The Official Creeping Launch

Posted on Friday, July 29, 2011 by Robert Hood

The official launch of the new edition of my short-story collection Creeping in Reptile Flesh took place today. It was a virtual launch and in reality consists of the initial marketing push. Here’s a nice big scan of the cover. Seriously, click on it to view it even larger and in exquisite detail. That image by Cat Sparks is dynamite stuff — and I like the textured text a lot.

For those who don’t know the book, check out the earlier Backbrain announcement of Morrigan Books’ re-print of the collection. More information can be gleaned from the Morrigan Books website and Smashwords website, from which you can buy the e-version. A Kindle-friendly e-version and a print edition available through Amazon will be announced soon.

Those who already own the Aurealis Award-nominated book in the form of the first Altair Australia edition should note that while the same stories appear in it, there has been some effective editing done (supervised by Morrigan editor Kari Wolfe and senior editor Amanda Pillar) and an additional story has been added as a bonus (one that reflects on, and takes place in the same “world” as,  the title novella). If you liked the first edition, you’ll love this one — and at US$3.95 why not pick it up again for the bonus content.

As part of the launch, I was interviewed by editor Kari Wolfe. My response to a question about the stories in Creeping in Reptile Flesh is reproduced below, but you can read the whole interview here.

What is your favorite story from this collection?  Is there one that stands out for you, the most inspired, the one that you’re most eager to share with your readers?

RH: Well, they’re all my babies and I love them all for different reasons, even when in hindsight I see the flaws. I have a great affection for ‘The Slimelight, and How to Step into It’, for example, for its bizarre and somewhat gooey humour, its origins in my experiences in amateur theatre and its rather naive romanticism — something I don’t do all that much. I love ‘Rotting Eggplant on the Bottom Shelf of a Fridge’ for its surreal extravagance, the way it creates meaning on a level beyond plot and how, in order to “get” it, readers need to grasp its oddball absurdity — in which lies, I think, the underlying nature of human existence. I love the creepiness of many of the stories, from the gross-out of ‘Heartless’ and the Cthulhan tentacle horror of ‘The Black Lake’s Fatal Flood’ to the subtle eeriness of ‘You’re A Sick Man, Mr Antwhistle’, and the unexpected menace of the last two paragraphs of ‘Getting Rid of Mother’ (which, of course, only work because of what comes before). I love the dark introversion of ‘Groundswell’, the quirky pessimism of ‘Rotten Times’ and the wistful melancholy of ‘Casual Visitors’. ‘Dreams of Death’ is classic Hitchcockian noir — a sub-genre I adore.

But the stand-out for me is the title story, ‘Creeping in Reptile Flesh’. It’s a long story and one that took me a long time to get right. I think its complexity, in terms of both plot and thematic impact, represents some of the most successful writing I’ve ever done. I don’t think it’s an easy read, not if you want to get full value out of it. It demands attention at a level we don’t always give to works within the genre, yet it has all the right ingredients: horror, suspense, humour, politics, interesting characters, startling imagery, symbolic layering — even a zombie or two — and a plot with some hopefully unexpected turns, all forming a theme that I as author find profound and compelling. It’s about Australia in a way that may not be obvious, exploring how ferality becomes an indigenous reality of its own — and it’s about the transcendent bestiality of human nature. It’s also fun. It was fun to write — and reading it now, I still find it wildly entertaining.

But maybe that’s just me.

Order a copy today — and also go to the book’s Facebook page and “Like” it. If you’ve already read the book, leave a comment. If you buy it now and read it for the first time, let me know what you think.

Above all, enjoy.

Posted in Books, My Writing, News | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Remind Me! How Many Tentacles Should It Have?

Posted on Friday, July 22, 2011 by Robert Hood

Giant squids and their mega-cephalopodic partners-in-crime, giant octopi, have a fruitful life in and out of the cinema. They are probably one of the few fantasy creatures that have genuine real-life equivalents. Sure, squids and octopi from the real world mightn’t be quite as humungous as their fictional cousins but size-wise they’re not too shabby.

Giant squids/octopi — along with their soul-mates, the sea-serpent — are frequent visitors to the pages of ship logs and newspapers throughout the ages. They crop up in the indices of weird-shit books and magazines with a sort of casual inevitability that must be the envy of celebrities everywhere.

Source: Pierre Denys de Montfort (1810) reproduced in R. Ellis (1994), Monsters of the Sea. Robert Hale Ltd. — via wikipedia.

Sometimes the really big ones are identified as the legendary “Kraken”, star of Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest (US-2006; dir.  Gore Verbinski) — though the visualisations of the Kraken in Clash of the Titans (US-2010; dir. Louis Leterrier) and indeed Ray Harryhausen’s version in the original 1981 film weren’t overly squid-like, apart from the tentacles. Still, it’s all grist for the fantasy mill, scientific accuracy or not.

Apart from the above mentioned, famous giant squids/octopi from the cinema include the nameless beastie from various renditions of Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (in particular, the 1954 version directed by Richard Fleischer and starring Kirk Douglas as Ned and James Mason as the infamous misanthrope Captain Nemo), Ray Harryhausen’s tentacle-deprived Really Big Octopus from It Came From Beneath the Sea (US-1955; dir. Robert Gordon), the Whatever-It-Is from Deep Rising (US-1998; dir. Stephen Sommers) and the co-star of the recent “classic” Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus (US-2009; dir. Jack Perez/Ace Hannah).

Early book illustration of “The Scene” from Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

Then there’s the whole Lovecraftian tentacle-fest known as the Cthulhu mythos — but we won’t go there though if you’re interested you could go check out this Undead Backbrain article).

What this is all about is just my typically roundabout way of introducing you to a new giant squid movie. This one’s a short animated film called Giant Squid, directed by Maxwell O. Perry and released by Dimly Lit Films.

Created in the “limited animation” style of South Park, it tells the tale of a very nasty and very big squid and the poor sods who hunt it.

Synopsis:

When Elise’s boyfriend is abducted by a giant green killer squid in the Atlantic Ocean, she enlists the help of a marine biologist and a drunken squid poacher to track the squid before it is too late … but the squid has other plans.

Giant Squid has everything you need in a giant squid movie. This includes:

1. A large green squid:

2. Beautiful women:

3. Gore in abundance:

4. A beautiful woman in a bikini covered in blood:

5. An attractive female scientist complete with lab coat and glasses:

6. A expository scene delivered by the attractive female scientist:

8. A panicking naval commander:

6. A crusty old sea-dog who’s the only one that knows how to deal with the Squid:

7. A climactic scene where the giant squid trashes stuff:

8. A concluding scene (But who will prevail?)

Anyway, check out the trailer below:

[youtube EoEfFgiMFFw]

Giant Squid will be playing in the 1pm Matinee Block of films on Saturday 23 July (between films from South Korea and India) at the 15 Minutes of Fame Film Festival in Palm Bay, FL. For those in the general vicinity of Florida, the Festival takes place at the Palm Bay Dollar Movies at 160 Malabar Rd. Tickets are $2.00 each. Bargain!

Meanwhile there are some “Making of” videos that you can watch starting here.

Source: Dimly Lit website; Facebook page; YouTube Channel. Via Avery Guerra. Written by Robert Hood

Posted in Animation, Giant Monsters, Giant Squids, News | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Review: Painting Giant Robots and Monsters

Posted on Sunday, July 17, 2011 by Robert Hood

Godaizer (Singapore-2011; short [18:43 min.]; dir. Hillary Yeo)

Reviewed by Robert Hood

Mecha is one of the most popular sub-categories of anime and has produced some of the best and longest-running animated sci-fi series ever. Though quintessentially Japanese when considered in terms of this genre, mecha’s tropes and central characteristics have also been adapted across cultural borders. Godaizer, a luminous, 18-minute animated film made by an independent creator, comes from Singapore. Producer/director Yeo plays upon the genre’s Japanese heritage in many different ways, not just via signage.

Godaizer is not the kind of frenetic anime that is all action and noise, certainly during its opening third. In some ways it is more suggestive of Miyazaki’s cinematic style (not so much visually as in general ambiance). Its opening sequence, showing the start of what is obviously another typical day, is slow and contemplative, as the youthful main character, awoken by a bedside clock, looks out upon the morning and the chooks, pushes open rusting gates and then pulls switches to start up the vast repair shop in which he lives. The roof slides back to let in the sun, service gates grind open and lights come on.

A wealth of information, both situational and emotional, is conveyed in this initial sequence, all without words. As the boy shuffles through a vast workshop, we see that it is full of large robots of various kinds, from toy-like to militarist: a virtual history of giant robot design. This robot construction and repair shop has clearly seen better days, however, and its staff – the boy and an old man he finds asleep under one of the machines – are to an extent just going through the motions. The glory days are past.

Mecha anime features huge robots created for military purposes and most typically controlled by youthful pilots. Sometimes the relationship between human and machine is simply that of pilot and aircraft. But the nature of the bond can also be metaphysical, as in Neon Genesis Evangelion, or based on deliberate physical and mental imprinting. Often, the particular human pilot is the only one able to effectively control the giant machine.

In Godaizer, it becomes clear that the boy is the pilot of the workshop’s ultimate robot – the largest most impressive in the building – and to do so effectively, mental discipline is required. But both he and his robot have seen little action for some time and the air of ennui he exudes resembles a “holding pattern”. Yeo gives us a glimpse into the past through the simple device of a wall covered in newspaper clippings and a photograph of a youthful pilot and his family – clearly the boy’s father with wife and young son. The implied tragedy is never elaborated upon. However, the emotional significance is clear. Can the boy live up to the past and the expectations of his grandfather? Will he be given a chance to do so?

As a genre, mecha crosses over into daikaiju (or “giant monster”) territory, as the giant machine becomes Earth’s only effective defense against monstrous giants and gargantuan alien invaders. In the 70s and 80s in particular several television series tried to exploit the immense popularity of Ultraman by taking this approach, as in, for example, the 1972 series Iron King. Such is also the case in Godaizer. After the opening sequence, the film cuts to a modern scientific laboratory just as an experiment is taking place. As a result of the experiment a huge creature awakens and breaks out of its confinement, heading off to engage in the kind of rampage through city streets and countryside that Godzilla and his friends made famous. So our young protagonist is required to don the uniform and put aside self-doubts to face the challenge.

Godaizer embraces the dynamics of daikaiju conflict as thoroughly as it exploits the tropes of the human/machine dynamic lying at the heart of the genre. It is a superb work of animation – lacking the “clean” lines of both traditional cel animation and modern CG imaging, but replacing them with a luminous, painterly quality that emphasises brush strokes and texture. It comes over as an animated painting, beautifully rendered, colours vibrant and surfaces finely textured. This enhances the story, what there is of it, very effectively indeed. In some ways, this artistic execution is more important than the plot.

A mecha/daikaiju classic in miniature, Godaizer may be short, but what it lacks in direct narrative complexity it makes up for in attention to suggestive detail. Everything is there, conveyed through beautifully rendered visuals (by Ray Toh), an artist’s attention to emotional detail, and an effective soundtrack that may be wordless but is not lacking in suggestiveness. The film is truly cinematic in the sense that it is the imagery and the atmosphere created by the art and the sound effects that carry the narrative and emotional meaning — by implication rather than through dialogue. Though it doesn’t exactly work like a film from the early silent era, it has adopted the visual essence that is the soul of cinema – and the result is both entertaining and accurate to its genre.

See it when it comes to a festival near you – or when it appears on DVD. You won’t regret it.

Posted in Animation, Daikaiju, Giant Monsters, Independent film, Mecha, Pictorial art, Review, Robots | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Intimations of Kong

Posted on Friday, July 15, 2011 by Robert Hood

For some time now Undead Backbrain has been following the evolution of a film based on artist Joe DeVito and writer Brad Strickland’s illustrated novel Kong: King of Skull Island  (see this article from 2009, for example). Rumours of its coming were persistent for a while. Initially developed by FX-master Ray Harryhausen, it began as a project of Fantastic Films, where it languished for some time. In June 2009, Variety reported that the property had been acquired by Spirit Pictures, and the film was to be produced by Arnold Kunert.

Shortly afterwards Fantastic Films pulled the entry and associated artwork from their site, though sometime later added another entry to their upcoming productions list called “King Kong: The Beginning”, clearly planning to do their own prequel or original-style film about the Great Ape on Skull Island. This entry has since disappeared, so we can assume the plan fell through. Meanwhile, the Spirit Pictures project presumably continued, though there has been little word of it.

Just a few days ago, however, came an announcement that Fox Animation has decided to take up the Kong gauntlet, in the form of an animated film to be written by Christian Magalhaes and Bob Snow based on a story by Mike Weber (source: Deadline). Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps will produce in conjunction with Ted Field’s Radar Pictures. There’s not much by way of plot detail, but it is said to be a “modern-day” approach to the story, told from Kong’s point-of-view. Cute and cuddly? Happy ending? Who knows?

Made curious by certain facts relating to the project, the Backbrain’s Jimmy Olson, Kaiju Search-Robot Avery (aka Avery Guerra), has been in pursuit of clarification. He reports:

I was told a short while back, by someone who had worked on the DeVito project, that they were no longer involved and that they had heard that Ted Fields was now attached to it. In conjunction with this new report that Fields’ team was working on the Fox animation, it all seemed very confusing. Were these the same project? So I enquired of Joe DeVito if this new animated film was related to his project in any way.

This was DeVito’s exclusive reply:

“I can tell you that the project you refer to is not connected to mine. The two are on completely different tracks. Mine is still moving ahead very well and I can say this: the project has never been more alive, and has never been on a faster track or in better hands than it is right now.”

So one Kong project may be dead, but it appears we’ve got two others to look forward to.

Meanwhile, here are some of Joe DeVito images from Kong: King of Skull Island:

  • Source: Avery Guerra. Written by Robert Hood.

On King Kong on Film:

For one of the most recognisable and prestigious figures in giant monster film history, Kong has not been afforded the sort of franchise continuity typical of icons — certainly not producing enough adaptations, prequels, sequels and spin-offs of quality to warrant a section of his own on Undead Backbrain’s Giant Monster Film List.

The original King Kong (US-1933; dir. Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack) is considered one of the greats, not just among fantasy/monster films but in the history of cinema itself. Images from the film have survived through the years and have entered our cultural consciousness, so that even those who have never seen the film are aware of the Great Ape and his key antics.

Apart from anything else the 1933 King Kong highlighted the work of SFX master Willis O’Brien and led not only to a run of classic films using his characteristic stop-motion techniques, but also played a central role in bringing Willis O’Brien protégé Ray Harryhausen onto the scene. Harryhausen’s superb fantasy SFX have in turn inspired filmmakers, artists and monster makers for decades, in the stop-motion animation field and beyond it, even today in the world of digital FX creation.

What followed for the original Kong, however, was less inspiring. Though not a bad film, the quickly made follow-up, Son of Kong (US-1933; dir. Ernest B. Schoedsack) was a much more minor affair, with some good moments from O’Brien but little resonance. Famously, O’Brien planned to make another Kong film, tentatively titled King Kong vs Frankenstein, but it never eventuated (see the Backbrain article “Willis O’Brien’s Frankenstein” here). This in turn led to Toho Studio’s acquisition of the script and subsequent adaptation of it as Kingu Kongu tai Gojira [King Kong vs Godzilla] (1962; dir. Ishiro Honda) — and then again, sans Kong, as Furankenshutain tai chitei kaiju Baragon [Frankenstein vs the Subterranean Monster Baragon] (1965; dir. Ishiro Honda) aka Frankenstein Conquers the World (US, 1966). But that’s another story. The Japanese Kong, of course, reappeared in Kingukongu no gyakushu [trans. King Kong’s Counterattack; aka King Kong Escapes] (1967; dir. Ishiro Honda).

Note: Kong’s career actually began early in Japan with a short film Wasei Kingu Kongu [lit. Japanese King Kong] (directed by Torajiro Saito in 1933) and a few years later in Edo ni arawareta Kingu Kongu [lit. King Kong Appears in Edo] (1938; directed by Sôya Kumagai). These films are lost now, but we do know that Kong was played by a man in a suit and from available stills did pretty much what he did in New York — grabbed the girl and rampaged.

After that there is little to report. Putting aside assorted low-rent rip-offs such as A*P*E (1976), Queen Kong (1976) and this recent one from Bangladesh, cartoon series such as 1998’s The Mighty Kong, and non-Kong giant ape films such as Schoedsack and O’Brien’s Mighty Joe Young (1949), Britain’s Konga (1960) and the Hong Kong The Mighty Peking Man (1977), there have been few legitimate Kong films. The first appeared in 1976, with the Dino De Laurentiis produced, big-budget remake, King Kong (US-1976; dir. John Guillermin) — still defended by some, but in truth pretty much an artistic failure, despite a few excellent moments and some decent non-stop-motion SFX (see Backbrain review). The relative success of this film resulted in a sequel, King Kong Lives! (US-1986; dir. John Guillermin and Charles McCracken) — a film that is universally derided but which I for one found to be more fun than its predecessor, despite its many flaws.

Next up came Peter Jackson’s 2005 remake, an expensive latter-day homage to the original, scorned by some but to my mind a superb, if somewhat unrestrained achievement.

Where will these new ones fit? We’ll see.

Posted in Film, Giant Monsters, Kaiju Search-Robot Avery, King Kong, Monsters in general, News, Posters, Update | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

New El Monstro Trailer

Posted on Monday, July 11, 2011 by Robert Hood

Ah, murderous femmes, exploitation violence, an aging seer (of the Aussie kind) and a huge tentacled monster. It’s multiple festival award winner El Monstro del Mar (Australia-2010; dir. Stuart Simpson) — and while we’re waiting for the DVD, here’s the brand new trailer:

[youtube mutj9D2RnYU]

Thanks for the heads-up, Avery!

You can read the Backbrain interview with the director, Stuart Simpson, here. Or check out the official website.

Posted in Exploitation films, Film, Giant Monsters, Giant Squids, Horror, Independent film, Trailers, Update | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Exclusive: An Invasion of Russian Spores

Posted on Tuesday, June 28, 2011 by Robert Hood

Maksim Dyachuk is a young independent Russian filmmaker. He’s virtually unknown in the industry worldwide, but that may change in the near future if ambition and talent have anything to do with it. Taking his cue from Gareth Edwards (who came from nowhere to gain critical acclaim for his self-made giant monster drama, Monsters, and is now helming one of the most highly anticipated franchise reboots there is — Godzilla — for Legendary Pictures), Dyachuk hopes that his own cheaply produced but — from the evidence so far — monstrously effective sci-fi/horror thriller Spores [aka СПОРЫ] will find its niche in the West and give him the clout to complete what he sees as a trilogy.

He has allowed Undead Backbrain to release the first English teaser trailer for Spores. Check it out below:

[youtube cCVYJaFgMjs]

Original Russian version:

[youtube Mm4Q2RYMY54]

“Spores represents four years of work,” he explained to Undead Backbrain. “I have done it myself, without backing. In Russia, it is possible to shoot such films. Production costs are not too expensive and the situation there offers good money-saving opportunities. I want to make a movie trilogy under the title Spores, of which this first one — which I call Spores: Invasion — is the first. I am willing to cooperate to get the rest made. I’m hoping that a producer in the US and Europe will be in the audience when this first Spores premiers and will recognise the potential of what I can achieve.”

Post-production work on Spores is almost completed, and the film will be available in November.

“The script, video camera work and visual effects are all my own work,” Dyachuk explained. “I was inspired by Gareth Edwards. He also makes films virtually by himself. But I live in Siberia. The film is in the Russian language. There will be English subtitles and if I find a producer in the USA, there will be an English dub version.”

On the issue of the film’s genre, Dyachuk explained: “In Russia, fantasy, sci-fi and horror movies are not popular. And this is my favorite genre. But there are interesting stories, places, and actors here and it is ideal to take advantage of that.”

We look forward to seeing the result once post-production is complete.

Synopsis:

A group of youthful friends go out of town on an outing and stumble upon an old Soviet factory. The factory has been long abandoned and is derelict. It interests them and they decide to explore and to document what they find. But their curiosity brings them face-to-face with unimaginable danger. It transpires that alien spores have come to Earth on a meteorite, and that these spores quickly multiply and take on a monstrous form once they touch the ground. Who among the group of threatened humans will fight? Who will survive? And what will the ultimate outcome of this terror be for the planet?

Crew:

  • Directed by Maksim Dyachuk
  • Director of Photography: Maksim Dyachuk
  • Produced by Dina Green
  • Sound design: Igor Faust
  • Editing: Maksim Dyachuk
  • Scenario: Maksim Dyachuk
  • Music: Igor Faust
  • VFX Effects and Compositing: Maksim Dyachuk

Cast:

Natalia Rybjakova, Valery Kuzmenko, Oleg Burlakov, Elena Sherbakova, Nikolay Dubkov, Vladimir Kokin and Leonid Gusarov

More stills, production pictures and conceptual artwork is available in the Gallery below.

Gallery:

Posted in Fantasy, Film, Horror, Independent film, Monsters in general, News, Teaser | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

American Kaiju: Aligon Attacks!

Posted on Monday, June 27, 2011 by Robert Hood

Hot on the heels of his announcement that Bluewater Productions has contracted him to produce a series of American Kaiju comics, Todd Tennant has provided the Backbrain with a pic of another of his feature monsters — this time, Aligon — and a teaser image to entice you into the fold (if you’re not already there).

Clearly something’s arrived in the Big Apple!

And here’s Aligon, whose genetic background is made clear by the name.

If you’re not looking forward to this series of Todd’s, then you must have come to this site by accident.

Source: Todd Tennant. See this previous Backbrain article for more, and don’t forget to check out Todd Tennant’s graphic novelisation of the rejected Ted Elliott/Terry Rossio 1994 Godzilla screenplay.

Posted in Comics, Daikaiju, Giant Monsters, Godzilla, Graphic novels, Teaser, Todd Tennant, Update | 1 Comment

Zombie Get-Together: The Reunion

Posted on Thursday, June 23, 2011 by Robert Hood

Of his new zombie film, The Reunion, writer/director Jeff Stewart comments:

“It’s a cross between HBO’s hit series The Wire and the zombie film Dawn of the Dead…  an urban zombie flick.”

Blending imagery, themes and story elements from both crime dramas and zombie films, the cross-genre thriller depicts men and women embroiled in the world of crime, their lives affected by tragedy, redemption and betrayal. But further pressure is put on everyone when a zombie outbreak erupts across the city.

Synopsis:

The story revolves around Braxton and Ben, two childhood friends who end up in the drug trade. When Ben is sent to jail, Braxton decides to call it quits and become an honest businessman. Ben is released early and is threatening to destroy everything Braxton has built. With no choice, Braxton enacts a plan to “deal” with his former friend and business partner, but before he can take action all hell breaks loose. Now the former friends must work together to stay alive against an onslaught of the undead.

As you can see from this poster, The Reunion‘s got all the requisite dramatic requirements for a crime thriller — plus zombies. And there’s lots of them!

[youtube ATk4rdZrQq8]

The Reunion stars (among others) Kirk Ponton (The City is Mine), Chase Toretto (The Bastard Men of Root Flats) and Ronnie Armani. It was filmed in New Jersey with an estimated budget of $35,000 (IMDb).

Imagery from The Reunion, which is still in production, is looking extremely effective, managing to give an artful quality even to the abundant, exploitation-style violence. The zombie hordes look excellent.

We’ll definitely be keeping an eye or three out for this one.

Check out the Gallery below for more imagery from the film, as well as alternative posters, production shots, gore, more zombies, concept art and more.

Gallery:

Posted in Film, Horror, Independent film, Pictorial art, Trailers, Zombies | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Exclusive: First Image of the New Killer Shrews

Posted on Sunday, June 19, 2011 by Robert Hood

Okay, so I’d just finished putting up some video material shot on the location set of Return of the Killer Shrews (US-2011; dir. Steve Latshaw) — the sequel to the 1959 exploitation horror cheapie, The Killer Shrews — when the first image released of the new killer shrews turned up in my in-box, courtesy of  Scott Romine and James and Dorothy Best. It shows a creature that is utterly different from the dashshund-in-fur critters that were bodgied up for the first film.

As giant mutant shrews go, it looks great, doesn’t it?

Certainly as compared to:

As you no doubt know by now, the new film stars James Best, who was the lead in the original film all those years ago. He’s playing the same character — years later, as he unwillingly returns to the Killer Shrew island and finds himself again facing the toothy monstrosities. For a full synopsis, check out this earlier Backbrain article.

Unlike the first film, this one is reputed to be much more ambitious, aspiring to much better production values and a bigger budget. They’ve so far snaffled some bigger names to take starring roles, including John Schneider (ex-Duke of Hazzard and Clark Kent’s father in Smallville), Sean Flynn (grandson of Errol), Jennifer Lyons (Desperate Housewives) and Bruce Davison (X-Men and a million other things).

In these YouTube interviews, James Best explains why this film will be “a real film” as opposed to the fun, but admittedly fairly lousy, original:

[youtube ENbPdAqenis]

[youtube 5xsmszbewRg]

Above: Director Steve Latshaw, Dan Golden and co-writer Pat Moran on location
in the Santa Clarita area during filming

Check out the new article on Undead Brainspasm for more pictures and some fun on-set shenanigans from Best. There is also a Flash slideshow of production shots on the film website here (under the date June 2nd, 2011).

  • Source: Scott Romine and James and Dorothy Best via Avery Guerra. Written by Robert Hood
Posted in Exploitation films, Film, Horror, Monsters in general, Update | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Laputa: Castle in the Sky

Posted on Sunday, June 19, 2011 by Robert Hood

Laputa: Castle in the Sky [original title: Tenkû no shiro Rapyuta] (Japan-1986; dir. Hayao Miyazaki

Reviewed by Robert Hood

There is a distinctly steampunk — or perhaps more accurately retro, post-Industrial — aesthetic  to Hayao Miyazaki’s typically luminous fantasy anime, Laputa: Castle in the Sky. Technological imagery combines with more fantastical elements to create the sort of magical ambiance  quintessential to Miyazaki’s grandmaster status in the field of animation. Though science fiction in general appearance, replete with flying machines, robots and advanced, if ancient, technology, much of the film feels like magic. The combination makes for a wonderful two-hours of family entertainment — profound simplicity, darkness wrapped in auras of light.

After an opening scene in which a young girl (Sheeta) falls from a huge dirigible while trying to escape both a mysterious enemy and air-pirates, the action shifts to Pazu, an engineer’s apprentice at work in a vast mining construct, clearly well past its prime. He sees the young girl not so much falling as floating down from the sky, apparently carried to safety by the glowing pendant she wears around her neck. He catches her in his arms.

This encounter is the beginning of an adventurous journey that involves spectacular chase scenes, pseudo-fascist troops, air battles, puzzles to be solved — and a mythical flying castle that is what remains of an ancient civilisation whose power had been vast but has long since been lost to ground-dwelling humanity. Many seek the source of that power, however, and Pazu must not only help Sheeta escape them, but also unravel the mystery of who she is and how she is connected to Laputa.

Though the sinister pirates convincingly turn into eccentric comrades during the unravelling of the narrative,  and the overall tone of the film is one of well-meaning optimism, there is a dark and melancholy undercurrent as well. It is this that creates the film’s complexity and gives an effective texture to the story. If nothing else, evidence of human civilisation here is in various stages of decay — from the mining township of Slag Ravine, which appears to be living under the shadow of economic decline, to Laputa itself, which is the last evidence of an advanced civilisation that has now all but disappeared. Parts of it are overgrown, crumbling, with only the natural reserves — kept up by a strange and strangely endearing robotic ecologist — surviving to the end. In that end the island in the sky becomes more or less a huge tree (the Tree of Life?), with the debris of greatness entangled in its roots — a significant symbol of the continuity of the natural world and the ephemeral nature of humanity’s creations, no matter how magnificent.

This new Blu-ray edition of Laputa: Castle in the Sky is absolutely beautiful, evidence, if any were needed, that traditional cel animation can stand up to scrutiny against CGI and in some areas perhaps even surpass it. Apparently 69,262 traditional “cels” and 381 colors were needed to give Laputa its radiant splendor, and there is no stinting on the quality of the animation itself. The luminosity of this transfer to Blu-ray has to be the best the film has ever looked and is more than worthy of this great work of animated cinema.

If you love Miyazaki’s work, you will need to upgrade to this edition, which you can watch with its original Japanese soundtrack or with an effective English dub. If you don’t love Miyazaki’s work… what’s your problem?

Laputa: Castle in the Sky is released on DVD and on Blu-ray by Madman Entertainment.

Posted in Animation, Fantasy, Film, Review, Robots, Science Fiction | Tagged , , | Leave a comment