Thrill Kill Jack in Hale Manor

Last updated

Thrill Kill Jack in Hale Manor is a 2000 independent comedy film produced by the Hale Manor Collective, a trio of Connecticut filmmakers consisting of Mike Aransky, Phil Guerrette and Thomas Edward Seymour. The film parodies action/adventure flicks by following the mystical loner Thrill Kill Jack (played by Guerrette) in his search for a stolen magic gun within the booby-trapped mansion of a master criminal (played by Seymour). [1]

Connecticut state of the United States of America

Connecticut is the southernmost state in the New England region of the United States. As of the 2010 Census, it has the highest per-capita income, Human Development Index (0.962), and median household income in the United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capital is Hartford and its most populous city is Bridgeport. It is part of New England, although portions of it are often grouped with New York and New Jersey as the Tri-state area. The state is named for the Connecticut River which approximately bisects the state. The word "Connecticut" is derived from various anglicized spellings of an Algonquian word for "long tidal river".

Thomas Edward Seymour is an American filmmaker and actor.

According to Seymour in an interview published in the online magazine PulpLit, the film was shot “over a year’s period on weekends. Consequently the film’s scenery turns from summer to winter to spring all within about 80 minutes. The film only cost about $700 to make. We shot it on a Hi-8 that we had and did the editing on a crappy PC. The real cost of the film was video tape and renting a Beta deck to make our masters on.” [2] The film played in festivals, gaining a Merit Award at the B-Movie Film Festival, and it was featured on Independent Film Channel’s “Split Screen” when that show covered the 2000 Fangoria horror convention. [2]

The Scare-A-Con Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Syracuse, United States.

Thrill Kill Jack in Hale Manor was released on DVD in 2006. [3]

Related Research Articles

Thora Birch American actress

Thora Birch is an American actress and producer. She made her film debut in Purple People Eater (1988), for which she won a Young Artist Award for "Best Young Actress Under Nine Years of Age", and rose to prominence as a child star with appearances in films such as All I Want for Christmas (1991), Patriot Games (1992), Hocus Pocus (1993), Monkey Trouble (1994), Now and Then (1995), and Alaska (1996).

<i>The Little Shop of Horrors</i> 1960 American comedy horror film directed by Roger Corman

The Little Shop of Horrors is a 1960 American comedy film directed by Roger Corman. Written by Charles B. Griffith, the film is a farce about an inadequate florist's assistant who cultivates a plant that feeds on human blood. The film's concept is thought to be based on a 1932 story called "Green Thoughts", by John Collier, about a man-eating plant. However, Dennis McDougal suggests that Griffith may have been influenced by Arthur C. Clarke's sci-fi short story from 1956, "The Reluctant Orchid". Mythology about man-eating plants dates back to at least the 1800s, and probably much earlier.

<i>The Boondock Saints</i> 1999 film by Troy Duffy

The Boondock Saints is a 1999 American vigilante action-thriller film written and directed by Troy Duffy. The film stars Sean Patrick Flanery and Norman Reedus as fraternal twins, Connor and Murphy MacManus, who become vigilantes after killing two members of the Russian Mafia in self defense. After both experience an epiphany, the brothers, together with their friend "Funny Man", set out to rid their home city of Boston of crime and evil, all the while being pursued by FBI Special Agent Paul Smecker.

Philip Seymour Hoffman American actor and film director

Philip Seymour Hoffman was an American actor, director, and producer. Best known for his distinctive supporting and character roles – typically lowlifes, eccentrics, bullies, and misfits – Hoffman acted in many films from the early 1990s until his death in 2014.

<i>To Live and Die in L.A.</i> (film) 1985 film by William Friedkin

To Live and Die in L.A. is a 1985 American action thriller film directed by William Friedkin and based on the novel by former U.S. Secret Service agent Gerald Petievich, who co-wrote the screenplay with Friedkin. The film features William Petersen, Willem Dafoe and John Pankow among others. Wang Chung composed and performed the original music soundtrack. The film tells the story of the lengths to which two Secret Service agents go to arrest a counterfeiter.

<i>A History of Violence</i> 2005 film by David Cronenberg

A History of Violence is a 2005 American crime thriller film directed by David Cronenberg and written by Josh Olson. It is an adaptation of the 1997 graphic novel A History of Violence by John Wagner and Vince Locke. The film stars Viggo Mortensen as the owner of a small-town diner who is thrust into the spotlight after confronting two robbers in self-defense, thus changing his life forever.

<i>Memento</i> (film) 2000 film by Christopher Nolan

Memento is a 2000 American neo-noir psychological thriller film written and directed by Christopher Nolan, and produced by Suzanne and Jennifer Todd. The film's script was based on a pitch by Jonathan Nolan, who later wrote the story "Memento Mori" from the concept. It stars Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Joe Pantoliano.

<i>Little Shop of Horrors</i> (film) 1986 film by Frank Oz

Little Shop of Horrors is a 1986 American rock musical comedy horror film directed by Frank Oz. It is a film adaptation of the off-Broadway musical comedy of the same name by composer Alan Menken and writer Howard Ashman about a geeky florist shop worker who finds out his Venus flytrap can speak. Menken and Ashman's Off-Broadway musical was based on the low-budget 1960 film The Little Shop of Horrors, directed by Roger Corman. The 1986 film stars Rick Moranis, Ellen Greene, Vincent Gardenia, Steve Martin, and Levi Stubbs as the voice of Audrey II. The film also featured special appearances by Jim Belushi, John Candy, Christopher Guest and Bill Murray. It was produced by David Geffen through The Geffen Company and released by Warner Bros. on December 19, 1986.

<i>The Phantom from 10,000 Leagues</i> 1955 film by Dan Milner

The Phantom from 10,000 Leagues is a 1955 independently made American black-and-white science fiction monster film, produced by Jack Milner and Dan Milner, that stars Kent Taylor and Cathy Downs.

<i>Killer Flick</i> 1998 film

Killer Flick is a 1998 American independent black comedy road film written and directed by Mark Weidman that follows a group of people as they go on a crime spree and film their own activities.

Everything Moves Alone is a 2001 independent comedy film produced by Connecticut filmmakers Mike Aransky, Phil Guerrette and Thomas Edward Seymour. Everything Moves Alone is a largely forgotten film from the 90’s independent film movement. This film is a dramatic comedy is in the spirit of Clerks and Bottle Rocket. The film follows the journey of a suicidal ex-soldier named Scotch (Guerrette) who tracks down his estranged and hostile brother (Aransky) in a small New England town. In this new surrounding, Scotch becomes involved in a strange and comically violent feud between a wealthy but misanthropic local (Seymour) and the easily excitable owner of a video store.

Land of College Prophets is a 2005 independent comedy film produced by Thomas Edward Seymour, Mike Aransky and Phil Guerette. Prophets was one of the first of the "backyard superhero" subgenres of films pre-dating James Gunn's Super, Defendor, Special,Kick Ass and so on. The film involves low-level superhero's at a community college that awaken a haunted wishing well. The film mixes comedy with science-fiction in a tale of two brawling college students who accidentally reactivate a dormant well that spews toxic liquids into the surrounding community, resulting in abrupt and deadly changes within nature and people. The film was available on Netflix, Hollywood Video and Movie Gallery in 2005.

Bikini Bloodbath is a 2006 comedy film that parodies the horror-slasher movies of the 1980s. Written and directed by Thomas Edward Seymour and Jonathan Gorman, the film focuses on a high school girls’ volleyball team that plans to host an end-of-semester party. Two members of the boys’ football team crash the party, but problems begin when the maniacal Chef Death, a serial killer portrayed by Rob Coz, who wields meat cleavers and culinary one-liners, interrupts the proceedings by slaying the partygoers.

<i>Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins</i> 2008 television film directed by Mike Slee

Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins is a 2008 television film created by Discovery Films and Oxford Scientific Films as a prequel to the Animal Planet series Meerkat Manor. A scripted documentary narrated by Whoopi Goldberg, the film details the life of a meerkat named Flower from birth to her becoming the leader of a meerkat group called the Whiskers. The film is based on the research notes of the Kalahari Meerkat Project and primarily uses wild meerkat "actors" to represent those in the story. Shot over two years at the Kuruman River Reserve in Northern Cape, South Africa, the film employed a much larger crew than the series. Some scenes were shot at a wildlife park in the United Kingdom, while others were created using camera tricks and trained film animals.

<i>Slade in Flame</i> 1975 film by Richard Loncraine

Slade in Flame is a 1975 film starring the British rock band Slade. It was directed by Richard Loncraine and written by Andrew Birkin with additional dialogue by Dave Humphries. The film includes supporting roles by Tom Conti, Alan Lake and Johnny Shannon. In November 1974, the band's soundtrack album of the same name was released prior to the film.

<i>Soul Power</i> (film) 2008 film by Jeff Levy-Hinte

Soul Power is a 2008 documentary film directed by Jeff Levy-Hinte about the Zaire 74 music festival in Kinshasa which accompanied the Rumble in the Jungle heavyweight boxing championship match between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman in October 1974. The film was made from archival footage; other footage shot at the time focusing on the fight was edited to form the film When We Were Kings.

<i>Jack the Ripper</i> (1988 TV series) 1988 British crime drama TV series

Jack the Ripper is a 1988 British television film drama based on the notorious Jack the Ripper murder spree in Victorian London.

London Betty is a 2009 American comedy/adventure film directed and written by Thomas Edward Seymour. The film includes performances by Nicole Lewis, Daniel von Bargen, Russ Russo, and director Seymour, as well as narration by Clint Howard. London Betty made the list of "Top Films of the Year" on Moviesmademe.com in 2009. Originally having a theatrical release in 2009, the film was released on DVD in 2010 through Maverick Entertainment on their Platinum Label. In May 2011 London Betty hit the #3 spot for British comedy on Amazon on Demand. The film was nationally distributed at Blockbuster Video until the company went out of business in 2013. Director Tom Seymour affectionately referred to this film and his two other features as the "Backyard Trilogy" consisting of three film, Everything Moves Alone, Land of College Prophets and London Betty. The three films all involve backyard thieves or in the case of Land of College Prophets superheroes that all dwell in suburban environments all shot within central Connecticut.

<i>The Master</i> (2012 film) 2012 film by Paul Thomas Anderson

The Master is a 2012 American drama film written, directed, and co-produced by Paul Thomas Anderson and starring Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Amy Adams. It tells the story of Freddie Quell (Phoenix), a World War II veteran struggling to adjust to a post-war society, who meets Lancaster Dodd (Hoffman), a leader of a religious movement known as "The Cause". Dodd sees something in Quell and accepts him into the movement. Freddie takes a liking to "The Cause" and begins traveling with Dodd along the East Coast to spread the teachings.

References