The Billionty-Oneth Geek: Older Than 8 Since 1991

The Hateful Eight is Quentin Tarantino’s latest masterpiece and is somewhat more akin to chamber theater.  The movie opens off following a stagecoach that’s rushing through the harsh winter terrain avoiding a torrential blizzard that’s on its tail.  Within the coach is a rugged bearded outlaw named John Ruth, also known as the Hangman, and his captive, a feisty woman named Daisy.  An route to collect his bounty, they come across Major Marquis Warren, another bounty hunter, and Chris Mannix, who are stranded in the cold and request a ride from John Ruth.  Not knowing if they can be trusted, Ruth grudgingly gives them a ride, keeping his fingers hovering closely over the triggers of his firearms.  As the blizzard becomes more perilous, the band arrives at a lodge, where they meet the remaining eight.  However, everyone looks a little too greasy, and smells a little bit too much like gunpowder.  Who can be trusted?  It’s not too long aft...

(Warning: Spoilers Ahead) Star Wars !!!!  After a 10 year gap we finally receive a new entry into the now Disney owned Star Wars franchise!  So it is apt that the new entry is called the Force Awakens . The movie starts off 30 years from where the Return of the Jedi last left us.  The Empire has fallen and the Rebels have seemingly disbanded.  But from the ashes of the past, a new threat has risen.  Out of the fallen Empire, a new army called the First Order has spawned, threatening to finish off what the Empire set out to do –  eliminate the force by terminating the last known Jedi, Luke Skywalker.  But as the Empire has evolved so have the Rebels.  Led by General Leia Organa, the Resistance (or the new Rebels) aims to find Luke first, to stop the First Order. We are told this story through two new main characters.  Rey, who is a scavenger on the planet Jakku, who harvests scrap metals to earn a meal.  Finn, a turnco...

Bone Tomahawk takes place in the 1890s in a small frontier town called Bright Hope.  After the arrival of a mysterious drifter, the town is stalked by shadowy, primitive Native American characters.  They murder a local farmhand and kidnap the drifter, the female doctor and a deputy.  The Sheriff is advised by a friendly Native American that the ones who conducted the kidnapping and murder are not considered true Native Americans.  They are primitive cave dwellers referred to as troglodytes, known for their savagery, barbarism and cannibalistic tendencies.  The Sheriff assembles a team including an elderly deputy, an itchy fingered gunslinger and a civilian townsman (husband of the kidnapped doctor) to track down the troglodytes and save the townsfolk.  Together, they head out to face the dangers of the wild where the chances of survival are fleeting. Bone Tomahawk is a perfect merger of the western and cannibal-horror genres.  Clocking at 1...

As promised, just a short follow-up on the Martian , the movie which was released last month.  I wrote a longer review of the book (here). The movie is pretty enjoyable, and although it shifts a few scenes around, it stays pretty much true to the book at least as far as big scenes and bullet points go.  I mean, there are things that just won’t translate well to the big screen, so they kept a lot off.  Specifically, going into details with all the different math calculations and science.  They really streamline it all, and show you things, instead of bore you with details. There were a few problems I had with the movie though.  I think the main one is the passage of time.  They did a good job with Watney, letting him appear more primal as the movie progresses, but pretty much everyone else looks the same.  So even though 400 days or so have passed, it just looks like a week to everyone but Watney.  The progression of time was also poo...

I don’t know where to even begin with Turbo Kid !  I didn’t know what I was expecting and it’s hard to put together what I received!  But I’ll try! Turbo Kid takes place in a post-apocalyptic future where civility is all but a distant memory.  It is a time when resources are far too few, requiring the processing and dispensing of human parts to create water.  We follow a young kid, only known to us as the Kid, as he faces insurmountable odds in an effort to take down a tyrannical warlord hell-bent on destroying humanity.  But the Kid isn’t alone!  Armed with a Mega Man type blaster, he’s joined by a quirky and mysterious young girl named Apple and an Indiana Jones-like alpha male hero named Frederic.  But are the trio enough to stop an army of spear-wielding, shoulder-pads wearing, bike riding hooligans? Turbo Kid is a love letter to the 80s.  It’s so clear from the opening music number that we’re gonna get something 80s inspired....

Knock, Knock is the latest effort from cult favourite director, Eli Roth.  It’s also the first outing by Keanu Reeves since 2014’s much lauded John Wick, an action packed fan favourite. Knock, Knock is about an architect named Evan Webber (Reeves); a happily married man with two kids.  On one particular weekend, the wife and kids go away to the beach house while Evan stays behind to catch up on work.  The first night is a stormy evening with what appears to be a torrential downpour.  That night, two unexpected young females show up at Evan’s door.  Drenched from head to toe, the buxom young lasses claim that they got lost looking for a house party in the neighbourhood.  Evan let’s them in to dry off and use his tablet to find the right address.  Due to the stormy night, it wouldn’t be 45 minutes until a cab arrives to pick them up.  And that provides 45 minutes for them to seduce him.  What seemed like fun and games the previous n...

Sicario is a very big punch to the gut.  But one that hits you in a good way. Sicario , as the opening moments of the movie tells us, is the Spanish word for ‘hitman’.  The movie follows FBI agent, Kate Macer (Emily Blunt), one who specializes in cases dealing with kidnappings.  In the opening scene, her team invades a house tipped off to be holding hostages somewhere in Arizona.  Instead of hostages, they find dead bodies strewn up along the house walls – victims of a Mexican drug cartel.  It’s a scene none of them are expecting, and we can tell this, because they all discharge to the front yard to vomit.  Following this case, Kate is summoned to an FBI office where she is transferred and recruited to be part of a team lead by a Department of Defense consultant named Matt (Josh Brolin).  His casual demeanor throws her off and she is unsure of what she’s getting into.  Matt’s scope of work is a bit grander than what Kate is used to....

Deathgasm is the latest Kiwi produced horror flick to hit stateside.  It tells the story of a group of teenaged metalheads (in a band called Deathgasm) who discover the ancient lyrics and staff music from a legendary yet reclusive metalhead named Rikki Daggers.  One evening during band practice, they perform the ancient music, metalcore style.  Unbeknownst to them, the music puts them into a trance like state inviting demons to possess all people nearby.  Death, blood and guts ensue as the demons ravage the quaint neighbourhood.  It’s up to Deathgasm to stop the demon takeover. Deathgasm is not good by any traditional or conventional sense.  However, if you’re heading into the movie knowing that it’s a horror movie about a bunch of teenage metalheads and demon possession, then you need not look further, because Deathgasm delivers on that front.  It’s a niche genre that the niche audience will enjoy; bystanders need not go further.  The ...

I know a lot of you out there feel the same way, but it's worth mentioning anyways, but the older we get, the less free time it feels we have.  And unfortunately, that's one of the reasons why my posts have been so sporadic, if not altogether non-existent.  I haven't had as much time to enjoy as much geekery as I've wanted to, and even less time to sit and write about them.  I really enjoy writing about geek related stuffs and actually a friend was asking me about my blog writing a month or so ago.  It encouraged me to dabble at it again.  As a friend once said to me, it’s that reflection and that dissection that graduates the medium to an art form.  And so it's a new initiative of mine to try and write at least one post a week about something... anything! If I had to choose one, I think the geekery that took the biggest hit has been movies.  I feel like with gaming, books, comics and TV shows, it's easy to fragment the medium into save poi...

What a bizarre movie! Ms. 45 is an exploitation flick released originally in 1981.  It follows the life of Thana, a young, mute seamstress working in New York who is raped twice in a single day.  Traumatized by those events, she goes on a killing spree, randomly killing men with a .45 caliber gun.  Thus, Ms. 45 was born.  At first, she seems to have a motive – to dispatch any male person who would attempt to take advantage of her.  But later on, the motive becomes blurred, as she targets random men making out with their girlfriends, not related to or threatening Thana in any way.  In its bloody denouement, Thana dresses as a pistol wielding nun (don’t ask why, there are no answers) and goes on a shooting rampage at a club that her friends are attending. Ms. 45 is one of the first full length features by renowned director, Abel Ferrara ( Bad Lieutenant, King of New York ).  Much like his other movies, Ms. 45 goes for the gritty New York...

Y’know, in terms of movies, this summer has been so shit.  Every week, there seems to be a new letdown, a new Hollywood debacle.  Amidst the piles of summer movie dung, Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation is a glimmer in that mess.  It rises above all the other stenches. Rogue Nation , the 5 th installment in the Mission Impossible franchise, follows our favourite IMF agent, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise), as he tracks down a mysterious organization that he believes is tied to many of the recent real-world disasters or wars.  However, while on the trail of this rogue group, or Syndicate, Ethan himself has become a bit of a rogue agent (hence a rogue nation!  Aha, a-ha!  A-hahaha!).  With the IMF becoming defunct, thanks to recent reckless actions, he no longer has ties to a recognized organization.  Not only does Ethan become a chaser, but he’s also the chased, as the CIA are hot on his trails.  Their adventure takes you around the world ...

The teaser for Quentin Tarantino's next film is finally here!  And it looks glorious!  Shot in the beautiful 70 mm format, this is Tarantino's ninth film.  It's interesting how the teaser notes this as being his eighth.  (Perhaps he doesn't count Jackie Brown, the only title in his repertoire that he didn't script.  Or perhaps Kill Bill vol. 1 and 2 are considered one film).  In any case, this is the 2nd western in a row for the fan favourite film darling. The production of this movie is interesting because it almost never came to be!  After a script leak in early 2014, the frustrated Tarantino threatened to pull production on the project.  However, after doing a live reading with several of the notable and purported cast members, somehow, he changed his mind.  And now we're all better for it! I can't wait!  It looks like this year Christmas is going to come with a bullet!  Later geeks!

Goodnight Mommy is a Swedish horror/thriller that was originally released in 2014.  The movie follows two young twins as they spend their summer in the remote Swedish countryside.  They’re seen early on celebrating a summer full of innocent fun with laughter, sunshine and smiles.  One day, their mother returns home having gone through cosmetic surgery on her face.  Her face is bandaged beyond recognition.  Is she who she really says she is?  After some suspicious activity, the two boys begin to question her identity.  Is she someone that we can trust?  Alternatively, can the perspective from the boys be trusted? There’s not too much more I can say about the plot, as the story takes you for a few twists and turns as akin to horror movies.   I will say this though, that within 6 minutes of the movie, you could already tell what the major twist of the story will be.  And it’s mostly because it’s nothing that you haven’t alrea...

Evil Dead .  The beloved franchise.  Was a remake necessary? Evil Dead (remake) follows a bunch of 20-somethings as they gather at a cabin in the woods for a getaway weekend.  The getaway is not without purpose, for you see, Mia, one of the girls in the group is battling drug addiction, and it’s with hope that she would overcome her demons (!) surrounded by friends and ridding herself of the poison.  But they are not alone in the woods.  And when the group finds the dreaded Book of the Dead, conveniently located in the cabin, and reads aloud its sacred incantations, the woods become alive.  And then our friends become dead!  But then they become alive again!  EVIL DEAD!!! I didn’t like this movie. The movie incorporates elements from the original Evil Dead , but the spirit of Evil Dead wasn’t there.  Everything was slick.  In any other horror movie this would be fine, but I think as an “Evil Dead” movie, there’s a pedigree t...

So I saw a crapload of movies during the holiday break and just wanted to write a short bit on each one! The Hobbit I watched The Hobbit in 3D and at the high-frame rate (HFR) screening.  Did NOT like!  The high-frame rate takes away from the cinematical magic feel with the traditional 24 fps frame rate.  As a result, everything moved too quick (and in some cases more jerky, because you can see every little motion) and seemed more live than what you’re used to seeing in a movie.  It makes it all very disconcerting and it feels like you’re watching soap opera style filming.  In addition, as a gamer, the HFR really reminded me of something that I’m used to seeing out of a video game and not from a movie.  So in my head, it was almost like a translation or processing error.  “Wait a minute, I’m not supposed to see that there!”. The one benefit of the HFR though is that the 3D was less straining on the eye.  Compared to the trailers that t...

I first heard of Indie Game: The Movie while I was watching CBC News at work.  I was gobsmacked.  A documentary about video games, made by Canadians that was critically acclaimed at the Sundance Film Festival.  What!? Indie Game follows four different independent game developers: Jonathan Blow (developer of Braid ), Ed McMillen and Tommy Refenes (developers of Super Meat Boy ) and Phil Fish (developer of Fez ).  With Ed, Tommy and Phil, we follow their lives as they attempt to get their games developed and launched.  We see their struggles with the industry, and their David and Goliath attitudes as they try to get their games out.  They each provide their reasons for why they’ve given up everything they have to develop games.  With Jonathan Blow, since his game was already released, we get a more reflective perspective.   Overall, Indie Game: The Movie was enjoyable.  Technically, it was a very sharp, clean looking do...