Monopoly Masta!

      Unfortunately for three of my friends, yesterday night didn't go quite as planned. I will gladly explain. After sitting down for good two hours dwelling in the carnivorous land of Applied Therapeutics, I received word that two of our friends will be coming over to visit. I know, I still have another, what, thirteen hours worth of studying ahead of me? But after what happened the night before... I wanted to exact some well deserved revenge.
      This past weekend, I stopped by Barnes And Nobles to buy some board games. I have horrendous aptitude when it comes to such games but I believed that it would be a nice addition to the new place. With that said, welcome to the family, Monopoly and Bananagrams! Don't knock Bananagrams, which some of you might be tempted to do. I absolutely love playing that game. Later that night, my roommate convinced me to play Monopoly with him. Since it was a brand new set, he wanted me to christen it...What a load of bullshit. Behind the scenes, he wanted a chance to exert his dominance in the game. Truth be told, for the next two and a half hours that's exactly what he did. He showed me how far one can walk down the path of the devil because of this game. I believed possession of the soul was characterized by long and arduous bouts of the soul against the devil's hold but I was proven wrong. In just a matter of moments, my roommate traded his amiability and self control for insatiable ruthlessness.
      After obliterating any chances I had at building a Monopoly, he stated that he will think about trading properties only after I land on one of his properties. Let me make that clear. I would have to pay up at least one thousand dollars so that he could give me a monopoly out of pity, since pretty much all the properties he owned had hotels on it. Although I knew the end was inevitable, I played till the bitter end. As the victor, he reserved the right to be called "Monopoly Masta" and, annoyingly, wouldn't let me forget it. But if I knew what was going to happen the following night, I would have gone through all the badgering with a grin on my face.
      To make a long story short, until the next time I lose in Monopoly, you may address me as the long awaited "Monopoly Masta". You should have seen his face after I cleaned him out, it was the face of pathetic defeat. He still had properties, although mortgaged, after landing on my path of utter destruction. But the pride was sucked out of him and humbleness eased back into place. You can also call me the healer. That is, if you want to. It's not mandatory but it's certainly an option. Who knew? Monopoly does sometimes deal success to those who are flagrantly tossed to the side by the Scrooges of society. But you know what I truly got out of this experience? That I'm hours behind in my studies and although it was a strategy game, Monopoly will do nothing for my midterm next week. Agreed? Agreed.

The Crow

      As a result of not being able to sleep last night, no matter what I tried to do, I went ahead and decided to watch a movie. I mean nothing worked. The soft sound of waves hitting the rocks on a beach, sleeping on my face, hiking up the fan a couple of notches all seemed to fail me. Of all the movies I have on a growing list, I picked Alex Proyas' "The Crow", which was released in 1994. Why "The Crow"? The first reason being, I have yet to watch a movie that stars a superhero by the name of Crow, until today morning obviously, so the plot line must be original. Secondly, I have a soft spot for ass-kicking, crime fighting, justice providing, death dealing superheros. And finally, as I was watching one of Vlogs that I subscribe to, I found out that Brandon Lee, who plays the main character, actually died on set. So, I believe that this movie is one of those several movies that you have to watch before you expire.

      Lee plays the role of an up and coming musician and to-be-newlywed, Eric Draven. Due to a housing issue with the city's most vile of criminals, his fiancee was brutally raped and beaten in front of his eyes. Draven came in on what was happening and was sent, mercilessly, to his untimely death and his fiancee died hours later. Now, Draven is back to see the death of each of these criminals through as The Crow. Bear with me on this one. To me, the Crow was Nicholas Cage's "Ghost Rider", Michael Jai White's "Spawn", Ben Affleck's "Daredevil", and Heath Ledger's "Joker", all packed into one character. But all of these movies came out years after the release of this movie. It could be very much possible that the main characters of these movies, in part, originated from the character of The Crow. Except "The Joker" of course. 

      I, personally, loved watching this movie. The musical composition of this movie was beautifully manipulated and handled by Graeme Revell. As we speak, I am replaying the shit out of Revell's "Return to the Grave." That piece is not as dark as it sounds, trust me. Although based on an eerie theme, there were scenes that put a smile on my face. Aside from some empty acting from Ernie Hudson and one or two movie mistakes, this movie is a must see. Now about Brandon Lee, the son of the late and coveted Bruce Lee. Because of an improperly prepared gun on set, Lee was accidentally shot on scene. Hours later, he was pronounced dead at New Hanover Regional Medical Center, Wilmington, because of an bullet intrusion to the spine. 

      There is no doubt in my mind that if Lee was still alive today, he would have the actor to watch on the big screen. His unique ability to be taken seriously, even with a bit of humor, makes him an actor with a lot to offer. The movie went on a hiatus for a while but Lee's family pushed for the movie's release in his remembrance. Proyas and Lee's stunt double, Chad Stahelski, did a great job covering up and keeping Eric Draven alive without a trace of Lee's absence. Will I watch this movie again? Yes, most definitely.

I will post the link to Revell's "Return to the Grave" on my "What I'm listening to right now" column. Check it out.