Movies/TV

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (5 second review...give or take a few)

Stephen Majewski — Mon, 12 Dec 2005 22:42:00 GMT

Pros

This is the best book in the series.
The movie was much better than the Prisoner of Azkaban (and is my favorite adaptation so far).
The kids are learning to act (though Daniel (Harry) is the slowest learner).

Cons

The new Dumbledore sucks, sucks, 100 times sucks (reinforced from my thoughts of him in part 3).
Fleur is not the knockout, part-Veela she was written to be nor is there any mention of why all the boys go ga ga for her.
The final event is much, much, much better in the book and quite dull in the movie. They should have trimmed the first event, which went much longer in the movie than the book, if they needed more time.
I really wanted to see Mr. Weasley bitch out Mr. Dursley, but alas no such luck. In fact, the Dursleys weren't in the movie at all.

You Can't Take the Sky From Me

Stephen Majewski — Sat, 01 Oct 2005 22:37:00 GMT

I’ve just returned from an afternoon showing of the new Joss Whedon flick, Serenity. As a fan of both Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel as well as a late blooming fan of the underappreciated Firefly, I was highly interested in seeing this first motion picture that was solely Whedon’s vision. Though Joss has written multiple screenplays, Serenity is his directorial debut.

First off, let me say that the rumors that it is not necessary to have seen the doomed Firefly series are a bit unfounded. While the movie covers enough back history to not leave a newbie completely lost, there is little time dedicated to character development. With eight characters returning from the original series along with a couple new characters being added, the entire movie would have been wasted trying to cover everyone’s individual stories.

The movie itself was typical Whedon style. There was an excellent balance of action, drama, and humor (sometimes all in the same scene) all wrapped around an excellent story. I really don’t want to get into any more details for fear that someone will hunt me down like a dog for spoiling the movie. Some scenes did feel like they were running a bit long, but that might have simply been the uncomfortable theater chairs wearing away at my back.

As expected with a motion picture, the visual effects have been kicked up a notch. Considering how impressive the effects have become on television, it’s good to see that there is always room for improvement. At one point in the movie, there is a massive battle scene that rivals that of the opening scenes of Revenge of the Sith. I’m not a huge fan of movies that are all about the special effects, and Serenity in no way relies on these effects. As should be the case, the effects help to progress the story not overshadow it.

Considering these actors have held relatively small roles in their careers, I feel they did an excellent job. Joss required a larger range of emotions from his actors, and they were more than happy to deliver for him. Oddly enough, three of the main characters in Firefly were reused by Joss as villains on both Buffy and Angel. Luckily, I was able to shake off my negative feelings for them though a strict diet of watching Firefly before seeing this movie; lest mine eyes be waiting for Buffy or Angel to step out of the shadows to give them a little bit of the old ultra-violence.

So the bottom line is, I liked the movie. I wouldn’t say I loved it; otherwise I’d be willing to see it multiple times at $7.50 a pop. I would highly recommend this movie as long as you’ve seen the series first (which would mean I’m preaching to the choir). I feel the lack of character development would make it more difficult for someone who hasn’t seen the series to have the necessary emotional attachment to the characters. Trust me, you’ll have a greater appreciation for the movie in the end.

Find more information on Joss Whedon and his projects at www.whedon.info.

Transformers The Movie - Part Deux

Stephen Majewski — Sat, 30 Jul 2005 18:42:00 GMT

Sometimes it's hard for us to let go of our youth. When I was younger I loved the Transformers (still do considering I'm watching Season One as I type this). I still collect some of the newer toys that strike my fancy, though the Generation 1 replicas are too expensive for me. In any case, I was out digging around on the Transformers website when I found a link to a movie website. It turns out that a live-action movie is in the works; scheduled for release on 7/4/2007.

I won’t say I didn’t feel a tingle of excitement, but it was quickly overshadowed by deep concern. Despite the success of some of the current comics-gone-movies, there are still a few that are gigantic stinkers. Okay, the Transformers weren’t exactly all that special. They were quite cheesy and as an adult I see the shows were glorified marketing mechanisms, but I digress.

When I was 11, the original Transformers movie was released. I remember busting my butt washing windows for cabbies to earn enough money to go see it. In all, I saw the movie numerous times in theaters. I had a video tape I wore to nothingness (I still have it, actually). I even recorded the audio so I could listen to the movie during family trips (we only had walkmans back then, not in-car DVD players these young whipper snappers have today).

The original movie was cool. I own it on DVD and still watch it from time to time. Of course, it was also another marketing mechanism by which they (Hasbro) swapped out all the old Transformers with new ones. If you watch the first few seasons, you’ll see Autobots and Decepticons take hit after hit. In the movie, they fall with one shot. Kinda obvious if you ask me. BUY NEW TOYS!!!

Going back to the new live-action movie, I hope they are able to come up with a screenplay that will cater to kids while not taking a giant poo on the original fans like me. Personally, I’d prefer to see the Gen 1 guys. It’s wishful thinking on my part, since it’ll most likely involve the newer versions of the characters.

Despite my misgivings, I know I’ll go see it. The good part is I’m older, so I don’t care about waiting like I did when I was a wee one.

Episode III - Montezuma's Revenge

Stephen Majewski — Wed, 01 Jun 2005 05:06:00 GMT

After a couple of weeks of patient waiting, I finally dragged myself to the theater to see Episode III. My wallet is lighter (okay, actually I had a gift certificate…but it’s as good as cash). I had reservations before I went in, but felt I needed to see this final installment.

A part of me wants to keep in mind that, complain as I might, this IS Lucas’ vision and not my own. Therefore, my complaints are somewhat unjustified. Another part of me feels cheated. Still, after Episode I and II, what did I expect?

In a nutshell, this movie was horrible. The battles went too long and were far too busy. The dialog was unbearably cheesy and delivered as though the actors had just stepped in front of a camera for the first time. And a part of me wishes I could erase the image of Darth Vader screaming, “Noooooooooooo!”

The success of the original trilogy earned Lucas the right to make his own movie the way he wanted. All I can say is, perhaps the studios actually KNEW what they were doing when they dug their claws into the original trilogy. Power corrupts.

Even if I could get my $9.50 back, I’d still be out the 2:23 minutes (not counting previews) Lucas has sapped away from my life.

The Force is Weak With This One

Stephen Majewski — Tue, 24 May 2005 02:24:00 GMT

I know I’m going to lose a bunch of nerd points for this, but I have yet to drag myself out to the new Star Wars movie. There’s a part of me that that just cannot justify standing in line for a movie longer than the actual length of the movie.

I hate lines. I hate traffic. I hate waiting. So I wait on my own time and get what I want with immediate gratification. Okay, so I’m still waiting in a way and don’t have the luxury of the “experience”, but I don’t really care. I still get to see the movie. I did my waiting in line for the re-release of Episode 4. What I got was a crappy seat in a packed theater. No, thank you.

I’m going to see the movie, despite all the bad press. I’m not a huge Star Wars purest, so the inconsistencies don’t bug me too much. Sure, I would’ve rather the prequels be more centered on the fall of Anakin rather than the rise of Palpatine, but I just have to see Episode 3 in order for the circle to be complete. In the mean time, I’ll just drive my wife crazy with all the Star Wars stuff.

mostly harmless

Stephen Majewski — Tue, 08 Mar 2005 05:08:00 GMT

being stuck in traffic for roughly 2-3 hours everyday is an extremely boring commute. i've got gobs (that's a technical term) of music, but it's all stuff (another technical term) i've heard over and over and over and over. i've tried different podcasts, but am getting rather frustrated with the quality level (it's to be expected for the price i pay, i suppose). as a result, i have started looking at audiobooks as a way to feed my brain while sucking fumes.

the story begins (in paragraph 2 no less) with me hunting for audiobooks to cram onto my ipod. i am somewhat skeptical about dropping anywhere from 20-50 dollars on an author about which i know nothing, so i tend to dip back to books i read in my youth and would like to read again . . . well . . . have someone read to me (mommy, tell me a story). i ran across a book i read some 15 years ago, the hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy by douglas adams.

as it turns out there is a negative side to using tivo (or any other pvr). it seems the ability to skip commercials keeps you out of the loop on certain things . . . like upcoming movies, so i was shocked to discover there is a movie adaption of the book being released on april 29^th. i've no doubt many people already know about it, but being in touch with technology has put me out of touch with commerciology (new word).

i remember watching a rather cheesy british mini-series made in the early 80s about hitchhiker series, but they were done on a tragically small budget. despite the fact that they still captured the spirit of the books, they lacked the eye candy (and acting candy) that could've made them exceptional. let's just hope hollywood doesn't overshadow the spirit with the candy (yeah, right).

there were 5 books in the hitchhiker's trilogy (douglas blames the inconsistency on 'a poor grasp of arithmetic'), so i wonder if this movie will be trying to cram all the books together or simply cover book 1. if it is the latter, i only hope we are able to get the full gambit and not a mere 2 or 3 movies.

if you're not big on british humour, such as monte python or black adder, you probably won't like the hitchhiker series. if you're a truly twisted individual and would like to know the question to which the answer is 42 . . . read the series. i can guarantee you'll never look at a mouse the same way again.

i think it's spectacular that douglas' works are finally being put to the silver screen. tragically, this comic genius was taken from us prematurely several years ago by a condition that was far from "mostly harmless". therefore, we have to make the best of what we've got. so long, doug, and thanks for all the fish.

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