Gloria Oliver's Blog, page 99

Movie Review - Resident Evil: Retribution

Resident Evil: Retribution


Starring: Milla Jovovich, Sienna Guillory, Michelle Rodriguez, Aryana Engineer, Bingbing Li, Boris Kodjoe, Johann Urb, Robin Kasyanov, Kevin Durand, Ofilio Portillo, Oded Fehr, Colin Salmon, Shawn Roberts, and more.

Directed by: Paul W S Anderson Writing Credits: Paul W S Anderson Cinematography by: Glen MacPherson Original Music by: tomandandy (Tom Hadju and Andy Milburn)

Premise: Captured after the unexpected attack by a brainwashed Jill at the end of "Resident Evil: Afterlife," Alice finds help from an unexpected source - her sworn enemy, Albert Wesker. His agent Ada and a small team of men have been tasked with setting Alice free and destroying Umbrella's underwater Siberian base. The Red Queen, Umbrella's AI, who has now taken over the facility, will not make the task easy. (Rated R)

Review:

1) Acting - Total Thumbs Up: The film gives unexpected avenues for the stars to show their acting acumen. Milla Jovovich has always done well in her action film roles, but we get to see another side of her talents in the early Suburbia section of the movie as a suburban housewife fighting for her life and reacting from it. Michelle Rodriguez also gets to show a different side as she too has multiple roles in the film. Aryana Engineer gave a good and layered performance despite her young years. The fact her character was handicapped and used voice and sign to communicate allowed for deeper layers for the character of Becky.

2) Special Effects - Total Thumbs Up: As with each of the preceding "Resident Evil" film, the budget for this one was high, and they made great use of it. Some true hard work went into the film and it showed.

They did a great job integrating the zones of the base with computer simulations and tracking systems used by the Red Queen. They made great visuals and also kept the audience informed on who was where. The attention to detail was high and really came through as the groups traveled through the different zones.

There were fights and explosions galore. And in a nice reversal, we even got chainsaw wielding zombies! The amount of flying bullet casings was quite impressive as well. Dumb zombies, hungry zombies, Russian smart zombies,  even armed and rocket launcher wielding zombies, it was a veritable smorgasbord of 'zombiness', which was a lot of fun.

There were the occasional segments of infinite bullet syndrome, but they did make the attempt to stay realistic on occasion.

The opening sequence was both unusual and attention grabbing. The franchise has always been very good with their openings - this one was one of the best.

3) Plot/Story - Thumbs Up: In previous reviews of the franchise I'd made the statement that as the budget went up, the story quality went down. I am rather pleased to say that in this instance, they broke the pattern. Of a whole, they kept the story simple and strait forward, which helped to keep it from careening into plot holes or other issues the "Resident Evil" films have shown in the past.

For those who've not watched the previous films, they have a quick recap picking up some of the most important details to share with the audience so they know what's what. For those who've watched them all, you'll get the added treat of seeing many of the characters from some of the previous films brought back, though not exactly as you've met them before. Made for some fun contrast and also gave some of the actors a chance to shine in a different line from the usual action personas.

A definite fun bit was the recreation of the opening sequence where the virus first showed up in Tokyo, Japan in "Resident Evil: Afterlife." They even got the same Japanese Business Man (Takato Yamashita) and the J Pop Girl (Mika Nakashima) to reprise their roles. Nice!

4) Stunts - Total Thumbs Up: The choreography during the fights were 'top notch.' Combine them with the great special effects, and it made for a fabulous viewing experience. The fight with Alice, the chain, the gun, and the Japanese zombies will stay with me for a long time - it was a work of art. Everyone gave their best and then some.

5) Locations/Cinematography - Total Thumbs Up: The panning scene where you see exactly where Alice is when she escapes part of her prison was utterly breathtaking. Water was a recurring theme and used in some very imaginative ways. Loved the visual with Michelle Rodriguez towards the end.

The recreations of New York, Moscow, Tokyo, and American suburbia were exquisite. It made the contrast even better when the illusion would occasionally crack and show the facility beneath. There were several rooms in the base proper that had great impact due to the use of light. Loved the lighting up sequence at the central hub. Lots and lots of visuals to keep the eyes occupied.

Conclusion: A lot more fun than I was expecting. Definitely one to check out. Just the high doses of action will keep the audience's adrenaline pumping to high levels throughout. And yes, we get left in a cliff hanger - AGAIN.

Rating: 4 out of 5 (Hubby's Rating: Worth Paying Full Price to See Again)

Picture Kaleidoscope 9/12/12

Good to be back in the swing of things. Phew!


Found this gorgeous flower arrangement at Gloria's Restaurant. (No, not mine! Hush.) :P Very exotic looking.

Due to circumstances beyond my control, I ended up having to get another car. What's truly bizarre is that not until the deal was done did I really look at the car. It has the face of a cat! 

Best of all though, the headlights look like actual eyes. Look at the lashes and the eye shadow! Too cool! (This is a Hyundai Elantra - in case you were wondering. :P) Big trunk and awesome gas mileage! Yeah!

My daughter and her hubby were out on their usual Wednesday night game where they hang at a local restaurant. Unbeknownst to them, Ben's Balloons were making an appearance. Here is their version of Cthulhu!

And Dr Who's Tardis! They do some awesome work!

I'm also cheating and using some of my daughter's pictures. She's been sending me pics from her visit up north. Heh heh.

She said this tunnel actually had a light show! Wish she'd shot video! (She was going to a connecting flight. No idea which city she was in for this. Still, too cool!)

Some of the local nature at her friend's place.

Peach tree.

Cucumbers!


Love the trees. You don't get them like this down here.

I'm hoping she's having a blast! 
Have a great mid week!
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Mind Sieve 9/10/12

I'm baaack~!






You know I HAD to. Supernatural Season 8 Promo. May it be good. :P

Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters...say what? And with Jeremy Renner? I'm so there. :P


Per Tor.com this Star Wars spoof was done a long time ago (yes, in a galaxy far far away~!). I'd never seen it but it was cute. COPS and Star Wars unite for Troops.


Rock Jocks Theatrical Trailer - this could be cute!


As Long As You Love Me Parody from the Key of Awesome. Even has a Star Wars section! lol.


The Expandables 2 Part 2 - yeah, if the film left you wanting a little more, here you go. Hee!


The Rocketeer Animation - Fanmade. This was adorable! Wish there was more.


Matt Smith & Karen Gillan - Dr Who vs. Nerdist - celebrity bowling! Yeah, I wasn't going to look at this, then I thought, naw, do it for a minute. Watched the whole thing. Laughed my buns off. lol. Tons of fun.

Tom Hank's Electric City - very gritty, very noir, and it's animated!







3 Reasons Why Coercing Readers Into Newsletter Subscriptions Is A Bad Idea by Roni Loren. Makes sense.

This is how one of my publishers is using social media (plus it let's me give it an extra plug! :P) - The 2012 Zumaya Publications Trivia Scavenger Hunt. Heh heh heh. (What?)






The Business Rusch: A Good Offense from Kristine Kathryn Rusch.

A Warning To All Writers Who Need Help Indie Publishing from Kristine Kathryn Rusch. Scary stuff!


I think I got a little carried away - but so much good stuff to share!
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Virtual Tourist - Star Wars The Old Republic 9/9/12

Been busting chops to catch up this week on everything! Wheee!


Republic Side - Jedi Consular
Belsavis



The ruins look somewhat Mayan except blockier, don't you think?

Entrance to finding Hallow Voice, the Esh-ka leader.



I'm thinking that's where he's at. :P Totally forgot to take his pic before we pulled him out after the big battle. Sigh. The Esh-kat leader asked me to choose a name in their format. Of the three, I chose Ember Fist. :)



My little Jedi made that big hole right there. Oh yeah. 

Just fascinated by this nasty looking critter. We have not been brave enough to take him on. lol.

Different angle on some of the ruins.

Just when I thought we'd seen all the nasty creatures... Eek! This one was on hubbin's story track. 

Ancient escape ship.

Generator in the distance.
Hoping we get to play more today! Work and convention schedules have not been helping!


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Sneak Peek At Some of The Prices for the 2012 Zumaya Publications Scavenger Hunt!

Here's a peek at some of the prizes for the Zumaya Publications Scavenger Hunt:


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If you've read my novels, you'll know which one I threw into the pot. Hee hee!
All the details can be found at blog.zumayapublications.com
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Movie Review - Branded

Branded


Starring: Ed Stoppard, Leelee Sobieski, Jeffrey Tambor, Max von Sydow, Ingeborga Dapkunaite, and more.

Directed by: Jamie Bradshaw and Alexander Doulerain Written by: Jamie Bradshaw and Alexander Doulerain Cinematography by: Rogier Stoffer Original Music by: Eduard Artemiev

Premise: Hit by lightning as a child, Misha Galkin was marked for an unusual life. Driven to the edge by a number of bad incidents in his life relating to his career in marketing, he eventually comes to realize there's an enemy only he can see, and he sets out to save humanity from it, even if it means doing things their way. (Rated R)

Review:

1) Acting - Thumbs Up: Ed Stoppard wore many faces as he worked through the life of Misha, and he wore them well. Leelee Sobiesky glowed in her performance. Her love for Misha shone brightly, and her disappointment and fears further in the film were palpable. The scene where she leaves Misha after she finds him again was very poignant.

2) Special Effects - Thumbs Up: Though not present in flashy amounts in the beginning of the film, the special effects play a large part in the later sections. Most of the effects are subtle shifts in technology, changes that help the audience see it is a future time as we leave the modern age. The creatures (the living embodiment of the brands) Misha sees towards the end, which evolve and grow and go to war on one another, were nicely done. Definitely grotesque enough to give kids the "heebie jeebies".

3) Plot Story - Thumbs Up: A lot of people will disagree with me on this. "Branded" is the type of film where you either get and enjoy the multiple, odd, overlapping layers and symbolism, or you don't. The original US title for the film was "Mad Cow". Cows play an important role in the movie from the moment it begins to the end. They are used as a symbol for people, for biblical type greed, deity sacrifice, and more. This symbolism ties into the new name "Branded" as well, as it can be taken to mean several things - from product branding, with regards to marketing, but also to being branded like a cow by the products we consume.

In a twisted way I applaud them for their misleading movie previews. Yes, it told you somewhat what the film would be about, yet didn't. It's as if by shaping the preview in the way they did, they prove some of the same points stated in the film - anything to get you in the door, even if it has nothing to do with what you'll find inside. (The same can be said for some of the premise blurbs at some sites - this film is not a science fiction thriller.)

It's told in a 'funky' manner as well. Sometimes it acts like a documentary, others like a normal movie, and more. Many viewers might find it slow, and possibly awkward. I liked it anyway.

4) Locations/Cinematography - Thumbs Up: Filmed mostly in Moscow, the old city gives the film a great feel. With the added CGI, they're able to add ads all over the place, the names just slightly different, but totally familiar to the audience. Watching how they change at the different stages of the film was half the fun.

Conclusion: An interesting film that will not appeal to most audiences. But if you'd like to see something with some truths and a sprinkle of insanity, it might just be for you.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 (Hubby's Rating: Not Worth Seeing: Even on Cable)[image error]

Picture Kaleidoscope - Animefest 2012 Edition

This past weekend was Animefest! It was totally fun and I got a bunch of awesome costume pics to share. (Way too much to do in way too little time is why I had to skip the usual Sunday and Monday posts. Wah!)


I loved that he was able to get the two swans for the backside! Lol! (Ack, I know the anime but the brain is not firing! Dang it! Has Luffy the Pirate0

One mean Queen of Hearts~!

Awesome Loki and Hawkeye. Loki's staff even glowed. And Hawkeye had the cool quiver too!

Here's the staff. Totally awesome.

Mario! And, uhm, didn't notice the lady till later. Doh!

Two of the vendors had brought Pachinko with them! This is the Evangelion Pachinko machine.

A super awesome Assassin's Creed costume. 

This killed me. If you're a Fan of Dr. Slump by Toriyama, you'll get the joke. Heh heh. (Creator of Dragonball) Arale, the girl hero (and android) of the comedy series as Pooh. Too funny.

A table filled with ONLY Dr Who stuff. Drool....

Loved the half and half look. Forgot to ask him if it was patterned after the Star Trek episode of something else.

Life sized Pokemon! Woot!

Loved this cowboy outfit. The big gun was very cool.

Card Captor Sakura!

Dr. Doofenschmirtz battling Agent P! Go Phineas and Ferb!

Look at the size of that bazooka thing!

This Elven princess costume was a thing of utter awesomeness. Look at all the detail!

Knight from a game whose name escapes me. Argh! With their pets! Too cute.

This owl costume was super awesome. On the back she even has tail feathers. So adorable!

She looked awesome in this. Wish I'd taken a better pic!

On Sunday morning. She had way too much energy, but was so cute!

He even lipsynched to music. Hee!

An adorable Gara my daughter found. As well as some homemade lip balm called Peary Tentacle. hee! And look at the awesome baggie she put it in! From Starrydance Cosmetics~!

Captain America like you've never seen him before. 

Loved the sword!


Podcaster doing some interviews in artist alley.

She was frosty! Hee!
It was a great Animefest. Can't wait for next year!
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The 2012 Zumaya Publications Scavenger Hunt!

An announcement from one of my publishers that could prove lucrative. heh heh heh.

Welcome to the 2012 Zumaya Trivia Scavenger Hunt! 
We had so much fun last year with a smaller version in conjunction with a chat we decided to expand it, gather some terrific prizes and give lots of people a chance to win them by running the event through the month of September.         A number of our authors have donated those prizes, and they are all related somehow to their books. How they’re related, we aren’t going to tell, beyond maybe a hint or two. We don’t want to give away all our secrets.         The way the contest works is that a group of Zumaya authors are hosting a collection of links on their blogs. There will be a question about themselves or their books, and a link to where you can find the answer. Visit all the blogs, collect the answers to all the questions, then go here, and complete the contest form.         Now, a contest wouldn’t be any fun if it was too easy, so we’ve added some book and author-related trivia questions just to challenge you. Take your time—the Zumaya Trivia Scavenger Hunt will run through the entire month of September. You can see photos of some of the great prizes we’re giving away over at  Pinterest in the "What Do These Have In Common" album or at the Zumaya page at Facebook. Who knows— there might even be a few books and ebooks tossed into the mix before we’re done. We’ll definitely be giving away at least one ereader, but we’re waiting for all the new models to come out before we pick those.         There will also be daily and weekly trivia contests, so keep an eye on Twitter and the Zumaya page on Facebook, or re-visit our company blog Zumaya Tales.  If you haven’t liked the Zumaya page on Facebook, now would be a good time. We’ll also have a chat at Coffee Time Romance and more on 4 September to launch, and a couple of hangouts on Google+ over the next four weeks.         There is, of course, no purchase required, and your private information will remain between you and Zumaya. Unless we’re authorized to do otherwise, it will all be deleted when the contest ends. While we’d love it if you sampled our wares, our goal with this contest is to get to know as many people as we can, and to let them get to know us. So, welcome and have fun!
Now to get you started...
At the bottom of this post is a list of Zumaya authors. On each of their websites you’ll find the answer to a question. Collect the answers to those questions, then go to the ZP Survey Monkey page and fill in the answers. 

My question is: "Does Gloria Oliver wear glasses?" The answer is both here and at my website. Heh heh heh. (What? They can't all be super brain stoppers?) :P



Cindy Lynn Speer Rachel Green Kim Baccellia Rie Sheridan Rose Mike DiCerto Linda Andrews Arlene Sachitano Gloria Oliver Alana Lorens Wendy Dager Mark Roberts Christine MarciniakInLinkz.com

Movie Review - The Expendables 2

The Expendables 2


Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lungdren, Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis, Nan Yu, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, Liam Hemsworth, Scott Adkins, Charisma Carpenter, and more...

Directed by: Simon West Screenplay by: Richard Wenk and Sylvester Stallone Story by: Ken Kaufman, David Agosto, and Richard Wenk Based on the characters by: David Callaham Cinematography by: Shelly Johnson Original Music by: Brian Tyler

Premise: When a supposedly easy mission turns bad and takes the life of one of their own, the Expendables won't rest until they've gotten revenge.

Review:

1) Acting - Thumbs Up: There wasn't much for most of the actors to act to, but what there was was well done. Stallone did a great  job. Van Damme was an awesomely nasty bad guy. It was definitely fun watching them all prancing about with guns blazing.

2) Special Effects - Total Thumbs Up: Great explosions! Tons of weapons fire during different parts of the film and they actually would run out of bullets, trying for a feeling of authenticity. It even had daring airplane lift offs and landings. Plenty of special effects entertainment for all.

3) Plot/Story - Neutral: The beginning of the film with the extraction/rescue plan was probably the best part of the whole movie. It truly showed the extent  of Expendables' skills. Then the story unfortunately turned into an unimaginative romp with too many winks to the audience with regards to in-jokes and other slipped in bits. Some were quite funny, but others fell flat. While seeing Chuck Norris was great, he got thrown in as a "Deus Ex Machina" at least once in the film. Some of  the others were also treated this way.

I was pretty miffed at the convenient way they got Jet Li's character to leave after the intro mission was over to make room for the character of Maggie. Though his 'fry pan' martial arts was totally enjoyable, it wasn't enough to make up for the big gap caused in the group with the departure of his character. It was almost as if the writers were afraid of having two characters doing martial arts. Which is silly as there can never be enough martial arts in an action film.

The jokes, like I said, were plentiful. Some were subtle, others were not. "Total Recall", "Die Hard", and even those online jokes about Chuck Norris made an appearance. I believe even the tattoo Van Damme wore as part if his 'bad guy' persona was an in-joke to one of his films.

4) Stunts - Total Thumbs Up: Great stunts. Kudos to the stuntmen standing in for our favorite older action heroes, especially during the final battle sequence. The only sequence with any issues was during the forced plane landing. The area of danger with Magggie was done in super shaky cam. Rather than add to the danger, it made the sequence incredibly difficult to see, making it lose any impact on the viewer of the possible loss of the new teammate.

5) Locations/Cinematography - Thumbs Up: Lots of foreign locations and interesting places were in the film. I especially enjoyed the cool structure of the mountain mines in Russia.

Conclusion: "Expendables 2" delivers on a ton of action, explosions, and gun play, but the plot left a lot to be desired. I didn't personally feel it came close to the original in overall satisfaction. But it definitely was awesome seeing all those big action stars on the big screen again.

Rating: 3 out of 5 (Hubby's Rating: Worth Seeing for Matinee)

Picture Kaleidoscope 8/29/12

Greetings!



Almost like a glowing pearl on a fluffy cushion, no? :)


Full Moon Over Over Horse Guards Palace by JZA Photography.

The Toothbrush Incident from Zzapback. Look closely. Quite funny. heh.
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Couple Traveling The World And Posing For Wedding Photos Along The Way from PetaPixel. (Mayan wedding photo by Dean Anderson.)
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Awesome Photos of Bald Men Wearing Water Splashes as Wigs from Peta Pixel. Photos by Tim Tadder.

See you next time!