Gone Too Soon, Robin Williams!
It has been a minute. I have been out of the mix, out of the loop, and possibly out of my mind! Well; maybe, maybe not. Who is to say. There is so much going on right now, and I had several topics that I wanted to blog about. Yet, there has been a seeming explosion of news today that merits discussion; I feel a need to express my emotions through this computer!
First, I am at a state of despair, disdain, disbelief, at the loss of an icon! Mr. Robin Williams died today! At age 63, Robin Williams was found dead in his home from an apparent suicide, of all things! Unbelievably, he was suffering from some level of depression! You just NEVER KNOW what someone else is TRULY going through!
Williams’ death is especially upsetting to me because I view him as an icon! I got in touch with Williams as a child by occasional viewings of him in Mork and Mindy during my childhood. Yet, it was his role in The Birdcage that truly captured my attention to the essence of his awesome theatrical talent, while at the same time assisting me with viewing myself. From that point, I continued with viewing Williams in his works in cinema and on television, while thoroughly being delighted by all of it!
They are saying that it was around noon, Pacific Standard Time, when police officers arrived at Williams’ home. It was at that point when the officers discovered his lifeless body, and medics were summoned to recover him. He was later taken to an area hospital, where he was officially pronounced as dead from asphyxiation, drug overdose.
Joy Behar is being interviewed by telephone now, regarding her memories of Robin Williams. C.N.N. has gone into a clip from his role in the Academy Award-winning film Good Will Hunting. Williams has had roles in so many movies that have captivated audiences for decades, and has literally made fans out of millions of people around the planet!
Now, after the fact, reporters are saying that Robin Williams was suffering from addiction and depression. My question would be, “where was everyone when it might have been even slightly suspected that Robin was having the least of issues?” Did no one give a damn that he might do something even mildly drastic before it would get to the point that the man would KILL HIMSELF!?!? Where are people when you truly need them?
Well, we all have to go some time, one way or another, sad, but true. Indeed, it is sad, very sad that Robin Williams killed himself. I was/am especially distraught because I found him to be an icon. Williams was intelligent, humorous, globally savvy, ecologically aware, and indeed someone to which I had no problem with idolizing. Yes, he had his problems, he had his issues, but who does not? I would have to wonder about out of all of his Hollywood friends and associates, did no one notice that Robin was having issues and problems that might have needed intervention, or may have required some form of help that could have prevented this?
Robin McLaurin Williams was born July 21, 1951 in Chicago, Illinois. He had been married three times, the last of whom was his widow, Susan Schneider. He has three children. Rest in peace, Robin!
SEE THESE SITES!!!
http://news.yahoo.com/robim-williams-manic-comedy-star-dead-63-232616625.html
http://robinwilliams.tumblr.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Williams_filmography
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/celeb-news/robin-williams-dead-of-apparent-suicide-at-63-231414092.html
The Wolverine Is A WOW!
Like so many X-Men fanatics, I had been eagerly anticipating my chance to see the film The Wolverine! I was glad when the day arrived for which I had made plans to be at my regular theater to view the film, and I saw that I was not alone in my eagerness for this adventure. This recent release to the Marvel Comics franchise certainly stabbed at entries of expectation!
The movie begins with a pre-adamantium Logan (Hugh Jackman) in Japan, during World War II. He is at Hiroshima at the time of the dropping of the atomic bomb. Logan is in an area where he suffers the effects of the blast, as we see his flesh boiled from his body, yet regenerated time and time again due to his mutant healing capacity.
He escapes the area of the blast, getting to a place where he can rest. During this time, he imagines Jean Grey (Famke Jannsen), and the images become frightening. Logan leaves, walking into the woods, then to a gas station. He sees men at this gas station who have a dead bear on their vehicle, and this bear was friendly to Logan while he was in the woods. An altercation ensues, a Logan asks about the killed bear, the men get snide with him, and one man even strikes at Logan!
An altercation breaks out, yet Logan sees a girl. He is hit, but he breaks free from the fight, getting away with the girl. She is identified as Ariyako, and she means to give Logan a sword from Master Yashida (Hal Yamanouchi). He also wants Logan to fly to Japan, yet Logan does not want to go. Ariyako ends up convincing Logan to take the trip to Japan.
They arrive in the eastern nation, getting to the residence of Master Yashida. Logan still is ragged from previous fights, so he is taken to be cleaned by caretakers within Yashida’s home. Once refreshed, he is taken to a lab, where a doctor offers Logan the chance to be freed of his seeming immortality. This doctor wants Logan’s power in order to protect his granddaughter Mariko (Tao Okamato) from attacking Yakuza gangsters!
Logan again finds himself dreaming of Jean. He is interrupted by the leader of a Japanese fighting group with which he had prior affiliations. This person thought that Logan was dead. However, Logan and this man go on to attend the funeral of Master Yashida. The ceremony is interrupted, and gunfire erupts! Another mutant attacks Logan, as Yakuza attempt to get hold of Mariko. As some Yakuza run away, Logan is stabbed by sword through his abdomen, yet he chases his attackers! Mariko has been separated from him.
Mariko gets onto a speeding train, as Logan follows her, with Yakuza trailing them! Logan remains injured, yet he moves through the cars of the train, followed by sword-wielding attackers. He and Mariko both are chased and attacked, as a fight ensues through the cars, with Logan stabbing Yakuza as the train took them to a stop at a hotel station. There, both of them got out, checking into a room overnight.
Logan acts as a sentry outside while Mariko sleeps that night. He has images of Jean, and he collapses from being hurt during the prior fight with the Yakuza. He wakes up to see that his healing capacity remains lost, yet he has been stitched by a worker of the motel in which they have been resting, who happens to be a veterinarian! Yet, the villains Harada and Viper (Svetlana Khodchenkova) have connected, and Viper now is after Logan and Mariko!
Once they have reached Nagasaki, Logan and Mariko are growing fond of one another. He tells her of his past, as she has images of Logan dying. Mariko wants to tell Logan about these visions, yet she does not get the chance to do so. Mariko is caught, surprisingly by a kidnapper who was ordered to do so by her own father!
Later, Shingen tells the other members of Yashida Corporation that Mariko has departed the business empire. He means to kill her when his Black Ninjas arrive with Viper! However, Harada saves Mariko, as Viper poisons Shingen!
Logan gets to Yashida Corporation headquarters, where he gets hold of medical tools to remove the parasite that has been responsible for the attempted elimination of his mutant powers. He later fights Shingen, who is in the midst of trying to kill Yukio. He kills Shingen, then goes with Yukio to go after Harada and Viper. As they reach a research center where the enemies are at, Logan is attacked and caught by Harada!
Viper has Logan put into a machine that can remove his capacity for immortality. She lets him meet Silver Samurai, who was a super-heated, Adamantium sword! Yet, Mariko gets free to assist Logan, breaking Silver Samurai’s sword! Harada has a change of heart while in battle, opting to help Logan to escape, yet he gets killed by Silver Samurai. Yukio overcomes Viper by hanging her!
Logan gets into a death fight with Silver Samurai! He ends up having his Adamantium claws cut off, and his powers of immortality being taken away from him. Silver Samurai then shows himself to be Yashida, having faked his death all along. Yet, Mariko steps in, stabbing Yashida with Logan’s cut-off claws, and letting Logan toss Yashida over a cliff! As Logan passes out unconscious, he hallucinates of Jean Grey, seeming to move beyond her dying. Mariko does go onto become the C.E.O. of Yashida Corporation, while Yukio remains with Logan as his bodyguard, as they travel to locations yet to be revealed!
After the credits, we see that Logan returns to The U.S. two years later, and he is approached by Magneto (Sir Ian McKellan)! The lord of magnetism allegedly needs The Wolverine’s assistance with combating a new threat against mutants that means to attempt total mutant extermination! As Logan questions why he should trust Magneto, Professor X (Patrick Stewart) arrives! As Logan asks how it is that Charles is alive, The Professor pointedly reminds him that he is not the only one with gifts! MORE IS TO COME!!!!
Of course, more films always are around the way! Next week has Mark Wahlberg and Denzel Washington in 2 Guns! More of August is exciting with other eagerly-awaited films! These include Afternoon Delight, The Butler, Elysium, Kick Ass 2, and The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones!
Deep-Sea Monsters At the Movies!
Friday is film day! Only one movie made the cut for us today, though we could have caught a second film. Actually, after seeing the movie that we did see, we probably would have seen the other movie instead! No matter; we saw what we saw!
Our feature film for this week was Pacific Rim! The film begins with the display of an ancient rift beneath the sea floor of The Pacific Ocean. It is from this breach of the ground that enormous creatures called Kaiju arise and attack! Nations of the world immediately band together in response, creating a pact that will allow their militaries to unite for the purpose of battling the marine monsters.
Extreme and enormous robots called Jaegers are created to battle the Kaiju. The Jaegers begin fighting the Kaiju at first, yet they come to a stand-off against the monsters. Fighters Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam), Yancy Becket (Diego Klattenhoff), and Mako Maori (Rinko Kikuchi) are returning to the military program to train as pilots for the Jaegers. They have an initially disastrous test run of the Jaegers, yet the team is forced to regroup. Hong Kong has been destroyed by the Kaiju, and the forces are needed now!
Dr. Newton Geizler (Charlie Day) has been experimenting with mechanical technology and mental advancement. He has been testing with links to the brain and potential devices to enhance mental capacity. In his fervor to create more works, Dr. Geizler sneaks the assistance of black market operator Hannibal Chau (Ron Perlman) to deliver more kaiju brain materials. Chau is critical of Geizler’s efforts, yet he does opt to go ahead with getting the brain materials from the Kaiju monsters. Yet, this is a fatal move for Chau, as he is killed in this operation!
Kaiju advance toward Hong Kong, attacking it! China has the assistance of Australia and Russia to defend it against the monsters, but their forces are destroyed quickly by the Kaiju. The Jaegers controlled by Mako and Raleigh manage to stop the attack!
Dr. Geizler has completed an experiment that allowed him to access the Kaiju brain. It was a nearly deadly test, yet Dr. Geizler learned that the Kaiju really are biological machines sent from another world. They are being used by their alien hosts as some manners of a step-one colonization plan!
As Dr. Geizler’s experiment became expansive, it drew the attention of Kaiju at their home world! More arrived at Earth, proceeding to Hong Kong to find Dr. Geizler. As one Kaiju is seen by Geizler, it is revealed to be pregnant. It dies, then it’s baby attacks Hannibal Chau and his attack forces. After eating Chau, the newborn Kaiju then dies before it can do any more damage!
Dr. Geizler and a colleague enter the dead Kaiju’s brain, where they discover a portal that allowed passage from the alien world to Earth. Jaeger machines are gathered, and a nuclear device is prepared for one to be deployed undersea. As Jaegers prepare to submerge for placement of the bomb, Geizler and Gottleib discover and underwater portal which allows the passage of only Kaiju!
Combative forces gather to battle the Kaiju. A nuclear bomb is made to destroy them once and for all. A risky mission is embarked upon to enter the undersea portal, yet Kaiju emerge to attack! One of the Kaiju is the biggest one that has been seen yet, and the human forces end up detonating bombs, killing themselves to destroy the Kaiju before they can reach the surface!
At the end, Raleigh and Mako get hold of a kaiju carcass, which they use to get through the wormhole. They enter the Kaiju dimension, where Raleigh creates a nuclear bomb. It explodes as he and Mako escape!
Next week has six features that plan to pull people to the big screens! The big films include The Conjuring (Vera Farmiga, Ron Livingston, Lili Taylor, Patrick Wilson), Girl Most Likely (Annette Benning, Darren Criss, Matt Dillon, Kristen Wiig), Only God Forgives (Ryan Gosling, Vithaya Pansringarm, Yayaying Rhatha Phongham, Kristin Scott Thomas) Red 2 (Anthony Hopkins, John Malkovich, Helen Mirren, Bruce Willis), R.I.P.D. (Kevin Bacon, Jeff Bridges, Mary-Louise Parker, Ryan Reynolds), and Turbo (voices of Paul Giamatti, Samuel L. Jackson, Ryan Reynolds, and Maya Rudolph). We will pick the two that seem the best for that day!
Of course, some can be saved for the following Friday! Several movies will premiere that week, yet only one will be on the must-see list. The highly-anticipated The Wolverine opens Friday, July 26! That same day sees the openings of Blue Jasmine and The To Do List! That will wrap up July 2013 movie releases!
I was peepin’ in some mirrors…..
Comedic Calamity & A Satisfying Superman!
This was one of those Fridays that we had been anticipating for a while! It actually was a two-film treat, with one movie that was something of a comedic surprise, and the second being the blockbuster that we were yearning to watch for months! I will say that I was happy with this evening at our area theater!
We actually started with This Is The End! A witty film that features some of the currently leading comedic actors, the movie opens with Seth Rogen and Danny McBride getting together to hang out. They hang out for a minute, then Seth hooks up with Jay Pharaoh to harvest their weed stock. They proceed to talk about committing more mischief, yet Jay is not interested.
The group gets to James Franco’s house, where party activity is happening. Rihanna happened to be there, and she bitch-slapped some guy! Jonah was playing with some Spaniel dog that did not know how to bark, while most of the others basically were talking shit. Other mischief occurs, then the group proceeds to serenade the girls at the party with their song “Take Fur Panties Off”!
As the madness continues, there suddenly is a giant quake! Blue beams blast downward from the sky, and people are lifted away by them! Cars begin to race and collide, as explosions occur, and the group gets back to James Franco’s house. No one there knows what has happened, as Jay tries to describe what he saw. Suddenly, there is another quake, so all of them run out of the house, which now is aflame!
Several celebrities have run outside. The ground has split open, sucking in one guy, then Rihanna! Kevin Hart and a few others fall into a hole in the ground. Jay Pharaoh runs inside, turning on the television, where information is broadcast that a 9.7 quake has occurred in Los Angeles!
Suddenly, a helicopter crashes outside of the house, and a propeller strikes one of James Franco’s family paintings. James Franco and Jonah Hill go outside, running amok. The group takes in what has turned out to be an evening of chaos, then they go inside to go to bed for the night!
As morning arrives, James Franco awakens, as Danny has cooked breakfast. He did not know what happened the night before, thinking it all was a joke. Suddenly, a strange man breaks into the yard, and the group argues about letting him inside. The man is decapitated, and his head rolls inside of the house! Now, everyone wants to know what is going on, so the group goes outdoors to see that Los Angeles has been set on fire!
James Franco video-records the scene, as Jay Baruchel and Jonah Hill declare that The Apocalypse has arrived! They decide to have a get-high party, going indoors to jam to Gangnam Style! The group proceeds to smoke weed and to come up with silly ideas, when Emma Watson suddenly breaks into the house! She tells them that a zombie invasion has occurred!
Later, Emma is asleep, and the guys discuss flying the helicopter outside. Someone needs to go to get supplies without being caught by the zombies. Craig Robinson is elected to do this, and he does make it to a store to retrieve water. As he gets the water, something chases him! Craig runs, and the group now has no goods, with some creature outside of the house!
The group decides to dig through the floor to get to underground water. Meanwhile, Danny leaves, as Seth and Jay wind up hanging onto the remains of the floor that has collapsed into the ground below. Two barrels of water are salvaged. Yet, Danny returns, becoming reckless and irresponsible, as he wastes supplies and becomes selfish. The group decides to vote him out of the house, yet they give into weaker feelings, letting him stay!
Danny shows that he can cook, so they opt to keep him secured by putting him in the freezer! The day progresses into night, as Craig and Jonah decide to go looking for more supplies. While they are out, Jonah winds up being sexually assaulted by a demon, then finding himself possessed! He now has super strength, as he goes after James and Seth! The group manages to grab hold of Jonah to perform an exorcism, but a fire breaks out which burns down the house, and burns up Jonah!
Craig now decides to volunteer himself for sacrifice, allowing the group to escape an attacking demon. Craig winds up being taken into Heaven because of this good deed, so James decides to give himself up to cannibals to help the others escape. This works, at first, but James gets cocky, teasing the demonic cannibals because he is getting away. The light to Heaven suddenly vanishes, leaving James behind on Earth to be taken by the cannibals!
The Devil arrives, about to eat Jay and Seth! The two hug one another, rekindling their friendship. The Light of Heaven shines down to claim Jay, but being with Seth will not allow him to ascend! This prompts Seth to sacrifice himself to Satan, which allows Jay to get away, and also earns redemption for Seth!
At the end, Jay and Seth get to The Pearly Gates. Craig is there already, letting them inside to Heaven. There, Jay makes a wish that The Backstreet Boys would reunite (???). It all ends with a divine dance setting, as The Backstreet Boys perform Everybody!
The second feature was the eagerly-anticipated Man of Steel! It begins on Planet Krypton, with Lara Lor-Van (Ayelet Zurer) enduring an intense labor. A male child is born, as the planet is collapsing from it’s core!
General Zod (Michael Shannon) is leading Krypton’s ruling council, through which Jor-El (Russell Crowe) has been taken prisoner. A fight emerges, and Jor-El manages to get free. The planet now is at war, as Jor-El hurries to a secret chamber to get hold of The Codex. Zod tries to steal this from Jor-El, yet Jor-El escapes!
The Codex has information about a distant and habitable world to which he can send his infant son, Kal-El. It is urgent that Kal-El reach ths world, as Jor-El and Lara Lor-Van place Kal-El into this pod, labeled with the S symbol.
Zod enters the chamber, as the pod is about to launch. He means to destroy the pod, as to destroy all traces of Jor-El. Kal-El is managed to be launched into space, yet Zod kills Jor-El! He then promises to find Kal-El, yet he is captured, and he is imprisoned for the murder of Jor-El. Moments later, Planet Krypton is incensed, then destroyed by it’s expanding, red-giant star! Baby Kal-El’s pod is thrust away from Krypton, as it later enters our solar system, hurtling past Saturn, and racing toward Earth.
A baby is taken in by The Kents, Jonathan (Kevin Costner) and Martha (Diane Lane) of Smallville. He is raised as Clark. It is his human mother, Martha, who teaches Clark to stabilize his powers, as they create feelings of confusion and pain for him, at first. As Clark ages into teen years, Jonathan tells him that he truly is from another planet. He comforts Clark, yet encourages him not to use his powers in front of people, as society is not ready for him.
A powerful storm that produced a tornado struck Smallville. The effects of the storm lead to Jonathan’s death. After grieving for his human father, and with his human mother’s blessing, Clark leaves to wander the nation. He lives in secrecy for years, later finding a secret capsule from Krypton. It has a device inside of it that allows a communication with the hologram-spirit of his father. It just happens that a snooping reporter from Metropolis named Lois Lane (Amy Adams) came across this capsule, also. She is nearly injured while trying to get into it, yet Clark rescues her with his super-human capabilities!
Shocked by what has happened, Lois returns to Metropolis, and to The Daily Planet. She means to write a story about this super human who saved her life. However, the newspaper’s editor, Perry White (Laurence Fishburne) rejects her drafts!
General Zod voyages to Earth, tracing the scout ship in which Kal-El was placed. He demands to the people of Earth that Kal-El surrender to him, or they will suffer his wrath! Clark turns himself into The U.S. Armed Forces, as they proceed to give him to Zod! Zod then proceeds to reveal plans to convert Earth into a world more akin to Krypton through the use of an engine device that works with his space vessel. It will eliminate all of Earth’s people, making it clear for Zod to repopulate the planet with Kryptonians that have been engineered by the use of the codex stored within Clark’s cellular structure!
It is back at Smallville where Clark confronts Faora-Ul (Antje Traue). He is able to stop this assistant to Zod from proceeding with plans to convert Earth into a Krypton-like planet by surrendering to The U.S. Army, who are forced to turn him over to Faora-Ul! Clark and Lois are turned over to Zod and his forces, yet they get free by using an image of Jor-El that Clark downloaded into Zod’s main computer. This programming confusion leads to an attack from Krypton’s forces onto Earth, with The U.S. Army responding intensely! Clark appears as Superman, convincing The U.S. Armed Forces that he is their ally. Yet, Zod means to get hold of the codex, which is within Clark’s genetic code, and he releases a vessel over The Indian Ocean to begin an attack!
Superman now has Lois at his side, as they speak with U.S. Armed Forces. They give details from Jor-El’s computer program that set an attack against Zod’s vessel. A wormhole is opened slightly above Earth, which consumes Zod’s ship and his minions!
Superman returns to The Indian Ocean to shut down the engine that was starting to transform Earth into a Krypton-like world! Then, he races back to Metropolis to engage Zod in battle, as the villainous general uses powers equivalent to Superman’s. The Man of Steel ends up killing General Zod in order to save people from the general’s wicked wrath! Nearly succumbing to pain of emotion from having to kill, Superman is comforted by Lois Lane. He chooses to pick himself up, resuming a life as Clark Kent, living with the secrecy of Superman to protect humanity when needed!
Next week, we get to check out Brad Pitt in an all-out battle against zombies! The fate of the world will be at stake as he leads heroic human forces to save the planet in World War Z! The same day will have Monsters University, as June will close out with The Heat and White House Down!
Beam Me Up For This One!
We had been waiting for several months to see Star Trek: Into Darkness! I am probably something of a genetic Trekkie (Trekker???), as my mother was a Trek-fiend before I was born, and I was plunged deep into the realm of Star Trek all throughout childhood. I am into all of the series, all of the films, all of the characters, and what-not. I just love it… but anyhow…
The film opens with Spock (Zachary Quinto) inside of an erupting volcano, attempting to save this alien world from it’s eruption. He is beamed out just before a massive eruption takes hold of him. We go to San Francisco, where StarFleet Headquarters is stationed. Kirk and Spock are interviewed by an admiral for prior actions which may cost them penalties. Indeed, Kirk is losing command of The Enterprise for actions unfit of a commanding officer!
The scene switches to London, where young medical officers are testing specimens. Lucille Harewood (Anjini Taneja Azhar) is being treated medically. Meanwhile, Admiral Marcus (Peter Weller) tried to test some results, and he blew up a building!
James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) is in a bar, now learning that he is to be a first officer, and he is to serve in conjunction with Spock, beneath his admired Captain. He gets information that he has to report to this ship to serve, as the fleet has to prepare for battle. War has been declared, as a Commander Harewood has declared war against Starfleet!
Kirk has information about Commander Harewood’s vessel to disable it. Spock has to rush to get the information to transmission before Harewood can fire on Kirk, stopping him from counter-attack. Also, Scotty gets details about Commander Harewood to stop him, which forces the traitorous officer to flee to The Klingon Homeworld!
Kirk decides to follow the traitor, yet he cannot attack the enemy vessel in Klingon space. Spock, Sulu (John Cho), and Uhura (Zoe Saldana) are with him. Their mission is to return Harewood to justice for the murder of Captain Chris Pike, the original Captain of The Enterprise. However, they are having trouble capturing Pike, as their shuttle suddenly has broken down in Klingon space!
Kirk, Spock, and Uhura went to The Klingon Homeworld, with Sulu aboard The Enterprise as Acting Captain. As Kirk, Spock, and Uhura were flying downward, they were attacked by three Klingon ships. They had to surrender, with Uhura negotiating terms because she speaks Klingon! As she accepted their terms, she negotiated for their release.
Amid all of the happenings, Commander Harewood reappeared. He is attempting to sway information from Kirk while Kirk is trying to negotiate with The Klingons for the release of his crewmen. Kirk has Scotty working with the daughter of Admiral Marcus to prepare torpedoes for firing immediately!
Admiral Marcus goes with Dr. Mc Coy (Karl Urban) to the surface to place the missile. Mc Coy accidentally traps his left hand inside of the missile’s key pad. When they manage to open the pad to get his hand out, they see an alien body inside of the missile! They have no idea how it got there, what it is, or anything about it!
Bones and Admiral Marcus get back to The Enterprise. They note that the body held inside the missile was that of a three-hundred year-old creature! It is revived, and it identifies itself as Kahn (Benedict Cumberbatch)! Kahn proceeds to explain his situation to Marcus, Bones, Kirk, and Spock, as an approaching ship appears. Yet, Admiral Marcus claims to take Kahn into custody, taking him with his crew!
Admiral Marcus’ ship warps to Earth. It fires on The Enterprise, yet his daughter is aboard the ship. The Enterprise is set for self-destruct now, in an attempt to get the admiral to stop his attack through a cat and mouse game. The Admiral now knows that his daughter is aboard The Enterprise, and she will not beam back to his ship unless he stands down with is attack!
Kirk now works with with Starfleet Command to place Admiral Marcus under arrest. Before he could be taken in, he breaks loose, knocking down his own daughter, stunning other officers, and getting his hands onto a grenade to detonate it! The Enterprise is shaken, and it is shuffled sideways. The ship loses power, and it buckles sideways, succumbing to Earth’s gravity!
Kirk and Scotty try to get The Enterprise functional, as Kirk winds up sucker-punching Scotty to get him out of the ship safely, so that he can land The Enterprise without any losses. Kirk does manage to save The Enterprise, getting the warpdrive back online, as Spock rushes to engineering to see that Kirk is trapped in the radiation chamber (it is a reverse scene from Star Trek II…).
Kirk passes out in the radiation chamber as The Enterprise crashes in San Francisco Bay. Spock swam to the coast of San Francisco, then chasing Kahn into the downtown area. They reached a lauching pad, fighting.
Mc Coy worked to revive Kirk with cryogenic technology. Kahn was needed to be alive, so that he could be taken back to The Enterprise lab for his cells. The regenerative properties of his genetic faculties had the capacity to provide the necessary regenerative capabilities needed to bring Kirk back to stability!
Next week has the animation of Epic, featuring the voices of Beyonce Knowles, Josh Hutcherson, Colin Ferrell, and Amanda Seyfried! Also, Fast & Furious 6 and The Hangover Part III will premiere next weekend! The following weekend, the last weekend of May, will bring the excitement of After Earth and Shadow Dancer!
Candice Wins Season 12!
I went ahead and watched the finale of American Idol Season Twelve. I had been watching it sporadically this season, so I was more or less familiar with the contestants, and I have submitted prior blog entries about some of the shows. Ehh…
Candice Glover won! That is for the best, as she is the best singer out of what remains. I suppose that she was the best singer of the contestants that did wrangle through the contest. Indeed, this year did prove to be a year for the females, as all of the young ladies had much stronger singing voices than the young men!
It came down to the final sing-off between Candice and Kree Harrison. Both young ladies presented their A-games, singing at their top levels. Yet, at the end, twenty-three year-old Candice Glover emerged as the champion of American Idol Season 12! Congratulations!
SEE THESE SITES!!!
http://www.eonline.com/news/american_idol/videos
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/american-idol
http://news.yahoo.com/american-idol-season-12-winner-023731075.html
http://au.ibtimes.com/…/american-idol-2013…winner-candice.htm
http://www.celebuzz.com/…/candice-glover-wins-american-idol
Iron Man 3 Rocks!
Oh, we were waiting to see this movie, and I am glad to say that we were NOT disappointed! I am excited that all of the comic feature heroes are being brought to the big screen, and that they are having continued success. The Marvel Comics adventures always were entertaining, and the current conversions of the tales to cinematic adventures has been extremely amazing. The Iron Man series is NO exception!
“A famous man once said we create our own demons”. Iron Man 3 begins with Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) giving a speech at a massive New Year’s gala in Bern, Switzerland. The story moves to Tony in Malibu, California, where he is advancing his Iron Man suits. Suddenly, a news update shows that a terrorist has attacked Kuwait, killing many people, including children!
A sadistic villain called The Mandarin has launched a terrorist attack. Iron Man has promised to deal with the situation, seeking the assistance of his heroic friend Colonel James Rhodes (Don Cheadle). Colonel Rhodes now assists Iron Man as an iron-suited super hero called Iron Patriot (War Machine)! Both heroes vow to respond immediately, as bombings have occurred at the hands of The Mandarin!
Tony’s girlfriend, Pepper Potts (Gwenneth Paltrow) is running his facility while Tony is away. Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) has arrived there to meet with her. He is a scientist, currently in the midst of mapping the bio-electrical activity of the human brain. Pepper is not exactly fond of, nor pleased by the sight of Killian, as he tries to recruit her into being a test subject for his scientific testings!
Pepper returns to her home with Tony, where he is testing new Iron Man armored suits. As they are about to be married, Tony actually spied on Pepper as Killian tried to hit on her! It is later that Tony tells this to Pepper, admitting that he is having some emotional issues. When they go to bed for the evening, one of Tony’s armored suits activates, advancing toward Pepper as she sleeps!
Pepper awakens, calms herself, then she goes downstairs. Noise is heard outside, as it is seen that two men are fighting in the street. One of the fighters reveals himself to be extremely powerful, as the other man explodes! The victorious man announces himself as The Mandarin (Sir Ben Kingsley), and that he is on a mission of terror with another action soon to come!
Colonel Rhodes was injured in a previous battle against The Mandarin, and Tony visits him in the hospital. It is there where Tony announces that he will battle The Mandarin. Tony proceeds to get covert information from The F.B.I. and from S.H.I.E.L.D. about the tactics of The Mandarin. He studies residue from bombs that Mandarin has deployed, along with details from prior attack locations. The details lead Tony to Rose Hill, Tennessee.
Tony and Pepper are at his home when a bomb advances toward his residence! His living room is blown up, and helicopters arrive, launching missiles! Pepper attempts getting into an Iron Man suit to help, as Tony runs to get into his own suit. The house still is under fire, and the copters have launched missiles directly into Tony’s mansion. He winds up being dragged into falling debris from his declining home, sinking into the ocean waters beside the mansion’s plot. Tony is buried under water and rubble, yet he manages to get himself free.
Now, within a fully-charged iron suit, Tony flies back to Tennessee. The suit is somewhat damaged, as he crashes into water, and he ends up being dragged to shore by a Texaco hauler ship. Night has fallen; Tony contacts Pepper to leave her a message. He takes his damaged iron suit to a nearby home, getting the unusual assistance of an inquisitive young boy named Harley (Ty Simkins)!
Pepper has Tony’s Iron Man suit and helmet, now! She puts them on, downloading Tony’s last message. She learns that Adrian Killian has been behind the attacks on Tony, and that Adrian is in cohoots with The Mandarin!
Meanwhile, Tony is with Harley. He has information about the last explosion, which reveals that Harley is science-saavy, and that he is something of a chatterbox! Harley leads Tony to a restaurant, where he meets with a Mrs. Davis (Dale Dickey). Their meeting is interrupted by an F.B.I. agent, who attempts to arrest Harley. Yet, a local sherriff intrudes on the scene. The agent kills the sherriff, along with two other bystanders who attempt to help Tony!
This agent proceeds with an attempt to attack Tony, but he escapes. She chases Tony, revealing that she has psycho-kenetic powers and telepathic capacity! Tony keeps her trapped in the restaurant, but she breaks loose, heading toward a water tower outside. Meanwhile, Harley is outside, and he winds up being caught by this agent. Yet, Harley knows tactics taught to him by Tony, including methods of how to escape being held captive.
The Mandarin now has made a public broadcast to the nation! He announces that he has captives, and that he will kill them if The President does not call him in thirty seconds! President Ellis (William Sadler) does call The Mandarin, yet the captives are killed anyway! The Mandarin then announces that he is going to continue with his attacks on the nation!
Colonel Rhodes suits up as War Machine, and he is contacted by Tony. Additionally, Tony gets the assistance of a news cameraman out of Chattanooga, Tennessee named Gary (Adam Pally). Tony is able to contact Colonel Rhodes, and he gets information about A.I.M.. He sees that A.I.M. has been working with failed attempts to hone work on biological and genetic enhancements in human test subjects!
Henchmen of The Mandarin intrude upon Pepper, and they capture Iron Patriot! Tony has Harley to download details into his iron suit as it is recharging. Yet, Tony suddenly is overcome by pain and nervous attack! Harley assists Tony by giving him amazingly useful, psychological advice, which Tony follows!
Harley proceeds to sneak into The Mandarin’s Miami mansion, hacking computer information, and deploying pressure bombs! He sneaks further into the mansion, as Tony encounters a fake of The Mandarin, meant to distract Iron Man’s heroic tactics. This fake tells Tony that The Mandarin that he has been the one on the televised broadcastst of the villain, meant to fake-out the nation!
The real Mandarin appears, knocking Tony out, then trapping him. An ex-girlfriend of Tony’s, Maya Hansen (Rebecca Hall) appears, as she has Pepper held captive, too! Maya is deluded by Mandarin, and she is working with his henchman, Aldrich Killian, as well. In the midst of trying to gain control of the situation, Killian kills Maya!
Killian reveals that he has Iron Patriot captive, too! War Machine attempts to fight, but Killian somehow catches fire and crumbles! Tony finally arrives, getting access to a newly-charged suit, then fighting Mandarin’s thugs!
Now, Iron Man and Iron Patriot get access to Mandarin. The villain tells of his plans of destruction, and of his intent to capture The President! Mandarin has an impersonator of Iron Patriot, who currently is in route to Air Force One, meaning to kill The President! Yet, The President is NOT on the plane!
The villains to attack Air Force One, puncturing a hole into the side of the plane, which vacuums passengers out into the sky! Tony reaches The President’s Plane, and he saves thirteen people that are falling to the ground. He, along with all of the passengers, work together to make a safe water landing!
Pepper remains trapped, and The President is delivered to The Mandarin in Iron Patriot’s suit. Tony Stark and Colonel Rhodes are told where The President is being held captive. Both of them are shot at by thugs, as their iron suits appear, along with several other iron suits, to assist for battle! All of the thugs are eliminated, as Tony and Colonel Stark suit up to go and save Pepper!
Colonel Rhodes moves to save President Ellis, yet he winds up fighting thugs trying to attack them. The President winds up suiting into Rhodes’ iron suit, battling the thugs! Meanwhile, Tony is trying to save Pepper, as she is seeming to fall into a pit of flames!
A flaming villain appears, who is very powerful, and he moves to battle Tony. He removes Tony’s iron suit, and a back-up suit is not able to reach Tony. The Mandarin gets into one of Tony’s iron suits, so Tony blows up the suit with the villain inside of it! Yet, Mandarin amazingly survives one last time, only to have himself killed as Pepper dons an iron suit to fight the villain, killing him, and saving her beloved Tony! All of the additional iron suits are destroyed, as well!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/01/don-cheadle-iron-man-3_n_3189590.html
These trailers for After Earth are getting hotter and hotter! It is going to be fantastic to see father and son Will and Jaden Smith in this sci-fi fantasy that promises to be spectacular! The film opens May 31!
Meanwhile, May seems to be the month for mesmerizing movies! The English Teacher, The Great Gatsby, and Peeples all open next week, May 10! The following week, May 17, will feature Star Trek: Into Darkness! May 24 will present the animation of Epic, featuring the voices of Colin Farrell, Josh Hutcherson, Beyonce Knowles, and Amanda Seyfried! May 31 also has the movie labeled as a thriller, called Now You See Me, featuring Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and Mark Ruffalo!
Tony Stark indeed is a Hero!!!
Gone Too Soon. Rest In Peace, Chris Kelly.
Man, that sucks! I can recall being in school, boogeying down with my buddies to Jump! Those guys were just a little younger than we were at the time, yet it still was all about fun and the fantasy of the fast life. It seems so much of an all too harsh and all too often reality that we are reminded of how that fast life can run so quickly and into an unforgiving brick wall.
I am reading the daily headlines before turning it in for the evening, as I browse through the cnn.com entertainment page. I get to the article that relays the details about the shocking (at least to me…) death of Chris Kelly! He was half of the 90’s hip-hop duo Kriss Kross, famously known for their party tracks that included Jump, along with Tonite’s Tha Night and Warm It Up!
He and pal Chris Smith were really cool during the early 1990’s, as the thirteen year-0lds who rocked the hip-hop world with their boogie to the beat track Jump! They had a couple of other hits that included Warm It Up and The Bomb, yet it mostly was Jump that made Kriss Kross famous. The duo did become pioneers of the hip-hop industry, highlighting the involvement of youths in the game!
Right now, how Chris Kelly died has not been released to the public. The media reports said that he was found unconscious at his Atlanta home, then rushed to Atlanta Medical Center. He died at the medical facility’s south campus around 5 p.m.. Chris Kelly was 34 years old.
Kriss Kross was known for working with ATL hip hop pioneer Jermaine Dupri, along with standout rap artist Da Brat. Their stage names were Daddy Mac and Mac Daddy! Chris Kelly was Mac Daddy and Chris Smith was Daddy Mac. Rest In Peace…..
SEE THESE SITES!!!
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/thetimesherald/obituary.aspx?pid=164575342#fbLoggedOut
http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/01/showbiz/georgia-chris-kelly-obituary/index.html?hpt=hp_t1
http://www.usatoday.com/…/01/chris-kelly-kriss-kross-dies/2128291
http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/kris-kross-rapper-kelly-dead-at-34-20130502-2iunh.html
http://www.justjared.com/…rapper-chris-kelly-found-dead-at-34
Films Focusing on Levels of Failure!
I have been slacking on my blogging! Other things have been on the plate ahead of the computer, and getting to online reviews of recent films has not been a regular activity of priority. To my chagrin, I have not been having the evening online fun that I am accustomed to enjoying!
It was this past Friday that I did make it to the regular cinema for the weekend film features! We had been anticipating these movies, and I can say that the films did not disappoint! The regular double-dose began with Pain & Gain!
High-action director Michael Bay lead this film that featured Dwayne Johnson and Mark Wahlberg. Supposedly based on a true story, the lead actors portray body-building trainers out of Miami who turn to lives of crime. Wahlberg plays Danny Lugo, who is a semi-delusional fitness freak that works in a Miami gym. His intentions are to become the most financially successful and physically-fit person on the planet, while gaining personal wealth by any means necesssary!
The efforts to turn his fantasies into reality lead Lugo to look into the lessons of so-called self-help succeeder named Johnny Wu (Ken Jeong). After buying into the words of Wu, Lugo recruits fellow body builders. He talks an overly buffed Paul Doyle (Dwayne Johnson), and a foolish, following-fellow Adrian Doorbal (Anthony Mackie) into joining his plans to gain success. Together, the trio kidnap, rob, then make a pathetic attempt at trying to kill fitness client and deli shop manager Victor Kershaw (Tony Shalhoub)!
Doyle, who is some manner of mind-boggled, born-again Christian, is totally against the idea of brutally murdering Kershaw as they mean to rob his store! He winds up bonding with Kershaw during the robbery attempt, who sees this as an opportunity to get out of the hostile situation. Kershaw already is a shyster himself, and he takes advantage of the miserable moment to sleaze out of being killed!
Lugo leads his pea-brained posse into further plans of criminal activity. He pauses for moments of physical improvement to do random sit-ups and pull-ups, while constantly trying to keep Paul within the mindset of robbery. Paul recently was released from prison, and has made an effort to find Jesus, so he is not comfortable with a return to serious criminal action. Yet, Lugo is able to convince Paul and Adrian to join-in with his plan to rob, to kidnap, and to murder Victor Kershaw!
Their plan falls apart when retired detective Ed DuBois (Ed Harris) gets wind of these likely criminal activities. DuBois decides to follow with this case out of some level of recreation during his retirement years, although he is laden with a consistent back pain. Yet, DuBois is able to follow through with piecing together various leads that place each of the bumbling burglars into the wrong places at the wrong times. Eventually, all of Lugo’s misguided hopes and dreams end up in failure, as he and his incompetent cohorts are captured by the efforts of Detective DuBois!
We entered Mud for our second feature! This movie starts with the introduction of two young boys living in rural Arkansas who regularly wander to play along the banks of The Mississippi River. Ellis (Tye Sheridan) lives with a submissive mother and an abusive father in a house-b0at along the river’s shoreline. He regularly sneaks out to play with his friend Neckbone (Jacob Lofland), who fishes in the river for oysters with his uncle.
It is one afternoon when Ellis and Neckbone are wandering along the river when they decide use a canoe to venture out toward an ait within the middle of The Mighty Mississippi. Neckbone has been to this ait before, and he knows that there is something like a canoe suspended within the branches of a tree there. He and Ellis decide to return to the island, wherer they climb the tree to explore the canoe. Within it, they find that there is bread, and there are newly-tracked footprints! This prompts the boys to leave quickly, before they are found!
Upon getting back to their own canoe, they see that someone has been in it! Indeed, a man appears, and he identifies himself as Mud (Matthew McConaughey). Mud interrogates Ellis and Neckbone, while revealing bits and pieces about himself. The boys ask him why he is hiding in a tree, and Mud says that he is hiding from The Law because he has killed a man! He means to get away, and he wants to reunite with his long-time love, Juniper (Reese Witherspoon), who is supposed to be waiting for him.
Mud enlists the aid of Ellis and Neckbone to retrieve information and supplies for him. Also, Mud has them to deliver messages to Juniper, telling her of his whereabouts, and of his intentions to return to her. Yet, unbeknownst to Mud or the boys, they are under surveillance by Texas bounty hunter Carver (Paul Sparks).
Ellis and Neckbone continue with efforts to assist Mud despite the risks. It is likely that Ellis seeks a father-figure, in the fact that he has none in the home of his successively slapping dad. Neckbone is cautious about continuing to help Mud, but he does so because Ellis is his best friend. The boys do continue to risk their own safety and sanctuary to help this eerie stranger, which seems to turn into a realized, one-ended situation. Ellis and Neckbone realize that there never was anything in it for themselves, as Juniper in fact had found other love, Mud was deluded within a long-lost and possibly one-sided romance, and they both were assisting a wanted criminal!
Iron Man 3 opens this week! The long-awaited third installment to this Marvel Comics hero adventure is finally in theaters, to the delight of fans! This edition features Tony Stark battling The Mandarin in an attempt to save society from devastation and destruction! Don Cheadle suits up beside him as his ally, War Machine!
May has more movies on the way! The 10th will feature the releases Leonardo Dicaprio and Tobey Maguire in The Great Gatsby, along with David Alan Grier, S. Epatha Merkerson, Craig Robinson, and Kerry Washington in Tyler Perry’s Peeples! Star Trek: Into Darkness premieres the following week, May 17. More of this month includes After Earth, Epic, Fast & Furious 6, and The Hangover Part III!
Congratulations Jason Collins!
http://www.foxnews.com/…to-nba-player…collins-coming-out-as-gay
An Unexpected Journey, but An Expected Delight!
First of all, thoughts, heavy hearts, and condolences go out to the community of Newton, Connecticut. There is NO excuse for the tragic events which occurred there, today. There NEVER is an excuse to harm the innocent; NEVER an excuse to harm our children!
http://theoutside.wordpress.com/…/newton-ct-school-shooting
I was at my local movie theater today, oblivious to the reports about what had happened within this New England community. I had been looking forward to viewing this 2012 reboot of The Hobbit, seeing how it would be tied into The Lord of The Rings film series! Indeed, it was exciting, and I did enjoy watching The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey!
“My Dear Frodo”, began the story, as Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman) started to explain his story to a picture of Frodo (Elijah Wood). It was long ago when Bilbo left The Shire, going on a journey to the City of Dale, and onto The Kingdom of Erador. This is the home of the dwarves, where one found The Arken Stone, also called The King Jewel. The dwarves began to lust for more jewels, getting greedy for gold, then turning wicked! This apparently called upon dragons to attack their kingdom, yet men fought alongside them to defeat the dragons! Yet, Eragon, the king of men, was lost!
The elves did not help the dwarves in their struggle, and the dwarves never forgave them for this betrayal. This tale was told to Bilbo Baggins , the uncle of Frodo. Indeed, it was sixty years prior when Gandalf (Ian Mc Kellen) arrived to meet Bilbo to seek an adventure companion. Bilbo declined at first, yet a dwarf arrived at his home that evening. More dwarves showed up, then Gandalf returned with even more dwarves! The dwarf leader, Oin (John Callen), arrived to tell the others of the upcoming adventure to free a dragon!
The dwarves wanted to know how many dragons that Gandalf had slayed, as the wizard had to use a special item to get them to this location, The Lonely Mountain. Their task required the assistance of a burglar, which was where Bilbo is needed. This hobbit was declared to be the 14th member of this team. So, after connecting with they dwarves, they had Bilbo to read and to sign an accord, as they told Gandalf that they would not be responsible for this hobbit’s fate! Yet, it was Bilbo’s history of thievery that made him stand out as the proper hobbit for this task!
It was the next morning when Bilbo received a note that required his signature. Upon signing, Bilbo left The Shire to begin this adventure. He joined with Gandalf and dwarves, leaving The Shire, and reaching a mountainside. There, a noise was heard, and the dwarves recognized it as the sound of Orks! One dwarf called Thorin (Richard Armitage) admitted his hate for Orks, which inspired the others to attempt defeating them. Yet, upon the end of their battle, few dwarves survived! Thorin was named as the new dwarf leader.
Orks plotted revenge, and to catch a dwarf who defected from the group. Yet, the next day arrived, as Gandalf had gone with Bilbo into the rain. As one hobbit was caring for nearby forest animals, they saw that the wizard Saruman (Christopher Lee) was harming the animals. A spell was cast to protect them, then Bilbo, Gandalf, and dwarves proceeded to Saruman’s castle. After realizing that Sauruman was not going to help, the group fled.
First, they sought the assistance of elves. Yet, upon getting links from the elves, the group journeyed further into barren territory. This portion of the trek lead them to dark tunnels, where they had the first encounter with Gollum (Andy Serkis)! At this point, Bilbo enteracts with Gollum, getting hold of the “precious” ring that the creature held. This point makes the link between Gollum, and how the creature lusts for the One Ring that ultimately must be destroyed in The Lord of The Rings epic adventures!
The trailers for movies coming soon are exciting! Next week has Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away, Kathy Najimy, Seth Rogen, and Barbra Streisand in The Guilt Trip, and Tom Cruise leading in Jack Reacher! Before the year ends, look forward to Allegiance, Django Unchained, Les Miserables, Parental Guidance, and This Is 40!
![[IMG]](https://i0.wp.com/i12.photobucket.com/albums/a250/Orionsaint/Animate/GandalfPower.gif)
From This Litter Box 