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By Richard Hamilton, September 29, 2008 7:18 pm

Another one of my childhood TV staples has been resurrected. Despite the absence of the Hoff, Mr. Feenie’s voice and the Trans Am. In spite of the terrible two-hour made for TV movie. Against all odds, I managed to be excited about the return of Knight Rider as a series. I know that puts me in the vast minority or TV viewers, but I was truly excited.

Let’s dispense with the bad news first. The dialogue was cheesy, the plot was thin, and most of the characters were forgettable. No one should be surprised by this; I know I wasn’t. The same criticisms could be launched against the original show, (along with 99% of shows form the 80’s for that matter). Face it. Options were limited. Americans were bored. The car was cool. We still watched. Today, however, this is a much graver crime.

I also thought some of the effects were thin in this new Knight Rider. KITT jumps?? Not well. And the napalm-like bomb…what was that all about?

And I’m not sold on the new storyline either. Michael Knight’s “estranged” son, Mike Traceur, played by former soap star Justin Bruening, lost part of his memory in Iraq. (Apparently not the how to kick butt part.) His past comes back to haunt him in the middle of a mission and his FBI watchdog fakes his death. Of course, he now takes on his dad’s name (that seems like a good cover) and returns to the covert business of international hardcore-ness.

Now, I’m not a prude, but the sexuality of this episode seemed a little forced and unnecessary. Okay, a lot forced and not at all necessary to move the story along. I guess they thought that would attract a few more views.

With all of that out of the way, the good stuff. KITT looked good. The Cobra was tough. The transformations were great (even the truck…it was all very slick). I’m looking into getting an attack-mode kit for the Volvo.

I haven’t given up hope; you can’t judge a series by its premiere (we can collectively agree to ignore the two-hour “special,” can’t we? and pretend this was the very first we had seen of this new Knight Rider). Honestly though, NBC needs to kick Knight Rider up a notch. Today’s audience won’t tolerate shallow characters, cheesy dialogue, and meandering plots…at least not for long. Just ask disenchanted Lost fans. Let’s be open-minded and give it a few episodes and see where Knight Rider takes us.

I wonder how Germans feel about Justin?

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By Richard Hamilton, July 9, 2008 3:12 pm

Of all the big movies out in theaters right now, you may be asking why I am reviewing a Disney flick that is out on DVD. Well. Mainly because I haven’t seen Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Indiana Jones, or Get Smart. These are all on my list, but between my 4 month old, the job search and doing a week of camp, I haven’t been to the theater in a long time. I have been watching a lot of rented movies since we don’t have cable anymore (long story).

So, back to National Treasure 2.

If I were to say I was disappointed, that would imply I had high expectations. I should probably lead with the fact that I don’t like Nicholas Cage. Somehow, he seems to land great roles in great films, but I’m not a fan. The writing was flat. The plot was predictable. The story was weird.

That being said. If you liked National Treasure, you probably like National Treasure 2. It was a fun way to waste 124 minutes.

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By Richard Hamilton, July 6, 2007 2:56 pm

Transformers was on the top of my “Must See” list of summer movies. I have been a fan of Transformers (primarily the cartoon) since my childhood.

For those of you not familiar with the Transformers franchise, I will give a brief history. In 1984, a line of toys was launched. To promote these new toys, they also started TV Cartoon and Comic Book series. I was four when this happened, and it was a significant childhood cultural phenomenon. The basic idea thought behind the toys and accompanying series involved alien robots who disguising themselves as earth machines, some bent on destroying humanity (the Decepticons), others on protecting it (the Autobots). Transformers had so much commercial success, other companies began importing similar toys into the US.

The Cartoon series ended in here 1987.

Needless to say, I was excited to hear Transformers would be on film.

The visual effects lived up to the hype. The bots looked amazing! The interplay between CGI and live actors was great. This film brought the cartoon to life. There were even a few tidbits of consistency with the original series thrown in for the geeks watching the film. For instance, Bumblebee (originally a VW Bug, who got a much needed overhaul and is a Camaro in the recent film) was still the first Autobot to encounter humans. The film also did a decent job filling in some of the blanks. Why do these alien robots look like common vehicles on earth? They have the ability to analyze and replicate machines they encounter, of course. The only drawback to the film was the goofy dialogue and predictable plot, minor inconveniences. The film was shot with a extremely dramatic feel, which the storyline just did not deliver.

The film came out the week of the Forth of July and scored nearly $153 million that week alone. But should you see it? There is a lot of violence (albeit digital robot violence), some strong language, and sexual tension between the leading actor and actress. It is rated PG-13 for a reason. I do not recommend you take your young children to see Transformers. But, any respectable child of the 80’s or Comic/Si-Fi/Action fan should check it out before it leaves the theaters.

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By Richard Hamilton, January 17, 2007 10:29 pm

Sony launched their latest gaming system with promises of revolutionizing the industry. With a host of new features (massive hard drive, wireless controllers, and a user friendly interface) and improved game play the future seemed bright. Lines of faithful geeks and hopeful parents camped out at their local Best Buy or Circuit City waiting to get their hands on the future of video gaming.

This hype was short-lived.

According to the research group NPD, this past November, prime Christmas shopping time, Sony sold less than half as many PS3s than Nintendo sold Wiis and Microsoft sold year old Xbox 360s. Sales have not fared well to date. Two factors fueled this tech-fizzle: 1) the overextended price point and 2) impotent technology. The two are related. Between research, development, and production, the Blu-Ray drives tack on a hefty price to the PS3. Much of this cost was passed on to the consumer. To make matters worse, Sony has not been able to conquer the Blu-Ray technology for gaming application, effectively turning the PS3 into a big, over-priced PS2. Throw in the mix the limited number of features available on Blu Ray, and Sony has a costly disaster on their hands.

Is there a future for Sony? There will always be a spot for Sony in the gaming industry. There will need to be some delivery on the hype the next go around. How about for the PS3? Is there any hope? If the Blu-Ray technology becomes useful, or if Hollywood settles on Blu-Ray over HD (which seems unlikely), PS3 has a chance. But these advances need to come soon. If Sony does not get the inks worked out of their Blu Ray, you can always convert the system into a grill (no joke, check out therealps3grill.com)