Sony is kicking ass at CES After announcing Skype for the PSP Slim (yeah phaty doesn’t have the RAM to handle it), they now announce a upcoming BR profile 2.0 that will include a portable versions of the movies inside the disc to upload to portable devices like the PSP. That 16Gb Memory Stick will come in handy…

[tags]Sony, CES, Playstation 3, PSP, Playstation, Playstation Portable, Blu-Ray, movies[/tags]

I swear that if this guy becomes the next Captain America I’ll never watch a Marvel movie again…

Let me tell you before hand that this will be an extremely biased post. Watchmen is one of my favorite graphic novels. I bought the Brazilian edition when I was young (lost it for some years now) and it was THE comic that made me look to comic books from a different perspective. Watchmen is not the usual super hero saves the day kind of story. It’s not about super powers or super heroes as you might be used to. Watchmen is about many things but above all else, it’s about men, mankind, flawed and imperfect with all it’s damaged psychology.

I won’t be telling the story though, that would be sacrilege. Watchmen is one of those books you must read at least once in your life time, seeing the movie will give you but a glimpse of the story. Saying this I’m not impling that the movie sucks, nope, I loved the movie, it was everything a Watchmen fan could expect. I wouldn’t mind an extra hour of movie, perhaps a director’s cut will appear later on, or the DVD / BR version will be extended like they did with LOTR. The movie is beautifully made, the cast is brilliant with the exception of Ozymandias, who in my humble opinion should have been an actor with a different build and not so feminine looks, Moloch and Big Figure were a bit out of touch but those are secondary characters. Besides these exceptions everyone else is taken from the comic book, Rorschach is perfect as well as Doc. Manhattan. The CGI is very well done, and the movie has that dreamy feeling you get when reading the novel.

If you read the novel, keep in mind the movie is an adaptation, there will be lots of stuff diferent from the book, I would say that perhaps 20% of the book is not there at all, still it won’t make a diference because the soul of Watchmen it’s in the message If you don’t, please make a BIG favor to yourself, buy the book or borrow it from someone and read it before you go see the movie, that will make you enjoy the movie even better when find diferences and similarities with both.

I watched the movie on the premier and I’m thinking about going again… too bad they won’t give me another Watchmen pin as they did on the first time

I don’t recall exactly when I saw Blade Runner for the first time. I remeber seeing it when I was very young, on national television, with my mother, who by the way, introduced and exposed me to Sci-Fi at an early age.

Years passed until I watched Blade Runner again, I was 19 and this time it was the Director’s Cut on DVD, one of the first I bought. Watching this movie at this age is something of a life changing event, you have a different sensibility, understanding and maturity which is indeed needed to appreciate a movie like Blade Runner. I have friends that until this day don’t understand the greatness of Ridley’s masterpiece.

I became a fan, of the movie, of the wonderful Vangelis soundtrack (which btw I’m listening right as I write this), of all that derranged world / universe and necessary darkness needed to make it work. I read Philip k. Dick’s book that was the source for the adaptation “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” and even got the excellent Blade Runner game from Westwood.

Blade Runner is a 27 year old movie, but it still manages to be up to date, which is incredible. In todays movie industry, movies are made like fast food, ready to be consumed and disposed of. But BR is more than a sci-fi flick, for me, Ridley’s Blade Runner (along with Gibson’s Neuromancer) defined the concept of Cyberpunk in perfection and set grounds for a whole generation of sci-fi works.

The latest iteration of Blade Runner is the Final Cut, which it’s the only of the 7 BR versions that Ridley Scott had complete artistic control. This is also known as the “25th Year Anniversary Edition” since it was released to celebrate BR’s anniversary. This is probably the most common edition to be found on stores, and it’s one of the best to watch. The image and sound has been remastered and there’s a Full HD version on Bluray. Still, if you really want a crash course on Blade Runner, get the 5 Disc Collector’s edition with the Final Cut, the 1982 Theatrical Version, the 1982 International Version and the 1992 Director’s Cut. This pack also includes the excellent documentary Dangerous Days which tells the compelling and controversy story of the movie’s production. Amazon.com has it for $21.99 and it’s region free, meaning you can watch it everywhere, and while you’re at it, get the 25 Year Anniversary Soundtrack, you won’t be disappointed.

I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die.