Discussing Film, Music, TV, Books, Video Games and More
Zac: Craig is back as Bond with possibly the best director yet to work on the series in Sam Mendes, and the results are sure to please Bond fanatics who have felt the series has gotten away from its roots, while not alienating those that don’t mind the new face of Bond.
Alright people, it’s almost the end of the year – which means some big releases are coming out. Some of the biggest albums, movies, and video games are slatted for release, making for one incredible last quarter in 2012. Enough of this, let’s get to our selections. [Read more...]
As the year winds down to an end, I find myself trying to squeeze in a bunch of films that I haven’t seen from the past year, all while rewatching some of the highlight films in order to compile a best of list (Be on the look out for those to start the first week of January!). Click more to see what I thought were possible contenders and whether or not they failed to live up to the high hopes. [Read more...]
David Fincher’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is the definitive version of this internationally renowned source material, besting both the book and the Swedish film of the same name. [Read more...]
The Adventures of Tintin is a wonderful action-adventure that allows director Steven Spielberg to unleash every action beat/camera move he has never been able to do with the freedom of motion capture. [Read more...]
Before going on to the review, I must warn a vast majority of you all that are interested in seeing David Fincher’s adaptation of Stieg Larsson’s book series The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. If you cannot handle any sort of ultra-violence, which includes pictures of brutal murders and a couple of scenes of rape and torture, then this movie might not be for you. Also, if you are a movie goer and easily gets lost in such a way that you leave the theater scratching your head, then once again, this movie is probably not for you. But if you are a brave soul who loves a good murder mystery, then by all means, go and see this film.
Dream House is an interesting idea, not a horror film, and has no idea what to do with itself; crumbling under a ridiculous exposition heavy third act twist that is almost laughable. Poor and misleading marketing will make reactions to this film far worse then It deserves though as there could have been something here. [Read more...]
A couple of weeks ago I excitedly told my aunt that I was going to Comic Con in a week, with a big ol’ smile on my face. I didn’t really expect her to be jealous, but I was overly excited. Then she asked if it was a gathering of comics or something. As in comedians. I then proceeded to try and explain that it was this really cool event that happens each year that has been taken over by Hollywood in the past decade or so. Basically it has everything a nerd would desire to see, including comics, writers, artists, video games, tv shows, and movies. I told her about the panels I was planning on sitting in on and some of the people that were scheduled to attend. I was adamant about making her see how awesome it was, but she just didn’t get it. Color me deflated. Oh well, I guess Comic Con is just for certain people…
Like this girl:
Steven Spielberg’s – Munich (2005)
Steven Spielberg continued his successful run of historical period pieces with this spy/thriller of sorts following the Israeli reaction to 1972 Munich Olympic hostage massacre that not only captures the tension of assassination, but perfectly conveys the right vs. wrong of the Israel/Palestine conflict.
The film opens amid a flashback that we will re-visit throughout the film of the Palestinian terrorists group Black September infiltrating the Olympic housing and taking the Israeli athletes hostage. After following the press/public perspective of the event unfolding, leading up to the haunting line “There all gone,” on NBC’s broadcast. We next jump to a top secret meeting of Mossad in which lead by the Prime Minister of Isreal they compile a list of targets as part of retaliation and retribution of the terrorist attack. To lead this mission they recruit Avner, the son of a war hero and a former body guard of the Prime Minister. With the aid of four other specialized individuals, bombs, documents, clean up, and cars, he will eliminate the desired targets as all ties are cut from his connection to the government. Operating on cash out of a safety deposit box and names on a list Avner is at his own means to locate their targets and eliminate them. [Read more...]
These days it is not hard to find a movie or novel pertaining to the horrors of WWII, rarely do these stories rise above the usual sob story and become something more uplifting. Such is the case of Defiance.
This film tells the true story of four Jewish brothers (three of which are played by Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, and Jamie Bell, all turning in great performances) forced to flee to the forest after German soldiers attack their village. It first appears that this is going to be a simple story of revenge, but luckily it becomes something more. After their first night in the woods they are joined by another group of refugees, and their numbers continue to grow as the story progresses. Though there are a large number of obstacles: fighting amongst themselves, sickness, food shortages, being discovered, etc, even in the most discouraging moments hope somehow remains.
Daniel Craig as Bond is back and he is delivering on the same level as Casino Royale in this dark, vengeful, and action packed investigation coming of age (as a spy) story.
Now, fair warning to those that haven’t seen Casino Royale in a while, I highly recommend that you watch that movies shortly before seeing this one as it picks up almost immediately after the first film and never looks back to fill you in. We open on a high speed car chase in a tunnel alongside a lake in Italy as Bond is on the run from his pursuers with Mr. White (who he shot in the leg at the end of Casino Royale) in tow. White is suspected to be the key to a mysterious group/organization causing a huge pain in the neck for MI6 among other government agencies and Bond has brought him in for investigation. After arriving “safely” to MI6′s bunker, White proclaims, “we have people everywhere, don’t we?” which then lead’s to a foot chases through the streets, roofs, and ceilings of this Italian town in which Bond does not capture his target but is left only the option to kill him. Bond’s actions distress M (Dame Judi Dench), who feels like he is running off vengeance for Vesper’s death at the end of the previous film. Bond proclaims he is on board and heads to Haiti to follow a lead on this mysterious [Read more...]
Chris Weitz first foray into the fantasy realm is one that is inspiring, and is almost something great, but I can’t help like feeling there was so much more to know. The film looks fantastic, with top notch CGI throughout, doing an exceptional job with the dæmon’s (pronounced demons), the animal manifestation of ones soul that never leaves your side, prowling about everywhere in this fantasy world. We are quickly introduced to Lord Asriel (Daniel Craig) and we know he is important and is doing important things but we never really find out why and who he really is. [Read more...]
Tyrion seems to slowly be shifting into the role of the main protagonist as this lengthy story unfolds. … (more...)
The Hangover Part III is a step in the right direction, it is just such a long walk back to being good after Part II. … (more)
Kon-Tiki is a pretty straight forward biopic in its construction, but it tells an incredible story that allows some gorgeous imagery. … (more)
J.J. Abrams is back for another trek into Star Trek and fans of his first entry will have little to complain about with Into Darkness. … (more)
Baz Luhrmann brings The Great Gatsby to the big screen with a style and visual wonder that is irresistible, even when the story doesn't connect as … (more)
Upstream Color is now available to everyone, so I thought it's about time to break it down to the best of my abilities to help fuel the conversation. … (more)
Love them or hate them, Vampire Weekend’s latest album Modern Vampires of the City is a must listen of 2013. … (more)
Allison Weiss latest effort Say What You Mean brings a punky charm to a rather plastic singer/songwriter scene. … (more)
Iron and Wine continues his road down the glossy, highly produced road with Ghost on Ghost. This time around, however, he knocks this album out of … (more)
Kid Cudi third rap album Indicud reminds us just how unique and fun the former G.O.O.D. Music artist is, as he rides in and out of the most unique … (more)
Fall Out Boy comes out of hiding to release Save Rock and Roll, their highly anticipated fifth full length that doesn’t fall flat when it comes to … (more)
Daenerys army continues to grow, Samwell Tarly displays his brave side, Ser Davos becomes literate and Sansa's last name is Lannister in this … (more)
As I wipe the tears from my eyes, I think it is safe to say that Arrow knows how to end a season. … (more)
Right before our eyes, Jaime Lannister has gone from being one of the most hated, to one of the most respectable characters in the Game of Thrones … (more)
The new HBO show from Christopher Guest and his gang gets off to a great start that shows a lot of promise for the future. … (more)
Apparently, modern day witch hunts do exist. In case you haven’t heard the story of the West Memphis Three, now is your chance to read all about … (more)
Ross Matthews is right about one thing – any self-confidence he feels about his writing skills is without a doubt delusional. He’d have to be … (more)
Yes, this might possibly be (i.e., definitely is) yet another World War II book review that you by now have probably come to expect from me; but … (more)
I am really struggling to come up with an introduction that does this book justice, because to me, Me Before You was perfection. … (more)
Ken Levine deserves some kind of medal. First, he introduced us to the world of Rapture, where we would kindly roam the halls of a forgotten city … (more)
Plagued by delays and shortcomings, 2012 was an up-and-down year for video games. We saw triumphant returns to form, fantastic new IP's, and some … (more)
For future reference: when skydiving, be sure that your projected landing zone doesn’t happen to be an island full of evil pirates that are more … (more)