Welcome

Welcome to my ever-evolving blog. It started out as a blog on Beachbody workouts and products, mainly when I was a Beachbody coach. I no longer coach, not because I don't believe in Beachbody's programs (I subscribe to Beachbody on Demand and use their workouts every day), I am just not a salesperson and hated that aspect of it. I am more than willing to answer questions about my experiences with their products and the various workouts, and I feel freer to do so without the appearance of giving a biased review of something.

I have also started adding reviews for various things I have purchased like movies, books, CDs, and other products. This was brought about by a fight with Amazon in which all of my reviews were removed over a completely bullshit allegation that I posted a review that violated their terms of service. After going back and forth with the morons in the community-reviews department (even after they admitted that my posts did not violate their guidelines) they restored my account (which took them six months to do), but I have been posting my reviews on my blog to have them preserved in case something like that happens again. And here, I will post uncensored reviews so I will swear from time to time and post reviews that may be longer than Amazon's character limit. Everything I post here on any topic or product is my personal opinion, and I take no compensation for any product reviews I post. I am a member of Amazon's vine program and because I get those products for free, I keep those reviews on Amazon only, but everything I have purchased with my own money, whether from Amazon or some other store/website/outlet, I will post here.  

I also plan to do some longer blog posts on various topics, such as how to learn physics, how to get through calculus, and longer reviews of workout programs as I do them. Basically, whatever strikes me as interesting at the time.  As you can see if you navigate around the blog, I had many years in between postings. During that time I was going back to school to get an engineering degree, and learning material that I avoided my first time through college was a different experience and one that gave me a lot of insight into how to do well in those classes, which I will try to impart here for those who are looking to get a science or engineering degree. 

Sunday, May 19, 2024

DVD/Movie Review: Rush Hour 2

 


Rush Hour 2 is the 2001 sequel to the original 1998 movie. It brings back Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan as Carter and Lee and adds Roselyn Sanchez and Zhang Ziyi (who was coming off her role in Crouching Tiger: Hidden Dragon). The cast is rounded out by John Lone, Alan King, Jeremy Piven, and Harris Yulin. Sharp-eyed viewers will also catch a glimpse of a young Maggie Q (who would later star in the series Nikita and Designated Survivor) in a small role.  The film starts out with Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker in Hong Kong, on the vacation they were going on at the end of the first movie. Chan's character, Lee, does nothing but work on cases, while Carter wants to relax, have fun, and hook up. They end up in the middle of a counterfeit money/money laundering ring that spans from Hong Kong back to the US.

The DVD extras again a director's commentary with Brett Ratner, deleted and extended scenes, a gag reel, making-of and behind-the-scenes featurettes with the cast and crew, and the trailers. This movie is one of the few sequels that is better than the original movie. This is in part because the original was not exactly a masterpiece, so all it really had to do was improve on the formula that made the first one work. The two main additions to the case in this movie were Zhang Ziyi, who played one of the main villains of the film, and Roselyn Sanchez, who plays an undercover secret service agent. Both have a dance background which allows them to do really well in the fight scenes they are involved in, and of course, the rather gratuitous shot of Roselyn Sanchez in her underwear about halfway through the movie is not bad either. 

Like the first movie, this one is a pretty formulaic buddy cop movie. The main story involves the two main characters becoming closer friends but with a somewhat cliched bit of tension thrown in. The movie does not really take itself too seriously and does a good job of balancing the big fight scenes that Chan's films are known for and Chris Tucker's comedy. Ultimately, it is a very enjoyable sequel with a good blend of action and comedy. If you liked or loved the first movie, you will probably like this one too.  On the other hand, if the first movie did not do anything for you this one will not either.

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