16 Hours

I Couldn't Agree More...

Life of Pi

You should see it.

Animated Short - Paths of Hate

Some of you have probably already seen this, but it was recently made available in full length and is spectacular. The film was created at Poland’s Platige Image, home of Tomek Baginski, Grzegorz Jonkajtys, Michal Socha and, of course, Paths of Hate director Damian Nenow.

It features what is probably one of the best animated aerial war scenes ever made and reminds me of the kind of great stuff that Japanese producers like Production I.G. and Gonzo USED to do - you know, before M.O.E. ran everyone off the railroad tracks.

Now, to start your weekend off with something a little different:



Caution: Stop at 5:40 for the happy ending... You can download the movie in HD here.

A Man Listens, and A Man Likes...

Not sure how many other Song of Ice and Fire geeks are out there, but I just had to post this for all you RR Martin fans:



And he's right, if you've been watching the TV series on HBO but haven't read the books and think you know what's going on, you REALLY need to read the books...

Aokigahara

A short and sad documentary about the forest at the base of Mt. Fuji in Japan were between 50-100 people go every year to commit suicide.

Warning: Graphic Content. Viewer discression is advised. Seriously.



Mr. Hayano is a man of great wisdom.

'Hobbit' Trailer #1 Released

Just in case you haven't already seen it:

Titancon - Belfast Ireland - Sept 24th - Be There

Loving this...



Even if the fifth book didn't go anywhere... HEH.

(Note: I don't know how many of you out there might be Game of Thrones fans, but if you are you know that everyone bitched like hell that it took like 10 years to get a decidedly mediocre fifth installment. But really? That ain't nothin people. Anime fans can do ten years standing on our heads!)

I'm With Her....

And a few Anime DVD's would be nice too...

The Mountain - Amazing Time Lapse Video of the Milky Way

Nothing much happening in the Anime world today (it's summer after all), so here is a little something off topic.

I have a little photography hobby on the side (which I pretty much suck at) which causes me to follow a few photography blogs. Check this out. Terje Sorgjerd has captured the Milky Way in time lapse over El Teide, which is Spain's highest mountain. Filmed between April 4 and April 11, 2011, the individual frames were shot using a Canon 5D Mark II with a Canon 17mm TSE, Canon 16-35mm II, Canon 24/1.4II, and Sigma 12-24mm.

As you watch the video to get to catch a glimpse of how the earth feels as it falls through space. Just sit back and enjoy. It's amazing:

The Mountain from TSO Photography on Vimeo.
Music is by Ludovico Einaudi, the song is called "Nuvole bianche"

He has also previous done a shorter video called 'The Aurora' which he shot in and around Kirkenes and Pas National Park bordering Russia in temps around -10 to -15 degrees below zero:

The Aurora from TSO Photography on Vimeo.

Music is sung by Lisa Gerrard from the Gladiator Movie Soundtrack.

The Irony of it Does Not Escape me...

A few random paraprosdokian points:

- Never argue with an idiot. He'll drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
- The last thing I want to do is hurt you. But it's still on the list.
- If I agreed with you we'd both be wrong.
- We never really grow up, we only learn how to act in public.
- Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit; Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
- The early bird might get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
- How is it one careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire?
- Dolphins are so smart that within a few weeks of captivity, they can train people to stand at the edge of a pool and throw fish.
- I didn't say it was your fault, I said I was blaming you.
- Women will never be equal to men till they can walk down the street with a bald head and a beer gut and still think they're sexy.
- A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
- You don't need a parachute to skydive, but you do need one to skydive again.
- The voices in my head may be fake, but they have good ideas!
- Hospitality is making your guests feel like they're at home, even if you wish they were.
- I scream the same way whether I'm about to be eaten by a shark or seaweed touches my foot.
- Some cause happiness wherever they go, others whenever they go.
- There's a fine line between cuddling and holding someone down so they can't get away.
- You're never too old to learn something stupid.

And finally:

- The R1 Anime business is a cruel and shallow financial trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs. There's also a negative side.

PlayStation Network Might Not Be Back Up Fully Before the End of May

According to an article published Sunday on Bloomberg, PSN (the PlayStation Network) might not be up again until the end of May:

"PlayStation Network and Qriocity online services remain shut as of today, Shigenori Yoshida, a Tokyo-based spokesman said. Sony is uncertain when it can resume the services, Yoshida said by phone today. The company is in the process of adopting an improved security system and its plan to restart the services fully by May 31 is unchanged, he said."

Howard Stringer, the CEO of Sony has offered his personal apology for the break in, and announced that Sony will offer $1 Million in identity theft protection for all PSN users. Sony says they will start sending activation e-mails for the protection service out to PSN account holders in the next few days.

I feel bad for all the third party companies that rely on PSN for movie and game software download revenue. This will be 5 weeks worth of cash flow they will never get back. More info here.

And just a reminder to anyone who has needed to cancel their credit card because of PSN getting hacked, be sure to contact us if you have any pending pre-orders in so we can get your payment info updated.

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy Extended Editions - Finally Coming to BLURAY!

I've been meaning to make a post about this for a few days, but I haven't had a chance until now. Just a heads up to everyone who has been WAITING and WAITING and WAITING that New Line has finally announced the The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy EXTENDED EDITION (Limited) BluRay Boxed Set!

If you're like me, you've been waiting forever for the extended editions of LOTR to come out on BluRay, and you've been pretty put out that New Line tried to milk everyone again by releasing only the theatrical versions on BD back in April of last year. Hopefully everyone skipped that release and waited for this set.

Specs for Limitd Edition BD set currently are listing all 3 movies on BD (1080p) + Digital copies. Aspect Ratio is listed at 2.35:1 (as it should be) with DTS 6.1 ES sound. The set will include the same extended edition footage and commentaries as the extended edition DVD sets, and will also have the same documentaries.

This version is being promoted as a 'limited edition', but really (just like an Anime release) it's probably only 'limited' to the amount they can sell. Release date is still listed as TBA, and my guess is that it won't street until the 4th quarter (probably October or November of this year) but we can finally pre-order it now. Outstanding! If I had to pick only one live action title to have on BD, this would be the one. I'm such a geek! :-)

Tron Legacy Coming as a 3D BD / BD / DVD / DC Package - Wow!

Just as a follow up for my recent post about Tron Legacy, they have finally announced the DVD / BD release for April 5th (I think).

I've been curious as to how this big Hollywood release was going to be packaged, and the great minds at Disney's media sales division have not disappointed us - at least in their creativity for taking our money.

It looks like we will have 5 choices:

Tron Legacy DVD - $29.99 MSRP

Tron: Legacy (Two-Disc BD Blu-ray/DVD Combo) - $39.99 MSRP

Tron: Legacy (Four-Disc Combo: Blu-ray 3D / Blu-ray / DVD / Digital Copy) - $49.99 MSRP

Tron: Legacy (Five-Disc Combo Blu-ray 3D / Blu-ray / DVD / Digital Copy + Tron: The Original Classic Special Edition Blu-ray) - $79.99 MSRP

Tron: Legacy Limited Edition (Five-Disc Combo Blu-ray 3D / Blu-ray / DVD / Digital Copy + Tron: The Original Classic Special Edition Blu-ray) - $99.99 MSRP

Wow. And some fans complain that Anime releases are too expensive?! OK, let's see - regular DVD @ $30 bucks, then the lowest price economy BD/DVD option @ $40 MSRP. Then we have a 4 disk pack that includes every conceivable version someone might need @ $50 bucks MSRP. The next step adds in a very desirable BD version of the original Tron movie - but @ $80 bucks MSRP (about the same price as buying it seperately), and then finally we can choose the glorious 'Limited Edition' version in special packaging for $100 bucks MSRP.

OK, they've already fleeced $34 out of us to see it in 3D at the theater, and another $8 for the excellent Daft Punk soundtrack. So am I going to pay up again and buy it on BluRay? Of course I am. Now must... resist... buying... 3D TV set... ugggggg!