Board of Corrections: Like The Corners Of My Mind

Posted on January 12, 2020 by geelw

Ah, the persistence of memory or, when the brain stops working, it still works some wonders. I was watching a certain movie a few days ago and the phone rang in the other room. Usually, I let the machine take it, but I was waiting for some important medical info to roll in. So I lowered the TV sound, ran to the living room, answered the call and heard what I needed to hear, then made a call myself to check something related.

That took, what? Maybe seven or eight minutes? I didn’t pause the film I was watching like I sometimes do, so that comes into play here (you’ll see). Was it good or bad news? That, as they say, is CLASSIFIED (well, for the moment).

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Random Film of the Week Quickie: DEAD END

Posted on January 10, 2020 by geelw

“I hear the marinara sauce is good in this joint…”

I love Dead End for a few reasons. It’s a great film based off a stage play that yep, both looks and feels stagey, but that works highly in its favor. It’s a classic Old New York City film just for the location it presents and the feeling that, staging aside, that place actually existed. It also marked the debut of The Dead End Kids who’d later morph into The Little Tough Guys, then The East Side Kids and then into The Bowery Boys with a total of close to 50 audience-pleasing fluff comedies made between 1937 and 1958. To some non-fans of the Boys, this only proves the law of diminishing returns should have been more strictly obeyed and enforced (ha and ha). But, I digress.

It also has Humphrey Bogart in an early knockout role as a slickly dressed but menacing thug who returns to his old stomping grounds with a brand new facelift for mixed results. Finally, it’s a nicely directed “message” film by the great William Wyler that works on many levels, some of which soak in only after a second or third viewing. Go grab your popcorn, pal. I’ll wait. Oh, you’re making it on the stove the old-fashioned way? Good. I’ll go get a bowl and meet you back here in five.

Bogie lets McCrea know he can’t wear a hat AND a bucket at the same time.

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Random Film of the Week: Dracula/Horror of Dracula (1958)

Posted on January 9, 2020 by geelw

Now, that’s a title screen, Isn’t it?

Amusingly enough, I was wearing a Famous Monsters of Filmland T-shirt I got as a gift when I ran into an older neighbor in the supermarket last week who mentioned that as a kid, her parents took her to see Horror of Dracula back in 1958. She was only 8 years old, but was a big fan of sci-fi and horror movies, noting her parents were as well, and they’d make trips to the movies regularly. She noted she couldn’t sleep for about a month or so, but not because of Dracula, mind you, as (spoiler!) he’s as dead as a door nail at the end of the film (well, until his revival in the next films), but because of his brides.

She was convinced they were going to come after her for some reason and I noted that I’m sure many people who’ve seen this film sure as heck wanted a nibble on the neck from any of the lovely ladies in that film, vampires or not. Maybe even a few too many nibbles.

She laughed, and said “I know, but there was one in particular… what’s her name? The one that looked like a cat?” I thought for a few seconds and guessed correctly it was Andrée Melly, who indeed did look like a cat, and yes, briefly played that favorite bide of too many others as well. The neighbor let out a loud laugh. “Well that was fast! I guess she made an impression on you, too!”, which made me laugh as well, as there’s a pun in there she didn’t realize she was making. Anyway, we chatted a bit more and I helped her get a big aluminum baking pan off a high shelf for the ham she was making, as family was visiting that weekend. She paid for her groceries and left with a wave, thanking me for jogging her memory.

Meow! Careful. I hear she bites…

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SEGA AGES Sends Shinobi and Fantasy Zone Westward

Posted on January 9, 2020 by geelw

Get ready for the tough stuff…

SEGA AGES on the Nintendo Switch gets more classics with developer M2 offering up two more Sega hits of yore with the developer’s stellar ports, and yes, each will arrive with new enhancements in tow that offer more accessibility options and new ways to enjoy these titles. First up, it’s the Ninja-packed action classic, Shinobi:

Ninjutsu master Joe Musashi returns in this classic side-scrolling platformer. He has been sent on a mission to single-handedly find and rescue all the children of the Oboro clan who have been kidnapped by a criminal syndicate known as ZEED. Utilize your sharp sword, shurikens, throwing knives, and even magic to defeat the enemy and free the hostages.

The challenging side-scrolling action title Shinobi strikes back with an AGES mode that gives a white-robed Musashi extra health and damage, and an added Melee button that lets you dispatch enemies up close and personal. And if the hordes of ZEED are proving too much of a test, difficulty and stage select options have been implemented, along with a reverse time feature.

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An Animated Discussion (Part 3)

Posted on January 8, 2020 by geelw

So, here we are again. Let’s see how, this time, we’ll see what else was in the bag of cartoons I loaned a friend. I added some stuff that wasn’t animated or not quite cartoons, but they all fit a theme. So here’s the final countdown with a few surprises for good measure:

Roujin-Z: Here’s the thing. Both kids don’t like anime, but I decided to pop this into the lot because it’s a family film of sorts and I know both parents would be into it because they’d “get” it and enjoy it even if their two Teen Titans didn’t. Lo and behold, not only did the kids take to it, they were both deciding that the genre was much more that what friends at school were hammering them in the heads over endlessly.

I should have gone with Ghost In The Shell as well, but this Otomo flick was more of an acceptable choice and I didn’t want to overwhelm them, although, yes, I had to field a few questions regarding the crazy ending. That said, I wonder how Akira or something as nuts as a Fist of the North Star would have gone over. That said, I think a Miyazaki film might be a better thing (I’m looking at YOU, Lupin!)…

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Disaster Report 4: Survival Instinct Keeps You Moving

Posted on January 7, 2020 by geelw

Well, here’s a game that was initially canceled a few years ago thanks to a real-life disaster a few years ago in Japan, but thanks to developer Granzella (R-Type Final 2) taking up the reins on the project, we’re finally getting Disaster Report 4 on PC, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch this spring. The console versions will come digitally downloadable as standard editions on their respective shops, while the NISA store will be selling the Limited physical editions and retailers GameStop and Amazon, physical standard editions for those who don’t want that extra omake swag shown below:

I kind of want the bag, but my wallet is screaming at me from a coat pocket, and I’m trying to keep it happy these days. I still have my old copy of Disaster Report on the PlayStation 2 and I think there’s a copy of the sequel here in the game library, so I’m ready as ever for this one. Here’s the newest PS4 trailer, so yon can see more of the game from a few new angles:

I was all set to give up on “survival” games. but this series has never let me down and it’s lovely to see it come back, albeit at a really crazy time in the real world where every day there’s a disaster of some sort. Thanks to Granzella for saving this from the abyss and tweaking it up for its close-up and NISA for choosing to publish it.

-GW

ITTA: (Bullet) Hell Is Other People In This New PC and Switch Game

Posted on January 7, 2020 by geelw

My inbox is a treasure trove of indie game info, so much so that it takes time to sift through all the emails I receive about so many games each week. Okay, it’s a BURIED treasure trove at times, as I sometimes get a few dozen pitches a week, I’m still catching up with games from 2019! In an attempt to rectify this, here’s info on a *new* release that will hopefully, pique your interest as it did with mine, ITTA, for PC and Nintendo Switch. It does look pretty interesting, that’s for sure:

Created by Jacob Williams, a solo developer at Glass Revolver, the game mixes what seems very like a frantic boss rush mode in a campaign that’s bound to test the skills or anyone willing to pick up a controller. The game also has some horror-themed elements so it’ll be right up a few alleys. I’d say. Yes. this one goes on the review request list, so check back to see my impressions.

Well, soon, I hope…

-GW

Wizardry: Labyrinth of Lost Souls Makes My Day (Or is it Months?)

Posted on January 7, 2020 by geelw

So, a Steam review code arrived about 20 or so minutes ago and I’m dying to play it, but I need to post a few articles before I get to the game as I won’t get to posting if I start playing first. Yes, even though I went through this one on the PS3, I’m more than happy to fire it up again after a few years away because it’s like the security blanket of games for me and I want to see if I can get through it with no walkthroughs in sight. Granted, the turn-based nature of the game means I don’t need to worry about failing because I’m old and slow these days, and I recall a lot of the floors here by heart.

The traps, however? Hmmm… not so much, although the rather random nature of the encounters will make the game a perfect storm if I get overwhelmed. It feels good to revisit this again, so come back around for impressions at some point.

-GW

Some Trailers, “Hmm…” Version

Posted on January 7, 2020 by geelw

Okay, my “don’t watch any more trailers!” phase lasted about two whole months or so before I started getting bugged by a few folks to, you know, go watch some trailers. I really didn’t want to because in my mind, they make me less likely to want to see a film thanks to too many of them being more or less edited in such a similar fashion that they tend to blend into “CG… or not CG” affairs with performance a secondary consideration. But that’s just my more jaded take. That and hey, I find seeing films totally cold makes them a lot more enjoyable.

In any event, I finally sat down and caught a few trailers for upcoming or already released films and as predicted, liked a few and didn’t like others. Here are a few I liked:

Underwater:

Okay, I’ve liked seeing Kristen Stewart really getting into some roles where you forget she was in all those Twilight films, so this not quite new (it was supposed to be released in 2017) 20th Century Fox release has my interest piqued. There’s an ALIEN vibe here that I like but the film seems to touch a few bases I hope get tackled well. It certainly seems to be more action-oriented than Ridley Scott’s 1979 film, though. But then again, modern trailers tend to make everything in a genre look like it’s going to pack in endless action scenes. I’m hopeful this one explores more than expected and can stand alone without a need for sequels galore. We shall see, of course.

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Terminator: Resistance (Finally) Arrives on PS4 Digitally

Posted on January 7, 2020 by geelw

This is actually pretty funny, as Terminator: Resistance has been out on PC for a few months and on PS4 in other territories as a physical release, so it’s like a time gate effect here in the US to see this trailer. Even funnier, I ended up playing about an hour of the PC version at a friend’s place not too long ago and can safely say publisher Reef Entertainment and veteran developer Teyon have really knocked it out of the park in terms of the overall atmosphere.

Translation, it really feels like it’s set in the Terminator universe ‘Future War’ setting and all, and the music is absolutely brilliant. It’s got a few pesky areas, but from my time spent with the PC version, I really liked what I played. Enough to order the game from a UK retailer where the PS4 physical version was cheaper that the digital one by almost half. Anyway, this will be a fun review when it arrives in a few days, that’s for sure. Before you ask, PS4 games will run in any territory, but I may need to set up a UK account if there’s any downloadable content, but that’s not a big deal to do at all.