After nearly two years, H and I finally got out to see a movie in a theater. Instead of jumping into something heavy, we decided for lighter fare: The Pirates! Band of Misfits (In the rest of the English speaking world, where they are not afraid of science, the subtitle is Adventures with Scientists.
It is an Ardman claymation film. Ardman are the people who created Wallace and Grommet, Chicken Run, and Sean the Sheep. As one would expect from Ardman, the film looks incredible. I am always amazed at how detailed and lush their films look. The characters are amazingly expressive. They have facial expressions, body postures, and movements that are, in some cases, even more expressive than what you can get from a human actor. The backgrounds were equally detailed. Some of them are digital, but they all flow together seamlessly. We saw it in 2D and I cannot see how 3D would do anything to improve the visuals. It would probably detract from the experience by being a distraction.
The story was OK. It had a good number of laughs and a wicked portrayal of Queen Elizabeth. Overall, it is a pretty standard issue story for a family movie. The writing will appeal to kids and adults alike. H felt like the first part of the movie dragged a bit, but I didn't mind the beginning at all.
The most impressive thing about the movie was the craftsmanship. It was clearly made by people who care about turning out high quality products. The movie was years in the making and it shows. It is a stark contrast to a lot of the poop that studios crank out simply for a buck. If you want to support quality, skip Transformers, John Carter, G. I. Joe and all of the cookie cutter romance movies spit out from the Sparks factory, and see Pirates!.
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Friday, May 4, 2012
Habenaros
For H's birthday we got a sitter and did "adult" things: eat, drink, and see a movie. Our initial plan was to eat at Bison County, but H wanted to go to Tempo. Tempo is closed on Sundays....
Then we remembered that there was a new Mexican place, Habenaros, on the corner of Moody and Newton. We were initially skeptical that it would be any good since most of the restaurants that have occupied the space were take out joints that lasted about six months.
We felt adventurous and checked out the menu. The menu looked good and the insides made it clear that the joint was a sit down eatery. We decided to take the risk. Bad Mexican food is still pretty decent. It is hard to totally ruin.
The first thing we did was checkout the drink menu. It was fairly standard save for one thing: infused tequila. The take top shelf tequila and add in fresh cut fruits and other things to add a twist to the flavor. We decided on Margaritas with infused tequila. H went with a peach and I went with a spicy jalapeño, mango. They were both yummy. The infusions were subtle and added to the drink without radically altering the basic flavor.
The food was basic, but good. We got nachos with chicken, mole chicken enchiladas, and a vegetable burrito. The nachos were the most interesting thing we got. The chicken was grilled over an open flame and had a little bit of a kick. The enchiladas and the burrito were both excellent, but basically what you would expect from a high end Mexican restaurant.
The prices were pretty reasonable. We managed to get out for around $50. I felt it was reasonable for two top shelf drinks, an appetizer, and two entrées.
I would definitely go back.
Then we remembered that there was a new Mexican place, Habenaros, on the corner of Moody and Newton. We were initially skeptical that it would be any good since most of the restaurants that have occupied the space were take out joints that lasted about six months.
We felt adventurous and checked out the menu. The menu looked good and the insides made it clear that the joint was a sit down eatery. We decided to take the risk. Bad Mexican food is still pretty decent. It is hard to totally ruin.
The first thing we did was checkout the drink menu. It was fairly standard save for one thing: infused tequila. The take top shelf tequila and add in fresh cut fruits and other things to add a twist to the flavor. We decided on Margaritas with infused tequila. H went with a peach and I went with a spicy jalapeño, mango. They were both yummy. The infusions were subtle and added to the drink without radically altering the basic flavor.
The food was basic, but good. We got nachos with chicken, mole chicken enchiladas, and a vegetable burrito. The nachos were the most interesting thing we got. The chicken was grilled over an open flame and had a little bit of a kick. The enchiladas and the burrito were both excellent, but basically what you would expect from a high end Mexican restaurant.
The prices were pretty reasonable. We managed to get out for around $50. I felt it was reasonable for two top shelf drinks, an appetizer, and two entrées.
I would definitely go back.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)