Game of the Year 2013

A lot of people are giving this to GTA V, I have played it. it is fun, but the dialogue is really bad. Like, makes you wince, kind of bad. I really like The Last of Us. It is a zombie game but, then again, it isn't. The writing was good and the story pulls you in. I think that this wins for best game. Best cinematography would go to Tomb Raider. That game is beautiful. It is also very fun to play. Best RPG would have to go to NiNoKuni. Studio Ghibli doesn't let you down with this one and it is also the recipient of the best all ages award. Now I have not played all the games this year, so my subjective list my not match your subjective list. What do you think the best games of the year were? Why do you think my opinions are wrong? let me know in the comments.

Oblivian-Movie Review (2013)

Wow, quite surprised by this movie. Wasn't really expecting much. I mean, I heard it was better than After Earth, but that doesn't really ring as an endorsement. Two scientologist step into the box office with post apocolyptic stories and Tom Cruise steps out as the box office winner.

This is a long movie, but it doesn't feel long. I looked at the clock towards the end and was stunned that I had already been sitting there for two hours. It isn't a Michael Bay film, so there isn't something exploding and/or giving you a seizure every five minutes. The amazingly beautiful sets and locations are given plenty of screen time for the viewer get lost in.

The plot, although a retread of some other movies felt fresh and approached differently. This movie requires your attention to watch it and get what is going on. My wife was preoccupied and had millions of questions at the end of the movie that I had to explain.

I thought it was great and if you love scifi movies, you will enjoy it. Someone on IMDB stated that millenials shouldn't watch it because they wont appreciate it and it won't keep their attention. Oddly there was no arguement from anyone in that thread. First time ever for an internet thread. I don't know if I agree, My 12.5 year old was enjoying it until she had to go to bed and she will likely finish it up on her own. But maybe my millenial isn't the typical millenial.

***Here there be spoilers*** So the movie stuck in my mind after watching it. I was still thinking about it the next morning. I came to the conclusion that Victoria's memory wasn't as impaired as Jack's. The way she looks at Jack's wife in the sleeping pod and then totally flirts with him as his navigator/co-pilot shows that there is jealousy. She also seems to recognize her when Jack brings her in. My theory is that she remembered more, but knew that she could never be with Jack any other way. Even in their current states the relationship was very onesided with Jack remaining distant. I thought this was communicated very well. Victoria was willing to live a lie and doom humanity as long as she got to be with Jack. What do you think?

The Wolverine- Spoiler free movie review

Hugh Jackman brought the Wolverine to the screen this weekend with his 5th film playing the character. I guess you could say 6th if you count his cameo in First Class. This take was much better than the last outing, X-Men origins: Wolverine. I know, how could it get worse? The good news is that the trailer is right; this is the Wolverine movie that fans have been waiting for. It isn't as light as Avengers and it isn't as dark as Dark Knight. It falls somewhere in the middle where I think it should. I can say that it was a more entertaining film than Man of Steel. Acting: Jackman was able to make the character seem somewhat fresh. After all these outings, that is fairly remarkable. The Japanese cast were very good as well. I thought the portrayal of viper was a bit over the top, but everything about that character was over the top. It was a contrast to the more human wolverine and not a different mutant every scene. The story borrows heavily from The Ronin storyline from the 80s, this is not a bad thing. It isn't 100% faithful, no where near, but you can tell they were trying and it was closer than anything else the Fox/X-Men franchise has put out. They even had the iconic image from the comics of Logan filled with arrows. The smaller scale fits the Wolverine character as a man that heals well and has claws can't really be expected to save the universe by his lonesome. Thankfully, this one isn't a cameo filled extravaganza where you have to try and figure out how Emma Frost is Silver Fox's little sister that somehow is deaged from the first class movie. It did manage to surprise me in a few spots. The movie was a lot of fun and you should stay for the stinger.

2312

2312 by Kim Stanley Robinson
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This book was torture. Certain parts of it were great, but the rest of it falls flat, especially when you compare it to the good parts. I didn't really see any growth in the characters. The story is basically a mystery but it is very linear with no twists or false hunches. I kept expecting a surprise and got nothing. Maybe there was one in the epilogue, which I didn't even bother to read.

The book was a good world building exercise, but that was really all he did. He throws in some futuristic philosophies and technologies, but I found some of these a bit far fetched or not far fetched enough. The main plot point is said to be impossible in the text and it is never explained in the text how it isn't. It was infuriating.

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