The story takes place in 2154, three decades after a multinational corporation has established a mining colony on Pandora, a planet light years from Earth. A toxic environment and hostile natives — one corporate apparatchik calls the locals “blue monkeys” — forces the conglom to engage with Pandora by proxy. Humans dwell in oxygen-drenched cocoons but move out into mines or to confront the planet’s hostile creatures in hugely fortified armor and robotics or — as avatars.

The protagonist, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), is a disabled former Marine who takes his late twin brother’s place in the avatar program, a sort of bone thrown to the scientific community by the corporation in hopes that the study of Pandora and its population might create a more peaceful planet.

Without any training, Jake suddenly must learn how to link his consciousness to an avatar, a remotely controlled biological body that mixes human DNA with that of the native population, the Na’vi. Since he is incautious and overly curious, he immediately rushes into the fresh air — to a native — to throw open Pandora’s many boxes.

What a glory Cameron has created for Jake to romp in, all in a crisp 3D realism. It’s every fairy tale about flying dragons, magic plants, weirdly hypnotic creepy-crawlies and feral dogs rolled up into a rain forest with a highly advanced spiritual design. It seems — although the scientists led by Sigourney Weaver’s top doc have barely scratched the surface — a flow of energy ripples through the roots of trees and the spores of the plants, which the Na’vi know how to tap into.

The center of life is a holy tree where tribal memories and the wisdom of their ancestors is theirs for the asking. This is what the humans want to strip mine.

Jake manages to get taken in by one tribe where a powerful, Amazonian named Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) takes him under her wing to teach him how to live in the forest, speak the language and honor the traditions of nature. Yes, they fall in love but Cameron has never been a sentimentalist: He makes it tough on his love birds.

They must overcome obstacles and learn each other’s heart. The Na’vi have a saying, “I see you,” which goes beyond the visual. It means I see into you and know your heart.

In his months with the Na’vi, Jake experiences their life as the “true world” and that inside his crippled body locked in a coffin-like transponding device, where he can control his avatar, is as the “dream.” The switch to the other side is gradual for his body remains with the human colony while his consciousness is sometimes elsewhere.

He provides solid intelligence about the Na’vi defensive capabilities to Col. Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang), the ramrod head of security for the mining consortium and the movie’s villain. But as Jake comes to see things through Neytiri’s eyes, he hopes to establish enough trust between the humans and the natives to negotiate a peace. But the corporation wants the land the Na’vi occupy for its valuable raw material so the Colonel sees no purpose in this.

The battle for Pandora occupies much of the final third of the film. The planet’s animal life — the More awards coveragecreatures of the ground and air — give battle along with the Na’vi, but they come up against projectiles, bombs and armor that seemingly will be their ruin.

As with everything in “Avatar,” Cameron has coolly thought things through. With every visual tool he can muster, he takes viewers through the battle like a master tactician, demonstrating how every turn in the fight, every valiant death or cowardly act, changes its course. The screen is alive with more action and the soundtrack pops with more robust music than any dozen sci-fi shoot-’em-ups you care to mention.

In years of development and four years of production no detail in the pic is unimportant. Cameron’s collaborators excel beginning with the actors. Whether in human shape or as natives, they all bring terrific vitality to their roles.

Mauro Fiore’s cinematography is dazzling as it melts all the visual elements into a science-fiction whole. You believe in Pandora. Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg’s design brings Cameron’s screenplay to life with disarming ease.

James Horner’s score never intrudes but subtly eggs the action on while the editing attributed to Cameron, Stephen Rivkin and John Refoua maintains a breathless pace that exhilarates rather than fatigues. Not a minute is wasted; there is no down time.

The only question is: How will Cameron ever top this?

The amateur film, The Hunt for Gollum; an adaptation by Chris Bouchard of a portion of Tolkien literature; is quite clearly a grand homage to the epic trilogy directed by Peter Jackson. The actual construction of the film was well executed with an expansive environment for the actors to play. Sadly, it seems key performers didn’t have the wherewithal to use the tools at hand.

Before I start on the actors, I should explain a little about the direction. The movie begins with an exposition monologue from a disembodied voice and a montage of landscape to set the scene. While standard for fantasy epics and quite pretty, the set up is just this side of tedious. Valuable time was devoured while explaining storyline that is very likely already known by the audience since this is a fan film. I had to stop myself twice from skipping ahead, trying to get to the actual beginning of the story. While this was frustrating, I admired Mr. Bouchard’s attention to detail.

Adrian Webster, was the lucky actor chosen to shoulder the role of Aragorn. It is quite obvious he was chosen for his uncanny likeness to a young and waif-thin Viggo Mortensen. On the official website of the Independent Online Cinema Co: thehuntforgollum.com there are handy biographies of each actor. His reads: “As a strong actor with a thoughtful gaze, he brings [a] very solid performance and stage combat skills to his role in The Hunt For Gollum…” I will agree that his gaze was thoughtful. Sadly, through the entire 35min film, his gaze was so thoughtful it was nigh on catatonic. His most dynamic acting choice was heavy breathing when it was appropriate to be out of breath. His dialog was monotone and bereft of passion, and there was no emotional investment through out the film, though the stakes were quite obviously high. I think my favorite part was watching him deal with “Gollum.” The wildly flailing creature was in a sack and though obviously he should weigh at least 50lbs, was slung over Webster’s shoulder with absolute ease. He even hefted him with one hand at arms length, seemingly because absence of care and emotion imbues one with super strength.

I was not entirely unimpressed with the acting in this case, however. Patrick O’Connor’s Gandalf was wise and quietly grave, while Rita Ramnani’s Arwen was charming, however brief. Gareth Brough contributed a decent performance as Gollum’s voice. Brough’s Gollum was nicely reminiscent of the original trilogy’s playfully psychotic and childish demeanor, while he at the same time brought his own flavor to the role.

Since this was a fan film, there is always a certain allowance made for quality. However, I was rather impressed with the craftsmanship of this movie. The locations were excellently chosen and seemed to go on forever. The blue-screen work was decently done if perhaps a step above a student film. The special effect makeup was inspired, turning the stunt performers into hideously convincing orcs. Costume design was well conceived, the only issue being the quality of materials supplied to the creators. I was constantly distracted by the rangers’ ridiculous wigs, and the insubstantial prop luggage. To make up for that though, was the beautiful animation of Gollum. His appearance and fluidity of motion was above and beyond what I’d expected from a fan film, which sort of encompasses the theme of the overall cinematography.

The Hunt for Gollum is an interesting edition to the films based on a Tolken Universe. It is a side of the story that is worthy of being told, and those who decided to do so executed the telling with great respect to those who came before. If one grasps the fact that it was a small budget tackling a large endeavor it’s easy to appreciate and share in the excitement and love the film makers obviously have for their craft. The Hunt for Gollum is worth watching, if only to remember that movies are not only meant for profit, but to celebrate the human imagination and tell a story.

Throughout history, there have been winners, and there have been haters. Usually the haters are on the outside looking in with no clue what it feels like to win a championship or come in first place. This hateful and laughable video illustrates the fact that those who are on top are always the subjects of the most ridicule. The fans who despise the Yankees usually like two teams: the one they support, and any team that plays the Yankees. There have been a myriad of books written on this subject. I suppose disgruntled fans need a place to vent their frustration.

Yankee fans can defend these criticisms with the obvious retorts: they have over 34 players inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, 16 uniform numbers retired, and of course, 27 World Championships, more than any other professional team in any professional sport.

All these stats are impressive, but the simple underlying truth is: the New York Yankee franchise is a model of excellence that all professional teams can either hate, admire, or try to emulate. Every April, each team starts out the season with an equal record, what happens during the season relies on many factors, one of them being long and short term goals, and an another being luck. The Yankee organization knows the formula for success, and that formula is open for any team to copy. This blueprint is not about the money, it is an attitude, an expectation to win each and every year. But what fun is it if every team duplicated the Yankees? The absolute joy of rooting for your team, city, or country in professional sports is the fact that at the end of the season or tournament, there is only one victor. It just so happens that the Yankees have been that victor more than any other team.

I am sure that the Boston Red Sox fans of the 1920′s would have been the first to put up a YouTube video making fun of the resented Yankees. But you have to give the franchise from the Bronx credit, Babe Ruth is a sole reason why sports in America is as large an industry and source of entertainment that it is today. An entire stadium was built in his honor to accommodate the thousands of fans who came out to see him hit the long ball, Yankee Stadium: The House that Ruth Built. Even in the 1920’s, America had a fascination with the Home Run and more accurately, with a winner.

Give credit where credit is due, the iconic Babe changed sports not only in America but throughout the world, forever. This is a fact that must not be overlooked. All of today’s multi-millionaire athletes from LeBron James, to Manny Rodriguez, to Lionel Messi all have George Herman Ruth to thank, and even though he began his career as a member of the Red Sox, the Yankees are the team that took him from being a pitcher to an everyday position player. They gave him the opportunity to launch moon shots over the wall and ultimately, gave him a salary and a celebrity status that was unparalleled at the time.

I am a total advocate of freedom of speech and self-expression. I believe that without these important rights, we would live in an oppressed world without any freedoms whatsoever. However, the obvious use of Photoshop in this piece takes away from the overall humor; the jokes would work better if the images looked more realistic. If the viewer has a difficult time differentiating between fabricated or real, the comedy is more successful, and the general vibe of the piece is more effective.

This video’s somewhat witty take on the Yankees and their players is immature, and speaks to the amount of hatred that those who sit at the pinnacle of their sport must endure. It gives truth to the statement “It’s lonely at the top.” I am pretty sure A-Rod, Jeter, and company do not pay much attention. They make millions of dollars, they are adored by millions of fans, and most importantly, they win.

Overall, the rousing jealousy directed toward the New York Yankees spills over like a Gulf oil spill, and because of that, this video is a comedic success. But even this non-Yankee fan is laughing at the video, not with; because in truth, playing the sexuality game, coupled together with obviously doctored photos and headlines from 2004 is not only out-dated, but borders on completely lame.

Love them or hate them, the Yankees are not only a model of excellence in sport, they are the essence of Americana. They do everything in a big way: big money, big stars, big attention, and big wins. You cannot deny the storied tradition of the pinstripes, and no matter how many more videos come out that make fun of Derek Jeter’s sexuality, or Alex Rodriguez’s extra-curricular activities, both will surely be inducted in the Baseball Hall of Fame as New York Yankees, and one truth will still remain: History is written by the winners.

Unlike it’s opening title card reading “Dodgers!!!!!” this short tribute to Los Angeles’ boys in blue lacks any real moments worth five exclamation points. Excluding the first shot of Nomar Garciapara’s triumphant trot around the bases after his walk off two-run homer, capping a ninth inning rally that included four consecutive solo shots one September 2007 evening, the Los Angeles Dodgers ballclub has had few moments of glory.

Now, that’s not too say that LA’s real baseball team hasn’t enjoyed tons over the past decade or so, but they have never eclipsed the glory of their last world championship in 1988. Before 2008’s breakthrough to the NLCS, the Dodgers hadn’t won a playoff game since 1995; they hadn’t won a playoff series since they earned the title of baseball’s best team in 1988.

Watching this brief still photo tribute to the Dodgers, it’s easy to discern why they haven’t returned to glory, despite being the most high profile baseball team on the West Coast.

The montage of Dodger players features mostly journeymen professionals, who have traveled from team to team, or wily veterans who are in the twilight of their career. Immediately following the shot of Garciapara is a photo of Brett Tomko, a pitcher who has been on eleven different Major League Baseball teams. A stark photo of David Wells appears about halfway through. His tenure with the Dodgers lasted two months, before he filed for free agency, only then realizing that no one would sign him and he retired thereafter.

The identity of the Los Angeles Dodgers in this short video tribute is severely skewered. Gone are the stability of the late 80’s and early 90’s. The faces of the Dodger organization in those years, Hershiser and Gibson, Piazza and Karros are all gone replaced by Jose Cruz Jr. and Odalis Perez.

This video does include some of the younger up and coming faces of the organization, including a fading Russell Martin, and an inconsistent Matt Kemp. But nowhere in the past decade has there been a single player who is completely recognized as the face of the Dodgers. Some may argue that Manny Ramirez has taken upon himself that role, but he will certainly move to the American League after this season.

Because the Dodgers have lacked recognizable faces, one pitcher and one hitter, the amount of their success has remained relatively low. This is a team that should, for all intents and purposes, be a West Coast Yankees. But because of a lack of identity, and an owner mired in legal troubles, the Dodgers remain as a competitive, but never serious title contender.

However it isn’t all Dodger blues, as it were. Left absent from this two minute montage are young players Andre Eithier and Clayton Kershaw. These two have the potential to become that elusive Dodgers identity that winning teams often have. Two players on both sides of the ball, that are associated with their respective team. It is now up to the aforementioned owner, Frank McCourt, to keep these two in Dodger Blue, and create an identity for this Los Angeles team.

Cuisinart ICE-30BC Pure Indulgence 2-Quart Automatic Frozen Yogurt, Sorbet, and Ice Cream Maker $73.95 …

Presto 114316 04820 PopLite Hot Air Corn Popper $29.99 Plug in Prestos PopLite and the party begins. In less than 2.5 minutes you will have up to 18 cups which is equal to two large bowlfuls of fluffy popcorn with virtually no unpopped kernels. And because the machine uses hot air instead of oil the resulting snack is healthier and lower in calories. Thats not to say you can nott add butter in fact the half cup measuring cup on top of the popper doubl…

Keurig B60 Special Edition Gourmet Single-Cup Home-Brewing System …

Little Broken Hearts $7.99 …

Bloom $4.99 …

The Journey: The Very Best of Donna Summer $10.99 All products are BRAND NEW and factory sealed. Fast shipping and 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed….

Star Wars: The Original Trilogy (Episodes IV – VI) [Blu-ray] $33.98 The Star Wars trilogy had the rare distinction of becoming more than just a series of movies, but a cultural phenomenon, a life-defining event for its generation. On its surface, George Lucas’s original 1977 film is a rollicking and humorous space fantasy that owes debts to more influences than one can count on two hands, but filmgoers became entranced by its basic struggle of good vs. evil “a lon…

The Lion King (Two-Disc Diamond Edition Blu-ray / DVD Combo in Blu-ray Packaging) $17.40 The wait is over. For the first time ever, experience the majesty of Disney’s epic animated masterpiece as it roars off the screen and into your living room on Blu-ray and Blu-ray 3D. With a spectacular digital picture, spine-tingling high definition sound and immersive bonus features—you will feel the love for this critically acclaimed and universally beloved classic like never before…

Beauty and the Beast (Three-Disc Diamond Edition Blu-ray/DVD Combo in Blu-ray Packaging) $26.99 Set in and around a quaint French village during the late 18th century, Beauty and the Beast follows the fantastic adventures of Belle, a brightand beautiful young woman who finds escape from her ordinary life, and the advances of a boorish suitor, Gaston, by reading books. Meanwhile, off in a castle in the distance, a cruel young prince is cast under the spell of an enchantress who turns him into…

Belkin Mini Surge Protector Dual USB Charger $13.30 Protect your electronic devices while traveling….

---