'Real Steel' A Review

'Real Steel' is a fun, simple, predictable movie. The formula is age old, the only new thing is fighting robots, and I guess that's enough. It's best not to think to hard about the movie, just sit back and enjoy. Hugh Jackman is our down-on-his-luck former boxer trying to make it back to the top. The year is 2020 and human boxing has been replaced by robot boxing.

The movie opens with Charlie(Jackman) at a rodeo pitting his robot against a two ton bull. How the bull is actually suppose to have a chance, I don't understand. Charlie makes a bad bet and get's distracted by a pretty girl at a crucial moment and the bull destroys his robot. He welches on the bet and as he's sneaking off he's approached by two men. They tell him his former girlfriend is dead and he needs to go to a custody hearing for his son.

He takes custody of the kid, Max, and thus begins their reconciliation. They teach each other things and grow. Max finds Atom a sparing robot that they teach to box and brings them together as well as success and confidence. There is a climatic 'Rocky' type fight at the end with the undisputed robot champion.

It's cheesy and you can see every twist in the plot coming a mile away. But its fun and the chemistry between Jackman and Max is playful and sweet if not totally convincing. There are some major holes in the plot as far as how these robots work and what, if any, artificial intelligence they have. But who cares. It's a decent movie about a father reconnecting with his son...and robots fighting.

Rent It.

Panang Curry: Azha

Evidently I took a movie instead of actually taking a picture. The good thing is you can hear the odd classical music playing. It wouldn't be so odd if they didn't have the Bourne Ultimatum playing with subtitles in the restaurant as well.

Azha is in the running for the worst Panang I've had. The rice was overcooked and reminded me of the rice they served in my grade school cafeteria. The curry was thine with virtually no flavor whatsoever no spice and no peanut flavor. It did have green, red, and orange peppers but those in of them selves can't anchor the curry. The waiter was very nice but the atmosphere and the food left something to be desired. My Thai iced coffee was the highlight of the meal. Would I go again?

Nope.

Hand Of Fate

I do not believe in God, I believe in Fate. I believe we all have a purpose, a great arching purpose. And on the way to the big purpose you have many small purposes along the way. Some thing, some greater design or plan, puts you in certain situations because you're meant to be there. You're meant to make a difference, to help, to stand up and act.

I went to college at Illinois State University. All the dorms there have Subway's on the first floor. I OD'ed on Subway, always a foot long chicken teriyaki on wheat with cheese, olives, and sweet onion sauce. I was in the same dorm as a close friend of mine from high school, Drew, but didn't room with him. It was Sunday evening May first, May Day, my best friend and roommate was working at the local Bennigans so I had the room to myself. I was ignoring my calculus homework in favor of leveling up my characters in Final Fantasy 10. I got hungry around 8. I went down to get a sandwich and when the elevator doors opened there was Drew, dirty and crying.

Me: (concerned) Drew! What's up man? You OK?
Drew: (bawling, drunk) Fuck, man. I'm fucked up man.
Me: Drew, what's going on man, what happened.
Drew: LAX house(pronounced Lacrosse)...bands all day...this fucking hill man...slipped in the mud...shit man I think my ankle is broken...
Me: (very concerned) You broke your ankle?
Drew: Yeah. I heard a pop and then awwww...
Me: You walked from there?
Drew: Yeah.
Me: Jesus man. (all business) Stay right here, don't move.
(goes to subway, fills up a Subway to go bag with ice, returns)
Me: Alright, lets get you up to your room.
Drew: (slings arm around shoulder and hobbles)
Me: Here's what were gonna do. Were gonna go up to your room, you're going to lie down and ice your ankle. You have your car keys?
Drew: ...yeah...
Me: Give them to me. (he does) Good. Where's your car?
Drew: ...um...ahhh...
Me: Come on man.
Drew: ...Hester...Hester and School.
Me: Good. After we get you situated I'm going to go get your car, pull it out front and then comeback here and get you. I can probably be there and back in 15 minutes. Can you handle that or do you need an ambulance.
Drew: (tears leaking out) Naw man. Come get me.
Me: Alright. Then we're gonna go to the ER and get you fixed up. I'm here man. I know it hurts but I'm here and this will be OK.
Drew: (starting to cry)...My dad is gonna be so mad...
Me: (sharply) Fuck that. You're gonna be OK and that's the important thing. Look at me. Look at me(he does). It hurts, you're fucked up, I know. Everything is gonna be fine man. You're gonna be OK. You walked home from the LAX house you crazy fuck(grins). I'll take care of the rest.

He was fine. The ER checked his leg and it was a hairline fracture. He needed to wear a brace for two months and it was tender after but he came out OK.

Afterwards I reflected. Why did I come down at the exact moment he was coming up? Would he have called me when he got to his room? It seemed to me too perfect, too much of a coincidence. I think I was meant to be there. I was meant to help my friend who I eventually became estranged from. He wasn't a great friend, we didn't get along in college. But I was glad. I was happy to help my friend who had befriended me in high school when not many did. I was glad to help out someone who was hurt and lost and needed someone to take care of them. Something put me there. I was guided there...

By the Hand of Fate.

Graffiti 36

This was outside the movie theater, it made me wonder, who put this up? Was it the girl, is she really into herself and puts up stickers of herself. Or is it the ex-boyfriend of this girl and he's trying to send her a message to let her know he wants to get back together. Or its some total creep who just likes the person who he saw across the street and became obsessed. Is it her current boyfriend who is making a statement of his unfailing love. I don't know.

"A man's face is his autobiography. A woman's face is her work of fiction." -Oscar Wilde

"If you want a vision of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face - forever." -George Orwell

'Rocket Science' A Review

'Rocket Science' is an off-beat coming of age movie that came out in 2007. The movie centers around Hal, a high schooler with a stutter. The star of the debate team, Ginny, inexplicably recruits him on her quest for the debate championship.

What follows is an interesting investigation of first loves, first heartbreaks, and ambitions. Hal fights against his position the whole movie. Fights against the fact he's an outcast, fights against his stutter, fights against his waning adolescence. He fights against the fact he's horribly outmatched by Ginny intellectually and sexually. The film is very unique in the fact it approaches growing up from a very real place. It has a wonderful score that extenuates many moments in the film. The fast talking back drop of debate also adds a playfulness to the film. All the characters are large and real. They talk how normal people talk and want what normal people want. They want a place, they want validation, they want some kind of explanation. It's a moving, fun film that even if you don't enjoy, rings true of growing up.

See It.

'Moneyball' A Review

Went to see the late showing of 'Moneyball' with Tisher tonight. It came highly recommended from my mom.

'Moneyball' is about the Oakland A's GM and his frustration about how the MLB works with all the rich teams having an unfair advantage over the poorer teams. Brad Pitt meets Jonah Hill and they implement a new idea, to stack the team by statistics of who gets on base the most. They attempt to structure the team to optimize runs rather than anything else. The idea behind this may be very interesting to sports fans or baseball fanatics. I was mildly interested in exactly what they were implementing but more interested in their passion for it.

What carries the movie is Brad Pitts fervor to change the game, his need to reinvent it, his desire to be remembered. Also the chemistry between Pitt and Hill is great. Pitt as a mentor and partner, leaning on hill for his ideas and his smarts but also teaching him how to work at the MLB. There's a scene where Pitt makes Hill let him go because he says hill have to cut, trade, or bust down a player one day. That scene really pays off when Pitt and Hill make a big trade and they both have to release players. It's the first time I've ever scene Jonah Hill be still or quiet or low status and it was great. The idea of what their trying to implement and their passion for it makes for a really interesting friendship between both characters.

The low points were few. Philip Seymour Hoffman as the manager was one. There seemed no point for him even to be in the movie. Whenever he was on screen he just frowned. He showed no emotion and no range. That could have been what they were going for but in that case there's no need to hire Philip Seymour Hoffman. It seemed to me the only reason he was in the movie was to have another star on the cast list. The movie also felt kind of long but to be fair I did see it at 10:20 on a Wednesday.

The acting was great, the chemistry between the characters drew you in, and the story was compelling.

See It.

Day Of The Dead

Beanpole's submission to a Day Of The Dead art show.

"Even at our birth, death does but stand aside a little. And every day he looks towards us and muses somewhat to himself whether that day or the next he will draw nigh." -Robert Bolt

"Unbeing dead isn't being alive." -e.e. cummings