has been considered an exciting voice in cinema, resulting in accolades and award nominations for his disturbing and absurdist works. That does not change for Poor Things, an adaptation of Alasdair Gray’s 1992 novel which sees Lanthimos and writer Tony McNamara on fire once more after their previous collaboration with 2018’s The Favourite.
After committing suicide, Bella (Emma Stone) is resurrected by the scarred and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe) – who Bella refers to as God. Initially naïve, Bella’s eagerness to learn more about the outside world clashes with Godwin’s desire to keep her safe. Bella rebels by running away with slick lawyer Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo), as their continent-spanning journey leads...
- 11/2/2023
- by James Rodrigues
- Nerdly
On Friday nights, IndieWire After Dark takes a feature-length beat to honor fringe cinema in the streaming age.
First, the spoiler-free pitch for one editor’s midnight movie pick — something weird and wonderful from any age of film that deserves our memorializing.
Then, the spoiler-filled aftermath as experienced by the unwitting editor attacked by this week’s recommendation.
The Pitch: This Is What You Get When Alpaca Etiquette Is Ignored
Every time I watch “Color Out of Space” I remember to celebrate the fact that none of my current responsibilities involve caring for alpacas (for either domestic or commercial purposes). Despite the off-brand llamas’ unofficial status as the Rolls Royce of even-toed ungulate mammals, Richard Stanley’s 2019 horror film makes raising them seem like an inconvenience that rivals the appearance of indescribable cosmic evils. Who on Earth has the time to examine unpasteurized alpaca milk for the presence of fennel?...
First, the spoiler-free pitch for one editor’s midnight movie pick — something weird and wonderful from any age of film that deserves our memorializing.
Then, the spoiler-filled aftermath as experienced by the unwitting editor attacked by this week’s recommendation.
The Pitch: This Is What You Get When Alpaca Etiquette Is Ignored
Every time I watch “Color Out of Space” I remember to celebrate the fact that none of my current responsibilities involve caring for alpacas (for either domestic or commercial purposes). Despite the off-brand llamas’ unofficial status as the Rolls Royce of even-toed ungulate mammals, Richard Stanley’s 2019 horror film makes raising them seem like an inconvenience that rivals the appearance of indescribable cosmic evils. Who on Earth has the time to examine unpasteurized alpaca milk for the presence of fennel?...
- 10/21/2023
- by Christian Zilko and Alison Foreman
- Indiewire
Many genre figures have had biographical films done about them, Boris Karloff, Kane Hodder, and Robert Englund just to name a few. But I Am Monsters! is a little different from the rest. It’s a filmed adaptation of the autobiographical one-man show of the same name by Nicholas Vince.
For those for whom the name doesn’t ring a bell, Vince played Chatterer in Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II. That was the start of a long string of films that include another of Clive Barker’s films, Nightbreed, as well as films as diverse as The Black Gloves, They’re Outside and Fuck You Immortality. Coincidentally, his most recent film, How to Kill Monsters, also made its debut at this year’s FrightFest.
After a collection of home movie clips and a brief recap of his introduction to performing, he takes the stage and tells about landing his first role,...
For those for whom the name doesn’t ring a bell, Vince played Chatterer in Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II. That was the start of a long string of films that include another of Clive Barker’s films, Nightbreed, as well as films as diverse as The Black Gloves, They’re Outside and Fuck You Immortality. Coincidentally, his most recent film, How to Kill Monsters, also made its debut at this year’s FrightFest.
After a collection of home movie clips and a brief recap of his introduction to performing, he takes the stage and tells about landing his first role,...
- 8/29/2023
- by Jim Morazzini
- Nerdly
Spoiler Alert: This contains spoilers from FX’s “What We Do in the Shadows” Season 5, Episode 7 now streaming on Hulu.
The human-animal hybrid has been done countless times before, so when “What We Do in the Shadows” prosthetics designer Paul Jones was tasked with bringing some hybrid creatures to the FX comedy, his approach was “to ground the designs in something that was realistic, and not funny.”
The latest episode, aptly titled “Hybrid Creatures,” sees Laszlo’s (Matt Berry) experiments yield some new results.
Over the course of the season, the Staten Island vampire has been curious as to why Guillermo (Harvey Guillén) — after taking things into his own hands finally to become a vampire — has had trouble transforming. It’s taking far too long, weeks in fact, and Guillermo can still go out in broad daylight.
Laszlo secures Guillermo’s DNA, and starts injecting frogs — and then stray animals,...
The human-animal hybrid has been done countless times before, so when “What We Do in the Shadows” prosthetics designer Paul Jones was tasked with bringing some hybrid creatures to the FX comedy, his approach was “to ground the designs in something that was realistic, and not funny.”
The latest episode, aptly titled “Hybrid Creatures,” sees Laszlo’s (Matt Berry) experiments yield some new results.
Over the course of the season, the Staten Island vampire has been curious as to why Guillermo (Harvey Guillén) — after taking things into his own hands finally to become a vampire — has had trouble transforming. It’s taking far too long, weeks in fact, and Guillermo can still go out in broad daylight.
Laszlo secures Guillermo’s DNA, and starts injecting frogs — and then stray animals,...
- 8/18/2023
- by Jazz Tangcay
- Variety Film + TV
Note: This story contains spoilers from “What We Do in the Shadows” Season 5, Episode 7.
There’s an unofficial rule on the set of “What We Do in the Shadows:” no fully CGI characters. So when Paul Jones, the series’ longtime prosthetics and animatronics designer, heard that there would be an episode filled with hybrid Guillermo creatures, he knew he was in for a challenge.
“Paul [Simms] knew right away that this was a lot of work for anybody, and he was able to schedule that toward the end of filming. I actually had probably about eight weeks lead up to it,” Jones told TheWrap.
That eight-week runway allowed for a lot of testing on one of the wildest episodes of the FX comedy series. All season long, Laszlo (Matt Berry) has been experimenting on Guillermo (Harvey Guillén), trying to determine what it means that his housemate is both a vampire...
There’s an unofficial rule on the set of “What We Do in the Shadows:” no fully CGI characters. So when Paul Jones, the series’ longtime prosthetics and animatronics designer, heard that there would be an episode filled with hybrid Guillermo creatures, he knew he was in for a challenge.
“Paul [Simms] knew right away that this was a lot of work for anybody, and he was able to schedule that toward the end of filming. I actually had probably about eight weeks lead up to it,” Jones told TheWrap.
That eight-week runway allowed for a lot of testing on one of the wildest episodes of the FX comedy series. All season long, Laszlo (Matt Berry) has been experimenting on Guillermo (Harvey Guillén), trying to determine what it means that his housemate is both a vampire...
- 8/18/2023
- by Kayla Cobb
- The Wrap
Robert De Niro is 80 years old, and what better way to celebrate his birthday than with a look back at one of his most underrated classics: Ronin. John Frankenheimer’s career seemed to reach its nadir when he directed the ill-conceived remake of The Island of Dr. Moreau. Still, someone in Hollywood must have been impressed by how he held that tortured project together, as two years later, he would release 1998’s Ronin, boasting an all-star cast including Robert DeNiro, Sean Bean and Jean Reno. This action flick about a group of disavowed spies working as mercenaries wound up being a masterclass in action filmmaking from the director who helped invent the genre with The Train, Black Sunday, Grand Prix, and so many more.
While a modest box office hit, Ronin has become something of a classic, famed for its spectacular car chases through the streets of Paris. It’s...
While a modest box office hit, Ronin has become something of a classic, famed for its spectacular car chases through the streets of Paris. It’s...
- 8/17/2023
- by Chris Bumbray
- JoBlo.com
Stars: Cam Gigandet, Natalie Burn, Ser’Darius Blain, Jason Patric, Nicole Arlyn, Orlando Jones, Pancho Moler, D.Y. Sao | Written by Chad Law, Shane Dax Taylor | Directed by Timothy Woodward Jr.
As Til Death Do Us Part opens The Best Man sits in a pew working on his speech as upbeat music plays in the background. That’s followed by similar glimpses of other wedding party members prepping for the ceremony. A flashback to The Bride and Groom, nobody in this film has a name, on vacation serves to reinforce the happy image.
But Til Death Do Us Part isn’t a Hallmark Channel rom-com or Lifetime Channel thriller. Because when The Bride gets cold feet and bails on the wedding, we find out everyone involved in the ceremony is a highly skilled assassin. Now the stood-up Groom wants more than just his ring back, and their employer doesn’t take resignations well.
As Til Death Do Us Part opens The Best Man sits in a pew working on his speech as upbeat music plays in the background. That’s followed by similar glimpses of other wedding party members prepping for the ceremony. A flashback to The Bride and Groom, nobody in this film has a name, on vacation serves to reinforce the happy image.
But Til Death Do Us Part isn’t a Hallmark Channel rom-com or Lifetime Channel thriller. Because when The Bride gets cold feet and bails on the wedding, we find out everyone involved in the ceremony is a highly skilled assassin. Now the stood-up Groom wants more than just his ring back, and their employer doesn’t take resignations well.
- 8/3/2023
- by Jim Morazzini
- Nerdly
While much of the initial fanbase that helped turn Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles into a pop culture phenomenon aged out following the original cartoon (1987-1996) and live action movies (1990-1993), the property has continued to flourish with reboots in TV, film, and comics every few years.
If the upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem has you interested in exploring various versions of Tmnt, there’s no better place for a horror fan to start than Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series that aired for five seasons between 2012 and 2017.
While there’s an inherent connection to horror in the various mutants and monsters that pop up throughout the franchise, no rendition embraces the genre nearly as much as this one. In addition to references to classics like Alien, Friday the 13th, and The Evil Dead, the series employed several notable horror actors throughout its 124-episode run.
Here are...
If the upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem has you interested in exploring various versions of Tmnt, there’s no better place for a horror fan to start than Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series that aired for five seasons between 2012 and 2017.
While there’s an inherent connection to horror in the various mutants and monsters that pop up throughout the franchise, no rendition embraces the genre nearly as much as this one. In addition to references to classics like Alien, Friday the 13th, and The Evil Dead, the series employed several notable horror actors throughout its 124-episode run.
Here are...
- 8/2/2023
- by Alex DiVincenzo
- bloody-disgusting.com
One of the things I really enjoy about researching articles for /Film is finding out about all the different actors who were up for famous parts. Superhero movies are usually pretty good value in that respect and some of my favorite alternative casting choices come from the "Batman" franchise.
In the '80s, Jack Nicholson was always the studio's first choice to play the Joker in Tim Burton's blockbusting "Batman," but there were also some other great names in the frame at one point or another. As much as I enjoy Nicholson's performance, I would have loved to see John Lithgow in the part. I think he would have made the character far more grotesque but, unfortunately, he talked Burton out of casting him during an audition. Tim Curry and Ray Liotta would have also brought a totally different energy to the role.
For "Batman Returns," the list of...
In the '80s, Jack Nicholson was always the studio's first choice to play the Joker in Tim Burton's blockbusting "Batman," but there were also some other great names in the frame at one point or another. As much as I enjoy Nicholson's performance, I would have loved to see John Lithgow in the part. I think he would have made the character far more grotesque but, unfortunately, he talked Burton out of casting him during an audition. Tim Curry and Ray Liotta would have also brought a totally different energy to the role.
For "Batman Returns," the list of...
- 5/14/2023
- by Lee Adams
- Slash Film
Bloody Disgusting has learned this week that special effects artist Bill Basso, whose work can be seen in a handful of genre favorites, passed on May 4, 2023 at the age of 60 years old.
“William Anthony Basso Jr. was a sculptor, painter, and special effects makeup artist. He was born on December 8, 1962, in Manalapan, and attended Christian Brothers Academy for high school and Parsons School of Design for college,” his obituary reads.
Primarily working for the legendary Stan Winston Studio throughout the 1990s, Bill Basso’s special effects credits include “Monsters,” Tremors, Bride of Re-Animator, Edward Scissorhands, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Batman Returns, Jurassic Park, Interview with the Vampire, Congo, The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Relic, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Creature, Lake Placid, Inspector Gadget, Lost Souls, and Reign of Fire.
Basso was also on the special effects makeup crew for Tales from the Darkside: The Movie, and he did puppeteer work on Predator 2,...
“William Anthony Basso Jr. was a sculptor, painter, and special effects makeup artist. He was born on December 8, 1962, in Manalapan, and attended Christian Brothers Academy for high school and Parsons School of Design for college,” his obituary reads.
Primarily working for the legendary Stan Winston Studio throughout the 1990s, Bill Basso’s special effects credits include “Monsters,” Tremors, Bride of Re-Animator, Edward Scissorhands, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Batman Returns, Jurassic Park, Interview with the Vampire, Congo, The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Relic, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Creature, Lake Placid, Inspector Gadget, Lost Souls, and Reign of Fire.
Basso was also on the special effects makeup crew for Tales from the Darkside: The Movie, and he did puppeteer work on Predator 2,...
- 5/8/2023
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
Potential spoilers (but nothing you haven't seen in the trailers) follow.
The central villain of James Gunn's "Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3" is a figure called the High Evolutionary played by Chukwudi Iwuji. As his name implies, the High Evolutionary is hellbent on directing evolution toward an ill-defined peaceful, perfect society. Using Dr. Moreau-like surgery, and 1993-era-"Super Mario Bros."-style hyper-evolution pods, the villain has been altering kidnapped Earth mammals, transforming them into the humanoid citizens of his own constructed planet called Counter-Earth.
Visually, Counter-Earth is a parody of Earth. The High Evolutionary admired Earth's art and infrastructure but hated its ignorance and bigotry. His goal is to recreate Earth, but populated by genetically enhanced animal people with no propensity for crime and violence. He doesn't lay out the parameters for his experiment, but it involves building entire planets, seeding them with an entire civilization of billions,...
The central villain of James Gunn's "Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3" is a figure called the High Evolutionary played by Chukwudi Iwuji. As his name implies, the High Evolutionary is hellbent on directing evolution toward an ill-defined peaceful, perfect society. Using Dr. Moreau-like surgery, and 1993-era-"Super Mario Bros."-style hyper-evolution pods, the villain has been altering kidnapped Earth mammals, transforming them into the humanoid citizens of his own constructed planet called Counter-Earth.
Visually, Counter-Earth is a parody of Earth. The High Evolutionary admired Earth's art and infrastructure but hated its ignorance and bigotry. His goal is to recreate Earth, but populated by genetically enhanced animal people with no propensity for crime and violence. He doesn't lay out the parameters for his experiment, but it involves building entire planets, seeding them with an entire civilization of billions,...
- 5/3/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Marlon Brando is one of the most iconic actors from the Golden Age of Hollywood. Known for his intense acting style and tendency to take on roles that allowed him to play rebellious characters, he first rose to fame in the ’50s, following his portrayal of Stanley Kowalski in the movie A Streetcar Named Desire. Later on in his career, Brando developed a reputation for eccentricity, which carried over to the sets of the movie projects he worked on. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the stories relating to his 1996 film, The Island of Dr. Moreau, where Brando is said to have behaved in a truly outrageous fashion on set, including wearing all-white face paint and having an ice bucket strapped to the top of his head.
Marlon Brando was an infamous Hollywood bad boy Marlon Brando (1924-2004), American actor and director, on March 16, 1965. | Jean-Regis Rouston/Roger Viollet via...
Marlon Brando was an infamous Hollywood bad boy Marlon Brando (1924-2004), American actor and director, on March 16, 1965. | Jean-Regis Rouston/Roger Viollet via...
- 4/2/2023
- by Christina Nunn
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
In a 2020 interview with the New York Times Magazine, actor Val Kilmer acknowledged his unfortunate reputation for being "difficult." Although possessed of movie star good looks, handily backed up by a great deal of talent and devotion to his craft, Kilmer often found himself butting heads with executives and studio honchos over his perceived ego. He admitted that had "alienated the head of every major studio," but only out of an attempt to empower actors and directors over studios, and, in his words, "attempt to breathe Suzukian life into a myriad of Hollywood moments." He further confessed as much in Ting Poo's and Leo Scott's 2021 biographical documentary "Val," when he admitted to behaving poorly. He then amended that more accurate adverbs might be "bizarrely" and "brazenly."
But for years, Kilmer couldn't shake his rep. Many stories of Kilmer's bad behavior notoriously came from the utter clusterf*** that was John Frankenheimer...
But for years, Kilmer couldn't shake his rep. Many stories of Kilmer's bad behavior notoriously came from the utter clusterf*** that was John Frankenheimer...
- 3/24/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
The prolific producer of more than 90 movies across seven decades, it’s being reported today that Edward R. Pressman passed away on Tuesday in Los Angeles at the age of 79.
Edward Pressman’s notable genre credits include American Psycho and The Crow, as well as genre-spanning films including Conan the Barbarian, Judge Dredd, Bad Lieutenant, Phantom of the Paradise, Sisters, The Island of Dr. Moreau, and the slasher Christmas Evil.
Pressman also produced films including Crimewave, Masters of the Universe, Wall Street, Blue Steel, Street Fighter, Wendigo, Party Monster, Thank You for Smoking, and She Will (2022).
Variety notes, “Pressman was born in New York to Jack and Lynn Pressman, the founders of Pressman Toy. After studying philosophy at Stanford, he went to grad school at the London School of Economics, where he met director Paul Williams. The filmmakers came to Hollywood, where they secured a two-picture deal from United Artists.
Edward Pressman’s notable genre credits include American Psycho and The Crow, as well as genre-spanning films including Conan the Barbarian, Judge Dredd, Bad Lieutenant, Phantom of the Paradise, Sisters, The Island of Dr. Moreau, and the slasher Christmas Evil.
Pressman also produced films including Crimewave, Masters of the Universe, Wall Street, Blue Steel, Street Fighter, Wendigo, Party Monster, Thank You for Smoking, and She Will (2022).
Variety notes, “Pressman was born in New York to Jack and Lynn Pressman, the founders of Pressman Toy. After studying philosophy at Stanford, he went to grad school at the London School of Economics, where he met director Paul Williams. The filmmakers came to Hollywood, where they secured a two-picture deal from United Artists.
- 1/18/2023
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
Edward R. Pressman, the prolific Hollywood indie producer behind Wall Street, Badlands, American Psycho, Das Boot and The Crow, among dozens of others, died Tuesday in Los Angeles. He was 79.
His death was confirmed to Deadline his company, Pressman Films.
Related Story Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2023: Photo Gallery & Obituaries Related Story Bruce Gowers Dies: Groundbreaking Music Video Director Of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" Was 82 Related Story Jeff Shuter Dies: Producer Of Motion Comics For "Invincible" & "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" Was 41
With dozens of acclaimed and impactful films and TV movies stretching back to the late 1960s and including now-classics like Conan the Barbarian, Talk Radio, Bad Lieutenant and Brian De Palma’s 1972 Sisters, Pressman was noted for discovering talented directors early in their careers. In addition to Sisters he produced De Palma’s Phantom of the Paradise, and, with the acclaimed 1973 TV-movie Badlands, Terrence Malick. Jason Reitman made his...
His death was confirmed to Deadline his company, Pressman Films.
Related Story Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2023: Photo Gallery & Obituaries Related Story Bruce Gowers Dies: Groundbreaking Music Video Director Of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" Was 82 Related Story Jeff Shuter Dies: Producer Of Motion Comics For "Invincible" & "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" Was 41
With dozens of acclaimed and impactful films and TV movies stretching back to the late 1960s and including now-classics like Conan the Barbarian, Talk Radio, Bad Lieutenant and Brian De Palma’s 1972 Sisters, Pressman was noted for discovering talented directors early in their careers. In addition to Sisters he produced De Palma’s Phantom of the Paradise, and, with the acclaimed 1973 TV-movie Badlands, Terrence Malick. Jason Reitman made his...
- 1/18/2023
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Oliver Stone was born in 1946. Jim Morrison was born in 1943. Stone was 19 when The Doors first formed in 1965. Morrison was 22. By 1991, a 45-year-old Stone had established himself as a notable and hard-striking American Boomer auteur with films like "Platoon," "Wall Street," and "Born on the Fourth of July." By 1991, Morrison had been dead for 20 years.
Stone's wild, drug-soaked biopic "The Doors" was released to modest success and a warm critical response (the film currently holds a mere 57 approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes). Using multiple film formats and a freewheeling narrative, "The Doors" certainly captured the sweaty, drugged-out experience of attending a concert in the late 1960s, but didn't offer too much beyond the death wish-inflected arc possessed by the band's doomed lead singer.
Morrison was played by Val Kilmer, a rising star at the time with comedy hits like "Top Secret!" and "Real Genius," as well as blockbusters like "Top Gun" and "Willow,...
Stone's wild, drug-soaked biopic "The Doors" was released to modest success and a warm critical response (the film currently holds a mere 57 approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes). Using multiple film formats and a freewheeling narrative, "The Doors" certainly captured the sweaty, drugged-out experience of attending a concert in the late 1960s, but didn't offer too much beyond the death wish-inflected arc possessed by the band's doomed lead singer.
Morrison was played by Val Kilmer, a rising star at the time with comedy hits like "Top Secret!" and "Real Genius," as well as blockbusters like "Top Gun" and "Willow,...
- 12/9/2022
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
John Leguizamo is back on the big screen with The Menu and he recently opened up about who he based his character on.
Leguizamo plays the character of Georgie Diaz, an action star past his prime. To get into the mindset of the fictional character, the Encanto voice actor got inspiration from Steven Seagal.
“I’ve met lots of these stars like that, maybe before they were washed up,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “I mean, now they’re washed up. I kind of based mine on Steven Seagal. I had a bad run-in with him. We did a movie together. It was Executive Decision. He’s kind of a horrible human.”
Executive Decision is a 1996 film directed by Stuart Baird that starred Kurt Russell, Halle Berry, Leguizamo and Seagal, among others. The film has a 63 Rotten Tomatoes score and earned Seagal a Razzie Award in the Worst Supporting Actor category...
Leguizamo plays the character of Georgie Diaz, an action star past his prime. To get into the mindset of the fictional character, the Encanto voice actor got inspiration from Steven Seagal.
“I’ve met lots of these stars like that, maybe before they were washed up,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “I mean, now they’re washed up. I kind of based mine on Steven Seagal. I had a bad run-in with him. We did a movie together. It was Executive Decision. He’s kind of a horrible human.”
Executive Decision is a 1996 film directed by Stuart Baird that starred Kurt Russell, Halle Berry, Leguizamo and Seagal, among others. The film has a 63 Rotten Tomatoes score and earned Seagal a Razzie Award in the Worst Supporting Actor category...
- 11/20/2022
- by Armando Tinoco
- Deadline Film + TV
Richard Stanley's sci-fi Lovecraftian horror, "Color Out of Space," marked a comeback for the director after a span of 20 years. Best known for "Hardware" and "Dust Devils," which morphed into cult classics years after their release, Stanley largely stepped away from the industry in the '90s following his negative experiences as the director of "The Island of Dr. Moreau." His 2019 movie is an adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's short story, "The Color Out of Space," and was intended to be the first film in a working trilogy of Lovecraft-based movies, with "The Dunwich Horror" being the next project.
"Color Out of Space" is a compelling entry in...
The post Steven Spielberg's True Influence On Color Out of Space appeared first on /Film.
"Color Out of Space" is a compelling entry in...
The post Steven Spielberg's True Influence On Color Out of Space appeared first on /Film.
- 6/29/2022
- by Debopriyaa Dutta
- Slash Film
Hello, dear readers! This week’s batch of horror and sci-fi home media releases has a lot of fun offerings, both new and old. If you’re looking to catch up on some recent genre entertainment, there are plenty of options headed to both Blu-ray and DVD this Tuesday, including Wyrmwood: Apocalypse, Death Valley, Kicking Blood, and Slasher: Flesh and Bone. Scream Factory is also giving both The Craft and Escape From New York the 4K treatment this week, and if you’re looking for some cult titles, both Girls Nite Out and Without Warning are headed to Blu-ray on May 17th as well.
The Craft: Collector’s Edition 4K
Sarah has always been different. So as the newcomer at St. Benedict's Academy, she immediately falls in with high school outsiders. But there's something different about her new friends, and it's not just that they won't settle for being a group of powerless misfits.
The Craft: Collector’s Edition 4K
Sarah has always been different. So as the newcomer at St. Benedict's Academy, she immediately falls in with high school outsiders. But there's something different about her new friends, and it's not just that they won't settle for being a group of powerless misfits.
- 5/16/2022
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
Despite its reputation as one of the most notorious flops of the '90s, "The Island of Dr. Moreau" almost passes as a watchable movie. It's nicely shot, the makeup effects are terrific, and on a surface level, it appears to be a standard Hollywood sci-fi horror. But then, right from the opening scene, something seems very off.
The first clue is the voice over from David Thewlis, parachuted in at the last moment to play the lead. With his flat Lancashire accent jibing badly against the glossy photography, it feels like a skit parodying Hollywood voice overs. That's just for fun, because...
The post Marlon Brando's Demands on Island of Dr Moreau Sent Production Spiraling Out of Control appeared first on /Film.
The first clue is the voice over from David Thewlis, parachuted in at the last moment to play the lead. With his flat Lancashire accent jibing badly against the glossy photography, it feels like a skit parodying Hollywood voice overs. That's just for fun, because...
The post Marlon Brando's Demands on Island of Dr Moreau Sent Production Spiraling Out of Control appeared first on /Film.
- 4/13/2022
- by Lee Adams
- Slash Film
Exclusive: Paramount Pictures is in early development on an untitled H.G. Wells project from Wes Ball’s OddBall Entertainment, under its Paramount Players label.
While specific information on the Wells novel at its center hasn’t been disclosed, we hear that it will be a very loose adaptation stemming from the “mythology” that surrounds one of the writer’s most iconic titles. The film’s logline is being kept under wraps. A director has not yet been attached.
Rising screenwriter Laura Gillis is writing the screenplay, based off of a previous incarnation by T.S. Nowlin. OddBall Entertainment’s Ball, Joe Hartwick Jr. and Hank Wyler will produce, under their first-look deal with the studio, alongside Nowlin.
Wells is the iconic English sci-fi writer known for novels including The Time Machine, The Island of Doctor Moreau, The Invisible Man and The War of the Worlds,...
While specific information on the Wells novel at its center hasn’t been disclosed, we hear that it will be a very loose adaptation stemming from the “mythology” that surrounds one of the writer’s most iconic titles. The film’s logline is being kept under wraps. A director has not yet been attached.
Rising screenwriter Laura Gillis is writing the screenplay, based off of a previous incarnation by T.S. Nowlin. OddBall Entertainment’s Ball, Joe Hartwick Jr. and Hank Wyler will produce, under their first-look deal with the studio, alongside Nowlin.
Wells is the iconic English sci-fi writer known for novels including The Time Machine, The Island of Doctor Moreau, The Invisible Man and The War of the Worlds,...
- 3/28/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
This April, Scream Factory is bring Night Creatures to Blu-ray as a Collector's Edition release! Here's a look at the special features and cover art for this 1962 Hammer cult classic:
"Brace yourself for the long-awaited Hammer cult film classic debuting on Blu-ray. On April 19, 2022, Scream Factory™ is excited to present the highly anticipated Hammer Fim cult classic Night Creatures Collector’s Edition Blu-ray. Directed by Peter Graham Scott (The Avengers) and produced by John Temple-Smith (The Island of Dr. Moreau), this chilling classic stars Peter Cushing (The Curse of Frankenstein), Yvonne Romain (Circus Of Horrors), Patrick Allen (When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth), and Oliver Reed (Quatermass And The Pitt). A must-have for movie collectors and loyal fans of Hammer Films, this definitive Blu-ray release contains special bonus content, including new 2K scan of the interpositive, new audio commentary with film historian Bruce Hallenbeck, new interviews with author and historian Kim Newman,...
"Brace yourself for the long-awaited Hammer cult film classic debuting on Blu-ray. On April 19, 2022, Scream Factory™ is excited to present the highly anticipated Hammer Fim cult classic Night Creatures Collector’s Edition Blu-ray. Directed by Peter Graham Scott (The Avengers) and produced by John Temple-Smith (The Island of Dr. Moreau), this chilling classic stars Peter Cushing (The Curse of Frankenstein), Yvonne Romain (Circus Of Horrors), Patrick Allen (When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth), and Oliver Reed (Quatermass And The Pitt). A must-have for movie collectors and loyal fans of Hammer Films, this definitive Blu-ray release contains special bonus content, including new 2K scan of the interpositive, new audio commentary with film historian Bruce Hallenbeck, new interviews with author and historian Kim Newman,...
- 3/7/2022
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
The remarkable transformation of Stellan Skarsgård into the horrifying Baron Harkonnen for “Dune” faces considerable competition in the Oscar category for makeup/hair. At least judging by the Make-Up Artists & Hairstylists Guild race, in which “House of Gucci” leads the race with three nominations for an unrecognizable Jared Leto as the balding, paunchy Paolo. Also posing threats are “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” in which Oscar-nominated Jessica Chastain gets craftily transformed into the eponymous evangelist, and “Cruella,” in which Emma Stone delightfully becomes the punkish fashion designer.
We will obviously get a better handle on the Oscar race after the February 19 Muahs Awards at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. However, where “Dune” has the advantage is not being limited by real-life people or a Disney icon in training. Indeed, director Denis Villeneuve was free to reinvent the look of Skarsgård’s Baron by riffing on Marlon Brando’s Col. Kurtz from “Apocalypse Now.
We will obviously get a better handle on the Oscar race after the February 19 Muahs Awards at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. However, where “Dune” has the advantage is not being limited by real-life people or a Disney icon in training. Indeed, director Denis Villeneuve was free to reinvent the look of Skarsgård’s Baron by riffing on Marlon Brando’s Col. Kurtz from “Apocalypse Now.
- 2/17/2022
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Hello, dear readers! Before those of us in the States get ready to gobble down our Thanksgiving dinners later this week, we have a brand new batch of horror and sci-fi home entertainment releases to look forward to first. One of this writer’s favorite films of all time, Philip Kaufman’s Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978) is getting the 4K treatment from Kino Lorber this Tuesday, and Arrow Video is resurrecting both The Snake Girl and the Silver Haired Witch and Phantom of the Mall: Eric’s Revenge on Blu-ray as well (this is also very exciting news in my world). Arrow is also re-releasing a handful of other titles—The Cat O’ Nine Tails, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, and C.H.U.D.—and the first season of Rod Serling’s Night Gallery is headed to Blu-ray as well.
Other releases for November 23rd include Chupa, Lair,...
Other releases for November 23rd include Chupa, Lair,...
- 11/23/2021
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
“Val,” the warmly received and reveal documentary about actor Val Kilmer, began simply with an email. A decade ago, Leo Scott was working as an editor on director Harmony Korine’s half-hour comedy series for Vice Films ‘The Lotus Community Workshop.” Kilmer played a version of himself as a motivational speaker. “It was quite incredible what he did with that character,” said Scott during a recent Film Independent Zoom conversation on “Val.”
“I really, really wanted to tell him how good he was,” Scott noted. So, he sent a carefully crafted e-mail to the actor, who has starred in such films as 1984’s “Top Secret!,” 1996’s “Top Gun,” 1991’s “The Doors,” 1993’s “Tombstone” and 1995’s “Batman Forever.” Much to Scott’s surprise, Kilmer quickly sent him back an email. Soon, Scott found himself working with Kilmer on his one-man theater piece on Mark Twain.
“He was starting to workshop the...
“I really, really wanted to tell him how good he was,” Scott noted. So, he sent a carefully crafted e-mail to the actor, who has starred in such films as 1984’s “Top Secret!,” 1996’s “Top Gun,” 1991’s “The Doors,” 1993’s “Tombstone” and 1995’s “Batman Forever.” Much to Scott’s surprise, Kilmer quickly sent him back an email. Soon, Scott found himself working with Kilmer on his one-man theater piece on Mark Twain.
“He was starting to workshop the...
- 11/18/2021
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Photo: ‘Val’ What do you know about Val Kilmer? That he was Batman in Joel Schumacher’s campy ‘Batman Forever’? That he was notoriously hard to work with during the disastrous production of ‘the Island of Dr. Moreau’? Or that he had a two-year battle with throat cancer? You may be familiar with the works of Val Kilmer, an actor who has always considered themselves a “serious actor” despite some silly roles such as in ‘Top Gun’, but you may not be familiar with the life of Val Kilmer. Leo Scott and Ting Poo’s ‘Val’ is a documentary composed of narration and home footage that Val Kilmer shot himself, creating a self-reflective portrait of not only Val Kilmer but for any audience member who identifies as an artist. Related article: ‘In the Heights’ – Behind the Scenes and Full Commentary/Reactions from Cast & Crew Related article: The Hollywood Insider’s...
- 8/21/2021
- by Brianna Benozich
- Hollywood Insider - Substance & Meaningful Entertainment
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Val Kilmer’s heartfelt new documentary “Val” premiered on Amazon Prime on Friday, and apart from tugging at your heartstrings, the film will stir up nostalgic memories of the 61-year-old actor’s filmography. To help with your next movie marathon, we comprised a list of 10 of Kilmer’s best films along with links to where you can stream them.
For more perspective on Kilmer’s life story, you might want to take a deep dive into Kilmer’s memoir, “I’m Your Huckleberry.” Below, find a list of great movies in his film catalog. For more binging options be sure to see our picks for movies by Christopher Nolan, Michael Keaton, and Al Pacino.
Val Kilmer’s heartfelt new documentary “Val” premiered on Amazon Prime on Friday, and apart from tugging at your heartstrings, the film will stir up nostalgic memories of the 61-year-old actor’s filmography. To help with your next movie marathon, we comprised a list of 10 of Kilmer’s best films along with links to where you can stream them.
For more perspective on Kilmer’s life story, you might want to take a deep dive into Kilmer’s memoir, “I’m Your Huckleberry.” Below, find a list of great movies in his film catalog. For more binging options be sure to see our picks for movies by Christopher Nolan, Michael Keaton, and Al Pacino.
- 8/10/2021
- by Latifah Muhammad
- Indiewire
Leo Scott and Ting Poo’s new documentary feature, Val, is not a mortality play. It is a rehearsal for an upcoming act. During a tour of his one-man stage show, Citizen Twain, Val Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer. The actor underwent two tracheostomies, and now can only speak while covering a tube. The narration of the new film is thus done by his son Jack Kilmer, allowing the pair to share a non-verbal connection throughout the journey, and through time and expression itself. While there are flourishes of humor, the documentary is a serious study of an artist who has always struggled to be understood, told through the selective memory of Kilmer’s Pov.
“I’ve wanted to tell a story about acting for a very long time,” Kilmer says toward the beginning of the documentary. “And now that it’s difficult to speak, I want to tell my story more than ever.
“I’ve wanted to tell a story about acting for a very long time,” Kilmer says toward the beginning of the documentary. “And now that it’s difficult to speak, I want to tell my story more than ever.
- 8/6/2021
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
This review of “Val” was first published on July 23, 2021 after its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival.
When a documentary is full of home movies of a little kid who grew up to become famous, the operative word is usually cute. And “Val,” which premiered at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, certainly has lots of cute moments of Val Kilmer and his siblings growing up in Southern California.
But those are the tip of the amateur-video iceberg in this film from directors Leo Scott and Ting Poo. The filmmakers were given access to thousands of hours of Kilmer’s footage, which also includes video of Val horsing around with Tom Cruise on the “Top Gun” set, Val’s unsolicited audition tapes for Stanley Kubrick for “Full Metal Jacket” and Martin Scorsese for “GoodFellas,” and even Val arguing with director John Frankenheimer during the rocky shooting of “The Island of Dr. Moreau.
When a documentary is full of home movies of a little kid who grew up to become famous, the operative word is usually cute. And “Val,” which premiered at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, certainly has lots of cute moments of Val Kilmer and his siblings growing up in Southern California.
But those are the tip of the amateur-video iceberg in this film from directors Leo Scott and Ting Poo. The filmmakers were given access to thousands of hours of Kilmer’s footage, which also includes video of Val horsing around with Tom Cruise on the “Top Gun” set, Val’s unsolicited audition tapes for Stanley Kubrick for “Full Metal Jacket” and Martin Scorsese for “GoodFellas,” and even Val arguing with director John Frankenheimer during the rocky shooting of “The Island of Dr. Moreau.
- 8/5/2021
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
The actor’s voice, perhaps more than any other tool in their kit—more than face and physicality—provides their critical means of expression. The surprisingly high-pitched voix aigue of Marlon Brando, for instance, or the rich low-ish register of Julia Roberts’ tone that can burst into shaking laughter. Bacall’s husky hum. Bogart’s lisp.
What, then, of an actor who can no longer speak, or at least in the voice we have come to know? Such is the fate of Val Kilmer, whose treatment for cancer now requires that he cap a throat tube each time he speaks. It has deprived him of the texture he could achieve in his speaking and singing voices, but not his soul of an artist.
The sense of Kilmer as very much the playful and searching spirit he has always been comes through in the new documentary Val, directed by Leo Scott and Ting Poo.
What, then, of an actor who can no longer speak, or at least in the voice we have come to know? Such is the fate of Val Kilmer, whose treatment for cancer now requires that he cap a throat tube each time he speaks. It has deprived him of the texture he could achieve in his speaking and singing voices, but not his soul of an artist.
The sense of Kilmer as very much the playful and searching spirit he has always been comes through in the new documentary Val, directed by Leo Scott and Ting Poo.
- 8/4/2021
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
“Top Gun” actor Val Kilmer surprised everyone when he revealed that for the past 40 years, he’s been capturing his life and career on video, ending up with more than 800 hours of footage.
A feature documentary was the natural conclusion of his faithful chronicling, and when Kilmer mentioned that he was digitizing the footage to filmmaker Leo Scott, the idea for “Val” was hatched.
Scott had been editing “The Lotus Community Workshop,” a segment starring the actor within the 2012 omnibus “The Fourth Dimension,” and ended up helping with the digitization. He also brought in collaborator and fellow editor Ting Poo (“Heaven Is a Traffic Jam on the 405”) to make the documentary happen. It begins streaming on Amazon Prime Video on Aug. 6.
Scott and Poo served as both co-directors and co-editors, organizing the tapes, digitizing them and helping tell Kilmer’s story as well as shaping it into the sharp film that has generated awards buzz.
A feature documentary was the natural conclusion of his faithful chronicling, and when Kilmer mentioned that he was digitizing the footage to filmmaker Leo Scott, the idea for “Val” was hatched.
Scott had been editing “The Lotus Community Workshop,” a segment starring the actor within the 2012 omnibus “The Fourth Dimension,” and ended up helping with the digitization. He also brought in collaborator and fellow editor Ting Poo (“Heaven Is a Traffic Jam on the 405”) to make the documentary happen. It begins streaming on Amazon Prime Video on Aug. 6.
Scott and Poo served as both co-directors and co-editors, organizing the tapes, digitizing them and helping tell Kilmer’s story as well as shaping it into the sharp film that has generated awards buzz.
- 7/28/2021
- by Jazz Tangcay
- Variety Film + TV
In “Val,” the actor Val Kilmer, now in his early 60s, appears before us as a broken-down relic of himself. His face, once beaming and chiseled, with that smile that resembled a bite, now looks soggy and morose, with dark eyebrows that give him an oddly Nixonian cast. More dramatically, he speaks in a thin robotic rasp, the result of a procedure performed on his trachea to heal the throat cancer that was diagnosed in 2015. Kilmer beat the cancer but was left with that scratchy voice-box drone, which takes a bit of getting used to. Yet once you do get used to it, you realize he’s very much the same fellow — or, at least, the older, wiser, more melancholy version. Kilmer used to talk quite fast; that was part of his comic sauvity in films like “Real Genius” — that this dude who looked like a sun god spoke like a geek in overdrive.
- 7/7/2021
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
Val Kilmer has been waiting to tell his story for decades. In “Val,” the intimate first-person account of the actor’s ambitious rise to Hollywood A-lister and the bumpy years that followed, Kilmer shares his experiences in both candid voiceover narration and years of home video footage from virtually every chapter of his life — from his promising early days to the clashes over creative vision that came later, and the tragic battle with throat cancer that limited his ability to speak.
Kilmer, who wrote about his health struggles in the 2020 memoir “I’m Your Huckleberry,” received an operation on his trachea that has left him unable to speak beyond a whisper. But his footage tells a much louder story. Kilmer had his camcorder in hand for every phase of his career, but it took directors Leo Scott and Ting Poo to piece it all together.
The movie premieres at Cannes...
Kilmer, who wrote about his health struggles in the 2020 memoir “I’m Your Huckleberry,” received an operation on his trachea that has left him unable to speak beyond a whisper. But his footage tells a much louder story. Kilmer had his camcorder in hand for every phase of his career, but it took directors Leo Scott and Ting Poo to piece it all together.
The movie premieres at Cannes...
- 7/6/2021
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Exclusive: Zack Stentz, writer of blockbusters Thor and X-Men: First Class and creator of Netflix’s Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous, is teaming up with producer Geoffrey James Clark (The 2nd) to launch production company Electric Brain Entertainment.
Named after the Chinese characters that form the Mandarin word for computer, the LA-based film and TV firm will develop and produce genre-driven, IP-based and original content.
Stentz and Clark previously sold a scripted pilot to Apple+ in 2019 based on the Arabian Nights IP, and concocted a re-imaging of The Island Of Dr. Moreau with production partner Gunpowder & Sky, where Clark previously had a production deal. Clark most recently produced Ryan Phillippe action movie The 2nd, which was sold to multiple markets by Voltage Pictures.
Stentz said: “Like a lot of writers, the enforced shutdown of the pandemic ended up lighting a creative fire in me. After a career spent largely playing in established franchises,...
Named after the Chinese characters that form the Mandarin word for computer, the LA-based film and TV firm will develop and produce genre-driven, IP-based and original content.
Stentz and Clark previously sold a scripted pilot to Apple+ in 2019 based on the Arabian Nights IP, and concocted a re-imaging of The Island Of Dr. Moreau with production partner Gunpowder & Sky, where Clark previously had a production deal. Clark most recently produced Ryan Phillippe action movie The 2nd, which was sold to multiple markets by Voltage Pictures.
Stentz said: “Like a lot of writers, the enforced shutdown of the pandemic ended up lighting a creative fire in me. After a career spent largely playing in established franchises,...
- 6/25/2021
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Welcome to this week’s Major League Wrestling: Fusion review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have the season finale of a wrestling show. That’s new. What will the wrestlers do with no matches to wrestle? Will they get a f—king job?! These lazy bastards have been allowed to not work long enough! I have a job! Nobody kisses Brad Pitt’s ass like me! Nobody! Brad Pitt: Slut! Here! Now! Me: Yes master! Yes master! You’re the best master! Brad Pitt: I might have hit my son. I don’t know. Pizza! Now! Me: Yes master! Yes master! Brad Pitt: I want a pizza…a pizza that ass! Me: Yes master! Yes master! Just like Jonah Hill master! Brad Pitt: Joe-na is an excellent slut. Is bitch a good slut? Me: Yes master! Yes master! Brad Pitt: Then go back in time and kill…...
- 5/10/2021
- by Nathan Favel
- Nerdly
The Island of Dr. Moreau is one of my favorite stories of all time not due to the strange way that the deranged doctor was attempting to create animal/human hybrids, but due to the final line of the movie in which the castaway, Edward Douglas, speaks that concerns his misgivings about his fellow human beings and how much they remind him of the beast-men that Moreau created. This tale is one morality, science fiction, and also of humanity on a deeper level since in the long run, we are animals, but animals that have a much different thought process than
Why We Need Another Island of Dr. Moreau...
Why We Need Another Island of Dr. Moreau...
- 1/5/2021
- by Tom
- TVovermind.com
Exclusive: Gunpowder & Sky’s sci-fi arm Dust has teamed with Sylvester Stallone and Braden Aftergood’s Balboa Productions to develop the sci-fi sports drama series Meshed based on the short story by the same name by Rich Larson. Edward Ricourt is on board to adapt.
Set in the not-so-distant future, Meshed is centered around a technology — appropriately called Mesh — which allows for an immersive experience of professional basketball through the eyes of its athletes. Mesh enhances the game for viewers while commoditizing the lives of its players. The show will explore the intersection of sports, sponsorship, friendship, global entertainment and winning at all costs.
“Rich Larson’s visionary short story sits at the cross-section of two very prescient ideas: the role of technology in enhancing athletic achievement, and the increasingly immersive world of spectator sport,” said Aftergood. “Sylvester Stallone and I are honored to...
Set in the not-so-distant future, Meshed is centered around a technology — appropriately called Mesh — which allows for an immersive experience of professional basketball through the eyes of its athletes. Mesh enhances the game for viewers while commoditizing the lives of its players. The show will explore the intersection of sports, sponsorship, friendship, global entertainment and winning at all costs.
“Rich Larson’s visionary short story sits at the cross-section of two very prescient ideas: the role of technology in enhancing athletic achievement, and the increasingly immersive world of spectator sport,” said Aftergood. “Sylvester Stallone and I are honored to...
- 12/1/2020
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
H.G. Wells’ classic The Island of Dr. Moreau is being turned into a TV series by Gunpowder & Sky and their sci-fi label Dust. The series, called Moreau, reimagines Wells’ tale of man tampering in god’s domain for the 21st century, with X-Men: First Class writer Zack Stentz attached to write the series. That’s all well and good, […]
The post ‘Island of Dr. Moreau’ TV Series Will Update the Sci-Fi Story For the 21st Century appeared first on /Film.
The post ‘Island of Dr. Moreau’ TV Series Will Update the Sci-Fi Story For the 21st Century appeared first on /Film.
- 11/13/2020
- by Chris Evangelista
- Slash Film
I hope you're up for taking an island vacation in the near future because Gunpowder & Sky's sci-fi label, Dust, just announced that they're developing Moreau, a twisted TV series that puts a modern spin on the classic novel, The Island of Dr. Moreau, by H.G. Wells. The upcoming series hails from the pen of Zack Stentz, whose previous works include…...
- 11/12/2020
- by Steve Seigh
- JoBlo.com
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