GeekFurious the Podcast - Episode 204: Was Live!

Our first ever LIVE podcast that was watched and listened to by actual living people! Enjoy the recording. I don't know what we talked about but I'm sure it was something interesting.



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Furycast 63 - FOX is Not a Real Network

Jess and Magnus discuss CHUCK (way too much), NEW GIRL, HAPPY ENDINGS, PARKS AND RECREATION, ARCHER, plus some other stuff... like how FOX is not a real network... ummm... Viggo Mortensen... what else? Racism in the industry... look, it is an hour long. It is bound to cover a lot of stuff that I can't remember. Just let it be people! Let it be!

WARNING: this is essentially an unedited podcast. Only 12 seconds at the beginning and 10 at the end were cut out. So if we relieve ourselves or drink water or stop talking for a minute... it is all there. ENJOY!

To listen, press play below.


You can also DOWNLOAD THE MP3 VERSION by right clicking that link and then saving the file to your hard drive so that you can do with it as you wish. I don't want to know. Just do it. In the privacy of your own home.
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Furycast 62 - That Horrible Noise

Jess and Magnus discuss a whole heap of things including the CHUCK anniversary, NEW GIRL, HAPPY ENDINGS, PARKS AND RECREATION, GAME OF THRONES, FRINGE, movies, and why the Golden Globes are dumb. Plus more. Adult language used.

WARNING!!!! Jess' microphone is apparently so bad that I had to put a noise filter on the entire podcast just to help drown out the buzz emanating from it. At times it isn't as bad as other times. It may bother some more than others. I apologize for this and have all the confidence in the world that Jess won't give two shits about it and make no effort to improve her microphone issues in the future.

Autoplaying for my convenience.


You can also download this podcast by RIGHT CLICKING THIS LINK and saving it to your computer.
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The Hunger Games Movie Review

The Hunger Games movie has made a bazillion dollars opening weekend, and everyone I know has seen it already. I won't write up a synopsis of the film, because if you don't know what it's about by now, here is the wikipedia entry I was really looking forward to this movie coming out, though not as much as say, a Harry Potter or the upcoming The Hobbit, mostly because The Hunger Games isn't as well written as either of those books. I had read a few reviews before heading to the theater, so I had some idea of what people thought the pluses and minuses of the film were, but I think for the most part I was open to the film and had no definable expectations. That being said...

...the movie was fantastic. I really loved it. It almost surprised me how much I loved it. The tone and the look of the film were spot on, and Jennifer Lawrence was just amazing as the main character, Katniss Everdeen. Even though I knew the story, and knew what would happen, I was still on the edge of my seat through most of the film.

The movie is a faithful adaptation of the novel, and I think might be a better adaptation than a YA fiction book would or should normally get. And the book is definitely YA, the writing and the story just feel like it was written for teen girls, but the film feels like it is meant for everyone (over the age 13 of course). I think the story, and Katniss herself, are relatable for a very broad audience. Her strength, courage, honesty, vulnerability, make her accessible to everyone watching her, both us, the real world audience, and the audience of Capitol citizens, who are glued to their screens, cheering and crying for Katniss throughout the Games.

And that is the main reason I think the film is better at this than the book: Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss. I like her Katniss so much better than the book's incarnation. Interestingly, Jennifer Lawrence looks almost nothing like the Katniss that author Suzanne Collins describes as slight, with straight black hair and olive skin. But her presence on screen and her honesty captured me completely. Would I rather have someone else, who looks like Katniss or would I rather have Jennifer Lawrence? I'd rather have Jennifer Lawrence, hands down. She had to do everything in this film, she carried the whole thing on her very capable shoulders. I must say I was surprised by this a little bit, I know she is an Oscar nominated actress, but I haven't seen Winter's Bone. I did see her in X-Men: First Class but she didn't really stand out to me, but I'm definitely a fan now.

The casting overall in the film was really well done. I was particularly impressed at how much I liked Elizabeth Banks' character Effie, considering how strange she looks, which can be very hard to act around.

Since I enjoyed the movie so much it's hard to find anything major to take issue with, but I do have a few things I'd like to nitpick about. None of them are “Why did they cut this?” like in my Battle Royale movie review, thankfully.

I'd like to have seen more reactions from and scenes with Capitol citizens as they were watching the games. We got a few moments of Haymitch schmoozing, a few moments of District citizens watching, and scenes of the game controllers, but not enough of the Captiol citizens generally. I think more of that would have helped sell the emotional trickery of the love story between Peeta and Katniss. I know some people were confused by their relationship, and didn't buy the love story, but that was the point. I think a few more moments showing how the Capitol was being manipulated by this “star-crossed” lovers yarn would have worked to the film's benefit. Especially since it is a nice way to show the tributes, who are completely and overtly manipulated by the government on a daily basis AND during the games, playing the game right back. In my head, right before Katniss kisses Peeta full on the mouth, there is a quick cutaway to a camera in the cave quietly zooming in in anticipation, ready for the “romantic” kiss that the Capitol and sponsors are eagerly anticipating.

I also think the film should have had a bit more blood and gore. There was barely any. I understand why the filmmakers kept it so tame, they want the lucrative teen audience to come out and see the film, but I did think it was heavy handed in the editing out of blood splatters. The average 12 year old has seen plenty of TV/video game/movie violence already, whether their parents know it or not.

But anyway, see this movie on the big screen. See it and enjoy it and then give in to the immediate urge to learn archery and basic forest survival. I haven't wanted to live in a tree so badly since I was a kid and read My Side of the Mountain.

And by the way, I know most of you will be rushing here to comment on whether you are Team Pitabread or Team Thorbrother, but let's all be honest...what we really want is Haymitch and Effie hooking up on the downlow on that fancy train. Just me?

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Battle Royale Movie Review

Battle Royale released in 2000 in Japan, based on the novel of the same title which I have already sort of reviewed earlier. The film only officially released in the US in December 2011, not because it had been banned (which was a rumor) but because no one had bought the distribution rights. The film has gotten really good reviews and even won some awards in Japan, dispite a number of protestations and criticisms of the film's subject material when it released.

As a film on its own, Battle Royale is kick ass. It's an awesome, bloody, crazy film that tells the story of a bunch of Japanese teenage classmates who are forced to fight a battle to the death on an island. Its fun and shocking, and I can easily see why people who saw the movie before reading the book, would prefer the film. It cuts right to the chase, it skips most of the backstory (obviously due to only having 2 hours to tell the story) and uses the gore and violence and youth of the contestants to full impact. The problem I have with Battle Royale the film, is when I start looking at it as an adaptation of the 1999 novel. (It is not an adaptation of the manga, the novel came first.) Like I said, to those who see the film first, I can see how the novel is probably way to long etc. but since I read the novel before I saw the film, to me, as an adaptation, the film doesn't quite hold up. At least, not as well as I'd hoped.

Again, I understand the need to cut out a lot of backstory because of time restraints. But there were a number of things cut for the film version that I just don't understand. I'll give the two biggest examples: Kazuo's character, the main antagonist, changes from paper to screen, and one of the most film-y sequences from the book, a car chase/shootout is not in the film at all.

Regarding Kazuo, in the film he is evil. He is mean and emotional and enjoys killing his fellow classmates. He even volunteers to join the class just to participate in this battle to the death. He is for all intents and purposes, a pure psychopath, which serves as the reason he goes on a killing rampage. The book Kazuo is much more chilling; he feels nothing. He doesn't feel much pain, he feels no guilt, anger, joy, no emotion of any kind. He suffered brain damage as a fetus, when his mother was in a car accident. This damaged the part of his brain that controls human emotion. Kazuo decides to play the game, to kill his classmates, because he flips a coin, and that's the side it lands on. He doesn't enjoy killing anyone, but he doesn't feel bad about it either. Imagine being hunted by someone who has no feelings, pure creepy. I think it would have made the film much more interesting to keep Kazuo the way he was originally written.

The car chase being cut makes far less sense to me. Kazuo in a car chasing, Shuya, Shogo, and Niroko in a van while they are shooting at each other and almost dying every second, why would anyone cut that? And it takes place right around the climax of the film. I guess I'd have to ask the filmmakers to get an answer to this. It's really disappointing to read something like that and see absolutely nothing of it on screen.

The film doesn't come close to developing the kind of depth the novel has, but I'd say definitely see the film Battle Royale, it is awesome on its own. But if you've read the book already, prepare yourself for some serious changes. Not just in some scenes, but in some of the character psychology as well.

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