METROPOLIS

By Aleck Bennett
Contributing Writer

It’s a Fritz Lang kind of Spring, I suppose. That feeling is helped along by two venues showing the most recent restoration of Lang’s pioneering science fiction classic, METROPOLIS, which finally brings the film as close to its original state as possible. The historic Plaza Theatre has booked the film for a full week, and there’s a special outdoor screening of the restoration at Woodruff Arts Center featuring the US debut of a specially-composed score performed live by Georgia Tech’s Sonic Generator.

Last time we talked Fritz Lang, it was about M (1931), the first serial killer-themed horror film. But now, we’re going four years earlier and looking at METROPOLIS, the first feature-length science fiction movie. And in the ensuing years, METROPOLIS continues to be relevant to contemporary life, its themes resonating through the ages as our industrialized society becomes more and more technocratic.

The sprawling plot of METROPOLIS speaks mostly to the topic of class division. In the year 2026, the wealthy preside over the city of Metropolis and lead lives of decadence, while a teeming underclass of workers toil day in and day out, slaves to the machines that provide the power that drives the city above. Freder (Gustav Fröhlich)—the son of Joh Fredersen (Alfred Abel), the city’s aristocratic Master—falls in love with a labor organizer named Maria (Brigitte Helm) and enters the underground city of the workers. There, he just may serve to fulfill the prophesied role of the city’s “heart”: the man who will help Maria unite the workers and join the city’s “hands” (its workers) with its “head” (the ruling aristocracy). But the ruling class has other plans to keep the underclass down: to kidnap Maria and use a robotic doppelganger to sow seeds of discord among the laborers.

Add in a love triangle, espionage, sabotage, disaster, riots, beautiful art deco set design, Biblical references, hints of occultism, expert use of miniatures and pioneering special effects, and not only do you have an epic that presents a morality play and political polemic depicting class struggle with the rhythm of everyday life, but also a bustling action picture designed to keep viewers enthralled with the kind of futuristic grand spectacle not seen on the screen before.

Unfortunately, that balance was largely destroyed by cuts to the film that took place shortly after its premiere. The film was funded and its distribution controlled by a partnership between MGM, Paramount and German film studio UFA, which was known as Parufamet (a portmanteau of the three studios’ names). Parufamet cut the film from its 153-minute running time to 115 minutes, and later that year it was cut down further by UFA to a brief 91 minute running time. Huge chunks of character exposition and plot points were lost completely. This left much of the spectacle but presented seemingly one-dimensional characters inhabiting the film, which only emphasized the heavy-handedness of the film’s message-laden storyline. A film about people and ideas became simply a film about ideas.

Over the decades, numerous attempts at restoration took place using whatever could be found. The high (or low, depending on your stance) point of 20th-century efforts came with the 1984 release of a version compiled by songwriter/producer Giorgio Moroder. Moroder’s restoration was, at that point, the most complete version of the film available, incorporating all footage known to exist at the time. However, the film was tinted throughout, with its intertitles replaced with subtitles for continuity’s sake, with a pop soundtrack (featuring Freddie Mercury, Pat Benatar,  Bonnie Tyler, Adam Ant, Loverboy, etc.) in place of a traditional score and with its frame rate increased to 24 frames per second (which resulted in an artificially-shortened running time of 82 minutes).

In 2002, Kino Lorber and the F.W. Murnau Foundation released a 124-minute restoration that seemed to be the final word on the film, as all remaining footage was believed to have been lost to the ravages of time. Missing footage was described in newly-designed title cards to fill in the blanks. But shortly afterward, film prints were found in New Zealand and Argentina that contained scenes not included in any existing copy. In fact, the Argentine print was a 16mm reduction of the entire original cut of the film. With these new sources in hand, METROPOLIS was restored to 95% completion (only two short sequences could not be included due to extensive damage). Settling on an acceptable frame rate (the actual frame rates of many silent films are hard to determine), and with the additional sequences restored to their rightful places, the final running time of the now-nearly-complete METROPOLIS is 145 minutes.

And those restored scenes restore a coherency and depth to the film that has not been experienced since its premiere some 86 years ago. The character of Freder becomes heroic rather than a cipher. Maria becomes a fully-rounded character rather than an archetype. Sure, the highly stylized acting familiar to German Expressionist silent filmmaking is still present, which may stand as a roadblock to viewers raised on the naturalistic acting of modern cinema, but the operatic tenor of the performances is almost necessary to keep the actors from being overwhelmed by the sheer size and spectacle of the film’s sets and effects (adjusted for inflation, the film’s budget in today’s numbers would be $200 million, making it one of the most expensive movies ever made, equal to James Cameron’s TITANIC). Without the benefit of speech, the sheer BIGNESS of the movie demands performances as visually loud as the sets are huge.

Though the film was panned upon first wide release (in my opinion, largely due to its being butchered and available only in compromised form), METROPOLIS has since become one of the highest-regarded films in existence, with its influence felt in movies ranging from BLADE RUNNER to DR. STRANGELOVE; from STAR WARS to BACK TO THE FUTURE; from DARK CITY to THE FIFTH ELEMENT. Oddly enough, though, it has found more frequent homage in the field of popular music. The music videos for Queen’s “Radio Ga Ga,” Nine Inch Nails’ “We’re in This Together” and Madonna’s “Express Yourself” have all been inspired by the movie’s themes and visuals. Meanwhile, Atlanta’s own Janelle Monáe has released two fantastic concept albums inspired by the film: 2007’s METROPOLIS: SUITE I (THE CHASE) and 2010’s THE ARCHANDROID. (Based on the title, I’m guessing that this year’s upcoming album, THE ELECTRIC LADY, will round out the trilogy.)

For very different experiences in viewing METROPOLIS this week, let me recommend that you take the film in twice. Firstly, it’s playing a week-long engagement at the Plaza Theatre, where you can sit in the enshrouding darkness and get caught up in the purely visual storytelling of this masterwork as the towering images wash over you to the accompaniment of the gorgeous original score by Gottfried Huppertz. Secondly, though, the film is the subject of a free outdoor screening at the Woodruff Arts Center on Tuesday, May 28, projected on the Anne Cox Chambers Wing of the High Museum. There, the film will be accompanied by a live performance by Georgia Tech’s contemporary music ensemble Sonic Generator (augmented by several additional performers from Atlanta’s vast musical spectrum), performing a score composed by renowned Argentine composer Martin Matalon which is making its US debut. For more details about this singular event, check out this great in-depth write-up in CREATIVE LOAFING by Doug DeLoach.

Either way (or both!) you take it, METROPOLIS is both a film of its time and film of all time; a movie that speaks to the concerns of Weimar-era Germany in 1927 and the “one percent vs. the 99 percent” fights of today. It’s a landmark in science fiction, a landmark in the development of special effects and a landmark in cinematic history, and in its restored condition, it commands the attention like few films ever made.

Aleck Bennett is a writer, blogger, pug warden, pop culture enthusiast, raconteur and bon vivant from the greater Atlanta area. Visit his blog atdoctorsardonicus.wordpress.com

Earl "Bubba" Maddox.

By Eve Wynne-Warren
Contributing Writer

Editor’s Note: If Gregory Dean Smalley was the founding father of Bubbapalooza, the annual rockabilly/roots festival every Memorial Day Weekend at Star Bar, then Earl “Bubba” Maddox, who passed away from cancer in March, had to be its lovably crazy uncle.  Earl drummed for a slew of seminal bands such as the Diggers, the Convicts and Gregory Dean and the Bubbamatics, and lately had been a character actor in movies. Events like Bubba, places like the Star Bar and the musicians who play there are at the heart of why we do ATLRetro. In this companion feature to our Bubbapalooza preview, Eve Wynne-Warren asks some of the Bubba regulars who knew Earl well for a few stories. It wasn’t hard for them to think of a few. For more about Earl, also check out the warm tribute by James Kelly (Slim Chance) that appeared in Creative Loafing here.

Earl Maddox had his own way of seeing the world and thought outside the box more than anybody you ever met. Atlanta musician, entrepreneur and Star Bar institution Billy Ratliff recalls some instances that beautifully illustrate Earl’s uniquely creative charm:

Billy Ratliff: “I met Earl in the late ‘80s at the [Euclid Avenue] Yacht Club. He was on his way out of town; he always was a bit of a gypsy. About 3 a.m., Earl said before I leave, let me show you something. So we headed out to his car, and he opened the trunk and there lay an antique cannon of some sort – something like a Gatling gun off an old ship. Did I want to buy this item? I had no need for a cannon at that point.”

Earl Maddox in THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON (2008).

That was Earl. Random bits of dreamlike appearances always with a story, an offering and a new friend; things that don’t transpire in the day-to-day lives of most. And he was down to earth and approachable. He made some of the most unlikely friends just about anywhere he went.

Billy : “One day I ran into Earl. ‘I haven’t seen you in a while, where’ve you been?’ Earl said. ‘Oh, hanging out at Webster’s studio.’ ‘Pardon?’ ‘Yeah, I was fishin’ down off a dirt road down south of the airport and outta the woods came Webster.’ ‘You mean the little guy from TV?’”

Yep, that was Earl.

Earl’s free spirit took him places so unimagined and sometimes unexpected by many. I asked writer-painter and fellow free spirit/barstool philosopher Greg Theakston to share his favorite memory of Earl..

Eve: Do you remember asking my advice as a Southerner for a Southern-sounding nom de plume? I suggested the name Earl to you (ironically many years before the TV show MY NAME IS EARL). Earl Maddox was my inspiration for that answer.

Greg Theakson: I remember. My favorite memory of him was one night in the Little Vinyl Lounge [the downstairs bar in the Star Bar]. Earl jumped up and announced that he was gonna go to Hollywood and be an Actor…and by God he DID! He was what I call a real ‘Hillbilly Gentleman.’”

Earl’s film and TV appearances can be seen on his Internet Movie Data Base listing.

Faylynn Owen (the former booking agent for the Star Bar, presently found behind the bar at the Yacht Club): “My favorite memory of Earl is the last time I saw him. He came into the Yacht [and] was very excited about being in DJANGO UNCHAINED, and we just talked for a little while. Earl was always fun.”

Bassist Bill Lattner first met Earl at the first rehearsal of the Diggers. He immediately knew he’d found one helluva drummer, but more than that, a lifelong friend.

Bill Lattner: It was the [previous] drummer’s loft. He hit the drums so lightly, he may as well not have been there, couldn’t hear him at all, and I knew, the kind of band it was supposed to be, we needed somebody knocking the shit outta the kick and snare! Earl was living in NOLA, just in town visiting Greg. I told him how frustrated I was with the drummer situation. During a break, Earl said I’ll be back in a minute and came back in with a cinder block, out of his truck. He put it in front of the kick, and sat down, and gave the pedal such a whack, the block moved! The rest of the guys came back in, and Earl said, mind if I play one? So, we kicked a tune off, and there was the snare and kick, that I knew we sorely needed! He played three tunes, I think; this was the fuckin’ drummer we need!! I think we had to do one or two gigs with the other guy, to give Earl a couple weeks to move up here. And then he became my roommate, one of my best friends and a true brother, to me! I miss him every day.”

Raise a PBR to the memory of Earl “Bubba” Maddox this Friday May 24 and Saturday May 25 at Bubbapalooza 22 at the Star Bar!

Spike Fullerton plays an early Bubbapalooza. Clipping courtesy of Spike Fullerton.

By Eve Wynne-Warren
Contributing Writer

Bubbapolooza is a celebration of American roots music held every Memorial Day weekend at the Star Community Bar in Little 5 Points. This year marks the 22nd year that friends, fans and family have gathered together to hear some of the best rockabilly, country and rock music around, and the line-up is mighty exciting. On Friday May 24 starting at 8 p.m., hear The Belmont Playboys, Hi-Test, Ghost Riders Car Club, Blacktop Rockets, AM Gold and Slim Chance & the Convicts. Then on Saturday May 25 with doors at 4 p.m. (music at 5), the roster includes an even bigger herd of ATLRetro Kool Kats such as Caroline & the Ramblers, Cletis & His City Cousins, and Grim Rooster, plus Nashville’s The Billygoats, with Jason Ringenberg (of Jason and the Scorchers), Ohio’s The Twistin’ Tarantulas, Jimbo Mathus & The Tri-State Coalition up from Missississippi, El Capitan & The Band With No Name (surf meets Ennio Morricone!) and McPherson Struts. And that’s not to mention a triad of surf bands – Kill, Baby, Kill, The Intoxicators and The Mystery Men? – downstairs in the Little Vinyl Lounge.

There used to be a bumper sticker adorning the rear of many an Atlanta vehicle that read, “The Star Bar, where things go Twang in the night.” The gracious booking agents who have worked the offices there over the years have, as any live venue does, varied the types of bands and shows offered since the doors opened on Halloween, 1991. However, few other Atlanta venues have been so inclined to offer as much Roots Americana as the Star. It’s not what you’d think of a swank place to “be seen”; it’s a Honky Tonk. People come there for the music. I’ve always enjoyed the fact that you didn’t have to be a certain age, race or one of the “beautiful people” to feel at home there…just love the music. That is the essence of Bubbapolooza, which was founded by Cabbagetown snogwriter/guitarist Gregory Dean Smalley. Since Greg passed away from AIDS in the mid-1990s, every Bubba has been dedicated to him and the Boones Farm toast to his legacy is always an emotional moment. This year’s event also pays tribute to the memory of Earl Maddox, another Bubba godfather who passed away from cancer last year. Earl drummed for a slew of bands such as the Diggers, the Convicts and Gregory Dean and the Bubbamatics, and lately had been a character actor in movies. [Ed. note: read a companion story about Earl here and check out our 20th anniversary retrospective for some more history.].

This year ATLRetro decided to catch up with some Star Bar regular suspects, musicians and fans to give those “Bubba virgins” an idea of what it’s all about.

“My goal for this year’s booking of Bubbapalooza was to have a few more regional and national acts to go along with our great regulars and keep the spirit of the event alive,” says Bryan Malone, who does the booking for the Star Bar. “We have more touring acts this year than in the past few years. With Twistin’ Tarantulas, Jason Ringenberg and Jimbo Mathus, I feel we’ve done that.

One of the things that makes this event special is that it is a chance for some of the older fans to come out,” he adds. “Bubbapalooza is almost like a Star Bar family reunion. It’s the one time of year that we see faces and groups from the days of the club’s inception having a great time and enjoying great music.  It is not uncommon to hear the phrase “Happy Bubba” throughout the course of the weekend. This year as always, we donate a portion of the proceeds to the family of Gregory Dean Smalley who created Bubbapalooza. But this past year we lost an old friend when Earl Maddox passed, so we will also be doing something special in honor of him and his family. The whole thing is a family reunion with great friends and great music. There ain’t much else like it anywhere. Happy Bubba!”

Richard “Spike” Fullerton currently plays with Ghost Riders Car Club, on the Friday Bubba playlist, and in the first few Bubbas, with the HotPoint Rangers and later Kingsized, or so he thinks. “My memories are pretty dim,” Spike admits. “The first one, as I barely recall, was very much about humor and the feeling that Atlanta had a pretty good crop of young players in a genre that was on the way back. In the few years I’d been here the rockabilly/country scene had been evolving out of second rate clubs and into better venues. It felt like a sort of coming-out party that our music was vibrant enough to have a club to call our own. The Star Bar really became something vaguely akin to The Ace or Dingwalls in London, where our group just would naturally go there first and check who’s on the marquee later. I really feel fortunate to have had that moment in my musical career. One of my very first gigs back after work had kept me away was with the Ghost Riders Car Club at Bubbapalooza. It’s a very gratifying experience to come back to old friends in a familiar place, and find you’ve still got something to say to each other, musically and spiritually. I thoroughly enjoy the festival and what it has come to mean, to me anyway. I hope to play many more.”

I then asked drummer Mike Hammer to relate what might be his favorite year of playing the event. He said he had not been to every Bubba, but to most of them. ”I became good friends with Greg Smalley back in those days,” Mike recalls. “My memory of a great gig was ‘94 or ’95, I think. [Ed. note: Mike was playing with Caroline and the Ramblers then]. The Lost Continentals were the next to last band, and the headliner was to be Scott Miller and his band, the Viceroys. At the last minute, we were told they could not make it for some reason, so we had the stage for the rest of the night. I think we even had Ben Friedman from Cigar Store [Indians] up with Amy Pike singing something. It turned into a wild show and the place was packed. I think it really pushed the Lost Continentals’ rep over the top here in town.”

The Billygoats play Bubbapalooza 20. Photo credit: Al Laipple.

I remember that. Those Bubba pickin’ party/encore sets are definitely some of my favorite memories. Mike will be at the drums with Cletis and the City Cousins on this year’s line-up. I asked Clete, who just may have been at every Bubbapolooza (even some only known to fans in an alternate universe), the same question. Alas there was a Braves game on and I got no reply. I will be sure to ask him in the middle of his set at the show.

Faye Lynn Owen, bartender at the Euclid Avenue Yacht Club, booked the bands for the Star Bar in the early years, and damned, if she didn’t do great job of it, too. I asked her what year stood out in her mind. “Drive by Truckers is probably the most now famous band to play Bubba,” Faye Lynn says. “I don’t really have a favorite memory of Bubba. I loved them all.”

This year’s Bubbapolooza is headlined by the one and only Jason of Americana Roots Rock royalty Jason and the Scorchers, backed by The Billygoats, one of my all-time favorite Star Bar bands, also from Nashville. I asked them how many Bubbapoloozas they’d played. “I can only say that, even though I know that we played Bubba may more times than this, we only remember the last three – ’cause we were sober.”

There you have it. Come early; there’s real good Bar-B-Q on the patio courtesy of Slope’s BBQ. And try to plan on coming both nights; choosing which night to be there is too hard. Bryan Malone booked the line-up this year and I gotta give him extra credit for doing a fine job and setting the ticket price so it’s easy to come both nights ($10 Friday/ $15 Saturday). Wear something comfortable and think about cabbing there and home if you like to have a drink with your “Twang.” If you’ve been before, find me and give me a hug. If it’s new to you, come join the friends and family, and we’ll raise a toast together to Greg Smalley, Earl Maddox and George Jones. I bet you’ll come back next year.

Chris Brown and Shane Morton at The Lab. Photo courtesy of Adult Swim.

When Shane Morton, aka Atlanta’s Renaissance man of horror, and Chris Brown, mad mastermind of Macabre Puppets and the bloody musical SCARLET’S WEB (Dad’s Garage), first got involved with Adult Swim‘s  YOUR PRETTY FACE IS GOING TO HELL, they immediately realized this grotesque and groovy gig was their dream, or should we say nightmare, job. The initial assignment was special effects makeup, but the show didn’t have an art director yet. It’s a story Shane has already told colorfully in several articles, but he asked them for a couple of days to film a make-up test to prove the pair could transform humans into demons in 45 minutes, then he got to work on sketches and models. Being old-school Ray Harryhausen fans, Shane and Chris wanted to do as much as possible with miniatures, but budgets and technological advances dictated a balance between digital effects for lava flows and heads spinning like Linda Blair and the old ways for blood spurts and HR Geiger-esque urinals. Still, the pair didn’t have to do much to convince everyone to let them take over much of what perhaps a little ironically is called the “practical” effects for the series.

“Maybe we were thinking too much about that,” Shane says, speaking about his passion for traditional effects from the monster FX Lab he’s built south of the city at the Atlanta Zombie Apocalypse. The undead Halloween attraction is one of many horror events he has nurtured locally and is a big force behind the transformation of Atlanta into Halloween-town, USA. “We did sculpt and cast all the horns themselves,” he continues. “We didn’t want to be just painting people red and sticking horns on them, and we didn’t want anything store-bought.”

Ever since the Middle Ages, comedies about deals with the Devil have proven a surefire hit. Think about such Retro cult classic movies as BEDAZZLED (The 1967 version, of course, starring Peter Cook and Dudley Moore) and POOR DEVIL (TV, 1971), starring Sammy Davis Jr.  and Christopher Lee). YOUR PRETTY FACE IS GOING TO HELL mixes in-your-face crassness and generous gore with office comedy, reimagining Hades as a contemporary cubicle-ridden setting. Demon Gary (played by Henry Zebrowski) is dedicated but far too much of a screw-up to earn a promotion. Yet it’s hard not to empathize with the well-meaning “associate” because we all like to complain about our bosses, but his, well, has to be worst because it’s Satan. The original live-action series is created and directed by Dave Willis (AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE, SQUIDBILLIES) and Casper Kelly (SQUIDBILLIES, HARVEY BIRDMAN: ATTORNEY AT LAW; STROKER & HOOP). The final installment of the six-episode run airs this Thursday May 23, 2013, at midnight.

Henry Zebrowski stars as Gary the demon in YOUR PRETTY FACE IS GOING TO HELL. Photo courtesy of Adult Swim.

At the Silver Scream Spookshow, Shane’s homage to Retro spook shows of old, he regularly performs magic tricks as Horror Host with the Most Professor Morte. Whether transforming humans into monsters with make-up, conjuring up crazy sets or engineering a splattery gross-out nosebleed, Shane views his effects work equally as magic. A consummate showman, he “performs” for the crew and ultimately the TV audience. “When there is special effects stuff going on, everybody wants to be around to watch it,” Shane says. “You’re getting to see the trick in the magic trick. You’re getting to peek behind the curtain.”

Part of the magic on YOUR PRETTY FACE was having to be prepared for the unexpected every day on the set. The script served only as a loose guide because a great deal of improvisation happened, too, Shane says. With that in mind, he kept a “library of prosthetics” on set. At the AZA Lab prior to shooting, he crafted multiple “wounds and hanging eyeballs and sets of teeth, because you never know what these people are going to ask for.”

Shane and Chris started each day by getting the cast into make-up. As simple as it may seem to paint someone red and stick on horns, Shane notes that because the body is organic–yeah, people sweat and rub against things–there’s a nonstop need for  reapplication. “We were constantly touching up their noses, painting in their ears, touching their beards up, molesting them all day long,” Shane says. “You have to get intimate.”

That process became trickier when on location, such as for the third episode, “Take Life By the Horns,” in which Gary found himself fallen into a ravine. That shoot involved dodging poison ivy and copperhead snakes and having to rappel camera equipment down the side of a mountain, Chris recalls.

After make-up, the pair would launch into preparing the special effects and any additional props needed for the day. Sometimes that could be blood or pus or a potion of extreme projectile vomit, also needed for the ravine shoot. “We had a limited amount of time, so I literally used a sump pump, like you use to bail water out of your basement,” Chris says. “I put together a big plunger and a giant syringe, and then opened the nozzle to spew out a rainbow collection, which included stew, cream of mushroom soup, I made some gelatin and crunched up into chunks. The smell quickly turned rancid so it even smelled like vomit.” In addition, Gary broke his leg from the fall down the cliff, and Chris had to create nauseating pus to spew from the wound. Yes, it did involve black blood, red blood and tapioca pudding!

Satan (Matt Servitto) gets a touch-up from Shane Morton. Photo courtesy of Adult Swim.

Shane and Chris are used to working wonders on a tight budget and schedule whether it’s for local theater or DEAR GOD! NO!, an over-the-top neo-exploitation movie involving bikers, Bigfoot and a Nazi mad scientist which scored awards at grindhouse festivals across the nation. While the budget was not huge for YOUR PRETTY FACE, it was much larger than the typical indie which allowed such treats as Chris was crafting Satan’s legs out of actual yak fur rather than a used gorilla suit. “The original talk was that Satan would be fat, over-the-hill, and extra lecherous like the demon in LEGEND (1985) as if time has caught up with him,” Shane says. “We were really gung ho for that, but we loved the look he ended up with.”

A secret ingredient underneath Satan’s furry legs was spandex tights, that could easily be changed out if Matt Servitto, the actor who plays Satan, felt sweaty. A lycra lining gave four-way stretch which, as Shane notes, even allowed Matt to do David Lee Roth kicks in a photo shoot. As for costume maintenance, well, “it was like combing out a big dog,” Chris says.

Perhaps Shane’s favorite set pieces are the aforementioned H.R. Geiger-esque urinals, the bowls of which needed to accommodate the heads of demons who displeased Satan. Yeah, he pees on them, including sometimes poor hapless Gary. Originally they were supposed to be clean, standard urinals, but then Shane had the crazy idea to make them scary: “Everything in hell is monsters, so let’s make the urinals monsters, too!”

Shane Morton at work on Claude (Craig Rowin), Gary's over-dedicated intern in YOUR PRETTY FACE IS GOING TO HELL. Photo courtesy of Adult Swim.

Shane went home and crafted a miniature model, brought it in, and got the greenlight to create a urinal that looks like an extra-large facehugger. He toyed with various color ideas but finally decided that the bathrooms otherwise would be spotless in Hell.

The demonic duo were impressed that the show really did follow through with Satan actually peeing on the demons’ heads. Of course, even with a program that prides itself on shock value, some things inevitably didn’t make the final cut. For example, Satan won’t poop on Gary’s face, even though the scene was filmed. “It will end up on DVD maybe,” Shane says hopefully. “Somebody getting pooped on or an arm hacked off is a good day at work! It keeps the energy up.”

Satan’s office is packed with props created by Shane and Chris, though it is not perhaps quite the devilish “greatest hits” collection that they originally envisioned. Instead of the trophies and plaques that have become de rigeur in executive offices, Shane wanted to include on the shelf Eve’s apple, Christ’s crown of thorns and Hitler’s head in a jar. And clearance couldn’t be gotten for Wall of Shame photos of Satan flashing a big grin with dubious celebrities such as David Hasselhoff and the Octomom. Still, those who look carefully will see many subtle Shane and Chris touches such as faces of tortured souls on the steel balls that click back and forth on the Devil’s desk. “Everything is pumped up a little bit because after all we are in hell,” Shane says. “Even the elevator switch looks like something scary.”

In other words, Shane and Chris had one of a helluva good time. At an apartment location, some little old ladies told the crew “they were going to pray for us because we were doing the devil’s work,” Shane says. “We joked every day and maybe it did get a bit old but ‘it’s really hell getting all this done today!’”

Shane holds up his own head, a prop he crafted for DEAR GOD! NO! Photo courtesy of Adult Swim.

As the season draws to a close, the pair are now just waiting to hear the final ratings and whether the show gets greenlit for a second season. If yes, they’re hoping for a bigger budget and the chance to play around more with more practical special effects over CGI–“to raise the bar,” as Chris says. “If we end up getting multiple seasons, it’s only going to get more extreme,” he adds. And maybe there’ll even be a cameo for that giant spider with the humungous nut-sack hanging on his back that turned out to be expensive to cast.

In the meantime, Chris will be working on the script for a $3-4 million movie version of SCARLET’S WEB. And Shane recently wrapped the indie feature, TALES FROM MORNINGVIEW CEMETERY. In it, he appears as Professior Morte, fulfilling the Cryptkeeper role, introducing the segments and holding the show together. He’s also involved in preproduction with director Jimmy Bickert for FRANKENSTEIN CREATED BIKERS, the much-anticipated sequel to DEAR GOD! NO! It will be filmed in 35mm widescreen hopefully by the end of 2013, he revealed, and include a lot more special effects and monsters. Look for Shane, or rather his Professor Morte alter-ego, at the 11th Annual Rock n Roll Monster Bash at the Starlight Six Drive-In on Sunday June 2. The movies this year are THE DEVIL’S RAIN (1975) and EVIL DEAD 2 (1987), not to mention six bands, scary shopping and Monstrosity Championship Wrestling! [ED. Note: Watch for Retro Reviews of both movies next week]

Editor’s Note: Shane and Chris are just a few of the talented local folk streaming by in the end credits of YOUR PRETTY FACE. More ATLRetro friends include producer Linda Burns (V/H/S, THE SIGNAL), set decorator/property master Laurie Garner, who’s played bass in so many Atlanta bands (She-Monster and Vietnam to name a few), and the indomitable Eddie Ray (SATANIC PANIC BAND OUT OF HELL and a previous Kool Kat to boot!).

ALSO: Learn some of the make-up secrets Shane Morton used in YOUR PRETTY FACE IS GOING TO HELL at his Monster Make-up Class on Sunday May 26 in his Lab at AZA. For more details, visit the Facebook Event Page here.

By Rachel Marshall

“Come find me. I have a drink for you. I call it the Adios, Motherfucker,” John grinned, and left me and my friend Jaimes to wonder what exactly goes into an Adios, Motherfucker. Tequila, clearly, but after that? Jaimes and I would find out later, but until then we continued to enjoy our night at Moe’s Original Barbeque in Midtown.

The only person I wanted at my side for a foray into all things meat was Jaimes. She is no stranger to barbecue. In fact, some of my favorite grilling adventures come from this lovely, food-crazy girl. Naturally, she was going to be my co-pilot, as we investigated the newest Moe’s location here in ATL. Boasting several locations, Moe’s never lets the success go to their head. In fact, the establishment bends over backwards to show a flexible and diabolical love of all things smoky, caramelized, spicy and sweet.

Not only does Moe’s lean on traditional, familial “there’s, like, 15 ingredients in our rub” barbecue, this current Moe’s location refuses to let go of 349 14th Street’s past. Upon entering the establishment, a large Kool Korners Gro. sign is impossible to miss, crowning the curling, copyright cursive of red and white “Coca Cola.” Before Moe’s was Moe’s, Kool Korners Grocery was a hot spot for any foodie looking for a fix of Cuban sandwichery. Our host – chef, pitmaster, and all around badass Rocketman – was pretty clear that Moe’s was not in the market to forget the deeply forged roots of 349 14th St.

The space feels like a high-end dive, a plus in my books. Never really felt that a barbecue joint should be dressed up in the trappings of fine-dining with quartet music humming through the air. No, no! The more peanut shells on the floor the better, the more I have to yell for someone to hear me across the table, the better. Now, Moe’s does not have peanut shells or decibel violation, but there is a hominess that settles in as you find your seat within the belly of the beast.

A cold pitcher of beer later, and Jaimes and I are recovering from a feast. Rocketman and John pulled out all stops to make sure we really got to taste the spectrum of Moe’s barbecue offerings. Highlights for us? The smoked wings! Not fried. Not broiled.  Not roasted. Smoking the wings brought an incredibly subtle char, and left the meat inside juicy. These scarlet gems of meat candy cannot be missed if you scoot your way down 14th St.! The St. Louis-styled ribs are a perfect balance of sauce to rub, allowing me to savor every flavor, instead of one overlapping the other. Butterfly fried shrimp and catfish can still be detected in a complimentary batter, and shine when combined with house-made remoulade. I was hesitant to try the collards, because I generally find them over-cooked and sour everywhere I go, but these collards are different. Just looking at them, you can immediately spot the difference. The collards are vibrantly verdant, and a not-so-liberally applied vinegar makes them shine. Instead of a vinegar bomb erupting and blinding my palette for the rest of the meal, I was actually enjoying the taste of collards, instead of dark green vinegar death.

The feeling I had, enjoying this food, was that Moe’s was in the market to respect the food, and broadcast the flavors. Let’s take their coleslaw, for example. Some barbecue joints will slather their coleslaw in mayo and call it a day. Moe’s does a light apple cider vinegar marinade, which maintains the texture, and avoids any mayo-cloying that can occur. Moe’s is also very conservative with sauces, keeping most of them on the side, or lightly drizzled over food so as not to mask anything. At the same time? These same sauces and rubs follow a certain barbecue tradition. You ever ask a pitmaster what goes into their rub, the best answer you could receive is a long sigh, and a laundry list of herbs and spices. A lot of the time, this sort of list won’t have measurements of quantities; a pinch of this, a bit of that, and some of that stuff over there.

Jaimes and I are on the patio, flirting with a couple of coconut pies while we smoke cigarettes, and cautiously explore the Adios, Motherfucker. John is nearby, also enjoying a cigarette the way someone enjoys a quick snack. He sits with us, and we talk about where we come from, what we cook, what we like about barbecue, and what doesn’t work. Just shooting the shit with some food philosophies, a conversational path I stumble down and cannot wait to call a past-time. There is something nostalgic about finding a good barbecue place, whether it’s a longstanding player in the food game, or a newcomer. You can reminisce on cook-outs with your own folks, or grilling with friends on a back-porch. You maintain tradition, you continue to tell a story that someone in your family (or their family) started years and year and years ago with salt, pepper, brown sugar, cayenne, a pinch of this, and a pinch of that.

If you want to find out what’s in an Adios, Motherfucker, or just enjoy some really great grub, check out Moe’s Original Barbecue at 349 14th St., Atlanta, GA 30318.

By Julia Carlson

Monday, May 20

Swing down to Café 290, and hear Joe Gransden and his awesome 16-piece big band perform swinging jazz at 8:30 p.m. Northside Tavern hosts its weekly Blues Jam featuring blues and southern soul singer Lola Gulley. Enjoy some BBQ with Pead Boy & the Pork Bellies at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack.

Tuesday, May 21

It’s all good. At least 20 guest singers honor the folk rock icon during 7th Annual Bob Dylan Birthday Bash at The Earl, hosted by Chickens and Pigs. Your $7 in advance/$10 at door admission benefits nonprofit Ovarian Cycle, which funds cancer research. Musical May continues as Stanley Donen directs SINGING IN THE RAIN (1952) with the help of stars Gene Kelly, Donald O’Connor and Debbie Reynolds in Northlake Festival Movie Tavern’s retro cinema classic this week. Kool Kat Calu Cordeira mixes tiki libations at Mai Tai Tahitian Tuesday starting at 9 p.m. at the Dark Horse Tavern. Grab your horn and head over to Twain’s in Decatur for a Joe Gransden jazz jam session starting at 9 p.m., or you can blues it down with Nathan Nelson & Entertainment Crackers at Northside Tavern. Head over to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack for some old school southern rock and blues with Crosstown Allstars. Tease up that big hair for a Heavy Metal Cover Band at 10 High.

Wednesday, May 22

Saxophonist extraordinaire David Sanborn and guitarist/vocalist Jonathan Butler deliver Satin & Soul at the Cobb Energy Centre, part of Atlanta’s all May month of jazz leading up to the Atlanta Jazz Festival at Piedmont Park this weekend. Get schooled by either of two of Atlanta’s burlesque finest  Katherine Lashe or Kool Kat Talloolah Love in Beginning Burlesque classes at Studio Burlesque. See our Kool Kat interview with Talloolah here. Old enough to feel Retro? It’s Ladies Night at Johnny’s Hideaway which plays hits from Sinatra to Madonna for a generally mature crowd. Danny “Mudcat” Dudeck brings the Piedmont blues to Northside Tavern. Frankie’s Blues Mission preaches the blues at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack. Go SINGING IN THE RAIN (1952) for a second night at Northlake Festival Movie Tavern.

Thursday, May 23

The American Cancer Society celebrates its 100th birthday in style with “An Evening with Quincy Jones & Friends” at the Fox Theatre. The legendary music producer/performer will be joined for an unforgettable performance with special guests including James Ingram, Patti Austin, Siedah Garrett, Nikki Yanofsky and Alfredo Rodriguez.More action than usual OTP as Raleigh, NC’s Chatham County Line brings their brand of bluegrass to Red Clay Theatre in Duluth, and Beverly Guitar Watkins blues it down at Steve’s Live Music in Sandy Springs. Back intown, it’s 80s/90s Retro Video Night with free drinks ’til 10 at The Shelter.  Have a maitai, mon, while listening to Lloyd’s Rocksteady Review play soulful sounds of ’60s and ’70s Jamaica with a nod to all other island music at vintage tiki bar, Trader Vic’s. Go to Northside Tavern to hear the classic 50s Chicago-style blues of The Breeze Kings. Get on over to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack to hear the honkytonkin’ blues of Chickenshack. Cunningham Henson Duo takes the stage at Red Light Cafe‘s weekly Bluegrass Thursday. If you didn’t get the chance to go to Studio Burlesque yesterday, you have another chance to try out Beginning Burlesque with Ursula Undress at 6:30 p.m., followed by Performance Track Series at 9:30 p.m. It’s your final night to go SINGING IN THE RAIN (1952) at Northlake Festival Movie Tavern.

Friday, May 24

Gregory Dean Smalley and Earl Maddox may no longer be with us, but some of the city’s (and southeast’s) finest rockabilly and Redneck Underground bands raise a Boone’s Farm toast high to their legacy during the opening night of the 22nd annual Bubbapalooza 2013 at the Star Bar. Friday’s line-up includes The Belmont Boys, Hi-Test, Ghost Riders Car Club, Blacktop Rockets, AM Gold and Slim Chance & the Convicts. Watch for a preview of this year’s Bubba soon, but in the meantime, check out our 20th anniversary retrospective for some history.  Ask Colin Baker the Doctor’s name, we dare you, this weekend at TimeGate, Atlanta’s annual DOCTOR WHO/STARGATE convention through Sunday at The Holiday Inn Select Perimeter-Dunwoody. The actor played the iconic British science fiction protagonist from 1984-86. Watch for our Timegate preview later this week.  Mudcat brings the blues to Northside Tavern for a two-night jam.  The Nick Longo Band jazzes it up under the dinosaurs at Fernbank Museum of Natural History’s Martinis and IMAX. Enjoy BBQ with a side of Funky Bluestar at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack.  Gatsby’s throws an ’80s throwback party. Two Black and white classics start weeklong runs today at The Plaza Theatre: the recently digitally restored and finally complete silent METROPOLIS (1927) and Martin Scorsese‘s brilliant boxing drama RAGING BULL (1980) starring Robert DeNiro. Watch for Retro Reviews later this week.  Oh, and then there’s some comedy called PORKY’S (1982).

Saturday, May 25

The free Atlanta Jazz Festival kicks off today outdoors at Piedmont Park (through Memorial Day Monday). Catch the Aaron Diehl Quartet, Alexandra Jackson, Cecile McLoren Salvant, and more. The 22nd annual Bubbapalooza 2013 fires up its big night with BBQ and an all-star line-up of rockabilly/Redneck Underground bands at the Star Bar. Saturday’s line-up includes a herd of Kool Kats such as Caroline & the Ramblers, Cletis & His City Cousins, and Grim Rooster, plus Nashville’s The Billygoats and Ohio’s The Twistin’ Tarantulas, and many more. TimeGate, Atlanta’s annual DOCTOR WHO/STARGATE convention also has its big day at The Holiday Inn Select Perimeter-Dunwoody. Watch for our Timegate preview later this week.  Mudcat brings the blues to Northside Tavern for the second of a two-night jam. Mount Carmel will be bringing their 1973 musical spirit to The Earl. The Jumpin’ Jukes swing from Mississippi into Fat Matt’s Rib Shack. As usual, DJ Romeo Cologne transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours of the night.

Professor Morte (Shane Morton). Photo courtesy of Shane Morton.

Sunday, May 26

The free Atlanta Jazz Festival continues outdoors at Piedmont Park (through Memorial Day Monday). Catch Jacob Deaton and the Tribulation Band, Tia Fuller, Rudresh Mahanthappa’s Gamak and more. TimeGate, Atlanta’s annual DOCTOR WHO/STARGATE convention winds down at The Holiday Inn Select Perimeter-Dunwoody. It’s never too early to get ready for Halloween. Learn SFX make-up from the Silver Scream Spookshow‘s Professor Morte himself at Shane Morton’s Monster Makeup Class at noon. The Trio will jazz up The Family Dog from 7-10 p.m. Check out some classic bottleneck acoustic blues from The Tony Bryant Blues Band at Fatt Matt’s  Rib Shack. Enjoya honkytonk BBQ brunch with live music at Big Tex starting at noon. CineProv makes light of notorious REEFER MADNESS (1936) at The Plaza Theatre.

Ongoing

Two black and white classics start weeklong runs May 24-30 at The Plaza Theatre: the recently digitally restored and finally complete silent METROPOLIS (1927) and Martin Scorsese‘s brilliant boxing drama RAGING BULL (1980) starring Robert DeNiro. Watch for Retro Reviews later this week. Oh, and then there’s some comedy called PORKY’S (1982).

EXTREME MAMMALS from sabertooth tiger skulls and wooly mammoth fur to contemporary creatures such as the duck-billed platypus invade Fernbank Museum of Natural History through August 18.

Learn about  a different side to the third American president and Constitution author in the Really Retro special exhibition Slavery at Jefferson’s Monticello: How the Word is Passed Down at the Atlanta History Center through July 7.

Every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday night is Retro Cinema at Movie Tavern. Check out classic movies on the big screen weekly at 7:30 p.m.

Do you have or know of a Retro event we should include in This Week in Retro Atlanta? Be sure to email us at atlretro@gmail.com!

Radio Free Radio; Hosted by Col. Bruce Hampton and Michael Holbrook; 7 p.m.;  first and third Thursdays of each month

By William Ashton
Contributing Writer

For a self-proclaimed “shy accountant,” Col. Bruce Hampton has made a spectacle of himself for more than four decades. He’s acted in an Oscar-winning movie (SLING BLADE [1996]), made 15 records (or so) and helped organize the H.O.R.D.E. concert tours of the ‘90s, but he’s mostly known as a performing musician, playing thousands of shows since the late 1960s.

A big, genial man, Hampton had a heart attack a few years ago, but he still plays 150 shows a year. He says that, at age “66 and above ground,” that’s plenty. “If I could go on at 8 p.m., I’d do more, but a lot of southern clubs start at 11,” he says. “It’s a young man’s game.”

Col. Bruce Hampton’s music is an unpredictable blend of blues, jazz and psychedelic rock, with a dash of funk and what not. Before the term “jam band” was coined, Hampton was jamming; he’s played  guitar and sang with The Hampton Grease Band, Aquarium Rescue Unit and Fiji Mariners (among others). A touchstone for many musicians in the jam-band circuit, Hampton was there for all but one H.O.R.D.E. tour in the ‘90s, he recalls.

“The only time I missed [H.O.R.D.E.] was when I went out with [the late blues musician] Hubert Sumlin one year, which was fine. We were in Louisiana one night when Sumlin offered to take us to the Crossroads [the intersection along Mississippi’s Highway 61 where blues legend Robert Johnson was rumored to have sold his soul to the devil]. We declined very quickly,” Hampton says. “It was a long way away.”

Col. Bruce Hampton (his legal name, he says) has recently taken his talents to the airwaves, playing music and sharing stories on AM 1690’s “Radio Free Radio” with former Hampton Grease Band member Michael Holbrook.  The show airs at 7 pm on the first and third Thursdays of each month.

“I’ve done occasional programs on AM 1690. Jon Waterhouse (from the radio station) asked us to do it every other week,” he said. “I do whatever Jon tells me.”

Hampton and Holbrook seem to have thousands of stories about life on the road, touching on encounters with everyone from Frank Zappa and John Lennon to Muddy Waters and Chet Atkins.

Playing with G.E. Smith led to Hampton’s sitting in on-air with the SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE band one night a couple of decades ago, when Smith was “SNL’s” musical director. Longtime friend Billy Bob Thornton cast Hampton in SLING BLADE – and Hampton’s band performs in Thornton’s forthcoming movie JAYNE MANSFIELD’S CAR.

Sometime this year, Atlanta fans may see Col. Bruce playing regularly at the long-shuttered Avondale Towne Cinema. Hampton is among those meeting with Avondale city officials, with a goal of reopening the venue under new management, he says.

“A couple of lawyers from Alabama are planning to reopen the venue, and music will certainly be a part of it,” said Hampton, who saw wrestling matches at the Avondale landmark when he was growing up in the Decatur area. “I’ll try to play there twice a month and have guest artists. We had a similar (residency) at Brandywine in the ‘90s and it was a huge success.”

Another successful outlet for Hampton’s talents are the summertime Jam Cruises, which gather assorted musicians – many from New Orleans – for musical voyages through the Caribbean.

Hampton seems surprised that he likes the cruises. “I dislike Disney World. I hate just about everything with a lot of people involved, but this is the greatest thing I’ve ever done,” he said. “There’s food 24 hours a day, music 20 hours a day. The musicians are the cream of the crop. It’s fascinating and great.”

Hampton’s own fascinating story is the subject of a 2012 documentary, BASICALLY FRIGHTENED: THE MUSICAL MADNESS OF COLONEL BRUCE HAMPTON; the DVD (with new bonus live footage) has recently gained distribution through Amazon.com after a couple of years of limited availability.

DAY OF THE DEAD (1985); Dir. George Romero; Starring Lori Cardille and Joe Pilato; Tuesday, May 14, 9:30 p.m.; 

By Andrew Kemp
Contributing Writer

George A. Romero’s 1968 classic NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD warned audiences that when there was no more room in Hell, the dead would walk the earth. It was a strong and resonating nightmare for Americans who, after a decade of unrest and war, had begun to wonder if Hell was truly spilling over. Romero’s 1985 film DAY OF THE DEAD has an entirely different thought for people living through the last days of the Cold War: if the dead come, can we learn to live with them? Can we learn to live with ourselves?

DAY OF THE DEAD, which arrives at the Plaza Theatre on Tuesday night for the Splatter Cinema series, is the third film in Romero’s Dead trilogy, following the nihilistic NIGHT and 1978’s satirical classic DAWN OF THE DEAD. Unlike most movie franchises, the films in Romero’s Dead series have no direct connections to one another. Each film is an isolated story located within the same world where a plague of zombies has destroyed civilization and where the best and worst instincts of the human race clash against each other in the last, desperate clutch for survival. Fans of THE WALKING DEAD may recognize that world, and may or may not know that they owe a debt to Romero: NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD invented the modern concept of the zombie, and Romero perfected using the dead to explore the dark side of the living. In NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, racial tensions and domestic violence tears at a small band of survivors; DAWN OF THE DEAD skewers the lure of commerce and capitalism as zombies descend on a shopping mall; 2005’s LAND OF THE DEAD shows a group of wealthy survivors crawling to safety on the backs of the poor.

DAY OF THE DEAD is more of a closed system, a bottle episode that puts two opposing ideologies into an tight space and shakes them up. Sarah (Lori Cardille) is part of a dwindling team of scientists in an underground military compound charged with finding a cure for the zombie plague. The soldiers assigned to protect them are led by Captain Rhodes (Joe Pilato), who barks orders and grows increasingly hostile to the science team as the hopelessness of their situation becomes clear. The fuse in the powderkeg is the cache of zombies the scientists are drawing from for their experiments, especially a dead guy named “Bub” who may be learning to be human again.

Always considered something of a problem child in the Romero series because it compares unfavorably to the (let’s admit it) superior DAWN, fans and critics initially kicked DAY OF THE DEAD down the street, leading to an agonizing 20-year delay before Romero returned to zombies in LAND. But DAY has been picking up attention from critics lately and the signs point to what could eventually be a complete rehabilitation. Yes, the movie’s problems are hard to ignore—for an apocalyptic movie, it sure feels very small, and the performances are grating—but Romero crafts the story and stages his world with his trademark critic’s eye. The signature conflict between progress and aggression, between building and destroying, is slathered on pretty thick, but the film is also an intriguing analogy about forming camps to shoot at one another when the enemy is, quite literally, at the gates. The movie could be about climate change or a financial collapse—all that really matters is the struggle about who gets to be leader on a sinking ship.

But DAY OF THE DEAD is a zombie horror movie, let’s not forget, and it’s the visuals that really help the film pop next to the rest of the b-horror crowd. This is a Splatter Cinema screening, which means there’s plenty of outrageous gore and some of the best of Tom Savini’s famous zombie effects. Romero has a particular gift for encouraging great monster makeup and then finding inventive and iconic ways to shoot it. DAY OF THE DEAD has plenty of munchy, crunchy effects, but it also has one of the most infamous disembowelings in movie history. And here I sit, 10 years after I first saw the film, never able to shake the opening image, where a zombie walks past sporting only the least-useful half of its jaw while an old rotting newspaper declares in its headline that “THE DEAD WALK!”

The NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD was a literal evening of horrors, but the DAWN of its sequel was more of a metaphor, a way to describe the gradual realization that the world had changed and would never be the same. DAY OF THE DEAD continues that metaphor. The long day is here and the survivors have only the bleak reality that arrives and lingers—we’re all alone, on our own, and fodder for the cold inevitable.

Andrew Kemp is a screenwriter and game writer who started talking about movies in 1984 and got stuck that way. He writes at www.thehollywoodprojects.com and hosts a bimonthly screening series of classic films at theaters around Atlanta.

By Julia Carlson

Monday, May 13

Swing down to Café 290, and hear the sweet jazz beat of Bumpin the Mango at 8:30 p.m. Northside Tavern hosts its weekly Blues Jam featuring blues and southern soul singer, Lola Gulley. And enjoy some BBQ with Pead Boy & the Pork Bellies at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack.

Tuesday, May 14

Go undead, undead with the master of zombie cinema as Splatter Cinema presents George Romero’s DAY OF THE DEAD (1985) as its monthly feature at The Plaza Theater, at 9:30 p.m. Read our Retro Review here.  Musical May continues as George Sidney directs stars Dick Van Dyke and Ann Margaret in BYE BYE BIRDIE (1963), Northlake Festival Movie Tavern’s retro cinema classic this week. Kool Kat Calu Cordeira mixes tiki libations at Mai Tai Tahitian Tuesday starting at 9 p.m. at the Dark Horse Tavern. Grab your horn and head over to Twain’s in Decatur for a Joe Gransden jazz jam session starting at 9 p.m., or you can blues it down with Nathan Nelson & Entertainment Crackers at Northside Tavern. Head over to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack for some old school southern rock and blues with Crosstown Allstars. Tease up that big hair for a Heavy Metal Cover Band at 10 High.

Wednesday, May 15

Roots rock phenomenon Nikki Hill, with her husband Matt on guitar, tore-up the 2013 Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekender. Catch her first Atlanta appearance at Smith’s Olde Bar.Get schooled by either of two of Atlanta’s burlesque finest  Katherine Lashe or Talloolah Love in Beginning Burlesque classes at Studio Burlesque. Old enough to feel Retro? It’s Ladies Night at Johnny’s Hideaway which plays hits from Sinatra to Madonna for a generally mature crowd. Danny “Mudcat” Dudeck brings the Piedmont blues to Northside Tavern. Frankie’s Blues Mission preaches the blues at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack.

Thursday, May 16

“Their raucous set was like if the Velvet Underground had turned to the MC5 at their Boston Tea Party concert in 1968 and, instead of insulting them, had turned and made love to them—and that was how Lou Reed wound up wearing that dog collar,” declared Dan Collins, editor of LA RECORD, about Fullerton, California band The Cosmonauts‘ recent performance at Austin Psych fest. Catch them rocking out at 529 with The Garden and The Caste Outs. Annie Sellick is headlining the last of the Jazz Nights at Scottish Rite outdoor concerts in Oakhurst from 6:30-10pm. It’s 80s/90s Retro Video Night with free drinks ’til 10 at The Shelter.  Relax with a cocktail while listening to Agent 45 spin old school soul, blues and R&B at vintage tiki bar, Trader Vic’s. Go to Northside Tavern to hear the classic 50s Chicago-style blues of The Breeze Kings. Get on over to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack to hear the honkytonkin’ blues of Chickenshack. Plectophilia takes the stage at Red Light Cafe‘s weekly Bluegrass Thursday.

Friday, May 17

Sail on to the Star Bar and shake your booty at Stayin’ Alive,Romeo Cologne’s Disco Doggies Benefit Party supports animal rescue nonprofit Society of Humane Friends Georgia. Andrew and the Disapyramids, featuring Kool Kat Joshua Longino, bring some ’60s rock n roll to The Earl, before  St. Paul and the Broken Bones break into soul. Alabama makes it a Southern rock night at the sweet home of restored 1929 movie palace The Fox Theatre. Smokey’s Farmland Band and The High Strung String Band strum up some eclectic bluegrass to The Masqurade. The Will Goble Quartet, featuring Gregory Tardy plays Friday Jazz at the High Museum of Art . Rolling Stones tribute band The Jagged Stones, featuring ATLRetro Kool Kat Keef Richards will make sure you get some satisfaction at Cooper’s Corner in Grayson. It’s Salsa Night under the dinosaurs with Salsambo Dance Company at Fernbank Museum of Natural History’s Martinis and IMAX. Enjoy BBQ with a side of Atlanta Boogie at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack. Sans Abri delivers bluegrass-influenced Americana alt-roots music at Big Tex. And over at Northside Tavern, Stoney Brooks brings “jitter bugging swing dance” this Friday night.

Saturday, May 18

Head down to the Fifth Annual Atlanta Springfest at Twain’s and hear a whole slew of swell bands for just 10 bucks including Gringo Star, Villain Family, Uncle Daddy & the Kissin’ Cousins and Muleskinner MacQueen. ATLRetro Kool Kat, the fabulous Fonda Lingue presents “Le Jardin,” the latest production of  The Jewel Box Revue,  a glitzy, glamorous revue reminiscent of the Golden Era of Burlesque, hosted by Devin Liquor and featuring performances by such Atlanta and Knoxville stars as Ursula Undress, The Chameleon Queen, Nipsy Tussle and more. The Atlanta Rollergirls all-star team, the Dirty South Derby Girls take on the Ohio Roller Girls at 5 p.m., and the Toxic Shocks battle the Apocalpystix at 7:30 p.m. at the Yaarab Shrine. Come investigate Taste of the Highlands to sample the best of the neighborhood’s restaurants! Online Retro radio station Garage 71 and magazine Grease Inc. host a first annual Cruise-In to celebrate 2013 Armed Forces Day and raise money for charity Pin-Ups for Soldiers, which provides care packages to deployed military, with vintage bike and car shows, and live rockabilly/roots music from The Sideburners, Kira Annalise and Atomic Boogie. Don your flapper dress, grab those spats and Charleston on down to the Roaring 20s Big Band Dine and Swing Dance at G.A.B.B.A The fabulous Rolling Stones are the subject of Satisfaction, which can be found at Variety Playhouse! Punk veterans Alkaline Trio take Center Stage. Come see Ron Cooley and the Hard Times deliver classic electric blues, soul, rock’n’roll, R&B and jazz at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack.. As usual, DJ Romeo Cologne transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours of the night.

Sunday, May 12

The Trio jazz up The Family Dog. Check out some classic bottleneck acoustic blues from The Tony Bryant Blues Band at Fatt Matt’s Rib Shack. Get a Banjolicious brunch at Big Tex starting at noon. Cineprov spoofs up John Travolta cult classic, THE BOY IN THE PLASTIC BUBBLE (1976), at The Plaza Theater at 7:30pm.

Ongoing

The Plaza Theater will be showing Fritz Lang-directed horror classic M (1931), starring Peter Lorre (see our Retro Review here) and GHOSTBUSTERS (1984) through Thursday.

EXTREME MAMMALS from sabertooth tiger skulls and wooly mammoth fur to contemporary creatures such as the duck-billed platypus invade Fernbank Museum of Natural History through August 18.

Learn about  a different side to the third American president and Constitution author in the Really Retro special exhibition Slavery at Jefferson’s Monticello: How the Word is Passed Down at the Atlanta History Center through July 7.

Every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday night is Retro Cinema at Movie Tavern. Check out classic movies on the big screen weekly at 7:30 p.m.

M

By Aleck Bennett
Contributing Writer

Starting this Friday, the Plaza Theatre allows us a look at where an entire subgenre of cinema—the psychological horror film—emerged by presenting a beautiful digital restoration of Fritz Lang’s pioneering classic M.

Hannibal Lecter and Jame “Buffalo Bill” Gumb. Norman Bates and Patrick Bateman. Frank Zito and Mark Lewis. Fictional serial killers of cinema, all driven by deeply cast and untamable desires to murder. Each one has their set of forebears and influences, but the family tree for the entire group springs from a single source. Not just a single source, but a single letter: M.

A series of child killings is plaguing Berlin, perpetrated by the seemingly mild-mannered Hans Beckert. As Beckert’s crimes intensify, police presence on the streets of the city increases in response. The relatively “good” criminals of Berlin—the pickpockets, beggars, safecrackers, pimps and prostitutes of the city’s streets—see their professions being stifled by the police raids carried out in search for Beckert, and they organize a manhunt of their own. Hans Beckert becomes a man pursued by both sides of the law, impotent to stop the drive to kill that fuels his crimes, and his time is rapidly running out.

The primary feeling that pervades M is an overwhelming sense of societal unease. The murder of innocent children has set neighbor violently against neighbor. Those in charge of upholding the law are seen as no different from the criminal underworld of Berlin. Practically everybody in the film, save for the children, is physically repulsive and morally suspect. The entire city seems to be in shadows, every bar and meeting place a dive grubby with the accumulation of decades of cigar smoke, spilled drinks and half-eaten food. The glamour of Berlin in the 1920s has passed into the pulse-pounding hangover of the early 1930s. It’s the waning days of the Weimar Republic, and the decadence of the era has given birth to monsters. And the monster in our crosshairs is Hans Beckert. And yet he’s one of the only truly relatable characters in the film.

Unlike those who would pursue him, though, Beckert is a man without a choice. He’s filled with self-loathing at the unspeakable acts that he is compelled to carry out, yet he is unable to stop himself. Those on his tail have chosen their vices and created their own fates. Beckert’s fate is foisted upon him by either an accident of genetics or by the society into which he was born, and from the ugly way Fritz Lang paints German society circa 1931, we can safely assume that the author intends society to be on the hook for this one.

Lang and the film’s writer Thea von Harbou (Lang’s wife at the time) created the modern serial killer-themed psychological horror film with this landmark piece of cinema. By removing all sense of mystery from the story and showing the guilty party in practically the first frame, the movie is allowed to delve into Beckert’s damaged psyche, to witness how his actions resonate within the greater society and to generate suspense not from the uncovering of clues, but from seeing the forces on either side of the law slowly closing in on the film’s protagonist and wondering how they will eventually catch up with him. It’s a genius move, and the end result is a film that feels contemporary in its sensibility rather than one that treads the well-worn path of detective fiction.

And unlike most early talkies, Lang’s use of sound is complex and evocative. The film’s opening sequence, in which Beckert pursues the young Elsie Beckmann as his latest victim (a sequence in which we do not see his face, but hear his voice), is cross-cut with another scene playing out at Elsie’s apartment building as the girl’s mother waits for her. As the sequence concludes, Elsie’s mother calls out for her repeatedly. With each call we are shown a different, empty location, and each time the mother’s voice becomes fainter and fainter until it’s clear that Elsie can no longer hear that call. It’s a purely sound-driven sequence that was incredibly forward-thinking for its time. Similarly, Lang depicts two meetings in visually similar locations—one, a meeting of the policemen and the second, a meeting of the criminals—and cross-cuts between them on dialogue cues to create a sort of counterpoint which drives the parallel action. Lang also lifted the concept of the leitmotif from opera as a sound-based storytelling device. Beckert has a habit of whistling a few bars of “In the Hall of the Mountain King” by Edvard Grieg, and as the film progresses, the use of the music becomes an announcement to the audience that Beckert is nearby.

And finally, Peter Lorre delivers a performance that few actors of any generation could approach. As Beckert, Lorre segues from joviality to intense self-loathing, from desperate pleading to furious anger, with nary a seam showing and never seeming artificial or overly theatrical in his approach. He makes Beckert a fully rounded human character, practically alone among the grotesques that populate the Berlin of the movie. It’s a tour-de-force, with his climactic confrontation and breakdown being one of the most effective performances he would ever deliver. It’s the performance that made him a star, as he would flee Germany in 1933 to find international success waiting for him in Paris, London and Hollywood.

M is both contemporary in its feel and a snapshot of a particular place at a particular time. And it’s not a pretty picture. Lang had first-hand experience of the changing weather of Germany: production on the film was nearly shut down based on the Nazi party’s reading of the original title—MÖRDER UNTER UNS (MURDERER AMONG US)—as an attack on the then-growing party. And he translated his horror at what he saw as festering within German society into not only what is considered a psychological horror classic, but the first film of its kind. Consistently engrossing, tightly wound and entirely thrilling, it’s not a movie to be missed.

Aleck Bennett is a writer, blogger, pug warden, pop culture enthusiast, raconteur and bon vivant from the greater Atlanta area. Visit his blog atdoctorsardonicus.wordpress.com