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Staci Layne Wilson

Staci Layne Wilson


Last Updated: 11/20/2009

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Gender: Female
Sign: Virgo

City: Tinsel Town
Country: US
Signup Date: 12/30/2005

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Sunday, January 10, 2010 

http://stacilaynewilson.wordpress.com/2010/01/10/wonderful-one-hundred-of-the-double-00s-and-fifty-more-to-grow-on/



 

 

If you want my updates in the future please click the link and scroll down to the bottom to subscribe to the blog, because I won't be posting it here anymore.


 

 
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Wednesday, January 06, 2010 
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Wednesday, January 06, 2010 


Happy New Year!

 

As soon as I do my Best Films of the Decade and Best Horror Films of the Decade lists, I'll be revamping my blog and moving it elsewhere. In the meantime, please follow me on Twitter or friend me on Facebook.

 

As a parting shot, here are links to a few my favorite MySpace blog entries.


1 fangirl, 2 interviews, 2 guitar gods + 1 Oscar winner = infinite joy

Blog-Worthy

Clotheshorse Heath

Little Red Racy Hood

Les is the Most!

Note to Self (About Self)

Photos from the Adolf/White Halloween Party

Redheaded Women That I Ain't Supposed to Kiss

The Dead Weather Rocks Out With Their Fox Out

 

 

 

 

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Tuesday, December 29, 2009 

Current mood: Jazz-Handszy

 

 

I made an interesting observation today (to me, anyway), so therefore my "Good-bye 2009" blog isn't the last of the year after all! Here's what I was thinking: Horror directors often make the best directors of musicals. Maybe there is something to be said about the similarities between the physicality of building scary suspense, and segueing from drama and launching into song and dance. I'm not sure, but each is a pretty singular genre which isn't easy to pull off just so, and (so to speak) hit all the right notes.

 

Think about it: Robert Wise directed The Haunting AND Westside Story; Darren Bousman directed Saw 2 AND Repo! The Genetic Opera; Ken Russell directed Crimes of Passion AND Tommy; Brian De Palma directed Carrie AND Phantom of the Paradise; Keith Gordon directed The Singing Detective AND Dexter. Alan Parker did The Wall AND Angel Heart. The list goes on!

 

Of all the live action musical feature films that get kudos, I don't care for most them — I'd just as soon be shot in the eye with Ralphie's BB gun as to have to watch Westside Story, and I'm not big on Jesus Christ Superstar or The Sound of Music, either. I'm just wishy-washy on Grease, Cabaret, and Sweeney Todd.

 

Dreamgirls was good, but I've never had the desire to watch it again. Same with Chicago. And Fame. Same with The Rocky Horror Picture Show — though I do own the soundtrack, the only song that really works by itself for me is Sweet Transvestite (Tim Curry version, with the Brad and Janet dialogue intact). I think the greatest test of a musical movie is if you buy the soundtrack, and the songs stand alone. I own and adore the tunes from Tommy, A Star Is Born, Hair, The Wall, Moulin Rouge, Repo!, and Nine… but I only still to half of those regularly.

 

I like Evita and The Wall a lot, but they didn't quite make the cut. In order of the years, here are my picks for the Top Musical Movie of All Time, Space & Dimension.

 

 

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

 

 

 

 

Phantom of the Paradise (1974)

 

 

 

 

Tommy (1975)

 

 

 

 

A Star Is Born (1976)

 

 

 

 

Hair (1979)

 

 

 

 

All That Jazz (1979)

 

 

 

 

Moulin Rouge (2001) #1 FAVORITE J

 

 

 

The Singing Detective (2003)

 

 

 

 

Repo the Genetic Opera (2008)

 

 

 

 

Nine (2009)

 

 

 

Ta-da!

 

 

 

 

 

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Saturday, December 26, 2009 

Current mood:Nine - A Great Movie of '09

X-Mas '09 in the bag

 

 

X-Mas day was lovely. We spent it at Bill and Beth's house, and Terrence joined us. We ate to excess (not kidding… there was turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, croissants, stuffing, green beans, peas, cranberry sauce, three different kinds of pies, and chocolates!). Bill decorated the house "Scary Christmas" style and we watched Inglorious Basterds (instead of A Christmas Story… move over leg-lamp, make way for the Tarantino foot fetish).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As for the booty-haul, for me it was pretty much all about vintage jewelry (Enzo gave me a watch from Marilyn Monroe's estate, my mom gave me a 1930s emerald and diamond-chip bracelet and several other things from a going-out-of-business sale, and I also got some cool rings and stuff from friends), cute clothes (yay! My sister Jill came thru again with ADORABLE couture), and lots and lots of chocolate. I have noticed the trend this year seems to be dark chocolate spiked with salt — I like it!

 

 

 

 

 

Also, as I do twice every year (spring, and December), I pruned my closet. I have sooooo many clothes and this time there was very little I wanted to part with. So, I had to reorganize a bit. Between my full closet, an armoire, and two chests of drawers, it's still sometimes hard to find what I want. I did something a little bit different, which hopefully will work: I have fewer items of all-black clothing than ever before, so I decided to put everything black (regardless of what type of garment) in one armoire side.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2009 IN REVIEW - Microcosm

 

Top 10 Searches of 2009, according to YAHOO! are: 10. Rune Scape, 9. NASCAR, 8. Kim Kardashian, 7. American Idol, 6. Naruto, 5. Brittany Spears, 4. Megan Fox, 3. WWE, 2. Twilight Saga, and 1. Michael Jackson

 

Wow. I do not care about a single one of those things! (And before reading the list, I did not know what Rune Scape or Naruto even were.)

 

Bringing the focus in from the world to just my own little planet, I was going to post some of the best highlights of 2009 for myself/my diary (I don't count the downsides, and try not to look back in regret), but then I started scanning at the dozen of blogs I posted in 2009 and thought better of that.

 

So, here's what I remember:

 

Professionally, it was The Year of Jason Voorhees: I got to "act" in a Friday the 13th mockumentary; did a retro DVD commentary on F13 Pt V; appeared in the His Name Was Jason doc; covered the Friday the 13th remake's premiere and TV junkets; and did an exhaustive written retrospective on the entire film series. Also, I… "acted" a part in the teaser trailer for the Phoenix Dust movie; was a judge in the First-Annual Reaper Awards; was interviewed for three horror movie documentaries; appeared on TV a few times for Reelz Channel, Bravo, and Starz; Fantastique Magazine made its print debut; had my quotes used in ads for movies and TV shows; one of my novels was adapted for a film script; covered a lot more TV series than usual; interviewed hundreds and hundreds of people (but the BEST were Jack White and Jimmy Page, twice in one day!).

 

Personally, I gained momentum in my photography concentrating on architecture and self-portraiture; saw two incredible Dead Weather concerts; bought furniture, painted, redecorated; got Malcolm McDowell to officially OK being my "boyfriend"; I read more books; got to spend time with friends I haven't seen in years; I joined the Twitter-troops; I went to museums in two countries, and visited many historical buildings; traveled to some of favorite cities, including Chicago, Toronto, and Seattle.

 

As usual, I kept notes in my calendar about weight and workouts. Been doing that for years and years. Partially due to my upbringing, the business I work in, and because I get lots of unprovoked comments on my appearance, all the time.  I have, all my life— from strangers, friends, family. Everyone likes to chime in. For those who see me fairly often, these are the things they do not like and will let me know: when I wear pants and long skirts; when my hair is shorter than mid-shoulder blade; my being very thin. (Yeah, who knew? Men [especially] like short skirts, long hair, and curves).

 

At my height (or lack thereof) I think I look the best between 100 and 104 lbs. In thumbing back through my calendar, I was shocked to see how much I weighed (for me) in the beginning of the year! As for now, I haven't weighed myself in a couple of weeks... I hope I'll be starting 2010 a bit lighter, though. Jan: 109, Feb: 109, Mar: 109, Apr: 106.5, May: 108, Jun: 103, Jul: 103, Aug: 102, Sep: 99.5, Oct: 99.5, Nov: 99.5, early Dec: 103. That's the averages. The heaviest was 112, the lowest was 99. I remember when 95/96 was no problem. Sigh... But then again, I did get up to 127 about 10 years ago.

 

I guess I didn't start on my self-portraits till mid-year, but here they are up till now. I don't think I've changed much over the year, but then again I'm kind of too close to the subject to really tell for sure!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fortunately, I don't have any major vices I need to give up (I did successfully cut down on drinking coffee at night, which has helped with the insomnia). So, this is what I've got in mind for '10 —  New Year's Resolutions: Do's and Don'ts … Do work on getting some freelance jobs in fashion (blogging, reporting, photography); Don't be overly familiar (I sometimes hug people I just met); Do think a little longer before speaking; Don't be impatient; Do maintain good posture at all times; Don't let weeks go by without calling family and friends; Do get better-organized; Don't put things off; Do travel more often just for pleasure or/and extend business trips an extra day or so; Don't talk about myself so much, even when people ask.

 

Now I want to know… what are YOUR New Year's Resolutions?? (Be honest!)

 

Well, unless something earth-shattering happens this will be my final blog of the year. Still haven't decided if I will move it over to Livejournal or Blogspot… or just stay here at MySpace. It's six of one, half a dozen of the other…

 

In the meantime, I'm thinking about starting on a BEST and WORST films of the decade (hard to believe it's almost already 2010. Seems like the Y2K scare was just last week!), so that it won't be such a huge undertaking come next December. Any suggestions for good websites that list all the movies released, in an easy format? And what are your picks and pans for the 00's?

 

—   Till 'Ten, Then!

 

Staci Layne

 

 

 

 

Currently listening:
Nine
By Various Artists
Release date: 2009-12-21
9:32 PM 
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Sunday, December 20, 2009 

 

No sooner did I return from Austin than I was up and at'em again with another set visit the next day (Scream Queens Season 2), and two concerts that night (my dad and The Ventures, and Brian Setzer Orchestra).

 

I always think December will be restful month, but it never is. Movies are wrapping for the end of the year, the films for Academy consideration are shuttled out in limited release, stores and online retailers beckon, and friends want to socialize more. It's all good… but tiring (and fattening).

 

The trip to Austin was on behalf of L'Ecran Fantastique to observe filming for Predators, but I was blended, folded and whipped into the domestic group so I got to see a lot of my chummy colleagues (Jenna, Chris, Jeff, and Steve to name a few). Plus, I knew Derek Mears was working on the film so he was kind enough to keep me company for a little while — got to take a drive with him and see some of Austin's highways and byways. But actually what I found much prettier and more intriguing were the hallways in my hotel…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I went out on my own for a bit, wandering down the famed 6th Street (Old Pecan) and saw the old Alamo Drafthouse… but felt uninspired in regards to taking any pictures. The low-slung bar and tavern architecture in Austin (been there several times now) doesn't do anything for me. Plus, there were A LOT of vocal, interactive weirdoes on the street so I didn't really want to stop 'n snap.

 

I took a couple more pics inside the hotel — The Omni, where I've stayed before — mostly of the windows and the view from their famous glass elevator.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I didn't really add to my mirror self-portrait series, either… I was a bit 'off' on that whole trip. Extremely hungry (for the wrong things), very tired (slept till 11 one morning), and unmotivated (even though there was a gym, I only looked inside and never worked out). Here're the two sp's I did take:

 

 

 

 

 

I also took this goofy pic of Jenna at the BBQ joint, to add to my collection of "Friends with Deer Heads" photo series. (Yes, I am working on such a thing! :)

 

 

 

So, not much in the way of pictures on that trip. Certainly NOTHING compared to Toronto (http://staciwilson.com/Toronto). I need to look at those pics again; I got some good ones. I wish I could make a living from traveling around the world photographing building facades and interiors. What a life that would be. But for now, the life I've got is keeping me busy, compensated, and happy.

 

 

This is the final pic from the Austin trip: Sunset from the plane window, with my iPhone. Unfortunately, it doesn't really capture the drama of the colors (cobalt blue, royal purple, a thin line of sunshine yellow, then a layer of deep burnt orange). I just have this single shot, because I didn't want to reach across the dude sitting in the window seat more than once.

 

 

 

At first, I thought the plane ride would be abysmal (the flight out to Austin was great: I had the aisle, tiny quiet woman sitting next to me, and no children nearby). On the way home there was a crying baby in the seat in front who never stopped wailing, plus the flight was delayed and overbooked so I got stuck in the middle seat between two big guys. But — it was an exit row so there was good leg room, I had good magazines to keep my attention (Esquire, and Shape), the baby's lungs were no match for Led Zeppelin Mothership on my iPod, and on top of that my traveling companions were really nice and just talkative enough (we chatted about movies, looked at pics of each other's pets on camera phones).

 

As for the set visit itself, it was neat — it was at Troublemaker Studios, so we got to talk to Robert Rodriguez, got a tour, met a lot of the staff, saw a teeny bit of filming, talked to Adrien Brody, Danny Trejo, Alice Braga, Greg Nicoterro, and best of all (my first encounter) Walton Goggins from The Shield. I loved that show so much, and him on it, so it was great to find out how cool he is (and funny) and how willing he was to talk about the ending of The Shield and offer his insights, etc. (thankfully, someone else asked him — I don't ever ask off-topic questions at junkets or set visits, as interested as I may personally be in other topics… I just can't use those kinds of the interviews for my outlets).

 

When I got home, I of course had a TON of mail to go through. Plus xmas packages, etc. One thing you guys may be interested in, though, is the latest L'Ecran Fantastique. Please forgive the quick 'n dirty snapshots, but here's the cover and then some of my features (I had a lot, but not the cover story). I love the layout and design of this magazine so much, I'm really proud to be a part of it. Also, with this issue I noticed they changed the texture of their interior paper — it's now more porous and matte. I like it better.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last night was the Brian Setzer concert, featuring The Ventures. My dad was nice enough to get us passes, so Enzo and me went to see everybody. Caught up with a bunch of old family friends I have not seen in years! Here's one snap of my dad, Enzo, me, and John Durrill who I've known all my life but seldom ever see even though we both live in L.A. John is a really interesting guy (he does a lot of things, but I think he's best known for his songwriting — he wrote hits for Cher, Merle Haggard, and of course The Ventures) and very sweet.

 

 

 

Me and my daddy.

 

 

 

Here are some pics I took of the concerts. The ones of The Ventures aren't very good because the backstage area was super-cramped (usually backstage is an excellent vantage point, but not the one at Universal!), plus there was something about the lighting from that angle that wreaked havoc with the camera's exposure and focus capability. At least on the good side, my dad was closest to me. From the theater later on, even from pretty far back, I got a few good pics of Brian Setzer. The one with the trombones is a cute tribute he did to The Ventures (playing Pipeline).

 

That's one adjective I don't usually apply to concerts: "cute". But The Brian Setzer Orchestra is definitely not hardcore! I don't know much about rockabilly music, but I would assume this is the lite version. It's fun, and surfacy. (Then again, even the rockabilly groups I **do** like, such as The Cramps and the B-52's, I can only take in very small, occasional doses.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That's about all for now. Here's what I am looking forward to in my very near future…

 

 

 

Seasons 4 and 5

 

 

 

 

I started on Shutter Island. Never read any Dennis Lehane before, and so far (2+ chapters in) I really like the writing style.

 

 

 

 

In moderation (yeah, right…!)

 

 

 

 

Maybe one more blog here this year, then I think I'll try and switch over to blogspot again. Myspace is not only super-dead, but the blogging CMS they're using now really sucks. I never get the fonts, sizing, or spacing I expect after I hit the "post" button anymore.

 

 

 

 

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Sunday, December 13, 2009 

Current mood: Well-read

When I was younger and into learning all about different religions, I was interested in wicca and tarot cards and the various methods of divination. The art and craft of "fortune telling" is so fascinating -- from the very early days of civilization, to now with its big business / big scam connotations. I loved the recently Penn & Teller BS episode on astrology, but far be it from me to rain on anyone's parade or deny myself a little fun on the astral planes. So last night I partook in the providential prognostications.

It was at Tony and Jason's housewarming gala they had a fortune teller, complete with the Swami getup, candles, and a deck of tarot cards. Before he arrived, I overheard murmured conversations amongst some of the guests how scared or reluctant they were to get readings. So silly! You can't take it seriously, but it's always fun to do it anyway and see what they'll pick up on.

I've seldom sought out readings in my life -- and never paid anyone to do it, it's just when it's offered to me -- but they're always thought-provoking. One was from a friend, Hal Stone (a fixture at "The Rainbow" some of you may know him), who was into psychometry. This was years and years ago. He held my ring, and said he saw a horse eating watermelon. Now that's pretty strange and very specific, but sure enough, I had been feeding my foal, Flame, some watermelon a few days before! Hardly a life-altering prediction, but still pretty uncanny.

Last night I wanted to get my palm read, but the swami immediately had me shuffling cards for tarot. I guess he know what was best, so I went with the psychic flow. First I drew the Page of Cups, then Wheel of Fortune, then the Ace of Cups. He told me a few things about them and went off on some funny tangents (apparently, I can eat all the pizza I want next year and not gain any weight... odd coincidence, maybe, is that just the day before the reading I went into a Stuft Pizza and then changed my mind about getting one). He also said, in relation to the Ace of Cups, he saw me writing something creative or to do with the arts that will be very successful in next year (I did **not** say I'm a writer, I told him pretty much nothing about me).

Then, after a few minutes, he asked me to draw two more cards. These were the Eight of Swords and The Hierophant. Apparently, I'm the Swords but it's in the past, and The Hierophant is an old, wise man in my life.

After that, swami laid the cards out like this, from bottom to top:

Eight of Swords
Wheel of Fortune
Page of Cups
The Hierophant
Ace of Cups

I could not get an answer out of him as to what the spread in its entirely meant. Anybody know? I suppose if curiosity gets the better of me I will have to look it
 

up!
 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 

Anyway, the party was awesome. Tony is quite the gourmet, so the food wasn't exactly your usual chips and dip.

The guests were fab -- I knew many of them, plus Tony's Halloween and horror friends (PJ Soles, Jeffrey Landman, Gloria Gifford, and also Tom Holland who NEVER remembers meeting me ;) and so it was a nice way to spend the evening after the late, late, late junket (Book of Eli - I did 1:1 with the Hughes Bros for the French mag).


I finished by BEST GENRE & HORROR OF 2009 - it's pretty much as I predicted, but I had wanted to see The Lovely Bones first before finalizing it.
 
 


Click here to see the HORROR.COM "BEST" of 2009 List
 

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Friday, December 11, 2009 

Current mood: skinny now, soon to be fat
I hear the In Solvent See Tour has "the least blood in Skinny Puppy history" -- but it was far from bloodless. As I'm sure I've mentioned before, I'm not very familiar with Skinny Puppy's music but I do think Ogre is a dynamic and mesmerizing performer (from his work in Repo!, and his OhGr concert which I saw last year at the EL REY) and so I was eager to see the closing night show. We arrived early so as to have a good vantage point for photos and videos (which means suffering through inane overheard conversations and strangers' small talk, plus the so-so opening acts). I was front and center so I got some cool pics with the magic SONY H20 and the FLIP -- as usual -- did an incredible job picking up the sound and light. In fact, I am listening to the video footage right now (it's going up on my YouTube channel -- /stacilayne -- soon) and it sounds **BETTER** than it did live. The equalizer is great on that thing.
I believe this is the set list... I could be wrong!

- Love In Vein
- HateKILL
- Addiction
- Dogshit
- Deadlines
- Politikil
- Pedafly
- Rodent
- Tormentor
- Pro-Test
- Morpheus Laughing
- Ugli
- Assimilate
- Worlock

Following are pics of the night unfolding from arrival at NOKIA to the first opening act (didn't catch his name), the second performer Vverevvolf Grehv, and then just a few of the many snaps I took of Ogre. Actually, the concert was a little different than I expected in that it's not traditional in the sense the other band members are seen or even acknowledged in any way. If I didn't already know, I would have thought it was a solo act with backup musicians. In sum it was a great show, and I'm glad I went -- Ogre certainly knows how to entertain (I would have liked to have seen his face more, though... masks do distance one from the artist; I prefer to see the singer emote).
 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 



 


 


 


 


 


 


 
Speaking of music, I've been stuck on old tracks lately. And a weird mix up at that: BOB DYLAN and DONNA SUMMER. Talk about your split personality. More specifically, I've been listening to "MacArthurs Park". That song is so compelling and creepy. I like the Richard Harris original a little better than the Donna Summer cover, but her voice is so fantastic. I'll bet her version could be remixed really well with the dippy disco interludes removed. Her vocal track stands alone quite well. I've also been thinking about who would be good to re-do it (I don't think anyone's had a hit with it since hers, in the 70s). IMO the two very best musicians doing covers these days are SONIC YOUTH and any band JACK WHITE is in. But after last night, I was thinking Ogre could do a pretty incredible twist on it as well! That would really be an out of the box take, for sure. In case you are not familiar here's a little "one hit wonders" television segment on the Richard Harris version.
 


If I really wanted to, I could leave some cake out in the rain (it's pouring here!). But it would be a shame to waste this red velvet masterpiece of beets and cream cheese.
 



I read on Twitter that some griddle/bakery in L.A. is making red velvet packcakes with cream cheese frosting as topping. OMG... I am tempted to make the trek. Although my weight and body fat ratio is holding thanks to my diligent daily workouts, I don't think I can continue as I have been: for at least a month now, the bulk of my diet has consisted of coffee and desserts. That is all I've been craving, and I wish I wasn't such a slave to my appetites. I need to buckle down and turn it around after the holidays, for sure (my mom is mailing me a bunch of baked goods next week she told me, so I'm not gonna fight it). Another thing I've been stuck on lately, at least once of twice a day, is a killer hot drink mix I concocted, consisting of: Milk chocolate coco, a spoonful of instant coffee, a dash of non-dairy creamer, and ground cinnamon sprinkled on top. One GOOD thing I'm doing dietwise though, is drinking more Teechino. Have you heard of this? It's a coffee and decaf-coffee alternative (no acid) and it's suprisingly tasty. I recommend it.
 


I don't necessarily recommend THE LOVELY BONES... but I don't "not recommend" it, either. It's one of those where I say it's up to you. My full review is posted at HORROR.COM if you are interested in knowing my thoughts on how the cinematic version stacks up against the book. I did have a "lovely" time talking to the talent at the red carpet premiere the other night, at least. (In spite of the bitter, bitter cold... the rain that seeped in through the tent and settled into the carpet actually FROZE, creating "red ice". And my hands were so cold that I could not feel my fingers until about an hour afterward.)
 
Here are some pics. I rather like the one I got of the whole row looking down and getting (from R to L) Rose McIver, Stanley Tucci, Peter Jackson, and Saoirse Ronan. They were all lovely to talk to, especially Michael Imperioli because I've been a fan of his work for many years but never interviewed him before. Unfortunately, I reduced to the "stupid questions" because Warner Bros chose to have the red carpet on Monday and the press screening for us to see the movie on Tuesday. But, at least I got to tell him how fantastic I thought he was on LIFE ON MARS and we both agreed it was a bummer the show didn't get a chance at a Season 2.
 

 


 


 


 


 


 

So, my review of THE LOVELY BONES is up at HORROR.COM, as I mentioned. The video interviews with be at SYFY soon, I expect. (Speaking of which, anyone see their miniseries ALICE yet? I recorded it.)
 
I've been watching some movies lately... a mixed bag. Yesterday alone, in addition to an hour and a half workout, writing, and the concert, I watched: InALIENable (schlocky sci-fi, starring Richard Hatch), The Third Man (starring Joseph Cotten, and I'm embarrassed to say it's my first time seeing it -- aside from the extremely irritating zither music, I loved it), The Hangover (second time seeing it, not as funny as the first blush but still good), and 1971's Queens of Evil (which was OK storywise, but amazing visually -- very Carnaby Street fashionable and funky!).
 
Also, I compiled a list of all the movies out this year with numerical titles. I'd noticed it before, but having the actual names of the movies really confirms the phenomenon.
 
- $9.99
- (500) Days of Summer
- 12
- 12 Rounds
- 13B
- 17 Again
- 2012
- 24 City
- 35 Shots of Rum
- 9
- 99
- Cargo 200
- Delhi 6
- District 9
- Eleven Minutes
- Fifty Dead Men Walking
- Five Minutes of Heaven
- Friday the 13th
- H2
- MBV 3D
- My One and Only
- Nine
- Ong Bak 2: The Beginning
- Paris 36
- Planet 51
- Saw VI
- Ten9Eight: Shoot for the Moon
- The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day
- The Fourth Kind
- The Pink Panther 2
- The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
- Three Monkeys
- Two Lovers
- Year One
In parting, here are some snaps from the last issue of FANTASTIQUE. I'm glad they used my "eyes alined" picture of Peter Jackson in my Comic-Con report, and I'm also really proud of all the great contributions I got on the NERDS OF THE ROUNDTABLE roundup (dream remakes -- mine was The Abominable Dr. Phibes starring Cate Blanchett in the title role and co-directed by Wim Wenders and Darren Aronofsky). The writers really pulled it out for that one, and I even got Eli Roth to add his 02.
 

 

 

 


I think that's it for now. This month is turning out -- as always, every year -- unexpectedly busy. I just picked up a last-minute set visit today, so that means I will be flying next week... and back just in time for the numerous screenings and parties I already had lined up. AND, on top of all that, I am being interviewed on-camera for TWO horror documentaries before the end of the year! Whew...!
 
E-Ya Later,
 
Staci Layne
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Saturday, December 05, 2009 
Yesterday eventful, relaxing and fulfilling. My totally awesome, completely amazing, and super-fantastic SONY H20 camera captured most of it…

(P.S. If you just want to scroll down, I do have my "BEST of 2009" movie list semi-published…)

First stop was mPRm for the mini press junket of BITCH SLAP, a revved up genre flick I describe as "The crack-addicted trick baby of Russ Meyer and Modesty Blaise". It's pretty cool!

Here is the view from outside the mPRm offices window, penthouse level. That white spec on the hill is the HOLLYWOOD sign, which you can see perfectly with the naked eye and if the photo were larger (it's sharp in the high-res version).

The bodacious "Bitches" -- Erin Cummings, Julia Roth, America Olivo.

Director Rick Jacobson, and me.

Next stop was The Los Angeles County Museum, which is only 5 minutes from mPRm. I wanted to go, to see the OBJECTS BY ARCHITECTS exhibit before it's gone in 2010. But first, outside is this "Urban Light" sculpture… brings to mind film noir or Narnia, depending on your sensibilities.

Another (skewed) view.

The only photo I took not with my camera, but the iPhone, because I knew it would be pick up the flare and deep shadows. (I really like the iPhone's camera a lot… I've gotten some neat shots with it, especially in dressing rooms.)

The OBJECTS BY ARCHITECTS exhibit was really tiny; just a few furniture pieces, which they said I wasn't allowed to photograph. You can see for yourself how well I obey orders.

OBJECTS BY ARCHITECTS

OBJECTS BY ARCHITECTS

OBJECTS BY ARCHITECTS

I was also told I couldn't be up here, with my high heels on.

Loved this surrealist imagery, especially because it looks like DAVID BOWIE.

Cool collision of colors.

Mirror

Mirror

Mirror

I liked this window view from afar not only for the negative space, but because it frames the city outside as if it were meant to be on display.

Wilshire Blvd. peeks in.

Craftsman furniture display.

A better look at the chandelier.

Clothing cases.

Parasol perspective.

This fireplace was once in a Chicago mansion.

A closer at the fireless place.

Furniture and finery.

Frank Lloyd Wright… right?

Does this make you horny, baby?

Vases.

One of the display entryways; I found it more interesting than the display itself.

Walkways outside the museum.

Goodbye, LACMA…

…Hello, DDL!

Screening over, on the road. Christmas garnishes, palm trees, and Tiffany's -- it's the Holidays in Beverly Hills.

Once again, as ever, gazing through the windshield at brake lights. Yep, it's the 405 on a Friday night… but all's well that ends well (eventually).

= = =

I have been seeing a lot of movies lately. Lots on DVD and ones I've DVR'ed (SLEEPWALKING was very good), plus going out to screenings and seeing some films.

The aforementioned NINE was great (it's based on, and builds upon, Fellini's 8-1/2 -- it was Broadway show in the early 80s). I also saw UP IN THE AIR. As for as Jason Reitman's whopping oeuvres of three goes, I liked it better than JUNO but not as much as THANK YOU FOR SMOKING. Saw BITCH SLAP of course, and also BOOK OF ELI (neither are released till 2010).

My Favorite Movies of 2009

- (500) Days of Summer
- Drag Me to Hell
- Inglourious Basterds
- Inkheart
- It Might Get Loud
- Jennifer's Body
- My Bloody Valentine 3D
- Nine
- Orphan
- Taken
- The Box
- The Hangover
- The House of the Devil
- The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
- The International
- The Last Station

As of right now, my TOP 5 would be:

1. (500) Days of Summer
2. The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus
3. Nine
4. Inglourious Basterds
5. The International

2009 Movies out -- or still to come -- I want to see

- Avatar
- Did You Hear About the Morgans?
- It's Complicated
- Me and Orson Welles
- Serious Moonlight
- Sherlock Holmes
- The Lovely Bones
- The Road
- The White Ribbon
- The Young Victoria
- Uncertainty
- Until the Light Takes Us

I'm reading Miss O'Dell, the memoirs of Apple records insider Chris O'Dell. I like it. It's a light, fun read. Nothing too deep or revelatory, but entertaining and engaging enough. I recommend it if you're interested in what it was like to just hang out and be friends with The Beatles, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, etc., back in the day.

11:22 PM 
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Saturday, November 28, 2009 
It's nice to be in the pink, but lately I like to go a little deeper and dive into the red. (Lit-stop: "in the pink", though first commonly used by Shakespeare in the 1500s and meaning 'the pinnacle', evolved to convey the glowing healthiness of a rosy complexion. Then Bob Guccione came along…)


Best of all in the world of my favorite color duo (red and white), I **finally** (after over a year of having a standing eBay search alerts) found the Mode Merr Candy Dress! It's not sanctioned by The White Stripes or anything, but just look at it.





Marvelous, yes? The dress was buy-it-now at a steal price, but it's not exactly my size (it's a medium, and oftentimes even XS needs to be altered down to fit me) but I've got my fingers crossed. The seller did say the sizing runs small and I do have a good tailor. So…


I didn't take a chance on these awesome shoes I found, also on eBay. At 5.5 I know they'd be too big in this style (I can sometimes wear this size if the shoe is strappy, but for a pump I really need a 4.5 — practically impossible to find. I have so many shoes with cotton stuffed in the toes, and that doesn't really work very well).




Here is the link, just in case anyone else reading this is a 5.5


If I had all kinds of time and patience and wanted to deal with touching up roots all the time, I'd love to have red and white hair. Here are a couple of cute styles, but I think it would be neat to do one side (half) in red and the other in platinum blonde.






Went red for Thanksgiving too. Here's some of what was on the menu for a couple of gluttonous days — Red velvet cake, red Thai curry, and red raspberry jam for flaky butter croissants. Heaven. (And now, the 'stairmaster to heaven' to make up for it!)








I've been busy with articles, reviews, lists, and caching up on dozens and dozens of emails. But I've been unusually lazy too, watching hours upon hours of movies and TV shows (some while on the treadmill, but still).



The best thing I have seen is Mad Men. Finally getting on that bandwagon. I interviewed John Hamm, and the costume designer, on a press line about the show in 2007 just before Season One began. I thought it sounded good, but just never tuned in until now. (Though I did watch an episode once on assignment, in order to flash-review it. That is why I had the whole thing on DVD, been holding onto it.)



Now I finally know what all the fuss is about, and I must say this Don Draper's Guide to Picking Up Women skit from SNL is just perfect (but only after you've seen the show).



The martini dry dialogue is fantastic, and I really like how the music isn't overwhelming, as in so many period shows. It's all very subtle. It was a pleasant surprise to me to discover Maggie Siff was part of the ensemble. I thought she was great on Life On Mars, a series that was set in another cool era (the 70s), and now she is tough-cookie Tara on Sons of Anarchy. She's so versatile.






Speaking of versatile, I'm trying to expand on my year-end BEST OF lists for Horror.com. It's always so hard to try and lump everything together — I mean, how can an indie or direct-to-disc movie be compared fairly to a big studio blockbuster type? So, I'm breaking it down. First up is short films. Check out the link, because the article has the video players to the movies imbedded. There are some really good ones you may not otherwise see.





I wrote a few reviews, a Twitter article, and posted a few video interviews, including one with Roger Corman, and Ninja Assassin which opened earlier this week. The junket for Ninja Assassin was at a Japanese restaurant (the super chichi Yamashiro) nestled up in the Hollywood Hills. That was a little different, but all in all I do prefer the Four Seasons. It's like my home away from home. Here's a screen-cap of the place, then myself with the star Rain and the director James McTeigue. James was such a nice guy, I felt badly about having to post a negative review of his film… but that's how it goes!















Saw a few movies from my newly-purchased Forbidden Hollywood DVD (pre-Hays Office). I want to see the one with Barbra Stanwyck and I'll get to it eventually, but started with a couple starring Norma Shearer. She was big in the silent era, but it's interesting to see how naturalistic and modern (akin to today's) her acting style really was. I liked The Divorcee (1930, "When a woman discovers that her husband has been unfaithful to her, she decides to respond to his infidelities in kind!") best, but I have to say A Free Soul (1931) was pretty entertaining too. Quite the melodrama, costarring Clark Gable as (get this) "Ace Wilfong", a notorious gambler and womanizer. So funny (not intended as such at the time, of course).


I lovelovelove the costumes in those 1930s flicks! Art Deco is everywhere, from the cut of the clothing, to the marcel-wave hairstyle, to the décor on set. I took a few screen-caps.









And from class to crass, I also viewed Fatal Charm, an Italian crime thriller from 1978 starring Joan Collins as a bitchy stripper who really never takes it off (that could describe her in most of her roles, actually! None quite as delirious as The Devil Within Her, though). Just the opening credits had me howling. It's a classic.







Let's see. I also saw…

The Big Clock (1948) starring Ray Milland, Charles Laughton, Elsa Lanchester, and Maureen O'Sullivan (Mia Farrow's mom… the movie was directed by John Farrow). A mystery along the lines of something Hitchcock would have done. Pretty good, but I wasn't really in the mood for it. I also wasn't in the mood for the slow train of Horror Express (1972), starring Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. The fact that the DVD was terrible print and cut-up pan-n-scan, probably didn't help. I'll try it again some other time.

Watched a couple of sucker-punch romantic movies. One was a film I'd actually planned to avoid for the rest of my life, Nights in Rodanthe (2008). But a friend of mine said it wasn't bad and I do like Diane Lane and Richard Gere. So it was on TV and I watched it. And it was bad… but in a good, can't-believe-I'm-actually-watching-this kind of way. A better romantic adventure (with the emphasis on the latter) is The North Face (2008), based on the true story of ill-fated German mountaineers who tried to climb the Eiger portion of the alps during WWII. The suspense is pretty gripping and the human drama is undeniably moving.

Finally saw two movies that have been on my "must watch" list for years. First up was Irreversible (2002), a French language story of revenge told in reverse (starring real-life husband and wife, Vincent Cassel and Monica Bellucci). I have to say, I thought it was a bit overhyped. I did like the acting and I thought the two violent scenes were very effective, but the story would not hold up if were told in proper order. It's too heavy-handed. When it comes to loopy timeline movies, I still prefer Pulp Fiction and Memento.

Then the other flick on my "I should watch this" list was The City of Lost Children (1995) — another French film, this one sci-fi and directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Alien Resurrection, Amelie), starring Ron Perlman, cinematography by Darius Khondji, with costumes by Jean-Paul Gaultier. Sounded like an absolute shoo-in for me… but… I kind of hated it. Maybe it was my frame of mind, but I don't think so. I just found it so loud, annoying and irritating. Everyone was constantly yelling, screaming, crying, or complaining. Then there was the drooling, barking dogs, bratty, smart-ass kids, and whacky clones. Grating.

Black Orpheus (1959) - Another French movie, this one being an Academy Award winner. I liked it a lot, at first… then it just kept going on and on without much purpose. Still, I liked the mise-en-scène and I found the actors and characters appealing. Especially Lourdes de Oliveira; she played Mira, the scorned fiancée of Orpheus. She was stunning — so captivating, flat out gorgeous and fiery, yet only went on to do one other film. I wonder why? Anyhow, I thought Black Orpheus had waaaaaay too much singing and dancing in it (yes, I understand the backdrop is carnival) — and, I pretty much agree with this review… there are lots of pics too, if you're interested.

The Sun Also Rises (1957) - I hadn't seen this movie, but I felt as though I had once I started watching it because I remembered so much of what Robert Evans wrote in his memoirs, The Kid Stays In The Picture. It was OK, but I found it pretty dated and so contrived compared to what was being produced in Europe during that same time. One pleasant surprise was Errol Flynn's performance. Of course I've seen him in his early dashing hero-style roles, but here he kind of reminded me — given much more limited material — of Clark Gable's great performance in The Misfits. I never realized Errol Flynn possessed such easy, graceful gravitas.

Trucker (2008) - All Michelle Monaghan, all the time. She is in every single scene of this slow yet absorbing drama about a mother-trucker. (Hey, what can I say? She's a mom and she drives a big rig.)

As for TV on DVR, I saw Sons of Anarchy, Californication and Dexter, plus two long-stored episodes of Castle. I'm way behind on that one. It's a fun, breezy show; not really worth recording… but I did. Anyway, in one episode (When The Bough Breaks) I saw an actress (Elaine Hendrix) who reminded me a lot of Roberta Collins! What do you think?








Haven't seen any of Project Runway lately, but I was recording its sister show, Models on the Runway. I watched one episode and found it even more wafer thin than its subjects. I erased the rest of the season. I saw one episode of Mary Queen of Shops; it's kind of like Tabitha's Salon Takeover but Mary is much more polite. And boring. Coming up, I may try the debut of Launch My Line, a reality show about budding designers and their mentors.



Next week there is a new show coming on, hosted by my favorite theoretical physicist, Michio Kaku. It's called Sci-Fi Science: Physics of the Impossible, debuting on Tuesday SCIHD. Kaku makes all that geeky stuff so relatable to everyday life. The only other two who do the same sort of thing, perhaps a bit better, are Desmond Morris (anthropologist) and James Burke (science historian).



Proof that I am an optimist… I got several new books on sale, while I currently have three big, unopened novels sitting on my nightstand. I guess I must believe I'll live to see another day, and I won't break my glasses like (quoth Rod Serling) "Mr. Henry Bemis, a charter member in the fraternity of dreamers…"





Actually, I have read Travels before. A long time ago, I checked it out at the library. It's Michael Critchon's bizarre yet fascinating autobiography, and I was inspired to reread it after seeing some very poor reviews on his final novel, Pirate Latitudes (seems he never finished it, but it was published anyway).

I have a few stories in the latest issue of L'Ecran Fantastique. Something on Avatar, plus Paranormal Activity, Where The Wild Things Are, and maybe another. Haven't looked through it yet. I never did get my hands on Issue #3 of the English language version, Fantastique. It's probably out of the shops by now. Ah, well!





Speaking of my writings, I saw that my out-of-print training manual, The Horse's Choice, is $99 buy-it-now on eBay. I've seen it before for $150 on Amazon's second-hand section. It did sell out when it was published, but I never pushed to have it reprinted. Nice to know it's in demand. Still, it's not as good as Travels, which you can get for only $2.99!

Oh, yes: One more dress! Purchase inspired by Men Men, and a steal at that. Cute, huh?




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Sunday, November 22, 2009 

Current mood: Movie-Mired

Don't get me wrong, folks. I'm as busy as ever. But… I have been watching an inordinate amount of TV lately. The DVR's in two rooms are nearly stuffed to the bursting point, but I am not a week behind on my favorite shows (Sons of Anarchy, Crash, Ugly Betty, Desperate Housewives, Californication, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Dexter, Cold Case, FlashForward, Criminal Minds). I do have a few seasons mostly unwatched (Project Runway, Models on the Runway, 30 Rock,  The Big Bang Theory, Castle… erased Top Chef: Las Vegas, after watching about 8 episodes. What a bunch of whiners).




Don't know where I'm finding the time, because I am also keeping up on movies. Been to several screenings for junkets and just because, plus I'm reviewing all the DVDs coming my way. I wrote two reviews this morning, when I really should have been on the treadmill. And now, I'm catching up on my other writing. Seriously need to start putting together my annual lists of BEST and WORST movies and DVDs. That is always so hard (but worthwhile).


Anyway, just for kicks, and in the interest of putting off actual work for as long as humanly possible, here's my stack of "to be watched" DVDs and DVR for the holidays schedule-slump. I know I won't get through all of them.


WWII in HD, History Channel - 10 hours of WWII… probably won't hang for it all. I did watch some of it, and frankly found it mighty depressing. All that real blood and suffering in unflinching full color. Not for me. There are some aspects of the era I find interesting: namely the Nazis extremism and bizarre occultism, plots to kill Hitler, and the individual stories of personal triumph. But overall, not a "fan" (my favorite war is The War of the Roses — give me chivalry over swastikas any day).


Trucker - I hear this is Michelle Monahagn's tour de force, and that it's a genuine, unsentimental look at motherhood under the most trying of circumstances. Seems interesting.


Mad Men - I have Seasons 1 and 2 on DVD and I've been meaning to watch it. I love the era (those skinny ties and bullet bras) and setting (the advertising agency world fascinates me, always has) so I know I'll be hooked. That's why I've been avoiding it up till now.


Lie To Me - I love Tim Roth (haven't seen Youth Without Youth yet? Then you are really missing out. It's like a smarter, artier and much more existentialist Benjamin Button) and I have seen a few episodes on TV. The series looks to be worth a try.


Mary Pickford: The Muse of The Movies - A documentary on "America's Sweetheart". I already know a lot about her film career, but this also gives her kudos for being one of the smartest businesswomen ever in the pioneer days of Hollywood. Her voice, along with Michael York's, narrates.


Jack Taylor of Beverly Hills - Another cinematic documentary. This one is about haberdasher to Hollywood's biggest and brightest, Jack Taylor (born in 1917, still alive). He dressed everyone from Cary Grant to Elvis Presley.


North Face - German-language true story starring Benno Fürmann, which is about prideful Nazi mountain climbers in the 1930s scaling Eiger's north face. I hear the cinematography and the suspense are stunning, and it's a real must-see.


Irreversible - One of those "been meaning to watch for years, finally bought the DVD" kinda movies.


City of Lost Children - see: above.


Inglorious Bastards - I got this 3-disk special DVD edition of the 70s grindhouse flick at the junket for Inglourious Basterds MONTHS ago. I did remove the shrinkwrap, but still haven't watched it. Want to.


Horror Express - Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing in a 1972 horror movie set on a train. I am so there… eventually!


Fatal Charm - Stars my heroine of horror and the bitchiest beauty on the planet, Joan Collins. Nuff said.


Beneath the Surface - My friend Blake directed this movie, and I do want to see it. Just haven't, yet.


Case of the Bloody Iris - Giallo I haven't seen. This is something I must rectify.


Dial M for Murder - Hitchcock I have, of course, viewed many times. Want to see it again.


Forbidden Hollywood - Boxed set of pre-Hays office movies from the dirty-30s. Clark Gable, Bette Davis, Barbara Stanwyke, Lionel Barrymore… YES.


10 Years of Rialto: 10 Discs - Still slogging through this one. I really like it, but one must be in a certain mood for sourpuss cinematic French ennui.


Queens of Evil - 1970 Euro-cult horror. Terrence burned this for me. Says it's got good visuals. That remains to be seen.


Film Noir Collection: 18 Movie Boxed Set. I've seen some of these, but by no means all.


The Searchers - Shortly after doing the set visit for Priest, where the director kept saying how heavily influenced he was by The Searchers, that movie just happened to be on TV. So, I recorded it. I am sure I must have seen it a long time ago, but I'm not a huge John Ford fan so… Yeah. Sorry. I'll take Leone over Ford any day. But that doesn't mean I don't want to be educated by any and all of the legendary film directors, so I'll watch it again.


The Wicked Lady - 1983 flick starring Faye Dunaway, Alan Bates, and John Gielgud. I mainly taped it because I'd just seen Alan Bates in An Unmarried Woman, but also because it looks like stupid, trashy fun. Dearest Dunaway as a "highway woman" in 1800s London? Gawd, why not?


The Sun Also Rises - A classic. Hemingway. I really should see it.


Sergio Leone - Here's my Leone! MGMHD has been running all the Man With No Name movies and some of the director's other best Westerns. Gonna fest it one day (or two!) complete with plenty of spaghetti and meatballs in place of the popcorn.


Blade Runner - Of course, seen it many times. Always worth seeing again, especially in HD in the extended version.


The Red Shoes - Michael Powell's Technicolor triumph. Such a pretty movie, but I've always found it so boring. I'm gonna try again. It's on the biggest TV in the house… should look great, if nothing else.


On top of all that, I have screenings throughout the next month for Sherlock Holmes, Bitch Slap, Up In The Air, Paper Heart, Daybreakers, and I reallyreallyreally WANT to see: Nine (musical, starring Daniel Day Lewis), Loss of a Teardrop Diamond (based on Tennessee Williams), Creation (the Charles Darwin story, starring Paul Bettany), The Lovely Bones (directed by Peter Jackson, I adored the book), The Young Victoria (Queen, that is), Avatar (seems overhyped, but I am a James Cameron fan), and An Education (60s coming-of-age-story… already out in theaters, and probably soon to be gone).




So. Not too many lofty viewing goals, eh? Plus, I have a big stack of books I aim to read.


Here are caps from my latest reviews and video interviews (many, many, many more coming very soon!).

  • Rob Zombie on El Superbeasto at SciFiWire
  • The Echo Game in L'Ecran Fantastique magazine (print only)
     


















    • One last thing: I'd like to know from everyone, sort of a poll if you will, which horror movies you saw in 2009 that you either loved or loathed. Not that it will affect my own list for     horror.com (I'm opinionated enough to make up my own mind :) but sometimes I don't review all the ones I see and I forget about them. Also — again, no effect on my list — there are some I didn't see. Like Twilight: New Moon. Decided to skip it and keep myself pristine, since I haven't seen the first Twilight either.



    E-Ya Later!


    Staci Layne




    P.S. Edward Woodward died five days ago? Damn. RIP, "Robbie".



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    Friday, November 20, 2009 

    I have been up to so much, I'm falling behind in blogging. The horror, the horror — ! Kidding. That's the least of my priorities right now, but I did want to update you guys on the latest imagery.

     

    Toronto was a blast, not only for the Resident Evil 4 set visit, but I also have friends who live there so I enjoyed a mini vacation. I did the things I like to do (visiting the museum, window-shopping, viewing architecture, playing with ferrets, and basically absorbing whatever city I happen to be in), and took over 500 photos of just that.

     

    Each gallery uploaded tells a story, so if you're interested, read my captions (and please… as ever… excuse my requisite typos!)

     

    STACI'S TORONTO TRIP - link

     



     

     

     

     



     

    Thank you, Jackie and Cynthia, for the smoothly-run and so-fun set visit!

     


    = = =

     

    I have seen so many movies and DVDs, I can barely remember what they are… but I do keep a list. I still have approximately 6 or 7 to review or/and watch for review and more are showing up on my doorstep daily (that's nothing new). I've been doing a lot of set visits back-to-back (notable: Priest, with Paul Bettany, Karl Urban and Maggie Q… but beyond that, I am embargoed). Here are a few of my latest published horror reviews.

     

     

    HORROR.COM

     

     


     

     

    On top of the reviews, there's an avalanche of emails to answer, leads to pursue, interviews to put together, big screen movies I want to see just for my own edification…

     

    …Actually, I did do that yesterday. I may do the junket in January, but for now I simply wanted to see the Tolstoy biopic, starring Christopher Plummer and Helen Mirren, The Last Station.

     

     

    It was excellent. Definitely not a big screen must-see (I would have enjoyed it just as much at home in HD), but really, really good. I took Miss Pamela, and she enjoyed it just as much.

     

     

     

     

     

    After that, I zipped off to Jim Hemphill's Q&A night with Paul Mazursky at the Aero.

     

     

     

     

    I hadn't seen An Unmarried Woman (1977, stars Jill Clayburgh) before (Harry & Tonto is still my favorite Mazursky movie, I think… and DUH. Stupid me, I forgot to bring my ANIMAL MOVIES GUIDE to ask him to autograph for me. Ah, well. I'm even more scatterbrained than usual thanks to my busy'ness). I really liked it a lot. So many nuances, and such great acting... and the 70s comb-overs, rattan-wicker, and baggy clothes are hideously entertaining. I'd definitely see it again.

     

    The Mazursky Q&A was interesting. I learned a few things (I know some of his movies, but by no means have I seen them all).

     



     

    After that, Darren and me took off for his pre- B-day late night breakfast at Izzy's Deli (SUBLIME eats… corned beef, scrambled eggs, potato pancakes :), then it was home late and up early this morning — soon, I'm out the door for the Ninja Assassins junket and more adventures!

     


     

     


     

     

    E-Ya Later,

     

    Staci Layne

     

     

     

     

     

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    Wednesday, November 11, 2009 


    It's been so nice having a little breathing room lately. Catching up with longtime, faraway friends is the best bonus. Here's a photo album from last night at THE EDISON with Lara, who's in town visting from Colorado.






    = = =

    Been wasting a little bit of time visiting a couple of my favorite "guilty pleasure" blogs... here's what's new and nifty:








    = = = =

    Very very soon, I'll be meeting more far-off friends in Canada for a working vacay, and DEFINITELY will be spending a lot of time here... Can't wait!







     
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    Monday, November 09, 2009 

     

    AFM is going on, which I don't cover, so that means I have some time on my hands (kind of…). I've been organizing my computer files, getting months-worth of digital photos uploaded to Shutterfly, watching some DVD screeners I needed to see for review, and I'm even reading (finished Sandman, started The Mirror: A History, nonfic by Sabine Melchior-Bonnet. So far, excellent).

     

     

    Best of all, I can work out for as long as I like and not feel crushed and rushed by my schedule. It's funny — for many years, I hated working out. Now, I love it. I guess it's like me and the treadmill have this Stockholm Syndrome thing going on.

     

     

    Having good iTunes definitely helps (and no neighbors in the adjacent apartments). I've been musically inspired lately, putting together some mixes. I think the spark started with Mars, at the Horror Fest. He burned this for us to listen to on the freeway forays to- and from- Auburn and Sacarmento. (BTW, I gotta say… driving with Mars is quite entertaining! One of my more erudite friends, he likens tailgaters to Ivanhoe. That's esoteric as hell, but certainly apropos.)

     

     

     

     

    I liked the music, but I thought I could expand on it a little more, So I took some of his songs out, added mine, and now tell a story with it (the songs and lyrics, from beginning to end. I add back-story to everything, even my outfits. Kinda silly, but that's the creative mind I guess.)

     

     

     

     

     

    Here's another mix I've been into lately, good running on the treadmill.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    It seems really eclectic, but each and every song dovetails perfectly. That is one of my strengths: Putting things together. I am not especially good at generating things — for instance, I wouldn't be a successful clothes designer, but I could be a stylist; I may not be a gourmet chef, but I'm an excellent short-order cook; I can't grow flowers, but I can arrange beauteous bouquets all day long. I've always had a knack for knowing what goes together: from horses and kids when I used to give riding lessons; to couples and friends and business partners I've put together; to organizing which rescue animals would live in which groups.

     

     

    This is not to say I don't have a million limitations, and there are countless things I can't do. But unless I need a new skill, I don't worry about that stuff — or I find a way to learn the skill which best suits my comfort level. As anyone, I'm a work in progress. Frustration is futile, so I find ways around that whenever possible. The flipside of that is a flaw — avoidance — but I've found I have a lot more fun and less stress when I accentuate the positive.

     

     

    And you know what was positively fun? Andrew's 30th birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese! His girlfriend Annette (a little covert "set-up" of mine ;-) made it a total surprise party and it had the hoped-for effect. He was surprised and enjoyed all the kiddie games. It was my first time there. I never did go to C.E.C. as a child. (When we went out, my mom would take me and my friends to either Farrell's, Dupar's, or Sambo's.)

     

     

    I posted some new photo albums up at Facebook (OK, not all the "catching up" I've been doing has been entirely productive) and one of them is ANDREW'S PARTY. There are lots of crazy photos there, so check it out.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     
     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     
     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    In between my mini travels and busy-work within the next couple of weeks, I'm planning on meeting an old friend for the first time. Yes, you read that right: Lara and me have been horsey-and-writing-and-music pals for at least 15 years now via correspondence, but we haven't met in person yet. That's gonna change soon. I'm also going to catch some revival films and Q&A's, but sadly I have to miss this one… The Hollywood Italia and Vittorio DiSica ones look great.

     

     

     

     

     

    As I was saying, that book on mirrors is noteworthy. I've had mirrors in mind always, but The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus jogged the interest. One of the things I'd forgotten about was that in Renaissance Times, people used to wear mirrors as jewelry and would tie small, round mirrors to their waists with long ribbons so they'd have their reflections at hand anytime. I went on eBay looking for some mirror jewelry but could not find anything suitable — I may make something myself. (Note to Samantha: there's an idea for you!)

     

     

     

     

     

     
    8:19 PM 
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    Thursday, November 05, 2009 

    I made it to my appointment with the "end of the world" two years early. The premiere of 2012 - Hard to believe that was just yesterday! So much happened. And all I had to fortify me was copious caffeine, and pastries.


    This was breakfast at THE IMAGINARIUM OF DR. PARNASSUS junket: coffee and pumpkin bread.







    Then nothing to eat (too busy) until late night McDonald's drive-thru after THE 2012 RED CARPET: Coffee and apple pie.









    The day started early on the treadmill, then down the road out of town...







    ...and to the Four Seasons Hotel, where I got to interview Terry Gilliam for THE IMAGINARIUM OF DR. PARNASSUS. I was really, really looking forward to it. The only other time I've interviewed him is for another "Heath Ledger movie" THE BROTHERS GRIMM in 2005. Look at the picture comparison. We have both changed a lot, in four years. But not in chemistry -- as with the first time I talked to him, we were joking around immediately and it seemed like we had a shorthand. That doesn't happen very often.






    Definitely some directors I've taken to instantly are Gilliam, Todd Haynes, and Guillermo Del Toro. A few actors would be Malcolm McDowell, Doug Hutchison, and Idris Elba. Females who're really cool, right off the top of my head, are Zoe Saldana, Emma Stone, and Helen Mirren. Always a pleasure to talk to any of those folks. Most interview subjects are pretty guarded -- Heath Ledger was in that category, for sure.

    I get so many questions about Heath Ledger, as if I knew him. Our TV-Wire video at YouTube has gotten over 200,000 views and people either love or hate it. It's very polarizing. The interview took place in November of 2007 in New York, and while I'M NOT THERE wasn't a box office hit, that clip certainly was (and is). When Ledger died in January of '08, I actually had friends calling me and offering their condolences. I have to say I was shocked, but not surprised when I heard the news.

    Since I have been asked so many times, I'm going to write everything I can remember about my impressions of Heath Ledger. If memory serves, he first caught my eye in A Knight's Tale. I thought he was really hot and good-looking onscreen, then was totally disappointed when I did the premiere! He was introverted to the extreme, his skin was bad, his hair was dirty, and he was sucking down cigarettes like cancer was going out of style. I subsequently interviewed him on the press lines for Monster's Ball and The Four Feathers. Naomi Watts was with him, and I thought: "She could do better!" He wasn't exactly rude, just so withdrawn it was hard to find something to like. But then his work started to trascend him... his acting was so amazing that it really spoke for him. I didn't cover The Order or Brokeback Mountain (though I did interview Ang Lee for the latter), but then we did our first on-camera interview for THE BROTHERS GRIMM. He was paired with Matt Damon, and that was a super-short interview (three minutes for two people, and gregarious Matt did most of the talking), but there was a little more of a light in his eyes.


    After that, I did a much longer interview (for print) on the set of The Dark Knight in Chicago. He was still pretty uncomfortable with the press -- I really can't believe anyone wouldn't evolve in so many years, doing the same thing -- but he was talking more. For the first time, I was impressed by Heath Ledger. He didn't seem assured, but he did come off as a very comitted actor who genuinely cared about his work. He also got my sense of humor, which a lot of people don't. So he scored a few points there. Then he did the amazing, wonderful, fantastic film I'M NOT THERE and that's where he really scored. Not only in the movie, but our interview was really interesting for me. First of all, he remembered me from the Batman set visit and there were pleasantries.





    Then after the interview, he said he really liked the blue streak in my hair and he asked me how it's done. He gave me his "lucky" clothespin and was still shy, but much sweeter than usual. I like his sort of unguarded moment during the interview when he isn't sure if when I say "that's interesting" I really mean it or if I was using "interesting" as a substitute word for something else. But I genuinely found his reply informative; he answered my question in a way I didn't expect. He had good perspective on things. That interview has been praised, torn apart, understood, and misinterpreted by hundreds of YouTube users.

    Some people say he seems to be flirtatious, and others say he seems very uncomfortable. In the room, at the moment, it felt like a little bit of both -- but I did feel as though he liked me: but he didn't like the press junket situation. He did seem very jittery and sleep-deprived, yet he took the time to be complimentary on my hair, clothes and shoes. It was really the first time he seemed (more or less) engaged during an interview.

    In sum, if he hadn't passed away, Heath Ledger would have made a just "OK" impression on me overall. He was improving on the interviews side of things, and as far as acting: I was beginning to love him. His later roles -- Dark Knight, Candy, I'm Not There -- are my favorites.


    FYI

    Brothers Grimm Video Interview

    http://www.horror.com/php/article-917-1.html

    It's old, not Flash, so you may have to download it.

    As for my stuff on Dark Knight, that's only in text.

    http://www.horror.com/php/article-2036-1.html
    http://www.horror.com/php/article-1873-1.html

    And, my Heath blogs (from before he passed on)

    http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=46048036&blogId=329477658

    http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=46048036&blogId=329501080


    = = =

    Earlier today, I wrote my review of THE IMAGINARIUM OF DR. PARNASSUS.







    CLICK HERE TO READ THE WHOLE THING
    http://www.horror.com/php/article-2618-1.html


    This was one of the more difficult reviews I've had to write this year. (I think "It Might Get Loud" still takes the cake.) It is a movie I really liked... one with many depths and layers of meaning, innuendo, inside jokes and cosmic connections and a bit of bafflement. I honestly don't think I absorbed it all properly... so I was hoping to see it again before having to write the recap. But I didn't have time. Heath Ledger is perfect in the flick, as are his three counterparts (Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell). But it's really Christopher Plummer and Lily Cole's show.

    At the junket, I also interviewed Lily Cole and Vern Troyer. They were nice, but for me it really was all about Terry Gilliam.







    = = =

    Back to yesterday (I really can't believe I did all this less than 24 hours ago). We covered the 2012 premiere at the new Downtown L.A. Entertainment Complex. Never been there before. I guess the inaugural event was THIS IS IT, which isn't my thing. I didn't cover it, and have no interest in seeing it either.

    Here're some stills from the red carpet. Me, on Jenna's iPhone. As you can see, I didn't bother to change from that morning, and I put my hair up in a messy bun.







    Mickey Rooney and his wife Jan were among the first to arrive. He's not in the movie, so I am not sure what the connection is. Anyway, I didn't interview him. I may have mentioned he's in a movie with my mom (THE PRIVATE LIVES OF ADAM & EVE) but then again I may not have -- he seems rather cantankerous.






    Not at all cantankerous -- quite gorgeous and charming, actually -- was Johann Urb who plays a pilot in 2012. I love him on EASTWICK.







    Here's another shot of him, with his girlfriend off to the side. 6'+ blonde supermodel type: a very predictable couple, these two.






    Beatrice Rosen is in the movie. I didn't talk to her, I was waiting for the director to come up.





    I didn't talk to this cute little girl in the movie, either -- but I got a great snapshot!






    Oh, and then there is my shoe obession. These are both publicists' shoes. The black ones are cool, but I liked the nude-colored ones so much, I asked about them. They are Gwen Stefani LAMB, she said.










    The director, Roland Emmerich. He's good to interview -- very enthusiastic. Then star John Cusack... not so much. It's always like pulling teeth to get a good soundbite out of him.









    Here is Camilla Bell, who was in Emmerich's last movie, 2000 BC (or something like that; I covered it a couple of years ago, and found it dreadful).





    Danny Glover is in the movie. He plays the President of the United States.





    Adam Lambert, from American Idol (a show I am proud to say I have *NEVER* watched). He has a song on the 2012 soundtrack.





    Last shot of the night: All's well that ends well!




    = = =


    AT RANDOM


    I watched and reviewed NOT FORGOTTEN today. Don't bother.





    I do want to bother with these two movies, though... haven't seen them yet but they're so on my radar!









    Remember the other day I posted that thing about the "Staci Layne" friend request at FaceBook? Well, I also stumbled upon REDHOTSTACI -- funny.




    I'm reading NEIL GAIMAN'S SANDMAN for the first time, at Terrance's suggeston. I really like it a lot, even though I don't naturally take to the graphic novel format. I have a lot of books here to read, plus have a couple on order (cheap, under $5 at half.com) about mirrors (inspired by DR. PARNASSUS, and simply my enduring fascination with mirrored imagery).









    = = =


    That's it for now. Got lots of work and travel ahead of me in the weeks to come...


    E-Ya Later!


    Staci Layne

    4:12 AM 
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