Using 3TB in encoded video files.
1,791GB used to store 287 HD Movies
366GB used to store 241 SD Movies
870GB used to store 58 TV Series
129GB used to store 29 Anime TV Series
Needless to say, I'm running out of space.
Showing posts with label Movies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Movies. Show all posts
April 11, 2009
December 17, 2008
December 1, 2008
Elite Squad Review
RT Link here
What I like about the movie is that it isn't overly preachy. I found this movie's fast edits and shaky cam actually appropriate for this gritty crime drama. That made the movie fun and entertaining, in a way a more serious film might not have been. For that I might rate the movie higher than I should, because I didn't quite feel preached to. My main beef with the movie was the narration, which personally I kind of wish I could have seen the movie without. Narration might have been necessary to keep some focus on its plot themes, and not get lost in action. The problem is that the narrator switches between his personal story and his God’s view of what’s happening with the main characters. It probably should have been one or the other, but telling ends up with too much narration. Remove either of these elements, and I think the added subtly would make the film feel more layered and complex. But with the narration and action, it became an assault of the senses which I can see why it turned off so many critics.
If the movie adds anything to the debate, it's that it tries to link the systematic societal failures that result in drug violence to upper class individual moral behavior. The movie asks, "How many poor kids have to die for a rich kid to smoke weed?" It's a message that gets buried under a lot of on screen violence, torture, and over narration. Even asking that very question ignores the role the state has in that violence, with the creation of a paramilitary police corp and corruption among the regular police. The movie points the finger at drug gangs, the state, and the affluent classes alike, and links individual actions to systemic issues. I can't knock the movie for that.
The movie doesn't tackle urban violence as a result of poverty, and treads likely on the subject of urban violence being a result of classism. In this movie, the race/class division almost seems acceptable if only non-black/non-poor kids didn't travel to the Favela to buy drugs. Then again, other films have documented classism elsewhere, and doing so here probably would have made this movie less of a shoot-em-up, and it would have been less appealing to me. A police drama has to be about the police, and by showing a liberal sympathizing university student resorting to torture to extract information from a witness, there's more to blame than just the cop, regardless of how disturbing the cop's actions are.
What I like about the movie is that it isn't overly preachy. I found this movie's fast edits and shaky cam actually appropriate for this gritty crime drama. That made the movie fun and entertaining, in a way a more serious film might not have been. For that I might rate the movie higher than I should, because I didn't quite feel preached to. My main beef with the movie was the narration, which personally I kind of wish I could have seen the movie without. Narration might have been necessary to keep some focus on its plot themes, and not get lost in action. The problem is that the narrator switches between his personal story and his God’s view of what’s happening with the main characters. It probably should have been one or the other, but telling ends up with too much narration. Remove either of these elements, and I think the added subtly would make the film feel more layered and complex. But with the narration and action, it became an assault of the senses which I can see why it turned off so many critics.
If the movie adds anything to the debate, it's that it tries to link the systematic societal failures that result in drug violence to upper class individual moral behavior. The movie asks, "How many poor kids have to die for a rich kid to smoke weed?" It's a message that gets buried under a lot of on screen violence, torture, and over narration. Even asking that very question ignores the role the state has in that violence, with the creation of a paramilitary police corp and corruption among the regular police. The movie points the finger at drug gangs, the state, and the affluent classes alike, and links individual actions to systemic issues. I can't knock the movie for that.
The movie doesn't tackle urban violence as a result of poverty, and treads likely on the subject of urban violence being a result of classism. In this movie, the race/class division almost seems acceptable if only non-black/non-poor kids didn't travel to the Favela to buy drugs. Then again, other films have documented classism elsewhere, and doing so here probably would have made this movie less of a shoot-em-up, and it would have been less appealing to me. A police drama has to be about the police, and by showing a liberal sympathizing university student resorting to torture to extract information from a witness, there's more to blame than just the cop, regardless of how disturbing the cop's actions are.
November 12, 2008
2008 Movies in Review - Part 1
I try to do a year in review when it comes to movies, but the problem is that movies to me are relatively disposable entertainment. Without a list of what came out, it's actually kind of hard to remember what I've seen. The crap movie list probably won't fill out until next year, when IMDB does their end of the year page. But thanks to Rotten Tomatoes and NetFlix, the top should fill out well. Starting the year in review kind of early, but I think I got a good start. A fair amount of these are already on DVD.
So In order of preference:
Highly Recommended
Slumdog Millionaire - I think the vision and scope of this film, is perhaps the grandest of any movie I've seen this year. How a movie seems to accomplish so much, wow is all I can say. What can Danny Boyle not direct (besides a stalker movie)? *Added 1/1
Wall-E - Yeah I said it. Wall E before Dark Knight. Suck it. But seriously. Arguably more impressive than Keith Ledger's performance was the sheer amount of emotion this movie contained, and how that emotion was portrayed by animated mimes. There's no dialog from the principle characters, yet everyone in the theater teared up. This movie proves that less is more.
Batman, The Dark Knight - Underwhelming act 3, and average performance from Christian Bale do bring the movie down from what I would call one of the top breakout acting performances of my lifetime. Kieth was known before this movie, but after this movie, but watching him perform here is like watching a pitcher throw a perfect game at the World Series.
Mongol - This year had few epic sword and sandal movies. But this one ranks up there with the best of them. It's movies like this one that gives me a reason to keep tabs on what's playing in the Limited release market. Best Cinematography of the year. I really want the sequels to get made.
Che, Part 1 - Benico Del Toro's best role. There are some major acting performances I haven't seen, but I can tell you this one deserves an acting nomination. *Added 1/1
Bigger Stronger Faster* - This documentary deserves kudos alone for challenging conventional wisdom. Add to it its slightly whimsical nature, and well researched and advocated position, it takes the approach of a Michael Moore and Morgon Spurlock film, and ranks among the best of its class.
Tropic Thunder - What can Robert Downing Jr. not do? Funniest movie of the year. Also best ensemble cast performance of the year.
Iron Man
In Search of a Midnight Kiss
The Bank Job
Milk
W.
Kung Fu Panda
Hellboy II - The Golden Army
Recommended
Elite Squad *Added 12/1
Traitor
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Religulous
Gran Torino *Added 1/1
The Promotion
Step Brothers
Transporter 3 *Added 1/1
Red Cliff *(Note that this is the Asian cut [1 part of a 2 parter], not the 2.5hr single film version)
Watchable
Kabluey
Chicago 10
Sukiyaki Western Django
In Bruges *Added 11/17
Burn After Reading
Hancock
Choke *Added 1/1
Balls Out *Added 1/1
Cass *Added 1/1
Not Recommended
The Incredible Hulk
Cloverfield
So In order of preference:
Highly Recommended
Slumdog Millionaire - I think the vision and scope of this film, is perhaps the grandest of any movie I've seen this year. How a movie seems to accomplish so much, wow is all I can say. What can Danny Boyle not direct (besides a stalker movie)? *Added 1/1
Wall-E - Yeah I said it. Wall E before Dark Knight. Suck it. But seriously. Arguably more impressive than Keith Ledger's performance was the sheer amount of emotion this movie contained, and how that emotion was portrayed by animated mimes. There's no dialog from the principle characters, yet everyone in the theater teared up. This movie proves that less is more.
Batman, The Dark Knight - Underwhelming act 3, and average performance from Christian Bale do bring the movie down from what I would call one of the top breakout acting performances of my lifetime. Kieth was known before this movie, but after this movie, but watching him perform here is like watching a pitcher throw a perfect game at the World Series.
Mongol - This year had few epic sword and sandal movies. But this one ranks up there with the best of them. It's movies like this one that gives me a reason to keep tabs on what's playing in the Limited release market. Best Cinematography of the year. I really want the sequels to get made.
Che, Part 1 - Benico Del Toro's best role. There are some major acting performances I haven't seen, but I can tell you this one deserves an acting nomination. *Added 1/1
Bigger Stronger Faster* - This documentary deserves kudos alone for challenging conventional wisdom. Add to it its slightly whimsical nature, and well researched and advocated position, it takes the approach of a Michael Moore and Morgon Spurlock film, and ranks among the best of its class.
Tropic Thunder - What can Robert Downing Jr. not do? Funniest movie of the year. Also best ensemble cast performance of the year.
Iron Man
In Search of a Midnight Kiss
The Bank Job
Milk
W.
Kung Fu Panda
Hellboy II - The Golden Army
Recommended
Elite Squad *Added 12/1
Traitor
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Religulous
Gran Torino *Added 1/1
The Promotion
Step Brothers
Transporter 3 *Added 1/1
Red Cliff *(Note that this is the Asian cut [1 part of a 2 parter], not the 2.5hr single film version)
Watchable
Kabluey
Chicago 10
Sukiyaki Western Django
In Bruges *Added 11/17
Burn After Reading
Hancock
Choke *Added 1/1
Balls Out *Added 1/1
Cass *Added 1/1
Not Recommended
The Incredible Hulk
Cloverfield
November 3, 2008
In Search of a Midnight Kiss & Traitor
Saw 2 movies over the weekend. In Search of a Midnight Kiss was an indie romantic comedy, and actually surprisingly good. Quirky, slightly cliche, but I have to admit I loved the performances, and the ending wasn't typical. I have to admit I loved how the film skipped through parts of LA, where the city set an interesting backdrop to a lot of dialog. It's a movie that felt like it was mostly filmed on location, but the location wasn't closed down. Life just went on around the characters as it normally would, and that added something to the realism the movie wanted to imply. Love is sometimes messy, and doesn't end well, but it's the journey as much as the destination.
The other movie was Traitor, starring the man who would replace Terrance Howard in Iron Man. One of the better War on Terror movies, since the movie has come and left, I will spoil some of the movie. Personally, I think I would have preferred it if Don Cheadle was simply a terrorist vs an agent. The movie lost a fair amount of the energy when it became clear that he was deep cover. Personally I hope someone looks at this movie, and decides to make a evil Bond movie. And I don't mean Bond going rogue for personal reasons, but Bond working for the bad guys, and maybe even winning for the bad guys. Kind of like No Country for Old Men. Don was great in the movie, and honestly I like Guy Pierce's performance too, but towards the end it became kind of conventional, and a non-major movie like this has to be non-conventional.
The other movie was Traitor, starring the man who would replace Terrance Howard in Iron Man. One of the better War on Terror movies, since the movie has come and left, I will spoil some of the movie. Personally, I think I would have preferred it if Don Cheadle was simply a terrorist vs an agent. The movie lost a fair amount of the energy when it became clear that he was deep cover. Personally I hope someone looks at this movie, and decides to make a evil Bond movie. And I don't mean Bond going rogue for personal reasons, but Bond working for the bad guys, and maybe even winning for the bad guys. Kind of like No Country for Old Men. Don was great in the movie, and honestly I like Guy Pierce's performance too, but towards the end it became kind of conventional, and a non-major movie like this has to be non-conventional.
October 31, 2008
October 27, 2008
Long term gain, short term loss.
Best Buy is carrying the Touch Pro now, and it's the most awesome hardware out there on the market. While I like the tabs of the Sony Xperia X1 (reminds me of some funky Linux windows management GUI), the accelerometer of the iPhone 3G (awesome for gaming), or the Storm (feedback + multitouch?!??!?!?! how insane is that), the Touch Pro is straight business. That's the best looking keyboard I've seen on a phone. Combine it with a GUI that does a decent job of hiding the garbage that is WinMo, a VGA screen, good touch ability, as much 3rd party support as the iPhone, it's God damn awesome. A bit pricey at $300 (or $750 unlocked WTF?). Chances are though I will end up waiting for the AT&T version, so I can move into the corporate account. But it has to be available in just a few days, especially with word that Verizon is getting their version ready as well.
Saw W last night. Like it overall. Was a bit overboard with the psychodrama. The dreams at the end were weak and overbearing. It's like Oliver Stone wanted to beat down stupid people with the message "Our President has daddy issues! We went to war becuase his daddy has daddy issues!" But the portrayals were spot on. That alone worth makes it watching. It jumps around in time a lot, but it serves the movie well. I was under the impression that the various quotes (like Powell's "you break it you buy it" or Tenet's "Slam Dunk") were all in different contexts, but the way the movie keeps the principles together gives you the "internal debate" feel that Bush probably had in his head. As storytelling, it's a effective way to make dozens of different meetings and arguements into a single movie. Oh, and I love Powell v. Cheney. Speaking of Powell, every lne was like "When I was with your dad..." or "Your Dad would have done..." and that seemed disingenuous. I don't recall any biography that refers to Powell constantly referencing Bush 41 that way. Might have done it once or twice IRL, but he did it like a dozen times or more.
Starting to run again, just in time for the big race. It's gonna hurt. Bad.
I'm working the polls this year. Actually, I'll be in City Hall, working with the CAP Central Absentee Prescient. If you live in the city, and mailed in your absentee ballot, there's a decent chance I'll be the one opening the envelop and making sure it counts on election day. It's actually a pretty cool little way to give back to the community. Think of people like Ashley in Michigan, or people in the military, I'll get to make sure people who signed up to defend this country actually have a voice in its government. Kick Ass. But working from 5:30AM to 10PM or 11PM doesn't. Still, it's personally refreshing to see that these ballots actually get counted in the same day totals, and not added in as an after thought for the final tally at Wikipedia.
Learned a lot about the voting process, provisional ballots, etc. Personally, I don't think the system is a fraught with problems as some activists would have you believe. On one hand, there are people who want to win, and will use the rules to their advantage. On the other hand, you're dealing with the public which didn't attend an all day class on a Saturday to review the ins and outs of federal and state election law. So I understand people's concern. All I can say is show up early, expect to wait a little bit, bring a government issued ID, be polite to everyone around you, and don't carry or wear any material referring to the campaign or election to the poll booth.
I never really finished my post on Goldman, but I'm at a loss as to who to vote for Mayor. The last candidate discussion is tomorrow, and I'll be at the Library of Virginia for it. Hopefully someone will stick out. Otherwise... probably just skip that part of the ballot, or vote for the person who is last in the polls to help insure a runoff.
Saw W last night. Like it overall. Was a bit overboard with the psychodrama. The dreams at the end were weak and overbearing. It's like Oliver Stone wanted to beat down stupid people with the message "Our President has daddy issues! We went to war becuase his daddy has daddy issues!" But the portrayals were spot on. That alone worth makes it watching. It jumps around in time a lot, but it serves the movie well. I was under the impression that the various quotes (like Powell's "you break it you buy it" or Tenet's "Slam Dunk") were all in different contexts, but the way the movie keeps the principles together gives you the "internal debate" feel that Bush probably had in his head. As storytelling, it's a effective way to make dozens of different meetings and arguements into a single movie. Oh, and I love Powell v. Cheney. Speaking of Powell, every lne was like "When I was with your dad..." or "Your Dad would have done..." and that seemed disingenuous. I don't recall any biography that refers to Powell constantly referencing Bush 41 that way. Might have done it once or twice IRL, but he did it like a dozen times or more.
Starting to run again, just in time for the big race. It's gonna hurt. Bad.
I'm working the polls this year. Actually, I'll be in City Hall, working with the CAP Central Absentee Prescient. If you live in the city, and mailed in your absentee ballot, there's a decent chance I'll be the one opening the envelop and making sure it counts on election day. It's actually a pretty cool little way to give back to the community. Think of people like Ashley in Michigan, or people in the military, I'll get to make sure people who signed up to defend this country actually have a voice in its government. Kick Ass. But working from 5:30AM to 10PM or 11PM doesn't. Still, it's personally refreshing to see that these ballots actually get counted in the same day totals, and not added in as an after thought for the final tally at Wikipedia.
Learned a lot about the voting process, provisional ballots, etc. Personally, I don't think the system is a fraught with problems as some activists would have you believe. On one hand, there are people who want to win, and will use the rules to their advantage. On the other hand, you're dealing with the public which didn't attend an all day class on a Saturday to review the ins and outs of federal and state election law. So I understand people's concern. All I can say is show up early, expect to wait a little bit, bring a government issued ID, be polite to everyone around you, and don't carry or wear any material referring to the campaign or election to the poll booth.
I never really finished my post on Goldman, but I'm at a loss as to who to vote for Mayor. The last candidate discussion is tomorrow, and I'll be at the Library of Virginia for it. Hopefully someone will stick out. Otherwise... probably just skip that part of the ballot, or vote for the person who is last in the polls to help insure a runoff.
October 23, 2008
August 26, 2008
Randonness
I tried to watch the DNC, but there was just too much bullshit for me to sit through. I find real infomercials more entertaining.
No one told me that Infected Mushroom is playing this Sat in Baltimore. I wish I knew on MOnday, I wouldn't have indulged myself. LOL
Caught up on some movies I wanted to watch. You know, it's real hard to watch people speak in other languages without subtitles. What I found really odd in Where in the World is Osama bin Laden, is that Morgan Spurlock speaks English, and people respond in Arabic. No translator. It's like if I was in Star Trek and my universal translator is broken. What the hell?
Bigger, Stonger, Faster was really good, but also really pro-steroids. I place steroids in the recreational drugs class. People I think should be able to use them, but they have to assume the risks involved. I don't think they harm society enough to be banned, but I have an admittedly high threshold of what I would allow individuals to take part in. That's just me. I'd never do it, but I'm not a gym rat. If some other dude or woman is, that's their business.
Also saw the John Reilly film The Promotion. It was ok. I don't really have a lot to say about it.
Next on my list is Transsiberian.
I decided to slow down on running this week. It's been hard the past few weeks and I want a little break. Probably will still run today just because, but yeah, I want to be a little lazy.
And I need to go grocery shopping.
No one told me that Infected Mushroom is playing this Sat in Baltimore. I wish I knew on MOnday, I wouldn't have indulged myself. LOL
Caught up on some movies I wanted to watch. You know, it's real hard to watch people speak in other languages without subtitles. What I found really odd in Where in the World is Osama bin Laden, is that Morgan Spurlock speaks English, and people respond in Arabic. No translator. It's like if I was in Star Trek and my universal translator is broken. What the hell?
Bigger, Stonger, Faster was really good, but also really pro-steroids. I place steroids in the recreational drugs class. People I think should be able to use them, but they have to assume the risks involved. I don't think they harm society enough to be banned, but I have an admittedly high threshold of what I would allow individuals to take part in. That's just me. I'd never do it, but I'm not a gym rat. If some other dude or woman is, that's their business.
Also saw the John Reilly film The Promotion. It was ok. I don't really have a lot to say about it.
Next on my list is Transsiberian.
I decided to slow down on running this week. It's been hard the past few weeks and I want a little break. Probably will still run today just because, but yeah, I want to be a little lazy.
And I need to go grocery shopping.
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