Blade Runner 2049, Movie Review

Blade Runner 2049 is the long anticipated sequel to one of the founding stories of the cyberpunk setting. There is enough written about this movie already that there is nothing I can say that would change a person's thoughts on whether they should see this film or not.

First guideline: If you saw the first Blade Runner from 1982 and liked it, you will like this. And, the opposite applies.

I am a longtime fan of the story. Instead of going into the movie which has had thousands of reviews written about by now I am going to go more into the storyline and what I think this does for the entirety of what we have.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick is where this story starts. I recommend that if you are a fan of the movies that you get the book and read it. (It has been retitled Blade Runner: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?) The introduction of Deckard, and the futuristic world he lives in is presented there and so many of the so much backstory is given that is used as a backdrop to both movies.

The first movie did a great job of taking the story and presenting it in such a way as to enhance the universe the story is set in. There is a lot of thematic elements in the book that are touched on in the movies. So many of the ideas I have heard people discuss about the original movie and now in the second. What I found interesting about so many of the people I have listened in on is how many of them haven't read the book.

I don't want to go in and rehash the arguments. Just let me say, the book is worth reading and it doesn't take away from the movies. It also applies the other way around, the movies don't take away from the book.

The original Blade Runner takes the basis of the story and gives it a great application to the new media. I know there is never going to be a perfect adaptation between a movie and the written word, no matter which came first. Where the book delves into the thoughts feelings and other aspects that books are good at, the movie dove into the visual media that they are good at.

Now we come to the latest installment of the story. Thirty five years have passed since the first movie. And I give the production kudos for not remaking the original story, or deciding on doing a prequel. Instead they decided to move the story forward.

There is a thirty-five year gap that events have occurred in that are hinted at in the movie (there are some shorts done to tell about that time which fans will want to see, if they haven't already). The story picks up there. The world has changed (just like ours have changed over the last thirty five years), and the lack of stagnation felt good. I have seen other stories where they present a break in the timeline with updating the storyline and it doesn't feel right. This passage of time felt right.

Blade Runner 2049 keeps the feel and the look of the original Blade Runner. The times are dark, society is struggling, and we are still in the greater Los Angeles area. There is information given about what is happening out in space and we get a look at Las Vegas. But, the story stays focused in location.

A long with location, they keep the story focused on the same major themes being played out in the original Blade Runner. We are still trying to determine what it means to be alive, and in love. Is it something that we can create and control, or is it something that is greater and beyond us as a race. These themes about life are carried beyond the human race, as was done in the book and the first movie.

I have always felt the book and first movie were full of philosophy. And, the latest installment carries that discussion forward.

There is also the underlying theme of power, and the controlling of another person's life. The theme is played out, but it is the characterizations in the latest movie that cause me to not give Blade Runner 2049 the full on top score a movie can get. I felt our villain, Niander Wallace, was presented as a two-dimensional character.

Every character needs to have depth and give a why as to them taking the actions they take. Niander tells us he wants power to control a slave race so he, and thus humans, can expand through the stars. Okay. But, I might have missed something, but I was left asking, "why?" He is given to show acts of evil by killing a newborn replicant and a minion, along with having a minion kill police officers because they could. This came across as being a shallow portrayal. Even the K's boss, Joshi, showed more depth as an antagonist to the story than Niander.

This leads me to question what is in store for future films. There have been statements of interest in doing another movie. It is unclear of which direction the movie would go in, but I would like to think that it will be handled in a similar fashion as the three books that were written by K.W. Jeter after the first movie to work on reconciling the differences between the Dick's book and the original movie. For those interested the books are titled Blade Runner 2: The Edge of Human, Blade Runner 3: Replicant Night, and Blade Runner 3: Eye and Talon.

Overall

Blade Runner 2049 is a three hour epic that continues a story into the future first presented by Philip K. Dick. It is a dark portrayal into a possible future where humans, as a race, have decimated ourselves and trying to deal with the problems we have created. The acting, directing, writing, cinematography, soundtrack, etc. all work to keep the storyline going.

I give Blade Runner 2049 4 out of 5.

Also submitted to Utah Geek Magazine.

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The Dark City Hork; The Oozing Eye Tribe

Orc King by Mananedo on Deviant Art

In some of the lowest levels of the city of Hork, on the edge of the tunnels leading into the darker realms of the underdark, the Oozing Eye Tribe is in control. It's a dangerous area for anyone to be found without permission. Although they are believed to be the smallest of the controlling tribes of the city, they have long reaching influence inside and outside the city.

The leader of the tribe, Kruckak, has been following the same path the leaders of his tribe have followed since the city was taken away from the dwarves. Instead of vying against the other orc tribes for power within the city, the Oozing Eye has been building power outside of the city, and using that reach to influence the darker corners within.

By counting their tribal members who are working and living in other areas of the underdark and on the surface, the Oozing Eye may be one of the larger tribes. Their presence, or ambassadors, in a number of these other cities or racial communities has increased their power in ways other tribes don't know about.  One of their strongest connections is with a community of Illithid who live in the caverns deep below the city. Another is a smaller drow city to the north of Hork. They also have a hidden enclave in the surface city to the East. The Oozing Eye also maintains connections with a number of other smaller locations through the caverns and across the surface.

This has led to supplying the city of Hork, by working with smugglers, the black markets, and guilds, with many goods the residents have come to enjoy. One of the smuggling operation is the group moving goods through The Squeeze. Other operations are located throughout the city, and even inside some of the ruling tribes. When an orc find themselves owning something valuable and recognizable the connections of the Oozing Eye provides the opportunity for them to earn some gold and be rid of the dangerous prize.

Kruckack knows about the operations, but, by choice, he doesn't know the full depth of them. He represents his tribe on the Kings' Council and the lack of knowledge of the extent of the clans operations is a layer of protection for himself and his tribe. He uses his position within the council to gather information helpful in their smuggling operations (like when tribes are disputing boundaries). Also, if there is one of their operations being threatened by political activity, he uses his position to divert or distract the tribal kings.

Working with the Illithid

The working relation with the illithid has been beneficial to the Oozing Eye. The illithid have given the tribe support in defending themselves and hiding their operation. In the other direction the tribe has been providing the illithid with slaves, food, and a route into the city or into other locations they are working in.

Illithid from Forgotten Realms

The mind flayers have not openly shown interest in the orc city. Instead they use it as a point of rest between the human city and their own home. This works well for the orc tribe. The illithid prefer to travel through the city wit while attracting as little attention as possible.

The tribe understands the illithid are working towards their own end, even if the orcs don't know what that is. For the orcs, the relationship has been profitable and advantageous, and that is enough. They figure the risk is worth what they've been getting. They've also taken a number of precautions to protect themselves from the abilities of the mind flayers where they think it is most advantageous to do so.

The illithid understand the Oozing Eye is providing a service for them they could probably do on their own. It is easier though to have the orcs doing the work of which a lower race should be doing. Every mind flayer in the city has some level of connection to the lower community, and thus, the Oozing Eye. They help the tribe only as a means of protecting themselves.

Working with the Drow

The Oozing Eye has set up an enclave and trading outpost just outside the nearby drow city. The orcs supply mostly surface goods to the drow, which has been profitable for the tribe. The surface items the orcs selling have a high social status attached to them in the drow community and they are willing to pay well for them.

The trading enclave is in a cave complex that is well protected by the orcs and only those who have demonstrated a level of personal control are allowed to work there. The positions are prized because of the amount of bonus pay the orcs at the enclave earn. However, the location isn't without risk since the drow consider the orcs to be so far below them and orcs who have wandered off on their own, or even in too small of a group, never return home.

The Oozing Eye has also helped the drow gain access to the city to spy on the tribes and other activities. Along with the normal diplomatic channels the dark elves have with the city leadership, they have spies gathering information through non-diplomatic channels.

Working on the surface

The other end of the orc trade route from the drow and illithid is the surface city to the East. This location is more clandestine than any of their other operations. The tribe has lost more members to the humans, elves, and dwarves of the surface in the city than any other location.

In the surface city the orcs work through one of the thieves guilds. The orcs are in the role of smugglers and black market merchants. They are providing goods from Hork, the illithid, drow, and other locations. Even though many of the items aren't considered illegal, the city has made it illegal to trade with the "monstrous races."  

Sturrgot of the Oozing Eye

Sturrgot is one of the leading merchants/smugglers of the Oozing Eye tribe. He has travelled the underdark tunnels for years and knows his routes intimately. Along with the main trade routes, Sturrgot knows many back routes to get into places without being seen coming and going.

Sturrgot has also created a number of safe havens where he can hide between the cities. Because of his capabilities he's trusted by the tribe to transport high profit items: living and non-living. He also has his own clients which the tribe doesn't know about.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

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Muse, Movie Review

Muse hints in its title at a high level to what the story is about. A struggling artist finds his muse, and in so doing rises quickly in the ranks of the southern California art scene. What the title doesn't tell you is the story doesn't retell the more common known story of the Greek muses. Instead it delves into the mythology of Ireland.

The story in Musegoes into deeper details of the overarching conflict between the blessing and the curse of finding your talent—finding your muse

Adam (Riley Egan) finds his muse. His work takes on a new emotional level he didn't have before. Their relationship grows, along with his fame. But, there is a price because an Irish Muse, Leannan Si, is a jealous creature willing to defend their love from anything that would take them away.

As Adam's fame grows a love interest begins to compete with the Leannan Si, at which point the artist must make a decision.

By going to Irish mythology this story takes unexpected twists. Choices come with greater consequences and Adam's choices will affect others.

SETTING

Adam's studio/home, along with the surrounding area, does a great job of portraying the life of a struggling artist in the Los Angeles art scene. It builds what he is facing in his life and career.

The spaces used developed the story without needing the characters to be present. There was as much of the story being told with the location and layout of the rooms and the camera work as by the acting and the dialogue.

STORYLINE

Museuses intriguing story arcs. I enjoyed the fact that we were being introduced to something outside of Greek mythology. There were a couple of points I felt were weaker and took away from the overall storytelling of the film.

The introductory sequence introduces us to the muse, but we don't know it until later. What we are given is an introduction to a supernatural creature with the capability of dealing destruction. Although it ties in later, the introduction felt disjointed from the rest of the story and the connection to the artist felt forced.

The other part that bothered me was a period of conversation to explain a Leannan Si. I'm sure this was information many people would need about a different mythology they are not used to hearing about. I felt much of the information had already been presented in earlier scenes and the additional information could have been covered in less of a maid and butler setting.

Acting

The lead actor, Riley Egan (nominated for Best Actor) sold the role of being the struggling artist. I'm sure it didn't hurt he knew how to paint, and, therefore, able to portray painting in a realistic manner. He presented himself not only struggling financially, but as a person struggling in social settings. He gave a performance reflecting his character's arc. At first, he showed the lack of confidence. Then, through the help of his muse, he gained the confidence to do incredible actions—many people would never dream of doing.

Elle Evans (nominated for Best Supporting Actress) plays his muse. She also gave a wonderful performance in a role which had its own difficulties: she has no lines. She successfully creates a performance telling her story without words. She also wonderfully represents her story arc of a creature of need.

Together, the two actors carry the audience forward in the story without the need of words.

Overall

I saw Museat the 2017 FilmQuest Film Festival. It was nominated for five awards: Best Actor (Riley Egan), Best Supporting Actress (Elle Evans), Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, and Best Score. It was written and directed by John Burr. Additional cast included Kate Mansi and Lou Ferrigno, Jr. Muse comes from the USA and runs 88 minutes.

Museis a horror movie with an overture of sexuality. There is nudity and sexual situations. There is gore and splatter. There are decisions of embracing the darkness of the circumstance to create fame. This would get an R rating.

All of this comes together to tell a story with a twist. Even with the points mentioned above, this is a horror movie worth seeing.

I give Muse3 ½ out of 5.

Museis currently on the film festival circuit.

This article is submitted to Utah Geek Magazine.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

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Diani and Devine Meet the Apocalypse, Movie Review

Diani and Devine Meet the Apocalypse looks at surviving an apocalyptic event by the common man. The apocalypse has come and Etta Devine and Gabriel Diani are a comedic couple in Los Angeles faced with making the decision of what to do.

It all begins as a simple blackout. Since everyone has dealt with a blackout before they do what I think we would all do, they wait. The situation doesn't get any better. They eventually find out it's not just a local problem, but still consider the situation something the proper authorities will resolve.

After the water and gas to their apartment run out, the decision to stay in LA changes. They decide it's time to leave. They pack their essentials into their car, which is a great play on modern society and what so many people consider essentials for living, and leave to seek shelter with a friend living in a commune. Their first stop is to get supplies at the local market.

As anticipated the market has been picked clean of anything useful. However, they do meet some old friends for a nice chat to catch-up. When leaving the store, they have their car stolen (by police officers). Even though they have a destination, they need to find a way to get there.

The rest of the movie is about their encounters and how they deal with them. I'm not going any further into the story because I keep going back and editing out spoilers of the parts the made me laugh. I will say that even though I saw a number of the jokes being set up, they were delivered in a fashion that made the movie work.

Diani and Devine Meet the Apocalypse ties comedic elements with real concerns about what could happen when we are faced with a societal calamity. It uses an over-the-top approach to explore the problems a common couple have to deal with. But, even with the serious topic, the humor is not lost and is heightened by the sharp counterpoint of the issues and how they deal with them.

Cast and Acting

I was seeing myself and people I know portrayed on the screen. Along with their own talents, the casting of the rest of the characters is a success. Everyone fits the characters they're playing. Of course, some of them are being played to an extreme level, which is done with a near perfection. Even when it was a clear setup to a visual gag, it was delivered with timing that increased the fun instead of dreading the outcome. You can tell Devine and Diani are based out of LA with the people they have showing up on screen with them.

Writing

With the extreme aspects of the plot it could be easy to lose the story. The story of Diani and Devine Meet the Apocalypse pulls it off with great writing (winner at FilmQuest for Best Screenplay) and directing (nominated for best director). This could have gone the other way because Etta Devine and Gabriel Diani wrote and directed their movie, along with starring in it. I am willing to suspect they filled in on other areas. Some works where the creator(s) are this heavily involved can go bad as they become so serious about the "ownership" and outcome of their film. In this case, the outcome is opposite with a presentation that is not only owned by them. Every actor/character feels like they are completely involved.

Overall

I saw Diani and Devine Meet the Apocalypse at the 2017 FilmQuest Film Festival. It was nominated for award in five categories: Best Director, Best Actor (Gabriel Diani), Best Costumes, Best Ensemble Cast, Best Screenplay (Winner), The Minerva Award – Female Filmmaker Prize. Other noted cast includes Barry Bostwick, Kirsten Vangsness, Johnathon Silverman, and Cole Stratton. The movie runs 90 minutes.

It is currently making the rounds on the film festival circuit.

The combination work Devine and Diani put into their film creates a synergy between the various roles to give us characters (who may be based on their real lives) who are true to the story. The portrayal on the screen is great as they succeeded in directing themselves and the rest of the cast.

I can see this comedic adventure into a near future apocalypse becoming a cult classic. Some movies make this because they are so bad, while others do it because they are good and fun enough to see more than once. Diani and Devine Meet the Apocalypse as being part of the second category.

There are subtleties shared in the movie that kept me and the people I was sitting by watching. I know a missed some, and would be interested in going back just to read the T-shirts.

I give Diani and Devine Meet the Apocalypse 4 out of 5.

This article is submitted to Utah Geek Magazine.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

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Gnaw, Movie Review

Escaping from a bad marriage Jennifer moves into an apartment away from the town where her husband lives. In her efforts of creating a new life for herself she ends up having to deal with a different level of abuse.

Gnawcreates a fictional creature that is introduced in a at the start in the film in a manner that we know what it is capable of, and what it probably is, but not how. Of course that was already given in the title.

We don't meet the creature again until much later in the story after we have already been given enough foreshadowing to know what it is and what is happening, even though NAME doesn't. At the same time she is dealing with some unknown horror Jennifer must also deal with the efforts of her ex-husband to take away her control of her life.

The mix of the main plot and the sub plot come together in a climatic conclusion that is executed with precision, even with everyone knowing what the final outcome is going to be. The delivery of how it happens is what makes this movie so good.

Storyline

Gnawplays on the theme of overcoming an abusive relationship from the title to the final scene. After the introduction, Jennifer is shown moving. At first we don't know why, but her reactions to events around her quickly drops clues about who she is and where she is from.

The build of the story continues throughout the movie. Every scene supported the theme. They might not have been obvious that some scenes were supporting the theme until more of Jennifer's backstory is unfolded on screen.

Along with the building within the theme, there are enough misleading clues (red herrings) in the story to keep you guessing on how Jennifer is going to be able to solve her problem, or if she even can.

The relationship between the two main characters, Jennifer and Terry, continues to build the storyline by giving another through another lens.

Acting

Penelope Mitchell (Curve and The Curse of Downers Grove) does a wonderful job in portraying Jennifer. She was nominated for best actress. Penelope gives us a woman who is starting out with hope. She continues to run into roadblocks in her desire for a new life because of her past relationship and the unknown that is happening to her.

She develops a friendship with Terry, another resident in the apartment complex she moved to, who is portrayed by Kyle Gass (Book of Fire). Kyle also gives a performance that brings his character to life. Kyle was nominated for best supporting actor.

When these two are on the screen together they present characters that fit together.

Overall

I saw Gnawat the 2017 FilmQuest Film Festival. It was nominated for eight awards: Best Feature Film, Best Director, Best Actress (Penelope Mitchell), Best Supporting Actor (Kyle Gass), Best Cinematography, Best Sound, Best VFX, and Best Makeup. Gnaw was directed by Haylor Garcia and written by Jim Brennan and Haylar Garcia. The movie is from the USA and runs 99 minutes. Additional listed cast includes Chris Johnson (Game Day and 47 Meters Down) and Sally Kirkland (Price for Freedom and The Most Hated Woman).

Gnawis a supernatural horror thriller that keeps you engaged. There is enough that gives a strong continuity from beginning to end with the right amount of misleading details to keep you guessing how it is going to end up. It was an ending I found fulfilling.

I give Gnaw4 out of 5.

Gnawis currently on the film festival circuit.

This article is submitted to Utah Geek Magazine.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

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The Secret Garden (Steampunk), Movie Review

The Secret Garden is a classic story—one that has stood up as a book and as a movie. With this in mind, Director Owen Smith didn't want to be compared to what has come before. Instead of "remaking" the movie in the same style that's been accomplished and enjoyed, he reset it in steampunk.

We are moved to a fictional factory that is in demise. Mary Lennox shows up for a short stay and ends up being orphaned and needing to stay longer. By the end she has changed things around for her uncle and those few people who have been holding on.

Sorry if this is a spoiler, but the story was written in 1910, released as a book in 1911, and the first movie came out in 1949.

The story has become a classic that lends itself to be a good movie. However, it is not the story that makes this movie. What sets this movie apart is the setting and the cast.

Using Steampunk

Smith succeeded with using a steampunk alternative for his presentation of The Secret Garden. The location they found creates a space where the story unfolds in spectacular fashion. Yes, alterations were made to the tale. They were not able to keep to the age of the original characters and as you watch what they did you find the alterations are done with taste and are reflected within this telling.

The aspects of the story they changed fit together to give a delightful family tale. Details were dealt with to make sure continuity is maintained throughout the movie. The visual effects for creating the steampunk universe play on the roles. The costumes fit the characters and add to the setting. Kudos to their designer because there were details in the costumes that could have been easily overlooked.

The extra tidbits used in the costume design helped to reflect the limitation of space and push the story along in the new setting. This was recognized at FilmQuest as The Secret Garden was nominated for Best Costumes.

Cast

The cast played off one another as though they truly were the characters they were portraying. This is probably why The Secret Garden was nominated for Best Ensemble Cast. All did well, but Amanda Waters (Mandie Movies) as Martha Sowerby was exceptional, and was nominated for Best Supporting Actress.

Other cast members included Erin Leigh Bushko as Mrs Medlock, Sacha Dzuba as Doctor Craven, Mark Ashworth as Ben Weatherstaff, Max River as Dickon Sowerby, Hannah Fierman as Lily Craven, Paden Garrett Anderson as Colin Craven, and Michael Vaughn as Archibald Craven.

Overall

I was able to see The Secret Garden at the 2017 FilmQuest Film Festival. It was nominated for seven awards: Best Supporting Actress (Amanda Waters), Best Costumes, Best Production Design, Best Sound, Best Score, Best VFX, and Best Ensemble Cast. The movie runs 90 minutes.

The Secret Garden is a wonderful family tale presented as a movie worth sharing as a family. If you are familiar with the story, or not, this was done in a delightful manner that keeps with the style of movies The Dogwood Motion Picture Company has become known for.

I give The Secret Garden 4 out of 5.

The Secret Garden is currently on the film festival circuit.

This article is submitted to Utah Geek Magazine.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

You can also join Guild Master Gaming on Google+, Facebook, and Twitter(@GuildMstrGmng).

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The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Review

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Publisher: Nintendo Developer: Nintendo Platform: Nintendo Switch Release: 2017 Genre: RPG / Sandbox Rating: 9.4 \ 10.0: Excellent

Above is Link raiding a Bokoblin camp.

For years, the Legend of Zelda series has remained one of the most celebrated and respected franchises in gaming. The 3D entries in the saga have all been nearly universally acclaimed by critics (although 2011's Skyward Sword had a mixed reception by fans), but these games have fallen into a predictable pattern over the years. The plots may be original, but the progression has always involved travelling from linear dungeon to linear dungeon to acquire items that are only useful in several specific areas. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild aims to break this cycle, and it has done so excellently.

Breath of the Wild presents an interesting new story that complicates the Zelda timeline further by having evidence to suggest that it could be part of any of any of the three post-Ocarina of Time timelines. It begins with Link being told to awaken by a disembodied voice. He arises from a chamber, unarmed and unarmored. He then retrieves a tablet that resembles a Switch console from a pedestal and exits the chamber. He spots an hooded man nearby. He leads Link to the top of a massive tower, then instructs him to visit the four shrines scattered throughout valley which happens to be located atop a massive wall. Each of these shrines introduces one of the four abilities that can be used by the Shiekah Slate, the aforementioned tablet. These are the ability to use manually detonated sphere or cube-shaped bombs; magnesis, which allows you to move metal objects with ease; stasis, which can be used to temporarily freeze objects in place and repeatedly hit them in order to build up potential energy that will become kinetic energy once the effect expires; and cryonis, which allows you to generate pillars of ice on the surface of bodies of water.

After doing this, the old man will grant you his paraglider and reveal that he is actually the ghost of the previous king of Hyrule. He explains that Link was gravely wounded when Calamity Ganon awoke and wreaked havoc upon Hyrule, and had to be revived by being frozen in time inside the Shrine of Resurrection, which wiped his memory completely, has been asleep for 100 years. He has been awoken to defeat Calamity Ganon, an evil force that has been contained inside the ruins of Hyrule Castle by Zelda ever since he took control of the many robotic Guardians that once defended Hyrule. Calamity Ganon's four elemental forms also possessed the four Divine Beasts,  massive mechanical animals that were created in preparation for Ganon's return, and trapped the spirits of their pilots within. Ganon has nearly broken free from the barrier surrounding the castle, and the consequences of his escape would be catastrophic. It's up to Link to free the Divine Beasts from Ganon's influence and recover his memories -- or you could just head straight to Hyrule Castle. Sure, you'll get killed in a single hit by every occupant of the castle and break a full inventory's worth of the weapons that you'll have at the time before even coming close to killing several of those enemies, but the game won't stop you. Every other activity is entirely optional and only serves to prepare you for your confrontation with Calamity Ganon. Liberating the Divine Beasts will allow their pilots to assist you in the final battle; completing shrines will earn you Spirit Orbs that can be exchanged for health and stamina upgrades; and collecting Korok seeds will allow you to increase your weapon, bow, and shield storage.

If these activities sound too plentiful for a traditional Zelda world, that's because they are; Breath of the Wild is the first fully open-world title in the series. Discovering every shrine will be the main goal of adventurous players as they explore the overworld. Each of them serves as a mini-dungeon with either a puzzle or combat trial. These ramp up in difficulty as you travel further from where you started, and although there is a intended manner in which each puzzle is meant to be completed, there are often multiple unintended solutions and shortcuts that brought a grin to my face when I discovered them (Tip: Metal weapons and yellow Chu Chu jelly can be used to complete circuits). There are 120 of these scattered throughout the world. Most can be found just by exploring thanks to a handy shrine detector on your HUD, but some appear after completing a riddle or side quest. A handful of the game's side quests are fantastic and tell small but memorable stories, but a large number are sadly generic fetch quests, and some even simply involve giving a character a certain number of an item that you are very likely to already have on hand.

One of the strongest aspects of Breath of the Wild is its combat. It still retains the targeting and dodging system that has been present in every mainline 3D Zelda title, but has tweaked it to emphasize proper timing when the action is intense and makes stealth a viable option for players who want to slowly and carefully raid camps and rewards thinking outside the box. There are two major additions to melee combat: Parrying is performed by pressing A while holding a shield, and doing this the moment an enemy attacks will cause them to stumble, leaving them open for a beating; dodging right before an enemy's melee attack hits you will cause time to slow down, and you'll be prompted to execute a flurried rush, an uninterruptible string of attacks that lasts several seconds; and if you silently approach an enemy from behind, you can deal a devastating blow that deals eight times the normal damage of the weapon you use, and careful players can wipe out an entire enemy camp one single-hit kill at a time without anyone knowing you were ever there. Mastering these moves is essential for taking down some of Link's tougher foes. BotW also boasts the most expansive arsenal of weapons in the Zelda series to date; there are boomerangs, bows, claymores, clubs, magic staffs, spears, swords, and more, and each weapon type has a unique charged attack. Link's archery abilities have been expanded as well; you're no longer restricted to standing still while taking aim, and he can even slow down time temporarily by drawing his bow in midair.

The swordplay itself is fantastic, but it is involved in one of the game's most controversial features: weapon durability. After landing a certain number of hits with a weapon, you will be notified that it is badly damaged, meaning that a handful of hits more will shatter it. I remember being excited as I discovered powerful new weapons early in my adventure only to realize that they would soon be gone. Because I exchanged most of the Korok seeds I discovered for weapon storage upgrades, I eventually ended up with so many Royal Claymores and elemental blades that they became expendable, but this took far too many hours to be worth the disappointment that breaking powerful weapons caused early on.

As you explore Hyrule you'll inevitably encounter Guardians, the aforementioned automatons that have been possessed by Ganon. These mechanical beasts can shoot an incredibly powerful laser from their one eye that can kill even the . They pose a massive threat a first, and new players will learn either to run from them or, without ruining the surprise of finding out, how to make great use of a pot lid. One of the most satisfying parts of my experience was gaining the courage to face a Guardian and severing the metal giant's legs one by then and finishing off its immobilized body.

In terms of presentation, Breath of the Wild is stellar in some areas but inconsistent overall. The game's art style is a massive positive; like Skyward Sword before it, it strikes a perfect balance between Wind Waker's cartoonishness and Twilight Princess's realism while having an incredible attention to detail that wasn't possible on the Wii. Blades or grass are pushed apart by Link's footsteps, clusters of fallen leaves shift around as Link swims through ponds, and wind pushes the sparks from fire; this comes at a cost however, as the framerate will often drop significantly, albeit briefly, when there are large amounts of fire onscreen, but experiences constant low framerates in certain areas such as deep in the Faron jungles and in the heart of the Lost Woods. Additionally, this is is the only first party Switch title thus far to run at a locked 30 FPS, although this is most likely due to the Switch being a quickly made port of a game that was originally made to be an exclusive for significantly weaker hardware. The soundtrack is incredible for the most part, but disappointing at times. The subtle piano tracks that play during exploration in combination with the ambient sounds sometimes alleviates the atmosphere to great heights, but these tracks simply cannot compete with the likes of Twilight Princess's Hyrule Field Theme and Wind Waker's sailing theme. Outside of exploration, however, the soundtracks shines. The themes for each town as well as the various combat themes elevate the soundtrack to the quality standard set by the rest of the series.

Aside form the fully open world structure, the most notable deviation from the Zelda series' traditions is the addition of voice acting. Text boxes with sound effects are still used during gameplay, but important cutscenes are now fully voiced. Some of the voice performances are good, but many are of questionable quality (most notably Princess Mipha). This is a step in the right direction for this series, but compared to past acting acting in Nintendo games such as Kid Icarus: Uprising and the Fire Emblem games, BotW is disappointing.

Overall, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is an incredible game. It has a handful of insignificant flaws, but those do little to detract from its engaging exploration, interesting story, and stunning presentation. It's a must have for anyone seeking a fresh Zelda experience or exciting opne world antics and is a great reason to get your hands on a Switch.

Ups
Incredible art style and soundtrack
Subtle references to past Zelda games
Immersive exploration
Flexible puzzle solutions
Numerous secrets and easter eggs
Incredible sense of freedom

Downs
Weapon durability devalues loot
Some boring and uninteresting side quests
Some underwhelming voice acting performances
Occasional framerate drops

Also available on Wii U

The System Difference: In terms of gameplay and visuals, both versions of BotW are identical. The added portability of the Switch version made my wait to get the console well worth it.

ESRB: E10+ Content: Fantasy Violence, Mild Suggestive Themes, and Use of Alcohol Price: $59.99 (Retail / Download)

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Time to get tough

It is...

• soon to be 10 years since Pedigree Dogs Exposed
• five years since The Advisory Council on the Welfare Issues of Dog Breeding highlighted the issues linked to head conformation in brachycephalic breeds
• 18 months since the publication of research (funded by the kennel club) spelling out the link between stenosis (pinched nostrils) and respiratory issues, especially in French Bulldogs
• a year since a veterinary petition demanding urgent reform for flat-faced dogs
• almost a year since the Kennel Club set up the Brachcycephalic Breeds Working Group in response to that petition

.. and of course I have highlighted the issue of pinched nostrils endlessly here on this blog.

Endlessly.

And yet... the picture at the top is one the Kennel Club has used as the ideal depiction of the French Bulldog in its new edition (2017) of its Illustrated Breed Standards.

And it isn't a one-off. Here's the one the KC has used for the Boston Terrier standard.

©  The Kennel Club

The Bulldog.

©  The Kennel Club

And the Pug.

©  The Kennel Club

Dogs are as near-as-damn-it obligate nose breathers. And even if they can supplement by mouth-breathing when they are awake, they are unable to do so when they are asleep, meaning thousands of these dogs live lives of interrupted sleep as they have to wake up in order to not asphyxiate.

Study after study has shown that these dogs pay the price for not being able to pull in a decent lungful of air and that starts with the nostrils.

These pictures are all the proof you need that the Kennel Club is not taking this issue seriously; that at its very core the KC is paying nothing more than lip-service to the demands for reform by the veterinary profession and animal welfare campaigners.

At one of the first meetings of the Brachycephalic Breeds Working Group, then KC Chairman Steve Dean expressly said that he didn't want "changing the breed standards" to be at the top of everyone's list of actions that could be taken.

And indeed, it hasn't been.

There have been some new measures.  The KC continues to fund brachy research. There is also now a brachy learning resource available on the KC website, the promise of better education of judges and a breed club commitment to educate better about the importance of keeping brachycephalics slim. There are also now health schemes for the Bulldog, French Bulldog and the Pug which do test for respiratory issues.

All this is welcome. But, bottom line, the Kennel Club continues to bat for the breeders who do not want the basic phenotype to change because it's the breeders that pay their wages.

Of course the simplest, quickest remedy is to give these dogs back some muzzle - to help not just with breathing issues, but to help protect their eyes from trauma and to give their teeth some room in their overcrowded mouths (a Pug here compared to an Australian Shepherd).

The problem is that  breeders are wedded to flat faces, particularly in Pugs and Bulldogs. They talk about the perfect "layback" - which essentially means that the nose should not interrupt the line between the forehead and tip of the dog's chin.

In fact, there's a new book out on the Pug head (yours for only $159) which reminds everyone that the word Pug comes from the latin for "fist" and that this is the shape the Pug's head should be in profile - i.e. totally flat.

Source

Here's a reminder from a top UK show breeder of what the Bulldog's head should look like.

Source

As you can see, a  protruding nose or a less severe underbite is considered a fault.

There was a big review of breed standards following Pedigree Dogs Exposed but it was mostly to add vague qualifiers such as, in the Pug standard,  "relatively" short rather than just short when describing the length of the muzzle. This gives the breeders way too much wiggle room.  We need proper metrics - a defined minimum skull/head/muzzle ratio and we need to find more profound ways to change their minds about what constitutes their breed in their eyes.

Large open nostrils are a requirement in brachy breed standards, but this is widely ignored because other points of the breed are considered more important. There would be outrage if a Frenchie with one lop ear  or a Bulldog with a liver-coloured nose won in the show-ring, but dogs with slits for nostrils continue to be made up to champions. 

Meanwhile, on my CRUFFA group, whenever you post a picture of more moderate examples of the breed, current of historical, the breeders heap scorn. A few days ago, one breeder insisted that the dog featured in this famous painting of a Pug by Carl Reichert, dating from the late 19th century, was a crossbreed.

Same for these ones. Mongrels, the lot of them.

She admitted that the eye-white showing was undesirable but  preferred the look of this Crufts dog.

Today, this was posted on a public Facebook page by one French Bulldog breeder in response to a plea by vets for more moderate dogs.

To those who say you cannot rebuild Rome in a day I say... rubbish. There are already more moderate versions of these breeds out there being bred by breeders more interested in health than the current fashion. 

For more than 10 years, I have called for moderation and hoped it would come from the breeders. But  I now know it won't. If we want anything more than a wee bit of tweaking round the edges, then we need to demand it. 

It is time to get tough. These dogs suffer - not all of them all the time but too many of them too often. 

Brachycephalics live a third less long than non-brachy dogs. Fifty per cent have significant airway disease. Almost all struggle to cool themselves. Most Bulldogs still can't mate or give birth naturally. Pugs have 19 times the risk of developing corneal ulcers.  All suffer from very low genetic diversity. And so on.

Today, Bulldogs, French Bulldogs and Pugs make up one in five of the dogs registered with the Kennel Club - up from one in 50 in 2005.

Yesterday, a new petition was launched asking for a ban on brachycephalics.  Over 20k people signed it in the first 24 hrs. 

Have we reached a tipping point?  With your help. 

I haven't been able to blog much recently because I am busy finishing off a television series for BBC2. But I have taken time out to write this because the new breed standard pictures made me so angry.

So please... Although it's moderation I want, not a ban, sign the petition. Make your feelings known to the Kennel Club (see here). Complain if brands or media use generic pictures of brachycephalics to sell their wares. 

Vets: thank you so much for all that you are now doing, but please keep the pressure on.

And, of course, to everyone out there - please don't buy that puppy. 

It is not safe to buy a Pug, Bulldog or French Bulldog. Not safe for them and not safe for your wallet. 

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Dead Leaves, Movie Review, Screened at FilmQuest Film Festival 2017

I saw the French-Canadian film Dead Leaves at the 2017 FilmQuest Film Festival.

Dead Leaves is three stories taking place at the same time in the Canadian woods five years after an economic collapse. Even though there is this overarching setting for the story the three individual stories make it a little harder to give a rundown of the plot.

At the beginning there is a brief moment that shows the stories are taking place in the same area, and hints that they are intertwined. Then each goes on their separate ways, until the closing scene of the movie. So, this felt like three stories in an anthology where there is a known starting point and ending point.

Each of the three stories in Dead Leaves had a different feel to it. There were three directors listed for the movie and who were also listed as the writers. This makes me feel that each created and directed their own storyline.

This gives the movie a rough start. The storylines are very disparate, heading off in their own directions with hints that they are going to be linking back together. With the definite differences in character and feel to each story it was easy enough to tell when the story shifted from one to another. It was almost too much of a difference to give the acceptance that they were all happening close to each other.

After settling in and giving over to the style, I was able to find that each was looking at a different aspect of how life could turn for individuals in the rural setting. Each story told of an individual dealing with the situation in their way. Because of the choices they made, each was having to deal with their own set of individual circumstances.

As the stories continue to unfold we are given the opportunity to see how through their differences they are each dealing with very much the same theme of man's inhumanity to man. And, how they are struggling to rise above the situation, but being dragged into the circumstances of the overarching situation.

The movie builds, creating a more solidified story than what we start with. The final scene gives the culmination that as long as there are people like the three protagonists we can have hope for our continuation.

The film is set in the French-Canadian forests and the setting is used to great affect in telling the story. The locations become elements helping build the story and the impact the collapse has had on the people. And, at the same time, you are given how resilient the land has been in how the impact has been limited to humanity.

There are times we see the tropes used in post-apocalyptic settings. It is hard to say if Dead Leaves was paying homage to earlier works from years past or if there was a deeper meaning. When I first saw the scenes I felt a little pushed out of the story, thinking they were just rehashing. But, they were just scenes and not the rehashing of the story. This led me to think about what the movie was saying at the deeper level and how people fall back on what they known in dealing with the unknown. For many of us the known way of dealing with this type of situation are those stories we have read and seen.

The look of the actors was used just as well, if not better than the settings in telling the story. The look gave an authentic feel to what it would be like just a few years after. It wasn't over-the-top. It looked like people who had dug into their closets, traded, or did with what they could find. It spoke of the hardship of some, and the established luxury of others. Their look even gave hints about what they were willing to do.

The portrayal of the characters never took me out of the movie. I was watching people who were dealing with their life as they now know it. I never felt like anything that was done pulled me back into the present and away from the hardships and decisions they were being faced with.

The strength of having the three storylines is it gives every person seeing this film someone to identify with. Once I did that, and noticed those around me were doing the same, we were drawn in. I could see people leaning forward then back at different times, corresponding to the storyline that had their interest.

It didn't mean the other stories weren't as compelling, they just had different hooks. I listened to people talking about the film afterwards and how they related to different characters, and why.

Overall, Dead Leaves has a slower start and a great finish. The use of the setting provides additional character to the story and to the theme. The acting is wonderful and I could feel what the characters were going through. The movie is in French.

I give Dead Leaves 4 out of 5.

Dead Leaves is currently on the film festival circuit.

Dead Leaves was nominated for eight awards at FilmQuest: Best Feature Film; Best Director; Best Actor, Roy Dupuis; Best Supporting Actress, Audrey Rancourt-Lessard; Best Costumes; Best Sound; Best Score; and Best Makeup.

The Director/Writers were listed as Thierry Bouffard, Steve Landry, and Edouard A. Tremblay. With the cast of Roy Dupuis, Noemie O'Farrell, Audrey Rancourt-Lessard, and Philippe Racine. The movie runs for 103 minutes.

This article is also published with Utah Geek Magazine.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

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