Rango

I thought it would be nice to write up another movie review this week while the movie is fresh in my mind. For my birthday party, I went with my friends to Arizona steak house for a meal and then afterward went to see the movie "Rango." I didn't know what to expect from the film since I had only really seen one or two previews, but the reviews for it were good, and I like Johnny Depp. I must say, I was really impressed with this movie.

The general story is that of a captive lizard that has spent his life pretending to be other people and thinks of himself as an actor. He plays as many different personas, but all of them seem shallow. He realizes that it's because there are no conflicts in his narratives--and upon coming to this realization, his aquarium falls out of the back window of the car when the car swerves to try not to hit an armadillo. He's a chameleon that now has to survive the heat of the desert. Eventually, he does make it to a small town that is undergoing a water shortage. He decides to pretend to be a tough gunslinger and is appointed sheriff of the town. He soon realizes that there's more to the water shortage than it originally seemed, and he eventually has to quit pretending, and either leave the town to it's own devises, or try to become a true hero.

I was surprised at the dark overtones of this movie. Death seems to be a recurring theme throughout the narrative. The band keeps telling the audience that Rango is going to die. The armadillo from the beginning is actually flattened by the car, but somehow pulls itself together and moves on, and yet it becomes a spiritual guide. Rango becomes sheriff by accidentally killing a hawk. And, there's even a scene towards the end where Rango passes out from exhaustion and ends up going on a sort of spiritual journey. The movie definitely has the feel of a Western with those sort of dark overtones, and it's easy to lose yourself in the feel of it and to sort of forget that you're looking at a cast of animals.

The animation of this movie is also very good. It seems computer animated films are becoming better and better as the years go by. I think what impressed me most about this particular film was the textures of the animals used. The fur looked like fur, the dry scales of the rattlesnake looked like scales, and yet there were subtle things about each of the characters that gave them personality, like the line on the scales of the rattlesnake's mouth that looked almost like a thin mustache.

All of the acting was very good in this movie. Once again, Johnny Depp also proves himself to be a versatile actor. All of the voices seemed to fit the characters perfectly. There was lots of humor throughout the film that was delivered well by the actors, and subtle humor that a child definitely wouldn't pick up on. (I must say, it's hilarious to hear "Flight of the Valkyries" played on a banjo.)

My only real complaint about this movie is it is a little slow to start. The first quarter or so of the movie leaves you wondering, "What am I watching," and it does come across as a little boring. This is mostly due to the strange nature of the film. Still, the pace picks up quickly. I think I decided this film was excellent when Rango meets "The Spirit of the West." (Watch the movie, you'll love the reference.) My only other complaint is that the female lizard for some reason has hair. I know that's a small complaint, but it bugged me for some reason. I just kind of wanted to have her hat knocked off at some point so that we could see the hair was attached to the hat, but that's okay.

Overall, I highly recommend this movie to anyone who likes a good Western. It's funny, fun, and is definitely worth the money to see in the theater.

See You on the Dark Side of the Moon...

Hello all,

Well, it's close to the end of the week, so I thought I would go ahead and write another blog entry. There isn't much to say about this week. Since I worked very hard last week, I've been trying to take it a little easier this time around. I've worked just hard enough that I know I'll finish my chores by the end of the day tomorrow. In my free time I've been doing a little bit of brain storming on that changeling novel, trying to put the finishing touches on my "Redemption" story, screwing around on the internet, and playing a little WoW. I've also started a prayer journal, and that's pretty nice.

This last weekend was very busy. We built a new set of stairs for the front porch of our house. Thank you again to all of my friends who helped out on that. You are awesome. I also gamed more than I have in a very long time. We played Ars Magica, the Grimm game (the one I run), and Swashbucklers of the Seven Skies. But, it left me feeling a little tired this week, that and changing the darn time and losing an hour of sleep... I still don't think my sleep schedule has caught up yet. Anyway, I won't have the cover finished this week for "Eternity Game." I'm hoping for the next.

The big news is that my birthday is coming up on Tuesday. I'll be twenty nine. Hence the title of this blog, because I really don't know where the time went. It's not getting older that's bothering me as much as how quickly the years slipped away. It feels like I was in my mid-twenties maybe a year ago, but clearly that isn't the case. It's spooky, and the years don't seem to want to dance any slower. Still, I'm okay with that. Twenty-nine isn't that old, but like I said, it just snuck up on me and makes me realize that I'm not as young as I once was.

I should probably start taking better care of myself, establish good habits now, etc. I probably won't though. I'm also realizing if I ever want a tattoo or another type of piercing my time is running out for that as well. (I got a belly-button piercing last time I felt this way...)

Well, happy reading and writing to you all. I hope you have a good weekend. I think I will. I have a fun birthday party planned and the weather should be good. Take care.

I don't want to go in the cart...

Hello all,

I'm sorry it's been so long since I've written on my blog, but I've been incredibly sick for about two weeks now. I had an upper respiratory infection that left me sleeping most of the day for over a week, as well as making me not feel like doing anything at all. Still, despite my illness, I've managed to do a lot of writing this week and have almost finished "Redemption." I've also come up with a new idea for another novel.

My next idea is an urban fantasy novel with the lead character as a changeling. She manages to escape from Arcadia, but her place in her home has been taken by a fetch. So, she must learn to adjust to living in the human world again on her own. Her memories of her life in Arcadia are also fractured. She comes across other changelings in the city, faces that she remembers, but she can't place them.

It's only a rough concept currently, but I plan to try to work on it in the near future. Also, I've used this week to start work on the cover for "Eternity Game." Since I'm publishing it on e-book readers, I need to make my own cover. I'm glad to say that it's coming along pretty nicely. I didn't expect it to go so smoothly since I've been so out of practice. I've been using free photos from sites offering stock photos for public use. When I finish, I'll post it on the blog for you to see. Wish me luck.