PS3 vs XBOX360

I remember getting into this heated, geeky discussion a while back.

The common ground we did establish was that PS3 loses out on market share due to the lack of available titles and cost of console/games.

The biggest plus point working in favour of PS3, came from exclusive titles, many of which helped to secure the monopoly that Sony had with PS2.

While the PS2 had a stranglehold on the gaming industry with Japanese gamemakers backing up Sony, Microsoft had little to no support from outstanding gamemakers.

I mentioned previously that with the current generation of console games, the roles have been reversed, but my observations were not met with the same level of concurrence from my Brothers.

Since my Bother from Another Mother wanted me to cite titles on the XBOX360 and was not convinced that Oblivion, Mass Effect, Bioshock, GTA belong to the same category as the 'Greats'...

I now present to you:

Final Fantasy XIII

[Movie Review] - 12 Angry Men

I came across this title when I was looking for some of the better courtroom dramas that have been filmed, long weekend and all. Turns out that the American Film Institute has a list of 'America's 10 Greatest Films in 10 Classic Genres'.


So What's It About
Directed by Sidney Lumet, starring 12 actors whom I have never heard of before this film, and still can't remember after this film, '12 Angry Men (1957)' is a film about the deliberation process by 12 jurors in a murder case. The jury is isolated and confined to a single room, where they are to remain until they can decide on a unanimous verdict.

This film stands out from other courtroom dramas in that it is filmed almost entirely in a single room. Throw in sweltering heat, broken air-conditioning, and 12 men in formal attire who inevitably impose on others their morals and values as they get involved in the case, and you have a constant flow of dialogue and heated exchange.


How Bad Can It Be?
It isn't, really. Other than the fact that the film is in black-and-white, which is somewhat of a turn-off in this day and age, this is probably the most riveting courtroom drama I've seen in a while.

In fact, as far as courtroom dramas go, I prefer this to 'To Kill A Mockingbird (1962)', which is the Top Dog on AFI's list.

The case in the film involves murder; there is no convoluted plot to throw the audience off-track, meaning fewer loopholes for the audience to nit-pick.

There is very little legal jargon to sieve through. Since the entire film revolves around the conversations between the jurors, so there is less of a barrier between the audience and the characters.

There are no lawyers in the film, and no grandstanding a la Alan Shore, so the audience is less likely to be disappointed if the actors' performance is anything short of James Spader.


What I'd Rather Be Doing...
In the absence of Boston Legal, this is a pretty good fix.

Actually, if Boston Legal was still being aired, that might be my fix for not watching this film...