Committed's 1st Birthday!

Today marks Committed's first birthday: it was exactly one year ago today that I made my first post. Whatever I was striving for, whatever I was hoping this blog would accomplish, it pales in comparison to what it has actually wrought: at this moment I've written two produced scripts for my favorite movie studio, one of which is a shark movie, my dream genre.

I feel very fortunate, very blessed and very humbled at these events, and in no small way were these victories aided by the fine, fine folks who pop by on a regular basis. People like Slushie Man, Mr. Gable, C.H., Tysto, Brunez, BlUsKrEEm, all my beautiful and intelligent followers and even you snarky Anonymii - thanks for reading, for commenting, and for making me feel like I'm not writing in a vacuum. 


And also, of course, a huge, huge, HUGE thanks to everyone at The Asylum who - despite my expectations of a cease & desist order - have been nothing but accommodating to my attempts to piggy-back on their success. Thanks for making great movies that keep getting better every go-round, and thanks for giving me a shot. For everything that made me start this blog, I've now got 100 times that motivation to keep it going. 


So thank you, honestly, from the bottom of my coal-like heart, to anyone who reads this; thanks for the best, most important year of my life. And, as always, Viva La Asylum!!!

Thanks for 100,000 Hits!!!

With 18 days remaining until Committed's first birthday, the blog recorded its 100,000th hit at 7:21PM, PST this evening. Not too shabby.

A sincere and heartfelt thanks to everyone who' s popped by over the last 12 months, especially those of you who've done it often, and extra-especially to those of you who have let me write screenplays for your awesome company. This blog = my best idea EVER. And without readers, it would be just more meaningless flotsam in an endless digital sea. 

Thanks for reading my flotsam. Only awesome things ahead...

Live Blog Fest: ALMIGHTY THOR SyFy PREMIERE!!!

 

Greetings and welcome one and all to yet another COMMITTED live blog fest, our third so far, and perhaps the biggest yet, celebrating what could well turn out to be the biggest night for The Asylum on SyFy to date. I'm talking of course - in case you live in a hole or came across this site looking for naked pictures of Debbie Gibson (sorry) - about the World (West Coast) Premiere of Almighty Thor, now a mere 15 minutes away, and a film with a real shot at becoming the highest-rated SyFy Saturday Original Movie ever. Only a trifling 3 million + viewers block Thor from destiny.

The film stars newcomer (and incredible self-publicist, the true champion of this film) Cody Deal as the titular God of Thunder, Richard "21 Jump Street" Grieco as Thor's brother, the mischievous and malevolent Loki, Kevin "Diesel" Nash as their father Odin, and Patricia "skimpy costume from the first Mummy movie" Velasquez as, well, I'm not sure yet, but chances are, a hot chick. 

But the talent in this one isn't just on-screen, it's also behind the scenes, as well: the film is directed by Christopher Ray, who recently helmed The Asylum's Mega Shark vs Crocosaurus and is currently serving as First Assistant Director on a certain 3D Asylum horror film in production as we speak (ahem...A Haunting in Salem, script by me; just had to get that in). Ray directed from a script by Eric Forsberg, the genius writer/director behind last year's pop-culture phenom and instant cult classic Mega Piranha. Furthermore, the score comes from Chris Ridenhour - resident Asylum Beethoven - and the cinematography is courtesy of Alex Yellin, another guy currently working on A Haunting in Salem.

But not only do we have the movie starting up in less than a quarter hour, we also got dinner, drinks, desert - themed, no less - witty commentary, embarrassing photos (like the one to the right of me all decked out in my in my Almighty accessories; thanks, Wal Mart), and all-around Asylum-geekery until 11 pm, when I've promised my wife I'll stop.

Until then, we're going full-throttle here at COMMITTED, so feel free to comment like crazy below as I update this same post minute-by-minute throughout the whole film. Simply refresh your browser for the latest drivel. That said, crack open a cold one, get comfortable and stay tuned for the start of festivities, only minutes away...


Oh yeah, and tell everyone you know on the West Coast to turn on their TVs to SyFy, right now.

First up, Richard GREEK-O pita-stuffed lamburgers, seasoned with salt and pepper, stuffed in a pita and adorned with goat cheese and red pepper spread, and a side of Kevin "Nashed" potatoes with feta cheese,


These were delicious, as delicious, say, as Thor's coming of age in a militaristic Asgardian family.

Less than three minutes to go, so it's time to pour the golden chalice. See, I thought a lot about the kind of cocktail to make for this event, but when it came down to it, Norse warriors drink ale, and so then, shall I, specifically the gods' own nectar, the champagne of beer, Miller High Life.

So then dinner...check. Drinks...check. Dessert...formulating...t -minus a few minutes so buckle in, my fellow, faithfully-committed, the show's about to start...


9:00 PM - this is where the party starts...

9:02 PM - beautiful FX right off the bat... 

9:03 PM - Richard Grieco rising... 

9:04 PM - already RG is a evil genius,,,here comes Kevin Nash and...CODY DEAL! Clean-shaven Thor works for me, adds an element of inexperience that makes the character more endearing, I think... 

9:06 PM - first creature sighting... Forsberg kicks ass as a screenwriter!

9:09 PM - Grieco's nonchalance, almost apathy, is strangely fitting for the role... 

9: 13 PM - awesome creature FX, and that cody can really swing a sword...kevin nash as odin brings a sort of stern authoritarianism to the role, a physical intimidation that i thin is quite necessary when dealing with a god of gods...ooh...odin/loki swordfight...

9: 17 PM loki is as bad as hamlet's dad... 

9:18 PM -  first commercial break, and so far, so excellent...Forsberg's take on the myth is very human and easily related to, Nash was exquisite as Odin and Grieco as Loki is a new breed of menacing. Deal as Thor brings a much-appreciated youth to the role, and displays an interesting take on a god as a fledgling, that is, an immortal, all-powerful being vulnerable enough to need breathing room. can't wait to see what happens next, now that shit's popping off...

9:24 PM - Purpose becomes clear...I've never seen a more emotional Kevin Nash performance...kudos, Diesel... 

9:26 PM - entre vous ... the lovely Patricia Velasquez...to Thor's aid...

9:30 PM 1/4th of the way through, and already this is more entertaining than I suspect Marvel's Thor is. There's a humanity to the characters here, a relatability that most polytheistic epics lack. deal as thor is fresh, naive and eager to prove himself, and grieco is a badass villain, so casual with his maliciousness, so comfortable in his evil...can't wait for the rest! 

9:35 PM - lots of slo-mo action sequences in this...verdict still out on this, though it does draw attention to some spectacular action choreography 

9:40 PM - and thus begins the training regiment...Patricia Velasquez is not nearly the eye candy i thought she'd be, and i mean that as a compliment, because whereas she is still very much a beautiful woman, her role here isn't dependent on her beauty, it is dependent on her emotional strength, which she has by the bucket. 

9:43 PM - onward to Earth...now shit gets really good... 

9:45 PM -  interesting use of color here by director Christopher Ray - sepia for Asgard, blue for Earth - makes for a distinctive division of acts and an adjustment we make along with the characters...nice...

9:52 PM -  just a note to say i really like the approach Forsberg took with this script. instead of tying in too heavily to the mythology, he gave us just enough, what we needed to know, then took the story and made it his own, a fish-out-of-water story, that fish just having, you know, god like strength and invulnerability. but overall, i think it makes the story more human.

plus the art direction and cinematography in LA are awesome so far, very gritty and un-mythic, giving even more humanity to the script. 

9:54 PM - it's like - and i swear i mean this in a good way - Wings of Desire meets Hercules in New York, a mythic foundation in an urban landscape, classical meets contemporary in a brutal clash of philosophies, the result of which is a sense of timeless struggle costumes and weaponry can't define, for it is immortal. 


or, you know, people beating each other up and blowing shit up.

9:58 PM - halfway through...thor going out on his own...thoughts from the audience? blow up that comments board! 

10:04 PM - holy shit! the sword play in this is excellent! i mean EXCELLENT! note to self: dont mess with cody deal...

and the rain...beautiful work by alex yellin...

10:07 PM -  thor as vulnerable...cody deal's performance is winning me over minute by minute. i like my gods human...

10:08 PM - is it just me, or when grieco is walking down the LA sidewalk, is that an andy dick impression? ;)

10:12 PM - dessert! and work with me on this one, but we're having: Chocolate Cody'd Deal-icious Ice Cream Cookie Sundaes! How desperate am I for tie-in food?


45 minutes to go!








10:19 PM - again, the use of color, the use of smoke, of sweeping cameras - the cinematography on this one is off the charts...it's a gorgeous movie...and now more swordplay!!!


10:21 PM -  graffiti and norse gods - what a combo!


10:22 PM - btw - chris ridenhour - if you read this, i want an mp3 copy of this score to write to...so subtly epic, so sweeping and expansive...i WANT it...


10:30 PM - Thor commercial during Almighty Thor presentation...synergy...


10:33 PM -  unleash the creatures on LA...do it!


10:35 PM -  again, pleasantly surprised at the amount of screen time Patricia Velasquez is getting. until tonight, i only thought of her as a pretty face. she's got a juliette binoche quality to her, i see now, and is quite a deft actress. biggest and most pleasant surprise of the night..

10:36 PM - UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUZZZZZIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


10:38 PM -  yo - that uzi scene is even more awesome than the trailer lead us to believe...


10:40 PM - so with less than 20 minutes to go, im'ma cut on the scene by scene stuff, to spare spoilers, but give me a few minutes to collect my final impressions (and watch the creature MADNESS) and i'll get right back  to you...


11:00 PM - so, still marinating on this one - my final thoughts will accompany the DVD release post on Tuesday - but for now, swimming in the moment, I have to say that overall I was impressed. The performances by all leads took this one out of the typical context, made it more human, though haughtier, almost like a shakesperean gangster flick. Grieco brought a decadent nonchalance to Loki, Cody Deal an intense vulnerability to Thor - I want to say how thrilled I was to be as taken by his performance as I hoped I would; this guy's got some big things in his future - and Patricia Velasquez an unforeseen and, quite frankly, unsuspected depth. 

Kudos as well to director Christopher Ray and cinematographer Alex Yellin for a beautiful, elegiac, sweeping visual feast, and screenwriter Eric Forsberg for another SyFy classic - action-packed, emotional and epic; in all honesty, if I could write like that guy, I'd never leave the house. Hats off to the visual FX team for baller creature and lava work. And what else is there to say? Almighty Thor met all my expectations as a fast-paced, action-centric thrill-ride. Here's hoping it met yours, and here's hoping when the ratings come out next week, we'll have ourselves a new SyFy Original Movie champion on our hands. 


Thanks for dropping by/tuning in/logging on/whatever the kids are calling it these days. As usual, I had an awesome time. Buy/rent/queue the DVD for Tuesday!

Other Places I Can Be Found (online, that is)

If there ever comes a time when you're reading COMMITTED and you find yourself saying, "Man, I just can't get enough of this guy's snarky, pseudo-journalistic ramblings, I wish there was more," then brother, have I got good news for you.

I can also be found - spouting more Asylum propaganda, shamelessly self-promoting my other writing, commenting on films outside these familiar walls, and generally drunk-posting - on the titan of social media they call Twitter.

That's right, two paragraphs just to tell you (again, actually) that I have a Twitter account. You know you want more.

Committed Gets 50,000th Hit!!!

That's right, believe it or not, only eight or so months after going live, Committed has logged its 50,000th hit. It went down about midnight this last Sunday, with the big hit itself coming from beautiful Los Angeles, California. Thanks, Angelinos!

So, a big, heartfelt and sincere thanks to everyone who's dropped by the last several months, especially those of you that have dropped by more than once, left comments, passed along information, et cetera. Without you guys, I'm just some dude in a basement with a weird hobby. With you guys, I'm some dude in a basement with a weird hobby and readership. That's a huge difference, believe me.

And of course, another reiteration of my undying affection for The Asylum is in order. Thanks for the scores of great movies, and thanks for the support. Go ahead and throw away the key, because you can count me forever-committed.

And yes, I both recognize and am delighted by the fact that the graph denoting my 50,000th hit looks like a Mega Shark fin skimming the surface. Another sign it was meant to be.

Viva la Asylum!

Happy Six-Month Anniversary to COMMITTED!

Just like the title hints, this Sunday will mark COMMITTED's six-month anniversary, and I just wanted to take a post to say thanks to everybody who's been stopping by, reading my inane ramblings, and even commenting on occasion. The genesis of this blog was my simple and enthusiastic appreciation for the films of The Asylum - both those good and those not-as-good - the philosophy behind their business approach and the creative talent they employ, and I wanted to share this enthusiasm with complete strangers worldwide, just to see what happened. And the honest to god truth is, more than 27,000 hits later, I'm enjoying this and The Asylum more than ever. So thanks again, gang, for a couple of things, I guess, and I hope you're having as much fun reading my posts as I am writing them. That's the whole point, right?

                                                                                            P.

Last Chance to Vote for the 2010 Loonies!

This is it, your very last chance to register your votes for the first ever Looney Awards for Excellence in Asylum Films; in approximately 48 hours, your opportunity to be a part of history vanishes.

So take one last look at the nominees and email your selections to 2010Loonies@gmail.com before midnight wherever you live on Wednesday, February 2nd, Groundhog Day here in the states. Friday, February 4th, five short days from now, the official winners will be announced at noon, PST. 

Before that, however, on Thursday, I'll be posting my personal picks in each category, a sort of Committed's Best of 2010. The Asylum put out a lot of great films last year, written, directed by and starring some ridiculously talented and imaginative people. Show them you appreciate their efforts by casting your votes now.

Democracy Now!

977's Pitch #7: "Committed"

This pitch is going to be a little different than usual in that this time I'm not pitching a movie, but rather a television series. What's more, a reality series. What's even more, a SyFy original reality series. 

I think, given the network's continuing success in this market - from "Ghost Hunters" and its various incarnations, up through "Destination Truth," "Beast Legends" and, most recently, "Hollywood Treasure" - and given the network's ongoing relationship with a certain independent film studio, that it would make perfect sense, to me at least, for SyFy to commission an original documentary series centered around the fine folks at The Asylum. And what should be the name you this series, you might be asking? What else?

"COMMITTED"

The gist is this: each season of "Committed" contains ten, one-hour episodes, and focuses on the complete development and release of one Asylum film. Each step of the process is covered, from concept to script to production crew to casting to shooting to editing to marketing, allowing loyal viewers an inside look at The Asylum's unique, efficient and economic filmmaking style. Shows would air on Saturday nights at 8 p.m., and each season's finale would be immediately followed by the world premiere of the film that season focused on at 9 p.m., this being, of course, the standard time-slot for SyFy Originals.

As the shrewdest, most-talked-about little studio since AIP, the folks over at The Asylum have a unique perspective on the Hollywood system and subverting it that I think would absolutely appeal to the creative, nonconformist types glued to SyFy on a Saturday night. And just imagine: what if there had been a camera crew following around Arkoff, Nicholson and Corman in the early years of AIP, giving us a first-hand glance at the tricks of the trade that made them one of the most successful and beloved independents in American film history? Imagine watching the likes of Francis Ford Coppola, Peter Bogdanovich, Martin Scorsese, Johnathan Demme, James Cameron, et cetera as they learned and honed the skills that would one day make them legends? It would be a cinematic artifact of immeasurable worth. And it would be pretty fucking awesome, too. 

This is exactly where we are, I believe, in the development of The Asylum: almost fifteen years under their belt and production has taken over distribution, at least as far as public consciousness is concerned, and now "Asylum-film" is quickly becoming a genre in and of itself. The ripple of awareness is expanding beyond this one, small, niche pond, and the time to make a bigger splash is now. Everyone watching SyFy knows who The Asylum is, and at least 80% of them are curious, one way or another, to see just how these flicks are hatched. I might be estimating those numbers, and I'm certainly no expert, but it just seems to me that a show like this on a network like that at a time like this couldn't help but succeed for at least a few seasons.

I mean, really, who doesn't want to watch Jaleel White screentest? Or Eric Forsberg explain to Paul Logan where and how to kick the yet-to-be-added Mega Piranha? Or exactly what goes down at an Asylum staff meeting? 

Bottom line, people love movies, and more and more as technology is becoming more and more available, the die hard fans want to know how movies are made, perhaps looking to inform their own endeavors. SyFy fans in particular, I would wager, engage in creative projects of their own - from writing to art to filmmaking or animation - more than most other network fanbases. This makes them, in my mind, the perfect audience for a series showcasing the inner workings of a low-budget genre filmmaking juggernaut and Hollywood outsiders on the brink of exploding into cultural consciousness in a major, lasting way. I, for one, would be glued to my set.

And if producers should want to introduce the company to viewers through a new employee that comes on in episode one, a "Dr. Carter," if you will, through whose energetic, enthusiastic eyes we see the magic and marvel of filmmaking unfurl, I might know a guy willing to quit his day job and force his wife southward from Oregon. I might.

I'm just sayin'.

COMMITTED Gets 1,000th Hit!

As of 8 a.m. this morning, COMMITTED logged its 1,000th hit since launching on August 27th. Now, I don't know if 1,000 hits in a little shy of three weeks is good by normal blog standards or not, but it's pretty fucking awesome in my book. Thanks to all y'all who've stopped by, and keep it up! Things are only getting better from here, so tell your friends, families, video store clerks, Facebook profiles, Twitter accounts, still-functioning MySpace pages, message board threads, personal blogs and anyone else who will listen; there are a lot of great Asylum films coming out over the next few months, and it's up to us, the COMMITTED, to help spread the good word.

Thanks again, and really, it only gets better from here!