Month: April 2013

42

Posted on by GumballsPlaysGames

42-poster-4

We saw 42 on Friday. 42 tells the tale of the first black MLB player, Jackie Robinson. The movie is absolutely wonderful. It’s sad, scary, upsetting and incredibly moving throughout the two hour tale. The acting is great throughout and Harrison Ford plays his character very well.

The film’s scenery is incredible and it really helps bring the viewer into the late 1940’s baseball scene. There are many heavy, hard to watch moments in the movie but there are just as many lighthearted, heartwarming moments to balance it out and you’ll certainly leave the theater with a smile on your face. I highly recommend you see this movie, I loved it.

Recently Watched: Dark Skies

Posted on by GumballsPlaysGames

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I finally managed to watch Dark Skies this past weekend and I have to say it was a decently scary movie. Overall it wasn’t as scary as a Paranormal Activity movie (due mainly to a slow start and set up) but it had a few moments that were definitely on par with those movies. The conclusion was a bit strange but it worked and made for a thrilling end to a pretty decent movie. Would I recommend making a trip to the movies to see it? Not exactly, but it’d be worth a trip to the cheap theater, or a DVD rental a few months down the road.

Wrestlemania 29 follow up

Posted on by GumballsPlaysGames

So my buddy called WWE today to complain about the fact that although he paid $60 to watch the PPV streaming via WWE.com he couldn’t watch any of it due to the fact that the server apparently crashed. Well the customer service response he received was that they will not be issuing any refunds for anyone affected, but rather they extended access through the rest of the week.

Are you kidding me? You pay $60 to watch a live event and you can’t watch it due to the servers being down and all you get is the ability to watch it the rest of the week? First of all the results are already out, second of all it’s already on The Pirate Bay, and thirdly we already watched an illegal live stream of the event.

So will we be buying a WWE PPV again? No. It seems you’re better off streaming it illegally or pirating it.

Also, this guy exactly sums up my thoughts on the PPV:

Wrestlemania letdowns

Posted on by GumballsPlaysGames

Please note there will be SPOILERS ahead.

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So I can’t describe myself as the hugest wrestling fan on the planet, but rather an occasional watcher and friend of a few more hardcore fans, but I have to say Wrestlemania 29 was a bit of a disappointment, especially after all of the buildup.

There wasn’t a whole lot of drama, especially not in the main event. When compared to the match between The Rock and CM Punk at the last pay per view, the match between The Rock and John Cena was nowhere near as electrifying. It really just seemed like them going through the motions with The Rock handing over the title and walking away back to his film career….once again. And the hug and handshake at the end? Really?

The most exciting match of the night was easily the one between Undertaker and CM Punk, but even that seemed like it could’ve had just a little more to it.

On a side note, WWE.com really dropped the ball on this one. My buddy purchased the PPV stream via WWE.com and after about ten minutes of watching the server crashed and for the rest of the night simply said the service was unavailable. We tried to call the 1-800 number several times, however it only rang and rang with no answer. We had to end up streaming the PPV illegally which of course was a big sacrifice on quality. We weren’t the only ones with this problem either, there were plenty of other users complaining via Twitter about being unable to stream the PPV they purchased. I can only hope the refund process is painless for those affected.

I can finally stop using my iPad as my primary camera

Posted on by GumballsPlaysGames

So at some point this summer my iPhone’s camera took a dump and started taking blurry pictures (I think it’s because I always took it skiing). I still believe that a phone is the perfect camera, and an actual camera is an archaic and dying device much like a newspaper or paper books.

However for awhile I had to use my iPad as my primary camera, which was just a little awkward. It takes great pictures in my eye, and even side by side with my new camera I still think the iPad’s pictures look just as good.

Anyway, I picked up a Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-W620, slightly used on Amazon for about $30! Pretty sweet deal. I need to pick up an SD card before it can officially retire my iPad as it can only store 5 pictures on its internal memory, but I guess in the long run I won’t look like such a nerd holding up an iPad to take pictures and video.

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Below you can see a side by side comparison of the Sony Cyber-Shot and the iPad 4.

Cyber-Shot (14.1 megapixels)

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iPad 4 (5 megapixels)

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Netflix finds: But I’m a Cheerleader

Posted on by GumballsPlaysGames

But I’m a Cheerleader is a 1999 satire about a high school cheerleader who is sent to a “gay to straight” camp by her parents. The problem? She was straight, or so she thought. (Of course sending someone to such a camp is a problem in the first place and the film works to poke fun at such ‘gay to straight’ and anit-gay thinking).

I discovered the film on Netflix last night and it was absolutely amazing! It sort of reminded me of Empire Records for some reason, but the characters in this film are absolutely amazing and the way they interact with and learn about each other is just heartwarming. The movie made my smile throughout and left me with a good feeling.

One of the most amazing things about this film is the song “Glass Vase, Cello Case”. This song gave me goosebumps when I first heard it and it still does as I listen to it over and over again. It’s very powerful and the moments in the film in which it plays are just as powerful and moving.

I highly recommend adding this film to your Netflix queue, it’s well worth the watch.

Why an always connected Xbox wouldn’t be that bad

Posted on by GumballsPlaysGames

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A lot of people think the idea of an always connected console is a bad thing. They’re worried about DRM, being able to play offline and who knows what else. But in reality aren’t most devices ‘always on’ these days? Do you ever turn your computer off? I don’t. Do you ever turn your tablet or phone off? I doubt it. And these devices are most likely always connected to the internet as well (at least in the home).

An always online Xbox is a huge step forward. An Xbox not connected to the internet / Xbox Live is a very limited and nearly useless machine. The Xbox Live experience makes gaming a much better experience.

What I want from the next Xbox is live tiles.

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If there’s one thing I LOVE about Windows 8, it’s live tiles. It’s a really cool concept for a homescreen. You can see your e-mails, Twitter and Facebook feeds at a glance. You have the weather forecast, sports scores and news headlines constantly scrolling on your start screen.

Imagine the next Xbox, always on. Just leave your TV on and you can see all this information in front of you or in the background. Imagine it having the snap screen feature, where you can open an app and snap it next to another app…..Watch TV on one side and play Call of Duty on the other side during commercials (simply ‘click’ the screen to bring it full screen).

The ESPN and MLB.tv apps already offer a glimpse of this. The ESPN app will show videos in the upper left corner which you can bring full screen or search through more highlights, news or live feeds using the rest of the screen. MLB.tv functions very similarly with the latest update.

This is exactly what Microsoft wants the next Xbox to be, an always on, always connected media device feeding you news (and advertisements of course) throughout the day. It’s not a bad thing. It’s a convenient thing.

I barely turn my Xbox off now, but the current homescreen is rather boring. A Windows 8 style live tile interface would be much more useful.