• Frankenstein 1988 – High tech monster of the 1980s

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    October 15, 2020 /  Bad Science Fiction, Uncategorized

    Frankenstein's face with bare teethAhh yes. The 1980s. When computers were new and the world was modern and clean. There was an optimism towards technology back then that does not exist today. When the beginning credits roll on this post modern Frankenstein saga, they bleep across the green screen in a high tech font like an old IBM dumb terminal accompanied by high tech synthesizer music worthy of an old Atari game console. Yes, this film is dated.  Probably a good reason why there has never been a DVD or Blu Ray edition, but you can find it copyright free on You Tube if you don’t want to hunt for a VHS copy on e-bay. For a true connoisseur of bad science fiction, past visions of a future that never came is all part of the fun.

    This post-modern horror story is filmed in Montreal by Director Jean-Claude Lord, but could have taken place in just about any squeaky clean suburb in the U.S. or Canada. Lord was a commercially successful Canadian director of both film and television and his next project after this one was the award winning sled dog adventure movie, Toby McTeague. Lord then spun that success into the opportunity to direct the Hollywood Sequel, Eddie and the Cruisers II. This is not Lord’s best work, but there is some interesting stuff here that begets his future success.

    The hero and monster of this story is Carl Lehman, a family man and scientist designing spacesuits for a defense contractor. Lehman ends up crossing his crooked boss, played by Richard Cox of Star Trek: The Next Generation, for the usual financial shenanigans. Cox then rigs an explosion that mutilates Lehman’s body, using what is left of him as a horrifying Frankenstein experiment. Wrap the remains in his own spacesuit, throw the whole mess into an incinerator and the fun begins.

    Movie Poster

    Franken-Carl then has a night out on the town as he terrorizes the population, although the black remains of his spacesuit remain much less terrorizing without the help of light and reflection he does remain frightening as long as you don’t get to close. The monster also acquires superhuman strength and a very nasty temper, partially from implants provided from his boss’ monkey research. Carl’s eyes, the only part of his body exposed through the melted spacesuit, show his emotion of shock and terror at what he has become.

    After defeating the minions his former  employer sent after him, Carl is reunited with his pregnant wife one final time where he is able to explain to her that the monster he has become can no longer love her or be loved by her, or even be trusted by her. In the end, this modern Frankenstein does win the battle and creates a legacy his children can be proud of. Along the way we are treated to plenty of low budget effects and a synthesized soundtrack worthy of any 80s production. Frankenstein 2000, in some markets titled The Vindicator.

    vindicator usedCarl’s inner battle is not with his own demons, but with the demon his creator attempted to force him to be. In the end he must make the choice of not only destroying his creator, but destroying himself as well. An interesting twist on an old story.

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  • A different kind of doggie splash day

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    October 26, 2015 /  Uncategorized

    IMG_0909End of the summer doggie splash days are popular where I live in Dallas as they are all over the country now. Large waterparks put on huge events with live music and multiple sponsors to entertain the dogs. Local swimming pools have fundraisers for local dog rescue groups and foster dogs are invited to join the fun. At the end of the summer in August and September there are many choices for dogs to cool off, go adventuring and find new friends.

    The Splash Factory in Grand Prairie, Texas is not the biggest waterpark in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex. It’s not like one of the huge Hawaiian Falls franchises or the even bigger NRH2O Megawaterpark. But this little waterpark hidden in an older blue collar neighborhood near Downtown Grand Prairie has a style all it’s own. There are water guns spraying everywhere almost like giant sprinkler world. Large metal and concrete sculptures dump buckets of waters on running dogs as they pass. Spray cannons shoot out and water geysers shoot up at different times, sometimes at random. Everywhere you look water is dumping, splashing or spraying in one direction or another. Bright colors are pasted all over the ground on waterproof turf to add to the excitement. The splash factory was a water playground made for kids, but dogs are even more excited by the water shooting from guns and other strange objects throughout the park. I brought Cody and Cherokee out to the Splash Factory this year and they had a great time running around the spray. Local people showed up with their playful dogs for the event IMG_0878making this like a neighborhood picnic. It wasn’t as overwhelming as some of the bigger events so if your dog is a little shy, this might be the event for him.

    The Splash Factory is at 601 E. Grand Prairie Road, South of Jefferson and West of Beltline. For more information, their website is here:

    http://www.grandfungp.com/aquatics/splashfactory.htm

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