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The Sessions, a hidden gem

Buy it on DVD/Bluray February 12, 2013

Good morning readers!

I just wanted to take a moment to do a (not-so) quick post about this incredible movie I watched last night. The Sessions, starring John Hawkes, Hellen Hunt, and William H. Macy. It's a film (a true story by the way) about a man named Mark O'Brien, who was striken with Polio as a child and whose muscles are essentially paralyzed from the neck down. To make a long story short, he eventually begins seeing a sex surrogate to guide him through the process of, well, becoming a man.

I know it sounds borderline ridiculous, but it's actually quite a great film. The relationships explored between Mark (Hawkes) and his surrogate Cheryl (Hunt), attendants, and priest (Macy) are brilliantly depicted and developed. Plus, believe it or not, the story is nothing short of inspirational. I don't want to give too much away, because I truly believe this is a must see.

A few quick notes however.

1. If you are asking yourself, "I wonder what the difference between a sex surrogate and a prostitute is?" The answer is, not much. Hellen Hunt's character attempts explaining the difference in the film, but really, it's kind of weak. Truth is, she's just a super classy prostitute. Picture Julia Roberts in pretty woman, towards the end of her stint with Gere (you know, when she's all classed out and fancy), and add a college education, simple therapy tactics, a tape recorder, and about 25 years.

2. Ladies, be warned, there is a bit more than a fair share of nudity in this one, and it's pretty much all Hellen Hunt. However, we must give credit where credit is due. Hellen is roughly 50 years old (in real life), her face is about 58 +/-, but good for her, because truth be told, the body is still only 32! She looks fantastic, and be at ease, the nudity is very much in context and gracefully done. There are a few "graphic" moments, but nothing too in your face (well except the scene where she is all up in his face). So, if you're weird about sex, maybe stay away, but trust me, you'd be missing out on an incredible story.

3. Lastly, the ending felt a little rushed and unsatisfying. The movie spans roughly 11 years from what I gathered, but 7/8 of the film all take place in 1988, and then, slam, you've flex capacitored your way to the future, where of course we don't need roads, but I'd like an explanation of how we got there. But it's a small price to pay for a great story, greater characters, and greaterest bumpin physiques.

Anyways, I hope this helps, and makes you want to see it. The DVD/Bluray releases on Tuesday, February 12, 2013, and trust me, you won't regret it.

As always, if you like reading this, follow Pol, Dre and myself on Facebook and Twitter for daily updates, thoughts, pics and more. You can also email us at pausedreviews@gmail.com with your thoughts as well as any suggestions for what you'd like us to watch/play and review!

Thanks for reading all!

- Franc

Dead Space 3 Demo Continued!

Pol in red Dre in blue.  Like a boss!

Hey guys.  So, Dre and I decided to try out the demo on Co-Op.

First, my thoughts on playing through it solo.  The game looks and feels amazing.  The camera doesn't jerk around and place you in awkward positions. (I don't need to know if Issac is wearing Hanes).

The Demo is short, but gives you a feel for many of the new features of the game, as Dre pointed out earlier...Customization!! But not just for your weapon, your armor as well.  With the items you pick up early on you get to see what it's like to build your very own weapon, and it does not disappoint. I feel like I will be spending A LOT of time figuring out what combination of things will be OP.  Dre has already talked about the single player, so we move on to Co-Op.

The co-op story (in the demo at least) seems to stay mostly the same. The cut scenes are different (depending on which character you're playing), as John Carver and Issac Clarke are helping each other to get out of whatever bind they may be finding themselves in.  But as expected, having two guns is better than one.  Dre and I blew through the demo in what seemed to be only a few minutes.  We probably spent more time playing with our guns (teehee) than going through the game play.

All in all, the demo shows you just enough to make you want to play straight through the game two or three times.  I'm as excited about this game as I am for Heart of the Swarm. Get ready to build some nasty alien decapitating laser shotguns. Oh and be ready to jump, those mo-fo's come from everywhere!!

If you like reading this, follow Franc, Dre and myself on Facebook and Twitter.

Thanks everyone, let me know if you have specific games you want my opinion on!  Email us at pausedreviews@gmail.com.  Updates on Halo 4 Spartan Ops and my play through of XCOM coming soon!

-Pol

EA created an amazing world.

New Release Tuesday! January 29, 2013

Get excited folks, tomorrow is New Release Tuesday! There are some great titles coming out tomorrow, and here is a quick look at a few.

Seven Psychopaths and The Awakening are two movies that I missed in theaters, and was super bummed I had. I'm crazy excited to get my hands on these and check them out. The Awakening didn't do well on the review circuit, but the story line really interested me. Plus I think Rebecca Hall and Dominic West are two really great actors, and I hope they bring it in this one!

Seven Psychopaths basically speaks for itself. The trailer was amazing, it looked hilarious, and literally stars everyone you want to see in a movie. Can't wait to watch this one. While I'll probably check out The Awakening on XBox video or Redbox before comitting to the buy, I'll definitely be getting Seven Psychopaths tomorrow, so look out for my Blu-ray review this week.

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns part 2 is definitely a much anticipated release on my end. The first installment of this animated feature, based on Frank Miller's ground-breaking graphic novel, was brilliant. We've had to wait ages for part 2, and now that it's here I can't wait! By the way, if you haven't read the novel, do it, you won't regret it! This will definitely be owned by me in less than 24 hours!

Downton Abbey: Season 3 is one that I would like to say will be purchased for the Mrs. but as any of you who know me can attest, I'm super stoked for this release as well. A great show, with an amazing cast. While I'll admit, as the seasons progress, some of the plot lines become a little too convenient, overall, it's an amazing show. I recommend this to anyone who hasn't seen it. The best part is you can catch seasons 1 & 2 on Netflix instant, and I'm sure season 3 will be added shortly. Side note, if you're a fan, take a few hours to rewatch Notting Hill, and see Lord Grantham (Hugh Bonneville) as you've never seen him before!

Hotel Transylvania is one for the kiddies. I haven't seen it myself, or read much on it, but there it is and it comes out tomorrow. Along with Paranormal Activity 4. This is a franchise that like Scary Movie should've ended with the first one. I haven't seen this one yet, but 2 and 3 were so awful, I can only imagine the gem this one will be. Who knows, it may Rocky us all, where the first was brilliant, 2 and 3 made you want to drive to Sly's house and slap him right in the face, but then 4 came out of nowhere and made you ashamed you ever doubted it. I'll give it a quick watch and let you know, but don't hold your breath, I'm sure it will be terrible.

A few other random releases tomorrow are:

• Hello I Must Be Going
• Citadel
• Noobz
• Cold Light of Day
• Femme Fatales: Season 1
• Pan Am: Season 1

Thanks for reading, and remember you can subscribe to this blog by entering your email in the right-hand column. Doing this will send you an email notification whenever a new blog has been posted, so you never have to miss a word!

You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter, or email us at pausedreviews@gmail.com!

Let us know what you are watching, playing or thinking, you may even be included in our next podcast!

Thanks all,

Franc

Dead Space 3 Demo

Hey Everyone,

Just tried out the new demo for Dead Space 3. Lets first start by saying, that the stomping never gets old. It gives you that gratification after you disassemble those creatures, who in my case just utterly scare me. Plus, with stomping gives you more ammo, health and new things called "scrap".

In Dead Space 3 one of the coolest things that the developers added was the customization of weaponary. When I say customization, I'm leaning more towards creating your own gun from scratch. You can customize it however you want it. For those who have played the games, "Borderland and Borderlands 2". It's the same thing.

For those who haven't. Not to worry, simply because you will spend alot of time creating your own (from scratch) weapon. You want to shoot spikes at the creatures, with a shot-gun attached as your secondary, sure no problem. Oh..you want to increase your ammo and damage at the same time? Of course you can, as long as you have the scrap amount required. The possibilites are endless with this game. 

Next time we'll report in on co-op (*cough cough* Franc and Pol). Playing in co-op changes the story, so super excited to see how that plays out.

Remember to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for the latest updates, and get excited for our very first podcast episode, airing on February 6, 2013!

Thanks for reading,

Dre

American Horror Story

So, as promised here is my first post on Season 1 of American Horror Story. For those of you who have seen it, I am dying to hear what you thought of it. Email us at pausedreviews@gmail.com, or message us on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/pausedreviews or Twitter, @PausedReviews. Tell us what you liked, what you hated, or if  you just think the blog to follow is totally off base. Also, let us know if you're cool with us sharing your thoughts on the next podcast!

So, with all that said, back to the subject at hand. Overall, I thought Season 1 of AHS was not bad. I admit, it definitely did not have the greatest of starts in my book. However, as the story progressed I found that I could not stop watching. As every episode ended, revealing another piece of the puzzle, I just had to see what the next episode would unveil.

The concept of the show, I thought was brilliant, and while elements may have been super predictable, I thought it made for very original television. If you haven't seen it, I'll give a brief run down, without giving out any spoiler. The general idea is that a family of three, Vivien, Ben and their daughter Violet, move out to LA from Boston after tragedy strikes their family. Looking for a fresh start, they move into an old house that is, of course, aggressively haunted. From there, insanity ensues, as the family is forced to deal with hardship after hardship from both the living, and spiritual worlds.

What is so brilliant about the show is how they reveal each character to you. Word of warning, after the first episode, I was so confused, I had no idea what just happened. You are thrown in the middle of roughly 4.6 million plot lines and introduced to a minimum of 58 characters. However, in epic, Tarantino-esque fashion, the more you watch, the more is revealed about each character, and better still, how each relates to the other. This is what grabbed me and compelled me to keep watching.

As for the story itself, it's not half bad. As I mentioned, several parts are super predictable, but it doesn't really ruin the show for you. Just because you guessed it right, doesn't make it bad. Another aspect that was so great, was the balance of turmoil from both the living and the dead. Interactions between the ghosts and the family led to not only issues within the house, but also consequences in the real world. Watching the family have to struggle against this war on two fronts is also what make the show so fun to watch. And with such heavy hitting actors as Dylan McDermott, Connie Britton, Morris Chestnut, Kate Mara and Jessica Lange, the acting and writing is compelling, well-structured, believable, and will keep you watching.

Production quality is also respectable. I love that the show didn't try to do too much with the spirits and ghosts. I find that when TV shows try to depict ghosts in cheesy ethereal fashion, they really only succeed in making it look even more unbelievable. AHS lets the actors make you believe they are who they say they are, and again, they do it quite well.

Overall, I would have to say, this was a good recommendation, and I would definitely recommend it to you. Don't let the subject matter deter you. If you are sensitive to "horror" this show is not really "scary", but more of a tense thriller. I'd say very worth the watch, I'm actually excited to catch up on Season 2: Asylum as soon as I can. Word of warning however, I did the whole show in basically one day. Try to pace yourself, it is some dark subject matter, and by the end I found myself just a tad overwhelmed. Kind of like after I watched "Requiem for a Dream", it just kind of takes you to a weird place and leaves you moderately troubled. However, if you pace it, you'll be fine.

So, on a scale of "Legion" to 10 (with 10 being the highest and "Legion" being the worst movie ever made), I'd give American Horror Story, Season 1, a strong 7.5.

If you have Netfilx, they just added the full season to their Instant watch offerings. If you don't have Netflix...why not?

Give it a shot, and let us know what you think. Also, keep sending us more recommendations for movies, shows and games. So far you guys are 1 for 1!

Happy viewing!

Franc

Paused! is now on Twitter!

Hey all, Paused! is finally now on Twitter! Follow us @PausedReviews to see what we are watching and playing between episodes, comment on past podcasts, and send us your thoughts and suggestions!