Now Playing: The Amazing Spiderman 2

We went to see The Amazing Spiderman 2 a couple of weeks ago.  I do love Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone – they have great chemistry.  The movie, overall, was okay, but I felt it was a little slow.  I expect that from origin stories, but sequels should slip along at a fairly rapid pace.    It suffers from too many villains (see Batman Forever) and not enough time to give them the screen time needed to, well, care.  Castling was pretty much spot-on, but we saw entirely too little of everyone to really see the benefits of it.  And that Twilight-esque passage of time bit?  Schmaltz!

I guess Captain America is still too fresh on the brain.  I’m giving this a 3 out of 5 stars, based on special effects, cinematography, and casting alone.

Now Playing: Transcendence

I watched Transcendence over three weeks ago – sorry for being so late.  It was okay, but nothing mind-blowing.  I found HAL so much creepier.

It did spark a debate on whether one would choose to “live” eternally as a computer on a massive hard drive somewhere, if one could.  Also, as an extension of that question, what make a human, "human"? If you cut off my arms and legs, I’m still human.  What if you cut off my stomach too?  What if I’m just a brain/stem combo – still human? Robocop kinda talked about this – but he had a few meat organs left.  What if I all I have are the unique chemical composition of my brain and the electrical synaptic responses therein?

Dark thoughts for a Spring day.

Oh!  2.5 out of 5 stars.

Now Playing: Muppets Most Wanted

Indulged in my inner child in some Muppet mania with Muppets Most Wanted. Yes, the plot was thin and the cameos bordered on overkill, but it was what Muppets do best - funny and cute.  No secret that I'm a fan of Kermit - maybe it's because he's so earnest or that he loves the impossible Miss Piggy or his unfailing loyalty.  I don't know.  I like him a lot.  Seeing a mean Bizarro-Kermie? Pretty awesome!

My favourite moment has to be the green piglet and the pink tadpole, though.  Probably not worth going to the theatre - I'd even say it's a bit too slow for kids.  But it's a nice trip down nostalgia lane. 2.5 out of 5 stars.

For some bonus fun, check out:
Gordon  Ramsay v Swedish Chef 
...wicked.

Now Playing: Captain America: The Winter Soldier

I’ve been sitting on this for a while, and I’m not sure why.  Last Sunday, we went to see Captain America: The Winter Soldier in IMAX 3D (if you’re going to do to 3D, poppets, take it from this veteran: only bother if it’s in IMAX).  This is the second Captain America movie (and I must have not liked Cap; The First Avenger very much at all, as I didn’t even bother to review it) and the ninth Avengers movie in the series.  We should be getting tired of these by now, but they just seem to be getting better and better.

Case in point: TWS is really good.  I mean, really good. Yes, yes – action sequences, special effects, yaddayadda is all good. Pretty great, actually.  Especially on that crisp IMAX 3D screen.  But that’s to be expected.  What makes this one really good is script and, yes, acting.  I really felt for the Captain (something I was missing in the first one) and the Big Bad is the kind of antagonist I like: many shades of grey*. There are so many spoilers if I try to talk about this topic, so I’ll expound below.

Needless to say, it’s a good movie.  4 out of 5 stars.
*I hate that the phrase “shades of grey” has been co-opted by mediocre erotica.

Spoilers!

new look

Have decided to enter the Web2.0 era (just as 3.0 is getting going) and reformat the blog to fit more naturally on widescreen monitors.  While it is a bit of an adjustment (I do miss that black background...), I think it's time.  No need to be alarmed.  Same old me, just a different skin.

Now Playing: 300: Rise of an Empire

Wow.  I actually completely forgot we had watched 300: Rise of an Empire, like two weeks ago.  That's a statement unto itself.  So, what do I actually remember? umm...

Eva Green! Oh yes, she had the hottest costumes. Her battle armour had these fantastic golden spinal ridge-horn-dealies that actually had a defensive purpose!  And she was a wicked marksman, which meant her bow was elaborate and goth-ish.  Oh, and her "off-duty" "dress"?  Several leather strips that hid everything but gave her complete mobility.  drooool.  She also had the best lines.  Anyway - that's what I remember most.

 The rest is pretty much a blur of abs.  That's sad.  Oh, and the lack of anything remotely historical.  As we learned from Spartacus, when it's bloody and believable?  The combination is, simply, thrilling.

So, I guess I can't do anything but give it 2.5 out of 5 stars.  Anything more would be a lie.  

Now Playing: Veronica Mars

It’s funny, I never did share my love of Veronica Mars with you, poppets, via a dedicated post.  I mean, I’ve mentioned the show in passing, but haven’t had an ode to it like I have with others, and that’s okay.  That may change this summer.  After watching the movie, I’ve developed an itch to rewatch the show in its entirety.

The movie was like a really good, double-part episode.  Right down to not tying up all the loose ends and hinting to what’s coming up in the future.  The mystery is good, pacing is good… it’s all good.  The actors slipped right back into their roles , too.  No awkwardness there.  It’s great to see father and daughter reconnect (my favourite father-daughter relationship on TV, actually).  And LoVe? They’re perfect.

All in all: 4 out of 5 stars.  But if you’re not a fan – don’t even bother.  The movie will make so sense and half the dialogue quips will be lost.