Happy Memorial Day!

The past month or so has been quite busy; I’ve been preoccupied with issues at work and helping a family member recover from surgery.  Despite that, I have also been busy with occasional bursts of writing.  I’ve been jumping among several different manuscripts, getting them done little by little.

These days though, I’ve started research and design for a story set in WWII.  It's always been a fascinating subject; it's pretty incredible thinking about just how far-reaching the war was, how much intense conflict was involved, and how much was at stake.  It had some of the darkest and most terrible moments in human history, and also some of the most valiant victories.

My interest in WWII has helped me on my first novel, "Rider of the White Horse," which is currently being re-edited.  I've also kick-started a new story which I'm calling "Der Jaegermeister," which will focus on a rogue huntsman opposing German forces in the Black Forest.  I'm still not sure just how fantastic this story will be (I suppose the premise itself takes a stretch of the imagination), but it'll be a thrilling story, I can tell already.

To help inspire myself, I've been playing lots of "Wolfenstein" on the PS3, and I've been revisiting some great WWII-themed movies.  I probably will review them soon.  ;-)  Some dilligent research is also being conducted, so I can hopefully create this story without it being total and unbelievable BS.  My previous attempt at a WWII war story was rather weak, but perhaps this will work better as an adventure story.

This Memorial Day, I'm not sure what kind of time I will have, but I do hope to get some work done on this.  It's probably the most appropriate focus for a holiday that's meant to commemorate our nation's war heroes.  I am certainly grateful for the sacrifices of our soldiers throughout history, and I hope that their continuing service will prevent another sprawling conflict like WWII from happening ever again.

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Heroes, Gods, and Mad Geniuses!

Latest and greatest film reviews! With so many superhero-themed movies, both old and new, I have half a mind to create my own hero!

“The Green Hornet”

With a masked hero in a long coat and fedora driving a classy-looking car in the middle of the night, “The Green Hornet” has a classic appeal that somewhat resembles “The Shadow.” Unlike “The Shadow,” which was almost overdramatic, “The Green Hornet” never really takes itself seriously.  With a goofy slacker of a hero, this film bombards the audience with gracious amounts of wild comedy and wild action.  When the heroes aren’t blasting the hell out of everything and wreaking havoc, the main character comes out with some of the funniest lines, before duking it out with his under-appreciated sidekick.  There is hardly a dull moment in this film; it induces both adrenaline and laughter.

The story’s pretty well, showcasing a cast of relatively interesting characters bonding and forming the heroic duo.  It takes some stretch of the imagination to buy into this film, but since it never really takes itself seriously, it works.  I find it a little disconcerting watching the Hornet and Kato bickering so much; their chemistry works in many scenes and then explodes in others.  The added drama can provide an interesting and intense obstacle for the story, but it’s also a little annoying.  Otherwise, I felt the story overall was well-made.

The film has very slick and stylish photography.  Some editing effects are weird; you can expect to see lots of slow-motion fights, with markers highlighting enemies and guns like a video game.  A few other scenes show some very trippy and gimmicky effects.  But otherwise, the cameramanship is solid.  Acting is swell; Seth Rogan is perfect as the main character, Jay Chou is cool as Kato, Cameron Diaz is lovely as ever, and Christoph Waltz did okay (although I don’t think he had much to work with here).  Writing is not bad, and is often funny.  Production value is strong, showing plenty of cool sets, props, and costumes.  Music is okay.

Unless you have an aversion to movies that are fun and brainless, I see no reason why I wouldn’t recommend this to anybody.

4/5 (entertainment:  4.5/5, story:  4/5, film:  4/5)

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 “Thor”

Remember the post-credit scenes in “Iron Man 2,” where the Shield agents discover a mysterious hammer-like object in the desert? Well, they finally made a movie all around that concept.  “Thor” throws us into a world where Norse myth collides with the science-fiction Marvel universe in a surprisingly sublime fashion.  With this clever setup, we are introduced to the title character, who battles giants and mortal men alike with thunderous force.  There is plenty of action throughout this flick, and lots of beautiful special effects.  Even when Thor isn’t bashing the hell out of things, there’s enough character-driven drama to keep it strong.  And of course, nothing’s more amusing than watching an archaic deity walking among modern man; there are a few funny moments throughout.  It’s maybe not as action-packed as some of the other Marvel films, but “Thor” met my expectations perfectly.

The story’s a little predictable, especially if you’re already familiar with the comics or Norse myth.  But it is well-presented, and presents enough decent characterization to keep it fresh.  I do believe that something is missing; Thor never seems to learn much when he’s on Earth.  But he does learn something, and when the climax comes it makes good enough sense.

The film has good photography for the most part.  The frost-giant battle shows some rather jittery cameramanship and editing, but afterwards it’s all solid.  Some shots have some really funky crooked angles, but I think it’s cool.  Acting is great; I loved Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman in their roles, and Anthony Hopkins is a naturally good choice for Odin.  Writing is not terribly sophisticated, but it gets the job done.  Production value is phenomenal, with loads of excellent sets, props, costumes, and some very imaginative settings.  It’s especially impressive how the designers have adopted Norse myth into the story and designs to fit into a sci-fi niche, and still make sense.  The music score is not bad.

Recommended!

4/5 (entertainment:  4/5, story:  4/5, film:  4/5)


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“Megamind”

Superheroes typically win the fight and get the girl in the end, but what happens when a supervillain succeeds? We see maybe a little bit of that scenario with “Despicable Me,” but “Megamind” throws superpowers and heroism in the mix to more effectively lampoon off of the “Superman” mythos. As a result, we get a rather intriguing premise, gracious amounts of action and eye-candy, and quite a few amusing laughs. The comedy’s nice and slappy, with plenty of funny lines. Will Ferrell’s style of humor works well for the movie. It’s quite fun overall, and I’d put it on the same level as “Monsters vs Aliens.”

The story’s pretty unique; it borrows a little from other sources, but once it gets going it develops a brilliant tale of deception and dramatic irony. The middle of the movie drags maybe a little, and the film overall feels a little hectic as it jumps from one mad situation to another, and then tossing one or two bizarre twists. But it all works out sublimely in the end. It also helps that the characters receive decent treatment with some solid emotional depth.

The film shows strong animation quality. Movements are smooth, textures rendering and lighting are great, and the overall designs are stylish. It’s similar in style and quality to “Monsters vs Aliens.” Voice-acting seems good; Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Jonah Hill, Brad Pitt, Ben Stiller, are all decent. Music features a lot of rock songs, which seem a little arbitrary, but usually do fit their given scenes.

Casually recommended!

4/5 (entertainment: 4.5/5, story: 4/5, film: 4/5)

On Blu-Ray, I can detect a slight amount of jagged lines, aliasing, pixilation, and banding. But it’s very slight and small, and almost unnoticeable unless you got your face glued to the screen. It’s just a slight problem for me; the image still looks insanely sharp and clean, with good-looking colors and contrast (once again, I don’t see a problem with coloring). I seem to remember “Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children” having worse issues than this. Sound quality did not disappoint.

PQ: 4/5, AQ: 5/5

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A Mortal Marathon!

I ocassionally enjoy writing and posting movie reviews all over the Internet, so why not post some on this here blog? Last weekend, I watched...

“Mortal Kombat.”

Back in the 90s, I remember when the classic video game hit the markets and caused a stir.  Not only did it make a huge commercial splash, but it was also quite controversial for its graphicness.  I honestly never had the pleasure of playing these MK games, and in this day and age, fighting games are not my forte.  But action and martial arts movies certainly are, especially when they’re based on popular video games.

The “Mortal Kombat” movie offers plenty of fun.  It’s got enough fight scenes to satisfy; some are short and some are pretty cheesy, but some fights hold up really well and are a blast.  It’s got some very old-school special effects that, even though appear gaudy by today’s standards, are good in concept and design.  Above all, this is a film that doesn’t take itself that seriously; it’s probably an important aspect for a film with such a weak story and with so many limitations.  Most of the movie’s flaws are forgivable given the tongue-in-cheek attitude, and altogether it’s not too far off from the original video game.

For better or for worse though, the story suffers tremendously.  Of course, fighting games like this don’t usually have a story to draw upon, so the movie does the best it can to extrapolate the characters and tournament-themed conflict into an “Enter the Dragon”-style plot.  It works for the most part, but I find it pretty darn shallow, unoriginal, and lacking in proper immersion.  Some more depth to the story, characters, or environment would probably have helped.

The film shows fine photography and editing, with some interesting lighting effects.  Acting is pretty hammy all around; Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa is almost laughable with his facial expressions and over-zealous dialogue, and I found it hard to take Christopher Lambert seriously.  But, the three main leads (Robin Shou, Linden Ashby, and Bridgette Wilson) fit their roles respectably.  Writing is not terribly sophisticated at all.  The production shows some limitations with its horrid CGI-graphics and some fake-looking sets and props.  But, the designs are awesome and the costumes aren’t bad.  Music is really smashing.

I’m sure this film will appeal to kids wanting something exciting and don’t mind something slightly cheesy.  Video game fans and folks who grew up with this movie will probably get a nostalgic kick out of it too.  Otherwise, I can only recommend it as a rental.

3/5 (entertainment:  4/5, story:  2/5, film:  3/5)

This Blu-Ray looks better than I thought it would.  I am pleased with its sharpness and detail, which appears consistently well-defined.  Some noise and grain can be seen here and there, but otherwise it looks quite clean.  Colors and contrast can be pretty weak at certain spots.  Sound quality was disappointing; sound effects didn’t have much impact, the dialogue was subdued in many places, and the volume was a little low overall.  One part sounded a bit muffled.  But otherwise, it is mostly clean and clear.

PQ:  3.5/5, AQ:  2.5/5

Extras include a God-awful 40-minute animated feature, a trailer, and BD-Live capability.  The first release of this disc includes a digital copy and a PSN download to unlock a costume in the latest MK game.

Extras:  1.5/5

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“DOA:  Dead or Alive”

This film plays out pretty similar to “Mortal Kombat,” after it’s been stripped away of all the gothic-fantasy aesthetics and replaced with a group of hot ladies chillin’ at a lovely beach resort.  It’s a bright and vibrant film, jazzed up with style and flair, and imbued with plenty of fighting and sex appeal.  …on second thought, forget “MK,” it’s a little closer to “Charlie’s Angels.”

It’s not a film that takes itself seriously; perhaps even on a deeper level than “MK.” The fights are frequent and can be pretty absurd.  But they are all a blast; whether bouncing on bamboo trees, running up the steps of a temple, trying to maintain footing on floating rafts…the setpieces are brilliant throughout, and make for a solid collection of memorable scenes.  The choreography is fast and intense, and can be beautiful to behold.  Combined with occasional lighthearted comedy, it’s nothing but fun on a bun!

The story suffers though; once again, it revolves around fighters coming to some tournament to duke it out for whatever reason.  As it goes on, it goes off in some ridiculous directions, for better or for worse.  But without any substantial depth to the plot or characters, it comes off as a pretty dumb movie in the end.

But it’s a very good looking film, with strong photography and gorgeous locations.  Cameramanship is especially impressive during the fight scenes, for it is still and shows decent composition.  Acting is not bad for this film, but it can be a little hammy.  Production value is high, and I especially love some of the sets and costumes the film uses.  Special effects are slick and hardly distracting.  Music is cooler than crud!

3.5/5 (entertainment:  4.5/5, story:  2/5, film:  4/5)  Increased from 3/5

This Blu-Ray looks great.  It’s sharp, clean, and very colorful.  There is some grain and noise, but it’s very fine and hardly distracting.  Sound quality is not bad, but the music tends to dip in volume (possibly an intentional effect in the mixing process), and it ultimately doesn’t have that much of an impact.

PQ:  4.5/5, AQ:  4/5

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