Turned Out *Almost* As I Planned

Last Friday, I wrote about my weekend plans and talked about how one should go about planning his/her end of the week break. Yes, its just a normal weekend, but as I said before, there's been one too many times that I've been sitting at my desk on Sunday night at about 9 or 9:30, wishing I'd done more with the previous 48 hours. So on Friday, I talked about my plans for the next two days.

Everything managed to turn out well, except for a couple of complications. (Hey, you can't predict a hitch or two in your plans all the time, am I right?)

Friday after work, I ran a couple errands before going home, where I played some video games and watched TV before having supper and going down to the rink, where the Conquest Merchants annihilated the Kenaston Blizzards with a score of 11-3. When I went home, I planned on staying up late and watching "The Godfather Part II" (yes, my mind had changed from the previous choice of "Heat"), but I fell asleep about 45 minutes into the film and when I awoke, the screen said "Please Insert Disc Two". I decided to call it a night after that. So that was kind of a bust. I absolutely hate it when I fall asleep out of nowhere. My mind is alert and wide awake but my body just shuts down. Some nights I'll be watching something on TV at 12:00 AM, and it'll seem like I just blinked and an hour passes! Very strange.

So, like I said on Friday, my brother Brendon and I planned on going to Saskatoon on Saturday to see a couple of movies, "Cloverfield" and "Rambo". Well, when the two of us were finally dressed and ready to go at about 11:00, we discovered the family SUV had a flat tire. So after pumping it full of air, we took it over to Outlook and got the guys at Tirecraft to fix it for $30. We were finally gone by about 1:00 PM, at which point the two of us knew we were going to miss one movie. So it came down to making a single choice. Ultimately, we decided on seeing "Cloverfield" at 3:35 at the Galaxy. Before that, we hit the Blockbuster, Superstore and Mac's Convenience. I picked up "3:10 To Yuma" at Blockbuster, as also rented "Jackass The Game" on PS2. Its fun and entertaining, worth the $9 rental price.

"Cloverfield" was really intriguing, and very different than a lot of things you would see at the multiplex. Its a monster movie taken from the POV of a small group of friends, all told through one of the friend's digital camcorders. The story was really well-written and had some great special FX. While standing in line, I noticed there was an advisory notice posted on the ticket counter that said the camera usage in the movie could trigger motion sickness. I was again told this as I bought the two tickets. Well, I really didn't buy them, as I used some of my "Scene" points that I've accumulated through my credit card to get mine and Brendon's tickets. Overall, I really liked the movie and definitely recommend it to moviegoers.

The only thing that annoyed me about it was that in all the hype and TV ads leading up to its opening, it seems the sole credit for "Cloverfield" belongs to JJ Abrams, the producer. Now, I get that he's the biggest name attached to this movie, but he didn't DIRECT it, did he? Ultimately, its the director who's vision hits the screen, not a producer's. Everywhere you look, whether its in TV spots, magazine ads, or posters, the Paramount executives make it seem like "Cloverfield" was made possible entirely by Abrams, and not the work of the writer and director. As an aspiring filmmaker myself, this frustrates me to no end. Why do the big studios think a certain movie needs a known name at the top of its ads as a producer? The film ITSELF isn't enough to get the interest of the audience? Take "Hostel", for example. Would that film have made $20 million opening weekend if Quentin Tarantino didn't have his name stamped at the top of the posters and ads for it? I don't think so. He even had his name attached to the sequel and that bombed last summer.

I know this may seem like just another one of my opinionated rants, but at least this is one that I have an emotional investment in. If I'm lucky enough to break into Hollywood, I'm not going to beg Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, or Martin Scorsese to pretend to produce just so my movie will make $20-25 million on opening weekend. The film, its actors, its writing, and its direction should be good enough, and if not, then too bad. So I just want to say that MATT REEVES, the director of "Cloverfield", did a Hell of a job and really made something unique and different.

Anyway, after the movie, we grabbed supper from The Peking restaurant and headed home, where we once again whisked off to the rink, this time to see the Merchants come THIS CLOSE to beating Delisle in a 3-2 shootout. Great game, and Conquest has really brought their A-game recently. At home, I once again tried watching "The Godfather Part II", but AGAIN fell asleep! So pretty much the second I woke up on Sunday morning, I threw it in the DVD player again and this time, finished it. My conclusion? The first one is still the best.

Sunday night I ordered the WWE Royal Rumble on PPV. The show didn't disappoint, and the two World Championship matches were great and really told a story. The Rumble itself was surprising and ended in a shock, as John Cena returned as #30 and threw Triple H out last to win it. WWE kept everyone in the dark about Cena's return, as it was widely believed he was going to be out of action until after Wrestlemania 24, leading into April. But I guess he rehabbed pretty hard and returned months early. Now as most people know, I'm not a Cena fan. I think he's overexposed, overrated, and that the WWE shoves him down our throats way too often. As well, he has never shown me that he can actually WRESTLE, and by that I mean a marathon chain-wrestling match with a lot of technicality and submission moves. Cena's arsenal includes a sloppy-looking side powerbomb, a fistdrop, an STFU hold, and a modified fireman's carry. Compared to the greats such as Bret Hart, Mr. Perfect, The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Triple H and The Undertaker, this guy is just a backyard wrestler! Regardless of my feelings for his abilities, the crowd in MSG went nuts for his surprise return, even if they booed him shortly after. When he won the whole thing, my thoughts were that the WWE just wanted to end the show on a surprise note and it was something to get people talking.

Here are the quick results of the 2008 Royal Rumble...

1. Ric Flair vs. MVP: This was a Career Threatening match for Flair, as the current storyline is that the next match he loses, he will be forced to retire. This was a solid opener; short and sweet and made both guys look good. It ended about 7 minutes in, and the crowd at Madison Square Garden gave Flair a rousing ovation after he made MVP tap out to the figure four. WINNER: Ric Flair by submission at 7:00
2. JBL vs. Chris Jericho: I didn't expect this one to end cleanly at all. I knew it was going to be a messy ending because this feud will likely continue. Jericho looked strong against the bigger JBL, and after getting busted open, this match began telling a good story between these two, as the blood poured down Jericho's face like a broken faucet. It ended with Y2J cracking JBL with a chair, getting disqualified, but he could've cared less, beating on JBL and ending his assault by wrapping a TV cable around his neck and pulling, coming out of this battle as the last man standing. I fully expect to see more out of this feud, because there's some potential there. WINNER: JBL by disqualification at 10:00
3. World Heavyweight Title Match, Edge (C) vs. Rey Mysterio: This was my favorite match of the night. All too often, Smackdown is overlooked and all the attention is given to Raw, but there's no denying that Smackdown's roster knows how to put on a fantastic performance and tell a great in-ring story, which is what this match did. The underdog Mysterio was actually booed for much of this match, and the "bad guy" Edge cheered. The World Heavyweight Champion is one of my all-time favorites and I was also cheering him myself, but I've always had a respect for the smaller Mysterio, who hit some very impressive moves, including a somersault plancha over the top rope to the floor and a tornado DDT off the ring apron. Edge played the role of the animalistic opportunist as his usual self, focusing on Rey's injured leg and countering several high-risk moves, such as turning a 619 attempt into a powerslam. In the end, Smackdown General Manager Vickie Guerrero sacrificed herself and took a 619 instead of Edge, and Mysterio looked down at her in confusion. When he then tried launching at Edge with a senton splash, the World Champ speared him in mid-flight and pinned him to retain the Title.
WINNER: Edge by pinfall at about 15:00, retains the World Heavyweight Title
4. WWE Championship Match, Randy Orton (C) vs. Jeff Hardy: This was no doubt the most heated rivalry heading into the PPV, as the feud between these two really got the fans into anticipating this match, which didn't disappoint. Hardy was especially impressive and has definitely picked up his A-game in recent months. If he stays on the path he's on right now, there's definitely some World Championship gold in his future. Orton played the heel Champion role well, as he always does, hitting cheap shots, trying to maim Hardy and keep him grounded. Jeff hit some impressive moves near the end of the match, including a moonsault to the arena floor that nearly knocked both guys out. Back in the ring, Hardy went for a Twist of Fate, but Orton countered into the RKO with lightning-quick speed for the win. The match served both men well; it made Hardy look like a strong contender for the Title for the next long while, and helped Orton keep the image of the Champion who narrowly escapes defeat. I can't wait to see these two go at it again.
WINNER: Randy Orton by pinfall at about 17:00, retains the WWE Championship
5. The Royal Rumble Match: The annual over-the-top battle royal began with The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels, the same two men who were the final two in last year's Rumble. From there, a new superstar entered the match every 90 seconds. This one was exciting and very hard to predict who was gonna win, especially when Michaels and The Undertaker were eliminated at nearly the same time. As mentioned earlier, John Cena returned out of nowhere and won it by throwing HHH out, which nobody saw coming. I guess that was the point in the first place, but I don't see the logic. I also don't like the fact that Cena was welcomed back into that comfy main-event status mere moments after returning. Far as I'm concerned, he should've been demoted to an upper card feud at best and worked his way back up to World Title contender status. But the suits in the office like his marketability so right back in the Title picture he goes. I say Batista should've won it, and kudos to him for lasting the longest in the match itself.
WINNER: John Cena last eliminates Triple H at about 56:00

Anyway, its back to work now, and thinking about next weekend's plans. Fortunately, they're coming sooner than most times because I stayed home from work yesterday because of this horrible weather we're having. -50 with the wind chill, can you believe it?!?

Still, tomorrow's already Wednesday and it'll be Friday again before you know it.

Keep 'em laughin',
Derek