A possible Call of Duty bug is causing a new Pride-themed cosmetic to paint the bullets in one version of one of the game’s guns the colors of the transgender flag. Now, right wing rage jockeys are seizing this to peddle transphobic conspiracy theories so idiotic they would be laughable, if not for the real world…
A possible Call of Duty bug is causing a new Pride-themed cosmetic to paint the bullets in one version of one of the game’s guns the colors of the transgender flag. Now, right wing rage jockeys are seizing this to peddle transphobic conspiracy theories so idiotic they would be laughable, if not for the real world…
Come into the lab and see what’s on the slab for Universal as the studio Frankenstein’s a Monster High movie based on the beloved horror-themed toy line. After unleashing the billion-dollar Barbie movie on the world, Universal and Mattel are teaming up for another toys-to-life film project focusing on an iconic collection of dolls. The Monster High toy line debuted in 2010 while focusing on the teenage children of famous monsters such as Dracula, Frankenstein, and the Wolfman. Monster High finds the teens navigating high school while contending with the pressures and perils of adolescence. Akiva Goldsman is producing Universal and Mattel’s Monster High movie, while the studios have yet to name a director.
“Monster High helps fans discover the great beauty in being true to yourself and celebrates the unique sensibilities at the core of who we are as individuals. We’re proud to partner with Universal Pictures and the brilliant Akiva Goldsman to usher this important message to audiences worldwide,” said Mattell Films boss Robbie Brenner.
“I’ve been fascinated by Monster High since my daughters were obsessed with the dolls as kids. I’m thrilled to once again join forces with Robbie Brenner and our friends at Mattel to help bring this iconic property to life,” said Goldsman.
In addition to the stylish toy line, Monster High has a television series and two live-action adaptations for fans to enjoy. The plots revolve around Clawdeen Wolf, Draculaura, and Frankie Stein, three monstrous young women with special powers. Other characters in the Monster High universe include Lagoon Blue, Toralei, Manny Taur, Cleo DeNile, Catty Noir, Hoodude Voodoo, Posea Reef, Skelita Calaveras, Jackson Jekyll, and many, many more.
Mattel is bringing several iconic toy properties to the silver screen, including Daniel Kaluuya’s Barney, Vin Diesel’s Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, Hot Wheels, Masters of the Universe, and more. Other projects in the works include films based on Polly Pocket, UNO, View-Master, Wishbone, Magic 8 Ball, American Girl, Bob the Builder, and more.
Are movies like Barbie and Monster High the future of entertainment? Can the big screen treatment elevate Monster High to a new level? I would think so. I know plenty of adults who enjoy the Monster High toy line and would jump at the chance to see a big-budget Monster High movie. The smartly designed dolls exhibit extraordinary powers, giving them a magical edge that allows for supernatural shenanigans. It will be interesting to see what kind of love Universal and Mattel give to Monster High and if the film can achieve mass appeal.
The post Universal enters the lab for a Monster High movie based on the famous horror-themed Mattel toy line appeared first on JoBlo.
Image Nation Abu Dhabi and Spooky Pictures recently teamed up to produce the horror film Late Night With the Devil, headed up by the Australian writing and directing duo of Colin and Cameron Cairnes (100 Bloody Acres) and starring David Dastmalchian – whose previous credits include The Boogeyman, The Last Voyage of the Demeter, and The Suicide Squad. The film received a theatrical release earlier this year before reaching the Shudder streaming service, and now it has been announced that IFC Films and Shudder will be bringing Late Night With the Devil back to theatres tomorrow, June 6th, for screenings that will begin at 6pm (at 6 on 6/6, get it?) and will include a Q&A with star Dastmalchian and filmmaker Kevin Smith, who directed Dastmalchian in Jay and Silent Bob Reboot. Late Night With the Devil will continue showing at participating theatres throughout the weekend.
Here’s the information: The version screened will include bonus content featuring a personalized introduction from film star David Dastmalchian, followed by an extended Q&A between David and famed cult classic writer/director Kevin Smith. The film will play through the weekend on over 500 screens across North America, including theater chains AMC, Cinemark, Drafthousse, Regal, National Amusements, Harkins and Cineplex.
Late Night With the Devil is a “supernatural chiller” that tells the story of the live broadcast of a late-night talk show in 1977 that goes horribly wrong, unleashing evil into the nation’s living rooms. Dastmalchian plays Jack Delroy, the host of the show Night Owls.
Colin and Cameron Cairnes previously provided the following statement: “In the ’70s and ’80s there was something slightly dangerous about late-night TV. Talk shows in particular were a window into some strange adult world. We thought combining that charged, live-to-air atmosphere with the supernatural could make for a uniquely frightening film experience.”
Spooky Pictures was founded by It producer Roy Lee and the Paranormal Activity franchise’s Steven Schneider. They are producing Late Night With the Devil alongside John Molloy, Derek Dauchy, and Future Pictures’ Mat Govoni and Adam White. Dastmalchian serves as an executive producer with Rami Yasin and Lake Mungo director Joel Anderson.
Are you a fan of Late Night With the Devil, and will you be catching the movie on the big screen during this theatrical re-release to see the Dastmalchian / Smith Q&A? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
The post Late Night With the Devil returns to theatres with David Dastmalchian, Kevin Smith Q&A appeared first on JoBlo.
PLOT: Sophia, a brilliant scientist comes to realize that a large shark is swimming deep in the waters near Paris.
REVIEW: There’s something about shark movies that gets to me on a primal level. Sure, there’s still just the one good one but something about them increases my anxiety to unreal heights. The surface of the water hides all the mysteries and horror beneath it, and I have a very active imagination. So my ears perked up when it was announced that Xavier Gens would be entering the world of shark horror. Because even when he doesn’t entirely hit (like this year’s Mayhem) he still manages to provide a technically proficient film with consistent momentum.
Under Paris follows Sophia after her entire team has been killed by a large shark. Three years later, the same shark’s GPS tag springs up in the canals of Paris, causing Sophia to seek it out. She has to contend with politicians who don’t believe her, a shark protection group that refuses to think a shark would ever be violent, and Mother Nature herself. Bérénice Bejo is great as Sophia and gives the film a bit of class. I haven’t really seen her since The Artist, so it was a bit jarring to see her fighting sharks at first. Thankfully she fits in perfectly and brings an air of believability to the narrative. And given how ridiculous the events can get, she’s invaluable. And while he didn’t get to show off his martial arts chops, Nassim Lyes does a good job as the river police commander.
The sharks range from passable to really bad with their CGI. It’s amazing how sharks are still so difficult to pull off in a believable way. There are brief moments where the sharks look pretty decent and are believable enough. But there are even more times when they behave so unrealistically and defy the law of physics. Movie sharks move so unnaturally fast that it takes a bit of the fear away. And I lost track of the times this giant shark propelled itself out of the water in a comical way.
I enjoyed the cinematography on display, with the filmmakers really utilizing different looks for the underwater shots. They were able to take advantage of the dirty river water as a great way to hide the shark and increase the tension. Variant color schemes help to provide a unique identity for each scene, which could have very easily been very samey. And there’s a beautiful shot of Paris near the end of the film that made me question how they managed such good FX at such a large scale.
A decent number of people are killed by the shark but a frustratingly small amount is shown on screen. They take the standard horror approach of ramping up the kills with every subsequent death, but it can still feel a little rinse and repeat. After all, how many different ways can a person get killed by a shark? And these sharks also really don’t seem to like eating people and just like nibbling on and dismembering them. They lose their aura of terror the more the film goes on and the more we see them interact. Thankfully, at about the halfway mark, there are so many deaths that it’s easy to lose track. And a shoutout to the Deep Blue Sea reference (you’ll know it when you see it).
There are plenty of silly moments like Sophia reminiscing about her dead friends, only to accidentally come across the footage of them dying. But it just adds to the absurdity of the events. Because as much as everything is treated deadly serious, these moments really help to add to the entertainment value. Just like the blue-haired climate change girl being insistent that sharks don’t eat people only to learn the hard way that she may be wrong.
Under Paris is exactly what most shark movies end up being: an absurdist view of what a shark would do if it was a sentient killer. I wouldn’t say it’s good, but there are some high-octane moments that help you ignore the more overtly dumb ones. Climate change is a large factor in the story and it gets a little heavy-handed with its message. But I really enjoyed where the film ended up, setting up for what could be an extremely intriguing sequel. Watch this with a group of friends and laugh at the insanity on display. That’s what most shark movies are good for, and this is no exception.
UNDER PARIS IS STREAMING ON NETFLIX ON JUNE 5TH, 2024.
The post Under Paris Review appeared first on JoBlo.
We’ve only seen one trailer for Assassin’s Creed Shadows, the next entry in Ubisoft’s open-world stealth-RPG series, but fans already think they know exactly where the game takes place. Beyond the era in which the game will be set, Sengoku-period Japan, a series of developer riddles has drip-fed information that seems…
We’ve only seen one trailer for Assassin’s Creed Shadows, the next entry in Ubisoft’s open-world stealth-RPG series, but fans already think they know exactly where the game takes place. Beyond the era in which the game will be set, Sengoku-period Japan, a series of developer riddles has drip-fed information that seems…
Last Friday (not the 13th) on our Horror Live Stream, Friday Night Frights (watch it embedded above), our host Tyler Nichols, inspired by the recent release of the indie horror flick, In A Violent Nature, opted to open up a discussion with viewers about what the best Friday the 13th movies are. We also ran a poll on the weekend (The Final Chapter and Jason Lives were nearly neck-in-neck). Keeping with the theme, we decided to take a deep, long-form dive into the franchise rankings ourselves.
While this list is all in good fun, I have to admit that I found it to be surprisingly difficult to put together. That’s because the Friday the 13th franchise is my favorite of all franchises and I love every one of these films. Ranking them was like trying to rank my major internal organs. Some may work better than others, but I need them all! I struggled to decide which order to put them in, and ended up listing them based on which ones I would most like to watch at any given time. So here they are, listed from “Yes, put that movie on right now!” to “Sure, okay, let’s watch it.” Check it out, then let us know how you would rank the movies by leaving a comment below.
FRIDAY THE 13TH PART III (1982)
The Jason everyone knows is born here. This is where he gets his iconic hockey mask, and he wears it while taking out a group of youths vacationing at a cabin on the edge of Crystal Lake. Part 2 director Steve Miner returned for this one and managed to make it creepy while also packing it with gimmicks meant to be seen in 3D on the big screen – and you ever have the chance to see Friday the 13th Part III in 3D, go for it. It’s an awesome experience. Especially when you get to watch the hulking, hockey masked Jason (Richard Brooker) engage the final girl in one of the best chases of the franchise. A 13 minute sequence that goes all over the cabin property.
FRIDAY THE 13TH (1980)
Directed by Sean S. Cunningham, the original Friday the 13th has achieved classic status – and yet somehow it still doesn’t get enough respect or credit for how effectively creepy it is. A low budget but well crafted production, it delivers a dark-yet-fun atmosphere, an unnerving back story, an incredible score, amazing special effects (courtesy of Tom Savini), and an unforgettable performance by Betsy Palmer. Palmer shows up late in the film as a grieving mother out to avenge her young son, who drowned at Camp Crystal Lake more than twenty years earlier because the counselors weren’t paying attention. The new counselors didn’t have anything to do with it, but they pay the price.
FRIDAY THE 13TH: THE FINAL CHAPTER (1984)
A family living in a house out in the woods. A group of young people renting the house right across from them. And Jason Voorhees (Ted White this time) lurking nearby, waiting to strike. Director Joseph Zito brought a very dark atmosphere to this film, and yet it’s also a whole lot of fun, featuring some of the best, most likeable young characters in the entire series. (Plus some wild dancing from Crispin Glover.) Tom Savini believed “The Final Chapter” subtitle and returned to supply the bloodshed for Jason’s send-off. The kills are brutal, even the ones that are cut quickly, and the showiest of all is reserved for Jason himself. Jason is legitimately scary in this film, but a clever young boy named Tommy Jarvis figures out how to defeat the monster. For now.
FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VI: JASON LIVES (1986)
Tasked with bringing Jason Voorhees back from the dead, writer/director Tom McLoughlin looked to the Universal Monsters era for inspiration and resurrected Jason Frankenstein-style, with a well-placed lightning bolt. Jason rises from his grave a bit rotten but stronger than ever, just in time for the re-opening of Camp Crystal Lake. As returning adversary Tommy Jarvis tries to stop Jason, McLoughlin treats the viewer to fun characters, humorous lines and situations, cool stunts, great cinematography, and a rock ‘n roll soundtrack. Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (which shows the title and subtitle the other way around in the title sequence, so it’s Jason Lives: Friday the 13th Part VI) pushes the comedy further than any of the previous movies, but it works because Jason himself (CJ Graham) is never the butt of the joke. McLoughlin found a way to bring fresh energy to the franchise while still keeping it in the woods.
FRIDAY THE 13TH PART 2 (1981)
Friday the 13th Part 2 (not Part II, as they didn’t get fancy with the Roman numerals until later) is so good, it’s easy to overlook the fact that it’s built on a very odd decision: the one to make Jason Voorhees, the drowned child whose mother was out for vengeance in the first movie, the killer this time around. This isn’t the Jason who would become a pop culture icon. This is a backwoods fellow who wears a sack on his head (with Steve Dash being the man under the sack). But he’s also a terrifying killer who slashes his way through a new batch of counselors. Director Steve Miner did a great job of replicating the tone of the first movie, and the film features one of the best heroines in the franchise: child psychologist Ginny Fields, who comes up with a clever way of stopping Jason in his tracks.
FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VII: THE NEW BLOOD (1988)
When Paramount couldn’t secure a deal with New Line Cinema to make Freddy vs. Jason, they shifted gears and made a sequel that is basically Jason vs. Carrie. You have the same set-up as The Final Chapter, partying youths in a house across from a family home, but this time the family home is occupied by a troubled girl with telekinetic abilities. Like Tommy in Jason Lives, that girl (named Tina) accidentally resurrects Jason, then has to deal with the consequences. And when it comes time for their showdown, Tina uses her telekinesis to dish out quite a beating to the hockey masked slasher. It’s pretty awesome. Kane Hodder made his Jason debut in this film, and director / FX artist John Carl Beuchler gave him a great rotten look.
FRIDAY THE 13TH: A NEW BEGINNING (1985)
After years of psychiatric treatments, Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter hero Tommy Jarvis arrives at Pinehurst Halfway House… and soon a killer in a hockey mask starts picking off the staff of the halfway house, the troubled youths staying there, and people in the surrounding area. The identity of the killer is meant to be a mystery, but it’s pretty hard to miss the clues. Directed by Danny Steinmann, A New Beginning has a bad reputation, but it’s still a lot of fun. Jason (Tom Morga and Johnny Hock) may only be present in Tommy’s hallucinations, but we still get a hockey masked killer who acts just like him. The characters are ridiculous, the movie is extremely sleazy, but that’s all just part of its charm.
FREDDY VS. JASON (2003)
After a long trip through development hell, Freddy vs. Jason finally reached theatres in 2003, with director Ronny Yu bringing the concept to the screen with great style. Robert Englund reprises the role of Nightmare on Elm Street franchise dream stalker Freddy Krueger, who uses the image of Mrs. Voorhees to encourage Jason Voorhees (Ken Kirzinger) to rise from Hell and head over to his old haunt of Elm Street to commit murder and stir up fear. Fear that will allow Freddy to return to the dreams of the Elm Street kids. But when Jason overstays his welcome and claims too many victims on Elm Street, the slashers clash. Fights take place in both the dream world and at Camp Crystal Lake, and the climactic battle is a glorious bloodbath.
FRIDAY THE 13TH (2009)
Ideas from the first four Friday the 13th films were mixed together for this reboot, a collaboration between Paramount and New Line Cinema. Derek Mears plays a Jason Voorhees who is faster and more intense than ever before. He’s wearing a sack on his head when we first see him, and later in the film he acquires a hockey mask. The set-up is the same as we’ve seen multiple times: Jason slashes his way through a bunch of youths who are vacationing at a house near Crystal Lake. The movie also draws from the end of Part 2 for its most controversial element: when Jason crosses paths with a young woman who resembles his mother, he locks her up in his mine shaft lair instead of killing her. Some fans think it’s a logical extension of what we saw in Part 2, other fans hate it.
FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VIII: JASON TAKES MANHATTAN (1989)
The Paramount era came to an end with Jason Takes Manhattan, which underwhelmed at the box office when movie-goers saw that it didn’t really deliver on the promise of the title. Jason (Kane Hodder) spends most of the film on a cruise ship that’s on its way to Manhattan, knocking off youths who are on board for a senior trip. When they do reach their destination, Manhattan is mostly played by Vancouver alleyways. But there is a great moment where we see Jason standing in the middle of Times Square. Part VIII also disappoints with a spacey heroine who’s always tripping, since director Rob Hedden wanted to work in some Elm Street-esque elements. The movie is fun, but you can see why Paramount gave up.
JASON GOES TO HELL: THE FINAL FRIDAY (1993)
The franchise moved to New Line Cinema with this installment, and director Adam Marcus set out to deliver a film that would be very different from any of its predecessors. He certainly accomplished that. Jason Voorhees (Kane Hodder) is blasted to pieces by the FBI in the opening sequence… then spends the rest of the movie possessing people, starting with the coroner who is compelled to eat his heart. Jason’s spirit moves from body to body as he seeks out family members we never heard of before, because this movie creates its own mythology. “Through a Voorhees was he born, through a Voorhees may he be reborn, and only by the hands of a Voorhees will he die.” How can he die? By being stabbed with a magic dagger that sends him straight to Hell.
JASON X (2002)
While Freddy vs. Jason was making its way through development hell, director James Isaac decided to make another Friday the 13th sequel – one that would be set in the future to avoid causing continuity issues with the Freddy crossover. So a frozen Jason (Kane Hodder) gets blasted into space in the year 2455, and once he thaws out it’s business as usual because the ship he’s on happens to be inhabited by a bunch of youngsters. Plus some Marines, but those aren’t a problem. The cyborg causes him more trouble, but once his body gets blasted apart he just gets a new one, thanks to nanotechnology. Jason is upgraded into Uber Jason! Jason X is extremely goofy, and highly entertaining when you’re in the mood for absurdity.
The post Friday the 13th Movies Ranked appeared first on JoBlo.
Grand Theft Auto Online’s next big summer update arrives in June and will add new bounty hunting and police missions to Rockstar’s massively popular crime simulator. Also coming in the future update: New props and modes for the in-game content creator, and some more quality-of-life improvements, too.
Grand Theft Auto Online’s next big summer update arrives in June and will add new bounty hunting and police missions to Rockstar’s massively popular crime simulator. Also coming in the future update: New props and modes for the in-game content creator, and some more quality-of-life improvements, too.