Extra Credits' History Lesson is Pure Awesome

This is materialized awesome. Lets get lots more of this, please?

Errant Signal - Spec Ops: The Line

Recently, I finally had the chance to play through Spec Ops: The Line. I know I'm pretty late to the party but it hadn't exactly been near the top of my priority list until Sony started giving it away for "free." In any case, I played through it and though I didn't find it to be the Game of the Year contender that some touted it as being, it was definitely one of the more interesting and subversive titles I've ever experienced. You just had to slog through some seriously uninspired mechanics to get to that narrative.

I've been mulling over the game in the back of my head and thinking about writing a post about it. I downloaded Killing Is Harmless by Brendan Keogh, a long-form critical discussion of Spec Ops that I'm interested in if only to see someone take such a significant and serious attempt at criticism of the medium. Once I finish that I may take a stab at writing something about the game if I have anything unique to contribute to the (more or less finished) conversation about its themes.

This morning I came across this great video that pretty much canvasses everything there is to say about Spec Ops brilliantly. It's a fantastic watch and I highly recommend it if you've a) played through Spec Ops, or b) don't expect to ever play through it. This is a rare instance where I feel like the general, non-video game playing public should really check out this video on a game, as it effectively ties the game's internal conversation to a larger, political discussion about war culture.

If you truly feel disinterested in video games then skip ahead to the 16:20 mark in the video and just watch the last two and a half minutes. I'm sure you can spare the time and I promise you it'll be well spent, as it's a great final word about the conversation that a military shooter video game is trying to start.

A Dramatic Reading of Sexist YouTube Comments

The following video comes in response to that heartwarming story about a dude who hacked the original Donkey Kong arcade game to let his daughter play the game as a girl. Apparently some people took issue with the hack:

I'm torn about this video. On the one hand, it's a visceral reminder of how much people suck. On the other hand, if people are going to be shitty on the Internet then at least we can get funny videos to slightly sweeten the deal. It's a "spoonful of sugar" type deal, because laughing at people for being stupid is more fun than getting angry. Or at least the laughter helps with the anger.

Tropes vs Women in Video Games: Damsel in Distress Part 1

The first video in Anita Sarkeesian's Tropes vs Women in Video Games series has been released, and can be viewed below. It's the first part of a discussion of the gaming-incarnation of the "damsel in distress" trope, and is a fascinating watch. This entry effectively canvases the use of the trope in the Zelda and Mario series, as well as the transformation of Rare's Dinosaur Planet into Starfox Adventures. Check it out, it's worth your 25 minutes!

In case you weren't aware of the Tropes vs Women in Video Games series before checking out this video, you should know that the newly-launched series has already been the subject of much controversy (all of which kinda makes a good case for the series' existence). Sarkeesian has been making her Tropes vs Women videos for a while, but for the video games extension of the series she turned to Kickstarter to get funding from fans. For reasons that (frankly) allude elude me, this was seen as some sort of irredeemable transgression on her part, and attracted the collective hatred of misogynistic gamers from the depths of the Internet. Slate's Amanda Marcotte sums it up nicely:

Sarkeesian's story is a doozy, by the way. She started a Kickstarter page to raise money to make a documentary about the tropes used by video game designers to portray female characters. She hadn't expressed an opinion about video games yet, but simply by stating that she would at some point in the future do so, she had to endure an absolute avalanche of misogynist abuse from men who hoped they could silence her before her too-scary-to-be-heard opinion could be voiced. Every access point they could exploit was used to try to get to her, especially her YouTube page. Her Wikipedia page was repeatedly vandalized with lies, links out to porn sites, and pornographic pictures. Eventually, Wikipedia shut it down.

Wow. Sarkeesian asked for a paltry $6,000 from fans to make a series about videos games and the roles of women within them, and just for that she was viciously attacked. Helen Lewis at the New Statesman canvases the harassment and intimidation tactics Sarkeesian was subjected to, and it's a pretty harrowing read. Thankfully the story at least has a happy turn in that Sarkeesian was able to raise over $150,000, and will be putting out follow ups to the video above.

So now we have a solid video series examining gaming with a critical lens that is sorely needed. We also have a moment of shame in the gaming community that can be pointed to as evidence that there is something tangibly wrong with the way (many) gamers think about gender and deal with other people. I'm at a bit of a loss trying to conceive of how anyone thought it would be reasonable to harass anyone the way Sarkeesian was harassed, much less for the mere prospect of having an opinion, but clearly that was the case for a great many people out there. Again, this kind of thinking within the gaming community is precisely the reason why we need these kinds of videos, as the only way to make any sorts of changes to these phenomena is discussion and education.

The Best Thing College Humor Has Done in Years

I. Have. No. Words. This video is perfect. Instant classic.

CollegeHumor's Favorite Funny Videos

Margaret Atwood Talks Modernity and Zombies

The title says it all. Care of The Hour's YouTube channel. This is just plain awesome. The english-lit-major and zombie-genre-loving parts of me are squealing with collective delight. Squee-ing, even. It's a good day.

Facebook Law

College Humour has put together an amusing video explaining why all those "For the Record: I hereby declare..." Facebook statuses you've likely been seeing on your newsfeed. I was a particular fan of the inclusion of the Rome Statute, which (as my International Law class recently learned) gives the International Criminal Court jurisdiction over war crimes, genocide, crimes against humanity, and aggression. Whoever originally wrote the block of text that's being passed around willy-nilly clearly had a good sense of humour.

Ben Franklin Was a Dirty Dude

The recent release of Assassin's Creed 3 has allowed the less historically inclined to enjoy some of the more offbeat moments of America's past, including the eccentricities of Ben "Founding Father" Franklin. Kotaku has put together a video showing off Franklin's rant about why men should take older women as mistresses, and it should not be missed. None of this should be surprising if you've looked into Franklin's history before, but the accurate depiction in a blockbuster video game is likely to surprise a lot of gamers. Check it out below:

I'll have much more to say about Assassin's Creed 3 soon so check back if you're curious about the game.

Honest Trailers: Prometheus

My hate-on for Prometheus continues with this hilarious Honest Trailer from Screen Junkies. It's not new or anything but it's making me laugh this morning so I figured why not share? Also it's nice to finally be able to laugh about how bad Prometheus was instead of being sent into an angry hate-spiral. Maybe someday I'll be able to watch it again without experiencing the cinephile equivalent of a post-traumatic acid flashback. Not that I'm eager to test the waters, mind you. Anyway, enough stalling/passive-aggressive griping, enjoy the video below:

Russians Make Quitting Smoking Easy in 4 Minute Video

I found the video below on reddit thanks to user spif. In it a Russian YouTube user does an experiment to see just how much tar comes out of cigarettes when we smoke them, and the results are quite jarring. Nothing in the video is likely to be "news" to you in this day and age, but the shock of seeing the raw tar at the end is extremely effective. If you've ever wanted to quit smoking then this video presents a good visual incentive to do so immediately:

Orca and Ripoff Flicks

I've acknowledged The Big Picture as one of my favourite web series before, and its best moments often come in October when "MovieBob" does an annual feature called "Schlocktober." For a full month Bob gives us episodes on "obscure and/or bizarre horror and monster movies," basically ensuring that Christmas comes an extra four times a year for horror/monster movie nerds. This year Bob has decided to feature Orca as one of his movie picks, and the results are fantastic. Give the episode a watch below (major spoilers for Orca):

The Escapist : The Big Picture : Schlocktober 2012: Orca

This video brings up a long-time curiosity of mine: movies that were green-lit strictly to feed off the popularity of blockbuster hits. One of my all time favourite films, Ridley Scott's 1979 masterpiece Alien, is perhaps the best example of this phenomenon. Dan O'Bannon's script was approved for production largely by virtue of the fact that Star Wars was an unprecedented hit in 1977, leading movie execs to say "People love space!" and fast track potential contenders for said space-fans' money. But the story of Alien is a serious diamond in the rough type scenario, as more often than not these "ripoff flicks" end up as poor shadows of the films that inspired them. Just watch Moonraker and you'll see what I mean.

As Bob indicates in the video, the release of Jaws had a similar effect to that of Star Wars, and Orca was one of many attempts to steal Steven Spielberg's crown as the king of underwater horror (to date none have succeeded, IMHO). Another illustrious contender was Joe Dante's Piranha, a parody of the many Jaws imitations. It is notable both for being "the best of the Jaws ripoffs" in Spielberg's own estimation (source: Wikipedia), and because James Cameron made his directorial debut with the sequel, Piranha II: The Spawning. Also the hilarious 2010 remake, Piranha 3D, featured a 3D underwater nude ballet sequence that might be most exploitative thing ever filmed.

The ripoff flicks phenomenon has intrigued me for years because when things go right (see: all of the aforementioned examples besides Moonraker) it's the perfect confluence of the financial and artistic motivations behind filmmaking. Granted, things tend to go wrong more often than not (see: Moonraker), but the best examples make all of the worst movies worth it (others might not agree with me). Hell, the superhero film genre is itself an example of this phenomenon, and I'd watch Catwoman a hundred times if that's what it took to get The Dark Knight. I might revisit this subject in more depth in a future post, but for now it's enough to say that ripoff flicks present a more nuanced picture of the business side of filmmaking.

Human Sexuality in Under Four Minutes

Hank from VlogBrothers has put together a fantastic and concise video explaining the surprisingly complex subject of human sexuality. This is my first experience of VlogBrothers but it certainly won't be my last: this kind of clear and engaging discussion of difficult topics is the stuff that Internet legend is made of. It's a quick and worthwhile watch so without further ado I invite you to get to it below:

(Big thanks to Chelsey for the heads up)

The Style of The Wire

About a week ago this video-essay on the visual style of The Wire made the rounds on film blogs and such. I only finally got a chance to watch it this morning, and frankly it's stunning. Erland Lavik, a Norwegian academic, gives a shockingly thorough and well-presented breakdown of The Wire's unique approach to story-telling, and spends thirty minutes expanding upon a premise that only takes a few words to convey: it's shot like a documentary. His analysis of the "creeping up on the action" motif, and the way the camera follows instead of fishes, floored me by pointing out subtle but significant aspects of some of my favourite scenes.

Although I'd acknowledged that The Wire was presented in a particular way to reflect its narrative, until I watched this video I hadn't really considered all of the subtle ways in which that design choice manifested itself. Lavik's video feels like sitting through a half-hour introductory lecture on filmmaking, and if that sounds like something you'd enjoy then I strongly recommend you check it out.

Warning: Spoilers for The Wire follow

As an aside, the zoom on Bodie near the end is positively haunting, especially with Lavik's narration of how Bodie clearly doesn't see the big picture at that moment...

One line I particularly appreciate is when Lavik says that "when everything is presented as climactic, nothing is" in reference to Domino. That sentiment also perfectly captures one of my (many) problems with the fourth season of Battlestar Galactica: the fact that we saw Admiral Adama reduced to tears so many times robbed the image of its impact. *Sigh* But that's another rant for another post...

(Via /Film)

LoL: David Mitchell's Soapbox

This morning I was made aware of David Mitchell's wonderful YouTube account where he releases short video rants in a series called David Mitchell's Soapbox. If you're familiar with David Mitchell and his sense of humour from great British programs like Peep Show then you'll know exactly what to expect here. The basic gist is that each three minute episode is a rant by Mitchell for/against something like "group consensus" and modern standards of spelling. As you can probably tell from that description, the videos are incredibly dry and sarcastic, so if that's the kind of thing you're into then you're bound to love them.

The one below is on 'LoL' and you might be surprised by Mitchell's take on the, erm, "word" (?). My favourite part of the video comes near the end when he shifts gears and starts into the use of smileys in texts/emails. It's a well thought out little rant that's as insightful about societal niceties as it is hilariously overwrought, which is exactly why I like it.

 

(Via Julia)

The Death of Home Consoles

I just finished watching an engrossing and shocking presentation by Ben Cousins of ngmoco (I'd never heard of him either) that persuasively outlines the impending "death" of videogame consoles as we know them. To be fair he doesn't say they'll disappear completely as much as fade into irrelevance/niche markets, but being compared to arcades is pretty much equivalent in my books.

Check out the presentation for yourself below. It's 26 minutes long but if you have any interest in gaming then trust me it's worth it:

When The Consoles Die, What Comes Next?

 

View another webinar from Ben Cousins

As the video itself makes clear, this is far from the the first time someone has pondered whether the mobile gaming industry might displace home consoles. However, Cousins' presentation is the most tangible and immediate the mobile threat has ever seemed. As someone who grew up with home consoles it's a little saddening to see such sobering evidence that they're going the way of the dinosaur.

I only recently began testing the waters of mobile gaming, and while I've been pleasantly surprised by its depth and quality, I can't help but sense that there are ways in which the mobile platform is fundamentally lacking. It's less immersive by design given that it's portable and public (in the sense that you use it in public, often people can reach you on it, and it's a gateway platform with other functionality). On top of that the controls often create more of a distancing effect, from the perspectives of both users and programmers. All this adds up to the fact that while I thoroughly enjoy mobile gaming I don't and can't get lost in the experience. Maybe that's also a product of age (I have noticed a similar problem with some home console titles lately), but the inherent qualities of the mobile platform don't do it any favours.

(Via Kotaku)

PS: I promise I have some non-videogame related posts in the works!

Leap Years Explained

On this day of February 29th, 2012, it seems appropriate to take a moment to consider that strange (and wonderful?) phenomenon that is the leap year. Not merely a crappy (and ill-timed) Amy Adams vehicle, the leap year is actually a method of timekeeping devised in an attempt to eliminate errors resulting from the irregularity of the Earth's rotation around the Sun. I'll let the video below explain further, but suffice to say it's a surprisingly interesting and complex concept. Anyway, please enjoy this interesting and educational video on leap years:

Today also presents an opportunity to pause and reflect: where were you on the last February 29th? I mean that literally, meta-phorically/physically, spiritually, however you want to consider your life really. For me, it was 2008 and I was living in Montreal and working my way through the third year of an undergraduate degree in English Literature and Cultural Studies. Most importantly I had not yet attended law school and was therefore a much, much, much happier and less cynical person. Ahh, memories... 

Belated Media: Scream

The latest awesome thing I've found during my daily scouring of the Internet is Belated Media, a video series of film reviews steeped in sarcasm, geekery, and pretension. There aren't many videos in the series but they can all be found here on YouTube (there's also a very ugly tumblr blog and a Facebook page). Some of my favourites are the Top 10 of 2010 video and the Black Swan review (that started it all?), but the absolute best is the Scream review embedded below. Just watch it, Belated Media speaks (at length) for itself. Suffice to say it's a fantastic review of an incredible film:

This video series is the perfect match for me. It's snide and geeky and funny, and more than one person has already pointed out significant similarities between our styles. In that sense I suppose my admiration is almost an indirect form of vanity, which I am completely ok with. I'd be lying if I said that watching these videos hadn't made me at least consider putting together a video review of one of the movies I've seen recently and enjoyed (reviews are incoming, I swear). But regardless of all that, Belated Media presents witty and intelligent commentary on popular movies. You should check it out. End of story.

It's Time

I don't really like the idea/want to get in the habit of citing Gawker as a good authority on social issues, but in this case they're dead on: the US absolutely does need ads like this one:

Getting Stoked for 'Shame'

I've been meaning to write about the upcoming movie Shame for a while now. The sophomore feature-length release from director Steve McQueen, Shame stars the incredible Michael Fassbender as a sex addict living in New York. When his younger sister (played by the increasingly daring Carey Mulligan) moves in with him, Fassbender's life begins to spiral out of control.

What's gotten me so excited for Shame is the bold approach distributor Fox Searchlight is taking with the film: they're embracing its NC-17 rating. More than that they're wearing it like "a badge of honour." This move is unusual in the extreme and it's strange but inspiring to see such a brave step forward coming from a member of the Fox family. Here's an incredible quote from Fox Searchlight director Steve Gilula:

I think NC-17 is a badge of honor, not a scarlet letter. We believe it is time for the rating to become usable in a serious manner. The sheer talent of the actors and the vision of the filmmaker are extraordinary. It’s not a film that everyone will take easily, but it certainly breaks through the clutter and is distinctive and original. It’s a game changer.

The NC-17 rating has traditionally been a death mark for films that push the limits of social norms. When a film gets this rating most theatres typically won't play it, fearing public backlash against deviant content. Germaine Lussier over at /Film explains it best:

When a film gets branded with an NC-17 rating, most studios do one of four things. They re-cut it hoping to get an R-rating, release it unrated, doom it direct-to-DVD or suck it up and go for it.

That last option is a rarity because embracing the NC-17 rating means fighting an unfair, almost pornographic, connotation. The MPAA website itself explicitly states “NC-17 does not mean ‘obscene’ or ‘pornographic’ in the common or legal meaning of those words, and should not be construed as a negative judgment in any sense. The rating simply signals that the content is appropriate only for an adult audience.” But that doesn’t stop major theater chains from not playing the movies, major video distributors from not stocking the movies or TV channels from not advertising the movies. It’s a huge mountain to climb.

The resultant battles between filmmakers (at every level of the process) and the MPAA over ratings have been well documented. This phenomenon has spawned an interesting (albeit very one-sided) documentary, This Film is Not Yet Rated, that everyone who's interested in film should see.

Now to see a major indie distributor like Fox Searchlight coming out in support of a film that's been branded with the NC-17 rating is both refreshing and encouraging. Hopefully it's a sign that the stigma associated with the rating is deteriorating and that we'll be seeing more daring and unique cinema as a result.

Anyway, I bring this all up now because the red band trailer for Shame has been released and it is, in a word, electric. It's embedded below, but seeing as it's red band I'll warn you that it's definitely NSFW. The score and the acting are the highlights of this minimalistic but powerful taste of what we'll see. Without a single line of dialogue Fassbender manages to establish an incredible sense of tension and forced restraint. On top of that the music evokes memories of The Social Network and There Will Be Blood, two of my favourite film scores.

The trailer's gotten me excited for a film I would already have gone to see solely for the cinematic-political reasons stated above. Shame has received great reviews and this trailer gives credence to that buzz. Hopefully this film's success will match its quality so that it has the opportunity to positively impact the entire industry.

The Internet Has Isolated The Essence of Sadness

Apologies in advance for the ridiculously emo title of this post. Also for the infinite sadness you might feel in a few moments.

About a month back I came across an interesting post on reddit by user KhaoticLegacy. Apparently Thai insurance commercials are generally short films unto themselves that depict tragic human stories meant to evoke compassion, heartbreak, and a very strong sense that you need life insurance. Like, yesterday. This Google search pulls up a whole bunch of them so you can see for yourself (thanks tiexano). Anyway, KhaoticLegacy noted that if you take any one of these ads and use YouTube Doubler to change the audio to the music from the (much adored) Dead Island trailer, what you end up with is the most sad thing ever. Every time. For real.

Check out this one example:

It's uncanny how well this works with every single Thai insurance ad. Seriously, here's another "favourite" of mine (make sure to mute the Thai ad). The first time I watched on of these videos I was instantly transformed from a grown, reasonably competent adult into an angsty, "misunderstood" teenager. Equally devastating is the mashup of the Dead Island trailer music with the already heartbreaking opening montage from Up! that you can find here if you're just feeling too chipper today.

This strange but mesmerizing phenomenon raises a number of important questions:
1) Why are these instantly depressing videos so strangely compelling? What does it say about the human condition that we can enjoy the experience of sadness?
2) Have the composers of the Dead Island trailer music found the perfect combination of notes to instantly evoke simultaneous feelings of compassion, futility, and despair? Can it make anything sad? Is that dog dead?
3) What is the deal with Thai insurance commercials?!

These questions and more plague me while I continue to find new, more poignant combinations of internet videos with the Dead Island trailer music...

Editor's note: I've been meaning to post about this one for a few weeks, sorry for the delay Chris!