Franz Kafka. You’ve probably heard the name before at the very least, even if you haven’t read any of his works. Kafka is regarded today as one of the most influential writers of the 20th Century, writing a large collection of short stories alongside several novellas such as The Metamorphosis and The Trial. Kafka’s writing…
The 2001 film A.I: Artificial Intelligence, is a fascinating, if flawed film. What the film does have in spades is memorable set pieces. In one such example, the robot boy David and his robot friend Gigolo Joe (Haley Joel Osment and Jude Law respectively) fly across a flooded Manhattan, the abandoned skyscrapers jutting out of…
In 1973, the Cold War entered a new phase. In Chile, the democratically elected President, Salvador Allende, was overthrown by a military coup led by General Augusto Pinochet. The coup was sponsored by the United States government, with the approval of Richard Nixon. Overnight, 41 years of democratic rule in Chile was ended. The military…
2001: A Space Odyssey is still what I would consider to be one of the best films of all time. Despite the fact that the futuristic universe 2001 imagined has never come, it has an unrivalled aesthetic, soundtrack, and style which remains second-to-none. The special effects, impressive beyond anything seen before in 1968 are still…
There’s nothing like being trapped on an inhospitable alien world with no hope of rescue to really get the blood pumping. At least, that what I’d believe; surely it would be incredibly stressful? Morningstar: Descent to Deadrock begs to differ. When the small spacecraft Morningstar crash lands mysteriously on the planet Deadrock its surviving crew…
I love The Curse of Monkey Island. It’s easily one of my all-time favourite games. However, there’s always been a reference in it that I’ve been missing out on until this year. When walking into Blondebeard’s Chicken Shoppe on Plunder Island, there is someone sitting at a table labelled as a “quiet patron.” This skeletal…
I like Bill Murray. I said it. He’s a funny guy. He’s great in Ghostbusters, excellent in Lost in Translation, and pretty amazing in Rushmore. But one film of his I will always come back to is Groundhog Day. Murray’s portrayal of irritable, arrogant weatherman Phil Connors trapped in a time loop on February 2nd,…
In the city where I work, there’s a branch of a store called Games Workshop. I must confess that I’ve never set foot inside it. Games Workshop kind of terrifies me. I’ve heard of Warhammer, but it’s never something I’ve tried or known how to get into. There are levels of geekdom beyond my own…
As our own British gentleman and exemplar contributing writer, it’s Gareth Brading’s job to open up our top picks of 2014 with his own list of games that spiked his interest during the year. Without further ado… Game of the Year Best Multiplayer – Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft The best game I played this year is…
The word “Miami” conjures many thoughts in the mind. Many will immediately think of Miami Vice, the 1980’s, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Hotline Miami and all that jazz. But before it all, there was just a small sleepy town in the Everglades. Then, in the early 1920s and has happened in our recent past,…
