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yahoo-movies-uk · 8 years ago

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What happened to Star Trek’s small-screen stars?

We know what Shatner, Stewart and the like are up to these days, but what about those other valuable Starfleet officers that entertained us so? Where are the crew members of 'Star Trek' now?

Jonathan Frakes – Commander William Riker (TNG)

Riker finally got to be a Captain before he bowed out of the 'Star Trek' universe at the end of 'Star Trek: Nemesis' in 2002, but he swiftly swapped the captain's chair for the director's chair. Having already helmed Trek movies including 'First Contact' and 'Insurrection', Frakes was the unlikely director behind 2004's 'Thunderbirds' movie. These days he balances acting gigs with directing TV episodes on series like 'Castle', 'Falling Skies' and 'NCIS', and he can be heard voicing Star-Lord's father in the 'Guardians Of The Galaxy' TV animation.

Brent Spiner – Data (TNG)

Ironically, we all shed a tear when emotionless robot Data said goodbye to 'Star Trek' in 2005 after a few guest spots on 'Enterprise', but Spiner hasn't stopped working since. He reprised his (second) most popular role in this year's 'Independence Day' sequel, with two revelations: not only was Dr Brakish Okun gay, but he was very much not dead as the first movie suggested. He can currently be seen in 'Walking Dead' creator Robert Kirkman's new possession thriller 'Outcast', or at a 'Star Trek' convention near you.

Marina Sirtis – Counselor Deanna Troi (TNG)

Born in London's East End to Greek-born parents, Sirtis played ship's counselor Troi in 'The Next Generation' but didn't really settle into the role until they gave her a proper Starfleet uniform to cover up her cleavage. Sirtis reprised her role in an episode of 'Star Trek Voyager' in 2000 but she's stayed with 'Star Trek' in several small ways, not just on the convention circuit but also as the voice of the ship's computer in unofficial fan series 'Star Trek Continues'. Watch her, if you dare, in 2016 horror 'Little Dead Rotting Hood'.

Michael Dorn – Worf (TNG/DS9)

Michael Dorn is the most experienced 'Star Trek' actor ever, having appeared in 175 episodes of 'The Next Generation' and then a further 102 episodes when he transported to successor 'Deep Space Nine'. Six 'Star Trek' movies bring his total appearances to 281. He's not done with Star Trek, either: Dorn is currently trying to raise interest on social media for a proposed Worf spin-off called 'Star Trek: Captain Worf'. Ironically, Dorn says: “I had come up with the idea because I love [Worf] and I think he's a character that hasn't been fully developed.” Make that 281 appearances... to date.

LeVar Burton – Chief Engineer Geordi La Forge (TNG)

LeVar Burton was famous before he clocked in to the Enterprise's engine room – he brought pleasure to millions of youngsters as the host of educational show 'Reading Rainbow', and thanks to Kickstarter, he was able to do so again in 2014 after raising £3.8 million for its triumphant return. Burton currently lends his voice to Dr Greene in animated kiddy spin-off 'Transformers: Rescue Bots', and made a 2016 cameo in the remake of 'Roots', the mini-series which made him famous in 1977.

Gates McFadden - Commander Beverly Crusher

The American actress originally found fame as a choreographer working on Jim Henson productions like ‘The Dark Crystal’, ‘Labyrinth’, and ‘The Muppets Take Manhattan’ before she was cast as the chief medical officer aboard the Enterprise. She starred in all four subsequent ‘TNG’ films, but acting roles soon dried up and she now teaches acting. McFadden, now 67, still appears on the Trek convention circuit and her last movie role was in the low budget comedy ‘Make the Yuletide Gay’ in 2009.

Wil Wheaton – Ensign Wesley Crusher (TNG)

The most hated 'Star Trek' character ever has done pretty well to turn his fortunes around, settling into his role of Ambassador of Geekdom (or 'King of the Nerds', if you prefer). An early adopted of all forms of social media and tech, Wheaton has amassed an army of followers who adore his TV appearances, tabletop game tournaments and cameos on the likes of 'The Big Bang Theory', where he plays Sheldon's nemesis. Now 44, he continues to star in his own D&D web series, on series like 'Powers' and as himself on panel shows like 'Whose Line Is It Anyway?'.

Avery Brooks – Captain Benjamin Sisko (DS9)

Unlike most of his fellow 'Star Trek' actors, Avery Brooks has shown little interest in hanging onto the show's coattails since his days on the bridge ended – Brooks' last contribution to a 'Star Trek' project was a voiceover for videogame 'Star Trek: Legacy' in 2006. A keen jazz musician, Brooks lent his talents to a performance at the Springfield Symphony Hall in February 2016 to celebrate Black History Month. If you're lucky, you can catch the ex-captain at Trek conventions around the world.

Alexander Siddig – Dr Julian Bashir (DS9)

One of the more successful 'Deep Space Nine' alumni, Siddig left Julian Bashir behind to play large roles in TV shows including '24' (where he played former terrorist Hamri Al-Assad) and movies like 'Clash Of The Titans' and Wikileaks dramatisation 'The Fifth Estate' opposite Benedict Cumberbatch. He was last seen being skewered by the Sand Snakes of Dorne in season 6 of 'Game Of Thrones' and plays Ruben Oliver in excellent drama series 'Peaky Blinders'.

Nana Visitor – Colonel Kira Nerys (DS9)

As Bajoran Major turned Colonel Kira Nerys, Visitor appeared in 173 episodes of 'Deep Space Nine' before moving on to Jessica Alba serial 'Dark Angel' and various single-serving TV appearances. Super Trek nerd Seth MacFarlane cast her, and a wealth of other Trek actors, in 'Family Guy' episodes and in 2015's 'Ted 2', and she'll next appear in low-budget Trek-inspired comedy 'Unbelievable!!!!!' (yes, five exclamation marks, so you know it's going to be good). She married and later divorced co-star Siddig – the pair have a son named Django.

René Auberjonois - Odo (DS9)

The theatre actor was unrecognisable as Odo, Deep Space Nine’s head of security, thanks to a headful of deeply unsettling prosthetics but fans of ‘M*A*S*H’ (the film) will have known him as Father Mulcahy too. He directed 9 episodes of ‘DS9′ and has worked steadily as a TV actor ever since. He’s also a talented singer and voice actor having played Chef Louis in ‘The Little Mermaid’, and is the current voice of Pepé Le Pew in the ‘Looney Tunes Show’.

Colm Meaney – Chief Miles O'Brien (TNG/DS9)

Irish actor Meaney brought some Dublin charm to both ‘The Next Generation’ and 'Deep Space Nine' and hasn't wanted for work since the show was cancelled in 1999. He played Gene Hunt in a US pilot for 'Life On Mars' (before Harvey Keitel eventually got the role), played Don Revie in 'The Damned United', starred as Russell Brand's dad in 'Get Him To The Greek' and most recently took Norwich's finest hostage in 'Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa'. You'll be able to spy him in next year's espionage thriller 'Felt', about the Deep Throat informant. (He's not playing Deep Throat).

Quark - Armin Shimerman (TNG/DS9/Voyager)

Ferengi bartender Quark appeared in three different ‘Star Trek’ shows, but is most keenly associated with DS9 where his money-grabbing character was often at odds with Odo, the station’s security chief. He’s a TV regular appearing in shows like ‘Boston Legal’, ‘Buffy’, and ‘Stargate SG1′ but he’s probably best known now for his voice work in the ‘Ratchet & Clank’ video game series playing Dr. Nefarious.

Kate Mulgrew – Captain Kathryn Janeway (Voyager)

Mulgrew made her final Trek cameo as Vice Admiral Janeway in 'Star Trek: Nemesis' in 2002. She's proved adept at playing serious roles in confined spaces: Mulgrew plays Russian prison chef Red in the phenomenally successful Netflix series 'Orange Is The New Black', for which she won an Emmy nomination (fun fact: she was also nominated for a Golden Globe for playing TV detective Columbo's wife in spin-off, 'Mrs Columbo'). Mulgrew recently used her platform to speak out for prison reform. Janeway would approve.

Jeri Ryan - Seven of Nine (Voyager)

The lads mag favourite reportedly gave ‘Voyager’ a 60% ratings boost when joined the cast in season 4 as the liberated Borg Seven of Nine. Must have been a compelling storyline. After the show ended in 2001 she appeared in school drama ‘Boston Public’, and headlined the critically panned sci-fi comedy ‘The Last Man’, before appearing in TV shows like ‘The OC’ and ‘Boston Legal’. Aside from playing Sonya Blade in the short-lived ‘Mortal Kombat’ web series, Jeri can currently be seen in Amazon’s hit cop show ‘Bosch’.

Ethan Phillips - Neelix (Voyager)

Ship’s cook Neelix was a popular character aboard Voyager earning himself a spin-off cookbook featuring recipes contributed by actors from all iterations of the franchise. Since ‘Voyager’ he’s continued to act on stage, and has made a number of film appearances in ‘Bad Santa’, Michael Bay’s ‘The Island’, and more recently in the Coens’ ‘Inside Llewyn Davis’ playing Mr Gorfeins, the owner of the escaped cat.

Tim Russ – Lieutenant Commander Tuvok (Voyager)

Fun fact about the man who would be Tuvok – he also played the guy at the beginning of 'Spaceballs' who yells: “We ain't found s**t!” Work has not been so hard to come by: now 60, Russ has no less than 11 movie projects on his plate for 2016, and a few for next year too, including sci-fi TV series 'Blade Of Honor', which sounds a lot like a 'Star Trek' ripoff if we're being honest. And then there's 'Renegades', a familiar trek through the stars that flirts with copyright law, in which he plays 'Kovok'. Hmmm.

Jolene Blalock - Commander T’Pol (Enterprise)

Following the success of Voyager’s Seven of Nine, the last Trek series followed suit casting model turned actress Jolene Blalock as the Vulcan T’Pol. After ‘Enterprise’ she appeared in ‘Stargate SG1′ but her guest appearance as Sawyer’s love interest in ‘Lost’ never saw the light of day. She had a starring role in the straight-to-DVD ‘Starship Troopers 3: Marauder’, and prefers to keep her distance from Trek fandom nowadays and has only ever appeared at one convention in 2005. In 2014 she played the wife of Jack Black’s porn baron in Cameron Diaz comedy ‘Sex Tape’.

#slideshow #news #movies #features #star trek

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yungcrybby-anonymousbosch666 · 8 years ago

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At least now I know I’m not the only one. (The thing about the finisher is spot on, it’s going to cut her career short. Too bad some dudebro makes a perv comment right after. Nobody wants it, bro.)

I’m going to go with “Orphan raised by Glacier” cause she does seem like a slightly better WCW Mortal Kombat ripoff.

I just like...wrestlers. Remember when Bryan Danielson’s gimmick was “wrestler” and he was the most famous dude in Ring of Honor? He came to WWE with that gimmick. I wish more people would figure out how to make being a wrestler work. I guess that’s a bygone era, tho.

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illusivegore · 6 years ago

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Gore’s Games of 2018

I’m sure you all know the drill at this point. Everyone and their mother seems to post a list about all of their favorites from the year, so I’ll spare you the build up and just get into some of the games I enjoyed in 2018.

Games Crossed Off the Backlog

This year I’m going to kick things off with some of the great games I finally got around to playing from my backlog. A good amount of these games are ones that I mentioned last year as ones I wasn’t able get to. All of these games were great and a couple would have easily made my Game of the Year list under normal circumstances.

2018 Games I Missed Out On

Next up, I’m going to highlight the games from 2018 that ended up on my backlog or that I still haven’t purchased yet. These are all games that I’d love to play at some point, and this is the reason why you won’t see them on my main list.

Honorable Mentions

This final section (before I get to my actual picks) highlights some of the games I played and enjoyed but not enough to feel comfortable writing about them or including them on my GOTY list. I look forward to digging into all of these more in the coming months.

Celeste | Dead Cells | Into the Breach | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | Yoku’s Island Express

Top 5 Games of 2018

NBA 2K Playgrounds 2

I’m going to kick this off with a game that I can’t imagine will be anywhere near most people’s game of the year lists. NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 continues to be a divisive game due to its microtransactions and player unlock system, but at its core, it really is a fun arcade-style basketball game.

The gameplay harkens back to the NBA JAM games and it’s over the top and kind of absurd at times. With every game played, you’ll be leveling up players and earning currency that will allow you to unlock new players. So while the game does offer microtransactions, they aren’t necessary if you’re okay with a bit of a grind. It’s not exactly ideal, but that kind of gameplay is right up my alley. I feel like I’m making progress each time I play and it ensures I will keep coming back for more. If you’re an NBA fan and know what you’re getting into, there is a lot of fun to be had here.

Magic: The Gathering Arena

Arena was actually first available to play in 2017, but only entered into its open beta phase in 2018, so for that reason, it makes my list. Hell, when it officially releases it will probably make a future GOTY list again.

I was very skeptical about Arena because it looked like Wizards of the Coast was just trying to ripoff Hearthstone‘s aesthetic (and they kind of are), but this is actually a good game and once I played my first match I was hooked. It’s a great place for both newcomers and veterans of Magic to play. Arena is much more user-friendly and intuitive than Magic Online while also offering a far more authentic Magic experience than previous Duels games have.

The game is free-to-play, and I know that term gets a bad wrap nowadays, but Arena does it right. You can buy booster packs with real money or you can earn gold (and even single cards or packs on occasion) naturally through playing. I was able to build one of the most competitive decks in the format in a few weeks time and that was just by playing a few matches each day. Even in the early stages you’ll quickly earn a number of “starter decks” which will supply you with a decent selection of cards. So you’ll never be short on new things to try while you work towards building your card collection.

Arena is fantastic, and if you’ve ever even been curious about Magic: the Gathering, you should give it a shot.

Pokémon: Let’s Go, Eevee!

Over that past few years I’ve played a lot of Pokémon. Between revisiting Blue, Silver, SoulSilver, Pearl, White, White 2, X, Y, Alpha Sapphire, Omega Ruby and playing through the new releases of Sun, Moon, and Ultra Moon, as well as shiny hunting in a few of those games, I’ve spent nearly 1,000 hours with the series in the last three years. Needless to say, I was starting to feel a bit of Pokémon fatigue (which is why I still haven’t played Ultra Sun). If that wasn’t enough, I was also never a big fan of Pokémon Go!. So when the Pokémon: Let’s Go! games were announced I had zero interest and pushed them completely off of my radar. Then the games finally released and my love for Pokémon got the best of me. I started reading reviews, watching videos, and talking to friends about them. Eventually I looked past my skepticism and decided to give it a try and I’m so glad I did.

Pokémon Let’s Go! was a breath of fresh air for me. It was a laid back experience that I didn’t even know I needed. It’s far more streamlined than other games in the series as you can choose when to encounter wild Pokémon and you no longer need to battle in order to catch them (in most cases). This aspect was one of the biggest reasons I was skeptical of the game. While catching Pokémon is probably my favorite part, I do enjoy the battles as well. I was afraid I wouldn’t get the battle itch scratched, but that wasn’t the case at all. There are more than enough trainers to battle throughout, so it was almost the perfect blend of catching and battling for me.

I went with the Eevee version and oh boy, Eevee is a little badass. That little dude is completely overpowered in Let’s Go! and makes it a breeze if you choose to play that way. It’s definitely the easiest Pokémon game I’ve ever played, which is saying a lot because they’ve never been known for their difficulty, but that didn’t stop it from being the most enjoyable time I had playing a game in 2018.

Octopath Traveler

Another game that surprised me in 2018 was Octopath Traveler. I’ve never been the biggest fan of JRPGs, but I was immediately drawn in by Octopath Traveler‘s charming art. When I finally got my Nintendo Switch last year it was the first game I really dug into. As it turns out, by the end of my 80 hours with it, the characters and combat system became something I loved even more than the art style that initially caught my attention.

Octopath Traveler‘s combat is turned-based and revolves around a “break” system. Each enemy has certain weaknesses to specific weapon types or elemental attacks. If you hit them with one of those attacks enough times their defenses will break and they will be stunned the following turn, allowing you to deal increased damage. There is also a boost system that allows you to hit with multiple attacks each turn. Without delving too deep into the mechanics, I’ll just say all of this offers a ton of strategic options and makes combat a joy.

If the title wasn’t telling enough, Octopath Traveler‘s story focuses on eight different characters. Each character has their own set of chapters you can complete, a variety of traits and combat options, and a unique personality and story to tell. You don’t have to finish every character’s storyline, but I exhausted all story options because I found myself wanting to know more about each one of them. I’d even go so far as to say that there hasn’t been a collective group of characters I liked this much since the original Mass Effect trilogy.

I feel like Octopath Traveler got overlooked by a lot of people, so if you’re a fan JRPGs or just looking for a quality experience you should seek this one out.

God of War

Continuing with the trend of games that surprised me last year, next up is God of War. I’ve dabbled a bit in the God of War franchise, but the 2018 release was the first game in the series I’ve ever seen through to completion. It is nothing like its predecessors as it trades in the linear gameplay and shallow, over-the-top brutality for an engaging and robust world, as well as a far more rewarding combat system.

Perhaps the biggest accomplishment of God of War is that it made Kratos into a character with depth and one that I was able to invest in. It also introduced his son, Atreus, and their relationship was something I loved watching evolve over the course of the game. Kratos is still a no nonsense badass, but his humanity is allowed to shine through in his interactions with Atreus.

As I mentioned, the combat in God of War is so much more rewarding than it was in previous entries. While you might still be able to mindlessly hack-and-slash your way through on easier difficulties, if you truly want to master combat you’ll need to develop more in-depth strategies. Kratos wields the Leviathan axe this time around, which you can use for melee attacks or as a projectile. The most ingenious part is that you can recall the axe with the press of a button which not only adds to your strategic options, but also creates a very satisfying ebb and flow to combat. You’ll also have to incorporate blocking and parrying, as well as guiding Atreus to use his bow. Once I was able to start stringing together all of these moves and tactics, God of War‘s combat system quickly became one of my all-time favorites.

God of War also offers up tons of side content to keep you busy for hours. With the recent release of a New Game+ mode, I’m looking forward to running through it again. It was quite the experience and one I’m happy to call my favorite of 2018.

Most Anticipated Games

It’s always fun to look to the future, so I’m going to wrap things up with my most anticipated games. Some of these games have 2019 release dates and others I’m keeping my fingers crossed for.

#games #video games #best of

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deusexmagicalgirl · 5 years ago

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Tattoo Assassins

James Rolfe’s “Angry Video Game Nerd” is considerably more vulgar than the usual here, so I have to give a language warning. Nonetheless, I am reposting this video for the sole reason that, upon watching it, I suddenly want to see a bad-good comedy-action movie based on the never-released Mortal Kombat ripoff game Tattoo Assassins. That thing looks hilarious.

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ihatewrestling · 8 years ago

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The 100: Monday Nitro

As our President looks back our his first 100 days in office(I live in the US), I have finished watching the first 100 episodes of WCW Monday Nitro for the first time.

Having never seen them before, but being well aware of the program and its talent, I expected something much different than what I got. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though.

First, I assumed that Hulk Hogan was on front street every episode, and I assumed Hall and Nash were with him all the time. That was very rarely the case. I’d say that the three of them were together less than twenty percent of the time.

I know Hall was in rehab for a stretch in early 1997, which was obvious because he honestly looked pretty great when he came back. Hogan, on the other hand would disappear for huge stretches of time and show up at random, and he never looked quite the same.

I also think it is fair to say that early on, he didn’t quite get the NWO gimmick, and by early I mean as late as August of 97. He was still cutting promos that sounded like Hulkamania, but like a bootleg version. He still wasn’t as laid back as Hall and Nash.

Strangely, he and X-Pac, I mean 123 Kid, I mean, Syxx, and Hogan were like twins. They cut promos exactly the same. The only real difference was that you could tell Syxx was on something. They even seemed to be booked in the same manner. Hogan had his World title for longer, but lost just as much as anyone else in NWO, which was actually a lot.

They would just lose a bunch of tag matches that wouldn’t cost them titles, or they’d be about to lose title matches and win by cheating. To this point, I’d say they were booked perfectly.

Unfortunately, I’d say they were the only thing booked well. The other story lines were very confusing, and the commentary didn’t help. For example, at Bash at the Beach 97, Chris Jericho showed up to defend the WCW Cruiserweight Championship, against Ultimo Dragon. Jericho apparently won the title on Saturday Nitro, by beating Syxx, ending his 125 day reign.

This was a big deal because the announcers kept going on and on and on about how WCW finally got a title back from the NWO and how Jericho was a WCW hero. There were several problems, though. First Jericho won it on June 28 on a show that was only broadcasted on the internet. It was 1997 so 11 people saw the match. Second, the first time we heard about Jericho having the title, was at Bash at the Beach on July 13.

That’s a lot of time to go by without mentioning that he won, especially since he was now a hero. The other issue, is that Tony Schiavone mentioned that Syxx was owed a title rematch against Jericho. If that was the case, then it should have happened at the pay-per-view. Syxx wasn’t there so he was obviously free to have a match.

The alternative would have been to not mention a rematch at all. By saying Jericho specifically was owed a rematch, I was told who the winner of the Jericho vs. Dragon match would be before it even started.

On the flip side of things, history hasn’t been kind to Lex Luger. His character was simple and straightforward, and he played it well. He was a reliable wrestler, that the crowd often got behind. He was beaten by nearly everybody, but never appeared to phone it in. Without his size and look, I don’t think they NWO would have worked because they needed an imposing face to challenge.

The same can be said for The Giant, now Big show, which is why it made sense to pair the two together. I feel they are the only two faces they got right. Everything else was a matter of putting some guys together.

The build for Sting feels like a big deal, but I have the luxury of watching show after show without waiting a week between shows. Had I watched it in real time, I think I’d be sick of waiting for Sting to make a move.

Ric Flair was used incorrectly almost exclusively. It is easy to see they knew he was a big draw, but couldn’t fit him into proper feuds. He was as great as they would let him be with plenty left in the tank.

The same can’t be said for Piper. The crowd loved him, he had the energy, but it happened to be from 1982 and his gimmick didn’t evolve enough to jive. They paired him with Flair in what can only be described as “The Old Guard,” but the nostalgia wore off quickly.

The MVP for the first 100 episodes of WCW Monday Nitro has to be Diamond Dallas Page. I would say he is the third babyface that they booked to perfection, but I don’t think he quite qualifies as a face, and that’s a good thing.

Most of the thought out storylines revolved around WCW vs. NWO. Which side is this guy on? Is he going to switch? What’s his motive? DDP had pieces of those elements to his character, but he didn’t need any of it.

His character was based off of DDP doing what DDP wanted, and not backing down from anyone. The NWO just happened to be the regular challengers he didn’t fear. That felt more real than anything else WCW was doing.

I appreciate the invasion of the NWO, but I relate more to not wanting to be told what to do, and that’s what made DDP so good.

Other random complaints I have where the endless Mortal Kombat ripoffs, endless parade of football players, the Nitro Girls, and the move to three hours. I can’t decide if they went to three hours to make time for the Nitro Girls, or if they got the Nitro Girls in anticipation of having to fill the extra hour. Either way it was all too much.

The cruiserweights were as good as they are remembered, but the lines were drawn to deep in the sand. I’d have liked to see them mix it up with someone bigger for a change of pace, but obviously(I think) that never happened.

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daleisgreat · 8 years ago

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Top 10 and Worst 5 Films of 2014 through 2016

I meant to do this last year, but completely neglected it. When I ran my old podcast, one episode a year, my friends Matt, Jay and I would host our annual best and worst movies of the year episode. We did three installments for films that hit in 2011-2013. The podcast is not around anymore so I have not done it since, but I still have been keeping Word documents on my computer with a list of all the movies I saw each year and constantly update my top 10 and worst 5 rankings of the year. I meant to post the best and worst of 2015 as a blog, but as I said it just slipped past me and I will make up for it now with a triple best and worst list for 2014 through 2016. I had a whole extra year to catch up on Netflix and VUDU on 2014 and 2015 releases I missed so I have seen about 20% more films than I did than 2016. So hopefully that will excuse any glaring omissions that did not make my rankings. That said, I am still feeling pretty good about my 2016 list and there were only a handful of films that slipped by me that I have not seen yet. Movies linked on the lists will take you to my review of the film if you want to see my expanded thoughts on the film. One last thing before the lists, I want to give a shoutout to one of my favorite film critics, Scott Sawitz! I have discussed movies, wrestling and a ton more with Scott for well over a decade and have had the pleasure of having him guest host on my aforementioned podcast several times. I have always been a fan of his reviews and weekly column, Monday Morning Critic, over at Inside Pulse. His latest column is his annual top 10 films of the year I always look forward to. Scott has a twist on his rankings this year because he has been putting a ton of work into his weekly YouTube series, Confessions of a Super-Hero, weekly bite-sized episodic viewing all about what super-heroes do in their off-duty downtime. If you have a moment, please check it out! Now, onto the lists! 2014 TOP 10 10) Wild 9) Nightcrawler 8) Gone Girl 7) Equalizer/John Wick 6) Imitation Game 5) Interstellar 4) Guardians of the Galaxy 3) Whiplash 2) Captain America: The Winter Soldier 1) Boyhood Best Documentary – Life Itself

The two comic book films on the list ranked high with Marvel having a stellar year. Guardians surprised me because the concept just seemed impossible to pull off in live action with an animated tree and talking raccoon, but somehow Marvel did it and it kicked all kinds of ass. Winter Soldier was an awesome modern day follow up to The First Avenger. I seem to be in the minority of people when discussing Interstellar, and while I would rank it a notch or two under other non-Batman Christopher Nolan classics like Inception, I still very much enjoyed it that it made it into the midst of my top 10. Life Itself is an excellent documentary all about Roger Ebert in his final days as it documents his and Gene Siskel’s breakout rise as the go to film critics of the nation. Wild hit all the right nerves for me on Cheryl Strayed’s arduous journey of self-discovery. Nightcrawler shocked me at the lengths Gyllenhaal went to get the ultimate creep-o look down and his convincing transition from wannabe ripoff artist to the quintessential conman. I was expecting Equalizer to be a by-the-numbers action flick, but Denzel Washington proved me wrong by adding on many layers to it, and it is bizarre how John Wick came out within weeks of it and both were nearly identical plots, but both delivered in their own unique way. John Wick also gets my dubious award for best ever Kevin Nash cameo. Finally, props to Richard Linklater for delivering on his film that was literally 12 years in the making with Boyhood. Linklater is a risk taker with his ambitious projects, and he knocked another one out of the park with Boyhood getting my vote as best film of 2014. 2014 WORST 5 5) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4) Tekken 2 3) Pro-Wrestling Zombies 2) Amazing Spider-Man 2 1) Transformers: Rise of the Fallen 2014 saw many terrible films, I actually had nearly 10 films as being ‘worst 5-calibur’ material. The TMNT remake had a few bright spots and scene-saving moments from Will Arnett, but he alone could not save a film with so many gut-wrenching jokes and awful retconning of the TMNT lore I grew up with. I actually dug the first Tekken film as a kind of solid nonsense fighting tournament movie that was kind of faithful to the source material ala Mortal Kombat, but the sequel was this awful attempt at a mafia-crime-mystery-drama that failed on all levels. Pro-Wrestling Zombies was a very low budget zombie slashing film starring Matt Hardy, Jim Duggan and Roddy Piper, but with these wrestling legends it was not even enjoyable in an ironic way like most zombie films, and was just flatout bad. Amazing Spider-Man 2 shocked me because I legitimately enjoyed the reboot, and thought this would be another easy follow up with most of the same cast and crew returning. However, Spider-Man and Electro both cast painful jokes and banter throughout that did not exist in the prior film, and there were countless groan inducing moments. The latest Transformers film outdid the straight-up bad humor and moments throughout the entire wreck of a film. Michael Bay somehow found a way to make it a nearly insurmountable task to get through. 2015 Top 10 10) Southpaw 9) Ant Man 8) The Martian 7) End of the Tour 6) Mad Max: Fury Road 5) Revenant 4) Creed 3) Steve Jobs 2) Spotlight 1) Hateful Eight Best Documentary – Tie: Electric Boogaloo & Winning: Racing Life of Paul Newman

Yeah, I like my feel good boxing/sports films as Jake Gyllenhaal shined again this year in Southpaw and Creed surpassed my expectations with its contemporary take on the Rocky franchise. While the lighthearted moments from Damon seemed a little forced, I still very much dug his Mars survival story, but not as much I got immersed into Dicaprio’s and Tom Hardy’s intense wilderness survival adventure that is The Revenant. Fury Road marked the first Mad Max movie I saw and the bombastic costumes initially had me raising an eyebrow, but once the heavy metal guitar semi-truck graced the screen in its infinite glory I instantly went on board with the film and never got off. I recently reviewed Steve Jobs, and if you recall I absolutely loved its use of creative license to tell a nonstop dialogue juggernaut of three big moments in Jobs’ life. Spotlight is the perfect way to tell a slow building mystery film where investigative journalists gradually picked away at their biggest scoop ever. Finally, I am biased towards Quentin Tarantino as I view the man as being one of the absolute best at dialogue in films, and he delivered once again with countless another excellent script and scenes that stole the show in The Hateful Eight. The setting worked perfectly and I was on my toes waiting to see which one of the eight was going to make the first move in a powdered keg filled with characters ready to burst. 2015 Worst 5 5) Fantastic Four 4) Jupiter Ascending 3) Chappie 2) Ted 2 1) Pixels

I was surprised at how bad Jupiter Ascending turned out to be, and did not expect Channing Tatum to be the only decent part of that film. After the dud that was Sucker Punch and now Jupiter Ascending, I am cutting myself off from all future Wachowski-directed films. I am a fan of District 9 and its director Neil Blomkamp and felt burned by his latest film, the insufferable Chappie in numerous ways. I was anticipating bad things from both Fantastic Four or Pixels, but part of me forced myself to go to see how awful they ultimately were. Fantastic Four was mostly drawn out and dull, and had some very head-scratching moments throughout. I cannot remember the last Adam Sandler film I legitimately liked, does the first half of Funny People count? Any marginal hopes of a semi-decent film were squashed the second Kevin James popped up on screen as the dopey president of the USA. Practically the entire film was bad, but I will at least give it minor props for some pretty good use of the videogame CG in the film. 2016 Top 10 10) Purge: Election Year 9) Deadpool 8) Star Trek: Beyond 7) 13 Hours: Secret Soldiers of Benghazi 6) Captain America: Civil War 5) Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice 4) Hacksaw Ridge 3) Sully 2) Fences 1) The Accountant Best Documentary – ESPN 30 for 30: The ’85 Bears

The last two Purge films have turned into guilty Halloween pleasures like the old Final Destination films. Election Year kept up the same gritty, over-the-top tone and pace as Anarchy Reigns before it. Deadpool surprised me at not being a dud, and far exceeded my expectations with tons of great jokes, dialogue, action and unapologetically aware 4th wall-breaking references throughout. It has been awhile since I got wrapped up in an intense R-rated war film, and 2016 had two of them with 13 Hours and Hacksaw Ridge that both get high recommendations from me. I am a wee bit of a Clint Eastwood fan, but I will give him and Tom Hanks righteous props on how they somehow made Sully’s heroic emergency plane landing into the Hudson River a thrilling feature length film. Some of you who saw the list are probably baffled at why I rank the controversial Dawn of Justice over the much-loved Civil War, but the two ranked so close together I just might change my answer if you ask me any day of the week. If I am splitting hairs I did not care for the shoehorned Spider-Man extended cameo, and his dialogue has me worried that Homecoming is going to be filled with an equal, if not worse script than Amazing Spider-Man 2. Denzel Washington and Viola Davis are sublime in Fences. The small, but mighty cast here delivered powerful performances, with Washington and Davis especially delivering in this dialogue-driven-tour-de-force about hard times for a family making ends meet in the 1950s. I did not know too much going into The Accountant other than it had what appeared to be a gimmick of an assassin with Autism. I could not have been more wrong as there is so much more going on with this film that it entertained me throughout its near two and a half hour runtime. Ben Affleck continues his streak of excellent performances, and I cannot wait to see how his upcoming solo version of The Batman turns out. Worst 5 2) Suicide Squad 1) Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk

I have only seen two movies this year that qualify as “worst 5-caliber.” I could not get into Suicide Squad. The first third of the film played out like an extended trailer scored with worn out songs that I am use to only hearing off trailers. There were several WTF moments throughout, and add in the film felt compromised after audiences griped that Dawn of Justice was not lighthearted enough. DC/Warner Bros. responded by pasting in several post-production groan-worthy zingers that played more to the mainstream, but made me cringe. I am optimistic for the presumable sequel though, because I did dig Will Smith as Deadshot and Margot Robbie’s portrayal of fan favorite, Harley Quinn and I am even interested in what direction they take The Joker next. Halftime Walk usurped it as my worst film of the year however because of how unlikeable the cast is. About 20% of the film is war flashbacks that I actually liked, but the other 80% is the members of the military squad’s day being honored at a football game, and just being super dick-ish and incredibly un-empathetic throughout it. I know this is based off a book, but I do not know if something got lost in translation or if this was the desired vision of the film. Either way, it yields my worst of the year honors! Thanks for sticking with me rambling all this way, see you next year!

#random movie #top 10 #boyhood #transformers rise of the fallen #the hateful eight #pixels #accountant #billy lynn's long halftime walk #suicide squad #spotlight #captain america #fences

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