Fahrenheit - Video Game Review

Fahrenheit, also known as Indigo Prophecy in America,

is a cinematic adventure game by Quantic Dream. Being released in September 2005, it may not deliver the visuals of your latest Call of Duty but if that's what you're looking for, then you're completely missing the point.

Fahrenheit doesn't really feel like a video game, as a matter of fact, it's more of an interactive movie than a video game. I will not go into the plot, as even the very beginning of the game can be spoiled to some extent. Let me just say that throughout the game, you have to make certain decisions, perform different actions (most of the time with time limit set), play interactive fight scenes and overall put yourself in the boots of the main character.

Having said earlier that it's an interactive game, I should stress the point that there are multiple ways to play and finish the game. Yes, multiple endings for all you Bioware geeks.

To sum it up, it's a great game with great plot and originality just dripping over the edge. Check this one out and experience one of the most gratifying cinematic experiences you'll ever have while playing a video game.

Y: The Last Man - Graphic Novel Review

I'll be honest, I'm not the biggest fan of comic books and graphic novels. Now that we got that out of the way, let me talk about one of my all time favourites...

Y: The Last Man centers around a young man called Yorick, who is the only survivor of an unexpected... well, something... that kills all the males on Earth. He is the last remaining male on the whole planet, hence the title.
You've gotta admit, it's a very original and overall promising premise for a post-apocalyptic story.
But as it turns out, being the last man on earth is not such a pleasant thing. Yorick must hide his identity and team up with a special agent 355 and an expert geneticist Dr. Allison Mann on his journey.
What is the goal of the journey you ask? Finding Yorick's girlfriend, but I'd be lying to you if I were to say it's really what the novel is about.

All I can say, without spoiling anything, is that Yorick is not exactly safe in the all-female populated world, and he must overcome many obstacles that in turn introduce us, as readers, to the after-effects of the apocalypse.

This novel seems to excel in all the elements that combine it. The plot is great, the character development is there (which really adds a lot to the overall experience), the art is great.
Once again, Vertigo didn't disappoint and provided one of the most exciting, fresh and overall compelling graphic novels out there.

(Note: some adult content. But you should already know this... after all, it's Vertigo)

A Dramatic Turn of Events - Album Review

Dream Theater is back! This album is a big statement made by the band: "We're not only able to continue without Mike Portnoy, but we're going to deliver what the fans have always wanted - a classic DT album in the same veins as Images & Words and Scenes from a Memory". That's right, no more Muse or Metallica 'influences' - this album doesn't sound like anything but DT.

The album opens with "On the Backs of Angels" which has the classic old-school DT sound to it. There is not much originality here, but it's a great song non the less.

Next up comes the radio-hit of the album, "Build Me Up, Break Me Down". Heavy guitar riffs, catchy chorus, very mainstream-ish sound to it. It's not exactly my cup of tea, but hey, I'm not complaining... The song ends with beautifully arranged strings section that fades into....

Song #3, "Lost Not Forgotten" which has some "Under a Glass Moon" vibe to it... Very technical, progressive and yet retaining the other qualities that identify DT. The chorus is quite catchy (although some might disagree) and it's definitely not a ballad. Like in "Under a Glass Moon", which I mentioned before, Petrucci delivers here one of those mind-blowing, technical, proggy guitar solos we all love and missed...

Next comes "This Is the Life", which in my opinion is the most underrated song of the album. This is Dream Theater at its finest. This song sounds HUGE. All the elements come together to give a very epic-sounding tune. It should be noted that Petrucci plays a little Dire Straits sounding solo, on clean! Yeah, something we didn't hear in a long time.

Track #5, Shama-... I mean, "Bridges in the Sky"! And yes, I like the sound of the shaman burping, and the choir singing "Tal Museri". Jokes aside, it's a very strong track. I feel like mentioning LaBrie, who did a fantastic job on this one. The chorus is my favourite part, it's an ear-worm... oh, great, now it's stuck in my head for the next few days

Song 6 is the much anticipated "Outcry", a song that I didn't really like at first... it's very complicated, progressive to the extreme and not very melodic at times. It may throw some less-hardcore listeners off, but I guarantee that given enough time - it will grow on you. If nothing else, I'm sure it's quite an experience to see this song performed live, especially the instrumental section in the middle of the song (which might be the craziest thing since "The Dance of Eternity")

Coming up is the 2 song combo that raises the album to a whole new level. "Far From Heaven" and "Breaking All Illusions" follows an established formula of "Vacant" and "Stream of Consciousness" or "Wait For Sleep" and "Learning to Live". A quiet piano-vocal ballad followed by an epic that redefines the word 'epic'.
And no, this is not an exception. "Far From Heaven" is filled with emotion and it delivers what I personally have been asking for a long time... Jordan Rudess playing a melodic piece without his signature scale-runs and hyperspeed finger movements. James LaBrie does an amazing job at not only filling the song with sincere emotions, but also writing the lyrics, which I think many of us can relate to.
Following "Far From Heaven", and sharing with it some common themes is my favourite song of the album - "Breaking All Illusions".
Without much exaggeration, I think it is the best DT song since Octavarium, and probably 3rd best since Six Degrees.
The song combines all the elements that I personally love about DT, it's very melodic, progressive, has a beautiful, beautiful solo that starts very soft and touching and grows into this big epic part that would make David Gilmour say: "dude...."
The song culminates in a grand crescendo of all the instruments playing that simple theme we already heard in "Far From Heaven", but to such effect that it gives me goosebumps every single time.

The album ends with another ballad, "Beneath the Surface".... but not really. The album ended with the epic ending of "Breaking All Illusions", this song is the cool-down... as described by the man himself, it's the song you hear as you see the ending credits rolling and people start getting up and leaving, and only the most faithful fans are staying around till the very last second.
Not to diminish from the song's quality, it's a great ballad, and there's nothing shameful in being the 'ending credits song'.

To sum it up, I think it's one of the better DT albums, being up there with such classics as Six Degrees and Awake. When I heard that Mike Portnoy was leaving, my initial fear was that on the next record we'll have uncontrolled shredding and 10000 notes per second playing by Petrucci and Rudess... but no, quite the contrary. This might be one of the most melodic albums coming from the prog-metal giants, focusing more on themes and orchestration than mindless speed... which is always a blessing. The quality of the sound is also worth mentioning, all the instruments sound very clear and yet not over the top - all thanks to the mixing jedi master - Andy Wallace.

Wow if you made it so far into the review, you guys are troopers out there...
Actually, if you've gotten that far, you need to ge-

Black Swan - Movie Review

Would it be really weird if I were to say that I liked a movie about ballet?

Black Swan... what can I say, it's Darren Aronofsky... This movie is like an ultimate mix between "The Wrestler" and "Requiem for a Dream"

So the plot goes like this, a young ballet dancer Nina (Natalie Portman) gets the role of the Swan Queen in the new adaptation of the Swan Lake, which in turn demands from her to master both the White Swan and the Black Swan. The White Swan part is perfect for her, but it's the Black Swan that Nina really struggles with. You get to see the character of Nina evolve, driven by her perfectionism, trying to break loose from the constant control of her charming mother and yet trying to please everyone. She befriends a fellow dancer, Lily (Mila Kunis), who is probably the most interesting character in the movie. You just can't put your finger on her, you never seem to understand if she's genuinely trying to help or is she simply trying to replace Nina.

Now about the actors, as far as I'm concerned, Black Swan got one of the best performances I've ever seen. Not only Natalie Portman (we'll get to her in a second), but all the supporting cast... Mila Kunis was perfect for her role, Vincent Cassel, who played the director, was really good... and of course the mother...

As for Natalie Portman - Oscar, no doubt (edit: I told you). This is her best role by far, the display of emotions and the overall craziness and turmoil that's inside her character's mind, the way she put it all on screen... You could actually see inside the character's head, and that clearly tells you something about the actor... I know, most of it was the great job done by the director, but I assure you, you need a really-really good actor to portray the complexity of Darren Aronofsky's ideas.

The soundtrack was really memorable (c'mon, it's Swan Lake...) and created all the tension of the last 10-20 minutes of the movie.

Now about the dancing, I'm not gonna lie to you, I have no clue in ballet... but from what I saw, Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis were on a very good level (I guess doing ballet for six months, 7 days a week, 5 hours a day does make you a ballet dancer)

(of course, Aronofsky's films are not for everyone... If you just wanna watch something that doesn't demand any brain activity and just watch some explosions *cough*michaelbay*cough* and have some laughs with your friends while chewing popcorn - you can safely pass on this one)


It's one of the best movies of 2010 and definitely should've won the Best Picture... oh, well

Zombieland - Movie Review

I'll put it straight, I was very sceptical of this movie... I simply don't like contemporary comedies like "The Hangover" or "A-Team" (though I must admit, I rofled when I saw Sharlto Copley singing while spinning on the propeller of a chopper), but this one... it was great!

It tells the story of a dude, Columbus (played by Jesse Eisenberg) trying to find his family in a post-apocalyptic world, joined by "Tallahassee" (played by Woody Harrelson). Eisenberg plays the same type of character he plays in every movie, but he does a great job, so I'm not the one to complain. Harrelson simply stole every single scene he was in. I genuinely laughed during most of those scenes. The whole movie is like one big parody of "Dawn of the Dead" and other zombie movies. So the zombie movies fans out there might actually enjoy this movie a lot more than everyone else.

Now there is a single scene in this movie with a well known actor making a cameo, that totally made my day. Props to that actor (you all probably know who I'm talking about, but let me indulge in my stupid dream of a world without spoilers).
Throughout the whole movie there is a recurring theme of Columbus's rules, and I must say they did a great job with that.

I loved this movie. From the opening credits showing all the zombies running in slow motion to the tunes of Metallica ("For Whom the Bell Tolls"), I knew I'd love this movie.

It's a great horror-comedy, quite different from Shaun of the Dead, so definitely check it out.

[Rec] - Movie Review

I doubt this movie is very popular so I'll explain a bit... It's a spanish horror movie done in the 'found footage' style (like Cloverfield, The Blair Witch Project)... I don't know much about the spanish film industry, but apparently they can make good movies, or at least horror movies that'll scare the holy potato and it's spirit out of you...

The movie is shot from the perspective of the two TV journalists who follow the fire brigade to a regular apartment where a regular old lady was locked inside her apartment... As it turns out, the old lady is not your typical grandma who walks at 0.0005 mph... this old lady can run.... and bite...

Well, after that all hell breaks loose, throughout the whole movie you'll feel a bit claustrophobic which magnifies the total scariness of it....

Unfortunately, I can't tell you much about the actors except that the actress in the leading role looks damn fine...

And I don't wanna reveal much, but there is one particular character who suddenly goes apeshit in the middle of the movie, and the actor/actress playing it has done a particularly good job.

Now if you've watched "Quarantine", you should probably know that it's a remake of [Rec], and a remake of a lesser quality, so you should still check out [Rec].

Overall, if you're into psychological horror, don't mind a bit of gore, and wanna try something new - it's a movie for you

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind - Movie Review

oh, my darling... oh, my darling... oh, my darling, Clementine...

A romantic drama with sci-fi elements starring Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Tom Wilkinson, Mary Jane Watson and Frodo? 

YES!

I must confess, I only watched this movie because Jim Carrey was in it and I initially thought it would suck... oh my, I was wrong...

It tells the story of  Joel, a quiet dork played by Jim Carrey, who falls in love with the energetic (probably bi-polar) girl called Clementine. After several complications he decides to erase all his memories of Clementine after she has done the same for him. From here on, welcome to the wonderland.

Actors... what can I say... I've already listed some (I think I forgot Mark Ruffalo)... great actors, great performances, expectations exceeded.

Now for the real deal, Jim Carrey... The dude CAN ACT! If you thought all he's capable of is Ace Ventura/The Mask type of roles (a mistake I've made myself), think again. IMHO he has a great chemistry with Kate Winslet, and I'd love as hell to see another movie with the two.

This is an artistic masterpiece, the visuals are amazing but they don't overshadow the human drama and the great performances. And by visuals, I don't mean CGI, I mean the most surreal use of shadows, light and colours.

This is one of those rare cases when all the elements fall in their rightful place and stay in total balance. This is a movie I can watch time after time and it's needless to say that it easily makes it to my top 10 list (heck, probably even top 5)