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It's not that I even expected there to be a single laugh amongst Stan Helsing's hour and a half runtime, it's just that I kinda felt an obligation to watch it, being a horror movie fan and blogger. I've seen enough of the current slew of spoof flicks (Date Movie, Disaster Movie, Meet The Spartans, the list goes on and on) to know that the days of Airplane and even Scary Movie are long long gone and Stan Helsing, with its childish 'spoofing' of 20 year old horror movies, is even more confirmation of this fact. How these movies keep getting made is completely beyond me but apparently someone out there with great power and money thinks they're funny, and that concerns me. With its juvenile and incredibly immature sense of humor, or lack thereof, Stan Helsing is one of the least funny movies i've seen all year - and it's a goddamn comedy! I've watched many dramatic films where i've ended up in tears (the sad kind) by the end and yet, there was always at least one or two moments of levity and humor throughout where a good chuckle came out of me. Not so with Stan Helsing. Literally every single 'joke' falls flat and I wouldn't be shocked in the least to discover that the screenwriter had his 10 year old son ghostwrite the script for him.
Now if you shackled me to a chair, rigged jumper cables to my balls, and demanded I tell you one good or funny thing about the movie, i'd probably wind up saying that Kenan Thompson is at least somewhat of a humorous guy. There, you got it out me. But it's the only positive thing whatsoever I can say about anything relating to this movie and remember, I only said it because you threatened thousands of volts of electricity to my privates.
Stan Helsing is honestly one of the stupidest movies I have ever watched and it makes me truly miss the days when Leslie Nielsen was funny and had a respectable career. You should've quit while you were ahead (aka the early 90's), Les. For that matter, the spoof movie should've quit while it was ahead, back in the early 2000's.
If you need further proof as to the stupidity and lameness of this movie, check out the pictures below of how each of the classic horror icons are depicted in the flick!
"Pleatherface"
He's got a handbag on his face, instead of human skin. He's got a leather...face. Get it!? And he doesn't use a chainsaw, he uses a leaf blower! Classic!
"Fweddy"
I guess since Freddy wears a hat similar to one worn by the typical depiction of a "pimp", they decided to turn him into a gold toothed giant clock wearing gangsta? I suppose? By the way, the clock that 'Fweddy' has around his neck is a countdown to sleep time. While it is a funny concept and is humorous to picture Freddy sitting around waiting for bedtime, it's a concept they never bother to explore or suck any humor out of. I guess they thought it was funnier to show 'Fweddy' brushing his gold teeth with the toothbrush that's affixed to his glove.
"Mason"
He wears a hockey jersey...because of his hockey mask...genius! What an original thought! The band-aid might have been funny had it been on the side that Jason got axed in Friday Part 3, as a nice little tie in to the real films, but it's not even on the correct side, so i'm kinda wondering if the director's intention was even to spoof Jason's trademark axe wound or he just thought slapping a band-aid on the mask would be hilarious. I'm gonna go with the latter. I must also mention that 'Mason' is played by Ken Kirzinger, the same dude who portayed Jason Voorhees in Freddy vs Jason. Have you no respect for the historic role you were lucky enough to play, Mr. Kirzinger? You don't see Kane Hodder shitting on the character, do you?
"Lucky"
Rhymes with Chucky, Ha Ha! They depicted the Chucky doll as a human midget with elf shoes and a game of Tic Tac Toe carved into his face! Brilliant!
"Michael Criers"
The whole thing about Michael Myers is that, due to his mask, he had an expressionless face at all times. In Stan Helsing, his mask expression changes depending on how he's feeling! How do they think of this stuff!!! Funny thing is, Mikey has such a small amount of screentime in the movie that I didn't even notice the changing of masks until I went back through it to pull pictures for this post. Note that he also wears a yarmulke. Because yarmulke's are funny.
"Needlehead"
Ahh, I think you guys get the point by now....
When I first started reading up on how to be a successful blogger, over a year ago now, one of the things I always read to never do was call attention to a lack of posting. Reason being, when it comes to blogging, a lack of posting is pretty much death and to constantly be apologizing for, explaining, and calling attention to that lack of posting makes your readers lose faith in you and eventually stop coming around your neck of the woods. Well, there's been a serious lack of posting around here lately and I don't want any of you guys to think it's just laziness or me slacking off or losing interest, so i'm gonna throw that advice out the window and go ahead and call attention to it...
For the first year and three months of my days as a horror blogger, I was jobless. This blog was essentially my only obligation and even though I didn't get paid for it, it pretty much became my entire life. I poured so much time and energy into this thing to make it what it is today, updating three or four times a day (without ever going more than 2 or 3 days without a post), and it didn't even matter that I wasn't getting paid for it. I was doing it because I loved to do it, not because I wanted to turn any profits off of it. But we've all gotta have a job and start to make some money at some point and I knew in the back of my mind that the day I got a normal job, the blog would suffer. And it has. I got a job a few months back and Freddy In Space has not been the same since. I'm lucky if I update a few times a week because lets face it, getting up at 7:30 in the morning and putting in a full day of work at a shitty uninspiring job is not what gets me in the mood to come home and blog about my passions. It gets me in the mood to sleep and sulk, and that's about it. My passions have now taken a back seat to a job I hate and that really bums me out, but that's just the reality of life and this is a reality that I always knew was inevitable. It's also a reality that has just hit me harder than ever being that I was offered press passes to the opening night party of the New York City Horror Film Festival this past Wednesday, but had to turn them down because of my job. Ouch, now that one hurt. But I won't be bitter about it. I had the incredible opportunity to do this for over a year, without a job, and devote all of my time and energy to it and for that I am pretty damn thankful. So, cutting to the chase, is this the end of Freddy In Space?
ABSOLUTELY NOT. Though my hits have dwindled and my spirits have been a bit broken, I will never give up on this blog. It's the one true passion i've got going for me and i'll be damned if i'm gonna let some little minimum wage temporary job take that away from me. I'm not gonna be able to update nearly as much as I used to, but i'm damn sure gonna try my best to bring you guys the same content you've come to enjoy reading over this past year, on as frequent of a basis as I can bring it. Don't lose faith in me and be a little patient, that's all I ask.
All this being said, I can assure you that whatever I end up doing with my life, as far as a career goes, it will be based around horror movies. They're what makes me happy, they're what keeps me going, and the horror world is the world I want to live out the rest of my days in. My biggest fear has always been that my passions and dreams will be thrown by the wayside and replaced with some generic job that I get stuck in, as is the case with 90% of society, and i'm gonna do everything I can to prevent that from happening. It's just not me and i'm just not gonna settle for it. But I digress....
What I was here to say is that i'm not giving up on this blog and that I will never give up on this blog. That being established, lets get back to doing what we've been doing for the past year and a half.
Now if you'll excuse me, i'm gonna go do what I do best - pop open a cold one and get my rocks off on a fucked up horror flick. Once I sober up, maybe i'll jump on here and write up a little review. It's probably the only thing i've ever been real good at doing, so I figure I should probably stick with it.
While i've never been the hugest Sleepaway Camp fan, I do get a kick out of the movies - how can you not love the little girl with the dick and the wildly inventive kill scenes? I'm actually quite surprised that it took me this long to check out the big return of the franchise, but I think that'd have something to do with the outpouring of negativity from my fellow horror bloggers. I decided on a whim to finally pop it in this past weekend and quite frankly, it's a piece of garbage. That being established, when I look back, I can't deny that I kinda had a teeny tiny bit of fun while watching it. Granted I usually have fun with slasher flicks, no matter how bad they are, but I can't rag on Return To Sleepaway Camp all that much given that it really doesn't take itself too seriously and i'm fairly certain the filmmakers sole intention was to make a highly campy and very cheesy slasher flick that would fit right in with the earlier installments in the franchise - mission accomplished. So while Return To Sleepaway Camp is not what I would call a good horror movie, and does kinda lack in creative and gory kill scenes, it's pretty much perfect fodder for a drunken movie night with friends and ya know what? That's good enough for me. Oh, and I can't lie, I marked out for the ending, even if it was predictable.
Now this is what I call a GREAT fucking horror movie, and a completely original horror movie to boot. Two friends head out to the local abandoned insane asylum for a day of drinking and debauchery and they stumble upon a chained up girl in the basement - what ensues is perhaps the most twisted love story of all time and one of the best horror movies of the last several years. This is some seriously dark and disturbing shit that is only for the open minded and for those who can handle some seriously dark and disturbing shit - like dudes fucking dead chicks. What's so incredible about this movie is that behind all the necrophilia and dark subject matter, it truly is a love story at heart - the most perfect combination of love and horror since Let The Right One In. It's movies like Deadgirl that show that there are still people out there with boldy original takes on the genre, and that's something to take comfort in. Don't look it up on IMDb or Wikipedia and spoil anything for yourself, just go rent it and experience the movie for yourself. I can almost guarantee you'll be talking and thinking about it for days afterward.
^ Ron Perlman, a couple weeks without a shave ^
I've long been fascinated with Bigfoot/Sasquatch/whatever you want to call him and so i've decided to make him the subject of a new research project - a project that needs your help. I'm trying to compile a list of every single Bigfoot horror movie ever made and though i'm pretty sure i've got most of them jotted down, i'm also pretty damn sure that I must be missing a few. The reason I want this list is because I plan on not only watching every BF horror movie ever made, but also writing a little article on the history of Bigfoot in the horror world, which i'm gonna send over to HorrorHound magazine - hopefully, it will get published. If not, I can always post it right here. So here's the list i've come up with so far, if any of you guys know any other Bigfoot horror movies out there that i'm missing, please leave a comment and give me your knowledge! Abominable Snowman/Yeti based horror movies also apply, being that it's basically the same creature, just covered in snow. So basically i'm looking for any movie with a large man-ape creature tearing motherfuckers up. Go!
Abominable
The Legend of Boggy Creek
Primal
Shriek of the Mutilated
Yeti
The Curse of Bigfoot
Night of the Demon
Sasquatch - The Capture of Bigfoot
Sasquatch Mountain
Bigfoot at Holler Creek Canyon
Sasquatch Hunters
The Search for the Beast
Clawed : The Legend of Sasquatch
Suburban Sasquatch
Sasquatch Assault
The Legend of Bigfoot
Snow Creature
Snowbeast
Creature From Black Lake
Being that today is Friday the 13th, i've decided to repost something very special that I wrote up earlier this year for Benevolent Street. It's not that i'm being lazy and don't want to come up with a new post for today, believe me, it's just that this post is one of the most meaningful things I have ever written and now that I have a few more readers than I did back when I plugged the post earlier this year, I thought it'd be nice to get it back out there for those who haven't seen it yet. The post was written hot on the heels of the Friday The 13th remake hitting theatres and the aim was to memorialize and pay tribute to all of the folks from the entire Friday franchise who are no longer with us. What made this post so special to me was that I was actually contacted by several people who were friends and family of the deceased actors, who showed their appreciation for the post and shared stories about their loved ones - which I have included within this post. 'Friday The 13th - In Memoriam' has been reposted on several sites (including Friday The 13th Films, Scab's Horror Blog, and Retro Slashers), but this is the first time it's ever been posted right here on Freddy In Space - where it belongs! So happy Friday the 13th to all and enjoy this little blast from the past - perhaps my greatest contribution to the world of horror blogging.
With the remake of Friday the 13th hitting theatres in a little over a week, I think now is the perfect time to honor the franchise alumns who are no longer with us. Without these guys and girls, the Friday universe would not be what it is today. And in fact, without them today, that universe is just a little bit smaller. However, as sad as it is, it is only natural and inevitable that in the 3 decades now that the series has been running, a few of those stars were bound to burn out. But by watching these movies over and over again and remembering these men and women, we are keeping them as immortal as Jason Voorhees himself.
We have lost a total of 12 on screen personas in the Friday the 13th franchise over the course of, ironically, 12 installments. Lets take a moment to remember those who have passed on.
Walt Gorney – Crazy Ralph – Friday The 13th
April 12th, 1912 – March 5th, 2004
Although he is best known for his role as Crazy Ralph and was believed by many to be an actual town crazy that was cast in the film (even by some of the other cast members at the time!), Austrian born Walt Gorney was actually an accomplished stage performer. After Friday the 13th, he reprised his role as Ralph in Part 2 and even returned, post character death, in Part 7 to do the opening voice over narration. Gorney passed away at St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York City at the age of 91 as a result of natural causes.
Laurie Bartram – Brenda – Friday The 13th
May 16th, 1958 – May 25th, 2007
Prior to Friday, Bartram’s only acting credits were in a couple television shows as well as the 1974 horror film The House of Seven Corpses. Friday The 13th was her last acting role and after it, she enrolled at Liberty Baptist College where she met her husband Gregory McCauley, whom she went on to have five children with. She died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 49 in Virginia.
"Laurie Bartram was a dear friend of mine. While I still think about her at random times whenever a Friday the 13th roles around she is the first person I think of. Laurie and I became friends while we were at Liberty University our freshman year. It’s funny, at the time, I had no idea that she had been an actress in a movie or that she had a role in the soap opera, “Another World“. When someone asked me if she ever talked about her acting career, I was oblivious to it. Later when I asked her, “Why didn’t you tell me?“ Laurie said very simply, “I loved the fact that you didn’t know and that you just loved me for who I am.” And I did. Later she actually gave me the shirt she wore in the movie Friday the 13th but she didn’t want me to watch it! For Laurie those years were a past she had left behind. Years later I finally got her to agree to let me rent it. Watching her on screen made me smile because it was “so Laurie“. Her expressions and mannerisms came through in her character. Laurie was a beautiful person. I think that would have shown through in any role that she played. RIP I miss you Leej." - Jenny
Rex Everhart – Enos (Truck Driver) – Friday The 13th
June 13th, 1920 – March 13th, 2000
Rex Everhart was an accomplished stage, television, and film actor who was nominated for Broadway’s 1978 Best Actor Tony Award. He appeared in the hit films Superman and The Elephant Man and voiced Belle’s father in Beauty and the Beast before ending his acting career in 1992. In 2000, he succombed to lung cancer in Watseka, Illinois at the age of 79.
Sally Anne Golden – Sandy – Friday The 13th
July 31st, 1910 – January 29th, 1982
No stranger to horror, Golden appeared in 1976’s Alice Sweet Alice before landing a role in Friday The 13th, which was to be her last role. She died of unknown causes at the age of 71 in New York City.
Tom McBride – Mark – Friday The 13th Part 2
October 7th, 1952 – September 24th, 1995
Friday The 13th was the first acting role for Tom McBride, who went on to appear in only two more films and one television show before his death from the AIDS virus at 42. His final moments were documented in the heart wrenching 1996 documentary Life and Death on the A List. McBride was the first franchise cast member who played a camp counselor to die in real life.
"I have always thought it would be a good idea, and a warm way of remembering “Friday The 13th” actors and actresses who have passed away. Being Tom McBride’s nursing assistant, he and I became friends. He would talk about being in commercials, modeling, and movies. I was a fan of the “Friday The 13th” series, and Tom would spend lots of time talking about the interview to land the role, the setting/scenes, and working with the other actors. When I went to take Tom’s vital signs one morning, there was a machete laying on the chair beside his bed with his signiture. Tom was funny, energetic, and always made a friend. I remember him telling me that his wish before dying is for people to remember him not from AIDS, but as someone who made someone smile, laugh, and made a friend. He told me that it would be neat to be remembered as “Machete-Face”. He laughed and said he should have been the one to come back and be a horror icon like “Jason” and “Leatherface”. So when I think of my friend, I can’t help but to think of ol’ “Machete-Face”." - Gary
Steve Susskind – Harold – Friday The 13th Part 3
October 3rd, 1942 – January 21st, 2005
Part 3 was Susskind’s first acting role in a career that lasted until his death at the age of 62 in 2005 as a result of an automobile accident. He leaves behind a legacy that includes films like 1986’s House, Star Trek : The Final Frontier, Terminator 3, and Monsters Inc. as well as shows such as Married With Children, Tales From The Crypt, and Seinfeld.
David Wiley – Abel – Friday The 13th Part 3
1929 – February 5th, 2007
Before his Crazy Ralph-esque turn in Part 3, Wiley had roles on the popular shows Hogan’s Heroes and Chips. After the film, he went on to appear in countless other shows and a few more films as well as even voicing a pedestrian in Grand Theft Auto : Vice City. He lost his battle to cancer in his late 70’s.
Antony Ponzini – Vincent – Friday The 13th Part 4
June 1st, 1933 – December 30th, 2002
Antony Ponzini mostly acted in television shows over the course of his 40 year career, appearing on hit shows the likes of Hawaii Five-O, Three’s Company, All My Children, Baywatch, and Seinfeld. At 69, he passed away of unknown causes in Connecticut.
Abigail Shelton - "Woman" - Friday The 13th Part 4
May 3rd, 1932 - December 11th, 2006
Credited only as “woman” in Friday Part 4, Abigail Shelton appeared very briefly 8 1/2 minutes into the film, hugging a loved one in a hospital room off to the side as Jason is wheeled in. Here’s a screen grab :
Friday Part 4 was Shelton's second to last appearance on film. Her other credits include mostly television shows. She also sung in a cabaret act with her husband, who she remained with till the day she died.
"Very GREAT tribute! And thank you so much for including Abigail Shelton. Abigail Shelton is my Aunt. She did a lot of part work for old shows like The Fugitive, Bonanza, Perry Mason etc. She also had a small reoccurring role on Dallas in 1989. She was Married to John T. Kelly a writer until he passed away. She was in the movie he wrote called Zig Zag and she also was in Disney’s original That Darn Cat. She did tons of theatre and was very talented. Her real name was Francis Compton. She had a sister and brother (my dad) and only one son Peter. She moved out to California from Virginia when she was 20 to follow her dream of acting." - Wendy
Ric Mancini – Mayor Cobb – Friday The 13th Part 5
April 16th, 1933 – May 26th, 2006
Ric Mancini had a long career before Part 5 came along and a long career after it passed, taking on roles in the films Ghostbusters, Ready To Rumble and Ed Wood as well as small roles in the TV shows ER, The A-Team, Charlie’s Angels, and MASH. He died at the age of 73 in Woodland Hills, California at the Motion Picture Hospital of unknown causes.
Mark Venturini – Victor – Friday The 13th Part 5
January 10th, 1961 – February 14th, 1996
In the same year that he played Victor, the man essentially responsible for the return of “Jason” to the franchise, Venturini also appeared in the horror cult classic Return of the Living Dead, as the character Suicide. He career only lasted 10 years, when the 35 year old former football player died of Leukemia in Los Angeles.
Vernon Washington – George – Friday The 13th Part 5
August 10th, 1927 – June 7th, 1988
A New Beginning was the final film role for Vernon Washington, who had previously been known for his roles in the television shows The Jeffersons and Roots : The Next Generations. He died just three years after the film was released at age 50 after health problems forced him to retire from acting.
REST IN PEACE TO ALL OF YOU.
For all you UK'ers out there, you're in for quite a treat this holiday season. At long last, the Christmas horror classic 'Silent Night, Deadly Night' will be released uncut (for the first time ever in the UK) on region 2 DVD in just a couple short weeks (Nov. 23rd). Although we've had the flick uncut on DVD here in the states for several years now, I can't help but be incredibly jealous of the cover art you guys are getting. As much as I love the classic image of Santa coming out of a chimney holding an axe that's on the US DVD's (and on the shirt i'm currently wearing), this is by far one of the coolest cover arts I have ever seen. Please put this on a shirt or make a poster out of it!
I have such a love for SNDN, especially around this time of the year, that I just might have to pick this one up even though I already own the rare and out of print SNDN/SNDN Part 2 Double Feature. Being that that set sells for upwards of $60 on Amazon, it's one of my most prized DVD possessions in my entire collection. SNDN was re-released (on its own) in 2008, which also went out of print - this time before I could snatch it up. As for SNDN Part 2, it can only be gotten on DVD in the afformentioned Double Feature set, which makes the DVD all the more precious to me. If only SNDN 3, 4, and 5 would come to DVD. If only it were a perfect world....
Oh wait! That's right! They are! On December first of this year, 'Silent Night, Deadly Night' parts 3, 4, and 5 will be released in the form of a box set - which can be pre-ordered right now for a mere $14.99!
So whether you live in the UK or in the US, i'd say you have something to be excited about this Christmas!
Anyone else out there have a yearly tradition of watching the Silent Night flicks? I always watch part 1 and 2 but have never actually seen 3, 4, or 5. Needless to say, I cannot wait to have a marathon of all five next month!
The 35th anniversary of Ronald Defeo's brutal slaying of his entire family on 112 Ocean Avenue in Amityville, New York is this coming Friday and by a complete coincidence, Jen and I ended up in Amityville this past weekend. After living an hour or so away from the house all these years, we finally headed out there to take a look at the house, completely unaware that we showed up just one week prior to the anniversary. Although the house looks a bit different than it did back in the day - the most notable of differences being the change in windows - it's still pretty damn recognizable. Here's a couple pictures I snapped as we drove by.
It has long been a desire of mine to take a trip up to the house, so I can finally cross this one off the bucket list. Although I wish I could lie to make this post more interesting, no pigs were seen in the windows and no paranormal activity was witnessed. I really wish the people that owned this place would embrace it and open it up for tours, at least around Halloween time....
You'd think Bigfoot would be the perfect fodder for some kickass horror flicks, wouldn't ya? Sadly, while ole Sassie has been the focal point of many a genre picture, he's never quite been done the justice he has long deserved. Bottom line being - most Bigfoot horror movies suck something fierce. While most reviews I have read lump Abominable in this same category of shitty Sasquatch on a rampage films, I simply cannot agree. To my surprise, I really enjoyed this movie and found it to be one of the better Bigfoot horror movies I have ever seen. It's not perfect and it's certaintly not without its flaws, but damn if it isn't fun. And it's not just gory mindless fun either, it also works really well as a Rear Window-esque thriller at times. Essentially, it's Rear Window meets a pretty damn solid Bigfoot flick and i'd say that's a winning combination. Keep an eye out for a nude Tiffany Shepis (that was redundant), Jeffrey Combs, and Bigfoot movie vet Lance Henriksen. Praise for this movie aside, i'm still waiting for Bigfoot to be utilized to his full cinematic potential.
I'll admit that although my fascination with Charles Manson knows no bounds, i'm kinda tired of documentaries about him and the Tate-LaBianca murders. They all rehash the same material and stories, but that didn't stop me from blind buying this one and giving it a chance - i'm very happy I made that decision. This is one of the best and most compelling Manson docs to date and i'd have to attribute that to the pure enthusiasm of the guy who hosts it, Scott Michaels. Michaels is a Hollywood historian with a deep and dark fascination with Hollywood death and it totally shows in this riveting and highly unique documentary. I thought I knew everything there was to know about Manson and the murders and even I was filled with tons of new information and insight. From never before seen autopsy reports to a step by step walkthrough of that fateful night in 1969 to visits to actual locations that are pivotal to the case and "the family", Six Degrees of Helter Skelter is a must see for all those with a sick curiosity about all things Charlie Manson. If you think you've seen and heard all there is to be seen and heard on the matter, you're in for a pleasant treat. If you know nothing about the murders, you might wanna start elsewhere and work your way up to this one.
Basement Jack, out November 17th on DVD, has been getting tons of praise of late and has won many an award and it's further proof that praise and awards do not a good movie make. This is not an "exciting, kick-ass old school slasher" or "one of the true horror highlights of the last decade", like the quotes on the back proclaim, it's a generic piece of crap with literally only 10 or 20 worthwhile seconds in the entire hour and a half runtime. Yes, there is one cool sequence, but that's about all Basement Jack has got going for it. It's just another generic tale of a damaged kid with a horrible mother going nutso and killing a bunch of people - nothing more and...well...maybe a little less. The absolutely dreadful effects - akin to ones you'd see in a 10 year old's homemade horror movie - make this one even worse than the typical generic bad horror movie. Talk about a let down....
It's not too often that I talk about non horror movies on here, but I am compelled - much like I was just compelled to break my little unwritten rule of spending more than $20 on a single movie. One of my favorite movies of all time has just been released on 20th Anniversary Ultimate Collector's Edition Blu-ray and though it isn't a horror movie, despite the fact that it has a hockey masked man wielding a chainsaw in it, I simply must praise its awesomeness. What am I talking about? Behold my new prized possession!
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation is not only my favorite holiday flick of all time but as I said, it's also one of my favorite movies of all time, period. Ever since my dad introduced me to the Griswold's way back when I was a youngster, I have been in love with this movie and while most have the desire to watch A Christmas Story several times over during the month of December, Christmas Vacation has always been more my moose mug of tea. It's one of those movies that compels me to watch it whenever it's on, no matter how recently I just saw it. If i'm flipping through the channels and I see Chevy Chase dangling from the gutters, rest assured I will not only leave it on, but sit down and watch the entire movie, no matter what I was in the middle of doing. Why do I love the movie so much? Quite simply, because it reminds me of my childhood. I have many fond memories of watching it on Christmas eve, alone in my room, and counting down the hours until I could leave my room and gather round the tree with my family. Christmas Vacation brings me back to those times like nothing else can and that's the main reason I hold it so close to my heart and that's also the reason that no dollar amount is too high to recapture just a little bit of that childhood excitement. Whenever I need a little pick me up during the holidays, Clark, Cousin Eddie and the gang ALWAYS do the trick. So ya see, it is for all these reasons that I simply could not resist this Ultimate Collector's Edition, especially since I only have the old-school snap case DVD - which, for sentimental reasons, I will still be holding onto. Don't ask me to explain it, because I really can't. Sentimentality aside, at least for the moment, let's take a closer look at this beautiful set.
The tin case is adorned with Griswold family photos and even the famous image of the cat who blew all of his nine lives in one go. But the real treats lie inside, so let's crack this baby open!
First up, we've of course got the Blu-ray itself, or should I say Green-ray. Huge props to Warner Bros. for the green case. The disc art shares the image of the char broiled cat from the back of the tin. As for what's on the disc, the only special feature is the cast and crew commentary track that was included on the special edition DVD release from a few years back. Again, i've only had the snap case edition all these years, so this is new to me. I haven't watched the whole movie in high def yet (I will right after I finish this post) but I sampled a couple scenes and it looks pretty spiffy, despite the fact that it appears to have no main menu screen. But this set isn't really so much about the disc contents or even the picture quality of the flick, at least for me, it's all about the goodies inside the tin!
An official Wally World Santa hat!!
Four premium quality cork bottomed coasters featuring images and quotes from the film!
An "I survived a Griswold family Christmas" pin!
Snow powder! Just add water and you've got (weird smelling fake) snow, any time of the year! Don't believe me, see for yourself!
As if that wasn't cool enough (yes, i'm very very easily amused), you can let the water evaporate out and re-use the snow over and over again! Whoever thought to include this in the set deserves a serious raise.
And finally, best of all....
A mini replica of the moose mug!! This item is a Blu-ray exclusive and if ya ask me, despite its tiny size, this sucker is worth the $25 all its own. I got a full size replica mug for Christmas last year, but you can never have too many moose mugs!
So my point here is, this set fucking rocks and is a total must own for all super fans of Christmas Vacation. Sure there are no new special features, but so what! The special added goodies more than make up for the lack of that and besides, what Christmas Vacation fan in his right mind can turn down such kickass swag? A+, Warner Bros.
The Ultimate Collector's Edition set is available on both DVD and Blu-ray, with the only difference being the inclusion of the moose mug with the Blu-ray. Shockingly, the Blu-ray set is selling for three dollars less than the DVD set on Amazon, so you might wanna snatch it up before the price goes up. You can also pick up the Blu-ray by itself, which features the original art. You can only get the green cased version in the set.
Time to get myself in the Christmas spirit a little bit early and get my first dose of Christmas Vacation of the year! But first, one last little Christmas related note while i'm in the sentimental mood....
I may not have ever been the best at vocalizing my appreciation for things but dad/mom, if you're reading, I cannot thank you guys enough for always making every Christmas the most magical time it could be, even long after the cat was out of the bag on the whole Santa thing. Those childhood Christmases are something I will never ever forget and I cannot wait to pass your enthusiasm and genuine excitement for the season onto my own children someday. Thank you.
American Psycho is a movie that I did not care for the first time I watched it. Maybe it was because I was too young to really get it or maybe it was because I watched the edited version on TV - probably a combination of both of these factors - but I have grown to love and appreciate the movie and completely agree with HorrorHound's recent list that it is one of the best horror films in the last decade. Whether or not you consider American Psycho a horror film is a discussion all its own, but what i'm here to discuss with you guys is the ambiguous ending of the movie. It's completely open to the individual viewers interpretation - which is something I love - but I want to know your personal thoughts on the matter.
Did Patrick Bateman really kill all those people and get away with it or was the whole movie a product of his demented imagination?
I love the ideas of both of these interpretations. The implication of the first is that the rich can really get away with anything, something that kinda seems to be true in this world. Bateman is a sadistic fuck who can't stop killing people and wants to get caught - but he can't, even when he admits what he's done, due to his high social status. It's an awesome idea - Bateman being trapped in his own personal hell with no escape - but personally, I prefer the second interpretation and it's the one that fits in with the whole movie the best.
One of the main themes of the movie is vanity and the importance of how we look to others, which is an obsession of Bateman's, and that's why the idea that all of the killings were merely in his head holds the most power for me. We always hear that it's what's on the inside that counts, but really, as far as society is concerned, it's mostly what's on the outside that counts. Bateman knows this and despite the fact that he envisions himself killing everyone he knows, works with, and encounters - something he'd love to actually act out - he keeps his cool and appears normal to the people around him, the same people he wants to kill, and thus, it really doesn't even matter what's going on inside his head. Bateman is an attractive, in shape, rich, and successful American man with a nice business card - that's what's important, right?
I think it's safe to say that we all day dream from time to time of taking an axe to a co-worker or random person on the street but we don't do it and that's really all that matters. We put the thoughts out of our head, act normal, and try our best to fit in. Again, it's what people can see on the surface that counts. If we appear normal, then we can get in no trouble for our imagined actions and nobody will be the wiser. As Bateman says in one of the closing lines of the film, "...inside doesn't matter". As far as i'm concerned, that's the whole idea of the entire film and it's that compelling and ballsy idea that makes the movie so interesting and different to me and it's also why I think it works so well from the perspective of a female director. After all, women know better than anyone the sad truth that outer beauty is a lot more important in this day and age than what lies inside...
What's your interpretation? Leave a comment and let's discuss it!
