Culture Shock

The Book of Eli - worth the journey

mintoncard — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:35:00 GMT

Last night I was fortunate to attend a pre-screening of The Book of Eli. A post-apocalyptic tale, in which a lone man (Denzel) fights his way across America in order to protect a sacred book that holds the secrets to saving humankind. I found the film to be exceptional. It was a more "complex" movie than I thought it was going to be. Both in story and character. I do advise those who want to see this film to avoid spoilers. There are moments in the film that should be savored in the theater, not in a blog or forum.

A tip of the hat to Mike Scott for the invite, as well as Manchester theater for hosting.

Games games games!

mintoncard — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 23:47:00 GMT

So many stunning video games, so little time to play them all. Today, I am posting about games that I am playing as well as games that I have pre-ordered recently.

LEFT 4 DEAD 2 (out now) -

Left 4 Dead 2 is set at roughly the same time as the original – just after the outbreak that turned most of the population into various zombie mutants. Players assume the role of four new "Survivors," each with their own personality and new dialog. The game leads these "Survivors" through the southeastern region of the US - from Savannah, Georgia through the bayou country, and climaxing in New Orleans’ French Quarter.

BORDERLANDS (out now) -

A sci-fi/action RPG from acclaimed developer Gearbox, Borderlands combines the best in first-person action gaming with elements of a traditional role-playing game (RPG). The excitement of this hybridization is further magnified by the game's groundbreaking content generation system which allows for a near-endless variety in missions, environments, enemies, weapons, item drops and character customization, making the game's single player, multiplayer and online campaigns not to be missed.

BAYONETTA (out now) -

Blurring the borders of good and evil, this cinematic and stylized adventure stars Bayonetta, a heroine bent on sending supernatural forces to the depths of hell. Armed with her four enchanted guns known as Scarborough Fair, she battles both monstrous behemoths and angelic enemies. By combining special magic attacks, summoning primal forces and unleashing devastating weaponry, she impressively punishes anyone who gets in her way. From its fluid and intuitive combat system to its gripping story line, Bayonetta is one action thriller that won't disappoint.

DANTE'S INFERNO (release date - 02/09/10) -

Dante’s Inferno is an epic single player, third-person action adventure game inspired by "Inferno", part one of Dante Alighieri’s classic Italian poem, "The Divine Comedy." Featuring nonstop action rendered at 60 frames-per-second, signature and upgradable weapons, attack combos and mana-fueled spells and the choice of punishing or absolving the souls of defeated enemies, it is a classic Medieval tale of the eternal conflict with sin and the resulting horrors of hell, adapted for a new generation and a new medium.

GOD OF WAR III (release date - 03/31/10) -

God of War III allows players on the PlayStation 3 to take on the climatic role of the ex-Spartan warrior, Kratos, as he treads through the intimidating heights of Mt. Olympus and the dark depths of Hades once more to seek revenge on those who have betrayed him. Armed with double-chained blades, as well a selection of new weapons, Kratos must take on mythology's darkest creatures while solving intricate puzzles throughout his merciless quest to destroy Olympus and the mighty Zeus himself.

HEAVY RAIN (release date - 02/23/10) -

Experience a gripping psychological crime thriller filled with innumerable twists and turns, where even the smallest actions and choices can cause dramatic consequences. The hunt is on for the Origami Killer, named after his calling card of leaving folded paper shapes on victims. Four characters, each with their own motives, take part in a desperate attempt to stop the killer from claiming a new victim.

BIOSHOCK 2 (release date - 02/09/10) -

Set approximately 10 years after the events of the original BioShock, the halls of Rapture once again echo with sins of the past. Along the Atlantic coastline, a monster — somehow familiar, yet still quite different from anything ever seen — has been snatching little girls and bringing them back to the undersea city. It is a Big Sister, new denizens of Rapture who were once one of the forgotten little girls known as Little Sisters, known to inhabit the city's dank halls. No longer a pawn used to harvest ADAM, the dangerously powerful gene-altering lifeblood of Rapture, from the bodies of others and in turn run the risk of being harvested herself, the Big Sister is now the fastest and most powerful thing in Rapture. You, on the other hand are the very first Big Daddy, in fact the prototype, that for some reason has reactivated. You are similar to the Big Daddies familiar from the original BioShock, but also very different in that you possess free will and no memory of the events of the past ten years. The question is, as you travel through the decrepit and beautiful fallen city beneath the waves, hunting for answers and the solution to your own survival, are you really the hunter, or the hunted?

FINAL FANTASY XIII (release date - 03/09/10) -

From the creative minds behind FINAL FANTASY VII and FINAL FANTASY X comes the latest installment in the critically acclaimed series. Players will follow Lightning, Snow, and the other heroes who are dealt a hand of fate by the god-like fal'Cie. Cursed and regarded as enemies of society, they have the world against them and nobody to rely on but each other. Will they find the strength within themselves to break free of their curse and determine their own fates, or will they succumb to this higher power? With a story that is sure to connect with players' hearts, diverse new characters from world-renowned creator and character designer Tetsuya Nomura, and exciting new gameplay features centered around an evolved Active Time Battle system, FINAL FANTASY XIII will be the pinnacle in gaming experiences.

Weekend movie reviews (catching up)

mintoncard — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 17:34:00 GMT

I saw some fairly good movies over the past few weeks. Here is the recap:

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans -

Terence McDonagh (Nicolas Cage) is a drug- and gambling-addled detective in post-Katrina New Orleans investigating the killing of five Senegalese immigrants. I thought it was a great dark and funny roll for Cage. A fun film with unexpected moments of insanity.

Objectified -

A feature-length documentary about our complex relationship with manufactured objects and, by extension, the people who design them. Amazing film. Not so much about how things are designed, but more about WHY things are designed and how they relate to us. Also features a short look into the design process at Apple (left me wanting more).

Precious -

In Harlem, an overweight, illiterate teen who is pregnant with her second child is invited to enroll in an alternative school in hopes that her life can head in a new direction. Not exactly the "feel good" movie of the year, but all performances are stunning and award-worthy.

The Final Destination -

After a teen's premonition of a deadly race-car crash helps saves the lives of his peers, Death sets out to collect those who evaded their end. Completely ridiculous. The over the top deaths were the only thing keeping this movie afloat.

Law Abiding Citizen -

A frustrated man decides to take justice into his own hands after a plea bargain sets one of his family's killers free. He targets not only the killer but also the district attorney and others involved in the deal. I love a good revenge movie, and this one does not disappoint.

The Invention of Lying -

Mark Bellison (Ricky Gervais) lives in a world just like our own, but no one lies there. Everyone is completely honest all the time. I was surprised at how good this film was. Honesty can be very funny!

Daybreakers -

In the year 2019, a plague has transformed most every human into vampires. Faced with a dwindling blood supply, the fractured dominant race plots their survival; meanwhile, a researcher works with a covert band of vamps on a way to save humankind. Saw this with my good friend Mike Scott this weekend. Scary with a surprising twist on the vampire story.

Black Dynamite -

This is the story of 1970s African-American action legend Black Dynamite. The Man killed his brother, pumped heroin into local orphanages, and flooded the ghetto with adulterated malt liquor. Black Dynamite was the one hero willing to fight The Man all the way from the blood-soaked city streets to the hallowed halls of the Honky House. Hilarious & ridiculous send-up of the blaxsploitation films of the 1970s.

AVATAR "concept art"

mintoncard — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 18:36:00 GMT

Some interesting unused alien designs created for the James Cameron masterpiece AVATAR:

Best Movies of 2009

mintoncard — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 16:42:00 GMT

I'll build suspense by going backward. Here we go...

10. Watchmen - As a fan of the original comic, I was just giddy to see this epic brought to the big screen.

9. Princess and the Frog - Classic animation as well as a fun and funny experience.

8. Drag Me To Hell - Nice to see Raimi back to form.

7. Coraline - Exceptional story and effects. Neil Gaiman is a wonderful story teller.

6. Up - Any movie that can make me cry 10 minutes into the film is worthy of this list.

5. Star Trek - Despite plot holes galore, this film gave the franchise a nice reboot.

4. Moon - Sam Rockwell. That is all I have to say.

3. Taken - Liam Neeson finally gets to cut loose. A delicious revenge movie.

2. District 9 - It's amazing what you can do with a good script and a talented director.

1. AVATAR - More of an "experience" than a "movie". Don't cheat yourself, see it in 3D.

Twilight Saga: Eclipse & Iron Man 2 posters

mintoncard — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 18:33:00 GMT

I know, I know... I haven't updated the blog in a few weeks. It's been busy here at the station with our new look and the holidays. Enough with my excuses, here are two new movie posters!

I present the new teaser poster for Twilight Saga: Eclipse.

Also, the new Iron Man 2 poster showcasing War-Machine and some new Stark armor.

Video of Cat being fed with chopsticks

mintoncard — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 21:15:00 GMT

Video of a cat being fed with chopsticks.

WARNING: So cute, the sugar-rush might kill you.

Click HERE to watch the video.

Man Dies After Secret 4-Year Battle With Gorilla

mintoncard — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:59:00 GMT

Such a tragedy.

Click HERE to read the entire article.

a-ha - calling it quits

mintoncard — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 21:48:00 GMT

Most people think of a-ha as the "one hit wonders" behind the 80's hit "Take on Me". Granted that was their biggest hit, but they have had many successful albums over the years that have spawned #1 hits all over the world. I was sad to receive an email today from the official website:

We've literally lived the ultimate boy's adventure tale, through a longer, more rewarding career than anyone could hope for.

Doing this now will give us a chance to get more involved in other meaningful aspects of life, be it humanitarian work, politics, or whatever else - and of course through new constellations in the field of art and music. We are retiring as a band, not as individuals.

Change is always difficult and it is easy to get set in one's ways. Now it is time to move on.

It's quite a shame considering that the latest CD Foot of the Mountain is considered one of their very best. Oh well. Nothing lasts forever.

Amazing Magic Kingdom miniature effect video!

mintoncard — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 17:18:00 GMT

Disney Parks released an amazing Magic Kingdom Tilt-Shift video. All the beauty of it is coming from the "miniature" effect. Everything and everybody on the video are real but it looks like a model that would have been animated in "stop-motion", the famous 1960's special effects technique. For those of you who wouldn't be familiar with the SFX technique, in stop-motion the object is moved in small increments between individually photographed frames, creating the illusion of movement when the series of frames is played as a continuous sequence.

In fact, this great video was created from a series of photos snapped inside the Magic Kingdom Park by David Roark, manager of creative photography for Disney’s Yellow Shoes Creative Group. And if you want to discover how he did this incredible "miniature" effect I suggest you read his interview on the Disney Parks blog.

Click HERE to watch this AMAZING video!

Weekend movie review - Trick r Treat

mintoncard — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:59:00 GMT

This weekend I saw Trick r Treat:

It is said that Halloween is the night when the dead rise to walk among us and other unspeakable things roam free. The rituals of All Hallows Eve were devised to protect us from their evil mischief, and one small town is about to be taught a terrifying lesson that some traditions are best not forgotten. Nothing is what it seems when a suburban couple learns the dangers of blowing out a Jack-o-Lantern before midnight; four women cross paths with a costumed stalker at a local festival; a group of pranksters goes too far and discovers the horrifying truth buried in a local legend; and a cantankerous old hermit is visited by a strange trick-or-treater with a few bones to pick. Costumes and candy, ghouls and goblins, monsters and mayhem... the tricks and treats of Halloween turn deadly as strange creatures of every variety-human and otherwise-try to survive the scariest night of the year.

Fantastic film. Of course, this is not a movie for kids. There are adult themes as well as scares and gore. Of note is one of the most original werwolf transformations I have ever seen!

Cheerleaders Jump Rope Routine!

mintoncard — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 21:14:00 GMT

Amazing Jump-Rope Cheerleaders!

Click here to see them in action!

Thanks to Sue for the link.

Pet Shop Boys - Concert Photos

mintoncard — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 18:26:00 GMT

This last Wednesday I saw the Pet Shop Boys at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco. It was a great show! Here are some pics of the event.

Cute Animal Overload of Goodness!

mintoncard — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:20:00 GMT

Seeing as Mike Scott is on "vacation" for the week, I figure I would post some SERIOUS cute animal overload here on CULTURE SHOCK!

BABY SLOTH!

Click here to see the video!

SLOW LORIS GETTING TICKLED!

Click here to see the video!

BABY ANTEATER!

Click here to see the video!

D23 Expo - Big thanks to Bradford!

mintoncard — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 16:05:00 GMT

Big thanks to Bradford (editor here at the station) who attended the D23 Expo and was thoughtful enough to bring me back a fantastic postcard (pictured above). Of note: The original he gave me was signed by the artist!

Thanks again Brad!