De-constructing Tim Burton Part 1 of 3

Hold on, look at his socks. Is he wearing Bettlejuice socks?

De-constructing Tim Burton Part 1 of 3

Tim Burton's top five and bottom five?

Make sure to check out the link above and see if you agree with the list.

Anyone that's read my reviews knows that I'm not the biggest fan of Tim Burton as a director. I generally feel he's too much into style over substance. He can paint an amazing world with his twisted mind, but he just doesn't have the desire to fill it up with compelling plots and characters.

That's just my opinion.

Tim Burton receives more praise than I think he deserves. For some reason, fanboys place him up there as one of the great directors of our time. I strongly disagree with that. I think Burton is an entertaining director, when he finds stories that fit his quirky nature. (Willie Wonka and Pee-Wee) But, he fails when he tries to remake movies that are supposed to have a stronger sense of plot and characterization.

In this first post, I’ll cover some of the problems I have with Mr. Burton and his work.

1. He always looks dirty: I know it’s not fair, but it’s true. The man keeps up this act that he’s a grungy, striving artist. You’re a millionaire, so you don’t have to look like one of those bums you see playing the guitar in front of the coffee shop. I know I can’t tell people how to live their lives, but wash your teeth, take a bath, cut your hair, and get some new clothes.

2. Too much dependence on sets: Even when he’s on location, it feels like he’s filming on a set or stage. While Batman (89) felt like it was filmed on the real streets, Batman Returns feels like the entire thing was filmed on the WB lot. This style hampers him.

3. Keeping it too simple: When you get down to it, his plots are simple, almost fairytale like. The original Planet of the Apes dealt with weighty issues and clever plotting. In the remake, Burton has Marky-Mark running around the planet with no real purpose. All the relevant social issues were removed from the remake. He does this with many of his movies. (Make sure to check out Kevin Smith’s story about him and Smith's discarded Superman script.)

4. Tim Burton-Land: (Long time reader Paul gets much credit for this term) When he gets his way, his movies will start to turn into twisted circus movies with Doctor Seuss mountains and trees. Throw in that creepy Danny Elfman cirrus music (with children chanting) you got half of Burton’s movies right there. It works for some movies, but not so much with Batman Returns. Batman doesn’t fit into Tim Burton-Land.

5. Style over Good writing and characters: Logic and character development goes out the window. In its place, there are some really good designs and set pieces. His 'vision' can be dark yet pretty, but normal storytelling is harmed.

Next up, what he's done right...

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Why does everyone around him look like they live in coffins?

He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword

Before there was Xena, there was She-Ra

He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword

(http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videolinks/thedudette/nostalgia-chick/2213-she-ra-princess-of-power)

Whoa, I actually remember watching this ‘movie’ way back in 1985! And, I remember being very disappointed with the ‘movie’. This had something to do with the fact it was more of a She-Ra movie and not really a He-Man movie. I was also disappointed the He-Man show was replaced by its spin off She-Ra.

The kicker is that this ‘movie’ wasn’t supposed to be a movie at all. It was a collection a five-part series premiere for the spin off show She-Ra. This is a problem when you do little to re-edit it into a film. The plot isn’t that ‘big’ and if you put something that was made for the small screen on the big screen, the story better be good enough for the big screen. (I’m looking at you X-Files 2 movie.)

I’ve been watching the movie on the Internet, in tiny portions, and I’m forced to say the movie hasn’t aged well at all. It is still nice to re-visit the film though.

Secret Of The Sword Part 1

Secret Of The Sword Part 2

Secret Of The Sword Part 3

He-man and She-Ra: Secret of the Sword (pt 4)

Vince DiCola Interview (Follow up to the last post)

Vince DiCola Interview (Follow up to the last post)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjnmQoY8oo8

Above is a link to an interview with the composer of the animated movie. I disagree with Mr. DiCola's views on synthesizers being used more in movie scores. I think there should be more Orchestral scores out than anything else.

I'd like to see him work on more videogaming score (such as his work on Gran Turismo 5 Prologue)

You can check out a printed interview too.

Note: In this interview he states he would have wrote the score differently today, giving it a orchestral sound. Everything creative is influenced by the time period it was created.

Transformers The Movie (1986 animated version) Isolated score

Transformers The Movie (1986 animated version) Isolated score

Like in some DVDs, isolated scores are usually just the isolated music from the DVD/movie as it is played in the order on the film. The best thing about isolated scores is that it gives people insight how important music is to a film and how it brings out an emotional connection with what is on screen.

I’ve always felt people never give enough credit to movie and TV scores.

Anyway, here is the isolated score for Transformers The Movie, which pg2nd has masterfully accumulated.

The beginning with the amazingly powerful Unicron Theme

Death of Optimus Prime

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

The rest of it is here.

One of the things that really stood out about the Transformers the movie was the interesting score, which was an almost a complete departure from the TV show. (Minus the Lion version of the TV show theme song.)

The movie score relied heavily on hair-band rock music and synthetic keyboard music. Vince DiCola wrote most of the actual score with a few 80’s rock songs thrown in for good measure. As stated in the video notes, DiCola wrote a great deal of the music to storyboards, and from storyboard to screen was change considerably. Late in the game, producers used Alt-versions of tracks or completely removed them, replacing some with those 80s songs.

The third season of Transformers started to incorporate a similar style to the movie score using more synthetic tones and techno music. (Like the techno/hip-hop third and fourth seasons intros)

More Cool William Shatner videos!

More Cool William Shatner videos!

Shatner sells Commodores

Comment: Well, we all have to make ends meet right. Here he’s selling the Commodore Vic-20. I remember the Commodore 16 and 64, but I don’t recall this one. Note: They can’t even get the proper Special Effect for the ‘transporter’ in the advert. This was done in the 70 or early 80s.

DirectTV ad

Comment: There’s something disturbing about watching a 1991 Shatner body attached to a 2008 Shatner head.

Shatner playing with Shatner on Pyramid

Comment: I’m at a loss for words.

Takei vs Shatner on the Shatner Roast

George Takei brings the house down with his roast of Shatner. He was one of the best ones on the show. The best line, “Speaking of fat alcoholics, good evening, Bill.” Watch Takei’s face when he turns to Shatner. Its years of anger built up. That whole Takei roast was not an act. He really rips into him and it gets a little awkward. “F’ you and the horse you rode in on.”

James Rhodes

Don Cheadle is officially signed for Iron Man 2 and possible the Avengers movie

The Movie has reported that Marvel Studios has announced that he’s taking over the role Jim Rhodes from Terrence Howard.

The studio knew going in that getting a good actor for a secondary character was vitally important to their overall universe, which explains Howard’s involvement.

The character, in the main comic book universe, becomes a superhero named War Machine. WM is similar to Iron Man, but the suit is black. I like how Marvel is thinking ahead in their movie universe and setting things up for spin off characters. I could see a War Machine movie coming down the line. I'm guessing War Machine will show up in the Avengers movie.

The studio decided to dump Terrence Howard and go with Don Cheadle instead. I don't have a problem with this, as I like both Howard and Cheadle. I would have liked to have seen Howard reprise his role though.

This came as a total surprise to Howard, who was in negotiations for the follow up movie.

(("It was the surprise of a lifetime," the actor and musician told National Public Radio on Tuesday. "There was no explanation, (the contract) just up and vanished."

Howard said he read news reports that money was the issue, saying the contracts he signs apparently "aren't worth the paper that they're printed on sometimes."))

I'm sure there is more to the story than what we're reading here.

What happened to Michael Richards?

What happened to Michael Richards?

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=932x9h2L4AM)

After his bad day at the office, he sort of disappeared from the face of the Earth. We haven’t even heard a mad ranting peep from the guy.

Did he get sucked into the same vortex as Larry Craig?

Sure he went crazy, but think about this, his only popular character was a strange tall guy with crazy hair on a show about nothing.

Pretty much most of the cast doesn’t get much work today. But his career is pretty much over.

Is the force strong with the Cincinnati Bengals?

Is the force strong with the Cincinnati Bengals?

While I’m not a sports fan, I have to say this one is freaking cool as hell. Some fan took the time and painted his stormtrooper outfit to the Cincinnati Bengals color orange. I like when people that take their favorite loves and mash them up.

Doing a bit more searching, I found the Bengals Stormtrooper has his own Myspace and takes pictures with fans from time to time. That's when he's shooting and missing Ewoks and Droids.

And there are a few videos of this guy out there. (here and here)

I usually dislike some of the more extreme fans or fanboys, but I really like this guy.

Here's hoping George Lucas doesn't send his a Lawsuit letter or Jar-Jar Binks

Side note: I've always suspected that the Galactic Empire was occupying the Unites Sates, given the video of their appearance in San Francisco and that they actually train their stormtroopers on Earth, my suspicions are true. When a Stormtrooper pours out a little liquor for his dead homies, how much does he pour out? Because that's two destroyed Death Stars full of stormtroopers.

Random Thoughts

Nice hair, El.

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Random Thoughts

~Shatner Again: Shatner takes another potshot at Takei. This time it’s gotten personal. Shatner never ceases to amaze me. He does it in video form as well. I like Shatner's take on Kirk, but the man has to realize most of the cast from the show didn't like him and still don't. This whole “I don't understand why they hate me bit” is getting old.

~Selma Blair does magic...sort of: Of course this was fake, but I thought it was funny how she kept doing more and more crazy magic tricks. Not a bad video.

~El DeBarge gets popped again: Once you get out of prision, don't you want to stay out. For those that have forgotten who El DeBarge is, he was the singer that sung “Who's Johnny” (The video has him in a courtroom, which is a bit of foreshadowing for his life.) and “Rhythm of the Night”. Maybe he was following the rhythm of the night when the cops arrested him with a controlled substance. Maybe Johnny Five can spring El from prison.

By the way, his Wiki page states he has 11 children. I guess he really was following the rhythm of the night eleven times. If I had 11 kids, I'd probably be hooked on a controlled substance too.

~Here's Ashley Todd's MySpace (Cache) before it got locked up (like her): Why does every crazy person/killer have a damn myspace page? Here's the best line from her page, (("Lying is the most fun a girl can have without taking her cloths off, but its better if you do." )) I think we all know that now.

Some of her Myspace friends have thrown their support for her too. Most of them were set to private though. One person had this on their page: ((supports Ashley Todd. I love you girl. Hang in there. As for the people who believe everything they read: Don't message me. I will not respond. ))

Don't believe everything they read? Like when someone scratches a “B” into their own face? We should read that right?

Ashley Todd: The crazy one

How did she get the black eye? Was it faked?

A John McCain supporter/worker admits to ‘making up’ the whole robbery/beating by a black man (AKA Obama supporter)

Holy smokes, what in the world went through this woman’s mind?

The local police have charged Ashley Todd with making a false police report. But that’s not the worst of it.

((The woman told investigators a man approached her Wednesday night at an ATM in Pittsburgh's East End, put a blade to her neck and demanded money, said Pittsburgh police spokeswoman Diane Richard.))

((Todd originally told police a man "punched her in the back of the head, knocking her to the ground, and he continued to punch and kick her while threatening to teach her a lesson for being a McCain supporter," according to a police statement.))

She made the entire story up, stating that a black man attacked her and cut a backwards “B” onto her cheek. This is the worst case of race baiting I’ve ever seen in my life. One has to wonder if she’s using the ‘crazy card’ to keep herself out of jail. Plus, we forget that she turned herself in, admitting to the entire lie.

Then again, she somehow scratched an “B” into her face. That is more than a little off to me. And the fact a 20 year-old woman would think this plan would work doesn’t give her points in the sane department.

If she is of full body and mind, at what great lengths would some go to keep Obama out of office? It sickens me that she played up on the fear of race in this election.

I’m sure more info will be revealed as time passes, but right now it doesn’t really add up.

This is the kind of woman you'd take home to mom, right?

Chair-gate: Nhlanhla Nene becomes a 'fall guy'

Nhlanhla Nene destroys chairs (This video still has me laughing)

With all the doom and gloom about the world economy, It’s nice to have something the whole world can laugh at; An overweight dude breaking a chair and falling on his ass.

Like any other boring interview, South African Finance Committee Chairperson Nhlanhla Nene sits there answering questions when he hears a crack in his chair. Mere moments later, the chair explodes into pieces and he proceeds to fall to the floor.

It was all caught on tape.

Key points in the video...

~Watch his body jerk after the first snap

~Even though he never misses a beat, watch his eyes. He knows he only has a few seconds before he goes down. There were a couple of seconds he could have stopped the interview and jumped out of the chair.

With this Chair-gate video, Nhlanhla Nene has found himself quickly becoming an Internet celebrity.

The link above has this to say about the Chair-gate incident…

((His office said he was alright after the fall and did not want to comment to the media, which had been swamping him. "He doesn't want to entertain it anymore."))

I'm sure his ego is a bit bruised. I'm certain he'll have his people inspect every chair before he sits down again. Or he'll just do interviews standing up.

Listen, I've actually had that happen to me during a middle school class in a science lab. I watched as my ass and body fell to the floor as my lab stool gave way. Everyone had good laugh out of it with the except of me. That fall hurt, man.

Hey, falling on our asses makes us human, right? But, it was funny.

Did he complete the interview on the floor?

Random Things

Random Things

~Newer Watchmen Trailer (From an event) I have to say this one is even better than the last trailer. There are a few more FX shots. While this might not break even with normal crowds, I'm looking forward to it.

~Shatner is one angry man, claims he wasn't invited to Takei wedding: I just like how Shatner spins things in different direction whenever its negative toward him. (Remember that whole JJ Abrams Thing?) Sulu says he invited him. But, I do have to side with Shatner on one point, I am not a huge fan of weddings and silently loath being invited to them. I'd still go out of respect.

~Shopping Cart Failure: This one is the best. Watch as a pair of Target workers forget to close the door on truck, which is full of shopping carts. Watch their delayed reaction too. (Actually, I think it was the trucker's fault.)

~Special Needs kid kicks a young child and then is knocked out by the father of the child: In this battle, who do you cheer for? Because you'll feel bad picking sides. The father knocks the kid out in one punch. By the way, why did the down syndrome kid kick the toddler? Who was he talking to on the phone? I'm sure the father was acting on instinct and didn't realize the kid had problems. Hmm, could that be the same father that knocked out that girl at McDonald's?

~Woman vs. Coffee table: (Table 1, Woman 0)I feel bad for her, but why was she standing on a table singing? Since she recorded it herself, How did this video get out?

Obama Bucks: Now that's just dumb

Wow, just wow.

Obama Bucks (Source of Post)

Okay, I mean "WTF".

Are you kidding me? When you have an intelligent black man trying to break people's old fashion views of stereotypes and then someone decides to publish this racist cartoon in a newsletter, that's just dumb.

And I thought the Curious George shirt was out of line.

I've always said that we've come a long way in race relations, but then something so stupid comes around and knocks your faith down. Keep in mind many Republicans have come out against this photo.

Read on to see what happened...

((But when Diane Fedele, president of the Chaffey (Calif.) Community Republican Women, Federated, put the illustration in her October newsletter it sparked such criticism that she resigned this week. The critics included some California Republicans and news media pundits, including MSNBC cable host Keith Olbermann.))

Keep in mind a Democrat actually created the picture. His name is Timothy Kastelein. While I understand the reasons behind the drawing, I have to ponder if he was aware somebody would take so seriously that they'd place in a damn newsletter.

((Kastelein, 31, said the cartoon was meant to satirize "fringes of the Republican Party who fear a black president."))

Here's where it gets even better.

((According to the Press Enterprise of Riverside, Calif., Fedele said she did not know the food items were African-American stereotypes and were considered insulting. "I do not think like a bigot. ..." she wrote in her resignation letter.))

Is she for real?

There is a bucket of chicken, a watermelon, and a stack of ribs. Then to top it off, there's the damn Kool-Aid man yelling "Oh, Yeah!" They couldn't used just a glass of Kool-Aid, but instead they used the damn Kool-Aid man. (He should have been busting out of the dollar bill.)

Fedele, you've pissed off the KFC folks, but don't piss off the Mother-Fing Kool-Aid Man. He'll bust through all your walls.

Bad videogame movies

Maybe Joe the Plumber is the third Mario Brother?
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Time Magazine came up with the ten worst videogames turned movies.

(http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1851626_1851846,00.html)

Here are some I fully agree with.

Wing Commander: Given that I’m a Sci-fi fan, I rented this piece of crap. I could barely make it through the entire movie. Stick with the actual videogame cut scenes instead of the movie. When you go from Wing Commander to writing for the WWE, you’re Freddie Prinze Jr.

Resident Evil: Apocalypse: This is the second in the film series and isn’t that bad. Actually, I found it very enjoyable. I just didn’t like that they reconned RE2 and RE3 into the movie. The first movie could have easily fit into the videogame continuity, but the second just is a re-telling of RE 2 & 3. I understand why Time has it on the list.

Double Dragon: Most people forget about this game/movie and for good reasons too. It stinks, and it kind of reminds me of the Dragon Ball Z movie coming out soon. BTW, I can’t count how many “Double Dragon” Chinese restaurants I’ve come across.

Street Fighter: This movie is so bad that I’m actively trying to forget it.

Super Mario Bros.: Who can blame Nintendo for whoring out their biggest franchise? I can… Then again, I’m sure Sega would have done a live action Sonic the Hedgehog if they could. Imagine how that that would be?

Top Five things that pissed me off this week…

Top Five things that pissed me off this week…

I know that I keep changing the damn name, but here I go.

5. Finding rocks in your shoes: Maybe it is me, but I find myself discovering rocks rolling around my shoes all the time. This forces me to stop in my walk and slip my shoe off to dump the rock out. How the hell do these rocks get in there? Is there a rock demon that appears and dumps rocks in your shoes to annoy you?

4. The colder seasons: Something about this time of year that just depresses me to no end. I hate the cold and I’m tempted to move to west with my brother just to avoid this weather. Where’s that global warming?

3. Joe the Plumber (or Plumper): I’m sick of hearing about people named ‘Joe’. This guy felt so compelled to speak his mind, yet isn’t really a plumber at all. Why go through all the trouble to stage this confrontation with Obama? This smells like a plant to me and a very bad one. Screw Joe Six-Pack too. (Is he a Republican?)

2. Madonna again: Okay, so you fell off a horse and was injured. What kind of emotional support did you want from your hubby? Did you want him to fall off a horse too? I think she has talent singing, but I’m sure she’s not the nicest person to live with. Moreover, what is with that fake accent? Please, can she retire already?

1. Men wearing crocs: Okay, I’ll give you a pass for wearing sandals, but crocs are out of the question. It looks like you’re wearing a pair of Swiss Cheese shoes. You’re a guy, a man baby, and you can’t stride around wearing cheese shoes. You lose man points for that. Enough with the metro-sexual junk guys. (I bet you get more rocks in your shoes than me.)

Drew Struzan (That Poster Guy)

(Make sure to check his Wiki Page)

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Drew Struzan as covered by the Nastalgia Critic

After looking at his posters for years, I finally know the guy’s name. Drew Struzan is known as the poster guy. He draws his posters in the traditional way with real paint and colors.

Well the Nostalgia Critic has created a fine tribute to this artist. I had no idea he got his big break with the original Star Wars films. Struzan does have an epic feel to his posters. The posters make want to go out and see the films to these posters.

I have to agree with NC that the newer CGI posters don't have the same feel and look cheap.

I have one of his Back to the Future II posters in my room now.

Ebert reviews eight minutes

There seems to be a bit of a controversy about Roger Ebert only watching the first 8 minutes of Tru Loved (Trailer here) and writing a review of those eight minutes. He received a DVD Screener and could only get through eight minutes. He ends up defending his decision in this post, which has over 400 comments.

I think he should have mentioned it up front that he couldn’t get through the movie and the review was only for the first eight minutes. On the other hand, I can see why he didn’t finish the movie. At his age and poor health, time is more important than ever. Why waste it on a foolish movie?

Anyway, I know you’re not suppose to judge a movie by its trailer, with the exception of The Spirit, but this trailer stinks. So, I don’t see it improving with the movie one bit.

By the way, yes Nichelle Nichols (Star Trek) and Jasmine Guy (A Different World) are in the movie too.

Colin Powell says he’ll vote for Obama.

Colin Powell says he’ll vote for Obama.

This is not a political blog but...

I’ve always liked Powell. While I don’t agree with all his political beliefs, I think he is a respectable moderate voice from within the Republican Party. I wasn’t a fan of some of the political maneuvering he helped convey in the Iraqi War, but I still like the guy.

Taken from the link above…

((President Bush’s former Secretary of State said that he was backing Mr Obama, not because of his race, but because he had met the standard to be an exceptional President. And he delivered a stinging rebuff to the Republican, John McCain, describing his campaign as petty and troubling))

I have to agree with Powell. The McCain ticket has gotten dirty, really dirty. I do not like some of the pure racism that’s being fueled by their smear campaign from the crowds. There are truly people out there that are afraid of having a black president and the McCain group is giving them a voice. And, I have to ask why?

Are these the people you want supporting you?

Like Powell, I also respected John McCain and I supported him back when he ran against Bush. But he’s helping feeding these scare ads and tactics. Back in the day, I saw McCain as the guy that stood up to the religious right and fought strongly for campaign finance reform. Now, he’s become the mouthpiece of the very groups he was against all those years.

One thing I will say to Powell; watch out for the organized backlash. They’re coming.

Hey, Kool-Aid Man! (Oh, yeah)

Hey, Kool-Aid Man! (Oh, yeah)

I freaking hate the Kool-Aid man.

He’s one of those company mascots that scare the living crap out of me. When I was a child, I’d remember watching this huge mutant-living glass of Kool-Aid come bursting through walls with no care in the world. Think of all the walls this giant glass creature has destroyed over the years.

(Side Note: Make sure you click on this link to find out everything you ever wanted to know about this Kool-Aid guy.)

It would seem the popularity of the Kool-Aid Man returned to the top when Family Guy did a spoof The Glassed Mutant in one of their episodes.

How would you feel about a pitcher of Kool-Aid that sounds like Wolfman Jack destroying your property? I just don’t trust a talking oversized Pitcher of Kool-Aid that feels the need to destroy walls.

I have a few questions though…

Does insurance cover the Kool-Aid Man damage?

After thirty years of destroying wall, who in their right mind would call for the Kool-Aid Man? It’s pretty obvious he’s going to destroy a wall.

What’s with that stupid grin?

Videos

Kool-Aid man knows how to play Basketball: Oh, yeah!

Dane Cook discusses the Kool-Aid Man: This is probably one of the funnier jokes he made.

Five most awkward Kool-Aid Man moments: This is a funny parody for the most part.

One of those ads:

Kool-Aid Man as an action hero

Medal of Honor: Airborne (Soundtrack Review)

Medal of Honor: Airborne (Soundtrack Review)

After leaving the series on top with Frontline, Michael Giacchino finally returns to the MOH series with Airborne. So how does this score hold up to Giacchino’s other MOH scores? Well, it’s certainly a different take on the music than the other MOH material.

I mean Giacchino has taken the music in an almost completely different style and tone. He brought this newer/darker style from his time on LOST and Alias and twisted it into a MOH score. Heck, there’s a new theme in the score that is only two notes away from the John Locke’s theme from LOST.

You can still find heavy influences within his work from John Williams, but now there is the added bonus of string instruments taking a stronger position in this soundtrack. There are a ton of newer themes and only a handful of older themes returning from the other MOH soundtracks. The old themes that show up are nice, but most of them are cameos.

One such returning theme is the old school MOH theme that builds into the new airborne theme. This is a nice touch by the composer to merge the old with the new. The Airborne theme has its moments but not as heroic as Giacchino’s other main themes, but it’s still fun to listen to them. Many of his newer themes do have a darker texture to them.

The Airborne score can never live up to Frontline. This is because the tracks will not draw you in emotionally like Frontline. On that level, they’re not supposed to. There are no vocals or suites like in Frontline. It’s still a remarkable score and stands out from all the rock-filled scores in videogames today. Despite the shift in style, it’s good to see Michael Giacchino branch out and try something different.

Grade: B

My favorite tracks…

Operation Neptune: Here’s a new march with one of the newer themes. This track is a prime example of the newer style that Giacchino is trying to voice.

Unblocking Utah: Here’s an uplifting track that’s probably my favorite from the entire score. The song is fast and fun. It moves into the strong old school MOH theme toward the middle.

Operation Varsity: Here’s another new theme that’s a march as well. I like how the piece builds upon itself. Look for an old MOH theme from the first score to make a short appearance.

Dropping into Nijmegen: It has some cool ethnic drum mixed with an older theme.

Wreckage of Nijmegen: Remember the beautiful “Operation Market Garden” track from Frontline? Well, that theme returns in a different arrangement. This track has a sinister quality compared to Operation Market Garden.

New Photos from the New Star Trek movie (2009)

Here are a few photos from the upcoming Star Trek film from J.J Abrams’s camp.

Source:

http://www.slashfilm.com/2008/10/15/sixstar-trek-photos-revealed/

At first, I wasn’t too to pleased about the reboot, even though it is only a soft reboot. Looking at these new pictures, I am a little more hyped.

There could still be a chance this movie will suck, but I trust Abrams. However, I felt the franchise needed at least another five years to rest before restarting it again.

Zachary Quinto as Spock. I really dig this casting call.
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First Look at the bridge...it fits with the style of ST Enterprise
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Nice

Literal Version of 80s music videos

Literal Version of 80s music videos

A friend of mine introduced these two videos to me and I got a kick out of them. The basic premise of these videos is to hear what is literally on the screen instead of the real lyrics from the song. They’re pretty funny when you watch the videos with the lyrics.

There's so many video they can take on (pun intended)

Take On Me: Literal Video Version

Comment: If there ever was a video that needed a parody, it would be this video. I never realized they the hero seems to have his own pipe wrench as well. Where did he hide that wrench the whole time?

Head Over Heels (by Tears for Fear)

Comment: I’ve totally forgot about this song. Was that really Dave Coulier? If not, he looked like his twin. Coulier should start randomly showing up in music videos. It could help his career.

I do have a few questions about this video…

Why is there a monkey reading a book in the damn library?

Why does the janitor receive so much screen time?

Do you think she can see the future and past with those huge glasses?

He seems a bit shocked he can fly, why?

Dexter (First Season) Part 2 of 2

The show Dexter also has a good of supporting cast of characters. One of the standout players is Jennifer Carpenter, a fellow Louisville native, who plays Dexter’s stepsister. She happens to be a cop turned homicide detective. Carpenter plays the young detective as a bright-eyed young lady that has a fairly good relationship with Dexter, even though she doesn’t know he’s a serial killer.

The other character that really stands out from the rest is Detective James Doakes played by Erik King. Doakes is a stern man that doesn’t have much of a sense of humor and doesn’t like or trust Dexter that much. During the first season, he is the only that suspects that there is more to Dexter than meets the eye. King plays him as an asshole, which suits his character well.

The rest of the characters aren’t as good the two above, but they do add something to the overall show. They get a little better at the end of the season.

I also enjoyed the main storyline involving a clever serial killer the media calls the Ice Truck Killer. This serial killer knows who Dexter really is and teases Dexter by leaving clues at Dexter’s apartment. The Ice Truck Killer storyline runs through the entire season. It’s creepy but it has a Seven vibe to.

Despite a few flaws involving the identity of the Ice Truck Killer and his interaction with Dexter, I found the show very dark and compelling with a dash of dark humor. This show just proves that the creative people work on cable and not on the main networks.

Give this show a try and you might enjoy it. I’m looking forward to the second season.

Grade: B+

Top 5 Things that Anger Me This Week

This item drains away your dreams and hope. But, hey keep playing you might just win.
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Top 5 Things that Anger Me This Week…

1. That gay guy that feels the need to appraise my style of clothing: There was a Supervisor from work that was gay and he would always attempt to critique my style of clothing as if I was a female or gay. Sorry, I’m a guy and I just throw on a t-shirt and shorts. The last thing I care about is the way my clothes look. I usually don’t have name brand clothes and refuse to spend over 7 bucks on a damn shirt.

2. Squirrels during the fall: It’s that time of year that these little guys run around franticly searching for food. Except that, they freak out when I’m on my bike. They’ll jump out in front of my bicycle and nearly are run over by me. I like these little guys, but they freak out during the fall. The last that I want to hear is their little bodies being crushed under my tires.

3. Casey Anthony: Okay, it is now time to admit you killed your child. Why continue to live the lie? Given the picture of you drunk on a Friday night and peeing in a parking lot while your child was missing, I would have already marked you a horrible mom anyway. Living with the big lie will not be good for you. Look at what happened to OJ recently. Remember this; What would OJ do?

4. Slow Driving in the fast lane: Are you serious? Do you want to hold up the six cars behind you by drifting along in the fast lane? When you see people tailgating you, it’s time to move over. I can’t believe people can’t get the hint. Are they trying to piss people off?

5. That guy at the gas station that feels the need to check in 10 sets of lottery numbers and a box of cigarettes: You’re not going to win, so give it up. Instead of hoping for the Lottery Ticket Pixie to grant you fortune, how about you take some classes and move up in your company or start your own business? Want to make more cash? Stop buying those over-taxed cigarettes.