Brunner's Bar

Halloween (2007) Since today is Halloween I figured this would be the perfect movie to end Halloween week.  Last night we carved our pumpkin and today my son is anxiously waiting to put on his costume and rush out to see how much candy he can get before he tires out. He is three so he tires pretty fast, but all that matters is that he has a great time.It is a lot of fun to go out with him and see how happy he is to get candy. My son is always a little shy at first but after about two houses he is running to the next house. Come back next year when I do Halloween week again and review the original versions of the movies I did here. For those of you that celebrate Halloween, I wish you a Happy Halloween and hope you have half as much fun as I hope to today.  I'm a big fan of Rob Zombie and when he started to make movies I was excited to see what he would come up with. I really liked House of a 1000 Corpses, and Devils Rejects. When I saw he was going to be doing the remake of

Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) This movie seemed to start the big horror remake craze. Before this movie we hadn't had a remake of the big contemporary horror movie monsters like there are now. There have been plenty of continuations of Freddy, Jason, and Micheal Myers but no one had tackled redoing the movie that had started the franchise yet. I may be wrong and if I am please let me know in the comments. I might need to try to expand my rental list if I have missed a good horror movie remake. I need to be honest and admit that I hadn't seen the original Chainsaw Massacre when my wife and I went to see this at the theaters. I had heard about Leatherface and knew what he looked like but I hadn't taken the time to watch it. Back in 2003 when my wife and I were just dating we went to the movies every week. We also loved horror movies and this was a must see. The trailer looked awesome and it was one we couldn't pass up. I knew nothing else about this m

Friday the 13th (2009) When this movie came out I was a little leery about another Friday the 13th movie. Sure the original ones were cheesy and ridiculous but that was the appeal. Later movies like Jason goes to Hell and Jason X were just bad movies. Needless to say I was afraid this was going to be another stupid movie that just capitalizes on the fact Jason Voorhees was in it. At first I had heard this was going to be a remake of the original, and then I heard this was going to be just Friday the 13th part 11. It turns out this movie is kind of both. The movie opens with a rainy night and a camp counselor running from Jason's mother. The first movie doesn't even have Jason Voorhees in it till the very end. The first movie revolves around the mother getting revenge on camp counselors because she is crazy. Flash forward to today and the legend of Camp Chrystal Lake is known by all. The reason I would say this is partially a remake of the originals is simply because we

A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) Welcome to Elm Street where the population continues to drop. I love this movie and the original because nothing is scarier than something that can get you in your dreams. When we sleep we can feel safe and relaxed, but what happens when your dreams turn against you? The concept is really cool and I have to thank Wes Craven for coming up with it. As a child his movies had me sleeping with a flashlight under my pillow. This remake was, in my opinion, very well done. It keeps a lot of the things that made the original movie great while still allowing it to stand on it's own. The original movie was scary when I was a kid and I was watching it on late night TV when my parents thought I was sleeping. Now it has lost it's ability to scare me. As an adult I can see all the cheesy scenes and campy dialog, and I enjoy it for a whole different set of reasons. In the new movie director Samuel Bayer takes this classic and gives it his own twist.

It's that time of year again. The leaves are turning and falling to the ground. Finally we got a little frost on our pumpkin, and hordes of children are obsessing over what to wear for that one night of Trick or Treating. For those of you unaware of what Halloween is, it is a night where kids get to dress up in costumes and go house to house begging for free candy. There is a lot more history of the holiday and stuff but this is the important thing to know, FREE CANDY!!! Halloween is my favorite holiday and I look forward to it every year. Before my wife and I had our two wonderful children we used to have Halloween parties. They were always a lot of fun, and something we all looked forward to every year. We always made lots of great food and everyone would dress up. Half way through the night we would usually end up getting Guitar Hero out and we would play till our fingers hurt. This was mainly the guys of course, the ladies cheered us on or rolled their eyes. We will get

Feature Follow is the day of the week that we get to know each other and make some new friends. This is graciously put on by our hosts  Parajunkee  and  Alison Can Read . Each week there is one blog featured by each host and a question to help us break the ice and open discussion. Since I am new to blogging I don't currently have a preference as to how you follow me. Feel free to follow through bloglovin, email, or GFC. I'm not picky just happy to have the company.   This weeks question is:  This week is an activity: Bookagram: Photograph your fave read in a funny place. I have to admit that I was so lost as to what type of picture I should take. Yes, I know it was supposed to be funny but I was still at a loss. I asked my wife what I should do and she asked me if I still knew how to tie a noose. Don't judge me I was a weird teen. Anyway she said I should hang my favorite book in homage to Halloween. I decided to take this a step further. 

Zombies & Demons Let me put this out there first.  I didn't choose this because of the cover art.  This was not the cover that was on Netgalley when I requested this title. All I really wanted was a good zombie book since the Walking Dead came back on TV. I was first introduced to the Grimm Fairy Tales graphic novels with their version of Sleepy Hollow. That book was amazing, and I really liked it, so when I saw that they did a Zombies and Demons book I figured I would give it a try. I like zombies, I even like demon tales from time to time. This book for me was kind of a let down. Since this is broken down into two separate stories I will review each section starting with the Zombies portion.  This wasn't so bad, but I wanted more than a Romeo and Juliet meet George Romero. A slave falls in love with the plantation owner's daughter, and all hell breaks loose. The plantation owner hunts them down by raising the dead to find them. I wont spoil the rest of the stor

Man of Steel  Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly book meme hosted by Jill over at  Breaking the Spine.   This day allows us to  share news on upcoming releases that have us on the edge of our seats in anticipation. This week my Waiting on Wednesday is for the Blu-Ray release of Man of steel . I have already reviewed this movie so I wont bore you with how awesome it is. However, if you would like to read my review just click the second link and it will take you there. This is the best movie I have seen this year and I can't wait to watch it again. My wife and I don'tget to see movies in the theater very often so when we do it has to be a one we both really want to see. This one we saw in 3D and it was worth the extra cost. The 3D effects on this movie were really good and I am going to get this in the 3D Blu-Ray so when I finally get my 3D TV this will be one of the first I watch on it. This release has some cool special features listed and I really enjoy watching all

Green Lantern Vol 3: The end All good things must come to an end and all questions I had have been answered. When I started on the Green lantern books after the New 52 started I was hooked. I just read Green Lantern: Rise of the Third Army. That book compiled all of the Green Lantern books into one story, but it ended in the midst of a huge battle. This doesn’t pick up during that battle so I’m anxious to see how that ends, but this book does bring an end to a lot of question I had. Who was the first Lantern, why are the Guardians out to destroy all they have built, and where is Hal Jordan? The story line does come to an end, but it made me wish I knew what all happened in the background. This book revolves around Hal Jordan, Simon Baz, and Sinestro. I do hope they make a volume 2 to The Rise of the Third Army. If not I will wait anxiously for the graphic novel release of Green Lantern Corps and other books to fill in the gaps. Simon Baz is new to being a Green Lantern. H

Aquaman Vol 2: The Others  I have been very impressed with the reboot of Aquaman. Geoff Johns has made him less of a joke and more of a hero that can hold his own with the Justice League. That being said, I have to admit that I was a little disappointed in this particular book. The gripes I have are just minor, but I was hoping to get more in depth with the Atlantean artifacts. In Auquaman Vol 1: The Trench , Aquaman finds a relic from Atlantis, and we know very little about it. I was hoping to get more info on these relics and continue the story that I loved in book one. There is some story about the relics, but for the most part this is about Aquaman Vs Black Manta. Not that this was a bad story at all, but I expected something else with how Volume 1 ended. This story is about the Others. This team is kind of like a third string Justice League. They have been looking for relics from Atlantis to protect them. Aquaman joined with them early on in his career when he was brought

Feature Follow is the day of the week that we get to know each other and make some new friends. This is graciously put on by our hosts  Parajunkee  and  Alison Can Read . Each week there is one blog featured by each host and a question to help us break the ice and open discussion. Since I am new to blogging I don't currently have a preference as to how you follow me. Feel free to follow through bloglovin, email, or GFC. I'm not picky just happy to have the company.   This weeks question is:  What are some of your favorite magazines??? There really is only one magazine that I subscribe to and that is: I have been a fan of mysteries since I became a young adult. Sherlock Holmes is just one of my favorites. This magazine showcases different mystery authors and their short stories. Along with these short pieces there are book reviews and all kinds of interesting articles.I have been interested in this magazine for years but never subscribed. Last year w

Invention of Hugo Cabret  I am a little late to the party with this one. I must be honest and say that I had not heard about this book until well after the movie had come out. I loved the trailer, and the idea of this mechanical man drawing a secret note once fixed seemed intriguing. I still haven't seen the movie yet, but it has been on my to watch list for along time. Here is the trailer that captured my attention so well: It wasn't until a year or two ago that I found out Hugo was based off of this book. I had to put this on my to-read list but it sadly rested at the bottom. There were a lot of other grown up reads I wanted to get to first. The last time we all went to the library as a family my lovely wife had the idea that we should just get The Invention of Hugo Cabret and read it as a family. My son is almost 4 and my wife and I have both read books to him individually but this was the first time we read as a family. I was very excited for this to be our first

Aquaman Vol 3: Throne of Atlantis  Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly book meme hosted by Jill over at  Breaking the Spine.   This day allows us to  share news on upcoming releases that have us on the edge of our seats in anticipation. I never thought I would see the day where I would be excited about an Aquaman book. Aquaman has always been the joke of the DC Universe. He has been ridiculed in tons of television shows such as Saturday Night Live and Big Bang Theory. Even when Smallville introduced Aquaman, the guy was kind of lame. Geoff Johns has changed that. When the New 52 launched, DC looked at it as a way to redo their beloved heroes. Some of the reboots were not what I wanted to see, but others were amazing stories. Aquaman is one of those stories that has done well with a fresh relaunch. Here is the Goodreads description for this book.   Aquaman, who long ago lost contact with his people, must watch as armies emerge from the sea to attack the surface world. The Just

Batman Vol. 3: Death of the Family (The New 52)  Absolutely Amazing!!!! Scott Snyder has done an amazing job with the Batman comics since the New 52 began. Several of the reboots have not lived up to my expectations, but the Batman series has been the best I have seen. DC Comics was kind enough to let me read this collection early for an honest review care of Net Galley. I can’t tell you how excited I was to see this. I have been a Batman fan all my life and he is by far my favorite superhero. My love for Batman has rubbed of on my 3 year old son and he loves running around in his mask and homemade cap shouting “I’m Batman”. It will be many years before I let him read my comics, but I still get a kick out of seeing what I must have been like as a child. It is also nice to have an excuse to watch my Batman Animated series DVDs because he loves those. This book starts off after the Court of Owls story line, the Joker has been missing for a year and now he is back. A

Feature Follow is the day of the week that we get to know each other and make some new friends. This is graciously put on by our hosts  Parajunkee  and  Alison Can Read . Each week there is one blog featured by each host and a question to help us break the ice and open discussion. Since I am new to blogging I don't currently have a preference as to how you follow me. Feel free to follow through bloglovin, email, or GFC. I'm not picky just happy to have the company.   This weeks question is:   This week is an activity where we feature our favorite blogger. My featured blogger is... Angela's Anxious Life   Angie has been a big help in getting my blog up and running. I have a few friends who have helped answer questions when I have them, but Angie has been my main go to. Since she has helped me so much by introducing me to this feature and others I feel I should thank her by featuring her blog here. I am also featuring this blog because we

Iron Man 3 I finally got around to seeing this movie. I was blown away and want to watch it over again already. This really is the best of the three in my opinion. This movie shows so much more depth to all of the characters than in previous movies, and the action is just crazy. This picks up right where Avengers left off. Tony Stark is back from New York and having a little problem coping with life as a superhero all of a sudden. Emotions and anxiety are getting the best of him, and he is not used to having to deal with this or think about the safety of anyone other than himself. A terrorist has been plaguing the world, and Iron Man is not able to stop all of it. Calling out this terrorist he paints a target on himself and Pepper, his better half. The plot is very engaging, and I was not able to look away for a moment while watching this. Usually when I am at home watching a movie I play on my iPad or do something else while I watch. I couldn't while watching this. My wi

Hollow City Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly book meme hosted by Jill over at  Breaking the Spine.   This day allows us to  share news on upcoming releases that have us on the edge of our seats in anticipation. This is book two in the Miss Peregrine series. The first book was a mixture of really weird pictures that were found at garage sales, flee markets, and estate sales. Ransom Riggs did a great job incorporating these weird photos in his story. Hollow City is the continuation of that story. Here is the Goodreads description: In 1940 after the first book ends, Jacob and his new Welsh island friends flee to London, the Peculiar capital of the world. Caul, a dangerous madman, is Miss Peregrine’s brother, and can steal Peculiar abilities for himself. The Peculiars must fight for survival, again.  Not  much to go on, but having read the first book I have been anxious for this to come out. My wife and I read the first book right as it came out so we have been waiting for

The October List  I had no idea what to expect when I got this book. Of course I expected nothing less than classic Deaver twists and turns. I got all that and way more. Since I first heard about this book I had read a few descriptions, and it never registered that it was described as a novel in reverse. I was thrown off when I opened the book and instead of a title page or copyright page I just saw Chapter 36. The book nerd in me was really excited when I flipped to the back of the book and there was all the copyright pages and titles pages as well as a table of contents with titles for each picture before each chapter. That's right I said pictures before each chapter. Jeffery Deaver took his camera and did some photo journalism to go along with the story. I would highly recommend not reading the titles for the pictures becasue it does give away what each chapter is about. Since the table of contents is in the back I don't think that will be a problem unless you cheat.

Melt: The Art of Macaroni and Cheese One of my passions other than my family, books and movies is cooking. I love to cook, and the more difficult the recipe the more I want to challenge myself to make it.  I also have learned how to fix a recipe if it is not as tasty as I think it should be. Enough with tooting my own horn. Cooking is relaxing for me. No matter how stressful a day at work might be I  like coming home and putting together a nice meal for my family. I have been a member of Netgalley for awhile now and gotten some amazing books to review. It never occured to me to look through the cookbook section. When I saw this I thought "Who doesn't love Mac and Cheese?" I was very excited when I was approved for this title. There are a ton of recipes in this collection, but for the most part they are not at all what I was expecting. I was expecting twists on a classic favorite, there are a few recipes, but for the most part this is more of a pasta cook book. Past

Feature Follow is the day of the week that we get to know each other and make some new friends. This is graciously put on by our hosts  Parajunkee  and  Alison Can Read . Each week there is one blog featured by each host and a question to help us break the ice and open discussion. Since I am new to blogging I don't currently have a preference as to how you follow me. Feel free to follow through bloglovin, email, or GFC. I'm not picky just happy to have the company.   This weeks question is:   What book (or TV show or movie) have you not read that seemingly everyone else has?  Well there is not much I don't read these days. I tend to shy away from YA books, but I have read the popular ones. I caved to peer pressure and read Harry Potter even though I was so against it till the 5th book came out. I read the Hunger Games series last year, and I have read a few of the Mortal Instruments series.  One series I haven't read yet is the Divergent books

Justice League Vol 2  I have been really impressed with the way the Justice League books are going. The first volume of the New 52 showed us how the team came to be with a new twist to it. This volume jumps ahead several years showing a more unified team, watchtower and all. This really allows for a pure plot driven story. There is no need to waste time with setting things up. This story, written by the talented Geoff Johns, begins with a character we met in volume 1. His life was changed after the forming of the Justice League and not for the better. Now he asks for help from these superheroes but doesn't get any. The problems of the many out way the needs of the few (Yes I just used a quote from Star Trek). Having been "rejected," he sets out to end the Justice League for good. There is a lot of emotion in this comic that you don't usually see in a series like this. Geoff Johns does an amazing job conveying the struggle and turmoil of each character while s

Trouble in Mind   Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly book meme hosted by Jill over at  Breaking the Spine.   This day allows us to  share news on upcoming releases that have us on the edge of our seats in anticipation. I am really excited about 'Trouble in Mind' for many different reasons, one of which might be considered a little odd. This book would mean that in less than a year Jeffery  Deaver has had three books out. I got  Kill Room in June,  The October List   which was released yesterday and now this one which is coming out March 4, 2014. Here is the Goodreads Description:  The "grand master of the plot twist" ( Booklist ) is back with his third story collection. The stories include: "A Textbook Case," a Lincoln Rhyme story: When a young woman is found brutally murdered in a parking garage, with a veritable mountain of potential evidence to sift through, it may be the most challenging case former NYPD detective Lincoln Rhyme has ever taken