Explanations

So this last Friday I shot a short film over the course of four and a half hours. Most of my spare time has been spent cutting it together, so I haven't found the time to consume any new media to offer opinions about. I'm hoping that within the next week or two tops, I can have the finished video online.

Expect a shortfall in my writing here.

Retrospective: Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

And when I say 'retrospective' what I mean is 'I'm still watching it'. It's just that good. I wish I could send any of you who haven't watched Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (surely the minority) through a convenient link to a website where you could watch it for free.

Unfortunately, those days are past. Instead, you're going to have to bite the bullet (freeze ray beam?) and head over to iTunes, fork over some hard earned cash, and the bask in the glory which is Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. This is for real people. Go forth.

Oh, and I promise this is the last time I'll mention the good Doctor Horrible. Unless of course, there's some new development on that front (fingers crossed).

Food: Muffins

Muffins are tasty.

3/3 - Go eat a muffin.

Short Film: Run the Streets

Run the Streets is a student film I acted in earlier this year. The crew behind the film did a great job, especially considering this was the first film they had made as a group or as individuals. Of course, I was in the film, in a leading role, so my opinion might be just a little bit biased.

Anyways, the film runs about 22 minutes in all. It's in 3 parts on Youtube; viewable here through the magic of the internet. If you're curious (come on, you're at least a little bit curious) you can check it out below. Or if you hate imbedded video for some reason (really?) you can check it out at the source:

Here (part one).
Here (part two).
And here (part three).

And tonight I'll go watch some television or a movie or something so I can write an entry which isn't shameful, transparent, ego-stroking, self-promotion.

Which reminds me, I break a window in part three and it is totally sweet. Check it out:

Television Series: Burn Notice

Burn Notice is a television series which, until recently, was only remarkable to me in that it was the first television series with Bruce Campbell in it to survive past Season one. Now that I've started to watch the show, I understand why it survived.

The premise is simple: Michael Westen is a spy who just lost his job. He got a burn notice (you know, like in the title) and now all his assets are frozen and no one in the intelligence community will talk to him. So he needs to figure out who's behind it all. In the interim, he's stuck in Miami, working odd jobs to keep himself afloat.

And that last part is what makes it simple. Every episode Michael Westen has a particular job he has to complete, which forms the three act story arc of each episode. We also get to learn tidbits about who burned Michael.

But what makes the show great is its sense of humour. Before watching the show, and based solely on the promotional ads and photos I thought it was a serious show. But it never takes itself completely seriously and that is why this show stands out and rises above.

I'm only three episodes in, but so far, my impressions are good. I would highly recommend seeking Burn Notice out. For fans of Bruce Campbell, this is him in an excellent supporting role. For everyone else, this is just good television.

3/3 - It's good. Go get it.

Film: The Dark Knight

So The Dark Knight is good. I mean, you already knew that, but I'm just going to reinforce it. You also already know that Christian Bale plays Batman well (you did see Batman Begins after all), and that Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker is excellent.

What you may not know, is that Aaron Eckhart is brilliant as Harvey Dent/Two Face. The story arc really belongs to that character, even though he never takes centre stage.

I also feel I should offer up some warnings (perhaps not quite the right word). First of all, the film is long. Epic long. Almost three hours long. It manages to hold you for the duration though, so I guess that's not really a warning, merely an observation.

Lastly, the plot is easy to follow, yet if subjected to any level of scrutiny, it is unbelievably complex. There are layers upon layers of deception and forethought by the characters which frankly are at best highly improbably, but in practice impossible for any non-omnipotent deity to orchestrate. Of course, while you're watching the film you won't notice the improbabilities (well, now you might). You'll be having such a good time they'll fly right by. So again, not really a warning, so much as a "check your logical brain at the door". But this is a movie about a man who jumps from rooftops in a batsuit so...

Oh, and lastly (for real this time), the movie is mentally and emotionally draining. Immediately afterwards you will feel like you need a nap followed by a light comedy. So warm up your dvd player and throw some extra cushions on the couch before you head to the theatre.

3/3 - Because every flaw I can think of isn't really a bad thing. The movie is just good. That's it.

Internet Series: Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog: Act Three

Earlier today, the internet was introduced to the conclusion to Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.  This series is officially awesome.  It manages to run the emotional gauntlet and is just... incredible.

Act One, although clearly meant as part one of three, stood alone quite well.  But when you add on Acts Two and Three the finished product is just jaw dropping incredible.

3/3 - There is nothing left to say.  Why are you still here?  Go and watch it, from the beginning, through 'til the end, and enjoy every precious second.

Internet Series: Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog: Act Two

So Act Two is out now, with Act Three arriving tomorrow.

Act Two is... well, it's the second act in a three act show. Which means it isn't introducing or resolving, just moving us through the motions so we can get from point A to point B (Act One to Act Three). It's still good, just not quite as good as Act One. Which is to be expected from Act Two.

There are still some excellent moments from Act Two though, particularly the opening musical number, and the closing musical number (and the conversation between Captain Hammer and Doctor Horrible just before said closing number). As a percentage of the whole, 5 or 6 really good minutes out of 13 is a better success ratio than most can manage.

I'm waiting for Act Three now, though, more so than basking in Act Two.

3/3 - If only because you've already seen Act One, and "these are not the hammer".

Internet Series: Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog: Act One

Do you remember that superhero spoof movie from this summer? The one that was called, with ridiculous amounts creative flair, Superhero Movie? Well forget about that. A clever superhero parody just arrived, in the form of Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

Quick background. Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog is the brain-child of Joss Whedon (as well as his two brothers and Maurissa Tancharoen). It's a web-series in three parts, chronicling the criminal exploits and love-life of the titular Doctor Horrible. It was shot over six-days on a tiny budget, and is being released via the internet and later on DVD.

Oh, and in case you hadn't figured it out, it's a musical.

It's also witty, funny, and just all around brilliant. Neil Patrick Harris turns in an amazing performance as Doctor Horrible, with Felicia Day and Nathan Fillion doing excellent work in their supporting roles.

I just, I don't know what to say beyond that. I've watched Act One three times since last night and it's still as funny as the first time through. It is what Joss Whedon has historically done best (touching drama, presented in comedic gift-wrap), boiled down to its purest essence. With superheroes. But you know.

Anyways, if you hate Firefly, Angel, Buffy and everything else Joss Whedon has ever touched, then I'm going to recommend you watch Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog anyways. Seriously, give it a shot. Unless you have a cold, shrivled heart, and absolutely no sense of humour, you're going to like it at least a little bit.

3/3 - You're here, on a computer, surfing the net. I know you are. So get on the iTunes store, pay $1.99 for Act One, download, and enjoy. Or be cheap and go here.

Video Game: Overlord

Realizing this is about as timely and relevant as a rotten pork roast at a PETA rally, I just bought Overlord and thought I would throw some impressions out there for anyone who cares (and anyone who doesn't too... I don't want to leave you out).

In a single academically themed sentence: A for premise, D for implementation.

Now, that's not strictly speaking fair. The game is fun, but it's premise fair outshines the finished product. In fact, after about an hour with the game I had the overwhelming urge to go out and buy Fable and play through it again.

Your minions are cute, fun, but not too bright and, at times, difficult to control. The lack of better camera control is a problem, which although not terrible, was frustrating. It's just hard to get a good view of what's going on. The lack of an in-game map is incredibly annoying, leading to far too much wasted time wandering around wondering where the hell you are, and how to get back to that place you saw 30 minutes ago and need to be now. And when your avatar finishes off a boss with a personal flourish, it never feels satisfying, especially after you've had 30 minions wailing on the guy.

And you can't be evil enough. It's a game about being evil, yet the vast majority of it I seem to be killing people more evil than I am, which apparently makes me evil. Except in every other game it makes you good. So really, I'm just a good guy with Gremlins and spiky armour. Most of the ways you become more evil in the game involve killing innocent bystanders and stealing food. If you ask me, these are petty crimes. I was expecting to be conquering cities, laying waste to nations and corrupting the innocent. But it seems someone else already beat me to it, so I just have to settle for killing the old tyrant and replacing him/her with a new tyrant (namely, me). We're talking evil at a 3rd grade level. This shit is amateur hour.

So when I want to up the evil, I get a desire to play Dungeon Keeper, where you actually killed just upholders of the peace with a wider variety of minions. And it had better strategy elements to boot. And when I want to boil the game down to straight up RPG, instead of RPG/strategy hybrid, I get the desire to play Fable.

So is the game good? Sort of. It's fun, but every time it's fun, I just start to think about how much more fun I could be having playing a game from yesteryear which did everything Overlord does better. Except, maybe, for the humour. Because Overlord does have a twisted sense of humour which, for the most part, works remarkably well.

But is that enough to save it? I don't think so.

3/3 for the premise.

1/3 for the game.

Film: Hellboy 2: The Golden Army

So Hellboy. Let me start off by expressing my undying fanboyishness (what?) for Guillermo Del Toro and, to a much greater extent, Ron Perlman.

With that said, I didn't really like Hellboy 2.

Visually, the film was phenomenal, with excellent performances delivered by the entire cast. But for all that was good about the film I never felt any sort of emotional attachment to the characters or the film as a whole. I got hints of it when Hellboy was faced with moral dilemnas, but never really got drawn in. I also found the fight scenes, with the exception of the battle against the forest giant thingy and moments in the final confrontation, to be fairly flat and unengaging.

It was a really strange experience actually, where I liked everything I saw on an intellectual level but almost never on an emotional level (with the exception of Hellboy's moral dilemna's, as mentioned earlier). There were some good funny moments as well, but as a whole the film was not hilarious.

So I guess I never found the heart of the film. Which isn't to say it's not there. When I walked out of the film, my first reaction was a desire to watch it again; to find a reason to like it. But on a single viewing, I was not fully captivated.

At this point, I'm not sure I can recommend the film Hellboy 2, so much as the idea of Hellboy 2. Because I definitely like the idea of Hellboy 2, but I'm not sure if I like the film. When I figure it out I'll let you know.

1/3 - For now, I can't really recommend it. But I want to. I really want to.

Radio Silence

This is where I rationalize my not doing anything here for 20 odd days. I'm going to rationalize it because I feel somewhat bad for not writing anything here. And although I've been busy, I haven't been so busy that I couldn't have written a note here and a note there had I really wanted to. Frankly, I just didn't feel like writing. So I didn't.

But now I do.

So with renewed vigour I steadfastly vow to review every movie I watch in theatres from this day forth. And not only that, I swear I will review them in a timely fashion.

Simply put, we're back in business.