About The House of the Lost on the Cape, Japanese Folklore and More in this Home Video Review

The House of the Lost on the Cape is not an impressive film title, but it gets to the point.

The House of the Lost on the CapeEleven Arts and Shout! Factory
Available to purchase on Amazon USA

The animated adaptation of Sachiko Kashiwaba’s novel The House of the Lost on the Cape is sweet. Not only does it carefully touch upon recent events in a thoughtful manner, but also brings folklore to life, by revealing what its relationship is to the environment. The themes explored isn’t too different from what Studio Ghibli’s Pon Poko paraded in a town facing ecological devestation. Instead, the harmony is more reminescent from My Neighbour Totoro, and that’s why I took notice.

In this film’s case, the opening act recalls the devestation from the 2011 Tohoku earthquake. The people who chose to stay in the Kitsunezaki region are just doing what they can to go on. But from the terror comes a chance for Yui (Mana Ashida) to leave home. She wasn’t happy because of constant family squabbles, and what we learn about this past is not always neatly explained. Sometime afterwards in her wanderings, she befriends another child, Hiyori (Sari Awano)–who lost her parents–and what they discover may well be a chance to learn how to live life to its fullest.

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BRATS Spiderweb and Shibuya News

BRATS latest music video, “Spiderweb” is now out and we got news of their next performance!

bratsThe talents who now make up BRATS this year is riding high. After the release of their music video, “Spiderweb” to the Internet on Sept 2, 2023, and the fandom has shown their love, this two-person group is confirmed to perform at Shibuya Spotify O-WEST next.

This event marks their second live show this year. It will take place Oct 8, and feature new arrangements of like “Forget me not,” “Ms. Downer,” and “Dodatte Yokatta.”

Rei said, “Up until now, our BRATS sound has been rooted in a traditional style of rock. For this new single, we wanted to go for a heavy digital approach to match the song’s message about life on the internet.”

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Is James Cameron’s Avatar Still Hot and Expectations For Its Sequel

Some knowledge is required before I watch James Cameron’s Avatar: Way of the Water. Both are good, but not spectacular.

James Cameron's AvatarWhen James Cameron’s Avatar played in theatres 14 years ago, nearly everyone loved it. During its first run, this movie proved two things were needed. The technology to capture this filmmaker’s vision on digital celluloid with proper 3D cameras had to be custom made. His efforts proved why films who fake the process aren’t as spectacular, and even watching it again today, in preparation for part two, shows the pretend method still isn’t good.

The second fact explains why he waited so long to make that sequel. Despite all the technical advances (and many year long study to get aquatic effects looking right), there is something special about the tale Cameron tells. It’s a story where a paraplegic Earth-man, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) visited the planet of Pandora, met an alien girl Neytiri (Zoë Saldaña), to whom he falls in love with, and decided to change sides to save a civilization from disappearing.

The upcoming sequel thankfully considers ten years will have passed since the last adventure. Aside from a few comic book releases from Dark horse Comics, I doubt every fan looked.

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Is There No Place For Bravery with Glitch Factory Games’ Latest?

In No Place For Bravery, players may well be wanting to turn Thorn into the Mighty Thor, but that won’t come easy.

No Place for BraveryAvailable for the Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam

No Place For Bravery is a beautiful looking retro-style RPG where its fantasy narrative matters more than the game play. Here, you’re guiding a former Nordic warrior, Thorn, on his quest to find his daughter. She’s been kidnapped, and it’s sometimes tough to notice the clues about where her captors have taken her. Each decision you make can either bring him closer to an unsettling truth or decide to hang up the sword for good.

In this game’s case, it’s about why must our intrepid adventurer cross the road? The little girl means everything to him, and it seems he’ll stop at nothing to bring her back. That also includes killing, and when considering he’s a war veteran, the PTSD will one day come back to haunt him. That’s one reason why this game measures up. The pixel based bloodshed is enough to satsify an Evil Dead fan, but as for what it all means, the dialgoue that opens this story up is haunting.

In that regard, playing this game on a big screen rather than a small one is a must. I found the story very satisfying but the game, not so much. When I wasn’t playing at home, I found Orion’s Upswitch gaming accessory to be very helpful. Although this larger screen attachment lacks touch controls, that’s okay. The controllers you attach onto this device help do the work. I’ll be providing a more detailed review in later days, after trying it on other games which I always wanted to make portable.

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[Victoria, BC] Cherry Bomb Toys Needs Your Help

Cherry Bomb Toys is more than a fixture, but also a heart of the Nerdtoria community with the many shows they put on throughout the year.

Cherry Bomb ToysSay it isn’t so, but another fixture in Victoria, BC’s Nerd Row is required to relocate. Cherry Bomb Toys and The National Toy Museum of Canada can’t stay in the building they called home for 13 years.

According to Candice Woodward, co-owner of the two operations, the new landlords have other plans. It’s tough to say what 1410 Broad Street will become, but since they’re not going to challenge CTV Vancouver Island (formerly known as A Channel before broadcasting giants took over), what that bit of street will become is unlikely going to be media related. All any long time residents of this city can hope for is that the Victoria Event Centre isn’t the next target.

What lays along Broad and Johnson are many shops catering to comic book, gamers, home video enthusiasts, and toy collectors. A few years ago, Yellowjacket Comics had to move because the building needed upgrades. It’s safe to say developers don’t have the interests of geeks in mind and Nerd Row will eventually get demolished. It’s safe to say Legends Comics and Books is next.

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TheNFB’s has Zeb’s Spider World Premiere at VIFF! It Won’t String You Along.

Zeb’s Spider is playing this and the following weekend at The Rio Theatre (1660 E Broadway) in Vancouver, BC.

Zeb's SpiderZeb’s Spider isn’t so itsy bitsy, and this woman can give Sam Greenfield, the unluckiest person in the world from the animated movie, Luck, a run for her money. They both live in sub-basement apartments, and just have a lot of problems in life to face. This down-and-out individual is deathly afraid of arachnids, and as for what she does to the wall crawler is an entertaining variation of a cat and mouse tale.

This stop-motion animated short produced by the National Film Board of Canada is making its world debut at the 2022 Vancouver International Film Festival today, and has two screenings (please see below for details).

But before the eight legged wonder can be called friend, they must work out their issues. This human’s place is often riddled with other pestilence, and without this tiny wonder, her life might even take an even worse fate. What this short by Alicia Eisen and Sophie Jarvis offers is more than a fable. There are some insights to what defines some people, and scares others. Some might say encounters with the unknown can become a wake-up call.

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