What's Happening: November 2012

Novembers are always nuts. But this year? This year? Completely bonkers. Let's take a look at all the good stuff going down.

Right now: Wreck-it Ralph is now in theaters! It's totally awesome and you should totally see it. What could be more great than a video game movie made by Disney? Not much.

Looper

You ought to be aware of this movie, because it looks awesome.

Movie Reviews: Tron²

Back when Tron Legacy released, I had huge interest in it. All I knew was it was the sequel to a cult hit from almost 30 years ago. I was determined, though, to watch the original first. Unfortunately, Netflix didn't have it for rent so I saved it for later. Months went by and it all of a sudden appeared in the mailbox. I'm glad I saw Tron before Tron Legacy. I don't think it's necessary, but it certainly added a lot the sequel.

Movie Review: Super 8

There's not much to say about Super 8. Personally, I found Super 8 to be super great. As a result, this movie review will end up being on the short side. If there's one word to describe the film it's "nice". By the end of it, you just end up feeling good. The film certainly has it's dark moments, though, and starts with the death of the main character's mother. The story, you see, focuses on a group of kids trying to film a zombie movie to enter a film festival with a Super 8 camera. That's the only mention of the title in the entire movie, and it's irrelevant other than that. They could have called this movie anything, really. Anyway, after sneaking out one night to film by a train station the kids witness the most extreme train crash in the history of film. Seriously, it was ridiculous. I'd say Super 8 is worth seeing for that moment alone. After the crash, the children and their families get wrapped up in some crazy government conspiracy involving the mysterious train cargo. There's not even a whole lot I can talk about without ruining things, but I can say that this movie has been compared to Spielberg's sci-fi classic E.T. (he produced Super 8). That's a fair comparison, I'd say, as this is reminiscent of it. It also reminded me of District 9. If you've seen D9 then you'll probably understand what I mean while watching Super 8.

Movie Review: Batman Under the Red Hood

Holy awesomeness, Batman! Now this is what animated Batman should be like. I haven't enjoyed me some animated Batman action this much since, well, Batman the Animated Series. The Batman was good, and The Brave and The Bold has it's followers but if they ever make a series like this movie, I would need a change of pants.

Bad Movie Review: Mega Snake

You guys wanted movies? I'll do you one better. Bad movies. Yes, there's nothing quite as entertaining as a bad movie. When it's done right, of course. Mega Snake is one of those movies. You'd think it would be one of those things where a snake falls into a vat of atomic nuclear goo, grows huge, and attacks major metropolitan cities. But you'd be wrong. No, Mega Snake has no epic scientists or over the top military campaigns. Instead it takes place in some backwater redneck town in which some mystical Indian snake escapes and eats all the farm animals. And ma. Poor ma. I mean, it's good because it's different and it comes off cheesy in a good way because it tries to be serious and fails. But I can't help feeling that this movie would have been ten times as awesome if the main characters were these two random redneck dudes that live in the woods. They really steal the show. Somehow, they craft a flamethrower out of a barbecue grill and go snake hunting in an armored truck with a megaphone. Epic. You never really care about the characters (except poor, poor ma) and, yes, everyone pretty much dies at the end. I normally wouldn't ruin a movie like that, but you can see it coming from a mile away. In fact, you could have probably guessed that from the name alone. Anyway, Mega Snake is a good bad movie. Definitely check it out if you're into that.

4/5 cow pies

The Real Last Airbender Trailer

I'm actually really excited now. But am I the only one concerned that none of these trailers have featured much in the way of actual acting? I'm just hoping that's not to hide the fact that the acting sucks. It's probably just because they wanted to make an exciting trailer, though.

Network

Dear Readers,

I recently watched a film titled "Network". The actors in it do a great job of portraying the ideas of their characters. Its a satirical film about the television industry, but can be applied to any media form. It even though it was released in 1976 its message still holds true today. It points out and exagerates ideals that newer generations and the media seem to hold. It is slightly disturbing in its accuracy and portrail of how the media is run. If I say much more it will give away the film, but please, take the time to go rent and watch this movie. And before you blow it off as being ridiculous, think hard about it.

New Teaser for "The Last Airbender" is Pretty Good, Actually

I've been optimistic towards this film since it was announced. While the announcement of the director and cast seemed a bit questionable, my optimism remained. Then the first teaser came. Aang looked pretty spot on and the Fire Nation ships looked perfect. I started to get excited. Now IGN has premiered the new Superbowl spot for the film. I must say, even if the characters don't all look exactly like they do in the show, everything else seems, at this point at least, well done. As for the music... let's just say they should have hired The Track Team. I can't wait for the trailer next Friday. I can only hope and pray they don't massively screw it all up. But as it stands now, it looks like a great adaptation of the show. Though we haven't seen any actual acting yet...

MicroMovieReview: 2012

Every year around the Holiday season, Hollywood always comes out with a couple of "feel good" movies to get you into the joyous spirit. Then there's 2012. This is the depressing film of the Holiday season. Seriously, it makes you feel down. Why they would release this weeks before Holiday is anyone's guess. Nothing is happy about this movie. Not even the ending is happy. I'm sure it's supposed to be uplifting, but it's just not. Although the movie studio really dug themselves in a hole with this one. I'm pretty sure it's impossible to make the end of days any happier.

MicroMovieReview: Fantastic Mr. Fox

Well, it's Tuesday December 1st and you know what that means: time for new content. I have no idea what those two statements have to do with one another but yeah, content time!

Movie Review: Indiana Jones

It's not quite the arthritic adventures of Harrison Ford that I was expecting. Actually, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is just the opposite. It's crazy. Remember that believability factor I spoke of with Iron Man? Well, it's almost nonexistent here. It's almost as if Indy was some sort of invulnerable super hero or something. And the plot? It's crazier than the action sequences. It would have been fine if they just left it at the legend of the Crystal Skulls. But no! They had to go and make everything totally out there! You'll see what I mean within the first five minutes. I'm really not sure what else to say about it. It's completely... weird. It all might have worked if it had been some other movie, but Indiana Jones? It was a fine movie, just not a fine Indiana Jones movie. In all, it was not bad, but not great. See it if your a fan. Actually, you'll probably enjoy it more if you're not.