Spectre movie review

Here's what you need to know; Bond is now on a personal mission, one he was sent on by M's dying wish. But he may not be able to face this latest foe, one that can hide everywhere, but that you can never hide from, one that lurks in the darkness of Bond's past and present, it's name is Spectre.

The pre title sequence of this latest 007 adventure is really awesome, taking place at a day of the dead festival in Mexico, and it's great to look at, in fact, it's either all one shot or just edited to look like one shot, but the first shot of the film is incredible, and it lasts for several minutes, what follows as you might expect is some destruction and action. And just like Skyfall with the train, this film's intro has an awesome and pretty nuts fight inside a helicopter. What follows is the typical Bond song and visually stimulating title sequence, and while I liked them, I personally thought that the one in Skyfall was far better, I prefer the song and the visuals are cooler. Bond is just as badass in Spectre as he's always been, he's also still as womanizing as ever, but there's more to him than that in this film, and I'll get to it later. Q, M and Eve all return from Skyfall, and they're all still cool, Q is still funny and smart and has all the funky spy gadgets, plus it's Ben Wishaw, the guy was Paddington bear, how can you not like the guy. While I miss the sexual tension with Bond and Eve, Eve is still a pretty cool character also. M meanwhile, I liked him back when he was Mallory, and I still like him as M, they pull a similar story with him to the one in Skyfall, him and Bond on opposing sides at first, but they join the same team towards the end. This film also has a host of new characters, starting with C, who is Moriarty from Sherlock, while I loved him as Moriarty, I think that it's a bit obvious what side he's on from the minute you see him, but he does have some cool scenes near the end. Drax from Guardians of the Galaxy is also here, and from what I remember he only says one word in the entire film, to be fair it's pretty funny, and he has a really awesome fight with Bond on a train, another train, damn. Now for Swann, who I find very interesting, because she's not just a typical Bond girl, there is a genuine relationship that grows between them as the film goes on, plus, it does help that she is pretty sexy, to say the least. Their relationship also brings something new and interesting out of Bond, admittedly I haven't seen many Bond films, but I haven't seen Bond get an actual love interest in the way he has in this film, and I really liked that element, it was cool. And then there's the villain, who I thought was really cool, I liked his big evil plan and I also liked the history he had with Bond, a history that I won't spoil. I love all of the characters here, and just like Skyfall, the banter between them is great, it's funny, it's well written, and it's great. When the plot finally starts to move I really liked Spectre's big plan to rule the world, it's one I've seen before, but if it's done well I don't care, and it was done well.

This film, like Skyfall, has some awesome action scenes, including one in a crater, one in the mountains, the already mentioned scene with the helicopter, and they're are really fun to watch, there isn't a single one I didn't like, even if the pretty uneventful car chase was a bit of a drag really. What I found a bit funny was the amount of gadgets in Spectre, some of it was a bit sci fi, but don't worry, no space lasers, which is good. Like I said though the car chase was a bit dull, I think back to the MI5 car chase, which was completely awesome from beginning to end, this one just wasn't. Which isn't to say this film doesn't have some intense moments, because it absolutely does, there is one particular part that is just vile, you'll know it when you see it, it is nasty. Then there's a sequence in London near the end that was absolutely great. But all the action scenes have that same great tension to them. Now for some globe trotting, to, as ever, some scenic and stunning places, like the stunning snowy mountains of Austria, to vast expanses of desert, to the streets of Rome, and yes, they all look great. I feel like it's time to talk about some negative, so now let's go. First off, for the first half maybe the film is very hard to follow, example, early on in this film Bond attends a funeral in Rome, and I have no clue who's funeral it was, I just don't know. A lot of names get thrown around and I don't remember any of them. To that extent I'd say the first half of the film is the weakest part, because like I say, it's hard to follow, that criticism stops applying in the second half, which is completely awesome. Also, there's a bit of a hole in the film, I won't say who but a character in the film is caught in a really, really big explosion, yet he somehow survives when he clearly shouldn't have. Like I say though, the film really picks up in the second half, and becomes more like what I wanted from Spectre.

Spectre is a really good film, for the second half. Throughout the film it has the same great characters and dialogue I loved in Skyfall, as well as a cool villain and an interesting love interest character for Bond. It's a shame then that I was so lost for it's first half. It does however has great action and great tension, oh yeah. Spectre is still a good film though, and I'd recommend it.

Thunderbirds Are Go Falling Skies review

Here's what you need to know; a Brains designed hotel is open for business, in space. What no one see's coming is a sabotage attempt that sends the hotel hurtling out of orbit. International Rescue flies in to save the day, but finds a sinister plan involving the Hood.

Well, here we go again. First off, the good, as ever this episode is pretty good looking, while the characters aren't up to the same bar as the Thunderbird machines, said machines look great, and it's still great to see these classic machines with the fancy new tech, I know I've said something like that a few times in the past, but I haven't seen this show in a few weeks, so it's worth saying again. Something more specific I sort of liked was the hotel itself, I think a hotel in space is completely cool. But, while I also think nano technology is also completely cool, this episode kind of lost me with the hotel being made entirely from nano bots that put themselves together in a week, as someone who really enjoys science, it's a bit dumb. However, this idea is a cool one, evacuating a hotel as it falls out of orbit, I think this large scale rescue operation is more like what IR would do in real life, in that I really like it, it's interesting. The evac is also pretty cool, I didn't know Thunderbird 3 had a cargo bay, or for that matter that Thunderbird 2 had a shower. Unfortunately this episode lacks the tension of classic Thunderbirds and the immediacy of this new series, at least in my opinion, it's just not as interesting as it should be when Kayo confronts the Hood and the hotel begins to burn on re entry. All in all this episode is very hit and miss for me, I like the hotel, I like the rescue, but the climactic finale lacks any sense of climaxity, the story is not as interesting as it should be, couple that with the nonsense about nano bots and you have an episode that doesn't really go either way, you won't be missing anything by not checking it out.

Girl House movie review

Here's what you need to know; Kylie Atkins, a college student in need of money, joins Girl House, a pornographic online reality series hosted in a house and on a site that are rumoured to be completely impenetrable, but Kylie and the other girls are about to learn that their little fortress isn't as impregnable as they first thought, in a very violent manner.
When I was first made aware of this film it was on an illegal torrent site a friend of mine was browsing, at first I passed it off as just a shitty slasher film filled with sex and gore, but I eventually just said fuck it and decided to give it a chance, now, for this spookiest of weeks on my blog, let's review a film unlike anything I've reviewed before, Girl House.

As I do every time I'll start with the characters, and really you have 4 to choose from, Kylie, our main girl, is serviceable as a hero, she is smart, capable, and, now here's something I don't say often here, she's pretty damn sexy. But really Kylie is just our main character and little more, she's not particularly interesting and doesn't leave much of an impact, even with her sexiness. Now, her boyfriend and his friend I thought were much more interesting, the boyfriend is a cool character, and his friend, in addition to being the brains, is pretty funny, no, really funny, I liked him. And then there's Loverboy, our fucked up Psycho killer, who is just the fucked up psycho killer, he too is not particularly interesting or, from a psycho killer standpoint, very original, he's just a guy who does creepy stuff because he's creepy, you see a lot of him in his basement where it's dark and grey and spooky, pretty standard stuff. That said, there is a pretty cool scene with him at his job, it's a very minor part of the film, but it's still interesting, for reasons I won't spoil, I also won't spoil his origin story, which is the focus of the film's intro, I'll just say it goes from pretty cringe worthy to down right fucking grim very fast, and it sets the mood very nicely for the rest of the film. I guess I should mention the other girls, but here's the thing, you know it already, they're in this film simply to be sexy, which they do pretty well, and die horribly, which they also do pretty well. But again, you've seen these 'characters' dozens of times before on [insert name of porn site here]. The film does go for something that's moderately clever about vanity and beauty, but it's brief, however it is a clever little thing that I liked, as incredibly minor as it is. Speaking of concepts, the concept of the Girl House is really interesting, albeit explained in a really cringe worthy way, a site that broadcasts the day to day of the girls 24/7 in a Big Brother style, it's something I'm pretty surprised doesn't actually exist, or maybe it does and I just don't know about it. Also, this film is pretty gory and fucked up, minor spoiler, a girl chokes to death after getting a giant dildo violently rammed down her throat, did I also mention this film is dirty, because yes, it's extremely dirty, but if you read my synopsis and didn't know the film would be like that, yeah. It's creepy at first when the guy gets into the house, but here is a massive problem this film has, everyone in the Girl House is deaf, this must be so because they are completely oblivious to the screaming and thumping as Loverboy runs around the house killing everyone, it really does get on my nerves just how obvious this guy is, and how blind they all are to him, oh yeah, they're blind as well. With that in mind, the killings are kind of cool, albeit extremely gory and messed up, and the showdown between Kylie and Loverboy is actually really cool and pretty clever, not to mention intense as all shot, and you know I love me some tension.

Girl House is an interesting film, at first glance it's a very average looking slasher film, but to be honest, calling it that wouldn't be giving it enough credit. It has some smart ideas, including a really interesting idea in the Girl House, and a few little things here and there that are pretty cool. I really like how unapologetic this film is, both with the gore and with the sex, and I love it's finale, which is intense and cool. But it has mostly unoriginal and uninteresting characters, which is a drag, and it really bugs me how oblivious everyone is to the psycho killer. To be honest though I'm actually glad I gave this film a chance, it's not worth going out and hunting it down, but if you ever get the chance, I'd recommend giving Girl House a watch.

Skyfall movie review

Here's what you need to know; while on a mission in Turkey, James Bond is fatally shot, and disappears off the grid to enjoy some privacy in death. He is however thrown back into action after a deadly terrorist attack right in the heart of London, the perpetrator of which seems to be specifically after M. As this twisted foe lurks in the shadows, Bond is about to embark on one of the toughest missions of his life.

Now, this is a Bond film, which means it's plot is very important, a dumb Bond film is a bad one. Fortunately this film is actually pretty smart. Right from the pre title sequence you know you're in for a sweet movie, as Bond wrestles with a guy on the roof of a moving train, what else is immediately clear is how well the film is put together, the cinematography in this film is brilliant, no annoying shaky cam or other action film tropes, this film is shot gorgeously. In addition to being shot gorgeously there's the probably more important question of characters, so how are they. James Bond is absolutely awesome, he's tough, he's badass, like I said, fighting on top of a train, but that's literally just the start of it, Bond is a complete badass several times in this film, and it is completely awesome. What may be surprising though is how emotional this Bond is, sure he's still a badass, he's still all skill, he's still a total womaniser, but he has some really great and pretty emotional scenes in this film with M, particularly near the end. He also has some great banter with M, and Q, and pretty much everyone in this film. He also has a kind of cute mother son relationship with M, who has also become a much more emotional character, not least because of the film's villain, but we'll get to that. Q and Eve are also pretty cool characters, as are Mallory and Kincade, Q is an interesting character in how different he is to Bond, and is arguable representative of the spying business becoming more modern, where as Bond and Eve have some great sexual tension and some funny back and forth, she is also quite the badass in the field, even if her aim is a bit iffy. Don't worry if you also want your Bond girl, because this film has that too, and she's pretty sexy, so no worries there. But now we get to the meat, the villain, who, in addition to having some funky hair, is the most fascinating character in this film by a mile. Silva is the kind of guy you really don't want to be in the same room as, with every word out of his mouth you know the guy is completely out of his mind, and that unsettling sickness radiates from him like you wouldn't believe, he's just an un nerving presence on screen. But he's not just crazy, like Bond, Silva has a sentimental attachment to M, and this film explores their relationship in a way that's just as interesting as her relationship with Bond, but far, far more nightmare inducing. he's a very unpredictable character, but that's part of the fun, with the rest of course being his nasty backstory and his obsession with M. Skyfall also has fun, like with Q, with how the spying business is changing, and more importantly how the enemy is now no longer a flag or a nation, and how shadowy and dangerous the modern world is with all our technology, but rather than being done in a really blunt and annoying way, it's done in a way that makes sense, and in a way that really makes this an interesting spy film as well as an exciting action film.

Did I say action, oh yeah, this film is an action film too, and I must say, this film has some pretty cool action. right from the first action scene you know this film will have cool action, and this film has a few really great ones, including the Turkey mission at the beginning, a few smatterings of action here and there, culminating in an absolutely awesome final showdown with Silva, all of which being filmed brilliantly and often looking gorgeous, particularly a brief fight in Shanghai and the final showdown. really if I had any complaint it would be that sometimes the action is a bit OTT, but then I remember the car stunt in MI5, and how grounded and realistic action films I like are, like Pacific Rim, all things considered the action in this film is very grounded when you really think about it, though I'm not sure if lightbulb + shotgun shell really does = nail bomb, as cool as that actually is. but really, you don't just remember the action in this film, you remember the slower character moments too, in fact maybe more so, just because of how well written and interesting they are, this film may have slower moments but I'd never say it slows down, and the funny dialogue and heavy emotional stuff is really cool. It's a Bond film, so you'd expect a bit of globe trotting, and disappointed you will not be, Bond goes all over the world in this film, from the neon technical marvel of Shanghai, to the long dead remains of what probably isn't supposed to be Hashima, but who are they kidding, to the rolling hills and mountains of Scotland. and like I said earlier, there's never a dull moment, the film is constantly moving and all the locations Bond visits are great. And, I'll just say it, there is probably more emotional things going on in this film than you'd first expect, what with Bond's relationship with M, Silva's relationship with M, and a pretty rough finale, in addition to being exciting, as ever, no spoilers, but it's heavy, and it's awesome.

Skyfall is amazing, it has amazingly interesting and funny dialogue, some really cool emotional stuff, and some badass action with a badass hero, a badass and bat shit crazy villain, and some beautiful places and cinematography, I really have no issues with this film, which leaves me no choice but to call it a masterpiece, Skyfall is an absolute must watch.

shooting cans

So a few days ago my sister's boyfriend bought a bb gun in Blackpool, much to my sister's annoyance, I and he however think it's awesome. Last night we went out with some cans and did some shooting. 8 little cans, 10 shots per round, we came up with a little game/ test of the gun's range and accuracy. We set up 2 cans about 20 feet away, 1 point for hitting a can, 2 points for knocking a can over. Not exactly surprising that he completely kicked my arse, I got 2 points and he got 5, however that was over 2 rounds. So now I've used a bb gun, and on a side note, I know an MP5 and a bb gun are a bit different, but I was surprised by how hefty it was, not like I remember exactly how much an MP5 weighed, and not like I had the opportunity to fire it. But it was fun for shoot some cans, until my nan came out and told us off for making too much noise, oh well, fun while it lasted.

The Crazies movie review

Here's what you need to know; Sheriff Dutten has started to notice odd behaviour in the citizens of Ogden Marsh, a peaceful little town in the farmlands of Iowa. Little does he know that his happy little town is about to descend into madness as a leaked bio weapon turns it's friendly inhabitants into murderous psychopaths. Now him, his wife and his deputy must contend with the infected and the merciless government forces in an attempt to escape the doomed town.

At first glance this is a very standard outbreak movie, but that may just be it's greatest strength. As ever we'll start with the characters. Dutten is pretty cool, he's exactly the guy I'd want to go to hell with, because he's smart, in fact maybe he catches onto what's going on a little fast, but he really is smart, he's the man with the plan. That said, there isn't really a stupid character in this film, apart from the townsfolk, who are really just there to be infected anyway. His wife's pretty cool, like him she's smart. But then there's the deputy, who is my favourite character in the film for 1 reason, a reason that I'm not going to spoil, I'll just say he had a really great moment in the film. Like I said though they're really the guys you are stuck with for the film, they do meet people along the way but they're just the townsfolk. The film does however set up this town very well, it's a very friendly looking town, an everyone knows everyone farming town. This film also does a great job of setting up the fall too, from the very beginning the film has a very creepy mood about it, one that reaches a few peaks with some really tense moments with the crazies. But, while there are jump scares, this film is smarter than simple jump scares, a few times a character would be in frame, then the camera would slowly pan and a crazy would be there, just in the background not doing anything, staring at the character while  they are completely unaware. Similar to the last film I reviewed, this film also has a good bit of paranoia, as people in the group start to distrust one another, and it makes for one of the best scenes in the film, if not the best. But this film isn't just a zombie film, the crazies are a bit different, it's a fun and creative take on the zombie virus that I really like. This is a very realistic film, the army doesn't exactly drag it's feet in containing the virus, and to an extent for most of the film they're a greater threat than the crazies. But even then there are a few really good scenes, one in particular in a barn that's pretty tense. And, no spoilers, but this film doesn't shy away from the showing how far the government will go to cover up it's fuck up, and it's pretty brutal. Maybe to some people however this film's admittedly low amount of originality might be a bit of a turn off, believe me, it's a very predictable movie for the most part, no surprises or twists here. But why I'm personally fine with it is because of how well it's done, it's a very high end version of the outbreak movie, and like I say, even when you've seen those elements in dozens of films before, that doesn't change how effective this film is over all.

I really enjoyed The Crazies, yes it's a very unoriginal movie, and it doesn't really do anything unique, but what it does it does really well, and the whole film just comes together in a way that's still fun to watch even though you've definitely seen it before. Throw in some fun characters and a lovably creepy tone and you have a great little outbreak movie that's better than most, and that's definitely worth watching.

The Thing movie review

Here's what you need to know; scientist Kate Lloyd is invited to an exciting archaeological find; a crashed alien ship buried in the frozen wasteland of Antarctica, complete with it's long frozen pilot. The excitement turns to terror when the pilot wakes up, and begins to feed on the team, and copy them one by one. Not knowing who to trust, Kate and the rest of the team are in a battle of wits with an extra-terrestrial foe that can hide in human skin.
Yes, I know this film is a prequel/remake of the 1982 film of the same name, a film I really loved, but with that in mind, I'm going to keep this review about this film, the 2011 version.

First off the main characters, how are they? Kate is a pretty cool main character, and not just because it's Mary Elizabeth Winstead, though admittedly that is never, ever a bad thing. I like seeing how her character changes throughout the film, going from the little scientist girl to the badass alien killer you know she'll become, it's a believable change of character, in addition to that she's a pretty smart, and I like smart characters. Really though it's pretty hard to gravitate to any other characters, the American helicopter pilots are pretty cool, and they made for one of my favourite moments in the film. Then there's the 2 scientists, one of them is a bit stupid and dickish, while the other is just there for most of the film, it should tell you something that I don't remember their names, though like I said, the Americans were pretty cool. Then there's the Norwegians, who, let's be honest, are in this film simply to die, there's some cool scenes with them, and they have interesting and useful things to say more often than not, but really none of them really stand out from one another, none of them are particularly interesting on their own, and by the end of the film they've left very little impact. What does however really work is the tension between them when they learn that the alien can assimilate them. Whether it be something personal and subtle like a distrustful look or something more like one of the several explosive confrontations, there's always just an unease to the proceedings, and it makes the film very tense to watch, particularly in the beginning and middle, not so much in the end.in the end things become a bit more straightforward, that said I still think it's really cool, when the thing is walking around playing hide and seek with the American pilot in particular, that is fucking creepy. Speaking of things, how are the effects, effects are a bit of a mixed bag, the transformations are really gory and violent and they look really good, and for the most part the monsters look pretty good, thanks to a pretty cool combination of practical and computer effects. That said, tentacles, so many tentacles, and I could say the same for the CG in this film, I think this film would have been much better if CG was used a lot less, and practical effects were more prominent, this point is made more clear at times when the CG looks like complete crap. On the plus side the monsters look really cool for the most part, only, like I said, too many tentacles, and the ship also looked really cool, for the 5 minutes you see it. Finally, I can imagine the ending of this film can be very polarising, no spoilers here, but I like the ending, I think it's a very fitting ending , though I can understand why maybe some people wouldn't like it.

The Thing is a great little film in my opinion, yes it has mostly forgettable characters and at times really bad effects, but when this film works, it really works, it has a cool main character, some cool monsters, and some great tension filled scenes that I loved. The Thing is definitely worth watching.

The Strain season 2 The Assassin review

Spoilers for The Strain ahead.
Here's what you need to know; Eph and Dutch get ready to kill Palmer, while Palmer tries to win Coco back. Meanwhile Abraham gets closer to finding the Lumen. And things don't really go to plan for anybody.

Just like the Battle for Red Hook, I really liked this episode. And I'll cut to the chase, the assassination attempt was awesome, it was really intense and I love me some intense shit, and it was a really cool scene, though I got really worked up when I learned that he missed. He fucking missed. Part of me knew he would to be honest, I doubt The Strain will pull a Walking Dead and kill off a major character, which is something I'll go on about more later. But I really didn't want him to miss, I wanted to see Palmer die. If that wasn't bad enough he shot Coco, come on, why, why Coco. That said, now Palmer will have to tell her about the Master, which will be very interesting to watch. But what interests me more is why did the Master save her, I mean why would he go out of his way to save Palmer's girlfriend, surely it wasn't Palmer's threat to dissolve their partnership, I hope the reason they give isn't a shit one. Meanwhile the scene where Palmer confronts Eph in the jail was badass, it's just cool to have those 2 in the same room, and to see them talk. The stuff going on with Abraham however is less interesting, like many things in The Strain, the hunt for the Lumen is just this thing that keeps getting brought up but never goes anywhere, well in this episode it finally went somewhere, sort of. I feel like this routine is starting to get old with this show, a bold and cool new idea is thrown in, like Eph's bio weapon, and the Lumen, and there's a lot of talking about this thing but nothing is ever done, then when something is finally done, it goes wrong and it's back to square 1. And that happened again with the Lumen, Abraham finally found it, and after flicking through a few pages someone knocks him out and takes the Lumen, someone who's face you never see, maybe next week. Speaking of next week, holy shit the cliff hanger, it shows Dutch chained up in Eichhorst's dungeon. Now this I must see, since, like I said earlier, I doubt this show will kill off a main character, and I still think that applies here, but then again, maybe I'm wrong, and maybe yeah, Dutch is going to die, what would definitely shake things up. But I hope she doesn't get eaten by that German bastard, and I doubt she will, either way, I wanna see what happens next. All in all I liked this episode a great deal, it had a banger of an ending, and it's nice to see some plot points finally going somewhere, even if that somewhere isn't very far, worth checking out.

Thunderbirds Edge of Impact review

Here's what you need to know; The Hood has villainous plans for the experimental Red Arrow project, plans that put innocent people in danger, International Rescue is called into action after a sabotage, but they have to be careful, they have a guest.

I like this episode a lot more than Terror in New York City, even with the awesome crash sequence. This episode starts with a weapons test, which is always cool, and then we have Eyebrows himself getting hired to sabotage the Red Arrow, which we then see. I find it funny that the Hood could watch the launch of the Red Arrow, a secretive experimental jet, from the car park, but that scene is really cool, as the Red Arrow nose dives into a hanger. I really liked the story on Tracy Island in this episode, with Colonel Casey on the island, it's an interesting idea for Thunderbirds, and I think it's pretty funny when they try to hide the Thunderbird take off from Casey. At the danger zone things are pretty interesting, and I really like the situation, it's a very precarious situation. Though if I'm being completely honest the rescue itself is a bit lacklustre in my opinion, Thunderbirds has really cool machines, but in this episode we have a mortar cannon mounted on a golf cart looking thing. It bugs me that I know how I would change the rescue and I know that my change would probably make it a more fun rescue, that sounds big headed, I know, and it probably is. But that said, it doesn't take away from how cool the situation itself is, or how cool the story is with the Hood and Casey, however this episode does have a notable lack of tension in my opinion, and that isn't good. All in all, this episode lacks tension, and it has an underwhelming rescue, but aside from that it has a cool story with some really cool and some pretty funny scenes, and a very funny end for the Hood, and an interesting situation that I really liked, it's worth checking out.

Jeepers Creepers movie review

Here's what you need to know; Darry and his sister are on the road, returning home from college, but their road trip turns nightmarish when they make a horrific discovery, and an evil force chooses them as it's next victims, now they must run for their lives, if they are ever to escape the Creeper.

This is a very small film, focusing on 2 people pretty much for it's entirety, so how are they as characters. Darry and Trish are fine, in the start of the film they have fun brother sister banter, but aside from that neither of them are amazingly interesting, and is it just me, or in every close up of either of them in this film they are wide eyed and open mouthed like they've seen someone blow their brains out in front of them, truth be told it's pretty goofy looking, Justin Long in particular. Really while neither of them are annoying, and they have some fun back and forth, neither of them are very memorable at all. The supporting characters, I don't even know if any of them have names, but really they're what you'd expect if I said county cop or diner patron or crazy cat lady. The only other one really is a psychic that tries to help them towards the end of the film, but really she just feels more like a bundle of questions, why psychic? Why the vision she allegedly had? why does she know about the Creeper, how does she know, because of a vision? Really she's just another supernatural element where the film didn't need one, and she does nothing for the plot. Speaking of plot, the film is on a very small scale, taking place pretty much entirely on 1 road and with just 2 characters, however, at least for the first half, I felt that it really worked, as you didn't see much of the Creeper. And for the first half the Creeper looks a lot cooler, with a ragged coat and cowboy hat, almost always either in the distance or in the dark, and driving around in a rusted old van, he, at least for the first half, is a very unsettling figure. Unfortunately rather than going the much cleverer and much scarier route of making the Creeper just a guy, they make him a monster, let me explain, I'm an adult now, movie monsters have to be pretty impressive to scare me, alternatively, it's very easy to get creeped out by the thought of someone insane and murderous hunting you down, because that is more real than a giant bat from hell, and that can get under your skin a lot better than a bat, which is what the Creeper is. Further more, the pre bat wing design of the Creeper looked really cool, the ragged clothes and cowboy hat, as well as the pretty freaky face, but then they just do away with that and give him wings, and he just stops being scary, just completely, the monster doesn't look that cool either, he's just a monster, with wings. His true form, like the psychic is just a supernatural element that the film didn't need or in my opinion benefit from. That said, this film has a few really cool scenes, 2 in particular really stand out to me, one where they drive past a church and see the Creeper, it's creepy, I liked it, and one with the Creeper on the roof of a car, I just though that was a cool scene. These 2 scenes are also really good for building the Creeper as a character, something that, unfortunately, gets completely thrown away along with any chance of him being scary. Finally, the film has an ending that I have mixed feelings on, with no real big fight with the Creeper, it just catches them, and I really think that the film should have ended then, and had the fate of his victim be left a mystery, because that's scarier to me than a mutilated body, by a mile, and it just feels, like the Creeper himself, like a wasted opportunity.

Which is pretty much how I can describe this film, a wasted opportunity, with it's creepy first half it really looks like it might go somewhere, and be a creepy and scary chase film, but instead it just throws all the momentum it had built away in favour of being a pretty bog standard monster movie. While it's not a bad film by any means, it has a great first half, but let's itself down. You won't hate yourself for giving it a watch, but you won't be missing anything by passing on Jeepers Creepers.

Attempt 1 update 2

Well, they're still growing, in fact, there's another one sprouting, taking the number up to 7, and so far those 7 seem to be doing brilliantly, they're green and they're growing, and for a fool, that's pretty good. But to be honest I'm a bit concerned that they won't survive, winter is coming, in the words of the late Eddard Stark, and things don't tend to grow in the winter, they're getting plenty of sun in the window, but now I'm worried the cold will kill them. Who knows, maybe in spring they'll have survived and I'll put them in the garden or something, if not, sod, but for now they're looking good.

Monster House movie review

Here's what you need to know; DJ has been spying on his creepy old neighbour Mr Nebbercracker, but following a confrontation, Nebbercracker is suddenly rushed to hospital. With Nebbercracker gone, DJ and his friends notice odd goings on with his house, and become convinced Nebbercracker has returned from the dead, with Halloween right around the corner, DJ and his friends make it their mission to kill the Monster House and save the day.

This film wastes no time setting the mood, it's a very Halloweeny movie, with vibrant oranges, and a creepy old man living in a creepy old house. And to be fair, even given it's age, the animation still looks really good, the characters and Mo-cap are clearly not new, but they are still quite impressive for their age, and the mo-cap, animation and directing all have a fun energy to them that keeps the movie going. Now for the characters, DJ, our hero, is a surprisingly relatable character, he's at that point in his life when his voice starts to change and he starts wanting to be treated like an adult, but at the same time he still clings to his adventurous side, and this makes him a very fun and relatable character. Cowder, his best friend, is a less complicated character, but in my opinion a funnier character, he's overly dramatic, clumsy, and his adventurous side frequently blurs the line between brave and moronic, he also says some really funny shit. Jenny, the pseudo love interest is a bit of a smart-arse, in that though she too has some really funny moments, and the romantic element is done perfectly, and in a surprisingly mature and grounded way, and like DJ, it's surprisingly relatable. Finally he have Nebbercracker, who is by far the most interesting character in the film, but for reasons I won't spoil, I'll just say things are not what they first appear with him. While the supporting characters are largely just in the background, I wouldn't call them forgettable, even if the majority of them of just stereotypes, Skull however, he's in the film for one scene, and he was hilarious. The film at first tells a very simple story, a group of kids try to play hero and save Halloween from an evil ghost, in that there is some fun to be had with the adventure, as they put together a big elaborate plan to take out the ghost. however, towards the end the film flips the script, and becomes a very emotional and personal story that I won't spoil, but at the same time the film ramps up the adventure, making for a crazy awesome finale that I'll talk more about later. Just know that this film is more than just a kiddy adventure.

This film may catch you off guard in another way, it might just creep you out, I mean it, this film has some really creepy imagery from time to time, including a brief but spooky nightmare sequence. and then there's the house itself, which is a genuinely chilling sight for most of the film, it's old, it's decaying, and weirdly, it's anthropomorphic, but, while that sounds goofy, it isn't as goofy as it sounds, and the house also has a really cool design, it's just cool to look at. The best I can compare it to is the Goosebumps books, it won't scare you as an adult, but as a kid, they're pretty creepy, and when the house monsters out it really looks cool, and even I must admit, it looks creepy. The script flip is a funny thing, because while this may be a kid's film, it's unusually dark and grim, but I'm really not going to say more. The more adventurous scenes are also pretty fun, as they try to fight the house using water guns and makeshift hoover dummies. But the film's finale is by far the best part of the film, both in terms of how visually impressive it is, and in terms of just how much fun it is to watch. It's arguable that this film's a bit of a slow burn in that regard, coupled with the creepy imagery and mature themes, and maybe this film will resonate better with adults than it will with children, fortunately, that makes it a great family film, as well as a fun Halloween movie.

Monster House is a fun and spooky adventure for the most part, and it's a lot of fun, what with it's fun and funny characters, but then the film becomes something else entirely in it's final act, ramping up the adventure, the spookiness, the emotion, everything, culminating in an explosive and touching end to a fun film that's definitely worth watching.

The darkess, and mo-blur

So last night I was up late, as usual, probably why I'm so tired at work, but that's beside the point, I tried to get some half decent night photography. The problem, that I learned during trial runs before the eclipse as well as attempts during my photography course, my camera doesn't like taking photos at night. Regardless, I got some snaps that are worth showing I guess, they're kind of abstract, I like them, it's also worth noting that these are completely un-edited. Enjoy.

Halo 4 (single player) (Xbox One) game review

Here's what you need to know; after years of drifting in deep space, Master Chief and Cortana crash land in mysterious Forerunner planet, and unleash a terrible evil that threatens the entire human race, but Chief and Cortana have bigger problems, and Chief's humanity is about to be put to the test.

Halo 4 is the first major release in the Halo series since Reach, and the first to be developed by the new helm of the series; 343 Industries, just getting that out of the way. Halo 4 picks up a few years after the end of Halo 3, and starts with one hell of a bang when the wreckage of the Forward Unto Dawn is boarded by an army of Covenant, an army that Chief has to repel alone, in that the game does a great job of setting the mood, a mood of insurmountable odds. After a 100% badass first mission, and in a move very reminiscent of CE, you are dropped onto Requiem, a planet that will grab you with it's awe inspiring and haunting beauty the instant you lay eyes on it, seriously, it's a feeling very similar to the moment in Halo CE when you first step out onto the Halo ring, it's brilliantly done. But the brilliance doesn't stop there, in fact if you ask me, in terms of the single player, the brilliance never stops. I'll start with the characters, and this is easily the most emotionally heavy story in the Halo series, taking centre stage and stealing the show here is Cortana, who is beginning to deteriorate into rampancy, and she has a few really emotional moments as she is forced to come to terms with the fact she is going insane. Master Chief is also forced into some rough emotional scenes as the only person he ever cared about dies slowly in front of him, the 2 are a great pair here, and it really makes for some heavy scenes. Another character is arguably the series' first proper villain, the Didact is also completely badass, he's menacing, intelligent, but he's also a very grounded villain, with a hatred for humanity that's surprisingly believable, plus he's quotable, and I love me someone who's quotable. Del Rio, Palmer and Lasky are pretty much your supporting characters, and they're fine, albeit hollow compared to Chief, Cortana and Didact, the Librarian also makes an appearance in this game, a very brief one, but still a cool one, there really isn't a character here I don't like, even with Palmer and Del Rio, who I'm admittedly largely indifferent to. The story is still a space hopping, baddy killing adventure, however with the more emotional tone, it's a much more personal story, one that leads to a pretty sorrowful ending, movies and video games don't make me cry, but that doesn't mean I'm made of stone, and this game got to me, I'll admit that.

The gameplay in Halo 4 is, in my opinion, a lot more fun than Halo 3's, the biggest change is of course the ability to sprint, an ability that I'm personally fine with, but that's just me, I don't mind being able to move a little faster, and at least in the single player it hardly breaks the game. Another change is the return of armour abilities from Halo Reach, however I personally didn't really use them much, though some of them are really cool, like a portable Hardlight shield, an autosentry, and Promethean vision, by far the coolest, which allows you, at least briefly, to see through walls, and that shit is cool. Something very new and exciting is an entirely new enemy type; the Prometheans, who I personally really like. We'll start with the smallest, the Crawler, a fast, small class that usually carries smaller weapons, but can crawl on pretty much any surface, and usually attack in large groups. then we have the Watchers, a slightly more annoying flying class that, while not much of a threat on their own, can provide support for the bigger Promethean class, and can be spawned by the bigger class. that bigger Promethean class is the Knight, a brutish enemy that's big, fast, and can teleport, which is really annoying, that said they are a lot of fun to fight, and I never really got wound up by their teleporting. along with the new enemy type comes a collection of funky new guns, as well as a few new UNSC guns which are pretty cool, including the SAW, which is awesome, and the Railgun, which is a fucking Railgun, need I say more. among the new Forerunner weapons is the Light Rifle, a nifty new rifle with an alt fire mode, and a vicious Scattershot, which at a close enough range, literally blasts enemies into pretty orange pixels. all of the new guns, as well as the returning ones sound incredible, which is a vast improvement from the nerf guns from Halo 3, the UNSC guns in particular are just great to listen to, in fact this game in general is great to listen to, from the subtle things like the thumps and clunks of Chief's armour, to the huge and epic musical score, which is easily on par with O'Donnell's and Salvatori's score from previous Halos. Speaking of incredible, this game looks stunning, it genuinely looks beautiful graphically, both in the game and in cutscenes. The game also has a wide variety of levels, ranging from desert, to dense jungle, again, to cramped cave systems and intricate and striking Forerunner structures and UNSC ships and bases, there are a few too many missions where you must hit x number of switches, but for each of them is a big vehicle mission where you drive a tank or escort the monstrous UNSC Mammoth or go nuts with the new Mantis mech, all of which are, as ever, huge fun.

I really like Halo 4, in fact, no, I love Halo 4, it's gorgeous to look at, gorgeous to listen to, it's huge fun to play, and to play around with the new guns and new enemies. But what I love more is the story and characters, with a heavy story that puts it's characters in fascinating and emotional places, it's a superb story with a hard hitting ending. It's brilliant, easily up there with Halo 2, and like Halo 2, it's an absolute must play.

Halo 3 (single player) (Xbox One) game review

Here's what you need to know; the Prophet of Truth has launched another attack on Earth, and has got to work unearthing a mysterious Forerunner artefact that may be the key to complete galactic destruction, now Chief and Arbiter must stop Truth from ending life as we know it.

Halo 3 picks up right where Halo 2 left off, with Master Chief falling from Truth's ship and landing in the Jungle, in that though I was kind of disappointed by a bit of a gap in the story, I mean, at the end of Halo 2 Johnson and the Arbiter were still on Halo, and Chief was still on Truth's ship when it slipspaced above Earth, I just feel like in the time between Truth slipspacing to Earth and Johnson and the Arbiter finding Chief in the jungle something was missed. Unfortunately I have a few similar issues with Halo 3's story, but first I'll start with what I liked. I thought the characters were still really cool, particularly Chief and the Arbiter, as Chief tries to save Cortana from the Gravemind and the Arbiter seeks revenge for Truth's betrayal. Johnson is less amusing here, but towards the end of the story he has a few really awesome scenes, same with Keyes. And in a very good turn, Spark is much more relevant in this game, given that he's my favourite character from the first Halo, that's good, Gravemind returns too, and he's as creepy and poetic as ever. Meanwhile, Cortana is absent for most of the game, which I don't really know how to feel, on one hand, it makes sense in the story and it gives Chief a personal motive to save her, but she's a really cool character, so to have her only appear at the end feels a bit weird. Something I'm really happy to see is the return of the Covenant civil war, which by the start of this game is in full swing, while this game does lack the politics of Halo 2, the Arbiter and the Elites' crusade against the Brutes is really cool to see. And the cool doesn't stop there, with the friendship between Chief and the Arbiter, and we finally see the Ark, which is absolutely awesome, as everything Forerunner is. And I do like the ending of Halo 3, while it is left open, I felt that it concluded the story of the Halo trilogy in a very fitting way. Now for what I didn't like, the Flood, and some minor spoiler ahead, but I was fine with them on the Ark, I however don't like how they showed up on Earth, I thought that it just felt out of place and forced. But as the game went on from there I thought the Flood was fine.

Now for the part of this review that will divide opinion, from a gameplay standpoint I feel that Halo 3 is the weakest in the trilogy, which isn't to say that gameplay is bad, because it's not, but one criticism I have is that the guns just don't have the same punch as they did in Halo 2, the assault rifle and needler in particular, the guns in Halo 3 just feel nerfed. that said, the new guns and vehicles are pretty cool, I really liked using the Spike rifle, and the flamethrower is pretty sweet, turrets can also be detached from their mounts now, letting you effectively become an unstoppable killing machine for as long as you're carrying the turret. The new vehicles are also really cool, while they feel a little clumsy to drive, the Chopper and Prowler are formidable in battle, the Chopper in particular, with which you can simply ram your way through most enemy vehicles, while the Hornet is very cool, and huge fun to fly. The game even further mixes things up with huge Covenant Scarab battles which I must admit are completely badass, and a creative new Flood pure form that can change form from the fast and agile crawler to a bothersome wall hugging form that can use ranged attacks to just straight up walking tanks. Unfortunately my issues with Halo 3's game play include the guns feeling nerfed, the backtracking, which is more frequent here than Halo CE and Halo 2 combined. And most difficult to explain, the length, which just feels short. It's true that all the games in the trilogy can be beat in a very short amount of time, but even with Halo CE and 2, even during a speed run, they didn't feel short, but when I don't speed run Halo 3, it still feels really short. The level design fortunately is pretty cool, with a wide variety of locations ranging from dense jungle to massive dried lake beds, snowy mountains and sandy deserts to let loose with vehicles, to indoor spaces in which to go wild with the nerfed guns. One such open vehicle section is the final sequence, but it just lacks the intensity of the final Warthog run in CE, and it ultimately isn't as fulfilling. Finally, this game got no special treatment for the Xbox One, and while the ingame graphics still look good, the cutscenes really don't, they show their age, and look pretty clumsy.

There are things in Halo 3 that I really like, I think it's story is a sound conclusion to the Halo trilogy, and I like the things it does with it's characters, but unfortunately Halo 3 just doesn't do it for me, it's guns feel weak, the game feels short, even when it's not, and the big finale falls flat when compared to CE's finale. The new guns and vehicles are pretty cool, but over all, while I don't dislike or hate Halo 3, I still think it's the weakest in the trilogy.

Doctor Who series 9 The Girl Who Died review

Spoilers ahead for Doctor Who.
Here's what you need to know; the Doctor and Clara end up being captured by Vikings and taken to their village, but things take an unexpected turn when a formidable foe shows up. Now the Doctor, Clara, and their new friend Ashildr must prepare a town of Vikings for a battle like no other.
This review is pretty late, but here's the truth, instead of this, me and my family watched Jurassic World, and I didn't watch it, but now I have, so let's go.

After Before the Flood, I wanted an episode of Doctor Who that was actually good, and as it turns out, I got what I wanted with this episode, so we'll actually start with what I didn't like, I thought the Mire were pretty dumb, their armour looked cool, in that big clumsy walking tank kind of way, but I thought they were a bit stupid when Odin showed up and drank a bottle of testosterone and preached of the joy of war, it was a cartoon, Gears of War isn't that manly for god's sake, and when the helmet comes off and you see their faces, yep, dumb. But to be honest there isn't really anything in this episode I didn't like. The elephant in the room is of course Arya Stark from Game of Thrones, who at first I thought was just here because she's in Game of Thrones and Game of Thrones is huge, but no, Maisie Williams' character actually becomes a pretty interesting Character, though at the same time I'm a little apprehensive, I hope that she becomes an important character, though I think she'll be less important than I'd guess from the Doctor's premonition. I was having fun with the story of the Vikings vs the Mire, even if I thought the Mire were cartoons, and I really like the black mail the Doctor pulls on them, even with how indicative of the world we live in I think it is, what with phones and social media and what not. But, and here's where the real spoilers begin, I started loving this episode when Ashildr dies, I didn't expect her to die, and I love the scene when the Doctor is mourning her death. And then the Doctor remembers why he chose the Capaldi face, and I really liked the reason, and how that reason drives him to ultimately potentially cause a lot of damage, seriously, someone who's body is infused with alien technology, someone who loses the ability to die, that's kind of a big deal, like absolutely world changing, and in this episode he seems particularly paranoid about changing history too much, so I'm interested to see where this goes, and I'm praying that it won't be a huge let down like Under the Lake and Before the Flood. But all in all I really like this episode, I thought it had a fun story and interesting characters, I really liked the Doctor's later scenes in this episode, and I want to see what happens next with this story. This episode is definitely worth checking out.

Moar Minecraft

That is right, more Minecraft mini figures, 12 more, meaning my collection of these little lumps has doubled in size. Here we have also have a couple Minecraft mobs I don't recognise, but we'll get to that. So first off in the middle is Alex and a diamond Steve, and for some reason Alex's face looks a bit weird to me, meanwhile Steve is completely awesome in his diamond armour. Then here we have a decent number of hostile mobs, including a completely adorable slime, a zombie who seems to be having a rough morning, and 3 nether mobs, which is awesome since I don't think I have any nether mobs, and now I have a ghast, a blaze and a wither skeleton, is it just me or are wither skeletons completely terrifying in the game. Then we have, interestingly, a squid, a mooshroom, and a sheep, not terribly fussed about the mooshroom or sheep, but that squid is awesome. And then finally we have the 2 in the front, which I do not recognise, according to the Minecraft wiki the purple one is an endermite, and the fish looking one is a guardian, and I've never seen either of them in the game, so these are interesting to me, particularly the Guardian, that thing looks funky. So there you have it, some more Minecraft mini figures, I like them.

The Strain season 2 The Battle for Red Hook review

spoilers ahead for The Strain.
Here's what you need to know; with the location of their hideout discovered, Abraham fears another attack from the Vampires, he and the team join forces with Feraldo to defend Red Hook from the looming attack, but they have underestimated the vampires, severely.

Ok, this is more like it, I really enjoyed this episode. Lets get right to the grit, this episode is a battle, and it's a pretty fucking sweet battle, I do enjoy some vampire killing in this show, and this episode has it in spades. I really liked the battle itself in this episode, because it was something this show normally isn't, large scale. Usually the team is the primary focus of the show, and it sticks with them, but here we have a city taking up arms against an invading army or vampires, and it's awesome. Of course though the battle isn't everything in this episode, so we'll start with what I didn't like, pretty much everything with Dutch and her girlfriend, I just don't care. Meanwhile the stuff at the power station was pretty cool, even if it was pretty simple, turn the power back on. And Abraham and Eichhorst's encounter was also really cool, and I love how Eichhorst taunted Eph about Kelly and his past, and then about his choice of weapons. Eichhorst is really cool in this episode. Though I do have a few questions, for starters how was Abraham able to get onto the roof so fast, and more importantly, I know a few characters I like would be dead by now if this weren't the case, but why is it that when they're up against the grunt vampires they're all dead eye, never once missing, but when it comes to a higher up vampire like Eichhorst or Kelly they can't shoot for shit, at this point it's actually pretty funny. Overall this is a pretty short review, but I really liked this episode, I don't know if it's my favourite episode of The Strain so far, but it's a definite step up for season 2, and absolutely worth checking out.

Thunderbirds Terror in New York City review

Here's what you need to know; while returning to base from a mission, Thunderbird 2 comes under attack from the US Navy, and is badly damaged. Things don't exactly get better when development in New York goes horribly wrong, trapping Ned Cook and his camera man underground, with Thunderbird 2 crippled, International Rescue are forced to get creative.

This episode is almost certainly a favourite of mine purely for the first 10 minutes or so. After a pretty sweet sequence with the Firefly and Thunderbird 1 chasing Ned and his cameraman, there is one of the coolest things that happened in the original Thunderbirds. I absolutely adore the sequence in which Thunderbird 2 is under missile attack, from beginning to end it is just brilliant, there's some tension when TB2 goes into a dive, and then there's the crash, which is just nuts. First off it's a very violent crash, it's not the happy ending crash from Thunderbirds Are Go, TB2 comes in on fire, slams down on the runway, and slides along the runway, still on fire, billowing thick black smoke, it just  looks like a painful crash, and that, as I've said many times, is something the new CG Thunderbirds will never do, this crash has some real weight to it, and I love it. For me personally though the episode kind of drops of after the awesome crash, you see the Empire State building collapse, which is pretty cool, and towards the end when the finance building is leaning things ramp up again, but there's some down time in between with Ned underground and the water coming up, and for some reason I'm just not as interested here, Ned Cook is a character that doesn't interest me, and while the US Army and Air traffic control actually made rescue attempts, most of this episode is Thunderbird 4 hanging onto the side of a ship while the water comes up in Ned and his cameraman's underground tomb. Like I said though the episode picks up when the finance building starts to collapse, because I don't think the finale of this episode would be anywhere near as intense as it was is there wasn't the added threat of the building collapse, I liked the finale of this episode, and it does have a good amount of tension, but it doesn't make up for the rest of the episode, especially considering the awesome first 10 minutes.

This episode has one of my favourite sequences in Thunderbirds ever in it's opening, and it more than makes up for an otherwise underwhelming episode on it's own. That said, the rest of the episode is still a bit underwhelming for me. But I loved the first 10 minutes and the finale, just not everything else, still, it's worth a watch.

Halo 2 Anniversary (single player) game review

Here's what you need to know; the Covenant have launched an attack on Earth, and a grave discovery is made deep in space, causing the destinies of Humanity's and the Covenant's greatest warriors to converge, and the battle to save the galaxy from complete destruction to fire up once more.

Something that should immediately be apparent from the first 10 minutes of the game is the larger scope of it's story, Halo 2's story just puts Halo CE's in the dark, at least in my opinion. A big part of that larger scope is a 2nd playable character, in Halo 2, as well as the Master Chief, you spend about half of the campaign playing as the Arbiter, before becoming the Arbiter, he was a covenant fleet commander, and this not only opens a new perspective on the Human Covenant war, but is a treasure chest of universe and lore. We see the Covenant's side of the war in Halo 2, which fascinates me, as does the politics of the Covenant, which is a big part of the Covenant story in this game. Their religion about the Halo rings gets coverage here, and we see their religious leaders, the Prophets, who serve as 3 of the game's baddies. I adore the Halo universe, as you may know, so Halo 2 is just Christmas, it's also a really interesting story, as we effectively see the dawn of a civil war in the Covenant, and we see the main character of this story lose his faith and realise the truth about his religion, which is something that really interests me. The Human side of the story is also really interesting, as the Covenant launch an attack on Earth, and another Halo ring is found, one that Chief and his fellow humans become determined to prevent the firing of. But what really sets this game's story above Halo CE's is it's characters, Chief, Cortana, Johnson, Spark and such return from Halo CE, and with the exception of Spark, who isn't really in the game much, all of the returning characters are more badass, Johnson in particular, who is completely awesome, and far more present here, he's also very quotable, "oh I know what the ladies like." if you have a badass and you make him quotable, I'm in, Master Chief and Cortana are the same, and both get more to say and do in the story, which is never bad. The Covenant characters are also cool, as I said, the Arbiter has a cool arch throughout the game, and the Prophets are also cool, it's just cool to watch the Covenant cutscenes and listen to them talk, as I already said, Covenant religion and politics fascinates me. There's another character who I will not name, spoilers, he is only in the game very briefly, but when he is there he is completely awesome and completely creepy, and he's a poet, a strange trait, but one that makes him pretty fun to listen to. I do however have one massive issue, the ending, there isn't one, the game's campaign just sort of stops, leaving on a cliff hanger that is infuriating. I didn't like the Empire Strikes Back ending, but I liked that more than this shit, it literally feels like a few missions were just cut from the game at the end, which is probably what actually happened, but that doesn't excuse a shit ending.

Gameplay has been refined, the same system as the first game is here, you can carry 2 guns, any 2 you like, but the 2 playable characters can do different things, Chief has a light, while Arbiter has the far cooler ability to turn invisible, I didn't really use either ability in the game, and aside from that the 2 characters play exactly the same, luckily then the gameplay is still solid with both of them. The game now feels much more responsive, and the arsenal of weapons is even bigger and even more nuts, with previously unusable weapons like the energy sword and fuel rod cannon now usable, as well as new weapons like the cute little SMG, and the mean and brutal Brute Shot, as well as the hyper cool Covenant carbine and Battle rifle, 2 fast firing medium range rifles that are both awesome, though weirdly the assault rifle has been removed. A big change in the gameplay is the ability to dual wield smaller guns, which is something you will use, as it's actually useful and makes you feel like a badass. It's also fun to try different combinations of weapons, maybe I'm just imagining it, but the Plasma rifle SMG combination is really effective. Further mixing things up is a few new enemy types, in addition to the returning Covenant and Flood enemies, you fight a splinter faction of the Covenant, massive Forerunner drones with shields on the front and mortar cannons on the top, flying bugs, jet pack elites, and finally and most notably, the Brutes, who are ridiculously tough, don't have shields, and charge at you randomly and beat the shit out of you. This game also has a few new vehicles, as well as the returning ones from CE. The navigation issues are much less of a problem here, thank god, and there is more variety in the levels, which is even better. And the version of the game I played was the anniversary version, which is much more of a talking point in this game. Far from the face lift of CEA, Halo 2 got some real treatment, the graphics have received a massive upgrade, and now the game looks stunning, which is really impressive, the sound and music has also been upgraded, which aside from a few changes I really don't like, is a massive improvement, though why did they get rid of Blow Me Away, seriously, that song was perfect, so why did they change it? And then there's of course the cutscenes, which are fucking amazing, they really are, they were done by Blur, the studio that did the cutscenes for Halo Wars, and they hit it out of the park with the gorgeous remade cutscenes, they are easily the best part of the Anniversary edition.

Halo 2 steps it up from Halo Combat Evolved in literally every way, and the Anniversary edition takes it even further, making a 10 year old game gorgeous to look at and listen to. I do have a problem with the ending, but I love this game's campaign, it's expansive, political, has really fun and interesting characters, of course just being a fun game to play even now certainly helps, and I will say Halo 2 is an absolute must play.

Kung Fu Panda movie review

Here's what you need to know; Po is a nobody selling noodles at his dad's restaurant, but he dreams of one day becoming a Kung Fu master and palling with the greatest Kung Fu warriors in all of China. However, his dream is put to the test when the sinister Tai Lung escapes from prison and returns to the Valley of Peace for his revenge, with time fast running out, Po must believe in himself and become the fabled Dragon Warrior.
Let's do something I don't do often, review an animated film, here's my review of Kung Fu Panda.

As I always do, I'll start with the characters and story. Po is a brilliant main character, he's an extremely likable character, not just because of how side splitting funny he is, but because of his dream, and the conflict he has with Shifu is one of the driving forces of the film. Po is a panda who doubts himself, and that doubt is a sizable part of his arch throughout the film. As I said earlier he is also side splittingly funny, because he is, but really there isn't a character in this film that isn't funny. The only one that I wouldn't really call funny is Oogway, who is one of the most badass characters in the film, he is the wise, old Kung Fu master, and he's good at it, he too is an extremely likable character. Shifu is a very interesting character, he has a really interesting arch throughout the film, just like Po, and the film's as much about him finding peace as it is about Po learning Kung Fu, and he has a very interesting backstory and relationship with the film's villain. Which brings us on to Tai Lung, who is a cool villain. The first time you see him is some menacing stuff, and he is completely badass from the instant he appears. He's not just a black and white villain though, he's more complex than that, and it makes him a very interesting and surprisingly likable character, his motive is simple, but his reasons are far more complicated. The Furious Five are less interesting, but then they're funny, so there's no reason to complain, and when they throw down they too are completely awesome. The film's story is driven by these characters, so while it may be very straightforward, a panda learning Kung FU, it's a very funny film with funny and likable characters. And it allows for some very fun fight scenes and training scenes with Po and Shifu.

This is an animated film, so the quality of the animation is something moderately important, fortunately, this film has really good animation, the characters and environments all look great, and the animation is fast and energetic during the Kung Fu scenes. I can't hold off saying it any longer, this is the most visually beautiful animated film I've ever seen, I find the aesthetic of ancient China to be really cool, and this film is crammed full of it, not in a cheesy way, but in a way that was clearly created with respect and love. The music is the same, this film sounds wonderful, and it really fits the aesthetic. This film also has some absolutely stunning imagery. Everything works for me, the aesthetic of the world, the design of the characters and environments, the fun animation. And the colours, holy shit the colours, they look absolutely stunning, there are times when this film looks like a painting, exploding with amazing design and gorgeous colours, and it's an absolute joy to look at. Certain times in particular really stand out, including every scene involving the sacred peach tree, the prison break scene, and the final battle with Tai Lung. These 3 examples are what stand out when I think about it, but there are others, and the film doesn't have a dull moment, you're always either looking at something beautiful, watching fun Kung Fu, or laughing out loud, none of them are bad. You'd think this film has an element of parody to it, given that it's about anthropomorphic animals, but the film takes itself seriously enough to have some surprisingly heavy scenes, the majority of which involve Shifu. It's also very light hearted, and has a great blend of comedy, adventure and more impactful, emotional stuff.

Kung Fu Panda is one of my favourite animated films, because it has everything I want in an animation, it has really nice looking animation, stunning imagery and colour, a fun light hearted tone, yet some heavier moments, and really funny and likable characters, it's just an all round good film, and it's definitely a must watch.

Attempt 1 update

Ha hahahahahahahaha, yes I planted the seeds at the wrong time of the year, yes I've never grown anything before in my life, but just look. They're actually growing, well, 5 of them are, but they're actually growing, how absolutely awesome is that. Truth be told I don't know how they're growing, like I said, it's the wrong time of the year, but now I really have to pay attention to these little fellas, I have to keep them alive. I'm really happy about this, now let's not fuck it up.

Crimson Peak movie review

Here's what you need to know; young and aspiring writer Edith Cushing has fallen in love with failing inventor and clay miner Thomas Sharpe, and the 2 get married and move into the Sharpe residence, known as Crimson Peak. But things aren't right in the house, at night things go bump, and Sharpe and his sister seem to be up to something shady, Edith starts to realise she's in a spider's web, and she is in mortal danger.

This film wasn't very well marketed, it was marketed as a horror movie, filled with ghosts and scares, but really this movie is something very different. We'll start with the characters, as ever. Edith, our young writer, is possibly the least interesting character in the film, she's a completely serviceable main character, but she really doesn't stand out in any major way. Alan McMichael is more interesting, even if he doesn't really do much until the end of the film. But who absolutely steals the show here is Tom Hiddleston and Jessica Chastain as Thomas and Lucille Sharpe. These were both really interesting characters in my opinion. Thomas is a man who is clearly conflicted, and there's a subtle guilt to him, one that is part of the mystery that I felt was driving this film. Lucille is another really interesting character, she too has a secret, and as the film progresses she only gets more interesting as she slowly starts to unravel and she is revealed to possibly have a few screws loose. I won't spoil it here for obvious reasons, but the relationship and the secrecy with the Sharpes is really twisted and really interesting, and when it all comes to light is when both characters hit a bit of a peak for how interesting and how unhinged they both are. The story here is also very interesting, like del Toro's Spanish films, this is a much smaller, more personal film than what he's been doing lately. This is a good thing in my opinion, because as glorious as the action is in Pacific Rim, del Toro is at his best in films like Pan's Labyrinth and The Devil's Backbone, and this film reminded me of those films in a lot of ways, which can't ever be a bad thing. I said this film was mismarketed, it was marketed as a scary horror story, when in reality it's a Romance, blended in with a little Murder Mystery, and as those 2 things this film is pretty fun in my opinion, the mystery is by far the strongest element. It's a very slow burning film, which is bound to put people off, but when everything comes out in the last 30 or so minutes is when the film finally kicks off and becomes really cool, and after that last section of the film was really when I decided that I liked this film, especially because of the tense final moments, the mystery of the Sharpes, which even after the plot twist, I still thought was the most interesting part of the film.

del Toro is known for his very artist style, but holy shit this film is stunning. The house takes on a character of it's own with pretty much everything about it, from it's beautiful design, to it's decaying and neglected state, to the way the walls and floors ooze deep red sludge from the mine beneath, the house breathes, creaks, bleeds, it's like a living thing, and it's really brought to life here. The costumes are also really cool, there isn't an uninteresting one, they all pop with colour and design, and I really don't give a shit about fashion, but the costumes here are awesome. del Toro's directing is also brilliant, the cinematography is a marvel sometimes in this film, and the lighting is something that stood out to me, there are a few times when I realised that the lighting in this film was actually genuinely creepy. Which finally brings me onto the ghosts, anyone familiar with The Devil's Backbone will be familiar with the design of the ghosts, because they're very similar, but these things make Santi look like something from a kids show, they are genuinely frightening, at least to me, and they definitely got under my skin. CG is utilized to create the ghosts here, and I don't think that's a bad thing, because they're so cool to look at and so fucking freaky, the one from the trailer that comes up through the floor and the first ghost you see in the film in particular, woof, they were scary. There's also a good bit of gore in this film, a good amount of blood, and, minor spoiler, someone gets their head repeatedly slammed into a bathroom sink, and their face is turned to pulp, yeah, there's violence and gore. This film also deals with some very mature themes, which I won't spoil, but once you get past the pretty awkward sex scenes, it's actually handled pretty well. So while the film will creep you out with it's spooky ghosts, this is a film that will haunt you in a much deeper, more frightening way, a way that will stay with you, which is something I love.

I really liked Crimson Peak, it's stunning to look at and has really cool design and costume, as well as some really creepy and very interesting and freaky looking ghosts. I personally didn't gravitate to the main character, but I was completely gripped by Thomas and Lucille Sharpe, who stole the show from beginning to end, and I had a lot of fun with the mystery of the film. This is a film that creeped me out, unsettled me, and completely hooked me, and it's definitely worth watching.

Empire Strikes Back movie review

Here's what you need to know; after the successful attack on the Death Star, and the subsequent attack on the Rebel base, the Rebels are in a bad way, and have now set up camp on the barren ice planet Hoth. But the Empire is coming, and now Luke must embark on the next mission in his quest to become a Jedi and defeat the evil Empire.

First off, this film requires that you've seen the first Star Wars, there's no build up or character establishment, it just kicks into full gear right out the gate. This is actually a good thing in my opinion, since the film wastes no time, it just assumes you know these people and then gets moving immediately. Since I haven't watched the first Star Wars since I reviewed it, I felt a bit lost at first, but I got back into a Star Wars mood pretty quick. The characters are cool as ever, and I got a lot more behind Chewbacca in this film, in addition to the old characters, a few new ones are introduced that are also pretty cool, mainly Lando and Yoda. Lando, like Han, is a smuggler, and like Han, is one charming scoundrel, he's also a very interesting character, but for reasons I will not spoil, yep, we're still being sensitive with spoilers. Yoda starts off not how I expected him, I didn't expect him to bug the shit out of Luke, it makes sense now I think about it, but it's just not what I expected. When he becomes more like the Yoda I expected, he's cool, he's wise, and that scene when he lifts the sunk X wing was awesome, I'll admit that, I thought it was awesome. Something I'm confused on is that I don't feel this movie has any real bigger shit, what I mean by that is in the first film the rebels were out to destroy the Death Star, but in this film it's the Empire attacking the rebel base, which is only really going on for the first act of the film. The rest of the story is Luke training and Han, Leia, Chewbacca trying to evade the Empire. It's not that I don't like what's here, I actually really liked it, but I think some of it's gravity is taken away without that bigger shit. Speaking of bigger Shit, the Battle of Hoth is every bit as awesome as I'd heard, with the AT-AT walkers and all the lasers, and the Snowspeeder completely wrecking an AT-AT with a tow cable, it was all very cool. I do have one more problem with the plot though, the ending, it does what a lot of sequels do which is leave it's story completely open and with very little resolution of it's own. It bugs me when movies do this, and Empire Strikes Back, from what I've heard, was famous for it's cliff hanger ending, especially after it's bombshell plot twist.

Visual effects, just like in the first one, hold up really well, and still look pretty good, though I am more impressed here, mainly because of the Battle of Hoth and the cloud city. Again the AT-AT's looked really cool, and like I said in I think was my Pit of Peril review real models and pyrotechnics will beat CG any day, here's more of what I mean. The practical effects also look really good, even if Yoda looks a little funny, and I mean funny, when he's climbing around Luke's camp in the swamp it looks pretty dumb. The battles still look cool, with all the lasers and the smoke, and I thought the lightsabre battle was a lot cooler in this film than in the first film. The end of the lightsabre fight was also really cool, possibly one of the best scenes in the film. I've already mentioned Hoth, but the scenes in the asteroid field were pretty cool, mostly when the Tie fighters were chasing the Falcon and hitting the asteroids. But the scenes in the swamp were also really cool, not just because of how they looked, but because they were cool, particularly when Yoda appears and when he raises the sunk X wing. The scenes with Vader were also really cool, though he does choke out a lot of admirals. The cloud city was just the cloud city, but the scenes in there with the characters were really cool. And the carbonite scene was one of my favourite scenes in the movie.

This film is better than the first Star Wars, and it's a film I really enjoyed, it has great characters, a lot of really fun scenes, some dandy special effects and an awesome movie battle. Unfortunately though I do have my problems with the film, I'm not a huge fan of it's big cliff hanger ending. That said I had a lot of fun with Empire Strikes Back, and I'd strongly recommend it.

Halo Combat Evolved Anniversary (single player) (Xbox One) game review

Here's what you need to know; after being forced to abandon the colony world Reach and with the genocidal Covenant forces hot on their tail, the crew of the UNSC starship Pillar of Autumn make an unusual find, a ring planet. After crash landing on the mysterious ring, Master Chief; a legendary warrior, and the surviving Pillar of Autumn crew become locked in a vicious battle with the Covenant. But the ring harbours dark secrets, secrets that could bring death and destruction to the entire galaxy, or even end life as we know it.
Busy week indeed, I planned to put up this review on Tuesday, but Halo 5 is coming, I must prepare, also, I haven't reviewed anything Halo other than a few toys, and done a few other posts with references to Halo, but now I'm reviewing Halo, so let's go.

You know it's coming so here we go, in my brief of the game's story I mentioned a planet called Reach, anyone even vaguely familiar with Halo will know what Reach is, but that's something this game did brilliantly, it wasn't just a story, it was a world, a universe, a universe that I could ramble about for hours because I love it and it's awesome, but it's way more fun to see it for yourself. What is here, specifically in the 10 or so hour campaign, is a cool and mysterious story that starts off as just Humanity fighting the Covenant, but quickly becomes more and then later entirely about the ring,  it's a fun mystery to solve until it stops being about fun and starts being about saving the galaxy from total destruction. The characters, the 2 you spend most of the game with are Cortana and Master Chief, I say Cortana first because she's awesome, but Chief is a badass, a complete badass, sometimes to a humorous degree, and he's a very man of few words kind of guy, that said the back and forth between him and Cortana is often brilliantly funny, at least in my opinion. Really though there's Keyes, the Pillar's captain, who is just the captain, and then there's Sergeant Johnson, who is the most archetypal archetype badass army sergeant in gaming, he's actually pretty damn funny. Then finally of course there's easily my favourite character in the game, the rambling eyeball himself Guilty Spark, he's brilliant, I'd hang out with him, I'm sure he'd get annoying or he'd try to kill me, but he's just such a cool character, and for literally being a floating ball, that's not bad. It's a shame however that the game really kind of lacks a villain, I mean technically Spark is the villain, but the game does lack an involved and menacing villain. This doesn't hurt the game as much as you'd think, given how cool it's mystery is, but it's worth noting.

For a game that's coming up on 15 years old, it plays really well. The controls do have a somewhat odd feel to them, chief moon jumps about 9 feet in the air, guns don't have recoil, and in addition to his shields, which recharge over time when he's hurt, Chief has health that he needs to replenish with med kits, it's a mechanic that's pretty much gone in modern AAA games, replaced with people getting jam in their eyes when they're shot. The health system may for this reason sound archaic, but it still functions just fine. Combining the jumping and health however, this game does have something archaic, Chief takes falls damage, this may not sound weird, until you realise Chief's a physically augmented super soldier who wears a state of the art suit of armour that literally weighs a ton, so when you jump from ledge that's slightly too high and lose all your shields and a few points of health, especially when there's enemies everywhere, it gets a bit annoying. Halo has a 2 weapon system, you can carry 2 guns and some grenades, but you can have any combination of guns you want, and some of the guns are really cool, from the crazy overpowered pistol, to the sleek but vicious plasma rifle, to the very sharp looking pink death cloud that is the needler. They all look really cool as well, and even the more standard guns like the sniper and rocket launcher look and sound really cool. The game also features several large open areas in which you can let loose with a few vehicles, ranging from pretty standard army jeeps and tanks, which like the guns still look and sound really cool, as well as some weirder and wilder Covenant vehicles, the agile and rapid Ghost and the comparatively cumbersome airborne Banshee, each vehicle drives and shoots differently and they're all fun to use, but give me the Scorpion any day of the week, that thing is fucking mean. But what's the point in guns and vehicles if you have nothing to fight, Halo has you covered, with a host of interesting and cool enemies, from the laughable and pathetic grunts, to the Jackals with their annoying shields and tendency to fire charged plasma bursts with superb accuracy, to the fast and tough elites. There's also a giant Covenant species called Hunters you fight a few times in the game, which are cool, and later on you fight these really nasty zombie like monsters and flying robots that shoot lasers, it's less silly than it sounds. All of these enemies can be taken out the same way, with bullets, but each has it's own pattern or tactic that you have to deal with, offering it's own unique challenge that keeps you your toes.

Unfortunately I do have a few issues with the otherwise fun gameplay, for starters, while the levels all look really cool, a lot of them suffer from the same problem of very poor navigation, friendly warning, you will get lost, at least once in this game, and it will annoy you. Not only are a lot of the levels complete mazes, but there's usually very little visual verity from room to room, so you'll think you're going in circles a few times, my personally bane is 343 Guilty Spark, I've never done that level without getting lost, when the mood and atmosphere wears off, it just gets frustrating. Also, towards the end of the game, rather than actually ramping up the challenge, the devs just decided to throw more and more enemies at you, and give the enemies bigger guns. There's a difference between making the game more challenging and just being unfair, but Halo Combat Evolved does stray over that line, at least in my opinion. However, that melts away in game's finale, which is probably the most awesome and intense vehicle sequence I've played in a game, I still feel the rush every time, even now I've beat the game probably about 3 or 4 times, it's brilliant, and it's a great finale that sends the game off in a great way. Finally, this is the Anniversary edition of this game, so in addition to the 14 year old graphics that admittedly look very dated today, you get a very snazzy new graphics engine that gives the game a new coat of paint while leaving the gameplay intact and untouched. The new cut scenes are nothing to write home about, but the updated in-game graphics look really nice, even now, 4 years later. And even better, at the touch of a button you can switch between the old and updated graphics, which does sound like a gimmick, and it kind of is, but it's cool to see how the game has changed over 10 years on the fly. On the 360 release there was a brief delay with the transition, but on the One the transition is instant, making the changes all the more striking and cool. This function, like I said, doesn't alter the gameplay, but it's a really cool trick nonetheless.

Halo Combat Evolved has aged tremendously, it's still fun to play, has some funky and creative guns and vehicles, likable characters, a simple but fun story with a brilliant finale, and of course it introduces you to the huge and awesome universe of Halo. That said, there are a few design choices that haven't aged well at all, and when you encounter them it will frustrate you. But all in all Halo is a fun game that you won't regret playing if you haven't already, it's definitely worth a try.