I Know Who Killed Me

What’s in a name? I don’t spend a lot of time obsessing over titles. I go with whatever strikes my fancy, usually a song. You have to imagine the title alone probably got the screenplay a few extra reads. Sadly, it’s also the only interesting thing about the film -- okay, Lindsay Lohan as a bad girl stripper ain’t half bad. Good girl Aubrey gets kidnapped by a serial killer, wakes up mutilated, now claiming to be a stripper named “Dakota”. Is she crazy? Is she making it all up? Does she have something to hide? Who’s the attacker? Not a bad set up, but everything after? Plot holes big enough for a chorus line of strippers to lap dance their way through, absurd twists and one of the most ridiculous closing scenes ever committed to celluloid. Still, it’s got that cool title...

The Middleman

Caught Monday’s premiere on ABC Family. I guess you could say it’s a quirkier “Special Unit 2" with a dash of "Men In Black”. Lots of playful banter between the Middleman and his sidekick -- who at times bears an uncanny resemblance to Rosario Dawson -- as they battle the forces of evil. I’ve never read the “The Middleman” comic book, but the show certainly does capture the feel of that medium. Honestly, I’m more than a little surprised that a quirky, sci-fi comedy was able to get past the gate keepers. I would’ve expected all the fun to get sucked out by the machine and replaced with something “edgier”. BTW, “The Middleman” was created by “Lost” alumni Javier "Javi" Grillo-Marxuach and he happens to have a livejournal here.

Story Starters

Egypt uncovers 'missing' pyramid of a pharaoh

Fish "looks like cross between rotweiller and mermaid"

Florida Man Selling Ghosts

Ghost hunters more in demand

Girl with stomach pains carrying embryonic twin

Hackers try to cause seizures on epilepsy site

McCain would like to see a man on Mars

Alien video man asks Obama to back UFO plan

Sorry...

(That’ll make more sense in a few days)

Watched last night’s “Fear Itself” with Eric Roberts...meh. Could have been a very good story about redemption, but a settled for so-so one about revenge... the ending felt a bit tacked on. Seriously thought about that Fox sitcom contest for a few days -- even came up with something non-paranormal -- but the last thing I needed was yet another diversion. I’ll save the idea for a future screenplay.

Jekyll

Even though I spent a significant amount of my weekend watching Prince videos and procrastinating, I did get my head out the Paisley Park haze long enough to check out the BBC’s “Jekyll” on DVD. It’s an updated version of the classic tale and features some brilliant writing by Steven Moffat -- who also deserves props for his work on "Dr. Who". “Jekyll” manages to be dark, scary and funny, all at the same time. Haven’t taken a good look at the DVD extras but there seems to be a decent amount. I’m sure it won’t be long before some network swoops down and tries to “adapt” it for American audiences.

Fear Itself

What happened to the great sc-fi/horror anthology shows like “The Twilight Zone” and “Outer Limits”? Even “Tales from the Darkside” and “Tales from the Crypt” had their moments. This was pretty dull and predictable. They took what was a half-hour story -- at best -- and tried stretching it into an hour.

His name is Prince...

and he is 50!

Contest Alert!

The New York Television Festival and Fox Broadcasting have joined forces to create a contest for aspiring television writers. They’re looking for a half-hour, sitcom script (25-35 pages) in proper format, submitted as a PDF document. The winner gets 25k and a development deal with Fox. The deadline is June 13th, 11:59 pm (Eastern) or when they receive 1,500 entries. Best of all, it’s free! Check out here for more info.