She was family

Today, someone passed away.

I feel cheated that I never had the opportunity, the privilege to know her when she was as young as she was today.

Growing up in Hong Kong, my grandparents lived a huge distance away in India, and she was the elder of our little community. She was someone who just got love, she never needed to ask, never needed to want it.

Her children, her grandchildren loved her ever so much, and if you had known her, you would have too. There was that infectious characteristic to her. You met her and you would always remember her.

As I grew up, she was family, she was our grandmother. People who are that special, are family, and you can never have too many grandmothers!

She was someone who whenever we met, I would feel like I was coming back with something, a new thought, a revived feeling of life. I guess that's just what she was, an ocean of life, you could be the saddest person in the world, but chatting with her would just reignite that spark of life in you and remind you that you have so much of it in you, that squandering it is a crime.

Sharing the gift of life does not diminish it, it simply overfills the vessel. I hope, I pray to god that I am able to have even half the life that she has when I last saw her.

With her passing, I mourn in a special way, a way I think she would have wanted us to remember her. With a smile on our faces, with fond memories in our minds and our bodies filled with life.

For that truly is the greatest legacy, to not only touch so many lives, but to be an integral part of them. Even though she has left her body, she has not left our hearts, our souls and she never will.

I truly feel sad today, I mourn for my fathers mother, a woman of amazing character and similarly filled with life, who passed before I could understand these things, and because this remarkable woman passed away without me getting a chance to talk to her one more time, to tell her just how much she really meant to me.

She was family.

Skyfall - The Return of the Bond Franchise

Sam Mendes's Skyfall is the latest iteration of the now, 50 year old James Bond Saga. And if I may say so, it’s one of the finest James Bond movies in recent years.

For me, there was a huge difference in the audience from the time they entered and the time they left the hall. Before we entered, they were excited, the thrill of a Bond movie having got them eager for the latest installment. After however, they were largely uninterested if not disappointed, with some people saying it was a waste of time. I thought it was brilliant!

What do we expect from an action movie? Fights, explosions, women, more explosions and a contrived plot.

Thankfully, those people who liked Skyfall will realize that Bond isn't an action movie, it's a Spy movie. Spy movies are nitty, gritty movies where there are intense action sequences followed by character and plot development, they rely on a story being told rather than just having a unexplained loose-end blow up (Yeah, I'm pointing at you Transformers 3 and Avengers)

That is what Bond is all about, fighting a personal battle, it's not about the fighting an omnipresent organization, leave that for Jason Borne. Skyfall finally brings us to where 007 should be, England's Greatest Secret Agent.

If I may say so, Daniel Craig has had a relatively poor term as Bond so far, he started off as a brilliantly in Casino Royale (which again, relied on building the plot rather than action sequence after action sequence) but he was turned into a British action hero and made a fool of with Quantum of Solace.

Personally, I feel that it's nicer to look at QoS as the ugly stepchild of the franchise and simply ignore it. Because when you do, there is a beautiful connection between the two films. (I think Sam Mendes and I think alike!)

At the end of Casino Royale, Bond has seen the love of his life die. He is a broken package, this is echoed in Skyfall he seems to have grown weary of his job as a government hitman and has begun drowning his sorrows in guilt and booze. He longs for something more meaningful, perhaps something less cloak-and-dagger, and something that has some truth to it.

As we've all seen from the trailers, Bond is presumed dead after a failed mission in Turkey, but we all know that a good agent can't be stopped, and after 3 months, Bond comes back. "Why?" he's asked, repeatedly (as if to drive home the point) why would he return when he was out clean?

It's because he's a spy, and (as lame as it may sound) a Son of England; he is loyal to M, so when a crisis looms, with her as the target, Bond is quick to return, essentially resurrecting himself to protect her (that's loyalty!)

Craig's Bond as mentioned is not a perfect Bond that we've all grown used to seeing, he is a man who does what he does, but it doesn't mean that it doesn't mean that his choices don't affect him.

Javier Bardem's portrayal of the villain is superb; the character, Raoul Silva, is so effortlessly intimidating that it's easy to be caught off guard. He doesn't bleed blood, he doesn't have weird scars or fetish's, he is a man who has been betrayed, and he's been planning his revenge for a long time. Bardem's character, might have possibly not been that interesting had it been portrayed by a traditional Hollywood actor, with a clear British, or American accent, Bardem brings the exotic touch of a Spanish accent to the character, that with the blond hair sets him apart from the other Bond villains. Another lovely thing to see with this character is that he doesn't tell Bond his entire plan. He keeps the game going by having a plan and having Bond chase after him, this makes for some interesting twists and turns in the plot. (and please note, that his character is not gay)

Something that this film has been pointed out for lacking is a good Bond Girl. Every 007 movie has certain female characters, you have Moneypenny (last seen back when Pierce Brosnan was wearing the Tux), there is the woman that Bond sleeps with which the villain promptly kills to antagonize Bond (cause even though he's a player, he's human) and then there is the strong 'Bond Girl' who helps James foil the dastardly plot before succumbing to his charms. Skyfall breaks this trend, as they have the woman that Bond sleeps with, that's clear, but the character that we all believe is the 'Bond Girl' - Eve, lacks the chemistry and strength necessary for a Bond Girl. Sure there is a huge amount of innuendo and she accidentally almost kills him, but that's about it. She’s doesn't click with him.

Judy Dench on the other hand, is M, the entire story revolves around her, she is possibly the only important woman included in this movie, which is why I believe that while Mendes doesn't say it, he has very clearly made Dench his 'Bond Girl' in spirit.

The movie is a bit long, clocking in at nearly 2 1/2 hours; however, it is filled with enough content to keep you content for the entire movie. There might be a point where the average viewer will get bored and want a fight sequence, my advice is to have patience and listen to the dialogue. Some of it can be very important in developing characters with tiny little aspects that you might miss, had you been texting in the movie hall.

As mentioned, the plot has thankfully moved from the horrendous one of Quantum of Solace, where Bond fought a faceless organization, and has replaced it with a single foe. Again, as I've mentioned, this is where the Bond films excel, they create a connection between the protagonist and the antagonist that makes their cold wars and hot battles all the more epic.

My advice, watch the movie! Don't expect a Michael Bay film, expect a film that requires some time for you to listen and realise what the characters are going through, because that is what completes a successful film. Not crazy effects, but characters that are memorable and identifiable.

Halo: Forward Unto Dawn

I've been meaning to write about this web series, Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn, but I thought I'd wait till it finished before casting my vote. It's Unfrigginbelievable

FUD (I'm abbreviating) is the larges venture by Microsoft into the live-action segment, costing around 10 million dollars to produce, it was filled with a bunch of Hollywood actors and produced like an honest to god, 100 million dollar film. They got Daniel Cudmore (Collosus from X-Men: Last Stand) and Anna Popplewell (Susan from The Narnia Films) to play key roles with Cudmore filling the armour of Halo's Master Chief.

343 Industries marketing campaign for this new video game trilogy is simply remarkable. Halo is a video game, however, due to the series immense popularity, Microsoft dipped and then plunged the series into different media types. The first media that Halo reached was in the form of Novels. These novels provided much needed filler material that connected the Origins of the Chief, to the First Halo and finally the gap between Halo 1 and Halo 2. It was necessary, it was good. Then, the franchise got even more popular, being described as the Xbox's signature title, it became the baby of Microsoft's Xbox.

We all know that babies are indulged, and Halo is no different, over the 10 years of the franchise, it has seen the creation of: Books, Comics, Action Figures, Board Games, Fan Made Machinima, Anime and it was even tabled as a full fledged Hollywood movie! (To be produced by Peter Jackson, thank god that didn't happen) So what makes this so different? What is 343 Industries doing that is so different?

While the books, comics, films, etc were not essential, but more of additives so that true Halo fans would be able to further understand the back story of characters, 343 has made these 'additives' a requirement to understand the story. By linking a novel and the main game directly, it makes the novel an essential read for one to understand the changes in the game (properly that is, I'm sure they've explained it sufficiently in-game). Personally, I find that this is a brilliant strategy, Microsoft got well known sci-fi authors to write the new Halo books, and considering the fan following that sci-fi works accumulate, it would have certainly resulted in new customers for the Halo franchise. Add the field of Live Action and every single filmmaker who loves video games sits up and takes notice, because their dreams have just been made real. It's a brilliant approach cause it consumes the market, it builds the hype for the product even more, especially when you realize that since the first Halo came out 10 years ago, there are new customers entering that special video-game age, so such a strategy is perfect to draw them in.

Enough about that, let's look at Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn.

*********POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERTS********

FUD is a 5 episode web-series hosted by Machinima Prime, unlike any other Halo Live Action stuff, this was all done by Microsoft, so it's official.

FUD follows Thomas Lasky, a Cadet in the Corbulo Academy of Military Science, (A sort of Halo Westpoint) He and his squad, are not the most cohesive unit, primarily because they are the sons and daughters of high ranking UNSC Personnel. This means that while other cadets have worked to be there, these are the special ones. The squad is interesting as plenty of them show a high amount of arrogence and disdain towards the war the UNSC is fighting (against rebels) and more importantly at the fact that their parents haven't been with them because of the military.

Lasky is not the biggest screw up in the squad not by far, he's the protagonist for one reason only, he's not motivated, and despite having leadership skills, he is hesitant to take them on. The series looks at this, and show how, over the series, he changes as a person and becomes someone he needs to be. He's helped along this journey by his best friend, Cadet Silva (played by Anna Popplewell) who is one of the best cadets, but not really cut out for leadership.

The first episode gives us the lay of the land, we are introduced to the cadets and how Lasky isn't everyone's best friend, in fact he's screwed up plans due to his inability to place faith in his commanders (he's right at making the call, but that's not the question)

The second episode shows us how there is exceptional desire to see this squad become strong as they are all full of potential and none of them are seizing it. Lasky is continuously berated for his errors and his past resulting in a scuffle where he kicks the snot out of his rival. He is reprimanded by his CO, however, the words that are said leave a faint impression on him, as he makes a decision that will change the way his teammates look at him.

I won't say what all happens next, but eventually, the Master Chief comes to pull the squad out of a particularly tough spot. I swear, the first time you actually see the Chief on screen, you are spellbound. The fact that he was actually there, not animated, not CGI (same thing no?) but a real person, in a real suit (a rubber one, but that's not the point!) was amazing!

Did you know that in the books, the Master Chief is supposed to be 6ft 7in, the actor who plays the Chief, Daniel Cudmore, is the same height! I saw that and the gamer geek in me flipped out. Slowly FUD is moving from a simple web series to Halo on film.

The story of FUD is perfect. By the third episode, you know all the important characters and their personal struggles, but it's still not what you'd want in a live action series based on a FPS game, you want explosions, you want the Covenant and war! We all love war, it's why we play the game. FUD takes your expectations and openly mock you as they show you all of this, but from the eyes of fresh recruit. The horror of war, and the despair that is seen as each character falls and the relief when the Chief enters.

The Covenant was done in an intelligent manner, with the 3rd, 4th and 5th episodes all taking place in the night, the ability to see any animation flaws are hidden, and it also simulates the fear that would be there when being chased by a stronger, more advanced race through a dark forest. By emphasizing on the voices, weapons lights and armour lights, FUD does complete justice to the mysterious, sinister nature of the Covenant, although I was sort of hoping for more Chief/Elite action.

The only problem, the absolute only problem that I had was that 343 allowed Spartans faces to be seen. Half the joy of the characters of Spartans was that they are faceless warriors for the players to identify with, by giving them a face, you have created an identity that this Spartan looks like this, and what for? Just so that 343 can show the seeds of doubt as to the age of the Spartans, why they are near child soldiers and not full grown men and women. Perhaps this fits into their story behind the Spartan IV's (yeah, that's happening) or it contributes towards something else that is yet to be revealed.

At fifteen minutes an episode, Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn is the best think you could watch on youtube as you count the days to November 6th and the launch of Halo 4. In Halo 4, you will see the return of Tom Lasky on the UNSC Infinity, and while no one knows the role of his character in the game, Forward Unto Dawn certainly tells you where he gets his courage and faith from.

I'd suggest you watch it, even if you aren't a Halo fan or a Gamer, there is something truly spectacular when you have someone whom you've played as for most of your childhood appear real. Forward Unto Dawn is that awesome, and so, so much more.

Episode I
Episode II
Episode III
Episode IV
Episode V

Enjoy!