I was really looking forward to seeing Furiosa , despite these prequel-crazy times we’re living in where every movie, TV show, and book has to be a prequel that shows us exactly how Miles first met Becky, and how it almost always winds up an underwhelming exercise in frustration because it wasn‘t done very well. There are exceptions, like House of the Dragon (which is far superior to Game of Thrones ), Star Wars: Rogue One (a great movie that compliments the original Star Wars film), and--now having finally seen it--I can add the Mad Max prequel Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga to that esteemed list. The reason I had such high hopes for Furiosa was its director, George Miller, who brought his Mad Max saga back to rip-roaring life almost ten years ago with the incredible Mad Max: Fury Road . First starting out as a doctor in his native Australia, Miller has gone on to become an extremely talented film director over the course of his over forty year career. Furi
“You’ll enjoy Mr. Barlow. And he’ll enjoy you.” --Richard Straker (James Mason) from ‘Salem’s Lot 1979 ‘Salem’s Lot is one of my favorite novels by Stephen King. ‘Salem’s Lot is the locals’ name for their town, known officially as Jerusalem’s Lot, in Maine. King’s book describes the insidious and terrifying invasion of ’Salem’s Lot by vampires, led by Richard Straker and Kurt Barlow, two outsiders who have come to the town to disingenuously open an antiques store. They also bought the Martsen House, a creepy old abandoned mansion that sits overlooking the town, to serve as their home. Writer Ben Mears, who suffered a traumatic event in the Marsten House as a boy, returns to ’Salem’s Lot for research for his latest novel, only to find himself--along with several others--battling for the very souls of its townspeople. With this masterful book, only his second after Carrie, Stephen King updated the vampire myth to the then-modern day. Instead of lurking