Category: Movies

Geek Month in Review: August 2010

by Administrator, posted in Geek Stuff, Guest Authors, Movies, Science, Television

By JB Sanders

And here’s the August edition of Geek Monthly.

Pictish symbols
Because few things are geekier than a language dead over a thousand years. Plus it’s got some code-decryption bits.

Pencil-tip Micro-sculptures
Geeky in that retro sort-of way. There’s a “how many angels” joke in here somewhere.

Nobody Does it Better
Where “it” is late-night talk show hosting. Thirty years of shows digitized and searchable. Pro-payment thing to get the full clips, but they’ll have a rotating selection of clips and full shows available. Wild!

When Computer Keyboards Were Made Like 1950’s Cars
You know, with steel. There are people who swear by their ancient, clunky keyboards and will get violent if someone tries to take them away. And when your keyboard is, in fact, made of steel (NOT plastic), that’s a problem.

But there are different brands of “my favorite keyboard”.

There’s Ancient Apple.
The Intentionally Retro

And the King of Keyboards, the IBM Model M Thunkmaster. So you KNOW when you’re typing.

LEGO Creationary
It’s like Pictionary; only instead of drawing you build things with LEGOS. Not sold yet? How about it has difficulty settings, from things like “cactus” to “Taj Mahal”. Seriously. Buy here.

Ancient Recordings!
Well, ok, old recordings. From the 20’s and 30’s and 40’s, music and speeches not heard since they were recorded. It’s mostly an article about lost Jazz recordings, but also about a tech genius (William Savory) who recorded live jam sessions onto aluminum and acetate 12-inch and 16-inch disks at 33 1/3 before that it was fully invented (he did help create the standard). Which leads to quotes like this: “You hear some of this stuff and you say, ‘This can’t be 70 years old.’ ”

Unfortunately, although they’re hard at work digitizing (and in some cases, cleaning the records so they can be played), it’s going to take a long time to get online. And then there’s the who owns it thing. Not the records, that’s clear – the music. Woo!

Screens Under the Microscope
Kindle and iPad screens under a USB microscope, compared with newspaper, book and magazine print. Nice comparison!

Big Monster Movies
Are they back? If so, cool!

Plug-in Solar & Wind
This is crazy smart, if they can make it happen. Imagine grabbing a few solar panels from the hardware store, putting them where you like and plugging them into a regular outlet. Then it just provides the house with power. The company is coming out with products in 2011 (which is a lot better than the ubiquitous “5 years”). I’ll be waiting.

Visualizing Data
David McCandless shows us how to visualize massive amounts of data. Or “knowledge compression”. Fascinating, funny, insightful. Pretty much as with all TED talks (the good ones, anyway).

And don’t miss out on his actual website, where he’s posted zillions more of these great diagrams.

Especially this one on how many times Dr Who has traveled through time.

Muh Ruh Ruhhh
All of Chewbacca’s dialogue from all his appearances in the Star Wars movies, on a large sticky note.

Lost 25 Minutes of Metropolis: Found!
When Fritz Lang’s epic silent-movie Sci-Fi masterpiece was released in theaters, the movie was cut from it’s original 2 and a half hours to a more palatable 90 minutes, slicing away scenes which “make so much more sense” when included. Take a look at a glimpse.

Cheeseburger Dissolved in Acid
Ever wonder what would happen if you dipped a burger in hydrochloric acid? Wonder no longer!

Self-lacing Sneakers on the Way
Marty McFly had them in 1985, so why don’t we? Nike is working on it.

About John:
John’s a geek from way back. He’s been floating between various computer-related jobs for years, until he settled into doing tech support in higher ed. Now he rules the Macs on campus with an iron hand (really, it’s on his desk).

Geek Credentials:
RPG: Blue box D&D, lead minis, been to GenCon in Milwaukee.
Computer: TRS-80 Color Computer, Amiga 1000, UNIX system w/reel-to-reel backup tape
Card games: bought Magic cards at GenCon in 1993
Science: Met Phil Plait, got time on a mainframe for astronomy project in 1983
His Blog: http://glenandtyler.blogspot.com

The Geek Month in Review: July 2010

by Administrator, posted in Books, Geek Stuff, Guest Authors, Movies

by JB Sanders

So I’ve collected a bunch of stuff together in the form of my commentary on various geeky news stories, reviews, or whatnot. One paragraph of my thoughts, plus a link or two related to it.

This will not always be everything that happened in the month of Geek Relevance. I don’t have the staff for that. Heck, I barely have enough staff to get me coffee! But I promise at least one or two things you haven’t heard about before, because they’re so damned obscure.

Here’s July 2010 in Geekery:

RPG Geek Squee
Monte Cook did a full-on adventure module! If you aren’t familiar with who Monte Cook is, he was one of three people responsible for re-engineering D&D in 1998, D&D 3.0. I would say that D&D 3.0 was probably one of the most successful RPG systems ever created. It combined modern sensibilities with a lot of the flavor of Old School D&D. So he’s one of those folks in the Geek Hall of Fame.

But it doesn’t slice bread (app pending)
Look, everyone who knows me will tell you, I’m a huge Apple fanboy. I got that going on all over the place. But those of you old enough to remember the Jetsons will recall scifi’s promise of the video phone. It was going to be wall-sized or toaster-sized (like the “real” telephones of 1974). It was going to revolutionize everything and everyone was going to have one.

Well, Apple’s iPhone 4 does that in a device that fits in your HAND. Video calls. In your HAND.

So, I find it infinitely amusing that folks have made an application for the iPhone 4 that turns it into a flashlight. A real, serious flashlight that uses the iPhone 4’s LED flash (designed for flash photography).

It’s a Swiss-army phone!

Mark Twain, still kicking ass
The man’s been dead 100 years, but he’s still topical, relevant and acerbic as hell.

Now THAT’s Building a Castle
This team has been working on building a castle in France using only traditional methods (as they can figure them out via archaeology and reading historical texts). They’ve been going since 1998.

Plato’s Hidden Messages
There’s nothing cooler than discovering deeper meaning, and when that comes from one of the founders of “Western Civilization” (such as it is), you just have to step back and say “Whoa!”. A scholar in Britain has discovered hidden messages coded in Plato’s writings. Stuff he couldn’t say openly for fear of reprisal.

The SciFi Airshow
So, it’s like an air show, only all the “planes” are scifi space vehicles. (It’s not real, though.)

Word of the Month: phonagnosia
It’s when you can’t recognize who a person is just by their voice.

Gore Factor Five!
I know, Dragon Age: Origins has been out, like, forever. The review I’m linking to is even months old. But it’s so damn funny, who cares?!

Best. Map. Ever..
Or even, all maps ever made of the earth, the stars and the universe in general, smushed together. Found out about this amazing map by seeing it on TED, and if you don’t know about the TED talks, I’m sorry. You’re about to have a lot of your free time sucked away by amazing speakers and mind-blowing technology.

See the talk about it at TEDTalks.

And then see the software that makes up the map.

Sinbad, Totally Not a Remake
I don’t really know what to make of this preview. It’s got Patrick Stewart voice over, but it looks like someone said “hey, what if Bollywood made a Sindbad movie in the 70’s?”. Hell, Bollywood probably DID make some Sinbad movies in the 70’s. To Wikipedia! No! They did make a TV series about Sindbad though.

Anyway, it’s a teaser trailer.

It’ll Totally Be a Hit With the Geeks
And while I’m on the subject of wack-ass previews, here’s Sucker Punch. This movie will either be:
1. The greatest movie ever made.
2. The worst movie ever made.

I don’t really see any middle ground for it. On the surface, it’s got what every hetero male (or lesbian female) movie-going geek wants to see: chicks with swords, kicking robot samurai ass. It’s got burlesque, and dragons breathing fire. It’s got airplane dogfights, zepplins, machine guns, gangsters, and a 1950’s insane asylum. And since it’s from the director of 300 and Watchmen, it looks like rock-and-roll.

See the preview and you’ll know what I mean.

Tron
You saw the trailer, right? New movie, same universe. Not a remake, but a … sequel? Yeah, looks good.

About John:
John’s a geek from way back. He’s been floating between various computer-related jobs for years, until he settled into doing tech support in higher ed. Now he rules the Macs on campus with an iron hand (really, it’s on his desk).

Geek Credentials:
RPG: Blue box D&D, lead minis, been to GenCon in Milwaukee.
Computer: TRS-80 Color Computer, Amiga 1000, UNIX system w/reel-to-reel backup tape
Card games: bought Magic cards at GenCon in 1993
Science: Met Phil Plait, got time on a mainframe for astronomy project in 1983
His Blog: http://glenandtyler.blogspot.com

Rethinking the Remix

by Administrator, posted in Geek Stuff, Movies, Music

I know it’s hard for you to imagine, but sometimes things over here at The Buffet do not go according to plan. For instance, my mythical interview with my all-time RPG heart throb Robin Laws, the man behind all that is good and right with table top roleplaying games (Can you tell I’m a fan?). I had the heart stopping pleasure of doing a 30 minute phone interview with him. He was absolutely everything I hoped he would be; intelligent, quick witted, and inspiring. At this point you’re probably wondering where you can hear/read this interview. Well, you can’t. In theory it is still locked away in the little device that recorded our interview, but alas it seems to defy transcription. For those of you who feel inclined, you can start a letter writing campaign to my husband to see if you can help him get it into a useable format. For me, the Robin Laws thing is pretty heartbreaking. Even after all this time my gut turns at how utterly unprofessional this is. Laws must have come to the logical conclusion that I am just some crazy hack that just wanted to say I talked to him. Not too far off base.

At least that interview took place. (I swear, I’m not lying!) I don’t have the time to go down the list of the dozens of interviews I’ve attempted that have failed from lack of response from the interviewee. They all started out promising. They all said they would do it. And then, they fall off the face of the earth. Or at least I hope they did because if you can’t find the time to answer 10 softball questions via email, your ass had better be out orbiting the Earth. Out of all the failed interviews I’ve had, after Robin Laws there is only one other that I truly regret not happening.

Last year the folks at Disinformation mailed me a handful of DVDs to review for The Buffet. You actually read, or can now go and read, two of them. However there was one movie, “RiP! A Remix Manifesto” that I found very compelling and a complex mine field to try to explain and discuss, so I approached my contact about interviewing the director Brett Gaylor. My contact at Disinformation told me to go ahead and put together the interview and he would get it taken care of. And then nothing happened. Not only did the interview not happen, but I haven’t received any other promotional items since then. It’s okay, I’m sure if I borrowed my friend’s telescope I would find the guy drifting in space, occasionally bumping into satellites or other missing interviewees.

Without the interview I kind of just gave up on talking about the film. Although I sometimes try to present a neutral outlook on things, I tend to like to know how I feel about something I publish. I like this. This is unfair. I dislike that. The simple fact is, when it comes to the issue of remixing, I am of two minds on the issue.

For those of you who don’t know what a remix is (I’m impressed you found your way to “the internets” and were able to navigate through it’s tubes via “the Google” to find my site), Wikipedia has a pretty concise definition for you. “A remix is an alternative version of a song made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song (film, literature etc.).” And there lies my dilemma.

I worked in music retail for years. Many a time I told a youthful shopper scoffing at paying for a CD how musicians only get around $.05 per album sold. This is why they tour, because unless they want to live on ramen they have to get out there and sell some tickets, and more importantly, some t-shirts. The long and short of it is, what is still considered the industry standard for record labels is a pretty raw deal for the musician, unless they get lucky and blow up. That is changing, but that is a whole different post. I love music. I am passionate about it, and grateful to the folks that make it possible. I buy my album, and my t-shirt when possible.

However, on the flip side, copyrighting has always rubbed me the wrong way. I always like to tell the story of poor, talented, and totally hosed Biz Markie of “Just a Friend” fame. The recording industry used Biz Markie as an example of what happens when you use unlicensed music in your songs. Gilbert O’Sullivan claimed that the Biz’s song “Alone Again” featured an unauthorized sample from his hit “Alone Again (Naturally)”. Biz Markie’s album was pulled, and the fall out greatly hindered his career. By greatly hindered, I mean most of you probably don’t know who Biz Markie is. (In an odd bit of fate, shortly after writing this TMZ actually mentioned Biz Markie!) The ruling of Grand Upright Music, Ltd. v. Warner Bros. Records, Inc. altered the landscape of hip-hop, finding that all samples must be cleared with the original artist before being used. I understand. I really do. I mean, we all remember that nonsense when Vanilla Ice tried to prove that he didn’t rip off Queen’s “Under Pressure” to make “Ice, Ice Baby”. It was painful. They totally robbed Queen. And yet, I can’t help but feel that those sorts of lawsuits create a climate of fear within artistic communities. Sure, Vanilla Ice verses Queen seems pretty straight forward. But how far does this go? At what point does one song end and another begin.

Let’s take this scene from “Rip!” as an example:

That guy at the end with a computer and a dancing crowd is Girl Talk. Actually, his name is Gregg Gillis, but he performs under the name Girl Talk. Girl Talk is central in “RiP!” and with good reason, Girl Talk’s music is created entirely from other artist’s songs. He is a giant lawsuit waiting to happen. Here’s what Girl Talk does:

The question is, where does Elvis Costello end and Girl Talk begin? Can you tell? (By the way, I love his girlfriend laying in bed trying to sleep. You know she’s all like, Gregg, take your laptop and your friends with the cameras somewhere else now, okay?)

As I said earlier, I love music. As a fun challenge I decided to see how many artists I could recognize that went into constructing Girl Talk’s 14 track, 54 minute, album “Feed the Animals”. (I just want to say that I did not cheat and read liner notes or do internet searches or anything. Anyone that knows me personally will tell you that I do not play around when it comes to music, so as much as it pained me to sort of recognize a song but not know a name to add to the list, I did not falter and cheat. That also means I may have gotten some wrong here, but I feel pretty confident.) Here we go: UGK, Twisted Sister, Sinead O’Connor, The Ting Tings, Butthole Surfers, Michael Sembello, Blackstreet, Kanye West, The Band, Steve Winwood, Ace of Base, Cassidy, Kenny Loggins, Busta Rhymes, The Police, Faith No More, Paula Cole, Jackson 5, Queen, Jay-Z, Mary J. Blige, Grandmaster Flash, Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Missy Elliot, Digital Underground, Nu Shooz, Public Enemy, 2 in a Room, what sounds like Boy George singing the Cheap Trick song “I Want You to Want Me”, Jimi Hendrix, that song “New Soul” that was in the MacBook ads, Eminem, LL Cool J, Soul II Soul, Beastie Boys, Pras/ODB/Mya doing “Ghetto Superstar” which is ironic since that song lifts from Dolly Parton and Kenny Roger’s “Islands in the Stream”, Diana Ross, Carpenters, Metallica, Styx, Janet Jackson, Snap, Prince, Ice Cube, Tag Team, The Cardigans, Rick Springfield, Big Country, Afrika Bambaataa, Michael Jackson, Roy Orbison, Salt-n-Pepa, Deee-Lite, Nirvana, The Beach Boys, Rick Astley, Kool Moe Dee, K7, Daft Punk, Lil’ Mama, Tone Loc, Fleetwood Mac, David Bowie, 2 Live Crew, M.I.A., Cranberries, Quad City DJs, Kelly Clarkson, the bass riff that became the intro to the MTV logo back in the day and it KILLS me not remembering where it came from (Metallica maybe?), Soulja Boy, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Foreigner. GASP!

I can easily say I didn’t get even half of what went into making the album. If Girl Talk wanted to create a legal version of the album, he would need to buy the rights to use every song from the 72 artists listed above as well as the probably 100 others. Girl Talk could bankrupt himself just to make one album, let alone the other three albums he’s done. Not to mention if just one copyright holder refuses to grant permission, the entire album would be flushed.

I know, I can hear you now, “But Rebecca, you just said that he used other artist’s work. You actually listed them!” I know! I KNOW! I hate it. I hate feeling all confused and vexed like this. It’s just, yes, he used music from all 72 of the artists I listed, but you can’t even really tell he did. I mean you can, but you can’t. Here, take a look at this video a YouTuber made for the song “In Step”:

As frustrating as it is, I don’t have any apt conclusion to end this article. I am as true blue of a music supporter as you could hope to find, and yet, for my birthday I asked my husband to get me a few Girl Talk CDs. In my defense, Girl Talk is a giant nerd with a laptop that makes totally hot dance music; I am incapable of resisting something that pushes all the right buttons for me.

Do yourself, and me, a favor. Watch “RiP: A Remix Manifesto” and come back here and share your thoughts with me. I need all the help I can get on this one!

Music Matters

by Administrator, posted in Movies, Music

Music matters. I don’t have facts and figures to back up that statement. Sure, I could go online and find them, but you know it’s true, so why fight with WordPress to create a link? Music inspires, educates, and liberates, that’s just how it is, no sense in denying it. Can’t imagine a world without it, and I think I’ve made it pretty clear from previous posts that I wouldn’t want to be in a world that doesn’t have it. I was surprised to learn that from 1996-2001 music was banned by the Taliban in Afghanistan. What is that world like?

Many of you may have heard about the documentary “Afghan Star“. For those of you who haven’t, it’s a film documentary that follows the lives of contestants and producers of a television show in Afghanistan called “Afghan Star”. “Afghan Star” makes “American Idol” contestants look like total wusses. And before you email me compelling stories about the lives of the struggling as to yet already be semi-well-known AI contestants, answer me this; Any former AI contestant have to live under government protection for singing on stage? Yeah, I thought so. Music was banned. However, 60% of the Afghan population is under the age of 21 and the Taliban has lost some of its hold, so that’s right folks, music is back.

“Afghan Star” brings pop music to the people, following the same basic structure that we know from “American Idol”. It’s an elimination based performance contest where people use their phones to vote for their favorites. A third of the country watched the finale of the season followed in “Afghan Star”. This is contestant Setara performing.

Is it just me, or that just damned catchy? I sit and shimmy at my keyboard every time I play it. Notice her jaunty swaying? Well, in Afghanistan that’s the equivalent of Madonna dry humping the stage while rolling around in a bridal gown at the MTV awards. Or perhaps it’s Madonna’s simulated masturbation rendition of “Like a Virgin” for the Truth or Dare Tour? Either way, whatever the most offensive visual Madonna has busted out in public, Setara’s rhythmic swaying is its equivalent.

Setara was doomed to get knocked out of the competition for being so brazen, and as predicted, she was. Although, just like any artist with nothing to lose, she went full out for her farewell performance.

The dancing, and worse, exposing her hair, caused an uproar and death threats. Surprisingly, it was the other female contestant Lima, who was very demure and conservative that ended up living under the protection of her local governor at the end of the film.

But Rebecca, you’re ready to say, that’s all well and good, but that’s one show, and it’s pop music. That’s not really music. One, I’d dare argue that in a country where music has been banned for 5 years, there is nothing more important than a vibrant pop music revival. Second, would a band of pretty Afghan boys in skinny jeans channeling indie Brit pop make you feel better?

In that case, here you go!

That was Kabul Dreams, and they claim to be Afghanistan’s first rock band. I don’t know if that is an entirely accurate claim, but they are a rock band, they are in Afghanistan, and they’re the only one I’ve heard of, so that makes it good enough for me!

There is music in Afghanistan again, and that means that truly anything is possible. That’s what music does, no sense in denying it.

As a quick aside, for those of you who tend towards heavy metal, can I suggest checking out “Heavy Metal in Baghdad”? It’s about Iraq, not Afghanistan, but it follows the only heavy metal band in Iraq. You can watch it for free thanks to Hulu! In fact, if you’ve got one and a half hours, you can watch it here now!

Because When You Realize that You Want to Spend the Rest of Your Life with Somebody…

by Administrator, posted in Messages from Rebecca, Movies

…you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.

Despite my love of action movies I’ll admit that I have a soft spot for some films considered to be more “chick flick” in nature. One of my favorites is “When Harry Met Sally”. After seeing that movie I could never look at New Year’s Eve the same way again. So to celebrate the end of 2009 and the beginning of 2010 I want to share one of my favorite New Year’s Eve moments with all of you.

See you next year!

(Spoiler Alert: This is the very end of the movie, so if you watch this you’ll know how it ends. Also, you might want a tissue before pressing play.)

Merry Christmas to All, and to All a Good Nightmare!

by Administrator, posted in Guest Authors, Movies, Television

It’s funny how this article from guest author Alice Diehl came about. As I sat at my desk I couldn’t ignore the fact that the holiday season was approaching. The Magical Buffet’s original format generally ignored acknowledging holidays, but with this new blog format it seemed wrong to not acknowledge some holidays as they approach or as they occur. So there it was, Christmas was coming. The question was, what was I going to do about it? Write some heart felt personal piece about Christmas, not going to happen. Talk about the Pagan roots to so many beloved Christmas features, it seems better informed and more talented writers would be addressing that else where. Honestly, I wanted to find the evil opposite of what most websites would do for a Christmas post. I found my mind wandering to some of the bizarre slasher movies set around the holidays. And the rest is history.

I’m friends with Alice from our interactions on the website MyNerdGirl.com (join us there!). I knew she was funny, intelligent, and more importantly a huge fan of horror movies. I asked her to compile a list of her favorite seasonal horror films and I’m pleased to share with you the results.

Hey there Ghouls and Girls! I know you all have that common Christmas picture in your heads, let me set the scene for you: Your stockings are hung by the chimney with care; you’ve just gorged yourself on sugar plums and gingerbread. The children are all nestled in their beds, and in the middle of the night a man with a slight weight problem breaks and enters into your cozy suburban home…lo and behold in this scenario we assume he is bringing gifts upon this midnight clear, but if the modern day world and the advent of film has anything to say about it Santa’s bringing an axe this Christmas!

During a time of the year that promotes togetherness I ask you to cozy up, get the egg nog and cover the kids’ eyes as I count down my top five Holiday Horror treats.

#5: Jack Frost

On the way to his execution a serial killer is genetically mutated into a murderous snowman, who’s only enjoyment comes from seeking revenge on the lawman that took him down.

I gotta tell you kids if you’ve got a phobia of Styrofoam this film is not for you. Who can forget that climatic battle in the end where our killer meets his demise “a la kool-aid acid” chemical peel.

#4: Silent Night, Bloody Night

Let me pull up some key descriptive words: Old Mansion, Mental Institution, Deranged Killer, Weird Townsfolk, and Warhol? If you’re down for decking the halls with a little blood this one is for you. Beyond all the normal horror holiday highlights check this usually unheard of gem out, with appearances by many of Warhol’s Factory superstars as mental institution inmates it makes for a bloody and kooky trip.

#3: Gremlins

It’s a classic…period end of sentence, if you haven’t seen it, it should be on your wish list. I know I’m hoping to find Gizmo in my stocking on Christmas morning. Or possibly Phoebe Cates. (smile)

#2: Black Christmas

Who doesn’t love a film that gives you a reason not to pledge as a sorority sister, or store your decorations in an attic? The film touts a cast of lovely ladies, inappropriate phone calls (who hasn’t savored the holiday punch and dialed some old friends) and that classic scene with Clare’s body propped up in the attic window. Plus, Steve Martin LOVES it…and that takes the cat’s pajamas in my book.

#1: The Shinning

Okay, so this one isn’t exactly holiday themed, no Santa, no holiday meals, but it has all the winter and seasonal essentials. Snow. A ski resort. Family togetherness. I connect with this film on a personal level, having grown up in a small snowy mountain community and having hung out at the local ski resort more times than I can count. It’s an age old question that’s being answered with this film; does all that family time really make for holiday spirit or daddy’s ultimate meltdown?

Honorable x- mass-acre Television Mentions:

Tales from the Crypt “All Through the House”

Buffy the Vampire Slayer “Amends” Season 3, Episode 10.The one where Angel finds his wing, so to speak.

I hope you enjoyed my selections….”Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good nightmare!”

About the Author:
Alice has been a horror movie buff since she was a little girl. Particularly the “Halloween” series. She hopes to be the first scream queen on wheels. She’s also an advocate for LGBT as well the disability communities. Been a nerd since conception. So proud! You can catch her on www.mynerdgirl.com as well her Facebook page.

A Turkey Named Brotherhood

by Administrator, posted in Events, Messages from Rebecca, Movies

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving here in the United States. I found myself wondering how is it that, three years of having a website, and I have not given appropriate Thanksgiving Day respect to “Addams Family Values”? It is a horrible lapse on my part, one that I will correct now.

It’s hard not to fall in love with Wednesday Addams when she states, “The gods of my tribe have spoken. They have said, ‘Do not trust the Pilgrims, especially Sarah Miller’.” Inevitably I wander around the apartment singing “Eat me!” It’s a whole lot of holiday cheer for me, wrapped in a tight four minute bundle. When a student pressed my Native American Anthropology professor for an example of the appropriate portrayal of Native Americans in film, he instantly responded, “Addams Family Values”.

However you chose to celebrate Thanksgiving, be it with a take away meal from Boston Market, a day long event with friends, or at a resort, please accept this offering along with best wishes from The Magical Buffet.

This Blog Post Brought to You By…

by Administrator, posted in Books, Messages from Rebecca, Movies, Reviews

For those of you who follow the exciting world of “tech” news, you may have been hearing a lot of noise about how on December 1, 2009 The Federal Trade Commission will require bloggers and celebrities to clearly state when they receive cash or “payment in kind” for endorsing a company’s products or services. This seemed as good of time as any to let you in on how I, and in turn The Magical Buffet, operate. Prepare to probably not be surprised.

As of this moment, The Magical Buffet generates no revenue. We have no paid advertisers, we don’t charge for access to the site (and we never will), and I am not compensated monetarily by anyone for the enchanting articles that I write (but if someone wants to pay me, email me!). In truth, I actually lose money every month creating this wonderous thing you see before you. That said, this unpaid gig is not without its perks.

First, I get to interact with all kinds of awesome people. Have you had an email exchange with Oberon Zell-Ravenheart or Steve Kenson? You know who has? This lady. Also, instead of being “polite” and not talking about politics or religion, I get to do that whenever I want. Take THAT “polite society”! Lastly, I get sent review copies of books and DVDs.

I know from time to time I mention in my reviews that the thing I’m talking about was sent to me by the publisher or distributor, but I don’t always clearly state that fact. Just in case you didn’t know, the books and DVDs I review are given to me in the hopes that I review them.

Here’s the shocker. Stuff that gets reviewed on this website is all stuff I genuinely like. In fact, I had toyed with setting up a website that I wanted to call “Shit Rebecca Likes”. Instead, you poor souls have to put up with hearing about shit I like between articles and interviews from actual professionals. When I started doing reviews I made the conscious decision to only write reviews for things I like and that I think my readers will like. So yes, that means that there is stuff that I get sent that never makes it onto the website, and I’m drunk with the power. Drunk I say!

I’m not anticipating an FTC crackdown on The Magical Buffet, in fact, I’m fairly certain the FTC will never know that I, or my little website that could, even exist. However, it is fair to let people know that hey, I didn’t pay for this book that I’m reviewing. So, um, hey, I haven’t paid for any of the books that I’ve reviewed, but I’ve only reviewed the books and movies that I liked, I’m all moral like that.

And that my friends will probably be the only time I’ll be described anywhere, by anyone, as moral.

Standing With Stones

by Administrator, posted in Movies, Reviews

When I first saw the package for “Standing with Stones: A Journey Through Megalithic Britain” I thought, whatever, yet another thing about Stonehenge. I can’t tell you how glad I am that I still opted to pop it into my DVD player.

“Standing with Stones” dedicates possibly one full minute to Stonehenge and nothing more. So what the heck does writer/presenter Rupert Soskin talk about for a little over two hours? Everything else, and if there is one thing you take away from this film is that there is a whole lot of everything else. Soskin leads you on a picturesque tour that covers England, Wales, Ireland, Isle of Man, and Scotland, revealing the treasure trove of stone circles, cairns, standing stones, and more that exist relatively unnoticed by modern society.

Soskin makes for a charming tour guide. He displays a whimsical, mischievous nature, nearly delighting in the unsolvable puzzle that these ancient sites present. Other times he cuts through your inclination to get caught up in a perceived spirituality of the sites with insightful, practical observations.

Producer/Director/Cameraman Michael Bott captures the beauty of the land wonderfully. Sweeping shots of majestic landscapes are broken up with amusingly framed scenes of impressive stone displays being frequented by live stock.

“Standing with Stones” is a beautiful, thoughtful examination of all the ancient stone sites that Britain and its surrounding environs have to offer. This film is a must for anyone interested in Britain’s countryside because “Standing with Stones” is a beautiful travelogue. Also, anyone whose spiritual practices are linked to ancient Britain will find this a useful film to watch to get insights into what their spiritual ancestors lives may have been like, including a wonderful segment dedicated to ancient Druids.

Although not a summer movie blockbuster, no explosions or alien invaders here, I did find “Standing with Stones” and a nice glass of wine to be an enjoyable way to spend an evening.

You can purchase “Standing with Stones” at Amazon.com, Disinfo.com, and iTunes.

The End is Near!

by Administrator, posted in Movies, Mythology, Reviews

It’s true. The awesome Disinformation Company gave me a copy of their documentary “2012: Science or Superstition” to review. I’m very excited, not only is this the first DVD I’ve ever reviewed, but it came from the folks at Disinfo.com, AND I’m interested in the subject matter. Obviously the end times are upon us.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the whole 2012 thing, let me sum up. The ancient Mayans created a very complex, advanced, utterly bad ass long calendar. The calendar ends on December 21, 2012. Everyone has an opinion as to what this means, and most of them seem to have a book.

“2012: Science or Superstition” is an hour and a half of opinions from a variety of sources, most notably Graham Hancock, author of “Fingerprints of the Gods”. I don’t want to sit here and outline it for you because I would probably flounder horribly at presenting their research. The introduction to the documentary explains in more detail the Mayan long count calendar and that the end date of December 21, 2012 is generally interpreted to mean one of two things: a date for the beginning of the apocalypse or the beginning of a time of renewal and rebirth of conciousness. (For the record, my theory is that by the time the Mayans realized that their formula for the calendar broke down the last date was so far away that they figured hey, let’s just forget about it. I mean, they were advanced, but they were still just people, and people are more than happy to not deal with annoying and tedious problems that could later be address hundreds of thousands of years later.)

The rest of the film has various authors and scientists presenting their thoughts, theories, and research. My favorite of these individuals was Dr. Anthony F. Aveni, Professor of Astronomy and Anthropology at Colgate University. His insights were razor sharp, laced with skepticism, yet surprisingly thoughtful and considerate in regards to other people’s beliefs. Oddly, it was his insights that are making me reconsider my “The Mayans Got Lazy” theory.

The best part is that you can get the movie on iTunes for only $9.99! You can buy it on Amazon for just a tiny bit more, and it retails at the reasonable price of $19.99.

To learn more, visit the website!