Category Archives: Reviews

Movie Reviews: Wanted & The Incredible Hulk.

Okay, by popular request (1 comment on previous post), I’m going to give you guys a quick heads-up on the double feature I saw last Friday night. Wanted & The Incredible Hulk.

First off, let me just say that going to a drive-in in a Buick LeSabre by yourself can be a humbling experience. When the trailers came on before Wanted, showing The Dark Knight, I thought to myself, “Hey, why don’t I turn on the car stereo and listen to this in style?”

So I insert the key and turn it to turn on the car stereo… and the headlights come on. Right on the screen. No problem, right? Just turn ‘em off. So I quickly took the key out… and watched in slow motion horror as the lights STAYED ON. As they do EVERY TIME you turn off the car.

Within seconds one of the theater attendants was at my car, banging on the hood and asking me to turn off my lights. I shrugged sheepishly (i.e. pathetically) and explained I couldn’t turn them off, and that they’d turn off automatically in about two minutes.

TWO MINUTES!!! During that time I was the most hated man in the parking lot. I wanted to slink down in my passenger seat until the pain subsided. What’s worse, the car to my left had a girl in it who was laughing hysterically as she narrated what was going on into her cell phone.

It was a sad, sad movie moment for me. ME! The guy who strives for Movie Experience Perfection! The one who can’t stand talkers anywhere in earshot, and here I was ruining a hallowed movie moment – The Trailers – for the entire audience. :( I’ve since resolved to read the freakin’ manual to figure out how to turn those ding dang lights off next time.

Now, the nutshells:

Wanted – It was everything the trailers made it out to be. Fast, adrenaline-fueled belief-suspending fun. The slow-motion action scenes were nothing short of spectacular. On the downside, there was a lot of crude language and the violence was prevalent, but if you stomached any of the Kill Bills, you’ll do just fine, Scout. On the plus side, watching the movie served as great inspiration for a novel one day. :) Took a page’s worth of notes and everything. And that’s the way it should be for me – when I read a novel, watch a movie / TV show, I don’t just want to be entertained, I want to be educated, affected. Inspired. :)

The Incredible Hulk – Starting out, my expectations were kinda low. I wasn’t impressed with the trailers for it, but I made a point to only watch them twice, lest I ruin the celluloid surprises later on. Thankfully, the trailers didn’t do the sheer action and adrenaline of the fight scenes justice.

I was one of 5 people who actually enjoyed Ang Lee’s “Hulk” back in 2003. No, it wasn’t perfect, but I’d rather it err on the side of being TOO intellectual than simply insulting (see: Daredevil, Elektra, etc.). When I heard the director of the new Hulk was the guy who brought us The Transporter & The Transporter 2, I smiled. Sure, they might be over-the-top action flicks, but ya gotta zero in on their strong points: They’re Over-The-Top Action Flicks. :)

Thankfully, he didn’t disappoint. The Incredible Hulk is satisfying. The fight scenes are impressive, and they progress nicely from Good to Great to Holy Moses That’s Cool!  The CGI rendering is excellent (in my opinion), and the Hulk never looked so accurate on screen. Norton and the cast are great, but I’m not a huge Norton fan, to be honest. He comes across as too whiny an mousey (which, in truth, made him an ideal Bruce Banner).

So there you have it. My two cents. Hancock comes out today, and I’m kinda looking forward to that. :) Aside from that, I’m also hankerin’ a bit for The Dark Knight, Journey to the Center of the Earth (in 3D), and The Mummy 3.

Kevin

Comfort Zones, Callings & Emusic Withdrawl.

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Iron Man Movie Review.

I’m not a huge Iron Man fan. Being a Marvel Comics reader growing up, I was familiar with him, but I never really read a full-fledged “Iron Man” issue. (The closest thing was when he tussled with the Hulk one time… With deliciously crunchy results.)

That said, when I saw Iron Man, the movie, on Monday night, it was with a semi-unbiased mental palate. You’ve heard the critics, and now you’ll hear me: it was good. Quite good. Funny, action-packed, intelligent, well-acted. Kudos on all accounts, really.

So. If you see only ONE movie this Spring (yes, it’s still Spring), then see Iron Man. I would have to say it’s right up there next to “Batman Begins” with being one of the most polished and faithful comic book adaptations to come to the silver screen. Yes, it was THAT good. An A-, to be sure.

I’m really loving Lubbock weather. It might be hot during the day, but it cools off right quick at night. Balmy and breezy, it’s like a tropical paradise sometimes. Without the beach… Or rather, with plenty of beach but not ocean. Yeah. That’s more accurate.

This afternoon we had violent thunderstorms with a smattering of hail. And now? At 5:30pm? Blue skies and balmy weather. Yup. I think Lubbock’s gonna fit in just fine. :)

Kevin

Ipod Addendum

As I sat in the sauna this afternoon, beads of sweat turning into rivulets as I listened to “Neglected Threes” on my iPod, a thought occurred to me.

I was listening to Switchfoot’s “This Is Your Life,” and I was hearing elements of the music I’d never heard before. Subtle aspects which had always escaped me in the past. It could be that I’ve mainly heard the song in “wide open” areas – the car, the living room stereo, etc. But I’d like to think it’s a combination of the JVC Marshmallow headphones and the iPod itself. I’d always heard they provided excellent sound reproduction, and now I tend to believe it.

That’s it. Just thrilled about the new sounds coming out of old songs.

Slept on my neck wrong last night, so I have a crick in it. Can’t look left without yelping. :| Isn’t growing up fun, kids? Wheeeee……..

Kevin

Ipod Feedback & No Worries.

Something strange has happened the past week. As I’ve squatted at a table here at the gym to read/write/etc., I’ve had not one but TWO people compliment my Clie setup. What setup is this, you ask? Not much. It’s my Sony Clie TJ-37 and the Stowaway Folding Keyboard.

Apparently this stuff’s the bomb, because people give me looks left and right when I write on it. (Granted, they give me looks regardless… but when you’re as good-lookin’ as I am, you get used to rubber-necked gawkers…)

And now, the question on everyone’s mind: What’s on Kevin’s iPod?

Playlists:

Latest Greatest – Songs added in the last 3 months with a rating of 3 Stars or higher (out of 5)

Unrated – Those songs I have yet to rate. Duh.

Chick Picks – Women singer/songwriters, songs with a rating of 3 stars or higher

Recently Played – This is mainly for my LastFM.com profile, so I can see which artists really ARE my favorite ones. Why that’s relevant, I can’t say. But in my world, it is.

Neglected Threes – Songs with a rating of 3 stars that haven’t been played in over a year.

Podcasts:
LifeChurch.tv sermons – now I can watch ‘em without a laptop! Less burn marks on the thighs. Yay!
BlendTek episodes – “Don’t breathe this.” Absolutely hilarious.
StrongBad E-mails - Thanks for Jolena and Chris Mayfield for showing me the StrongBad way years ago.
GrooveSalad “Taste of the Week” – Short, 5-minute podcast of downtempo & ambient picks.
Dave’s Lounge – the leader in downtempo, trip-hop and chillout goodness, all in a 30 minute podcast.
The Chillcast - The chillout runner-up podcast.

Photos:
Kevin’s iPod Picks (family)
Scripture – For the past year I’ve typed up every single Bible verse I’ve underlined or marked, collected them into a Word document, and then painstakingly transformed them into individual JPEGs with Photoshop. The results? Digital flashcards. I’ve run the Scripture slideshows on my Clie for a while, and the experience is only heightened on the iPod. (If anyone would like to use my digital scripture list, just let me know and I’ll upload ‘em for you.)

Address Book – hard to search, but nice to have, just in case
Notes (Text notes from my Clie) – Good to have, but the inability to enter or change text makes me frowny. Kinda sad. But still thrilled to have it, so more zippy than frowny.

Overall, I’m loving my iPod. It has exceeded my expectations. Sound is excellent, too. I was skeptical it would compare to Samsung’s WOW and SRS enhancements, but it does. I should note, my earphones of choice are the JVC Marshmallow earbuds. Affordable (2 on eBay for $10), excellent range and effective noise isolation makes for an unsurpassed audio experience. (Even better than the Etymotic buds, which surprised me.) Good stuff. I WILL say, however, that 4 gb is dinky. I’d almost say it’s worth it to save your money and get a whopping 80gb iPod Classic, if you’re a diehard music junkie. Plus, you wouldn’t have to pick and choose what music/movies/tv shows/podcasts/pictures to take with you. It’d all just be there. (Here’s hoping for a 60gb iPhone come June…)

In other news, I’m not going to be able to write many more posts for a while. You know how I stabbed my finger in early March? Well, that’s gotten worse. I didn’t sever a tendon, but I nicked it pretty good, and then made the situation worse by using my hand too much before it healed. (I THOUGHT a few weeks would be sufficient. It wasn’t. :( )

So I’m scheduled for surgery (my very 1st surgery) on May 15th. Then there’s a minimum 2 week period where I’ll have to keep it elevated above my heart. For 2 weeks. My mother is coming for the first week, and Elaine, our babysitter of choice from Edmond, is coming for the second week.

So, yeah. It kinda sucks. And yes, I feel utterly stupid. And have a newfound respect for scissors. (As should you all, now…)

At the same time, I try to keep it in perspective. Could’ve been MUCH worse. And the fact that I have full mobility NOW is a good sign. But as one who loves to write, the fear of not being able to was looming.

No wonder God is reaching me with messages about Worry these days. I watch LifeChurch.tv podcast sermons at random. I missed the Hostage series (due to the move), so I’m just catching up on it. Last night I watched the sermon on Worrying. It was, as you can imagine, excellent. Well-timed and pointed.

Then the next chapter in “The Power of Positive Thinking” (which I’ve been reading the last month) is on… Worrying.

I’m always amazed how precisely God sychronizes my life with what He wants me to know, just when He wants me to know it. He consistently and faithfully anticipates my need, and fills it. And the more I pursue Him and His truth – whether in the Bible directly, sermons, books, music, etc. – the more He reveals His hand in my life.

I’m slowly finding a peace with not knowing, with not being in control. I don’t know why God wants me to be laid up for a while. I’m not going to be able to serve on the LifeChurch.tv Internet Campus for a long time, and in my mind that’s a bad thing. But I’ just thinking about my own microscopic world. God sees everything.

Maybe there’s something I’m supposed to do. To learn. To grow. Perhaps there’s someone I’m supposed to meet and talk to whom I wouldn’t have met otherwise. Doctors, nurses, etc. Who knows? I have no idea.

But I’m choosing to trust in Him. I’m choosing to have a stubborn faith in His goodness, in His ultimate plan. It’s not always logical, faith. Which is why I’m emphasizing that it’s a choice. It’s easy to look at life and say it’s chaotic, out of control and God is a twisted puppetmaster. It’s hard to see the mess all around you and say, “God’s got it covered.”

On a final note, I’ll probably be uploading more audio and video blog entries. So my skills in those areas will develop more. Heh….

That’s it. I’ll catch you guys later. :)

Kevin

Jumper & Other Movie Thoughts.

I just wanted to say that I saw the movie Jumper last week on opening day, and contrary to the critics out there, It Did NOT Suck. Granted, I’m biased because I had read the novels by Stephen Gould and already loved the main character (David). But the critics are being TOO critical on this one. It’s an enjoyable, fast-moving flick. Hayden Christensen doesn’t suck as much as he did in the Star Wars films, and I felt he nailed his character perfectly.

Samuel Jackson, on the other hand… Had annoying hair. If anything screamed “Bad Wig” more than his get-up, I d on’t know what it would be.

So, yeah, I wanted to set the record straight. Jumper was fun. Not perfect, but fun. And I highly recommend the original novel and the sequel, Reflex.

Other movie thoughts:

Aliens Vs. Predator 2 – this one DID suck. A LOT. Because it was “R” instead of PG-13, they went for the HARD “R.” Full of excessive gore, blood, violence, etc. Plus, it was all so fast you didn’t have ANY idea what was happening, or who was fighting whom. Big, big stinker.

Cloverfield – I liked it. My friend, Rob, hated it. But I enjoyed the story and the adrenaline boosts that came at just the right time. One word of advice: don’t watch the screen the whole time. Look above or below it, until the motion slows down. You WILL get sick if you watch it head on. Trust me.

Proof- Kim and I watched this last night. Math geeks out there will love it. Normal people (like myself) will still find it enjoyable. All star cast with nary a stinker in the talent department.

The Lookout – Joseph Gordon Levitt is the new Heath Ledger. Looks identical to him, and has the acting chops to match him. (Also check out “Brick” for a real twister. Watch WITH subtitles on. The language is so specialized, you’d quickly be lost without ‘em.)

Kevin

Ready, Set… Bring It On, 2009!!!

Yeah, you read that right. I said 2009. I KNOW it’s 2008, but I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about 2009. February, to be exact.

And what, you ask, is so special about February 2009? Well, friend, that’s when all the channels will be forced to broadcast their schtuff in a digital format, as opposed to analog. It also means people without HD TV & their tuners will have to get a converter box thingy to tune in those over-the-air signals. (Click here for more details.)

The reason this is blog-worthy is because of a small surprise I had this week.

Kim and I have been without a dedicated DVD player for about a year and a half now. We had a fantasmic Panasonic DVD recorder, but I mistakenly placed it on TOP of the VHS player we had. And that sucker was old, and cranked out a TON of heat. Or so I found out.

Yes. I fried our DVD recorder. Toasted it something fierce. It wouldn’t have been so painful if I hadn’t toasted the OTHER one I had, a year prior to that. :\ After a few heated conversations with the Panasonic support people (who, I should note, were calm and professional) I finally read that page one section in the manual. About not putting their delicate equipment over other hot stuff. Again, a painful lesson to learn… So consider yourself warned.

Anyhow, we’ve been using our portable Phillips DVD player for the past year, hooking it up to the TV through the various video cables. It wasn’t an ideal situation. So this year we decided to use some of the Christmas money we were given and buy a proper DVD / VHS player combo, to simplify our entertainment lives.

On Saturday Kim and I went on a date, and happened to drop into Circuit City to browse their players. The one we wanted, a Sony, was out of stock. BUT, the salesman said, there WAS an open box item in the front of the store. So we wander up and take a gander. Sure enough, it’s an identical item, but marked down considerably.

And beside it? A Panasonic VHS / DVD Recorder combo. The Panasonic DMR-EZ47VK, to be precise. It was marked down from $289 to $189, which was substantial. Especially for a combo player that records to DVD.

So we snatched it up. True, it was $90 more than I expected to spend, but considering the cost and the benefits (and the 1 year warranty), I couldn’t resist.

So we get it home, hook it up, and all is well. Then I read the manual, slowly, and my eyes light up. This thing didn’t just have a tuner in it’s gut, it had a digital tuner inside! Curious, I have it automatically load all the channels it can pick up, and then I changed the channel… Only to realize I’m watching a football game in crystal-clear, pristine high definition.

I was shocked. Delighted. Astounded. We have a Samsung box, 4:3 29″ screen, but apparently it’s HD-ready because there the signal was in all its widescreen glory.

So that was my thrill of Sunday. Watching TV in HD for the first time in my very own home. Almost makes me want to get a bigger TV… Someday….

Kevin

Long John Silver’s Buttered Lobster Bites.

I love lobster. It was disgusting as a kid, then became a bit more appealing when (ahem) I actually TRIED it. And now? Now I love it.

I don’t eat it a lot, though, what with the high price. But once in a while I go out to eat with my parents and there’s a restaurant that serves it, so I graciously accept their generosity. Aside from that? No lobster for Kevin.

Until today. Today I will go to Long John Silvers and order some of their Buttered Lobster Bites that I’ve seen advertised non-stop the past week. I will order them and I will eat them and I will hopefully love them.

If they don’t make me sick. :)

I’ll give you my impressions in the next post.

Kevin “Cousteau” Mills

Update: No need to wait for another post. I can testify that I’ve eaten a sampling of the aforementioned Lobster Bites and can give you immediate feedback immediately, with no waiting.

They’re delicious.

I’m sorry, but it’s true. When I took my first bite I said to myself, “Wow. These are actually good! REALLY good!” And then I snarfed down the whole bucketful. (Note: A bucket is about the size of a large woman’s thimble, or perhaps a cup’s worth.)

The taste and texture are true to lobsterness of the past, with the exception of the crunchy, buttery exterior. But even that is pretty good. So yesterday I ordered a second bucket of Buttered Lobster Bites and, complimented with a Kraft Alfredo Pasta mix, had myself a delicious delicacy of lobster and alfredo (and Gatorade Ice, if you must know…)

Oh yes. I’m the pinnacle of physical perfection, I am.

But seriously, they’re good. And they’re gonna be gone any second now, so if you don’t want to wait another 6-8 months to give these a try, I strongly suggest you get past your initial disgust at the idea and buy a thimbleful today.

Kevin

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