A bizarre blend of Edo era Samurai action, and wild west Cowboy violence, the Japanese remake of Unforgiven is just a little surreal. Taking place in Hokkaido in 1880 with Tombstone right next door, it looks like they did an excellent job blending the two cultures to tell a story that is equally heart-wrenching in either one. I particularly liked the scene of the cowboys riding off across the western terrain against the backdrop of Mt. Fuji.
Terrestrial Human
Daz 3D is a powerful free 3D modeling and animation software package that has everything you could want to create your own animations. Mind, if you are not careful, the content store may drain your wallet in short order. But that is mostly a problem for the lazy, who are not willing to do the work to create their own stuff when they can just buy it off the shelf.
Once you have downloaded and installed the free software package, knowing how to use it would be pretty useful, so some tutorials would help out. As with most training and tutorials, any of these concepts apply equally to a lot of different software packages that do the same general job. The major real differences between them are what the buttons are called and which menu they live in, although each program seems to have 1 to 3 things it can do with a click that the other programs need a procedure for. So if you use a different program for your 3D modeling and rendering, most of the info will apply once you figure out where those buttons live in your software.
The first one is a basic intro to 3D modeling and animation, demonstrating the basic components any animation is made of. Once you understand what the components are, it is just a mater of learning how to do each of them in whichever program you prefer, and finally how to put them together to create your finished product. The second tutorial is about the program itself, Daz Studio, showing you where these functions live in this software and how to use them. Again, most of the concepts work in any software, so you might want to at least watch it once, even if you use a different program. And if you don’t already have a 3D modeling software package you prefer to work in, then I recommend downloading and installing either Daz or Blender, as the best free 3D programs on the market today. There are more tutorials where these came from, keep your eyes open and you will find a lot of good ones.
This is more about the author and his books than the movie; perhaps I should call it Something To Read? I have been waiting for a decade or so for them to turn Dean Koontz’s wonderful character Odd Thomas into a movie, and I have heard about them doing so for the last few years. It has finally gotten beyond the rumor stage; a week from Friday, this one hits the big screen! The delay was caused by some legal issues between film making partners which should never have gotten in the way. From the trailer it looks like they have built the perfect film version of the first book in the series, and I am keeping my fingers crossed that they pull the box office numbers necessary to allow them to continue cranking out the entire collection of stories for our viewing enjoyment!
Have you read the Odd Thomas books or graphic novels? Oddy is a short order cook working the breakfast crowd at the grill, because that simple job allows him to zen out and let his mind come up with the proper solutions to help the various dead who appear to him. They don’t speak to him, for the dead do not talk. But they do make him aware of what their problems are, so he can help them. Most often they are looking for Justice, to have their killer stopped so they can not kill others. Sometimes they just need to be reassured they will be remembered, or that their mother knows how much they loved her, or maybe they just need that final ball to fetch. Odd Thomas has been seeing the dead since he was a child, and he is finally beginning to figure out how he can best serve them.
Dean R Koontz is a unique writer because his genre is horror, and his message is about how beautiful the world is, and how wonderful most of the people in it are, and most of all how full of hope and love even the most terrifying situation is. I never liked horror until I started reading this author. Actually, I still don’t like horror, but when the story carries this strong a message about how the world is right and good when good people stand up against evil, how could I not like it? The other series Dean does that impresses the hell out of me is his Frankenstein set, where Victor is trying to reduce people to slaves/robots, and not just a couple of folks, but entire cities and states. Meanwhile, the first Monster he created is still alive a few hundred years later, has learned the trick of quantum teleportation from the Dali Lama, and is out to save humanity from him with the help of some New Orleans cops, a sentient cancer tumor, and the 10th clone of Victor’s first wife. Trust me when I say Dean will always take you on a fun ride with lots of surprising stops along the way and will always leave you grinning ear to ear when you finally get to your destination.
The Studio Ghibli film nominated for an Academy Award, The Wind Rises, is finally on the big screen for American audiences to enjoy. This is a bit different as Anime goes, because it is a look at the real life of a man who designed fighter planes for Japan during WWII. While Anime does not shy away from hard story lines, it does not often tell you about actual people, other than historical figures long dead in completely different eras. It has some stiff competition in the Awards, it is up against both Despicable Me 2 and Frozen; I am looking forward to seeing it in the theater. After I do, I will have finally seen everything nominated and can make my decision as to which one I would vote for. Also out this week, Pompeii is about a gladiator making a mad dash to save his true love from being married to a corrupt Roman Senator (is there any other kind?) while the Volcano trashes the town. That one sounds like it should be a lot of fun. There is a chance that Angels in Stardust might be an interesting fantasy as well, or at least an indie quirky kind of film.
The only movie I could find this time was an almost-direct-to-DVD release called Battle of the Damned, which is basically Dolph Lundgren and his Robots vs. a Zombie virus outbreak in a remake of Escape From New York. I say almost because it did show up in some theaters in Germany last year, but nowhere else that I am aware of.
We do better in TV, with Game of Thrones: Season Three, bringing the next book of the George R.R. Martin series to the home. I realize that is also only a single title, but the category makes up in quality for the difference.
Where we really make out this week is in Anime; not only more than one title, but more than one excellent title! Ever dream of being able to join your school’s Robot Research Club, and build a giant fighting robot based on your favorite Anime, that would then battle it out in competitions? If so, Robotics;Notes: Part 1 is a must see, from the folks who did Chaos;HEAD and Steins;Gate. But be careful what you wish for; when a sentient AI program begins giving the club members hints about secret robot designs hidden online, things take a turn for the really strange. Naruto Shippūden the Movie: Blood Prison is actually the 5th movie about the Nine Tailed Fox and his ninja friends. They should probably start putting numbers directly in the titles so you wouldn’t have to wonder. In this one, Naruto is convicted of a crime he didn’t commit and ends up in prison inside a castle, which I suppose must mean a dungeon. He befriends a few of the inmates and gears up to get free, whatever way he can.
Jormungand is the story of a child soldier desperately seeking those who murdered his family, who ends up as the newest bodyguard for Koko. She is an arms dealer who brings the Boom to the downtrodden masses while preparing for her own version of World Peace. This is one of those instant gratification releases; while season 1 and season 2 are two separate box sets, they are being released on the same day. Folks like me who go nuts being forced to wait 6 months or a year to find out how the story turns out really appreciates that. Of course, in 6 months they will no doubt release both seasons in a single box set for about $5 more than just one season will cost you now, but who wants to wait? I should probably also mention this is from the team that brought you Black Lagoon, so you should expect quite a large helping of ultra-violence and amorality.
Finally, Time Bokan: Royal Revival i just too funny for words. A classic Anime is getting remade, but to select which series of the original 9 different seasons with different casts, the bad guys from the original shows are building their own giant mechas and having a race. Except, the bad guy’s robots in Anime only do one thing really well; get destroyed in some visually stunning fashion. Plus, they are bad guys; cheating and dirty tricks are their stock in trade. My favorite quote about this program is: It’s Grand Theft Mecha Vs. Super Moron Kart as the baddies slam, bash and dirty trick each other to the finish in TIME BOKAN: ROYAL REVIVAL! This one is actually from 1993, and was first released on DVD in the US in 2005. This re-release does mark the first time you can get it in Blu Ray in North America, and if you haven’t seen it before it is quite amusing.
I couldn’t help it, this song was too much fun. I Kveld Med YLVIS isn’t a band, it is a Norwegian talk/variety show with an attitude, and they originally did this track as another comedy skit on their show. It went somewhat viral, pulling in 359,757,676 views (as of the last time I checked), the equivalent of every man, woman, and child in the US watching it. They brought it to the BBC Children In Need Special produced every year to aid kids who might otherwise not get a chance to grow up, and were joined by a bunch of singers you should recognize; how many of them can you name? And then someone mashed it up with 2013’s other runaway silly song, Gangnam Style from Psy. Just goes to show, sometimes when you get silly the world notices and sings along.