Fan Rant: When the HELL Can I See 'Rogue' Already?
Filed under: Horror, Fandom, The Weinstein Co., Fan Rant
Man oh man do I love a good Killer Croc flick. Problem is ... there's maybe one true "classic" of the sub-genre (that'd be Lewis Teague's and John Sayles' Alligator, of course), and the rest of 'em are pretty much floating crap. Over the past year or so we've seen a bit of a resurgence in the category: Lake Placid 2 is mindless stupidity; Stewart Raffill's Croc is slightly better than that; that Primeval one is a passable enough time-waster; and the indie Aussie import Black Water is actually quite good, although more of a slow-burn nature thriller than a chomp-'em-up horror flick -- but what of Rogue?Yes, Rogue. Ring any bells? Sophomore effort from Wolf Creek director Greg Mclean, Rogue looks to be a standard enough Killer Croc flick that stars Michael Vartan, Radha Mitchell and Sam Worthington. The fact that the flick has been sitting on a shelf over at Weinstein Co. for over a year might seem like a red flag, but that's why the world needs horror geeks like me: So I can tell you that early reaction to the flick has been surprisingly positive! The flick came out in Australia last November, and while it didn't do a whole lot of business, I've been hearing rumblings from my horror colleagues that the movie's quite good!
So obviously I was elated when the Weinsteins stopped playing musical chairs with the flick's release date. It was recently reported that Rogue would hit "the top ten U.S. markets" on April 25. My fingers were crossed. (Philly has to be one of the top ten markets, right?) Unfortunately, the "top ten markets" plan has been scrapped. Hell, the flick isn't even opening in New York City, let alone in its petulant little cousin called Philadelphia. According to Shock, Rogue will be available to movie fans in Atlanta, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Miami, Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco, and Tampa. Yeah, us east-coasters don't even know what a "krokodile" is. Dammit. Good thing we're expecting a quick video store turnaround for this title. (Cuz I just wanna see the darn thing already.)
Also at Shock I discovered a VERY cool new poster for Rogue. It's a simple concept, really, but it works for me. Here's hoping Bob and Harvey stick with this style for their "Dimension Extreme" DVD release. Here's further hoping they send a print down to Philly and hold a very special screening of Rogue for me and some good friends.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-10-2008 @ 8:19PM
Peter Hall said...
I too have been craving some ROGUE, though BLACK WATER went quite a ways to scratch the itch. Frankly I'll be impressed if ROGUE tops it. I was on a base in the middle of the Qatari desert when I saw a crocodile flash on a TV monitor and BLACK WATER induced memories sent a shiver down my spine and my heart rate sped up just a tad. I loved it.
The release shuffle I'm more pissed about is ALL THE BOYS LOVE MANDY LANE. I'll be importing the July UK DVD of it before it ever sees the light of a US theater, thanks to the bastards at Senator.
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4-10-2008 @ 9:56PM
Bubba8193 said...
Primeval wasn't that bad of a croc film either. Black Water was okay, just a little slow when it came to the suspense part. As for Lake Placid 2, I didn't even bother watching it.
But I'll defiently rent 'Rogue' when it comes out on DVD! (and hopefully is released by Dimension Extreme soon)
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4-10-2008 @ 11:01PM
Scott Weinberg said...
I knew I forgot one! I've added PRIMEVAL to the list O crocs. Gracias.
4-13-2008 @ 6:23AM
tiptop said...
I feel sorry for those who are not able to see this movie as it is not just another croc movie but a movie which has horror, suspense and more showed the contrast of the area. I found myself on tour and what an experience. I have read and heard how difficult the movie was to make and a tour de force for the actors so full compliments to the cast and crew - all of whom did their job excellently. There before our eyes we saw the incredibly majestic and beautiful scenery of the NT and then we witnessed the heat, saw the dust, the dense vegetation the insects and oh yes the biggest beast of them all the crocodile. I found myself thinking how I would react in that situation - could I remain relatively calm and go into help mode (hope so) or could I remain relatively calm and then reluctantly take the lead as the reluctant hero Pete did (so well played by Michael Vartan) (not sure but I'd like to think that I could), would I be hysterical and a danger to all (hope not) or would I be belligerent and only look after myself and be a danger to all (definitely hope not), would I be a survivor? I hope I am never in that situation. At first I thought that the ending was a bit far fetched but just recently a couple were wading in a pool in the NT and a croc grabbed and mauled the lady and her partner jumped on the croc held it down and poked it in the eyes allowing him to free his partner!!! So thank you Greg McLean for a wonderful experience, I hope people can see Rogue on the big screen where it belongs and that you continue to produce many more movies in accordance with your principles but please stay clear of those Weinstein people!
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