Superman 2: The Richard Donner cut review

Many or even most Superman fans seem to hold the opinion that the Richard Donner cut of Superman Two was what the movie was meant to be. I myself had high hopes for this movie before it was due for release.

I had watched the Richard Lester cut of the movie to the point of boredom that I could memorize every single scene to the last detail. The main problems I found with Richard Lester's edition was the story being Superman disappearing earlier in the film to fulfill his romance with Lois Lane and reappearing later on, finishing off general Zod and his trio gang and the movie more or less finished. At least the adventure part was over.

I found the Richard Donner cut to be even worse. The beginning has Clark Kent saving Lois in the most unusual way with her falling down the window, him rushing down the stairs, using his heat vision and super breath in front of the public and not getting noticed by even one person.

Superman does not even make his first public appearance until way into the movie at the Niagara Falls scene. Lex Luthor and Miss Tessmacher have a comical and less realistic trip to the Fortress of Solitude with Miss Tessmacher using a toilet in an apparently advanced Kryptonian origin building.

Most of the scene was poking fun at the realism of the fortress and the Kryptonian facility.

Other improved scenes were also added such as seeing Superman fly without his costume, convincing an audience that his outfit has nothing to do with his powers. The re-powering scene was corrected and the battle scene with Superman and the Kryptonian trio has some extra details. But the ending of it is the same as the original cut with Superman simply abandoning Lex Luthor at the fortress mysteriously.

The ending was even worse than the original cut with Superman reserving time in order to erase Lois Lane's memory of his secret identity. As everything reverses in time, general Zod's trio strangely don't come back to life. Even if Zod's trio was ignored, the whole time reverse thing is simply something that doesn't belong in a franchise like Superman.

It was too bad that Superman 1 had to have it in the first place, though some later fan editions may change that.

The Richard Donner cut was nothing but an overall disappointment with a few improvements in them. Viewing both movies I still prefer the Richard Lester cut over this and am holding on to my two disc Richard Lester DVD set till I can have a customly made fan edition of the movie with my preference of the scenes or bought another fan edition of the movie.

Mortal Kombat franchise review

As a kid I was a strong fan of the classic MK video games. I was first introduced to it in the mid 90s at a friends house before I was bought my own Sega MD2. I enjoyed all three games and even the ultimate MK 3.

Then by the mid 90s, the movie was released. I loved it at first but after buying my own copy and watching it several times, I realize it's great but not worth buying. Anyone who liked it can always rent it, but I don't recommend purchasing it.

The cartoon The Journey Begins was actually good in terms of animation coloring and background story including the excellent 3D graphics for character's background scenes, but the battle scenes were lame and so was the plot-line of the cartoon. It just ends with the main characters in battle.

The second Mortal Kombat film came out in Pakistan in 1998. I remember renting it during my summer holidays in 1998. Despite it's negative reviews, I would put it on the same rating as the first movie.

While it had it's share of poor quality it also took place in various places instead of just a set of battles on one island.

I liked the second movie, but again don't recommend owning it. It's just one of those movies you'd want to watch a few times in a lifetime.

The Mortal Kombat trilogy was nothing new in experience other than the original first games put together with some extra difficulties and unlockables. But still a great game nevertheless.

The fourth installment in the MK game in the series was just amazing. For the first time introducing 3D graphics and high quality coloring as well as most of the classic characters brought back in a new and reformed mode.

The game is great with it's new enhancements and unlockables. I also love how they brought back Goro the classic villain. He was the best villain. Putting Motaro in his place as boss was poor creativity in my opinion.

I also loved the unlockable videos in the ending. I can confidently state that I like Mortal Kombat 4 the best game in the series to this day. A simple collection of characters and yet at the same time great features. Nothing fancy like the MK games of today.

Best of all I liked Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm and it did leave a small imprint in my mind. I watched the series at age 13 along with my other friends who were also strong fans of the franchise at that time.

The show had more than just senseless fighting and amazing storylines fitted together with character development. It's a pity the show didn't continue after the first season. The cartoon has to be the best part of the MK franchise for me.

Mortal Kombat:Conquest was a good TV show with much live action, but I overall didn't pay much attention to it. The show simply has an emptiness to it. None of our favorite characters were in it. And those that were had weird moves and dialogue such as that between Scorpion and Sub-Zero.

The show was not very enjoyable. It never made it beyond a first season anyway.

Today I have little interest in the Mk games. As a young man in my mid 20s I find the games to be boring. Not that they weren't fun for their time, but I'm not much of a video-gamer anymore. The only games I ever do play are challenging ones that require you to think such as Resident Evil. There are other challenging games that I like such as Hitman or Big Game Hunter, but still don't play them much.

My review of Mortal Kombat is about the franchise as a whole. I think the cartoon series ware great and we can look forward to movie reboots. But the games are no longer tasty or interesting unless we see other forms of gaming other than the senseless fighting.

Flowers in the Attic 2009 DVD review

This is not a judgment of Flowers in the Attic and Dollanganger Saga as a whole, but specifically this 2009 DVD release of the movie.

Now I know the typical reaction is that the movie is a piece of trash compared to the book and I couldn't agree anymore. The movie is an utter disappointment when you read the books. It doesn't matter that you see the movie after or before you read the books, like me, you'll see the movie alone is unrealistic, lacking storyline and poor in almost every way.

But I believe there is more to it than that. I wouldn't believe the movie would be based on the book and leave out all the important dialogue, character development and other elements let alone creating an ending for the whole series in the first story.

Somewhere in the movie archives exists an extended version of this movie with all the relevant footage to the story. Hidden somewhere by the filmmakers to avoid all the controversial themes and to end the long story short, added the sudden death of Corrine Foxworth.

That extended edition is still waiting to make it's comeback at the right time when the whole franchise resumes it's publicity. That can probably never be done unless a remake comes out.

To get straight to the DVD review, the main difference by the 2009 DVD release from the other releases is the cover art which looks more colorful and creative compared with the previous release.

Other than that the movie offers nothing more. Even the "special features" section contains nothing more than a trailer(s) of the film. I bought a second hand copy of the 2009 edition thinking it would have more scenes and other extras compared to the previous releases.

That seemed to be the case as there seems to be footage I don't recall seeing in the previous versions but still nothing special. Not recommended to fans and non-fans alike, unless of course all the missing scenes are restored.

This movie should only be seen on TV whenever it airs. Aside from that if you don't own a copy of the DVD or want to buy it to be able to see it, I'd advise against wasting your money on it. You can watch it online for free.

If you really wish to buy it, then I advise waiting for a remake and/or an extended edition to come out. An extended edition should come out when the market for it is right and the timing couldn't be better than with the release of a remake.

The not so Fantastic Four

I'll admit I've never been much of a Fantastic Four fan but that factor does not make me biased against this movie. I still did enjoy a few cartoon episodes that I watched in Pakistan as child. I had seen TV commercials of the movie releases but couldn't be bothered to go see them.

There is a grocery Supermarket that I regularly buy from with it's high quality of food as well as the latest movies that they sell for low prices. Some of them are even brand new yet incredibly cheap.

I had bought a few great movies from the DVD section for as low as $7.99 each. One night as I finished shopping for groceries, I decided to go through the DVD container to see if there was anything worth buying.

I was left with really nothing but I decided to opt for Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. I thought this collectable brand new two disc edition would sell for a lot online if I did not like it.

I was right about not liking it, but I can't sell it on Amazon due to it having a different cover art than the one available. Amazon requires your product to look exactly like the one seen on the list when selling. No differences are acceptable.

The movie had a terrible cast for Johnny, The Human torch. His acting was also silly and had bad humor. Mr Fantastic also has cheap humor. These definitely weren't the characters who we'd seen in the cartoons.

The plot was also unrealistic and the Silver Surfers abilities were also fake. The main problem with this movie is that it's very difficult to put a franchise like the Fantastic Four to live action as comparison to X-Men or Spiderman due to the powers of these heroes and heroine being far more fancy and complex.

I'd give this movie a one out of five rating. If readers are not convinced, they should rent the movie first and see if it's worth buying or not.

A political analysis on Superman in the wake of Superman Returns

Below is an article written by an individual called Dr. Haider Mahdi who believes that Superman is an American propaganda tool due to showing his preference and patriotism towards that country. He may be right since that is clearly shown in Christopher Reeve's Superman movies.

Even a pair of American critics of Superman Four mocked the scene of Superman showing his American patriotism when the alien himself is not American. I'm not advocating/opposing his opinions, but the article did receive critical responses in America and I was looking for it since 2006 and I just want to share it here.

Quoted bellow is the article:

It may be news to foreign policy Pundits in Islamabad as well as to the majority of readers that Superman, the highly coveted American film hero, is an expression and a creation of fascist minds rooted in a political culture that epitomizes power and the use of force.

This is so, as Superman alters the nature of reality and creates a reality of his own, which defies human understanding and logic. He also violates every rule of physics and all scientific principles known to humanity. The notion of Superman is based on the idea of a battle between "good vs. evil," from an exclusively American perspective, where the battle always demonstrates an external threat to American society and its people.

In the end, obviously, "good" prevails and America is saved. What could be more virtuous than that? Superman is naturally and invariably a white male, handsome, debonair, brave, moral, and kind, potent, exciting, loving, and capable of generating ecstasy at the touch of a finger. And of course, he is in love with a white female equally kind-hearted, devoted, beautiful, loving, noble, pious, pure, and honorable – and together the pair fights the "evil-doers" to ultimate victory for "good," and lives in love and peace thereafter.

Filmgoers, overwhelmed with the human emotions of goodness and a sense of envy (I wish I were like him) just like the foreign policy Pundits in Islamabad, applaud and go home happily, little realizing that they have all been fooled. The momentary experience of the film is not only an entertainment odyssey - it is in fact a well-planned and well-administered dose of indoctrination into the American ideology of "demon-hunting," "external threats," the use of force and the obsession with power.

No wonder then that at the height of Bush's neo-con-manufactured war on the so-called terrorism of Islamic militants, Superman is back with a "bang" in American movie theaters. "Superman Returns," which opens in the United States this week, is receiving knock-out reviews from critics and is winning over audiences as the latest crime-fighting, evil-smashing, and sincere "Man of Steel."

How else would America express its solidarity with the Bush Administration and its faith-oriented politics? Indeed, the concept of Superman can only be explained by unflinching faith - absolute faith that transcends ideas and is based on unshakable convictions and messianic notions that overwhelm the need for analysis. Superman is absolutely unreal, and yet he is admired for the deeds he performs. It all boils down to the promotion of Bush's fascist doctrine, both inside and outside America.

Superman is not the only entertainment available from American that promotes Bush's agenda of aggression against a self-perceived evil world, which is out to destroy America and its values.

A Los Angeles-based company, Pandemic Studios, has just developed a video game, "Mercenaries 2," which features mercenaries invading Venezuela to guarantee oil supplies for the United States.

The game graphically depicts Caracas being engulfed in flames after aerial bombardment, even depicting the logo of Venezuela's national oil company. Given Venezuela's desire to press for an independent foreign policy and a domestic agenda free of the heavy-handed treatment once meted out by the U.S., the development of "Mercenaries 2" is not accidental. It certainly shows the psychotic and fascist ideas that underlie the fundamentals of American thinking in the contemporary Bush era.

In a remarkable recent article, Professor Adel Safety, UNESCO Chair of Leadership and President of the School of Government at Bahcesehir University, Istanbul, concludes that ideologues of the Bush regime propound fascist ideas without claiming to be fascist.

Here, I will summarize Professor Safety's thesis:

Bush, himself, is driven by an absolute sense of "faith" which overrides rationality and analysis. In doing so, the American President believes that he is ordained to carry out divine will. Referring to the Iraq invasion, Bush told Bob Woodward, "Going into this period, I was praying for strength to do the Lord's will." Absolute religious extremism, isn't it?

Safety's article quotes a summer 2004 issue of Daedalus, in which professor of constitutional law, Sanford Levinson, writes, "… Carl Schmitt , the leading Nazi German philosopher, is the real source of inspiration of the Bush regime." Schmitt held the view that in politics, "the ultimate distinction is between friend and foe. And this comes before … any notion of justice and morality."

Safety's article quotes a summer 2004 issue of Daedalus, in which professor of constitutional law, Sanford Levinson, writes, "… Carl Schmitt the leading Nazi German philosopher, is the real source of inspiration of the Bush regime." Schmitt held the view that in politics, "the ultimate distinction is between friend and foe. And this comes before … any notion of justice and morality."

Hence, this helps us understand Bush's categorical declaration and demand for absolute submission by other nations to the American foreign policy agenda, for example when he said that nations are either with "us" or with "them," meaning if a nation is not with the U.S., then it is America's enemy. This also illustrates Bush's doctrine of the pre-emptive and unilateral use of force against any actual or perceived adversary. By any measure, this is a truly fascist position to hold in a system of competing nation-states when, at our present stage of human development, the emphasis should be on dialogue and collaborative decision-making.

The analysis offered by Professor Safety explains how Leo Strauss, Professor at the University of Chicago in the 1970s, had a "powerful influence over the thinking of the Bush regime." Strauss, a protégé of Carl Schmitt, has been described as the "Fascist godfather of the neocons."

Strauss's doctrine advocated a truly "Machiavellian approach to politics and foreign policy," completely devoid of morality and ethics. Strauss believed that "a stable political order required an external threat and that if such a threat doesn't exist, one should be manufactured." Safety further states that "Strauss has directly influenced some of the leading ideologues in the Bush administration:

Paul Wolfowitz, the architect of the Iraq War, and Abram Shulsky, the director of the Pentagon's Office of Special Plans, set up by Douglas Feith to produce its own evidence to bolster the case for war. Both Wolfowitz and Shulsky studied under Strauss at the University of Chicago in the 1970s." It is in this framework that a connection between the Bush Administration's thinking and its global foreign policy agenda can be made and explained.

It seems that pundits in Islamabad, the architects of Pakistan's foreign policy, pride themselves on conducting the country's foreign affairs on the basis of Realpolitik. But the issue inherent in Pakistan's contemporary domestic and foreign policy is that it is aligned with the fascist doctrine promoted by the U.S., which is hell-bent on carrying out an agenda aimed at global instability, war, and the promotion of conflict around the world. How can this be justified by Pakistan and its decision makers?

It is obvious that Pakistan is also out of sync in the way it conducts its domestic war against so-called terrorism, when the task is to achieve close human interaction and dialogue to resolve issues between several adversaries. How long will Pakistan continue in this wrong direction?

Indeed, the majority of people around the world, especially the Muslim world, harbir reasonable doubt as to the American version of how 9/11 happened. Similarly, Iraq was most definitely for the purpose of manufacturing enemies for the U.S.

The question that begs an immediate answer and change in course from Pakistan is: How much longer can Pakistan support America's line in the "war on terrorism," which was artificially manufactured by the United States?

It is also clear that a similar doctrine of manufacturing enemies is being followed in Islamabad's corridors power. But the more pressing matter is to find a strategy that will disengage Pakistan from the fraudulent, fascist-oriented ideology of the American regime. Pakistan can no longer afford killing its own people under the pretext of a war on terrorism.

It is also clear that a similar doctrine of manufacturing enemies is being followed in Islamabad's corridors power. But the more pressing matter is to find a strategy that will disengage Pakistan from the fraudulent, fascist-oriented ideology of the American regime. Pakistan can no longer afford killing its own people under the pretext of a war on terrorism.

Philosophers since ancient times have maintained that knowledge is power - and the power of knowledge can set us free. It would be instructive for Islamabad's pundits to heed this wisdom.

Critical post on Spiderman the movie

I watched the movie in 2002 on cinema and a few times on DVD at friends/families' houses. I liked the action sequences but overall I wasn't too crazy about it.

My main problem with the film is it's portrayal and the horrible audience that the makers seem to  target. Spiderman is a superhero and a superhero is supposed to serve as a role model for young people. Instead the character is a reckless high school teenager who craves for cars, women and uses his powers to beat up school bullies.

I recently bought it on DVD very cheap in order to sell it for a profit and was appalled by the use of homophobic language by no other than the "hero" himself during the fighting match scene. I'm not homosexual, nor do I advocate adoption rights to homosexuals, but it doesn't mean I don't respect their rights to be homosexual.

The wrestling stadium scenes and the "hero's" not-so-attractive childhood crush being amused by fancy, expensive cars is the ultimate symbol of greed and violence in North American culture.

Instead of being a mature university student finding his own way, Spiderman had to be a reckless teenager getting superpowers and beating up bullies. I'm not excusing bullying, but Peter Parker's response will certainly send the wrong message to teens wanting to be brave and heroic.

The "Green Goblin" wasn't even a goblin but a man in a suit resembling a goblin. Instead of creating a creature who was the last of it's kind and wanting to take revenge on humanity for it, they put a man in a fake suit.

Dr Osborne could have been transformed into Dr Doom as he was a mad scientist, but instead this is the movie makers version of a "Green Goblin."

The story also doesn't really focus much on the superhero Spiderman, but rather Peter Parker's crush on the unattractive Mary Jane and how heroic it is to die for her. Even the opening narration by Parker discusses his story on the woman who he liked instead of character development.

The movie is everything aimed at a North American audience who have a lust for such themes of violence, greed (ie. love for fancy cars etc.), prejudice towards those who are not like the majority.

Even the action sequences were mostly lame and propagated as such a heroic thing to risk your life for the girl you like. As mentioned I purchased the DVD from Amazon for a low price to sell it for a profit. I can't wait to get rid of it!

Google+ ruining blogspot

Now after ruining all the previous sites owned by Google, this new Google + is doing it's typical corporate takeover by ruining the simple, easy-to-use layout of blogspot and turning it into a cluttered mess.

YouTube was the last Google feature to be ruined by this. How long before "Google +" goes into a full rampage and ruins everything created/purchased by Google.

Terrible day for those who have used blogspot like me.

Good review of Superman Returns

 Good review of Superman Returns:

"Star Wars Revisited" rants

I was browsing a website about fan edited movie, better explained as movies edited by their fans which include/exclude scenes, special effects and dialogue between the characters. I have actually been planning for about two years on doing some fan edits on my own and posting them online but since it consumes time and hard drive space, I think it'll be a long time before I make any of them.

So on this website I entered a search for Star Wars to see what edits have been done. I've actually seen some great edits on YouTube of films including Revenge of the Sith though it was wrongly retitled as "Dark Force Rising."

That movie was included amongst many Star Wars edits listed there. But one that caught my interest was "Star Wars Revisited."
It was an edited version of Episode Four A New Hope, a first one in an upcoming re-edited trilogy of the original Star Wars movies.

I viewed the movie on YouTube and I think it was great. Usually with Star Wars and Superman films re-edited I drag through the scenes and feel like I'm watching the exact same thing again even though I'm not.

But with this edit I enjoyed every moment of, especially the final space battle scene. Overall I think i was a great edit and I'd give it four out of five points.

The thing that I disliked was what I'll probably see more of in the upcoming fan edited versions of episodes Five and Six and that is that they contain too much of George Lucas's lame edits.

In the case of A New Hope, too much of the CGI X-Wing fighters were visible. The worst shot was the close up 3D shot of the X-Wings in space after departing the Yavin moon. I don't need to specify what I mean. That itself was the worst shot in the movie I think.

It was just too obvious they are CGI animations and not real life spacecraft like in the original 1977 cut in which real life models are used. The use of models for X-Wing fighters and star destroyers where much more realistic than the lame CGI substitutes especially in episode four.

The other problem was that the edit also unnecessarily put the millennium falcon in light speed after escaping the death star. This made it unrealistic since the death star eventually floated to the Yavin system, ready to destroy the moon and the rebel base on it.

And the last and least most bearable problem was the voice-over of Luke's aunt Beru. That was unnecessary and even if it had to be done, it could have been done with a better tone and fluency. But other than those major significant flaws the edit was awesome.

Despite that I still wouldn't get it on DVD. According to the makers of these fan edits, you have to own an original copy of the film in order to own these DVDs. I would have acquired this and sold my original cut but the mentioned problems don't make it entirely enjoyable or realistic.

I've seen previews of The Empire Strikes Back and some of the coloring looks even worse than the current versions. This only increases my doubts that it will be the perfect fan cut that we all have been looking out for.

Unless you don't have a problem with any of the ridiculous flaws in these "Star Wars Revisits," don't get them on DVD.

No edit of your favorite movie can be perfect unless it's your own cut. While mentioning that, I can't think of a better version of Empire Strikes Back than the 1997 special edition.

If you really want your favorite edition, then like me you'll get on your feet and make your own that you like best. Of course you may need help in creating DVD chapters and a box cover art which you can customly order online, but you can always inquire on those, again online.

The Star Wars Revisits are great improvements but not recommendable substitutes to the current Star Wars movies unless they are made as realistic as possible and reduce the lame changes made by Mr Lucas which actually contribute to this reduction.

And since these edits are available online there is not need to trade in your current cuts until you can get the best edit for yourselves.

My X-Files franchise rating, commentary and how I would redirect it

Before I get to how I would redirect the series, including storyline, I want to discuss the series franchise directly and how it influenced my life. Also included in the discussion are the X-Files movies and the PlayStation 2 game "Resist or Serve."

I hadn't had any exposure to the X-Files until last August ever since 2008 when I watched the second movie which was no good. Prior to that I saw the last two seasons back in 2007-2008 when I was in Pakistan. I had bought them cheap on DVD. And prior to that I had played the PlayStation 2 game Resist or Serve in 2004.

The game was a piece of cake due to it's survival horror genre, which makes games more worth playing instead of senseless button pushing. Weather you're a regular gamer or not or a regular X-Files fan, this game met all standards of excitement and adventure.

But at the same time you don't really need to buy it. Once you've played the game and finished it there is really nothing more to it. It has limited difficulty selections and unlockable bonus features unlike the Resident Evil games that it was modeled after.

So aside from those I really had no exposure to the series since watching the second movie on DVD but didn't like it.

My revisit to my favorite TV franchise was rather a miracle. Back in the summer of 2011 towards the end of July I had just dropped a summer course at university that I was failing so I was left with nothing much to do until regular classes resumed in September.

During summer school I had traded my regular mobile phone service for blackberry to use Internet in the university library to help me with my summer course since the regular PCs were difficult to log into for me.

That was a big regret and I went to the local electronic super store (one of the biggest in my city actually) to get help in switching back to my regular cell phone. One of the employees there kindly helped me and showed me how it was by switching the chip back into the cell phone.

How good it felt to have my regular phone back in service. Using the blackberry to send and receive calls was a headache. What a great store and how kind and informative the employee had been. All of this help I got for free.

I was just happy to have my cell phone back in use and wanted to give the store a little business after seeing DVD case sets of the various X-Files seasons.

I wasn't planning on doing anything for the rest of the summer and also wanted to see what happened after the first X-Files film which I had on DVD. I knew the movie preceded the sixth season. I bought the sixth season and even told the kind employee that I had a good mind to buy some stuff from the store to show him my gratitude as I carried the newly purchased DVD set out the store.

I even had second thoughts about spending seventeen dollars including taxes on a box set. But since I had nothing to do for the rest of the summer and show some appreciation for the store employee's kind help, I thought why not.

It took me at least two days before I wanted to open the set and make sure all the discs worked perfectly. I just loved the episodes of season six and had no regret buying it.

It really brought back memories even though I had not seen all the episodes of each season, including six. The best part about season six was that even the stand alone episodes were good, at least most of them.

But then it came to an episode about an abductee friend of Mulder and Scully by the name of Casandra that had references which I didn't know of. I realized that to enjoy and understand the series fully, I would have to go back and see the episodes in sequence.

I found a used copy of the complete first season in October at a second hand store for only fifteen dollars and decided to buy it. It was actually also good, but not as good as season six.

I did manage to catch a lot of my favorite episodes in season one. My love for the X-Files takes me back to my childhood in Pakistan when I was in junior school (grade 3 to 6) and senior school (grade 7 to 11).

The X-Files was a great part of my childhood especially with family and close friends, both in and out of school, having an equal passion for the franchise.

The whole storyline had the fascinating theme of government conspiracy and alien phenomenon, all of which have a basis in reality. The two main characters were also very lovable and I did develop an attachment to them. I think any X-Files fan or anyone who appreciated the philosophical ideas of the show would love these characters.

When you begin to love a good franchise and it's characters you develop a sense of familiarity with them. From that familiarity comes a passion for them. That's how I developed a my likes for Mulder and Scully.

I was actually lucky during this time as a kid to have missed most of the terrible episodes in the series- mainly stand alone episodes- which I'll just discuss.

So as I kid I managed to see most of the good episodes and a few bad stand alone episodes. I didn't get to see all or even the majority of them. This was partially due to moving to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) in grade six and attending an American school there for one term which I did not like at all and couldn't wait to go back to Karachi.

We didn't get that cable in Abu Dhabi but towards the end of my attendance at the American school in Abu Dhabi, the first X-Files movie "Fight the Future" came out that winter. I went with family friends to see it and we just loved it.

The movie blended in perfectly with in between the seasons. And it didn't feel like an extended episode to look like a film. It truly remained loyal to the mythology, it included a long plot that took an entire films length to proceed and get through.

So we saw it and I also had a few glimpses of season five rented on VHS by a family friend living with us. Then I was a free kid and moved back to Karachi to live with my father while my mother continued living in UAE with her career as she already had for many years.

I'd visit her during my vacations. But cable packages had changed by this time in Pakistan and many new channels came in, so the X-Files was there, but lost somewhere amongst the dozens of channels. But every now and then I managed to catch some episodes my uncle recorded on VHS.

My paternal uncle and I were truly science fiction "fanboys."
Then a year later I was living back in Abu Dhabi, this time going to a much better school. I managed see more great episodes when I visited Karachi, but still no proper viewing of episodes in order until I moved to North America. By this time the series was in it's last season and ready to end. My uncle also passed away from smoking in Karachi later in 2003.

Bad for me. But since the beginning of the academic year in 2011, I manged to start again by buying the seasons on DVD in order. I've reached season five and will watch it when studies are completed and if I'm lucky enough not to have to do summer school.

Season one was quite good as mentioned. Even many stand alone episodes were actually also exciting, not all. Season two was nothing like that at all and was filled with several of these lousy stand alone episodes with the worst story lines. From evil imprisoned magicians doing targeted killings using black magic to hauntings at old people's centers.

Even the episodes related to the plot were strange. For example Mulder's sister appears and later disappears. He and his parents don't treat it like a big deal and in later episodes he continues with his work as if nothing has happened.

There was also another disgusting "monster of the week" episode in which a monster sucks people into the sewer where it lived. An individual in that episode also sheds his flesh in the shower.

Season two was probably my least favorite season. Season three was not much better at all except for the episode "Oubliette" with the stunning Canadian actress Jewel Staite (she's not so stunning anymore). In fact I remember when my uncle recorded the episode in Pakistan, I used to view it every day in the afternoons, a few hours before tea time just to see her.

But other than that, season three was almost just as bad as season two with some incredibly bad stand alone episodes such as "Hell Money" and the lake monster episode. Season four was slightly better than the previous two but was again infected with stand alone episodes.

Even my favorite episodes in that season "Tempus Fugit" and "Max" were caught between lame stand alone episodes, which I did not dislike for being unrelated to the plot, but rather having terrible storylines.

Seeing the first four seasons now, I am actually tempted to sell them off and get the X-Files mythology on DVD as a substitute. The X-Files mythology on DVD contain only the episodes related to the plot, though at least one plot episode from season four about the "cigarette smoking man" are missing from this from what I read.

Regardless, if you're a hardcore fan of the mythology and get bored by the stand alone episodes then I would buy only the mythology until maybe season five.

I've viewed all the seasons now save for season five and season seven. Season six is not complete, but I'll come back to that after I finish season five. So far though I can confidently state that season six is the best and fully on track with the theme of the franchise.

It not only has good plot lines, but the stand alone episodes also somehow managed to succeed. The episode "How the Ghosts Stole Christmas" was really fascinating. It interlocked philosophy with mystery.

There were some episodes early in the series that I really, really liked and have been unable to find them. This leads me to believe that they could only be in season five.

Fans might disagree with me on most of what I've written about season six and how the franchise derailed on/after that season, but even those fans admit online in their reviews how terrible many of the stand alone episodes were in seasons one to three.

As for the second X-Files movie: I Want to Believe, it is widely accepted as a failure. I found it was not just about the psychic, but Scully fighting her own faith in technology to help children.

So to carry on, I can state the first three seasons were weak unless we remove the bad stand alone episodes. The first movie was great. The PlayStation2 game was great. Season six was great so far and I expect season five not to be too far behind since some of my favorite episodes would be in there.

Season eight and nine were also great, but the stand alone episodes really also harmed their beauty in a significant way. I would recommend newcomers watching only the good episodes of the seasons and skipping past the stand alone episodes save for some really good ones.

The movie of course is another worthy collectible. But season five is when the real excitement should start.

We also know that after season six the franchise started to loose budget due to a decline in viewing and the fact that Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny were reluctant to carry one with the series. The creator Chris Carter was running out of ideas and that's what he should have worked on to keep the series alive which is what I want to discuss.

That is my commentary of the franchise and it's positive role in my life.

How I would reboot the X-Files franchise:
Before anything else I would scrap the second movie from the storyline. Not really because of how boring it was but because it had no connection with the storyline and Mulder's sudden re-appearance and ability to evade persecution at the hands of the government was simply un-realistic.

Instead the storyline should continue where the series left off with Mulder and Scully gone underground. Since both Mr David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson didn't want to continue the series, a reboot series should continue with their characters disappeared and a new team of FBI agents seeking to trace them out.

The story could also use alien abduction as a means of removing the two characters with a set of newcomer characters following leads to Mulder and Scully at the same time replacing them as investigating paranormal cases.

Towards the ending or even in between the new series, David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson could make reappearances.

That is how I would reboot the franchise. If Chris Carter had paused to use his imagination or receive suggestions from fans, the franchise could survive with or without Duchovny and Anderson.

If such was done, the X-Files would have continued as a successful franchise even if done by a different strategy. As far as I can see, my method of rebooting the franchise would not only continue the series but also given it a new taste without repeating the same themes again and again.

Tintin movie review

I was partially disappointed by the climax of the movie, but was definitely pleased with the storyline. As a fan of the comics and one who has read all the books that were released in color, I must complement Spielberg's strategy of crossing over two separate episodes from the book series and creating some independent themes for the movies.

Had he not done that and gone directly by the books, all those who have read them would probably know what would happen to the movie, reducing the excitement to almost none.

The other great thing was it was released in CGI 3D graphics instead of casting live action actors. An all time favorite comic book character like Tintin can rarely be represented by an actor and CGI was the best way to put him on the screen.

But other than those factors, my main problem with the movie was there was too many "action sequences" followed by one after another instead of the character using critical thinking and solving mysteries as seen in the comic books.

There was way too much "action" and goose chasing around. Not enough of hardcore adventure. I was also watching a clip on YouTube from the Tintin game and a cut scene seemed to have better dialogue than the movie itself.

Viewing the movie and understanding the plot, I knew the story did not end with the movie but later on in a sequel where the treasure is pursued. Spielberg did a fairly good job in keeping the readers of the comic series in suspense by scrambling the story lines.

However I feel Spielberg relied too much on the comics and mixing together their plot-lines which is partially the problem with the movie. I would have made the movie based on my own plot, borrowing some vague plot-lines from the comics, but not to such a great extent.

The movie was overall nothing really exciting. I have no intention of seeing it again, let alone buying it on DVD. This does not mean I'm not waiting for the sequel. The sequel is where the real action probably begins. But the movie did fail my expectations as a strong fan of the original comic book franchise. I would give this movie two out of five stars.

Resident Evil 6 isn't for me as far as I can see

I really enjoyed Resident Evil 1 the director's cut version. That was a great way for a loyal fan like me to be introduced to the franchise. But reading the walkthroughs for Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3 I thought I wouldn't enjoy them since they seemed more like failed imitations of the first and second games in a boring environment.

It turned out I was right when I actually played them. But before that I had played Code Veronica X and it was the just as good as the original with intense story lines. But after playing all the previously released RE games, I came to understand that the series had a fault of repeating the same survival horror each time.

The main plot-line of the games, including the spin-offs are the same of the T-Virus being spilled and zombies crowding up the area.

A friend in high school who was also a Resident Evil fan shared the same sentiments. But Resident Evil 4 seemed to have changed all of that or so I thought. I enjoyed the new departure from the T-Virus and zombies to a new plot. I remember the commercial and conveyed it to my friend who thought RE would have been much better with actual evil and not some mutated monsters.

I rented Resident Evil 4 back in 2005 and played it. The game was a success and would re-brand the franchise for good. But the majority of "RE fans" or better yet, fans of the zombies, T-Virus and other mutated monsters weren't too thrilled with this change.

For them RE is a trademark of the zombies and T-Virus.

They did seem to have a passion for the action though. I like the new change and the combination of action with survival horror. So in a bid to please the fans Capcom decided to keep the action and create a new environment only worse when they released Resident Evil 5.

Resident Evil 5 was so far removed from the dark, lonely survival horror atmosphere to being in broad daylight and have some crazy butchers come and fight you. I didn't even bother playing it.

Resident Evil 6 seems to be only worsening the franchise with the T-Virus appearing again and threatening to infect the whole world. Are we going Planet of the Apes?

I know it may be early for me to judge, but since I was right in my predictions of not liking Resident Evil 2, 3 and 5, I doubt I could be wrong again but who knows.

I also mentioned that I don't really quite get thrilled by the game series repeating survival horror again and again with a few cut scenes in between. I really thought Resident Evil four was rebooting the franchise with action sequences and bidding farewell to the T-Virus and it's mutated products. But no thanks to the fans of the T-Virus and zombies, we're going all the way back.

Instead of adding new themes to the franchise such as spy missions or anything else that is not just limited to constant searching and killing enemies, Capcom is ensuring of keeping it's customer base high and pleasing the "fans" by introducing the old themes once again, only worsened with senseless violence, explosions and other themes that have only killed RE originality and potential to evolve into a successful franchise.

I don't own a PS3 and won't be getting one for the next few months or perhaps years. But if I do, I'm only getting the remake edition of Resident Evil 4 and the spin-offs that have been produced. I think I have lost faith ever since Capcom decided to please "fans" who seem to have no passion for improvement or evolving a franchise.

Below is a Resident Evil 6 trailer that gives me the feeling it's not for me: