Argo Or Not To Argo

Argo is a GO!  Wow, what an amazing film.  Expertly directed by Ben Affleck, Argo tells the story of the Iran Hostage Crisis of 1979 when the American Consulate in Iran was stormed, and a few of the employees escaped to the Canadian Embassy.   Besides directing, Affleck also plays the CIA agent (Tony Mendez) who comes up with a plan to rescue the hostages by creating a fake movie and having them be the production crew.   The casting is stellar with John Goodman, Alan Arkin, Bryan Cranston, and Victor Garber in supporting roles that all make a huge impression.   What impressed me the most was the way Affleck directed the film.   It was suspenseful throughout even though I already knew how the film would end.    This is an Oscar contender for sure so see it while you can.

3D or Not to 3D, That is the Question...

I know a lot of people really like the 3D craze and enjoy watching any film that is created in 3D.  The movie studios and theater owners love it since they can charge more money for a 3D ticket than a regular one,  I however don't like this trend and where it is heading.  First things first, watching 3D films gives me a headache and I can't walk straight when the film is over as it really messes with my equilibrium.  Putting my physical limitations to 3D aside, here are the other reasons that I don't enjoy watching movies in 3D.
 1. It's too gimmicky.
     Years ago (back in the early 90's) they came out with an interactive film.  It was supposed to be the wave of the future but it only lasted for one film as far as I know.  The film was called Mr. Payback: An Interactive Movie, and it starred Billy Warlock as Mr. Payback (He was in the first few seasons of Baywatch as well as Days of Our Lives and General Hospital, just in case you were wondering).  Each seat in the theater had a remote control attached it and at certain times in the film everything paused and the audience was told to choose what would happen next.  It was multiple choice and as the film went on, people in the theater started yelling out their choices trying to get others to agree with them as the majority vote would always win.  It was like those Choose Your Own Adventure books that kids read.  It was a fun experience for one movie but if all movies were like that I would be bored with it very quickly.  3D feels the same way to me.  It's a cool experience to see one time but when all movies use the technology it becomes tiresome.
2. It's not all well done.
     Some movies, like Avatar, are filmed in 3D but most films that are touted as 3D were actually done in post production.  There is a huge difference between these two types of 3D formats and the latter does not do the medium justice.
3. It takes me out of the story.
     When the film is in 3D, I find myself looking at the 3D objects more than the film itself as a whole.  It removes me from the emotional aspects of the film and instead of immersing me in the film (which is part of the reasoning behind 3D) it removes me from it as I know it is a gimmick and I'm watching things fly at my face instead of how the characters are interacting.  The subtleties of the medium are lost when you are no longer focusing on the story but on the background.  Some action films that are not 3D do this as well when the special effects seem to become a character in the film because they distract the viewer from the plot (see Transformers: Dark of the Moon).    
4. The glasses are annoying.
     The glasses are much better today than they were in the 50's when they were made of paper with one blue plastic lens and one red but they are still annoying.  In fact, they may be the reason why my brain makes me feel dizzy and sick when I wear them.  Something else needs to be invented that allows you to see a 3D film without any special glasses for you to wear at all.

     Well, those are my thoughts, feel free to agree or disagree.  My hope is that the fad will end soon and become a rare experience to enjoy instead of the norm.
 

The Dark Knight Rises

     Wow, what an ending to an excellent trilogy by Christopher Nolan.  After the Aurora, CO shooting, I have to admit I was a little nervous about going to see the film and I waited a week to do it instead of seeing it opening weekend like I had originally planned.  Not that I really expected a gunman to be able to make it to the third floor where my theater was located but still, it unnerves me that someone was that deranged and no one knew it until it was too late.  I even caught myself looking at my watch during the first hour, waiting for the 30 minute mark to pass (signaling when James Holmes entered the theater and started shooting) so I could feel more relaxed.  So now onto the actual film...
     WARNING - SPOILERS AHEAD!!!  As usual all the major players were there preformed by exquisit actors - Gary Oldman (Gordon), Morgan Freeman (Fox), Michael Caine (Alfred), Christian Bale (Bruce Wayne/Batman).  We even got to see some old favorites from previous films, Liam Neeson and Cillian Murphy along with some great newcomers, Tom Hardy (Bane), Anne Hathaway (Catwoman), and Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Blake).  While it can't be denied that the late Heath Ledger was the best Batman villain to ever grace the screen, he was also so chillingly realistic that I have a hard time watching the film.  He made the Joker so disturbing that I always walk away from seeing the film a little scared about what might be around the next corner as well as in my dreams.  Bane is not that kind of villain for which I am grateful as I will be able to watch and enjoy this film repeatedly without the nightmares.  He is well played by Tom Hardy who doesn't even look like himself and the audio team needs to be applauded for making his Darth Vaderish voice distinct enough to hear over the explosions, guns and soundtrack.   Catwoman is also wonderful and her humor is a nice break in the drama that unfolds around her. I wasn't too sure about Nolan's choice of Anne Hathaway but she did an amazing job that made me completely forget her Princess Diaries character that has been stuck in my head for years now.   I especially liked when she pretended to be a damsal in distress as the police showed up at the pub and then she kicked butt whenever they weren't watching.  Blake, however, was my favorite character besides Batman.  His desire for justice and strong belief in Batman was intoxicating.  The reveal at the end of the film that he was going to be Robin and join Batman in the bat cave was the best part of the movie for me.  And I wished for a peek at a sequel involving the caped crusader and his sidekick after the end credits, but no dice, bummer.
     I love films with a happy ending and this ones delivers.  While it is violent, like all the Batman films, it has a strong moral center, surprising twists, and more than one hero to root for.

Spiderman, Take 2

This past weekend I went to see The Amazing Spiderman at the local theater.  As a fan of the original Spiderman movies, I was looking forward to this reboot of the series although it did seem a little too soon as the others hadn't been made that long ago.  The story of this new film is very similar to the first Spiderman film as Peter Parker loses his parents, lives with his aunt and uncle, loses his uncle, is bitten by a spider and becomes a superhero.  The differences are a new girlfriend, Gwen Stacy, a different villain and handmade web shooters instead of naturally occurring ones.  What impressed me the most about this new vision of Spiderman was the teenage humor/pranks that Spiderman employs during the film.  He seemed more like a normal teenager who was trying to have fun with his new gifts.  He mocked his villains when they couldn't keep up with him and seemed to toy with them like an older child does to a younger sibling.  The new Spiderman costume was also fantastic, props to the costume team for this great design.  Andrew Garfield was great in the role of Spiderman and I really loved Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy.  Unlike Kirsten Dunst (Mary Jane in the original Spiderman), Gwen Stacy was a strong female character who stood up for herself and willingly participated in the action to save the city from the Lizard.  Mary Jane shied away from danger and screamed most of the time as she always seemed to be captured.  Gwen, however, kept her head, hid from the Lizard and was able to create an antidote and deliver it to Spiderman, through her father, just in time.  The other supporting roles in the film fantastic as well.  Having Martin Sheen and Sally Field as Peter Parker's aunt and uncle was a stroke of genius!  I was moved by their performances and so saddened when Uncle Ben met his inevitable fate.  Denis Leary (Captain Stacy) and Rhys Ifans (Dr. Curt Connors/ The Lizard) were also well cast in their respective roles.  The only thing that was a little off in this version was the speed at which Peter Parker got used to his new skills.  I appreciated the effort it took Tobey Maguire's Spiderman to get used to swinging from his web and use his special skills.  Andrew Garfield's Spiderman was ready to go as soon as he received his powers.  Overall I like both Spiderman films and will continue to enjoy them both as soon as The Amazing Spiderman comes to DVD.

Time to vent again...

     So today I went to iTunes to download some movies that were on sale this week and on a whim I decided to see if Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2 was on sale or not.  IT WASN"T EVEN LISTED!!!!  Warner Brothers has removed most of the Harry Potter films from iTunes to support their push to Ultraviolet.  ARGH! It really angers me when companies decided for the consumer what format a film will be in.  If they want all of their films on the Ultraviolet format that's fine, but at least consider the customer first.  Most customers (like me) want media (film, music, etc...) in a certain format that works with our devices.  The iTunes format for digital content has been around the longest, therefore those of us who own a lot of content from that system would like any new content also in the same system.  One system, one place for storage and one place for the library.  By removing their content from iTunes, Warner Brothers is making the customer buy into its system but it isn't allowing transfer of previously purchased items into that same system.  For example, if I buy a song from Amazon, I can put it into Amazon's cloud player or I can put it into my iTunes library where every other song I own is stored.  This makes sense.  Amazon is allowing me to buy their content but I don't have to use their system if I don't want to.  When it comes to films and TV shows it seems that no one wants to play nice with the customer.  iTunes, Amazon and Ultraviolet all make you use their systems to use their content.  You can't buy it once and use it on any system you want.  Granted, a lot of these companies offer apps to be able to use their content on whatever device you have, but then you have content all over the place on your device.  On my iPad I have movies and TV shows from iTunes in the "Movies" app (which includes all the Harry Potter films except for the last one) and my Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 is in the "Flixster" app.  Amazon doesn't even have a movie/TV app for the iPad so with them I'm out of luck which is why I can't purchase movies from them but at least I'm not forced to like with Ultraviolet.  It was the only option when I bought the DVD/Blu-ray pack.  If they would allow users the ability to buy a digital film or TV show and use it in any library/app they wish I wouldn't mind the different formats.  But as it is, it just makes me frustrated. ARGH! That is all for today, thanks for letting me vent!

Hunger Games Review

I have been waiting for The Hunger Games movie since I first read the books 2 years ago and it did not disappoint. I was worried that it would end up like The Firm, Eragon, and Twilight - movies made from books that did not live up to the book's greatness. Fortunately, the producers used the input of the book's author, Suzanne Collins, and the director followed the book very closely. Of course a few things had to be left out in order to make it flow and fit in a film's time frame, but overall The Hunger Games is a great adaptation of the book. The casting is one of the big reasons that this film works. Everyone fits perfectly with what I imagined when reading the books. Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss is excellent! She displays the right amount of emotion, tomboyishness, beauty, fear and confusion. I can't imagine anyone else in the role - it's like Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, there is no one else who can play the character as well. While we don't see much of Gale, his portrayer - Liam Hemsworth is a perfect match and cute to boot! Peeta is also well played by Josh Hutcherson, and comes across as the sweetest, most selfless character in the movie.  Rue, Haymitch, Primrose, Cato, Cinna and President Snow all match their literary characters exactly which really help this movie make the book come alive.  There is only one thing they left out of the film that bothered me and that was the bread given to Katniss by the people of District 11.  Instead we see District 11 rebelling against the Peacekeepers which doesn't really happen until book two. The rebellion was a moving scene and it didn't bother me that it was there out of place, but with one more minute of film they could have shown the bread being dropped to Katniss, it would not have taken long.  A brilliant addition to the film that was not in the book, was the scenes of the game-makers creating obstacles for the tributes in the arena.  From firebombs to vicious beasts, it was portrayed as a big video game controlled by people who acted like kids killing each other was just a game.  We imagine this in our minds while reading the books but it is never explicitly stated.  These scenes really push home the idea that the government of Panem is like their ancient counterpart in Rome during the times of the gladiators.  Killing is a sport and whoever is killed means nothing to society, or at least to the society in power.  Another scene that is small but really pushes this idea home is a moment set in the capitol.  There is a huge courtyard with TV screens in it.  Families are there watching the games like it is the super bowl.  We see a family of four sitting on a bench.  The son has a plastic sword and he viciously attacks his younger sister with it.  She screams playfully as she pretends to die while the parents laugh and applaud at their play.  A great film, a poignant message and hopefully a cautionary tale to future generations.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Update on Ultraviolet and it's Issues/Features

    Last year, Ultraviolet was created by Warner Brothers and other movie studios in Hollywood as they wanted something to compete with iTunes that allowed them to keep more of the profits from distributing their films and TV shows digitally.  It had some serious issues when it started and it still has quite a few issues to fix as of this writing as well.  I signed up for an account to try it out and also because I had no choice since it was the only way to get a free digital copy of the final Harry Potter film without having to pay for it again in iTunes.  First you have to sign up for a Flixster account and I chose the sign up with Facebook option.  Then you have to sign up for an Ultraviolet account and link the two together.  As with all accounts you create online, you better write down your passwords and user names because you will need them later if you ever want to access your digital content again.
     Last year, there was no way to download the movies to your computer only to your mobile devices but now they have created a desktop application that allows you to stream or download your digital content purchased from Ultraviolet.  This is a plus, and a feature that helps it compete with iTunes.  However, once again you must download two things before this works, Adobe Air and then Flixster Collections.  Once you log into Flixster Collections (which by the way is an email address and password, the one you used for Ultraviolet not your Facebook account info, once again more things to remember) you are able to see what items you own.  They also give you links to some free previews and one free TV show episode.  When I tried to find out how to purchase some more titles from Flixster/Ultraviolet I ran into issues again.  There is a section called "Discover" and it has a bunch of movie titles in no particular order that you can browse through and some of them have a "Buy" link in them.  However when you click "Buy" most of the titles say to purchase them from Amazon or iTunes.  A little weird since I thought the whole reason for creating another digital media service was for Ultraviolet to collecte profits themselves from sales.  As it stands, it looks like you can only buy titles when they come packaged with the DVDs or Blu-rays and then you enter the code they give you in the package.  There is a section in Flixster Collections to have it read your iTunes library and you can have it import your content so you can view it all in one place.  This does not let you import it into your Flixster/Ultraviolet account though, so you can't access and stream these purchases from anywhere but iTunes.  If you have the physical DVD's or Blu-rays (meaning you didn't purchase them from iTunes or Amazon) then you can take them to Walmart and have them converted to a digital file that goes into your Ultraviolet "locker" for $2 a piece.  Not a bad price but if you are like me and own more than 200 DVDs/Blu-rays then it becomes cost prohibitive. 
     One more thing that Ultraviolet doesn't have is the ability to buy individual episodes of TV shows.  This is one of the features I love about iTunes.  I don't always want to buy an entire season of a TV show.  Sometimes I missed an episode and just want to watch the one I missed.  Sometimes I only want to own episodes that I will watch again of certain shows and therefore I love being able to just purchase my favorite episodes.  One of my new favorite shows is Person of Interest.  It is not offered in iTunes and will only be offered in the Ultraviolet digital copy when you purchase the Blu-ray set.  You will get all of the episodes digitally but once again, there is no way to just download individual episodes. This is frustrating and since one of the purposes of these systems (iTunes and Ultraviolet) is to give users an alternative to piracy and p2p file sharing, they are making it difficult when the same options aren't available.  Most users want to do the right thing and pay for what they see/use etc... but it is hard for people to do the right thing when free options are available (although not legal) with better quality and in the format they want without the passwords/account sign in issues.  I am not condoning piracy in anyway, as I think artists should be paid for their work, but there are ways to offer content at a reasonable price for consumers in the formats they want that still give artists their due.  
     When Ultraviolet was first announced, they said you could only download the digital file 5 times, which was an issue if you ever had to restore your iPhone, wipe your hard drive due to viruses etc... Luckily it looks like they have changed their mind on this and you can re-download to your devices. 
     Overall, the service has improved from when it was first developed, but did we really need another service to use for our digital files?  And did it really need to be so involved to get it up and running on our own computers/devices?  So far I will just be using it to watch my one movie I have in the system, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt 2, otherwise I'm going to use iTunes, where I can have all my videos in one place on all my devices and I can stream it all to my Apple TV.  And if Deathly Hallows shows up for sale on iTunes ($5 or less) I may buy myself another copy and ditch Ultraviolet all together. 

Season Finale of NCIS: Los Angeles

NCIS: Los Angeles is one of my favorite shows currently on TV and I have been a fan since the very first episode that aired on NCIS.  G. Callen, played by Chris O'Donnell, is my favorite character and I adore watching him evolve over the episodes.  The finale for season 3, however, had me distressed.  Callen murdered an evil man in cold blood while TV crews watched and was immediately arrested for it.  Looking at it from the character's perspective, you understand why Callen wanted this man, the Chameleon, dead as he had killed some of Callen's colleagues.  But Callen always seems to have self control when it counts.  He's an orphan whose mother was murdered in front of him as a child, he was never accepted in any of his many foster homes, and he doesn't even know what his first name is.  He has endured this tortured childhood and yet become a valuable member of NCIS.  He has turned his life around.  While he is always on the edge of loosing it, his inner strength and values of right and wrong always surface in the end before its too late.  But not this time.  It was disturbing to me as I don't want my favorite character to loose his humanity. It is the glue that holds him together when everything else in his life is falling to pieces.  I hope that in the premiere of season 4 redemption for Calen is achieved or at least shown as a possibility down the road.  I am very curious to see how the writers turn this plot twist around.

Snow White and the Huntsman

So I went out with friends last night to see Snow White and the Huntsman not expecting much except for the hotness that is Chris Hemsworth.  In return I was pleasantly surprised at this magical interpretation of the Snow White tale.  This turned out to be a great film.  While I am not a fan of Kristen Stewart, her acting and English accent were quite good and I actually liked her in this role.  Chris Hemsworth was perfect in the role of axe bearing hunter extraordinaire with his sexy english accent.  But, Charlize Theron stole the show as the evil queen. The special effects/makeup for her transformation was amazing.  All of the familiar Snow White elements of the story were there, the evil queen, the apple, the dwarfs, the kiss, but it was presented in a fantastic grown up way that gives the story a whole new life.  Props go out to the director, cast and crew for this creative interpretation.  The only thing I didn't like about the film was the ending.  *Spoiler Alert* - When Snow White becomes the queen she stands in front of her subjects with a fanciful stick in her hand (what?) and looks out as everyone praises her.  The Huntsman comes in and looks at her with a smile, in return she looks at him with an expression of constipation.  Strange to say the least.  She has just become queen and can do and have anything she wants and she looks at him, the man who brought her back to life, with a distressed look.  What???  Then the movie ends.  No embrace, no, kiss, nothing.  Total fail on the ending!

Avengers!

     This was an exciting movie, and a funny one too!  I wasn't sure what to expect as I have had mixed reviews of some of the individual character films.  I loved Captain America and the first Ironman film but Ironman 2, Thor and The Incredible Hulk (2008) were just passable flicks in my opinion.  I think that the genius of this film is the fact that no one character has more screen time than another.  We get just enough of each character to like them but not enough find them annoying.  The banter between characters is also a huge plus - Ironman and David Banner bonding over their intellect - loved it!  I had never heard of the character of Hawkeye but he was fantastic both in looks and in character (way to go Jeremy Renner).  I was so glad he didn't stay with Loki for long.  And speaking of Loki, he was a great villain in this film, much better than he was in Thor.  The Hulk was probably my favorite character in the end as his comic timing was right on target.  When he punches Thor out of the blue and then throws Loki around like a rag doll, I was laughing so hard I was in tears, brilliant!  He was the character I have known about the longest as I was a huge fan of The Incredible Hulk TV series growing up.  His two films have fallen so below the mark that I was afraid they would screw him up again in this film, but they didn't, he was great.  Also, by using Mark Ruffalo's likeness for the Hulk they fixed the egregious CGI issues of the past.  This was the first time I didn't miss Lou Ferrigno as the big green guy.
     And now for the few dislikes of the film...the aliens that Loki was working with didn't look real and their big ships looked like sea turtles in the sky.  The Hulk was able to control himself way too fast, wasn't that his main struggle at the beginning of the film? And then once the aliens attacked he was able to quickly bring it under control enough to work with his friends.  Just a little too fast guys and no explanation of how either.  Overall, this was a great flick, kudos to Joss Whedon for the direction and the script!

Praise for Person of Interest

It took me a while to get into the show Person of Interest but I am now a huge fan.  I knew I had to give the show a try since it is another J.J. Abrams production and I usually love his creations.  Undercovers from last season was a big disappointment though so when it took me a while to get into this one I was afraid it was because it would be another bomb.  It turns out it just needed a few episodes to get the characters established.  Jim Caviezel is perfect in the role of John Reese, ex-CIA operative who is presumed dead.  He is lethal to those who deserve it and protective of the innocent.  Finch, played by Lost's Michael Emerson, took me a while to get used to.  As I was a huge Lost fan, it was difficult at first not to see him as Ben every time his face appeared onscreen.  Now, however, he is transforming into the character of Finch before my eyes.  Making Detective Carter a more essential part of the team has added a nice element to the story and the flashbacks of Reese with his former girlfriend make him more human and vulnerable to the viewer.  The only thing I don't like is that the show is not available on iTunes, such a bummer.