Boylan's Original Birch Beer

I know that this post has nothing to do with entertainment, however when I'm watching a movie, I love me some good 'ole fresh kettle corn and some ice cold root beer! :-)

My all-time favorite root beer!

Yesterday, my wife had to pick up some things at our local grocery store - Festival Foods - and she picked herself up some Boylan's All Natural Black Cherry Soda - while she was at it, she also grabbed some Boylan's Birch Beer, for me. Now, I had never heard of Boylan's, nor had I ever heard of Birch Beer, but I tell you what ~ it is delicious!

Their description on the box reads: "This carbonated soft drink has been the flagship product of the Boylan Bottling Co. for over 100 years. [they're registered since 1891!] Its availability on draught has given it a truly nostalgic image that all birch/root beers try to convey. The unique taste is distinctively minty and sharp. Because of its "bite" this product appeals to the true birch/root beer consumer. Its heritage has created a loyal following among people who associate Boylan's Birch Beer with their childhood."

So there you have it - my second favorite soda - next to Virgil's Root Beer.

The only thing with Boylan's is that it has sodium benzoate - a nasty preservative that's not so good for you - in it :-( [for those who do not know me personally, I try to eat as naturally as I can...]

With all of that said, go out and find you some Boylan's Birch Beer, for your next movie marathon ~ you'll be glad you did! :-)

Jason

Jack Frost

Note: This is not the family-friendly Michael Keaton version of Jack Frost. . .

Genre - Horror/Comedy
Year Released - 2006
Running Time - 89 minutes
Directed by Michael Cooney (who also directed a sequel to this, titled: Jack Frost 2: Revenge of the Mutant Killer Snowman)
Written by Michael Cooney (who also wrote Identity) and Jeremy Paige
Cast Includes:
Scott MacDonald
Christopher Allport
Stephen Mendel
Rob LaBelle (Eddie from the television series First Wave)
Shannon Elizabeth (American Pie 1 & 2 - this was her 1st film)

Rating: 2 Skulls

Plot Summary:
When his prison transport collides with a truck full of "genetic material", condemned serial killer Jack Frost is inexplicably transformed into a terrifying, murderous snowman.
With a red plaid scarf, a carrot nose, and a heart made out of coal, the icy madman sets his sights on a small, rural town and goes on an old-fashioned killing spree.

Review:
Generally, I do not review awful films on this Blog, however I felt inclined to review this one, as it was the inspiration behind the cult-classic Monsturd [see review dated 10/18/08]

Where Monsturd got everything right, Jack Frost got everything wrong.
I get what the film was going for, however I feel that it failed miserably!
[I should have rated it the dreaded 1 Skull - however Monsturd may never have been, if not for this film, so for that I have to give it something]

The film starts off with a little girl wanting a story [a similarity shared with Monsturd, except that it was the little girl telling the story in that one] In this one, an adult tells the young girl the story of Jack Frost, who was nimble and quick and gouged out people's eyes with candlesticks! He smashed in skulls with sticks and stones, and used iron bars to crush their bones. . .
This Jack Frost is a serial killer who has been on a rampage through 11 states, killing 38 people in 5 years time.

Sounds all well and good, however the film rapidly deteriorates!
After an accident (described in the plot summary) Jack Frost becomes an evil snowman, who is able to freeze & unfreeze at will, and who can shoot icicles out of his body. [it's even worse than it sounds!]

I would avoid this one, if I were you!

Here's the Trailer:

This movie also has a sequel, which I have absolutely no desire to see!
If you are in the mood for a mutated monster flick, watch Monsturd instead - at least that one is funny! :-)

Jason

Punisher: War Zone

Genre - Comic Book/Action Adventure
Year Released - 2008
Running Time - 107 minutes
Rated R (for strong brutal violence, language, and drug use)
Directed by Lexi Alexander (who, if you follow Martial Arts at all, is a World Record Kickboxer & Karate Champion - she also wrote & directed Green Street Hooligans - with Elijah Wood & Claire Forlani - I have never seen it, but it is in my Netflix Queue)
Written by Art Marcum, Matt Holloway, (both of whom also co-wrote Iron Man) and Nick Santora
Cast Includes:
Ray Stevenson (who played Titus in HBO's Rome)
Dominic West (who played Theron in 300 and Kirk - the guitarist - from Rock Star)
Doug Hutchison (Tooms from the X-Files! He was also in The Green Mile)
Wayne Knight (Newman from Seinfeld, Officer Don from 3rd Rock from the Sun)
Julie Benz (Rita - the girlfriend of Dexter, Darla from Buffy & Angel, Sarah in Rambo - she is also going to be in next year's sequel to Boondock Saints)
Colin Salmon (David from HEX - he is also in The Bank Job)

Rating: 5 Skulls

If you look in the top left corner, of the above poster, you will notice Thomas Jane - before he left the production. . . :-)

Plot Summary:

Frank Castle, a one-man force of vengeance known as "the Punisher", battles mob boss Billy Russoti. Left disfigured by the encounter, Russoti reemerges as Jigsaw, a psychotic villain with a small army at his command.

Too bad for Jigsaw, that the Punisher is preparing to annihilate him and his reign of terror, armed with a cache of high tech new weaponry by the handy Microchip.

This is not Tobin Bell from SAW

Review:

I need to start off by saying that I probably should have rated this movie much lower, however as a long-time fan of the Punisher [he is one of my all-time favorites!] I just couldn't help myself.

[My rating system, after all, is that this movie is well worth buying - to me - and I will watch it repeatedly]

I happen to be [one of the few?] who enjoy the 1989 version, with Dolph Lundgren, [I own it on VHS] and I loved the 2004 version with Thomas Jane.

[I do not know the full story of why Jane left this one, mid-way into production - my understanding is something to do with script discrepancies]

In all honesty, I didn't start off liking this one, very much, but after a while it started to grow on me.

Basically, the director - Alexander - stripped the comic character down to it's core and provided us with vengeance, pure and simple.

In the comics, you can understand where Frank is coming from - in the film though, that line becomes very blurred - Frank is just on a bloody rampage throughout this film! [though at one point he does question]

One thing that I really liked about this version, is the fact that this it stayed true to the comics, in regards to what happened with Frank's family [something the 2004 version failed to do]

I also loved the fact that Microchip was in this one! [Wayne Knight is the perfect Micro!]

I do not recall the Martin Soap character [he was the head of the Punisher Task Force, but I liked him as well.

Another thing that was very cool, was when Jigsaw 'became' Jigsaw - he put a three-dimensional puzzle together, on his computer, and at the bottom it stated "The World is Yours" ~ ala Scarface!

Two of my favorite scenes are 1. when the Punisher shows up on the roof top, where three meth addicts are bouncing around... and 2. when Agent Budiansky starts to call for back-up... these are laugh out loud moments - whether or not they are supposed to be, I am not sure. There is so much over-the-top action/violence in this film, that it really can't be taken seriously, however that is also part of the FUN!

Something else that I found interesting was the fact that it was hinted that Frank had previously attended seminary - he, obviously, has come a long, far way since those days!

Here's the Trailer:


Just keep in mind that this film is extremely violent! [I am still amazed that it was directed by a female] :-)

However, if you enjoy head explosions, stabbings to the face, etc, etc, then this film is a must see! [preferably in the theatre, with intense surround sound, which makes the experience of all of the explosions, gunfire, and the metal soundtrack all the more enjoyable - speaking of which, Rob Zombie wrote a new song for the film, which I did not know, until the credits rolled!]

Enjoy!

Jason

Fred Claus

Genre - Comedy
Year Released - 2007
Running Time - 115 minutes
Directed by David Dobkin (who also directed Clay Pigeons, Shanghai Knights, Wedding Crashers, and the upcoming DC movie The Flash in 2010)
Written by Dan Fogelman, (who co-wrote the screenplay for Pixar's Cars) and Jessie Nelson
Cast Includes:
Vince Vaughn (Old School, Dodgeball, Four Christmases, etc)
Paul Giamatti (Big Fat Liar and Lady in the Water - he will also be in next year's sequel to Bubba Ho-Tep ~ Bubba Nosferatu: Curse of the She-Vampires)
[Other notable cast members: Kathy Bates as Mother Claus, Rachel Weisz as Fred's girlfriend, Elizabeth Banks as Santa's Helper, and Kevin Spacey]

Rating: 3 Skulls

Plot Summary:

The joy and happiness of the holiday season is ruined for Santa Claus when his cranky older brother Fred comes to stay with him in the North Pole.

Always outdone by his saintlike brother, the bitter Fred (a repo man with a rap sheet) threatens to squash the spirit of Christmas.

Review:

After having recently watched Four Christmases, I was in the mood for another Vince Vaughn film, so I decided to try this one. . .

While not the best holiday film out there, I rather liked this one - it wasn't all that funny, however I liked the message.

The film starts off with the birth of Nicholas, Fred's younger brother, who we all know grows up to be St. Nick - aka Santa Claus. As Nicholas heads towards sainthood, getting all of the positive attention from his parents, Fred becomes resentful and leaves home. [At this point we learn that one of the rules of sainthood is that all family members, spouses included, freeze in time]

Time then jumps ahead, to the present, where Fred is a Repo man [who's company name is Repo-a-go-go] After Fred gets into some trouble, he has to call on his brother for help. . .

Fred calls this the very smurfy Smurf hut! :-)

Doesn't Giamatti look great as Santa?

My wife did not enjoy the film as much as I did. One of the things they did was make Christmas like a Corporate Business, where Santa and the elves had quotas to make, etc. My wife didn't like this aspect, even though that is basically what Christmas has become! So, the film may not be for everyone. I'll leave it up to you to decide. . .

Here's the Trailer:


Jason

Step Brothers

Genre - Comedy
Year Released - 2008
Running Time - 105 minutes
Directed by Adam McKay (who also directed Anchorman - which I did not like - and Talladega Nights - which I have no desire to see)
Written by Adam McKay, (who also wrote Anchorman & Talladega Nights) Will Ferrell, (who also wrote A Night at the Roxbury, and also co-wrote Anchorman & Talladega Nights) and John C. Reilly
Cast Includes:
Will Ferrell (Elf, Old School, Kicking & Screaming, etc)
John C. Reilly (Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, Magnolia, and Boogie Nights)
Mary Steenburgen (Elf, The Brave One, and Four Christmases)
Richard Jenkins
Adam Scott

Rating: 3 Skulls

Plot Summary:
Brennan Huff and Dale Doback - two grown men still living at home - turn into jealous, competitive stepbrothers when their single parents marry.
Brennan's constant competition with Dale strains his mom's marriage to Dale's dad.
Will the reluctant step siblings ever see eye to eye? And more importantly, will they ever leave the nest?

Review:
I found the concept of this movie to be pretty funny - two 40 year-old spoiled "children" who become stepbrothers, and even though Will Ferrell is 'hit or miss' with me, I felt that he and John C. Reilly [I loved Walk Hard] were perfectly cast to play stepbrothers.

The movie was decent and is worth renting, though it is not a movie that I would watch multiple times. It definitely had its moments - it has some great one-liners - one of my favorites being when Brennan (Will Ferrell) asks his younger brother, Derek (Adam Scott) if he knows what is good for shoulder pain - I do not know why, but I laughed out loud at his response - it just caught me right! :-)

My favorite part of the movie though was the conversation that Brennan & Dale had, at night, while lying in bed - the back and forth dialogue was absolutely hysterical - I was dying!

I felt that the down-side of the movie was that it just seemed to be all over the place.

I wish they would have focused more on some of the minor side story lines [such as Brennan & Dale messing with Brennan's younger brother, Derek, while he was attempting to sell their parents house - that was only a few minutes of the movie, while it could have been much more!]

Other story lines just seemed absurd to me - the whole Dale & Alice (Derek's wife) storyline was just ridiculous. Also, the whole thing with Brennan & Dale sleep walking - pointless!

Overall, like I said before - while not great, it is worth watching, at least once.

Seth Rogen has a pretty funny cameo, and there is a hysterical Deleted Scene ["Hulk Hands"] which should have been included in the movie!

Here's the Trailer:


Jason

WEC 37: Torres vs Tapia Re-Cap (also an Update on TUF - Season 8)

I was going to start off by telling you that tonight was the last "free" WEC event shown on the Versus network, however all throughout tonight's event they kept promoting next month's Urijah Faber vs Jens Pulver (2) Re-Match - Live on Versus! [which should be a great re-match, as Pulver went the distance - all 5 rounds - last time, and this time it will not be a championship match - just 3 rounds - though I am sure that Faber will still win] :-)
Anyhow, it is still my understanding that the WEC will eventually go the Pay-Per-View route [not that I'm complaining!]


The evening started out with a Bantamweight bout between Joseph Benavidez & Danny Martinez. What surprised me about this fight was that it had a female ref presiding! ~ 1st time that I have seen that! [not that there's anything wrong with that!]
As for the fight, it was an okay fight - nothing overly exciting - it went all 3 rounds, with Benavidez [who I wanted to win] winning by decision.

Next we had another Bantamweight match-up between Brian Bowles & Will Ribeiro - I wanted Bowles to win this one, and he did - waiting for Ribeiro to take him down, in the 2nd round, and then catching Ribeiro in a Guillotine Choke - Nice!

We were then given a Featherweight bout, with both fighters in their WEC debut - they were Wagnney Fabiano & Akitoshi "The Ironman" Tamura.
Not knowing either fighter's history, I decided on Tamura [simply because he's Japanese and goes by 'Ironman'] :-)
This fight shows why you do not choose fighter's because of their nationality or namesake - after a rather boring fight, with Fabiano dominating all 3 rounds, he ended up making Tamura tap out (via a head/arm choke) with only 12 seconds left of the 3rd and final round - he would have lost by decision anyhow!

Up next - the main event of the evening: Miguel Angel Torres vs Manny "The Mangler" Tapia (shown above) for the Bantamweight Belt!
I was rooting for Torres, all the way, on this one - Torres is an Awesome Fighter! His record is 34 wins, with only 1 loss - he hasn't lost a fight in 5 years! The dude is awesome. . .

This was a great fight Torres & Tapia were going toe-to-toe, blow-for-blow. Tapia put up a great fight, though you should have seen Torres' jabs snapping Tapia's head back! [Torres had a 9" reach advantage!] Torres also did some maneuver that I had never seen before - a forward roll axe kick - interesting, but not very effective (this time anyway)
In the end, Torres caught Tapia, knocking him out, near the end of the 2nd round, making for his 35th win - retaining the title and the belt!

Before I sign off, I also wanted to update those who may care about The Ultimate Fighter Finale, which will take place, Live, next Saturday (the 13th) on Spike.

In tonight's 11th & 12th episodes, of Season 8, the semi-finals took place, determining who will fight for the 6-figure UFC contract.

In episode 11, we had Light Heavyweights Ryan Bader & Eliot Marshall and Lightweights Phillipe Nover & George Roop face off to determine who will fight in the Finals.

In episode 12, we had Light Heavyweights Krzysztof Soszynski (my man!) & Vinnie Magalhaes and Lightweights Efrain Escudero & Junie Browning face off to determine who will fight in the Finals.

[Before I continue, I just have to give mad props to UFC President - Dana White - who is the man! It's no secret that I dislike Junie Browning, and after he continued to mouth off, and attempted to fight another fighter (in the house - which isn't allowed!) Dana called him out - told him that he needed to face his fears! Dana knew that Junie would rather be thrown off the show, than risk losing a fight, on national television. So, Dana spoke with the other fighters (to make sure they knew there was no favoritism being shown) and asked Efrain if he would rather attempt to "beat him off" the show - a hilarious moment in the show, as it didn't sound right, the way Dana said it :-) rather than just sending Junie home. Of course, Efrain agreed!]

As for the Finals - I regret having to inform everyone that my #1 pick Krzysztof lost his semi-final match-up! :-( [I am not making any excuses, but Magalhaes is a Submissions Expert, I tell you what!] I am sure that we will still see Krzysztof fight in a couple under-cards, till he works his way back up!

So, this means that Ryan Bader [who was my brother's #1 pick] & Vinnie Magalhaes will be fighting for the Light Heavyweight Contract. [My brother & I both agree that Magalhaes will most likely win the fight!]

As for the Lightweights - Phillipe Nover & Efrain Escudero will be fighting for the Contract. [Yes, I enjoyed watching Junie get beat down! Justice was Served - the right way!] :-)

The Nover vs Escudero match-up should make for an excellent fight, though my bet is on Nover!]

Jason

Triple Feature: Charlie Bartlett, Electroma, and The Seventh Seal

This past holiday weekend I watched 3 different genre movies, recommended by 3 different people. . .

First up, we have a dramatic comedy recommended by a fellow Blogger ~ Jolly Roger ~ you can visit his page at: http://cirquemacabre.wordpress.com/

Genre - Comedy/Drama
Year Released - 2007
Running Time - 97 minutes
Directed by Jon Poll
Written by Gustin Nash
Cast Includes:
Anton Yelchin (he will be playing Chekov in next year's Star Trek XI, as well as Kyle Reese in Terminator: Salvation)
Robert Downey Jr.(Natural Born Killers, U. S. Marshals, Iron Man, Tropic Thunder)
Hope Davis (Arlington Road, The Weatherman)
Kat Dennings (who plays Nora in this year's Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist)

Rating: 4 Skulls

Plot Summary:
This comedy follows the exploits of Charlie Bartlett, a miserable high school student who finds a novel way to fit in with his classmates: by pretending to be the school psychiatrist, dispensing advice and the occasional prescription medicine.
Charlie's sympathetic ear and ready access to drugs make him popular with the students, but his activities soon attract the unwelcome attention of the school principal.

Charlie dispensing medication (above) and advice (below)

Review:

I am not sure whether this movie came out this year, or last year (Netflix has the year as 2007 - one of the posters states August, the other February - perhaps it was slated to be released in August of '07, and was pushed to February of '08) either way, I had never heard of this movie until Jolly Roger left me a comment on my review of Tropical Thunder, stating that this movie, along with Step Brothers, are his two favorite comedies this year. . . So, I decided to check it out.

While funny, at times, this movie seems more of a Drama than a Comedy, to me, however I definitely enjoyed it, and I too recommend it, if you have never seen it.

[A couple of my favorite parts are when Charlie is put on Ritalin, and when he promotes the "Greatest After School Fights" after getting the tar beat of him as well - too funny!]

Here's the Trailer:


Thanks for the recommendation Jolly Roger!

Next up, we have a recommendation from a friend of mine, on MySpace ~ Sergio, from Greece:

This one is called Electroma [aka: Daft Punk's Electroma] and is a bit different in the fact that the entire movie is dialogue free.Genre - Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Year Released - 2006

Running Time - 72 minutes

Directed by Thomas Bangalter & Guy-Manuel De Homen-Christo

Written by Thomas Bangalter, Guy-Manuel De Homen-Christo, Paul Hahn, and Cedric Hervet

Cast Includes: Peter Hurteau and Michael Reich

Rating: 3 Skulls

Plot Summary:

Electronic music duo Daft Punk (Thomas Bangalter & Guy-Manuel De Homen-Christo) directs this experimental silent feature about two robots on a quest to become human. After a failed attempt to adopt a human facade, the robots find themselves wandering outcasts.

The Two Robots

Review:
I am not at all familiar with the band Daft Punk [in fact, I had never even heard of them] nor am I sure that I completely "got" what this movie is attempting to portray, however I did find it very interesting, and it was visually 'there' so I just kept watching it. :-)

I do want to mention a particular part - there is a scene where the robots are having human faces built, out of some sort of latex material, right over their giant helmet heads - which, in turn, made for giant/over-sized looking human heads! I was watching this with my two-year-old son in the room, and he was a little perturbed by the looks of their heads/faces - he kept saying he didn't like the "head-people" To make matters worse, when the robots left the lab, the sun started to melt their faces, and my son had to cover his eyes, he was so freaked out!

Here's the Trailer:


Sergio, if you end up reading this, thanks for the recommendation!


Last, but not least, we have my last recommendation - again, from another friend on MySpace - Roxanne, in California:
Foreign Film from Sweden - Swedish Title: Det Sjunde Ingseglet
Language - Swedish (you can choose either English Subtitles or English Dubbing)

Genre - Drama
Year Released - 1957
Running Time - 96 minutes
Directed by Ingmar Bergman
Written by Ingmar Bergman
Cast Includes:
Max van Sydow (whose other notable performances include Father Merrin in The Exorcist 1 & 2, King Osric in Conan the Barbarian, and Emperor Ming in Flash Gordon)
Bengt Ekerot, Gunnar Bjornstrand, Bibi Andersson, Nils Poppe, Ake Fridell, and Inga Gill

Rating: 3 Skulls
Plot Summary:
Exhausted and disillusioned, a medieval knight makes the journey home after years of combat in the Crusades. When the black robed figure of Death confronts him, the knight challenges him to a game of chess.

Review:
First I just have to confess that this is my 1st Ingmar Bergman film.
After Roxanne recommended this movie to me, I went to add it to my Netflix Queue, and I realized that it was already in there - perhaps because it is a Criterion Collection disc, or perhaps because I just love a good game of chess! :-) [who better to play, then Death?]

Part of the Netflix summary description states that this movie is "a powerful meditation on the existence of God and the meaning of life..." I'm not sure that I found the movie to be all that deep & philosophical, however I was moved by the horror of the Black Plague - the fact that death was a constant, and the people were ravaged and dying, by the thousands! To me, that is terrifying!

For those interested in a Classic, this movie is definitely worth watching, at least once.

Here's the Trailer:


Well, that wraps up my triple-feature ~ thanks again to the three folks who recommended these movies to me. :-)

Jason