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Showing posts from August, 2018

From the Corner: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1920)

Mike S here again with ANOTHER silent horror classic that I reviewed on my own blog.  This time, it's the 1920 version of " Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde ", starring John Barrymore (Drew Barrymore's grandfather). Dr. Jekyll is a fine, upstanding member of society: respectable, intellegent, and giving of his time to the poor in his clinic.  When criticized by his soon to be father-in-law, for his lack of worldly experience, Jekyll is determined to gain experience in the darker side of life.  A potion he creates allows him to revel in humanity's depravity as Mr. Hyde... but soon Hyde begins to take over.

Insomniac Theatre: "The Incredible Petrified World" (1957/1960)

What sort of film fits into the world of The Insomniac Theatre?  Well, movies that were completed in 1957... but not actually released until three years later for starters... Four oceanographers exploring the deep get trapped in a maze of underwater caverns.  They must find their way out before the volcano above them erupts... or they fall victim to a mysterious shipwreck survivor dwelling within the winding tunnels...

The Happytime Murders, A.X.L. and stuff

It's vacation time in The Basement, but not before Jason and Shawn unleash upon your ear holes the extended cut of Friday's segment on the mighty Radio NL 610 AM Morning Show! One complete with a look at this week's releases, and flicks coming out in the next two weeks. That includes the puppet caper The Happytime Murders, robot dog tale (get it?) A.X.L., the sci-fi actioner Kin, Conjuring spinoff The Nun and Jennifer Garner's action film Peppermint!

The Drunken Review: Humanoids from the Deep (1980)

Humanoids from the Deep, AKA Monster, is one of those notorious movies that circulated amongst my group of friends when I was a kid. Only one of the gang had seen it, but the telling of the tale he gave made this live on in infamy. Monsters come out of the water and seek hot chicks to mate with. And you see boobs! What more does a boy of 10 need to know!?!

The Basement takes a vacation, solves The Happytime Murders

It's vacation time in The Basement, ladies and gentlemen, but not before The Basement Boys join Howie  Reimer on the Radio NL 610 AM Morning Show to talk this week's new releases, and what's coming out in the weeks ahead. Yup, The Basement is taking a couple of weeks off, so there will be no new episodes until Sept. 14, once the extended-cut podcast drops on Sunday.

Retro Review: Pumpkinhead

It's funny the things that impact us more as we get older. There's a scene in Stan Winston's horror classic Pumpkinhead where Lance Henriksen, who has never been better, holds his dying son in his arms. He begins to tell the boy a story, which he does every day, when the boy utters a weak "Daddy," before passing on. When I was younger, I was like "Yeah, yeah. Bring on the monster and get to the killing."

Mike S's Top 5 Non-DC/Marvel Characters That Deserve to be on the Big Screen

After I did a list of DC characters , and a list of Marvel characters that deserved to be on the big screen, I could hear the sound of people saying, "HEY- They're are more to comics than those two companies!" And you'd be absolutely correct: Vertigo, Image, WildStorm, Dynamite, IDW, etc all have some great characters that I feel deserve a bit of love and appreciation... and possibly a big screen adaptation.

Having My Say: The Banned Ad For "The Nun"

Mike S here with words and shit. Not too long ago, Jay briefly discussed an advertisement for "The Nun" that was removed from YouTube due to "shocking content".  And he did so without calling anyone the "P" word . Props to him on that! I've had a few days to ruminate and ponder this situation, and felt I was ready to weigh in on it as well.

Mile 22, Crazy Rich Asians and Alpha

Summer is winding down, but that doesn't mean Jason and Shawn are! In fact, they're back once more with a look at this weekend's new releases and a review of Millennium After the Millennium! That's right, The Basement Boys sound off on the documentary that was the focus of a feature interview just a few short weeks ago. How do they feels about Troy Foreman and Jason Morris' ode to the influential 90's TV show? Stick with us!

Review: Millennium After the Millennium

If listeners recall, during each of our sit downs with the fine folks behind the Back to Frank Blank campaign I have preached my love for the TV series Millennium. It is, in my biased opinion, the best TV show that ever was. Cancelled in its prime, the Lance Henriksen vehicle was never given a proper conclusion, which is where Back to Frank Black came into play. Troy Foreman, James McLean and company pushed for a grand finale that would give closure to the series, and lead character Frank Black's plight.

Mile 22 goes Alpha, plus a review and junk

We're down to the last couple of weeks of summer break, which means the big movies have all but played themselves out. However, two wide releases still want to compete for your  movie-going buck, and that means the Basement Dwellers have some talking to do with Howie Reimer on the Radio NL 610 AM Morning Show.

Retro Review: Popcorn

Popcorn is one of those lesser-known genre flicks from my youth that I remember enjoying, but doesn't cross my brain pan very often. And when it does, it's not available on any streaming or rental service, so I'm always left feeling "well, shit!" when I want to watch it. Fortunately, my efforts to find the movie recently paid off, and a fresh copy arrived in my hot little hands earlier this week. Excited to watch it, I sat down and did just that last night. Was the wait worth it? Stick with me!

Insomniac Theatre: "Rampage" (2018)

Monster movies are a staple of the late night movie world, which means 2018 " Rampage " fits right into the Insomniac Theatre's roster of offerings. And what an offering it was...

When a movie trailer is too scary . . .

File this under so dumb it's almost unbelievable, but sadly true. It appears the latest marketing effort for Warner Bros. upcoming Conjuring spinoff The Nun was a little too intense for viewers. So much so it was pulled from YouTube. The video contained a jump scare that was deemed so jolting, it violated YouTube's "shocking content policy." When viewers complained on Reddit and Twitter, the video service pulled the ad.

From the Corner: "The Phantom of the Opera" (1925)

About four years ago, I reviewed the silent horror classic, " Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror ".  The next classic silent horror movie I'm bringing you is " The Phantom of the Opera ", starring Lon Chaney, Sr, and released in 1925.   A mysterious stranger has been threatening the star singer of the Paris Opera House- someone who has signs his letters simply as, "The Phantom".  This stranger wants to clear the way so his protege, Christine Daae can ascend to stardom herself.  Soon, her love for the Comte de Chagny collides with The Phantom's desire for Christine forcing both to take drastic actions in order to be with the one they love.

Help support Boris Karloff: The Early Years in Canada

Folks, there is a cool little project that needs your help. One that highlights the early years of, arguably, horror's greatest icon. He is Boris Karloff, and before he became a household name, he spent many years here in the Great White North, including a stint in Shawn and I's home town of Kamloops, British Columbia.

Summer of 84, The Meg and Slender Man

A podcast seven days in the making, the latest From The Basement is here to pleasure your ear holes. And this week we've got a great one-on-three interview as Jason talks with Montreal-based filmmaking collective RKSS about their latest feature, Summer of 84!

Review: The Meg

Is 20 years too long to wait for a movie? Can two decades worth of anticipation ever be satiated, especially when it comes to the glorious concept of a giant-shark movie? Can such a big-budget film work given the countless low-budget flicks made about that very same topic? Should Hollywood have even tried to adapt Steve Alten's ultimate beach book to the big screen, given the novel came out in the 90s? That's a lot of questions to ask one's self going into a Saturday afternoon matinee. Fortunately the answer to all these questions is the same, single word.

Review: Summer of '84

Hot on the heels of our interview with Montreal film collective RKSS, we've got a review of their new movie -- a follow up to their 2015 hit Turbo Kid -- Summer of '84, which get a limited theatrical release today! What an officious first paragraph for a Basement review . . . Written and put into production before the phenomenon that was/is Stranger Things and the big-screen adaptation of Stephen King's It, this is very much a loving look back at the 80s, which is when the collective of Francois Simard, Anouk Whissell and Yoann-Karl Whissell grew up.

The Meg swims into Summer of 84

It's Friday, and that means it's time for Jason and Shawn to join Howie Reimer on the Radio NL 610 AM Morning Show once again. This week, they're bringing an interview and review with them, along with their thoughts on the big -- as in giant-shark sized -- movie of the week: The Meg!

Retro Review: The Return of the Living Dead

Some movies stand the test of time, some movies don't. Some live up to your memories, some do not. The Return of the Living Dead is one of those odd ducks that does and doesn't. How so? Stick with me!

Mike S's Top 5 Marvel Heroes That Deserve a Big Screen Adaptation

Recently, I did a list of my top five DC heroes that I felt deserved a big screen adaptation ( you can read it here ).  It's only fair that I do one for Marvel, right? Right. I have to be honest though- I'm not altogether familiar with the Marvel heroes, having grown up mostly reading DC... however, there are a few that have caught my eye over the years, and I think would make good movie entertainment.

RKSS brings Summer of 84 to The Basement

Few things get Shawn and I as pumped as filmmakers sending us their movies to watch and review. In fact, the only thing more exciting is getting to talk to said filmmakers about said movie we're reviewing. And that's exactly what's happening this week, as Montreal-based filmmaking collective RKSS (Roadkill Superstars) speak to us about their latest movie, Summer of 84, which hits select cinemas on Friday.

The Animated Addict: "Akira" (1988)

The Animated Addict is back with a review of possibly one of the MOST influential animated movies of ALL time- 1988's " Akira ". Years after the mysterious destruction of most of Tokyo, a new city- Neo-Tokyo has grown around the ruins of the old city.  Rebellion is becoming an every day event, and bike gangs wage turf wars throughout the streets.  During one such skirmish, Tetsuo- a member of the Capsules is injured.  Before his friend Kaneda can get him to a hospital, the military shows up and spirits the injured Tetsuo away.  As he seeks to find out what happened to his friend, Kaneda gets involved with a rebel plot... and learns that his closest friend may in fact be his biggest threat...

Patrick Stewart reprises Capt. Picard in new Trek

Holy spaceballs Star Trek fans! It looks like Capt. Jean-Luc Picard will live long and prosper! That's right, word dropped just an hour ago from Patrick Stewart himself that he will return to the franchise that made him a superstar in a new Star Trek series for CBS All Access.

Christopher Robin and The Spy Who Dumped Me

Shawn is back in The Basement this week as a slew of new releases hit theatres -- none of them up The Basement Boys' alley, but the show always goes on. Truth is, Jason and Shawn are never short on words, so this week they do indeed riff on Disney's Christopher Robin and the Mila Kunis/Kate McKinnon comedy The Spy Who Dumped Me, plus a couple of other releases.

It's I-don't-want-to-watch-anything Friday

Summer is pretty much half over, and that means the majority of summer blockbusters are out, and what few big movies remain are still a week or so away. And that means there's very little for Jason, Shawn and Radio NL 610 AM Morning Show host Howie Reimer to talk about this week. Just kidding! They always have stuff to talk about!

Bond hottie headlines sleep-based horror Mara

It's been a while since I've seen former Bond girl Olga Kurylenko in anything, which is a shame as, aside from being downright beautiful, she was one of the better Bond girls in recent years. But she's back in the upcoming horror flick Mara, which hails from one of the producers of Paranormal Activity and Insidious. Pretty good pedigree as far as I'm concerned.

New Halloween flick is rated R

After months of speculation by horror fans, the MPAA has finally gone done and handed down a rating for David Gordon Green's upcoming Halloween movie . . . one that should please fans as much as fans can be pleased. Instead of going the PG-13 route of recent Blumhouse horror hits, Green and co-writer Danny McBride went old school, and the movie will indeed be rated R!