The Lord Of The Rings – The Two Towers: Extended Edition
Blu-ray
Directed by Peter Jackson
Written by Peter Jackson, Phillipa Boyens, Stephen Sinclair, and Fran Walsh; based on the novel by J.R.R. Tolkien
Starring Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen, and Sean Astin
New Line Home Video
Release Date: August 28, 2012

You can read Dr. Geek, Ph.D’s review of The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy Extended Edition from July 2011 here.

When you take a look back at some of the greatest second chapters in motion picture trilogies of all time like The Empire Strikes Back, The Godfather Part II, and (my personal favorite) Evil Dead II it is easy to understand why so many turn out vastly superior to their originals. Since most trilogies use their first story to act as set-up for almost everything that happens next the second is where things really start to take off. In successful film franchises it is also in the second installment where events begin to take darker turns, characters are forced to traverse a metaphorical – and sometimes literal – Hell to reach their personal Heaven, and the endings are very rarely happy or even conclusive.

Because the creators of the series – from the screenwriters to the studio executives with control over the green light to the bravura director and producer(s) who must assemble a crack team of actors and technicians to bring their mutual vision roaring to life – believe that the audiences who made the first movie a smashing success are invested in the ongoing narrative to the point where they will follow it wherever the filmmakers desire. Thus they are granted license to put their beloved characters through a series of traumatizing physical and psychological journeys where the only optimistic outcome is to survive to fight another day, nothing more.

The Exorcist, which remains one of the most powerful, galvanizing, controversial, unsettling, and downright chilling films of all time, celebrates its 40th anniversary today.

Directed by William Friedkin (fresh off a cachet of Academy Awards given to his prior film, The French Connection, including Best Director) and adapted by William Peter Blatty from his own novel, which had been released a few years prior and was a bestseller, The Exorcist remains so many things which elevate it from what on paper sort of reads like a hackneyed Z-budget William Castle/HG Lewis dime store narrative: A young girl gets possessed by a demon, and a priest is called to administer an exorcism, but everyone gets more than they bargained for in the process.

From all of us at Geeks of Doom, to all of our readers, friends, and fans around the World, we wish you a very happy holiday season and a wonderful new year!

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Directed by Ben Stiller
Written by Steve Conrad
Starring Ben Stiller, Kristin Wiig, Adam Scott, Sean Penn, and Shirley MacLaine
Release date: December 25, 2013

Ben Stiller‘s The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is a common, oft-heard message masquerading as an insight.

To be fair, the message is a sound one “” one we’ve all heard countless times “” but one that few of us heed: Live. Live your life. Get out there and experience it. In order to remind us of that message, superimposed text graphics that feel like they’re from a “Just Do It” Nike commercial, are peppered throughout.

Again, while the sentiment is worthy, I fretted our culture has cultivated an audience for material that feels pithy, but is anything but. In short, the suggestion that they’ve experienced something deep and enriching is enough to make them believe they actually have.

The $11 t-shirt deal of the day over at TeeFury today is a Doctor Who-inspired design by zerobriant called “The 11th Hour” which uses photochromatic ink that changes color in the sun.

The sale began at Teefury today, Wednesday, December 25, 2013, at midnight EST, and will continue for 24 hours from then, and once it’s over, it will not be sold on the site for $11 anymore, though it will continue into the next day for $14 (look for the After Hours bar at the top).