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+#+AUTHOR: Michał Sapka
+#+URL: https://michal.sapka.me/blog/
+#+STARTUP: show2levels indent logdone
+
+#+HUGO_BASE_DIR: ~/ghq/vcs.sapka.me/michal-sapka-me/
+#+HUGO_WEIGHT: auto
+#+HUGO_SECTION: brain-rot
+
+* Brain rot                                                       :@brainrot:
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot"
+:END:
+
+** Patlabor
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: brain-rot/patlabor
+:END:
+*** DONE Patlabor The Movie (1989)
+CLOSED: [2024-04-11 Thu 21:01]
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_FILE_NAME: patlabor-the-movie
+:EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: abstract The proto-GITS is still very nice!
+:EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c
+:EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot"
+:END:
+There was a time when /Patlabor/ was an established name.
+It was huge, it had /Mamoru Oshii/.
+Now, sadly, it's mostly forgotten.
+
+/Patlabor: The Movie/ is the first from the universe.
+I'll cover the following two soon, as this is my rewatch after decades.
+
+The story takes place in the distant future of 1999.
+Manual labor is aided by Labors, huge exoskeletons.
+Tokyo is undergoing a huge project, where old suburbs are demolished and artificial island are created on the coast.
+Some Labors are going berserk, destroying everything on their paths despite being unmanned.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0001.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Sucide is painless...
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0002.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+...It brings on many changes
+#+end_img-c
+
+Let's start with the visual feast.
+The movie looks stunning!
+Yes, later movies from IG top what we see here, and sometimes the faces may look weird.
+It's not perfect.
+But if we would simply tell ourselves that this style of animations is the peak and let's just try to maintain the quality, I'd be more than happy.
+The way this 35-year-old movie looks is a testament to the power of manual drawings.
+The design, the camera work, the coloring - I loved every second.
+
+Another cute thing I've noticed: /The Movie/ is an Oshii-type of movie.
+It came in this short period, where /anime/ was treating western culture as something alien and cool.
+We're seeing this in Jin-Roh, Evangelion, GITS, and many others.
+Here we've got the Bible.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0003.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+For a mecha anime, we've got a lot of people talking in different rooms
+#+end_img-c
+
+But this also shows the biggest problem of /Patlabor: The Movie/: it is shallow.
+On surface level, we've got everything one could ever want: Unabomber-style genius on a quest to stop progress at all cost.
+We're seeing how /old/ is discarded in the name of progress.
+We've also got a huge computer system which is maintained without deep understanding of how it works.
+Basically, 1999 is like 2024.
+But none of this is really developed.
+The main characters never stop and think, that maybe the world is not going the best route?
+Eiichi Hoba, the aforementioned Unabomber, is just a plot device: the viewer is also never confronted with his viewpoint.
+
+As it stands, /The Movie's/ story is disjointed:
+on one side we've got the real and interesting question.
+On the other, no one looks for answers and just accepts the risks of unconstrained growth.
+But maybe this was the point?
+We're seeing the same today: the world is ending, and most people are racing to be the last one to shut down the lights.
+It is scary how believable this is.
+Even the main threat is solved by a software rollback...
+
+/Patlabor: The Movie/ is good on its own, but it suffers from being the proto Ghost in the Shell.
+It's not near as good, nor is it as good as its sequel.
+But taking it at face value is really solid.
+I had huge fun rewatching it, but left unsatisfied for sophisticated sociopsychological treat Oshii is known for.
+
+My rating is 3.75/10
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0004.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Hav I mentioned thast this movie looks stunning?
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0005.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+S-T-U-N-N-I-N-G
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0006.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+It always amazes me how many anime shows older guys in their undergarments.
+I get, that Japan gets extremely hot during summer, but is it real that frequent?
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0008.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+One of many GITS-style scenes.
+#+end_img-c
+
+
+** Witcher
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: brain-rot/witcher
+:END:
+*** DONE Time of Contempt (1995)
+CLOSED: [2024-03-24 Sun 22:27]
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_FILE_NAME: andrzej-sapkowskis-time-of-contempt
+:EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: abstract Saga continues
+:EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r
+:EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot"
+:END:
+
+It's a stain of my honor - I am a Pole, but I've never read The Saga.
+It's not that I've never read any of The Witcher, but somehow I always stopped after the short stories.
+Last year I've decided to finally fix this.
+I am a proud nerd for crying out loud!
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "sapkowski-time-of-contemt.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-r
+The classic cover
+#+end_img-r
+
+/Time of Contempt/ is the second part of The Witcher Saga, but it's also the 4th book about Geralt and his world.
+Let's ignore the short stories for a second and let's talk about this book in context of The Saga.
+Here it suffers from being the middle child: Andrzej is developing the characters and story, but it lacks a impactful begging and an end.
+I haven't felt like that after finishing the /Blood of Elves,/ as it had a /begging/ and the ending was emotional.
+Geralt reunited with Ciri.
+The story is clearly not over, but we have a kind of closure.
+We know she is safe and ready for what's coming next.
+
+Here?
+Here we have no beginning as it follows the last book.
+It was to be expected.
+But I fail to notice anything new created here.
+Yes, we've got /amazing/ development of Ciri (I can't wait what how her blood heritage will screw over everyone), but nothing more.
+It just moves from scene to scene[fn:st], not spending any meaningful time anywhere.
+After 300 pages of this, it ends with Ciri joining some random group.
+I guess I will get to know them in /Baptism of Fire/, but I am not yet there.
+Are they good?
+Are they cool?
+Who the hell they even are?
+For me it was a huge let down.
+
+But the biggest thing missing in The Saga is humour.
+Both, /Sword of Destiny/ and /Last Wish/ were hilarious.
+It was not on Pratchett's level of humor, but Geralt was amazing when it came to deadpan.
+Moreover, I have no idea how well it translated to other languages, as it was based on Polish humour, but:
+the books were written for Polish reader who was expected to know /Szewczyk Dratewka,/ and therefore the way Geralt dealt with dragon was a funny refernce.
+But this aspect is now completely missingm[fn:enemy-mine], but it was what made the short stories for me.
+
+The biggest problem for me however was the fact I saw two seasons of The Witcher TV Series[fn:netflix].
+It was terrible and had nothing to do with the book (luckily for me!), but the TV versions of Ciri and Yennefer were irritating at best.
+Their book counterparts are not like that - Ciri is extremely cool and Yen is, well, not so bad - but the visual image is etched in my brain.
+I finally start to have a separate personnas for them, but it was difficult.
+Yes, to some extent Netflix ruined the books for me.
+
+I was never a fan of /fantasy/, as I always preferred /SciFi/.
+Give me a blaster or give me death[fn:rand]!
+If I found /Time of Contempt/ as a random book, I would not care for the rest of the series.
+It was ok, but nothing to write home about.
+Sapkowski has a great style and I very much want more, but he has not told anything interesting here.
+I will continue reading The Witcher, but mostly because it *is* The Witcher.
+
+I liked reading /Blood of Elves/ much more.
+
+I give it 3.5/5.
+
+[fn:rand] If you get the refence know, that I am no longer that type of a person.
+[fn:enemy-mine] We've got *huge* reference to /Enemy Mine/ in the single best part of the book, but it's not funny at all.
+Sad, scary - sure; but not funny. Just like the movie.
+[fn:st] ... /No one had a chance to interrupt/.
+/It was really quite hypnotic/.
+[fn:netflix] And not an episode more.
+It was already too much.
+
+
+
+** Persona
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: brain-rot/persona
+:END:
+*** DONE Persona 5: Strikers (2020)
+CLOSED: [2024-03-08 Fri 21:24]
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_FILE_NAME: persona-5-strikers
+:EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: abstract A short review of SciFi classic 
+:EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c
+:EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot"
+:END:
+/Persona 5/ took me close to a year... I think.
+It was a gigantic game with unbelievable amount of dialogue.
+It was also game I deeply enjoyed, despite not particularly liking anything about.
+The story was ok, the gameplay was ok, the RPG element was ok, the dating was ok.
+But, somehow, authors managed to join that into one freaking nice experience.
+
+/Persona 5: Strikers/ is none of those things.
+It's a linear button masher with characters I like.
+But it has /none/ of the good elements of /P5/.
+
+First, it's not an jRPG anymore.
+When fight starts, you are presented with dozens of enemies you need to fight in real time.
+Half of the time, I had no idea what was going on.
+Fights, for me, are terrible.
+Enemies were everywhere, and I had no /chance/ to control the battlefield.
+Lots of annoyances and finger pain, but no enjoyment.
+Just running into random spots, bashing melee attacks and checking for weakness from time to time.
+I play on easy and was tired of that very quickly, I can't imagine having any actual problems with this system you have no enjoyment with.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "p5s-1.jpg" "https://nintendoeverything.com/persona-5-scramble-the-phantom-strikers-boxart-details-screenshots/"
+#+begin_img-c
+Guess the only way here is to shut my brain down, as it's useless in all this chaos.
+#+end_img-c
+The real-world activities are almost none-existent.
+I loved how the Phantom Thieves bonded and became friends.
+None of this here.
+You've got some dialogue, but no payoff.
+There is some stat related to bonding, but we all know each other.
+In P5 the single best part was learning about each other and seeing how their lives improve.
+None of that is here.
+
+Dating?
+None.
+And my chosen love interest from /P5/ doesn't even show up!
+
+Extracurricular activities are limited to finding stuff on maps.
+
+Getting to know Tokyo?
+Nope. Every few hours we move to a new city.
+
+Story? Well, I gave up before it started.
+After 10 hours, midway through the third jail I gave up.
+I had to guard Futaba /again/ and after a moment became so frustrated and bored, that I stopped playing.
+
+I give 2/5 for those 10 hours.
+Maybe it gets better later on, but I don't care enough.
+I dropped the game and will never return.
+
+
+
+** Lawnmower Man
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: brain-rot/lawnmower-man
+:END:
+*** DONE Lawmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace (1996)
+CLOSED: [2024-02-23 Fri 20:29]
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_FILE_NAME: lawmower-man-2-1996
+:EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: abstract My mirco reviview of the sequeo to a vr killer thriller
+:EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c
+:EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot"
+:END:
+Fun fact: I remembered close to nothing about this movie back.
+When I was watching the first, everything seems familiar.
+Here?
+Not so much.
+Guess /Polsat/ consider the second one too expensive for regular broadcast.
+
+
+In /Lawnmawer Man[fn:reviewlm]/ we meet Jobe, now a genius being living in the cyberspace.
+But not so much, because in the first few minutes of /Lawmnower Man 2/ we learn that he has not left his meatsuit for the cyberspace.
+The explosion at the lab left him an amputee.
+But his talents are now in use of the Evil Corporation designing the future of cyberspace.
+
+Of course, Jobe wants the cyberspace for himself.
+
+The general plot seems similar to the first one, but they are very much different.
+The plot is much more complex, there are many more explosions and I think it makes much less sense than the first one.
+I would rate it at 2/5.
+
+But the biggest difference is that this movie is target towards certain audience.
+/Lawmower Man/ was a kid-friendly horror.
+/Lawmower Man 2/ is a kids' movie.
+They completely removed the part which tried to be scary.
+
+We've got bunch od kids (and a dog) fighting and winning against a grown-up.
+Yes, they get the help from an adult - the creator of cyberspace.
+But the main heroes are the kids.
+And the main target are the kids.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0002.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Kids flying in cyberspace
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0012.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+And flying even more.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0003.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Dog preparing to save a day...
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0004.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+And saving the day by inserting a CD in the drive.
+How can anyone consider this to be a movie for adoults?
+#+end_img-c
+
+I've read that the director was locked out of the editing room as he was trying to make a different movie.
+The producers said a firm "no" and made /Lawmower Man 2/ close to the likes of /Goonies/, /Explorers/ or /Flight of the Navigator/.
+It never reaches the coolness of those, but it tries.
+A lot of people on the interweb bash the movie on logical problems or being goofy.
+Yes - occasionally the plot makes so little sense that they needed to add voice over explaining why the hell the /gang/ is going where they are going.
+Yes, it has a dog who saves the day.
+38 years old me was not amused, but the 10-year-old inside me screamed "yeah! Radical!".
+He was not doing well with being /modern/ back then as well.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0005.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Her hair is the closest thing to a "scare" in the entire movie
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0006.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+This hippie is the inventor of VR.
+Tech geniuses leaving all the tech behind to live in the wild is now more real than ever
+#+end_img-c
+
+Jobe is being played by Matt Frewer, who quite often acts like Jim Carey, which is fitting.
+He is not the magical-killer he used to be.
+He is goofy.
+
+Even the music sounds like something Spielberg would use.
+
+There is no Pierce Brosnan here, as only Austin O'Brien returns from the first one, once again reprising the role of Peter Parkette.
+
+My biggest gripe is the special effect here.
+The movie takes place in the future, so we're no longer seeing green grass.
+The real world vibe is close to /Blade Runner/ or /Dark City/.
+I dig it!
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0001.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Cyberpunk!
+I'm pretty sure that almost all those scenes happened on the same crossroad.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0011.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Almost Blade Runner.
+#+end_img-c
+
+But then there is the /cyberspace/.
+In /Lawmower Man/ we had amazing, early CGI closer to an acid trip than anything else.
+Here, the cyberspace looks like ours.
+They just added CGI here and there.
+It looks like an episode of /The Next Generation/, but without most of the campiness.
+For the most part it is competent, but there is no spark.
+It's not /cool/.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0010.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Our first meeting with new Jobe in the cyberspace.
+Yes, this is VR-forest.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0007.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Cyberspace here give more of FMV-game kind of vibe than I would have expected
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0008.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+The VR here more social than what Apple showed.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0009.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Luckily, sometimes the VR almost delivers.
+#+end_img-c
+
+But the 10-year-old me would not care.
+He would rate it as 3.75/5 or "that was cool!".
+But he he wasn't picky at all.
+
+[fn:reviewlm] Vide: [[/blog/2024/lawmower-man-1229/][my review of Lawmower Man]].
+
+*** DONE The Lawnmower Man (1992)
+CLOSED: [2024-02-19 Mon 23:03]
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_FILE_NAME: lawmower-man-1992
+:EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: abstract My mirco reviview of a vr killer  thriller
+:EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c
+:EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot"
+:END:
+
+Back in the glorious 90s, when kids still enjoyed linear TV, we had /Polsat/.
+In the post-communist Poland, this was the first /western/ TV station.
+Filled with western movies, and western series[fn:series]
+Among those, there were constant replays of /The Lawnmower Man/[fn:trans]
+I watched it on every occasion and loved it.
+
+Now, 30 years later it is time for a rewatch.
+No cyberpunk deep dive can be considered a good one without /The Lawnmower Man/.
+
+/The Lawnmower Man/ is a movie about a disabled lawnmower man, Jobe, who, with the usage of virtual reality, becomes a genius.
+Soon after, an Evil Company, stars secretly giving him drugs contracted by the military.
+And as result, he starts exhibiting mind reading abilities and telekinesis (because, obviously, why not?).
+We've got the (popular at the time) subtext about the dangers of corporates who, without supervision, play God.
+Somehow we stopped doing that, and now we've got Altman killing humanity with the clap of happy crowd.
+/Lawmower Man/ is a movie about a great technology twisted by corporate overlords.
+Fitting.
+
+Jobe becomes a psychic, genius killer (like every mad genius), who decides to take over the cyberspace.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-1992-0001.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Remember when huge companies were scary?
+#+end_img-c
+
+The movie was initially released as a /Stephen King/ movie.
+King, however, sued the producers, as the movie has nothing to do the short story of the same name.
+And he won, because it was based on original script called /CyberGod/.
+Damn, I miss /cyber/ sounding cool.
+They should have the original name, instead of forcing King on everyone.
+And yes, I know King was the king back then.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-1992-0002.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+That's one way to save your neck from Apple Vision
+#+end_img-c
+
+The movie is we have here is a much dumbed down version of /Flowers for Algeron/, which I intend to finally read.
+I don't think anyone ever called it a /good/ movie, and for a good reason.
+It's cool, it's got great cyberspace CGI, it's got Pierce Brosnan.
+It also has an opening scene with a monkey using a gun, so yeah.
+
+Story-wise is as straight forward as it gets.
+The first half is full of sweet shots of grass and sexualization of a lawnmower.
+And the most awkward sex scene I've seen in ages... or two.
+Then, through a heavy-handed comment about religion and corporations we go the killing part.
+
+This movie fails as horror (there is not even blood or any scare here), and fails as morality play (it's not smart enough).
+But it is a testament to the glorious time, when /cyberspace/ was magical and full of potential.
+We sure deserve more of that.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-1992-0006.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+The cyberspace we all need.
+#+end_img-c
+
+I give it a 3.0/5.
+
+I was *sure* the ending of this film was from the sequel.
+But nope - I don't remember anything from the second one.
+Therefore, see you on the other side, /Beyond Cyberspace/.
+
+If anything, it's a great movie to show everyone how amazing trackballs are.
+And we all know it is a fact.
+No one can tell me otherwise.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-1992-0004.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+The hidden star of the movie, right behind that hairy guy.
+Look at that keyboard!
+Look at how beige it is!
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-1992-0005.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Cyber God indeed.
+#+end_img-c
+
+[fn:series] And Polish version of those.
+We had a great copy of /The Honeymooners/ named /Miodowe Lata/.
+The translation of the title is surprisingly spot-on.
+[fn:trans] Under an amazingly translated title, which would translate back as /The Lawmower Man of Minds/.
+Perfection.
+We knew /Dirty Dancing/ as /Spinning Sex/ and /Die Hard/ as /Glass Trap/.
+Those were simpler times.
+
+
+** Discworld
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: brain-rot/discworld
+:END:
+*** DONE  Interesting Times (1995)
+CLOSED: [2024-02-13 Tue 21:06]
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_FILE_NAME: interesting-times
+:EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: abstract A very short review
+:EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r
+:EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot"
+:END:
+
+Cover blurp:
+#+begin_quote
+Mighty Battles! Revolution! Death! War! (and his sons Terror and Panic, and daughter Clancy).
+
+The oldest and most inscrutable empire on the Discworld is in turmoil, brought about by the revolutionary treatise What I Did On My Holidays. Workers are uniting, with nothing to lose but their water buffaloes. Warlords are struggling for power. War (and Clancy) are spreading through the ancient cities.
+
+And all that stands in the way of terrible doom for eveyone is:
+
+Rincewind the Wizard, who can't even spell the word 'wizard' ...
+
+Cohen the barbarian hero, five foot tall in his surgical sandals, who has had a lifetime's experience of not dying ...
+
+...and a very special butterfly.
+#+end_quote
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "pratchett-interesting-times.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-r
+Cover
+#+end_img-r
+I am, what one could call, an old school /nerd/.
+All I care about are old operating systems, ancient editors and old SCIFI[fn:manga]
+Ah, and some text based game where you are a cute "@".
+/Of course/ I like Pratchett.
+
+I started reading him /years/ ago in the only way acceptable - chronological[fn:wrong].
+And I had a few years long pause.
+Now, after a series of reading /only/ technical books I am returning to fiction.
+
+/[[https://www.terrypratchettbooks.com/books/interesting-times/][Interesting Times]]/ is an ok-level Pratchett book.
+It's not close to his best, it's not close to his worst[fn:worst].
+
+This time Rincewind has to travel to Counterweight Continent and help a rebellion.
+There he reconnects with old acquaintances - Twoflower, and Cohen to Barbarian.
+
+The problem is that there is not much more.
+We've got a lot of Chinese things, which is new.
+But the story itself is extremely straight-forward.
+Nothing memorable happens.
+I finished it 2 days ago, and already I would have a problem recollecting any standing out moment.
+I still remember moments from other /Discworld/ books a decade after I read them!
+
+But Terry's writing makes me not care and just enjoy the journey.
+He is able to make a boring story interesting, and his characters are always great.
+I was reading the book while putting my son to sleep, and I almost gave him a heart attack with a laughter attack.
+This alone makes it worth it!
+
+Not the best place to start with //Discworld// (the best is, of course, /Colour of Magic/) but as n-th book in the series it's very enjoyable.
+
+I give it a =3.75/5=.
+
+**** Meta
+- Read as EPUB on Onyx Boox Note Air 2.
+- Read in Polish translation
+- Next up: back to Andrzej Sapkowski's with "Time of Contempt". I am not a good pole, having not read the entire saga. I promise to do it before my 40th birthday[fn:fort]
+
+
+[fn:wrong] It's ok to disagree, just like it's ok to be wrong.
+[fn:worst] Being a bad Pratchett's book still means being a very good one.
+Most authors would love to reach the level of one of those at least once.
+[fn:fort] Which is closer that I expected
+[fn:manga] And manga&anime, but that's beside the point.
+Not American comics though.
+Never cared about those, and it seems I never will.
+
+
+
+
+
+** Random American SciFi movies
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: brain-rot/american-scifi-movies
+:END:
+** DONE Hardware (1990)
+CLOSED: [2024-02-17 Sat 19:39]
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_FILE_NAME: hardware-1990
+:EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: abstract My mirco reviview of a killer-robot thriller
+:EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c
+:END:
+
+I continue my descend into American cyberpunk cinema[fn:cp].
+I spent my formative years watching /Anime, art house/ and ignoring most of USA movies.
+This means I haven't watched a lot of the /cult/ movies out there.
+
+/Hardware/ is a 1990 movie about a killer robot in a post-nuclear world.
+Think of a mix of Terminator, Aliens and Short Circuit.
+
+I heard of this movie years ago, but it seemed to be noting more than a cash grab after the success of /Terminator/ - a movie which I  don't partially enjoy.
+After watching, I have to say that there was a of true in this assumption.
+But somehow I ended enjoying /Hardware/ much more.
+
+Not that the story is better - if anything, it is much simpler, or just plain /simplistic/.
+Say what you will about /Terminator/, but the basic premise was great.
+/Hardware/ on the other hand doesn't offer a great idea.
+This is a straight movie about a killer robot.
+
+However, I enjoyed it more, as it is much closer to what /Alien[fn:alien]/ achieved
+The entire action is encapsulated in only a few, closed locations.
+Half of the runtime is spent in a single apartment, where the /Mark-13/ robot shows up from to time a try to murder someone.
+Much like the /Nostromo/!
+
+This allowed the movie to be *stunning* visually.
+I loved every frame here!
+I know that most of the effect is based on fog and lighting, but I dig it!
+Just take a look at the gallery below.
+
+Another thing which reminded me of /Alien/ is how they handled the special effects of the /monster/.
+We see very little of /Mark-13/ - he is often hard to see, covered in darkness.
+From time to time we see his movements, and well.
+Hiding him was clearly a good idea... just like with the /Xenomorph/.
+
+All in all, I enjoyed the movie.
+I'm not calling it one of my favorites, but I enjoyed  every minute of its short runtime.
+
+I give it a =3.5/5=.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0001.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Red sky of postnuclear... summer?
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0002.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+The Nomad.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0003.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Nomad searching the desert for stuff for sale.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0004.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+An ordinary store.
+Great vibes!
+Fun for the whole family.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0005.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Same store, different view.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0006.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+The perfect glasses.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0007.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Seems like somene realy liked Jin-Roh.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0008.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+What posses as art now.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0009.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Computer we want but don't deserve.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0010.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+An art studio. Nothing out of the ordinary.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0011.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Remember when spirituality was cool?
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0012.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Let's give our murder-robot eyes from a camera lense.
+I'm sure no one will drop it.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0013.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+UI we all want.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0014.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+What lurks in the shadows.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0015.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Yup, Jin-Roh.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0016.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Yankee-Roh.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0017.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+With some striking shadows.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0018.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+I have become bread, the destroyer of worlds.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0019.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Prelude...
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0020.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+And the (most likely) last usage of a refrigerator as a safe place which makes any sense in the history of cinema.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0021.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Yup, a hand.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0022.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Hold the presses!
+The glasses are back!
+I repeat: the glasses are back.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0023.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Mark-13 in all of its glory.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0024.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+This is only a window, but what a window it is.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0025.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+They have not used Wilhelm's scream.
+What a wasted opportunity.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0026.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+In 2024 those are rookie number when it comes to unnecessary lights inside a computer.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0027.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+I am a sucker for this type of fish eye.
+Always reminds me of /City of Lost Children./
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0028.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+It doesn't get more era-apporiate than this.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0029.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Ok, it does.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0030.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+One of the few CGI moments here.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0031.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+And one of /many/ lighting shots.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0032.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Look how black it is. Classy.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0033.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+But does it run Quake?
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0034.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Back to the desert, like a fine sandwich.
+#+end_img-c
+
+And a few nice /gore/ sceenes which I won't show it.
+This is a family-friendly website!
+
+Links:
+- [[https://thetvdb.com/movies/hardware][Hardware on TVDB]]
+- [[https://www.theofficialrichardstanley.com/][Director's official website]]
+
+[fn:cp] I disagree with calling those movies "cyberpunk" as they lack the "punk" element... or most of "cyber".
+No one rebels against the system, no one enters the /cyberspace/.
+But following this definition, I am not sure if we can call any movie other than /Johny Menomic/ a /Cyberpunk/.
+Often we put all dark-sf into "cyberpunk" genre, which limits our ability to be pricks about it.
+[fn:alien] Aka "the clearly superior of the /Alien/ series"
+
+** DONE Ghost in the Machine (1993)
+CLOSED: [2024-02-09 Fri 22:59]
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_FILE_NAME: ghost-in-the-machine
+:EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: abstract My mirco reviview of a computer thriller
+:EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r
+:END:
+Talk about a surprise!
+I was expecting a /schlock/, but I've seen a nice move.
+A dumb one, but still.
+
+The plot is the biggest problem: a serial killer has an MRI and due to electric storm gets his soul moved to computer network.
+With this, he becomes able to:
+- kill person by moving to a microwave and changing its settings,
+- kill a dog by arousing it with a TV program (using nothing by electric breakers), then hitting the dog with a VHS tape ejected from a VHS player which causes the animal to run towards the pool
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "ghost-in-the-machine.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-r
+Cover
+#+end_img-r
+It makes as little sense in the context of the movie as it does here.
+But the acting is (at the very least) acceptable and the FX are better than they should - and there is a lot of them.
+Moreover, the camera work is crazy!
+The movie /looks/ better than it should.
+It seems that this dumb, little movie got more passion in it than the entire MCU combined.
+
+The problem is that I have no idea what was going on.
+People were dying, cool computer interfaces were shown, but the plot barely connected those scenes together.
+
+It's a classic thriller from early days of personal computing revolution.
+I enjoyed it a lot.
+It is not a /good/ movie, but it is enjoyable.
+
+I give it a =3.0/5.=
+
+links:
+- [[https://utf.thetvdb.com/movies/ghost-in-the-machine][Ghost in the Machine on TVDB]]
+
+
+** DONE Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970) 
+CLOSED: [2024-03-03 Sun 16:52]
+:PROPERTIES:
+:EXPORT_FILE_NAME: colossus-1970
+:EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: abstract A short review of SciFi classic 
+:EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c
+:END:
+Finally, in my series of discovering the roots of cyberpunk in American Cyberpunk I've seen a real gem.
+
+/Colossus/ is a 1970 movie about a not-so-distant-future where Americans decide that it would be a great idea to give control of their military potential to a computer.
+On paper, it sounds great - a computer has no emotions, so it will not be stopped by petty things, like morality.
+Guess how well that turned out?
+Soon after switching on, Colossus learns about the existence of another such system - The Guardian, in the territory of CCCP.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0001.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+The movie starts with sexy old-comp scenes.
+Fitting, as Control Data Corporation supplied close to 5 million USD in computer equipment.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0002.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Sexy!
+Rest of the movie is not as sexy.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0003.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Colossus in person.
+#+end_img-c
+And then this SciFi thriller stops being so /crazy-computer/ focused, and analyzes /crazy-human/ reaction.
+Colossus starts exhibiting features which were never implemented.
+It[fn:it] starts /demanding/ to be connected with the Guardian, so they can communicate.
+And the scientist decide that it would be a great idea.
+The computers start exchanging data and developing language.
+Still - looks cool, let's see what happens.
+Only after Colossus threatens humans with ICBMs, Forbin (Colossus's creator) starts thinking that maybe this wasn't the best idea.
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0004.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+At first Colossus communicates only via text.
+Funny, as those screens sound like matrix printers.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0005.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+This one as well.
+#+end_img-c
+
+#+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0006.jpg" 
+#+begin_img-c
+Because it has a printer!
+It took me half of the movie to get that.
+Guess I'm too millenial for that to be obvious.
+#+end_img-c
+The movie is often described as an evil-computer story.
+Colossus is never evil in the movie.
+It does exactly what it was designed to do - to act without mercy.
+The evil ones here are the humans who never stop and think that maybe we are on the verge of the end of humanity.
+
+So yeah, it's an movie about Altman.
+We may have destroyed the civilization, but at lest we made a cool program which does things.
+No one know what those things are, but those are details you should not worry about.
+
+
+Story wise, /Colossus: The Forbin Project/ holds splendidly.
+Yes, we've got casual alcoholism and the female character exists only to have sex with Forbin[fn:sex].
+But the actual meat of the movie could be a base of an amazing movie today.
+The questions and subject are more relevant now that half a century ago.
+What was a huge /what-if/ scenario becomes a real /ok, but how do we stop it/.
+The Pentagon is already working on militarization of AI[fn:pent].
+We're pretty much screwed already.
+
+The best SciFi is not about giant battles or space travel for space travel sake.
+It's always about humans, a warning for us.
+And the /best/ SciFi is a warning for the next generations, as the threads become more real as years go by.
+
+There is a moment in the movie, where the entire day of Forbin is planned and monitored by an AI.
+What was a horror story, is now what a lot of us /expect/.
+
+/Colossus/ in a movie version of earlier book of same.
+There are 2 more in the series, and (as I've been told), Aliens make an appearance later on.
+Maybe someday!
+
+As for the movie, I give it a 4.25/5.
+[fn:it] There's an interesting discussion about what pronoum to use - He or It.
+[fn:sex] It is a plot point!
+A terrible one, but still.
+[fn:pent] Vide: [[https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3682355/pentagon-official-lays-out-dod-vision-for-ai/][Pentagon Official Lays Out DOD Vision for AI]].
+Note, it's from the official website of US Department of Defense.
+
+* REDIRECTS
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+location "//blog/patlabor-the-movie//" { block return 301 "/brain-rot/patlabor/patlabor-the-movie/ }
+location "/blog/2024/andrzej-sapkowskis-time-of-contempt//" { block return 301 "/brain-rot/witcher/andrzej-sapkowskis-time-of-contempt/ }
+location "/blog/2024/persona-5-strikers//" { block return 301 "/brain-rot/persona/persona-5-strikers/ }
+location "/blog/2024/colossus-1970//" { block return 301 "/brain-rot/colossus-1970/ }
+location "/blog/2024/lawmower-man-2-1996//" { block return 301 "/brain-rot/lawnmower-man/lawmower-man-2-1996/ }
+location "/blog/2024/lawmower-man-1992//" { block return 301 "/brain-rot/witcher/andrzej-sapkowskis-time-of-contempt/ }
+location "/blog/2024/hardware-1990//" { block return 301 "/brain-rot/hardware-1990/ }
+location "/blog/2024/interesting-times//" { block return 301 "/brain-rot/discworld/interesting-times/ }
+location "blog/2024/ghost-in-the-machine/" { block return 301 "/brain-rot/ghost-in-the-machine/ }
+