Listening To Robin Williams

Kick Ass Review

Friday my brother-in-law Antony and I went to see 'Kick Ass' in the Eye Cinema, Galway. (Sweet Popcorn!!!) Antony is just shy of 15 and I had high hopes he would enjoy the movie a lot.

To start, I'm big fan of Romita Jr. and have a lot of respect for Millar's writing so I was hoping for a solid enough translation.

The film works exceptionally well. Aaron Johnson fits the role of Dave Lizewski well. (Kudos to his American accent) I was initially sceptical about the casting of Nicolas Cage for the part of Big Daddy but his Adam Westesque portrayal of the man in black had a normally subdued Irish audience in hysterics. Hit Girl (Chloe Moretz) stole every scene she was in. The father/daughter relationship however unorthodox was actually quite charming.

'Super Bads' Christopher Mintz-Plasse is possibly miscast in the role of Red Mist. Saying that he very much made the role his own and there was little or no hint of Mc Lovin' left in his performance. 'Kick Ass 2' will be the true test for this casting decision.

The movie is obviously an homage to/parody of the average comic book story arc. At times you would be forgiven for thinking you had stumbled into Sam Raimi's Spiderman Universe. This is of course intentional, 'Kick Ass' is very obviously an alternate version of the Spiderman story line.

The action sequences are superb, edited to perfection. The soundtrack fits like a glove. The story moves along very well, and bar the final few scenes stays fairly grounded in the realistic world it strives to create. The language however course is integral to the story, and in my opinion rarely included for shock value. Parents rest assured your munchkins wont be exposed to anything they don't already hear in the school yard on a daily basis.

All in all, a great Friday night movie, Spiderman meets Kill Bill! 7.5 out of 10!

I think 15 year old Antony's first comment as we left the cinema says it all, 'I'm buying that when it comes out on DVD!'

Listening To Tommy and Hector Podcasts

Favorite Game Ever!

My favorite computer game by far is 'Animal Crossing Wild World' on Nintendo DS. Neen and I have such great memories playing it together. Personaly I think portability is what makes it so successful. The DS version in my oppinion far outshines it's N64, Game Cube, and Wii couterparts. It's a beautiful, fun and addictive game! I highly recommend it to anyone. Saturday we stumbled across these little Animal Crossing Bell Danglers in Pippa Blue (Formerly LolaRose)

Playing...

I have been playing this all weekend, so so fun. Plus it was a bargain at only 10 euro! Neen found it while doing the weekly shop in Tesco.

Reading...

I stumbled across this fantastic children's book yesterday while the wife and I were in our local bookstore 'Charlie Byrne's'. Entitled 'Wings, Horns & Claws', and created by Christopher Wormell this book is by far the most beautifully illustrated children's dinosaur book I have ever seen.

Wings, Horns, & Claws

A Dinosaur Book of Epic Proportions

Pages: 64 Age range: 3–8 years

ISBN: 9780762424191

Hardcover

Wings, Horns, & Claws: A Dinosaur Book of Epic Proportionsis an affectionate pictorial tribute to those prehistoric animals, who grow with every turn of the page reinforcing the cognitive learning concept of size and proportion. Wormell’s trademark beautiful woodcut illustrations are paired here with very detailed descriptions of his subjects, many of them the lesser-known, unsung dinos of the Jurassic world. His unique vision and incredible artistry elevate this book above the crowd of volumes devoted to the Earth’s coolest monsters. A great choice for kids and even adults who can’t get enough of these mythic creatures.

Heron on the Claddagh

I was down town early this week doing some photographic research for a project. When walking along Claddagh, I came across this heron standing in the narrow roadway. I assumed I would only have a fleeting moment to capture a picture before he flew off so I raised my already drawn camera and started clicking. The heron was unperturbed and let me take as many pictures as I wanted. I couldn't figure out what exactly he was doing there. Seconds later he flew on top of a nearby car and kindly posed for a few more shots. Approx. 2 minutes later I realized why he was there. A man emerged from the adjacent house with a bag of food, obviously on cue and proceeded to feed the heron. A nice surprise considering I had spent the morning photographing wooden doors.

Listening To