William Zabka is back as Robert McCall’s (Edward Woodward) son, Scott, and there’s a television debut for Bradley Whitford, Ed O’Neill shows up as a local doctor, and Dana Barron from National Lampoon’s Vacation is this week’s person in need of help from McCall’s Equalizer. The Children’s Song was written by Howard Chesley, Joel Surnow…
Tag: new york
The Equalizer (1985) – The Defector, and The Lock Box
Very quickly The Equalizer has shown that its willing to go dark and gritty, and while there are some dark moments in The Defector, The Lock Box is even darker. The Defector was written by Heywood Gould and first debuted on 2 October, 1985. An old friend, and former agent of the USSR, Felix (Joe…
The Equalizer (1985) – Pilot, and China Rain
I don’t know what the first episode of The Equalizer was that I saw, but I remember where I was, and I knew I found the concept and execution interesting, even at 14. It was grittier than a lot of the episodic television that was being broadcast at the time, a little darker, and had…
The Terminal (2004) – Steven Spielberg
Hearing the name Tom Hanks in connection to a Steven Spielberg film is always a good thing for me, and I remember going to see 2004’s The Terminal in the theatre, and just delighting in the dramatic comedy the pair had come up with. Hanks plays Viktor Navorski, a man who while in transit to…
1408 (2007) – Mikael Hafstrom
John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson star in this big screen adaptation of the Stephen King short story. Cusack, who has always been a favourite of mine, is Mike Enslin, a writer who cranked out one good (and seemingly forgotten novel) and after a personal tragedy, which had him walking out on his grief-stricken wife…
Fringe (2011) – Lysergic Acid Diethylamide, and 6:02 AM EST
It’s time for Bell’s (Leonard Nimoy) soul to leave Olivia’s (Anna Torv) body but there seems to be no way to oust him from her body, and with him as the dominant consciousness, Olivia’s time to recover is running out. So Walter (John Noble) comes up with a shocking plan in Lysergic Acid Diethylamide. Written…
Night Call: A Walking Shadows Novel (2020) – Brenden Carlson
Brenden Carlson’s Night Call, available from Dundurn Press is set in the past, an alternate 1933, and yet in describing it, I lean towards the phrase retro-future noir. We are introduced to the cynical hard-boiled detective, Elias Roche, who is haunted by an incident in his past and walks a fine line between the law…
Crimson Peak (2015) – Guillermo del Toro
The first time I watched del Toro’s gothic tale I didn’t pay attention as much as I should and consequently, I grew bored with it. The advertising had made it look more akin to a horror film which is what I thought I wanted. I wasn’t prepared for the onslaught of lurid colors, and what…
The Natural (1984) – Barry Levinson
Barry Levinson and Robert Redford deliver one of the all time great baseball fairytales with their adaptation of Bernard Malamud’s stirring novel of the same name. Set in a gloriously rendered version of yesteryear, the film follows Roy Hobbs (Redford) the best ball player that ever was. The film gives us this hazy beautiful look…
Mimic (1997) – Guillermo del Toro
del Toro has long been a favorite director, so I thought it was time to go back and visit Mimic. The film has a bit of a sordid past, not the least of which is Weinstein’s involvement, who clashed constantly with del Toro. The director swore off the film, but was finally able to give…
The Mind Reels 