News

‘Don’t Look Now’, ‘The Witches’ Director Nicolas Roeg Has Died at 90

Published

5 years ago

November 24, 2018

Nicolas Roeg, the man behind the camera of genre masterpieces like Don’t Look Now, has died at aged 90.

By the time he sat down in the director’s chair for the atmospheric film starring Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie as a couple trying to move beyond the loss of their daughter on a trip to Venice, Roeg had already established himself as an editor and cinematographer. Don’t Look Now‘s violent and unexpected climax is still one of the most stunning in cinematic history.

Three years later, Roeg once again found himself in the director’s chair on an unusual project. The Man Who Fell to Earth starred David Bowie as an alien who comes to Earth in an attempt to save his own dying planet.

David Bowie in The Man Who Fell To Earth

The film, which was Bowie’s first starring role, received a lukewarm response by critics but, like many of Roeg’s films, it gained its own cult following in the decades that followed its release.

Roeg continued directing in the years that followed across genres with films like Castaway starring Oliver Reed and Track 29 with Gary Oldman, but it was 1990’s The Witches that would become his most famous and popular film.

Starring Anjelica Huston, The Witches was based on the Roald Dahl book about a plot by the world’s most powerful witches to be rid of children once and for all. Huston’s performance was both stunning and terrifying as the Grand High Witch in the film that was the last that Jim Henson oversaw himself before his death.

Anjelica Huston as The Grand High Witch in Nicolas Roeg’s The Witches

The Witches did not come without its controversies, however. Roald Dahl, upon seeing the film, called it appalling and too vulgar and threatened legal action to have his name and title removed from the film. In a strange twist, he also said that the film’s ending was too positive and unlike the book he had written.

He later, grudgingly, dropped his threat.

These kind of reactions had followed Roeg throughout his career. Don’t Look Now was criticized for its lengthy, graphic sex scenes. The Man Who Fell to Earth was called too surreal and confounding.

And yet, these were the marks that ultimately made his work stand out. He delighted in playing with time and space in his films in ways that kept the audience on their toes. Those that “got it” became ardent fans.

Nicolas Roeg perhaps explained it best, however, and it seems perfect and right to end with the director’s own words:

“I’ve been told my movies are difficult to market. It isn’t a horror film, it isn’t a thriller. Yes, there’s a love story in it but it could hardly be called a romance,” Roeg told The Guardian in 2007. “People love things in boxes, classified a genre. But it’s just life. Life and birth and sex and love — they don’t necessarily all go together.”

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Movies

Trailer for ‘The Exorcism’ Has Russell Crowe Possessed

Published

13 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

The latest exorcism movie is about to drop this summer. It’s aptly titled The Exorcism and it stars Academy Award winner turned B-movie savant Russell Crowe. The trailer dropped today and by the looks of it, we are getting a possession movie that takes place on a movie set.

Just like this year’s recent demon-in-media-space film Late Night With the Devil, The Exorcism happens during a production. Although the former takes place on a live network talk show, the latter is on an active sound stage. Hopefully, it won’t be entirely serious and we’ll get some meta chuckles out of it.

The film will open in theaters on June 7, but since Shudder also acquired it, it probably won’t be long after that until it finds a home on the streaming service.

Crowe plays, “Anthony Miller, a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His estranged daughter, Lee (Ryan Simpkins), wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play. The film also stars Sam Worthington, Chloe Bailey, Adam Goldberg and David Hyde Pierce.”

Crowe did see some success in last year’s The Pope’s Exorcist mostly because his character was so over-the-top and infused with such comical hubris it bordered on parody. We will see if that is the route actor-turned-director Joshua John Miller takes with The Exorcism.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

News

Win a Stay at The Lizzie Borden House From Spirit Halloween

Published

15 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Spirit Halloween has declared that this week marks the start of spooky season and to celebrate they are offering fans a chance to stay at the Lizzie Borden House with so many perks Lizzie herself would approve.

The Lizzie Borden House in Fall River, MA is claimed to be one of the most haunted houses in America. Of course one lucky winner and up to 12 of their friends will find out if the rumors are true if they win the grand prize: A private stay in the notorious house.

“We are delighted to work with Spirit Halloween to roll out the red carpet and offer the public a chance to win a one-of-a-kind experience at the infamous Lizzie Borden House, which also includes additional haunted experiences and merchandise,” said Lance Zaal, President & Founder of US Ghost Adventures.

Fans can enter to win by following Spirit Halloween‘s Instagram and leaving a comment on the contest post from now through April 28.

The prize also includes:

An exclusive guided house tour, including insider insight around the murder, the trial, and commonly reported hauntings

A late-night ghost tour, complete with professional ghost-hunting gear

A private breakfast in the Borden family dining room

A ghost hunting starter kit with two pieces of Ghost Daddy Ghost Hunting Gear and a lesson for two at US Ghost Adventures Ghost Hunting Course

The ultimate Lizzie Borden gift package, featuring an official hatchet, the Lizzie Borden board game, Lily the Haunted Doll, and America’s Most Haunted Volume II

Winner’s choice of a Ghost Tour experience in Salem or a True Crime experience in Boston for two

“Our Halfway to Halloween celebration provides fans an exhilarating taste of what’s to come this fall and empowers them to start planning for their favorite season as early as they please,” said Steven Silverstein, CEO of Spirit Halloween. “We have cultivated an incredible following of enthusiasts who embody the Halloween lifestyle, and we’re thrilled to bring the fun back to life.”

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A post shared by Spirit Halloween (@spirithalloween)

Spirit Halloween is also preparing for their retail haunted houses. On Thursday, August 1 their flagship store in Egg Harbor Township, NJ. will officially open to start off the season. That event usually draws in hordes of people eager to see what new merch, animatronics, and exclusive IP goods will be trending this year.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Movies

’28 Years Later’ Trilogy Taking Shape With Serious Star Power

Published

16 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Danny Boyle is revisiting his 28 Days Later universe with three new films. He will direct the first, 28 Years Later, with two more to follow. Deadline is reporting that sources say Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes have been cast for the first entry, a sequel to the original. Details are being kept under wraps so we don’t know how or if the first original sequel 28 Weeks Later fits into the project.

**Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes**

Boyle will direct the first movie but it’s unclear which role he will take on in the subsequent films. What is known is Candyman (2021) director Nia DaCosta is scheduled to direct the second film in this trilogy and that the third will be filmed immediately afterward. Whether DaCosta will direct both is still unclear.

Alex Garland is writing the scripts. Garland is having a successful time at the box office right now. He wrote and directed the current action/thriller Civil War which was just knocked out of the theatrical top spot by Radio Silence’s Abigail.

There is no word yet on when, or where, 28 Years Later will start production.