Boston and back & movies galore

My buddy Matt and I have returned from our jaunt out East and it was a blast, albeit a long drive. We went through the U.S. on the way there and came back through Canada. We had a brief stop in Chicago on the way out to see my friend Casey in a show at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater as well as seeing Stephen Ouimette in the show too (he's from the hilarious Shakespeare show on the Sundance Channel called 'Sling & Arrows'). Luckily, we did not have to provide passports yet at the border to Canada, but everyone will in 2008 - you have been warned.

(**I'm putting just a few photos on here, but I've also set up a Kodak Gallery so send me your e-mail if you're interested in seeing the rest.**)

In our two days in Boston, we did the Freedom Trail tour and I also took a tour of Fenway Park, home of the Red Sox. I was shocked at how easily it was to navigate and how walkable the city really is. I went from Brookline to downtown Boston in 45 minutes. I really liked it out there, but it was really chilly, which was an apparent anomaly as the summers there are supposed to be REALLY hot. We stayed with a friend of Matt's from the Peace Corps and their hospitality was very appreciated.

As I mentioned, we wrapped our trip up by coming back through Canada and made another stop at Niagra Falls to enjoy nature in all it's majesty. They hadn't changed since the last time I saw them, but we saw them from the Canadian side last time so we saw them from the U.S. this time. All in all, it was a nice week traveling and we had no real weather problems at all. Boston was fantastic and I could totally see myself living out there some day.

Upon returning, a couple of friends of mine decided to give the middle finger to 'the man' and do something I've always wanted to do - sneak into movies for free. But not just "a" movie, mind you, but make a day out of it and sneak into a couple of movies. We used free passes to the first film so technically the only money we spent was on overpriced pop & candy (hence, sticking it to the aforementioned 'man').

First on the agenda was Live Free or Die Hard. I am so pleased to tell you that this was a nice return to form for a franchise that I think was starting to get away from itself with it's last outing - which was not lost on the producers as well since it had been 11 years since hearing a peep from anything having to with another Die Hard movie. Bruce Willis is "on" again as an older, wiser John McClane and just seems to glide right back into where we left off with him. The backstory was a touch confusing at the beginning, but it soon gave way to the amazing action and crazy scenarios that he undoubtedly finds himself stuck in. Len Wiseman helmed this outing and following the gunplay and obvious grasp of the action genre he displayed in the equally praised & panned Underworld movies, I thought they nailed the nostalgic feel yet were able to bring the franchise up to date at the same time.

Next we found ourselves sitting in the Judd Apatow comedy Knocked Up. Seth Rogan stars opposite Kathryn Heigl as a stoner nobody that beds an amazing hottie after a drunken night at a club and, as the movie hints at, gets her pregnant. It's very much a story that's been told before about one person being out of the other person's class, but they fall for each other and find a way to make it work, but Apatow is able to put in language (albeit highly vulgar) that seems to relate to people today. Dare I say, these Apatow & Adam McKay films - Old School, Anchorman, Talledgea Nights are perhaps the younger generations Stripes, Meatballs, Ghostbusters, etc.? I enjoyed it, but not as much as I did Apatow's previous offerings.

After a jaunt to el restroom (and killing a half an hour in Oceans Thirteen...which I REALLY want to see the rest of now), we found ourselves giving comedy a second try and ending our escapade with Dreamworks Shrek 3. Unfortunately, we should've just stayed in Oceans Thirteen. I would actually say that this is my least favorite of the trilogy. Something just seemed off, whether it be the story or maybe a sense of "we've been through this before." Plus, without giving much away, the ad campaign and storyline of Shrek being a father throughout the film is very misleading. The regular cast is all still back and do well, but I found myself really only laughing out loud at the Gingerbread Man parts. The addition of new characters failed to create a sense of excitement as I just felt very disengaged. I think it's safely time for this troupe to step aside for awhile to either generate more interest for a later film or just let Dreamworks create a new franchise.

So that was it for Sunday's movie excursion, but were we finished? Oh no. They were doing a preview special the following night for easily the most anticipated film of the summer and we bought our tickets as soon as we saw the ad for it.

With the Great Escape Cinema's quickly becoming our second home, we joined a sold out crowd to see a preview of Transformers. I will admit, hearing Optimus Prime speak on the big screen (for technically, the second time) and having it be not only live action, but the same actor that did the cartoon AND hearing that trademark 'transformers' noise as the robots change into their respective vehicles (and a sound that everyone has their own interpretation of) created a smile on my face the had vaulted itself forward from my inner-child stuck somewhere in the 80's. Just hearing that voice saying things as simple as "eBay" was just awesome. This was very much a Michael Bay movie with tons of action and things blowing up, but the fact that Spielberg was the producer actually set my heart at ease that this franchise was in good hands. I read on Best Week Ever that the fight scenes were akin to, "putting two Transformers in a blender and turning it on," and that is fairly accurate to a point. It was a bit confusing at times watching the Autobots and Decepticons spar and trying to figure out who just clocked who as they tumble down the side of a building, but it wasn't enough to take me out of the moment. The understated star in this blockbuster was the performance of Shia LeBouf, as he did fantastic and has great comic timing (if you haven't seen his SNL appearance yet, YouTube it - it's worth it). The rumor mill is that he'll play Indiana Jones' son in the forthcoming Indy movie and after seeing this performance, he's easily gets my approval.

So there you have it. That's all I've been up to besides prepping for the CSz World Championships and (still) trying to find a job. I hope all is well with you and drop me a line if you want to see more Bostonian pics.

Oh, and if you haven't checked out Will Ferrell & Adam McKay's new website, Funny or Die, do yourself a favor and click on the link to the right. It's awesome - especially the Landlord sketch.