The Adventures of a Digital Sensei
I have always been more of a Batman fan so it pains me to say that Man of Steel might totally eclipse the Dark Knight trilogy. Granted, the last film, Dark Knight Rises, was a total letdown. However, I didn’t think that Nolan and crew would save their best for the Boyscout in Blue.
The video below is a 12 minute featurette Continue reading “Man of Steel looks epic!”
The Batman first appeared in Detective comics issue #27 in May 1939. I can’t adequately express how much this character has meant to me over the years. He has been my hero, my role model, and my inspiration since I was little boy. I have always looked up to him and probably always will. As a Continue reading “Happy Birthday Batman”
As another birthday has passed I am finding myself increasing attracted to “extreme” activities like shooting, archery, motorcycle riding, mixed martial arts, and body ink. The body ink has been especially foremost in my thoughts. I had an in depth discussion with my kids over dinner about the benefit of waiting until you are much older before deciding whether or not to get inked. My argument was basically a tale of how silly it would be for me today if I had gotten the tattoo that I wanted at 15. I would now be stuck with a full chest Iron Fist dragon tattoo instead of the far more sensible full chest Batman emblem that I am considering at 47.
I really think I am having a minor midlife crisis.
Last night I went with the family to the midnight showing of the new Batman movie. Just by chance it was opening in Oslo on my birthday. I have been looking forward to this movie all year. I am hesitant to admit that the flick did not live up to my expectations. I won’t write anything about it just yet. I think that I will just Continue reading “Batman: The Dark Knight Rises….. ehh.”
As long as I can remember I have had a special place in my heart for the comic book character known as Batman. More than any other fictional character, and if I am really honest, more than any real life person as well, Batman has helped to define my own personal and moral code. My mother, who is a fairly religious person, has lamented over the fact that I have never in my life asked myself “what would Jesus do”, but have on more than one occasion chosen a course of action based upon “what would Batman do”. With that said, as I sit here on my vacation Norway I have been thinking about the recent shooting in Colorado during the midnight showing of “The Dark Knight Rises” and the Norwegian shooter from last summer quite a bit.
Anyone familiar with the Batman mythos will know that Bruce Wayne’s (aka Batman) parents were senselessly murdered in front of him while on their way home from watching “The Mark of Zorro”. Their murder marks a critical turning point in the life of the young Bruce Wayne. I keep thinking Continue reading “A dark night indeed”
The martial artist in me is conflicted by the recent turn of events in Colorado, and the anniversary the mass murder in Oslo, Norway. The Norwegian gunman had more than an hour to hunt down and attack his victims. More than an hour, which means that he had to stop and reload at multiple points. As a person that trains in self defense based arts, I can’t help but think about what I would do if faced by such a threat. Would my training make a difference? Would I freeze or rise to the challenge? Are the arts that I am studying really effective in real combat situation? In truth, I don’t have any answers. I would hope that be able to protect myself and my loved ones. Or at the very least make the son of a bitch regret picking me or mine as a target.
My father was gunned down when I was fourteen as he was closing down his candy shop for the evening. The murderer was never found. Even as a young man I often Continue reading “If I can’t be famous, I’ll be infamous!”
It was a pretty good day for me. I had a couple of really productive meetings followed by an opportunity to reconnect with an old passion of mine that I have neglected for far too long, podcasting. Thanks to a good friend of mine I was asked to participate in a podcast about the new Spider-man movie with the guys over at NewYorkCine. I was brought in for my expertise on all things related to Spider-man and comic nerdism/geekdom. Plus I was one of the few people on the panel that actually loved the new Spider-man reboot more than the Sam Raimi versions.
Big up to my boy Thomas Edward Seymour for the invite. I had a blast. Here is to hoping they ask me back to help review the new Chris Nolan Batman flick, The Dark Knight Rises, later this month.
The Spider-man podcast with my commentary can be found here:
If your browser does not support the audio element. Please access the podcast at:
http://newyorkcine.podbean.com/2012/07/10/new-york-cine-not-so-amazing-spider-man-27/
You can check Continue reading “……does whatever a spider can!”
Here is a list of some of the best superhero fanfilms that I have come across on the web. I qualify best as in excellent production values and not in acting ability. That is not to say that the acting is bad in some of these productions. It is just that the genres of movies that I prefer don’t generally lend themselves to creating the next academy award winner Continue reading “The Best Superhero Fanfilms”