Shut Up and Drive

Wreck It Ralph is Disney's latest animated film, and I loved it. The film has had a profound influence on me that I have not felt since 1994's The Lion King. For those who know me (and long-time readers), that is significant. Over the next few weeks, I am going to be taking a look at some thoughts, questions, and interest generated by the film. 

Anyway, on to this week's post.

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What is your drive in life?

What gets you out of bed every morning? What makes you look forward to tomorrow? I am generally a forward-thinking person, but I found myself stuck on this question over the past week. Most days I wake up and go right to work, but this certainly is not what I look forward to each day. There is something more.

I am lucky to have a job that lets me exercise my interests and abilities. I poured five years of my life into BGSU and got a lousy piece of paper and $40,000 of debt to deal with. It turns out those years were well-spent, as I am enjoying a job that enables me to not only go to work happy everyday, but also lets me continue learning new skills. I also get enough time everyday to work on other interests: photography, biking, writing, exercising - and therein lies the answer to my question. I drive to improve myself through learning and practice.

Simple happiness is too easy to come by. I can play video games day and night with a smile on my face. Video games, nice dinners out with friends, hiking, writing, helping others - these kinds of things and more all make me happy, but happiness is not enough. I want to have a variety of skills that are useful, I want to make others happy (at least those who share the sediment), I want to travel and see America, and I want to write fiction that inspires its readers. I get out of bed every morning because these things matter to me and I absolutely want to become better at them.

At the (hopefully) still-young age of 28, I can safe that this is my drive in life.

B3 out.

The Unexpected Review: Wreck-It Ralph Is Phenomenal

This weekend I ventured out to brave a theater full of children to see Wreck-It Ralph, Walt Disney Animation Studio's 52nd animated film. Ever since 1995's Toy Story, Pixar has been at the forefront of modern animated films, making Disney's traditional animation studio as antiquated as 1980's Pac-Man against 2012's Halo 4.

Influenced by video game characters, settings, and plots, Wreck-It Ralph focuses on the titular character who desires to change his ways as a bad guy in order to find happiness. While the moral of the story is traditional - "be yourself" - its the presentation of the non-traditional plot that brings the film to the forefront of Disney's modern era.

Wreck-It Ralph features cameos of dozens of video game characters. Long-time gamers - especially those rooted in the 1980s and 1990s - will undoubtedly smile at all the references big and small. The familiar faces are nice, but the core cast of characters throughout the film are original and completely believable as video game characters. Personifying these with human emotions - fear, greed, humor, and of course love - works on so many levels thanks to the excellent plot.

And the plot takes center stage. The entirely-predictable story excels thanks to a roller coaster ride of colorful settings, subtle humor, catchy music, and one of the best-paced films Disney has ever made. Although running nearly two-hours, Wreck-It Ralph never feels too long and no one scene ever drags on into boredom or becomes predictable. Unlike video game-to-film adaptations that tend to feel overly pretentious (I am looking at you, Resident Evil), Wreck-It Ralph builds on the influence of video games and finds parody and emulation as sources of inspiration. The pixelated world of fictional video game "Fix-It Felix Jr." contrasts against the dark, moody, high-definition lines of first-person shooter "Hero's Duty." Most of the film takes place in the insanely-colorful "Sugar Rush," which squarely captures the influence of modern kart-racers.

Even with a couple of interesting wrinkles with films like Bolt and Tangled, Disney has been struggling to find itself in the CGI era. Wreck-It Ralph feels original and fresh in a way that Disney films have not since 1989's The Little Mermaid. While I doubt we are in store for another Disney Renaissance, Wreck-It Ralph would certainly be a fantastic start.

B3 out.

Candlebox and Dead Bodies

The last two weeks have been very busy - busy enough that I outright forgot to blog last Sunday. My bad. So we have a little catching up to do.

Last Thursday, November 1st, I ended a short 4-day work week with an amazing concert. Candlebox played a free show at Hollywood Casino in Toledo. I went into the concert slightly concerned about some of my usual drama bullcrap, but I made my enjoyment of the show top priority. Everything went better than expected. Despite seeing The Trews twice and a surprisingly-awesome Sponge concert just a week prior, Candlebox took the crown for 2012's best concert. Awesome songs, ear-ringing volume, and an energetic band made the two-hour show my personal favorite this year.

Between then and today, I have been keeping busy with work and working on a couple of projects. The big one right now: learning Android development, a new skill that will benefit me personally and professionally. I have chosen to write an Android application before the end of the year that I will take into CodeMash 2013 as my showpiece at next year's conference.

Yesterday was a wrinkle in my usual weekend routine. I ventured down to Columbus, Ohio with my parents to check out Body Worlds at the Center of Science and Industry. I last saw Body Worlds in the summer of 2004 in Cleveland and was blown away by the amazing displays of human bodies. I was thrilled to visit Columbus for the exhibit yesterday, but was ultimately let down a bit by the small size of it. For anyone who has not seen Body Worlds, however, the trip is still worth it and comes highly recommended.

After Body Worlds, we toured all of COSi and I found most of the science center to be quite fun, but again, a little more subdued that I was hoping. Perhaps my expectations were set too high going into into yesterday. I still had a great time, though, and look forward to going again with friends.

B3 out.