22
Sep
2009
The Informant!
Matt Damon is one of the top leading men for the Hollywood circuit, no questions asked. He’s well known from the thriving “Bourne” and “Ocean” franchises, though his latest release is a demonstration in his more curious role choices.
15
Sep
2009
9
Creators with unconventional imaginations seem to thrive in the animation realm. Director Shane Acker used his inventiveness to command a post-apocalyptic world into life. Based on the short film engineered for his thesis at UCLA, “9” has turned into the full-length featured story released on September 9, ‘09.
15
Sep
2009
Dual Reviews – Gamer
There are tons of reasons I love watching movies. There’s also tons of reasons I love reading and writing. Both of these reviews are awesome examples of different takes on film and writing, so I hope other people can enjoy these too.
And without further ado!
23
Aug
2009
(500) Days of Summer
In most of my reviews up to now, I’ve tried to interject some information on how the movie or material relates to me. It’s an easy way to begin writing because, well, I know me. So I write what I know, and there is only one way to really know anything- by learning. However fortunate or unfortunate, life for me is turning out to be one big lesson, with the biggest teacher definitely being relationships. Relating to people is not like math problems or history facts. People can be similar yet so INCREDIBLY different at the same time. Friends, girlfriends, family, strangers; they’ve all taught me very different things. Sometimes those lessons even contradict themselves. I’ve just tried to repeat what has worked well and learn from everything else.
23
Aug
2009
PlayStation Network: Fat Princess
Man its been a while since I’ve written a review. You can’t blame me though, nothing of interest was coming out of the studios that would entice me to spend money, except for the one game I kept seeing getting mentioned on multiple gaming websites. That game is of course Fat Princess for the PS3, which leads me to Respect The Review’s newest game review in about a month…
11
Aug
2009
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
The G.I. Joe popularity apex was a bit before my time I think. My brother and I were more Spider-Man, Batman, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle fans. Like most burgeoning young chaps around that time though, we did have a few of the Joe action figures and caught the old series on TV every now and then. Whatever my exposure was, it never really ingrained that “Yo Joe!” love of the franchise unfortunately. As I walked into the theater excited to see an action movie – but still with mixed feelings after the trailers and TV spots – I kept low expectations to give the film a solid chance.
18
Jul
2009
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
One Sunday afternoon about four years ago I became reasonably bored and took a trip to the Border’s store across the street from my house. Keep in mind that I wasn’t a big reader at the time; the last book I actually finished was Catch 22 for high school English class almost two years before that. I looked around – with store coupon in hand – until I found a box-set of books with the same name as some movies I’d seen at a friends house. Settling into my Laz-y-boy chair that afternoon, I officially tore into Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone, reading by daylight until the sun set and I persuaded myself to finish it in bed. Since that day I’ve enjoyed every J.K. Rowling novel twice, continued my renaissance in reading pretty frequently, I’ve become involved with creative writing at my college, and followed my interest as it’s turned into a love for stories in general.
18
Jul
2009
Xbox Live Arcade: Magic: The Gathering – Duels of The Planeswalkers
I’ve always been a fan of Magic the Gathering (MTG), yet I’ve probably never played more than a combined 24 hours of the game. You see reason is that I had friends that were mostly into sports, movies and video games. Whenever I broached the subject of wanting to play magic I was mostly met with bewildered looks and laughs from friends saying “Ha. That was a good one there! Wanting to play Magic. Your a funny guy Ruben!”. I don’t know if it was the stereotype they had of people who played Magic that made them shun the game and its players like the plague, but I always felt odd in being the only person wanting to play. Alas! Such is the case no longer! Now in the confort of my own couch the developers at Stainless Games have allowed me the chance to play the game that has been out of my grasp for the past 10+ years of my life, without the fear of being ridiculed by my friends and colleagues (except for my wife, who still does not understand that she married a nerd).
27
Jun
2009
Playstation 3: Prototype
Prototype by Radical Entertainment, makers of the minor praised Scarface video game, is their first venture on the PS3 and I can say that they have done a phenomenal job in creating a game that entices you to spend time in exploring the world they created.
25
Jun
2009
Year One
Going into Year One I may have expected a bit too much. Keeping my expectations low is something I’m working on, because then movies like this would be much less disappointing (in theory). Between the funny Michael Cera/Jack Black team-up trailer for the film, and Harold Ramis in the director’s seat, I know I was pretty excited. If you look at the rest of the film’s cast, you believe great things could have been possible. It’s too bad this was far too hopeful. Oh well. You live, you learn.
