Tuesday, January 27, 2009

polish poster haters

So we've posted images of fab Polish posters and other variations on poster design, so this decent gallery at wellmedicated.com is nothing new. What is fascinating is the over 300 comments about the post, particularly the people who call these posters garbage. Thanks internet. Thanks for giving these morons power. I've excerpted some of the choice comments below as well as some positive ones.

Straight Time

The Changeling

Critters

Don't Look Now

Short Circuit 2

Enter The Dragon

Bukator - August 23rd, 2008
Are u ppl blind? These are garbage. It looks like they were drawn with pencil crayons and markers by a ten year old. We live in a world of photoshop now. These poters look to be drawn in Microsoft Paint. Get with the times man. I like vintage design just as much as anyone else but these are just terrible excuses for art. Very lazy designs here that seem to be whipped up in minutes by whoever created them. If this is what it looks like throughout Poland, then they are missing out big time.

jkillah1 - August 25th, 2008
Many of you may call these “art”, but maybe you are just giving them too much credit because they are old. To me, they just remind me of all those dirty, boring, drab things from decades ago. Like watching TV shows from the early 90’s.

I love good art, and don’t get me wrong. The modern hollywood posters are not that great, but at least they have some vibrant color!

Nowadays, all that these posters would do is depress people and make them think that the films were boring! I’m surprised that so many people like these. It just gives me a sinking feeling in my gut. Uggh!

Atama - September 14th, 2008
i thought some of these were really good,but most of them were just disgusting. the never ending story one for instance is lazy and uninspired. i mean really,its like the guy was commissioned,and the day before it was due,he got drunk and watched the movie and then doodled what he remembered the next morning while eating breakfast before he went to drop it off. the Gandhi one,though,was absolutely beautiful. very Dali-esque. but to call any of these posters better than American ones is pretty off,one because that’s a pretty broad opinion,and two,because every one of these paintings is completely and utterly destroyed by Drew Struzan and folks of his caliber. still very nice and interesting though:D

The Final Word - September 15th, 2008
It’s frustrating (though not surprising) to see the negative comments on this board. It’s too bad that so many folks are so put off by the unfamiliar, when we should all be embracing it. These are all truly remarkable pieces.

To those who suggest that these are poorly drawn: You’re foolish.

To those who suggest that these were created to skirt copyright: You’re incorrect. They were created because, believe it or not, America’s design sensibility is neither universal nor supreme. Poles respond to advertising that reflects their sensibilities, as they should.

Haters hate. Playas play.

John Peter Paul - September 19th, 2008
I grew up in Poland in 70’s and 80’s. These posters represent the dominant artistic mood of the whole country at that time. We listened to dark and complex music, we valued deep literature, we were a rather somber and serious culture- with a romantic twist. It was a direct reflection of political and economic suppression as well as the result of very dominant catholic religious culture. We also looked to England, Italy and France more than the USA for artistic direction and inspiration.
Things have changed since, but to look back at those posters brings back some good and some not so good memories.
As to the colors, the repro and printing technology was not great. Also, some of the posters were well aged by the time they were digitized for display here

Friday, January 23, 2009

movie listings fail

I think I just scooped Jesse who sent this to me, but...

This film listing
on the website for Toronto's weekly paper NOW might be corrected, but lets just record it for posterity. If you are looking for the actual review from that link just navigate to listings.

UPDATE from Jesse: THEY'VE FIXED IT, SORT OF, and now it's even funnier

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

monsters on the loose (the puffy kind)

Note: I've just been exposed as a horrible, terrible, dishonest, fraud! I pulled these images off the world wide web a year ago and promptly forgot where they came from and the originator (that sounds like a super hero - THE ORIGINATOR!) has come knocking on the door of the cinema. These FABULOUS images came from Deadilicious. You can find the original post here. Hopefully that has saved me from thumping at the hands of a team of Mexican wrestlers....

Toronto is home to a party supply store called Balloon King, filled with stock that is at least 20 years old in some cases. When I was looking for items to stuff into a Halloween pinata, imagine my delight on finding I could buy sheets with these guys stapled to them for dirt cheap. The Dracula is pretty unsettling...

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Monday, January 12, 2009

Roger Ebert, watch out!

Didn't we ban this guy from the cinema during the Doris Wishman marathon for crawling around on all fours trying to eat the dried wads of gum off the bottom of the seats? And how in the hell does he afford all those DVDs? What was your income at that age? Enough to buy armfuls of DVDs each week?

Thursday, January 08, 2009

Shit!

I refuse to keep this up. I refuse to do this for all of 2009. Somebody keep Scott Walker, Cosey Fanni Tutti and Ray Davies safe for me, please.

Goodbye to Ray Dennis Steckler, one of the most glaringly cheap filmmakers ever. And one of the most insanely watchable and fun ones too. How can you not just love his films? I've even watched The Chooper (aka Blood Shack) twice! I begged my local variety store/rental place to sell it to me for $10 on VHS! I also have an unwatched DVD around here of the XXX stuff he made and was apparently not so proud of but it paid some bills, I guess. I'm always on the watch for any Cindy Lou Sutters (his one porn alias) posters and especially those that have a similar style such as these...










And his other films are just always classics of their respective genres and exercises in enthusiastic guerrilla filmmaking at its best and most awesomely inventive!








My personal favourite and the poster that has hung behind me while I've sit at this monitor for six years or more...





And its ultra-cool and stylish opening credits with Steckler starring (as he often did) under his acting name, Cash Flagg!






Here's a great J.D. movie that has Ray starring as 'Preacher Man'.





I'm sorry if you've seen these before and/or for all the images but this one really stings for me personally. I always hoped to one day go to Vegas and get the chance to meet him. Damn! Who wants to come over and watch Sex Rink with me?












Wednesday, January 07, 2009

you remember him, right?

Those cult film fans and autograph hounds in the Cleveland area or nearby should mark off April 3, 4 & 5 and attend Cinema Wasteland, the Burning Man Festival for cult film fans. If I could go, I would rush by the autograph line-ups for The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 35th Anniversary and stake out a spot to meet Christina Lindberg in Person! Check out this hot Lindberg vinyl! The "hit" singles: "Alt Blir Tyst Igen" and the b-side, "Du Ar Min Enda Karlek" released on Fib Aktuellt Records, in the early 1970s.

And my next stop would be over to the table for Frank “The Gray Suit Zombie” Serrao! Yes! Can you belive it? I'd be all sweaty palms and not even know where to start with all the dozens of questions I have for him!