R.I.P. Kolchak

Darren McGavins death is sad news for all of us who grew up watching the original television series Night Stalker, as well as the classic holiday film A Christmas Story. McGavin was 83 at the time of his death and reportedly in poor health over the last several years.

Dr. Who coming to Sci Fi Fridays

Hold on to your Sonic Screw Drivers! Starting this March the Sci-Fi Channel is set to dominate geekdom with another high profile show. The BBC's 2005 update of the classic Dr. Who series has been a runaway hit over there, much like Sci-Fi's BSG is here. The first season is thirteen episodes long and will tie in with the DVD release later this summer.


The new Doctor is played by British Actor Christopher Eccleston. If American audiences find him slightly familiar, its because of his roles in films like The Others, 28 Days Later, Gone in Sixty Seconds, and the cult hit Shallow Grave. His on-screen intensity will make for an interesting 21st century incarnation of our favorite Time Lord.

Check out the official Doctor Who site for more details.

From the Director of "Dog Soldiers"

A team of explorers trapped underground and hunted by strange predators doesn't sound all that inventive. However, given Neil Marshall's cult hit "Dog Soldiers" I'm willing to extend him the benefit of the doubt. Look for it to hit the U.S. sometime this fall, in the meantime check out the official movie site for more details.

Hostel (zero *s)

Watch out Paul W.S. Anderson and Uwe Boll, theres a new hack director in town and his name is Eli Roth. I didn't think it was possible for Roth to make a worse film than his 2002 big slobbery fanboy kiss to 80's Horror, Cabin Fever. I was wrong, very wrong and only ten minutes in I was wishing I had gone to see Munich instead.

To start with, the plot suffers from Roth's screen writing. Usually you'd like your audience to connect with, maybe even care about the characters on screen. Roth gives us little information beyond the obvious - a cardboard cutout trio looking for sex in Amsterdam. Paxton is the over confident ladies man, Josh is the sensitive brokenhearted geek, and Oli is the funny foreigner. By the end of the film, thats still all we really know about them.

The first forty minutes drag by as our intrepid threesome smoke dope and look for women in Amsterdam. C'mon, are we really supposed to believe in a city full of prostitutes and drugged out partiers even these three can't get enough action? When they finally do end up a brothel, they all decide to use the services of the same woman. Yeah, whatever. I don't know how Roth did it, but he was actually able to make gratuitous nudity and sex seem uninteresting. Eventually, just as I was falling asleep in the theater, they hear about this hostel in "Slovakia" and the film ominously switches gears.

I perked up a little at this point, thinking finally things will start happening. Another tedious twenty minutes later they do. Given all the hype, I was a little unsure of myself. Normally, I'm not sqeamish about gore, I find it interesting in a detached sort of way. With Hostel, I felt sympathy for the first victim and the rest I could've cared less. For all his self-promotion as the ultimate horror fan/director, Roth blows through the carnage like he was running out of film. As the credits rolled, I walked out of the theater thinking "that was it?"

There must be some type of demonic pact involved with this film. Otherwise, it would have gone straight to video, circled the drain of late-night cable and then disappeared forever. The only thing I know for sure is I won't be paying to see his next masterpiece. If you're smart you won't pay to see this one.