Out and About in LA: The Grammy Museum

Music just doesn’t have a hold on me like movies do. Which is weird cause I have over four hundred songs on my iPhone so I clearly like listening to it. But most of it involves either musical scores or just pop culture hits from films/television. So the idea of a museum of music sounded pretty boring to me initially. Luckily Los Angeles is hosted to a pretty cool museum of the sort thanks to The Grammys. The GRAMMY MUSEUM is what you think it is: a look at the history of one of the biggest awards an entertainer can receive. I’ll go into my full thoughts on the place a little later but for now enjoy what there is to offer right near the Staples Center.

Great Movie Scenes #016: Fargo (1996)

The TV show “adaptation” of the hit film Fargo has turned my world upside down. Not only is it the most well written, and incredibly cast show, but it enhances the original source for some strange reason. It’s not like there is a real connection between the characters but it somehow makes this area of America captivating. But before we got the show giving us literally gold coming out of character’s mouths we would get moments like this in the film:

The Art of Let’s Plays

(The cover photo, ‘Whose Side Are You On?’ is brought to you by Reddit user blaze_holejammer. Thanks for your incredible dedication to these Let’s Players!)

On the first generation God created the Atari and on the eight generation he created the PS4. In that span of time many things changed in the video game industry. Consoles have turned into ‘entertainment systems’, webcams & streaming services have changed how we view our devices, and now we have industries dedicated to watching people play games. That’s right, we as a society can go online and watch people play video games. What a time to be alive.

Great Movie Scenes #015: The Mask (1994)

If you want a great example of what made Jim Carrey hot shit during the 1990s look no further than this musical moment in The Mask:

Review: The Horde (2010)

Zombie movies are a dime a dozen these days. Thanks to The Walking Dead we have seen a resurgence of this horror genre like never before. So it comes no surprise that a lot of films and TV series have come along to get in that z-train of money. Most of these attempts I find to be pure garbage and have the lowest of special effects involved. One day while cruising through Netflix I stumbled upon another z-title but we go international as this is a French attempt at cashing in on the undead craze. Starting it up I honestly had no expectations what so ever. By the end I had a smile going from ear to ear and wish The Horde could keep going.

The premise is as simple as it gets. A bunch of corrupt cops storm a building to get revenge on a gang for killing one of their own. It goes south incredibly quickly but before our “heroes” bite it the undead suddenly emerge and now both have to work together if they want to survive. Again, not much of a story here as it is just a simple premise to get the ball rolling. You would think with the gruff characters and bleak setting this would be a harsh movie to watch. That would be a correct statement for the first twenty minutes but if you stick with it long enough you have one hell of a fun movie.

I could not tell you who these filmmakers are or what their previous filmography is. But I want to go find these people and thank them for making one crazy film. This zombie movie is basically The Raid but with zombies and what makes that even more ridiculous is that The Raid wasn’t even conceived until two years AFTER this film. The Horde is a very low-rez action film as we get the most basics of fight sequences and even the gore is hardly squeamish but that’s where this film finds its charm. It finds beauty out of scenes like a middle aged gangster literally sucker punching his way against two zombies. If that isn’t making you want to go out and find this film let me describe this in a few more sentences.

You got some pretty okay CGI along the way which somehow enhances the goofiness. So when you see a row of zombies get blasted by a heavy machine gun it comes out like jam rather than blood. Then you have some ridiculous characters involved including the aforementioned fist fighting gangster. Nothing can top a man named Rene however; who is a senior citizen, racist spouting, and Santa gut wielding coot who practically steals the film with his antics. If this film somehow lost the rest of this cast and just focused on Rene this could easily have turned into the greatest French film since The Rules of the Game. Top that with some truly entertaining action set pieces including a final stand in a garage that is honestly well paced and shot.

If you are a fan of horror films I recommend watching The Horde. It does have an incredibly awkward start and it you would be pressed into thinking this isn’t a good movie. But stick with it once the zombies come in and I promise you are going to have a wonderful time. Again, not a great movie in a technical sense by any stretch of the imagination. But The Horde stands out from a lot of the clones and competitors which makes all the difference.

The Most Extreme Work Tour II

Remember when I should you guys a sick tour  of my job back in the summer? Well with me being in a hot new spot I decided to give you another kick ass ride around the offices! You’ve all seen it on your TV, computers, laptops, phones, and what have yous. Here’s a look at what makes TMZ run like clockwork

The Best Films of 2015

And now for the thrilling conclusion! Here are the five, best films of 2015. Let me know how you guys think in the comments below or go to my Facebook page for any insights.

Out and About in California: Slab City

Here I am, back in Niland. There is more to the place than Salvation Mountain although it probably is the only ‘colorful’ thing about the area. Just next to the famed artwork is an area called ‘Slab City’. Labeled as ‘The Last Free City’ it basically means a lot of squatters living in the desert to avoid taxes and modern day life. The next series of pictures is the environment these Slabbers live in and some of the artwork they create.

The Worst Films of 2015

This is coming out a little late than usual but here is what I considered the WORST of the worst in film from 2015. Stay tuned next weekend for what will ultimately be the best of the previous year.

Out and About in California: Salvation Mountain

Holy crap it is 2016! Which means I have been in Los Angeles for nine months now. Absolute insanity. I still have a job and my future is still looking bright moving out here. But just because I have a professional life doesn’t mean I’ve given up traveling around. This year I resolve to go outside of LA though and explore this vast area we call the West. But we’ll take it one step at a time and stay in the general, Southern California area.

So join me for my first venture of 2016. Join me at SALVATION MOUNTAIN