To Boldly Go…

The Donz — Fri, 08 May 2009 17:24:29 +0000

I had the privilege of watching an early screening of JJ Abrams’ STAR TREK this week. (Courtesy of the fine folks at www.golivemiami.com, thanks Richard & Jeile!)

JJ Abrams

I’ve been of fan of “some” of JJ Abrams work in the past. (Loved Alias, thought Cloverfield was a great monster movie; haven’t caught on the LOST train. *long story*).

I’m just going to say that STAR TREK is in my top 3 favorite Sci-Fi movies of all time. It’s an amazing revival of the series, (whose last good movie for me was First Contact) and a fantastic treat for moviegoers this summer.

The crew of the USS Enterprise.

In short, the movie has a near-perfect mix of character development, plot, cinematography, writing, and performances. The ensemble cast that Abrams’ team put together, (almost) perfectly re-introduces the series to the new generation. Headstrong Chris Pine as James Kirk captures the gusto and bravado of the persona established by Shatner in the 60’s. Karl Urban is the PERFECT McCoy, and is easily for me the most entertaining character in the movie. Anton Yelchin has a small but entertaining role as Pavel Chekov, and John Cho from Harold & Kumar plays a minor role as Sulu. Zachary Quinto, known to many as the evil Sylar from NBC’s Heroes, is assuming the role of Spock in the re-imagining, and is the hardest actor for me to accept into the new cast. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m so used to seeing him as Sylar, or the fact that he plays a colder, more detached (if possible for a Vulcan) version of Spock. For some reason, even though the the species is supposed to be dictated by logic, I remember a profound warmness to Leonard Nimoy’s interpretation of Spock, (which I believe is very noticeable in his minor role in the new movie). Zoe Saldaña gives Uhura a modern sexiness and intelligence as the communications officer aboard the Enterprise, and is very likable. Finally, British comic star, Simon Pegg plays the always lovable Montgomery Scott in what are definitely some of the more hilarious scenes in the film.

I’m going to skip details of the story, since it’s pretty broad and is bound to satisfy fans of the series/movies. I will suggest, however, reading the excellent prequel comic book, STAR TREK: COUNTDOWN, since it explains the back story regarding the movie’s villain, Captain Nero (played by Eric Bana).

The movie has some excellent sequences, both visually and thematically, that will leave you very satisfied and in my opinion, showcase the ability of an able-minded team to breathe life back into series of old. The last sci-fi movie that gave me this amount of satisfaction when coming out of a theater was Joss Whedon’s masterpiece, Serenity. When wondering what to watch this weekend on your trip to the local cineplex, let yourself beam aboard with the crew of the Enterpise. They’ll boldly take you where where no movie experience has taken you before.

FINAL VERDICT:

5 out of 5 Vulcan Ears

As Col. Tigh would say, “Frak me…!”

The Donz — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 05:14:40 +0000

So this Friday is the LAST episode EVER of one of TV’s best shows: Battlestar Galactica. It’s hard to believe that five years have passed since I first started watching this show! I was still in college, and I remember my friend Roll and I would sit in front of my computer monitor and watch as many of them as possible back-to-back.

There were definitely some “coño” and “EAHH RAYO!!” moments that kept us awake all night discussing what had happened. I think the writers, producers and the talented cast have brought what otherwise could’ve been another mundane Sci-Fi (or should I say ‘SyFy’) show, into something truly special. When you have women, specially Moms, come up to you and say “You like Galactica too?!”, then you know that this isn’t your run-of-the-mill geek entertainment.

One of the things that appealed to me from the very beginning of the show, was the strong female cast that the show presented. Starting with President Laura Roslin (played with warmth and charisma by Mary McDonnell), we see how this character evolves from a scared, reluctant school teacher, to a sometimes steely decisive leader capable of surprising the audience at any given moment. Then we have Starbuck, (played by Katee Sackhoff) who is from the get go, a tough-as-nails, unrelenting force of nature that matures and grows over the series. We still have yet to find out ‘what’ she is exactly… :-/

I have organized a “Last Frakkin’ Party” event for those who wish to share the experience that is the last episode of BSG. It will be held at Duffy’s Deerfield Beach, on Friday, March 20th from 8:30PM to 12:01AM! Feel free to invite whomever you choose, but please RSVP to the following e-mail: thedonz@me.com. This way I can guesstimate the amount of people we’ll have at the event, and I can pass that info along to the Duffy’s staff!

On a final note, I wanted to honor a good friend of mine, who recently had the privilege of being an extra on the surprisingly good movie, “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist”. Here is some of Carlos Aquino’s (The Aquine) best work:

The Aquine: Dancing Falmel from The Donz on Vimeo.

The Donz Knows » Sci-Fi

To Boldly Go…

As Col. Tigh would say, “Frak me…!”