Wrestling #1: A change in the US scene

Talk about a huge announcement that came out of thin air!

Last week Ring of Honor Wrestling (rohwrestling.com) told the world they have come to an agreement with EchoStar, InDemand, and TVN to air six PPV's throughout 2007-08 (1 every 60 days). This statement prompted a domino effect on the US independent wrestling scene. Mainly due to decision made with in TNA.

The report prompted to immediately pull all TNA talent from RoH, which was down to only Austin Aries and Homicide. Unlike the previous situation when TNA did this (see Samoa Joe, Christopher Daniels, etc), this time I can completely understand. They want to protect their investment and their company. Having TNA wrestlers on another company's product that will be available national would be a bad idea. RoH has seen this coming and slowly started phasing the TNA workers out of main angles over the past few months.

What I don't get is the TNA verdict to pull talent from PWG (http://www.prowrestlingguerrilla.com/) because they make their DVD's available through High Spots (http://www.highspots.com/), a website that also distributes TNA merchandise. Unlike RoH, PWG uses a lot of TNA midcard talent in major storylines. Only time will tell, but it appears that if a promotion sells DVD's on a outside distributors website like High Spots or Smart Mark Video (http://www.smartmarkvideo.com/), then the TNA will be pulled. For the record, Smart Mark tapes and sells DVD & tapes for various promotions including IWA-MS, IWA-DS, CZW, Chikara, and several others.

Who gets hurt most by this...well the answer right now is both fans and wrestlers. TNA westlers will suffer because they wont be able take other booking to subsides their incomes. With TNA only doing one PPV and two TV tapings a month, that's not a lot money for some of the workers, especially low card workers. The fans may get resentful because they cant see these workers anywhere but TNA. Unless TNA plans to start running house shows on a weekly basis, which I cant see them doing, the potential backfire could be immense.

Back to the Ring of Honor. The huge difference with RoH's deal is these are NOT LIVE events. These will be taped shows, edited down (though no editing will occur in a match itself, just the entire card) to meet the two hour time slot. This gives the company the chance to create this event for DVD release, then make the necessary changes for the PPV. Not much extra work will go into the process.

This can only be a good thing for the company. If the deal fails, they can always go back to the original business model and try again later. But if the deal succeeds. We could have another national alternative in US wrestling...which is a great situation to have if you're a fan.

RoH has said they have no interest in taking on the WWE. They cant. They don't have the financial backing. They just want to carve out a piece for themselves. The promotion is different in how it presents itself than both the WWE and TNA (which are very similar in styles). As a fan of wrestling and of Ring of Honor, I hope the promotion gains new fans and makes more money thus making all wrestling fans the winners.

Horror on the Tube

If you're a fan horror, you will notice a decent amount of TV shows which contains the elements of horror in them on a regular basis. I'm only making note of this because the number seems to be higher than usual...and for the most part, these are great programs. Let's take a look.


Masters of Horror - Horror fans can be a very finicky bunch of people to please. Rarely do they get blown away by a movie or program. The critics for MoH are no exception. Most episodes are either loved or loathed. I seem to be in the minority because I've enjoyed every episode, some much more than others but all are watchable (though I believe Season 2 had a slight drop off). You get combine some of the best horror directors and writers together with a minimum budget a enjoyable stories should unfold. Hopefully the series keeps going for a few more years, which a variety of directors and writers so it doesn't get repetitive.

Favorites from Season 1: Jenifer, Cigarette Burns
Favorites from Season 2: Sounds Like


Supernatural - I compare this show to the X-Files in the fact there are two types of episodes. The ones which deal with monsters, urban legends, and things that go bump in the night; and ones which advance the main storyline of a powerful demon's plans to end mankind. At the heart of the program is the relationship between the Winchester brothers and how they deal with this responsibility. This is simply fun television, with some decent scares thrown in the mix.


Lost - This show helped to change television. After the explosive pilot, every week felt like a must see movie premiere. Characters are the soul of the program, but almost every episode features elements of horror - ghosts, mysterious creatures, strange noises, premonitions, on the list goes on and on. The shows gives very human characters with strengths and flaws, but makes the viewer care about each one. So many questions have opened up on the series, and for every one answered it seems a new questions open. Now the writers have an end point, I can see everything coming together to hopefully satisfy our curiosity.


Heroes - Taking a spin from Lost, the program puts an array of characters together with super powers and manages to humanize them all, regardless of intentions. It asks a lot of questions and sets up many scenarios, but it also gives the viewers answers. The very nature is more of a fantasy, but hey fantasy is horror's first cousin (along with science fiction). A rewarding show, which had me hooked after the first episode.


Nip/Tuck - I love this show, but I debated on adding it to the list. Then thought why the hell not. The horror that lies with in this program is the horror of human nature and what people are capable of doing to each other. And on this show, that is a lot. Last season was a small dip from the previous ones, which included Dr. Troy and Dr. McNamara dealing murder, feeding bodies to alligators, transsexuals, drug smugglers, white supremacists, porn, and so much other strangeness; but Season 4 still had organ smuggling.


Dexter - The concept alone had me from the first episode. A forensic detective who also a serial killer, but he only murders the extremely bad people. I caught the first few episodes when I had free Showtime for a week, no I cant wait for it to come out on DVD.


The Dead Zone, Ghost Whisperer, Medium - Honestly, I've never seen theses show. But it's are still on after their first season...may be I should check them out.

Check these past favorites (alright I didn't watch all of them on a regular basis) out on DVD: X-Files, Twin Peaks, Tales from the Crypt, Dead Like Me, The Twilight Zone, and even Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Charmed.

I'm certain there are more out there, just cant think of any at the moment. Let me know if I've missed any.

Welcome to my Grindhouse

Being a huge Quentin Tarantino fan and always entertained by Robert Rodriguez movies, I'm surprised it took me a couple of weeks to make it out and watch Grindhouse. Hey I've been busy, but with poor box office results I figured that it'd be pulled from the theaters in the next couple of weeks. So say goodbye to gorgeous spring weather made for yard work and say hello to the Sunday matinee!

I grew up in Northeast Indiana, which was fairly rural back in the day (now it's more saturated with suburban sprawl then ever, but still fairly rural). The closest thing to the "grindhouse" experience I ever came was the drive-in theater showing triple bills, with at least one of the flicks being low budget horror, kung fu, or sexplotation flick. The funny part is my mother would usually sit in the back seat, with me and my step-father in the front, so she could cover my eyes during if too much gore or nudity happened. Hey I was a pre-teen kid. With the Video Age rapidly growing in the late 80's, many of these cult and underground movies I would watch in my teenage years and beyond. Even today I am still discovering gems from the era...and many bad ones too.

Anyway, here is my take on Grindhouse. A few basic plot ideas are exposed, but nothing major or that causal readers probably don't already know. With that stated, you are warned.


Planet Terror - This is not Rodriguez's first foray into the horror genre. That would be The Faculty, which is essentially a different slant on Invasion of the Body Snatchers only with teenagers as the focal point (and yes, I liked the movie). Not surprisingly, Rodriguez says the idea for Planet came during the filming of that movie and years a head of the zombie explosion in horror.

The movie is rehashes some familiar ideas from Return of the Living Dead and 28 Days Later, with bio terrorists unleashing chemicals that infect the normal population turning them into zombies. Though here is that the infected aren't really zombies, they're just sick due to the chemicals. In typical Rodriguez fashion, the movie opens up with action and is action packed until the end. Even the over the top sequence with Cherry's machine gun leg is acceptable in the world of survival. And if you want gore, this one is full of blister popping and bloody explosions full of goodness.
Every time I watch a Robert Rodriguez film, I know that I can walk away satisfied. If for no other reason, he makes watching movies fun again. You don't have to think very much, just sit back and enjoy. And I respect the man even more because he does it outside the constraints of the Hollywood machine, proving to film makers all over the globe that you can be successful with out a major studio.


Death Proof - One thing you get with Tarantino is talking. Lots of talking. Usual about stuff normal people talk about...with heavy references of pop culture from the 70's into today mixed in. This flick is no exception.

The first part was all talk. Introducing a group of female characters and getting to know the villain and his weapon, Kurt Russel in a fabulous role. Then just when you think nothing else is going to happened. BAM! The the big whammy hits and hell breaks loose. An amazing sequence of the killer and his tool doing damage.

Then more talk begins. Introducing new female characters, establishing a new group of pals. You are left waiting. You are wanting anything to happen. You are begging for anything except more talking. As the story builds up, all the talking and waiting is forgiven with one of the best chase scenes ever filmed. It ranks right up there with The French Connection, Two Lane Blacktop, Bullitt, Vanishing Point, and Beverly Hills Cop. Alright, the last one I lied about since nothing else popped into my skull but you get my drift.

But it's not over yet. With a sweet twist of irony, another chase begins and the climax happens. Abruptly the credits role. While at first this abruptness seemed a bit strange, upon reflection it worked for me. Tarantino managed to again entertain me in a way no other director can.


The wrap - While I enjoyed the movie as a whole, and the fake trailers were awesome if you got the references, I found myself wondering. Would all the praise for the film still be occurring if it was directed by a random, unknown director or would it have been released directly to DVD? Guess we'll never know.

Movie Remake Mania

Let me be about the millionth person to utter the following statement: Hollywood, please cease with the horror movie remakes. Since we all know it’s never going to happen, can we at least a reduction in the amount being green lighted or fraction of common sense to the process. I can understand Hollywood wanting to make US versions of foreign movies. Many Americans refuse to watch movies from other countries because they “don’t want to read the screen” or “cant handle the bad dubbing” – the latter of which isn’t much of an issue anymore. It is a shame however. Over the last few years, other countries have made more original and better horror movies than here in America. But to remake all of these US movies from the 70’s and 80’s is silly. No one will ever convince me there is a shortage of good and original scripts collecting dust on a shelf that couldn’t be made instead.


Let’s face the truth. The track record of remakes, or my favorite movie term “re-imaging”, and pointless sequels isn’t very good. Once in a while you get one better than the original. The Hills Have Eyes is an example, or least from what I can remember about the Wes Craven version. But most of the time, the results are far worse. Take a number of examples over the last few years The Fog, Pulse, The Hitcher, The Grudge, Black Christmas, Dark Water, The Wicker Man, and the hits keep rolling on.


The problem is these bad movies are actually making the studios money. Most of the time they are fairly inexpensive to make (unless a big named actor is involved – another increasing trend) and requires little in box office revenue and DVD sales to make money. The studios make sure the movie is released as PG-13 (like just about every thing else released anymore) so a wider audience will have a chance to spend money. Then the movie gets released on DVD as unrated with scenes not seen in theaters. What a f***ing joke! And with Premonition, Motel Hell, The Eye, Funny Games, One Missed Call, The Invasion, Prom Night, I Am Legend, Sisters, and Friday the 13th (a "re-exploration", which is another great term) all slated in the to be released in the next year, there is no end in site.


The US is in a horror rebound! The genre is back and it’s cool as ever. And maybe that’s the problem. The subject matter that was once taboo and not made for teenagers are now being remade for that same audience, only in a lighter themed version which requires little thought. It boggles my mind how a script, worse than the original movie, get produced. And it pains me to see certain CLASSIC movies get remade.
Texas Chainsaw Massacre, though all right thanks to R. Lee Ermey and the white painted-on tank top of Jessica Beil, was not needed. Gus Van Zant remade back in 1998 almost entire shot for shot, which the exception of a masturbation scene. That movie was a complete waste of money and not needed. Now Rob Zombie is remaking Halloween. While I am a fan of his previous efforts and was kind of excited until I found out the movie wasn’t a sequel. Instead it will be a “retelling” (another one of my favorite movie terms), but the original is perfect. There is no need to remake it. Hell I’m sure some egghead has the bright idea to retell Citizen Kane too.


If Hollywood really wants to remake some horror movies, then dig a little bit. Pick some obscure flicks, one that could use another go around. Make sure the screenplay works before going on to production. And leave the great ones alone. Maybe try and update some movies from 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s. Now I’m a big fan of the Jacques Tourneur movies I Walked with a Zombie and Night of the Demon, why not give these the ole remake try. On second thought, CGI monsters or a serial killer would just replace the moodiness of those films. Just forget the whole damn idea.