Today's entry comes from our buddy up the street at
Pick Your Flick, the cool local video rental joint on Cottage Street right here in Easthampton. Since the last movie I saw in the the theater was Star Wars, I defer what I thought might be an interesting and timely topic, summer movies, to resident expert, Tim Jenks, proprietor of the aformentioned video rental place.
If you haven't been to his store, I suggest you check it out. Sure, Movie Gallery has more copies of stuff, but Tim's place is way cooler, has much more hometown feel, and is chock full of hidden indie gems. And the best part is, you can get movie ideas from Tim and his wife Liz. Their smiley daughter Gwen mostly gives movie recommendations by giggle and flailing arm gestures, but I expect soon she'll be another source of friendly conversation and movie info.
Here's Tim's take on the Summer of '09 movies he's seen so far...
+ Transformers: Revenge of The Fallen +
If you were between the ages of 5 and 18 during the 1980's, then you probably share the same feelings that I do about Transformers. If you don't fall into that age category, here's a glimpse into my thoughts: Transformers are Awesome! That's it, nothing too complicated here - they are without a doubt Awesome. So when I heard that they were making a Live-Action Transformers movie, I thought it was a joke. No one could make that work on the big screen if they weren't in their original animated form. Then, in 2007, Michael Bay blew us away with the coolest looking, walking, talking, destroying and gigantic "real" Transformers anyone had ever seen. So I hear that they are making a sequel to this awesome movie and don't think much about the way it will look or feel because I already know how it will look and feel, right?
Wrong.
Revenge of The Fallen is nothing like it great predecessor in any way other than the fact that there are Transformers in the movie. First off, the camera moves way too quick to even decipher what is happening on the screen if you could follow who was who anyway. They introduce way too many Transformers to try and remember on the fly and the Decepticons aren't that much different than the Autobots.
I would like to tell you that this movie was great but unfortunately that is not the case. Too many robots and explosions and not much story development make this one fall right on it's face.
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+ Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince +
If you have read the books then you probably feel the same way that I do about the last film, The Order of the Phoenix. It was nowhere near as good as the book and they seemed to have left out about two hundred pages of vital plot from the film. Well, the latest installment in the Harry Potter series blows the last one away by far. I would even go as far as to say this film is the best adaptation of the books to date. It's very dark and dreary, just as the book portrays. You should definitely watch this movie if you're a fan of the series, books or films or both.
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+ Star Trek +Let me start by stating that I am not a fan of Star Trek by any means. I never watched the original series or the spin offs or any of the previous films. That being said, let's talk about this film.
Simply put, this film blew away any expectations that I've ever had about Star Trek. It is awesome in every way. Visually it is simply stunning and the sets are incredible. The story line and character development are equally great as is the acting.
I highly recommend seeing this film even if you were never a fan or you still aren't a fan. After the film ended I wanted to watch more immediately, and I think you will agree.
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+ Bruno +Let's start this one off by saying that Bruno is a fictitional character from an HBO television series Da Ali G Show. If you were offended by Borat, then chances are that you will be highly offended by Bruno.
If you want to see male parts flying around, then go see Bruno. This film is definitely not for the easily offended, and this comedy hails all the stereotypical flamboyant gay jokes. It actually makes you question Sasha Baron Cohen’s own sexual preference, not that it makes a difference one way or another. Some of the props used during the filming are definitely not for the faint of heart. I’ll just leave it at that.
The scene where Paula Abdul is being interviewed about humanitarian issues while sitting on an old Mexican man is hilarious but miles from politically correct. The last scene of the wrestling match gone horribly wrong is so funny it had me nearly peeing in my pants. I strongly do not recommends this movie for families or people who are easily offended. If you can enjoy the raunchy movie, it's worth every penny to see it at the theater. I can’t wait for it to come out on DVD to see what all the extras are.
Conspiciously absent from Tim's list is the flick, The Hangover. Rumor has it, that's the funny movie of the summer to see. Miles funnier than Funny People, I'm told. Maybe I can get one of my scoopers to write a little review of that one.
Then again, that may not be suitable for family-friendly ICD reading.
In any event, it's prime movie weather. Too hot and muggy to do much else, besides eat ice cream of course.
And if you don't feel like driving all the way to West Springfield or South Hadley, crank up your a.c., stop by Tim's video store, and pick up a few flicks for tonight.
Tim's working on another ICD installment - his favorite rental summer of '09 flicks. Stay tuned for that.
And feel free to leave a comment with a movie recommendation of your own...
It may not seem totally drained when you look at the front section of the pond, the part we're used to gazing at from Cottage Street and Williston, but the pond is down to a trickling brook on the east end. That side did not disappoint. Can't wait to see the giant earthmoving equipment go to town on the muck.
As you see above, the fishermen have realized smaller pond means easier to catch. Not sure if that's actually true, but they've definitely been trying. They don't seem deterred by the muck and low tide smell at all.
Today...
And a few more to round out the tour as logged today, Monday, August 17th, 2009... 
Well, it looks like the pond has started its exit in prep for the long-anticipated dredging out project. It could be yet another tease, but it does seem that the valves on the spillway have been opened, and the water level is slowly starting to drop.
After sweltering it out during this first real blast of summer heat these past few days, it became clear the shop's center A.C. unit, the workhorse, just wasn't going to make the cut. I never considered a big window AC as a disposable thing, but between the size of the shop, the people, the heat thrown off by all the freezers, and the door constantly opening and closing, 3 12K window AC's just are no match for those 85+ degree and humid days. And after blowing warm air at us during the hotest times of the day these past few, it became clear today that one of us had to go.
I was actually stopped for this one, a little safer...
