Unfettered Blather

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I usually don’t talk about celebrities because I really do have better things to occupy my time. That said, Natasha Richardson has always been one of my favorite actresses despite having been in only a handful of movies that I’ve actually seen. It was The Comfort of Strangers that I first noticed her while she worked with Rupert Everett, my introduction to him as well. Also, this is a movie that cemented Christopher Walken as the king of creepy, even though I eventually saw earlier work of his that showed me he had been at it for awhile. She was always stellar in everything she did, even the unnecessary remake of The Parent Trap.

45 is simply too young to pass and I feel for her husband and children.

This actually makes a pretty good follow up to my last piece. I really only watch G4TV for Ninja Warrior and Human Wrecking Balls. The fact that there are other shows on G4TV is about as relevant as there are other shows outside of Mythbusters on the Discovery channel. I simply do not care. Still, I have browsed long enough to catch the geek eyeball traps they call programming and I am surprised at the base level cynicism that is levelled at their target demographic. It would seem that G4TV seems to think having a few hot chicks on a show is enough to rope in the lonely male gamer stereotype that they adhere so strongly to. Sadly, I think this strategy is working. I’m not criticizing G4TV for using lovely young women to entice single 20-something men to watch their shows. This is a tried and true television hook and it seems to work just as well today as it did 50 years ago.

My only real complaint is that I think G4TV is missing out on a real opportunity here. Not just to embrace a stereotype but help shatter it. Instead of just using women in the usual eye candy role, much like the hostesses of the Price is Right back when I was a kid, they are actually expected to interact with the host of the show. That’s fine, just don’t be so crass as to expect anyone with a brain and the ability to turn off lust induced brain freeze (Thank you, Dave Barry) for 5 seconds to actually believe someone like Olivia Munn is anything more than an aspiring model who was lucky enough to land a gig where she can trade on her looks as long as they last. I don’t have a problem with Ms. Munn, I simply don’t believe she is anything more than an opportunisitic wannabe hollywood starlet who is being leveraged as a cheap marketing ploy. Her tendency to dress in fanboyish outfits, such as an outing in the classic ‘Slave Leia’ costume, is a testament to the reliance of G4TV marketing of hoping their demographic is too busy drooling over Munn’s chest to notice they are being easily manipulated.

I actually would mind Olivia Munn less if not for the presence of Morgan Webb. Webb has cleaned up nicely over the years, though she was never bad looking she certainly did appear a little rougher and a lot less polished than Munn ever did. Even so, Morgan Webb is at least a legitimate gamer and displays how you can be attractive and yet still have a fairly geeky hobby. I also think she’s a better representation of the real gaming market. While G4TV is still set on the lonely 20-something can’t get a date demographic the real gaming market has expanded well beyond that. In my mind, Morgan Webb helps break the mold by being attractive and yet has real credibility as a gamer. Olivia Munn looks like she doesn’t know what to do with a game controller. There is a chasm between what these two women represent. Not to mention, once Webb got away from some of the “gamer look” stereotype she actually turned out to be pretty hot in her own right. I didn’t even recognize her at first when I saw the latest X-Play commercials. Not that there was anything wrong with her before, but I like the new look as opposed to the old stereotype of “I’m a girl gamer who happens to be hot but could be just as happy playing a videogame in the basement”. Videogames have moved into family rooms long ago. Webb’s current look may be more mainstream and less “hardcore”, but I like it. I feel like she has a reason to be talking about games. I feel like Munn is laughing behind gamer’s backs.

The biggest problem here though? No matter how cynical the view G4TV is taking towards gamers, so long as gamers continue to tune in for it this will continue.

“The Mummy” films rate as one of the best conceived franchise concepts of the past decade and an idea that was long overdue. The Indian Jones films pioneered a genre few have really made a quality attempt to expand upon. I am still surprised by how likeable and charming the characters are in the 1999 release and while it has some issues, the sequel “The Mummy Returns” still captured a great deal of original’s charm and fanciful style. To say the series had characters and stars ideal for their roles was an understatement.

I really don’t rewatch movies very frequently but the Mummy films never seem to loose that shine, sadly the most recent installment breaks that feeling with a determination one almost has to admire.

The current film is set in 1946 and the O’Connell couple is suffering from a bland existence. We learn they did espionage work during WWII and are trying to settle in to the life of an average couple and failing miserably at the attempt. Evie has written a popular romantic novel about mummies and enthusiastic female fans are after her to write a sequel while Rick is trying a hobby that “doesn’t involve guns”. This aspect of the film is well played as we see two people who lived a life of discovery and adventure trying to shoehorn themselves in to roles that are simply no longer viable. When you save the world and face down otherworldly danger, how does one take an interest in fly fishing? The answer is, you don’t. The opening aspect of the film gives you a glimmer of hope.

This flicker is almost immediately dashed by Maria Bello, probably the weakest link in the entire film. Rachael Weisz played a fairly complex character whereas Maria Bello plays a dispassionate substitute. She doesn’t blend well with Fraiser’s character and at times you can almost see it on their faces. Fraiser trys, but its obvious the motivation present in the first two films is gone. This is probably the most telling flaw. I’ve always enjoyed Fraiser as an actor, he has an energy to his roles, even poor ones where he seems to give that extra effort to make the character come to life. The Rick O’Connell in Tomb seems tired, probably more so from his stuffy replacement wife. Evie is as essential to the formula as Rick is. Can anyone name a celebrated film or musical duo that didn’t suck after half the of the duo disappears? Didn’t think so. This alone should have been a reason to cancel the project in my mind.

Bello is simply distracting and the mind drifts and ponders what the film might have been like if Weisz was on screen. She distracts on two different levels.

The film concentrates more on setting and CGI than individual action scenes and Fraiser’s classic fights present in the first two films are lost in a flurry of scenes where Yeti are engaged in fisticuffs while bullets fly. Fraiser is later mortally wounded in a disturbingly direct reference to “Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade” and must be saved before he can continue the fight

The biggest problem with the film is pacing, we just don’t get to see much of any particular character to allow them to engage us. Much of the film relies on the fact we know and like Fraiser, but only his brother-in-law Johnathan makes a return from the original cast. We are introduced to the O’Connell’s rather predictable and at times, unpleasant adult son Alex who runs the range of typical wooden character traits from disdain for his father to cheap sentimentality followed by awkward emotional interest in his female companion. Alex is a typical movie stereotype and we’ve seen far too many stereotypes acted far better than this.

For much of the film I wondered why we have been straddled with this jerk and his attempts to be witty or roguish doesn’t do anything to make him any more likeable. Overall Alex feels entirely unnecessary and as the film continues you realize he is unnecessary in every way.

Jet Li is another perplexing addition, a man brought in for his considerable martial arts prowess and acting credentials, only to have neither used to any effect in the film. Jet Li is a place holder, much like Brendan Fraiser to add credibility to a film that sorely lacks it.

The entire effort seems in a rush to get from scene to scene, like a collection of bright ideas and brainstorming sessions with little discussion given to how to make all of these events and themes relate. This grows frustrating because we see potential in each scene, but the feeling conveyed is on that the director didn’t care, we aren’t allowed to get attached either through character development of well written dialogue. Most characters speak in lazy cliches and catch phrases before being whisked away to the latest CGI local

“Unnecessary” is the best singular way to describe Tomb, the film is a collection of well made scenes, poor writing and characters the film seems to busy to bother with, characters we’ve come to know and love from the first films are used as mere puppets to line someone’s pockets. This is the reason for sequels that many directors seem to forget, we want to see Rick and Evie deal with mummies, not CGI effects with the characters as a cheap backdrop. There is no mythos left to tap, no charm or attachment to the previous titles to lend it a sense of continuity. The Tomb of the Dragon emperor simply ends the film series, nothing more. It gives us nothing, sews up no loose ends, it doesn’t take the characters to new levels or relates them further or shows us where they are headed as we part ways. The film is a sad way to see the series end because it walks away from us with out so much as a a goodbye.

In a way this post is where I give up. Jason has decided he wants to get away from punditry for Unfettered Blather and while I know he would never ask me to stop posting my rants here, I honestly don’t see the point to it anymore.

Someone once made a comment:

“Politics determines how we live our lives on earth, religion determines how we live our lives afterwards - I think people need to talk about it.”

There are a lot of pundit sites out there, at this point I think the fact that everyone can isolate themselves to their own blogs is a great way to make sure you never have to hear anyone but yourself, maybe you can garner a tribe of loyal followers. I have seen some where intelligent debate thrives but those are rare. I suppose forums are somewhat to blame for this, the struggle for dominance.

I like saying inflammatory things, mainly because the definition for what is inappropriate and incendiary is cast in an ever expanding net. It used to be “its not what you say, its how you say it”, this has eventually become “you can’t say that”.

Politics is the language of maturity because it involves change that effect everyone. Interest in the fundamentals of the political process seems to drop every day. I hear from an ever increasing number of people that they no longer watch the news because it is “depressing”. I can’t argue with this but I was raised with the idea that you search, read, filter and find the information to keep you informed. The news never depressed me because I was never given the expectation that life was merry sunshine. Life is tough and there are more bad people than good, but knowing that you take pride in perseverance and being informed on the truth, not opinion.

I suppose thats the final nail in this coffin, the fact that opinion and truth have become interchangeable to most people. It doesn’t matter if it is the truth, the truth is something individual, subject. Is it really the truth if it isn’t my truth?

Phillip K. Dick said “Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away.”

To be blunt, I’m tired of talking to people who spend their time trying to find new ways to make it go away.

Am I saying I know the truth? No, I have ideas and if I test them and they don’t withstand the test, I am wrong and I will never fail to admit it. Adhering blindly to anything in my view is dangerous but if you do believe it you need to be educated on the subject and able to explain it. Thats too much effort for most.

Nobody really wants to have a dialogue, politics has effectively become a split-level debate. People want to sound off on soapboxes, podiums where they can gush soundbites and unsupportable statistics. The other option is to button up and say nothing when the issue comes up for fear of an argument related to option one. This has given way to a form of extremely passive aggressive behavior where we toast our glasses, smile at how wrong the person is and ignore the debate.

I’m not trying to be smug, I’ve tried to be open and to carry on point, counterpoint conversations. The simple fact is I don’t like talking to people and having them pretend I’m not there.

Finally most people simply button-up when you try to broach the subject or make a comment. People are fearful of the very events and beliefs that will shape their lives. I’d rather make an enemy than a false friend. Do I judge people on politics? Certainly not in most cases, but I much rather feel I can be respected and share my beliefs and ideas with people instead of finding friendship and acquaintances that will remain as such as long as I don’t breach a list of taboos.

That being said I don’t feel I can contribute anything to the debate anymore. I won’t talk on forums, I’ve been that route for a firm decade. I’ve owned, ran and managed several more.

My new focus when the mood strikes me will be gaming articles and mainstream entertainment. My hobby certainly doesn’t fall in that category but recently I’ve approached a good friend about contributing to a national publication and they seemed very enthusiastic about my desire to write. Expect more news on this front!

Finally, now that I have made my triumphant return to gaming (with little or no fanfare - perhaps you haven’t heard!) I intend to focus heavily on game reviews and comparative efforts with Jason

Looking forward to 2009!!