Martyrs

Most horror movies explore how many different ways someone can die. The  victims are typically stupid characters we wouldn’t miss while adding them to the darwin awards.  As a result we cheer on the villain as they cue that familiar horror sound.  It’s a horrible statement but true.  Like a kid overcoming his fear of the dark, most of us have become desensitized to this stuff.  No more over the top villains killing senseless teens in a camp, a cabin, their dreams, on a highway or any of that stuff.  They’re typically not scenarios you can relate to.

Lately, horror movies try to relate to us by exploring ways your father, mother, brother, and/or sister can die right before your eyes.  Not the quick death but these movies attempt to make us a bit squeamish by forcing us to watch a prolonged death.  The one second scream is now presented to us through several minutes of audible agony.  Mainstream movies like House of a 1000 Corpses, Saw and Hostel are examples of these.  They definitely made us feel something a little bit different from old horror movies.  I guess you can call it torture porn but all of them have villains who are relatively insane.  What’s insane?

Martyrs…yeah.  Martyrs is insane.  What can I say about Martyrs?  Not too much because I don’t want to give anything away.  I came into it without seeing a trailer or reading up reviews and that’s the way I typically like seeing them.  This movie is definitely the best horror-esque movie I’ve seen in a while.  Not only is it a rollercoaster of blood and guts it makes you doubt what kind of movie is really is.  There are several times throughout the movie my mind (the one that has been brainwashed with typical horror movies) tries to figure out what’s going to happen next and Martyrs pleasantly proves me wrong.  Well, not pleasantly haha.  That’s the worst word I could have used.  There’s actually one point in the movie where my mind recalls Mike Tyson saying, “What the *uck?! What the *uck?!” as he’s describing his first fight with Evander in Tyson’s recent documentary.  It’s interesting because it’s different.  After watching the movie, I searched online to find out more about it.  It’s a movie that get people talking so please watch it so we can talk about it!  Oh, also it’s a French movie so don’t watch it if you don’t like reading subtitles or seeing blood.

freelensing – lenses have the right to breathe

Photos taken with the lens detached from the camera but held in place and moved around to focus. This also lets extra light in sometimes causing light leaks and giving a vintage look and feel.

Also:
* Gives extra bokeh by shrinking the area in focus (apeture is 0)
* Allows for super macro shots
* Delicious light leaks
* Tilt-shift effects

Flickr member lukeroberts coins the term freelensing. People have probably been doing this for some time but I’ve only come across it just recently. Some dslrs won’t allow you to take a photo without a lens mounted on the camera. I’m not sure if there’s a way to force the camera to take a photo. This technique only works well with a prime lens. You’ll have to focus the lens to infinity and experiment with your distance to subject and the len’s distance and angle from the camera. You can probably expect dust to get on your sensor so make sure you can clean it. My only prime lens is an 85mm f1.8 and the following are some examples. I wonder what other lenses can be used.

Discover Documentaries

Holy smack! The end of April is already here.  Today, I have some video goodies to share.  I’ve already stated my love for documentaries on a previous post.  If it wasn’t for the lack of cable tv I wouldn’t be watching as many documentaries as I do now.  Some of them are just “ehh..”.  The ones I’m posting today are the ones I’ve shared with others just to talk about it.  Let’s get it started!

Mike Tyson documentary (the older one) – Mike Tyson was always in the media when I was growing up.  I remember playing Punch Out! on the good old blow-the-cartridge-and-insert-but-not-all-the-way NES, hearing about him going to jail, and the infamous biting incident.  Basically, I just witnessed him on his decline in boxing.  This documentary showed me why he was a great inside the ring and maybe not so much outside the ring.  It leaves off with his time in jail which leads us into the next documentary to cover the rest.

Tyson (the newer documentary) – This one is more of an autobiographical interview of Mikey’s life.  You’ll hear his take on what went on in his past.  I found it hilarious and interesting.  A sign of a good movie is when I start to reinact lines from it and I’ve found myself doing that with Tyson.  Good watch!

Discovery Channel’s Rise of the Video Game – As I said, I was playing Mike Tyson’s Punch Out! and became very frustrated trying to beat Soda Popinski.  Even before that we had a Sega Master System which has a built in maze game.  After the NES I grew up using a Gameboy on long drives and mastered Mario Kart on the SNES.  We skipped the N64 and got a Playstation and loved Symphony of the Night.  The last console was the beloved Sega Dreamcast and had burned an entire collection of games.  I was done with consoles but then again I had Counter-Strike to take up my time.  I used to play hours and hours for an entire year!  Where’s that skill now?  Rise of the Video Game is a six part series chronicling the advent of the video game and major milestones in its evolution.  Since I haven’t been a serious gamer in years, it’s interesting to see how it all began and where it’s going.  I had a blast when it covered the timeframe when I was into gaming.  If you’ve grown up playing games, this is a must see.

BBC’s Soul Deep – This documentary series was recommended by my brother.  Many of my music favorites have been recommended by him and this documentary is no different.  Soul Deep chronicles the advent and evolution of popular black music.  The series talks about many famous artists such as Ruthie Brown, Etta James, Jaime Fox, I mean, Ray Charles, Sam Cook, Little Richard, Otis Redding, James Brown, Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston, Mary J. Blige, Beyonce, and many others.  My parents played soul and R&B music while I was growing up.  I remember my dad trying to play Roberta Flack’s Killing Me Softly on his electronic keyboard.  As I grew older I found I knew words to songs who’s artist’s names left me clueless.  Funk and soul music prevailed in my teen breakdancing years.  What are serious relationships without slowjams?  How could we have slowjams without popular black music? haha.  Well, we’d have some but with less feeling.  I have a piece of art hanging on my living room wall.  It states, “music comforts the soul” and Soul Deep comforts my musical mind.  Also, the Beyonce audio board feed is funny but apparently false.

If there’s anything you should get from this post, it’s to watch the Discovery Channel and BBC.  HBO’s good too.  Now, find these videos!  You tube them while watching ninja videos to train against torrents.

Superfly update for FlyCast for Blackberry

“What program do you use to stream music on your Blackberry?  What? You don’t stream music on your Blackberry?”

That’s a common mini conversation I’ve encountered.  I’ve heard Slacker Radio is pretty good but your SOL if you’re not a US resident.  So what’s left for the rest of us?  FlyCast is one of the few online streaming applications for Blackberry phones.  On Thursday, March 19, FlyCast released an update for its Blackberry users.  My favourite new feature is the ability to search Shoutcast streams and play from your preferences rather than the ones included in FlyCast (not that there’s anything wrong with their preloaded streams).  I can stream Cerritos Allstars now on my phone!  How cool is that?  FlyCast has had this feature for the iPhone for a while now but I know more people sporting a Blackberry instead.  Now, how do I get WJAM The Breeze playing on FlyCast?

Easy, breezy, beautiful, WJAM 104.3

Finally, after months of drifting and listening to one main online radio station, I’ve come across something else I can listen to and not get sick of.  There is a catch, however.  It’s all slow jams all the time and you have to be a romantic and a little older to appreciate the music.  The station is WJAM The Breeze Radio.

WJAM 104.3 is an online radio network providing four stations catering to old school, r&b and soul music.  I’ve only listened to the Breeze Radio and luckily listened to a playlist of songs that brought me back to my more romantic days haha.  This station plays a variety of soft music and offers a ton of songs I’ve never been exposed to before.  Sure, you’re heart won’t melt to all of the songs and some hours might all be saxo-mo-phone tracks but then, when you least expect it, one of “your” songs sneaks up on you and makes you smile!  It’s radio, right? And it has to have its high and lows to keep you interested.  Now sing it, baby! Haha.  Hope you enjoy WJAM The Breeze Radio.

Dizzy Spells somehow translates into Beer

Today, I woke up with a really intense dizzy spell.  I’ve experienced this sensation before only to find myself waking up collapsed on the floor.  Fortunately I didn’t experience my syncopic episode.  What’s weird is this is the first time feeling this for over 4 hours.  I didn’t drink last night or the rest of this week for that matter.  It feels like I’m on the heavier side of being buzzed.  If a police officer pulled me over on my way to work today to conduct a DIY test, I would pass the breathalizer test but probably fail walking straight.  Maybe also the alphabet backwards haha.  That’s how bad it was.  After a few glasses of water, some yogurt, turkey and time I feel a little bit better but not much.  Enough about my condition.  Let’s all be happy the weekend’s here and, for us Winnipegers, nice weather along the way.  I’m sure a few of you are going to converse over a pint or two of beer (not beers and not fishes either) and get your dizzy spell on.  Here’s an Aussie 6 part series about beer I’m currently watching.  It’s quite enjoyable so enjoy!

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Appreciating Beer

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Beer Connoisseur

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Beer Mania

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Beer and Food

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Crafting Beer

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Beer Culture