tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47898570861882964642011-08-24T11:50:43.619-04:00Film, Television, Literature and Video Game criticism... now available in 8-bit.Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.comBlogger1251100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-34106383349329216832010-08-18T23:59:00.001-04:002010-08-19T13:12:57.283-04:00

This time last year I gave a rave review to BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger, the new fighting game from the developers of the Guilty Gear series. I didn't expect that I would be back this year to review a new installment in the BlazBlue series, yet here I am, once again delivering a thoroughly positive take on Arc System Works' latest production.I was slightly disappointed when BlazBlue: Continuum

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-7817282466345837112010-08-09T18:09:00.006-04:002010-12-16T15:28:39.490-05:00

I don't like my first review of Inception. I had nagging gripes with the movie the first time I saw it, but I couldn't nail them down. So, I saw it again, and I now wish to clarify what I find so frustrating about the film. Again, it must be said that Inception is not bad. It contains some fascinating ideas and thrilling moments. (If you don't want any of those moments spoiled, stick with my

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-3657922829399749612010-08-07T12:30:00.001-04:002010-08-08T11:10:34.544-04:00

From the very first scene, Eclipse feels less like a scam than the last two Twilight movies. New Moon, in particular, seemed like a movie-shaped placeholder – a $50 millon "OUT TO LUNCH. BE BACK IN JUNE." sign from the producers. While Twilight, the original, managed to succeed as entertainment, it wasn't because of any brilliance on the filmmakers' part – the movie felt as if someone had dropped

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-37531484858825553652010-08-01T13:14:00.001-04:002010-08-01T19:59:14.776-04:00

Night Train to Munich is an obscure movie; an early Carol Reed film made at the start of World War II. It's hardly the best film of Reed's career, but it more than deserves its recent Criterion Collection reissue. Philip Kemp's fine essay introducing the Criterion edition of Night Train to Munich concludes by calling the 1940 film a "preparatory sketch" for Reed's later masterpiece, The Third

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-86492943635377369122010-07-26T14:34:00.017-04:002010-07-26T23:29:55.373-04:00

In spite of its travels to the depths of the human mind, Inception may be most interesting as an expression of the limits of Christopher Nolan's ambition. His film is by no means a failure, but it balks at taking big risks; Inception rarely feels like the unfettered roller coaster that it should be. Instead, it is a neat film – one that mostly challenges on the superficial level of plot and

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-24606602377661896692010-07-18T23:59:00.001-04:002010-07-19T17:33:05.212-04:00

Inception is not Christopher Nolan's best film, but it may be the most representative film he has yet directed, a summation of his career thus far. With its twisty plot, its awe-inspiring visions, and its ambiguity, it seems the quintessential Christopher Nolan film. It's a shame that it also suffers from Nolan's few, but vexing, bad habits. (I'll try and avoid explicit spoilers, but some plot

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-59805691750796257522010-07-15T19:34:00.004-04:002010-07-15T19:45:25.026-04:00

Readers,Mere hours from now, Christopher Nolan's Inception will open nationwide. If you have been following Mr. Keeley and me long enough, you'll know that we've been ceaselessly anticipating the film for a year now. I could joke, as I have in past editor's notes, but I have not a single drop of insincerity to share on this topic; I'm shitting myself with excitement.Mr. Keeley had enough

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-17993545104293538212010-07-11T23:59:00.000-04:002010-07-12T00:45:45.842-04:00

About two years ago, my uncle presented me with a large cardboard box full of books, mostly mysteries and thrillers. Prominent among these books was the complete six-book run of Simon Quinn's "The Inquisitor" series, about Francis Xavier Killy, the Vatican secret agent/assassin who serves fifteen days' penance in a Roman catacomb each time he kills a man. Despite the out-there concept, the

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-18524301152686412922010-07-01T20:01:00.004-04:002010-07-01T20:09:36.008-04:00

I don't think I was the only one who cringed upon hearing that a third Toy Story was in production. Especially concerning were the early stages of this film's life; there was a time when Disney had decided to produce the film without the involvement of its creators at Pixar. Thankfully, fate intervened and allowed Pixar to regain full control of the film. While I still worried that making a

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-67530289133584246152010-06-21T23:59:00.002-04:002010-06-22T12:26:48.119-04:00

I only occasionally discuss books on Make Me a Sandwich Grace!; when I do, it's usually in thecontext of an adaptation like Point Blank or The Prestige. This has never been a literary blog, and I don't intend to make it one. I'm discussing a series of books today, but I'm not going to pronounce on Great Literature. Nope, I'm going to be talking about James Bond novels. More specifically, I'm

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-66117927861641993982010-06-16T21:52:00.007-04:002010-06-17T16:59:16.347-04:00

Only on the rarest occasions do I walk out of a movie surprised by how good it was. The night I saw Forgetting Sarah Marshall was one of those instances. Jason Segel's feature writing debut was filled with warm, hilarious, well-drawn characters. Yet as much as I enjoyed the characters, I never expected to see them again. Nevertheless, here we are, discussing Get Him to the Greek, a spinoff

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-57828172200138025382010-06-12T23:59:00.002-04:002010-06-17T17:08:14.128-04:00

A few months ago, I panned The Headless Woman, a quiet, compact foreign film about a woman, her psychology, and a crime that might or might not have happened. Today I'm here to praise The Girl on the Train, a film with a similar concept, but superior execution. This 2009 French production may derive from a 2004 scandal but, director, André Téchiné, has produced neither a Law and Order, "ripped

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-45951159227429275692010-06-10T23:59:00.007-04:002010-06-17T17:08:51.725-04:00

There is a moment somewhere in hour twenty-six of Sex and the City 2 when Carrie, accepting an invitation to Abu Dhabi, says something to the effect of, "Finally some glamour in my life." With this embarrassingly earnest statement, her transformation into a petulant, unrelatable asshole is complete.Way back in 2008, Sex and the City: The Movie was the subject of this blog's inaugural post. (Read

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-69336910550350049762010-06-06T23:59:00.003-04:002010-06-17T17:09:07.444-04:00

Rocket Knight is a strange little game but a good one. Like Mega Man 10, it's a platforming throwback – a homage to old games on early systems. Unlike Mega Man, however, the Rocket Knight/Sparkster franchise was, until this year, almost forgotten. Though the series had a few partisans, mostly connoisseurs of mid-nineties games, very few gamers ever expected a fourth Rocket Knight adventure. After

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-56729640833581663632010-05-30T23:59:00.016-04:002010-06-17T19:38:26.737-04:00

As you surely know, Mr. Keeley and I are feverishly preparing for the release of Marmaduke. In these final days before the marvelous occasion, we feel that we must redouble our efforts. After all, intense study of 54 years worth of daily cartoons is quite time consuming. The delicate lines of the illustrations, the writing's subtle critique of dog-human relations, and all of Marmaduke's unique

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-54002570093256638252010-05-27T18:19:00.012-04:002010-06-21T14:27:00.589-04:00

There was a lot of screaming and blood and only fleeting moments of clarity; it was a long struggle, but 24 has finally breathed its last. As we stand with its maimed corpse before us, I can't say I feel all that bad for the show.Way back in 2001, I was enthralled by 24's premiere, and I continued to watch the show (with varying degrees of enthusiasm) for the next six years. The formula was

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-42746400681707641472010-05-23T23:10:00.002-04:002010-06-21T15:37:16.627-04:00

As Mr. Hollis-Lima said in his previous post, Red Dead Redemption is a fine game. I've spent far too much time playing it this week, and I have no doubt that I shall devote just as many hours to it next week. And yet Red Dead, despite its six-year development, doesn't feel quite so polished as I might have hoped. It's a great achievement for Rockstar, but I can't help but feel it should have been

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-70685211597982275782010-05-19T17:02:00.007-04:002010-06-21T15:36:51.094-04:00

This is a first look at Red Dead Redemption. Expect my full review in the coming weeks.Grand Theft Auto IV was a great game, but it had its problems. Most notably, it suffered from a crippling discordance between its gameplay and its story. That is why, merely a few hours into the game, I already feel as though Red Dead Redemption is a considerable improvement over its spiritual predecessor. Yet

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-46690949202237647112010-05-15T23:59:00.003-04:002010-06-21T14:29:22.239-04:00

Mr. Hollis-Lima and I generally have very similar tastes in film; but our tastes diverge when it comes to Westerns. I grew up watching John Ford films; I might well have been disowned if I decided that I didn't care for The Searchers. Thankfully, I never had to face such an aesthetic-familial dilemma; I have always thought The Searchers a great film. But my favorite Western – another John Ford

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-64033364892376796512010-05-10T21:18:00.016-04:002010-06-21T15:35:30.242-04:00

Shockingly, I am going against popular opinion on this one. I enjoyed Iron Man 2 more than I did its predecessor. I always thought the first, while hardly a failure, suffered from a poorly structured plot. Sure Robert Downey Jr. was a ton of fun as playboy, Tony Stark, but too much time was spent explaining how he became Iron Man. It left far too little time for establishing the eventual villain

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-18086510346943492032010-05-08T23:59:00.005-04:002010-06-21T15:34:34.203-04:00

Superhero movies are supposed to be crowd-pleasers before they are critic-pleasers. A few, most notably The Dark Knight, Spider-Man 2, and the original Iron Man, manage to be both. Most movie fans expected that Iron Man 2 would be just as good, if not better, than its predecessor. After all, the new movie had a higher budget, retained director Jon Favreau, and starred Mickey Rourke and Scarlett

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-80676221088444522512010-05-06T23:59:00.004-04:002010-06-21T14:30:37.404-04:00

I always chuckle to myself when I hear people praising Glee simply for being a TV musical. Sure, such shows are rare, but they did exist prior to the birth of American Idol's love child. For example, Glee's other, illegitimate parent: High School Musical. That franchise could hardly be described as overlooked, but people still seem to forget that it got to the well first. Meanwhile, the honor of

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-50447766222530212512010-05-01T23:59:00.001-04:002010-06-21T14:31:16.754-04:00

Not only is Network considered one of the seventies' many classic films, but for months two people whose opinion I generally respect have also been urging me to watch it. I heard that the film was prophetic, topical, and blackly humorous. So when I sat down to finally watch the film last night, I expected to love it. Alas, I can't say that I appreciated the film nearly as much as I

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-7679886974591909552010-04-28T22:12:00.002-04:002010-06-21T14:31:30.491-04:00

Maybe I am over-thinking this. I mean, the movie's title is Kick-Ass, and I am sitting here trying to figure out what the point of it all was.Sure, there are moments when Kick-Ass is fairly kick-ass, but I cannot bring myself to stop thinking there. This film's premise is so post-modern that I feel obligated to look for some sort of examination of heroism or violence in our society or, hell, even

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-70244774545665603862010-04-26T23:59:00.002-04:002010-06-21T14:31:44.015-04:00

A few months back, I reviewed Peter Yates' underrated Boston crime film, The Friends of Eddie Coyle. I was full of praise for that film; I was especially taken with the film's evocation of seventies' Boston. Whereas most cinematic Bostons are less than convincing, Yates shot on location and made his bleak and gritty Hub believable to old Boston hands like me. Yates' brilliant use of setting in

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-13346402516977308432010-04-23T23:59:00.002-04:002010-06-21T14:34:06.579-04:00

How to Train Your Dragon: An IMAX 3D Experience.A positively nauseating title, right? When I noticed the first advertisements for this film, I did not even bother to roll my eyes. We are currently in the midst of a full-fledged deluge of 3D movies, and one more crappy kids' movie about animals and fart jokes was not going to make things any better. Thank the movie gods, then, that How to Train

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-24336026017490845082010-04-17T13:48:00.029-04:002010-06-21T14:34:35.523-04:00

Way back in October, Make Me a Sandwich, Grace! devoted several posts to Uncharted 2, then the hot new thing on the Playstation 3. I claimed that the single player was a masterpiece, but was slightly less taken with the multiplayer. In this Tuesday's post on patches, Mr. Hollis-Lima criticized some of the changes that Naughty Dog made to their game's multiplayer, though he acknowledged that the

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-84249726180218273572010-04-13T08:00:00.001-04:002010-06-21T14:35:03.669-04:00

Back in the days before online gaming, there was one feeling that gamers loathed above all others. It was a vague but potent mix of anger, disappointment and victimization – it was the feeling that the game you had just bought was crappy. This was nothing like going to see a bad movie or eating at a bad restaurant; the consequences of these misfortunes are generally limited to a couple hours'

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-47794596860087762792010-04-09T23:20:00.006-04:002010-06-21T14:35:18.050-04:00

Hundreds, if not thousands, of films have attempted to address the various horrors of the twentieth century, from fascism and the Holocaust to communism and Stalinism. These movies tend to alternate between the ponderous and the campy, so it's a pleasure to find a production that deals seriously with these matters while remaining charming and even funny. The 2006 Czech film, I Served the King of

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-22327586908974436952010-04-06T23:59:00.013-04:002010-06-21T14:41:00.968-04:00

I am sure that you have seen the term "net neutrality" in passing. You probably skimmed right past it or made a brief and unsuccessful effort to grasp its significance. It is a vague and bland term that belies its own importance.Make no mistake: It is one of the most important civil rights issues of the 21st century.Now, I am no law student and I do not claim to know the history of media law

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-65261205192606760272010-04-01T12:22:00.002-04:002010-06-21T14:41:50.512-04:00

As a young, aspiring filmmaker, hope can be in short supply. Steady, fulfilling work often seems like a mere pipe dream. That is why, once in a while, I need to see a film that gives me hope – a film that proves how no lack of funds or experience can stop a great filmmaker from succeeding. That is why I need to see films like The Room.Tommy Wiseau's story is an unequivocal manifestation of the

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-21310194370213541302010-03-27T23:59:00.001-04:002010-06-21T14:42:11.268-04:00

In my previous post on Final Fantasy XIII, I stated that I liked it as far as I had played it, but that I needed more time with the game to pass final judgment. I've now finished the game, if not all the postgame content, so I feel qualified to finish reviewing it. To be brief: Final Fantasy XIII is a very, very good game, but not, I think, a great one. While not as incompetent or hackneyed as a

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-37108702061645305142010-03-24T14:38:00.006-04:002010-06-21T14:42:30.221-04:00

It is quite natural to assume that Green Zone suffers in comparison to The Hurt Locker. Yet it hardly came to mind while I viewed the film. Paul Greengrass' Iraq War thriller takes a far broader perspective than Kathryn Bigelow's Oscar-winning drama does. Within the first few minutes, Matt Damon is standing up and asking the big questions of his commanders – Are there really any WMDs in Iraq? Who

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-14112187270519821802010-03-21T23:59:00.001-04:002010-06-21T14:42:41.845-04:00

When Mega Man 9 appeared in 2008, most fans were pleasantly surprised by developer Inti Creates' decision to craft the new game in 8-bit NES style. Mega Man 9, Capcom promised, would not repeat the mistakes of its predecessor: Awkward "2.5D" platforming, an over-elaborate plot involving space robots, and awful forced scrolling levels. Mega Man 9 was a critical success, and I doubt it cost much at

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-44535453391347024762010-03-17T20:36:00.003-04:002010-06-21T14:42:59.015-04:00

When Mr. Keeley and I discussed the Wii a few weeks back, I concluded that motion gaming's future looked more promising on the two other systems – Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. Sony seems to agree since, last week, they announced Playstation Move. This is not an autonomous system; like Microsoft's camera-based Project Natal, it will serve as a relaunch of sorts for the company's existing system.

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-5623325709748996192010-03-14T14:03:00.003-04:002010-06-21T15:31:44.329-04:00

This is the first part of a two-part post on the recently-released Final Fantasy XIII – it's my impressions halfway through the game's story. I wasn't sure that I would enjoy Final Fantasy XIII. This is a rather strange thing for me to admit, as I had played and beaten nine of the previous twelve games, as well as several Final Fantasy spinoffs. Though the Final Fantasy series has always been

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-88026769015690979222010-03-10T13:41:00.001-05:002010-06-21T15:02:39.557-04:00

On the occasions I review classic movies, I generally try to make the film in question, however old it might be, appear relevant. Today's film, The Fallen Idol, has been in film buff news of late, though not for happy reasons. Until recently, this fine movie was available as a Criterion Collection DVD. Last month, StudioCanal sold the rights to this and over twenty other films to Lions Gate.

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-65321966376440720382010-03-03T21:00:00.003-05:002010-06-21T15:41:38.296-04:00

This week brings my double-length post on the groundbreaking Playstation 3 game, Heavy Rain. Mr. Keeley will return next week with two posts of his own.Heavy Rain is not a perfect game. It is an important game.In fact, it is probably one of the most important games ever made. Not everything this audacious effort attempts is successful, but one very significant part is: It proves that video

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-61646405547031681522010-02-27T22:26:00.022-05:002010-06-21T15:03:17.107-04:00

The Last Station wasn't quite the movie I was expecting; that's both a good and a bad thing. Surely, I thought, a film about a Dying Writer and his Moral Struggles would be dark, grim, and gloomy; The Last Station is not. On the other hand, I left the theater thinking the film could have benefited had the actors and writers shown a little more of the restraint that this sort of serious period

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-48874589849366492402010-02-24T12:05:00.004-05:002010-06-21T15:03:33.570-04:00

Mr. Keeley and I have a running joke. We say that Resident Evil 5 is the only game we have ever played ironically.It is not just the script; bad video game scripts are a dime a dozen. While Resident Evil 5's script indeed ranks among the worst, this game is inept on every level – from game design to art design to animation to acting. For decades, film fans have been watching terrible movies

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-57019336799484855132010-02-19T21:29:00.031-05:002010-06-21T15:09:36.569-04:00

Before I properly start my review of Gomorrah, a very fine 2008 film from Italy, I must offer a bit of context for my praise: Whenever a gritty and decently-made gangster film or TV series appears, critics tend to praise it for its realism and/or its departure from The Godfather. The Sopranos is more realistic than Goodfellas is more realistic than dePalma's Scarface, etc. It's an old reviewing

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-22949100880881830142010-02-16T17:57:00.030-05:002010-06-21T15:09:50.355-04:00

After my last review, of a mediocre action film, I wrote that I would need an art film to serve as a palette cleanser of sorts. I don't know that the 2008 Austrian production Revanche qualifies as "arthouse" – it seems insufficiently pretentious to me – but it's a fine film, and worthy of its 2009 Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Film.For its first forty minutes, Revanche doesn't feel like a

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-43895370558122392712010-02-13T23:59:00.005-05:002010-06-21T15:20:58.836-04:00

The first five films were presented this past Tuesday in Part One.As a movie about the war in Iraq, The Hurt Locker was overdue, but it was decidedly worth the wait. Director, Kathryn Bigelow captures the tension, the ugliness and the aimlessness of the conflict by keeping her camera grounded and her characters adrift.Presenting the war through the exploits of Staff Sergeant William James (

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-29985980395941163242010-02-09T15:43:00.035-05:002010-06-21T15:21:24.559-04:00

A few months ago, I ranted about how the Academy's decision to expand the nominations for the Best Picture Oscar to ten was little more than a ratings-grabbing gimmick. With the 82nd annual award show coming next month, time has proven that my fears were justified. The inclusion of ten films in the running has done little to make the race more interesting; there is no question about what movie

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-17438790501518915642010-02-06T16:20:00.001-05:002010-06-21T15:10:39.388-04:00

Normally I would not go to see a movie like From Paris with Love. As much as Mr. Hollis-Lima might bemoan my penchant for mediocre action films, it's rare that I will pay $10.50 to see them in a theater. I should no doubt have missed John Travolta's ultraviolent Gallic romp, had I not known that Taken's creative team had reunited for Paris. Director Pierre Morel and producer Luc Besson had

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-8320493792266131252010-02-03T22:04:00.010-05:002010-06-21T15:22:38.257-04:00

During the airing of Dollhouse's series finale on Friday night, Fox cut off the show in the middle of what I can only assume was the final scene. Considering this show's short, tumultuous history, what could have been more appropriate?Dollhouse should not have had a second season. The show's ratings were consistently in the toilet. Countless shows have gotten sacked after one or two episodes

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-30853954873913168432010-01-29T16:28:00.032-05:002010-06-21T15:22:52.222-04:00

Edge of Darkness is not by any stretch of the imagination an original film. It's a revenge film. About an angry father. Who faces an evil corporation. And kills a lot of people. All on a Boston-and-Berkshires backdrop. This film may not win any awards for screenplay, acting, or cinematography, but at least it's an enjoyable thrill ride. The long-absent Mel Gibson plays Thomas Craven, a lonely

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-85017771035783936182010-01-27T11:02:00.006-05:002010-06-21T15:23:06.421-04:00

This time last year, I was thrilled with Playstation Home. Much to the frustration of my friends and girlfriend, I would spend hours each week jogging around this virtual neighborhood of dead-eyed mutes. Yet even then, I knew it was more in anticipation of what was to come than it was because of the experience it offered at the time. Playstation Home has been in its "open beta" phase for just

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-55505124413113498332010-01-25T23:56:00.002-05:002010-06-21T15:23:27.169-04:00

I suppose I should begin this post with a clarification. I am reviewing 9, the 2009 CGI film about doll-like creatures in a post-apocalyptic world. I am not reviewing Nine, the 2009 remake of 8 1/2 that features Penelope Cruz dancing and singing in her underwear. The latter movie is apparently quite a disappointment, while the subject of my review was in fact quite a good movie. 9 is the story of

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-76481684067230835642010-01-19T19:15:00.001-05:002010-06-21T15:23:48.597-04:00

These days, watching NBC is like watching a lost hiker gnawing at his arm in a desperate attempt to stave off starvation. Moving Jay Leno to ten o'clock has done far more damage to the network than even the biggest skeptics probably expected, digging the deep hole NBC had in its primetime schedule even deeper. Now, as the network struggles to rectify the situation, Conan O'Brien has effectively

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-31223155545207137172010-01-17T15:35:00.002-05:002010-06-21T15:24:07.086-04:00

I like to think I'm fairly knowledgeable about cinematic matters, but I have to admit that I know absolutely nothing about Argentinean film. As such, I had very few real expectations going into Lucrecia Martel's 2008 film The Headless Woman, which showed in a few American theaters late last year. I admired the film more than I liked it; it's clever and difficult without being especially

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-86173838530742592972010-01-12T23:59:00.003-05:002010-06-21T15:24:21.050-04:00

With Avatar suddenly being called the frontrunner for this year's Best Picture Oscar, there are a number of small movies that are almost guaranteed to be sold short. One of them is A Single Man. The film may very well snag a nomination but, as we have previously discussed on this blog, that does not mean what it used to mean. The sad fact is that this introspective, character-driven movie is

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-14869909797970266852010-01-09T23:59:00.005-05:002010-06-21T15:25:47.336-04:00

A few weeks back I promised I would write a post on Christopher Nolan's Insomnia. Here it is, slightly delayed.I've now watched all of Christopher Nolan's currently-released films with the exception of his student work. So I can say with some certainty that Insomnia represents a break from the rest of his oeuvre and – perhaps – hints towards his future artistic development.Like its two

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-29745746468059864722010-01-04T23:30:00.005-05:002010-08-08T11:13:52.032-04:00

Did you see Titanic? Of course you did. Years later, do you look back on it with particular fondness? I doubt it. When you join the rest of the world in shelling out $11.50 to see Avatar, you are signing up for a very similar deal.James Cameron's latest siege on Hollywood's bank accounts, after all, is about as shallow as a movie experience can get. Despite being heralded as "revolutionary,"

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-46819211912919597732010-01-02T14:31:00.002-05:002010-06-21T15:28:28.158-04:00

This is Part Two of a two-part series wherein we discuss the successes and failures of Nintendo's Wii console as it enters its fourth year on the market. Mr. Hollis-Lima's analysis of the console as a draw to casual gamers was posted earlier this week.I spent the morning of the Wii launch – November 19, 2006 – scouring Boston for the system. I bypassed Best Buy and other big box retailers and

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-73222714980146991642009-12-29T23:59:00.004-05:002010-06-21T15:45:59.184-04:00

This is Part One of a two-part series wherein we will discuss the successes and failures of Nintendo's Wii console as it enters its fourth year on the market. Mr. Keeley's contribution will discuss the console from a Nintendo fan's perspective.As difficult as it may be for some hardcore gamers to admit, the Nintendo Wii has been a massive success in one regard – sales. In fact, the Wii's sales

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-39507916565876465792009-12-22T08:00:00.003-05:002010-06-21T15:46:51.616-04:00

Mr. Keeley and I are taking off this week for the holidays. Rest assured, however, that we will be back next week. In fact, we will return with a special, two-post feature on the Nintendo Wii. (You know; it is that video game console that grandma and grandpa are always playing in Wal-Mart commercials.) We will discuss the system's successes and failures three years on, as well its effect on

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-31044917667474635642009-12-19T18:28:00.012-05:002010-06-21T15:47:06.048-04:00

I missed the short theatrical run of The Baader Meinhof Complex. For some reason, I couldn't convince any of my friends to come and watch a two-and-a-half-hour foreign film about an obscure (in this country) German terrorist organization. It's a shame I wasn't able to shanghai anyone into watching it with me, because The Baader Meinhof Complex is one of the best films I've seen all year.The two

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-84990493691128537292009-12-16T20:51:00.005-05:002010-06-21T15:47:41.109-04:00

If you are like me, you often find our culture a bit overwhelming. From the hundreds of magazines clamoring for your attention, to the thousands of cable channels fighting for your screentime, to the millions of websites begging for your clickthroughs, information overload is an unavoidable side effect of being a modern American. This is a condition called infomania, and thankfully, there is a

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-62032910927783666642009-12-11T16:58:00.018-05:002010-06-21T16:04:28.029-04:00

Originally, my Christopher Nolan retrospective was going to cover Nolan's films in order. Alas, Netflix sent me The Prestige (2006) before Insomnia (2002), so I've decided to cover the later film before the earlier. Somehow it seems appropriate, given the director's penchant for telling stories out of order.I don't know that The Prestige is Christopher Nolan's best movie, but – unless Insomnia

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-9358520348578677062009-12-08T06:37:00.005-05:002010-06-21T16:40:32.684-04:00

Now that Fantastic Mr. Fox has hit theaters, it is clear where Wes Anderson's career has been headed. His dry comedies have always been filled with characters who are somewhere between abstract caricatures and everyday people. His visual style is similar in its ironies: wholly stylized and modern – with conspicuously storyboarded shots, bold color palettes and mechanical manipulations of space

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-90647621612866274682009-12-05T22:07:00.017-05:002010-06-21T16:40:52.046-04:00

I take a somewhat guilty pleasure in revenge stories. I imagine the moviegoing public shares my fascination, else there would be far fewer filmed vendettas. The simplest revenge movies offer the audience opportunities for guilt-free sadism. At other times, the genre can be intellectual, ironic, and even funny. Today's movie is an odd beast – a marriage between a revenge film and an art film. I am

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-22527791565322145382009-12-01T21:22:00.004-05:002010-06-21T16:41:18.394-04:00

Some things never change. Way back in 1956 – the days of television's childhood – Elvis Presley's hip gyrations had a way of stirring up controversy. Ed Sullivan, a famous broadcaster, vowed to never allow such a vulgar act on his show. Once the ratings for Presley's appearance on rival, Steve Allen's show came in, however, he suddenly had a change of heart. Presley's performance on The Ed

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-76938069491110733852009-11-28T13:08:00.018-05:002010-06-21T16:44:24.248-04:00

Last week I took a look at Christopher Nolan's first film; this week I'm looking at his second. Sometime in the next few weeks, expect looks at Insomnia and The Prestige.Following may have played the independent theater circuit, but Christopher Nolan didn't enter the mainstream until the release of his second film, Memento. Nolan's second feature film uses many of the same tricks and teases that

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-72068287172188618632009-11-25T12:28:00.005-05:002010-06-21T16:46:28.975-04:00

Full disclosure: I kind of liked the first Twilight film. It had a long list of flaws, most of which could be blamed on Melissa Rosenberg's crappy screenplay, but despite them, the film managed to convey something authentic. That now-somewhat-famous shot of Edward and Bella lying in a bed of flowers is an undeniably potent representation of two teens lost in the throes of hormonal love. Thanks

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-86895444896535091342009-11-21T11:19:00.004-05:002010-06-21T16:53:33.911-04:00

As some of you may know, The Dark Knight was by far my favorite film of 2008. Mr. Hollis-Lima liked it, too. Earlier this year, I blogged about the trailer for Nolan's next film, a science fiction thriller called Inception. Nolan's second Batman seems to have overshadowed all his previous work, even the much-praised Memento. I thought it would be entertaining to do a Make Me a Sandwich, Grace

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-24508730204309153092009-11-18T11:27:00.005-05:002010-06-21T16:54:20.283-04:00

Now that Dollhouse has been sent to the attic, the options for sci-fi fans who watch network television are fewer than ever. Even Fringe, the only other sci-fi show that Fox has, spent some time on the chopping block. Surprisingly, it seems that ABC is looking to fill this void. This September, one of the network's major premieres was a show called FlashForward. Now, in the thick of November

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-2820311403907570872009-11-13T15:00:00.023-05:002010-06-21T17:15:20.094-04:00

After suffering through The Boondock Saints II, I started thinking about better Boston-themed crime movies. Most modern movie viewers would cite The Departed as the great Boston crime movie, except that a) it's not that great and b) it's a remake of a Hong Kong film. If only Bostonians had better memories, they would say that 1973's The Friends of Eddie Coyle is the best of all the films of life

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-51037531691603139382009-11-10T11:02:00.008-05:002010-06-21T17:21:36.497-04:00

It is the policy of this blog's editor that slurs against any group of people will not be displayed, unless part of a decidedly relevant quote. Accordingly, any potentially offensive language herein is presented for the sole purpose of cogent discussion. Any user comments that do not also meet this criterion will be deleted immediately.Just over a week ago, the video game world found itself in

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-7082615887489212192009-11-07T21:33:00.002-05:002010-06-21T17:22:33.344-04:00

A few weeks back, I looked at Fritz Lang's film, Man Hunt, an anti-Nazi film Lang made after World War II started but before Pearl Harbor. Like Lang, Hitchcock was a European director who had come to the States; like Lang, he hadn't left his political convictions behind. Foreign Correspondent (1940) was Hitchcock's second American film; Rebecca came out just four months before. Hitchcock, it

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-44502483825733156452009-11-03T11:38:00.006-05:002010-06-21T17:25:30.144-04:00

Take that, Hollywood.You've been content to (almost) exclusively crank out pale, regurgitated horror fare for years and it has finally crept up and bit you. Some guy from Rancho Peñasquitos got two actors and $15,000 together and managed to make the best horror movie in years, possibly decades. Furthermore, he took a filmmaking gimmick that you have repeatedly failed to make functional – the "

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-69709024123614364132009-10-31T12:26:00.003-04:002010-06-21T17:37:03.334-04:00

On some days and with some movies, blogging is an act of masochism. Today is one of those days and Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day is one of those movies. Why, oh why, did they ever let Troy Duffy make another movie?In an earlier piece on Martin McDonagh, I talked about In Bruges as a sort of revisionist Tarantino film – it had humor and ultraviolence and odd conversations, but it had depths

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-79530776646562258632009-10-27T21:50:00.005-04:002010-06-21T17:38:46.487-04:00

If "Uncharted: Drake's Fortune" marked the opening shots of a revolution, "Uncharted 2: Among Thieves" will prove to mark the moment when the war became winnable. The original game had an emphasis on narrative that changed the standards for video games as a storytelling medium. The sequel does not necessarily change the standards again, it just ensures that future games will have no choice but

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-38394394268432069882009-10-24T12:20:00.002-04:002010-06-21T17:39:27.355-04:00

As I hope Tuesday's review made clear, the singe-player mode alone made Uncharted 2 one of the best games that I've ever had the pleasure of playing. The game didn't need a multiplayer mode, and I don't think many fans of the first game expected one. For one thing, Naughty Dog has never been known for crafting competitive games. In the past, they've made very very good games designed for single

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-16202240316516665662009-10-20T23:59:00.004-04:002010-06-21T17:40:07.189-04:00

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune was a wonderful game. It was balanced, well-written, and player-friendly; it had a great story and high replayability. But, after playing Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, I never want to touch Drake's Fortune again. Nathan Drake is back and in great form.Among Thieves' basic gameplay isn't much different from Drake's Fortune's, but the accumulation of small tweaks and

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-23110583376015659702009-10-16T23:50:00.006-04:002010-06-21T17:41:59.341-04:00

Before Mr. Keeley posts his (appropriately) epic, two-post review of the anxiously awaited "Uncharted 2: Among Thieves" next week, I feel that we should take a look back at the game's predecessor, "Uncharted: Drake's Fortune."Back in 2007, calling yourself a Playstation 3 owner was not saying much. The console's price was through the roof and its game library did little to make it more

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-70730351722755333012009-10-13T23:59:00.001-04:002010-06-21T17:45:29.218-04:00

Zombie apocalypses are misrepresented in modern media far too often. Sure, everyone you know will probably die, but there are plenty of upsides if you do manage to survive. You will never find yourself wanting for any material possessions again; every store in the world is free for your scavenging. You will never have to work again, apart from dealing with the occasional, flesh-eating nuisance

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-49061783925709430282009-10-10T13:20:00.002-04:002010-06-21T17:46:51.089-04:00

There's a legend that Joseph Goebbels offered Fritz Lang an official propaganda position in the Nazi Party and that Lang fled Germany the very night of the proposal. Film historians have cast doubts on this fine story, though parts of it remain plausible. The Nazis, ironically enough, really liked Lang's great anti-totalitarian film Metropolis; Hitler himself was a fan. Lang, unlike other

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-5567010853418906432009-10-06T15:37:00.019-04:002010-06-21T17:47:37.721-04:00

It is now safe to say that, with the exception of a few CBS laggards, the laugh track is dead.Let us pause for a moment, in order to spit on its grave. Sure, we have all spent many hours enjoying such shows; some were, indeed, quite good. They say that limitation breeds creativity, after all, and the typical sitcom had many limitations. Was this, however, really fair? Would you ever watch a

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-41448960232162560302009-10-03T16:18:00.001-04:002010-06-21T17:48:13.115-04:00

If one were to read only a short synopsis of it, Steven Soderbergh's new film The Informant! might sound like just another corporate whistleblower film. As IMDB puts it: "The U.S. government decides to go after an agri-business giant with a price-fixing accusation, based on the evidence submitted by their star witness, vice president turned informant Mark Whitacre." Perhaps Soderbergh is

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-46167902331437994092009-09-29T22:16:00.003-04:002010-06-21T17:48:39.978-04:00

You have to hand it to Fox's marketing department on this one. There was not a particularly large amount of people who watched the "Glee" series premiere when it aired a few months ago but, more likely than not, you heard someone chatting up the show over the summer. Fox slipped in the pilot episode of the series at the end of the spring and, quite purposefully, made the episode ubiquitous on

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-47028341640826785432009-09-26T17:10:00.003-04:002010-06-21T17:50:10.687-04:00

Note that this write-up contains spoilers for the season premiere of Dollhouse.A few weeks ago, Mr. Hollis-Lima talked about his admiration for Joss Whedon's Dollhouse. Despite all the praise it received from people I'm inclined to trust, I never got around to really watching the show – I saw my friends and roommates viewing it and once I even watched three-quarters of an episode. Still, I could

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-58150591654519403232009-09-22T21:55:00.007-04:002010-06-21T17:52:32.909-04:00

This post discusses plotlines from season five of "House." Be warned, those of you who are behind on the series: Many spoilers lie ahead. No major spoilers from last night's premiere, however, are revealed.Fox's (second?) best show returned last night in bold form. It was one of those rare instances where network television brushed up against a world of writing possibilities that is usually

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-53958074824777418552009-09-18T23:59:00.002-04:002010-06-21T17:53:28.985-04:00

Despite the unkind things I said about Marvel vs. Capcom 2, I'm a great fan of fighting games. I'm not especially good at them - I can't perform the most convoluted attacks, nor can I parry multi-hit attacks by counting individual frames of animation. And yet there's something about the genre that never gets old for me. It's not just the games' difficulty; I don't feel the same attachment to "

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-84184602638341479262009-09-15T23:42:00.005-04:002010-06-21T20:44:42.354-04:00

For all of my excitement over LittleBigPlanet last summer, I could not help but feel a bit apprehensive. Media Molecule's humble, little game for the Playstation 3 had tremendous buzz from the media, but no one could be sure how well the game would really work until it was loosed upon the world and given some time to grow. Some wondered if putting faith in the gamer masses to keep such a game

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-8878740626466160822009-09-11T21:20:00.010-04:002010-06-21T17:56:34.646-04:00

According to IMDB, The International was supposed to appear in 2008, but was delayed until 2009 for reshoots and increased action. I don't know if the delay made the movie any better than it is, but it did serve to make the film topical - when it came out, we were all worried about evil banks. Just about every reviewer of the film discussed The International's supposed relevance, but one can push

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-6477411600379290312009-09-08T23:59:00.002-04:002010-06-21T17:57:46.546-04:00

The Dollhouse offers a service. For a certain amount of money, you can have the exact person you want – the exact person you need – instantly. Do not think of it as a fantasy, however, because a doll does not act; a doll is a genuine, complete human being, designed to your specifications, temporarily at your service.That is the sales pitch, anyway.What goes on behind the scenes, in order to

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-18929308425453886262009-09-04T17:31:00.013-04:002010-06-21T17:58:15.611-04:00

A month or so ago, I wrote a blog post about Batman: Arkham Asylum, wherein I expressed my high hopes for the title. Of course, I knew that licensed videogames are usually awful, and that superhero games in particular have a dark history. Rocksteady, the Brits behind Arkham Asylum, had only released one game before Batman: A mostly-forgotten shooter called Urban Chaos: Riot Response. I hoped

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-7139631205426198852009-09-01T01:40:00.006-04:002010-06-21T17:58:43.357-04:00

The Mouse is a hungry beast. It swallows up massive companies like little hunks of swiss cheese. Few of these deals garner respect from film fans but, a few years back, one that did just that came along. It was the deal that made Walt Disney the exclusive distributor of Studio Ghibli films in the United States. Even for Disney's biggest detractors, it was quite a match; Ghibli has been called

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-62329882842259035812009-08-28T18:44:00.005-04:002010-06-21T17:59:53.961-04:00

I gather that quite a few people - perhaps they're restrained to the Internet, but I doubt it - are actually excited about James Cameron's new film Avatar. I've always thought I'm just a bit out of the American mainstream, but I honestly cannot comprehend how anyone would give a damn about the movie after seeing the trailer.Avatar has two major selling-points: James Cameron's return to directing

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-6236247858681773322009-08-25T22:21:00.003-04:002010-06-21T18:00:24.251-04:00

My jury seems to be permanently out on this guy. His penchant for giddy mash-ups of obscure genres and insistence on subverting convention makes his movies suit cinephiles quite nicely. Then again, it is hard to argue that they do much else beyond such academic exercises. Then again, Quentin Tarantino's uncanny understanding of what makes movies tick comes with some serious talent to back it

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-81148980427037894322009-08-21T19:36:00.012-04:002010-06-21T18:00:49.656-04:00

Few downloadable games have been more enthusiastically promoted by the gaming press than Marvel vs. Capcom 2. This isn't surprising, as many consider this fighting game from 2000 a classic of the genre. MvC2 is known for its huge roster of characters - there are twenty-eight characters from Capcom videogames and twenty-eight more from Marvel Comics properties. The game is 2D and sprite-based, so

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-54969367337857430542009-08-18T20:25:00.002-04:002010-06-21T18:01:25.351-04:00

Oh, "District 9," how I loved you. Yet, you had to go and burn me... or make me pop like a sack of meat with a firecracker inside of it.It was hard to ignore that first, cryptic trailer that came out a few months ago. The film simply looked like nothing else, with its ripped-from-a-news-broadcast footage of South Africa and the ominous spacecraft hovering, cemented in the skies above the city.

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-50242129442821985952009-08-15T18:51:00.009-04:002010-06-21T18:02:27.480-04:00

Before I review the new film, Mr. Hollis-Lima has prepared a short introduction to the TV series that spawned it:Maybe you have heard of Eva, maybe you have not. One thing is for sure: You should see it. This low budget Japanese animated television series from the mid nineties may just be one of the greatest artistic achievements of the 20th Century.I first heard of Neon Genesis Evangelion in

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-51870497585632113912009-08-13T17:42:00.001-04:002010-06-21T18:07:23.401-04:00

That is a bit more like it. By sheer odds, the evil alliance of Paramount and Hasbro had to land a summer spectacle somewhere in the ballpark this year. "G. I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" is a stupid movie, yes, but it gets the stupidity just right. The plot makes a shred of sense, the characters are not heinous stereotypes and the directing is coherent. (Michael Bay: Stop doodling boobies and

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-54832939550929784712009-08-11T01:23:00.005-04:002010-06-21T18:07:49.677-04:00

I intended to refrain from writing on this issue. It is one characterized by such brazen condescension that I refused to believe that the average American was not already privy to it. More often than not this summer, however, I have found my trips to the movie theater beginning with an obnoxious reminder of just how naked the greed of American media companies has become. I am speaking about

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-27154183562228946672009-08-07T12:57:00.008-04:002010-06-21T18:08:21.796-04:00

Many of the worst videogames ever made have been licensed games based off popular movie, TV, or comics properties. For every licensed masterpiece like Goldeneye, there have been dozens of mediocre to awful games with big names on their covers. You would think that a James Bond or Superman game would be hard to mess up, but it has been done time and again. So I make it a rule to not get too

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-5617014640986555782009-08-04T20:40:00.005-04:002010-06-21T18:08:44.234-04:00

"Funny People" can safely be described as Judd Apatow's first drama. While it features many of the ingredients that made his previous films so successful, the mixture has been tweaked ever so slightly. One cannot blame him for trying. His unique mix of raunchy humor and winning earnestness has proven wildly successful, but it has also spawned countless emulations. Attempting to change the

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-15543833027947964402009-08-01T23:05:00.002-04:002010-06-21T18:10:05.117-04:00

To put it bluntly, this movie should not be this good. Paramount, with its summer cash cows, has proven that you do not need to make a great movie to keep the fans of a franchise happy. Yet, Warner Brothers insists on churning out summer spectacles that are strikingly innovative and complex. One could even argue that "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," an absolutely impeccable production

Matt Hollis-Limahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12028030281320264222noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4789857086188296464.post-87502431634016114092009-07-31T16:13:00.001-04:002010-06-21T18:11:26.600-04:00

Donald E. Westlake was an extremely prolific writer; he wrote something like eighty-eight books, not counting juvenilia and "paperback original trash" like Campus Doll. There have been many writers more proficient than Westlake - Georges Simenon, for example, wrote two hundred books and had time to sleep with Josephine Baker (amongst dozens of other women). What's notable about Westlake is that,

Matt Keeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06879233228833576188noreply@blogger.com0