Crisis

I'm beginning to realize the only time I come to write in blogs anymore is when I am at a breaking point in my life. Perhaps not a breaking point, but it feels like it for sure.

Actually, I just remembered I have my pen and journal sitting right next to me...

...sorry, blogspot. I'm old fashioned. ;)

Halloween Review

I wasn't going to mention John Carpenter in this review at all except for this one statement. And that is exactly the point! John Carpenter isn't included at all in this version of Halloween except for the creation of the original characters and plot.

A lot of people feel that the original Halloween should be untouched territory. That it was perfect the way it was. And I agree with them! The original Halloween was not just an incredible horror film, but a great movie in general. It is, in fact, my favorite horror film of all time. Enter Rob Zombie. Not just with a sequel, mind you, but a movie with the simple title "Halloween." A remake? I was not excited to say the least. Especially when there was talk about Zombie not knowing if he wanted to use the original mask or an alternative.

However--

***SPOILERS***

Rob Zombie did use the original mask. Yes he changed it a bit. The expression on the mask was not as "emotionless", which I think was very important that it remained that way. Another change was the dirt and grime added due to the mask being buried under the floor of his old house for fifteen years. Yes, that makes since, but I preferred the pure white mask that you could see more clearly in a dark room. Very creepy. Yet, despite the minor changes I didn't exactly agree with, I was able to looks past them and even appreciate them to an extent.

I've never been a big fan of Rob Zombie to begin with, and that's what took me off guard with this film. I felt that Zombie's style and directing ability have matured a great amount since his last two films. I actually found myself admiring some of the direction. I loved the instability of the camera during the "hunting" scene with Laurie. I also loved how much darker this version of Halloween turned out to be. It gives Michael even more of an evil edge.

The movie itself was terrifying when it wanted to be. I have not found myself more on edge with a horror film in a LONG time. Michael Myers was brutal in this version. Yes, he would bust through walls in the original, but not the way he did in this one. Tyler Mane's Michael Myers was a monster, and he didn't hide any of that from the audience. When Laurie is running out of the house and Michael comes walking out behind her, it is not reminiscent of the old Michael who would just casually follow. This Michael Myers comes stomping out like a predator determined to get his prey. Not only his he determined, he's furious! And you can see it!

Another thing I really liked was that Michael did not want to kill his sister at first. He wanted to reunite with her. But because she didn't understand that and stabbed him in the back, or the shoulder for that matter, his child-inside personality kicks in to kill anything that he considers to be not for him, but against him.

As for Dr. Loomis, I thought Malcolm McDowell did a fine job. He looked and sounded much like Donald Pleasance, (as much he could). I also liked how Michael and Loomis, though they had much different perspectives, had a respect, even a soft spot for each other. Michael could've killed Loomis, but did not. Perhaps it was because he was too focused on his sister. Even so, the connection was still apparent.

I loved the ending. Laurie screaming her head off while straddled across her dead brother that she just shot in the head at point plank. Blood covering her chin. And then the close up of her screaming in terror with the sound of police sirens getting closer. Credits. I loved it.

In conclusion, I really enjoyed Rob Zombie's Halloween. I think one of the reasons I enjoyed it so much is because I did not have a problem comparing it to the original at all. I didn't have a problem, meaning I simply didn't compare them. The thought did not enter my mind. I did not consider this a remake. For fans to really see this movie for what it is, the have to truly realize this is not Carpenter's Halloween! It's just a different version. One that went deeper into the person of Michael Myers. And while some might argue that the mystery of Michael Myers was one of the very aspects that made him so scary (and I agree), I still enjoyed his story line and was able to continue to fear his icon just as effectively, if not more, because if his beefed up, barbaric personality.

Well done, Rob. I don't know if I'll ever enjoy another one of your movies as much as I did this one, but you've shown me you do have some talent after all. No sequels, though! Michael Myers is DEAD!

P.S. Thank you for keeping the original music! It was scary as hell!

Rating 9/10

God Bless. Jer. 32:27
John L. Pelzel

Metallica: Death Magnetic Review

Death Magnetic is a very interesting release by Metallica. For the past 17 years, Metallica has been receiving negative remarks for their work due to the change in style of their music. Most notably was the criticism from Load and on, save S&M. People have been asking the musicians to return to their roots ever since. With the release of St. Anger, they claimed to have accomplished this, but the result was their most embarrassing album ever. St. Anger was not just a bad album for Metallica, it was one of the worst musical sessions I have ever heard from any band or artist, period. However, Death Magnetic takes a different approach.

There are both pros and cons to this new release. I'll start with the pros. First and foremost, the CD starts off well. The sound is reminiscent of their earlier work. There are shredding guitar solos with a qualifying "heavy" output, and on some aspects, it fits in with the likes of ...And Justice For All, my favorite Metallica album.

Actually, that's the only pro that I can come up with at the moment. But that's not a bad thing! This was a very important accomplishment for the band, and it's, for the most part, decently consistent throughout the entire album. Unfortunately, it is also connected to my cons, and I do have more than one of those.

When you start Death Magnetic, it sounds as if it's going to take you back to the Metallica of the 80's. Most songs have some resemblance to their older works, but at the same time, you also hear their more recent inspirations as well. Thankfully, nothing like St. Anger, but more like Load and ReLoad. Now, this is not necessarily a bad thing either. I, myself, while not liking Load and ReLoad near as much as the previous albums, I did not loath them. But, for a lot of people, they did, and therefore, will get a hint of the same with the album of topic.

There are a couple songs where, the songs as a whole, sound very Load era influenced, and then in the middle, they'll break into an ...And Justice For All solo. This, for me, did not entirely work and the two styles did not compliment very well. It sounded a bit crunched together, as if they said "Hey, we need a solo in here because the fans want it," and just threw it in.

The further you get into Death Magnetic, the less and less it sounds like the old Metallica. Like I said before, there are pieces of each song that have a bit of Justice in them, but sometimes they take it a little overboard. Solo in Unforgiven III? I didn't like it. The mood the other two had and that 95% of the third has is a sad, melancholy "unforgiven" feel. An energetic solo does not fit.

Toward the end of the album, though, they start to go back to their raw metal influence. Evidence in attempting to recreate ...And Justice For All is prevalent in the last two songs. An instrumental, followed by a thrashing speed metal encore. Exactly like Justice. "My Apocalypse" was a satisfying ending. Possibly my favorite song on the CD.

Lastly, I'd like to make the most important realization as far as Metallica trying to get back to their old style. It's not going to happen. Reason being, James Hetfield's voice is very different from his earlier days. From Master of Puppets and back, he had a very young rebellious voice. On ...And Justice For All, it was still juvenile, but was vaguely starting to get deeper. Now, James has a more mature, gruff voice. This affects the sound of their music greatly, as far as tone and feeling.

Another unfortunate thing, over the years, I've noticed Hetfield's lyrics, while I'm sure are from the heart (as they should be), have become a little, for lack of a better term, cheesy. Not so much cheesy as they just aren't poetically written as they used to be. It's either that or he just can seem to find the way to sing them as effectively as before. And for me, that's been one of Metallica's biggest problems lately. They need to sound more serious about their message and not so scripted. It's almost as if you can feel that James doesn't really know what to do with his material. I frequently get the same feeling from Kirk Hammet. His guitar writing in their most recent CDs frequently sounds a little uncared for. Like there's not as much thought, blood and sweat that goes into it as there used to be.

All in all, Death Magnetic is an nice attempt to bring back the old fans, but has a faint nagging voice in the background begging for approval. You get a slight vibe that Metallica is trying very very hard to please their listeners, but can't quite find that old familiar magic that they used to have back in their prime. It's a great attempt, but it's just a step behind. I would put this album in between "the black album" and Load. A great deal above Load, but a small inch below the former mentioned. I did enjoy the album, and the direction Metallica has been heading takes an exciting turn. While I would not be so quick to say "Welcome back, Metallica!" I will say, "Welcome back to Earth!"

Rating: 8/10

God Bless. Jer. 32:27
John L. Pelzel

Reflection

So I’ve been pretty sick here for the past two weeks. I’d had a terrible cough, deep in the chest. There were many times that I was very concerned it might be something pretty serious. Perhaps bronchitis or pneumonia. Thank God, though, it seems to be finally clearing up. I think it’s because I started taking medicine. I personally like to hold off on taking any medicine for as long as possible to allow my body the opportunity to try to fight off the germs itself. I consider it exercising my immune system. I believe that one can eventually make their body become dependent on medication over time if they do not let their immune system do some of the work. Unfortunately, I was not seeing any relief, so I decided it was time to start taking medicine. I still have a small cough, but it is nowhere near what it had been. I would guess that I will be back to normal within a couple of days, hopefully.

It’s amazing to think about how wonderful it is to breathe. Taking in a deep breath and feeling your lungs functioning. Very good feeling. Our lungs are very hard workers. Especially if we put them through so much trauma, like smoking. I used to smoke all the time. At one point in my life, I was probably smoking an average of 15 cigarettes a day! I even smoked over a whole pack in one day, one time. As of late, I’ve been off and on, and for the past couple of months had narrowed it down to approximately one a day, if that. Now, I’m on the track of being completely cigarette free. It’s not very hard when all you’ve been smoking recently was one a day. And I know that I’m definitely done smoking cigarettes in any kind of consistency from now on. After having this cough, I considered the possibility of having lung cancer or emphysema. It is not a good thought or feeling at all! To have the idea that your days on earth might very well be greatly limited. Especially when you are lying in bed, holding your wife while she sleeps. That is a moment you never want to leave. I want to be here with her for as long as I possibly can, and I’m not going to take the risk of being taken away by lung cancer just so I can have a 10 minute moment of nicotine enjoyment. It’s not worth it at all. Not to mention how terrible it would be of me to die and leave her here, in this life, alone, with two kids and no protection. What a selfish act, to smoke cigarettes and play roulette with my life, when I have loved ones that I desperately need to be here for. I need my wife, and I know she needs me just as much. What a terrible fate to risk putting her in. A widow at just 20 years old. It shames me to know that I was playing those games. At least now I truly understand how irresponsible it is. I might’ve saved my life in the process. Thank you, God.

I’ve been writing a bit more lately. Maybe not on screenplays as much as I’d like to be, but writing nonetheless. It feels really good, and I think, like exercising the body or immune system for that matter, writing is a habit that needs to be exercised. It seems the more you do it, the more you crave it. Soon, hopefully, I will find myself sitting down and writing out one of my screenplays with little effort. If not a screenplay, at least a story or book.

God Bless. Jer. 32:27
John L. Pelzel

Life

Things are a little down for me at the moment. It's just one of those things--where you don't see any relief in sight. Thankfully, I know that that is not true and that situations never last forever. I love being a husband and father all too much, but that doesn't stop life from knocking on your door. And sometimes, life doesn't have too many good things to say. That's where I am right now. But I look forward to the day that I'm sure is soon to come, where I get to take a deep breathing sigh of relief that everything is back to working order again. I long for that. In the meantime, I will just sit back and let God mold me into the stronger person that He wants me to become. As painful as it is, I know He is transforming me into something even greater than before and that there is a reason He is choosing to mold me the way He is right now. Nobody said it was easy, though.

God Bless. Jer. 32:27

Hope

My love,
It feels hopeless, doesn't it?
The battle of living,
With the world smashing down on us,
Trying to break us,
Suffocating us to the very last breath.
But we'll carry on.
I know how you feel.
With an eternal dark void in the distance,
No light at the end of the tunnel.
But we'll carry on.

My love,
For you, is undying.
It blooms every day only with new life.
The one thing keeping me whole,
From crumbling apart.
And the tears that fall from my eyes,
Are tears of joy and gratitude,
That you are here by my side.
And we'll carry on,
Because we have that one thing,
That doesn't feel hopeless,

Us.

- John L. Pelzel 2008

Munich Review

Mr. Spielberg,

I am so sorry. Let me explain. One day, while on Netflix, I decided I should probably rent Munich and get it over with. I don't remember hearing anything about how well the movie was received by the critics, but I honestly couldn't get very excited about the movie. It seemed like a very dull film, but with your name being on it, of course I have to see it. The DVD showed up unexpected in my mailbox one day, and I was a little put out that I didn't get a different movie that I was more interested in. Now, back to my apology. I'm sorry for doubting you. That is all.

Sincerely,
John

Yes. Munich was very enjoyable. I was actually quite shocked at how "unboring" the movie turned out to be. I was expecting a slow, historical-event film revolving around a "let's catch these guys" scenario. Not at all. First of all, the characters were very personal. These aren't just a bunch of guys running around on a television screen that you don't care about. You connect with them, which I believe was my greatest fear, wouldn't occur. Character development, in my opinion, is one of the most important, if not the most important aspect of a film. Second of all, the film did a great job of making the plot interesting. It wasn't an "arrest them!" story, it was a very captivating crime thriller. Now, I don't know (and doubt) that everything that happened in the movie actually happened in real life, but hey, who cares? That's what movies are all about. Besides, it said "inspired by" real life events.

My one complain was the ending (which has involuntarily become my "complaint of choice" as of late). It seemed a bit short and unfinished. Unresolved. Still, it did not distract from the enjoyment of the film as a whole.

I thought Munich was great. Definitely overlooked. Good job, Mr. Spielberg. You never cease to amaze me (except for perhaps the latest Indiana Jones addition). I hope you live until you are 150 and continue to direct movies the entire time. Bring on Lincoln!

8.8/10