The Mutilation Man Movie Review

Above Pic: The Mutilation Man in Action

Ahhh another day, another torture related film. The Mutilation Man opening credits show a man in his garage being tortured and eventually being killed by a large ominous silent man in a form fitting face mask. The killer is silent, not even saying a word to his victim. The foreboding music, the sparse sets, and lack of adequate lighting permeate this 80 minute film.

The Cole Brothers do a decent job with very limiting funding, but this film comes off as a bad Saw ripoff with very wooden acting. Later in Mutilation Man, our killer, decked out in an appropriate Jason style flannel shirt, enters the house of an unsuspecting couple on their anniversary night during awkward, uninspired passion.

Above Pic: The innocent couple, caught in a Bad Romance Haha!

Well guess what happens, they are tortured. Later in the film we find out that these are not random killings. I don't want to spoil it. The film moves along at the same pace as a wounded snail chasing a three legged turtle. The only decent thing about this film is that there is no corny dialogue, there are some cool jump scenes, and appropriate music.

For horror fans The Mutilation Man rates a rent a 4.5 out of 10. For casual fans and non B movie fans I rate this one a skip.

Jabberwock Movie Review

 

Above Pic: Jabberwock Poster

Not sure were to begin on this tepid tale of an odd looking dragon terrorizing a small village sometime in the past. Might as well begin during the opening scene, which finds two horse riders in the mountainous dry terrain, then all of the sudden a man finds an egg shaped object. Lightning strikes and blamo there is a full sized adult dragon after them. One guy is killed then the other finds his way into the nearby unsuspecting sleepy and rather boring town.

The acting on this film is just so dull, there is very little sense of urgency. I mean really if something was chasing me, that could not only easily eat me, but eat most of the town, I would panic, run, scream, fight, or do something. Most of the actors and actresses are relatively inexperienced, I did notice Michael Worth putting forth some effort as the warrior Alec.

The story continues as some folk in the town are killed, but a cute young girl, Jocelyn  played innocently by Violeta Markovska is captured by the dragon presumably brought to the dragon's lair for food for the new eggs about to hatch. 

Now I am all for catching cute young Bulgarian girls, but that is another story, for another post, but this dragon is just crazy! Well the town folk devise a way to capture and eventually kill the Jabberwock. Finally, by the third act, a bit of emotion and sense of impending doom is added to the liveliness of the story.

I did like some of the plot ideas, but the acting was not so moving, it was kind of like day old bread, you will eat it if it is there, but would rather eat a fresh bakery loaf. Some of the scenery was nice, and the CGI dragon was average, but won't tingle your toes for awesomeness Haha.

Overall I give this dragon pile Jabberwock a 4.5 out of 10 a marginal rent or watch on free TV. I do give the Bulgarian lady an 8 on the hotness scale, if that means anything.

Monique Ganderton Interview (C) 2012 Dan's Movie Report (Exclusive!)

 Above Pic: Monique crouched and ready for action: Photo Credit: Camilla Camaglia (Berlin) All photos can be made wallpaper size by clicking on them, right clicking on the larger image and then selecting view image.Images are EXCLUSIVE to Dan's Movie Report! Enjoy! Monique can be seen onscreen in 2013 in The Package and Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters! Acting! Watch out, Monique is ready for Action!

The 2012 year of action continues with the amazing Monique Ganderton. She is a multi-talented performer on both sides of the camera. This Canadian born lady has worked on dozens of TV shows and movies and even has a produced several short films with her partner Sam Hargrave. It is time for me to shut up and allow the beauty to speak, or else I might get injured.

Were you a daredevil as a kid, is that why you got into stunt work?

Almost embarrassingly the opposite! I didn’t go on a rollercoaster until I was 18! But I guess I did do a ridiculous amount of athletics because of my dad. I am the oldest of three girls so he made me his sport buddy! I played softball, skied, pole vaulted, rode horses and eventually taught snowboarding. I think I am into the mental game of stunts more than being a daredevil! But I do love flying and crashing so maybe I am just in denial…

I have to ask what is the most dangerous stunt you ever performed for

a movie or TV show? Describe the set-up.

Its hard to gauge the level of dangerous since there are so many factors and a simple stunt can be dangerous…But the one I took extra caution too was on Conan The Barbarian when we were galloping in a horse chase sequence. I am driving a two-horse chariot and then I jump from the chariot to the horse. It was kind of nuts since I had to get the horses up to gallop speed driving them then, plan out my timing with camera to step on the edge of the chariot, keep my balance and jump to the galloping horse then ride them off bareback and finally have to stop them and turn them around and go back to one! It was a cool old school style stunt but it could have potential to be a disaster! Glad it worked and I am proud of it. 

Above Pic: Playful and dangerous Monique. Photo Credit: Camilla Camaglia (Berlin)

I am not gonna lie I am a huge X-men fan, and that was a bad ass stunt you did for Rebecca Romijn in the interrogation room on X-Men 3, how long was the set-up? Share a story from the set.

That was a crazy day!!! We came up with the fight in the morning and didn’t get the hand cuffs until that day. They were not made to give at all! All metal. Usually with prep you can make ones with bungy or with foam. I was rushed to set, tons of pressure and had never attempted to jump through the cuffs yet. They set up a mini tramp by the table and I am supposed to jump on the tramp and through the cuffs. I am basically naked just to remind as well! And a cold concrete floor under the tramp. You know where this is going? I catch my pinky toe on the first attempt and eat it from table to tramp to the floor with my little toe caught in the chains to the cuffs! It was insanity! The on-set photographer actually caught athe moment of my toe getting caught mid air! That day ended up being a 17 hour day then add the make up times of 6 hours and it was epic. Tons of takes of everything but it was a blast! 

  On King of Fighters you did stunts, and also played the character

Mature, on films where you have a dual role are you less daring to do

the stunt work?

I always want to do everything. I can really appreciate that about actors wanting to maintain the integrity of their characters and performances by being involved in everything. However sometimes the ego has to take a time out and you have to worry about the acting and let someone do their job and do the stunts for you! I had a stunt double for KOF who was awesome. The producers couldn’t let me do the stunts because of risk so I had to deal with it.

Above Pic: Monique screams, everyone run! Photo Credit: Camilla Camaglia (Berlin)


Be honest, were you happy with the outcome of the King of Fighters?

Haha I fast forwarded most of it but I thought some of the action was cool. But no. I wasn’t overly thrilled by the product but I think we knew what it was when we made it. There were a lot of big personalities squished into a little movie. Wink Wink. But I did meet my amazing boyfriend Sam Hargrave on that show so something great came out of it and I don’t regret it at all!

Hansel and Gretel: Witchhunters seems like a cool project, how did you

get the part of one of the Witches and stunt double work for Famke?

Well…Funny you should ask…I had told David Leitch, a stunt coordinator that I work with a lot, that I was focusing more on acting. Then Famke got cast for the part, Sam was already working on the show and they were really trying to get me to come out. I said I had to act or my manager would KILL me! So they found the uncast roles and set me up with auditions and it worked out! So Everyone was happy in the end! I got to act, got to perform some action and work with Sam! It was so much fun!

Famke is a great actress she must be cool to work with, did you guys

share some time on the set together?

Famke is the coolest. I adore her! She is so tall so we would head out in Berlin and both wear heels and be HUGE! It was amazing! She had a tough time on the show because of the extensive prosthetics but she was a trooper.She totally killed it witch style, all the fights and action. She was always so game to fly in the harness. It was hilarious. She would want to do more takes for fun.

Who are some of your favorite actresses to double?

I love them all! That sounds corny but I think the 5’10 ladies in Hollywood must be the coolest laid back gals because I have never had any drama, issues or anything. Just all super cool! Tricia Helfer, Rachel Nichols and Famke I have double a couple times. They are all hilarious and love action and are always cool and game for anything. Sigourney Weaver is SO badass and was my movie hero growing up. And Nicole Kidman is such an amazing actor to watch work. I really have been so lucky.

How long was your portion of the filming process of Hansel and Gretel?

The Candy Witch was about a couple weeks, I also play a Mom in there somewhere which was a few days and then doubling Famke was a couple months. 

Above Pic: Monique attends 2011 Hollyshorts Short Film Festival.  

On to your short films, you and Sam have a sick twisted sense of humor

just like mine, how did Love and Vigilance idea come?

Well thank you! We had been talking about a vigilante couple thing for a while and wanted to shoot another short ourselves. So we just wrote it and it kept getting crazier and crazier! Then ta da!

How long did it take to film, shoot and edit?

Filming took about a week. It was really tricky because Sam had to shave his facial hair for the second character. We needed to make sure we were finished all of the hairy one! The edit took a few days. We worked on it whenever we had time. But it was pretty quick. The shoot was the crazy part. Talking to people that are not there, making sure focus was good and sound levels were right, then perform! We both appreciate EVERY aspect of film making now for sure!

You and Sam want to develop this idea into a feature length film or a TV series?

This short is pretty silly but the idea in a more sophisticated comedic state would make for a pretty awesome series I think. We have pitches for similar ideas so who knows!

Ok tell me once and for all where did  you two get those props for the

Love and Vigilance film? Hahahaa!

That may have been the most hilarious shopping event we have every been on. We went to a sex shop in LA and asked them to show us the largest realistic dildo they had that would be safe to smack someone in the face with. Without batting an eye the lady helping us walked us to an isle full of dildos so we had to take them all out and test them. I am hitting Sam on the head with every kind of dildo you can imagine, laughing my ass off! Then we picked The Big Boy! A steal BTW at 35.99.

Above Pic: Monique seated and sexy. Photo Credit: Camilla Camaglia (Berlin)   

Even though you are not a formally trained martial artist, stage

combat is obviously in your arsenal?

Not so much stage but I learn as much as I can from whomever I am working with. In this past few years dating Sam I have learned a ton from him since he is a bit of a fight genius! I really love to fight…is that bad?

Your love of animals, must have started as a kid, my mom has a rescue

dog, how many do you have? How did you find them?

I have loved animals as long as I can remember. I used to find stray cats when I was little and convinced my dad to get us a dog. I also love horses and started riding at a very young age. Now I have Rocky a Rottweiler mix from SPCA Vancouver Shelter, Apollo the orange cat that I found in a box in an alley, Baby, a horse that was in a shady situation outside of Vancouver and our two newest rescues, Piper and Hannah, both from the South La Shelter. They destroy millions of dogs in the US every year. Just go to the South LA shelter. It is heartbreaking. The staff at S LA have the hardest job and I really appreciate them. Never EVER buy puppies, always adopt. 

Above Pic: Monique stands out. Photo Credit: Camilla Camaglia (Berlin)

What are the charities you support?

Animals!!! I love these charities, Last Chance For Animals – their site is so informative. http://www.lcanimal.org/, and for horses, The Grace Foundation.http://www.thegracefoundationofnorcal.org/. I also have supported friends traveling to Africa on a house building mission, and a friend who needed some financing for her powerful documentary, To the Moon and Back. I also give out to some of the folks of Hastings in Vancouver, a hub for the homeless. I think its great to give and help where you can. I prefer to see a direct influence of my charity which is why I rescue animals and give to people I know. You see your help working immediately and that is so rewarding! 

Above Pic: Screencap of Monique in Continuum Click for hi res. (C) 2012 Showcase Network.

What is in store for 2012 for Monique, new projects on the horizon?

I hope it will be a combination of being of part of some cool projects as well as creating a few more of my own! I am always looking to collaborate with new people. AlsoI have a couple web series pitches I’d love to see fly so might try to shoot one while I am in Vancouver. I’ll be up here spending some much needed time at my second home in Gastown. I LOVE Vancouver and have a lot of family and friends here so it’s a nice change from the perfect LA weather and people! 

Wow, Monique great perspective on the film business, with an inside behind the scenes look into the life of an active stunt woman! 

For more on Monique Check out her official site @ http://moniqueganderton.com/

Twitter Monique your thoughts and desires @  https://twitter.co/#!/MoGanderton

Watch for more news and new hot pics from sexy Monique upcoming on your home for action, Dan's Movie Report! 

UPDATE: 7-24-12 Watch for Monique on the Canadian Sci-Fi Series 

Continuum! The series is currently airing on Showcase TV.

 

Raze Movie News, Upcoming Zoë Bell Project.

Above pics: These ladies are not exchanging eyeliner coloring tips!


While I was completing the research on the interview with Monique Ganderton, I came across a cool new teaser video for the new film Raze. Raze stars Stunt superstar Zoë Bell and actress Rachel Nichols. This promises to be a full on action film with the tagline "Fight or Die!" The production is well organized, and has a variety of websites to kick your ass and tease your mind as the sexy ladies prepare to duke it out. Monique is doing stunt work on the project.

Twitter till you are tired @ https://twitter.com/#!/razethemovie

Slap your face to Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/RazeTheMovie

Check out the impending violence, a real tease @ http://www.razethemovie.com/

Aoni Ma Interview

Above Pic: Aoni Ma In Action!

Above Pic: Aoni Ma in a sexy dress! Ronnie Chung Image, Danny Shamon edit!

The 2012 year of action continues with newcomer Aoni Ma. Aoni may be a fresh face on the scene but her nearly two decade experience in martial arts, coupled with her enthusiastic attitude will propel her to the top of the action world. Aoni is fluent in Mandarin and will be working on a project in China later in 2012. Enough of my ramblings, time to listen to the insightful words of Aoni.


After a such a long time practicing Wushu what attracted you to acting?

First of all I came from a Wushu, Kung-fu family. My father has been a strong
influence on me for both martial arts and film. He was an action actor and a
stuntman in china around the 90s, but he decided to quit the business when I
was born. I guess part of my drive to pursue film and acting is to continue and
finish my father’s dream.

Is it hard to make the transition? What steps have you taken such as  acting classes to further your career?

Speaking of making the transition from martial arts to Acting. Honestly I had no clue what direction to head to in the very beginning. I have been practicing  Wushu and Kung-fu with my father since I was 6, and when I decided go into the business all I had in my mind was to be an ACTION star and totally ignored the fact that besides being a great martial artist I also need to be a great actress. My father’s master is Yu Cheng Hui (famous well respected action actor in china, since the first making of ShaoLin temple with Jet Li, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yu_Chenghui) who is like a grandfather to me. He is the one who taught me the importance of acting. He believes that everybody should take an acting class once in their lifetime, because it will help you to understand yourself better. So he enrolled me in one of the best acting school in China “Beijing Film Academy” and mentored me about the business, from that point on, acting has been a big part of my life.

I majored in theater in college and after college I went on to couple acting schools in Hollywood to keep my craft fresh. Now I’m still taking classes every week at the Sport Of Acting with Vinny Guastaferro. I believe that acting is the same as martial arts, you have to keep up with the practice to get good, to get better.

I saw you worked on the film Cross as a stunt performer. What about stunt work, are you interested in doing falls, fights, and doubling for actresses?

Stunts… are very interesting to me; I want to be an actress that CAN and is
WILLING do my own stunts. I am very lucky to have many stunt friends that help me with things that I lack in the stunt field. I’m the type of person that’s always willing to learn, I might be an expert in Wushu, but there are thousands of other arts in the world, I believe I should be open minded and willing to learn and adapt. As far as doing high falls, wire works, fights, stage combat, those are the things that get me all hyped up. I love the adrenaline rush to it. I am totally down to do it when the opportunity appears.

Above Pic: Sexy Aoni Ma.


Have you done any modeling work? What about music video work?

I have done both modeling and music videos in the past. And honestly I love it as much as acting and martial arts. I love to tell stories though body movements, no matter if is in a photo or dancing in a music video.

I read on imdb that you are involved with Zalman King's new film
Kamikaze Love, how did your role of the defense class instructor come?

Hahah, I booked the role of self defense class instructor from a friend’s
recommendation. A friend of mine was working on the project and the producer
asked him if he knew someone that can teach a self defense class on screen. My friend called me right away because he had watched me teach a martial arts class in the past. His words to me over the phone were “ I know a lot of martial arts teachers but not many of them can be natural on screen, you are perfect for this part. I know you won’t let me down!” I remember thinking to myself, WOW, soooo much pressure. When I arrived on set, everything was great, I was very lucky to work with Zalman King and the crew, and they are just AMAZING.

What about Kantz's action horror Project Purgatory: Bejing, how did
that role come your way?

For Project Purgatory: Beijing, I knew Kantz for a while. I worked on couple of his
earlier projects, and we all had a blast. I’m very thankful that he always kept me
in mind for future projects. At first he had me in mind to play IP’s girlfriend
Sydney, but he scratched that idea and give me the character of GRAVE. The
idea was for me to have the character that’s able to fight and show off my skills.
And honestly I was very happy with the change. I do play well with the cold bitchy
assassin type of character, NO JOKES!

Any funny stories on the set of any of the films you have worked on? 


Ohh myyyy, there are just too many! I have a very tomboyish personality, I love working with people, ALL types of people. So, hilarious stuff happens all the time. Okie, here is one, I was in China doing a show called “Jackie Chan’s The Disciple.” From our hotel to the location is about a 3 hour bus ride and of course on the first day I had no clue about the long ride. Before I went on the bus I had chugged 2 bottles of water to help me detoxify the cold I had at the time. NOT A GOOD IDEA. I was dying, and of course the bathroom on the bus was not working, and there was NO place to stop for me to go to handle my business. Being next to a group of guy co-workers was not the best thing either. They started to make waterfall sounds, talked about swimming, and made other water related jokes, OHHH mannn! I swear it was the most horrible 3 hour bus ride of my LIFE. And until today the guys still make fun of me for having the bladder of a 5 year old.

What are some other projects you have worked on?

I have worked on a couple of reality shows such as Jackie Chan’s Disciple, Miss
Asia and also America’s Next Action Diva. Independent feature films, and couple of the award winning shorts films such as “On The Edge” which won the Best Action Short Film of the year 2009 at the Action On Film Festivals. Live shows such as Power Rangers, and motion capture for video games. Honestly I am just willing to work, hahah I get my high from working.

Who are some of your acting influences?

I get my acting influences from everyone that I meet. I find PEOPLE fascinating
even if they are not in the film industry. I like the energy and persona that people send out. Call me weird but I believe that acting is very much related to everyday lives and characters.

What directors, actors, or actresses you would like to work with?

I have to say Angelina Jolie is the person I want to meet and work with. Of
course every actor (ME included) wants to work with James Cameron and
Steven Spielberg. But I would love to meet and work with Angelina Jolie because she is that strong woman role model that I look up to.

Above Pic: Sexy and Dangerous Aoni Ma

Chat about your favorite genre of film. (action, horror, drama etc...) What attracts you to it?

Of course my favorite genre of film would be ACTION FILMS. I grew up watching my father doing action on TV and it seriously inspired me to be like him or even better than him. I view action films in a different way, not just popcorn movie night on my couch, it’s more of what can I learn from it? What makes this film so awesome? How I can inspire myself to be better?
 

What is upcoming in 2012 for Aoni?

WOW, 2012! Hopefully I get the opportunity to work on bigger projects! So far I am casted on a project overseas in March and I will for sure keep everyone  posted. Other than that I just have to get ready for what life throws at me. It’s going to be a GREAT YEAR!

Thanks to Aoni for a great interview. Smart, sexy, and talented; Aoni is always ready for action! Look for more on her on Dan's Movie Report in the near future. In the meantime check out her official website @ http://aonimatalent.com

Tammie Baird: Stuntwoman Profile

Above Pic: Tammie 2012 promo picture (To view pic full size click on it, right click on the enlarged image and select view image, it will increase to full screen, click again viola you have a wallpaper image of sultry Tammie!)

Back in 2011 I put up some pics on Tammie as she did a cool car hit stunt for a video. 2012 is the year of action on Dan's Movie Report, and Tammie fits right in. She is always up for a good fall! haha!

Tammie is experienced in a variety of stunts, and has worked on several cool TV shows and films, most recently NCIS: Los Angeles and Sons of Anarchy. Tammie is athletic, intelligent, sexy, hardworking, and makes an excellent addition to any project.

In early 2012 Tammie went to New Mexico to work on the TV show In Plain Sight. She was doubling the actress, Rachel Boston, whom Tammie said she was very nice to work with. She is now returning to NCIS: Los Angeles and continuing to double the actress Daniela Ruah.

Blast your browsers over to Tammie's official website @ http://www.tammiebaird.com/

Swing over to her stunt reel video on you tube @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4R-GOglqS7o

Watch for more on Tammie on Dan's Movie Report!

Haywire Movie Review

Above Pic: Haywire theater poster

2012 is the year of action on Dan's Movie Report. What action year would be complete without a viewing of Gina Carano's debut effort Haywire? Steven Soderbergh directs this tight 93 minute film, which puts Carano at the center of the action and puts veteran actors like Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, Antonio Banderas, and Michael Douglas at her mercy!

The film opens in a seedy diner and the action gets rolling. Gina is beautiful in a dangerous scary sort of way, I do wish that she showed more emotion and energy in her facial expressions as she does in her fighting ability. This is a serious film, but even in the lighter moments such as her being asked to be eye candy her facial expression never seems to alter. I am sure she will work on this for her next effort.

Haywire is an important experiment in the world of action films. With a 25 million dollar budget, major stars attached, and the first true female fighter as a star it remains to be seen if the US or the rest of the world is ready for such a gritty realistic film which the lead character is a female. My prediction is that it will fare far better overseas than in the US as other countries seem to embrace the strong female character.

Above Pic: Gina runs in Haywire. Thank your stars she is not chasing you haha!

As the film progressed I wish I was able to witness one other strong female character. I think Haywire should have brought in another lady from either the MMA world or the martial arts world to combat her. Although Gina has a difficult time with the actors she faces, as they underestimate her, I think a major female nemesis would have balanced the story, thus adding to the excitement and energy.

Haywire was shot using the digital RED cam, which has a dark, yet film like look and works to set a foreboding atmosphere throughout the film. Steven Soderbergh obviously took a lot of time to set up and frame each shot, the background and set props, although minimalistic at times added to the film's realism.

The fighting and action are of course the true highlight of Haywire. This is not swords and wire-work, there is no beauty to being rammed to the floor as a table lamp is knocked over. Although she is a bit soft spoken for a special ops agent, Gina will kick your ass if you mess with her, and proves that time and again. She has power, and also knows where to strike an opponent to cause maximum damage.

I really struggled with the rating on Haywire. I loved the action, but wish the film had a longer running time to learn more about the characters. Gina needs a few more films to properly hone her acting skills. She is rough around the edges as an actress, but that is to be expected. I give Haywire a solid 7 out of 10, a must see for the action, and to support women in action films.

Haywire opens nationwide on January 20th 2012.

Facebook Official page @ https://www.facebook.com/haywiremovie