Saturday, January 31, 2009

John Updike 1932-2009

The Vault of Horror mourns the passing on Tuesday of John Updike, who--along with Norman Mailer--was one of the most important American literary figures of the late 20th century.

Prior to being homogenized by Harvard, the young Updike was particularly interested in science fiction, gravitating toward hard sci-fi writers like Isaac Asimov who displayed a solid knowledge of science, much like himself. Despite moving into the literary "mainstream" post-Harvard as a columnist for the New Yorker, Updike always retained a certain affection for the genre, incorporating it into several of his works, most notably the 1975 novella The Chaste Planet.

Updike's only foray into horror was a heavily diluted one, namely the 1984 horror/fantasy/comic novel The Witches of Eastwick. The tale of three witches who conjure up a mysterious demonic seducer was such a popular one that it has enjoyed several adaptations, most notably the 1987 film starring Jack Nicholson. It was also turned into two different TV movies and a 2000 stage musical, and a new ongoing series based on the novel is set to premiere on ABC in the fall.

Final Fantasy XIII Trailer


It's out, it's gonna be amazing; just check out the trailer and feel the jaw drop to the floor and make you want to buy a PS3....


Hubless Custom Motorcycle


This amazing looking custom bike runs on the hubless wheels(spokeless wheels)and was designed by the guys at Amen Design.


Inspired by Franco Sbarro's hubless wheels. Hubless wheels work by fixing the rotating parts (brake ring, bearings, hubless rim) onto the outer side of a non-rotating inner ring that attaches to the motorcycle's swingarm or forks.


Advantages include decreased unsprung weight, reduced structural stress (no spokes to transmit forces through), increased braking leverage, more accurate steering, reduced vibration and a lower center of gravity.


Check this bike in motion. Looks so great! A guaranteed head-turner....

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Phone Booth Aquarium


A telephone booth aquarium. By artists Benoit Deseille and Benedetto Bufalino for the Lyon Light Festival in France.

"With the advent of the mobile telephone, telephone booths lie unused. We rediscover this glass cage transformed into an aquarium, full of exotically coloured fish; an invitation to escape and travel."




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Friday, January 30, 2009

Neckface Goes Big In LA


Classic Neck Face stylee done outside the Barracuda shop in Melrose, LA.




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Daniel LuVisi Concept Art


Daniel LuVisi makes amazing zombie/monster concept art. The above pic if for a potential movie adaptation of World War Z with the director of 'Quantum Of Solace' fame. Below are several other examples of what you can do in Photoshop and a Wacom tablet.




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Alex Proyas Talks Dracula

Not be outdone by his colleague the Wolf Man, yet another classic movie monster--namely the one and only Dracula--is set to return to the big screen as well, in a high-profile project announced last year called Dracula Year Zero.

On Wednesday, ShockTillYouDrop had a word with the film's director, Alex Proyas. Known for his excellent adaptation of The Crow, as well as his underrated cult fave Dark City, and yes, unfortunately, I Robot as well, Proyas should bring a unique vision to a script that supposedly merges Bram Stoker's fictional count with the historical Vlad Tepes upon which he was based. Presumably even moreso than Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), which also did this to a certain extent.

Here's some of what Proyas had to say:

"I'm not a fan of remakes or sequels - I haven't done any and I'm not really that excited by them usually.

"In the case of Dracula, the reason I got excited is I read a particular script that puts the whole legend on its head in every conceivable way and comes out with something that is both a kind of ode to Bram Stoker's original Dracula, in that it's kind of a prequel to that, but also redefines the character to such an extent that I found it quite exciting, so that is very much a reinvention of that character and it's why I got excited about it."

The script in question is by Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless, two untested commodities who also penned the screenplay for next year's remake of Flash Gordon--to be directed by Breck Eisner, the man also at the helm for the remakes of The Crazies and Creature from the Black Lagoon. How's that for random connections?

Office Worker Goes Insane



This goes out to all you office workers. If you're stuck in a cubicle all day this just might happen in your office.
An office worker in Russia has the biggest flip out and destroys his workplace, before being tasered by security. Original CCTV plus camera phone footage.

Lump Hammer Love Bites Show



Lump Hammer Love Bites Group Show

05.02.2009 - 28.02.2009
Concrete Hermit's first exhibition of 2009 is opening on Thursday February 5th and will include work by five artists creating prints, drawings and sculptures in the style of the ‘contemporary grotesque’ - a trip into the unique and intoxicating worlds of Andrew James Jones, Kate McMorrine, James Unsworth, Seth Scriver and Mudwig Dan

Concrete Hermit. 5a Club Row, E1 6JX London. UK.
talk: +44 (0) 207 729 2646 online: www.concretehermit.com

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Austin, TX Commuters Warned of Zombies

I don't know what's funnier, the actual prank, or that it was this news program's "Top Story"...

Underwater Sculpture


Jason de Caires Taylor’s underwater sculptures in Grenada, West Indies, create a unique, absorbing and expansive visual seascape. Highlighting natural ecological processes Taylor’s interventions explore the intricate relationships that exist between art and environment. His works become artificial reefs, attracting marine life, while offering the viewer privileged temporal encounters, as the shifting sand of the ocean floor, and the works change from moment to moment.





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Fresh Sneaker Custom Guide


This guide hosted on Sneaker Freaker by Sekure D is a very interesting and inspiring read that shows you how you can professionaly customise your sneakers and know that it has been done with style and most importantly, will stay looking fresh due to your now infinitely better preservation skills. If you want a pair of sneakers that is unique to you, I reccommend this guide. Thanks Very Masa for the heads up!





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Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Have Your Say: Global warming, fact or fiction?

Caused by humans?
The earth's natural cycle?
Complete bulls@#!?
A real threat?
Government scare tactics?

Do you think global warming and climate change is fact or fiction?

Leave us your comments.


Vader customs

Whilst searching images online for a new painting project, I stumbled across this neat little exhibition that was held in LA in 2007 at the LA Convention Centre.. 66 different artists customized their very own Darth Vader helmet! (soooo jealous!)











Black Sheep @ The Oscars: BEST ACTOR

This past spring, I caught Thomas McCarthy’s THE VISITOR and found myself unexpectedly taken with Richard Jenkins. I had only known him as the infamous Nathaniel Fisher on “Six Feet Under” and suddenly felt as though I had never seen him before. In October, I caught a press screening of FROST/NIXON and thought Frank Langella had it locked after his pitch perfect incarnation of Richard Nixon. Then I saw Sean Penn in MILK. I’m not a huge Penn fan but, as soon as I was through weeping, I was consumed with how transformative his performance was. I couldn’t imagine it getting any better but then I saw THE WRESTLER. Aside from being completely floored by Mickey Rourke’s comeback performance, I was most excited to know that the Best Actor race at the Oscars would be the most exciting race around. Oh wait, I forgot about Brad. This is probably because I found him and THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON fairly forgettable.

Richard Jenkins in THE VISITOR

For five years, all anyone knew of Richard Jenkins was that he was one of the coolest dead guys around and that he certainly did a number on his adopted television family. In THE VISITOR, Jenkins plays Walter Vale, a widow who hasn’t lived a day since his wife passed. It isn’t until he meets visitors from foreign lands in a home that is supposed to be his own, that he realizes that he is a visitor in his own life.

Jenkins was always a dark horse to get the nomination in this category and this is certainly a case where the nomination will be the ultimate honour. The nod will open plenty of doors though and Jenkins will walk right through them. We may hear his name here again before very long.

Frank Langella in FROST/NIXON

Langella’s Nixon is a tricky one indeed. He is always on top of whatever game is being played. He always has his sights on a grand return to the public eye, one that he never doubts he is fully entitled to. It is the moments where he finds himself alone though that reveal the most surprising aspects of a very guarded personality – fear and uncertainty. Langella makes Nixon human.

Langella originated this role on the stage and has been in Nixon’s skin long enough to make everything look so easy. He was the early favorite this year, with the added sympathy bonus for missing out last year on a nod for STARTING OUT IN THE EVENING, but this race comes down to only two horses really.

Sean Penn in MILK

Penn is considered to be one of the most prolific living actors of his generation. As I mentioned earlier, I’m not always sold on this. As Harvey Milk though, he embodies the spirit of progress, equality and life, all of which made the real Harvey Milk so incredibly charismatic and convincing. Penn’s portrayal of the first openly gay man elected to American public office is no caricature; it is tender and human.

Unfortunately, Penn won the Oscar a few years ago for MYSTIC RIVER, a performance I never felt was that impressive in a film that I always felt was horribly overrated. Having one statue already on his mantle or his toilet (I don’t know where he keeps these things), puts him at a disadvantage here as voters might choose to reward someone who has never won before. That said, he just picked up the SAG award and that has a lot of sway.

Brad Pitt in THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON

Pitt is hit or miss most of the time. He definitely hit it in David Fincher’s 13 times nominated epic but was it really him who hit it? Pitt’s facial expressions were captured using CG and subsequently graphed onto a number of other actors’ faces and bodies to show the character’s transition from old and dying to young and new. Personally, I never felt like I truly ever came to know Benjamin Button despite the technical marvel.

Pitt may have gotten swept up in Benjamin Button buzz here because he is way out of his league considering the competition. That’s saying a lot considering the gravitas of this particular superstar. Still, many have argued that Pitt’s performance is a collective collaboration with a handful of other actors, all of which had Pitt’s face pasted on theirs.

Mickey Rourke in THE WRESTLER

It only takes about five minutes of watching Darren Aronofsky’s return to form, THE WRESTLER, before you are amazed by how perfect Rourke is as Randy "The Ram" Robinson, an aging professional wrestler who still has to play in order to pay for his lackluster life. Rourke’s performance inspires such intense sympathy but remains authentic and realistic. It is no exaggeration when people say Rourke was born to play this part.

After picking up the Golden Globe for this performance, it pretty much comes down, in my opinion, to a final death match between Rourke and Penn. Rourke’s recent announcement that he will be fighting in a legitimate WWE wrestling match a few months from now is a little odd but Rourke still has one major advantage over Penn, the comeback vote. Who doesn’t love a comeback … especially when it is this damn good?

All in all, this a very hard one to call. I’m going to have to flip a coin now and make the big decision at the last second. Heads, it’s Penn; tails, it’s Rourke … And Rourke it is!

Mario Bros X Batman

MARIO VS BATMAN
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Final Coraline Trailer Is the Best Yet

The last promotional clip for Neil Gaiman and Henry Selick's Coraline hit the net last night. According to Ain't It Cool News, it's Selick's personal favorite trailer, and it's pretty easy to see why. Here it is, enjoy:

Self Assembling Modular Robot



A robot developed by roboticists at the University of Pennsylvania is made of modules that can recognise each other. This video shows modular robots reassembling when kicked apart.

Read more HERE.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Have Your Say: What's your favorite oldskool cartoon?

(Thundercats) 

Transformers, He Man, Spiderman, Thundercats, Mask, Centurions, GI Joe... what is your all-time  favorite oldskool cartoon series? 

Leave us your comments.

Humor me

More from the legendary Perry Bible Fellowship...




Chaz Bojorquez New Show


Chaz Bojorquez, also known as the Godfather of Cholo-style graffiti has a new show in LA, Jan 31st.


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The large, black Old English letters, highly abstracted and carefully designed, reveal strength and control. Besides just looking at the surface, this is an image that demands to be read and understood. These inscriptions achieve incredible sophisticated aesthetic heights and disclose the concerns of the neighborhood.


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"L.A. gang graffiti writings are called 'Placas' (plaques, symbols of territorial street boundaries), and are pledges of allegiance to your neighborhood. Its letter face has always been called 'Old English' and is always printed in upper case capital letters."


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The Placa is written in a contemporary high advertising format, with a headline, body copy, and a logo.Placas are written with care to make them straight and clean. They are flushed left and right or words are stacked and centered. Rarely are they ever done in lower case free-script, or other than in black letters.


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This squarish, prestigious typeface was meant to present to the public a formal document, encouraging gang strength, and creating an aura of exclusivity.


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