The Wolverine - Reviewed

Double header!

Well, sort-of. But whatever, just roll with it. As per the last entry, spoilers!

The Wolverine

What else can I really say here? It's more-or-less another origin story. Or rather a continuation thereof. This time it follows the Mariko storyline, but it was quite abrupt and out of nowhere, especially so when everything was cut short. The arc is still incomplete, but I doubt they'll ever go back to it. Especially judging by the scene after the credits.

The acting was overal good. I'm glad they hired proper speaking Japanese people rather than forcing English people to learn the lines and mispronounce everything. Which is why I'm also glad Hugh Jackman barely said a word in Japanese, either. Some scenes/lines bugged me here and there, but overal it's what you would expect from a Wolverine movie.

Though, with that said, I think it's also one of its gripes. It wasn't as actioned packed as I would've liked it to be. There was a lot of build-up, if you ask me. But it all led to pretty much... nothing. The action scenes were very subpar and short. Hell, the best one, in my opinion, was on the train, and to make the matter worse, it was against a random Yakuza grunt. And most of that you even see on the trailer.

I was also very disappointed by the lack of other mutants. I mean, sure, there's the Viper chick, but she wasn't really impressive or a proper antagonist. Speaking of antagonist, it seemed very much so like the movie couldn't decide who they wanted it to be. Was it the grandfather? Was it the Viper chick? Was it the dad? Make up your mind, movie! It all becomes clear by the end, of course, but until then it's a rollercoaster ride.

I can't really comment much on the soundtrack as I don't remember any of it. So I guess it was just your run of the mill music and ambiance. Which is fine, there weren't really any epic moments or whatnot to throw a good score underneath it. The 3-D was also very disappointing, I literally didn't notice a single effect. This is more a gripe with the industry as a whole of late, but this was a typical example of just wanting to milk out the extra buck for the glasses.

Overal I'm disappointed with the movie. And this is coming from someone who liked the previous Wolverine movie. I'd give it a 4 out of 10. If you're a fan I'd give it a rental, but that's about it.

Pacific Rim - Reviewed

As the title already says, I'm going to give it a knack to review a movie. Now, I do have to say I've never done it before, so I apologize if it's totally stupid and whatnot. And, of course, spoilers! But without further ado:

So, Pacific Rim.

Let me just start off by saying that as a general movie go-er and not as a critic or anything, I had a good time at the movie. I literally went in blind, I knew absolutely nothing about the movie. The only thing I had in mind, judging by the name was that I expected it to be a submarine movie in the Pacific.

I could not have been more wrong.

Pacific Rim cuts right to the chase and it's known within the first few minutes what the movie is like and what it's about. Which is good, the movie was already two hours, if they needed to explain the backstory and have them develop the Jaegers then it would've been too long, or needed a sequel, which wouldn't have fit at all.

I can't harp on the beginning too much, it has the standard fare of the main protagonist losing someone dear to him, as a setback and something he needs to overcome later in the movie. I'm glad they didn't really make that the main focus, but more-so just used it as an excuse to work in the girl as his Drift partner. My only complaint about it is, of course, you don't have time to grow a connection with the person who dies so early on in the movie.

The cast was great, consisting mostly of unknown or relatively unknown actors, with some more 'famous' ones getting less important roles. But they all did a great job, if you ask me.

The monster and Jaeger design was great, I loved how every single one of them was different. The Jaegers in the sense of their speciality or fighting style, and the Kaiju in regards to which animal they represented. Some were more obvious than others, but still very great!

I'm not going to nitpick every little thing about the movie, because to be frank, there are quite a few plotholes and just stupid/cheesy things. Or failing those, things that just don't make sense at all. Just enjoy it for what it is, an action packed CGI movie of mechas vs huge aliens.

The soundtrack is amazing, however! It felt proportionally epic with slight changes depending on the scenes, in regards to the 'main' theme it had. Even if you never intend to watch the movie (you should!) get your hands on the OST, it's great.

Overal, I'd rate it a 8 out of 10. If you can, you should watch it, but it will be a forgettable movie by the end of the year, sadly. I've already forgotten most dialogue from it.

Employed unemployment

As the title suggests, I have a job. Catering for a casino. It sounds lovely. You get to dress nice, entertain guests, make food. The good stuff!

Except it's been two weeks and I have yet to be called in for my first day. Which is kind of frustrating. I mean, this has prompted me to look for another job, and when asked "Do you currently work?" I have to fill in yes, but I have yet to set foot in the place or do actual work.

So life has been pretty boring, still. Other than that, the old baby maker is leaving next week, so I'll finally have some quiet time again.

Fireworks of nothing!

So, it's been a while. But fret not, for I still wander this earth!

I guess the main reason I didn't update is because a lot happened and nothing happened at the same time. Certain things happened which made life a bit hectic, but they're not things I wish to share publically. Not yet, anyway.

Other than that nothing really happened. I landed a job as catering staff for a casino, so hoorah for that. Money is always good, right? Right.

My birthgiver is currently also visiting me and has been for a while, which can be quite stressful at times. But you learn to deal with it. I also discovered that headphones help a lot!

That's about it, really. Here's to hoping the next post will be a bit more exciting, eh?

And happy be-lated freedom day, America.

Remember, remember...

As I sat gazing outside of the window last night, I couldn't help but wonder:

"What makes memories so special?"

It's a weird question, no matter how you look at it. You never stop and think about it, do you? Memories. You make them constantly; good ones, bad ones, you even forget most of them. But what causes us to distinguish between certain memories? What makes a certain object more important than another one?

Why is this picture more precious to me than this letter? Why would I easily throw away this store bought card from one person, but not from the other? We don't even stop to think about it, we just know which items are more important to us than others. Why is that?

Is it because of the feelings attached to it? Can we truly remember more than being generally happy or sad when recieving a certain item from someone? Is it because we associate the person with the items they gave? But if so, why don't we treasure everything like hoarders? Certainly almost all the people in your life are important to you?

To give a personal example, I relinquished the things my ex-lady gave me back to her, I regretted it and wished for it back. She wanted to keep a picture of herself and a souvenir she had gotten me. I gave the souvenir back but I fought tooth and nail for the picture. Why? Why does that picture mean more to me than the souvenir?

And the answer is that I don't know.

Doctor Who?

As most Whovians already know by this point, Matt Smith is going to be replaced as the 11th Doctor in the famous show Doctor Who. There seems to be quite a clear divide between fans, with one half going "Damn it, no!" and the other half going "Damn it, no!"

Wait. Did I do my Matt wrong? See what I did there? Right. Moving on.

Anyway, I personally embrace the change. Now, before you start wishing to exterminate me, just hear me out. Smith is a great Doctor, he's not Tennant, but he's brilliant. He brings the show alive with his quirk and the better writing also helps, of course.

But as with time and the show itself, it's constant, flowing and changing. So it's time for a change, 4 years is quite a long time to be a Doctor, and there's only so much longer you can drag it on before people completely resent the idea of ever having a new Doctor at all. Plus, with every new Doctor, it's a good chance to bring in new people to the show.

All in all, I'm for the change of a new Doctor, as long as he's good, of course. I realize everyone (me included) will be upset when they announce it, and we'll all need a couple of episodes upto a season for the new Doctor to grow on us, but we'll all love him. Just like we did with Smith.

"Run you clever boy and remember."

Strapped

So Animecon happened. Well, somewhat. It was only for a day and even then nothing was going on, it was more just sitting and standing around, watching people run around in cosplay. The atmosphere felt different than in the past, not sure why, but I didn't have as good of a time as the previous years. I guess it doesn't help when you're pinching pennies with every purchase you look at during such conventions, either.

I didn't take any pictures of cosplay, I wanted to at certain points but couldn't be bothered. It feels a bit cheap to whip out your phone to take a picture at those kind of events. People--well, most of the people, put in a lot of time and effort into their costumes and props and I whip out my phone because it's the only thing I have on hand.

I did buy this nice Sanji strap, though!