Out today from The Asylum, 500 MPH Storm, a hypercane-disaster flick from director Daniel Lusko and screenwriter Hank Woon, Jr.
I watched this one myself over the weekend, and I have to say, it packs a punch. It also rocks a pretty great cast, headed by the always-excellent Casper Van Dien, as well as Asylum-mainstay Sarah Lieving, and Third Watch's Michael Beach. Lots of harrowing escapes from nature gone amok in this one, which makes for a thrilling 90 minutes.
So stop what you're doing and get the to a DVD/Blu-Ray dispensary and procure the latest treasure from the fine folks at The Asylum. Now. Go. Hurry!
With the New Year now in full swing, there comes info on a handful of The Asylum's 2013 slate, including release dates, new projects, and posters. Let's get into this, shall we?
First up, there's a new poster and a release date for last Halloween's SyFy-Zombie venture, Rise of the Zombies. I don't know what's scarier here, the zombie horde, or huge Trejo-face.
The film also stars Mariel Hemingway, Ethan Suplee, Heather Hemmens, French Stewart, and LeVar Burton, and comes courtesy of director Nick Lyon, maestro of 2011's Zombie Apocalypse - shout out to the zombie tiger - working off a script from Keith Allen and Delondra Williams. This gore-fest lands on February 12th, Lincoln's Birthday.
Next up is 500 MPH Storm, whose poster can be found a few inches below this in the previous post. The storm-flick features Casper Van Dien, Michael Beach, and Sarah Lieving, and will street on February 26th, Johnny Cash's birthday.
Then there's plot, cast, and release date info on two new Asylum films, 100 Below Zero and Age of Dinosaurs.
The former (a.k.a. Dead World and 50 Degrees Below Zero) is a polar disaster flick from director Richard Braunstein (Layover) and screenwriters Richard Schenkman (Abraham Lincoln vs. Zombies) & H. Perry Horton (2-Headed Shark Attack, this blog). The plot:
"When a chain of volcanic eruptions rips
through Europe, the enormous ash cloud blocks out the sun, plunging the
continent into a new ice age. An American couple must find their
college-aged kids and get them out of Paris before it freezes over."
The film stars Jeff Fahey, Johnathan Rhys-Davies, and the lovely Sara Malakul Lane (left), and will be released on July 23rd.
Then there's Age of Dinosaurs, which we already knew was directed by the super-talented - and a Committed fan fave - Joseph Lawson (Nazis at the Center of the Earth, Clash of the Empires), written by Hank Woon Jr. (the above-mentioned 500 MPH Storm), and stars Treat Williams and Ronny Cox, but what we didn't know is just what this yarn's about. Well, now we know:
"Using breakthrough flesh-regeneration
technology, a biotech firm creates a set of living dinosaurs. But when
the creatures escape their museum exhibit and terrorize Los Angeles, a
former firefighter must rescue his teenage daughter from the chaos
brought on by the Age of Dinosaurs."
Film streets May 7th.
The next disaster flick from The Asylum - 500 MPH Storm - isn't due to street for another month, but today we got ourselves a look at the poster for the windy shindig, and it's typically awesome. Behold:
What'd I tell you? My favorite part is the single car flying through the air off to the left. There's always one dolt who tries to out-drive the hypercane.
500 MPH Storm stars the one and only Casper Van Dien (Starship Troopers, Sleepy Hollow, Python), Michael Beach ( ER, Third Watch), and - yes Asylum fans - the inimitable Sarah Lieving, veteran of more Asylum films than any other actor living or deceased. This marks Ms. Lieving's 14th time in front of Asylum cameras, the last being, of course, 2011's Mega Shark vs Crocosaurus. So if for nothing else, respect demands you see this film at least three times.
500 MPH Storm is directed by documentarian Daniel Lusko, and scripted by Hank Woon Jr., the pen behind another upcoming Asylum film, Age of Dinosaurs.
We can expect a trailer in a few weeks or so to further whet our appetite, but after that we'll have to wait all the way until February 26th to see the whole thing.
Up on The Asylum page today there's a new title in the "Coming Soon" section, Jack the Giant Killer. Dig the synopsis:
"A giant beanstalk brings Jack to a land in
the clouds filled with snarling, evil beasts. When the creatures make
their way to the ground, Jack must figure out how to get back down
before they destroy earth and everyone in it."
Well that just sounds fucking spectacular. It gets even better when you realize that the film is written and directed by one of The Asylum's most prolific talents, Mark Atkins. This will mark Atkins' (pun definitely intended) 11th turn as director for the studio - 11th - behind such classics as Halloween Night, Haunting of Winchester House, Princess of Mars, Battle of Los Angeles, Dragon Crusaders and Alien Origin. This guy is, as the kids say, the bee's knees.
The film is set to star Jane March, who earlier this year played the Wicked Queen in Grimm's Snow White, and Ben Cross, best known for playing Barnabus Collins in the 90's "Dark Shadows" relaunch, and Spock's dad in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek movie.
The film drops March 12, 2013, 10 days after Bryan Singer's Jack the Giant SLAYER hits theaters. And in case you're thinking "lawsuit," nope, there was another film called Jack the Giant Killer made back in 1962, and there are similarly-themed fairy tales in Cornish, Welsh, and Norse cultures, among others. Boo-ya!
But wait, there's more - 500 MPH Storm: "When an energy experiment goes haywire, a
rash of massive hurricanes rips across North America. A high school
science teacher must get his family to safety before the hurricanes
merge, creating a "hypercane" with the power to wipe the US off the map."
This one's from director Daniel Lusko and writer Hank Woon Jr., and stars...wait for it...CASPER VAN DIEN! That's right, Johnny Rico himself has FINALLY graced an Asylum flick! Also starring is Michael Beach, best known for "Third Watch." The film streets February 26th.
Also announced, a DVD date for Abducted (aka Layover), the studio's latest Lifetime Movie: January 8th. The film stars Lauren Holly (Dumb and Dumber, Picket Fences), Kaylee DeFer (Gossip Girl) and Joe Lando (Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman, Meteor Apocalypse); it was written by the always-excellent Naomi Selfman (Mega Python vs Gatoroid, Grimm's Snow White) and directed by R.D. Braunstein.
Whew! Happy Early New Year, Asylum-style.
