My Thoughts on the Battle: Los Angeles Trailer

9 Jan

Yeah, I guess this is a bit weird. I don’t know anybody who reviews trailers, but I do know this, the trailer for Battle: Los Angeles is awesome. I mean, damn was it good. I don’t think I’ve seen a better trailer, ever.

Okay, so it opens up with some slides showing these random alien sightings all across Earth (which I presume after checking out the sight and looking tirelessly at the Wikipedia entry after Wikipedia entry are real pictures). They’re all really cool slides and have a creepy feel. After the slides go a really cool music track begins to play. I can’t even begin to describe this music, it was just so different and fresh and new and it fit this trailer so perfectly, that I can’t help but think I’m going to see like forty internet videos use the same music and pretend they’re original. (Anyone notice the overuse of the Mass Effect 2 trailer music? Same thing.)

Anyhow, the music starts and we get some strange shots of L.A. with no sound, save the music. Then, slowly but surely, the shots change from just being regular L.A. shots to shots of ships dropping into L.A. from the sky. Then we see shots of soldiers arriving as the conflict ensues, all silent mind you (save the music). It’s just such an interesting feel, so quite and peaceful, even though death and destruction is right before your eyes. There’s some fantastic shots of the combat that will be taking place in the movie, even a few moving shots that really got to me (and all the while that music is get louder and louder, and better and better). Suddenly we get shots of the soldiers of the film in what look like alien hive nests (no sound, just music rising more) and on alien ships. And then we get, as the music of the trailer reaches its peak, one of the creepiest trailer shots (for an action film) I think I’ve ever seen, featuring a soldier firing in slow motion at enemies not seen in the camera’s lens, as a blurred metallic creature slowly creeps up behind the human. And then, silence comes, and the trailer ends.

Guys, if you haven’t seen it yet you need to look it up on YouTube, now. I saw in the theater recently, and my eyes were completely transfixed on the screen. It just looked awesome, felt awesome, and was overall awesome. I really hope this movie isn’t a disappointment. I also really hope it isn’t just an Independence Day re-skin. Oh, and of course they had better put that friggin’ music in there: so good.

HAPPY NEW DECADE!

1 Jan

GUYS, IT’S A NEW FRIGGIN’ DECADE! HOLY OSMOS! I LOVE YOU ALL! Except you Brian…meh…

My Thoughts On The Tourist

28 Dec

Too-long-didn’t-read version: boring, don’t watch it. If you’d like some depth, proceed with reading.

Okay, so you may have noticed that just about every review I’ve ever done is pretty positive. This will officially be my first negative one. I am reviewing:

So, where should I begin? Okay, let’s start with a weak storyline. Angelina Jolie plays the lover of a dude named Alexander Pierce who cheated a gangster and is on the run. The lover is assigned the duty of making Pierce’s trail cold by leading the people hunting him after a dude who looks like him. Ultimately, Jolie’s character and this stranger (who is a tourist played by Johnny Depp) develop a romantic relationship, and then we discover that Jolie is a spy. Wait, what? Okay, so the idea then is that Jolie all along was an agent who was supposed to keep watch over Mr. Pierce, and they fell in love, and now she’s been kicked out of her agency (and maybe I’m hard of hearing or something, but it was never made clear which agency she worked for, just that they were British). So, there’s the story. Interested? Don’t be, it sucks. Trust me when I say there’s only one good moment and I won’t spoil it. I’ll just let you know you’ll have to sit through the entire movie to get to it.

Okay, so next I’ll go over the romance. Let me just start this flop of a film. Some of the stuff that happened was just unbearable. I mean, this was really corny stuff. There were sequences where all I could do was think of the incredible Battle: Los Angeles trailer beforehand to keep my mind off of them. I really just didn’t enjoy them at all. Maybe a bit when Jolie wasn’t talking, but everything else was just bad.

While watching Depp I could tell he was at least trying. He’s never terrible, but this didn’t exactly strengthen my faith in him picking good movies(or his agent, anyway). Alice in Wonderland, and now this? Jesus, I hope the next Pirates of the Caribbean doesn’t suck. I will admit that there were some things the guy did that made me crack up (there’s a rooftop chase scene that was great). His accent was a bit off, seeing as he kept interchanging between American and English (ugh…), but aside from that he was okay.

I’ve decided the if you look two paragraphs up you’ll already be able to deduce my review of Jolie’s performance. Let’s just say (and this may sound wrong, but I only speak the truth) that the only good thing about it was the fact the cinematographer had a thing for her posterior. Ah, yes, that was nice.

The music was at times cool, but at times just terrible and corny. When the two kissed (in a dream mind you) the orchestra boomed in such a way it made you cringe with embarrassment. However, the music and mood did match at some points, and when it did it matched well.

Now, there’s the matter of the ending, which I mentioned earlier was actually good. The last few scenes before the film’s epilogue are quite enjoyable and actually a bit tense. And there’s a neat twist that made me go, “Oh, wow!” That was out loud by the way. So, I might argue that if you’re really feeling it you could stick out through the movie just for the end.

So, overall, The Tourist is rather odd, and boring, and cheesy. It isn’t a great film, and it isn’t even a relatively good film either. However, despite it’s shortcomings, that ending is pretty worthwhile, so I’ll just say it’s an okay movie. But it’s just clinging on the edge of okay, like the forth Indiana Jones movie. It may be worthwhile to people who like cheese, but I don’t. I like chicken, lots of chicken, and you’ll do better going to see a movie like The Social Network (which I haven’t seen but can safely assume is good) or Tron: Legacy (same as before, should be good).

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

27 Dec

Hey everybody! I know it’s been an enormously long time since I’ve posted (mostly because I’ve been busy writing), but I’m back for a while with great news: CHRISTMAS WAS AWESOME!

Okay, so first there’s the gifts my siblings got: my little brother got a brand new Toshiba gaming laptop with a slick screen and top of the line graphics card, Fable III Collector’s Edition, some other really cool video games, an ultralight, extremely durable remote controlled helicopter (from yours truly), and a lot of candy!

My younger sister got an incredible amount of toys, an amount way too high to count. I mean, it’s unbelievable how many toys she got, it’s ridiculous. You know that awesome toy you saw the last time you were at Toys ‘R’ Us, that one? Yeah, she has it. Oh, and she also got her first bike!

Then there’s my parents, who got some cool sci-fi books, some cookies, hugs, tools (from sis’, for Dad), cooking supplies (from me, for Mom), and some video games (Mom got Mass Effect 2).

My grandmother received some nice presents as well, one of the key ones (also from me (sorry)) being her Steamboat Willy snow globe, as well as Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury (incredible book).

Lastly, there’s me. I got a new Toshiba gaming laptop (awesome), tools (awesome), a new basketball (awesome), Shutter Island and Inception (I’ve reviewed both on the blog, go look for those write-ups), Fallout: New Vegas (decent, so far), an Epic Mickey t-shirt (but not the game), Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II Collector’s Edition (haven’t played yet) and some other stuff that I for some reason can’t remember off the top of my head. Ah well, it doesn’t matter. I’ll have reviews of Killing Floor and New TF2 up soon. I hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a happy new year!

New Posts Coming Soon!

30 Nov

I’ve been away for some time, but I plan to keep you guys busy with data again soon!

It’s Coming…

1 Oct

I’ve entered my new story into the Writers of the Future contest! I hope all of you fans who have remained faithful wish me luck in my endeavor. I can’t tell you the plot, since that in and of itself is a mystery, but I can tell you that it’s entitled Beginning. I really hope the judges enjoy it!

My Thoughts on Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

31 Aug

Man, you guys are patient. I apologize for having taken so long to write this review. I’ve just been extremely busy writing my story for the Writers of the Future contest. It’s going to kick ass. Anyhow, I’ve decided to finally sit down and write this review, just for you guys. So, here it is. Today I’m going to give you my thoughts on:

To begin, I just want to make it known that this is not a movie for non-gamers. Meaning, if you don’t play much video games, don’t go see this movie. I’m sorry Scott Pilgrim, but I can’t lie to my readers. It is possible to enjoy the film without being a gamer, but the chances are very slim.

And now onto the plot. Scott Pilgrim, the protagonist, lives in the “mysterious land” of Toronto, Canada. He’s a nerd, a bit of a jerk (breaking girls hearts all the time), and lives with his gay roommate across the street from the house where he grew up. One day he meets this girl named Ramona Flowers, falls in love with her, and begins dating her. Soon after this happens, he is attacked by Ramona’s first evil ex-boyfriend. He defeats the villain, but learns from Ramona that there are six more he has to deal with. And I think that’s all that needs to be said about the plot right now. Let me just say this: it’s told extremely well. The basic concept of how it’s told is that in a musical, when the emotion gets too strong, people burst into song. When the emotion gets too strong in Scott Pilgrim, people burst into awesome, video game fight scenes. That’s all it took to get me to see the movie. Great concept in my opinion.

Now, the only way to have a great comedy is to have a great cast. And boy does this film deliver. Michael Cera is the perfect Scott Pilgrim, and evolves from (and this is going to sound very cheesy) zero to hero excellently throughout the film. It was very believable Michael, seriously. And the lovely Mary Elizabeth Winstead did an excellent job as Ramona Flowers, not being flat or dull as I (forgive me) expected beforehand. The supporting cast was spot on as well, turning the world of Scott Pilgrim into a living, breathing, yet fantastic realm of excitement. Scott’s gay roommate, Wallace, was a riot. Everything he did had me hysterically. The evil ex-boyfriends were friggin’ hilarious, my favorite being Todd, the third of them. I won’t spoil his secret, but let me tell you that when you find it out, you’re going to laugh really friggin’ hard.

I give major props to Edgar Wright, the director. I haven’t read the graphic novels that this film was based off of, but I’ve heard from fans of the series that he really made the story leap right off the pages. It’s really cool when a director is able to create a film that really respects the source material. Nice job, Edgar.

Also, I’d just like to say that the music in this movie is awesome. I’m going to get the soundtrack off of iTunes soon. It’s great. And the way they incorporate it into the ex-boyfriend battles as an actual part of them is superb.

Overall, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is one of my favorite comedies already. It’s very funny, charming, and if you’re a gamer you really feel a connection to it. I love it, and hopefully so will all of you. See you next time.

Short Story: Trenton

22 Aug

Hey everybody! I just thought I’d throw something at you guys real quick. But first, an introduction to this particular piece of writing. I had to do a course in school about a year ago (I was fourteen) wherein I had to make a product and sell it to random people throughout the school. Most people made cookies or some other type of food; I wrote a short story in about four days. I sold quite a few copies and got reviews that ranged from 3/5 to 4/5. So you can call this article a slap in the face to them since you get to read it for free. I hope you enjoy it and if you think I should write the sequel, let me know in a comment. Ladies and gentlemen, here it is (click the link):

Trenton: Part One.

P.S.- If you find any errors, let me know in your review.

Apology

22 Aug

Sorry I haven’t posted the Tennessee Trip thing yet. I just need a friend of mine to email me the pictures from the trip. It’ll be up soon.

COMING SOON: The Tennessee Trip

19 Aug

Hey guy! I know I haven’t posted in a while, but I’ve been quite busy. I just thought I’d let you all know that tomorrow night I’ll have my “Tennessee Trip” post written. I’m too tired to write about it right this moment, but if you want the short version now I’ll give it to you: it was awesome!