Posted by TheTechLounge - Recent Articles: Hardware: Memory
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| August 29, 2004 |
Posted by Amazon Customer Reviews
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/themoneysit08-20
C. W. Fitch reviewed:
Artificial Attrition
| 1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:  Book-smart author, and in some places, a smart suspense., August 29, 2004 The main plot involves a super-secret sector of the FBI that specializes in bringing down the most lowlife criminals in the country using the most devious possible methods. The only problem is, once apprehended, they become little more than playthings to the nigh-demonic head of the sector, Roland Krutz. Torture, rape, sadism, and ultimately, death...you name it, it's all part of the game. One particular prisoner, Lloyd Potter, is brought into this "underworld" by mistake, and his wife and a few close friends race against the clock to rescue him before he becomes another victim of the program. This premise sounds intriguing enough, and once all the characters are introduced, the story takes a sharp left (or is it right?) into a hearty "good vs. evil" story. The team of friends, once assembled, seems less human and more like the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen as the story progresses, with superhuman mental capacity, endless wealth, and seemingly limitless resources. (And let's not forget the smarter-than-average rottweiler!) There are a few things that bring this read down a couple of notches, though. First off, the language. There were enough expletives peppering the dialogue to make George Carlin blush, though the author seemed to reserve them for the most evil of the characters in order to magnify their depravity. (Not to say that even the good guys didn't let one slip once in a while, though.) Also, though there were a few parts that were exciting enough to keep the pages moving, some of it read like an encyclopedia. A couple of the characters were quick to flaunt their knowledge of certain subjects, but it served to do little more than show that the author had read up on them and added little to the actual flow of the story. The characters are endearing. The story, while at times a little ridiculous, is entertaining. The climax of the story is quite unexpected, and one of the final sequences actually had me laughing out loud at the end of it. Overall, for a first effort, "Artificial Attrition" pleased me. There were a few rough spots in the grammar, and Epperson's political views were made abundantly clear, but it didn't detract from the reading. An enjoyable summer suspense. |
| August 29, 2004 |
Posted by TheTechLounge - Recent Articles: Multimedia: Speakers
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| August 27, 2004 |
Posted by Amazon Customer Reviews
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/themoneysit08-20
Erin Loughran reviewed:
| 1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:  Beverly Hills 90210 is the BEST, August 27, 2004 |
| August 27, 2004 |
Posted by TheTechLounge - Recent Articles: Hardware: Memory
http://www.thetechlounge.com
| August 21, 2004 |
Posted by TheTechLounge - Recent Articles: Cases: Mid-Tower
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| August 14, 2004 |
Posted by TheTechLounge - Recent Articles: Hardware: Memory
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| August 12, 2004 |
Posted by Amazon Customer Reviews
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/themoneysit08-20
Art reviewed:
Kung Fu - The Complete First Season
| 12 of 15 people found the following review helpful: About the Letterboxing..., August 10, 2004 When feature films that were filmed in various widescreen formats were first brought to VHS in a full-screen format, there was an outcry that the "chopping off" of the sides of the picture destroyed the artist's vision. In this ""de-letterboxing," the careful staging of scenes is invariably destroyed and sometimes leaves out crucial visual information, often leaving scenes with characters appearing to be talking to themselves (their adressees were cut out of the picture). If cutting the sides off of a widescreen film is "wrong" to viewers who would like to see a film in its original format, how can anyone argue that the "letterboxing" (cutting off the top and bottom of the picture) of a television series that originally appeared in a full-screen format be acceptable? It is hypocrisy at its height! Until the early 1990s, all television show productions used a full-screen presentation for their shows. At that time a few, high-profile TV dramas began presenting in a widescreen format; one that is fairly common among TV dramas today. In the earliest days of TV, there was never any consideration that their programs be shot in a widescreen format, a format many felt befitted the greater status films held at the time. Full-screen for television was the standard. "Kung Fu," filmed in the early to mid-1970s, was typical of all television productions of the time. It was filmed in a full-screen aspect ratio. The producers of this new DVD version of "Kung Fu" seem to have mistaken the outcry for widescreen films to be presented in widescreen format as a cry for ALL DVDs released to be presented in a widescreen format. That could not be further from the truth. Whether you like or hate what has been done to "Kung Fu," it is being presented in a format in which it was never intended to be viewed. This in and of itself diminishes the artistic integrity of those people that created the series for 1970s audiences (arguably, artistic integrity that may or may not have existed at the time, but we don't know that for sure, do we?). Some reviewers on these pages suggest that letterboxing somehow enhances the picture quality. This could not be further from the truth as one has nothing to do with the other. Good picture quality starts with the best possible source, and letterboxing a full screen picture can have no effect in that regard. Additionally, the fact that some reviewers do not FEEL they are "missing anything" is beside the point. You ARE missing something; something original viewers saw, but that you may never see. Can you imagine the outcry if the same widescreen treatment was given to the forthcoming "Star Trek" season series' DVDs to be released later this month? I cringe at the very idea! It is no less a mistake for "Kung Fu." Once again, it was a mistake to release "Kung Fu" in anything other than its original format, and this mistake should be rectified. However, since this is unlikely, don't let this keep you from experiencing one of television's landmark series. Since a letterboxed version is all that is available, if you really want to see the show, there is no other choice. One can only hope the producers will come to their senses with seasons two and three. |
| August 10, 2004 |
Posted by Amazon Customer Reviews
http://www.amazon.com/
maxmasa31 reviewed:
Timecop 2
| 16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:  Better than I had expected!, August 5, 2004 So, with that in mind, I really wasn't expecting much. In fact, I thought it would be worse than the Van Damme original, which, although one of his better movies, was still a waste of a couple of hours of my life. I mean, straight to DVD sequel could never match a big-budget Hollywood movie, right? Well, I'm glad to say I was wrong. This is actually a pretty darned decent movie--better than the original, that's for sure. Thomas Ian Griffith and Jason Scott Lee are both great. Their roles are complex, as there is a lot of grey area in terms of their being good and evil, but I thought they handled it well. Unfortunately, I still had some trouble seeing JSL as anything other than Bruce Lee in "Dragon," which wasn't helped by his fight scenes, where he still looks like the Dragon. Special effects were your typical Sci-Fi Channel stuff, nothing to write home about. Costumes and sets seemed a bit forced in period scenes, so it didn't come across as very natural, but, hey, like I said, Sci-Fi Channel stuff. In general, the acting was very good, all things considered, with only a few actors coming up lame (see Tava Smiley who is hot, but couldn't act her way out of a paper bag). The action sequences were kind of forced into the script (some of it didn't seem terribly necessary), but when it happens, JSL and TIG are great. And while JSL is great in his fight scenes, it was kind of sad to think that he'll be relegated to these kinds of roles because of his ethnicity. And while he does need some range to pull off this role, not much acting is required, and he is a better actor than this movie allows him to be. TIG, of course, is a wonderful villain...now if you could only get his role from "The Karate Kid" out of your head... I actually enjoyed the story, as I like time travel movies, and while it can be bewildering figuring out what's going on as the characters jump back and forth in time, the main idea of the movie--If we could go back in time, should we be/are we morally obligated to right the wrongs of the past?--comes through. If you're going to watch this expecting a Hollywood summer blockbuster movie, you will be sorely disappointed. If you love the Sci-Fi Channel, like I do, and want to watch a grade "A" b-movie, this is it! The cast is great, the story interesting and the action entertaining. Adjusted for the kind of movie it is (straight to DVD), I give it a solid four stars. A pleasant surprise and one of the best direct to video movies I've ever seen. |
| August 5, 2004 |
Posted by Amazon Customer Reviews
http://www.amazon.com/
maxmasa31 reviewed:
Timecop 2 DVD ~ Jason Scott Lee
| 16 of 18 people found the following review helpful: Better than I had expected!, August 5, 2004 So, with that in mind, I really wasn't expecting much. In fact, I thought it would be worse than the Van Damme original, which, although one of his better movies, was still a waste of a couple of hours of my life. I mean, straight to DVD sequel could never match a big-budget Hollywood movie, right? Well, I'm glad to say I was wrong. This is actually a pretty darned decent movie--better than the original, that's for sure. Thomas Ian Griffith and Jason Scott Lee are both great. Their roles are complex, as there is a lot of grey area in terms of their being good and evil, but I thought they handled it well. Unfortunately, I still had some trouble seeing JSL as anything other than Bruce Lee in "Dragon," which wasn't helped by his fight scenes, where he still looks like the Dragon. Special effects were your typical Sci-Fi Channel stuff, nothing to write home about. Costumes and sets seemed a bit forced in period scenes, so it didn't come across as very natural, but, hey, like I said, Sci-Fi Channel stuff. In general, the acting was very good, all things considered, with only a few actors coming up lame (see Tava Smiley who is hot, but couldn't act her way out of a paper bag). The action sequences were kind of forced into the script (some of it didn't seem terribly necessary), but when it happens, JSL and TIG are great. And while JSL is great in his fight scenes, it was kind of sad to think that he'll be relegated to these kinds of roles because of his ethnicity. And while he does need some range to pull off this role, not much acting is required, and he is a better actor than this movie allows him to be. TIG, of course, is a wonderful villain...now if you could only get his role from "The Karate Kid" out of your head... I actually enjoyed the story, as I like time travel movies, and while it can be bewildering figuring out what's going on as the characters jump back and forth in time, the main idea of the movie--If we could go back in time, should we be/are we morally obligated to right the wrongs of the past?--comes through. If you're going to watch this expecting a Hollywood summer blockbuster movie, you will be sorely disappointed. If you love the Sci-Fi Channel, like I do, and want to watch a grade "A" b-movie, this is it! The cast is great, the story interesting and the action entertaining. Adjusted for the kind of movie it is (straight to DVD), I give it a solid four stars. A pleasant surprise and one of the best direct to video movies I've ever seen. |
| August 5, 2004 |
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