Results

The Playtime Staff discuss Oscar-winning pictures, past and present. And we slapfight a little over Forrest Gump and Pulp Fiction, because that’s the kind of shop we run here.

Here’s a situation you will all be instantly familiar with.
You’re watching a movie. Could be at the local multiplex, could be the latest rental. Could be stumbled upon during late-night cable surfing. Doesn’t matter.
This actor shows up. You might recognize him, or not. You might even be able to put a name to him (a trick I never mastered). Again, doesn’t matter. What matters is, you’ll recognize the character. You’ve seen him a million times before.  Often he’s a side-character; sometimes (and more unforgivably) he’s a main character. He will …

The Land of Termina
Ocarina of Time, the landmark prequel to Majora’s Mask, holds the seeds from the which its future sibling springs. Some of these seeds are quite obvious: the masks, for instance. But, in my imagination, the most important seeds can be found in two seemingly unimportant moments. The first involves Zora’s Domain. As many dejected fellow gamers might recall, the enchanted winter that shrouds the Domain cannot be dispelled, even after destroying the appropriate evil spirit. The ice will supposedly melt at a future date beyond the game’s …

In terms of world news and events, the 2000s have been an intensely involved period, and a depressing one. From attacks on America, two large-scale wars, genocide still, horrific natural disasters and a global recession the “Aughts” haven’t been too kind on us as a whole. Cinema has really moved up its game during this time, however, producing a better quality of comedies, dramas and musicals compared to the previous couple decades. Animation, in fact, has never been better, and documentaries seem to …

Portal was a surprise when it was released in 2007. An inconspicuous and concise addition to the venerable Half-Life franchise, Portal was anticipated mainly for its unique gameplay mechanic: a gun that, instead of killing enemies, allowed a player to essentially draw doorways everywhere. Shoot blue energy at a wall and a blue circle appears. Shoot orange energy at another wall, or somewhere else on the same wall, and an orange circle appears. There is now a wormhole stretching from the blue circle to the orange circle. We can walk …

The neo-slave narrative, as defined by literary critic Ashraf Rushdy, is a genre of work that grew out of the awareness and turmoil of the 1960s Black Power movement. As a genre, the neo-slave narrative “assumed the form…and the first-person voice of antebellum slave narratives,” while attempting to position itself in the burgeoning debate between mainstream and minority opinion on history and cultural critique of the era.  While the 60s saw an explosion in critique based around deconstruction of dominant genres, like the novel or the tragedy 1, the neo-slave …

With time, unfound gems will be uncovered, newly discovered favorites will be shelved and I’ll be a richer person from the experience. I’d now like to reflect on those stories that count most to me and have left the greatest impact: my favorites.

If you’re a frustrated genre novelist, aspiring fantasy screenwriter, or fanfic writer in the making — and really, who isn’t? — you’ve probably found yourself standing at a bewildering crossroads of dramatic options. Should you rip off Star Wars, or Batman?  What does it truly mean to be human in an age where technology itself blurs the definitions of humanity? What are the limits of love in the face of our own cosmic mortality? Would The Matrix have been cooler with lasers? Fear not. The guideposts to your literary journey …

The remake singularity is coming. Within the next decade or so (if current trends are any indication), every film ever made will soon be in a state of constant re-imagining, with infinite remakes in production at any given time. Don’t like Renny Harlin’s explosion-centric take on Apocalypse Now? Well, try Len Wiseman’s explosion-centric take on Apocalypse Now. Or Tim Burton’s. Or Zack Snyder’s. Now, thanks to the ever-expanding proliferation of media, the same tired stories can be repackaged for you in any number of unappealing ways.
Traditionally, most remakes seem to …

I passionately love fairy tales. I love the act of storytelling-using words, tone, and gesture to conjure scenes. I love stories told of heroes, fools, and villains in comedic upsets, heart-rending drama and inevitable resolutions. I love being in the audience, watching a master at work and envisioning all they convey; to be immersed in a well-told story is as nourishing for the soul as a bracing meal is for the body. Even if we no longer confine the telling of tales to winter firesides or quilting racks but include …