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Novelization fans know the majority of literary tie-ins stick closely to their source materials rather than stray from them, but whenever one does make notable changes, they take notice. Gremlins is one such case. Indeed, the late George Gipe stayed true to the spirit of that Christmas spectacle we have all come to love and celebrate each winter, however, the author also took artistic license — primarily with the adorable face of the Gremlins franchise, to whom he gave an origin that is truly out of this world.

Everyone knows the gist of Gremlins by now: A small American town is overrun by monsters around Christmas, and only one young man — along with his strange new pet named “Gizmo” — can put an end to the holiday horror. Gipe, who also penned the novelizations for Back to the Future and Explorers, didn’t think to change the basic story of Joe Dante...

The first two episodes of the new “Star Wars” show Skeleton Crew dropped on Disney+ last night at 9 Pm Est. I watched them this morning. While they are a fun 80s-style Spielberian/Lucas-esque show that reminds me of “The Goonies,” “Explorers,” and even “Treasure Planet,” they aren’t exactly “Star Wars” yet.

The show is going for the time period the original trilogy came from (70s and 80s). It definitely has throwbacks to the original trilogy. However, if you took the “Star Wars” references out and made them something else entirely, it wouldn’t change the story too much. That said, we still have six episodes to go, which could change.

Jude Law isn’t in the first two episodes all that much, as the story mostly focuses on the kids and how they get a starship. But the kids are mostly fun and interesting, each with a distinct personality.

It'll soon be time to return to a galaxy far, far away, as Skeleton Crew, the latest Star Wars show, arrives on Disney+ on December 2, and if you're a fan of this franchise, it's not to be missed.

It's been a mixed year for Star Wars, with The Bad Batch finishing strong back in May, and The Acolyte having a disappointing run on the streaming platform, but it looks like Skeleton Crew could be just what's needed to get things moving again.

The show follows a group of kids who make a discovery on their home planet, which leads to them going off on an adventure across the stars, running into all kinds of danger, and meeting up with Jod Na Nawood, a mysterious and possibly Force-sensitive character portrayed by Jude Law.

Looking at the promotional material for the show, it seems like this will be taking things back to basics,...

Look at some of the best sci-fi movies of all time, and chances are you'll find a whole bunch of mayhem. Destructive events and deadly encounters with the unknown often go with the territory, to the point that it can sometimes be difficult to envision a work of science fiction that doesn't rack up a significant body count before the end credits roll. 

But it doesn't always have to be that way. While mortal danger is an easy way to create stakes and showing people die is the easiest way to establish danger, there are plenty of methods of making a sci-fi project interesting without killing off half the cast. This doesn't mean that the space Marines have to put down their laser rifles and settle their differences with the alien invaders over a game of Canasta, either. Many sci-fi films have found ways to provide thrills without any fatalities...

It’s hard to believe, but four-time Academy Award nominee Ethan Hawke has celebrated almost four decades in the film business. Hawke made his film debut in Joe Dante‘s 1985 film, “Explorers.”

Although an accomplished Tony-nominated stage actor, Hawke is primarily celebrated for his work in movies. He is one of the few performers who has been a double Oscar nominee in both the acting category (“Training Day” and “Boyhood”) and writing (“Before Sunrise” and “Before Midnight”). Hawke has also been nominated for two Screen Actors Guild Awards (“Training Day” and “Boyhood”), as well as a Golden Globe nod for “Boyhood.”

Unquestionably, Hawke’s most notable film collaborations have been with writer/director Richard Linklater, who had the ability to bring out something extra in him. In three “Before” films — “Before Sunrise” (1995), “Before Sunset” (2004) and “Before Midnight” (2013) — Hawke broke hearts all over the world as Jesse with his relationship with Julie Delpy‘s Céline.

Director Joe Dante has expressed his surprise that his film The Burbs is set to be turned into a TV show. More here.

Last month, Peacock commissioned a straight-to-series order for a TV adaptation of The Burbs, the 1989 dark comedy that starred Tom Hanks and Carrie Fisher. Despite being a worthy film, it’s often eclipsed by other movies from the same era, not least because both Tom Hanks and director Joe Dante both scored bigger hits around the same time.

In fact, nobody seems to be more surprised about the news than Dante himself, with the Gremlins director telling The Hollywood Reporter that, “I think my actual comment was ‘how are they going to make a whole TV series out of that story?’ As opposed to ‘I want to be the one to do it.’”

The original film saw Hanks, Bruce Dern and Carrie Fisher situated in a perfect...

Joe Dante, best known for directing 1984's "Gremlins" and its sequel, thrives in the 1950s B-movie genre. Flashes of cartoon comedy can also be found in his work, such as 2003's "Looney Tunes: Back in Action," along with satirical dark comedic aspects in films like "The Burbs." The '80s experienced a boom in sci-fi adjacent films that mimicked the Spielbergian formula where the wondrous nostalgia of childhood mixed with the otherworldly awe of extraterrestrial existence, and Dante incorporated aspects of this in his 1985 science fantasy, "Explorers."

There are several factors behind the commercial failure that greeted the film on its release: a rushed production, along with the release of "Back to the Future" around the same time, overshadowed most of the film's merits, which were appraised positively by critics at the time. Although "Explorers" is no "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," the film's innate charm helped it garner a cult following over the years,...

Ethan Hawke has an impressive filmography thanks to his long-standing career in Hollywood. Making his film debut with Explorers in 1985, he continues to expand his portfolio with a new project, Blue Moon. This project is quite special also because he is reuniting with Richard Linklater, who will be directing the movie.

Ethan Hawke in Training Day / Warner Bros. Pictures

However, their reunion wasn’t an easy task. In a new interview, the former delved into the project details, stating that the director made him wait for over a decade, and the reason will surprise you.

Richard Linklater Made Ethan Hawke Wait for 12 Years for Blue Moon

Ethan Hawke is no stranger to long-term collaborations, especially with acclaimed director Richard Linklater.

Their previous collaboration includes Before Sunrise trilogy, Boyhood (2014), Waking Life (2001), and Last Flag Flying (2017) among others. The duo is bringing another interesting project, Blue Moon, which has an interesting backstory for the actor.

Terry Matalas will direct a remake of the 1985 sci-fi Enemy Mine, which marooned a warring human and alien on an unoccupied planet.

It was a good year as far science fiction, 1985. There was Back To The Future of course, but also Weird Science, Explorers, Brazil and Enemy Mine. The latter film starred Dennis Quaid and Louis Gossett Jr, and was about a human space traveller (Quaid) who crash lands on a seemingly deserted planet along with a scaly alien. The twist is that the human and alien species are at war with each other, and the pair have to put their differences aside in order to survive.

Enemy Mine may not be quite as widely remembered as its 1985 contemporaries in the sci-fi genre, but its impact certainly lingered with those who saw it. Wolfgang Peterson directed the movie and Enemy Mine built up something of a cult following in the years after its release.

Within the wonderful world of kids’ movies lies a subgenre that doesn’t get discussed enough: the “Kids on Bikes” adventure movie. A combination of early adventure movies and the “latchkey” kid culture that afforded teens and pre-teens incredible new freedom, these movies occupy a unique space. They’re often intended for audiences in the same young age ranges as their protagonists yet they explore more adult themes and genuinely dangerous situations through the lens of an often wistful version of a particular kind of childhood. And yes, they explore those topics with the help of bikes.

Some are scary, some are uplifting, and some… well, to be honest, some don’t actually have many bicycles in them. In their own ways though, these are the movies that have come to define the “Kids on Bikes” adventure genre.

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

While there are a few films released before E.

Marc Thorpe, the visual effects artist who worked on several “Indiana Jones” and “Star Wars” films before launching the bot battling competition Robot Wars, has died. He was 77.

Thorpe died Friday of complications related to Parkinson’s Disease, his daughter Megan Feffer shared on Facebook.

“For him, early onset Parkinson’s disease started out with relatively mild tremors and then over time progressed toward less and less bodily autonomy — something particularly torturous for a fiercely independent artist like my dad whose joy in life was to create things with his hands,” Feffer wrote.

“While the disease itself is not technically considered terminal, it does eventually remove crucial functions like movement and swallowing – functions essential for life,” she continued. “To say the last few months, and especially the last few weeks, were challenging for my dad would be an understatement, and I am grateful that he is finally at peace.”

Thorpe...

Marc Thorpe, the visual effects artist who created the hit television series “Robot Wars” in which customized radio-controlled robots fight in metal arenas, has died. Thorpe was 77.

Thorpe died on Friday at a hospice facility in Alamo, California, according to his daughter Megan Feffer. Thorpe’s death resulted from complications of Parkinson’s disease. Doctors first diagnosed Thorpe with the progressive nervous system disorder in 1993.

“But if there’s one thing I know for sure it’s that my dad would want to be remembered – and not for his Parkinson’s Disease. He would want to be remembered for his art,” Megan Feffer wrote on Facebook.

She added: “From being a model maker at Ilm on ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Indiana Jones’ to his creation of ‘Robot Wars,’ he made many, many beautiful, weird, detailed and strange things.”

In 1979, Thorpe started working at Industrial Light and Magic/Lucasfilm as a model maker and animatronic designer.

Marc Thorpe, who created special effects for Star Wars and Indiana Jones films before launching Robot Wars, which feature radio-controlled gladiators in events he called “festivals of destruction and survival,” has died. He was 77.

Thorpe died Friday of complications related to Parkinson’s disease at a hospice facility in Alamo, California, his daughter, Megan Feffer, told The Hollywood Reporter. He was first diagnosed with the progressive disorder that affects the nervous system in 1993.

“For him, early onset Parkinson’s disease started out with relatively mild tremors and then over time progressed toward less and less bodily autonomy — something particularly torturous for a fiercely independent artist like my dad whose joy in life was to create things with his hands,” she wrote on Facebook.

“While the disease itself is not technically considered terminal, it does eventually remove crucial functions like movement and swallowing — functions essential for life. To say the last few months,...

Actor and filmmaker Ethan Hawke received the Stockholm Film Festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award 2023 at Biograf Skandia.

Hawke and his daughter, Maya Hawke, posed for a picture together on the red carpet at the ceremony.

Ethan, 53, made his film debut at the age of 14 in the 1985 sci-fi film Explorers, followed by his breakthrough performance as Todd Anderson in Dead Poets Society. He went on to star alongside Julie Delpy in the Before trilogy from 1995 to 2013, which he collaborated on with film director/writer Richard Linklater.

Ethan has received four Academy Award nominations in his career, along with two nominations for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the 2001 crime/thriller Training Day and three nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay for the Before trilogy films. The three films, Before Sunrise (1995), Before Sunset (2004) and Before Midnight (2013), were based on a woman named Amy Lehrhaupt, whom writer/director Richard Linklater met in a...

Actor Ethan Hawke became a film star after having done films like Dead Poets Society and Training Day. But overtime, Hawke began to notice a pattern among contemporary film stars that he wanted to take a break from.

Ethan Hawke once explained what it took to be a movie star Ethan Hakwe | Mike Coppola/Getty Images

Hawke’s filmography isn’t brimming with box-office hits like some of his contemporaries. Looking back on the actor’s work, even his successful films seem to focus less on spectacle and more on character work. This was designed by the actor earlier on in his career, who confided that he didn’t want to necessarily be a movie star. This was partially due to the Gattaca star‘s upbringing.

“I grew up in a household where there was such anger and resentment towards anyone who had any money, that I never really had...

The film’s title is a reference to the mythological creatures known as gremlins, which were blamed for mechanical failures in aircraft during World War II. The film was directed by Joe Dante, who also directed the 1985 film Explorers and the 2011 film Cowboys & Aliens. The screenplay for Gremlins was written by Chris Columbus, who also wrote the screenplays for Home Alone and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. The film stars Zach Galligan as Billy Peltzer, a young man who receives a Mogwai as a pet for Christmas. The Mogwai, named Gizmo, is given three rules: he must not be exposed to bright light, he must not be fed after midnight, and he must not get wet. If any of these rules are broken, the Mogwai will transform into a Gremlin, a mischievous and destructive creature. The film also stars Phoebe Cates as Billy’s girlfriend, Kate Beringer,...

The film’s title is a reference to the mythological creatures known as gremlins, which were blamed for mechanical failures in aircraft during World War II. The film was directed by Joe Dante, who also directed the 1985 film Explorers and the 2011 film Cowboys & Aliens. The screenplay for Gremlins was written by Chris Columbus, who also wrote the screenplays for Home Alone and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. The film stars Zach Galligan as Billy Peltzer, a young man who receives a Mogwai as a pet for Christmas. The Mogwai, named Gizmo, is given three rules: he must not be exposed to bright light, he must not be fed after midnight, and he must not get wet. If any of these rules are broken, the Mogwai will transform into a Gremlin, a mischievous and destructive creature. The film also stars Phoebe Cates as Billy’s girlfriend, Kate Beringer,...

Ethan Hawke has been a member of the Screen Actor’s Guild for quite some time.

On Tuesday, the 52-year-old Oscar nominee took some time to share a throwback snap to his Instagram, nostalgically recalling the day his 14-year-old self joined the iconic Guild.

“Age 14. In a fresh outfit my mom bought me for the honor of going to receive my SAG card,” wrote “The Black Phone” star, which showed an old school pic of him posing in front of the organization’s sign while holding a notebook.

Read More: Maya Hawke Admits She Once ‘Lied’ To Her Father Ethan And Said She ‘Was Going To Therapy’ When She Really Went To Lose Her Virginity

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A post shared by Ethan Hawke (@ethanhawke)

Hawke’s post comes along during the ongoing SAG-AFTRA and Writers Guild of America strikes and negotiations, which sees Hollywood’s writers and...

The phrase “stay-cation” is a little played out these days, but not on Sling Freestream. If the high price of just about everything has you saying “maybe next year” to those summer vacation plans, you can still get away with free, high-quality programs streaming live and on-demand on Sling’s free streaming platform.

You can see the best in global hunting and fishing, visit scenic vistas, and learn something new about exciting and exotic locales with channels like Go Traveler and Waypoint TV. Check below for a list of travel channels available on Sling Freestream, and start watching any time at no cost, whether you’re a paid Sling TV subscriber or not!

Watch Now $0 / month sling.com What Travel Channels are Available on Sling Freestream?

The headlining travel channel available on Sling Freestream is Go Traveler. Users can head to any continent on the planet with this channel, squeezing...

Joe Dante is an American filmmaker, best known for directing cult classic films such as Gremlins, The ‘Burbs and Explorers. His career has spanned decades since his first feature-length debut in 1978’s Hollywood Boulevard. Dante has worked on a variety of genres over the years – from horror to comedy to family films. He’s also contributed to numerous television series, including Amazing Stories, Tales from the Crypt and Smallville. Aside from his film work, Joe Dante has also served as a mentor for the American Film Institute’s Directing Workshop for Women program and the AFI Conservatory Directing program. In addition, he is a member of multiple film societies including the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences (AMPAS) and Directors Guild of America (DGA).

Joe Dante. Depostiphotos...

Aaron Stewart-Ahn, writer of Mandy (yes… That Mandy), discusses a few of his favorite films with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Mandy (2018)

The ’Burbs (1989) – Ti West’s trailer commentary, Tfh’s ’Burbs Mania

Explorers (1985)

The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982)

Cyborg (1990)

Masters Of The Universe (1987) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary

Down Twisted (1987)

Rumble In The Bronx (1996)

Green Book (2018)

Hellraiser (1987)

Nemesis (1992)

Heat (1995)

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind a.k.a. Warriors of the Wind (1984)

Princess Mononoke (1997)

Star Wars (1977)

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)

Dune (1984)

Blue Velvet (1986) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Charlie Largent’s Criterion Blu-ray review

Waterworld (1995)

Super Mario Bros. (1993)

Gremlins (1984) – Glenn Erickson’s 4K Blu-ray review, Tfh’s 30th anniversary celebration

Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)

Do The Right Thing (1989) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary

Minari (2020)

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review...

National Geographic Channel has acquired Elizabeth Unger’s wildlife-crime documentary feature “Tigre Gente” in Latin America, where the film will premiere on April 22 as part of the channel’s Earth Day lineup. Limonero Films has acquired the film for distribution outside Latin America. “Tigre Gente,” which premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in 2021, is produced by Unger alongside Joanna Natasegara, who won an Oscar for “The White Helmets,” and was Oscar nominated for “The Edge of Democracy” and “Virunga.”

When Unger set out to make a feature documentary about the battle to protect the jaguar in Bolivia, her mission was to break new ground in the wildlife-crime genre “by exploring the root cause of the mentality that’s driving the demand,” she says.

She hopes the film “will help battle misconceptions and give Western audiences a better comprehension of Chinese culture and tradition as it pertains to wildlife consumerism.”

She adds: “We can do better,...

A holy trinity of films ushered in Ethan Hawke’s “adult relationship” with Hollywood decades ago.

Academy Award nominee Hawke revealed that he was going to quit acting after “Explorers” and “Dead Poets Society,” but that watching Paul Schrader and Martin Scorsese’s “Taxi Driver” and “Raging Bull,” along with “Five Easy Pieces,” changed his mind back in 1989.

“That’s when my adult relationship with film really started,” Hawke told Sharp magazine about how his life changed at age 19. “I saw how high the bar could be — and I really wanted to be a part of it.”

The “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” actor added that he “slowly kept falling more and more in love with movies.”

Hawke returned to college after filming Peter Weir’s “Dead Poets Society,” and it took Hawke years to realize “what a master Peter was of this profession” following the film’s success.

"Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade" may be the finale to the trilogy, but it opened by going back to the adventurer's earliest beginnings. In a 10-minute sequence set in 1912 Utah, we learn how the future Dr. Jones acquired his hat, his whip, and his fear of snakes. Harrison Ford was obviously much too old to play the teenage Indy during this cold open, so River Phoenix played the part instead.

Ford is more protective of Indiana Jones than he is many of his other roles. It's not surprising that Phoenix only played the part with his approval. However, Ford didn't just okay Phoenix's casting, he was the one who first proposed it. How did Ford know Phoenix could successfully play his younger self? Three years earlier in 1986, they had played father and son in "The Mosquito Coast."

Casting Off Of The Mosquito Coast

Based on a novel by Paul Theroux,...

Actor/writer/director Ethan Hawke discusses a few of his favorite films with Josh Olson and Joe Dante.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Explorers (1985) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

The Verdict (1982)

The Color Of Money (1986) – Rod Lurie’s trailer commentary

Nobody’s Fool (1994)

Three Faces Of Eve (1957)

Mr. And Mrs. Bridge (1990)

North By Northwest (1959)

Torn Curtain (1966)

Psycho (1960) – John Landis’s trailer commentary

Frenzy (1972) – Joe Dante’s trailer commentary

Topaz (1969)

Boyhood (2014)

An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)

Blue Collar (1978) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary

First Reformed (2017) – Glenn Erickson’s trailer commentary

Taxi Driver (1976) – Rod Lurie’s trailer commentary

The Left Handed Gun (1958)

Hombre (1967)

Hud (1963)

Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid (1969)

The Life And Times Of Judge Roy Bean (1972) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

Buffalo Bill And The Indians, Or Sitting Bull’s History Lesson (1976) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

The Outrage (1964)

Rashomon (1950) – Brian Trenchard-Smith’s trailer commentary,...

Director/Tfh Guru Mick Garris discusses his favorite year in film, 1986, with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.

Show Notes:

Movies Referenced In This Episode

Stir of Echoes (1999)

The Sixth Sense (1999)

The Fly (1958) – Jesus Treviño’s trailer commentary

*The Fly (1986) – Katt Shea’s trailer commentary

The Fly II (1989)

Fuzzbucket (1986)

The Howling (1981) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings

Gremlins (1984) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review, Tfh’s Mogwai Madness

Alien (1979) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings

*Aliens (1986) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

The Terminator (1984) – Adam Rifkin’s trailer commentary

The Brood (1979) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)

Scanners (1981) – Mick Garris’s trailer commentary

Fast Company (1979)

Rabid (1977) – Mick Garris’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

Shivers (1975)

Crimes of the Future (1970)

Crimes of the Future (2022)

Stereo (1969)

Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985) – Alan Spencer’s trailer commentary

Stand By Me...

(from left) The Howling (Embassy Pictures); director Joe Dante; Gremlins (Warner Bros.) Photo: Todd Gilchrist/ Shout Factory; Shout Factory; Warner Bros. Graduating alongside Martin Scorsese and Ron Howard from Roger Corman’s school for filmmakers with more creativity than cash, Joe Dante was always the director whose 1980s blockbusters felt...

Iconic genre filmmaker Joe Dante is currently promoting his Scream Factory and Shout Factory TV takeover entitled “Joe Dante’s Film Inferno.” Taking place on September 3 on Screamfactorytv.com at 3pm Et, during the “Inferno,” the legendary director of ’80s classics like “Gremlins,” “Explorers,” and many more, will introduce and guide you through seven underrated classic feature films from the Shout Factory/Scream Factory catalog, including films like Roger Corman’s “Attack of the Crab Monsters,” William Castle’s “House on Haunted Hill,” and more.

Continue reading Joe Dante Talks Almost Making The Original ‘Batman’ Film & How He Wanted John Lithgow To Play The Joker at The Playlist.

Ethan Hawke was born in 1970, barely a year after Paul Newman received his fifth Oscar nomination, this one for producing Rachel, Rachel (1968). That film was the first passion project in which Newman directed his wife, muse, and lifelong partner, Joanne Woodward. It would not be the last. They would go on to collaborate again as director and star, and sometimes as co-leads, three more times before Hawke entered the industry. And by the time Hawke was himself getting his start as a teenager in movies like Explorers (1985) and Dead Poets Society (1989), Newman was still racking up Oscar nominations, plus a couple of wins in the 1980s.

To say that talent as immense as Newman and Woodward loomed large in Hawke’s world as a young actor would be an understatement. They were gods. And when their theater company, the Blue Light Theater Company, invested in one of Hawke’s earliest plays,...

Producer Mike Finnell (Joe Dante’s long time producing partner) joins Josh and Joe to discuss a few of his favorite movies.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Avalanche (1978)

Airport (1970)

Earthquake (1974) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

Matinee (1993) – Illeana Douglas’s trailer commentary, Dennis Cozzalio’s review, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

Hollywood Boulevard (1976) – Jon Davison’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing

Deceived (1991)

Newsies (1992)

Milk Money (1994)

Rock ‘n’ Roll High School (1979) – Eli Roth’s trailer commentary

The Howling (1981) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings

Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983)

Gremlins (1984) – Glenn Erickson’s 4K Blu-ray review, Tfh’s 30th anniversary celebration

Explorers (1985) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

Innerspace (1987) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

The ’Burbs (1989) – Ti West’s trailer commentary, Tfh’s ’Burbs Mania

Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)

Small Soldiers (1998)

A Matter of Life and Death (1946) – Glenn Erickson’s...

Kind blue eyes. That’s the most striking part of the poster for The Black Phone, the latest Blumhouse horror movie from director Scott Derrickson. Filling the poster is the face of the Grabber, a kidnapper and child murderer who terrorizes a Denver suburb in 1978, covered with speckled gray paint. A mask covers the Grabber’s jaw, giving the killer an unsettling permanent grin, while a top hat and wide glasses accentuate his upper face. But it’s those eyes that stand out the most, somehow kind and sad, despite their ghastly surroundings, making the Grabber all the more terrifying.

In that one image, we see the secret to Ethan Hawke’s late-career turn toward horror. After establishing himself as one of the greatest leading men from Generation X, Hawke developed a reputation for playing sensitive and vulnerable characters, given to fits of thoughtful melancholy. But with movies such as The Purge,...

This article contains Star Trek: Strange New Worlds spoilers.

Although Strange New Worlds doesn’t require a casual viewer to know anything about Star Trek, it certainly doesn’t hurt. Especially with the latest episode, the utterly hilarious episode, “Spock Amok.” Right away, even in the title, the episode is referencing the famous Original Series banger, “Amok Time.” You don’t need to have seen “Amok Time” to dig this episode, and frankly, the references to that classic episode are just the tip of the Vulcan Lirpa. (Which doesn’t have a tip anyway because it’s curved. You get it.)

Here are the biggest easter eggs and references in Strange New Worlds episode 5:

“Amok Time” Opening

The opening of the episode, in which Spock fights a “human” version of himself within a dream, references “Amok Time” in several ways. Overall, the scene foreshadows Spock’s actual wedding ceremony...

What if you could make your peace with your own history? What if you could, as an adult, go back and make peace with your younger self, and make your peace with the parents we failed to understand when we were growing up? What if you could go back and reconnect with your parents with the benefit of a lifetime of wisdom and perspective? These are the questions director Shawn Levy asks in his latest film The Adam Project. Starring Ryan Reynolds, Walker Scobell, Jennifer Garner, Mark Ruffalo, Zoe Saldaña and Catherine Keener, the film is the story of a time-traveling pilot Adam Reed (Reynolds) who teams up with his younger self, (Scobell), and his late father, Louis Reed (Ruffalo) to come to terms with his past, and losses, while saving the future.

In this throwback to the sci-films from the 80’s, the filmmaker proves with The Adam Project the power of nostalgia.

What would you say if you could go back in time and talk to your 12-year-old self? Something like, “Look, kid, you do not grow up to be rich, famous or a rock star — but you do have a family and a very fulfilling life, it does get better, just hang in there, lil’ slugger”? Would you urgently yell, “Come with me if you want to live!” and then you each have a really good laugh, because you both agree that The Terminator is, like, totally awesome? (That personal opinion...

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By Todd Garbarini

I love Joe Dante. He has directed some hugely entertaining films and is an aficionado of the same genres I adore. Additionally, like most film directors, he is highly versed in cinemaspeak. My introduction to his work came in 1983 when I bought his werewolf classic The Howling (1981) sight-unseen on RCA’s now extinct Ced system and immediately took to it. That failed stylus-based videodisc format was severely limited to only several thousand titles, so I had to rely on VHS to catch up with his Hollywood Boulevard (1976), Piranha (1978), and Rock ‘n’ Roll High School (1979) in the mid-80’s following theatrical viewings of Twilight Zone: The Movie in 1983 and Gremlins in 1984. For some reason, his July 12, 1985-released outing Explorers, which concerns the escapades of three young boys making their way through the battlefield of junior high school, escaped my list of...

One of Joe Dante’s finest pictures speaks heart-to-heart to gee-whiz space fans — transporting us from our backyard to the far reaches of the galaxy. With a boost from aliens unknown, Ethan Hawke, River Phoenix and Jason Presson are the intrepid space cadets that construct a fantastic vehicle from mysterious dream-signals, no Interociter required. Their dreams hint at the secret desires in their adolescent imaginations, even without an it’s-all-a-dream sandpit. They dare fly where no man has flown before, a genuine escape from the petty pressures of Junior High. New and old input on the Blu-ray finally tells the full story of the making of an underrated wonder movie.

Explorers

Blu-ray

1985 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 109, 106 min. / Street Date May 25, 2021

Starring: Ethan Hawke, River Phoenix, Jason Presson, Amanda Peterson, Dick Miller, Dana Ivey, James Cromwell, Brooke Bundy, Robert Picardo, Leslie Rickert, Mary Kay Place.

Cinematography: John Hora

Film Editor: Tina Hirsch

Production Design: Robert S.

One of director Joe Dante’s most interesting and underrated films gets the Blu-ray treatment it deserves with the Shout Factory release of Explorers, Dante’s 1985 follow-up to Gremlins that walks a similarly unconventional line between Spielbergian sentiment and Tashlinesque pop satire, with an undercurrent of unsettling melancholy thrown in for good measure. There’s genuine warmth and wonder to spare in the first half of the film as friends Ethan Hawke, River Phoenix, and Jason Presson build their own spaceship; when they actually manage to rendezvous with the aliens who have been communicating with them, the movie shifts gears to become […]

The post Jim Hemphill’s Home Video Recommendations: Explorers, Fool for Love, 12 Monkeys first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

One of director Joe Dante’s most interesting and underrated films gets the Blu-ray treatment it deserves with the Shout Factory release of Explorers, Dante’s 1985 follow-up to Gremlins that walks a similarly unconventional line between Spielbergian sentiment and Tashlinesque pop satire, with an undercurrent of unsettling melancholy thrown in for good measure. There’s genuine warmth and wonder to spare in the first half of the film as friends Ethan Hawke, River Phoenix, and Jason Presson build their own spaceship; when they actually manage to rendezvous with the aliens who have been communicating with them, the movie shifts gears to become […]

The post Jim Hemphill’s Home Video Recommendations: Explorers, Fool for Love, 12 Monkeys first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

Writer, director and actress Rebecca Miller discusses a few of her favorite films with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Personal Velocity: Three Portraits (2002)

The Ballad Of Jack And Rose (2005)

The Private Lives Of Pippa Lee (2009)

Maggie’s Plan (2015)

Explorers (1985)

The Way We Were (1973)

Battleship Potemkin (1925)

Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday (1953)

Annie Hall (1977)

Repulsion (1965)

Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

Knife In The Water (1962)

The Tenant (1976)

Cries and Whispers (1972)

Persona (1966)

The Magician (1958)

Hour Of The Wolf (1968)

The Virgin Spring (1960)

The Seventh Seal (1957)

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)

The Exorcist (1973)

The Shining (1980)

La Dolce Vita (1960)

Regarding Henry (1991)

Angela (1995)

Badlands (1973)

Casino (1995)

On The Waterfront (1954)

My Dinner with Andre (1981)

Jules and Jim (1962)

The Bitter Tears Of Petra von Kant (1972)

Wings Of Desire (1987)

The Killer Inside Me (1976)

The Killer Inside Me (2010)

Married To The Mob (1988)

Blue Velvet (1986)

Dune (1984)

Imitation Of Life (1934)

Imitation Of Life (1959)

Written On The Wind (1956)

Magnificent Obsession (1954)

All That Heaven Allows...

I am still not your Tintin expert – I’m in the middle of my first reading of this series, seventy years or so after it was published and a good forty years after I was in the target demographic – but I did just read The Adventures of Tintin, Vol. 5 , the first major post-war chunk of the adventures of the Belgian boy reporter (ha!), so I can, I hope, tell you a few things.

I’ve previously gotten through the earlier omnibuses: one , and two , and three , and four . I have not yet found the first two, semi-forgotten books Tintin in the Land of the Soviets and Tintin in the Congo, which are generally considered to be racist and/or dull and/or not up to Herge’s later level; I may get to them eventually, though the library copies I originally expected to read seem to have been quietly removed...

“The evolution of art is in constant flux,” says Ethan Hawke. “I don’t know what the future will bring.”

Hawke, one of this year’s Vision Award recipients at the 10th iteration of the Sun Valley Film Festival, has been championing independent cinema since he first emerged on the big screen as a teenager in such films as “Explorers” and the Oscar-winning “Dead Poets Society.” By the time he starred as intellectual slacker extraordinaire Troy Dyer in Ben Stiller’s now-cult classic “Reality Bites,” Hawke was the pop cultural embodiment of Generation X and the epitome of 1990s 20-something, post-collegiate ennui.

A four-time Oscar nominee — most recently for his 2014 turn in Richard Linklater’s experimental drama “Boyhood” — Hawke’s debut small-screen project, the Showtime pre-Civil War miniseries “The Good Lord Bird,” comes to the Sun Valley fest as not only a rousing example of American historical fiction, but Hawke’s unwavering commitment to high-quality,...

Writer, producer, director Lee Daniels discusses some of his favorite films with Josh & Joe.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Infested (2002)

Shadowboxer (2005)

The United States Vs. Billie Holiday (2021)

A Star Is Born (1937)

Lee Daniels’ The Butler (2013)

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)

Lady Sings The Blues (1972)

Island In The Sun (1957)

Carmen Jones (1954)

Claudine (1974)

Mandingo (1975)

Drum (1976)

Caligula (1979)

Gloria (1980)

The Exorcist (1973)

Abby (1974)

Blacula (1972)

Scream Blacula Scream (1973)

Cabaret (1972)

Lenny (1974)

Sounder (1972)

All That Jazz (1979)

I Am A Camera (1955)

Travels With My Aunt (1972)

The Emigrants (1971)

Star 80 (1983)

Harold And Maude (1971)

The Godfather (1972)

The Godfather Part II (1974)

Pickup On South Street (1953)

In The Mood For Love (2000)

Leave Her To Heaven (1945)

Laura (1944)

Dragonwyck (1946)

The Baron of Arizona (1950)

His Kind of Woman (1951)

Explorers (1985)

Innerspace (1987)

Jack Reacher (2012)

Them (1954)

Revenge of the Creature (1955)

Tarantula! (1955)

Coogan’s Bluff (1968)

Going In Style (1979)

Going In Style (2017)

Judas And The Black Messiah (2021)

Stroszek (1977)

Fitzcarraldo (1982)

Land of Silence and Darkness (1971)

Cave Of Forgotten Dreams...

Cinematographer John Hora, who collaborated with director Joe Dante on films including The Howling, Gremlins, Explorers and Matinee, has died. He was 80.

Hora died unexpectedly Feb. 9 of heart failure, the American Society of Cinematographers reported.

A fan of the large-format films of the 1950s, Hora also served as Dp on the Imax films The Journey Inside (1994) and Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man (2000), and for 2012 releases, he photographed the documentary The Last Days of Cinerama and the short In the Picture, the first project created with the ultra-wide 35mm Cinerama format since 1962.

Hora and Dante teamed up for the first time on The Howling (1981),...

Cinematographer John Hora, who collaborated with director Joe Dante on films including The Howling, Gremlins, Explorers and Matinee, has died. He was 80.

Hora died unexpectedly Feb. 9 of heart failure, the American Society of Cinematographers reported.

A fan of the large-format films of the 1950s, Hora also served as Dp on the Imax films The Journey Inside (1994) and Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man (2000), and for 2012 releases, he photographed the documentary The Last Days of Cinerama and the short In the Picture, the first project created with the ultra-wide 35mm Cinerama format since 1962.

Hora and Dante teamed up for the first time on The Howling (1981),...

Mulan and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine star Rosalind Chao chats about a few of her favorite movies with Josh & Joe.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Mulan (2020)

The Joy Luck Club (1993)

The Seven Year Itch (1955)

Mary Poppins (1964)

The Sound Of Music (1965)

My Fair Lady (1964)

Gremlins (1984)

Explorers (1985)

Funny Girl (1968)

What’s Up Doc? (1972)

The Heartbreak Kid (1972)

The Graduate (1967)

Midnight Run (1988)

Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

The Lonely Guy (1984)

Waiting For Guffman (1996)

Best In Show (2000)

Hamilton (2020)

Fast Times At Ridgemont High (1982)

Misery (1990)

Paris, Texas (1984)

Buena Vista Social Club (1999)

sex, lies and videotape (1989)

The Shining (1980)

Matewan (1987)

Thousand Pieces of Gold (1990)

Lost In Translation (2003)

Mean Streets (1973)

On The Rocks (2020)

Somewhere (2010)

Adaptation (2002)

Mandy (2018)

Possessor (2020)

Midsommar (2019)

The Wicker Man (1973)

Hereditary (2018)

The Lighthouse (2019)

Other Notable Items

The Scott Alexander podcast episodes

Tfh Guru Larry Karaszewski

Star Trek franchise

The It’s A Small World ride

Disneyland

University of the Arts

Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987-1994)

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine...

“What if Dean Martin got shrunken down and put inside Jerry Lewis?” That was writer Jeffrey Boam’s clever take on his comedy-fantasy rewrite of a straight spy-fi script conceived by producers who had seemingly never heard of Fantastic Voyage. It attracted director Joe Dante, looking to make a commercial hit after the box office failure of Explorers. But in the end, of course, it turned out to be just as wacky as his earlier stuff, and its most appreciative audience emerged a year later via home video. Ilm won an Oscar for its still impressive pre-cgi special effects.

The post Innerspace appeared first on Trailers From Hell.

by Lynn Lee

If I had to pick one actor who most perfectly embodies the spirit of Generation X, the choice would be a no-brainer. With all due respect to other 40 and 50something stars or dead icons in his peer group, it could never be anyone other than Ethan Hawke. Not because—or not only because—of Reality Bites, which made him the poster child for cynical, disaffected (but secretly vulnerable) Gen X slackers everywhere. Rather because his career exemplifies the quiet independence and under-the-radar achievements of that not-quite-lost, but certainly liminal, generation. He’s been working steadily since his debut, at the age of 14, in Explorers (1985), yet like any good Gen Xer, has successfully eluded easy characterization. He reaches the half century mark today having assembled one of the most intriguing and eclectic bodies of work of any currently living actor...

Get ready, streamers. This is a huge weekend when it comes to new releases, as the various major streaming service have lots of fresh content to offer over the next few days. There are a ton of must-see originals dropping from today, Friday the 16th, right up until Sunday, with Netflix unveiling one of its biggest titles of the month, Disney Plus releasing a brand new movie and Hulu adding a new Marvel series.

To start with, Netflix’s Friday haul is stuffed with original films and TV shows, including La Révolution, a French historical program that puts a twist on the French Revolution, Spanish thriller Someone Has to Die and, most notably, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Aaron Sorkin’s biopic about a group of anti-Vietnam War protestors featuring an all-star cast including Sacha Baron Cohen, Eddie Redmayne and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.

For more, see below for the...

This Star Trek: Discovery article contains major spoilers for the Season 3 premiere.

When Burnham runs into Book’s ship in the first episode of Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 — “That Hope Is You, Part 1” — she’s set-up to spend the rest of the first episode asking a lot of questions. This is science fiction worldbuilding 101: Make your protagonist a fish-out-of-water, that way, the audience can learn about the kooky rules of this new sci-fi world right alongside your hero. In Seasons 1 and 2 of Discovery, Burnham quoted from one of Spock’s favorite books, Alice In Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking Glass. But, in Season 3, Burnham doesn’t bother quoting these books. Basically, from a narrative point-of-view, she is Alice, and the man known as Book is her Cheshire Cat. Well. He has a cat, but you get it. Burnham is unstuck in time and space, and in an attempt to get herself grounded,...

You might still be making your way through this past Friday’s new haul, but let’s look ahead all the same to what’s coming to Disney Plus this coming week. There are 10 new titles in total, including the latest episodes of the streaming service’s ongoing TV series, plus a couple of fresh shows and a brand new original movie.

Here’s the full list of what’s hitting D+ on Friday, October 16th:

Clouds (Premiere) *Disney+ Original

Disney Junior the Rocketeer (S1)

Drain (S3)

Lost on Everest

Magic of Disney’s Animal Kingdom – Episode 104 – “Meet the Mandrills” *Disney+ Original

Marvel’s Iron Man & Captain America: Heroes United

Meet the Chimps (Premiere) *Disney+ Original

One Day At Disney – Episode 146 – “Alfredo Ayala: R&d Imagineer” *Disney+ Original

The Right Stuff – Episode 103 – “Single Combat Warrior” *Disney+ Original

Weird But True – Episode 310 – “Explorers” *Disney+ Original

Following its premiere this Friday, astronaut-themed drama...