Day 20 was the upper body foam rolling routine and the two Lift-4 recovery routines. I did each of them back to back, and they definitely helped. Especially foam rolling my IT band in the Lift-4 foam rolling video because I was definitely having some knee pain this past week.
Sunday, February 11, 2024
DVD/TV Series Review: Fringe: The Complete Series
+++Warning, this contains spoilers from throughout the series (in paragraphs 4 and 5). +++
Fringe was a supernatural crime drama that ran for five seasons on FOX from 2008-2013. The series starred John Noble, Anna Torv, and Joshua Jackson. Lance Reddick and Blair Brown had leading and later recurring roles during the series.
The premise of the show was that a special division of the FBI was set up to investigate a series of strange phenomena (which was referred to in the first couple of seasons as the pattern). Much of the phenomena was based on the work of Dr. Walter Bishop (played by John Noble who gives probably the best overall performance in the series) who had been in a mental hospital for 17 years. Walter ends up as a special consultant for the FBI along with his son Peter (played by Joshua Jackson) who initially just tags along acting as Walter's babysitter and then he ends up helping investigate the events.
The cornerstone of the series was the wonderful acting. All the actors from the series regulars to those who played recurring characters and the bit parts did very well. It was another series where there was really no huge star that was a series regular. While Leonard Nimoy did make a few cameo appearances throughout the series and his character was mentioned a lot throughout the series, he was not in many of the episodes. I also like how the writers always grounded the unreal concepts in real science. They either took a known scientific fact and then stretched it, or took a scientific hypothesis and tried to come up with an explanation for it (reasonable or otherwise). Obviously, the outcomes were totally fake and unreal, but the premise that it started with was at least rooted in something that was.
The first season mostly followed a procedural case-of-the-week formula. Even in the first season, however, you can see that the writers were placing hints from the start of the two big serial storylines of the series, namely the war against the parallel universe and the war against the observers. Even with the procedural stories, there was actually a lot of continuity between the episodes, and as a result, it is definitely one of those series where you really do have to see it from the beginning to follow what is going on (especially as you get into the later seasons).
The only problem I have with the series is that at times it tried to do too much, and often went on too many tangents. Personally, I think they should have focused on one big story (either the parallel universe war or the observer takeover) and stuck with that. The 4th season kept the parallel universe, but changed the storylines because of Peter being "erased." On one hand, it allows for a different twist on the stories, but on the other hand, it created a storyline that just ended with the 4th season finale, and the storyline of William Bell's attempt to create his own universe did not really get totally resolved. The heroes did stop him, but he was allowed to just disappear and then the show did the time jump to tell the story of the observer takeover which ultimately ended the series. I think they lost a lot of more casual viewers that season because things just got hard to follow.
Fringe is definitely not a show that will appeal to everyone. Even though it started out with fairly good ratings it always was kind of a "cult" following kind of show. If you cannot easily suspend your disbelief this series is not for you. The show gets weird at times, but that is the point, and often joked about in the show. If you do like that kind of thing you will enjoy the series. If you are into science and are entertained by sci-fi material, and like shows that have unique storylines and is definitely not a carbon copy of anything else, this is worth giving a look.
The premise of the show was that a special division of the FBI was set up to investigate a series of strange phenomena (which was referred to in the first couple of seasons as the pattern). Much of the phenomena was based on the work of Dr. Walter Bishop (played by John Noble who gives probably the best overall performance in the series) who had been in a mental hospital for 17 years. Walter ends up as a special consultant for the FBI along with his son Peter (played by Joshua Jackson) who initially just tags along acting as Walter's babysitter and then he ends up helping investigate the events.
The cornerstone of the series was the wonderful acting. All the actors from the series regulars to those who played recurring characters and the bit parts did very well. It was another series where there was really no huge star that was a series regular. While Leonard Nimoy did make a few cameo appearances throughout the series and his character was mentioned a lot throughout the series, he was not in many of the episodes. I also like how the writers always grounded the unreal concepts in real science. They either took a known scientific fact and then stretched it, or took a scientific hypothesis and tried to come up with an explanation for it (reasonable or otherwise). Obviously, the outcomes were totally fake and unreal, but the premise that it started with was at least rooted in something that was.
The first season mostly followed a procedural case-of-the-week formula. Even in the first season, however, you can see that the writers were placing hints from the start of the two big serial storylines of the series, namely the war against the parallel universe and the war against the observers. Even with the procedural stories, there was actually a lot of continuity between the episodes, and as a result, it is definitely one of those series where you really do have to see it from the beginning to follow what is going on (especially as you get into the later seasons).
The only problem I have with the series is that at times it tried to do too much, and often went on too many tangents. Personally, I think they should have focused on one big story (either the parallel universe war or the observer takeover) and stuck with that. The 4th season kept the parallel universe, but changed the storylines because of Peter being "erased." On one hand, it allows for a different twist on the stories, but on the other hand, it created a storyline that just ended with the 4th season finale, and the storyline of William Bell's attempt to create his own universe did not really get totally resolved. The heroes did stop him, but he was allowed to just disappear and then the show did the time jump to tell the story of the observer takeover which ultimately ended the series. I think they lost a lot of more casual viewers that season because things just got hard to follow.
Fringe is definitely not a show that will appeal to everyone. Even though it started out with fairly good ratings it always was kind of a "cult" following kind of show. If you cannot easily suspend your disbelief this series is not for you. The show gets weird at times, but that is the point, and often joked about in the show. If you do like that kind of thing you will enjoy the series. If you are into science and are entertained by sci-fi material, and like shows that have unique storylines and is definitely not a carbon copy of anything else, this is worth giving a look.
Saturday, February 10, 2024
DVD/Movie Review: Barbarella
Barbarella is a cult-classic science fiction movie from 1968 directed by Roger Vadim and starring Jane Fonda. If there were ever a movie that could be described as the best movie of all time while also being the worst movie of all time, this is it. The story and acting are horribly bad. It is so bad that it could easily be one of the movies that the characters on "Mystery Science Theater 3000" could watch and excoriate. Along with the horrible writing and acting the special effects are extremely cheesy but given when this was made, that is not all that surprising. On the other hand, you have Jane Fonda at her physical peak either naked or half naked throughout the entire film.
The movie has been released several times on physical media. I have the DVD release with the uncut version of the movie. The only extra on that release is the movie trailer, but there are no commentary tracks on the movie or any other special features specific to the movie.
The movie does actually have a plot in which Barbarella is looking for a scientist named Durand Durand who has disappeared with some kind of weapon, but the movie is basically about Barbarella boning everyone she meets and showing off Fonda in various states of undress. There are a lot of people who hate Fonda for her war protest days, but there is no denying that in her prime she was as hot as any actress and this movie very much uses that to its advantage. The movie did have some influence on pop culture as the character of Durand Durand was the inspiration for the name of the 80s pop band Duran Duran. Ultimately, the movie is very cheesy and campy. Kind of akin to the 1960s Batman TV show in that way. It is not one to get because you want to see quality acting. It is however one of those that you can be entertained by just how bad it is.
Friday, February 9, 2024
Workout Update: T25/Lift-4/645 Corrective and Foam Rolling- Day 19
Day 19 was total body circuit in T25 and Legs 50/50 in Lift 4.
Each workout went okay, but I definitely did not have as much stamina as I did yesterday. I had to modify a lot more of the moves in each workout. I did use lighter weights for the weight portion of the Lift 4 workouts still (although I did bump up the weight I was using for one of the exercises from 20 to 25 lbs). I am looking forward to tomorrow's recovery routines, and hopefully, Sunday's T25 workout will be a bit easier.
Blu-Ray/Movie Review: A Time to Kill (Spoilers)
+++Warning, the review has spoilers in the third paragraph. If you have not seen the movie and care about being spoiled, skip that paragraph.+++
A Time to Kill is the 1996 movie adaptation of the John Grisham novel of the same name starring Matthew McConaughey, Sandra Bullock, Kevin Spacey, and Samuel L. Jackson. The wonderful supporting cast includes Ashley Judd, Donald and Kiefer Sutherland, Kurtwood Smith, Octavia Spencer, Chris Cooper, Charles S. Dutton, and Oliver Platt.
There are a couple things to keep in mind about this movie. One it was only a story. The movie clearly fictionalizes the very real lynchings and attacks of blacks that were common during the Civil Rights era in the South and the corrupt Southern justice system that allowed the people who were doing the lynchings to go free and make a more modern-day story from it. The twist in this movie is that the father of a child who was attacked takes justice into his own hands and subsequently ends up on trial in that same corrupt justice system.
Anyone who knows history (especially legal history) is aware of the fact that there was jury nullification many times in the South in favor of whites who had murdered blacks (and who had done so for far less compelling reasons than for which Samuel L. Jackson's character commits murder in this story). What is ultimately done in this story is having the jury nullification going the other way, after leading you to think that it could not possibly happen.
The second thing to keep in mind is that the movie is a courtroom drama, so (despite the story being written by a lawyer) the legal elements, especially the courtroom scenes are almost completely wrong. Anyone who has sat through more than one real trial knows that the vast majority of the time nothing dramatic happens. Lawyers are not allowed to ask 5 min long questions to a witness, and then present another 5 min long soliloquy after the witness answers the question. For the most part, trials are usually very dry and boring, with little to no excitement or things like breaking the witness. So pretty much every courtroom drama ever made has little to no authenticity to any of the legal aspects and this is no different.
If you can get past all that however and just focus on the acting and suspend your disbelief, the movie is very good. The suspension of disbelief will be hard for lawyers and law students. I remember when I watched this while in law school I was basically counting everything it got wrong. But now I can watch it without focusing on all that stuff. I think Samuel L. Jackson and Matthew McConaughey had great chemistry and played off each other very well. Sandra Bullock and McConaughey sold the tension between their characters well, and Donald Sutherland did a great job as the old, washed-up, alcoholic attorney who was advising the young upstart. I also thought Kevin Spacy (regardless of what you might think of him now) did a great job as the slimy district attorney.
The A/V transfer of the movie is very good, especially for a pre-DVD era movie that does not have a ton of special effects. The only extra is a trailer for the movie. There are no deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes material, or the like. Ultimately, if you cannot get past how unreal the story is, then do not get the movie because you probably will not like it. If you are good at suspension of disbelief and can just enjoy the story and good acting (both of which are top-notch), then it is well worth the time to watch.
The second thing to keep in mind is that the movie is a courtroom drama, so (despite the story being written by a lawyer) the legal elements, especially the courtroom scenes are almost completely wrong. Anyone who has sat through more than one real trial knows that the vast majority of the time nothing dramatic happens. Lawyers are not allowed to ask 5 min long questions to a witness, and then present another 5 min long soliloquy after the witness answers the question. For the most part, trials are usually very dry and boring, with little to no excitement or things like breaking the witness. So pretty much every courtroom drama ever made has little to no authenticity to any of the legal aspects and this is no different.
If you can get past all that however and just focus on the acting and suspend your disbelief, the movie is very good. The suspension of disbelief will be hard for lawyers and law students. I remember when I watched this while in law school I was basically counting everything it got wrong. But now I can watch it without focusing on all that stuff. I think Samuel L. Jackson and Matthew McConaughey had great chemistry and played off each other very well. Sandra Bullock and McConaughey sold the tension between their characters well, and Donald Sutherland did a great job as the old, washed-up, alcoholic attorney who was advising the young upstart. I also thought Kevin Spacy (regardless of what you might think of him now) did a great job as the slimy district attorney.
The A/V transfer of the movie is very good, especially for a pre-DVD era movie that does not have a ton of special effects. The only extra is a trailer for the movie. There are no deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes material, or the like. Ultimately, if you cannot get past how unreal the story is, then do not get the movie because you probably will not like it. If you are good at suspension of disbelief and can just enjoy the story and good acting (both of which are top-notch), then it is well worth the time to watch.
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