'Sinister Stuff' doesn't deliver enough

Sinister Stuff (1934)
Starring: Anonymous Voice Actors
Director: Steve Muffati
Rating: Four of Ten Stars

Cubby the Bear must save his lady love from the villainous wolf who holds the mortgage to the home she shares with her aged mother.

"Sinister Stuff" is one of at least 18 cartoons featuring Cubby the Bear that appeared during the run of the the Aesop's Fables cartoon anthology series. Like pretty much everything from the Van Beuren animation shop, the episodes vary greatly in quality. This one is at the lower end of the scale; there are worse ones out there, but there are also far better ones.

The strong points of "Sinister Stuff" include the music. As is often the case with Van Beuren efforts, the music is excellent and it's very important in this film where the characters don't sing, but they do all speak in verse and rhymes. The end result is the sense that we're watching a weird operetta, and it feels very appropriate since it's a spoof of old-time melodramas. 

The animation here is also superior to what is present in many Van Beuren efforts, with details both in the backgrounds and foregrounds as characters go through their antics. This better-than-average animation also augments and elevates the hilarity and oddness of the several bicycle gags featured (even if one is dragged down slightly by some looping).

The supporting characters are also a lot of fun, from the villain's three sidekicks (who must be related to the weirdos that stiffed Tom & Jerry for cab fare back in 1931) to the fretting mother about to be homeless. In fact, the three sidekicks are the center of the film's funniest moments.

Unfortunately, the bad in this film outweighs all those good parts... and the bad all revolves around story. It starts off well enough as a straight-forward spoof of the stereotypical melodramas with a mustache-twirling villain kidnapping the hero's lady love and putting her in an extreme danger than only he can rescue her from. As it builds toward the climax, however, it begins to fall apart: Jokes are set up that don't pay off, the cartoon-comedy battle between the villain and the hero ranks among the lamest I've ever seen, and the ending just sort of falls flat (although it does reflect the late Pre-Code period in which this film was produced.

Perhaps the most damning thing about "Sinister Stuff" is that as I was watching it, I found myself thinking that Van Beuren's team had done a similar thing much better back in 1929 (and even that effort wasn't all that good).

But don't just take my word for it. If you have a few moments, click below and watch "Sinister Stuff"... if nothing else, I think you'll enjoy the bits with the three sidekicks.

Princesses of Mars, Part 41

It's time for another check-in with our favorite residents of the Red Planet.

The Martian Princesses seem rather busy today. 

  

 

Maybe the Russians have started a war on Mars, too? They have a long history with the color red, so maybe they think Mars and the people who live there ALSO belong to them?

'Validation' is fun, sweet, and entertaining

Validation (2007)
Starring: TJ Thyne and Vicki Davis
Director: Kurt Kuenne

Rating: Ten of Ten Stars

A parking attendant (Thyne) with a gift for lifting people's spirits falls in love with the one person he can't make smile (Davis).

If you're feeling down and/or are in the mood for a romantic comedy, you need to watch "Validation". Even if you're happy and just want to watch something really fun and entertaining, you need to watch "Validation".  Go ahead and click on the embedded video below! I guarantee you will have a smile on your face at the end of its 15-minutes run-time... and I likewise feel you'll find yourself adding this to your lists of favorite romantic comedies and urban fantasy films. You'll also find yourself humming the theme song, "Smile".

I probably already gave too much away about the film between the teaser summary at the top and the paragraph above, so I'll just add that if liked T.J. Thynes on the long-running Fox series "Bones" (2005 - 2017), you'll love him after seeing his performance here.

I love everything about this short film. It's among the most solid Ten of Ten Stars I've awarded since I began writing reviews again in 2003. If I could, I'd give it Eleven Stars, because it deserves a Star for the punnish title alone. (If you've spent any time on my Facebook page, you know how much I love puns.)

Musical Monday with Len Lye's Peanut Vendor

In 1933, New Zealander sculptor, animator, and puppeteer Len Lye made "The Peanut Vendor"/"Experimental Animation", a short film featuring a singing spider monkey puppet. It was something to show prospective investors as he tried to raise money to produce a feature-length puppet/stop-motion animation film.

Lye's efforts were in vain, and his puppet movie was never made... but a little bit of his dream survives to this day, for us to smile and marvel at.

The version embedded below is perhaps the highest quality and most complete one that's available for easy viewing. I've seen some commentators describe it as "creepy". Personally. I think it's rather cute.

But why don't you check it out and judge for yourself. Let me know if you, too, find it creepy... or if it perhaps filled a spider monkey-shaped void in your life that didn't even know was there until today.

But wait! There's more music with Len Lye's monkey!

One of the joys of this digital age we live in is that all sorts of fun, weird stuff is available in obscure corners of even the most well-known sites. Take for example this funky video where someone took Lye's spider monkey puppet film and replaced the soundtrack with that of the Beatles warming up (or just goofing off) during a recording session.

Bones Coffee's Bluesberry

It's Sunday. It's dark and I'm wearing sunglasses. I may or may not be on a mission from God, but it's time for another coffee review.

BONES COFFEE COMPANY: BLUESBERRY
Like most Bones Coffee flavored blends, this one starts with their high-quality, medium-roast Arabica beans, which means they're already off to a good start with a smooth and inherently sweet foundation. It's also worth noting that this another one of their blends that's packaged with a movie pun (like "Army of Dark Chocolate" and "From Dusk Till Donuts", just to name a couple), just to name a few). The package art isn't as amusing as some of the others, but it's up to the company's established standards and on point.

The unpacked Bluesberry grounds smelled strongly of blueberry, and that same wonderful smell rose from the mug as I poured the coffee. Unlike some Bones Coffee offerings, it wasn't strong as the coffee brewed, however.

The blueberry flavor was also not as strong as I drank the coffee. When I drank the Bluesberry blend black, the blueberry flavor was barely present; the taste was as if the coffee had been sweetened with a bit of blueberry juice, but nowhere what I expected based on the aroma when I poured it.

When I drink it with Unsweetened Almond Milk added, the blueberry taste is washed out and the drink tastes like a standard quality medium-roast with almond milk added. It is perhaps a little sweet, but the blueberry flavor is gone.

When I drink it with sugar-free Italian Sweet Cream creamer added, the blueberry taste bursts forcefully into the foreground. Here, the coffee flavor is almost drowned out between the creamer and the blueberry flavor. It doesn't become overwhelming or cloying... it just becomes the dominant flavor.

Bluesberry is another one of those Bones blends where the flavors tend to grow stronger as the coffee cools. Whether it's black or cut with the Unsweetened Almond Milk, the blueberry flavor grows stronger in the Bluesberry blend as it cools to room temperature. It doesn't become overwhelming, it just grows more obvious. Curiously, when the sugar-free Italian Sweet Cream creamer is mixed in, the flavors seem to rebalance themselves a bit, with the taste of coffee becoming evident again as the drink cools to room temperature. I thought that perhaps I hadn't started with sampling the Bluesberry with creamer added while it was properly hot, so I tried it that way again when I brewed my second pot. The result was the same. Why? Beats me... but then I'm just a daft Humanities sort of guy with very little understanding of all that sciency and chemistry stuff.

When consumed iced--whether black, or with Unsweetened Almond Milk or sugar-free Italian Sweet Cream creamer added--the blueberry flavor is strong, but not so strong that you can't taste the coffee as well. As such, this is a sweet coffee drink that works extremely well iced. It's something to keep in mind for when summer rolls around... and it's 106 miles to Chicago, you've got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, and it's dark. 

A reminder...

 ... that there are fools about on this Apirl 1, trying to be funny!

It's 4/1 and a Fantastic Friday

 Here's a little off-color fun featuring the First Family of the Marvel Comics Universe, courtesy of Frank Cho.

At the Eiffel Tower

On March 31, 1889, Gustave Eiffel led the first tour group up the Eiffel Tower in Paris. It was supposed to be a temporary structure (built in part to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution), but it proved to be both valuable as a tourist attraction and a place to put broadcast antennas, so the City of Paris decided to let it stand past the original demolition date of 1909.

 

The Eiffel Tower has now stood for 133 years, longer than many structures that were supposed to be permanent. You can read about the construction and history of the tower by clicking here... or you can just enjoy the pictures.

Art and Poetry

We're adding a little class to the joint with art and poetry...

'The Session' is worth attending

The Session (2012)
Starring: Alice Bristow and Niloo Ravaei
Director: Emelie Claxton

Rating: Six of Ten Stars

A girl (Bristow) undergoes hypno-therapy with disturbing results.

 
"The Session" is another student film I came across while trawling through YouTube for things to watch and write about in this space. It was made primarily to show its creator's competency with three-point lighting--which she demonstrates that she had--but it is also a very interesting, very creepy silent film that's well worth the few minutes of your time it takes to watch. I hope she got a good grade for it!

I admit that I don't know what to make of the patient's mindscape... but she probably has many more therapy sessions in her future.



Note: The creator of this film graduated from film school in 2015, and she has gone onto be a working director-for-hire. You can visit her website by clicking here.