Defiance: Movie Review

Caught the Sneaks for Defiance today,

Freedom begins, with an act of defiance.

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Based on the true story of the Bielsky Partisans, who were Polish Jews who came together for protection when their homeland was invaded by the Germans. The story revolves around the four jewish brothers, Tuvia (Daniel Craig), Zus (Liev Schreiber), Asael (Jamie Bell), Aron (George MacKay), who had managed to escape detention and encampment by the German Army, and instead of going into hiding, went back to rescue fellow Jews and built up a new community in the midst of the jungles to survive WWII.

Asael Bielsky (Jamie Bell)



Daniel Craig, famously know as James Bond, stars as Tuvia Bielsky, Leader and Commander of the bielsky partisans.

' you should've shot the milkman' - Zus Bielsky

Seems like around this timeframe, Hollywood enjoys churning out WW2 movies, with Valkyrie (starring Tom Cruise ) coming up next.

To sum it up, Defiance is indeed a show to catch, its storyline revolving around the survival of the Polish Jews and the struggles of building up a community when all form of law, justice, equality and fairness has broken down. The difficulties and struggles of maintaining leadership and doing what that is right often comes into question in the movie, as Tuvia, struggles between vengeance against the Germans who have pushed the Polish Jews and hunted them like animals, and choosing between protecting his people.

The movie explores to a certain extent the stereotypes of Jewish people, portraying them in this film to be people not to be messed with. It also explores the binding of community and how it is neccessary for survival in every case.

However, the rock hard grittiness of which the film begun with somewhat got lost along the way, but the story still followed along well, ( the revenge of Tuvia, by executing the police commisioner who murdered his family, Zus' revenge killings on villagers who aided germans kill jews. ) before milding down to the building of a community and the nitty gritty details and hardships.

I particularly enjoyed both Daniel and Liev's portrayal of the brothers at conflict between seeking vengeance and rebuilding the lives they've lost. With Daniel Craig's intense wide blue eyes almost in all shots even when he's supposed to be in a concussion. Liev's portrayal of sibling rivally too is something to note for a veteran actor.

All in all, Defiance is indeed a great movie to catch, and with a runtime of 137 minutes, would be worth your time and money.

(damn i wanna do a daniel craig defiance kitbash....anyone knows where to get the parts? )

Trip down to CSC - Mirrornoob's Iron Man Mark 3

Congrats to Mirrornoob on finally accquiring his Hot Toys Iron Man mark III.

Ordered it on his behalf from a honest and decent dealer at CSC, who runs Toyz Crazi at level 2.

Collected it today and opened it up for check it out outside CSC. Now i can't wait for mine to arrive from TFH...

To Note: Apparently the design for the lightup hands and head are pretty ingenious, using clear rubber nubs with an embeded LED lightbulb in the arms to the joint connectors...(unlike what i thought, which was the lightbulb being in the hands itself... ) which is pretty great a design and ingenious...for the hands had some sorta' plastic which focused and amplified the light.... awesome IMHO...

my only qualm is that it is way lighter than it looks...

Happy Chinese New Year 2009: Message From Joshua

Whilst most would wish all a very Happy Chinese New Year 2009, for prosperity and wealth and health, we must all confess that it is in part, optimism we hold dear, in these times of adversity.

Considering retrenchment will strike the hearts of many companies in full force here in Singapore right after the end of Chinese New Year.

And whilst words and wishes may be of little comfort in times like these, may we yet perservere through these adverse times, holding dear to us hope, optimism and strike opportunity the moment it presents itself to us.

and with the recent inauguration of President Barrack Obama, i have faith that in time, the american economy would stablize, settling down american based firms and companies here in Singapore, improving our economy by a tad'.

Likewise to the saying in The Dark Knight, and with the same conviction and emotions, i'd say '' I believe in Barrack Obama '' the same way as '' I believe in Harvey Dent''. Obama, being the symbol of change and hope just like Harvey Dent has been in TDK.

so with that, i leave you my dear readers, with but a simple prayer, to hold onto faith and hope, to find strength and courage in these darkened times, and press on. God Bless and good night.

Hot Toys True Type Figure ( tom cruise likeness )

love the articulation on the Hot Toy's true type figures...realistic and when worn with fabric costumes the outline and body structure's kinda accurate...

Using this True Type body for the james bond kitbash...hence removal of the Cruise head.

Lego Star Wars Shadow Trooper Keychain

a little something to put a smile on my face through Chinese New Year...

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Hauled it in today whilst running a wild goose chase from CSC to Plaza Singapura, supposedly to help Mirrornoob purchase his Hot Toys ironman Mark III whilst he's at high tea...
Pretty much a wasted trip considering Mirrornoob's failure to enquire the details on his trip down yesterday.

they're out of stock and even if the stocks do arrive, it'd be reserved for Pre-orders only...whilst others are not carrying the item till weeks after Chinese New Year. Plaza Sing's Movie Replicas do carry it, however are frequently out of stock, and the prices tend to be a tad' steeper than the rest...best plan of action is to wait it out Mirrornoob.

Seems that Hot Toy's Iron Man is gonna be one helluva of a HOTSELLER! got word from some sellers that they'd jack the price up way higher for walk-in purchases in the future...good thing i've got mine pre-ordered at Singapore's premium toy shop....The Falcon's Hanger!!

Star Wars: The Clone Wars new packaging and season 2

judging from this source...its apparent the animated clone wars will be extending till season 2 and we'd be having new waves of figures for season two...

and i'm pretty hyped up that there's gree on the packaging feature....CLONES MAN!!! whatever will star wars be without its clones?

read more here.

Hot Toys The Spirit Female figure

Are you looking for clues and hints about our next release of The Spirit? - This will be a highly detailed female figure we have ever seen and would definitely make an impression on anyone's display shelf. She is bound to make a different kind of impression with her sexy gaze that will take your breath away! The hint is: The most beautiful and sexiest character appears in the movie. Take a look on her elegant shadow and make your guess before she's ready for your preorders.
[Take a glimpse on her shadow] [View The Spirit collectibles]

Honestly with lines like Iron Man coming out soon, Predator, Terminator Salvation, Hellboy, and even the Spirit, i wonder how collectors actually cope with this whole load of toys in the economic downturn....

but its heartening to know that there's a bountiful harvest of toys yet to come. ( if you got the moolah)

Hot Toys Terminator Salvation: ITS OFFICIAL!!!

After the Judgment day, what will you get? - We are quite sure that you'll get some "Fine, delicate toys"! Yes, we mean it! We're excited to announce that we've been granted a world-wide license of Terminator: Salvation (aka T4)! We are aiming to bring you tons of collectible throughout 2009! With years of experience of producing fully poseable 1/6th scale robots and film-accurate 1/6th scale human figurines, it's not hard to tell what we are planning to do with this license. STICK with hottoys.com.hk to preview our first collectible announce in end of this month.
[Visit T4 Official site]

It is now official, Hot Toys are doing Terminator Salvation, a small joy and a eventful close to my wait. Now to overcome the recession and all the financial problems to get this awesome toys yet to be revealed.

Loading Toys The Courier

After the undisputed success with their Dangerous Man release, which resembled Daniel Craig as James Bond. I was first dubious of their quality and reputation, it being a new company. But my faith in Loading Toys are now cemented after my purchase of the Dangerous Man aka Bond.

So its to my greatest pleasure, that loading toys are releasing yet another sculpt, and pretty decent accessories to boot, ladies and gentlemen, Jason Statham.

I do believe that this release is also due to the hype and buildup to Transporter 3.

Pretty accurate likeness there.

Comes with....
-1 Jason Statham likeness headsculpt
-1 U.S. military sweater
-1 Tactical Pants
-1 Diplomat Bag
-1 G18C
-1 G18C Long Magazine
-1 511 Low Caliga

To note the head's made of resin, so its something you don't wanna drop.

Rather love the military sweater. Hopefully its quality would be a tad better than Dangerous Man's polo which was way too thin. The glow sticks that come with this figure would be something new though dubious to me...considering glowsticks are a one use thing.

All in all a pretty useful figure for kitbashes and Saturday toy's men's suits. Gonna need more of those....and till its released, i'd wait patiently.

Sketch of AVP's Iconic Scar Predator by Minna of My Abandonne World

Minna has done a simply fantastic job sketching out this Iconic Scar Predator from Aliens Versus Predator.

Apart from featuring her fantastic pieces of artwork, reviewing anime and movies, she also has her hand in baking and shares her recipes with all....Do head down to her site and drop her a comment on what you think of it!

"Sorry Superman, but Batman is the badass" - Christian Bale

'' Sorry Superman, but Batman is the BADASS'' - Christian Bale @ MTV movie awards 06'

Hilarious....though superman fans gonna be pissed at that comment!

iPhone 3G

Got these as christmas presents...

posted previously on the ironman cosbabies here.

And now for the iphone. =D

pretty nifty gadget i must say. though a tad bulky to stuff into your jean pocket.

Why the name, The Stormtrooper Effect???

You troopers have dissapointed me for the last time!!!

Just fun facts for viewers.....how the name of this blog came about. I had always found how the stormtroopers in the star wars original trilogy somehow never seemed to hit on target (at a main character ) no matter the amount of blasterfire, or seemingly large numbers of troops they have.

Hence derived that terminology for this site.

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The Principle of Evil Marksmanship (also known as the Stormtrooper Effect among Star Wars fans) is that enemy marksmen in action films are often very bad shots and almost never harm the main characters. The term was coined by film critic Roger Ebert in the 1980s.

Imperial Stormtroopers in the original Star Wars trilogy, despite overwhelming numbers, professional military education and training, full armour, military-grade firepower, and noticeable combat effectiveness against non-speaking characters, were incapable of seriously harming or indeed even hitting the films' protagonists.

Obi-Wan Kenobi even comments to Luke Skywalker, when the pair finds the destroyed Jawa sandcrawler, "These blast-points... Only Imperial stormtroopers are so precise." Additionally, in Return of the Jedi, stormtroopers are easily dispatched by the technologically inferior Ewoks, who are primarily armed with primitive weapons such as slings, rocks, and sticks.

The GURPS roleplaying game makes reference to an "Imperial Stormtrooper School of Marksmanship", whose graduates are inexplicably poor shots; for example, "The Nazis in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade must all have studied at the Imperial Stormtrooper School of Marksmanship.", and even included optional rules titled Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy designed to make large numbers of nameless characters ineffective.

sourced from http://www.bookrags.com/wiki/Principle_of_Evil_Marksmanship

Hot Toys Iron Man News

"Have you been waited too long for our Iron Man Mark III? - Good news! Your waiting is coming to an end! Our Iron Man Mark III collectible figure is scheduled to release before the Chinese New Year (26-Jan-09)! Designed with Red and Gold colored armor, this Iron Man figure could be a MASCOT in your house, especially suitable for showcasing in the sitting room and show to your relatives on the Chinese New Year day! Meanwhile, let's take a quick glimpse on the unique packaging for this extraordinary collectible before his arrival. " - Hot Toys Newsletter

what more can i say.....

Terminator Salvation: First Look

Thanks to Mirrornoob for this important headsup. As yet, Terminator salvation is THE movie and THE hype of 2009' just like how IronMan and The dark knight was for 2008, and star wars revenge of the sith was for 2005.

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I seriously pray that hot toys will kindly pick up the licence for John Connor, the suit and all including the weapons seems to be able to be kitbashed or have been done by Hot Toys before so it wouldn't be that hard for HT to put a figure like that together, apart from the ACOG scope on the rifle.

You can view the original page which posted this magazine picture, HERE

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And if you didn't yet know, the T-800 from terminator 1, 2, and 3 stood 6 feet tall, whilst the new movie/ older model terminator T-600 stands 8' feet tall.

Hot Toys 12' inch Bank Robber Joker Photoshoot

Finally got around taking shots of my bank robber joker. Kudos to Mirrornoob for helping me figure out how to use the macro function of my camera.

Also would like to take the opportunity to thank both Desmond and Adrian for helping me make my decision, via their photoshoots, whether or not to cancel my pre-order...had i done so, i wouldn't have had such an awesome figure. ( pretty skeptical of its paint apps at first )

In my opinion, as yet my favourite toy of my 12' inch collection. Good thing i didn't cancel my preorder.

Joker's iconic pistol with the extended clip

''Bonzo mask'' - titled by The Dark Knight dvd subtitles.

''I believe, that whatever that doesn't kill you, simply makes you......stranger....''

''This city deserves a better class of criminal, and i'm gonna give it to them!!!''

Hot Toys Iron Man Cosbaby

Got these two awesome cosbabies which i had been wanting to get for a long time from MINNA! as a christmas gift!!! thanks a million...

simply love the paint applications and the minute details to these absolutely cute figurines!

Happy New Year

with just only minutes to the end of the first day of the new year, i would like to take the oportunity to wish everyone, collectors, friends and visitors alike a very happy new year.


I will be updating the banner for my site as soon as i get things sorted out, preferably saturday or sunday. As yet the old one will have to make do.