Charles Siboto Articles & Reviews Portfolio

About Charles Siboto Charles Siboto is a delightful, youngish man of 28. He is a feminist because the world currently needs

people who are. He believes that all lives matter but currently it seems the world needs a reminder

that people of colour's lives also matter. He firmly believes that kindness matters and cannot abide

people who are asshats. When he's not standing perfectly still in the hope that people will leave him

alone, he's reading something to do with horses and/or spaceships or blogging (goodbuddies inc.

and The Jot Book) about that sort of thing. Call cell +27 (0)84 891 1726, email csiboto@gmail.com or

connect on Facebook

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/482/136989.html

15 Dec 2015

The movies in review: A look back at 2015

Looking back, it's safe to say that 2015 has been an exciting year at the movies, with the trends that

we've started to see carrying on into 2016 and beyond. The most surprising is that the small screen

has been no slouch either. Movies are tying in with TV series and platforms like HBO GO, Netflix,

DStv Drifta and ShowMax are making it almost seamless to stream content to your living room or

laptop and tablet if you don't like leaving bed on Sundays.

Let's look at some of the trends that stand out.

The nerds are still at the top of the heap

Marvel dominated at the movies yet again with Avengers: Age of Ultron and the surprisingly

charming Ant-Man. They acquired rights to Spider-Man and can now slot the web slinger into their

insane line-up that's planned all the way to 2019. Marvel is gunning for your TV as well. Agents of

SHIELD is still trudging along, but Marvel's partnership with Netflix is looking at making street-level

superheroes a thing on TV. The Avengers save the world from their lofty tower and heroes like

Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist deal with the local baddies on the ground as The

Defenders. Daredevil was the first of these shows to land and it was amazing - and by the look of

things Jessica Jones is set to be too. Netflix shoots a whole season of these shows and just releases

all 13 episodes all at once to warm our binge-loving hearts.

DC's TV line-up has been strong. The Flash is by far the best thing on TV. Arrow is still going strong

and Gotham is a delight to watch. Supergirl has just landed and we will also be getting to see

Legends of Tomorrow soon. DC has also announced its long string of movies all the way up to 2020.

Another April, another season of Game of Thrones in which Jon Snow clearly still knows nothing and

which left us wondering how we will survive the wait till April 2016.

It was unexpectedly fun to get stuck on Mars with Matt Damon in The Martian as he scienced the

shit out of surviving out there.

Local is lekker

It's great to see that there was quite a lot of local content this year and that the industry is growing.

This is a trend that should continue in 2016. Neil Blomkamp's Chappie was the biggest of the local

titles in terms of budget and marketing, but it was not such a strong showing. Other local hits were

Leon van Nierop's Ballade vir 'n Enkelling and teen surf movie Die Pro, based on Leon de Villiers'

Sanlam Award-winning novel of the same name. We also got the comedies Stikdas, Tell Me

Something Sweet and the drama with Steve Hofmeyr, Treurgrond. Dis ek, Anna, based on Anchien

Troskie's two top-selling novels also made huge waves.

Name dropping

Here is just a list of movies that blew our minds and have huge hype: Birdman, 50 Shades of Grey,

Pitch Perfect 2, Jurassic World, Bridge of Spies, Goosebumps, Inside Out, Pan, Black Mass, Mad Max:

Fury Road, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2, Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials and we only get

the new Bond movie, Spectre, towards the end of November here in SA, by which time we will be

sick of Sam Smith's brilliant theme song, Writing's On The Wall.

Star Wars

I have left the best for last. Star Wars falls into the nerd trend, but on so many levels it's just in a

league of its own. Star Wars is pretty much the biggest movie trend of 2015. A new Star Wars movie

will always be the biggest thing. The teaser trailer for The Force Awakens blew us away and the full

trailer is nothing short of magical. I think Christmas will be taking a back seat to Star Wars this year.

Here's to a happy 2016 at the movies.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/482/133965.html

2 Sep 2015

Not so Fantastic Four

The Bridgeburners, an elite military unit of the fictional Malazan Empire, have a saying that is very

apt for the situation that I find myself in. Going into something with eyes wide shut they say. In my

case I went to see the new Fantastic Four reboot with eyes wide shut. I knew I wasn't going to have a

good time, but I was morbidly curious to see the movie. No one likes writing bad movie reviews so I

will be as nice as I can be whilst remaining sincere and you can decide whether or not Fantastic Four

is worth your time from there. Well, let's jump right into it.

You have probably heard all the news doing the rounds on the interwebs concerning the squabbles

between director Josh Trent (Chronicle, 2012) and the executives over at 20th Century Fox regarding

the final cut of the movie that made it to screen. Trent maintains that the movie he made was ruined

in the cutting room and that his vision for the movie was very different from what the audience got

to see. To give Trent his due, the movie does feel a bit like something that was something else and

then was cut up along the way, but whatever happened internally between the parties involved

doesn't really help us much because we, the audience and fans of Marvel's long-time favourite

comic book family, got the short end of the stick once again.

Quite horrid

The 2005 Fantastic Four movie and its 2007 sequel were quite horrid, but one could at least argue

that they were fun and did not take themselves very seriously. This instalment feels like they were

trying to set up something quite epic and that would be part of a larger franchise going forward, but

somewhere along the line that vision just fell flat. The sad thing is that they really had the elements

they needed to make a great movie and, in the end, everything just didn't come together to make a

good product. The cast does a great job with what they are given and play their roles quite well, all

things considered.

This being a reboot, the plot is loosely the Fantastic Four origins story we all know and love. Instead

of getting their powers due to exposure to cosmic rays during a scientific mission to outer space they

get their powers from visiting a planet in another dimension that they discover and get to by means

of a Quantum Gate they build. It's the classic story of a 'sciency' group of people looking to advance

humanity, but things go awry and they end up with superpowers. The government also gets involved

and looks to abuse the group's powers for its own ends. You know what governments are like.

Another thing that was quite a let down is that at no point in the film does the team get their

superhero names. I guess they figured that they'll explore that in a sequel.

Reed Richards (Mr Fantastic) is played by Miles Teller (Divergent, 2014) and he becomes the leader

of the group as well as the brains, growing up as a misunderstood science prodigy. His body acquires

elastic properties, which allows him to stretch his limbs to suit his needs. Kate Mara (House of Cards,

2013) plays Sue Storm (Invisible Woman), who can render herself invisible and later project powerful

force fields. Ben Grimm (the Thing) is played to perfection by Jamie Bell (Snowpiercer, 2013). I have

always liked the Thing in the comics because his powers are a bit more difficult for him to deal with

since he looks like a giant rock golem and they do quite good by him in this movie. Johnny Storm

(the Human Torch) rounds up the team as the hothead of the group, both literally and figuratively.

He can generate flames around himself and fly. Micheal B Jordan (That Awkward Moment, 2014) fits

right in as Johnny Storm.

The whole concept is quite awful

On the more evil and more lacklustre side of things we have Toby Kebbell (Dawn of the Planet of the

Apes, 2014) in the difficult position of portraying a horribly envisioned Victor von Doom (Dr Doom).

Dr Doom is one of the greatest villains in comic books and this movie did him no justice. He looks

hideous as a nightmare and the whole concept is quite awful. Fantastic Four missed many beats in

that the story feels rushed, there is no real tension and everything is quite disjointed, but Dr Doom is

where they went wrong the most. They took a character that should be presented with a certain

gravitas and just stripped all of his personality.

Fantastic Four looks the part of a really fun and action-packed comic book movie, but sadly it is none

of those things. You can still go to see the movie, but don't expect it to be good. According to the

rumour mill a sequel is in the works and I honestly hope they do better with that. The world

deserves a good Fantastic Four movie. Hopefully 20th Century Fox also does well with the Deadpool

movie next year to keep things rolling.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/482/133512.html

24 Aug 2015

Hilarious Ant-Man

As a movie reviewer/blogger do you ever just wake up in the afternoon (that's when everyone wakes

up, right?) and just think how Marvel Studios possesses absolutely no chill? Can they just stop being

so amazing with their movies and series? I am a fan, for sure, but it just feels like I spend half my

time writing about some new great thing they did. After the sheer joy that was Avengers: Age of

Ultron I figured I'll tone down any and all excitement about Ant-Man. In fact, I'd just wait for it to

come out on DVD. Seriously, they can't just leave out Hank Pym and Janet van Dyne from the original

Avengers line-up and then hope to somehow make it work now, can they? They can't just give

Ultron, Pym's creation, to Tony Stark and just get away with it, can they? I finally went to see Ant-

Man and Marvel did all these things and made it work! Ant-Man is my favourite entry into the

Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). I hate Marvel, damn it!

Ant-Man is reminiscent of the Daredevil series in terms of its scale in the MCU. It takes place after

the events of Age of Ultron and, whilst still quite a major event, it is more of a closed-in story about

characters that are a bit more accessible than the Avengers. While the Avengers are busy dropping

cities on people, characters like Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) are just trying to get by. The story kicks off

with Lang just being released from prison and trying to make amends with his daughter and keep

away from his former life as a thief. He then gets caught up in some superhero stuff with Dr Hank

Pym (Michael Douglas) and the brilliant man's daughter, Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) and

eventually becomes Ant-Man. The villain of the piece is Darren Cross (Corey Stoll) who ends up

donning the Yellowjacket suit. Cross's motives are very much like those of Loki in Thor, which is to

say he is just a whiny child really. Loki has a certain charm so ends up working as a character people

are interested in, but Marvel still seems to struggle to create compelling villains. The Kingpin is the

only villain they have really done well to date. Pym and Janet's past story is merely hinted at, but

enough to let you know how they fit in with Howard Stark and Peggy Carter's SHIELD.

A heist film

Like Winter Soldier was a political spy thriller, Ant-Man is a heist film more than a superhero film and

a very funny one at that. This movie knows how to push all the right emotional buttons with the

audience. Scott Lang is the sort of character you can really root for and his misfit team of friends

provide a lot of very funny comic relief in the film. Michael Peña (Fury, 2014) as Lang's fast-talking

friend Luis, plays the role of the funny guy to perfection. David Dastmalchian (Animals, 2014) and

rapper TI appear as Lang's other wacky companions, Kurt and Dave and they also deliver a pretty

solid performance. Ant-Man sees Peyton Reed (Yes Man, 2008) in the director's chair and fan

favourite, Edgar Wright (Scott Pilgrim vs the World, 2010) as one of the screenwriters. Wright was

first signed up to direct Ant-Man in his popular zany style but got replaced with Reed later.

Do you guys remember how much fun old-school movies like Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989) were?

Ant-Man's action sequences are reminiscent of that in their hilarity. When Lang shrinks down to the

size of an ant he retains his strength as a normal sized adult male and can also control various ants

with the aid of a device behind his ear created by Pym. This allows some really fun action sequences

and also introduces us to one of the cooler characters in the movie, one of the ants that Lang

lovingly names Antony.

Ant-Man is a really great entry into the MCU and is well worth your time. The 3D effects are really

good and I imagine seeing it in Imax would be great as well. It's been on the local circuits for a while

now so if you haven't seen it yet I'd recommend you do so. Take your mum, dad, grandparents,

children and strangers in the street with you.

http://blog.quicket.co.za/post/120599468356/tedxtable-mountain

07 June 2015

TEDx Table Mountain

Africa is the continent that gave birth to the human race, it is a place of abundant natural wealth and

it is a place of great beauty. By rights Africa should be the Eden of our planet but, alas, it is not.

When the rest of the world thinks of Africa they think of war, poverty, laziness and people who are

late for appointments. The rest of the world either looks down on us or sees us as some sort of

charity case. South Africa, like many African states is a place of vast wealth and crippling poverty all

in one place. TEDxTableMountain, like all TEDx events all over the globe, is an independently

organised event that looks to get people together in the spirit of nurturing ideas worth spreading.

TED is a non-profit organisation devoted to spreading good ideas. It started as a four-day conference

in California some 26 years ago and has since spread to the rest of the word, even darkest Africa.

The idea is that thinkers and doers are asked to give a talk in 18 minutes that will share a great idea.

Independent events are organised under the TEDx name with support from TED. So although Africa

has many problems there are many individuals working hard and working smart to address our

problems. TEDx TableMountain hosted their second event on Monday night, 25 May and the theme

was: Journeys of Excellence. 25 May is also Africa Day so what better way to celebrate the continent

than listening to a great line-up of speakers explore ideas that can help ease some of our problems

or at least start a conversation that will pave the way to solutions.

This year’s TEDx TableMountain event took place at the Artscape Theatre and curator, Candice

Pelser (@CandicePelser) and her team did a great job organising the event. I’m a super nerd for any

event where people share ideas and dragged my ever suffering girlfriend with me to the event. We

were welcomed with a ‘passport’ to the talks each and some other cute freebies and it was all rather

cool. The crowd was massive and everyone looked excited to be there as they stood around

chatting. We had to wait a bit longer than expected to be seated because the previous Africa Day

event ran a bit longer than anticipated. Once everyone was inside the theatre and seated we were

ready to go. Some important and somewhat familiar looking people could be seen in the front rows,

the most recognizable being Premier of the Western Cape, Helen Zille. I made a mental note to take

a selfie with her later.

Our Mistress of Ceremonies for the evening was the beautiful, delightful and super enthusiastic Chi

Mhende (@chi_mhende). The evening saw some powerful performances by the Ikapa Youth Dance

Theatre (http://ikapadancetheatre.co.za/trai/youth-dance-theatre), Derek Gripper (@derekgripper)

translating great African composers whose music is passed down for generations but never written

down and the group, Whispers of Wisdom (@Whisperzofwiz) delivering a performance that inspires

Africans, especially the youth, to dream bigger than is expected of them. The overarching theme on

the evening was that even though South Africa and the rest of Africa are facing serious and very

large problems Africans can step up to the plate and through individual and collaborative journeys of

excellence we can rise above those problems.

The speakers were made up of Dr Gubela Mji who spoke about her experience working as a

researcher collecting data about how to improve the lives of disabled people but then seeing that

research just being stored up in shelves and never being used for anything. She formed a network

with other researchers and like-minded individuals to take all the data just sitting around and started

exploring ways to make the date accessible enough so as to actually be useful in improving the lives

of disable people. Paul Mesarcik (@paulmesarcik) showed a device that he and his team created to

detect shack fires before they spread and leave many people homeless. The device is called Lumkani,

which loosely translates from Xhosa to English as everyone beware. Dr Llewellyn Padayachy, a

paediatric neurosurgeon spoke about his research into non-invasive techniques to diagnose and

guide the treatment of critical conditions affecting the brain, especially in poor communities in

which many people can’t afford expensive surgeries for diagnosing such conditions. Dr Tindile Booi is

a qualified medical doctor and now works in a psychiatric context and helps children from difficult

backgrounds and teenagers affected by HIV cope with their situations and helps them believe that

life is worth living. One of the ways she does this is interactive storytelling. Dr Tindile Booi’s

talk/performance was my favourite of the evening and her way of telling stories, singing and dancing

is a thing of beauty to behold.

Shadreck Chirikure is Associate Professor of Archaeology and Director of the Archaeological

Materials Laboratory at the University of Cape Town and he addressed the negative view that people

have of Africa as never having produced any technology. He explored some old findings to the

contrary and showed that Africa has produced some advanced technology through its history.

Continuing with the technological trend Prof Robert van Zyl showcased the CubeSat he worked on

with his students. The CubeSat is a nanosatellite in the shape of a cube that can be sent into Space at

relatively low cost. Joseph Wamicha, a young man after my own heart, spoke about how the idea of

deeper space exploration and eventually colonisation is not just the stuff of science fiction but

something we can work on right now. The Earth’s resources are finite, as we know very well here in

Africa, but if we could look beyond the Earth and tap into the bountiful resources of the universe we

could solve many conflicts here on Earth.

What I took away from the evening is that Africa is more than just a place of darkness and backward

thinking. Yes, we have problems but Africans are more than capable of surmounting those problems

with the wealth of resources we have. Not resources in terms of gold of silver but rather our human

capital. Africans know hardship but this is also what makes us more resourceful and think outside of

the box. Africans can be excellent and be a force of good change in the world. Events like TEDx

TableMountain are very important because they provide us with the platform to get together and

discuss our problems and our ideas for solving them.

http://blog.quicket.co.za/post/120599709846/thecity-and-tholakele

07 June 2015

TheCITY and Tholakele

I like cool things as much as the next person . . . okay maybe a little more than the next person and

last week Thursday I got to go see a pretty cool thing. I was at The Waiting Room on Long Street to

see two bands that I’d never heard of before but sounded interesting so I gathered my entourage (I

have them just lying around) and with the promise of beer and good music we headed for The

Waiting Room to see TheCITY and Tholakele. I’m glad to report back that my promise of beer and

good music was fulfilled because both bands blew me away and I had a rocking good time. You

should check both bands out some time.

The Waiting Room is the sort of grungy and intimate place that draws in cool and artsy people and

the crowd consisted of these kinds of individuals. The setting was cosy with comfy chairs placed

facing the small stage and there was some space for people to dance it up should the music move

them. This was the sort of gig where people get to chatting with each other and the bands, making

friends and just having a good time jamming to some cool sounds.

Tholakele were first to grace the stage with their African Jazzy sound. Bronwen Clacherty is the

leading lady and vocalist of the band and her voice is just amazingly rich and with the band

performing songs like Ngqo Ngqo Ngqo, Nozimama and Nyemamusasa they really are an act that is

representative of South Africa’s linguistic and cultural diversity. Bronwen also showcased some

remarkable usage of traditional instruments like bows and something that I’m 93.4% sure is a mbira

in adding an African flavour to their music. Bronwen studied at The South African College of Music,

University of Cape Town and explored musical areas such as Jazz Vibraphone, Classical Percussion,

Cuban Percussion and African Instruments focusing on South African bows. You can catch some of

the songs Tholakele performed on the night on her Facebook page. You can also catch her hanging

out in the Twitter streets: @Bronwenclack.

TheCITY closed off the night on a very high note with their heart pumping Future Afro style. The

band is made up of Bonj Mpanza on vocals and her voice is powerful and downright haunting.

Clement Carr works magic on the keys, Ryan McArthur rocks out on bass and Ruby Crowie drives the

truck on drums. I was looking forward to this performance after I had their song, Long for You stuck

in my head from listening to it the previous evening on PopsicleTV.com. These guys are the epitome

of cool and every single song they played had me singing along, tapping my feet and bobbing my

head along to the music. My favourite three were Long for You, Nguwe and Something Sweet. You

can download their EP on iTunes and it’s pretty damn amazing!

TheCITY and Tholakele are two rocking bands and my entourage and I had a great time at their gig.

As I’d said before, if you have time and they are in the area it’s well worth your while to pop in and

listen to some good music.

http://blog.quicket.co.za/post/116908315506/stellenbosch-craft-beer-festival

20 April 2015

Stellenbosch Craft Beer Festival

Since moving to Cape Town about two years ago I have drank quite a lot of wine on some very pretty

wine farms. Wine tasting has become an enjoyable pastime for me but I’m a simple guy and lack the

sophistication to be a proper wine enthusiast. Deep down, in my heart of hearts I’m a beer guy. Beer

is one of the best things after a long day’s work. A beer with some friends makes for some very

enjoyable and magical moments. It’s no wonder Benjamin Franklin noted that beer is proof that God

loves us and wants us to be happy. The Stellenbosch Craft Beer Festival was even more proof that

God wants us to be happy. I woke up to the perfect sunshine day on Saturday morning, 18 April and

gathered all my friendlings in the vicinity and herded them to the train station (no poor sap wants to

be the designated driver on such an occasion) and off to beautiful Stellie we went!

After about an hour on the hot train we desperately needed beer and the first sip of beer from the

Drifter Brewing Company was heavenly. The festival was held at the Klein Libertas Theatre situated

in central Stellenbosch, which proved to be a rather charming setting. The venue was packed to

bursting with people hanging out on the lawn watching the bands on the stage, sitting at the

wooden tables that were laid out or just walking around and sampling beer and food from all the

stands. The vibe was very laid back and everyone was in good spirits . . . or would that be hops

rather? One of the brewing companies had a funny tagline on their stand: Beer makes me hoppy. I

can testify that everyone at the festival was very hoppy.

Many of the local craft beer breweries had their wares on sale and offered free tastings so you could

know what you were getting into. Some of the breweries there on the day were: Sir Thomas Brewing

Co., Beerfly Brewery, Red Sky Brew, Stickman Brewery, Wild Beast Brewing Co. (my personal

favourite), Mind The Gap Cider Company, Leopold7 – South Africa, Drifter Brewing Company,

Everson’s Cider, Die Biervrou (super cool name), Birkenhead Brewery, Fraser’s Folly and Red Crow

Cider.

The food wasn’t to be scoffed at either. After a few beers one works up a hearty appetite and I had

myself a bratwurst roll and tried to speak German to the lady at the stall, which didn’t work out too

well but was quite funny. If you came hungry to the festival you were covered, what with stalls

offering pulled pork sandwiches, boerewors rolls, slap chips and other greasy things to soak all that

beer in your belly up.

As far as firsts go the Stellenbosch Craft Beer Festival was quite good and I foresee it being a

something that people look forward to every year. The weather played along nicely, the beer was

flowing, there was lots to eat, the music was cool and the crowd was a rowdy and fun bunch. If you

missed out this year be sure to look out for this festival for next year. I will most definitely be there.

http://blog.quicket.co.za/post/116631895301/drones-drumloops

17 April 2015

Drones and Drumloops

If you know me you know that I have a soft spot in my heart . . . or would that be brain? Whatever. I

have a soft spot in one or both of those organs for all things nerdy so attending my first Tech Talk

Cape Town on Wednesday night was quite a wonderful experience. I love the idea of people from

different professional backgrounds coming together and sharing their expertise and helping each

other improve ideas. Those are the kinds of collaborations that drive innovation. KAT-O

(KickAssTech-Obviously) is all about collaboration with their monthly series of lectures. Wednesday

night’s talk was their second one and the title was a fun and quirky: Drones and Drumloops. This

monthly series of lectures aims to ‘bring attention to outstanding local science, technology and

innovation, presented by a specialist within a field, followed by food, drinks and networking. Topics

covered vary from "string theory & bitcoins" to "drones & drumloops"’. The wonderfully brilliant

Robyn Farah (@RobynFarah) is the brains and heart behind the operation and they are covering

some kickass tech in these talks, obviously.

The talk was held at 75 Harrington Street in Gardens, which is a co-working space that freelancers or

pretty much just anyone can use as an affordable office away from home. The venue looks very

industrial and looks like the sort of place where super amazing internet start-ups are born. By the

time I arrived the venue was already bustling with people talking, drinking and eating food from the

Wahine Food Truck. After grabbing a beer, walking around and looking at some drones lined up on

the tables I grabbed a seat next to a friendly group of people. The place was packed to bursting with

people and the atmosphere was just brilliant. Robyn Farah gave a little intro speech and then

handed the mic over to the first speaker of the evening, indie game developer, Peter Gardner

(@thefuntastic).

Peter developed a puzzle game called Cadence. The project is still in progress but he did give a demo

of the game at the talk. The basic principle is that the player needs to complete a set of puzzles that

result in a drumloop or several of them being created to progress to the next level. If you like puzzle

games and are a tad bit musically inclined this is for you. Peter spoke about his journey from turning

from a 9 – 5 lifestyle that stifled his creative output to going off on his own and the struggles he

faced with failure and fear and overcoming those. The title of his talk was Finding Greatness Slowly:

Harsh Lessons of a Long Term Creative Project and you can find the slides here:

http://www.slideshare.net/petercardwellgardner/finding-greatness-slowly. Peter is part of the

South African game dev scene and they are doing some brilliant things and I would recommend that

you look into some of the stuff they do. Check out the studio of which Peter is part, Made with

Monster Love: http://www.madewithmonsterlove.com. You can check out their Noodlestarter there

for Cadence and help them raise some funds.

You know that drones are the future, right? No, I don’t mean people mindlessly slaving away in

factories in some dystopian setting. I mean the cool kind of drones. The next and last talk was from

the guys over at Darkwing Aerials (@DarkwingAerials). They had a few of their drones on display and

discussed issues like the difficulty in obtaining the proper documentation for operating drones in

South Africa as almost no regulations exist. Another issue for drone operators is the classification of

whether the drones they use are classified as aerial craft or toys. Darkwing Aerials are at the

forefront of the drone revolution is South Africa to a large extent as they travelled to the UK to

obtain the proper documentation for operating their drones. They also adhere to those documented

standards of operation. Darkwing Aerials also looked at the usage of drones from commercial,

industrial, photography and for things like mapping out farms. They showed beautifully shot videos

of the shots they took using drones for National Geographic. The videos were breathtakingly

beautiful, showing shots of animals on land and some at sea.

Another group of cool people working with drones was also at the event. They are called Flying

Robot (@flyingrobotfpv) and they use their drones in a more fun way, they race them. They had a

video on-screen of the drones flying around in parking lots at amazing speeds. They also had some

drones on sale at the event.

Tech Talk Cape Town: Drones and Drumloops was very informative and lots of fun. The networking

after the talks was great and everyone I met was super friendly and more than willing to share ideas

or ask about what I have going on. Peter Gardner and the guys from Darkwing Aerials were happy to

answer any questions about their projects and allowed the crowd to play the demo of Cadence and

touch the drones. Look out for the next talk and come out and meet a group of intelligent and

collaborative individuals.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/482/126800.html

10 April 2015

The Furious 7

You have probably heard that Fast & Furious 7 or rather, Furious 7 made enough money to fill

Scrooge McDuck's vault three times over in its opening weekend. I think that one of the biggest

reasons for this is, because of all the movies in the franchise, Furious 7 has the most heart. To

paraphrase Vin Diesel's character, Dominic Toretto: This time around it's not just about being fast.

This was the first movie in the series that my girlfriend saw and she shed a tear in the cinema

because this is a beautiful movie about friendship, family and a farewell to a brother. Don't get me

wrong, it's also about fast cars, ridiculous action scenes and golden girls in bikinis (I kid you not).

Furious 7 looks good and is one of the coolest movies out this year.

Furious 7 sees Justin Lin, director of the franchise since Tokyo Drift, hand over the keys to James

Wan to have at it in the driver's seat. Wan sounds like an odd choice to direct, being known for his

horror movies like Saw (2004), Insidious (2010) and The Conjuring (2013), but pulls it off

spectacularly. Furious 7 is a final goodbye to Paul Walker and that's something that had to be done

with love and Wan manages to convey that in the movie. The detail of the action sequences is

brilliant with camera zooms and slow mo used in very cool ways to create suspense that actually

leaves you on the edge of your seat, even though you knew the good guys would be okay all along.

Crazier than before

You know how they hire eight-year-olds to write the script for Transformers movies? The Fast and

The Furious does a similar thing, but they at least edit it a bit after the kid has written it. The car

chases/battles are crazier than before, which is saying a lot considering that a tank and, later, an

aeroplane on a never-ending runway were involved in car chases in the last movie. Roman (Tyrese

Gibson) has a funny rant in the movie about how of all the crazy things they've done, jumping out of

an aeroplane with their cars is the craziest. That's not even a spoiler because you can see some of

that scene in the trailer. The story is that Owen Shaw, the bad guy they put away in the last movie,

has a meaner older brother named Deckard Shaw. This guy is so bad ass that he doesn't even need a

team to mess with Dom's crew. He is basically like the bad guy in horror movies, he just keeps

coming and kicking ass. Deckard is played brilliantly by Jason Statham (Transporter) and fulfils all

sorts of dreams we've had of seeing him face off with The Rock and Vin Diesel. Deckard is as tough

as nails and seeing him fight it off with Dom, armed with tyre levers is just cool. The reason Deckard

wants to kill Dom and everyone in his crew is because they put his brother in hospital - his brother

who was a murderer and just a downright nasty dude. They didn't even kill the guy and Deckard is all

kinds of mad because, you know, family. I think it's a bit of an overreaction, but sure wish I had a

brother who would do that for me.

God's Eye

Deckard Shaw may be a bad-ass loner, but even he needs some help when Dom's crew proves to be

quite a handful. Mose Jakande (Djimon Hounsou) is a mercenary whose team is after a device called

God's Eye because it can hack into any device with a camera on the planet and use facial recognition

to find anyone. These two team up as a matter of convenience. Dom's crew gets help from a

government spook, Mr Nobody (Kurt Russel) to take down the bad guys. Dom's team is made up of

Brian (Paul Walker), who serves as the heart of the movie and it's cool to see the CGI and body

doubles with his brothers they used to have Walker's character finish the movie after his death.

Michelle Rodriguez (Machete) is back as Letty and is still coping with her amnesia and getting to

grips with her relationship with Dom. Jordana Brewster (Annapolis) plays Mia, Dom's sister and

Brian's girlfriend. Tej (Ludacris) is back as the tech guy and Roman (Tyrese Gibson) as the comic

relief. The beautiful Nathalie Emmanuel (Game of Thrones) plays hacker Ramsey. The Rock returns

as Luke Hobbs and he is still kicking ass and delivering cheesy one-liners that we all love, and by his

side is Elsa Pataky (Snakes on a Plane) as Elena. Han (Sung Kang) and Gisele (Gal Gadot) have cameos

and so do some people from the older movies. You'll also see Ronda Rousey (The Expendables 3)

kicking some ass in the movie. The casting is brilliant and everyone on the main cast knows each

other so well by now that it really feels like they are family.

It's not a Fast and Furious movie without some beautiful cars burning it up in some exotic locations.

Furious 7 transports viewers through places like Los Angeles, Tokyo, the Caucasus Mountains and

the Etihad Towers in Abu Dhabi. This movie is ice-cold levels of cool and lots of fun to watch. It's the

perfect send off for Paul Walker. Because I know you guys are like Dom and don't have friends, you

have family I recommend you get together and pop into the cinema to see Furious 7. It doesn't

disappoint.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/482/126149.html

25 March 2015

DC and Marvel's plans for the future

We all love superheroes and, over the last few years, DC and Marvel have been showing us a lot of

comic book love on television and on the big screen.

DC and Marvel's plans for the future

DC is struggling at the box office at the moment with Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy being the

only venture that really worked out well for them. Green Lantern was a bit of a disaster and Man of

Steel didn't quite succeed in capturing what Superman is really about, what with the big blue Boy

Scout probably killing more innocent people in Metropolis than he saved in his fight against General

Zodd. While DC may be lagging behind on the big screen, it is dominating the small screen with

shows like Arrow, The Flash (which is just pure gold, you guys) and Gotham. Marvel has Agents of

SHIELD, which goes from annoying to really good and then back to annoying again. Agent Carter is

nice too, I guess. The Peggy Carter character is less tiresome than most of the people on the Agents

of SHIELD roster at any rate. Marvel had a great 2014 at the movies with Captain America: Winter

Soldier and The Guardians of the Galaxy being absolutely amazing. They are looking to do the same

in 2015 with Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ant-Man. Marvel also has more things lined up for

television to compete with DC on that front.

Big things are happening for both DC and Marvel this year and going ahead, so let's dive into some of

the fun stuff from both of the studios, shall we? Let's kick off with Marvel's detailed plan for things

to come and then look at how DC responds.

Comic book goodness

Marvel is taking the Avengers out on their second outing on 1 May in Age of Ultron and geeks

everywhere can't wait to get some of that comic book goodness. Heck, people in general can't wait

to get hold of that comic book goodness. Then there is the bonus we South Africans have of seeing

Hulk smashing downtown Jozi. Move over New York! Marvel knows how to make movies that appeal

to everyone and they do it with such charm. Just to make sure that everyone knows that Marvel

knows what it is doing, it went ahead and announced its complete Phase 3 line-up. Just like that.

BOOM! Phase two closes off with Ant-Man on 17 July this year. Ant-Man is looking to be the sleeper

hit that The Guardians of the Galaxy was last year.

DC and Marvel's plans for the future

Phase 3 kicks off with Captain America: Civil War set for 6 May, 2016. Marvel Studios acquired the

rights to Spider-Man from Sony and this is great news as he is an important part of the Civil War

storyline and will finally get to play with the rest of the Avengers gang. I doubt that Spidy will be

getting his own movie before then, but let's see. Also, a black Spidy seems to be a thing with Donald

Glover's and other names being thrown around. On 4 November, 2016, Marvel taps into the magical

corner of the comic book universe by bringing in the Sorcerer Supreme in Doctor Strange. The

lovable Guardians of the Galaxy go on their second space adventure on 5 May, 2017, (so far away to

see more of Groot) and things get all sort of apocalyptic in Thor: Ragnarok on 3 November, 2017.

The Avengers (and probably the Guardians of the Galaxy) assemble again to face off with the big bad

Thanos in Infinity War Part 1 on 4 May, 2018. Black Panther makes his debut on 6 July, 2018 (I

imagine we will see him in some sort of cameo before this though). Captain Marvel gets her day in

the sun on 2 November, 2018. The Avengers continue their Infinity Gauntlet story in Infinity War

Part 2 on 3 May, 2019. The Inhumans are now a thing on Agents of SHIELD, but the royal family gets

its own movie on 12 July, 2019. I doubt we'll be seeing any of the royal family on TV before then.

A lot darker and grittier

Marvel is good at interconnections between all of its franchises and for all the flak I give Agents of

SHIELD it ties in nicely with the events in the films and will continue to do so if all the plans on the

table work out. 10 April will see the launch of Daredevil on Netflix and by the look of the trailer it's

set to be a lot darker and grittier than the other Marvel stuff. It will also tie into the bigger Marvel

universe like Agent Carter and Agents of SHIELD. Later this year we'll also get A.K.A. Jessica Jones.

Iron Fist, Luke Cage and The Defenders will also be getting some love on the small screen, but their

dates have not been announced yet.

DC and Marvel's plans for the future

Meanwhile, back at the ranch ... The Justice League is clearly still a thing for DC with Superman vs

Batman: Dawn of Justice scheduled for 25 March, 2016. Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) will be a

principal character in the movie, so that's the big three in the Justice League right there. Jason

Momoa (Game of Thrones) has been cast as Aquaman and his character has been revealed in

costume on posters with the tagline: Unite the Seven. This could refer to the seven seas of which he

is king or the seven founding members of the Justice League. Cyborg (Ray Fisher) is also set to make

an appearance in the movie.

DC is playing catch up with Marvel and so it also announced its line-up for its DC Cinematic Universe.

DCU? DCU 52? Well, whatever they call it, here it is. After Dawn of Justice we get to see the Suicide

Squad in action on 5 August, 2015. Who doesn't like anti-heroes? Really. Look out for Jared Leto as

The Joker, Will Smith as Deadshot, Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn and Jai Courtney as Captain

Boomerang. Oprah Winfrey was one of the people being considered to play Amanda Waller, but

Viola Davis (Ender's Game) got it in the end. The Suicide Squad makes a regular appearance on

Arrow, so I guess the TV and cinema worlds won't be linked as the actors aren't the same. Gal Godot

returns as Wonder Woman on 23 June, 2017. 17 November, 2017 sees the biggie in the form of

Justice League Part One. The Flash zooms in on 23 March, 2018 and we take a look at what's going

on in Atlantis in Aquaman on 27 July, 2018. By the power and beard of Zeus we will be graced by

Shazam (Captain Marvel to some but Marvel has their Captain Marvel so yeah, that) on 5 April, 2019.

The Rock has been cast as Black Adam, so you know this will be fun. Justice League Part Two is set

for 14 June, 2019, Cyborg for 3 April, 2020 and DC will try again with Green Lantern on 19 June,

2020.

There's not much to say about DC's TV presence other than that it is having a good time. In addition

to shows like Arrow, The Flash and Gotham, it has Constantine exploring the magical realm. Supergirl

is getting her own show this year and Lucifer and Preacher are on the cards as well.

We have a lot of comic book movies and TV shows to look forward to over the next few years and

the name of the game from both studios is clearly shared cinematic universes, which we love. DC

seems not to be sharing on between its TV shows and movies, though, but, hey, it still looks like a lot

of big things going on. Feel free to get excited about all the cool things headed our way. See you at

the movies.

http://www.culturecrit.com/2014/09/kindness-and-information-age.html

18 September 2014

Kindness and the Information Age

In light of the recent ALS Ice Bucket Challenge craze, Charles Siboto examines a new age of

kindness and how you can be effective in making the world a better place.

Recently a friend challenged me to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge and this got me thinking about how

everyone can do something around them to make the world a brighter place. I won’t lie, I’d never

heard of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) before seeing all the videos of people pouring buckets of

ice-cold water over their heads on my social media feeds. You’d think I’d know that Stephen

Hawking suffers from ALS at least, but nope, total ignorance on my part. ALS is a disease very far

removed from my centre of attention.

The people behind the Ice Bucket Challenge, the ALS Association, are looking to create a world

without ALS. This, of course, requires money for researching cures for the disease and supporting

people already living with it and affected by it. This is a noble cause and they used the power of

social media to come up with a fun way to raise the funds they need for this good work. I commend

this and it’s great to see a charitable drive gain so much momentum and create a stir. This is the sort

of cause that people should donate money to or invest some of their time in whether they do it with

a video or not. But you should always know exactly what it is that you are supporting.

The interwebs are a vibrant place where people vehemently share their opinions and very soon

memes were making the rounds that people are wasting water whilst many regions in the world

don’t have enough drinking water. Many celebrity personalities also declined the challenge on the

grounds that there are reports stating that the ALS Association is involved in animal testing. Both

these points are valid: wasting water is foolish and supporting an organisation that runs tests for

cures for diseases on animals is not something everyone can agree on (and that’s a whole different

and important argument).

The former issue made me think of my beloved mother warning me not to waste food as a child

because children in China are starving . . . but how would my not wasting the food ease their plight?

I always thought. We live in South Africa and there were children starving in our neighbourhood that

I could have given that food to. As far as animal testing is concerned, I don’t know whether the ALS

Association is involved in this or not but it highlights the point that people shouldn’t blindly donate

to organisations. As someone trying to ease the burden of other human beings, you must go a bit

further than just giving money to an organisation and invest some of your time finding out whether

it shares the same values as you. This is also another reason I like the idea of volunteering because it

gives you a first-hand experience of work being done by charities and other such institutes.

I took up the Ice Bucket Challenge but I did not support the ALS Association because I felt that there

are causes closer to me that I can focus on. The world is in dire need of a lot of cleverness to solve

many of its issues. Children should not be starving in China, South Africa or anywhere else when

there is more than enough food to go around. There are enough resources for everyone on our

planet but the problem is access. Clever minds are needed to enable such access but kindness is also

needed. I am intelligent but I doubt I will be figuring out how to solve the issue of a child in China’s

hunger anytime soon (sorry, mom) but I sure can give a hungry child who is right down the road

from me something to eat. I took up my Ice Bucket Challenge in a spirit of being kind to all my fellow

humans and helping where I can. I love food and I am the sort of person who packs a lot of it for

work and sport so I will pack just a few more sandwiches and fruit to give to people.

Giving sandwiches doesn’t solve the underlying problems though. I don’t have much money to give

but I also don’t think that would help as much as me giving of my time. I love books and when I was

growing up my family was poor (we’re only a little less so now) and stories were my refuge; they

comforted me and taught me some wisdom. In addition to my grandmother and mother I was raised

by stories and our local library was my second home. I can share that with children and will do so. I

am privileged to work at the Children and Youth editorial office of one of South Africa’s largest

publishing houses and to volunteer on the executive board (this is a whole lot less fancy than it

sounds) of an organisation that seeks to get rid of the problem of illiteracy in South Africa. These are

wonderful platforms from which to help nurture a hunger for learning in children and thus equip

them with knowledge to support themselves as they grow older. I pledge my efforts and time to

these ventures because that is a role I am most equipped to play in trying to make the world a better

place.

I think most people are looking for opportunities to be kind but miss them in their daily lives because

they think their acts of kindness may be too insignificant or they are daunted by the really large acts

they really want to be doing. Look at all the opportunities on social media that are wasted! People

will like and share the crap out of a status highlighting conflicts across the world and how we really

should be doing something. Sometimes people even emotionally blackmail each other with posts

about how you support something heinous like rape if you don’t share some picture. I hate stuff like

that but it shows that people want to be kind, there is a spark of it albeit somewhat misguided. This

whole Ice Bucket Challenge phenomenon proves that social media can be a powerful tool to create

awareness of issues and even to raise money for them but you still have to go out and be kind and

generous in your daily life. Do small things for people and if you can, do big things. Just try and

extend a helping hand whenever you can. That is my challenge to you.

The world is full of injustices like undernourishment, rape, murder, sexism, racism, corruption, war

and many issues like disease and natural disasters. Lend your support wherever you can. You don’t

have to be Superman or Wonder Woman (unless you can, then totally do that) but your small acts of

kindness and even your cleverness can go a long way.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/482/117142.html

06 August 2014

Sci-fi space opera with Guardians of the Galaxy

Well, well, well - it would seem that Marvel Studios can do no wrong with its 2014 releases. Captain

America: The Winter Soldier was a surprisingly and thoroughly entertaining spy movie that does

what comic books have often done since their inception, using superhero figures that should be

absurd but seem to be the perfect vehicle to address issues our real world is facing. The Winter

Soldier turned the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) that viewers are familiar with on its head with

the events that occur in it, which leaves us wondering how things will play out in The Avengers: Age

of Ultron next year. The events in The Winter Soldier also affected the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D TV

show's storyline, which is to say it gave some much-needed new life to a series that was rather

lacklustre up to that point.

This is all good and well, but it's not why we are here. Guardians of the Galaxy is why we are here

and boy is it a good romp to the side of the galaxy that has thus far only been hinted at in some of

the other movies. Again, Marvel Studios seems to have found the right, and somewhat unlikely,

people for the job of making a movie whose tones differ from the others in the MCU, but is also right

at home in it. With director James Gunn at its helm, Guardians of the Galaxy is an adventure, sci-fi,

space opera that is fun to watch without ever taking away from the depth of its characters. James

Gunn directed the wonderful 2006 B-grade movie Slither and he wrote screenplays for 2002's live-

action Scooby-Doo movie and 2004's Dawn of the Dead, so you know he's bringing some silliness to

this venture. That silliness endears the venture to audiences worldwide.

Good guys who are all a little messed up

The Avengers is a story of good guys who are all a little messed up and initially find it hard to work

together, but they all spring from the hero mould. The Guardians of the Galaxy is a group of

criminals, outcasts and misfits that all land up in prison together. Each character in this group bound

together by circumstance, greed and a lot of madness is highly flawed and works his way into your

heart from that perspective. They go from trying to steal from and kill each other to forming a pretty

badass team to stand in the way of some crazy villains, hell bent on destroying the galaxy.

Peter Quill, who also calls himself Star-Lord, is the leading man and possesses the charm that you

usually find in supporting characters. His character is a little bit Han Solo, some Tony Stark and a

measure of Captain Kirk from the recent Star Trek movies. He is abducted from Earth as a boy in

1988 by a group of space pirates known as the Ravagers, just after his mother dies. He is raised by

them and their leader Yondu (Michael Rooker) is a weird sort of father figure to him. Quill starts out

as a bit of a douche and becomes more of a leader and a hero throughout the movie. His character is

also formed by the death of his mother and how he has had to cope with that. Like all of the cast

members Chris Pratt (The Lego Movie) delivers a strong performance as Star-Lord.

The rest of the team consists of the assassin (and adopted daughter of Thanos) Gamora, played by

Zoe Saldana (Avatar) who looks just as good as a green alien as she did a blue one. Gamora is

dangerous, but is also just seeking to do some good and escape from under evil shadow of Marvel's

ultimate big bad, Thanos. Dave Bautistsa (The Man with the Iron Fists) plays Drax the Destroyer, the

muscle in the group. Drax's wife and child were killed by the main villain in the movie, Ronan the

Accuser, and he wants revenge. Drax's character is also funny and often provides as much comedy as

he does destruction of everything around him. Dave Bautista has a somewhat limited acting range,

but Gunn seems to have set up his scenes in such a way that they fit in with how a menacing

character like Drax would behave. The final members of the team, and the ones that cinema-goers

will probably love the most, are bounty hunters Rocket, the raccoon and Groot, the tree-like

humanoid. Rocket, voiced by Bradley Cooper (The Hangover) is a genetically engineered raccoon

with a love for guns and some great, albeit quirky, battle tactics. Rocket is a fast-talking maniac and

he is also alone in the universe as there is no one like him and he survives by his wits. Groot is

adorable and is the one member in the team that's not crazy in any way, well other than in the fact

the he hangs with crazies. He is a tree-like creature who looks out for Rocket and, later, everyone

else. Groot is beast in battle, though, and not to be messed with. He only ever says one line in the

movie: "I am Groot." But with that line he portrays a wide spectrum of emotions and is just cute to

watch. Groot is voiced by Vin Diesel (Fast and the Furious), which seems an odd choice, but it works.

A radical fanatic

The main villain is Ronan the Accuser, a member of the Kree alien race. He is a radical fanatic whose

main goal is to destroy the planet Xandar, whose population he views as his mortal enemies. He is

not a great villain, but Lee Pace (The Hobbit) does a good job playing him and he does have some

truly menacing moments. He is ultimately just there to set up Thanos as the big bad for later though.

Characters like Nebula, Gomora's adopted sister and The Collector (Benicio del Toro) also make an

appearance and add to the adventure.

The Guardians of the Galaxy is the most fun you can have in a cinema at the moment. It's an

adventure driven by characters you can't help but falling in love with and you want them to succeed.

Everything in the movie oozes style. It's a visual feast, but the outstanding element is the music. The

soundtrack makes what is already a great movie a masterpiece. Songs like Hooked on a Feeling,

Cherry Bomb and Ain't No Mountain High Enough will be stuck in your head as you leave the cinema.

Move over Avengers, the Guardians of the Galaxy are in town and they are shooting things up with

style to spare.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/482/113633.html

21 May 2014

Throwing our storytelling toys

I went to go see Captain America: The Winter Soldier some time ago and it was the best movie I've

seen so far this year - and that made me think about toys and storytelling. Sitting in that dark

cinema, watching a remarkably good comic book movie, I realised that we are living in the best time

in terms of seeing things that you could only imagine translated into visual stories.

Growing up reading novels and comic books, many people of my generation are at home living in

their heads. All you needed to keep you busy for hours was a Lego set. Older generations can boast

that they only needed a stick and a stone and that's fine too. The point is that we were all happy

mucking around with sticks or Lego blocks and building these vast landscapes in our minds where

robots battled it out with monsters or whatever else. But then we grew up and our toys were

discarded and left to gather dust in a garage, but we didn't discard our imaginations.

The things we loved as children

Our movies, books, video games and even our toys are taken from the things we loved as children.

Michael Bay's Transformers movies may not have had good plots, but I absolutely adore them for

their visuals. Every single time I see an Autobot or Decepticon transform I smile. Those are the

visuals that I had in my head as a child every time I played with a Transformers action figure or

watched the cartoon. To this day I can't get over how CGI took images I could only see in my head

and plastered them onto screens. There's a little magic about it. It's like pizza, even if it's bad it's still

nice to have.

Stories and how we tell them has always been very fascinating to me. Movies are big business and

Hollywood has gone back to your childhood to dig up all your old toys and is telling those stories on

the big screen - and it works for the most part. Marvel has successfully translated many of its comic

franchises into film and it has many plans going forward. Guardians of the Galaxy is its next venture

and it sure is being adventurous because the characters aren't well known by general audiences.

Marvel is good at taking its quirkier franchises and making good films, though. When Iron Man came

out lots of people didn't know who he was.

Gritty, realistic superhero movies

DC is not having as good a time with its offerings, failing more often than not - but Christopher

Nolan's Batman trilogy sure did set the benchmark for gritty, realistic superhero movies. Everyone

and his dog loves Batman, but even as a kid reading the comics, watching the cartoons and playing

with the action figures, you know that the idea of a running around fighting crime dressed as a bat is

ridiculous. Batman is probably my favourite comic book character but I'm the first to admit that he is

the most ridiculous of the superheroes. You buy into it, though, because it's fun. Then Nolan sells it

to you in a straight-up serious setting and it works. If you didn't have a guy dressed as a bat the

movies could simply be good action/thriller stories. Marvel did a great job with placing Captain

America in a realistic setting in Winter Soldier too. Take away the star-spangled costume and Winter

Soldier is just a really good spy flick. It's an interesting dynamic, that, taking stories people think are

for children and selling them to adults (and children still) as fun shoot-'em-ups or taking them

seriously as stories that could be entirely plausible.

It's a great time to be alive and to see things you loved as a kid being reincarnated in ways that make

you love them again or make you want to hire a squad of ninja pirates to assassinate everyone

involved in ruining your favourite comic book (guys behind Green Lantern, I'm referring to you). You

even get charming things like The Lego Movie! We're throwing all our storytelling telling toys in the

sandpit and having a great time playing with or just peeing on them. Life's good.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/482/111837.html

07 April 2014

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Looking forward to a new instalment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCE) is quite nerve-

wracking because you never really get what you expect in the end. This works both ways in terms of

getting more than you bargained for and getting short-changed. Luckily, Captain America: The

Winter Soldier gives you more than you bargained for.

The first Cap movie was enjoyable, but it felt like Marvel really just made it for the sake of

establishing the Cap's role in The Avengers instead of really digging deep into the character. This

time around you get a better glimpse into what makes America's superhero golden boy tick. You also

get to know Nick Fury as an actual person for the first time in all the appearances he's made in the

MCE. Winter Soldier is a solid and thoroughly enjoyable movie and can both stand on its own and fits

into the MCE nicely.

Marvel has been playing around with the tone of its movies post-Avengers and it worked very well in

Iron Man 3 and not so much in Thor: Dark World. Winter Soldier goes more the way of Iron Man 3 in

that it's not so much a superhero movie as it is a spy flick or a thriller. This is a great thing and allows

the plot to centre more on heroes as people that we can relate to. This change in direction tends to

annoy comic book purists and, as much as I do understand that line of thinking, I like how accessible

Marvel's movies are to anyone who doesn't read comic books.

Out of place in the modern age

Two years after the alien invasion shenanigans that went down in New York the Cap's (Chris Evans)

still working for SHIELD because, unlike the rest of the Avengers gang, he doesn't have anything to

return to. He still feels out of place in the modern age, but he's a soldier and keeps going and is

largely fixated on doing what he does best: punch the snot out of bad guys. With the Russo Brothers

(You, Me and Dupree) at the helm, Winter Soldier plays out as a political thriller and the pace is

great. SHIELD itself is in danger in this outing and a lot of moral questions regarding world security

and the role of agencies like SHIELD (or the CIA in real-world terms) are explored. This wouldn't be a

Captain America story if the evil HYDRA (KGB in real-world terms) didn't make an appearance.

They're there in the shadows, working hard to rob the world of its freedoms.

The Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), as a character, is actually more of a sub-plot in the movie. He is,

of course, the bad guy super soldier for the Cap to face off against and his origins are revealed, but

only to a small extent. It seems like they're actually hoping to do something with him further down

the line and this movie serves only to introduce him to the audience.

Winter Soldier also sees the introduction of the character of the Falcon (Anthony Mackie) as the

Cap's sidekick (very much like Iron Man's Rhodey). He is a cool enough character but Nick Fury

(Samuel L Jackson) does steal the show in this feature. Fury has always been the guy who shows up

and says some ridiculous things in other movies and just looks cool. His character's explored in some

depth this time around and you start learning why he has issues trusting people. Black Widow

(Scarlett Johansson) makes a return and she is slick as usual. She is the moral contrast of Cap in that

she has no qualms about lying to get things done. Their dynamic throughout the movie is great to

see.

I highly recommend that you go to see The Winter Soldier; it's very good and just lots of fun to

watch. Look out for the Stan Lee cameo and wait for both end credit scenes and then proceed to get

excited for Guardians of the Galaxy later this year and Avengers: Age of Ultron next year.

http://blog.collectionary.com/daily-thoughts-on-action-figures/

26 February 2014

Daily thoughts on Action Figures

I remember an instance when I was five or so and playing with an assortment of action figures (I

think I was playing G.I. Joe vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) and my mother commented on how

much fun I seemed to be having with my little dolls. She called my action figures dolls! The nerve of

some parents! I had to set her straight, because boys don’t play with dolls, we play with action

figures.

Thinking of that moment in my life made me wonder where the action figure trend started, and why

we are so obsessed with playing and collecting them. I’m a fan of all things geeky and it seems

action figures are deeply rooted in that culture. Think along the lines of dinosaurs, superheroes, Star

Trek and G.I. Joe; action figures have been made of all of these franchises and we love it. As a kid

you rip the figures out of their packaging and actually play with them but adults (who are just bigger,

more boring kids) collect the stuff and keep them in mint condition. Action figures, my furry friends,

are a serious business.

The term “action figure” was coined by some people at Hasbro in 1964 when they released their G.I.

Joe merchandise and couldn’t really call them dolls because, you know, boys had to play with them.

Society back then was only a little more sexist than we are now. The whole action figure/doll thing is

just quite sexist to be frank. Anyone can play with or collect them but we are still pretty much

conditioned to see them as boys’ or girls’ toys. You’ll be interested to know that without the success

of the Barbie range of dolls that G.I. Joe action figures might not exist as we know them now. We

should all take a moment and thank Stan Weston for realizing that Barbie-sized dolls with a military

theme are something that the world needs. Stan’s the guy who brought the G.I. Joe idea to Hasbro

in 1963 (known as Hassenfeld Brothers then).

They kicked things off with just three ‘dolls’ in their line-up: Rocky the Marine, Skip the Sailor and

Ace the Pilot. By 1965 they’d added an african american soldier and even tried a female Joe two

years later in the role of . . . wait for it . . . a nurse! That, of course, didn’t really work out too well.

Over the years life got weird and G.I. Joes like Atomic Man and Bulletman got added to the line-up.

This is the point where genres like fantasy and sci-fi were gaining prominence and people were open

to new and strange ideas. The latter half of 20th century was a great time for action figures! Star

Wars and Star Trek were big, comic book characters were just begging for action figures to be made

of them and franchises like Indiana Jones were appearing all over the show. Everyone was just

licensing everything: Masters of the Universe, Thundercats, Gundam and almost everything else that

you love.

When I was a kid I wanted to join the military when I grew up — thankfully I didn’t grow up. I spent

hours playing with those little green soldier action figures that we almost as cool as Lego. What

were they called…? Ah, yes! Army Men. I conquered so much of the world with those guys. Are

they even proper action figures? I’m not sure but they are even proper cool.

People who collect and/or play with action figures are nerds or geeks of some sort and that’s fine.

We all love playing or love the stories from things like Star Wars so much that we collect some sort

of memento to remind of exactly how cool Boba Fett is. To think that pieces of plastic so

painstakingly and artfully moulded can make us so happy! Imagination is truly a wonderful thing.

Now you know that action figures are totally rad-ical. And knowing is half the battle! I really never

got around to figuring out what the other half is; you can just make that one up as you go along.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/482/109654.html

14 February 2014

Haunting beauty in The Book Thief

One of The Book Thief's promotional campaigns was a series of images and teasers posted on its

Facebook page related to words and their meaning. One of the themes throughout the story is

words and what they mean to people; how beautiful words are and how ugly they are. Words are

more powerful weapons than guns and bombs after all.

One of the words that were used on the Facebook campaign is wonder: {won•der} n. surprise

mingled with admiration, caused by something beautiful, unexpected, or inexplicable.

This is the reaction you get from watching this film. The Book Thief will make you smile, cry, laugh

and then leave your heart broken with its haunting beauty. As a high-ranking member of the Book

Snob Society I can find reasons why the film adaptation of this story does not do it justice, but those

reasons are ultimately shallow because this adaptation is really good and captures the important

themes of the book.

Set in Nazi Germany

The story is narrated by Death (Roger Allam), who is surprisingly pleasant given the nature of his job,

which he seems to dislike. Set in Nazi Germany from April 1938 the plot follows the life of Liesel

Meminger (Sophie Nélisse) as she adjusts to a new life on Himmel Street in the fictional town of

Molching with her foster parents Hans and Rosa Hubermann (Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson). This

is the story of a German girl trying to make sense of her small, fragile life amidst the horrors of Nazi

Germany leading up to World War 2. Liesel finds a solace of sorts in books and words, and tries to

make sense of her circumstances through them. She doesn't understand all the hate going around

and no one really knows how to answer why so much hate can spread like a disease.

Many stories of this terrible era in humanity's history are told from the viewpoint of Jewish people

or others who were affected by the atrocities committed by the Nazis, but this is the story of a small

German town just trying to survive when the world has gone mad. Sophie Nélisse is wonderful as

Liesel Meminger; she plays the role with the utmost grace. The rest of the cast also deliver stellar

performances. Geoffrey Rush's portrayal of Hans is sincere and makes you love the man who teaches

Liesel to read, to love and to be courageous, albeit seemingly foolish in the dreadful time they live in.

Rosa is stern and rules the Hubermann household with an iron fist, but you can tell she loves them

all. Max (Ben Schnetzer), the young Jewish man that the Hubermanns hide in their basement

manages to convey a lot of sadness and joy in that cramped space, and is one of the characters that

steals the show. My personal favourite character is Liesel's best friend, Rudy Steiner (Nico Liersch).

This lemon-haired boy is all heart and you can't help but love him.

A slightly different perspective

This is a great movie. It's not the best movie depicting the period, but it does offer a slightly different

perspective into it and it is beautifully shot. The oppressive Nazi propaganda is a constant backdrop

to the story and it constantly reminds you of the bleakness of the place the story is set in. The music

by John Williams adds quite a lot to the tone if this film and is moving.

Some people feel that it's too sad. I don't think so. It is sad, but it also shows how normal people

overcome terrible situations and how kind and selfless they can be. I think the story, like all good

stories, is what JRR Tolkien called eucatastrophe - the good tale that breaks your heart.

Put some tissues in your pocket or handbag and give The Book Thief a viewing. It's a good movie.

That is all.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/429/107472.html

16 January 2014

47 Ronin fails to excite

From the outset of this review, you need to know that this is a terrible movie. Save yourself some

money and just wait for it on DVD. Even then do not buy it, just hire it from the video store. Look, we

can't really have high expectations of a movie starring Keanu Reeves. He seems to be the guy

directors call when they want to take really good stories like the Constantine comic books and turn

them into movies people don't really know how to react to. I mean, Reeves was even weird as Neo

in The Matrix; he is just a strange actor.

I digress though; let's just get back into why 47 Ronin is 118 minutes (Nu Metro's and Ster-Kinekor's

ridiculous amount of trailers and ads aside) of your precious life given to a ridiculous venture.

The problem with this movie, strangely enough, is that it tries too hard to sell its weak plot to you

and it tries to make you care about its shallow characters. I have no problem with the lack of a solid

plot or weak character development in a movie about a fictionalised feudal Japan inhabited by

honourable Samurai, witches, demons and other shady characters. In fact, both those weaknesses

usually make such a venture much better because you expect it to be cheesy and crammed to

bursting with well-choreographed fight scenes accompanied by mind-bending CGI.

47 Ronin doesn't do this! There are only a handful of fight sequences and they are pretty much

average and the CGI, though quite good, is not that great or rather it isn't used that effectively.

Director, Carl Erik Rinsch tried to tell the story of the real 47 Ronin and make it very fantastical at the

same time and failed on both counts. This movie, then, does not reward the viewer in any way other

than it being very pretty. The scenery takes your breath away and the costumes the characters wear

are amazing.

The story centres on Lord Asono's kingdom of Ako preparing to host a tournament in honour of a

visit from the Shogun, the ruler of all of Japan. His beautiful daughter, Miko is in charge of all the

ceremonial preparations and we learn that she is in love with Keanu Reeves' character, the half-

breed, Kai. He is an outcast because he is half Japanese and half British and was raised by the

demons of the forest, the Tengu and was trained by them to fight and also learned some of their

magical abilities, which he uses only once in the movie. He was adopted by Lord Asona but can never

be a Samurai and everyone in the kingdom pretty much hates him. So much so that he lives in a hut

in the outskirts of the kingdom. He is continuously beaten and humiliated throughout the movie for

trying to help everyone.

Oishi, the leader of the Samurai and later the 47 Ronin is the main protagonist even though he is

dumb enough not to believe Kai when he warns them of the witch, Mizuki. Oishi is your usual

honourable-to-the-death type of guy - a lot like Ned Stark from Game of Thrones. Lord Kira, ruler of

the neighbouring kingdom, Nagato is the villain of the piece. He is your usual power hungry

megalomaniac who seeks to rule all of Japan. He is a decent villain but his companion, Mizuki is the

one that truly steals the show. She oozes sexy creepiness as a witch. What follows is a story of

deception and revenge by 47 guys you really don't care about.

Another thing that irked me is the misleading posters of the movie, mainly the heavily tattooed

pirate guy displayed on all the material as the Renegade. He looks cool and you think he's a

prominent character till you find out he's in the movie for less than five minutes. What the hell,

man?

To conclude, this is a very bad movie. It is deadly dull and in no way captures the spirit of the real-life

47 Ronin who set out to avenge their master in 18th-century Japan. It has some interesting moments

and in the few instances when the action kicks in it is done rather well but leaves you hungry for

more. The story tries to engage you but doesn't get it right. Save yourself some time and money and

give this one a miss.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/429/97709.html

01 August 2013

There's a Disconnect

If there is one thing you should learn in this digital day and age (albeit not as digital as science and

science fiction speculated in the 20th century) it's that social networks will undo you in a matter of

seconds if you are not careful. Look at what happened to model Jessica Leandra dos Santos on

Twitter last year - two racist tweets out of anger and her modelling career went down in flames.

Disconnect looks at how our online activities affect our everyday lives over time. The film is centred

around the idea of how people's online lives spill over into their "real" lives and how, ironically, in

being connected via the Internet, people have actually become disconnected from each other.

The plot follows the stories of four different sets of characters and contains a number of

interconnections between the different story arcs. Disconnect is not the movie I expected from what

was revealed in the trailer and I am glad it isn't. I was expecting a feature with a strong focus on

cybercrime in terms of fraud and paedophiles preying on children by means of social media and

sinister chat rooms. The latter issue is a very important to address, but usually movies deal with it in

a manner that freaks viewers out in the same way that slasher movies do.

A dramatic climactic point

Disconnect deals with all these issues in a very human way. The story is simply about people who are

drifting further and further apart as a result of being too connected to the communication platforms

that the Internet and the technology surrounding it affords. Henry Alex Rubin's (Girl, Interrupted,

1999) direction is brilliant in terms of how the story is paced and how it develops. Many of the

scenes are very quiet and all you can hear is the sound of people typing away on keyboards, and

when they do talk it's usually over the phone or via a webcam. All these methods of communication

feel very natural to the viewer because that's how we communicate on a daily basis. Reading a fairly

large portion of the movie's dialogue onscreen as people text each other becomes second nature.

The film reaches a dramatic climactic point that you just don't expect and blows you away for a few

seconds - especially after how calm everything has been more or less up to that point.

Andrew Stern (Nurses, 2007) wrote a good story that will stay with you for a while after seeing the

movie and the ensemble cast delivers some good performances. The initial story is that of Kyle

(brilliantly played by Max Thierot), an underage chat room worker who meets a reporter, Nina

Dunham (Andrea Riseborough), in one of his chat room sessions, who wants to help him leave that

world behind by sharing his story. The question, though, is does he need her help? There is the story

of teenagers, Jason (Colin Ford) and Frye, which deals with the issue of cyber-bullying and its

outcomes. Ben Boyd (Jonah Bobo) is the victim of the cyber-bullying by the two boys and the plot

also centres on the fragmented lives that he and his family lead. This arc of the story deals a lot with

loneliness as one of its major themes. Jason Bateman (Horrible Bosses, 2011) and Hope Davis (About

Schmidt, 2002) play Ben's parents and Frank Grillo (End of Watch, 2012) plays Jason's father.

The last story is that of a couple, Cindy (Paula Patton) and Derek (Alexander Skarsgård) who have

become distant from each other as the result of having lost a child and how they cope with having

their credit card details stolen online as a result of them spending so much time on the Internet in an

attempt to find refuge from their problems. These stories are all cleverly and subtly interweaved

throughout the movie and, at times, you are given glimpses of how things could have gone in

another direction instead of the one the plot follows. Things could go horribly wrong or they can go

right.

I enjoyed Disconnect a lot. It's a very apt story in our digital age and hits home with its message. I

highly recommend that you go to see it.

http://www.xbox-360.co.za/2013/05/26/xbox-one-reveal-a-summary/

26 May 2013-10-11

Xbox One Reveal – A Summary

After Tuesday night’s reveal of the Xbox One (no one wanted an Xbox 720 anyway) at Microsoft’s

conference, held at their headquarters in the city of Redmond in Washington, it’s safe to say that the

next generation of consoles is pretty much a current generation premise now. Some speculations

can be set aside and new speculations can be made regarding the final versions of the PlayStation 4

and the Xbox One. The Nintendo WiiU has been out for a while and doing okayish in terms of both

sales and availability of games — and there’s the news that EA is ditching the platform to take into

consideration. Even though we still don’t know what the PlayStation 4 looks like (even after

Tuesday’s attempt to steal Microsoft’s shine by showing us a video of a close up of the system that

actually shows us nothing) we have a fairly good idea of what it’s capable of. Microsoft’s reveal of its

mean machine gave us a good idea of what their battle tactics are entering the fray.

The first thing you want to know is what’s under the hood of the Xbox One and how it looks in terms

of raw power. The console sports an 8-core x86 AMD CPU, a GPU roughly equal to AMD’s Radeon

7790, 8GB of DDR3 RAM (shared between the CPU and GPU), 32MB of SRAM on the graphics die and

200GB of memory bandwidth. The console also comes with a Blu-ray drive, 500GB hard drive,

802.11n WiFi, HDMI in and out, Gigabit Ethernet and USB 3.0 ports. At a quick glance it’s more or

less what the PlayStation 4 is offering and this is not a bad thing as such. I’ve heard many gamers say

that they don’t just want a new powerhouse console but rather something different from Microsoft

in terms of ingenuity. Microsoft has listened and promised that Kinect will feature in clever ways in

terms of creating new gaming experiences. Cleary Microsoft is trying to capture the casual gamer

market with its aproach. As much as we hardcore gamers always whine we have to admit that the

casual market is where the money comes from to make gaming the huge phenomenon it is today.

The reveal showed that the Xbox One is looking to be more than just a gaming console, it wants to

be the one solution to all your media needs with features like Instant Switch and Snap Mode, which

allow seamless shifting between media like games, movies, music and even services like Skype using

voice commands. Nifty, but whether it will actually be useful remains to be seen. The idea is to do

away with the clutter in the living room space. The console also looks the multimedia device part

and looks like something you’d find as part of an entertainment system instead of a gaming device.

Personally the new look has grown on me after a few days of taking it in. The Kinekt camera also

receives an upgrade and can pick up even slight gestures like facial twitches and ‘slight changes to

your skin pigment’.

Gamers needn’t fret though, the list of games isn’t all that skimpy, what with Call of Duty: Ghost

taking a spotlight (with added killing of dogs…). Forza Motorsport 5 also looks very pretty. EA Sports

anounced a new gaming engine they’re calling Sports Ignite. Fans of sports titles like the FIFA series

can drool at more realistic and natural gameplay. Remedy, the guys behind the brilliant Alan Wake,

announced a new IP, Quantum Break, which looks like it’s a TV show with gaming elements and

looks to blur the lines between the two media. Alan Wake played like a Stephen King book and that

was great so this could be the next big thing. Quantum Break looks like it will be the title to compete

with the PlayStation 4 exclusive, Beyond: Two Souls. We’ll have to wait for more news as time goes.

In fact, we pretty much have to wait for more news on all the games that were announced. E3 will

obviously the bigger platform for everyone to put their best foot forward next month. You can’t

have a new Xbox without Halo making an appearance, even if it’s not a game. It was announced that

legendary director, Steven Spielberg’s producing a live-action Halo TV show along with 343 Studios,

which will be an Xbox Live exclusive. Microsoft’s taking multimedia very seriously as you can see.

The Xbox One reveal was very similar to Sony’s conference in February in terms of revealing just

enough to whet our appetites for what’s to come and to make more of our own speculations. At

least we know what the console looks like though and that’s a point to Microsoft. The PlayStation 4′s

still leading in terms of the number of launch titles we know about but that could change at E3. See

you guys there.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/429/93018.html

07 May 2013

Go see Iron Man 3

1 May was Worker's Day and that's all well and good. What's more important is that it was also Iron

Man 3 day and because there was no work to go to (thanks Worker's Day, you're awesome) we got

to enjoy Tony Stark's new adventure all day long! Okay, I'm lying; we got to enjoy it for the 130

minutes we would have on any other day.

Iron Man 3 is the first of the post-Avengers Marvel movies to hit our screens this year and we've all

been waiting to see how it would turn out after last year's team up. Tony Stark's previous solo

adventures have been the most successful of the Marvel movies and cinema-goers really like the

character. Iron Man 3 lives up to the hype in most ways and misses the mark in one critical way

that's bound to upset the comic book fans, but casual fans won't notice at all. But hey, it's Robert

Downey Jnr as Tony Stark; he's a nutcase and he's Iron Man so, of course, the movie's awesome.

The movie focuses more on Tony Stark as a person instead of just the suit and this is great because it

give us a good story and a better understanding of the man. Tony is suffering from Post-traumatic

Stress Disorder after the events of The Avengers, which took place in New York. The world has

changed significantly now that people know that aliens exist and that there are other worlds out

there; some that Earth can ally with, like Asgard, but most that are probably hostile. This frightens

Tony and he experiences anxiety attacks whenever New York or wormholes are mentioned.

Tony's past is also catching up with him

Tony feels helpless knowing that the safety of those he loves can be threatened at any moment and

does the one thing he knows best: spend all his time working on improving his Iron Man armour in

his hi-tech workshop. It's not like the nightmares that he has allow him any sleep anyway. His manic

demeanour causes tensions between him and his girlfriend, Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow). Tony's

past is also catching up with him in the form of the appearance of an ex-fling who heralds the

surfacing of the villain, who Tony spurned in the past. You know how these intelligent, socially

awkward people are - you play one cruel trick on them and they spend years plotting revenge. The

villain of the piece is Aldrich Killian (Guy Pierce), a megalomaniac with a creepy grin and

superpowers that he developed in his lab. He immediately puts those to use in becoming a terrorist

of sorts. Guy Pearce (Prometheus) plays a good villain; he's creepy, crazy and sports cool tattoos.

As a fan of the comics, I enjoyed the movie but it's hard to overlook the liberties that were taken

with the classic Iron Man villain, Mandarin, played by the excellent Sir Ben Kingsley (Schindler's List)

in what could've been a great role, but turned out to be rather demeaning instead. In a movie that

does everything right this is a huge flaw. Again, only those familiar with Iron Man's stories will pick

this up and be bothered by it, as the movie is still good regardless. Speaking of villains, I have no clue

what Maya Hansen's (Rebecca Hall) role in the movie is other than being Tony's ex-fling. Her story

pretty much doesn't matter at all. Villains have always been the Iron Man franchise's weak point and

that doesn't change too much in this instalment.

In some ways this isn't an Iron Man movie at all - much like last year's Skyfall wasn't really a Bond

movie. This is actually a good thing because it shows us a Marvel world in which Tony is just a dude

with a boatload of problems, people he cares for and fights to fight. You can spot Shane Black's (Kiss

Kiss Bang Bang) directorial signature all over this feature. The tone is definitely darker than Jon

Favreau's (who reprises his role as the lummox chief of security, Happy Hogan) take on the Iron Man

universe. You can spot moments of Lethal Weapon-style buddy cop chemistry between Tony and

Rhodey (Don Cheadle). The action sequences are also from the era of excessive explosions. Shane

Black's directorial style works well for a movie about a Tony Stark who has to rely more on his wits

than his mechanical suits without skimping on any of the action.

A solid supporting actor

Don Cheadle (Crash) is a solid supporting actor as Tony's best friend, Colonel James Rhodes. He

should never be the lead in anything because he's that really great guy every hero needs at his side.

His Iron Patron armour is an eyesore though. It's super ugly and annoyingly American. Gwyneth

Paltrow is more than just a pretty face and business brain in this instalment as Pepper Pots. She's the

damsel in distress who acquires her own shiny armour, as it were, instead of relying on Tony in his

armour to save her. Ty Simpkins (Insidious) steals the show as 10-year-old Harley Keener, who Tony

encounters when he's stranded whilst investigating the people who want to kill him. The banter

between the two is hilarious and both characters are amazingly snarky and witty. I always have to

give a nod to Paul Bettany (Priest) as the voice of Tony's AI system, Jarvis.

3D technology is lost on most filmmakers. Iron Man 3 is another example that slapping a few 3D

effects on a movie in post-production is a terrible move. If you can see this one in 2D go for it and

save yourself some money.

This is Tony Stark's best outing so far and is just great to see. Iron Man 3 is an amazing movie and

heralds more good things to come from Marvel this year. Go see it today if you haven't yet. Go see it

again if you have already.

http://www.xbox-360.co.za/2013/04/15/review-bioshock-inifinite-a-masterpiece/

15 April 2013

Review: Bioshock Inifinite “a masterpiece”

A new BioShock title is something that makes gamers stop and think back to the first game in the

series in 2007. The game added a thread of magic to the first-person shooter genre that had not

been there before. It’s with fondness and a little shiver down the spine that we remember being in

Jack’s shoes exploring Rapture, Andrew Ryan’s dystopian underwater city. Rapture was the sort of

place gamers had never visited before because the technology didn’t allow it up to that point in

time. Rapture was gorgeous in its ugliness. Rapture was a utopian dream turned into a nightmare.

BioShock was great to look at and fun to play but it also made gamers think about human progress,

hubris, elitism and morality. BioShock is the Atlas Shrugged and 1984 of gaming. Ken Levine and his

team at Irrational Games are back with a third instalment in the series and this time we’re taken to

Columbia, a city in the sky. BioShock Infinite is here and it writes one of the great chapters in

gaming.

Gone is the claustrophobic underwater dystopia that was Rapture. No more are the crazy Splicers

that were out to kill you. Forget all about plasmids, ADAM, EVE, Big Daddies and Little Sisters.

BioShock Infinite places gamers in the shoes of Booker DeWitt, a former private investigator who’s

been hired to rescue a girl. Everything concerning the girl and why she needs to be rescued is very

hush-hush. Her name is Elizabeth and she is trapped in a tower in Columbia, where she is protected

or held captive (one can’t be too sure) by a giant mechanical bird referred to as Songbird. Elizabeth

and Songbird’s relationship is reminiscent of that of the Little Sisters with the Big Daddies in

BioShock – it’s complicated. Unlike Rapture Booker finds Columbia at its peak and only beginning to

crumble. It’s a dream city starting to turn into a nightmare. Columbia is a super American 1912 city

with fanatic ideals in the form of white supremacy and religious extremism. Columbia is old America

and such a dream cannot endure. Booker arrives at the city at a time of change and, of course, plays

a part in those events. The resistance faction, the Vox Populi is active in fighting for liberation and

equality. The storyline is very mysterious and the player cannot take anything at face value. What is

the brand on Booker’s hand that sets him apart as an antichrist figure? These are the sort of

questions that make up BioShock Infinite’s story. Most things aren’t as they seem. Much like Andrew

Ryan’s dream of a city populated by only the world’s most gifted individuals Columbia is Father

Comstock’s dream of a ‘pure’ America with ‘pure’ American ideals. Father Comstock is Columbia’s

over-zealous leader and his misguided ideals are what bring the city to its soaring heights and what

causes its fall from grace, as it were. BioShock Infinite’s plot deals with the uncomfortable themes of

racism, ideals of supremacy and religious extremism. Irrational Games handles these themes deftly

and in many instances you find yourself outraged at how cruel human beings are and at other

instances you are saddened. BioShock tells a story that matters to players and lingers in your mind.

This game proves that video games can be a platform to tell great stories.

Powered by a modified Unreal Engine 3, the game’s visuals are beautiful and leave gamers in awe.

Columbia’s old America aesthetic is infused with steampunk elements and that blend works well.

Being a city in the sky and an open playing space your surroundings make you feel like you’re really

flying but also add an element of fear, like you might fall at any moment. The game’s graphics look

their best on a powerful PC but the Xbox 360’s no slouch and you can see the painstaking attention

to detail that went into crafting BioShock Infinite. The game is a visual feast. I’m not one to pay any

special attention to a game’s soundtrack but BioShock Infinite’s score accompanies and

complements its light and dark moments perfectly. The last time a score made me feel this way in a

game was in the Halo series. All these elements come together and create an atmosphere you won’t

forget any time soon.

As lofty as BioShock Infinite’s ideals are playing the game is outright fun. It’s a first-person shooter

and as such it’s all about guns and it has these in abundance: pistols, shotguns, machine guns and

the rest of the usual artillery. What really makes combat fun though is the usage of vigors, which are

very much like BioShock’s plasmids. Vigors allow you to throw bolts of electricity at enemies, use fire

to set them alight, attack them with super speed, unleash crows upon them or turn enemies against

each other. Coupled with your guns and a melee weapon you pick up early on in the game vigors

make for fun and creative combat situations. You can loot enemy corpses for money to purchase

upgrades for your weapons and salts (which power vigors). These upgrades make your life easier

against enemies like the mechanical George Washingtons – who, much like BioShock’s Big Daddies,

are the heavies in the game. Armed with chainguns these foes aren’t to be sneered at and I must say

that the George Washington motif is unnerving. Once you free Elizabeth she accompanies you as a

friendly A.I. She has the ability to create tears in space-time, which allows her to materialise

weapons such as turrets in a fight or health kits and salts to help you stay alive. Elizabeth is a

wonderful companion and you can’t help but like her. Then there’s the Skyline railway system that

connects all of Columbia, which you can latch onto using your melee weapon as a hook. This allows

you to travel around the city easily but also makes combat interesting. You can rain death upon

enemies from the Skyline and jump in and out of fights.

BioShock Infinite is a great game all-round and it’s well worth your time. There’s no multiplayer

campaign but the astounding ending will have you playing this game again. This is a AAA title and

you can get your grubby paws on it for roughly R600.00. If you have more money jingling in your

pockets and you don’t know what to do with it get hold of the Songbird Collector’s Edition for

around R1600.00 (check availability), which comes with awesome goodies to warm your gaming

heart.

If you enjoyed the first BioShock title this game is for you and if you’re human this game is for you.

The only faults I can find with it are some bugs that tarnish the gameplay slightly but other than that

BioShock Infinite is a masterpiece.

BioShock Infinite is pie in the gaming sky and it tastes really good. Grab a slice.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/429/91881.html

11 April 2013

Underwhelming GI Joe

Expectation and hype are killers. After approximately two years of waiting GI Joe: Retaliation hits the

screens and it's underwhelming to say the least. I'm not too proud to admit that I fell headfirst into

the hype machine.

It's a case of last year's Ghost Rider: Vengeance again where my faith was misplaced. GI Joe: The Rise

of Cobra (2009) was utter rubbish, but Hollywood's hype machine made sure that they got the

marketing strategy right second time around: throw in all the best bits of the movie in the trailer,

add The Rock (whom everyone and their dog loves) as Roadblock, pretend that Channing Tatum is

actually in the movie for more than two minutes to draw the ladies and find a place for Bruce Willis

because old-school is relevant again. This strategy worked. This movie has been on my to-watch list

since last year and my ass was in that cinema seat as soon as it stared the screening.

GI Joe: Retaliation is a rubbish movie, you guys. I'm sad to say it's a fun movie too. You really can't

help but like it. I see a trend here. It's as if a bunch of the top Hollywood people got together in a

dark room and decided that 2013 is the year of rubbish movies that people will love and to try to

sneak Bruce Willis into as many of them as possible. It's a strange tactic but it works.

Ridiculous and makes no sense whatsoever

Retaliation's storyline is ridiculous and makes no sense whatsoever. The world's elite covert fighting

force (that everyone seems to know about so clearly that they aren't good at being covert), the GI

Joes are sent on a mission to Pakistan to stop some sort of nuclear standoff and end up being

framed for trying to steal the nuclear weapon they were sent in to confiscate. The President of the

United States orders an airstrike to eliminate the team. This is where the filmmakers take the

opportunity to kill off Channing Tatum's character, Duke, and have The Rock's character take charge

of what's left of the team. By now all the women who wanted to see Channing Tatum are in their

seats and can't leave.

Well played, Hollywood, well played.

It turns out that the President isn't actually the President; he's the sinister Zartan in clever disguise.

The casting for Zartan is confusing because this movie's hell bent on not making sense. Zartan is

played by Arnold Vosloo, but as he spends most of his time as the President he is really played by

Jonathan Pryce and you only see Arnold Vosloo's face once in a flashback.

Presidential imposter

Roadblock, Flint (DJ Cotrona) and Lady Jaye (Adrianne Palicki) are all that's left of the Joes and they

"cleverly" work out that the President is an imposter and recruit Bruce Willis' character, General

Joseph Colton, to help them save the world from Zartan and Cobra Commander (Luke Bracey), who's

been broken out of a German maximum security prison, which turns out not to have been so

maximum security after all. Cobra Commander's only job is to walk around and look like a dork in

this movie; Zartan and his sidekick Firefly (Ray Stevenson) are the real villains.

Snake Eyes (Ray Park) is also alive because he was away doing ninja stuff whilst everyone else was

being killed off. He is on his own adventure entirely for the most of the movie and doesn't seem to

care about his buddies. He spends 40 minutes or so on a mission to capture Storm Shadow (Byung-

hun Lee) to answer for the murder of the Hard Master when they were kids. After the best action

sequence of the movie it turns out that Storm Shadow didn't kill the Hard Master and it was actually

Zartan (the Arnold Vosloo version) and they decide to team up to kick his ass. Someone decided that

Storm Shadow should not wear a shirt for more than two seconds at a time. I guess that's meant to

make up for killing Duke.

The action all comes together with Zartan using his presidential powers to force the world's nuclear

countries into very cool stand-off. This is a brilliant bit in the movie. Nuclear warheads are launched,

fun is poked at North Korea and London gets blown up by Cobra Commander's Zeus satellites right

after everyone's forced to disarm their nuclear weapons.

The Joes show up in time to save the rest of the world and everything goes back to normal - except

that London is destroyed and no one seems to be bothered in the least that one of the world's major

cities is no more. It's madness!

GI Joe: Retaliation is retarded on too many levels to count and yet somehow it works. I don't know

what's happening in the world anymore. Go see this movie for The Rock and the crazy shenanigans.

http://www.xbox-360.co.za/2013/03/12/review-tomb-raider-a-human-story/

12 March 2013

Review: Tomb Raider “a human story”

The new Tomb Raider has landed and it’s made a big splash in the process. Lara Croft has been

rebooted and given a new origins story but it’s always a hit or miss affair when you take a well-

known and beloved character like Lara Croft and remake her; fans are not too forgiving if you get a

reboot wrong.

The fact that the last Tomb Raider games have been rather lacking in lustre adds more pressure to

the expectation from a new game in the franchise. In this case it’s good that we’re in a period where

fans will give a franchise another chance to reboot if it’s been mucking up a little – it’s a clean slate

of sorts really. With Rhianna Pratchett, writer of Mirror’s Edge, having penned the story and showing

us a different side of Lara, you’re in for a ride.

Gone is the plastic, large-breasted Lara Croft of yesteryear and in is an honest attempt at building a

human being who evolves from someone young, appropriately attractive (and appropriately

dressed), somewhat naive and very vulnerable, into a hero. This is what this origins story is, a look at

how Lara Croft became as tough as adamantium claws – what she has to live through to reach that

point. Rhianna Pratchett points out that her Lara is a real woman and this rings true. Throughout the

game the player learns what it takes to be a graduate, fresh out of university and to find yourself

shipwrecked on an island occupied by cultists who aren’t very welcoming. Lara’s journey from wide-

eyed graduate to kick-ass survivor i s a brutal one that would leave most people traumatised if they

were to manage to survive at all. It’s also a beautiful experience that speaks to the player about the

resilience of the human spirit.

The visuals and game mechanics are powered by a modified Crystal Engine and both are stunning.

Lara gets grimier and more bloodied as she makes her way through the breath-yanking island,

surviving. The island is alive with vibrant fauna and flora and the weather conditions are wonderfully

temperamental. The atmosphere is rich and heavy throughout. The island is a character in itself and

exploring it is fun and scary all at once. The dangers are real but once in a while Lara makes it to the

top of a ledge and the view is spectacular. Tomb Raider’s resounding theme is survival and Lara has

to learn to do whatever it takes to survive and to save her comrades. She hunts and kills deer on the

island and defends herself against wolves. This is one of the strong points of the game, the fact that

it doesn’t try to recreate the action-adventure genre. It takes elements from Uncharted, Arkham

Asylum and other games and blends them seamlessly to tell its unique story. The control scheme is a

reiteration of what you’re familiar with and works comfortably well on the controller whether you’re

shimmying across a ledge, sneaking up on a bad guy or find yourself in a gunfight.

The bow and its arrows is the stand-out weapon. Its versatility is great, but getting a kill lead to a

degree of satisfaction I’m sure some people will consider sinful. The grimy and rather violent

takedowns prove to be a lot of fun once you get into the swing of things. Tomb Raider is not a

celebration of violence but rather the player continuously embraces the independence and pride

Lara feels at being able to defend her life in a very hostile environment. The bow also makes for

great stealth kills and it can be upgraded as you progress through the game for better usage in all

out fire fights. Other weapons are also upgradeable as you proceed through the island and salvage

wreckage to add onto them. Fire fights get intense and it’s fun to try different ways of approaching

enemies and other tough situations. The enemy AI is smart, although Tomb Raider doesn’t do

anything new in this regard.

The island provides a great deal of exploring options in between shooting the bad guys. Lara Croft is

an archaeologist, after all, and exploring is very rewarding; finding all sorts of nooks and crannies

filled with cool items and information regarding the history of the island and the cultists occupying

it. The island is steeped in history and just walking around it leaves the player with a sense of

wonder at what stories, broken statues and abandoned bunkers could tell. The very ground and air

seem to be a memory of great and terrible things that happened there. Although Lara has to survive

and progress through the storyline, curiosity always results in some interesting non-linear play as the

island begs to be explored in great detail. The island’s history is beautifully crafted and is hauntingly

beautiful and ugly. This aspect of the game is what the Tomb Raider series is about and is the best

aspect of Lara’s first outing as an archaeologist.

There’s a multiplayer option tagged onto the single-player experience but it does nothing to set itself

apart from other MP games. The multiplayer option does give you something to do when friends

pop over or you’re looking for extra value for your money through some prolonged play. It’s the sort

of add-on that you wouldn’t mind investing a few forgettable hours in purely because after the 12 or

so hours it takes you to complete the main campaign you’ll want to stick around a little longer. It

does, sadly, feel like an afterthought after playing through the campaign.

At its heart Tomb Raider is a human story told particularly well using video gaming as a platform. The

game mechanics and controls are solid but what really carries the game is the story (even when it

fumbles), great voice acting and amazing setting. The folks at Crystal Dynamics have outdone

themselves. I give it heartfelt thumbs up; it’s one of the best games to be released in a while.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/429/90481.html

11 March 2013

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters

Fairy tales have been getting their fair share of fun in the sun and now it's Hansel & Gretel's turn to

shine on the silver screen. As a child you must have asked yourself what Hansel and Gretel got up to

after killing the witch and going back home to their father. Were they mad at him for being a

complete scumbag and choosing their wicked (a clue right there that she's not a savoury character)

stepmother over them and killed him? Were they traumatised at having killed a person and ended

up in a nuthouse literally made of an assortment of nuts? Did they acquire a taste for killing witches

and carry on in that line of business?

Well, it seems that they went into the witch-hunting business according to director and writer

Tommy Wirkola. Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters is, technically speaking, not a good movie, but it

seems that movies have tapped into an element that keeps audiences interested: fun. The movie is

delightfully dark, over-the-top violent and just all-round funny. Wirkola's witches' brew works. It's

all, "Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and cauldron bubble". The 3D effect are very good

and makes witches exploding on-screen loads of fun to watch. I wouldn't recommend that you take

your children to see this movie. Alas, this fairy tale is not for them.

The witches keep you laughing

The violence is all in the spirit of fun and no one will complain about the number of witches harmed

during the making of the film. Jeremy Renner (The Avengers, 2012) plays as good a Hansel as you

can ask for and the fact that his character developed diabetes from being forced to eat too much

candy by the first witch they kill is a cool addition. He has to inject himself with insulin every few

hours or die. Gemma Arterton (Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, 2010) is straight up hot as Gretel

and she's kick-ass too. She ends up hanging out with a troll named Edward and it's just the funniest

thing ever. Famke Janssen's introduction as the evil witch and main antagonist, Muriel, is something

taken straight out of X-Men: The Last Stand (2006). That aside, she pulls off a very grotesque villain

along with the rest of her creepy coven. The witches keep you laughing.

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters is not a great movie, but it's well worth your time. It doesn't take

itself seriously and is very playful; it's humorously violent and has good 3D effects. It's a fun way to

spend a Saturday night with friends or with a date.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/429/90429.html

08 March 2013

A Good Day to Die Hard: a rubbish movie through and through!

I'm very excited today. It's the first time that I'm going to sit down to write a review for a movie

that's rubbish for BizLounge. I should also put in from the outset that I actually liked it, though. A

Good Day to Die Hard is a rubbish movie through and through! But it's a fun movie.

There's a semblance of a storyline that suggests that Skip Woods wrote the script when he was five,

lots of cool gun fights and explosions. There are bad Russian people (those evil Russians!) and Bruce

Willis as John McClane walking the streets of Russia swearing at everyone and being a douchebag

father. The biggest thing is the helicopter that is crashed into a building because, you know, it's a Die

Hard movie. The movie is very short, at 98 minutes, and this is actually a good thing. McClane and

his CIA agent kid, Jack McClane, played by Jai Courtney (Spartacus: War of the Damned, 2010), can

only kill the evil Russian man once, after all, and then they have to get back home for dinner. But

while they're in Russia they might as well take the time to jump over to Chernobyl, Ukraine and have

a few gunfights there and cause an explosion or two.

I don't actually know why I'm writing a review for this movie! It's a bad movie, guys, it really is. Wait

for it to come out on DVD and Blu-ray and then hire it - don't actually buy it. Invite a few friends

over, get very drunk and laugh. You can also grab a few buddies and go see it on half-price movie

day and use a bunch of discount cards to make it even cheaper. Remember to laugh at how

ridiculous it is.

It's fun, a redeeming factor

I vaguely remember liking the first two Die Hard movies and disliking the third one. I never got

around to bothering with 4.0. A Good Day to Die Hard is fun, though. I must emphasise this

redeeming factor. You can catalogue it under the influx of new action movies that have been revived

by The Expendables (2010). It slots right in there with its 1980s/90s vibe. It seems these old guys like

Bruce Willis just never stop being cool, they're like good whiskey. When I was at the cinema to see

this movie I saw that they were also showing Jean-Claude Van Damme in 6 Bullets (2012) and Arnold

Schwarzenegger in The Last Stand (2013). A thing is happening here and I'm not sure if it's a good

thing or not. Action is the order of the day and more so in its old-school format. However it turns

out, I'm sure it will provide a few laughs.

A Good Day to Die Hard is the sort of movie I wish I'd just made at home for shits and giggles. Go see

Bruce Wills and Jai Courtney kick Russians in the head as father and son, John and Jack McClane if

you're looking for a few laughs and your girlfriend/boyfriend, dogfriend or alter ego has kicked you

out of the house.

Yippee yi-yay Mother Russia! Sigh.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/429/89747.html

25 February 2012

Storytelling across platforms

One of the truly great things about stories is that there are many ways to tell them and share them

with each other. Stories are in our DNA as a species. We tell beautiful stories and we tell ugly stories.

Just look at the stories in the last few weeks' news: ugly stories like the outrageous instances of rape

and murder of women in our society and beautiful stories of women standing together to try to

repair our broken society in the political arena; the disheartening story of a sports hero who became

a villain. I recently finished rereading Final Crisis (2009) by Grant Morrison, one of the truly great

grand-scale comic books I've had the pleasure to experience. In it, one of the race of celestial beings

monitoring the multiverse notes that her race has become contaminated by interacting with the

beings that they oversee: "We all now have names and stories; there are heroes and villains, secrets

and lovers." To be human is to tell stories. I'd go as far as to say that being sentient is to tell stories.

There have been a lot of cool goings on across all my favourite storytelling media and this has led me

to thinking about how we tell each other stories and how we tell them across different platforms. A

very cool thing happened at this year's D.I.C.E (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit.

Gabe Newell, the CEO and co-founder of powerhouse gaming studio Valve, sat down to discuss

storytelling with well-known filmmaker JJ Abrams. In their keynote address they discussed the idea

of making films based on Half-Life (1998) and Portal (2007). If you're a gamer you probably know

that these titles are classics and have each redefined the gaming landscape on their release. If you

aren't a gamer trust me when I tell you that these games are a big deal. Believe the hype.

The idea of a movie based on a video game franchise is by no means new: it's just not been a very

successful thus far. Films and video games seem to be like Aliens and Predators - they don't play

together nicely. More films based on video games have tanked than not and vice versa. Sure,

ventures like the Resident Evil (2002 to 2012) movies and The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from

Butcher Bay (2004) video game turned out all right, but there's a Far Cry (2008) movie directed by a

very misguided Uwe Boll and too many terrible movie game adaptations for every success. Film and

gaming are sibling media and if they get over their family squabbles they can make magic together.

DVDs over books or video games

Movies have been a very successful storytelling vehicle since their inception because of how

accessible they are to everyone. After a hard day's work most people would rather curl up with a

DVD than a book or a video game. This quality allows movies to complement the other storytelling

media. Comic books and fantasy and sci-fi novels have increased in popularity because of the movie

franchises based on them. Technology has reached an apex where it's able sincerely to translate

fantasy worlds like Middle-Earth and Westeros onto screen. But even with the limited technology of

the late '70s George Lucas brought us Star Wars, which means that there really just is no excuse not

to be able to translate good stories onto the big screen.

Newell and Abrams touched on the difference in storytelling methods between the two media. Film

is a more passive form of presenting a story, the viewer can buy into the characters' lives and even

fall in love with them, but they are never participants. Conversely, gaming is a more interactive

medium and the player is in charge of how the story plays out (pun always intended). Even in a

tightly scripted game like Half-Life 2 (2004) you feel the pressure of it all being up to you to save the

human race from the invading aliens, the Combine. Games like BioWare's Mass Effect (2007 to 2012)

series take the interactive element further by adding serious consequences to your actions. I let a

character die in the first game and it made life hard in the second game when his people weren't all

that warm towards me and assisting with my mission. These are things to consider when telling

stories across these media. Players used to hitting zombies over the head with a crowbar as Gordon

Freeman may feel odd having to just watch him hit zombies over the head in a movie.

Some semblance of a story required

This is where the power of imaginative ways of storytelling comes into play. Movie audiences are

more used to good plots than gamers. Action films and romantic comedies aside, most people

require some semblance of a story in their movies. Gaming has been a shoot-'em-up affair for the

most part - we only started getting good stories recently. This is the ideal time to combine the

storytelling techniques of film and gaming. Film is at a point at which it allows filmmakers to tell

stories that they weren't able to just a few years back. Life of Pi (2012) was thought to be unfilmable,

but Ang Lee and his team made it happen and it's one of the most visually astonishing films of all

time.

Gaming is going next generation and there's a strong emphasis on imaginative ways of telling stories

and presenting them to gamers. Nintendo is leading the charge with its Wii U already available and

doing good things. Sony has officially announced the PlayStation 4 at its 20/21 February, 2013

conference. It didn't reveal the actual console, only the hardware specs and the new controller. The

ideas surrounding the console and the videos of the games are quite impressive, though, and have

me excited about the future. We're awaiting news from Microsoft regarding the next iteration of the

Xbox, but so far all the next-gen players (pun always intended) are focused on cross-platform

sharing. This is why Gabe Newell and JJ Abrams' D.I.C.E address was so important and goes beyond

just a Half-Life or Portal movie. Filmmakers and game developers need to share information and

learn to understand one another's media to tell their stories across platforms successfully.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/429/88698.html

04 February 2013

Tarantino at his best

When a Quentin Tarantino movie hits the big screen we all pay attention. People like me get wildly

excited and forget to wear pants to the cinema. Other folks throw their hands in the air in disdain at

the amount of blood that will be spilled on-screen and worry about the direction in which our

society is headed. Add American slavery to the mix and you have Spike Lee refusing to see the film.

Django Unchained, set two years before the American Civil War, is pretty straightforward in its

premise: Django, brilliantly portrayed by Jamie Foxx (Ray), is a slave who has been unchained. The

unchaining is done by dentist-turned-bounty hunter Dr King Schultz, the fastest gun in the South,

played by the charming Christoph Waltz, whose previous role in a Tarantino gig (2009's Inglorious

Basterds) as SS Colonel Hans Lando was breath-yanking. Django and King team up to kill some bad

white folk and to save Django's wife Broomhilda, played by the oh-so-beautiful Kerry Washington

(Ray) from the evil clutches (I think that's an appropriate phrase) of Mississippi plantation owner

Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio). Lots of things happen in-between that - and that's where the fun

is.

A terrifically good, if quite simple story

What makes Django Unchained such a great picture is that even though the element of slavery is

there to jar your brain and incite a strong emotional reaction (and rightly so) it's a terrifically good, if

quite simple, story that just happens to take place in an inhumane era of America's history. At its

heart it's a Spaghetti Western and pays homage to classic movies in the genre. The movie has some

beautiful shots of Django looking very much like Clint Eastwood in Sergio Leone's The Good, The Bad

And The Ugly (1966) - the movie that Tarantino states is the best-directed film of all time. He

especially looks the part in the gunslinger shots in the theatrical poster. Django Unchained takes its

title from Sergio Carbucci's Spaghetti Western, Django (1966) with Franco Nero as Django. Nero

makes a cameo appearance in this feature. The title also alludes to the films Hercules Unchained

(1959) and Angel Unchained (1970). Both these films also deal with the themes of escape from

captivity and revenge. By now, we all know that Tarantino is well versed in revenge and he doesn't

skip a beat with it in this feature. Django is angry and will gun down anyone who stands between

him and his woman.

The movie's musical score's excellent and is one of its best elements. The scenes with Rick Ross' 100

Black Coffins, John Legend's Who Did That To You, and Freedom by Anthony Hamilton are perfect.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Samuel L Jackson (Pulp Fiction) played their roles as Calvin Candie and

Stephen to a tee. The whole cast deserves a standing ovation though. If you've not seen Django

Unchained yet, do yourself a favour and rectify the situation today. This is Quentin Tarantino at his

very best.

The only thing really wrong with this movie is that Boba Fett isn't in it, him being the coolest bounty

hunter in a galaxy by far, and owning a ship called Slave I. I really should write some fan fiction with

him in it, a la Fifty Shades Of Grey.

At this rate, Tarantino should direct the films based on Stephen King's Dark Tower series and Jamie

Foxx play the role of Roland Deschain.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/429/88347.html

28 January 2013

The year that was: the hard men

Now that we're reaching the end of January my brain is finally accepting that it's a new year and I

don't put down 2012 at the end of everything I have to date anymore. This, of course, means that

it's as good a time as any to look back at the year that was and smile at how many great movies

were released (it truly was a great 2012 at the movies) and to look forward to what 2013's going to

look like in terms of cinema.

I rediscovered how much fun action is in 2012 in the form of The Expendables 2. Having seen Daniel

Craig running around in Skyfall three times now (he runs a lot in that movie) and trawling the

interwebs for images and trailers for this year's Man of Steel has got me thinking about 2012's

"hard" men in cinema and who we should be on the lookout for this year. A lot of good action-

orientated movies made it to the big screen last year and we've had the chance to see many leading

men kick villains in the head or being kicked by villains in the head, but who's the hardest of them

all? Be a good sport and let me be your ghost of action past, present and future. Let's take a look,

shall we, in no particular order.

Almost all of the hard men from the golden age

We have to start with the old-school guys in The Expendables 2. This movie rounds up almost all of

the hard men from the golden age of action movies and just for kicks and punches puts them in one

movie. The outstanding tough-as-nails guy in this feature is without a doubt Jean-Claude Van

Damme. The guy is 52 and still pulls off that split roundhouse kick that only he does (in every single

movie) and whilst being awesome it just makes everyone in the world feel awkward. He plays the

villain aptly named, Jean Vilain because, you know, the names in The Expendables 2 are very

creative. His villainy is less menacing and more comedic. Don't get me wrong though, Mr Villain will

kill you and then pose to put his sunglasses on before walking away. The thick accent he has in the

movie just adds to the high level of kick-assery. I have to give a nod to Jason Statham as Lee

Christmas in the feature. Statham embodies the image of a hard man and you don't want to get into

a fist, knife or gun fight with him. It's common knowledge that Chuck Norris is the hardest man alive

and his character as Booker, even though quite peripheral, makes quite an impression: he works

alone, has an awesome intro in which he blows up a tank and proceeds to tell a Chuck Norris joke.

You don't get harder than Chuck Norris telling a Chuck Norris Joke.

Mark Ruffalo's "enormous, green rage monster" surprised me by stealing the spotlight in The

Avengers. The Hulk has always been very difficult to translate from comic book pages onto the big

screen. Both of Marvel's 2003 (Hulk) and 2008 (The Incredible Hulk) attempts at this feat didn't work

out in a manner they or we would've liked. Eric Bana (Troy) and Edward Norton (Fight Club) did a

good job pulling off Bruce Banner, but the monster itself lacked lustre. In The Avengers, on the other

fist, the Hulk kicks all sorts of ass - Asgardian, human, Chitauri, you name it! He was smashing things

and ripping them apart all over the show. The scenes in which he punches Thor and mops the floor

(quite literally) with Loki had audiences in stitches. The Hulk is a hard, erm, giant, green thing and we

fear his wrath.

A really hands-on, break-your-face sort of villain

Christopher Nolan ended his Batman trilogy on a high note with The Dark Knight Rises and the

inclusion of a really hands-on, break-your-face sort of villain in the form of Bane was a highlight. You

know you're a hard man when you break the Bat. Tom Hardy's portrayal of Bane is brutal and his

presence is menacing. In one scene he merely places his hand on a guy's shoulder and asks if he's

intimidated yet. God knows I was. Everything about Bane is designed to inspire fear in his foes: his

creepy mask, terrifying voice (coupled with his eloquent language usage) and his calculated bone-

crunching fighting style. Bane is one of the best hard villains to appear on-screen in a while. We

feared the late Heath Ledger's Joker because he was bat crazy (pun fully intended) and we didn't

know what he was going to do, but with Bane you fear the grievous bodily harm he could cause you.

Along with Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen), Christopher Nolan's involvement in Man of Steel (14 June,

2013) has me excited about a Justice League movie in the near future, but that's neither here nor

there for now. Superman is literally a hard man but not so much in terms of his reputation for

kicking villains in the head. His is the big blue Boy Scout after all, but I hope Henry Cavill (The

Immortals) rids the world of this image in his role as the world's greatest hero. Superman is a

dangerous man and will break you; ask guys like Darkseid, they know.

I like Daniel Craig's James Bond, especially as he breaks all the Bond traditions. Craig's Bond is

dangerous and you had best believe that he will kill you with his bare hands. That guy will run for

two hours in a movie to kill you. Bond is a certified hard man (MI6 probably gave him an actual

certificate) in Skyfall. Javier Bardem's portrayal of villain, Raoul Silva, on the other hand is very

unsettling. He makes your skin crawl and impresses you at the same time. He gets an enthusiastic

nod from me.

You might disagree with Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage) as a hard man, but the

disenfranchised King Under the Mountain was badass in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. When

was the last time you saw a dwarf kick so much orc, goblin, warg and troll ass and still find the time

to make the ladies swoon? Admit it, the dude's badass and we get to see more from him in the

second instalment of The Hobbit this year, titled The Desolation of Smaug (13 December).

The latest Tarantino

Quentin Tarantino knows how to rile people up whilst entertaining them and his latest flick, Django

Unchained does just that. Jamie Foxx as Django and the charming Christoph Waltz as Dr King Schultz

are the coolest pair of bounty hunters as they trek through the USA's Deep South in the pursuit of

life, liberty and vengeance. Django is angry and the deadly gun skills he acquires from Dr Schultz

make white folk who harm innocents quake in fear.

I'm looking forward to a great 2013 filled with loads of action to accompany my cinema-going

experience. My eyes are peeled and my ear's on the ground for the following kick-assery: Thor: The

Dark World, A Good Day to Die Hard (Yippee Yi-Yay Mother Russia!), Iron Man 3, Star Trek: Into

Darkness, The Fast and the Furious 6 (all I can say is Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson), GI Joe: Retaliation

(can I say Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson again or was the first time enough?), Pacific Rim, Kick-Ass 2,

The Wolverine (oh, yes!) and the sequel to The Hunger Games, Catching Fire if you must.

Tell me, furry friendlings, are you not entertained by all of that goodness? Of course you are. Have a

great 2013 at the movies.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/429/87502.html

07 January 2013

An Unexpected Journey

"In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit." Thus, one of the greatest children's books introduced

our little furry-footed friends to the world and all were amazed, and the world has never got over

hobbits since.

Peter Jackson takes us back to his beautiful rendition of Middle-Earth that we all fell in love with in

The Lord Of The Rings and from the opening scene it feels like we've never left. I'm thoroughly

impressed by Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens and Guillermo del Toro's storytelling

ability; they manage expertly to navigate the line between being true to the source material (thus

pleasing we rabid fans) and recreating the story where it is necessary. Jackson and his brilliant team

set the bar quite high with The Lord Of The Rings and I was afraid that The Hobbit would not live up

to that standard - the book, after all, is a written for children and is much less epic in scale. The fact

that Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth) was involved didn't make me any more comfortable. I like

Mr del Toro, but his imagination is a bit too dark and twisted for Middle-Earth.

The story is brilliantly told

I'm glad to report that my fears were unfounded and that The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey lives

up to Jackson's legacy and that the story is brilliantly told and the visuals are amazing. I'm not

convinced by 3D technology yet and the 48 frames per second (over the standard 24) that the movie

is filmed in didn't change much for me. Be warned that some people in the audience complained

about headaches and dizziness. Bear that in mind when you go to see the movie. Initially the film

was meant to be released in two parts, but it's been decided on a trilogy now with The Desolation Of

Smaug and There And Back Again being released in 2013 and 2014, respectively. It's a cash-in

scheme for all intents and purposes, but if the quality's as good as the first offering, fans won't mind

forking out the cash for more Middle-Earth goodness.

Yet another great performance

Sir Ian McKellan reprises his role as Gandalf and delivers yet another great performance as the

wizard, if not better and more subtle. Also returning to their roles are Hugo Weaving as Elrond, the

never-ageing Cate Blanchett as Galdriel, Christopher Lee as Saruman, and Elijah Wood and Ian Holm

in cameo roles as Frodo and Bilbo, respectively. Martin Freeman (Sherlock) plays the role of young

Bilbo Baggins with nothing but charm - he brings the character to life. A very good looking Thorin

Oakenshield (Richard Armitage) and his company of dwarves are very endearing and amusing. One

can't help but love them. It's high time that the dwarves got the spotlight. Andy Serkis deserves a

special mention in delivering another haunting and, dare I say, heartbreaking performance as

Gollum. I am especially glad about the inclusion and expansion of the character of the wizard,

Radagast the Brown (Sylvester McCoy). His absence in The Lord Of The Rings was understandable,

but it was still a loss. My inner fan boy is rejoicing.

If you're a fan of The Lord Of The Rings, or just want to see good fantasy movie, The Hobbit: An

Unexpected Journey should be at the top of your list. Expect a hobbit, adventure, raucous dwarves,

trolls, orcs, goblins, wolves, stone giants (uber cool, these), a hint at a dragon and just all-round

magic. Some people felt that the movie was too long, but I felt it was too short. The wait until the

next instalment is what is too long.

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28 November 2012

If the Sky Should Fall

"The name's Bond, James Bond". These words, though iconic and catchy, have never mattered much

to me. I like James Bond, but not to the degree that I care whether he takes his martini shaken or

stirred. As Daniel Craig's Bond says in Casino Royale (2006) when asked whether he wants his martini

shaken or stirred: "Do I look like I give a damn?" Bond's just a guy who kicks ass, has cool toys and

gets laid more often than not. Tony Stark does that and does it better. Also, I grew up with Pierce

Brosnan's Bond, whose whole suave thing I could not really buy into. I liked Die Another Day (2002),

but that might have something to do with Halle Berry in a bikini and the scenes in which Bond's

imprisoned by the North Korean military and oozes coolness regardless. I've also been too lazy to

put effort into going back and watching the last 50 years' worth of 007 movies. Sean Connery,

George Lazenby, Roger Moore and Timothy Dalton have all passed me by for the most part. I vaguely

remember liking Live And Let Die (1973) after seeing it on eTV's Friday Action Night time slot some

years back. My opinion on anything 007 doesn't matter then, but bear with me.

You know what I can do with my little finger

Enter Daniel Craig rebooting the series in Casino Royale and I liked 007. I liked him a lot. Daniel

Craig's Bond is a scary man! He is rough around the edges, he is messy and brutal in the manner in

which he takes down the baddies. In the opening scene of Casino Royale he makes his first kill

(earning his 00 status) and it's very physical and later he's chasing a minor villain through crowds and

a construction site in Madagascar and it looks rough: he's big and blunt, but he's cunning and

intelligent about how he uses his physique to his advantage. Bane's bone-crunching style in The Dark

Knight Rises (2012) is similar. Daniel Craig's Bond will shoot you in the head without much of a

second thought. Then he dons a suit, turns up the ol' charm and gets the girls and you love it - you're

not even jealous if you're a guy. His banter is of the witty variety and his fists of the iron sort. The

guy gets away with lines like: "That's because you know what I can do with my little finger." When

Vesper Lynd tells him: "James, I want you to know that if all that was left of you were your smile and

your little finger, you'd still be more of a man than any I've known." I can't imagine Pierce Brosnan

pulling that off.

Daniel Craig was badass

Quantum Of Solace (2008) wasn't as good as Casino Royale, but it was solid and Daniel Craig was

badass in it, and the fact that he's on a quest for revenge adds weight to his badassery. Other than

that it was a movie to kill some time. The oh-so-beautiful Olga Kurylenko (Hitman) as Camille Montes

is pretty kick ass too. She's hot, but you know she will kick you in the head.

Needless to say that from the trailers I've seen, the poking I've done around Internetland and my

interrogation of people who attended the Heineken premiere (also attended by Bond Girl, Bérénice

Marlohe) in Rosebank last week, I'm looking forward to Skyfall, officially releasing on our screens on

Friday, 31 November. I'm especially looking forward to Javier Bardem (No Country For Old Men) as

villain, Silva and Ben Wishaw (Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer) as Q in his first appearance in the

rebooted series. I can't go leaving Naomie Harris (Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest) out

as Eve Moneypenny. It's all very exciting and I'll catch you guys at the movies on Friday and we'll

make merry with Mr Bond.

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22 November 2012

BMXing Back to the Future

I'm addicted to Jack Parow's nostalgia-inducing song I Miss, in which he lists some of the coolest

things that kids experienced when growing up in the 1980s and 90s. This song takes me back to

summer days spent exploring the neighbourhood on my BMX, rushing home after school to watch

shows like He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (1983 to 1985), always reciting the show's iconic

phrase along with Prince Adam as he held his sword aloft and would say: "By the power of Greyskull

... I have the Power!"

Weekday mornings would be "morhpin time" with The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (1993 to the

end of time); it was always an impressive act getting ready for school, eating breakfast, focusing on

the show and trying to ignore my mother screaming at me to hurry up. All we 1980s and 90s kids

fondly remember fighting over the remote control with siblings or parents to watch The A-Team

(1983 to 1987). We grew up in an interesting time in terms of cinema, television and the rise of

video games. All these platforms were being experimented with and improved until they hit a sweet

spot that brings a lone tear to the eye (left one if you're a guy and right one if you're a girl).

No VHS

A true story: I remember waiting for movies like Ghostbusters (1984), Back To The Future (1985) and

3 Ninjas (1992) to air on TV because my parents aren't cinema-going folk and we never got around

to owning a VHS machine. I got to see a lot of re-runs of cool shows like Robotech (1985) that I

missed when they aired originally because, you know, I was doing that being a baby thing. Most of

my 90s were spent catching up on the 80s - I grew up on a healthy diet of Rice Krispies and re-runs.

The best thing about growing up in that era was the evolution of video games, though. I started out

at the corner shops and arcades like all kids then. My friends and I would BMX to the store to buy

bread and milk and steal 50 cent coins from the change to play titles like Tekken (1995), Real Bout

Fatal Fury Special (1997) and the many iterations of King of Fighters since 1994. Weekends meant

BMXing to the arcade to play the rail shooter, House of the Dead (1997) and never really getting

around to finishing it before our tokens ran out. To this day I still take girls I'm on a date with to play

that game should we walk by The Magic Company at a shopping complex. When gaming became a

household thing I spent hours on my PC shooting up aliens on Mars in Doom (1993), single-handedly

taking down Hitler's Third Reich in Wolfenstein 3D (1992) and doing trippy things in Jazz Jackrabbit

(1994) - that game had to be developed by people high on drugs. Every kid of the day had a soft spot

for consoles like the Nintendo Entertainment System and Super Nintendo Entertainment System (ol'

NES and SNES). When I'd get bored with my video games I'd get on my trusty BMX and pedal to a

friend's house to play on his SEGA Genesis - we'd sit in front of his TV avenging Ryu's dad in Ninja

Gaiden (1988). This bliss would only last until 5pm each weekday and then your parents would shout

at you to switch off your "TV game" so that they could watch Days Of Our Lives.

Becoming an adult

All-in-all, life was good and my only fear was turning 18 and becoming an adult. I imagined there was

a switch in people's brains that was flicked when they turned 18 and their love of cartoons and video

games flew out of the ol' window. I started scheming and plotting how to work my way around this

tragic state of affairs. I sat in my lab (by which I mean my room) at night and worked on complex

schemes to rid myself of this switch, the most practical of which involved a cranium saw and a stick

of dynamite. As a generation, we managed to circumvent that switch and simply didn't outgrow the

things we loved; we took them all and dragged them, kicking and screaming, into adulthood and

forced them to grow up with us. We left nothing for kids growing up now; they have to sort

themselves out, I guess.

Towards the end of I Miss, Jack Parow says: "There's a lot of good things that happened back then,

but I can't keep going on about way back when so that's enough of that, no way no how, 'cause I'd

miss all the shit that I'm doing now." I agree with this sentiment because we're living in cinema,

television and video game heaven right now. Sure, many times it's hard for writers and developers to

get things right and recreate the magic we remember from the past, but I have had more fun as an

adult than as a child. All the cool movies and video games are mature now and usually come with an

adult rating because all the kids from the 80s and 90s are making them, and we make what we

loved, with the addition of adult themes.

He'd kill you and then have sex with your wife

This year alone has been great, what with awesome sauce like season two of Game of Thrones and

season two of the BBC's brilliant Sherlock. We even took Batman and made adults love him with

Christopher Nolan's take on the character. You can take your children to see The Hobbit: An

Unexpected Journey in December, but you'll probably appreciate it more. You can't take them to see

Cloud Atlas because they'll be bored and Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained is also pretty much

off the cards. I'm looking forward to Skyfall next week because Daniel Craig is hard; you know he'd

kill you and then have sex with your wife and you can't even hate him for it. Children missing out

again, the poor schmucks. Sylvester Stallone collected almost every action star of the 80s and 90s

and made the two Expendables (2010 and 2012) movies which revived the action genre for me. They

are cheesy in the best way possible and the one-liners are magical. They're quite heavy-handed on

the violence though.

All I can say is that it's great to be alive in a time to experience such great (and sometimes not-so-

great) cinema, television and video games. I'm happy that my generation never got around to

actually growing up. Go to the movies and watch some Cloud Atlas goodness and Alex Cross, which

is surprisingly solid and means all that trash Tyler Perry always makes is on purpose! He probably sits

on the money he makes from the Madea stuff and just laughs and laughs till he needs to pee and

then he comes back after a pee break to laugh some more. Liam Neeson's still kicking people in the

head in Taken 2 and I see Mel Gibson's doing a thing in How I Spent My Summer Vacation. Go see

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 if you're that way inclined. There's lots to be seen and revel

in. To all the gamers out there, get your grubby mittens on Call of Duty: Blacks Ops 2 whilst I save my

pennies for Borderlands 2 and the Mass Effect Trilogy.

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20 November 2012

My head in Cloud Atlas

I went to go see Cloud Atlas last week and I'm still uncertain of what I saw, but it moved me like no

other movie has since last year's Super 8 - and Lucky Number Slevin (2006) before that. Cloud Atlas

is not really a movie in the conventional sense of the word, "It is merely images and feelings, moving

in time and ready to collapse at any moment", Carson Lund points out in his Notebook Review. I

foresee many viewings of this movie in my future - it's right up there in the stratosphere with The

Matrix (1999), V for Vendetta (2005) and Watchmen (2009). The movie's tagline, "Everything's

Connected", is true of its relationship with the movies mentioned above in terms of having the

Wachowskis at the helm (along with Perfume: The Story of Murderer's (2006) Tom Tykwer) and the

casting of Hugo Weaving. The Wachowskis and Weaving weren't involved in Watchmen, but the Alan

Moore connection is there, as he had written both comic books. The point, though, is that Cloud

Atlas takes this idea of how everything is connected and plays with it on many levels.

The characters in the story are connected by events throughout space and time, and the actors play

multiple characters throughout the story to layer this idea of interconnectedness further. To my

mind this movie is a lot like my limited understanding of String Theory and Quantum Physics - it's

mind-bending, but there's a beautiful magic to it that we all can relate to. As you can see, my

understanding of this movie makes only a little sense. Take my advice and throw sense out of the

window (or at least suspend it) when you go to see Cloud Atlas, you'll have a much better time of it if

you do.

Astonishing acting range

Hugo Weaving's broad acting range has always been nothing short of astonishing in my eyes -

especially as the title character in V for Vendetta, in which you never really see his face behind the

Guy Fawkes mask, but you can feel the expressions he's conveying. In Cloud Atlas all his roles are

somewhat sinister and remind you of him as Agent Smith in The Matrix. All the characters are quite

silly when you think about it and they're all pretty serious about their silliness. Their stories are quite

moving though. Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, Hugh Grant, Jim Sturgess, Susan Sarandon,

James D'Arcy, Xun Zhou and a handful of others join in on the costume fun, each portraying multiple

characters.

Cloud Atlas is a beast of beauty; it's seemingly haphazard and all over the place in its narration of a

visually appealing tale. I use the word seemingly because I'm not sure whether there is a method in

the madness (the narration promises that there is) or whether I am missing the plot entirely. It's the

sort of movie that's easy to slide into and allow your mind to be transported by. It sells you a plot

that's difficult to make sense of once you stand up from your seat and leave the cinema. Whilst

you're there, though, you buy into the magic and it all makes sense on a raw, emotional level. It's

said (by some clever person) that a good book never reveals all of its secrets upon the first reading

and that holds true for this movie, it begs to be viewed multiple times - it wants as much of your

money as possible ;). Having never read David Mitchell's novel, on which the movie is based, I can't

say whether or not it, too, had the same appeal to revisit its world.

I guess I must "warn" you that Cloud Atlas is a long movie, at approximately three hours.

My head is in Cloud Atlas and I don't want to find my way back down. It wasn't on my 2012 list of

movies to look forward to, but it managed to creep (sneaky bastard that it is) onto the list and

position itself in the top five. Go to see Cloud Atlas and allow it to transport you to and from time

and space.

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19 July 2012

We're Batman

So our friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man's currently doing his web-slinging thing on the big screen;

new actor in the form of Andrew Garfield, Mary Jane's been put on the shelf in favour of a new love

interest Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone), he's donning a cool new suit. The Lizard (Rhys Ifans) causes

havoc as the new villain and basically everything is shiny new. Total reboot. The movie is getting

healthy reviews all-round and doing well at the box office. According to IMDb stats, the movie's

sitting at a USD525 353 977 worldwide gross as of 16 July. It's safe to say that Spidy's having a good

time. The Dark Knight rises on Friday (27 July on our screens), though, and will probably put an end

to all of that.

Personally, I liked the Sam Raimi trilogy, especially the first one. Peter Parker's nerdiness and the

manner in which he had to learn to assimilate his Spider-Man identity into his life were beautifully

communicated. Then again I was also a bookish teenager at the time. That's what Spider-Man's story

is about, after all - a nerdy teenager trying to find his place in the world, albeit a super-powered

teenager. That's one of the reasons that the character is so well received by comic book readers and

cinema-goers; his story is not very far removed from our own. Peter Parker is an intelligent science

nerd (genius in fact), he is orphaned at a young age and lives with his kindly aunt and uncle and as he

grows older he, naturally, wants to know more about his parents - whose story is a very hush-hush

sort of affair. Like many of us, he's had to navigate the maze that is high school life; he falls in love

and it's a mess. In the classic storyline when Peter graduates high school he is broke and has to work

as a freelance photographer snapping exclusive shots of his Spider-Man alter ego for the Daily Bugle.

Peter doesn't have it easy in any manner; his life is the sort of rough that many teenagers and young

adults can relate to. He has the added responsibility of being a web-slinging superhero, but we can

understand his struggles on a very real level. This is why we continue to read the comic books and

watch the movies.

Being our favourite superhero

In our quiet moments, we've all toyed with the idea of being our favourite superhero, whether it's

Spidy or Superman. That's a far as it goes, though, we dream about it for a bit and then carry on with

our lives. Then there's Batman. He's different. When we imagine being Batman there's a certain

form of magic to it, the dream seems like it's within reach. Superpowers aside, Spider-Man is more

of a realistic character than Batman, but damn reality to hell! We want to be Batman. The Amazing-

Spiderman is merely keeping us busy till The Dark Knight Rises hits our screens. Everyone knows that

there's no competition between the two heroes - Batman will dominate. I'm expecting The Dark

Knight Rises to smash all the records set by Marvel's The Avengers.

Because we all want to be Batman, let's see how one can go about emulating Christopher Nolan's

take on the character on the grimy streets of Jozi (SA's Gotham). First things first (never second):

money. You will need to play the national lottery and win the jackpot. I have faith that this can be

done. The millions that you win in the lottery will be invested into building a company that matches

Wayne Industries in stature and is worth billions. The company's main purpose is to supply you with

ultra-cool gadgets to assist you in your war against crime; everything else can be handled by guys in

nice suits and you can sleep through the board meetings. You should probably put in some effort

into making sure that the corporate image of the company is squeaky clean. Read the memos now

and then and do business with people like Patrice Motsepe and Tokyo Sexwale. That's just the

company image. Your own image, conversely, should be a rich, shallow playboy. I'd suggest hanging

out with Kenny Kunene when you have time; take pictures with him and eat some finger food off of

the naked body of a girl or two. Hire a Lucius Fox type of fellow to act as the CEO of the company,

but he has to be there in the more important role of making cool gadgets for you and adding nifty

improvements to your Batsuit - like the ability to manoeuvre your neck freely. You will need to be

able to trust this individual with your secret Batman identity and one of the deciding factors in

employing this individual should be his take on the Batmobile. The tough Jozi environment calls for a

kick-ass design that strikes fear into the hearts of hardened criminals.

You need to step up to the plate

You probably aren't an orphan whose rich parents were killed in a shady alley (where classy folk

hang) but you do live in South Africa, you watch the news and you know that the crime stats are very

high. This fact positively irks you and you're filled with an all-encompassing desire to do something

about it. You need to step up to the plate and be the hero that Jozi needs, not the one it deserves -

or some such cool thing. You are a dark knight.

The next item on your list is an obscenely large and elaborate mansion in Houghton. It needs to be

big enough to fit in a Batcave, so shop wisely. The mansion must come with the butler services of

Alfred Pennyworth, a gentleman of distinguished proportions. If you can't find someone named

Alfred Pennyworth find a person with impeccable butler skills, extremely accurate marksmanship,

some hand-to-hand combat skills and overall resourcefulness, and then legally change his name. Feel

free to do the same with Lucius Fox. In addition to making good tea, Alfred helps you design a

Batsuit with a cool utility belt in which you keep gadgets that solve a myriad of problems you face

when tackling crime. Remember to get Lucuis to add the neck manoeuvrability aspects to the suit

later, because, as Nolan highlighted in The Dark Knight, looking behind you is very important. Alfred

also gives you advice concerning push-ups, women, family and the minds of maniacs. This reminds

me, you will need to establish an asylum for the criminally insane individuals you battle.

Read a book and play Soduku

I doubt I have to point out to you that, as Batman, you will need to establish a rigourous training

regimen and master most of the martial arts in existence, because you're averse to the idea of using

firearms. We already have too many illegal guns in this country. You're rich so hire people to train

you or travel the world exploring all the criminal underworlds, like Bruce Wayne in Batman Begins.

Just be on the lookout for Ra's al Ghul - that guy is not your friend. Batman is highly intelligent so

read a book now and then and play Soduku.

Finally, you should stalk the Gauteng Police Commissioner, Lieutenant-General Mzwandile Petros

(unfortunately he looks like a man you can't convince to change his name to Jim Gordon) and strike

up an alliance with him. He should know that he can count on you for help and that you're willing to

take the fall as the villain of the story in order to continue fighting Jozi's criminal element. It's all

about that dynamic where he knows you keep the streets clean and still sends his troops after you

because you can handle that pressure. Also, you get to freak him out with your disappearing trick

every time he turns his back whilst speaking to you. It'll never stop baffling him.

Money and wealthy company? Check. Lucius Fox? Check. Burning desire to fight crime? Check.

Mansion and butler named Alfred Pennyworth? Check. Batsuit with neck manoeuvrability? Check.

Training in all sorts of martial arts and an extensive informal education? Check. A contact in the

police force? Check.

The rest is really just you getting out there and testing what does and what doesn't work. You'll get

beaten up, stabbed and shot, I imagine. Once that's all over, though, you'll be all set and ready for all

manner of kick-assery. Go watch The Dark Knight Rises on 27 July and then make us proud prowling

the mean streets of Jozi. Wherever an old lady without an umbrella, handbag or walking stick is in

danger, be there!

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02 July 2012

Imaginary countries for old men

No Country for Old Men, the title of the Cormac McCarthy novel and its Oscar winning film

adaptation by the Coen brothers, echoes the trend I've been noticing in Hollywood for the last

decade at least; all the old men (and, to a slighter degree, women) have left our "immoral"

contemporary society and have gone to seek their fortunes in fantastical pasts that never were and

space-age futures in distant galaxies that we hope will come to pass. What I'm trying to say, in a long

and roundabout manner, is that with the rise in popularity of fantasy, science fiction and comic book

movies in Hollywood, a niche has been created for old men. With themes and tropes such as

longevity, immortality, magic and mutation these genres are a breeding ground for elderly

characters running around and being kick-ass. This, of course, means more work and, dare I say

glory, for elderly actors. The revolution of the nerds is creating employment for old people, which

means no retirement for the wicked, I guess.

We all love wizards

The most common manifestation of this kick-assery (yes, that's a word, I promise I didn't make it up)

is in the form of wizards. We all can't help but love wizards in some manner; the good ones are what

we all wish our grandfathers were in their spare time and we feel the same warmth towards them as

most South Africans do towards Nelson Mandela. The evil ones we loathe but secretly want to high

five in dark corners for how charming and witty they are.

The late Richard Harris (emotionally blackmailed by his then 11-year-old granddaughter into

accepting the role, despite his declining health ) and Michael Gambon brought the stately and, quite

conversely, whimsical Dumbledore to life in their portrayal of his character in the Harry Potter films.

Professor Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore is, of course, the epitome of wizardry: he is over

100 years old (born 1881, JK Rowling tells us), he has an impressively long silver mane of hair and an

even more impressively long silver beard that he tucks into his belt, has a thing for thick, woollen

socks and, naturally, he has an arsenal of powerful magic at his disposal. Richard Harris is probably

remembered more for his role as Dumbledore than for his other more "serious" roles in films like

Gladiator, in which he played Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Michael Gambon's the person we think

about when think Dumbledore, though, as he played the character for a longer period of time and

did a brilliant job of it. His name is now written in the scrolls of high mages in some dusty library and

if he were to expire right now we would be proud of his magical achievement.

If I'm going to bother speaking of wizards at all I can't not mention Ian McKellen in his role as

Gandalf in Peter Jackson's beautiful The Lord Of The Rings trilogy (don't tell JRR Tolkien that I used

that term), a role he reprises in the much anticipated film, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,

coming out later this year. The first thing that pops into many moviegoers' heads when we see Ian

McKellen is Gandalf and his giant nose, and that makes us feel all fuzzy and squishy inside. There are

those of us who think Magneto, the antagonistic and also admirable character he played in the X-

Men movies. He also played Leigh Teabing in The Da Vinci Code, but I can't decide whether or not

that earns him a tick in this here context.

Dracula, Scaramanga and Saruman

Carrying on the wizardly trend in The Lord of the Rings is Christopher Lee (well known for playing

Dracula and Bond villain, Francisco Scaramanga), playing the character of Saruman, whom we love to

hate. The scene in which his "fell voice" is heard on the air as he attempts to bring down the

mountain of Caradhras on the fellowship embodies the image of an evil wizard in my mind.

Christopher Lee continues to have a good run in fantasy and science fiction films, appearing in Star

Wars: Attack of the Clones, and Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith as the evil Count Dooku. He also

voices the character of the Sith lord in 2008's animated Star Wars series, The Clone Wars and voices

the Jabberwocky in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland. Like Ian McKellen he reprises his role as

Saruman in the forthcoming The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. And, thus, Christopher Lee's CV

continues to grow longer than Saruman's wizardly beard.

Based on Marvel Studios' success, I feel the need to spare a thought for Stan Lee and the myriad of

cameo appearances and the writing and producing credits he has. There are so many of these credits

that I'm sure they just put his name in them, even if he's just at home sleeping in his Fantastic Four

PJs. But he gets a nod all the same.

Enter Batman

Staying in the realm of comic books, Batman had the ill fortune of losing his parents at a young age

and, thus, he was raised by his butler, Alfred Pennyworth, who is his staunchest ally in his never-

ending crusade against crime. I really wanted to talk more about Tony Stark's butler, Edwin Jarvis,

too, but Marvel Studios decided that they're cool and went with the AI version of the beloved butler,

J.A.R.V.I.S. (Just a Rather Very Intelligent System) for the movies instead. One of the coolest comic

book moments for me is in Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch's The Ultimates, in which they refer to Alfred

and Jarvis hanging out on weekends, even though they don't occupy the same universe. I like that

image. It's also funny that Alfred's father is named Jarvis. I digress though, the person who matters

right now is Michael Caine, who portrays Alfred's character in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy.

Where does one start with this man's long list of films? Alfie, Get Carter, The Man Who Would Be

King, his Oscar-winning performances in Hannah And Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules, The

Italian Job (not the remake), Inception and many, many others beside. All that matters to us, though,

is that he is Alfred in Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and on 20 July we see him in The Dark Knight

Rises. That is all. Morgan Freeman and his long list of film credits also gets a nod as Lucious Fox in

Nolan's Batman trilogy.

I've left out many elderly folk who are running around and being kick-ass and, for that, I apologise.

The picture I'm painting is simply to outline that the rise of the nerds is changing the rules of who is

considered cool and who isn't. Old people are cool right now, so much so that I wish I was 70. The

last really cool thing on TV was the second season of Game Of Thrones and it's just crawling with old

people being awesome. Young people had better watch out, our swag (100 people cringe) is being

stolen from right under our pierced noses.

Anyhoo, July is coming and it's bringing with it two very delicious movies to look forward to and spot

old folk in: The Amazing Spider-Man (13 July) and The Dark Knight Rises (20 July).

That is it. There is no more.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/429/74470.html

02 May 2012

A great 2012 at the movies

In terms of fantasy, sci-fi and comic book movies, the year 2012 only begins now. Sure, we've had

the rather lacklustre Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, Wrath of the Titans and, dare I add, The

Hunger Games to whet our appetites for what is to come, but that's all they were - starters before

the main course.

The first of the really big guns has already been rolled out as we speak. Marvel's super team, The

Avengers, is assembled and ready to face the threat that Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and his goons (such a

cool word) pose to the world (by which they mostly mean the US).

Mismatched heroes

When the world faces its greatest threat, as it does on a regular basis, Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson),

director of international peacekeeping agency, SHIELD, calls together the world's greatest and most

mismatched heroes to kick it in the head: Captain America (Chris Evans), a soldier literally lost in

time; "enormous, green rage monster", The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo); "genius, billionaire, playboy,

philanthropist" in a suit of armour, Iron Man; hammer-wielding god of thunder Thor, and agents

Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner). That, my furry friends, sets the

scene for all sorts of tomfoolery and kick-assery that both those who read Mark Millar and Bryan

Hitch's The Ultimates, and those who didn't, are sure to enjoy. Do yourself a favour and go to see

this one in all three of its glorious dimensions. Joss Whedon has done a great job at the helm of this

ship and never steers it wrongly. The Avengers is set to be one of 2012's highlights.

Spiderman, Batman and Bond

From here on out it's GI Joe: Retaliation (29 June, 2012), which has The Rock as Roadblock. That

alone will result in me watching it, but it also looks like it will be a good movie in terms of actual

merit. As long as it's nothing like The Rise Of Cobra all's well in the world. Marvel takes another jab

at the Spiderman franchise with Spidy's latest outing in the form of The Amazing Spiderman (6 July,

2012). Christopher Nolan's much-anticipated conclusion to his Batman trilogy, The Dark Knight Rising

hits the screens on 20 July, 2012, and Peter Jackson takes us back to Middle Earth before Christmas

in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (14 December, 2012). In-between those we'll be seeing titles

like The Expendables 2, World War Z, Resident Evil: Retribution, James Bond doing his Bond thing in

Skyfall, Prometheus, Jack the Giant Killer and MIB 3 to mention only a few.

All I can say is, save your 3D glasses from The Avengers and expect the remainder of this year to be a

great one at the movies.

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/97/72456.html

16 March 2012

The nerds are taking over

Not that long ago, in a galaxy known as the Milky Way, on a planet called Earth, I read the words

'Save a Non-Geek Today' in a PC Format 1 editor's note, and was amused by the seemingly far-

fetched concept. Little did I know that those words foretold the revolution that is silently sweeping

over the world and converting the masses into geeks without them realising it.

A short decade ago, people who spent hours playing video games, reading fantasy, science fiction

and comic books were thought to be weird and had chairs thrown at them wherever they went by

their peers. These people went under 'derogatory' labels such as nerd and geek and were generally

frowned upon for their silliness and were told that they should grow up.

What people don't know though, is that you can't keep a nerd down for long because they will go

back to his secret lair (because we all have one of those) and hatch a plan, so cunning you could pin

a tail on it and call it a weasel, to take over the world! Which is exactly what happened, the nerds

took over a chunk of the Hollywood machine and with it a large portion of the world. The message

being sent out to the masses is, 'Don't f*ck with us! We know how to build guns that shoot lasers.'

There was a time

There was a time when you had only a handful of television shows and movies to pick from if you

had a craving for super heroes, space or medieval settings, especially if you were an adult and

wanted something fantastic, yet mature. Television and movie studios were reluctant to touch such

material because they feared that they couldn't sell it to a wide enough audience.

Steven Erikson, Canadian writer of the Malazan Book of the Fallen series of fantasy novels, spent

nearly a decade trying to sell his script for Gardens of the Moon and nobody wanted it because it

was too ambitious! He'd walk out of studio meetings with his friend, and co-writer, Ian C Esslemont

having heard words such as: 'Try something . . . simpler. Something like everything else out there.

Something less . . . ambitious.'2 Studios didn't want to invest in material that audiences might find to

be too complicated or weird, which makes sense to a large extent but in the process they were

grossly underestimating the intellectual capacity and imagination of audiences. People wanted

something that would challenge them, hence the success of ventures such as The Matrix. People

wanted to go to the cinema and be sold a fantastic story that is intelligent enough to actually buy

into. People wanted, as Erikson puts it, 'sophisticated shit'.

This is the space-age

This, my furry friends, is where we are at, the space-age of television, cinema and literature in

general. Admittedly it's a little annoying that the 'real' world is not the high-tech one envisioned by

great minds like Isaac Asimov, in which the human race has conquered the stars. The nerds are in

charge of a large slice of the Hollywood pie and, like the gay community, we (me not so much

actually, which is an outright travesty!) have the buying power to sustain that hold. Since the release

of movies like The Lord of the Rings, Watchmen, V for Vendetta, 300, Sin City and others beside sci-fi

and fantasy have had a ubiquitous presence in the box-office.

Last year was great in terms of quantity! Seeing releases like The Green Hornet, Priest, the fourth

Pirates of the Caribbean, Thor, X-Men: First Class, Green Lantern, Transformers 3, The First Avenger:

Captain America, Cowboys and Aliens and Conan the Barbarian! This year we have Ghost Rider: Spirit

of Vengeance currently showing in cinemas and we are looking forward to titles like The Avengers,

The Dark Knight Rises, The Amazing Spider-man, Men in Black 3, G.I. Joe: Retaliation and The Hobbit:

An Unexpected Journey.

Fantasy, it would seem, is especially big in the form of television series. This is not surprising,

however, considering the length of the average high fantasy series of books. Shows like Legend of

the Seeker are rather lacklustre compared to their source material but the release of gems like Game

of Thrones shows that the genre can really do well on this platform.

The masses love these movies and shows and don't even notice that they're buying into the worlds

of the kids they made fun of in school. The nerds are taking over an important aspect of people's

lives, their imaginations. Just take a look around you at the wide-eyed uninitiated masses captivated

by dragons, lasers and men of steel on the silver screen or their LCDs and LEDs at home - slavish

devotees of the wonder that is fantasy, sci-fi and comic books with the nerds at the head of the

revolution.

1September 2003 Edition, Intelligence Publishing 2 Steven Erikson. Gardens of the Moon (2007 Bantam Press, Great Britain), Author's Note, pp. xi - xvii.