GNBC: The Water Knife

March 3, 2016 / / 3 Comments
9780385352871_custom-b9151d61a5c6869bf30190fa56d69a11c7c8bcd9-s400-c85

Knopf/Oliver Munday

Welcome to the first review post of the GeekyNerdy Book Club!! Last month, I asked you guys if you would be interested in participating in a bi-monthly book club and the response seemed to be fairly positive, so here we are!

Since no one seemed to have a particular preference in terms of fiction or non-fiction, I decided to kick things off with The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi, which my former co-worker J recommended to me. I had been dying to read it ever since he first recommended it to me, so making it the first book club selection was the perfect way to get it off of my “To Be Read” list!  Read More

Robogenesis

June 18, 2015 / / No Comments
Will Staehle/Maksim Toome

Will Staehle/Maksim Toome

I was a huge fan of Daniel H. Wilson’s Robopocalypse, so when I saw that his sequel, Robogenesis, was available in paperback, I immediately snatched it off the shelf at Barnes&Noble (I like my series to match, both in cover design and type – I know, nerd!). And while I quickly worked my way through the first part of the book, I slowed down dramatically after that. Indeed, it took a fair bit of mental coaxing to get myself through the last 100 pages.

Set in the months after the defeat of Archos R-14, an artificial intelligence that launched a global robot uprising, Robogenesis tells the story of a new menace that is determined to annihilate the human race: Archos R-8, the older “brother.” Read More

Ex Machina

April 21, 2015 / / No Comments
DNA Studios/Film 4

DNA Studios/Film 4

Warning: There are some spoilers in this, so proceed at your own risk!

This past weekend, the Mysterious Mr. C and I joined our friends M and P for a good old-fashioned double date – dinner and a movie. The meal was dim sum, and the film was Alex Garland’s Ex Machina.

Though the sci-fi thriller was on my “To See” list, I had completely forgotten about it until M suggested it as a movie option that the guys might like too. I vaguely remembered that the film involved robots, but that was about it. And you know what, it was actually a lot of fun to go into the theater with just a vague idea of what I was in for! Read More

CHAPPiE

March 9, 2015 / / No Comments
Columbia Pictures

Columbia Pictures

I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am often struck by the fact that paid movie reviewers typically love the movies that I can’t quite get into, and revile the movies that I adore. Of course, everyone is entitled to his or her own opinions, but this has more or less been true my entire life. In fact, I often use the reviews in a reverse fashion – high praise makes me think twice before heading to the theater, while criticism has me looking for movie times!

Neill Blomkamp’s latest film CHAPPiE is the most recent example of this fundamental disagreement. As far as I can tell, the reviews of the film so far have been lackluster. Read More

Ender’s Game (The Movie)

February 12, 2015 / / 1 Comment
Summit Entertainment

Summit Entertainment

An embarrassingly long time ago, the movie version of Ender’s Game aired on television. Since I hadn’t read the book yet, I recorded it, so I could review things in their proper order. Having finished the book this past weekend, I tucked into the film as I soon as I could on Tuesday night!

For me, the movie began on a high note because the cinematography was just stunning. The colors were extremely rich and deep space looked so serene and peaceful, despite the fact that it was being used to train kids for war. But after the opening scenes, the whole thing turned for me, and not in a good way.  Read More