Movie | Eight Legged Freaks | Pass

Fun monster homage featuring a notable cast, that doesn't take itself too seriously.

TV | Revolution | Fail

I can't quite put my finger on why I don't like this series. The acting is good, but the show seems miscast. The cinematography is fine, but it seems false at the same time. The premise seems promising enough, yet it's boring as all get out. Ack! All I know is that it doesn't work for me...

TV | Mockingbird Lane | PASS

Super fun one hour television special that reboots The Munsters. From the same crew that brought us the awesome Dead Like Me, Wonderfalls and Pushing Daisies. A must see for Halloween!

I wish they'd make it into a series.

Movie | Rare Exports | PASS

Thanks for the recommendation, DubS!

This is a super fun foreign film revolving around the premise that Santa is really an evil monster who has been lying dormant inside a mad-made mountain. It's an adult movie that really isn't very gory, but has horror overtones mixed with a dash of humor.

There were two short movies made that established the plot. Sorry about the subtitles - I couldn't find them on Youtube without. A definite PASS!

Warning: I highly recommend that you watch the movie before you watch these two shorts!

Movie | Exit Humanity | Pass

Surprisingly decent. But it's for zombie and/or apocalypse genre fans only, really.

Movie | Put Up Your Dux | PASS

For a lot of the martial arts world, the movie Bloodsport was and continues to be a touchstone. Years after it came out (and made Jean-Claude Van Damme a household name), word started circulating that the man behind the film, a martial artist named Frank Dux, was not being entirely forthcoming in the truth behind his stories. This was mainly due to an inflammatory article in the LA Times.

Non-martial artists will find this an interesting picture, too. Did this man's ego run amok and create all of the problems he experiences to this very day? If so, at what point is he forgiven his relatively minor infractions? Also, does hearsay equal gospel? Just because somebody says something about someone that can't be proven one way or another by the accused party, does that make it right and truthful? Is it fair to completely dismiss a person and their life because their self-importance might have gotten away from them? That's a really tricky maze to navigate...

Though there is no mention of it, the size of the muscles on Dux and Van Damme a number of years ago makes me wonder if steroids weren't involved. At that time period, they certainly were at their heyday (the 'roids). This might have been a factor in personality and business dealings...but I have no proof of any such use. Still...

As usual, the truth is stranger than fiction and this documentary about Dux (who some say is the true grandfather of MMA) won't necessarily answer any questions. Is there a witch hunt against the man or is everything he's put forth the absolute truth? We'll probably never know. But, it's a fascinating watch and a must see!

TV | Hell On Wheels | PASS

What in tarnation?!@#$%!@#$%? I thought I'd already added this to my blog, but apparently not. I can't find it anywhere. Must have forgotten.

This is a really good show about characters involved in building a railroad. That certainly sounds like a boring premise, but it's not in this show. Everything is top notch about this show, especially the writing.

The first season was really good, lots of interesting twists and turns and great character development.

The second season takes the characters and completely flips them upside down. Strong, dominant characters are now weak and submissive and the opposite is true of the wimpy ones. That takes some mighty fine writing to pull off and they do it masterfully.

Best role for Common, hands down. It looks like he's been working hard on his acting and it definitely shows. The rest of the cast is just fantastic.

Highly violent (but in a realistic, "That's the way it was" sort of way) and very adult. A must see, in my book.

"When logic isn't on your side, resort to the profane." - Lilly Bell

Movie | Colombiana | PASS

You know I have to see any movie with Luc Besson's name attached to it. Let's see if this one is any good....

...it was awesome and I loved it! Basically a reworking of La Femme Nikita, that's no bad thing. A must see for genre fans.

And I loved all of the Parkour!

Movie | Iron Sky | Pass

Nazis on the dark side of the moon?

I've been waiting for this for a long time. Will it be any good? I'll find out shortly! I already love the soundtrack.

...So how was it? If you're a fan of fantastical action movies like Hellboy, you're going to love this flick. Tons of fun, some really hilarious bits and an underscore of seriousness.

Definitely worth a rental. Make it a double with a similar movie. Lockout, for example.

TV | Major Crimes | Pass

An excellent continuation of The Closer, this time more focused on the team. That is a really, really good thing because this is a great cast. The first season was well worth watching and let's hope the second is just as good.

Transport | Paper Bicycle | PASS

A $20 bicycle built for the masses made of cardboard? Awesome!

http://news.yahoo.com/cardboard-bicycle-change-world-says-israeli-inventor-090732689.html

Movie | Jiro Dreams of Sushi | PASS

Just gorgeous and amazing in the simplicity of it all.

A life worth living can be extremely difficult and 85 year old sushi master Jiro Ono is living proof.

This film also had great correlation with martial arts practice and lifestyle. Martial arts instructors don't get a lot of support as people and professionals and sometimes it can be a rather painful (in many ways) existence. This documentary will ring many bells and help you continue to walk the path.

A must see!

TV | Tales From The Crypt | Pass

The classic television series is well worth viewing in entirety.

TV | Elementary | PAss

A very good show that's quite similar to Monk, minus a lot of the quirkiness and most of the humor. Both Liu and Miller are excellent, as usual. And Quinn, though in a supporting role, is also as good as ever. I love that they've gotten away from the boring old Sherlock tales.

Movie | Rad | Pass

Classic 80s movie similar to Footloose (and just about every other teen-oriented movie from that decade). But this time, instead of dancing, you get BMX bikes! Lots of recognizable actors and the music is so very period perfect. Unfortunately out of print and never released on DVD (a crime!), it's available if you look hard enough. Thanks for the loan and the recommendation, TP!

Movie | Hugo | Pass-ish

Visually gorgeous, but this movie was a mess. It starts as the story of an orphan who keeps the clocks running in a Paris train station and ends up a love letter to movies by Scorcese. It's long, it's boring and yet it's still fairly good.

I thought a lot of kids would find this just too slow, but when I asked them they said they loved it. Of course, when I asked them what the best part was, they had no idea. They couldn't make out what the story was, exactly, but they thought it was so visually intriguing, it didn't matter.

But still, this movie was a mess!

Movie | Salvation Boulevard | Pass

Huge cast, which usually equals a huge pile of...

But, it worked pretty well here and the story was fun to watch. Seems like there was a religious theme running with Bernie. This was more overtly laughter-inducing, but Bernie was better.

Movie | Bernie | Pass

Jack Black plays a somewhat serious role, marvelously. This is the true story about a guy that nobody wants to dislike even though he murdered somebody.

Movie | John Carter | Pass

Not worthy of all the scorn it received, maybe a tad long, this movie is a whole lot of fun. If you liked The Mummy, Stargate, Cowboys and Aliens and other over the top adventures, you're going to like this. It's worth a rental!

Movie | The Sasquatch Gang | Pass-ish

Let's make another Napolean Dynamite!

This even costarred the great Jon Gries and featured a cameo by Jon Heder. It didn't make for a very good movie, though.

The best part was a supporting character named Sophie, played by Addie Land. She's actually the real reason to see this movie. Justin Long plays a cartoon character, which is too bad and a waste of his talent (though his character's buddy named Shirts, played by Joey Kern, was pretty funny - mumbling every line and making very little sense).

Movie | Abraham Lincoln vs Zombies | Fail

I've certainly seen worse, but this was really bad. That's sort of sad, because this movie looked like it was a lot of work and they were very earnest about it. But it was boring and nothing interesting happened. You could say the acting was really poor, but that feels like a cheap shot. I think if they'd put a bunch of clever dialogue and a lot more humor into the script, it would have worked on another level and gained a cult following (Undead comes to mind).

Movie | Spirits of the Dead | Pass

Seriously trippy 70s movie that brings three of Edgar Allan Poe's stories to life, starring some really major actors and major directors. The actors, Jane Fonda in particular, are so beautiful to look at that it's practically unreal.

I had forgotten the masochistic elements of Poe's stories and this movie really focus on them quite a bit. I warned you...

If it wasn't just a bit slow, this would have been a PASS. Even so, it probably should be - this is a must see for the cinema elitists (Fellini! Fellini! Fellini!) who love them some psychedelic psychological low-key horror.

Movie | Night of the Creeps | Pass

Cult classic 80s horror-comedy. "The good news is your dates are here. The bad news is...they're all dead."