It is rare when the remake of a classic, almost iconic film from the past is superior to the original but that is exactly what we have when comparing the original True Grit to the Coen Brother’s adaptation — a vastly superior film in almost every respect. Based on the book of the same name, True Grit follows the path of a young girl who seeks vengeance upon her father’s murderer. She hires Roster Cogburn to track down the scoundrel; mayhem and chaos ensue. Well written, expertly directed, and acted with precision, True Grit easily moves into the top-five westerns I’ve ever...

I’ve learned that AMC is producing excellent series these days. What with the success of Mad Men followed by my favorite, Breaking Bad, AMC is becoming a powerful entity for creative, cutting-edge talent. The writing, direction, and plot lines are fresh, interesting, and hold my attention for more than a single season. Not easy to do with so many channels to chose from and quite honestly, not even HBO with their massive budget can keep pace. This is what good writing and believable stories do over massive budgets and recognizable names. AMC has come through again with The Walking Dead. Based upon...

Restrepo is a National Geographic docudrama which follows the 15-month deployment of a platoon in the most dangerous posting in the U.S. military — the Korangal Valley, Afghanistan. Known for its relentless assaults and being under fire every day, the outpost’s main goal is to win the hearts and minds of the local populace to generate support for a main highway through the heart of the valley. The highway would link two major populace centers but this film shows much more than simple negotiation with military platitudes. The heart and soul of this picture is the daily toll placed on these...

Forgive my absence but I just finished one of the most hectic terms I’ve endured, thus far. However, I’m off for Christmas break (probably longer) and have a little time on my hands. Why not get back to what I love (writing) and update the iPad chatter. Sure enough, I’ve come to love the iPad. It is without a doubt, a fabulous piece of technology which allows all manner of content viewing. Whether it is checking email, surfing the web (without Flash), watching video, playing music, or employing one of the many apps I’ve purchased, the iPad does it all (mostly). Some of my...

In these days of tight economic conditions, disposable income is the exception, not the rule. So, in order to buy the next best toy or gadget, one must liquidate older items in order to keep the gadget inventory current. I recently sold multiple items on both eBay and Craigslist (like an old graphics card, some unused golf clubs, and a couple of collector edition books). I netted some guilt-free disposable income but had no particular destination for the cash. So, since we’ve had such good luck on Craigslist, I decided to begin nosing around, checking prices on this and that. Since I’m an...