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a2600rat
Reviews
Karateka (1984)
The Video Game Returns...
Karateka leaves you with the impression that the game was an experiment. Almost a prototype of what was to be seen in the first consoles after the '82 video game crash. The characters were amazingly fluid for their time, in some ways superior to the stick-figure sprites seen in 8-bit consoles. Karateka is the earliest example I can think of that uses modern cut-scenes - and uses them effectively. The game probably taxed hardware of its time a little too much: the lags in game play were terrible. It might have played much better on later hardware such as the Macintosh, NES, or a 286 PC. I doubt any original copies exist on magnetic media. Since the game is well over 20 years old, the data on original media has long since decayed. I did find a disk image recently to play on my Mac using an Apple II emulator and was overwhelmed with a wave of nostalgia. If you get a chance, check out a fan film called Karateka II, a very silly although somewhat buggy parody.
Batman Begins (2005)
The Dark Knight returns!
I saw the midnight showing on opening day and I was thrilled to see that Batman has returned as a menacing vigilante, not as the cartoonish parody of Batman portrayed in the last film in the old franchise. Gotham City is a dark, crime-infested hellhole, filled with feelings of hopelessness and despair, just the way I remember from the Dark Night comics. Dr. Crane's first transformation from the mousy, Milquetoast-ish psychiatrist into the delightfully sadistic Scarecrow is equally impressive. Christian Bale's performance as Batman is adequate, perhaps a little forced. I give it 9 out of 10 stars only because of the somewhat silly, cartoony plot of the villains to destroy Gotham City.
Exorcist: The Beginning (2004)
Disappointing.
Take "Raiders of the Lost Ark", remove the swashbuckling, add elements of the original "Exorcist", replace the really scary stuff with lots of BOO!-type scares, throw in a pointless love story and a sappy sentimental attachment to a young boy. There you have it: a movie that started with a good premise and decayed into a boring, rigid, Spielberg-like formula flick.
The problems don't stop there: the CG effects were appallingly sub-par and the "scary" bits were nowhere near as menacing as poor Regan's ordeal in the original movie.
I saw the first matinée this morning with a few friends who took the day off with me. I figured that maybe, being an embalmer, I've become desensitized to bizarre imagery. My buds told me, 'No, it's not you. That was boring'.
If you want scary, stick with the original 'Exorcist'. It scared the holy hell out of me when I was a teenager and I never tire of watching it.