Euthanasia The Ride - NEW at Six Flags Magic Mountain....Oh Yeah...Its a KILLER

An interesting concept by Lithuanian engineer Julijonas Urbonas called the Euthanasia Coaster would be a roller coaster that would kill anyone who rode it. According to Julijonas the concept would “take the life of a person humanely, with elegance and euphoria” and would consist of a two minute climb up a steep peak followed by a high speed trip through loops designed to make all the blood rush from your brain eventually killing you.

If you were going to die anyway, is this how you would want to go out? See Julijonas discuss his concept in the video below.

New Music Spotlight: DVA

Admittedly, I don't know much about Hyperdub artist and UK producer DVA, but I do know good music and there has been a wealth of it coming from across the pond. Blending an innovative vibe with electro-funk sensibilities, DVA crafts what can be described as an audible pleasure and true gem for those looking for an other-worldly music experience. DVA's video treatment for "Why You Do" is a true testament of creative innovation in its stark simplicity. And fellow UK artist A.L. drenches the joint in pure soul, if not a bit of controversy, taking it the song, content, and video to another galaxy entirely. Get to know DVA and take a gander at his latest offering "Pretty Ugly" and funk up your life.

Pause Moment of the Week: Russell Simmons Brings Us New Life with Nicki Minaj's "Stupid Hoe"

Vivvaaaaa Las Vegas

Yoooo...whats good folks...sorry I have been M.I.A for a bit......still recovering from partying like the famous guy that's named after my dad in vegas.....new post to follow as soon as the coma subsides :)

The Narrative Gem of "Chronicle"

Typically this part of the year brings little pleasure by way of cinema. It is widely known that the first couple of months of the year is but a dumping ground for films that studios thought would not be successful amongst the more high profile offerings of the yesteryear. However, every now and again you will sit through something that will surprise you and entertain you in a refreshingly striking way that somehow subverted your expectations entirely. I live for movie experiences like this....in fact...this is why i proudly call myself a cinemaphile....because every now and again....you'll see something and regard it as a real gem.

When I first saw the ads for "Chronicle" (a chronically mismarketed and missold film) i had an "eh wan" sorta reaction. The special effects looked kinda cool...but I thought, surely they will mess this up somehow with its Heroes meets Cloverfield "found footage" premise. When my boys saw the movie and panned it, then I thought for sure that this movie would get quickly shuffled down to my "wait until netflix" list. But something about it kept at me.....and as I unknowingly found my way into the Arclight, taking my seat for what I thought would surely be a rote experience at the movies......I was surprised when the lights came up and I sat firmly planted in my seat.....letting the experience of the closing title sequence wash over me with this awesome M83 song playing in the background (see above).

To back it up a bit, I now judge the merits of a movie on how quickly I want to leave the movie theater. If the movie end, the house lights come up, and I bolt for the door....then I consider the experience utterly forgettable....but if I have a strong desire to stay in my seat and actually read about all the players involved in the production, then I know that what i have seen is certified good. I struggled with calling "Chronicle" necessarily "good" but when I thought about it....something is in fact more appealing about it....that crosses it into sorta "brilliant".

at 84 minutes, it would be pretty easy for "Chronicle" to fly off the rails without any fault of its own. But it manages to tell a very simple and effective story and wrap it all in a decidedly tired and overused medium while at the same time producing something fresh and exciting. There is really nothing terribly original about "Chronicle", but I loved how it took sorta old conventions and made them new. The script is nothing to write home about, but a funny thing happened sorta 15 minutes into the movie, I became far less concerned about what the characters were saying and rather, enjoy the subtleties of the performances. The actors here are soo effective at what they are doing and come alive so much on screen that they totally and completely sell the friendship until the very end of the film. Its is this exemplified friendship that is the heart of the film.

in short, "Chronicle" takes us through a slice of life through the eyes of Andrew Detmer (Dane DeHann) a socially awkward high school kid whose homelife is hell and social life even more disparaging. His only friend seems to be his much cooler cousin Matt Garetty (Alex Russell) who (as suggested) only seems to be around because he's family and to provide the much needed lift to school. Andrew and Matt are joined one day by Steven Montgomery (an excellent Michael B. Jordan) the most popular kid at school whose mannerisms and personality seemed to remind me a lot of myself (on a side note, how many films have you seen where the most popular kid in school is black and he or she is not treated like "the token" in the story). The three discover an underground cave one evening, get adventurous, and then wake up the next day with what can best be described as superpowers. As their superpowers grow, so do the bonds of their friendship....three unlikely people who are connected through incredible circumstance.

as "Chronicle" unfolds, we learn that Andrew family life is growing increasingly more taxing and damaging....and his powers act as a way for him to enable himself and cope with the misery at home. I want give too much more away other than to say that "Chronicle" gradually slides into darker waters, but the narrative is handled so effectively, by the time you get there you completely understand how you got there. You understand where the anger is coming from and why its being unleashed in such a way.

I still really can't put my finger on it, but something really grabbed me about the story being told here. And it def helps that the special effects lend themselves completely to the storytelling and are not delivered in "look at me" sorta spectacle. By the time you get to the end.......the story felt like it unfolded in a completely natural way and I was surprised by how it all ends on such an emotional, sentimental, striking note. Needless to say, the movie stayed with me and still has....a chronicle for a thouroghly enjoyable movie going experience.

The Greatest Love Of All: Happy Valentines Day

like many a celebrity battling demons...you often hear about their untimely demise in the context of a hoax. I would have to admit, when I first heard that Whitney Houston had passed my initial reaction was "is this a joke" and then, like everyone else, your heart kinda drops with the realization that one of the greats has been called home.

I would have to say that the death of Whitney Houston is shocking for several reasons. Not only, once again, do we have an "E True Hollywood Story" ending to one of the biggest and brightest stars that we will ever see, but it was so abrupt.....so "here one moment, gone the next" that you can't help but reflect on your own life and journey and just be thankful for the time you have on this earth to fulfill your destiny.

I very much believe all that i have heard about Whitney in interviews from some of her closest cohorts.....that she was like your favorite auntie....warm, inviting, loving...and full of life. She definitely was a star, unlike most celebrities we adorn today. Whitney's death is not only a signal of an enormous talent called back way too soon...but essentially the end of an era in music. I don't care who comes along or how good they can sing.....we will never see or hear another talent like Whitney in this lifetime and that is a hard pill to swallow.

I guess what i liked most about Whitney is that even though she was a diva....she was just like you and me and unfortunately "Being Bobby Brown" proved just how just like you and me she really was (whether good or bad). But that was essentially part of her charm. And the love she had for her family and those around her was very palpable. I just feel sorry for her daughter...because losing a parent...especially a parent you have such a strong bond with...is devastating....but God has got her in his care.

I will have to admit, that hearing about such a loss has made me even more grateful for those in my life whose love serves as a constant, daily inspiration. If you love someone, you should protect that at all cost because, like most all things in life, they can be here one moment and gone the next (either physically or figuratively). So on this valentines day and in memory of Whitney i would have to be cheesy and say yeah, "The Greatest Love of All is Easy to Achieve", but you have to love yourself number one in order to know what love is to give. Yeah, we face problems, have our demons, and get "caught up" with the best of them....but the love you have for yourself serves as a guide through the darkness and a reference point for those around you. The Greatest love of all should come from inside you, it should shine through you, and speak to the essence of you. Like most all things, its comes with great responsibility, and its power is transformative.

For love's sake, cherish every moment people and never take anything for granted. For "God giveth and God taketh away" and you never know when, in a lightening bolt moment, you could casually be waiting for the party.......never to arrive. Life is precious, life is beautiful.....and life at the end of the day is very fragile.......be thankful for it all....good and bad.....and life live with a higher purpose in mind. Tell those you love that you love them everyday....for Valentines is only but a blip on the map, an occasion to encapsulate the year long celebration. Happy Valentine's day folks.

Soderbergh's "Haywire" Misfire

Minus the "Ocean's 11" nonsense....Ive really enjoyed most all Soderbergh's big screen offerings and even developed a fond appreciate for his particular viewpoint. However, "Haywire" has me scratching my head for several reasons. Im sure out in cyberspace somewhere are some really great highlights of Gina Carano in action. Personally, ive never heard of her, but she is soo good supposedly, that she seems to have received muse status from Soderbergh who somehow saw Carano at an MMA exhibition and committed her to celluloid as cinema's new break out star. The inspiration seems foggy at best as what Carano has delivered is a stilted, wooden performance, and paint by the numbers action sequences that would have seemed just as capable say in the hands of Charlize Theron. What "Haywire" really needed was an actress....and what it got was a Burger King cardboard cutout of an action star.

Whats so frustrating about Soderbergh's work here is that all the elements are here for a killer film. Great title, and a handful of marquee supporting actors in it boy, Michael Fassbender, Michael Douglas, Channing Tatum, Bill Paxton, and Antonio Banderas. The actors are inevitably on loan here......lending more of their star wattage than acting chops. But I count this as a fault of Soderbergh whose use of fartsy artsy techniques and background use of credible actors have you going "haywire" for just how lackluster they are for smoothing out the jagged edges of the screenplay...mainly the acting by Carano. I imagine that they guys take the back seat here, so to speak, to not bring any more attention to how bad her acting is....but since these actors are soo good...even in lame roles.....a lot of the film comes across as line reading.

overall, what you crave is a dragged out, knocked out, action stunner a la Kill Bill....but what you get is "Drive".....a virtually action free action movie. And at 90 minues, this couldn't be more painful to sit through or follow. The plot, told in extended flash back, is sooooo overly convoluted that you'll totally stop caring halfway through and the use of locals is soo excessive....its almost bastardy. There is nothing to speak of in terms of tension, suspense, or plot twist (which there are many). And to boot, the movie seems to fetishize Carano in a way that her bravado shuns off instantly.......thus culminating in a juvenile wish fulfillment fantasy where a lot of tough guys get their asses kicked by a tough gal. Ultimately we've seen it all done before, only phoned in by Soderbergh...........we get the added back slap of high art purely for a genre exercise in consumption and ego tripping......frankly Soderbergh, that planned retirement may not be such a bad thing after all....if only to put a spark back in your creative voice.