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By Adrian Smith

The first question you are probably asking is “Do we need another book about Hammer films?” Speaking as someone whose Hammer shelf is already groaning with the weight of so many volumes on the company, the answer, as far as Hammer Complete is concerned, is “Absolutely.” This book, coming in at nearly 1000 pages, is a lifetime achievement for journalist Howard Maxford, and one that deserves immense praise. Unlike other books which might focus specifically on the horror films, or the posters, or the ups and downs of the company itself, here Maxford has attempted to provide a complete encyclopedia of everything and everyone connected to Hammer. From Temple Abady (who appeared in Never Look Back in 1952) and The Abominable Snowman (1957) to Murial Zillah and Marc Zuber, no Hammer stone has been left unturned or contributor ignored.

Unlike many books of this type which are little more than...

As you know, Hollywood is currently going through crazy time as every day has been filled with news of sexual misconduct and abuse in Hollywood. People are opening up and sharing terrible stories of how they have been inappropriately treated by others in the industry over the years. I have a feeling this isn't going to end an go away anytime soon.

Well, now there's an unbelievably crazy shocking report from Daily Mail about Smallville actress Allison Mack. According to insiders, Mack is "second in command" and "key recruiter" of a sex cult called Nxivm Dos “Dominus Obsequious Sororium” that's Latin for "Master Over the Slave Women."

News of the cult was reported on last month in the New York Times who reported that they also brand women with cauterizing rods, and that the leader forces its members to go on “near-starvation diets” to satisfy the leader’s sexual needs.

It’s a presumptive moment of exposure. One man guesses what another man is too afraid to say, but he goes further than the first man could’ve expected.

“You think…maybe… I don’t even want to say it out loud.”

“Slave girls?”

No, Emmit Stussey wasn’t talking about slave girls, but his exchange with Sy Feltz became one of the stand-out comedic moments of “Fargo” Season 3, if not the series to date, because of the miscommunication. Beyond that, it’s also a telling illustration of the duo’s relationship. Sy wants to protect Emmit; more than that, he wants to do what Emmit is incapable of doing, for the good of their company.

Read More: Noah Hawley on the ‘Fargo’ Finale and Why the Fate of Gloria Burgle Matters More Than You Think

“I think Sy really liked being the guy behind the scenes who never took his boots off,...

The Performer | Freddie Highmore

The Show | Bates Motel

The Episode | “The Cord” (April 24, 2017)

The Performance | Throughout the superlative A&E drama’s five-season run, Highmore has slayed us over and over again not just by revealing the depths of the mental illness that transformed Norman into his “psycho” Mother but by doing so without ever letting us forget the sweet boy trapped in the prison of his own warped mind. In the series’ heartbreaking final episode, the actor — infuriatingly never Emmy-nominated — took a last “stab” at it, delivering a performance that could only be described as killer.

First, Highmore vanished into Mother,...

Tensions rise between Emmit and Ray, though (unbeknownst to one another) both brothers have far larger problems to deal with on Fargo Season 3 Episode 2.

Also, Nikki left a used tampon in Emmit's desk drawer. So there's that.

"The Principle of Restricted Choice" found the narrative sectioned off in three separate portions – Gloria's story, Ray's story, and Emmit's story.

Much like the first two seasons of the series, I'm guessing that as the season progresses, the three distinct plots will come closer and closer, intersecting and eventually condensing into one.

Gloria's main concern was investigating her stepfather's murder. They're pretty clear on the how (asphyxiation via glue) but it's the why and the whodunnit that's a mystery.

Gloria: They glued his nose and mouth shut. Are we thinking cause of death is somehow a cliffhanger?

Donny: Guess not.

Permalink: Are we thinking cause of death is somehow a cliffhanger? Added: April...

Need to catch up? Check out our previous Fargo recap here.

The sibling rivalry between Fargo‘s Ray and Emmit only got uglier this week… and yeah, even a little bloody, thanks to Nikki.

Ray’s conscience is nagging him about Maurice’s death by A/C — which is good, because he seemed a little too blasé about it last week, frankly. He shares his troubles with Nikki, and she responds by slapping him across the face. Twice. “There’s something wrong with your chi,” she informs him. “You’re all blocked up, babe.” The only way he can unblock himself,...

Ryan Lambie Feb 21, 2017

Before he made The Godfather and Apocalypse Now, Francis Ford Coppola got his start by editing monsters into a Soviet sci-fi film...

Everyone loves a good success story, and Hollywood history's full of them. Actors sleeping in their cars until they get their first lucky break. Writers papering the walls of their lodgings with rejection letters until they finally get a script in front of a receptive producer. Filmmakers who've spent years paying their dues before a studio finally comes calling.

See related Robot Wars interview: presenter Angela Scanlon Robot Wars episode 6 review Robot Wars episode 5 review Robot Wars episode 4 review Robot Wars episode 3 review

Director Francis Ford Coppola, before he shot to fame - and, for a time, considerable wealth - with such films as The Godfather, The Conversation and Apocalypse Now, scrabbled around at the lower end of the industry like just about everyone else.

Trekkies and Trekkers stormed the gates of Paramount Pictures last Friday night for the ultimate fan event, and Famous Monsters was front and center for all of the excitement.

Pitched as “a special evening in celebration of Star Trek Beyond,” the night was full of unexpected treats for fans, who were promised a first look at the new, full trailer for the film, plus “special guests” and other surprises. All were invited to step into historic Stage 31 — where Star Trek (The Original Series) filmed a majority of its scenes over its three-year run between 1966-1969 — through a recreated U.S.S. Enterprise hallway, leading into a theater-in-the-round–styled stage. Mythbusters star Adam Savage hosted the event, which opened with a tribute video to Trek. Stars including Rihanna, Stephen Colbert, and mohawked Nasa mission controller Bobak Ferdowsi shared their favorite memories of the influential show —alongside Trek stars Zoe Saldana and Simon Pegg — and a brand-new,...

The Railway Man.s Garry Phillips won the Gold Tripod for best feature at the Australian Cinematographers Society (Acs) national awards, an event dedicated to the memory of Andrew Lesnie. Phillips also got the Acs.s highest honour, the Milli Award, for which all Golden Tripod recipients were eligible.

Ben Nott received an award of distinction in the feature category for Predestination. Adam Arkapaw.s True Detectives episode 4 was feted for best telefeature, miniseries, TV drama or comedy, and Andrew Commis got the award. of distinction for Devil's Playground. Best dramatised documentary was Jim Frater.s The War That Changed Us episode 1. Joel Lawrence won the best international news award for Tsunami Anniversary. The audience at the awards, which were presented on Saturday night at Moma, stood for a minute's silence for Oscar-winner Lesnie, 59, who died last Monday. . National president Ron Johanson said, .We need to acknowledge the love and...

Touch and Anzac Girls have won key prizes at the 2014 Australian Cinematographers Society awards for South Australia and Western Australia.

Aaron Gully took the best cinema feature award for Touch, a mystery starring Leeanna Walsman, Matt Day and newcomer Onor Nottle, produced by Triptych Pictures. Julie Byrne and directed by Christopher Houghton.

The best telefeature, series, TV drama or comedy trophy went to Geoffrey Hall Acs for episode four of Screentime.s Anzac Girls. Hall also collected the Milton Ingerson award for best entry overall.

Jim Frater Acs took the dual prize for best dramatised documentary for The War That Changed Us episode 1 and for Desert War- Alamein, both produced by Electric Pictures. Andrew Ogilvie. Here is the full list of winners: Student Cinematography Gold: Jordan Agutter ~ The Crane Wife ~ Sa Silver: Caroline Fisher ~ Source to Sea ~ Sa Bronze: Molly O.Connor ~ Damsels ~ Sa Experimental & Specialised Gold: Malcolm Ludgate...

Andrew time travels 35 years back to revisit the theatrical release of the Buck Rogers In The 25th Century film...

Once synonymous with science fiction, the phrase ‘That Buck Rogers Stuff’ once called to mind everything the average person thought about Science Fiction - ray guns, rocket ships and robots. Certainly in the 1928, when the then-christened Anthony Rogers made his debut, he was something pretty unique in Sci-Fi - the space adventurer as swash-buckler. Given the nickname ‘Buck’ by John F. Dille, the novel, Armageddon, was adapted into the comic strips in 1929 and then in 1932, Buck Rogers became the first major Science Fiction radio drama. 1939 saw Larry ‘Buster’ Crabbe take on the role for a 12-part serial. All of this is to say that Buck Rogers was around for quite a while before many people of my generation discovered him.

Buck Rogers In The 25th Century arrived on UK shores via the medium of cinema.

Martine Beswick (One Million Years B.C., Slave Girls and Dr Jekyll & Sister Hyde), Caroline Munro (Captain Kronos and Dracula A.D.72), Kate O'Mara (Horror of Frankenstein and The Vampire Lovers) and Maddie Smith (Vampire Lovers and Frankenstein and the and Monster from Hell). (Photo: copyright Mark Mawston, all rights reserved.)

Saturday 9th November 2013

Report by Adrian Smith

On Saturday in the shadow of Westminster Abbey, amidst the power-hungry elite of Whitehall and Downing Street, gathered an even more sinister and corrupting influence. Darth Vader rubbed shoulders with evil twins, corrupted children, vampires, zombies and even Jack the Ripper. Overseeing this evil conclave were directors whose films were so depraved that sometimes sick bags were supplied to the audience.

Horror film buffs were of course overjoyed at the fantastic selection of stars at this Hammer and Horror Film event. Representing the Bond girls were Caroline Munro, Caron Gardner, Martine Beswick and Madeline Smith.

Hammer and Horror Film Day!

Saturday November the 9th ( 10am – 5pm )

Central Hall Westminster.

Storey’s Gate, Westminster, London SW1H 9Nh

UK’s longest running film fair and convention.

Now in it’s 40th year!

The Convention presents dealers from all over the UK, Europe, Us ,

Canada and South America.

Specialising in rare original film memorabilia and collectables.

Taking place six times a year these are truly unique events for anyone with an interest in films!

With actors and director’s signings, illustrated talks, retrospectives and film screenings taking place through out the day.

Items covering the history of cinema can be found. From the silents to the present.

From rare items of the 1920’s to new releases and the latest heart throb.

Among the many different field of cinema covered at the show is – Classic Hollywood, horror films, sci-fi, the best of British and European cinema as we as cult tv!

BBC Two's The Fall held steady for its second episode on Monday night, according to overnight figures.

Gillian Anderson's crime drama dipped around 100,000 viewers to 3.38 million (14.7%) at 9pm. Earlier, the Chelsea Flower Show attracted 3.02m (13.1%) at 8pm.

On BBC One, The One Show was the most watched programme outside of soaps with 4.27m (22.0%) at 7pm. A repeat of Miranda amused 2.63m (11.2%) at 8.30pm.

Hillsborough documentary How They Buried the Truth was seen by 2.84m (12.3%) at 9pm.

ITV's The Dales attracted 3.05m (13.6%) at 8pm, with a further 200k (0.9%) on +1. Vicious dipped over 100k to 2.55m (11.0%) at 9pm (186k/1.0% on +1). The Job Lot fell to 1.91m (8.3%) at 9.30pm (114k/0.8%).

On Channel 4, Superscrimpers brought in 943k (4.1%) at 8pm. Skint climbed from last week to 2.68m (11.0%) at 9pm (561k/3.4%), while Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares USA secured 1.13m (7.0%) at 10pm.

Channel 5's Ohio Slave Girls documentary was seen by 842k (3.7%) at 8pm. CSI thrilled...

Hammer is in the process of restoring many of their classic films. On top of the usual digital restoration and work on bonus features, they are also on the hunt for rare and missing scenes to restore into the original films:

“We’ll post at length next week… but here’s a list of “lost” scenes that we’d love to restore if we are able to source materials. Anyone who knows the whereabouts of such, please email us.

1. An extended “knife in neck/snake bite” scene from The Reptile (this is thought to exist, but no known evidence).

2. The “eyeball” scene from The Curse Of Frankenstein (this footage definitely exists somewhere).

3. The “head in acid bath” scene from The Curse Of Frankenstein (this scene may not have been filmed, though stills exist).

4. The “under-dressed maidens” in the flashback procession from The Mummy (this scene may not have been filmed,...

© Hammer

In a landmark collaboration, Hammer today announced that Studiocanal, Anolis Entertainment (Germany), Pinewood, illuminate Hollywood fka Htv and others are coming together to undertake a major restoration of the iconic Hammer film library. The project will bring over 30 movies into HD format for Blu-ray and new media exploitation in the 21st Century. This represents substantial investment by Hammer and its key partner Studiocanal, and is testimony to the extraordinary regard with which the Hammer legacy is held internationally, with some materials for the project being provided by Hammer’s original Us production partners Twentieth Century Fox, Warner Bros. and Paramount Pictures.

Dracula Prince of Darkness is the first title scheduled for release in the global restoration project and will be released in the UK in conjunction with Studiocanal in March 2012. The partnership continues throughout the spring for the releases of The Reptile and The Plague of The Zombies, and...

There's no doubt about it ... when it comes to horror, few studios are as synonymous with the genre as Hammer. The long and rich history they have with some of the world's greatest monsters and movies is nothing short of legendary, and they're looking to take steps to preserve these gems for many generations to come!

From the Press Release

In a landmark collaboration, Hammer today announced that Studiocanal, Anolis Entertainment (Germany), Pinewood, illuminate Hollywood fka Htv, and others are coming together to undertake a major restoration of the iconic Hammer film library. The project will bring over 30 movies into HD format for Blu-ray and new media exploitation in the 21st Century. This represents substantial investment by Hammer and its key partner, Studiocanal, and is testimony to the extraordinary regard with which the Hammer legacy is held internationally, with some materials for the project being provided by Hammer’s original...

“My name is Bond - James Bond". That classic introduction to the cinema’s greatest secret agent is as famous as “I am Dracula, I bid you welcome.” When the box office success of Dr No (1962) turned the unknown Sean Connery into a movie legend, Hammer was never far away from the franchise. With their own films running parallel to the Bond series, Hammer and Eon Productions often made use of the same talent.

Dr No also marked the debuts of Bernard Lee (the first of 11 films as M) and Lois Maxwell (the first of 14 as Miss Moneypenny). Lee had a brief turn as Tarmut in Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell (1973) and despite never starring in a Hammer horror, Maxwell turned up in their early fifties thrillers Lady in the Fog (1953) and Mantrap (1954).

As doomed double-agent Professor Dent, Anthony Dawson is best known as the vile Marquis in Curse...

As a movie producer, Albert Zugsmith was a major player in Hollywood in the 40′s and 50′s working alongside his friend Howard Hughes for Rko, then moving to Universal where his credits included The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957) and Orson Welle’s Touch Of Evil (1958). His less stellar directorial efforts from later in his career were sheer exploitation madness with such gems as Sex Kittens Go To College (1960 – with Mamie Van Doren, Tuesday Weld, and Vampira!), Private Lives Of Adam And Eve (also 1960 with Van Doren, Weld, and June Wilkinson!) and Fanny Hill which he co-directed with Russ Meyer in Germany in 1964 (sensing a pattern here?). Confessions Of An Opium Eater (1962) was his most unusual and artful film as director, a tawdry mix of Asian stereotypes and sleaze that no one should mistake for great art -but one that makes for fascinating viewing. It’s a real oddity; meditative, eerie, and...

If you're knowledgeable about your film history, a fan of classic horror movies or grew up a generation ago in the British Isles then you are familiar with the name of Hammer Films. While the company's origins lie in the 1930s, Hammer's film legacy truly began with its run of modestly budgeted gothic horror movies in the 1950s. Over the spread of the next three decades, the name of Hammer Films became synonymous with several actors like Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee who made their mark playing the doomed scientist or the prince of darkness, Count Dracula, respectively.

The Art of Hammer collects the movie poster artwork from Hammer's collection of films from the 1950s to the end of the 1970s. It was a time when British audiences ate up Hammer's high concept (but low budgeted) B-movies, films that offered frights, thrills and sometimes a glimpse of a young lass' bosum in her undergarments.

You'll often hear us complain about the sad state of movie posters nowadays, but come October you'll no doubt hear us singing the praises of Titan Books' The Art of Hammer, the first ever collection of rare and iconic Hammer film posters with nearly 300 examples drawn from Hammer’s own archive and private collections from around the world.

From the Press Release:

Hammer is almost as well known for the way it promoted its films as for the films themselves. The legendary British production company supported each new release with eye-catching posters that have become classics of their kind.

Licensed by Coolabi, fully authorized by Hammer Films Productions Ltd., and annotated by acclaimed historian Marcus Hearn (author of the recent bestseller Hammer Glamour [review here]), The Art of Hammer is a testament to the company’s pioneering mastery of film promotion and a celebration of movie art at its best.

Over fifty years ago,...