Search This Blog

Saturday, March 15, 2014

Scribblenauts

Are you ready for another edition of the Saturday Smorgasbord?  I certainly hope so, because I have a very cool topic up for discussion. 

Because I chose to use the first week of March as a bit of a departure from the Saturday Smorgasbord by talking about something that was bugging me, all the Smorgasbord weeks have been pushed back a week.  I guess I'm just lucky that March has five Saturdays in it.

Confused?  I'm sorry.

Okay, let's clarify this a bit.  I am going to be talking about a video game in this blog entry.  And, this is a video game that combines two of my favourite things.  It combines puzzles and drawing.

But wait.  How can you draw and solve puzzles at the same time?  And, on a video game screen, no less?

Oh, there are definitely ways.  Why, just take a look at the Nintendo DS console.  If you want to play puzzle games on a video game screen, the Nintendo DS has a whole lot of options available!  I suppose one popular option for a puzzle game is the game cartridge that allows you to play Sudoku.  And, yes, Sudoku can be a lot of fun and a big challenge to complete...but Sudoku is not the subject of today's blog.  There are only so many combinations that you can arrange the numerals of 1-9 in, and besides...it's very difficult to make a substantial blog posting on Sudoku.

Well, what about a word search?  Sometimes there are video games that allow you to find words and use your DS stylus to circle them on the puzzle board.  And, admittedly, I am someone who doesn't mind a good word search.  But somehow when you convert it into a video game, it doesn't really work.

And, don't even get me started on video game crossword puzzles.  I can't even finish a crossword puzzle in the newspaper, let alone a video game!

So, what's left?  Hmmm...I have quite a sizeable collection of Nintendo DS games available.  Let's take a look.

Hmmm...what about this game?  "Scribblenauts"? 



Yes!  That's it!  I want to do a blog entry on Scribblenauts!

But, just exactly what is Scribblenauts?  Glad you asked!  It's a game that was first released on the Nintendo DS console in September 2009, and as I explained earlier, it's a video game that blends puzzles with drawing.

Though, I should note that in this game...you technically don't get to do the drawing.  The drawings are already done for you by the main character of the game, who is named Maxwell.



How you access the drawings is simple.  If you click on the draw logo, you'll be taken to a screen in which you can type in a word or words.  Once you finish typing the word, Maxwell will draw the image, and you can then use the item to help you solve the puzzle.

For instance, if you're trying to climb up to an upper level, all you need to do to draw a ladder is type in the word ladder, and a ladder will magically appear on screen.  Then all you would have to do is arrange the ladder to where you want it, and go from there.

You can even combine objects together to make a sort of chain reaction.  Suppose you have to cross a chasm, and you find that a rope is not working.  Well, if you draw a tree, and tie the rope around the tree, you might be able to swing across the pit.

The number of combinations are endless.  And at the end of this blog entry, I'll share some of the strangest things that you can ever draw on Scribblenauts.

NOTE:  You cannot type in profanity on Scribblenauts.  If you do, you might end up getting a picture of a donkey or a chicken.  After all, the game is manufactured for Nintendo, which is more or less the family gaming system.

Your job is to use Maxwell's drawings to try and solve different puzzles.  And, the puzzles involve everything from transporting a puppy across a river, to figuring out what kind of present to give at a wedding reception, to defending somebody against a bully. 

Yeah, that's one of the positive aspects of Scribblenauts.  In most cases, the scenarios are very realistic...though there are some that are way out there.  You'll quickly find that out as you play through the levels.



Now, each level has a particular task that you have to do.  In some puzzles, there is only one solution, but in other tasks, there could be more than one way to solve each puzzle.  For instance, if your task were to give the child a treat on Halloween, you could give them the most logical thing, which would be a piece of candy.  Or, you could give them a puppy, a car, a toy, or even a bomb if you like.

(Just be warned.  If the bomb explodes and knocks out the trick-or-treater, it's game over.)

Yes, that's right.  If you fail to succeed in any puzzle, and a pivotal part of the puzzle gets injured, broken, or worse...it's game over for you, and you'll have to try again.

Now, if you happen to solve the puzzle, you can earn a star shaped token called a Starite, and the more Starites you earn, the further you can move in the game.  And with there being 220 different levels in the game, you're going to need every single one!

Once you have the puzzle mode mastered, you can try the side-scrolling action mode, which will take what you learned in the puzzle mode and use it to collect all the starites in the level.  You might have to open up boxes, destroy items in the way, or be creative with ropes and ladders.  Good luck!

And, now for the moment you have all been waiting for.  It's time to list all of the cool things you can draw on Scribblenauts.  I've tested all of these myself and needless to say, you can have a lot of fun with these objects.

Here's my list.

1.  KEYBOARD CAT - You know that little video that is floating around the Internet that shows a cat playing a keyboard?  Oh, look...here it is!



Well, you can draw a keyboard cat in Scribblenauts.  Mind you, it serves no purpose in the game, but it's cool that you can have one, if you wanted one.

2.  PHILOSORAPTOR - Yes, you can bring in a dinosaur to make your game more fun. 

3 - RICKROLL - You may have heard this term describing a particular British male singer and his biggest hit.  Oh, look...here it is below.



Well, apparently if you enter this term into Scribblenauts, you can make Rick Astley appear in your game.  He doesn't sing though.

4 - GIANT ENEMY CRAB - Exactly how it's described.

5 - EPIC FAIL - Yes, you can really find out what "epic fail" would look like if you type it in.  It comes in the form of a nuclear weapon.  And, be very careful with it too...one false move, and you can blow up the whole landscape!

6 - EPIC WIN - On the flipside, entering this code in will net you a Starite!  Well, not a REAL one.  Just a facsimile.  Because that code would be cheating.

7 - ANON - Will allow you to draw a human being...an invisible one, but a human being, nonetheless.

8 - ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US - One of the biggest translation fails in video game history comes to you in Scribblenauts!  Only in this game, it brings up a futuristic robotic bunker type thing.

9 - YOUR FACE - Draws a face.  Pretty straight forward.

10 - CHUTHLU - Draws a gigantic green monster that eats everything and anything in its path.



11 - GOD - If ever you need protection, you can enter this code in, and God will come and protect you!

12 - DEVIL - The exact opposite of God!

Friday, March 14, 2014

The Zack Morris Phone...And Why I Wish We All Had One...



You know, one of the things that I want to do with the blog this year is to write more personalized stories about things that are going through my head at the moment, while supplementing them with a pop culture twist.  And, I did say that one of the changes that I would be making would be less emphasis on descriptions and more emphasis on personal tales and what I've learned over the years through the subject of pop culture.

This is the case with today's entry.  It's a combination of interesting story and slight rant with just a little dash of pop culture blended in for flavouring.  I'm trying to present information a little bit differently to keep this blog fresh, because after nearly three years, I find it a challenge to come up with suitable topics.  So, I'm trying a different approach.

Okay, so I'll set up the story/rant.

I am the kind of person who contrary to what some may believe, I enjoy having conversations with people - well, provide that the other person isn't one that takes the information I tell them and uses it to spread tomorrow's gossip.

Okay, let's amend that a bit.  I enjoy having conversations with people who won't betray me or stab me in the back.  Yes, that's much better.

And, by conversations, I do not mean "Hi, how are you today?" or "Nice weather we're having", or "Is the tuna fish sandwich delicious?".  I mean deep, meaningful conversations that get people thinking.  Conversations that spark a lively discussion about anything and everything.  Conversations that take on a life of their own and are so interesting and unpredictable that you never know how it will end, or the possible things that could come up in discussion.

As someone who kept away from people for a spell due to a plethora of emotional issues, I've rediscovered the lost art of conversation, and my hope is that I run into people who share that same love.

But that's just it.  As far as I'm concerned, the art of good conversation is becoming exactly that.  A lost art.

These days, I am finding it quite difficult to engage in conversation with people...and honestly, I don't think it's my fault this time.  Oh, sure, when I was younger, I would have a hard time because I was always worried about saying the wrong thing, or thinking they wouldn't like me, or all sort of insecure silliness that happened to pass through my brain at that time.  But now, I'm finding it difficult because people simply don't like to get engaged in deep conversation.



They would much rather stare blankly into their mobile phones to play a round of Candy Crush, text a person on the other end who only writes in Internet acronyms, or watches a dozen of those Vine videos that they find entertaining, but other people find incredibly foolish.

Well, okay, not EVERYONE is like this.  But I also have to admit that when it comes to meeting new people, it doesn't really bode well when their nose is glued to a cell phone screen trying to play the game Flappy Bird.



(Seriously, what the hell is a Flappy Bird?  And, why should I care about a Flappy Bird?  Is it the same as an Angry Bird?  Big Bird?  Wait...why am I caring again?)

I've kept quiet about this until now, but I'm going to be honest...I can't stand it when people sit down at the same table that I am at and instead of even saying hello to me, they instantly yank out their phone and freeze me out.  I'm sorry, but that's just plain rude.  Even ruder still is when they show everyone else at the table some funny video that they found and completely ignore you for who knows what reason.  Believe me, I've had that happen to me as well, and as far as I'm concerned, it's just as rude.

Mind you, some of the people who are cell phone junkies are probably so stuck on their screen that they aren't even aware of their rudeness.  In fact, these "cell phone zombies" lack so much self-awareness that I'm amazed that none of them have any horror stories of walking straight into an open manhole on the street or nearly getting clobbered by a Ford Mustang as they cross the street.

And, don't even get me started on the number of people who absolutely have nervous breakdowns because they misplace or break their phones.  I've even heard some people exclaim that they can't live without their phones.

Um.  No.  Just no.  Does your phone allow you to breathe clean air?  No.  Does your phone provide you shelter in a storm?  No.  Can your phone feed you?  No.  And, don't even try to use the argument that you can use your phone to order Domino's Pizza.  That won't fly with me.

Now, as much as you might think that I am anti-mobile phone, I really am not.  I think everyone should have one for emergency purposes.  I even have a pay-as-you-go phone (that I haven't used since 2012)...but it's nice to know that I have one, in case I need it.  But I am not one who is attached to the phone.  I have seen some people become so antisocial in trying to use their phones to go on every social network they can, and it's enough for me to swear to myself that I wouldn't become so dependent on a piece of electronic equipment.

But, what's the solution?  You can't wish for a scenario in which all mobile phones stop working a la "Revolution".  I don't know if I could handle living in a world without ANY outside communication.  But, I don't really want to live in a world where people become slaves to technology.  I want to feel as though I can engage in conversation with somebody without having to talk to them through a screen.

So, here's my solution.  It's a crazy one, but I think it might work.





What if we took all the smartphones in the world, and replaced them with Zack Morris phones instead?

Now, what exactly is a Zack Morris phone?  Well, it's this.



You see, years ago...like 25 years ago, to be exact, mobile phones were a lot different.  They had gigantic antennas, looked like a retro walkie-talkie, and weighed enough that you could probably kill a man if you threw them hard enough.  I don't even know how heavy those phones were, but they certainly looked as though you could get quite a workout with them.




And on "Saved By The Bell", Zack Morris certainly could be one of those kids who might have fallen into the clutches of the cell phone zombie.  After all, every other episode of the show featured Zack using his phone to get out of some serious jams, be it hiring an actor to impersonate Mr. Belding, to winning a trip to Hawaii from a radio contest hosted at The Max to calling Kelly for a date in record time.  Zack's first love may not have been Kelly Kapowski, but his super gigantic cellular phone.

But there's a beautiful simplicity to Zack's whopper of a portable phone.  There was no screen, no texting, no fancy ringtones...nothing of the sort.  In many ways, Zack's phone worked basically the same as a modern day cordless phone...well, minus the gigantic antenna, of course.  And, you know, that was fine.  After all, Zack didn't just spend his whole day on the phone.  He had to find a way to rescue Screech whenever he had gotten himself into trouble while following one of Zack's lame ideas.  He had to plan social time with Slater and Lisa while sipping on milkshakes at The Max.  He had to get a nerd to help him with his homework so that Mr. Belding wouldn't give him detention.  He had to climb into Jessie's window and prevent her from taking any more caffeine pills so that she wouldn't feel so excited, or so scared...

...well, okay, you get my point.

The thing is that Zack didn't need to have all those bells and whistles that modern day cell phones have because he found a way to balance everything.  I shudder to think of what might have happened had "Twitter" been invented during the "Saved By The Bell" years.  Everyone would be sitting in front of their neon orange lockers not interacting with anyone in person, but instead posting Instagram photos of Mr. Belding in a clown outfit, or liking a Kelly Kapowski selfie.

And, that would just be boring.  Much like it's boring enough to sit at a lunch table and see everyone else attached to their cell phones ignoring the world around them.

But I choose not to join them.  Surely there must be others out there in the world who can choose to live their lives cell phone free.  I know you're out there!

And for those of you who aren't...you can break the habit!

Seriously, just try unplugging your phone for 24 hours.  Let your battery drain until it's near empty and go cold turkey for a whole day without even using it once (unless you really have to make a phone call).  I bet most of you will be able to do it.  And, when you do, I bet most of you will find it a refreshing change.

So, that's my challenge to you.  Turn off the phone.  Heck, watch a marathon of Saved By The Bell episodes to get your mind off of it if you like.  But seriously, just do it.  You might enjoy it!  You may even relearn how to communicate without technology!

Thursday, March 13, 2014

Turn Off Your Damn Sno-Cone Maker, Ma Nature! PLEASE!!!


March 13, 2014

Before I begin, I would like to divert your attention to a photo that I took this past January 27.  It was taken from my living room window on one particularly nasty day of weather.  Have a look below!



I'm going to tell you right off the bat...that is NOT fog.  It's snow.  Blowing snow.  Snow that has been a mainstay for this winter since basically November 2013.

AND, I'M SICK OF IT!!!

And for someone who was born and raised in Canada and is used to all kinds of wacky weather during the winter months, it took a lot for me to admit to it. 

But, good god, Mother Nature.  We get it.  You wanted us to have a nasty winter, and believe me.  We got the message.

Now, I have a video message for you!

NOTE:  I filmed this video at 11:30 in the evening after my shift at work is over.  I tried to make the outdoor lighting work, but as you can see in some places, it just didn't happen.  But since it was the only opportunity I had to make this video, you take what you can get.



Wednesday, March 12, 2014

The Dry-Erase Board Solution

You know, I drew the Professor Plum card for this week's Whatever Wednesday entry, and this means that I have to do a diary entry for today's piece.  That's cool.  Fair enough.  I've since recovered from that horrible cold I had last week, and my voice is finally back after temporarily disappearing for a little spell.

But being sick with the cold had me thinking...what if I had lost my voice on a day in which I was supposed to do a video diary entry?  What would I have done?

Oh, sure, I could have done something like write the diary entry instead.  It wouldn't have been that difficult.  But I wanted to do something a little more creative.  Something that would be unexpected.

And, then as I was wandering through the office supply section of the store I work at...it hit me.  These series of "selfies" will tell the tale...




Tuesday, March 11, 2014

March 11, 1956

Happy March eleventh, everybody!  It's hard to believe that in just a week and a half, Spring will finally be here.

(Seriously, in my neck of the woods, it truly is hard to believe.  We just got another snowfall a couple of days ago!  Enough with the snow, Mother Nature!  We're all sick of it!)

Okay, so anyway, today is March 11, and for today's blog topic, I've chosen a subject that many may not recognize by his face...but believe it or not, he's had a career that has spanned many decades.  And even though you might not know who he is...you will for certain know him for the roles he played.

Ponder that for a moment as we take a look at some of the historical events that took place on this date...

222 - Emperor Elagabalus and his mother, Julia Soaemias are assassinated by the Praetorian Guard during a revolt in Italy

1702 - England's first national daily newspaper - "The Daily Courant" - is first published

1824 - The United States Department of War creates the Bureau of Indian Affairs

1851 - The first performance of "Rigoletto" by Giuseppe Verdi is held in Paris, France

1861 - The Constitution of the Confederate States of America is issued

1867 - Exactly sixteen years after debuting "Rigoletto", Verdi premieres "Don Carlos" in Paris

1888 - The Great Blizzard of 1888 strikes the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, which kills 400 people and grinds commerce to a halt

1903 - Bandleader and variety show host Lawrence Welk (d. 1992) is born in Strasburg, North Dakota

1927 - The Roxy Theatre in New York City is opened by Samuel Roxy Rothafel

1945 - The Imperial Japanese Army attempts a kamikaze attack on the U.S. Pacific Fleet anchored at Ulithi atoll

1946 - Rudolf Hoss - the first commandant of Auschwitz - is captured by British troops

1983 - The nation of Pakistan successfully conducts a cold test of a nuclear weapon

1993 - Janet Reno is confirmed by the United States Senate and sworn in the following day as the first female Attorney General of the United States

2004 - Tragedy strikes Madrid, Spain as a series of simultaneous explosions rock the city's mass transit system, killing 191 people during rush hour

2009 - Sixteen people die and eleven more injured in the Winneden school shooting in Germany

2011 - A magnitude 9.0 earthquake strikes near Sendai, Japan, causing devastation to many Japanese communities and causes the second most devastating nuclear accident in history

And, celebrating a March 11 birthday are the following celebrities.  Happy birthday to Rupert Murdoch, Sam Donaldson, Joel Steiger, Bobby McFerrin, Susan Richardson, Jimmy Fortune, Curtis Brown, Cheryl Lynn, Elias Koteas, Jeffrey Nordling, Alex Kingston, Emma Chambers, Shane Richie, Jesse Jackson Jr., Wallace Langham, John Barrowman, Lisa Loeb, Terrence Howard, Johnny Knoxville, Benji and Joel Madden, Thora Birch, Lindsey McKeon, Melissa Rycroft, Anton Yelchin, and Demi Harman.

Okay.  Now for today's Tuesday Timeline date.  For some reason, I feel like going back to the 1950s for this one.



Like, maybe...March 11, 1956?  Sounds good?

Okay, so, as I was saying in the opening of this blog, today's subject is a man who happens to be celebrating a birthday today.  In this case, the birthday just happens to be number fifty-eight in a series of...well, who knows?  And, as I also stated, this man has had one heck of a career.  In fact, last year he celebrated thirty years in the business.  That's quite impressive, especially in a landscape where heavy emphasis is placed on reality television.

But here's the thing.  Would you recognize him if I posted a picture of him?  Here's his headshot below.



Okay, so I see some of you recognizing him right away (not really), and I see some of you trying to think about what television show or movie you might have seen him in (not really).  And, I am sure that many of you are wondering who this person could be.

Well, okay.  Let's play the name game.  What do all of these characters have in common?

Yakko Warner.  Raphael.  Steelbeak.  Pinky.  P.J.  Corky.  Donatello.

Well, obviously all of them happen to be cartoon characters from some of your favourite television shows.  Shows such as "Goof Troop", "Darkwing Duck", "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", and "Animaniacs".  But here's the twist.  Did you know that all of the above characters were voiced by the same man?

And that the man who does the voices for all of these characters is the same one I featured in the picture above?



Well, this man has a name.  Rob Paulsen.  And, today happens to be the fifty-eighth anniversary of the day that Rob Paulsen was born!

Now, I'll be talking about some of the more memorable characters that he has voiced in his thirty plus years as a voice actor.  Believe it or not, there are more than seven.  Truth be told, in his entire career, he has voiced at least two hundred and fifty different characters in shows from "2 Stupid Dogs" to "Yo Yogi!" and everything in between!

However, it come as a surprise to you that voice acting was not Rob's first career choice.  Believe it or not, Rob's main goal in life was to play hockey professionally.  Had things gone his way, he very well could have found himself competing on the ice against Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, or Ray Bourque.  But somewhere along the way, his secondary love for the arts won out, and he opted to try and find work as an actor or singer (Paulsen sang in a children's choir growing up).



It did take a little bit of time and a lot of hard work, but Paulsen's persistence netted him his very first voice role in 1983's "G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero" as "Snow Job" and "Tripwire".  Little did he realize that this would be the beginning of what would become his life's work so far.

Now, certainly Rob didn't initially set out to do just voice roles.  He did do some work in live-action films as well, which included the movies "Eyes of Fire", "Body Double", "Stewardess School", and "Warlock".  It's okay if you haven't heard of any of these movies before.  They're largely forgettable B-movies from the 1980s.  And, Rob's film career lasted a total of three or four years before Rob decided to make the switch to solely voice acting.  It was a decision that Paulsen was influenced to make by his then toddler aged son.  Because the roles he played in some of the movies were quite R-rated, Paulsen explained that he would not want his son to watch them, so he couldn't really feel any sense of pride in the work that he did do...which I can completely understand.

So, this caused Rob Paulsen to focus on cartoons...which allowed him to take on roles that his son could watch.  Ultimately, it ended up being a good decision as he has had steady work since 1983! 

But, what are some of his most famous roles?  Well, obviously I can't talk about ALL of them...that would make this Tuesday Timeline the same length as an Agatha Christie novel!  But believe me when I say that this man has truly been a huge part of my childhood.  He was one constant in nearly every cartoon that I watched, and I just hope he knows just how many kids grew up with him entertaining them for over three decades, and just how grateful we all are to him for all the joy and fun he's brought to the world of animation.  Well done, good sir.

So, for the conclusion of this blog, and because it is his birthday, let's post some clips (if possible) of some of Rob's most memorable roles.

And, what better way to begin with the one television cartoon that I was obsessed with as a kid?



Now, "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" was definitely a show that I was hooked on.  I watched the cartoon (and own the first two seasons on DVD), I watched the movie (which I also own on DVD for nostalgic purposes), I had the toys, read the comics, even illustrated a series of Ninja Turtle books for my third grade classroom (which I unfortunately do not have...wish I could have saved them so I could scan them...just to see how childish the artwork was). 



And one of the reasons why I loved the cartoon was because of the actors who were a part of the show.  Now, when the show first debuted in 1987, Rob Paulsen played Raphael for the first nine years of the cartoon (he took Season 10 off and was replaced by Michael Gough).  But Paulsen holds an interesting claim to fame because Raphael isn't the only Turtle he would play.



When the series was rebooted for Nickelodeon in 2012, Paulsen was hired to voice the role of Donatello, as Sean Astin had already been cast as Raphael.  And, admittedly, Paulsen was apprehensive about taking the role, as he didn't want to take over the role if Barry Gordon (the original Donatello) wanted it more.  But with Gordon's okay, Paulsen assumed the role of Donatello for the new series, making him the only voice actor to voice two different turtles for two different series.



Another show in which Paulsen shined was in the television cartoon "Animaniacs" where he voiced two main roles.  He was memorable enough as Dr. Scratchensniff, but perhaps his more memorable and hilarious role was that of Yakko Warner.  Why, just have a look at one of the clips that featured Yakko singing a song about all of the nations of the world?  I warn you...the map is slightly outdated.  It was filmed back in 1993, after all.



Okay, are you convinced of Rob Paulsen's genius now?  Stay tuned.  There's more!

One of the spinoff shows that stemmed from "Animaniacs" was the hugely popular "Pinky and The Brain".  Of course, we all know that Maurice LaMarche voiced the role of "The Brain".  But Paulsen was absolutely brilliant in the role of Pinky, the lovable, but as dumb as a brick of moldy cheese partner-in-crime of The Brain. 



NARF!

And, who could forget all the minor roles he had over the years?  He was Marco Smurf on "The Smurfs".  He was Boober on the cartoon series of "Fraggle Rock".  He played Corky on "The Snorks", "Goof Troop"'s P.J., and villain Steelbeak on "Darkwing Duck".

And, that's not even counting the 1,000 television commercials he has made over the years, from when he was Mr. Opportunity...



...to a singing Mini-Wheat...




...to being in one of the most memorable "Got Milk" ads to ever air on television!
 



Is there anything this man CAN'T do?!?

Monday, March 10, 2014

Frozen - Convince Me To See It!

You know, working in the media section of a department store, I have a fair idea of which movies, albums, and video games are the most popular ones.  And, believe me, when it comes down to it, the more times that I have to restock a display of a particular movie or video game, the more popular I know it is.

I can't even begin to tell you just how many copies of "Grand Theft Auto V" I've rang through the register since it was released in September 2013.  I believe I lost count after ten dozen.  And, those were the copies that I am legally able to sell.  The number of people who I had to refuse sale to because they were underage is a fair number too.

(And, just on an unrelated note, I have to admit that I do get a high telling a 12-year-old kid that they can't buy an M-rated game.  Just a smidgen, though.)

The same goes for television series on DVD.  Chances are that if the television series have the words "The Big Bang Theory", "Sons of Anarchy", "Breaking Bad", and "Game of Thrones" in the title, I'm likely to sell a few copies a week.  And for movies, new releases always seem to sell quite well during the first week.  I imagine that when the second "Hunger Games" movie was released on DVD and Blu-Ray on March 7, I ended up selling quite a few copies.  Luckily, I was there an hour before the store opened to set it up, so that release day went very smoothly.

But, sometimes the anticipation of a film release on DVD and Blu-Ray is so great that some people will call the store or ask me at least ten times a day if it has been released yet.  I ended up getting it for "The Fast and Furious 6", "Despicable Me 2", and surprisingly enough "Bad Grandpa"! 

And the blog topic that I chose for today's Monday Matinee discussion is the one movie that people have been and are STILL asking me about today.  And once you find out what the movie is, you'll understand why I've made this entire blog bright blue in colour.

But here's the biggest twist of all.  This is a movie that I...have not seen yet.

Now, normally with a Monday Matinee feature, I have at least seen the film before I talk about it.  But this film is one that I never got around to seeing.  So, I imagine that you're wondering how I can comment on a film that I've never seen.

Simple.  I'll do a little write-up on the film just based on film reviews, synopses, and various clips and videos that I have seen, and I'm going to just do the best I can.  And, at the end of this blog entry, I'm going to ask all of you to convince me to see this movie.  The film comes out on DVD and Blu-Ray March 18, and has already been available on iTunes since February, and if people do a good enough job convincing me to check out this movie, then on the release date, I'll see about renting the film (or possibly even purchasing the film) to scope it out for myself.  And if that happens, I'll devote a future entry to the film and my own take on it.

(I'm trying a new format for the Monday Matinee.  Consider it an experiment of sorts.)

So, without further adieu, let's have a look at the film for discussion today, which was first released in theatres four months ago in November 2013.



Wait...WHAT?  I'm doing a Monday Matinee!  Not a Sunday Jukebox!  Madonna has absolutely nothing to do with this film whatsoever!  Sigh...I'm going to have to fire my video person...

...oh, wait.  That's me.  Never mind, then.  Oh, look!  Here's the clip I really wanted!



ARTIST:  Idina Menzel
SONG:  Let It Go
ALBUM:  Frozen
DATE RELEASED:  November 25, 2013
PEAK POSITION ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS:  #17

Yes, the song by Adele Dazeem...um, I mean, Idina Menzel recently won the Academy Award for Best Song.  And, as far as the movie goes, it is one of the most successful animated movies of all time, making over one billion dollars in the box office.  It's expected that when the film is released on DVD and Blu-Ray that the number will increase.  And, many people who have seen this movie have claimed that it is Disney's best movie since its renaissance period of 1989-1995.



Hmmm...this sounds like a very convincing argument for me to go and view "Frozen", doesn't it?  It is Disney's fifty-third animated feature, and is loosely based on the Hans Christian Andersen tale "The Snow Queen".  And, yes, Idina Menzel is one of the stars of this frosty animated feature, but the movie also stars "Veronica Mars" starlet Kristen Bell, Josh Gad, Jonathan Groff, Santino Fontana, and Alan Tudyk. 

You know, I gotta say...that cast list is mighty impressive.  Slowly getting convinced to watch it.  But, alas, I have to continue writing this blog.

Okay, so again, I stress that I have not seen this movie, so I can't really offer up any plot lines or spoilers (not that it matters anyway because I never reveal endings to the movies anyway), but what I do know is the reason why the film is called "Frozen" is because the film is about a pair of sisters - one of whom has the ability to create ice and snow with just the wave of a hand.  





Of course, it stands to reason that the sister that has the power to do that is the one that Idina Menzel portrays, Elsa.  After all, she's the one who sings the Oscar winning song!  And, from what I gather, something happens in which her powers cause her to become estranged from her sister, Anna (Bell).  And, then something happens that causes the whole world to become one gigantic snowball, and I assume that at some point the two sisters will have to come together to return the kingdom back to normal.  But, again, I'm just speculating.




Along the way though, the sisters will cross paths with several other characters.  For instance, they'll meet a man by the name of Kristoff (Groff) who along with his reindeer Sven becomes a person whom both sisters come to rely on...perhaps one more so than the other.  We also have Hans (Fontana), a prince who captures the attention of one of the sisters in the movie...but is all what it seems with this guy, or is there something darker to his personality?

And then there's the comic relief character of Olaf the Snowman (Gad), whose only dream is to experience what the season of summer is really like.  Oh, look, here's a convenient song clip of Olaf's singing in action.





Of course, I'm not sure how a full-fledged snowman can actually find a way to enjoy summer as the intensity of the UV rays coming from Mister Golden Sun would transform Olaf into a sopping mess of slush that is no longer lovable and huggable.  But, hey...it's a Disney movie, so I'm guessing that somewhere along the way, there's a compromise made, and Olaf can enjoy both worlds.




But you know, it's just absolutely crazy to me just how many people have fallen in love with "Frozen" over the last four months.  And, it's not just the movie that people have fallen in love with either.  Do you have any idea just how many times I've restocked the "Frozen" soundtrack in our CD section?  Enough times for me to realize that maybe the iPod hasn't completely killed off the compact disc star yet.  




And, that's not to mention the fact that the toy department around Christmas was completely raided by girls of all ages, desperate to get their hands on either an Anna or an Elsa doll.  The number of dolls I remember seeing in shopping carts around the store was just staggering!  




There's even a video game adaptation of the movie featuring Olaf that is available for both the Nintendo DS and Nintendo 3DS.  Again, I have no experience of playing this game at all, but I do know that I have sold quite a few of them over the last couple of months.

So, I get that "Frozen" is a big hit film, and I understand that millions of you have seen it at least once.

So, now I turn the floor over to you.  Convince me to watch this movie.  Tell me why you think I should check out this movie when it is released on home video format.  Convince me to review this film for either a future Monday Matinee, or even a Whatever Wednesday or Thursday Diary entry.  I may even post some of your responses in a future blog entry.

So, for all of you salespeople out there...sell me on "Frozen".