Posts Tagged ‘murder’
9 items.
Sep24
LIKE SINGLE WHITE FEMALE, BUT WITH A GUY INSTEAD
September 24th, 2004 |
(6 votes, average: 9.33 out of 10)
How’s THAT for a reversal?
Here I had you thinking that Jared was the one going mental, but it turns out it was Jimmy! Well, in Tom’s dream at least. But maybe Jared got to him? Put some thoughts in his head? It’s certainly a possibility. Maybe that question will be answered in the mini trade paperback I’m putting together that collects this arc. Yea… I’m thinking there might be a bonus comic inserted between this comic and Wednesday’s comic that might address that very issue…
Oh, by the way, if you want to see a sketch of Tom with a knife stuck in his back, you can view it by voting for Theater Hopper at buzzComix. Click here to see it.
The sketch isn’t all that good because I didn’t have a lot of time to work on the comic yesterday. About an hour and a half when I came home from work and then another hour or so before I went to bed. For the curious, I was out helping someone celebrate a birthday. I think the comic suffered a little bit, which I’m dissapointed with. Some of the perspective is off.
At any rate, I hope you’re enjoying the story arc. Can you believe it’s gone on now for almost a month? Crazy. Hopefully Tom’s little nightmare will be a nice little cliffhanger whetting your appetites for more. WHETTING, I SAY!
So what’s in theaters this weekend? After what seems like forever, Shaun of the Dead drops stateside. I guess it was mega-popular in the UK. People were constantly sending me e-mails about it from over there a few months ago. “Why aren’t you talking about Shaun of the Dead? You need to do a comic about Shaun of the Dead!” Well, we’re just now getting it, so hold your horses.
From where I sit, the movie looks pretty unique. A love story that spoofs zombie movies at the same time? Interesting. My only concern is will I be able to tell the zombies apart from the non-infected British cast? They’re a pale sort, that’s for sure. I might need to bring a scorecard.
Ahhhh, I’m just pulling your leg, you limeys! All in good fun! Seriously, I’m just playin’…
The only other movie I’m half-curious to see is John Waters A Dirty Shame. It’s a sex comedy with Tracy Ullman and Johnny Knoxville.
Wow. I never thought I would ever write a sentence like that in my life.
This is the brilliance of John Waters, though. Right now he’s forcing movie reviewers around the globe to write the same head-scratching synopsis.
The movie is rated NC-17, which isn’t surprising if you’re familiar with Waters’ past work pushing the boundaries of good taste. Of course this rating instantly motivates me to see it more. What’s all the hub-bub about? All I know is that the normally rail-thin Selma Blair is sporting a pair of giant, fake boobs through the whole picture. I think she plays a stripper, or something named Caprice Stickles. Classic.
The next trick will be finding a theater in good ol’ conservative Iowa that’ll play an NC-17 movie.
Funny story about a John Waters experience I had. I worked at a movie theater tearing tickets back when Serial Mom with Kathleen Turner. We had just closed up all the theaters for that afternoon’s matinee’s when this woman and her 8 year-old daughter come storming out of Serial Mom. She immediately demands to speak with a manager to complain about the movie. “How could you show this kind of filth in your theaters?” and what not. “My child should not have to watch this kind of garbage!”
Our manager gave it to her straight: First, it’s a John Waters movie. If you’re familiar with the history of cinema at all, you’d know he was notorious for filming a 6 foot 2 transvestite eating dog poo on camera. Second, the movie was rated “R”, so it’s your own fault for bring your daughter. Third, the movie is titled SERIAL MOM! Did you hear the title instead of read it and think it was about Frosted Flakes?
Never underestimate the ignorance of the American public.
I’ve been working on a new t-shirt design. It’s my goal to work on the site over the weekend, redesigning the store so I can take pre-orders next Monday. There’s been some buzz about this little fashion item building in the THorum. If you want a shirt, take back some aluminum cans this weekend and be ready to reserve one on Monday!
Everyone have a great weekend!
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Curse an overtly polite Midwestern upbringing! Tom has it in his head that Jimmy is trying to take his place, but he’s took locked into his hospitality that he can’t do anything about it.
Incidentally, what Tom WISHES he could do is represented in today’s buzzComix incentive sketch – a parallel reality where ANYTHING can happen! Click here to view it!
We’re coming close to the end of the arc and I’m still toying with a couple of potential endings. I don’t want to spoil anything for those of you have been along for the ride or especially those of you who have been so encouraging! But whichever way it lands, I hope you’ve enjoyed it.
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The big thing I want to talk about today is the new t-shirt design I was talking about all last week. It’s called “Spoiler” and it is on sale RIGHT NOW in the newly redesigned store!
But I should forewarn you. This t-shirt launch is going to be a little different. Thanks to the good people at Brunetto Shirts, not only are we offering t-shirts, but baby doll tees and hoodies, too!
Not only that, but we’re offering a myriad of color from you to choose from! 22 colors for the t-shirts, 10 colors for the baby doll teesand 7 colors for the hoodies. Now there should be NO reason why everyone can’t get the COLOR of shirt in the STYLE they want!
There’s also a handy Flash application on each page that gives you a rough idea of what the design will look like against different colored backgrounds! I’m telling you, we thought of EVERYTHING!
PRE-ORDERS WILL BE GOING ON THROUGH OCTOBER 15th. So that means you have 3 weeks to gather up your loose change and reserve your shirt before I place the order with the printer. If feedback in the THorum is any indication, this is going to be a really popular shirt, so be sure to get in on the ground floor.
But let’s say for the sake of argument that you don’t like this new shirt. Hey, that’s alright! You haven’t hurt my feelings. In fact, I have a pretty thick skin when it comes to that kind of thing.
That’s why I’m already hard at work on THREE NEW T-SHIRT DESIGNS that will debut shortly after the pre-order time period for the Spoiler shirt ends. I plan on rolling the rest of them out subsequently.
So it’s kind of like the weather here in Iowa; Don’t like it? Wait 20 minutes! Or in this case, about 20 days.
I know some of you will have questions about the links to the posters and DVD pages not working. That was intentional. I gave myself a deadline to put the Spoiler shirts on sale today, so other elements of the store have been put on hold. Access to those areas will be open soon and when they are, you can expect to read about it here.
Some of you might also be wondering about our previous t-shirt – The Pimp Tom t-shirt. Well, don’t worry. It’ll be coming back soon and better than ever. In fact, I’m thinking about producing it with as many color options as I have for the Spoiler t-shirt. I LOVE giving people options!
If you guys have any questions that weren’t covered in this space, feel free to send me an e-mail and I will do my best to answer them!
That about covers things for the moment. Thanks for your support!
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I know that making fun of a Lindsay Lohan movie is kind of like shooting fish in a barrel that have been coked up and spray tanning for years (allegedly!), but the premise of I Know Who Killed Me was too delicious to pass up. I know a lot of guys who still think Lohan is hot because they’re into girls who barely know how to hold their liquor and I know women who want to string Lohan up by her Louis Vuitton handbag for setting the women’s movement back 20 years. I mean, flashing your lady parts for publicity? That’s just sad.
Lohan plays a girl that’s been kidnapped, tortured and left for dead. When she wakes up, she insists that she’s not the person that people were looking for (they just look alike!) and the original girl is still in danger.
You can try to read the plot synopsis over at IMDB and see if it makes sense to you. I read it three times before giving up. Basically it’s a role meant to show off Lohan’s acting chops as she tackles the same character from different emotional perspectives. But does anyone really care at this point?
By now, Lindsay Lohan is known more for the company she keeps and her constant run-ins with the law. Her most famous role isn’t on screen. Her most famous role is being a drunk socialite with crazy parents. Anyone who is a fan of hers seems to be an apologist of some kind – always citing her incredible acting talent. Often you hear her name mentioned in the same breath as Drew Barrymoore – another actress who showed promise early on, but was derailed by the Hollywood party scene before getting her act together.
My question is, why does everyone things she’s such a great actress? I mean, recent movies like Georgia Rule and Herbie Fully Loaded maybe aren’t films that one can fairly gauge her talent with because, by the time those movies were made, she was already a fixture in tabloids. So what about the movies pre-fame? Freaky Friday, Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen and the much lauded Mean Girls – plus a handful of Disney movies like The Parent Trap and Life Size.
A few of these movies I’ve seen and a few of them I haven’t. Mean Girls, for example – Lohan was never really the star. It was Tina Fey’s whip-smart screenplay that takes that credit. There seemed to be an inkling of talent in The Parent Trap, but she was, like, eight years-old at the time, so who can judge?
My point is that there is nothing in Lohan’s body of work that suggests to me that she’s the next Jodie Foster and I think deep down she probably knows that. So why not live it up when you have the money? What frustrates me is that she keeps being offered these second chances because she somehow fooled America into thinking she’s either A.) interesting or B.) talented – of which she is neither. I mean, to land a role in Robert Altman’s last movie? How does that happen?
It’s all part of the great American cycle of fame. We love to build you up and we love to tear you down. And if you can make a comeback, we love you all the more.
Until we tear you down again.
Maybe Lohan is interesting to some because she’s at once both nakedly ambitious as she is equally self-destructive. Sometimes she’s just naked! But there’s only so many times you can catch me with the “No, I really CAN act!” maneuver before you lose all credibility by hanging out with Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. The fact of the matter is, if she wanted to be taken seriously at all, she wouldn’t be showing up in trendy Hollywood night clubs. You can complain all you like about the paparazzi and how they won’t leave you alone. But there’s a simple solution – stay home.
/end rant
Hey, guys – Don’t forget to check out tonight’s broadcast of The Triple Feature over at Talkshoe. We go live at 9:00 PM CST. Not sure what we’re talking about this week, but odds are good that it isn’t I Know Who Killed Me. Personally, I won’t mind exploring I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry. I took a swipe at it in the blog I posted on Saturday (sorry for the delay on Friday’s comic, BTW) and there was some interesting feedback in the comments section. It seems like some people were willing to give the movie a pass, but others were concerned about the film’s dangerous attitudes about homosexuality – even if it was being played for laughs. I might trying bouncing that off Joe and Gordon to see what they think. But odds are good we’ll probably spend most of the hour talking about The Simpsons Movie.
So tune in!
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Lots of things to talk about today, so let’s jump right into it.
First, Cloverfield. I resisted posting too many of my opinions on Monday because I wanted to entice you to listen to our weekly broadcast of The Triple Feature over at TalkShoe.com. We had lots to say about Cloverfield in a spoiler-heavy episode. Basically, the group opinion is that we loved it. Sure there were some implausibilities with the character motivation and the shaky cam could be a little much at times. But all-in-all, its an excellent monster movie. One that doesn’t make you feel stupid for liking monster movies.
I have talked to a few people, however, that hated the film. Most people generally cite the handheld approach as a deal-killer. But if you didn’t know that going in, you have no one to blame but yourself. Last Friday, the couple sitting next to me couldn’t stomach it, I guess. The left with about 20 minutes to go. Who does that? If you’re going to leave, don’t you think you would have left earlier?
Apologies to those of you who are trying to download Monday’s show. I guess TalkShoe was trying out some new technology that screwed up all Monday broadcasts. So the show hasn’t been sent out through RSS or is available on the site just yet. If you weren’t able to join us live, keep checking. I’m sure the show will be posted soon – and it was a good one. You don’t want to miss it!
Today’s comic is about Untraceable, The Silence of the Lambs knock-off with Hollywood’s go-to cougar Diane Lane in the Clarice Starling role. Part of me is interested in the concept of a serial killer who uses technology to stay one step ahead of the law. The idea of a web site people can log on to and watch a man die is kind of timely in its observation of our appetite and curiosity for violence-soaked entertainment.
But at the end of the day, you know this one is going to be a dud. Hollywood has yet to produce a thriller about the internet that I’ve been impressed with. The Net, Hackers, uh… Okay, I couldn’t really think of any others. But that’s my point! Hollywood never gets technology right when it comes to the internet. They always have to spice it up and make computer interfaces more complicated and fancy than they actually are. It always takes me right out of the movie. It’s not Star Trek, okay? Government agencies aren’t whipping around graphic-heavy interfaces with deliberately animated cursors with infinite-zoom capabilities.
I mean, not yet. Or… whatever.
Certainly something that speaks to the theme of Untraceable and our attraction to the macabre is the recent death of Heath Ledger. If you haven’t heard about this by now, you must be living under some rock. Someone e-mailed me with the new late yesterday afternoon and I thought they were lying. Brad Renfro died a week ago. While no less tragic and untimely, it was at least conceivable because of his history of drug abuse. But Heath Ledger? The guy seemed to have everything going for him. Critical acclaim, strong performances, a star-making turn as The Joker in the upcoming Batman movie. Ledger was the kind of actor that could have worked for the rest of his life. He always brought a dignity to his roles that made you admire him. He was a great talent and this is a great waste.
It’s too soon to speculate what happened, but I can only hope it was an accident. I don’t know if I can wrap my mind around it otherwise. My heart goes out to his friends and family.
I have to close for now, but I’ll be back later with another post concerning the recent Oscar nominations. There’s a lot there that I want to go into and I’ve probably worn out my welcome with this post.
So let’s all talk a breather and I encourage you to come back later in the day for my take on the nominations, the snubs and even The Razzies! Lots of award talk to go around!
See you soon!
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Major shout-out to Michael May from Eros, Inc. for providing me with this excellent guest strip today. Michael was one of the architects of the excellent musical version of Instant Classic last week and offer this guest strip without me asking as a form of thanks. He’s been a real life-safer. So thanks, Mike!
At the moment, I’m in transit – coming home from Emerald City Comicon in Seattle. Since it’s only a two-day con, I wanted to stay the whole time to take advantage of it. Flying out Sunday night didn’t appeal to me, so I stuck it out another day. Expect a full recap soon.
Since I’m out of town, we won’t be recording The Triple Feature tonight. Instead, we’re looking to record it on Wednesday. So stay tuned for more information soon.
Thanks again to everyone who came out to see me at Emerald City Comicon. I had a blast and I can’t wait to tell you more about it!
Talk to you soon!
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Sep11
I know this was supposed to be a week of guest strips. But, well, I couldn’t really round one up for today. Chalk it up to poor planning. I decided late last week to take this week off and that’s not time enough for most artists with already busy schedules to drop what they’re doing and produce something for me.
Hats off, however, to Jason Swearingen and Paul Southworth for their time and consideration. It is much appreciated.
I took time off this week partially to give myself a break from the comic and partially to work on some other projects that needed my attention. Primarily on a freelancing web site that I intend to use to attract clients and provide a temporary revenue stream while I look for more permanent work.
I have to admit I did not make much progress on that front. However, I kept busy this week applying for jobs and sending out resumes. I took a few meetings and had a few interviews. Fortunately, my experience is such that I attract the interest of most employers. At this point, it’s finding one who is willing to compensate fairly for that experience.
My freelance site aside, I did accomplish something else this week that actually benefits both of us and not just myself. I took some time this week to prepare the Theater Hopper store for a massive fire sale that I’m going to start promoting next week. I have a little bit of money saved up thanks to Project Wonderful and I plan on spreading it around a little bit in hopes of attracting people to my store and helping me clear out some inventory.
As of now, everything in the store is on sale. All books are $9.99. All shirts are $7.99. I’ve even dug out some old inventory I haven’t had on the site for a while in hopes of selling that as well – mostly baby doll tees in limited inventory for $4.99.
If you scroll down to the bottom of the main page in the store, you’ll see I’m selling the Iron Man parody poster I designed for Chicago Comic Con in early September. I have 49 left in stock and I’m selling them for $3.00 a piece.
The sale ends at Midnight on Sunday, September 20. I am motivated to get rid of as much inventory as possible, but I don’t know if I’ll do something like this again. So if you see something you want, now is the time to grab it.
Thanks and have a great weekend.
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In terms of location, not to many “whodunnits” are staged in Antarctica. Really the only other movie that even comes close in my mind is John Carpenter’s The Thing or maybe 30 Days of Night. So I’ll give Whiteout style points for the interesting location.
Still, when I read the plot synopsis, I couldn’t help but wonder about the title. True, blizzard conditions result in a blinding “whiteout” as Kate Beckinsale’s character attempts to solve a murder. But she’s also under the added pressure of finding a murderer in three days before the last plane leaves the continent and those who are left behind are plunged into six months of night.
It’s kind of like Christopher Nolan’s Insomnia, but in reverse. Or maybe like Pitch Black. But, y’know… without all the space monsters. But why so many “race-against-time” plot devices?
I realize that Whiteout is based on a comic mini-series of the same name released by Oni Press in 1998. So, for all intents and purposes, this is a “comic book movie” and perhaps such compounding dilemmas don’t have to make sense.
Still, I think you could do so much with the isolation and the paranoia of such a remote location that multiple “race-against-time” elements aren’t needed.
Certainly something that CAN’T be explained is casting Kate Beckinsale – arguably one of the most attractive women in film right now – in a role that requires her to wear bulky parkas and heavy boots all over the place. Next time, Kate, try to solve a murder on Bikini Island, or something.
SEXISM! WOO!
With that out of the way, I want to remind everyone that there is a fire sale in the store right now. All of the books are $9.99, all of the t-shirts are $7.99 and I’m also selling some remainder inventory for much, much less. Baby doll tees for $4.99, a poster and a sample booklet at reduced prices as well.
The sale runs through the weekend, but I encourage you to place your orders now. I got a bunch of orders of the weekend and I hope to have them sent out by tomorrow. So if you want your merchandise included in that mailing, place your order today.
In the meantime, I will be adding a special graphic to the top of the page to remind you of the sale. But if you guys can help me out by mentioning the sale through your Twitter or Facebook accounts, that would help me out a great deal.
I’m selling off this inventory at dramatically low prices to hopefully raise enough money to produce the third Theater Hopper book. Although yesterday, my good friend Gordon McAlpin from Multiplex launched Book 1 Club of Awesome and is giving rewards to people who contribute funding to the production of his first print collection. I’m thinking I might have to steal his idea.
I’m sure we’ll be talking about Gordon’s forthcoming book as well as catch up on other topics tonight on The Triple Feature at TalkShoe. Remember: We record live at 9:00 PM CST and would love it if you could join us.
See you then!
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I had a big post in mind when I put this comic together last night. But some kind of blog date kerfuffle late at night prevented me from posting it until this afternoon. So what I had planned on writing yesterday evening has completely evaporated by this afternoon!
I hope you like the comic. It’s pretty straightforward. I admit to being stuck coming up with the punchline. Actually, I came up with the “Lawyer Attorney” observation first. I probably should have flipped things around to make that the punchline. But I turned out pretty well. What can you expect post-Thanksgiving when your brain has been choked by tryptophan?
Not much more to talk about tonight, except that I hope to see Ninja Assassin some time this evening. I’ve been hearing great things from friends who have already seen it. I’m still a little skittish about going to the theaters on Black Friday, but hopefully the mall crowds have exhausted themselves and gone home by the time I show up. I plan on going to the late, late show.
Still trying to fanagle an opportunity to see The Fantastic Mr. Fox with Cami tomorrow. The film broke wide across the country on Wednesday, but we haven’t nailed down a babysitter yet. I’ve felt considerably out of the loop on that one since it was available in limited release two weeks prior. It feels like no one is talking about it anymore – and I hate it when that happens.
Last thing I’ll mention – and I think you know where it’s going – please pledge to the Kickstarter fund raising campaign for Theater Hopper: Year Three. We have 33 days left in the campaign and 63% left to go. I’m worried that after the baby arrives on the 10th, I won’t have time to really chase it down. That, compounded by the holidays getting in the way, I’m really worried that I won’t be able to raise the money I need to do this!
So, if you have even a dollar left in your pocket after cashing in on department store sales, please consider pledging. I appreciate your support.
Thanks and have a great weekend!
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First things first. I’ve decided to take advantage of all the hoopla surrounding CYBER MONDAY and have marked down all regularly-priced items in the Theater Hopper store by 50%.
So, if you’re looking to pick up a copy of Theater Hopper: Year Three for $7.50 or a Spoiler I t-shirt for $5.00, now is the time to do it. Because I promise you prices will NEVER be this low at any other time during the year.
Incidentally, I should mention that I attended a local craft/art show called Market Day this weekend and both Spoiler I and Spoiler II shirts were selling like hotcakes. People clearly saw the value of these shirts as original gift ideas and these items are perfect for the movie-lover in YOUR family this holiday season.
This is the first CYBER MONDAY I’ve ever participated in, so let’s make it worth everyone’s while, shall we?
Now let’s talk about the comic…
Hey, ladies! Nothing like some dude telling you what does and what doesn’t qualify as a feminist manifesto, huh?
Yeah, I have no idea what I’m talking about.
Except, well, I saw Tangled this weekend (and by the way, it’s really good) and I couldn’t help but think about the positive message it sends to young girls in terms of confronting your fears and putting your destiny in your own hands.
Disney films – particularly Disney “princess” films – get a bad rap for delivering demoralizing messages to young girls. Both Tangled and The House of Mouse’s previous film The Princess and The Frog I think have done a good job of reversing that trend.
It’s true that Disney decided to name the film Tangled instead of Rapunzel after the box office failure of The Princess and The Frog and out of fear that they were alienating boys from the audience – which is lame. But ultimately, I think it’s the content of these two films that will win out.
Both Rapunzel and Tiana are capable and determined young women who aren’t exactly sitting on their hands waiting for a man to sweep them off their feet and create a better life for them. These are heroines who not only have a sense of their own destiny, but want direct ownership of how it is forged.
With criticisms of Disney’s history in mind, the fact that Rapunzel uses a frying pan as a weapon in the movie felt somewhat deliberate to me – especially when coupled with the “kept” woman metaphor and being locked away from society. Think about controlling husbands – the “go make me a sammich” neanderthals who dictate their wife’s social life, the friends she can see and who she’s allowed to talk to.
I know it’s a kids movie and I’m likely projecting all of this onto something completely innocent. All I’m saying is that the frying pan is kind of prominent in the film (with several callbacks) and I kind of can’t ignore it as a visual cue.
As for the movie itself, I’ll say that after reading a few reviews online that my expectations were set kind of low. A lot of people complained that the film was derivative other (better) Disney movies by referencing specific scenes from those classics.
They’re not exactly wrong. Tangled does mirror it’s predecessors at times. During the barroom sing-a-long “I’ve Got A Dream,” one can’t help but be reminded of Gaston’s illustrious ode to himself in Beauty and the Beast. Near the end of the film, Rapunzel and her romantic interest Flynn Ryder sit together on a boat while paper lanterns float around them in a scene reminiscent of The Little Mermaid. The painterly style of the film immediately places it in league visually with films like Sleeping Beauty.
But where these critics saw these references as unimaginative, I found them to be wholly deliberate.
Tangled is Disney’s 50th animated feature. That’s a significant achievement. To that end, it seems only reasonable that the animators might want to visually reference their older films. To me, it was no different than when the producers of Die Another Day (the 20th film in the James Bond) franchise decided to litter references to the previous 19 films throughout the movie.
If I were to make any complaints about Tangled, it would be that original songs by Alan Menken aren’t entirely memorable. But I wasn’t particularly bothered by that because I’m of the opinion that Disney’s adherence to the archetype of a musical narrative really doesn’t fit with contemporary audience expectations. Unless the songs are absolutely stellar, there’s not much reason to include them. Aside from selling copies of the soundtrack, of course. Menke’s songs didn’t detract from the overall experience. But I wouldn’t say they added anything, either.
If you haven’t seen Tangled yet, I strongly encourage you to do so. They film has energy, life and continues Disney’s upward trend in animation after a string of duds the last few years. You’ll definitely walk out of the film feeling a little bit of that old Disney magic.
Did anyone else here see Tangled this weekend? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below! Don’t forget about the Cyber Monday sale going on until midnight CST tonight! Everything in the store is half-off! Tell your friends and have a great week!
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