Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to introduce you to Johnny Johnson of Darkstone Entertainment, the man who’s making the Plan 9 from Outer Space re-make happen! He’s been generous enough to offer the Happy Horror team an interview. We struggled to reduce our questions to an appropriate nine and we’re pleased to bring you a blow-by-blow account of how the interview went down.

 
Without further commentary, here’s the interview!
 
 
Red Hawk asks:
Has some of the dialog that’s been mocked over the years been fixed for the upcoming movie? If so how did you handle that, but if not what made you decide to keep it the same?
 

The film is a remake to be treated seriously so there is only so far you can go with the
original dialogue. 99% of the dialogue is new, however some of the key lines are being mixed in to keep those moments alive…Couldn’t go forward without them.

How did you guys cast the Tor Johnson character? Did you go with another professional wrestler or some other actor?

Actually most of the film is not cast at the moment. The role of Inspector Clay (Tor Johnson) however was one of the first filled. I have a man within our crew that has by all means “the look” so that was a no brainer. JOHN R. PRICE II will be portraying the role.

Are you planning any merchandise to go along with the movie? If so, what is (or will be)
available and how can we fans get our hands on it?
 

That’s funny. I haven’t thought about that. Most likely whoever the distributor is will have
the control on that play. I just hope I can get a few things myself.

Glittersoul asks:

When did you first see Ed Wood’s original Plan 9 from Outer Space and how did it impact you then?
 

I had seen Plan 9 From Outer Space back when I was a kid on SUPER SCARY SATURDAY hosted by Grandpa from the Munsters. I was horribly addicted to the show and that happened to be one of my favorite episodes. It was Plan 9 from outer space and my first introduction to Godzilla right after as a double feature. It was a hell of a day. That night I was fighting aliens and giant lizards with my laser tag guns…I won.

While filming this movie can you tell us about any barriers you guys had to overcome or maybe some interesting moments during the filming?
 

Well, we haven’t gone into production yet. It is slated for March 2009. We will face many of the same obstacles that old Eddie faced in 1959. Budget, casting, time restraints, the main factor being to tell a story that is about aliens resurrecting the dead to destroy the world.

It’s still a hard sell. I’d be happy to update you as we go though. I am sure there will be
more problems to yap about.

It’s crazy idea time! Let’s pretend you’ve got an unlimited budget for marketing the movie, what would you do to get the world’s attention and draw the biggest crowds for 09/09/09?
 

First, I’d resurrect the dead. Have them hand out flyers. Second, wrestle William Shatner for charity, giving out free tickets for the premiere every time the man knocks me on my ass.

Third, learn how to fly…Just because. And lastly, build a space ship and land it on Tom
Cruise’s house. That could be really exciting. 

GlowStormLion asks:
 
When it comes to special effects for Plan 9, are you guys going with traditional means or CGI?
 

I am more of a fan of the traditional methods. When it comes to the zombies and aliens expect a lot of that. Now, on the lasers and space ships…Well…CGI kinda makes that happen without spending a fortune. So I would guess a healthy mix.

Can you tell us about any favorite effects you had fun shooting or are particularly proud of?

I am looking forward to seeing the inside of the space ship. From the designs I have been viewing it looks to be quite cool.

What particular scenes or moments in the movie are you most concerned with portraying as close as possible to the original by altering them as little as possible?
 

Ooh, can’t give that one away. There are a few, and I hope you guys will dig them as much as I do.

 
If Ed Wood were alive today and you could direct alongside him, but you had to re-make a ‘cult classic movie’ that wasn’t one of Mr. Wood’s, which project would you want to take on with him and why? (Of course, you’re not allowed to pick Plan 9! lol)
 

Wow! That’s a nifty question…Hmmm…I would have to say I would want to remake the V series from the 1980’s. I loved that show as a kid and would love to see a sequel series or remake. And I think there is enough length in the story for Eddie and me to have our moments in the directing department. Although, I’d give anything to have a dinner with the man, and hear his stories of relentless filmmaking. If he were still kickin’ today I am sure he would knock me over the head and make the remake himself. And rightly so. I just hope I can do what he originally wanted to do with the film and at the same time remember him and his legacy well. 

 
That’s a wrap! Don’t forget to visit check our article on the upcoming
re-make of this cult classic at: www.plan9movie.com

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Since my review of Pitch Black (coming soon!) I’ve been thinking about my love of the whole mating of science fiction and horror films. Aliens make some of the best monsters and I love seeing how imaginative filmmakers can get when it comes to creating memorable extra-terrestrial fiends. While I wasn’t much of a Doom player, I did enjoy the premise of that game and found myself pretty freaked out by it at certain times. Pathetic I know, but actually… it gets worse.

The first movies I clearly remember seeing in the theaters were Bambi and E.T. when I was around four or five years old. I’m almost ashamed to admit that E.T. scared the hell out of me and after the scene with the rattling trashcans I spent most of the movie hiding under my blanket. For me, E.T. was the first blending of science fiction and horror. Crossing two genres I generally regard highly is almost always alot of fun. I can enjoy just about any crossing of horror with nearly any other genre, but science fiction and horror is my favorite. Man, when those two fuck the results are amazing!

Ghosts of Mars is no exception to that and I dare say it may be the finest film of its kind that I’ve seen so far.

The story told is fairly simple. It’s the 22nd century (the year 2176 to be specific) and Mars has been terraformed so that we humans can screw it up walk on it without worrying about gravity or a breathable atmosphere. The society here is run by a "matronage". In other words, women are running things. We’ve got some lady law enforcement types who will be escorting a prisoner from a mining village to his appropriate penal camp. Of course, they’ll be running into some snags along the way since that’d be a pretty boring story in and of itself.

While some reviews I’ve read didn’t care for the acting, I certainly enjoyed it! The women in charge are Pam Grier (Jawbreaker, Jackie Brown), Natasha Henstridge (Species, Bounce) and Clea Duvall (The Grudge, 21 Grams). All of them have done work I’ve enjoyed in other films, so if you keep in mind that this film was made in the spirit of B-movies then I think you can appreciate their work in this title. The get great big guns, too, so really there’s not too much to complain about. Oh yeah, there’s also Jason Stratham (Cellular, Collateral), their hornball sidekick who’s along for the ride.

Ice Cube plays James "Desolation" Williams, the prisoner in need of transport, and does a damned fine job taking his pimp persona to Mars. Actually it was New Mexico and that’s gypsum covered in biodegradeable red food dye that they’re passing off as the surface of Mars, but I digress. The whole operation should be simple except for one little complication. The mining town is empty because some jackass went and opened a secret vault which freed the spirits of the ancient Martians. These spirits possessed the colonists available to them. This is not a good day and Ice Cube and friends are definitely going to have to make use of all available AK’s to dispense of their demonic foes.

What follows is your basic tale of intergalactic ass-kicking. The Martian spirits are remnants of an ancient civilization (which I’d have liked to know a whole lot more about!) and they’re capable of switching bodies when their current host dies. This helps make things alot trickier and far more interesting. When these spirits get ahold of us normal people they begin to turn us into damned fine interpretations of Marilyn Manson. Apparently, they not only self-mutilate, they also take the time to apply some wicked make-up as an extra fearsome (but lovingly offered) touch of cinematic madness.

I was shocked to learn that it was not Natasha Henstridge who was originally set to play the lead cop-type. It was actually Courtney Love! While I definitely enjoyed Henstridge’s acting, I’d have loved to seen Kurt’s former wife in this role. We already know how deliciously violent she is with mere humans, just imagine how she’d act towards hostile Martians! Unfortunately, she had her foot run over by her boyfriend’s ex-wife which put her out of commission for the filming. Henstridge took over, but she became extremely sick from exhaustion because she’d just shot two other films back to back before she replaced Love and Ghosts of Mars required a great deal of heavy physical acting.

That’ll wrap it up for my review. I’m sure you know that I’m going to give this movie a 5 out of 5 because it’s just so fucking cool! If you’ve not seen it and think you might like it, give it a shot because John Carpenter directed a classic with this one.

So, until my next swear-filled review, this is GlowStormLion reminding you to check your ammo before you start smarting off, fool.

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I remember when I first got a computer with a DVD-ROM drive. What a thrilling thought it was that not only could I play music CD’s, but now I could also watch entire movies right on my PC! Would there ever be an end to the wonders of this inspiring age of technology? Could it get any better in terms of entertainment value? Would the damn thing even PLAY the movie?

It was that last question I hadn’t thought to ask when I signed up for Netflix the very first time, a few years back. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that my sparkly new computer could handle a simple DVD. Besides, if it didn’t work I had my then recently acquired Playstation 2 as back-up. Turns out it didn’t work. Shocker. Neither would the PS2 play the disc. Rage. After instant messaging some death threats to more technically attuned acquaintances of mine I was finally educated in the intricate art of making computers play DVDs. It was a hellish (har) pain in the ass.

The story here involves some bigshot actors who I’m going to assume you’re familiar with the work of because that lessens the amount of typing I have to do. Keanu Reeves plays the protagonist of the film, named Kevin Lomax. Charlize Theron acts as his wifely counterpart, Mary Ann. John Milton is the name of Al Pacino’s character. Basically Kevin is a lawyer with a record that’s all wins and John Milton is a powerful legal type from New York who’s interested in bringing dear Mr. Lomax aboard the firm of Milton, Chadwick & Waters. Come to think of it, it’d make a great song: "The devil went down to Florida to score himself a hotshot attorney…"

Now of course Al Pacino is playing a diabolical force from Hell as he usually does so I won’t be spoiling anything by letting you know that. I’ll omit the cheesey ‘lawyers are evil’ jokes so we can move forward with the review. The general challenge laid out before Lomax is your basic question of how far you’ll go find success. Nothing new in that aspect, and honestly, overall I found the film fairly predictable.

The set design for this movie was top-notch. The luxury of the surroundings that the Lomax couple enjoy makes terrific eyecandy and also helps to make Kevin’s choice a bit more understandable. In the presence of such grandiose extravagance I could see how it might be hard to consider whether defending child molestors and murderers was all that wrong. Wait, no I can’t. I suppose that’s why I’d not make such a terrific defense lawyer. In a stroke of true irony, those who made the movie actually got in trouble for props that too closely resembled the sculpture on the facade of the Episcopal National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. This was changed for the DVD release but not before several without the editing had been produced. I wonder if those are hard to get ahold of?

As the story comes to a close it definitely gets weird. Since it’s supposed to be a bit of a mystery, I don’t want to give out too many details on what all happens in the film. Suffice it to say that you’ll get to meet the devil, but not Mrs. Jones and that you’ll find out whether or not there is a son of Satan and furthermore if there is, would he have sex with his sister? These questions nagged me until The Devil’s Advocate revealed all. I feel better knowing.

In closing, I give this movie a 3 out of 5 because Keanu Reeves is a pain to watch and Al Pacino didn’t do enough killing, nor did he pick up one single machinegun. It’s picky of me, I know but SOMEONE has got to stand up for what’s right!

Until we meet again, this is GlowStormLion cordially inviting you to say hello to his little friend.

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Ah, the life of a writer! An existence brimming with passion and creativity. Plenty of time to dig deep inside one’s self to till the soils of the soul so that they become rich with purpose. Tending one’s fertile imagination so that it brings forth the kind of harvest that can be enjoyed by all. Alone with the paper or screen. Armed with visions and the words to describe them. A pure form of labor that precious few can truly succeed at. Must be an amazing way to earn a living, don’t you think?

Of course, nothing in this world is free… and other trite cliche’s along those lines. The isolation required to do what a writer does, that tenacity of purpose, must surely tax the mind, body and spirit. When the resource you’re burning as fuel are your own thoughts and the tools of your trade are your mind and hands, things can get a bit exhausting. Yep, Secret Window is about the burning struggles of a full-time author.

Since the film was based on the novella Secret Window, Secret Garden by Stephen King from his Four Past Midnight compilation, I already knew the story. In the book we had a writer writing about writing. It wasn’t too bad as far as stories of that type go, in its written form, but could a MOVIE pull it off?

Here’s a quick rundown of the story. We have Mort Rainey (played by Johnny Depp) as a writer who’s soon to be divorced from his wife Amy (Maria Bello from Coyote Ugly and Permanent Midnight). Amy’s been sleeping around on Mort with Ted (Timothy Hutton of The General’s Daughter, The Dark Half) which is what leads to their break-up. Ted and Mort aren’t the grandest of friends, which is understandable given the circumstances. So, Mr. Rainey heads off to the isolation of a rural cabin where he intends to deal with his demons and fight his way back into the writing arena.

Normally I’m not much for movies that are rated under an R. Generally, they seem to try too hard to avoid the highlights of the cinematic experience, in my book. There’s almost always too much shying away from the less pleasant aspects of life. Avoiding the elements that make a story feel real to me only served to upset me because it’s crucial to my enjoyment of a film that I believe, even if only while it plays, that it COULD happen. Secret Window, surprisingly, does not disappoint in this respect. Sure there’s not a lot of gore or boobies or anything like that, but there is a lot of substance and style.

The elements of the original novella’s story were brought to life with such vision that it actually ended up enhancing the story line. I’ll be first to admit that it’s not often that anyone can enhance a King story, but the makers of Secret Window did precisely. The sense of frustration, apathy, anger and confusion are all very palpable. It’s what I’d term as ‘emotionally tactile’ if such a phrase existed. In the event that it does not, consider it just invented.

John Turturro (Fear X, Anger Management) plays the role of Rainey’s antagonistic fan John Shooter. This dear Shooter fellow is upset with Mort due to some strong feelings that Mort is plagiarizing Shooter’s work. You’ll have to actually watch the film to see how it all goes down. I’d like to offer a tip, though: stay aware. There’s a lot of symbolism in this movie and it all makes more sense when you’re prepared to watch for that sort of thing. I really wasn’t, so I needed a lot of discussion with a friend to be able to figure out what all was going on.

This is definitely a fine rental. It’s easily a 3 out of 5 for me. That may sound a bit harsh, but my rating is based on it’s suitability as a horror film. The elements are there, dark and strong, but it’d need to punch me a bit harder with the shock or creep factor in order to get those last 2 points. Overall, Secret Window is worth at least one peek through.

Until next time… have a good one!

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