Poetry: "There's A Chill In The Air"

Poetry: There's A Chill In The Air" Version 1: A Work in Progress

There's a Chill in the Air

But I really don't care

I've protected my hair

Like a thermal-clothed Bear

I sit inside in my chair

I go outside when I dare

Life isn't so fair

If you easily scare

Know what to wear

It does little good if you swear...

Poetry: "No Internet in Heaven"

Poetry: "No Internet in Heaven" A work in progress

If there's no internet in Heaven

Then I don't want to go

If the other place has the net I'd gladly go below.

With how cruel and unjust our world is

God's existence is in doubt

The so-called 'Father' of all things seems to be a cold, unfeeling lout...

Sci-Fi Bri's Movies: "The Crazies"

Sci-Fi Bri's Movies: "The Crazies"

Characters/Actors: Dave (Timothy Olyphant), Judy (Radha "Melinda and Melinda" Mitchell, etc.

In the small midwestern town of Ogden Marsh, Iowa, soon after a military plane crashes into the water supply the people who live near that water start to go murderously crazy. The sheriff (Timothy Olyphant) and his pregnant, local physician wife (Radha Mitchell) must deal with the normal citizens going crazy and mysterious military people in hazard suits before they and the whole town are destroyed. Watch for the car wash scene. Based on a much earlier movie of the same name by George Romero ( Director of the original "Night of the Living Dead", etc.) who also was one of the producers of this film. Could be one of the best horror movies of 2010.

Sci-Fi Bri's Last Minute Oscar Picks

Sci-Fi Bri's Last Minute Oscar Picks

This year there are ten movies nominated for Best Picture. I haven't seen all of them, but some deserve to be nominated more than others do. I will only make picks for the categories I have seen.

Best animated film: "Up" , about a grumpy old man (Ed Asner) who makes his home into a giant hot air balloon and travels a long way with a young stowaway. The movie was also nominated for Best Picture, but it is very unlikely to win against the likes of the Box Office juggernaut "Avatar" (with about $2 billion plus in ticket sales worldwide) or the critical darling "The Hurt Locker".

Best Director: Katharine Bigalow, James Cameron's ex BTW, is almost a sure thing for "The Hurt Locker" about American Bomb Squad members serving in Iraq. James Cameron arguably could win for "Avatar", but he has won before and the Academy has snubbed the fairer sex for too long. Quentin Tarentino perhaps deserves a nod for "Inglourious Basterds", but he has no chance in hell.

Best Supporting Actor: I haven't seen all the movies in this category, but if Christoph Waltz doesn't win for his portrayal of an urbane Nazi then something is very wrong.

Best Supporting Actress: Again, I haven't seen all the movies in this category, but of the ones I have seen Maggie Gyllenhaal is the best performance as a single mother/ journalist who gets involved with an aging country musician in "Crazy Heart".

Best Actor: I haven't seen every single movie in this category, but if Jeff Bridges fails to win as an aging, broken down country singer then the winner won't truly deserve the award.

Best Actress: I have seen only four of the movies in this category. The most likely to win is Sandra Bullock as a Southern Matriarch who takes in a hard luck African-American boy who later becomes an NFL star. Meryl Streep could possibly win in her role as Julia Child in "Julie and Julia". Less likely to win are Carey Mulligan in "An Education" as a young woman seduced by a much older man, and Helen Mirren as Leo Tolstoy's histrionic wife in "The Last Station" though both performances were excellent.

Best Picture: I have seen eight out of the ten movies in this category. Most of these movies were really good, but it is debatable if all of the films deserve to be lauded as possible Best Picture. The most likely to win are "Avatar" and "The Hurt Locker". A lot of critics are going with "The Hurt Locker". While "The Hurt Locker" is an excellent movie with a low budget, I am going with "Avatar" as Best Picture. If "Avatar" wins expect a lot more movies to be made with stratospheric budgets bigger than the Gross National Product of most nations. I chose "Avatar" because I could watch it over and over again and never get tired of it.

Sci-Fi Bri's Movies: "The Blind Side"

Sci-Fi Bri's Movies: "The Blind Side"

Characters/Actors: Michael Oher aka Big Mike ?, Leigh-Ann Tuoy (Sandra Bullock), Tim McGraw, etc.

Based on a true story. A large black boy named Michael Oher but referred to as "Big Mike" with questionable academic ability who has lived a difficult life gets admitted to a prestigious Christian school based on his athletic ability. His academic potential leaves a lot to be desired. Soon after attending the school, Big Mike gets kicked out of his foster family's home. His biological mother is a drug addict, so she isn't much help to him. Leigh-Ann Tuoy, the matriarch of an affluent white family takes pity on Big Mike and she lets him sleep on her couch. Her husband (Tim McGraw) , who owns nearly one hundred fast food restaurants, is none-too-thrilled about the arrangement at first. Before long though, Bib Mike becomes part of the family. Leigh-Ann is a little pushy, but she has a good heart. With Leigh-Ann's help, Michael Oher becomes successful on both the athletic field and to a lesser extent in the classroom. Oher, after a rusty start, does so well at high school football that he has the choice of attending almost any college he desires. There is a brief investigation by a semi-heartless NCAA investigator about possible improper recruitment by certain college football coaches, though. In real-life, Oher was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens (an NFL team) in 2009. I've seem a lot of similar uplifting sports movies. Sandra Bullock was excellent as Leigh-Ann Tuoy and she received a well-deserved Best Actress nomination.

Poetry: "The incantation"

Poetry: "The Incantation"

Poison wafting in the air

You can smell it if you dare

You'll be lying on the ground

Dying or dead without a sound.

Sci-Fi Bri's Movies: "The Wolfman"

Sci-Fi Bri's Movies: "The Wolfman" (2010)

Characters/Actors: Lawrence Talbot ( Benicio ["The Usual Suspects,etc.] Del Toro), Sir John Talbot ( Anthony ["Hannibal Lecter] Hopkins), Gwen (Emily Blunt), Aberline (Hugo ["The Matrix"] Weaving), etc.

In this reimagining of the 1941 original, Lawrence Talbot, a professional actor, returns to Blackmoor near London, England in the mid-1800s to attend the burial of his only brother. His brother Ben was mutilated by a murderous creature. He was about to marry a beautiful young woman. Soon after the funeral, Lawrence is attacked by the same creature, a werewolf, but he survives the vicious attack. In a Gypsy village, an old Gypsy woman saves Talbot's life, even though she knows there is no cure for the bite except a silver bullet. At the full moon, Talbot becomes a wolfman and cannot control the ravenous beast he becomes until the moon is no longer full. It turns out that a werewolf killed his mother, and caused him to leave his place of birth until another attack results in him coming back. His father, Sir John Talbot knows a lot more than he should about what is happening to his son. The identity of his attacker is closer to him than he expects. Also, Lawrence is starting to fall in love with his late brother's one-time fiance' (Emily Talbot). Perhaps the most disturbing part of the movie was when misguided psychiatrists attempt to barbarically 'cure' Lawrence's supposed "Lycanthropy Delusion" by way of proto-psychiatric treatment (dipping Talbot in a vat of ice water, etc.) Hugo Weaving was pretty intense as a Scotland Yard detective who becomes a zealous werewolf hunter. Quite good, but hard to say if superior to the Lon Chaney version.