Ah, so I finally saw the new Bond flick, Casino Royale, starring the latest Bond, Daniel Craig. After hearing quite a few reviews declaring this as the best Bond since Sean Connery, I was obviously excited. Also hearing what Neil and Schwartz thought of it, raving how great it was, made me even more excited for it. But what do I think of it now that I saw it? Eh. Yes, thats about it. The story was OK, the action scenes were pretty cool, but the lack of many things really brought it down. (*WARNING* - the following may include spoilers, don't read it unless you have already seen Casino Royale or don't plan on seeing it for a while!)
The Pros of the Movie
The movie really started off kind of cool, black and white, and mysterious. I also like how Bond is being promoted to 00 status, and on one of his first missions he pisses M off so much that she wants to get rid of him. The fight scenes are what I would have to say were more badass than previous. Bond actually gets hurt, his tuxedo is bloody, he almost dies, he gets tortured but is still a badass. And the ending is probably the sweetest part of the film (and just about the only redeeming factor for the last 20 mins) as he sneaks up on the guy and does the usual "Bond, James Bond" quote. Also, when he makes up the martini and orders one without caring if its shaken or stirred was a plus.
The Cons
OK, no Money Penny, I can handle that. No Q though?!? WTF! And this leads to my next problem, where the hell were all the gadgets? Now the Aston Martin was cool as hell, along with the extras in the dash, but he doesn't even drive it 5 mins in the film! And the one real car chase lasts about 20 secs. Now there were many running scenes while Bond is on foot which were cool, but why give him such a sweet ass car and not even really use it. I do not know.
And the girls. Now the latino chick in the begining was pretty hot, but the main female role? I don't think so. Chiffre's g/f did turn sluttier and sluttier from scene to scene, but I don't think she even had one spoken role, let alone was in more than 3 short scenes. And the main female role's name is Vesper. What happened to Pussy Galore?!? And the only somewhat sexual induendo was talking about his pinky. Nothing compared to "I thought Christmas only 'comes' once a year".
And what kind of Bond villain gets jumped by a couple of freedom fighters in his hotel room. He doesn't even have a cool back story, just an eye that bleads? His henchmen weren't even crazy asses. Just some bald guy that wasn't even intimidating with a crazy ass Daniel Craig running around.
Conclusion
So did I enjoy it? Yes. Did it beat out Goldeneye as my favorite? No way in hell. Daniel Craig is a baddass, and was a pretty sweet actor, but I think they showed off his body more times than the girls. And throughout the movie, I kept forgetting it was even Bond with the lack of gadgets, suaveness, and sex scenes. The locations were exotic, the cars kicked ass, and they even brought back Felix which hasn't been in a Bond movie since the Timothy Dalton era (probably my second favorite Bond). Rating the movie, I would give it an 8/10. Rating it as purely a Bond movie though, I would probably have to lower it down to a 6/10. Please comment and let me know your thoughts!
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Friday, November 17, 2006
FU MANCHU
Ah, so Matt decided to drive 3 hrs from El Centro to Costa Mesa to see Fu Manchu on a Thur nite. And he had to work the next day! It all started when we got there at 8:30pm. We thought the show started at 9pm. We were wrong. We waited outside the "Detroit Bar" until 9pm, when the doors opened. We did however meet this old guy who had apparently been rockin out to Fu Manchu since he was a kid (if I had to guess, he was between 35 and 40) He then introduced us to his wife, which was hot and loved rock n roll! I think Matt was in heaven hahaha! This is all while I am waiting for Cynthia and her friend to meet us at the bar after attempting to see Tenacious D perform a free concert, which turned into being just a giant MySpace lie.
So after a couple beers, the show starts. As Fu Manchu is performing their first song, I notice an older looking fellow in a ripped grey t-shirt just start jumping like a fucking kangaroo, straight up in the air. The guy was a maniac. I thought security would get involved, but I shortly learned that he wouldnt be a problem compared to what we were about to see. Another great character was the dude with the long blonde hair, head banging in front of the stage. His hair literally almost hit the ceiling, it must have been like 4 feet long. The rest of the crowd was a mix of punk looking rockers and good old tattooed biker rockers. This combination with heavy guitar riffs and shouting lyrics turned the venue into a good old fashioned mosh pit.
About 2 songs into the set, some dude just starts pushing and moshing. He was thrown out in a few minutes. Then I look over near the bar, and theres a stoner lookin dude with long hair and a biker guy with a shaved head fighting. The shaved head guy takes the stoner guys head, grabs his hair and smashes him into the bar. They were both escorted out, although the stoner guy came back towards the end. He also complained to the security that the biker dude "pulled his hair". So a few songs later, towards the end of the show, a tattooed dude in a wife beater with spikey hair is doin some funky dance moves (kind of like the streaker did during Bob Dylna's set on that MTV awards show back in the 90's). He pushes me aside and starts talkin to some other concert goers. Out of no where, the security guards grab him and take him out. I guess there are rules against stupid dancing.
The show is reaching an end. The lead singer gives a shout out to his wife for their anniversary (a first for me to hear at a rock show). He then explains that this will be the last song. Most of the crowd has either been kicked out or has left by now around 1am. So about 2 mins into the last song, I get drenched. I'm like WTF. I then notice an empty beer cup fall to my feet. Within about 15 secs, 2 security guards push me out of the way, and grab this dude in a headlock. They literally drug him out while I thought his head was going to pop due to its purpleish-red color. As we are leaving, the douchebag that couldnt wait 30 more seconds for the concert to end before getting kicked out, is arguing with the bouncers. To make things even better, hes got an accent and is bitching about the US shows. To make things even better, as we leave the bar, the fog is so thick that I cant see 10 ft ahead of me. Of course, Matt and Cynthia have to follow me home on the 405 which was only going about 40 mph, which is unheard of in LA. So that was my first experience with the Detroit Bar and Fu Manchu. I can only home my next experience will be just as violent.
Up Next: Partying' Up with Uncle Randy and Horwitz!
So after a couple beers, the show starts. As Fu Manchu is performing their first song, I notice an older looking fellow in a ripped grey t-shirt just start jumping like a fucking kangaroo, straight up in the air. The guy was a maniac. I thought security would get involved, but I shortly learned that he wouldnt be a problem compared to what we were about to see. Another great character was the dude with the long blonde hair, head banging in front of the stage. His hair literally almost hit the ceiling, it must have been like 4 feet long. The rest of the crowd was a mix of punk looking rockers and good old tattooed biker rockers. This combination with heavy guitar riffs and shouting lyrics turned the venue into a good old fashioned mosh pit.
About 2 songs into the set, some dude just starts pushing and moshing. He was thrown out in a few minutes. Then I look over near the bar, and theres a stoner lookin dude with long hair and a biker guy with a shaved head fighting. The shaved head guy takes the stoner guys head, grabs his hair and smashes him into the bar. They were both escorted out, although the stoner guy came back towards the end. He also complained to the security that the biker dude "pulled his hair". So a few songs later, towards the end of the show, a tattooed dude in a wife beater with spikey hair is doin some funky dance moves (kind of like the streaker did during Bob Dylna's set on that MTV awards show back in the 90's). He pushes me aside and starts talkin to some other concert goers. Out of no where, the security guards grab him and take him out. I guess there are rules against stupid dancing.
The show is reaching an end. The lead singer gives a shout out to his wife for their anniversary (a first for me to hear at a rock show). He then explains that this will be the last song. Most of the crowd has either been kicked out or has left by now around 1am. So about 2 mins into the last song, I get drenched. I'm like WTF. I then notice an empty beer cup fall to my feet. Within about 15 secs, 2 security guards push me out of the way, and grab this dude in a headlock. They literally drug him out while I thought his head was going to pop due to its purpleish-red color. As we are leaving, the douchebag that couldnt wait 30 more seconds for the concert to end before getting kicked out, is arguing with the bouncers. To make things even better, hes got an accent and is bitching about the US shows. To make things even better, as we leave the bar, the fog is so thick that I cant see 10 ft ahead of me. Of course, Matt and Cynthia have to follow me home on the 405 which was only going about 40 mph, which is unheard of in LA. So that was my first experience with the Detroit Bar and Fu Manchu. I can only home my next experience will be just as violent.
Up Next: Partying' Up with Uncle Randy and Horwitz!
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