Film Review: Pitch Black (The Chronicles of Riddick)

"You're not afraid of the dark, are you?" - Vin Diesel

When a starship crash-lands on an arid, desert planet with three suns, the survivors are left in quite a predicament: should they fear the serial killer who's been let loose among them, or fear the monsters systematically stalking them from the dark? Pitch Black is a pretty unique thriller, and a lot of it is in its visual storytelling: it's a brutal universe with oppressive planetscapes, freaky alien monsters, and a whole cast of cut-throat characters.

However, the film has always felt like a mixed bag to me. A lot of it is simply because it's split evenly down the middle. The first half of this film is a survivalist story, with the characters moping around, getting their bearings, and trying to figure out what to do with themselves. With some hushed dialogue and so many character beats to run through, these acts can be rather dry. When the solar eclipse finally hits and all the nocturnal beasties come out, things pick up quite a bit, with frequent chases, fights, and thrills. The experience is marred by the film's style though: a lot of the more exciting parts have some of the most erratic editing and flashing images ever put together, and it can be unnerving.

The film does tell an inherently interesting story though. Most of the characters are pretty dry and flat alien fodder, but one character stands out: Richard B. Riddick, the strong-bodied low-voiced serial killer who doubles as both the story's nemesis and hero. His progression as the anti-hero provides the best dynamics to the story, and it is ultimately interesting how this dark character is pitted against such dark monsters (in essence, using a monster to fight monsters). The film overall is pretty decent and original sci-fi material, but aside from Riddick, it doesn't really have many characters to like or root for.

This film does its best to be stylish and hip. It boasts some pretty decent photography, but it gets really erratic with the editing at spots, using a few too many flashing images and fast cuts for my tastes. Weird color schemes are also dispensed liberally throughout the film's first half. Acting is okay: everybody plays it tough in this picture, especially Vin Diesel, whose performance matches up pretty well with the character. Writing is not bad. This production has okay-looking sets, props, costumes, and locals. Some of the special effects haven't aged well, despite being well-conceived. Music is pretty standard.

This film has an unrated director's cut available on DVD and Blu-Ray, which offers a few extra minutes of dialogue and character-building scenes.  To me, the differences between the director's cut and theatrical cut is very slight, and I find it hard to really tell them apart.

There is a lot to like about Pitch Black, except for the supporting characters, some of the long drama, and the gaudy editing. Horror and sci-fi fans should enjoy it the best, but for most, I'd recommend it as a rental.

3.5/5 (Entertainment: Pretty Good | Story: Pretty Good | Film: Pretty Good)

Travel: Salt Lake City Comic Con 2013

For the first time ever, Comic Con has come to Salt Lake City, from September 5th to the 7th of this year.  For those who don't know, the Comic Con is a major convention for all things comic-book related, although nowadays, it's expanded tremendously to encompass all interests in comics, films, TV, animation (or anime), video games, card games, collectables, art, books, and more.  It usually revolves around all things sci-fi, fantasy, or superhero-related, so the convention is like a Mecca for nerds world wide.  Comic Con has traditionally been held in many major cities around the world, to include San Diego, New York, Chicago, Dallas, Baltimore, and more.  I've been told that ticket sales for SLC have set a new record for most amount of tickets sold at a Comic Con's opening - last I heard, over 30,000 tickets have sold.

For three days at the Salt Palace Convention Center, fans would have the chance to roam around rows and rows of vendors, selling any number of things.  A number of major celebrities were available for autographs, photo opportunities, and probably a few major presentations:  such celebrities included such folks as William Shatner, Adam West, Burt Ward, Ray Park, Lou Ferrigno, Henry Winkler, Kevin Sorbo, and more.  There would be oodles of different events and panels open for visitors to participate in.  The most interesting thing, however, may be the sheer number of visitors coming in costume:  everywhere you look, you could see intricate, detailed, faithful replications of favorite comic, movie, and game characters.  Among the myriad of quality costumes, I was able to identify plenty of Star Wars outfits (most especially Darth Vader, Padme Amidala, common stormtroopers and scout troopers), Star Trek uniforms, X-Men characters (specifically, Mystique), Batman characters (The Joker, Bane), Harry Potter characters, a few Ghostbusters, Iron Man, Spiderman, Gandalf, Inuyasha, Ichigo Kurosake, one of the henchmen from the Crazy 88s, splicers from Bioshock, block-headed people from Minecraft, a soldier from Mass Effect, soldiers from Halo, Warcraft characters, orcs, ghouls, zombies, and lord knows what else.  Even if you don't see much else, just watching the people all around can be a unique experience as it is.

I personally attended the convention solo, wearing nothing more than a Cyberdyne Systems tee-shirt (but heck, it's a grade more unique than all the Superman and Batman shirts everybody else was wearing).  This was my first time attending a convention like this, and I was rather anxious to start with.  I arrived early for registration - even though I've bought my ticket online earlier in the week, it's still necessary to register at the convention center to receive a wristband pass that will allow you to enter and exit the building freely, in addition to a goodie bag, which contained a booklet and poster.  Then I had to wait for the actual event to open; I was an hour early, but there were plenty of other people waiting already.  The line was already extending out the door and wrapped around a length of sidewalk that was partitioned off with caution tape.  As I waited, the line continued to grow, until it wrapped around the block and past the front of the building.  Once the doors opened, the line moved pretty swiftly; after standing in the heat for so long, it was pretty refreshing to enter the wide-open air-conditioned building.

Once inside, I was overwhelmed with a vast stretch of stalls and booths, selling all manner of comics, graphic novels, manga, artwork, videos, games, and paraphernalia.  I pretty much spent my time combing through the aisles, looking for interesting stuff (in addition to gawking at the costumed visitors all around).  Among the more interesting sights, I got to see a full-sized R2D2 roaming around, some Ghostbuster equipment that was actually glowing, and some kind of Fear Factory display, which included a painted bus, some large scary statues, and some zombies running around.  The Weta workshop had a stand set up as well, displaying some weaponry and make-up work from The Hobbit films (they also showed a sneak peak of the upcoming Desolation of Smaug film, but I somehow missed it).  There was also a big display set up with all kinds of intricately-designed Lego sets (which included an Arabic palace, a working train, the flying aircraft carrier from The Avengers, and some Star Wars vehicles, among other things).

Among the cool things I picked up from the stalls, I took the opportunity to buy some inexpensive comics that I've never heard of before (something called Xenoholic? The guy told me it was good), a couple of graphic novels (Red Sonja omnibus, and Unique), some cards and a playmat for Magic:  The Gathering (I believe the mat is exclusive to the convention), a couple of pieces of artwork from a fellow named Ken Meyer Jr.

Afterward, I figured I should attend a panel, to see what wisdom I could get from one of the many guest speakers.  There were many possibilities, but I opted to attend one concerning how to become a bestselling author in the modern publishing environment.  The speaker was author Aaron Patterson; he explained his experience with e-book publishing, underscoring its key advantages, and he provided a basic overview of what to do.  The man seemed pretty well-off through online publishing, and it sounds like a simple and beneficial solution.  It also sounds like a lot of time and money to invest in it.  I did walk away feeling a little more enlightened and motivated, but it also had me considering additional aspects that I never gave much thought to before.

After that, I felt I had enough, for I was feeling exhausted.  I know there are probably a million more things I could have divulged more in:  I could have attended more panels or events if I really planned it out better, I could have asked for more pictures of costumed guests, and I never did meet any major celebrities or anything.  However, that is not to say that the trip was a waste at all:  it was a unique experience that was satisfying, and generally way more fun than I imagined it would be.  Despite the size of the crowd, I felt well within my element there.  I'm certain that SLC will continue to host the Comic Con annually, and I'm certain that I would go again.  Now that I've tested the waters a bit with this type of thing, I'll probably be more involved next time.  Maybe I should go dressed as Alucard from Hellsing...hmmm...

Music: All About Celldweller

I haven't really written much about my favorite music, but I always intended to.  What better way to start than on the 10th anniversary of the debut album of one of my favorite bands:  Celldweller.

Celldweller is one of those bands you've probably heard repeatedly on TV and in video games, but never realized. This band consists primarily of just one dude:  Klayton, a performer and DJ from Detroit.  In the 90s, he was the front man for a band called Circle of Dust (of which I haven't heard anything, but they've put out five albums).  Celldweller debuted in 2003, and has been sporadically active since.  Klayton's second Celldweller album wouldn't come out until 2012, but in between, he produced a conceptual soundtrack and a plethora of remixes and exclusives.

I'd classify Celldweller's music as a form of industrial metal, for it is hard, intense, and highly energetic.  Most of their songs have strong beats, rip-roaring guitar, loud screamy vocals, and a strong undercurrent of electronica.  It's not all noise though:  many of the band's music incorporates orchestral elements, and most songs have strong, structured, catchy melodies.  The songs convey a certain mood and style that's distinctively futuristic or otherworldly (songs from the latest album, Wish Upon a Blackstar, are especially spacey in nature).

I first discovered Celldweller around 2004, after playing the video game Enter the Matrix, and looking at the game's music credits for cool stuff to download.  A huge variety of other songs have been featured in movies, games, TV shows, and commercials across the board.  Celldweller has been slow in producing actual CD albums, but their songs are usually readily available as MP3 singles and downloads in various online stores.

I've collected as many of Celldweller's songs as I could, going so far as buying their physical CDs whenever available.  I find this brand of music very catchy, invigorating, and inspiring.  Many of these songs have not only been great for everyday listening, but have also been hugely inspirational for my writing.  Many Celldweller songs have seeped into my playlists, inspiring the most exciting and far-out ideas I've conjured.

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DISCOGRAPHY

Celldweller (2003)

The band's self-titled debut hits pretty hard and fast:  the opening song "Switchback" is one of the band's biggest and most recognizable hits.  The energy rages on consistently with such songs as "Stay With Me (Unlikely)," "The Last Firstborn," "Symbiont," "I Believe You," and "Own Little World." Things get a little more downbeat and moody with "Frozen," a song which directly inspired one of my sci-fi novels.  I really admire the beat and guitar work of "Unlikely (Stay With Me)," and something about "So Sorry to Say" has always felt uplifting.  However, the experience is brought down just a tad by a few songs I never cared about (namely, "Under My Feet," "Afraid This Time" and "Fadeaway").  Despite a few quibbles, the album is pretty solid.

This album was just recently re-issued as a 10th anniversary edition, featuring a bonus disc crammed full of great bonus content.  Biggest standouts include a cover of "Tragedy," which I feel beats the living snot out of the original Bee Gees version.  Plus, "Shapeshifter" is included, a smashing song made in conjunction with Styles of Beyond, but was sadly never featured in any of Celldweller's main albums.  The disc also includes a number of unreleased demo songs and a number of fairly awesome remixes. "Ghosts," in particular, is becoming a new favorite of mine.

The Beta Cessions (2005)

But wait, there's more! Celldweller also produced this companion album to their self-titled debut, which features the entire Celldweller album without the vocals.  If you really want to hear the hard-hitting beats, synthesized sounds, and guitar without Klayton's voice, then this album makes for an excellent soundtrack-type of experience.  Another disc includes a wealth of alternate versions of certain songs, plus a few exclusive songs (including "Goodbye" and "Kemikal").






Soundtrack for the Voices in My Head Volume 1 (2009)

One of two albums Celldweller has made that's designed as a conceptual soundtrack.  Most of this album is instrumental, featuring fantastic and otherworldly soundscapes that could effectively set the stage for any sci-fi or fantasy adventure.  Chances are that you may recognize such tracks as "Through the Gates," "Solaris," "Surgical," "Animatronic," "Descent," or the various versions of "Ursa Minor" from film trailers or games (I do distinctively remember hearing "Ursa Minor" in the trailer for the movie Surrogates).  "La Puerta del Diablo" is probably one of the scariest tracks I've heard, for even though it's a slow and moody track, it's just plain creepy.  A few preliminary versions of the song "Birthright" are also included.  This album has become an essential part of my collection, for it provides a versatile inspiration for any number of stories I've created.

Wish Upon a Blackstar (2012)

I was actually pretty hyped for this release:  Klayton had actually released parts of this album from 2009 onward.  This whole project was rolled out in a novel-like fashion, with each new single released as a downloadable "chapter" of the larger piece.  I had a pretty early exposure to the songs "Louder Than Words," "The Best It's Gonna Get," and "So Long Sentiment," which are all catchy as hell.  Upon listening to the whole album, I came to enjoy "The Lucky One" the best, for its catchy lyrics and strong pulsing beats.  A similar energy is achieved in "Blackstar," "Unshakable," and "I Can't Wait."  There's something about "It Makes No Difference Who We Are" I find most addicting.  The album achieves some pleasing ambiance with "Memories of a Girl I Haven't Met" and "The Seven Sisters."

The album overall could be listened to as a continuous story.  I've never listened closely enough to the lyrics to discern a plot per se, but Klayton himself articulated the basic moral being "be careful what you wish for." The blackstar itself is a otherworldly motif that harkens to a far-out and imaginative setting.  In spite of the album's spacey appeal, it has been a major influence on my writings; "The Lucky One" is probably my most-played song, for it was inspirational for one of the action scenes in my superhero-themed novel.

A number of outtakes from this album actually appear on the bonus disc of the Celldweller 10th Anniversary release.

Soundtrack for the Voices in My Head Volume 2 (2012)

In addition to Wish Upon a Blackstar, Celldweller also released another conceptual soundtrack album.  Gamers everywhere would get a kick out of "First Person Shooter," which is an intense and hard-hitting composition that would be perfect in a shooter game.  "Shut Em Down" is one of the awesomest songs of the lot, featuring the same manic energy, but with dramatic orchestral parts.  The same sense of drama and intensity is echoed in "Earth Scraper," "Senorita Bonita," "Scandroid," "Pulsar," "Solid State Playmate," and "Heart-Break." Things mellow out just a bit in "Empyrean," which still boasts a steady beat and menacing synthesized sounds.  "Venus," and the epic 19-minute track "Adrift on Celestial Seas," offer a more gentle, poetic, and elegant sense of otherworldly splendor.  Best of all, the album also features the song "The End," a variant of "Welcome to the End" was was featured in the band's first album. "The End" starts off slow, but the last minute or so just explodes in a crescendo that's both furious and elegant.  A lot of the songs in this album have been influential in my writing.

The Complete Cellout Volume 1 (2012)

This album pretty much consists of remixes, and they aren't all bad.  Only the opening 30-second intro track is new, but every other song is a familiar hit from the group's other albums.  It's still a highly-energetic and stylishly-electronic experience, and it can be interesting to hear favorite songs mixed in fresh new ways.

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AL'S FAVORITE SONGS

Film Review: Watchmen

"October 12th, 1985: Dog carcass in alley this morning, tire tread on burst stomach. This city is afraid of me. I have seen its true face. The streets are extended gutters and the gutters are full of blood and when the drains finally scab over, all the vermin will drown. The accumulated filth of all their sex and murder will foam up about their waists and all the whores and politicians will look up and shout 'Save us!'... and I'll whisper 'no.'" - Jackie Earle Haley

For decades, comic books have offered an insightful view on how superheroes and masked vigilantes could impact society. Yes, they help wipe out crime on the street level, but what then? What happens when the super villains emerge? What happens when countries go to war? What happens when the human race treads across the edge of oblivion, and can only be saved by making hard decisions that normal people can't make?

The Watchmen comic was published to show an alternate 1985, where history is severely altered by the presence of such heroes. A film adaptation was in the works as far back as 1986, but scriptwriting and budgeting issues would make it an unfeasible project until 2009.

To fully encapsulate the broad scope and scale of the story, this film runs for well over two and a half hours (or, a full three hours for the director's cut, three and a half for the ultimate cut). Action occurs in short sporadic bursts, but is never really the film's highlight. It's a drama for the most part, but it is a stylish and evenly-paced one. The imagery is often really fantastic and impressive. The character conflicts and discoveries drive most of the picture, building a coherent mystery and plenty of psychological dynamics. Even though this superhero movie doesn't have a whole lot of super action, it is consistently engaging.

The story follows the original comic practically word-for-word and frame-by-frame, save for a few small changes (most of which involves the ending, which some fans have criticized for "missing the point" of Alan Moore's work). The downside to adapting the story so closely is that the film doesn't really add or expand on much creatively, and the most critical of viewers would say that the filmmakers have made something flat and lifeless out of the material.

As for myself, I was always intrigued by the story, and I believe all the strengths of the comic are effectively ported over into the film. The plot gets a little random, but it all builds up to an interesting anticlimax that offers some really challenging ideas of morality and ethics, especially by superhero standards. Throughout the picture, themes of human nature permeate strongly, always hinting at the darkest, most violent, most primal, and most self-destructive aspects of society. Parts of the film are quite grisly and violent this way, and it makes for a really dark and bleak experience. This film features a plethora of interesting characters, each with their own unique characteristics, backgrounds, and issues.

This film uses very stylish photography. Slow-motion effects are used quite liberally. Other times, the film uses some really cool camera moves and angles. Editing is solid. Acting is generally good: the entire cast does their best to bring the comic's characters to life. Writing follows the comic very closely, and is generally good in spite of that. This production uses quality sets, props, costumes, and awesome special effects. Music is really distinctive too.

Aside from the theatrical cut of the film, there is a director's cut available on DVD and Blu-Ray, which offers twenty-four minutes of new scenes that are seamlessly cut into the feature, and do add a little more to the story and characters.  The ultimate cut is also available, which includes the Tales of the Black Freighter cartoon cut into the film, to best represent the original comic.

This film is a very close adaptation of the Watchmen comic, and that is both the film's blessing and curse, ultimately making it a love-it-or-hate-it film. I personally love it, because I love watching the story unfold with such vivid visuals on screen. It is a dark and cerebral experience that few, if any, other superhero films can offer.

4.5/5 (Entertainment: Very Good | Story: Very Good | Film: Very Good)

Film Review: Watchmen: Under the Hood

"Okay.  There it is.  I've said it.  I dressed up.  As an owl.  And fought crime." - Alan Moore / Dave Gibbons, Watchmen

This short mockumentary is produced as a side-feature to the Watchmen film. It basically offers a wealth of interviews intended to offer more depth and insight to the characters and the world they live in.

The biggest value in watching this feature would be in better understanding the history of the Watchmen's characters; history that's perhaps referenced in the main film, but rarely elaborated on. However, it's not like the film never gave too little information; everything in Under the Hood is extra credit, to satisfy those fans who might be curious to know more. It's pretty interesting, but in the end, it doesn't resonate as strongly as the main film, or the Tales of the Black Freighter, which actually told a relevant story. The best that Under the Hood can do is lend the film a greater sense of authenticity, and translate even more of the Watchmen comic for viewers. Otherwise, I was left feeling that this was a little pointless.

For what it's worth though, the film is consistent in keeping up with the look, style, and era of the main film. It uses simple, interview-style camerawork and editing, and it even has a few old-fashioned commercials thrown in. Acting and writing is not bad. Most sets, props, and costumes appear authentic.

Best recommended to Watchmen fans.

3/5 (Entertainment: Average | Story: Average | Film: Average)

Film Review: Watchmen: Tales of the Black Freighter

"At death's approach, all creatures discover an aptitude for violence." - Alan Moore / Dave Gibbons, Watchmen

Anybody who's familiar with the Watchmen graphic novel will recognize the significance of the Tales of the Black Freighter. This was originally the comic-within-the-comic, having nothing much to do with the events of Watchmen, but offering a stark thematic parallel.

This animated feature translates that segment of the comic to accompany the Watchmen film (and if you watch the film's Ultimate Cut, this cartoon will be spliced into the main feature). On its own, the cartoon is short, bleak, and pretty gnarly. It runs pretty fast and it tells a heck of a story.

Following the Watchmen comic closely, this feature tells a very dark and violent story full of hideously ironic twists. The story is simple, but highly effective. It offers the bare minimum characterizations, but it digs deeply into the main character's psyche and madness to dig up strong themes of humanity's savagery; themes that are effectively echoed in the Watchmen film.

This feature uses pretty decent animation quality: movements are a little stiff and cheap, but it looks sharp, clean, and well-rendered. Voice-acting is not bad, and the writing is good. Designs for the characters and settings are good, and some scenes show good imagination. Music is alright.

Recommended for anybody interested in the Watchmen film.

4/5 (Entertainment: Good | Story: Good | Film: Good)

Film Review: The World's End

For many people, there's that certain phase in life where they're crazy, sloppy, reckless party animals. It comes, it goes, some people move on and mature, but others don't and perpetually go back to the clubs and bars to have the time of their lives. The World's End starts off with a simple premise - four older gentlemen reuniting to re-attempt a pub crawl they conducted in their youth - and it takes off from there in pretty wild directions. The film blends in familiar plot elements from the other two films in the "Cornetto Trilogy" - Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz - but with its firm focus on the most epic pub crawl ever, the film delves into thrilling and amusing new territory.

The comedy in this film is generally good: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and the rest of the cast continue to manipulate sharp dialogue, witty word puns, crazy situations, and strong characterizations to illicit decent laughs. It takes a little while for the main action to pick up, but even when the big brawling scenes aren't taking place, the film maintains consistent pacing all the way through.

I was personally pleased with the story though: it takes place over a single night, but it crams in so much characterization that it's rather compelling. The core story borrows from Invasion of the Body Snatchers, swapping out the "pod people" with machines (or "blanks" as the case may be) that remind me so much of the Suzuki robots from Gantz. It's the characters that drive the story though, not only through their discoveries and conflicts, but also with their rich backgrounds and psychologies, which dig up some very strong themes regarding friendship, maturity, aging, and being human overall. From the middle of the film onward, it struck me that much of this film is about the differences between those who live wild and free and those who don't - or perhaps the squares vs the rebels, or literally, the robots vs people. Regardless of how you look at it, the final message is that humans can't be inherently conditioned or reprogrammed to be obedient or conformist slaves. The ultimate conclusion is that "we wanna be free, we wanna be free to do what we wanna do, and we wanna get loaded and we wanna have a good time!" Even for a square like myself, I found this message most inspiring.

If there's anything wrong with this movie, it's just that things get a little incredulous. The fight scenes seem a little out-of-place, with the unassuming characters busting out crazy robot-slaying moves at every chance they get. I started to wonder whether or not these events were truly plausible in modern times. It's also a little incredulous to believe that these guys would actually continue through all 12 pubs in their crawl, even though they sense danger from #6 onwards.  Regardless, these few nitpicks didn't really break the film for me.

This film uses decent photography - it gets a little jittery during the fight scenes, but it is solid everywhere else. Editing is decent. Acting is top-notch: Simon Pegg is at his most outrageous here, and steals the show throughout. Nick Frost flexes some decent acting muscle, portraying a decent range of emotion, without sacrificing the comedy. Everybody else is good. Writing is loaded with great lines. This production uses authentic-looking sets, props, and costumes. Special effects are generally okay. Music is pretty good.

This film surpassed my expectations and delivered a rich story to accompany its rich comedy. It comes close to being my favorite of the three movies these guys have made (Hot Fuzz still being my favorite), and unless you're some kind of soulless machine, it comes recommended.

4.5/5 (Entertainment: Good | Story: Perfect | Film: Very Good)