Fire_in_the_Sky_6_25_12

5 Great Alien Invasion Movies!!!

Avatar of EvanDickson
Movies
Posted by EvanDickson on February 24, 2013 @ 11:15am
Category: Movies / Editorials

With Dark Skies in theaters this weekend, I figured I’d take a look at some of its precursors in the fundamentally popular “Aliens F*cking With Us” genre. Once I started digging I found so many great examples that it was hard to whittle them all down. Since Dark Skies looks like a more intimate film that focusses on character impact rather than spectacle (not having seen it, I could be wrong) I decided to shift my focus away from large scale stuff like War Of The Worlds and Transformers (hey, the Decepticons and Autobots are technically aliens) and take a look at films that focus on the more personally horrifying aspects of being f*cked with by aliens.

I also wanted to focus on menace. For instance, I truly love Close Encounters Of The Third Kind but something like that doesn’t really invite comparison to Dark Skies nor is it “horror enough” for our purposes here today (though I highly recommend it on the off chance you haven’t seen it).

If they’re not invading our planet, they’re invading our bodies and minds. Head inside for 5 Great Alien Invasion Movies!!! READ MORE

johnwilliamsbanner

Happy 81st Birthday To Composer John Williams

Avatar of JonathanBarkan
Music
Posted by JonathanBarkan on February 08, 2013 @ 6:00pm
Category: Music / News

Today marks the 81st birthday of composer John Williams. This is the man who brought us one of the most infamous horror scores when he composed Jaws in 1975. Since that day, people are still afraid to get in the water (myself included). He also composed the 1979 Dracula, which starred Frank Langella as Dracula, Laurence Olivier as Van Helsing and Halloween‘s Donald Pleasence as Dr. Jack Seward. There was also his work on Brian De Palma’s The Fury (1978), which featured Kirk Douglas and John Cassavetes (Rosemary’s Baby).

But it’s not only for these films that Williams is so well known and accomplished. He is also responsible for fantastic scores to such films as the Indiana Jones series, Jurassic Park, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Schindler’s List, Star Wars, and more.

And so with fond memories for the music of each of these films, I wish John Williams a very happy birthday and thank him for all he has brought us! READ MORE

Carlo_Rambaldi_8_10_12

R.I.P. Special Effects Artist Carlo Rambaldi (1925-2012)

Avatar of EvanDickson
Movies
Posted by EvanDickson on August 10, 2012 @ 3:42pm
Category: Movies / News

Italian special effects artist Carlo Rambaldi has passed away at the age of 86. He leaves behind an impressive legacy of films, many of which you have no doubt seen. Silver Bullet, King Kong (1976), Deep Red, The Hand, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, A Lizard In A Woman’s Skin, King Kong Lives, E.T. and more. He won Academy Awards for both Alien and E.T..

Anyone working in Hollywood can tell you just how difficult it is to come across an FX craftsman who is truly a master of their trade. Too often they look for easy ways out, hijack a film’s budget or just plain can’t deliver what on they promise. Judging by his work, Rambaldi was most certainly not that kind of guy. He made some of the most imaginative and realistic practical effects ever committed to film at a fraction of the cost someone with half the talent might charge today.

Head inside for a video featuring some of his career highlights (via Badass Digest). READ MORE