I am one man in a sea of a million bloggers who are likely writing a review about Dark Knight as you read this. I don't know if what I can say will be more or less enlightened, or if it will merely come off as the ramblings of a mad douche.
Dark Knight is a perfect movie.
Fuck what anyone else says. Fuck if anyone thinks I am saying this because it is expected to like this movie. In fact, if anyone likes this movie JUST because of Ledger, or JUST because people tell you that you have to like it, then fuck you to.
Here are a few names other than Ledger that made this a perfect movie:
Morgan Freeman
Michael Caine
Aaron Eckhart
And especially Gary Oldmen
If you don't understand why Bale and Maggie aren't listed, then you don't know movies to well. Bale delivers a usable Batman, I like the guy! Really! But in Bat-Mode whenever he tries to sound intimidating it just sounds like a smokers cough through a shit covered rag. The fact that they allowed him to go around in a bat costume yelling out unintelligible jargen like, "Whhhhherreere AAhhhrrreeee Thhhheeeeeeyyyeyeye?!?!". Though I do really like his portrayal of Bruce Wayne, not gonna lie. The on screen chemistry between Alfred and Bruce is fantastic in both movies. So don't get me wrong... he is a good actor. He is just forced into bad dialogue. Maggie only proved the fact that the Rachael character was interchangable. It didn't really matter who said her lines. It's like it was merely neccesary for her words to fall across the screen and give anyone else a break between actual acting. You could have had generic actress A or B in said part and the results would have been the same.
Those are my ONLY complaints with the movie. And if that is all? Then what you have on your hands is a damn perfect movie. This film kept all of the great chemistry of the first one, and brought it in spades. One powerful scene after another, witty dialogue delivered perfectly on Ledgers behalf, acting that left me breathless, schocked, frightened and enlightened all in one film.
The strong influence by the Alan Moore's story Batman: The Killing Joke is evident in Ledgers portrayal of the Joker. And it was only until after seeing this movie the first time did I truly mourne the loss of Mr. Ledger. I have come across his works before in a merely dabbling sense, but this was the first role of this that touched me. It felt like Ledger was lost deep in that role, and I can hope that maybe somewhere he knows that he brought to life a creature on screen that has really changed how people view comic book movies.
I can only say that this movie stands up to many multiple viewing, at full price at the theater. And being a cheap guy, that is really hard for me to find a movie I like this much. This is a must see, must buy, must worship film. It will change how you see comics, and comic book films.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
E3 Live Blog - Nintendo
12:08 pm: Cammy Dunaway takes the stage. She talks about having fun. Perhaps she's been playing the demo of Gears of War 2.
12:09 pm: She has noted that indeed, she is not Reggie Fils-Aime. Thanks for telling me.
12:10 pm: "Shaun White Snowboarding" unveiled. It is being demoed by S.W. himself. He has fun despite wiping out twice. It is Balance Board compatible. Ubisoft is the game's publisher.
12: 12 pm: Cammy gives the game a shot. She demos the Half-Pipe mode in the game. Overall, the game is impressive, but one's got to wonder how it will compete with SSX and We Ski. Shaun White Snowboarding releases "exclusively on the Wii this year's end."
12: 14 pm: Nintendo's Global President Satoru Iwata takes stage. He's talking about change in the industry. He looks like the guy in Brain Age. Oddly enough, he mentions the game as an example.
12: 16 pm: "Small things with small budgets can capture great audience if they have great idea," he says. Trying to defend Wii Fit as a game is like telling me O.J. was innocent. Sorry, Iwata.
12: 20 pm: **Uploaded images for Shaun White**
12: 22 pm: Iwata took a subtle, indirect stab at Microsoft for their "new" Avatar system (read: Fall). He thanks everyone for their time. Let's do it.
12: 23 pm: Animal Crossing Wii announced. Where was this 2 years ago??
12: 24 pm: Looks damn near like every other Animal Crossing. Nintendo is clearly "pulling a Madden" here.
12: 25 pm: "Wii Speak" unveiled - a wired mic for Wii. It's being demoed with Animal Crossing now. A group of players in the game goes fishing and communicates with one another via "Wii Speak." Online features? I swear I just heard online shop and player interaction.
12: 27 pm: Demo over. Animal Crossing shows potential. Reggie Fils-Aime now takes stage.
12: 29 pm: Usual sales numbers and charts are being discussed. 2007 was "supposed to be" the Peak year for the Nintendo DS. It wasn't.
12: 31 pm: "Pokemon" is apparently the franchise hit of the DS. I don't think Reggie has ever heard of Nintendogs.
12: 33 pm: Wii software sales are discussed. These numbers are skewed by Wii Play, because that accounts for...I don't know...all of it.
12: 34 pm: Reggie believes that third-party developers have found success on the Wii. I beg to differ.
12: 36 pm: "Star Wars: the Clone Wars" just announced. This is the "Lightsaber Game" that everyone will ask for later this year. Looks like fun!
12: 38 pm: "Surf the Skies" (Rayman series) announced. It is compatible with the balance board.
12: 39 pm: "Call of Duty: World at War" - compatible with the Wii Zapper. It looks like an N64 game.
12: 40 pm: Cammy takes the stage again. She talks about upcoming Nintendo DS titles. "Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades" is announced. Game developers briefly talk about a new feature called, "Song Sharing." The game hits this fall.
12: 41 pm: New Pokemon Ranger. New Guitar Hero. Spore Creatures. <--these are the highlights. I'm concerned about Cammy's voice as she said, "This is the only version of Spore that hits this year." Uh, oh.
12: 45 pm: GRAND THEFT AUTO: Chintatown Wars hits Nintendo DS this winter. Fucking aweome. Excellent job, Nintendo!
12: 48 pm: Wii: Motion Plus is briefly discussed by Reggie. He announces "Wii Sports: Resort." It will come packaged with a remote Jacket and the Motion Plus device.
12: 49 pm: A demo of one of the "mini-games" on WSR, Frisbee Toss, is shown. Cammy takes stage and expresses the detection of subtle movement with Motion Plus. She then successfully throws a frisbee to a dog.
12: 50 pm: Reggie now demos another part of WSR, Jet Ski. The game shows promise in terms of actual speed. I'm being sincere.
12: 51 pm: A third portion of WSR, Swordfight, is demoed between Reggie and Cammy. There is some serious applause from the audience. I hope that people still buy Star Wars. Nonetheless, this game will SELL.
12: 53 pm: Wii Sports: Resort hits "next spring." That means never.
12: 55 pm: Reggie says something new is coming. It's "sure to bring smiles." I better hear Zelda.
12: 56 pm: I hear drumming. This is what's "new." Call me crazy, crazier, perhaps.
12: 57 pm: Miyamoto comes on stage playing a virtual saxophone thing with his Wii Remote. Together with the drummer, this is "Wii Music." Actually, it sounds like Good Charlotte.
12: 59 pm: "Most rhythm games require you to play an instrument by pressing a button at a certain designated time." Right, this requires skill.
1:00 pm: "Wii Music" is about playing the notes you want. ((Translation: this is for people who can't beat Easy mode on Guitar Hero))
1:03 pm: The game will include a lesson mode. You can play drums, piano, violin, guitar, and more.I'm going out on a limb here, but I think in 5 years, no one will play any real instruments.
1:05 pm: A group of four is demos the Mario theme for "Wii Music." At least Nintendo has created music for their own rhythm game. I'm kind of hoping this is a foreshadowing to a new Mario game. (Edit: hope is lost)
1:08 pm: Reggie takes stage again. He mentions the word "fad" in regards to the Wii. He is completely unaware of his personal announcement that "Wii Music" being available this holiday season.
1:10 pm: Nintendo's conference has come to an end. Mario and Zelda must've been too sick to attend.
Thank you!
-------
EAL
12:09 pm: She has noted that indeed, she is not Reggie Fils-Aime. Thanks for telling me.
12:10 pm: "Shaun White Snowboarding" unveiled. It is being demoed by S.W. himself. He has fun despite wiping out twice. It is Balance Board compatible. Ubisoft is the game's publisher.
12: 12 pm: Cammy gives the game a shot. She demos the Half-Pipe mode in the game. Overall, the game is impressive, but one's got to wonder how it will compete with SSX and We Ski. Shaun White Snowboarding releases "exclusively on the Wii this year's end."
12: 14 pm: Nintendo's Global President Satoru Iwata takes stage. He's talking about change in the industry. He looks like the guy in Brain Age. Oddly enough, he mentions the game as an example.
12: 16 pm: "Small things with small budgets can capture great audience if they have great idea," he says. Trying to defend Wii Fit as a game is like telling me O.J. was innocent. Sorry, Iwata.
12: 20 pm: **Uploaded images for Shaun White**
12: 22 pm: Iwata took a subtle, indirect stab at Microsoft for their "new" Avatar system (read: Fall). He thanks everyone for their time. Let's do it.
12: 23 pm: Animal Crossing Wii announced. Where was this 2 years ago??12: 24 pm: Looks damn near like every other Animal Crossing. Nintendo is clearly "pulling a Madden" here.
12: 25 pm: "Wii Speak" unveiled - a wired mic for Wii. It's being demoed with Animal Crossing now. A group of players in the game goes fishing and communicates with one another via "Wii Speak." Online features? I swear I just heard online shop and player interaction.12: 27 pm: Demo over. Animal Crossing shows potential. Reggie Fils-Aime now takes stage.
12: 29 pm: Usual sales numbers and charts are being discussed. 2007 was "supposed to be" the Peak year for the Nintendo DS. It wasn't.
12: 31 pm: "Pokemon" is apparently the franchise hit of the DS. I don't think Reggie has ever heard of Nintendogs.
12: 33 pm: Wii software sales are discussed. These numbers are skewed by Wii Play, because that accounts for...I don't know...all of it.
12: 34 pm: Reggie believes that third-party developers have found success on the Wii. I beg to differ.
12: 36 pm: "Star Wars: the Clone Wars" just announced. This is the "Lightsaber Game" that everyone will ask for later this year. Looks like fun!12: 38 pm: "Surf the Skies" (Rayman series) announced. It is compatible with the balance board.
12: 39 pm: "Call of Duty: World at War" - compatible with the Wii Zapper. It looks like an N64 game.12: 40 pm: Cammy takes the stage again. She talks about upcoming Nintendo DS titles. "Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades" is announced. Game developers briefly talk about a new feature called, "Song Sharing." The game hits this fall.
12: 41 pm: New Pokemon Ranger. New Guitar Hero. Spore Creatures. <--these are the highlights. I'm concerned about Cammy's voice as she said, "This is the only version of Spore that hits this year." Uh, oh.
12: 45 pm: GRAND THEFT AUTO: Chintatown Wars hits Nintendo DS this winter. Fucking aweome. Excellent job, Nintendo!12: 48 pm: Wii: Motion Plus is briefly discussed by Reggie. He announces "Wii Sports: Resort." It will come packaged with a remote Jacket and the Motion Plus device.
12: 49 pm: A demo of one of the "mini-games" on WSR, Frisbee Toss, is shown. Cammy takes stage and expresses the detection of subtle movement with Motion Plus. She then successfully throws a frisbee to a dog.
12: 50 pm: Reggie now demos another part of WSR, Jet Ski. The game shows promise in terms of actual speed. I'm being sincere.
12: 51 pm: A third portion of WSR, Swordfight, is demoed between Reggie and Cammy. There is some serious applause from the audience. I hope that people still buy Star Wars. Nonetheless, this game will SELL.
12: 53 pm: Wii Sports: Resort hits "next spring." That means never.
12: 55 pm: Reggie says something new is coming. It's "sure to bring smiles." I better hear Zelda.
12: 56 pm: I hear drumming. This is what's "new." Call me crazy, crazier, perhaps.
12: 57 pm: Miyamoto comes on stage playing a virtual saxophone thing with his Wii Remote. Together with the drummer, this is "Wii Music." Actually, it sounds like Good Charlotte.
12: 59 pm: "Most rhythm games require you to play an instrument by pressing a button at a certain designated time." Right, this requires skill.
1:00 pm: "Wii Music" is about playing the notes you want. ((Translation: this is for people who can't beat Easy mode on Guitar Hero))
1:03 pm: The game will include a lesson mode. You can play drums, piano, violin, guitar, and more.I'm going out on a limb here, but I think in 5 years, no one will play any real instruments.
1:05 pm: A group of four is demos the Mario theme for "Wii Music." At least Nintendo has created music for their own rhythm game. I'm kind of hoping this is a foreshadowing to a new Mario game. (Edit: hope is lost)
1:08 pm: Reggie takes stage again. He mentions the word "fad" in regards to the Wii. He is completely unaware of his personal announcement that "Wii Music" being available this holiday season.
1:10 pm: Nintendo's conference has come to an end. Mario and Zelda must've been too sick to attend.
Thank you!
-------
EAL
Monday, July 14, 2008
E3: Microsoft Post-Conference Analysis (v. 2)
Top 3 Announcements:
My Fall/Win
ter Gaming Library:
- Avatar System w/ New Dashboard
- Gears of War 5 player co-op
- Xbox Live partnership with Netflix
- "You're in the Movies" w/ Vision Camera
- New Live Party System
- Fallout 3
- "Lips" isn't too impressive
- No stage demo for Rock Band 2
- No Vision support for new Avatar System
ter Gaming Library:
E3: Microsoft Post-Conference Analysis
Top 3 Announcements:
My Fall/Winter Gaming Library: 
- Final Fantasy XIII coming to Xbox 360
- New Dashboard Layout
- Gears of War 2 gets 5 player Co-op
- Fable 2 gets online co-op (drop in, drop out)
- Group chat system in Fall Update (8 players)
- Metallica full-album download for Guitar Hero: World Tour
- No-Shows: Too Human, Halo Wars, & Alan Wake
- Resident Evil 5 releases in March (ouch!)
- No price adjustment for Arcade and Elite consoles
Friday, July 11, 2008
Project III: The Adventure/Platform
Title: Unlikely
Story: Ex-superhero, "Anonymous Man," is currently unemployed after suffering a career ending football injury. As a result, his resident city of Grimsmith is more open to crime.
Seizing the opportunity, mad scientist Frank Fiasco sets out to conquer the city. The only thing standing in Fiasco's way is...himself.
Fiasco may be clever, but he's accident prone. No matter how great his inventions are, they always fail. But...even with failure, his mission still succeeds.
Despite the wheelchair, Anonymous Man remains skeptical about his ability to defend the city. The only "power" he has is his eyesight, which in reality is simply a pair of reading glasses. Although this is nowhere close to any superhuman ability, Anonymous Man has believed otherwise since he was seven.
Armed with normality and a wheelchair with gadgets galore, Anonymous Man sets out to stop Fiasco once and for all.
(more details to come)
Gameplay:
Third-person adventure/platform.
(more details to come)
Story: Ex-superhero, "Anonymous Man," is currently unemployed after suffering a career ending football injury. As a result, his resident city of Grimsmith is more open to crime.
Seizing the opportunity, mad scientist Frank Fiasco sets out to conquer the city. The only thing standing in Fiasco's way is...himself.
Fiasco may be clever, but he's accident prone. No matter how great his inventions are, they always fail. But...even with failure, his mission still succeeds.
- For example, he tested a robot to destroy cars in a desert junkyard. The robot short-circuited and fell on a mine, thereby causing an explosion which blew the place to bits.
Despite the wheelchair, Anonymous Man remains skeptical about his ability to defend the city. The only "power" he has is his eyesight, which in reality is simply a pair of reading glasses. Although this is nowhere close to any superhuman ability, Anonymous Man has believed otherwise since he was seven.
Armed with normality and a wheelchair with gadgets galore, Anonymous Man sets out to stop Fiasco once and for all.
(more details to come)
Gameplay:
Third-person adventure/platform.
(more details to come)
Project II: The RPG
Title: Cliche Hero
Story: A young boy embarks on a satirical journey parallel to the RPG standard - yielding a massive sword over his shoulder, he sets out on a series of quests which follow the unwritten rules of RPGs.
Blissfully unaware of these "coincidences," the boy continues his adventure to find the answers to: "Why?"
(more details to come)
Gameplay:
Action and Turn-Based RPG.
(more details to come)
Story: A young boy embarks on a satirical journey parallel to the RPG standard - yielding a massive sword over his shoulder, he sets out on a series of quests which follow the unwritten rules of RPGs.
Blissfully unaware of these "coincidences," the boy continues his adventure to find the answers to: "Why?"
(more details to come)
Gameplay:
Action and Turn-Based RPG.
(more details to come)
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Project I: The (Vampire) RTS
Title: Ignited Coalition
Story: Transylvania University is an accredited institution that has been around for nearly a century. Its commitment to offering education to local villagers and vampires has earned the school many awards and maintained a healthy relationship amongst its students. In the late 1700s, governor Samuel von Brukenthal (link) is the honored guest speaker to a graduating class. During his speech, the university is set ablaze, killing everyone inside.
After days of mourning and investigation, authorities schedule a meeting at the town hall. Locals are enraged and demand justice brought forth on the arsonist. Authorities then unveil the full details of their investigation, citing 3 suspects with possible motives each.
Which brings the game to you, the Arsonist. All that stands between you and Transylvania is the army you can produce by nightfall.
Gameplay:
The game is divided into two components - day and night. During the daytime, you build your castle and offensive units (humans). At night, you prepare those offensive units to attack an opposing force while simultaneously building defensive units (night creatures) for your castle.
Each full game period is set in a 24 hour (in-game) interval and can be customized in full. Examples are as follows:
-Player can change the interval based upon custom timings. The 24 hour clock can be a full day in real-life or even an hour (IRL).
-The hours of day and night can be adjusted. A player can set 15 of the hours in-game as daytime, 9 at night.
-Players can plan a battle to last for a maximum of 7 days (in-game). Each day of the week can be adjusted as illustrated above.
-Players can utilize the online "Weather.com" feature to use local day/night hours in game.
In terms of battle, the game defaults to a free-for-all of 4 players.
Playable Characters:
The Governor's Wife
Controls:
-Fully customizable button-mapping
-Exponential control option
-Support for voice controls
Experience and Leveling:
Humans and Night-Creatures
Units:
Humans - Torchers, Catapults, Archers, Pitchforks, Spears, Clubs, Axemen
Night Creatures - Vampires, Bats, Werewolves
Story: Transylvania University is an accredited institution that has been around for nearly a century. Its commitment to offering education to local villagers and vampires has earned the school many awards and maintained a healthy relationship amongst its students. In the late 1700s, governor Samuel von Brukenthal (link) is the honored guest speaker to a graduating class. During his speech, the university is set ablaze, killing everyone inside.
After days of mourning and investigation, authorities schedule a meeting at the town hall. Locals are enraged and demand justice brought forth on the arsonist. Authorities then unveil the full details of their investigation, citing 3 suspects with possible motives each.
Which brings the game to you, the Arsonist. All that stands between you and Transylvania is the army you can produce by nightfall.
Gameplay:
The game is divided into two components - day and night. During the daytime, you build your castle and offensive units (humans). At night, you prepare those offensive units to attack an opposing force while simultaneously building defensive units (night creatures) for your castle.
Each full game period is set in a 24 hour (in-game) interval and can be customized in full. Examples are as follows:
-Player can change the interval based upon custom timings. The 24 hour clock can be a full day in real-life or even an hour (IRL).
-The hours of day and night can be adjusted. A player can set 15 of the hours in-game as daytime, 9 at night.
-Players can plan a battle to last for a maximum of 7 days (in-game). Each day of the week can be adjusted as illustrated above.
-Players can utilize the online "Weather.com" feature to use local day/night hours in game.
In terms of battle, the game defaults to a free-for-all of 4 players.
Playable Characters:
The Governor's Wife
- Customization Options
- Female character only
- Physical attributes (height, weight)
- Clothing options
- Traits - mob units receive attack bonus
- Customization Options
- Male or Female
- Physical attributes (height, weight)
- Clothing options
- Traits - night-creatures receive defense bonus
- Customization Options
- Male character only
- Physical attributes (height, weight)
- Clothing options
- Traits - ability to produce units quicker coupled with faster unit movement
Controls:
-Fully customizable button-mapping
-Exponential control option
-Support for voice controls
Experience and Leveling:
Humans and Night-Creatures
- Unit Leaders
- Training for leaders and groups
- Stipulation - the leader must always be ranked higher than the group
- 5-point ranking system
- Groups can train in skills such as movement and attack
Units:
Humans - Torchers, Catapults, Archers, Pitchforks, Spears, Clubs, Axemen
Night Creatures - Vampires, Bats, Werewolves
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