Sunday, 28 May 2017

Special: Best of April 2017

It recently came to my attention that I skipped over this during this busy month when Special's have been few and far between but I figured I should bang it out before May is up.

Best Theatrical Film:

Going In Style

Okay so this is a little unfair since April was  really bad month for me heading out to the multiplex but in saying that Going In Style is a movie I made a point to see and I thoroughly enjoyed it. There's just something about watching 3 geriatric's decide to rob a bank.

Best Rental Film:

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

This was a lot tougher to decide on then it usually is, first off the phenomenal new DCAU movie "Teen Titans: The Judas Contract" hit shelves, I decided against that having already featured a ton of DC Comics movies in this still pretty new column already. There was also some of the best movies of January come out with Underworld: Blood Wars and The Founder hitting as well as 2 of my favourite Oscar movies in Lion and Hidden Figures. But in the end Rogue One is definitely deserving of this spot seeing as it was a favourite of mine from last year.

Best Album:

New Found Glory - Makes Me Sick

Appologies to all the other deserving albums in April by The Flatliners, The Maine and any others but it's only once every 2 years I can focus on the greatest band in the world and I'm not passing it up. NFG seems to be in a cycle now where they put out an under performing record then release a bland record they know the fanbase will eat up. This can be traced back to 2006's Coming Home where they experimented and most did not approve, then came the Easycore heavy Not Without A Fight, which pleased fans but did little to stretch their career, they then put out Radiosurgery which certainly acts as a prequel to this album, but again it didn't fare well. Then came Resurrection, needing to prove they are still the same band without Steve Klein they again went back to their roots and released an album full of pop punk bangers with heavy riffs. Longtime fans loved it everyone else, not so much. Which brings us to Make Me Sick, again getting away from their roots but the early returns are strong as this is easily the best over Radiosurgery and Coming Home leading to the possibility that NFG finally discovered where they can live and mature without kicking up their roots.

Best Graphic Novel:

We Stand on Guard: Deluxe Edition, by Brian K. Vaughan, Steve Skroce, and Matt Hollingsworth.

Brian K. Vaughan (Saga, Paper Girls) has never shied away from politics, and We Stand on Guard is certainly no different. Set approximately 100 years from now, it’s the story of a brave band of Canadian freedom fighters who are tasked with defending their homeland from invasion by a powerful, technologically superior adversary with imperial aspirations: the United States. I’m certain that no offense will be taken by anyone. You can now get the whole series in a deluxe hardcover edition.

Best Video Game:

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Nintendo Switch)


Saturday, 27 May 2017

Top 10 Countdown: May 27, 2017

10. The Menzingers - After The Party
Last week: NEW!


9. State Champs - Slow Burn
Last week: 10.


8. Real Friends - Empty Picture Frames
Last week: NEW!


7. All Time Low - Last Young Renegade
Last week: 8.


6. Pierce The Veil - Floral And Fading
Last week: 3.


5. Run The Jewels - Legend Has It
Last week: 7.


4. Grayscale - Atlantic
Last week: 5.


3. Like Pacific - 22A
Last week: 4.


2. The Summer Set - Jean Jacket
Last week: 2.


1. The Maine - Bad Behavior
Last week: 1.

Sunday, 21 May 2017

Top 10 Countdown: May 20, 2017

10. State Champs - Slow Burn
Last week: NEW!


9. New Found Glory - Happy Being Miserable
Last week: 4.


8. All Time Low - Last Young Renegade
Last week: 9.


7. Run The Jewels - Legend Has It
Last week: 8.


6. Four Year Strong - Men Are From Mars
Last week: 6.


5. Grayscale - Atlantic
Last week: 7.


4. Like Pacific - 22A
Last week: 5.


3. Pierce The Veil - Floral And Fading
Last week: 1.


2. The Summer Set - Jean Jacket
Last week: 3.


1. The Maine - Bad Behavior
Last week: 2.

Saturday, 13 May 2017

Top 10 Countdown: May 13, 2017

10. Taking Back Sunday - Call Come Running
Last week: 5.


9. All Time Low - Last Young Renegade
Last week: 10.


8. Run The Jewels - Legend Has It
Last week: 9.


7. Grayscale - Atlantic
Last week: NEW!


6. Four Year Strong - Men Are From Mars
Last week: 8.


5. Like Pacific - 22A
Last week: 6.


4. New Found Glory - Happy Being Miserable
Last week: 1.


3. The Summer Set - Jean Jacket
Last week: 4.


2. The Maine - Bad Behavior
Last week: 3.


1. Pierce The Veil - Floral And Fading
Last week: 2.

Monday, 8 May 2017

Top 10 Countdown: May 6, 2017

10. All Time Low - Last Young Renegade
Last week: NEW!


9. Run The Jewels - Legend Has It
Last week: 10.


8. Four Year Strong - Men Are From Mars
Last week: 9.


7. As It Is - Hey Rachel
Last week: 2.


6. Like Pacific - 22A
Last week: 8.


5. Taking Back Sunday - Call Come Running
Last week: 5.


4. The Summer Set - Jean Jacket
Last week: 6.


3. The Maine - Bad Behavior
Last week: 4.


2. Pierce The Veil - Floral And Fading
Last week: 3.


1. New Found Glory - Happy Being Miserable
Last week: 1.

Sunday, 7 May 2017

Special: Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2/Beauty And The Beast/Get Out Mini-Reviews

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2:

Synopsis: Set to the all-new sonic backdrop of Awesome Mixtape #2, Marvel Studios' "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" continues the team's adventures as they traverse the outer reaches of the cosmos. The Guardians must fight to keep their newfound family together as they unravel the mystery of Peter Quill's true parentage. Old foes become new allies and fan-favorite characters from the classic comics will come to our heroes' aid as the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to expand.

My thoughts: Just as fun as the first installment, Guardians ups it's drama and comedy chops in volume 2 without losing the heart and soul of what made the first so great, though admittedly the soundtrack to "Vol. 2" is lacking in comparison to the first though that could be only because they used all the good late 70's, early 80's pop music in the first.

Final verdict: 5 angry baby trees out of 5.

Beauty And The Beast:

Synopsis: Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" is a live-action re-telling of the studio's animated classic which refashions the classic characters from the tale as old as time for a contemporary audience, staying true to the original music while updating the score with several new songs. "Beauty and the Beast" is the fantastic journey of Belle, a bright, beautiful and independent young woman who is taken prisoner by a beast in his castle. Despite her fears, she befriends the castle's enchanted staff and learns to look beyond the Beast's hideous exterior and realize the kind heart and soul of the true Prince within. The film stars: Emma Watson as Belle; Dan Stevens as the Beast; Luke Evans as Gaston, the handsome, but shallow villager who woos Belle.

My thoughts: Not a huge fan of the original, this is basically a carbon copy of it but with more songs. Not a fan of the songs. By the time the last 30 minutes rolls around and I start to get interested, another song comes on and I'm reminded of the films first 2 acts.

Final verdict: 3 sing-a-longs out of 5.

Get Out:

Synopsis: Now that Chris and his girlfriend, Rose, have reached the meet-the-parents milestone of dating, she invites him for a weekend getaway upstate with Missy and Dean. At first, Chris reads the family's overly accommodating behavior as nervous attempts to deal with their daughter's interracial relationship, but as the weekend progresses, a series of increasingly disturbing discoveries lead him to a truth that he could have never imagined.

My thoughts: What can I say about "Get Out" that hasn't already been said? It's complex, it's intriguing, it's underlying theme is obvious without beating you over the head with the message and is deserving of all the praise it's getting... Also fuck Armond White, dude's a piece of feces.

Final verdict: 4 scenes of racial unrest out of 5