Hero Inc.

I don’t really know why this movie looked interesting to me. I already knew how it would end. I hate fake southern accents. And it is filled with coaches I didn’t like from teams I hate. Well, it looks like it was a good move to see this movie.

The Blind Side tells the story of Michael Oher, who was a homeless African American kid that was taken in by a well off white family.  Due to Oher’s large size, he was a perfect fit for football and the rest of the movie sells itself.

Now let me start by saying that I could have done without the first few minutes of the movie even though I didn’t see it because my eyes were closed.  I just didn’t need to see the Theismann leg break.  Sure I was told they didn’t show it, but I didn’t want to make the mistake because it is just scary to watch.

Also, it is sad to see great coaches perform so badly in acting.  I mean, how hard can it be to portray yourself?  You are acting as yourself and you fail?  That is just epic failure.

Other than those negatives, the movie was funny, heartfelt, and provided me a great message that I need to start timing all homeless people to see their 40 yard time.  If you have nothing else to see, check it out.  Oh yeah, I knew I was in California watching this movie when no one understood the Bear Bryant joke.

[Rating: 3/5]

Here’s the next set of reviews from my Netflix queue.

Borat Funny but not my style and therefore did not finish. [Rating: 0/5]	Dan in Real Life I really don’t like Dane Cook, but I loved this movie. Yay, another Romantic Comedy that I enjoyed. [Rating: 4.5/5]
I.O.USA It is time to “Wake Up America” and fix this national debt issue or someone’s kids will need to pay (and pay big). [Rating: 4/5]	The Dirty Dozen If I’m going to war, I’m bringing Lee Marvin and possibly Jim Brown, Donald Sutherland, Charles Bronson, and Telly Savalas. [Rating: 3.5/5]
Tron Quite cheesy even for me, but at least I’m ready for the sequel. [Rating: 2/5]	Twilight Not really a Netflix movie (someone lent it to me). As bad as I thought it was going to be, but “you shine like diamonds.” [Rating: 2/5]

After years of wishing and hoping, I was finally able to dress as a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle. I may not have been my favorite, but a turtle is a turtle.

The party was great and the costumes were even better. I was unable to defend my Best Costume 2008 award, but the Democrat deserved the award for staying in character all night. I am jealous for not receiving a Nobel Peace Prize since he was handing them out to everyone.

Overall, I believe the Double Dare couple was the best. I mean, it was so simple yet so perfect. I wanted to throw my drink at them any time I was nearby so that I could win the physical challenge.

I was also shocked at how many people could tell that my shell was a papasan chair. I did receive several compliments and that was without being noticed as the guy that also brought the pizza to the party.

The party was great and the costumes keep getting better every year.

Yes, you read that title correctly.  I’m talking about the NES.  The original Nintendo gaming console that everything else was built upon or measured against.  Currently IGN is compiling their list of the 100 greatest NES games.  I’ve only been able to see 100-81 and I’m already remembering the dream. Weekends, summer days, hours trying to beat all of those great games.  Well, in order to be nostalgic, here’s my quick list.

10.		This was never a game that I ever felt like I was truly getting the hang of it, but I always wanted to play it if I visited a friend who owned the game. Tornadoes, dogs, angry home owners, and grim reaper are all normal deterrents to a normal paper delivery.
9.		The original puzzle game doesn’t offer too many changes from each encounter, but people still flock back to it. Classical music and puzzle blocks was apparently the winning formula.
8.		This game has the luxury of being a combination game and essentially gets that boost to be included in this list. Super Mario Bros. provided the first real effort in trying to save the princess from Bowser. From land to water to sewers to castles, this first version had it all. Once you were done with the Mario’s, you could switch to a new game without even changing cartridges. Sure there was that annoying dog that everyone tried to shoot, but you had the latest technology in your hands as you lifted that light gun and pulled the trigger. The science of how it all works still escapes me.
7.		Quite simply the greatest football game ever created. You have four plays to choose from (normally 2 running and 2 passing). What else do you need? Sure, the latest football games are more realistic, but they are not as entertaining. I have hated the 49ers in real life, but I always found myself playing as them in every game.
6.		One freakin’ hard game but every version is always fun and challenging at the same time. One of the first games to feature a female primary character. Similar to the Legend of Zelda approach, one could choose his/her own path. Who knew that Samus would be that attractive underneath that suit?
5.		Machine Gun, Spray Gun, Anything but the lazer. Quite simply the most widely known cheat code in the world and the easiest way to see if someone is a team player (Are they entering “select start” to make this a two man show?).
4.		Yeah, I’m a wimp and never made it farther than Soda Popinski, but who cares. The music was too cool to pass up.
3.		From the opening title sequence you’ll be hooked. We all know that we start with Flash man and work our way from that point onward. Wily vs Light. Good robots vs Evil robots. All of the robots had terrible names but cool special moves.
2.		Many people want to place this game as number 1 on their list and I am actually fighting moving it higher myself. Super Mario Bros. 3 had it all: cool suits, great bosses, cool worlds, and an interesting story. We all cheated using the whistles once we learned of them but I actually have gone back and taken the time on a few different occasions to walk through each and every world before conquering it. I’d say my top items from this game are the Tanooki Suit (useless but fun) and the giant world.
1.		There is no game that I have played since this one that truly captures my interest quite like the original gold cartridge has. Working as Link in order to save Princess Zelda, one must trek across a huge world in search of different levels that offer many goodies and several baddies. The game was a choose your own adventure and the order was up to you and your skills. One of my favorite memories was spending an entire birthday in college working to beating the game before watching Aladdin. Man, I’m a big kid.

Here are the few honorable mentions: Ducktales, TMNT, Chip N’ Dale Rescue Rangers, River City Random, Excitebike, Double Dribble

That’s right baby.  I was able to watch my beloved Atlanta Falcons destroy the San Francisco 49ers this weekend 45 – 10.  Check out NFL.com for game highlights.

This trip to San Francisco was planned about a month ago and the highlight was going to be this game.  I have been to a few different NFL stadiums (Raymond James, Alltel/Jacksonville Municipal, and Superdome) but I have never been in an NFL stadium, other than the Georgia Dome, watching an NFL team play.  I was really excited even though I was informed of the horrible characteristics that were used to describe Candlestick Park.  Horrible neighborhood.  Worst NFL Stadium.  Surly the local SF residents were exaggerating just a bit.

…..Or not.  I must state that Candlestick Park is really one of the worst stadiums I have ever been to or seen.  This includes all sports (baseball, basketball, hockey, etc.).  Sure the area was terrible.  That’s where you build stadiums because the property taxes are low and you have fewer people of “power” to complain about adding a new monstrosity.  But this stadium was/is in need of several improvements.  Heck, you pay a few hundred people and a new coat of paint would improve it drastically.  It worked for the Georgia Dome to go from this to this.

Once inside the stadium it did not get any better.  I believe the seats used inside the stadium are the same rusty seats ripped from any youngster’s early childhood memories of the local sandlot.  I think I could have gotten Hepatitis if I turned the wrong way in my seat.  I also must state that I’m never a fan of combination stadiums (i.e. baseball and football).  They just don’t work effectively in my eyes.

Enough about the stadium.  My pictures speak for themselves.  On to the fans and the game.

The fans were pure 49ers, early 80’s magic.  Walking through the tailgating area made me feel that I was a young punk during the 80’s but without a cool windbreaker jacket.  Maybe it was the throwback jerseys that I saw.  Maybe it was the atmosphere with the old stadium, but I truly felt like I took a step back in time.  I could easily pick out the fans of the dirty birds because they at least looked updated.

The 49ers fans that actually spoke to me (before the game started of course) were really great.  They loved to perform the normal trash talking that was expected.  I even had a group of 49ers fans with a fully eaten chicken bone telling me that this was the way they expected their dirty birds. It’s a shame I couldn’t find them 15 minutes into the game.

Overall, the trip to SF was great because I was able to see May (the true reason for going) and my Falcons truly put together a great game on all sides of the ball.

Go birds and I’ll see you again in Atlanta vs Da Bears.

Zombies, Van Halen, Humor, Killing Zombies, Pop Culture. What else does one actually need?

The Earth has been overcome with a plague that turns all who receive the bite to become a zombie.  You have now entered Zombieland.  There are only a few humans left and those humans must fight to survive.  Simple enough story.

Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenber, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin all bring something different to the film. Woody is your off his rocker man just wanting to kill zombies. Emma is your love interest. Abigail is the little sister to bring a “family” element. Jesse……well…..Jesse is your poor man’s Michael Cera. Michael probably turned down the role and Jesse was just enough to fool the average movie watcher.

Now I knew the movie would be funny based on the trailer, but I never expected how funny it could be.  You’ll need a vast array of pop culture knowledge to truly enjoy this movie but you will still laugh until it hurts.  The banter between Woody and Jesse will get you started.  Enter the two female leads and your sides will hurt.  Break out an ultra A list celebrity and you will be on the floor gasping for air.  Bless you celebrity.  Bless you.  (FYI, don’t go looking at IMDB or other sites to see who it is.  It’s worth it to be surprised.)

Great soundtrack that keeps the movie rocking.  Filmed in Georgia (congrats Coweta).  Instantly quotable (a must).  I’m still laughing.  If only Jesse wasn’t a wannabe Michael Cera, I’d be able to give this movie 5 out of 5.  Oh well.  close enough.

[Rating: 4.5/5]

It’s about time that Quentin Tarantino’s war epic made its appearance. I remember reading about his possible script a few years ago. Nearly double the size of a normal script and filled with every ounce of talent he had. Well, I’m hear to say that he probably produced one of his best movies yet.

I’d love to state that this movie centers on the Inglorious Basterds (a group of no-holds bar Jewish soldiers), but I just can’t.  Quentin weaves a story with many players (as always) but is able to easily make you remember and connect with each one.  Maybe not all of the Nazis, but you get the idea.

Christoph Waltz, or as I term him the Merovingian’s older brother, was perfect. As the creepy Col. Hans Landa, Waltz is able to make you hate and laugh in sometimes the same scenes.  If it wasn’t for his character, I’d have to say that Brad Pitt shined with his hard Tennessee accent.

Overall, I came into the film expecting more gore and basterds but was given less on both fronts.less gore than I thought.  Normally this may leave me wanting more, but Quentin was able to satisfy everything I needed in this movie with one exception.  I really wasn’t big on the ending even if it reminded me of the old war movies (Dirty Dozen, Kelly’s Heroes, etc.)

[Rating: 4/5]

I’ll leave this review short since I’m so late to seeing this movie (over a month old).

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince was probably one of my least favorite books so I was skeptical of how I would receive the movie.  However, I think the Potter movies are continuing to get better.  This could be due to the acting skills getting better for the kids that have grown up on screen for us or that the subject of each book/movie has allowed the presentation to age for the better.

David Yates is the man at the helm for the final chapters of the Potter saga and I believe he gets it.  He allows a good collection of the elements that made the books so entertaining:  humor, awkward situations as the kids grow, fear, action, etc.  Here’s hoping that he can also make the final chapter (my true least favorite book) come alive on the big screen.

The one drawback to this movie for me was that I felt more emotional connection during the chase scene within the fields than I did at the final climax of the movie.  This is odd for those that know what happened.  It should have been the reverse but I just didn’t feel it like I should have.

[Rating: 4/5]

As a side note, I was able to see this movie at the Chinese Mann Theater in LA.  Sure, it wasn’t the main screen where all of the premiers take place, but it was still cool to attend.  It’s amazing how great a screen can look and sound with the right technology behind it.  This theater also had the new D-BOX seats.  I didn’t try them (not for $20 at least), but my seats were close enough to “feel” the experience.  I’d say overall it seems more like a novelty than a great way to see a movie.

Wow. I went into this moving thinking it would be pretty good, but I walked out thinking it was simply amazing.

For those that somehow don’t know anything about this movie, it is produced by Peter Jackson and could be well on its way to being one of the best Sci-Fi movies.  I pulled the following synopsis from Imdb:

Thirty years ago, aliens made first contact with Earth. Humans waited for the hostile attack, or the giant advances in technology. Neither came. Instead, the aliens were refugees, the last survivors of their home world. The creatures were set up in a makeshift home in South Africa’s District 9 as the world’s nations argued over what to do with them. Now, patience over the alien situation has run out. Control over the aliens has been contracted out to Multi-National United (MNU), a private company uninterested in the aliens’ welfare – they will receive tremendous profits if they can make the aliens’ awesome weaponry work. So far, they have failed; activation of the weaponry requires alien DNA. The tension between the aliens and the humans comes to a head when an MNU field operative, Wikus van der Merwe (Sharlto Copley), contracts a mysterious virus that begins changing his DNA. Wikus quickly becomes the most hunted man in the world, as well as the most valuable – he is the key to unlocking the secrets of alien technology. Ostracized and friendless, there is only one place left for him to hide: District 9.

For a relatively newcomer in terms of directing, Neill Blomkamp delivers a great movie that mixes action, comedy, and drama.  With a documentary style (interviews, non-steadycam), Neill makes the audience feel as if the events are unfolding before them or have already happened in the current world.  Along with newbie Blomkamp, we are also introduced to another somewhat first timer in our “hero” Sharlto Copley who plays Wikus Van De Merwe.  Copley’s character easily morphs from the laughable failure to the man fighting to do the right thing.  Apparently Copley had no previous acting experience and was only given the role after Blomkamp tossed him into the mix while filming Alive in Joburg, which is the short film that inspired District 9.

Just as a warning to those who are squeamish, this movie is filled with gore.  I don’t believe it is gore for the sake of gore (i.e. what you mind find in most modern horror movies).  It’s more of a gore that you might see if you combined Saving Private Ryan’s opening season, Aliens, and some really cool futuristic weapons.  It is interesting to see an audience flinch when a man pulls his fingernails off but a soldier’s body exploding is normal.

With the great detail Blomkamp offered in terms of action and technology, I say give the man Halo.  Give him Iron Man.  Give him anything he wants.  With Halo he could actually end the curse of bad movies based on video games.  Those weapons.  That mech warrior.  The aliens.  All of it looked amazing.

Most of you know how I hate to over hype a movie, but this is probably the best movie I have seen since The Dark Knight.

[Rating: 5/5]

It seems like many moons ago I was writing about my latest foray into the world of Linux thanks to my new netbook toy.  Before that I attempted to chronicle my journey into learning about the free OS.  I guess then that it is time for an update on my progress.

After enjoying Mandriva for well over a year, I decided it was time for a change.  Still fighting off that which is popular, I chose to go with Linux Mint.  Built on top of Ubuntu but with a flare for elegance, it seemed like a great choice.  It’s been about a month since the move to Mint and I’d say my reaction has been mixed thus far.

Linux Mint does offer certain areas of improvement over Mandriva, mainly the user base for help.  I can use either the Ubuntu crowd or Mint specific users.  I’ve also noticed better performance in my VirtualBox from when it was run on Mandriva.  However, I’ve also run into the normal “this didn’t work out of the box” items that plague many new installations, such as issues with the video driver that prevent me from utilizing the accelerated graphics card functions.  I certainly don’t need the cool visual affects, but they were always nice to have within Mandriva.  I’m certain I can get them working if I take the time to update with the correct driver, but so far I haven’t really taken the time.  It also seems that I’m learning to like Gnome or not even notice a true difference with KDE. Gasp!  Don’t tell the geeks or I’ll be thrown out, if I haven’t been already.

I’ve also noticed an annoying item related to my use of Pidgin.  It seems that when my computer is left alone for a period of time, Pidgin always seems to hog my resources when I try to use it again.  I’ve googled it but didn’t find many results.  I even tried to post to a forum, but you know you have to reply to those.  Oops.

With the OS change, requires a few application changes.  Not many mind you.  The biggest and most important change for me is the media manager application.  Previously with Mandriva I was using Amarok.  Amarok is still to this day the best music software I have used but I’m not liking the new path it is heading with the major changes made for version 2.  It was my all inclusive software (music, tagging, media transfer to Creative Zen).  Linux Mint came with RhythmBox oob, but it fell short.  I then tried Songbird (still not understanding the need to combine the media manager with a browser).  So No luck there either.  Now it seems I’m using a mixture of Banshee and Listen.  These are great for listening to my tunes but not so much for transferring files to my Creative Zen.  I’ve tried using Gnomad 2 for transferring files, but my artwork is lost and that’s a kill switch for me.

Now that’s the desktop.  On to the netbook.

Since my netbook post, I’ve been using eebuntu netbook remix, which was based on Ubuntu 8.10.  It was slick and really tried to utiize the smaller netbook screen and give you ease of navigation.  I loved it and thought I’d keep it forever, but updates put an end to that.  When I tried to upgrade to the 9.04, I saw an exterme performance drop in the graphical department.  At this point, I realized that I was not really using the netbook remix as it was intended and decided to change by installing Ubuntu 9.04 without the netbook remix addon.

Well, I must say that I’m impressed.  Everything I need has worked OOB with Ubuntu (wifi works, yay).  I’ve spent the past day or two customizing it to my somewhat liking.  As you can see, I still need to remove the wonderful gnome footprint start button icon.  Maybe I can get Will to make me a simple Black Adam lightining icon in reference to my netbook’s name (blackatom).

With the Hydoxygen iconse, a customized Dust theme, and the AWN dock bar (I found this one to be less process intensive than the Gnome-Do Docky theme), I think I’m ready to go enjoy my netbook again. I might even come to like Ubuntu enough to put in on my desktop.  Apple lovers, please don’t begin to tell me my desktop is very similar to Apple’s setup.  Similarities just mean that something is working for a larger population.

I also tried a live boot of Moblin, which was impressive but confusing.  Here’s hoping they can continue to improve it.