movies

1045 – The Mist (2007)

timespace coordinates: 2000’s small town of Bridgton, Maine

Mtime.com

The Mist (also known as Stephen King’s The Mist) is a 2007 American science-fiction horror film based on the 1980 book The Mist by Stephen King. The film was written and directed by Frank Darabont. Darabont had been interested in adapting The Mist for the big screen since the 1980s. The film features an ensemble cast including Thomas JaneMarcia Gay HardenSamuel WitwerToby Jones, and future The Walking Dead actors Jeffrey DeMunnLaurie HoldenMelissa McBride, and Juan Gabriel Pareja. Darabont has since revealed that he had “always had it in mind to shoot The Mist in black and white”, a decision inspired by such iconic films as Night of the Living Dead (1968) and the “pre-color” work of Ray Harryhausen. While the film’s cinematic release was in color, the director has described the black and white print (released on Blu-ray in 2008) as his “preferred version.”

The director revised the ending of the film to be darker than the novella’s ending, a change to which King was amenable. Darabont also sought unique creature designs to differentiate them from his creatures in past films.

Although a monster movie, the central theme explores what ordinary people will be driven to do under extraordinary circumstances. The plot revolves around members of the small town of Bridgton, Maine who, after a severe thunderstorm causes the power to go out the night before, meet in a supermarket to pick up supplies. While they struggle to survive, an unnatural mist envelops the town and conceals vicious, Lovecraftian monsters as extreme tensions rise among the survivors.

MV5BMzE3MDk0ODkwM15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMzA5NTk5MTI@._V1_

meta-reference to this film appears in one of Stephen King’s later novels, Under the Dome. (wiki)   /   [The Mist (TV series) imdb]

imdb

movies

0993 – Repo Man (1984)

timespace coordinates: 1980s los angeles california

057TxV3PgrvLmRRswkihebTJczHZNw_large

Repo Man is a 1984 American science fiction comedy film written and directed by Alex Cox. It stars Harry Dean Stanton and Emilio Estevez.

The plot concerns a young punk rock enthusiast (Estevez) in Los Angeles who finds himself partnered with a jaded repossession agent (Stanton) and subsequently caught up in the pursuit for a mysterious car that might be connected to extraterrestrials. The soundtrack is noted as a snapshot of the early-’80s Los Angeles hardcore punk scene

repo (1)

Repo Man received widespread acclaim, and was considered one of the best films of 1984. It has achieved cult status. (wiki)

imdb / sequels

animation, movies, series

0966 – The Chronicles of Riddick

Pitch Black (2000)

timespace coordinates:  desert planet – distant future

MV5BNTNmYzE1OWYtZDdjNC00OTdhLTg1YjUtYWJlZTVkMzkzNmVkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQxNzMzNDI@._V1_

Pitch Black (titled The Chronicles of Riddick: Pitch Black on its DVD re-release) is a 2000 American science fiction action horror film co-written and directed by David Twohy. The film stars Vin DieselRadha MitchellCole Hauser, and Keith David. Dangerous criminal Richard B. Riddick (Diesel) is being transported to prison in a spacecraft. When the spaceship is damaged by comet debris and makes an emergency crash landing on an empty desert planet, Riddick escapes. However, when predatory alien creatures begin attacking the survivors, Riddick joins forces with the surviving crew and other passengers to develop a plan to escape the planet.Pitch Black was shot on a modest budget of US$23 million. Despite mixed reviews from critics, it was a sleeper hit, grossing over $53 million worldwide and developing its own cult following, particularly around the antihero Riddick. (wiki)

imdb


Pitch Black: Slam City (2000 Motion Comic)

(Prequel to Pitch Black) Slam City is in the form of an official, confidential prison record detailing Riddick’s arrival and escape from the Ursa Luna Slam city Facility in eleven hours twenty-two minutes. Notably, it shows Riddick undergoing the surgery that gives him “eyeshine” – the ability to see in the dark – and paying for this with a pack of Kool cigarettes as mentioned in Pitch Black. William J. Johns is seen at the end of the movie and is charged with capturing Riddick. (imdb)

(on youtube)


The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay (2004 video game)

timespace coordinates: inside Butcher Bay, a maximum-security prison – facility constructed on a barren planet

81K5PI3eZNL.AC_SL1500_

(Prequel to Pitch Black)The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay is a first-person action and stealth video game developed by Starbreeze Studios and published by Vivendi Universal Games. Released for the Xbox and Windows in 2004, the game is a tie-in prequel to the futuristic science fiction film The Chronicles of Riddick. Actor Vin Diesel—who was involved in the game’s development—reprises his role as that film’s protagonist, Richard B. Riddick.

The game follows Riddick, the anti-hero of the two films Pitch Black and The Chronicles of Riddick, as he attempts to escape from a maximum-security prison called Butcher Bay. Escape from Butcher Bays designers focused on exploring Riddick’s character in a prison break setting to differentiate the game from the film. The game’s influences include the film Escape from Alcatraz, and video games such as Half-Life and Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell. (wiki)

(Game Movie) (Playthrough)


The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena (2009 video game)

81z7mYPL1AL._AC_SL1500_

The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena is a science fiction first-person action video game for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Mac OS X. The game is a sequel to The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay, which was remade and included along with the Assault on Dark Athena campaign. (wiki)

(Game Movie) (walkthrough)


The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury (2004)

MV5BYTNmNzVhMDItZmQ4MC00MjAwLTk0MTYtMTdlNzk2NTVlMGNkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMzg2MzE2OTE@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,688,1000_AL_

The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury is a 2004 made-for-DVD adult animated science fiction film. It was directed by the Korean-American Æon Flux animator Peter Chung, and features Vin Diesel reprising his role of Richard B. Riddick. It acts as a bridgepoint between Pitch Black and The Chronicles of Riddick. (wiki)

imdb


The Chronicles of Riddick (2004)

timespace coordinates: 26th century Helion Prime, prison moon Crematoria

6N9O82cSGX3MTTPCuPpbVWyVORl

The Chronicles of Riddick is a 2004 American science fiction adventure film which follows the adventures of Richard B. Riddick as he attempts to elude capture after the events depicted in the 2000 film Pitch Black. It is written and directed by Pitch Black director David Twohy, with Vin Diesel reprising his role as Riddick and now also acting as producer. It is the first and so far only film in the franchise to be given a PG-13 rating.

91mTNxf002L._SL1500_

Despite not doing especially well in theatres, the film has been successful on DVD and has gained a cult following. (wiki)

imdb


Riddick: Blindsided (2013)

A new attempt on Lord Marshal Riddick’s life is made on the Necromongers’ ship. It’s time for Riddick to end the years long meandering through space and go back to his roots. (imdb)


Riddick (2013)

MV5BMTk5NzYwMzQ4MV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMjE5MTI1OQ@@._V1_

Riddick is a 2013 American science fiction thriller film, the third installment in the Riddick film series. Produced by and starring Vin Diesel as the title character.

imdb

riddick_by_caseycallenderart-d6j0tpf


Sequel

movies

0957 – Suspiria (1977)

timespace coordinates: 1970’s FreiburgGermany

Suspiria (Latin: [sʊsˈpɪria]) is a 1977 Italian supernatural horror film directed by Dario Argento, co-written by Argento and Daria Nicolodi, partially based on Thomas De Quincey‘s 1845 essay Suspiria de Profundis (Sighs from the Depths) and co-produced by Claudio and Salvatore Argento. The film stars Jessica Harper as an American ballet student who transfers to a prestigious dance academy in Germany but realizes, after a series of brutal murders, that the academy is a front for a supernatural conspiracy. It also features Stefania CasiniFlavio BucciMiguel BoséAlida ValliUdo Kier and Joan Bennett, in her final film role.

albumtemp-6

The film is the first of the trilogy Argento refers to as The Three Mothers, which also comprises Inferno (1980) and The Mother of Tears (2007)Suspiria has become one of Argento’s most successful feature films, receiving critical acclaim for its visual and stylistic flair, use of vibrant colors and its score by the prog-rock band Goblin.

suspiria_1977_barclay_french

Suspiria has become a cult classic, and is recognised as an influential film in the horror genre. It served as the inspiration for a 2018 film of the same title, directed by Luca Guadagnino. (wiki)

suspiria-poster-6ea6f37a6f9571a3-01


imdb

movies

0833 – The Wicker Man (1973)

timespace coordinates: 1973  remote Hebridean island Summerisle

THE WICKER MAN - Australian Poster 1

The Wicker Man is a 1973 British mystery horror film directed by Robin Hardy. It stars Edward WoodwardBritt EklandDiane CilentoIngrid Pitt, and Christopher Lee. The screenplay by Anthony Shaffer, inspired by David Pinner‘s 1967 novel Ritual, centres on the visit of Police Sergeant Neil Howie to the isolated island of Summerisle, in search of a missing girl. Howie, a devout Christian, is appalled to find that the inhabitants of the island have abandoned Christianity and now practise a form of Celtic paganism.

In 2011, a spiritual sequel entitled The Wicker Tree was released to mixed reviews. This film was also directed by Hardy, and featured Lee in a cameo appearance. (wiki)

enewpbd3wxjz

Potential graphic novel and third film   /   Wicker man   /   imdb

movies, quotes, Uncategorized

0824 – Dark City (1998)

dark_city_by_nuke_vizard-d309igf

Dark City is a 1998 neo-noir science fiction film directed by Alex Proyas. The screenplay was written by Proyas, Lem Dobbs and David S. Goyer. The film stars Rufus SewellKiefer SutherlandJennifer Connelly, and William Hurt. Sewell plays John Murdoch, an amnesiac man who finds himself suspected of murder. Murdoch attempts to discover his true identity and clear his name while on the run from the police and a mysterious group known only as the “Strangers”.

Dark-City-variant-reduced-size-687x1024
chris skinner streetscape edition poster

(themes) Theologian Gerard Loughlin interprets Dark City as a retelling of Plato‘s Allegory of the Cave. For Loughlin, the city dwellers are prisoners who do not realize they are in a prison. John Murdoch’s escape from the prison parallels the escape from the cave in the allegory. He is assisted by Dr. Schreber, who explains the city’s mechanism as Socrates explains to Glaucon how the shadows in the cave are cast. Murdoch however becomes more than Glaucon; Loughlin writes, “He is a Glaucon who comes to realize that Socrates’ tale of an upper, more real world, is itself a shadow, a forgery.”

DCSky-1
chris skinner skyscape edition poster

Murdoch defeats the Strangers who control the inhabitants and remakes the world based on childhood memories, which were themselves illusions arranged by the Strangers. Loughlin writes of the lack of background, “The origin of the city is off–stage, unknown and unknowable.” Murdoch now casts new shadows for the city inhabitants, who must trust his judgment. Unlike Plato, Murdoch “is disabused of any hope of an outside” and becomes the demiurge for the cave, the only environment he knows. 

dark_city_quad_movie_poster

The city in Dark City is described by Higley as a “murky, nightmarish German expressionist film noir depiction of urban repression and mechanism”. The city has a World War II dreariness reminiscent of Edward Hopper‘s (0049) works and has details from different eras and architectures that are changed by the Strangers; “buildings collapse as others emerge and battle with one another at the end”. The round window in Dark City is concave like a fishbowl and is a frequently seen element throughout the city. The inhabitants do not live at the top of the city; the main characters’ homes are dwarfed by the bricolage of buildings.  (wiki)


Mr. Hand: We’re very lucky when you think about it. / Emma Murdoch: I’m sorry? / Mr. Hand: To be able to revisit those places which have meant so very much to us. / Emma Murdoch: I thought it was more that we were haunted by them. / Mr. Hand: Perhaps. But imagine a life Alien to yours. In which your memories were not your own, but those shared by every other of you kind. Imagine the torment of such an existence….no experiences to call your own. / Emma Murdoch: If it was all you knew, maybe it would be a comfort. / Mr. Hand: But if you were to discover something different…Something….better.

imdb   /   Chris Skinner