Ahhhh, a great night.... AND great movies!

After working six-day weeks for the last two weeks and coming through a killer holiday season, I finally have two days off in a row. I downloaded some movies, poured some wine, and wrapped my arms around my sweetie for a true movie night. And it was EXCELLENT. -20 degrees outside, but inside with our space heater and blankets, we were snug as bugs. These are the days I live for. Or work for. Or both.

Anyways, on to the movies. To start, I'd like to thank the good people over at MovieX for hosting some QUALITY movie torrents. Notice that I said they hosted torrents, NOT actual movie files. That's the beauty of P2P. No one's really responsible for anything! It's awesome! As a side-note, if the MPAA doesn't find a way to deliver cheap broadband content without all the DRM bullsh*t, they are going to find themselves in much the same boat as the music industry REALLY soon. Bittorrent is just about at the level where non-geeks are willing to try it. Remember Napster? When the non-geeks embraced it, there was no putting the genie back in the bottle. But, I digress...

First up is Pan's Labyrinth from the creative mind of Guillermo Del Toro.



Del Toro's body of work as a director is not particularly impressive. Mimic (giant bugs), The Devil's Backbone (WWII Spanish ghosts), Blade II (pure nonsense), and Hellboy (mildly interesting). He's always seemed to me as if he's just about to peak with his next movie. And Pan's Labyrinth is this movie. Like the Devil's Backbone (which was previously my favorite movie of his), Pan's Labyrinth is also set in Franco's fascist Spain. A little girl who's obsessed with fantasy books is pulled into a entire fantasy world. But all's not cupcakes and sunshine for our heroine. Her world is VERY dark. Almost as dark as her crumbling real life. I understand that it's nominated for a crapload of academy awards, as it should be for EXCELLENT cinematography, a wonderfully original script, and great acting. Maybe not for the younger kids, but 12 or so and up should be okay. But, remember that I don't have kids and I might be a sh*tty judge of this stuff.

Next flick up is The Prestige. You see, there are three acts to any magic trick.
The Pledge - The magician shows the audience something ordinary.
The Turn - The magician does something extraordinary to the ordinary thing.
The Prestige - The magician brings back the ordinary thing and shows the audience that everyone's safe and sound.



Or some such thing. This is Hugh Jackman (aka Wolverine) and Christian Bale (aka Batman) starring in Chris Nolan's best flick to date. It's a thinker with sooo many twists and turns that we had to pause the movie every few minutes to discuss what just happened! And since it was a Chris Nolan film, all the scenes were COMPLETELY out of order. I LOVE movies like this! Did I mention that Scarlett Johannson (and her ample cleavage) was in it? Seriously, she is phenomenal. But that's another discussion. The movie was great, but it moved in at the bottom of my top ten list when it introduced Nikola Tesla as a character integral to the story. I have been fascinated by Tesla ever since I saw a Tesla Coil at the Griffith Observatory.



I can virtually recite his entire life story. You may not have heard of him, but every time you turn on a light or plug in an appliance, he should be remembered just as quickly as Edison. It's a fascinating story, and it was great to see his character in the Prestige. Tesla died penniless and insane, and the movie alludes to the fact that he is aware that his obsession will ultimately drive him over the edge. If you're in the mood for a really engaging thriller, or you just want to see Batman and Wolverine fight, check it out!

UPDATE: Here are two Youtube videos showcasing Scarlett's phenomenal rack!



Here' my favorite. I think this guy is gay so he gets a free squeeze pass.