Posts Tagged ‘movie’

Movies: Next Generation

Tuesday, August 31st, 2010
“What’s your favorite movie?”
is a question everyone can answer, and everyone will answer passionately. Film sees radical changes in technology and style; every decade of film has it’s own identity and has a different feel from the ones before and after it. But no matter where you came from, film has an undeniable impact on our culture, and it’s only natural to show the love. We have movie t shirts for all your favorites, old and new alike. We have a soft spot for the classic brat pack, Marty McFly, and the best of George Lucas’ films and don our 80s movie tees with pride, but all generations had movies to be just as passionate about. In fact, Citizen Kane is considered critically to be one of the best films ever made, and that came out in 1941, long before we were even born!
Did you know that movie theaters have been around for almost one hundred years? Way back then, it was a far simpler time. Moving pictures movie theaterwere spectacles, not yet evolved enough to tell a real story, but more than enough to captivate a culture. Back then, movies were only a few minutes in length, with choppy frame rates and blurry shots, and we didn’t complain! We walked a mile in the snow with no shoes to the five cent theater, and they didn’t even have air conditioning! Naturally though, theaters have grown a lot since then.  Now, the first big trip to the movie theater is a childhood memory we can all cherish. Remember that first time you saw Star Wars as a kid and the Star Destroyer made it’s slow crawl over the audience, accompanied by a massive mechanical roar that echoed through the room? Remember the next five times you saw Star Wars after that? It’s a rhetorical question: you’ll never forget.
A far cry from our childhoods, today we have the option to sit down in a body-hugging plush seat, recline it back, put a massive sugary soft drink in the arm rest and watch our favorite actors do their thing on a 40 foot screen in full HD and 3D while looking almost as good as reality. We have theaters with moving seats that weave and wobble along with the action, and massive screens that telescope across the ceiling, surrounding the viewer with an image on all sides. We’ve even moved past 3-D and have seen the introduction of “4-D” cinemas, which spray water, move seats, blow jets of wind, and more, all to immerse the next generation in the world of movies even more than the last. And if you don’t feel like going out and you feel like the magic is finally gone, with Video On Demand services now you don’t even need to leave the couch. Pop on your favorite movie t-shirt, slide the DVD in, and turn your own house into a theater to envy!

New Karate Kid Movie Hits Theaters June 11

Thursday, June 3rd, 2010
The first of the Karate Kid series was a critically acclaimed coming of age karate kidstory about a student-mentor relationship and the battle for dignity against the dishonorable Cobra Kai. It brought us classic phrases like “wax on, wax off” and “sweep the leg”, the crane kick has entered the martial arts lexicon, and the film launched Ralph Macchio’s career as a teen sensation. It would see three sequels, all popular, but critically none would have the cult reputation of the iconic first film, which is still merchandised and quoted to this day.
Jaden Smith in New Karate Kid MovieHowever, a new challenger finally enters to make a grab for Macchio’s throne. Produced by Will Smith and starring his son Jaden, 2010′s upcoming Karate Kid movie has a June 11th release date and a world of anticipation behind it. More of a reboot than a remake, Karate Kid 2010 brings the action overseas to Beijing, and focuses on kung fu over the more traditional karate from the original. Though Pat Morita (Mr. Miyagi) has sadly passed on, he finds a suitable replacement in film legend Jackie Chan, playing Mr. Han, a kung-fu master passing on his kung fu secrets to the new “karate kid”. While the characters and fighting style may have changed, the film looks to keep the spirit intact, and with filming being performed on location in places like the Great Wall of China it looks to be the authentic martial arts film fans have been dying to see. Respectfully, the new film will contain a few homages to the original, including a variation on the fly-catching training sequence. While the great cast and location should keep old fans satisfied, this will prove to be a great time to get a whole new generation in on the Karate Kid legend, and bring “strike first strike hard no mercy sir” back to the warrior repertoire once again.