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A Young Warrior’s Journey Towards “Catching These Hands”
As I was growing up I always loved video games. It started when my older brother introduced me to the first ever Mortal Kombat on the original Gameboy. Since my brother took martial arts classes when he was younger, he always had this fascination for fighting games like Tekken, Mortal Kombat, and Dead or Alive. If you can deck someone in the face, he wanted it immediately. And because I was the younger sibling, of course I was subjected to the torture of sibling rivalry and was forced to learn how to play fighting games the hard way or else I wouldn’t have an ego left by the time I was 15.
Now as I grew older, I admired games that was a great mixture of both. Adventurous story-line, some violence here and there to release a little bit of pent up aggression, nothing too serious. And then at the age of 13, I was introduced to something called Grand Theft Auto. My older cousins advertised it to me as a game that had cars, an open world format, NPC interactions and of course, violence. In my head, I was like wow that sounds wonderful, I’d love to play. Little did I know exactly what was about to go down.
I held the PS2 controller in between my fingers and took control of the vehicle. I zoomed down the street into the sunset, gliding within a safe distance from the curb, drifting, sliding, I was having a grand time. Then, suddenly, OH DAMN! I accidentally ran into someone.
Listen, I am not savage enough for Grand Theft Auto
The first thing I did was apologize. That should have been the first sign to figure out I ain’t built for this. I don’t know anyone who runs over someone in a video game and then apologizes to the NPC as if they can hear you through the screen. This poor lady was walking across the street and just got hit with a Lambo. That car too expensive to be getting into accidents with. And don’t get me started with the police chase. When it was time for me to start shooting, lord I could not pull out the gun for nothing. This takes some skill that I honestly did not have. They’re shooting, while I’m swerving and screaming because I don’t like conflict.
Before this, the most violent game I played was Tekken 3, where the worst thing you could have possibly done was kick an Ogre in the face. Here I was like wow, you have to shoot and drive a car at the same time (with the high possibility of running people over)? What if I run over someone while trying to escape from the police? Wouldn’t that make everything worse?
Screams in Hufflepuff
Of course, I know what you are thinking: “Why would they let you play Grand Theft Auto when you were 13?” Well, maybe I shouldn’t have been playing it, considering that my goodie-too-shoes behind can’t handle that much stress. However, a comment that tends to surface in correspondence to playing violent video games is that it will eventually influence folks to enact this violence in reality. With games like Grand Theft Auto, Mortal Kombat, and the Red Dead Redemption series, just to name a few, many folks have this belief that these games will eventually affect people, more specifically adolescents and cause them to enact this violence later down in adulthood.
Contrary to popular beliefs there is no direct correlation between enacting real life violence inspired by video games. I.E: After running over 30 people with a car and blowing up buildings with a machine gun, it will not inspire folks to enact those same actions in the future. Folks have tried to use violent video games as a scapegoat for why school shootings and terrorism occur. Many folks have instead use these games as a coping mechanism to divert their attention from overwhelming stress. Gamers have seen how these interactive worlds can influence the imagination and create meaningful conversations about the world around us. But sometimes, when the day is rough and everything around you is just getting you pissed off, honestly you really just want to pull out a cannon and reduce the world around you to rubble.
Unlimited Mortality
From the outside looking in, without understanding the true context behind certain games, people will downplay the problem solving that it takes to get out of dangerous situations. Games that include open world violence have seemingly limitless ways to die. We’ve seen it in games like Red Dead Redemption 2, where you roll up to a gun fight, survive, and then get killed by a random puma. Or you’re running away from law enforcement and accidentally trip on a rock and you find yourself rolling down a cliff and now you’re dead. To be honest, I’ve probably died more from situations like this rather than actual fights themselves. I know that I walk into games like Red Dead just to cook and pet the dogs at this point. Even games with milder version of violence like Breath of The Wild, I found myself running away from the Guardians once I heard the music. In no way shape or form, do I ever want the sauce.
But these games did something else for me; in spite of me reflecting my fear of conflict within the virtual world, I got to learn about how to walk into challenges with different solutions. Example, side mission in Red Dead Redemption 2: “We all hate the KKK.” Normally, I do not want the sauce, but I always got time to throw hands with racists. There’s about eight of them and only one of me. It is nighttime, I’m not good at up close combat, how am I going to get out of this alive?
An Introductory Course to Modern Problem Solving
There are many ways one could approach a challenge, and you have to look at it as such. You have a problem, and you map it out in different ways. Some people might say, run up on them head-first, or others might say snipe from a distance. Sniping from the distance sounds wonderful, it keeps you far enough so that they don’t see you; but the problem is that they will eventually come looking. I never want them to see me. So, what did I do? I threw a stick of dynamite into their campfire. Explosion on impact. Never had to see them, got straight to the point. When we look at this situation at face value, we’re thinking about how can we get out of this situation alive, but this is also a form of critical thinking.
Within life, we will be placed in situations that require a certain amount of risk factor. We will have to think of our goal, and the various ways we could achieve it, while keeping in mind the obstacles that exist around us. Of course, most situations where we have to apply critical thinking might not be life or death, but the consistent act of applying one’s self to problem solving allows us to broaden our horizons in ways outside of academia. My personal history with games in this genre, I’ll admit, has been very limited. My openness to them has slowly widened. (After I discovered the fulfillment of running away from law enforcement on a horse, then perching myself on a hill to cook some oregano venison along the sunset.)
I enjoy the exploratory format of video games that introduce problem solving and emotional release through unconventional methods. I believe that the emotional release these games grants us in periods of frustration, and the obscene stories it brings to the group chats will inspire the future generation of game creators to create new ways to keep us engaged while challenging the formats that allowed these worlds to become a part of our culture.
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The post I’m Not Savage Enough for ‘Grand Theft Auto’ appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
A Young Warrior’s Journey Towards “Catching These Hands”
As I was growing up I always loved video games. It started when my older brother introduced me to the first ever Mortal Kombat on the original Gameboy. Since my brother took martial arts classes when he was younger, he always had this fascination for fighting games like Tekken, Mortal Kombat, and Dead or Alive. If you can deck someone in the face, he wanted it immediately. And because I was the younger sibling, of course I was subjected to the torture of sibling rivalry and was forced to learn how to play fighting games the hard way or else I wouldn’t have an ego left by the time I was 15.
Now as I grew older, I admired games that was a great mixture of both. Adventurous story-line, some violence here and there to release a little bit of pent up aggression, nothing too serious. And then at the age of 13, I was introduced to something called Grand Theft Auto. My older cousins advertised it to me as a game that had cars, an open world format, NPC interactions and of course, violence. In my head, I was like wow that sounds wonderful, I’d love to play. Little did I know exactly what was about to go down.
I held the PS2 controller in between my fingers and took control of the vehicle. I zoomed down the street into the sunset, gliding within a safe distance from the curb, drifting, sliding, I was having a grand time. Then, suddenly, OH DAMN! I accidentally ran into someone.
Listen, I am not savage enough for Grand Theft Auto
The first thing I did was apologize. That should have been the first sign to figure out I ain’t built for this. I don’t know anyone who runs over someone in a video game and then apologizes to the NPC as if they can hear you through the screen. This poor lady was walking across the street and just got hit with a Lambo. That car too expensive to be getting into accidents with. And don’t get me started with the police chase. When it was time for me to start shooting, lord I could not pull out the gun for nothing. This takes some skill that I honestly did not have. They’re shooting, while I’m swerving and screaming because I don’t like conflict.
Before this, the most violent game I played was Tekken 3, where the worst thing you could have possibly done was kick an Ogre in the face. Here I was like wow, you have to shoot and drive a car at the same time (with the high possibility of running people over)? What if I run over someone while trying to escape from the police? Wouldn’t that make everything worse?
Screams in Hufflepuff
Of course, I know what you are thinking: “Why would they let you play Grand Theft Auto when you were 13?” Well, maybe I shouldn’t have been playing it, considering that my goodie-too-shoes behind can’t handle that much stress. However, a comment that tends to surface in correspondence to playing violent video games is that it will eventually influence folks to enact this violence in reality. With games like Grand Theft Auto, Mortal Kombat, and the Red Dead Redemption series, just to name a few, many folks have this belief that these games will eventually affect people, more specifically adolescents and cause them to enact this violence later down in adulthood.
Contrary to popular beliefs there is no direct correlation between enacting real life violence inspired by video games. I.E: After running over 30 people with a car and blowing up buildings with a machine gun, it will not inspire folks to enact those same actions in the future. Folks have tried to use violent video games as a scapegoat for why school shootings and terrorism occur. Many folks have instead use these games as a coping mechanism to divert their attention from overwhelming stress. Gamers have seen how these interactive worlds can influence the imagination and create meaningful conversations about the world around us. But sometimes, when the day is rough and everything around you is just getting you pissed off, honestly you really just want to pull out a cannon and reduce the world around you to rubble.
Unlimited Mortality
From the outside looking in, without understanding the true context behind certain games, people will downplay the problem solving that it takes to get out of dangerous situations. Games that include open world violence have seemingly limitless ways to die. We’ve seen it in games like Red Dead Redemption 2, where you roll up to a gun fight, survive, and then get killed by a random puma. Or you’re running away from law enforcement and accidentally trip on a rock and you find yourself rolling down a cliff and now you’re dead. To be honest, I’ve probably died more from situations like this rather than actual fights themselves. I know that I walk into games like Red Dead just to cook and pet the dogs at this point. Even games with milder version of violence like Breath of The Wild, I found myself running away from the Guardians once I heard the music. In no way shape or form, do I ever want the sauce.
But these games did something else for me; in spite of me reflecting my fear of conflict within the virtual world, I got to learn about how to walk into challenges with different solutions. Example, side mission in Red Dead Redemption 2: “We all hate the KKK.” Normally, I do not want the sauce, but I always got time to throw hands with racists. There’s about eight of them and only one of me. It is nighttime, I’m not good at up close combat, how am I going to get out of this alive?
An Introductory Course to Modern Problem Solving
There are many ways one could approach a challenge, and you have to look at it as such. You have a problem, and you map it out in different ways. Some people might say, run up on them head-first, or others might say snipe from a distance. Sniping from the distance sounds wonderful, it keeps you far enough so that they don’t see you; but the problem is that they will eventually come looking. I never want them to see me. So, what did I do? I threw a stick of dynamite into their campfire. Explosion on impact. Never had to see them, got straight to the point. When we look at this situation at face value, we’re thinking about how can we get out of this situation alive, but this is also a form of critical thinking.
Within life, we will be placed in situations that require a certain amount of risk factor. We will have to think of our goal, and the various ways we could achieve it, while keeping in mind the obstacles that exist around us. Of course, most situations where we have to apply critical thinking might not be life or death, but the consistent act of applying one’s self to problem solving allows us to broaden our horizons in ways outside of academia. My personal history with games in this genre, I’ll admit, has been very limited. My openness to them has slowly widened. (After I discovered the fulfillment of running away from law enforcement on a horse, then perching myself on a hill to cook some oregano venison along the sunset.)
I enjoy the exploratory format of video games that introduce problem solving and emotional release through unconventional methods. I believe that the emotional release these games grants us in periods of frustration, and the obscene stories it brings to the group chats will inspire the future generation of game creators to create new ways to keep us engaged while challenging the formats that allowed these worlds to become a part of our culture.
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Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!
The post I’m Not Savage Enough for ‘Grand Theft Auto’ appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
Good Evening, people. We're back at it AGAIN! Welcome to the latest episode of Afronerd Radio's Grindhouse podcast airing every Sunday at 6pm, thanks to the good folks at BTalk 100. Join your humble Afronerdist podcasters as they wax about all things nerdy, blerdy, and newsworthy. The topics to be analyzed this go around are: as many states and cities are slowly lifting quarantine restrictions at public centers, Dburt still ponders if folks are purposely clueless or delusional regarding the need to slow things down because normalcy may not return for quite some time; young bicyclists apparently for the last couple of years have been posting idiotic "daredevil" videos of themselves defiantly swerving in and out of oncoming traffic at the last possible second averting certain death and injury-Dburt laments the loss of decency and intelligence, per usual; will the US take cues from recent shoppers in the Philippines who are required to go through "disinfectant booths"; actor, Bill Pullman responds to a clip that President Trump tweeted of his (superimposed) self over the actor's famed speech in the 90s blockbuster, Independence Day; noted director, Christopher Nolan's upcoming film, Tenet may be the test case for how to release (and hopefully recoup) a $200M movie while in the throws of a pandemic; former President Barack Obama had some pointed words about the handling of COVID-19 by the Trump administration during a virtual commencement address to graduating HBCU students; Captain Pike is ready for his close-up with the long speculated rumor turning now fact that CBS All Access is producing another Star Trek series for the burgeoning streaming network; actor, Ethan Hawke's take on abolitionist, John Brown hit the internets via a new trailer for a seven part Showtime series, Good Lord Bird; Dburt never did get a chance to talk about the new Hulu animated series, Solar Opposites, from the same producers of Rick and Morty (as if you couldn't tell); And lastly, Dburt gives a much needed "battle plan" for black men in the wake of the death of Ahmaud Arbery (Breonna Taylor included) and the harassment of a black appliance deliverer attempting to traverse a white gated community in OKC. Call LIVE at 1-508-645-0100.
*AFTER CLICKING ON THE LINK, GO DIRECTLY TO THE "LIVE STREAM" OF AFRONERD RADIO!!!
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Theaters are closed, movies delayed, and access to press screenings are limited to streaming. There’s no better time to highlight smaller films — amazing movies without the big-studio marketing budget that makes it harder for you to find. Discover a new film festival darling and support new, emerging, and independent filmmakers. Sheltering in place doesn’t need to stop you from your weekend evening escape to the movies. Follow the flurry of upcoming reviews on Twitter, or find all my reviews for movies you can stream from right at home.
At first blush, A Clear Shot, written and directed by Nick Leisure, is a straightforward hostage thriller. A group of men with guns will storm the lobby, fire into the air, yell for everyone to get down. What follows are terse and quick-witted conversations between robbers and the hostage negotiator in a psychological battle to get what both sides want. The hostage negotiator will repeatedly say that he doesn’t want anyone to get hurt, to which the robbers reiterate their demands. Hostages themselves negotiate whether to “do something” by way of intervening or wait for their hopeful rescue. A power struggle wages in the parking lot between the negotiator, S.W.A.T., and the “brass,” edging the negotiator closer to going rogue. You have seen that story before, if not many times, on major network television crime dramas and movies. Where you might hope A Clear Shot is a bait-and-switch, a Trojan horse that appears to be a generic heist that comes with a twist a lá Inside Man, you should know from the onset that A Clear Shot is not that movie. Your first impression is to be trusted, which isn’t to say A Clear Shot is a bad movie, but one for which your expectations should be accurately calibrated for you to enjoy.
Starring Mario Van Peebles as hostage negotiator Detective Gomez, A Clear Shot is inspired by a true story of 1991 holdup by young Thai immigrants. The four boys range from a volatile hot-head who wants to earn his respect through violence to a crying, shaking member of the group holding a gun for the first time. It’s clear from the onset that these are not what you would consider smart criminals, but desperate idiots, as robbers demand millions of dollars, a helicopter to fly them to Thailand, and full body armor “like Robo-Cop” for their escape. Police recognize the type of robbers they’re dealing with, making for a precarious situation: it’s less about whether the robbers will get what they want and more about whether the conflict can end with no one physically harmed. The only thing more dangerous than smart robbers with guns are dumb ones, and this cannot be overstated, the gunmen here are portrayed as extremely young and stupid.
Hostages include store employees and a handful of shoppers, 15 hostages total not including the unborn baby of a pregnant mother. While most of the hostages are mute and nameless, a few of them hold an ongoing conversation for the audience to mentally role-play along, debating how to handle the situation against gunmen so clearly in over their heads. One of the hostages is a store employee played by Mandela Van Peebles, Mario Van Peebles’ son, playing the role of pacifist against a growing consensus from other hostages that they should attack the gunmen instead of waiting to die. Of the ones in favor of bum-rushing the gunmen, none are more badass than an old man who has faced death before in war and says the things we all wish we could say in a crisis, and as confidently.
Outside the store are most of the clichés you could imagine, beginning with Detective Gomez himself who shows up with large sunglasses on a cloudy day, unshaven and tie loosened, a secret flask in his coat pocket for when he needs a drink. If you can forgive the clichés, you may be pushed beyond your breaking point with an inexplicable romance that brews under the surface of the conflict between Detective Gomez and an on-site woman police officer.
While the film is low-budget, it’s rarely a distraction. Little is needed to tell the story A Clear Shot is trying to tell, and so little is used. But between the cliché dialogue, witless criminals, and ham-fisted romance, you will likely find yourself asking what the film is aiming for at all. My best answer comes from a running theme throughout Detective Gomez’s negotiations: he’s Black and Mexican and has struggled in this country the same way the desperate gunmen have. We are given brief glimpses into the lives of the gunmen and how they have struggled, showing how they feel abandoned and unwelcome in their new country. The result is desperation, that sometimes desperation leads to this, and only someone who relates can best mitigate the damage of those whose desperation manifest in destructive ways.
This may be giving A Clear Shot more credit than it deserves, if its action-star movie poster is any indication. Still, if you want an easy, paint-by-the-numbers hostage thriller to watch with your popcorn, there are worse options. For my time and money though, there are better options than an elongated episode of a cancelled CBS pilot.
A Clear Shot is now available for streaming on demand.
Find all of Jordan Calhoun’s Rotten Tomatoes-approved movie reviews at Jordan Calhoun at the Movies.
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The post ‘A Clear Shot’ is a Clear Miss appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
Welcome to our The Best Things Streaming column where each month, we’ll run down the best of what’s hitting your fave streaming channel. We’ll also highlight a few of our favorite viewing choices as well as curating the best of what’s available for you!
Our newest addition to the roster is HBO Max who are coming out strong with a massive selection of streaming choices. With the COVID-19 crisis keeping us indoors, boy do we need it. From highly-anticipated originals to the return of a couple of beloved cartoons and even a reboot of a classic detective, HBO Max is delivering.
I May Destroy You (June 7th)
HBO Max
We’re massive fans of Michaela Coel and her incredible show Chewing Gum, so her new drama series I May Destroy You is high on our to watch list. “Set in London, where gratification is only an app away, the story centers on Arabella (Coel), a carefree, self-assured Londoner with a group of great friends, a boyfriend in Italy, and a burgeoning writing career. But when her drink is spiked, she must question and rebuild every element of her life.”
Summer Camp Island ( June 18)
HBO Max
If you haven’t watched Summer Camp Island then we’ve got great news: the series is headed to HBO Max and it’s an absolute treat. Created by British animator and illustrator Julia Pott the show is set in a magical summer camp run by teen witches. Summer Camp Island is the chilled quarantine watch you’ve been waiting for! It’ll make your days better and your nights more magical. Plus some of our favorite creators have been working on the new episodes.
Perry Mason (June 21st)
HBO Max
Matthew Rhys as Perry Mason sounds like a monkey paw type wish that we made when drunk, but apparently it was actually a great idea that HBO had! The new series centers on the young man before he became a famed criminal defense lawyer. “1931, Los Angeles. While the rest of the country struggles through the Great Depression, this city is booming! Oil! Olympic Games! Talking Pictures! Evangelical Fervor! And a child kidnapping gone very, very wrong,”
Adventure Time Distant Lands: BMO, Special Premiere (June 25)
HBO Max
The first of HBO Max four animated Adventure Time specials focuses on BMO, the little gaming gender-fluid console who lived with Finn and Jake in their treasure-filled tree house. The original series was at its best when it was at its most experimental and Distant Lands seems to be following that lead. This adventure throws BMO into an epic dystopian fantasy landscape. Wherever in the galaxy BMO has ended up, the planet looks ravaged and in need of saving. So it’s lucky the hero they need has arrived!
Doom Patrol S2 (June 25)
HBO Max
Doom Patrol was one of the best superhero shows in ages and most people never even got to watch it due to it streaming on DC Universe. Centering around a team of superpowered misfits, the series was absurd, beautiful, moving, and hopeful. It also stars an unreal cast featuring Brendan Fraser, Matt Bomer, and Alan Tudyk. Luckily the second season is heading to HBO Max and we cannot wait to see what our favorite group of heroes are up to this time.
You can check out our other June picks below!
June 1
Adventures In Babysitting, 1987 (HBO)
Amelie, 2001 (HBO)
An American Werewolf in London, 1981 (HBO)
Cabaret, 1972
Chicago, 2002
A Cinderella Story, 2004
Cradle 2 the Grave, 2003
Drop Dead Gorgeous, 1999
Dune, 1984 (HBO)
Elf, 2003
Enter The Dragon, 1973
Far and Away, 1992 (HBO)
Final Destination, 2000
Forces of Nature, 1999 (HBO)
Final Destination 2, 2003
The Final Destination, 2009
Final Destination 3, 2006
Forces of Nature, 1999 (HBO)
The Fountain, 2006 (HBO)
From Dusk Til Dawn, 1996
Full Metal Jacket, 1987
The Good Son, 1993 (HBO)
The Goonies, 1985
Hanna, 2011 (HBO)
He Got Game, 1998 (HBO)
Heaven Can Wait, 1978
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, 2012
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, 2013
The Hunger, 1983
The Iron Giant, 1999
Juice, 1992
Looney Tunes: Back in Action, 2003
The Losers, 2010
Magic Mike, 2012
Misery, 1990
A Monster Calls, 2016 (HBO)
The Neverending Story II: The Next Chapter, 1991
Presumed Innocent, 1990
The Neverending Story, 1984
Richie Rich (Movie), 1994
Rosewood, 1997
Rugrats Go Wild, 2003
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, 2011 (HBO)
Speed Racer, 2008
The Stepfather, 1987 (HBO)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, 1990
Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride, 2005
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2, 1991
The Time Traveler’s Wife, 2009
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3, 1993
Titanic, 1997
TMNT, 2007
Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie, 1997 (HBO)
Tweety’s High-Flying Adventures, 2000
Uncle Buck, 1989 (HBO)
Veronica Mars, 2014
Weird Science, 1985 (HBO)
When Harry Met Sally, 1989
Wild Wild West, 1999
X-Men: First Class, 2011 (HBO)
You’ve Got Mail, 1998
June 2
Inside Carbonaro, Season One (TruTV)
June 6
Ad Astra, 2019 (HBO)
Yvonne Orji: Momma, I Made It! (HBO)
June 7
I May Destroy You, Series Premiere (HBO)
June 10
Infinity Train, Season 2 Premiere
June 12
El asesino de los caprichos (AKA The Goya Murders), 2020 (HBO)
June 16
David Attenborough’s Ant Mountain, 2016
David Attenbourough’s Light on Earth, 2016
First Man, 2017
Going Nuts: Tales from Squirrel World, 2019
Looney Tunes (Batch 2) (6/22), Season One
Popeye (Batch 2) (6/22), Season One
Scandalous: The Untold Story of the National Enquirer, Documentary Premiere (CNN)
June 18
Summer Camp Island, Season 2 Premiere
June 20
Ford V. Ferrari, 2020 (HBO)
June 21
Perry Mason, Limited Series Premiere (HBO)
June 24
South Park, Seasons 1-23
June 25
Adventure Time Distant Lands: BMO, Special Premiere
Doom Patrol, Season 2 Premiere
Search Party, Season 3 Premiere
June 27
Doctor Sleep (Director’s Cut), 2020 (HBO)
The post Best Things Coming to HBO MAX in June appeared first on Nerdist.