another change in direction

Okay, so I decided against using this site to update my life. Maybe somebody noticed, but I doubt it.

The new (and improved!) plan is to start sharing links to the reviews that I’ve been posting on a totally different site…a totally different site with reviews about everything, from the new items at your local convenience store to the expensive wines served in upscale restaurants…located in exotic countries. The Las Vegas Critics site is one of the reasons that this particular blog has stagnated, but Secret Undersea City will soon host links to all of the reviews I’ve been writing during the time I’ve been gone. Get ready.

Stardust

Stardust: official trailer | Stardust: casino implosion

exclusive HD trailer for Stardust

Stardust trailers on Apple.com

Stardust might very well be my favorite Neil Gaiman (text-only) book (I’ve not yet read Anansi Boys or Coraline) and I was originally excited that they were going to make it into a movie. That excitement has faded…from what I’ve seen so far it looks like the magic will be drained from the story in much the same way that I felt like it was drained from the first Harry Potter movie. I also don’t understand why they’re using some of the bigger names in the cast. I’ve never really cared for Michelle Pfeiffer (even in a catsuit!) and I can’t imagine that Robert DeNiro was very cost effective, but I guess I’m okay with Angela Chase Claire Danes and Rupert Everett.

 

Stardust Hotel and Casino

Meanwhile, in Las Vegas, there was a completely different Stardust that lasted from July 2, 1958 until March 13, 2007, when it was imploded. I might be biased, but WhileLasVegasSleeps.com has a complete video of the implosion and I think it’s the best one that I’ve seen. The actual event was way more amazing than the video could capture (the entire fireworks segment was like one huge finale) and you really just have to be there to feel the explosions, but click through for the next best thing.

Coincidentally, in the movie Casino, Robert Deniro portrayed the head of the Stardust, but the name of the casino was changed to “Tangiers” for the film. (We know it was really the Stardust though, don’t we?)

Paprika, Next, 1408 and more Sunshine

Sunshine (update) | Paprika (anime) | Next (PKDick) | 1408 (King)

New Sunshine trailers: Kaneda and MSN Exclusive

This might be all you get for a while…apparently the US release date for this movie has been pushed back until December. (but not the UK release date…what’s up with that?)

 

Paprika trailer

Paprika seems to be about a detective who can enter the dreams of the people she is investigating. There’s so much potential for unbelievable and amazing imagery with a premise like this that I can’t imagine that it wouldn’t be worth seeing. It looks to me like something that Michel Gondry might have created, but since Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind dealt with the inner workings of the mind that’s probably to be expected.

 

Next trailer

Since Next is based on a Philip K. Dick story (and I’ve liked almost everything of his that has been adapted for the big screen: Blade Runner, Minority Report, A Scanner Darkly, etc.) I’m hoping that it will be good. It’s about a Las Vegas showroom magician named Cris Johnson who can see a few minutes into the future.

 

1408 trailer

This one has been out there for a while, but I forgot to share. It’s based on a Stephen King short story, but I think it might actually be worth watching (unlike many of his other adapted works.) It’s about a horror writer that checks into hotel room #1408 because it is rumored to be haunted.

Vegas, baby. Vegas.

I really wanted to like the first Resident Evil movie…and I even tricked myself into believing that I liked it based on the last few minutes, but overall it really wasn’t very good. The sequel, however, was easily one of the worst films that I’ve ever encountered in all my years on this planet (even though it’s teaser trailer was also kinda cool.) So don’t get the wrong idea…I’m not recommending this film. I have no plans to see this movie and the only way I would even consider it is if it got some good reviews. I’m sharing because the first ten or fifteen seconds of this trailer could almost be an ad for Christopher’s Las Vegas blog…right before it gets all desolate and Mad Max-y with all the action and stuff. Click through for Milla being all tough and a glimpse of the mirror girl from Heroes.

the new Resident Evil: Extinction teaser trailer