The Transience of Life Presents

Closure of This Blog Until Further Notice

2008-09-27T04:52:00.002-04:00

For now, I do not know what to do with this space, so I have exported the concept (and my ranting side) to T3H RavinG 1Mp .

My official writing site is www.websterwade.info which is bare for now until I sort out copyright issues or (preferably) publish something.

Travel Blog for a Bit

2008-07-10T18:57:00.003-04:00

I'm leaving for Baltimore/DC tomorrow, where I will begin my eleven day quest for self, purpose, and(/or at least copious amounts of) sex. I'll be visiting New York City for the first time, during the world premiere of The Dark Knight. I am going there to see a British comedian, one chubby funster and multiple internationally accredited awards winner Ricky Gervais, whos is also an innovative writer, actor, stand up, and media personality. And it's because I want to hear him talk about Karl Pilkington. My other grand indulgence will be a RUSH concert three days later. During my stay, I plan to see many films (opening nights as well!), at theatre or small organized private screenings. Other than that, I'm open to the idea of living. And I'm very open to finding a publisher, school, or collaborator to invigorate me into taking my next steps as an artist.

It's a soul quest, pot fest, gay jest filled cruise through the northeastern United States.

And it begins tomorrow at 6AM when I begin the airport gauntlet.

ReVAMP

2008-06-25T23:30:00.000-04:00

I will be changing the model of this site. My quality control is driving me nuts, and I don't think I can make this site as nice as I want with the features I want just using Blogger, but I AM using blogger for drivel, quick convenient links, gratuitous video features, and snippy irrelevant (but concise) commentary at impraving.blogspot.com, so that I can more effectively fit into the "blog" style. I just don't think fancy articles go on blogs, and so far, there aren't ANY fancy ones here anyway, so saving this webdomain for when I do write some fancy articles that may work in a blog context.

The Scale as Usual: Three Contemporary Indie Zombie Flicks

2008-05-10T13:18:00.000-04:00

THE SCALE USUAL IS FIVE STARS, HALVES ALLOWED

Zombie Wars (2006) *** 1/2

This is one of the better indie zombie b flicks I've seen (and I have seen ALOT of them). My rating for Zombie Wars is based on comparison to other films specifically in the zombie genre.

This is years after the zombie scourge and the semi-intelligent zombies have learned how to keep humans and breed them so tha they never run out of food. A few units of "soldiers" are still around to protect the surviving people from getting nabbed for Zombie farmin'. A soldier gets captured by zombies after a surprise attack, and he lives in the Zombie Farm for a few weeks, hatching his escape plan for him and his tarzan-chick (the zombie farmed people are not allowed to speak).

Yeah the acting is shit and the plot is executed in a sloppy script, but the zombies look great. The action sequences are well cut, and the editing overall is great because it actually makes sense, as compared to about fifty other zombie films I've seen that must've been edited by the undead they were so incomprehensibly irrational. This production actually bothered (again slagging other worse zombie projects) to create a sense of setting and zombified (isolated, grungy) atmosphere with this movie. And it's a pretty good exploration of the "zombie intelligence" factor debate ever raging in the zombie fan community. The script may be wooden in terms of dialogue but the premise, sequence of events, and anchor scenes are all very interesting and well expressed.

Definite watch for zombie fans or anyone who likes their horror with tasty gourmet cheese on reel shaped crackers.

Also this is available for netflix Instant Watch

Fido (2007) ****

One of my favorite zombie movies of the decade. Fido is an interesting and comical social satire, exactly what zombies were meant for. Matrix star Carrie Anne Moss is married to Dylan Baker, living in a conformist society; the couple decide, against Baker's wishes, to get a zombie slave for helping around the house. When the zombie starts to bond with their son, the couple is split by their feelings towards the "domesticated zombie".

There are some great wide shots of the suburban 1950s American styled neighborhood and a patch of grassy knoll where one of the "domesticated zombies" gets into trouble. Everyone has a domestic zombie and they are considered completely controlled, harmless, and a marker of social status.

The script follows the "modern artist interpreting the 50s" aesthetic. Like a zombie fan's "Far From Heaven", the husband is troubled by the zombie, but won't reveal why; whereas his wife is oddly moved by and defensive of Fido's connection with their kid.

Just an awesome movie. I'd say the deserves an add to your DVD collection.

[REC] (2007) ***1/2

It was definitely worth the time I took to see it, but unlike some zombie movie reviewers claim, this is not better than Diary of the Dead.

It does maintain its tension, but there's really nothing beyond that. Am I supposed to congratulate a professional film crew for making handheld look decent (because I thought that was their job)? Am I supposed to be thrilled that they hired a capable editor? Because if that's all it takes to make a good horror movie, then The Blair Witch Project was a good movie.

All my dissing done, I simply was not afraid for the people stuck in the infected building. I applaud the creators for the three (of about twenty) obvious jump-scare moments included that stirred me.

The simple reason why I can't say this is a cherished new zombie classic is because I have no desire to see it again. The main actress does not impress me, and considering she is carrying about half of the film's tension, that's not very good. This is nearly a nonplot movie and there are no echoing themes or messages behind it. It's just another crew saying, "hey we can do just as well as your valued American independents (Diary) or your Hollywood cash (Cloverfield)".

Worth a watch for sure, but just didn't capture me the same way it did for other viewers. There are plans to do an American remake of this called "Quarantine" but I am not happy about that.

The Scale as Usual - The King of Kong Documentary

2008-05-09T20:40:00.000-04:00

THE SCALE AS USUAL IS FIVE STARS HALVES ALLOWED

The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (2007) ****1/2

The production crew delves into the lives of classic video games' top players, centering around a rivalry between the first superstar of gaming Billy Mitchell and an unknown newcomer Steve Wiebe for world champion of Donkey Kong, a game revered by regular classic game circuit players as perhaps the most difficult of the classic games. The "referee" of classic gaming is a very interesting person, quite clearly an artistic word-minded soul interested in a very technical math-centered field, and by finding the balance between the two, he created a new career and a new way of viewing video games and infuses the film with a poetic aspect.

The crew captures many angles of the involved people's personalities, enough that this feels very narrative at points, which is a marker of good doc. Watching it, I became involved in the politics of this community, this "unusual and relatively unknown" outlet for proving oneself, and was quite intrigued by the gamers' competitive tactics and somewhat archaic score verification process, which looked easily corruptible by personal bias.

At the end of this movie, one feels like you've learned something. Even a seasoned gamer like myself didnt know about "Twin Galaxies" though I had heard of the place they run FunSpot. Beyond that, there are themes of determination, competition, being "the best" at something, and gaming culture.

This movie will probably change the way you view video games. It is conveniently available on netflix Instant Watch.

The Scale As Usual - Texas Chainsaw Massacre Movie Roundup

2008-05-06T03:09:00.000-04:00

THE SCALE AS USUAL IS FIVE STARS, HALVES ALLOWED

Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) *****

This movie is a benchmark visual expression of insanity, rage, and violence. As Tobe Hooper explains in the documentary feature The American Nightmare, the concept for the film came to him when he was in a large tool store and had a bit of a panic attack, he looked at the various common household tool weaponry and thought, "It'd be real easy just to saw my way through the crowd."

Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986)**1/2
Dennis Hopper (as God's right hand sheriff) is the best part of this flick. The grandpa gimmick is done again successfully, and this manic character controlling Leatherface is refreshingly witty and political. But that's where the goodness ends, as this is simply not very scary, being primarily set in an odd underground complex/cave system instead of the old homestead.

Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990)***1/2
This version of the family is interesting and devilish - particularly the gas attendant and little girl induced shivers for me. The mother character is the most original and perverse. It's fun to see Aragorn kicking around campy horror. My biggest problem with this movie is that Leatherface does not appear solid and large enough in wide shots (most of the killing shots). Some padding could have fixed this lack of mass problem easily. Far better than TCM 2. The grotesque credits alone outshines the entirety of Eli Roth's repetitive reel. Plus horror darling Ken Foree makes an appearance as a survivalist trying to outwit the Texas gang. If Leatherface was just a bit bulkier, this would be nearly on par with the first film.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre - The Next Generation (1997) **
It's entertaining to see Renee Zellweger playing a "survivor girl", but the "family" is quite weak in this one, as is the gore. For queasy types and kids, it's plenty grotesque, but there are no memorable kills or scares here for a horror fan. I saw the "dead family around the table" scene as a kid and was not only horrified, but offended, that this shocking trash was circulating; now, the corpses play as substandard production value and the concept of the overall scene is not as classic as prior "TCM family dinner scenes". Another dinner scene comment: Grandpa appears dead as usual but radically different from other incarnations of the character. He looks particularly corpsey in this flick, there is no dialogue on the family's part hinting that he is alive, but at the climax of the scene he gets up to walk, which is not an effective scare and very out of character (we just wanna see Grandpa struggle to lift a hammer, not see him bouncing about the room). McConaughey plays a good self-mutilating psychotic and I like the direction Leatherface has taken - extremely introverted and seemingly obsessed with the death of his mother whilst still struggling with yearnings for sexual contact with women, and expressing both this grief and longing as serial murder. I do hate the chainsaw swinging at the end which is an uninspiring exact re-enactment of the end of Hooper's original (you can only do that shot once in film history and make it meaningful, plus it has to have been a truly horrific film to warrant that bold ending). I also don't like concept that we are introduced to at the end *SPOLIER** that the world is run by an elite group and they fund and cover the Texas family's mayhem as part of a larger scheme to remind people of "true horror and fear". The "elite man" we meet has some cool fleshcraft and piercings on his body, but this menacing visual goes nowhere and his character barely registers as one dimensional besides not really adding to the plot.**SPOILER DONE.
Overall, I can see why the series had to "reboot" after this film.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003, REBOOT) ***1/2
revived the TCM franchise and inspired countless copy films On May-03-08: Had a craving to rewatch this today, partly because I needed a gorefest and finally because this movie has received so much praise from horror fans in particular so I had to re-watch this to get a fuller view of it. The biggest thing this movie has going for it is that it is scary. From Leatherface's design and characterization, which went down many twisted and too revealing versions of the character. Leatherface didn't need the pageantry he displays in TCM2 and TCM The Next Generation; TCM3 elevated Leatherface to that "supernaturally indestructible" level, and this remake goes with the original plan, the best one: mysterious, a human bull, deviant in unimaginable ways living out his supreme fantasies. Still, this is no TCM original; I have only seen the original once, much the same as The Exorcist or The Last House on the Left, because I felt I didn't want to see it again because those films were so solidly jarring and within their own demented yet believable universe. With this remake, somehow most of the gore and chasing seem more entertaining than frightening. R. Lee Armey gives a standout performance; I think his character is given the best lines and delivers them well to make for a supreme baddie and a believable totally horrifying character. Script wise, I always have my complaints. Obviously, this is just the first TCM re-written in the same plot sequence and premise. I especially don't like that when the film needs to move on to a scare scene, it typically does so by condescending the viewer and portraying the characters as foolish and oblivious whose fear does not justify their actions, especially in incidents before gore is unleashed upon them. Also more technical complaints: this movie made me question many anatomical things such as, if you have a meathook puncturing your lung and several other severe cuts, how long would one really live and how does a simple knife in the stomach end that? So this movie isn't consistent on being realistic in the death scenes, and though horror can be said to have a license to exaggerate above any other genre, it is too gratuitous here that sometimes a death loses its scare appeal (the kid on the meathook). Filming and set design: well done. As I said in my opening line, every twenty something serial slasher since has imitated Leatherface's basement and the Crawford mill in general. It's tightly cut with a great shot of Leatherface chasing two protagonists through several laundry lines of white sheets. Basically, this is a thrill ride. You get your jumps, but if you've seen the original TCM, you're not going to see anything near that impeccable portrait of insanity; this movie is for this age, instead of atmosphere and story, this moves quicker and concentrates on being very showy with any special effects or sets.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006) **
It could have been longer and less identical (more like less of a carbon copy) to its 2003 predecessor. Leatherface is given a through backstory treatment, which mirrors the tale of Michael Myers that Rob Zombie told in 2007. R. Lee Armey is back to do what he does. This is just a forgettable string of badly lit chase scenes and annoying dialogue.

I got myself a blog!!!

2008-05-05T21:26:00.000-04:00

That title is a quote from the show Squidbillies, a cartoon aimed at adult audiences that airs on Cartoon Network during the network's [adult swim] segment of daily programming. In the Episode, "Sharif", the Sheriff gets a tan, some leggings, and a blog and teenaged mucus colored squid Rusty is incredulous about this claim saying, "Damn boy, you got urself a blog?"

Okay so what I will start doing is posting my recent movie reviews. I use my Flixtster account for alot of the material, and I keep reviews brief, adding info where I've used film jargon or a quick reference. Here's a shitty zombie movie and a great zombie movie to start things off right.

THE SCALE AS USUAL: FIVE STAR SET, HALVES ALLOWED

Day of the Dead (2008) **

Definitely a movie that demonstrates why piracy is good for the industry: another way to filter the junk. I can't say this won't become a guilty pleasure of mine, but I can say with extreme certainty that this is no more a significant movie for the zombie genre than say....Return of the Living Dead: Rave 2 the Grave. It's just an action fest; and if all you want is a zombie shooter, watch Resident Evil: Apocalypse, Land of the Dead, or the 04 Dawn of the Dead remake because this is just gratuitous without being focused or trying to accomplish anything. If you want gratuitous and self-indulgence that accomplishes something, watch the first Return of the Living Dead, any Fulci zombie movie, or the modern tribute Planet Terror.

How this abomination got made:
-Imdb says:'Those who owned the rights to Day of the Dead (1985) made a straight-to-DVD "sequel" in 2005 called Day of the Dead 2: Contagium. Despite the title, the two movies are unrelated.'
-At ZombieReportingCenter.com (ZRC is my fav site for all zombie news), columnist Jef Porkins has this to say on his review of the 2008 remake: "The Taurus Entertainment Company, the people behind Day Of The Dead 2: Contagium are the ones behind this mess."
-From wikipedia: "Day of the Dead 2: Contagium is a low-budget quasi-prequel to the George A. Romero film Day of the Dead. Although it is advertised as an official sequel as Taurus Entertainment Company holds the rights to the original film, no one from the original film had any involvement in Contagium." So it is quite apparent that Taurus sold the rights to the film to Millenium Inc, distributor for Day of the Dead 08

What is wrong with this movie:
-The zombie makeup: the zombies turn into blistered ugly things immediately in a way that is more akin to Argento's "Demons" than a person who has become infected with a zombie-ish strand. The makeup look for the faces is a uniform aesthetic, but unfortunately it is a very poor aesthetic design concept.
-Zombies with super-powers: again, these creatures are more reminiscent of "Demons" or "Dead Alive" than even the "28 blah Later" series or the 04 Dawn remake. These zombies can instantly leap like Spider-Man, bash barricades like the Hulk, cling to vehicles like treefrogs, and even dodge bullets Matrix-style. It is absurd and quite unscary.
-The zombie "intelligence" factor: These zombies can fire weapons, drive cars, and use stealth like Solid Snake to capture their victims. The filmmakers have to the gall to do another "Bub" but they don't have the sense to give him characterization and a clear plot purpose because they're too busy firing uzis at hyperzombies.
-Big Script Problems: No time spent developing our human survivors, or at least not any effective attempts. The younger brother and his girlfriend are on the right track in terms of characterization needed. Everyone else is under-developed because the movie is obsessed with showing nothing but zombie violence. Clocking in at a mere 81 minutes, too many opportunities to build characters we don't want to die are dismissed as quickly as the zombies overrun the town. The more I muse on this movie, the less I like it.

But I am of the school that would prefer a zombie story that focuses more on the people trying to survive and, by doing this, reveals some interesting facets of human nature. I agree with Roger Ebert that "Land of the Dead" should have been a social drama set entirely inside Fiddler's Green with only the occasional mention or glimpse of zombies and Romero would have made a more resounding film. I whole-heartedly agree. These zombies run 50mph in the other direction, and they don't even give a scare like Snyder's version did.

This is Bub from Romero's Day of the Dead (1985)

Diary of the Dead (2008) ****1/2

Set for DVD Release on May 20, 2008 - Diary's MySpace Page

I finally capitulated and downloaded a cam; I couldn't wait any longer!

Romero is back at the top of his form. This is the true Dead movie for our era, not the uber-derivative studio action trash that Land was. This is biting satire, with necessary biting zombies. One forgets how proper zombies move until you watch some Romero. I love the inside joke comments on the "breaking ankles if they try to run" thing. The effects look amazing and they are memorable, unlike "Land". I can't tell definitively how high the cinematography level is here because I did resort to watching a cam, but if the story and acting are any indicator, this is a new benchmark in horror films.

It's so rare that a film not only fulfills the hype I have for it, but exceeds the excellence I expected. Romero is better off running his own productions, and this movie should show fans and him alike that it is the only way to go with the stories he wants to tell. Dawn was consumerism, and Diary is its media equivalent. Huge achievement.

Can't wait to get the DVD as a birthday present to myself, and can finally watch the whole image as the cam was missing about 30% off one side.