George D. Allen
George started making movies at age 12, and hopes one day his filmography will encompass more than his Superdog trilogy, two gory “Dark Factor” films (plus a third concerned far more with suspense, character and “plot”), and the Dostoevsky short “The Grand Inquisitor” that earned him an uneventful if fun tenure as a Cinema Directing teaching assistant. Favorite amateur, semi-pro, and professional theatre credits include the role of Cervantes/Don Quixote in “Man of La Mancha,” wildly egocentric thespian Nick Bottom in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” and a stint as stage manager and composer for Philadelphia’s Vox Theatre Company…when having his score for their production of Strindberg’s “The Black Glove” described as “atmospheric” in the Philadelphia Inquirer was a rare…emphasis on rare…delight. George directs and does postproduction duties on “Movie Irv” Slifkin’s Movie Buzz podcast.
George D.'s Posts
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
What famous director was originally asked to direct the silent chiller classic The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari? Which symphony of horror received its lavish premiere at a zoo? Can you guess the name of the legendary actor who was so dedicated he brought his own houseplants to decorate the set? Find out the answers to these mystifying tidbits of Terror-ific Trivia, along with a host of other little-known facts behind your favorite fear films, as Ghouly Irv digs around the darkest corners of his crypt:
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
He raised comic fans' hackles by casting Michael Keaton as Batman; tinkered with cinematic legend by revisiting the Planet of the Apes; and split audiences and critics by daring to reinvent Roald Dahl's beloved book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with Johnny Depp in the role of Willy Wonka. Now, Tim Burton has brought Depp back into the fold for this visually wild cinematic take on Lewis Carroll's classic, Alice in Wonderland. How does the director fare with this latest reimagining of a literary icon? Let's check in with Movie Irv:
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
Looking for a great DVD/Blu-ray hit you may have missed in the theaters? Check out Movie Irv's recommendations for these three "sleeper" hits:
George D. Allen | Staff Notes
Quick: You’re about to be stranded on a desert island…and you can only take 10 movies with you. What movies are making your cut? Will they be your “Top 10” favorites? Will they be movies that you feel best represent “you”? Will you be bringing any movies along for the family? Let’s assume all other creature comforts are normal, so you don’t have to worry about going into Stephen King-style, “Survivor Type” mode. You can go alone, or bring your friends and family. But only 10 movies can come with you. It’s time to make your Dewar’s Profile, take your Rorschach test, call it whatever you will.
Here are my choices, in alphabetical order:
George D. Allen | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
Ready for the much-hyped release of Universal Studios' The Wolfman, the big-budget remake of their own 1941 chiller classic starring Lon Chaney, Jr.? Fright fans everywhere are salivating over the scary trailers and crossing their fingers that the modern-day CGI effects don't overwhelm the brilliant practical makeups designed by Rick Baker. On our MovieFrightFare program spotlighted on our page at the Famous Monsters of Filmland website, Ghouly Irv takes a fond look back at the furry, furry best of the man-beast movies:
George D. Allen | Staff Notes
Hollywood Nostradamus (a friend on the outside who alerted me to the existence of this marvelous Steven Seagal program some time ago) pointed me towards these, and since his sentiments about the following exactly mirror my own, I might as well quote him directly.
You all know and love Charles Bronson from such classics as Chato's Land and The White Buffalo. You all know my affection for the man who used to wear his sister's clothes to school. But what you are about to see will shake you to the core. Perhaps the greatest collection of video ever presented (aside from the Atene audition tape), these not only hold up to repeated viewing, they utterly demand it. More drama than a Chekhov play, more joy than a Tesh concert, more heart than a Drew Barrymore movie. I give you...MANDOM:
More brilliance, below:
George D. Allen | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
...with the help of MovieFanFare's own "Movie Irv" Slifkin, who, as the announcement of the 2010 Academy Award nominees grows near (Tuesday, February 2), has prepared his own set of predictions about both the nominees and the eventual winners. See if you agree:
George D. Allen | Staff Notes
I axed for it. And what a thrill the answer was yes!
With a scheduled debut of January 18, we at Movies Unlimited/MovieFanFare will become regular contributors on the new Famous Monsters of Filmland website. We’ll be offering freshly dug up MovieFrightFare videos featuring our own Ghouly Irv as well as some (hopefully) entertaining and enlightening articles about the old and new classics of the horror, sci-fi, and fantasy genres, and the people who make them possible. This opportunity is especially rewarding for me, as I was an avid young reader of the magazine during its print run, and can trace the breadth of my appreciation for classic horror in part to the monstrous amount of fun packed inside every issue.
How many “children of Famous Monsters of Filmland” are out there?
George D. Allen | Staff Notes
There are movies that can start conversations (Citizen Kane, Eraserhead, The Sixth Sense), movies that can end conversations (Salo: The 120 Days of Sodom, Fahrenheit 9/11, perhaps the entire oeuvre of Michael Bay), and movies that are simply about conversations.
I hold a special place in my movie-watching heart for films that truly emphasize the spoken word as much as the powerful image. The pure theatricality of the material is immensely appealing to me, the wrenching of the inherently more visual craft of filmmaking in one way or another towards something approximating the experience of live theater.
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
The party’s over. The year’s over. The decade’s over! Movie Irv, still hanging out at the Movie Buzz holiday party long after Sammy Claws and Brian B. have left the building, has decided to make up a list of his favorite films of the decade. See if you agree:
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
James Cameron's got some big shoes to fill: his own! Having steered the mighty Titanic to box-office and Academy Award glory over a decade ago, the self-styled "king of the world" is unleashing an epic sci-fi saga that fuses his vivid imagination to mind-boggling cinema technology. Is Avatar about to change the movies? Has Cameron managed to defy (already high) expectations once again...or, are his fans about to turn on him with all the hatriolic fury of a prequel-trilogy-bashing Star Wars junkie? Let's turn to Movie Irv for his verdict:
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
Irv and Brian B. have heard all of Sammy Claus’s jokes before (see his “comedy” act in the first installment of our holiday podcast), so they decide to compare notes on their favorite unusual Christmas-themed hits. How many have you seen? How many must you own? How many are you going to want to give out as presents? There’s only one way to find out:
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