PixlBit

Long time, no blog entry, so here we go. 

Work: aside from the one-two gut punch from last weekend, where a homecoming football game was followed by a junior varsity volleyball tournament the next morning (requiring me to stay there all night and up till 6 a.m.), work is more manageable. Basketball season will no doubt suck but I'm crossing my fingers that football dies a quick death soon. Seeing's how the school's team hasn't down well as of late, perhaps they won't progress to the district tournament.

Small incidents here and there - like the pee-wee football semi-finals yesterday that no one told me about until 30 minutes before they started - can and will irritate me like nothing else but I've been doing this so long that I really shouldn't be surprised that I'm the last to know sometimes.

Gaming wise, its safe to say that Destiny has dominated these past two months. I've given Diablo 3 and Rogue Legacy some time as well but there's nothing like PVP, strike and story missions and all-out grinding with some friends who just joke around as well as help you out (and you help them out). Destiny has its shortcomings but Bungie's dream of a social gaming experience has come true in this regard.

I still need to finish my 2nd playthrough of ME2 and I just had to go and buy some cheap games this weekend: Dead Space 2 and Dante's Inferno Ultimate Edition off of PSN's Sale of the Dead and a physical copy of Dead Space. I now have all three Dead Space games that were made availabe on the PS3. I played a little of the first DS after I got home and the game still looks and sounds amazing for a 2008 release. The scares are mostly of the spring-loaded-cat-trap variety but these xenomorphs mean business and are just gnarly looking. I suppose this is my scary-game pick for the Halloween month. 

Recent movie watches:

The Descent: Possibly my favorite horror film of the last 15 years or so. Still terrifying after all this time. The sense of claustrophobia and despair is so potent. You will never, NEVER see me in a cave. This is a fantastic British horror film from 2005.

Transformers: Age of Extinction: I was told to stay away from this but I didn't listen. I really need to drop the "it's so bad I have to see it" line of logic because its wasting my time. This "franchise" is completely and utterly dead and stagnant. It's not so much the obnoxious, misogynistic and mean-spirited attempts at humor (although that hurts) but its simply boring.

For all of its spectacle and ungraceful attempts to add complexity to a plot (to a series that never required it), it accomplishes nothing, aside from finally killing any interest I have in this series.

An incredible waste of resources on both sides of the camera. Don't make the mistake that I made. If you haven't seen this, keep it that way. You gain nothing. Nothing.

Chef: It's smart, funny, endearing and an effective tribute to the art of creation and the effect of criticism (in both good and bad forms). It is also a film you should never watch hungry because the display of food preparation made my mouth water over and over again. For example, there's a ham and cheese sandwich that Jon Favreau's character makes for his son so I so desperately want now. Anyway, highly recommended.

Edge of Tomorrow: If you missed this during its theatrical run (don't feel bad, for I did too), you should give it a chance on rental. Its an excellent sci-fi/action film with brains, heart and a unique spin on the "endless day" scenario that we usually associate with Groundhog Day (the film, not the holiday). Tom Cruise excels as a man who begins the film as a craven, spineless coward with zero combat experience and only gradually becomes a capable soldier, through dying so many MANY times. Emily Blunt steals the film as this kickass female soldier who assists Cruise in his attempts to use a time-loop ability to stop an alien invasion that could devastate humanity if successful. 

Hatchet: This is a low-budget love letter to slasher horror films of the 80s and early 90s, full of gore, laughs and a memorable movie monster. It's also the first of a trilogy and I intend to watch them as well.

As I'm typing this, one of Smashing Pumpkins' most underrated albums, Adore, is playing. There's a lullaby quality to some of the later tracks and I'm wanting to hit the bed. I hope everyone has had a good week and weekend.