The Girl with The Bangkok Dragon Tattoo

Is it just me or does the cover of John Burdett's Bangkok Tattoo more than a little resemble the widely-available edition of Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo? Isn't it enough that the word "tattoo" is in the title of both books?  Apparently they had to go with the yellow, green, and black color scheme just to hammer the resemblance home further.

What's even more distressing is the blurb gracing the cover of Bangkok Tattoo.  Not small enough to be considered subliminal, the message is easily lost in the contrasting color scheme. Upon closer inspection, the out-and-out cynicism of the marketing gurus behind the cover of Bangkok Tattoo is readily apparent:

Spoiler Spoilers Alert

Since this blog is frequented by both car enthusiasts and movie lovers, I thought I'd be the first to inform you of a hot new trend that's sweeping the auto industry, Spoiler Spoilers.  Have you ever been torn between jazzing up your Honda Civic hatchback and blurting out the twist endings of some of the world's most beloved movies?  Now you don't have to choose.  Ladies and gentlemen, I present, Spoiler Spoilers:

Lost Innocence

If there is a better symbol for lost innocence than a man selling a large stack of model train magazines in order to purchase hardcore porn DVDs, I do not know what it is.

Even More Recently Discovered Stieg Larsson Manuscripts

Fans of Stieg Larsson's Millenium Trilogy, recently discovered to be an enneaology, can rejoice even further, due to a discovery of even more manuscripts by the Larsson estate.  The series can now be considered a, well, whatever the heck you would call a series of fifteen things.  Readers can follow the exploits of Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist for another five novels.  The titles, translated from the Swedish, are as follows: 

The Girl who Took a Bath with a Radio Sitting Right There on the Edge of the Tub

The Girl who Didn't Back Up Her Data

The Girl who Refused to Have a Suspicious Mole Checked Out

The Girl who Played with Danny Bonaduce

The Girl who Walked Up and Down a Highly Varnished Wooden Staircase in Stockinged Feet

Separated at Birth, Lisa?

One cannot help but notice the striking similarities in the artwork for Tommy Wiseau's The Room and Dont Look Back, the seminal documentary about folk-rock legend Bob Dylan.  Is this merely a happy accident or is Wiseau, whose film came along nearly four decades after Dont Look Back, portraying himself to be an artistic force of the same magnitude?

As facts come to light, the likelihood that this is merely a coincidence seems less and less likely.  What is sure to be great news for Dylan fans also proves itself to be a compelling piece of the puzzle in the story between these resonant images.  A Special Edition of Dont Look Back, to be released on DVD and Blu-Ray, is re-packaged to include never-before-seen footage of seven unreleased Bob Dylan songs.  Distinguishing ears may hear more than a few echoes of these nearly lost Dylan gems in the dialogue spoken in The Room.  The seven never-before-heard Dylan songs are as follows:

Oh, Hi Mark

I Love You, Lisa

You're Tearing Me Apart, Lisa

Please Talk to Me Please.

She's a Sociopath (She Can't Love Anyone)

She's Such a Manipulative WITCH

I Definitely Have Breast Cancer

I Suppose It Eats Mardi Grass . . .

In Dario Argento's The Stendahl Syndrome (1995), Detective Anna Manni (Asia Argento) is brutally raped at the hands of a serial killer.  At the advice of her therapist, Detective Manni takes some time off from work to visit her family outside of the city.  While away, the art-appreciating Anna is struck by an idea.  Perhaps some therapeutic painting would help her deal with her trauma.  With the blessing of her therapist, Anna is off to the local art supply store.

Once home, Anna, who cannot be bothered to use a paintbrush, goes to work with fervor.

She paints with the urgency of one hoping to exorcise a demon.

Her creation is a screaming face crying tears of blood.

Anna steps back to contemplate that which has been brought forth from the darkest recesses of her psyche.  We see that for a painting smock, wardrobe has chosen for Anna a shirt that does not at all detract from the scene or spoil the tone of the movie in any way.

A "Moo Orleans" shirt, complete with a very cool cartoon cow.  I mean, come on, a cow wearing shades?  Who'da thunk it?

Recently Discovered Stieg Larsson Manuscripts

Fans of Steig Larsson's Millenium Trilogy, a highly successful series of novels featuring the immensely popular The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, can rejoice.  The author died tragically in 2004 before any of his work saw print and went on to become international best sellers.  The problem with death is that it severely limits a writer's output.  Fans of Larsson would have to to content themselves on the three novels he had written before his death.  That is until now. I am happy to report that the Larsson's estate has uncovered several manuscripts the author had left behind.  The Millennium Trilogy, it turns out, is actually an enneaology.  Readers can now follow Larsson's beloved, tech-savvy characters for another six novels.  The titles, translated from the Swedish, are as follows:


The Girl with the Dolphin Tattoo

The Girl Who Made Sudden Movements Around Unfamiliar Dogs

The Girl with the Beard of Bees

The Girl Who Went Swimming Less than an Hour After She Ate

The Girl with the Ed Hardy T-Shirt

The Girl Who Mixed Several Household Cleaners in Order to Invent a "Super Cleaner"