The Fighter stars Mark Walhberg as the always one-step short boxer Micky Eklund and can never seem to win. He lives and breathes by his family, especially his brother (Bale) who is a “legendary” boxer who claims to have knocked down Sugar Ray Leonard. The problem here is that Dicky suffers from a terrible cocaine addiction and their mother (who is also their manager) is too blind to see what’s really happening in her family.

The film has a strong cast from top to bottom and they all add a certain spark to the main story. Micky falls in love with a bartender (Amy Adams) who is tough in her own ways and wants to see Micky reach the top. Even though her character isn’t constantly featured, her presence is always felt and fills the gap between Micky’s dysfunctional family and pursuing his career without failing along the way. What will hook you into the story is the different levels of character development and environment. You’re always learning about the Dicky, Micky and how different – yet – similar they are as brothers. Dicky’s wish to “rise to the top” once again later becomes a road to recovery as he sees his faults and wants to make things better by maturing into a helpful older brother.

You get a good look between what happens in the streets and in the ring, letting you feel both the impact of a splitting family and the punches of Micky’s trials and errors. The only (small) gripe with the film relies in the fights, which is debatable since it’s based on a true story, but they sometimes feel staged and timed perfectly, like a pro wrestling match. That being said, it doesn’t take anything away from the great feeling that you watch through Micky’s evolution and they are all still enjoyable.

I strongly recommend watching the film and for those interested, it’s currently available in the Netflix Instant Streaming service. There are many things to get out of the film, be it brotherly love, a rise to the top, family matters and a strong relationship among others. Mark and Christian had great chemistry in The Fighter and it’s something that will have me watching the film again in the near future.

Larry Crowne is a great example of how a great cast does not equal a great movie. Tom Hanks had his hands full with writing, directing and starring in the movie, when he should have chosen one particular role. The movie lacks any source of direction, offering different subjects without elaborating on any of them.

The film’s premise is that Larry Crowne has lost his job because he didn’t have a college degree, so when his neighbor and buddy that we hardly see in the film tells his he should get some education, he does so. Once we learn about his situation, his job is never referenced again in the movie, aside from a scene near the end. Why give us a story and then not follow-up on it? Does he want to go work there again?

Upon entering university, Larry never encounters any sort of issues, social conflicts or anything that might remotely cause any sort of turbulence during the course of his educational experience. He meets a girl who might be one of the nicest female characters in film history, and there seems to be a spark of interest between them which is killed when Wilmer Valderrama’s character steps in and contributes in no way expect a lame attempt at adding another comedic element to Crowne’s new life.

Julia Robert plays the irritated, I can’t wait to be divorced professor. That’s about as much depth as we get out of Julia’s character and is carried on during the course of the film. Why should we like her? Are we supposed to? Aside from a drunken romantic scene, there’s no other source of information as to why Larry Crowne and Mercy Tainot would fall for each other. If fixing the issues of a GPS device is the main source of romantic attraction, then my love for Pandas might be enough to make me the president of the United States.

There’s a lame attempt at a Breakfast Club-style group with Mrs. Lainots’ class, but their scenes never last long enough to really care about any of them. The constant theme of this whole film is too much for too little. “Less is more” is something somebody should have told Hanks before beginning production of this film. When you attempt to cramp in so many characters with no real source of direction or conflict, you end up getting a mediocre film that doesn’t turn into anything else thanks to Hanks and Robert’s terrible chemistry. If this film is attempting to be a romantic, comedy or Napoleon Dynamite-style average film, it doesn’t do a good job portraying any of them.

The reason “Larry Crowne” can be called a decent, passable family film is because there is no conflict to ever tire you out. Nothing ever happens during the entire course of the film that might jeopardize someone. Lose your job? No problem? Need to give the bank your house? Go for it! When we don’t see anything happen to a character we might care for, it’s incredibly difficult to establish some sort of connection.

I give props to Tom Hanks for attempting to cover a large array of roles in this average film, but if you’re going to try it again, give the script to someone else or give another person a shot at directing.

1. Bloodsport: ECW’s Most Violent Matches
2. Breaking the Code: Behind the Walls of Chris Jericho
3. Future Shock: UPW vs The World Volume 1
4. Future Shock: UPW vs The World Volume 2
5. Hell in a Cell 2009
6. Hell in a Cell Compilation Set
7. Ladder Match
8. Mick Foley’s Greatest Hits and Misses
9. Phenomena:l The Best of AJ Styles Volume 1
10. Rey Mysterio: 619
11. Rey Mysterio: The Biggest Little Man
12. Rob Van Dam: One of a Kind
13. Shawn Michaels My Journey
14. Survivor Series 2001
15. The Rise + Fall of ECW
16. The Ultimate Ric Flair Collection
17. Tombstone The History of the Undertaker
18. Wrestlemania 22
19. WWE RAW – The Beginning The Best of Seasons 1 and 2

Remember the days when you had to go to the store, buy the game, pop in the CD and input the key so you could install it? Well that’s still there, but between install limits and taking up space the days of purchasing hard-copy versions of PC games have quickly been diminishing.

A study by the NDP group in 2009 showed that digital games were neck-in-neck with their retail brothers, taking up 48% of the computer games purchased in the year. [Source] When combining with console games the number takes a tumble, but it’s still noticeable at around 10 to 20% being downloaded. [Source]

Downloadable-only games have risen up within the past few years

Downloadable games on the computer side have become a very attractive alternative thanks to competition from multiple websites and aggressive game sales, especially during the holidays.

Here are some of the more popular digital distribution websites:

The most popular from the list would be Steam, created by the people behind Half-Life and Portal, Valve. Of all the distribution services, Steam offers the most attractive balance between game catalog, digital right managing and attractive pricing. It’s rare to go by an entire week without seeing a very good deal on Steam. Digital distribution websites also vanished the download/install limit on a game, allowing you to download the game as many times as you need and install them on as many computers as you want, as long as you’re signed in to your account. Some games still have an install limit, but they are more flexible this time around.

Websites like GoG.com (Good old Games) offer different incentives such as guaranteed DRM-free games and extra features per purchase including artwork and the game’s soundtrack. We’ve finally gotten to the point where competition is very much existent in the world of digital game sales and it couldn’t be better for the consumer. Games for Windows, launched recently by Microsoft is the latest fighter to enter the mix. Between daily deals, weekly deals and Microsoft-exclusive games it seem to be a high contender for some head-to-head competition with Steam. The addition of Games for Windows Live on certain games is also a nice incentive, allowing you to collect achievements with Gamer Points being added to your Xbox Live account. They’ve put out great deals such as the classic EIDOS hit Deus Ex for 99 cents and real-time strategy game Age of Empires III: The Complete Collection at just 10 cents.

Games for Windows Live Website

Steam has its perks too, Steam Cloud being one of them. It uploads your game save and ties it to your account so no matter where you are, once you install your game you can pick up from where you left off. Not all games have this feature though, same with Steam Achievements.

Purchasing from different digital distribution websites is like owning a different set of shelfs. If you buy a game, it’s tied to a certain website (excluding DRM-free games) so you have to return to that specific service to re-download or change any options. If you’re OCD, the digital market may be a nightmare for you. What if you’ve purchased all of your games from Steam, but Games for Windows puts out an amazing deal on your favorite game? Decisions, decisions.

Amazon Game Sale

The biggest debate is regarding the ownership of the games themselves. To play a game on Steam you must be signed in to your account and be connected online (Unless you play in offline mode). There have been times that due to high activity, mainly during huge sales, certain games have become temporarily unavailable. There’s also the paranoia that one of these services will cease to exist in the future. What will happen to your games then? Realistically, it’s very unlikely that websites like Steam, GFW, etc. will vanish. Even if they haven’t completely taken over the gaming market, they have a large enough impact to be taken as serious competitor.
The real question is regarding dominance.

Steam is the “grand daddy” between the services offering forums, friends list, achievements, a simple user interface and once again, the deals. What happens if Steam is the cause of – say – Impulse’s demise? Seems unlikely, but not impossible.

Only time will tell how much more digital sales pick-up and who will be the top dogs for decades to come. Will PC gaming become digital-exclusive within the next ten years? I believe so, but there are collectors out there that are always saddened to hear that. As a DVD/Blu-ray collector I fully understand, but between attractive pricing, simplistic access to your games and not having to worry about losing your copy, digital gaming is set to take over be it 5, 10 or 20 years from now.

Even though it’s such a simple intro, the music and the atmosphere that it offered just sucked you right in. CAPCOM  should add the two guys fighting at the beginning as downloadable characters in Super Street Fighter IV, they are long overdue as playable characters! My favorite track in Street Fighter II is hands-down Ken’s theme. Right from the first beat I just fell in love with the track. It’s catchy, pumps you up and is a perfect track for a fighting game. I ended up playing almost exclusively on Ken’s stage for this reason.

There are tons of game that I can say have shaped me into the gamer I am today. The Final Fantasy franchise has more than influenced my gaming preferences and hidden gems like Star Ocean: Second Story reassured my love for great role-playing games, but it was Pokémon (both Red and Blue) that really lured me into the genre and deeper into gaming as a whole. Anyone that popped one of those two cartridges to play on a green and black screen knows what I’m talking about. I played those games everywhere. School, at home, in the bathroom, at the school bathroom, there was nothing that could stop me from collecting all 150 Pokémon, or at least those available in their respective versions.

Pokémon Fire Red (GBA)

There was just something so thrilling about weakening one of those pocket monsters and trying to level them up, decide which four moves they can learn and earning all of those badges, especially while on the go. Out of all the portable games I’ve played, none have impacted me as much as this series has. Many games offered a lot of elements in just one package, but few manage to pull it off the way Pokémon did.

Yeah, graphically speaking it was nothing to be amazed that, and that’s why I love them so much. The Pokémon series as a whole, all the way to the DS have proved that gameplay shall always remain the priority over graphics. The series did create its own look that’s familiar within all versions, which is instant success in a mass-market of games where parents are crawling to find the perfect gift for their child. I don’t know how many Pokémon we’re up to now, but the original 1-5-0 is where it’ll always be at.

It’s 2010 and I’m playing an updated version of a game released back in 1996 (Japan) [North American release was in 1998] and the result is that I’m still having all sorts of fun playing this classic adventure. The fact that the series is aimed at a younger audience and it can still capture the attention of many over 12 years after it’s original release will leave my gaming heart with a soft spot for the pocket monsters that you couldn’t stop capturing.

There are stores, there are super stores and then there’s Walmart, the epitome of greatness in the whole world. You can buy anything there, ANYTHING and save money while doing so, who doesn’t love that!? My twitter obsession has finally transitioned to video in the most over-the-top and outrageous form. This is simply me going to Walmart… which isn’t quite simple as it involves a lot of yelling and sounding like a little girl. Enjoy the video and I hope you still talk to me after viewing it.

What do you get when you have two good friends stand in front of a video camera? You get random and most probably pointless videos, but they are still pretty fun to create. Apparently they want to make this into an improvisation show starring two puertorricans as… two Russians, figure that one out. Let’s see what happens but, until then, here’s a little something that was filmed at our university. Enjoy?

My main dish was purchased from the pasta-focused locale, but we also ordered a slice of pizza from the second place to split and taste. Everything looked delicious and it was very difficult to choose what to eat. I’m a pizza and pasta lover, so these types of places were made for me. My plate of choice was some Ziti pasta which looked very appealing. All standard combinations in the place included a 22oz. soft drink and two garlic rolls which are enough reason to go check out the place.

A nice touch from Villa is that they let you choose which sauce you would like on your pasta, be it marinara or alfredo. I chose alfredo and was very pleased with the taste and texture. Many places have sauce that’s too watery and ends up feeling “artificial”, but I didn’t have that problem here. I’m not a big fan of spinach or broccoli, but even the stuffed pizza had me tempted.

The garlic roles are definitely something to talk about. They have that nice garlic taste without coming on too strong and the bread is nice and soft while still being a bit crispy. Most of the combinations come with two rolls, but you can also order them separately for $1.00 a piece, same goes for meatballs. They don’t have ordinary-sized meatballs, these are soft and from the moment you taste them you can tell they are made from high quality meat. A spaghetti combination will come with two of them. The last thing we tasted was the pizza, and the crust stands out as one of the best ones I’ve tasted in quite a while. The cheese, the sauce, everything about it tasted different when compared to the “other” pizza places that you usually see in food courts.
Verdict: When you have a place like this in a food court, something like  Burger King or McDonald’s should never be an option. The fact that you can have restaurant quality Italian food while you’re shopping for clothes is tremendous and if you’re a real big fan of Italian food like me, Villa should be your next stop for a nice lunch or dinner while out with the family. There’s lasagna, pizza, pasta, sandwiches, rolls, stromboli, salads, wings, it’s an all around delicious-looking stop that should always be on your list.

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