When I was a little boy, “Highlights” was the only thing even remotely fun about going to the doctor’s office. And because that was the only place I ever saw it, I thought that it was a special magazine that you could only get to see at the doctor.
All posts by Eric Robert Nolan
A very short review of “Afflicted” (2014)
First, a clarification — there appear to be maybe a half dozen films or shorts entitled some variation of “Afflicted;” I am referring here to the outstanding 2014 found-footage vampire film.
Second, some advice — if you skip this because of an aversion to found-footage horror movies, you’re cheating yourself. This was fantastic. I’d give it a 9 out of 10.
It’s a creative tour-de-force for young filmmakers Clif Prowse and Derek Lee, who not only wrote and directed the movie, but also starred (quite capably) as its two leads.
It begins well, but not with brilliance. It’s too reminiscent, at first, of a similar recent found-footage film in which affable young men develop superpowers with frightening consequences — 2012’s wonderful “Chronicle.” Also, certain plot points are predictable. (Gasp! Derek is suddenly burned by sunlight!)
Then we get an unexpected plot turn, and the film gets much, much better. I won’t say much for fear of spoilers, but this is a fresh, entirely fun take on the vampire genre, with some special effects and action sequences that are pretty impressive for a low budget film.
And do watch through the entire credits. There is both a mid-credits scene and a post-credits scene that are absolutely worth it. The latter casts the story in a completely new light.
Check this out, horror fans. You won’t be disappointed.
I am so trippin’ right now.
So anyone close to me who’s asked me why I became a writer (and a horror fan) knows that one of the reasons is my awesome childhood memories — telling ghost stories under the front porch at the house of Jason and Adam Huhn, across the street in rural New York, along with my next-door neighbor Shawn Degnan. Those were some damn fun summer nights … and ghost stories were a perfect way to end a long day of exploring the woods, trading baseball cards or playing basketball in the hoop that Mr. Huhn put up for all the kids on the street. I used to beg my Mom to let me stay out longer.
Jason, Adam and Shawn and were my closest boyhood friends. Our quartet could easily be the 80’s equivalent of the kids in “Stand By Me.” Or, maybe better yet, we were adventurous enough to be “twinners” for a certain Ka-Tet in Mid-World: Roland Deschain, Cuthbert Allgood, Alain Johns and Jamie De Curry. (Seeing how I was an obnoxious chatterbox a preteen, I’m pretty sure I would be Cuthbert.)
Well, tonight Adam found me via this blog, and wrote to say hello! (I’d tried previously to find the guys via social media, but to no avail.) Adam even asked if I remembered telling ghost stories under the porch!
This Internet thingy can be a good thing, I tell ya!
That’s so meta …
The other day I saw an overflying falcon carrying a huge tree branch, and later saw another one snatch a fish right out of the local stream as I passed.
So basically Virginia is a real-life version of The Nature Channel.
Covers to “Doom 2099,” Marvel Comics, 1993
Issues #1-3. Art by Pat Broderick.
John William Waterhouse’s “Magic Circle,” 1886
One of the best memes I’ve ever seen.
Throwback Thursday: the most 70’s-tastic screenshot ever!
How’s this for a pop-culture artifact? It was shared recently on Facebook by my friend Conrad.
This is a screenshot from 1977’s “CHiPs,” that weekly, family-friendly, primetime police dramedy in which a pair of affable California Highway Patrolmen would never even draw their sidearms over the course of an hour-long episode.
And, yes, the period marquee in the background is indeed advertising the original “Star Wars.”
Even at the age of five or six, CHiPs was too goofy for me — despite the fact that Shawn Degnan, my best friend next door, frequently recommended it. Shawn and I did agree on the show’s contemporary, however — “Buck Rogers in the 25th Century” (1979-1981).
Andrew Wyeth’s “Christina’s World” (1948)
Publication Announcement
Congratulations, Dennis!
Eric Robert Nolan, Author 