Brave New World

A novel about the distant future which was way ahead of it's time with introducing and predicting concepts which are now relevant, Aldous Huxley's Brave New World is an eye and mind opener into well, a brave new world.

With bold idea's like hypnopaedia, also known as sleep-learning, or classical conditioning, it's a vast imaginary view at how the author managed to look ahead at upcoming scientific and technological developments.

The plot and it's characters are likable, but the way of writing by Huxley somewhat set me off, with paragraphs sometimes looking like walls, and at other times, the numerous terminologies got me confounded.

Still,  it's an important book of the 20th century, as it rebels subtly against ideologies like capitalism and socialism, and comparisons towards George Orwell's 1984 can be made, going against totalitarian or utopian ideas.

Brave New World is fairly approachable to read, and yet the topics one will find in it are quite deep, such as the lengths of nature versus nurture methods. I'm sure that i will read it again in the future in order to understand and appreciate it even better.

I wish you all, ironically of course, a brave new year in 2017!

Rating: **(out of 4)

Aguirre, the Wrath of God

Perhaps Werner Herzog's magnum opus, Aguirre, the Wrath of God is an epic film inspired by the novella Heart of Darkness. Subsequently, this is the movie that inspired Francis Ford Coppola to make Apocalypse Now, and they all share a similar premise.

It's a story about obsession and madness because of an illusion called El Dorado. Aguirre's main character Don Lope de Aguirre played by Klaus Kinski acted well, and was the main reason for wanting to see this movie, because his face and infamous frenzy personality is intense to behold.

The opening scene is very powerful with it's epic grim yet inviting score towards Peru's paradise surrounding Machu Picchu, as the conquistadores led eventually by Lope are determined to find the City of Gold.

Although the plot is thin, it's really the scenery and the so called oneiric moments that make the Wrath of God memorable, alongside the fauna's background noise and that one little moment when one of the locals is ordered by Lope to play a flute tune.

Last but not least is that Klaus Kinski's mad performance bore similarities towards the real Aguirre's homicidal delusions of grandeur, and it easily sucks viewers into the whirlpool of despair as the dream of El Dorado degrades further.

It's a flawed experience, as the direction and the pacing could feel better, but the good outweighs the bad easily, as the cinematography is intense at times, the soundtrack is as quoted by the late Roger Ebert"haunting, ecclesiastical, human and more", and the ending is a beautiful wreck of insanity.

Some years ago, I shared my top 25 movies. At that time, this movie was arguably battling for the third spot alongside Apocalypse Now. If I were to do that again in the future, Aguirre, the Wrath of God would be listed, just for it's dreamlike state alone, as it can easily conjure upon your sense of imagination.

Rating: 8.0

Nostalgic Childhood Animations

While I am on the subject of nostalgia after writing the previous blog article, let's dig deeper with nostalgic childhood animations, sharing with you 4 of my most fonded memories:

We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story is a genuine childhood memory movie for me personally, but it’s flawed looking back at it now. A group of dinosaurs are selected by a time travelling doctor to grant kid’s wishes in present time.

As goofy as that sounds, the pacing, voice acting and animation are even more inferior. The only thing I now like is the Eccentric Circus and some animated effects seen there.

Rating: 6.0

A childhood movie of mine, Lady and the Tramp is a classic Walt Disney production featuring a royal lady and a tramp dog who fall in love despite danger, jealousy and other obstacles hindering them.

Although only the opening and ending scenes depict snow, it still is technically a Christmas movie. Memorable scenes include the romantic dinner outside, Lady’s childhood, the zoo quarrel and the ending.

Rating: 7.0

Another childhood movie of mine, Bedknobs and Broomsticks is one of my most memorable ones and still remains very nostalgic to this day upon finally re-watching it. 3 children, a witch and a professor go on a magical adventure to recover a spell book so that the Nazi’s can be defeated back in London.

My favorite moments are when the 5 of them go underwater, when they participate into the tournament with the animals and when the witch summons a magical army of armors to fight the Nazi’s.

And in the center of it all is a bed which transports the 5 main characters around, and I always considered the bed to symbolically represent the cozy and comfy nature of Bedknobs and Broomsticks!

Rating: 7.5

ANOTHER childhood movie of mine, Pete’s dragon is about Pete and his animated naughty dragon, but the movie itself is filled with musical songs and in fact has so much that even now when I’m an adult, I was always more interested in Pete and his dragon rather than the songs.

Other than a nostalgic piece, it really isn’t good or decent, it’s one of those movies which starts with interest but along the way I wanted it to finish quickly. One exception is that my favorite song has always been once they started painting the house.

Rating: 6.0

Double Retro Blog: Mario Kart 64 & Diddy Kong Racing

Super Mario Kart holds a place in my heart for letting me multi play with my brother and even my dad, but it's the 64 bit racing duo of the 90's which defined the best couching time I had with friends, alongside other prominent games.

Mario Kart 64 is the successor and grants up to 4 players to play simultaneously, while the roster has expanded and the previous game modes return including Grand Prix, Time Trial, Versus Mode and Battle Mode, of which the latter was for me the most fun to play with friends, especially on the block arena!

I realized for the first time here, the difference between NTSC and PAL versions, because I played both of them for Mario Kart 64. I noticed changes towards the music and the speed of the karts themselves, and it confused me.

It is also the game where one of my best friends and his brother had established world records in regards to the Time Trial records around the early 2000's.  I could not compete likewise, but I still liked acknowledging this.

Mario Kart 64 remains one of the best in the series, and is obviously a retro activity for me!

This is the other very fun racing multiplayer game I experienced with buddies in the 90's, where the most prominent feature is that besides karting, you can also fly with aeroplanes in the sky, and hover with hovercrafts through the water, for ALL of the stages!

And these stages were vast and numerous, and again, my buddy and his brother used to have world records for this one as well. However, I managed to have my own record on one of the water levels in it, and they were not able to beat it, so take that!

There are pro's and con's towards using the different vehicles, but the course design is fair and balanced in that regard, it just depends on what kind of play style you are craving. A rather creative story mode is also involved, and the cast includes not only Diddy Kong, but Banjo and Conker from Rare's other games too!

Diddy Kong Racing is another retro look from the Nintendo 64's prime time, and it featured fun multiplayer and obstacle items to annoy your opponents too, just like with Mario Kart 64. It's a shame that a true sequel was never released!

Windows 10

Contrary to popular trending, I waited a year before I rolled out Windows 10 to improve upon my Windows 7 Ultimate.

I was a bit afraid and skeptical of the doom scenarios involving the events that Microsoft's newest OS would basically collect and log everything you do,  but then I figured that I was able to tweak some settings and keep my sanity that I don't have anything to hide, yet I still value my privacy.

Windows 10 is now roughly available for 1.5 years and notable features which I have noticed include a graphical simpler overhaul of the user interface with a mix from Windows 8, a redefined browser named Edge and DirectX 12.

Of course, there is more introduced, including the assistant Cortana, universal apps akin to IoT's technology and ideology and numerous technical updates, upgrades and name changes towards established features, but that is all at this moment not important to me.

This is simply a small review or perhaps a preview on the long term usage that I am at this moment content with Windows 10 despite the doom articles and the giant updates every now and then, and let's not forget about the way Microsoft forced the infamous system tray pop up every now and then.

Eventually I will explore the OS and study it further officially, but for now, I am satisfied. I definitely liked Windows 7 and even Windows XP before that, while I kind of experienced Windows 8(not 8.1), but now it's time to use perhaps Microsoft's last traditional OS as we know it.

Rise of the Tomb Raider

 

OST

Seeming as I am struggling with creativity in regards towards writing a Christmas blog, this game will now serve as this year's Christmas special, as it coicidentally takes place in one of the coldest environments out there; Siberia.

A vast improvement over the 2013 reboot, in setting, gameplay, scale and presentation, Rise of the Tomb Raider comes to the PlayStation 4 in a special 20th anniversary edition of the franchise, featuring all of the DLC and additional extras.

This time, Lara is on the tracks of uncovering the lost city of Kitezh in the far east of Siberia, and only Jonah is really returning from last time to help out. Trinity's Konstatin and Ana are decent villains, and Jacob is a modest leader in a snowy landscape.

Additionally, the expansion stories and DLC make it a large game, and side content also include the return of optional tombs to raid. The Craft mansion episode is a well done extra providing for more background story, and it's easily more interesting to move through than the entirety of Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, which I despised.

Rise of the Tomb Raider is a great game with addictive climbing and maneuvering mechanics, and can now easily compete with for instance the Uncharted franchise, although the tone and dialogue among other factors are obviously different.

Improvements for the future could include a better cast to accompany Lara, and maybe a bigger arsenal of weaponry, seeming as Lara has become a cold mass murderer anyway, much like Nathan. I figure that I also ought to give the older Tomb Raider games a second chance, in order to celebrate the series even better.

Rating: 8.5

Final Fantasy XV

 Up for the Challenge

A Final Fantasy for Fans and First-Timers.

It's been five years already since I started a marathon of the most recognizable JRPG series, and then reviewing them here. As stand alone titles, each one would bring something new to the table, be it a new combat system, a gripping plot, or a new setting.

The fan community is heavily divided by not only which main title is the best or worst, but also by which of them contributed objectively the most, critically or commercially, groundbreaking or tiresomely.

With Final Fantasy XV, a title for which we have waited a long time, I am once again confounded  and conflicted with emotions as to how I would rate it. Following after in my opinion a disastrous direction with XIII, it manages to reverse flip that one's structure.

Love it or hate it, open world is the current trend in video gaming. And this is also the game's strongest point. It's combat system is like a lite edition compared to say, Kingdom Hearts, but for me it worked and it had enough variety with it's weapons while magic and summons took a backseat.

The so called "boy band" or the 4 heroes/brothers for life are all likable, from big brother vanguard Gladio to energetic Prompto to my favorite cooking Ignis who gives gentle advice at night, they accompany Noctis, a fairly convincing protagonist destined and strong willed to claim his heritage.

Quests are granted pretty standard, from fetching to delivering to combating, to miscellaneous activities like Chocobo Racing and fishing, the side content of Final Fantasy XV is easily satisfying, so much that I leveled just enough in order to finish the main story.

And that's easily the game's weakest point, alongside the second half direction of returning to tight corridors and hallways, with Chapter 13 standing out as the most generic and redundant time in this fantasy, reflecting on everything that is wrong with the industry today.

Granted, Final Fantasy storylines have always gone over the top, but atleast some of them remain classic in nature and have a well constructed narrative and presentation to show them off, alongside drama and emotional effects. With XV, I didn't care on the grand picture for what was happening, as camping out at night or exploring was more satisfying.

Graphically, it's also a mixed bag, alongside glitches and bugs that really should not had happened with this game's infamous development hell/vaporware status. At times the landscapes, outposts and the people can be beautiful, but at other times, NPC's can freeze or move awkward, and textures can fail, depending on the camera's angle.

The priorities as to how the game got designed in it's categories sometimes also questioned me back towards the Japanese developers at Square Enix as to what they were thinking, and once again does Chapter 13 come to mind and be the prime example.

In the end though, I really enjoyed the first half as I took my time driving around the land with the Regalia and 3 of my best virtual buddies while memorizing with tunes from all of the old main Final Fantasy soundtracks, which easily beats out the second half.

Rating: 7.5

Rogue One

It's the beginning of a new era for Star Wars, and this is the first side story full feature to embrace the silver screen. After having seen this in 3D Dolby Cinema at the Vue in Hilversum with my brother and friends, I can easily recommend it to fans and even newcomers.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story details the origins of how the superweapon known as the Death Star was constructed by a collaborating imperial weapon scientist(Mads Mikkelsen). Of course, Revenge of the Sith showed this happening already at the end, but this goes deeper with the details.

The scientist's daugher Jyn played by the beautiful Felicia Jones is destined and determined to become a heroine for the Rebellion/Alliance, and together with a pack of rebels including Donnie Yen's blind character and Forrest Whitaker's mentor character, they fight back.

While the tone offers a minimum of comic relief, this time in the form of a droid, it does set it right with granting a serious dramatic mood, and for the first time, I felt connected towards the rebellion as a whole, not because of the characters for who I did not really care for, but more because of the cause and the means towards it.

Unlike hardened Star Wars original trilogy fans, I did see this movie bring improvement in one decisive factor, and I'm referring to the action battle scenes then, which are easily the best since Empire Strikes Back.

Like The Force Awakens before, it borrows from familiar trademarks from the space epos, and yet it also works very good as a connection bridge towards A New Hope. Maybe this movie shouldn't have been made, and some unexplained lore should had been intact, but now that the franchise is expanding, it is inevitable.

I found it refreshing to see a bleak and negative ending, as it meant that the whole cast basically sacrificed itself for the rebellion and Luke and friends to be given hope in Episode IV. Arguably, it also works as a stand alone sci-fi, whether you are a longtime fan or not.

Rogue One is in overall a very intense sci-fi space epos with flexibility, even showing us in my opinion the best rendered CGI yet in actors who either died, or are older now. Better get used to spin-offs like this, or else you won't survive the ride on this cashcow. :)

Rating: 8.0

PlayStation 4, Part Two

I have been a new member of the PlayStation family since 2014. After I got baited into falling for the Destiny combo with a white console, I ditched the former while I had to wait atleast for a full year until the truly interesting and good games started coming out, and I'm talking about exclusives then.

After humble but great beginnings happened with The Last of Us Remastered and Bloodborne,  I don't regret buying the system at all, as I previously borrowed a PlayStation 3 from a friend and beat and reviewed numerous games, acquiring the taste and knowledge that the brand has enough good exclusives.

Now let´s talk about the other features and stuff for a bit. PlayStation Now as a cloud gaming service has failed for me so far, because while I am able to play natural PS4 games online just fine and smoothly, the streaming games lagged painfully beyond being playable.

The PS4 Pro is overkill for me at the moment, because not only can it not playback Blu-ray discs, but I don't have a 4K TV either. The only true improvement it has for me is that some games will get 60 frames per second.

PlayStation Plus is at first a weird requirement to play online, but after a few months I got my "value" of it back by providing free games. Usually, these would be average indie games, but sometimes, titles like Resident Evil Remastered would definitely make me happy to have a subscription, and of course to be able to play multiplayer online.

The PlayStation VR seems to be succesful for now, but I think that I myself am not ready for it yet, nor do I think that there are truly groundbreaking VR games available for it yet. Plus, the price for the device is rather expensive,

My gaming library in early 2016 expanded from 7 games, to 17 games at the end of december, proving that the system has enough magnificent good quality of games out, and there are many upcoming promising games coming out in early 2017, which I will mention in january traditionally.

I don't mind buying particular third party games for it despite having a good PC, because I feel that some games are better played on a big HD TV, and I prefer to play third person perspectives on my couch.

So in overall, right now, I am really, really enjoying all of the games in my collection, and Sony has easily "provided" for me as a gamer this year, while Nintendo clearly hasn't. 2017 cannot come soon enough in order to experience the latest in gaming!

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

 

It has been nearly a year, and the first anthology film has already just been released into cinema's, as I am about to see it this weekend, but before that, let me review the first new generation Star Wars film, which is Episode VII.

Like many have already deducted, it's story premise is most of all similar to Episode IV or A New Hope, and it continues to connect to the overall saga by keeping trademarks, tropes and familiars intact.

A new generation of epic space operas is upon us, and Episode VII delivers entirely. With an old and new cast carrying on, The Force Awakens is a worthy successor and instantly is just as good in it's own merits as Episode III and V did as the best entries in their own trilogies.

J. J. Abrams has taken over the cape and mantle so to speak and it's so good that the movie was over before I knew it.

When the First Order has risen out of the ashes of the Galactic Empire, the Force starts awakening in our heroes Finn and Rey, a former Stormtrooper and a mysterious lonesome gal who is technically skilled and a fighter.

Pretty much all of the Star Wars tropes return, including the opening prologue text, the transition scenes, the various foreign or alien creatures, the Jedi religion, "there is still good in him", "May the Force be with you" and an important character dies near the end, which is Han Solo this time.

I didn't like Kylo Ren at first because he sounded like an emotional trainwreck and a coward hiding behind a mask. But upon reviewing, I saw how he is struggling and being confounded by which side of the Force to take, making him actually my favorite new character.

Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens is a very strong start of a new trilogy, and with it, a new celebrating generation of a Star Wars fan community. We will very soon be able to judge Disney's direction with the franchise, and if  we're lucky, Disney might just start a better "Expanded Universe"  than Lucasfilm or Marvel!

Rating: 8.0