Movie review on the way!

Sorry for the lack of films review recently but I can promise that there's one on the way...and it's big! I will be reviewing three films that arguably ruined the future of a popular franchise. I won't spoil it now but It will be one of the longest reviews I ever typed. Be sure to stay tuned as I will post it  this upcoming monday or tuesday. I also would like to encourage you to please follow on the blog because it let's me know who is reading this material and it's helps me a lot. Thanks!

[Coletrain]

Meet "Coletrain"

This is lost footage from a year ago. Never had the opportunity to upload it till now. Now you can see me fire a 357 magnum unprofessionally...YEA

Let's Talk: Anime (Discussion segment)

        This was a journal I wrote during my Film Analysis class after viewing the short film "She and Her Cat". I actually got a bunch of extra credit points from my teacher after writing this response as it was not assigned. I basically highlights the general topic of Anime and its view with western audiences. Enjoy!


        From the recent viewing of the short anime film "She and Her Cat", I can understand why the film may have been different in the eyes of my class mates. Anime doesn't attract much of a western audience because it either hasn't been exposed enough in the community as only a few channels host it at the moment (mainly Toonami or Adult Swim), or it's just the group's overall reaction. Audiences in the United States are often put off by the overly complicated story lines of these shows, as well as the overall art direction.
        Let me just state that I am not a hater of Anime, I'm a supporter as there are a bunch of examples that stand out of the crowd. In terms of film, the work of Hayao Miyazaki has always stood out. In fact, one of the very first films I ever saw was "Princess Mononoke", a film in which I highly recommend. I was about five or six when I saw the original film in theaters and my parents took me to it thinking it was fun for the whole family. Instead, what we got was a film with graphic violence, well executed voice acting and overall, Miyazaki's best film in my opinion. The film is so good, I have it in my DVD collection. "Akira" is also another film that stands out which at the time, pushed animation to a new level while not doing great commercially. "Ghost in the Shell" serves as a great example of Anime being noticed as the Wachowski brothers were inspired by the "cyber-punk" atmosphere of the film and were able to recreate that sort of feeling but in there own vision in "The Matrix".  TV shows vary on the other hand as there are some that are good and some that need improvements. I tended to lose interest in shows that repeat the same plot structure and that are longer than 100 episodes but I try to be patient, waiting for deeper character development to hopefully come into play. Shows like "Bleach" and "Naruto" follow this kind of structure in order to not only hook its viewers but to follow the Manga as best as possible. Repetition is what hurts these shows. I don't need to see a fight that goes over the course of 15 episodes because that not only takes away excitement and suspense from these fights. It becomes monotonous and it begins to lose my attention.
        This doesn't necessarily apply to all Anime as there are some that are able to break from the sense of repetition and deliver new ideas but go unrecognized because of the common misconception that cartoons are for kids. "Death Note" is an example of the darker side in which shows can go as teenager, Light Yagami, is given the power to kill anyone by simply writing their name in a book, whether it be through a heart attack or through other means of torture. With Anime, artists are able to create a world to their liking and it gives the creator more freedom to their work. I can understand the turn off as audiences don't want to have a complicated story or annoying characters but it isn't all that bad. If you just get past these annoyances, there are truly some great hidden gems within the genre.

Update 2/8/12

Hello people of the internet. Just want to give a quick update. Sorry for the lack of content as I've been trying to spread the word about the blog. New reviews will come this weekend. So yea the blog isn't dead just took a bit of hiatus but will be back this weekend. Also make sure to follow because that's how I know people are reading my thoughts...

Cool beans

App Review: Scribblenauts Remix IOS review

        Few Games on the app store have accomplished the ability of having a gamer, like me, invested. Often I will play a game on the iPhone for roughly ten or so minutes until I become bored and decide to move on to the next one. That's not the case with the "Scribblenauts", a game originally released on the Nintendo DS which has now gotten a port onto IOS devices. I never had the opportunity of trying out the original "Scribblenauts" on Nintendo's dual screen handheld, so I really didn't know what to expect. Often I am intimidated by puzzle related games because I normally like to have an experience in which I can just kick back and relax. "Scribblenauts Remix" was a different story as it provided both addicting gameplay and an overall rewarding experience for just the price of $1.00.
        The gameplay is "Scribblenauts" greatest achievement. There are a total of five stages and within those five stages are ten puzzles. Each of these puzzles require the player to type a specific word or adjective in order to complete the puzzle. The word the player types in becomes a part of the world. For example, there is a puzzle that requires players to find an alternative way to extinct the dinosaurs (discarding the use of weapons or meteorites). Simply type in the word "Dragon" or "Tsunami" and the game will spawn these "ideas" on the screen to complete the puzzle. This is the reason why I kept coming back to "Scribblenauts Remix", making the  game highly replayable by going back to previously completed levels and simply taking a different approach.

        My only complaint with "Scibblenauts Remix" is the use of the camera. The game often requires the player to move the camera to the left using two fingers. Many times I would do this and it would start to move my character into a pit or run him into spikes. This becomes frustrating at first but it doesn't hinder the experience too much.
        Overall "Scribblenauts Remix" is one of the most addicting and enjoyable experiences in which the App Store has to offer. If you are looking for a game that will keep you invested, don't pass this up, as you may miss out on one of the app stores' hidden gems.

Video Game Review: Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary for Xbox 360

        With the release of the 10th anniversary title "Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary" for Microsoft's Xbox 360, I think it is the perfect time for me to give my two cents on this HD re-release. After all, this is the first Halo title developed by 343 Industries because of the end of Bungie's 10 year contract with Microsoft. So is the Halo franchise safe or is it a step backward? Well I am happy to say that the game is going in the right direction and it's great to play the game that defined Microsoft's original Xbox all over again.
        With Anniversary, players get a remastered version of Halo's original campaign as well as hints to the upcoming release of "Halo 4" later this year through skulls and terminals. Players will also receive the "Anniversary Map Pack" which carries seven remade maps that span from the original Halo to it's later release on PC and a few from it's sequel. The best part about this package is that it only costs $40 dollars and for any fan of the Halo franchise, this is a must-own.
        Now that's all said and done but how does it make Anniversary's overall package? The campaign is pretty much the same as it was ten years ago but players have the option to switch between both the 2001 and 2011 graphical outlook on the fly, making it playable for those who want to relive the experience as it was intended and to see how much progress we have come over the past ten years. I will say though that it's HD look is a little below that of last year's graphical presentation of "Halo Reach" but either way, the game looks good. One of the new inclusions to the game is the ability to play two player online co-op of xbox live, which fans of Halo have been wanting to see for a long time. The campaign is a blast to play through but there's not a whole lot of incentive to go back unless you're in to finding easter eggs and earning achievement points.
        Flipping over to the multiplayer side, players will get to enjoy Halo Reach's multiplayer, whether you own a copy of Halo Reach, or not. I can see the respect 343 Industries has for Reach's multiplayer fan base but there's a lack of innovation as it's the same experience I had last year. However, all is not bad as the design of the Multiplayer maps are great. Developer Certain Affinity returns to give us the maps we  have enjoyed over the years, each of which are well crafted with the addition of added details to the environment. Each of these maps bring a sense of nostalgia and are redesigned for the Reach multiplayer format.
        Overall, "Halo Combat Evolved Anniversary" brings gamers back to the game that changed how we play first-person shooters today. The campaign may not offer a whole lot of fresh content to veterans and the multiplayer is familiar, but for $40, this is an offer no Halo fan should pass up.

PROS

- Great Campaign

- Nostalgia

- Multiplayer + Maps

CONS

- Lack of Innovation

- Replay Value

OVERALL SCORE

8/10

Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below! And if you liked this review, please follow.

-ColeTrain

War Horse - Movie Review

      
        I thought I would start off my first review with a film I saw just recently called "War Horse", released on December 25, 2011 for America. The film tells the story of a boy by the name of Albert, who lives in England during the early 1900's. His father decides to purchase a horse at an auction for a high price. Albert starts to grow a connection with the horse overtime and names the horse "Joey". However, things go astray as the horse becomes a financial burden for the family and as an act of desperation, Albert's father decides to sell the horse to the British Army in preparation for WWI. Though Albert and Joey are separated, it highlights all of Joeys' time during the war through secondary characters and also captures WWI from 1914-1918. I won't go any further with the plot because I want to keep this review as spoiler free as possible but that's pretty much the basic plot structure of "War Horse".


    

        Overall, the film turns out pretty decent but not without some flaws. First off, I just want to say the the cinematography in "War Horse" is amazing and it's pretty apparent that Steven Spielberg put a lot of thought and effort into it. Some of the opening battle sequences capture the scope and action that WWI brought. I also think that showing the war through the lives of different characters seemed to work out well as it showed the audience both the English and German perspectives of the war.
        However, I do think they might have used too many of these characters to tell the story. I can see that Spielberg wanted to show his audience the whole course of the war but it is part of the reason why the film drags on for about two hours and 26 minutes (146 minutes total). If a  minor character were to die in the film, I really wouldn't care because of how many of these secondary characters were introduced. It helps span the whole period of WWI but it makes the film twice as long. If they decided to focus on the three major stories, then it would have made it more condensed and would include further character development. I also want to say that this film tries to pull at you're heartstrings and takes a somewhat family approach by showing the sufferings of certain characters and some of these are either a hit or miss.
        Overall, I found "War Horse" to be somewhat enjoyable in my opinion. If the film didn't have such a long run-time, a plot structure similar to other war related films, and cheesy attempts at making the audience cry, then I probably would have enjoyed it more. If you're willing to look past these problems, give "War Horse" a shot. If not, there are just as good, if not better, films in theaters now.

PROS

- Cinematography

- Historical Depiction

- Story Telling

- Setting

CONS

- Length

- Cheesy

- Too Many Characters

OVERALL SCORE

6.8/10

Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below! And if you liked this review, please follow.

-ColeTrain