Law Abiding Citizen [2009]
This film had an interesting plot line that at first wasn't overly appealing to me. A man has his family killed in front of him and the justice system does what it can, but it's not enough and doesn't appear fair or just to the survivor. This sounds like any day of the week in the court system in the USA to me. Some people are criminals and receive what they deserve and others don't appear to receive justice at all. Gerald Butler plays the main character in this film and his family is shown to be killed in the beginning of the film. We see the trial and Butler's character is not happy that one of the criminals is about to be a cooperative witness and receive preferential treatment by the D.A and the judge.
Ten years flashes bye and we are at present day. Butler as we later find out has taken the last ten years to prepare his teaching plan and is ready to implement it, but it's not an easy plan to watch or to follow at times in this movie. Butler begins a systematic removal of each of the criminals as well as each of the members of the courts who he deems as responsible for the lack of justice in his family's killing. It is an interesting story-and one in which can only be told in film. In a movie you can do anything and have any outcome and this is definitely true with Butler's character. He's put in prison for the alleged murder of the remaining criminal who was involved in his family's killing. He then proceeds to get himself thrown in solitary confinement and despite being under 24 hour scrutiny he's able to eliminate the judge, district attorney and DA staff involved in the original case.
The movie is suspenseful and at times intense, but I found myself rooting for Gerald Butler. I'm not sure if it was because his character lost his family, or if it was because they were murdered in front of him, or even because of the apparent lack of concern by the DA's office that made me want him to succeed in his quest to eliminate everyone involved, but I had no desire to see Jamie Foxx win at the end of the film. I kept thinking to myself that this is a movie and that all things are possible, so that means that somehow Gerald Butler will walk out of prison and everything will be made right.
Needless to say I was not happy with the ending. It may make others happy or feel that justice was served in the film, but I wasn't pleased to see that Jamie Foxx walks away and Gerald Butler dies at the end. Films at times are supposed to make you feel better or help teach you something, and that can be done by suspending your disbelief. I suspended my disbelief through two hours of this movie only to find the last page to be quite bitter.
Law Abiding Citizen [2009]
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1197624/
Tuesday- 3rd November 2009
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Monday, November 2, 2009
Romeo Void-Warm in Your Coat [1992]
Romeo Void-Never Say Never [1992]
Back in the early 90’s I was in college and listening to music that seemed to represent my mood, thoughts and feelings! The Goth-new wave era had arrived in full force and Romeo Void was one of many groups that I heard on cd’s, in concert and over the air. They seemed to have only two widely popular and well played songs-Never Say Never and A Girl in Trouble-but despite this lack of superficial popularity they became quite popular in the groups that I was around.
I loved the music and the lyrics-both seemed to convey my dark feelings and I was attracted to the way the music flowed than the lyrics themselves for many of the songs I enjoyed. It wasn’t until years later when I was in grad school that I really began to look at the song’s lyrics and analyze what they meant or what they might be trying to say to the larger world and maybe even to us who listened to the music every day.
My thoughts recently have returned to Romeo Void’s cd “Warm in Ur Coat” which has strong lyrics in the songs “Never Say Never” and “A Girl in Trouble”. Both present what appears to be a very strong willed feminist who is living her life on her terms, but on further examination I’ve noticed what appears to be the subtle undertones of women being used and abused by society and they then are required to become self-sufficient and emotionally hard to survive.
In “Never Say Never” I wonder if this song makes reference to incest. We hear in the opening verse that “sun suit girls must be discreet” and I wonder if this is not a reference to a young women, a pre-teen, who is sunning herself outside in the back where her father could be watching. And the verse ends with the words-“Nursing their fathers locked inside. They masqueraded as his bride.” Is this a reference to a father having sex with his daughter? As the obvious metaphor of the father being locked inside-inside her? And only with your spouse are you to have sex so is the last line a reference to the daughter playing the wife? The next verse makes reference to an old man, who sounds homeless and sleeps outside covered in newspapers, but would be “warm in your coat”, and I’ll ask what coat that might be? When I first heard these lyrics I always thought of it literally-being sheltered in someone’s winter coat to stay warm. As I’ve gotten older I wonder if it doesn’t mean a woman’s personal coat that is made of hair and at times called furry. I’ll leave it at that so that this blog can remain PG-13 for the moment! Then there is the chorus that repeats the title-“I might like you better if we slept together…never say never!” And does this make reference of what the father says to his daughter or daughter to father? I suppose it’s open to interpretation.
Now when I listed to “A Girl in Trouble [is a temporary thing]” back when it came out I thought it was a bit of a pop-like song with lyrics that were a bit more upbeat but still quirky. I had thought that it made reference to any pretty girl who could just flash her smile and toss her hair and some guy with money would could bye and help her out. I think the lyrics paint quite a different picture which I’d not noticed until recently. The lyrics say that “she’s heard every line” and she has to save her tears for later when she can afford to cry, but for the moment she has to take care of business. She has to be strong and hard and go get it done. Further reflection on these lyrics indicates she’s a pretty girl and she’s been hit on by plenty of guys. But at least one of these guys may have had his way with her as she has something that is tearing her up inside and is making her want to cry, but she can’t allow herself to cry. I knew of two girls when I was in college who described events like this to me. They had boyfriends or a guy they were dating and they were physically intimate with the guy. During the relationship they became pregnant and the guy left her. They spoke of how they were in trouble, but were going to take care of it, or made reference to how they had business to take care of-before they could collapse and cry. I’m sure this scenario must have occurred many times on college campuses in the 80’s, 90’s and today as well. Pretty girls get in to trouble because they fall for a guy and his lines and then they become pregnant.
The lyrics to some of my favorite songs haven’t changed, but like life itself your perspective of things does change as you get older. Some things have more meaning, some less and others no meaning at all. A girlfriend who dumped me two years ago broke my heart at the time and made me wonder how I’d pick myself up. Two years later I sit and write about song lyrics and wonder why I ever dated her in the first place-and why I’d want to bother dating anyone again. Returning to the songs of my youth reminds me of how dark and jaded my outlook on life was and that I never thought I’d live as long as I have at this moment. I tried to live as much as I could and experience as much as possible thinking that life would be short. Now that I’m older and am old by my own definition during my youth I have a dark outlook on life but not so much that it will end soon, but more so that life doesn’t change. Those that were beautiful and had it all when I was young still do, and the beautiful still have a different life in the USA. Those who were not born with money or looks must work hard to make a living and try and find what happiness they can in the time that they are given. Perhaps the music of my youth can help me to find a smile-even if it is dark music!
Romeo Void-Never Say Never
http://www.stlyrics.com/lyrics/dodgeball/neversaynever.htm
Never Say Never-listen online
http://popup.lala.com/popup/504684693663463194
rhapsody-never say never
http://www.rhapsody.com/romeo-void/warm-in-your-coat/never-say-never/lyrics.html
rhapsody-a girl in trouble
http://www.rhapsody.com/romeo-void/warm-in-your-coat/a-girl-in-trouble-is-a-temporary-thing/lyrics.html
Monday, November 02, 2009
Back in the early 90’s I was in college and listening to music that seemed to represent my mood, thoughts and feelings! The Goth-new wave era had arrived in full force and Romeo Void was one of many groups that I heard on cd’s, in concert and over the air. They seemed to have only two widely popular and well played songs-Never Say Never and A Girl in Trouble-but despite this lack of superficial popularity they became quite popular in the groups that I was around.
I loved the music and the lyrics-both seemed to convey my dark feelings and I was attracted to the way the music flowed than the lyrics themselves for many of the songs I enjoyed. It wasn’t until years later when I was in grad school that I really began to look at the song’s lyrics and analyze what they meant or what they might be trying to say to the larger world and maybe even to us who listened to the music every day.
My thoughts recently have returned to Romeo Void’s cd “Warm in Ur Coat” which has strong lyrics in the songs “Never Say Never” and “A Girl in Trouble”. Both present what appears to be a very strong willed feminist who is living her life on her terms, but on further examination I’ve noticed what appears to be the subtle undertones of women being used and abused by society and they then are required to become self-sufficient and emotionally hard to survive.
In “Never Say Never” I wonder if this song makes reference to incest. We hear in the opening verse that “sun suit girls must be discreet” and I wonder if this is not a reference to a young women, a pre-teen, who is sunning herself outside in the back where her father could be watching. And the verse ends with the words-“Nursing their fathers locked inside. They masqueraded as his bride.” Is this a reference to a father having sex with his daughter? As the obvious metaphor of the father being locked inside-inside her? And only with your spouse are you to have sex so is the last line a reference to the daughter playing the wife? The next verse makes reference to an old man, who sounds homeless and sleeps outside covered in newspapers, but would be “warm in your coat”, and I’ll ask what coat that might be? When I first heard these lyrics I always thought of it literally-being sheltered in someone’s winter coat to stay warm. As I’ve gotten older I wonder if it doesn’t mean a woman’s personal coat that is made of hair and at times called furry. I’ll leave it at that so that this blog can remain PG-13 for the moment! Then there is the chorus that repeats the title-“I might like you better if we slept together…never say never!” And does this make reference of what the father says to his daughter or daughter to father? I suppose it’s open to interpretation.
Now when I listed to “A Girl in Trouble [is a temporary thing]” back when it came out I thought it was a bit of a pop-like song with lyrics that were a bit more upbeat but still quirky. I had thought that it made reference to any pretty girl who could just flash her smile and toss her hair and some guy with money would could bye and help her out. I think the lyrics paint quite a different picture which I’d not noticed until recently. The lyrics say that “she’s heard every line” and she has to save her tears for later when she can afford to cry, but for the moment she has to take care of business. She has to be strong and hard and go get it done. Further reflection on these lyrics indicates she’s a pretty girl and she’s been hit on by plenty of guys. But at least one of these guys may have had his way with her as she has something that is tearing her up inside and is making her want to cry, but she can’t allow herself to cry. I knew of two girls when I was in college who described events like this to me. They had boyfriends or a guy they were dating and they were physically intimate with the guy. During the relationship they became pregnant and the guy left her. They spoke of how they were in trouble, but were going to take care of it, or made reference to how they had business to take care of-before they could collapse and cry. I’m sure this scenario must have occurred many times on college campuses in the 80’s, 90’s and today as well. Pretty girls get in to trouble because they fall for a guy and his lines and then they become pregnant.
The lyrics to some of my favorite songs haven’t changed, but like life itself your perspective of things does change as you get older. Some things have more meaning, some less and others no meaning at all. A girlfriend who dumped me two years ago broke my heart at the time and made me wonder how I’d pick myself up. Two years later I sit and write about song lyrics and wonder why I ever dated her in the first place-and why I’d want to bother dating anyone again. Returning to the songs of my youth reminds me of how dark and jaded my outlook on life was and that I never thought I’d live as long as I have at this moment. I tried to live as much as I could and experience as much as possible thinking that life would be short. Now that I’m older and am old by my own definition during my youth I have a dark outlook on life but not so much that it will end soon, but more so that life doesn’t change. Those that were beautiful and had it all when I was young still do, and the beautiful still have a different life in the USA. Those who were not born with money or looks must work hard to make a living and try and find what happiness they can in the time that they are given. Perhaps the music of my youth can help me to find a smile-even if it is dark music!
Romeo Void-Never Say Never
http://www.stlyrics.com/lyrics/dodgeball/neversaynever.htm
Never Say Never-listen online
http://popup.lala.com/popup/504684693663463194
rhapsody-never say never
http://www.rhapsody.com/romeo-void/warm-in-your-coat/never-say-never/lyrics.html
rhapsody-a girl in trouble
http://www.rhapsody.com/romeo-void/warm-in-your-coat/a-girl-in-trouble-is-a-temporary-thing/lyrics.html
Monday, November 02, 2009
Lions-Rams 11/01/2009
Lions Loose Again…
I’m really getting tired of writing that subject line! It’s been two seasons since we’ve had anything to cheer over, be excited about and have any hope that the future might be brighter than what the past has been. After yesterdays 17 to 10 loss to the St.Louis Rams I’m starting to wonder what we have left to look forward to this season. I’d like to think that the Lions played well at least in this losing effort, but that would be a lie. The Lions played one of the worst teams in the NFL and should have been able to beat them handily if the Lions were a team that had it together. The Lions were losing by a field goal at the end of the 1st quarter. Why they couldn’t have scored themselves against a team that has had nearly as many looses as the Lions had in the past two years I couldn’t tell you. Then Stafford was intercepted in the 2nd quarter in t he end-zone. The only reason we got on the scoreboard was that the Rams defense made the mistake of coming out of the end-zone and then being tackled back in the end-zone. A safety! Wow a 10-2 game at half-time.
The Lions did show some life in the 2nd half by tying the game 10-10 by making the two point conversion in the beginning of the 4th quarter, but with less than two minutes left the Lions allowed the Rams Steven Jackson to run 25 yards into the end-zone. He couldn’t be stopped and the Lions had nearly half their defense on him and with this the Lions found a way to lose again this week.
The Lions need to do something to make tackles, to move the ball, run the ball and score!
Lions/Rams week#8
http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2009110104/2009/REG8/rams@lions
Box Score Lions 10 Rams 17
http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2009110104/2009/REG8/rams@lions/analyze/box-score
Monday, November 02, 2009
I’m really getting tired of writing that subject line! It’s been two seasons since we’ve had anything to cheer over, be excited about and have any hope that the future might be brighter than what the past has been. After yesterdays 17 to 10 loss to the St.Louis Rams I’m starting to wonder what we have left to look forward to this season. I’d like to think that the Lions played well at least in this losing effort, but that would be a lie. The Lions played one of the worst teams in the NFL and should have been able to beat them handily if the Lions were a team that had it together. The Lions were losing by a field goal at the end of the 1st quarter. Why they couldn’t have scored themselves against a team that has had nearly as many looses as the Lions had in the past two years I couldn’t tell you. Then Stafford was intercepted in the 2nd quarter in t he end-zone. The only reason we got on the scoreboard was that the Rams defense made the mistake of coming out of the end-zone and then being tackled back in the end-zone. A safety! Wow a 10-2 game at half-time.
The Lions did show some life in the 2nd half by tying the game 10-10 by making the two point conversion in the beginning of the 4th quarter, but with less than two minutes left the Lions allowed the Rams Steven Jackson to run 25 yards into the end-zone. He couldn’t be stopped and the Lions had nearly half their defense on him and with this the Lions found a way to lose again this week.
The Lions need to do something to make tackles, to move the ball, run the ball and score!
Lions/Rams week#8
http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2009110104/2009/REG8/rams@lions
Box Score Lions 10 Rams 17
http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2009110104/2009/REG8/rams@lions/analyze/box-score
Monday, November 02, 2009
Friday, October 30, 2009
Yankees/Phillies in 2009 Series
World Series Tied One Game Each!
The Phillies started off strong and dominant in game one with Cliff Lee pitching the game of his life. Shutting down the Yankees with no earned runs and walking off the field and out of Yankee Stadium with a 6 to 1 win and taking game one as if it were candy from a baby! Lee’s performance was outstanding and even Tim McCarver seemed surprised at not only how well Lee pitched but how relaxed he was on the field. Lee made plays you’d expect in the World Series! Like a nonchalant catch of a pop up to the mound and then a behind the back group of a hot grounder back through the box. If the Phillies end up winning the series it will be because Lee pitched so well in game one it gave the Phillies confidence going in to game two, and guaranteed them at least a split when they come home this weekend.
Game two with AJ Burnett and the ever talkative Pedro Martinez looked to be a repeat of game one through much of the early innings. Pedro was quite dominant and he held a one run lead going into the bottom of the 4th inning until mark Teixeira homered off a change up on the outside of the plate! And it remained tied until Hideko Matsui homered in the bottom of the 6th of Pedro and that was all that Burnett needed. The Yankees took a two run lead going into the 8th and 9th innings with Mariano Rivera pitching a two inning save. His 8th inning appeared less strong when he allowed two runners to reach with only one out, but a strong throw by Jeter got the double-play and got the Yankees out of the 8th inning!
I think it was more of a relief than joy for me when they won last night and even the series at one win apiece! Going back to Philadelphia is not the hard part in my mind for the Yankees, I think keeping the Phillies offense out of the game-as they were by Burnett in game#2-will be the difficult part for their starters and the bull-pen. I expect to see the Yankees come back to the Bronx Wednesday for game #6 and hopefully win the series at home!
Phillies-Yankees Game #1
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jsp?gid=2009_10_28_phimlb_nyamlb_1
Phillies/Yankees Game#2
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jsp?gid=2009_10_29_phimlb_nyamlb_1
Friday, October 30, 2009
The Phillies started off strong and dominant in game one with Cliff Lee pitching the game of his life. Shutting down the Yankees with no earned runs and walking off the field and out of Yankee Stadium with a 6 to 1 win and taking game one as if it were candy from a baby! Lee’s performance was outstanding and even Tim McCarver seemed surprised at not only how well Lee pitched but how relaxed he was on the field. Lee made plays you’d expect in the World Series! Like a nonchalant catch of a pop up to the mound and then a behind the back group of a hot grounder back through the box. If the Phillies end up winning the series it will be because Lee pitched so well in game one it gave the Phillies confidence going in to game two, and guaranteed them at least a split when they come home this weekend.
Game two with AJ Burnett and the ever talkative Pedro Martinez looked to be a repeat of game one through much of the early innings. Pedro was quite dominant and he held a one run lead going into the bottom of the 4th inning until mark Teixeira homered off a change up on the outside of the plate! And it remained tied until Hideko Matsui homered in the bottom of the 6th of Pedro and that was all that Burnett needed. The Yankees took a two run lead going into the 8th and 9th innings with Mariano Rivera pitching a two inning save. His 8th inning appeared less strong when he allowed two runners to reach with only one out, but a strong throw by Jeter got the double-play and got the Yankees out of the 8th inning!
I think it was more of a relief than joy for me when they won last night and even the series at one win apiece! Going back to Philadelphia is not the hard part in my mind for the Yankees, I think keeping the Phillies offense out of the game-as they were by Burnett in game#2-will be the difficult part for their starters and the bull-pen. I expect to see the Yankees come back to the Bronx Wednesday for game #6 and hopefully win the series at home!
Phillies-Yankees Game #1
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jsp?gid=2009_10_28_phimlb_nyamlb_1
Phillies/Yankees Game#2
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jsp?gid=2009_10_29_phimlb_nyamlb_1
Friday, October 30, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs-animated 2009 Film
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs [2009]
I’ve been a fan of many of the animated films that have been released in the last several years. The Incredibles [2004] and Monsters, Inc [2004] are probably my favorite animated films since the turn of the century though I did enjoy Monsters v. Aliens as well as Wall-e and Igor. However the latest animated film Cloudy with a chance of meatballs ranks up there with the plot lines of A Scanner Darkly and Ratatouille [2007]. The plot is obvious from the title of the film. An odd scientist like inventor creates a machine that can turn water in to food!
The movie sounds interesting at least at first, but then we learn that the inventor-Flint Lockwood-has a father who can’t talk with him and doesn’t understand him as well as that Flint has a crush on a local weather reporter who acts dumb even though she’s super smart! Is this what we want out of our animated films-A pretty girl who acts dumb to be accepted and a crazy inventor who doesn’t get along with his father? To make matters worse in the plot the machine that alters the DNA of the water into food breaks down near the end of the film and is creating sentient food-forms. We see whole cooked chickens walking around as if they are alive! What better Pr for vegetarians!
The film also has a happy ending-which I didn’t expect considering how the plot had gone up to that point, so it was a letdown of sorts to me to have such an ending.
Over all it’s not a bad film, just not an exciting or great film. See it when it comes out on DVD or watch it on cable.
official website-cloudy with a chance of meatballs
http://www.cloudywithachanceofmeatballs.com/
Cloudy on imdb.com
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0844471/
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
I’ve been a fan of many of the animated films that have been released in the last several years. The Incredibles [2004] and Monsters, Inc [2004] are probably my favorite animated films since the turn of the century though I did enjoy Monsters v. Aliens as well as Wall-e and Igor. However the latest animated film Cloudy with a chance of meatballs ranks up there with the plot lines of A Scanner Darkly and Ratatouille [2007]. The plot is obvious from the title of the film. An odd scientist like inventor creates a machine that can turn water in to food!
The movie sounds interesting at least at first, but then we learn that the inventor-Flint Lockwood-has a father who can’t talk with him and doesn’t understand him as well as that Flint has a crush on a local weather reporter who acts dumb even though she’s super smart! Is this what we want out of our animated films-A pretty girl who acts dumb to be accepted and a crazy inventor who doesn’t get along with his father? To make matters worse in the plot the machine that alters the DNA of the water into food breaks down near the end of the film and is creating sentient food-forms. We see whole cooked chickens walking around as if they are alive! What better Pr for vegetarians!
The film also has a happy ending-which I didn’t expect considering how the plot had gone up to that point, so it was a letdown of sorts to me to have such an ending.
Over all it’s not a bad film, just not an exciting or great film. See it when it comes out on DVD or watch it on cable.
official website-cloudy with a chance of meatballs
http://www.cloudywithachanceofmeatballs.com/
Cloudy on imdb.com
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0844471/
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
2009 World Series Game #1
Yankees/Phillies-World Series Game#1!
Well it’s been six long years for Yankees fans to see their beloved Bronx-Bombers back in the Fall Classic! And it’s been all of a year for the Philadelphia crowd to enjoy the same. It’s going to be a train/I-95 series over the next week and I can imagine that there will be plenty of New Yorkers in Philly over the weekend when the Yankees play there on Saturday and Sunday, and perhaps Monday night too!
Tonight at around 8pm I’ll be at home watching game #1 in this series and waiting to see who has more offense and who has better pitching. I think most of us who have followed the American League and seen the playoffs this fall will expect C.C Sabathia to pitch well and to leave it all on the field. Hopefully we’ll have a great series and see why both these teams belong in the fall classic!
2009 Playoff Schedule
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/schedule/ps.jsp?y=09
2009 World Series game #1
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2009_10_28_phimlb_nyamlb_1
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Well it’s been six long years for Yankees fans to see their beloved Bronx-Bombers back in the Fall Classic! And it’s been all of a year for the Philadelphia crowd to enjoy the same. It’s going to be a train/I-95 series over the next week and I can imagine that there will be plenty of New Yorkers in Philly over the weekend when the Yankees play there on Saturday and Sunday, and perhaps Monday night too!
Tonight at around 8pm I’ll be at home watching game #1 in this series and waiting to see who has more offense and who has better pitching. I think most of us who have followed the American League and seen the playoffs this fall will expect C.C Sabathia to pitch well and to leave it all on the field. Hopefully we’ll have a great series and see why both these teams belong in the fall classic!
2009 Playoff Schedule
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/schedule/ps.jsp?y=09
2009 World Series game #1
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2009_10_28_phimlb_nyamlb_1
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Surrogates-Willis' Latest Movie [2009]
Surrogates [2009]
A few weeks ago I went and saw the latest Bruce Willis movie entitled Surrogates. Set some time in the future where nearly everyone in the US works, plays and experiences their life through an android body. It’s an interesting plot, and Willis plays an interesting character. He is an FBI agent and his surrogate is 20 years his younger but is based on his physical features. We see a young Willis running around the city after a killer.
The movie presents us with an interesting future. Where no one is homeless, out of work and crime is nearly gone-all because of these surrogates! Everyone has one and everyone can look as handsome or as beautiful as they can afford to look by manufactured means. They look gorgeous and can feel everything that their surrogate does. So they can go out and literally jump out of a plane without a parachute, all because their surrogate will be destroyed but they won’t be!
But we find that there is a problem when a military weapon is stolen that can destroy not only the surrogate but the human connected to it as well. This is where Willis comes in and must find out who it is that is trying to kill the inventor and owner of the company that manufactures the surrogates. Willis finds that he not only must determine who is working against him, but who really is who. As a surrogate can have more than one person who uses it Willis finds that he’s not only in a who-dun-it mystery, but also a who-is-it on that other side of that surrogate!
The ending is not one I had expected and for that I give the writers a thumbs-up in their creativity. The idea of surrogates for everyone is sci-fi to say the least but also a world in which I’d rather not live. Walking around and not having any real interaction with a human being. Where the person I may touch or hug is simply an android and while I might feel the sensation there is still no real physical or human interaction. I’m glad this is sci-fi and not anything that science is actually working to produce.
Surrogates-imdb.com
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0986263/
Surrogates-Official Website
http://www.chooseyoursurrogate.com/
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
A few weeks ago I went and saw the latest Bruce Willis movie entitled Surrogates. Set some time in the future where nearly everyone in the US works, plays and experiences their life through an android body. It’s an interesting plot, and Willis plays an interesting character. He is an FBI agent and his surrogate is 20 years his younger but is based on his physical features. We see a young Willis running around the city after a killer.
The movie presents us with an interesting future. Where no one is homeless, out of work and crime is nearly gone-all because of these surrogates! Everyone has one and everyone can look as handsome or as beautiful as they can afford to look by manufactured means. They look gorgeous and can feel everything that their surrogate does. So they can go out and literally jump out of a plane without a parachute, all because their surrogate will be destroyed but they won’t be!
But we find that there is a problem when a military weapon is stolen that can destroy not only the surrogate but the human connected to it as well. This is where Willis comes in and must find out who it is that is trying to kill the inventor and owner of the company that manufactures the surrogates. Willis finds that he not only must determine who is working against him, but who really is who. As a surrogate can have more than one person who uses it Willis finds that he’s not only in a who-dun-it mystery, but also a who-is-it on that other side of that surrogate!
The ending is not one I had expected and for that I give the writers a thumbs-up in their creativity. The idea of surrogates for everyone is sci-fi to say the least but also a world in which I’d rather not live. Walking around and not having any real interaction with a human being. Where the person I may touch or hug is simply an android and while I might feel the sensation there is still no real physical or human interaction. I’m glad this is sci-fi and not anything that science is actually working to produce.
Surrogates-imdb.com
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0986263/
Surrogates-Official Website
http://www.chooseyoursurrogate.com/
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Yankees/Angels Working for Series Bid
Yankees-Angels in the 2009 ALCS!
October 2009 has had some interesting baseball for us to watch and listen too. I saw the Detroit Tigers blow a 7 game lead with a week to go and then loose the division to the Twins in a one game playoff. The Twins then lost the division series to the Yankees in straight games-no real surprise there. Now the Yankees are playing some very good baseball against the Angels and hoping to return to the World Series for the first time in six years.
The last time the Yankees were in the series Joe Torre was their manager. I was sick on dialysis and lived in a basement apartment in Ann Arbor, Michigan. I also watched the Yankees loose in 6 games to the Florida Marlins as Jorge Posada bounced out to 2nd and ended the game. It was a surprise though it shouldn’t have been one for me. I saw them loose in 7 games to Arizona in 2001 and couldn’t believe that Mariano Rivera was capable of losing a game.
Now we have game five to be played tomorrow night in Anaheim, California at 8pm [EST] and there will be millions watching and waiting to see if the Yankees can pull off one more game and go back to the fall classic.
However, I don’t think I’d be living up to my standards if I left this entry without mentioning the very terrible officiating/umping we have seen during these playoffs. Last night’s fiasco was the worst and is being compared to the poor umpping by Leslie Nielsen in the movie Naked Gun! How can someone miss so many obvious calls in such a short amount of time? I realize these guys are human and will make mistakes, but these were obvious ones-not close calls that you needed a digital computer to move frame by frame to view and determine if the call was right. It was so wrong people in the stands could see it!
I hope that the umping gets better and that the Yankees win Thursday night. I’d rather have the Yankees in the series because they earned their way there and won the game than because the umps made a huge mistake and gave the game away.
espn.com-baseball playoffs and the poor calls
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/playoffs/2009/columns/story?columnist=caple_jim&id=4581598
world series 2003
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/ps/y2003/
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
October 2009 has had some interesting baseball for us to watch and listen too. I saw the Detroit Tigers blow a 7 game lead with a week to go and then loose the division to the Twins in a one game playoff. The Twins then lost the division series to the Yankees in straight games-no real surprise there. Now the Yankees are playing some very good baseball against the Angels and hoping to return to the World Series for the first time in six years.
The last time the Yankees were in the series Joe Torre was their manager. I was sick on dialysis and lived in a basement apartment in Ann Arbor, Michigan. I also watched the Yankees loose in 6 games to the Florida Marlins as Jorge Posada bounced out to 2nd and ended the game. It was a surprise though it shouldn’t have been one for me. I saw them loose in 7 games to Arizona in 2001 and couldn’t believe that Mariano Rivera was capable of losing a game.
Now we have game five to be played tomorrow night in Anaheim, California at 8pm [EST] and there will be millions watching and waiting to see if the Yankees can pull off one more game and go back to the fall classic.
However, I don’t think I’d be living up to my standards if I left this entry without mentioning the very terrible officiating/umping we have seen during these playoffs. Last night’s fiasco was the worst and is being compared to the poor umpping by Leslie Nielsen in the movie Naked Gun! How can someone miss so many obvious calls in such a short amount of time? I realize these guys are human and will make mistakes, but these were obvious ones-not close calls that you needed a digital computer to move frame by frame to view and determine if the call was right. It was so wrong people in the stands could see it!
I hope that the umping gets better and that the Yankees win Thursday night. I’d rather have the Yankees in the series because they earned their way there and won the game than because the umps made a huge mistake and gave the game away.
espn.com-baseball playoffs and the poor calls
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/playoffs/2009/columns/story?columnist=caple_jim&id=4581598
world series 2003
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/ps/y2003/
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Is This Movie True or False?
The Informant [2009]
This movie may or may not be based on a true story, but one thing I found true was that I could have waited to view it until it came out on DVD and then rented it! Matt Damon plays an interesting role-a bit of a goof-an exec who is apparently trying to do the right thing in a corporate world that certainly wouldn’t teach its members to in fact do the right thing. Damon gets the FBI involved in what is an alleged price fixing scheme between ADM and several very large corporations from Japan and Europe.
What we see in the film is part mock-u-mentory, part cartoon spy world and partly messed up. Half way through the film I’m waiting for the hammer to drop on the corporate VP’s at ADM in the film and we are told that Damon’s character is now the subject of a federal investigation and has stolen-embezzled-millions of dollars from the company he works for and is trying to take down. The focus shifts from ADM to Damon and it seems to get weirder from there. Damon’s character starts staging fake kidnappings and accusing the FBI of wrong doing as well as a fake letter from his psychiatrist saying he has a DSM diagnosed mental condition that should give him immunity for all this actions.
The film is not badly written and there are many notable characters in it-Scott Bakula plays a very believable role as the lead Special Agent from the FBI who Damon contacts and Melanie Lynskey who plays Damon’s wife in the film is known for her reoccurring quirky and cute role on Two and a Half Men on CBS. Despite these good supporting roles the film’s two hour time left me waiting for the end with relief rather than disappointment. I’d suggest renting this film or watching it on cable in a few years. Don’t waste your time going to the theater and paying fill price to see it!
imdb.com-the informant
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1130080/
The Informant Official website
http://theinformantmovie.warnerbros.com/
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
This movie may or may not be based on a true story, but one thing I found true was that I could have waited to view it until it came out on DVD and then rented it! Matt Damon plays an interesting role-a bit of a goof-an exec who is apparently trying to do the right thing in a corporate world that certainly wouldn’t teach its members to in fact do the right thing. Damon gets the FBI involved in what is an alleged price fixing scheme between ADM and several very large corporations from Japan and Europe.
What we see in the film is part mock-u-mentory, part cartoon spy world and partly messed up. Half way through the film I’m waiting for the hammer to drop on the corporate VP’s at ADM in the film and we are told that Damon’s character is now the subject of a federal investigation and has stolen-embezzled-millions of dollars from the company he works for and is trying to take down. The focus shifts from ADM to Damon and it seems to get weirder from there. Damon’s character starts staging fake kidnappings and accusing the FBI of wrong doing as well as a fake letter from his psychiatrist saying he has a DSM diagnosed mental condition that should give him immunity for all this actions.
The film is not badly written and there are many notable characters in it-Scott Bakula plays a very believable role as the lead Special Agent from the FBI who Damon contacts and Melanie Lynskey who plays Damon’s wife in the film is known for her reoccurring quirky and cute role on Two and a Half Men on CBS. Despite these good supporting roles the film’s two hour time left me waiting for the end with relief rather than disappointment. I’d suggest renting this film or watching it on cable in a few years. Don’t waste your time going to the theater and paying fill price to see it!
imdb.com-the informant
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1130080/
The Informant Official website
http://theinformantmovie.warnerbros.com/
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Detroit Lions Keep Loosing
Lions Loose Last Three Sundays
The Detroit Lions have lost in their last three games. To most of us who follow the Lions and watch them each week this is not really a shock to our system. To the rest of the country who follows football-and even to Michigan residents-this is what was to be expected. But in the last three weeks they have lost two close games that could have gone in our favor. The games against the Bears in Chicago and against the Steelers at Ford Field could have gone in our favor as the Lions showed offense as well as defense throughout the game. The Lions couldn’t put it all together though and as many of us were trying to keep our life in the land of denial going-at least I was-last week we watched the Lions loose to the Packers at Lambeau by a score of 26-0.
A shut out! We played horridly, and I watched in amazement while the young rookie who hurt his knee just over two weeks ago stood on the sideline laughing and talking with his teammates, while Dante Culpepper pulled a muscle and had to come out of the game. It’s the same story as last year. We have a quarterback we think will start to lead and give us some offense. He gets hurt and then another quarterback gets hurt. We are back to having Drew Stanton come in and finish the game. Hopefully he’ll actually get some time to practice this week and be better prepared to go on the field in 10 days when the Lions play the Rams at home at Ford Field on Sunday November 1st. The Rams are currently winless so perhaps the Lions can beat up on them and squeeze another victory out of this season. They will; be playing games against teams that are under .500 in the next several weeks which could prove to help the Lions record. I hope that it helps us put a few more wins in the column and doesn’t have us sitting here wondering how much longer we have to wait to become a better football team.
Lions 0 Packers 26
http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2009101801/2009/REG6/lions@packers#tab:analyze
Lions Home Page
http://www.nfl.com/teams/detroitlions/profile?team=DET
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
The Detroit Lions have lost in their last three games. To most of us who follow the Lions and watch them each week this is not really a shock to our system. To the rest of the country who follows football-and even to Michigan residents-this is what was to be expected. But in the last three weeks they have lost two close games that could have gone in our favor. The games against the Bears in Chicago and against the Steelers at Ford Field could have gone in our favor as the Lions showed offense as well as defense throughout the game. The Lions couldn’t put it all together though and as many of us were trying to keep our life in the land of denial going-at least I was-last week we watched the Lions loose to the Packers at Lambeau by a score of 26-0.
A shut out! We played horridly, and I watched in amazement while the young rookie who hurt his knee just over two weeks ago stood on the sideline laughing and talking with his teammates, while Dante Culpepper pulled a muscle and had to come out of the game. It’s the same story as last year. We have a quarterback we think will start to lead and give us some offense. He gets hurt and then another quarterback gets hurt. We are back to having Drew Stanton come in and finish the game. Hopefully he’ll actually get some time to practice this week and be better prepared to go on the field in 10 days when the Lions play the Rams at home at Ford Field on Sunday November 1st. The Rams are currently winless so perhaps the Lions can beat up on them and squeeze another victory out of this season. They will; be playing games against teams that are under .500 in the next several weeks which could prove to help the Lions record. I hope that it helps us put a few more wins in the column and doesn’t have us sitting here wondering how much longer we have to wait to become a better football team.
Lions 0 Packers 26
http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2009101801/2009/REG6/lions@packers#tab:analyze
Lions Home Page
http://www.nfl.com/teams/detroitlions/profile?team=DET
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Brady Has A Career Game!
Patriots Run Over the Titans on Sunday!
I’m not a fan of the NE Patriots as I’m sure many aren’t. Tom Brady is a former UM star and in the past I’ve supported NE to show my loyalty to a UM alumni. This past weekend Brady did something I’ve never seen, and may not be seen again for many years. He threw for six touchdowns in a game and five in a quarter. Amidst the snow, wind and cold of New England he made the Titans look like pee-wee football players and took his team down the field so many times I stopped counting!
A 59 to 0 score at the end of the game should be enough to convey how poorly the Titans played, or how well the Patriots did-but in this case it was both. The Titans who were 13-3 last year are 0-6 [worse than the Detroit Lions if you can believe it] and the Patriots are 4-2 and are in 1st place in the AFC East division.
This game may have silenced many of Brady’s critics, but all we can do is wait and see if he turns out to be the Brady of old and watch and wait for some more exciting football to come.
NFL.com-Game Recap
http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2009101810/2009/REG6/titans@patriots
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
I’m not a fan of the NE Patriots as I’m sure many aren’t. Tom Brady is a former UM star and in the past I’ve supported NE to show my loyalty to a UM alumni. This past weekend Brady did something I’ve never seen, and may not be seen again for many years. He threw for six touchdowns in a game and five in a quarter. Amidst the snow, wind and cold of New England he made the Titans look like pee-wee football players and took his team down the field so many times I stopped counting!
A 59 to 0 score at the end of the game should be enough to convey how poorly the Titans played, or how well the Patriots did-but in this case it was both. The Titans who were 13-3 last year are 0-6 [worse than the Detroit Lions if you can believe it] and the Patriots are 4-2 and are in 1st place in the AFC East division.
This game may have silenced many of Brady’s critics, but all we can do is wait and see if he turns out to be the Brady of old and watch and wait for some more exciting football to come.
NFL.com-Game Recap
http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2009101810/2009/REG6/titans@patriots
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Zombieland [2009]
I’ve been in an intermittent bad mood the last couple of weeks. Luckily I’ve not been forcing my bad mood on too! But this movie was just what I would have ordered if I was an MD instead of an RN. It had some interesting scenes, some kick-ass whack ‘em in the head with a baseball bat and shoot ‘em up with a fully automatic machine gun scene and that was really what I was looking for in this film. Gave me the chance to vicariously live through the film and the characters-especially Woody Harrelson’s character-to vent some of my past frustrations in life.
Zombie Killer is certainly not an official title for anyone in this film, but it is what each of the characters must do or learn to do in order to survive in the film. If you think this film is about some new Disney land where everyone dresses up like zombies and runs after you…well you’d be wrong-mostly wrong-but unlike Cedar Point’s Hallo-weekends where the employees dress up and try and scare you this film portrays a land that has been overrun by beef eating Americans who have managed to all get the BSE and spread it around to nearly everyone in the Country. BSE is bovine-spongiform encephalopathy for those who have not read about it. It’s prevalent in cows and you may have heard it by its more common name-mad cow disease!
The premise is that mad cow has spread from the cows to humans and the humans become zombies after eating the infected cow meat! All the more reason to be vegetarian now-No? So the infected then start eating other people, anyone and everyone they can find-sort of like the world in “I Am Legend” [2007] but only a bit nastier. Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg team up in a very unlikely partner scenario. The fact that Eisenberg has survived this long is amazing, but he gives a semi-believable story as to how he managed to survive as long as he has, and this involved his “patented” rules-31 at the start of the film and 32 at the end. The rules do seem reasonable but it’s hardly believable that he really survived all by himself for so long. None the less he and Harrelson team up for a journey that involves two young girls and cross-country chase and a semi-wild ending at a Disney-land style amusement park!
This film probably won’t win any Oscars or awards but if you enjoy zombie movies, like movies without too much gore and blood or just want to enjoy the visceral feeling of watching someone beat the crap out of some zombies, then this film is for you!
zombieland-imdb.com
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1156398/
http://www.zombieland.com/
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Zombie Killer is certainly not an official title for anyone in this film, but it is what each of the characters must do or learn to do in order to survive in the film. If you think this film is about some new Disney land where everyone dresses up like zombies and runs after you…well you’d be wrong-mostly wrong-but unlike Cedar Point’s Hallo-weekends where the employees dress up and try and scare you this film portrays a land that has been overrun by beef eating Americans who have managed to all get the BSE and spread it around to nearly everyone in the Country. BSE is bovine-spongiform encephalopathy for those who have not read about it. It’s prevalent in cows and you may have heard it by its more common name-mad cow disease!
The premise is that mad cow has spread from the cows to humans and the humans become zombies after eating the infected cow meat! All the more reason to be vegetarian now-No? So the infected then start eating other people, anyone and everyone they can find-sort of like the world in “I Am Legend” [2007] but only a bit nastier. Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg team up in a very unlikely partner scenario. The fact that Eisenberg has survived this long is amazing, but he gives a semi-believable story as to how he managed to survive as long as he has, and this involved his “patented” rules-31 at the start of the film and 32 at the end. The rules do seem reasonable but it’s hardly believable that he really survived all by himself for so long. None the less he and Harrelson team up for a journey that involves two young girls and cross-country chase and a semi-wild ending at a Disney-land style amusement park!
This film probably won’t win any Oscars or awards but if you enjoy zombie movies, like movies without too much gore and blood or just want to enjoy the visceral feeling of watching someone beat the crap out of some zombies, then this film is for you!
zombieland-imdb.com
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1156398/
http://www.zombieland.com/
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Monday, September 28, 2009
Lions Beat Washington!
Finally!
The Detroit Lions after a very long time-yes since December 2007-have won a regular season game. Their 19 game losing streak is at an end and as the owner of the Lions put it so well yesterday in a post game interview with Fox 2-Detroit, “the monkey is off our backs, King Kong is off our backs and now we can start winning.”
The Lions have had a huge turn-over in staff, both coaching and players, that this team is an entirely different one from the past several years. Despite that this team still was caring the weight of last years horrible 0-16 record and with two losses to start this season it wasn’t making winning any easier.
Yet the Lions finally put together a strong performance that lasted the entire game. They had good defense that stopped Washington’s running game at the goal line when they needed. They were able to come up with an interception to stop a drive in the 4th quarter and despite giving Washington a last chance at the end they stopped them short of scoring and short of breaking our hearts again.
The Lions win came in front of what must have been one of the smallest crowds at Ford Field since the stadium opened. Just 40k+ came to see them play yesterday and who can blame us for not going? I sat at home and listened to the game and wondered and waiting and hoped that they’d finally win.
Perhaps now that the Lions have won one game this season it will be, as the Owner William Clay Ford predicts, easier to win. Hopefully this team can put behind that losing streak and move on with confidence to play the Bears next weekend in Chicago. A cold and unwelcoming place soldier Field will be to the Detroit Lions. May the win we just had this weekend keep them warm and may the memory of winning keep them confident enough to win again!
Lions 19 Redskins 14-Week #3
http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=290927008
Calgary Herald-Lions Win
http://www.calgaryherald.com/sports/Lions+King+Kong+their+backs/2041319/story.html
Espn recap Lions Win
http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/recap?gameId=290927008
Monday, September 28, 2009
The Detroit Lions after a very long time-yes since December 2007-have won a regular season game. Their 19 game losing streak is at an end and as the owner of the Lions put it so well yesterday in a post game interview with Fox 2-Detroit, “the monkey is off our backs, King Kong is off our backs and now we can start winning.”
The Lions have had a huge turn-over in staff, both coaching and players, that this team is an entirely different one from the past several years. Despite that this team still was caring the weight of last years horrible 0-16 record and with two losses to start this season it wasn’t making winning any easier.
Yet the Lions finally put together a strong performance that lasted the entire game. They had good defense that stopped Washington’s running game at the goal line when they needed. They were able to come up with an interception to stop a drive in the 4th quarter and despite giving Washington a last chance at the end they stopped them short of scoring and short of breaking our hearts again.
The Lions win came in front of what must have been one of the smallest crowds at Ford Field since the stadium opened. Just 40k+ came to see them play yesterday and who can blame us for not going? I sat at home and listened to the game and wondered and waiting and hoped that they’d finally win.
Perhaps now that the Lions have won one game this season it will be, as the Owner William Clay Ford predicts, easier to win. Hopefully this team can put behind that losing streak and move on with confidence to play the Bears next weekend in Chicago. A cold and unwelcoming place soldier Field will be to the Detroit Lions. May the win we just had this weekend keep them warm and may the memory of winning keep them confident enough to win again!
Lions 19 Redskins 14-Week #3
http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=290927008
Calgary Herald-Lions Win
http://www.calgaryherald.com/sports/Lions+King+Kong+their+backs/2041319/story.html
Espn recap Lions Win
http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/recap?gameId=290927008
Monday, September 28, 2009
District 9 [2009]
When I first heard of this new film that Peter Jackson was involved in I was interested and excited, then I saw the preview and I was not sure I wanted to view the film. The previews made the film look very depressing. The plot presented was of a group of aliens who became lost and couldn’t get their ship to work and were stranded here on earth.
The trailer made it appear that the aliens lived in squalor and were being held captive by us humans here on earth. So much for ethical behavior among inter-species, but then what should I expect from a species that raises animals simply to kill them and eat them?
Putting the ethics of eating meat aside, the movie itself really was depressing to me. I viewed it last week hoping that I’d be wrong and it presented humans in a very realistic light. We care more about ourselves than anything else. I’m not talking about individual survival or survival of our species. Humans in real life care more about obtaining wealth, material objects and having “the good life” than working towards an ethical dispersal of goods and materials across the planet for the benefit of all of mankind, let alone all of the earth. We worry over global warming and the possibility of losing much of our country’s coastal areas in the next 100 years because of global warming and yet we over produce animals for food in the most disgusting of environments. People across the planet are starving and have no clean water to eat. People in our own country have nowhere to live and not enough food to eat and yet we still worry about getting the new PSP 3 on sale and buying the latest fashions and going to the most elite restaurants.
The film District 9 may be a parody of all of the above. While it may not be the writer and director’s intent to parody modern society they do present humans in a way that appears most revealing and most unflattering. Humans in the not so distant future have to “deal” with the arrival of a group of aliens who have gotten lost. They cannot return home as their ship doesn’t function. As a result of these events the country of South Africa-where the ship has arrived-forcibly removes the aliens from their ship and then makes them live in what amounts to concentration camps. They live in shacks made of cardboard, left over plywood and aluminum. They live in firth and garbage. They are shown scrounging through garbage for food and for whatever they can find to use for survival.
The film shows people being interviewed who have various reactions to the aliens. Some speak as if they are a blight to the world and just want them to leave and “go home” or “go back to where they came from”. Those being interviewed for the film also speak of the aliens as if they are not deserving of any respect and as if they aren’t intelligent and are some form of untouchable, a lower social class and don’t deserve to have a clean place to live or food to eat.
During the film one of the government workers who is been charged with moving the entire group of aliens-some 1+ million-from the current camp to a “newer and better camp” is laughing about the nickname the aliens have and laughing as one of them is scrounging through garbage. They aliens are called “prawns” because they are seen as bottom feeders by humans. We also see the official performing a mass “abortion” on a shack full of young “prawns” incubating. Afterwards he laughs about performing his first abortion.
Later in the movie this same official is exposed to an alien bio-technology which turns out to be fuel for their space ship. The fluid slowly turns the human into an alien and during the course of the human trying to regain his humanity we find that humans have been secretly experimenting on the aliens and trying to use alien technology for profit.
The story line is interesting but it is not a feel good movie with a happy ending, nor is it a scary-horror movie. This film presents humans in a very negative light which appears reminiscent to countless government regimes who exploit those with little power. It’s the story of the human race. I hope that it’s not one that will be repeated forever.
District 9 [2009]
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1136608/
Official Web Site-District 9
http://www.district9movie.com/
Monday, September 28, 2009
The trailer made it appear that the aliens lived in squalor and were being held captive by us humans here on earth. So much for ethical behavior among inter-species, but then what should I expect from a species that raises animals simply to kill them and eat them?
Putting the ethics of eating meat aside, the movie itself really was depressing to me. I viewed it last week hoping that I’d be wrong and it presented humans in a very realistic light. We care more about ourselves than anything else. I’m not talking about individual survival or survival of our species. Humans in real life care more about obtaining wealth, material objects and having “the good life” than working towards an ethical dispersal of goods and materials across the planet for the benefit of all of mankind, let alone all of the earth. We worry over global warming and the possibility of losing much of our country’s coastal areas in the next 100 years because of global warming and yet we over produce animals for food in the most disgusting of environments. People across the planet are starving and have no clean water to eat. People in our own country have nowhere to live and not enough food to eat and yet we still worry about getting the new PSP 3 on sale and buying the latest fashions and going to the most elite restaurants.
The film District 9 may be a parody of all of the above. While it may not be the writer and director’s intent to parody modern society they do present humans in a way that appears most revealing and most unflattering. Humans in the not so distant future have to “deal” with the arrival of a group of aliens who have gotten lost. They cannot return home as their ship doesn’t function. As a result of these events the country of South Africa-where the ship has arrived-forcibly removes the aliens from their ship and then makes them live in what amounts to concentration camps. They live in shacks made of cardboard, left over plywood and aluminum. They live in firth and garbage. They are shown scrounging through garbage for food and for whatever they can find to use for survival.
The film shows people being interviewed who have various reactions to the aliens. Some speak as if they are a blight to the world and just want them to leave and “go home” or “go back to where they came from”. Those being interviewed for the film also speak of the aliens as if they are not deserving of any respect and as if they aren’t intelligent and are some form of untouchable, a lower social class and don’t deserve to have a clean place to live or food to eat.
During the film one of the government workers who is been charged with moving the entire group of aliens-some 1+ million-from the current camp to a “newer and better camp” is laughing about the nickname the aliens have and laughing as one of them is scrounging through garbage. They aliens are called “prawns” because they are seen as bottom feeders by humans. We also see the official performing a mass “abortion” on a shack full of young “prawns” incubating. Afterwards he laughs about performing his first abortion.
Later in the movie this same official is exposed to an alien bio-technology which turns out to be fuel for their space ship. The fluid slowly turns the human into an alien and during the course of the human trying to regain his humanity we find that humans have been secretly experimenting on the aliens and trying to use alien technology for profit.
The story line is interesting but it is not a feel good movie with a happy ending, nor is it a scary-horror movie. This film presents humans in a very negative light which appears reminiscent to countless government regimes who exploit those with little power. It’s the story of the human race. I hope that it’s not one that will be repeated forever.
District 9 [2009]
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1136608/
Official Web Site-District 9
http://www.district9movie.com/
Monday, September 28, 2009
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Inglorious Basterds [2009]
A movie depicting the events of the Second World War seemed somewhat out of character for Quentin Tarintino when I first heard of it. Up to the opening of the movie I still wasn’t convinced that I would like it or that I even wanted to see it. After Tarintino’s last work-Grindhouse-which I felt was so incredibly bad I wasn’t sure seeing another one of his movies was a good use of my time. After seeing and hearing an interview of him by Tavis Smiley on PBS shortly after the film opened last month I quickly changed my mind.
Tarintino explained that yes this film was in fact set during the Second World War, but that while it doesn’t change who won the war it did in fact chance the way the war ended. He went on to explain that he had written several strong characters in the film-Lt Aldo Raine and Sgt Stiglitz-and he let the film follow where these characters would have gone. He believed that if this US Army Soldier-Lt. Aldo Raine-had been in German occupied France in 1943-1944 then what we saw in the film would have transpired and the war itself would have ended sooner. Lt.Raine’s team took risks and those risks let to the end of the war sooner than in reality.
The premise is an interesting one pursued by Tarintino and the film itself is presented much in the style we have seen in the past-with a bit of the Chapters thrown in like in Kill Bill vol 1 and vol 2 as well as the multiple scenes shot simultaneously, but then watched by the viewer successively like in Jackie Brown. The film also is just as violent as any war film that you may have seen in the past, and it does not spare anyone’s delicate sensibilities. IF you faint at blood then you’re best not to view this film.
The film also has several very good scenes in it. One scene near the beginning of the film is when Brad Pitt is introduced as Lt Raine. He is introducing himself to his new squad of eight American-Jewish soldiers. When he states that they all have a debt owed him when signing on to this unit and assignment and that debt is 100 scalps each, no one backs down! They all have a resounding, “Yes, SIR!” to convey their acceptance of this contract. Later in the film two of Pitt’s remaining soldiers are undercover in the theater is to be the Third Reich’s Demise and they burst in to a private box that has Hitler viewing a film. First they both shot Hitler and Goebbels with a machine gun, but moments later one of the soldiers turns and sees Hitler’s body laying on the floor and shoots him several more times. Even though his character says nothing he conveys his hatred and disgust so well with his body language it’s as if he was adding his own, “Screw You F@#$( Nazi!”
The movie itself ends in a way I had not expected, but if I could say that I could predict Tarintino’s movie plots then I’d be the one writing them instead of him!
Over all this is a good film and those who have enjoyed Tarintino’s other films should enjoy this one as well!
Inglorious Basterds-imdb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0361748/
Jackie Brown [1997]
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119396/
Pulp Fiction [1994]
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110912/
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Tarintino explained that yes this film was in fact set during the Second World War, but that while it doesn’t change who won the war it did in fact chance the way the war ended. He went on to explain that he had written several strong characters in the film-Lt Aldo Raine and Sgt Stiglitz-and he let the film follow where these characters would have gone. He believed that if this US Army Soldier-Lt. Aldo Raine-had been in German occupied France in 1943-1944 then what we saw in the film would have transpired and the war itself would have ended sooner. Lt.Raine’s team took risks and those risks let to the end of the war sooner than in reality.
The premise is an interesting one pursued by Tarintino and the film itself is presented much in the style we have seen in the past-with a bit of the Chapters thrown in like in Kill Bill vol 1 and vol 2 as well as the multiple scenes shot simultaneously, but then watched by the viewer successively like in Jackie Brown. The film also is just as violent as any war film that you may have seen in the past, and it does not spare anyone’s delicate sensibilities. IF you faint at blood then you’re best not to view this film.
The film also has several very good scenes in it. One scene near the beginning of the film is when Brad Pitt is introduced as Lt Raine. He is introducing himself to his new squad of eight American-Jewish soldiers. When he states that they all have a debt owed him when signing on to this unit and assignment and that debt is 100 scalps each, no one backs down! They all have a resounding, “Yes, SIR!” to convey their acceptance of this contract. Later in the film two of Pitt’s remaining soldiers are undercover in the theater is to be the Third Reich’s Demise and they burst in to a private box that has Hitler viewing a film. First they both shot Hitler and Goebbels with a machine gun, but moments later one of the soldiers turns and sees Hitler’s body laying on the floor and shoots him several more times. Even though his character says nothing he conveys his hatred and disgust so well with his body language it’s as if he was adding his own, “Screw You F@#$( Nazi!”
The movie itself ends in a way I had not expected, but if I could say that I could predict Tarintino’s movie plots then I’d be the one writing them instead of him!
Over all this is a good film and those who have enjoyed Tarintino’s other films should enjoy this one as well!
Inglorious Basterds-imdb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0361748/
Jackie Brown [1997]
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119396/
Pulp Fiction [1994]
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110912/
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
ALIEN NATION [1988]
This movie came out many years ago! So long ago in fact that I was in school at the time! And I’m not saying if I was in grade-school, or high-school! But I do remember seeing it on cable a few years after it came out and recently saw it again on cable. It reminded me of how young the big name stars were in the late 80’s-James Caan and Mandy Patinkin-who looked old to me then, don’t appear as old now some 20 years later!
The movie’s plot is simple-aliens land on earth and are lost. They can’t find their way home and so they crash the INS and start living in LA! Mandy Patinkin’s character is an alien named “Sam Francisco” and it’s a joke that makes you groan to say the least! Patinkin plays a police officer who is partnered with Caan. They stumble on to a new drug that is being produced by the aliens and is about to be widely distributed among the “Newcomer” alien members. We’re told that crack and heroin are like pez compared to this drug!
The story moves quickly-which is a necessity in films but not true in real police work-and we see Caan and Pantinkin’s characters investigating several deaths over the course of a few days. The deaths are all related and lead them to the leader of the alien’s drug operation. An alien named William Harcourt-played by Terrence Stamp. The movie has several very good chase scenes and even an interesting side-line into the personal life of Patinkin’s character and the history of the aliens in general.
Overall the movie is very good and has an interesting sci-fi twist on an old cop movie plot. Old cop and rookie working together to solve a problem larger than themselves and they must put aside their differences and dislikes of each other to achieve the greater good.
Alien Nation [1988] imdb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094631/
Monday, September 21, 2009
The movie’s plot is simple-aliens land on earth and are lost. They can’t find their way home and so they crash the INS and start living in LA! Mandy Patinkin’s character is an alien named “Sam Francisco” and it’s a joke that makes you groan to say the least! Patinkin plays a police officer who is partnered with Caan. They stumble on to a new drug that is being produced by the aliens and is about to be widely distributed among the “Newcomer” alien members. We’re told that crack and heroin are like pez compared to this drug!
The story moves quickly-which is a necessity in films but not true in real police work-and we see Caan and Pantinkin’s characters investigating several deaths over the course of a few days. The deaths are all related and lead them to the leader of the alien’s drug operation. An alien named William Harcourt-played by Terrence Stamp. The movie has several very good chase scenes and even an interesting side-line into the personal life of Patinkin’s character and the history of the aliens in general.
Overall the movie is very good and has an interesting sci-fi twist on an old cop movie plot. Old cop and rookie working together to solve a problem larger than themselves and they must put aside their differences and dislikes of each other to achieve the greater good.
Alien Nation [1988] imdb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094631/
Monday, September 21, 2009
Giants Christian New Dallas Stadium with a Win!
The NY Giants played well in Sunday night’s Dallas home opener. The Giant defense was the recipient of four Dallas turnovers which lead to 12 points, but the NY offense could not get itself in to the end zone most of the night and this nearly cost them the game!
The game itself was exciting and the lead changed hands each quarter. The Giants looked as they would lose when Tynes missed field goal in the 2nd quarter appeared as if it would come back to haunt them at the end of the 4th quarter as Dallas took the lead with less than half the quarter to go. NY marched down the field yet again though and in a dramatic fashion Tynes made a last second 37 yard field goal, which was then called back when Dallas managed to get in a last moment time out. The field goal was re-kicked and Tynes made it and the Giants won 33 to 31 in the first game at the Cowboy’s new stadium which had a record setting 105k+ fans.
It was an exciting game to watch on a big screen TV at home! I wondered not so much which offense would score more, but whether NY would have enough offensive scoring. Dallas opened up their running game more in the 2nd half and made it look as if NY would go home empty handed. But just as the Giants pulled off a win in the Super bowl two years ago against New England they did so hear as well. The Giants are now 2-0 in conference play and on the season, but really need to get their offense playing better within the red-zone.
The previous week NY beat Washington at home in the opening week on Sunday night Football but failed to take control when they entered the red-zone. NY leads their division at 2-0 but if they expect to continue to win they need to find a way to get into the end zone that doesn’t always include defensive touchdowns.
NYG 33 Dallas 31 Week#2
http://sports-ak.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=290920006
Giants Beat Washington in Week#1
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/recap?gameId=290913019
Monday, September 21, 2009
The game itself was exciting and the lead changed hands each quarter. The Giants looked as they would lose when Tynes missed field goal in the 2nd quarter appeared as if it would come back to haunt them at the end of the 4th quarter as Dallas took the lead with less than half the quarter to go. NY marched down the field yet again though and in a dramatic fashion Tynes made a last second 37 yard field goal, which was then called back when Dallas managed to get in a last moment time out. The field goal was re-kicked and Tynes made it and the Giants won 33 to 31 in the first game at the Cowboy’s new stadium which had a record setting 105k+ fans.
It was an exciting game to watch on a big screen TV at home! I wondered not so much which offense would score more, but whether NY would have enough offensive scoring. Dallas opened up their running game more in the 2nd half and made it look as if NY would go home empty handed. But just as the Giants pulled off a win in the Super bowl two years ago against New England they did so hear as well. The Giants are now 2-0 in conference play and on the season, but really need to get their offense playing better within the red-zone.
The previous week NY beat Washington at home in the opening week on Sunday night Football but failed to take control when they entered the red-zone. NY leads their division at 2-0 but if they expect to continue to win they need to find a way to get into the end zone that doesn’t always include defensive touchdowns.
NYG 33 Dallas 31 Week#2
http://sports-ak.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=290920006
Giants Beat Washington in Week#1
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/recap?gameId=290913019
Monday, September 21, 2009
Lions Start Season With two Looses!
The Detroit Lions have started their 2009 season the way they started their 2008 season. For that matter they have started the season the way they ended last season and the way they have played the last 19 games. They Lost!
The Lions are 1 and 25 in their last season and a half and so far the press is talking about how the rookies are playing well and how they improved over last week-their first week in the NFL. But I think most of us fans who have been watching the Lions play for many years are more interested in seeing the Lions start winning. An 8 – 8 season this year would be like winning the super bowl! We’ve not seen the latter and who knows if we’re see the former in the near future.
There are things that surprised me about today’s game-first, that it was even televised! After last seasons lack of performance, lack of wins and lack of anything positive I expected none of the home games to be televised. So I was happily surprised that I could watch the game in the comfort of my home earlier today. Brett Favre’s continued ability to play-at such an old age for a football player-surprised me and that he played as well as he did. I had hoped that the Lions would win, not simply because EVERY Lions fan has been waiting for a win for nearly two years now, but because this was an inter-conference rivalry, and a chance to win at home as well as a chance to put Brett Favre in his place.
No matter what might have gone well for the Lions today they still lost.
Minnesota-Detroit Week #2
http://sports-ak.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=290920008
Monday, September 21, 2009
The Lions are 1 and 25 in their last season and a half and so far the press is talking about how the rookies are playing well and how they improved over last week-their first week in the NFL. But I think most of us fans who have been watching the Lions play for many years are more interested in seeing the Lions start winning. An 8 – 8 season this year would be like winning the super bowl! We’ve not seen the latter and who knows if we’re see the former in the near future.
There are things that surprised me about today’s game-first, that it was even televised! After last seasons lack of performance, lack of wins and lack of anything positive I expected none of the home games to be televised. So I was happily surprised that I could watch the game in the comfort of my home earlier today. Brett Favre’s continued ability to play-at such an old age for a football player-surprised me and that he played as well as he did. I had hoped that the Lions would win, not simply because EVERY Lions fan has been waiting for a win for nearly two years now, but because this was an inter-conference rivalry, and a chance to win at home as well as a chance to put Brett Favre in his place.
No matter what might have gone well for the Lions today they still lost.
Minnesota-Detroit Week #2
http://sports-ak.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=290920008
Monday, September 21, 2009
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Favre’s A Wuss
My subject line will undoubtedly upset and even anger some Packer, Jet and Viking fans, but having experienced the cheese-head revolution when I lived in the green Bay area for two years I can honestly say that Green Bay Packer fans truly deserved better than they have received from the once great and now twice retired Brett Favre.
Favre announced last night-august 18th-that he was returning to the NFL and would be playing the 2009 season with the Minnesota Vikings. I’m sure this will not bring great joy to the rival Green bay fans. Favre holds nearly ever major NFL throwing record and his career was a storied one for Green Bay. He decided to retire in 2008 and since then has retired twice and reneged on that statement twice.
I have no dislike of Favre as a person, but if he wants to play football, then he ought to be honest with the fans as say, “yes my desire and goal is to play football this season” even if he didn’t know where that might be. Unfortunately he has made too many statements saying he had made a final decision and would stay retired and then changed his mind and come back to whatever team would take him. My hope is not that he will play poorly this season, but that he will remain committed to one team until he finally does retire.
NFL.com-Favre Returns to NFL Fall 2009
http://www.nfl.com/trainingcamp/story?id=09000d5d811faa27&template=without-video-with-comments&confirm=true
Yahoo-Sports-Favre Signs with Vikings
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-vikings-favre&prov=ap&type=lgns
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Favre announced last night-august 18th-that he was returning to the NFL and would be playing the 2009 season with the Minnesota Vikings. I’m sure this will not bring great joy to the rival Green bay fans. Favre holds nearly ever major NFL throwing record and his career was a storied one for Green Bay. He decided to retire in 2008 and since then has retired twice and reneged on that statement twice.
I have no dislike of Favre as a person, but if he wants to play football, then he ought to be honest with the fans as say, “yes my desire and goal is to play football this season” even if he didn’t know where that might be. Unfortunately he has made too many statements saying he had made a final decision and would stay retired and then changed his mind and come back to whatever team would take him. My hope is not that he will play poorly this season, but that he will remain committed to one team until he finally does retire.
NFL.com-Favre Returns to NFL Fall 2009
http://www.nfl.com/trainingcamp/story?id=09000d5d811faa27&template=without-video-with-comments&confirm=true
Yahoo-Sports-Favre Signs with Vikings
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-vikings-favre&prov=ap&type=lgns
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Mark “The Bird” Fidrych Dies
The Summer of 1976 will not be forgotten by any Detroit Tiger fans, nor any baseball fans that watched Monday night baseball at any point that season. Mark Fidrych was an absolute dynamo on the mound and he electrified the city of Detroit as well as baseball parks across the country when he pitched. The Summer of 76 is being remembered by fans across Detroit and across the country right now in fondness and with some regret as the man who was “The Bird” passed away in an accident at his home on Monday-13th April, 2009.
He will be remembered as the man who smoothed out the mound before each inning he pitched, as the man who talked to the ball, and as an energetic and wild guy on the field with the crazy hair from the 70’s. Mark Fidrych brought a lot of fun and excitement back to Detroit and back to baseball in 1976. When people were not going to the ball park because games seemed boring, and the American Leauge was beginning the designated hitter rule to make the games higher scoring Mark Fidrych made the game interesting not simply because of his quirks on the mound, but because of his energy and his talent. His rookie season he went 19-9 and pitched 24 complete games. I dare you to name the last time any pitcher did that in a season let alone find one who’s had 24 complete games in his career. He pitched like there was no tomorrow and in some ways that is exactly what he had. In 1976 he was the starter for the AL in the All Star game and was rookie of the year. He had the lowest ERA of any starter that year.
He brought a lot of excitement to the game and the city. I recall the year after there was even a song that circulated on the radio about “The Bird” that I have at home. It’s a small “45” style disc that my aunt and uncle got for me from a local radio station. I can remember the last game he started as well in 1980. I listened to it one fall evening as I threw my own ball against the steps of our house and wondered if this would be the start of his comeback. I didn’t know it then but I was listening to his last game, and he didn’t pitch well either-giving up 5 runs in less than an inning. It was a dissapointing outting and more so it was dissapointing that he was never able to regain the effectiveness and strength that he had in 1976.
Mark “The Bird” Fidrych will be missed, but more so he will be remembered by all of us here in the southeastern Michigan area for what he did for baseball and what he gave us in the season of 1976.
Mark Fidrych Passes-April 13th, 2009
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=caple/090414&sportCat=mlb
Tigers manager Jim Leyland comments on Fidrych's passing
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090414&content_id=4263994&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb
Tigers Article on Fidrych's Career
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090413&content_id=4252328&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det
1976-The Year of The Bird.
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090413&content_id=4257396&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
He will be remembered as the man who smoothed out the mound before each inning he pitched, as the man who talked to the ball, and as an energetic and wild guy on the field with the crazy hair from the 70’s. Mark Fidrych brought a lot of fun and excitement back to Detroit and back to baseball in 1976. When people were not going to the ball park because games seemed boring, and the American Leauge was beginning the designated hitter rule to make the games higher scoring Mark Fidrych made the game interesting not simply because of his quirks on the mound, but because of his energy and his talent. His rookie season he went 19-9 and pitched 24 complete games. I dare you to name the last time any pitcher did that in a season let alone find one who’s had 24 complete games in his career. He pitched like there was no tomorrow and in some ways that is exactly what he had. In 1976 he was the starter for the AL in the All Star game and was rookie of the year. He had the lowest ERA of any starter that year.
He brought a lot of excitement to the game and the city. I recall the year after there was even a song that circulated on the radio about “The Bird” that I have at home. It’s a small “45” style disc that my aunt and uncle got for me from a local radio station. I can remember the last game he started as well in 1980. I listened to it one fall evening as I threw my own ball against the steps of our house and wondered if this would be the start of his comeback. I didn’t know it then but I was listening to his last game, and he didn’t pitch well either-giving up 5 runs in less than an inning. It was a dissapointing outting and more so it was dissapointing that he was never able to regain the effectiveness and strength that he had in 1976.
Mark “The Bird” Fidrych will be missed, but more so he will be remembered by all of us here in the southeastern Michigan area for what he did for baseball and what he gave us in the season of 1976.
Mark Fidrych Passes-April 13th, 2009
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=caple/090414&sportCat=mlb
Tigers manager Jim Leyland comments on Fidrych's passing
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090414&content_id=4263994&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb
Tigers Article on Fidrych's Career
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090413&content_id=4252328&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det
1976-The Year of The Bird.
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090413&content_id=4257396&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
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