The Top Ten Most Underrated Movie Villains - 10. Dracula from Monster Squad

- Sketch by Dezi Sienty

10. Count Dracula (Monster Squad) "Give me the amulet you Bitch!"

Cody Dee Williams: I know we’re all thinking it, but I guess I’m the only one willing to man-up and put it in print: Duncan Regehr’s interpretation of Dracula in the 1987 Fred Dekker cult-classic The Monster Squad kicks, KICKS, Bela Lugosi’s Dracula in the nards! In the behind the scenes featurette on the new Monster Squad DVD, Fred Dekker admits that his first choice to play Dracula was none other than Liam Neeson. Who knows how that casting decision would have altered the lives of Neeson and Regehr? Maybe Regehr would’ve been nominated for an Academy Award for playing Oskar Schindler and Neeson would have nailed the role of John Dirks in the 2000, direct-to-video, film Krocodylus (yes, a movie so bad it had to rip off the plot of Lake Placid). But one thing is for certain, no way in hell Neeson brings one-fifth the amount of wicked dandyism and ambigious sexuality that Regehr brought to the role of Dracula. Now, give him his props, you Bitch!

Jen Huber: Why can't all the vampires coming out right now be like Duncan Regehr's Dracula? The pale skin and the creepy red eyes before turning into a bat are great but what really makes this version of Dracula work is the guy's facial expressions. The wide-eyed look is fantastic and the mix of emotions that play on his face is clear for all to see. Each time I see the movie I take one of his expressions a different way so it's kind of like a choose your own adventure. I probably would think twice before standing in the way of him and an amulet

THE EVIL EMPIRE STRIKES BACK!

Well, I’m just finally coming out of my hangover from Sunday night; the result of a 10 mile walking tour of Brooklyn, followed by two margaritas, a countless number of beers, and two celebratory shots of Canadian Club to finish it off. But, I gotta tell ya, today’s headache and haziness were a small price to pay for finally witnessing the team I love get back to the Fall Classic. And in such a gritty, gutsy fashion to boot.

The Angels gave us a great fight and made us earn it. Congrats to that team and their fans for a well fought battle and a tremendous, entertaining, tooth and nail series. Really a top notch, stand-up group of guys and their manager Mike Scioscia is a total throwback class act. Much respect for that ball club.

But here we go again. It’s gonna be another dogfight with a tough, scrappy bunch in the Philadelphia Phillies. Some great hitters on that team and a collective never say die attitude. I’m fully expecting these two clubs to push each other to their limits and bring out the best in one another.

However, at the end of the day, I’m truly confident in this 2009 Yankees team and that they will get it done. There is just something intangible about them that has inspired confidence in us fans. It’s a feeling we haven’t had in what feels like a very, very long time. This year's Yankees are just too dynamic, too talented, too well rounded to fail. Their starting pitching has been absolutely dominant. It’s gotten them this far, and it’s going to be the difference maker in this series with the Phillies, as well.

I didn’t drink a drop of Champagne last night (and thankfully so…). Figured I’d save the classy stuff for when we bring #27 back to New York.

GO YANKEES!!!

An Open Letter to Red Sox Nation:

This weekend the Red Sox got swept by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in what must have been a tragic, tragic, heartbreaking loss for the Nation; a loss reminiscent of the pre-2004 days. Aaron "Fucking" Boone, Bill "Fucking" Buckner, Bucky "Fucking" Dent; now you can add Vladimir "Fucking" Guerrero to the list of players that have had the distinction of sticking a proverbial knife into the collective heart of Red Sox Nation.

I'm a Yankees fan, so I should take incalculable amounts of pleasure in the Red Sox regressing back to their cursed ways. But I gotta tell ya... I'm not. I'm really not. For starters, I'm not a Yankees lifer. Actually I only started rooting for them after I moved to New York in 2003. Unfortunately, that year also coincides with the end of the road for the great Yankees' run of championship caliber teams that started in 1995. So I know all about October disappointment. 2004 alone was probably the bleakest moment in Yankees' history and I was right there, just one year into my fanhood, to experience every excruciating moment of ALCS Games 4, 5, 6, and 7. The Sox went on to the win the World Series that year and again in 2007, as the Yankees, year in and year out, got progressively more inept and dysfunctional in the Post Season.

So, I get it Sox Fans. And I wanna speak to you directly here, mano a-masses: I'm not here to gloat or shove it in your face. I'm not that guy. I'd like to rise above it all and say I am sorry it didn't work out for you this year. Despite the fact that I think the majority of you let 2004 and 2007 go to your head. Despite the fact that most of you still insist on hypocritically chanting "You took steroids" when A-Rod's up to bat, when your team actually won two World Series titles with a couple of roid freaks in the middle of your line up. Despite the fact that you have several premiere players who get away with ugly moments that no Yankees player would ever be able to get away with (see: Kevin Youkilis throwing his helmet at an opposing player, and Dustin Pedroia throwing the Fenway grounds crew under the bus after the Sox Game 3 loss to the Angels).

Despite all of this... I'd still like to congratulate you and your team on a winning season and I send my sincere hopes for a bounce back 2010 for the Sox. From the Bucket to The Red Sox Nation at large, we tip our navy cap to the following Red Sox of 2009:

Jacoby Ellsbury:


Dustin Pedroia:


Kevin Youkilis:


Big Papi:


Josh Beckett:


JD Drew:


Jason Bay:


Jason Varitek:


and, of course, Jonathan Papelbon:

The Informant!

This past week was busy as usual, not unlike the last few months. My company has been non-stop busy with all of the product we have out in the field. Between Michael Moore and George Clooney flicks things are finally starting to slow up just enough for me to get another post in. Tamar intimated to me that she wanted to see the Informant! But when push came to shove to actually go to the theater she decided that sewing and knitting was the plan of action for the day. No biggie, I really wanted to see this movie anyway, so I hit the Mega Movies Theatre by myself to catch it. I'm glad I did too it was a fun little movie. Matt Damon, as always, is great as the seemingly hapless/pathological liar Mark Whitacre. It can be frustrating to watch because this guy is all over the place with his tall tales. He's almost a recreation of Damon's Tom Ripley without the homicidal tendencies. Director Soderburgh shows again, that given the right material, he can put together a grade A movie. While Damon has again proved why he's worth every penny the studios throw at him.It starts out simply enough, Bio-Chemist Mark Whitacre works for an Agri-Corporation. He is struggling to discover the cause of a virus in their corn that is hurting profits. Whitacre claims to his bosses that a rival Japanese firm is sabotaging the supply. Instead of dealing with it internally they decide to go to the FBI which causes Whitacre to alter his story to price fixing. Thus begins his downward spiral toward ruin. The film is based on the true story and as the story unfolds, you start to see that the truth is stranger than fiction. Whitacre narrates the film and we get an insight into his thought process. On the surface he appears to be a genuinely affable guy, he tries to pull of this Clark Kent thing, smart yet naive. He also has this quirk, where he thinks he is living in a movie. When he turns undercover informer for the FBI he revels in his new task as corporate spy. He constantly compares his situation to those in James Bond and the movie the Firm. It's pretty amazing what this guy gets away with. It's also insanely hilarious watching him Michael Scott his way through the sting operation. It's almost painful watching his lies come back on him putting him on the spot so he can dig the hole even deeper.
This flick may not be for everybody it works on it's own slow pace and if you can appreciate good writing and an interesting lead then you should have no trouble sitting through this. But if you haven't got much of an attention span or if you can't handle a comedy that doesn't deal in dick and fart jokes than this isn't your movie. Whitacre is a pretty complex guy you think you get him pegged about half way through the film and then he surprises you again. Is he truly a master manipulator or is he just a fool getting lucky, it's hard to say. Other than Damon this flick isn't chock full of A-listers which I think really grounds the movie, honestly. It's good to see Scott Bakula get some work. I've always liked the guy from Quantum Leap and when he guest starred on Chuck and he does a good job again playing an empathetic FBI Agent who gets taken for a ride by Mark Whitacre and his antics. Another fun actor from the 80's Thomas "Biff" Wilson also had a nice little role in the flick unfortunately they didn't give him much to do, the guy can bring the funny and it's unfortunate that they couldn't have given him a funnier role. And I'm still not sure why Joel McHale was in this movie. The guy is hilarious on the Soup and he's pretty funny on his new show Community but they don't let him do his snarky thing here, they sort of Mormoned him up or something. That was a bit of a waste.
Other than the wonky soundtrack that sounded like it belonged in Ocean's 11, this was an enjoyable little movie and I suggest you check it out now before the onslaught of October films flood it out of the marketplace.

Grade 4 Buckets

Zombieland

This will be in my DVD collection as soon as possible. A fantastic, fun, B-movie experience!



Zombieland follows four misfits who somehow manage to survive after a massive outbreak turns most of the human population into zombies. Not really able to trust each other, the four decide to join forces and embark on one crazy adventure after another.


Woody Harrelson steals every scene in this movie. He is perfect in the role of Tallahassee. His character seems to find his life's passion in killing zombies and surviving. Constantly striving to attain the title of "zombie killer of the week" by developing creative ways to disarm zombies, Tallahassee is a force of nature.

Jesse Eisenberg is also impressive in this film. Last seen in Adventureland, Eisenberg holds his own in his role as Columbus. He plays the same sort of character as seen in Adventureland, Columbus is a rule following, anti-social guy whose knack for keeping to himself might be the sole reason for his surviving so long. He creates a list of fail safe ways to prevent a zombie attack in the beginning of the film that is very funny.



Rounding out the cast are Emma Stone as Wichita and Abigail Breslin as Little Rock. The two are sisters that give Tallahassee and Columbus a run for their money. Outsmarting the boys more often than they would like to admit, the girls are a great addition to the group. The four balance each other out well and create good chemistry throughout.



Perhaps the greatest scenes in the movie come when the four run into Bill Murray. Hijinks ensue and the result is hilarious. There is a scene at the end of the credits with Murray that didn't make the film, stay through to see it!

I love zombie movies and this one might just make it into my top 10. The story is great, the acting on point and the zombie killings are so creative! I say job well done!

4 Buckets