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MUTS82
Dislikes: liars, politics in general, zealotry (especially the religious type), things that are boring.
Books I'm reading: The Analects of Confucius, Bad News by Tom Fenton, The Art of War by Sun Tzu. By all means, PM me with books you think I might like, I'll love you forever if I do. [biggrin]
Favorite Bands: Linkin' Park, the Police, Collective Soul.
Favorite TV shows: Battlestar Galactica, Lost, Daily Show/Colbert Report.
Btw, it's MUTS, an acronym, just in case you actually care.
Reviews
Death in Gaza (2004)
An eye-opening view into the most depressing real-life story I've ever seen.
I caught this about a third of the way through on HBO one night. I used to wonder just what caused some kids to grow up to strap a bomb to themselves and try and take as many innocent Israelis with them as possible. Now I know.
I spent a great deal of time absorbed in the films sheer, gritty horror of the bleak desperation that is the Palestinian world. Sometimes I couldn't believe what I saw and heard; my mouth was literally agape about half the time. It was the most shocking, horrifying, and saddening display of pure, brutal inhumanity ever recorded on camera, in my opinion. It lays plain the reality that evil begets evil and shows that evil is a cycle that will continue to consume innocent lives on both sides unless truth and compassion finally win out, if such a thing is even possible anymore.
Many of you think might think that nothing can justify the evils Palestinian suicide bombers visit on innocent Israelis. You're right. Nothing can justify it. But those young men and women with the bombs strapped on had lives too. And when they're raised in an environment of utter poverty, taught nothing but propaganda in their 'schools' and society, see their friends killed right in front of them by 'the Israeli pigs', forced to attend great, joyous ceremonies around the bodies of 'martyrs' (including young boys who did nothing wrong and got shot for it), and are befriended by young Arab martyrs who grew up exactly the same way, it's no wonder Hamas and Hezbollah has such a large supply of human bombs to throw at Israel.
The supreme irony here is that the two young Palestinian boys who were the focus of a lot of the film decided to become journalists instead of martyrs due to the friendship they felt for the films director, James Miller. He was shot in the neck by an arab-Israeli trooper in an APC at night near the end of the film crews time in Gaza; he died almost instantly. The crew had yelled that they were British journalists to the crew of the APC, but it didn't matter; the shots come anyways.
Had the films director not died, we would have seen the Israeli's side of the story. Unfortunately, the film claimed its title in innocent blood striving for answers to a cycle of never-ending violence in the Middle East.
'Death in Gaza' is about just that: death. The death of innocence, the death of truth, the death of hope for the residents of the Palestinian territories surrounding Israel.
If you wonder why the Middle East is such a mess, see this film. Then you'll know the answer.
Resident Evil (2002)
Finally, a good video game-movie translation...and a terrifying message
(Warning: spoilers ahead!) There have been a lot of attempts to bring video games to the big screen. Super Mario Brothers, Mortal Combat, Tomb Raider, the list goes on. Finally, however, there is a break in that list. Located under an elegant mansion, Umbrella, one of the most powerful corporations in the world, has a secret lab named the Hive. Stocked with the brilliant scientists, state-of-the-art technology, and run by a sentient super computer called the Red Queen, Umbrella most promising research is done here: genetic manipulation and viral weaponry. When a project the corporation is working on suddenly gets out of hand, the lab is locked down, killing all the scientists and containing the secret they were working on. In the mansion above, Alice (played by the beautiful and talented Milla Jovovich) awakens from a chemically induced state of amnesia (part of the facilities automated defenses suddenly turned on) just in time to meet a team of commandos sent in by Umbrella to ascertain the nature of the emergency and reestablish control. Alice and her partner, also suffering from memory loss, and escorted into the Hive by the team immediately. The fun starts. After shutting down the Red Queen, who initiated the emergency shut down that contained the catastrophic events, the team is besieged by legions of scientists who have been altered into tough, flesh eating zombies. As the surviving team members struggle for their lives, desperate to escape the Hive, they discover the terrible truth: the zombies were created by the T-virus, a genetic weapon that reanimates dead tissue, creating beings whose only purpose is to feed. One scratch, one bite from these abominations, and you're infected, with just hours before you become one of them. As with all viruses, there's no antidote. The action and tension mount as the stuggle for survival continues when the few survivors face the epitome of Umbrellas sick research: a creature called 'the licker,' huge, unstoppable, killing machines that were once human beings. They are almost impossible to kill and become stronger, faster, and deadlier with each life they take. It soon becomes clear that none of them may leave alive...and even if they could, their death might be better than exposing the outside world to the horrors of Umbrellas secret weapons. Resident Evil delivers the goods, no doubt about it. Sure, it's story is simple, the acting isn't superb, and the setup is nothing new. Which makes the films appeal and success in its endeavour only more impressive. Milla Jovovich is great as a heroine, with all strength and guile we've come to expect from such roles over the years. Michelle Rodriguez does a great job as Rain, the tough, dedicated soldier who must deal with her wounds and what they mean for her ultimate fate. The plot twists and turns, with flashes of recollection from Alice adding to the story gradually at just the right times. The music, techno, punk, rock, whatever you call it, is just perfect for the mood and action of the movie. And the FX and makeup, superb. Simply put, go see RE, especially if you're a fan of the video games series, you won't be disappointed. In addition to finding the film entertaining and action packed, though, I was also disturbed and genuinely frightened by it. No, not the film itself, but the idea behind it. Resident Evil is not just another sci-fi horror flik, but a warning. In an age where it seems science is revealing incredible possibilities to us, genetics has emerged as both the a holy grail and doomsday weapon. The best expression of this is given at the films end, where Alice stands alone in the middle of a dead Raccoon City, where the T-virus has devasted all life in a once bustling metropolitan area. The most horrifying scene of the movie, perhaps, because this might not be as impossible a scenario as it sounds.
Alias (2001)
One word for this show: WOW!
Okay, we all know that most shows that make it to primetime don't come close to living up to the promise of the advertisements. Well, believe me, ALIAS is not one of these shows. It's a fast-paced, smart, heart-felt, cliff-hanging spy thriller that no one should miss.
Sydney Bristow (portrayed by a fantastic Jennifer Garner) is a college student who is recruited by a top secret division of the CIA, SD-6. She is a natural operations (espionage, covert ops, etc) agent who is sent into the field on a variety of missions and excels at her work.
When her fiancee discovers the true nature of her work, however, her boss, Arvin Sloan (Ron Rifkin) has him killed. That's when Sydney's father (Victor Garber), who also works at SD-6, someone she doesn't get along with real well, reveals the truth to her: SD-6 isn't part of the CIA, it's a rogue group of agents who have infiltrated the US government and are working on their own secret agenda.
Enter Michael Vartan, a (real) CIA agent, who Sydney goes to with her information about SD-6. Soon he is her handler (basically boss) at CIA and she is working as a double agent. Her missions quickly take on a shape of mystery as SD-6 dispatches her all over the world, hunting down the relics of an Italian inventor, Ribaldi whose relics hold some secret purpose. The problem: he died over five centuries ago...and everyone else in the black ops community wants a piece of his work.
Alias is top notch TV. Thrilling, emotional, intelligent, top caliber in all respects. This is going to go on to be a huge hit, you can tell. I saw just one episode and I was hooked. Jennifer Garner is outstanding, painting a portrayal of a woman whose life has taken a most unexpected turn and is holding on with brains, charm, beauty, skill, strength, and integrity that makes her seem so out of place, like a lost angel amidst the black sea of the international intelligence community, pitted secretly against an undisputedly evil Sloan, who will protect his position of power at any cost. The supporting cast is fantastic, with real depth to each character. The writing is great, gripping you in a story you don't want to end, as it leaves you in a cliffhanger every week. Maybe the story is unrealistic, but that hardly matters here, as you're enjoying the story so much you don't care about anything else. The music get your adreneline pumping all through the show, and doesn't let go. There are few shows on TV that showcase the real talent of Hollywood as this one does. A real knockout, well worth the hour you'll put into it every Sunday.
If you're in the mood for something truly enjoyable and exciting, check out Alias, every Sunday at 9 PM on ABC. Also, Fox Family Channel is airing the show from the beginning every Friday at the same time. Don't miss this excellent new show, created by J.J. Abrams. You won't be sorry you tuned in!
Red Planet (2000)
Good flick, much better than "Mission to Mars"
Okay, so this movie won't win any really prestigious awards, I'll give you that. Still, simply because Mission to Mars, which arrived earlier than Red Planet, was a waste of time and money for the most part, doesn't mean this piece of scif-fi should be overlooked. The storyline was solid, there was good acting, the special effects rocked (AMEE in particular), there was a good bit of suspense and surprise, and it was fun to watch. Kudos to Carrie-Anne Moss here, who did a great acting job and delivered a wonderful narraration for the beginning and end sequences. So what if the ending was typical Hollywood, boy gets girl, saves planet, etc, I still enjoyed it. Real moviegoers shouldn't let things like this ruin the experience of watching a movie, but look at the whole picture instead. If you haven't seen Red Planet, do so now.
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
Best damn Brit flick ever!
God, this movie is a riot! The only thing bad about it is its rather abrupt and disappointing ending (and the fact that it has to end.) Some of the sequences here are bound to live on in movie history till the end of time. The coconut-swallow guards, the villager/political expert, the Black Knight, the Three-Headed Knight, the Conversation with God, the tempting of Sir Galahad, the witch burners, Tim the enchanter, the man at the Bridge of Death, the Frenchmen, I could go on and on (and on and on and on) but I won't. Suffice to say, if you haven't seen this movie or just need a good laugh, see this movie NOW! I doubt a funnier movie exists than this.