Month: October 2014

Darke Reviews – The Addams Family (1991)

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The awesome thing about being totally and completely freelance? The ability to write and give opinion (an important word) based on my own judgements without outside influence. I have promised a review a day this month on the theme of horror, halloween, and general linkage between those. As an extra challenge I have decided to review classic movies every other day. As much as I love Beautiful Creatures, it is not a classic. Tonight however, I feel confident in ruling this a classic. The Addams Family.

Based on the works of Charles Samuel Addams (who at one point in his life lived on Elm Street) during his time as a cartoonist for the New Yorker. His cartoons, which weren’t always about the Family, ran from 1940 until his death in 1988. A syndicated show ran on ABC from 1964 until 1966 for 64 episodes. This is the series most people are familiar with and the iconic looks and personalities are most derived. I cannot in good conscience talk about the Addams family without discussing the raw, controlled storm of insanity and energy that is John Astin (and his eyes) in the role of Gomez. The beautifully gothic, gorgeous, and svelte vamp that is Carolyn Jones as the family matriarch Morticia. Jackie Coogans Fester and Ted Cassidy as Lurch (You Raaaaang). These were truly the creation of media icons that last half a century later. While the actors Wednesday and Pugsley originally were mostly forgettable, they too brought the comic characters to life with their look and personality, even with the children’s ages at 6 and 8. Even Hanna Barbara attempted an animated series in 1973, which only lasted 16 episodes. They even co starred in an episode of Scooby Doo, then again who didn’t.

In 1991, Barry (Men In Black) Sonnenfeld created a movie adaptation of the series as first directorial role. He had previously worked as a director of photography in such classics as Misery, Millers Crossing, and When Harry Met Sally. How he got into comedic movies after , I have no idea. I have to admit aging Wednesday and Pugsley was a good move to make them something a little more manageable and believable in many respects.  He worked from a script by Caroline Thompson who had previously only worked on Edward Scissorhands. I suppose working with Burton helped her understand the atmosphere required for an Addams family film, she would later write the screenplay for Nightmare Before Christmas and the Corpse Bride. There is also a screenplay credit for Larry Wilson, best known for Beetlejuice. It is abundantly clear these two writers had the pedigree and background to understand the appropriate tone and character flavor for an Addams family film.

They also had the unenviable task of reintroducing the world to a family few of the 80s generation would know, unless like me they enjoyed them in syndication. I suppose that explains much about me now too eh? They sadly fell into the trap of so many of the people adapting TV series to film. There’s a belief you have to establish the characters and introduce them in a new way. I am not so sure on this theory and I am hard pressed to think of a tv to film transfer that doesn’t do this. It doesn’t always work and it slows the progress of the film. Sadly as much as I love the Addams, the story here is probably the weakest part. The con artist to get in the family and steal their fortune. It works as an introduction, but just is kinda flat and not nearly as memorable as its sequel (review tomorrow). While it does bring to life most of the characters, their own personalities in a stronger story could do the same.

The late great Raul Julia captures most of Astin’s performance mania but puts a slightly more refined and less comical edge to it. If the original was played straight, this one is played to the razors edge. I do love Angelica Huston’s Morticia, but she doesn’t quite capture the exquisiteness of Jones. She does her part, but something seems off. Like they tried too hard to touch on what Jones did. It was good just not great, but I don’t think I can blame Huston here. She gives it her all and when she and Julia are together I see the chemistry.

Gomez & Morticia Meme

This is a core truth for me.

 

Gomez and Morticia were near perfect in this more deadpan take on the characters, without a laugh track, but the real standout for 14 year old me – Wednesday. This was Christina Ricci’s second film role and one of my earliest and longest lasting crushes of a fictional character.  The aging of the character for the film (approx 11 based on Ricci’s age) made it work as a character as I said before. Ricci though sold it in every single scene. Deadpan delivery – check. Creepy Astin like eye movements – check. Even the few times she smiled – check. The personality and growth of the character from 6 to 11 were clear and I can see this being the girl she grew into (also the girl I wanted to be and lets face it kinda am). Pugsley took the backseat this time and was somewhat dopey and dimwitted, but still captured much of the original characters quirks. The two children have as much chemistry together as siblings as the parents do. The subtle looks with the brothers and sisters stereotypical antagonism worked.  The 7′ (2.13m) tall Carel Struyken perfectly nailed Lurch. This may seem like an easy task but such minimalistic acting is not at all easy and falling into line against what Cassidy did was difficult. The weakest member is probably the strongest comic in the bunch and that is Christopher Lloyd as Fester. There’s something missing about his performance, even within the confines of the films style and adaptation from the original it doesn’t feel like a modern evolution of Jackie Coogan; where so many of the others do.

From an FX standpoint, for 1991 the movie actually does fairly well. The downside is the 90s need to insert bad music into movies to help them sell, with a clip from MC Hammer playing at one point. The infamous Thing loooked pretty good then, but doesn’t hold up nearly as well twenty three years later. What they do right is so many of the subtle background practical effects through the film. The things that give it the Addams character as much as the family itself. Yes, once again until Act 3 when the final few shots of the climax were painful even then. They even found time to insert the original theme – which is important.

TL;DR

Agree with me or not, The Addams Family is a modern classic. It successfully reinvented and reinvigorated the Addams and provided us several films after. Even though the story was somewhat weak, the characters were amazingly strong. If you want to know me – watch this movie and watch Wednesday.

I do recommend the film aside though as a solid two hours of entertainment that can be shared with the family or enjoyed privately. This one makes me smile.

I must now debate Addams viewing parties…..

Until tomorrow when we review the Addams Family Values.

Seven Devils all around you...

Darke Reviews | Beautiful Creatures (2013) Revisited

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When I first started the reviews I wasn’t as professional and far less verbose with the Beautiful Creatures review coming in at a mere 354 words. My average now is closer to between 700 and 1000 words. Also when I saw this movie the first time, it attracted me enough to its style and world that I broke one of my rules. I read the book. No, thats not quite right, I devoured the books. I ordered the first book when I got home from the film, then in a single night read it. I ordered the remaining three books and read each one in a night. As we begin this review let me preface it with this statement: This book series would have made a fantastic movie!! I loved it. Ok I loved 3 of the 4 but that’s par for the course with trilogies that turn into quadrilogies. This is not a condemnation of the movie, but a mere statement that I am able to – in this case – judge each independently.

So yes, this is another one of the films Hollywood has tried to shuffle out in the young adult genre to find the next Twilight or Hunger Games. It had a rather awesome ad campaign which introduced me to the awesome sound of Florence and the Machine, at least made me aware of them. Seven Devils *shivers*

 

 

Adapted for the screen and directed by relative newcomer to the chair Richard LaGravenese. LaGravenese was no stranger to the writers chair being involved in the screenplay of the acclaimed Fisher King, Horse Whisperer, and Bridges of Madison County. He was even nominated for an Academy award for Fisher King. He understands quite a bit about human nature and the importance of the right dialogue to establish your characters. The importance of chemistry and charisma with the characters is as important. For these reasons, he gets a pass on most, but not all, of the changes from the original source material. Quite a bit of the original material would have been difficult to shoot on the best of days and other elements with the budget they had would have, to put it bluntly, looked as bad as the wolves in the Day After Tomorrow or something just slightly better than what SyFy does. Even the removing and combining of characters is accepted within the narrative considering the roles some of them played.

The source material from Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl is rich and beautiful and southern. Granted I am partial as being a girl from South Carolina for the first part of my life. I love the southern life. I love southern charm. I love (most) of small town southern culture. The majority of this was captured on film, until Act III. The changes here are to put it mildly so bloody annoying in comparison. From a pure film narrative, they work, don’t get me wrong; but from book to screen they fail on every conceivable level.

What makes this movie work though is pure chemistry and charm. There’s a line in the film that fits the nature of the two leads “you can’t help it can you / drooling with charm”. It does. It does so much. Most of this is because of Alden Ehrenreich as Ethan Wate and Alice Englert as Lena Duchannes. Alden sadly, has not done much since, but was in the truly bizarre film Twixt. Englert has had similar lack of career evolution since then. Alone in the film each one is worth watching. Together they have chemistry unlike anything I’ve seen in a young adult film. Twilight, we know is an abomination when it comes to the love story, and the reserved nature of Jennifer Lawrence in Hunger Games makes the chemistry hard at times. Alden nails the southern boy wanting to get out of town, the shock of what he finds out, and the power of true love. Englert, she played the character so well I fell in love with the character as much as Ethan. Her fear, her hesitation, her desperation, her almost goth vibe – nailed. Together though, I rarely see a couple look and feel so natural – no matter the genre.

The supporting cast is nearly as incredible. Jeremy Irons chews scenery as the master he is in the role of Macon Ravenwood. Seriously, if you need to learn the definition of chewing scenery – watch him here, especially with his own southern accent. Viola Davis ( who you can watch chew scenery in How to Get Away with Murder) comes in equally strong as Amma. Two time Oscar winner Emma Thompson as Mrs. Lincoln seems determined to try to show up Irons in the scenery diet. She almost succeeds a few times. Emmy Rossum (Phantom of the Opera, Poseidon) and Thomas Mann (Project X, Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters) are relegated to side kick roles. Aside from sexy vamp, there’s little to say about Rossum here. Mann thankfully has shown up more in other films and is largely forgettable here relegated to Ethans best friend.

Ok, most of the effects are kinda weak. They aren’t the best but they are not the worst either. I have a partial love for the tornadoes seen in one of the trailers.Make up and wardrobe nailed it, until act 3.  There’s some ridiculousness there that gives me a headache just thinking about it.

TL;DR

I love this movie. It is totally unappreciated and deeply underrated. It isn’t a great film, it was not the second coming of YA in film – though I wish it had been. When I was in Ennis last winter it happened to be on TV and me and my coworker who I did not expect to like it both watched. He really likes the film. The two people I saw it with initially, both went in highly dubious and came out enjoying it – probably not as much as I did but still enjoyed it. While this one isnt at Frozen levels of obsession for me, it is still pretty high on my list.

As I said in the first review – see it. Embrace it. Love it. Beautiful Creatures is worth the watch.

You can also read the books – they are worth it too.

 

 

Darke Reviews | Halloween (1978)

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So last night I had to buy the Halloween, no not the Rob Zombie one, the real one. The original one. These reviews are based on films that I own or have access to and I did not have this one. A sin in its own right for those that really enjoy horror. I do have the option through friends to do an old vs. new on this with Halloween vs. Halloween. I just can’t though. Much like how Doug Walker feels about the haunting. I feel about the Halloween series. The original wins. The Rob Zombie version sucks. I will probably reference this as I talk through the review of the original.

While Texas Chainsaw Massacre beats this by 4 years in release date, Halloween is probably the film most singularly responsible for the Teen Slasher style of horror that dominated the late 70’s and almost all of the 80s. This has everything to do with what the film does successfully that so many many others failed to understand (Zombie).

Let us start with discussing the screenplay that was written by Debra Hill and John Carpenter. Hill, who sadly most people aren’t aware of, was a frequent collaborator with Carpenter on much of his early works. She was a writer on this film, The Fog (excellent),  and Halloween 2. She was also a well known and popular female producer in Hollywood until her death in 2005. Carpenter himself, like Wes Craven, is one of the names most associated with Horror films to this day. It is nigh impossible to discuss the great horror films of all time without either of their names coming up.

Carpenter himself, was of course, also the director of the film. The man has an unusually strong grasp of atmosphere, sound, and darkness.  These elements, along with soundtracks usually designed by him, come through in so many of his other films. He was also the director of Dark Star , the indie film by the guys who wrote Alien. This would be his first wide release foray into horror.

I am going to point out something that is often overlooked, the movie has a budget to ratio of 144:1.  The film was made with a budget of $325,000 and made $47,000,000. By the numbers this makes it more successful than Clerks. It is also perfectly in line with the modern era of horror in which budgets are rather small with relatively successful box offices. Sadly, even the modern era still typically have budgets in the millions and only made 3 to 4 times the budget. Paranormal Activity and Blair Witch being key exceptions to those rules.

The story here involves as escaped mental patient returning to his hometown of Haddonfield, Illinois (Hill’s hometown is Haddonfield NJ); a stereotypical, near Rockwellian, midwestern town (it actually reminds me of my hometown a bit). His single minded focus is a young high school girl named Laurie Strode.  The patients doctor, Sam Loomis, rushes to Haddonfield to try to stop the patient from reaching his goal.

It is important to know, and this is what sets the movie apart from later reimagining garbage, is that Michael Myers as a character was never named as such. He simply was The Shape. He was a force of nature. He existed as a physical manifestation of evil. He didn’t need a backstory. He didn’t need a reason to be. He simply was. While later films in this particular arc would add  supernatural elements to his story and expand on it, the success here was none of it was needed. He scared people simply by BEING. This talks to Carpenters understanding of things as a director, the thing you cant see is more scary than the thing you can. What you don’t know scares you. Its why the ending of The Thing is so perfect and so iconic and why this film is the same. You never see The Shape fully until the end. You get glimpses. You get partials. Even the movie posters didn’t show a thing. This is brilliance and a brilliance we’ve lost as a film going society.

(ok technically you can put it together. He was called Michael as a child in the beginning and you are told its the Myers house shortly after during Strode’s introduction)

From an acting standpoint, so much rides on the shoulders of first time film actress, barely 20 at the release of the film, Jamie Lee Curtis. She was cast as much for her skill as her heritage, being the daughter of Pyscho’s famous shower scene victim Janet Leigh. Curtis would later be labeled the Scream Queen with future performances in The Fog, Prom Night, Terror Train, and of course Halloween II. She as much as anyone starts the tradition of the lone virginal female protagonist overcoming the antagonist of the film after going through a crucible of sorts and find their inner strength and power. Their own rage, their own will to survive.

The weight of veteran actor Donald Pleasence as Loomis adds to the emotion. He consistently through the movie is in a near fervored insanity as he futily attempts to warn people of the threat Myers presents.

From another technical standpoint the film uses its music perfectly. If I were to make a list of iconic themes this would be on it. Without the music or with different music it would lose something.

 

TL;DR?

This is a classic. So many slasher films that follow after are but pale imitations of this. It is a must see film for any horror aficionado. I find that it even holds up watching today.

Because of all that was done right in this, all that works, I truly truly hate Rob Zombies version. For everything this does right, his does wrong.

If there is a Halloween film to watch. Watch the one that started it all.

Darke Reviews | Dracula Untold (2014)

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Amongst my nicknames is Vampire Princess. My license plate says VAMPRE, I have well over 100 books involving, about, or otherwise tied to vampires. So to say I am an aficionado of all things vampire is an understatement. I’ve been reading about them since I could read. I have a moral (amoral?) obligation to watch any vampire film that comes to the silver screen. This means I see it all, even Twilight and Vampire Academy. When I saw the trailer for Dracula Untold I had a feeling about this film, but knew I would be seeing it anyway.

First time film director Gary Shore must have impressed Hollywood with the career he made directing commercials before to get this job. He is working with a script by first time writers Burk Sharpless (seriously…that’s his name) and Matt Sazama. The trio of novices have crafted a different origin story for our famous voivode. Dracula actually has more remakes and interpretations than any other character ever and this time, they focus on the conflict between the people of Transylvania and the looming shadow of the Ottoman empire. I realize now as I write this, the overall plot is very similar to 300 with the vampire aspect thrown in. They do some interesting things with the principle characters and the entirety of Act III was rather enjoyable. The dialogue is often corny but the actors do their best to deliver it within the serious tone the movie tries to keep.

From an acting standpoint much rides on Luke Evans as Vlad. I actually like Evans. I’ve seen most of his filmography – Clash of the Titans, Three Musketeers, Immortals, The Raven, No One Lives, Fast & Furious 6, and of course most recently as Bard in the Hobbit films. He is an action star and though his range is fairly limited he does some pretty good things with that range. This time he does carry the film and has to go from loving father and husband, to monster, to protector, to monster again. He wears righteous rage so well in this movie and still shows that he is learning to chew scenery. Co-star Charles “Tywin Lannister” Dance, is a master of it. I couldn’t stop giggling or making Vampire The Masquerade/Game of Thrones comments under my breath watching him. Sarah Gadon as Vlad’s wife Mirena brings a smile to my face in nearly every scene. Just when I think she will fall victim to so many annoying tropes, I remain surprised. Dominic Cooper (Howard Stark in Captain America) must have been cast from his time playing Saddam Hussein in the Devil’s Double.  The casting call must have been “we need a white guy who can pass as middle eastern.” “Hey can we get this guy?”. I am not saying he is a bad actor by and stretch, but there’s some whitewashing going on here in the casting and that I cannot approve of on some moral grounds.

On a technical standpoint. Is the Bat scene from the trailers ridiculous? Oh by all the New Gods and Old and the Lord of Light YES. It doesn’t make it any less cool looking. The transformation to bat and the uncovering of his vampiric powers are well handled and honestly do look really cool.  They are used effectively, practically, and rather coolly through each fight sequence. The camera work is good. The CG is not god awful. The vampiric reaction to silver and sunlight is handled in a way I haven’t seen before and enjoy what I saw. Music by Ramin Djawadi didn’t help with the Game of Thrones links in my brain. The pacing is really well done and there’s little fat on this movie.

TL;DR?

Let me be absolutely clear. This is not a good movie. Historical inaccuracies, geographic inaccuracies, costuming inaccuracies, the premise, and story all  combined present a rather silly reinvention of the Dracula films.

At the same time, it is also absolutely enjoyable. I was laughing. I was engaged. I was entertained. I probably wasn’t supposed to giggle through the first few minutes of the final act, but that doesn’t take away the fact that I was. I was getting more and more angry the longer the film went on during act I and finally realized that I need to stop taking this seriously. I had to stop expecting that there would be *any* similarity to real history beyond Ottomans and Vlad being in it. Once I embraced what the movie was doing I truly began to enjoy it. I like what it adds to the Dracula Mythos and vampires in general.

I even look forward to potential sequels from this. How strange is that?

So should you see it?

Well. If you want a silly fun actiony vampire movie? Yes. This is one of those beer and pretzels movies. It BEGS for it.

If you want a solid Dracula film, like we got with Oldman? Um No. just no. Save your money for halloween candy or something.

Ask Me ANYTHING – Round 1

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I frequently see on many LGBTQ or Trans friendly sites, “Questions not to ask someone who is Trans”. I read over them and sometimes I am scratching my head wondering why. I know that for some people the questions are very personal, very private, and often can be something they are not comfortable being asked or answering – especially publically. I respect those people and their feelings on the matter.

I intend to do just the opposite. I believe if I can answer people’s questions I can end a little ignorance in the world and hopefully make it an easier place for someone like me. someone who doesn’t have the awesome coworkers, employer, and friends that support them. I can maybe make it easier for people to understand why some laws can hurt and some places are dangerous for us. I was asked plenty of questions. Really good ones and I am going to do my best to answer them, but first a disclaimer:

I am not speaking for anyone but me. I am not the voice of the Trans community, I am but a voice in it.

How did you know you were born the wrong gender? When did you know? What were the early signs?

I really didn’t have an epiphany one day and go “Oh shit, I should have had a vagina!”. When I was 8 or 9 I was channel surfing one night and came across a movie where a character was turned from a male to a female through some sort of spell. Something in my brain clicked at that and went “wouldn’t it be nice to be female instead?” It stuck with me. I have always had trouble sleeping at night, I am definitely nocturnal, so as a kid I would write my own dreams in my head until I fell asleep. In most of these dreams I kept taking myself into scenarios where I was either born female or was changed to female. Those scenarios felt more comfortable than the ones where I was what I thought was me.

But I was raised in a rural, small arse town in Maryland. I used to tell people drive north til you see cows and cornfields then turn left. We didn’t have the internet. I was sheltered to a point. I don’t even think I knew what Gay was until my mid to late teens. The mere concept of being able to become female was relegated to fantasy because I never even realized it could be a thing. So I was a boy/male 99% of the time, and only got to explore being a girl in my dreams and imagination. I never talked about it to anyone because it wasn’t a thing that was possible. So why bother? In 10th grade, we learned about viruses in biology class and how they change genes. I spent hours upon hours in the library and at home reading my books on trying to figure out if it was possible to create a virus that would change my gender. In classic Jess fashion I over thought it and realized I’d have trouble beating the white blood cells and how to properly introduce another virus that would stop the modifications of the first one. ….I also was trying to figure out how to add Cat DNA to it. I wanted balance, night vision, and claws. sue me.

When I left Maryland and everything there behind, for better and worse, I was on my own. I still never really thought of it. I had grown up sheltered enough in the right ways that the concepts never occurred to me as possibilities. Then I found online. I found roleplaying. More and more my characters were female. My persona became female online. I talked to people and it became fantasy play. I had friends who helped me learn the right words to use if I was going to be a girl – because I was still an idiot and didn’t quite get it. I had friends who in RL would visit and take me shopping for clothes. I started wearing them under my clothes at work and just enjoyed the sensation and how comfortable they felt.

Eventually my full-time online persona became female. Some people would suspect and try to trap me into revealing I was male. My voice doesn’t modulate well and without a lot of concentration there is no way it passes.

So it was a slow progress from dreams, to roleplay, to fantasies, to the realization it COULD be real. It felt right. It felt to me that this is who I was meant to be. Who I was supposed to be. After some urging from some coworkers to stop half assing it and make a stand for myself. I did.

Ultimately, I think I knew when I was a kid. I just was too dumb, too ignorant, and too isolated to realize it.

If it weren’t for me being as far from my family and the culture as humanly possible and roleplaying games happening at the right time in my life, I may have remained as ignorant. They opened my mind to new possibilities and removed blinders I was raised with. That is not a condemnation on how I was raised. It simply is how I was raised.

What should I, as a parent, look for in my child if they feel they may be transgender but can’t put those feelings into words?

Let me start with: I don’t feel I am remotely qualified to answer this. I can never have children. Ever. (unless I adopt, but it’s not the same as giving birth to me)

That out of the way. Children will surprise you. The world is a much smaller and aware place than it was when I was a child in the 80s. A coworker I respect greatly was talking about how their child was talking about “who we would go to war with next”. When I was that childs age I was thinking of how to stay standing while surfing the middle aisle on my school bus, trying to avoid bullies, playing my Nintendo, and reading but not really grasping Stephen King. The children of today have a better voice than we did. The biggest thing you can do as a parent is listen when they use it. Don’t discount the little things. Let them be who they want to be.

If your child wants Transformers shoes instead of Barbie? Let em.
They want to play with toys that are generally considered masculine rather than feminine? Let em.

If your boy wants to wear a pink tutu or a pretty dress for school picture day because it will make them happy. Take them shopping and get them the dress that makes their eyes light up and hug you so hard it hurts and say “I Love you Mommy” when you do it. If your girl wants to play football or baseball or wear her hair “like the other boys” let them. Fight the system if you have to, but let them. Listen to THEIR pronouns. If you look at the last thing I wrote there “like the other boys”. That means they might be self identifying with boys rather than girls. Vice versa is true. If you’ve got a boy who shows interest in getting a mani pedi? Sweet. They are awesome. I love going to the salon and being pampered.

Just don’t discourage them. Don’t tell them “don’t get too full of yourself” as I was told once when I mentioned to my family “I was told I had a sexy voice”. Don’t buy into societal stereotypes of Pink is for girls. Blue is for boys. Lego’s are for boys, but the Lego’s specially for girls are for girls only. I Could do an entire rant on that alone.

Do not let what society currently says is masculine/feminine define how you raise your child or limit your child. Watch what THEY Show interest in and embrace it with them. That’s the best thing you can do. Your child will tell you what they think they are, just listen/watch them.

You can even ask them if you want. As a parent you have a great opportunity to end the stupidity that is sexism/racism/ism-ism by simply asking them what they think and letting them know they can be whatever they want to be. They have the freedom we may not have had.

Does that help?

PS. I won’t get into anything beyond binary gender here. There’s an entire new realm of gender expression being discussed now that I am not knowledgeable enough to speak on.

What can I, as a friend, do to help make your transition easier?

Watch the pronouns. Those probably hurt me more than anything else. I was at Starr Pass the other night and a waiter kept calling me sir, even after correcting him. One of my coworkers noticed and asked if it really bothered me and really it does. It deflates me. It shuts me down.

It’s widely known I have a self image issue. I am very self deprecating about my looks at work in one of our chat rooms. I have to work very hard to pass as a female, well not as hard now thanks to the surgery, but still very hard. I even got called Sir tonight by the bartender at the movie theatre. He did self correct, but I caught it and it still stung. When I get called: “He”, “Sir”, “Jason”, “Him” it hurts every time and makes me doubt. Doubt all I’ve done so far and still have to do. Makes me doubt if I can really do this, if I can really be me. I eventually muscle through it, but for a bit my ego, which already looks like its gone a few dozen rounds with Tyson AND a stampede of water buffalo, is broken.

The other thing is to help spread the message of understanding. The campaign “It Gets Better” is so true. It does get better once you are in a wider world. So much like I said above in the question about parenting, don’t make it wrong to be a girl if you have a boy. Don’t make it wrong to be a boy if you have a girl. Let me get more into that with the perspective question below. That one is such a loaded question its not even funny.

Also, since I was never raised as a girl. I still make a lot of boy mistakes and don’t have a lot of practice with make up, fashion, even walking right (though I think I am pretty good there now). If you see me do something blatantly boyish…let me know?

I am sure there is more and when I do the video later this week I might include that…or add more in the comments below as I think about it.

 

I think what I’m most curious about is perspective… How did your perspective change as you went through your process? Good and bad.

Ok. Wow, you could not have asked a more loaded question if you tried. If you follow me on FB at all you’ll see me sharing or liking quite a few things about gender equality and sexism. For the better part of 35 years or so I was for all intents and purposes born, raised, and living like a male. I am white. This means I had white male privilege. Which for those not really familiar with the topic gave me the societal power of ignorance and blessing. I didn’t see sexism for what it was in many respects. I wasn’t affected by it. I wasn’t affected by hate crimes. I wasn’t affected by so many things, which left me ignorant to them. Ignorance of this variety is damaging. By giving up the “maleness” I am giving up some of that privilege.

In fact, not only am I giving it up. I am subjecting myself willingly to open hate and ridicule. Not just from men, but there are feminist groups out there who will never consider me a woman. There are people, closed-minded as they may be, that see me not as a person, but as a deviant. So there are some significant changes in perspective. I have to worry about walking alone at night in some places, in ways that I didn’t before. I have a statistically higher probability of being a victim of rape, hate crimes, or assault now. This transition has made me more aware of many problems in society that I could ignore because I wasn’t affected. It’s made me realize how I have been and some really dumb things I’ve done that have furthered or at least by omission of action allowed for continued bad behavior.

The short answer is the good and the bad are the same. I am now affected, so I am no longer ignorant.

I am aware now of some really odd double standards in society, things I hadn’t thought of and when I write them out you will probably realize are stupid:

I legally had my name and gender changed at the end of July. My drivers licence went from M to F. At this point I was subject to all laws as they pertain to women. I had my breast augmentation surgery last week. Now..here’s the stupidity:

From August on, I legally could not have swam at the public pool in my HOA in just my swim trunks. Sure I could have passed for male and I doubt anyone would have noticed, but had someone said something and I was forced to show my ID…I could have been charged with public indecency. Even though I was still relatively flat chested and at the maximum just had enough growth from my hormones that I looked overweight. Consider that…

Now…what if I hadn’t changed my gender with the government and still had this surgery. I’d have some lovely breasts and – to my knowledge – would have no law stopping me from walking around topless.

Additionally from a personal perspective on the concept of perspective. I have to put more work in than say some women do. I have to go out of my way to be just a bit more feminine, to say the right things, look the right way, I have to put additional effort to pass as female – all to be accepted as such in public. Some of my girlfriends can throw on a shirt, shorts, forget brushing their hair and no one will question them. If I don’t work harder to pass, then there are questions and unlike this forum, some of them can get uncomfortable. Some of them can be fearful.

Prior to the name change: Bathrooms terrified me in a public places. after the name change…I know they cannot do anything legally about it. But there’s still risk
Pools however, the ocean? I can’t enjoy due to the hair loss I was suffering before I started the hormone therapy. Yes, I can do stuff about the hair, but that’s more money and things that aren’t covered.

My perspective is continually evolving these days where before I had the luxury of it being stagnant. Ignorance of so much of the world was a part of my life before and now while I may be ignorant of some things, I am not nearly so on so many other topics and this is a very very good thing. It lets me do things like this and try to help other people understand.

I can see now how bad society has gotten. I can see now how good it is getting in many respects. It’s a long road ahead and I am happy to be able to help steer from time to time.

Along those same lines, what has been the most helpful from friends and others for you as you’ve gone through this?

I want to call people out by initials here, I won’t use full names, but I want them to know I am specifically talking about them. I suppose someone could look at my friends list and figure it out and if these individuals want me to omit their initials I will.

SU: Providing me clothes when I first started being Jess at work. Money is daunting and so much of what I am going through isn’t covered by insurance. Aside from the physical, she’s been supportive and someone who while we may not have been friends when I first started this we certainly are now. SU is important to me and her support was one of the first and has always been there.

SH: Being inquisitive and prodding me when all I was doing was being Jason in women’s clothes. You asked. You pushed. You pushed me out of my comfort zone. Between you and SU I don’t think I’d be where I am today if it weren’t for you both specifically.

CJ,E, A: Being some of the oldest, and lets face it only, non work friends in my local life. No judging. Enduring shopping trips. Enduring my freaking out over the fact I cannot find shoes (13EE/13W – we don’t get pretty shoes) or clothes or anything that I am comfortable in. Being there when I have had some truly deep and dark days where I thought being Tucson would be like coming back to a prison and a life I hated. Still not a fan of Tucson, but my life is better for them in it.

All of the people at work, managers, coffee addicts, barista, teammates, former team mates and so many others I really cannot name them all. There’ve been some pronoun and name slips even recently, but people try. People care. Walking in the first day as Jess with an “its a girl balloon” on my desk. Walking back in after the surgery to find an Elsa/Anna Tiara. All the people asking how I am doing. All the people who go “we’re all girls here” when I am standing with them. A certain person (typhoid) ready to beat someone’s ass down at PV when he thought he saw a sideline look and a comment. All of the incredible support and love I feel. The old clothes donations to me, the fact that I am a thought at all.

Being invited to girls night. Hell being invited out at all. All of these things have been helpful.

The way so many people online and in real life just go with it. It isn’t a thing to you , it just is.

I know so many of you call me Brave. I don’t feel it really, but I do feel safe around you and that has a value you can’t touch.

Seems to me the general consensus is “You can ask me anything you want. Just please do it with the same courtesy you’d like in kind with respect to privacy and dignity. I feel I made the right decision for me, but don’t think for one instant that it was an easy one. Be cool, not cruel.” Sound about right?

Pretty much. I have been open to questions since day 1 of the transition when I walked into a training class of returning members of my team. So few were asked and I’ve been surprised. I don’t think its bad, but surprised. It’s why I did something like this. Of course, if someone were cruel to me – my words can eviscerate just as easily.

What can your friends do to continue to support you?

Continue to make me feel safe. Continue to treat me as one of the girls. Continue to have conversations with me as if I was born genetically / physically female. Continue to be awesome.

AND….

Share posts like this and others I do. Share the experience and knowledge when you hear someone make a comment you think if I was in earshot of would hurt me. Do not be silent. Do not be passive. There’s a reason people post about being a LGTBQ Ally. No matter what happens legally or socially – our numbers will always be a minority. Stand up and be counted as a friend and ally when you hear something. Stop the ignorance of others. Just because I didn’t hear it myself doesn’t mean it was right to let it slide.

If you are afraid to do so, I get it I really do get it. But ask yourself why you’d be afraid. Then think of all I, and others like me, go through. It’s probably something like that. Sorry to turn this around on folks, but I don’t know another way to try to help folks understand.

Ultimately as a friend, continue to be one. This journey isn’t over. I am alone in many respects in my life with not much chance of that ever-changing. I do need the friends. I do need the support.

…and let me tell you it is appreciated.

You have made it so far in your journey and I know how brave you have been to get this far. Do you have any fears about continuing? What do you do to combat those fears?

I still don’t consider myself brave. I don’t consider myself strong. I just survive. I endure. I suppose with so many saying I am I might be. I just need to say I don’t see it.

I have fears every day. I wake up afraid of what happens if my wig falls off at work. I wake up and am afraid of what might happen if I take a walk at night as the hormones I am on are quite literally making me physically weaker. I am worried about this new surgery and if something goes wrong having to go through it again to fix it. I am worried when its all said and done it won’t look natural. I am worried that I won’t be able to afford the Genital surgery (when I am ready for it). I am worried of what happens if it goes wrong. I am worried about being a trans woman trying to get a date and being single the rest of my years. I am worried about the polarization of politics and that some numb nuts will pass a law that makes my life even harder.

When I was in Maryland a few months back, my friend told me her church was passing a petition around to stop a law from passing. This law would provide gender equality to Trans individuals and allow us to use the rest room we identify as. She was uncomfortable with it, but had concerns. We had a very long conversation on the topic too. Things are changing for the positive for people like me, but it doesn’t take too much for them to swing the other way if ignorance is allowed to have too much of a voice and people who don’t know better listen. Fear mongering in the media terrifies me because of what it could mean.

what do I do to combat it? Write posts like this. Talk to people. Be open and try to be informative. Otherwise though? The fear is always there. I just have the pleasant blessing of a job that keeps me so busy I don’t have time to worry. So I guess I distract myself from it, but its there. I try to not let it control me. I hold my head high and try to shrug things off when I do hear them. I don’t always succeed as I mentioned before but I will survive.

I endure. I move on to the next day and the one after. I don’t always believe it will get better for me, but I also refuse to be beaten.

….and yes, I listen to Let It Go on repeat on the particularly bad days.

What is the best experience you have had throughout your transition? Wil you share you worst experience?

The first day of work as Jess was one of the best. Seeing the excitement in some peoples eyes when I told them things I was doing as part of it. The smile on my best friends face when I tell her about things I will write in this vein. Waking up with boobs last Wednesday. …ok waking up is a strong word for what I did. The day I went to court and got my gender changed from M to F though? Probably the best. I cried in joy leaving the Social Security administration building.

Worst? Losing a relationship of 15 years. Hands down. No contest. Most painful experience of my life transition or no.

How should I reference pre-transition Jessica? Pronouns, names, etc.

If you’ve known me since I left Maryland? Jess/Jessica/Jessie/Queen Elsa/Vampire Princess/She/Her…etc

Thats been my persona for the better part from 97 on when online. I try to refer to myself the same, “When I was a little girl”..etc.

Do you think it’s been easier to be yourself online?

Yes. Yes. Yes. I was laughing the other day as I realized one of my oldest AIM names could be used at work now since it legally IS my name. There’s no more hiding. I am female. I am Jessica.

Have you been concerned about “coming out” (for want of a better phrase) to those you’ve only known online?

Honestly ? No. Nearly everyone I knew in City of Heroes or before that knew me as Jess or Plas. I was treated as female by so many there is not much of a change. I suppose the biggest concern is surprising people that didn’t know I wasn’t a genetic or cis-gender female. Online communities tend to be more accepting based on how you were than who you are in life…with only a few exceptions. Another concern is people who may not realize that the person they knew as Jason is now Jessica. I ran into that with a few folks I reached out to from Maryland. Since everything online for me has been Jess for years, it was weird and uncomfortable to try to let them know who I was.

Some I tried to reconnect with and no reply. I like to think its because they didn’t know who I was rather than they knew who I was and ignored me anyway.

Has it been more or less difficult with your online friends as opposed to your “real life” friends and family?

As I said before, online is so much easier. RL friends, have all been relatively easy. I’ve had to block a few on Facebook when I see them supporting some of the hate mongering ignorance I’ve talked about. Some say one thing, but believe another. I try to talk to them, but…its difficult. It’s confusing to hear “I accept you and don’t have a problem with you” then see the same person supporting groups and people that would see me in a padded room, jail cell, or otherwise outlawed in some way shape or form. This goes back to what I said earlier about not being silent and standing up.

So many of you do accept me and practice what you preach and that means a lot. I’ve said it  few times already, but I want it to be clear the support is appreciated and taken to my black frozen little heart.

With family? It’s not really that hard. I have never been close to my family. Most of them when I was growing up would only talk to me when they were drunk. Yes I am airing dirty laundry, but I want this to be 100% open and honest. The ones I was worried about telling are having trouble still. They go through the usual stuff “what did we do wrong?” “was it something we did raising you?” “was it your parents divorce?”. The answer here is No. There is nothing my family did raising me that made me THIS way. There’s plenty of other issues from that raising, but those have nothing to do with being trans. I was afraid of their reaction when I told them. I was afraid they wouldn’t talk to me anymore, the ones I talked to anyway. The reality is though, it wouldn’t have changed my life much. Most of them were content to ignore me when I was there, now that I am 2000 miles away I am even more out of mind.

The exceptions, those I care about, it was nice to see they cared. It meant more than I might have lead on when I visited. Plus I got to find out an estranged cousin is totally awesome, not a surprise considering my aunt though.

 

Is there anything you feel you’re “giving up” and will miss as you complete your transition?

Aside from a penis and the ability to walk around topless in my house comfortably? I still don’t have a good answer here. I want to get back to this. I will let you know when I edit it.

 

What is the most exciting thing you feel you’ll gain from it?

I’ve been so long-winded with other answers, so let me try to be short with this one.

Sense of Self. Completeness. Being who I am supposed to be inside and out. They say bring your whole self to work. I am almost there. I am almost the me in my head, my heart, and soul. Yes, the body is just a shell, but its a shell I put value on.

…and in a semi humorous vein – looking fine in a bikini or tank top.

I know you from way back in the day, and many of our exploits come up in conversation with mutual friends from that era. When referring to things that occurred pre transition is it appropriate to refer to you in the masculine sense, as you were in the occasion being discussed, or the feminine sense, add you are now and prefer?

this one is weird. I said for people who know me after Maryland it’s always Jess. For you though, and those from that time in my life when recounting our various and sundry exploits. I think… it’s ok and natural to start with the former name and pronouns. I would ask, and I hope it is not unreasonable to do so, that as conversations happen the name and pronouns transition as much as I have from past to current state. If I am talking to you, or the few others (ok one other right now) that I talk to from then, I will talk about myself in the feminine and would ask that you respond in kind when we talk. I hope that is reasonable?

Every group has a segment that embarrasses them. For whites, its Honey Boo Boo; for blacks its anytime Bill Cosby opens his mouth nowadays. Is there any behavior that makes transgenders shake their heads and say, “ugh, you are embarrassing us”?

RuPaul. RuPaul is not a transgender or transsexual. He uses us as a punchline. We are a joke. When I see “trannys” used as jokes in movies, comedy, or TV its upsetting. It is upsetting when I see people laughing and sharing it. Some do it infrequently (even Colbert does it) and it’s not good. But RuPaul is hands down the worst and most problematic.

I also want to bring up Laverne Cox. Not as an embarrassment, but setting false expectations in the physical department. SHE IS INCREDIBLE. She is a powerful voice and spokesperson for trans-rights and I am glad we have her. I also see a cover of TIME magazine and she is just much photoshopped to modern beauty aesthetics there it makes it more mentally difficult for people like me who don’t pass as well. This is an internal thing vs. external, but I have had this feeling for a while. Again I am glad the trans community has her, maybe I just wish she was more like me?

 

Do you have to be bi or gay to be a transgender?

No! Being Trans in my sense is about physical expression matching mental/spiritual/emotional. Sexual attraction is an entirely different matter.

Also, much like I talked about with binary genders, there’s an entire spectrum of sexuality that I am ill-equipped to discuss tonight.

 

What is someone considered(gay, straight, bi) if they decide to change their gender and now they are the same-sex they are attracted to?

I suppose by the strictest definition, they would be considered homosexual. This one, like I said, is weird as there’s a spectrum we could talk about. Gender expression and sexuality are different animals and can bake the brain without careful explanation.

 

Is there anything about the process you are scared of? (I am not sure how far you are in your process)

I think I covered this above, but I am also scared of the fact I am pretty much on hormones the rest of my life. Self injecting sucks. I’ve been on HRT for over a year now.  I am scared that even after the breasts, the vaginoplasty, and even what hair replacement I get, I still won’t pass as female.

What has been the hardest decision you have had to make?

  • Deciding to continue on this path even though it cost me the fiancée of 15 years.
  • Deciding to actually take the first step and become Jessica at work.
  • Making the decision to never turn back no matter how hard it got or is going to get.
  • Writing posts like this knowing that I am asking it to be shared and how cruel the internet can be to women (not my friends. I mean the trolls that live in the comments of Youtube…they are scary)

If people were to ask me if you are trans, what would be the best way for me to answer them? (Other then nonya)

“Yep, she’s a transwoman. If you want to know more about it, please ask her. She’s very open to questions as long as they come from a place of wanting to learn more.”

….and yes I just wrote that as I do suggested verbiage for work.

What resources are available for people who may want to learn more about the medical aspects of changing their gender?

Let me get back to you on that. I have done so little research it’s not funny. I’ve been flying blind on a rocket cycle with the occasional google search. For the longest time I wasn’t getting results because I searched Transsexual rather than Transgender (or vice versa..). I used a few links from the Southern Arizona LGBTQ community site: Wingspan.org

I Will let you know when I edit this post.

How does a person go about starting the process?

  • I started small. Clothing changes, make up, earrings, nails, hair.
  • Then after some talks with coworkers, I talked to my boss. We talked to HR together.
  • Then I told the others I work with, which surprised the frak out of HR. They weren’t used to someone being so forward about it I guess?
  • I knew from some reading that a Psychologist has to say you are sound of mind, so I Saw one for a single visit and he said “Yep the patient is cognizant and aware and has gender dysphoria…they can start treatment if they want”
  • Saw my primary care physician. ..ok I found a PCP, then saw them. Said this is what I want to do. I need an endocrinologist (I didn’t do research there, I know hormones = endocrine system.)
  • She recommended one, they had a six month waiting list.
  • I called around and found one that saw me in a month.
  • Started HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy) then.
  • During 1 year check up, I asked the Dr. if it would be ok to get the Breast Augmentation. Dr said yeah I don’t see any issue.
  • Called a few Plastic SUrgeons, when I found out insurance doesn’t cover this – WHICH SUCKS – found one on a recommendation from some folks
  • Met him
  • One month later I woke up with boobs.
  • Where I am year from now…no clue…I will look into that bridge when I am ready for it.

Do you have any words of wisdom for others doing the same

I am  no Yoda. I don’t do platitudes, but:

  • You cannot do this alone. Find people who will support you and embrace them. Trust them. Let them know what that trust means.
  • You WILL be afraid, but don’t let your fear stop you.
  • You will be asked questions, you have no obligation to answer any of them.
  • You will be judged by society. If you like the judgement FANTASTIC. If you don’t – it WILL get to you, but muscle through it.
  • Transition is a dream…one that can be a reality. Don’t turn your back on your dreams if you want them.

It does get better. 

 

So this post ended up a lot longer than I thought it was going to. If you read to the end – thank you!. If you have additional questions. ask them in the comments, facebook me,  or shoot me an email to AmusedintheDarke@gmail.com.

 

 

Darke Reviews – Gone Girl (2014)

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As promised I am getting this review done. Sorry it is a few days late, but I had some surgery last week and was pretty much told to not move much for a bit. Do I regret not seeing this the opening weekend? Not really. It looks like plenty of people went and saw it, letting it take the weekend by a hair over the horror movie prequel Annabelle (probably not seeing it).

http://boxofficemojo.com/

Source Box office Mojo

So should you see it now that I have and can talk about it.

The movie is in the based on a book category by writer Gillian Flynn, who also has the sole screenplay credit. I will be honest, I am trying to remember when that’s happened before and the name involved wasnt Stephen King. (Ok I looked it up after writing that sentence, Anne Rice has book/screenplay credit on 1994’s Interview with the Vampire).  It’s rare the author not only options her book, but gets to write the screenplay and no others come in to “touch it up”. That being said this means any and all changes are approved by the author to some extent. As per usual I can’t comment on the book, but the woman next to me said the movie was actually darker than the source material. I find that fascinating, but not entirely surprising. As someone who also writes, if given the option I would make edits to my work after the fact if converting it for the screen. Change the little things, or even big things, I might not have seen in my first thousand passes through the writing process.

On top of the pure writer element to the movie, the director is David Fincher. I suppose this should have told me what I was getting into with the movie when examining his credits before this, at least once he realized what he can do directing. I will try not to hold Alien 3 against him. Fincher is the man responsible for Se7en, Fight Club, The Social Network, and the americanized remake of Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. That last one is the one I want to call attention to. I am writing a review about a murder/dissappearance mystery and cannot give spoilers. You realize how insanely hard that is? Not even a hint? While watching the movie, however, I was reminded of the Niels Arden Oplev (aka original) version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. It took your brain places you don’t normally go and makes you uncomfortable while there. This movie actually can do the same.

From an acting standpoint, ladies and gentlemen, we have witnessed Ben Affleck and his A Game. He is stellar in this movie through all the transitions he must go through, but to be honest I knew he had it in him. He has made some questionable choices in his career putting it mildly, but since his revival with Argo he seems to be on the right track. The person that truly surprised me was Rosamund Pike. When I first saw her in the nail in the coffin of Bond movies Die Another Day I was unimpressed. Then came Doom, my eye brows raised but she was generally bland. I saw the same blandness in Surrogates and Wrath of the Titans. Even in Jack Reacher and The Worlds End I wasn’t seeing much from her. So in the same vein of questionable career choices, while she didn’t burn as spectacularly as Affleck did, she wasn’t really impressing me. I must now issue a formal written apology. The woman can act. I loved her in this. The eyes, the emotion, and the weight she must carry through the flashbacks of her characters life with Affleck. Brilliant.

The supporting cast with such notables as Tyler Perry and the awe- wait for it – some Neil Patrick Harris really were able to bring the rest of the movie together and lift some of the burden from the two mains. Kim Dickens as the Detective and Carrie Coon as Afflecks sister had as much on the table as Affleck and Pike and delivered just as much intelligence and heart as the film needed. It all worked.

As a technical thing, the movie does run nearly three hours and at a certain point it begins to feel it. I am not entirely sure what, if anything, could have been cut but it was worth mentioning.

So I am going to jump to the TL;DR now

Gone Girl is an interesting film. I like where it took my brain. I liked what I saw. I liked what I figured out and what I didn’t. I was disappointed in some things not happening, but I suppose that is what makes the movie so satisfying.

If you need a good film. One that should be Oscar bait, I can really feel comfortable recommending Gone Girl.

 

Darke Reviews | Dracula (1931)

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Going back to the classics is fun. Watching how they were shot, how they were scripted and acted. Dracula is no exception to this. When I was a little girl my elementary school and the public library had books on some of the Universal Monsters. I devoured them with special attention to the Wolfman and Dracula, though unsurprisingly Dracula was the one that truly captured my attention then and forever. I tried to read the book around the same time, but as bright as I am told I was, the wording was too dense for me at the tender age of 7. I have long since fixed that and even managed to get my hands on the tome that is the Annotated version. So being able to review this movie, while not quite the best, it is definitive. All other Dracula and Vampire movies after owe something to this.

While not the first time the name graced the silver screen -I am not including the stage plays – , it was the first authorized time. Ok, there is also a little known Hungarian Film “Dracula’s Death” which has a character who thinks he is Dracula in it.  FW Murnau’s Nosferatu was the first film vampire, though this was unauthorized after a suit from Stokers widow and all copies were ordered destroyed. This can also be considered the first supernatural thriller, I will add the addendum, by American hands. Universal studios hit something special when they did it. Little known fact that a Spanish version of the film was shot simultaneously. Now you might be going “alright cool, they made a version in spain at the same time.” Yet, I return with “No! They filmed on the same set.” The american version shot on the stages during the day and the spanish version at night. The spanish version is sometimes considered technically superior and for the time a bit racier and sexier than its American counterpart.

The movie was directed by Tod Browning officially, though behind the scenes stories and comments made by cast and crew indicate there was either a total lack of direction or that Karl Freund, the cinematographer, stepped in. Browning was a go to director for studios having done dozens of films prior, including the Lon Chaney classic London After Midnight. His expertise was in silent film and outsiders. This explains much of the silence within the film and certain choices that were made. Freund for his part was just as important. Tracking shots , high camera dollies, and even the atmosphere within the movie are largely attributed to him. Horror movies in general owe so much to this, both good and bad.

Edna Mode does not approve.

Edna Mode does not approve.

 

Its hard to talk about a story and the writers since everyone knows it. Of course it is inspired by Bram Stokers novel from 1897. Stoker for his part had heard of the man Dracula and used him as a springboard with next to no research and never having been to Romania himself. This accounts for many of the descriptions of places and things within Transylvania not being remotely like how they’ve been filmed. His novel then was adapted for the stage, officially, by Hamilton Deane and John L. Balderston (Didn’t I mention him recently in the Mummy). Garret Fort has credit for a version of the play script. When it comes to the movie however, this one falls under the movie writer curse: 5 total writers, including the director. There are significant changes from the source material to this of course, no real change there from Hollywood, but the biggest and probably most impactful is the Lugosi look. Dracula was always described as off putting, yet here we have something and someone foreign and handsome.

 

 

Real vs Movie Borgo Pass

The Borgo Pass: Erosion the true terror of Dracula

Lugosi was not the first pick. He wasn’t even the second or third. The original choice was Lon Chaney who died, before production began, due to cancer. Called the Man of A Thousand Faces, his roles in Phantom of the Opera and the Hunchback of Notre Dame made him one an easy pick. I don’t know what he would have looked like in the make up, he was one of the rare actors who truly enjoyed the chair and the prosthetics. Lugosi however with his look, powerful and hypnotic eyes, and trade mark accent ended up with the role and the world has never been the same. Sadly the studio did not offer him a contract after the success of Dracula, as they did with Karloff on Frankenstein and he had trouble being seen outside of a certain genre after. Perhaps one of his greatest single work after shows the mans true talent for acting, The Black Cat, in which he starred  against Karloff himself.

The rest of the cast has Helen Chandler as the ever staring Mina, who was fantastic on stage but did not make much of an impact in movies. David Manners, who also appeared in the Mummy and Frankenstein as John Harker here. Edward Van Sloan as Dr. Van Helsing. Seriously all this man plays is the Doctor who knows it all!  Dwight Frye though is the standout. His Renfield defined the role for almost a century to come. It was as problematic for him as it was for Lugosi in the work field after. He shows the widest range of acting in the film with his eyes, vocal pitch, laugh, and mannerisms are truly iconic.

Even the movie magic of the day was amazing. While obviously not a lot of it holds up today, some tricks like Dracula walking through a spider web really do. Today someone would use some half baked CG work and give us something laughable, this wasn’t. This was alien and new and creepy.

TL;DR?

I highly recommend any cinephiles to see this at least once in their life, if they have not already. If you are a fan of all things vampire like I am this is a must have in your collection.

If you want to see where it all began, absolutely watch this.

Modern movie goers will eye roll at the acting and some interesting flubs in the film, but it is a classic and worth watching – at least once

 

 

 

 

 

Darke Reviews | The Mummy (1999)

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When doing reviews of certain movies that are remakes, I like to do Old vs. New. A true compare and contrast with points for each as to why one is better than the other. I blame Nostalgia Critic for setting me on that kind of track and he should relish the blame. This time, however, I felt that I should do each review separately so I could give proper credit and praise to the founding material which is over 80 years old and be able to highlight all the nods, homages, and little tells I noticed in the remake that show a certain respect or love for the original. In this case The Mummy, that was released in 1999, really feels like a spiritual successor to the original with quite a few callbacks to the source. I praised the original yesterday and in it’s own context and against films of its time it is a fantastic film. The media and medium has evolved over the years that we feel that we need more to our films, better and worse, and that brings us to this remake of The Mummy.

Director Stephen Sommers has an interesting track record when it comes to his films. If I tell you he did the live action Jungle Book with Jason Scott Lee, you might barely remember that. If I tell you he directed and wrote Catch Me If You Can, you will probably think of the Leonardo DiCaprio movie – and sadly be wrong. If I mention Deep Rising (a review coming later this month) you start to get an idea. If I say Van Helsing, your eyes might start rolling. If I say GI Joe: Rise of Cobra – you will start screaming something about the physics of ice in water. The man has a very specific tongue in cheek style when it comes to his films. He doesn’t seem to take anything too seriously, which can be to his detriment, but also seems to have a very specific love for the films he makes even if it appears careless. He is driven by the imagination of a fourteen year old boy and has budgets in the tens of millions of dollars to play with it. Where Zack Snyder has similar issues in addition to a healthy dose of misogyny, Sommers steers clear of it and just keeps the movies fun and the women in them strong and true to their nature. I can tell that Sommers not just liked, but loved the Universal Monsters as a kid. I really imagine him as the leader of the Monster Squad in his neighborhood.

This love probably explains his writing credit as both Screen Story & Screenplay. The other two writing credits, not including the original 1932 credits that are referenced, go to Lloyd Fonvielle ( Cherry 2000) and Kevin Jarre (Tombstone, Glory, Rambo: First Blood Part II). When you look at the film it’s hard to tell where the person who gave us Tombstone (the Kurt Russell version) had a hand in it much less Fonvielle with his limited work. Their powers combined, however, not only captured the essence of the original; but added a world level threat to the epic feel of the movie. Also where the 1932 film focused on the Imhotep/Anck Su Namun (different spelling this time) love story, this one also brings back the sense of adventure that captured the world in the modern age of exploration.  ADVENTURE really should be capitalized as that is the spirit of the film as much as anything else. Your child brain imagines going on these expeditions, discovering lost tombs, buried treasures, and uncovering mysteries of the past in a true swashbuckling manner.

The movie significantly expands the cast of characters as its net of horror and story grew wider as well. We have Brendan Fraser as our Adventurer and treasure seeker Rick O’Connell. Rachel Weisz is our heroine but far from a damsel in distress, as Evie Carnahan. John Hannah (Spartacus) is our Shaggy and Scooby Doo in this mystery as Evie’s brother Jonathan. I’d be willing to bet their last name is a play on Lord Carnarvon, the man who backed Howard Carters expedition in 1922. This time the creature, still named Imhotep, is played by Arnold Vosloo – with only a bit more historical accuracy as to whom Imhotep was. Rather than cast Anck Su Namun as the same actress for both the past life and current, the role went to the Venezuelan beauty Patricia Velasquez. A new character is introduced to the story and an old name changed dramatically in Oded Fehrs Ardeth Bay, who played a guardian of the tomb.  The villains lackey, Beni, was played by frequent Summers character actor Kevin J. O’Connor.

From a technical standpoint the movie is very much a product of its times. The CG isn’t all that hot, but they do some creative things we had not seen before with it. Sadly we’ve seen it too much since then. The film also wisely used a lot of practical effects to help the story along. When it went practical the notes were hit near perfectly for whatever tone they wanted and the effects looked good. The CG for quite a few effects mostly came off comical, and while I hope that was the intent if it wasn’t there’s a huge disconnect. Sadly this level of computer work seems to not evolve through any of Summers later works; which becomes especially problematic when you look at GI Joe ten years after this one.

TL;DR

This movie is not scary. It is fun. It is just plain, ol fashioned, adventuring fun. It has problems true, but also has a lot of heart and humor to it along with some honest tension and a reasonably well crafted story. Brendan Fraser’s natural charisma is probably the biggest key to this, but everyone does their part.

I really do recommend this one if you need a beer and pretzels night with a bunch of friends.

If you really want to treat yourself though? Watch the original and then this one and look for how many lines of dialogue, set pieces, character names, and story elements are kept from one to another. It’s more than you’d guess.

 

Darke Reviews | The Mummy (1932)

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I promised I would spend time this year talking about the Universal Monsters. These are the originals. These are what all else since has been based on, inspired by, or outright copied from. Sure there were a handful of adaptations of some of these works before hand, but these were the ones that caught the public eye and the imagination of an generations. There have been a few false starts and failed reboots in the past twenty years or so of some of these original creature features and rumor has it that Universal is going to try again with these films. The recent remakes have had mixed success with fans, critics, and the box office. So for todays film, lets discuss archaeology a bit, shall we?

Some spoilers below.

Egypt had been awash in mystery and mysticism to the western world for decades when this film came out.  The celebrity status of the ancient culture had gone, well quite frankly, viral ten years prior when Howard Carter had discovered the intact Tomb of Tutankhamun (King Tut). This launched (or relaunched I suppose) the modern era of Egyptology. It really comes as no surprise that after the success of Dracula and Frankenstein in 1931 that Universal would be seeking out another monster to fill their slate. They had to look no further than sensationalist newspapers tales of the Curse of the Pharaohs. I suppose the media blowing things out of proportion isn’t as new as we thought neh? With the ideas of curses on mummies and their tombs and an audience hungry for something to scare them magic was bound to happen.

The story was originally written, though uncredited, by Richard Schayer and Nina Wilcox Putnam. It was adapted to the screenplay by John Balderston, who also wrote the screenplay for Dracula and Frankenstein. Balderston, fascinatingly, was a foreign correspondent who covered Carters opening of the Tomb in 1922.  He also prior to this had written stageplays for both Dracula and Frankenstein. He also adapted the first version of the film Last of the Mohicans. If we thought Hollywood was a factory now, churning out writers and spitting them out, it looks to have been worse in the early days with people going uncredited, underpaid, and in some cases having no rights to their work and being forced to sue.

The film focuses on the recent discovery of an intact mummy, by the name of Imhotep,  found in unusual circumstances. The movie wastes no time before the title character resurrects himself through the greed of a young explorer. Imhotep plans his not so nefarious plot to resurrect his equally dead and mummified love Ankh-es-en-amon. Yes, that is right – this is a love story with the focus on a monster. He isn’t the rotting corpse image we often imagine, but rather a dry and only slightly emaciated individual who actually spends time amongst people and takes on the name Ardeth Bay, in his search for the reincarnation of his lost love. He finds her in a young british socialite named Helen Grosvenor and begins to use his powers to remove those who would stand in the way of his love; while our “heroes” try to save the young woman’s life. It’s fascinating to me how much I find myself siding with the so called monster as I watch this and want him to succeed. What is equally fascinating is that, for its time, it is no act of our protagonists but rather the female center of the film that wins the day.

I think part of the success of the film resides in the reserved yet deeply emotional performance of Boris Karloff. Karloff, a man so awesome all they used was his last name on the poster, was already forty-five when he took this role and had a huge career behind him. He had recently been thrust into the limelight as Frankenstein. The films made the man seem a towering giant against his cast mates, yet he was only 5’11. He had decades of acting experience before him in both stage and silent pictures before. It’s worth mentioning amidst this praise that the rest of the cast does well. The style of film at the time had movies shot as if they were stage plays rather than motion pictures. Blocking, dialogue, even a bit of hollow over acting come from that particular style. Along with Karloff, Edward Van Sloan was a regular in these original films, always playing the same character by type if not by name. In the Mummy he is the wizened Doctor Muller, who understands the powers of The Mummy, his goals, and the fact that “the old gods of egypt still have power here…”

Another special mention goes to director and cinematographer Karl Freund. Sadly uncredited in Dracula for his work, he was given the appropriate credit in the Mummy. His knowledge of the camera was probably some of the best in the world at the time having worked in film since 1914. He was also the cinematographer on the German classic Metropolis. His eye for the technology, light, and even color (its important in black and white…) gave the Mummy its much needed atmosphere.

TL;DR

The Mummy is a classic and if you truly appreciate old Hollywood needs to be part of your collection or at least watched. It will not satisfy modern movie goers a single iota, but if you want to see where we came from. If you want to see what inspired so much in the years to come. Take 73 minutes of your life and give it a watch.

The next review will cover it’s most modern remake and I will touch on all the things they took from this film.

 

If you do want a copy of this I would have to recommend getting it and all of its ilk here Universal Classic Monsters: The Essential Collection [Blu-ray]

 

 

Darke Reviews | Jeepers Creepers (2001)

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When I first started writing reviews it was for a dear friend, and respected reviewer Grim D. Reaper over at MovieCrypt. It feels like so much longer ago than thirteen years, but this movie was one of the very first I reviewed. I have a bit of nostalgia for this and *almost* waited to put this on a classics day this month, but I do not think it is quite there yet. I do fondly remember watching this in a theatre alone shortly after my move to Arizona and how I felt coming out of it, which makes this one special to me.

Still riding the early wave of low budget horror that has long since crested and feels more like a tsunami that won’t go away these days, Jeepers Creepers made its debut in one of the worst time slots for any movie, Labor Day weekend. This film closed out the summer and was the start of the September drudge that hits us most every year.  The trailer did it’s job on this one though, giving us a pair of teens who saw something odd and did the stupid thing and looked into it. They hinted at a creature and wisely never quite showed it.

The movie was written and directed by Victor Salva. Prior to this he only had Powder to his credit and after Jeepers Creepers 2 is the only worth noting. I consider this a shame as not only did he manage to create an interesting horror universe we had never previously explored, he also was able to obtain wonderful performances from his actors, have beautiful set design, creature design, and camera work. This is no small thing, there are few writer/director combinations that can do everything so successfully. You usually end up with ego (The Nolan Effect) or brilliance. This one, to me, is brilliant.

The stage is set with two college age siblings returning home, even with the laundry, during a school break. One some road in the middle of rural farm country, that could be anywhere in 60% of the US, they think they see a man drop a body into a well. For reasons only twenty somethings and younger might understand they look into it, only to find not one body but several at the bottom of the shaft. They try to leave before the killer returns only to find out it may be too late for them. The rest of the film is a well paced, tension piece building to the climax – which…well see for yourself.

Our siblings are played by Gina Philips, who really has not escaped the horror genre since, and Justin Long in his first starring role. Long had only previously been seen as Brandon in Galaxy Quest and gone on to pretty much hit every genre known to man in the years since of his career; most recently starring in Kevin Smith’s Tusk. With all due respect to Philips, who played the strong horror female beginning to end in this movie, Long is the emotional heart and soul of the movie. You can see the fact that this boy knows how to properly act in this work as he switches from comical doofy brother to so terrified he cannot even speak. I’ve often said comedic actors make some of the best dramatic actors and Long proves the point when given the right material and in Jeepers Creepers he was. You can see it in his eyes through the performance what he is going through.

The technical side of thing, I have no choice but to focus on the Creeper. Brian Penikas was the creature & make up effects supervisor on this project.  He had been professionally working in the industry for sixteen years prior and this appears to be his first Supervisory role. I have never quite seen something like the Creeper, from mythos – to abilities – to design, end to end it is an original thing.  The production design of Steven Legler, who has equally few credits, works perfectly in conjunction with Penikas.

The biggest problem of the film from any perspective is when the perspective shifts. 95% of the movie we are with our brother and sister. They are the focus and we are with them. Then in Act III there’s a switch and for a few minutes we are taken away from them to focus on the creature. While they don’t shine a spotlight on the creature, keeping most of its mystique, the sudden shift of the film is jarring. I appreciated it as it lended explanation to something I would have wondered about, and Grim was disappointed in it. Years later, I see his point, but stand by mine. It doesn’t bother me all that much and doesn’t take away from the movie for me.

TL;DR

If you need a modern(ish) creature feature – Jeepers Creepers is your film. The effects actually hold up. The story holds. The acting holds. This is surprisingly rare in the horror genre and worth embracing.

I consider Jeepers Creepers a modern cult classic in Horror, that hopefully people come to appreciate in time for all that it does right.