Magikplp’s blog

QotD: Naughty or Nice

7 days ago
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Making a list, checking it twice... How's your holiday shopping going? Who's left on your list?

I really wish there was a better QotD - this one makes me feel guilty.

Some thoughts

Dec 13, 2009
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Hey Gang,

My buddy is working on creating a website for a webisode I've produce/wrote. He's learning HTML and he's doing it for free, so I can't ask for too much.

So wanted to get your thoughts on the site and what reasonable changes could be made. www.qpid.tv

Let me know, thanks.

Ali

Wall-E Trailer - Watchmen Style

Mar 26, 2009
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It's not the greatest trailer but an interesting mix complete with a refined rendition.

Watchmen & WALL-E Mashup Trailer - 720p HD

The Nicholas Cage Movie Plot Generator

Mar 25, 2009
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For your amusement. =)

Nicolascageplotgen

Here is another yahoo link dedicated to this guy
http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/getback-nicolas-cage.html

Culture QotD: Nonfiction Book Suggestion - Outliers

Mar 23, 2009
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If you were to suggest ONE nonfiction book that everyone should read, what would it be?

Outliers. Plain & Simple.

It's a great read with tremendous insight on truly makes someone "successful" and an "outlier" among society. The examination ranges from Bill Gates to the Chinese "natural" ability to work with numbers. The reasoning is simple to read, interactive and entertaining for what could have easily been turned into a lecture.

You can rip right through the book because it's entertaining or pick up a chapter every week. So it does not well in not making you feel suicidal about what will happen next.

Infomercial of the Day: It's Real. Hilarious.

Mar 16, 2009
4 comments

Typically, I choose not to post random things unless it warrants such attention.

Thank me later about wasting the next 30 seconds of your life.

(Thanks to Dr. Floyd E. Seskin for the invention also).

Golf Club Fail

Snyder is not Visionary: Watchmen (+ Memory of a Killer)

Mar 8, 2009
7 comments

WATCHMEN REVIEW

Okay - I got you to read my blog LOL. Ironically, this is a similar tactic that is utilized to convey the theme of Watchmen. =)

The trailers did a great job in depicting that Watchmen is a political-noir-anti-superhero film. If you're expecting nipples on rubber costumes, you have another thing coming.

Now I'm going to support my claim about Mr. Snyder. He is not a visionary but a very very very intelligent & savvy individual. Let's look at his Snyder's top three films, Dawn of the Dead, 300, & Watchmen. The proclamations about "Visionary" need to be corrected as those films have had a previous predecessor.

-- Dawn of the Dead = Made successfully in the 70s introducing the Zombie Genre.

-- 300 is based on Frank Miller's graphic novel.

-- Watchmen = based one of DC's first graphic novels that actually resonate with the general audience.

Snyder has the intelligence to choose critically acclaimed projects, add a spin to them and maintain a tone. As a director, he did a great job of keeping stories in line with the original but adding plot twists needed to make a popular movie (hell you'll see Dr. Manhattan's penis in about 5% of the scenes -- with no pun intended that is sticking to the original). That isn't visionary, that is intelligence. In Watchmen, he managed to make the film entertaining while maintaining that thread of being political.

In a heavily experienced and armed battalion of actors, I think the show belonged to Jackie Earle Haley's character "Rorschach." He generated the most charisma with the mask on and when off, actually stole the show. Some notable characters were Jeffrey Dean Morgan's "The Comedian" (whom I hate in Grey's Anatomy) and Carla Gugino's "Silk Spectre."

As far as the plot went, it did not meet the huge expectation I had for it. Even with the length 2 hours, 40 minutes, it did not feel as fulfilling as 300. Perhaps the plot was to large or to complex to be put into a single film. We were talking politics, fear, conspiracy and maintaining our humanity! In itself, that is a custom built engine that separates it from the typical comic book movie. Had the film focused or defined these ideas a little more, this would have met my own expectations -- similar to 2008 big hit, "The Dark Knight." If you hadn't noticed -- Dark Knight is as every bit political as it is comic book.

Overall the film is good and the general population will appreciate this film. Just don't come in with the expectation that it will resonate as much as 300 or Dark Knight. I leave you with one of my favorite scenes, that define the essence of this film.

WATCHMEN: Scene 3 (extrait)

MEMORY OF A KILLER (Belgian Film)

A hitman who is losing his memory. Doesn't that logline sound interesting? Well the movie is certainly on that page. It's Memento mixed in with Bourne Identity. A fresh redux to a saturated genre. The movie itself is 20 minutes to long as they arc to soon. The first half of the film is amazing but the climax just takes a little to long to flesh itself out. Overall, if you're looking for something different, with action but relatable then we have a winner.

I leave you with a trailer to see if the film will strike a chord.

The Memory Of A Killer (2003)

Review: A book & movie =)

Mar 4, 2009
7 comments

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LARRY
Let's be straight here, I'm a film/tv guy here. So I appreciate screenwriting first followed by books. For my internship, I had to cover the book, "The Gospel According to Larry" and it is brilliantly written coming of age piece. The point of view is from 17 year-old who light heartedly approaches the believce that he can help "change the world." Unlike Michael Moore's own self-indulgence and narcissim, "Larry" provides a common rationality behind is own believes but a vulnerability that reminds us that we all have some growing to do. Just like anyone else who wants to "change the world" there are aspects of the book where he does appear selfish -- but who isn't at the ages of 17, 23, 27, 32? We are all selfish in our own right and often we chose the severity of this attribute. For those of you interested in reading a quick, light-hearted and interesting book -- this is it for you, young or old.

Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li
I grew up a fan playing street fighter. My character was Guile. So when I watched this movie, I did it out of faith and loyalty. Were my expectations low? Absolutely, afterall I feel like Capcom is jumping on the Marvel Studios bandwagon by producing their own content. Now that is not a bad thing to be your own boss but when you jump platforms, you're handling a whole different beast. Video Games vs. Films are different. Having stated that, I had LOW expectations...and thanks to Chris Klein, he shattered my expectations by making it even worse. To lighten up my rant (thank goodness I did not pay to see this) I leave you a hilarious montage of his acting.

Street Fighter: The Legend Of Chun Li - Best Of Charlie Nash

Rourke. Dissed Again.

Feb 22, 2009
6 comments

The Wrestler - Hang Out

Mickey Rourke should have taken Best Actor, period. Personally, I thought Wrestler was the best film of the year but I understand why Slumdog is an attractive film.

However, Mickey vs. Penn? C'mon. Mickey's character had a more compelling and internalized conflict. Relying more on non-verbal communication to express his characters thought, Mickey took the more subtle path of making this story interesting. In addition, the difficulty of the role was far more intriguing and complex than Milk. This is not taking the hard-work away from Penn but Rourke had owned him, acting-wise. Forget political agendas, forget "social change" for a second, we're talking ACTING.

Bottom line - I want to kick a Cambodian Baby now.

The Warriors / Gomorra / Coraline - Reviews

Feb 17, 2009
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Hey Guys - this will be quick and brief. I am spent from this weekend. =P

Coraline.

It is as entertaining as it is visually stunning. It's a fantastic reprieve when utilizing what appears to be a lost art - stop motion. Now couple that with a modern twist, 3D and you have a formula for success. With a great story line, parents will be sure to enjoy it just as much as the kiddos. For those expecting a Tim Burton look-alike, you will not find it here. The story has elements of darkness but is mostly shrouded with the lightly realistic family dramatics. Essentially you have a girl who finds an actual portal to escape the drudgeries of living in a new location and her family. Coraline's new neighbors are eccentric but can only hold her interest for so long. We have a winner for a light, clean and witty fun.

Coraline- Confronting the Other Mother

Gomorra

Don't be mistaken by the name, it's actually a movie based in present and realistic times. We are essentially exploring the dark reaches of organized crime in Italy. Instead of exploring the subject on a political level, the issues are focused on the personal affects these organizations have. It's shot in a documentary format, so it may not be as action based as a Scarface or Bourne Identity bring, but it brings it's own voice to this relatively old topic.

Gomorrah UK Trailer - In Cinemas October 10

The Warriors

Haha - thanks to Raven, I finally watched this badboy in it's entirety. It's great to watch classics such as this. This has to be one of the first films that made studio heads realize -- that the youth were marketable. It had the right elements of story, fun and plain movie cheese. I loved it. To further validate this film, for being made 30 years in advance, they did a great job of executing the story. To me it seems like good older films put serious thought into camera angles as oppose to today, which seems spontaneous. Regardless it's a classic that will entertain, check out my favorite scene.