Hikari Friday: Funko Gives You A Ghost of a Chance This Week!

Posted on December 5, 2014 by geelw

Only ONE Funko Hikari Sofubi Vinyl figure up for this week’s giveaway, but there’s also the announcement of a limited edition figure you can run out and buy from Hot Topic, of all places. The freebie chance first: It’s #1 of 1500 this time and it’s a ghost you’d not want to bust at all because you’d be covered head to toe in icky marshmallow goop that’s probably a wee bit too hot to be sitting on your tender skin. Say hello to Ice Stay Puft Premium Hikari Sofubi Figure:

Yes, you should be nice to him or he’ll get mad and grow on you! Well, that would be a good thing under non-ghostly un-possessed marshmallow man conditions. But you know the drill if you’ve seen Ghostbusters, right? Anyway, if you want a chance to win this one, hit up one of Funko’s social media sites:

http://www.facebook.com/OriginalFunko
http://www.twitter.com/OriginalFunko
Instagram @OriginalFunko

Follow the rules there and hold you breath for a week. Well, don’t REALLY hold your breath for that long, now. Otherwise, you’ll be dead and with some real ghosts only to find out there’s NO Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man, only lonely moans and dirges playing every damned day and night. BOOooooooOOOOooooo! ALso, if you don’t win this time, you ca always buy that big guy at your favorite Funko retailer.

As for that other Hikari Vinyl? Attention Hot Topic shoppers! Be on the lookout for Retro Pastels Stay Puft Hikari Premium Sofubi Figure coming soon to a HT near you and online at HotTopic.com. Check him out and feel the rainbow love:

Obvious jokes about marshmallows on mushrooms aside, I can see this one becoming a hot topic of conversation as only 500 will be made before the mold is melted. Keep and eyeball peeled and get yours soon!

Hikari Friday Giveaway: Funko’s Got Two Stay Pufts Who’d Like to Stay Put In Your Collection!

Posted on October 24, 2014 by geelw

It’s that time of the week again and as Halloween is rolling up like a spooky candy-filled fog next Friday, Funko is giving two of you out there a chance to win.

This time out it’s a double dose of the not so friendly Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man in two different paint schemes. Get lucky here and you’ll soon be a winner of either this cool Stay Puft Premium Hikari Sofubi Figure (#1 of 1500):

Or this Entertainment Earth exclusive Pink Glitter Stay-Puft Figure(#1 of 1000):

Of course, you need to do a little digital legwork and pop over to one of Funko’s social media channels:

http://www.facebook.com/OriginalFunko
http://www.twitter.com/OriginalFunko
Instagram @OriginalFunko

If you’re NOT a winner, the first figure is available in December and the other can be pre-ordered at Entertainment Earth using that link above. As always, Good Luck!

TCM Reminds Us That War Is (And Always Will Be) Hell…

Posted on September 25, 2014 by geelw

Ah, there’s nothing like the darkly comic insanity of Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove (or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb) to remind us that painting oneself into a corner before deciding to spray a few cans of Raid around the house, then light up a cigarette to relax is always a terrible idea. Anyway, if you’re up late tonight and into Friday morning, you can catch this classic on TCM at 1am (eastern time – dip backwards on that clock according to your own time zone). I tend to watch this one a few times a year because it’s both hilarious and bracing while showing not much has changed over time except news (and bombs) can travel a hell of a lot faster. While the film is perhaps the bleakest of black comedies, according to one New Yorker article from earlier this year… a good deal of what happened in the film was (and perhaps still is) entirely plausible to some extent. Eeeeek. Um, sleep well, ladies and gents… sleep well…

Hikari Friday Time! Funko Wants You To Win Something Big, Sticky And Ghosty…

Posted on August 29, 2014 by geelw

As summer slowly winds down, what better way to close it out than with memories of roasting marshmallows and not-so scary ghost stories? Well, that’s the first thing I thought of when I saw this week’s Hikari giveaway. Funko is giving away this awesome Burnt Stay Puft Premium Hikari Sofubi Figure (#1 of only 1500 made):

And yes, YOU can be the lucky winner! Or the VERY unlucky winner if that thing ever comes to life and grows to the size it did in Ghostbusters! Anyway, as usual, just hit up one of Funko’s social media sites:

http://www.facebook.com/OriginalFunko
http://www.twitter.com/OriginalFunko
Instagram @OriginalFunko

Take a chance and perhaps you’ll get that email that says you’ve won big! Er, just keep an eye out for the box WALKING down the street towards your house. If you’re a loser, you can buy one of these limited edition Premium vinyls in November at your favorite Funko retailer. Have a super and SAFE Labor Day, by the way!

ALL THAT JAZZ & All That Jazz You Need To See, Thanks To The Criterion Collection!

Posted on August 25, 2014 by geelw

Bob Fosse’s 1979 semi-autobiographical musical masterpiece finally gets the Criterion treatment and if you’ve not see it yet (or have and it’s been a while), NOW is, as they say… the TIME. This is one of those one of a kind films that while not exactly an autobiography, is about the director’s own struggles, vices and other issues, cutting very close to the truth of his wild life on many levels. Compare this to the formulaic pap most Hollywood biopics have turned into over the decades and it’s no wonder this one makes plenty of lists of people’s favorite films. Of course, it also made me never want to do more than five things at ones, kept me away from drugs and smoking, so it’s also kicking it as a cautionary tale. Yeah, I’ll get to writing up a Random Film of the Week on this one in a bit – I actually want to see this new transfer to check out how good a job was done on it first. To the backlog you go, Gideon!

Random Film of the Week(end): The Punisher (2004)

Posted on July 19, 2014 by geelw

(thanks, Flauntvids!)

When I finally got around to seeing the 2004 version of The Punisher last week, I was wondering how I missed this one back then in theaters (although I’d not pay a dime to see this flick) or on cable. Then I realized that the film came out when I was in a crazy jobless phase and had chopped out any ideas of spending money to hit the local theater (or any other theater for that matter) until I was back in the black.

Well, even if I’d wanted to see this gloomy and unintentionally hilarious (yet erratically violent) movie, I’d have chosen to save my money. While it works on a basic level of grunting guys saying unintelligible stuff before trying to out-kill each other, the film is far too uneven to be entertaining unless there’s someone on screen getting killed in a ridiculous manner. Where the first (and forgotten by most, save for the more die-hard Marvel movie fans) Punisher film from 1989 was an automatic camp cult classic thanks to Dolph Lundgren’s grumbling and mumbling through the role as sullen serial gangster murderer Frank Castle, some cheesy sets and laughable action scenes, this reboot tries a wee bit too hard to capture the mood of 70’s and 80’s action films to the point that it feels a wee bit outdated on a few fronts… Continue reading →

Ghostbusters Turns 30 (!), Makes Me Feel Closer To Being Dead…

Posted on July 10, 2014 by geelw

Hmmmm… I hope that didn’t sound too grim or anything, but man, I can’t believe Ghostbusters is 30 years old! Yaaaaaaah! Oh well. I saw it when it was originally released a few times (at least 5 or 6) and too many times on cable afterwards, but haven’t seen it an a few years because I got over my adoration of it quite some time ago. In other words, my nostalgia meter isn’t bursting and splatting slime onto the walls and ceilings at this news as it is with some people who saw this trailer and geeked out of their minds about this re-release. Then again, perhaps I’ve become more of a quietly cheerful curmudgeon over time… Continue reading →

Random Film of the Week: Happy Birthday To Me

Posted on May 7, 2014 by geelw

](thanks, oldhockstatterplace!)

I actually don’t do much on my birthday other than pore over whatever greetings sent my way (and this year has been good for people sending well wishes), while trying to stay out of trouble (so far, so good). It’ll be a light dinner (wait, pizza is light? It is when it’s your birthday!) and a glass of Chianti later tonight and maybe a movie or two, one of which may or may not be this 1981 slasher flick with the somewhat loyal cult following.

I’m aged enough to have first seen this one back in 1981 when it was initially released and while it’s got some effective, offbeat murders and a few cast members of note, it’s far from the best the genre has to offer. That said, it is fun to put together the plot’s parts and uncover the killer as you go, even though the film seems to want to surprise you with a twisteroo near the finale that may or may not make you want to stab someone…

Continue reading →

RoboCop Update: Wednesday’s The Day. “Stay Out of Trouble!”

Posted on February 10, 2014 by geelw

Nope, if you DON’T go to the movies, RoboCop won’t roll up and drag you by the collar to the nearest theater and plant you in a seat with no popcorn. Nope, you’ll just have to live without that embarrassment, people. However, if the film is worth seeing and you miss it, you’ll have to deal with those pals of yours yakking on and on about it until you crack an break out that wallet for your own ticket. Of course, those noise-canceling headphones people seem crazy about just may be your new best friends for a few weeks if you’re holding out for that home video release. Just nod and smile when people talk to you and it’s going to be alright.

Of course, you may end up joining the army, a cult, suddenly getting married or even become part of a robbery team RoboCop has to break up if you go about your days nodding and smiling at everything, so don’t rely TOO much on those headphones…

RoboCop “Man and Machine” 1 & 2 (Or: Oh Man, What A Machine!): Get Me Rewrite Edition!

Posted on February 7, 2014 by geelw

Aha. I see what happened! I accidentally overwrote this post somehow thanks to having TWO “Add New Post” tabs open, using one to post these trailers, closing up shop for the night and restating today to use that second window. WordPress recognizes multiple windows open as the SAME post, so if you try to be slick and do multiple posts in different tabs, you’re going to simply overwrite the first post as you think you’re publishing NEW ones. Blargh. I haven’t done that in a while, so I’ll need to NOT do that again. (gives self Vulcan memory pinch): “REMEMBER.” Any-way, here we go again (and I HATE rewriting stuff, so it’s a bit different this time:

As you can see, there’s a new shiny metal sheriff coming to town, so you’ll want to be extra good while hoping this film is as well. I think it’ll do well on its own merits, but you know some of the die-hard who want that R-rating will be going after this one for anything they see as not as good as the original. On that note, I say as long as you guys cling to that classic, it’ll live on forever. But don’t poop on this reboots’ parade if it manages to get stuff right and isn’t a bad film at the end of the day. Granted, it’s going to be headed to home video in what, four to six months from now and possibly hit cable before the end of the year, right? So you can see this without paying that ticket price. I guess if you average in whatever you pay for cable or whatever streaming service you use, you’ll be buying this for LESS than a dollar soon enough. Ha and ha ha.

Meh – I like the old post better, but this will have to do. At least I dug up a third clip I just noticed while recovering the other two. The FUNNY thing is I had a tab with the old post in it open, but closed it, so I could have copied and pasted the darn thing if I’d caught the error! Ah well… Love me, love my dumb mistakes!