Shazam!-2019 (Savior)

Everyone is going to give you a big long post about How Shazam is really Captain Marvel. It is a long story that is only interesting to uber-nerds and fans of the legal system. So long story short, long before Marvel existed Shazam was Captain Marvel, DC sued the creator, eventually, DC ended up with the trademark for the story of Captain Marvel (Shazam) and Marvel copyrighted the name Captain Marvel for their character. Around 2012 DC changed the name to Shazam became most people that was his name anyway.

Anyway, as for the movie. It is an origin story for Shazam and how Billy Batson got his powers. In his case, he got them from a wizard in need of a champion before his powers were gone to fight the seven deadly sins that escaped when Dr. Thaddeus received their powers when he was pissed The Wizard decided he wasn’t worthy years earlier.

The movie looks pretty good, is well acted and is quite funny. Watching Billy and his brother Freddy figure out his powers is great and happily, the best parts aren’t given away in the previews. There is even a nice cameo from another DC hero.

I also enjoyed the fact that they know the type of character they have, and the history he has with DC and embraced it. I don’t want to spoil it, but it was a pleasant surprise. I do have a couple complaints tho. First, there were a couple spots that the CGI looked a bit cheap compared to the rest of the movie, most notably with the seven deadly sins. My biggest issue is the movie is over 2 hours long and it feels about 30 minutes longer than it needed to be. The ending just dragged for me and it isn’t that I didn’t enjoy it because the ending was good, it just felt like the dragged it on longer than it needed to be just to make the movie longer. It was, however, one of the best DC movies I have seen. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Avengers Endgame to Be Stan Lees Last Cameo on Film

In a recent interview with comicbook.com the Russo brothers confirmed what many of us suspected, Endgame will be the last cameo for Stan Lee. They were however very careful to say last committed to film. This leads me to believe they will continue to carry on the tradition in other ways, maybe with pictures or something of the sort. Either way, I think the legacy of Stan Lee and his cameos will continue. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Pet Sematary, 2019 (Savior)

So I feel I should tell you, I am probably going to make some statements that some may feel are a bit controversial. Some may agree, some may not. Feel free to berate me in the comments.

First, let me say this. The 2019 version of Pet Sematary is better than the 1989 version. Second, the 1989 version wasn’t all that good anyway. Third, how did I not realize the movie was spelled with an S?

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That really isn’t important, just weird I never noticed. On to the review. If you are reading this, I am sure you read the book or saw the original. In the grand scheme of things, the story hasn’t changed. Doctor Louis moves with his family to the country to slow down and spend more time with the family. His wife, Rachel as a troubled past that will come and go throughout the movie and then the kids Ellie and Gage try their best to adjust to the new life. Gage is young and his one job most of the movie and that is to be cute, and Hugo and Lucas (Yes twins) Lavoie do the job amazingly. Ellie (Jete Lawerence) also does a commendable job and plays her role very well tho I feel John Lithgow steals the show with his role as Jud.

As the movie goes on their cat, Church (sorry guys, no name here, Church was played by multiple cats) dies and Jud introduces Louis to what is beyond the place the locals bury their animals. To a place where the dead doesn’t stay dead. The cat comes back as we all know, but Church isn’t what he used to be. The friendly cat is hissing and scratching and bringing home dead animals and even stops Louis from getting some man and wife time with Rachel. The cat is truly evil.

Now I don’t want to go any further in the story as there are some changes, and you will be happy to know it has been reported a few places that the man Stephen King himself approved of the changes. I enjoyed the changes personally tho I do have to admit while the movie was good enough (but not great) it isn’t a very good book to movie adaptation. It was, however, a good movie. If you are looking for an accurate to the book experience you are not going to get it. If you are looking to simply be entertained, this is worth a watch. Tho before I go, anyone that has seen the movie can you answer a question for me and @torstenvblog? How the hell did they get the cow to the burial place? Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Friday The 13th (2009)

There is so much an so little to say about the 2009 reboot on Friday The 13th. For example, Jared Padalecki plays the role of Clay amazingly. Tho we can debate how good of a character Clay actually is. This perfectly sums up the whole movie really. For everything the movie does right, there is a counterpoint that makes you question why some decisions were made. The opening scene, in fact, the opening credits are essentially the first movie done in about 2 minutes ending with the beheading of Jason’s mom with a machete. After this Jason as a child finds the machete and locket and a killer is born. This leads to the movie and the introduction of the characters. Well sort of.

We then meet a group of kids whose names I won’t bother telling you because in typical Friday the 13th fashion they are all basically going to have sex and get murdered. To the movies credit the murders are amazing and I won’t spoil them. Now, the opening credits end with a title shot of the movie name. Yes, this was the opening scene and nobody you have seen is a main character in the movie nor are they all that important except of course one.

Finally, we come to the movie itself. Fans of the series will be happy and sad. I say this because in the ’80s and 90’s all you wanted of a slasher flick was boobs and a body count and that is all you will get. You will be sad tho because all you will really get is boobs and a body count, and it is 2009. The formula hasn’t changed, the story is bare bones and the little attempts they have made at a story leave you scratching your head. Now I will be spoiling huge chunks of the movie in the next paragraph. The movie is 10 years old, if you haven’t seen it by now I assume the interest is not there. Feel free however to stop reading now and know that I was entertained, but did not feel the movie was good.

You guys ready for spoilers? Seriously if not, stop now. Go. You were warned. They spent a very large part of the movie-making Jason out to be a regular guy. He was a kid, grew up into a man. Built a ton of stuff, feels pain, misses his mother the whole nine yards. Then this dude gets stabbed through the chest and gets his head sliced up by a wood chipper. For reasons, I can’t understand they untie him and toss him in the lake. Now there was no need for this but surprise, twist ending. Jason leaps up through the dock and the movie ends with Jason grabbing Clay’s sister.  Basically, Jason goes from regular dude to immortal and doesn’t come back to life until they dump him in the lake. Worse off, the twist ending leaves you to assume his sister dies and he probably died trying to save her. Who knows tho, they have beat him once. It became a choose your own ending. A  decent enough movie was ruined by an ending that wasn’t even needed. Regardless, feel to let me know what you thought. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Disney Promises Alien and Planet of the Apes Not Finished.

As reported by ScreenRant Disney stated at Cinemacon that they felt many of the Fox movies even the R rated ones had life to them and on that list was Alien and Planet of the Apes and they would be made in such a way to allow the R rating they typically don’t make under the Disney banner.

This is great news for many people that have been worried about this sort of thing but it also brings up the interesting question of, if they are going to continue with those franchises will there be new IP’s that will have similar ratings, and will they make it to the Disney streaming service? I obviously have no answers but it is interesting to think about. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Wet Hot American Summer (2001)

Did you ever watch a movie that makes you think, what the hell did I just watch? Then you have to stop and realize the movie you just watched or the game you just played was by no means good, well planned or even well done? Then realize for some reason you can’t explain, you greatly enjoy it? That is Wet Hot American Summer. That is also the beauty of the movie. The movie is just dumb, but it is meant to be. The further the movie goes the more ridiculous it gets. There is a Vietnam vet cook that starts out as kind of the crazed cook and by the end he is talking to a can of vegetables, dry humping a can of vegetables. By the way here is who you should imagine doing that.giphy.gif

Yep, that is Chris Meloni dry humping a refrigerator. That is also the level of WTF we are dealing with. Also not even the weirdest part of the movie. It is almost like they wanted to make the most 80’s movie possible. The movie also takes place in one day, the last day of camp. There honestly isn’t even much of a true story, it is just a bunch of people trying to enjoy the last day of camp, mostly trying to get laid. there are about a dozen mini stories going on including one counselor trying to get a kid to take a shower, which he hasn’t done all summer. The movie is just all kinda strange. Tho I do say go give it a watch, it is entertaining. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Mark Hamill Is Chucky

It has been a long burning question in the horror world, who will be the voice of Chucky in the new child’s play. Well, we finally have an answer. He has been the Joker, He has been Luke Skywalker. Master Eraqus in Kingdom Hearts 3. Now, Mark Hamill will be Chucky in the new Child’s Play. Enjoy the video, an may the gaming gods bring you glory.

The Witch Files (2018)

The Witch Files is a movie about as you can guess, witches. When a group of five young women, all of which are pretty unhappy meet in detention, Jules shows them her that being a witch has some perks. After using her powers to get them out of detention, Jules has them all meet up at the local park where the town allegedly killed a bunch of witches years ago where they form a new coven.

Throughout the movie, they will find they can do all sorts of things, like levitating a book, convince people they already paid for things when they didn’t and even get one of their moms to quit drinking. They, of course, will discover this has a price, and they all start to suffer some physical ailments, like degrading vision or loss of hearing since as we have learned from so many movies, video games and anime in the past, you can’t get anything for free from magic.

There are also the other cliches, such as one of them betraying the group, someone being old as hell and all that other stuff. Nothing in this movie is new or innovative or even done in a new way. It is all done pretty well tho, the acting is great and the script is pretty good, the special effects are done nicely for what is clearly not a AAA movie. The movie isn’t great, but it is certainly good enough. If you like movies about witches, there is no reason not to check this one out. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

My Thoughts On Jordan Peele

In case somehow you haven’t heard, recently Jordan Peele said something along the lines of he doesn’t see himself casting a white lead anytime soon because he has already seen that movie. Now a lot of people have got pretty upset over this, and on the surface, this seems pretty understandable. What if Abrams said he didn’t see himself casting a black lead anytime soon, wouldn’t people be pissed? The answer is yes and it would be an equally emotional response. But let’s stop for a second here, and think of this logically. Who is Jordan Peele?

Well, it probably goes without saying, I do not know the man. I can’t just call him up and ask. I do know he is a writer, actor, comedian, and director that has won more than one Academy award. His newest movie, Us (2019) has already made millions in the box office. He is the son of a white mother, Lucinda Williams, and his father was a black man, Hayward Peele and he was raised by his single mother in New York City where he graduated High School and dropped out of college after 2 years. This you can find in a few minutes with a google search. You know what this tells me about Mr. Jordan Peele? Nothing. Not a damned thing. I know he is funny and makes great movies and shows. He might be an asshole. He might be the nicest guy you will ever meet. Maybe he kicks puppies, I couldn’t tell you.

What I can tell you is if I ever wrote a movie, I would probably never have a Mongolian lead. I have nothing against the Mongolian people or culture, I just don’t know anything about them and have no interest in seeing a movie about them. I couldn’t write a convincing character for one to play. I would write a movie about what I know and I am interested in. Probably some fat white guy drinking a Monster playing video games wishing his girlfriend would finally bring home her hot friend or at least a pizza. Hey, it’s my dream don’t judge.

Jordan, however, is more talented than I am so he writes blockbuster movies and shows like Key&Peele and Us that have strong black leads because that is what he knows and wants to see. There is no reason at all to think what he said or how he writes movies is racially motivated, any more than Stephen King mostly having White leads or me saying I probably wouldn’t have a Mongolian lead is racially motivated. He is just a guy living his dream writing movies he would like to see and that obviously his fans want to see. That is a good thing, it is what every writer in existence does. So please, stop reading into what he said and enjoy his movies for what they are and appreciate someone being honest for once, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

 

Dora The Explorer Trailer

First, here is the trailer. I know a lot of you probably didn’t watch it because it is a movie based off a show for 5-year-olds. So, please watch it so everything  I say makes sense.

Okay first it is a Nickelodeon movie, its a bit silly and we all knew that was coming. Eva Longoria is still a good looking woman as expected and Micheal Pena is great. Cool, we are covered. Moving on, why the hell does Dora have what appears to be dynamite, rock climbing equipment and a flair in school? Also, this kid has a giant knife in school? Seriously I own a similar knife, you could take an arm off with that thing, legitimately.

I watched this show with my kids, she wondered around singing songs with her backpack and a map, now she is going to knife poor Swiper, and I hate to admit I kind of want to see it. Why you may ask because this movie is going to either be fun or a train wreck and either way that will be interesting. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.