More Wants!
What else is there to do during “stay at home” excitement but goof off on the internet and drool over pretty things that you want to purchase?
The Game Limited Edition from Arrow Academy
- Limited to only 3,000 units
- Deluxe packaging including a 200-page hardback book housed in a rigid slipcase, illustrated with newly commissioned artwork by Corey Brickley
- 200-page book exclusive to this edition includes a newly-commissioned full-length monograph by Bilge Ebiri, and selected archive materials, including an American Cinematographer article from 1997, a 2004 interview with Harris Savides by Alexander Ballinger, and the chapter on the film from Dark Eye: The Films of David Fincher by James Swallow
- Arrow Academy Blu-ray including new bonus features and UK home video premiere of director-approved 2K restoration
- Universal Special Edition DVD featuring archive extras with cast and crew
Flash Gordon 5-Disc Limited Edition (New 4K Restoration!) from Studio Canal
DISC ONE – 4K BLU-RAY
- BRAND NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE FILM, SUPERVISED AND APPROVED BY DIRECTOR MIKE HODGES
- New Lost in Space: Nic Roeg’s Flash Gordon (also iTunes extra)
- Audio commentary with Mike Hodges
- Audio commentary with Brian Blessed
- Behind the scenes of Flash Gordon
- Stills gallery (also iTunes extra)
- Storyboards gallery (also iTunes extra)
- Original theatrical trailer
DISC TWO – BLU-RAY
- Interview with Mike Hodges
- Interview with comic book artist Alex Ross TBC
- Interview with screenwriter Lorenzo Semple, Jr. TBC
- Episode 24 of Flash Gordon (1979-1982): The Survival Game / Gremlin’s Finest Hour
- Sam Jones’s acting start
- Entertainment Earth on Flash Gordon merchandise
- Bob Lindenmayer discusses deleted scenes and original endings
- 35th Anniversary Greenroom
- 35th Anniversary reunion featurette
- Renato Casaro extended interview
- Brian Blessed anecdotes
- Melody’s musings
- On the soundtrack (Brian May & Howard Blake)
- Easter Eggs
THE FIVE-DISC COLLECTOR’S EDITION INCLUDES
- The 4K Blu-ray plus two Blu-ray discs
- BONUS BLU-RAY DISC OF LIFE AFTER FLASH, the 2017 feature documentary celebrating the film and it’s star, directed by Lisa Downs
- ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK CD by Queen & Howard Blake
- 32 page booklet
- 16 page Titan mini book (The Story of Flash Gordon)
- Reproduced booklet of the first strip of original comic books
- Poster of original artwork
- 4 artcards of various incarnations of Flash film posters across the years
- 1 sew on ‘Flash patch’
Crash Mediabook from Turbine Media (New 4K Restoration!)
Bonus Materials:
40-page Booklet – HD-Trailer – US-NC-17-Trailer – New interviews in HD (ca. 140 Min.): Talk with Viggo Mortensen & David Cronenberg (ca. 52 Min.), Peter Suschitzky (DoP – ca. 20 Min.), Jeremy Thomas (Producer – ca. 17 Min.), Howard Shore (Composer – ca. 23. Min.), Deirdre Bowen (Casting Director – ca. 27 Min.) – Archive: Theatrical Release Interviews with Cast & Crew (ca. 22 Min.) – Behind the Scenes (ca. 11. Min.) – David Cronenberg’s Short Films: The Nest (ca. 9 Min.), Camera (ca. 6 Min.), At the Suicide of the Last Jew in the World in the Last Cinema in the World (ca. 4 Min.)
Trivial Pursuit: Horror Ultimate Edition from The OP Games
There’s no turning back from TRIVIAL PURSUIT: HORROR ULTIMATE EDITION! Explore the darkest corners of pop culture in this fact-based challenge where survival skills are a must! 1800 blood-curdling questions from across all horror genres will test your mastery of the macabre. Rely on your skill and luck to make it out alive through six comprehensive categories: Gore & Disturbing, Psychological, Killer, Monster, Paranormal, and Comedy.
- 1 Custom Game Board
- 6 Custom Movers – Monster Hand, Doll Head, Straitjacket, Goat Head, Cleaver in Brain, and Table Saw
- 300 Cards with 1800 Questions
- 36 Wedges
- Rules
**********
And, of course, these are all very pricey items. Good Grief. I really need to get out of the house and off the internet.
Wants! [D&D Edition]
If I had a spare $400+ to spend, I would totally buy all 12 of the kick-ass Dungeons and Dragons T-shirts from 80’s Tees that are based on the 1983 animated series. *Drools!*
Week … Whatever
Here we are on week “whatever” of our “stay at home” adventures. North Carolina has extended our stay at home orders until May 8th. After that we will begin a slow 3-phase reopening plan. Hopefully, this is the smart way to make things happen. It’s going to be interesting to see if Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina get spanked with a lot of new infections because of their sudden re-openings. Time will tell.
Meanwhile, these Cheese Sticks from Sauced were one of the major highlight of the weekend. Ha, ha.
We *might* have disobeyed those stay at home orders and tripped to Gatlinburg on Sunday to pick up some moonshine from the two distilleries that were open. It was a bit weird to see NOBODY out and about on streets that are normally teaming with tourists. We saw maybe 10 other people and about as many businesses open. Craziness.
Of course, the Mysterious Mansion is closed and we are seriously sad about that!
Back at home, we tried out some new things with the moonshine that was purchased. Needless to say, Moonshine-Laced Mini Milkshakes are gonna be my new lover. Sugarlands‘ Dark Chocolate Coffee Sippin’ Creme is perfect for this task. Yum!
Music Madness
Everyone surviving the pandemic craziness? No? At least we have been treated to some really excellent music releases over the last week!
Fiona Apple’s Fetch the Bolt Cutters is already the front runner for best album of the year. It’s complex and challenging … and you need to listen to it right now.
The Twilight Sad have dropped IT WON/T BE LIKE THIS ALL THE TIME LIVE. I really do love this band and it’s great to see them continuing to gain popularity. My only complaint is that I wish they had trimmed down the two minutes of audience noise at the beginning of the show/first track. But that’s a minor quibble.
X has dropped ALPHABETLAND (the first album in 35 years featuring all the original members). Clocking in at a lean 27 minutes, it’s loud, aggressive, and everything else you would expect from X. I didn’t know how much I needed this in my life until I heard it.
Movie Madness
Thanks to all the “stay at home” induced free time that I now have, I am finally making my way through the backlog of movies that I have purchased but have not watched. First up was the five Hammer film sets from Indicator in the UK. The sets have a pretty diverse range of films from Hammer … gothic horror, crime thrillers, adventure, and war movies. Out of the 20 movies, there was only one that I really disliked (Visa to Canton) with the rest all being solid. The ones that I consider to be favorites are listed in bold.
Hammer Volume One: Fear Warning!
1. Maniac (1963)
2. The Gorgon (1964)
3. The Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb (1964)
4. Fanatic (1965)
Hammer Volume Two: Criminal Intent
1. The Snorkel (1958)
2. Never Take Sweets from a Stranger (1960)
3. The Full Treatment (1960)
4. Cash on Demand (1961)
Hammer Volume Three: Blood & Terror
1. The Camp on Blood Island (1958)
2. Yesterday’s Enemy (1959)
3. The Strangler’s of Bombay (1959)
4. The Terror of the Tongs (1961)
Hammer Volume Four: Faces of Fear
1. The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958)
2. The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll (1960)
3. Taste of Fear (1961)
4. The Damned (1962)
Hammer Volume Five: Death & Deceit
1. Visa to Canton (1960)
2. The Pirates of Blood River (1962)
3. The Scarlett Blade (1963)
4. The Brigand of Kandahar (1965)
Tough Times
This is a redefinition that I can get behind given current circumstances …
Compare/Contrast
Back in 1988, Bernard Sumner (of New Order) and Johnny Marr (formerly of The Smiths) formed a group called Electronic. On their self-titled debut album (released in 1991), they collaborated with Pet Shop Boys on the song “The Patience of a Saint.” It’s a really great album and you should seek it out for a listen. Now, after the album came out, Sumner went back to record Republic with New Order and Pet Shop Boys went to work on their fifth album, Very. End of story?
So, this is of interest to nobody but me but … those subsequent albums which were released in 1993 (Republic in May and Very in September) both contain songs titled “Young Offender.” Planned? Just coincidence? Probably the later … but I still find it to be a fun factoid (that I probably never would have thought about had I not all this “stay-at-home” induced free time).
Now amuse yourself by listening to both songs.
New Order “Young Offender”
Pet Shop Boys “Young Offender”
Day … Whatever
Well. The days have quickly become a routine.
Wake up.
Cardio.
Shower.
Work.
Stress eat.
Watch a movie.
Stress drink.
Sleep.
[Repeat]
Last Friday was another Zoom session with friends. I am not sure that I will get used to this kind of socializing. But, it’s better than nothing right now.
Speaking of movies … I have been working my way through the initial run of Amityville related films. I have never liked the original movie. So much potential that gets totally squandered. Amityville II: The Possession was actually pretty damn decent (all things considered). Amityville 3-D was kinda lame … but in 3-D (whoo!). Amityville 4: The Evil Escapes was made-for-TV-tastic (Patty Duke and Jean Wyatt!). Amityville: It’s About Time was just bad. Two more (A New Generation and Dollhouse) and I can get off this kick. And yes, I know it’s silly of me to think any of these movies are going to be any good. Ha, ha.
Meanwhile … here’s Bowser being precious as fuck.
New Threads
This new t-shirt that has arrived certainly is appropriate of the uncertain times we are currently living in.
Day 17 [Paranoia Edition]
I’m already tired of being paranoid that everything I touch is possibly going to sicken or kill me. At least hand washing has become more fun …
Day 16 [Pandemic Edition]
Well. Here we are on Day 16 of being back from NYC. It’s crazy how quickly things change. Three days after we got back, the state shut down all restaurants for dine in and turned them into delivery/take out only establishments. A few days after that, the county issued a “stay at home” order and all non-essential businesses shut down. Movie theaters, gyms, most retail shops, etc are now closed. Thank goodness the liquor store is considered essential! Today at 5:00 pm, the whole state goes into “stay at home” mode until the end of April. I am guessing that working from home for the past nine years has prepped me somewhat for what the next few months hold. Homebodies for the win!
It appears that David and I made it back from New York City without any germs. We have been monitoring ourselves every day and so far no fever/cough/shortness of breath. Part of me is paranoid that we are asymptomatic even though we have made it past the 14-day self-quarantine window. Silly, I know. So far there are not any reported cases in our county … but I suspect that will change. It just seems to be EVERYWHERE.
What sucks is the timing. Spring has arrived (finally!) and things are beautiful outside. Too bad everyone feels the same way and the walking paths and hiking trails have been jammed with people since there is nothing else to do. They have closed some of the local state parks and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park has also totally shut down due to the influx of visitors. I am fully expecting that the Blue Ridge Parkway will follow suit in the next few weeks. So, I guess walking around the back yard is going to have to do.
Here are some back yard blooms …
Bowser has certainly been enjoying the fact that we are around the house all the time. He also appears to be unconcerned with the miseries of the world. Oh, to be a dog …
Saturday night, we tired out the new way to socially gather in these times of social distancing. It was super nice to actually see some friends … even if it was via a computer screen. I am guessing this will become a regular thing for the foreseeable future.
Meanwhile … I received a copy of Dave Stewart‘s book, Monster Man. Thanks a bunch for sending it my way, Dave! [Kissy!]
And, finally … before we went to New York City, I picked up a copy of Horrified™: Universal Monsters™. How could I resist a game where you battle Universal’s classic movie monsters? It looks like it’s gonna be a fun game to play. Now for this pandemic to end so we can invite people over for a game night!
Upcoming
To say that I am stupid excited about Criterion‘s upcoming release of Elem Klimov‘s Come and See would be a huge understatement.
This legendary film from Soviet director Elem Klimov is a senses-shattering plunge into the dehumanizing horrors of war. As Nazi forces encroach on his small village in Belorussia, teenage Flyora (Alexei Kravchenko, in a searing depiction of anguish) eagerly joins the Soviet resistance. Rather than the adventure and glory he envisioned, what he finds is a waking nightmare of unimaginable carnage and cruelty—rendered with a feverish, otherworldly intensity by Klimov’s subjective camera work and expressionistic sound design. Nearly blocked from being made by Soviet censors, who took seven years to approve its script, Come and See is perhaps the most visceral, impossible-to-forget antiwar film ever made.
Special Features
- New 2K digital restoration by Mosfilm, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray
- New interview with cinematographer Roger Deakins
- New interview with director Elem Klimov’s brother and frequent collaborator German Klimov
- Flaming Memory, a three-film documentary series from 1975–77 by filmmaker Viktor Dashuk featuring firsthand accounts of survivors of the genocide in Belorussia during World War II
- Interview from 2001 with Elem Klimov
- Interviews from 2001 with actor Alexei Kravchenko and production designer Viktor Petrov
- How “Come and See” Was Filmed, a 1985 short film about the making of the film featuring interviews with Elem Klimov, Kravchenko, and writer Ales Adamovich
- Theatrical rerelease trailer
- New English subtitle translation
- PLUS: Essays by critic Mark Le Fanu and poet Valzhyna Mort