Our Blog

Photo by Pixabay from Pexels

Most people agree Halloween is the obvious choice for a horror movie backdrop. It’s been done to death (sorry) and we think other holidays should get some recognition. That’s why we want to celebrate October and Halloween by not talking about Halloween at all. Here are some of our favorite horror flicks that take place on other, allegedly less spooky holidays. Reader beware: none of these are safe for work or for young children.

Ant-Man was introduced to a huge new audience when his standalone movie came out in 2015. Paul Rudd took up the mantle of Scott Lang, who took up the mantle of Ant-Man—the hero who can shrink, grow (in later films), and talk to ants. While that’s good and fun, we can’t help but wonder what the movie would’ve been like if Scott Lang had been afraid of bugs like a normal person. Thankfully, we don’t have to guess any longer. An anonymous source inside Marvel Studios sent us an early draft of the 2015 Ant-Man that answers those questions and more. We’ve reproduced portions of the script below.

Unless you’ve been living under a super powered rock for the past ten years (yes, the first Iron Man premiered back in 2008), then you know cinematic universes are all the rage right now. Marvel’s short after-credits scene at the end of Iron Man changed the dynamics of the entire movie business. Now, with Stephen King kicking off his own mythology mash-up with Castle Rock, we started thinking about what cinematic universes we want to see next.

The Jurassic Park franchise has created entire generations obsessed with dinosaurs. And what’s not to like? They were giant, scaly (OK, probably feathery) monsters ripped straight from the pages of a fantasy novel. As Jurassic Park has proved over and over again, dinosaurs can make anything better. With that being said, we injected the terrible lizards into some of our favorite books. Welcome to…Jurassic Word!

Dungeons & Dragons is like a big ol’ nerd umbrella wide enough accommodate many types of players. Do you like roleplaying colorful characters? Do you enjoy rolling dice, crunching numbers, maxing out damage? Do you have an epic world brewing in your head? You’re all covered. Additionally, the game’s focus on shared storytelling especially attracts creative people, from writers and illustrators to musicians and actors. That got us wondering how classic authors would play Dungeons & Dragons if they were alive today. Grab your D20 and let’s go!

Date: February 25^th, 1977

Dear reader,

You’re receiving this newsletter because you’re on the mailing list for Hal’s Hotelier Book Corner. I’m sorry I haven’t been sending out more reviews. The Hilltop Inn (located in scenic Canadensis, PA) has been very busy this season. A luxury hotel doesn’t run itself, after all!