Heh. Songs are funny.

Pete Green – I haven't got a Myspace because Myspace fucking sucks

2007 Round Up

Another topical post.

BEST FILM I SAW IN 2007

Tricky. My gut reaction is either Sunshine or 30 Days of Night.

BEST TV SHOW I WATCHED IN 2007

The future episode of Heroes. Awesome.

BEST COMIC I READ IN 2007

Again, tricky. The last issue of Ultimates 2 with the 8 page spread. The beginning and last issues of The Sinestro Corps War was as good as Star Wars.

BEST BOOK I READ IN 2007

To be honest, there haven't been many new books I've read this year, mainly been re-reading those already in my collection. So, by that definition the best book I own is Run so that by default is the best book I read in 2007.

BEST SONG I LISTENED TO IN 2007

Drama Queen by The Switches or the theme from Hot Fuzz

BEST VIDEO GAME I PLAYED IN 2007

Gitarro Man Lives for the PSP.

And me without an umbrella. Of course.

At least the toilets are still flushing.

Fashion Tip #1

So, there's going to be a new Hulk film next year starring Ed Norton* and on the website website they've released the first images, one of which is Mr Norton in a vest starring and what we can only assume is somekind of Hulk potion.

I only mention this because one of the first images released for the upcoming Iron Man film was of Robert Downey Jr in a vest building an Iron Man suit.

What is it with the vest thing? Why are both main characters in vests? Are vests next years hot clothing item?




* Is it Ed or Edward? He was definetly Ed Norton when he was in Fight Club but I'm sure I've seen him credited as "Edward" as well in posh films.

The Duchess is back!

The Phil Doyle Laptop Machine: Zero Defects.

Film review: I Am Legend

I Am Legend @ IMDB

To go off on a tangent almost immediately, the closest film to compare this to is Cast Away: big giant movie star appears in a film where it's just them on screen the majority of the time. Will Smith is the new Tom Hanks? Possibly.

Back to the film, what we have here is basically Fresh Prince of The Living Dead or, as some have somewhat unfairly put it, 28 Days Lamer.

That is the obvious comparison: Wiky-wiky-wild-wild-Will is Robert Neville, the last man alive in New York and possibly the world. He is searching for the cure for a plague that has wiped out 90% of mankind, a few were immune but the rest? I'm definitely sensing zombies.

But here lies the problem: they're full CG. They jump around all over the place and basically are so over the top they aren't scary. Remember The Mummy Returns? With the mummies that chased the double decker bus? That's what they're like.

The scariest bit of business with them is when Big Willy goes into a building full of them and you see a group huddling together. THAT was freaky. A big group of computer effects jumping over cars? Nope.

The problem is that I've read the book and in the book they're vampires but still essentially human. And that makes them scary because we can see ourselves in them. Not so with the Infected in this film, they may well have been aliens or something.

It goes without saying that the original book was better but it's not all bad. Will Smith holds his own as the only screen presence for most of the film. The world he lives in is intriguing but the pseudo science around it could be left behind and the story just left to focus on the characters will to survive.

And, to it's credit, it does pull an ending that you wouldn't expect for a Will Smith film. It's not quite as depressing as the end of the Dawn of The Dead remake but it's not far off. I enjoyed it.

Now, to finish the review. As it's a new year, and I'm running out of weapons, I'm changing the wrap up. Reviews will now finish as follows:

In a word? Ordinary.

Best three string guitar since The Presidents of The United States of America did Mach 5

Finally!

Warner Brother is now soley supporting Blu-Ray which should be the final nail in the HD-DVD coffin. From a UK perspective all the HD sections have a much greater proportion of blue boxes rather than that slightly depressing burgundy that HD-DVDs come in.

This is also fairly significant since every domestic format Sony has launched died on it's arse. Examples being Betamax, MiniDisc and UMD.

Now there is no reason for me not own a PS3...when they get a bit cheaper.

I still likey Iron Man

Okay, that isn't the movie Iron Man, it's an "advervideo" from a new Marvel website called Marvel Kids promoting the Marvel Adventures line which is basically the core Marvel concepts only without the decades of continuity.

Advervideos. Hmm.

My new favourite website.

One day, one of these will be mine.

*sigh*

The screen on my laptop broke. The screen went dark but I could still make out stuff on the screen so I'm guessing that the backlight broke.

Now I have to use the old laptop again. Everything looks small and the screen isn't as nice and the keys are different and I can't burn DVDs or anything.

Sucks.

The warranty should cover it but first I've got to get Sony to pick the damn thing up.

I'm guessing this could be the first of a series of posts.

And I failed my driving test.

*sigh*

Still REALLY excited!

Eeeeee!

Me likey Iron Man! Me likey Iron Man!

Iron Man looks cool. Not as cool as the hi-res movie trailer but still pretty cool.

Goddamn those Ninja Yakuzas!

Yeah, there is no way that is getting a UK cinema release. How the Hell do they get away with that stuff?

Now my blog is cool!

Good meeting!

Those Wii jokes aren't so funny any more, are they?

You know things are going well when you don't even have to advertise your product for it to sell really well.

You know, I remember having a GameCube and watching it die a painful death whilst everyone else ignored it. One silly name and new control scheme later and they've conquered the world.

Again.

Looks like the internet is going to break again.

The new Grand Theft Auto IV trailer is up, so the internet will no doubt slow to a crawl.

Thoughts? It's undeniable that the game looks great. But my concern is how the thing is going to control. That's going to be the biggest thing. It can look as great as any Hollywood summer blockbuster but if it still controls like a dog whenever you try to shoot something then what's the point of all the fancy next-gen hi-def razzamatazz?

I'm going to hold off my final opinion until I see actual gameplay footage. That or play it. That'd be nice.

Jail time occurs in real time

They won't be able to hold him. I give it a week before he escapes in a hail of gunfire.

Film Review: America Gangster

American Gangster @ IMDB

Last time we did the equation Russel Crowe + Ridley Scott (ignoring A Good Year for obvious reasons) we had the cinematic juggernaut that was Gladiator. Unleash Hell and all that.

So what do we get this time? We get Russel Crowe as an incorruptible New York cop tasked with bringing down major drug lords. A pure brand of heroin is flooding the streets and no one knows where it's coming from. But wait, who's this in a very expensive looking chinchilla fur coat? Why, it's academy award winning actor Denzel Washington!

The easiest comparison: Heat, in that you have two heavyweight actors that don't actually share a scene until the end. Other nods and hats tipped to include The French Connection and Goodfellas. Illustrious company, that goes without saying. Can the film stand amongst them?

Yeah. It's not quite the masterpiece it wants to be but you can't fault it. Both leads are great, the look of the film is superb, the plot engrossing. This is Russel Crowe from The Insider rather than Cinderella Man, which can only be a good thing. Denzel is Denzel.

My only concern: it hasn't quite got the iconic scene that the other films have: the bank robbery from Heat, the car chase from French Connection, pretty much any scene you fancy from Goodfellas. Don't get me wrong, the film is great but you just wanted that one great scene to push it over the top. Whether or not this means that the film will stand the test of time is a question that will have to wait for a while.

It's also a long film so pack a cushion.

So, great film, no complaints. My only problem was that my free cinema card didn't work so I had to pay. That sucked.

The film gets a pair of knuckle dusters, the ideal thing to beat lowlifes with to prove who is in charge.

Jackie Chan + Comics = Awesome