RIP Val Kilmer

First time I saw him in Top Secret back in the early 80's video days (& nights).

My favorite Val Kilmer part is in Mann's masterpeice of American Noir- Heat

with a soft spot for Mamet's Spartan.

He was blamed for the catastrophe that was Island of Dr. Moreau, with a mad Marlon Brando and a Mini me. Richard Stanley is over that one, John Frankenheimer is gone, like Marlon and Val now.

Val was cool in Ron Howard's Willow (sword & sorcery way before LOTR & epigons la GOT).

He was Iceman, "the wingman" in Tony Scott's seminal Top Gun. Also his last part on screen was in Top Gun 2, a cameo where he became Admiral Tom 'Iceman' Kazansky.

He was a beautiful crazed Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone's The Doors

Val did a Batman (Forever)

A Simon Templar-The Saint (in Moscow)

Doc Holiday (in Tombstone).

-also Kill Me Again & Thunderheart (thx, Andrei ;)

A great comeback film, with Robert Downey jr. was Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, that me and Andrei saw in the world premiere in Cannes in 2005. And we loved it !!!

and a great parodic part in McGruber (2010) as the evil baddie ;) Cunth. 

Long suffering from throat cancer he made a comeback in the headlights with the intense documentary VAL (2021) , in the official Selection in Cannes Film Festival. He died, age 65, on April 1st 2025.

Jose Ramirez@Transilvania Blues Nights -28.03.2025

Jose Ramirez - 28 martie 2025, Rockstadt, Brasov, ora 20.00

Pentru prima oară în România și la Brașov, ”Bad Hombre”, Jose Ramirez vine la clubul Rockstadt din Brașov pentru un concert unic, vineri 28 martie 2025, la ora 20.00!

https://www.facebook.com/events/492695487183106/

Jose Ramirez este considerat artistul latin Blues #1 din lume, nominalizat la Blues Music Award în 2021 și 2023, locul 2 la International Blues Challenge organizate de The Blues Foundation în Memphis, Tennessee. Născut în Costa Rica, Jose a fost pasionat de stilul Chicago West Side Blues. A cântat alături de Keb' Mo', Ronnie Baker Brooks, Buddy Guy, Kingfish, Jimmy Johnson și Anson Funderburgh. Muzica sa este diferită de blues-ul tradițional, are influențe latine, Soul și Rhythm‘n Blues. Este primul artist latino-american care a semnat un contract cu faimoasa casă de discuri de jazz și blues din Chicago, Delmark Records, în 2022, cu albumul “Major League Blues”, apoi cu label-ul Blue Crawlfish, pentru al treilea album al său, “Bad Hombre Live”, care a ieșit alături de un film documentar omonim despre ascensiunea sa ca artist. Deja în “Major League Blues”, Jose Ramirez ”Bad Hombre” și trupa sa, vin acum la Transilvania Blues Nights !!!

https://joseramirezmusic.com

"Jose Ramirez is such a tasty guitarist, it's so refreshing " - Shemekia Copeland

" Be Warned, this cat is like Gasoline & Matches: EXPLOSIVE ! "-Jack Sullivan - Blues Music Magazine

" The most Soulful and Heartfelt Blues since Robert Cray burst onto the scene all those years ago" - Stephen Foster BBC

https://rockstadt.ro/event/jose-ramirez-transilvania-blues-nights-at-rockstadt-28-martie/

Preț bilete: 100 de lei în pre-sale pe rockstadt.ro, 130 de lei in ziua concertului.  Un eveniment marca Transilvania Blues Nights recomandat de Rock FM și Zile și Nopți.

Sponsori: BCR, Butan Gaz, Dräxlmaier Group, Tehnic Mihor, BitDatamining, Brasov Old Town Apartments.

Parteneri culinari: A-Ha Bistro, Coliba Haiducilor

here's Jose's wayfer for this gig:

Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party (2024)

There was one doc about Tom Petty, Peter Bogdaovich's exhaustive 4 hrs. Running Down a Dream (2007). Now there's also Somewhere You Feel Free (2021), about the amking of his album Wildflowers. And now this Lost documentary about Tom Petty in 1983. And the Heartbreakers. Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party  came out in US theaters in 2024 for a few days, ultra limited. It's the 1st film (lost too) of Cameron Crowe. Featuring the grand weird desert video of "You Got Lucky" from Long After Dark (1982). And the outtakes. And the making of a director - C.C. -

The film was restored for a one-weekend theatrical release in October2024 (on Tom's Bday), and it’s now available to stream on Paramount+ as of March 11.

Rolling Stone article here. 

The Monkey (2025)

I said/wrote before that Osgood Perkins' films are creepy, the atmosphere there is hard to breathe, tense, uncanny. There is something unpleasant about them. Longlegs tho was overrated, it came to me sold as the horror of the decade, century, millennium, etc. While it's not the case the film is ok, a superior thriller, veeery creepy and Nicolas Cage performance of the year 2024. Also being highly successful Perkins was asked to do The Monkey, a long belated project, adaptation of an old short story by  Stephen King, published in the anthology Skeleton Crew (1985) . The Monkey was first in print in the November 1980 issue of Gallery magazine. Then, revised and updated, in 1985's Skeleton Crew (story # 3). Inspired by the old classic The Moneky Paw by W. W. Jacobs., but with more twists and shouts.

King's original Monkey played the cymbals as the toy monkeys do. However due to Disney's copyright of the Monkey cymbal playing (from Toy Story 3), the Monkey plays now the drums !!! It's called the -Organ Grinder Monkey, "lifelike", there is no grinder and no organ, actually organs get grinded :)

King's original story was a simple one, and not a real funny one. Osgood (who also has a cameo in the film as Uncle Chip :), changed most of it, the scope, the deaths, the atmosphere, the characters and the vibe, giving it a most dark humor side, the forte of the film starring Theo James (The Gentlemen series) in a dual role, the twin brothers. The duration is pretty cool too (a tight 98 minutes), and so are the references, from King's novels (The Shining, Misery), to the Maine location (also Kings') and the Psycho (motel, stuffed birds, creepiness) and even Vertigo. The ending rises the value of the film at least a Notch. Osgood kinda exorcises himself on this one, big time ("and there was a pale horse whose named..."). Read his bio and see what I mean here. 

Results, a great little film that I hope will not be transformed into a lame franchise-James Wan produced the film through his Atomic Monster banner, surely there will be more drums to bang. 

7 out of 10 / 3 1/2 out of 5 !