Movie Review: Pink Panther 2

"I would like a rhumb". Whenever I've heard those words pronounced, even without the outrageous French accent, in any hotel lobby, I can't help but laugh. I've been a Peter Sellers fan since I was a young boy and those words always remind me of the bumbling Inspector Clouseau. Many people have found Sellers interpretation of the inept detective as pure comedic genius, and as such, it is to be expected that anyone trying to reprise the role would have some rather large shoes to fill. And as funny as Steve Martin is, I just don't believe that he is up to it.

When many think of Clouseau, they mention several traits that Sellers used to define the character: the outrageous French accent that even the French don't seem to understand, the sexist and racist remarks that are pronounced regularly and the massive ego of the bumbling detective. Personally, I've always thought that what made Seller's Clouseau tremendously funny was his outrage at others less than gallant behaviour and his nonchalance when faced with the most embarrassing mishaps. But the true genius behind it was the delivery. Deadpan, and believable. And sadly, Martin is anything but.

Although I laughed on a few occasions throughout the film, I was also reminded how unfortunate it was that Sellers died so young. Martin has seized on what the average person knows about Clouseau, bumbling ineptness, and given his take on it. I hate to critique someone of Martin's comic calibre, but in this case, I can't do anything but. Whereas Sellers seemed a natural, Martin is nothing short of forced in this role. He is just trying too hard, and that just takes away from the comedy. And in a movie with a cast that also includes another comedic genius, John Cleese, the result is simply not what I expected.

My recommendation really depends on your tastes. If you like Peter Sellers, then don't bother with this film. Otherwise, take a look, you might find something to like about it.

Pick of the week: Wayback Machine

I have been browsing the Web on a daily basis for almost 10 years now, and was browsing irregularly for the 5 years before that. Although I have a pretty extensive collection on links and try to keep it sorted, refreshed and updated, I still run into a problem on certain occasions; when a site is no longer hosted, and simply disappears! We lose real gems this way!

In comes the Wayback Machine to the rescue. Browse through over 150 billion web pages archived from 1996 to a very recently. And it's easy to use too. To start using the Wayback Machine, just type in the URL of a site or page where you would like to begin, and press Enter. Then select from the archived dates available. The resulting pages point to other archived pages at as close a date as possible. Unfortunately, keyword searching is not currently supported, but it may be in the future.

If you've "lost" a site you really liked, do yourself a favour and head over to the Wayback Machine. You might be surprised at what you find!!!

Movie Review: Knowing

I've always liked end of the world disaster movies, like The Day After Tomorrow and Deep Impact. There is something a little satisfying in seeing the reaction of the masses to some implausible but potential scenarios of global doom. But Knowing takes this concept one step further; what if you knew in advance about the end of the world?

Starring Nicholas Cage as a widowed and less than believable astrophysics professor. Spoilers are provided below, so if you haven't seen the movie, do yourself a favour and wait before reading the rest.

During the historic opening of a time capsule placed at his son's high school, students unseal letters written by students from fifty years ago. Cage's son receives a strange letter covered in numbers, without any obvious sense. Piqued by a curious encounter with a mysterious being and strange whispering, the son brings the letter home. That night, after confronting his son concerning the theft of the letter, which Cage considers school property, and during one of his nightly drinking bouts as he slips into a depressive state due to the death of his wife, Cage discovers within the letter a sequence of numbers that corresponds to the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Centre. More importantly, a number following the date corresponds exactly to the number of victims.

Furious research through the night allow Cage to discover that the letter is a complete list of all of the major disasters of the last fifty years, in perfect sequential order. But is it a coincidence? As one of his colleagues points out, there are also sequences of numbers between each set of dates that are unaccounted for, which could indicate that Cage is simply finding meaning in random numbers. And the odd ending of the letter, which provides a date and the number 33 do not really correspond to anything. Since there are three sets of dates that indicate future events, Cage proceeds to investigate and eventually attempt to stop the disasters that indicated by the dates and numbers of victims, and what we eventually discover are the exact coordinates for each happening. We also learn that the little girl who had written the letter fifty years ago had locked herself in a closet in the school and scratched something else into the door. After meeting with the daughter of the letter writer, Cage discovers that the 33 are actually upside down letter E, and that EE stands for Everyone Else and we finally understand that the final catastrophe will be global in scale and will mean the end of humanity. Being an astrophysics professor, Cage quickly determines that an unusually strong solar flare will destroy all life on Earth.

The mysterious stranger has now multiplied and we begin to realize that they are not from this world, and that they are here for a purpose. This is when the movie begins to take a turn for the worst as we quickly learn that the Strangers are here to save some humans, specifically certain children, including Cage's son and the daughter of the daughter of the original letter writer. All along, the Strangers had sent messages, warnings if you like, to allow the descendants of some chosen people to survive the next fifty years in order to be "picked up" just before the impending disaster.

The story ends, and we witness the destruction of the Earth but not before watching the alien spaceship lift off from the surface, and from our bird's eye perspective, we see that several ships are leaving the surface of the planet in the same way. Moments later, these ships quickly "warp" away from Earth's orbit and the flare hits the planet, eradicating everything on the planet's surface. The children are dropped in a field of bulbous, wheat-like plains, where they immediately begin to walk towards a lone white tree, as we see other alien ships in the distance, we assume dropping their "cargo" in the same manner.

The movie was an enjoyable visual experience, and although the story has some elements of drama, the story telling was simply not up to par with the possibilities that this story held. Cage provided adequate acting skills, but his role did not really allow him to display anything other than utter depression, or utter terror at the impending doom! It's worth watching at least once, but that's about it.

A visit to Playvalue Toys

Today, my wife, son and I decided to take a short trip to a fantastic toy store near our place called Playvalue Toys. This is the second time we visit this true toy store. Don't talk to me about places like Toys R US, as these are simply commercial entities that just happen to target children by selling toys. Playvalue is a true toy store, with an emphasis on educational and well manufactured toys. The store is located at 1501 Carling Avenue, in Ottawa, and occupies a space in a warehouse-type facility.

The store is divided into two main sections, the boxed toy section and the outdoor toy section. They have what I consider the largest selection of Playmobil toys I've ever seen, and I've had a chance to see some pretty exclusive toy stores in Europe! They also have a fantastic selection of Lego sets, and once again, it is pretty much the largest inventory I've seen with my own eyes. The only sets they seem to be missing are the very exclusive and limited-edition sets (which are pretty expensive to keep in stock, and don't necessarily appeal to children as much as adult-aged children!!!)

One of the fantastic lines that they carry is Plan Toys, and I am astounded at the quality of these toys every time I see them. They specialize in early childhood education and the types of toys the make are very indicative of their level of knowledge. Great stuff!!!

I highly recommend taking a look at the store's website, or better yet, go on ahead for a visit. There is ample parking, and the huge mural logo is hard to miss.

Pick of the week: Smashing Magazine

I have been browsing the Web for many years now, and a topic that used to be very, very popular, web design, has given way to templates and other assorted time-savers for Mr. and Mrs. Everyone. The problem is, there are still web designers around, and they still need insight, inspiration and just plain help.

In comes Smashing Magazine, a fantastic weblog dedicated to web developers and designers. Although some of the articles tend towards the technical aspects of web development, none of them can be faulted with being boring or useless. If you are in the field and have never taken a look at this site, then do yourself the favour. If you are just an amateur, many of the design-specific articles will be of tremendous use as well.

The beater bike

I've been riding bicycles for almost 30 years now, although I really haven't ridden much lately. But I do have a cycling project in mind though. I would like to build a beater bike. What's a beater bike you ask? My definition of a beater is a bike that is just not attractive to thieves, that is simple to operate and that is as trouble free as possible. In essence, a useful urban bike.

I already have a really nice bicycle, and although it is a joy to ride, it is a problem in several circumstances. When I want to go into town, I never feel that I can lock up my bike safely, as it has numerous desirable components. Like a race car, it is meant to be used, then stored. What I need is a bike that I don't really care about, with no removable parts, as are common on more expensive bikes. Parts like quick release hubs or seat posts, derailleurs and shifters, as well as some more obvious materials, like carbon fiber, that can be locked downtown without fear (or with less fear) of theft.

Here are some of my basic requirements:

- 700C wheels (road bike wheels)
- Puncture resistant tires and tubes (with shraeder valve, for availability)
- Single speed drive (simple and reliable)
- Chain drive (simple and reliable, easily available replacements)
- Front and rear v-brakes (simple and reliable, easily available replacements)
- Straight handlebars and low rise stem (for a more comfortable position compared to road bike stems and handlebars)
- Straight fork (no suspension)
- Matte paint job (most likely black, although grey might be even less appealing to thieves)
- Freewheel hub (I don't really like flip-flop hubs)
- Platform pedals (I don't really want the trouble of clipless pedals)

Some manufacturers have begun producing bikes that fit many of my requirements except one, price. I have been told that it is possible to go to a bicycle "recycling" centre, and build up a new bike from old parts for a reasonable amount.

The Trek Soho:

The Trek Soho is a great looking bike, but it is listed at almost CAN$1000, and that is just too much to be considered a beater.

The Trek District:

With the District, Trek is using a belt-drive system instead of the more traditional chain design. They feel that this provides a more rugged and quieter transmission system. I would very much like to ride it myself and determine that on my own. I have faith that such a system could work very well indeed. But once again, the bike is priced beyond the definition of a beater.

The Giant Bowery Mashup:

The Giant Bowery Mashup really looks like a track bike with straight handlebars. It has a nice paint job, and a nice mix of parts. But it is also too expensive for my needs.

I will keep exploring what is available on the market, as that is an obvious and simple solution. But I will also be keeping my eyes open for a discarded bike that might just meet my needs. More to follow.

Pick of the week: Blurb

I've been working on a book project for several years now, a cookbook by yours truly! I have been working on this project for almost ten years now, and although I have about two hundred and fifty pages written so far, I have very few corresponding images. Since I have an interest in photography and have the studio equipment to take the pictures I need, I know that it is just a question of time to get them done. Although I have to admit that the photography is the most time consuming aspect of this endeavour, the part that had me scratching my head the most was the actual publishing. I didn't relish going through a traditional publisher, who would most likely heavily edit my work, and have me rewrite the whole thing five times before going to print. And that got me thinking...

Self-publishing has become a big business now, and with the savvy demonstrated by many online entrepreneurs, and it has allowed many first time writers to publish bookstore quality hard copies of their work, in quantities that are within the realm of affordability. One such business is Blurb; their fantastic site allows you to order your own book, with numerous options and in quantities from one to as many as you'd like!

After registration, and a download of their book making software, BookSmart, both Mac and PC users can easily create their book from a selection of book formats, review and edit to their heart's content, and then upload the final product when ready to order hard copies.

The printing and shipping takes around seven to ten business days, and Blurb will also print books with custom branding or no branding, for those who prefer that option. All in all, a very smooth and easy process, with numerous positive reviews and a great finished product. Take a look for yourself.

Thanks to Blurb for the use of the book images.