Friday, July 13, 2007

Harry Potter 5 Again

Today Harry and I along with our friends Bruce, John and Mosies went to Grauman's Chinese Theater. I have watched the last four movies at least once at the Grauman's. It's a beautiful theater and the screen and sounds are excellent. We got to the theater a few hours early just so we could get a good seat. We were about seventh in line but by the time Bruce, John and Mosies showed up the people in front let in another 15 people. Even with all those folks we got a really good seat. I was worried what Bruce was going to think of the movie since he hasn't been a fan of the last few.. but he liked it.. everyone liked it. After the movie Bruce, Harry and I went to Jonny Rockets for some dinner. It was a fun night.

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Today the fifth Harry Potter movie opened and of course I had to see it first thing. I was going to go to a midnight showing, then a 9:45am showing, then 1:30pm showing.. but things kept popping up and delaying us, but we were finally able see the 4:30 showing. We got there two hour early to get in line. We were about seven people back from the front.. it was super hot and we were dying. But after an hour and a half they let us in and we managed to get some of the best seats in the theater.

Now for the movie... As you all know I'm a huge Harry Potter fan. I have read and listened to all the six of the books many many times and highly anticipating the seventh and final book... anyways back to the movie. In short I LOVED IT... this was my favorite of the five movies so far, but I tend to say that with each new movie. This one was much darker and very story driven. This is the longest novel and yet the shortest movie and it just flies by. The SFX are awesome of course and the acting continues to improve. I think the managed to capture the essence of the story but they did cut a huge amount of the book from the movie.. but this was expected. This movie starts off with a bang and continues move fast forward up to the last 25 minute final battle, which is unbelievable. This movie is the most adult of the five. The new characters are fantastic, both Umbridge and Luna are played perfectly. I am seeing this again Friday night at Mann's Chinese theater with some friends and then again with my Dad on Sunday. Some Harry Potter fans will be disappointed at all the cuts, that just the way it is. But this Harry Potter fan enjoys the books as one version of Harry Potter and the movies as another version of Harry Potter. Can't wait to see it again.

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Harry Potter 5 Tickets

So today we went back to AMC Burbank to see if we could exchange our tickets for a later showing. It wasn't a problem at all.. so instead of 1pm we are going to see Harry Potter 5 at 4:30pm instead. As we were leaving I noticed that there are already lines forming for the 12:15AM showing that night.. BTW it was only 2pm. There were about twenty or so people already in line and again there were even more lines for the 9:45am showing.. and yes there were a few people in line for that. I'm a true fan of Harry Potter but I would not wait in line more then a few hours.

After getting tickets for Wednesday (opening day) at AMC Burbank, we headed to Grauman's to get tickets for Friday night, to see the movie with our friends at 7pm. Of course we get there and something is going on ESPY'S awards and it was a bit crazy but did manage to make to the theater and buy tickets for Friday at 7pm.

So will be seeing Harry Potter Wednesday at 4:30pm, Friday at 7pm and possibly Sunday with my Dad. And of course will have to see it in IMAX 3D.

Monday, July 9, 2007

Harry Potter Trio Hand, Feet and Wand in Cement Ceramony

Well like in my previous blog, the next day after the premiere the three main actors were going to be putting there hand, feet and wands in cement in front of Grauman's Chienese Theater. I figured since it was a Monday and folks would be working that it might not be a crazy as it was yesterday during the premiere. Well I was wrong... I got to Hollywood about an hour before it was suppose to start and again there must have been a few thousand people there. in the stands, along the streets all over the place. I actually parked and walked over to the place but I couldn't see anything and it was so hot outside I figure it wasn't worth saying. It was so much choas that I took a few picture of the crowds and headed back home.

Later in the day Harry and I went to AMC in Burbank where we plan on watching HP5 on Wednesday. We figure that 9:45 was too early for us so we got advance tickets for 1pm on Wednesday. When we get home there is a not on our door from our apartment complex telling me that they are inspecting the apartment on Wedesday between the hours of 9am and Noon. So we would no longer be able to get to the movie before 1. Going to try tomorrow and see if I can exchange the tickets for a later time. I'll keep you posted.

Sunday, July 8, 2007

Harry Potter Premiere in Los Angeles

Well the next few weeks are going to be full of Harry Potter.. Harry Potter 5 premieres this week and it had it's US premiere here in Los Angeles. Since I had the time off I was going to go down and check it out. I got up early that day to head down there but I started to read stuff online and found out that folks have been camping out 24 hours in advance.. I figured I wouldn't have a chance so I decided not to try and get down there. Later I heard on the news that there were over a three thousand people there. I was very happy that I didn't try to attempt to go down. Oh well we still have two more movies to premiere.

4400

This is a TV series on the USA network, I have wanted to watch this since it premiered in 2004 but always seemed to miss it and figure I would catch it at a later date. So three years later I was able to finally sit down and watch the entire first season (only six episodes). This was a very cool TV series, it had some good stories and the characters were very cool. You think it's an alien abduction but find out it's something more. I like this series because they explain what is going on at the end of season one.. they don't drag it out for many seasons. But with that said there are still a lot of questions. The cool thing is it's currently on its fourth season so I have a lot more to enjoy. If you don't know what it's about.. here's a synopsis.. but there are some spoilers at the end.

When a passing comet abruptly changes course and hurtles towards Earth, there is widespread panic and distress as people prepare for Armageddon. However, the comet does not crash: instead, it slows down, hovers, and eventually touches down on a lake in the Pacific Northwest.

Finally, 4400 people emerge from a blinding white light, people from all different ages and walks of life who have been presumed dead or missing -- and none aged even a day from when they were last seen. It's as if a giant time capsule full of people has been opened up, unaltered and untouched by time.

Although not immediately evident, it soon becomes apparent that The 4400 have each been returned with a special power as they unwittingly begin to exhibit abilities including superhuman strength, healing touch, and clairvoyance. Eager to revisit memories from their past and reunite with those they left behind, two worlds collide as 4400 people acclimated to living in the past are forced to deal with the new challenges of living in the present.

A new federal division agency of Homeland Security called NTAC (National Threat Assessment Command) is formed to follow The 4400, lead by Tom Baldwin, a crime investigator, and Diana Skouris, a bio medic. Tom's involvement is personal: his nephew Shawn was one of the 4400 people abducted - and, if not for Shawn, his son Kyle would have been abducted instead.

Building their investigation case by case, Tom and Diana slowly begin to shed light on the mystery of the 4400. Finally, on the very beach where Shawn was abducted, they learn the truth about what happened: The 4400 were not abducted by aliens, but instead were taken by humans living hundreds of thousands of years in the future. Facing an end stage of human evolution and with a vested interest in the betterment of their predecessors, they have sent back The 4400 to play pivotal roles in upcoming events that will impact the future of mankind.