Update

Hey folks just wanted to let you know what's been going on. So life has been a little chaotic for me. My fiancee was away for 3 weeks, I've been working a lot, and playing lots of games. However in that chaotic month (well almost month) I received my first Platinum trophy on Heavy Rain. That was something I wanted before I wrote a review on it. So here's what will be coming in the next few weeks.

~Possibly another Top Ten
~Heavy Rain review
~The completion of the first season of Buffy reviews
~Some more movie reviews, on what, well I haven't figured that out yet.
~Possibly an anime review or two...Maybe, that's a big maybe because I just now started to get into anime and really don't know too much about it.

Top Ten (2)

Top Ten in 2008, Please Keep in mind that the only movies going on this list are ones I have seen and I feel deserve a place on my Top 10. I'm sure there are wonderful movies, that I just haven't seen yet. Each movie has a short blurb about it. Hope you enjoy! 

10) Bedtime Stories: A family comedy about a hotel handyman whose life changes when the lavish bedtime stories he tells his niece and nephew start to magically come true.

9) 27 Dresses: Jane is career-oriented and secretly in love with her employer, George. She spends much of her time as a bridesmaid, and has 27 dresses as evidence. Then her structured and ordered life comes unhinged when her younger sister, Tess, re-enters her life, and a reporter, Kevin, is attracted to her. Kevin decides to publish Jane's secret and her overwhelming wardrobe. Things get even more complicated when Jane finds out she may end up losing George to none other than her very own sister.

8) Fireproof: In Albany, the marriage of Caleb end Catherine Holt is in crisis and they decide to divorce. However, Caleb's father, John, proposes that his son delays their separation process for forty days and follow a procedure called "The Love Dare" to make them love each other again.

7) Kung Fu Panda: A CG-animated comedy about a lazy, irreverent slacker panda, Po, who must somehow become a Kung Fu Master in order to save the Valley of Peace from a villainous snow leopard, Tai Lung. Set in the legendary world of ancient China, this is the story of Po, our unlikely hero, who enters the rigid world of Kung Fu and turning it upside down. Po ultimately becomes a Kung Fu hero by learning that if he believes in himself, he can do anything.

6) Doubt: In 1964 a Catholic elementary school has just admitted its first Black student, a 12-year-old boy transferred from public school. The principal, a rigid disciplinarian nun, and the liberal parish priest are both concerned for the boy's welfare in a predominantly Irish/Italian school. The nun becomes convinced that the priest has, or is planning to have, an improper relationship with the child and is determined to force him to leave the school. A third compassionate person is the boy's mother, who has another point of view. The fourth person is a young teacher who is concerned but confused by the conflict between the nun and the priest.

5) Definitely, Maybe: On the day she has her first sex ed class, 10-year-old Maya grills her divorcing dad Will Hayes about her conception. That night, he fills her in, changing the names of the women who were in his life then to keep her guessing which is her mom: Emily, his college girlfriend when he came to New York from Wisconsin for Clinton's '92 campaign; April, edgy, a little cynical, who misses her father; and, Summer, a writer attracted to older, established men. In demanding the story, Maya's motivation is clear: to get her dad to fall in love again with her mom. Will this parent trap work? In the telling, might Will discover his true Penelope? Definitely. Maybe.

4) Zack and Miri Make a Porno: After completion of their school, Zack Brown and Miriam Linky go steady, live together, but are not intimate. Years later, they are still living together and on the lookout for intimacy. Despite Zack's employment with 'Bean-N-Gone' Coffee Shop, owned by an East Indian, Surya, they are unable to pay their utilities and end up without hydro and heat. After attending a reunion, both decide to make a porno film, and title it 'Star Whores'. They accordingly hire actors and decide to play lovers themselves in this movie - with hilarious and life changing results.

3) Iron Man: Tony Stark is the complete playboy who also happens to be an engineering genius. While in Afghanistan demonstrating a new missile he's captured and wounded. His captors want him to assemble a missile for them but instead he creates an armored suit and a means to prevent his death from the shrapnel left in his chest by the attack. He uses the armored suit to escape. Back in the U.S. he announces his company will cease making weapons and he begins work on an updated armored suit only to find that Obadiah Stane, his second in command at Stark industries has been selling Stark weapons to the insurgents. He uses his new suit to return to Afghanistan to destroy the arms and then to stop Stane from misusing his research.

2) The Dark Knight: Batman raises the stakes in his bourgeois war on crime. With the help of Lieutenant Jim Gordon and District Attorney Harvey Dent, Batman sets out to dismantle the remaining criminal organizations that plague the city streets. The partnership proves to be effective, but they soon find themselves prey to a reign of chaos unleashed by a rising criminal mastermind known to the terrified citizens of Gotham as The Joker

1) Wall-E: In a distant, but not so unrealistic future, where mankind has abandoned earth because it has become covered with trash from products sold by the powerful multi-national Buy N Large corporation, WALL-E, a garbage collecting robot has been left to clean up the mess. Mesmerized with trinkets of Earth's history and show tunes, WALL-E is alone on Earth except for a sprightly pet cockroach. One day, Eve, a sleek (and dangerous) reconnaissance robot, is sent to Earth to find proof that life is once again sustainable. WALL-E falls in love with Eve. WALL-E rescues Eve from a dust storm and shows her a living plant he found amongst the rubble. Consistent with her "directive" Eve takes the plant and automatically enters a deactivated state except for a blinking green beacon. WALL-E, doesn't understand what has happened to his new friend, but true to his love, he protects her from wind, rain, and lightning, even as she is unresponsive. One day a massive ship comes to reclaim Eve, but WALL-E, out of love or loneliness hitches a ride on the outside of the ship to rescue Eve. The ship arrives back at a large space cruise ship, which is carrying all of the humans who evacuated Earth 700 years earlier. The people of Earth ride around this space resort on hovering chairs which give them a constant feed of TV and video chatting. They drink all of their meals through a straw out of laziness and/or bone loss, and are all so fat that they can barely move. When the auto-pilot computer, acting on hastily given instructions sent many centuries before, tries to prevent the people of Earth from returning, by stealing the plant, WALL-E, Eve, the portly captain, and a band of broken robots stage a mutiny.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer S1 EP8

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Season 1 Episode 8

"I Robot...You Jane"

Original Airdate: April 28, 1997

Summary: In 1418, a group of Italian priests use magick to trap the demon Moloch in a book, only to be released if the book is ever read aloud. In 1997 Sunnydale, the computer teacher, Ms. Calendar, is working on a project to digitally scan all the books in the library. When a new arrival, in a strange language, is scanned, Moloch is released into the computer... and into every computer connected to it. Now Buffy must face Moloch's human minions, while Giles must figure out how to exorcise a demon from the Internet.

Meanwhile, Willow meets a nice boy online. His name is Malcolm...

Review:  Another weak episode of the season, another movie-of-the-week episode, this time it's centered around Willow. She gets her first "boyfriend," someone she met online. It just goes to show that sometimes online dating is not always a good thing, however this was several years ago when this episode came out and online dating was sincerely frowned upon, anyway more on the episode. Now that Willow has someone in her life, Xander is jealous. But still something is just off about this guy.  Buffy notices that it's not just Willow, but 2 of the other "computer geeks" are also acting weird. 

One thing I love about this episode is the sexual tension between Jenny Calendar and Rupert Giles. This is where they begin. I remember when I first saw this episode and Giles said "There's a demon in the internet" and Jenny said "I know." I immediately thought that she planted the book, and then we find out that she is a technopagan. Awesome! 

This is a great Willow episode, mostly I have no complaints, just that in the end it gets hard to see. The color is not as bad as most, only in a few spots. The story line is a little weak, but the over all message of the episode is pretty clear. Careful with the people you meet online. I give this episode a 6/10.

Quote of the Episode: 

Xander: I mean... sure, he says he is a high school student -- but I could say I'm a high school student.
Buffy: You are.
Xander: Okay, but I could also say that I'm an elderly Dutch woman... Get me? And who's to say I'm not if I'm in the elderly Dutch chat room?
Buffy: I get your point... (beat) I get your point! This guy could be anybody -- I mean he could be weird, or crazy, or old, or... he could be a circus freak -- he's probably a circus freak!

Buffy the Vampire Slayer S1 EP7

Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Season 1 Episode 7
"Angel"
Original Airdate: April 14, 1997


Summary: After Angel saves Buffy from a gang of vampire warriors, their relationship starts to become more intense. As their love blooms, Buffy learns that Angel has been hiding a dark secret. She hesitates, not sure what to believe, but when Angel's secret puts someone she loves in danger, she knows what she has to do.


Review: Dark Clothing and dark lighting, make for a bad combo. Every so often especially in the first season these combos come together, and guess what folks, it's happened again! I don't know what it is with this season. I guess they just haven't gotten the groove down yet.
Anyway onto the episode, we start off at the Bronze with the gang and Buffy seems to be bringing down everyone, so she decides to leave and ends up getting jumped by a gang of vampire warriors, and Angel comes to her rescue causing the events of the rest of the episode to unfold. We find out what Angel's been hiding, and why he's been so distant. He's a Vampire!! I'm shocked! Not really, He's handsome, brooding, and buff why wouldn't he be a vampire. So here comes the forbidden love story line. 
Still not sure if Angel is good or bad, Buffy's confusion causes her and the gang to hit the books where they learn that over the past 80 years Angel has lived in solitude and shunned himself from other beings like himself. He's a vampire, but she's the slayer she's supposed to kill him. Can she? Well you'll just have to tune in to find out!
This episode is gearing up for the finale, I wouldn't call it movie-of-the-week, but it doesn't really giveaway what is going to happen in the end at all. One character who has been in several episodes is Darla, but I have yet to really discuss her. She is basically the Master's lackey and also ex-lover of Angel. Darla wants Angel back on her side, but we fans know there is only one way to do that. So she makes it look like Angel attempted to kill Joyce (Buffy's mom), and Buffy seeks vengeance. At the end of the episode we learn about the curse. Angel has received his soul back, and can no longer feed on human beings. So he is good! Yay! 
It's a good episode, one of my favorites of the season. Only a few more left, can't wait for the next few when it gets so good! Buffy and Angel's love starts to bud, and they are a wonderful couple! The definition of True Love. I give this episode an 8/10 stars.


Quote of the Episode: 
Willow: What about Angel?
Buffy: Angel? I can just see him in a relationship. "Hi Honey, you’re in grave danger, I’ll see you next month.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer S1 EP6

Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Season 1 Episode 6
"The Pack"
Original Airdate: April 4, 1997



Summary: While enduring the annual field trip to the zoo, Xander and several other students enter the quarantined Hyena pen and become possessed by the demonic spirit of the wild animals. When Buffy notices a significant change in Xander's personality, she must figure out what happened and how to reverse it before something terrible happens

Review: Xander's becoming a hyena! Oh no! What are the scoobies to do? Well simple try to get their old pal Xander back to his normal self, and also the other knuckleheads that are bullying the school community. After all the strange behavior, pig and principal eating, they figure out how to fix him and the rest of the cronies. 
It's the classic possession episode that, every paranormal show has it. It's a Xander focused episode, and one that I truly think it's a great one. There's not many vampires in this episode, which I am ok with. I know that the series is called Buffy the VAMPIRE Slayer, but that doesn't mean that's all that's involved in this world. There is so much more. I like seeing the non-vampire side to the show, to see where it is going. 

I noticed that the coloring to this episode has been a lot brighter than the previous ones and that they were able to fix what was wrong with it. I didn't have to turn all the lights off to watch it! Yay!

Nicholas Brendon's acting in this is great. He plays the perfect person that turns on his friends and betrays them. He's started to step up and show how good of an actor he actually is. 

Buffy is turning out to be a wonderful show. It's got the humor, the story lines, the characters, and everything else that makes a great show. "The Pack" is just a movie-of-the-week type of an episode, not anything truly spectacular, but I wouldn't say it flops at all. It's still a great episode especially for the first season of the show. I'm excited for more. I give this episode a 7/10.

Quote of the Episode: 
Giles: Xander's taken to teasing the less fortunate?
Buffy: Uh-huh.
Giles: And, there's been a noticeable change in both clothing and demeanor?
Buffy: Yes.
Giles: And, well, otherwise all his spare time is spent lounging about with imbeciles.
Buffy: It's bad, isn't it?
Giles: It's devastating. He's turned into a sixteen-year-old boy. Of course, you'll have to kill him

Top Ten (1)

Top Ten in 2009 Please Keep in mind that the only movies going on this list are ones I have seen and I feel deserve a place on my Top 10. I'm sure there are wonderful movies, that I just haven't seen yet. Each movie has a short blurb about it. Hope you enjoy! 

10. My Sister's Keeper: In Los Angeles, the eleven year old Anna Fitzgerald seeks the successful lawyer Campbell Alexander trying to hire him to earn medical emancipation from her mother Sara that wants Anna to donate her kidney to her sister. She tells the lawyer the story of her family after the discovery that her older sister Kate has had leukemia; how she was conceived by in vitro fertilization to become a donor; and the medical procedures she has been submitted since she was five years old to donate to her sister. Campbell accepts to work pro bono and the obsessed Sara decides to go to court to force Anna to help her sister.

9. Ponyo:  The son of a sailor, 5-year old Sosuke lives a quiet life on an oceanside cliff with his mother Lisa. One fateful day, he finds a beautiful goldfish trapped in a bottle on the beach and upon rescuing her, names her Ponyo. But she is no ordinary goldfish. The daughter of a masterful wizard and a sea goddess, Ponyo uses her father's magic to transform herself into a young girl and quickly falls in love with Sosuke, but the use of such powerful sorcery causes a dangerous imbalance in the world. As the moon steadily draws nearer to the earth and Ponyo's father sends the ocean's mighty waves to find his daughter, the two children embark on an adventure of a lifetime to save the world and fulfill Ponyo's dreams of becoming human. 

8. The Twilight Saga: New Moon: After Bella recovers from the vampire attack that almost claimed her life, she looks to celebrate her birthday with Edward and his family. However, a minor accident during the festivities results in Bella's blood being shed, a sight that proves too intense for the Cullens, who decide to leave the town of Forks, Washington for Bella and Edward's sake. Initially heartbroken, Bella finds a form of comfort in reckless living, as well as an even-closer friendship with Jacob Black. Danger in different forms awaits.

7. The Lovely Bones: The Lovely Bones is the story of a 14-year-old girl from suburban Pennsylvania who is murdered by her neighbor. She tells the story from Heaven, showing the lives of the people around her and how they have changed all while attempting to get someone to find her lost body.

6. Angels & Demons: When a murder of a physicist, Leonardo Vetra, finds a symbolist, Robert Langdon, and Mr. Vetra's daughter, Vittoria, on an adventure for a secret brotherhood, The Illuminati. Clues lead them all around the Vatican, including the four alters of science, Earth, Air, Fire and Water. An Assassin, working for the Illuminati, has captured four cardinals, and murders each, painfully. Robert and Vittoria also are searching for a new very destructive weapon that could kill millions.

5. Zombieland: The horror comedy Zombieland focuses on two men who have found a way to survive a world overrun by zombies. Columbus is a big wuss -- but when you're afraid of being eaten by zombies, fear can keep you alive. Tallahassee is an AK-toting, zombie-slaying' bad ass whose single determination is to get the last Twinkie on earth. As they join forces with Wichita and Little Rock, who have also found unique ways to survive the zombie mayhem, they will have to determine which is worse: relying on each other or succumbing to the zombies.

4. Paranormal Activity: Katie and her boyfriend Micah have been living together for three years and out of the blue, they are haunted by an entity while they are sleeping. Katie discloses to Micah that she has been haunted since she was eight year-old. The skeptical Micah buys a camera to videotape the paranormal activity in their home during the night. Katie calls Fredrichs, to help them, but he explains that he is specialist in ghosts. However he feels the presence of a fiend and advises the couple to call a friend of his.

3. Where the Wild Things Are: An adolescent named Max has an active imagination, and he will throw fits if others don't go along with what he wants. Max - following an incident with Claire (his sister) and her friends, and following a tantrum which he throws as a result of his Mother paying more attention to her boyfriend than to him - runs away from home. Wearing his wolf costume at the time, Max not only runs away physically, but runs toward a world in his imagination. This world, an ocean away, is inhabited by large wild beasts, including one named Carol who is much like Max himself in temperament. Instead of eating Max like they normally would with creatures of his type, the wild things befriend Max after he proclaims himself a king who can magically solve all their problems.

2. Up in the Air: Ryan Bingham's job is to fire people from theirs. The anguish, hostility, and despair of his "clients" has left him falsely compassionate, living out of a suitcase, and loving every second of it. When his boss hires arrogant young Natalie, she develops a method of video conferencing that will allow termination without ever leaving the office - essentially threatening the existence Ryan so cherishes. Determined to show the naive girl the error of her logic, Ryan takes her on one of his cross country firing expeditions, but as she starts to realize the disheartening realities of her profession, he begins to see the downfalls to his way of life.

1. Up: A young Carl Fredrickson meets a young adventure spirited girl named Ellie. They both dream of going to a Lost Land in South America. 70 years later, Ellie has died. Carl remembers the promise he made to her. Then, when he inadvertently hits a construction worker, he is forced to go to a retirement home. But before they can take him, he and his house fly away. However he has a stowaway aboard. An 8 year old boy named Russell, whose trying to get an assisting the elderly badge. Together, they embark in an adventure, where they encounter talking dogs, an evil villain and a rare bird named Kevin.

New Directions....

So I've noticed that pretty much all this blog is, is reviews. Now I am a huge movie person. I have about 1,000 DVD's, I love going to movies, watching movies, and talking about movies. So one thing I would like to start doing is Top Ten lists. Now I don't know if I will do this every week, but I would like to do it every once in a while. I'm still going to continue my reviews, this is just an add on.