The Random Blog
It’s Not Just For #Numbers Any More…12/29/2015 Despite it being almost being #2016, I have only recently started using the #hashtag. Yes, I am clearly an #oldman who doesn’t get what those #darnkids are talking about. However, having started using them, I am now a little #addicted to them, and its kind of fun to create new ones. I do believe that a few of you who are reading this did so through the hashtags, so #welcome to the #randomgeek!
So for those of you who don’t really get them, what are these #tictactoe boards doing all over your #internet? Well the #hashtag is used as a search tool, primarily on social media like #Twitter or #Facebook, that if searched for will surface all the #posts that have used that #hashtag. For example, if you search #sillykitties on twitter, then you will get whatever people have posted and #tagged with #sillykitties. Be warned, sometimes you will get things that you don’t expect, sometimes you get things that are #NSFW (hint: don’t search #NSFW at work… or ever if you prefer your things family friendly!). The hardest part to get your head around is the damage they do to perfectly wonderful #grammaticalstructure. Also, #spellcheckers dislike the #hashtag as well, as it just makes a hash of it all (#pun). #hashtag searches don’t do spaces or punctuation, as they both mark the end of the current #hashtag. So this forces awkward creations like “#omglunchwastotesamazingwillbebackformore!” or “#epicday at the #rogerscenter #cantbelieveitsnotskydome” or “OMGtgifCCbffTTYSdftba” (Translation: Oh my god, thank goodness its Friday, CC Best Friend Forever, talk to you soon, don’t forget to be awesome!). it takes a while to figure out how to actually convert some #hashtags to real sentences, but it can be done. I find speaking it makes it #easytounderstand. I’ve mostly been trying to use it to make some uniquely identifiable events like my recent #007daysofbondmas, or to take part of other social events, like #TBT (throw back Thursday) or even just be a label to surface the post as part of a relevant search. like #jamesbond. It’s possible to go overboard, but its better to keep them relevant and meaningful. Better hashtags will result in better results. I do find that the more generic tags will get more views, however its good to create unique ones to make it easier to build engagement with your audience. For the best engagement, don’t go for teenage abbreviations or l33t speak if that’s not who your audience is, keep things in English that are easy concepts to understand, unless it’s a well understood abbreviation, like #LOL. All the short forms are thanks to twitter and its character limit. A lot of folks might not understand that #tl;dr translates out to #toolongdidntread which is out again to “Too long, didn’t read”. Also, be consistent if your using the same #hashtag over and over. Don’t use #TGIF and #thankgoditsfriday and #thankgoodnessitsfriday, pick one and use it again and again. I’m no expert at hashtags, but hopefully this gives you a #startingpoint in your #quest to be a #hashtag pro! For more info, here’s a good article about some rules, and hopefully you won’t end up like Fallon and Timberlake (watch the video in the article, its #ROFL #funny #hilarious!, the sequel is also good), don't be those guys.
0 Comments
The 007 Days of Bondmass Return!12/19/2015 Welcome to The 007 Days of Bondmas! At the Random Geek, we get into the holiday spirit by watching the world’s greatest spy do what he does best! Each day, we watch a new James Bond movie, and I find and share a cool image related to the film on our Facebook page! Check out the posts there, and don't forget to leave a Like! No reviews or detailed analysis, just a fun countdown of some great movies! Follow along if you like! Day 1: Dr No (1962) A resourceful British government agent seeks answers in a case involving the disappearance of a colleague and the disruption of the American space program. Day 2: Live and Let Die (1973) 007 is sent to stop a diabolically brilliant heroin magnate armed with a complex organization and a reliable psychic tarot card reader. Day 3: A View to a Kill (1985) An investigation of a horse-racing scam leads 007 to a mad industrialist who plans to create a worldwide microchip monopoly by destroying California's Silicon Valley. Day 4, Part 1: Moonraker (1979) James Bond investigates the mid-air theft of a space shuttle and discovers a plot to commit global genocide. Day 4, Part 2: Goldfinger (1964) Investigating a gold magnate's smuggling, James Bond uncovers a plot to contaminate the Fort Knox gold reserve. Day 5: License to Kill (1989) James Bond goes rogue and sets off to unleash vengeance on a drug lord who tortured his best friend, a C.I.A. agent, and left him for dead and murdered his bride after he helped capture him. Day 6: Thunderball (1965) James Bond heads to The Bahamas to recover two nuclear warheads stolen by SPECTRE agent Emilio Largo in an international extortion scheme. Day 7: Skyfall (2012) Bond's loyalty to M is tested when her past comes back to haunt her. Whilst MI6 comes under attack, 007 must track down and destroy the threat, no matter how personal the cost. Check out the gallery for the classic movie posters, and click them to watch the original trailers. Be warned, the trailers show a lot, so if you haven't seen them, you may want to skip to stay spoiler free. The Force is strong with this one. First off, no plot spoilers to be found here, just some pure reactions.
Having been super hyped for this movie, it all could have gone horribly wrong. 1999 was a similar period of huge expectations, and boy where we let down. This is not 1999, and this film blows all the prequels out of the water. It's most certainly the best looking Star Wars ever. Thanks to the attempt to shoot with as much real, on set elements as possible, plus with the modern capabilities of digital imagery, this film feels real. The planets, the ships, everything just feels really good. If I had to complain about something graphical it would be the 3d. I found it to be unnecessary, and kind of took away from the sharpness of the image. It’s a wonderfully funny movie, while still being serious when it needs to. In fact, everyone is really good, and really bring their characters to life. Daisy Ridley and John Boyega are so amazing in this. If they hadn’t, this film wouldn’t have worked as well as it did. Oscar Isaac is also super good as Poe Dameron, ace pilot. The returning characters, despite not having played them in years, all feel like themselves, especially Harrison Ford, who just is Han Solo. So did you need to be worried about this film? No, it turns out they did a pretty awesome job with it. Its fun and serious and pulls at the heart strings. Are there any negatives? Sure, its got a few little things that could be tightened up a bit. I wish we saw more of some characters, sometimes things get a little chaotic and it takes some mental sorting to catch up, and it’s a bit derivative of some of the previous films in some regards. So not a perfect film, but its so much fun and made with passion, its hard to be upset about these little imperfections. This film made me feel the love for Star Wars again. It made me crave for the next one, for any thing more. Of course we will be getting more, Rogue One is out next year, and Episode 8 the year after that. Till then, well the film just came out, so I guess we can just go see it a few thousand more times because remember, The Force (Awakens) is with you… always. It's (not) a trap!12/17/2015 Return of the Jedi is a slightly conflicted movie. I have always liked it, however in re-watching it, there are some issues I’d like to discuss.
After the darkness of Episode 5, the follow up was always going to be a bit lighter in tone. Which is fine, however there are a couple of things that go to far. First is the dance scene in Jabba’s palace. Growing up I was always slightly annoyed by this random musical interlude, but it was tolerable and set up the much more awesome set piece between Luke and the Rancor. However, the special editions changed the music, lengthened it, and added some silly cg characters. It now totally stands out, is kind of obnoxious and utterly drag the film to a stand still. This was one of the early warnings that Lucas was starting to go to far, and really go over the top. Then there are the Ewoks. Now, I like the Ewoks. There, I said it! When I was a kid I loved those tenacious little fur balls. I will admit though that some won’t be willing to take the suspension of disbelief, I think that things aren’t as bad as that. They defeat the walkers in by destroying them with logs, which really isn’t that much of a step from taking out AT-ATs with tow cables. They beat Storm Troopers with stones, which if you’ve ever been hit in the head, even with a helmet on, still hurts. I could have done without Chewie’s Tarzan impersonation, but really, the Ewoks aren’t half as bad as Jar Jar, and definitely make the story more accessible to a younger audience. But both of these things are definitely of symptoms of Lucas getting a little over indulgent. There are some great character moments, and the actors have done such a superb job that by now everyone is truly just inhabiting their character, not acting them. However, some of the best moments come from Vader, who has completed this 6 movie series, and through out has grown and changed and gone from slightly annoying child to evil bad ass to repenting at the end. Even the special edition changes really do a nice job of building on Vader. Mark Hamill also does a great job of portraying Luke as older and wiser, but still with the emotions and passions that make him vulnerable. This movie has perhaps the biggest action sequences of the original series, and the effects are still awesome. Seeing hundreds of Starfighters and capital ships on screen is thrilling, the lightsaber battle between Luke and Vader is epic, and the battle on Endor is fun. Occasionally some of the matte paintings don’t blend as well as they could, but on the whole the use of practical models makes everything feel more solid. The changes to the film for the special editions aren’t overly bad, some are even good, and the team at ILM did a good job of making them fit into the film as a whole. There was some silliness in this movie, but also still some depth. And once the credits rolled, this was it. The story could have been over, and we would leave these characters to their happily ever after. We did get more Star Wars in the form of the prequels, and while they did add to the saga (some good and some bad!), they still didn’t continue the story. The Force Awakens is left with the difficult question of how do we carry on from here? With the reset of the Expanded Universe continuity (now branded as Legends), there really is a clean slate for director JJ Abrams to work with. Only thing left now is to go see what he did. The Force Awakens….now! Who's Scruffy Looking?12/17/2015 The Empire Strikes Back is the one that gets the most critical acclaim. However, growing up, it wasn’t my favourite film of the series. Why was that, and how has time changed my point of view?
This is perhaps the slowest paced of the films, and the middle section focuses on a lot of character development. As a kid, this was kind of cool, but I was always more interested in the whiz-bang action of space ships and lightsabers, not exercise routines and mystical mumbo jumbo. The middle of the film can drag a bit if you were expecting lots of action. However, that slower pace allows us to get to know the characters better, and all that character development is what makes the film so much deeper. Luke is slowly becoming the Jedi he’s destined to become. Leia and Han get closer together, and their banter is much more believable then the dribble that we get for a love story in the prequels. Yoda takes the Force from a vague idea to something more concrete and obtainable. However, the biggest relationship is of course between Luke and Vader. Luke is haunted by the man who cut down his mentor, the man who killed his father. Vader is tasked by the Emperor to bring Skywalker to him, but Vader is also compelled to find this young man who is strong with the Force, someone who he shares a bond with. This bombshell defines the film for many, and is turns what we know about our characters on its head. The fact that this knowledge comes after a brutal lightsaber fight makes it all the more impactful. Empire takes our heroes to even more exciting places, like the icy wastes of Hoth, Dagobah’s steaming swamps, an asteroid field and the city in the cloud’s of Bespin. Any one of these locations would be a breath taking change from what we’re used to here on ole planet Earth, so giving us these unique set pieces all together in one film increases the spectacle, and makes the movie feel like it takes place in real places that are lived in. The film has several big action pieces, and all of them hold up really well. The Hoth battle can be the weakest in some ways, depending on the version of the film you see. Compositing elements on white in the 1980s was difficult, and in the older versions this does stand out a bit, but it’s been cleaned up in the more modern versions. Yoda is awesome. That muppet is filled with personality, Frank Oz makes him soulful, funny and filled with life. You believe that Yoda is a real alien, who can lift X-wings with only the Force. These days, series and sequels are the norm. But how do you follow A New Hope? By focusing on the characters, and their relationships, we have an solid heart for the film. We already like the characters, and its great to get to see them grow and change. We’re given a world that has been opened up beyond the smaller scale of A New Hope. We get to see more of how our villains operate, we get to explore the Force, we see a proper lightsaber duel, we get more space battles, we get new characters like Lando and Boba Fett who compliment our core cast well. Everything in the film builds on what we already know, and wraps that all up in a plot that moves everyone forward. Crucially, it’s impactful. You can’t ignore the events of this film, they’re crucial to the whole series. Even bolder was that the good guys don’t win. Every hero character is hurting some how, the villains are in a stronger position then at the start. This film earns its accolades. It’s hard for a sequel to improve on its predecessor and The Empire Strikes Back does that. But, its still not my favourite, despite having more respect for it. That honour still belongs to A New Hope. I love the purity of vision that film had, the pace and the fact that you can remove it from everything else and it stands entirely on its own. Empire needs the other films to be as successful, and it is certainly epic in its own ways. Of course, if this is how you follow up A New Hope, then how do you follow up Empire Strikes Back? Lucas and Company: “We shall double our efforts.” The Random Geek: “I hope so, Director, for your sake. The Audience is not as forgiving as I am.” Beginning Of The Middle Is The Beginning12/17/2015 I don’t know when it was exactly when I saw Star Wars for the first time, but it certainly influenced my tastes from a young age. The film has been changed around and discussed at length over the year, but really this is what it all started with, so let’s dive in to it.
Having watched the prequels, a few things immediately stand out. First the beginning is a much simpler. In Episode 3 we’re thrown into a large scale battle, with hundreds of ships, droids and just utter chaos. In Episode 4, a small ship is being chased down by a much larger and more menacing ship. It clearly sets up the conflict of the film, big evil empire vs small group of rebels. From there, we slowly meet our characters, one at a time. C-3P0 and R2-D2 are the first characters we meet, and unlike Jar Jar, have just enough seriousness. No pudu here! And then Darth Vader enters, and he just commands the screen. One step through the door and you know that the big bad is here. From the character design, to him just throwing poor Cpt. Antilles across the room, he just sells the darkness. Now ironically one of the biggest complaints from the prequels is how whiny Anakin is, and here we meet Luke, whining away. “But I was going into Tosche Station to pick up some power converters!” Clearly the Skywalker’s have a bit of a family trait, but unlike Anakin, Luke grows out of it. This film’s script does a much better job of getting out of the way of its actors. Through out the film, the jokes are subtler, the dialogue is more streamlined, and the action all flows so naturally. Everything in this script shows how badly George Lucas wanted this film. Where the prequels come across as indulgent, and made up of filler, A New Hope is lean and everything feels purposeful! We still talk politics, as the Senate is dissolved; we still sit and talk, but they serve as nice breaks in the action, not as the action; not every single thing is spoken, but is emoted. The film as a result has everything it needs, but little that it doesn’t. The special effects are something I was hard on with the prequel films, but here, even though the film is almost 40 years old, I found the effects to be better then the newer films. Why? Things are real! Even the special editions, with the added computer graphics still look great, because they made the CG match the physical. But when you see that very first starship fly on screen, and then the Star Destroyer following it, its got a weight to it, because it was a model. The interiors are actually constructed, and interact with the actors in a way that green screen just doesn’t. Now that’s not say things are perfect. You get the occasional compositing issue, some things that feel like maybe they were built with duct tape and a prayer, and some dated design choices, but on the whole its never as distracting as the digital disconnect in the prequels. Even though there aren’t as many well known actors (at the time) in this film, because of the better script they’re given an opportunity to shine. As the elder statesmen of the film, Alec Guinness and Peter Cushing really do a wonderful job with their characters. Guinness has just enough of the playful old man, but really brings the seriousness when it’s required. As our only explanation for the force in this film he does a great job of selling it, when it easily could have been silly. Cushing comes across as almost more evil then Vader in this film, and as a man who orders the death of billions, that’s a good thing! Our trio of heroes also do a great job of bringing their characters to life. Mark Hamill takes us from a bored and listless farmboy to heroic starfighter pilot, will still leaving room for more. Carrie Fisher doesn’t give us the damsel in distress, but a confident and in charge woman who is more than capable of action. As Han Solo, Harrison Ford is the essence of bad ass, regardless of if he shot first or not. He’s just the guy you wanted to be. Everyone emotes, quips, and they just inhabit their characters. I wouldn’t want anyone else to play these parts. As the awards are handed out and the film draws to a close, you can’t help but feel elated and inspired by this galaxy far, far away. This is why we’re getting a new sequel movie now, and not a remake or re-imagining. It set me down my path of geekiness, and its not a stretch to say that without Star Wars, there might not be The Random Geek. I certainly am not the only who was inspired by this film, and fortunately one of those people is making The Force Awakens! The series beginning this is, to new heights the sequel will go. As far as anyone at the time knew, this was going to be it. George Lucas kept saying he wasn’t going to make any more, and Disney’s takeover wasn’t even a concept in the fans imagination then. This was it, the end of the trilogy, the lead in to the original series, and the fall of Anakin Skywalker. Revenge of the Sith starts with an epic battle, which although slightly mired by the silliness that has plagued the prequel trilogy, is suitably awesome. A Starfighter battle, followed by some Jedi adventuring leads us to a lightsaber battle that feels familiar. The fight between Anakin and Count Dooku that matches the last epic battle between Luke and Darth Vader in Return of the Jedi. However, it feels a little shallow in comparison. All the technical issues pop up here, the fake sets, the reliance on CG, and over choreography of the fight. Compare that to the fight in Return of the Jedi. The fight was filmed on a real set, and there was a raw emotion that runs through the fight. Even just a bit of smoke on the set gives it depth and realism. I once turned this movie off out of frustration and a fair amount of disappointment. This wasn’t what I wanted Star Wars to be! However, while watching it this time, I do appreciate it more, even like it more. Many of the things I was upset with Attack of the Clones are improved in this film. It feels like the actors are allowed to be a bit more expressive, and already the key relationships are feeling more real and fleshed out. Obi-wan and Anakin now feel like old friends who have been through hell and back. Anakin and Padme actually feel more like a couple, and the romance is more believable, although still creepy. The best interactions though are between Palpatine and Anakin. Ian McDiarmid is so under rated in this role. He IS the Emperor, he just makes Palpatine ooze of evil and corruption. Palpatine just utterly molds Anakin into Darth Vader, line by line. He gets a bit over the top by movies end, although I will blame the writing more then the actor for that. I also must give Hayden Christensen his due as well. While a lot of the lines he has are still whiny, he does a much better job of playing this tormented character, and his descent feels natural. Some of scene where Anakin makes his fateful choice suffers from over scripting, but it mostly works. Order 66 is heartbreaking, and while we already knew the Jedi must fall, its still is one of the most poignant moments of the prequel trilogy.
This is the best looking of the 3 prequel movies, however it still suffers from being too fake. This was entirely a decision of direction. By aggressively pursuing the digital, a lot of the realism gets sacrificed. A lot of the short comings of the previous films though have been addressed, but there are definite moments where you can see the “green” and separate the real from the fake. The real meat of the movie is the penultimate confrontation between Obi-wan and Anakin. Where some will say that it too has been overly planned and feels more like a dance, I see it as it is intended. These two have trained and fought together for years. They know each others moves as the other makes them. The real “dance” is more the battle between Yoda and Palpatine, and is less satisfying than the goings on at Mustafar. Again, the action gives the actors an opportunity to actually use their acting skills to emote their characters as opposed to simply saying things. Ewan McGregor really delivers his anguish at Anakin’s fall. It’s fairly satisfying to see, and really does feel like the payoff we’ve been wanting. After this, the movie takes some opportunity to deliver a last little bit of silliness. The “losing the will to live” line, which is really just so dumb. She just had twins and must clearly be not into the whole mothering thing if she’s going to just quit on life. And then there is the No heard across the galaxy, which totally throws off the awesomeness of the mask being placed on Vader’s head, that first iconic breath, the voice…it was so close to being epic…and then… The end of the movie feels like we’re just doing some housekeeping, getting things ready for Episode 4. At least we finally get to see Alderaan for the one time in the series, which is quite lovely. And the final shot which is absolutely appropriate and iconic, even if you can tell the CG-ness of it. And that’s it. We’ve been told the story of the fall of Anakin Skywalker and the rise of Darth Vader and the Empire. We were treated to lots of cameos and fan service along the way, especially in this last film, with Chewbacca and the Millenium Falcon showing up, lots of throw back dialogue, and other little bits here and there. Could it have been better? Yup, it sure could have! But on the whole the prequel trilogy delivers a good base for the original trilogy, and despite my misgiving does add to the overall world. Some aspects (Midichlorians I’m looking at you) can and should never be brought up again, but it does answer most of the questions it sets out to answer. However, when watching these films, we see the pitfalls of making a “Modern” Star Wars. So much of the charm and reality of the original trilogy came from the practical props and locations, from having “aliens” on set, to having to actually do physical stunts. Sure, digital technology let George Lucas have every little thing he could dream of, and make everything appear to be huge in scope. But to quote another movie series that went over the top, “with great power comes great responsibility.” Lucas forgot this, and got carried away. More people should have told him no, but didn’t, and as a result, these are the movies we have. Everything I have seen (which admittedly isn’t much, because spoilers!) seems to suggest that the crew of The Force Awakens realized this, have learned from what went wrong with the prequels, and are doing everything they can to make their film worthy of the originals. Will their efforts be good enough? In 3 Days time, I’ll let you know. Attack of the Exposition!12/14/2015 After the disappointment of The Phantom Menace, I tried to rationalize what happened. With the coming of Episode 2: Attack of the Clones, there was the hope that perhaps some of the problems had been fixed with this new film. And yes, some had…and many hadn’t.
More computer graphics is never the right call, especially in the early 2000s. It still feels so fake. There is so little heart in this movie. Everything feels empty. The CG aliens, the back drops, even most of the sets look of early video games. When Muppets emote more then your CG characters, what’s the point of them? However, some of the CG does work pretty well, such as the fly over of the Senator’s shuttle at the movie’s start, and the end battle. It is particularly good when what’s on screen is all digital. Oddly though, when a real set or location shows up, it actually stands out for having to much substance! The acting in this movie is so bad. Even the actors who are capable of better are forced to act against nothing at all half the time, and the dialogue is so clunky its amazing they managed to keep a straight face. Then there is Hayden Christensen. The man is as wooden as a tree, and that’s being mean to the tree. All of the scenes in which he’s supposed to have any amount of emotional depth just fall so flat. Which is not to say he’s not capable, as he has received good reviews in other roles, however when combined with the less then ideal character direction from George Lucas, Christensen just can’t make it work. He mostly comes across as creepy and whiny. You almost could cut him completely out of the movie, and still have a decent short film about Obi-wan’s detective work. The bigger problem is the exposition heavy script. There’s so much that is said in this movie, when simply showing would have sufficed. Few scenes allow the actors to just emote. Anakin has one moment in which he acts, and you can feel the pain and the darkness in it, only to have it ruined by clunky exposition a scene later. At least we know “He hates them!”, as its screamed at us. It’s a common trait between The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones. So much of the script is extraneous, and you can cut out vast swaths of the movie and not actually lose anything of real importance. Parts that you would like to have in still just don’t flow naturally, and the parts that do work are rare but delightful. I rather enjoyed Obi-wan’s plot line, and felt that it was the most effective part of the film. The Battle of Geonosis, despite some of the above, actually comes across in a much better light. It’s the first time we see the Jedi in large scale battle, and it’s great. Because of all the action, there is time for a few scenes were the actors can just act! Especially moving is one scene with young Boba Fett. Super simple, but very effective. The only part I had a hard time with, from the first time till now, was Yoda’s battle with Count Dooku. It was very cool, but just that step over the top. But on the whole it’s a worthy beginning for the Clone Wars. If only Anakin’s and Padme’s romance had a believable build up like the conflict did. Attack of the Clones is a better movie then The Phantom Menace. However, it still has many short comings. At least in this film you got a sense that things were happening, and many of the pieces were being set up for the conclusion of the trilogy. Watching it though just makes you wish it could be better, and it was just good enough to keep the hope alive that Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith would wrap everything up in a nice way to lead into the classic series. Yoda “The dark side clouds everything. Impossible to see the future is”. Remembering 1999....12/13/2015 I remember 1999… The edge of the next century. The movies we had all grown up with were coming back! Star Wars…all new…on the big screen! Having grown up with the original trilogy, a series that form one of the planks that my entire fandom of science fiction, little more could make me so excited! My friends and I journeyed to the theatre, lightsabers in hand, waiting in the line, then taking our seats, the music swells…and we watch The Phantom Menace.
Malcom Merlyn's Minions12/11/2015 If you haven't seen Arrow's latest episode, Dark Water, then some big things happened in it. I won't spoil it for you, but needless to say you should watch it before the internet ruins it for you! However there was a line that stood out to me, and as soon as I was done I searched the internet for the obvious thing....and found nothing! So here you go, the meme that line deserves! Malcolm: “Since you told me about your last encounter with Damien Darhk, I’ve had my minions look into it.”
Thea: “You love having minions.” Who wouldn't Thea... who wouldn't? The Random GeekI've been geeking out over things since I can remember. Now is time I share it with the world! Archives
February 2018
Categories |