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Aside December 21, 2021 Markosun Movies

The ‘Banned Trailer’ from The Exorcist

Aside December 6, 2021 Markosun Movies, Scary

In my humble opinion the The Exorcist is the most frightening horror movie ever made. Nothing ever created before or since contains the chilling notions and graphic images put forward in that film. The Hellraiser movies get honourable mention.

The Exorcist will scare the meanest, nastiest and badest hombres out there.

William Friedkin’s 1973 masterpiece, The Exorcist, was a landmark in horror cinema, a cultural phenomenon, and (if adjusting for inflation) the ninth highest-grossing film of all time.

The film makes minimal use of music—a stylistic choice which gives the film an air of stark realism despite the supernatural events depicted onscreen. Of the minimal music used in the film, most famous is Mike Oldfield’s “Tubular Bells,” which went on to become a smash so huge that it essentially birthed the Virgin empire.

Before Friedkin settled on Oldfield’s prog masterpiece, he had originally commissioned a score from Lalo Schifrin, who had famously done soundtrack work for Cool Hand Luke, Dirty Harry, and the instantly recognizable Mission Impossible TV show theme.

Schifrin’s atonal Exorcist score was very much in the vein of Krzysztof Penderecki (whose “Cello Concerto No. 1” of Polymorphia was used in the film’s final edit) with the addition of Bernard Herrmann-esque “fright stabs.”

This score was used in an advanced trailer which some have called the “banned trailer.” As the stories go, this trailer literally made audiences sick when it was shown. It’s unclear if the sounds and images were simply upsetting or if the flashing images actually caused seizures in some viewers.

Below the banned trailer and a short film showing audience reaction to the movie.

Great Bear Attack Movie way before ‘The Revenant’

Aside December 5, 2021 Markosun Animals, Movies

‘The Revenant’ was a box office breaking movie and most reviews are that it was very good. In the movie the Leonardo DiCaprio character gets attacked and mauled by a mean mother grizzly bear. It is a riveting scene. But not the best bear attack scene in movies. Back in 1997 a movie was released called ‘The Edge.’ It received little fanfare and sort of faded away into oblivion. A few years ago I caught it on TV and was mesmerized.

The survivors are stranded in the Alaska wilderness and ultimately get stalked and attacked by a giant Kodiak bear. This Kodiak (Kodiaks are giant grizzlies) chases them for miles and the characters barely escape until the final showdown. Sensational bear attack scenes.

The Edge is a 1997 American survival drama film directed by Lee Tamahori and starring Anthony Hopkins and Alec Baldwin. Bart the Bear, a trained Kodiak bear known for appearances in several Hollywood movies, also appears in the film as a vicious grizzly; this was one of his last film roles.

Home Alone house available to book on Airbnb

Aside December 2, 2021 Markosun Buildings, Movies

Home Alone fans can now live out their childhood dreams by spending the night in the film’s iconic house.

The house – home to the McCallister family in the 1990 Christmas classic – has been made available on Airbnb for one night only.

Located in the Chicago area, the home will be available to book from 7 December for $25 (£18).

The successful applicants will be able to stay overnight on 12 December. It is available for a maximum of four guests.

The blockbuster famously starred Macaulay Culkin as Kevin McCallister.

Guests will be greeted on arrival by Devin Ratray, who played his older brother Buzz.

“You may not remember me as particularly accommodating,” Buzz is quoted as saying in the press release.

“But I’ve grown up, and I’d be happy to share my family home – my pizza, even – with you this holiday season. Just try not to let my tarantula, Axl, loose this time.”

Other perks include booby traps, aftershave and a mirror to scream into, and 90s junk food.

The Hungarian Charles Bronson

Aside November 18, 2021 Markosun Movies

American actor Charles Bronson & the “Hungarian Charles Bronson”, actor Robert Bronzi.

Hungarian born performer Robert Bronzi is world traveled actor and professional horseman with a love for the wild west and classic American film. Bronzi has worked as a Carpenter, Horsetrainer, Musician and former Military Service Member. Professionally Trained Actor at Maria Mezey Theatre School (Budapest) as well as stuntman, acrobat and Judo Player. Robert speaks multiple languages including English, Spanish and Hungarian.

Charles Bronson was one of, if not the most, hardcore action stars ever. His gruff demeanor, no-nonsense delivery, and ruthless attitude inspired a whole generation of butt-kicking actors. Sadly, Bronson passed away in 2003, but a Hungarian actor is attempting to continue the late actor’s legacy. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that he happens to look exactly like the Death Wish star.

Robert Kovacs, AKA Robert Bronzi, made the leap from European Wild West stage shows to Hollywood after Puerto Rican film director Rene Perez spotted his photo on the wall of a bar in Spain and thought it was a still of Bronson from some mystery movie. Perez met with Bronzi and ended up bringing him to America to star in the 2017 horror western From Hell to the Wild West. Since then, Bronzi has appeared in a number of action films where the main selling point has been his uncanny likeness to Bronson. Last year there was the Death Wish-like revenge film Death Kiss and western Once Upon a Time in Deadwood, and up next he’ll star in the prison escape action Escape from Death Block 13.

Abduction Movie Posters

Aside November 4, 2021 Markosun Movies, Science Fiction

Markozen’s top 10 Horror movies

Aside October 27, 2021 Markosun Movies

This is a very subjective list as I am not a movie aficionado and there are dozens of great horror movies that I have not seen. But here it is.

Number 1

The Exorcist

I saw this movie when I was 14 years old. Not a good idea. I was an altar boy at the time and therefore still believed in Angels and Demons. This movie so terrified me that I almost went to see a priest to discuss my possible possession by a demon.

This movie takes horror to a whole new level. There is the blatant visceral demonic possession scenes, but at the same time subtle underlying terrifying messages that come at you from all angles.

Number 2

Hellraiser

The Cenobite Demons in this movie are radical. The torture chambers and dark cenobite world is shocking. Pinhead causes cold streams of angst to penetrate your very soul. The Uncle Frank character is a classic. Clive Barker creates a brand new world of horror like nothing that came before.

Number 3

The Shining

Jack Nicholson at his creepy best. What you don’t see in this movie is scarier than what you do see. The Overlook Hotel is the perfect haunted mansion. The horrific history of the hotel is something that the moviegoer will ponder for weeks after seeing this movie.

Number 4

Alien

Great monster, great spaceship, great planet scene, great story and great crew on the ship. Enough said.

Number 5

Black Christmas

Very creepy psycho in the attic murdering sorority girls. A young Andrea Martin is worth revisiting this classic. The strange sounds and noises that the thing in the attic makes is enough to make your hair stand on end.

Number 6

Dawn of the Dead

Zombies run amuck in a shopping mall. Lots of gore which is typical of Zombie movies. After seeing this movie you will never look at a shopping mall the same way again.

Number 7

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 1974

Very disturbing hillbilly killers who also double as cannibals. These gruesome psychos are on a mission from the Devil himself. Sticking innocent victims on a meat hook is just one of their nefarious techniques. The old grandpa killer is an island of hilarity in this dark tale.

The Grandpa scene, not for the faint of heart.

Number 8

The Silence of the Lambs

The Antagonist in this movie is one of the best of all time. Hannibal the Cannibal Lecter is a genius killer and cannibal. His dispatch of the 2 policeman is done with such cunning and precision that it makes your head spin. Great story combined with amazing characters. A classic.

Number 9

The Thing 1982

One of the most innovative monsters in movie history. This Thing can copy and replicate any biological form. You never know who the enemy is. Your best buddy or pet could be an evil alien life form that wants to eat you whole. Set in the Antarctic on an isolated base this movie leaves you with a very cold chill indeed.

Number 10

The Hills Have Eyes

Grotesque mutants that prey on unsuspecting travellers. This movie has enough blood, guck and gore to nauseate the toughest horror fan. The mutants got this way from exposure to radiation from atomic bomb tests in the desert. They are seeking revenge on the normal folk. And pity the poor normal folk that wander into mutant territory.

How many people work on a Hollywood film?

Aside October 22, 2021October 22, 2021 Markosun Movies

The statistics below are somewhat dated.

I watched a movie the other day and when ‘The End’ text appeared a really catchy song started. So I listened to the song and began watching the credits. It seemed to never end, credit after credit with name after name. A question arose in my head; how many people are in a crew for a Hollywood film?

By Stephen Follows

Last week I ran a course in Malaysia for the Met Film School and the Malaysian Government. Malaysia is set to be a popular destination for Hollywood projects, thanks mostly to the 30% tax break and the brand new Pinewood Studio complex. The studio is not officially open yet but already ‘Marco Polo’ has set up shop and is hiring. The Malaysian government is funding courses to prepare locals for work on huge Hollywood productions and my course last week was for would-be Production Assistants.

In order to give the students a sense of the scale of these productions I asked them to guess how many people worked on the movie ‘Avatar’. Guesses ranged from a few hundred up to a thousand. The actual figure (according to IMDb) is 2,984.

This got me thinking about what the number of crew members could tell us about a production. There are few caveats to this approach which I’ve laid out at the bottom of this article, but nonetheless it’s quite a revealing process. I took the 50 highest grossing films of each of the past 20 years (giving me 1,000 films to study) and looked at the number of people credited on IMDb. In summary…

Iron Man 3 credits 3,310 crew members
The average number of crew credits in the top 1,000 films between 1994 and 2013 was 588.
Over half of the top films had under 500 people in their crew
On average the top films of the past two decades have each had 3.5 writers, 7 producers, 55 people in the art department, 32 in sound, 55 in camera / electrical and 156 in visual effects.
The Butler had 39 producers – 5 producers, 17 executive producers, 6 co-executive producers, 4 co-producers and 7 associate producers
A third of the workers on Love Actually were in the art department
Crew credits suggest that Peter Jackson favours special effects over visual effects more than the industry average.
Now You See Me has six times the average number of people in the camera department
23% of the people who worked on ‘Pokemon: The First Movie’ were in the music department

The largest crew on a Hollywood film

The biggest crews are rather staggering, with 3,310 people receiving a credit on Iron Man 3.

FILMS WITH LARGEST CREWS (1994-2017)
Iron Man 3	3,310
Avatar	2,984
Marvel’s The Avengers	2,718
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey	2,709
Chronicles of Narnia: Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe	2,622
Man of Steel	2,543
Captain America: The First Avenger	2,536
Thor	2,384
Transformers: Dark of the Moon	2,376
His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass	2,235

Overall, the average number of crew credits was 588, with the top 25% of films accounting for half of all credits. Out of my list of 1,000 films…

Only 1 film had over 3,000 credits
13 films credited between 2,000 – 2,999 people
133 films credited between 1,000 – 1,999 people
287 films credited between 500 – 999 people
566 films credited under 500 people

Visual Effects

Avatar just pips Iron Man 3 to the Oscar for ‘Most People Credited in the Visual Effects Department’. Interestingly, The Golden Compass is the only Hollywood film in the top 20 of this visual effect chart which was not released in 3D.

FILMS WITH LARGEST VISUAL EFFECTS DEPARTMENT (1994-2017)
Avatar	1,844
Iron Man 3	1,834
Marvel’s The Avengers	1,514
Man of Steel	1,445
The Golden Compass	1,252

For 57 of my 1,000 films, the Visual Effects Department made up over 50% of all crew members. If you meet someone in a pub who says they worked on Harry Potter there is a 62% chance they worked in visual effects. Similar numbers are true for Gravity, Pacific Rim, Avatar and Total Recall. In fact, the VFX department of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II made up a larger percentage of the total crew than Avatar (62.0% versus 61.8%). This is surprising as Harry Potter appears to be an almost exclusively live action film whereas Avatar is largely CGI animation.

Special Effects

Special effects include on-set physical, mechanical and in-camera effects and should not be confused with digital / visual effects. Hollywood films by Peter Jackson take up four out of the top five places, revealing his love of real-world, on set trickery.

FILMS WITH LARGEST SPECIAL EFFECTS DEPARTMENTS (1994-2017)
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey	225
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring	217
Avatar	212
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King	211
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers	195

Stunts

The number of stunt performers involved with the most recent Batman film is rather impressive, due in part to the huge street battles.

FILMS WITH LARGEST STUNT DEPARTMENTS (1994-2017)
The Dark Knight Rises	258
The Green Hornet	223
The Bourne Ultimatum	188
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer	177
The Lone Ranger	175

That mysterious lake in the Clint Eastwood movie High Plains Drifter

Aside October 22, 2021 Markosun Movies, Nature

High Plains Drifter is a classic Eastwood movie from the early seventies. I think I have seen the movie 7 or 8 times. And every time I watch it I am mesmerized by that beautiful lake.

High Plains Drifter is a 1973 American Western film, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood and produced by Robert Daley for The Malpaso Company and Universal Pictures. Eastwood plays a mysterious gunfighter hired by the residents of a corrupt frontier mining town to defend them against a group of criminals.

The film was shot on location on the shores of Mono Lake, California.

Mono Lake is a large, shallow saline soda lake in Mono County, California, formed at least 760,000 years ago as a terminal lake in a basin that has no outlet to the ocean. The lack of an outlet causes high levels of salts to accumulate in the lake. These salts also make the lake water alkaline.

This desert lake has an unusually productive ecosystem based on brine shrimp that thrive in its waters, and provides critical nesting habitat for two million annual migratory birds that feed on the shrimp.

Mono Lake

Max. length	15 km (9.3 mi)
Max. width	21 km (13 mi)
Surface area	45,133 acres (182.65 km²)
Average depth	17 m (56 ft)
Max. depth	48 m (157 ft)
Water volume	2,970,000 acre·ft (3.66 km³)
Surface elevation	6,383 ft (1,946 m) above sea level

Islands	Two major: Negit Island and Paoha Island; numerous minor outcroppings (including tufa rock formations). The lake’s water level is notably variable.

Clint riding into the town of Lago, on the shore of Mono Lake.

In the movie they paint the town red to try and disorient the killers who are on their way.

The movie set (town of Lago) in the first picture, and the same location with the town gone in the second.

The most unusual feature of Mono Lake are its dramatic tufa towers emerging from the surface. These rock towers form when underwater springs rich in calcium mix with the waters of the lake, which are rich in carbonates. The resulting reaction forms limestone. Over time the buildup of limestone formed towers, and when the water level of the lake dropped the towers became exposed.