Posts

Getting some Soul in Quebec and having a whale of a time

-
Image
Some cars make you feel like a speed demon, others turn heads as they past you.  Some are simply anonymous work horses, and yet others are so poorly made you feel shy telling others what you drive. 
But how about a funky little number that makes you feel like Noddy and is fun to look at, fun to drive and makes you want to go on an adventure?
So I recently went over to North America and I was supposed to get a full sized sedan, and they offered me a Nissan Ultima, a typical workhorse of the rental car fleet... reliable, spacious and utterly boring... 
So I did the Oliver Twist thing and asked, “are there more choices?” Coincidentally someone had just returned a car and the kind man at Thrifty car rental allowed me to choose amongst the other cars he had, and I spied that unmistakable form in bright red, newly washed, sitting next to the grey Nissan Ultima. The choice was obvious, and I took the keys to the car and put all my gear in it.  
Now there are many names for this kind of vehicle, …
Post a Comment
Read more

Game night movie review

-
Game night movie review

Some movies have a plot that feels familiar and yet leave a longer impression on you than the average yarn or summer blockbuster where you simply leave your brain turned off at the entrance.
Game night has a story that we may have seen before such as in Micheal Douglas movie The Game but it succeeds because of the wonderful chemistry between the leads played by Rachel mc Adams and Jason Bateman. They are supported by a wonderful team of actors which make this show rise above the average show.
So a make believe game takes a serious turn and the players have to sieve through what is a game and what is real to save the protagonist's brother.
Rachel is always lovely, does comedy well and her affable girl next door demeanor leads a realism and humor not found in too many other actresses.
She combines well with Jason to elevate a genetic plot into one filled with funny moments and good twists.
Recommended 4/5


Sent from my iPhone
Sorry for brevity of message
Post a Comment
Reactions:
Read more

Redeeming Digital Media Codes - the new frontier in movie playback

-
Image
Remember the days when one had shelves of discs? A whole wall filled with your collection of all kinds of media, from DVDs to Blu Ray to 4k and of course some CDs and even LPs... then trying to remember where that particular title was kept? Nowadays, many things are kept online, and you just need a media player. 

The good news is that many discs also come with a digital code, which allows you to redeem the same movie online.

I must say.. I have been slow to try this new way of keeping movies. When space becomes a premium, keeping movies online or in a cloud form makes sense.
However are there any compromises?

Firstly you need to choice a platform. There are quite a few:
Vudu, Movies Anwaywhere (MA), Ultraviolet, Flixster, iTunes to name a few..

Some are proprietary, such as iTunes, others like Movies Anywhere give you the option of using different platforms to be linked with. For example, you can key a code into MA, then link it to iTunes.

The devil is in the details though.. as not every mo…
Post a Comment
Reactions:
Read more

Den of Thieves movie review

-
Image
This is like a Heat lite... taking the heist element of that movie, then milking some emotion part out of it. There are also Now You See Me surprise twist parts in it, just so it does not appear to be a straight up heist movie. Does it work?
Well I chose to focus on what it does well: The action. There's plenty of surround, good fight scenes and that for me, makes up for the wooden acting and the rather unnecessary relationship angle thrown in to make the lead more 'human'. A whole chunk could have been cut out without missing a beat.

So is it a buy, rental or a skip it? I would say it's a rental at least and if it comes cheap, worth a leap of faith for action aficionados.
3/5



Post a Comment
Reactions:
Read more

Mission Impossible Fallout Movie Review

-
Image
What are the common adjectives to describe an action movie?
Breath-taking stunts, bone crunching combat, breakneck pacing, side splitting dialogue with side kicks and a dash of romantic interlude?
Well, here we have a movie with a functional plot, and an extremely hardworking superstar who really strives to make it work.. he is a wonderful chef, placing all the adjectives together into a wonderful movie which he dishes out with all his heart, blood and guts. That's the short take on this..

There are not too many stars these days who will put their life and limb on the line for one movie, but how about doing that for half a dozen in the ongoing franchise? One simply gasps in amazement at the stunts and it's not merely one stunt, but the entire movie is one daredevil manoeuvre after another. Take half of them away and you still have a solid action movie. So I do allow Mr Cruise his indulgence, since he is basically in every single scene and he does dominate the movie.

Howe…
Post a Comment
Reactions:
Read more

Buying A New AVR or AV Amp: things to look out for

-
Image
- at least 7.1 capability with built in amps
- latest sound formats:
DD, DTS are basic, you also want Tru-HD and DTS-MA as a standard as well more 3D formats like DTS-X, Dolby Atmos.
These days, not only the video gets upscaled, but you also have upscaling of sound, using tech from Dolby and DTS: Dolby Surround and DTS- Neural X.



You can never have enough power and do note that what they state on the box seldom gets realised in real life. Look at the power consumption for an idea. Eg, if the power drawn from the wall is 700W, and there are 9 channels, even if the amp has an efficiency of 80%, that means you won't see more than 60W per channel when all channels are operating.

However if you live in a domestic setting like a flat and use a subwoofer, this will be enough if you use typical speakers. More power allows you to use less efficient speakers and will give you more dynamism and headroom for the explosive moments.

HDMI inputs and version.

For 3D, you only need HDMI v1.4 but …
Post a Comment
Reactions:
Read more

Jurassic World : Fallen Kingdom movie review

-
If you liked the shock factor combined with the technology, and decent action built in, this movie will please the original fans as well as attract new ones to the franchise.
It feels a little like the suspense thrillers of yore ala Alien but it does fall a little short as though you have seen it before, with a basic theme of greed causing science to go awry.
But the CGI is amazing and Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas form a good pairing. Not as much romance or humor as the last installment but a good outing nevertheless.
Action fans will be pleased and the surround effects come from everywhere, even topside.
Bass is thunderous and the volume dial is turned all the way up to 12.. Watch out when the volcano 🌋 explodes!
There are new creatures as expected but you do get to see your old favorites too.
They do leave enough room for yet another sequel.
3/5
Post a Comment
Reactions:
Read more