Observation Notes Catch-Up: Sci-Fi

I know not all my readers have been with me from the beginning, and I also know given the amount of postings I've made in such a short span of time, things can get lost in the shuffle. I also know that I'm not the best at tagging uniformly, so there might be a few things, specifically Observation Notes, that go unread. As such, periodically I like to remind you - with links! - of the films I've reviewed, and I think a good way of grouping these is by genre. So here, for your catching-up or even revisiting pleasure, are the Sci-Fi films produced by The Asylum that I've reviewed thus far (please note "creature feature" is a separate designation from sci-fi, so that list will come later), along with links to the original posts. Enjoy!

 30,000 Leagues Under the Sea 
 starring Lorenzo Lamas
 based on a novel by Jules Verne
 screenplay by Eric Forsberg
 directed by Gabriel Bologna

100 Million B.C.
starring Michael Gross, Christopher Atkins & Greg Evigan
screenplay by Paul Bales
directed by Louis Myman

 

2012: Doomsday
screenplay by Nick Everhart
directed by Nick Everhart

I Am Omega
based on a story by Richard Matheson
screenplay by Geoff Meed
directed by Griff Furst



 

Invasion of the Pod People
screenplay by Leigh Scott
directed by Justin Jones

Alien vs. Hunter
screenplay by David Michael Latt
directed by Scott Harper

Journey to the Center of the Earth
based on the novel by Jules Verne
screenplay by Steve Bevilacqua and Scott Wheeler
directed by Scott Wheeler and Davey Jones




 

The Land That Time Forgot
based on the novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs
written by Darren Dalton
directed by C. Thomas Howell

War of the Worlds 
based on the novel by H.G. Wells
screenplay by David Michael Latt & Carlos De Los Rios
directed by David Michael Latt

War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave
suggested by a novel by H.G. Wells
story by Steve Bevilacqua
screenplay by Karen Forsberg
directed by C. Thomas Howell

inmate profile: Erica Roby

Though her acting career only lasted two brief years, 2006 and 2007, Erica Roby left an indelible impression on Asylum fans. All eight films Ms. Roby made were with the Asylum, making her, percentage-wise, the company's most faithful, non-founding employee. From her titular debut in Exorcism: the Possession of Gail Bowers up until her final on-screen appearance in Invasion of the Pod People, Ms. Roby was poised to become a 21st Century scream queen of the highest order - the sort that not only has no problem with nudity, but nor with contrived lesbian scenes* - before bowing out of the limelight and stepping behind the cameras. 

Since leaving The Asylum in 2007, Ms. Roby has worked as a story editor on episodes of "Denise Richards: It's Complicated," and "Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew," and most notably as an associate producer on the last season of "The Amazing Race." 

So, unfortunately for her fans, it seems as though things in Ms. Roby's non-acting, professional life are going just fine, making it a likely foregone conclusion that she shan't be returning to the direct-to-DVD market anytime soon. To assuage yourselves, take a look a Ms. Roby's most-impressive and completely-Asylum filmography:

Exorcism: The Possession of Gail Bowers...Gail Bowers
Hillside Cannibals...Rhian
Dracula's Curse...Christina Lockheart
The 9/11 Commission Report...Melinda
Halloween Night...Angela
The Hitchhiker...Lindsey
The Apocalypse...Laura
Invasion of the Pod People...Melissa


And who knows? Perhaps if we her fans get riled up enough, start one of them Facebook petitions the kids are so fond of these days, we might be able to finagle a cameo at least in 2012: Ice Age. Stranger things have been forced to happen because of the internet.

* two films - not one but two - contain said scenes. for real. have fun discovering which ones!

creature feature: POD PEOPLE PLANTS

Not since Little Shop of Horrors has one, innocuous plant wrought so much evil. 

I am speaking, of course, of the seemingly harmless potted plant from The Asylum's Invasion of the Pod People, a tie-in to the most recent Body Snatchers remake, Invasion starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig. 

So the gist is this: alien life has come to Earth with the intent of taking over Earthling bodies, thus controlling the planet. Well how the heck are they going to do that?, you might be asking yourself (or maybe not, either way...). Via plants, of course, the most harmless and therefore unsuspected of our planet's biological inhabitants. All the aliens gotta do then is transform themselves into some regular old plant, like, say, a ginger root, then the Earthlings, with their love of feng shui, will place said plant somewhere in close proximity to themselves, like perhaps their desk at work, or a bedside table. Who doesn't like plants, after all? Who wouldn't want to punch up their living or working space with a little natural decor? Fortunately for the alien race in question here, not a single Earthling they can find.

 Once the plant is close enough to the Earthling it wants to take over, for example, a nubile young girl, then it works its alien magic to produce some kind of spore or other such smelly hoodoo that worms its way into our biology and slowly assumes control, walking around as us unbeknown to us, making us act all the fool, sinister-like, and what's worse, sometimes making us engage in lesbian threesomes with co-workers we don't even remember the next morning; it's kinda like "Red Shoe Diaries" meets Lost Highway, a sexy, malevolent fugue state. And of course, don't forget all this is merely a precursor to a complete and total takeover of the human race and this mudball we call home. 

There are loads of alien-invasion stories in cinema; this particular one has been made five times to date. When pondering how they might make their version unique, The Asylum decided to sex it up, a good move, and then involve a common houseplant, a questionable but thoroughly entertaining move.

Bottom line: don't trust gingerbread men, you don't know who that could be.

WICKED COOL: an overview of Asylum horror

this is a re-post of a guest spot I did back at the beginning of the month for attackfromplanetb.com, on Asylum horror. in the spirit of the holiday, i thought i'd show it here.

___________________________________________________________ 

If there’s one constant in the ever-shifting marketing focus of The Asylum, it’s that people love a good scare, whether it comes by sci-fi, creature flicks or straight-up horror. And though The Asylum is best-known at present for its work in the realm of mockbusters, the genre it has been delivering with the most consistency – and originality – for nearly fifteen years, is good, old-fashioned horror.

First a bit of backstory: The Asylum was formed by David Michael Latt, David Rimawi and Sherri Strain in 1997. Rimawi and Strain had been executives at Village Roadshow, and upon leaving teamed with writer/director Latt to start a genre distribution and production company. In the early days Asylum was mainly a distributor, and the films were all over the place – thrillers, comedies, dramas, horror films, etc. – but it was horror The Asylum execs first set their production eye upon. Killers, a hallucinogenic, bloody thriller directed by David Michael Latt, was the first film produced by The Asylum in their first year together. Five years later it would spawn a sequel that would also mark the beginning of The Asylum’s rigorous production routine that would soon make them one of the most prolific independent studios in Hollywood.

For the purposes of closer examination, I’ve broken the horror films of The Asylum into three distinct eras: 1997-2005 – the genre era; 2006-2008 – the mockbuster era; and 2009-present – the (mega) modern era.

THE GENRE ERA (1997-2005)

Approximately fifteen horror films were released by The Asylum between 1997 and 2005, making them the company’s primary production focus until the mockbuster came along. Of these films, the overwhelming majority were based upon some variation of legend or myth, the very basis of genre horror: angered spirits (Scarecrow, Intermedio), vampires (Way of the Vampire), mummies (Legion of the Dead), pirates (Jolly Roger: Massacre at Cutter’s Cove), Frankenstein’s monster (Frankenstein Reborn), werewolves (The Beast of Bray Road), zombies (Death Valley: the Revenge of Bloody Bill) and, of course, demons (Shapeshifter).

No matter how broad their appeal, however, these films got lost – along with so many others from so many other small production companies, many of which are now long-defunct - in a sea of direct-to-DVD horror that choked the marketplace in the wake of the genre’s popular revival in the late-90’s thanks to films like the Scream franchise and The Blair Witch Project. But while other companies reacted to the problem by pushing out even more films in the same vein, The Asylum took a gamble and shifted their marketing strategy, as well as their place in film history.

THE MOCKBUSTER ERA (2006-2008)

In 1995, Asylum executives had a game-changing idea. That was the year Steven Spielberg was set to deliver his long-awaited version of H. G. Wells’ classic novel of alien invasion, War of the Worlds. As the story wasn’t original to Spielberg, there was nothing to stop anyone else from making a competitive version but the revered filmmaker’s own clout and ego. And who cares about that? The Asylum rushed a version into production starring former Hollywood heavy-hitters C. Thomas Howell and Judd Nelson, two fine actors who’d had doors shut on them The Asylum was only too eager to open. The result? 100,000 copies ordered by Blockbuster, blowing all other orders on all previous Asylum titles clear out of the water. The rest is history.

On the horror front, The Asylum continued to produce a large number of films in the genre during this era – eleven, depending on how you define the genre – but as with The Asylum’s sci-fi output, across the board these were mockbusters, or tie-ins:

                    THE ASYLUM                                                        HOLLYWOOD

Exorcism: The Possession of Gail Bowers        The Exorcism of Emily Rose

When a Killer Calls                                              When a Stranger Calls

Hillside Cannibals                                                The Hills Have Eyes

666: The Child                                                     The Omen

Snakes on a Train                                               Snakes on a Plane

Halloween Night                                                Halloween

Freakshow                                                           Tod Browning’s Freaks

The Hitchhiker                                                    The Hitcher

Supercroc                                                            Rogue, Primeval, Croc, Black Water

Invasion of the Pod People                              Invasion, Invasion of the Body Snatchers

666: The Beast (sequel to 666: The Child)    The Omen

With the exception of Snakes on a Train, most of these films flew under the radar in terms of cultural awareness, the flashier sci-fi tie-ins like Transmorphers, Terminators, and King of the Lost World garnering the most media attention. But as the mockbuster era continued to flourish throughout ’07 and ‘08 in the arena of sci-fi, The Asylum cut back on the number of horror films it produced. 666: The Beast, arguably the last horror film of this era, would see two years pass and twelve more films made before there was another horror title in the Asylum’s filmography. But this would turn out to be just a trimming of fat, so to speak, a sacrifice in the quantity of years past for the quality to come.

THE (MEGA) MODERN ERA (2009-Present)

In late 2009 when The Asylum released Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus, yet again the wheels in their marketing minds began to turn. Mega Shark, as we all know, went on to become the most notable film in The Asylum’s catalogue and was the eighth-most Googled trailer of the year thanks to a now-infamously-classic certain plane-chewing scene, an astounding accomplishment for an independent studio in arguably one of the most spectacular years in Hollywood history, visually-speaking (Avatar, District 9, Star Trek, Transformers 2, 2012, Terminator Salvation, etc.). As a result of this success, The Asylum began pushing out other similarly-conceived films, including MegaFault, Mega Piranha, the upcoming Mega Shark vs. Crocosaurus (out 12/21/10!!!) and Mega Python vs. Gatoroid. In an interview aired October 2^nd of this year on “Last Call with Carson Daly,” Asylum honchos Latt, Rimawi and Paul Bales seemed to indicate this was a direction production would continue to head in. So what does this mean for Asylum horror? Will creature flicks absorb both sci-fi and horror productions, meld them into some composite terror? Not likely.

Though The Asylum has only released four horror films since 2009 – The Haunting of Winchester House, Paranormal Entity, 100 Feet and 8213 Gacy House – three of the four have been completely original (Paranormal Entity was just begging to be made), and coincidentally, perhaps, or perhaps not, all four have been ghost stories. Doubtful this is a specific trend – the ghosts – but what it does seem to be is The Asylum’s return to stand-alone horror, so to speak; original stories that don’t need to draft off of a studio release to find an audience.

Trying to predict the future of the Asylum is like trying to predict what number a many-sided die will land on when rolled; one can only guess. But horror has always been the backbone of The Asylum’s productions – however manifested – and in fact, it’s where they’ve been the most original and most daring. In an era where every half-baked scary story or gore-fest is slapped onscreen, The Asylum, in this modern era, at least, seems to be doing something popular media’s conception of them would find contrary: they’re discriminating. And for us, the committed, this may not mean a horror flick every few months, but it means when we do get them, we’re guaranteed that good scare.

inmate profile: Sarah Lieving

It doesn't get any more veteran than Sarah Lieving: in five years she's made twelve (if you count the upcoming Mega Shark vs. Crocosaurus, which I totally do) films with The Asylum, including the first seven of her career. Known for her hottie-next-door looks and her strong, playfully brash persona, Ms. Lieving is a palpable threat to steal every single scene she's in, and her ability to blend into a smaller role or triumphantly take the lead is unparalleled among her peers, making her a natural fit in any script sent her way.

Bottom line, Sarah Lieving is the quintessential Asylum actress, our poster girl, our scream-queen with smarts, the Jamie Lee Curtis, the Barbara Steele of her era. Peruse if you will a complete list of her work with the Asylum (because it's so damn impressive):

War of the Worlds (2005)...Nancy

Frankenstein Reborn (2005)...Jessica Halverson

The Beast of Bray Road (2005)...Kelly

King of the Lost World (2005)...Rita Summerlee

Dracula's Curse (2006)...Alex Deveraux

666: The Child (2006)...Erika Lawson

The 9/11 Commission Report (2006)...Valerie

The Hitchhiker (2007)...Melinda

The Apocalypse (2007)...Janis

Invasion of the Pod People (2007)...Louise

Airline Disaster (2010)...Annette Franklin(uncredited)

Mega Shark vs. Crocosaurus (2010)...Agent Hutchinson

Sarah's other notable upcoming projects include playing the Wicked Witch of the East in The Witches of Oz 3D, directed by Asylum alum Leigh Scott, and Super Shark, directed by Fred Olen Ray, father of MSvC director Christopher Ray.

Sarah Lieving, consider yourself saluted.

observation notes: Invasion of the Pod People

How do you scold your favorite child? Probably not publicly, as I'm about to do. But some things...

They should have known better. It isn't The Asylum's fault, necessarily, that the concept of this film, at this point in the history of cinema, is trite and rehashed to fucking death. They were just doing their jobs, the fine folks at The Asylum, they were just giving us what we want, a low budget, boob-and-blow-up-heavy version of a Hollywood blockbuster, in this case Invasion, starring the spirit that inhabits Nicole Kidman's body and the last guy to ever play James Bond. Not the first time this film's been straight-up remade, Invasion was the fourth incarnation, behind Kevin McCarthy in the 1956 version, Donald Sutherland in the Philip Kaufman-directed 1978 version, and the lovely Gabrielle Anwar starring for Abel Ferrara in 1993's abbreviated Body Snatchers. Not to mention the dozens of times it's basic premise - alien seeds come to Earth by one means or another, then slowly begin to infiltrate the citizenry, passing as the people they've killed or, the bodies they've snatched - has been pilfered.

A sidenote here to say I'm somewhat surprised The Asylum passed up an opportunity to use the word "snatch" or any of its derivations in the title. Especially as the film's pretty much lesbian sci-fi erotica.

Set among the world of D-list talent representation, our first introduction to lead actress Erica Roby (Exorcism: The Possession of Gail Bowers, Halloween Night, The Hitchhiker) is her being getting taken (invaded) from behind by some middle-aged dude against a big picture window. This is how they start the movie, figuring perhaps since the rest of it's not going to be that entertaining, they'd better throw in the promise of nudity right at the get-go with some, well, nudity. There are a few scenes between Miss Roby and this geezer, as well as Miss Roby and another miss, but all share the same sense of posed awkwardness and sheer lack of sensuality. She says it herself, in referencing her affair with the old guy, "It's weird." It really is Erica, and I wish there wasn't so much of it. Did you hear that? Did you hear what you just made me do? You made me openly wish for a lack of nudity and sexual situations in a film. Me. That's just fucking ridiculous.

The main nexus for the pod persons' invasion seems to be Miss Roby and associates' office, which in an attempt to look industrial-modern looks like the inside of a steam ship, an actual, working steam ship. It is here that the hot-lesbian boss brings each of her underlings ginger root plants that will inevitably impregnate, devour and replace them all. The lovely and sassy Danae Nason - the film's brightest spot - describes it best, and by "best" I mean the best she can: "It's one of those trendy, new things, it's Chinese or Japanese or some feng shui bullshit." Nicely said. The fact that the original giver of of this gift, this alien seed, was a porn star the agency was trying to sign, leaves a bad taste in my mouth, much like alien seed (note the lack of "must" after "seed." Eyes up people.).

At some point in the film the cops come to Miss Roby, or she goes to them, somehow she becomes the got-to for info on the invasion. I went to the bathroom for a few minutes, made another drink, missed some stuff, but I'm pretty sure it doesn't matter.

Jesus. Okay. This review is becoming as big a clusterfuck as the movie was. There's just so much insane shit going on at once here, it's hard to explain it coherently, because this shit just isn't coherent. I love you, Asylum, god know I do, but this shit was too much. The acting wasn't great, saved only, as I mentioned, by sultry snarkstress Nason; Miss Roby's character was too doe-eyed, too fresh-off-the-bus-and-fucking-anything-that's-nice-to-her, and Miss Roby's portrayal of her was one-note and phoned-in, as if she couldn't be bothered. I know she's alumnae, but still. And the production values lacked a little as well, especially the sound. But despite all this, it was still a better film than Invasion. There was the ample nudity - which though it may have been a bit too much and non sequitur for me, I realize it's a plus for others - and the, uh, the, well, umm...nope, pretty much the nudity is all this one's got going for it. And there really is a lot of it. At one point a lesbian orgy factors into the invasion, don't really get that one, but who cares, right? I should have put that in the post heading: "Lesbian Orgy Factors Into Invasion." More of a CHUD headline, really though.

There were however a couple of quotes that elicited a genuine laugh from me:

"She's a porn star."
"Well she's a porn star who's sucking the right cock!"

and

"Are you familiar with guns at all?"
"No."
"Maybe you should think about a shotgun."

But the quote I most identified with came the morning after Miss Roby's first lesbian encounter, with her boss no less: "What did I do last night?"

I asked the same question this morning, unable to look my DVD player in the eyes.