What's on Screen? Hurricane Bianca

I haven't really been doing as many book or movie reviews because I haven't had the time (or ability) to watch a movie or read a book lately. I've been very busy and my eyes haven't liked to look at my computer or tv screen. So needless to say for a while yet movie theatres are going to be out too.

But I did finally get to watch a movie I've been wanting to watch since a good friend mentioned it to me. Hurricane Bianca.

To be perfectly honest I wasn't sure what to expect when the movie started. But I will say that after having seen the whole thing, I'm looking forward to watching the sequel when I have a chance. Currently I'm not sure when that will be. But I do know that looking forward to more of a similar kind, means I enjoyed it.

Not suitable for younger children due to language. Teens could watch it I think, though as with many films with various content, parental discretion is advised. I found it enjoyable. But I'm an adult, and I have my own set of standards for films.

What's on Screen?: The 10th Kingdom

We all have movies that we watch multiple times for a variety of reasons. Like comfort food they become familiar, letting us enjoy them on various levels. The 10th kingdom is like that for me.

This isn't a short movie. It was originally aired as a multi part miniseries on television. Which may lead some of you to think it would be a bit cheesy. Some parts are. But it is still something that I enjoy watching. I've seen it enough that I don't have to watch the screen to enjoy it. I have happy memories of watching it.

They go through a variety of fairy tale and nursery rhyme themed areas, that will bring happiness and laughter even to children based on the types of scenarios presented. And while some things seem a little dated now, it is still highly enjoyable.

Anyway, ja... not a lot to say. Just... wanted you to know I am trying. Still trying. Things are going back to normal soon...Maybe? I have another doctors appointment soon. So... I'll let you know.

What's on Screen? Tale of Tales

SPOILER warning! If you intend on watching this film you may not want to read my commentary about it. I say this not because I am going to be giving a play by play, but because I want you to have a chance to make your own opinions. If you're not worried about that, please by all means read away.

Tale of Tales was earmarked as a movie that was trending on Netflix so I thought I would give it a try. I watched the whole thing. I have a few observations, but the biggest sentiment by the end of the movie was a sense of dissatisfaction.

I say this because I feel as if the film lacked closure. This may have been intentional to challenge the viewer to decide what should happen next. But I found it disappointing. You never find out what happens when the prince finds his mother missing, or what happens to the vain "queen". But maybe that was the point of the film? To leave us wondering and thinking about how the stories may have ended?

The costumes were absolutely gorgeous though. I can't even begin to express how excited I was as the film started off strongly with gorgeous costumes. In the image posted above you can get a slight preview of them, but they're absolutely fabulous. I am so very impressed by their costume designer. I would watch the movie again simply for the costumes. That should tell you a lot I think.

There were some points in the film that were a bit gruesome. But none of them were as bad as some of the things they show on tv nowadays. (Oh man, that makes me sound old.) But the way it's shown, and the way it's presented makes sense in the storyline.

Anyway, it's an alright movie. But I don't see how it earned trending status. But hey, it could have earned it because people were wondering the same thing. Why is this here?

Do you have any movie recommendations? Let us know below.

What's on Screen? Clan Tynker Presents The Dream Train

So when we're out and about going to various events we have the pleasure of seeing all kinds of amazing acts. Musicians, artists, and actors. This is sometimes frustrating because when we see amazing shows we want to share with people we care about. This particular film is an example of this.

Clan Tynker is a family circus group and they have been performing at the Sterling Renaissance Festival now the past two seasons that I attended. While sometimes it's easy to keep your group together this year the part of the group I really thought would enjoy Clan Tynker, got distracted after lunch and missed the show.

So being a good aunt, I purchased this movie figuring they will enjoy it just as much. And while the kids have yet to watch it, I HAVE watched it more than once, and I find it very enjoyable.

Unlike the live show which has a much more circus like approach, The Dream Train is more steampunk. Not a bad thing at all, as it's also something we enjoy. And since the kids in my life LOVE trains more than most things, I know they're going to love this video.

There are a few moments where there are flashing images on the screen, and those didn't sit to well with me, but it's not the fault of the artists. I' just acknowledging it because I know other people have a sensitivity to it as well. The flashing images are infrequent though, they were just unexpected.

I HIGHLY recommend this video. It's creative, as well as inspires the imagination of the viewers. A great video to watch with your family.

What's on Screen? The Real Ghostbusters

Alright so today we're going to be looking at something old. Thanks to the wonderful internet and Netflix, we're able to watch a lot of shows and things that were on TV when we were younger. This past weekend we had the pleasure of watching a handful of episodes of The REAL Ghostbusters.

This is a show that I vaguely remember, in the best ways from when I was younger. I'm sure a number of us remember everything that came with the The Real Ghostbusters. Awesome weird toys, and of course the Ecto Cooler!

The Real Ghostbusters played with the ideas that were made when the movies came out. It extended the realm of the stories. There were more ghosts and ideas explored. They mentioned ghosts and things that people might try to look up. Voodoo, european folklore and all kinds of interesting things even genies!

It might lack continuity, but it has a lot of creative spooks and it makes tons of pop culture references that may escape younger kids, but as a chance to remember and enjoy something more or less mindless was nice.

What's On Screen? : Batman : The Movie

Sometimes it's fun to watch old movies, even if we know they're going to be bad. That's how the 1960's Batman TV show is. You know it's not going to meet the modern expectations that we currently have, but it's so hard to look away.

My Dad recently came home with this movie on dvd as a surprise for me. I was slightly shocked because I had no idea it was available on DVD. My Mom didn't even know there had actually been a Batman movie made in the 60's. I was amused, and I let them watch it first and they just kept making amusing comments about how the movie was ridiculous. I enjoyed hearing their amusement.

Batman: The Movie was released in 1966. It's pretty rough when it comes to today's standards, in fact, the people who were watching it with me seemed to think the film was stupid. But I tried to remind them that when the movie came out people had different expectations about films.

The movie is funny, and it has highlights that remind you of days long gone by now. The simple humor and the lack of overused special effects is nice.

I do think many people appreciate it for what it really is. A time capsule of what's clearly dated comedy.

You should always have an open mind when watching older films. There's a ton of great things to enjoy. The costumes, the puns, silly decor. But it's not for everyone. I recommend just putting it on as background noise, or for kids. Children may find the old humor hilarious. But I enjoyed it. SHows something about me doesn't it?

What's on Screen? : Tales of Halloween

I had a blast a few weekends back watching movies and working on character creation for a tabletop rpg. I am amused to say that it seems like we're not the only ones to have watched Tales of Halloween that weekend. It seems a lot of my friends think alike.  Which is both a positive surprise, and something I couldn't have planned. We've been watching mostly anime there, so it was a nice change to watch something new.

When me and my friends get together we have a tendency to pick out horror movies, or horror comedies to watch. That is if there's not some cartoon we've yet to see on the chart as being of interest. We only recently found out a newer member of our circle has a problem with zombies. Which might explain their aversion to horror films.

All in all, Tales of Halloween, is a cute film. It has some amusing scenarios, unbelievable mostly, but still interesting enough to keep the audience's attention. I must admit that I do think the number of stories made it drag a bit, as well as proved distracting. It was fun to try and see the places where the stories would overlap. Yet 11 stories in one movie, proves to have short stories, and limits the amount of depth the parts received.

If you're interested in a movie that has similarities to Tales from the Crypt, and other horror shows this will meet your expectations. There's a little bit of language. But it's not so gory that you couldn't watch it with older children (figure 11 and up). The costuming is fun, and even the computer animation was amusing. Watch closely and you'll see how the stories are woven together, lots of fun when you spot these things.

Have fun and don't scare yourself. Let someone else do that for you.

What's on Screen? Baby's Day Out

When it comes to the early 90's there's a ton of movies that are considered to be classic. But no matter who you ask, what these films are vary. But in our house as I grew up, there were some movies that were on constantly. Mr. Boogedy, Bushwacked, Home Alone, and the movie that we're watching today. Baby's Day Out.

My father loves this movie. Almost a little too much to be honest. We've probably had almost 50 copies of it through the years. I might be exaggerating slightly, but I want you to understand how important or beloved the film is. It still is. I found the copy I'm watching for someone else. My brothers children requested it for the holidays. But it wasn't to be found in time for that. But since I don't give up easily, I found it! I picked it up at a game store in Buffalo when I was hanging out with a good friend.

Movie Poster from Web

So why is this movie so much fun to watch? It's not hugely mainstream, so it's not like everyone has seen it. It doesn't have the greatest special effects, You can tell the gorilla isn't real. There's no hard core fighting. Instead there's a baby outwitting 3 grown adults while following the storyline of his favorite book.

While this might sound absurd, I have to admit it's actually enjoyable. The movie itself has a lot of the classic comedy physical humour that you would associate with other humorous film, such as Home Alone or most of the Three Stooges material. It is a great example of how exaggeration can be used to create amusing situations in unexpected manners.

If the weather has you feeling a little down and you need a laugh, I highly recommend this movie. I don't know how hard it might be to find, but if you can find it, I hope you see why it makes me laugh. Not just small giggle laughs, mouth grin laughs. And I hope it turns the corners of your mouth up too.

What's on Screen? Ghostbusters

This past weekend I finally had the chance to watch the new Ghostbusters movie. I have a few things to say about it on a whole. But before I get into that, I want to tackle other peoples opinions about the film.

The majority of reviews and comments that I saw in reference to this film were negative. A lot of people did not give it a warm reception, instead they wanted to compare it to the original 2 films from the 80's. Doing that leads to a few problems in my opinion. The 80's are a rather nostalgic time right now, because it's what people grew up with or watched with their kids. (Yeah... I know that sounds weird but hear me out). This means when they saw the name Ghostbusters, they were likely expecting the same sort of film. Filmography and what people expect in movies is much different now.

What was high tech and scary back in the originals is corny now. It doesn't get the same reaction from the audience. Technology has also improved, meaning there was a great window to try some new effects. To be honest, while yes I'd have been interested to see the film as a continuation of the original films, the reality is it wasn't a feasible idea.  So I'm not going to tell anyone that didn't like the movie that they should have, or ought to. But I am willing to listen to their complaints and give my own account of what I thought.

So first things first. The more or less all female cast. I found this refreshing, mainly because I do feel there is a rather sad amount of positive female role models in the media. I don't care if they're not conventional or 'kardashian' gorgeous. I found them appealing on a number of levels. They were almost real. They seemed like people you might actually run into.

The male villain, surprising as it was, gave the story a validity. I could believe that a person could try to cause mayhem, due to selfish aims. I could see them using similar technology based on the same research. I could also feel sorry for him. Not because he was bad or good, but just because he seemed to have gone off the deep end.

The sets were rather nice, I had no complaints on that. The story didn't lag or slow down. There wasn't too much nonsense, though the ghost fighting scene near the end did remind me a little bit of the Power Rangers. So yeah, it was a funny as well as entertaining.

There was one thing about the movie that bothered me a lot. The soundtrack lacked something. Most of the music was decent. Yet the longer song sequences grated my nerves because they didn't feel like they fit into the film. It was almost like they were trying to force the music to fit. I wish they would have gotten one of the original soundtrack writers (though it looks like after some research that might not have been feasible... I didn't realize so many people from then aren't around anymore). In honesty it was the only part of the movie I think could have been improved. Which means most of the movie was awesome. So I have to say I do recommend it.

What's On The Screen? : Unicorn City

Okay, so I know a lot of you may not be into gaming. It's not everyone's cup of tea. But there are some of us that really do enjoy gaming in various forms. We've watched a variety of movies about gaming. But this one was new to me and I was looking for something light to watch, just to give me something to be distracted by.

Yeah... so I didn't actually know what I was getting into when I hit play on this movie. Not a bad thing in this case. It's a fun movie with some theme points and comedy scenes similar to ones seen in other gamer themed movies. (If you haven't seen The Gamers, you should because it's amazing! But this has nothing to do with the current post it's a side note.) But unlike most of them, this movie looks at the idea of trying to bring the game into the real world, rather than trying to disappear into the fantasy world. Which is presented in an interesting manner.

The costumes are nice, and believable. The acting, while sometimes a bit cheesy or over the  top, isn't really all that offensive. Some of the situations are ones that various types of gamers can understand. There's romance, rivalry, and now and then stupidity. Oh! And a taser, can't forget that! On the whole though, while not necessarily a movie that will appeal to everyone, it is lighthearted and a nice change from the big name romantic comedies or the films with overly computer generated situations. Give it a shot if you get a chance, maybe it's not for you, but...maybe it is.

*Is babbling a bit, sorry. It's been a long week already*

The Backwater Gospel

Happy Birthday.

Sick