October 2012

Chasing Mavericks

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: Chasing Mavericks
  • IMDB: link

chasing-mavericks-posterEven though the film was directed by the combination of Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential, Wonder Boys) and Michael Apted (Gorillas in the Mist, Coal Miner’s Daughter), I was still surprised by how much I enjoyed Chasing Mavericks. The film is based on the real life of surfer Jay Moriarty (Jonny Weston, who reminds me more than a little of Christopher Atkins in The Pirate Movie) who grew up chasing giant waves most believed were myths in a small cove in Northern California in the mid-1990’s.

Although the surfing footage is some of the best ever captured for a feature film, the screenplay is just as focused on Jay’s life outside the water when he’s not obsessed with his dream of surfing Mavericks. The fatherless young man whose alcoholic mother (Elisabeth Shue) is less than dependable latches on at a young age to a surfing neighbor (Gerard Butler) who, despite having enough trouble figuring out how to be a father to his own daughter (Maya Raines), finds himself cast into the role of a surrogate father to the talented young surfer whether he likes it or not.

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Cloud Atlas is in Need of a Road Map (and Lots of Editing)

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: Cloud Atlas
  • IMDB: link

cloud-atlas-posterCloud Atlas, the collaboration by the Wachowskis and Tom Tykwer to bring the novel of the same name by David Mitchell to the big screen is, to put it bluntly, a mess.  It’s an ambitious mess to be sure as the project bites off far more than it can chew by casting a small group of actors playing multiple roles across different time periods, but it’s a mess none the less. Fans of the book may be prepared for what’s to come, but the rest of us could use a road map of this late night ride to nowhere. (At least nowhere interesting.)

The film beings by throwing the audience into a variety of stories taking place decades, or in some cases centuries, apart (including two distinctly different version of the future – one of which owes a little too much to The Time Machine). Introducing a slew of characters in the opening 15-20 minutes, all played by the same group of actors who jump centuries, ethnicities, and even gender between tales (due to some strikingly inconsistent make-up and CGI), Cloud Atlas hits the ground running and expects you to keep up.

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Cloud Atlas is in Need of a Road Map (and Lots of Editing) Read More »

Arrow – Lone Gunmen

/ / Television Reviews
  • Title: Green Arrow – Lone Gunmen
  • tv.com: link

arrow-lone-gunmen

Green Arrow‘s (Stephen Amell) vigilante justice is complicated by the arrival of an assassin who kills the latest name (Tobias Slezak) on Queen’s list before the archer can exact his own form of justice. After being grazed by the poisoned bullet that takes out his target, Oliver traces the assassin’s unique killing style to an unknown assassin known only as Deadshot (Michael Rowe). As Green Arrow traces the killer’s bullet back to his employers (through logic that’s far from clear), which leads to equally dumb plan of passing himself off as a member of the Russian Mob, Detective Lance’s (Paul Blackthorne) own investigation into the killings leads him to believe someone is killing off competing bidders for an energy company, a group that includes Walter Steele (Colin Salmon).

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Sons of Great Dane – Why Ramble?

/ / Music News & Reviews

sons-of-great-dane-why-rambleKansas City Power pop five-piece band Sons of Great Dane have re-released their first album Why Ramble? along with their new EP You Can’t Lose it All, All at Once through Sharp County Records. The highlight of the 10-song album is “Bullet Left It’s Barrels Head,” but there’s plenty here for fans of the genre from the catchy “Easy Train” to the more low-key melodies of “The Ballad of Lou Baker.” Although the new EP feels a little more serious (it doesn’t have the more lighthearted and fun tone of Why Ramble?), it’s certainly worth a listen to those who enjoyed the band’s first album. You can check out Sons of Great Dane’s recent appearance on the Chevy Music Showcase here and listen to both the album and EP inside.

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