I’m not usually into fighting games on a console and take a much bigger part in First Person Shooters which most recently has been Battlefield: Bad Company. Over the past couple of months I’ve not even touched the 360, however knowing that the UFC demo was available I thought I’d give it an hour of my time just to see what it was like. My prediction was that it would be horrendous like all of the other fighting computer games. They usually don’t feel right, the transitions don’t flow, the punches are “plain” and it just doesn’t seem like it’s supposed to.

I was pleasantly surprised. First off by the lack of a health bar, the huge defining factor in most fighting games that you’re about to get your ass kicked and lose a match. In the UFC a knockout can come at any time and it’s the same for the game, granted you can become gassed if your cardio isn’t up to scratch and this can have an effect on your fight but even a last ditch attempt at a knockout can be successful.

I’ve only played this game for one afternoon and haven’t explored the full thing but was so impressed I thought I’d write up about it.

At the end of the day I’m impressed, the visuals are crisp, the transitions and fighting flows, the soundtrack as with most UFC events is terrific and I’ve not thrown the controller through the wall. One funny part of the game is the fighters, they look very realistic and in fact look more a less identical to the actual real life fighters yet Dana White looks nothing like Dana.

It’s 2009 and Fast and Furious is back. The cars, the music, the racing is all back including Dom Toretto. This Fast and Furious could well be called an interquel as it’s set 5 years after the first movie but before the Tokyo Drift movie. Apparently Vin Diesel wanted to make a proper movie and the best time to set it was after the first movie instead of faffing around with the story lines from the latter two movies.

The movie starts how it means to go on with a high octane snatch and grab of fuel. Dom and Letty are still together with a new group containing some new characters and Brian isn’t far behind. After the snatch and grab Dom realises he needs to cut away before the whole team are taken down by the cops and leaves Letty with the gang.

Dom and Brian end up crossing paths in LA and briefly fight each other before realising they are about to fight a common enemy. During the explosive plot the duo are together till the end with plenty of woah and holy crap high speed moments. I had heard there was a lack of cars in the film however I believe there were just enough to keep the story on track and the film entertaining unlike some of the previous films where they dragged.

An all round good movie if you’re into the Fast and Furious series.

If you’d like to see the trailer before buying your tickets, head over to Moovees (one of my sites where I collate film trailers).

The Fast & Furious OST is pretty good and the tracks are featured below;

1. Rye Rye – Bang (feat. M.I.A.)
2. Busta Rhymes – G-Stro
3. Kenna – Loose Wires
4. Pitbull – Blanco (feat. Pharrell)
5. Pitbull – Krazy (feat. Lil Jon)
6. Pitbull – You Slip, She Grip (feat. Tego Calderon)
7. Shark City Click – Head Bust
8. Pitbull – Bad Girls (feat. Robin Thicke)
9. Don Omar – Virtual Diva
10. Tasha – La Isla Bonita
11. Pitbull – Blanco (feat. Pharrell)

Confessions of a Shopaholic had me hooked within the first few pages, a sneak peek into the life of Rebecca Bloomwood – Financial Journalist. I stood by her as she went through the twists and turns of life, through her tears and joys, love and heartbreak. A character whom I think we can all identify with to some degree, for myself, alongside loving shopping, it was the belief that if I hide bad things away for long enough they might just disappear. My addiction had begun. Each book that followed carried on the story.

Needless to say when it was announced that they were making the story into a film, I was looking forward to it. Being able to re-live the novel, but this time on the big screen where the characters are brought to life. The trailers teased and made the anticipation that little more exciting.

As Rebecca Bloomwood would write; ?Contemplating the film on the big screen was like finding the perfect dress you’ve longed for, in the sale at Barney’s; it’s the right size and has no faults. The feeling of exhilaration flows through your veins, everything seems better. Until you realise when you wear it to the most amazing ball that the perfect dress has a nick in it at the hem, at first not that noticeable, but through the night, the hem slowly unravels and the dress falls apart at the seams. You’re so disappointed, you feel let down as if you’ve been cheated.’

One of the main nick?s in the hem of my perfect dress was evident within the first 5 minutes. As I watched in disbelief, I couldn’t help thinking to myself; “This didn’t happen in the novel”, ”I don’t understand” and “I don?t remember it happening like that in the novel”, so much so that I found it very difficult to absorb myself in the film. There were so many inconsistencies; so many so that I asked if we?d walked into the wrong theatre therefore missing part of the story. Why was it all set in New York? Why was Becky working for Successful Saving? Why did she go to work for Luke? Why was Alicia ?Bitch? Longlegs working for Elite fashion magazine? Why were Tarquin and Suze engaged within the first 5 minutes? Where was the on air argument between Becky and Luke? Why did Becky not work on Morning Coffee in a regular slot? And so many more…

The unraveling of my hem happened before my eyes as we were introduced to the main characters of the story. The character of Rebecca Bloomwood was unbelievable, although Becky is slightly naive in her dealings and imaginings within the novel and obviously does have a shopping addiction; the movie portrayed her as a plastic, simple minded and superficial. Suze was impersonal, unlike how she is described within the novel; she lacked her caring and motherly side and instead came across as quite aggressive and selfish. What happened to the girl who would do anything for her friend, who stuck by Becky no matter how many mistakes she made? Tarquin was quite confusing, he held a very small role so it was impossible to judge the character too much, yet I was left asking the question; what happened to the scrawny, un-stylish and awkward character described in the novel that Rebecca found so repulsive? Luke Brandon was possibly the most believable character within the movie, although I found it difficult to relate Luke?s mysterious, almost distant and driven characteristics portrayed by Kinsella to the actor playing the role. Whatever did happen to him running Brandon communications from the beginning?

I understand that changes have to be made on screen to fill the film reel and that sometimes it may be necessary for the range of novels to be merged slightly. Yet why the producers and script writers omitted important events and almost re-wrote an already fantastic storyline is beyond me.

I can?t help but feel rather deflated; the lovable and hilarious ?Confessions of a Shopaholic? was obviously lost in translation.

The first guest post by Jennifer as she had read all of the Sophie Kinsella books to know the difference between the two mediums.

Doug was part of a small contingent of British Forces sent to to recapture Garmsir with the help of member of the Afghan National Army (ANA) and the Afghan National Police (ANP), whilst this was supposed to be a 48hr operation it ended up over a week long with British and Afghan casualties. They were up against a determined enemy with a small amount of forces, Doug leading from the front came close to losing his own life on numerous occasions. JTAC Sam New and Doug fighting from the front on regular occasions bringing in fast air strikes within 60 metres of their own position, well within the safety guidelines.

The silence was broken by a burst of fire from the first building on the left, which was still only just emerging into view. The earth in front of the Danish sergeant erupted into little fountains of dust. Then more bullets came my way, zipping and fizzing through the air, scything through the crops. Instinctively I ducked even lower and pulled my trigger, spewing ammunition towards our attacks.

Doug Beattie, MC – “An Ordinary Soldier”

Doug left Garmsir on R&R and only took 48hrs to get back to his wife and family in the U.K. No one at home could imagine the ferocious fighting he had been through after all he had stabbed an enemy fighter through the throat with his bayonet, fired on and slotted a number of enemy as well as bringing 500lb + bombs down on groups of fighters dismembering bodies.

He saw through his own two eyes like so many other soldiers around the world. He was invited to go back to Afghanistan even though he was determined to leave the Army however he had to do something first. He had to write about his experiences to help him deal with what had happened, he had to write “An Ordinary Soldier”.

He pulls no punches and doesn’t look for forgiveness for what he made decisions to do, he has enough time answering the questions he asks himself. It’s a terrific read and constantly keeps you engaged throughout the entirety of the book.

Operation Valkyrie or (Operation Walküre)  as it was also known was an operation developed for the Reserve Army of the German Army. The plan was approved by Adolf Hitler himself unknowing that it was in fact a plan against himself. The original Operation Valkyrie before Claus Von Stauffenberg rewrote it was intended to be used in the event that Allied bombing of German cities resulted in a breakdown in law and order or an uprising from the millions of forced laborers working in the German factories.

FROM THE OUTSET

The first six minutes of the movie which you can watch courtesy of Apple make you sit back in your seat for what you expect to be an intense 1hr 30 minutes of your life. There is nothing better than secret wartime plans, plots and assassination attempts to get the heart racing but when it boiled down to it my heart didn’t race nor was I sat back in my seat for long.

Whilst this was a blockbuster movie it was more of a history lesson for the people in the audience who didn’t know much about this particular poignant piece of our history. It was after all the last ditch attempt to oust Hitler from power and stop the rest of the SS and Hitler loyalists from taking over and carrying on where Hitler had been.

IT WAS OK… JUST

The movie was just ok, it didn’t particularly go much further than OK. The cast were very good and every member had been specifically placed and suited to each character. Tom Cruise was very good and definitely suited his role best, and further reading on Claus von Stauffenberg shows just how much Cruise had likened himself.

What more can I say? I’m looking forward to Underworld: Rise of the Lykans.

Will Smith plays Ben Thomas, an IRS Agent with a secret who starts a journey of redemption by changing the lives of others.

Listening to Radio 1 a few mornings ago, the whole team were stating that Seven Pounds would have you crying like a small girl even if you were the manliest of men. Whilst there were a lot of people leaving the movie in tears (mostly middle aged women I might add) I just couldn’t understand why people thought it was so sad. I thought it was a pretty boring movie, I nearly fell asleep in parts and to glorify a subject which the movie follows thoroughly annoys me!

Factually I am not sure if half of the things in the movie could medically happen, it’s increasingly difficult to like a film when you can’t actually believe the story never mind agree with the subject matter.

I hope Will Smith gets back on track soon with his movies as the past 3 or 4 have not been worth the money spent on them.

I’M NOT GOING TO SPOIL IT FOR YOU

I’m certainly not about to create a spoiler as it could be so easily done and you’ll probably know the outcome of the movie within ten minutes of sitting down but I’d like you to make your own judgement. The review could have been so much better if the movie wasn’t so obvious in its plot.

Valkyrie is the movie I am looking forward to and fingers crossed its a whole lot better than some of the movies I have seen recently.

Andy McNab

Immediate Action was about Andy McNab going for SAS selection from his Green Jackets regiment, it was his personal account of his life whilst trying to get into one of the most renowned special forces regiments in the world.

Back in 1983, Andy McNab was B Squadron of the SAS. This was one of the four squadrons of the SAS. He was picked to be in Air Troop which is also known as Seven Troop. Andy McNab joined a group of men who over the years would become his closest friends. After becoming the freshly badged SAS Trooper he headed out to the Malayan jungle and met up with his new troop. Each member of the troop has a place in the book, some more prevalent than others.

This book is a sad story of loss, losing friends who were never meant to go. From Al Slater, one of the training staff in the 1980′s program “The Para’s”, to Nish and Frank Collins, Andy has lost a lot of people and friends to a variety of reasons.

Beyond all of that Seven Troop is a huge account of ten years in a secret service with details of some never-before-revealed operations. Drama, action and thrill had me enthralled for the 3 days Seven Troop took to read. I never wanted to put the book down.

Seven Troop is a reflective look upon the armed forces and the underlying problems that occur when back home, post traumatic stress disorder is an illness which is frequently published about in the media however when McNab was in the service it wasn’t one of the things which you talked about. Even the tough SAS lads have trouble dealing with the jobs they’ve been tasked to complete.

I don’t want to give too much away as it is such a good read.

A film by Baz Luhrmann, the guy I knew best for creating a song about sun cream…

Starring Nicola Kidman and Hugh Jackman, Australia is an epic movie with a romantic twist yet with action and adventure throughout. Set in the time that Australia was about to feel World War 2 at home, a posh Lady from England (Nicole Kidman) travelled thousands of miles to find out what her Husband had been doing with their foreign business.

Arriving she finds out some tragic news and needs the help of a local man called Drover (Hugh Jackman) to keep the business afloat and out of reach of the largest cattle company profiteer in Australia. Together with her new family and new found love, they travel across Australia to Darwin just as the Japanese Air Force are bombing Pearl Harbour. Their journey is treacherous but the adventure doesn’t stop as the Japanese then head towards Australia and launch a bombing campaign on Darwin. It’s an extensive adventure in the land of Oz!

SURPRISED

I hadn’t rushed to the cinema to go and see Australia, in fact it was purely pot luck that I ended up seeing it at all. Typically there was nothing else on at the time that I wanted to go. I checked out a couple of reviews which said that Australia was an epic fail rather than an epic which didn’t have me rushing off my seat anymore to get there. It was the only movie on so I wasn’t going to see anything else and the real movies I want to see aren’t out for a week or so. Jennifer really didn’t want to see it.

It started at 1pm, we walked out at 3:55pm almost 3 hours later. Granted I moved around in my seat a little just so I didn’t turn to stone but I wasn’t bored. Not once. I thought the movie was going to end a couple of times but it carried on going. It seemed to add on chapters of a story where you would usually find the movie stopped and followed up in a years time. It was a terrific story from beginning to end, it was a moving story even if it was partially a love story.

HISTORY

There is a lot of history in the movie, a lot of it I didn’t know much about. Being a bit of a history geek I enjoyed learning more than the normal cinema gower but putting that to one side the story wasn’t affected by it.

It’s a long story but I’d watch it again and may possibly hit my DVD list.

The beginning of the movie is somewhat unclear as it starts in the 1920′s with Keanu Reeves climbing in the Indian Mountains where an “orb” lands. Some kind of  abduction takes place, and Keanu Reeves is left on earth. The next scene sees Helen Benson, the scientist, receiving a phone call from the government where she is then transported to the local HQ for what the government think is going to be the end of the world. They enlist her help to try and find a way to aid them however quickly realising the end of the world is not so near as an “orb” lands and the real story starts.

THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT

Klaatu arrives back on Earth to help it, which through 75% of the movie is hard to believe. Gort, a giant indestructible robot walks from the “Orb” at the beginning of the movie and shuts down the entire gathering of the US Forces on the ground, he then proceeds throughout the movie to deliver a dust storm which eats through anything and everything.

To rid the world and start afresh is the only way to save it. Gort and Klaatu are on Earth to save it from the human race who in their eyes are intent on destroying it. John Cleese has a short role in the film as a Nobel Prize Winner who understands and reasons with Klaatu to give the human race a chance and help us/them to change and save planet Earth.

WAY BETTER

I had mixed feelings on going to see the movie. I had a feeling it was going to be an all looks and no show movie whereby its a lot worse when you put your butt on a seat. How wrong I was, the entirety of the movie was intriguing with awesome visuals throughout. Reeves and Connolly play very good parts however I believe the star of the show was Jaden Smith who played Jacob. For a small kid he certainly put in a massive effort with the movie adding emotion where it wouldn’t have been.

It’s definitely a must see movie this December.

Lakeview Terrace is the new home for two new home buyers, Patrick Wilson and Kerry Washington. They become the target of their deranged new neighbour played by Samuel L. Jackson, an LAPD officer who is so odd he should be in a padded cell.

Jackson takes it upon himself to be the all seeing eye of the neighbourhood and involves himself way to much in the daily running of peoples lives and especially his new next door neighbours. A constant pain in the newlyweds lives with constant harrasment and directed hate to them being a mixed race couple. In the end Wilson and Washington fight back.

I WANT MY TWO HOURS BACK

I should have known from booking the movie which was the smallest showing room that this wasn’t going to be exciting. The most painful thing apart from losing a good 2 hours of my life to an awful movie is that now I feel let down by Samuel L. Jackson. When actors take part in rubbish movies which aren’t going to take the world by storm they’re clearly needing some extra cash for Christmas. I never thought Jackson would have done this but he clearly has. The movie seemed utterly pointless and is a MUCH worse version of Denzel Washingtons ‘Training Day’.

There isn’t much to say really, it was quite possibly one of the worst movies I have ever seen.