This HALLOWEEN…🎃 the pretty girl next door wants to invite you in for a treat… OR A TRICK! 😈
WITCH TALES Halloween Horror anthology Signed and Numbered blu-ray is ON SALE NOW!
Witch Tales takes place on HALLOWEEN NIGHT with tales of terror adapted from pre-code horror comic books in the vein of TALES FROM THE CRYPT hosted by an enchanting witch with her own diabolical plans for All Hallows Eve!
GET A FREE Pre-code HORROR CARD of your choice when you buy the blu-ray!
The reviews are in – “Delightful cartoonishness and plenty of practical gore…WITCH TALES is an enjoyable romp” – RUE MORGUE
“SPOOKY and DISGUSTING” – House of Tortured Souls
“EFFECTIVELY GROSS EFFECTS” – Voices from the Balcony
“Lyddon knows how to tell a FRIGHT-FARE story well” – Ghastly Grinning
“WITCH TALES is a great anthology horror film that doesn’t hold back on the gore..” – Ciao Handy Films
“This film would be perfect for you on a chilly night around Halloween time.” GNoH #horrorfan #halloweenmovies #witches #indiefilm #horrorbluray
Blu-ray on EBAY
RENT on AMAZON!
In this continuation of a very special video series celebrating the 100th anniversary of Weird Tales pulp magazine and the artists and writers that sprang from the publication we present part two of our look at the special H.P. Lovecraft sci-fi horror issues of Heavy Metal and Metal Hurlant published in 1978 and ’79. Featuring Lovecraftian science fiction and horror art by Breccia, Moebius, Voss, Druillet and the Necronomicon, Clerc and many others. The creators of Metal Hurlant including Moebius, Dionnet, and Druillet, realized the importance of Lovecraft in literature and as a cultural phenomenon. The result is a great issue with bibliography, filmography, and an article on Lovecraft’s famous letters.
Also a peak at the Halloween issue of Lovecraftiana the magazine of Eldritch and Cosmic Horror with art adapted from Lovecraft stories by yours truly.
One of the classic series of underground horror comics from the early 1970’s, SKULL comics published by LAST GASP featured top artists in the underground art scene including Richard Corben aka GORE, Spain, Veitch, Irons, Jaxon, and Sheridan who make up the content for issue number three of SKULL, published in 1971.
A truly twisted SPAIN cover kicks off the issue followed by an intro by the host, Ol’ skull, then it’s time for the sexy and sinful TALES of the LEATHER NUN by Sheridan, one of the most iconic characters in underground comics. Gore, better known as Richard Corben, supplies the delightfully deranged HORRIBLE HARVEY’S HOUSE while Irons and Veitch cap off the issue with a particularly sick tale of cannibals called CLEAN UP CREW.
Watch the SKULL #3 video here.
In 2019, Fig Biz and Incendium released some very special five inch action figures from two of the Heavy Metal movie and magazine’s most beloved characters: Taarna The Taarakian and Nelson, the b-17 Gunner zombie. These figures were released separately and as an exclusive set celebrating the 300th issue of Heavy Metal magazine. Included in the set were accessories such as Taarna’s magical sword and Nelson’s tailgunner machine gun and a box of ammo. In addition to the figures, there are three lapel pins including Taarna, Nelson, and the classic Heavy Metal logo pin.
In this video we take a good look at the action figures and even do a minor re-paint on one of the figures to make him ghoulishly good!
Click here to watch the 2019 Heavy Metal Movie Taarna And B-17 Nelson Action Figures Video
In the latest video from Horror Mike, he takes a good look at the revolutionary French illustrated science fiction and fantasy magazine Metal Hurlant, issue number eight from September 1976, and it’s American cousin, Heavy Metal number one from April, 1977.
We examine the great cover art of battling robots by Nicollett and explore the contents of each magazine featuring art by Druillet, Moebius, Voss, Picaret, Bode, Corben, and many others.
Metal Hurlant was founded in 1974 by Jean Giraud aka Moebius, Jean-Pierre Dionnet, Philippe Druillet, and Bernard Farkas. It was released in North America as Heavy Metal, published by the creators of National Lampoon magazine.
Click here to watch the “Metal Hurlant #8 Heavy Metal #1: A Tale of Two Covers. Illustrated Sci-fi Horror & Fantasy Magazines” video.
In the latest video on the Horror Mike channel, we take a look at Carl Macek’s book “Heavy Metal: The Art of the Movie – Animation for the Eighties.”
This behind the scenes book examines the animation production behind one of the best animated films ever made with artists including Neal Adams, Mike Ploog, Juan Gimenez, Angus McKie, Howard Chakin, and more. Storyboards, models, rotoscoping techniques and character studies that shaped the look of the Heavy Metal movie are in the book
published in 1981 by New York Zoetrope.
The book is broken into chapters reflecting the various stories including Soft Landing, Gremlins aka B-17, Grimaldi, So Beautiful and So Dangerous, Den, Harry Canyon, Captain Stern, and Taarna.
While the book is long out of print, you can buy used copies of Heavy Metal: The Art of the Movie here.
We look at Nueva Frontera Spanish Issue of Metal Hurlant #12 (1983) with the only known cover collaboration by Philippe Druillet and Jean Giraud “Moebius.” This cover first appeared in the 1980 edition of the original French Metal Hurlant #57 (special edition).
Other artists in this issue included Voss, Morisi, the incredible line art of Bihannic, and an episode of THE INCAL by Moebius and Jodorowsky.
While Metal Hurlant debuted in France in 1975 by founders Jean Giraud aka Moebius, Philippe Druillet, Dionnet, and Farkas, the Spanish language edition of Metal Hurlant didn’t surface in name in Spain until 1982. TOTEM was the original spanish magazine that more closely mirrored the French publication during the late 1970s.
For fans of both Metal Hurlant and Heavy Metal magazines, I highly recommend the excellent new book “METAL HURLANT: 1975 to 1984” published in 2022 by Les Humanoides Associes. 290 pages featuring many of the great early stories from the magazine and many extras, now on sale.
Metal Hurlant From Page to Screen – How Heavy Metal Magazine Influenced Science Fiction Cinema with Links to All Movies!
by Mike T. Lyddon 12/18/2022
Watch the entire video here.
Everyone is familiar with the classic Heavy Metal animated film released in 1981 but this was not the first film venture in the Heavy Metal universe.
More than a decade earlier in 1969, years before the launch of Metal Hurlant in France and Heavy Metal magazine in the United States, artist Richard Corben made a short live action and animated film called NEVERWHERE. This was the crude yet effective origin story of Corben’s DEN, a popular comic book series that would be officially introduced in Metal Hurlant in 1975 and Heavy Metal magazine in 1977. There is no doubt that the makers of the Heavy Metal movie in 1981 were inspired by both Corben’s original short film and his amazing comic strip in the magazines.
In 1973, French filmmaker Rene Laloux’s landmark animated science fiction feature FANTASTIC PLANET hit theater screens worldwide. This bizarre and visually stunning film pre-dated the magazines but it’s influence would later be seen in the pages of Metal Hurlant and Heavy Metal for years to come.
Years later, Laloux would make the 1988 animated feature Gandahar aka Light Years with production design by Phillipe Caza, a major force in the Metal Hurlant / Heavy Metal universe. The film was also translated into english by famous sci-fi author, Isaac Asimov.
For Phillipe Caza, his journey in Metal Hurlant began in 1977. He did numerous covers and stories for the magazine, many of which were reprinted in Heavy Metal. His fantastic production design in Laloux’s Gandahar makes the film the visual feast that it is.
In 1976, writer Dan O’Bannon would collaborate with Moebius on the two part science fiction comic strip, The Long Tomorrow, published to great acclaim in issues 7 and 8 of Metal Hurlant, then in the July and August 1977 issues of Heavy Metal.
Moebius’ depiction of the near future with massive, congested and delapidated mega-cities with mile high sky scrapers and flying cars influenced Ridley Scott and his landmark science fiction film BLADE RUNNER in 1982.
Moebius and Dan O’Bannon would collaborate again on the classic 1979 sci-fi horror film ALIEN with O’Bannon supplying the screenplay and Moebius as one of the key concept artists.
Moebius would go on to lend his conceptual and production design talents to Tron in 1982, Willow in 1988, The Abyss in 1989, and The Fifth Element in 1997, directed by fellow Frenchman, Luc Besson.
It should be noted that not only was Moebius the co-founder of Metal Hurlant magazine, he was one of the biggest contributors to the publication and his influence on the look of science fiction films of the 70s, 80s, and 90s is massive.
After Alien, Dan O’bannon would go on to make one of the greatest zombie movies of all time, Return of the Living Dead in 1985, a film that has the earmarks of Metal Hurlant and Heavy Metal all over it, even down to the production design of master artist William Stout who also contributed art to Heavy Metal.
Heavy Metal alumnus H.R. Giger’s influence on the Alien films and pop culture in general is astounding. His visualizations of the Alien creatures, their ships, and physiology made Alien the monumental sci-fi horror breakthrough that it was in 1979. He contributed a few covers to Metal Hurlant and Heavy Metal along with some very interesting interior content including his surreal pictorial with Blondie lead singer Debbie Harry in the December 1981 issue.
Enki Bilal was a very Popular Metal Hurlant / Heavy Metal artist who did a variety of fantastic covers and interior stories including Exterminator 17 and the Nikopol trilogy which was the basis for his 2004 movie IMMORTAL about a 2095 Earth occupied by ancient gods and genetically altered humans. When a god is sentenced to death he seeks a new human host and a woman to bear his child.
Marc Caro was a Metal Hurlant artist whose work could be seen in Metal Hurlant in the late 1970’s. He was famously part of the Jeunet – Caro duo consisting of himself and Jean Jeunet who made such classic science fiction and fantasy films as Delicatessen and City of Lost Children.
Jeunet also directed my second favorite Alien film, Alien: Resurrection with Marc Caro as design supervisor. While Aliens and Alien 3 did little to expand upon the Alien universe, Alien Resurrection did more than make up for their shortcomings in world building. 200 years after her death, Ellen Ripley is revived as a powerful human/alien hybrid clone. Along with a crew of space pirates, she must again battle the deadly aliens and stop them from reaching Earth. This stunning work gives us yet more mutations and looks of the Aliens as well as a glimpse into their collective intelligence.
Last but not least we circle back with the great Moebius and his numerous collaborations with Alejandro Jodorworsky.
Jodorworsky is known for his violent and surreal films El Topo, Holy Mountain, and Santa Sangre.
He and Moebius began a years long serialization of THE INCAL: the cosmic adventures of 2nd rate private detective John Difool first appearing in Metal Hurlant #58 in 1980. It also started up in Heavy Metal in 1982 and has been recently announced as a forthcoming feature length live action film now in pre-production.
Both Moebius and Dan O’Bannon were involved in Jodorworsky’s failed attempt to make his version of Frank Herbert’s DUNE in the 1970’s but perhaps now we will see the beginnings of an epic saga of THE INCAL on the big screen very soon.
Metal Hurlant 1975 to 1984 Book (in French)
Kindle https://amzn.to/3WupcPO
Paperback https://amzn.to/3uYbY2c
Heavy Metal Movie 1981 on Blu-ray
https://amzn.to/3FNQV7d
FILMOGRAPHIES
Rene Laloux
Fantastic Planet 1973
Criterion blu-ray or rent
https://amzn.to/3VfhibU
Gandahar aka Light Years (France 1988) Rene Laloux – production design by Philipe Caza
Issac Asimov wrote the English translation for the English version of the film.
Gandahar is currently only available on youtube –
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3FsASNavdU&list=PLD0E4348BA371EF68
Jean Giraud Moebius
The Incal in Metal Hurlant 1980, in Heavy Metal 1982
The long running series written by Jodorowsky and drawn by Moebius.
Hardcover 316 page graphic novel on sale here
Soon to be a major motion picture, in pre-production now.
https://amzn.to/3PEOloN
MOEBIUS: Chroniques Métalliques et Chaos
200 PAGE hardcover book on all Moebius art for Metal Hurlant / Heavy Metal magazines.
https://amzn.to/3HSLUx0
MOEBIUS FILM CREDITS
Alien 1979 concept artist
Alien Blu-ray 4K 40th anniversary
https://amzn.to/3v5Lzzt
Alien the directors cut rent https://amzn.to/3YAeEk2
Willow 1988 concept artist
Willow 1988 Blu-ray DVD or rent https://amzn.to/3jjfEcc
Tron 1982 conceptual artist
Tron 1982 two disc blu-ray or rent https://amzn.to/3HMRely
The Abyss 1989 conceptual artist
currently unavailable
The Fifth Element 1997 production designer
Fifth Element 1997 4K and Blu-ray or rent https://amzn.to/3BQ1vd3
Arzach Rhapsody 2003 original designs and storyboards
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1c-zEwSxuB0
The Long Tomorrow 1976 Metal Hurlant- art by Moebius, written by O’Bannon
Graphic novel (collection with The Long Tomorrow)
Chapter one appears in Heavy Metal July 1977 https://amzn.to/3HSMMSs
Chapter two appears in Heavy Metal Aug 1977 https://amzn.to/3VebMWY
Richard Corben
Den first serialized in Metal Hurlant 1975, then used in the Heavy Metal movie in 1981.
Corben made a Den short film called “Neverwhere” in 1969, available on Youtube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JM3hjD_W0yI
H.R. Giger
Heavy Metal magazine
Alien films
Alien Blu-ray 4K 40th anniversary https://amzn.to/3v5Lzzt
Alien the directors cut rent https://amzn.to/3YAeEk2
Philipe Caza
Popular cover and interior artist for Metal Hurlant / Heavy Metal
Gandahar 1988 production design
currently only on youtube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3FsASNavdU&list=PLD0E4348BA371EF68
Enki Bilal
Popular Metal Hurlant / Heavy Metal artist who did a variety of covers and interior stories including Exterminator 17 on sale here –
https://amzn.to/3WuoeDa
Immortal 2004 – Directed by Enki Bilal
Blu-ray or rent
https://amzn.to/3HNm4ub
The Nikopol Trilogy – basis for Immortal film, in english –
https://amzn.to/3FJC3a5
Marc Caro and Jean Jeunet
Alien Resurrection 1997 design supervisor, directed by Jean Jeunet
Blu-ray
https://amzn.to/3FLUOJQ
Delicatessen 1991 director
Rent https://amzn.to/3jnegFe
City of Lost Children 1995 director
Rent https://amzn.to/3HZBStQ
Dante 01 2008 director
DVD or rent https://amzn.to/3BPB5Yy
Dan O’Bannon
Alien 1979
Alien Blu-ray 4K 40th anniversary https://amzn.to/3v5Lzzt
Alien the directors cut rent https://amzn.to/3YAeEk2
Return of the Living Dead 1985
Blu-ray or Rent
https://amzn.to/3PFBORY
Dead and Buried 1981
Blu-ray or Rent https://amzn.to/3WAcQpd
The Long Tomorrow 1976 Metal Hurlant- art by Moebius, written by O’Bannon
Graphic novel (collection with The Long Tomorrow)
Chapter one appears in Heavy Metal July 1977 https://amzn.to/3HSMMSs
Chapter two appears in Heavy Metal Aug 1977 https://amzn.to/3VebMWY
Alejandro Jodorowsky
The Incal in Metal Hurlant 1980, in Heavy Metal 1982
The long running series written by Jodorowsky and drawn by Moebius.
Hardcover 316 page graphic novel on sale here https://amzn.to/3PEOloN
Forthcoming motion picture in pre-production.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15843316/
Jodorowsky’s Dune rent https://amzn.to/3HQIriD
Documentary about filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky’s scrapped movie adaptation of Frank Herbert’s science fiction novel Dune – collaborators including Moebius and Dan O’Bannon contributed to Alien and Heavy Metal.
El Topo Rent https://amzn.to/3VgVfSe
Santa Sangre 1990 Rent https://amzn.to/3HSzFkc
Holy Mountain 1973 Rent https://amzn.to/3v2czzU
A few years before Heavy Metal illustrated science fiction and fantasy magazine hit the stands to worldwide acclaim, it’s mother, Metal Hurlant would shake the rafters in a revolutonary new approach to comic books and illustrated magazines.
Part one of a long series on both Metal Hurlant and Heavy Metal illustrated science fiction and fantasy magazines. Metal Hurlant was formed in France in 1974 by Moebius, Druillet, Dionnet, and Farkas aka Les Humanoides Associes. Two years later, National Lampoon would publish Heavy Metal magazine which more or less reprinted the comic book stories from Metal Hurlant. We take a good look at the new 290 page illustrated book “Metal Hurlant 1975 – 1984” the prime early years of the magazine featuring art by Moebius, Druillet, Caza, Claveloux, Bode, and stories by Dan O’Bannon, Dionnet, and more.
Buy the book here on sale now
On the 12/11/2022 Horror Mike LIVE Sunday Nooner show we take a good look at the animated science fiction film HEAVY METAL (1981) and HEAVY METAL 2000, the sequel starring Julie Strain, Michael Ironside, and Billy Idol.
heavy metal animated film 1981
The original film is based on Heavy Metal magazine 1977 which was published by National Lampoon publisher Leonard Mogel who discovered the original French version Metal Hurlant when he was in France trying to sell National Lampoon magazine to a European audience.
Metal Hurlant sprang from the French publication PILOTE. Many of the Metal Hurlant artists had already appeared in the pages of PILOTE prior to the birth of Metal Hurlant but artists Phillippe Druillet and Jean Giraud aka Moebius wanted to create a science fiction and fantasy based magazine that would scrap the rules of traditional illustrated magazines, so Metal Hurlant was created with additional partners Jean Pierre Dionnet and the money man of the operation, Bernard Farkas.
Originally, Heavy Metal was largely reprints of Metal Hurlant but soon they would add many American artists and writers to the magazine.
The 1981 Heavy Metal animated film was a Candadian production helmed by Gerald Potterson, produced by Ivan Reitman (Animal House, Ghostbusters). This is why Canadian actors including John Candy, Eugene Levy, Joe Flaherty, and Harold Ramis lent their vocal talents to the production.
The film utilized a lot of rotoscoping technique which consists of filming live sequences and drawing over the images to give it an animated effect.
rotoscoping technique on heavy metal 1981
Several animation studios from around the world provided the animation for the film.
Harry Canyon, Den, and Captain Stern segments were taken from the magazine.
The Taarna sequence was written specifically for the film and was loosely based upon Arzach by Moebius although he was strangely not credited for it.
Elmer Bernstein composed the music and a variety of rock artists supplied soundtrack material including Don Henley, BOC, Cheap Trick, Black Sabbath, and DEVO.
Due to soundtrack copyright issues, the movie was not released on VHS until 1996. Kevin Eastman (TMNT) bought the publishing rights to the magazine and worked out the legal issues surrounding the soundtrack.
heavy metal vhs 1996
Heavy Metal 2000 (2000) aka Heavy Metal: F.A.K.K.² featuring voice work by Julie Strain, Billy Idol, and Michael Ironside, is based upon The Melting Pot comic book (1993) co-written by Kevin Eastman.
In reality, this comic book and the movie is loosely derived from the Taarna segment in the original film with very similar set ups.
In Taarna, the titular character seeks to kill the man who was transformed into an evil tyrant by the green glowing lochnar lava and wiped out her people.
In HM 2000, A miner named Tyler is exposed to The key to the chamber, a glowing crystal that can lead the bearer back to the fountain and drives anyone who possessed it insane.
Tyler invades the planet Eden, and kills many of the Edenites, capturing some so he can extract the immortality fluids from their bodies. The lead character Kerrie (voiced by Julie Strain) an Edenite, seeks revenge on Tyler.
In 2008, there were plans for a Heavy Metal movie remake to be directed by David Fincher but it was scrapped. In 2011, Robert Rodriguez bought the rights to the movie in order to make another film. After a few years, the project eventually morphed into the Netflix series “Love, Death, and Robots.”
Métal Hurlant Chronicles is an English-language Franco-Belgian live action television science fiction anthology series that ran from 2012 – 2014 to very mixed reviews.
Heavy Metal 1981 Blu-ray and Heavy Metal 2000 are now on sale and available to rent.
Metal Hurlant Chronicles series is available on blu-ray.
If you’ve been to a Dollar Tree lately, chances are you’ve seen a comic book called FINAL FACTION or a number of their related action figures along with some animated videos available on Youtube.
Final Faction hit the Dollar Tree shelves in 2021 and has been steadily releasing a variety of toys featuring members of the Alpha Team led by Sargeant Steadfast and his trusty dog Churro who jumps into a larger mechanized canine to help his friends battle the evil Kharn.
In addition to the regular Final Faction action figures and accessories, there are emerging limited edition toys including the very popular but kind of rare VENOM series of Kharn creatures that appear to be showing up at selected stores only.
Watch this Final Faction video to learn more about the universe and new toys they’ve added.
