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I loved it.

I got to see The Two Towers last night. As a stand alone movie, I thought it was amazing. The scenery was incredible. The special effects were remarkable. Overall, I was very impressed.

As a conversion from a pre-existing book, this movie was not as good as the first one in my opinion. It seemed to me that major pieces of the plot were changed. In the first film things were left out for time's sake. That's very different from changing them.

I'll definitely have to see it again, and I'm excited about the third one. With this one, I just had a little trouble separating the film from the book. Both are excellent on their own, but not necessarily together. Oh well, we can't always get everything we want, right?

Wired News: Digital Actors in Rings Can Think
I can't wait to see the movie already... I just can't wait...

Last weekend I saw Harry Potter II: The CHamber of Secrets. It was way better than the first one and inspired me to read the books. I'll let you know how that works out.

At work, I have learned more vbscript than should be allowed and can currently make Power Point sit, beg, and give me its paw. All completely automated. Look for some power point tools coming soon.

This Saturday I'm going to Foxwoods, a casino in CT to celebrate the birth of my mother's first and only son (bet you can't guess who that is). Hopefully I'll win big, but more likely I'll come home more poor than when I left.

Monday night the Patriots play the Titans. Yes folks, we've reached the magical make or break portion of the season. I'm quite looking forward to it.

Things have been kind of hectic lately, so you'll have to have some patience. Stay tuned though, as I do have a few things up my sleeves.

Up Yours - More Tolkien Goodies
I can't wait for the new LOTR movie to come out either. The first one was really good, capturing much of Tolkien's world the way I had imagined it, minus the depiction of some of the elves. I've read the series many times, enjoying it more and more each time. Tolkien's son has published a series of books about the books, which I'll pick up in the near future. They describe how Tolkien came up with his ideas and what happened in his life as he wrote. There are also a number of books that elaborate on side shoots from the main tale, such as The Tolkien Reader. I'm also eagerly awaiting the re-release of the Fellowship DVD due out in November, as it will have a lot of new footage.

The only thing I didn't agree with in Dawn's post was the comment about coming back as Diane Lane in the picture she linked. Personally, I'd like to come back as that guy (notice how I didn't make any puns with the word come; I'm so well behaved sometimes).

Oh, and by the way, this post is my first attempt at using the trackback functionality of Movable Type.

I saw One Hour Photo last night. I thought it was good, but pretty messed up. Definitely not as much of a psychological thriller as I thought, but definitely a movie that makes you wonder if the girl at the coffee counter who recognizes you does so because your addicted or because she's sitting in your living room watching your TV when you're not home.

Seriously, though, Robin Williams is good in this one. By far though, he's at his creepiest when the he starts squirting blood from his eyes. As written the character is definitely creepy, seeing Mrs. Doubtfire play it, though, makes it so much worse. Other than him and the script, you won't realy ind much to rave about: the camera work is pretty straight forward, nothing really groundbreaking. It's a good story, though, and with all of the children who have been kidnapped lately, it's a creepiness that is easily associated with.

I'd have to say that I'd recommend this movie. It's not going to end up being my favorite, but it's an enjoyable night out.

I saw Signs this weekend and loved it. I'd even see it again.

Shyamalan pays close attention to detail in this flick featuring Mel Gibson as a former pastor who is questioning his faith under the threat of an alien invasion. The children are very believable as is Gibson, and it is easy to associate with them throughout the film. In comparison to Shyamalan's previous popular works, I feel this film is much more like The Sixth Sense than it is Unbreakable. I was disappointed after seeing the latter, however this film more than makes up for it. There is some breathtaking camera work as well as a tight storyline and a great ending. I found myself mesmerized throughout the film. I have seen quite a few movies lately and the audience has been rude and annoying at all of them, talking, answering cell phones, etc. This is the first film I've seen in a while where the audience was actually stunned into silence, awaiting the next development, unable to turn their attention away.

Signs plays on fears we all have in order to create a story that is very believable as well as entertaining. I highly recommend it. I give it an A.

So I don't really watch many movies at home. I don't even own a DVD player yet (the reason for that is more money related vs. not actually wanting one). However, I really enjoy going to see movies at the theater. The loud surround sound systems, the big screen, the dark and the lack of conversation are all reasons why. That's not the point though. The point is that I went to see Road to Perdition last night.

Now I admit. Before I went to see it, I didn't know what the word perdition meant. Today though, I looked it up and it means utter destruction. Fitting, no? (that question will make sense once you've seen the movie)

I liked it a lot. Hanks was excellent. I enjoyed Changing Lanes a lot, and I think this movie is in the same vein. What vein is that you ask? Well, both movies are psychological dramas. They're about people who you can relate to in situations you can relate to doing things you might consider doing were you in that situation. They're about relationships and people. They're not action flicks unless you count the action in your head as you think about what they must be going through. They're movies about people for people who enjoy thinking about people.

In Perdition, Hanks plays a man who works for the mob. His son, curious as to what his father does, follows his dad and sees him murder two men. This sets up a whole series of nasty events forcing Hanks to protect his son.

The directorial style was excellent, as was the camera work. There were some really nice focus effects. Hanks had a stellar performance, even though it was difficult at first to see him in the role of a killer. On the flip-side, I could easily associate with him as a dad trying to figure out his relationship with his son. The story was tight, moved at a good pace, and kept me interested. The score was good; I'm actually considering purchasing the soundtrack. I enjoyed the movie greatly and highly recommend it.

I give Road to Perdition an A.