Manual Movie Reviews

Alucarda was obviously made to cash in on the success of the Exorcist. And on many levels, it succeeds. The film is about a young girl who lives in a convent, and takes a fellow young nymph into the woods, where they encounter some strange gypsies. These gypsies are, well, basically devil worshippers, and they seem to possess poor Alucarda, who wants nothing more than to have some fun in the woods, and escape the sin obsessed nuns of the convent, who seem to be wearing bloody bandages as habits. Well, from there the film gets very crazy, with lots of blood, screaming, and blasphemies, as Alucarda uses her new found power much the way Sissy Spacek did in Carrie. And from there, it's nuns vs. devil-chicks, and sheer lunacy. There is a disturbing scene towards the end with a crucufix, that worked well in the "anything goes" seventies, but would never work today. The film is erotic, disturbing, and just plain old fun, but certainly not for everybody. Very eerie, and atmospheric, and on a stormy October night I cant think of a better way to spend it than by watchin a film with as much guts as "Alucarda".

The movie definitely deserves a place in the list of the best vampire movies ever made. The characters are quite good, though the overacting of Tina Romero (Alucarda) makes the character seem not so real. ALUCARDa/aDRACULA that is a funny thing you find in the name.

Okay, I've been burned before, as I'm sure we all have, by the blurbs on the box. This one says:

More blood, loud screaming and nudity then any horror film I can think of.

So I bought it, knowing full well it could be another Unhinged. So, I started watching it and the first thing that really stands out are the costumes of the nuns that are made to look like bloodied bandages. And so, I made it through the first time and other then the nun's habbits, it wasn't that weird. But then I was compelled to watch it again, and the second time it was like watching it for the first time!

This movie throws so much specticle, blood, screams, and general devilry at its audience it is like a hard rain that bounces off the ground and doesn't soak in.

This movie could be the greatest single horror movie in history and no one has ever heard of it! Except for the guy quoted on the cover.

If you're a horror fan, you gotta get this. If you're dating a horror fan and you don't really get "this whole horror thing" but you love your horror lover, then get him or her this and you will be well esteemed! They may even think you understand them, which could have dire consequences.

Other then the movie, there are some interviews with people who knew the director, some guy named Juan Moctezuma and possibly a documentary, I don't really remember. And then there is a text biography about him, which I didn't read because reading is passe and besides, I'm illiterate.

So, buy this movie now or you may not be able to look at yourself in the mirror because you will have become a vampire, or something.

Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down is my favorite of the unusual but compelling Pedro Almodovar library. It's probably a terrible movie for stalkers to watch because it works out better than their best dreams. Then again most kidnappers lack the verve of Antonio Banderas. The object of his captivity is quite a girl and the consummation scene was well overdue. If you are anxious to see a kidnapping movie with a romantic ending, this is your picture.

After seeing this film it dawned on me why Almodovar's films have their own feel. I don't think I have seen a gum wrapper or faded paint in any of his films. Everyone seems to live in renovated apartments and work in offices with modern furniture. Both his cinematography and art direction are so crisp and clear that you can smell the wet paint and imagine the crew behind the camera wiping their hands in mineral spirits. I wince at the thought of his characters eating something, because it will get crumbs on the floor. Luckily the characters seem to think of this before me.

I bought this movie (went looking for it actually) because Antonio Banderas is in it. Most if not all of the reviews claimed it was the best one he was ever in. Well I don't know about that, but it was pretty interesting. First of all, unless you are fluent and can read spanish, know that this movie is sub-titled.

I thought the story line was pretty weak but you know, as an Antonio fan, he really held the viewer's interest. Other reviewers said they thought the movie was kinky or slight S&M. I didn't think so. He tied her to the bed so that she wouldn't escape, not for erotic reasons. She, in the end, wanted to be tied because she was torn between wanting to leave him and loving him. I will not ruin the ending but know that this movie is not (to me anyway) of the erotic sort so don't buy it with that in mind.

DO buy it for Antonio Banderas. He's not as polished in his charm and expressions as he is, say, in Never Talk to Strangers or Original Sin but he is still handsome and captivating as ever.

Unless you like spanish movies or follow one of the actors careers, I don't see any real reason to see this movie. Nothing great, except again, for this one actor. You know this guy named Antonio.

One of the best Almodovar's and Bandera's films.

Then that happened, then that happened, then that happened.... Anyone with a passable knowledge of Castro and the Cuban Revolution will realize that "Fidel" is little more than a dramatic chronicle of the most familiar episodes of Castro's life. The film is nearly a cliché. Add that the film is a three hours plus long and the acting is mediocre at best, the resulting sense of chore viewers experience is predictable.

Yet with all the time the movie allots itself (and sentences the viewer to), time, in places, is oddly prioritized. The Cuban missile crisis was a blip in history apparently.

Oh, there's more. There is the dissonance in film's perspective about Castro himself. The film doesn't suggest that Castro is a multifaceted, complicated character. Rather, the film takes a sudden and unpredictable shift in its point of view. Actually, the shift resembles a conversion. Castro goes from a visionary and precocious revolutionary leader to--presto!--the failed tyrant we know from the news and White House press briefings. I'm sure the conversion saved the film from the charge of pro-Castro ... that is all too familiar when anything the least bit laudatory about Castro or post-revolutionary Cuba is depicted. But, then, that's how propaganda works here.

This English language film does well in bringing Fidel Castro to life as a personality and showing his role in the Cuban revolution. It has a great deal of excitement and drama, especially during the revolutionary period of the 50's, including a fair amount of military life and action.

The filmmakers try to give a balanced view of Castro--illustrating his passion for the welfare of Cuban people but also showing how power in some ways went to his head. As Celia Sanchez tells him (around 1980 I believe), "Listen to what I have to say--don't interrupt me--you're losing touch with the people."

"Fidel" is historically accurate from what I know and all the major characters in the Cuban revolution are depicted here including Sanchez, Raul Castro, Ernesto (Che) Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos.

I think the filmmakers took on too much, however, in attempting to cover Fidel's life from 1949 to present. Many events are given too little exposure. Yet this film is much too long at about 3 hours and 20 minues. A better film might have focused on the revolution up through 1959 and ended with the march into Santiago--about two-thirds of what this one covers--leaving the rest for another day.

All in all, "Fidel" is well done. For people in the U.S. it gives a good account of a major, and fairly recent, historical event (the Cuban Revolution) occuring just south of our border--an event of which most U.S. people have little knowledge.

This movie from start to end is very good, except some parts went to fast. I felt like that I was there in the movie. For the most part, it had actual events and the storyline is almost accurate. The actor for che guevara should have been more of hero then what he protrays in the movie. I would watch it again many times over.

The video transfer is excellent on this DVD, however the sound leaves a lot to be desired. I have a good audio system hooked into my television and the audio tracks were still bad. I was disappointed in sound quality. When you purchase a DVD you expect a higher quality level all around.

You will just laugh like crazey when you see what happen to 790
in the episode 2.9 791 (i'd hat to spoil it)

Episode 2.10 "Wake the Dead" I love the way kai acts in this episode because it just really cool on how he looks.
Five teenagers are carousing around the universe when they decide it's time to take a nap. They oversleep by about 300 years. The Lexx comes across their shaggin' wagon and Xev can't help but go for a look. The teens are brought on board and, once roused, are determined to party. But jealousies and tempers flare and Kai is woken up in a most unpleasant fashion. What happens next is straight out of a slasher flick, as the dead man walking demonstrates why he was such a good assassin for His Shadow.

Episode 2.11 "Nook" This is another of my favorite LEXX shows because stan has some pretty bad luck you'll see if you getthe DVD.
The Lexx and its crew discover Nook, a planet covered by water with the exception of one island, which is inhabited by a religious order of men who haven't seen a woman in 100 years. They follow strict rules and roles: scribes, for example, are only ever allowed to copy dislocated passages from disparate books, ensuring that no one Brother ever learns too much. Kai, however, suspects there is something he can learn from the archives of this seemingly perfect society, and intends to find out all he can ... and Xev learns what she's been biologically designed for ...
Episode 2.12 "Norb"
The strange young boy who appeared on the Lexx with the family of hillbillies is encountered again - this time floating through space. He is brought aboard the ship, and Kai observes he lacks "a certain vitality" - indeed, because Norb is no longer a little boy, but is composed of vicious drone arms - Mantrid's creations. These drones process everything they touch into more drone arms, and are impossible to contain.

Episode 2.12

it took a while for the story arc to get going in season 2 but i guess that is cause they had to space it out over twenty eps. Any way it gets moving along here and is just fantastic. Even the stand alone eps are great as well. the most fun on tv ever. it starts out with 791. Not my favorite Lexx episode but it has its moments. Then a classic. Wake the DEAD. One of the episodes where Kia goes completely bonkers and tries to kill every one. He is absolutly convincing as a dead assasin who has recovered his memory and then reprogrammed by a meddling kid who told him to kill every one on the Lexx. Then there is Nook. The episode that Xev had been waiting for ever since she was transformed into a love slave with a personality. She lost her verginity. It is wacky and fun but also disterbing in a sexual way. You'll see what I mean. And finally we look at Norb. The return of Norb, the little kid from White Trash, and the return of Mantrid. This is the episode where all the eaten planets finally gets explaned. The story arc is pushed full steam ahead here without any flaws. We also learn something about 790 which makes his day more enjoyable than if he saw Stan get chopped in half by Kia's brace and fed to the Lexx. Oh and by the way, has anyone else ever noticed that every person on the show has been killed at least once. All the main characters have all died at least twice. Just thought that I would point that out. Hope you enjoy.

This movie reminds me some what of Lugosi's "Human Monster", but it really doesn't measure up. Somewhat atmospheric, but there really isn't much entertainment value here. If you find dubbed audio tracks distracting, then forget this one.

When I was a boy they would show this movie very late saturday nights on TV and I'd stay up way past bedtime just to watch Gothic Horror Euro-movies like this and BLACK SUNDAY(a.k.a. "The Mask Of Satan")which terrified and scared me to death. I grew up, but I never forgot those two, amongst several other OLD gothic horror flicks I've been lucky to find on Dvd these past couple years. I always thought the terrifying "Mortho" was a vampire! All I know and have never been able to forget is that I was Mortho-fied with fear and terror at the site of him. I'd be so terrified laying in bed when the lights were out because I feared seeing his face on the ceiling if I opened my eyes. He still seems quite creepy after all these years. This movie is a CLASSIC of its genre and a 'must have' for collectors. It is a gem of a remaster in classic B&W, mostly filmed at night(it seems), nevertheless, it's a well made atmospheric movie. More of a "thriller" than a "horror" flick. Nice to have just for the memories of loving scary movies as a child...

I love this movie. Awful acting and all. There's atmosphere to spare and a morbid story that moves. A mad surgeon uses his disfigured mind-controlled "slave"---Morpho---to kidnap women to use in fiendish skin graft experiments to restore the ruined face of his beloved daughter. Set at the turn-of-the-century, his laboratory is the basement of an old castle surrounded by a moat. In this European version, there's a few [breast]shots here and there. But it's the delirium of the entire movie that keeps me going. Hysterically awful at times but so lovable as a relic of a bygone genre that I have to rate it high. The music is a cacophonus clanging that just adds to the lurid aura of Morpho stalking the women as his "master" waits nearby. Delicious b&w photography is preserved wonderfully on DVD. Jess Franco was noted for his sexy shockers but this is my favorite of them all. Dubbing is bad and this works just fine as well in making this a true-blue "Euroshocker" that to me defines itself.

"The First Night of My Life" is another of the short films commissioned for French television as part of the "2000 Seen by..." project (e.g., "Tamas and Juli"), dealing with the idea of the coming millennium. This 1998 film from Spanish director Miguel Albaladejo tells of Manuel (Juango Martinez), a poor anuel), a social worker and his pregnant wife, Paloma (Leonor Watling) who leave for a New Year's Eve party in Madrid. The couple just miss the wife's father (Emilio Gutierrez Caba), who was coming to offer them a ride. When the father's car is stolen by a cheap hood named Johnny (Carlos Fuentes), things just continue to get worse. At first this looks like just another screwball comedy, but Albaladejo constructs the tale so that the concincidences and random events bring everything to a satisfying conclusion and a memorable final shot. "La primera noche de mi vida" won a couple of Spanish critics awards for Best Picture. The problem, of course, will be finding it in your local video store.

I have already reviewed this movie, but just wanted to add this blurb about subtitles and this movie:

I have been reading the reviews of films like "Tierra" and "The Official Story" which say that subtitles cannot be turned off on the DVD versions. I just wanted to add that, for "The First Night of My Life" (and "All About My Mother") the subtitles can be turned off. For "The First Night of My Life" the options are English subtitles or no subtitles (Spanish subtitles are not available), and for "All About My Mother" Enlish or Spanish subtitles are available, or you can turn the subtitles off; It is nice to be able to turn off subtitles if you want to.

If you review other films in Spanish (DVD version), please mention subtitles in your review: which languages are available and can they be turned off. Thanks!

This is the story of a man and his very pregnant girlfriend heading off for the center of Madrid for New Year's Eve on Dec. 31, 1999. Several other stories are told (involving a host of characters: a begger, a rich man, thieves, cab drivers, police, store clerks, and a slum family), and all are intertwined (kind of like how "Pulp Fiction" and "Grand Canyon" had intertwining stories). As for the movie itself, it was a good movie and was very funny at times (this is a comedy), but just didn't have as much substance as I would have liked, I just never really cared about all but a couple of the characters. It isn't a bad movie, but it isn't a great movie either. If you are looking for a Spanish comedy you won't be angry with yourself if you see this one.

If you are looking for Spanish (language) comedies, also take a look at Kika and Guantanamera (the only other two Spanish language comedies that I have seen).

This film is very entertaining. Based on the real life story of Johnny, the film uses real news footage captured during this crime/hostage situation in the early 90's. It is relevant to add that the film was one of the first made after Chile's return to democracy in 1990. The political tensions between politicians, the right-wing judge's disdain for the democratic government's officials, and the reluctance of a civilian government to use force are directly linked to the brutality utilized on the population by the military dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet, and are insights most non-Chilean viewers would miss. Chilean cinema has boomed in recent years, but unfortunately is not yet readily available to the international market.

Ok, this is not "Pulp Fiction" Chilean style but it has a style of it's own. Part black comedy, part surreal action drama, this movie is for the most part captivating and entertaining. The main character, Johnny 100 pesos(small time criminal?)is a naive young thug who thinks very little and acts first. He's a dope who manages to get himself involved with some"professional" crooks who set out to heist a bank. Their clumsy attempt only creates more problems for them when they decide to take bank hostages. Enter the omnipresent media to portray a picture of victims and thieves in a hilarious manner. Johnnny is given particular attention has a profile of him is given by fellow students and teachers much like the media gives attention to our anti heroes with the inevitable response of "he was just an ordinary kid, who would have thought..........." This "Johnnny watch" is very funny as a different take is given daily from various perspectives to paint a picture of Johnnny. There is even a campaign to get Johnnny home safe. The thieves are in a no win situation surrounded by media and troops but they want a plane to Cuba and the usual hostage demands for safety. This in itself is very funny as they bicker among themselves about the attitudes of Castros Cuba towards foreigners who seek refuge there. The movie is pretty funny, remember it is a black comedy, so don't take it seriously. There are some serious moments but for the most part it is a farce. Johnny even gets "romantic" and lusts for one of the hostages and this creates further conflict as she is the bankers mistress. The story is understood on many different levels, part satire, part social commentary and action drama. A very entertaining look at how Chileans percieve the world around them. Not too heavy, light enough for even those on a diet from foreign films.

This movie spread interest for chilean movies in Chile, the movie bussines was at a low but this movie helped resurrect chilean cinema which from 4-5 movies a year in the mid 90's has leaped to over 20 in 2000.

The movie is based on a real hostage situation.

First things first. If you have not seen Lexx season 3 at all, do not watch the interview with film editor Stewart Dowds as he completely gives away the major plot theme for season 3 before the episode (which is not on this disc) which actually reveals it. How that got through I have to wonder.

I actually bought my Season 1 (the four movies) DVDs, Season 2 and Season 3 DVDs from a Canadian outfit called Videoflicks with a website of the same name (add a dot com to their name). This would make sense that you can get the entire show new there, as it is a Canadian-German co-production. There is slight variation as I guess by law they have to include French language tracks but I imagine they are essentially the same as the ones sold here. It is funny to hear the cast, especially the Lexx in French as we're not used to it, I guess.

If you haven't seen any of Season 3, probably best to skip this review as I go into some events that occur in the first disc and assume some knowledge of prior events. The first episode (Gondola) starts as the crew of the Lexx pursue Duke and Fifi after the moth attack on Boomtown. An interesting situation has been put forward that by now, people they've met in past episodes and seasons who then died seem to be re-appearing on Fire or Water with alarming regularity, though with new names and no memory of their prior life. So, in a way it makes sense that since Kai died when His Divine Shadow killed him at the start of the first movie, he would have been reincarnated on Water. So, it does provide an explanation as to why there is now two of them. An interesting point to ponder here does that leave the re-animated corpse who is also Kai? Is he an separate entity or just a machine with no free will?

Anyway, "Gondola" is probably the best of the three episodes as having crash landed their moth, the crew of the Lexx have to rebuild one of Fire's flying machines to make it back to shelter before the heat kills them. They end up picking up a couple of survivors and then the dilemma is now having too much weight on board, how do they make it across the Red Hot Sea? Not surprisingly death and treachery come into play. We learn that Prince's power extends past just that of mere re-incarnation.

"K-Town" After a forced landing on a tower called K-Town, we seem to get the impression that the future is full of psychotic Germanic types, in this case who seem to alternate between deep depression and homicidal craziness within a few minutes, the later being particularly bad news for the crew of the Lexx since it involves being chased over bottomless pits and having rocks thrown at them. Keeping with the theme of the show, they do encounter a past character. I won't say who it is, though I guess the recap at the start would make it obvious. What they were supposed to contribute to the season in anyone's guess as they are shuffled out as mysteriously as they were brought in. Though the enigmatic statement is made "perhaps this is my punishment" does give a clue to the nature of Fire and Water. You also get to see what Kai wears under his assassin's uniform. Eye opening stuff.

"Tunnels" has our intrepid heroes trying to make it from K-Town to another tower. Not surprisingly, they are also full of homicidal lunatics. Prince who we would have all pegged as the bad guy by now tries to help though undoubtably there's something in it to him. Given what happened in earlier episodes, we should all have a strong suspicion as to what's happening next
at the end of this episode.

This season is 13 episodes, which is probably why it has been a bit awkward to put onto DVD and why they've gone 4,3,3,3 with the episodes. Assuming technically 5 episodes to a disc isn't possible, preventing 4,4,5. Lexx is available 5 episodes to a set in the UK but each set contains 2 discs which is even weirder. There has been a price cut per disc to compensate for there being less episodes per disc this season. Presumably it will be back to 4 episodes a disc for season 4, which numbered 24 episodes (more friendly to being divided by 4).

Drawbacks with this disc would probably be the lack of material in the extra features. The quiz is the sort of thing you only ever bother with once. The interview with Stewart Dowds is interesting and features about 30 seconds of footage from a Season 4 episode (I'm guessing Apocalexx Now, I haven't actually seen it), but only runs for a bit over 2 minutes. The making of Season 3 is also interesting with interviews with Michael McManus (Kai), Brian Downey (Stanley), Nigel Bennett (Prince) and the Director of "Gondola". Some special effects work and design sketches are also covered but there could have been more than the five or so minutes in length it is. So far, the four making of specials spread over the four discs of season 1 are the best so far. Creatitivity with search engines and looking north of the border in Maple leaf territory will help you find those.

As for the episodes themselves, they seem to be in a holding pattern between the start of the series and what must be coming later. Not a great deal happens, nor does it advance the plot as much as you would expect for the length of 3 episodes. Kai seemed to spend a lot of time throwing himself from great heights to fix himself according to the "thump the electric gadget to make it work" school of practice. I'm of the opinion that what K-Town and Tunnels covered probably could have been condensed into 1 episode.

Interestingly enough, these 3 episodes do not feature 790 or the Lexx.

An excellent DVD and a brilliant series. A shame the release dates are so far apart.

I never had the opportunity to see series III on TV, so these episodes are new to me. I have found that series three has much more of a consistent plot than earlier series, although all are far more consistent than most Sci-Fi series.

My only complaint was that this DVD had only tree episodes, whereas all prior DVD's had four. I would also like to see the original films released on DVD, if they are not already.

In the second volume, the first episode is an intrigueing look into the way of life on the planets fire and water, giving the viewer important info that will be tied up with other loose threads by the end of the season. Very well done. The next two episodes are put together like a briliantly twisted and elongated Monty Python sketch. Very funny stuff but not for eveyone. Keep in mind it is 100% gratuitious. Don't take it too serious and you will enjoy a daring and risky couple of hours of the most off the wall TV ever made.

Beautiful, mysterious scenery, gorgeous cinematography, great acting... only one thing missing... a truly good reason on why this plot deserved almost two hours of my time. The fact that "Mararia" looked pretty couldn't hide the fact that the pacing was incredibly sluggish, so much in fact that ALL THREE of the people I was watching this film with fell asleep at various points of the movie. This could be attributed to sleepiness, or the fact that the movie has that affect on people. Despite the fact that you empathize with the characters, the plot twists keep plunging deeper and deeper into the bizarre and disturbing. The finale seems out of the blue, without a real lead-up, or genuine character basis, taking away from all notions of empathy we had for anyone onscreen.

If you happen to like this kind of strange, surreal psychological mayhem, you might actually enjoy this movie, if it doesn't make you want to take a nap through most of it first.

This movie has every element of a classic telenovela, the lovely young maiden, the villain, witchcraft, romantic triangles, lust, lost love, betrayal, illegitimate children, tragedy, alcoholism, madness, despair, murder and more! However, Mararia is saved from being just another potboiler by a well crafted plot and a set of strong characters. Mararia doesn't come off as a soap opera -- it's more like a tragic gothic novel along the of "Tess of the D'Ubervilles" or "Jude the Obscure."

The story opens as the handsome, young doctor, Fermin, arrives on the beautiful but eerie island of Lanzarote. In some ways the island is a paradise. In other ways, as Fermin points out during his first tour of the volcanic lava fields, it can also appear to be hell.

One morning, as Fermin stands on the roof of his home he spies a lovely young girl hurrying into the kitchen. He races down the stairs and encounters the gorgeous Mararia, who happens to be his housekeeper's ward. Fermin is a fairly straitlaced, conventional sort with a high opinion of himself. He downplays his feelings until he can get a sense of Mararia's worthiness of his attentions.

After Fermin stitches up the knife wounds in his first patient, a rejected suitor of Mararia, she confides to him that she has no interest in the local boys. She is saving herself for a man who will be able to take her away "to the big island" -- or perhaps even farther.

For a time, it looks as though the romance between Fermin and Mararia is inevitable. But a triangle develops when a dashing British geologist arrives on the island and becomes Fermin's house guest and romantic rival.

The story is fleshed out with a wonderful array of supporting characters. Fermin's housekeeper (and Mararia's guardian) happens to be a skilled practitioner of witchcraft, voodoo, and the healing arts. She is a pleasant enough woman, utterly devoted to her surrogate daughter. There also is the island's "town drunk" with whom the other characters, who should know better, always entrust some seemingly small yet pivotal duty.

Mararia is a dark, gripping story that should hold the viewers attention.

This is the rendition in film of Rafael Arozarena's novel "Mararía". Filmed in the island of Lanzarote(Canary Islands,Spain),where the novel takes place, the movie has an amazing photographic work that earned it, deservedly, the Spanish equivalent of an Oscar. The views of the strange landscape of this island are simply spectacular and are well integrated into the film and complement the story in a meaningfull way. It is worth seeing just for that, although the historical reconstruction, the music, and the acting are also worth noting. The soundtrack, created by a well known musician from the Islands, incorporates musical forms from the folkloric tradition of the islands with more modern forms. My recommendation for Non-Spanish speakers: get the subtitled version.

This is a wonderful look at the "real" West for a change; warts and all. BUT, and it is a big BUT, it needs to be seen as originally filmed not cut for television. Neverthless I'll keep this copy and then buy it again when it is released in Widescreen. Why do those who support the rights of directors and complain when someone "messes" with "their" product think nothing of chopping a film to fit a televion screen.

This moive had everything that made it easy to remember. Glen Ford was always a standup kind of guy and could be hard as nails, or gentle. Jack Lemmon was like a new born calf looking for how to walk on his unsteady legs. The other actors were very good and there was no over acting, they fit their roles perfectly, as a person that enjoys good stunts this one was not lacking in that department. I would watch this moive often,as it is good entertainment.

Very amusing western with Jack Lemmon learning the cowboy-way by pro Glenn Ford. Colorful and entertaining and one of the classics. Waiting only for "The Sheepman".