That's another movie down

Well, if nothing else, this year won't be a two-movie affair. I went and saw Ocean's 8 over the weekend. It wasn't bad, but it could have been better. It lacked tension and had basically no conflict at all. It was a straight-up heist movie with minimal drama. Loved the cast and the acting, though. I just wish more time had been spent fleshing them out more. I'd give the movie a 3 out of 5 stars.

Anyway, with Ocean's 8 out of the picture, I still have a prospective list of movies still to watch this year. Next month is Ant-Man and The Wasp, followed by Skyscraper. I'm still on the fence about the latter. I'm not on the fence about Aquaman, however.

Chris Hardwick Accused of Abuse by Chloe Dykstra, Or, Dudes in Hollywood Are Dicks

Trigger warning: Don't read if you are triggered by mention of abuse and sexual assault.


Another day, another male celebrity stands accused of abusive behavior. The Verge is reporting that actress Chloe Dykstra wrote a post on Medium about an ex-boyfriend who was abusive during their three-year-long relationship and that after breaking up, he blacklisted her from getting work. Dykstra doesn't name the ex, but it's widely believed and all but confirmed to be Nerdist founder and game and talk show host, Chris Hardwick. Hardwick has denied the allegations, but then again, that's standard operating procedure. The allegations themselves are disturbing. Dykstra claims that she was forced to basically become subservient to Hardwick, never going out at night and not having any male friends. The most sickening thing, however, is that Hardwick required her to have sex even when she didn't want to. I don't know if that fits the definition, but that sure as hell sounds like rape. She goes on to detail how she went through dramatic weight and hair loss during the three-year ordeal.

Thus so far, Hardwick has been disavowed faster than an operative from the IMF by both AMC and The Nerdist. Meanwhile, NBC is "accessing" the situation and his future as host of that game show, The Wall.

My take on this? If the allegations are true, Chris Hardwick is a huge fucking asshole who deserves to be blacklisted permanently exiled to the proverbial wilderness. And I generally believe women when they accuse men of abuse because it takes a lot of courage and nerves to speak out about it. Especially when it's against men who can and will sabotage their careers. I support and applaud Chloe Dykstra for her bravery.

I liked Chris Hardwick and this news is just plain disappointing. The fact that he was able to hide such an abusive personality behind the facade of being a "nice, nerdy guy" is troubling because it automatically makes one wonder who else is hiding their true self behind a mask. He was sexually abusive towards Chloe Dykstra in addition to the emotional abuse is even more disturbing.

No, Chris Hardwick is an asshole who needs to crawl under a rock and never creep back out.

My movie watching itenerary for the rest of 2018 (hopefully)

I've noted that I typically only watch one or two movies a year and that Marvel already maxed me out with excellent outings like Black Panther and Infinity War. Or so I thought. I've got the itch to see more movies this year and might actually have the funds to do it, so here's a provisional list of movies I plan on trying to see this year:

via Vulture.

Ocean's 8: I didn't even know until I was driving past the local movie theater that this movie had been released. I thought it was slotted for later this year or something. I want to see Ocean's 8 for the very simple and predictable reason that it has an all-female cast. The cast list itself is enticing, but I just really like the idea of an all-woman driven heist film.

via IGN.

Ant-Man and The Wasp: I haven't watched the first Ant-Man movie yet, but I still want to see the sequel. A big reason is that I will forever be amused that not only has there been even one Ant-Man movie, but that it did well enough to warrant a sequel.

 

via the official website.

Skyscraper: Jot this down as a maybe. I can't recall ever watching a Dwayne Johnson movie in theaters and this looks like it might be an enjoyable popcorn flick. Plus, his character where's a prosthetic leg, so it'll be interesting to see how they utilize that in the movie.

via IMDb.

Aquaman: I haven't watched a single solitary teaser, trailer, or anything about this movie but I am probably going to watch it because like Ant-Man, I never expected that Aquaman of all possible characters would get the movie treatment.

I have no idea what other movies are coming out this year and my dance card is pretty full with even just these three or four movies, so I'll probably pass on any others.

June's Nerd Trash Icon: Shuri from Black Panther

Because Shuri (played by Letitia Wright) was one of the tip top things about the Black Panther. I loved how she was a super genius who, judging from that scene in Infinity War, is probably smarter than guys like Bruce Banner and Tony Stark. I also dug how she took no shit from her brother T'Challa and had zero problems with dragging him. Being King of Wakanda and Black Panther doesn't spare you from your little sister.

http://fuckyeah-nerdery.tumblr.com/post/174437983135/toney-starks-i-invite-you-to-my-lab-and-you

 

New wall art

I decided to buy some new posters yesterday and Wonder Woman, Black Panther, and Ant-Man and The Wasp now grace my wall. They look pretty snazzy. Check out the poor quality pictures below.

The new additions triggered a general reorganization of all of my posters. I ended up moving the old ones elsewhere. The Flash poster is the only one that stayed on the same wall.

And yes, that is an apple tree on the wall in the first picture. At some point, there was a family that lived in this house before me and this was their kid's room and they painted a tree on the wall for some reason. I should probably paint over it one day.