Comics Review: "NIGHT OF THE GHOUL #5" Makes Underground Sounds

NIGHT OF THE GHOUL #5 (OF 6)
comiXology/Best Jacket Press

STORY: Scott Snyder
ART: Francesco Francavilla
COLORS: Francesco Francavilla
LETTERS: Andworld Design
EDITOR: Will Dennis
COVER: Francesco Francavilla
24pp, Colors, 3.99 U.S. (March 2022)

Age Rating: 15+

Night of the Ghoul co-created by Scott Snyder and Francesco Francavilla

Episode 05

Night of the Ghoul is a digital comic book miniseries created by writer Scott Snyder and artist Francesco Francavilla.  It is published by comiXology as part of its “comiXology Originals” line of digital comics.  This six-issue series will later be collected in trade paperback form by Dark Horse Comics.  Night of the Ghoul focuses on the dark conspiracy behind a lost horror film from 1936.

Night of the Ghoul finds film fanatic, Forest Innman, and his son, Orson, at an old folks home deep in the desert.  There, Forest meets one of the home's residents, Charles Patrick, who is really T.F. Merritt, a screenwriter and film director from the Golden Age of Hollywood.  In 1936, Merritt shot a a cursed horror film, “Night of the Ghoul,” that never made it to the silver screen.  A mysterious studio fire destroyed the footage and killed the cast and crew at the wrap-party.  The film became a legend, but no footage was ever recovered … until Forest finds some footage.  And the trouble begins.

Night of the Ghoul #5 opens with the Ghoul's acolytes, the Order of the Fly, in full attack mode.  Forest and Merritt have their backs against the wall, but Forest doesn't really have time to worry about himself.  He can hear the voice of his son calling to him, and Forest is shocked to discover that his son is trapped … underground.

Now, with Cora the nurse as their only allies, Forest and Merritt make a run for it.  Can Forest save Orson?  Can they escape Dr. Skeen and the thing inside him?

Meanwhile, in the past, Alex Powell and his allies try to save his father, Sgt. Kurt Powell of Eagle Company, from the thing inside him.  But here comes the Order of the Fly...

THE LOWDOWN:  In Night of the Ghoul, Francavilla and Snyder have created a masterpiece of atmospheric horror.  Every chapter, but this fifth chapter feels like writer Scott Snyder is padding the series so that it reaches six chapter/issues.

Luckily, every chapter of Night of the Ghoul is a chance to see the beautiful art of Francesco Francavilla and to read his powerful graphical storytelling.  For Episode 5, Francavilla creates a pace that carries the reader rapidly through this chapter.  Every page begins on the razor's wire and ends in a cliffhanger – at least it seems that way.  The underground sequence bleeds creepiness, so much so that I was ready to move past it.

Yes, I have a few quibbles.  Still, I can't wait to read the final chapter.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Scott Snyder and of Francesco Francavilla will want to try Night of the Ghoul.

A

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


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Review: "SING 2" is Full of Feel-Good Magic

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 21 of 2022 (No. 1833) by Leroy Douresseaux

Sing 2 (2021)
Running time:  110 minutes (1 hour, 50 minutes)
MPA – PG for some rude material and mild peril/violence
WRITER/DIRECTOR:  Garth Jennings
PRODUCERS:  Janet Healy and Chris Meledandri
EDITOR:  Gregory Perler
COMPOSER:  Joby Talbot

ANIMATION/FANTASY/MUSICAL AND FAMILY/COMEDY

Starring:  (voices) Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Scarlett Johansson, Taron Egerton, Tori Kelly, Nick Kroll, Jennifer Saunders, Garth Jennings, Chelsea Peretti, Bobby Cannavale, Nick Offerman, Adam Buxton, Eric Andre, Halsey, Letitia Wright, Bono, Pharrell Williams, Julia Davis, Peter Serafinowicz, and Wes Anderson and Spike Jonze

Sing 2 is a 2021 computer-animated, jukebox musical comedy film written and directed by Garth Jennings and produced by Illumination Entertainment.  It is a sequel to the 2016 animated film, Sing.  In Sing 2, the Moon Theater crew must persuade a media mogul and a reclusive rock star to believe in their new show.

Sing 2 opens some time after the events depicted in Sing.  Buster Moon the koala (Matthew McConaughey) and the rebuilt “Moon Theater” are thriving.  His latest goal is to impress Suki (Chelsea Peretti), a talent scout from Crystal Entertainment in Redshore City, but Suki is definitely not impressed with the stars of the theater.  So Buster leads his troupe:  Rosita (Reese Witherspoon), a housewife and mother of 25 piglets; Gunter (Nick Kroll), the exuberant pig performer who wants to dance as much as he wants to sing; Ash (Scarlett Johansson), the punk-rock porcupine and singer; Johnny (Taron Egerton), the teenage gorilla singer, and Meena (Tori Kelly), the shy teenage elephant singer, to their destiny in Redshore.

Once there, they infiltrate Crystal Tower Theater in order to get an audience with Jimmy Crystal (Bobby Cannavale), a white wolf and media mogul, but Crystal brushes them off.  Desperate, Buster starts making promises to Crystal.  The first is that he and his troupe can stage a massive space-themed musical, “Out of This World.”  Secondly, Buster says that he can get reclusive rock legend, Clay Calloway (Bono), to be part of his show.

The problem is that Calloway has not been seen in over fifteen years since his wife died.  Buster sends his secretary, Miss Crawly (Garth Jennings), to find him.  After Miss Crawly fails spectacularly, Buster's show is in trouble and his life is on the line with Jimmy Crystal.  Is there anyway or anyone that can save “Out of This World?”

I recently watched the original film, Sing, for the first time.  I found that all the obstacles that Buster and his troupe face in the original were all over the place and overkill, and I did not think that Matthew McConaughey's voice performance amounted to much.  McConaughey is better in Sing 2, but not great.  The conflict and obstacles that Buster and the Moon Theater troupe face are singularly focused or directly related to putting on their sci-fi show, “Out of This World.”

In Sing 2, I find the returning characters to be likable or more likable, perhaps, because I am now more familiar with then.  There are also some excellent new characters.  I hope Letitia Wright's Nooshy, a lynx and a street dancer who teaches Johnny to dance, returns if there is another film in the series.  Porsha Crystal (Halsey), Jimmy's daughter, actually grows as a character in the film.  Bobby Cannavale has a fine old time with his performance as Jimmy Crystal, and noted film director, Spike Jonze, is excellent as Jerry the cat, Jimmy's loyal and groveling assistant.  As Clay Calloway, Bono (of the legendary rock band, U2) doesn't sound like Bono, and his performance is mostly flat.

The film's big musical finale, the actual performance of “Out of This World,” is sweet and lovely, although it is a little over the top.  It is an excellent show-stopper, and serves as a nice send off for Buster Moon and his troupe – on to better things.  I hope that there is a third film in the series.  Watching the endearing Sing 2 reminded me of why I really love watching animated films, especially computer-animated films.  They are the warm cup of cocoa in my life as a movie lover.

7 of 10
A-

Saturday, April 9, 2022


NOTES:
2022 Image Awards (NAACP):  1 win: “Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance-Motion Picture” (Letitia Wright); 2 nominations: “Outstanding Animated Motion Picture” (Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance-Motion Picture” (Eric André)


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Negromancer News Bits and Bites from April 1st to 9th, 2022 - Update #27

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

You can support Leroy via Paypal or on Patreon:

ENTERTAINMENT AND CULTURE NEWS:

WILL SMITH - From Deadline:  The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences has banded recent Oscar-winner Will Smith from attending its programs and events - virtually or in-person - including the Academy Awards ceremony for a period of 10 years.  This is his punishment for bitch-slapping Chris Rock during the 94th Academy Awards ceremony, Sun., March 27th.

From Variety:  Actor Harry Lennix comes off the porch to tell Will Smith that he should ... voluntarily give back his recent "Best Actor" Oscar in order to restore the awards honor ... saying this with a straight face.

From TMZ - Celebrities keep weighing in - Grammy Award-nominated rapper and recording artist, Fat Joe, says that Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the 94th Academy awards "makes minorities look bad."

TELEVISION - From Variety:  Warner Bros. has cancelled the daytime, syndicated talk show, "The Real," after eight seasons (which is 7 years longer than I thought it would last).

CELEBRITY - From TIME:  Michelle Yeoh talk to the venerable magazine, in part about her new film, "Everthing Everywhere All at Once."

BUSINESS/WARNER BROS. DISCOVERY - From Deadline:  Who is in and who is out at Warner Bros. Discovery?  Who is under CEO David Zaslav?

From Deadline:  Fri., April 8th, Warner Bros. Discovery has been born of the WarnerMedia-Discovery merger.  It will make its Wall Street debut Mon., April 11th. David Zaslav, CEO of Discovery, will be the CEO of the new company.

From Deadline:  The 43 billion dollar merger between Discovery and WarnerMedia is set to close this week, and the new leadership structure.

From Deadline:  As WarnerMedia approaches its merger with Discovery, WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar leaves the company.

From Deadline:  Ann Sarnoff, who held the top role in WarnerMedia film and TV, is also departing ahead of the Warner merger with Discovery.

From Deadline:  Andy Forssell, the head of HBO Max, is out at WarnerMedia ahead of the merger with Discovery.

From Deadline:  The WarnerMedia purge continues - with six former executives dismissed.

MOVIES - From THR:  Rapper Kid Cudi (Scott Mescudi), has joined John Woo's action thriller, "Silent Night," which stars Joel Kinnaman.  Cudi recently starred in the horror film, "X."

SPORTS - From CBSSports:  The University of South Carolina Gamecocks are the winners of the Women's NCAA Basketball Championship, beating the University of Connecticut 64-49.  This is the Gamecocks' second NCAA women's basketball title.

MUSIC AWARDS - From Deadline:   The winners were announced at the 2022 / 64th Annual Grammy Awards.  Oscar-winner Jon Batiste won "Album of the Year" for his LP, "We Are."

BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficePro:  The winner of the 4/1 to 4/3 weekend box office is Sony Pictures' "Morbius" with an estimated take of 39.1 million dollars.

From Here:  Here is Negromancer's review of "Morbius."

From Deadline:  "Morbius" leads the global box office with an 84 million dollar debut, making 44.9 million of that in 62 international markets.

NETFLIX - From Variety:  Netflix has slowed its development of a Will Smith action-thriller, "Fast and Loose," in the wake of the Oscar slap.

NETFLIX - From Deadline:  After not speaking for 13 years, director Lee Daniels and Oscar-winning actress Mo'Nique will reunite on the Netflix film, "Demon House."  Daniels directed Mo'Nique in the film, "Precious" for which she won her Oscar.

TELEVISION - From Deadline:  Actress Demetria McKinney has joined The CW's pilot, "The Winchesters." The project is a prequel to The CW's long-running series, "Supernatural."

MOVIES - From WeGotThisCovered:  Marvel Studios stalwarts Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson will star in director Jason Bateman's mystery film, "Project Artemis" for AppleTV.

MOVIES - From MovieWeb:  Actor Chris Pine wanted his new action movie, "The Contractor," in which he plays a Special Forces sergeant, to be as authentic as possible.

MOVIES - From Deadline:  Bruce Willis' family have announced that the two-time Emmy Award-winning actor is retiring due to health related issues.

OBITS:

From ESPN:   NFL quarterback, Dwayne Haskins, has died at the age of 24, Saturday, April 9, 2022, killed when he was struck by a vehicle.  Haskins played for the Ohio State Buckeyes from 2016 to 2018, where he was the MVP of the 2019 Rose Bowl.  Haskins was currently a member of the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers, but he was originally picked by the Washington Redskins in the 2019 NFL Draft - First Round, Pick #15.

From From Variety:  Television and film actress, Estelle Harris, has died at the age of 93, Saturday, April 2, 2022.  She is best known for playing "Estelle Costanza," the mother of George Costanza on the former NBC sitcom, "Seinfeld."  She also provided the voice for "Mrs. Potato Head" in Disney/Pixar's "Toy Story" films, with "Toy Story 4" (2019) being her final film role.  She also played "Muriel" on the Disney Channel sitcom, "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody" (2005-08).

From Deadline:  Television actress, Barrie Youngfellow, has died at the age of 75, Monday, March 28, 2022.  Youngfellow is best remembered for starring as "Jan Hoffmeyer Gray" in the sitcom, "It's A Living."  The series aired on ABC from 1980-82 and in first-run syndication from 1985-89, and Youngfellow was one of only four actors who appeared in all 120 episodes of the series.

From THR: Film and television producer Walter Coblenz has died at the age of 93, Wednesday, March 16, 2022.  Coblenz received an Oscar-nomination for producing the 1976 film, "All the King's Men." Coblenz also produced films like "The Candidate" (1972) and "Money Talks" (1997)  He also received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for producing (with Lee Rich) the 1973 made-for-TV film, "The Blue Knight."

-------------------------------------

WILL SMITH/CHRIS ROCK - From Variety:   Will Smith has announced that he is withdrawing his membership from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS).

From Variety:  Will Smith walks onstage at the 94th Academy Awards and slaps Chris Rock in the face for making a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.

From Variety:  The Academy has said that Will Smith was asked to leave the 94th Academy Awards ceremony after slapping presenter Chris Rock, but he refused.  The Academy has started disciplinary proceedings against Smith.

From Deadline:  Oscar-winner Will Smith formally apologizes to comedian Chris Rock for slapping him during the 94th Academy Awards show.

From Variety:  Chris Rock says that he is "still kind of processing what happened."

From Variety:   "Harry Potter" star Daniel Radcliffe says that he is "dramatically bored" with hearing people's opinion about "THE SLAP."

From Variety:  Will Smith won the "Best Actor" Oscar for portraying the father of tennis stars, Venus and Serena Willaims, Richard Williams, in the biopic, "King Richard."  In regards to Smith slapping Chris Rock onstage during the 94th Academy Awards, Richard says, "We don't condone anyone hitting anyone else."

From Variety:  The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) has confirmed that Chris Rock has declined to file a police report regarding Oscar-winner Will Smith slapping him during the 94th Academy Awards.

From THR:  The actors' union, SAG-AFTRA, calls Will Smith's slap of Chris Rock to be "unacceptable."

From People:  Of the Oscar slap, "Aquaman" Jason Momoa says that he is shocked that Will Smith slapped Chris Rock and that "There's a tipping point for everyone."

From Variety:  Celebrities react to the Oscar bitch slap heard around the world.

-----------------------------

Review: "SING" is Animated by Pop Music Hits

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 20 of 2022 (No. 1832) by Leroy Douresseaux

Sing (2016)
Running time:  108 minutes (1 hour, 48 minutes)
MPAA – PG for some rude humor and mild peril
DIRECTOR:  Garth Jennings with Christophe Lourdelet
WRITER:  Garth Jennings
PRODUCERS:  Janet Healy and Chris Meledandri
EDITOR:  Gregory Perler
COMPOSER:  Joby Talbot

ANIMATION/FANTASY/MUSICAL AND FAMILY/COMEDY

Starring:  Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Seth MacFarlane, Scarlett Johansson, John C. Reilly, Taron Egerton, Tori Kelly, Jennifer Saunders, Garth Jennings, Peter Serafinowicz, Nick Kroll, Leslie Jones, Rhea Perlman, Beck Bennett, Jay Pharoah, Nick Offerman, Laraine Newman, Wes Anderson, and Jennifer Hudson

Sing is a 2016 computer-animated, jukebox musical comedy film written and directed by Garth Jennings and produced by Illumination Entertainment.  The film focuses on a struggling theater owner who holds a singing competition to save his theater.

Sing is set in a city (Calatonia) inhabited by anthropomorphic (humanoid) animals.  The film introduces Buster Moon (Matthew McConaughey), a koala who owns the “Moon Theater.”  The theater is struggling, and Judith (Rhea Perlman), a brown llama who represents Buster's bank, is threatening the theater with foreclosure.  In a bid to get people interested in the theater, Buster decides to hold a singing competition with a prize of $1,000 going to the winner.  However, Buster's secretary, Miss Crawly (Garth Jennings), an elderly iguana, accidentally creates a typo that adds two extra zeros to the prize money.  The misprinted fliers for the competition, which declare a $100,000 prize, are also accidentally blown all over the city.

Soon, animals are lined up in front of the theater for the competition's open audition, but Buster only chooses a select few to participate in the singing competition.  There is Rosita (Reese Witherspoon), a housewife and mother of 25 piglets.  She is paired with another pig, Gunter (Nick Kroll), an exuberant performer who wants to dance as much as he sings.  Ash (Scarlett Johansson) is a punk-rock porcupine and singer who is trying to find her voice as a songwriter.

Johnny (Taron Egerton) is a singer and teenage gorilla, but he is also reluctantly part of his father, Big Daddy's (Peter Serafinowicz) gang of thieves.  Mike (Seth MacFarlane) is a white mouse who is a street musician and singer of swing music.  Meena (Tori Kelly), a teenage elephant, could be a contestant, but she has terrible stage fright.  Can Buster and his friend, Eddie Noodleman (John C. Reilly), a sheep, bring everyone together and save the theater before financial doom sinks them all?

The Hollywood film industry, sometimes called a “dream factory,” has consistently been pedaling fantasies in which plucky underdogs overcome obstacles in order to achieve something positive, which provides the audience with a happy ending.  Some films pile trials and tribulations, errors, failures, and misfortune upon the hero and supporting characters so much so that it often strains credulity.  The idea seems to be that the more the underdog has to overcome, the greater the pay off for the audience when the underdog wins in the end.

That is Sing in the proverbial movie nutshell.  I found it rather tiresome.  Poor old Buster Moon suffers so much failure, most of it brought upon him by his own actions, that it made Buster less sympathetic to me.  Buster is a plucky theater owner.  He is also such a con artist that it is hard to imagine him as much more than a loser, which is what most people would call him.  It did not help that I found Matthew McConaughey all wrong as the voice of Buster.

For me, there are a couple of things that enhance Sing.  First is Seth MacFarlane, who is best known for the Fox Network's long-running, prime time animated television sitcom, “Family Guy.”  Initially, I did not recognize his voice as Mike the white mouse, but when I did, it made sense to me.  MacFarlane is a genius at voice acting in both live-action and animated productions.  He can sing the heck out of big band and swing music standards, and as Mike, he steals most of the scenes in which the character appears.  Seth certainly makes a case for a Mike solo movie.

Second, I also initially did not realize that Scarlett Johansson was the voice of Ash, the punk-rock porcupine.  Johansson gives a voice performance full of texture, emotion, and personality, and when Ash sings, Johansson kills it.  [Johannson has released one solo album and an album recorded with Pete Yorn].  I spent most of movie wanting for her to be back on screen.  I'm one vote for an Ash movie.

Finally, the third thing that saves this film is the last 20 minutes.  Most of Sing's characters are caricatures and character types, as pleasant as they may be.  However, all the characters (except Buster) shine in the film's riveting, song-filled final 20 minutes.  This rousing songfest even offers a thrilling jail break and a crazy car chase.  I avoided Sing for years, and I am not really interested in singing competitions, in general.  I only really watched it because I am going to watch and review its recent sequel, Sing 2.  However, MacFarlane, Johansson, and the show-stopping finale made me glad I watched Sing.  I like animated movies – even the ones that are not Pixar-great.

6 of 10
B

Saturday, April 2, 2022


NOTES:
2017 Golden Globes, USA:  2 nominations: “Best Original Song - Motion Picture” (Ryan Tedder, Stevie Wonder, and Francis and the Lights for the song, “Faith”) and “Best Motion Picture – Animated”


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Review: Jessica Chastain in "THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE" - Good Gawd!

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 19 of 2022 (No. 1831) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021)

Running time:  126 minutes (2 hours, 6 minutes)

MPAA – PG-13 for sexual content and drug abuse

DIRECTOR:  Michael Showalter

WRITER: Abe Sylvia (based on the documentary by Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato)

PRODUCERS:  Gigi Pritzker and Rachel Shane

CINEMATOGRAPHER: Michael Gioulakis (D.o.P.)

EDITORS:  Mary Jo Markey and Andrew Weisblum

COMPOSER:  Theodore Shapiro

Academy Award winner

DRAMA/BIOPIC

Starring:  Jessica Chastain, Andrew Garfield, Cherry Jones, Vincent D'Onofrio, Mark Wystrach, Sam Jaeger, Louis Cancelmi, Gabriel Olds, Fredric Lehne, Jay Huguley, Dan Johnson, and Chandler Head

The Eyes of Tammy Faye is a 2021 biographical drama film directed by Michael Showalter.  The film is based on the 2000 documentary film, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, which was directed and produced by Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato.  The Eyes of Tammy Faye the movie takes a look at the rise into fame and fall into infamy of evangelist and television personality, Tammy Faye Bakker.

The Eyes of Tammy Faye introduces young Tamara Faye LaValley (Chandler Head) in the year 1952.  Growing up in a religious community in International Falls, Minnesota, Tammy is an outcast because her mother, Rachel Grover (Cherry Jones), divorced Tammy's father.  Although she is now married to Fred Grover (Fredric Lehne), Rachel believes that she is seen by some as a harlot.  She hides Tammy in order to hide her shame.  However, young Tammy Faye ain't having none of that and inserts herself into the church.  The parishioners become attracted to the way she speaks Biblical scripture and the way in which she “speaks in tongues.”

In 1960, while attending North Central Bible College in Minneapolis Minnesota, Tammy (Jessica Chastain) meets and falls in love with fellow college student, Jim Bakker (Andrew Garfield).  In 1961, the two marry and drop out of college.  They drive around the United States to preach and inspire Christian communities, with Jim preaching and Tammy singing and playing with puppets for children.  Seeking to create and have control over their own programs, the couple create “The PTL Club,” the flagship show of their PTL Satellite Network.  Tammy Faye and Jim Bakker become increasingly popular over the years, but with fame comes more money and more secrets and lies.  Can Jim and Tammy Faye save themselves with the success in which they save souls?

The Eyes of Tammy Faye is about Tammy Faye LaValley/Bakker/Messner, and as Tammy Faye, Jessica Chastain gives the performance of her career.  That is saying a lot, as Chastain's career is filled with bravura performances, except for her god-awful turn in 2019's (X-Men:) Dark Phoenix.  Chastain, who recently won a “Best Actress” Oscar for this performance, buries herself in the work of this film's make-up and hairstyling artists (who also won and Oscar) and reemerges as an attractive and alluring fictional version of the real life Tammy Faye.  I couldn't stop watching her, believing in her, and seeing Chastain's Tammy Faye as a real person that I wanted to think about for the entire run time of this film.

It is a testament to Andrew Garfield's acting skills that he created space in this film for Jim Bakker.  Garfield makes his Bakker a hollow man who is beset by greed and full of hypocrisy.  He condemns Tammy's minor infidelity while hiding three decades of homosexual dalliances and affairs.  Garfield's Bakker, however, can survive in the vortex that is Chastain's Tammy Faye.

The script presents Tammy as having good intentions, as being loving, and as being naive.  Jim Bakker is in love with himself and with money and fame as much as he loves God.  The story suggests that Jim's faults make the couple vulnerable to opportunists and predators, such as Jerry Faldwell, whom actor Vincent D'Onofrio portrays as some kind of evangelical crime lord.  On the other hand, the film suggests that Tammy Faye's ignorance and unwillingness to speak up at certain times contribute to her unwillingness or inability to pay heed to the warnings of Rachel, her mother.  Rachel is played by Cherry Jones in an excellent performance that would have been noticed more if it weren't in the shadow of Chastain's.

Director Michael Showalter takes the fine performances of his cast and makes a movie that is the epic as character drama.  He gives us the rise and the fall and the (somewhat) redemption of a woman who had a moment in time that ultimately trapped her in the public sphere as a figure worthy of mocking.  To me, The Eyes of Tammy Faye is saying that she did not deserve this, but I remember her as someone who deserved some of the derision pointed her way.  As the guiding force of The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Jessica Chastain deserves all the praise and awards pointed her way.

8 of 10
A

Tuesday, April 5, 2022


NOTES:
2022 Academy Awards, USA:  2 wins: “Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling” (Stephanie Ingram, Linda Dowds, and Justin Raleigh) and “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role” (Jessica Chastain)

2022 BAFTA Awards:  1 win: “Best Make Up & Hair” (Linda Dowds, Stephanie Ingram, and Justin Raleigh)

2022 Golden Globes, USA:  1 nomination: “Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture-Drama” (Jessica Chastain)


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Comics Review: "DIE!NAMITE Never Dies! Volume 3 #2"

DIE!NAMITE NEVER DIES! VOLUME 3 #2
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT

STORY: Fred Van Lente
ART: Vincenzo Carratù
COLORS: Kike J. Diaz
LETTERS: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
EDITOR: Nate Cosby
COVER: Tony Fleecs
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Tony Fleecs; Leirix Li; Marat Mychaels; Lucio Parrillo; Arthur Suydam; John Vasquesz; Gracie the Cosplay Lass (cosplay)
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (April 2022)

Rated Teen+

“Lord Greystoke of Mars”

DIE!namite is a series of zombie apocalypse comics from Dynamite Entertainment that utilizes some of the publisher's most popular characters and licensed properties.  The latest is DIE!namite Never Dies!  It is written by Fred Van Lente; drawn by Vincenzo Carratu; colored by Kike J. Diaz; and lettered by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou.  This time, Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) and Jane, his wife, join the cross-company zombie crossover.

DIE!namite Never Dies! Volume 3 #2 (“Lord Greystoke of Mars”) opens above the Earth.  There, “Science Hero Tech” from Captain Future tries to stem zombies in orbit.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, Vampirella, Evil Sonja, Pantha, and Jane battle to save Tarzan and Jane's home, the Uziri National Forest, from zombies – both human and dinosaurs!  So where is the Lord of the Jungle?  He is off-world.

On Barsoom (Mars), Tarzan has joined Carthoris, Jedwar of Helium and son of John Carter and Dejah Thoris, and Thuvia, Princess of Earth (Jasoom), in a battle to save Helium from a zombie invasion.

THE LOWDOWN:  In July 2021, Dynamite Entertainment's marketing department began providing me with PDF review copies of some of their titles.  One of them is DIE!namite Never Dies! Volume 3 #2.  It is only the fifth DIE!namite comic that I have read, although I've known of the series since it first began.

I didn't have much to say about DIE!namite Never Dies! Volume 3 #2.  It was like any other issue in this series that I've read … except that there was Tarzan, and I am a fan of the character.  For me, Tarzan brings something extra to the series.

Writer Fred Van Lente offered a first issue that intrigued me.  With this second issue, he offers an issue that has me sold on this series.  There are new characters, more subplots, another strange Martian city, and a dark secret in a jungle temple.  The art team of artist Vincenzo Carratu and colorist Kike J. Diaz present some pretty art that is clear and invigorating storytelling.

After the first issue, I thought DIE!namite Never Dies! Volume 3 had potential.  This second issue really sells the series.  Let's join the interplanetary fun.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of DIE!namite will want DIE!namite Never Dies! Volume 3.

[This comic book includes “Dynamite Dispatch,” which features an interview with writer Tom Sniegoski.]

B+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


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The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Comics Review: "PROJECT SUPERPOWERS: Fractured States #1" Looks Really Good

PROJECT SUPERPOWERS: FRACTURED STATES VOLUME 1 #1
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT

STORY: Ron Marz and Andy Lanning
ART: Emilio Utrera
COLORS: Arthur Hesli
LETTERS: Tom Napolitano
EDITOR: Brian Cunningham
COVER: Mike Rooth
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Paula Andrade; Geraldo Borges; Gary Frank; Marat Mychaels with Omi Remalante; Rus Wooton;  Gracie the Cosplay Lass (cosplay)
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (April 2022)

Rated Teen+

Project Superpowers was a comic book limited series published by Dynamite Entertainment beginning in January 2008.  The series resurrected many superheroes from the “Golden Age of Comics” that were originally published by now-defunct companies like Crestwood Publications, Fox Comics, and Nedor Comics.  Many of these characters were in the public domain.

The series was set on an Earth where a twentieth century conflict gave rise to the age of “the Superpowers.”  These Superpowers protected the world, especially the United States.

The characters return in the new comic book series, Project Superpowers: Fractured States Volume 1.  It is written by Ron Marz and Andy Lanning; drawn by Emilio Utrera; colored by Arthur Hesli; and lettered by Tom Napolitano.  The series focuses on a “John Doe,” who awakens in the mid twenty-first century to find the world turned upside down.  Does he bring salvation … or doom?

Project Superpowers: Fractured States Volume 1 #1 opens in the year 2052.  In Washington D.C., at the Lincoln Memorial, the Superpower known as The Flag is getting a beat down.  But is it all a dream?

A mysterious man awakens, unkempt, naked, and abandoned in a storage room in a sealed underground base.  This John Doe emerges in the year 2052 to learn that he is in Florida in a world changed by climate disaster, plague, and environmental collapse.  The Black Terror is now a group of revolutionaries, “The Black Terrors.”  The world has been turned upside down?  Where are the Superpowers?  And who is the amnesiac?

THE LOWDOWN:  In July 2021, Dynamite Entertainment's marketing department began providing me with PDF review copies of some of their titles.  One of them is Project Superpowers: Fractured States Volume 1 #1, which is the first Project Superpowers comic book that I have read.

I don't know if Ron Marz and Andy Lanning are or have ever been “superstar writers,” but who decides that?  They are indeed longtime veteran comic book writers, and they have been entertaining readers for decades.  With Project Superpowers: Fractured States, they are into another decade of entertaining us – as far as I'm concerned.  I like the sense of mystery in this story, and I doubly like that fact that they reveal a lot about the state of 2052, while making me interested in learning more in later issues.  Basically, their writing doesn't make me feel cheated.  This would still be an enjoyable individual comic book even if I did not keep reading this series.

Artist Emilio Utrera's art here has a classic 1970s comic book feel to it.  There is little Dave Cockrum here and a little Jack Kirby there, with some flourishes of Neal Adams and John Buscema all over the place.  The graphical storytelling is clear, but is also dynamic as befitting this wild first issue.  Arthur Hesli's colors infuse the story with a sense of mystery, action, and peril, and Tom Napolitano's letters do what they always do – convey drama and excitement.

I am shocked by this first issue.  I did not know what to expect of Project Superpowers: Fractured States Volume 1 #1, and now, I can't wait for the next issue.  I highly recommend it.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Project Superpowers and of superhero comic books will want Project Superpowers: Fractured States Volume 1.

[This comic book includes “Dynamite Dispatch,” which features an interview with writer Tom Sniegoski.]

A

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


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