Movie Review: The Revenant

I apologize for all of my R rated movie reviews recently.
That said, this is the goriest, heaviest, adult movie to date on my blog with a review.
I make this note so that no one takes this R rating lightly in any way shape or form.

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The Revenant (2015)

Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu
Producer: Arnon Milchan, Steve Golin, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Mary Parent, Keith Redmon, James W. Skotchdopole
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Release Date: December 16, 2015 (TCL Chinese Theatre), December 25, 2015 (U.S. Limited Release), January 8, 2016 (Worldwide Release)
Running Time: 156 minutes
Country: United States
Language: Arikara, English, French, Pawnee
Rating: R

Trailer

Inspired by true events, in an expedition of the uncharted American wilderness, legendary explorer Hugh Glass is brutally attacked by a bear and left for dead by members of his own hunting team. In a quest to survive, Glass endures unimaginable grief as well as the betrayal of his confidant John Fitzgerald. Guided by sheer will and the love of his family, Glass must navigate a vicious winter in a relentless pursuit to live and find redemption. (Source)

Movie Tags: Historical, Man vs Wild, Survival, Drama, Western, semi-biographical

Note: Please note R rating.

This film may be, by far the goriest grittiest movie I've seen in years, but it was worth watching.

I'm going to be honest.. I saw this over two weeks ago and still have no idea how it makes me feel.
It's a story about real people's lives, it's history. It's gritty, unpleasant, cringe inducing, insightful, beautiful, ugly, raw...
I loved it but I also hated it... unsure of where that leaves me. Conflicted. Confused.

I feel the need to consider it given me a different view on my life, the value of how easy life and death came almost 200 years ago. The idea that I came from those that survived those conditions, ones I can't even imagine, always blows me away. Something I try not to think too hard about because it might blow my mind away too much. 

This movie dances around the entire reality that lives hanging in the balance. Struggling with the ideas of if you are able to change your life or if you are meant to let things be.
That partnerships, friendships, relationships, life and death, all come and go so easily and quickly. While some.. last longer than you'd ever expect, but let's dive in.

Hugh Glass was real. His story is true, this version however, not entirely. You may have no noticed the "semi-biographical" tag.
Hugh Glass was a mountain man and beaver fur trapper in the American West in the 1820s and 1830s.  On his first trip up the Missouri River in 1823 he was severely mauled by a grizzly bear, left for dead by his companions, survived, and struggled on his own for about six weeks and 200 miles back to Fort Kiowa. This feat was legendary among his peers almost immediately and the story has been retold (and elaborated on) ever since. (Source)

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What I enjoyed the most, were the little details this movie touched on. Actual research into the lives, culture, and practices of indigenous tribes.

There's a scene where a Pawnee man dies and a piece of moss is placed in his mouth. This is something they actually did to respect their dead.
The person I watched the film with pointed it out to me, I noticed it, but hadn't really thought much of it. It's such a simple, but beautiful moment which only adds farther depth to the complexity of this film.

Along with that, there is a meeting of chance, which leads to Hugh being kept alive by someone solely for their consideration and kindness. The effort they put into building shelter is beyond amazing and authentic to the times.

There's the hunting techniques, the Pawnee hunt with fire. There's a moment when you see fire rage up and take over a flat area and wolves running off. A Pawnee man is taking a kill from the wolves since they fear fire, as most animals instinctively do.

As I've already discussed, some of the facts have been altered an that effects my feelings and review of the film. Mainly because it's disappointing. While I understand there are issues of entertainment and different version of memoirs of the events. The heaviest point, some characters did not die, those that somewhat impacted the story line, as well as the driving force of the film doesn't hold against the facts of the journey. But I'm trying to avoid spoilers.

If you are interested... Farther reading... Fact checking...

IMDb | Wikipedia | Rotten Tomatoes

Game Review: Joking Hazard

Being I have always stated this as a review blog to better my writing, I once again feel the liberty to branch out. I have done movie reviews,TV reviews, and would now like to add to the occasionally [tabletop] gaming review genre.
Tabletop games are a love of mine, mostly board games and card games. Not so much miniatures or even RP games.
Gaming is something I enjoy, not as regularly as I'd like, but when I get the chance I jump at it.

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Created by: Cyanide And Happiness
Players: 3 or More
Ages: 18+ Adult Content

Facebook | Kickstarter | Cyanide And Happiness
Buy From Official Store

This was a wonderful gift from my loving boyfriend. Who backed it through Kickstarter and received a Red Box version (see edited picture below). Which also includes two additional card packs, Blast from the Past and Kickstarter Thank You Pack.
It was funded back in on February 2016, he was hoping it would be a birthday present. (Which is actually arrived around early October, earlier than their Nov '16 estimated date, even after some delays.)

If you're easily offended and/or can't handle a few swear words or two, please turn back. Do not pass go, do not collect some humour along the way.

Joking Hazard's plays style and concept are fairly easy. The idea, you are making a comic strip. The catch is, it's in parts.
Each round there are players and a judge. The judge decides who wins that round, by choosing their favourite punchline, based on whatever the heck they decided. (Funniest, crudest, best reference.)

Basic Rules
Gather 3 or more human being and have everyone draw 7 cards. Place the rst in a draw pile, face down. Pick the first judge through nonviolent means.

The deck plays first, by flipping the top card off the draw pile. This is the starter panel.

The judge plays second, by placing a card from their hand on either side of the starter panel, creating a two panel setup.

Everyone else plays third. Each player plays a card, face down, at the end of the setup to create the punchline. The judge shuffles the punchlines and puts them face up one at a time, and then picks their favourite. the winning player then takes their card back for score keeping.

Everyone draws another card, you should always have 7.
Judge changes and so on. The first player to whatever score you want to play wins.

Example:

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It's a very open ended game where you're encouraged to adjust the rules to your liking and even suggest other ways to play the game.
There are also Red Panel cards, with suggested play of becoming a bonus round!
Some other suggested play examples include, Jerk mode, Marathon, Neverending Story.
Along with a list of "Suggested Drinking Rules" with, Drinking Wagering, Ultimate Sacrifice, Bottoms Up, Learn 2 Read, Decked Over, No One Cares.

The first time we played we already established some 'house rules'.
First, not one single draw pile. We make multiple piles all over the table and you can pick any number of cards from any of them. There's just too many to try and create one pile.

Second, there are red bordered cards that normally launch you into a different play style, we ignored that and played two cards instead. Allowing for split play.
Meaning, of the two cards played if the judge only liked one from each player, each player gets 1 point instead of 2 points.

While this is a fun games, it feels rather limited after a few plays. Which is why it fell on only a 3 star rating. Even after about the 20 rounds we played, it was a pretty simply standard kind of game.

The cards themselves are hilarious, the typical Cyanide And Happiness we know and love. I've no doubt seen all of them and hope to see more hilarious inappropriateness from this game.

Despite the rating, I will be playing it again. Hoping to try some of the other modes or even create my own! Mwahah!

"Joking Hazard was made possible by the 63,758 people who backed us on Kickstarter. If you're one of them, thank you so much. You brought this game to life!"

    BoardGameGeek | Wiki

This is what my box looks likes. It's originally NSFW (Not Safe For Work) but I edited it so that it's cleaned up... It's still pretty obvious what it says.