The Lego Movie Review

When I first saw posters of this movie, I thought it was going to be a failure for some reason. I thought it'd be the next The Smurfs or Garfield or something, where the things we loved as children become disasters as movies.
Then I saw the reviews, and I was shocked. 96% on Rotten Tomatoes?! 8.5 on IMDB?! That's almost Dark Knight/Inception territory. Guess I had to watch this movie...I was pretty excited to see what the hype was all about and if this movie in fact deserved such high praise. So I watched it and...

For those of you who think this movie was horrible, I completely disagree with you.

From the beginning of the  movie, I was immediately captivated by the (as critics like to say) stunning visuals. From the animations of the flowing waters of the Lego ocean to the characters' frantic construction of spaceships and motorcycles, I was just truly amazed at how awesome the animation was. I wondered how in the world did the artists put this movie together? I was immersed in another dimension and felt like I was part of the Lego world. In my opinion, this is probably one of the greatest artistic films strictly in terms of animation I have seen.

How did they animate this stuff?

Sure there are some blemishes about this movie. The story could have been better and it seemed as if the emphasis was more on the art and humor of the film.
But keep in mind that the target audience of this movie is children. It doesn't necessarily have to cater to an adult audience. And I'd say that this is a pretty darn good kids movie. But the various jokes throughout the movie garnered laughter even from adult viewers so...

I'm trying as hard as I can NOT to be biased by the RT and IMDB scores. Yes, I agree that 96% is a bit too high for this movie. But to say this is an awful movie is inaccurate. The Hangover Part III and After Earth are bad movies. And I don't think this movie belongs in that lower echelon at all.

What also makes this movie awesome is the various voice actors of this film. If you told me Morgan Freeman AND Liam Neeson were voice actors for any film, I'd watch it in a heartbeat. Those two can read me bedtime stories every night. I found it funny to hear their charismatic, iconic voices saying cheesy/humorous lines, especially Liam Neeson when he takes the role of Good Cop/Bad Cop. But pile on top of that the voices of famous stars including: Will Ferrell, Charlie Day, Elizabeth Banks, Will Arnett, Alison Brie, Key from Key & Peele, Shaq, etc. A truly star-studded cast. Though I wish Batman was voiced by Christian Bale and Gandalf was voiced by Ian McKellen...
Oh yeah, you will see the ending is pretty cool too and will change the way you see the movie and the power of imagination.

I wish I had his voice

But perhaps one striking aspect of this film was the character Emmet. He's a protagonist that has none of the qualities of a typical superhero. Throughout the film, people constantly give him crap for being useless and not being good at anything and not being special. They criticize him by saying he shouldn't have been the chosen one. Even Emmet has his moments of discouragement and feels like a burden to his team. To me, Emmet's character appealed to me because I could identify with him so much. I mean, we all could. I've often felt inadequate and discouraged when I do things and find that other people are significantly better at those things than I am. Like sports or music or whatever. I ask myself sometimes whether I am good or talented at anything. I found myself envying the skills of other people. And it certainly doesn't help that being the height that I am. Sorry I'm sounding pessimistic all of a sudden.

For me, I think the lesson to learn from this movie is no matter how average you feel, God created you in a unique way. You are not an accident. People might be better than you at certain things but they have weaknesses as well. Nobody's perfect. God doesn't want us to envy other people. He doesn't want us to feel useless and inadequate. He wants all of us to be like Emmet who stays positive and uses his strengths to help others. Despite all the criticisms, (hope this doesn't spoil) Emmet rises up as the hero of this movie. Rather than focusing on what he can't do, Emmet focuses on what he can do in order to help his friends. And he does it with a constant, goofy smile on his face.

So rather than being in a "woe-is-me" mentality, I need to be thankful for being created this way in God's image. Feeling insignificant will only discourage me from the things God wants me to do. And through Him, weaknesses can become strengths. Actually, it doesn't matter whether or not we are good at anything. The only thing that matters is what we can do to glorify God.

This is some pretty deep and heavy stuff to take from a kids movie. Sorry about that.

Anyways, if you haven't seen this movie, I highly recommend you watch it. This is a movie that is meant for the big screen and NOT to be watched on a computer. And I usually don't like watching movies in 3D because it makes my head hurt. But this movie is an exception. The 3D actually makes it a better viewing experience. So don't pass up this opportunity. Spend the extra money and go watch this movie in 3D before it's too late. If you played with Legos as a kid, you will be in for a real trip down memory lane. 

SCORE: 8.8 / 10

I'm Not a Businessman I'm a Busyness...Man

I've been so busy...Something I never would have expected before this winter quarter started. And I don't even have a job or an internship. Maybe it's because I'm taking 4 classes (18 credits) I don't know. Yesterday I spent Presidents' Day waking up at 5am in the morning to be a production assistant on a film shoot that lasted until 7pm.

I know, I know. You might say, "Oh that's nothing...I do this and that. Don't talk to me about busy." and I get that. But I recently am finding I have no time to do the things I usually do. I have no time to go to the gym, no time to work on my career development (resume/cover letter), no time to do homework, no time to Facebook or blog, no time to check ESPN, and no time to sleep. And I love sleep. I need at least 8-9 hours. Yeah, I'm pretty weak. I've just feel fatigued and exhausted throughout the day.

Yes, if I managed my time well, I would be able to do all these things, but this weekend I did NOTHING in terms of studying for school. And we all know those books we have to read and those assignments get piled up and eventually have to get done if we choose not to do them. Ugh, this is going to be a busy week.

But I also find I have no time to read the Bible, let alone communicate with God at a sincere level.

Sure, I pray to God, but it all feels rushed. Everything feels rushed in my life. Even as I am writing this post, I'm desperately trying to get this all over with. I'm pretty much feeling burdened and stressed out, thinking of the upcoming things I have to do, saying, "Ah crap, I have to finish that assignment or read that book." I've had hateful thoughts towards things and people who are wasting my time because for some reason, my biggest pet-peeve is unnecessarily wasting time.

It feels like the weight of the world is on my shoulders sometimes.

But is this what God wants? I don't think so. In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus says: 

28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

I know this is easier said than done...but I don't think I even tried to stop and really commit to surrendering everything that's on my plate to God. For me, God wants me to let it go and let Him do the work. 

Sorry...I couldn't resist.

I mean, He sent His one and only Son who took all the burdens of mankind. I would think He'd know what it's like to be in our situation but multiplied by a million. It's like He's telling me: "I got you." There's a story my high school teacher told me of how people hunted monkeys in the wild. They'd place a jar with a treat inside and a monkey would come and put its hand inside to get it. But no matter how hard they tried, they could not take it out. They could only take their hand out without the treat. But monkeys would be too stubborn to let the treat go, and they'd end up getting caught. Hope that made sense.

So I guess if there's one thing to do, it appears it's the one answer to all our problems: Trusting in Him.

I just need to surrender everything and let Him do His thing. I mean, God is infinitely more powerful, wiser, and loving than we are. We know this, yet it feels like we don't feel it or believe it sometimes. 

He has dominion over all the earth. He controls the tides of life. And I need to trust that even though things are overwhelming right now, this is all going to be ultimately overcome through God, for God is with us. PTL

We Did It...

I wish I made this post yesterday. If only I didn't sleep that entire day because I slept Monday at 4am.
Even though it's two days after the event, one thing hasn't changed...

The Seahawks are world champions. 

And I'm still sitting here smiling as I write this. Yesterday, in the enemy territory of LA, I walked around UCLA with my Russell Wilson jersey proud to be a Seahawk. It all feels so surreal that this team I have followed and supported for officially 8 years since its last Super Bowl has finally won. I can't imagine how this must feel for the fans since the team started in 1974. 
Reminder to those Seahawks bandwagon fans: once you get on, there's no getting off.
I DO NOT care if it was a boring game. Would it have meant more if it was a closer game? Honestly, yes. I probably would have cried or fainted. The point is, the Seahawks put a good old-fashioned booty-slapping (?) on the Denver Broncos and made them look like a JV team. You'd be lying if you said you weren't surprised by the outcome of this game.
This was the Seahawks' way of giving the middle-finger to the doubters and national pundits who said there was no way they would stop Peyton Manning. 

This is what happens when you doubt the #1 defense, who, after this game, has surely cemented itself as one of the greatest defenses of all time. 12th Man, you were heard in the stands of MetLife and people say it was the loudest the stadium has ever been. If there were a fan base that deserved a championship it would be this one. And there were no stupid "Omahas" this game thanks to all of you. 
Super Bowl MVP Malcolm Smith said it best:

"We kind of have a chip on our shoulder, a lot of guys got overlooked, a bunch of misfits, a bunch of guys who it was said wouldn't be anything.'' 

Malcolm Smith was a 7th round pick who didn't get invited to the combine and was a back-up linebacker.
Kam Chancellor and Richard Sherman were 5th round picks. Byron Maxwell was a 4th-string cornerback.
Doug Baldwin and Jermaine Kearse were undrafted free agents, yet they both caught touchdowns in the Super Bowl. UNDRAFTED FREE AGENTS.
The list goes on and on for the individuals on this team who had the biggest chip on their shoulders.
Oh yeah...and Russell Wilson was a 3rd round pick because he was 5''10 & 3/4 inches tall.
WHERE ARE YOU MATT FLYNN SUPPORTERS NOW?!
John Schneider and Pete Carroll are freakin' Jedi masters for assembling this team. And they were criticized heavily for their drafts.

These "misfits" who people said wouldn't amount to anything, who people said were "pedestrian" and "appetizers" just won the Superbowl.
There could not have been a better team to represent the city of Seattle. We were a city of misfits and losers who hadn't won a major sports championship since 1979. We were the butt of jokes and people (*cough* 49ers fans) would resort to asking where our rings were.
By the way, you say you have more rings than us, but you haven't won a championship in 20 years. Kinda like bragging about all the girlfriends you had in middle school.
But now we can proudly say we DO have a ring. And there's surely more to come in the upcoming years.
I said before, if we win this game, get ready for a dynasty to come. Be excited that we have one of the youngest teams in the NFL and another draft+free agency to boot. This team has the potential to be even better next year...But let's not get too ahead of ourselves here.
For now...let's enjoy the fact that we are no longer the team without a ring. We are no longer a city that is "cursed." We are no longer Cleveland or Detroit (no offense to those cities, hope they join us someday).

THE SEATTLE SEAHAWKS ARE SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS.

And NOBODY can take that away from us...

The Greatest Sword vs. The Greatest Shield

I'm not going to take away the accomplishments from the Sonics' championship in 1979...
But that was 35 years ago.
Many people were not even born or they were really young around that time. Heck, my parents were teenagers. But tomorrow is going to be the biggest game in Seattle sports history.

Why? It would be Seattle's first championship in 35 years. Yes there's the Seattle Storm, no disrespect there. But I don't remember seeing the masses freak out over their championship wins.

This game tomorrow is for all the marbles. The #1 offense vs. the #1 defense...

The Greatest Sword vs. The Greatest Shield.

You can make an argument for either team winning this game and you wouldn't be called crazy. No matter what team wins, it's not going to be much of a surprise. Some say this is going to be the greatest game to watch in many years.  

You probably know who I'm rooting for in this game though. 

And also, this is a must win game.

Ok, that's a pretty obvious thing to say. But I say that because I don't want to hear people saying: "Yeah, it's ok if we lose. We can always win next year" Uh...NO. You can't bet on beating 31 other teams every year. The NFL is just too competitive. Ask the 49ers who lost the Super Bowl last year who aren't even playing this year (that's a shame...). Seahawks fans have to treat these Super Bowl trips like it's their last. Look at the NFC Championship: A more accurate throw to Crabtree and the Seahawks would have lost. Seattle was literally inches from seeing Jim Harbaugh and his khaki pants and Kaepernick with his Beats headphones flying to New York instead.

Since 2000, only ONE team has lost a Super Bowl to come back and win one in the future: The New York Giants lost in 2001 and finally won one in 2008. And I'm not gonna wait any longer for a championship to come. It's now or never time for the city of Seattle. For our city. 

To the 12th Man going to MetLife stadium: I want to hear you. People say that there are many more Hawks fans than Bronco fans in New York, so show the nation what you are capable of. Make MetLife Stadium like CenturyLink field as much as possible. To the Seahawks, stop Peyton Manning from his quick releases. Stop his Omaha calls too. Make it a nightmare for him like the Giants did to Brady. 

If the Seahawks play their A-game tomorrow, get ready for the Lombardi trophy to come to Seattle. 

Do you know the implications of this game?

This game is our chance to cement ourselves in the upper echelon of great defenses that won the Super Bowl: the Steelers in the 70s, the 85 Bears, the 2000 Ravens, and so on. This is our chance to prove the pundits wrong that you need a QB who throws for 300+ passing yards to win championships. This is our chance to silence all those critics. This is our chance to bring a championship to a city that has been desperate for one for 35 years. This is our chance to not win just one Super Bowl, but to build a dynasty here in Seattle...

This is our chance to WIN FOREVER.

GO HAWKS...Make your city proud. 

"Give them nothing...But take from them EVERYTHING" ~ King Leonidas

Prediction: Seattle 27 - Denver 23