Ben Hibon has done an amazing job with his animated short, Codehunters.  Absolutely beautiful, and a must for cyberpunk/steampunk fans out there.   At first glance it reminded my of Jamie Hewlett’s work (Gorillaz/Tank Girl) and there are touches of Peter Chung in there too (Dark Fury).  Mad Max meets Akira.  The near-dark future stuff that nightmares are made of.

Words from The Edwin.

http://edwinmcrae.com

I love this movie. Right from the start, with the librarian dealing with a ghost who likes toying with books and card catalogs, it’s a ton of fun. I remember when I first saw it and the Stay Puft Marshallow Man appeared. I was laughing so hard, I was crying. The 80s was such a great decade for big, fun movies.

I guess there’s a Ghostbusters III in the works, scheduled for 2012….just in time for the end of the world per the Mayan Calendar!

And that, I think, is the greatest strength of this new Trek – it brings in people who are not sci-fi fans, particularly women, it seems. So on that front, this movie is a huge success.

Obviously, if you are a real Trek fan, you’ll know that quite a few Trekkers/Trekkies are seriously pissed off about it. Rebooting the entire Trek universe, and wiping out 40 years of Canon? Spock and Uhuru? Vulcan gone? Whaaaat???

I went into the movie totally fresh, having avoided reading any reviews of it until I’d seen it. I had no idea it was a reboot. I was sitting there scratching my head as to why Chekov was already onboard the Enterprise when finally the plot revealed that this was an alternative timeline. (I’m not so up on Trek Canon that I remembered whether Kirk’s father was alive or not.)

I totally expected everything to “reset” back to normal at the end of the film, and I was blown away when they didn’t. (This surprised my mom too!) But actually, I’d say that was one of the better aspects of the film. Having seen the Standard Star Trek Timeline Reset Plot waaaaayyyy too many times at this point (especially on Voyager), I was glad someone finally had the balls to keep things screwed up and different.

My mom and I have decided this “reboot” is not actually wiping out all the stuff that happened to the “original” Kirk and crew, but it is rather an alternative or parallel universe that the old Spock is now stuck in. Otherwise, had the original universe been wiped clean, old Spock would have disappeared as in Back to the Future. (As my mom explained, the old timeline still has to exist for the old Spock to continue existing, it is only “logical,” and since he is a Vulcan, it has to be based on logic! You go, Mom!)

Given that I’m willing to accept that this new Trek does not in any way negate Original Trek, I’m a bit more forgiving than some Trek fans over this new timeline and the events thereof (including the Spock and Uhuru thing, which will either be annoying or interesting in future sequels).

So putting that big huge issue aside, here’s my take on the rest of the film:

Loved the casting for the new Kirk and Spock – both were fantastic, and cute I might add so good eye candy for the ladies.

New McCoy kicked ass, but I wished he had some better lines in parts.

I liked the new Scottie, though some complained he was too silly…I still liked him. I was just confused as to how he got immediately promoted to Chief Engineer once arriving on the Enterprise. Where’d the original one go?

New Sulu was OK…they didn’t give him much to work with so I can’t really judge. I did love his unfolding sword though. More of that, please!

New Chekov…umm…yeah, not my favorite. Chekov was supposed to be the young hottie for the girls watching the orignal Star Trek, modeled after the Beatles and the Monkees. This new Chekov looked like he had been living in a cave all his life and had never seen sunlight. Unappealing.

New Uhuru: Pretty, but not bringing the presence that Nichelle Nichols had.

Plotwise, the writing was pretty poor, especially for a J.J. Abrams project, who has been so meticulous with Lost that I expect much more from him. But the action was definitely entertaining and the pace was quick, so you didn’t have time while watching to ponder the numerous inconsistencies and ridiculous events (such as Kirk getting dumped off at the very planet Old Spock was on). Watching all the machinations they went through to get all the characters together was downright painful at times.

Otherwise, I was entertained and enjoyed it, and felt it was certainly better than some of the worse Next Generation films. (What about that awful one where they go to the planet with eternal life? That was certainly underwhelming.)

The brightest spot for me was the appearance of Leonard Nimoy as Old Spock. Once he started speaking, I was reminded how good the original cast was. Nimoy brought so much to the screen with his performance, even at his advanced age. As good as the young Spock was, he was definitely served by Nimoy.

Overall, I give this film at B+ – to me it’s not the worst Trek movie ever but it’s definitely no Wrath of Khan.

I think that future installments (as I’m sure there will be) will actually be much better. We won’t have to deal with the awkward introductions and whatnot to get the crew together. We’ll just have our new Kirk at the helm, galavanting around the galaxy with his intense blue eyes (loved those blue eyes – sorry Shatner).

Not really true Trek, but honestly? They could have done a lot worse. I remember how upset I was when Next Generation came out. I originally hated that with a passion. This is a million times better than that first Next Generation episode, so perhaps they’ll improve with the next film and we can start over again with this being the ODD number of the new Trek movies, and number two, the EVEN number, will be good. (That’s our Trek movie luck, right?)

We can only hope.

I won’t give the plot away in case you haven’t seen it, but consider that some inspiration was provided by the disappearing bees lost through colony collapse syndrome. (This may or not may make the film more appealing.) I liked the concept, though scientifically it is a bit far-fetched.

I will comment briefly on the casting. Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel play a husband and wife with relationship problems who are running from The Happening. I don’t have anything against either of them, but together they were an odd couple. Deschanel is not my favorite actress; her appeal is limited to her playing a wide-eyed deer-in-the-headlights female. Compared to her youthful, fresh face, Wahlberg is aging (badly) and the chemistry between them was non-existent. But I liked Wahlberg even though he’s starting to look a little too rough around the edges.

So the while the casting was so-so, the film had its strange and horrific concept going for it. The Happening manages to make wind and trees scary, so for that I’ll give it an A-.

The Spiderwick Chronicles is a fun movie, filled with action and paced well. The kids were great in it and the special effects were also pretty good. Where this movie disappoints is that it is way too rushed and does not take any time to explore the fairy world. Instead of letting us see the magic and wonder of the fairies, we are constantly bombarded with goblins and big nasty things snarling and chasing the kids.

This was a lost opportunity, I feel, and keeps the film from becoming a classic. Still, what we do see is entertaining and exciting (if perhaps a bit scary for really small children). Overall, I give it a B.

“The best? No way,” I said. “Good, yes, but the best ever?”

“Well, it’s at least in the top ten,” he replied.

So maybe this really is a guy thing, because I cannot for the life of me see how The Dark Knight could be considered one of the best films ever made, as good as it was for what it was.

Surely, classics such as Citizen Kane or Gone With the Wind haven’t been forgotten? Or, if you are into things of a more sci-fi nature, how about the prodigious effort resulting in the Lord of the Rings trilogy? Or the original Star Wars? 2001? Blade Runner?

Granted, we haven’t quite had a serious film about a superhero that might be elevated to art, but I’ll say that The Matrix, with its post-modern superhero Neo, could certainly fit that bill.

When I saw The Matrix for the first time, I was absolutely blown away. It was not only technically brilliant and innovative, but it set a mood and tone that really messed with your head. You walked out of The Matrix questioning the very nature of your conscious reality. And you were entertained to boot.

The Matrix made me reevaluate my relationship to the world. It reminded me that the world is really just a temporary illusion, a brief stopping point in the eternity beyond.

In comparison to that feeling, my feelings upon leaving The Dark Knight were, “That was really good, but I doubt I’ll ever want to see it again.”

The Dark Knight was not brilliant or innovative. It was simply well-executed. It was an almost flawless action movie. But it was not deep, nor was it original.

So, as much as The Dark Knight has blown away the box office, I am going to make the bold prediction here that it is not going to become a classic that changes the way we see cinema in the way The Matrix did. Spider-Man, as you recall, also gets huge box office, but it will be seen as cheesy and dated in 20 years. Box office success does not necessarily mean lasting cultural impact.

Of course, The Dark Knight is anything but cheesy. It is filled with terrific action scenes and great performances. If anything, it will be remembered for Heath Ledger’s brilliant, tragic performance, so poignant now that we know that the emotional toll the role took on him played a part in his death. But beyond the great action and fast plotting, what does The Dark Knight give us that will stick in our minds later?

Hey, I think it’s great when a truck flips upside down from front to back, but if you’ve seen it once, you’ve seen it.

I recently saw No Country for Old Men, and while I’m not a fan of that kind of violence, nor do I go out of my way to watch Coen Brothers movies, No Country for Old Men was brilliant. I’ll remember it. It said something meaningful about the human condition.

The Dark Knight, in contrast, tries to be deep and meaningful, but cannot escape its comic book roots. “Gotham needs a hero,” Batman tells us. And yet, for all the apparent philosophical pondering on the surface, The Dark Knight is so busy piling on the plotlines and action that it loses its heart. The Joker is simply insane; Batman is typically stoic; our heroine is good and beautiful in the most generic way. Most disconcerting: Two-Face makes his dramatic shift without much real character development to back it up.

In fact, the only hint of heart and soul I found in the whole film was the scene involving the large black convict on the boat – you’ll know what I’m talking about if you’ve seen the film already.

I was also greatly disappointed in the setting and cinematography. While I understand the trend lately is towards realism in sci-fi (Battlestar Galactica), I found Gotham to be flat and boring. I must admit I enjoyed Tim Burton’s retro-futuristic Gotham’s much better. While I didn’t expect that type of over-the-top Gotham here, I just wanted something more…dark. The entire film was too bright for a film called The Dark Knight. (I did think the final hospital explosion was well-done, however.)

This type of overdone realism in sci-fi will become out of vogue at some point, and the film will show its age later because of it. Mark my words.

As for the cast (beyond Heath Ledger): Super hottie Christian Bale makes a terrific Batman, except for his “Batman voice,” but he did not have much opportunity to shine here. Harvey Dent took up more focus. Maggie Gyllenhaal is a better actress than Katie Holmes, but the lighting on her made her look absolutely awful. With that, I just couldn’t buy that two hot men were so in love with her based on her bland personality and puffy face. (It’s not that I need her to be a supermodel. She just looked tired to me.)

On a more positive note, I’m always delighted to see Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman in just about anything. These two truly gave the film some sparkle that was otherwise missing in our overly serious main characters. Gary Oldman is another favorite of mine, even with that horrible bushy mustache.

All in all, I’d give The Dark Knight an 8 out of 10 for its fast plotting, great action, and fantastic performances by Oldman and Ledger. But a classic? No, not quite.

The Fifth Element
Now a classic sci-fi film from the 90s, The Fifth Element is on Hulu in its entirety with only a few short commercial breaks. Boy, how I miss the 90s and how freakin’ over the top we were. Sci-fi was just a lot more colorful and humorous back then. Now it’s all grey and dreary and “realistic.” Blah. The Fifth Element is so totally wacked in moments that it would have been a complete failure were it not for Bruce Willis, Chris Tucker, and a surprisingly good performance by Milla Jovovich (in her trademark white bandages and skinny little bod).

Alfred Hitchcock Presents/The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
OK, not really sci-fi for the most part, but these are really worth a watch. I remember seeing them a long time ago and forgot how good some of the episodes are. While a few are predictable, many are well-written with surprising twists and turns. Hitchcock himself makes the show with his goofy black humor. Keep an eye open for stars before they were stars.

Regenesis
A Canadian TV show about biotechnology and all the gory things that go along with it (such as massive viral outbreaks), Regenesis is OK – something to watch while you are doing something else. The first two episodes featured a deadly virus run amok and a mysterious boy who claims he is a “clone.” I wasn’t blown away by the two episodes I watched (it seemed like a cheesier version of House meets CSI meets the movie Outbreak), but some reviewers loved it. I’m willing to give it a few more episodes before making my final decision on it.

I went to see Max & Co this week. A cute story by Christine Dory and Emmanuel Salinger, and very cool stop animation. The mise-en-scene is a nice mixture of steam-punky technology and alpine small-town idealism. And there’s something I really like about French with subtitles. Just sounds cool.

While it’s essentially a kids film, it has some nice adult level moments, like when the captured flies are gassed, have orgasms, and lay eggs while cavorting drunkenly through the air. Well, I laughed.

So, highly recommend it if you get the chance to see it.