A desperate bid to rediscover creativity
Ready Player One is a non-stop rush of pop culture references both visual and in the script. It's a movie about a hunt for Easter eggs that will itself be the subject of a hunt for all the Easter eggs it contains. That seems pretty meta. There's barely a frame or line that goes by… Continue reading Ready Player One: An overload of pop culture references
Quantum Night, by Robert J. Sawyer comes with a full freight of compelling ideas, one after another, and an intriguing set of twists and reveals. Excellent reading. Robert J. Sawyers always make me think, and in this novel, Mr. Sawyer deploys a modified narrative style to convey a densely-packed series of ideas. He's cut down… Continue reading Quantum Night, by Robert J. Sawyer – Book review
Finished Karina Sumner-Smith’s first novel, Radiant, and enjoyed it. The setting is something I haven’t seen before. It’s post apocalyptic on one literal level, but then has a city that floats above the ruins. Powered by magic, it’s a collection of floating towers around a central spire. Sumner-Smith’s description through the book makes it a… Continue reading Radiant review
I saw Godzilla on the weekend, and it was pretty much what I would expect from a giant-monster movie. And it was worth seeing in the theatre, but maybe more of a Tuesday night movie (in Canada, Tuesdays are cheaper nights). The effects are good. The monsters are big. Godzilla looks like he should. There… Continue reading Godzilla about what you’d expect
I can't afford to lose anymore intelligence, but I started watching 2012 despite knowing it was bad disaster porn. I'm having trouble articulating why I did this. Maybe to see just how dumb it was, or to see the special effects. I don't remember, but I feel dumber after watching only part of the movie.… Continue reading 2012: A late review based on a partial viewing
Leviathan Wakes starts with an act of piracy and a mystery, then ramps up quickly, expands in scope, raises the stakes, and floors the gas pedal for most of the way through. It's an addictive read, a page-turner that kept me hooked to the end. I liked the characters of Holden and Miller around whom… Continue reading Book Review: Leviathan Wakes
When I saw Captain America a few years ago my review was pretty much, "better than I expected," because I had no preconceived opinion or emotional investment in the character. Even going into this second movie, I thought this would be an entertaining film, but Cap was never what Superman was to me, so even… Continue reading Captain America: The Winter Soldier – My Review
Just came back from watching Gravity in IMAX 3D, which is an intense experience. The movie starts quickly, with just enough establishment of character and setting, then kicks into gear and rarely lets up. It's a simple survival story with a simple human against nature conflict in the most hostile environment known. At the end… Continue reading Gravity: a quick review
Dispatches from Obscurity 