Top Five Favorite Film Directors

I love film. Movies are, by far, my favorite art form. For about two hours, I can be placed in a world completely different than my own; a world of action-packed explosions and thrilling high speed chases, or perhaps a world where I learn the physical and emotional struggles of others that I am either empathetic to, or discovering for the first time. Motion pictures can be a great escape or truly life changing.

And behind these films are directors, many of whom are also the writers. These are the visionaries, the creators and the artists that paint the film for the audiences. They make words on a page come to life. But all are different, and some more talented than others. Honestly, a lot of it has to do with personal taste. And so, I list for you my current top five favorite film directors. These are the guys that will get me in line at the box office with only their name.

5. Ron Howard

Apollo 13 is one of my favorite movies. In fact, it’s the main reason I have an interest in space exploration today. It was also my first true Ron Howard movie. Sure, I had seen Splash, but I don’t think that really counts. A Beautiful Mind was the first movie I watched and immediately predicted that it would win the Academy Award for Best Picture (It did, by the way). Cinderella Man was even more moving than A Beautiful Mind, and proved as a startling reminder of how hard the Great Depression really was. I am ashamed to admit that I still have not seen Ransom or Frost/Nixon yet. But I promise I will before the year is out.

4. Steven Spielberg

This one is kind of a no-brainer. It actually seems to easy to place Spielberg on this list, as he is one of the greatest directors of all time. But honestly, Jurassic Park changed my life. The first time I saw it is one of those milestones in my life. I was obsessed with the idea of man creating a dinosaur terror on a tropical island paradise. But that is just one of the many fantastic movie this man has created to change my life. Saving Private Ryan might just be my all time favorite movie.

The man is a master of blockbusters. Indiana Jones, Jaws, E.T. and Minority Report are some of the stunning rip-roaring movies he’s created. But the guy will turn around and make a movie that makes you feel. The Terminal was touching. War of the Worlds and Munich were both haunting in completely different ways. Schindler’s List might be his masterpiece.

3. J.J. Abrams

J.J. Abrams is still new the the scene, but so far he’s turning everything he touches to gold. While I have to forgive him for Alias and praise him for Lost, we’re talking about movies, here. To me, he’s the fixer of movies. He knows how to take a great action movie and turn it into something better. Mission Impossible III was a refreshing change from the first two awful movies. He produced Cloverfield, which is essentially a really good version of the old, crappy Godzilla movies. And he breathed new life into the dying Star Trek franchise. Which, being a die hard Trekkie, earned my undying loyalty and affection to the man. Now he’s teaming up with Spielberg for his next secret movie, Super 8. I’m ready to buy my ticket now.

2. Quentin Tarantino

This guy just makes cool movies. He is what happens when a movie lover grows up to make movies. Every one of his films is loaded with style and dialogue reminiscent of 1970s films. Grindhouse: Death Proof was a great spoof of old grindhouse cinema, and Kill Bill was a great kung fu movie nod. No expense seems to be spared for his movies. Top notch actors, larger than life special effects and some of the best film soundtracks to grace your ears fill each frame.

But most of all, the thing that drives his movies is the dialogue. A lost art form these days, Tarantino isn’t afraid to have his characters sit at a table for a half hour and have a conversation, sometimes devoid of overall storytelling attributes. Each of his films is a character study and an introspect into the director himself. Stylistically, this guy is unmatched and completely unique.

1. Christopher Nolan

Christopher Nolan is my favorite director. He continues to deliver masterpiece after masterpiece. Batman Begins was the start of an extremely believable comic book franchise. The Dark Knight was supremely better. Each of his movies isn’t just a fun thriller, it delves deep into the psyche of the characters. Memento was a frightful insight into the power of our minds and what we’re capable of. The Prestige was an equally disturbing film, making us question who the good guy really is.

But most of all, he is the master of theme. He doesn’t just write cause and effect. The film is a tapestry of mind-bending twists and recurring references to the deeper story at hand. His next movie, Inception hits theaters on July 16th and the third Batman movie is already on the drawing board.

Smartphones

I’m writing this post from my Motorola Droid. Smartphones are amazing. They allow us to do stuff that make us lazier if not more efficient. They also cost a crapload of money to have, so I may just have to start blogging more often just to rationalize my purchase.

Since I last posted, I graduated college with a Bachelor’s in aeronautical engineering and found a job as a technician testing appliances for production. I’m working a lot, trying to make enough money to start putting a dent in those student loans.

Adusting from college life to real life has been interesting. Two months ago, I had a slight panic one Sunday evening where I realized that I hadn’t done any homework all weekend. I then remembered that I was finished with school and I never had to do homework again. It was a fantastic feeling.

Life after college certainly has been 100% less stressful. I’ll enjoy it while it lasts.

Green Mars

Tonight I finished Kim Stanley Robinson’s book, Green Mars. It’s the second book in his Mars Trilogy about the colonization and terraforming of the red planet and the sequel to Red Mars. In these books, Robinson lays out an extremely detailed and in depth scientific depiction of the process of making Mars capable of sustaining human life. From the types of plants that could live on the cold surface, to the changing of the atmospheric pressure and composition, to the political and social upheavals on both Earth and Mars, everything is detailed in the most thorough manner.

The problem is that these things are all detailed to an excrutiating degree. While the idea of terraforming Mars is an overwhelmingly interesting one, the reader has to walk through an account of every crater and lichen and rock and millibar of pressure that is involved in the process. It it one of the slowest books I’ve ever read, and although I would like to see how it all pans out in the final book of the trilogy, Blue Mars, I just don’t think I’ll ever have it in me to read it.

That, and most of the characters are unlikable and boring. Robinson writes these books as a series of short stories, each following a different character. In two of the longest and dullest sections of Green Mars, we follow the two most boring and unlikable characters. It’s hard to retain interest and sympathy for the characters and their situations when you don’t care how they end up.

Although the story was interesting and had some riveting moments, much of it was traveling and documenting the planet. Red Mars was the same, except it had a much more interesting storyline. From what I read from the reviews of Blue Mars, it’ll be much of the same types of social struggles and slow progression of the terraforming process.

I need to read something light and fast paced next. Maybe a Beverly Cleary book…

Pomplamoose does Christmas!

A few months ago, through a random Facebook post, I discovered Pomplamoose, a musical duo that record low budget music videos for YouTube. The name apparently means grapefruit in French, which matches the whimsical nature of their music. In reality, their names are Jack Conte and Nataly Dawn, and they seem to have a lot of fun making these videos. I, for one, enjoy them emmensely. Check out their music channel and enjoy their latest original song, Aways in the Season.

Ares I-X Launch a Success

NASA launched their Ares I prototype today at 11:30 a.m. ET when a break in the weather allowed the test to go unhindered. It was a beautiful launch and appeared to go completely as planned. Congratulations to NASA for a successful beginning for their third generation flight vehicle!

Incidentally, there was a beautiful Mach cone when it went supersonic!

NASA to Test Fly the Ares I-X Today

After scrubbing the launch yesterday due to weather, NASA is going to try once more to launch its first prototype of the Ares I rocket today. This is the new vehicle that will be taking astronauts to the International Space Station after the retirement of the Space Shuttle fleet, and eventually, it will take us back to the moon.

Specifically, they are testing the stage one solid rocket section and separation of the Ares I-X. The vehicle will be unmanned and is only an initial test of the spacecraft’s abilities.

Hopefully, the launch will go as planned without further weather delays or unforseen mishaps. This should be a stepping stone to the next phase in NASA’s space exploration.

The launch is scheduled for 8:00 a.m. ET.

Kicking Up the DUST

Last month, CCP, the developer of the MMORPG Eve Online, announced the next step in the evolution of the Eve universe: DUST 514.

DUST 514 is a first person shooter based in the same universe as Eve Online, known as New Eden. DUST players will essentially be mercenaries for hire by Eve players in order to secure planets for alliance sovereignty in systems.

There are a lot of mixed thoughts on this new idea, both for the future of Eve Online and first person shooters. Many are afraid that the sovereignty system is in danger of being corrupted by FPS players that simply don’t care about the politics of New Eden and just want to make a name for themselves on DUST. On the other hand, it is a vastly new idea of two completely different types of games interacting with each other and affecting the outcomes of players both in space and planetside.

One of the biggest issues with DUST is that it was announced to be released for consoles, while nothing has been mentioned about a PC version..

At this point, not much is known about DUST 514, only the basic premise, a sweet video preview and a couple of screenshots. But CCP will undoubtedly reveal more at their Fanfest next month, as well as the details behind the next Eve Online release: Dominion.

Mixed concerns aside, CCP continues to outdo themselves. Every Eve release is better than the last, and their hints at what they have in store for Dominion has excited a lot of people. If DUST 514 works smoothly with the Eve community and turns out to be a solid FPS, it could seriously change video game interaction forever.

Tron Legacy Looks Pretty Awesome

Disney released a teaser trailer for the long awaited sequel for the 1982 movie Tron at the 2009 Comic-Con. Anyone who’s seen the original film will recognize the famous light cycles in this trailer. Basically, it looks as if it’s the same Tron universe, except a lot cooler.

Tron Legacy will be released in 2010, with 3D in select theatres.

On a slightly disappointing, yet not surprising note, Disney is not allowing this video to be embedded, so you have to go directly to YouTube to watch the trailer.

Yeah, Disney sucks. But this movie looks awesome.

Futurama is Returning!

Good news everyone! Futurama is returning!

After Fox dropped the sci-fi cartoon in 2003, Futurama has only existed in reruns on DVD, Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim, and more recently, Comedy Central. Although several Futurama movies have been made and aired on Comedy Central, no episodes have been made for some time.

Until now. On Friday, it was made official that the entire cast had struck a deal with Fox to return for the show and 26 episodes will be made to air on Comedy Central next year.

You can read more here.

EVE Online: The Butterfly Effect

CCP, the developer of the MMORPG EVE Online, a game which I am severly addicted to, has released a cool new video promo for the game. Hopefully, it will explain my addiction a little bit. If not, it’s still pretty shiny and fun to watch.