The curse of Frank Black

[ethsnafu]

Well I guess that's simply a case of assimilation. In the same respect, Jesus was originally Yeshua, a Hebrew name which has been transliterated into Greek as Iesous with the English "Jesus" coming from the Latin transliteration of the Greek name into the Latin Iesus. Jesus was most certainly not the way His name was written or pronounced but it has become an accepted form of referring to Him. In much the same way Easter was Ēastre or Ēostre or Eoaster, Christmas was Cristes mæsse and so on and so forth. The upsurge of interest in Wicca seems to have help propagate the modern pronunciation of Samhain which is an accepted, if not accurate, way of referring to the festival.

I have to say I have been watching a few Halloween related films and shows of late. You must be like me, eager to get to October and not prepared to wait

Eth

[Guest Kudzu1977]

Well I guess that's simply a case of assimilation. In the same respect, Jesus was originally Yeshua, a Hebrew name which has been transliterated into Greek as Iesous with the English "Jesus" coming from the Latin transliteration of the Greek name into the Latin Iesus. Jesus was most certainly not the way His name was written or pronounced but it has become an accepted form of referring to Him. In much the same way Easter was Ēastre or Ēostre or Eoaster, Christmas was Cristes mæsse and so on and so forth. The upsurge of interest in Wicca seems to have help propagate the modern pronunciation of Samhain which is an accepted, if not accurate, way of referring to the festival.

I have to say I have been watching a few Halloween related films and shows of late. You must be like me, eager to get to October and not prepared to wait

Eth

Yeah ...I get your point and agree to about 99.9 recurring % - still I guess it's annoying mainly because the word is still used in modern Irish and is therefore current. Then again how many French words do we use in English and continue to mangle....I am particularly good at that myself!

[Guest e.v. tooms]

this is a truly amazing episode

i'm sorry to admit I didn't pay close attention to MM for the first couple of years

i was (and still am) a rabid x-files fan and suppose I didn't want to divide my loyalty...stupid, i know

anyway, i stumbled accross an MM marathon around 98/99 (actually around halloween time) and this episode started playing

i was riveted after the first two minutes - and i still don't quite understand why!

nothing much happens in this ep - it should be boring - but it...just...works!

i think, for me, its the whole feel of it

i loved the crocell scenes, and when he offered young Frank the cigarette - so wrong, yet in a warped way, so perfect!

i became an avid MM fan after seeing this

[ethsnafu]

Hi e.v.

So nice of you to share your thoughts with us. I adore this episode and it's a super example of when less is more. I believe Glem Morgan was partly inspired to write this episode because of his awareness of how expressive Lance Henriksen can be even without dialogue. He wanted to strip dialogue down to an absolute minimum and let actions speak louder than words.

The only problem with this episode is adhering to my yearly ritual of only watching this at Halloween. I don't think I've ever managed that to date,

Eth

[Guest evil]

I just love the atmosphere to this episode, and to me, it's a great legion episode, the evil has a sense of humor!

It's also a good feeling show because there is some real funny times in it. Dyoh!

[ethsnafu]

It's superb isn't it? I love it not only because it is a fine MM episode but also a fine example of how to do a Halloween episode and get the atmosphere so suitably spot on. Too many shows opt to go much larger, slightly camper, when an opportunity presents itself to do a Halloween episode and MM took the opposite view and went for something beautifully minimalistic and somewhat ponderous which is precisely the right atmosphere for the night when the shades of the dead walk between the two worlds. Compare this with "...Thirteen Years Later" which is certainly more akin to the type of thing commonly employed by other shows. It is much sensational and much more tongue in cheek and whilst it works well it isn't the masterpiece (IMHO) that The Curse Of Frank Black is.

Only a few more months and I get to watch this legitimately as it is my cherished Halloween treat and one I try to prevent myself from watching all through the year till the best night of the year.

Bring on the candy corn.

Eth

[Guest evil]

It's superb isn't it? I love it not only because it is a fine MM episode but also a fine example of how to do a Halloween episode and get the atmosphere so suitably spot on. Too many shows opt to go much larger, slightly camper, when an opportunity presents itself to do a Halloween episode and MM took the opposite view and went for something beautifully minimalistic and somewhat ponderous which is precisely the right atmosphere for the night when the shades of the dead walk between the two worlds. Compare this with "...Thirteen Years Later" which is certainly more akin to the type of thing commonly employed by other shows. It is much sensational and much more tongue in cheek and whilst it works well it isn't the masterpiece (IMHO) that The Curse Of Frank Black is.

Only a few more months and I get to watch this legitimately as it is my cherished Halloween treat and one I try to prevent myself from watching all through the year till the best night of the year.

Bring on the candy corn.

Eth

yeeeeeeeah, it's brilliant!!!!!! everything about it. I actually watch that one several times a year and it never dies. It really sums up all the evil he is encountered, retouching belcher's demise,

the winging demon, showing you that it's warching him all the time. I liked the whole crazy neighbor twist, Frank returning to the yellow house, the alien. Frank's life actually becomes a folklore horror story among kids. perhaps a peak into Pest House, the camera work, the music is real creepy.....I love this episode!

[IHaveGoodInstincts]

Yep. Deep and creepy.

This episode initially turned me off, but in retrospect, it was my own fault. I initially did not watch this episode in its entirity. I think I even made the mistake of fast forwarding through parts of it, for reasons I can't recall. Maybe it was because I had infants and toddlers running around my house back then. Having seen the light and glued myself in front of the TV for the full 45, it's beautiful, but in that Millenniumistic creepy way of course. I think I wrote in another thread that I kept waiting for some creepy dude to jump out of the darkness and kill someone at multiple times during the episode.

Lesson learned: The world needs to stop for the full length of the Millennium episode.

And if it's a 2-parter.....

[ethsnafu]

Everyone involved with this episode deserves huge amounts as kudos as there isn't an area in which it lacks. When I was doing the Millennium postcards I would sometimes struggle to find a moment, or a motif, in an episode that would leap out at your as a good starting point for a visual. When it came to doing the postcard for "The Curse Of Frank Black" it was more a case of what to choose than what the heck. There are so many superb visuals and moments in this episode that just leap from the screen...the crunch of the blade in the pumpkin, the wax seeping through like blood, Frank and the flashlight, the smokey Crocell in his b-movie black and white scenes, the recurring use of A.C.T.S, the demonic egg-splat - it's quite, quite magnificent throughout.

I have a feeling I'm not going to make it to Halloween to see this one.

Eth

[Guest evil]

A show of shows! Masterpiece!