Episode 34 -- Best Godzilla movies

In this episode Tanya, Aaron and Travis list what they consider to be the best Godzilla movies ever made.

You and the Cockroaches: Post Apocalyptic movies

Hey every one it’s me Aaron and today I will be talking about post apocalyptic movies the ones that rocked and the ones that sucked. First off, the classic the Road Warrior worked because it had a good story and was strange enough to be different and ultimately a cult classic. The fact that it was also the first movie of its kind was also a contributing factor to its success, and the standard of how we rate movies of this genre.
Next I am going to talk about a movie that did not work for me and that was the recently released the Book of Eli. This movie had a power house cast, incredible fight scenes, but was lacking in storyline. It felt like a side quest that could have been done in a game like Fall Out 3, which is not good for the sole concept of a movie.
Now love or hate it but another good example was Waterworld the fact that it takes place after a non nuclear apocalypse makes it exotic enough to stand out and I think that is the key to this genre is that it has to be exotic, the viewer has to be taken to a strange new place, but at the same time be recognizable like the Statue of Liberty at the end of the original Planet of the Apes or the ruins of L.A. in Terminator Salvation.
Now as for Terminator Salvation it is the traditional post nuke movie but what makes it good is the fact that the story and the action are the main draw of this movie. The storyline isn’t that heavy and is reminiscent of the previous Terminator movies but the action is what works for this movie. You’ve got Mad Max car chases, guns blazing action scenes and new mecha. Plus Christian Bale shooting guns makes any movie a hit!
My last example of a different non nuclear post movie is Reign of Fire. In this movie dragons have swarmed and destroyed the world. This story has your exotic factor plus a simple enough storyline, good action, and Christian Bale shooting guns. The key to any good post apocalyptic movie is to make it exotic but recognizable and make sure the story is simple but good. So catch you next time stay l33t Aaron.

Episode 33 -- Cloverfield

Directed by Matt Reeves
Produced by: JJ Abrams

A group of friends throw a party for Rob, who is leaving New York to go and work in Japan. As the party progresses, however, violent shakes and explosions herald the arrival of an unknown creature, which begins its rampage by throwing the head of the Statue of Liberty down into a street. Told from the viewfinder of their video camera, Cloverfield shows how Rob and his friends venture deep into the streets of New York, determined to rescue Rob's true love from her destroyed apartment building in midtown.

Will you fall in love with the movie Valentine's Day?

I recently saw the ensemble rom com Valentine's Day, and found it to be an enjoyable but uneven film. The film has a huge cast with the likes of Julia Roberts, Anne Hathaway, Jamie Foxx, Shirley Maclaine to name a few. Some of my favorite storylines focused on Julia Roberts and Shirley Maclaine. Julia Roberts is an Army officer coming home for one day to spend with the guy she loves. She is seated next to Bradley Cooper on the flight and falls asleep on his shoulder. She tells Bradley's character that she is a keen observer and already has him pegged. The verbal volleyball between these two convinced me that they need to star in a romantic comedy together. They have amazing chemistry! However, there is a little secret about these characters that is revealed at the end and they are pretty good twists. My main problem with this film is that several of the storylines were underdeveloped. Ashton Kutcher and Jennifer Gardner are suppose to be best friends who fall for each other, but we don't get enough development to understand why they are friends or what drew them to each other. Also, the teenager played by Emma Roberts could have had her character cut from the movie. Do we really need a "romantic storyline" about losing your virginity? Overall, this is an enjoyable film and if you are really in the mood for a romantic comedy this is not a bad choice.

Live Movie Adaptations of animated shows

Hey every one it's Aaron and i am writing for you guys another blog. This blog today will deal with live action movie adaptations of Japanese anime and American animated shows. I will be discussing what worked and what didn't work and my hopes for the future movies being adapted. First off lets talk about the movies that worked i would be negligent if i did not talk about the success of the first Transformers movie. Even if you have issues with Michal Bay you must admit that he did an outstanding job bringing the world of Transformers to the big screen and the
CGI action and story were all perfect making this a good example of what can be done in making an adaptation. Unfortunately the sequel suffered from some story issues and was not as good as the first proving that writing is one of the key factors in any movie making project. Another excellent adaptation was the Japanese live action Cashern movie even thou the anime for Cashern was that retro 60's, 70's style. The people behind Cashern were able to reinvent the style and sort of modernize it making it one of the must see adaptations. The one thing that both these adaptations have in common is that they are almost made as tributes to the original works. I remember reading articles on both directors and they said that they where fans of the original works and that they wanted to do the movie in a way that reflected that.
I think that is the only way to do a adaptation of any thing now lets talk about the ones that didn't do that. Such is the case for GI Joe my most hated adaptation ever produced. Those of you that have listened to the podcast will know my deep hatred of this movie so i will not dwell too much on it. GI Joe failed in my opinion because there was no passion to make it a tribute, and that it was basically a property that was exploited and raped to make a few bucks. Another adaptation that I have a love hate relationship with is the Speed Racer adaptation that the Matrix boys did. Now the problem with this movie is in the writing, and the fact that they tried to make it to kid friendly and we get too much Spritle and Chim Chim and it ruins the movie. I was hoping Speed and Trixie would find them in the trunk beat them to death and store their bodies in trash bags. Aah you can only hope the same for the Scooby Doo adaptations as well. Kids don't need movies to be dumbed down for them. Sometimes you just need to explain to them the reason that man's head exploded and just what a boomer is. Anyway as we start to see more and more animated shows being adapted in to live action movies we can hope that they are treated with the respect that they deserve and are made in a way that shows it here is hope that M Knight does not mess up air bender. Anyway thanks for reading and stay l33t Aaron.

Episode 32 -- D-War a.k.a. Dragon Wars

In accordance with a Korean legend, every five hundred years, a woman protected by a man transforms in a serpent to fight against a dragon in a battle between good and evil. In Los Angeles of the present days, after a mysterious accident, the reporter Ethan Kendrick recalls his meeting fifteen years ago with Jack, who owned an antique shop and told him that he was the one supposed to protect Sarah Daniels. Ethan seeks out Sarah and together they fight to survive and destroy the devilish dragon.

Episode 31 -- The Host

Kicking off our Kaiju Eiga (monster movie) themed month we present our review of The Host. A mutant monster leaves the water and attacks people on the side of the Han river. The teenager Park Hyun-seo is carried by the creature and vanishes in the river. While grieving her loss, her father Park Gang-du; her grandfather, her aunt and archery medalist Park Nam-Joo; and her uncle Park Nam-il are sent by the army with all the people that had some sort of contact with the monster to quarantine in a facility. During the night, Gang-du receives a phone call from Hyun-seo telling that she is alive in a big sewage nearby the river. Gang-du tell the militaries but nobody believes on his words, saying that he is delusional due to the shock of his loss. The Park family joins forces trying to find Hyun-seo and rescue her.

Special Episode -- Oscar nominations

Tanya, Aaron, and Charles discuss their reactions to the Oscar nominations announced 2/2/10. They also predict who they think will win in their respective categories. Who do you think should win for Best Picture?

3D is it becoming too much?

With the success of Avatar in 3D, it has caused the studio to go back in and add 3D elements to Clash of the Titans. Watching Avatar on the IMAX 3D, I thought to myself there is no way I would ever want to see this in 2D. Nothing can match the experience I had in IMAX, unless I could install one where I live. Frankly, the IMAX screen would be bigger than my entire apartment. This got me thinking if this trend of 3D movies continues how would this change the movie experience? Or is this a trend that people will grow tired of? Hollywood has tried this experiment before, and used the 3D experience to drive people back to the movies instead of sitting down in front of TV. Today it feels like we're doing the same thing. Using 3D to entice people back to the theaters instead of being on the Internet or playing video games. Most people I have talked to have said that they would not have enjoyed Avatar in the 2D format. What does that mean for the longevity of this film? People will rush out in mass to buy the movie, but will it capture their imaginations the same way it did in the theater?