Kimputer's Weblog

It has been quite a ride, these past three years. Working for the wrong side, working for both sides, and working for the good guys. That’s the action part. Then there’s the murdered fiancee, and the distant father, and the deceased mother. That’s the drama part. Then there’s the Rambaldi device, and the prophecies. That’s the mysterious part. The first season was quite episodic, but it was a nice build-up for season 2 and 3, where it slowly evolved into highly serialised storytelling that had the effect of a non-stop adrenaline rush, with a cliffhanger waiting to grab you every week. Guess people didn’t like it that much (sliding ratings), so J.J. Abrams must have succumbed to pressure from the big studio bosses. All that added depth is now gone, and episode for episode roll by feeling a bit like the same. It’s still strong writing though, but it’s just not the same. It’s gone from being great to just being good. Let’s hope the tides return soon.

Not so much Hide and Seek, as Robert DeNiro heads back in plain sight to the number one spot this week after vacating it with the Fockers. Teaming up with Dakota Fanning, it brings in $22 million.
Are We There Yet? is past its peak, at number 2 with $17 million. At 3, Million Dollar Baby enjoys its first week of wide release (and does so favoribly, probably due to 7 Oscar noms), with $11.8 million. Meanwhile at 4, Coach Carter hangs on with $8 million. The Fockers round off the top five with $7.6 million.

The past years haven’t been really good, comedy series wise. Most quality shows were gone, leaving only Friends on the air. And so the laugh out loud moments were also gone since May (even as quality for this show was also slipping since season 5 and 6, while regaining only a bit of ground in the last season). Joey was supposed to pick up the thread in September, but it has grown stale in a very short time. This new mid-season replacement (for Father of the Pride), is finally what we’ve been waiting for. It’s a fresh comedy with a good variety of characters and storylines, very unlike Joey, where you can practically fill in the dialogue before it’s spoken. Here things actually happen, also very unlike the static scenario of Joey. It’s going to be a short season (13 eps.), but at least it’s qualtiy.

A product of the George Clooney/Steven Soderbergh partnership, it’s a 10 episode series on HBO. Something of a mix of soft-core The Office and the current batch of reality TV shows, following three actors through their hardships and joys in acting classes and actual jobs. While the title says unscripted, the dialogue may be, but certain storylines are clearly setup and developed. Mostly funny stuff, and here and there they’re trying to blend in some drama.
With the powers behind the show, it’s also fun to see backstage shots for the real and fictitious guest roles the actors landed, opening doors to lots of funny cameos (for instance other actors and directors). While the first four episodes were pretty solid, the fifth was a bit of a letdown. Another half a season to decide if it’s worth a second season.

Just found a COMPLETELY WHITE hair on my chin (must be some 4 weeks old). I kid you not.
So it’s probably time to say something reealllly really wise now. And on the way home, listening to the radio, all I could come up with was:

Any radio host playing Nelly Furtado and Evanascence back to back, should be have all his hair pulled out, and shoved down his ears.

Anyways, gonna shave now, let’s see if I’m just as wise in 4 weeks as I was today .

It’s that time again. But this time, there’s a Quarter Pounder on the line (only for question 1, there’s a bet involved), so please answer truthfully.

1. Answer what YOU think (usually, K-uestions are about what you think I think)

This McMenu (not a fixed menu of course, it’s custom ordered), for one person only, is:
1. much
2. not so much

2.
a. Braeburn
b. Pink Lady

3. This kinda sucKs, but I’m probably (not totally sure yet), allergic to (kicking in a migraine):
a. Water
b. Sesame
c. Peanuts
d. Latex

This icon will indicate if I have answered the K-uestions yet

It’s the third one, that should say enough. Really. Where the first one was unique, blending neat action, style and story into a surprise hit, the second saw the decay eating away the uniqueness. The third is just a non-stop slugfest, without a proper story, dialogue and style to go on. So, enter the new sidekicks. The guy is an empty character with the sole purpose as comic relief (though his physique has some function too), while the female (Jessica Biel) makes a nice transition from actress (critically acclaimed series 7th Heaven) to ass kicking hot chick.
It’s really funny to see how David S. Goyer destroys this franchise (screenplay Blade, added producer duty in chapter two, added director duty to chapter 3). All in all, a typical movie you just want to see once.6.

Rate 1 (sucks) to 5 (cool). Only rate the latest pictures, otherwise I can’t keep track of the average.

Total: 686 out of 212 votes > Average is: 3.236

Lost my 20+ years allround pocket knife this Friday. Searched high and low, emptied the trash bins. Nudding.
And now, I’m helping a client on the phone, and while fiddling around, what do I see hanging around ?

Last time I asked myself, with the bizzy TV schedule I had, if that actually constitutes as an addiction. Now a few months later, I still have time to fit in at least one hour of Counter-Strike: Source online gaming ! Well, THAT answers that question then, not ?
Anyways, here’s an updated list for what YOU should follow if you do not want to drop in the same pitfall of addiction as me:

The MUST-SEE !
Jack and Bobby
Lost
CSI
Smallville
Alias
24
Unscripted
Huff

The Good:
Monk
King of the Hill
Committed
Boston Legal
Everwood

The Sometimes (in that order according to extra time to kill):
NCIS
Kevin Hill
Joey
CSI:NY
Veronica Mars

The Try-out Bench (new series):
Numb3rs

The Axed (either cancelled by the network or dismissed by me):
Star Trek: Enterprise
Point Pleasant
Medium
House
Father of the Pride
Johnny Zero
Desperate Housewives
Medical Investigation
Last Comic Standing
Hawaii
Clubhouse
Drawn Together

The Wait
Blind Justice (new ABC)
Grey’s Anatomy (new ABC)
The Office (new NBC version)

South Park (season 9)
Tru Calling (season 2)
The Dead Zone (season 4)
Battlestar Galactica (season 2)

Off to watch some more TV it is. Intermingled with a bit of Counter-Strike. Naturally.

Everything you expected from the first half (see old review), you get back in the second half. And more. Ending with another two-parter, it proves to be one of the best entries this year, for TV in general. Successfully combining action, drama, politics and even a bit of faith and religion into a highly compacted short season, and still there are no cut corners to be found. Every episodes stands on its own, with a greath wealth of depth, while keeping your heart rate up, and your mouth in the “Aww!” position. With a nasty cliffhanger to boot, the only sad thing will be the waiting for season 2 (filming confirmed, air date not).

Another branch of the alternative programming of Fox, it’s a mix of Charmed and Baywatch with a more serious overtones, but geared to the teen demographics. Outline might have been interesting (Daughter of Satan and human female washes up on the shore of high class suburban town, who will try to find her destiny and mother in the future episodes), but the choppy dialogue and story development can’t be consealed by high production value (directing, production design etc.). You can clearly see where it’s headed, and the umpteenth seduction scene or where something devilish happens isn’t really what I’m waiting for.
As I got my plate full as it is, with a few more upcoming new series on the way, I just don’t have time to wait for the writers to settle in (they had enough time on the pilot, don’t you think).

As I mentioned earlier, new ice cream taster is my second third fourth and fifth middle name, but somehow, this one slipped under the radar for more than a month now. The supermarket put in the lower parts of the freezer, and hence I missed it.
So, what do two proven flavors do combined ? It’s the usual sum of all parts equation. It’s marvelous !
The chocolate Hertog part is creamy as usual, and soft as well. The flavor is deep and lasting. Then the Toblerone parts add a different kind of sweet, and the extra texture to makes it as addictive as the sum of all parts equation would have calculated. I.e., it’s quite dangerous.8+.

Ice Cube, rapper/writer turned movie star/producer, is now in the habit of freezing the number one spot for himself when it’s time. He follows the success of the Barbershop series with a new comedy, Are We There Yet ?, with $18.5 million. Apparently, we’re not quite there yet, as he takes over the XXX franchise, the movie opening in a few weeks.
Coach Carter isn’t tired yet, but fatigue is definitly there, at number 2 with $11 million. At number 3, the Focker family has garnered a small fortune now, another week of $10.2 million (with the total standing at $248 million).
Sticking at number four is In Good Company, with $8.5 million. Rounding off the top five is Racing Stripes, looking like it’s going to give up the race, and dropping two places, with $7.1 million.

Yimou Zhang follows Hero quickly with another show of drama with a dash of old fashioned tragedy and breath-taking martial arts. Lost is the intricate perspective storytelling, but the stylised directing style is still there. A simple story to start with will slowly complicate itself, while many key scenes will slowly work itself under your skin. Again, this is accomplished by timing dialogue, giving every scene texture with colors, subtle sound effects and an underlying dramatic score. This makes every scene having a poetic feel to it.
Again, helping this movie a few grades up is the mesmerising beautiful Ziyi Zhang, playing another complex and emotionally laden (at least, under the surface) role, effectively elbowing her way into the many upcoming leading actress awards for this year.8.

Rate 1 (sucks) to 5 (cool). Only rate the latest pictures, otherwise I can’t keep track of the average.

Total: 685 out of 211 votes > Average is: 3.246

I could use some user input on these future innovative endeavors, y’know.