one eskim0

one eskim0 is a new UK band. It is also the story of a little Eskimo and his lady love, Little Feather and how they must battle the evil man with the top hat and his forces of darkness if they are ever to come back together again.
Conceptual albums are far from a new idea, but one eskim0, in conjunction with Warner Brothers, have taken it to a new level.
Not only are there a series of short, animated films that connect into a whole, but it is interactive as well. If you go to FindLittleFeather.com you can help one eskim0 in his search for his lady love.
With animation by Passion Pictures, well known for their award winning animation of the GORILLAZ videos, The Adventures of one eskim0 take you on an amazing journey.
I watched all of these in one setting and they went by in a blur. The music melds perfectly with the action onscreen and eliminates the need for any dialogue. I tried my hand at the online games and did horribly, but I do not do well at those for the most part so, no harm no foul.
This is really a great idea for a concept album and I hope that more bands utilize this idea.
Can you imagine a RUSH concept album with art by Hayoa Miyazaki? I think I just gave myself chills.
Check out the trailer

GHOSTS OF GIRLFRIENDS PAST (2009)

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past” on Blu-ray, DVD, On Demand & Digital Download September 22.
http://www.ghostsofgirlfriendspastmovie.com/dvd/main.html

Let's run down the flick, shall we?

“Ghosts of Girlfriends Past” stars Matthew McConaughey as perpetual bachelor Connor Mead. On the eve of his brother Paul’s wedding, Connor’s mockery of romance proves a real buzz-kill for Paul and the wedding party, including Connor’s childhood friend Jenny Perroti (Jennifer Garner), the one woman who has always seemed immune to his considerable charm. Just when it looks like he may single-handedly ruin the celebration, Connor is visited by the ghosts of his jilted girlfriends, who take him on a revealing and hilarious odyssey through his failed relationships. Together they attempt to find out what turned him into such a player and whether he has a second chance to find—and this time keep—the love of his life.

Now let me be the first to say that I do not automatically hate anything Matthew McConaughey. That being said, this is a pretty good comedy that features McConaughey doing his silly shtick. And it's not really all that annoying this time around.
Good for him.

OBSERVE AND REPORT (2009)

“Observe and Report” on Blu-ray, DVD, On Demand & Digital Download September 22.
http://observe-and-report.warnerbros.com/dvd/index.html

Okay, when this first came out I missed it at the theater. The trailers all played it like a comedy and I had already seen Paul Blart, Mall Cop.
Then I watched this work of genius.
I received the DVD in the mail yesterday and I have already watched it twice. What can I say? I am flabbergasted by many things concerning this film.
The first would have to be that this is being advertised as a comedy. Maybe if you look at it as the blackest comedy you have ever seen. This is nothing like a comedy. There are so many characters in this film that ring true to life that it is almost painful to watch.
How many films have you seen where they do a montage of people in a mall. Plenty I bet. From Fast Times At Ridgemont High to Mallrats. The mall is always played out as this bright, shiny happy place.
The mall in Observe And Report is very bright and very shiny, but the people shown in it are all to real. This is not a place for the beautiful people. It's a place for the people who really exist. It kind of throws you off a bit.
Ronnie Barnhardt (Seth Rogen) is the head of mall security. He lives in an insular little world where he is in charge.
Then it hits the fan. First we get a flasher who is running around the mall showing his nasty goodies to everyone and then the stores start getting robbed after hours. Ronnie knows that this is his time to shine. He can catch the pervert, catch the robber and impress the really hot girl, Brandy (Anna Faris) in the process.
Kind of plays like a fantasy doesn't it?
And how many times do our fantasies really play out like we envision them?
That's right, never.
This is no safe little comedy to watch with the kiddies. If ever a film has earned it's R rating, Observe And Report would be it.
Ronnie isn't a hero. He's a guy who has bipolar disorder and is off his meds. He has a delusional sense of what is right and wrong and is dangerous to himself and others.
That being said, Ronnie Barnhardt is my hero. This is a man who, no matter how twisted he may be mentally, has a dream and will overcome all obstacles to achieve what he wants. Sure, sometimes he doesn't know what he wants, but he never backs down.
If it makes him an unpopular dickhead, Ronnie Barnhardt knows what is right in the world and he will stop at nothing to achieve his goals.
As soon as he figures out what they might be.
If any other actor had played this part they would be up for an Academy Award. Any one who says that Seth Rogen's portrayal of Ronnie Barnhardt isn't Oscar worthy is a freaking idiot.
Anna Faris is great in this. Ray Liotta is great in this. Everyone who is in this right down to the nasty little flasher is great in this.
Basically it boils down to these two things;
One, you must see this movie. Warner Bros. has made it possible to do so through multiple means. There is no reason not to see this flick.
Two, Ronnie Barnhardt is my idol and anyone would be proud to have this man as their friend.
Yeah, I am fully aware that he's a fictional character, but you know what I mean.
Go watch the damn movie already.
Best quote;
"The world has no need for another scared man."
Very true.
Director Jody Hill did such a great job with The Foot Fist Way. Observe And Report is his proof that his work will always be of this caliber. And the soundtrack for this film is pehnomenal. Best use of a Queen song since Shaun Of The Dead.

CLIPS, CLIPS and more CLIPS!

In conjunction with a recent post that covers all the recent boix sets that hit the shelves this Tuesday I thought I would include some clips for some of the more interesting ones. Here ya go. Watch to your little hearts' content

WARNER BROTHERS ARCHIVES

This is, without a doubt, the smartest thing I have ever seen a film company do before. They have all these films that have some requests for a release, but they wouldn't fund a general DVD release. Instead of making us sweat it out and watch bad dupes and horrid VHS versions of these films. And paying top dollar for them as well, I'd like to add. Warner Brothers has hit upon a goldmine. Hopefully, other companies will see this and follow suit.
I am referring to The Warner Brothers Archive Collection. It's a little like POD (Publish On Demand) Warner Brothers lists movies that they have the masters for. You select what you want. They make them and send them on their merry way.
It's genius!
I recently received BAD RONALD, DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK and a huge five disc OUR GANG set. These are the best any of these have ever looked. I have horrible dupes of the two horror flicks that I have watched numerous times and they NEVER looked this good. Clear, sharp pictures with the colors that were intended to be seen. Well, except for OUR GANG, but that's black and white and looking pretty damned crisp if you ask me.
For the true collector, Warner Brothers Archive is a dream come true.
Now, if they own Killdozer I'm gonna need that and I saw that they have Urgh, A Music War, been looking for that for a while.
Oh yeah and there's.....

ATTACK OF THE TV BOX SETS

Time to see what is up in the world of television and those lovely box sets that make it possible for us to have lives no longer under the steel grip of the television overlords.

Just kidding, but here are a plethora of television box sets from around the globe!

Once again, kidding. I'm pretty sure all of this stuff is American made or, at the very least, Canadian. (No offense, Canadians, you brew a lovely beer and I am a big fan of your bacon).

Now, on to the reviews!



SUPERNATURAL Season Four

Season Four! Man, it felt like this thing just came out. And it's up to season four??? I caught a couple of episodes way back when and it was alright. Not really my cup of tea, but okay. I perused the box set and found nothing to really change my opinion one way or the other.



TWO AND A HALF MEN Season Six

This one of my new favorite reruns on Fox to watch. Sheen and Cryer are excellent together and the kid is funny too. I have always been a Cryer fan and it's good to see him still making the funny. Excellent sitcom with and excellent cast. This show can stay around forever.



ONE TREE HILL Season Six

I never watched this show. Upon viewing a few episodes from this set I can also say I haven't missed anything. The girls are pretty and the drama is pretty cookie cutter fare. I'm guessing that the pretty girls have kept this around for six seasons. Yeah, the pretty girls, that's the ticket.



SMALLVILLE Season Eight

Shouldn't this show be called Lois and Clark by now? I mean he's in Metropolis so, what's left to say. Over the years this show has messed around with the Superboy mythos enough to make me more than a little nauseous and this season is really no exception. Are we, as comic fans, really this hard up for stuff like this/ Cartoon Network's Brave And The Bold is infinitely better than this crap and more fun to boot.



FRINGE Season One

I tried this one out. Yeah, I'm gonna use my memories of X-Files to keep me warm instead. I get what they are trying to do here, but I think they are trying to hard and it shows. The lenticular box is pretty cool though.




SCOOBY DOO, WHERE ARE YOU? Volume Three

It's classic Scooby. There is nothing better in the known universe. I wish they would just put them all in one huge box set. That would make it better.

Nothing spectacular up there, is there? Nope, with the exception of Scooby Doo, of course. And sure, Two And A Half Men is pretty damned cool as well. Well, fear no more little campers. I have saved the best for last.



SUPERFRIENDS: THE LOST EPISODES

What do you do when you continue to make episodes of Superfriends cartoons and there is no Superfriends show on television. You air those puppies on the Superman/Batman Adventures show and everyone loves them. Now they are all here for your enjoyment and this is some pretty good stuff. Lots of guest stars, short running times per episode. This is classic Hanna Barbera at its finest and a true addition to any Superfriends fan's library. I like this so much that I'm gonna include a clip right here;




There ya go people. Enough television programming to shock as moose and as varied as...well, I don't know , but it's as varied as something, that's for sure.
And I am out.

Seeya!

POE from BOOM!

Growing up you either read Edgar Allen Poe or you don't. Of the people who read it, you either like it...or you don't. My favorite Poe story is The Cask of Amontillado. I have read all of his stuff and always enjoy it. Now, we have a comic that gives us a little insight into what makes Poe, Poe.
Bereaved over the death of his wife, Edgar has been put in a sanitarium. He doesn't like it there and continually escapes and annoys the other patients so he is asked to leave. His brother is a policeman investigating a string of murders and Edgar offers to help with matters of deduction.
It doesn't take long before there are references to Masque OF The Red Death, The Raven, Fall Of The House Of Usher and this is only by the second issue. Author J. Baron Mitchell knows his Poe and shows that we will be in good hands for this adventure. The artistic stylings of Dean Kotz fit the tone of the story well and give it that Victorian look with modern sensibilities.
Over all POE is an excellent comic for the POE fans in the world and may help to introduce many more to the author's writings.
Well done.