Coffee Talk #505: My Problem With Christopher Nolan’s Batman

Now that Chrisopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy has wrapped up with The Dark Knight Rises, let’s take a look at his movies through the old retroscope. Nolan’s Batman flicks have been critically lauded and there are lots of reasons why the praise is totally deserved. However, it seems like the director gets a lot of passes, partially because he’s Christopher Nolan and partially because he’s not Joel Schumacher.

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Kristen Stewart’s cheating heart, Michael Phelps disappointing Olympic 2012 start, or super cute Jordyn Wieber failing to qualify for the all-around gymnastics competition, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Now that Chrisopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy has wrapped up with The Dark Knight Rises, let’s take a look at his movies through the old retroscope. Nolan’s Batman flicks have been critically lauded and there are lots of reasons why the praise is totally deserved. However, it seems like the director gets a lot of passes, partially because he’s Christopher Nolan and partially because he’s not Joel Schumacher.

As a comic-book nerd, my biggest issue with Nolan’s Batman is based on the director’s penchant for realism. His ultra-realistic take on the Dark Knight made for some distinct movies, but it also took away from one of Batman’s defining characteristics: his desire not to see anyone die. I had a problem with the cavalier way that Batman let Ra’s al Ghul die in Batman Begins. The Bats that I know and love in the comics would have found a way to save Two-Face and Rachel Dawes in The Dark Knight. Naturally, villains died in The Dark Knight Rises too. It was real and made sense under the rules of reality, but it wasn’t like comic-book Batman.

Look at the panel on the right from Kingdom Come. For those of you without the benefit of flash photography images, it’s Superman telling Batman, “More than anyone in the world, when you scratch everything else away from Batman, you’re left with someone that doesn’t want to see anybody die.” To me (again, as a comic-book nerd) this sums up Batman perfectly. The traumatic death of his parents has left him with an irrational desire to make sure that everyone lives — even his greatest enemies like The Joker! At times it’s frustrating, because comic-book Batman’s world would be simpler and his life would be easier if he’d let the occasional baddie die (or if Gotham had the death penalty). But comic-book Batman is not about simpler or easier. He’s about life.

So yeah, that’s my big issue with this particular Batman (and I totally admit it’s a nerd nitpick). Now it’s your turn to go on a Bat-rant! What are your problems with Christopher Nolan’s version of Batman?

The Newsroom Episode 6 “Bullies”: Realism At Last!

Review: Realism finally arrives on The Newsroom. In tonight’s episode (“Bullies“), Olivia Munn’s Sloan Sabbith makes a tragic on-air mistake, earning the scorn of viewers, producers, and executives. This is the role she was born for! I kid, I kid. Seriously though, I’m starting to enjoy her character. She’s been getting a lot of screen time in the last two episodes and, as much as it pains me to admit this, she’s doing well.

It was nice to see David Krumholtz playing Will’s psychiatrist (those are the ones that can prescribe drugs, I believe). I enjoyed his performance in Sidewalks of New York and I have to support actors from Queens. Terry Crews was fun as Will’s unwanted bodyguard. I’ve been waiting for this guy to break out. He’s big, he’s great at action, and he’s funny. He caught my eye in The Longest Yard and I’ve been waiting for him to become a star. It’s great that an already star-studded cast (along with Olivia Munn) is getting fantastic complementary performances from minor characters.

The real-world news in this episode was the nuclear meltdown in Fukushima. It seemed like an afterthought in relation to Will’s therapy session and his death threat. It’s kind of nuts that Aaron Sorkin can make a nuclear disaster seem secondary to personal shortcomings and interoffice drama. However, a Japanese story gave Sloan time to shine and to established the fact that she’s fluent in Japanese (in addition to having two PhDs). To be fair, she (Olivia, not Sloan) was raised in Tokyo and studied Japanese in school. Realism!

Sam Waterston continues to knock it out of the park as Charlie Skinner. He has another episode-stealing scene in “Bullies”. I’m pretty sure he’s done that for four of the six shows that have aired.

Oh yeah, Don is finally vocalizing his excruciatingly slow realization that Maggie might be into Jim. You’ve had almost a year to figure this out buddy. Get there.

Overall, I enjoyed “Bullies”, but not nearly as much as last week’s “Amen” episode. People that love the show will continue to love it, but this episode isn’t going to change the minds of the The Newsroom’s many detractors. If anything, it’ll give them more mud to sling.

iPhone 5 Assembled From Leaked Parts?

[Updated 7/30] Loads of purported iPhone 5 (or whatever it will be called) parts have been leaked over the last few months. The fastidious people at iLab Factory have assembled them to form Voltron illustrate what the final model will look like. Obvious changes include a longer form factor, a new dock connector, and a two-tone back. Head on over to the site to see several more pictures of iLab’s alleged iPhone 5.

Do you think these photos are legit? What do you think of the two-tone looks? Any longtime iPhone users out there worried about the new dock connector? Also, I want the white one!!!

Source via 9 to 5 Mac

[Update July 30 8:03AM PT: Macotakara has posted a video of the casing. Check it out below.]

Man of Steel (Superman) Teaser Trailer

Here’s the teaser trailer for Man of Steel, the upcoming Superman movie starring Henry Cavill. The film is being directed by Zach Snyder, with writing chores being handled by David S. Goyer. The trailer has a somber tone, but ends on a note that could take your breath away. I love how the air ripples and tracks are left when Snyder’s Superman is flying. I was never happy with how Supes’ power level was portrayed in the previous movies. In my mind, his fights against super-powered baddies should be like Neo vs. Agent Smith in The Matrix Revolutions. When Superman throws a punch, gusts of wind should form and windows should shatter. I have a feeling that this movie will deliver in that regard.

Anyway, check out the clip and share your thoughts in the comments section (please!).

London Olympics 2012 Kicks Off With Bond, Queen, and Bean

The opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics in London started with a video featuring James Bond (Daniel Craig) and Queen Elizabeth II. It climaxed with Britain’s top spy and QE2 jumping out of a helicopter and into the arena. Millions of women around the world go gaga over Bond, but my favorite part of the opening ceremony featured Rowan Atkinson reprising his role as Mr. Bean. The opening theme from Chariots of Fire + Mr. Bean = Awesome.

Personally, I would have preferred it if Mr. Bean was featured in the entire ceremony. Check out the clips below and let me know what you think (please!).

[Update 11:32PM PT]: Meh. The International Olympic Committee doesn’t understand the Internet and is reporting all embedded YouTube clips. That makes me less likely to watch Olympic events. Here are direct links to the James Bond and Mr. Bean clips.]

Powerfox & Ponymane Beatles Mashup

This has been a stressful week for a variety of reasons. Thankfully, it’s Friday! Let’s try to kick off the weekend with shiny happy feelings. You know what always makes me happy? Listening to Powerfox & Ponymane! Watch and listen to these lovely ladies mash up a pair of songs by The Beatles. Hopefully it puts a smile on your face. Happy Friday!

New Characters Revealed For Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition

Overhaul Games has listed new features and a new adventure for the highly anticipate Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition. The big surprise was a trio of new characters (more on them in a sec). The company claims that it will implement more than 400 improvements, including new cinematics, gameplay features from Baldur’s Gate 2 (class kits!), improved multiplayer, and more. The new adventure is called “The Black Pits” and revolves around the machinations of a mad drow named Baeloth. (Aside from Drizzt Do’Urden, are there any drow that aren’t mad? Perhaps they all need more fiber.)

As for the new characters, here are excerpts from their descriptions:

Rasaad yn Bashir
Rasaad is a Calishite Monk demonstrating his monastic arts to the people of Nashkel. His quest ultimately leads into the highest reaches of the Cloud Peaks, where he must face an unexpected nemesis. Add him to your Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition experience to unleash the Monk’s extraordinary power.

Neera the Wild Mage
Neera is a half-elf wild mage slowly coming to terms with her enormous magical potential. Add her to your Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition experience and ignite your wild side.

Dorn Il-Khan
Dorn is a half-orc Blackguard whose otherworldly patron grants him terrible powers in the form of his black sword and unholy spells. Add him to your Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition and inflict evil to the last corpse.

I highly recommend heading over to the Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition web site for the full descriptions of these three characters and more details on the improvements mentioned above. The game will be available in September for Windows PC, Mac OS, and iOS, with an Android version coming at a later date.

As a huge Baldur’s Gate mark (played the game through 18 times!), I am so amped for enhanced version. I’m probably going to pick up both the OS X and iOS versions. This is one of my favorites games of all time and the only one I know of that prominently features a miniature giant space hamster. Hopefully these new characters understand the proper way to treat miniature giant space hamsters.

Any of you psyched for Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition? Any of the new characters catch your eye?

Source

Coffee Talk #504: Your Favorite Olympic Videogames

The 2012 Olympics begins today! Most of you have been feverishly anticipating the dramatic showdowns in the synchronized swimming and rhythmic gymnastics competitions. Please put those thoughts aside to talk about your favorite Olympic videogames! Whether you’re talking about the summer games vs. winter games or simulation vs. Mario and Sonic, there have been loads of Olympic videogames released over the years. What are some of your favorites?

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, your favorite summer alcoholic beverage, curtains vs. blinds, or if Tebow-mania will be better or worse now that he’s a bench player in NY, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

The 2012 Olympics begins today! Most of you have been feverishly anticipating the dramatic showdowns in the synchronized swimming and rhythmic gymnastics competitions. Please put those thoughts aside to talk about your favorite Olympic videogames! Whether you’re talking about the summer games vs. winter games or simulation vs. Mario and Sonic, there have been loads of Olympic videogames released over the years. What are some of your favorites?

As for me, I’m going to take it back to the Commodore 64 era. I have fond memories of playing Epyx’s Summer Games and Winter Games with my friends. Back then, multiplayer consisted of passing around the joystick or taking turns on the keyboard. Between the multiplayer fun and the wide variety of events, I’ll never forget playing Epyx’s awesome Olympic games.

How about you? What are some of your favorite Olympic games?

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

The parts I need to fix my television haven’t arrived yet, so it’s possible that I won’t be able to use my consoles this weekend. That sucks since there are a bunch of games I want to play. The good news is that my iPad is serving me well for television and gaming. Between the HBO Go and Time Warner Cable apps, I haven’t really missed any of the shows I usually watch. As always, I’m playing a ton of Civilization Revolution. That’s been joined by several rounds of Skylanders Cloud Patrol. If the parts for my TV don’t arrive this weekend, I’ll be perfectly content playing several iPad games and watching videos through apps.

How about you? What’s on your weekend playlist?