I did not see the original Twilight. I read the novel and was horrified; how many teenage girls truly believe that men like Edward Cullen exist? (Fewer, probably, than the number of boys men who expect to meet a gorgeous independent woman who caters to their every whim and is miraculously attracted to slovenly underachievers, but that’s a rant for another film.) In real life a man who stalks protects a woman the way Edward does will continue to do so whether her life’s in danger or not. Perhaps the majority of Twilight fans recognize this, and treat the stories as wish fulfillment, much as this reviewer does with good romantic comedies (though not, it must be said, The Ugly Truth, which peddled a similar adolescent fantasy).
On that level, New Moon delivers. It reproduces the central appeal of the books: a man who’s faster, stronger, more romantic, better at playing baseball and musical instruments alike and more beautiful than anyone you could possibly imagine falls for Bella Swan, an ordinary, unremarkable-looking girl, and continually professes not only that he loves her, but that he cannot live without her. So protective is he that when his otherworldly urges place her in danger he actually abandons her to protect her.
This is the basest sort of adolescent fantasy, the kind any writer who’s attended university could dream up, and yet it would be undone by a sense of manufactured cynicism if author Stephenie Meyer didn’t wholeheartedly believe in it. She does, and it would appear a wide cross-section of the western world does too.
Well folks, it looks like we’ve only got two years to live.With that in mind, are you sure you want to spend the last bit of your precious time watching your terrifying fate on the big screen? If your answer to that question is an enthusiastic and energetic YES, then 2012 is just the movie for you.
Directed by Roland Emmerich, 2012 is about the human race’s greatest fear: the end of the world. According to the Mayan calendar, the world is set to undergo a series of large-scale natural disasters on Dec. 12, 2012, that humans will not be able to survive. The film takes us on the two journeys. The first is with an intelligent but unpopular writer, played by John Cusack. He’s divorced, and has two kids who prefer their mom (Amanda Peet)’s new boyfriend to their real father. Pretty typical, right? Still, if anyone can wiggle back into a child’s heart, it’s Cusack.The second journey follows a geologist (Chiwetel Ejiofor) who works for the White House. He helps the government prepare by giving estimated times for each disaster to hit.
I live near a hill where the forest is still lush and green.
Yes, the best time to be a gamer, Fall – Winter 2009 brings forth so many amazing games.
Game on! I mean Video Game on.. not that gambling game on. Trust me gambling is not cool.
As always click on the image for full sized goodness.
The Play offs have started.
The last hockey game I bought for full price was Wayne Gretzky’s 3D Hockey for the N64, since then I haven’t really fallen in love with any new hockey games. Sure, I’ve played my share but nothing has captured the frenzy of the old hockey games and has left me wondering if maybe my expectations are a bit too high. No, I haven’t been under a rock or anything, I’ve played and kept up to date on the newer NHL games but nothing has really stood out enough for me to merit a purchase.
When talks were brewing about NHL 2K10 utilizing the Wii Motion Plus accessory I was really excited to see how evolutionary this title might turn out to be. This excitement was due to the fact that the last sports title I played that utilized the Motion Plus was the excellent Tiger Woods 10. In the end it’s the actual utilization of this little gizmo that will either make or break this title.
So does NHL 2k10 have what it takes? READ MORE »
Developer Retro Studios has my heart, what they have managed to create over the last 7 years is nothing short of the most influential and loved series to ever grace any console.
On my list of favorite games 2002’s Metroid Prime for the GameCube ranks the highest, simply put I love this title.
Till this day I am astonished at how a once unknown developer has taken such a beloved franchise and moved it into the third dimension whilst maintaining the classic series feel and essence. Very few games can match the sheer mood and ambiance that the Metroid Prime series is known for.
When I found out that the entire Prime series was coming to the Wii on one disc I just couldn’t believe Retro studios was going jam pack all that awesome sauce into one piece of media. READ MORE »
Elementary my dear. After almost a year and then some we finally get another Layton game in our grubby little hands. It’s sort of funny as I mentioned in the preview that Japan is on its 4th title and the series is fairly popular there and here is hoping it catches steam in North America. The title is developed by Level 5 who have been handling this small franchise called DRAGON QUEST. The thing that strikes me about The Professor Layton series is how it can be called a true successor to old-school point and click adventure games. Almost every artistic scenery is littered with interactive madness, whether it’s coins that need to be uncovered, a scene to be analyzed or your traditional brain teaser that needs to be solved. Combine the fact that the game follows a very well told story which runs at a decent 12 hours with over 150 puzzles and you have a solid title that is a must buy for gamers of any age group but especially those nostalgic for the old school adventure games. READ MORE »
Just when I thought Ryan Gosling couldn’t get any sexier. Well, he’s in a band now. Not just any band – a duo with his best friend (and sister’s ex-boyfriend) Zach Shields called Dead Man’s Bones featuring, throughout the entire album, the Silverdale Conservatory Children’s Choir.
The result: songs with titles like “My Body is a Zombie for You” (the chorus of which is shouted by the aforementioned children), set to ominous piano-folk and the Roy Orbison-esque voice of Gosling. The mood is something like the Billy the Kid scene from I’m Not There, and if that reference is too obscure, let’s just call it Halloween. In the video for the band’s first single, “In the Room Where You Sleep”, the choir is outfitted in an array of costumes from skeleton to pirate to ghost.
Gosling has clearly gotten into character yet again – he and Shields created their own label, Werewolf Heart, that will release the debut Never Let a Lack of Talent Get You Down this summer. (Werewolf Heart has also taken on upcoming releases from Ima Robot and The Goat.) And just this week, Dead Man’s Bones announced plans for a North American tour in October, with stops in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, and will include a local talent show before each performance.
At points, “The Time Traveler’s Wife” sheds new light into the romantic drama genre. But at others, it just gets old and fails the test of time.
The film – based on the hit novel by Audrey Niffenegger of the same title – revolves around Henry DeTamble (played by Eric Bana), a Chicago librarian with “Chrono Displacement” disorder, a condition which allows him to randomly disappear into both the past and the future without warning (otherwise known as time traveling). He tries to build a life with the woman of his dreams, a young artist named Clare Abshire (Rachel McAdams), but their relationship is tested when the couple is forced to part ways for long periods of time due to his condition.
We first meet Henry as a little kid who’s assured by an older version of himself, after going through a car accident that everything is going to “be okay.” Fast forward a few decades later and a 30 something Henry is greeted by Clare whose known him since the age of six – the problem is, he doesn’t have a clue who she is.
If you go into “Bandslam” with very low expectations, you’ll be pleasantly surprised that this PG movie isn’t half bad. In fact, there’s some great lines, characters and story arches (for a Disney-style movie).
The key word here is Disney-style because Bandslam is definitely a step up from its Disney Channel predecessors. And don’t let Mickey Mouse alumna Alyson Michalka (“Phil of the Future”) and Vanessa Hudgens (“High School Musical”) discourage you from seeing this movie because tween, tween parents and everyone in between can take something out of “Bandslam” (including a lesson by Michalka’s character on how to kiss).
Hudgens plays Sa5m (the five is silent and no, I’m not kidding). Sa5m’s a high school misfit with an artistic personality, who speaks slowly and with little tone because she used to stutter as kid. Charlotte (played by Michalka) is her complete polar opposite. The former blond cheerleader (who has her own wikipedia page) ditches pom poms for music during her senior year.
I am not the audience for this movie.
Well folks, it looks like we’ve only got two years to live.With that in mind, are you sure you want to spend the last bit of your precious time watching your terrifying fate on the big screen? If your answer to that question is an enthusiastic and energetic YES, then 2012 is just the movie for you.
andPOP got the opportunity to try out 2K Sports’ latest hockey title, NHL 2K10. We had the chance to play the game and talk with the developers.
Primed Perfection
After almost a year and then some we finally get another Layton game in our grubby little hands. It’s sort of funny as I mentioned in the preview that Japan is on its 4th title and the series is fairly popular there and here is hoping it catches steam in North America. The title is developed by Level 5 who have been handling this small franchise called DRAGON QUEST. The thing that strikes me about The Professor Layton series is how it can be called a true successor to old-school point and click adventure games. Almost every artistic scenery is littered with interactive madness, whether it’s coins that need to be uncovered, a scene to be analyzed or your traditional brain teaser that needs to be solved. Combine the fact that the game follows a very well told story which runs at a decent 12 hours with over 150 puzzles and you have a solid title that is a must buy for gamers of any age group but especially those nostalgic for the old school adventure games. 
Just when I thought Ryan Gosling couldn’t get any sexier. Well, he’s in a band now. Not just any band – a duo with his best friend (and sister’s ex-boyfriend) Zach Shields called Dead Man’s Bones featuring, throughout the entire album, the Silverdale Conservatory Children’s Choir.
At points, “The Time Traveler’s Wife” sheds new light into the romantic drama genre. But at others, it just gets old and fails the test of time.
If you go into “Bandslam” with very low expectations, you’ll be pleasantly surprised that this PG movie isn’t half bad. In fact, there’s some great lines, characters and story arches (for a Disney-style movie).
