"Che", "30 Rock", And More!

I haven't posted in a long time, so this is just a small catch up on what's been happening. I got really excited today because Steven Soderbergh's "Che" has just come out in a 3 disc set in the Criterion Collection. If anybody knows me, they know I'm obsessed with getting Criterion editions of some of my favorite films. As soon as I have the money, I'm going to Barnes And Noble and purchasing a copy. It's 5 hours long (although it was theatrically released in two parts, and that's how it's presented here), and is pure brilliance! Benicio Del Toro, who is set to appear in next-month's "The Wolf Man", acts as Che. He is one of the greatest actors of his generation, and I cannot wait to see his performance in "The Wolf Man"!

I've also started to watch Tina Fey's "30 Rock", a comedy series that follows the daily lives of the crew on the fictional "TGS With Tracy Jordan". Tracy Morgan, Tina Fay, Alec Baldwin, and Jack McBrayer are brilliant in the TV series. Alec Baldwin is hilarious with his all business approach to television, Tracy Morgan's portrayal of true idiocy is brilliant, and Jack McBrayer melts your heart as the simple-minded yet loyal Kenneth. Anybody who wants to watch a great television series should watch "30 Rock"!

Other than that, I have also started watching the television series "Star Wars: The Clone Wars". It's very good, but I am not as impressed with it as I was with the 2003 micro series that was on Cartoon Network. The new series has plots that are worthy of the original trilogy, and the visual style is amazing, but the script is sometimes a bit childish. However, I would still recommend it to friends, and I recommend it to you.

"The Death And Return Of Superman"

When I found out the news that Doomsday, one of my all-time favorite Superman villains, was the central antagonist for season 8 of "Smallville", I went into a frenzy of reminiscence. In Smallville, Doomsday is the alter-ego of Davis Bloome, a paramedic with an appetite for violence. His alter-ego, the Doomsday creature, looks a little different from the comics, but still, it is great that, for the first time ever, Doomsday has come to the silver screen.

As I said before, I was reminiscing. The main reason why is that Doomsday was originally introduced in a Superman story arc named "The Death Of Superman". Superman and Doomsday both die at the end of the graphic novel, and so it sets up events for the next two entries, "A World Without Superman" and "The Return Of Superman". These events were also recently adapted into an animated film, named "Superman: Doomsday".

Now, as many of my family and friends will know, I don't like the Superman character, but I don't despise him. Many of his stories don't appeal to me because he has no flaws- the only comic that had him in that I ever liked was "Superman: For Tomorrow"- one that I recommend to everybody. I do believe, however, that "The Death And Return" is Superman at his best. It was so successful as an arc that there was an audio drama, several animated adaptations (with lots of artistic liberty) as well as a video game.

"Star Trek", My Birthday, And More!

First of all, I'd like to thank everybody for my presents. Listed below are the presents and who they are from:

1. "Seven Samurai" DVD- Grandad
2. "One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest" DVD- Amanda
3. "The Blair Witch Project" DVD- Amanda
4. "Rear Window" DVD- Isabella
5. "To Kill A Mockingbird" DVD- Nana Betty
6. "Beauty and the Beast" DVD*- Nana Carole
7. "Stanley Kubrick: A Biography" by John Baxter- The Williams
8. "The Shining" by Stephen King- The Williams
9. "'Salem's Lot" by Stephen King- The Williams
10. "Skulduggery Pleasant 3: The Faceless Ones" by Derek Landy- Sue & Guy
11. "Mad Max" DVD- Sue & Guy
12. "Blow Up" DVD- Sue & Guy

*I am talking about the 1940's black and white one, not the disney one. This one is a lot more artistic, and very frightening, and very true to the original short story.

I also saw "Star Trek" this weekend, and I must say, I loved it. One of the best science fiction movies I've seen in a long time. And I'm kinda ashamed to say, but I watched a few of the original series... and I loved it! I started writing a few short stories, which you can read at this link:

www.startrekadventures.blogspot.com

Happy reading! And thanks for my presents!

"X-Men Origins: Wolverine", "Doctor Strange: The Animated Series" and "On the Waterfront"

So... I saw the new Wolverine movie, and I have to say that it is the best marvel movie made as of yet. The only one, in my opinion, that has matched up to it in originality and... sheer art, was the animated movie of "Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme". I urge any and all to go and see it, but don't take any children who are less than 12 years old- there is a particularly nasty scene (or should I say, scenes) that features a beheading, and a character that looks like the Mummy, just without a mouth.

When you look at the title of "Doctor Strange: The Animated Series", you probably think that I was talking about the movie I just mentioned. Well, I can tell you this- you are wrong. I've begun a short, web-based television series adapting the original Doctor Strange comics. I have made two episodes as of yet, both of which are on youtube. However, a note- the first episode had the audio taken away, So i will upload both of the episodes some time in the near future. If you want them straight away, we can chat via MSN and transfer the files then. They are in .wmv format.

Also, I saw "On the Waterfront" with Marlon Brando for the first time ever. I must say it was a brilliant film, but I need to watch it again as I saw it immediately after "Wolverine" and it seemed pretty tame. Anything will after that film!