Movie Review: The Dark Knight

07-19-08
Well bOoGiE and I got together and took our better halves to the newest Batman movie "The Dark Knight." It was a lengthy movie with a lot of exciting drama and unexpected twists. They pulled off some things that I didn't expect, which in most cases was very good. It definitely lived up to it's title of being "Dark" at the same time not messing up the core of the Batman character. Ledger's performance of the Joker was impressive. I honestly didn't think anyone could stand a chance against Jack Nicholson's version of the character, but Ledger went for a different angle instead of a re-hash, which makes it very interesting. I think that both Ledger and Nicholson were both great at it, but just from two different approaches. They did honor Ledger's memory in the credits, an honorable thing. There are a lot of twists and turns that make you keep guessing during the movie, and several scenes that are not expected. Bale did a great job as Batman, I think he plays the role very convincing. I would not recommend this film for small children, it is violent, gory, and has some demented villains. But for adults who enjoy modern takes on comic book characters, epic drama, and action films; it was very good. On the Woo-Dig-It scale from "0" to "10", i'd have to give it an 8. Very good job! What's next after Watchmen, DC? We need some Green Lantern, WonderWoman, Flash, and JLA. Let's get 'er done!

http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1809271891/details

Christian Bale Reinvents Terminator Franchise

07-17-08
In 1984 James Cameron directed a science fiction film called "The Terminator" starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Arnold apparently decided he wanted to play the villain of the movie instead of the hero. The villain was a robotic killer cyborg programmed to "terminate" human kind. The story involved a dark future where these cyborg terminators are hunting mankind to extinction as they fight a human resistance movement. Arnold's Terminator is sent back in time (1984) to Terminate the mother of the man who leads the human resistance in the future. The Terminator is a classic scifi action film with a strong fan following. It is rated R for a sex scene, large scale death tolls, language, horror, and violence. It is not "family friendly" but for an adult audience that likes sci-fi action films, I give it a "8.5" out of "10" on the WOO-DIG-IT SCALE.

Arnold also acted in both of the Terminator sequels: T2 and T3. There has been the first season of TV show called: "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" with a new cast playing both familiar and new characters. The original film and all the sequels so far have dealt with modern day characters that know about the danger that awaits their dark future and try to destroy Skynet, the computer system that controls all the terminators, before it destroys the world.

Now, on the internet they have posted a teaser trailer of a new movie "Terminator Salvation." It show's Batman's Christian Bale playing the character of John Connor, the heroic leader of the human resistance, fighting to save the human race from deadly machines. This appears to be set in the future where John Connor is now an adult taking on his role as leader of the human resistance fighters. This appears to be the first film to be actually set in the future. Christian Bale has done a great job re-inventing the Batman character in Batman Begins, and I can't wait to see what he does in "The Dark Knight." Now Christian Bale steps up again to "bat" (I know TERRIBLE pun), this time at another famous science fiction franchise. It will be interesting to see what he does with the role of John Connor. So far I'm really pleased with the acting that I've seen him do, he seems to bring some good depth to his characters. Check out the teaser and get ready because the Terminators are coming!
http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1810025211/info

Netflix on Xbox 360

07-14-08
From PCWorld.com:

Microsoft and Netflix are jumping into bed today, it was announced at the annual E3 Media and Business Summit in Los Angeles, via an exclusive partnership which will bring select streaming content to the Xbox 360. This is an expansion of Netflix's plans to bring movies to home theaters via the Internet, which it already does via its Web site and the Roku Netflix set top box.
This new partnership will let Xbox 360 owners who are also Netflix subscribers stream "thousands of movies" to their game console. To use this service, much like the current Roku player, you'll have to initially select the movies via the Netflix Instant Queue feature on its Web site so you can later view them on your Xbox 360.
Still Netflix is only making a small fraction of its titles available for download through this partnerships with Roku and now Microsoft. The lack of titles appears to only be a minor complaint of the Roku offering, considering the player is apparently out of stock. Xbox 360 already have access to some movie titles and video content through the Xbox Live Marketplace Video Store.

Movie Review: Facing The Giants

07-12-08
While searching for a blog topic, I thought I'd pull from my profile and do a review on the movie "Facing The Giants." This 2006 theatrical film is rated PG for "thematic elements." This emotion filled drama follows the story of Grant Taylor, a defeated coach faced with leading a losing football team, angry parents, a doubting friend, family stress, and a long list of additional depressing life challenges. Crying out for help, Coach Taylor feels that he is surrounded by "giants of fear and failure." In a desperate and dark time of his life, he changes his team's philosophy to honor God in all they do, on the football field and off. And, well you might want to view the movie to see how it turns out! :) I highly recommend this film and it gets a "9.5" out of "10" on the Woo Dig It scale for positive real life messages and symbolism. It is a family friendly Christian film, but non Christians will enjoy it also for it's great story, drama, positive messages, and good acting performances from unknown actors. The movie also contains a very good soundtrack that I recommend as well, a great compliment to the film. Another important note: you do not have to be a sports fan to like this movie. I know little about football and still really enjoyed it. Football fans will even catch an acting cameo by a real live professional football coach, you try to spot it! It is rare to find an upbeat and uplifting film sometimes, and Facing The Giants definitely upholds that! Go rent it, share a bowl of popcorn with friends and family, and ENJOY!
http://www.facingthegiants.com/
http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1809738431/info