THE DANMAN CAN

Life and death, comfort and survival, nature and industry, innocence and corruption, fear and desire, beauty and chaos, confusion and rejection, delight and remorse. Nicolas Roeg Feature Films Ranked

Martin Scorsese  is still delivering compelling, visually captivating, richly woven stories as an octogenarian. Killers Of The Flower Moon  (2023) is all of those things and even feels like Marty stepping a bit outside his wheelhouse. Robbie Robertson 's (R.I.P.) final score is moody, droning, and hypnotic—reminiscent of the bass-playing of  Mark Sandman  (of Morphine ) and the scores of  Nick Cave  and  Warren Ellis . The accompanying soundtrack of old blues and indigenous music marries perfectly to the movie. Recommended for fans of  There Will Be Blood   (2007) ( review ),  The Irishman  (2019) ( review ), Heaven's Gate (1980),  Days Of Heaven   (1978) ( review ), and Boardwalk Empire   (2010–2014). Martin Scorsese Feature Films Ranked Top 20 Directors

My first band, Sector Nine Eight, existed from 1996–2004. The experiences that I shared with the other three gentlemen in S98 (friends to this day) continue to be cherished memories.  Earlier this year, my friend (and former boss) Kevin Colburn (leader of my second band, PELT , which existed from 2003–2004 AD) shared one of the only full performances of an S98 set that we know to exist (big thanks for filming this, Kevin!). Please enjoy 6 songs performed by S98 live at Newbury Comics  (where I was employed from 2000–2008) in Nashua, NH from 2003.  You can watch and listen to the whole performance ( warts and all, via low-grade camcorder audio/video ) at the YouTube link below! 1. "28: Across" 2. "Is This The Song You Wanted?" 3. "These Days" 4. "Half" 5. "Deviate From The Shadows" 6. "Too Much" Dan Sardella - Vocals, Guitar Neal Demazure - Guitar Kevin O'Leary - Bass, Vocals Dave Heffernan - Drums All songs copyright S...

Sam Raimi 's  The Evil Dead   (1981) is full of flaws, cheap sets, bad makeup, and more, but it's so inventive, so unique, and so steeped in low budget charm that none of that matters. The one and only  Bruce Campbell  was still finding his footing here in his commercial debut, but he left his mark as Ashley Williams—put through the wringer, smashed, beaten up, splattered with guts, dumped with buckets of blood, and tormented by the titular forces, all to Raimi's delight. The young director infused his debut film with energetic gusto, extreme dutch angles, and insane POV shaky cam, in the process making one of the most influential independent horror films and one of the most beloved cult films ever made. It's one of my  Top 100 Films —I've seen it dozens of times and it never fails to impress me every time I watch it (this time with an audience, which made it a different kind of fun). Sam Raimi Feature Films Ranked Evil Dead  Franchise Films Ranked

1973's The Wicker Man  has never been a film I've loved. I've seen it at least four times now (the theatrical version at least once, possibly twice, and The Final Cut three times; I can't recall if I've ever watched the Director's Cut). On this most recent viewing I definitely enjoyed it the most (the last time I watched it was seven years ago). I still feel its reputation belies the film to a certain degree (I don't think the ending is all that shocking and I don't find a single thing about the movie scary), but the songs are well done and memorable (🎶 Corn rigs and barley rigs and corn rigs are bonnie 🎶), the story is compelling enough, the society in the picture seems like it'd be fun, and something about TWM clearly warrants repeat viewings.

The Nightmare Before Christmas   (1993) celebrates its 30th anniversary today. It's always been a weird film for me. I've owned it on three home video formats now, and while I do enjoy it quite a lot, I've never been crazy about the songs, and being that it's a musical, that's prevented me from ever fully embracing it. Also, despite its lean running time of 76 minutes and its fast pace, there are still points where I lose interest. I adore stop-motion and the animation in  TNBC  is undoubtedly gorgeous. I greatly appreciate all the painstaking care and craft that goes into making a film of this sort. But when it comes to stop-motion  Tim Burton  properties, I know I am in the minority when I say that I prefer  Corpse Bride  (2005) (though I'm due for a revisit of that flick). And when it comes to stop-motion pictures by  Henry Selick  (who directed  TNBC , not Burton as I think a lot of people still believe), I prefer  Coraline ...

"This is no dream! This is really happening!" Roman Polanski Feature Films Ranked The Danman Top 100 Films (2019 Edition)