DvDo’s and Don’ts – Review of Saw 4
DvDo’s and Don’ts – Saw 4
At this point they basically beat the horse completely to death. After the first Saw, which was an above average film, it has been on a steady decline since the original. The 4th film at least had the unique benefit of a few awesome transitional cuts. If you liked the other Saw films you’re going to get the same raw intensity and gritty violence, with seamier people and extreme closure/punishment for their poor life-choices. It also wraps the entirety of the series up pretty well. It’s just mired by being less entertaining and not as well written as the original. Expect plot twists like all Saw films. This one in particular plays more-so with how we view movies and utilizes that to trick you.
DO give it a rental if you like other films like it.
DON’T watch it if you have a weak stomach, they go excessive on the gore.
DON’T be surprised if you didn’t guess or immediately get the twist
Overall: 3/5
Obscurities: In the Shadow of the Bat Part 2
Obscurities: In the Shadow of the Bat Part 2
In anticipation for the Dark Knight I immersed myself in the Batman. Last time I talked about the movies I watched, this time the graphic novels I read. I won’t review them, because to be frank all of them were good in different ways, something like the Killing Joke is better written than the Man Who Laughs, but both are good in different ways. I’d recommend a read of any of the 7 I read: Batman Year One, The Man who Laughs, The Killing Joke, Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, The Long Halloween, the Dark Knight Returns, and the Dark Knight Strikes Again. Minor Spoilers ahead!
-Batman Year One- The Batman origin story, told primarily from the dual-perspectives of Bruce Wayan and Jim Gordon as they both arrive in Gotham and begin to clean away the corruption imposed by the mob. You don’t really get any of the Rogue’s Gallery outside of Selena Kyle as the budding Catwoman and a mention at the end toward the Joker. An overall excellent look at how Batman established himself as a hero and won over Jim Gordon to his side, this book probably served as inspiration for Batman begins.
-The Man who Laughs- Picking up where year one left off, this is a retelling of Batman’s first encounter with the Joker. Batman finds the Joker to far succeed any mob adversary he’s ever faced, laying the groundwork for the anarchist clown to become his number one arch nemesis. This book shares quite a bit in common with The Dark Knight in that the theme of Batman being the inspiration for these madmen to arrive in Gotham to rise up and meet up is a central plot point.
-The Killing Joke- Alan Moore’s tale of the Joker’s origin story. This according to Nolan was a big inspiration in how he based the Joker in The Dark Knight. It also shares some common themes in that the Joker consistently retells his origin story in a different way, preferring his past to be multiple choice. It really captures the Joker’s anarchist and indiscriminately murderous psyche in a way only Alan Moore could.
-Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth- Breathtaking artwork coinciding with the origin story of Arkham Asylum and its once crazed owner. Batman has to go to Arkham to deal with the inmates who have taken control of the Asylum on April Fool’s Day. Featuring many cameos from the Rogue’s Gallery as Batman makes his way through the Asylum to uncover it’s dark past.
-The Long Halloween- The origin of Two-Face and an awesome detective story to boot. I found myself half-right in my guessing of the story but the twist truly through me off. Batman must discover the identity and foil the killer known as Holiday, who murders mob members during holidays, leaving behind the murder weapon (a light-weight pistol with a baby-bottle nipple for a silencer) and a trinket associated with the holiday. Featuring numerous cameos from the Rogue’s Gallery and even Calendar Man like some sort of Hannibal Lector figure, the Long Halloween was one of the most enjoyable of all the graphic novels I read.
-The Dark Knight Returns- Set in an alternate future, Frank Miller gives Batman his balls back in an extremely twisted book featuring an angry out of retirement Batman, the Joker and even the Man of Steel in one of the best endings to a Batman story I’ve ever seen. This book is a must read and you truly have to read it to appreciate it.
-The Dark Knight Strikes Again- I read this shortly after seeing the Dark Knight and to be honest it doesn’t live up to The Dark Knight Returns at all. Frank Miller wrote the sequel, but even the zany pop-art style visuals don’t match up to Miller’s gritty drawings. Read it, if you want to know what happens after DKR, but the book features less Batman than it should, Superman I think is in this book more. After reading it, it just made me want to read Kingdom Come again which is better by far, in both visuals and in story.
There you have it, I recommend 7 graphic novels, well 6 technically. Though I’ll through in a recommendation of Kingdom Come as well, an alternate DC universe future where the outburst of new heroes leads to a Book of Revelations style impending apocalypse.
Obscurities- In the Shadow of the Bat part 1
Obscurities- In the Shadow of the Bat part 1
In anticipation of the Dark Knight, I immersed myself in the Batman for a good 3 days. I read 7 graphic novels and watched 5 films. The films included Batman Begins, Batman: Gotham Knight, Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, Batman: Mask of the Phantasm and The Batman vs Dracula. The graphic novels I read were Batman Year One, The Man who Laughs, The Killing Joke, Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, The Long Halloween and the Dark Knight Returns.
Batman Begins- Very little needs to be said about this film. Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale rebooted the Batman franchise after the on film abortion that was Batman and Robin. Without all the Arnold Mr. Freeze Puns and terrible bat-nipples, you get a serious and realistic look at how the Batman came to be. Drawing slight influence from Batman: Year One, Begins was the best Batman film to date and arguably the best superhero movie ever, as Bale put it so eloquently quoting Frank Miller, “its about time we give Batman his balls back.”
4.5/5
Batman: Gotham Knight- In a way this was the Animatrix of the Batman universe. By allowing various Japanese Directors to animate stories that are supposed to occur in between Batman Begins and the Dark Knight you get 6 interlinking and unique stories that interpret the Batman in different ways and we even get a battle with Killer Croc. Gotham Knight is an excellent little rent or purchase for the avid Bat-fan, your bound to like at least one tale and at least one art-style.
4/5
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm- The best of the Batman animated films, this movie tells the story of the mobs involvement in Gotham and of Bruce Wayan’s ex-fiancée Andrea Beaumont. The Batman has to deal with The Phantasm a new villain that is picking off the Mob heads leaving the Bat to the Blame. He also has an interesting encounter with his archenemy along the way.
4/5
Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker- Set in the futuristic Batman Beyond Universe, Bruce Wayan has long since retired, but the world is still in need of a hero. Terry McGinnis, a high school student, dons the mantle of the bat in a suit provided to him by the original Batman. Wayan serves as his mentor when he comes face to face with an enemy long thought to be dead. The Joker has evil plans for Gotham and a supporting gang that can help him achieve his goals against the modern Batman.
3.5/5
The Batman Vs. Dracula- A play off of the graphic novel that came before it, this takes a light hearted and heavy handed approach to the subject matter. Instead of murdering people, they simply become Vampires that aren’t dead. The Penguin and the Joker both have an important role in the film as supporting films, with the films climatic villain being the Dark Lord Dracula.
3/5
Next time I’ll have a review for the Graphic Novels, I’ll start by saying of the seven I read, five are considered the best Batman Stories ever according to IGN.
The Final Cut: Review of The Dark Knight
The Final Cut: Review of The Dark Knight
Well, this is my 3rd time saying it this year, but The Dark Knight is the new best film of the year for me. First it was In Bruges, then Wall-E (even though personally I’d still prefer In Bruges based on Subject) and now the honor goes to the Bat. More specifically you could say it goes to a terrifically well acted film, with two particular shining stars in Heath Ledger, who rightfully deserves an Oscar for being the most believably psychotic, down-right frightening Clown in movie history (take that Pennywise, the Joker would give you Nightmares) and Aaron Eckhart playing at the duality of Harvey Dent and the monster he becomes. Bale, Oldman, and Caine also step up far above par, though as the Batman, Bale’s voice gets exhausted on you very quickly.
The film is very high octane and accomplishes a whole lot within 2 and a half hours, like any Nolan film you have to either view it a few times or pay close attention to follow the whole of the plot, I did the later and it held up extremely well. On top of everything, I was happy to see they delved deeper into many of the themes found in the comic and came out with a truly remarkable story. By the end, you find yourself wishing it was longer, longing to see more of Ledger and Bale as Bruce Wayan.
The whole cast adds a lot and in the end you wind up with a dark, hard PG-13 film, with enough violence, romance, dark comedy, suspense, shocks and drama to appeal to a wide audience. I went into the film expecting it to be the hype it was given, sadly I wouldn’t call it the greatest film ever made, but I would say it’s the greatest film I’ve seen all year and while it may not have the cultural impact of something like the Godfather or Schindler’s List, it does so much to keep you enthralled, entertained and above all smiling from the edge of your seat. With some highly memorable lines, a deep satisfying ending and an awe inducing performance led by Ledger the film will likely be the best you’ve seen in a while. So smile, Why so Serious?
Overall: 5/5
See it, maybe even twice, buy it when it comes out
Recommendation Theatre- Cemetery Man
Recommendation Theatre- Cemetery Man
A rather obscure film made in Italy and starring Rupert Everett, this film isn’t for everyone. I had to watch it in a college class and my roommate completely hated it. However most will peg this movie in the horror-genre and not see it for the dark absurdist comedy it truly is.
The story is about a man and his mentally-challenged assistant who work in a cemetery. The problem being, the people come back to life as zombies, so the workers have to put them back in their graves. From this central plot, the movie goes every-which way into one of the most bizarre things you could ever possibly see. It is this consistent curve-ball absurdist flair that will turn most people off to this movie. But if you give it a chance it has quite a few good laughs and it screams cult classic.
So, give the film a rent, unless everything I said already has completely turned you off from the thing, in which case ignore it and move on.
Obscurities- E3 Day 4
E3 Day 4- Final Smash
Well nothing really new today, just more of what was already shown. One interesting game that shouldn’t be overlooked is Fat Princess. This unique PSN title features 5 classes and juxtaposition of Candy Land environments and blood-splattering violence. The flagship capture the princess mode, gives the opposing team the quest of re-taking their princess in their engorged state, as the princess has been force-fed by the opposing team. All the little quirks of the game make it feel like a bizarre mix of TF2 class gameplay and cutesy titles like Animal Crossing. The action gameplay, building, seesaw assaults and piranhas only add to a quirky and unique gem. This original IP gets my digital distribution Game of the Show.
As for console game of the show, I’d go with Dead Space. A surprisingly good game from EA that mixes Science Fiction and Survival Horror, your character finds that a mining colony has been overtaken by organic terrors. Through what is described as “tactical dismemberment” by the developers the hero must destroy his foes through severing appendages.
For PC gamers I’d go with Dragon Age, Bioware bringing a classic RPG can’t be beat. Baldur’s Gate will always be one of the best RPGs ever made and if they can capture that again, they have gold. Handheld game surprises would probably be Resistance or Kirby for the DS. I’d say GTA, but they didn’t show anything aside from talking about it.
Obscurities- E3 Day 3
E3 Day 3- 3rd Strike
No real big announcements today except for Dead Rising being ported to the Wii and Nintendo is working on Pikmin 3. That being said I think the real winner of E3 so far has been the 3rd parties. Especially EA and Capcom displayed interesting games. I now look forward to and plan to Pre-order/Purchase quite a few games I never even thought about before.
The unique games that really excited me were the creative Little Big Planet and the PSN game Fat Princess, which with its quirky charm and strategic class system really seems like a gem. Third person action/adventure and survival horror seems to be a new standard, games like Dead Space, Dark Void, Infamous, RE5, and SH: Homecoming all looked excellent in their own way. Dead Space and Dark Void especially surprised me, Dead Space for being a unique looking survival horror title and Dark Void for looking to accomplish action with jetpack fighting.
The other game I’m looking forward to is Dragon Age, the gameplay looks excellent. Bioware going back to their roots with a Baldur’s Gate style RPG except within their own universe gives an interesting number of awesome possibilities. Mass Effect was an interesting successor to KotOR, though it seems like Bioware might be secretly making a new KotOR anyway.
Obscurities- E3 Day 2 Part 2
E3 Day 2- Paced-station 3
Out of all 3 conferences Sony’s was the worst paced of the three. All the announcements came at the end like afterthoughts and after sitting through an hour plus to get there it was kind of exhausting. That being said, it was still more entertaining than Nintendo. The confirmation for God of War 3 was nice. The new games MAG, a 256 player, 8 to a team tactical based war simulator, as well as Infamous from the Sly Cooper developers looked interesting.
Out of everything they did, Little Big Planet was the most entertaining. A PowerPoint presentation becomes a lot more interesting when made in game and played out using the Sack-boy. The new PS3 features are okay, with in game rentals and purchases in place to rival Microsoft’s use of Netflix. The PS3 price-drop to $399 for the 80 GB model come September will likely be more crucial.
All in all the PS3 didn’t show off much, but then again Microsoft showed off RE5 and Fallout 3 which are multiplatform. The major 3 all kind of had lackluster showings, with the best presentation thus far being EA, which pains me to ever say that. Of course with EA buying up Bioware, I might as well start embracing them. Lets hope the 3rd party showings give us something new to look forward to.
Obscurities- E3 Day 2 part 1
E3 Day 2- Nintendon’t
Well I don’t own a Wii and was planning on buying a DS, but I do play my friend’s Wii. It has a few decent games, and more coming out, Wario and Chocobo Dungeon come to mind. However, Nintendo’s E3 showing was a shit on the face of hardcore/intermediate gamers. Wii Sports 2 sword fighting and Animal Crossing sums up the only good things presented. They made a big deal out of mediocre games like Pokemon Rangers and Rayman. GTA for the DS is okay in concept, but I don’t know how well it work out, I suppose I can hope for the best.
Their biggest announcement as they put it is Wii Music, which in theory sounded great, until they stated that you just push buttons and it plays itself. It’s like Communist Guitar Hero, no skill, no gameplay, In Soviet Russia Sax plays you! This is a toy, they make these for little kids, to push buttons and pretend they are playing music, except slap in more instruments, multi-player and Nintendo music.
On top of that the rest of the presentation Nintendo was singing their own praises, including stating they are at the top of the software sales, which they are technically only through counting Wii-Sports in bundled format. Non-bundled software, Nintendo is equal to Sony in games sold and half of what the 360 has sold.
