Movie News and Reviews

DL Hammons at Cruising Altitude has a challenge today – six short excerpts/flash pieces based on a prompt from six different writers. Can you guess which writer wrote which piece based on their ‘voice?’ Let’s just say I already know one of the writers…

Elizabeth Mueller asked if I was some kind of Hollywood Ninja spy since I know so much about films. While I do harbor a lot of movie knowledge and see a ton of movies, there are a couple key sites I hit.

For information, release dates, and reviews, I visit Rotten Tomatoes and the IMDB.

For hot-off-the-press news, I visit JoBlo and Blastr.

Now you too can be a Movie Ninja!

Battlefield Earth was easily the number one Worst Movie Ever in last week’s blogfest. After so many awful films, I thought I’d offer you some good ones:

Drive
Great reviews prompted me to see this one. Ryan Gosling is a stuntman/mechanic by day and a getaway driver by night. A man of few words, he befriends a neighbor and her son. When her husband returns home from prison, Gosling offers to help rob a pawnshop to pay back protection money. Things go wrong, of course…
If you remember my review of Hanna, this movie is similar – an art house action flick. Very slow paced and stylish, with great camera work and lighting, and a unique soundtrack. Think Michael Mann’s Heat and Manhunter. If you like that style of film, I highly recommend Drive.

The Warrior’s Way
I had no idea what to expect from this film but was pleasantly surprised. It begins with a ninja warrior, toting a baby he spared, seeking refuge with a circus group in an isolated Western town. As you can tell by the setup, it’s quirky! The entire film was shot on green screen and looks quite amazing, including a giant Ferris wheel under construction. It was like a comic book come to life and featured some bloody and intense action. Geoffrey Rush is excellent in his small role as a drunken former gunslinger. This movie isn’t for everyone, but I found it quirky and fun.

And this Wednesday Tucker & Dale vs. Evil is the featured film on Direct TV’s HDNet Movies! Last I looked, it was still a perfect 100% on Rotten Tomatoes with over thirty reviews.

Seen any good movies lately? Don’t forget to check out Cruising Altitude. And hey – less than three months to Christmas!!

Rocking the 80's!

Cool guest and 80’s quiz for you today! And a few chuckles at my expense.

But first, a HUGE thank you to everyone who participated (or simply enjoyed) the Worst Movies Ever blogfest. Wow! I think that was the best one yet. I got such a kick out of reading everyone’s reasons for their worst movie selections. I managed to visit everyone’s post and then some. (Which is why I took a break Tuesday morning.) But I really, really appreciate everyone who got involved in the revelry of crappy movies. All of the links now lead straight to the blogfest post, so please continue to browse, especially the later entries.

Now, for your viewing pleasure… the 80’s Queen herself – Nicki Elson!

I’m just going to say it: Alex and I have nothing in common.

I write chick-lit romance; he writes sci-fi adventure.

He’s a techno-gadget wizard; I recently had to Google to figure out how to turn off my hand-me-down Nano.

I’m a frequent user of the emoticon. :) He doesn’t partake of them. :(

And music? Let’s just say we have differing tastes. Sir Alex won a totally rockin’ out cool One Hit Wonders of the 80s CD in a trivia contest at my blog during A to Z, and do you know what he said? Well, I don’t remember his exact words, but it was essentially “I’ll take a pass.” For real. He took a pass on the likes of Kajagoogoo and Dexy’s Midnight Runners. Can you imagine? (Yes, I did!)

But I so wanted to guest post at his place to show off my schnazzy new book cover (with nary a spaceship in sight) and let Alex’s Army know about Omnific Publishing’s awesome Back-to-School Sale throughout September―Three Daves and other school-related titles are only 99 cents in Kindle, Nook, and ePub! So I had to come up with something…anything…to ingratiate myself to the Ninja Master. Then it hit me…

…I’m a big fan of the 80s, as evidenced by the era in which Three Daves is set…

…he’s a big fan of heavy metal…

Metal was HUGE in the 80s! At least as huge as the hair of the musicians themselves!

And here we have it, the common ground. :)

Don’t be nervous, but right now we’re going to see how fit you are to be a member of Alex’s Army. How many of these 10 songs from the 80s can you match with the correct metal band? Give it a whirl and please let Alex know in the comments how you did (if you preferred 80s New Wave to Metal, you can let him know that too—loudly.)

Quizzes by Quibblo.com | SnapApp Quiz Apps

Good luck!

Thanks for stopping by, and thanks for having me, Alex!

P.S. If you’re a book reviewer, A Tale of Many Reviews has opened up sign-ups for a Three Daves paper book tour.

Visit Nicki Elson at her website or blog.

All right guys – you’ve been challenged!

And if metal is not your thing, can you name any other 80’s band? Anyone? Anyone?

Worst Movies Ever Blogfest!

It’s time for the Worst Movies Ever Blogfest!

Today, post a list of up to ten of the worst movies you’ve ever had the misfortune to watch. Films that just oozed awfulness and featured plot holes so big you could drive a bus through them. Any genre or year, but only theater and straight to video/DVD titles. (We already know SyFy Channel movies suck!) Sign up, grab the button, and give us the worst! And be sure to visit others participating in the blogfest.

And now, some of the worst movies I’ve ever watched:

Manos: The Hands of Fate

It just goes to show that sometimes the worst films can make the best MST 3000 episodes. But on its own, this film is a dumpster fire. I can't even say that at least it's in focus, because it's not.

Catwoman

At one point Halle Berry plays with yarn and licks herself. It would have worked as porn, but not as a PG-13 rated super heroine movie.

The Wicker Man

Nicholas Cage in a bear costume. Need I say more?

The English Patient

Yup, I'm talking about the Oscar winning movie The English Patient. I despised every character in the movie. Cheating losers. C'mon movie, at least give me one likeable character! Yes, I'm prepared for flack on this one...

The Mist

Great first half followed by a train wreck of a finish. So, let me get this straight, all the people in the grocery store turn from their own moral values and try to sacrifice a boy in less than a day? Complete and utter crap, especially the very ending.

House of the Dead

Uwe Boll must be stopped. With films like In the Name of the King, Alone in the Dark, Bloodrayne, and this cinematic turd, Boll is single handedly destroying the movie industry. And I thought the SyFy Channel movie version of my book would be bad...

Highlander 2

"There can be only one" and this movie proves it. It's either an unfunny comedy or a dull and confusing action movie. Or, quite possibly, the best disaster movie ever.

The Happening

The only thing scarier than the trees and wind forcing people to commit suicide might be homicidal high humidity. (Thank you, Rifftrax.) As a matter of fact, watch this with Rifftrax to turn a terrible movie into a work of genius.

The Guardian

Killer druid nanny. Say that a couple times to yourself to truly capture the inane silliness of those three words. Killer druid nanny. Really?!! Considering that this is from William Friedkin, the masterful director of The Exorcist and Sorcerer, this movie is a major misfire. I almost walked out on this movie.

Battlefield: Earth

This movie fails on every level. The acting is terrible and the dialogue is cringe-worthy. If L. Ron Hubbard hadn't died fourteen years previous, this would have killed him.




Agree? Disagree? Think I’m insane for including an Oscar-winning movie on my list? What horrible film(s) would you choose?

Be sure to visit others participating in the blogfest!

"Arranging" a Giveaway and Dark Future Humor

I have a guest today - and she’s offering a giveaway!

And, don’t forget – Monday is the Worst Movies Ever Blogfest! Click the link to sign up and join us in listing up to ten of the worst movies ever made. Remember, must be a theater or video release. SyFy movies don’t count – we already know they suck…

On to my guest, the awesome L.J. Sellers…

Finding Humor in a Dark Future

In my new novel, the future is bleak, my characters are flawed, and their quests are intensely personal. Writing this novel could have been depressing, but I set much of the story in an endurance contest called the Gauntlet, which provided some unusual and amusing research moments.

In one competition scene, the protagonist is required to crawl through tunnels. I wanted her experience to seem real, so I left my keyboard and got down on my hands and knees. I crawled around the family room for a few minutes, trying to decide how big the tunnel needed to be and what part of my body would start to hurt first. Of course, my husband walked in as I was crawling and mumbling and said, “When does the barking start?”
It was the first laugh “til your belly hurts” moment I’d had in a long time.

In another phase of the contest, Lara enters a locked-room scenario, in which she must use the items on hand to find a MacGyver-type solution to get out. I admit, I sought help from my husband, who designs and builds things for a living. We came up with a plausible three-step solution, then decided to test the parts of it that we could. Not wanting to give away this scene in the story, let’s just say we headed down to the garage with a box of matches and some potentially combustible material. (It’s Oregon, and it was raining, so we had to stay inside.)

As we struck the matches and cheered for a flame, we remembered catching our three boys doing something similar when they were young. We imagined our kids walking in on us while we attempted to start a fire in the garage, and saying “What the hell?” We laughed until the tears rolled.

It’s good to experience little moments like that when you write gritty thrillers. Otherwise, it’s too easy to get sucked into a dark mode and forget that people and characters can find joy and humor even under stressful circumstances. I also managed to sneak a light moment into the story near the end. And even though The Arranger is set in a bleak world thirteen years from now, the overall theme is an affirmation of the human desire to improve oneself and make a difference in the world around us.

Do you need humor in every novel? Or are some thrillers better without it?

L.J. Sellers is an award-winning journalist and the author of the bestselling Detective Jackson mystery/suspense series: The Sex Club, Secrets to Die For, Thrilled to Death, Passions of the Dead, and Dying for Justice. Her novels have been highly praised by Mystery Scene, Crimespree, and Spinetingler magazines, and the series is on Amazon Kindle’s bestselling police procedural list. L.J. also has three standalone thrillers: The Baby Thief, The Suicide Effect, and The Arranger. When not plotting murders, she enjoys performing standup comedy, cycling, social networking, and attending mystery conferences. She’s also been known to jump out of airplanes.

Leave a comment to win a copy of The Arranger! One physical book and two eBooks will be given to three random winners.

Questions for LJ? Ready for the blogfest? Seeing a movie this weekend? (Hopefully it doesn’t end up on your list.) And does anyone want to hear me play guitar? Just kidding – I don’t torture my blogger buddies!

You Rock! And News...

Today I am visiting the awesome and beautiful Elizabeth Mueller, talking about brainstorming the second book. So, if anyone else out there has written one story and now you’re beginning to panic about a sequel or follow-up, head on over. Hopefully I don’t mess you up even worse.

But wait – there’s more!

Big thanks again to those who left such awesome comments for those participating in the Insecure Writer’s Support Group. I appreciate everyone’s efforts. You guys rock!

And I got some news on the book trailer my publisher is creating for CassaFire – and I’m so stoked! Another animated piece, but - no words to read this time. You get to hear Byron speak! Damn, I can’t wait…

And, in one week, it’s the Worst Movies Ever Blogfest! Spread the word. If the insecurity of last Wednesday didn’t take down the internet, then we need to try again with an onslaught of crappy movies. Sign up below!

Any other questions about the Insecure Writer’s Support Group? Did you makes some new friends? What about the blogfest? Have you signed up? Why not?! Can’t tell me there aren’t a slew of bad movies out there…

Crap, I can’t wait to see my book trailer…

All right, go see Elizabeth now and tell her she’s one beautiful lady!

FFW - Marketing Tips, Quiz Answers, and My Next Blogfest!!

Fantastic Friday Writers – Marketing Tips and Tricks

I’m not an expert on marketing, but there is one tip I can offer - don’t use your blog just to advertise. Sure, when you’re doing a blog tour or there’s a big moment, let everyone know. But don’t venture into blogging to advertise. Come here to make friends.

Why do I think that’s important? Because I can’t begin to tell you how many of my blogger buddies purchased my book just because they like me. For many, it was their first science fiction book! It’s really flattering and humbling.

If I’d focused on selling my book rather than making friends, I would’ve missed a great opportunity. And not just in the books I wouldn’t have sold, but in the priceless value of the friendships I would’ve missed.

Crap, I think I just learned something. Thanks, guys!

Check out my FFW partners’ answers: Elizabeth, Anastasia, J. D., Deirdre, M. Pax, and Jeffrey, and Charlene.


Quiz answers:

The Lexx was a living spaceship on these four TV movies before it was a series - name the movie series title!  Before it was a series called Lexx, it was four TV movies called Tales From a Parallel Universe.

Name the song VH1 Classics declared as the number one rock song of the 1980’s. Bonus fuzzy feelings if you can name the second song as well!  Number one - Bon Jovi - Living on a Prayer. Number two - Def Leppard - Pour Some Sugar on Me


Now, are you ready for a new blogfest?

We had The Movie Dirty Dozen - now it’s time for:

That’s right! Time to list the worst movies ever made.

Here’s the scoop:

Worst Movies Ever Blogfest!
On Monday, September 19, post a list of up to ten of the worst movies you’ve ever had the misfortune to watch. Films that just oozed awfulness and featured plot holes so big you could drive a bus through them. Any genre or year, but only theater and straight to video/DVD titles. (Otherwise we’d all list every movie ever made by the SyFy Channel!) Sign up, grab the button, and on September 19, give us the worst! And be sure to visit others participating in the blogfest.

So, are you ready to warn the world about some really bad films?