Storytelling for movies have come a long way over the decades. Specifically when you see movie trailers, you can tell how a studio’s methods change when enticing you to see a film. Some movies that stand the test of time would benefit from a modern take on their trailer. That’s exactly what Michael Edwards has done with Terminator 2: Judgement Day. He’s taken this classic sci-fi action-drama and cut a trailer worthy of the modern era. It’s gorgeous and looks pro AF. Have a look for yourself: Two things strike me as excellent attention to detail. First, the omission of…
Tag: culture
A pizza box sits on a table. Moments later two curious faces enter the frame, excited by its contents. The two keep glancing at each other while building their anticipation for what lies inside. Each speaks in a gibberish only the other can understand. With a lift of the lid, the pair are shocked to discover it’s empty. First, there’s shock. Then there’s bellyaching. The pair turn to the camera and send gibberish accusations at whoever is filming. Finally, they slink away off camera, defeated again. This entire sequence plays out in less than 20 seconds. The narrative is tight,…
Leave it to The NY Times to come up with a simple and informative interactive flowchart as to why there is an insane problem with manufacturing everything right now. The genius in the feature is how it starts simple. The pandemic hit. Companies, seeing a small dip as the tip of the iceberg, decided to go into crisis mode. They slowed production of the goods they manufacture and also laid off tons of their workforce. These turned out to be critical mistakes. The supply chain is still screwed up from these moves. Instead of conserving their businesses thinking commerce would…
“I’ve never been out of cream cheese for 30 years,” said Joseph Yemma, the owner of F&H Dairies in Brooklyn, a dairy product distributor for many of the city’s bagel shops. “There’s no end in sight.” In interviews with owners and workers at about 20 bagel shops and delis across the city, many said they were frazzled, frustrated and rushing to find cream cheese after learning about the shortage in the past few days. Absolute Bagels has enough cream cheese to last until Thursday, Mr. Patta said. But employees at his typical supplier told him they could not confirm when…
After the immense success of Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse in 2018, it was inevitable that Sony would produce a sequel. Now Sony has finally released the first trailer for the film. Even more of a surprise is this will be told in two parts. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Part One) has the same amazing mixed animation style as the first movie. Even more interesting is they pulled a trick from Back to the Future. This movie start at the same point where the prior one ended. Shameik Moore and Hailee Steinfeld reprise their roles for the movie and it looks…
Benn Jordan, known for writing music under the name The Flashbulb, has uploaded a 20-minute video to YouTube in which he goes over how he’s been scammed. And not by some ordinary person, but by a reputable NYT reporter. At first, this video seems quite long for viewing. But Jordan goes into many details on how New York Times reporter Ian Urbina has allegedly scammed him. Jordan says he was solicited to write original music in exchange for potential exposure. We know exactly what exposure is worth: zero. The video is a full takedown of Urbina’s position wherein he allegedly…
I’ve talked about Wirecutter before and how it’s one of the three tools I use when doing any online shopping. The site has been around for years and does fantastic work. I never have to spend hours figuring out which item is best. I read one article and then make my purchase. All is not rosy for Wirecutter as the Wirecutter Union announced a strike lasting from Black Friday through Cyber Monday. The strike was due to being treated poorly by the NY Times. The union has asked people NOT to shop via affiliate links that helps generate revenue on…
Keza MacDonald has done exquisite work bringing to light the insane grind it takes to be a streamer on Twitch. “My sleep schedule shifted into the North American time zone because most of the people who were viewing my channel at the time were there,” says 36-year-old Cassie, a founder of the Black Twitch UK network, who has been streaming for five years under the name GeekyCassie. “I would do my day at work, nap a bit, and then stream for up to eight to 12 hours at night-time. I’d be absolutely beat, and then get up and do my work again ……
From the “things I didn’t see coming” category is the announcement by Jack Dorsey (Twitter’s co-founder) that he is stepping down as Twitter’s CEO. He, of course, announced it in a tweet. It’s more of a one-liner of text accompanied by a screen shot of his email he sent to the company. not sure anyone has heard but, I resigned from Twitter Originally tweeted by jack⚡️ (@jack) on November 29, 2021. To tl;dr the whole thing, he basically doesn’t want Twitter to be a “founder-led” company at this time and feels it would be better if someone else were at…
Christmas movies are always tough to nail right. Sometimes they’re too cheesy or too serious. The timeless ones are timeless for unknown reasons because they can still be too serious or too cheesy. A Christmas Story was basically unknown until TBS decided to run it endlessly on Christmas, turning it into a modern classic. A new challenger has entered the arena this year: 8-Bit Christmas. I checked it out this past weekend and this will be my spoiler-free thoughts. This movie stars Neil-Patrick Harris narrating a story to his daughter about his adventures in 1987 to get a Nintendo (which…
Leave it to the old vanguard of Hollywood to blame their failures on anyone else but themselves. This time around it’s Ridley Scott, mastermind of amazing movies, who’s looking for a scapegoat because his latest film, The Last Duel has bombed. “I think what it boils down to — what we’ve got today [are] the audiences who were brought up on these fucking cellphones. The millennian [sic] do not ever want to be taught anything unless you’re told it on a cellphone,” Scott said. Old Guy Complaining About Crap The Last Duel hit theaters exclusively on October 20th and earned…
The much-awaited Grand Theft Auto compilation for Nintendo Switch is out and talk about a disappointment. After Rockstar released the game, people have been tearing it to shreds due to an awful conversation, especially on Switch. In some ways GTA runs even worse than on PS2, a console 3 generations behind the Switch. [It’s] one of the worst user-rated Switch game [on Metacritic] ever. After its release on November 11, 2021, it became the focus of much ire, mainly due to poor optimization, bugs, glitches, graphical inferiority compared to the original PlayStation 2 titles, and more. iMore I was pretty…
Disney+, best known for endless Star Wars and Marvel stuff these days, is dropping an amazing docuseries on November 25th with exclusive behind-the-scenes footage of The Beatles. It’s produced by Peter Jackson (the Lord of the Rings guy) and will release on the service for three consecutive days. The Beatles official channel has released a small clip of the show to YouTube. It’s only 85-seconds long but you can see the magic of the Fab Four in action. I’ve been waiting for this for nearly a year since it was originally introduced and cannot wait to view it. The footage…
I rarely post about sports, but even as a hockey fan I can recognize this goal would excite anyone. Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers scored this amazing beauty against four players on the NY Rangers. I could describe it, but you should see it for yourself. Having this guy on any team is like inputting a cheat code. What a talent.
Nintendo’s big Animal Crossing: New Horizons Direct in October announced that two big updates would happen. The first being general updates to the game would bring it to version 2.0. This is to be the final update to the game. Version 2.0 brings a LOT of things like the fan-demanded Brewster’s Roost cafe, island ordnances, a shopping plaza on Harv’s Island, and more. The full list is here on IGN. This update to bring the game to an official 2.0 version and Nintendo has added a bunch things. Nintendo stated this would be the final update to Animal Crossing: New…
Two things I never expected to find entertaining when put together are Microsoft Excel and TikTok. Those are two diametrically opposed things. One is fun and has whimsy, while the other is a Chinese-owned social network that’s basically overtaken Facebook Meta. I kid, I kid. In actuality, Excel can be a wondrous tool in the hands of someone who knows even 25% of its power. I’ve seen colleagues work their magic on a spreadsheet in seconds simply because they knew a certain formula or function. Enter Kat Norton, an Excel guru that Quartz has profiled. Norton found herself in similar…
“Win an iPad!” the flyer said. Quite the prize and one that immediately enticed my kids to read on. In only a few paragraphs it was evident what was being proposed to school-aged children: they draw and design something that can go onto a t-shirt and in exchange the winner is given an iPad. I immediately said ‘no’. “But, why?” the confused voices asked me. The answer, or devil as they say, is in the details Because this ‘contest’ was like many. One where the ability to easily take ownership of others’ ideas is common and the idea of paying…
Origin stories are a roll of the dice. They’re usually movies we never ask for. Some are innovative. Some are completely unnecessary. Today Disney released the trailer for Lightyear, an origin story for Buzz Lightyear. I was instantly skeptical, especially after reading that Buzz would not be voiced by Tim Allen. Then I watched the trailer. Chris Evans, from the tiny dialogue we get, sounds good as Buzz. Even further, I like the darker look of the film. It seems like it may be more gritty, which would add some nice color to the character. Lastly I think this can…
Lost in the bonanza of home buying was this fact: Zillow itself was buying homes. The speculation was the company did this to resell homes at a higher value, thus manipulating house values. This would benefit the listings it shows on its website. As the market has cooled in the past months, Zillow decided to pump the brakes on their hair-brained scheme. But due to a shortage of labor and supplies, Zillow can’t meet current demands to close, renovate, and resell the homes fast enough. CEO Jeremy Wacksman said the temporary pause on purchasing of new homes will allow Zillow to focus…
One of the silliest accessories Apple ever released were the iPod Socks. For $29 you could get a set of six socks for your iPod. It was weird but a fun accessory. I bought and still own my set (minus my green one which went missing) that came out in 2004. In today’s modern time, NativeUnion has gone ahead and released “beanies” for your AirPods. Our latest product is a tribute to one of the creations that’ve inspired our teams and the 10th anniversary of the visionary Steve Jobs’ passing. But more so, it’s just a fun way for us…
Interesting that a constant flow of crisis’ leads to “solutions” such as this: Facebook is planning to change its company name next week to reflect its focus on building the metaverse, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter. The coming name change, which CEO Mark Zuckerberg plans to talk about at the company’s annual Connect conference on October 28th, but could unveil sooner, is meant to signal the tech giant’s ambition to be known for more than social media and all the ills that entail. The rebrand would likely position the blue Facebook app as one of…
If there was a perfect example of news that hit the TimeMachiner trifecta (Tech, Culture, and Nostalgia) it’s this. Last week Nokia announced they’re bringing back one of their most iconic cell phones: the 6310. This candy bar style phone was one you saw everywhere in the early aughts. It was durable as hell, had great battery life, polyphonic ringtones!!, and was a great size to fit in a pocket. More from the DailyMail: There will be ‘subtle changes’ to mark the passing of 20 years of technological evolution, including bigger buttons and a zoomed in menu for ease of…
The concept of shopping for groceries online to have them delivered to your house is a great one. In theory. You shop like you’re buying anything else and hours later someone shows up at your door with the delivery. The problem: the people doing the work are getting paid table scraps. Lured by the idea of “setting your own schedule” and “being your own boss”, people who do this gig work are learning they are at the mercy of the algorithms put in place to determine pay. Shoppers for Instacart have had enough. 13,000 workers went on strike for Saturday…
Recently there was a fantastic segment by David Pogue for CBS Sunday Morning wherein he goes over the current supply chain problems. It’s been a royal pain in the ass to find certain products and yet we hear reports of container ships waiting outside ports for days to unload all their cargo. It all comes down to one thing: trucks. With all the technology and efficiency implemented over the years there’s a single fact that holds true: we are overly-dependent on trucks and truckers to move all these goods to and fro. The oxygen the supply chain requires is a…
Variety reports Scarlett Johansson and Disney have settled their lawsuit wherein Johansson claimed she was not being paid properly. The suit began with Black Widow’s simultaneous release on Disney+ and theaters. Johansson had accused Disney of reneging on its promise to do a traditional theatrical release for “Black Widow,” in favor of a simultaneous release on Disney Plus. The suit alleged that Johansson lost out on tens of millions of dollars in box office bonuses. Variety This lawsuit was an omission to September 2nd’s Longform article wherein I talked about theatrical releases and Day One streaming of the same movie.…
You’ve heard about it. Maybe you’ve watched it. But one fact is clear: you cannot escape seeing some acknowledgement about Ted Lasso. The show that has finally given Apple a bonafide hit for its Apple TV+ service is everywhere. It received 20 Emmy nominations and took home seven of those. What is it about a goofy guy coaching soccer, knowing nothing about the sport, we find so appealing? I think part of why this show sticks the landing is the state of the world. We’re still dealing with COVID and all the ripples affecting our lives. Just how Tiger King…
Huge news coming from the Hollywood Reporter regarding the Doctor Who universe. The BBC has announced that Russell T. Davies, Who’s show runner for the first few seasons, is returning to the role after 12 years. Russell T. Davies — who was instrumental in helping revive Doctor Who in 2005, ending a 16-year hiatus on TV screens — is set to make a sensational return to the BBC’s cult sci-fi series. The acclaimed and multi-award-winning TV creator behind shows such as Queer as Folk and, more recently, Years and Years, A Very English Scandal and It’s a Sin was unveiled…
Lots has been written about Dan Price, the CEO of Gravity Payments. Price made headlines six years ago by setting the company’s minimum pay to $70,000 per year. Part of this was accomplished by Price lowering his own salary to that same mark. CBS News ran an update about him to see how things are going. “Our turnover rate was cut in half, so when you have employees staying twice as long, their knowledge of how to help our customers skyrocketed over time and that’s really what paid for the raise more so than my pay cut,” said Price. Dan…
This week the National Video Game Museum (NVM) has opened an exciting virtual exhibit showcasing Animal Crossing: New Horizons islands. Many of us took refuge on a deserted island in 2020 ran by a tycoon raccoon. The NVM saw an opportunity late last year. NVM put out a call for submissions from Animal Crossing: New Horizons players in order to preserve this unique moment in history. Players sent in memories, photos, adventures, and videos reflecting how this monstrously-successful game helped through a tough year. Now, their virtual exhibit is live. While the world was on pause, the island paradises of…
In a year (and a half) of politics, pandemics, climate-change-induced weather, and other depressing crap, we get something fantastic I’d completely forgotten about. A teaser dropped for the 4th installment in the Matrix now-a series from the Wachowski Sisters. There’s some fun trickery you get to experience by watching the trailer via the official Matrix website and choosing your preferred pill. I won’t spoil it, but definitely watch the trailer there instead of on YouTube. It’s been 18 years since our last adventure with Neo and Agent Smith and I was quite happy to let it be. As amazing as…