Gno Schitt

The lovely lady and I went to Girl with the Dragon Tattoo yesterday and I have to say that I found the experience to be 90% enjoyable. And that's not to say that any part of the show was bad, but there were a few parts where I found myself not just shifting in my seat but the best way to put it would be writhing.

Having not read the books before hand, I found much of the story-line to be twisted and unexpected. My fiance absolutely loved the show despite knowing the entire plot beforehand. I attribute this to the movie being a very accurate portrayal of the book itself, as attested by her, and from a stellar performance from both of the lead characters Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara.

Another big thing I noticed during this show that I haven't seen in any movie for quite some time is pace change and not just between scenes. I've been shown the graph of what makes a good story. You may have seen it being discussed on Extra Credits and I found, when examining the movie afterwards that it was very similar to this. That may be an over-evaluation but here's the bottom line. I was never bored once. I refuse to say anything specific about the show in case you, like me, haven't read the books(I plan to now). I was worried that they would ruin the story by making it 'Hollywood' and the inclusion of Daniel Craig, I'll admit, was initially a worry for me. Thankfully, it appears as if Mr. Bond can convincingly play a helpless down on his luck victim just as well as an untouchable secret agent. And I won't spoil a thing about Rooney Mara's performance.

This one is definitely a theater watch recommend. A warning though, the sex/violence in this one is well balanced but extremely graphic at times. By balanced, I mean there are many opportunities for it to be gratuitous, but it only is when it needs to be. I praise the director, David Fincher for deciding that it was enough to hear teeth hitting the ground rather than showing them(in slow motion or something foolish like that). Great respect for the material and the overall tone.

for shit like this


I'm a little sick that this exists.

you understand all these references. :)

Hello Ladies and Gentlemen,

If you have been talking to me lately, you know I'm looking forward to Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Well Launch day approaches and I would like to invite all those that are wanting to play this join up on the same server.

I am a part of Midnight Squadron. You can sign up and become part of our gaming clan at : http://www.midnightsquadron.com

We will be launching into the game on the server: Port Nowhere
It is a PvP server.

I haven't picked a character name yet, but contact me and we can all join up. Playing with Friends is the best option in an MMO.

Looking foward to seeing you in game!

This is a very interesting article about a tech firm called Atos that is banning internal emails by the end of 2012. I really like the logic that they are using for why they are doing it. I am not sure how it is going to work out for them, but best of luck to them.

There are still cool things coming out of Star Wars fan stuff. I know you are thinking Cello's are lame, but you really should check out the video, the sound is great, and the video is clever.



This might be old, but it is new to me.

Checkout this great post on a blog I follow, "The Reaction".

From the above, I am Aragorn, an Intrepid-Class Scout ship,  and then the rest is pure gobble-de-gook!

I have often wondered the connection between mustaches and prostate cancer. Penny Arcade here has offered up the reason, though I am not sure how sound the argument is. Comments!!!

(lifted in part from www.computerandvideogames.com)

TIMESPLITTERS 4
The last game in this series was TimeSplitters: Future Perfect which released in 2005. Six years is a long time to be waiting for a sequel so we reckon the gaming world is ready for the series to make a return on the current generation of consoles. We loved TimeSplitters for its fast-paced, arcade style action and really just the fact that it didn't take itself too seriously, which is a nice contrast to the current crop of realistic, modern shooters.

We particularly liked additions such as 'Robo-pussy' - a remote control cat that you could drive around. More fun and crazy ideas like this would be welcome in the sequel. Another great thing about TimeSplitters it that because it's not constrained to one time, it allows the player to wield a large variety of weapons from many different time periods, making the gun-play certainly more interesting.

It is rumoured that Crytek is currently working on a new game in TimeSplitters series, with the intention of releasing it on next-generation consoles. Supposedly the title will take advantage of CryEngine 3 and DirectX 11 tech. We're not sure if it will actually be TimeSplitters 4 or just a spin-off, however. Still, it's exciting to hear of any news regarding TimeSplitters and the sooner a new one comes out, the better.

Also - HD monkeys. That is all!

In the day to day tedium, frustration and excitement it is easy to forget that all of it occurs within the domain of a freedom that others paid for with their lives. Here on GnoSchitt we have the grandest of personal luxuries: the right to say and think whatever we want*.

* within the limits of human rights and decency



On Remembrance Day, I find I'm often moved to tears. I'm not crying because I have stories of great personal loss from the Great Wars (or conflicts thereafter). From what I understand one of my grandfathers drove a supply or equipment truck in the second world war. I didn't know him very well and he died before I was old enough to understand what the whole thing meant. I never had a chance to talk to him about it. I'm moved to tears by the realization that I have so much to be utterly thankful for because of the great selfless sacrifice of thousands of people who's names I'll never know.

For the last three or four years I have watched the CBC Rememberance Service from Ottawa. The first time I watched that service I was surprised at the age of the remaining veterans. Has it been that long? During the service they spoke of the "Tomb of the Unknown Soldier".



So the story goes, when this new memorial was unveiled in 2000, the crowd in attendance spontaneously began leaving their poppies behind on the tomb as they left the service that cold November morning. This has become a bona fide tradition now with thousand upon thousands of poppies left on the memorial site as the crowds in attendance pay their respects to the men and women of those wars. As I've gotten older, I've come to understand what their motivations might be. Indeed in many ways I think I feel the same. I feel gloriously Canadian: deep sadness that we have need to go to war mixed with thankfulness that we have fought so valiantly.

This had led me to add a few important things to my personal bucket list, I genuinely hope I'm able to plan the following two excursions before it's been too long:

A Trip to Vimy Ridge
Attendance at the Ottawa Remembrance Service with an option to be standing here in the Canadian War Museum at 11am if we cannot get onto the grounds for the outdoor service.

I would gladly plan either of these events with others if they feel similarly inclined.

           Lest we forget

I am sure all of you have at least half of these checked off...

If you have a sec, go read this - angry now? good!

This really bothers the shit out of me that Spielberg is so flippantly dismissing the way he totally (and permanently) fucked up this series. There is really nowhere to go from here on this series, and it's likely dead ended.

I can't imagine a future Indiana Jones film STARRING no-talent, starts-fights-in-canada-and-gets-thumped, LaBeouf and NO Harrison Ford selling more than a few thousand tickets. The franchise isn't strong enough to bring those indifferent to the character out, and Shia isn't strong enough to convince us old-school Indy loyalists to give a shit.

Blaming it on George Lucas is trendy and convenient.

While I found this really funny, I'm not sure I was totally okay with it, given my family makeup.

We're ready to believe you!



I'm going to the 7:00 pm show of the original Ghostbusters movie at Galaxy Cinema. After that, if I'm feeling squirrely, I might stay and watch Paranormal Activity 3. Who's with me?

To quote the article:

Variety also reported that production on the live-action film adaptation of Katsuhiro Otomo's Akira manga is set to begin in late February or early March. According to the magazine, the film's current story goes as follows: "Set in New Manhattan, the cyberpunk sci-fi epic follows the leader of a biker gang who must save his friend, discovered with potentially destructive psychokinetic abilities, from government medical experiments."

I'm glad to hear Gary Oldman and/or Helena Bonham-Carter might be involved in the project now, but I'm concerned about the use of Garret Hedlund, especially in a young person role like Kaneda. He's not getting any younger and it was already a stretch in TRON:Legacy. Are there no good actual teen actors anywhere anymore?

I'm probably going to end up going to see the live action Akira no matter what, as I have immensely fond memories of the first time I watched the 1982 animated film when I was just starting to grok cyberpunk themes in high school.

(but God help us if they do)

You can't ignore him anymore. First they ridiculed him, then they tried to ignore him, but people wanted to hear what Dr. Paul had to say, and now the other Presidential hopefuls are clamoring to shake his hand at the end of the debate.



I went to Ron Paul's Facebook page, and LIKED it. You should too.

Bout damn time too!

In the run-up to Halloween, I thought this video would be worth a re-watch.



"Only vistas, eh?"

Classic

Oooo!! Bonus video:

P.A.: Short for Post Apocalyptic calendar.  The P.A. dating system started in North America about 109 years ago and marks the end of the Dark Age that followed the Great Cataclysm.  The Dark Ages lasted for nearly 200 years.

December 22, 2098 A.D. marks the Coming ofthe Rifts and the beginning of the Great Cataclysm.  Note: Most people in the world of Rifts do not know exactly when the Great Cataclysm began nor how it began or how long the Dark Age lasted.  Conventional wisdom is that the Dark Age continued for roughly 200 years.  Some believe it was as long as three hundred.

2099 A.D. to 2286 A.D. is the actual 188 year long Dark Age that engulfed North America and most of the planet following the Great Cataclysm.

1 P.A. (2287A.D.): Human civilization emerges from the long Dark Age in North America with the rise of Chi-Town and other notable "civilized" city-states, kingdoms and communities.  Human civilization also rises from barbarism and begins to make its presence known around this point in other parts of the world.  However, many parts of the world remain in barbarism or have been taken over by D-Bees (other dimensional beings) or mutants and monsters common to the day.  Chi-Town created the Apocalyptic calendar, but it was quickly adopted throughout the continent, and later, in other parts of the world.