Last night my girlfriend and I went to see the new all-CGI (computer generated image) Beowulf.  The theater by me is showing the 3D version, so we decided to give it a shot.  In order to view the movie in so-called "3D" you have to wear a pair of glasses that look like something Buddy Holly would wear (black, horned-rim with thick frames).  The newest version of 3D is accomplished by having the left and right lenses at different polarization angles as opposed to the old-style red & green lens version of 3D.  The 3D effects were abound throughout the movie and at times seemed to be a bit forced just to look cool.  It was actually kind of hard on the eyes after awhile because your eyes keep wanting to focus in at different levels throughout the entire movie.  It was novel to see say that I've seen a new 3D movie and it is much better than the red/green version of 3D, but I would have to say that I prefer the classic 2D variety better.

As for the movie itself it was mediocre at best.  My girlfriend pointed out what was off about the movie and it was the acting of Ray Winston in the role of Beowulf.  Whether it was his voice acting or the script itself, you just never  seem to connect with Beowulf enough to really care about what happens.  The voice acting of Anthony Hopkins, Robin Wright Penn, John Malkovich and Angelina Jolie definitely overshadow Mr. Winstones.  Then again, he arguably had the most difficult part.

Now for the CGI.  The LOTR most definitely set the bar high in this department.  Beowulf comes close to what the LOTR accomplished, but not quite.  Sure, the fact that the entire movie is CGI is pretty impressive.   They tried real hard to make some things look real-life (faces, expressions, scenery) and did a great job.  However, the motion of the characters was sorely lacking in that it seems very stiff in a lot of scenes.  If you compare it to the motion of Gollum in the LOTR, it doesn't quite stack up.

Two things really bothered me about the movie.  First is the unwarranted T & A scenes and lude & degrading conversations in regards to women.  Sure, this may have been the way Vikings acting, but it really wasn't necessary to tell this story.  Also, because of these scenes, it is something that parents will have to take into account before letting their kids see it.  The second thing is the ending.  Like with a lot of great stories the beginning and middle are great, but the writers just can't seem to come up with a decent ending.  They tack on a scene at the end that is almost like they wanted to leave it open in case of a sequel, which would be silly in the case of Beowulf.  The movie should have ended with Beowulf's funeral ship set ablaze and floating off into the sunset.  Yeah, it would have been cliche, but it would have given the audience a definitive ending.

This morning I hiked for about 4 hours out on King Canyon Trail which is located west of Tucson near Saguaro National Park in the Tucson mountain range (??).  Several trails break off from this one and they have different names, but I don't remember them.  The trail is not difficult at all and is mostly gravel, although in many spots it is very large gravel which can be tough on the ankles and you have to slow down.  The scenery isn't all that spectacular compared to the Catalina area which has much higher peaks.  One spot where several trails meet has a pretty good view overlooking the valley and you can see a very long way off.  Just like any hiking trail the best part is just being able to get out away from town in the fresh air and quiet.  Hiking is very therapeutic for both the body and the mind. 

Here's a couple of pics for your viewing pleasure... I particularly like the one of the baby(?) horned lizard I found along the side of the trail.

Last night we went to the All Soul's Day procession/parade here in Tucson.  This was the first time that I'd ever been to an event such as this one.  It is a far cry from the parades we had back in Ohio.  Instead of marching bands, fire trucks, and the Mayor in the back of a convertible waving to the crowd, you get every sort of costume representing something about death that you can imagine (and a few you can't imagine).  There's no sign up, order of procession or nice and even spacing.  Basically, anyone that wants to can come down and join the parade.  The vast majority were wearing costumes or held signs, but there were a few that just joined in and walked along with the masses.  You had everything from religious icons to war protests to people honoring their loved ones that had passed on to just plain weirdos.  They definitely crawl out of the woodwork for this one.  The entire procession went by in less than an hour, so it didn't take long.  I think that this was mainly because we were at the beginning of the route and they hadn't spread out yet.  Overall it was quite entertaining and definitely something that I'm glad that I witnessed at least once in my life.  Heck, it might be neat to dress up and join in next year

This past weekend we went to Glow at the Triangle L Ranch.  It is an evening event that features various artwork that incorporates some form of light.  One piece was a spaceship launching that had lights synchronized with sound effects that was kind of mesmerizing to watch.  They also had a blacksmithing demonstration and a couple of stages where bands/musicians played.  The band we watched played music like I envision you'd here in some Creole bar in Lousiana.  It was exactly the style of music I like, but they definitely knew how to play and were quite enjoyable.  It was chilly that night, so it was nice that they had fire rings setup to sit around while you listened to the music.

On Sunday we went to Buckelew Farms where they had some arts & crafts, a small petting zoo, a corn maze and a huge pumpkin patch where you can pick your own pumpkin.   The arts and crafts tent wasn't much... in fact, it was mostly junk.  The corn maze was huge.  The idea was to go around the maze and find different posts where you would punch a card that you're given.  After about half an hour in the maze with the 95° heat cooking us, we decided we had enough and cut through the corn to the exit with only having found one post.  It was fun, but it was just too darn hot that day.  To help facilitate getting your pumpkin they had horse drawn carts that would take you out and bring you back from the patch.  Once back they weighed your pumpkin(s) and you paid by the pound.  It was reasonly priced.  We had two pumpkins totalling over 25 pounds and it cost us $7.  Of course we carved them up then when we got home.  Here's a picture of the pumpkin I carved all lit up.