George McGrath is known for voicing the characters Cowntess / Fish / Globey / Flower / Pterri in “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse”. He is also the writer of various episodes of the show including the theme song.
George also wrote the film “Big Top Pee-Wee” and was a writer on the HBO series “Tracy Takes On”. Media Mikes had a chance to chat about “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse” and his work on the show.
Actors: Lori Cardille, Terry Alexander, Richard Liberty, Joseph Pilato
Directors: George A. Romero
Rated: Unrated
Studio: Shout! Factory
DVD Release Date: September 17, 2013
Run Time: 101 minutes
Film: 4 out of 5 stars
Extras: 4 out of 5 stars
I have always loved “Day of the Dead” but it is a very hard act to follow! “Dawn of the Dead” is easily one of the best horror films ever. But “Day” still has a ton of life in it (get the pun?!) and still holds up today even after almost 30 years. With TV shows like “The Walking Dead” and films like “World War Z”, zombies have never been hotter, so this is a great time to revisit this classic. You also get to see “The Walking Dead” Director/Co-Executive Producer/Special Effects Make-Up Artist Greg Nicotero start off in the business with his first acting role. “Scream Factory, which is part Shout Factory, is finally giving this film the release that it deserves with this Collector’s Edition Blu-ray. This film has never looked so good and shines with this release. If you own Starz/Anchor Bay rather bland 2007 release of this film, it is definitely worth the upgrade. No question!
Official Premise: The concluding part of George A. Romero’s cult horror trilogy opens with the undead roaming the planet freely. The living have been forced underground, where they make their base in a hidden missile depot, helping with the experiments of scientist Doctor Logan (Liberty), who hopes to domesticate the zombies. However, the military faction of the human survivors favour a more direct approach, and with food stocks becoming ever more depleted, they decide to take action. What folllows is the final showdown between the forces of the living and the armies of the dead.
Scream Factory gave this film a lot of love with a brand new high-def transfer…and it looks stunning. I have the older 2007 Blu-ray and the comparison is really amazing. Top that with a solid DTS-HD Master Audio track and this release is kicking on all cylinders. There is also some fantastic special features including two brand new extras. “World’s End: The Legacy of “Day of the Dead” is a brand new documentary, which is easily worth the purchase of the disc alone. “Underground: A Look into the ‘Day of the Dead’ Mines” is another new feature looking into the film’s shooting location. There are two audio commentary tracks, the first with writer/director George A. Romero, Special Make-up Effects artist Tom Savini, Production Designer Cletus Anderson and actress Lori Cardille. The second is with filmmaker Roger Avary. There is some great behind-the-scenes footage coming straight from Tom Savini’s personal archives. Lastly there are Photo Galleries, Theatrical Trailers and TV Spots included.
Guitar legend George Lynch is probably best known for his work with the popular eighties hard rock band Dokken. After the break-up of the band in 1989 George continued to be successful with his group’s Lynch Mob, Souls of We and T&N which along with George also features former Dokken members Jeff Pilson and Mick Brown. T&N has just released a new album titled “Slave to the Empire” and Media Mikes had the chance to talk with George about the release as well as some of his new signature guitar products.
Adam Lawton: What led to the decision of revisiting the T&N project and to also recording a new album?
George Lynch: The idea of me, Jeff, Mick and maybe even Don Dokken playing together again has always been there. The thing is with everyone being in different bands these days and being busy it’s kind of hard to all get together. You almost have to have a reason or an avenue to make that happen. We had been trying to put the Dokken thing back together for a few years and it never really happened. Eventually Mick, Jeff and I decided to do this without Don. We did ask him to join us however he declined. When you play with the same group of guys for a number of decades those experiences never go away as its part of your life.
AL: Where there at any time reservations about the project and getting back together?
GL: No. Mick has really been coming back in a big way over the last few years. He has gone out on a couple Lynch Mob tours, he played on this album of course and he will most likely end up being the drummer when we take T&N on the road. Jeff and I have been constantly trying to find ways to work together. We live down the street from one another and really our relationship has never changed. We still inter-act the same as we did in the early Dokken days. We might be 30 years older but when we are sitting in a room playing music together it’s like that time never went by.
AL: What was it like writing new material together and also revisiting the old material?
GL: Those were two completely different animals. Re-doing the old stuff was relatively easy. It didn’t require a lot of brain power as we know the songs really well. That allowed us to have fun with them and change/add in some new parts. With the new material it was more as if we were in a laboratory. A little more thinking was required. Thinking is work for me these days. (Laughs) We did a lot of the writing by the seat of our pants. That’s what’s wonderful about writing with Jeff. I love the trust we have and we have a certain style of writing. There has never been an issue with Jeff and me productivity wise. There is sometimes an issue though when it comes to picking a direction. We may write a trippy acid song one time and a blues song the next. We have to sort of bring ourselves in when it comes to that type of thing.
AL: Has there been any discussion about touring in support of the release?
GL: We intended to go out last year during the fall. We had a really great slot at the Loud Park Festival and there were a few European shows and a few shows in the states booked however due to a number of business reasons things didn’t pan out. Things for this coming year are looking really good and our intention is to get out there.
AL: Being a huge horror fan I have to ask how Dokken got involved with the “Nightmare on Elm Street” franchise?
GL: We had a wonderful manager at the time by the name of Cliff Bernstein. At the time he was probably one of the biggest rock managers and still actually could be one of the biggest today. If I had to credit one person with the success of Dokken I would have to credit him. He brought that opportunity to us. Being involved with that film really propelled the band in to a lot of people’s consciousness. Jeff and I wrote “Dream Warriors” when we were living together in Arizona. For us it was a huge deal even though we didn’t really make any money at it. (Laughs) We were persuaded by our managers to take a buy out on the song. We received a small piece for the song and that was it. It worked for us though.
AL: Were you guy’s fans of the previous films?
GL: I personally was. When the first one came out I thought it was pretty mind blowing. I was in to horror films growing up and I like a lot of the classics. Prior to the movie though I had sort of evolved out of liking the genre but when we did the song for the film it renewed my interest in horror films.
AL: Do you have any new signature guitar gear coming out this year?
GL: I have two things that I can think of off of the top of my head. The first one is a pedal I have been working on with the Cusack Company. The idea is for the pedal to combine everything I think is crucial in a pedal board in to one unit. Over the years I have found running a number of pedals can cause impedance issues. This pedal is being designed so that everything matches up perfectly and all your signals are balanced. The other thing I have been working on is a signature acoustic guitar through ESP. They have come out extremely well and even better than I expected. We worked hard on the project to make a guitar that sounded good and was affordable. Everything on these guitars looks and sounds great!
AL: Do you have any other projects in the works that you would like to mention?
GL: I have a project that we just decided on a name for the other day. It’s titled KXM. The letters stand for Korn, Kings X and Lynch Mob. The lineup is Ray Luzier of Korn, Doug Pinnick of Kings X and me so that’s where the KXM comes from. We went in to the studio not knowing what we would sound like. Things could have gone a number of different ways but what it ended up being is a very dark sounding record with some funk elements. We actually just finished it up. I don’t think there is anything unexpected on the record but it is dark. We have some interesting ideas of how we are going to be releasing the material so people will want to be watching for that. I also have something that is still in the project stage called The Infidels. It features the rhythm section of the band WAR. We are doing some very ass shaking, groove type material that is just instrumental at this time as we are still deciding what we want to do with everything. Lastly is a documentary film titled “ShadowTrain”. On the surface the film appears to be about music and Native Americans but it is really an exploration of human nature. The film is philosophical, historical, musical and spiritual. This is something I have never done before but thankfully I have people working with me on this that know what they are doing. There is also a band involved with this as well that recorded a record. The record is the soundtrack to the film and is mostly improvisational. What we did was to go around to Native American reservations and play music that was completely improvisational. We had no idea what we were going to do. We just would start with a beat or a riff and see where it would take us. People interested in finding out more about the film can visit the official website at www.shadowtrainmovie.com
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To celebrate the release of “George A. Romero Presents Deadtime Stories- Volume 2”, Media Mikes would like to giveaway 5 COPIES of the DVD. If you would like to win one of these prizes, please leave us a comment below or send us an email and let us know your favorite favorite Romero film. This giveaway will be open until Monday October 3rd at Noon, Eastern Time and is only open to residents of the United States. Only one entry per person, per household; all other entries will be considered invalid. Once the giveaway ends, Media Mikes will randomly pick out winners and alert the winners via email.
Millennium Entertainment proudly announces the DVD release of “George A. Romero Presents Deadtime Stories- Volume 2”. The second volume of this two-volume set from horror master Romero consists of an anthology of three 30-minute nail-biting horror films from writer Jeff Monahan (Lone Star), who also directs alongside Michael Fischa, Matt Walsh and Marty Schiff.
George A. Romero, writer-director of the famed NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, has created this horror anthology containing the following three short horror films:
· THE GORGE: Three best friends go hiking on a fun morning expedition when a sudden avalanche leaves them trapped in a cave with no way out. Now imprisoned in a living nightmare, how long can the three survive before they begin to turn on each other?
· ON SABBATH HILL: A chilling tale about a handsome playboy professor who is a stickler for student attendance. When his wandering affections cause a female admirer to commit suicide, his stern attendance rules come back to haunt him. Literally.
· DUST: When a scientist at a high-tech space lab discovers dust from the planet Mars might have the ability to cure cancer, a security guard steals a sample for his terminally ill wife. What at first appears to be a miracle cure turns into an unimaginable horror.
Directors: Jeff Monahan, Matt Walsh
Starring: George A. Romero
Studio: Millennium Entertainment
MPAA Rated: R
Run Time: 101 minutes
Our Score: 2.5 out of 5 stars
If you read my review for Volume 1 of this release then you would know that 2.5/5 is a RAVING review compared. I still am confused as to why George A. Romero decided to put his name on these films since they are not B movies and are lower than even Syfy originals (which I LOVE BTW). The acting and production value are so weak overall. Luckily the first two films in this series are good and really gory. The last one is lame but watchable.
The first film is called “THE GORGE”. It is about three best friends that go hiking but an avalanche trapped in a cave and resort to cannibalism. The second is called “ON SABBATH HILL” about a professor relationship with his student causes her to commit suicide, but still comes to class to haunt him. The last one is my least favorite “DUST” about a scientist that discovers dust from Mars that the ability to cure cancer but a security guard steals it for terminally ill wife and of course things go array.
Luckily this collection of horror films does not skimp on the gore. It is actually pretty intense especially in the first film. Since this is a zero budget project even though it shows it this is a major improvement from Volume 1’s films which I could barely even finish. Overall worth a watch but definitely not “Tales from the Crypt” quality.
Director: J.T. Seaton
Starring: Peter Stickles, Michelle Tomlinson, Lynn Lowry
Rated: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Vicious Circle Films
Run Time: 93 minutes
Our Score: 1.5 out of 5 stars
I have seen my share of shitty zombie movies for sure and this is definitely one of them. The idea is behind this film gets old after 5 minutes with the whole zombie intervention. What is funny is that the film actually gets better in its third act when it become a zombie slay fest. It is hard to watch these movies because they all claim to be some kind of a mix with “Shaun of the Dead”. “Shaun of the Dead” was a unique film and honestly there hasn’t been anything like it since.
The title pretty much tells the whole plot, there is a zombie named George whose friends surprise him with an intervention. Things go array and George has himself a buffet of his friends, salesman and strippers. Zany antics break out and the victims turn into zombies themselves. The story tries to hard to be funny and it ends up failing.
I have to note that Lynn Lowry gives a genre worthy performance and its super over the top (too bad she gets offed so quickly). Production wise this film is low budget but it does have some decent gore. Although my main issue is that the film goes from extremely gory in some scenes and then in other scenes it has cut away kills.
SPECIAL FEATURES (Not available for review)
Cast & Crew Audio Commentary, Deleted/Alternate Scenes, Lloyd Kaufman Alternate Takes & Bloopers, Zombie Rehab Center Group Therapy, Sunday On The Set With George – Short Film by Mike Justice, Theatrical & Teaser Trailers, Behind the Scenes Footage
