Two plays for Halloween show

 I have had two of plays selected by O.G. Productions for its annual Halloween show at the St. James Tavern in Columbus on Oct. 30.

"Cover Charge" and "Bar Witch" each fit one of the themes: Not all heroes wear capes and the bloody foot. They were fun to write, and they'll be fun to see performed.

Bring Her Back

A movie such as Bring Her Back (2025) poses a challenge for me. By most objective standards I use to judge a movie, it offers a lot to praise: strong performances, intense themes, effective direction, and undeniably creepy and involving moments.

But I don't know if I can wholeheartedly embrace or recommend Bring Her Back. I came out of the film quite affected by it but more depressed than scared. It's not a fun horror movie, dealing with heavy subject matter, but I felt no catharsis from watching it, only worn down, even as I praise the craftsmanship that went into it.

Have I gone soft, or is the movie too strong for me? Maybe some parts hit too close to home.

"The Last At-Bat of Mighty Mac" to debut with Theatre Reset

Theatre Reset out of Columbus has officially picked my play, "The Last At-Bat of Mighty Mac," for its seventh short play festival.

This is the fourth time Theatre Reset has brought one of my plays to life, and they've done tremendous work each time.

"The Last At-Bat of Mighty Mac" is about two brothers, both former baseball players, one a ghost, and how the past doesn't always remain at rest. Compared to my other material Theatre Reset has put on, it is more somber and darker, and I can't wait to see what they do with it.

The festival will be held at 8 p.m. Friday, May 1, and 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday, May 2, at the Columbus Performing Arts Center's Shedd Theater, 549 Franklin Avenue, Columbus, Oh 43215. The 2 p.m. performance will feature Stagehand ASL interpreters. 

Click here for more information about the festival and Theatre Reset.

Pan's Labyrinth

Proof there is always another chance. I missed the opportunity to see Pan's Labyrinth (2006) during its initial theatrical run, but the following year, a local theatre near my college showed it as part of a film course, so I did see it on the big screen. 

By that point, I had seen the movie on DVD and knew what to expect. My fellow film students, knowing only it was a Spanish-language fantasy movie about a little girl and fairies, were not as prepared as me.

Very much a modern cinematic fairy tale, Pan's Labyrinth is not, I repeat not, a children's movie. Between the eyeless monster that eats babies, the fairies that get their heads bitten off, and the looming faun that looks like he belongs on a Dimmu Borgir album cover, this is a dark, intense fairy tale.

The film is also arguably not a fantasy movie; all these wonderful and frightening creatures we witness could very well be just the products of the imagination of a little girl desperate to escape the real life horrors of war surrounding her. Sure, monsters and supernatural creatures can be bad, but they got nothing on a cruel stepfather and an oppressive political regime.

The Shape of Water

There's a quote attributed to Stuart Gordon, director of Re-Animator, about how in all those old horror movies, you'd see the monster carry the heroine off into the swamp, but you'd never get to see what he planned to do. That desire to depict what the monster had in mind partly served as the inspiration for the infamous head scene in his Lovecraft adaptation.

Director Guillermo del Toro takes a similar philosophy in a different direction in The Shape of Water (2017), which he co-wrote with Vanessa Taylor. His heroine, the mute Elisa (Sally Hawkins), and his slimy creature, referred to as the Asset (Doug Jones, naturally), indeed go all the way, a couple of times, but it's played as sweet and romantic instead of disgusting and creepy.

You may be wondering how a human woman and a mutant fish-man can engage in coitus. Don't worry. Elisa helpfully explains the process, through sign language and other hand gestures, to her best friend and co-worker Zelda (Octavia Spencer), in a conversation that runs the gamut from stunned incredulity to curiosity to unwavering support. We should all have friends as cool and understanding as Zelda.

Frankenstein (2025)

The newest adaptation of Frankenstein presents me with a critical question: would I have enjoyed this exact same movie more had it been directed by anyone other than Guillermo del Toro? I don't know

del Toro has one of the most impressive filmographies of any director currently working in Hollywood, and few other filmmakers in history have made so many lasting contributions to the sci fi, horror, and fantasy genres: Pan's Labyrinth, The Devil's Backbone, The Shape of Water, I can go on.

Frankenstein has long been a dream project of del Toro's. I remember when it was announced in 2007 with plans to star del Toro regular and go-to man in the creature suit Doug Jones. del Toro's films demonstrate a keen understanding of monsters, tragedy, the evil of men, and both the beauty and horror of the Gothic that del Toro and Frankenstein, on paper, is a match made in Heaven.

The Terminator

Strip away the legacy that followed. Forget the pop culture baggage. Ignore the subpar sequels. Examine The Terminator on its own terms. 

That can be difficult. So much has come and gone in the more than 40 years since the movie's initial release, some good, some bad, and some all but impossible to believe.

But try to set all that aside. Just watch the movie and experience it on its own terms. The Terminator a lean, mean thrill machine, packed with nightmarish imagery, an intriguing apocalyptic story, an iconic performance by Arnold Schwarzenegger, and enough humanity to offer hope for the future.

Aliens

In the final 20 minutes or so of Aliens, series protagonist Ripley (an Oscar-nominated Sigourney Weaver) prepares to enter the creatures' hive to rescue Newt (Carrie Henn), a little girl captured by the nasty creatures.  Ripley loads up with a massive pulse rifle, a flamethrower, and grenades. 

As the elevator descends to what could be her death, we see how strung out and exhausted Ripley is, covered in sweat and grime. With her weapons ready, she closes her eyes, mentally preparing herself for the horrors she's about to confront.

That little moment demonstrates why Aliens is a worthy follow-up to the original Alien. It expands both the characters and the narrative instead of repeating the same plot and because writer-director James Cameron gives Ripley something sci fi and horror characters don't always receive: choice. 

Many science fiction horror tales drop their protagonists in a pressure cooker and watch them react, and the best ones, like Alien, show us what those characters are made of. In Aliens, we get that, but some of the best moments occur not when the monsters unexpectedly attack but when Ripley chooses to confront them. Instead of seeing her as a fool, we the viewer understand, sympathize, and root for her for doing so.

The Abyss

An early image in The Abyss captures the mystery and danger of the hidden world lurking in the ocean depths. Oil rig workers, recruited by the Navy for a rescue mission, search the flooded innards of a sunken nuclear submarine and are greeted by the pale corpses of doomed sailors as they navigate in clunky scuba gear and breathing apparatus. One rig worker sees spider-like crabs nestled on a dead man's face, and in a gruesome moment, a crab scuttles out of the mouth. 

Even without aliens or creatures of unknown origin, the ocean contains its share of the strange, the uncanny, and the dangerous. Never mind the sea creatures that will eat you without a moment's thought; the human body is not capable of surviving in the ocean without extreme measures and hard-developed technology. With the cold, the water pressure, and lack of air, humans are outmatched and out of their element.

I'm Dangerous Tonight

It's accurate to say Tobe Hooper peaked early in his career when he directed The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, one of the most influential horror films of all time. It's also misleading because to reduce Hooper's output to one movie or to say he never made another one as good is to overlook a filmography filled with offbeat projects and hidden gems.

One such project is I'm Dangerous Tonight, a TV movie made for the USA Network and inspired by a novella (unread by me) by Cornell Woolrich, the noted crime writer who also wrote the story that inspired Hitchcock's Rear Window. 

Nothing but Trouble

Nothing but Trouble is a movie I love telling friends about if they've never heard of it. I always preface my description by asking them to consider what kind of movie they would expect with that title and a cast headlined by Chevy Chase, Dan Aykoyd, Demi Moore, and John Candy.

Invariably, when I tell them what the actual movie is like and how it unfolds, my friends go wide-eyed, their mouths hang open, and they look at me like me like I'm completely crazy.

New York financial advisor Chris Thorne (Chase), to impress his new neighbor Diane (Moore), agrees to drive her to Atlantic City, along with a pair of obnoxious clients. Taking the "scenic" route through the village of Valkenvania, Chris unknowingly runs a stop sign, and the village constable Dennis (Candy) takes the foursome to the local courthouse, presided over by the 106-year-old Justice of the Peace, Alvin Valkenheiser (Aykroyd, who also wrote and directed). The Judge and his family have a habit murdering passing travelers who violated even the most minor of traffic laws, and they have no plans of letting Chris, Diane, and the others go free.

Season of the Witch (1972)

Among other things it's capable of, art can do two things: it can be a statement by the artist about the world, and it can be a revealing look about the artist themselves. Season of the Witch, written and directed by George A. Romero, does both.

Season of the Witch is about Joan Mitchell (Jan White), a housewife approaching middle age. Her 19-year-old daughter is on the verge of moving out, and her husband Jack all but ignores her. When she learns a new neighbor is a practicing witch, Joan is intrigued and seeks to learn more about witchcraft and magic. She casts a spell to seduce her daughter's boyfriend, but as the line between fantasy and reality blurs, she becomes plagued by nightmares of a dark figure attacking her in her home.

Hardware

The future in the world of Hardware is metal and not just because the film features cameos by Iggy Pop as a radio D.J. named Angry Bob and Lemmy as a taximan who plays Motorhead for his passengers. 

Cities have been reduced to rusting wastelands of decaying buildings and infrastructure, mechanicals limbs are common enough to go unmentioned, and government-built robots with a mission to sterilize the human race will soon be deployed en masse. 

Meanwhile, the desert now called Earth shows few signs of life. Humans struggle to survive this harsh, unforgiving planet, everything looks dirty and crowded, and fragile flesh is prone to disease, disfigurement, and genetic malformities. In the looming battle between man and machines, the machines hold all the advantage.

Sinners

Sinners shares similar DNA to From Dusk Till Dawn. Both begin as slow-burn crime stories about a pair of brothers with a scheme before shifting gears to become violent, gory horror stories in which our main characters end up trapped in a bar, fighting for their lives as besieging vampires want in.

There are plenty of differences. From Dusk Till Dawn's big twist came out of nowhere - no buildup, no foreshadowing, etc. - and that was the movie's big joke. Plenty of people were disappointed a character-driven story about kidnappers and their hostages became a wild, campy action flick, but if you roll with it, it's a fun, cool exercise in style for its own sake.

Sinners has greater ambitions. The vampiric threat is suggested sooner and built up, so it doesn't come out of nowhere. More significantly, the movie makes a more concerted effort to thread its halves together, so the character work and thematic elements don't fall by the wayside. Instead, the vampire angle enriches rather than detracts from the serious drama of the earlier scenes.

The result is one of the best horror movies in recent years, one that makes me hope writer-director Ryan Coogler spends more time in the genre.

Lessons from seeing your play performed

On May 31, I attended Theatre Reset's Short Play Festival #5, which featured a performance of my play, "Water to Whine," and I had an absolute blast. I loved everything they did, the performances were great, and I was happily surprised, in more ways than one. All the plays were great, and I'm so happy I got to see them.

The experience reminded me of a few important lessons about writing scripts, whether for stage or film, and I feel like sharing them here.

Theatre Reset picks up 'Water to Whine'

Theatre Reset, a Columbus-based and a women and nonbinary owned and operated theatre company, has selected my play, "Water to Whine," to be part of its fifth short play festival.

The company has previously produced two other plays I wrote - "Your Child, The Devil, and You" and "George of the Dead" - and I am excited to see what they do with "Water to Whine."

The festival will be held May 30 and 31 at Shedd Theater, 540 Franklin Ave., Columbus, OH 43215. Auditions are mid-March.

For more information about the festival, visit Theatre Reset's website.

The Ascent

Two Soviet partisans during World War II become cut off from their unit, struggle to survive the winter Belarusian countryside, and end up captured by the Germans.

That is the entire plot of The Ascent (1977), the final film of director Larisa Shepitko, who died two years later in a car accident. Like Wings, it is a stark, black-and-white drama, but instead of nestled twenty years after the Great Patriotic War, The Ascent is buried face first in the grueling conflict and misery of fighting and marching.

The Train

Is The Train the Saving Private Ryan of the 1960s? Consider the premises of both films: during World War II, a small group of battle-weary men are tasked with a near-impossible mission behind enemy lines to retrieve something that holds more propagandist than strategic value. 

In the case of The Train, that something is a nation's art, a symbol cultural heritage and pride. In Saving Private Ryan, the mission is one man, the sole survivor of a group of brothers, whose return will spare his mother more heartbreak and give the American public a positive story in the midst of the costly D-Day landings.

Obviously, there are plenty of differences. Steven Spielberg is, at his heart, a sentimentalist, who sees saving Ryan as a decent act among all the horrors of war, a good deed performed at a great cost that reminds us to be grateful for all the veterans went through. John Frankenheimer, still a relative upstart when he directed The Train, is a pessimist, a cynic who questions the human cost of saving a few paintings.

Seven Days in May

The United States and the Soviet Union have signed a peace treaty that calls for both nations to eliminate their stocks of nuclear weapons. President Jordan Lyman (Frederic March), who pushed for the treaty, sees his approval rating reach an all-time low, the deal unpopular among many Americans. His most prominent opponent is U.S. Air Force General James Mattoon Scott, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (Burt Lancaster), who believes Lyman has weakened the country. 

Marine Colonel "Jiggs" Casey (Kirk Douglas) is chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, serving directly under Scott, whom he greatly admires. Jiggs stumbles upon evidence that Scott and other generals are planning a coup d'etat, removing Lyman and installing Scott in his place as the head of a military junta. The plan is set to take place in seven days, under the cover of a training exercise.

Saved!

Mary (Jena Malone) describes herself as Born-Again, having been "saved" when she was 3. Entering her senior year at American Eagle Christian High School, she thinks she has everything figured out until her boyfriend Dean (Chad Faust) drops a bombshell: he thinks he's gay.

Obviously, that's a big no-no, but after a vision of Jesus in a swimming pool, Mary decides to take drastic action. She has sex with Dean. Unfortunately, Dean's parents find his stash of gay porn and send him away to a halfway house to be "cured," and Mary learns she's pregnant. Confused, alone, she grows alienated from her familiar life at school, drawing the ire of her best friend Hillary Faye (Mandy Moore), who does not take kindly to anyone straying from the faith.

Saved! (2004) takes satirical aim at fundamental, evangelical Christian high schools and goes after the hypocritical, judgmental, and holier-than-thou people it finds there. 

Yet, beneath its cynical exterior, the movie has a heart and demonstrates affection toward its characters. No one is beyond forgiveness, not even the worst Christianity has to offer.