Workout of the Day: DDP Yoga

2014's first workout came courtesy of former WCW superstar Diamond Dallas Page and a well constructed testimonial video/infomercial.  DDP Yoga, formerly known as Yoga For Regular Guys is billed as "not your mama's yoga!".  After seeing DDP help wrestlers former and current like Jake "The Snake" Roberts, Scott "Razor Ramon" Hall and Chris Jericho with substance abuse and back issues, I figured it would be a nice addition to my workout regimen and something new to keep me interested.  The system wasn't all that expensive, about what you'd pay for two months at a commercial gym.  You know, those overcrowded, messy, understaffed joints that are full of Don'ters kidding themselves with New Years Resolutions for the month of January.

There are several workouts for varying levels of exertion and we started out with two programs showing you the basics of DDP's Diamond Dozen, 13 moves designed to get your heart rate up, engage your muscles and increase flexibility.  All of the moves were pretty basic and have you focusing on firing muscle groups by using isometric tension.  The 25 minute Energy! workout moves quick and DDP is positive, supportive and funny as your instructor.  By the end I felt pretty invigorated and tight yet relaxed. 

Watch this and try not to cry:

End of Watch(ing): 2013

Another year, another 80 movies in a theater.  First run, revival, special events, anniversaries, midnights and outdoor screenings add up in the city of lights and angels.  Looking back, I got to see some of my favorite movies of all time on the big screen like The Great Escape (2nd time), The Terminator (3rd time), Robocop (2nd time) and Escape From New York (3rd time) as well as see some of my favorite actors in person like Jean-Claude Van Damme, Kurt Russell and Peter Weller.

On the new movie front, three flicks hit cinemas that became instant favorites:

Pain & Gain

Hands down my favorite movie of the year.  Why?  Because it's a movie about DOING.  Not talking about it, being about it!  Just because it's about the dark side of the human condition doesn't take away from the fact that P&G was the most hilarious and fucked up good time I had in a theater.  Of course I'm partial to the flick as well due to it's 90's bodybuilding backdrop which I find hysterical.  Mark Wahlberg is great as the determined, positive, yoked out, manipulative and demented ring leader following a three finger plan to rid the world of a douche bag while getting rich in the process.  Dwayne Johnson's freakish physique and boyish charm are put to good use as the dim witted weak link of the group and Wings' Tony Shalhoub is fantastic as the self made, total asshole, non-salad eating mark.  Michael Bay brings his usual vibrant, over the top and kinetic style to a low budget classic that shows he knows what he's doing even if people try to give him crap about it.

Pacific Rim

The most fun I had at the movies this summer.  Maybe it was the low expectations, maybe it was the horrid trailers, maybe it was the new yet familiar concept of Transformers fighting Godzilla but I was not looking forward to it.  Imagine my surprise when I found myself grinning ear to ear from the very start.  The soundtrack is catchy and rocking while the giant robot destruction was near heart stopping and exciting.  Rim almost spoils you for other movies because it makes you feel and yearn for a higher purpose.  We all go to movies to be entertained and sometimes educated but Rim is truly cinematic magic as it makes reality seem oh so boring compared to the world created.  Guillermo Del Toro brings out your inner 12 year old while making your 31 year old self wish he had a higher calling as singular and important as defending the world from massive, angry alien invaders.

The Last Stand

Arnold's would be comeback vehicle might not have set the box office on fire but that doesn't take away from the fact that it's an age appropriate and rollicking fun time showing the King still has the goods.  A modern western realized by easterner Kim Jee-Woon, Stand is a violent and quirky thriller that pits Arnie's small town rag-tag Sheriff's Department against the merciless army of an escaped cartel leader.  For me, Stand ranks among The Oak's best flicks, especially trumping anything he's done since True Lies in 1994.

Other flicks I enjoyed or at least made me pay attention:

Star Trek Into Darkness
Ender's Game
World War Z
Thor:  The Dark World
Only God Forgives
Rush
Don Jon
Prisoners
2 Guns

I haven't gotten around to seeing most of the award fodder yet, that's what January is for.

Snow Screen: Drew: The Man Behind the Poster

Several years and a couple of San Diego Comic-Con's in the making, Drew:  The Man Behind the Poster, received a limited theatrical release before hitting DVD and Netflix this fall.  The story of Drew Struzan, one of if not the most known and beloved movie artists of all time (seriously, can you name another poster artist?); Drew is a study of the man's work peppered with bits about his life and now legacy featuring a plethora of famous interviewees and fans including George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Thomas Jane, Frank Darabont, Leonard Maltin, Michael J. Fox and Guillermo Del Toro.  The last two being particularly funny in their comments and recollections of describing their relationship with the artist.


The documentary opens with a brief and melancholy look at Struzan's loveless childhood that led him to moving out after high school.  A Los Angeles native, Struzan attended Art Center in Pasadena where he honed his craft for six years.  Newly married with a child, Struzan went to work designing album covers which culminated in his much revered piece for Alice Cooper's Welcome to My Nightmare in 1975.  An advertising agency came calling and convinced Struzan to switch to movie poster art which paid much more handsomely.  The die cast, history was now in the making.

  
Drew's narrative focuses on a few major eras of his work, the first being Star Wars, which came in as a partnership offer from a friend who was good at robots but not humans.  George Lucas loved the combined work and as time has shown us, commissioned Struzan for dozens more pieces for the original 1977 trilogy, 1997 Special Edition releases and 1999's second trilogy.  His collaborations with Steven Spielberg, primarily Indiana Jones, is the next era highlighted with many an observation by the man himself, Harrison Ford.  Struzan's work with Jim Henson on The Muppet movies comes after which was a surprise as you forget how many wonderful posters he's created over the years.

As a documentary, Drew delivers a wonderful 90 minute look at the artist whose work defined a generation at the movies.  His textured, vibrant and better than photo-real style conveyed story, action, excitement and wonder in a single image in less than a second's glance.  The 80's were arguably his go-go years with iconic posters for Back to the Future, First Blood, Coming to America, Blade Runner, The Goonies, Police Academy, Big Trouble In Little China and Masters of the Universe among dozens more forever embedded themselves into the mind of young viewers like myself.  The last title is subject to some slight ire as an example of the poster being better than the movie.  It's an absolutely stunning poster but I disagree it's a bad movie because I whole-heartedly love Masters for all it's "Conan the Barbarian meets Star Wars done on the cheap" sensibility.

As a narrative feature, Drew might not be as interesting to unaware or casual fans as conflict isn't a heavily featured topic and there are no high stakes to speak of.  Struzan's hardships as a child and his later professional strife with shady business partners are covered by not dwelled upon showing that the soft spoken, kind hearted artist has not become bitter.  In the end, Drew is a lovingly insightful look into the career and influence of an artist who unknowingly put a stamp on cinematic history without even trying.

For more information on the documentary and how to see it, check out the official site.

Weird(cool) Panels: Thor

It's always fun to come across a randomly weird issue of mainstream comics.  Whether it's Bruce Banner's bachelor party or Steve "Captain America" Rogers going on a date, these offbeat stories are usually a nice break from the monotony of superhero comics.

In this case, it started in Thor # 364 from I believe 1984 for several issues in which God of Mischief Loki turns Thor into a frog!  But since he's Thor, he's a super frog with enhanced strength.  Roaming the ponds of New York's Central park, Frog Thor comes across Puddlegulp, a frog who is recruiting other amphibians to fight an army of evil rats looking to poison the water supply of NY with all the traps set out for them.  Throw in some sewer crocodiles controlled by a dude with a flute and you get one of the weirdest comic book scenarios I've come across in quite a while.

Straight Flexing on the Net(flix)

In case you haven't heard, Netflix is about to lose a shit ton of titles to herald the year of the machines 2014.  Read the full list over at Dark Horizons and start crafting your To Watch list!  Among the digital casualties:

Jean-Claude Van Damme:  Hard Target, Lionheart, The Quest, Street Fighter and Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo.  Looks like the 65 million views his Volvo ad mustered couldn't save the Muscles From Brussels' Universal catalog along with his early appearance in Boogaloo.

Mel Gibson:  Braveheart, Gallipolli and We Were Soldiers

Cannon Films:  Breakin' 2 and Revenge of the Ninja

Lance Henriksen:  Pumpkinhead and Hard Target

Sylvester Stallone:  Stop!  Or My Mom Will Shoot (we still have Staying Alive and Antz though!)

Michael Biehn:  Dead Men Can't Dance (alongside the TV Highlander himself, Adrian Paul)

Tom Selleck:  Quigley Down Under

Arnold Schwarzenegger:  Not affected, we still got Conan The Destroyer and Jingle All the Way!

Between loads of laundry, I worked on my expiring Instant Queue with Running Scared, Peter Hyams' 1986 buddy comedy starring Gregory Hines and Billy Crystal, most memorable for an impressive car chase on top of Chicago's L train tracks and a cop car with bullet proof glass.

Next was 1988's I'm Gonna Git You Sucka, the Blaxploitation parody from Keenan Ivory Wayans featuring no less than Isaac Hayes (Duke A-Number One!), Bernie Casey (Nerd savior), Chris Rock, Jim Brown and the best sidekick who was cooler than the hero, Steve James, of American Ninja fame as Kung-Fu Joe.

Michael Dudikoff and Steve James in a Cannon Films classic:

Biehn Scene: Alien 3

I love Aliens.  I've loved it since seeing it as a kid on CBS Saturday night then running around the house with a Super Soaker thinking it was a Pulse Rifle.  Years later I'd see it in all it's uncut glory on VHS and then the Special Edition in 1990 that reincorporated 17 minutes of James Cameron preferred footage.  Michael Biehn's portrayal of soft spoken, thrown into command, Biehn there, done that Corporal Hicks was a revelation.  Even though it was Ripley's movie, Biehn's turn as Hicks was calm, cool and badass while forever ingraining himself as one of my favorite actors.  Whether he's the vulnerable action hero of The Terminator, Navy Seals and Timebomb or the crazed, misunderstood mustached "villain" of Tombstone or The Abyss, Biehn always delivers a performance that can only be described as equal parts sensitive and intense...Sintense!

My love for 1986's Aliens was so strong that I never had a desire to watch 1979's Alien let alone 1992's Alien 3.  I may have caught bits and pieces of both but I didn't sit down for Alien until last summer to prep for Prometheus.  Alien 3 was still dead to me since I knew Hicks was not featured and had only heard bad things about the troubled production.  Thanks to the magic of in depth special features, we get to hear about all of those struggles from the people who lived them.  Following the success of Aliens, the producers went to work on a third installment but were stuck creatively.  Even though Sigourney Weaver's Ripley had become a north star for women in science fiction and garnered her an Academy Award nomination, female moviegoers still did not flock to Alien or Aliens.

For Alien 3, ideas were fleshed out and screenplays commissioned focusing on the male action hero Hicks could represent.  For whatever reason, Biehn, the man who brought Hicks to life, the consummate professional who replaced another actor already cast in the role over a weekend, was not going to be asked back.  When the flick finally started to roll under first time director David Fincher's eye, Weaver was center stage and Hicks was dead.  Already dead at the start of the film, Hicks was to be a carrier of a chest burster, thus bringing the xenomorph threat to new settings.  Once Biehn got wind of it, he and his agent protested and threatened to sue if his likeness was used.  Finally, a photo of Biehn from Aliens appeared on screen, for which he was paid nearly as much as his salary was on the previous film.

Now I'm trying to watch the prison planet set Alien 3, which has it's merits, but it's no Aliens and I nodded off several times.  Even though each Alien film is it's own self contained story, it's hard to watch Alien 3 and see everything Cameron and crew had accomplished in Aliens negated and jettisoned in the first 15 minutes.  That, and the cast and characters just can't hold a candle to Hicks, Hudson, Bishop, Apone, Drake or Vasquez.

Hicks lives!

Van Dammage - Dolla Dolla Bills

"Money is shit.  I mean, money is beautiful - hear me - it's good for you; it's good for the family, for buying a house, a car, for security.  But money is only paper.  If you do a good movie, you'll be a legend."
             Jean-Claude Van Damme

Arnold 24: End of Days and Jingle All the Way

Remember that time I told you about how I watched 5 Arnold movies in a weekend?  Yeah you do.  This past Saturday included an early morning viewing of 1999's End of Days as I shook off the previous night's holiday party followed by 1996's festive classic Jingle All the Way before popping in newly remastered The Terminator from 1984 later while cleaning up the house.

End of Days brings two memories to mind: the first being the breakfast shake Arnold puts together when his character; a sloppy and suicidal ex-cop working private security, is introduced.  It contains no less than coffee, leftover Chinese food, a piece of pizza picked up off the floor, Pepto Bismol and beer.  The second memory being that when EOD was released, it was a bit of a question mark as Arnold hadn't headlined a movie in 3 years and underwent heart surgery in the interim.  Arnie came back a bit haggard compared to his usual clean cut appearances as EOD's Jericho Cane is a man without hope and barely holding on when he comes across the bizarre case of Satan coming to NY looking for a wife.

Hitting screens during the Thanksgiving rush, Days wasn't quite the welcome back party Ah-nuld expected and was the start of his box office decline as 2000's The 6th Day and 2002's Collateral Damage would ring in middling returns.  EOD still managed to land in the Top 20 Worldwide grossing films of the year with a tally of over $200 million.  At the helm was Peter Hyams, who had experienced a bit of a career resurgence thanks to Jean-Claude Van Damme's attempts to branch out beyond simple martial arts fare in 1994's Timecop and 1995's Sudden Death.  Arnold's trusted friend James Cameron recommended Hyams for the job which turned out not to be quite as successful a pairing.  According to Arnold, Hyams didn't take many of his suggestions and bashed Cameron's filmmaking style which forever branded him a moron in the eyes of The Oak.

Much more enjoyable is Arnold's family Christmas flick, Jingle All the Way.  I've always loved this movie and tend to watch it frequently as it just cracks me up.  Jingle tells the story of hard working mattress salesman Howard Langston who always seems to miss out on his son Jamie's growing up.  Determined to make it up to him, Howie goes off in search of the season's hottest toy, Turbo Man.  Crowd trampling, unchecked capitalism, counterfeit toy rings, Mall of America, animatronic reindeer, exploding mail and mother fudging karate hijinks ensues.  The flick boasts an impressive credit list on and off screen as producer Chris Columbus brought us Home Alone, Gremlins, Mrs. Doubtfire and would later work on Harry Potter while director Bryan Levant was fresh from Beethoven and The Flinstones.

The cast is also great and filled with familiar faces like Sinbad, Rita Wilson (Tom Hanx's wife), Phil Hartman ("Oh these cookies!"), James Belushi, The Big Show, Chris Parnell, Booger himself Curtis Armstrong and Robert Conrad from TV's The Wild, Wild West.  Also a Thanksgiving release, Jingle also got caught up in the holiday shuffle, grossing less than Arnold's previous comedic attempts Twins and Kindergarten Cop but doing much better than his "man getting pregnant" flick Junior.  The Oak hasn't headlined a comedy since which is a huge loss because he is hilarious.  HILARIOUS.

Gotta Drank! Vast

While Christmas in California is a little weird since it's in the 70's, a week ago I experienced temperatures in the 20's in Iowa, 40's in Missouri and 60's in Oklahoma which required long sleeves.  Upon arriving in Oklahoma, it was dinner and drinks at Vast, a classy, upscale joint located on the 49th floor of a downtown Oklahoma City skyscraper.  I opted for an Old Fashioned which was very smooth and refreshing.  The view of course, is incredible as the million person population, stadium and half dozen highways of the city were spread out below in a funnel cake of lights and concrete.  My friend requested they reference an episode of Knight Rider as our reservation which they first rebuffed but ultimately carried out.  Because Trust Don't Rust.

Workout of the Day: Pec Pop

What do you do when you can't sleep and wake up at 5:00 AM for no particular reason?  In my case, it was time to work off a weekend of only eating 2 meals per day made up of fast food burgers or pizza.  So where my daily calories might have been lower than usual, it was still time to kick some endorphins and get ready for the holiday week.  Didn't feel like hitting the gym so I opted for a push up centric workout at home.

Like Chins, Push Ups are a great exercise you can do a million ways, anywhere and at any given time.  You only need enough space to get into position.  To spice up my session, I did sets to hit all three parts of the pecs:  upper, middle and lower.  You need to work the upper portion to tie into your shoulders, neck and clavicle while middle gives you that mass and width so you avoid narrow bird chest syndrome then lower tightens up the edges and bottom for that good slab like appearance.  I also recommend elevating each hand individually so you get a little more stretch out of the exercise.  In my apartment's spare room/office/gym I just use a couple hard cover novels about 2 inches thick.  Hand position wise I opted for normal, just outside shoulder width and wide.  Remember to keep your elbows close to the body so you're not putting all the stress on your shoulders.

For Incline, just put your feet up on your bed, a stool or a Swiss Ball if you've got one.  Doing them off a Ball will make it a little tougher as you've got to maintain stability so your core gets more work.  For regular, feet on the ground is fine while decline you can place your hands on a stair, a small box or even a coffee table, whatever you have around.

Phase I - Push Ups & Barbell Curls:  For mass, size and shape I alternated these two exercises doing 2 sets each of incline, regular and decline push ups.  For Curls, I bent at the waist, keeping my back straight and gripped the barbell at shoulder width.  It's kind of like a Spider or Preacher curl without a bench.  To really pump up my bi's, I would complete 8-10 full reps then do 3-4 partial "half" reps.  When the weight started to get heavy and I couldn't complete many reps, I'd strip the bar every few repetitions until I got 8-10.

Phase II - Dumbbell Fly's, 1-Arm Preacher Curls, Pullovers and Concentration Curls:

Since I was working out at home, I chose simple exercises that could be done back to back, superset style with little rest or weight/equipment changes in-between.  Doing Fly's on a Swiss Ball you can roll your body into incline or regular position.  As the weight got heavier I switched to Pullovers and Concentration Curls to avoid strain on my shoulders or elbows.  Pullovers can be done on the Swiss Ball or on the floor with a rolled up towel or throw pillow under your upper back.

That was it for weights then I moved downstairs for cardio consisting of 1 mile on the bike as fast as I could followed by jump roping for 2 minutes then abs.  I repeated this 3 times and called it a morning.  It wasn't even 7:00 AM yet but my Monday was already moving right along.

Arnold on the comeback trail:

Snow Screen: 47 Ronin

On Christmas Day you can enjoy no less than 4 major new releases at your local cinema after you've finished a holiday feast or opening presents or going to church or working or relaxing or whatever you're doing.  You've got the latest from Leo Dicaprio and Martin Scorsese, living up 80's excess in The Wolf of Wall Street.  Or you could opt for Raging Bull VS Rocky in Grudge Match.  If seeing old men Stallone and DeNiro trade puns and punches doesn't sound appealing then you can go on a fantasy adventure with Ben Stiller as Walter Mitty.  Or you can check out a Japanese myth retold for the umpteenth time only paid for by American studios.

The story of a band of master less samurai, or ronin, 47 tells the tale of a mysterious half breed teaming up with a driven warrior to avenge the death of their slain master at the hands of a rival lord and his witch powered oracle.  I thought this was going to be a clunky, comic book movie retelling of the old legend but 47 Ronin was a surprisingly serious and straight forward samurai and swords action drama with some unexplained supernatural elements.  While it never rises to the "oh shit!" chaotic crescendo of 13 Assassins, travel the depth of Twilight Samurai, or go West meets East like The Last Samurai; Ronin manages to be an entertaining 2 hour affair and quite a departure for any American studio since every scene but one features a cast of Japanese actors along side co-leading man Keanu Reeves.

Apparently, things weren't quite smooth sailing on this one as first time director Carl Rinsch was handed the reins to a $175 million tent pole with global appeal.  A friend saw a rough cut years ago that clocked in one hour longer and her reaction was not good.  Now, 5 years after the project was announced, the flick is finally hitting screens.  Reviews haven't been kind and with such a crowded market, the prospect of becoming a sleeper hit seems limited.  It's been 10 years since Warner Brothers backed Tom Cruise's The Last Samurai (a worldwide hit in 2003) so it may be a while until you can see another samurai tale in theaters without subtitles.

If you haven't seen 13 Assassins, Netflix that joint!

Con-Man: Long Beach Comic & Horror Con 2013

November's 5th annual Long Beach Comic & Horror Con was a blast as usual.  One of the great things about utilizing the Long Beach Convention Center is the abundance of entertainment outside the show.  So if you need a break or want to grab some non-Con food, you're covered.  The awesome $1 bookstore was still rockin' and rollin' and I grabbed a handful of books about Tim Allen, the state of politics according to Jesse Ventura and World War II.  I was meant to visit the store that day as a Vanity Fair from 1993 featuring Sylvester Stallone was the first thing I saw.

Walking up to the show, they had more replica and prop vehicles than ever, including my first viewing of the Batmobile from 1989's Batman!  Totally missed out at Comic-Con when Warner Brothers had all of the Batmobiles out at their offsite stage.  We've seen the Back to the Future Delorean before and if you donate the owner shows you little hidden things on the car, pretty cool.

More from inside the show coming!