The Pen of Caleb - Reviews of Books, DVDs, and Games

I have just finished watching a must-see web tv production: Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. This is a 42-ish minute long opera comedy created by Joss Whedon and starring Neil Patrick Harris, Nathan Fillion, and Felicia Day. This is billed as a comedy musical — and it is funny — but there’s so much more to it. It has real, human depth.

This show is beautifully written, acted, and scored. This isn’t some YouTube video (not that there’s anything wrong with that) thrown together by a college kid. This production has all the elements of an hour-long dramatic TV show. It rivals primetime television on all levels. And it’s better than most of what’s on TV now.

You seriously need to watch this.

Watch it. Then tell all your friends and family about it. Tell everyone you know, because we need more quality entertainment like this. Here’s the link again — watch it and enjoy:

Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog

I just downloaded and played one fun demo on my PS3. It’s called Monster Madness. I’m going to have to buy this game.

I’m kind of a sucker for monster games as it is, but when you throw in a comic book feel, co-op play, and the feeling you get when you mix Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the original Gauntlet, we have a winner. The demo is fun. You pick one of the four characters — I chose Zack — and you run through the town and park dispatching monsters, zombies, and evil grandmas. Good times.

There is also online play and challenges, which are like mini games. The demo lets you connect to an online game, which surprised me. I was able to connect to a game, but the host killed it after only a few seconds. Now there aren’t any games to join, so I’ll just have to try later.

I also played the Suburban Warfare challenge, and it is super fun. You have to kill all kinds of monsters, and I’m doing it with a Gatling nail gun. It’ just cool. I’m playing with the same character I chose for the single player game, so I don’t know if you can choose other characters to use or not. I didn’t try.

I’m going to get back to playing this demo now. And then I’m going to have to buy it. Here’s a link to the game so you can pick it up:

Today I watched a great movie: The Forbidden Kingdom. Kung Fu, action, fantasy, Jackie Chan and Jet Li…you don’t get much better than that.

This movie is has a great story, great characters (portrayed by great actors), great special effects, and awesome action. I’m not going to go into the details here, because I don’t want to ruin anything. You just need to buy it right now and experience it yourself. It’s worth it. Here are links to the DVD and Blu-Ray versions:

DVD - The Forbidden Kingdom (Two-Disc Special Edition + Digital Copy)

Blu-Ray - The Forbidden Kingdom (2-Disc Special Edition) [Blu-ray]

This is just amazing!

Want to enjoy movies no matter how bad they are? Here is my fool-proof system for enjoying those poorly made Saturday afternoon movies.

Step 1) Get off your high horse. Seriously, could you do any better?
Step 2) It’s just a movie. Some are good, some are not.
Step 3) Sit comfortably.
Step 4) Let yourself get caught up in the story.
Step 5) Enjoy.
Step 6) Pat yourself on the back for successfully dismounting the silly horse.

Now you know. Go watch some movies.

Over the past two evenings, I have watched two movies you have just got to see.

You Don’t Mess with the Zohan

and

The Happening

I’ll write reviews of both movies later.

If you are looking for a funny podcast to get you through your dreary work day, grab Smodcast. It’s Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier, Writer/Director (Kevin) and Producer (Scott) of: Clerks, Mall Rats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Jersey Girl, Clerks 2, and now Zack and Miri Make a Porno.

I’ve always thought these guys were mad geniuses with the movie-making, but it seems that they are also mad geniuses at life. Or maybe just at talking.

From their slightly topical banter to their ever-enlightening and hilarious guests, this podcast is funny. Walt is probably my favorite guest host, but I also enjoy the others. If you need something funny to get you through a rough Monday (new smods are usually published Sunday evening), get this.

Here is the link to the most recent smodcast:

Smodcast

I recommend subscribing to the podcast in iTunes, then download all the episodes, and listen to them in chronological order. It’s worth the time and effort.

Wow. Go watch this trailer:

Tokyo Gore Police

It’s gory. And it’s in Tokyo. And there are cops. Looks like an independent cult flick, and I’m going to have to track this exaggeratefest down.

The Office does it again! This is another must-have DVD. A set, actually. It’s a set of four DVDs. This season is hilarious, well-written, and even has some touching moments to it.

22 episodes await your enjoyment, including three hour-longs. I don’t know which show is my favorite. The season finale is great, but so is the episode right before it. Then there’s the first one, “Gay Witch Hunt,” and it’s just hilarious. In the fifth episode, Dwight takes Ryan out for some sales training… and you can just imagine how that goes.

Not only do you get all of the episodes, but this DVD set is packed with special features. Here’s what is listed:

• Deleted scenes
• Episode commentaries
• Excerpts of NBC special hosted by the cast of The Office
• Toby Wraparounds
• Dwight Schrute music video
• Blooper reel
• and more that I’m not going to type

Oh, and I forgot to mention Andy. His character is just great.

Buy the DVD. It’s worth it. Here:

I’m a fan of good movies, and this is one good movie. But before you pick up Sweeney Todd, there’s one thing you have to know. It’s a musical. Don’t let that scare you off. Musicals aren’t a big thing any more (I think they were in the 60s or something, but I wasn’t alive back then), but this one is definitely worth your time.

Another great from Tim Burton, in my opinion. The imagery, use of color, costumes, and everything else about this film is great. It’s classic Tim Burton styling, but it’s still fresh. The funny thing about Tim Burton is that even though you can tell a movie is his by the visual style of it, his movies don’t follow some cookie-cutter pattern. His movies do have very similar visual elements, but they are in no way the same. Sweeney Todd is a well-made and well-directed film. Visually, it’s stunning.

Then, of course, there are the actors. Johnny Depp stars as Sweeney Todd  (AKA Benjamin Barker), and he just knocks this role out. I’ve always been a fan of Johnny Depp — he’s done such great work in different roles over the years. He’s not a cookie-cutter actor, which is perfect for a Tim Burton film. And don’t forget they’ve worked together on other movies, too.

Next is Helena Bonham Carter, who I first saw in Hamlet (the one with Mel Gibson). I haven’t followed her career, so I can’t tell you what all she’s been in. But she’s great at what she does, and one of my favorite roles of her’s is from Fight Club. I might have to rethink that after seeing her performance in Sweeney Todd. It’s good.

Alan Rickman plays the bad guy — the bad guy who is a corrupt official and not a demon barber. You might remember Alan Rickman from movies such as Dogma, Die Hard, or maybe the Harry Potter films. His character is the goal in this movie, so he’s fairly central to the story. He sings. Alan Rickman sings in this movie. It’s great.

There are many other actors and many great scenes in this film. If you are a fan of being entertained, you need to see this. Check it out, buy it, enjoy it.