Friday, March 31, 2006

The V

Yet another film review coming at you from the Hamma'. (That's thug for bigredhammer.) Before I begin that I will remind you all that tomorrow is a very cool day. If my roommates read my blog--which they don't-- they would beware. Mwahahaha!

Anyway, "V for Vendetta". It's tagline is "an uncompromising view of the future." and it lives up to its name. The future the Wachowski brothers (creators of The Matrix) paint is one dark with dictatorship, little hope for the common man, manipulation, and well, crazy heroes. But it is the crazy hero that gives the common man hope. And that hope is crucial. I wouldn't think that this future is actually possible. Sadly, history has shown us that indeed it is possible. Facism, nazism, and communism do exist. The Vendetta world is based on the goverments created during the World War II period. Everything in this movie is sadly within reach of mankind.

I don't want you to think that this movie is only sad and depressing. I walked away with a good feeling, one of patriotism, and knowing that there are things worth dying for. In the end it has a bright message: The good in mankind will prevail over the evil.

As for being rated R, this movie gets its rating from adult situations, and some gushing blood from fighting. The blood was completely unnecessary. This movie will draw you in and I will definitely own it when it is released. Bravo Wachowski Brothers!

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

One hundred

Following the example of my good friend Bob on her blog, I have decided to give one hundred interesting things about myself. I did this over several days at work. Around 70 I started to really stretch. Apparently I'm not as interesting as I thought!


  1. I speak Romanian.
  2. I was born in Tokyo, Japan.
  3. I can't swim.
  4. I write science fiction.
  5. The first R-rated movie I ever saw was "The Matrix."
  6. My mother is Canadian.
  7. I have hiked the highest peak in the Wasatch Front, Mount Nebo.
  8. The only organized sports team I've participated in was soccer, in the second grade.
  9. I can type 80 words per minute.
  10. I wear contacts.
Look out for more interesting things to come. To quote the profound Transformers, "There's more than meets the eye."

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Uber Ultraviolet

So tonight I saw the movie Ultraviolet. I was not expecting much. It looked like an AeonFlux knockoff. (Basically, an all action movie set in the future with funky camera angles and no character development.) I didn't even see AeonFlux. But after my friends and I were done eating at Cafe Pierpont that was all that was playing at a decent hour. So I went in expecting very little.

What I got was incredible. There is so much to talk about with this movie. First of all, I take it this movie is based on a comic book. And I can tell you, every frame in this movie could be made into a very well done comic frame. Or... it could be framed and put on your wall. It is a very stylistic film. The colors are vibrant and the action is fluid and intense. A lot of people die in this movie but it is all done very artistically. You see the movement of the sword but you don't see any gore. Very well done. It was like a combination of the good visual elements of The Matrix, Hero, and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Very well done.

The not so good parts of the movie: There is very little dialog. What dialog there is, you could very well put in a talk bubble just like in a comic. That isn't a good thing. Because there is not an emphasis on the dialog, we don't get to know the characters very well and we don't form a bond with them. If that had been so, this movie would do very well in the box office.

Now when this movie comes out on DVD I will certainly be buying it. It will add an artistic blending of sci-fi, action and martial arts to my film collection. Sadly, I know this movie will not do well in the box office because it is so stylistic. Many people will scoff at some of the effects or the dialog. Not everyone will see the art in this film. And that's really what it is... very well done art.