Battleship, the movie

It really isn't called "the movie" but I felt the need to add that to the end...

In random beer news, I brewed another one this past weekend. I made a 'Dark Red Porter' using a recipe I found in a brewing magazine. Pretty excited about it. I already have a name in mind but we will see if it is worth drinking before I really name it. For the recently made beers, the Black IPA "JT's Front Porch IBA" that Ted and I made is going faster than I would have believed and the Black Chocolate Stout is still bottle conditioning. We opened one of the stouts the other day, it turned out with a much more coffee flavor than chocolate. We shall see how it turns out in a few weeks.

And on to the movie, Battleship was fantastic. A super high intensity action movie, very tense and fun. And surprisingly funny in parts. I really have super low expectations of a movie version of any game. (Resident Evil is the only shining example of the genre I can think of...memorable other examples that come to mind are Doom, Dungeons and Dragons, and the absolutely horrible Bloodrayne). And a movie about Battleship seemed impossible. However, they pull it off admirably. They even have feasible reasoning for the game play...as hard as that sounds.

Awesome movie, Liam Neeson really just has a small role, as does Alexander Skarsgard. The real lead characters are Taylor Kitsch (John Carter and he also played Gambit in Wolverine, bugged me forever trying to figure out who he was), Brooklyn Decker, and Rihanna. Taylor Kitsch really does the 'scrappy underdog screwup that you're rooting for' character to a tee. His efforts to impress Brooklyn Decker at the first of the movie had me cracking up. Brooklyn Decker is gorgeous, as always and honestly, she has become quite the actress. I believe she will forever be the 'hot girlfriend' in every movie, probably never a lead. Rihanna was awesome. If I didn't know she was in this movie, I would not have recognized her. She really sold the role of the hardcore 'forever' tomboy. I really look forward to her being in future movies as possibly the lead. She could easily slip into an assassin or fugitive role.

And another honorable mention were the "veterans" (I put them in quotes because at this time, I am not sure they were not actual veterans that were asked to play in a movie). Seeing them just makes your heart proud...you really will come out of this movie with a strong feeling of patriotism, strange as that sounds.

Go see Battleship. It is worth seeing in the theater. I was completely shocked at how much I enjoyed this movie. It was pleasantly surprised. I would honestly say that if this would have been some sort of "Independence Day II", it would have been an acceptable sequel.

My only complaint is a small one...why did they put so much makeup on Alexander Skarsgard? At one point, they give him a super close up and he clearly has on lipstick...why? That's not what you want to see on the commander of a destroyer...lipstick...and blush...seriously...

"Cabin in the Woods" and a new homebrew

Beer first, it took the collaborative effort of a buddy of mine, (Ted), and I to create what has been the best beer I have ever brewed. We planned on brewing an IBA (India Black Ale, also known as a Black IPA or a Cascadian Dark) that Saturday morning and when it began raining, we had to move from the back patio (uncovered) to the front porch (covered). This is why the beer has been named JT's Front Porch IBA. It is as black as midnight, lightly malty, pretty hoppy with a lingering hoppy aftertaste. I hope we are able to make it again in the near future because it is going fast...

On to the movie. I have to admit that before I got tickets to "Cabin in the Woods", I had not seen a preview or heard anything about it. After watching the preview, there was no chance that I going to miss it and I was not disappointed in going. This is an awesome movie and it has everything you could possibly want in a movie. I highly advise you see this movie in the theater. It is worth the money. It is not going to win an Academy award or an Oscar but it has one of the most interesting storylines I have heard of recently. 2 thumbs way up.

***SPOILERS, well, not really, you need to see this movie and I am not going to spoil it for you***

I hesitate to classify it as a 'horror' movie although it definitely has that typical slasher/campy feel for the majority of the movie. The first 40 minutes or so are almost comedic. Honestly the whole movie has a serious humor streak. I would have almost called it slapstick if slapstick meant screaming bloody gore with snarky comments and dialogue. Really tho, everything that you want to happen in this movie, happens. I spent the whole movie wishing that one particular event would occur and then it did. But since I am not really going to spoil it for you (even you few that read this), I am going to stop now. Go see it and we will talk.

American Reunion and a new beer

New beer first, I had a Ballast Point Scupltin IPA the other day and it was fantastic. Super hoppy but a light mouthfeel. I hope to have another one in the next week or so.

I saw American Reunion last night. A funny movie although there was a surprising amount of seriousness. In my mind, they have to continue the story from the previous movies and because of that, there is not a 'laugh a minute' type feel to this movie. I had no idea that there have been eight of these movies now (EIGHT!?!), including the direct to DVD movies, which means there is a lot of stories to advance in the course of a movie that is not quite 2 hours long. Funny movie tho, Stifler steals the show for most of the movie, yet again.

***Spoiler Alert...although, if you don't want to know how the movie turns out or anything about the movie, why are you reading a review about it? I guess I am just warning morons...dunno***

The main premise of the movie, which is the same of all these movies, is sex. Who's getting some, who's not, what is the problem. The story line of Jim and Michelle having an 'out of sync' issue was pretty touching (in a completely ridiculous way of course) and will probably hit home for a lot of new parents. Eugene Levy is pure greatness with his awkward advice; he is the king of the TMI conversation. The "well placed thumb" comment or the story opening about how Jim's mom liked "diving for dollars" were both confusing and hysterical.

And I had forgotten how awesome Jennifer Coolidge is. I have been watching "2 Broke Girls" and she annoys the crap out of me in that, I had forgotten she was funny when she is not doing the over dramatic "I barely speak english unless there is sexual innuendo" accent. She really was pretty good in this movie and her with super drunk Eugene Levy really did make for several funny moments.

But what really makes this movie is Stifler. Seann William Scott is the master at this role, he is truly reminds me of every obnoxious self deluded prick I have ever known (including myself). But it was really touching when the other four guys came to his work after bitching at him and told him that he might be a dick, but 'you are our dick'. And I honestly cheered when he was the one to step up and punch the doctor who was threatening to sue anyone that touched him, screaming "Go ahead and sue me!! I'm not worth jack shit!!" Afterwards, I swear...never has the line "I am your dick" been included in such a touching moment.

This is a funny movie. In an over-the-top "why are there kids here" kind of way. And worth seeing but don't go to the theater, this one should be a rental. American Reunion should also be the last one of American Pie franchise. Everything was tied up, no loose ends, and anything added to this would be stupid and useless.