Avatar: The Making of the Bootleg

my top 10 films of 2009

For anybody who doesn't know, I love movies. I consider myself a film buff and one of my favorite things is to sit down and run through 3 or 4 films on a lazy Saturday. So far this year I've seen 58 movies, now that might sound like a shockingly high number to some but in all honestly it's rather modest considering that I saw 93 last year, and 123 in 2007. I have Meredith to thank for my lower number this year, and I do mean thank! She undoubtedly saved me many dollars and hours just by being around this year. I'm looking forward to watching her turn into a film critic just like me.

so here is the list, my top 10 films of 2009.

10. Paranormal Activity

Scariest, creepiest film i've seen in years. I loved it! it's an intense ride, and a nice, small gem of a film. to think that the budget was so small, and it's not even got a noticeable face or name in it, so much fun. i had to get up and walk away several times while watching this, i was physically shaken by this film and that is powerful stuff, the exact reason i love the horror genre.

9. Away We Go

it's great to see that sam mendes, who's recent films have all been insanely serious, can still craft a charming, sweet film like this. away we go is the perfect mix of humanity and laughs, staying serious enough to show the growth of its characters while not wondering down the normal pitfalls of most romantic comedies. seemingly an odd pairing at first, krasinski and rudolph are amazing here. their journey takes them all over north america as we meet a cast of characters that help form the kind of people and parents they want to be. touching and funny, away we go makes you wonder why so many other films miss this kind of wonderful simplicity.

8. Moon

moon is an excellent character piece that just so happens to be based in a futuristic, sci-fi world. rockwell is outstanding here! he certainly has the chops to pull off this kind of a one man show and his quirkiness perfectly balances the bland backdrop of a space station. i also really loved how paced and close to the vest all the major twist are, nothing is ever thrown in front of our faces as if to convince us of how great the film is. it takes its time, it tells a moving story and then leaves us wondering, and that is really all you can ask from a hard sci-fi film.

7. Up

another fantastic film from pixar, no surprise there. out of nowhere this film studio continues to show vast improvements in the quality of their animation as well as maturity in their story telling. UP hit more adult/life themes than any pixar film ever has and the end result was a fun and sweet look at how even a normal every day life can be a great adventure. i really liked it and while i still prefer wall-e and the incredibles, UP was great.

6. Drag Me To Hell

one of my most anticipated films of the summer and it did not disappoint! the movie was SICK! i haven't seen a truly American horror film this great in years. it was the most fun i've had in a theater since the star wars: episode 3 premiere. the audience was eating it up, laughing one second and jumping out of their seats the next. it was just full of intensity, campy-ness and scares. if you are at all a horror fan, check it out ASAP.

5. 500 Days Of Summer

500 days of summer is my new favorite rom/com since garden state. its presented as somewhat of a puzzle that the viewer has to experience, and it honestly takes a while to digest, to really cover the weight of the relationship between tom and summer and then see the genius of the performances and direction. so many very cool, creative moments highlight this film, the opening narration is absolutely perfect, the dance scene is my favorite scene of any film this year so far, and the expectations versus reality scene was an amazing way to get really get into a characters head. also, the soundtrack is awesome. so after a few days to review this film in my head, i can't stop think about it now. it's a great piece of art and i would easily call it one of my favorites of '09.

4. District 9

Freaking awesome, awesome, awesome movie! I love films that manage to flawlessly blend multiple genres and serious moral issues. sci-fi, documentary, thriller, normal guy thrust into a extraordinary situation... D9 is a mesh of ideas that combine into a completely original film that actually feels like the best video game movie ever, yet it's not based on a game! it also feels like what hitchcock might have done had he ever gotten into a sci-fi film. incredibly realistic CG, some of the best alien work in film history. plus, the acting, just unbelievable to think that sharlto copley isn't an actor, he was easily the highlight of the film. his fresh face brought a sense of reality to the story, where a name actor would not have had the same impact at all. microsoft has to kicking themselves for canning HALO now, as blomkamp absolutely knocked this one out of the park. i freaking love this movie, and i can't wait for the sequel.

3. The Hurt Locker

the critics are getting this one right! the hurt locker is one of the most intense, interesting and character driven films i've ever seen. words can not describe the enjoyable torture this film's action scenes put you through, they dare you to look away but know that you can't. along with a brilliant performance from renner, as well as the rest of the cast, tie together a stellar war film with no overt political agendas. this one could be a sleeper come oscar time, and might just propel renner into permanent leading man status. A MUST SEE FILM!

2. Star Trek

an awesome film! it was a blast to see these characters and this series back and relevant again. a great setup for the reimaging of the trek universe too. i loved chris pine, the dude is going to be a huge star. he has sort of a matt damon/harrison ford vibe going for him. in fact, the entire cast was amazing, the FX were nearly perfect too, it's a great movie, perfect rewatch quality too, i can't wait for more. my only complaint was the lens flare effect choice, it was a bit too much.

1. Avatar

AVATAR is a GREAT film. it's an epic sci-fi story that undoubtedly and immediately draws parallels to other great films, yet distinguishes itself by the very apparent years and years of conceptualization. the CGI being amazing goes without saying, but the level of detail along with the slow-motion style action scenes, is breath-taking. finally a director heard the cries of the people and didn't just make a jumbled mess out of the action shots. i loved the film, it's an instant game changer among the landscape of CGI effects and sci-fi in general. my only real complaint was the score, it just wasn't epic or unique enough to fit the greatness on the screen. also, the 3D tech was truly amazing, but it's still not practical for anything outside of theater viewing and sadly it's still rather uncomfortable. i think i would enjoy the film far more in 2D.

AVATAR review

there is no doubt about it, AVATAR is a GREAT, GREAT film. it's an epic sci-fi story that undoubtedly and immediately draws parallels to other great films, such as Dances with Wolves, yet distinguishes itself by the very apparent years and years of conceptualization. it's mind blowingly layered with eye candy, and never, not giving you something cool to look at. the CGI being amazing obviously goes without saying, but the level of detail along with the slow-motion style action scenes, is breath-taking. finally a director heard the cries of the people and didn't just make a jumbled mess out of the action shots. the story isn't new, but the method and set up is, this is about a man who becomes another species and saves their planet. WOW! i LOVE this film, it's an instant game changer among the landscape of CGI effects and sci-fi in general. not many people are picking up on that statement, GAME CHANGER. this is the point in movie history where the lines of performance and CGI have crossed. so where does the credit go? to the actor, to the animator, to the designer? my only real complaint was the score, it just wasn't epic or unique enough to fit the greatness on the screen. thinking of star wars immediately bring to mind it's theme, and that is sadly not here with AVATAR. also, the 3D tech was truly amazing, a joy to experience but it's still not practical for anything outside of theater viewing and still rather uncomfortable. i can't say enough about it, it's stuck in my head for days now and i can't wait to see it again and again. A+++

Jack Bauer Interrogates Santa Claus

the official LOST season 6 poster was just released at abc.com. it is different than the similar version that leaked out from Comic-con earily this year. I'm SO FREAKIN PUMPED to see how this amazing series wraps up. so what do you think, any clues in the poster? maybe the placement of certain characters is all the clues you need?

one of the coolest halloween costumes ever!

moon review

moon is an excellent character piece that just so happens to be based in a futuristic, sci-fi world. rockwell is outstanding here! he certainly has the chops to pull off this kind of a one man show and his quirkiness perfectly balances the bland backdrop of a space station. i also really loved how paced and close to the vest all the major twist are, nothing is ever thrown in front of our faces as if to convince us of how great the film is. it takes its time, it tells a moving story and then leaves us wondering, and that is really all you can ask from a hard sci-fi film. 4&1/2 out of 5!

Where the Wild Things Are Review

for me, this movie truly captured the book, while also bringing Max and the Wild Things characters amazingly great depth that just doesn't have room to exist in the short kid's book. Max's journey is awesome, the whole film is spot on a celebration of imagination, and the big emotional payoff is there, it's easy to feel. that being said, i was still somewhat bored by the 2nd half of the film. maybe that's simply because i knew where it was going, but i would suggest it was the far too quick and drastic change in tone that the film took near the end of the 2nd act.

I still enjoyed it, visually it is beyond stunning. i applaud spike jonze for not going the CGI route, but honestly i feel like the film is being hyped far, far too much. it's a great older kid's movie, and great for fans of the book, but if you don't like creative, imaginative films, there is no way you could enjoy this. it's the kind of movie that stays with you when you leave the theater though, i feel like i've just seen a classic that will be shown on tv for years to come.

rain don't stop us!

i love this girl! not many would put up with the torrential downpour we saw saturday and stick it out. we went to the UGA / Arizona State game last week, it rained hard for a good 2 hours before the game and then it continued till the middle of the 2nd quarter. we were soaked head to toe, but luckily the DAWGS pulled it out in the end. the trip just wouldn't have been as fun without the W, at least for me.

john mayer's new single - who says

as in, who says john mayer is a pot head?

http://johnmayer.com/whosays/

i love the sound, but the topic... not so much.

Kris Allen's debut single... not bad at all.

AWAY WE GO review

it's great to see that sam mendes, who's recent films have all been insanely serious, can still craft a charming, sweet film like this. away we go is the perfect mix of humanity and laughs, staying serious enough to show the growth of its characters while not wondering down the normal pitfalls of most romantic comedies. seemingly an odd pairing at first, krasinski and rudolph are amazing here. their journey takes them all over north america as we meet a cast of characters that help form the kind of people and parents they want to be. touching and funny, away we go makes you wonder why so many other films miss this kind of wonderful simplicity.

A-MAZING! SAND ANIMATION!?!

you are welcome for this sick GEORGIA background.

feast your eyes upon this beaut! do with it as you will...

why BAMA has the worst fans.

warning, watch out for the language here, though it still made me laugh. this guy is so intense, i'm thinking he might not make it through this season.

FIST BUMP in your FACE steve spurrier!

concert flyer

2 more days... GO DAWGS!

this week with GOD and aaron

i wanted to type this out, i guess just to get it out of my head...

GOD gave me a new perspective on a few things this week, things i honestly already knew but had somewhat lost sight of recently. working at the church has been awesome, i love it, but just like any job, it has its days. days where the unpreparedness of others come shining through and fall dead into my lap. i try to do my best with it, but lately i've missed the importance and the blessing of my work. i've gotten wrapped up in my list of thing to do, instead of just doing them for GOD.

i had a great meeting this week with Winfrey Shields, the media director from northstar church in kennesaw, which is HUGE by the way. great guy, a wealth of knowledge and years of experience for me to pull from, he's worked all over the country with franklin graham and all the biggest Christian bands. so we were talking about the philosophy of media in ministry, and he reminded me that my job is not about the website, projector screens, worship guides, cool posters, lights and sound. it's simply to focus on setting the tone for people to come to the throne and worship the LORD.

WOW! that hit me hard.

winfrey gave me a newfound sense of importance and encouraged me to a higher understanding of why i'm here in griffin. for me to think that i'm just as much of a critical part of the service as the soloist and the preacher, what a humbling thought! also, to know that i'm in a position where i can use the creative gifts GOD has given me to directly impact HIS kingdom. WHAT AN INCREDIBLE FEELING AND GIANT RESPONSIBILITY!

so i realized, what more can i ask for? knowing everything GOD has done for me and now seeing that i'm in a place to be able to constantly give HIM all the glory for my work, how could i ask for anything more of HIM?

...and still, HE GIVES ME EVEN MORE! HE PROVES HIS LOVE OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN!

all this came to a head yesterday, when i got a great surprise from Meredith. i won't go into what it was, that is something i'll keep between us, but it cut me down again, in a really great way. as if GOD himself was saying, "see there, I did that too. I did that for you."

so i would just challenge you, take a second to see what GOD has done for you and/or where HE has put you. don't look right over it, don't get too busy to notice it. HE is here, HE is constantly working for the good of those who love HIM.

the least we can do is thank HIM for it.

DISTRICT 9 review

Awesome, awesome, awesome movie! I love films that manage to flawlessly blend multiple genres and serious moral issues. sci-fi, documentary, thriller, normal guy thrust into a extraordinary situation... D9 is a mesh of ideas that combine into a completely original film that actually feels like the best video game movie ever, yet it's not based on a game! it also fells like what hitchcock might have gone had he ever gotten into a sci-fi film. incredibly realistic CG, some of the best alien work in film history. plus, the acting, just unbelievable to think that sharlto copley isn't an actor, he was easily the highlight of the film. his fresh face brought a sense of realty to the story, where a name actor would not have had the same impact at all. microsoft has to kicking themselves for canning HALO now, as blomkamp absolutely knocked this one out of the park. i freaking love this movie, and i can't wait for the sequel.

2 new ministry logos

collide is for the student's Wednesday night meeting

commonground is for the college sunday school class

D-NOW poster

my new church logos

new layout!

i spent about 10 minutes checking out the downloaded LOST template i had on here before, and now i understand how to manipulate them. awesome stuff... anyways, to the few friends i have on here, if you'd like a custom look let me know and maybe we can get one for you.

WHAT IF?

i'm bored so i cooked up a little conspiracy. what if... michael jackson just faked his own death? i'm not saying he did, i'm just going to point out a few nuggets that bug me.

1. this dude was such a health freak, he'd also had so many plastic surgeries, it was inevitable that he would be around doctors all the time. plus, the rumor was that he had just been given a complete clean bill of health to start this big tour? so it's hard to believe that he would just all of a sudden drop dead of a heart attack, especially considering that his own father is still alive and 79 years old.

2. so with jackson just about to start a massive world tour, what better way to get publicity would there ever be than to fake your own death? look at all the people who still think elvis is still alive... think about it, i wouldn't be surprised if all the jackson's ban together and do this tour now as a "tribute", maybe even with other big name stars and/or motown legends. just imagine that opening night, as the lights dim and thiller starts to play, a not so dead michael jackson zombie dances out onto the stage and the biggest prank in the history of the world is accomplished.

i'm just saying... that would be pretty cool.

dalton & lucy's vacation

i've been dog sitting this week for some new friends in griffin while they're on a week long cruise. this is a video of their dogs, dalton and lucy. dalton loves to play ball and lucy loves to make playing ball very difficult for dalton. check out the video.

GIRL FREAKS OUT!

Yahoo personals worked for me!

Most of you know my BIG news by now but i still wanted to post the story and photos here. the time finally came saturday for Meredith and I, we are now engaged! i love this girl so much and i can't wait to call her my wife.

anyways, the story is that i surprised her saturday morning with rose petals and a bunch of lit candles on the ground. as she came into the apartment her face showed about 15 different emotions from puzzled to shocked to happy tears to completely freaking out. haha, it was great! i said the magic words and she said the best YES i've ever heard in my life. it was such a great moment for us and with me being me, of course i hid a video camera and caught the whole event. :) hopefully i'll get to show it to you all some day, but for now enjoy the pics.

the drag me UP to hell weekend special edition

so life keeps moving on, as do i. i'm 4 weeks into griffin and loving it. everyone at the church has been awesome, and the learning curve hasn't been too steep either. i'm now in charge of www.sbcgriffin.org and all its various goodies, plus the weekly church bulletin and other random media things. all in all, i'm feeling pretty good about it and i now don't dread going into work everyday, which is just about all you can ask for.

i've had an outstanding time this weekend. first up, i finally got to see one of my most anticipated films of the summer, sam raimi's new horror film, drag me to hell. i agree, the title is awful, but the movie was SICK! i haven't seen a truly American horror film this great in years. it was the most fun i've had in a theater since the star wars: episode 3 premiere. just full of intensity, campy-ness and scares, if you are at all a horror fan, check it out ASAP.

next, i headed to G-ville to see my Meremint. I LOVE THAT GIRL! :) i hope she knows what she's getting herself into with me. we had a great meal at on the border, then we rented a girly-movie that i can't even bring myself to talk about. needless to say, i didn't like it. on saturday we both were dying to see UP, the new pixar movie. it was fantastic, no surprise there, and it hit on much more adult/life themes than any pixar film ever has. the short before UP was also great.

so late saturday i had to head back and say goodbye to M, which is getting harder and harder to do every time. hopefully, some day soon we'll be seeing an end to that issue.

sunday morning was a giant ball of stress, as one of my planned DVD presentations wouldn't play in the service and a few mistakes were found on the bulletin. i'm not perfect, but these mistakes actually had nothing to do with me but the information i was given for budget numbers. i didn't really feel great about how those numbers were being given to me unlabeled, i knew it was going to bite me eventually and it did. so maybe now that will get fixed?

pray for me this week, our vacation bible school runs till noon through friday and i'm a big player. photographer, light guy, media presenter and outback explorer. i've even got the hat to prove it.

jersey boys

Karla & Justin's Wedding pics

tennessee road trip pics

it's on... halo style tonight

not much to report... i'm ready for the weekend just like everybody else on the planet. it's likely that the new halo 3 maps will dominate the free time tonight, and i'm ok with that. :) I can't wait to see my lady tomorrow, she's coming down to keep me company.

i spent part of today dealing with a pill of a lady, who i've had past horrible experiences with. she's one of our people who thinks we do nothing else but cater to her needs and her needs alone. sheees... you know, i consider myself a nice guy but after being berated over the phone a couple of times, i'm sorry i pretty much lose all motivation to help you. today she was insisting that she get a replacement computer for a machine that is making a strange noise. mind you, not a machine that is broken, but one that is making a noise. hopefully, i've held her off for a week or 2, we'll see?

next week i'm off to IBM helpdesk training in Smyrna. the catch here is that i'm not sure if I will be offered the job or sure if i will be able to take the job? great management work there huh? the issue is money and the fact that NOBODY will give us the kind of answers we need to feel secure about it all. GOD will provide no matter what, but it hard sitting in the dark about something as big as this.

mondays are not fundays

am i right, mondays suck don't they? man... people just pawning off work and messing with my schedule. i'm ready to go home dang it.

sitting at the helpdesk is a mixed bag of emotions. sometimes things are fine, easy-going and just a pleasure to handle. other times, people can freak out about the smallest things and lose there ever-loving minds over them! it's quite incredible to see some of the reactions i get, and even more incredible to hear the depth of stupidity in some of the questions i get. people have actually asked me things like, "does the computer need to be turned on for me to use it?" or my favorite, "my printer isn't working, i think it's out of paper. what should i do?"

THANK GOD for HIS unconditional love, that's all i can say.


the weekend was great! i had a stellar time with M, she is a amazing gal and i love her more and more every second i spend with her. i got to meet 1 side of her extended family, and there was a ton of them! my family is maybe 15 deep at the most, and just this side of her's is hovering around 40! it was a bit overwhelming, but i guess i passed the test? at least nobody told me to leave. :)

GO BRAVES BABY! we're off to a good start at 5-1. yeah, it should be 6-0, we all know that but what can you do? our bullpen is going to blow games, they always do. i go nuts when they meltdown like they did the other night, but for some reason i seem to always come back. at least until they start doing that junk in august, then i'll begin to lose interest. still, by that time, college football will be right around the corner and i'll be a-ok.

Easter 2009

boredom is freedom from motivation

so i'm at work with nothing to do... this job is so hot and cold, one second i'm swamped and the next i'm starting my own blog to pass the time.

anyways great news, i've starting feeling like a human being again! YES, the massive doses of levoquin have finally killed the demon virus that was in me. now i'm just struggling to fight off allergies, that seemingly keep getting stronger every year? as they say, getting older ain't fun. i remember when the sight of pollen meant absolutely nothing to me, but now i hate the color yellow because of it and try to hold my breath when i'm walking to and from my car just to avoid it.

i'm headed to G'ville for the weekend to spend time with THE BEST GIRLFRIEND EVER. i can't wait to see her! last weekend was the pitts with the funk i had, so i'm looking forward to a great time.

GO BRAVES!