2022’s Smile was quietly one of the most profitable studio movies of the last few years. Originally designed as a low-budget movie for Paramount Plus, a round of excellent test screenings resulted in Paramount Pictures opting to give it a theatrical release. The result was a movie that grossed over $217 million worldwide on a $17 million budget. It immediately established writer/director Parker Finn, who adapted the movie from his own short (Laura Hasn’t Slept) as a horror phenom, and the release of his ambitious sequel is one of the bigger horror events of the year.

So, how does Smile 2 stack up to its sleeper-hit predecessor? Amazingly well, it turns out. Boasting a bigger budget, Parker Finn’s taken what could have been a run-of-the-mill sequel and elevated it to truly dazzling heights. I liked the first movie well enough, but I wasn’t prepared for how much fun the sequel was right off the bat.

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My only question about Smile 2 is what its reception by horror fans will be like- the film is so unapologetically camp that I wonder if some fans of the lower-key original might be put off. For me, it was the opposite, as Smile 2 dwarfed its predecessor, but it could rub people the wrong way with its heavy doses of pitch-black comedy. However, Finn also doesn’t skimp on the gore, with it being more gruesome than the original and having a big payoff, which is an all-timer for me as far as these things go. Indeed, I was shocked at how much I loved Smile 2. For me, it’s one of the more entertaining films I’ve seen this year, with the two-hour-plus running time racing by. It’s an all-out gore-soaked blast.

With Gladiator II thrusting into cinematic arenas next month, we hand out laurels to the greatest sword-and-sandal movies of them all

I. Spartacus (1960)
II. Gladiator (2000)
III. Ben-Hur (1959)
IV. Cleopatra (1963)
V. Caligula: the Ultimate Cut (2023)
VI. Quo Vadis (1951)
VII. The Sign of the Cross (1932)
VIII. Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979)
IX. Cleopatra (1934)
X. Fellini Satyricon (1969)
XI. Julius Caesar (1953)
XII. Carry On Cleo (1964)
XIII. The Eagle (2011)
XIV. Sebastiane (1976)
XV. Asterix & Obelix: Mission Cleopatra (2002)
XVI. The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
XVII. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966)
XVIII. Caesar and Cleopatra (1945)

Alfred Hitchcock: The Iconic Film Collection will collect six of the Master of Suspense’s classics on 4K Ultra HD + Digital: Rear Window, To Catch a Thief, Vertigo, North By Northwest, Psycho, and The Birds.

Releasing on November 26 via Universal, the six-disc set is limited to 5,150. It’s housed in premium book-style packaging featuring artwork by Tristan Eaton along with photos, bios, and trivia.

An archaeological dig of a quarry in Lincolnshire has uncovered evidence of settlements and agriculture spanning 6,000 years.

Excavations of the West Deeping quarry revealed a Roman settlement as well as Neolithic and Bronze Age finds.

The oldest artefacts included pottery used for cooking and eating.

A free exhibition of some of the finds will be on display in West Deeping village hall on Saturday, from 13:00 to 17:00 BST.

Hannah Barrett, a project officer with the Cambridge Archaeological Unit, said: "This site isn't just Neolithic, Bronze Age or Roman, we have all of the periods right through to Saxon in the 6th Century.

"All of these periods are represented and every single one has a good story to tell," she said.

"I think that's what's so fascinating about."

She added evidence dating back to the later Neolithic period included "the largest assemblage" of pottery ever found in East Anglia or the East Midlands.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/18769539

Currently decimating theaters as the #1 film in the country, Terrifier 3 will make viewers vomiting and passing out in the comfort of their own home at a later date.

The unrated slasher sequel is up for pre-order on SteelBook 4K Ultra HD, 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and DVD from Bloody Disgusting, SCREAMBOX, and Cineverse.

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Amazon’s exclusive Collector’s Box Set includes the film on 4K UHD + Blu-ray along with a Terrifier 3 ornament, Art the Clown mini mask, Terrifier 3 barf bag, Art the Clown enamel pin, Terrifier 3 box of soap, and Art the Clown selfie Polaroid replicas

Sean Astin may not be getting the Goonies sequel he’s hoping for, but he does have a role in an upcoming movie that has a shot at achieving cult classic status: a horror comedy called The Invisible Raptor, which will be receiving a theatrical and digital release (courtesy of Well Go USA) on December 6th. The film had its world premiere at the 2023 Sitges Film Festival and currently, with seven reviews, has a 100% fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Directed by Mike Hermosa from a screenplay by Mike Capes and Johnny Wickham, The Invisible Raptor has the following synopsis: After a top-secret experiment goes wrong, a hyper-intelligent invisible raptor escapes the lab and begins wreaking havoc in the surrounding neighborhood. When the creature’s identity is uncovered, it soon becomes clear that a disgraced paleontologist—alongside his ex-girlfriend, an unhinged amusement park security guard, and a local celebrity chicken farmer—is the town’s only hope for surviving the raptor’s ravenous rampage.

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The positive reviews of The Invisible Raptor have described it as “the smart version of a stupid movie,” “hilariously dumb,” “downright batshit,” “joyously silly,” and “inventive throughout,” and it’s said to have “likeable characters” and some “genuinely entertaining gore.” That sounds like a good time to me, so hopefully a trailer will be dropping online soon.

What does it take to build a new universe? The answer to that question is larger than we can afford to get into here, but we're pretty sure that "a person with experience" couldn't hurt. That certainly seems to be the case for Aspen Comics, who are launching their connected comic-book universe Ekos under the guiding hand of David Maisel, the originator of a small project you may now know as... the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Of course, you may already remember this story from when Popverse reported it mid-September. Ekos, you'll recall, is based on the creations of late comic artist Michael Turner, who was famous not just for his Big Two work but also for his creator-owned offerings, comics that attracted the likes of Geoff Johns before Turner's tragic passing. Now, Maisel is using his universe-building experience to link Turner's creations in a way they never were.

But before that comic, and the universe therein, hits shelves, Maisel sat down with Popverse to discuss his involvement with the project. We got into what excites him the most about Ekos and learned some of his history at Marvel, without which the MCU would not exist as we know it today. But don't let us take up more of your time - here's what Maisel himself had to say.

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I've collected Michael Turner art. I was huge Marvel fan and had a huge Marvel collection even before I went there. But I started collecting Michael Turner original art back in 2008, the year Iron Man came out, at Comic-Con. And I got to know his two best friends. Michael passed that year and he left his comic book company and his art to his two best friends who run Aspen now. James Cameron had the rights for all the entertainment stuff then, so I was just a collector.

But in 2018, the rights expired. James Cameron got busy on Avatar, and they asked me if I wanted to step in his shoes. And I was like, 'Of course.' I mean, it would be so great to bring the beauty of Michael Turner's line work and Peter Steigerwald's colors as the visual DNA of a new cinematic universe. Then I needed to come up with the idea for the universe, because Michael had Fathom - which is the number one comic in the world in 1998, crazy for an independent comic to beat Marvel and DC - but that was set to the present day, Soulfire was 200 years in the future, and Ekos was on another planet. Michael passed away before he could bring the characters together.

So over COVID, I finally came up with the idea that I thought was creatively unique and relevant for today's age, which is what's going to be in Ekos Volume One, which is of all of these characters together on this planet, in the same time zone.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/18758803

The open-hearted paean to friendship and a quiet life has become a global hit after charming viewers the world over. As it turns 10, its stars reflect on how they made TV magic

Counter-terrorism police are investigating whether Russian spies planted an incendiary device on a plane to Britain that later caught fire at a DHL warehouse in Birmingham, the Guardian can reveal.

Nobody was reported injured in the fire on 22 July at a warehouse in the suburb of Minworth that handles parcels for delivery, and the blaze was dealt with by the local fire brigade and by staff.

The parcel is believed to have arrived at the DHL warehouse by air, though it is not known if it was a cargo or passenger aircraft, nor where it was destined for. There could have been serious consequences if it had ignited during the flight.

A similar incident occurred in Germany, also in late July, when a suspect package bound for a flight caught fire at another DHL facility in Leipzig, and investigators are looking at links between the two. German authorities warned this week that had the parcel caught fire mid-air it could have downed the plane.

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British investigators suspect that the incendiary device is part of a wider campaign that Russian spies have been carrying out across Europe this year, which has been condemned as rash and careless by spy chiefs in the UK and elsewhere.

Ken McCallum, the head of MI5, warned last week that Russia’s GRU military intelligence appeared to be on “a sustained mission to generate mayhem on British and European streets: we’ve seen arson, sabotage and more”.

The British spy chief accused Russia of engaging in “dangerous actions conducted with increasing recklessness” and argued that the plotting was counter-productive for the Kremlin because it was “driving increased operational coordination with partners across Europe and beyond”.

Russia’s motive appears to have been to try to inflict a cost on western allies of Ukraine, though the plots are at times precise and at others poorly coordinated and amateurish. But the Kremlin usually denies it is engaged in sabotage activity and has in the past dismissed its accusers of engaging in conspiracy theories.

Here are some words you never expected to read: Greggs champagne bar. But the no-frills baker’s latest marketing stunt is a pop-up bar where its famous bakes will be served with £75-a-glass champagne in bespoke sausage roll-etched coupes.

The “reservation-only” Greggs champagne bar, which claims to be “inspired by 1920s Paris wine bars”, opens next week in the Newcastle branch of Fenwick. The Christmas pop-up in the department store’s food hall seats 16 customers around a curved bar, with guests encouraged to ring vintage crystal bells for a refill of Louis Roederer Cristal, which costs £425 a bottle.

Greggs, which is headquartered in Newcastle, said its first-ever champagne bar paired its “iconic savoury menu of bakes and rolls” with handpicked bubbles served by the glass or bottle from famous names such as Bollinger and Laurent Perrier. It claims to be the only place in the area offering the exclusive champagne menu “by the glass”.

Mercifully, the food is cheaper at under £5 for a main. In keeping with Greggs’ affordable ethos, there are cheaper bubbles to pair with a cheese and onion bake, such as a £10 glass of Ca di Alte prosecco or an £11 “pink jammie fizz” – a prosecco-based cocktail inspired by Greggs’ jam doughnuts.

Sontar-ha!

edit: adding the key: