The American

If a movie ever deserves to be called a slow burn, this one takes the cake. It starts off subtly with Clooney's character taking a stroll through some snow with a lady friend, only to be taking on gunfire moments later. We quickly discover, without being punched in the face, that he's an expert killer/assassin and that's about it. We don't get to know who he is, what makes him tick or where he comes from. The past is behind him and he lives in the moment: indeed, as he grudgingly befriends a priest he admits that he tries to escape history.

What I really like about the slow pace is observation: you watch Jack/Edward carry out an assignment, performing what seems to be mundane tasks, although they are incredibly interesting. All we know is that he is to build a gun for somebody. We slowly learn he's amazing at doing these, but puts up a front and tells people he doesn't get along with machines. What we are observing is a man struggling with inner demons and falls in love with a prostitute. Although he may be accused of losing his edge, he proves time and again that he has not. For what we gather as a cold blooded killer, he certainly has enough people calling him Mr. Butterfly.

Perhaps it's an unhealthy obsession with assassin's and these types, but watching him at work, gathering supplies, building parts of the gun, was all very fascinating. The action is sparse but edge of the seat, as is the rest of the movie. The locale is beautiful and tightly woven into the feel of the movie. You don't get a host of big names running around vying for screen time: you get legitimate foreign actors on location. Clooney plays the part perfectly: subdued and subtle, showing the right amount of emotion at the right times. I can completely understand why I never saw this hit the local theatre, which makes me a little sad. Hopefully, you can spread the word and check this little gem out.

Samsung PN50C540 Plasma Television

It took a long time to do it but I finally plunged and bought a new television set. My old DLP was showing a bit of age when compared to anything that's being released these days - or for that matter, anything released in the past two or three years. My old set was a 50" DLP Samsung that has served me well for four years; but, loving to play with new tech and the surge towards 1080p material, I couldn't resist any longer. On the "Black Friday" weekend I indulged in a fairly sweet deal from a local stereo shop.

I ended up sticking with Samsung - I never thought I would be a person who would participate in brand loyalty but here I am. My generation is notorious for swapping brands, stores and generally, chasing the best deal there is. You can't hold on to us, but my experience with Samsung has been too good for me to just jump ship to another brand. I have friends and family who all have Samsungs and it would be safe to say they are all happy, as am I.

What also did not help in making the decision on what set to go with is that they all look so much better than what I have, yet what I have is not so terrible. I could sit down, watch a Blu-Ray and be amazed at the image quality on my DLP. There was detail, depth and a good feel - that little something you just can't quite describe but is there. But when you visit a friend with a brand new set, you see what you've been missing. And now, with the new plasma I get a piece of that. I get deeper blacks, I get 1080p with even more detail than before (I wasn't sure if 1080p would make a huge difference, but it does, and I notice it a lot), and better , rich colours. It's a real joy to view.

But, it's not without its problems and I believe these are compromises for going with a set that is so inexpensive. Noticeable image retention, and the infamous Samsung buzz. Neither of these are deal breakers, as the buzz is inaudible unless you have dead silence, and image retention goes away naturally as you continue to watch: it really only rears its head after extended video game playing, and those are notorious for static screen items. My old DLP made noise, but I guess it all became white after a while. The DLP could never burn in or retain images. There is a worry that you experience with a plasma in regards to burn in: you think about it all the time. You worry about it, and I fear it takes away from the viewing experience. Then you realize, it's not that big of a deal as it doesn't happen, and with an inexpensive set like this, it would be easy to justify buying another after a couple of years - should the problem ever present itself.

The thickness of a television does not concern me: the DLP was about a foot and half deep, fit perfectly on my stand and delivered a great picture. The plasma is about three inches thick, sits slightly back on the stand a bit. Perhaps I should have gone with a bigger set, but I'm very happy and quickly accustomed to the size. There are other features on the set that I haven't really explored, mainly because I have little to no use for them. I did not op for a model where I could download apps or surf the internet (although this does, thankfully have an ethernet jack for future updates). I do all those things through the multitude of devices connected. It has media playback capabilities, and so did my old one. I never tried them once.

The television has been in use for about four weeks now, and I only write about it now because last weekend, I sold the DLP. For those four weeks it sat on the floor next to me; with a frown it looked on as I played with the new one, knowing that it would not be loved in the same way. But, bringing it into the home I did the other day, I believe it can be happy again. We set it on a nice, wide television stand, surrounded by audio towers with fogged glass and a small, (probably) twenty seven inch curved tube TV sitting on the floor. Yes, it will be quite the upgrade for the new owner, just as this plasma was quite the upgrade for me.

Mass Effect 2

Mass Effect 2 was a roller coaster of experience, both in-game and out. I was a bit late on the boat with the first game, as I picked up on the cheap and fell in love; the game was around 30 hours (was it?) and I must have blasted through it in a week or two. The addiction ran so deep, that I may have required counselling. It was like having a second full time job for a week. Perhaps one of the ways you can define an addiction is when it starts affecting your life and people around you. I'm pretty sure I was missing in action for a week, although I still went to work so I should be in the clear.

My excitement reached a peak when I picked up Mass Effect 2 just after launch day and delved right into it. I wouldn't go as insane with this one - spreading my time throughout a few weeks. Unfortunately my time with the game would keep spreading thin as something strange was happening. My interest just wasn't there. The missions were different; there was less involved in this game. I'll go into some more detail in a bit, but the point immediately is that I was twenty eight hours in and I stopped playing. This has happened in the past before, sometimes with disastrous results. In some cases, I just never pick the game up again. Other games, I try playing again and it fails: the game goes incomplete. In even further cases, I restart the game from the beginning and blast though in entirety.

My friends and I were concerned: what would happen to ME2? Well, I tried easing my way back into gaming. I played some Rock Band, some Super Mario Galaxy and a little online play with Left 4 Dead and more recently, Resident Evil 5. Saturday morning around 10:30am I wondered over to my collection, and without thinking, opened ME2 and put it in. This was going to happen.

Tron Legacy

Yes, I feel terrible. I'm a science fiction fan and I've never seen the original Tron. I couldn't even tell you what it's about: somebody goes into a video game and rides around on light cycles. Right? There must be more. In fact, it seems that there was and our modern day version does a little recap for us - at least, I think that's what was going on. Even at this point I couldn't give you much detail on the story because frankly, it doesn't matter and the movie doesn't try to overdo itself with one. This movie is about style, flash and effects and I'm sure it accomplished this.

I say I'm sure it did because I was distracted the entire time by the movie's special effects and theater lights reflecting erratically in the 3D IMAX glasses. There were many times when I couldn't see the action on screen because of these glasses. I've never experienced anything quite like it; after seeing a few 3D movies with those standard glasses, I was expecting more from a 3D IMAX, certainly not less. You wouldn't think the glasses would be different, but they were, and they were horrible.

Another shocking bit was the pre-movie message letting us know that not all scenes are going to be in 3D, but to keep your specs on throughout. It would make sense: the first part of the movie takes place in the "real world" and the rest, inside the video game. The video game world should come to life in 3D, right? Some of it did, but not all of it. In fact, the 3D scenes were also the ones in IMAX; the rest of the film was flat and letterboxed. The same method - minus the 3D - was used in The Dark Knight. Unfortunately, being forced to keep those glasses on the entire time meant reflections and distractions throughout.

It's unfortunate that the venue can interrupt the movie so much, but that's what happened here. The movie itself was interesting: after being sucked into the game for so long, Sam Flynn seeks the portal that will allow him and his father (who has been trapped since the original movie) to escape back to the real world. We have a young Father Flynn who is ruling the world and also has an interest in going to the other side, but with presumably disastrous results for all us non-programs. Action, comedy and suspense follow as they all should. There is no doubt this movie is very entertaining and a real blast. I look forward to seeing a beautiful Blu-Ray of this at home, sans 3D and distracting reflections.

So how is the young Jeff Bridges? We're not at the point yet where digital actors will take over, but we are fast approaching. The entire first flashback scene was creepy as we were stuck in the uncanny valley, but once we got into the digital game world things fell into place. It's a definite exercise in knowing how to handle your effects and limitations.

The anticipation for this movie was massive, and hence, a bit of disappointment walking away from it. The experience in the theatre didn't help. This was supposed to be an event; with plans to see it in the big city in big 3D IMAX. With months of incredible trailers, we set ourselves up.

Netflix

I touched upon Netflix a few months back when the service was newly minted in Canada, and haven't really visited it again (on this site) since. The low monthly entrance fee has meant that it visits my credit card once a month and I barely notice, just as those app purchases sit on my credit card and get absorbed, barely detectable financially and only noticeable as each one takes up a line on the statement. If you use the service a couple of times a month, it's "worth" it, although just having it available to you at any time, on any number of devices could be worth the price alone should you not even use it.

In the first month I watched a couple of great movies but would not go back to the interface for any real viewing for quite some time afterwards. Blame it on the number of higher quality films and shows available to me via other means, the general lack of new release movies and in general, the lack of any kind of television available through the service.

Terminator Salvation

Can anyone explain to me the phenomenon behind the Terminator resurrection? Judgment Day was, is, fantastic and probably always will be; a piece of cinema that will live on forever. Twelve years later we would get a sequel, where Cameron isn't really involved but Arnold is. Unfortunately it just didn't work out. We get a television series, of all things, that I neglected to watch. I kind of feel like I was finished with the whole Terminator series, until Salvation. And perhaps the only reason this was worthy of excitement was one of my favourite actors, Christian Bale. This guy picks his roles well, right? If he's going to get involved in another entry in a series that was revitalized in 2003 for what seemed like financial reasons alone, it must be worth a viewing.

I know it's a couple of years "too late" but I caught a bit of this on satellite and figured out that I really enjoy it. I had to come home and watch it properly with big sound and on my new plasma set. I really appreciate the scenes that parallel some of the original films: the truck "chase" scenese; the biker fight, and of course all the little mannerisms Marcus does that would "later" be replicated by the other terminators.

What really sets this movie apart from the others is that it takes place entirely in the future. The film is gritty, and full of machines. Machines that scare me. When I was younger while I perused one of my video game magazines, there was an image of Arnold half human, half cyborg, with the glowing red eye staring directly into your soul. It definitely touched mine. It's like when you look back at the exact moment you developed a fear of goats or spiders: perhaps one attacked you while you were young and you have since been afraid of them ever since. That moment I saw the Terminator staring back at me resurrected some repressed memories of watching The Terminator when I was younger. Those scenes where the metallic skeleton emerges from the flames. When the torso is still chasing them. That unstoppable force that will stop at nothing to get you; that's the stuff of my nightmares.

What I really love about Salvation are all the terminators in them, and just how horribly terrifying they look. The T-600 wearing those beat up old boots with a gattling gun was great; the intro scene where Connor is basically fighting a torso was great but more significant because it showed that these machines could be destroyed. And hence, some of the scariness - and magic - was taken away. In fact the whole first intro scene is so video game-like that it borderlines parody: they walk through some kind of sewer in waist high water, when a giant machine emerges behind them. The troop turn around, empty half a clip into it and turn back. Within three seconds that beast was destroyed. Something's just not right about that.

There are varying degrees of themes regarding fate, and of course time travel, but the movie knows it's place and doesn't get brainy. The post-apocalyptic world that is painted here goes under appreciated; we go into detail talking about The Book of Eli and The Road but pay no heed to the dirt-covered world of Salvation. Everything really does look like it's been through a war: we even get a nice wide shot of a fallen Los Angeles. But what really sums up this world in one word is: hopeless. These people are barely surviving; the "resistance" really doesn't stand much of a hope. It has, to a degree, captured part of that intense fear that was instilled in me as a child with the original movie.

The Office

It's pretty hard to believe this show is in its seventh season already. I felt like it was just yesterday I was watching the initial six episode first season. You all know it's adapted from the UK series of the same name and you all know which one is better...or do you? I can't say how I came across the original series so I can't give credit where it's due, but big credit to Classic Video of Kingston for renting them to me (and numerous other shows and movies).

I brought the first two seasons home on DVD and was thoroughly entertained. It was sharp, witty and face-paced. It was awkward and just generally, insane. It's a shame that the show was so short lived, but perhaps good too, as the American version has shown us. The UK version never lost it's stride; it started strong and ended strong too, not to mention that the special wrapped up the whole thing in a convenient story. The Carell-led version could go on indefinitely. This is definitely a problem with shows these days; look at Lost. It started out strong, became popular and meandered about as the end became clouded. Did The Office do the same thing?

Just over the past few days I've been looking for a twenty two minute show filler; sometimes you go back to old shows after you've burned through five seasons of a "new" show (I finished watching both The Big Bang Theory and How I Met Your Mother). But The Office was never a show I could rewatch in order; I would go through the listing, pick out one that I remember and put it on. So I popped on a random episode from season two and remembered why we were all so enamored every week. The subtlety and direction they were taking the characters was different from the UK, and it was healthy.

I guess, you could say everything was fresh back then. Jim harassing Dwight was innovative and hysterical. In recent seasons it comes across as cruel and unusual. I felt like I was watching a terrible car wreck unfold during the Christmas themed snowball fight episode from this current season (seven). The playfulness between Jim and Pam is great, and contrasted beautifully between the "secret" relationship with Dwight and Angela. Michael is oblivious but caring, and the rest of the office crew are coming into their own. I would say the only thing that has been consistently fantastic across the show run of the show so far is Creed.

So now we're at a point in the show where Carell is going to leave after the season and the show will go on. Seven seasons is a good run and probably a good point to end, but when there is money involved things will get dragged out as long as possible. Because of this I don't feel that we'll be able to look at in ten years and think of this as a great show as it should be, but merely an ok one. Or perhaps, like me, we'll just re-watch the first three (maybe four?) seasons again and again.

Holidays 2010

Alright, so it didn't go exactly as planned: I was going to write a few posts and have them queued up for regular updates throughout the holidays. But, you got one instead. And you know what? It's not even accurate. I wrote that before taking my annual trip to Southern Ontario, where many movies are typically consumed. This past week was no different. But, the movies I did see while I was down there are worthy of their own posts.

The Chronicles has had a great year, and I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who comes by the site. Unless you guys are messing with the stats somehow, the Chronicles is seeing hundreds of visits a month! We're also seeing a lot of visitors from all over the world, which is great to see.

I'm not sure how many weeks in a row I managed to get into a real groove, having a regular three posts a week. I like the pace: Monday, Wednesday and Friday updates, with perhaps the odd "bonus" update spread throughout. As always, comments are welcome and I'm thinking of setting up an e-mail account for all you people into that fad.

Alright, that's it for now. Here's looking forward to 2011!

- Ryebone