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  • Now Very Bad’s 2016 Oscar Predictions…

    Now Very Bad’s 2016 Oscar Predictions…

    The Academy asked me to hold off on my predictions for the 2016 Academy Awards until tonight so I wouldn’t influence the voters. I understand. Frankly, I didn’t get to see a lot of the pictures yet, which makes me qualified to be an official Oscar voter. That plus the fact that I’m a white male…

    I’m not watching the Oscars tonight. I really enjoy the spectacle generally, but I am passing this time. I really feel the #OscarsSoWhite movement is an important one. I stand with Spike and Jada…

    Nevertheless, I am a huge movie fan. So I’m going to leave you with a few thoughts and 140 character reviews of some of the nominees. Some of these have links to my full review, but a bunch of them I’ve seen only within the past couple of weeks and haven’t reviewed yet. (I actually only saw The Revenant this morning, Ex Machina last night, Spotlight yesterday and The Big Short Friday night.)

    So now, without further ado, here are my thoughts for the February 28th telecast of the Oscars:

    Best Picture:

    Someone needs to explain to me this whole number of nominees thing. For years there were only five, which was too few. But instead of upping it to ten, they have this weird criteria. But they are allowed ten. So you should have ten. Every time. It’s totally inexcusable that Ex Machina and Chi-Raq weren’t included here, and there are other pictures that had deserved those extra slots. No, Chi-Raq isn’t on the face of it a “Best Picture”, but it’s unbelievably timely and unique. And Bridge of Spies, while excellent, is in no way on the same level of import as some of the others.

    If anything other than The Big Short wins, I’m calling shenanigans…

    140 Character Reviews:

    Bridge of Spies (2015): Exactly what it looks like. Maybe best example of a note-perfect film that no one in the world asked for. Talented people not exerting much.

    Brooklyn (2015): Yes, you’ve seen and read stories like this before. It isn’t unique. But there’s something to be said for doing something well, nay perfect.

    Mad Max: Fury Road (2015): Original filmmaker Miller returns to his most famous (human) character with intense, unrelenting, disturbing & completely nuts thrill ride.

    Room (2015): I’m sorry. I just ran out of time. I really do want to see this. It looks great, and Brie Larson is sure to win without my help…

    Spotlight (2015): Less about church scandal than power and vitality of journalism. Wonderfully executed with few factual missteps; but some are pretty bad…

    The Big Short (2015): One of single best examples of masterful adaptation of a difficult subject matter. The book is excellent, but the film is truly sublime…

    The Martian (2015): If you haven’t read the book, you’ll love it almost without qualification. If you have, it can never be as satisfying, but it’s still great.

    The Revenant (2015): Fantastic if your idea of good time is watching people eat raw meat & get violently & graphically maimed. Gorgeous achievement but overlong.

    Nominees for other awards:

    140 Character Reviews:

    Ex Machina (2015): This is EXACTLY what great science fiction looks like. AI is our future; more stories coming. Superbly written, acted & paced. Masterpiece.

    Straight Outta Compton (2015): More than a simple biopic, time capsule of tumultuous age. Missing some important players, still mostly candid/truthful. Punches own weight.

    The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared (2013 – US 2015): Lovely, funny adaptation of quirky Swedish novel. Hints of Being There/Forrest Gump in no way detract from triumph. Full of fun characters.

    Inside Out (2015): Typical Pixar magic from co-director Pete Docter w/ great emotional stuff leading to leaky eyes & lots of laughs. So why didn’t it grab me?

    Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015): No surprise that House of Mouse would give fans EXACTLY what they clamored for. Careful what you wish for. Equal parts great & derivative…

    Cinderella (2015): Typically well-made live-action update of classic fairy tale is aggressively ok. Far too long for little ones to sit still – parents, too…

    Should Be Here / Robbed:

    Jason Mitchell’s performance as Eric “Eazy-E” Wright in Straight Outta Compton was noteworthy and probably should have earned him a nod…

    Chi-Raq is the most important film that came out last year. Yes, it’s a bit of a mixed bag, but it deserves to be part of the national conversation…

    Ian McKellen was absolutely robbed of a nomination…

    140 Character Reviews:

    Chi-Raq (2015): Spike’s latest joint is his most important & timely ever; high praise indeed considering his previous work. #MostImportantAmericanFilmmaker

    Mr. Holmes (2015): Unsurprisingly brilliant performance by the always dependable Ian McKellen as the world’s first private consulting detective, now retired…

  • #haikommute: when it is open

    When it is open
    Your umbrella is a spear
    Watch where you point it…

  • Terry Pratchett: My 10 Favorite Quotes

    Terry Pratchett: My 10 Favorite Quotes

    In 2004, Terry Pratchett came to Boston to be the Guest of Honor at WorldCon and did the first local signing in the over ten years I’d been reading his books. It was at the Boston Public Library. My wife & daughter were both ill, so I went by myself. (My wife would later get to see him speak a few years later at Harvard.)

    I expected the usual book signing experience – author reads a bit, takes a couple of questions, then signs til hand falls off. But Pterry came out and put on a one-man show, talking at length about a variety of subjects for nearly 2 hours. He was charming, hysterical, insightful and everything his writing led you to expect.

    Afterwards, I waited for nearly as long in line to see him. I was quite literally the last person in line since I’d gone off to make a phone call to check on my family right after the talk. He chatted and signed a book for everyone, despite how late it was getting and how much time he’d already spent at this gig.

    When I finally reached the front I asked if he wouldn’t mind signing two books, since neither of my girls could be there. He said, “Well, I’m only supposed to sign one but it’s the back of the queue” and graciously signed them, commenting on how pretty my daughter Moira’s name was and shook my hand.

    I was truly honored to meet such a great man.

    “The thing about witchcraft,” said Mistress Weatherwax, “is that it’s not like school at all. First you get the test, and then afterward you spend years findin’ out how you passed it. It’s a bit like life in that respect.”

    You passed, Terry…

     My top 10 favorite Pterry quotes:

    1. “We are here and this is now.” – Night Watch
    2. “But there are causes worth dying for,” said Butterfly. “No, there aren’t! Because you’ve only got one life but you can pick up another five causes on any street corner!” “Good grief, how can you live with a philosophy like that?” Rincewind took a deep breath. “Continuously!” – Interesting Times
    3. “I will give you some free advice.” “Will it cost me anything?” “You could say it is priceless. Are you listening?” “Yes.” “Good. Now … if you trust in yourself…” “Yes?” “… and believe in your dreams…” “Yes?” “… and follow your star…” “Yes?” “… you’ll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren’t so lazy.” – The Wee Free Men
    4. “What is there in this world that makes living worthwhile?” Death thought about it. CATS, he said finally. CATS ARE NICE. – Sourcery
    5. “The reward you get for digging holes is a bigger shovel.” – I Shall Wear Midnight
    6. “Sometimes it’s better to light a flamethrower than curse the darkness.” – Men at Arms
    7. “It’s vital to remember who you really are. It’s very important. It isn’t a good idea to rely on other people or things to do it for you, you see. They always get it wrong.” – Sourcery
    8. “Or, to put it another way, the existence of a badly put-together watch proved the existence of a blind watchmaker.” – Small Gods
    9. “Inside every old person is a young person wondering what happened.” – Moving Pictures
    10. “Give a man a fire and he’s warm for a day, but set fire to him and he’s warm for the rest of his life.” – Jingo

    Honorable mention:

    • “Winners never talk about glorious victories. That’s because they’re the ones who see what the battlefield looks like afterward. It’s only the losers who have glorious victories.” – Small Gods
    • “The reason that clichés become clichés is that they are the hammers and screwdrivers in the toolbox of communication.” – Guards! Guards!
    • “They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it is not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance.”  – Equal Rites
    • THAT’S MORTALS FOR YOU, Death continued. THEY’VE ONLY GOT A FEW YEARS IN THIS WORLD AND THEY SPEND THEM ALL IN MAKING THINGS COMPLICATED FOR THEMSELVES. – Mort
    • William wondered why he always disliked people who said “no offense meant.” Maybe it was because they found it easier to say “no offense meant”than actually refrain from giving offense. – The Truth
    • “You get a wonderful view from the point of no return.” – Making Money
    • “Logic is a wonderful thing but doesn’t always beat actual thought.” – The Last Continent
    • “I have no use for people who have learned the limits of the possible.” – The Last Hero
    • “I commend my soul to any god that can find it.” – Going Postal
    • “His progress through life was hampered by his tremendous sense of his own ignorance, a disability which affects all too few people.” – Maskerade

    Thanks to:

    http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Discworld

    http://www.co.uk.lspace.org/books/pqf/index.html

  • #OWIES: Reply All

    You see that “Reply All” button in your email? Ignore it. Use it as sparingly as the atomic bomb and for more or less the same reason. Nothing good ever came of adding more people to an online discussion. You’re not keeping people in the loop, you’re creating a feedback loop…

  • Lego Batman: The Videogame (2008)

    Lego Batman: The Videogame (2008)

    Batman turned 75 years old earlier this year (2014). In recognition, we are rebranding our site for one week to Now Very Bat… and focusing on the blockbusters, the smaller films, the comics and the video games that feature the Dark Knight. Also if you are a fan of casino games, you might want to visit 666CASINO website, and play some exciting casino games.

    Now Very Bat...

    These games are huge in my household. We all love playing in the “smashy smashy” world of Lego where we get to bash through bricks in order to get studs and the only thing that happens when you die is your body disassembles amusingly and you lose some points. It’s unbelievably addictive and the simplicity of the games are a real strength.

    The Lego games feature the best gameplay feature in the world: drop-in/drop-out cooperative play. If your child is having trouble with a situation just grab a controller and hop in to help. If you have to step away for a moment just drop out for a bit. Every single videogame should come with this feature.

    Lego Batman: The Videogame

    One of the most enjoyable things about the Lego series of games must be the humor. The teams responsible for these games do a marvelous job of injecting a light-hearted feel to familiar characters while retaining the spirit of the source material. Regardless of the franchise, they consistently hit it out of the park with their plastic versions. And the little Lego figures are so cute!

    Lego Batman varies from earlier other in the series in two significant ways: it isn’t based on an adapted story and it lets you play half of the game as the villains. This last idea is particularly inspired. You play through the story as Batman and Robin, thwarting the Rogue’s Gallery, only to then return to the same basic plot but playing as the bad guys, able to succeed because it’s all essentially happening before Bats shows up.

    Lego Batman: The Videogame

    Lego Batman is the 5th game in the Lego series by developer Traveller’s Tales, after 3 Star Wars games and Indiana Jones. So they should have the formula perfect by this point, but the game was released only three months after Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures, so anything that was a problem in that one wasn’t fixed here. And it shows. The first Lego Batman & Indy games are in my mind the weakest the series has produced. They’re still great fun and have the wonderful wit of all of the games, but the gameplay is not really up to that of the Lego Star Wars games. Fortunately, they’d take a year to put out the next game in the series, Indy 2, and it’s pretty much all been gravy since then.

    Lego Batman: The Videogame