3 out of 4 stars
This review will not go on anywhere near as long as the previous review of Catwoman did. This is mostly due to the fact that I have an easier time going on at length about a movie that sucked than one that worked quite well.
I used my last free movie pass and checked out The Bourne Supremacy last night and I thought it was extremely well done. Matt Damon is back as Jason Bourne and he does a superb job reprising the role. This movie does not give a huge amount of back story from the first film so it is probably best if you watch The Bourne Identity before stopping by the theater to check this out. The action occurs rapidly and often. There is also a great car chase scene that reminds me of the last great car chase scene that I saw in Ronin. However, I believe the thing I like best about this movie is the insight into small (seemingly insignificant) spy-type activities. The little things he does to achieve subterfuge or how he is obviously planning 2 or 3 steps ahead of seemingly unknown events. I am not sure if the film over-glorifies the abilities of this type of convert individual or if this is commonplace in well trained operatives. I just find it fascinating to watch. I think it is mostly the thought process where you are trained to take in all details from a given situation and always be formulating strategies and exit scenarios. I know I am typically blissfully unaware of the large amount of detail going on around me and I wonder what it must be like to be so in tune with all that is happening around you. Another film that exhibits this is the Robert Redford/Brad Pitt film, Spy Game.
One of the complaints I have scene about this movie is that during quite a few scenes the camera shakes rather violently. This seems to be a trend lately in some films and it is designed to help convey the action and make you feel somewhat disoriented as someone would in a fast-paced car chase through a city’s downtown. This effect also helps to convey some of Jason Bourne’s disorientation as he continues to learn more details of his history and of the plot he is unraveling.
I definitely would recommend seeing this in the theater and would say it is probably worth checking out even at full price.
Published on
July 30, 2004 in
Movies.
I honestly have no idea what to think about the movie, Team America: World Police. I sat speechless for a bit just considering how really bad or amazingly funny this movie could be. See for yourself…
Published on
July 30, 2004 in
news.
For those who have e-mailed me or replied to the Gmail-related posts:
I have no more Gmail invitations. Google has not seen fit to provide me with anymore and the ones I had were gone in about 24 hours.
A blogger named Dan has posted a work titled, the Apple Product Cycle which is both very true and very funny. Definitely worth a read.
Thought I would post a little more as a friend mentioned my Catwoman review on one of the mailing lists we are both on.
For those that don’t know me very well, I like movies. No, I really like movies. Specifically action of science fiction where the stars blow lots of $#!# up. I can handle most dramas, but I typically choose not to 
I have a large DVD collection and I sometimes have favorite movies playing for the background noise while I work on the computer. As I am such a connoisseur of movies, it takes a REALLY bad action movie to make me want to leave. I have only left two movies in my life:
1. Gremlins – I was a little kid with my parents on vacation and the scene where they strung up the dog in the christmas tree lights just seemed inhuman. What can I say, I have always had a place in my heart for animals and this film just killed me when I was 9. Seems foolish now, but at the time it felt horribly cruel to finish the film.
2. Pet Cemetery – I went with a friend on a weekend to see this and left after the little boy was killed. He looked to be about the same age as my little brother and I just had these images in my head of my little brother getting killed and it was just tearing me up. So, I wandered around the mall while the friend finished watching the movie. Never seen the rest of the film to this day and doubt I ever will…
Cruelty/Violence towards animals and children still ranks highly on my list of things to get pissed off over, but enough history…
Catwoman didn’t fall into either of these areas. The film is just boring and in places damn near unwatchable. I felt embarrassed being in the theater with some of the horrendous “cat” comments. Prior to watching the movie, I thought it would be the fact they ignored the character’s history or that they failed to accept the comic world they were working from. However. the thing that really almost drove me out was sheer boredom. I liked both the Hulk and Daredevil (which are not widely loved), but this one just bored me to the point I was looking at my watch, hoping it would end 
It think it is really obvious that Warner Brothers assumed that Halle Berry would pull in the crowds and didn’t bother getting a decent script or director. The director, Pitof, has only directed one other film, the french movie, Vidocq. This is not the type of director who would normally be used $100+ million summer movie.
If you are looking for a further reason not to see this movie, IMDb has this currently rated as a 2.7/10 and Rotten Tomatoes has it at a 9% freshness rating.
1 out of 4 stars
Well, I said it when I saw the trailer and I stand by my decision, this movie is absolutely horrible. I saw it with a free pass and I still feel I want something back from the studio for wasting my time. I even considered leaving the theater a couple of times. Some will tell you that Halle Berry’s body and outfit were a plus in this movie, but I don’t find her interesting at all as an actress. Is she hot? Sure, but there doesn’t seem to be anything else there. She was horrible as Storm in both X-Men films and she is very bad in this. Yes, I do realize that action films are not known for their acting, but I do expect more than a phoned in performance Sharon Stone and Benjamin Bratt’s characters were just about as bad.
They really overuse the ‘cat’ thing with her meowing, hissing, ording shots of cream. One of the worst lines in the film is where Catwoman orders a White Russian, minus the ice, vodka, and kahlua, to get a shot of cream (straight up no less ). The plot is razor thin and has very weak action scenes. The CGI catwoman looked poorly done, but it didn’t really bother me much as the rest of the movie was so bad, it seemed immaterial by comparison. The only saving grace is the movie is only about an hour and a half, but trust me that 90+ minutes feels like an eternity.
I have seen one reviewer refer to this as the “Showgirls of superhero movies” and that is really a dead on comparison. I do feel it is a little cruel to Showgirls though
Went with Heather and some friends to see Dave Matthews tonight at Alltel Pavilion in Raleigh. The show was really great and the weather turned out great if only a little too hot (hell, it is July, can’t ask for much more ). Robert Earl Keen opened for them and I am kind of surprised how much I enjoyed his music as I am not a huge fan of country music. There were a few songs in the 2nd half of the show I didn’t recognize so I need to check into where they came from. Definitely worth checking out. This is our second time seeing DMB and I think this concert was even better than the last.
Here is the set list courtesy of AntsMarching.org:
Date: 2004-07-26
Venue: Alltel Pavilion at Walnut Creek, Raleigh, NC
Setlist
The Stone
Satellite
Granny
One Sweet World
#41
Hello Again
Rhyme & Reason
When The World Ends
Sugar Will
Crush
Fool To Think
Joy Ride
Crazy Easy
Too Much
Help Myself
Ants Marching
Encore:
Good Good Time
Tripping Billies
Guests
All songs with Butch Taylor
Published on
July 25, 2004 in
Movies.
So, Star Wars Episode III now has an official title, ‘Revenge of the Sith’. I just hope this film continues with an even darker tone than the previous installment. While I haven’t been overly thrilled with the prequels so far, this one has the potential to be amazing if the transition to Darth Vader is done properly.
Well, we will just have to wait and see…
3 out of 4 stars
I have not read a lot of Isaac Asimov’s works, but I do have a fascination with his imagination and some of what he created. I hadn’t read I, Robot in quite some time and before our trip to Vegas I grabbed the unabridged audio book from Audible. I don’t remember loving it this much! It is possible this was originally due to my youth and the depth of the storyline, but I now plan to read more if I can find the time. I liked this movie for entirely different reasons, but just to be up front…
It is not based on the book. The end credits are listed as “Suggested by Isaac Asimov”. So, it is best to get used to that fact up front. It is set in the same universe with some similarly named and behaving characters, but the storylines bare little resemblance. That being said, it is not all bad. The movie is fun, fast paced, and in a real way honors the stories that Asimov wrote. Some of the plot twists and very much the ending convey a lot of what I believe Asimov did in his stories. Will Smith does an adequate job in the lead role. If you find him enjoyable in other roles, this will likely be no different. Bridget Moynahan, playing Susan Calvin, is a different story. While I think her acting was fine in terms of her skill, it did not match the character closely enough. In the book she was much more mechanical in her mannerisms and she would not have allowed anywhere near as much emotion as shown in this film. If you have read the book, there is only one point Dr. Calvin allows emotion to guide her actions and think of what she did to the robot, ‘Herbie’. This is a minor quibble for a movie that is not keeping strictly to the book though. I think it is a fun ride that is worth a watch, but I don’t want to say more for fear of spoiling it for anyone
I thought I would end with a quote I very much like from Asimov:
The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds new discoveries, is not ‘Eureka!’ (I found it!) but ‘That’s funny …’ – Isaac Asimov
Published on
July 23, 2004 in
Music.
Tags: rant.
I have one example of what is wrong with the music industry’s pricing for on-line purchases. The previous link will take you to the iTunes Music Store’s entry for Van Halen’s ‘The Best of Both Worlds’. This CD is put out by Rhino Records, an affiliate of Warner Music Group. Rhino has set the list price for this dual CD set as $24.98. Over-priced, yes, but not the worst I have seen as it is a dual CD set. Most stores are selling this in the first week out for $14.99 – $19.99. Care to take a guess how much the price is set for on Apple’s on-line store? $34.99 ?!?
UPDATE:
Sanity has prevailed. The price is now set at $15.99 on iTMS. Was the old price the result of an error or a trial to see if people would pay that much?
Continue reading ‘iTMS price = ~ 1.5xCD list price?’
