Three new dossiers are up:
The Process Church of The Final Judgement, the 60s cult.
Amber Case, the cyborg anthropologist.
David Cronenberg, the body horror film director.
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3 New Dossiers: Process Church of the Final Judgement, Amber Case, David Cronenberg
Three new dossiers are up:
The Process Church of The Final Judgement, the 60s cult.
Amber Case, the cyborg anthropologist.
David Cronenberg, the body horror film director.
Instruments for Operating on Mutant Women
The Criterion collection has a bunch of David Cronenberg memorabilia on display, including a photo gallery of these props from Dead Ringers: the so called “Instruments for Operating on Mutant Women.”
Also check out this feedback card from a test screening for Videodrome.
(via Justin)
See also: David Cronenberg on Gender
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/5vGKjQrIFXE/
Alejandro Jodorowsky Crowd Funding Next Film
Alejandro Jodorowsky, apparently fed up with not being able to raise funds from traditional sources, is appealing directly to fans to raise money for his next film, the autobiographical Danza De La Realidad (“The Dance of Reality”). Here’s the Google translate of the official site:
We invite you to participate in financing the film “The Dance of Reality,” directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky, Chilean artist and director.
With your donations we can make this project real. The people involved will have their name printed on the film. Donations totaling more than 100 USD will receive a certificate of ownership of an exclusive DVD of the movie version.
You can donate here.
(via Twitch film)
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/zMuMBJqYkNE/
Neuromancer Casting? Cyberpunks Weigh In
Damage from Planet Damage asked his “22 major arcana of cyberpunk” who they thought should be cast in a Neuromancer movie. I was honored to be included.
[CASE]
Klint: Joseph Gordon-Levitt Anabelle Cat: I love Cillian Murphy-superb choice and Joseph Gordon-Levitt Matt: An Unknown Rob: As for Case, the only person even slightly close to the target age that I feel could pull it off would be Joseph Gordon-Levitt. I think a lot of that has to do with his role in Brick, which was seriously perfect. M1k3y: Ryan Gosling as Case, if only to see him cyberpunk’d up. But mostly because he’s talented as shit.
Majority verdict? Joseph Gordon-Levitt.
Planet Damage: (Warning: some of the sidebar images may be NSFW)
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/Qt7L_gwsveQ/
Biopic Screenwriter Dustin Lance Black Working on Barefoot Bandit Film
Biopic screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, writer of Milk and the forthcoming J. Edgar, is working on the Barefoot Bandit film about Colton Harris-Moore. Black told Collider:
I’m finishing up The Barefoot Bandit, which is the feature on Colton Harris-Moore. So I’ve been spending a lot of time in Seattle. That’s almost done. And what an amazing kid. There’s so much that people don’t know about him yet. It’s heartbreaking and inspiring. It’s been a very emotional journey for me.
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/QLv5gLMJh_g/
Grant Morrison Working on Rogue Trooper Film?
Empire Online reports Grant Morrison is attached a film based on the 2000AD character Rogue Trooper:
With all eyes on the incoming Judge Dredd movie, it makes sense that savvy producers would be looking to legendary British comic 2000AD for further inspiration. Hence the news this morning that a Rogue Trooper film is in development at Sam Worthington’s production company, and that cult comics writer Grant Morrison (Arkham Asylum, Final Crisis, Superman) is at work on the screenplay. [...]
Morrison never wrote for the strip, but did provide copious Future Shocks, Zenith, and a handful of Dredds, so has plenty of 2000AD heritage. The news of a film and of Worthington and Morrison’s involvement is buried in a Daily Record story that mostly concentrates on Dinosaurs vs Aliens, the property that Morrison is currently working on with Barry Sonnenfeld. It’s an aside so sketchy that it doesn’t even come with a Morrison quote to back it up, so whether Worthington is developing the film with a view to personally slapping on the blue paint remains to be seen. We’ll bring you further details as they emerge.
Empire Online: Grant Morrison Writes Rogue Trooper Film
Rogue Trooper has already had a few video game adaptations.
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/o95W37M2Y9Q/
David Cronenberg Talks About Forthcoming Projects
Empire Online ran a short interview with David Cronenberg on what his next projects will be, after Dangerous Method and the film adaptation of Don Delillo’s Cosmopolis.”
There were odd rumblings some time ago of Cronenberg remaking his own version of The Fly. Not strictly true, says the director, but not exactly false either. “Yeah, that was a thing,” he says. “It’s not exactly a remake; it’s sort of a sequel, kinda. I’ve written a script of that but I don’t know if it’s going to really happen. That has to do with Fox…”
Cronenberg also says he’s considering a sequel to Eastern Promises and denies the rumor that he’s directing the English language adaptation of the Spanish movie Timecrimes.
Empire Online: Cronenberg On Eastern Promises 2 And The Fly 3!
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/fRBOiqe3CRM/
Patton Oswalt and Punisher War Zone Director Lexi Alexander Talk About how the Movie Got Made
Patton Oswalt joined director Lexi Alexander on an episode of the film podcast “How Did This Get Made?” to discuss Punisher War Zone.
How Did This Get Made? Punisher War Zone
Here are my notes from the interview:
-Lexi Alexander didn’t really want to do a Punisher sequel, but there was a sense that doing a big Hollywood movie was something she needed to do.
-The first meeting was right after the Virginia Tech shooting, and the news showed a clip of the shooter’s bed room and he had a Punisher poster.
-Alexander put the meeting off until later, and the studio ended up picking Rounders director John Dahl.
-But Alexander ended up being tapped for the film again when Dahl asked for too much money.
-The way the studio actually talked her into doing the movie was by telling her that she would be the first woman to direct a major super hero adaptation and that she could serve as a role model for girls who want to direct action films.
-Alexander says she really does hope she can serve as a role model to show girls that they can grow up to direct films other than Lifetime movies.
-Alexander started by doing focus groups of Punisher comic fans and asked them what they disliked about the first two Punisher movies.
-Alexander says all the ways that Frank Castle ends up killing people come from the comics, except the bit where he blows up the parkour guys with a rocket launcher.
-She said she included that bit because people kept telling her not to include any parkour guys because parkour was being over done. She decided instead to include them, but have them get blown up.
And here’s a clip of the Punisher from Super Hero Squad on Cartoon Network, which was played in the podcast:
See also: Oswalt’s review of Punisher War Zone
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/l2it2pMfpng/
The Mad Max Future Already Happened
Fun post from steelweaver about how Mad Max was inspired by the 1976 oil crisis and has some unsettling parallels with our current situation:
as I remember it, the setting for the first movie in the Mad Max series is a world where oil scarcity has led to economic disaster and the beginning of the breakdown of social order; where, whilst the police and justice systems continue to function, governmental cutbacks have diminished their ability to effectively maintain control; and where, whilst small pockets of civil society remain relatively unchanged (Max lives in a comfortable suburb with his wife and child), increasingly large areas are plagued by criminal gangs of looters.
Just saying…
In fact, the three-movie arc of the Mad Max films is in many ways a beautifully realised totally ridiculous, but excellently costumed, account of the slow breakdown of order (I), followed by total chaos (Road Warrior), followed by the first stages of re-establishing technology, trade and culture (Thunderdrome).
(Via Brainsturbator)
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/62WuniFMe5k/
Trailer For Rum Diary, Based on a Book by Hunter S. Thompson and Starring Johnny Depp
The film Rum Diary is based on Hunter S. Thompson‘s only published fictional novel* (though most of his works blur fact and fiction) and stars Johnny Depp.
(via Boing Boing)
*”Fictional novel” may seem redundant, but the New Journalism authors like Thompson, Truman Capote, Norman Mailer and Tom Wolfe called the notion that a novel must be fictional into question.
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/eYPjfqIibBQ/
Are We On the Verge of the Next Psychedelic Explosion?
The cover of DMT: The Spirit Molecule
I’m reading Grant Morrison’s Supergods right now, and I’ll probably have more to say on it in the future. But I’ve just passed a part in the book where he talks about the Sekhmet Hypothesis, and wanted to get some thoughts down right now.
The gist of the Sekhmet Hypothesis, as explained by Morrison, is that every 11 years culture shifts as sunspot activity waxes and wains. At one pole is “hippie” culture characterized by longer pop songs, longer hair baggy clothes, psychedelics and an emphasis on peace and love. At the other pole is punk culture, which is characterized by shorter pop songs, short hair, tight clothes, stimulants and an emphasis on anger and rebellion.
Update: Iain Spence, the originator of the Sekhmet Hypothesis and author of a book on the subject left a long comment that’s worth reading. It appears, first of all, that Morrison’s punk/hippie description of the hypothesis is much oversimplified (or perhaps I misunderstood his interpretation of it, this is like a game of telephone – if you want the real scoop on the hypothesis, go to the source). Second, Spence has updated the hypothesis having admitted that he was wrong about the solar cycle aspect of it, among other things.
So it would go:
- 1966: LSD, psychedelic rock, hippies, happenings, peace and love.
- 1977: Punk, new wave, shaved heads, cocaine, rock shows, nihilism.
- 1988: Rave, long electronic dance tracks, shoegaze, Brit pop, MDMA, “Peace, Love, Unity, Respect.”
- 1999: The Matrix, nu-metal, emo, screamo, cutting going mainstream, Red Bull, Starbucks, cocaine and meth making a come back, 9/11, Law & Order.
- 2010: Avatar, Alice in Wonderland and the “dandyishness” of the vampires of Twilight and True Blood (not sure I swallow that last part).
I could add the surge of mind fuck movies in the 90s, and their come back in the 10s, but as some readers pointed out in my earlier post on the subject, those types of movies didn’t entirely die out in the 00s. Also:
- The 60s were also marked by outrage and protest, some of quite violent. A lot of hippies and mods wore tight clothes.
- The late 70s and early 80s also had disco (and later house), psychedelic post-punk, butt rock, epic metal etc.
- The 90s had the Rodney King riots, gangsta rap, Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, plenty of metal, the militia movement, hyperviolent video games and movies.
- Rave didn’t completely die out in the 90s, instead it turned into teknival with a strong emphasis on the hippie-ish psytrance wing. Burning Man grew larger than ever. Not to mention Massively multiplayer online role playing games and Second Life. Tool put Alex Grey’s art on their album cover and his career exploded. Daniel Pinchbeck sold a bazillion books. And what about the popularity of bands like Radiohead, Coldplay and Muse? A bit more underground, but what to make of doom metal, dubstep and BPitchControl, or the hipster cred of Arthur Magazine?
It’s really hard for me to accept that “punk” is the opposite of “hippie.” The 60s counterculture wasn’t always peaceful and non-violent, and the punks, with their love of Jamaican music, antiwar songs and their vegan and vegetarianism were a lot more hippie-ish than many gave them credit for.
And yet…
It’s hard, given the number of exceptions to the formula, to swallow the idea that there’s a real, society-wide pull between punk and hippie every 11 years. Others have critiqued historicity before, and I don’t need to go there.
But there may be pattern of rising and falling tides of psychedelia, perhaps accompanied by a sense of optimism and energy that eventually dissipates. The 60s had acid, the 90s had ecstasy. And I’m hearing that DMT is becoming a common strong street drugs these days, and the new cool thing to listen to is apparently the sound of a modem slowed way down. We could be in for some weird times indeed.
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/MoqpcEkl-BI/
Trailer for Cronenberg’s Movie on Freud and Jung
Mentioned previously here, A Dangerous Method is directed by David Cronenberg and stars Viggo Mortensen as Sigmund Freud, Michael Fassbender as Carl Jung, Keira Knightley as Sabina Spielrein and Vincent Cassel as Otto Gross.
(Thanks James!)
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/hyKzmrXrCv8/
Documentary to Examine Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Dune
In “Jodorowsky’s Dune,” director Frank Pavich intends to get to the bottom of the proposed film and why it fell apart. The doc, half-completed, is currently looking for distribution at Cannes, though interviews with Jodorowsky, Geiger and others have already been recorded. They’ve also released a promo video, obtained by TwitchFilm, which should whet your appetite for what Pavich has in store—check it out after the jump
We hope this is the beginning of a Jodorowsky renaissance. His collaboration with David Lynch’s Absurda Films, “King Shot,” sought financing at Cannes in 2009, but the project was eventually canceled. And we have no idea what happened with “Abelcain,” the long-rumored sequel to “El Topo” that supposedly secured a budget in the fall that same year. It’s just as well, considering Jodo hasn’t been behind the camera since 1990’s “The Rainbow Thief” (which he has since disowned), but we do recommend the excellent two-disc “Santa Sangre” DVD put out earlier this year by the good folks at Severin Films.
indieWIRE: New Documentary To Go Inside ‘Jodorowsky’s Dune’
Here’s a whole bunch of stuff about Jodorowsky’s Dune.
And here’s a clip from, I think, the documentary La Constellation Jodorowsky about the Dune project:
Jodorowsky’s ideas for Dune ended up in his comic Metabarons, which is still in print.
From http://technoccult.net/archives/2011/05/14/documentary-to-examine-alejandro-jodorowskys-dune/
William S. Burroughs and Gus Van Sant: The Discipline Of Do Easy
The Discipline Of DE, a 9 minute adaptation of the short story by William S. Burroughs, was Gus Van Sant’s first film outside of film school. It was filmed around 1977. The story first appeared in Exterminator! in 1973.
Here’s an excerpt from the story:
DE is a way of doing. DE simply means doing whatever you do in the easiest most relaxed way you can manage which is also the quickest and most efficient way, as you will find as you advance in DE.You can start right now tidying up your flat, moving furniture or books, washing dishes, making tea, sorting papers. Don’t fumble, jerk, grab an object. Drop cool possessive fingers onto it like a gentle old cop making a soft arrest.
(via Dangerous Minds)
The Dream of the 90s is Alive in Hollywood
The late 90s had a string of interesting movies that made one feel… strange. The Matrix, Magnolia, Being John Malkovitch, Fight Club, American Beauty. Hell, even the Truman Show fit this mold. I call ‘em mind-fuck movies. They aren’t necessarily great movies, and those brought-up on a steady diet of weirdness probably wouldn’t be moved by them. But each one played with reality and identity, invoked paranoia in and interesting way, and/or made the mundane seem strange by zooming in a bit too close.
There was something about those movies, and the feeling that they transmitted, that’s been lost in the past decade. But I think it might be coming back.
It seemed at first in the early 00s that the mind-fucking would continue. There was Vanilla Sky (which was actually based on a late 90s Spanish movie), and Philip K. Dick was finally getting his due. But most of those Dick adaptations sucked. With few exceptions the 00s were dominated by realism, bromantic comedies, superheroes and sequels (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind stands out, but it seems a little too sentimental to qualify as a mind-fuck movie) . My favorite movie of the decade, Children of Men, was hardly a mind-fucker.
Actually, the 00s will probably be more remembered for its TV series than for its movies. We’ll remember shows like Deadwood, Six Feet Under, The Wire, Dexter and Mad Men. But great as these shows are, they are hardly mind-fuck material. Lost should have been the ultimate mind-fuck epic, but it ended instead in disappointment. (I haven’t watched all of Battle Start Gallactica, but I could see someone making the case that it should qualify for the mind-fuck category. If so, it’s the exception and not the rule.)
Maybe it was 9/11, Bush Administration and the wars. Maybe it was Hollywood’s risk-adversion. Whatever it was, that surrealist buzz fizzled.
But there’s a slew of new movies coming out of Hollywood that remind me of that 90s vibe. It may have started with Inception, and there are others coming up that look like they will break the 00s mold. Movies like
The Adjustment Bureau (yet another Dick adaptation), Limitless (which looks like a Scientology metaphor) and Sucker Punch. I’m not saying any of these will be good. In fact, I’d bet against it. But each one seems like it could be a story arc or plot line from The Invisibles. I’d say that’s a step in the right direction.
Mind-fuck might be too strong a word for this new crop of Hollywood movies. I’m thinking the term “neuro-film” might be a better fit.
Whatever you call it, here’s to hoping for a better decade.
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/-GWZY0foXk4/
Trailer for Film Adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s Radio Free Albemuth
io9: First trailer for Philip K. Dick’s Radio Free Albemuth with Alanis Morissette
A few years ago I would have been excited to see something like this coming to the mainstream. Now I cringe with the anticipation of the tedious conversations with n00bs and normals that this film will probably lead me into. Not to mention the the probability that it will become a Truther/Tea Partier favorite instead of a mind opener. One more sign that I’m getting old, or at least jaded.
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/b-yNKodw8U4/
Video: Alejandro Jodorowsky Talks About Santa Sangre
Alejandro Jodorowsky on SANTA SANGRE from Severin Films on Vimeo.
Ajelandro Jodorowsky talks about Santa Sangre in anticipation of the films re-release on DVD and Blu-Ray.
(via Dangerous Minds)
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/Dte2EPZf0Ko/
Images From David Cronenberg’s Forthcoming Film About Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung
David Cronenberg is directing a film about Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung, starring Viggo Mortensen as Freud and Michael Fassbender and Jung. The film is based on “The Talking Cure” by Christopher Hampton. Ace Showbiz has some stills.
Aceshowbiz: First Official Images From Keira Knightley’s ‘Dangerous Method’
(Thanks James K!)
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/CCAXkoXV09E/
Alan Moore’s New Feature Film And Spin Off TV Series, Jimmy’s End
Who knows if this will ever make it out of production hell:
As readers of Dodgem Logic #2 will know, photographer Mitch Jenkins took a striking series of portraits of performers at a Northampton burlesque review. He decided to film a 10-minute short featuring the dancers for his showreel and, wanting to help out a friend, Moore offered to write a shooting script. It was called “Jimmy’s End”.
As soon as word got out that Moore was writing something for film, people quickly got interested. Jenkins and Moore were approached by Warp Films (producers of Shane Meadows’ This is England and Chris Morris’ Four Lions), who offered to fund a feature version of the film.
These discussions grew to accommodate the idea of spinning off a Channel 4 series from the film, in the manner of This is England ’86. Moore said that initially he’d been dubious about how the story could be extended in this way but had now figured out a longer ongoing narrative.
Bleeding Cool: Jimmy’s End – Alan Moore’s New Feature Film And Spin Off TV Series
(via John Reppion)
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/8eOc5PjO1Us/
Amazing Fake Polish Movie Posters
Something Awful had a Polish movie poster contest – every entry they presented is amazing.
(via Boing Boing)
If you want to get a look at the real thing:
Makes me want to move to Poland!
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/wDmLGn9ifj0/
Inception Inspired by an Uncle Scrooge Comic? (Updated)
I haven’t had a chance to read the whole comic yet, but this is getting a lot of buzz online: there was an old Carl Banks Uncle Scrooge comic in which the Beagle Brothers infiltrated Uncle Scrooge’s dreams, using some sort of apparatus invented by Gyro Gearloose, to get him to reveal the combination to his safe. Gyro, Donald, and the nephews show up but can’t wake Scrooge and the Beagle Brothers for fear of serious mental repercussions, so they send Donald into Scrooge’s dream.
Uncle Scrooge: The Dream of a Lifetime
(Thanks to Walter Smith and Matt Staggs)
Update: Commenter Your Obedient Serpent says this is comic was by Don Rosa, not Carl Barks, and it dates from 2002 – which is a lot less impressive.
From http://technoccult.net/archives/2010/08/05/inception-inspired-by-an-uncle-scrooge-comic/
3 Novels To Read if You Liked Inception
Maze of Death by Philip K. Dick.
Inception seems to owe more than a little to Philip K. Dick’s reality-bending sci-fi yarns. In Maze of Death, which takes place in a world in which god seems to be an objectively real entity, several down-and-out misfits are assigned to work on a harsh, mostly uninhabited planet. But after losing radio contact with their employer they find themselves stranded without even knowing what their assignment is.
Japanese author Haruki Murakami is a master of writing surreal, dream-like novels. Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World revolves around a “calcutec,” who uses his brain as a type of encrypted storage. Companies hire him to store securely store trade secrets. Until, of course, something goes wrong.
Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami
Neuromancer by William Gibson.
I thought of Inception initially as a Dickian film, but my friend Ian pointed out it’s actually more of a Gibsonian film. Neuromancer, Gibson’s first novel, is a heist story taking place in virtual reality. Inception fans should feel right at home.
From http://technoccult.net/archives/2010/07/30/inception-novels/
Watch Primer Online for Free
Shane Carruth, director of Primer, put the entire movie on Google Video for free. It’s a favorite of mine.
(via Planet Damage, who calls it “Just like Inception, only weirder”)
From http://technoccult.net/archives/2010/07/27/watch-primer-online-for-free/
Grant Morrison’s New Movie, SINATORO
Apparently just announced at San Diego Comic Con:
This is the poster for the psychedelic revenge thriller Sinatoro, for which comic book legend Grant Morrison will be writing the screenplay. [...]
The film’s producers are Zdonk with video director Adam Egypt Mortimer on board. Grant Morrison describes the film as “a hallucinatory road-trip into the American psyche, and it evolved into a unique and genre-busting project, worthy, we hope, of a new way of thinking about movies.”
Bleeding Cool: Grant Morrison’s New Movie, SINATORO. And You Will Be Invited To Get Involved.
Looks like a late 90s Vertigo title. We’ll see if it actually happens… here’s hoping!
From http://technoccult.net/archives/2010/07/24/grant-morrison-sinator/
L. Ron Hubbard Movie to be Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
Paul Thomas Anderson is working on a film, working title The Master to star Philip Seymour Hoffman as a L. Ron Hubbard analogue:
Let’s look at what we know about the P.T. Anderson project. It centers around a man (Philip Seymour Hoffman, the only name currently attached to the film) who starts a faith-based organization that becomes popular in 1952 America — exactly the year L. Rob Hubbard expanded his Dianetics self-help system and established the Church of Scientology. The film explores “The Master’s” relationship with a young drifter named Freddie who joins the fold and becomes his Number 2 officer, only to later question both the faith and its figurehead in later years — something plenty of high and low ranking Scientologists alike have done over the years, many publicly denouncing the organization on their way out. The Master employs interrogation-style psychotherapy procedures not unlike the “audit” process basic to Scientology, and spends time living in seclusion with his inner circle on a ship, which Hubbard himself did in the 1960s. [...] More recently, trade paper Production Weekly reported that Reese Witherspoon had been offered a role in The Master; The Wrap’s Deal Central speculated she would play Mary Sue, the young, pregnant wife of Hoffman’s character. Mary Sue Whipp, of course, was the name of Hubbard’s much younger third wife who became involved in Dianetics in the 1950s and helped him run his Scientology empire. The role of The Master’s daughter is also being cast, with Amanda Seyfried, Emma Stone, and Deborah Ann Woll rumored to be in the running. Also linked to the project is Jeremy Renner, who had been up for the role of Freddie, though his involvement is as yet unconfirmed.
Film.com: Will Scientologists Declare War on Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master?
Playlists’s comparisons between the movie and Hubbard’s life
Universal passed on the film, reportedly balking at the $35 million budget, but of course there’s rampant speculation that the budget wasn’t the only reason. The Wrap reports that River Road picked up the film instead.
(via VBS)
Related posts:
- Restoration of lost Scientology materials complete
- Neuromancer Movie to be Directed by Vincenzo Natali of Splice and Cube Fame
- Three of Scientology’s elite parishioners keep faith, but leave the church
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/8PT-WMQ5RMY/
Neuromancer Movie to be Directed by Vincenzo Natali of Splice and Cube Fame
Seven Arts Pictures announced today that Vincenzo Natali (Splice, Cube) has been tapped to direct the upcoming motion picture adaptation of William Gibson’s seminal science fiction novel Neuromancer. Neuromancer is to be produced and financed in Canada by Prodigy Pictures in conjunction with Telefilm Canada. The film is expected to commence pre-production early next year in Toronto and has the full support of Telefilm Canada. The Company will continue to handle all sales of the picture.
Natali’s credits include Splice, starring Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley, as well as the cult psychological thriller Cube. Splice was released in thousands of theaters nationwide by Warner Brothers last Friday following a sensational debut at the Sundance Film Festival.
Marketwatch: Seven Arts Announces Vincenzo Natali to Direct Neuromancer
(via Cat Vincent)
No word whether Sasha Grey (pictured above) will reprise her role as Molly Millions, who she voiced in the New Museum in NYC Neuromancer performance thingy.
Related posts:
- Neuromancer… with Porn Star Sasha Grey as Molly
- William Gibson
- L. Ron Hubbard Movie to be Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/H8x9Oc5Cv54/
3-sentence Movie Reviews
Here are a few movies I’ve seen recently along with a 3 sentence review and letter grade:
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans – Werner Herzog humor and panache abound in this action/black-comedy romp through a post-Katrina New Orleans. Nicholas Cage really gets to shine as an unhinged cop with a heart of gold. This is one of those rare movies where the sequel is better than the original. “A”
Time Traveler’s Wife - Rachel McAdams is adorable, but Eric Bana seems distant, confused, and lacking in romantic chemistry. There is very little tension in this movie, but it is visually appealing. Watching time travel from the woman’s point of view is interesting, but ultimately the movie is a bit slow and something of a let down. “C+”
A Serious Man - Another Coen brothers masterpiece of misdirection. This movie is subtle, but not obtuse. The ultimate theme of this movie is to accept the mystery of not knowing what is coming, and enjoy every moment as it comes. “A+”
Avatar - Overrated. Overlong. Extremely lame without 3D. “C-”
The Fourth Kind - Some people call this a rip off Paranormal Activity, but in some ways it’s a superior film. The way “real” footage is interwoven with footage of mainstream actors is well done and heightens suspense. In the end however, the movie is a let down when you find all of it was fabricated. “C”
The Lovely Bones – This is a stylishly filmed fairy-tale which will sooth your fear of death. Stanley Tucci is perfectly creepy as the killer. Some of the fantasy CGI reminds me of a Claratin commercial, but this is still a well-made and suspenseful film. “B+”
xoxo
Izabael
“Best Buds” starring Natalie Portman
My source says Natalie Portman will be starring in a girl stoner movie called “Best Buds.” Hope to hear more soon. With “Best Buds” and “Her Highness,” she is making the choice to fully delve into stoner films. Good for her.
xoxo,
Izabael
Izabael’s Top 25 Mae West Quotes
25. I’ve been in more laps than a napkin.
24. I used to be Snow White, but I drifted.
23. It is better to be looked over than overlooked.
22. It’s not what I do, but the way I do it. It’s not what I say, but the way I say it.
21. Keep a diary, and someday it’ll keep you.
20. Love isn’t an emotion or an instinct – it’s an art.
19. Marriage is a great institution, but I’m not ready for an institution.
18. One and one is two, and two and two is four, and five will get you ten if you know how to work it.
17. A man can be short and dumpy and getting bald but if he has fire, women will like him.
16. A man has one hundred dollars and you leave him with two dollars, that’s subtraction.
15. A man’s kiss is his signature.
14. A woman in love can’t be reasonable – or she probably wouldn’t be in love.
13. All discarded lovers should be given a second chance, but with somebody else.
12. Cultivate your curves – they may be dangerous but they won’t be avoided.
11. Personally, I like two types of men – domestic and foreign.
10. She’s the kind of girl who climbed the ladder of success wrong by wrong.
9. Ten men waiting for me at the door? Send one of them home, I’m tired.
8. Those who are easily shocked should be shocked more often.
7. I’ll try anything once, twice if I like it, three times to make sure.
6. To err is human, but it feels divine.
5. Too much of a good thing can be wonderful.
4. When choosing between two evils, I always like to try the one I’ve never tried before.
3. When I’m good I’m very, very good, but when I’m bad, I’m better.
2. Anything worth doing is worth doing slowly.
1. You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.
xoxo,
Iza
What have I been up to?
I haven’t been writing much lately as far as blogs, so to break the ice I’m just going to talk about some random things on my mind.
Regarding more “magickal” blog topics: I’m helping pAmphAge write a small but comprehensive how-to manual on magick (with no “bullshit” allowed). This has been sucking out my “magickal” writing efforts, but there should be a lot more going on magickally here towards the end of the year as the book nears completion.
Regarding the new Eminem album Relapse: This is a guilty pleasure. I’m trying to get it out of my system now so I’m not still listening to it all year with everyone else. Also, how many dumb celebrities are going to take the bait and get mad at Eminem for the things he says? Eminem is the motley fool jester of mainstream media. To get mad at him only makes one look even more foolish (and helps Eminem sell more albums of course!)
Regarding EverQuest: As some of you know I play fantasy MMOs when I have a chance. I’ve been playing since I was a wee tot. I’ve played Asheron’s Call 1&2, Age of Conan, Anarchy Online, Dark Age of Camelot, Star Wars Galaxies, Everquest 2, Warhammer Online, Lineage II (where I was a GM for a short while), and of course World of Warcraft. I can say that after all these years, EverQuest is still my favorite! If you like any of these games, I seductively suggest you check out the game without which there wouldn’t even be a World of Warcraft. EverQuest is 10 years old and the world is huge now! Plenty to see and do! I love it. If anyone wants to know my EverQuest character names and server, you can email me privately and I might let you know 
Regarding the new Star Trek movie: Good casting! I rarely get to say this about a movie nowadays. But finally…good casting!
Guess that’s it for now!
Kisses & bites,
Izabael
Izabael’s Top 20 Stoner Movies
Criteria: Movie must have at least one actual use of marijuana by a human. This disqualifies a lot of borderline movies such as Dude, Where’s My Car? and Eurotrip (Where they only eat fake pot brownies…even while in Amsterdam–WTF?).
The ratings are based on my own peculiar balancing of weighing the overall quality of the movie with how much it is truly a stoner movie.
20. Still Smokin’ (1983)
I’m not going to apologize. As far as I’m concerned, stoner movies start and stop at Cheech & Chong; that’s why you will find them at the beginning, end, and middle of my list. This is the one where they go to Amsterdam.
19. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998)
Why so low on the list for fear and loathing? It’s more of an all out chaos and full-on drug movie rather than just a stoner a movie. But it needs to be on the list somewhere so here it is.
18. American Beauty (1999)
Carolyn Burnham: “Well, I see you’re smoking pot now. I think using psychotropic drugs is a very positive example to set for our daughter. “
Lester Burnham: “You’re one to talk, you bloodless, money-grubbing freak.”
17. True Romance (1993)
Brad Pitt’s small but brilliantly understated performance assures this movie a place on my list.
16. Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle (2004)
This movie is borderline retarded sometimes, but overall a fun, little stoner romp.
15. Lords of Dogtown (2005)
This barely qualifies to be on the list since the main characters have nothing to do with pot. It’s only seen being used by the surfers near the beginning of the movie. Still, the movie is one of my favorites and the spirit of the movie is liberating in a way that any stoner should enjoy.
14. Nice Dreams (1981)
This Cheech & Chong film has Timothy Leary and Pee-Wee Herman. What more do you want?
13. River’s Edge (1986)
Stoner movies aren’t always comedies. This is the darkest movie on my list but I feel it deserves a place in the top twenty since it’s a great flick and the use of marijuana is integral to the story in a variety of ways. Crispin Glover is a standout.
12. Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny (2006)
I know I don’t have to convert the Jack Black fans, but for stoners who haven’t yet given this film a try, let me just give away a little spoiler: They make a bong out of Satan’s horn. How fucking cool is that?
11. Easy Money (1983)
True, most of the pot references are in the first 15 minutes of the movie since Rodney Dangerfield has to quit all his vices for a year to gain his $10 million inheritance. Joe Pesci and Dangerfield have awesome chemistry and make this film an underrated classic.
10. Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001)
This movie is mother fuckin’ awesome.
9. Clueless (1995)
Showing that hot, platform-wearing high school girls can smoke pot too–at least on weekends.
Link to video with the pot-smoking part (since embedding is disabled.)
8. Knocked-up (2007)
A Judd Apataw (TM) movie. You know what to expect from Judd Apataw by now, right?
7. Pineapple Express (2008)
First movie named after an (albeit fictional) strain of weed–priceless. Some of the action sequences towards the end of the movie don’t really work for me, but still a funny movie.
6. Cheech and Chong’s Next Movie (1980)
Though not quite as genius as Up in Smoke, it’s still one of the finest examples of how to make a stoner movie. The only annoying thing for me is that Cheech Marin doesn’t play Cheech the whole movie–he’s also the character “Dwayne ‘Red’ Mendoza.” There is no reason he couldn’t have just been Cheech the entire film.
5. Dazed and Confused (1993)
Richard Linklater presents the last day of high school for a group of kids in 1976–good times for all.
4. Friday (1995)
“I know you don’t smoke weed
, I know this; but I’m gonna get you high today, ’cause it’s Friday; you ain’t got no job… and you ain’t got shit to do.”
Every day should be Friday. Seriously.
3. Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
This movie rounds out the top 3 mainly due to Sean Penn as Jeff Spicoli. Jeff Spicoli is the original surfer/stoner, and has become the archetype for white stoners in movies ever since.
2. The Big Lebowski (1998)
“I have not invented a ‘new style,’ composite, modified or otherwise that is set within distinct form as apart from “this” method or “that” method. On the contrary, I hope to free my followers from clinging to styles, patterns, or molds. Remember that Being-the-Dude is merely a name used, a mirror in which to see “ourselves”. . . Being-the-Dude is not an organized institution that one can be a member of. Either you understand or you don’t, and that is that. There is no mystery about my style. My movements are simple, direct and non-classical. The extraordinary part of it lies in its simplicity. Every movement in Being-the-Dude is being so of itself. There is nothing artificial about it. I always believe that the easy way is the right way. Being-the-Dude is simply the direct expression of one’s feelings with the minimum of movements and energy. The closer to the true way of Being-the-Dude, the less wastage of expression there is. Finally, a Being-the-Dude man who says Being-the-Dude is exclusively Being-the-Dude is simply not with it. He is still hung up on his self-closing resistance, in this case anchored down to reactionary pattern, and naturally is still bound by another modified pattern and can move within its limits. He has not digested the simple fact that truth exists outside all molds; pattern and awareness is never exclusive. Again let me remind you Being-the-Dude is just a name used, a boat to get one across, and once across it is to be discarded and not to be carried on one’s back.”
(This is actually a Bruce Lee quote–except he uses “Jeet Kune Do” instead of “Being-the-Dude” but otherwise it is identical. See original here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeet_Kune_Do.)
1. Up in Smoke (1978)
The is the first and the best. Classic through and through. (As a side note, the director, Lou Adler, was also a producer of the Monterey Pop Festival; the first American performance of the Jimi Hendrix Experience was among the many highlights.)
Honorable mentions: Clerks, How High, Grandma’s Boy, Rolling Kansas, Happy Face, and Scooby Doo (this live action film has endless hints that it’s a stoner movie, but is brilliantly masked as a “family movie.”)
Peace out; I got weed to see and people to smoke.
xoxoxo,
Izabael
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