Drop Dead, YouTube. Seriously.

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Okay, let’s see now. I get a movie to review on the site the other day and post two videos also sent by the PR folks who sent the screener on my YouTube channel. Today, I see that one of those videos for whatever reason has been taken down thanks to the request of some other company I have no clue about and according to the new and f—ked up YouTube rules:

You received a copyright strike

You now have 1 copyright strike. Getting multiple copyright strikes can lead to the termination of your account and the removal of all your videos. To avoid that from happening, please don’t upload videos that contain copyrighted content that you aren’t allowed to use.

Oh, DROP DEAD, please. I’m not running that clip to violate a copyright, I’m RUNNING IT AS PART OF MY GODDAMN REVIEW. Period. What the hell is up with all this nonsense that keeps people from producing content (and UNPAID content at that when it comes to my channel) and stupid threats that just make honest guys like me want to go out and drop a planet on some jerks with quick trigger fingers. Your stupid mandatory “Copyright School” video I’m forced to watch and be quizzed on is insulting and I can’t watch it anyway on my slow-ass connection here, which means I can’t respond to the fools who had that clip removed (yet).

If anything’s going to get me to drop off the damn internet and go be a cranky hermit in the woods, it’s shit like this. How about having idiots who have issues with content contact the ALLEGED offenders directly and see what’s what BEFORE this jackass judo you do on the accounts of innocent people? This chop first, ask questions maybe later thing isn’t going to cut it with me. Whatever. Thanks for ruining my Sunday night, clowns.

Random Film of the Week(end) Quickie: The Pit and the Pendulum (Or: That Funky Cold Medina)

The Pit and the Pendulum 1961So, here’s how MY Saturday night went. I’m sitting in the living room watching “The Price of Fear” marathon on This TV (which seems to be an offshoot of WPIX here in NYC that shows better movies, albeit edited for network standards) and during a commercial break in The Pit and the Pendulum (I know, I know – but I can’t pass up those Vincent Price/Roger Corman films anywhere they’re aired), I heard some loud music booming outside from someone going deaf in his or her car.

A few seconds later I end up nearly falling off the couch laughing because the song playing with its bumpy bass hanging out the window is none other than Tone Loc’s ode to lousy overpriced wine, Funky Cold Medina. Bwah and ha. Suddenly, my Saturday night got a great deal more interesting…

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Film Review: Alien Outpost

AlienOutpost_posterSet in the near future and packing quite a punch, Alien Outpost (Outpost 37) is a sci-fi action film genre fans will absolutely want to check out in theaters or on VOD. Directed by Jabbar Raisani, the film’s pseudo-documentary style does a decent job of setting up a not too far in the future world (2021) decimated by an alien invasion turned into a years-long standoff. Pitting a small yet dedicated group of soldiers against a weakened but still overwhelming force in a small, deadly area between Pakistan and Afghanistan, the men of Outpost 37 will face hazards and horrors from the aliens who have begun to use some of the locals to their advantage.

The film works well on a visceral level because despite some humorous banter flitting in and out between the soldiers, the tone is dead serious and believable to a good extent. It would have been nice to see more of the main enemy, though. Other than a short bit at the camp, those Heavies are only viewed briefly during action sequences and mostly at a distance. However, from the brief but impressive CG footage that opens the film and assorted “news” clips of destruction worldwide, we can see that they came, saw and almost conquered the planet. Troops around the world initially sent out to combat the Heavies end up stuck where they are thanks to the war dragging on so long that it’s become an underfunded albatross of a conflict. Yes, the movie can be seen as a heavy handed allegory, but it’s an entertaining heavy-handed allegory provided you’re not expecting epic battles and don’t mind the mirror the film holds up to current events.

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Earth Defense Force 4.1 Update: No Lights, New Rides? It’s All Good!


 

EDF 4.1 PS4 Release DateAmusing “warning”: If you don’t speak Japanese, this video will seem somewhat baffling for about the first two minutes and fifty-three seconds. However, those of you who happen to be fans of Sandlot’s awesome Earth Defense Force series of games will get your jaws hitting your shoes hard before you burst out laughing and nodding in approval.

The upcoming PlayStation 4 game Earth Defense Force 4.1: The Shadow of New Despair is shaping up to be a must-have title thanks to the developer not only porting the main game over intact, but adding loads of new content, enemies and vehicles. That Depth Crawler you see at around 2:55 is the best thing to happen to the series because it allows for the ultimate in mobility in the game’s deadly tunnel missions AND it works excellently in outdoor maps.

EDF 4.1 Depth CrawlerAdditionally, longtime EDF fans will see that there’s no longer static lighting in those tunnels, meaning visibility will be practically zero without some sort of light source. Thankfully, that Depth Crawler has lights (and packs some nice firepower). Hopefully, this means going in on foot if one chooses will show your character or teammates all sporting lights on their armor. The game isn’t out until April 2, 2915 in Japan and no U.S. localization plans have been announced.

EDF 4.1 Depth Crawler 1That said, one would hope that some smart publisher who owns the rights would be on the case worldwide for this one. I smell a surprise hit that thanks to all the improvements and new content just might be one of the better games. New bosses, more missions, improved visuals, what’s looking like a more stable frame rate? Yup, all of those are making EDF 4.1 a must buy when it finally ships. The Japanese version is compatible with any PS4, although expect to be lurking around GameFaqs if you need help navigating the menus and learning some strategies if you’re new to the EDF experience.

Alien Outpost Final Trailer: That Invasion? It’s Coming Sooner Than You Think!


 

AlienOutpost_posterThanks to a too crazy month of stuff knocking me about, I’d almost forgotten that Alien Outpost was arriving in theaters and on VOD this Friday. IFC Midnight has been putting out a nicely varied mix of genre films for a while now and between this one, Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead (yes, I’ll have a review up for that awesome indie shortly) plus a few other flicks on the way, it’s clear that massive budgets and major stars aren’t at all required to make compelling entertainment.

The mix of “found footage” documentary and intense sci-fi action should appeal to you weekend warriors looking for a little cinematic diversion to spend a slice of time with. Back with a review and more shortly…

IndieGala Every Monday Bundle Offers a Nice Freebie For Wordy Folks…

IndieGala EMB 01262015
 

It’s a Monday, it’s freezing outside and there’s going to be a ton of snow on the ground in some spots that will keep you indoors wishing you had the whole rest of the week off and then some. What to do, what to do? Well, if IndieGala has their merry way with some of you, you’ll be sitting in front of a warm PC playing some cheap games. Or at least ONE cheap game, as Words for Evil from this week’s Every Monday Bundle is FREE as a bird. Check it out below:


 

The rest of the games in this weeks deal ($1.49 for six games!) are certainly eclectic as you’ll soon see. Also, if you poke at the IndieGala store page, you can get another free game just because they really want you to shop there at some point and find even more deals. Sounds like a plan, if you ask me. Alrighty then – go do what you need to do. Me, I’m going to build a fire somewhere warm and cook the first thing that crosses my path…

Zojoi’s MacVentures Keep You Inside, Snow Outside!


 

Well, well… the MacVenture series is back and in fine nostalgic form, this time as a set of Steam digital downloads. While you can buy each of these four classics for $2.99 a pop, it’s best to go whole hog and bag the bundle for $8.99. For that price, you get the original Macintosh 128k black and white and Apple IIGS 4-bit color versions of the MacVenture Series: Uninvited, Shadowgate, Deja Vu and Deja Vu II: Lost In Las Vegas. Yes, they will run on current Macs (of course!) and any PC that’s using Windows 7 or above.

MacVentures Bundle 

Even better, since Zojoi Games is happy to get these classics back out in the fresh air, there’s s 20% launch discount on Steam ($2.39 each, $7.19 four pack bundle) until February 2, 2015. Yeah, so now you can’t say you have nothing to do because you’re snowed in with nothing but the cat to look at. Leave that pet on the bookshelf and go play with something a lot more entertaining…

Random Film of the Week(end): Malibu High

Malibu High MP 1979In the storied pantheon of “High school girl goes bad, turns to prostitution and murder to make ends meet, meets end tragically” films, Irvin Berwick’s 1979 exploitation classic Malibu High is probably the “best” of the bunch. Well, I’m not sure “best” is the proper word to use for a film this bizarre, but you genre fans know what I mean.

That cute poster on the left makes it look like a typical pre-80’s sex comedy flick packed with lowbrow laughs. But man, is it oh soooooooo misleading. Yes, there are laughs to be had here and plenty of them. But the film’s general tone straddles the line between parody and interesting attempts to be serious with breathtaking results… Continue reading

Star Wars: Battle Pod – New, Yet Nostalgic, Now In Arcades!

 

Star Wars Battle PodWait, who’s still got an arcade near them? And I don’t mean a mascot character “pizza” chain (yuk!) or a psuedo-pub grub hub with over-sized tablets posing as arcade games. All kidding aside, as soon as I saw that Star Wars: Battle Pod trailer above, I got a hearty laugh because it’s pretty much a far better-looking version of Namco’s classic 1991 arcade game Star Blade. Given the relatively short length of the experience, the specialized cabinet and its unique screen that allows for flawless immersion, the chances of seeing a home version of this game would normally be zero. On the other hand, with VR technology finally getting some sort of roll out within the next year or so, I could see this as some sort of pack-in or downloadable digital game to keep Star Wars fans happy.

In other words, it’s your move, Bandai Namco… Um, let the Wookie win?

Review: Citizens of Earth

Citizens of Earth BUY NOWPlatform: PlayStation Vita (also on PS4, PC, Nintendo Wii U, Nintendo 3DS)

Developer: Eden Industries

Publisher: Atlus

# of Players: 1

ERSB Rating: E10+ (Everyone 10+)

Official Site

 

Score: B+ (85%)

Fans of classic 90’s console RPGs should drop everything (as in, NOW) and grab Eden Industries’ Citizens of Earth for anything they can play it on. The game perfectly captures the spirit of the classic Super Nintendo game Earthbound while adding elements such as a more open world to explore 30+ party members to recruit and too many puns to keep track of. Not everything is flawless, however. A few typos, accumulated loading times and one pesky navigation glitch sometimes kick the good bits in the good bits. Nevertheless, this is one of those fun and funny games that can suck you in for hours at a time. Atlus wisely rescuing this failed crowd-funded game project and saw fit to publish it for a few platforms.

CoE_Screenshots-84-980x500In the game, You’re the Vice President of the World (!) and things are somewhat screwy in the post-election phase. Angry protesters are outside your home, there’s trouble at the local coffee shop and lots more wildness that requires your VP skills. You’ll need to round up and recruit citizens from all walks of life to aid you in your quest, so expect to meet up with a wide cast of odd and amusing party members as the game progresses. This isn’t any sort of emotional powerhouse storyline at all, so going in expecting weep-inducing cut scenes or “powerful” moments is a fool’s errand. On the other hand, if you like pun-heavy puns, goofy-looking enemies and creative uses of coffee, pastry and pharmaceuticals, you’ll love what’s here and then some… Continue reading