Saturday, December 1, 2012

In The Name Of The King: A Dungeon Siege Tale

Chris here, I watched the first 35 minutes of In The Name Of The King: A Dungeon Siege Tale and I had to turn it off. This isn't the worst movie I have ever seen, but it is in the top 5. I'll keep this short.


     Uwe Boll is the master at making terrible movies. He is also the master of giving video game movies a bad name. Dungeon Siege is a sub-par video game that is only known because it is a Diablo 2 knock off.  This film follows suit by being a below sub-par film that is only known because it is so bad and it also happens to be a Lord Of The Rings knock off. It'e pretty apparent that he is modeling this movie directly after Lord of The Rings with all the sweeping shots of landscape (which starts off the movie) the films score (more on that later) and the main bad guys (some kind of orc knock off). The first thing I thought after starting to watch this film on Youtube, for free, was "how does this talent-less director get these names?" Actors like Jason Statham, Ron Pearlman,  Ray Liotta and Burt Reynolds!? Talented people who can make a quality film when they want to, other then to earn a quick buck and the promise of a wrap party within 20 days I can't imagine that any of these people would want to work with Boll. If you want to know more about this psychopathic director I recommend looking at his wiki. I found the part where he says he will box any critic particularly funny, I decided that I would love to see him try to fight Robert Ebert.

Seeing "Bandit" as a king is strange and confusing. 
     This film opens with no context, my guess is Ray Liotta is an evil mage who is sleeping with the king's daughter who is a mage in training and the king would not approve of this. How do I know this? Great lines like "I'm so glad your training me to use this magic but my father's the king and if he finds out about us we will be in trouble". We are told that the shitty orc knock offs are attacking people and we are introduced to King Burt Reynolds. We see "Farmer" played by Jason Statham (because being named what you do is lazy and stupid so Boll had to put it in) doing things with his family including pulling some kind of root, and eating said root. It was at this point that I figured that his wife and son would both die within the next 15 minutes, nay, I demanded that these characters die. We are then introduced to Ron Pearlman. I don't know who he is but I think his name is "Old Guy who uses a pick ax as a weapon" or something like that. "Farmer" then has to fight a bunch of the orc knock off's and doesn't get hit, he runs to Ron Pearlman's house who shouts "It's about time" like he should have known they would be there too and how dare he not arrive before defending his own home. There's no explanation why anyone can fight that I saw or heard, but maybe they said something about it and the score was so overwhelming that I couldn't hear it.

     Speaking of the score, god damn this is terrible. Boll needs to turn it down. It's not like the dialogue is so great that we need to hear it but I don't want to listen to shitty wanna be Lord of the rings score when I can just listen to LOTR soundtrack (also on Youtube if you don't own it). Next question: Was there a fight choreographer? The first 35 minutes is 25 minutes of fighting and 10 minutes of useless story so there should have been, but there's no consistency.  Every time "Farmer" ducks and has a orc thing roll over him they die, no rhyme, no reason, there just gone forever. I think I figured it out though, every time "Farmer" rolls a orc thing off of him a small worm hole opens up and sucks them in, it makes as much sense as anything else in this movie so why not.

      More happened but I turned it off right around the part where they get to a bridge that has been burnt down and decide to zipline across a it with a piece of leather. "Farmer" makes it across but Pearlman gets stuck half way and the third guy goes without looking and ohhh no.... Hilarity sets in when they collide on the rope and fall several hundred feet into water below. Good thing the waters super deep and not normal water that will still kill you when you hit it because they are fine. The next line was so funny, Ron Pearlman gets out of the water and he's soaking wet and he says "So much for a short cut". That was the last straw for me. I had to turn it off.

This looks like a crappy Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles villain from the third movie.
    This is one of the worst things my eyes have ever endured and I've watched 60 year old meth addicted chicks taking their tops off at concerts. I couldn't get through it. I had better things to do.In summary the score was awful, the acting terrible, script... well I don't know if they had one, the set pieces looked like set pieces, the enemies are stock, the characters are stock and I think a dead, deaf, blind monkey could have made a better film.

0 out of 10 Boomerang throws that do nothing but scare off birds.
2 out of 10 Boomerang throws that do nothing but scare off birds. (If drinking, while watching with friends)

Saturday, November 24, 2012

3 Hours of Call Me Maybe By Comedian Erik Bowman

     So let me start this by saying that I’m a complete idiot, a moron, a fool, for even attempting such a feat.  I was at the PX here in Kuwait, and I noticed the song “Call Me Maybe” by Carly Rae Jepsen playing over the speakers.  Nothing abnormal, it’s a popular song at the moment with a solid 300+ million views on YouTube.  Then the song ended, and then it started again.  As I was paying for my stuff, I sparked up a conversation with the cashier about the song starting again.  In very broken English he informed me that the song was playing on repeat for about 3 hours.  Fuck.

     This got me wondering, how could someone hear that song, or any song for that matter, over and over again and not crack.  How could they not have their mind engulfed in the crippling tentacles of dementia and start flinging their own shit at strangers?  Or better yet, who would be so insane and idiotic to do this on purpose?  I would.  My name is Erik Bowman, and being of sound mind and body, I am going to listen to Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe” on repeat for 3 hours.  No breaks, no stoppages, doing nothing but listening to this song for 3 goddamn hours.  These are my thoughts as this terrifying feat is attempted.  This is for science.

Play count: 0
My hands are already shaking a little, I’ve heard this song a few times, and I already hate it.  I’m sincerely dreading what’s to come.
Play count: 1
iTunes rating = 1 star, take that Carly.
Play count: 3
I can’t help but notice that Carly sounds like a sheep when she says, “So baaaad.”  This won’t be so bad, I can do this.  I’m a grown ass man and she’s a Canadian Idol reject.

Play count: 5
Why the fuck am I doing this?  My stopwatch is showing 13 minutes and it’s already felt like an eternity.  Initially this just seemed like a funny idea, but right now I’m realized exactly how stupid of a fucking idea this is.  Unrelated note, I couldn’t find any naked pictures of her online.

Play count: 10
I honestly think my brain just shut off for the past 3 or 4 plays and I’m pretty sure that’s not a good sign.  But as soon as I started typing I became aware of what I was doing again and started paying attention to it again.  Also, it took about 10 plays of this song on repeat for me to actually notice the guitar in it.

Play count: 11
These pistachios are pretty good.  Sidenote, I’m dead inside.

Play count: 13
I’m starting to really enjoy the winding down sound part at the end of the song, because I get to enjoy a few seconds of break from the song.
Play count: 19
One hour down, this is a lot harder than I thought it would be.  Deep breath Bowman, you can do this.

Play count: 20
HEY I JUST MET YOU AND THIS IS CRAZY BUT HERE’S MY NUMBER SO CAHUIODFASNOJFASNUOFWANU

Play count: 21
I want to die.

Play count: 24
I can say without a doubt that I know absolutely every lyric to this song which is something I never wanted to be able to say I could do.  I’m also ashamed to say at times I find myself bobbing my head to the song.

Play count: 27
At this point I’m just silently shaking my head.  To be completely honest I’m extremely close to tapping out.
Play count: 29
I’m halfway there, I didn’t think I would even make it this far.  I took a few Advil since I’m starting to develop a headache, and staring at the screen is causing my eyes to water.  Maybe they’re just tears, I’m not quite sure.

Play count: 32
BEFORE YOU CAME TO INTO MY LIFE I MISSED YOU SO BAAAAAAAAD

Play count: 36
What happened?  Did I just black out for 4 plays of the song?  I literally blinked and it’s been over 10 minutes and I really can’t remember anything.
Play count: 38
Two hours down, one to go, I really can’t wait for this to be over.  This song is making my fucking teeth hurt.

Play count: 39
I’m really trying to come up with funny and entertaining things to say for this blog, but my mind is just fuzzy at this point.  I think this song is slowly killing me.  Carly is the slowest assassin I’ve ever heard of.

Play count: 42
I would probably pay $1000 to listen to any other song right now, maybe even $2000.  I just got a nosebleed.

Play count: 44
$3000.
Play count: 46
My head is throbbing at this point, I’m starting to rock back and forth mouthing the words the entire time, I’m really close to quitting, but I’m so close.  Sooooo close.
Play count: 48
A half an hour to go, every time this song ends I close my eyes and hope as hard as I can that a different song is going to play and every time it’s fucking Carly telling me about how she “threw a wish in the well”.

Play count: 52
I’m getting so close, maybe 5 to 6 more plays.  ICANDOTHISICANDOTHISICANDOTHISICANDOTHISICANDOTHISICANDOTHISICANDOTHISICANDOTHIS.

Play count: 54
I almost puked.  I’m not even lying to you I legitimately hung my head over my garbage can and couldn’t stop coughing.  I think I’m dying…

Play count: 55
AND ALL THE OTHER BOYS TRY TO CHASSSSSE MEEE
Play count: 56
I’m so close, it’s the home stretch.  DON’T STOP ME NOOOOOOOOOOW!
Play count: 56 with 20 seconds left
It’s over… It’s finally over.  I never have to do something like this ever again.  I think I’m going to go outside, smoke a cigarette and really think about what I’m doing with my life.  Well, maybe one more play won’t kill me…

Chris's Album Reviews: Of Monsters and Men - My Head Is An Animal


 File:My Head Is An Animal.jpg

 Nothing says indie rock like a person walking on a beach with a house behind them in waves


     The album My Head Is An Animal is a testament to how a single song can ruin your fan base. The first (and only) major single “Little Talks” is nothing like the rest of this album, so much so that it feels weird and out of place on an otherwise stellar album. Several of the songs fit well, but I fell that this album could use a little more production value. By that I don’t mean that its poor quality recording, I don’t think you can get poor quality recording any more, but I mean some songs (like little talks) just don’t feel like they belong on this album and the ones that do feel jumbled.

       I believe in a graph that marks each track and shows its flow and energy, what I am looking for is either a straight line, a wave or a strong upward of downward trend. This means I want an album to properly flow. When there are several peaks and valleys in an album I find myself having a much harder time getting into it. My Head Is An Animal is nothing but high peaks and low valleys. Typically this kills and album for me but here it just makes it annoying. I am always thinking about how things can be better and it really breaks my heart to think about how with just a little work this could be the best album of the year.
 This is how I see this albums energy reading.

     Each song has its own flow and I don’t want to review each of them however I will touch on my favorites. The album has one of the best opening songs for an album that I have heard in years with “Dirty Paws”. The song perfectly sets the tone for the entirety of the album, it has lots of build up and introduces us to their style of music with two singers being at the for-front with stunning harmonies. “Little Talks” is the best song on this album but needs to be replaced with a different song. It feels out of place, comes in with no warning and leaves you wanting more of the same but it never shows up. It has a strong punch and a strong horn section that just seems to fade right after it gets flowing."Love Love Love" is a song that makes you understand just how good of a singer the female vocalist really is. its a strong song that has very little back-up instruments.

I had to double check to make sure I wasn't on random when I first listened.
    
      My recommendation for Of Monsters and Men is to move around the songs to adjust the flow and remove "Little Talks" and release it as a single only. This album is very strong on its own and could be a classic if just a little more effort was put into it. Still, as is, this is a beautiful album that is rich with great songs that I defy most people not to enjoy. I will be, just in my own order.

8 out of 10 son’s that the mow the lawn.

Friday, August 3, 2012

The Worst Music Ever Made: Butterfly by Crazy Town

I had the displeasure of listening to the radio today on my ride into work. The local "Alternative station" was playing one of the worst songs ever created. Ladies and Gentlemen I give you "Butterfly" by Crazy Town. 
                                            "Bro.. that cover will NEVER become dated!"             

Holy moley where to start? This "song" for lack of a better word is terrible, if you have never heard it count yourself lucky, but also a little unlucky, more that later. Crazy Town is a rap/rock group formed in the mid ninety's and found one hit wonder status in 2000 when this song jumped up the charts all the way to #1. I suspect foul play, how did this useless excuse for a song reach the top spot in 2000? Well it did knock "Stutter" by Joe off.... so that's something in its plus column. Also it's where DJ AM got his start, that's right, he was in Crazy Town.

What makes it the worst music ever made: Well simple, it has a boring repetitive guitar riff, terribly written and preformed lyrics and a music video that is just funny these days. Watching this video was like stepping back to the year 2000. I can imagine a conversation with my daughter one day, "Dad what did people wear when you were in high school?" I'll show her this video and say "That's what douchebags of my day wore... that and really saggy pants regardless of their social-economic state, because they don't understand that the trend is based on a certain lifestyle that they don't properly lend themselves to.... Now run along daddy needs a drink." These are the lyrics formatted for your reading pleasure:

Come my lady
Come come my lady
you're my butterfly
Sugar.baby

Come my lady
Come come my lady
you're my butterfly
Sugar.baby

Such a sexy,sexy pretty little thing
Fierce nipple pierce you got me sprung with your tongue ring
and I ain't gonna lie cause your loving gets me high
So to keep you by my side thGere's nothing that I won't try
Butterflies in her eyes and looks to kill
Time is passing I'm asking could this be real
Cause I can't sleep I can't hold still
The only thing I really know is she got sex appeal

I can feel too much is never enough
You're always there to lift me up
When these times get rough I was lost, now I'm found
Ever since you've been around
You're the women that I want
So yo, I'm putting it down.

"Chorus"
Come my lady
Come come my lady
you're my butterfly
Sugar.baby
come my lady you're my
pretty baby ill make your legs shake
you make me go crazy

Come my lady
Come come my lady
you're my butterfly
Sugar.baby
come my lady you're my
pretty baby ill make your legs shake
you make me go crazy

I don't deserve you unless it's some kind of hidden message
to show me life is precious
Then I guess it's true
But to tell truth, I really never knew
T'll I met you... See I was lost and confused
Twisted and used up
Knew a better life existed but thought that I missed it

My lifestyle's wild I was living like a wild child
Trapped on a short leash paroled the police files
So yo. what' s happening now?
I see the sun breaking down into dark clouds
and a vision of you standing out in a crowd.

Chorus

Hey sugar momma, come and dance with me
The smartest thing you ever did was take a chance with me
Whatever tickles your fancy
Girl it's me and you like Sid and Nancy
So sexy....almost evil Talkin' about butterflies in my head
I used to think that happy endings were only in the books I read but
you made me feel alive when I was almost dead

You filled that empty space with the love I used to chase
and as far as I can see it don't get better than this
So butterfly, here is a song and it's sealed with a kiss
and a thank you miss.

come and dance with me
come and dance with me
come and dance with me
so come and dance with me
uhhhhh ha uhhh ha

Chorus x2

"I'm like Mark Mcgrath from Sugar Ray, but HARDCORE"

Maybe its me but what is the singer trying to get across with this? Does he just want her for sex? Is he trying to be her boyfriend? There's some pretty serious mixed messages in this especially in the line "Girl it's me and you like Sid and Nancy." Yeah... they're dead, he killed her then over dosed on heroin, seems like a poor analogy, unless you plan on stabbing her to death in a shitty apartment in New York, then its perfect! However, based on what the lead singer "Shifty Shellshock" (did I really just type that?) has been in the press for recently, maybe he does want to do that.

Cultural Impact Today: None, Crazy Town didn't inspire anyone, most people don't even know they exist and thank whatever god you pray to for that.

Score of Annoyingness: 7 out of 10, this song is terrible and annoying but in a way that is almost enjoyable. This is why I said earlier your lucky but unlucky if you had never heard it. It's a song that's so bad it's good, like films Manos: The Hands Of Fate or Roadhouse there is no value beyond laughing at how dumb they are. With this being said, when I have my wife in the car and it comes on the radio I crank it and we sing along.

Behind The Curve: 21 Jump Street

 21 Jump Street is not a new film, it came out earlier this year and I decided to wait until DVD to watch it. It was extremely entertaining. So how do you review a film you liked? It's really not as easy as just pointing out the flaws and getting upset like you can with movies that are garbage. Comedies are normally harder to judge especially if it looks like the people on screen are having fun and that’s what this film does, it has a good time with its actors, its source material and its overall plot. To say the least, I enjoyed it.




The Plot: A couple of cops played by Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum look and act immature and when they forget to read Miranda rights after arresting a drug dealer they are placed in a special undercovee squad designed to infiltrate high schools and bring down major crime rings that operate within them. Along the way there are hi-jinks including the two accidently switching fake identities leaving Tatum as the smart chemistry student while Hill is the track star. You see Tatum playing every instrument in a full orchestra and the two engaged in a car chase with Hill dressed as Peter Pan. It takes a fairly simple concept that we have seen several times before, the buddy cop flick, and adds many elements to appease its audience which is obviously aimed at males 15-39.

What was good: I never thought I would say this... The chemistry of Hill and Tatum is dead on, I feel like I could watch these two read the phone book to each other and it would be entertaining. Tatum is especially funny and earns some points in my book because of his ability to laugh at himself. Ice Cube is perfect as a stereotypical pissed off black captain, but he himself points this out so it's all in good fun. Good plot, tons of fun.
"Have you ever fired one gun whilst jumping through the air?"

What was bad: Not a lot, you kinda know what you’re in for when you watch this. The major nitpick is the lack of strong female roles. All females are either fragile or sex pots, but that’s not who they are aiming for with this film. I couldn’t tell you Hill’s or Tatum’s characters real or fake names.

It’s fun, if you like modern comedies that curse and you don't mind watching a guy trying to pick up his severed penis with his mouth this movie is for you.

8 out of 10 piƱata’s stuffed with drugs

Monday, July 23, 2012

The Dark Knight Rises

I went to see The Dark Knight Rises yesterday and all I can say is, eh.....
Talk about squandered potential, this film was geared to break all the records, be the first truly great superhero film trilogy and it falls flat. I had more moments asking myself what just happened and wondering if it was just me not understanding the plot because of the major holes then I care to count. Luckily it wasn't just me. I watched the film with a critic's eye, enjoying what there was to enjoy and trying to wrap my head around what story line I was provided. I left disappointed to say the least, and how could I not be? This film was hailed as a masterpiece months before it came out, rumors buzzed about the plot, the casting, the script. Will The Batman die? Will Bane take up his comic book counterparts title as the man who broke the bat? As it turns out, no.

Allow me to break it down. I am going to wrap up the issues with this movie, needless to say, SPOILERS.

                                                        Fuck Yeah he'll rise! Rise so hard!

The Dark Knight is one of the greatest superhero films ever made. Not only did it truly give us a hero to cheer for but it gave us two great villains, good supporting characters and a solid plot with a great second act ending. Setting The Dark Knight Rises 8 years later was a bold choice, but a good one, I personally agree with Nolan's plan to give this character some time in between the events of the Jokers attack and Bane's. However from the start this is questioned, The Batman has been gone for 8 years, but how long has Bruce Wayne been a shut in? It's not really determined, or at least it wasn't spelled out well enough for me. We can deduce that he has been shut in for awhile, and this happened after the clean energy project failed. We see Gordon debating if he should tell the truth about Dent... 8 years after he dies.... yeah this seems like as good of time as any, speaking of, what is the Dent act? It's never explained, we can determine that it is an act that keeps criminals in jail but other than that, who knows?

                               Ohhhh, that's the Dent act, just had to do a Google search to find it.

It seems to me that The Joker is a great reference point to any superhero villain, be it DC or Marvel. Heath Ledger's take on The Clown Prince of Crime is the stuff Oscars are made of. Bane however is underplayed to the point of boredom, what do we know about Bane? Nothing really, he's ruthless, has men who will follow him to their death, but really, we don't know much, especially after the "big reveal"... more on that later. So putting Bane in this mask that covers up half his face so we can't see Tom Hardy act was dumb, it's like hiring top notch actors to play chipmunks, its a waste of money. Bane looks threatening but other than that, nothing, there was no emotion on his face, no love, no fear, no nothing. It's not Tom Hardy's fault... we can't see his damn face! His voice is painfully dubbed to the point where it just gets annoying and he has a strange Deckard Cain voice that sounds like he should be identifying my Plate Mail of the Stars instead of threatening Batman. In the end Bane is reduced to the same fate as in Batman and Robin, second fiddle to a woman mastermind who is controlling him. Whats sad is that in the comics Bane is not only physically threatening but intellectually as well, and we will never see him do this in a film. He will always just be a big bodyguard.
                                                       Stay awhile and destroy Gotham.

The action scenes..... oh man, what action scenes? Watching Batman and Bane fight was boring, how do you fuck that up?! By making them just punch at each other, nothing else, just throw punches, two of the worlds greatest fighters, both trained by the league of shadows, Bane is a prison fighter and they just trade blows like some dumb Rock-em Sock-em Robots. Wheres the flair? I know that the "Boss Battles" in The Dark Knight Trilogy have all been pretty boring, but the fight with Scarecrow and Joker weren't really supposed to be intense, this needed to be, and wasn't. The other action scenes all involved Batman or Catwoman driving a vehicle and shooting people. Speaking of shooting people, if Batman won't use guns why do all of his vehicles have massive guns mounted on them? What sense does that make? None, but they sure look cool! Other action scenes included climbing and walking through a sewer.

Now the twist. Was I the only one who knew Miranda Tate was going to be evil? No, of course not, that was shown a mile away, but making her Ra's al Ghul's daughter was suprising and a waste. It would have been way better if we just took out her character completely, she makes Bane look weak minded. The "trigger" for the bomb is also a waste, a nice little way to pad out the movie but there was no need for a trigger, just say there's one and go from there, the fear alone will keep people at bay. Switching topics. Robin..... WHY? That is all.

Wrapping up: By reading this you would think I hated this movie, but I didn't It was a good attempt and not a bad film. However it has been hyped so much and has so much that it needs to reach to be as good as the previous film that it fails. Nolan tries to make a huge epic film that feels like it may be able to happen if someone who has the resources and drive attempted, but it falls flat. The bland colors mixed with the repetitive score get old quick add that with boring acting and boring action and we get a sub-par drama.
To sum it up, The Dark Knight did not rise, it fluttered then fell, like a dead pigeon.

Final Score: 6 out of 10 Dead Russian nuclear physicist

For comparison: Batman Begins: 9 out of 10. The Dark Knight: 10 out of 10

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Marvel NOW! or how I learned to love the re-boot

Hey everybody Chris here,
I typically like re-boots. I know this makes me in the minority because people typically feel attached to characters and plot lines and they hate to have all that time wasted. The exception seems to be James Bond because we understand most are independent characters and independent stories and we're cool with that. Maybe it's because we can't get close to Bond. Sure we know what he likes and how smooth he is, but its not like we really know a ton about his psyche. I digress, you see I love to "clean house" throw away all the extra and start from scratch. I learn from my past mistakes and make a better product.

At least that's the idea, the sad truth is that most re-boots are simply cash cows that executives in their respective industries cash into to make a quick buck. Comic books are the worst offenders in the re-boot world. It seems like a comic book character can't go more than a few years without being completely re-booted, even entire companies re-boot. DC's new 52 can be presented in two ways. #1: It is a good way to do away with years convoluted story lines that may or may not have been resolved, tons of 2nd, 3rd and 4th string characters who need to be eliminated and 80 years of character development that new readers would need to know to understand, in short, a brand new "jumping on point" for new readers. #2: A giant FUCK YOU to everyone who reads the comic and has been for years.

Marvel NOW! is attempting to do the same thing that The New 52 did, the major problem is that Marvel already did this 10(ish) years ago with the Ultimate universe. So I'll say it once, Marvel please stop what you are doing, its not going to gain you any new fans and just piss off the fan base you already have.

Marvel can you hear me....?