Cyborg: Death Machine was Directed by the MASE BROTHERS and dubbed in English, C:DM is an obvious and well-made short film that pays homage to the Action movies and Science-Fiction films of the 1980’s and 90’s. Taking inspiration from films such as The Terminator, Cyborg, Hardware, NEMESIS and even video games like Contra and Aliens vs Predator, there’s plenty of references all throughout this film.

Set in a dystopian future where machines have risen to oppress and exterminate mankind; armies of cyborgs created by the Magnatron Corp. seek out and destroy any and all humans left to starve in the ashes of the fallen civilization that was modern life.

I feel like this is the live-action CONTRA movie that I always wanted. And definitely a better Terminator film that the last few Terminator sequels could attempt to be.

From the start the film sets the tempo and atmosphere for this dark future straight out of a James Cameron film. The soundtrack was composed by Meteor and Pixions and is very, very, good at capturing that dread that should weigh down a story setting like this. I can only compare it to the composer that inspired this project; the composer of the original Terminator – Brad Fiedel.

Our hero is Alex Rayne, a militant cook (Under Siege reference) living in the wastelands accompanied by his friend and A.I. “Barry”. Barry is the heart of most of the humor sprinkled here and there and the overall humor was well executed giving needed counter-weight and balance with the violence.  Both Chef and A.I. are hunted by a lone cyborg sent by Magnatron. They eventually link up with members of the resistance for one last strike against the machine hordes. The cyborgs are basically Terminators with a dash of the Jin-Roh military police from the Kereboros saga. For a better comparison, go and watch Mamoru Oshii’s Kereboros films like Jin-Roh, Stray Dogs and the Red Spectacles as well as the manga that inspired them all.

The film is an English dub over the original language but, I have to say I really like the voice over acting. It complements the dialogue that thuds along like a Kojima script for MGS. The storyline is sufficient being that this is a short film that carries the impending doom of an M.D.GEIST OVA.

I loved the gameplay footage from the Robocop vs Terminator video game. Robocop vs Terminator is probably Frank Millers most underrated graphic novel, in my opinion.

The cinematography was actually well done and the set pieces were well done. Although some of the daytime scenes did pull me out of the overall mood and feel of the film. Luckily, those were few and in-between. The visual effects were good for a low-budget fan film. The action scenes were really good. The fights were well choreographed and the gore was satiating. There was no shaky camera and only one slow-motion sequence. And “Oh boy”, does the film close out with a banger. The last action scenes are just retro-perfection when the film transitions into a side-scrolling video game and then a Robot Jox type stop motion animation climax.

I highly recommend this film. Now streaming on NRW TV and on the MASE BROTHERS  Youtube channel.

And did I mention there’s a friggin’ post-credit scene?

Three thumbs up!!

Stay safe, stay away from Mega Corporations and their A.I.
And Keep your fingers on that Rewind Button.

Every hit lands square on target with devastating results and the fuzzy basslines are finetuned to raise hairs throughout the album’s 11 tracks. Cyberpunks best not miss on this top-shelf release by darksynth’s newest recruit lest they want to miss some of the season’s heaviest singles.

Be sure to grab a digital download of the album, as it comes with a pdf and audiobook of the album’s story.

Favorite tracks : The Fear (feat.Magnavolt), Back to Sleep Again (feat. King Protea), Highrider (feat.DreamReaper)

Starfarer ‘The Dark’ is out now on Bandcamp and Spotify.

Scanners is a 1981 Canadian science-fiction horror film written and directed by David Cronenberg and starring Stephen Lack, Jennifer O’Neill, Michael Ironside, and Patrick McGoohan. In the film, “scanners” are people with unusual telepathic and telekinetic powers. 

Yet, another film that was given a negative review by Roger Ebert and other film critics of the day before becoming the cult-classic it is today, thanks to grindhouse theaters and eventually the dawning of the home video industry.

Patrick McGoohan has recruited a rogue ‘SCANNER’ off the streets to lead a resistance against a dangerous Scanner (Michael Ironside) who is gathering up an underground militia of telephathic terrorists to wage war on ConSec. This sounds like some sort of storyline out of the Syndicate games or Shadowrun. There are twists and turns unraveling this mystery leading up to its final climax. The acting of McGoohan (famous for the classic TV series the Prisoner) and Ironside are stand-out performances. The practical effects including the infamous head exploding scene has been sampled and imitated in various mediums ever since. Scanners was you best example of how to film psychic battles in live action, right, with little money.

Keep your heads on straight and keep your finger on that Rewind Button.

What makes a film art? Is it subtext? The collage of mediums blanketed onto film with music and mood layering the textures, emotions and the suspension of disbelief? Well, the time has come. Yes, I did forget but, I remember now. 

This month’s Retro Movie is Panos Cosmatos’ debut psychedlic science fiction feature
– BEYOND THE BLACK RAINBOW (2010).

Spawned out of the grief of losing both his parents, Swedish sculptor Birgitta Ljungberg-Cosmatos and film director George P. Cosmatos (Rambo: First Blood Part II and Cobra), and funded from residuals from his fathers last film TOMBSTONE (1993). Beyond the Black Rainbow is a 35mm surreal mind-screw of colors, prolonged shots and transitions in lush panavision colors.

A young girl (Eva Allen) being studied and tested on by a mysterious scientific research corporation that is supervised by a mysterious and somewhat unhinged head of research scientist (Michael Rogers) for her untapped psychic potential. Yes, this was made before STRANGER THINGS. The runtime is 110 minutes and will feel longer due to the slow drip of tension and visuals. The shots are mostly long, giving the film a very claustrophobic and unnerving mood.

Jeremy Schmidt, keyboard player for Vancouver-based rockers Black Mountain, was invited by Cosmatos to compose the film’s soundtrack. “Evil Ball”, a track from Schmidt’s solo project, Sinoia Caves, was used by the movie’s director on a private screening held for Schmidt. A mutual appreciation for Tangerine Dream, John Carpenter soundtracks and Giorgio Moroder‘s music for Midnight Express (1978) and American Gigolo (1980) cemented their bond.^[25] Schmidt also pointed out the background music from The Shining (1980) and Risky Business (1983) as musical blueprints for the Beyond the Black Rainbow score.
– Wiki

There are themes of control woven into the drama. Control being presented here via Adults controlling the young or Masculine over the feminine. Barry Nyle at the start of the film seems like a scientist with an almost paternal affection towards his test subject but, as the film progresses that veil is removed to be nothing of the sort and his true and mutilated nature begins to bubble to the surface.

There is a very lovely film here with hints of all the films that were mentioned as musical influences to the score. The director being a fan of Michael Mann’s MANHUNTER and THE KEEP, Stanley Kubrick’s 2001 and the rest. The story of a young girl discovering her past and her strength and finally her liberation is a haunting, uncomfortable, acid-trip of a journey into the subconscious and the dark side of the third eye. Conspiracy Theorists will find a lot to chew on here within, with references to MKULTRA and a lot of the experimentation of psychedelics on human test subjects and research into psychic potential that has long been declassified by the C.I.A.

This is recommended viewing for anyone looking for something left-of-center. And a perfect start to a film career that was continued with MANDY (2018)

Keep your fingers on that Rewind button and stay loose, and stay easy…. and wear your masks.

ENJOY THE ALBUM TEASER AND PREPARE TO BE MINDBLOWN!!!! DANGEROUS DAYS IS SET TO BE RELEASE WORLDWIDE ON JUNE 17TH. AHEM….THAT IS NCXT WEEK!!!