Tag: Angry Birds

How Does The Angry Birds Franchise Continue to Fly?

Angry Birds is hardly eggcellent even though it’s entertainment value is mildly chuckle-worthy.

angry-birds-posterBy Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

Many species of flightless birds exist around the world, like the penguin and ostrich, and how they have managed to survive extinction is on how they learned to adapt. While others like the Dodo went extinct because they were fearless (more curious about the sailors who happened to hunt them instead of fleeing), sometimes having that bit of fear can go a long way. Either they can attack it head on or run away in terror. This analogy is slightly worked into the story in Angry Birds the Movie but the parable of historical times (like how the Americas was colonised and indigenous civilisation was destroyed) is missed.

This movie is more about finding acceptance amongst community. For Red (Jason Sudeikis), he has issues. They do not just stem from having a short fuse but also in how he behaves. Because he has big brows, he’s considered different and is teased for his unique features. Behind his back, he’s become a mockingbird. After an incident where he’s late at arriving at a birthday party (he’s an entertainer), he’s reprimanded and required to attend anger management therapy. By some miracle known as a plot, the misfits he meets at in this group eventually become his pals. When birds of a feather flock together, the inevitable happens,

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Ranking the Video Game Movies of 2016

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By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

So far, this year’s crop of movies inspired by video games is not making the grade. With two films out and at least three more due this year, I’m ranking the remaining couple by order of appeal and anticipation. After a lull in the previous years for the number of properties being turned into a film, I have to wonder what makes this year special. Another title, concerning a gentleman thief in an anthropomorphic world was slated for this year, but I’m dubious that it will come out in time before the year is over. I list this “Sly” film anyways, in hopes it comes out in time.

Will these features be good? Hard to say, since half the time these movies are made, it’s mostly to reignite a dying franchise. Just how Angry birds manages to stay on top after eight years is amazing. Rovio Entertainment must be making pigs fly to keep their flagship product alive. I’ve played the game and enjoyed it, but the novelty has died for me after their take on Star Wars in 2012. Kudos goes to the company for making a very addictive game (for some), and it just makes a glancing blow in making my top three of the movies I want to see.

Resident Evil: The Final Chapter
Release Date: September 2, 2016

After five films, this zombie-fighting franchise still shows it’s tough to put down the undead. Milla Jovovich looks great as always, and although the title implies an ending to the saga, to see how the Umbrella Corporation finally gets put down makes this film the number one product to check out. I’m just hoping the studio doesn’t do the no-brainer idea and simply reboot it with a new leading lady.

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Too Much Rovio? Angry Birds goes Grand Theft Auto?

Eventually there will come to be a time where the Angry Birds will no longer be popular.

AngryBirdsGOThe Angry Birds is to Rovio much like the Mario Brothers are to Nintendo. Without a flagship product, neither company can be widely successful. Nintendo can survive because it has a huge product line which is not limited to Mario, Zelda or Donkey Kong. They have many other video games and products to carry this company forward but what about Rovio?

With no surprise, Rovio is copying Nintendo. They are taking these flightless birds and making them mobile with Angry Birds Go! (due out on December 11). Last month had this company release a new iteration of Angry Birds Star Wars II which hardly looked all that exciting.

In what looks like a Mario Cart clone, the next iteration will get these pigs and birds racing. In this case, it’s a downhill racing game and a few unique features will keep this concept fresh. Hasbro’s Telepods toys will allow players to “teleport” new karts into the game. But not everyone will be waving the flag in the end.

Some fans want to see Rovio develop new ideas than to see rehashes of old ideas. They should let the birds take flight and develop a brand new idea.

This company does have other properties that they created games for, but those titles may be one hit wonders. The Croods and Amazing Alex are the only two licensed items featured on Rovio’s website, and there is no sign of any other ideas being offered or listed as in development. To have a company bank on only one property to continue its success is dangerous. Eventually there will come to be a time where the Angry Birds will no longer be popular.

Videogame Movies, A Look Back on the Good, Bad and The Ugly.

These videogame movies are memorable because at some point in time, they’ll be broadcast television for all the world to see.

Videogame Movies - Mario Bros.In the past three decades Hollywood has recognized the appeal of adapting popular video games to film. They provide a ready-made audience of fans who will most likely see them, and some have become cult classics. These videogame movies are memorable because at some point in time, they’ll be broadcast television for all the world to see. Usually the adaptation is a fun romp in the director’s part in translating pixels to a more realistic product. More often than not, the video game’s appeal is missed in the translation and critics and fans are quick to point out what’s missing in the film. In this look at the worst of what cinema had to offer, maybe they are gems after all:

As any fan and they will say that Super Mario Bros (1993) was mostly disliked even though it had achieved a cult following. This movie starred Bob Hoskins as Mario and John Leguizamo as Luigi. Turning the bad guys into gangsters was appropriate in what would otherwise be a fantasy film set in an alternate Earth world. To entirely base the movie on the mythology established in the Mario games would have been disastrous, especially in a decade when digital special effects was in its infancy.

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