Yep, that's a painted street to look like a water filled chasm, and it is awesome. What would you do if you turned the corner in your car and came across that? Continue after the break for more.
Visit Edgar Mueller's website to see more pictures of his amazing street art.
Last night were the Oscars: the annual ceremony to honor the best films of the year and the people who made them. I love to watch the show. I have seen every one for well over a decade and a half now, and this year's was very good. Not only was the show entertaining, but virtually every one of my expected winners did win (I knew Kate Winslet would pull it off). And as anticipated, Slumdog Millionaire took just about every award it was nominated for including the coveted Best Picture. The only exception (and indeed disappointment) of the night for me, was Sean Penn getting Best Actor for Milk.
House of Wax
Unlike last week's House on Hunted Hill, this film actually delivered on the creep factor. Of course I don't think you could not make a movie about wax figures and have it NOT be creepy. The ick factor for just the realistic wax sculptures was enough to give you the chills. It certainly helped that they ended up being REAL people covered in wax. How gruesome! (I always knew wax figures looked too real, now I know why.)
Vincent Price is the creepiest gentleman I think that has ever been put on screen. He exudes a sinister thinking through his character of the insane sculptor. It was fascinating to see the transformation of his character. In the beginning he is a humble artist, who likes to sculpt beautiful things. He doesn't revel in death or the macabre like his competitors in the wax circuit. However, when he is turned on by his partner and horribly burned in the fire, his obsessive insanity begins to take him over. Vincent Price has no problem portraying this tormented man.
It was still a little bit silly. The characters are one note, and the scares aren't tremendous, but it still manages to draw you in with its mystery and horror. And in the end, it manages to provide a creep factor that still holds up today. This is what a great B-movie from the 50s should be.
Bottom Line:
Vincent Price delivers a perfect blend of cordial insanity in this utterly creepy film, that somehow still manages to be quite an entertaining and thrilling film.
B
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I'm sure many of you are reading the title and wondering who I am talking about. That's ok, his name isn't very well known. However, I guarantee that you have seen his work. And I will bet that you have enjoyed it.
Let me give you a little background for me. I first recognized Drew Struzan after I had watched and rewatched and watched again the movie Hook. The cover to that VHS was a striking image, a piece of art that showcased the film's many dazzling and fantastical moments. I remember thinking about that image at school waiting to return home to watch it again.
I learned that an exhibition of some of his work would be held at an art gallery in LA, and on the opening night of the exhibition, Drew himself would be there. I was geeking out; to get the chance to meet the man who has drawn some of the most iconic film images ever, was very exciting.
I couldn't believe it, here it was. The poster that got me hooked on this artist, was on display. Remember, this wasn't merely a movie poster that you see in your local cineplex. This was the ORIGINAL painting. Slightly larger than a standard sized film poster, it had such incredible detail. I can't describe the pure joyous kiddy delight that sprung within me when I saw that painting on Friday night. I was that kid pouring over the old worn out VHS copy of Hook once again.
But it was rejected for this photo poster:
It is sad that the appreciation for this art has diminished so severely. The demand has all but evaported for illustrated posters. There are exceptions such as last year's Indiana Jones posters, and the George Lucas Star Wars prequels. Guillermo del Toro commissioned Drew to do posters for Hellboy, Hellboy II, and Pan's Labyrinth. Sadly, none of the final designs were used for marketing purposes. Also Frank Darabont commissioned him to do the work for the Mist, as well as Special edition covers for the Shawshank Redemption and the Green Mile.
House on Haunted Hill
There were a few genuine scares here and there, but I think the emphasis of this film is the relationship between the millionaire, Mr. Loren, and his wife. Throughout the picture you understand that they hate each other, both want each other dead (and one ends up so by the film's conclusion). It is how it unfolds that is ultimately the film's strength. With a few twist, turns and unexpected surprises, the finale wraps it up nicely, if leaving the audience a little unsatisfied.
Sad to say, that even Vincent Price's normal gooey, slimy, and yet altogether regal self, barely makes an appearance. He seems to be gliding through the scenes, playing a very one dimensional impression of himself, that eventually becomes so tired. This film makes me want to watch a good Vincent Price flick, so, so bad. I have to wash the taste of this flick outta my mouth.
Bottom Line:
OK, how gross is that? Could you imagine this? Sit down to watch the game, got the nachos, the dip, and a nice cold (or warm) glass of bull piss. You have to almost marvel at the man's business plan: Take something that everybody deems disgusting, which is inexpensive and easy to 'harvest,' then spin it and sell it to poor saps for a few bucks. It's so dastardly brilliant it sounds like the plot for a new James Bond film. 
Yuck! Yuck! Yuck! YUCK!!!!
One could make a small argument that the supplement found in some energy drinks known as taurine is the same thing. But unfortunately for the argument, taurine is a bit different then straight up cow pee. It is true that taurine can be found in cow urine and bull testicles but it isn't harvested from either. So take that naysayers. Actually, to please vegetarians and us folks who don't like the idea of drinking cow bile, taurine is generally synthesized today for human consumption.
The Adventures of Robin Hood
This all started last week, when a mysterious piece of paper showed up in the office. A piece of paper that was a sign up for girl scout cookies. Sign your name, what you want, and the cookies will be brought in to work in March. Wah-lah! I scoffed at the mere existence of such a list. "How impersonal!" I said to myself. If this parent was trying to sell their kid's cookies, they weren't doing a very good job at it. At least have the cajones to ask me in person.
My point is that the cookies are meant to be sold by children, to support a children's organization. I understand you want to help your kids, and get them that prize for selling the most cookies. It is a natural thing to want to do that, but this is something I will mark the line on very clearly:
Girls in the girl scouts, sell Girl Scout cookies. Period.
Here's some facts for you to munch on:There are lists and lists of statistics on this issue, but frankly it is too depressing to list them here. Simply understand, this is a tremendous problem. It is primarily isolated to Europe, Asia and Africa, but there are estimates that put about 14,000 people are trafficked into the US every year, against their will.
In Asia, women are regularly taken from poorer countries such as the Philippines and Thailand, and brought to wealthier nations such as Japan to work as prostitutes and strippers. However 80% of those go willingly, knowing they will be prostitutes. Which then leads to a very important question, is human trafficking OK if they are willing? I don't think so.
So why are people willingly going into this ring of trafficking? It could be something as innocent as a job offer from overseas. But from what I have gathered, it is simply because people are destitute. You have no money, and not a very good quality of life, somebody comes along and offers a roof, meals for your belly, and a job. You have no choice, so why not. What they don't expect is the bullying, the drug abuse, and the general depravity that you will experience being forced into something that you might have been willing to do at first because you had no better option. But to live and work under a regime of ownership, is not right.
So what do we do? First off, be aware. Know that this exists and more importantly a thriving business, with little police interference. Beware when traveling abroad. They love blondes for some reason. So wear a hat and look ugly.
I kid. I kid. But in all seriousness, just be aware. Odds are you have a better chance of being killed by a bee than to be coerced into forced slavery or prostitution. Just don't support this by getting a prostitute overseas or here in America. But then again, don't do that because it's disgusting.
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An example is that one of the troops gets caught hanging by his chute. Suspended from a church, he hangs for hours, as he goes unnoticed by the Germans in the courtyard. He watches as his buddies are mowed down and rounded up. It is a curious fact, but it feels like it was thrown in just because it really happened. Another example is the Chaplin who must find his case before he moves on. Or the paratrooper's clickers getting mistaken with a German's gun being cocked. The whole movie is this way, a series of happenstances that slowly build and then encompass the invasion itself, the story seems to be told by the events occurring and not through any thought or motivation of the characters.
The scope that is on display, is grand. Told from both perspectives, you see every gamut of emotion that happened on the day, through every rank. From General to Private, everybody's story is represented here. That is one thing I love about this film, and one of its war-film brethren, Tora Tora Tora. It has the courage to humanize the enemy. Very rarely do you see this in a war film, rarer to see it in one that is nearing 50 years old.
