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“The Book of Eli”: a brief review (w/spoilers)
I didn’t have plans to go see “The Book of Eli”, even though the trailer made it look like “Fallout 3: The Movie” (I happen to be a big fan of “Fallout 3“). But then I read some early reviews that...
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“Battle Los Angeles”: a brief review (w/spoilers)
My sweet wife Sandra is not a particular fan of SF films (though she’ll certainly watch or go see them with me), nor of war movies. Yet after we saw this movie today, she talked about how engrossed...
View Article“Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance”— a brief review, with spoilers
In the interest of full disclosure, I must say that I’ve been a Nicolas Cage fan ever since “Raising Arizona”. It doesn’t mean that I like (or have even seen) all the films he’s done, but I do like...
View Article“The Woman in Black” (1989 vs. 2012): a brief comparative review, with spoilers
My sweet wife and I went to see the new remake of “The Woman in Black”, starring Daniel Radcliffe. We had watched the original (made-for-British-TV) 1989 version when it first came out on video and at...
View Article“Act of Valor”: a brief review, w/spoilers
[Originally posted over at Ace of Spades] Those who “abjure” violence can only do so because others are committing violence on their behalf. — George Orwell, Notes on Nationalism This film has gotten a...
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“John Carter”: a brief review, with spoilers
I first read “A Princess of Mars” by Edgar Rice Burroughs early in high school, over 40 years ago. I loved the novel and enjoyed the ten (yes, ten) that followed, though none were quite as good or as...
View Article“The Hunger Games”: a brief review w/spoilers
My sweet wife and I went to see “The Hunger Games” today. I’ve read all three novels and enjoyed them — they are a cut above the usual Young Adult novels and are a bit dark and unrelenting. The...
View Article“The Avengers” (2012): a brief review, w/spoilers
Great movies that hit their target are hard to review, and Joss Whedon pretty much smacked this puppy out of the park. He made a 2:23 ensemble superhero movie that never lags and that doesn’t...
View ArticleNew series at bfwa.com: “Readings in Software Engineering”
Over at bfwa.com, I’ve started a new series of posts that will present brief reviews of and excerpts from my library of software engineering and IT project management texts. Here’s the introduction to...
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Endless Space from Amplitude Studios — a review
I have been playing computer games off and on since the mid-70s (“Star Trek” on the DECSystem-10 at BYU) and did game design and development myself in the 80s (Sundog: Frozen Legacy) while also...
View ArticleTomb Raider (2013): A brief (and preliminary) review, with spoilers
Of the previous “Tomb Raider” games, I only ever played the very first one, and even that not very much — it was my daughter Crystal who was the “Tomb Raider” aficionado (both games and movies). My...
View Article“Dishonored DLC: The Knife of Dunwall”— a brief review w/spoilers
“Dishonored” (2012) is one of my favorite games in quite some time. I haven’t put as many hours into it as I have into, say, “Endless Space” or “XCOM: Enemy Unknown”, but it has a moral resonance,...
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“Ender’s Game” (the movie): a brief review w/spoilers
I read the original “Ender’s Game” short story when it was published in Analog (August 1977). I was startled, because I knew the author, Orson Scott Card, slightly. He and I attended Brigham Young...
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The Vance Integral Edition: A (New) Review
Back in 2006, I started what was intended to be a review of all 44 volumes of the Vance Integral Edition. I didn’t get beyond my introductory post, which I have largely reproduced below, with some...
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