Sorry, but I have been busy...

Okay, so it has been quite a long time since my last post, but I have a good excuse. Really.

I have been very hard at work at not one, but three different jobs!

My day job at Macy's is great. I have been rocking the Women's Shoes size world and have been promoted offered a promotion to the Inventory Management team! Very exciting. I will be managing a whole team of bright, shiny Assistant and Associate Inventory Planners. This is nerve-wracking and terrifying, because I don't want to scare them away from Macy's, but I think I'll be a good manager.

My wedding and event planning business is another of my projects. NEW DAWN Wedding and Event Productions is in full swing, in my mind at least. I have been planning New York's first ever bridal shopping party.
The event is called Everything But the Dress. Pretty clever, huh?
It has been quite the undertaking and my first attempt did not work out. So I postponed the event from November until April and it was the best decision I could have made. The response has been really great. I have a lot of interest and a lot more time to plan and get everything together. I have along ways to go and still need sponsors and a liquor vendor, but I'm trying to be optimistic.
A friend created the awesome logo and graphics on the event website and I now have some marketing help so I think the event has the makings of being a success.
Check out the website if you get a chance, www.EBDbynewdawn.com

Finally, I was hired as the New York Event Director for RAW:natural born artists.
It's an amazing independent arts organization that expanding across the country to 22 cities in February.
I had an awesome trip to Southern California in September for a training. I also got to see one of their showcases in action, and it was incredible. A glass blower, fire dancers, fantastic artists, a film, a band all set at a beautiful outdoor in a chic boutique hotel.
I have to say, I'm terrified. What if I suck and screw this up! I have been working really hard to make sure I don't.
I've put together a good staff and found a great host.
We have been having problems securing a venue, but I think I found a great one tonight. I just hope the pricing isn't outrageous. The arts isn't a money making machine.

So that has been my very busy life recently. Moving on towards the holiday season and the New Year should only make my free time dwindle even further.
But I'm loving every minute of it.

Review: The Last Airbender

My first problem came about when this movie was announced and couldn't be called Avatar: The Last Airbender because of that movie with the blue aliens.

Next came the issues with casting. The cartoon has characters of mostly Asian races, this is after all an Anime type cartoon. Two of the main characters are an Eskimo type group of people with dark skin. The three main characters cast were all of Caucasian ethnicity. Now, the little boy who was cast as Aang did look a lot like the character in the cartoon, so I was kind of okay with that. But Saka and Kitara were nothing at all like the original characters and that could have been forgiven if their acting was any good, but it really really wasn't.
Then the Fire Nation somehow became Indian when they were obviously Japanese in the cartoon, but at least it was consistent throughout the cast of Fire Nation people. In the other nations there were a weird mix of people that just didn't seem to go. Anyway, the point is the casting was terrible for the most part.

The main thing that annoyed me watching the movie was the way the characters names were completely mispronounced. As a fan of the show I just didn't understand why the director would do something like that. Anyone going to see this movie who was a fan of the show would be confused and annoyed by this blatant neglect of the integrity if the show.

The movie ran at a weird pace, it dragged a lot and then all of sudden it rushed through a montage of weeks passing to get to the next point. It didn't flow well at all, like they wanted to get in a lot of stuff but weren't sure what was really important.
The bending effects were pretty cool for the most part, though they did have the characters doing prolonged movements before the effect. No one is going to stand around in a battle while someone does a minute of Tai Chi movements for each bending tactic.

Overall, I was quite disappointed. There was a lot of potential for this film and tons of material to work with. However the dialogue was terrible and the directing was worse. I would complain about being forced to watch it in 3D, as there was no other option at the theater I went to, but I can save that angry for a whole separate posting. Instead I will just recommend you don't waste your time on this movie and wait for it to be $5.99 on the clearance DVD rack.


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Book Review: Under the Dome pt 2

Given the enormity of this book I decided to write my review in two parts.
I was surprised how quickly I got through this book. It took me two weeks to read the book, mostly because I didn't want to put it down. I got extremely caught up in the story and the characters. Everytime I had to stop reading I felt anxious about what would happen next to the characters I cared about.
King has a way of making you feel connected to his characters. Which is no great feat. Especially since he tends to trickle their past into the story instead of giving you a lot of background at the beginning like other writers tend to do. Maybe that's why his characters tend to feel like such real people, you get to know along the way just like you do with your real friends.
The story takes place in a small town, Chester's Mill, which gets trapped under an invisible force field. The town goes from a quaint little place to insanity extremely quickly. It's interesting to think about what "good" people would do under such extreme circumstances. In this case, it's not all pretty.
I won't give anything away since almost everything is important to the telling of the story, but I will say that this book tugged at the entire spectrum of my emotions. I loathed so many of the power hungry characters, I loved the brave ones and felt pain whenever any of them got hurt. I rooted for the poor little boy left alone and hoped for the right ending for everyone. I say "right", because I didn't want a happy ending for everyone.

I've read almost every book Stephen King has written and I usually love all of them. There have been a couple that were tough to get through, but were really good stories nonetheless.
This book looked like it would be a difficult read. It's such a large book that it's daunting. I'm glad I tackled it. This turned out to be a very easy read because it was so engaging.
I think it may be one of my new favorite books. I definitely recommend King fans read this book and, as usual, enjoy his talent for writing an amazing story. I also recommend non-King fans to read this book and realize that he's not just a horror writer.

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Book Review: Under the Dome pt 1

I just passed the halfway mark in Stephen King's latest novel. Or should I say, tome, since this book is almost 1100 pages long.
I was expecting this to be my one book of the summer, but I'm actually getting through it really fast. I've only been reading it for a week for about an hour or two before bed. It's really freakin good. I don't want to put it down.
King has an amazing ability to create an "unlikely" situation, and then let us read about how his characters deal with it. His exploration into the psychological make for some pretty scary stuff, mostly because we end up thinking about how we would react in that situation and are afraid of what would happen then.
The story takes place in his usual haunt, a small town in Maine, that one morning ends up under some kind of dome or force field. It's completely impenetrable by anything the government throws at it. Of course there's no explanation of where it's from, at least not at this point in the book.
I'm completely engrossed in the characters and this town. It's amazing how fast things start to go downhill, although not without some help from a very unlikeable character in the town.
I'm sure I'll be done in less than a week with the second half of the book. I'm kind of afraid of what will happen, but I have faith in the good people of Chester's Mill to do the right thing.
I'll just have to wait and see.


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Whedon in the Marvel Universe

Joss Whedon has signed on to direct The Avengers movie.
When I heard that news I was super excited. Whedon is my favorite director ever. I love every project he touches even if it doesn't last long. Everyone who knows me knows what a Buffy freak I am.
Whedon has a very distinct style and he can tell a story very well. So of course I thought, "it's about damn time Marvel signed him on to a major project". I'm sure they had no idea what they were getting into with Whedon. He is now rewriting the script for the Avengers, and I've heard he's rewriting the Captain America script to tie the two movies together better. I can't wait for the end results. It will be quite a while before we get to see these projects on the big screen.
In the meantime, you can get your fix of Whedon soon on the small screen. He directed an episode of Glee with none other than our new favorite singer/dancer Neil Patrick Harris. The episode will air in May.


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Gen Art Film Festival: Night Seven

Closing night of the film festival gave us two more exceptionally well made films.
The short film was The Hirosaki Players directed by Jeff Sousa. A foreign language film about opening night of a Japanese play starring an aging actor being directed by his son who also wrote the play. The struggle of the son to get control over his father is very relatable. The father's arrogance and knowledge of his son's reliance on him shows his desperation to maintain his dominance over his son. As the play finally gets underway, the drama backstage doesn't end.
It was a very good film. I enjoyed watching it and would love to see more from this young director.

The final feature film of the festival was Mercy directed by Patrick Hoelck. Starring Scott Caan, who I've never seen in a lead role before, as Johnny a romance novelist who doesn't believe in love. Caan also wrote and produced the film.
Johnny meets a girl, Mercy played by a stunning Wendy Glenn, at his book party who turns down his usual charms. He later gets a bad review of his book and finds out it was written by Mercy.
The love story bounces around from their meeting to later in their relationship. Written by Scott Caan, the story is very well done and keeps you interested in the characters. The supporting roles, Johnny's two best friends, are extremely well written and add a lot of humor to the otherwise serious film. A nice addition to the film is the always wonderful to watch James Caan, who fittingly plays Johnny's father. His character has surprising depth.
This wasn't my favorite film of the festival, but it was very well done.


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Gen Art Film Festival: Night Six

Gen Art had a focus on women directors last night The short film, Daughters, was presented with the feature Tanner Hall. It was a very good pairing. They both focused on young women growing up and making difficult choices in life and love.

The star of Tanner Hall, Rooney Mara, plays Fernanda, a mature and thoughtful young girl who goes to an all girl's boarding school. She's spent so much of her life away from home she feels disconnected from her mother and considers the school her home. She has two very close friends Kate and Jo who each have extremely different personalities.
Her dynamic at school is changed when an old childhood friend enrolls in the school. Victoria us rebellious and dark, and attempts to insert herself in the group while trying to exclude Fern. Along with that is a forbidden crush on Gio, played by Tom Everett Scott.
The movie was well acted and all of the characters were very believable. I can see Rooney Mara having a very successful acting career ahead of her. The story, however, felt a little uninspired and predictable. It was a very textbook coming of age drama that had been done in many films before. It wasn't a bad film, I was entertained and never got bored, but I wasn't surprised or inspired by the story. The directors/writers were very sweet best friends and seemed to really enjoy making this film, so congrats to them.

Daughters was filmed in China and is a subtitled movie. I can't even imagine the difficulties the director went through to get this movie made. Even more so considering the content of the film. It focuses on the two child rule and the difficult decisions a family has to make in that environment. The main character is the eldest daughter who future is being decided for her because her mother is pregnant with a son. Her struggle to choose between an unwanted marriage and her little sister's life is extremely moving.
One of the best shorts this week.



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Gen Art Film Festival: Night Four

Society's obsession with celebrities and fame is no secret. There are gossip magazines at every newstand and supermarket. There is an endless number of websites and blogs dedicated to breaking stories about celebrity couples getting together or breaking up. The red carpet photos, the late night parties, the trips to the grocery store or fast food joint. The continuous stream of photos has to come from somewhere or someone. That's where the paparazzi come in. We've seen the growth of the celeb photographer increase in recent years. Celebrities seem to be followed everywhere, everyday. It's gotten pretty ridiculous. The celebrities have shown time and again how annoyed they are with having their lives invaded by these people every waking moment.

But what do you do if you see a young boy taking your photo alongside the rest of the paparazzi? If you're Adrien Grenier, you stop and find out who he is. And them you make a documentary about him.

Teenage Paparazzo follows Grenier and fourteen year old Austin who is a paparazzi. Austin is an adorable kid who decided to enter the paparazzi business and became quite successful at it. There are lots of interviews with celebrities like Eva Longoria, Matt Damon, Lewis Black and Whoopi Goldberg among others. Paris Hilton has a larger part in the film than most of the other celebs as she helps Grenier with a pretty funny experiment and she seems to have taken a liking to young Austin.
There are also interviews with psychologists, professors and other professionals which give us a more in depth look into why we, as humans, feel the compulsion to want more and more info about the personal lives of celebrities.
It's interesting to see the dynamic between the celebs and the paparazzi. The way the paparazzi justify their actions and feel they have the right to invade every personal moment of their lives because of who they are and the career choices they've made. Some celebrities are more understanding than others. They also realize that the kind of life you lead as a celebrity also determines how much paparazzi attention you will garner.
But to see a young kid out until 2 or 3 o'clock in the morning just to get pictures of Lindsay Lohan or Paris Hilton coming out of a club, it doesn't seem right. Where are his parents? Why would they let him do this? His parents are actually quite nice, intelligent people who have let their child explore an interest. Austin is a very smart and self-sufficient child. He's also a product of the world we live in, fascinated with celebrities and the idea of fame.
The film is very well-rounded, showing different perspectives of this world. Watching Adrien being shunned by the paparazzi was quite interesting. Also seeing how Austin handled the idea of the cameras being turned to him was fascinating.
I think it's a great look at how pop culture has spiralled out of control. It's definitely worth watching. Even if you're just interested in seeing all of the different celebrities in the movie. You'll definitely walk away with a different perspective on those gossip magazines.

Gen Art Film Festival: Night Three

Sebastian Guitierrez' film Electra Luxx had a great dry humor and campy quality to it. I was sure if I was going to like it when it first started, but I began to like it more and more as the movie progressed.
The movie was very well cast. Carla Gugino as the retired porn star was perfect. She is smokin' hot in the movie, and even better looking in person. Her big doe eyes lend her a vulnerability that comes through during the movie. Electra is a very multi-dimensional character. At first look she's a shallow sex symbol, but the more you watch, she becomes much more than that.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays a sex blogger, Bert Rodriguez. This guy is super funny, mostly because he's trying to be so serious about his reporting on Electra. The fact that he video blogs from his bedroom in his mother's house makes for some hysterical interruptions to his reports. His sister, the aspiring Internet Pin-up girl, and Trixie the cashier, played by Malin Ackerman (this is her second film being shown at this film festival), add even more interest to his scenes.
The director and writer, Sebastian Gutierrez did a great job with this film. Listening to him discuss his film at the Q&A session after the film showed how passionate he is. I had not heard of the first movie involving these characters, Women In Trouble. After seeing Electra Luxx and hearing Gutierrez talk about the characters and his love of them, I will definitely put it on my list of movies to watch.

This was a fun movie to watch and is definitely something I would recommend it if you like any of the actors involved in the project or if you just like funny, sexy films.

The shirt film paired with this film was a perfect match. Blowing Bubbles was a very short film made for a 24 hour film race. Bubbles is a clown whose act is to, obviously, blow bubbles. But when his love, the Bearded Lady, leaves him he can no longer perform. The fantasticly raunchy twist is his problem performing has less to do with her leaving and more to with what she would for him before he had to perform. Definitely a great, original idea for a film.
Congrats to these film makers for a job well done, and for having their films showcased together in this film festival.

The major highlight of my evening had nothing to do with these two movies. It came after j left the theater and saw, gasp, Zachary Quinto in the lobby! Being the major geek that I am, I wanted to run to him and tell him how much I loved him as Spock. I pretty much chickened out, but luckily my hubby wouldn't let me walk away without for a picture with him. He was very nice about it, although he could have smoked a little for me.






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Gen Art Film Festival: Night Two

Waiting For Forever, directed by James Keach was the movie chosen for night two of the film festival. The cast list was quite good for an indie film, Rachel Bilson, Richard Jenkins, Blythe Danner, Jaime King and Tom Sturridge. That, along with an interesting sounding blurb about childhood best friends who sort of lose touch, at least one if them does. Will (Sturridge) follows Emma (Bilson) around the country for years while working on his juggling career without her ever knowing how much he loves her.
I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it definitely wasn't what I got.
Will's character comes off as odd and slightly retarded along with being stalkerish and living in his own dream world.
Emma seems insincere and doesn't really connect with her parents. Her father is dying, which brought her back to her hometown in the first place, but she doesn't seem to really care.
Overall, it felt pretty disconnected and unrealistic in an awkward way, not in a "that would be great if it COULD happen" way.
Then there was Emma's boyfriend, who had no reason to be in the movie at all. He was used as some kind of plot device which was completely unneccesary to the story or the other character developments.
Blythe Danner did manage to bring some solid acting to the film as did Richard Jenkins, but that is to be expected from such high caliber actors.
In the end I walked away uninspired and untouched by the film.
The short film that was paired with this movie was called Extension directed by Tyler Byrne. The film was extremely insightful in it's simplicity. There was very little dialogue, but the expressions carried the message they were trying send.
Seeing a boy plugged in with an extension cord was an odd concept. Watching him try to break free was extremely touching. We are all tied to something in our lives, sometimes all we need to do is look to our loved ones to help us overcome our obstacles.
It was a great short film.

The after-party was at SL on west 14th. The Don Julio flowed once again and the place was packed.
Highlight of the evening? Seeing the beautiful Jane Seymour in person!



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Gen Art Film Festival: Night One

Opening night movie was happythankyoumoreplease (no spaces) directed by Josh Radnor. Starring Josh Radnor (How I Met Your Mother), Kate Mara, and one of the most adorable young boys I've seen in a movie in a long time, Michael Algieri.

The movie, set in manhattan, follows Sam (Radnor), a late-twenties not-so-successful writer whose mundane life begins to change when he finds himself stuck with a little boy who gets separated from his foster mom on the subway.
There are two other subplots to the movie. Sam's best friend, Annie, who has alopecia, and can't seem to choose the right guy. And a young couple trying to decide what the next move in their lives should be.
It's a great homage to New York. There's lots of references both visual and verbal to how great it is to live in NY and how LA sucks in comparison. Anyone who's from NY or who has been here long enough will most likely appreciate all of the anecdotes about surviving in this city and paying ridiculous rents to live in the city but not appreciating all it has to offer.
The whirlwind romance between Sam and Mississippi (Mara) is very cute, if a bit over the top. There's defintely a need to suspend disbelief with their situation and just enjoy it. But it's definitely worth it to do so.
Aside from the great writing and acting, what really caught my heart in this movie is Rasheen, Played by Michael Algieri. The nine year makes his feature film debut with a fantastic performance. After refusing to be left in the care of police or social services, this quiet character manages to get Sam to feel responsible for him and start to care enormously for his well being. Sam grows because of his interaction with Rasheen and becomes even more likable because he cares for this kid the best he can in his dysfunctional way. Algieri is now my favorite little boy in Hollywood. Watching him walk the red carpet like a pro was absolutely adorable.
This is a must see for any twenty something anywhere trying to find their way.
Radnor announced it will be released in select theaters sometime in August, so be sure to keep an eye out for this film.
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Movie Review: Leaves of Grass

Leaves of Grass had a red carpet premiere at the Sunshine Cinemas on Houston St in downtown New York tonight hosted by Gen Art.
The movie was directed by Tim Blake Nelson who had a featured role alongside Ed Norton. Norton played Billy and Brady, twin brothers from Oklahoma who grew up to live completely different and separate lives. Billy, a published writer and professor, lives an ordered life in New England while his brother lives a life of crime and growing marijuana.
The movie is filled with excellent actors including Richard Dreyfus, Susan Sarandon, Keri Russell and Melanie Lymsky.
It's a good film. Well paced and interesting with some good humor and touching moments. Ed, as usual, gives an excellent performance. It's funny to watch him playing an intelligent redneck, which he somehow manages to pull off believably.
Keri Russell, who plays Billy's love interest, is endearing. Although she seems a little too thin, she's very naturally pretty in the film. Her character is extremely insightful and poetic and leaves you wanting to embark on some introspective soul searching.
I'm not sure what kind of distribution this film will get, but if you have a good independent movie theater, then I'd suggest you go see this film. It's Ed at his versatile best.

Go go government

Health reform has passed! Finally!
There are many different angles that the health reform bill is being attacked or praised on. Mostly, I just can't understand why anyone would think it's a bad idea for our government to put a bill into place that would protect people from the greedy and immoral insurance business. This bill will allow millions of people to get medical insurance, followed by proper health care, that would never have been able to do so before.

Here's the thing, health insurance is supposed to help people get the care they need in the event that they fall ill. That illness can be anything, cancer, anemia, a heart attack or the flu. But it has become the practice of the insurance agencies to deny coverage to those people or drop them from coverage when they become sick. What's worse is that we the people have had to accept that as being okay because there was nothing else we could do.
This new bill speaks for the people, not the insurance agencies. Which, frankly, is something the government hasn't done in a long time. Year after year we've seen the politicians sitting in the pockets of big business. The auto industry, big oil, the banks, insurance firms, time and again get things passed in their favor because they have the deeper pockets. But we now have a president who was put in place by us, the constituents, and who does not have to worry about whether he will lose that financial backing from some huge firm.
Obama cares about the people of this country. It's a very strange concept to find on Capitol Hill. All those fat old men have been cut off from reality for so long they only see their own point of view and blindly believe it's what's right since they've been in place for so many years.
Hopefully this bill passing, and all the disgusting antics from the republicans that went on through the process, will show people that the government can change and actually achieve something great for our benefit. It should also show people the real faces of their republican politicians. The fact that they will vote No for no other reason than to spite the democrats. That's not what they are supposed to be there for. Elections are not supposed to be the reason for a congressmans actions. It seems as though they can't simply think on their own and do what they feel is right for the people they represent. Instead they do as they are told by the petty men who want their way and want do whatever they can to undermine the other party, even if it goes against something they themselves actually stand for. Where's the common sense in that. This is not high school. These are peoples lives they are messing around with and I hope those people realize it's time to put some fresh faces into those seats, even if they are still republican. I have to believe there are some good, smart and reasonable republican politicians out there. I know plenty of republicans and they aren't irrational people, they don't hate democrats and they are not opposed to every single liberal idea just because it's liberal.
I'm very excited about health care reform. I think it's definitely a step in the right direction to protecting people's rights to health care. If someone is willing to pay for insurance, then let them. They shouldn't be denied because they beat cancer five years ago. Every child should be covered. A parent shouldn't have to worry about whether they'll go broke if their child get sick or in an accident.
I can only hope that people will see how beneficial this will be to them and stop being so divisive. I'm tired of seeing the ugly things that people will do to get their point of view across. It's unneccessary and only makes you even more wrong when you attack people, verbally or physically.
This was a big win and now it's time to move on to the next issue. The republicans need to get over it and move forward to work on something new. And no, trying to repeal this bill is not something new.




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Graphic Novel review: Emily the Strange The Lost Days

I love the artwork for Emily the Strange. I've always loved checking out the products with the character and her cats and bats and things. I have not had the chance to read any of the comics though. They've been on my, and I've quickly skimmed through some of the collections. I wanted to start at the beginning and work my way through, but it just hadn't happened yet.
I was in the bookstore the other day looking at the new releases and what do I see, an Emily the Strange novel. I picked it up skimmed through, read the back, saw the cheap price of $8.99, and took it straight to the register. For some reason the novel appealed to me in a way te comic never did. It's weird because I read comics all the time.
The book was very good. A quick, fun, easy read. The artwork throughout the book is very cool. The cats and characters that Emily encounters are brought to life through her eyes. The writing is great. Basically, Emily has amnesia and you are reading her journal as she goes through her adventure of trying to figure out who she is and why she's in a small, desolate town called Blackrock. Her perception of the world is interesting. She's obviously not a normal 13 year old girl. Belgium! She's quite funny as well.
Emily is a very interesting character. I will defintely read the next couple of novels that are slated for release this year.
I'd recommend these books for any young adult reader. I think a lot of girls can relate to not feeling as though they belong, as well as knowing that strange can be a lot more interesting than normal. I'd also recommend this for any current fans of the comic or any similar comics like Dead @ 17. This is very relatable for any age group.


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FemGeek reviews The Good Guy

"The movie was cute."
That's the line I kept using all night whenever anyone asked what I thought about the movie at the after party. That's the best I can do. There's nothing special about this movie.
That's the same way I feel about the characters and the actors who play them. It's impossible to take Alexis Bledel seriously as a mid-twenties manhattanite. She still looks like the fifteen year old on the Gilmore Girls. She might be able to get away with playing a college student, possibly a recent college grad, but an established twenty-something with enough job experience to be asked to head a major not-for-profit in San Francisco is just not viable for her.
The guy in her life ends up perpetuating the major Wall Street dirt bag stereotype of a major player juggling multiple women at once and lying to them all completely and without remorse.
The good guy ends up not being able to make it on Wall Street simply because he isn't that douche bag they are trying to turn him into.
There's a little surprise in the end, which I don't want to call a twist because it doesn't qualify, but is pretty good nonetheless. There are a few good laugh out loud moments.
Overall, I would recommend waiting for the DVD on this one, it'll be there quickly, I'm sure. And please don't drag the boyfriend there with you for this. You should pick your battles wisely and this should not be one of them.



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Planet Hulk - New Animated Movie

I attended a screening of the, soon to be released straight to Blu-Ray, DVD and Digital Download, Planet Hulk movie. They had a bi-coastal event in conjunction with the Paley Media Center in NYC and LA.

There weren't any big names doing the voices for this movie, but the actors did a good job. It starts off with Iron Man and crew sending Hulk off planet Earth because he's uncontrollable, that's the sane as the comic. He goes off course and ends up on a planet that is waiting for a savior. They're technology and weapons are advanced, but bear a striking resemblance to the Roman empire at it's peak. The story then take a very unoriginal turn, Hulk becomes a slave/gladiator and must work with the others to fight for their freedom as well as kill the Red King.
It's a forgettable movie at best. The animation is nothing special and I felt like I watching an old cartoon instead of a new movie. I don't expect Pixar quality, I enjoy gritty animation, but DC does a much better job with this type of project than Marvel. The Wonder Woman movie from last year was much better than this, and nothing beats The Justice League.
I'm not sure I would recommend this movie for purchase. If you're a major Hulk fan, you'll probably get it anyway, but try not to get your hopes up expecting a great story. It's just not there.

There was a Q&A session after the movie. I did not stay around for it though. Seeing Quesada walk in with Mickey Mouse Tshirt wad enough for me.


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Addicted to Dragon Age: Origins

I just finished my first pass through Dragon Age last night. I have been playing for weeks, a couple of hours a nights, and for way too long on Saturdays. When I like a game I want to play all the time. It's like a compulsion.
The game is a lot of fun. It's a great role playing game for anyone who likes to see their characters evolve. There are multiple choices for race, classes and gender. The game is different depending on what you choose and the choices you make as a player.
The story is a classic heroic tale, you are recruited as a member of a group of Guardians called the Grey Wardens. They serve to protect the lands from the Blight, evil hordes of demons and darkspawn. They are also the ones that can defeat the Archdemon, a great demon that takes form as a dragon.
There are many places to travel through in the game. There are also tons of side quests to keep you busy for a long time if you don't want to go through the main story arc too quickly.
If you are an Xbox 360 gamer, like me, then you can gain the achievement points for this game. However, there are many that require you to play the game at least twice all the way through. If you are adamant about getting ALL of the points, then you need to play the game with each race. Don't be put off by this. I am looking forward to starting my second pass at the game with a different character. I can't wait to see how different the story will be and how differently the others in the game will react to me.
This is definitely a game I would recommend to anyone who enjoys role-playing games. If you are new to video games of this type, just play on casual and have fun.
There are, of course, game add-ons as well. One, The Stone Prisoner, you can get for free when you buy the game. A new expansion is due out later this year. I'm definitely looking forward to that!



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Youth in Revolt

Michael Cera plays an awkward teenager who can't get laid...wait isn't that the plot of his last movie? Actually it's the plot for almost every movie he's ever made. This one however manages to put a little twist on that plot by having the girl really like him a lot. They're love is destined to be difficult when they are continuously separated by distance and circumstance.
Cera's alter ego, Francois, is a bad boy and gives him a chance to show that he can be a little more than a kinda strange geeky guy.
The movie has a great cast, including Fred Willard, Zach Galifinakis, Ray Liotta, Steve Buschemi and more. They each lend their great comedic talent to the film.
It starts to feel too long half way through, but picks up the pace and the laughs again quickly. The strained, sometimes forced sounding intelligence of the youths in the film borders on over the top, but Cera manages to pull it off because it's sort of expected from him.
I liked the movie but didn't love it. I laughed quite a bit, but it's not the funniest of movies. I'd say it's an average comedy, but if you're a Cera fan, you'll enjoy getting you're fix of his cute nerdiness.

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