Tag Archives: Jamie Lee Curtis

Mini Reviews: The Bear! Episodes 6 to 9

Posted on by
The Bear Season 3

Sometimes, the staff at Graphic Policy read more comics than we’re able to get reviewed. When that happens you’ll see a weekly feature compiling reviews of the comics, or graphic novels, we just didn’t get a chance to write a full one for.

These are Graphic Policy’s Mini Reviews and Recommendations.

Logan

The Bear S3E6 “Napkins” – Leave it to Ayo Edebiri to direct the best episode of The Bear Season 3. She, writer Catherine Schetina, and actress Liza Colon-Zayas tell Tina’s origin in such a beautiful way and touch on how infuriating it can be to find a job in this day and age. The quiet glory of Kate Bush’s “Morning Fog” is contrasted with the dead faces of the young employees that Tina interacts with at different jobs as not even replying to an open interview hour on LinkedIn gets her a position. She breaks and gives a “Fuck you”, but is saved by dropping into The Beef, getting a comped sandwich and coffee from Richie, and having a real heart to heart with a then-stranger Mikey (Jon Bernthal). Edebiri, Schetina, Colon-Zayas, and Bernthal cut the bullshit and just have two people venting about their days and also finding inspiration in the next generation with Mikey showing a picture of one of Carmy’s dishes that was teased in the season premiere. One benefit of TV as a medium is the ability to go deep into people’s lives and motivations for a half hour, and “Napkins” pulls that off with grace and rhythm. Overall: 9.1

The Bear S3E7 “Legacy” – This episode was okay. The restaurant review cliffhanger goes some resolved, and there’s lots of great lines and sequences, but they don’t really fit together. This is definitely a companion piece to episode 5 with the intro featuring Carmy and Claire at dinner, and an extended Fak banter bit about the “haunting”. It’s growing a little stale, but obscure character actor Paul Reilly embodies a Fak much better than John Cena. Also, Shapiro attempts to poach Sydney for his new restaurant where she would have more pay, good benefits, and get to do her own thing, which leads to a lot of frustration and hand wringing across the episode. One true bright spot of the episode is the energy Paulie James and Christopher Zucchero bring as previous employees of The Beef straightening up the sandwich with a killer Beastie Boys needle drop to boot. Overall Verdict: 7.3

The Bear S3E8 “Ice Chips” – The Bear Season 3 excels at these hyper-focused, bottle-type episodes featuring a character or two, and “Ice Chips” is no exception. Writer Joanna Calo, and actors Abby Elliott and Jamie Lee Curtis create a little magic as Natalie goes into labor, and her mother Donna (Jamie Lee Curtis) is the only person to pick up the phone. Calo and director Christopher Storer turn in one of the most tense scenes in the show as Natalie attempts to navigate Chicagoland traffic after her water breaks and also find anyone to pick up the phone using voice to text. Donna and Natalie begin by arguing about epidurals with Curtis giving a loud, over the top performance before mellowing out and sharing stories of Natalie, Mikey, and Carmy’s birth. By the end of the episode when Pete (Chris Witaske) shows up, she’s silent and tears after sharing these beautiful moments with her daughter. Sure, the restaurant review plotline is on the deep freeze, but Calo, Storer, Curtis, and Elliott give us a window into a complex mother/daughter relationship told in an emotionally honest way. Overall: 9.2

The Bear S3E9 “Apologies” – Another semi-frustrating, fragmented episode of the bear. Writer Alex Russell continues the back half of Season 3’s formula of single character-centric episode and then ensemble one, and he’s stuck with the ensemble one. There are some strong visual moments in this episode from director Christopher Storer like a dual color/split screen showing how the front of house and back of house have never been on the same page at The Bear. Between some silly moments with the Faks, Sydney and Pete finding common ground, and an overlong Cicero monologue about Carbon-14 dating, the Claire/Carmy relationship arc has barely progressed plus Oliver Platt speaks for me in his anticipation for the review of The Bear. This season’s best arc has been the dissolution of the Sydney/Carmy working relationship, and the number on her offer sheet matches the bad vibes of their interactions. There’s an interesting early scene in this episode where they lock eyes for a minute showing their distance. However, Marcus and Tina make a new dish of their own while the restaurant is closed continuing the show’s theme of little flowers of hope in the midst of despair. Overall Verdict: 6.5

Preview: Mother Nature

Posted on by

Mother Nature

Writers: Jamie Lee Curtis, Russell Goldman
Artist: Karl Stevens
Cover Artist: Karl Stevens
Publisher: Titan Comics
HC, FC, 184pp, $29.99, On Sale August 8, 2023
ISBN: 9781787739130

DISCOVER THE DEBUT GRAPHIC NOVEL FROM HOLLYWOOD HORROR LEGEND JAMIE LEE CURTIS AND FILMMAKER RUSSELL GOLDMAN!

After witnessing her father die in mysterious circumstances on one of the Cobalt Corporation’s experimental oil extraction projects, Nova Terrell has grown up to despise the seemingly benevolent company relied upon by the town of Catch Creek, New Mexico.

The rebellious Nova wages a campaign of sabotage against the oil giant, until one night she accidentally makes a terrifying discovery about the true nature of the “Mother Nature” project and a threat that could destroy the entire town.

Mother Nature graphic novel, published by Titan Comics will be available from comic shops, book stores and digital devices from August 8, 2023.

Mother Nature

Preview: Mother Nature

Posted on by

Mother Nature

Writers: Jamie Lee Curtis, Russell Goldman
Artist: Karl Stevens
Cover Artist: Karl Stevens
Publisher: Titan Comics
HC, FC, 184pp, $29.99, On Sale August 8, 2023
ISBN: 9781787739130

DISCOVER THE DEBUT GRAPHIC NOVEL FROM HOLLYWOOD HORROR LEGEND JAMIE LEE CURTIS AND FILMMAKER RUSSELL GOLDMAN!

After witnessing her father die in mysterious circumstances on one of the Cobalt Corporation’s experimental oil extraction projects, Nova Terrell has grown up to despise the seemingly benevolent company relied upon by the town of Catch Creek, New Mexico.

The rebellious Nova wages a campaign of sabotage against the oil giant, until one night she accidentally makes a terrifying discovery about the true nature of the “Mother Nature” project and a threat that could destroy the entire town.

Mother Nature graphic novel, published by Titan Comics will be available from comic shops, book stores and digital devices from August 8, 2023.

Mother Nature

Jamie Lee Curtis’ Mother Nature arrives in July. Get a look!

Posted on by

This summer Titan Comics is publishing Mother Nature-the terrifying debut eco-horror graphic novel by Hollywood legend Jamie Lee Curtis. Co-written with film-maker Russell Goldman and illustrated by artist Karl Stevens, the book has been adapted from the script for the upcoming Comet Pictures and Blumhouse horror movie Mother Nature, directed by Jamie Lee Curtis.

Nova Terrell who, after witnessing her father die in mysterious circumstances on one of the Cobalt Corporation’s experimental oil extraction projects, has grown up to despise the seemingly benevolent company that the town of Catch Creek, New Mexico, relies on for its jobs and prosperity. The rebellious Nova wages a campaign of sabotage and vandalism against the oil giant, until one night she accidentally makes a terrifying discovery about the true nature of the “Mother Nature” project and the long-dormant, vengeful entity it has awakened that threatens to destroy them all.

Mother Nature graphic novel (176pp, hardcover, $29.99, 9781787739130) will be available from comic shops, book stores and digital devices from July 2023.

Around the Tubes

Posted on by

The weekend is almost here! What geeky things are you all doing? Sound off in the comments below! While you wait for the weekday to end and weekend to begin, here’s some comic news and a review from around the web to start the day.

Kotaku – The New Jujutsu Kaisen 0 Movie Is A Fresh Take On The Manga – Who has seen it? What’d you think?

Comicbook – Toronto Court Fines DC’s Titans FX Company Over $100K After Crew Member’s Death – ….

Kotaku – Jamie Lee Curtis Will Officiate Her Daughter’s Wedding In World of Warcraft Cosplay – This is awesome.

Review

ICv2 – Death Note: Short Stories

Death Note Short Stories

Jamie Lee Curtis Makes Her Graphic Novel Debut With Eco-Horror – Mother Nature!

Posted on by

Titan Comics has announced Mother Nature (Fall 2022) the terrifying debut eco-horror graphic novel by Hollywood legend Jamie Lee Curtis. Co-written with film-maker Russell Goldman and illustrated by artist Karl Stevens, the book has been adapted from the script for the upcoming Comet Pictures and Blumhouse horror movie Mother Nature, directed by Jamie Lee Curtis.

Nova Terrell who, after witnessing her father die in mysterious circumstances on one of the Cobalt Corporation’s experimental oil extraction projects, has grown up to despise the seemingly benevolent company that the town of Catch Creek, New Mexico, relies on for its jobs and prosperity. The rebellious Nova wages a campaign of sabotage and vandalism against the oil giant, until one night she accidentally makes a terrifying discovery about the true nature of the “Mother Nature” project and the long-dormant, vengeful entity it has awakened that threatens to destroy them all.

The Mother Nature graphic novel (156pp, hardcover, $24.99, 9781787739130) is set for release in stores and on digital devices in Fall 2022. Available to pre-order now on Amazon.

Mother Nature

Movie Review: Halloween

Posted on by

halloween-poster-2018This sequel to the original Halloween pretends its sequels never happened, and, upon jettisoning four decades of history, brings us the best reinvention of the story of Michael Myers ever. Finally, we have a worthy sequel to the film that helped define the slasher genre.

While this is almost a cliche, the best way to describe this film is “all killer, no filler.” Indeed, including flashbacks to the original film, you go nary 15 minutes in this film without someone getting brutally murdered by Michael Myers.

The film plays very close to the structure of the original: Michael Myers, in an asylum, nearing the anniversary of his murders, is visited by two real-crime podcasters (how very 2018!) who want to interview him ahead of his transfer to another facility.

His doctor introduces them, and they go about further investigating the murders that happened 40 years ago, including an interview with a fairly off-kilter and paranoid Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) the sole survivor of Myers’ previous spree. Just like the original, our monster breaks out during the transfer and returns to his hometown to go on a murder spree.

The only difference is, this time Laurie has been preparing for 40 years for this very moment. In some of the film’s best parts, and a supreme twist of fate, Myers becomes the hunted and she becomes the hunter. And this is where the film becomes wholly different and its own thing.

She is joined in this with both her daughter Karen (Judy Greer) and her granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak), who have varying degrees of tolerance for their mother/grandmother’s nuttery. To be fair, the elder Strode very much seems to have gone off the deep end, and hearing that Myers is back confirms all of her fears and preparation as realism, not paranoia.

The best surprise of the film is having this Trinity of three generations of strong women uniting to fight this unstoppable evil. It takes the first film’s rumination on purity and power and makes it a culturally relevant feminist coup de grace for today. The Strode women, divided by generations and outlooks on the world, when united are the only force that even comes close to counteracting Myers.

The other great surprise of the film is just how funny it is. Screenwriter Danny McBride and screenwriter/directorDavid Gordon Greenwho are normally more adept at stoner comedy (Pineapple Express, Your Highness, Eastbound and Down) put some really amazing touches on here to help break the tension. While the film is all killer, no filler, in between the kills we often get moments of levity that help set up the characters who are about to die gruesome deaths at the hands of Michael Myers and the stakes of the next phase of murder sprees.

Yes, it’s also extremely brutal. This film earns its R rating with some truly gross special effects that we haven’t seen outside of a Troma film in a long while. Also, apparently in this universe blood spurts very very very loudly! There are also a few moments involving impaling, or people’s heads being smashed in, that are on full display here. Horror and slasher fans will be delighted.

Again, it’s almost played for comical effect, and helps lighten the tone of what would otherwise be so dark and depressing. But the film never enters into camp, always staying on the right side of the slasher genre. While it knows that some of the campy elements are necessary, it keeps its funny parts funny and violent parts brutal.

The other great thing about this film is it does not present a great barrier to anyone who has never seen a Halloween film before. It sets up its universe extremely well and establishes its characters even without knowledge of the previous material. However, for die-hard true fans there are a lot of nods to the original that make you feel right at home. This also includes a return of the iconic John Carpenter score, which is as effective now as it was four decades ago.

Fans will eat this film up, and general audiences will likely have a good time as well, though maybe not as good of a time as the core audience. In this way it’s very much like the films in the Marvel franchise where there is a definite fanbase who will enjoy the film at a different level, but there is a strong mass appeal as well as a low bar for entry.

This is not only a great Halloween film, it is a great film for Halloween time. The slasher movie is a tried-and-true staple of the horror genre and especially popular this time of year. Audiences will find the tricks and treats that they so desire here and will be thoroughly satisfied.

3 and 1/2 out of 5 stars