Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Wired into Me: 2009 Movie Guide

I was thinking about putting together a list of my most anticipated films of 2009, but Wired more or less read my mind. I hope that Where the Wild Things Are defies expectations and turns out to be great--that was one of my favorite books as a kid and I would love to take my kid to see it. I agree with most of Wired's rankings, except compared to them, I am less enthusiastic about Transformers 2, Harry Potter, and Coraline, and more enthusiastic about Inglourious Basterds and Fanboys.

Happy New Year everyone!

Monday, December 29, 2008

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

South Park making long-awaited Blu-ray debut in March - Engadget HD

Engadget is reporting that South Park is coming out on Blu Ray. Seriously? That show is all about low resolution and low brow humor. I love it, but come on. Seriously? Apparently, Engadget disagrees on the low-resolution part.

Monday, December 22, 2008

Ode to Antiheroes

I have finally caught up with The Shield (7th & Final Season) and Dexter (3rd Season). Here are my impressions.

Dexter--The first two seasons of Dexter were incredible. Where shows like The Shield and The Sopranos had antiheroes who also had a warmer side when it came to family, Dexter the serial killer didn't really have a warmer side, and yet you still somehow always rooted for him. The first two seasons of Dexter played incredibly well, with intricate season-long story arcs that had insanely intense climaxes. Season 3 didn't live up to that standard, though. I still love the show, but the series-long arc was so implausible and the show fell into my biggest pet peeve in dramatic television--often the characters had to do something out of character in order to move the plot forward. That drives me crazy! Still, some of the moments shared between series star Michael C. Hall and Jimmy Smits were insanely great. So, overall a series well worth watching and a season that was good but not as good as its predecessors.

The Shield--The final season of this landmark show did not disappoint. The main protagonist is such an amazing antihero. Every season, heck almost every show, included some impossibly desperate situation for its dirty cop protagonist Vic Mackey (played brilliantly by Michael Chiklis), and yet he always managed to leverage his way out of the jam he and his team were in. In the final season, does the tangle of lies and deceptions finally catch up with Mackey and his crew? I won't give any spoilers, but this show did not disappoint. The last five minutes was perfectly played out, incredibly with barely any spoken dialog from Chiklis. David Chase could have taken some script notes from Shawn Ryan (creator of The Shield) when drafting the final season of the Sopranos. Those last three Shield episodes were amongst the most intensely suspenseful that I have ever witnessed from a TV series.

Next on my antihero playlist-- Weeds. I have never watched an episode, but I'm itching to start. As a fan of Chiklis, I'm also wondering if I should look into catching him with hair in The Commish. Either or both of those series will take a while to watch especially with Lost starting next month, so don't go looking for my impressions anytime soon.

I have seen 101 of these films

SUPPOSEDLY if you've seen over 85 films, you have no life. Mark the ones you've seen. There are 239 films on this list. Copy this list, go to your own blog/facebook/myspace account, paste this as a note. Then, put x's next to the films you've seen, add them up, change the header adding your number, and click post at the bottom. Have fun.

(X) Rocky Horror Picture Show
(X) Grease
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean
() Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest
() Boondock Saints
(x) Fight Club
() Starsky and Hutch
() Neverending Story
(X) Blazing Saddles
(X) Airplane
Total: 6

(x) The Princess Bride
() Anchorman
(x) Napoleon Dynamite
() Labyrinth
() Saw
() Saw II
(X) White Noise
(X) White Oleander
() Anger Management
(x) 50 First Dates
(x) The Princess Diaries
() The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
Total so far:12

(x) Scream
() Scream 2
() Scream 3
() Scary Movie
() Scary Movie 2
() Scary Movie 3
() Scary Movie 4
(X) American Pie
() American Pie 2
() American Wedding
() American Pie Band Camp
Total so far: 14

(X) Harry Potter 1
(X) Harry Potter 2
(X) Harry Potter 3
() Harry Potter 4
() Resident Evil 1
() Resident Evil 2
(x) The Wedding Singer
() Little Black Book
() The Village
() Lilo & Stitch
Total so far: 18

() Finding Nemo
() Finding Neverland
(X) Signs
() The Grinch
() Texas Chainsaw Massacre
() Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
() White Chicks
() Butterfly Effect
() 13 Going on 30
(X) I, Robot
(X) Robots
Total so far: 21

(X) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
() Universal Soldier
() Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
(X) Along Came Polly
(X) Deep Impact
() KingPin
() Never Been Kissed
(x) Meet The Parents
(x) Meet the Fockers
() Eight Crazy Nights
() Joe Dirt
() KING KONG
Total so far: 26

() A Cinderella Story
(X) The Terminal
() The Lizzie McGuire Movie
() Passport to Paris
() Dumb & Dumber
() Dumber & Dumberer
() Final Destination
() Final Destination 2
() Final Destination 3
(x) Halloween
(X) The Ring
() The Ring 2
() Surviving X-MAS
() Flubber
Total so far: 29

() Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
() Practical Magic
(x) Chicago
() Ghost Ship
() From Hell
() Hellboy
() Secret Window
() I Am Sam
(x) The Whole Nine Yards
() The Whole Ten Yards
Total so far: 31

(X) The Day After Tomorrow
() Child's Play
() Seed of Chucky
() Bride of Chucky
() Ten Things I Hate About You
() Just Married
() Gothika
(x) Nightmare on Elm Street
(x) Sixteen Candles
() Remember the Titans
() Coach Carter
() The Grudge
() The Grudge 2
(x) The Mask
() Son Of The Mask
Total so far: 35

(X) Bad Boys
() Bad Boys 2
() Joy Ride
() Lucky Number Slevin
(x) Ocean's Eleven
(x) Ocean's Twelve
(X) Bourne Identity
(X) Bourne Supremecy
(X) Lone Star
() Bedazzled
(X) Predator I
(X) Predator II
() The Fog
() Ice Age
() Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
() Curious George
Ttal so far: 43

(X) Independence Day
(x) Cujo
(X) A Bronx Tale
() Darkness Falls
(x) Christine
(x) ET
(x) Children of the Corn
() My Bosses Daughter
(x) Maid in Manhattan
(X) War of the Worlds
(X) Rush Hour
() Rush Hour 2
Total so far: 51

() Best Bet
() How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
() She's All That
() Calendar Girls
(X) Sideways
(X) Mars Attacks
() Event Horizon
() Ever After
(x) Wizard of Oz
(x) Forrest Gump
(X) Big Trouble in Little China
(X) The Terminator
(X) The Terminator 2
(X) The Terminator 3
Total so far: 59

(x) X-Men
(x) X-2
(x) X-3
(X) Spider-Man
(x) Spider-Man 2
() Sky High
() Jeepers Creepers
() Jeepers Creepers 2
(X) Catch Me If You Can
(x) The Little Mermaid
() Freaky Friday – ORGINAL VERSION
() Reign of Fire
() The Skulls
(x) Cruel Intentions
() Cruel Intentions 2
() The Hot Chick
(X) Shrek
(x) Shrek 2
Total so far: 69

(X) Swimfan
() Miracle on 34th street – ORGINAL VERSION, BLACK AND WHITE
() Old School
(x) The Notebook
() K-Pax
() Krippendorf's Tribe
() A Walk to Remember
() Ice Castles
() Boogeyman
(x) The 40-year-old Virgin
Total so far: 72

(X) Lord of the Rings Fellowship of the Ring
(X) Lord of the Rings The Two Towers
(X) Lord of the Rings Return Of the King
(x) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
(x) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
(x) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Total so far: 78

() Baseketball
() Hostel
(X) Waiting for Guffman
() House of 1000 Corpses
() Devils Rejects
() Elf
(X) Highlander
() Mothman Prophecies
(x) American History X
() Three
Total so Far: 77

() The Jacket
() Kung Fu Hustle
() Shaolin Soccer
() Night Watch
(X) Monsters Inc.
(x) Titanic
(X) Monty Python and the Holy Grail
(X) Shaun Of the Dead
() Willard
Total so far: 81

() High Tension
() Club Dread
(X) Hulk
() Dawn Of the Dead
(X) Hook
() Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
(X) 28 days later
() Orgazmo
() Phantasm
(X) Waterworld
Total so far: 85

(X) Kill Bill vol 1
(X) Kill Bill vol 2
()Mortal Kombat
() Wolf Creek
() Kingdom of Heaven
() the Hills Have Eyes – ORIGINAL VERSION
() I Spit on Your Grave aka the Day of the Woman
() The Last House on the Left
(X) Re-Animator
() Army of Darkness
Total so far: 88

(x) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
(x) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
(x) Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
(x) Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope
(x) Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back
(x) Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi
() Ewoks Caravan Of Courage
() Ewoks The Battle For Endor
Total so far: 94

(x) The Matrix
(X) The Matrix Reloaded
(X) The Matrix Revolutions
() Animatrix
() Evil Dead
() Evil Dead 2
(x) Team America: World Police
(x) Red Dragon
(x Silence of the Lambs
(x) Hannibal
Total so far: 101

Vid of Week 2008-12-22: A Cappella Star Wars

John Williams without instruments.

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Best Scene Ever from The Shield

I'm playing catch up with "The Shield" on my Tivo. No, I don't have Tivo guilt. Anyway, last night I watched the second to last episode. It turns out that the penultimate episode contained the ultimate scene from the series. I haven't watched the finale yet, but it will be hard to top this scene. The Shield better win loads of emmys this year on the strength of this scene alone. And it's not just Michael Chiklis as Vic Mackey. CCH Pounder, Jay Karnes, and Laurie Holden are also brilliant. Take a look.

Monday, December 15, 2008

Technologizer: Apple Patentmania & Frenemies

I instantly subscribed to Technologizer, a blog I had never heard of before as soon as I read Apple Patentmania: 31 Years of Big Ideas. I then proceeded to read this excellent article about Frenemies. Wow! Great articles guys. I look forward to more.

Vid of Week 2008-12-15: YouTube Documentary Trailer on YouTube

Could be an interesting film.



Thanks to SpoutBlog for the heads up.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Monday, December 8, 2008

TiVo's Netflix HD is Live?

TiVo/Netflix HD is finally here. Strange, though, the TiVo website is still saying coming soon and I haven't seen it on my player yet--I'm not sure whether I've gotten the most recent software updates. Assuming that Electronista isn't jumping the gun, I'll post something with my impressions ASAP.

Vid of Week 2008-12-08: Prop 8

Hysterical video from Funny or Die, with a lot of well know actors participating. You'll fall off your chair with laughter.

See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Animation the Most Competitive Oscar Category?

Earlier this year, there was discussion that Wall-E should be a serious contender for Best Picture, not just Best Animated Feature, for which it was assumed that it would win easily. Now, it looks like Wall-E is not even a lock to win the animation category.

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

HD Streaming Matures in 2009

It looks like HD streaming will be here in 2009, at least from Amazon via TiVo and Netflix via Samsung Blu-Ray players. Hopefully, the announced TiVo/Netflix download service will include HD, since I have my eye on a streaming-deficient Panasonic Blu-Ray player.

Monday, December 1, 2008