So, here I am, reviewing a game-based movie again. It’d be a terrible, torturous existence if I didn’t actually volunteer to write these articles. Before I went out to see Assassin’s Creed, I had already caught wind of a couple of bad reviews, predictably from video game-based blogs, that were all too eager to give this one a silent takedown for its inability to capture the immersion of the video game series it’s based on, originally created by Ubisoft in 2007.
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The game takes the stealth gameplay originated in Metal Gear Solid, and throws in some more throat-slitting and jumping off of buildings. It’s a mechanic that was certainly original when the first game made its debut on the Playstation 3, but it has since spanned 17 games, including spinoffs, and its gameplay has generally been improved by more high-profile titles like Rocksteady’s Batman: Arkham Asylum series. Right off the bat, there’s a challenge in translating this series to film, because of the game’s expanded lore, but there’s also a distinct storyline mechanic involved with Assassin’s Creed, that suggests the majority of the gameplay is based inside of a virtual reality matrix called “The Animus,” giving the player a logical reason to rewind and restart events during gameplay.

The split between futuristic sci-fi and medieval alternate history settings can be both accepted and thoroughly relished in a video game setting, but translating such a complex premise into a linear media like film means that finding the balance between the two contrasting themes is bound to be a struggle. And this movie struggles. An opening text crawl and a few jagged flashbacks give us the premise: there exists in this world an ancient artifact known as 'The Apple of Eden,' which is mystically known as the lone macguffin that can eliminate all violence in the world, at the expense of man’s free will. For centuries there have been two warring factions: The Assassins and the Templars, who have fought over possession of the Apple, in order to support their contrasting ideologies. Fast forward to modern times where a descendant of the Templars, Sophia Rivkin (Marion Cotillard) has learned the Apple contains a genetic code that promotes obedience in human beings. Purely out of scientific interest, she tracks down the descendant of an assassin, Callum Lynch (Michael Fassbender), on death row after a tortured existence that began when his father (Brendan Gleeson) murdered his mother in full Assassin garb. Rivkin, with the encouragement of her own Templar-cultist father (Jeremy Irons), wastes no time inserting Cal into the Apple, forcing him to re-live the memories of his Spanish Inquisition-era ancestor, Aguilar de Nerha.

The narrative thus plays out more in the modern era than the historic period that would be more central in the game series. Anything resembling plot is played out in the vast white walls of the Templar science lab, as Cal and Sophia slowly come to realize the significance of their rivalry while working contentiously to unlock the secrets of the Apple of Eden. Meanwhile, the segments with Aguilar in the past play out like marathon kinetic race-to-the-finish action sequences, reminiscent of Indiana Jones or Universal’s The Mummy. Seeing the enormous parkour action interposed with the antiseptic dramatic moments surrounding the Templar lab, it’s easy to feel like you’re part of the same experiment that Cal is experiencing, but not in a good way.
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Some interesting choices were made, seemingly to assist this movie in being ‘taken more seriously’ then your average video game-based film. The sadistic joy of sailing off a rooftop to slit an NPC’s throat doesn’t exist in this film. In fact, there seems to be a PG-13 level set of violence discretion shots throughout the film. The plot is consistently treated as though it has more gravity than the action, but in its attempt to be smarter, it blatantly ignores what is innately dumb about the premise: the Templars have been scientifically after this code for centuries. Why didn’t they write their own version of it? Then they made the obvious mistake of keeping several other ancestral Assassins, played most significantly by Michael K. Williams and Matias Varela, so they’d inevitably break out and kill every Templar scientist in the vicinity.

The movie, ironically, succeeds in hitting the tone that the game series always seems to, in that it’s good, but not great, and it has some interesting ideas, but mostly uses those ideas to facilitate character in-fighting and action-based spectacle. If that’s what you came to the theaters to see, you could absolutely do worse. Still, the attempt to wave the banner of deeper resonant metaphors that exist within the plot ultimately slits the throat of what could have been a truly visceral action film. I can only hope that it somehow works in conjunction with so many years of established video game plot, which would allow for the whole series to make more sense as a whole. 

Having a baby is a life changing experience and most of the time it is good thing for a young couple. But there are instances where their life is not quite where they want it to be when they find out a baby is on the way and depression can set in causing blow ups between the couple leading to divorce or something worse. Even if both parents love having the child, they could find that parenthood is not for them, it really is a lot of work on an hourly basis, but it does pay off in the long run. Even if parents think that it was a poor decision, they quickly find out that their child is the most important thing to them and most of the major problems go away, if even for a moment when the baby is sleeping and they see an angel lying before them.

With their first born on the way, Kate and Justin are also happy to see that they have new flat mates moving in under them. Not knowing anything about them, the couple sees that the new arrivals are serious about the garden in the back since they have it landscaped before they arrive. Seeing two pairs of shoes at their neighbor’s door, Kate and Justin know that the new residents are settling in and after hearing a lot of moaning downstairs, Kate is anxious to meet who has moved in. Looking out the back window into the garden, Kate sees a pregnant woman looming around and believes that they may have plenty to bond over.

Heading out to take care of some chores, Kate is stopped by Theresa and the two pregnant women go and have a nice swim together. Knowing that the two expecting families can hit it off, Kate invites Theresa and her husband over for dinner to seal the friendship deal. As Justin is cooking however, the light in the hallway burns out, and there is no time to replace it before Theresa and Jon arrive. Having a great dinner and watching as Theresa is sneaking sips of wine while her husband is not looking, Kate and Justin find out how lucky they are to be pregnant, since it took their new friends seven years to accomplish the same thing. As the night draws on and Theresa gets tired, the happy couple starts to head out when she trips over the cat and her shoes, falling down the stairs. Not being able to help, Kate and Justin feel terrible and arrive home the next day to find out that Theresa has lost her child. As heated words are exchanged between the couples, Justin and Kate take a short holiday to get away and find that Jon and Theresa have moved out and will not return home until they can give a proper congratulations to the couple.

The weeks fly by and Kate has finally given birth to baby Billy who is her angel, but that is not the only good news as Jon and Theresa have moved back in as well. Knowing that they are not completely over what has happened, the two are recovered enough to enjoy their flat mates' presence once again. As the couples get reacquainted once more time, Theresa offers her services in taking care of the baby to help Kate out and while she does not accept it right away, a little bit of help could go a long way. As the nights become filled with car alarms and baby screaming, being a parent is taking its toll on Kate and she needs a lot of help, but Justin is not able to stay away from work long enough to be a factor, but Theresa is there whenever help is needed. When little Billy will not stop crying one night, the doctors think that it is allergies and Kate will have to change her diet completely to keep breastfeeding, but what is strange is that Billy never has these issues when Theresa is taking care of him and Kate starts to become very suspicious of what her flat mate is doing to and with her child.

A little eye opening film that shows how far a family will go to get back what they have lost and overall, it is a little disturbing. Kate is blown away by the relationship that Theresa and Jon have and she has a little longing for that kind of love in her own life, or so she thinks until a little truth comes out about her new friend. Kate also has problems with her mother since she is never there and mom is the key reason why she never wanted to be a parent to begin with. The story does make Kate look like an unfit parent early on and when strange things start happening around the flat that make her look like she is losing her mind, well, you start to wonder if it really could be someone messing with her, or if she just wants out altogether. You always look for something that you like in a movie and the actors put it all on the line to make this a true drama film, especially in the dramatic pauses that they take in awkward conversations. Overall, not a bad flick and now I know why you should never leave your shoes near a stairway.

Five Takeaways

1. Cats are always underfoot, keep them away from pregnant women for goodness' sake.
2. Don’t be envious of others, especially if you are in the best situation of your life.
3. Don’t get involved with neighbors after an accident occurs on your property, it never ends well.
4. If your baby is sick around you and not its caregiver, there are questions you need to ask.
5. Cats are always underfoot, keep them away from pregnant women for goodness' sake.

Everybody has at least one voice in their head, their own, but when you start hearing multiple ones, which one do you listen to? Not knowing where they come from may be the scariest part because we all know that they do not get there on their own. With so many different things happening in life, everyone has a different way to cope with their issues including sometimes changing who they are depending on the situation. But if each situation requires a different person to show up, hence a new voice, will anybody ever know who the real you truly is?

Moving into the Juniper Tower is a big step for Suki who suffers from multiple personality disorder, because it means that she is showing improvement.  But moving into the tower also comes with the requirement that she will continue her treatment, The Siamese Burn on herself moving forward. Agreeing to what her doctor has requested, Suki enters the tower as a body falls from one of the top floors and nothing inside of the building seems to be getting better from there. Meeting a couple of women on her way up, Suki learns that she may not be the most insane person there and being on the sixteenth floor means that she is high risk and a lower floor would only guarantee injury…not death.

Entering her room, Suki has found a new home, but the voices inside of her head start to repeat everything that she has been told on her walk up. Wishing she were back at the hospital, a knock on the door and a visit from a familiar face is exactly what she needs. Hogan has been able to get himself sent to Juniper Tower, a building for women to be the ‘rooster in the henhouse.’ Following her voices, Suki gives into her urge and knows that Hogan will eventually get over his resentment for what she is about to do when all is said and done. Showing her friend the machine that she has to hook herself up to for her treatments, Hogan is beside himself and begs her to stay the way that she is. Although she does not hate being different, a little normal seems like a good idea and she plugs herself in.

As the counter on The Siamese Burn unit goes down, Suki’s blackouts become worse and the suicide count in the Juniper Tower goes up. Not being able to explain what is happening around her, one of Suki’s personalities has become the alpha when she is out. The Scribbler takes to the walls of her apartment and is trying to tell her something and while she does not know what that message is, everything will be explained by her doctor…someday. Seeing that her machine has been rewired as well, and is now tied into more electronics in her new place, Suki has to believe that The Scribbler is trying to get out and take over her body, but when Hogan gets his hands on the machine and she sees its effects on him, Suki has to find a way to believe it is all for the best. 

Just when you think you have it all figured out and watch a movie that has to do with multiple personalities and you try keep track of each person dying, thinking that those deaths are essential to character development, and it turns out that they aren't...wow, The Scribbler broke all the rules of a psychological thriller, and I liked it. I am always hesitant when watching a movie that has to do with so many different characters, but there are only a few that you need to actually pay attention to. With the story being told in a flashback fashion while Suki is being questioned by the police about what happened, you are forced to believe that Suki is crazy and while she is a little bit, the story may have more facts than the cops could have expected. The women around the building are just fantastic and even the dog becomes a scene stealer when all is said and done. With plenty of serious parts in the movie, there are still some places for laughs and you need to enjoy them before the finale, because that's when stuff starts to get real...

Five Takeaways

1. When entering your new home and seeing a body flying down from one of the higher floors, it might not be a place you want to live if you are not mentally sound.
2. Any machine that can count your personalities by hooking up jumper cables to your ears is either genius or dangerous, just saying.
3. When you are told to stay off the stairs by everyone in the building and see a dark shadow lurking while using them, it is probably just a ghost…or a person that wants to push you.
4. When waking up from a blackout in a place other than your apartment, just pray you are by a Halloween shop.
5. Be careful when sleeping around in an open asylum building, you might find that there is an evil ex looking to take care of business that you don’t want any part of.

Trying to fit in with family traditions is important in any relationship. Even if they believe in something that you do not, you have to try to make an effort to show your new family that you respect their beliefs. It is never easy, but sometimes you just have to go with the flow and just putting on a show is all you can do and while your new family might ultimately want you to change, they will respect you for who you are as long as you play along.

Working with one of her patients that is having problems with her pregnancy, Doctor Tora Hamilton finds out that she is in the middle of another miscarriage. Moving away from her stressful life with her husband Duncan, Tora has found that Scotland may be just the right place to heal her body and mind. Getting a job lined up from her father in-law and being added to the adoption list, she is ready to get her life started all over again. But not everything is perfect in her new home as Tora finds out when seeing that one of her horses has died during the night. Instead of causing a fuss, Tora pulls out the digger and starts to dig in the back yard only to find that there is something hidden in the peaty depths.

Uncovering the body of what appears to be a young girl, Tora is beside herself, in part from seeing the way that the girl died, but more so from discovering the symbols that were carved into her body. Seeing similar writing in the local runes, she wants to find out what happened and why. Sneaking into the morgue to get another look, Tora investigates the autopsy photos on the wall and finds out that the girl had just given birth and was feeding the child shortly before she was killed. Trying to convince the police that a crime had possibly occurred, Tora is shut down so she decides to do a little investigating of her own.

As she finds random facts out about the area, Tora knows that the data that shows the girl died two hundred years ago is not even close as to when this girl was killed and finding a wedding band in the mud, she now has some proof to take to the police to actually investigate the incident. Being able to convince Sergeant Dana that there is something strange about the body, the two women start bouncing ideas off of each other, but since no other women in the town are missing, there is nothing more to further the investigation. But when Tora finds out that an old drunkard that she was talking to about the symbols winds up dead and that Dana has suffered a crazy accident, she knows she is getting close to the truth. Not backing off, Tora is able to find a connection in town for the woman that she found in the back yard, but little does she know how deep the clan ties run in the outskirts of Scotland.

What a depressing little story as an outsider is forced to find out the truth of what has been happening in a little town for many years. I liked how Tora never gives up on her search for the truth, even when the cops try to keep her from digging in. Everyone in the town starts to see what she up to and that causes problems not only for her and her friends, but her home life as well. Trying to keep her quiet about the murder is the only thing that Duncan can do, but with her strong will for finding the truth, she will not give up until the answers are finally passed her way. With a little twist at the end that should have been added in a bit earlier for suspense, it is amazing how the families in the area have been able to keep their actions off of the radar, especially when child bearing women are going missing left and right.

Five Takeaways

1. Never move to a small town that is covered in Viking runes, especially if you don’t know what they say.
2. Make sure to know a few things about your spouse and their family, as family history is important if they have something to hide.
3. If you are a doctor and cannot tell the difference between insulin and experimental drugs, you might want to rethink your career choice.
4. When bodies are dug up in the back yard, in addition to figuring out how they got there, consider that it might be time to leave the area as well.
5. Don’t ever trust Mr. Grey, just don’t do it.

One of the things that I love to hear from people is how they found their path in life. It is something that not many people believe in, but for the few that do, it is great to see how their lives have changed when finding out what drives them and keeps them happy. With so many options of things that you can do with your life, it is easy to find something that you think you would enjoy, but it may not be what you were put here to do in the long run. Keep your eyes open and look for those new opportunities, as there may be one out there that is exactly what you are meant to do.

As the bubonic plague is ravaging the country side, young monk Osmund is surprised to see that he is not a carrier. Convincing one of his fellow brothers to let him out of quarantine, Osmund has only one thing on his mind, Averill, who is the love of his life. Being able to get her some food, he begs his love to leave the town and find a safe place to hold up. With a promise of seeing her again, Osmund needs to know if God will allow him to leave the monastery to continue his life outside of the walls and when one of the Bishop’s warriors shows up at the door, Osmund believes that it is a sign that he should see his love once again.

Hearing of a town that has been unaffected by the pestilence, Ulrich and his men have been ordered to investigate, but they need a guide to get them through a marsh and into the town. Knowing a bit about the area, Osmund volunteers his services and even though his Abbot does not want him to leave, he has no choice. The need to see Averill again is too great and Osmund will not be deterred.  Meeting up with the rest of Ulrich’s men in the woods, Osmund is told the truth behind the adventure and it is not to investigate the town, but to kill a demon that has taken the praise from God and get the villagers back on the side of Christianity. 

Seeing the hardships outside of town as the plague is moving through the countryside, Osmund wants to do anything he can to help those in need, but sees that there is no peace in this place like the kind he knows of inside of his monastery. Getting to the meeting place that Averill had set, Osmund is not able to locate her, but a band of robbers are looking to get their piece of flesh from the traveling squad. After a brief battle and losing one of his men, Ulrich needs to find the town and is ready to inflict hell upon its doorstep, but upon arriving, he sees revenge will be more difficult than he expected. Being greeted by Hob and Langiva and offered anything that they need, Ulrich wants to make them pay the price, but Osmund sees them as good people who have not lost their way. But after being reunited with Averill after seeing her lying dead on a slab, the witchcraft in the town cannot be ignored and the soldiers of God must fulfill their duty for the greater good.

Things had to be tough in the middle ages, especially when a disease such as the plague was moving through so many cities. Believing that God was wiping the slate clean to start again, everyone in the party had a different reason as to why they believed the plague started and my favorite came from Wolfstan who was there when England’s army decimated the French and killed every Frenchman they could find. With the fear of the higher power driving the men, even Osmund has to dig deep into his faith to figure out why only one town was not affected by the black death. I liked the mind games that were played in the town by Langiva and how she was able to create a following of her own and even when the truth came out, she was still loved by her people, just not Osmund who began the hunt of a lifetime for the witch.

Five Takeaways

1. When dealing with the bubonic plague, you don’t need to wash your hands or clean up at all to avoid being infected.
2. A witch is a witch and if she is not burned at the stake, she can be stabbed to death to release her curse.
3. When you see a bloody pile of clothes, it surely has to belong to your loved one, who entered the forest on her own.
4. Monks are not good with swords, but little daggers are a whole different story.
5. All redheads are witches, even if they are more strawberry blond, they are still witches!

When times seem tough and you don’t think that you will be able to get by, there are always people that are willing to help. Most of the time you turn to your friends for this kind of help, but sometimes they are not willing to have your back and strangers may be your only salvation. 

Sometimes the kindness of strangers is the only thing that you can depend upon, even when you may never see them again. Just a passerby with a big heart can be the one thing that you need to get yourself going again and while you may try to avoid them, the kinder ones will make sure that you are alright and making it through the day.

Visiting the cemetery with Roger, little Bird is taking pictures and checking out her parents' grave. Promising not to take pictures of the funeral that is occurring at the same time, something strange happens as gun shots rattle off. Watching as the funeral goers die, Bird does the only thing that comes to her mind and takes photographs of the killer without his mask on. Running back to the car to tell Roger what she has just witnessed, she finds out that he is in the graveyard looking for her. Seeing Roger get killed by the dark assassin, Bird makes a run for the nearest safe place she can find, but the killer is hot on her heels.

Yelling for help, Bird is stopped by Carter and he sees how distressed she is. Not having time to ask what is happening, Carter is shot in the leg and is forced to get Bird and himself into the house before the killer is able to finish the job. Being met by a gun blast of buck shot, Sade, the assassin, makes his way into the house and is ready to make a deal with the hillbilly, who is completely unaware of what is going on. With an offer to give up the little girl on the table, Sade tries to wear down Carter by being friendly, but he does not know who he is really dealing with. Exploring all of the opportunities being laid out for both sides in this standoff, Carter and Sade will not stand down from their positions and the life of little Bird is stuck in the balance.

I love movies that prove that less is more and feature only a couple characters that you actually get a chance to care about, including the bad guy from time to time. Trying to wear each other down, Carter and Sade show that no matter what, they will not bend to the others man's will and give up. While Bird is the prize for whomever wins, she wants to help and learns plenty about life while waiting to see what fate has in store for her. The interactions between all of the characters in this movie are just fantastic and even though you get to see a psychological game going on, you get a couple jokes as well to lighten the mood. Even though I expected a lot more action, there is enough to keep you entertained, but the mind games are what really sell this movie and make it one of a kind. 

So, I’ve written a lot of reviews for this site by now, and it’s become somewhat obvious that I tend to be a bit more…judgmental…of certain kinds of films than the other authors of this page. I often don’t bring it up, because it’s a silly thing to even write out: here I am the most critical critic on Nerds that Geek. I do, however, have a confession to make in the form of my bias towards movies from Disney. I’ve rolled my eyes pretty severely at live action remakes of animated films like Pete’s Dragon, and direct sequels to animated films centered on sidekicks like in Finding Dory. I blame my upbringing, since I’ve basically been watching the animated Disney feature since its revival in the Eisner era, and I have literally every other movie in that genre to compare a new one to…except for Home on the Range, Dinosaur, and Treasure Planet, because….ernhhmmhnh.

Back in my day, we called these things “Disney animated musicals,” but with the second revival of the series, containing films such as The Princess and The Frog, Tangled, Frozen, and now Moana, they have been re-classified as the “Disney Princess Movie.” It’s a more appropriate nickname for these films than the earlier kin, because they more centrally focus on their lead female characters, with Frozen going as far as turning the whole premise of “girl seeking truth and adventure and finding a handsome prince” completely on its head and shaking out all the fairy dust, leaving us with empowered female characters that support and elevate one another above the simplicity of the concept. Moana seeks to do the same thing, but with a lot more subtlety. To use an easy metaphor, Frozen passes the Bechdel test, while Moana features a Mako Mori, a female lead whose motivations drive the plot further than any other character in the film.

The beginning of the film immediately hands out the “great destiny” motivations of the film. Moana, played by newcomer Auli’I Cravalho, is destined to carry a small green stone known called The Heart of Te Fiti, which was taken as a gift to humankind by the demigod Maui, played by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, cursing the sea and surrounding islands to a slow and eventual death. It’s made clear right off the bat that Moana is not a princess; rather she’s destined to be the chief of the Montinui tribe after her father, Chief Tui. She knows vaguely about her destiny at sea, but her father forbids her to go near the water, because childhood trauma. So she stays, and becomes pretty adept towards her bid at future rule, until the curse of Te Fiti begins to eat up her island as well. She’s finally spurred to adventure when her grandmother (Rachel House) passes away, having learned the secret of the sailing ships her father kept hidden away under the reef.

From this point on, you can expect to see Moana, and a small wall-eyed rooster named Hei Hei (Supposedly voiced by Alan Tudyk, although stock chicken sound effects are used just as often) sail the ocean in order to fulfill the tent posts of the legend she was told as a child. The first rough night out at sea lands them on the very island where Maui has been living in exile. Maui, predictably has a lot of The Rock in his portrayal, Dwayne Johnson being no stranger to playing an egotistical yet charismatic Polynesian demigod. He, surprisingly, also takes after the Genie in Aladdin, moving about gracefully from scene to scene like a giant warrior ballerina, while the more mystical elements of his nature are illustrated with the animated tattoos that are all over his body. But as front and center as the character is, he never steals the heroism spotlight from Moana, who needs to motivate him constantly to do the responsible thing, and return the stone to Te Fiti. There’s a brief fight with one inch tall pirates, and then a slight detour where Maui has to retrieve his stolen magical fishhook from the 20 foot hermit crab monster Tamatoa (Jemaine Clement). All the while, both Moana and Maui challenge their individual motivations, part ways, and come back, all the way until the inevitable moment of confrontation with Te Fiti, where, guess which one of the two of them succeeds in returning the heart.

There’s an interesting concept at play through this film: the characters seem to understand there’s a plot going on, and they have to do it, but their minds and hearts are always back at home, where they’re supposed to be. It’s certainly a contrast from other Disney Princess films, but it’s hard to tell whether it was even intentional. Maui, in particular, loves to riff on the fact that he considers Moana a princess, even though there’s really no concept of that in this region. Also, the soundtrack provides tons of songs written with Polynesian orchestral sections, except for “You’re Welcome,” sung by Johnson as Maui, and “Shiny” sung by Clement as Tamatoa. Tamatoa’s whole arc is practically A Big-Lipped Alligator Moment, the only thing anchoring it to the main story being the retrieval of Maui’s magic hook.
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I’d be lying, though, if I said it wasn’t all entertaining, and also amazingly well animated. While lots of other animation studios are scaling back their CG to resemble something hand-drawn or stop motion, as with Dreamworks’ Trolls, Disney works fully within the 3-D rendering palette. The characters still seem lively and are full of expression, without resorting to any squash and stretch, frame-by-frame cheating techniques. There’s, naturally, lovely water to be seen, and lots of amazing wind and nature effects. And just count how many times you catch Maui doing “The People’s Eyebrow.”

So, there you are. It’s a good film. You’ll like it, your kids will love it, and there are no buts to be had. It goes alongside the current crop of Disney princess movies without becoming a direct clone of them. If I didn’t know better, I might even say it’s a mold breaker. But don’t quote me on that. It isn’t. 

Every vacation comes with a small problem or two, but most of the time they are such tiny issues that you can easily get over them. But there are the few instances where the problems escalate into something that cannot be ignored and that is when your vacation turns into so much more. The entire point of taking a vacation is to get away from life, but when you are forced to work hard at trying to have a good time, it may wind up being pointless. There is no true way in knowing whether or not a trip you plan will be perfect, you just have to go with the flow and hope for the best, because in the end, that is all you really can do anyway.

Years after writing his piece on Delos and the problems that happened at Westworld, Chuck Browning is ready to move on, but getting a strange phone call at the office has piqued his interest once again. Heading off to see an informant, Chuck is surprised to see that the man has fallen dead at his feet and now he must try and find out what is happening at the cyborg vacation location now that it has reopened. Being privy to a special all access tour from Delos, Chuck may have found his next exposé to write about, but he will not be met with open arms as news personality Tracy Ballard wants in on the story as well. With the two having history, Tracy and Chuck are forced to put aside their personal differences and work together, if for nothing else to get a really good story.

Seeing all of the heads of state on their flight, Chuck’s mind goes into overdrive since he has never seen this many people of power heading to one place outside of the U.N. Wanting to know why they are all headed to the new Delos facility, he strikes out at every turn trying to get a word with them. Arriving at Delos and noticing how much bigger it is now than it was two years ago when things went haywire inside Westworld, Chuck has an ulterior motive as he wants to know why his new informant Frenchy was killed.  With the robots being able to answer questions freely, they tell him nothing, but that will not keep Chuck from getting the answer he is looking for. While being catered to by Duffy, Tracy and Chuck are given all access to the park, including central command where all of the magic happens, but there is a different feeling around the floor as everyone that works behind the curtain is a robot to limit the chance of human error ever again.

After waking up from a nightmare, Tracy sees that Chuck is about to head out on an after-hours tour of the park and threatens to turn him in if she is not allowed to go with. Agreeing to let her tag along, Chuck moves under the park and finds someone that might actually be able to give him some answers as he meets Harry, one of the few remaining humans working on site. Being able to place Frenchy as a worker at the park, Harry has more secrets that Tracy and Chuck know nothing about, especially one room that he is not able to access, but the newest machines can. Being able to gain access to the room with some creative thinking, the group sees that there is something more sinister than they could have ever imagined going on behind closed doors since duplicates of world leaders along with replicas of Chuck and Tracy are being created.  Knowing that they have outstayed their welcome at the park, it is time to leave, but when the duplicates are released, there is no telling what they might do.

When you do one thing and it fails, it is always good to try again, but when it comes to androids that are self-aware, it might not be the best idea to give them another shot, that is what Westworld showed us and now Futureworld is making that same mistake all over again. As the robots become more self-aware and willing to do anything to ensure their survival and the survival of the planet, the gloves have come off and they do not have to listen to any rules. That has to be what I liked most about this movie since Dr. Schneider and Duffy know the ins and outs of the robots and what their purpose really is in this world, while Chuck and Tracy have no idea what the robots are capable of. It is fun to think about what the future will bring as it gets closer and closer every day, but if robots are in the picture, you might want to give it a second thought since there is no way to know what they can bring to the table, especially when they become free-thinking killing machines. 

Five Takeaways

1. If you are hated by a company, you should never accept any gifts from them, period.
2. When robots lie to you about anything, their programming is flawed, or they have been programmed to work against you.
3. If your best friend is a faceless robot, you might want to get out some more.
4. When your duplicates come to kill you, it is best to think outside of the box when it comes to outsmarting them, mainly because they know everything that you do.
5. A simple kiss can tell the difference between a duplicate and the real person, yup, its science. 

Vacations are meant to help you feel better about yourself and keep you from losing your cool, but that last part may not be for everybody. Some people live for excitement on their vacations and would rather go sky diving, speed luging or just jump off the side of a mountain. All things to make you remember that you are alive and living the life you want and while there is nothing wrong with that, the somber vacation where things are planned out and I don’t have to stress is the way to go for me. But if there was a place that I could live out my fantasies with a guarantee that nothing bad would happen, well that might make me change my mind a little bit.
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The Delos Company has made great strides in making people's dreams become reality. Being able to bring some of the most popular eras in  human history back to life, they offer a Medieval World filled with castles and knights, a Roman World with all of the glory of the empire and a West World that takes you back to the old west. For the small fee of a thousand dollars a day (per guest), people can be whisked away into their fantasies and not worry about a thing in the world and even have the freedom to do anything that they want. With no problems ever being reported about this grand adventure, Delos is the most trusted name in theme parks known to man.

Getting ready for his first adventure, Peter is trying to get all of his questions answered by his good friend John who has been in the park before. Not believing that any of the stories can be real, he will have to experience it for himself first hand. Seeing that the attendants on the shuttle craft in might have been robots as well, Peter does not know what to expect, but when arriving in town, he sees that anything is possible. Heading to the saloon to get a drink, Peter is tormented by the Gunslinger dressed in black that will not lay off until the out of towner is willing to do something about it. Pulling out his gun and laying the Gunslinger out, Peter may be on the greatest adventure of his life and will not look back.

Behind closed doors, everything is normal in the epicenter of the park's operations and after the night comes to a close, the supervisor takes a look at the robot casualties for the day and continues to note anything that might be out of the ordinary.  Finding that he has had three bots come into the shop with central computing issues, he is forced to tell everyone in charge that the computer sickness that was experienced in Medieval World is starting to make its way into West World. With nobody believing the report, he is forced to keep his attention focused on the three worlds to make sure that nothing gets out of control because nobody may know how to stop it.
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While guests continue to enjoy their vacations, the first malfunction seems to be a little odd, but not life threatening. When a sex bot refuses the advances of a customer, she is pulled from the program and checked out and the same central malfunction is found.  While Pete and John are enjoying their time as outlaws, a robo-snake bites John in the arm and now slight concern is shown by the Delos high brass.  Not knowing what this means, they limit customers coming in, but that proves to not be enough as the robots are starting to act on their own and being forced to watch as one kills a customer with no way to stop it, the power is cut, but the robots continue to carry on with their dirty work. Only the humans have to fear for their lives, but with so many robots running each area, there may be no way for anyone to escape .

Talk about a story that was well ahead of its time, it is amazing that we do not have robot theme parks out there yet. Maybe we do and I have not heard of them since I am not the richest man in the world, but if there is one, I would like to know more about the programming behind it. As we have learned in recent history, none of our programming is safe from hackers and just imagine what would happen if they took over all the androids in an amusement park. Although the story really revolves around Pete and John as they are on the vacation of a lifetime, I see more going on behind the scenes with the Delos brass and what they have designed, or more precisely, what they did not design. Having robots designing and building robots may be time efficient, but might not be the best idea when you do not know how the final product actually works. I am surprised that they never made a series out of this story, oh wait, yes they did. Looking at this movie, it really stands the test of time and when a crazy android world opens up, I hope they take note of this, because if they build killer robots, it will not end well for anyone involved. 

Rebellion is not a new theme, in film in general or in the Harry Potter series specifically. For years movie goers have been emboldened, impassioned, and inspired by on screen heroes who face insurmountable odds with sometimes little more than good intentions and a firm belief in right vs. wrong. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them continues this tradition of unlikely heroes battling against tyranny and oppression, giving audiences a movie that is at once familiar and entirely new. Newt Scamander’s fight against fear mongering and oppression draws heartwarming parallels with our original wiz-kid hero, Harry Potter, and we are reminded of why we fell in love with the wizarding world in the first place. But in the midst of all the spellbinding magic and fantastic beasts, this movie manages to give us a terrifying portrait of Wizard/Muggle ignorance and the dangerous threat humanity poses to ourselves and the world we inhabit.

The film follows two major “crises”; first, the wizarding world’s misunderstanding and subsequent mistreatment of magical creatures and second, the wizarding world’s fear of being exposed to the muggle world and the war, death, and destruction that would inevitably follow. Both play on important themes such as innate rights of existence (for animals and humans alike), the dangers of fear mongering, xenophobia, and segregation, etc. But while these overarching themes may upon first glance paint a simple portrait of good vs. evil, as J.K. Rowling does best, it is in the finer plot points and character developments that we see the complexities of her storytelling and ultimately her warnings against the “it’s us or them” mindset.

There are the occasional small references to these larger issues throughout the movie; Newt’s remark about America’s backwards muggle and wizard relation laws, the hints at animal trafficking and species endangerment, the “Second Salem” society which draws direct parallels to the literal witch hunt that threw early inhabitants of America into a deadly frenzy, etc. And all of these little things are the foundation of the larger political message the film is building to. Ultimately, the film is an outline of how dictators (or in this case, dark wizards) are able to rise to power.

The film opens with a montage of newspaper headlines which explain that Grindelwald (Voldemort’s predecessor) is wreaking war and destruction throughout Europe. We then jump quickly to Newt’s arrival in America, upon which we discover there is something magical loose in New York City that is threatening the wizarding world’s exposure to the no majs/muggles. What follows is a series of ignorant and fear driven decisions by the wizarding government that nearly lead to the destruction of the city and all-out war with the non-magic community or in other words, exactly what Grindelwald wants. It becomes clear that those in power, while trying their best to keep everything under control, are so intent on keeping a semblance of peace that they disregard the warning signs. They have been warned about the abusive woman who runs the Second Salem society but instead of taking action they demote the one witch who tries. They are warned that the murderous and destructive force raging through the city is an Obscura but they choose to believe that it is impossible and instead use Newt’s creatures as a scapegoat. Graves, who we presume is the head of magical law enforcement in America, sentences to people to death on the grounds that they might be working for Grindelwald and with no proof or trial is nearly able to carry out this sentence.

It is a story we’ve unfortunately seen before in our Muggle world, those in power doing nothing until it is too late and those without power suffering for it. We could draw parallels from every infamous dictator in our history to the dark wizards of the wizarding world, and many have. If you don’t believe me, Google “Who Said It, Voldemort or …” This seems to be a lesson we never quite learn, a pattern doomed to repeat itself over and over again but given a new name each time so we can all retreat safely into the belief that somehow this time may be different. And once again, J.K. Rowling provides us with a tale that reminds us that evil and hatred may change its face, its name, its target, but it does not change its nature. For Harry’s generation there was Voldemort. For Newt’s there is Grindelwald. One can only hope that perhaps J.K. Rowling’s latest installment will teach us what it seems history cannot and that the planned next four films will continue to encourage our rebellious potential.