Editorial
Still telling it as it is!
Wrestlemania X8
Wrestlemania the biggest showcase in Sports Entertainment went down with less of a bang than the women's championship.
Now in it's 18th year you would have thought that WWF owner Vince McMahon would have realized what does and does not work (although at this point I am beginning to think that there are more accidents than planned good matches).
Half of the matches were mediocre, the rest were boring! HHH VS Jericho could have been one of the best matches in the history of the sport had Chris Jericho not been turned into a cheating Heel (wrestling villain).
Had HHH and Chris Jericho had a good old fashioned feud leading up to a great technical match (which they both are the best in the game at) then when HHH lifted the title it would have been more fulfilling!
The Icons match between Hollywood Hulk Hogan and the Rock was nothing short of predictable! Come on you knew that Hogan would pass the proverbial torch to the younger equally untalented mouth piece!
If there was to be an Icon Vs Icon match it should have been Hogan VS HHH, or better even HHH Vs Mick Foley, two true Icons!
The only match that I truly enjoyed was The Undertaker verses The Nature Boy Rick Flair.
Rick Flair and the Undertaker (two of the older wrestlers in the WWF) showed that they are still main event as they put on a show that was nothing short of spectacular. Flair and the Taker showed all of the heart and skill that put all of the other matches to shame.
George VS Gareth
The biggest Pop battle so far this year kicked off on Monday as "the real" Pop Idol Winner Gareth Gates took on George Michael for next Weeks UK Singles Top Spot!
With Gareth already ahead on midweek sales it looks like George's chance of coming up from behind are slim!
Sorry couldn't resist that, and all joking aside, George Michael deserves to be No1 next week as Freeek is the first track that he has recorded that I don't mind!
As for Gareth's Unchained Melody, what a pile of crap! That has already hit the No3 spot in my top 5 worst cover versions of all time!
The song is great the version is terrible and so predictable.
To put this crap into perspective here are my Top 5 Worst Cover version:
1. I will always love you - Rik Waller (Dolly Parton)
2. Eternal Flame - Atomic Kitten (The Bangles)
3. Unchained Melody - Gareth Gates (The Righteous Brother)
4. Jealous Guy - Belinda Carlisle (a B-side) (John Lennon)
5. Smooth Criminal - Alien Ant Farm (Michael Jackson)
Mini Reviews:
A.I. Artificial Intelligence (region 2 DVD) This film should have been one of the best DVDs of the year, but due to an unforgivable ending it sadly is nothing short of mediocre.
I love Steven Spielbergs movies, and regard his as the greatest Director of all time and his collaboration with the late Stanley Kubrick had the potential of being one of the greatest film ever made had sentimentality not got in the way!
If you switch off A.I twenty minutes before the end, then you have a half decent movie with incredible special effects and photography and a great story.
Haley Joel Osment plays David the experimental android with human emotions who is used as a substitute son for a couple whose own son has been cryogenically frozen until a cure for his illness is found.
After a series of accidents David is released to fend for himself where he has to fight off a world turned against technology while on his quest to find the "Blue Fairy" who he believes will turn him into a real boy!
Along the way David meets up with Gigolo Joe (played excellently by Jude Law) who helps him on his quest.
Like many of Spielbergs classics, A.I tugs at the heart and but it does it is more reminiscent of Ridley Scott's Blade Runner which handled the human/android relationships allot better.
The extras on this disc are more geared towards the technical side of the film production and are more like advertisements for the Special Effects houses than anything else. A commentary track by Steven Spielberg would have been nice!
Rating:
FILM ***
EXTRAS ***
VALUE: ***
American Pie 2 Unseen (region 2 DVD) If you liked the first piece of pie, then you'll love the second!
American Pie 2 Unseen (although I cannot see the changes since the cinema release) follows the whole gang one year on as they get together after their first year at college!
Like the original it is anon-stop laugh fest from start to finish with Stifler (Seann William Scott) stealing the show!
Whereas the original went out for the gut laugh and the gross out, Pie 2 has a more sentimental side as the gang come to terms with growing up and having one last bash as a group before they grow up.
It is this sentimentality that sets American Pie 2 aside from its imitators. The writing is excellent, the cast is great and the ending is satisfying!
As for extras, the DVD-Rom is incredible, a real laugh, the commentaries (all four of them) are good as are the deleted scenes, out-takes, and behind the scenes featurette. This disc for extras does have everything including the proverbial kitchen sink!
Rating:
FILM ****
EXTRAS *****
COMMENTARIES: ***
VALUE: *****