Monthly Archives: September 2011

Hand Dryers Help Out Environment

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We all know that climate change is becoming a bigger problem than most of us ever imagined. Deforestation is destroying the environment and making entire species extinct. It is a much better idea for businesses to invest in airblade hand dryers. They cut down on paper towel usage, and all of the hand dryers you could possibly want are at that site, and you can search for energy efficient hand dryers, automatic or push button hand dryers. It also has a 30 day no hassle refund policy.

You want to make sure you buy a good hand dryer, my favourite are dyson hand dryers, especially the dyson air blade hand dryer it really gets your hands dry quickly and effectively. Something not every hand dryer does. A brilliant investment. It is good to invest in a dyson hand dryer.

Hand dryers are tidier than paper towels as well. No scrunched up paper towel balls lying around. I reckon hand dryers are a great investment for businesses and the eco conscious.

Richmond Question Time With Zac Goldsmith

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Time
20 September · 19:30 – 21:30

Location
Duke Street Church, Duke Street, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 1DH

My friend Ben Mallet worked on Zac Goldsmith’s political campaign and is a member of the Richmond Conservative Future, He invited me to a cross party Question Time debate, I am a political junkie so, of course, I went.

The MPs who took part were Zac Goldsmith MP – Chairing and Hosting, Sam Gyimah MP – Conservative Party, Nigel Farage MEP – UKIP Leader, Serge Lourie – Lib Dem, Former leader of Richmond Council for 9 years , Emily Thornberry MP – Labour Party, Brian Denny – Trade Unionists Against the EU Constitution convenor.

It was a brilliant event, put together by young people interested in politics and making a difference. I had a chat with Nigel Farage who promised Frost a interview. Farage came across as incredibly intelligent and well spoken, as did Sam Gyimah, although he got a lot of negativity for being a Tory. Quote of the night came from Emily Thornberry, who was asked about Labour’s time in power and how much debt they had racked up with the Iraq war, she stated: “We went into debt on purpose”. Which is unfortunate, as it is the rest of the country that is paying for it now.

Nigel Farage revealed he had had death threats against him when the talk turned to a homeowners right protecting their own property and Goldsmith asked him if would have a gun in his house if he lived in America, Farage said: “What makes you think I don’t have a gun in my house in this country?”. Serge Lourie defended faith schools, stating that both he and his children had went to one. All in all, a good lively debate. The main thing I took away was how angry people are about the current world situation.

I asked Goldsmith for his comments on how the evening went: “It was the first QT event in Richmond, and seems to have gone down very well. The audience was uncharacteristically lively, and having been a temporary imposter, my respect for the real David Dimbleby has doubled. We had a diverse and high profile panel, and I hope we’ll be able to replicate the success on other occasions. Huge congratulations to the CF team”.

Have You Seen… Five Documentaries to Seek Out (Part Three)

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Charles Rivington asks the immortal question: Do all dogs go to heaven?

 

I stated way back in part one that I was going to present this list in no particular order. Having said that I have saved my favourite feature length documentary by my favourite documentarian for last and written so much about it that I’ve had to give it an article in its own right. Oh well…

 

Gates of Heaven (1978)

 

Throughout the first two parts of this three-part article and through these four brilliant films, I have touched on some very challenging issues: war, mental illness and suicide, child molestation and the disintegration of a family, the birth of the movies. It therefore might seem somewhat anti-climatic, perhaps even rather disrespectful to have as my final entry a film about pet cemeteries. Surely a documentary about people batty enough to spend large amounts of money giving Fido a proper burial can only ever be mildly amusing (in a sort of ‘ha ha, she thinks he’s people’ kind of a way) or perhaps even just a bit pathetic. Surely, it can’t be one of the greatest and most profound works about mortality, loneliness and the human condition ever made, right?

 

Wrong. Errol Morris’ Gates of Heaven is, quite simply and quite literally, an incredible film. It’s the sort of film you could watch every day for the rest of your life and it would still be deeply rewarding. Throughout this article I’ve touched on what I believe makes a great documentary and I’ve suggested two things. Firstly, I’ve stated that a great documentary should be impartial and force the audience to form their own judgements

An enthusiastic pet owner.

without telling them what to think.  Because of Morris’ unobtrusive style and the fact that he lets his subjects speak for themselves and is neither nor seen nor heard throughout the entire film (Michael Moore could certainly learn from him), Gates of Heaven does this so effectively that that at any given moment of the film one section of the audience might be in tears while another suppresses giggles. Secondly, I have suggested that the great documentary will often take a subject and use it as a springboard to touch upon much broader or challenging themes. Gates of Heaven is a movie about freaking pet cemeteries that deals head on with humankind’s most terrifying and impossible question: that of its own mortality and solitude. This is truly the stuff of genius. It is one of the greatest documentaries of all time, by one of the greatest documentarians of all time and quite frankly one of the greatest films of all time. It’s also one of my favourites.

 

     Gates of Heaven takes as its inspiration the story of the exhumation and transportation of 450 pets from one cemetery to another. This fascinating and odd story is used to shape the film, which is structurally little more than a series of talking heads, into two halves. The first of these focuses on the story of Floyd “Mac” McClure, a paraplegic man who had dreamt of building a pet cemetery after the death of his childhood dog, and uses interviews with pet owners and investors in order to explore how his dream briefly became a reality. Particularly memorable interviewees include Mac’s rival, the owner of the local rendering plant who attempts to defend his unglamorous profession to hilarious effect, and a woman who holds conversations with her dog.  Most of Morris’ subjects have their eccentricities, and the film is not short of humour, but he has a unique skill for looking beyond these to the humanity below, frequently unearthing

Devastating

accounts of loss and loneliness. The story of the failure of Mac’s cemetery is a particularly resonant example of these and the tragedy of the matter is that this compassionate man was unable to translate his dream and his passion into a workable business.  It is a tragedy that occurs daily but that does not make it any less heart breaking and I imagine that it will resonate with many people, perhaps even more so now than in 1978. The final shot of Mac sitting in his wheelchair under a willow tree, surveying the former site of his failed cemetery is entirely devastating, a perfect, wordless evocation of loneliness and despair and a prime example of Morris’s subtle and unobtrusive early style.

 

 

Florence Rasmussen sits on her stoop.

At the film’s centre, acting as a kind of transitional moment between the two distinct halves, is a monologue by an elderly woman named Florence Rasmussen. It is truly one of the most bizarre, moving and hilarious few minutes of any film I have ever seen. Sitting on her stoop outside her house, which overlooks Mac’s cemetery, this fascinating woman recounts her baffling life story in short bursts, constantly contradicting herself as she attempts to explain her troubled relationship with her son. In another’s hands this might have come across as exploitative or condescending and it is abundantly clear that Rasmussen could easily have been mocked as a stereotypical madwoman. Morris’ camera however does not judge, merely records and the entire film is mercifully devoid of any cruel reality tv editing or Louis Theroux-style winks to the audience. Instead Florence is allowed to speak for herself and the result is a frustrating, funny and ultimately sad meditation on one woman’s delusion and loneliness. It is a stunning monologue and one that, as Roger Ebert states, ‘William Faulkner or Mark Twain would have wept with joy to have created.’ And yet, it is reality. It is reality, in its most pure, unedited and unscripted form. Sometimes real life truly is stranger than fiction.

 

 

A funeral at Bubbling Wells

The film’s focus then moves to The Bubbling Well Pet Memorial Park, which is run by the Harberts family. Patriarch Cal is a lot more ambitious and business savvy than Mac but shares his compassion for animals and has even built a church in order to celebrate God’s love for pets. His wife Scottie shares this view stating that, ‘God is not going to say, well, you’re walking in on two legs, you can go in. You’re walking in on four legs, we can’t take you.’ Although clearly successful in their business endeavours, the Harbarts family also harbours some unhappiness and this is particularly obvious in their sons Danny and Philip who both left their other lives (college and a job as an insurance salesman) to come back to the family business.

 

 

A bereaved couple reminisces in Gates of Heaven

There is one moment from this second half of the film that never fails to move me: a long silent montage of the headstones at Bubbling Well. If I had seen it on it’s own without the benefit of the rest of the film, I admit that it would probably have left me cold and it is true that some of the inscriptions are at first glance rather trite, silly even (‘God spelled backwards is dog’ etc). However after 80 minutes spent in the company of animal lovers and grieving pet owners and hearing them express their loneliness and grief, these inscriptions become a profound articulation of a universal and fundamental need for companionship and love. One of them reads ‘I knew love: I knew this Dog’ while another simply reads ‘For saving my life’. It is clear that there are stories behind each of these inscriptions, heart-breaking, heart-warming stories behind every headstone, stories about what it means to be alive, what it means to love and what it means to experience profound loss. They are stories about what it means to be human. Gates of Heaven merely touches on a few of these stories and in doing so it earns its place as one of the greatest documentary films of all time.

 

 

Gates of Heaven is currently available on DVD as part of ‘The Errol Morris Collection’ box set along with Vernon, Florida and The Thin Blue Line, which are both excellent.

 

 

 

IMDB: Using IMDB Resume and IMDB Starmeter To Boost Your Career.

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IMDB is a great resource, not only does it have a page on every movie and every film industry professional you can think of, it is also an amazing tool for an actor to promote their career.

IMDB has a resume section that you can join for a reasonable price. When you have IMDB resume you can add pictures to your IMDB, and of course your resume. You can also link your blog and your twitter to your page.

When people google you, it is usually your IMDB link that comes up first, so it is a false economy not to have it. If you do not have a project on IMDB (and you need one! Work for free for an IMDB credit is my advice) then you can still be on it if you get IMDB Resume.

People do lie on their resume, but I don’t recommend this, and do not list extra work unless you were heavily featured or had a line.

Even more important than IMDB Resume is the IMDB Starmeter. This is IMDB explaining what the Starmeter is http://www.imdb.com/help/show_leaf?prowhatisstarmeter

The Starmeter is important for actors and here is why: if you get a good starmeter ranking that means you are bankable. If people are searching for you then you will be offered movies and auditions. My starmeter has been as high as 6,000 and is usually between that and 31,000 on a bad week. Which is very good news and has helped my career. So, if your IMDB rank is not very good what can you do? I previously wrote about this in my personal blog http://balavage.wordpress.com/2011/07/25/charting-imdb-becoming-obsessed-with-starmeter/ and I am going to go into more detail here.

Step 1) This site is very good. http://www.karmalicity.com/b/?r=218 I know people who have done barely anything who now have good rankings, the site gives you publicity for your IMDB, Facebook fan page, YouTube and Twitter. It Is free so join now. The premium version is cheap and very good too.

Step 2) Make sure you have your photo on IMDB. Very important. Also put film stills and on-set photos on and modeling shots as well. If you want a photo, you can click the following link and go to add photos only: http://resume.imdb.com/

Step 3) Use social networking. Post your IMDB link. Add it to your email signature, your website, Twitter, anywhere you can think of. Share the films you are in, not just your IMDB page, every time a movie your in goes up, so do you.

5. Create an e-mail list. Only email when you have something to say. Do not spam people. Invite people to a screening, tell them of an award you won, an amazing job you just booked. Add your IMDB link into the email.

6) Get people to click on your IMDb profile (post the link on your Facebook or Twitter profiles, have it in your email signature, etc.)

7) Get interviewed and mentioned in TV guides and news articles.

This brilliant article has a run down of what the numbers mean and it says that a rank of 14,999 – 1,000: This is generally working actor territory and this about 999 – 1: You’re working. A lot. Good chance you’re repped by one of the big 5 agencies…or are about to be. Alternatively, you were recently on the cover of National Enquirer.

Give it a read.

I also recommend you get IMDBpro, and so does Harrison Ford, Blake Lively and Kevin Smith, if you are in the film industry, you need it.

To round up; IMDB is an amazing resource to help your career and I wish I had paid more attention to it earlier. Click on your friends links and put nice comments on their message boards. Keep coming back to Frost for more acting tips and career guidance. If you liked this article give my IMDB a click or post a message http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2952107/

The Gifts We Must Stop Giving: Ideas For Christmas

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Shop smarter, not harder, this Christmas
 
While we all try our best to keep up that polite exterior, most of us have some experience of forcing a smile upon receiving an unwanted gift. Novelty ties, ill-fitting underwear, naff toiletry sets – it seems we are a nation stuck in a never-ending cycle of buying for the sake of it, and receiving useless presents in exchange.
To support the launch of their new range of lifestyle gift experiences, powered by Time Out, Smartbox set out to find out more about the nation’s gifting habits.  They surveyed 845 people, up and down the country, and found that:
Receiving
·         Graciously accepting and quickly returning unwanted gifts is fast becoming the norm. 44% of people have returned a gift that was bought for them, with Londoners he most likely to do so
·         40% of people asked prefer to choose their own gifts
·         When asked to name the worst present received, the most popular response was an item of clothing (particularly socks, ill-fitting pants and hosiery)
·         It’s not all about the money. A whopping 84% said that an expensive gift would not mean more to them, with 95% claiming they’d prefer a gift that’s thoughtful, regardless of cost.
Giving
·         Despite the efforts of the eager 8.5% of the population who begin their Christmas shopping in January, 47% don’t feel their gifts are always truly appreciated
·         66% often spend more on a gift than they had hoped to, with a shocking 42% admitting they often spend more than they can afford.
Garry Barone, Head of Sales and Marketing at Smartbox UK, said: “We all know what it’s like to receive a gift we’re not too keen on, and I think if we’re honest, most of us have bought a gift that we knew wasn’t quite up to scratch. When you think about it, buying for the sake of it is a pretty pointless and sometimes costly exercise – particularly when it comes to Christmas. Our survey found that the average person buys for 10 or more people each year – and spends around £250.
“However, when it comes to receiving gifts, it really is the thought that counts. A Smartbox lifestyle gift experience gives you the best of both worlds. While you choose the themed Smartbox that best suits your loved one, they themselves are able to take their pick from up to 200 experiences detailed within.”
Smartbox is Europe’s leading lifestyle gift experience company. This year, they have joined forces with Time Out to offer an incredible range of gifts to suit every age, personality and pocket.
Unlike your usual gift cards and vouchers, each Time Out Smartbox comes in a quality gift box. The voucher comes with a glossy book featuring full details on each experience, making it really easy to choose. What’s more, the price is nowhere to be seen, so they never need to know how much you spent.
The booking process is easy as the voucher is activated on purchase.  All the recipient needs to do is choose what they want to do, where and when. They book directly with the experience provider and redeem the voucher on site. And with many of the packages available for two people, you can share the experience – bonus!
The Time Out Smartbox range includes:
·         Adrenaline (£119.95)
·         Adventure (£29.95)
·         Charming Getaways (£139.95)
·         Delicious Retreats (£199.95)
·         Gourmet Escapes (£269.95)
·         Table for Two (£59.95)
·         Tastings (£29.95)
·         Unusual Escapes (£89.95)
·         Zen & Spa (£59.95)
Also available:
·         The Michelin Star Dining Smartbox (£169)
Smartbox gift boxes are available at selected John Lewis, Butlers, Beales, Clinton Cards, Waterstones, Heal’s and Cargo stores. See website for full details & terms www.smartbox.co.uk.

Frost Interviews: Jason Croot.

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1) How did you get into making films?

I guess it started 10 years ago I made a experimental short film then made a few more and then progressed into professional features

2) What is your background?
I started acting 10 years ago before that I have around 30 jobs I never could settle in one but I guess I use a lot of life experience in my films and acting

3) How did you get your first film off the ground?

Le Fear was a real world wind 3 weeks after coming up with the idea the film was in the can, it was a great experience and really made my love for film making grow much stronger, we were stuck in post production for a while then the film was picked up for distribution I’m awaiting the release date which will be great

4) You act, write and direct, which one is your favourite?
I really can’t pick between acting and directing, I would say acting is like my first love and will never end, film making was my bit on the side during the acting years but now has become my full time love affair

5) You will be making Le Fear, Le Sequel soon. What was the idea behind the film? I was walking to the supermarket one day and had this idea to make a film about a film, using my experiences as an actor I was on one film shoot and the sound guy was texting during a take, I put a lot of misfits together and it worked out well, Le Sequel is the follow up to the first film this time I’ve had longer to plan and develop the storyline

6) What are you up to at the moment?
I’m in the middle of co directing my fourth feature film Meeting Place the film is based in a restaurant and follows conversations of 80 different actors some of which play 2 characters it’s been a good shoot

7) Who are your favourite actors/directors?
I have so many but to narrow down some, Steve McQueen, Max Von Sydow, Peter Sellers, early De Niro,Pacino & Brando, Jean-Pierre Léaud, Gérard Depardieu and the wonderful Roberto Benigni, directors Olivier Assayas, Jim jarmusch, Ingmar Bergman, Martin Scorsese & Quentin Tarantino

8) What advice to you have to people who want to get into film?
I guess never give in no matter what and don’t rely on anyone but yourself

9) What is your favourite thing about the film industry?
Being on set as an actor or director and working it

10) And the least?
Recalls just bloody cast me ;]

Thank you for taking the time to read this find out more on me on IMDB http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2907429/

Gamefest 2011 Review

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It has been aptly described as the ‘Gaming Event of The Year’, ‘A gaming extravaganza’ by others and a ‘Shame if you failed to get a ticket mate’ by the people online. I am of course talking about GAMEfest; the first-ever gaming festival from high street and online computer game retailers GAME. If you are into games – and you weren’t watching Chelsea lose – there is only one big question: where were you?

The things I have to do to keep Frost readers happy is beyond belief, but I’ll let you know I aptly ‘stayed calm and carried on’ to take one for the team with my sole intention of bringing you the ‘no nonsense’ report of gaming goodness. The saying goes take five a day – well when it comes to games I’ll happily take 50; heck, make mine 100 if that’s what it takes.

Let’s talk numbers:
100+ Big games on show
70+ Big games available for test
3+ hours taken to queue at longest point during the day for the biggest game showcases
1,500 screens displaying the latest games
1,000’s of games players from all over the world
3 girls from Nuts Magazine – well I wouldn’t be a man if I didn’t mention them would I? More on them later…

Lets talk games:
Tons of exclusives, we are talking Street Fighter X Tekken, Ridge Racer Unbounded, Batman Arkham City, Sonic Generations, Modern Warfare 3, Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi, to name just a few. There is loads to get through, the way I see it, it is a good job that Frost Magazine is web as opposed to paper based as the environment is saved by the sheer numbers of trees no longer needed to be cut down to bring you this report. But hey, let’s talk shop because here, in this report I want to focus on the real games that are going to make a real impact this year. The ones that you need to get on your pre-order list pretty sharpish, capiche.

Modern Warfare 3.
Obviously the first stand I headed to was this one under the mighty games developers Activison. Thanks to GAMEfest I got my sweaty hands on the first playable build of the mode in the UK. Yes it really is that good; Modern Warfare 3 by its looks alone raises the bar of a genre already inundated with shooters and looking quite tired. But how does it play? One word: incredible, with the noise of the exhibition it was really hard to hear all the instructions my character was being told but the controls were fine, the graphics even at this stage were ‘baby soft’ smooth. My only gripe is that there is no 3D version planned and after playing Resistance 3 in 3D I just know it would be incredible. Release date is scheduled for the 8th Nov. Seven words spring to mind: Do Not Miss Out On This Game.

Goldeneye 007: Reloaded
Goldeneye looks better than ever thanks to the upgraded power afforded by the PS3 and it goes without saying that it looks better than its Wii counterpart. Although it has to be said although it looks great, MW3 it is not. Nevertheless it ranks up there as a Bond game to own with enemies appearing extremely agile behind cover. I managed to play this with the Move Controller and although it took some getting used to it worked incredibly well.
Release date is scheduled for Nov

Battlefield 3
This is the year’s ‘other’ most anticipated shooter and of course you know it will be going head to head with Modern Warfare 3. Not sure if it is me but this is turning into a regular duel between Activision and EA over who runs the block. I tried the single player campaign and was quite taken aback by the quality of the graphics; smoke and explosions now being even more realistic. Again the movement was silky smooth whereas the controls needed just that little bit more work. So who runs the block? Well, personally, I am a fan of the Call of Duty franchise but this game is enough to make me hedge my bets. As good old Optimus Prime says ‘One shall stand….and one shall fall…’

X-Men: Destiny
X-Men: Destiny sees you step into the shoes of a newly realized young mutant who is tasked with using their special powers for good or evil? Sounds familiar? Yep I thought so too. I am a huge X-Men fanatic so was hoping this game would be incredible, however to me, graphically it looks on par with the first Infamous game and some of the camera angles looked decidedly dodgy. This was my least liked of the titles from the Activision stand, although I could still easily be proved wrong when it is released on the 30th September this year.

Spiderman: Edge of time
The all new Spiderman game was on show looking very tasty indeed. It looks like there is more time hopping around than the last game, and of the in game footage we were shown it looked like not only was Spidey much more fluid and agile but that there was a solid emphasis on action and combos. It’s enough to bring a smile to anyone’s lips.

Street Fighter X Tekken
This is really squaring up to be one heck of a game. Thank you so much Game for giving us players a direct hands on with more than a handful of characters on each side. The characters of Tekken step into the world of Street Fighter for a fight time spectacular. No wonder the queues went on, this game really has to be seen to be believed, with an overhauled control system that’s easy for fans of the Tekken games to pick up quickly and combos, tag combos and more combos than a KFC bargain bucket this is turning into a ‘must have game’. The backgrounds too are worth a mention; there is one with dinosaurs that looks totally incredible. But what’s that little birdy? There is going to be another game some point later where the characters of Street Fighter step into the world of Tekken? Wow, we better keep that one under our hat….

Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi
Looked pretty incredible, I heard repeated murmurings of gamers going ‘wow’ ‘amazing’ and ‘oh my gosh’ so I went over and pretty soon I was saying the same thing too. Bosses the size that even a 50 inch screen can’t handle and an overhauled control system, all of which takes a little bit of time to get used to but soon had me pulling off 50 hit combos with ease. I liked the look of the sprites, everything just looks spruced up and ‘combat ready’ as they say.

Soulcalibur V
Have you ever picked up sequel hoping that the games developers haven’t taken something out that you really enjoyed? Well if you are, you are a lot like me; the last game I played from this series was Soul Edge, the last Soulcalibur game I heard was cack so I left it alone as that is what you are supposed to do with smelly fish. However this game brought back all the memories and finesse of the original. It looks great, it sounds great. It is easy to pick up and play, but just one question: how many fabled blades are there?

Ridge Racer Unbounded
Is yet another entry into an almost legendary franchise playing like an explosive mix between Burnout and Split-Second. It looks as good as it plays and that is heart in the mouth, pedal to the metal tricky. You build energy by driving dangerously, drifting and overtaking in order to ram cars, destroy buildings and generally just create chaos on the track. Oh yeah and don’t forget to come first – wouldn’t be Ridge Racer if you didn’t have that. The driving controls need tightening up a bit but I actually enjoyed playing this game but and can’t wait to see how it will pan out later.

Ace Combat: Assault Horizon
This was next on my list. I am an avid fan of the franchise and been playing it since the PS One days but if I am honest I think towards the end it went off the rails a bit and got all dramatized. I had heard that the game had been completely overhauled and gone ‘back to the basics’ which can only be a good thing. Immediately from grabbing the control pad I could see the graphics and the control system had been completely revamped; a choice of controlling a plane or helicopter was the first decision I had to make and then in no time at all planes, bullets and explosions met me during an epic duel in the skies; dodging between huge buildings standing out against the horizon. However, I don’t know if it is just me but I found that despite these improvements essentially you are still just lining up your shots as before. Let’s hope it does not get repetitive as its predecessors did.

Ace Combat 3DS
This looked absolutely fantastic; the 3DS taking full advantage of the analogue sticks and whole 3D thing. Bullets, guns and explosions; now you can enjoy them on the bus, the train, on the way to work, you get the picture.

Bethesda Softworks
Bethesda was my personal saviours on the day, providing myself and my nephews with some super sized bags to put our accumulated goodies in. I have to be honest; I have heard of Prey and seen Rage but I had not heard of Skyrim before. Entering their Walkthrough after an hour or so of queuing I could see what the fuss was all about. All three titles looked astoundingly good. RAGE looks like a no holds barred FPS genre with solid action.  

SKYRIM  though was the real surprise for me; swords, wizards, trolls, magic, you get the picture, but what really surprised me was the quality of the graphics and the idea that the game develops around you as you play, sort of like World of Warcraft but with extra 3rd person perspective mmm. I will be keeping my beady little eyes on this one.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
This is one of the titles that my nephew really wanted to play and even now a day later he is still going on about it. Thanks to the Wii Motion Plus Controller you take full control over Link’s sword swipes on a one-to-one basis, taking on the enemies. It looks fabulous with a real nice graphical style to it that sets it apart from its predecessors and the boss fight I saw was pretty ridiculous in terms of combos and big moves. Wii owners have a good reason to rejoice.

Saints Row: The Third
This game looked like it was shaping up very nicely indeed, colourful solid sprites with a kind of tongue in cheek storyline being at the core. The fight and combo moves feel quite satisfying. Apparently Hulk Hogan and a certain porn actress are playable characters in the game. That certainly brought a smile to my nephew’s face.

Need for Speed: The Run
Only got to see videos of this owing to the time – it was such a shame. From what I saw the game has few on foot sections, and those it does have seem to serve to push the story forward as opposed to being a part of the race itself. One thing I did see was a kind of ‘rewind’ feature that rewinds time back to just before a crash giving you time to avoid it. Use of this is incredibly limited and is quite exciting when you think of it especially if it transfers to online play. Speed was on par with the fastest Burnout and the cops were unrelenting.

The Black Eyed Peas Experience
Hot on the heels of the Michael Jackson Experience comes this title. Opting to feature digitized sprites instead of stand-ins, this can have you dancing and singing as a group or as any one of your favourite lead singers or their entourage. Now, There is no denying that the Black Eyed Peas aren’t spectacular but are they on the same level as the king of pop? I am not so sure – whats next? The N-Dubz Experience. Anyhow it has to be said the game does look good and it was fun to play – lets just hope we are not seeing the dawn of another dancing, singing, play the guitar type franchise take over the world only to crash and burn and leave players angry.

SEGA
SEGA have been in the computer game business for almost three generations now, wisely backing out of the console making business to focus on games. It looked like they had brought their gaming offices with them showing off some of their biggest titles to date. First up – Mario and Sonic at the London Olympic Games on Wii and 3DS – good solid game filled with cutesy Wii’ness that tough guys like me stay away from…o.k I can explain about the photo….

Next up Rise of Nightmares for the Xbox Kinect only, and it has to be said that it is not a bad first attempt at a survival horror title for the Kinect. Rise of Nightmares begins a bit like a SAW movie with a bad guy who just likes doing bad things to people for fun. Waking up on a moving train you have an argument with your for girlfriend for being buried in the bottle, she storms off and then the dreaded monsters attack killing almost everybody. Using the Kinect controls is a bit of a hit and miss in my opinion and take some getting used to, but if you think of melee combat similar to Dead Island you are not far wrong. Although the premise is good time will tell whether the actual gameplay will be improved enough before the release.

Next up House of the Dead Overkill on the PS3 and thankfully this is a whole new state of affairs. Compatible with Playstation Move and in 3D with effects that I have got to say jump out of the screen like your heart jumps out of your mouth, this ‘on the rails shooter’ should be on your pre-order list pronto.

Sonic Generations on Xbox 360, PS3 and 3DS was a crowd pleaser, namely because it seemed to offer something for SEGA fans in the way of nostalgia that only the Megadrive collection with all your favourite hits missing could possibly do. You have a choice of both types of Sonic, new – with 3D run into the screen gameplay and old – sideways stages. Both types offered new stages, blistering speeds, familiar faces and lets not forget his go-go I can do anything attitude which is really hard not to fall in love with. My nephew was undecided on this title, however I enjoyed it immensely.

Warner
Popping over to the Warner stand the first thing I saw was a huge Batman statue – yes this was Arkham City territory and the crowds here was unbelievable. The game hosts had good sense to have the games on a timer with players on a roll on roll off queue to prevent any game hogs and it is easy to see why people would not want to give up their joypad. The quality of this title is simply incredible. The way Batman moves, the new detective mode, the combat system, the epic vistas; everything just looks bigger, better, badder and downright tastier. I don’t know about you but I can’t wait.

The Lord of the Rings: War in the North took me by surprise – where did this game come from? The monsters are simply huge and although RPG in nature in reality the gameplay seemed a lot like Baldur’s Gate with slo-mo finishers and non stop combat. A video showed some flying sections too with the character on the back of an eagle. Could be well worth a look on its release.

And, so ended the first-ever fantastic gaming festival. But the show would not be complete without making the most of every opportunity and funny enough big boy’s magazine Nuts were on hand to show that games festivals can be fun in every way. Arm firmly twisted firmly behind my back I was frog-marched over to the table to have my Nuts Magazine signed by the lovely Stacy, Daisy and India and oh look someone took a photograph. The things I have to do eh?

Drive {Film Review}

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There is nothing quite like a film by Nicolas Winding Refn to be compared with! The strange eerie blur of reality and surrealism, often combined together to make a bizarre and ever-lasting experience. Drive, which is based on the novel of the same name by James Sallis, was an experience like you take a scenic route in the calm areas and then get assaulted with its throttled engine when speeding up the highway. If there’s anything these type of movies that get it right, it’s from the writing and directing. I can also say it was a damn good experience to watch!

The story is about a nameless person, only goes by the name of ‘Driver’ (Ryan Gosling); during the day, he’s a part-time stunt performer and mechanic at an auto-repair shop (owned by Shannon, played by ‘Breaking Bad”s Bryan Cranston) but by night, he serves as a getaway driver for heists. Meanwhile, he slowly gets to know Irene (Carey Mulligan) and her son Benicio. The ‘Driver’ gets involved into another job but it, unfortunately, goes horribly wrong.

Ryan Gosling delivers a subtle performance as the man with no name, you can sense there is something much deeper in him than you may think. He is motivated on the simple things in life, never regrets anything and keeps on going on living. The interactions between Gosling and Mulligan may have little to no dialogue but it is sweet and gentle. It doesn’t resort to conventional smutlzy romance we’re all accustomed to, it comes off something natural and Mulligan brings the heart to the film. Though the scene-stealer is from Albert Brooks, who plays the brutally honest Bernie Rose. He’s not the stereotypical mobster, he’s the type of man who’d kill someone if he had to but would do it as a last resort. The rest of the supporting cast are all superb in their own right, have little screen-time but all have their own importance to the story.

Newton Thomas Sigel’s cinematography is absolutely gorgeous to look at, from the various night shots of L.A. to the car chases (only two of them through-out the duration). There are moments where you are transfixed to its beauty and you are also tensed when it comes to the chases. The editing is very put together, not too fast paced so we get a clear idea on what’s going on within the scene. It all makes homages to the classic 60s/70s car chases of ‘Bullitt’ etc. It all just puts the ‘Fast and the Furious’ franchise into shame and Refn just shows how it’s all done. The soundtrack is equally as superb, capturing the essence of its pulpy story-line but also delivering this dreamy quality that maybe represents the ‘Driver’s’ psyche.

Overall; easily one of the best movies of 2011 and such a unique film that serves as both art-house and pulp cinema! Refn is one of the best living filmmakers to date and should get recognised for his direction in this film. It doesn’t rely on the spectacle, it relies on the craft of the writing and performances.

4 out of 5