The World According To Dave Dagger

The Sims 2: Shouldn’t Be This Addictive

davedagger — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 16:30:11 +0000

I have always loved The Sims series, having had the entire first series with all the expansion packs, but have stayed clear of the second installment, remembering the time it took away from me, and also thinking my computer could not handle the graphical content. So as I sat at home with no internet due to my moving house (for the 9th time since November 2003), which also meant no World Of Warcraft, I was in need of an offline game for the PC.So for some reason I was searching through Wightbay (which is a free-ad site for residents of the Isle of Wight to buy and sell their goods for no fee – we like a bargain or two down here!) and came accross ‘The Sims 2 + 7 Expansion Packs”. Now one of which I don’t believe is an official expansion pack, but a Christmas ‘Stuff’ Pack, but never the less £40 was too good a deal to turn down, so I bought it. Good potential resale profit should I not like the game.

There is one burning question after playing this for a week; why is this god damn game so addictive? You don’t actually achieve anything. Nothing is going on. It takes ages to get your characters stats up, and is nigh on impossible if you don’t use the cheats! Yeah I tried playing without the cheats and lasted about 30mins, as my sim looked suicidal in his tiny little house. As I said I have only had this a week, but have only so far installed the University expansion pack, which is totally different from any of the previous series expansions (WTF was Makin’ Magic all about anyway???) Already I have made further purchases via ebay, picking up Bon Voyage expansion and the IKEA stuff and Teen Style stuff packs for next to nothing. This is why I love the PC for games, as it does not matter if you are a couple of years behind the times as I have paid out £50 for about £160 of games had I bought them brand new. I did the same not long ago with Rollercoaster Tycoon, and more recently with World of Warcraft.

Anyway, if you havn’t already played it, and you can pick it up cheap enough give it a go. Just be warned, like most PC games, its well addictive!

Friday The 13th: 2009 vs 1980

davedagger — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 17:19:50 +0000

So, for me anyway, the long wait was over. The Michael Bay produced Friday The 13th finally has arrived… and I for one was not disappointed. I don’t think that this will grab many new fans, as many people will just dismiss it as ‘yet another Friday The 13th film.’I guess in a way those people will be right, it is another Friday the 13th film, but this is really how the original films should have looked. With modern day technology, and mainstream budgets this is a perfect result for hardcore Friday fans. Of course there will be the people who want to jump on the band wagon and tell everyone how bad this film is, but I would have this to say to those people; what on earth were you expecting? A Kubrick style masterpiece? Tarantino-esque dialogue? Mind warping twisting plots? No. Friday the 13th has alongside Halloween been the marker for all slasher films, and what have we learnt in the past 30 years that a slasher film needs? A bunch of disposable teens who take drugs, have sex and have absolutely zero respect for the rules of horror films (never go for a walk in the woods at night, never have sex in a tent, don’t be the smart black guy, etc) and then throw in a massive guy in a mask to chop up all the annoying kids with a big ass knife. Get this right, and you have the basis of a pretty decent slasher film, all you have to do is have a few ingenious deaths, a high nipple count and a few gags and then everyone is happy. I am happy to report that the 2009 remake ticks every box and then some.

There were some unexpected additions to make this a lot more than just another remake. After all this is in noway a remake. A straight remake of the 1980 original would not have included Jason, this re-imaganing covered the first four chapters of the Friday the 13th saga, which makes for a really pacey film. There is also a high body count, which is also a F13 staple. Jason offed at least 12 victims to my knowledge. No doubt there will be the odd naysayer who will point out things that were not resolved, but do you really need every damn thing explained to you in detail? Did the creators not want to leave a few things uncovered so that a possible sequel would be in the offering? Of course they did. In the same way that Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2004 left a few holes so that there would be a prequel, F13 2009 left enough so that a sequel could (and should) be made.

As far as mainstay F13 characteristics go, there were three good boobie scenes (one of which must take the claim of being F13′s most hardcore sex scene), lots of drug use reference and of course some excellent deaths and gags. To mention a few without giving too much away we had a burning inside a tied up sleeping bag (reminded me of the sleeping bag death of Jason X – the only good thing about that film), an arrow through the head, death by flying axe, screwdriver through the head and many machetes to the head, including a great one through the top of the head under a dock (when you see it you will know why!) As for the gags the best one was when one of the guys heads to the tool shed (don’t ever do that when visiting Crystal Lake) and starts playing with a Ice Hockey stick that he found in there, only to be confronted by Jason clad in the infamous Hockey mask. Cue the line ‘Uh, I think this must belong to you’ as he holds out the stick. Obvious but very funny. The dialogue is ropey at best, but that is what horror films are about, casting people you have never heard of or never will hear of again. Ok there may be the odd exception; Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Bacon and Johnny Depp to name but a few, but generally you only really care about one person in a film like this, and in this particular film his name is Jason Voorhees.

I have always thought that Kane Hodder was the only man who could play Jason, and it is a real shame that he played Jason in four of the worst Jason films ever; Part 7 and 8, Jason Goes To Hell and Jason X. Ken Kirzinger did a good job in Freddy vs Jason, but in this new film Derek Mears has breathed new life to what some people would say is a very limited character. First of all it appears Jason now has the ability to run. I mean all you had to do was stay on your feet and run like fuck and you would be safe. Not now. Also this is a much cleverer Jason, and we get to see more than ever before, especially his dwelling. I love the idea that the kids are not staying at the Camp Crystal Lake, and that its whereabouts have been lost in time, and that Jason has taken over this place as his home. You see the old Voorhees household and Jason’s old bed, and then something you have never seen; Jason’s underground hideaway, and proof that he is not as stupid as you may think. A series of bells linked to tripwires all around the campus let Jason know when someone is tresspassing, in a similar fashion to Kane in See No Evil. This is great to see, as Jason’s home was only seen before in F13 Part 2, and very briefly.

All in all I was very pleased and even suprised at how good this was, hardcore fans will love it, movie gits will complain that there is too many holes, newbies will enjoy it but not be into it like the fans. This really is a great reward for fans, and will no doubt lead to more sequels, which will keep me happy.

A great addition to the Friday the 13th family, and well worth a watch… 10/10 to hardcore diehard fans like me,… 7/10 for newbies and the like!

Week 2: All Things Going Well

davedagger — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 12:39:16 +0000

Technically I have been on this new lifestyle program for two weeks now, but the first week we didn’t have any scales, but I know that I lost weight in that first week. So I’m kinda wondering what my real starting weight was.When we got the scales they read 26:12, at that time I’d been eating better and smaller for 10 days. So I would probably say that my starting weight was closer to 27:07, which would mean that after the first week (well 10 days) I actually lost 9lbs. Which when I think back to previous diets, is about right.
Anyway, as I have said before I’m not calling this a diet, but a change in lifestyle, and this week has seen me still eat things that are probably not right. Especially on Saturday, which myself and Jasmin have decided is our treat day. You have to have a treat day. I had sausage and chips from the chip shop, two battered jumbos and large chips. As well as that there was a buffet at Paul’s 30th birthday party, and a sausage sandwich along the line too. Oh and last night I had a treacle sponge pudding.
Yeah probably not the greatest week, but apart from that I was good. Good enough that I was happy when I got on the scales.

Weight this morning – 26:07
Weekly loss – 5lbs
Total loss – 1stn 0lbs

Killer Klowns From Outer Space: Reliving An Old Favourite

davedagger — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 15:43:32 +0000

I first watched this film when I was about 8 or 9 years old. My dad had a video section to his newsagents shop, and I remember looking at the bright and colourful box, and thinking this was the scariest thing in the world. The film was classified as a 15, but I watched it anyway… and I laughed all the way through. I would watch this film time and time again, would it hold its value to me over time though?
Despite the fact that no-one in the office had even heard of it when it turned up from Play.com, and that they all said it looked rubbish, I could not wait to watch this again. After all it had been nearly 20 years since it last polluted my young fragile mind! My girlfriend Jasmin wasn’t too happy that I had bought yet another ‘shit film’, but somehow I managed to persuade her to watch it.
Killer Klowns is now rated as a 12, which is pretty much par for the course these days with older films being downgraded (The Terminator is now a 15), but I reckon it could even get away with a PG certificate. I cannot remember even a drop of blood being spilt in this film, and the violence is cartoony at best. The clowns don’t talk they just make these weird squeeking noises, and the closest you get to nudity is a close up of a girls ankle (surely would be banned in the middle east!). One thing that I never picked up on when I was younger, is that it stars John Vernon, who has been in loads of films and TV programs, and is one of those people who you would say ‘Who is that guy, I know his face’. He is probably best known for his role in Animal House as the hapless college Dean. Anyway, Vernon plays the typical police sherriff of a small town who thinks the local kids are playing tricks on him when they tell him that the town is being over run by Killer Klowns From Outer Space. Seriously you just don’t get comic genius like that anymore!
Yes the acting is shocking, the Klowns themselves are about as scary as Sooty and Sweep, and the special effects are… well… special in the kind of way that they might have to get a different kind of bus to other special effects.
Time may have diminished it to new viewers (my girlfriend thought it was terrible), but to those of us who watched it in 1988 (damn I was 7!) put your feet up and enjoy the classic theme tune, terrible acting and piss poor effects and remember the things you forgot (totally forgot about the killer shadown puppet T-Rex!)

Fantastic for what it (a B-Movie Horror/Comedy… well comedy more than horror… actually no horror at all… unless you hate clowns)

7/10

New Year, New Goals

davedagger — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 14:44:05 +0000

So 2009 is here, and I have decided that I need to use this blog for more than just reviewing movies and video games, and things have to change within my own life too. Things will change, and will hopefully change my life forever.

Those who know me will know that I have always been a big lad, but I believe that since I took on an office job in June 2007 I have put on a fair old bit of weight, through lack of exercise and eating junk. So 2009 will be the year I do something about it, and this here blog is what I will use to track my weight loss.
I am not on my own in this crusade, my girlfriend is assisting me by making me eat more healthily. I am not calling this a diet, just changing lifetime eating habits.
I then thought it would be good idea to purchase some new bathroom scales, the old ones were apparently broken… it said ‘ER’ when I got onboard (nothing to do with exceeding the weight limit I told myself!). So on I got on Wednesday morning…

Weight Loss – Week One – Starting Weight 26:12

Hancock: Great Ideas Should Be Seen To The End

davedagger — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 15:20:26 +0000

If ever there was an idea that you would have thought would work in this day an age of Superhero films drenching the Box Office’s of the world, then you would have thought that a film about a terrible alcoholic super hero would have hit the spot. But you would in fact be wrong.

The fact is that this film should have been hilarious, a man who posses such great powers but does not know how to control them in anyway. (see Bruce Almighty for proof of this fact), but the film goes down the route of ‘Black Comedy’, and no I don’t mean Chris Rock or Martin Lawrence funny, I mean dark comedy, not really intended for kids.
Well that is the first mistake, and defiantly the films biggest mistake, and by no means the last. How must that production meeting gone?

“I got this idea for a film, it’s about a washed up, alcoholic super hero that tries to do good, but just ends up causing more damage. Will Smith is going to play the lead, we are going to release the film in the summer. It’s gonna be great. Really funny.”
“That sounds like a winner, guarenteed summer block buster you got there. The kids will love it”
“Umm, its not for kids though. It’s a Black Comedy. It’s dark. It’s for adults.”
“Get out of my office”

Thats how it should have gone down. Unfortunatly it was made the way it was.

Basically the first half of this film is ok, then the weak plot kicks in, the enevitable twist comes along as does the last minute attempt at creating some sort of nemesis for Hancock. This last thing is really really obviously rushed and a last minute inclusion. I had totally lost intrest in the film at that point. This film should have had the same feel to it as Wild Wild West or Men In Black, but sadly it doesn’t.

It should have been a family comedy like these two films, but no it chose the Black Comedy route, and for that it was just funny. So no humour and as for action… not so good either, and as for the wired green screen effects… yuck.

Such a great idea, shame it got messed up, maybe I just didn’t get it, but it did do very well at the box office, and sold well on DVD. I’m just glad I picked it up at Woolworths with 60% off. It just about kept me entertained for an hour, then I lost it. Probably will be one that sits in my collection forever, never to be watched again!

Not really for me, maybe if I can be arsed to watch it again it may grow on me, but for now… 4.5/10

Wanted: As Good As The Matrix?

davedagger — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 14:49:33 +0000

This will be the first of many of my film reviews in a short space of time, as I recieved a great many DVDs for Christmas, and bought a few more in the sales!
I was somewhat apprehensive about this film when it came out, but looking back on it I really shouldn’t have been so worried. The reputations coming into this film speak for themselves really.
At the top of the class you have Director Timur Bekmambetov (the man behind ‘Night Watch’ & ‘Day Watch’), Morgan Freeman (who rarely makes a bad film) and Angelina Jolie (who I feel is severely underrated as a leading action star). The one thing that was putting me off was that the lead role went to James McAvoy. I thought that this was just to try and attract a younger female demographic to the film, but actually he played the role perfectly.

Wanted has obviously set itself up to become a franchise, and comparisons must be made to The Matrix as far as the plot goes. Speaking of the plot, yes it has been done 100′s of times before (The Matrix was hardly original), but sometimes the simplest things are the most effective, and sometimes you must also let go of reality to enjoy yourself.

This film has been there and done it plenty of times before but the action and special effects are both top notch, and there are more than enough twists and turns to keep your mind working. What I did find strange is how Wanted was pretty gruesome in places, and fully deserved it’s 18 certificate, which is a rarity for a mainstream film these days.

I don’t really have a bad word to say about this film, but I wouldn’t ever rave about it either. It has similarities to The Matrix, but is never in the same league. The bullet bending thing is just the film’s gimmick in the same way that bullet time was The Matrix’s gimmick. In the same way that the Wachowski Brothers drew inspiration from their favourite films in making The Matrix Trilogy, I am pretty sure that Bekmambetov was inspired by The Matrix when making this film. It’s not that that is a bad thing in anyway!

All in all I would say that Wanted is an above average film, with some nice action, some nice eye candy for both guys and gals and a pretty standard sci-fi/action plot. If you are looking for one of those types of films that does not test the mind, yet keeps you entertained then give this a go. I know that quite a few people now have it in for Mrs Brad Pitt, but she really does the business in this, she can hold her own in any action film, and I have yet to see a better all round performance by any other leading lady of Hollywood (plus she looks cracking in this film – lots of tattoos and holding a gun since the good old days of Lara Croft)

For me I would defo want to watch this again some time, and I will give it a solid 7.5/10, and will look forward to any news of a sequel!

Pool: Three In A Row Now

davedagger — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 11:22:47 +0000

It’s taken some time, but finally I have hit a bit of form having now won three games in a row, but as predicted as soon as I start winning the rest of the team starts losing! It’s a funny old game! I’m sure come the end of the season we shall be there or there abouts when the promotion is decided!

Terminator Salvation: How To Rescue A Franchise

davedagger — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 16:49:13 +0000

From the looks of the latest trailer the latest Terminator instalment has indeed saved the franchise from becoming yet another one of those sagas that suffer from ‘just one sequel too many’ syndrome.Yet we should not have been surprised. After all it stars Christian Bale in the lead role as Resistance Leader John Conner, and as we all know he was a huge part of saving the Batman franchise.
The fact that this one does not (yet) feature Arnold Schwarzenegger, has given mixed feeling to it’s fans. I am a huge fan of these series, and don’t even mind the third one too much, but the one thing that annoyed me more than anything was the fact it was made for people who weren’t even born when T2: Judgement Day was made let alone the first film! The first Terminator film to feature the future war as its main setting was always going to be a big one, and this could well and truly carry on to future films, almost as a series reboot like Batman Begins, but staying within the saga’s time line. The first two films were all about stopping the future war with it’s main belief saying that there is ‘No Fate’, and that we as a race make our fate by the choices that we make every day. The third film however says that although Judgement Day never came on the date set, it was always inevitable to happen one day. (what sort of message is that?)

So now that our day of judgement has arrived and the war is in ‘Full Throttle’, or rather in the hands of Charlie’s Angels 2: Full Throttle director McG, who finally seems to have found his film. At first glimpses this film looks like a cross between the first two Terminator films, Mad Max and Transformers, which if that is the case we are on for one hell of a ride come May 22nd 2009. Quite simply this may be THE film of next year, with the promise of violence to match the first two films compared to the family friendly third, I for one will be there on opening night with the hope that this is on par with Terminator 2 (my favourite film of all time)

Check out why I am so excited

I cannot wait!

World of Warcraft: It’s a Question of Time

davedagger — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 15:59:13 +0000

So I have had the game for almost two weeks, and yes I am hooked already. It shouldn’t be that adictive, but it just eats time. How a fully grown man of 27 years old, can have already spent 20 hours roaming around a make believe land collecting items and trinkets, taking them to other characters so that they can then give you another list of items to be had that you need to take to someone else is truly beyond me, but it somehow is!So yeah 20 hours of game time in less than two weeks (12 days to be precise), and I dont think even think I have played it that much. But when you look at it, thats almost a whole day out of my life. Not including the time it took to set up, or the time it takes for me to turn my computer on and off, or the time I lose when I get disconnected… plus at this time of writting, I havn’t played today yet, and I am due to play another three hours tonight. So I can say that I will infact lose on average one day out of twelve to playing World of Warcraft. That works out at five days every two months, and a whole month out of every year just playing World of Warcraft. Thats without playing on the Wii or the 360.

I have truly opened a Pandora’s Box!

So on the morning of day 12 of the World of Warcraft experiment I am a Level 17 Dwarf Warrior currently questing in Westfall. I have ‘completed’ the Deadmines instance thanks to Carl aka ‘The Dande’ three times, and hopefully by the end of the week I will be a level 20.

Davedagger – The Level 17 Dwarf Warrior