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Looking Back: Stephen King’s Cat’s Eye

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Cat's Eye

Stephen King’s Cat’s Eye is a remarkable film. During Stephen King’s first cinematic hay day in the 1980s, anthology movies and shows were in fashion.  While television programs like the new Twilight Zone and Tales From the Darkside astounded television audiences, movies like Creepshow excited the theater going fans.  After the success of King’s Creepshow he doubled up and brought forth his next anthology gem, Cat’s Eye.   Mr. King’s seventieth birthday was just a few weeks ago, so we are looking back on Cat’s Eye and what makes this film such a joy to watch.

Fresh off the success of King’s Firestarter, young Drew Berrymore was cast in another King film, this time the anthology Cat’s Eye.  Although not in full action until the third act, Berrymore is the glue that holds this feline masterpiece together.  She serves as a sort of narrator between the stories, calling out in desperation to her furry savior.  The film is in three short stories.  The first two are adaptations taken from King’s short story collection Night Shift, and the third act is entirely original to the film itself.

Image result for stephen king's cat's eye pics

Quitters Inc.

The first story stars a young James Woods as wanna be quitter Dick Morrison, and is titled Quitters Inc.  Dick is persuaded by his friend to join Quitters Inc., a unique program to stop smoking.  Through unique measures, worse and worse things happening to Dick and his family, the company is determined to make him quit.  They first display their methods to Dick by locking an alley cat they have caught in an electric filled room, watching it jump.  As a child this scene traumatized me, i was upset for the cat, not really understanding what the intentions were for poor Dick.

There are various scenes throughout this short journey that cements itself into the reader’s mind.  The major one for me is a dinner party that Dick attends, where he mentally (or not?) perceives the owner of Smokers Inc. dancing down the stairs singing the Police’s iconic song Every Breath You Take.  I’m not going to spoil all the fun for those of you who have not seen this film, but let’s just say it ends in typical Stephen King fashion.

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The Ledge

Round two of this movie is titled The Ledge and is a breathtaking journey all it’s own.  The story takes place in Atlantic City, a town that was enjoying a renaissance all it’s own in the eighties and has since gone down hill.  Johnny Norris is romantically involved with a woman that is married to a gambler and crime boss by the name of Cressner.  Cressner, a man to bet on anything, offers Norris a bet of his own; if he can circumnavigate the outside of the high rise apartment complex, Cressner will offer his wife a divorce allowing Norris and Mrs. Cressner to be together.  However, and here’s the kicker, if he refuses he will have Norris set up on a possession of drugs charge that will send him away for a long time and leave his love to the grimy hands of her husband.

Norris agrees and is left to not only traverse his way around the skyscraper, but to endure multiple tests of endurance that Cressner places on him.  This is a great short for its time and one that the viewer will not soon forget.  Since my intention of writing this article is for the reader to want to watch this great piece for the first time, again I will not reveal the ending.  But it’s one to keep you on your toes!!!

Image result for stephen king's cat's eye pics

General

The third and final installment in this grand anthology is titled General.  Drew Berrymore plays Amanda, a young girl that is haunted every night by a troll that lives within her walls.  Her cat General, the same cat that has been traveling to her the entire film, helps to keep the troll away.  However, there is one problem; Amanda’s mom doesn’t want General in the house and begins to put her out every night.  The mother is put off by the cat, claiming that cat’s steal children’s breaths in their sleep.  One night the troll comes through the wall and kills the parakeet Polly that stays in Amanda’s room.

Amanda’s mom is pissed and takes General to the animal shelter where he will be euthanized the next day.  While the cat is away, the troll once again emerges from the wall and attempts to steal Amanda’s breath.  General escapes the animal shelter as the staff is coming in to feed him his last meal and runs home entering the house via the chimney.

Then comes the showdown between the troll in the wall and General.  The cat stands firm for her little girl and best friend, doing what she needs to do ending in a spectacular flight.

Cat’s Eye is a truly fun film, and one that mixes well with the rest of King’s cinematic films.  If you have never had the chance to see this film I highly recommend it.  Cat’s Eye is currently available on Blu-ray and DVD.

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Russell Crowe To Star in Another Exorcism Movie & It’s Not a Sequel

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Maybe it’s because The Exorcist just celebrated its 50th-anniversary last year, or maybe it’s because aging Academy Award-winning actors aren’t too proud to take on obscure roles, but Russell Crowe is visiting the Devil once again in yet another possession film. And it’s not related to his last one, The Pope’s Exorcist.

According to Collider, the film titled The Exorcism was originally going to be released under the name The Georgetown Project. Rights for its North American release were once in the hands of Miramax but then went to Vertical Entertainment. It will release on June 7 in theaters then head over to Shudder for subscribers.

Crowe will also star in this year’s upcoming Kraven the Hunter which is set to drop in theaters on August 30.

As for The Exorcism, Collider provides us with what it’s about:

“The film centers around actor Anthony Miller (Crowe), whose troubles come to the forefront as he shoots a supernatural horror movie. His estranged daughter (Ryan Simpkins) has to figure out whether he’s lapsing into his past addictions, or if something even more horrific is occurring. “

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New F-Bomb Laden ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Trailer: Bloody Buddy Movie

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Deadpool & Wolverine might be the buddy movie of the decade. The two heterodox superheroes are back in the latest trailer for the summer blockbuster, this time with more f-bombs than a gangster film.

‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Movie Trailer

This time the focus is on Wolverine played by Hugh Jackman. The adamantium-infused X-Man is having a bit of a pity party when Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) arrives on the scene who then tries to convince him to team up for selfish reasons. The result is a profanity-filled trailer with a Strange surprise at the end.

Deadpool & Wolverine is one of the most anticipated movies of the year. It comes out on July 26. Here is the latest trailer, and we suggest if you are at work and your space isn’t private, you might want to put in headphones.

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Original Blair Witch Cast Ask Lionsgate for Retroactive Residuals in Light of New Film

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The Blair Witch Project Cast

Jason Blum is planning to reboot The Blair Witch Project for the second time. That’s a fairly large task considering none of the reboots or sequels have managed to capture the magic of the 1999 film that brought found footage into the mainstream.

This idea has not been lost on the original Blair Witch cast, who has recently reached out to Lionsgate to ask for what they feel is fair compensation for their role in the pivotal film. Lionsgate gained access to The Blair Witch Project in 2003 when they purchased Artisan Entertainment.

Blair witch
The Blair Witch Project Cast

However, Artisan Entertainment was an independent studio before its purchase, meaning the actors were not part of SAG-AFTRA. As a result, the cast are not entitled to the same residuals from the project as actors in other major films. The cast doesn’t feel that the studio should be able to continue to profit off of their hard work and likenesses without fair compensation.

Their most recent request asks for “meaningful consultation on any future ‘Blair Witch’ reboot, sequel, prequel, toy, game, ride, escape room, etc., in which one could reasonably assume that Heather, Michael & Josh’s names and/or likenesses will be associated for promotional purposes in the public sphere.”

The blair witch project

At this time, Lionsgate has not offered any comment about this issue.

The full statement made by the cast can be found below.

OUR ASKS OF LIONSGATE (From Heather, Michael & Josh, stars of “The Blair Witch Project”):

1. Retroactive + future residual payments to Heather, Michael and Josh for acting services rendered in the original BWP, equivalent to the sum that would’ve been allotted through SAG-AFTRA, had we had proper union or legal representation when the film was made.

2. Meaningful consultation on any future Blair Witch reboot, sequel, prequel, toy, game, ride, escape room, etc…, in which one could reasonably assume that Heather, Michael & Josh’s names and/or likenesses will be associated for promotional purposes in the public sphere.

Note: Our film has now been rebooted twice, both times were a disappointment from a fan/box office/critical perspective. Neither of these films were made with significant creative input from the original team. As the insiders who created the Blair Witch and have been listening to what fans love & want for 25 years, we’re your single greatest, yet thus-far un-utilized secret-weapon!

3. “The Blair Witch Grant”: A 60k grant (the budget of our original movie), paid out yearly by Lionsgate, to an unknown/aspiring genre filmmaker to assist in making theirfirst feature film. This is a GRANT, not a development fund, hence Lionsgate will not own any of the underlying rights to the project.

A PUBLIC STATEMENT FROM THE DIRECTORS & PRODUCERS OF “THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT”:

As we near the 25th anniversary of The Blair Witch Project, our pride in the storyworld we created and the film we produced is reaffirmed by the recent announcement of a reboot by horror icons Jason Blum and James Wan.

While we, the original filmmakers, respect Lionsgate’s right to monetize the intellectual property as it sees fit, we must highlight the significant contributions of the original cast — Heather Donahue, Joshua Leonard, and Mike Williams. As the literal faces of what has become a franchise, their likenesses, voices, and real names are inseparably tied to The Blair Witch Project. Their unique contributions not only defined the film’s authenticity but continue to resonate with audiences around the world.

We celebrate our film’s legacy, and equally, we believe the actors deserve to be celebrated for their enduring association with the franchise.

Sincerely, Eduardo Sanchez, Dan Myrick, Gregg Hale, Robin Cowie, and Michael Monello

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