Yes, yes our little site is growing up. You can now find the Nerd Vortex at www.NerdVortex.com! Tell your friends! Come as you are! We hope to bring you more fun facts and nerdy goodness in our new location. We’re sorry for the inconvienence but are exited to start a new chapter in Nerd Vortex lore!
Murdoch Mysteries
Episode #2 of the Murdoch Mysteries: The Curse of the Lost Pharaohs was short and sweet, running only two and a half minutes. After a short recap, we learn another murder has taken place. Our heroes find a hieroglyphic journal, which with some painstaking effort, is translated into english. We also meet “The Stout-Hearted Enforcer” Inspector Thomas Brakenreid. They learn that an angry deity “is coming” and find themselves face to face with something from beyond the grave.
The Verdict
The visuals of this episode were just as good as the first, and the pulp feel continues to entertain. Because of the short length, the second episode seemed a bit rushed and a little disjointed from the first. Still, I’m looking forward to some more character interaction and some twists in the murder plot.
Our Episode #3 recap will be up later this week. In the mean time, tell us what you think in the comments.
Watch Webisode #2 of The Curse of the Lost Pharaohs HERE
And so it comes to an end. Season one of Game of Thrones proved that an adaptation doesn’t need to stray too far from the source material to be an entertaining, groundbreaking and exciting series. Episode 10 brings the first chapter (well, book actually) to a close and sets up some new surprises for the next season. They gave us life (Dragons!) and death (Drogo) but what impacted us the most? Take a look at our…
Top 5 Moments of Episode 10~Fire and Blood
5. Jon Makes a Choice
Context: Jon learns of Ned’s death and Robb’s march south. He abandons his post and rides off in the middle of the night, only to be caught by Sam and the rest of his Night’s Watch posse.
Should I stay or should I go now?
Lord Commander Mormont: Honour made you leave. Honour brought you back.
Jon: My friends brought me back.
Lord Commander Mormont: I didn’t say it was your honour.
Reasoning: Another hard choice for Jon snow. Kit Harrington plays Jon with the right amount of arrogance and inner turmoil. The black brothers are truly becoming brothers. John Bradley’s Sam is perfection. James Cosmos conveys the gravitas of the threat beyond the wall. Continue reading
Are you afraid of clowns? I thought so. What about Spanish clowns? Sad clowns? Clowns in love? Machinegun wielding clowns dressed as the pope?
Not so much scared as utterly utterly confused...
Director Álex de la Iglesia’s film, The Last Circus (Balada Triste de Trompeta) seems to have all this and more. Winner of Best Screenplay and best director at the Venice Film Festival (2010) and a selection of the Toronto International Film Festival (2010), The Last Circus will be opening August 12 (2011) in select theatres. The new red-band trailer gives a taste of the chaos to come. I’m not one for copy and pasting press releases but this one is so pitch perfect I have to relay it in full. I have never, in my life, laughed so hard reading a movie synopsis.
1937, Spain is in the midst of the brutal Spanish Civil War. A “Happy” circus clown is interrupted mid-performance and forcibly recruited by a militia. Still in his costume, he is handed a machete and led into battle against National soldiers, where he single handedly massacres an entire platoon. This absurd and disturbing scenario raises the curtain on a twisted tale of love, revenge, and psychopathic clowns that could only spring from the mind of filmmaker Álex de la Iglesia.
Fast forward to 1973, the tail end of the Franco regime. Javier, the son of the clown, dreams of following in his father’s career footsteps, but has seen too much tragedy in his life – he’s simply not funny and is only equipped to play the role of the Sad Clown. He finds work in a circus where he befriends an outlandish cast of characters, but as the Sad Clown he must take the abuse of the brutish Happy Clown Sergio, who humiliates Javier daily in the name of entertainment.
It is here that he meets Natalia, a gorgeous acrobat, and abused wife of Sergio. Javier falls deeply in love with Natalia and tries to rescue her from her cruel and violent husband, unleashing Sergio’s jealousy. But Natalia is torn between her affection towards Javier and her lust for Sergio.
With neither man willing to back down, this twisted love triangle evolves into a ferocious battle between Sad Clown and Happy Clown, escalating to unbelievable heights in this absurd, shocking, irreverent and unforgettable film.
See? It’s brilliant. It’s absurd. Confusing. Ridiculous. And now I want to watch this movie. For now we’ll have to settle for the trailer. View the Red Band Trailer HERE
This film may not be for everyone but it already has the makings of a cult classic. Who knows, maybe it’ll help ease your fear of clowns…yeah…not likely.
For more information visit the Last Circus Official Site: http://www.thelastcircusmovie.com/
or Official Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/thelastcircus
(Thanks to our friends at Ginsberg / Libby for the use of the press release and image)
Episode 9 of Game of Thrones is the one book fans have been dreading since the inception of the series. It will forever be rememberd as [SPOILERS] the one where Ned dies, and everyone else pretends to be frat boys–The Night’s Watch chanting for Longclaw, the Hill Tribes chanting for the halfman, Tyrion, Shae, and Bronn playing drinking game in the middle of the night….Here are the…
Top 5 Moments of Episode 9~Baelor
5. Jorah Gets Lucky
Context: Drogo is near death after last week’s fight. One of his bloodriders does not take kindly to Dany’s use of blood-magic and threatens the Khaleesi and her unborn child. Jorah decides its time to put on his armor.
If only that sword was Longclaw...
Reasoning: Jorah Mormont is a character who never jumped off the page for me, but Iain Glen brings the disgraced knight to life. Although much of this episode’s Dany-centric plot was poorly paced (so…how far along is she?) this scene stands out. Jorah shows his skill with a sword (and with a little luck) takes down the Dothraki rider with a swift slice to the face. We also see his willingness to protect Dany, even though he’s been spying for the crown. The Dothraki might be badass, but now they know why armor is a good idea. Continue reading
Title: SEASON OF THE WITCH
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Medieval Horror/Fantasy
Cast: Nicolas Cage, Ron Perlman, Claire Foy
Geek Connection: Perlman is Hellboy. Cage named his son Kal-El
Reviewed By: NerdVortex
I Would Describe This Movie As… A generic Nicolas Cage movie dressed as a medieval epic, and quite possibly a joke on all of us.
See It If… You can’t pass up Nicolas Cage (and everyone else) attempting a half-assed British accent, want to watch something mind-numbingly silly with a bunch of drunk people, or it’s free.
Skip It If… You’re sane, hate Nicolas Cage, or can’t look past cavernous plot-holes.
Final Thought: Nicolas Cage and Ron Perlman should be in a buddy-cop movie together, like Lethal Weapon…but not nearly as good.
Final Score: 5.2/10
Murdoch Mysteries
CityTv aired their first episode of the new webseries Murdoch Mysteries: The Curse of the Lost Pharaohs, earlier this week, and as promised, the Nerd Vortex is here to review it. While I’m not usually a fan of motion comics (really animate it or keep it on the page, I always say) Curse of the Pharaohs does something a little different. The webisode jumps between live action and animation seamlessly and uses the latter to emphasize character, drama, and move through scene transitions. But, let’s take a closer look.
The Plot
The Curse of the Lost Pharaohs is a story within a story (meta!). Constable George Crabtree (Johnny Harris), the title character’s eager sidekick, writes pulp style crime fiction on the side, and these webisodes bring one of them to life. Murdoch (Yannick Bisson), Crabtree and Julia Ogden (Helene Joy) find themselves with 6 dead Egyptologists, an empty coffin, and some deadly spores. Through the 13 part series, they must find the unsavoury culprit who committed these grisly murders, and find their lost mummy (which may or may not be loose in downtown Toronto).
The Execution
The Curse of the Lost Pharaohs amps up the pulpy nature of the early penny dreadfuls. The characters are strict archetypes (and from what I gather, differ from the Murdoch Mysteries core canon). Murdoch becomes The Fearless Leader; Crabtree becomes The Stalwart Sidekick; and Dr Julia Ogden becomes The Dangerous Beauty. They use all the expectations of the genre and heighten them with sometimes silly dialogue and over dramatic readings (think a more over the top and light-hearted version of Mark Waid’s Ruse…set in Canada). The webisode also does a great job of introducing these characters. I’ve never watched Murdoch Mysteries (meant to but it just never happened) and had no trouble following along. They also morph the live action characters into their animated counterparts (a great effect) so there is no confusion.
The Verdict
Murdoch Mysteries: The Curse of the Lost Pharaohs is a fun, light-hearted, pulp experience that could be a great introduction to the world of Murdoch Mysteries. The series doesn’t take itself too seriously and plays with the genre. If you like Holmesian mystery, take 5 minutes and watch the first episode of The Curse of the Lost Pharaohs.
And did I mention the artwork is great? The artwork is great. Francis Manapul captures the perfect feel for the series.
I’ll be watching Episode 2. Let’s see if it can keep my interest.
Watch Webisode #1 of The Curse of the Lost Pharaohs HERE
