The New Doctor

The announcement has been made, the shots have been fired, and finally after two days, one might hope the smoke has cleared. The new Doctor, who we will not see officially until Christmas evening, several months away, will be a woman. The new Doctor Who (if that is, indeed, his/her name, hmmm, I wonder if The Doctor will need to choose new pronouns…) will be played by Jodie Whittaker.

Now, first things first, the fact that The Doctor will be a woman doesn't bother me one bit. It's been known in fandom circles for decades that Time Lords/Ladies can change gender, race, even species, when they regenerate. Such a gender switch was verified as canon on the television series itself in the episode "Hell Bent" as a white male Time Lord regenerated into a black female Time Lady. Since then, we have seen, and loved, Michelle Gomez as missy, the female regeneration of The Master. It happens, it's canon, and that's how it's going to be.

If anything, my disappointment in the choice of new Doctor was more about it not being Hayley Atwill ("Agent Carter") or Kris Marshall (Love, Actually) than it being a woman. My only doubt is in the fact I have never seen Jodie Whittaker's work, so I'm not even sure what kind of Doctor she'll be - but then again, finding out is half the fun with any new Doctor. I just hope she'll have good stories. Bad stories can ruin even the best Doctors, as in the cases of both Sylvester McCoy and Peter Capaldi, in my opinion.

And now a word about fandom, and this is where it will get ugly. There have been a few distinct factions at war on social media regarding the announcement of the new "Doctor Who" as a woman. There are those true fans of the show who know it is canon, and know it has been hinted at and telegraphed over the span of seasons that eventually The Doctor would regenerate into a woman, and they were cool with it - granted, hesitant as they would be with any new Doctor, but not over gender.

Then there were those who were only casual fans or who only knew the show by reputation and had no idea how regeneration works, let alone what it is. Typically these folks probably voted for Brexit or Trump and wouldn't know a TARDIS from a police box. They were outraged that another male icon was being stolen from them. They were also typically the same folks who spell it 'Dr. Who' as opposed to 'Doctor Who.' For the record, this is Dr. Who, and this is Doctor Who, get it right. Not true Whovians and not worth my time.

Also not worth my time are the folks who have never seen the program and yet still have an opinion. You know what you can do with your opinion. If you don't watch, you don't get one. Just my opinion. And this includes all those folks trying to use the idea of an iconic male role becoming female for your own agendas. You don't get to do that if you know nothing about the mythos.

I welcome Jodie Whittaker to the Who family, and cannot wait for her adventures to begin. I think she's going to rock.

The Legend of Tarzan

The Legend of Tarzan ~ Don't tell him this, I don't want him to get a swollen head, but my big brother rocks. Even before he saved my life by giving me one of his kidneys, I always looked up to him. As his ten years junior little brother, I wanted to be like him, and what he thought was cool, I wanted to think was cool too. I've mentioned numerous times in my writing that my love of the Flash comes from him, and a recent interview with Joe DeVito reminded me of how I watched King Kong because of the big bro too. And then there's Tarzan.

My big brother also made me watch Tarzan by his enthusiasm for it. I remember very distinctly being sat down on a Saturday afternoon to watch 'the one where Tarzan goes to New York to save Boy.' The film in question was Tarzan's New York Adventure with Johnny Weissmuller and Maureen O'Sullivan, and for me, it was awesome. A new world had been opened up to me. From there I discovered Tarzan books and Tarzan comics (both of which were the best), the TV series with Ron Ely, and whenever one of the Weissmuller flicks showed, I was right there in front of the boob tube.

I loved the movies, and the TV show was okay, but I really grooved on the real Tarzan, the one from the books, and to some extent the comics. I knew he was a lot smarter than Weissmuller in the movies, a noble savage, a clever warrior, and an intelligent opponent. And I loved all the lost cities and fantasy elements, which led to my appreciation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' other awesomeness like Pellucidar and John Carter of Mars.

Because of this knowledge of what Tarzan was all about from the books, that he wasn't all yells and "me Tarzan, you Jane," I had rarely been truly happy with many cinematic versions. Casper Van Dien came close in Tarzan and the Lost City, but of course, no matter how you measure it, it's still a Casper Van Dien movie. I wondered if we'd ever get a Tarzan movie again, let alone a good one, and then came The Legend of Tarzan.

I had only heard whispers about it while it was being made, but had heard it was quite good. When I first saw the trailer, I was excited, and then I saw who was playing Tarzan, and my heart fell. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against Alexander Skarsgard, in fact, I'm a fan. His Eric Northman in "True Blood" was consistently one of the best things about the series, even when it was at its worst.

My great fear was that every time I looked at his Tarzan, I would see Eric. This is one of the reasons why studios usually look for unknowns when casting serial protagonists. I shouldn’t have worried though, from the moment we see Skarsgard on the screen, from the moment I saw him, I saw Tarzan. He is stunning in the role. Alexander Skarsgard is Tarzan. A man of few words, much action, and a caring hero, Skarsgard brings the king of the jungle to life in a way we've not seen in quite some time.

As Jane, and in previous films, Margot Robbie continues to impress me as an actress. Her Jane Porter Clayton is tough, takes no nonsense, and is yet still believable as a turn of the century woman of stature. Christoph Waltz overacts like a madman as the baddie, and it works, much better than his attempt at villainy in the James Bond franchise. He has shown that he can be evil in both a subtle and a manic mode. Samuel L. Jackson brings the humor and his contrast to Tarzan is one of the better aspects of the flick. I wish he'd been more however.

I'm not going to harp on or bring up the racism of the Tarzan stories (in that only a white man save Africa, etc.), there are much better men than me that can handle that, but I will note that the story of the movie takes place in a very dangerous era of the Congo, a time of massacre and genocide, and I wish the character would have stayed in the fantasy realm. Furthermore, I have to express distaste in the choice of Jackson's role, especially if he was going to be used for comic relief.

Samuel l. Jackson plays George Washington Williams, a real historical figure. He was a human rights activist who very specifically attacked King Leopold for his actions in the Congo. In my mind, especially played by an actor of Samuel L. Jackson's skills, I wish they'd gone with a more accurate portrayal of the man, rather than just comic relief/sidekick status.

That aside, I really loved this flick, and was grinning ear to ear throughout most of it. I can't wait for sequels. I enjoyed this almost as much as Captain America: Civil War, recommended.

Dr. Who and the Daleks

First things first, and those who know will just have to bear with me, but there is a very important lesson to be learned in the title of this film. It's all in the spelling. Dr. Who is an eccentric inventor played by Peter Cushing in two movies about the Daleks in the 1960s. Doctor Who is a Gallifreyan Time Lord played by over a dozen actors in the BBC television series for over fifty years. Two different things, however similar, got it? And Dr. Who from King Kong Escapes and the Rankin-Bass "Kong" animated series has nothing to do with either.

When "Doctor Who" first featured what would become his primary nemeses, the Daleks, the UK was caught up in a hysteria nearly as mad as Beatlemania. Daleks and Who were everywhere. Seeking to cash in, the BBC rushed into production this movie Dr. Who and the Daleks, and a year later, its sequel Daleks - Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D. It is a re-imagining of the "Doctor Who" TV series, to use the modern vernacular, and the first time we see any version of these characters either in color or widescreen. This was a treat for the times, despite the differences.

In the television series, while it has been presented as a pun on occasion, The Doctor is never referred to as Doctor Who. In the movies however, this is his name. He is a kind old man (as opposed to William Hartnell, the then current and first Doctor, being gruff and unpleasant at times) played with charming eccentricity by Peter Cushing. He is at times childlike and the source of thoroughly British dry wit, but in this fan's eyes, still very much a possible Doctor.

The rest of the TARDIS crew are essentially the same albeit recast for the movies. While Susan is still his granddaughter, changes had been made with the characters of Barbara and Ian. Barbara here is also a granddaughter and Ian is her suitor. In the series, there may have been some romantic chemistry between the two but it wasn't shown until years later when it was revealed that they had married.

We're launched into the story rather quickly, which is nice, no long secret origins or unnecessary exposition, just into the time machine and onto another planet, boom. The story, by the way, is based on the second serialized episode of the TV series, "The Daleks," written, as many later Dalek episodes would be, by Terry Nation. The crew arrives on the planet Skaro (though unnamed until the sequel) which has been ravaged by a nuclear war between the Thals and the Daleks.

What follows is a typical Daleks adventure, but in color and widescreen. The sets and backgrounds are slightly better than that of the TV series, but again kinda cool in color. The Daleks themselves are a little bigger than their TV counterparts, and so much more intimidating. The Thals, on the other hand, are very groovy, therefore dated, and somehow suited more to say Barbarella than "Doctor Who."

Dr. Who and the Daleks is a fun romp, if in some places a bit boring and corny. And if you catch it on TCM, you get to hear Ben Mankiewicz mangle the pronunciation of 'Daleks' multiple times in his intro and outro. I love ya, Ben, but come on! Every Who fan should see this at least once.

The Most Dangerous Game

This 1932 thriller is based on the award-winning short story of the same name by Richard Connell, and has been remade dozens of times in film and television. People are marooned on an island where an eccentric lives. He is a big game hunter and has always wanted to hunt the most dangerous game of all - man. Yes, it's an old story, but this is the first time it was done.

An RKO film produced by Merian C. Cooper, The Most Dangerous Game was shot concurrently with King Kong, easy to do as both settings are jungle islands. This flick even stars Robert Armstrong and Fay Wray, and also features an original score by Max Steiner. The cast also includes Joel McCrea, Noble Johnson, Leslie Banks as the villainous Count Zaroff, and Buster Crabbe in an uncredited role.

While there's no big gorilla in this one, it's full of atmospheric thrills and horror. The castle's door knocker alone is enough to give one nightmares, and Zaroff's Cossack manservant Ivan (Johnson) is pretty fearsome as well. The use of shadow reminds me of later Val Lewton work, perhaps inspired by the German silents.

Fay Wray's character here is a bit more sophisticated than Kong's Ann Darrow, and Robert Armstrong is the comic relief as a drunken delight. I always liked him best in this kind of role. McCrea and Banks are quite suited to the black and white hero and villain. And it's fun watching them tromp through the same sets from Kong.

I love the old horrors from the 1930s from RKO and Universal, and King Kong is one of my favorite films, so this is a great companion piece to that. Recommended.

Houdini on History

The big new television event this last Labor Day weekend was the two-part Houdini mini-series on The History Channel. I love Houdini. I love movies and documentaries and books about Houdini. I even love the surviving fragments of his movie serials. The man was awesome. This mini-series was... a great illusion.

Adrien Brody is in the title role and it's one that fits him well. Not only does he look like Harry Houdini both facially and in body type, he has that mysterious air about him. Despite his miscasting in Peter Jackson's King Kong, he's perfect here. Kristen Connolly is pretty fair in the role of Bess, and even though it's a cameo, it is always good to see Barry from "EastEnders."

The soundtrack, a lively rocking score by John Debney, is one of the best I've heard in some time. I'm looking forward to finding it somewhere soon. This score fits the quick cut flashy MTV way this was filmed. It's not a complaint, but a compliment. Stylistically this is an amazing piece of work, style it has, it's the other areas where it lacks.

The mini-series takes us from the magician's childhood to Harry and Bess Houdini's days on the road before he became famous to his death on stage in 1926. There is both truth and fiction here as with all Houdini stories. This version even takes into account Houdini's supposed service to the US government as a spy. And then there's a lot more iffy stuff here for a program that aired on The History Channel.

History's Houdini was keen on showing us how many stunts and tricks were done, but what it wasn't good at was telling the truth. The facts elude the movie event like the real Houdini escaping chains and cages. The Wild About Harry website had a lot to say about how far from the truth this mini-series strayed, and it's not pretty.

Now the 1960s Tony Curtis film and the 1970s Paul Michael Glaser telemovie weren't that great on the facts either, and I loved them. And I admit to liking this one as well, but in its four hours it lacks the heart the other two had in half the time. Recommended for those who aren't depending on facts or looking for more than a story that barely touches the surface.

Planes: Fire & Rescue

Planes: Fire & Rescue ~ I saw this one as part of a double feature at one of the state's only surviving drive-ins, the Delsea Drive-In in Vineland NJ. It was paired up with Guardians of the Galaxy, which was the second time in two days The Bride and I had seen that. If I'm being honest, I think the drive-in experience itself was far more interesting than the Planes flick.

Let's be honest, Planes: Fire & Rescue is a sequel to a sequel/spin-off that was meant only for DVD release but got pushed into theaters because of the success of its forefather, Cars and its official sequel Cars 2. We're seriously treading on King Kong Lives territory here. This can only be so good, and from what I saw, it's serviceable.

To be fair, I have to say we came in late as the folks at Delsea had to search our car to make sure we didn't bring in any outside food contraband, so we missed the first five to ten minutes of the movie. It's the same old story, old plane teaches a new plane new tricks, and learns a lesson himself as well. Dane Cook, Ed Harris, Julie Bowen, Wes Studi, and Patrick Warburton are fun as the voice cast.

I enjoyed the original trailer for this flick as it didn't betray right away that it was either animated or part of the Cars world right away. I kinda wish the movie had taken some of that tact. I liked the use of AC/DC's "Thunderstruck" here, a nice touch. I did doze off a couple times, and while I could blame that on being tired, it should be noted that I did not blink during Guardians of the Galaxy.

I also have to admit that the viewing of any movie happening in the Cars universe bothers me somewhat as I wonder what happened to the people. I highly suspect that this world exists in the aftermath of Stephen King's "Trucks" short story, and is sorta hinted at in Jon Negroni's Pixar Theory. I also can't help but wonder if Thomas the Tank Engine is also part of this world... brrrrr...

San Diego Comic-Con Catch-Up

Yeah, I realize it's all over, and no one's really talking about this year's San Diego Comic-Con any more, but I've been busy, and haven't been able to chime in. So consider this your official wrap-up.

We learned new details about the upcoming season of "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." including what role Lucy Lawless will play, and who the next big bad will be. Details are here at Biff Bam Pop!. On the "Agent Carter" front, Avengers fans will be pleased as Edwin Jarvis will be in the show, in his youthful prime, hopefully kicking ass and cleaning up. Sorry, butler joke, couldn't help it.

Other Marvel news included the official announcement the Guardians of the Galaxy sequel and animated series, an entertaining Avengers: Age of Ultron panel seen here, and a movie poster and details on the Ant-Man movie. Apparently we will have some kind of Wasp-ish character, and surprisingly, Yellowjacket, who's not Hank Pym, is the villain of the piece.

On the other side of the street at DC Comics, we finally got our first look at Wonder Woman from Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, for a full view, Biff Bam Pop! has it here. There was lots of TV news about "Constantine" and "Gotham," but the real stuff was all about Green Arrow and the Flash. Con goers got to see the pilot for the CW's "The Flash" which I reviewed here, and Ras Al Ghul was announced as the big bad on this season of "Arrow." And that's not even mentioning date night with Felicity or former movie Superman Brandon Routh as Ray Palmer. It's gonna be good.



Other news at the Comic-Con included Mothra, Rodan, and King Ghidorah being in the Godzilla sequel, a King Kong prequel called Skull Island, and the trailer for the new season of "The Walking Dead." It was a good con, shame I missed it.

Ray Harryhausen 1920-2013

Possibly one of the greatest special effects artists who ever lied passed away today. Ray Harryhausen was a big part of my childhood, and a big part of my adulthood. He influenced so many people, and in turn, he was influenced by another genius, Willis O'Brien, whose work in stop motion animation made King Kong the classic film, and the classic character he is today. He learned at the master's side and took that art even higher. Harryhausen was one of the greats.

I can't even guess how many times I've seen Jason and the Argonauts. I seriously think a hundred times would be a conservative guess. There's nothing by Harryhausen that I didn't love (and that includes oddities like It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World and the Puppetoons), but Jason is probably my favorite. I remember as a kid, channel 29 had the rights to it, and I never missed it when they aired it. The film is a beautiful piece of art, from start to finish, and it fueled my early love of the Greek myths.

I love the Sinbad films, 20 Million Miles to Earth, The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, and It Came from Beneath the Sea. I watch them relentlessly when they air. Harryhausen's involvement in Beast led to a semi-rational hatred of the Godzilla films, which he felt both ripped off and cheapened his work. His statements to that effect didn't lessen my respect and awe for his work, but man oh man, it did hurt this Godzilla fan.

I was never really a fan of Clash of the Titans, as by then, his age, and the amount of time it took to do his Dynamation, made him begin to cut corners and it just didn't look as good any more, to me at least. But then again, Harryhausen cutting corners was nothing new, as 1955's It Came from Beneath the Sea featured a five-tentacled octopus.

None of that diminishes Harryhausen's accomplishments and my love for his films. We have lost one of the living legends of Hollywood, and a master of an animation style that may never be the same again. Ray Harryhausen will be missed.

She

This 1935 film means a lot to me and I’m really happy I finally got to see it. One of the few times my father took an interest in my writing was when he suggested I see this flick. It must have been at some point when I was watching Raiders of the Lost Ark or Star Wars, and he said, “If you really want to see a good adventure story, you should see She, the original, from when I was a kid.” At some point when I was older I picked up a collection of H. Rider Haggard novels, and I immediately devoured it. Asking my father about it however, I learned he’d never read the books, and had only seen the original film version of She.

Finding that version has been a long road. Even when I worked in video retail, it was considered a ‘lost’ film, with only sparse footage remaining. It was made in 1935 but was seen by a whole new generation in re-release, double-billed with The Last Days of Pompeii (also from ’35) in 1948. Recently restored by Ray Harryhausen, believe it or not, from a print that Buster Keaton had in his garage - it is now available on DVD. Oddly it was originally meant to be a color film but because of budget restraints done in black and white. The restored cut includes a colorized version that uses actual scenery and wardrobe orders to make the colors match the originals.

Now that I’ve seen it I know what my father was talking about. If he had ever seen Raiders of the Lost Ark he might have marveled at the special effects, but the rest of it would be old hat to him because of She. The sets are amazing, especially the hall of the kings, and the dance number/ceremony that takes place there is breathtaking if dated. Max Steiner, composer for 1933’s King Kong, scored the terrific soundtrack, one of his best. Randolph Scott, mostly known for his cowboy flicks, is our hero in the mode that would later spawn Indiana Jones among others, and the startling beauty Helen Gahagan Douglass plays the title role. It was the only film appearance for the Broadway singer who later became a Congresswoman.

She was adapted by Ruth Rose (the writer of King Kong) from the Haggard novel, and produced by the legendary Merion C. Cooper, father of Kong. The action is a step above that of the time, no simple movie serial with a budget is this. The saber tooth tiger and avalanche scenes are great. This is one of the great adventure flicks of not only its time, but, dare I say it, all time. Highly recommended.

July 2007 Movie Log

Movies I've watched or re-watched this month include: Relative Strangers, Beyond the Rocks, Midnight Cowboy, Finding Nemo, F*ck, Latter Days, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Shortbus, The Pumpkin Eater, Nanny McPhee, The Simpsons Movie, Silver Hawk, American Dreamz, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II, Breach, Ladies They Talk About, Rashomon, The End of Violence, Farce of the Penguins, My Super Ex-Girlfriend, Ultraman Tiga & Ultraman Dyna, Evil Dead, Evil Dead II: Dead by Dawn, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, King Kong (2005), Ice Age: The Meltdown, One Million B.C. (1940), Picture Mommy Dead, Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla, Jaani Dushman: Ek Anokhi Kahani, Knocked Up, Invasion of Astro-Monster and Ghidrah the Three-Headed Monster.

Flicks to add to the list of movies I’ll watch whenever they are on TV: King Kong (2005) and anything Godzilla. Nanny McPhee would be added to my wife’s list, I just happen to be in the room.

Among the best this month would be F*ck, The Pumpkin Eater and Silver Hawk.

More Quickies

King Kong (2005)

Peter Jackson has made a film about the movies with a love and respect for not only the movies but one in particular, the one he's remaking, which is rare in Hollywood these last few decades. It's an understatement to say I loved this film, the best I've seen in years. Peter Jackson's Kong is as near to perfect as it gets.



Red Nightmare (1962)

A Communist scare short from "Batman" TV show alumni George Waggoner and Jack Webb that was probably shown in high schools of the time. Look for a young Robert Conrad in a small role. Also known as The Commies Are Coming, the Commies Are Coming, it's a great twenty-odd minutes of 'duck and cover' nostalgia.

Harry Potter and the Goblin of Fire (2005)

This is a Stephen King film. Not in that King made it, but in that, like most King movies, if you've read the book you enjoy the film. If you didn't, you are hopelessly lost. This installment of the HP saga is a visual extension of the book, but no means a film version. There was too much cut out. Director Mike Newell would have been better served doing two movies of this book rather than one, as was the original plan.



Soup to Nuts (1930)

A great peek at the Three Stooges before they were on their own. In this film, before getting contracts of their own with Columbia Pictures, they were the underling sidekicks of supposed funnyman Ted Healy. The stooges are the only shining moment in this unfortunately Rube Goldberg-penned dreck. No wonder today most folks will say "Ted who?"

Vulgar (2002)

Despite Kevin Smith's sideline involvement in this, this appropriately titled crap is unwatchable. It tries very hard to be artsy in an insultingly Richard Linklater-type vibe but fails miserably. Clown rape is not funny, no matter how it's portrayed.