Welcome to Gaia! ::

Code of the Ninja

5 - ninja ninja ninja ninja ninja - The ninja approves of this; failure to cohere with the ninja's decision is a grave mistake.
4 - ninja ninja ninja ninja - The ninja enjoys this, but he finds flaws.
3 - ninja ninja ninja - The ninja would rather date your sister, but since you may not have one he will take this instead.
2 - ninja ninja - The ninja warns you that he was only marginally impressed.
1 - ninja - If proper confession is made, the ninja will forgive you for taking part in this.
0 - xp - If you are looking for an invigorating experience I would suggest poking your eye out before this; the ninja does not approve.


Grading

-characters
-storyline
-style
-substance
-overall

Tag

Got a bone to pick with the reviewer? Want to suggest a work for review? Dying to hear about a new media or genre? Contact Rushifa with your questions and comments.



Poster Size

112 x 170

Future Projects

Movies
Serenity
Better Than Chocolate
Howl's Moving Castle
Ghost World
Heather
Interview With a Vampire
May
TransAmerica
Date Movie
But I'm a Cheerleader
If These Walls Could Talk, 2
Yours, Mine, and Ours


Books
Idoru
Geisha, A Life
Slayers
The Kite Runner
Howl's Moving Castle
Wicked
The Case of Einstein's Violin
Cabin Fever

Games
Suikoden III
ICO
Shadow of the Colossus
Silent Hill 4

TV Shows
Firefly
Lost

Anime
Slayers
Ranma 1/2
Maze

Comics
Sandman

Manga
Clover
X (X/1999)
Hana-kimi
Wish

Author Spotlight
Neil Gaimen
CLAMP
Robin McKinley
Diana Wynne Jones
Cornilia Funke
J.K. Rowling
Rumika Takehashi

Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Published Dec. 05, Issue 11

C.S. Lewis's books have been beloved of children and adults alike for many years, but the new version of his original book can stand on its own. In this era where fantasy movies are the current rage, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe does not disappoint.

For viewers unfamiliar with the Narnia books, and those who have not stumbled upon earlier versions of the movie, this adaptation serves as a great introduction. It is the story of another world, populated mostly by non-human beings. In The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe (which appeared as the second book of the series and the first written) four children from our world find their way into Narnia through a mysterious wardrobe. Awaiting them they find a world of endless winter, ruled over by the mysterious Snow Queen. A rebellion is brewing amongst the animal-inhabitants of Narnia, surrounding the true ruler of their land, the lion Arslan, and fueled by a prophecy describing the coming of the two Daughters of Eve and Sons of Adam, the future rulers of Narnia.

I enjoyed this movie immensely. I read the first few Narnia books when I was a child, and reread a number of them more recently. This movie adaptation was well done to say the least. All the characters and scenery look exactly as I had imagined them, and, unlike most movie adaptations, the plot is left almost completely intact. The only main differences are a few added scenes, which add much to the movie that the lack of narration took away. The CG in the movie was generally done well, although I found the cg of the beaver's slightly distracting. The voice talent of Arslan (Liam Niasen) absolutely blew me away, and the four children were all well done. The Snow Queen was perfectly sinister, with the right mix of cunning and evil.

One thing I would like to address is the obvious religious symbolism in this movie, and the original books. That was intentional on the part of C.S. Lewis, being a very religious man, and served as a kind lead-in to Christian beliefs for children. This transfers to the movie beautifully, but it neither adds to nor distracts from the story. The movie stands on its own with or without the hidden meanings. For Christians, this movie will show a kind, comforting connection to God, but for the non-Christians it will not impede enjoyment, or come of as an attempt at conversion. It is a well done movie, based off of a well done book, and can be enjoyed by all ages and backgrounds.


5- ninja ninja ninja ninja ninja -characters
5- ninja ninja ninja ninja ninja -storyline
4- ninja ninja ninja ninja -style
4- ninja ninja ninja ninja -substance
5- ninja ninja ninja ninja ninja -overall

Got a bone to pick with the reviewer? Want to suggest a work for review? Dying to hear about a new media or genre? Contact Rushifa with your questions and comments.

Memoirs of a Geisha

Published Feb. 06, Issue 13

This movie was, in a word, gorgeous. The pacing feels a bit forced at times, which is a problem with many movie adaptations from books, but it doesn't detract from the overall flow of the film.

Memoirs of a Geisha is the story of a young Japanese girl sent to live and work in Kyoto. When their parents fall on hard times, she and her sister are sold, Chiyo to a Geisha Okiya, and her sister into prostitution. Alone and unhappy, Chiyo at first protests her change of lifestyle, but eventually comes to except it, and give it all she has. Her rivalry with the older Geisha in her Okiya, Hatsumomo, and her friendship and sisterhood with her mentor, Mameha, shape her growth and development as a successful young geisha.

Running along side Chiyo's success is the love-story between her and an older businessman. One day, when Chiyo is still unable to except her new life as a Geisha, the Chairman comes along and cheers her up by buying her a snack. As a result of his unlikely kindness, Chiyo develops a crush on him which inspires her to succeed as a Geisha, and eventually be near him. With this new determination, Chiyo is able to rise higher and higher, breaking records and charming men with her talented dancing and skilled manners.

I enjoyed this movie. The cinematography was well done and the sets and character design were beautiful. There were some lovely dance scenes, as well as a few more "artsy" scenes which didn't really add anything, but were pretty to look at. As a movie, it was a success, but as an adaptation of a good book, it missed the mark. Many scenes were omitted, as was to be expected considering the book was very long, but there were a few unnecessary added scenes, and subtle changes in the plot which seemed to serve no purpose.

Personally, I have never liked the romance in this story. Although I am a romantic, and a lover of Japanese culture, I would have preferred the story be about Chiyo's personal growth, instead of her unlikely and unhealthy relationship with a much older man. The ending, which I will not give away, did not satisfy me because it did not prove anything, did not define anything. I suppose the excuse for this can be that it was written as if it were someone's real story, and thus would not perfectly fit any definition of literature; but it was fiction, and written by an outsider to the culture and gender which the story surrounds, and it simply missed the mark. If anything, the movie made it even worse by cutting out key after-the-fact scenes.


3- ninja ninja ninja -characters
2- ninja ninja -storyline
5- ninja ninja ninja ninja ninja -style
2- ninja ninja -substance
3- ninja ninja ninja -overall


Got a bone to pick with the reviewer? Want to suggest a work for review? Dying to hear about a new media or genre? Contact Rushifa with your questions and comments.

Silent Hill
Directed By Christophe Gans

Published Issue #15



This movie has been long anticipated by fans of the games. Although I've only played some of the 4th game (which, I'm told, while a good game, is not very "typical" of the series), I went in with a few specific expectations. For the most part, I left satisfied.

Plot wise, Silent Hill follows Rose, whose daughter Sharon is haunted by nightmares and sleep walking. A search for the cause of her repressed memories leads Rose toe Silent Hill, the town which may be Sharon's birth place. With Dad left behind and uninformed, Rose takes Sharon on a car trip to try to get to the bottom of her past. After a car crash and the disappearance of Sharon, Rose teams up with a sexy police woman named Cybil as they try to survive the abandoned city and find her daughter.

I'm not a big fan of horror, and I always prefer psychological thrillers to blood and gut horror. Most of the movie was the former, but a few scenes delved needlessly into the latter. There were some obvious fan-pleasers, and some cg which will definitely not stand up to the test of time.

The end was horribly disappointing, or at least the climax was. The actual note the movie leaves off on, however, gains it back some of the points it lost for cheesy special effects and unnecessary gore in the latter half of the movie.


4- ninja ninja ninja ninja -characters
3- ninja ninja ninja -storyline
2- ninja ninja -style
2- ninja ninja -substance
3- ninja ninja ninja -overall

Got a bone to pick with the reviewer? Want to suggest a work for review? Dying to hear about a new media or genre? Contact Rushifa with your questions and comments.

Cars
Directed By John Lasseter and Joe Ranft

Published Issue #17


Well, Pixar has done it again.

As Disney seems to lose its footing, I applaud their choice to team up with Pixar, a studio which certainly seems to understand and love what they do. Although Cars does not quite live up to Pixar's other masterpieces, it certainly makes the grade.

Plot-wise, Cars is not terribly original. Hot-shot city slicker meets "country bumpkins," learns the true meaning of life, and comes away the better for it. However, the unique use of cars instead of people adds a novel twist. The movie also deals with consumerism, enviromentalism, and a traditional old generation v. new generation. There is romance, action, suspense...everything you want out of a movie.

As with many cg movies, the effects are half the appeal. I was fortunate enough to see this movie with a game-design student, so I had all the little animation details pointed out to me. I think it helped my enjoyment of the movie. Even though I'm certainly not an expert, I found the graphics amazing, smooth, and stylistic but consistant.

My favorite part of the movie was the soundtrack. I thought all the songs were well chosen and well placed, and really helped the flow of the movie. Due I think greatly to the music, the movie had the gripping, encompassing feeling which I haven't felt in a kids movie in awhile.

Now, for those of you who've seen the previews and have been unimpressed, I would like to introduce a simple formula which my friend and I have come to depend on. Don't worry, this doesn't involve math. Quite simple, the best movies tend to have the worse ads, and via se versa. From the previews, I though Cars looked kind of stupid, but I realy enjoyed it and am glad I didn' trust my first impression.

3- ninja ninja ninja -characters
4- ninja ninja ninja ninja -storyline
5- ninja ninja ninja ninja ninja -style
4- ninja ninja ninja ninja -substance
4- ninja ninja ninja ninja -overall

Got a bone to pick with the reviewer? Want to suggest a work for review? Dying to hear about a new media or genre? Contact Rushifa with your questions and comments.

Book Review: Wicked, The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
By Gregory Maguire, 1995
Review by Rushifa

Publsihed Issue #19



When this book was first recommended to me, I didn't actually expect it to be good. I expected it to be funny, certainly; a lively parody and an entertaining read. But I certainly never expected to be captivated by it.

I've never been a big fan of the Wizard of Oz. Sure, I liked the movie well enough, and recently read the book, and have always enjoyed it, but I was never terribly attatched. Well, now I can never look at it the same way again.

Wicked doesn't change the events of the original book, at least not very much; it merely adds context to the events which simply wasn't there before. I'll admit, I've never read beyond the first book, so I can't say how much of the mythos was already established, but Maquire throws in demensions of politics, romance, betrayal, religion, racism, and maturity which I'm sure were not a part of the original childrens book.

As its title suggested, Wicked follows the life of the woman known to us as the Wicked Witch of the West. It sets up her birth, her family, her school days, her friends, her lovers, and her history, all while making her a character we identify with and love. He doesn't simply change her personality, he simply weaves everything together so her eventual meeting with Dorothy is understandable and sad.

The book itself is very well written. The author, although male, proves able to write both genders superbly, and allows each character to shine in their own vividly real ways. Despite being set in a fantastical land, the book feels very real. The writing is discriptive and entertaining, and the structure and connections are all very subte and well done.

5- ninja ninja ninja ninja ninja -characters
5- ninja ninja ninja ninja ninja -storyline
4- ninja ninja ninja ninja -style
4- ninja ninja ninja ninja -substance
5- ninja ninja ninja ninja ninja -overall

Wicked at Amazon.com
Wicked, the musical