“How could I have known that murder could sometimes smell like honeysuckle?”
It wasn’t the first film in the genre that would come to be known as film moir, but it’s one of the best. Directed by Billy Wilder, who co-wrote the film with Raymond Chandler (The Big Sleep, The Long Goodbye), Double Indemnity is often referred to as “the paradigmatic film noir,” raising the bar and setting the standard for all others that followed.
Our story begins with Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray), a cocky insurance salesman bleeding out in his boss’ office of a gunshot wound while recording his confession on Dictaphone. Through Neff’s narration the events which led him to this gruesome end are slowly revealed.
A simple house call to get his client to renew his auto insurance becomes anything but when Neff falls hard for the man’s younger wife (Barbara Stanwyck) who, at their first meeting, suggests procuring accidental life insurance for her husband (Tom Powers), without his knowledge, just in case anything nasty might befall him. Neff immediately knows what the woman is implying and promptly leaves.
The latest issue of Young Justice concludes the Gorilla City arc including giving us an origin of the city unique to the title. The issue also stands out as the final issue with the original team as Robin‘s case notes transition to a final panel revealing Nightwing thinking back on the adventure. This means starting next month the comic, like the show, will move forward with the “Invasion” storyline set five-years in the future.
Although I’m not thrilled by the rewriting of the origin of Gorrilla City to be nothing more than the effects of the Ultra-Humanite and the Brain experimenting on gorillas in Africa, the story centainly plays out well within that design as the team works alongsideGorilla Grodd to stop the super-villains which leads to the creation of Gorilla City.
We get Grodd, the final adventure with the original core team, and even cameos by Congrilla and Nightwing. That should be enough to warrant fans picking this one up. Worth a look.
Despite his recent interest in fox hunting Bender (John Di Maggio) becomes incensed after he discovers the hunters (led by guest-star Patrick Stewart) are actually hunting a robotic fox for sport. When his attempts to end robot cruelty and help Leela (Katey Sagal) protest the hunt fail, Bender decides to step in and rescue the fox. But Bender’s plan backfires when he finds himself the subject of the latest hunt.
It’s all been leading to this. The Flash takes on The Rogues… with the help of Captain Cold? Presented in a series of chapters, each drawn by a different artist (sadly none of which are done by Francis Manapul), The Flash Annual #1 may not be a great issue but there’s plenty here to talk about.
The story begins with a little backstory on Barry Allen and his father (which, to be honest, does feel more than a little like filler). We also finally see some of the backstory of the Rogues themselves, including how they came to have their super-powers thanks to Darwin Elias. Sigh, I guess this character is here to stay despite no rational explanation for any of his actions.
Entertainment Weekly is reporting Ryan Gosling will make his directorial debut with a modern day fairy tale entitled How to Catch a Monster which he will also write. The film, about a mother whose teenage son discovers a creepy underwater town, will star Gosling’s Drive co-star Christina Hendricks
Neal (Matt Bomer) and Peter (Tim DeKay) try to match wits with a political fixer (Perrey Reeves) who has been hired to sink the case of a criminal Peter is trying to put behind bars. To help take down the woman, who is behind the blackmail of the Assistant District Attorney (Michael Torpey) trying the case, Neal and Peter call on the help of an old friend, Sara Ellis (Hilarie Burton), to help set-up a sting that doesn’t go quite as planned.
To help promote her new movie The Paperboy actress Nicole Kidman took time out for a fashion photoshoot with photographer Mario Testino (you’ll find the pics inside) and sat down for an interview with Jacob Bernstein for V Magazine’s latest issue to discuss her willingness to go with the flow and take risks, her latest role which includes a brutal sex scene with co-star John Cusack in one scene and peeing on co-star Zac Efron in another, being forbidden to go to the beach as a child, working with director Stephen Daldry on The Hours following her divorce from Tom Cruise, her life in Nashville with husband Keith Urban, and her plans to work with writer/director Lars von Trier on The Nymphomaniac.
Annie (Piper Perabo) accepts Simon’s (Richard Coyle) offer to accompany him on his trip to Cuba. Although she gets Lena’s (Sarah Clarke) approval, Annie understands the risk of going in without any CIA back-up and no way home if something goes wrong, which, as you might expect, is exactly what happens. But the manner in which her trip ends no one could have foreseen.
Kidnapped and taken into Inner Earth by the Exile, Derek learns the truth about his captor in the latest issue. It turns out the Exile isn’t the super-villain Derek believed him to be but a member of the royal family who was banished for his theories of life on the surface of the Earth.
As Derek works on escaping, and even defending the creature that kidnapped him, Super Dinosaur brings his team to the rescue. There’s one big continuity error here with the ease SD and the kids make it into Inner Earth (a place that super-villains and scientists alike have been spending decades trying to discover).
You can’t really overlook such a big plot issue, but there’s enough fun here, including some great action, that you aren’t forced to dwell on it. You probably aren’t reading a title like Super Dinosaur for its logic or consistency. Still, it’s troubling.
The quick shift into the motivations of the Exile and the unexpected complexity of the politics in Inner Earth is a nice touch. I’m hoping the characters get to spend more time exploring the world before reuniting and returning to the surface. For fans.
The first three “Pond Life” commercials, I mean mini-adventures, celebrating the good Doctor’s return to television this weekend have hit the interwebs. Take a gander. Here’s Part 1, you’ll find Part 2 & Part 3 after the jump.
It wasn’t the first film in the genre that would come to be known as film moir, but it’s one of the best. Directed by Billy Wilder, who co-wrote the film with Raymond Chandler (The Big Sleep, The Long Goodbye), Double Indemnity is often referred to as “the paradigmatic film noir,” raising the bar and setting the standard for all others that followed.
The latest issue of Young Justice concludes the 
It’s all been leading to this. 
To help promote her new movie 
Kidnapped and taken into Inner Earth by the Exile, 
