Archive for December, 2012

Movie Review: Django Unchained

Posted in Reviews! with tags , , , , , on 12/31/2012 by Taylor Holt

Django-Unchained-Poster

Stars: Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, James Remar, Don Johnson

Rated R for strong graphic violence throughout, a vicious fight, language and some nudity, Running time 165 minutes, Action/Western

Compare to: The Good, the Bad, and the Weird (2008), Inglourious Basterds (2009)

In’s been a little of over three years since director Quintin Tarantino released his World War II spinoff, if you will and now we get Django Unchained. Not only was this worth the wait, it would easily go on any Top Ten I may feel the need to add some time soon from now.

The acting, the locales, the costumes, dialogue- anything you name is all just…good. Continue reading →

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Four Things a Tolkien Fan Appreciates in The Hobbit Film (Besides Everything)

Posted in Top 5 Lists, Whatever with tags , , , , , on 12/20/2012 by Taylor Holt
hobb5

“I want da gold!”

Written by Bryce Waller

Nine years.

That is how long I was forced to wait for another LOTR movie. And every day I was forced to wait was as long as a life age of the earth. I have to admit when this project was initially starting to gain attention, I was upset that Guillermo Del Toro was attached to direct and not Peter Jackson. I love Del Toro but LOTR fans claim only one man as the heir to the throne of Middle Earth – Sir Peter Jackson. If he has not been knighted, I just did it. Continue reading →

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Jackman: Origins

Posted in Whatever with tags , , , , on 12/19/2012 by Taylor Holt

wolverine

We have a problem.

Wolverine was always cool growing up and I don’t really need to explain why. While James Bond may have always been the embodiment of sophistication and coolness, Wolverine could just as easily be described as masculinity personified. Claws come out, motorcycles, cigars, side-burns, and just not caring about anything. That’s what I always thought of anyway. Continue reading →

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The Three Worst Christmas Movies

Posted in Top 5 Lists, Whatever with tags , , , on 12/18/2012 by Taylor Holt

Special guest writer for this article by Bryce Waller, a man of fine taste, Lord of the Rings knowledge, and Alabama football.

"Whatcha got there, Ben? A skillet of awful? Cool, cool."

“Whatcha got there, Ben? A skillet of awful? Cool, cool.”

We all have those movies that put us in the Christmas spirit every December – or October for those who choose not to celebrate Halloween or Thanksgiving, but those people don’t really count anyway.

Personally, I don’t truly feel like Christmas has started until I watch Elf and It’s A Wonderful Life. Those movies can be described as nothing other than pure, 100% nostalgia for this Tennessee boy’s soul. Backstreet Boys and Nsync do the same thing but it will get weird if we start talking about that so we’ll stay on topic. You may differ from me on what gets your holiday juices flowing, but I think we can all agree on a few “Christmas” films that drain even the most enthusiastic Christmas devotees of their Christmas spirit. As a self-proclaimed Christmas aficionado, I take offense to the following films: Continue reading →

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Movie Review: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Posted in Reviews! with tags , , , , on 12/17/2012 by Taylor Holt

thehubbit

Stars: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Andy Serkis

Rated PG-13 for extended sequences of intense fantasy action violence, and frightening images , Running time 169 minutes, Fantasy/Adeventure

Compare to: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)

Telling a 16 year-old version of myself in 2003 that I would have to wait nearly an entire decade for another of J.R.R. Tolkien’s middle earth-based stories, I would have thought (in my bottomless impatience) “Why even bother making it it’s going to take that long?” But now that the first installment of The Hobbit films is here, I’m glad they decided to do it.

Director Peter Jackson’s return to the series that not only helped reignite people’s love of the stories and launch multiple careers, but change the way movies are made altogether; specifically the technology of motion capture. But aside from anything technical or what went on behind the scenes, this movie is great. Continue reading →

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6 Bond Gadgets Reality Would Destroy

Posted in Top 5 Lists, Whatever with tags , , , , , on 12/10/2012 by Taylor Holt

james-bond-cars-1

That car…Oh, the car.

There’s no doubt about it, 007 is an amazing man. In fifty years, he’s had time to build up quite a nice little collection of tools, weapons, and other devices for his use in the British branch of awesome spies and soldiers. America has GI JOE.

And while many of Bond’s gadgets are more advanced versions of weapons and tools that government is are actually working on, and others are gadgets that work in theory at the very least, it’s also true that some of his toys are a bit on the stupid side. And while even the dumbest Bond gadget is better than the best Christmas gift we’ve ever received (a rat), it doesn’t stop the gadgets themselves still being a football field away from sensible in any scenario, save for the scene when the writer wants to finish the script and eat lunch.

Below are six of Bond’s gadgets that reality immediately deem retarded. Continue reading →

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