Hot Tub Time Machine (Blu-ray Review)
July 22nd, 2010 by Sean Ferguson
I think most people have at some point wondered “what if” whether it’s about a girl or boy in your past or a decision you made long ago that still keeps you awake at night on occasion. I think if everyone (myself included) were given the opportunity to find out how things could have been different knowing what they know now, they would jump at the chance if they had access to let’s say a GMC Delorean or in this case a Hot Tub Time Machine. Continue reading ‘Hot Tub Time Machine (Blu-ray Review)’
The summer heat is in full effect, and that means you’re probably doing all you can to stay near the conditioned air. Well, no big deal because I’ve got the scoop on the coolest film festival this year—Sundance 2010. Last January I spent a week in Park City, Utah with frigid temperatures, fast women, and fun films. So, grab a cold one and tap your winter boots together because I’m bringing you back to the most severe winter in American history. Better late than never, here’s a round up of my experiences/journal from the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. 
I am huge fan of Christopher Nolan’s films especially Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, but I’ve also really enjoyed his other movies as well. While I haven’t seen his earliest work on Doodlebug and Following, I did see Memento, which catapulted him into the public consciousness in a big way. Nolan obviously has recurring themes throughout all of his movies as they all contain elements of obsession, psychological and physical pain, guilt, and characters who try to succeed despite their hardships. 
While I love the idea of a channel dedicated to science fiction, The SyFy Channel (formerly the SciFi Channel) seems to be in an identity crisis hence the name change. This is a channel that cranks out a ton of original movies that are questionable in quality such as Mansquito and Mega Snake, but they also had great shows like Battlestar Galactica and Stargate SG-1. I was curious as to where this movie would fall as far quality counted. 
Crazy tells the story of Hank Garland whose name may not be recognizable to most people, but the people he played guitar with and the songs he played on are surely are. Garland was one of the most in-demand session guitar players in Nashville and he played for the likes of Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, The Everly Brothers, Conway Twitty, Patsy Cline, and Jerry Lee Lewis along with lots of others. 
I’ve always loved movies about magic so I was looking forward to reviewing The Illusionist which I missed in the theaters. I remember this movie came out around the same time as The Prestige so there were dueling magician movies just like volcano, Wyatt Earp and asteroid movies, which usually ends with the first movie doing well and the second one suffering. 
If you told me that mixed martial arts (MMA) fighting was the fastest growing sport around, I’d be hard-pressed to disagree with you. There is no denying the impression MMA has left on the public not just in the States, but around the world. The competitors come from around the globe to match not only their strength, but their wits against their fellow fighters. With personalities such as the Shamrock brothers, Chuck Liddell, and current powerhouse Anderson Silva, the landscape features an array of fighters from all weight classes, each with their unique arsenal of fighting styles. 
And I thought I had seen it all… Ah, Splice, words can’t even describe the disturbing visions I still have floating around in my head. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I’m not sure yet. I guess I need to let Tuesday night’s viewing experience sink in some more, cultivate and see what I think about in a few weeks as my mind continually digests what I witnessed on the silver screen. It’s actually hard to talk about here too. 
When Gregg Senko suggested that we write about three albums that changed our lives at first I thought that it would be pretty easy to do, until I really started to think about it. Should I cover only movie soundtracks or should it be non-movie related like my co-workers picks? Even now, as I am writing this, I have no idea what I will end up with as my picks. If you’ve read my bio section on the staff page of the website, you know that I have eclectic taste in music. 
Every once in a great while we’ll get one of those projects that we just can’t wait to devour. This be that kind of project. Three albums that changed us? It was kind of hard at first, but I feel that I was able to come through with my picks loud and clear. Funny enough, all three of my choices were discovered on or around the same time. Same decade, for sure. 
When fellow Why So Blu staff writer Gregg Senko asked me to come up with three albums that changed the world of music for me I jumped at the opportunity. I said to myself, “This will be a piece of cake.” Well, little did I know how hard it would be narrowing down my selections to just three. I mean, anyone that really associates with me knows that I have a very wide range of musical preferences and tastes in life. And then there are some people who know me as just that guy who only listens to Rob Zombie. 
All this week, Why So Blu will be featuring some of its writers albums that, while not necessarily their favorites, were recordings that changed our lives in some way, shape, or form. Each day, Monday through Friday of this week, will highlight a different writer. When the crew sat down and discussed this, we figured everyone likes music and this will give our readers a little insight into what makes us musically tick. 
Queen Latifah has had a busy decade in terms of her film career. From appearing on episodes of the television show Spin City in 2001 to last year’s third installment in the Ice Age franchise, she has also had a variety of projects dotting the landscape along the way. Latifah has appeared comedies such as Scary Movie 3 and the critically acclaimed musical Chicago. The rapper-turned-actress has had a very productive 2010 as she co-starred in Valentine’s Day and now takes top billing in her latest work, Just Wright. 
It was 2001 when the original Shrek captured the attention of audiences around the globe. Kids liked it for the fun characters and colorful delivery. Adults enjoyed it for the cleverly placed humor throughout the film. The sequel came out three years later and it was another round of laughs and adventure for theater-goers and big bucks for Dreamworks. You know Hollywood. Where success was once found, try and try again. 
I’ve always had a weak spot for rousing sports movies where the underdogs battle the odds and win, so I was looking forward to Invictus for that reason plus the great cast and the direction of Clint Eastwood, whom I’ve admired as an actor and as a director. Unlike say, Rocky, Invictus is about more than the sport and it’s more akin to Hoosiers where the results of a championship have a broader effect on a community or in this case a country. 
If anything, 2010 will be remembered as the year Hollywood made its (arguably) strongest push to make three-dimensional films part of the constant mainstream. The concept took audiences by storm in the 1950’s, though it proved to be nothing more than a fad associated with C-grade sci-fi films. It was something to take a date to, but seemed to offer little staying power. 
In 2008, Iron Man was released to an audience that wasn’t very familiar with the character and with a lead actor that had a history of personal demons that never allowed him to achieve the success his talent deserved. It turned out to be an explosive combination that raked in over $535 million worldwide. By taking the risk of giving Downey Jr. the role of a lifetime in Tony Stark, Director Jon Favreau pulled off a an amazing success story for both the movie and for Downey Jr. personally. 
