Welcome to the Atelier
Album of the Day:
The Kinks
The Village Green Preservation Society (1968)
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society is the sixth studio album by the English rock band the Kinks. Released on 22 November 1968, Village Green was a modest seller, but it was lauded by contemporary critics for its songwriting and has subsequently been regarded by commentators as an early concept album.
The Village Green Preservation Society
Do You Remember Walter
Johnny Thunder
Last of the Steam-Powered Trains
Big Sky
Sitting by the Riverside
Animal Farm
Village Green
Starstruck
Phenomenal Cat
All of My Friends Were There
Wicked Annabella
Monica
People Take Pictures of Each Other
Feature Presentation:
Dead Alive (Braindead)
(1992)
It all starts with a rare monkey-rat creature from Sumatra. You know, the kind of thing you’d normally see in a zoo, or maybe working out of a Taco Bell at midnight in Times Square. Anyway, this thing bites a woman named Vera, who just happens to be the world’s nosiest mother. Instead of calling her doctor, she calls it a scratch and keeps hosting tea parties. That’s when the problem begins: she dies, comes back, and suddenly dinner parties start looking like an all-you-can-eat buffet… where you are the buffet.
From there things begin to get weird, the whole neighborhood starts turning into zombies faster than a movie with furious car chases. Lionel, the son, is running around with more undead relatives than a Romeo family reunion. You’ve got priests doing kung fu on the undead, babies crawling out of soup bowls, and a lawnmower being used as a weapon of mass sanitation.
In the end, Lionel - the guy stuck in the middle of all this - finally stands up to his overbearing mother, who by this point has turned into a building-sized monster with arms big enough to slap a city bus literally tries to swallow him back into the womb. He cuts her down to size, literally, and cleans up the mess with more mop work than the New York subway system on New Year’s Day. Trust me, it’s not as fun as it sounds. In the end, he kills her, wins the girl, and survives the world’s bloodiest mop job. Moral of the story? Don’t adopt mysterious rats from Skull Island, don’t ignore your overbearing mother and always keep some gardening equipment handy.
Directed by Peter Jackson
Written by Stephen Sinclair, Fran Walsh, Peter Jackson
Staring
Timothy Balme as Lionel
Diana Peñalver as Paquita
Elizabeth Moody as Mum
Creature Double Feature:
The Fog
(1980)
It started in a small coastal town called Antonio Bay, a place so quiet that the loudest sound was the church bell - and the occasional suspiciously timed car alarm. You know, the American dream: white picket fences, a general store, and a dark curse that rises once a century in the form of glowing fog. It’s the kind of thing that doesn’t look good on a postcard. On the eve of their centennial celebration, the town discovered its founding fathers weren’t exactly candidates for sainthood. Turns out they built the place with ill-gotten gold after sinking a ship full of lepers, though I’d have recommend a bake sale. That’s when the fog rolled in and so did the problems. Not the normal kind that delays flights or ruins a good golf game, but the glowing, supernatural kind that comes with sharp-dressed ghosts carrying fishing hooks. Radios begin going haywire, fishing boats get turned into seafood platters, and a priest suddenly realizes the town’s history isn’t exactly suitable for Sunday school. Meanwhile, residents are getting picked off one by one by ghostly sailors carrying hooks - you know you’ve got trouble when even the weather report comes with a body count.
In the end, the townsfolk try to return the stolen gold, hoping the angry spirits will take it and sail off into the mist but the ghosts weren’t exactly in the mood for refunds. It’s kind of like returning a toaster after you’ve already used it for ten years. There were screams, shadows in the mist, and one very dramatic beheading. As the fog rolled back out to sea, the town breathed a sigh of relief - too soon, as it turns out. Because when the mist comes back, so do the ghosts, but not before making it perfectly clear: in Antonio Bay, the forecast is murder, with a chance of headless corpses.
Directed by John Carpenter
Written by John Carpenter & Debra Hill
Staring
Adrienne Barbeau as Stevie Wayne
Jamie Lee Curtis as Elizabeth Solley
Janet Leigh as Kathy Williams
The Mist
(2007)
It all started with a storm in Maine. That’s Maine, the state, not ‘main’ as in central or important. Although, I suppose the storm was both. After the violent storm, a mysterious mist rolled in—thick enough to hide a marching band, loud enough to silence the local weatherman. Citizens gathered in the supermarket, which was normally a safe haven for discount paper towels, but quickly became ground zero for hysteria, tentacle attacks, and one very disturbing incident involving a can of peas.
The mist concealed creatures of unknown origin. Some had claws, others had wings, and at least one looked suspiciously like my mother-in-law after a bad perm. As panic spread, the townspeople split into factions: the practical, the panicked, and the prophet. The prophet insisted the mist was divine punishment, though I personally thought it was more likely a plumbing issue. Regardless, people began disappearing faster than coupons on double-discount Tuesday. And while out in the parking lot there are monsters with more legs than a tap-dancing centipede, inside there are customers who think ‘aisle three’ is a great place to start a new religion.
In the end, our hero escapes with his son and a few survivors, only to face a twist so cruel it makes forgetting your coupon book at home look like a blessing. Unfortunately, his plan ended in tragedy, misunderstanding, and very poor timing. Moments after making a decision more final than a tax audit, the U.S. military arrived to clean things up. If there’s a moral, it’s this: never give up too soon, never trust a supermarket crowd, and above all, never shop during a fog advisory.
Directed by Frank Darabont
Written by Frank Darabont & Stephen King
Staring
Thomas Jane as David Drayton
Marcia Gay Harden as Mrs. Carmody
Laurie Holden as Amanda Dunfrey
Midnight Movie:
Orca
1977
Seizing on the success of Sea World, Orca is the touching story of a killer whale who becomes a widower after a fisherman harpoons his wife and unborn child. What follows isn’t just a marine mammal with a grudge; it’s a one-orca vendetta operation. Naturally, the whale swears revenge, which is a lot like a divorce settlement: long, drawn out, and it usually ends with someone losing their house. In this case, the house is literally burned down by a six-ton fish figured out arson faster than most people can order door dash.
The showdown comes when man and orca face off in icy waters, each determined to prove who was truly at the top of the food chain. The fisherman discovers that revenge isn’t just a dish best served cold - it’s also slippery and wet. In the end, the orca got justice, the man got frozen, and I got seasick just writing this. The whale wins, the fisherman loses, and an important lesson is learned: never harpoon anything that can outswim, outthink, and outmaneuver you - especially if it weighs more than your car.
Directed by Michael Anderson
Written by Luciano Vincenzoni, Sergio Donati, Robert Towne
Staring
Richard Harris as Captain Nolan
Charlotte Rampling as Rachel Bedford
Will Sampson as Jacob Umilak
Drink me:
Harmonia Nectere Passus
A smokey bubbly apple cinnamon gin cocktail that is sure to disappear
gin, creme de cassis, apple cider, lemon juice, topped with champagne and absinthe spritz, smoked with cinnamon
Drink me: Thursty Thursday
Hodag
A smokey mix of cognac and botanicals with black cardamom
cognac, amaro, crème de noyaux, peychaud and orange bitters with smoked cardamom
Alchemy:
The Drunken Clam Pizza
Ya ever had the clam pizza? It’s like… regular pizza, but instead of pepperoni, it’s got little chewy ocean guys all over it. You take a bite, and it’s like—‘Mmm, cheesy, lemony, salty… so it’s basically seafood and dairy, which I’m pretty sure is one of the food groups. And get this, no shells. Nope, nope, just extra crunchy peppery arugula topping.’ And don’t get me wrong, it ain’t like Quahog clams are the freshest, but you put enough cheese on anything, it tastes like heaven. Or at least like Cleveland’s cologne—strong and oddly comforting.
Alchemy:
Sister Encarnación Apple Nachos
Apple nachos… they are like a little blessing on a plate. Thin slices of apple, crisp and pure, like the gifts of creation itself, layered carefully so everyone may share. Then, over them, a spicy layer of horseradish cheddar cheese fall like grace, and scallions and parsley are sprinkled as though from Heaven’s own hand. It is a simple dish, yet filled with joy, because it takes something ordinary and turns it into something wonderful. They remind me of the children at the orphanage. Each apple slice alone is good, but when they are gathered together, they become something even more delightful. And just as we share food, we share love, laughter, and the spirit of togetherness with cheese.
Book of the Month:
The Daily Planet, December 6, 1996 - Special Edition
By Clark Kent, Staff Writer
A City Haunted by Holidays
Gotham City is once again in the headlines, not for its skyscrapers or its industry, but for a wave of violence that has gripped its citizens with fear. A series of brutal murders has followed the calendar’s most familiar holidays, earning the mysterious culprit the name “Holiday.” Each month brings another crime scene, another family left to grieve, and another reminder that Gotham remains a city where even tradition can be twisted into terror.
Though Batman’s presence looms large in any story about Gotham, the so-called “Holiday Killer” has managed to evade even the Dark Knight’s legendary detective skills. Sources say Batman has worked closely with District Attorney Harvey Dent and Commissioner James Gordon in an unprecedented alliance to stop the killings before they escalate further. But as the year marches forward, questions grow louder…
Batman: The Long Halloween
by Jeph Loeb (Author), Tim Sale (Illustrator)
