Tag Archives: my thoughts

COSMOS: my thoughts

Completed Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey. Thank you to host Neil deGrasse Tyson, composer Alan Silvestri, executive producer Seth MacFarlane, executive producer, writer, and director Ann Druyan, and of course the late, great Carl Sagan. Cosmos is a true masterpiece of knowledge and wonder. Spectacular, from top to bottom: live, on-location shoots; cinema-level CG animation; stylized traditional animation; an inspiring host in Dr. Tyson, who makes all of the science exciting and easily digestible; and a magical score imagined by Silvestri. Traveling through space and time on the modernized Ship of the Imagination across the past, present, and future is a wildly entertaining, visually breathtaking, and wholly educational experience. Personally I’ve always been fascinated by science; Cosmos has opened my eyes even wider to the enormous spectrum of knowledge out there today and the knowledge waiting to be discovered. How exactly does dark matter and dark energy work? Will alien life ever discover our Voyager spacecraft? What happened before the Big Bang? What lies beyond the Observable Universe? Equally as important, Cosmos reaches out and grips you about the concerning realities about how we are treating our planet and it envisions very different futures for us depending on the vital actions we take next. A “Cosmic Calendar,” introduced in the first episode of the 13-part series, visualizes and condenses our universe’s 13.8 billion year lifespan into a single, glanceable year; it might make you feel tiny in our vast universe (humanity occupies the last day in the last second of the entire calendar) but it provides such amazing insight into our existence, where we come from, and where we may be heading next. In sum, I highly recommend you carve out time in your lives to take an exciting journey into spacetime; it’s unlike anything else you’ve seen on TV before and you’ll come out of it awestruck, inspired, and most of all, with an expanded mind and a new passion to question everything around you.

My take on ‘Orphan Black’

It’s safe; you are now entering a spoiler-free zone.

Orphan Black is easily one of my favorites series of all time. There, mhm, I said it.

The sci-fi-tastic plot; the small yet distinguished cast of characters you care about; the score; cinematography. All brilliant.

Tatiana Maslany. Her nuanced skill is mesmerizing. Sarah, Alison, Cosima & Helena were seemingly played by different actors. She rocks.

Shouts to Jordan Gavaris (Felix) for bringing laughs and heart to the table. And to Skyler Wexler (Kira) for being so freakin adorable.

Gotta throw this in: I really, really enjoyed the thrilling score throughout. My favorite is the loud streaks for Helena’s theme.

Most of all, what made this series so much fun to watch: the pacing. 10 episodes, all plot momentum & character development, no fluff.

So much went down & there are still mysteries left dangling. Cannot wait to see what’s next when season 2 premieres April 2014.

Side thoughts

Orphan Black brings up a bold point: I’d prefer a shortened season (10-13 episodes) full of momentum & zero filler to a “full” 22-24 episode run. Cable networks are keen on tighter storytelling, and even some broadcast nets are getting in with “limited” series & runs. Color me curious for the future of scripted TV.

I just got out of ‘Pacific Rim’…thoughts!

Stream of consciousness…go!

Wow wow wow. Pacific Rim exceeded my expectations and then some. Guillermo del Toro has crafted the ultimate modern monsters versus machines movie here. I was absolutely blown away by the special effects, the art direction, and of course, Ramin Djawadi’s impressionable score. (I am running out to get the soundtrack now.)

The big battle sequences are well constructed as the scientifically enhanced Jaegers prove to be formidable opponents to the otherworldly monstrous Kaiju. Obviously del Toro owes inspiration to classic monster movies like Godzilla (in fact, he dedicates the movie to Ray Harryhausen and Ishirō Honda, pioneers of the genre) and it certainly invokes nostalgic thoughts underneath all that metal and monster guts. The heavy duty battles were so much fun to watch, as was the intimate yet powerful human vs. human fight sequence between leads Charlie Hunnam and Rinko Kikuchi. (And speaking of the cast, I gift honorable mention to Charlie Day and Burn Gorman who played a bizarre coupling of scientists with contagious wit and charm.)

What really had me gasping in excitement were the hard sci-fi elements incorporated into the film. In the future, humans will invent a way to create a neural bridge between minds: cool! And on top of all the flashy gizmos and Jaeger-bombs (heh, get it?) del Toro managed to weave an deep mythology concerning the Kaiju. Where exactly do they come from and why are they being sent to Earth to destroy mankind (and previous to this, the dinosaurs)? It’s all intriguing stuff and he’s left some questions unanswered and hopefully they will be addressed and padded with more Kaiju/alien mythos in the next one (yes a sequel is in the works).

Overall, Pacific Rim is a massively fun thrill ride packed with truly epic action sequences and curious mythology. Del Toro let his imagination run wild and the result is nothing short of awesome. When it ended, I felt a charge of electricity run through my veins–I still feel amped as I’m writing this! As a fan of monster movies and the hardcore sci-fi genre, this one sits near the top of the heap.

Side note: It’s best seen in IMAX 3D; the larger screen, the added depth and perspective, the bigger sound–this movie is meant to be experienced in the highest quality theatre.

Oh, and Idris Elba’s “cancel the apocalypse” speech will never get old.

FRINGE: It’s time to say goodbye

I’ve been dreading this moment but it’s time to face the music. The 18th of January marked the final Fringe Friday. Over the course of the past five years we laughed, we cried, and we believed in Olivia Dunham, Peter and Walter Bishop, Astrid Farnsworth, Phillip Broyles, Nina Sharp, September the Observer, and everybody else who came and went on this epic, far-out journey about what it means to be human. As expected the bald-headed baddies were destroyed (well, erased from time if you want to be precise) and our Fringe family went on to live their lives in peace. Even Walter who was forced to sacrifice himself and live in a distant future apart from his son and granddaughter–lord knows he’s having all kinds of fun with the scientists in Oslo, Norway talking them into accepting the “anomaly” Observer as an appropriate form of human evolution. What is humanity without the power of emotion beating inside it?

I’ll be short and sweet, just like the final season of the show. My thoughts on the series finale: It was all I hoped it would be. Intrinsically beautiful, exciting, emotional, poignant, satisfying. The series in general? One of a kind.

Over the years I shared my passion for Fringe in exactly 53 posts total including this one. From the intense teaser trailers to the unforgettable Comic Con panels to the nail-biting season renewals, Fringe has been an exhilarating roller coaster from shaky start to fantastic finish. From a mysterious plane crash to a portal aimed at the future, from The Pattern to The Plan, Fringe rose above its cult status and shined like a glimmer of hope.

After the break you can watch one last video featuring the main cast discussing the ramifications of the final episode. It’s time to say goodbye. Like family these characters will always remain in my heart. Continue reading FRINGE: It’s time to say goodbye

THE HOBBIT: my thoughts

–Spoiler-free– (and yes that’s me)

Just got out of the THE HOBBIT. In a word, it was FANTASTIC. The story so far is really exciting and filled with the best characters. I can’t imagine anyone but Martin Freeman playing young Bilbo Baggins. Ian McKellen is back as Gandolf and he’s better than ever. And all 13 dwarves have their own distinct ways about themselves that I appreciate. The little men are led by Thorin Oakenshield, played by Richard Armitage, and he’s already a favorite. It was great seeing old characters return as well–Ian Holm (old Baggins), Elijah Wood (Frodo), Hugo Weaving (Elrond), Cate Blanchett (Galadriel), Christopher Lee (Saruman), Bret McKenzie (Lindir). And who can forget Gollum; Andy Serkis has perfected the once-human creature here. He looks incredible (especially his giant blue eyes and sharp mouth) and the scene in which he encounters Bilbo has to be my favorite one. It’s a mix of fear, humor, and curiosity. An honorable mention goes to composer Howard Shore whose original score for the film borrows classic sounds from LOTR but also adds a new layer of epic proportions (if you don’t have the dwarf song “Misty Mountains” stuck in your head when you’re walking out then something’s wrong). In the end I felt fully satisfied (I never thought I’d be returning to Tolkien and Jackson’s Middle Earth) and yet I was left with a wanting feeling for more. One down, two to go. Bilbo is going on an adventure, and I’m all in.

I saw the movie in 3D in 48 frames per second, or what Peter Jackson is calling High Frame Rate (HFR). First off, 3D was effective on all accounts: the depth it added to the picture had me immersed the entire time. The HFR took some getting used to. When the film starts right off the bat you notice that something is, well, “off” with the picture. One, it’s as if you’re watching a super HDTV–the sharpness and crispness and vividness of the picture is starkly different than anything I’ve ever experienced before in theatres. But in a good way. There are many scenes in the film that take a birds-eye view of vast landscapes all around Middle Earth and the HFR injects a sense of hyper-realism into these shots. My jaw dropped more than once upon witnessing such beautiful scenes. However, this new technology can be jarring at times in a not-so-good way. In the opening scene, when old Bilbo is in his hole in the ground writing his book for Frodo, his movements are fluid but the 48 frames make it seem as if he’s speeding through the process. It’s as if someone pressed the “fast-forward” button on the remote. And this is noticable throughout the film, especially during fast-paced action sequences. When things slow down (or during the aforementioned birds-eye shots) this is not as noticable. Some critics argue that the 48 frames takes away from the mistique of the movie. THE HOBBIT is a fantasy and the hyper-realism removes the layer of mystery by attempting to make things that aren’t real (i.e. orcs, trolls, giant flying birds), look real. Friends of mine compared it to how video game cut scenes look. I’m not sure if I totally agree with that, however. All in all, I say if you have the opportunity to visit a theatre that’s playing the movie in 48FPS you should absolutely experience it for yourself. Though I never really got used to the effect–which has its advantages (super HD crystal clear picture) and disadvantages (the “fast-forward” effect)–I was truly mesmorized and found myself lost in Middle Earth until the credits rolled at the end. Is 48FPS the future of movies like Jackson predicts? It’s too early to tell. Is the effect too much for a movie with fantasy roots? Perhaps. But in the end it’s worth it because it’s always fun to try new things.

In the words of Mr. Ebert, THE HOBBIT gets two big thumbs up and I highly recommend you go on the wonderfully crafted journey.