The Walking Dead Update: A Need for More Zombies and the Battle for Governor

This is not the first time I have heard little grumbles about season 2 of the AMC series, The Walking Dead. Reading an article on Warming Glow made me realize how very often I have seen online TWD threads complaining about the lack of zombies, and how slow season 2 has been. Of course I absolutely agree, especially after reading about the season 2 opener that we will never see. A show revolving around the zombie apocalypse… we should not have to tell you that there should be more action! The way the season began, with Sophia being lost, was a setup for a long and drawn out, dramatic plot point. By episode 4, no one cared about Sophia anymore.

Hershel added a much-needed opposing point to the story. It was a very realistic element to TWD… seeing someone who morally could not bring himself to kill the walkers. However, how many zombies did we actually see action with this season? Not enough.

The incident with Shane and Otis was probably the most exciting zombie-related scene in all of season 2 so far. Bottom line: Don’t get boring on us! We need action! Grumble grumble grumble.

Next order of business: The Walking Dead needs a Governor!

Continue reading The Walking Dead Update: A Need for More Zombies and the Battle for Governor

Grizzly Review: The Grey

When I first saw the preview for The Grey, I was immediately put off by the presence of Liam Neeson, as well as the film’s seemingly relentlessly stupid plot and mindless action, but upon watching the trailer a couple more times, I began to see things that influenced me a little more. See, when you watch a preview, you need to look at it in parts, because more times than not, what you see in the preview is what the studio wants you to see and in most cases isn’t what you see in the actual film. A sad truth, but a truth nonetheless.


Regarding what caught my eye, there were three things in particular. Three things that may not mean much to the occasional moviegoer, but to someone who spends hours a week watching movie previews over and over again (pathetic, I know, don’t judge me), you pick up on a lot of things really quickly. The very first thing that caught my eye was the camera work. Most action films starring Liam Neeson insist on steady cam for scenes not including action, most notably Taken, which had one of the most steady hands I’ve seen in a picture of that kind. In The Grey‘s preview, this is not the case, starting off with a shot of Neeson simply walking, a voice-over invading the silence of his footsteps.

The second thing that I noticed almost immediately was the casting of Dallas Roberts, who hasn’t made a bad movie big budget movie since I’ve known him, and in many cases, his choice in independent film roles aren’t too bad either. But still, I know that good actors can star in bad movies, so that didn’t necessarily seal the deal for me. What did seal the deal though, was the film’s R rating. Now, you might be thinking I’m crazy, and you might even be considering clicking out of the page, but just stick with me for a bit, there’s a point to all of this.

Now, Liam Neeson is a middle-aged action star who has revived his career quite successfully, once again retaining the sex symbol status that he really never had. He hasn’t made an R rated movie since 2009, meaning he’s spent the last three years happily topping the box office, and at one point probably considered never looking back. What’s even more interesting is the MPAA certification behind the rating which is violence/disturbing content including bloody images, and pervasive language. Not once does it mention excessive gore or sex, but rather a subdued R rating.

I feel like as an industry, film is at a point where if the film earns an R rating, it’s usually because of either nudity or intense psychological drama, whereas PG-13 films have the excessive violence. The Grey proves my point, trading in useless action for some of the most intimate but not necessarily most violent death scenes in recent memory. Following a group of oil drillers in Alaska, a select group of survivors must make their way to safety after their plane back to Anchorage crashes, killing most of the other passengers, as well as the entire crew. Led by their mysterious hunter, Ottway (Liam Neeson), the group of seven survivors must make their way to safety, and in the far north of Earth, they have no idea where that might be.

To add insult to injury, the men are also being picked off by a group of wolves whose den is no more than 20 or 30 miles from their current location. They theorize that they only way they can get to safety is if they make it to a forest about 15 miles from them, they’ll be able to set up a camp, safely away from the pack of wolves, and possibly find a shelter or cabin of some kind. The more they walk, the more dangerous their journey becomes, with the wolves, the storms, and the altitude all playing factors into whether or not they’ll be able to survive this ordeal.

During the lonely nights, the men share stories of back home, what they would do if they made it out alive, and if their faith is enough to get them out alive. Ottway himself thinks of his wife back home, but states early on in an opening voice-over that he’ll never be able to be with her again, and we don’t know why. The film poses both philosophical and religious questions at many points throughout its duration, like the validity of human civility, the reliance on God and other higher beings, as well as survival skills in a time of desperation. There are also plenty of metaphors, as well as a good dose of symbolism to keep you thinking amongst all the atrocity.

The Grey is a film about 100 times sadder than I thought it was going to be, but it was also 100 times better than I thought it was going to be. Taking me completely by surprise, The Grey managed to take me on an emotional journey that I honestly wasn’t ready for. The characters are all individuals, beautifully fleshed out to represent a different walk of life, all with equally true and heartbreaking results.

Writer/Director Joe Carnahan is able to craft a beautiful film from a dismal topic, focusing much more on narrative than action while still keeping up a brisk pace for the film’s 118 minute long running time. But trust me, there’s plenty of action, and even a couple good scares to get the blood pumping. Liam Neeson turns in one of the best performances of his career, but Dallas Roberts is definitely his equal, playing a man of faith who struggles to maintain his sanity at times. He’s the most strong-willed of the group besides Neeson himself, and is the most resourceful when it comes to medical information.

Despite the film’s vast location, the addition of the man hunting wolves surrounding the group gave The Grey an extremely claustrophobic feel, with the mentality that the men have all this open space but nowhere to run. Speaking of the wolves, they were surprisingly realistic looking when looked at up close or dead. After some research, it turns out that they actually were real for the most part. The crew used four dead wolves that had been hunted and discarded in the surrounding area for the more “intimate” scenes. You’ll see what I’m talking about if you go see the movie. But when they weren’t real, the CG animals were quite realistic looking, and on a budget of only $17 million dollars, that’s definitely saying something.

The Grey, simply put, is an arthouse thriller suitable for the megaplex, but could most definitely find a home at your local independent theater. There were plenty of times when I feared that Carnahan would suddenly shift the bleak tone of the film, giving the characters the happy ending we know they deserve, but thankfully he doesn’t, and it results in a final scene that keeps playing over and over again in my head. It’s equally riveting and revealing, and if you have any remnants of a soul, you’ll probably shed a tear or two like I did. And on the bright side, the black guy does not die first in this movie. That right there should be enough incentive to hand over your ten dollars, right?

5/5 Bears

Grizzly Review: Man on a Ledge

The American film industry has been plagued with so many heists movies, that it sometimes physically pains me to see a trailer for a film of that genre. It’s a genre that only works for a select group of people, most notably Steven Soderbergh in the Ocean’s movies, and a few others that I honestly can’t even recall right now, but when I saw the preview for Man on a Ledge, to be perfectly frank, I was hooked. The premise, admittedly, was rehashed and redone a million times over, but the way that it was presented was strikingly fresh.

Man on a Ledge follows Nick Cassidy (Sam Worthington), an escaped convict who checks into a New York City hotel, with a room on the building’s twenty-first floor. He then climbs out of the window, onto a ledge, garnering the attention of some passersby which soon turns into a large crowd complete with ambulances, cop cars, and news vans. The man in charge of getting Cassidy safely back into the hotel is Detective Jack Dougherty (Ed Burns), but Cassidy doesn’t want him talking him through the ordeal. He wants the infamous Detective Lydia Mercer (Elizabeth Banks), who was once the department’s best until she let a rookie cop jump off the Brooklyn Bridge a month prior.

The whole thing seems rather routine by New York’s standards, but sometimes things aren’t exactly what they seem. Cassidy, who’s an ex-cop, was jailed for the robbery of a $40 million dollar diamond that belonged to David Englander (Ed Harris), one of the city’s most well known and richest businessmen. Cassidy insists that he’s innocent and the only way he can prove it, is if his brother Joey (Jamie Bell), and his girlfriend, Angie (Genesis Rodriguez), are able to get into Englander’s safe, retrieve the diamond, and make it out without a trace.

Written and directed by first time feature filmmakers Pablo F. Fenjves and Asger Leth, respectively, Man on a Ledge is a simply told film with an amazing cast that really have no business being there. Granted, the real purpose of the film is to serve as an exciting distraction from our regular lives, offering a halfway decent story and some predictable twists. In that respect, Man on a Ledge does what it’s supposed to, but not much more.

With some extremely cheesy writing and a sad attempt at a New York accent from Elizabeth Banks, the film is rather a caricature of what it could have been, hinting at greatness with the likes of Ed Harris turning in a great performance, as well as rather inspired performances by Sam Worthington and especially Jamie Bell, who serves as both the comedic relief and the nail biting action hero of this flick.

With that being said, Man on a Ledge does get rather exciting in its last 20 minutes, taking Cassidy off the ledge and into what is possibly the most dangerous places for him to be. The climax of the movie also gives the viewer some pretty decent twists that keep you on your toes for the remainder of the running time, but I just wished that the film’s first 80 minutes could have been as involving.

2.5/5 Bears

Alcatraz: Season 1, Episode 4 – “Cal Sweeney” Review

In this episode of Alcatraz we follow the events surrounding Cal Sweeney (Eric Johnson), a suave bank robber known for his theft of safety deposit box items. He is not a violent criminal unless things don’t go his way.

With episode 4, after our characterization of Dr. Soto (Jorge Garcia), we get back to the same feel that the first two episodes had. This episode had both the feel of a procedural cop drama and a mystery.

Spoilers Ahead>>>>>

Continue reading Alcatraz: Season 1, Episode 4 – “Cal Sweeney” Review

Jack White’s New SOLO Album: Blunderbuss – Preview a Sample!

The very talented Jack White is releasing a solo album! I am not sure if I have ever been so excited about anything in my entire life! As sad as that sounds, let me explain. I have always been a big fan of White’s talent. He is an amazing musician in many areas. His voice is remarkably unique and bluesy. His guitar riffs are always chaotic and unpredictable, yet his acoustic sets can be beautifully melodic and soft. Whether it was with The Raconteurs, the Dead Weather, or (my favorite) the White Stripes, he has made an unmistakable impression on the music world.

With this new CD, it seems we will be able to let Jack White out of his cage. No restrictions, no rules.

The CD titled Blunderbuss will be released on April 24th of this year. The album will be released on White’s record label, Third Man Records.

Here is the first sample of his new album: A song called Love Interruption. Prepare yourself for the eargasm.

Jack is also doing a lot of producing for his label. Even actor John C. Reilly (Step Brothers, Chicago, Boogie Nights) has a few White-produced singles! – “I’ll Be There If You Ever Want” and “Gonna Lay Down My Old Guitar.” to name a couple.

I will be back shortly after April 24th for an extensive review which I am sure will be full of praise.

Button Mashing: Xbox 720, Wii U, The Darkness II & God of War 4

This is Button Mashing, Grizzly Bomb’s video game news headquarters. Previews, interviews, rumors and all the latest stories relating to the biggest games, all in one place. Here are the most important things you need to know for the week of January 30th, 2012:

‘Xbox 720’ Chipset in Production – (IGN)

Rumors and hearsay has become cold, hard fact: “Xbox 720”, or at least its core ‘System on a Chip’, is already being developed. According to Fudzilla:

Recent speculation that the new main System on a Chip (SoC) for the Next Xbox began production is apparently accurate; the SoC did indeed start production in late December of 2011. Sources tell us that the code name for the chip is Oban, and it is being produced by both IBM and Global Foundries for Microsoft.

Fudzilla’s report continued with a lot of important (and partially incorrect) combinations of words and numbers which are certainly important and made no sense to someone as tech-stupid as myself:

The power behind the next Xbox will be a PowerPC CPU that is married to an ATI Southern Islands GPU, or modified 7000 series…”

However, IGNcorrected the initial mistake with the following update:

…mass production of the system’s GPU will indeed begin by the end of 2012 but will not, however, be based on AMD’s 7000 series Southern Islands GPU. Instead, the processor will be derived from the 6000 series, which was introduced last year. More specifically, it will be akin to the Radeon HD 6670, which offers support for DirectX11, multidisplay output, 3D and 1080p HD output.”

They went on to summarize it for the layman (Thank you IGN. Sincerely: The layman):

Continue reading Button Mashing: Xbox 720, Wii U, The Darkness II & God of War 4