This weekend’s pop culture consumption
I wasn’t on the best of moods on Friday evening, but finally watching Monty Python’s Life of Brian, combined with a few glasses of wine and some very unusual shooters (Milo and Stroh rum, Paul?!) was a passable way to spend the time. I still think I prefer Monty Python and The Holy Grail though for being more consistently funny.
On Saturday morning we joined Robin and Yvette for “something completely different” – Pan’s Labyrinth. We thought we better see it on opening week due to the likelihood it’ll be yanked tomorrow or Thursday so that Harry Potter 5 could be screened in 2 cinemas.
Anyway, my review of Pan’s Labyrinth is a full post in its own right (coming tomorrow), so I won’t say anything about it now.
On Saturday evening we finally got around to hiring and watching Thank You For Smoking, the witty look at tobacco lobbying, starring Aaron (Yes, I WAS in The Core) Eckhart. I don’t think it has quite the venomous bite of Lord of War, but the film is definitely part of that same “Makes you laugh while boosting your cynicism” genre. Thank You is certainly clever, and it does a good job of showing the power of argument over fact. In other words, it encourages audiences to make up their own mind about the Big Issues we’re continually being bombarded with.
BTW, the big irony of the film: Despite its subject matter, not a single cigarette is smoked during the film’s 90 minute running time.
Otherwise, apart from lunch with the Durbs crowd and a Sunday evening of Gummi Bears cartoons, I spent a hefty portion of the weekend playing God of War again. Last week I’d finally unboxed my Kratos figurine and placed him by my PC monitor. And with him continually glaring at me, Medusa head in hand, I’d felt the urge to start playing God of War again on my PS2.
Actually I never finished the action-adventure the first time I played, and had been feeling guilty about that – I usually feel compelled to (try) finish every game I play. So now I’ve started God of War from the beginning again, seeing as it’s a lot easier to play these types of games intensely over a short period of time so you don’t forget your combos or lose your reflexes. And there’s nothing worse than returning to a game after a 6-10 month absence only to jump straight into a crazy, demanding boss battle near the end of the game (I was battling the multiplying Cerberus). That kind of frustration will likely make you dump the game all over again.
Anyway, I’m pleased to report that I’m flying through the game so far – with minimal deaths for a change. I think paying more attention to blocking and evading has made a major difference.
And man, I do so enjoy the violent combo carnage of God of War. It is by no means an easy game – in fact some of the battles are quite stressful in their intensity. But it’s just such gloriously gratifying, violent fun to rip the wings off harpies with your bare hands and force your flaming sword though a Minotaur’s head. Oh, and play a sex minigame with 2 topless slave girls. God of War makes you want to step up onto the front lines and protect the No Under 18 game’s very existence from loud mouthed anti-gaming activists, who want to dilute everything down into PG-13 blandness, instead of acknowledging that adults want something a little spicier for their entertainment tastebuds.
I really hope God of War II goes Platinum in time for Christmas.
On Saturday morning we joined Robin and Yvette for “something completely different” – Pan’s Labyrinth. We thought we better see it on opening week due to the likelihood it’ll be yanked tomorrow or Thursday so that Harry Potter 5 could be screened in 2 cinemas.
Anyway, my review of Pan’s Labyrinth is a full post in its own right (coming tomorrow), so I won’t say anything about it now.
On Saturday evening we finally got around to hiring and watching Thank You For Smoking, the witty look at tobacco lobbying, starring Aaron (Yes, I WAS in The Core) Eckhart. I don’t think it has quite the venomous bite of Lord of War, but the film is definitely part of that same “Makes you laugh while boosting your cynicism” genre. Thank You is certainly clever, and it does a good job of showing the power of argument over fact. In other words, it encourages audiences to make up their own mind about the Big Issues we’re continually being bombarded with.
BTW, the big irony of the film: Despite its subject matter, not a single cigarette is smoked during the film’s 90 minute running time.
Otherwise, apart from lunch with the Durbs crowd and a Sunday evening of Gummi Bears cartoons, I spent a hefty portion of the weekend playing God of War again. Last week I’d finally unboxed my Kratos figurine and placed him by my PC monitor. And with him continually glaring at me, Medusa head in hand, I’d felt the urge to start playing God of War again on my PS2.
Actually I never finished the action-adventure the first time I played, and had been feeling guilty about that – I usually feel compelled to (try) finish every game I play. So now I’ve started God of War from the beginning again, seeing as it’s a lot easier to play these types of games intensely over a short period of time so you don’t forget your combos or lose your reflexes. And there’s nothing worse than returning to a game after a 6-10 month absence only to jump straight into a crazy, demanding boss battle near the end of the game (I was battling the multiplying Cerberus). That kind of frustration will likely make you dump the game all over again.
Anyway, I’m pleased to report that I’m flying through the game so far – with minimal deaths for a change. I think paying more attention to blocking and evading has made a major difference. And man, I do so enjoy the violent combo carnage of God of War. It is by no means an easy game – in fact some of the battles are quite stressful in their intensity. But it’s just such gloriously gratifying, violent fun to rip the wings off harpies with your bare hands and force your flaming sword though a Minotaur’s head. Oh, and play a sex minigame with 2 topless slave girls. God of War makes you want to step up onto the front lines and protect the No Under 18 game’s very existence from loud mouthed anti-gaming activists, who want to dilute everything down into PG-13 blandness, instead of acknowledging that adults want something a little spicier for their entertainment tastebuds.
I really hope God of War II goes Platinum in time for Christmas.
Comments
and yes, holy grail is much more consistently funny.