johnnymacbest

Where do we even start with this? Never has a game been this abysmally unoriginal, uninspired, trite, narrative repulsive story and characters with inconsistent characterization and motivation and just leaves a bad taste in a gamer's mouth and a waste of time, money, and tears.

It has been proven time and time again that divisive politics is ruining and continues to ruin entertainment as a whole and Dustborn or should I say, Dullsborn, is a true testament to that statement. Over the years, we've been bombarded with not-so-subtle political messaging, bringing in outside, daily world problems into video games where their primary reason and purpose is to, y'know, ENTERTAIN. There's a time and place for political discussions; not in any form of entertainment whatsoever; if you wanted to be preached to, you go to a seminar, town hall meeting, etc. Everyone else just wants escapism. Dullsborn provides NONE. At all.

So, to sum it up, spend your money, time, patience and Perseverance on other, more entertaining games like Black Myth: Wukong, Warhammer: Space Marine 2, Stellar Blade or any game that is devoid of audience alienating political discussions, etc. This latest dumpster fire will simply bore you to tears.

Avoid, like the avalanche.

There is a certain amount of hype surrounding The Legend of Lara Croft; which isn't as legendary as one might expect from this show, seeing as how several liberties were taken either stylistically for choice or for the sake of pushing an insane narrative that has absolutely nothing at all to do with the lore, setting, and overall, Lara's character as a worldwide famed archeaologist that is basically Indiana Jones with a bra and ponytail. A fair assessment that sums up this latest iteration, but you get my point.

Not helping matters is the nonsensical plot and character development that seriously stretches one's suspension of disbelieve in ways so unbelievable that it's right on par with that of the earlier Looney Tunes cartoons of years past. It's that bad. So bad in fact, that it completely disrepect's Lara Croft, who is anything but a Looney Tune caricature in terms of personality, quirks, traits, mannerisms, femininity, etc. Come to think of it, Lara has suspiciously been "physically altered" to fit an ideological body type akin to more of a masculine, rather than female anatomy of the female body and it is here where the creators of the show have fundamentally dropped the ball. Not helping matters is that of her companions, who are giving little to do other than be a diverse cast of carboard cutouts instead of actual characters. To be fair, Lara's companions in the games weren't exactly as fleshed out as her, but little tidbits into their insights surrounding Lara and her global escapades, made the experience so charming and endearing to players, lifelong fans, or newcomers worldwide, alike. This is part of the core of Lara Croft and the makers missed it by a wide margin.

Aided by admittedly cheap animation and out of place stylized action, the action scenes have little to no gravitas, stakes, or any sense of peril whatsoever that was so aptly in abundance in the video games and to a certain extent, the recent live action movies. Never once is the audience worried for Lara's safety (never mind her companions who are as vapid as air) and as a result, we're left with a character that is essentially a Mary Sue on par of Rey of the SW sequel trilogy fame. One has to wonder if the creators ever did their homework on the franchise and what it will need to draw viewers in as the original games have to everyone worldwide starting from the mid '90s were Lara became a famous icon for all ages, genders, races, etc. This latest attempt to "modernize Lara" for a supposedly abundant "modern audience" has done nothing more than make Lara a shadow of herself than she already has as evidence by her not so-stellar last game in the Survivor trilogy and it is further exemplified by the writing and dialog concerning conversations among characters as well as their appearance. Did anyone catch the Killmonger-looking dude with the identical hairstyle? I did and it led to me having an audible groan of disbelief. Laziness and lack of creativity in favor of generic character design. A FAR cry from the well-designed characters from the earlier and Survivor trilogy in the venerable series.

Although I enjoyed Haley Atwell's sumptuous voice as the titular heroine, here it feels rather forced, phoned in, sort of speak, rather than a natural, serene, fierce, determined, vulnerable, yet with an abundance of sarcasm, wit, femininity, but also caring and heartwarming. Not so here in Legend of Lara Croft.

Fans of the series and characters should rather stay away from this mediocre outing. Although I'm sure that those unfamiliar with the character will gravitate towards it, for general audiences, its a giant slog to witness. It wouldn't be surprising if this was cancelled after the first season; after all, nowadays, media companies can't afford to allow money being wasted on drivel; especially when it hurts their bottomline. It remains to be seen if a second attempt at an animated series will come after this one predictably bombs, but as always, we'll just have to wait and see.

For years, I've yearned to see this cult classic starring the venerable Kurt Russel in the title role; finally, that time was upon me, and I am more than impressed with its gritty, taught, sci-fi action against the backdrop of a post apocalyptic world on the brink of total societal collapse.

Russell stars as Snake Plissken, a gruff anti-hero tasked with rescuing the president from a gang of (possible) political dissidents holed up in a sealed off island of Manhattan, NYC that has a dark, tragic past. The setting works really well in establishing its tone, mood, atmosphere with a hefty dose of ultraviolence that and gritty direction that has become John Carpenter's trademark, and it really shows. It's a pity that if this film were to ever be remade for some "political modern audience" it shouldn't and never could compare to the seminal, dark original Carpenter classic.

Stellar performances abound aplenty, of course with Russell. But it is the supporting cast that succeeds with playing off the iconic antihero such as Ernest Borgnine, Lee Van Cleef, Adrienne Barbeau and Isaac Hayes; portraying characters that bring this unique universe to life with distinct personalities, quirks, traits, etc.

Adding to this is the stellar art direction, despite showing its age, still holds up with incredible attention to detail in production values and special effects. The indelible matte paintings that was a staple at the time done by a young James Cameron are a marvel to behold; especially with a 4k TV. If you can see it on the biggest screen affordable for home viewing, you're in for quite an impressive treat!!

The action scenes, though small in doses, deliver and are to the point. Nothing gratuitous, though some are quite brutal and gory. But for the most part, they compliment and accentuate the dark, futuristic setting well and reveal character motivations in actions and words.

So all in all, Escape from New York is one of the best sci-fi/post apocalyptic films I've ever seen for the very first time even in this day and age. With stylish action, well-written characters, gripping and suspensful plot, and sublime acting, its another one to have in your movie library.