Summer is finally here. It’s always been inspiring for me. This month I’ve been busying myself looking at acoustic guitars. Why? I have no idea. I have a decent beginner/mid-level Ibanez, but I’m wanting a Taylor or a Martin. But then therein lies a problem: I spend time looking at guitars when I should be spending time PLAYING my guitar. Despite my guitar distraction, I actually got a lot of stuff done in this merry old month of May: an out of state trip, a reconnection with my Nintendo Switch Lite, diving headlong into an RPG I’ve been working on for a year, and a special outing with Mrs. Burton to the IMAX.
Return of the Jedi on Blu Ray: I went to visit my grandsons in Austin this month, and was wonderfully pleased to find my youngest one, Eric, has developed an obsession for all things Star Wars. He was delighted when I mentioned wanting to watch Return of the Jedi with him. And when I left, I felt winsome when my daughter told me he was re-watching the movie because he missed me. I was never a big fan to be honest, but the movies are entertaining. I think The Empire Strikes Back will always be my favorite, but this one holds the most action. One astonishing thing I noticed in this one, something that slipped past me in previous viewings, was the scene in which C3-PO is telling stories of his adventures with Luke Skywalker and Han Solo, complete with authentic sound effects conjured up from his memory banks. This was a great scene. I’m surprised I hadn’t noticed it before.
Need for Speed: Shift 2 on PC: I’ve been playing this game for a while now. In grand EA “sim-cade” style this game answers the call for fans of both genres. Though I’m headed into the final races, the game states I’m only 55% done. As I mentioned before, the game is difficult. I had to dumb it down to the easiest difficulty, honestly, just so I can get through it. Best played with an X-box controller, I couldn’t imagine playing this with my wheel/paddle set. I’ve just discovered, unfortunately, this game is no longer available on any digital platform. I lucked out having the game on disc.
Billy Idol Whiplash Smile on vinyl: Released in 1986, this was the third release from Billy Idol, guitarist Steve Stevens, and producer Keith Forsey. This album has the same vibe that proved to the success of Idol’s first two albums, but I personally liked the songs on the previous two album over this one. “Sweet Sixteen” became a hit of sorts, and was probably the song I liked best on the album. Of course, the real reason I like any of Billy Idol’s albums is Steve Stevens. The guy is a guitar hero. Listen to his blistering solo on “Beyond Belief,” you’ll see.
Glenn Miller: I Remember Glenn Miller on vinyl: This man was a true piece of Americana. With his studious bespectacled grin and his dapper and kind demeanor, not to mention the fact that he was awarded a posthumous Bronze Star for his service during WWII, in which he volunteered to entertain troops and was lost over the English Channel in doing so. He was responsible for the movement of old timey jazz music into jazz swing. I spun this disc on the turntable and found to my surprise I didn’t like it at all. I feel like a disinterested child enduring a boring history class, but I just found this album droll. It was my first exposure to Glenn Miller and my experience makes me feel as if I’m perhaps missing out on something obvious, but I’m not getting it. I was never a fan of jazz, but I respect the genre and I find some it listenable. I can’t say the same for this “jazz swing” type of music.
Man on Fire on DVD: When director Tony Scott saw this novel penned by A.J. Quinnell, he knew he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to make a movie out of it. Changing the setting from Italy to Mexico City (which, Scott said, became a third character in the movie), he assembled a stellar cast and made a quintessential action thriller. He cast his characters on gut instinct, and his intuition obviously struck gold for him. Dakota Fanning, in six weeks learned to swim, learned conversational Spanish and learned to play Chopin on the piano so she could be competent in her role. Denzel Washington, Christopher Walken and Mickey Rourke were also cast. Denzel Washington played a great lead in this odd love story/revenge tale. The love story involves the relationship between Washington, a troubled former CIA operative and Dakota Fanning, who plays the little girl Washington is hired to protect. It’s a love story, not of amorous love, but of a true connection between two people of different backgrounds, different ages. And when the little girl is kidnapped, the movie switches into a bleak tale of revenge and comeuppance. Tony Scott used an antique hand crank camera to introduce a stutter to some of the scenes, contributing to the film’s gritty dirty roughened look. Top Gun, Crimson Tide, Unstoppable and Days of Thunder were all great films directed by Scott, films that are a testament to his talents when it came to action movies.
Slay the Spire on Nintendo Switch Lite: PC Gamer magazine is always lauding high praises on this indie roguelite game. I found it for el cheapo on a sale at the Nintendo Store and thought I’d give it a try. Boy, I got hooked! It’s a simple concept. You choose a character and battle through a bevy of monsters, facing each other Mortal Combat style. Each or your blocks and strikes is dictated by a hand of cards. Cards are played out and new ones drawn. As you level up, you can upgrade cards, so for example instead of an initial card that states, “gives you 5 points of blocking” you may gain a new card that says, “gives you 5 points of blocking and does 5 points of damage.” At the end of each battle, you move up on a map with designated points depicting campfires (where you rest and regain hit points), boss fights, and question marks which may be fights in disguise or a safe haven with extra rewards (and the opportunity to buy more and better cards to draw from). And then of course, there’s the spritely art style which looks almost hand drawn and the catchy soundtrack.
Doctor Zhivago Original Soundtrack on vinyl: This is one of the most haunting soundtracks I’ve ever heard. It’s no surprise it won three Academy Awards. The album runs a gamut of ethereally happy music to somber lugubrious dirges. Some of the songs sound almost like beer hall songs akin to polkas, and others evoke dismal Russian winters, toil and peasant strife. Though I was faintly familiar with Maurice Jarre’s film music, it’s when I heard his OST for Witness (1984) that I really began paying attention to him. He did numerous soundtracks for David Lean through the years and also worked with Alfred Hitchcock. When I found out he did the soundtrack for Doctor Zhivago, I’d always planned on revisiting it since I watched the movie as a child and it made such an impact on me (and traumatized me in one scene, ask me about it!) This is an old album my mother recently gave to me, and unfortunately, the disc reflects this. It harbors numerous scratches, pops and crackles. The gatefold album cover, however, is a gem. I’ll begin a pursuit for a better condition album to pair with the magnificent cover.
Pillars of Eternity on PC: This is the supposed spiritual successor to Baldur’s Gate was a Kickstarter project that pulled in 14 million dollars which at the time (2014) was the highest funded PC game ever on Kickstarter. Despite being a Unity game, the art style is beautiful, truly inspired by (but an evolution of) the classic RPGs we used to know and love back in the 90s – early aughts. I’m playing on Hard level and it is a challenge. The game is in three acts. I’m 73 hours in and still in Act 1. Oh, and I just hit level 7. I’m enjoying the game despite its difficulty, and its lack of intuitiveness. If you’ve played the venerable Bioware RPGs of old and enjoyed them, I recommend you give this one a go.
Top Gun: Maverick on IMAX: Production for this film started in 2010, and here, 12 years later we finally have it! Seemingly, any film with Tom Cruise is a film made with blood, sweat and tears, and this action flick is no exception. Critics liked it better than the original movie, and it’s not hard to see why. The 6K IMAX cameras used to make the film recorded over 800 hours of footage, which is more than the time spent to film the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy. I have to admit, watching movies on IMAX could ruin me for watching movies at a standard theater again. I was in my early twenties when the original Top Gun came out, a kid who’d just gotten out of the Navy. Watching this movie took me back to that time and made me feel young again.
