I was itching to explore the Dark Tower series again, and while I was listening to the KingCast, a fantastic podcast about Stephen King and films, and their guest was Bev Vincent, and they talked about his book, The Road to the Dark Tower. I hunted it down with a vengeance, and was delighted to…
Tag: jake
The Stuntman (1980) – Richard Rush
Steve Railsback, Peter O’Toole and Barbara Hershey headline the genre-defying film, The Stuntman, that sees a fugitive finding a place to hide… on a film set. Railsback is Cameron who is on the run from the police, seen in a wonderfully extended opening sequence that lays out a whole bunch of narrative threads before tying…
Stir of Echoes (1999) – David Koepp
Stir of Echoes got lost in the theatres when it went up against the ghost story The Sixth Sense. Based on the novel by Richard Matheson and adapted by Koepp who settled into the director’s chair as well, the film lets Kevin Bacon just shine, and features some well-executed visuals including the hypnotism sequence featuring…
Support Your Local Sheriff! (1969) – Burt Kennedy
James Garner is at his charming best in Support Your Local Sheriff! Jason (Garner) rides into a small gold rush town, which we see spring up through the opening credits after Prudy (Joan Hackett) and her father, Olly Perkins (Harry Morgan) discover gold partway through a funeral – and that should tell you all you…
Murphy’s Romance (1985) – Martin Ritt
James Garner earned his only Academy Award nomination for his turn as Murphy Jones, a local widower, handyman and pharmacist in the small town of Eunice, where the newly divorced Emma (Sally Field) and her young son, Jake (Corey Haim) arrive in to make an attempt at running a horse ranch. Emma has a tough…
Family Ties (1982) – Summer of ’82, I Never Killed for My Father, and Give Your Uncle Arthur a Kiss
Michael J. Weithorn wrote Summer of ’82 which first debuted on 27 October, 1982. Alex (Micheal J. Fox) is working his job at the local grocery store, Adler’s Grocery, and doing deliveries with Jennifer (Tina Yothers) when he meets Stephanie (Amy Steel) and loses his heart. But it’s not only his heart he loses when…
Episode Thirteen (2023) – Craig DiLouie
Orbit Books brings me my first real creepy novel of 2023, Episode Thirteen. Using the familiar structure of the found footage genre, something that has been co-opted successfully for all of the ghost-hunting shows that seem to plague reality television, DiLouie compiles a literary found footage film, offering up video transcripts, EVP recordings, text messages,…
The Saturday Night Ghost Club (2018) – Craig Davidson
A too-short novel that handles the delicacy of memory, nostalgia, growing up in the 80s, and ghost stories. Craig Davidson’s poignant and engaging The Saturday Night Ghost Club is an emotional and compelling read. Jake, the story’s narrator relates to the reader a coming-of-age summer as he, his new best friend, the friend’s sister, and…
Sixteen Candles (1984) – John Hughes
There are lots of things that still work with John Hughes teen comedy, Sixteen Candles, but there are so many problematic things that have really begun to overshadow the story’s heart. There’s some racism, there’s some things that walk the line up to and over harassment and assault, and that really takes the shine off…
Tell Me My Name (2020) – Erin Ruddy
Dundurn Press keeps my reading pile high, and full of thrills. This week, I dug into Tell Me My Name by Erin Ruddy, a tightly-paced thriller that makes me rethink about wanting to visit cottage country, and re-examining all my past interactions with everyone around me. Ellie and Neil were going to have some time…
The Mind Reels 