“Every once in a while I feel like I have to stir it up.”
– David Hyde Pierce
As Dr. Niles Crane on the popular NBC sitcom Frasier, which ran from 1993 to 2004, David Hyde Pierce was a paragon of gentility. However in his latest project, the independent movie The Perfect Host, he gets to embrace a far darker side of his psyche.
At first Warwick Wilson (played by Pierce) appears to be the epitome of civility and the consummate dinner party host. But when an unexpected guest arrives — John Taylor (played by Clayne Crawford), a bank robber in desperate need of a place to lay low — the evening’s events take a surprising course. Without giving too much away, by the time desert arrives, it’s impossible to tell who could — or should — die.
SuicideGirls caught up with Pierce by phone to chat about The Perfect Host and his other post-Frasier projects. The topic of dogs also rather unexpectedly, but nonetheless fortuitously, interrupted our conversation.
After fourteen years, the Harry Potter series is coming to an end. The first book was published in 1997, and with the release of the final film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, the journey comes to a close. Deathly Hallows premiered in London on July 7, and then in New York City on July 11. The internet has all but blown up since as fans avidly await the world wide release on July 15. The film is currently holding a 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, and shows no signs of falling. The video game by the same name and the official film soundtrack were released on July 12, 2011.
Harry Potter might be the biggest news of the week, but it wasn’t the only news. Yesterday, the first teaser poster for the Dark Knight was revealed. But that was only the second most exciting news surrounding the Caped Crusader in the past 7 days, as it was announced that Adam West will have a cameo in the upcoming film.
WHY DO YOU LOVE IT?: Since my never ending love and excitement for all things Harry Potter is too much for me to contain on my own, it’s really great to have a group of awesome folks who share the same interest!
DISCUSSION TIP: Be careful where you point yer wand *wink*.
BEST RANDOM QUOTE: “I HAVE A FRIGGIN NOSE, DAMNIT! IT IS JUST VERY, VERY FLAT!”
MOST HEATED DISCUSSION THREAD: There isn’t usually much drama, unless one of those Mudblood Gryffindor kids tries to show up in our common room… that’s a quick way to get stupified by a Slytherin.
WHO’S WELCOME TO JOIN?: Anyone who loves the series! All nerds welcome.
2006 was a illustrious year in music for many reasons, but certainly the release of Meat Loaf’s Bat Out Of Hell III was one of them. Meat Loaf and his longtime Bat Out Of Hell collaborator, Jim Steinman, were able to heal their wounds long enough to finish their trilogy.
Meat Loaf has been a cult figure since the release of his first albums in the early 1970s, but it was his role as Eddie the biker in The Rocky Horror Picture Show that cemented his legendary status. Meat Loaf has had only middling hits in-between his Bat Out Of Hell albums, but he is still creating music and still picking amazing roles in Fight Club and Dario Argento’s most recent episode of Masters of Horror, Pelts.
Stan Lee was recently named the 26th most influential American by Atlantic Monthly, but if it was up to me I would have put him quite a bit higher. Lee is, of course, best known as the co-creator of Spider-Man, X-Men, Fantastic Four and dozens more, though controversy has always swirled around how big his real contributions might have been. But first and foremost Lee has always been the consummate salesman, whether it was selling the latest weird Spider-Man villain to the readers or hosting the television show Who Wants To Be A Superhero?
Lee’s latest projects are totally without connection to Marvel Comics. His company, Purveyors of Wonders, has been producing original characters for straight to DVD movies. One of the best is Mosaic, an animated film starring the voice of Anna Paquin as Maggie Nelson a high school student whose father is an Interpol agent investigating a mysterious race that can change appearance at will. After Maggie is bathed in the power of one of her fathers discoveries, an ancient runestone, she gets all the powers of a chameleon. Maggie teams up with a member of that ancient race, codenamed Mosaic, to defeat the evil Mannequin who wants to take over the world.
The landscape of standup comedy on television has taken a surprising turn in the past few years. People like Artie Lange, Patton Oswalt and Paul Mooney are doing these amazing standup shows and are videotaping them in a very cool verite way. In the wake of the success of The Comedians of Comedy, Zach Galifianakis and director/editor Michael Blieden have teamed up again to bring Zach Galifianakis – Live at the Purple Onion to DVD. Besides Galifianakis hysterical set at the world renowned venue, we also get to see his brother Seth get interviewed by NPRs Brian Unger and get some real personal moments with Zach.
Despite all his super powers, the Green Lantern might not land the green light for a sequel. Reports had been floating around all week that the movie would be getting a follow up regardless of its horrible performance at the box office. However reports of a Green Lantern 2 were quickly dismissed as Warner Bros. waits to make the official decision. Likely, the studio is wanting to see its $200 million (plus a ridiculous $175 million in marketing costs) returned before they sign off on anything. It all comes down to the green, and the lantern’s light isn’t going to help him out of this one.
And as if this summer hasn’t had enough of overdone CGI, Transformers: Dark of the Moon will be releasing worldwide on the first of July. In the earliest reviews it looked like the critics had gone to the dark side as they praised the film. Many critics insisted it be viewed in 3D claiming it to be the visual rival of Avatar. The later reports weren’t as kind. USA Today hails it as being visually stunning, but lacking story line, and…
