zombie

It took 33 years, but it finally has happened. Thanks to high-definition video technology, Jaws 3 can at last be seen in the way it was originally meant to be seen, courtesy of Universal's recent release of the sequel on Blu-ray. Click below to read my full review. I've lost track of how many times I've seen Jaws and Jaws 2 , but I've only seen Jaws 3 twice in 2D. Every other time I've seen it after that was in a different 3D format--anaglyph, field sequential, and in the theater --to figure out which one was the best. Based on what I've seen before, the 3D version included in the new Jaws 3 Blu-ray is the best of the bunch. There's very little shadowing and most of the pop-out effects work beautifully; it even looks sharper, more colorful and less grainy than the 2D version that's on the same disc. Unfortunately, the notorious shark-through-the-window shot from the film's climax still doesn't look right, and I doubt it ever will until someon...

Last month, I posted an article about how I was able to convert my Kindle Fire into a portable viewer of 3D video content. At that point, I could watch side-by-side (SBS) 3D content from YouTube but I had yet to figure out how I could convert my collection of 3D Blu-rays into SBS 3D files that I could play back on the Fire. What I found out was that while such a goal is possible, it was trickier to accomplish than I thought it would be. Read on ... For those of you who want to stop reading now, the software system to get to convert 3D Blu-ray discs into SBS 3D files is DVDFab 9 . This is the ONLY software that I found that can actually do this. I should know, because I had to sift through dozens of software systems that claimed to do the same thing but couldn't do it at all. As anyone who understands 3D entertainment knows, a stereoscopic image has to have one image for the left eye and another image for the right eye in order for the viewer's brain to think that it is see...

At last, Universal does something right with the Jaws franchise (sort of). This June, the three Jaws sequels-- Jaws 2 , Jaws 3 and Jaws: The Revenge --will be released on Blu-ray. These sequels arrive four years after the first film received a deluxe Blu-ray treatment in 2012. I've heard from friends over the years that the Jaws sequels have been available as high-definition digital rentals, so this will mark the first time that the HD versions of the sequels will be available as hard copies. Unfortunately, even though these sequels will look great on HD televisions, the Blu-rays will be slim on extras. As far as I can tell, the only new extra we'll be getting out of these sequels is a 3D Blu-ray version of Jaws 3 --which is great news for 3D aficionados like me but not so great for Jaws fans who could care less about 3D. The Jaws 2 Blu-ray will have the same extras as the 2001 DVD release, and Jaws: The Revenge won't have anything extra but the theatrical trailer. I don...

Ever since I learned of its existence, I've done everything that I can afford to do to partake in 3D entertainment. I've picked up anaglyph 3D books, comics and DVDs; I purchased the Virtual FX 3D converter for my cathode ray tube (CRT) TV set so I could watch field sequential 3D DVDs; and I bought two 3D-capable flat screen TVs (one with active glasses, the other passive) so I could watch 3D Blu-rays and access 3D rentals from on demand services such as 3DGO . With such an obsessive pattern of behavior in place, it was only a matter of time before I found a way to watch 3D content on my Kindle Fire. After weeks of searching, that's exactly what I did through the OWL Stereoscopic Viewer, a lightweight and affordable tool that turned my Kindle Fire into a portable 3D video player. Read on ... 3D video entertainment got a significant boost with the arrival of high-definition flat screen TVs, and attempts to expand 3D videos and interactive 3D software over to smart phones an...

I have a confession to make. In a recent post , I mentioned how I had no interest in watching the new Batman v. Superman movie because I wasn't excited about it. What I did not mention was the movie-going math I did in my head as part of this decision. This year marks the release of two high-profile movies about superheroes fighting superheroes: BvS by Warner Bros. and DC and Captain America: Civil War by Disney and Marvel, which is slated for release on May 6th. In light of these two films, I had to ask myself this question: Which movie will feature a story that is worth enduring almost two hours of explosive CGI effects and eardrum-shattering surround-sound noises? Making such a decision may not sound like much, but this is a big deal for a movie geek like me. For as long as I can remember, watching as many high-profile special-effects driven movies as possible had become an annual tradition. This was largely due to growing up in the late '70 and the '80s, when filmmak...

This month marks the 20th anniversary of Capcom's iconic survival horror video game franchise, Resident Evil (a.k.a. Biohazard). Through two decades worth of hit games, Resident Evil proved that zombies were just as much of a reliable staple for video games as they were for low-budget horror movies. I didn't hop on the Resident Evil bandwagon when the franchise launched in the '90s. The promise of fighting off hordes of zombies, lizard people, giant spiders and other superfreaks just wasn't enough to overcome my aversion to the games' static camera angles and video clips that played every time players used stairs or opened a door. ( Every. Damn. Time. ) I finally saw the light of Resident Evil's appeal through the two rail shooters were released for the Nintendo Wii, The Umbrella Chronicles and The Darkness Chronicles . Some devoted fans hated these games, but I thought that they were great for gamers like me who just wanted to see what the franchise was like a...

About a decade ago, I purchased a software suite called DVD Catalyst , which allowed me to shrink DVD content into video files that were small enough to be stored and viewed on my cell phone. I got plenty of usage out of DVD Catalyst, which allowed me to catch up on my volumnous and ever expanding must-see movie list while I commuted via subway to remote work locations. Fast forward to 2016, and portable, flat screen video isn't just a possibility anymore--it's a way of life. Read on ... Right now, my Kindle Fire has access to three on-demand video services: Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Verizon Fios. I've been using Netflix for years, and Fios is the newest addition to my portable video viewing options. However, because Verizon is our cable TV and Internet service provider, the Fios application for the Kindle Fire has a few extra goodies that the other services don't--in particular, I can now watch stuff that I record via Fios through my Kindle Fire without having to turn...

Even though I'm a tech-loving geek, I've been reluctant to accept cell phones and tablets as mediums with which to regularly play video games. I've used my cell phone in the past to play simple games to pass the time, but I couldn't imagine this kind of gaming to equal or surpass PCs and game consoles. Yet upon recent consideration, I've come to realize that what makes this form of gaming worthwhile is the kind of game that one chooses to play on a cell phone or a tablet. The kind of game that I'm talking about in this post is Monument Valley by Ustwo. Monument Valley is a touchscreen-based puzzle game that depicts the silent Princess Ida's exploration of a lost civilization's "sacred geometry" to discover its secrets. Players use the touchscreen to move Ida through each level and manipulate the many knobs and levers that are hidden within the isometric puzzles. Currently, the game consists of ten levels with an extra level called "Ida...

Being a fan of video games for as long as I can remember, I'm somewhat surprised over how my gaming preferences have changed over time. I've previously gravitated towards more complex and graphically sophisticated games in order to experience the latest advancements in gaming technology. Yet as my real life becomes more stressful and personal funds get smaller, I find myself going back to the basics: simple yet intriguing visuals matched with simple yet addictive game play. This post will look at three indie puzzle games that caught my attention-- Breezeblox by Brennan Maddox, and Rush and Edge by Two Tribes--and why they're the go-to games for unwinding when reality causes your brain to overheat. Breezeblox , Rush and Edge are puzzle games that focus on geometric shapes, spatial relations and limited movement. There are no end bosses to beat, weapons to find, or enemies to vaporize; these games are all about navigating movable cubes from one end of a platform environm...