Total Recall Doesn't Recall Totally

CAUTION: POSSIBLE SPOILERS (you've been warned)

Over the weekend I went to see the Colin Farrell-starring remake/reboot of the 1990 Arnold Schwarzenegger sci-fi hit, Total Recall. It was fun but I prefer the original - Cheezy as Ah-nold might be.

Really, the opening scene kinda lost it for me. It takes place at some point before they insert the "memory cap" and Melina is part of the scene. You quickly find out it's a "dream" but now we've been introduced to the female protagonist. For me, this spoiled the potential for any sort of "what is reality?" scenario. It also ruined any possibility of discovery as the character discovers.

The 1990 movie was an action movie with guns blazing and exploding fake heads but it also had a lot of character development. The resistance went beyond Melina and Kuato. You met and cared about, at least superficially, their friends, mutated by sub-standard habitat domes on Mars and forced to pay, literally, for the right to breathe. You understood what they were fighting for.

The update focuses only on four major and one minor character. You have Quaid/Hauser, Melina, Cohaagen, and Lori (the "wife"). Then you throw in the co-worker(/agent?), Harry. Everybody else is pretty much a plot device or NPC. Heck, about half the cast are security robots. I cared about Quaid, being the protagonist, could have easily dealt with Melina biting it and kept waiting for Ferrell to shoot Lori in the head and say, "consider that a divorce."

As for plot, the two stories diverge widely there. The 1990 version is set on Mars, same as the short story it's based on, and Quaid/Hauser has been convinced to fight against a tyrannical CEO of the company stripping Mars of its minerals. Conditions are reminiscent of how the coal companies used to run mines in the 1930's. Workers were purposely kept impoverished, lived in sub-standard living conditions, received almost no health care, and depended on the company for almost everything. Cohaagen runs Mars in much the same way but, as I stated before, the people literally count on him for the air they breathe.

The remake is more of a political struggle and takes place exclusively on Earth. Chemical warfare has made all but the United Federation of Brittain (the U.K.) and The Colony (Australia) uninhabitable. The two are connected by a tunnel bored through the earth. Travel is accomplished via "The Fall" and takes less than 20 minutes from station to station. Think of it like a giant bank vacuum tube.

The basic scenario is that the people of the UFB are relatively well off - clean streets, shiny buildings, etc. - and The Colony is impoverished and oppressed, comprised mostly of unskilled labor for the UFB. I never did quite figure out exactly what the resistance was resisting but Matthias, leader of the resistance, was being blamed by Cohaagen for various "terrorist attacks" in the UFB.

As the movie goes on the audience is informed that Colony residents are seen as a lower class but it's not really touched on as to why. Were they allied with the losing side in the war? Are they just poor and "dirty"? Is it a matter of national pride for the UFB to hate them? We don't know.

As it turns out, Cohaagen is carrying out the "terrorist" attacks himself in order to justify creating a larger army of his "synthetic" police force. In reality, Cohaagen despises The Colony and wants to invade it, wipe it off the face of the earth and replace the unskilled workforce with robots. We're not really told why. I mean, Cohaagen is an asshole, obviously, but we don't really get the full effect of his assholity (I can make up words if I want!) thus making the entire crux of the plot fall totally flat.

The action sequences were great - especially the car chase and the elevator jumping. The problem was that the movie relies on them to carry it. It's like the plot is a device to get to the next action sequence rather than the action sequences helping to advance the plot.

My recommendation: Wait for it to come out on cable or use a freebie sms code from Redbox.

Seriously?

The wife an I went to the movies this afternoon. We went to see This Means War. It's a really fun movie. There's some good action and a LOT of laughter. It's a good balance between action flick and chick flick.

But that's not what I'm posting about. I'm posting about one of the previews.

The preview came up and appeared to be a period piece. There were shots of Abraham Lincoln and it seemed like it was going to be about him but something was off. They didn't seem to be playing it as a dramatically interpreted biopic. I couldn't put my finger on it but it just wasn't right.

The final scene of the trailer had someone on top of a moving train swinging a long-handled ax around like he was Darth Maul. Then I realized the someone was Abraham Lincoln. WTH? Fade to black and shimmer and flare in the signature of Abraham Lincoln.

The ENTIRE auditorium burst into laughter as the words "Vampire Hunter" appeared in red text under the signature. I'm not making this up. Check out the entry at IMDB. Watch the trailer while you're there.

25 Movies You Really Should See

I'm putting together some things I want to accomplish in 2012. One of them is to see 3 classic movies I've never seen. I will present my full To Do list later but it got me thinking about what movies I would share with people. Here I present Uncle Bubby's List, in no particular order, of 25 Movies You Really Should See.

1. Casablanca
• I once had to defend this in a college class as the best movie ever made. I've loved it ever since.
2. Citizen Kane
• A tale of greed and self-indulgence with an undertone of loneliness and lost innocence.
3. Charade
• A fun mystery starring Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant.
4. Office Space
• Everyone who has ever had a job should watch this movie. It encapsulates the workplace perfectly and takes you places you would really love to go but can't.
5. Fast Times at Ridgemont High
• A microcosm of the 1980s with shopping malls, part-time jobs, and awkward teenage love.
6. The Breakfast Club
• If you don't see yourself in at least one of these characters, you probably don't have a pulse.
7. 12 Angry Men
• A murder trial. A jury room. The vote is 11 to 1. A very interesting look into human nature and human behavior.
8. To Kill a Mockingbird
• Atticus Finch, a lawyer in the Depression-era South, defends a black man against an undeserved rape charge, and his kids against prejudice. I couldn't say it any better.
9. The Shawshank Redemption
• Another look at human nature and common decency.
10. Star Wars (Episode 4: A New Hope)
• The movie that made Sci-Fi fans out of so many many people. It also revolutionized movie making and special effects.
11. Fight Club
• A troubling look inside
12. The Matrix
• A mind-bending look at reality
13. Psycho
• What can happen when you love your mother a little too much
14. It's a Wonderful Life
• To be or not to be... how our lives connect to so much more than ourselves
15. Dr. Strangelove
• A bizarre take on 1950s cold war paranoia
16. North by Northwest
• A case of mistaken identity causes one man to have to unravel a mystery more tangled than a ball of last year's Christmas lights
17. A Clockwork Orange
• Sober, drunk, stoned, it doesn't matter. This movie is weird no matter how you watch it.
18. The Green Mile
• Duty and redemption
19. Forbidden Planet
• An old Sci-Fi classic with a wonderful "things are not as they appear" twist
20. Arsenic and Old Lace
• Pure screwball fun from beginning to end
21. It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
• More screwball fun
22. Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade
• A fantastic follow-the-clues story with everything Indiana Jones, Harrison Ford and Sean Connery can bring to it
23. Snatch
• A fun tangling and untangling of some relatively shady characters
24. The Boondock Saints
• They're on a mission from God
25. Toy Story
• One: It's a cartoon. Two: It's a fantastic story. Three: It's good for adults and kids alike.

Rule Of Acquisition Number 168,894*: Garage Sales Are Good

On almost any Saturday morning you can usually find me cruising by at least one or two garage sales. Hey, I gotta do something since they got rid of Saturday morning cartoons.

I tend to find the sales I want to check out by using iGarageSale or Garage Sale Rover on my iPhone. Both of these apps parse the Craigslist database and display pins on a map representing the sales near your current location. You can tap the pins and view the listing details.

Today, I found two. A garden variety garage sale and a pawn shop that was selling everything except guns and ammunition at 50% off Friday and Saturday to make room for a U-Haul center. I thought it was rather clever of them to advertise in the garage sale section of Craigslist.

After enjoying our traditional Saturday morning breakfast at Hardee's/Carl's Jr. we popped in at the first garage sale. Not much there, really, but I managed to snag a copy of the original Halo for the XBox. We gassed up my car then stopped by the pawn shop. Given their location, lack of inventory and minimal variety, it's no surprise they need to bring in another business type to stay afloat. We learned they will also be selling scooters and ATVs as well as used cars. They have the lot space for all of that but can you say, "all in?"

Anyway, the pawn shop sells DVDs for $2 each, making them $1 each on sale and I picked up The Man With One Red Shoe and 300. Not on the top of my must-have list but worth a buck to have them in my collection. I also spotted a copy of Left 4 Dead for the XBox 360. While I was meandering about looking at other things I didn't need or already owned, the wife asked me, "Did you see this?"

She handed me a white box. It was The Star Trek Original Motion Picture collection. It has the first 6 movies plus a bonus disk. It was still in its original shrink wrap with an $89.96 Wal-Mart sticker on it and a $60 pawn shop sticker on it. Today, it would be $30. Now, I've never been a big fan of the odd-numbered films so I took a look at the spines to remind me of the titles. They're in thin cases so I start squinting at The Motion Picture, The Wrath of Khan, The Search for... "Ooh! These are Blu-Rays! I want." So, that's another one of my Christmas presents I already know about.

The wife had mentioned during our morning planning session that she wanted to go to Tulsa to return some items to K-Mart and redeem her "Turkey Bucks," which garnered us an $11 coupon for a Butterball turkey. I had a small pile of items I had decluttered from my office, including an inkjet printer, a stereo received and a 6-disc CD changer I haven't used in six years, and decided it would be a good time to take them over to Goodwill. Finally, we wanted to swing by a Kohls to look at a waffle maker they had on sale - she's been into waffles lately for some reason.

We made the trek to Tulsa and got everything squared away at K-Mart and dropped off our items at Goodwill. As is our habit, we popped in to see if there were any goodies worth taking back with us. The wife picked up a blouse and I walked out with a Sister Hazel CD and the Barenaked Ladies greatest hits disc one.

The big score of the day, however, was at Kohls. Many years ago my wife gave me a nice leather wallet as a gift. It is a tri-fold wallet with an extra pocket in the back of the middle section of the cash area. Over the years I have found this space invaluable for storing FSA cards, corporate credit cards and other items I don't want to accidentally utilize.

About a year ago we noticed the wallet was starting to look a little past its prime. The black dye had faded from the corners-in so that the wallet now looks to be black with green highlights. I started looking for a replacement, even from the same company, but never found one that had anything like that extra convenience of that separate pocket.

It being (almost) holiday season, Kohls had their wallets prominently displayed. I started looking at them and, as usual, was getting disappointed with what I was finding. Around the back side of the display there were wallets from the company who made my wonderful extra-pocketed model. Wouldn't you know it, the very first one I picked up was exactly like the one I carry - extra pocket and all. Joy filled my heart and I was more than willing to pay the $20 to obtain this gem. I looked around a bit more and found one in a deep brown that eventually made it home with me.

Add another good Saturday to the list.

*Can anyone tell me where my Rule of Acquisition number comes from?

Doesn't Seem Quite The Same

I watched the first 15 minutes or so of War Games: The Dead Code before leaving for work this morning. I remember the original War Games with Matthew Broderick so, naturally, I am going to compare the two.

I must say at first blush I am less than impressed. In the original, the protagonist had a certain innocence to him. He was just smart enough to get himself into trouble. He stumbled upon what looked like a gaming site then spent several days, in movie time, researching how to gain access. He employed the assistance of his smarter, and twitchier, friends/mentors to help him in his quest.

In this version, the two lead characters - I haven't figured out which is the protagonist yet - seem like the type of people that would-be gurus look to for advice and hacking strategies. One goes so far as to build a small device that can intercept cell phone calls and redirect them to a nearby phone instead of the one they were destined for. David Lightman was quite clever but just didn't seem mature enough to understand the full implications of his actions until he was face-to-face with them. He had that high school innocence. So far it seems these two schmos are in college. If not then I have to wonder why their first scene occurred in a dark room with computers/work areas next to each other as if they are roommates.

I have set myself up for disappointment but I have to watch out of simple morbid curiosity.

All My Movies - A Review

No, this is not a review of my entire movie collection. This is a review of a nifty piece of software called All My Movies by Bolide Software. From the publisher's web site:

All My Movies™ is a personal movie database and intended for those who are tired of managing their movie collection manually or using difficult-to-use software programs. It is an easy-to-use DVD catalog program. You can use it to catalogue your personal collection of video files (AVI, MKV and other) Blu-rays, DVDs, CDs, VHS tapes, etc... You do not need to type all movie details; All My Movies™ will download all the details from the internet movie database automatically!

In the past, I created my own movie collection database using Microsoft Access. I put a lot of work into it and created fields for directors and actors and made the database searchable by these fields as well as by title, genre, etc.

The database worked well for my purposes but had two major flaws. The first, and perhaps the most annoying, was that every time Access was updated I had to make corrections to my code. When the need for tweaks became so pervasive that it would be easier to rebuild the database from scratch I gave it up. The second problem was that all of the information had to be entered manually. I spent a lot of time with IMDB on one monitor and my database on the other.

The first problem I solved by ditching the project. The second problem is something that All My Movies handles very well. As it states in the description, "All My Movies™ will download all the details from the internet movie database automatically!" (upon request, it can also search Amazon, blu-ray.com and a few other databases)

The first time I encountered All My Movies was as a Giveaway of the Day. The site, giveawayoftheday.com, features one program every day that a publisher has allowed them to give away. Once the 24-hour period is up, the program won't install and/or won't activate. If you have a hard drive crash you had better hope the program comes around again. The format of the program and the data collected is very similar to what I had put together for myself. It even includes cover art. The best feature of All My Movies, however, is the automatic lookup. Not only can you search by title but also by UPC (there's even a batch mode!). Yep, just punch in the numbers from the UPC and it will find your movie(s).

This was still limiting. It took a fair amount of work to gather a few movies, type in a UPC number, and look up the movie (lather, rinse, repeat). Writing down several numbers was a little less cumbersome but still only put a small dent in cataloging my collection with a half a day's effort. I have found a way around this.

Using the Red Laser app on my iPhone (free) I scan several barcodes and capture the movies, boxed sets, or TV series. I then email the list to myself and when I click the link the resulting web page lists the UPC number that I can then copy and paste into All My Movies for searching. It would be quicker if it just mailed me a list of the codes or included them with the description but I'll take what I can get.

Other notable features of All My Movies include multiple database support, searches by title, director, actor, studio, year, and a whole host of other criteria. Add your own screen shots. Keep track of the movies you've actually watched or create a wishlist. You can even keep track of who you've loaned your movies to.

There are a whole host of reports and statistics you can review and you can even export your database to an HTML file and list your movie collection on the web or just share it with friends.

Summary: All My Movies is an easy-to-use and robust application for cataloging your movie collection. The only limitation I have found is with TV series and collections. It didn't handle the Back to the Future: 25th Anniversary Trilogy Blu-ray set too well and you have to do a little bit of pruning for an individual season of a TV series. The price is a little steep at $44.95 for a single-user license but now that I've figured out how to use my iPhone to collect the UPC numbers I'm seriously considering shelling out the cash. If you want to try it out, there is a 30-day trial available for free.

Bolide software also publishes All My Books, and All My Software.

UPDATE: I discovered this morning that if you put Red Laser into multiple mode (there is a switch at the bottom of the scan screen) you end up with a list of UPC numbers... just what I was looking for.

Oh. Now I Get It

I love movies. This is not a secret to anyone who knows me or has perused any of a number of my online presences.

I see a lot of movies that are based on a formula - boy meets girl, girl likes boy but has no idea that he is in love with her, he is in denial that he's in love with her, he figures it out when she hooks up with another guy, he waits until last moment to confess his love to her, confession causes rift, girl breaks up with other guy and forgives boy, boy gets girl... lather, rinse, repeat. There are, of course, many different formulas but I am to a point where I can recognize them and know what is going to happen. You would think that would take all of the fun out of it but it doesn't. Well, sometimes it does but why would it ruin it sometimes and not others?

After seeing The Switch this evening, recognizing the formula, and liking it anyway I finally figured it out. The reason I like movies that are based on well-established formulas can be summed up in a single word: Characters. The formula movies I don't like have little to no character development or simply do not have compelling characters. Case in point, I enjoyed Armageddon and could care less about Deep Impact. I just could not make myself care about the characters in Deep Impact because they were so flat. The characters in Armageddon had depth to them. The story was not about the meteor, it was about the people.

But aren't characters what make any movie or television series compelling? Star Wars was not about a giant planet-killing sphere of death, it was about a farm boy realizing his destiny. Die Hard was not about a terrorist hostage situation, it was about a washed-up police detective becoming a reluctant hero because nobody else was there to do it. I could go on but you get the idea.

So I am now like the USA Network: Characters welcome.

Home Theater

I love movies. There have been times in my life, for several months at a time, you could find me at the movie theater every weekend. There are very few movies I regret having seen (Joe vs. The Volcano tops that very short list). I just really enjoy spending a couple of hours immersed in a world where the good guys (almost) always win, the right guy always gets the girl, and the protagonist delivers the perfect verbal riposte at the perfect moment and says something that we've always wanted to say to someone. I like television almost as much as I like movies. Like many Americans, the television is usually on whenever I am awake.

In broadcasting, there are two terms that explain how things often operate in my house, especially on the weekends. One is Least Objectionable Program. When you're channel flipping and your significant other and you find a program that neither of you is particularly enamored with but you both say, "yeah, that'll work," because there's nothing better on, that's Least Objectionable Program.

The second term is Tuning Inertia. Tuning Inertia is just what it sounds like. Whether you're watching a LOP or your favorite show, you leave it on that station to watch whatever comes on next - whatever that may be - because you have no objection to it and you don't want to make the effort to lean forward to pick up the remote.

Lately, I have seriously tired of these two concepts. I have easily over 100 DVDs and Blu-Ray discs and several of them are still in their shrink wrap. I know that if I landed on one of these movies playing on one of the OTA networks or TBS or some other cable network I would sit there and watch it... commercials and all. What's the sense in doing that? I have the movie right there and can watch it unedited, uncensored and without commercial interruption. I'm just too lazy to get up off my fat ass and slide the disc into the player.

No more! I have decided that if there is nothing I really want to watch on TV and I have the time, I am going to watch one of those movies that I own. I just pick one. Sometimes it's a specific movie, sometimes it's one of a particular genre. It doesn't matter. If I'm going to go for a personal LOP, it might as well be something I, at least once, fooled myself into believing was something I wanted to watch more than once.

This Post Was Produced In 3D

It seems that Hollywood and the movie theater industry see 3D as the savior of the theater experience (even with fantastic storytelling, box office numbers are declining). For me, that couldn't be further from the truth. According to Entertainment Weekly, there will be an unprecedented twenty movies released in 3D this year. I really wish they wouldn't. 3D brings with it technical issues, price gouging and piss poor production (maybe we should call it 3P?).

In order to see a 3D image in 3D, you have to wear special glasses. They can either be the colored lens variety (all but abandoned for moving pictures) or the polarized lens variety but you have to wear the glasses. As far as fit and comfort they don't seem they would be so bad except that I, along with tens of thousands of other homo sapiens, wear glasses. The extra downward pressure on my nose and the extra inward pressure above my ear (especially with the bow of my glasses trapped between the 3D glasses and my head) tends to make for a painful movie-watching experience. For additional pain, the act of watching a moving picture through those special lenses (whether you wear glasses or not) causes eyestrain... something I can do without, thankyouverymuch. The last movie I saw in 3D was Harry Potter and the 3D actually ruined the end of the movie for me. My fear is that I will have to abandon the theater experience (something I LOVE) because I won't be able to find a movie that isn't playing in 3D.

Now let's say I've given in and decided to go see a movie in 3D. I go to the window and pay my ever-increasing regular cover charge and I'm hit with a surcharge for use of the glasses. Well, I don't want to pay that for the next movie so I'm going to hang on to the glasses and bring them back with me for the next 3D show I'm forced to watch. I get to the theater only to find out that it doesn't matter if I already have a pair of glasses, I still have to pay the surcharge. No thanks.

Alright, so, let's say they work out the technical details and eliminate the need for glasses, and thus the eyestrain and ocular enhancement tax, there's still the production issues. Last weekend I watched Monsters vs. Aliens on DVD with my nephews. Near the beginning of the movie, an incidental character is playing with a paddle ball. You know, one of those wooden paddles with a rubber ball attached to it by a rubber band (never could get the hang of those things). As he's playing with it, the ball is bouncing in and out toward the camera. I immediately asked, "Was this originally released in 3D?"

The paddle ball exemplifies my problem with production. It's like a new toy that everyone has to play with. It's a, "It's 3D so we have to make things fly at the camera," attitude that causes the effect to be eternally overused such that if you're watching it in 2D just looks stupid. This purposefully poking effect detracts from the story. I just look at scenes like that and think, "yeah, it's in 3D... I get it. Move on." What's wrong with just letting us see the depth of the image and using the in-your-face effect when it makes sense (as when Brendan Frasier and co. and blasted out of a hole by water pressure while riding a dinosaur skull in Journey to the Center of the Earth)?

Wake up, Hollywood! 3D is a tool that doesn't have to be a gimmick. Also, if you're going to keep using it, please figure out a way to make it easier on the eyes.

I Cannot Say This Enough

Digital Rights Management is pure, simple and total BULLSHIT. It doesn't stop anyone from copying any digital content, it punishes the honest and encourages honest people to be dishonest.

I got a copy of Terminator Salvation on Blu Ray for Christmas. It includes a digital copy. This evening I popped the disc in to activate/download the digital copy so I could transfer it to my Zune. There's an activation code and, according to the instructions sheet, it's easy as 1-2-3.

1. Insert the DVD into your computer. 2. When prompted, enter the authorization code. 3. Follow the instructions to get your digital copy.

Step one went as planned and it has just gone to hell from there.

First, I was prompted to choose between an iTunes or Windows Media Player version. A little research and I find that I can't use the WMP version because the Zune isn't a "Play's For Sure" device. (Side note: I've always found it ironic that a Microsoft device is unable to play files in a Microsoft format if it is protected with Microsoft DRM) I decided to choose the iTunes version because there is a chance the Zune will be able to play it and, if not, I'm about 99% sure the iPod can.

Installer: I'm sorry, you don't have iTunes installed.
Me: There's a reason for that. I don't really need it and, frankly, I don't really want it installed.
Installer: Well, if you want the iTunes version of this content you'll need to install iTunes.

I installed iTunes.

iTunes: I see you're trying to activate a digital copy of a movie (iTunes sounds suspiciously like clippy). May I have your activation code, please.
Me: Sure, it's 9N**********
iTunes: Great. Now, may I have your Apple ID so I can verify your code?
Me: I don't think I have an Apple ID.
iTunes: No problem. You can use your AOL screen name and password.
Me: You GOTTA be fracking kidding me. AOL? Really? Didn't they implode, like, ten years ago?
iTunes: Alright, well, you can create an account and you'll have an Apple ID.
Me: What if I don't WANT and Apple ID?
iTunes: Well, if you want the iTunes version of this content you'll need to provide an Apple ID or your AOL screen name.

iTunes: Oh, one more thing. Every time you want to play this file on your computer you will need to give me your ID and password.

Kevin, this one's for you: BULLSHIT! TOTAL BULLSHIT!

Urgo Is Dead

Dom DeLuise died Monday evening at the age of 75. There was no disclosure of the cause of death, but DeLuise had been battling cancer for more than a year and had been hospitalized due to kidney failure and respiratory problems.

DeLuise had a long career in both television and films. He was most famous for his supporting roles in a number of Mel Brooks films, including 1974's "Blazing Saddles" and 1976's "Silent Movie." He was also in the Brooks-directed "The Twelve Chairs" (1970), "Spaceballs" (1987) and "Robin Hood: Men in Tights" (1993). Other credits include "Smokey and the Bandit II" (1980), "Cannonball Run" (1981) and "Cannonball Run II" (1984), "The End" (1978), "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" (1982) and "Johnny Dangerously" (1984). His voice was featured in such films as "An American Tail" (1986) and its sequels, "All Dogs Go to Heaven" (1989) and its 1996 sequel, and "Oliver & Company" (1988). [Source: CNN.com]

Whether behind the camera or in front of it, members of the DeLuise family have consistently been a part of the Stargate family. Stargate SG-1 fans will remember DeLuise as the title character in Season Three’s “Urgo,” where he played the fun-loving physical manifestation of an alien probe (and its creator) who wanted to experience life. After being implanted into the brains of the SG-1 team, he subliminally gets the team to show him new experiences while they struggle to get him out of their heads.

But beside this memorable episode, Dom left his greatest mark on the Stargate franchise through his sons. Peter DeLuise served as a director, writer, and producer on Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis for most of those series’ runs. Son Michael played Nick Marlowe/Colonel Danning in the episode “Wormhole X-Treme!” and son David played Pete Shanahan in several episodes of SG-1. [Source: GateWorld]

In the immortal words of Allan Sherman, "Hail to thee, fat person!"

Knowing

Just finished watching Knowing. Didn't resolve as expected... Not necessarily in good way... Not necessarily bad.

Apparently didn't move my legs the whole time. Couldn't quite straighten my knees when I stood up.

Nice evening all in all.

Mobile post sent by UncleBubby using Utterli. Replies.

Insert Prophetic Title Here (AKA - Kirk Wins)

Odd that I should have chosen that particular title yesterday. Kahn is dead. Ricardo Montalban, the man who played Kahn Noonien Singh in both Star Trek The Original Series (Space Seed) and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn, passed away yesterday at the age of 88 reportedly of natural causes.

I Like To Push The Buttons

When I bought my Sony (the significance of that will become clear) home theater amp six or eight years ago, it came with this really fancy-schmancy remote control. It had a little LCD screen and actually received data from the amplifier. It could be programmed to control many different devices, although I only did that once (it was kind-of a pain). Then, three or four years ago, I suddenly lost track of it. When I finally decided to hunt it down, I found it entangled in the jaws (it had actually been chewing on it) of the recliner mechanism.

This was not the death of my nifty remote, oh no. I put fresh batteries in it and she seemed to be just fine except for some wonkiness with an up/down scroll/select button which was relatively easy to overcome. I was happy... until the next time I picked it up and it indicated the batteries needed to be replaced. I replaced them, got a couple of commands sent, and it told me my brand new batteries needed to be replaced. Meh.

My original remote has been declining ever since. About a year ago, I checked into getting a replacement. They are available on eBay for $30-$50 (or more) depending on how the auctions run. Things were still running okay so I tabled the idea.

Fast forward to my new Blu-Ray player that, in order to get Dolby Digital or DTS surround sound, has to be muted on the TV via the setup on the player. My new gadget also required me to extract three remotes - in addition to the DVR remote we use every day - just to watch a movie. Combine that with the amplifier remote's most recent malady of not being able to reliably alter the volume of the receiver and it was time to start trolling eBay.

As I was looking at exact-match replacements, I stumbled upon some even fancier Sony universal remotes. They come pre-set to operate Sony components, can be coded to run other brands of devices (like any universal remote), are fully programable (you can train every single button from a dedicated remote in a matter of a couple of minutes if necessary), and can even run macros (multi-step commands). All this for a similar price to the exact-match replacement. Let's see, full control of Sony devices and programmable remote consolidation... I'm sold.

At the end of last week, I purchased a Son RM-AV3000 Remote Commander from eBay for just over $30. It came in yesterday.

The remote is quite large. It's about the size of an oversized paperback. I spent a couple of hours with it last night then completely re-programmed the DVR controls this evening (I wanted to reprogram a single button but it wouldn't clear the learned command for some reason). It was a breeze to program. With visual feedback on the LCD, getting to and using the programming mode is a snap. Half the reason I spent so long with it last night was deciding on which button to place which command that had to be learned as well as relabeling some of the user command buttons and device labels. I even added a macro to set up for DVD play (turn on amp, turn on DVD, switch TV input, switch amp input), then one to switch back when you're done (amp & DVD off, TV back to original input). I can now hear my sister's voice inside my head saying, "Geek."

Even in this short time, I have decided that it will be great for watching movies and not having to juggle three remotes but for day-to-day use, the DVR remote is much easier to handle. Want to see what it looks like? (click for larger image)

Heh heh heh... shiny.

(Yeah, that fancy new phone takes great pics, don't it?)

Simply Blu-tiful

I inaugurated the new blu-ray player last night. I rented Iron Man. The wife kept suggesting all these chick flicks but why would I want to waste my inaugural playback on a chick flick? It's not that I won't watch chick flicks, I wanted ACTION!

I built myself up. I really wanted to be blown away by the picture quality. I wasn't. I also wasn't disappointed. The picture was crisp and clear, the colors were vivid, it was a wonderful experience. It was a beautiful thing!

When I first connected it on Monday night I also played back a couple of standard DVDs to make sure the audio setup was correct and those looked pretty good, too (the blu-ray upconverts standard dvd's). Given the price difference between standard DVDs and Blu-Ray discs (around $10 or more), I will be thinking hard whether or not I want a movie on blu-ray. That is, until standard DVDs go the way of the dodo - which may take a while. Movies like Iron Man with lots of action or those with epic scale like Lord of the Rings will get the blu-ray treatment... they deserve it. Movies that aren't visually special like Bruce Almighty or Wild Hogs don't really gain much on blu-ray so standard DVD is sufficient for me.

I had heard that one of the reasons adoption of blu-ray was not as rapid as hoped was that the difference in picture quality between standard DVD and blu-ray was not as distinct as that between VHS and DVD. Having now seen the difference on my own equipment (and especially seeing what upconversion can do), I agree. I sat watching Iron Man thinking "This looks really great. It's very much like seeing it in the theater." all the while knowing my wife was sitting next to me saying to herself, "I don't see what the big deal is." Of course, I see the differences between composite, s-video and component video connections and she doesn't. Side-by-side she might see it but she just looks at the movie. As long as the faces aren't indistinguishable blobs, she's happy. It took me the longest time to get her to stop buying VHS.

Verdict: I'm in love. For movies where picture quality makes a difference to me, I will be buying blu-ray from now on. For movies where picture quality is not so much a factor, I'll save my money and stick with standard DVD.

UPDATE: The next morning, the wife finished watching the end of the movie (she'd given up for sleep toward the end of the movie). I was retrieving the disc from the player when I switched the input back to the DVR... WOW!! Ginormous difference! The faces on the screen looked almost blurry. Now I'm impressed (but I'm still going to have to think before buying blu-ray - it's not THAT great.)

In addition, the M-I-L bought me the first two Pirates movies and the last Die Hard movie on blu-ray. Woohoo!

The Day The Earth Stood Still Again

I missed the premier of Fringe so I'm watching the replay. Before starting the show, they ran a preview of the remake of "The Day the Earth Stood still." I'm conflicted about it. I am a HUGE fan of the original. I like the idea of it being modernized but I also don't want it to be messed with.

I was ready to write it off in a summary judgment until I saw Gort at the very end of the preview. It could go either way. It stars Keanu Reeves as Klaatu (if that's what they're calling him) but with the "special" abilities they've given him, it could easily turn in to the fourth installment of The Matrix. Klaatu was also very much a pacifist in the original and this One Seems to have made him more violent. From the preview, it appears that at least 1 person dies.

In the end, I will go see it but I have a feeling the original will still stand as the best.

Trek Expo Letdown

My annual pilgrimage has come around once again. The event that is Trek Expo. It is something I look forward to with great anticipation. The ability to see TV and movie start up close, hear them talk about their experiences and get an autograph or maybe even a picture is too much to resist. Through these events I have met or seen the likes of William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, James Doohan, Nichelle Nichols, Jeremy Bulloch, Bruce Boxleitner, Kevin Sorbo, Walter Koenig ... the list goes on. It's an exciting time for me.

Because we moved to Boise, I missed any chance at a convention last year. We were actually driving through Denver, CO on the opening day of StarFest, another convention, but couldn't afford the time (or money) to stop. I have been following the buildup to this years Trek Expo and had started to get excited about it. They promoted Adam Baldwin, Nichelle Nichols, Dean Stockwell, Wil Wheaton, the guy who plays Silar on Heroes and the lady who played Admiral Kane on BSG. I was kinda pumped. Then Silar and Kane cancelled. This was a fairly early cancellation. Disappointing but not devastating.

As May ended, I went back to the site and double-checked the dates. I also double-checked the ticket prices and almost fainted. I am used to $20-$30 for general admission for the whole weekend. The price this year jumped to $50 for the whole weekend or $20/day for Sat or Sun. Can you say wet blanket? No matter, the chance to meet Adam Baldwin and Dean Stockwell as well as see Wil Wheaton again would be worth it.

Today is opening day. I just checked the web site and Stockwell and Wheaton have cancelled. That means four out of the 5 people I really wanted to see have cancelled. In addition, the hosts have not back-filled the schedule so there are no substitutes coming (not that they've noted, at least).

They have nobody coming from any currently-airing shows or recent movies (unless you count Chuck on NBC). They have nobody from any recent shows such as Stargate. The people they do have, with the exception of Baldwin and Nichols, are all supporting actors/actresses or not big headliners. I don't have anything against these people and I actually enjoy seeing/listening to them but they're not who I go to see.

I am seriously reconsidering my resolve to attend at all this year. I will probably make an appearance tomorrow just so I can see Adam Baldwin and meet up with my friend Greg. I will most likely not attend Supper with the Stars as I have the past 4 or 5 years and I'm almost certain that I will save my gas, save the price of admission and skip Sunday altogether.

Sorry Starbase 21. You've collapsed the field on my warp drive.

Friday Night At The Movies

The massive facade of the Warren Theatre in Moore, OK is impressive. It can easily be seen from I-35 and proclaims itself proudly, especially at night when it is lit up with purple and green neon. As you step inside, you are treated to a richly colored expanse of wood, marble, neon and other decorative elements. It is the first clue that this will not be a regular movie experience.

The next clue you'll get is the staff uniforms. I'm not talking same-color shirts and khaki slacks, here. I'm talking full-on nostalgic usher uniforms complete with green (or white) jackets with brass buttons and shoulder boards paired with black slacks adorned with a satin strip along the outer seam and white gloves. There are a couple variations from this for staff at the concession counters or the bar (yes, there's a bar but I'll get to that later) but fancy jacket and formal slacks is the uniform of the day.

For us, though, this night was going to be extra special. My MIL had purchased a pair of tickets for us to see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull as an anniversary gift. What's so special about movie tickets, I hear you ask. What's so special is they were balcony seats. Reserved balcony seats.

We crossed the lobby to the base of the stairway where a young gentleman was stationed to assist patrons (and probably act as a gatekeeper). We asked him about the upstairs arrangements: In addition to balcony seating, there is also a lounge where you can order a meal or a drink from the full service bar. Sorry, kiddos, you have to be 21 or older to enjoy the balcony. We also asked him about the location of the elevator. He was very clear in his instructions, very friendly and courteous, and surprisingly articulate. I say surprisingly because he looked to be about 17 and I sometimes have difficulty finding those qualities in people of that age group. We thanked him and moved on.

We hadn't had dinner yet so we went into the diner. Yep, there's a full-service diner on the premises. It serves everything from appetizers and salads to sandwiches and pasta. We knew we would be able to have service at our seats (one of the perks of the balcony) but wanted to make sure we didn't need to place an order downstairs before proceeding to the balcony. We told the cashier we had balcony seats and asked if we needed to do anything special. She told us, "Oh no, if you have balcony seats you have a waiter who will get you anything you want." Her tone was almost as if to add that if we had paid for balcony seating, we were royalty for the evening and didn't need to mix with the crowd. Cool.

We took the elevator to the second level where we were met and welcomed by no less than four people. We showed one of them our tickets and she pointed out the auditorium we would be in and told us that they would be opening it for seating in about 20 minutes. In the mean time, she invited us to have a seat at the bar and enjoy ourselves (we could have sat at a table in the lounge but it was full up). With all this attention, this was beginning to feel like an old-time movie experience. I thought I should be wearing formal attire but felt perfectly comfortable in my blue jeans.

The back of the bar was a hive of activity. The bar is laid out with a slight curve and is only big enough for about a dozen or so people but there were at least five bartenders and the occasional supervisor (he had a different colored shirt) performing a well executed dance.

I really wanted to have dinner in the auditorium - just because I could - so I ordered a beer for myself, the wife had a malt beverage, and we ordered a plate of cheese sticks. We should have just ordered dinner because the cheese sticks arrived about two minutes before the auditorium opened. No matter, we took our time, I finished my beer, we finished the appetizer and cashed out.

When we entered the auditorium, someone was right there to usher us to our seats. We told her we had never attended a movie there and she explained that the seriously oversize seats were filled with memory foam and were heated. A small switch in the outer armrests clicked up for high or down for low. A small table was set between the seats and could be moved for our convenience. The best part was the little red button. Push the little red button, she said, and it would call her over and she would get us anything we wanted. This was awesome! The only thing we would have to get up for is a bathroom break.

After a few minutes perusing the menu I pushed the call button. About that same time, the lights dimmed and a brief introduction to the Warren Theatres started. As the announcer welcomed us the heavy, red velvet curtain slowly rose to reveal the projection screen. I had forgotten that in my youth, curtains used to cover the screen prior to the show. The invention of multi-screen theaters saw the end of that but Warren has thought of everything to revitalize the in-theater movie experience. When the waitress stealthily arrived, my wife ordered a turtle sundae and I ordered another beer and a sandwich with fries that I happily munched on almost the entire show.

We were treated to three movie previews and then the most amazing thing happened. The feature started. That's right, no advertisements. No Coca Cola short film, no AT&T sponsored turn-off-your-cell-phone blurb, nada. Actually, that's not entirely true. Since every auditorium is THX certified, we were subjected to the THX intro. This was amazing in and of itself. I believe it is the first time in my life that I have actually felt the bass in a movie theater. The low notes during the demo (and a few throughout the movie) actually vibrated the seats.

I enjoyed the movie. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull humorously acknowledges that the good Dr. Jones is getting a bit long in the tooth, takes a trip back to the original Raiders of the Lost Ark with the appearance of Karen Allen as Marion, and includes all of the adventure, cobwebs, and explosions we've come to expect from the franchise. Surprisingly, however, it left me wanting in the whip-cracking department..

This particular chapter in the saga let me down somewhat. While the premise is loosely based in reality (there really are crystal skulls that have been found) the climax is a little beyond my willing suspension of disbelief. In the end, though, it was a fun ride just like the other two have been. Oh, yeah, three... I keep forgetting about that Temple of Doom one. And it introduces elements that may keep the franchise alive a little longer.

Toward the end of the movie, our waitress noiselessly appeared by my side with our bill. She shined a small, single LED light on the total and handed me the holder. I slipped my debit card inside and handed it back. Within a minute she returned and wordlessly handed me a pen to sign for the total while she used her mini light to assist me. It was totally unobtrusive as was the rest of the wait staff. They were trained well.

There was a theater that Cinemark opened in Tulsa a few years ago that, from the descriptions, I thought would be quite impressive. It turned out to be a standard multiplex with a lot of extra window dressing. The Warren Theatre in Moore is everything I expected it to be. It makes the experience of watching the movie in a theater as important as the movie itself and that is how it should be. If you live anywhere near Moore, OK (I live 65 miles away) you should make an effort to go see a movie at the Warren. If you're over 21 and are on a date or out for a night on the town, spend the extra money (our entire evening including tickets, dinner, and drinks was less than $75) and treat yourself right with balcony seating. At the very least, head upstairs and check out the lounge.

Movie Time

Preparing 2 c indiana jones. Not even in the auditorium and its already cool. Details l8r.

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11 Days Between Posts

Life's just been that weird lately. It also didn't help that our DSL has been down for ~48 hours (the last 24 or so because the tech left the phone line unplugged - D'OH!).

Anyway, I was poking around some of the tech news sites and stumbled upon a story about Archos putting out a media player pre-loaded with the Harry Potter movies. The story included a picture of Daniel Radcliff and Emma Watson. What I want to know is, just what is he looking at anyway?