DVD Classics: Braveheart

The moment I saw Mel Gibson's epic Braveheart, I knew I had to own it. At the time, the richest edition in terms of quality for the film was a special 2-Disc Collector's Edition. Usually, these kinds of films, preferably great films that happen to be a few years old, always get the hand-me-down treatment, in which they'll be rushed and released on a basic DVD with absolutely nothing on the disc save the movie itself. This edition, however, released in 2007, is a definite improvement. It comes in a sweet cardboard sleeve to give it that collectable feel (I know, that sounds really geek-filled), and the overall design of the artwork defines the film itself. Paramount has somehow developed a niche for having no artwork on the discs and just have silver on them with the films logo, so there's nothing interesting there. The film itself is perfectly restored in rich quality and in its rightful aspect ratio. As for the features provided on the second disc, they are great and give a sufficient insight on the film, as well as trailers and footage from when the film was shot. Now I do know there is a new Collector's Sapphire Blu-Ray Edition of the film that was recently released. But if you do not have a Blu-Ray player, or you simply can't afford it, getting this edition, in my opinion, is simply just as incredible.

I'm going for "Hardened"

What is the true bargain between different editions of video games? Most notably for games that have been long awaited. Are they truly worth it to get the full experience of the game, or is it simply just a cash in on some worthless features? Yes and No. There certain editions that simply boost the appeal of the game, but never really boost the value of the game itself. Such include the recently released collector's edition of Batman: Arkham Asylum. The game itself sets the bar so high, that all of the extra goodies of the game seem completely unnecessary. While others do a great deal of justice, such as the various editions of the Halo games among others. And there are some that do neither bad nor good to the game, such as the prestige and hardened editions of Modern Warfare 2, which I'm tempted to pick up. What sometimes fumes us gamers that actually rarely happens is that these editions are released months, maybe years, after their regular counterparts. So in the end, one question remains..........is it worth it?

Logitech USB Desktop Microphone Review

For the past few years, I've been wanting to upgrade to a better microphone. One that doesn't feel like its going to break in 5 minutes, one that can capture audio at its purest within a reasonable budget. It wasn't until I ran into the Logitech USB Desktop Microphone that I noticed that this mic actually existed, wow. This mic is great. It captures audio as crisp as it can while at the same time filtering out the most unwanted audio from the background of its recordings. Now even though some mic's allow the functionality to be able to bend flexibly at your conviniency, this mic is static with its firm plastic boom and stand, but once you heard how amazing the audio sounds, despite still being able to move the boom up and down and the mic itself all around thanks to the comfort of the extendable cable, it doesn't really matter. If you're into song recording, podcasts, audio reviews, or just plain audio recording in general, for the price its going for, its a major steal.

THE RETURN

Wow! I haven't touched this thing in a long time. More written reviews and opinions of certain products coming very soon. As soon as in the next hour even. Peace!!

9/9/09!!!

THE WORLD IS GOING TO END!!!

JK

But in all seriousness, shouldn't days like this that come around every so often that contain a very rare phenomena call for a special honor in its occasion?

Excuse me while I ponder....

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra Movie Review

Yes, I barely saw it, so what?

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra chronicles the Joe's mission to stop M.A.R.S. industries from from (you guessed it) taking over the world, as the evil organization rises to become the malevolent Cobra.

Now critics have bashed this film to be brainless, loud and overdone. But people should know that when they read their criticism, they should be fully aware that these guys...have a very long, titanium beam in their ass.

I went into this movie with my expectations low, unfortunately due to earlier this summer's Revenge of the Fallen. But at the same time I was expecting a fun ride to what director Stephen Sommers has brought before with the first two Mummy films (although Van Helsing is a different story).

Thankfully it delivered! It was brainless but fun, different and nostalgic. Mainly coming from the characters back stories rather than the plot itself. even Marlon Wayans as Dukes friend, Ripchord, wasn't that bad, he's safe from any more Razzies (at least for this year). Comedy was sublime and "built-in" into the action. I even felt chills (in a good way) when Snake Eyes appeared for the first time, leaping out of the air ship.

Not every fun film escapes from its flaws.

Channing Tatum..............................nuff said.

The action was great and much better choreographed. And, no offense, but you can actually tell who is who (wink). BUT, it literally gave me a mild headache. Like I said, the action sequences were great, but I guess the connectivity between my eyes and the motored half of my brain got mildly damaged.

Another thing...TOO many "Mummy" references! I can't go into this without giving away some spoilers so you're gonna have to watch the film for yourself.

Overall, the film is what a pretty good action summer blockbuster film should be. You want action, go see this. If you're an avid G.I Joe fan, go see this, there are a pretty decent number of nods to the fans in this film. Is it better than "Transformers"? Its either on par...maybe a little better. But for most people, they'll have the will to watch it again.

YO JOE!!!

Acer Aspire Laptop Review

Here's my written review of the new Acer Aspire Laptop I got for B-Day, enjoy:

Acer Aspire C530. Comes with a AMD Athlon 64 X2 Q-L dual-core processor so its excellent for multi-tasking. It has high end graphics with an Ati Radeon 3200 HD graphics card. I tried "The Movies" game on it, and it ran smoothly without a problem. 3GB or RAM so it runs fast and efficient. It has a 250 GB hard drive, but space is really not an issue since I got an external 320GB hard drive, so its all good.

Comes with all the basic hard ware components plus more! A built-in mic and webcam I was not in for and I was definitely surprised. It gets better! PCI/ExpressCard slot for hooking up my camera via firewire and a 5-in-1 card slot to input pictures and saved data.

The laptop is Hi-Def all around. It has a 1080p HD screen with a Tuba Subwoofer and True 5.1 Surround Sound. It also has the capability to hook up to an HDTV via an HDMI output.

Now the beefs I have with it. First, uploading videos to the internet is not any faster, the internet connection I have is at fault here. Its not fast enough. So uploading is at the same rate. Certain programs that worked with my old laptop don't work on this one. Vista could be the reason for this but I'm not sure.

But fear not I shall! This came with an offer of a FREE upgrade to Windows 7 when its released in October. Plus I got it at the price of only $329.99!! A good bargain.

Overall, it hasn't let me down comletely, plus when my old one is completely extinct, this will save my ass.