Shmee.Me

March 27, 2014March 27, 2014

Get Stuck In A Think Tank!

Another comic book review?” you may be asking. Yeah well since this is my blog I get to review whatever I have been up too, and lately that has been a lot of comic books! Think Tank is a comic book released by Top Cow Comics (one of the founding members of Image Comics), and it is written Matt Hawkins and illustrated by Rahsan Ekedal.

Think Tank is about Dr. David Loren a genius DARPA worker who decides that he doesn’t want to make stuff that kills people anymore, but unfortunately the government will not let him go. He is too smart, and he knows too much, so all that is left is to plot his daring escape.

This is a fun book because it is so different. It is about an almost average guy who’s big brain makes him a quasi-superhero due to all the cool stuff he can build, and you feel bad for him once he realizes the damage that his inventions cause. Matt Hawkins must have done is research because the tech that David builds is probably close to becoming real. Plus David is that perfect heroic jerk slacker that is almost impossible not to love.

The book is in black and white, but Rahsan Ekedal still does a good job with the artwork. His shading is so good that I swear I can almost see the colors anyway, and the way he conveys action is almost perfect. He really brings this super smart idiot to life.

This book is different then the stuff I usually read, and it is nice to see something other then The Darkness, Witchblade, or something else over top 90s edgy come out of Top Cow. If they spent more time making comics like this, they would be one of my favorite comic book companies. Think Tank is a winner, and I think you should read it!

March 26, 2014March 26, 2014

Frozen Blu-Ray Update!

Frozen was by far the best American animated film to come out in theaters last year, and it was one of the most successful movies period, so far earning north of a billion dollars worldwide. I reviewed the movie when I saw it theaters last year, and I loved it. My thoughts on the film haven’t changed much, so this mostly going to be a review of the disk itself, and anything else I think needs to be said.

Like pretty much all computer animated films, this movie looks wonderful on an HD TV. All the colors just pop, and even if you do not have a 3D set, the images seem to come out of the screen. You feel like you can run and jump in the snow with Anna, Elsa, and the rest of the gang.

One thing I did notice on my second viewing, is that while the movie is better then anything Pixar has done in a couple of years story wise, Disney Studios still has a ways to catch up with their digital film counterparts as far the animation goes. The characters can still look a bit stiff, and separated from their environment. It is almost not fair for them to have to be compared to Pixar all the time, but the bar has been set, and Disney Animation falls just a tad short.

There are not a ton of extras on this disk. Their are couple of deleted scenes, but they are roughly drawn, and not fully animated. They do give a glimpse of what Elsa would be like if she was evil, and a little more info on the sisters’ relationship. There is a “making of” featurette, and some music videos as well.

This is a great movie, and it looks fantastic on an HD TV. You should have no worries about bringing this movie home. If you have kids this is probably a must buy. I hope Disney Animation Studios continues to make great movies like Frozen.

March 25, 2014

Shmee Is Under Locke & Key!

Locke & Key is a graphic novel written by Joe Hill and illustrated by Gabriel Rodriguez. I usually don’t read a lot of horror comics, but the idea of a family living in a Lovecraft inspired mystery house sounded like fun, and it was free. I as a rule never turn down free comics, but Locke & Key is worth paying for.

The story starts off with a grieving family moving to the father’s childhood house after the father was brutally murdered by a kid he counseled in school. The house doesn’t have an address, but instead is named “Keyhouse”, and is located in Lovecraft, Massachusetts (subtle I know). It turns out that the house has magical doors that can be opened with special keys, and for some reason only kids can learn about them. Oh yeah! The girl from The Ring lives there, and she is supper creepy!

Hill does a good job of being spooky while still telling an interesting story. You feel sad for the pain that the Locke family is going through, but at the same time you want to learn more cool stuff about this crazy house, and its neat doors and keys. You can tell that he loves the universe that he is playing in and adding too.

The artwork is great in this book. Despite the name of the town, Rodriguez really brings Lovecraft to life, and the house is full of all sorts of awesome detail. If I didn’t have to live in fear of The Ring girl, I would totally love to live in an old house like this. Anybody have any old named houses for sale?

This is a fun book, and while I didn’t pay for it, you should have no qualms about laying down a few bucks for it. It is creepy and engaging, and a heck of a lot of fun. Hill and Rodriguez have done a great job with this book, and I am very happy it is in my collection.

March 24, 2014March 24, 2014

Shmee Captures The Muppets Most Wanted!

I am a huge Muppets fan, so obviously I went to see the new film Muppets Most Wanted over the weekend, and while it was good, I couldn’t help feel a little disappointed. It had all the songs and celebrity cameos that I could want, but it seemed that it was lacking the love that Jason Segel brought to the table.

The movie starts directly after the first movie with the Muppets realizing that the cameras are still on, so that the studio must want a sequel. They then go directly in to the funniest song of the show about how they are making a sequel. It that contains the unfortunately true joke that sequels are sometimes are not as good as the first movie. For their next movie they decide that they are off on a world tour, but the world’s most dangerous frog Constantine is going to use it as a cover for his heists.

Whoever wrote this movie must have just thought that the Muppets are just about music and cameos because this movie is loaded with both, and they are both used quite well. The problem is that the pacing of this movie is off. The movie will feel like it is flying along with songs and jokes one minute, and then it comes to screeching halt the next. They just couldn’t quite make the movie engaging when they were telling the actual story.

The main human characters, Tina Fey, Ricky Gervais, and Ty Burrell, all know how to ham it up, and they were fun to watch. I was quite pleased that this movie was indeed all about the Muppets, so that it was a “Muppet” movie, and not just a movie that seemed to have some Muppets in it. I just think that they needed someone around that knew how a Muppet story should work.

This movie was fine, and it is not the worst Muppet movie that has been made. It is just a shame that they couldn’t keep the movie from dragging in places. I just have to hope that enough people will watch this movie, so that Disney will want to put the Muppets on screen again.

March 21, 2014July 7, 2015

I Cast Jem and The Holograms!

I was going to review another comic book today, but yesterday The Hollywood Reporter dropped the bomb that a Jem and The Holograms movie was being fast tracked with Jon M. Chu (G.I Joe: Retaliation) to direct. Well what could I do but to cast this movie for them, so they can get right to work! I have little cousins that need to see this work of art! This was the hardest movie I have cast due to the fact I know of almost no actors in the right age group for this, but here it goes:

Rio Pacheco:

At first I was thinking James Franco because he is up for anything, but he is a little old for this flick, so I went with family! Dave Franco. The kid can act, and much like his brother, he is in all sorts of random ~~crap~~ movies.

Aja Leith:

I had no idea on this one, and searching for “Young Talented Asian Actresses” is not something that anyone should try. Unless you like feeling like a creep and getting viruses. To each their own I suppose, so I went with the only one I could think of: Brenda Song. She has done good work on movies like The Social Network, and it would be good to get her away from Dads.

Carmen ‘Raya’ Alonso:

I was in a similar situation as with Aja, so again I went with someone I know, and why not have a Disney Channel reunion movie while we are at it. I went with superstar Selena Gomez. Boom! This movie just made a billion dollars. Seriously I am the best casting director ever!

Shana Elmsford:

This choice was surprisingly easy. I was just watching an interview about the new movie Divergent, and it was with the charming Zoë Kravitz. She can sing, and she can act! Man I am good at my fake job.

Kimber Benton:

So we need someone young and spunky that we can believe is a song writer? I am going to go with Elle Fanning. Put her in a red wig and we are good to go.

Jem – Jerrica Benton:

Well Elle kind of gave this one away, but if you are going to have sisters in the movie, and you have two talented sisters anyway, why not use them? Dakota Fanning. The Fanning sisters, and Selena Gomez?! Man. Best movie, EVER!

I am never going to cast a little girls’ movie ever again. I was way out of depth, but sometimes you have to do what you have to do. I hope you enjoyed my choices.