What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 11/14/14

Welcome to this week in geek!

I have a random selection of awesome things I'm into this week so lets get to it!

• Yik Yak

I recently downloaded this app for the first time to finally check it out for myself. I've been hearing a lot about it in professional circles and have read about it so I thought it would be good to see what was being said around my institution. It is consistent with the current zeitgeist about the app; a lot of sexist, angry, trivial, stream of consciousness posts. I agree that these things aren't being said because of Yik Yak, the app is just providing a platform for them. I'm interested to see how people to adapt to this app in the social media landscape, and where students and young people go next once Yik Yak isn't "cool" any more.

• Chef

I just watched this movie after hearing some good buzz about it when it came out earlier this year. It is written and directed by Jon Favreau (and also stars him as the titular chef, Carl Casper) of Iron Man fame. The movie is about a chef who has lost his passion for his cooking and has an existential crisis when a food critic smacks down his work online. He eventually opens up a food truck and begins to piece his life back together with his estranged wife and son. The film is a lot about the emotional relationship we can have with food and cooking, as well as the art of a masterfully prepared meal. It is a fun, light, heartwarming movie with some excellent actors in supporting roles like Sofia Vergara, Scarlett Johansson, Robert Downey, Jr., Dustin Hoffman, and John Leguizamo. I recommend you check it out, especially if you're a foodie!

• Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee

This web series was created by Jerry Seinfeld and it is exactly what the title suggests. We see Jerry ride around in vintage cars with popular comedians and they chat while they get coffee. It's simple yet brilliant in its minimalism. He's had guests on such as Jon Stewart, Aziz Ansari, Louis C.K, Patton Oswalt, and Tina Fey. Every episode is fun and unique and I've enjoyed pretty much all of them so it's great to spend some time with since it is a wholly authentic effort on Seinfeld's part since he's having real conversations in real places with these people. It feels very raw and benefits from it.

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Movie Review Monthly: October 2014

Greetings, movie lovers!

Welcome to this wrap-up of the month of October's movie reviews from Netflix. All these titles are available to stream (or were at the time) so check out my thoughts to find something cool to watch!

• Silver Linings Playbook
• Donnie Darko
• 12 Angry Men
• The Hunger Games - Catching Fire

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Our Sustainable Waste Impact, By the Numbers

It can seem like a daunting tasks making any greater impact with our daily sustainable habits, but this infographic I found puts things in a pretty positive context. While we're not where we need to be by a long shot, we've done a lot in the past several years to make a good impact. With everyone doing their part to make their habits more green, we can get to a better future when it comes to energy, waste, and maintaining harmony with nature. This particular resource focuses mostly on trash, recycling, and re-purposing. I hope to continue highlight how what we do makes a positive difference in the world. It's incremental and aggregate, but I know we all can make an impact if we work together.

See the rest of the awesome infographic here.

What I Was Geeking Out About: October 2014

Welcome to this wrap up of my weekly geek outs!

I'm always getting excited about a lot of stuff. Every Friday I share what I'm into and this is an attempt to serve it all up together in one place. Check out everything and hope you find something you like!

• Week of 10/03/14
• Week of 10/10/14
• Week of 10/17/14
• Week of 10/24/14
• Week of 10/31/14

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Movie Review Monday: From Dusk Till Dawn

Welcome to another edition of Movie Review Monday!

This week's film is 1996's From Dusk Till Dawn, directed by Robert Rodriguez and starring George Clooney (in his first leading role) and Quentin Tarantino with Harvey Keitel, Salma Hayek, and Juliette Lewis.

Wikipedia appropriately describes this movie as a "action black comedy horror thriller", which is a clunky mouthful but accurately captures the unique mash-up of genres in this film. There is a lot going on but it all comes out as a cool movie that does its own thing versus what your typical Hollywood movie typically churns out. I would liken it to something like Shaun of the Dead, which has some great action, zombie effects, and lots of laughs.

I had heard some things about this movie so I knew what to expect with all of the genre mixing. I won't spoil things for you here, but just know it essentially starts out as one movie and then becomes something completely different towards the second half. It all just works and the movie is a lot of fun. The wonderful practical effects in the film are done by industry legend Greg Nicotero (made popular most recently with his stellar work on The Walking Dead).

If you're into horror, action, and Quentin Tarantino/ Robert Rodriguez productions, you owe it to yourself to check this one out as it is a cult classic. You'll have a lot of fun and you won't have to think too much (which is always a good thing every once in a while).

Check out From Dusk Till Dawn streaming right now on Netflix!

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What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 11/07/14

Welcome to another week in geek!

I'm again highlighting a diverse array of things that I have been enjoying as of late. Hopefully some of them are stuff you check and enjoy as well!

• Marry Me

This new NBC show from creator David Caspe (who also created the awesome show Happy Endings) stars Casey Wilson and Ken Marino. It is loosely based on Caspe and Wilson's real life relationship and recent marriage. Wilson and Marino are some of my favorite comedic actors and they are given some great material to work with here. If you have watched Happy Endings, it is very similar to that with more of a focus on relationship humor. It's quick, witty, and has ended up as one of the few new shows this fall season I think I might stick with (sorry Gotham).

• 2014 Midterm Election

I'll withhold judgement on this new Congress until it is sworn in and gets to work, but the link above goes to the aspect of elections I end up being more fascinated by; ballot measures. I see it as a more fine tuned barometer of where the country is at on particular issues. Marijuana legalization (sale and use) won in two states, as well as minimum wage increases in a handful of states. Personhood amendments were also voted down in a few states. With stuff like marriage equality and marijuana, I've seen a drastic change just in my short lifetime. I'm intrigued to see where it all goes since this is where I see major societal change happening constantly versus the inaction coming from Congress.

• The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

I have to give a long overdue shout out to The Tonight Show since the mantle has been passed to Jimmy Fallon. He has brought his same fun energy and new media savvy to the venerable program, making all the episodes easily available on YouTube (link above), as well as Hulu. He also has several viral videos churning out of his show, having one almost every week it seems like, beating out the fading Jimmy Kimmel Live attempts (in my humble opinion). I mostly like to catch his "Thank You Notes" as well as the games he plays with his guests over his monologues or interview (which feel a little dated at this point). I highly recommend this show!!

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What I Love About Sci-Fi

"It can be as entertaining as other movies but transcends to another level where you have to watch it again or talk about it endlessly to process what you saw."

Science fiction (particularly in the medium of movies and television) has always been of interest to me. The genre provides unique storytelling opportunities for any number of topics. Such popular entries in the genre as The Twilight Zone, Star Trek, Firefly, Robocop, Inception, Terminator, Doctor Who, Alien, and any number of superhero or even zombie stories showcase glimpses of the future (or near future) from the times of which they were made or at the very least inquire into intriguing "what if" scenarios that explore our humanity, be they dystopic or utopic.

I'm always excited to see good, new sci-fi. Films such as Her have kept up with the modern realizations of past sci-fi. I always seek stuff out and appreciate when it is recommended to me. I've even been working to see some classic films such as 2001: A Space Odyssey and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. They have something relevant to say, either within their own story, or from how and when they were made.

I find sci-fi to be the most rich genre to examine. Horror movies have never been my forte, and they seem rather straightforward. The same goes for action movies. Both are entertaining for sure, but sci-fi has something more beyond simple thrills or chills. It brings forth issues of social justice without dealing with it straight on. For example, in Star Trek, the Federation's relationship with Klingons is indicative of race issues during the time it was made or the fact of their vision of the future with humans of every creed working on the bridge of the Enterprise. Casting for a show like that makes a simple statement about where we should be heading as a society. Our interactions with aliens moreover in all sci-fi is an engaging allegory for the ways we deal with difference in our culture. Seeing different alien races as barbarians or odd simply for the fact they live differently or look different from us.

There is also the always fascinating examination of man and machine in sci-fi. In something like the Terminator series, we're literally fighting machines and fearing their eventual takeover of society. In Her, it explores how machines may teach us how to be more human.

In all of these movies, there are unique combinations of genres such a sci-fi horror, sci-fi romantic comedy, or sci-fi action that creating entertaining and thought provoking results. This is what I love about science fiction. It can be as entertaining as other movies but transcends to another level where you have to watch it again or talk about it endlessly to process what you saw.

What are some of your favorite sci-fi films? What you do enjoy about them? Let me know in the comments or tweet at me!

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Movie Review Monday: Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

Welcome to another edition of Movie Review Monday!

This week's film is 1987's Planes, Trains, & Automobiles from director John Hughes and starring John Candy and Steve Martin.

The premise of the movie is the trials and roadblocks Candy and Martin's characters experience trying to get home for Thanksgiving. It's a funny and heartfelt movie that completely hinges on Candy and Martin. They play off each other well with Martin playing the straight guy to Candy's jovial nature.

The story is largely timeless as it is something we can all relate to with the universal frustrations of traveling. I also really enjoy the aspect of the film of the power of people helping each other. Neither character in the film would get home without the kindness of a stranger and just trusting your fellow traveler. I know how hard traveling can be so after watching this movie, I hope I can do the same for someone sometime to make their life a little easier. I also want to tease that there is a unique hook to this movie that gets revealed towards the end. It colors the movie in a totally different way and I had no idea it was coming. It's a great part of the story and it made the whole experience even better for me.

This film is silly, simple, fun, wholesome, and overall a great watch for the whole family. It is perfect for the holiday season so I recommend it to folks looking for something in this wheelhouse.

Check out Planes, Trains, & Automobiles streaming right now on Netflix!

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What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 10/31/14

Welcome to this spooktacular week in geek!

Bad Halloween puns aside, this week I wanted to highlight some of my favorite geeky horror films. Most of them have some sort of comedy element to them but are still fun Halloween watches with friends or family. Hopefully you've seen them all but if not, I highly recommend them all!

• Shaun of the Dead

This is one of my favorite movies of all time in general and was what I thought of first when I thought up the idea for this post. It's a classic British comedy with zombies (or zomedy, see what I did there?!) from 2004 starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in their first of the "Cornetto Trilogy" of films that recently concluded with The World's End. The movie has a lot of great gags, is full of heart, and is all in with the action. I love it and you need to watch it if you haven't before (or even if you haven't watched it in a while).

• Ghostbusters

This classic comedy from the 80s is a supernatural romp with some comedy legends like Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, and Harold Ramis. I still find it a fun ride these many years later and it is a cultural touchstone for sure. The theme song alone is awesome and worthy of any Halloween playlist!

• Alien

This one is a little different since it holds a unique place as a sci-fi horror film from back in the day. It inspired several sequels and prequels and is an awesome movie. Starring Sigourney Weaver as Ripley, we were first treated to the Alien back in 1979 and the movie still holds up very well. The basic premise is that Ripley is a lone survivor on a ship lampooned out in space as a vicious creature kills all of her fellow crew members. Weaver rocks in this movie and she definitely gets to play a great, strong, female character here. Check it out if you haven't gotten around to it, it is well worth your time.

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Movie Review Monday: The Hunger Games - Catching Fire

Welcome to another edition of Movie Review Monday!

In honor of the upcoming release of Mockingjay, Part I next month, this week's movie is The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.

I enjoyed the first film in this saga, but I was left wanting more at the end. This movie definitely delivers. With a wider cast of engaging characters, heighten stakes, and a broader scope to the story, Catching Fire is a more exciting movie that gets me stoked for the next one.

The film's large ensemble cast has all the notable folks from the first film returning including, Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth, Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson, Stanley Tucci, Lenny Kravitz, Elizabeth Banks, and Donald Sutherland all return with solid newcomers Jena Malone and Sam Claflin (among many others).

The stellar story helps support the amazing ensemble of characters. As rebellion stirs in the thirteen districts following Katniss and Peeta's unprecedented victory, all the most recent former winners from all of the districts are forced into a new game for the 75th anniversary of the event. They all battle a more complex, brutal arena and they have to band together if they want to survive and fight back.

I don't want to spoil anything for this movie but just trust me when I say, as someone who didn't read the books, I found the plot to be exciting and engaging. No one is safe from the slaughter of The Hunger Games, and the action keeps you really connected since you don't know what will happen next. The light sci-fi, dystopic vibe to the universe also gets expanded here as Katniss and Peeta tour all of the districts following their victory in the previous film. We get to see firsthand how this world works, and really connect with the rebellion as a result.

I highly recommend Catching Fire (and the original to get caught up if you haven't seen it), especially since you have plenty of time to watch before the next film comes out Nov. 21.

Check it out right now streaming on Netflix!

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