4 posts tagged “comics”
.:What I'm Watching:.
30 Days of Night. [When a monthlong darkness sets in on the tiny Alaskan town of Barrow, the locals are visited by a flock of bloodthirsty vampires eager to take advantage of the no-sun zone. The town sheriff Eben Olemaun (Josh Hartnett) and his deputy and wife, Stella (Melissa George), must act fast to save the dark day. Based on a popular horror comic by Steve Niles, the film also stars Ben Foster and Danny Huston. ~netflix] i was all freaked out! i don't think i can read the source material since i was covering my eyes for parts of the movie... can't really cover your eyes if you're reading the comic book or reading the novels, right? these vampires aren't the sexy vampires. oh no. they're the scary, shit your pants vampires. heh. oh, and josh hartnett didn't suck! 4 out of 5 stars. (dude. i don't think i could live in barrow, AL. it's COLD. oh. and there's that month where the sun doesn't rise.)
The City of Violence. [Returning home for his old pal Wang-jae's (Kil-Kang Ahn) funeral, police Detective Tae-su (Doo-hong Jung) reunites with former friends Pil-ho (Beom-su Lee), Dong-hwan (Seok-yong Jeong) and Seok-hwan (Seung-wan Ryoo). But when Tae-su begins to suspect there's something fishy about the death, he launches an informal investigation. He soon finds himself pitted against Pil-ho, whose shady business dealings may have played a role in Wang-jae's demise. ~netflix] i thought it was pretty good. some of the fight scenes are awesome. ridiculous and over the top? yes. but awesome, nonetheless. i'm feeling generous today, so 4 out of 5 stars for this one, too. and as an aside, i'm telling you right now, you can never trust the buggy-eyed koreans. hehe. ;P
The Kite Runner. [Years after fleeing the Taliban and immigrating to the United States, an Afghan man (Khalid Abdalla) returns to his war-ravaged homeland to try to repay his debt to a childhood friend whose trust he betrayed. Marc Forster (Finding Neverland, Monster's Ball) directs this touching story of family, friendship and bravery, based on the best-selling novel by Khaled Hosseini. ~netflix] i thought it was really good. i didn't read the book so i have no idea how close it stayed to the novel. there were some... disturbing parts. katie and i were like, "maaaaybe something ELSE is going on. and they're just not showing it..." if you watched the movie, you probably know which part i'm talking about. heh. 4 out of 5 stars.
Silent Running. [In a ruined future, huge orbiting spaceships preserve the last remaining trees from pollution and overcrowding on Earth. Botanist Freeman Lowell (Bruce Dern) receives an order to destroy the trees. He refuses, setting himself against his superiors and fellow crew members. Directed by special-effects titan Douglas Trumbull, Silent Running's innovative effects and powerful themes ensured its cult status. ~netflix] uhm... that was... interesting. possibly the only sci-fi movie ever to have bunnies in it. yay, bunnies! steve thinks there may have been bunnies in the beginning of ET, but honestly, i don't remember. i was like 5 or something when i watched it. and another thing... it's rated G-rated, but there is killing and death in this movie. just no blood. 3 out of 5. (oooh! and the lead is bruce dern. laura dern's dad! i love laura dern!)
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. [Johnny Depp (in an Oscar-nominated role) reteams with director Tim Burton for this adaptation of the hit Broadway musical about the Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Depp plays Sweeney Todd, a man who becomes a deranged murderer seeking revenge after being falsely imprisoned. To add to the macabre nature of his crimes, he enlists the help of his lover, Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter), who disposes of the victims by baking them into meat pies -- sought after by all of London. ~netflix] i really enjoy burton and depp collaborations. some parts of the story didn't really make sense to me, but i liked the way the movie looked and i thought the casting was great. 4 out of 5.
.:What I'm Reading:.
FINALLY GETTING CAUGHT UP ON COMICS! hooray! but i'm too lazy right now to list them out. if you actually wanna know what i'm reading, PM me and i can tell you. heh.
Book: Show us a great comic book.
ch-ch-check it out!
it's seriously one of the best i've read. check out his site, too.
.:What I'm Watching:.
300. [from imdb: Based on Frank Miller's graphic novel about the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 B.C.] holy. crap. SO awesome. frank miller is so great. and dayam, i just have to say that i'm glad they gave this nobody director a chance because he did a kickass job. all of the nobody actors were great, too! and thank god that it was well done and did well at the box office because now we're going to get a Watchmen movie for sure! huzzah!
Adam's Apples. [from netflix: Utopian clergyman Ivan (Mads Mikkelsen) finds his
Mongolian Ping Pong. [from netflix: After the arrival of an ordinary ping pong ball in a small Mongolian village, Bilike and his friends attempt to decipher the mysterious origin of the object. No one in the family has any knowledge regarding the ball's source, so Bilike and his pals must journey to a distant monastery and, finally, to China. A film of wonder and discovery, director Hao Ning's charming comedy transports viewers to the eternal landscape of the endless steppe.] uhm... it's just... okay. uhm... this synopsis is a little misleading because it sounds like they actually travelled to a distant monastery... and to china... but... uhm. they didn't. and not only do they not know the ball's source, they don't know what the ball is at all. so yeah. the synopsis isn't really the greatest. but the one from imdb was worse. and i didn't feel like writing my own. ANYWAY... we watched it at double time. and even then, at times, i thought it was too slow. i can't imagine watching it in real time.
Shortbus. [from netflix: Director John Cameron Mitchell delivers an unbridled look at the New York City underground, focusing on a group of hipsters who frequent a downtown club renowned for its lascivious ways. Through graphic polymorphous sexual couplings -- and using an ensemble cast composed largely of first-time actors -- the film chronicles each character's erotic journey of self-discovery in a raw and riveting fashion.] it's like porn. but disguised as art. heh. i liked it. sort of... but... i have to admit that all of the sex started to overpower the actual story for me. and i believe the actors were actually having sex. not just pretending. and i'm certain that this movie will never ever ever get rated by the MPAA. hehe. i'm sure that for some people, watching this movie would just be out of the question because they'd be so offended by the images. others would see the sex as just a vehicle for the story... but it was just too much. i don't know. i guess if i wanted to watch porn, i'd just watch porn. heh. i just read the trivia on imdb. it says: To make the actors more comfortable, the director and the cameramen were stripped naked while filming the scene. i'm not sure i'd feel more comfortable. heh. man. i'm such a prude, i guess. heh.
Unhitched. [from netflix: Struggling writer Olly Pickering (Stuart Townsend) doesn't mind serving as best man at his college pal's wedding even though he hasn't seen his friend in years. But when Olly falls for the beautiful, charming young bride (Amy Smart), his roommate Murray (Seth Green) cooks up a convoluted plan to sabotage the ceremony at any cost. It's sheer matrimonial mayhem in director Stefan Schwartz's outrageous romantic comedy.] it's cute. i actually liked it. i liked it more than "the holiday" which i watched last week... unfortunately, there are only 5 stars that i can use to rate movies on netflix. and i gave the holiday 3 stars. does that mean i have to give it 4 stars? i guess i will. why not. i love a good, happy ending. AND seth green talks with an english accent. HAH! it's very predictable, though. i guess rom-coms tend to be predictable. but it's still enjoyable.
.:What I'm Reading:.
300 - Frank Miller, Lynn Varley.
SO SO GOOD. i totally got chills reading it. and now that i've read it,
i can appreciate the movie even more. zack snyder did a FANTASTIC job
on the movie. and here's just a bit of trivia. lynn varley is frank
miller's wife. or ex-wife. or whatever. anyway, she's the colorist.
ooh, it says that she did some of the backgrounds for the movie, too.
.:What I'm Watching:.
too many movies… so these reviews will be the shortest ever!
Angel-A. luc besson movie. beautifully shot in black and white. it’s like a chick flick, but not necessarily for chicks.
An Inconvenient Truth. al gore’s passionate crusade to save the world from global warming. it’s great. and he’s a great speaker. really makes you think about your impact on this world.
Captain Blood. errol flynn became a film star with this movie. he plays a swashbuckling pirate… i have always loved errol flynn ever since i watched robin hood as a kid.
Cars. owen voices lightning mcqueen, a hotshot rookie racecar. it was really good. i thoroughly enjoyed it. it was well done… and what a good looking movie. really. he learns that there’s more to life than just being the #1 racecar, blah, blah, blah.
Clerks II. kevin smith. donkey show. jay doing a … er… uhm… tuck dance. enough said.
Death in Gaza . heartbreaking documentary. the film maker had set out to do a documentary on the israeli and pakistani children and the impact the ongoing war had on them. he ends up getting killed during the making of the film. he never got a chance to get the israeli children’s side of the story. but it was amazing to see how much hatred these children are brought up in.
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, Season 1. I HAVE THE POWER! my mom never really let me watch tv. but in the afternoons, i’d watch this show… and then my mom would touch the back of the tv and feel that it was hot and then i’d be totally busted for watching tv. yeah. so anyway, i love how prince adam looks EXACTLY LIKE HE-MAN (except he’s wearing a totally gay outfit) but NO ONE KNOWS THAT HE’S HE-MAN! also, i like how his voice gets the echo effect when he’s he-man. oh, and i like the moral at the end of the cartoon. heh. i think more cartoons should have that. hehe.the writing and the animation are crap, but i still loved that show...
Ice Age: The Meltdown. i want to see an entire movie of just scrat. is that so wrong? scrat’s just so friggin’ cute! the movie was cute. i really liked it.
John Tucker Must Die. i liked it more than i thought i would. there’s a lot of stupid stuff in it. and a lot of stuff that is just totally unrealistic, but i don’t think they were trying to take themselves seriously. i think that makes it more fun. john tucker plays a playah (heh) who is dating 3 girls. when they all find out, they vow to get revenge on him.
Miami Vice. entertaining, i suppose. colin farrell seriously needs to take a shower. it was just all right. i didn’t love it, i didn’t hate it. it was just… meh.
Midnight Cowboy. i could’ve sworn i was getting some other movie. but whatever. anyway, jon voigt plays a guy who’s from texas… he goes to NY to live out his big dreams of becoming a hustler and making money off lonely chicks. dustin hoffman plays a scruffy homeless dude who ends up becoming the cowboy’s bestest friend. i think the muppets Rizzo the Rat was named after him.
Network. fictional tale about the first man to be killed for having low ratings. so this tv network totally takes advantage of this pretty much insane guy who thinks he's some kind of modern prophet.really good.
Rushmore. jason schwartzmann is a high school student attending rushmore, an elite academy for rich, smart kids. he falls in love with a teacher there. gets expelled and ends up going to a public high school. i love bill .
Superman Returns. man, i loved this movie. routh (spelling?) was fantastic! there were certain angles that made him look just like christopher reeve. who, of course was my first crush EVER. i thought it was great. it’s definitely making my top 5 movies of 2006 list.
That’s the Way I Like It. (aka Forever Fever) singapore flick set in the disco era. let’s see. it was not very good. but it was borderline “so bad that it’s good.” it had disco music, dancing, kung fu, comedy, romance, drama. quite possibly every movie element you could ever possibly want all jammed into one movie.
Thumbsucker. i really liked it. about a boy in high school who still sucks his thumb. well, basically it's about that... anyway, it was pretty good.
To Kill a Mockingbird. super good. based on the book. if you haven’t read it, do it. and if you haven’t seen this movie, do that also.
Who Killed the Electric Car? also super good. it’s interesting to see what happened to the electric car and how the various forces played a part in getting rid of the electric car.
Wordplay. and another super good movie. about crossword puzzles, the people who solve them and create them and the people who attend the crossword puzzle convention every year. it was fascinating. maybe because i love documentaries AND i love crossword puzzles.
You, Me and Dupree. i *heart* owen . kate hudson and owen had waaaay more on-screen
chemistry than she did with matt dillon. i guess that’s why she and owen ended
up together in real life. owen
plays a guy who is basically a loser. he moves in with his best friend and new
bride. the previews made it seem like the whole movie was going to be about how
he mooches off them, but that’s not exactly the entire plot. eh, it’s worth a
rent. i liked it.
.:What I'm Listening To:.
Brand New Heavies: Get Used To It. great funk.
Tenacious D: The Pick of Destiny. the soundtrack to the movie. it is typical D.
.:What I'm Reading:.
Matthew Bernier. really good. support indie comics.
