The Final Destination series of films have officially become the movie-going equivalent of the tuxedo T-shirt. The first time you see it you say to yourself, "That's a really clever subversion of my expectations at this party." But after a while you begin to wonder just how long this gag is going to be milked because it really stopped being amusing several years ago. Final Destination 5 is an atrocious mess, but it is admittedly barely better than the last installment.
I was interested to see how Alan Ball would follow up last week’s all over the map episode of True Blood. What started out as an exciting, plot-packed hour ended as a cringe worthy, softcore porn Twilight tribute (albeit with a good soundtrack). Thankfully he managed to maintain the excitement without the cheese this week in ‘Cold Grey Light of Dawn’.
Perhaps it came out too close to Activision’s Prototype, maybe a superhero-who-isn’t was not a marketable enough concept for people to latch on to, but whatever the reason may be, folks just don’t seem to talk about the original inFAMOUS on the same level they do Uncharted, or even Sucker Punch’s own Sly Cooper. inFAMOUS 2 hopes to drive it all home, carrying the pulse of the first and wrap up both the narrative and the possibilities rooted in the first. Is there chain-lightning in the follow-up, or is there not enough power to keep this engine running?
The Devil’s Double is the disturbing tale of Latif Yahia, a well to-do Iraqi man who is forced to become the body double of Uday Hussein, the sadistic elder son of dictator Saddam Hussein. Despite a strong first half, this is a very uneven film, one that goes from an interesting character study of two wildly different men to an unnecessary action film by the third act.
Generation Hope #9 is “the one where we’re using the X-metaphor to talk about teenage gay suicide.” It's not a story where they "deal with" teenage gay suicide, of course; that would imply some sort of satisfactory resolution, if not an outright happy ending.
The sixth episode of True Blood's fourth season is entitled "I Wish I Was the Moon" for the Neko Case song that plays at the end of the episode and into the credits. The episode itself begins and ends with Erik Northman and Sookie Stackhouse locked in a long awaited, barely clothed embrace, and as for episode structure - that's about it. "I Wish I Was the Moon" has some stellar moments, some moments worthy of the misspent potential of the series, but when taken as a whole, the episode struck me as listless and disorganized - as much of this season has been.
With two movies, a long running spin off and countless one-shots, Hellboy is the gold standard for what creator-owned comics can be when there is that perfect combination of epic storytelling and emotionally rich characters involved. Yet like many other comic fans who know of the title, I don’t read it on a regular basis. If you are like me in this respect, you need to immediately pick up Hellboy: The Fury #1.
Despite numerous betrayals, spilled secrets and a long-awaited hook up, True Blood didn’t really get my blood pumping this week with its fifth episode ‘Me & the Devil’. Not surprising for mid-season of course, but still not saying much if this episode was a yawner despite there being a double murder. At least this week Alan Ball dialed back the inbreeding and has yet to find a cure for Eric’s shirt allergy. As Marnie would say, thank Goddess!
If a man in a giant bat costume can be rationalized – intensely and dramatically – then so too can a man named Captain America. The name alone makes my skin crawl; it’s filled with so much camp and pomp. When I imagined what such a film would feel like I thought of Independence Day. With that as my prejudice, this movie had some challenges to overcome in the battle of authenticity versus believability. However, I am happy to report that Captain America: The First Avenger nailed it.
Gil and Inez are on a trip to Paris, tagging along with her parents. It's evident from the start that their personalities clash. He is a successful Hollywood screenwriter in the middle of writing his first original novel, while she scoffs at her fiancé's new occupational wishes. After a less than cordial dinner with some new acquaintances, Gil goes for a walk around the city, finally stopping at an nondescript staircase. As a nearby clocks chimes midnight, an old-fashioned car pulls up and a stranger beckons Gil inside.
Just the other day I was contemplating the current television landscape when it occurred to me that — save for Game of Thrones — there just isn't enough incest on cable. Looks like Alan Ball agrees because family lovin' seems to be the theme of the latest episode of True Blood called 'I'm Alive and On Fire'.
For fans, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two has been a moment we’ve been both waiting for and dreading simultaneously. To see the end of something that, for those of my age group and level of dedication, has lasted for over a decade is obviously bittersweet. That’s a long time to have really loved and been invested in something.
The thing I really love about True Blood is that it's not only entertaining, it's also educational. In this week's episode 'If You Love Me,Then Why Am I Dyin' we learned that entrapment doesn't count as a defense in Vampire law, Mexico makes the best viagra and virtually any relationship problem can be solved with hypnosis. All valuable lessons that can be applied to our everyday lives.
Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition won't get new players interested in the fighting game scene any more than the latest map pack will for the Call of Duty franchise. But anyone who's sunk dozens of hours into the game over the past three years would do well to upgrade for roughly the price of two pints.
The Torchwood team returns and heads stateside in the fourth series of the BBC sci-fi show. A mix of British sci-fi geekiness with US action, it's a solid follow-up to the brilliant 'Children of the Earth'.
