Beyond: Two Souls, the next cinematic game from Quantic Dream makes its way to PS3 this week. Starring Ellen Page and Willam Dafoe, it is the developers follow up to Heavy Rain and so far early reviews have not been too kind saying you feel more like a spectator than controlling a character. Of course, decide for yourself if you want to give it a try. Also, Pokémon is back with two new games on 3DS which I am sure will sell all too well.
October 8th
[amazon_link id=”B0050SX7BQ” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Beyond: Two Souls[/amazon_link] (PS3)
To the surprise of no one, Ubisoft has announced a Season Pass for [amazon_link id=”B00BMFIXKQ” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Assassin’s Creed IV[/amazon_link] which will include the single player DLC, Freedom Cry. You will play the part of Adewale, Edward Kenway’s friend on the Jackdaw as he is caught in the slaving community. Never let it be said that the franchise is not afraid to take on sensitive subjects.
The $20 Season Pass will also include new missions, skins, weapons, the Kraken ship pack and more characters in multiplayer. It will save 20% over buying it all separately.
Space is as beautiful as it is frightening. It has enamored man since we were chiseling wheels out of stone. Select few have gotten to fly among the stars and there have been many movies made about those adventures like The Right Stuff and Apollo 13. I am here to say that Alfonso Cuaròn’s Gravity has set a new standard for the genre. It will take you into unimaginable despair, palpable tension and a sense of hope, all set against one of the most beautiful backdrops ever put to film.
And it does so in 90 minutes.
*Minor Spoilers Ahead*
When Gravity opens we are greeted with a breathtaking view of Earth. Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) is having a hard time keeping her lunch down as she works on the Hubble telescope during her first space mission. The counterpoint to Stone is Matt Kowalski (George Clooney), who is a veteran astronaut on his final mission into the stars. As Stone upgrades the telescope, Kowalski is having fun testing a new thruster pack while listening to country music and regaling Houston with his many stories of different women who have broken his heart. He begins each story with “Houston, I have a bad feeling about this mission” and as a bit of history embedded in the movie, Cuarón has Ed Harris voicing the Houston end of communication.
As repairs continue Houston warns the team of a Russian anti-satellite test that has gone wrong and has created a debris field that is growing larger as it takes out more satellites (think The Perfect Storm, just with satellite parts). Stone and Kowalski are unable to take cover in time and are separated. As Stone spins out of control, helpless, Kowalski uses his jetpack to reach her and tether them together. Their shuttle being completely rendered useless, Kowalski decides to try and get them to the International Space Station and use an escape pod to reach Earth.
Do not be fooled into thinking this is simply “Cast Away in Space”. There is no space volleyball. Clooney is a prime player and the voice of calm and reason for much longer than you think. But when this becomes Bullock’s film, she absolutely owns every minute of it. I always wondered why she won an Oscar for The Blind Side, but I have to say now that if she is not nominated again and a serious contender to win, there is something wrong in Hollywood. She takes you through a gamut of emotions that can rarely be matched. She runs through the five steps of (space) grief, albeit not in the usual order. I so much want to tell you more about the latter half of the film but can not in good conscience do that, needless to say that Bullock is a marvel to watch.
Photo courtesy 233prime.com
I am not a big fan of 3D movies, especially these days with all the post-produced effects as a money grab. I watched Gravity in IMAX 3D and was infinitely happy I did. It is the best use of the format since Avatar (I am not comparing the movies, mind you, just the use of 3D). More than once my jaw was agape at the immense depth of view when you were surrounded by nothing but stars. I flinched once during one particular scene involving the debris field, which comes along more than once. The use of practical effects and CGI are truly amazing.
Alfonso Cuarón was already one of my favorite directors having done Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and one of my favorite films ever, Children of Men. He has hit new heights with Gravity in ways I never thought possible. For people like me that grew up staring into the stars and wondering what it would be like to float among them, he has given one of the most realistic looks at what it is like. The child in me wants to thank him for the wonder and the adult me wants to praise him for the technical and emotional ride that he has crafted.
Gravity is an achievement that should not be missed. It is my favorite movie of the year, by far.
Now this is definitely good news. United Front Games, developers of the open world gem, Sleeping Dogs, has announced that a sequel “based in the Sleeping Dogs universe” is in the works. Whether this is a true sequel to the adventures of Wei Shen is not known.
The company has registered the trademark Triad Wars which could also mean a game with a more online component set in virtual Hong Kong. Either way, I will gladly take more Sleeping Dogs however I can get it.
Check out my review here and see why you should pick this game up.
Ron Burgundy is here to show you why you should pick Dodge’s SUV over all others including the wonders of its glovebox. It is the perfect vehicle for when you are out for a sexy night of jazz flute with your lady friend. The only way these ads could be better is if Brian Fantana was out there too because you know what they say about Dodge. 60% of the time they work…everytime.
Anchorman: The Legend Continues releases on December 20th.
Maybe people can make good decisions when they go see movies. Proof of that happened this weekend with Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity. Riding a wave of stellar reviews, the film set a new October record with $55.5 million beating Paranormal Activity 3’s $52.5 million in 2011. Estimates were expecting it to gross in the mid-30’s so this may be a huge surprise to some.
Since audiences were spending time in space it meant that Ben Affleck and Justin Timberlake were left with scraps. Runner Runner could only manage $7.6 million.
1. Gravity- $55.5 million/ $55.5 million
2. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2- $21.5/ $61.5
There is no long, drawn out explanation for I, Frankenstein. Monster is awakened 200 years after his creation and fights demons that look like Disney’s Gargoyles. The cast is not bad. I laughed some. Don’t laugh. We aren’t supposed to laugh I think. It’s being serious. Come on.
Jack Ryan is back on the big screen after an 11 year break and Chris Pine has now taken over the role. The first trailer for Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit may seem a bit by the numbers in places especially with the whole “wife showing up randomly and getting in the middle of things” but I am still excited for this movie because I do love me some shady government/espionage films. Plus, I trust director Kenneth Branagh with the character.
Also, it hurts to see Keira Knightley. Don’t get me wrong, I am a large goblin of a man but to see what she used to look like in the first Pirates movie to now just hurts. Seriously, go watch The Curse of the Black Pearl then watch At World’s End. It is like looking at the face of God then the face of Skeletor.
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit releases on Christmas Day.
Irrational Games wants to remind you that Bioshock: Burial at Sea is still coming with this trailer which is a trip for fans of old documentaries like me. Myles Bloom is searching for answers to see if the secret city of Rapture is real in this “Fact from Myth” feature that looks like a TV documentary from the 70’s.
Bioshock: Burial at Sea will release this year. Hopefully.
Well that didn’t take long at all. The first show of the new television season to get renewed is Sleepy Hollow after only three weeks on the air. Fox announced today that due to good ratings they would be moving forward with a second season next year. The first season is 13 episodes and instead of ordering an additional 9 for a full season of 22 episodes, they are taking the approach of the cable networks and keeping the series at 13 episodes a season.
I have always liked the shorter season order for dramas that shows like The Shield, The Walking Dead and Mad Men have done. Sometimes a show can seem like it is dragging when there are 22-24 episodes to film. I loved Arrow but some episodes were hard to get through with so many episodes. Sleepy Hollow seems like it will work much better as a shortened season show especially since it appears there is already a long term plot in place. It debuted with 10 million viewers and has held on to most of them through the first three episodes.
Sleepy Hollow has been a fun show so far, it is good to know there will be more next year.
