Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer is taking a lot of heat online for recent decisions to close beloved studios like Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks. Last night the long-time gaming exec was apparently exploring the wasteland in Fallout 76 when another player nuked his entire campsite.
Radio Silence has made good on their name, stepping away from the planned reboot of John Carpenter’s Escape from New York. While this is no doubt great news to fans of the original, one does wonder just how the project became something we couldn’t count on.
As director Tyler Gillett revealed to ComicBook.com, he and frequent collaborator Matt Bettinelli-Olpin are no longer part of a new Escape from New York. This is probably no real surprise, as news has been scant as of late. As Gillett put it, “I think titles like that bounce around for a while and I think they’ve tried to get that out of the blocks a few times. I think it’s just ultimately a tricky rights issue thing. There’s a clock on it and we just weren’t in a position to make the clock, ultimately. But who knows?”
Gillett also said it might have been a misstep to even think they could try to continue something that John Carpenter started. “I think, in hindsight, it feels crazy that we would think we would, post-Scream, step into a John Carpenter franchise. You never know. There’s still interest in it and we’ve had a few conversations about it but we’re not attached in any official capacity.” Radio Silence may not have been able to pull the trigger on Escape from New York, but its following – as with so many Carpenter films – has a massive cult following.
As such, nobody at this time is officially linked to a new Escape from New York, which has been described not as a full-on remake but rather a “requel”, a portmanteau that can definitely take some getting used to. Heck, let Carpenter himself take it on – he doesn’t even have to leave his couch!
Outside of continuing franchise ventures as with Scream and the now-abandoned Escape from New York “requel”, Radio Silence recently released Abigail, which stands as one of the best horror movies of the year so far.
What do you hope comes of a reboot of Escape from New York? Do you want to see an update of it or should the original and its sequel be its legacy? Share your thoughts below.
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Elon Musk continues to run X (formerly Twitter) in a variety of questionable ways, and surely one of the oddest is the decision to charge vast amounts of money for access to the site’s API. As such, major firms are dropping integration with the hellsite, the latest being Nintendo. From June 10, you will no longer be…
Elon Musk continues to run X (formerly Twitter) in a variety of questionable ways, and surely one of the oddest is the decision to charge vast amounts of money for access to the site’s API. As such, major firms are dropping integration with the hellsite, the latest being Nintendo. From June 10, you will no longer be…
I grew up in the time of the Chuck Norris joke. I didn’t even really know who he was apart from the Walker, Texas Ranger guy who Conan O’Brien would pull a lever to get just the most random, out of context clip. I remember seeing the Chuck Norris joke book in a Barnes and Noble store and leafing through it only to find a bunch of absolutely absurd and comically over the top things that Chuck Norris could and would do to you or what he kept behind his beard. It was enough for me to start looking at his overall contribution to film and much of it was action. I found him teaming up with the likes of Lee Marvin in The Delta Force or going up against the great Christopher Lee in An Eye for an Eye. There’s also a great fight he had with Bruce Lee in The Way of the Dragon that actually adds legitimacy to the fact that he was a class A fighter. Being a hairy chested fella myself I still feel that scene pretty hard when Bruce yanks a fistful of Chuck. Norris did end up with a couple horror movies in his credits. Hellbound, which I’m still undecided on if I want to cover or not, and today’s movie Silent Rage that was a fun flick to revisit.
Silent Rage (watch it HERE) was a Brother Mark special. For those of you watching since I’ve been a part of the channel, you’ll know that he was a huge part of my growing fandom as a child. We would load up on snacks from the convenience store before watching a laserdisc version of The Ninth Configuration or a Japanese import VHS of Buckaroo Bonzai. These sound like exaggerations, but I assure you there are more scenarios where first-time views of movies happened in ways which I would have never expected. Watching it for the first time when I was around 14, I noticed something that critics of the time also astutely called out. This movie is almost Chuck Norris versus Michael Myers. Now, there isn’t the same beat by beat story of a crazy person coming home after breaking out of an asylum and terrorizing their hometown on Halloween night but they do skip ahead to a supernatural version of their killer. Michael had already been stopped twice when he should have been long dead if he were a normal human and Jason would unleash his 3rd outing, in 3D no less, where he was quickly becoming unkillable.
Silent Rage was written by Joeseph Fraley with uncredited work by Edward Di Lorenzo. Fraley only has the screenplay for his credits but did contribute the story to a previous Chuck Norris feature Good Guys Wear Black. Di Lorenzo was a slightly more prolific writer with TV credits on Miami Vice, Space: 1999, and Wild Wild West. He also did the screenplay for the Joseph Cotten Italian horror movie Lady Frankenstein. The director was Michael Miller who has almost exclusively stayed in the made for TV movie arena but also had Class Reunion come out in the same year as Silent Rage, which was National Lampoons attempt to take a, if you’ll forgive me, stab at the slasher genre with overly comedic elements thrown in. He got these two movies based on the success of his two previous low budget movies Street Girls and Jackson County Jail. If those sound like Roger Corman movies, it’s because they are; both were executive produced by the legend.
Silent Rage opens with an ominous stained-glass window and some very early 80s sounding eerie score tunes while the credits roll on by. It definitely sets itself apart from other Norris movies and lets you know early that it is unmistakably horror. A phone rings and wakes up who you could rightfully assume is the main character if we didn’t see Norris’s name in the credits already. This is John Kirby, and he is not doing well. Kirby is played by Brian Libby who excelled at that guy roles in TV shows like the 80s Twilight Zone revival or Moonlighting but also had fun movie roles in the likes of Heat, Dreamscape, and what I probably know him best from, The Shawshank Redemption. He looks different here than he did in later roles and while his voice is very recognizable normally, he barely uses it in Silent Rage. He really personifies that title in his character work.
Kirby gets a call from his psychiatrist and tells him that he can’t make it. He goes crazy and ends up killing a couple of the people he is staying with before getting taken down by the police. First, he is just going to be arrested but when he breaks out of his cuffs and really starts a brawl, he is shot to death by police. The way the camera follows Kirby as he heads outside to grab an axe and then follows him stalking the family in the house is really well done and this beginning sequence is one of the most memorable of the film. It sets it up well and even though it’s rarely matched, it’s a great start to the movie. One of my few complaints about Silent Rage is that they knew how to use Kirby but the stuff in between falls kind of flat compared to his stalking and killing scenes. One of the cops on the scene and the one who of course subdues Kirby the initial time is Sheriff Dan Stevens played by Norris. It’s funny to say that name as Dan Stevens is a very successful and popular actor now. Also on the scene is Kirby psychiatrist Dr. Hallman played by Ron Silver and Deputy Charlie played by Stephen Furst.
Furst is essentially the bumbling comedy relief here and that makes sense as he was coming off of recent comedies like Animal House, Swim Team, Take Down, and Scavenger Hunt. Silver, who has maybe the goofiest IMDB picture I have ever seen may he rest in peace, was a wonderful character actor in both film and TV. He could play both good and bad well with things like The Entity from the same year as this, keep an eye out for that video soon, and Timecop. My favorite of his has got to be Blue Steel opposite Jamie Lee Curtis. In this, because of plot contrivance, he is not only the psychiatrist to our slasher villain but also the brother to Chuck Norris’s love interest. Why not. Kirby is technically dead, but two scientists use an experimental serum to try and bring him back. It works but the effect is not great. Instead of turning a normal human brain deranged, it just makes the deranged guy come back with Wolverine like healing powers.
The movie is broken down into a bunch of different sub-genres that don’t always meld together well. You could turn on different parts of this movie at different times and not know that its all part of the same flick. Kirby tracking down and killing his former doctor and wife feels like an 80s slasher movie but you could have also stumbled upon this movie when Chuck and Stephen Furst were breaking up a biker bar hostage situation to show off Norris’s kung fu skills properly. None of the movie is not enjoyable per se, it’s just a weird mish mash of styles and scenes at times. According to the writer and director, more of these fight scenes were put in because Norris had an easier time doing that on camera than the regular acting and certainly the mostly improvised love scenes between him and costar Toni Kalem.
The star here, with very little dialogue to boot, is easily Brian Libby’s Kirby. All of the scenes with him in it are why I wanted to cover Silent Rage in the first place. In a similar vein to the opening sequence where we see him stalking and being very intentional with his movements, one of the other stand out scenes of the movie is when he goes after Dr. Hallman in his home. Hallman knows Kirby has been brought back to a degree and is not thrilled about it. He goes home and when his wife goes out for pizza, we get the most Halloween ass POV following shot since, well, Halloween. For whatever reason it also reminds me of Italian Halloween knockoff Absurd from Joe Damato and George Eastman. Silver’s character is in his own home, but Kirby is still able to outwit him. While Dr. Hallman has a gun and smartly doesn’t hesitate to use it, he eventually falls victim to horror movie character stupidity. I will say that while we knew the movie needed a body count, it was surprising that both Hallman and his wife as well as, spoiler for a 42-year-old movie, Stephen Furst are the ones to get offed. It’s impressive that the movie wasn’t afraid to kill anyone besides Norris.
The movie follows one great sequence with another when Dr. Hallman’s wife comes home with pizza only to find his body and killer waiting for her. It’s another cat and mouse chase with some genuine suspense as we aren’t sure if they will keep her alive for revenge purposes. All of the music cues or lack of music, cinematography, and even blood usage work wonderfully here and I just want a whole movie of this. The two scientists try to kill of Kirby to wipe their hands clean of the whole affair, but he uses his healing factor to come back and kill them off while still being on the hunt for his last victims. Its here where Stephen Furst’s Charlie dies heroically buying time for Allison and then we begin the confrontation of Sherrif Dan’s fists vs the unkillable John Kirby. Dan holds his own but there are a few times that Kirby is able to get the upper hand and Allison needs to step in with either a feeble attempt at fighting or just hitting him with a car.
Bullets don’t work, blunt force doesn’t work, and even burning him with an exploding car accident doesn’t work so they lure Kirby to an open area with a covered up abandoned well. After a short fight and an excellent use of slo-mo flipping, Kirby ends up in the bottom of the well where we get the obligatory freeze shot jump scare that the bad guy isn’t gone for good. There would be no sequel even though the movie made 10 million at the box office. To be fair I can’t find any budget information on it so I’m not sure if that is good or bad. The movie is a fun venture into horror that I’m almost leaning towards calling Chucksploitation with its use of multiple elements to draw in crowds. It’s a fun flick that is easy to find streaming on Tubi or you can pick up the bare bones Blu-ray from Mill Creek. Give it a chance if you’ve never seen it or if you are like me and it has just been a while, you won’t be disappointed.
Two previous episodes of Revisited can be seen below. To see more of our shows, head over to the JoBlo Horror Originals channel – and subscribe while you’re at it!
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Taylor Sheridan will continue his reign over at Paramount+ as one of his new shows at the streamer has just been given the greenlight for continuation. Deadline is reporting that Lioness, which previously held the title Special Ops: Lioness, has just been renewed for a second season. The show starred an all-star cast, including Zoe Saldaña, Nicole Kidman, Laysla De Oliveira, Michael Kelly and Morgan Freeman.
Lioness became a smash hit for Paramount+ as it would set a new record as the platform’s most watched worldwide series premiere on launch day that totaled nearly 6 million total viewers in its first week across Paramount+ globally, as well as on a linear preview on the Paramount Network. The militaristic espionage thriller is produced by MTV Entertainment Studios and 101 Studios for Paramount+. Lioness premiered last summer and our own Alex Maidy was hooked just from the first episode, “While I have been a fan of Taylor Sheridan for a long time, Special Ops: Lioness may be the best start to a series he has delivered since Yellowstone. There have been a lot of military-centric series over the years, but few have been as rousing to me as this one. Few series have hooked me after one episode the way Special Ops: Lioness has and I cannot wait to see more.”
Jeff Grossman, the Executive Vice President of Programming at Paramount+, has expressed his excitement, “Our Paramount+ audience resoundingly has joined forces in support of Lioness’ gripping, global story and the powerhouse performances from Zoe Saldaña, Laysla De Oliveira and Nicole Kidman. We cannot wait to see more of the heart-stopping suspense and action that Taylor Sheridan and the incredibly talented team deliver in its second season.”
Chris McCarthy, from the Office of the CEO of Paramount Global and President & CEO, Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios also chimed in, “Lioness captivated audiences around the world as one of the most-watched global series premieres on Paramount+ last year. Driven by Taylor Sheridan’s masterful storytelling and Nicole Kidman and Zoe Saldaña’s remarkable performances, season two promises to immerse audiences in yet another riveting, adrenaline-fueled journey.”
The series also features Dave Annable, Jill Wagner, LaMonica Garrett, James Jordan, Austin Hébert, Jonah Wharton and Hannah Love Lanier. Lioness is executive produced by Taylor Sheridan, David C. Glasser, Zoe Saldaña, Nicole Kidman, Ron Burkle, Bob Yari, David Hutkin, Jill Wagner, David Lemanowicz, Geyer Kosinski, Michael Friedman and Keith Cox and is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution.
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Steve Albini, the revolutionary music engineer who helped define the sounds of the ‘80s and ‘90s, has passed away at 61. The cause of death has been ruled a heart attack.
Following a bout on the zine scene, Steve Albini hit the music world full force in the 1980s, founding pivotal punk band Big Black, which helped evolve the genre past expectations and was a seminal band of the post-hardcore movement. He, too, formed Shellac in the early ‘90s.
But outside of these bands, Steve Albini was by far better known to music lovers of the era for his work as an engineer. The first major record he worked on was the Pixies’ Surfer Rosa in 1988, an album so influential for Nirvana that they insisted on bringing Albini on board for their Nevermind follow-up, In Utero, with Kurt Cobain himself noting that the drums alone would be enough to change their sound. As such, In Utero had a rawness that Nevermind lacked, marking a key (but ultimately late) transition for the grunge era.
Steve Albini would also work on a number of other remarkable albums from the ‘90s, including The Breeders’ Pod and PJ Harvey’s Rid of Me. I would also personally recommend his work on albums by The Jesus Lizard and Silkworm, two bands that never get their due credit. Albini himself estimated that he had worked on “a couple thousand” records. Unfortunately, neither Big Black nor Shellac are on Spotify, but we’d encourage you to give a listen to as much of his work as you can to get an idea of just what sort of sound he promoted.
On his legacy and what music means, Steve Albini said, “The recording part is the part that matters to me — that I’m making a document that records a piece of our culture, the life’s work of the musicians that are hiring me. I take that part very seriously. I want the music to outlive all of us.” No doubt the legacy of Albini will live on as more generations discover his sounds and his influence.
What are your favorite Steve Albini albums or songs? Give us your picks and leave your condolences in the comments section.
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It doesn’t take long for Hades 2 to introduce Tarot Arcana cards to you, a new mechanic that allows protagonist Melinoë to become stronger in many ways. Each card requires a specific amount of Grasp, a resource unique to this system, which can fill up pretty fast.
It doesn’t take long for Hades 2 to introduce Tarot Arcana cards to you, a new mechanic that allows protagonist Melinoë to become stronger in many ways. Each card requires a specific amount of Grasp, a resource unique to this system, which can fill up pretty fast.
Glen Powell is a worker. He’s currently on an early 2000s Colin Ferrell/Samuel L. Jackson/Morgan Freeman run where he’s seemingly in everything. The breakout star of Top Gun: Maverick, who has two movies coming out this summer — Hit Man and Twisters — was also recently reported to join Margaret Qualley and Ed Harris in the thriller Huntington for writer/director John Patton Ford. Plus, he has stated that he and his Anyone But You co-star Sydney Sweeney are currently looking for more projects to star in after they capitalized on their on-set romance speculation.
The Hollywood Reporter is now confirming that Powell is in talks to star in the next movie from sci-fi blockbuster director J.J. Abrams. According to THR, no deal has yet to be made and there is no word on what the plot will be. However, it is also reported that this film will not involve a time travel plot element, which has been rumored to be a part of the next Abrams movie. Powell and Abrams have already collaborated as producers on Paul Crowder’s documentary The Blue Angels, which will be flying into IMAX on May 17 before landing on the streamer Prime Video a week later. The Blue Angels is a doc that follows a year with the Navy’s highly revered Flight Demonstration Squadron, which can usually be seen over high-profile American events.
This news also comes just after Powell was reported to join Anthony Mackie and Laura Dern in a legal drama titled Monsanto. The film will be written and directed by John Lee Hancock, who is known for The Blind Side and The Founder. Per THR, “Monsanto tells the true story of young, untried attorney Brent Wisner (Powell), who takes on a seemingly insurmountable case against the giant U.S. chemical company Monsanto on behalf of Dewayne ‘Lee’ Johnson (Mackie). Johnson used the company’s best-known product, Roundup, a wildly financially successful weed and grass pesticide killer, as part of his job as a high school groundskeeper and is now suffering illnesses.”
Meanwhile, Huntington will see Powell taking on the role of Becket Redfellow, the heir to a multi-billion-dollar fortune who will stop at nothing to get what he deserves… Or what he thinks he deserves. The film will draw inspiration from the 1949 crime comedy Kind Hearts and Coronets, which told the following story: When Louis D’Ascoyne Mazzini, who hails from a royal family, is denied dukedom, he plans to kill all the potential threats in his way.
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