It's been a while since the last update.
I saw a load of movies since last time:
Batman Begins: Great movie, easily the best of the series. Christian Bale makes for a good Batman, and even better for Bruce Wayne. Ever since I rented The Machinist on DVD, my respect for Bale has gone up considerably.
Land of the Dead: An enjoyable little movie. It still holds up my theory that zombies are the proletarian monster. Vampires are the aristocratic monsters, werewolves are for frightened peasants and farmers, and Frankenstein's Monster basically started the "Science Gone Awry" movement of storytelling. Zombies, however, are a child of the post-WWII environment. They symbolize popular uprisings and can easily represent proletarian uprisings. I liked the movie, even though it wasn't as polished as Dawn of the Dead (and didn't have Sarah Polley in it).
War of the Worlds: I've been interested in the story ever since I heard about Orson Welles' radio broadcast of H.G. Wells' story. I knew the ending, so I wasn't disappointed like some of my friends were... I regard it as one of the first green sci-fi stories and knew what to expect.
Fantastic Four: Somewhat disappointing. Beyond enjoying Jessica Alba as an unlikely Sue Storm, I did like the actors who played Mr. Fantastic and Victor von Doom -- though some would say that he was DINO or "Doom In Name Only." I'm not much of a comic fanboy beyond comics that will never be made into movies -- like Planetary, Astro City, The Authority and others.
Devil's Rejects: More pointless than House of a Thousand Corpses. I was not impressed with the movie at all, though I still think Rob Zombie could make a good movie for some reason.
The Island: A surprise from Michael Bay. Pretty good stuff, though I'm a sucker for Scarlett Johansson ever since I saw her in Lost in Translation (and subsequently once I watched Ghost World). Being a sci-fi geek, I knew what the story would be about after I watched the trailer, but I still enjoyed it.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: I honestly don't see the Jacko comparisons some are making to Depp's portrayal of Willy Wonka, but I still think the movie was better than the first movie overall. Though I still think Gene Wilder was a very convincing Wonka as a sinister recluse. I still remember seeing those stares he gave the kids and I remember being scared as a little kid. A good movie, but I still think Batman and The Island still lead for top spot for this latest batch of movies.
***
I went camping at the Pachena Bay Campground, next to Indian Reserve 12 (Anacla) -- my "home" reserve. I stayed at Site P6 from the 25th to the 28th. I was pretty much the only one camping in the P* area until Tuesday evening, when 200 people arrived by dugout canoe for a program called Tribal Journeys. That was enjoyable, if abrupt. I met a lot of great people while they stayed over for the night and then were off again in the morning.
It's going to be a long weekend in British Columbia, so I'm planning on doing as little as possible. I've rented a ffew movies and that's about it.
I saw a load of movies since last time:
Batman Begins: Great movie, easily the best of the series. Christian Bale makes for a good Batman, and even better for Bruce Wayne. Ever since I rented The Machinist on DVD, my respect for Bale has gone up considerably.
Land of the Dead: An enjoyable little movie. It still holds up my theory that zombies are the proletarian monster. Vampires are the aristocratic monsters, werewolves are for frightened peasants and farmers, and Frankenstein's Monster basically started the "Science Gone Awry" movement of storytelling. Zombies, however, are a child of the post-WWII environment. They symbolize popular uprisings and can easily represent proletarian uprisings. I liked the movie, even though it wasn't as polished as Dawn of the Dead (and didn't have Sarah Polley in it).
War of the Worlds: I've been interested in the story ever since I heard about Orson Welles' radio broadcast of H.G. Wells' story. I knew the ending, so I wasn't disappointed like some of my friends were... I regard it as one of the first green sci-fi stories and knew what to expect.
Fantastic Four: Somewhat disappointing. Beyond enjoying Jessica Alba as an unlikely Sue Storm, I did like the actors who played Mr. Fantastic and Victor von Doom -- though some would say that he was DINO or "Doom In Name Only." I'm not much of a comic fanboy beyond comics that will never be made into movies -- like Planetary, Astro City, The Authority and others.
Devil's Rejects: More pointless than House of a Thousand Corpses. I was not impressed with the movie at all, though I still think Rob Zombie could make a good movie for some reason.
The Island: A surprise from Michael Bay. Pretty good stuff, though I'm a sucker for Scarlett Johansson ever since I saw her in Lost in Translation (and subsequently once I watched Ghost World). Being a sci-fi geek, I knew what the story would be about after I watched the trailer, but I still enjoyed it.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: I honestly don't see the Jacko comparisons some are making to Depp's portrayal of Willy Wonka, but I still think the movie was better than the first movie overall. Though I still think Gene Wilder was a very convincing Wonka as a sinister recluse. I still remember seeing those stares he gave the kids and I remember being scared as a little kid. A good movie, but I still think Batman and The Island still lead for top spot for this latest batch of movies.
***
I went camping at the Pachena Bay Campground, next to Indian Reserve 12 (Anacla) -- my "home" reserve. I stayed at Site P6 from the 25th to the 28th. I was pretty much the only one camping in the P* area until Tuesday evening, when 200 people arrived by dugout canoe for a program called Tribal Journeys. That was enjoyable, if abrupt. I met a lot of great people while they stayed over for the night and then were off again in the morning.
It's going to be a long weekend in British Columbia, so I'm planning on doing as little as possible. I've rented a ffew movies and that's about it.