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Gravity Movie Review (spoiler-free)

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20130913-003420.jpgLet me start by disclaiming “spoiler free” – I assume you have seen a preview or read at least enough to know the most basic premise of the film. If you truly have no idea what it’s about, well, I make references to content used in the trailers. But seriously, if this does describe you, why are you even click to get this far?

I had a chance to see an early screener of the movie tonight, and felt like doing a little writing about it. In all candor, I’m more negative than positive on it personally, but I think there are a lot of reasons to go see it in theaters (if you are going to see it at all). Gravity might well define the “must see in theater” experience far more than any action movie ever would.

The Good:

  • Beautiful, amazing, breathtakingly phenomenal cinematography. I honestly feel closer to having an idea of what being in space might be like as a result of the way this was shot.
  • Solid acting. I felt the characters were genuine, and Clooney/Bullock fit their roles quite well – in fact I’m surprised at any negativity toward the acting on IMDB message boards or other spots.
  • Suspenseful. Cuaron did a great job keeping the audience on the edge of their seat, and had a solid balance between slowly built, drawn out sequences and other “gotcha” kind of moments.
  • Dialogue and characters. Great blends of comic and serious, deep and light, etc moments. Very well put together from that end.

    • The Bad:

  • Repetitive events. You know that scene in the preview where someone is grabbing on to some space ship part for dear life, and it appears that if they miss it they will be lost in space forever? Yeah, I’ve now seen that moment a few dozen times, to the point where I’d predict a Gravity Drinking Game around it. It’s just too much, and while I get it that that’s a big part of the premise, it becomes nearly comical after the first few times it occurs.
  • Too many crises. If you’ve read the trivia around Apollo 13, you’ve probably noticed they deliberately removed some of the events that transpired in real life from the film, mostly because they didn’t think the audience would find it believable. In Gravity, I felt that the cascading series of mishaps were just too many from start to finish. I think numerous moments could’ve been reduced or removed completely and the end result would’ve been more gripping. Instead, I kept getting that feeling where my suspension of disbelief was being taxed.
  • Too many “last possible moment” sequences. To avoid spoiling anything, just imagine a caper movie where the bomb is set to go off, and after a ton of action, the bomb is defused with less than a second to go. Now do it 3 or more (I’ve lost count) times in the same movie. It certainly builds up tension, but also increased the “okay, now they are just messing with me” effect.
  • The trailer. While I’d say it’s a tossup between Drive and Hancock as to “worst expectation setting for a movie, EVER,” I’d say Gravity’s trailer is on thin ice. If you’ve paid too much attention to it, it’s pretty ridden with spoilers (thankfully I had not seen it more than once before going into the movie). But if you also just saw it once or twice, you’d probably be thinking it’s a non-stop space action flick. It isn’t, and if you are unfamiliar with the director’s other works, you should definitely pay them some attention first. The movie paces really well actually, but it’s a much more drawn-out film than I think a lot of people will expect.
  • Annoying 3D. I wish I’d seen the IMAX 3D version, maybe that would change my feelings here. As it is, I didn’t, and other than 2-3 “really cool” uses of 3D, it was pretty superfluous to the movie.

    • Overall, I have negative feelings about Gravity. Per the above, it was wonderfully put together, but ultimately I felt the movie spent more time trying to manipulate me with unnecessary tension. I think the basic premise was suspenseful and dramatic enough, but had several too many “and now we’ll find a way for *another* crazy bad thing to happen” moments for me. I wish that weren’t the case, as I really did want to like it, but I’ve spent the past few hours picking it apart, not sitting around stunned at its beauty

    LG W53 "smart monitor" review (and a giveaway)

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    I’ve spent a few weeks months playing with the 23″ LG W53 “SMART monitor”, and in a nutshell, it’s a darn fine unit (full unit acquisition disclosure at the bottom of the review).  When I first got it I had already been using a cheapo generic 23″ as an extension for my MacBook, so I really had a good way to do a side-by-side comparison.  I found the colors more vivid on the LG, the UI for controlling the monitor was more pleasant to use, and it simply looked a lot nicer on my desk.

    As a disclaimer, I am by no means an expert at picture quality – with regards to how it appeared, this is purely a layman’s perspective.  My generic display had a bit of a dull-looking finish to colors, whereas bright colors on the LG seemed much more vivid.  I did try to set the default settings to appear similar (contrast, tint, etc), and watched a variety of content from movie trailers to simple desktop apps. There was also a “Cinema Mode” which looked good as well. The LG won hands-down, but in order to not sound all gushy about it, it wasn’t exactly a VCR-to-HDTV kind of difference in picture.  But if I had to choose, I’d choose the LG.

    In contrast to picture quality, I actually do know a thing or two about user interface design (maybe even three), and considering how terrible most TV/monitor menuing systems are, the LG sports a nice touch.  Buttons & on-screen controls line up well and make sense.  Also, they have a little motion sensor so as your hand approaches the buttons, they light up – this might sound frivolous, but for those of us who like to keep as few extra lights on/visible as possible, it’s definitely a plus.

    Lastly, the unit’s finish was much better than most of the other monitors I’ve seen at similar price points. While I’m not personally a huge fit-and-finish person, I do appreciate it looking a tad more professional on my desk.  This probably wouldn’t sell me on the unit either way, but if you are narrowing down amongst multiple options, having something look nice sure doesn’t hurt.  I actually ended up purchasing a 37″ LCD from LG for my home in large part due to the “high end feel” of their displays.  In summary, if you need a new/additional monitor, don’t want to break the bank, and want something that looks and feels good, I’d take a peek at the LG (on Amazon for ~$230).

    Disclosure

    I did not purchase the 23″ monitor, it was sent to me by LG, and I am permitted to keep it.  There were no stipulations, payments, or other parameters on the unit.

    Now for the giveaway!

    In addition to the unit for my desk, the gang at LG gave me one to give to the readers.  I’ve decided to use this as an opportunity to learn a bit more about who reads the blog.  If you are interested in winning the free monitor, just fill out my little survey between now and 12/31/09.  I’ll pick a winner randomly (note: you must live in the USA to win).

    Note: the contest is over, the winner has been picked.  Thanks for your participation!

    Freestyle Audio SoundWave Review: Sink or Swim?

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    Note: this is a guest-written review from Gitamba Saila-Ngita, I felt I didn’t spend enough time using MP3 players myself (not to mention any athletic activities whatsoever) to do an adequate review of the product.

    These days the iPod™ is ubiquitous, even to the extent that the term “iPod” has become synonymous with MP3 Player but, it might not be the only game in town! There are other options–especially when you want to take your music to… the extreme!

    I recently had the opportunity to check out Freestyle Audio’s SoundWave. Their slogan, “Take Your Music There”, which is coupled with lifestyle images of the outdoors, and instantly got me wondering whether this little 2″x3″ device could withstand the wear and tear of mother nature. The SoundWave comes with everything you need to get started right out of the box; such as waterproof headphones, a replacement belt clip, USB™ transfer cable, arm band, and my personal favorite, 50 free music downloads from the eMusic service (Apple please take note).

    The device also comes with a slew of pre-installed tunes which allows you to take it for a spin as soon as you’re ready. It can hold 2GB of music via internal storage (no SD slots to expand it), and packs a substantial 18 hour playback time.

    Getting started was fairly quick and rather painless.  After I set up my eMusic account, I uploaded some music onto the device before taking it out for a swim. One major difference between SoundWave and the iPod is that the SoundWave has no official software interface to your computer. This may not be a “make or break” deal for all MP3 Player users, but whether it be iTunes or Windows Media Player, it is definitely a convenience to have something that plays well with not only your music but your gadgets too.

    Now before I go further, I’m always rather skeptical of any waterproofed electronic, ESPECIALLY something like an MP3 player.  Usually the “waterproofing” is inadequate, or you sacrifice size to put your device into something as massive as an Otterbox. In some cases you could be like our friend David Spieser who had his iPod™ Shuffle “Waterproofed” for a pretty penny.

    Once in the water, things got kind of dicey. The SoundWave features six buttons, each with multiple functions that are displayed on simple and very tiny digital screen. I found the buttons very difficult to press. This may be partly due to the waterproofing, but it definitely made skipping through songs mid-swim a challenge. There is also a 5 second fade out when you skip, so trying to get to that next song to pump up your work out gets really annoying very quickly. I recommend setting up a play list, or enabling the shuffle function to make your work out as fluid as possible (On a side note, for some reason even with correct IDV3 tag encoding all my songs, no matter where I put them, displayed as gibberish – I am still trying to figure out why that happened). I swam for about an hour and also submerged the device up to its maximum depth of 10 feet.

    To my surprise, the device showed absolutely no signs of taking on water. The waterproof earphones held up great too, although I wish they were slightly more comfortable (it uses a standard headphone jack so I imagine you could find something waterproof that suits you). The sound quality both under water and above is not bad. The little guy also supports the WOW audio codec and multiple types of EQ to help tailor the experience to your liking.

    All around, the Free Style Audio’s SoundWave can take the beating you dish out while getting your sweat(or swim!) on. I recommend this to people who’ve been looking to bring a tough and rugged portable music player with them on active outings, where you won’t need to worry if it can take on a variety of physical and active elements.

    Sprint Mogul Review

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    The HTC Mogul is a smartphone available on the Sprint network, which runs Windows Mobile 6 Professional. It is equipped will a full QWERTY slide-out keyboard, and a QVGA (240×320) touchscreen. The Mogul I’m using for review has the newest ROM upgrade which unlocked the GPS chip, and the EV-DO Rev-A data connection.
    To get the new ROM update for your Mogul go here.

    Listed are the rest of the phone’s important specs (taken from phonescoop.com)

    Weight 5.8 oz
    Dimensions 4.33″ x 2.32″ x 0.73″
    Check out this iPhone vs Mogul size comparison
    at sizeasy.
    Battery Talk – 5.4 hours max. (324 minutes)
    Standby     – 340 hours max. (14.2 days)
    Processor 400 MHz
    Memory RAM – 64 MB
    Storage – 162 MB
    Connectivity Bluetooth – Supported Profiles: HFP, HSP, OPP, A2DP, AVRC, HID, PAN, SAP version 2.0
    Wi-Fi     – 802.11 b,g
    Memory Card Slot Type microSD (TransFlash)
    Camera Resolution 2+ megapixel

    Like all other WM devices this phone works best with the Microsoft Exchange server. It flawlessly integrates all your information over the air, without needing to connect to any computer, ever. It can receive emails the instant they are in your inbox, add dates and times of accepted calendar invites directly into your calendar app, and sync your contact and task listings. Users who are looking to get these tasks done quickly and effectively are the ones looking into the HTC Mogul. This device is very powerful but it isn’t for everyone, below are my opinions which should help you decide whether this smartphone is right for you.

    Hardware–
    The Mogul is a very tactile phone. It has 5 programmable hardware buttons, a 5-way directional pad, 2 hardware softkeys, a call and end button, a start button, 2 “OK” buttons, a navigational dial, a full QWERTY slide out keyboard, and a hardware WiFi on/off switch. The device feels like a rather good size for my hand. It couldn’t hurt if it was a little bit thinner, but it doesn’t feel overwhelmingly thick. The phone feels very sturdy, but it is a little on the heavy side. This might be a problem for someone with children that like to use their phone every once in a while. My other concern about the physical hardware is the super flimsily battery cover.

    One of the best features of the hardware is its slide out keyboard. It has a spring loaded action, which causes it to snap open and closed, making a solid clicking sound. The keys themselves are spaced out very well and give good feedback when typing. There are also 2 indicator lights, located at the top, that illuminate when the caps or the function locks are activated. This is a cool feature that makes typing on this device, that much easier.

    The one down side about having a slide out keyboard and no keypad on the face of the device is that it is extremely difficult to type with one hand. There is an onscreen keyboard that lets a user do so, but the keyboard that comes standard is so small you end up hitting the wrong letter half the time. There are 3rd party onscreen keyboards, but each of them has its own flaws and they don’t seamlessly integrate with every application. For those of you that text and drive, this phone isn’t for you. (disclaimer: don’t text and drive, it is very dangerous to take your eyes of the road for extended periods of time.)

    OS-
    Windows Mobile 6 Professional is overwhelmingly decent right out of the box. It is a multi-tasking OS, meaning more than one application can run at a time. Due to only 64MB of RAM, the OS tends to lag a little between clicks and app changes. When a user is done with an application, they need to be sure they hit the “X”, to close the app, or else it will stay open and drain memory resources. This is a change that was added with the newest ROM update. On some occasions the phone requires a reboot, in order to function at normal speeds again. These lag and speed issues are ones that a user must learn to live with, or else they will find themselves looking to get a different phone, fast.

    User Interface-
    The user interface for WM6 is out dated; it takes its design cues from Windows XP. While one can accomplish all of the same tasks on its default setting, WM6 doesn’t start to shine until you step into the realm of customizing it and making it your own. Here are some before and after shots of my home screen.

    Default HTC Mogul Home Screen Custom HTC Mogul Home Screen
    Mogul Default Home Screen Mogul Custom Home Screen

    As you can see on the left I have the default home screen with some basic information that a user needs. On the right is my customized home screen with a nice big clock along with email, text message, and missed call buttons. Below that are 3 big tabs that give me access to, this home screen, a weather screen, and a quick launch screen with shortcuts to 9 most used programs. Since the Mogul has 5 programmable hardware buttons, with this home screen plug-in, once my phone is turned on and unlocked, I am no more than 2 click away from 20 different programs. Which makes navigating much faster than the default home screen.

    This home screen plug-in was actually taken from the HTC Touch and adapted to work on other HTC WM6 smartphones. A web community called XDA-Developers, made this and other HTC apps conversions possible.

    The home screen is only the beginning of the modification I have made to my WM6 Mogul UI. I installed threaded text messaging, an iPhone-like contacts app, a new skin for the phone screen, a new system font, a single click app that changes my phone from ring to vibrate, and an HTC on screen keyboard. The great thing about WM6 on an HTC smartphone, is that with the xda-developers community and other sites like it, there are endless possibilities of the looks and applications you can add to your smartphone.

    Must have app-
    The absolute best application that every owner needs to add to this phone is Google Maps. Since it has a GPS chip you can use the app to find your current location, which takes about 10-15 sec. Once it has that, you can search your area for whatever business or address you are looking for. If you like, you can then get directions from your current GPS location to the location you just searched for. With this app it’s truly amazing how fast you can find places and get directions from your current location.

    Highlights-
    -The full QWERTY slide out keyboard, gives users a rather quick and easy way to type on this device. The downfall is the lack of a quality onscreen keyboard for the times that a user would want to use one hand to type.

    -Over the air syncing makes this phone a much needed tool for user working at a business with the Microsoft Exchange server.

    -This phone begs to be customized, therefore if a user doesn’t have the time or skill to do so, their user experience won’t be at its optimal level.

    -The ability to multi-task on this phone lets user accomplish multiple things at a time. The downfall is that its RAM is limited and causes the phone to lag when too many things are running.

    -Google Maps with the updated ROM that unlocks the GPS chip, makes this phone a valuable tool for traveling business users.

    Final thoughts-
    Overall I think that the HTC Mogul is a great smartphone with tremendous power. This device is perfect for business users that do a decent amount of traveling. The Mogul is also a good fit for users that enjoy tweaking out their phones and spending time to customize them. Casual and beginner smartphone users, might find this phone a little too overwhelming.

    Hopefully I have given you enough information for you to decide whether or not this smartphone could be the right smartphone for you. If you still need more information, I recommend, like I do with every smartphone, try it out before you commit to purchasing it. Since every service provider has a 30 day return policy, anyone can sign up for a new phone, return it within the 30 days, and only pay for the service used in that time period. This will help you know for sure you like the phone before you port your phone number and/or get locked into a 2 year agreement.