Classroom Bell Syndrome

I always find it amazing that everyone in class knows exactly when to start packing up their books and papers, especially when there are no clocks in the room. It’s never just one person and then another, creating a snowball effect either. It’s everyone but me, all at once, just picking up their stuff and putting it away.
I’m did a show last Saturday and will be posting the choice photos onto my Flickr and up here in the next couple of days. Just trying to find some time to edit them in between class and work.

District 9 Review

Last night, I got the chance to watch an early showing of District 9, the highly anticipated Science Fiction film by director Neill Blomkamp. To say that I was impressed is quite the understatement. Here’s a quick synopsis and review.

In the early ’80s, an alien spacecraft appeared in the sky above the city of Johannesburg, South Africa. The ship’s inhabitants are stuck on Earth after running out of fuel and need a new place to live. The government, feeling international pressure to assist the aliens, task the private company Multi-National United (MNU) with the settlement and protection of the aliens. MNU builds a camp in the outskirts of the city and dubs it District 9. The camp becomes a slum and after twenty years of tension and pressure from the human population of South Africa, the government decides to move the aliens, known as “prawns”, to a resettlement camp further away from the city. It’s then that we meet our hero, Wikus. Working for the MNU, it’s his responsibility to inform the residents of District 9 of their evictions. After entering one of the shacks to investigate for weapons, something goes wrong. I’d hate to spoil anything, so I’ll leave the synopsis there, on to the review.

The film is shot as a documentary/SF film hybrid. It’s an approach that allows for exposition in the form of interviews with experts and people closely related to the incident, without resorting to pathetic, “creative uses of angles” and seemingly magical cellphone cameras to capture the action (I’m looking at you Diary of the Dead.) This mix of styles is put together wonderfully: It’s never jarring to go from security footage, to a close-up, to a soldiers gun camera. Another aspect that I loved about the film is that it never feels the need to flaunt. Every shot is there for a reason, there is no grandstanding, no fan service, nothing like that. In this world, aliens have been around for twenty years, their ship has been hovering over the city for so long that people barely even notice it anymore and the camera makes sure to follow that same principle. The prawns are incredibly detailed and feel real enough to sympathize with, which is key to the story.

The fact that the story takes place in South Africa is no coincidence. This is, like all good SF, a social commentary. The prawns are stuck on Earth and want nothing more than to go home. They are treated as less-than by humanity, forced to live in small tin shacks, fenced off from the rest of the world. It’s message of anti-racism isn’t heavy-handed though. There aren’t any rousing speeches, filled with flowery prose, talking about how we’ve all got to get along. No, District 9 doesn’t need to resort to such petty tactics. The character development is so well done that at times I was actually uncomfortable with the brutality that was on screen. The film isn’t really all that gory. The brutality comes from the complete disregard and hatred that the humans have for the prawns. It’s scary to think that people have treated each other in a lot of the same ways, but that’s the key to good SF. It opens your mind to seeing things in a different light.

The characters are real, the story is real, the message is real, but perhaps most importantly for moviegoers today, the action is real too. Plot and character development only make things more intense as bullets fly and various things, both living and non-living, explode into showers of whatever-the-hell they were made. The trailers promise action, and while its not the type that most people were expecting, it is far from disappointing.

Overall, the film is excellent. The performances, both in terms of acting and directing, are fantastic. Especially when you consider that both are first timers. District 9 is a solid SF film that is able to appeal to a wide audience without giving up any ground on intelligent, plot or sympathetic characters. I suggest that everyone go see this movie and spread the word. This is the type of Science Fiction that we need: A smart, action packed movie that doesn’t feel the need to talk down to people.

Watch it.

Beard

I’ve decided to grow a full beard. Pictures shall be posted as I progress.

Future Guitar Legend

Greatest. Cake. Ever.

Some friends of a friend made this for a birthday party that I went to not too long ago. Needless to say, I was thoroughly impressed. It tasted pretty damn good too.

Broken Washer

Means going to a laundromat.

Clichéd? Yes. Still looks good though.

The Best Summary of Palin I’ve Ever Seen

Thanks to:
LisaNova

Keeping it short today.

I got a chance to play historian this weekend at a friend’s video shoot. I’m glad that I did it, if for no other reason other than the fact that I screwed up so many times.

I completely forgot to bring a second lens, had trouble deciding on the lighting and kept snapping a second too late and ending up with something out of focus or just completely uninteresting. After a bit of that awkwardness and getting over the fact that I’d have to shoot in a small space with the wrong lens, I was able to adapt enough to get some great shots and have quite a bit of fun. As much fun as curling up in a bathtub, praying that you don’t accidentally turn on the shower, inadvertently drowning your camera, your dreams and yourself can be anyway.

I’ve gotten an idea for something that I will be working on over the next few days and weeks. I will try and post a photo on a regular basis, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the “writes” of “Holdenwrites” becomes inaccurate. At least for a little while.

I promise that I’ll update when something interesting does happen. I will most certainly try and get a review for Mega Man 9 up, no promises though.

Picture of the Day

“Wait, which camera do I look in?”

Braid

A silhouetted figure stands just beyond the reach of a feebly glowing street light, the still-burning remains of a city silently flicker behind him.  Glowing embers twist and float around him as he slowly crosses the darkened bridge. The orange glow of the city and harsh yellow light of the street lamp slowly strip the shadows away from his face and body, but don’t dare touch the ones in his heart. The man takes one last look up at the night sky, the stars twinkling against the fiery glow, before facing the journey that lay before him. He must right the wrongs of the past, rebuilding the shattered pieces of his life like so many puzzles. Most importantly, he must find his princess and save her from the horrors of this place and so, with a final sigh, he enters the home.

So begins a masterpiece of art, music and gameplay innovation, Braid. Available on the Xbox 360 Live Arcade, Braid is a 2-D puzzle platformer that grants the player the ability to rewind time through control of the main character, Tim. While it’s not the newest idea, it is done uniquely enough to remain interesting and fun. There’s no limit to the amount that you can rewind in a level and you can even rewind to before you fell into that gaping pit of sparkling spikes. This feature makes puzzles that would be impossible in a conventional platformer laughably simple. Each stage either changes the rules of time manipulation or gives you a new ability to work with. Otherwise, they’re all very similar in purpose: Use your ability to muck with time to collect puzzles pieces and open various doors with ludicrously fragile keys, all in the hopes of finding your princess.

The story contradicts itself a few times, but is so open to interpretation, that it really doesn’t matter. Just when you think you’ve figured out who the Princess is, or that she may not be in the castle that you’re heading towards, you’re thrown for a loop. I’ve pieced together a handful of possible explinations, half of which seem to be completely and utterly different from what most forum-goers think. I’ll refrain from giving anything away in this review because I do think that everyone should experience the “Huh, but I thought he…” feeling that I went through playing this game. Most people won’t give a damn though, if for no other reason than the fact that what you’re seeing and hearing are so damned beautiful that it doesn’t matter what they’re trying to get you to read.

Braid is a gorgeous game. If you’ve ever wanted to walkthrough a watercolor painting, this is your chance. It brings back memories of What Dreams May Come’s visuals of heaven: Brush strokes and deep textures that help bring the levels to life. The soundtrack fits with it perfectly, each song matching the tone of it’s corresponding level.

There are a few flaws, but nothing bad enough to warrant skipping out on this incredible game. I know that if you’re reading this review, you’ve probably read or watched a dozen others with that same sentiment. It’s for a reason. Braid is well worth its fifteen dollar price tag, it’s lack of replay value or multiplayer is moot when you take into consideration what this game is trying to do. It’s giving the player something new, exciting and fun. It’s not rehashing a popular game and cranking out a profit from the mindless bastards that care for nothing more than headshots. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good mindless explosion fest, but for every Halo we need a Bioshock. This indie title is a good start. With any luck, it’s success will fuel more innovation than imitation.

A Half-Assed Psuedo Review

Last night, a few friends and I checked out this bar called “Titanic Restaurant and Brewery.” After a few minutes of getting acclimated to the college bar atmosphere and greeting a friends brother, we sat down inthe nautically themed dining area and ordered ourselves some micro-brewed goodness.

I don’t think that I’ve ever had a beer as good as the one that I had last night. Everything about it was incredible, it was as if they had tapped god’s keg and served us all pints of liquid brown gold. It was some seriously good beer. After realizing that I could only afford the one, having left all forms of money at home, I decided that I’d take in the sites and sounds. The bar itself was pretty nice. There were a good amount of people that were having friendly conversation and the live band that was playing, Mongo, wasn’t all that bad. They were only allowed to play covers, but considering that they went from Weezer to Pink Floyd to The Rolling Stones nearly seamlessly, I’ll say that they’re well worth a listen.

After a few hours of that, we headed back to my friends house and caught the most appropriate movie possible, Beerfest. After spending the entire 40 minute ride home thinking about how I could manage a career in professional beer drinking, I spent the rest of the night avoiding this blog and all the work I need to turn in for the comic. All in all, it was a pretty good night. There were a lot of great jokes that I, sadly cannot recall, but I’ll be sure to write them down next time.

Because I completely forgot to bring my camera with me last night, I will instead provide a picture of something that has nothing to do with the subject at hand. Still think it’s cool though.