Top-grossing films worldwide:
1. Avatar
2. Titanic
Top-grossing films in US and Canada
1. Titanic
2. The Dark Knight
3. Avatar
Titanic and Avatar are the only two theatrical films the guy has made in 12 years.
This man can now do ANYTHING HE WANTS in Hollywood. Period. I can't even comprehend that amount of casual winnage.
"Fuck, I don't even make a movie if it's not going to be the most popular thing in the world. Why even bother?"
Friday, January 29, 2010
Monday, January 25, 2010
Self-reflection
So I'm watching Spectacular Spider-Man on YouTube and I'm wondering why I'm rooting so hard for Gwen Stacy to wind up with Peter. In Ultimate Spider-Man I vastly prefer Mary Jane, and I like MJ better in the movie series too.
Then it hits me: I always go for the nerdier one. Never fails.
Good thing I found a nerdy one myself. :D
Then it hits me: I always go for the nerdier one. Never fails.
Good thing I found a nerdy one myself. :D
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Double Feature Review: The Fifth Element and Mars Attacks
Just saw a couple movies at the Paramount Theater here in Austin that I didn't really appreciate when they came out. This time, however, I greatly enjoyed them and would recommend them to anyone for at least a rent, though they are still hardly masterpieces.
Waaaay back in 1997, my favorite movies were The Lost World, Independence Day, and Batman Forever. Shudder. I even liked Batman & Robin and Godzilla (1998) when they came out, two movies that I now loathe beyond all others. What can I say, I was a stupid little kid. Two movies that I didn't like so much, because they weren't as flashy, weren't as conventional, and the humor was marginally more sophisticated, were The Fifth Element and Mars Attacks! And those were the movies that I decided to give another chance to last night.
The Fifth Element is a Bruce Willis sci-fi/action flick that is really a weird beast. It's probably most remembered for its depiction of New York in 2214, a crazy city of towers and beat-up hovercars that was influenced by Blade Runner and Heavy Metal and in turn influenced Attack of the Clones and other sci-fi movies. If you're male, however, you might remember it for nearly-naked Milla Jovovich and some of the most over-the-top small arms in sci-fi.
The plot is bizarre, and that helped turn me off to the movie way back when...it's sort of a Dungeons and Dragons plot stuck into sci-fi (there are even space orcs). Stones representing the four classical elements (!) plus a "perfect life form" (Jovovich) representing the "Fifth Element, life" all have to be gathered in one place every five thousand years to defeat Evil, which for some reason is a big flaming planet that appears out of nowhere whenever three other planets are "in alignment." I remember being bothered by exactly how little the nature and motives of Evil are ever discussed...in fact, its hardly *in* the movie except for the beginning and the end. We only see his henchman, Zorg (Gary Oldman), who despite having no motive that makes sense is extremely watchable. Oh, and Evil can make people bleed from the forehead for some reason. Yeah.
So that part of the movie isn't any better than I remembered, but I do appreciate several "elements" that flew way over my head as a kid. First off, there are a few scenes (notably in the opera) where the use of music to enhance the action is extraordinary. Second, despite having an extremely simple germ of a plot, Besson (the director) somehow executes it in the most twisted and darkly amusing of ways. For instance, the main character Korben Dallas (Willis) is a badass ex-special forces major who the government wants to travel to some planet and retrieve the four stones. So they rig a contest so that he is made the winner, so that he has a berth on the ship that's going there. However, as the military is showing up to brief him on this mission, the "perfect being" shows up with a priest in tow, who also wants the elements. The police also shows up to arrest Dallas on behalf of some of the villains, who are feuding with Zorg. Dallas tricks the police into taking the wrong guy, gets KOed by the priest who takes his ticket, then accepts the military mission. One frozen general, disguised alien, and exploding guy later, no fewer than FOUR "Korben Dallases" try to board that plane.
I'm still not sure I understand why the movie is as popular as it is, as it's not very good, but it's better than I remembered, mostly for the madcap second act (the first and third are weak). It's also got a good mix of humor and action, and a knack for surprising you.
Mars Attacks! is nothing but black humor, which I didn't always appreciate as a kid. It's also quite slow at times, until the Martians really start attacking in earnest. Still, I found myself laughing quite a bit, because the film excels in setting up worthless, imbecilic characters who are then killed by Martians in amusing and outrageous ways. Especially these days, watching Martians blow up Congress--to raucous laughter from one of the characters--is nothing short of therapeutic. And the visual effects are of a sort that you don't often see anymore: rejecting realism in favor of just looking cool and fascinating (and funny!).
I'm not the biggest Tim Burton fan, but this is one of my favorite of his films, now that I appreciate it more. And the ending takes the piss out of The War of the Worlds so hard that I'm amazed Spielberg remade it a few years later. (It's actually a more direct reference to Godzilla vs. Monster Zero.) Again, far from the greatest flick but well worth watching once if you want to see a bunch of movie stars acting like assholes and getting blown away, not to mention some loving homages to old-school alien and disaster movies.
Waaaay back in 1997, my favorite movies were The Lost World, Independence Day, and Batman Forever. Shudder. I even liked Batman & Robin and Godzilla (1998) when they came out, two movies that I now loathe beyond all others. What can I say, I was a stupid little kid. Two movies that I didn't like so much, because they weren't as flashy, weren't as conventional, and the humor was marginally more sophisticated, were The Fifth Element and Mars Attacks! And those were the movies that I decided to give another chance to last night.
The Fifth Element is a Bruce Willis sci-fi/action flick that is really a weird beast. It's probably most remembered for its depiction of New York in 2214, a crazy city of towers and beat-up hovercars that was influenced by Blade Runner and Heavy Metal and in turn influenced Attack of the Clones and other sci-fi movies. If you're male, however, you might remember it for nearly-naked Milla Jovovich and some of the most over-the-top small arms in sci-fi.
The plot is bizarre, and that helped turn me off to the movie way back when...it's sort of a Dungeons and Dragons plot stuck into sci-fi (there are even space orcs). Stones representing the four classical elements (!) plus a "perfect life form" (Jovovich) representing the "Fifth Element, life" all have to be gathered in one place every five thousand years to defeat Evil, which for some reason is a big flaming planet that appears out of nowhere whenever three other planets are "in alignment." I remember being bothered by exactly how little the nature and motives of Evil are ever discussed...in fact, its hardly *in* the movie except for the beginning and the end. We only see his henchman, Zorg (Gary Oldman), who despite having no motive that makes sense is extremely watchable. Oh, and Evil can make people bleed from the forehead for some reason. Yeah.
So that part of the movie isn't any better than I remembered, but I do appreciate several "elements" that flew way over my head as a kid. First off, there are a few scenes (notably in the opera) where the use of music to enhance the action is extraordinary. Second, despite having an extremely simple germ of a plot, Besson (the director) somehow executes it in the most twisted and darkly amusing of ways. For instance, the main character Korben Dallas (Willis) is a badass ex-special forces major who the government wants to travel to some planet and retrieve the four stones. So they rig a contest so that he is made the winner, so that he has a berth on the ship that's going there. However, as the military is showing up to brief him on this mission, the "perfect being" shows up with a priest in tow, who also wants the elements. The police also shows up to arrest Dallas on behalf of some of the villains, who are feuding with Zorg. Dallas tricks the police into taking the wrong guy, gets KOed by the priest who takes his ticket, then accepts the military mission. One frozen general, disguised alien, and exploding guy later, no fewer than FOUR "Korben Dallases" try to board that plane.
I'm still not sure I understand why the movie is as popular as it is, as it's not very good, but it's better than I remembered, mostly for the madcap second act (the first and third are weak). It's also got a good mix of humor and action, and a knack for surprising you.
Mars Attacks! is nothing but black humor, which I didn't always appreciate as a kid. It's also quite slow at times, until the Martians really start attacking in earnest. Still, I found myself laughing quite a bit, because the film excels in setting up worthless, imbecilic characters who are then killed by Martians in amusing and outrageous ways. Especially these days, watching Martians blow up Congress--to raucous laughter from one of the characters--is nothing short of therapeutic. And the visual effects are of a sort that you don't often see anymore: rejecting realism in favor of just looking cool and fascinating (and funny!).
I'm not the biggest Tim Burton fan, but this is one of my favorite of his films, now that I appreciate it more. And the ending takes the piss out of The War of the Worlds so hard that I'm amazed Spielberg remade it a few years later. (It's actually a more direct reference to Godzilla vs. Monster Zero.) Again, far from the greatest flick but well worth watching once if you want to see a bunch of movie stars acting like assholes and getting blown away, not to mention some loving homages to old-school alien and disaster movies.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
I think I just added myself as a follower, and I can't figure out how to take myself off. It's not that I'm so egotistical that I'm following myself, it's that I'm an idiot.
Anyway, as long as I'm procrastinating here I wanted to post some gems from my core course notebook. A few were recorded today, while others are from last semester:
Dr. Ryan: You can't just take a human baby and eat it and see if it gives you cancer. (The best part about this one is it actually made sense in context.)
(While taking a quiz)
Chad: I'll just grade this myself...zeeeeero.
(General laughter)
(Several minutes of scribbling pass)
Ammon: (loudly) Hey, I found a dollar!
(General hilarity)
Dr. Liebold (pointing at a graph): So, you could put a predator smiley over here, and a prey...sad face, over here.
Also Dr. Liebold: Think of mathematicians as a tool. Like a computer. Just check 'em out from somewhere if you need one. Ok, ok, you might have to buy 'em beer.
From my notes, written in the margin next to the phrase "Evolution stabilizing force?": "Good name for band."
Woo, grad school, just a barrel of laughs right?
Anyway, as long as I'm procrastinating here I wanted to post some gems from my core course notebook. A few were recorded today, while others are from last semester:
Dr. Ryan: You can't just take a human baby and eat it and see if it gives you cancer. (The best part about this one is it actually made sense in context.)
(While taking a quiz)
Chad: I'll just grade this myself...zeeeeero.
(General laughter)
(Several minutes of scribbling pass)
Ammon: (loudly) Hey, I found a dollar!
(General hilarity)
Dr. Liebold (pointing at a graph): So, you could put a predator smiley over here, and a prey...sad face, over here.
Also Dr. Liebold: Think of mathematicians as a tool. Like a computer. Just check 'em out from somewhere if you need one. Ok, ok, you might have to buy 'em beer.
From my notes, written in the margin next to the phrase "Evolution stabilizing force?": "Good name for band."
Woo, grad school, just a barrel of laughs right?
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
My Character Sheet
Patrick Stinson
Player Name: Patrick
Character Name: Patrick
Height: 5'11'' (The metric system is not used on character sheets!)
Weight: 158 lbs
Alignment: Lawful Good (with a touch of Frustrated)
Allegiances: Progressive politics, gay rights, SCIENCE, speculative fiction, Hasbro
Fandoms: Star Wars, Star Trek, Godzilla, Lord of the Rings, D&D (no kidding), Terminator, Battlestar Galactica, Transformers
God: None
Strength 9
Constitution 13
Dexterity 8
Intelligence 16
Wisdom 7
Charisma 12
Attack Bonus -2 (flail [not the kind with the ball and chain])
+5 (logical argument [90% of opponents ignore this attack])
Defenses 10 AC 11 Fortitude (+5 against all disease other than rhinovirus)
9 Reflex 14 Will (-5 against buying Transformers and helping folks move)
Spells Known:
Conjure Adventure: The caster can throw together a decent, you know, not-half-bad sort of adventure for game night. Casting time 1 hr/satisfied player.
EPIC Smackdown/Fail: The caster rolls opposed Intelligence and Charisma checks against an online adversary. If one succeeds, all present agree that the caster has pwned this n00b. If both fail, the caster is banished in shame.
Charm Lady: The caster rolls a d20. If he rolls a critical success, he has charmed the lady. If he rolls above a 15, the lady will continue to be his friend. If he rolls above 10, the lady will continue to speak to him. Special note: all results will be treated as 20 if the caster already has a girlfriend with the exception of the girlfriend's sister, who treats all such rolls as a "1."
Skills: Seminar Discussion +5, Experimental Design +4, Logic +6, Creating D&D Characters +8, Game Mastering +7, Video Games +3, Speed-Reading +9, Snarkery +7, Hap Ki Do -2, Archery -3, Skiing +3, Knowledge (biology) +10 Knowledge (Fandoms) +10
Feats:
Inside Joke
Where Does He Put It?
Katana Umbrella Proficiency
Moral Indignation
Flaws:
Teetotaler
Toy Collector
Oooh Something Shiny
Addiction (Diet Coke)
Addiction (pizza)
Addiction (Transformers Wiki)
Achievements:
Got into grad school!
Leveled several towns and killed several dragons (for the lulz) with La'Chiym the drow mage.
Allies
My parents
My beloved girlfriend, Courtney
My friends from home
My cohort and lab group
Player Name: Patrick
Character Name: Patrick
Height: 5'11'' (The metric system is not used on character sheets!)
Weight: 158 lbs
Alignment: Lawful Good (with a touch of Frustrated)
Allegiances: Progressive politics, gay rights, SCIENCE, speculative fiction, Hasbro
Fandoms: Star Wars, Star Trek, Godzilla, Lord of the Rings, D&D (no kidding), Terminator, Battlestar Galactica, Transformers
God: None
Strength 9
Constitution 13
Dexterity 8
Intelligence 16
Wisdom 7
Charisma 12
Attack Bonus -2 (flail [not the kind with the ball and chain])
+5 (logical argument [90% of opponents ignore this attack])
Defenses 10 AC 11 Fortitude (+5 against all disease other than rhinovirus)
9 Reflex 14 Will (-5 against buying Transformers and helping folks move)
Spells Known:
Conjure Adventure: The caster can throw together a decent, you know, not-half-bad sort of adventure for game night. Casting time 1 hr/satisfied player.
EPIC Smackdown/Fail: The caster rolls opposed Intelligence and Charisma checks against an online adversary. If one succeeds, all present agree that the caster has pwned this n00b. If both fail, the caster is banished in shame.
Charm Lady: The caster rolls a d20. If he rolls a critical success, he has charmed the lady. If he rolls above a 15, the lady will continue to be his friend. If he rolls above 10, the lady will continue to speak to him. Special note: all results will be treated as 20 if the caster already has a girlfriend with the exception of the girlfriend's sister, who treats all such rolls as a "1."
Skills: Seminar Discussion +5, Experimental Design +4, Logic +6, Creating D&D Characters +8, Game Mastering +7, Video Games +3, Speed-Reading +9, Snarkery +7, Hap Ki Do -2, Archery -3, Skiing +3, Knowledge (biology) +10 Knowledge (Fandoms) +10
Feats:
Inside Joke
Where Does He Put It?
Katana Umbrella Proficiency
Moral Indignation
Flaws:
Teetotaler
Toy Collector
Oooh Something Shiny
Addiction (Diet Coke)
Addiction (pizza)
Addiction (Transformers Wiki)
Achievements:
Got into grad school!
Leveled several towns and killed several dragons (for the lulz) with La'Chiym the drow mage.
Allies
My parents
My beloved girlfriend, Courtney
My friends from home
My cohort and lab group
First post, thirst most, cursed toast, pursed coast
Hello!
I'm Patrick Stinson. And I'm biased, but I think I'm a little bit interesting.
Probably, if you're actually reading this, you know quite a bit about me already. But just in case, I'm a 22 year old graduate student living in Austin, Texas and attending UT. I study biology, and am particularly interested in the adaptation of animals (specifically anurans right now, aka frogs and toads) to urbanization.
I'm also a huge geek.
I intend to fill this space with the crazy thoughts in my head that I don't usually do anything with. I can't get motivated to write in a journal, and I'm not skilled enough to create much in the way of art. However, what I really want right now is a forum where I can get feedback on my writing (hopefully there will be fiction and nonfiction) and set my own hours (but hopefully there will be at least something every day.
So to start us off, my next post will give you an intimate introduction to the deepest recesses of my soul.
I'm Patrick Stinson. And I'm biased, but I think I'm a little bit interesting.
Probably, if you're actually reading this, you know quite a bit about me already. But just in case, I'm a 22 year old graduate student living in Austin, Texas and attending UT. I study biology, and am particularly interested in the adaptation of animals (specifically anurans right now, aka frogs and toads) to urbanization.
I'm also a huge geek.
I intend to fill this space with the crazy thoughts in my head that I don't usually do anything with. I can't get motivated to write in a journal, and I'm not skilled enough to create much in the way of art. However, what I really want right now is a forum where I can get feedback on my writing (hopefully there will be fiction and nonfiction) and set my own hours (but hopefully there will be at least something every day.
So to start us off, my next post will give you an intimate introduction to the deepest recesses of my soul.
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