Marian Schedenig

Get ready for the year of Linux gaming: Spec details and prices still pending, as I understand. The Steam Deck is a brilliant piece of kit - and I rarely even use it in its primary function as a handheld, mostly it's just a docked gaming-ready PC with a full desktop when I need it. But the built-in controller is great, and the Steam Controller will finally be the same thing for couch gaming. I've been thinking about getting a dedicated multimedia/gaming PC in the somewhat near future - importantly something that also solidly plays videos (and is 4K ready) with audio passthrough and is fully Linux ready (for my custom scripts which control the lights as part of my movie night playlists). The Steam Machine won't be a super high end device, but (safely) assuming that it works just like the Deck and if it's reasonably priced, it should do nicely. And if the Steam Frame comes at a decent price, it should be a nice replacement for my rarely used Quest 2, considering it should be capable of running pretty much anything (software-wise).

Well, yes…

Dubrovnik. You beat me to that. Question is, is she correct in assuming that a stage trumps cookies?

Never heard of it, but I'm intrigued.

One thing that struck me about BTTF when I invited some friends over for a trilogy evening on 26 October (the 40th anniversary of the first use of the flux capacitor as shown in the film): In 1985, it was (I suppose) made as something that works both as a contemporary film for kids and a nostalgia film for their parents. Now it's one of *the* nostalgia films for its then current-day setting, which just screams 80s in all the nicest ways. Also, I consider it the unofficial/accidental origin of the "distracted boyfriend" meme.

I got Freddie Mercury vibes from this guy. Looks like a falling hammer on the left side of his head, too.

"Your legacy here"… is that an ad for the next person to buy a plaque named after them to replace this one?

It's one of those films that are virtually perfect for what they are. The script strikes a great balance between an engaging (and I suppose original, back then) exciting time travel story, high school comedy, and gleeful use of related tropes (I can't even fault it for the usually annoying use of the bicycle bell trope where whenever a bicycle shows up, the rider has to ring the bell - in this case even twice). The direction is inspired and seamlessly integrates the flashy effects (where they fit), the performances (great comedic timing), and cinematography - it's easy to forget the throwaway yet cult opening in light of everything that happens after it, but it perfectly sets the tone for the film. And it's pretty much impossible to imagine the film with any other principal cast (sorry, Eric Stoltz). Michael J. Fox's absurd line "You built a time machine… out of a DeLorean!?" is surely one of the best deliveries of a "!?" in film history. Plus you have all those little details and almost easter eggs to make repeated viewings better and better. It's pretty impressive how iconic the score is, considering it was Silvestri's first major score and significant parts of the film are left either unscored or make use of multiple songs (including the pre-climactic sequence). What's left to score doesn't leave much room for a lot of variation, yet the score never outstays its welcome, the heavy (!) Mickey Mousing is perfectly musical, and the theme itself is as integral to the overall feel of the film as the cast. (However, much of this is the reason for why I think the BTTF2 score is mostly just boring)

More Penderecki than Herrmann. Doesn't matter, it's possibly Goldenthal's greatest score.

I thought it was WB who blocked any further releases of his stuff because he'd sued them. Maybe I always misunderstood.

Recorded in Vienna, too. (As apparently everything is these days)

I'd forgive them for skipping Brainstorm again if they manage to make Sphere happen… I thought the problem (for us, not just for Goldenthal) with 300 was WB, not Goldenthal himself? If so, why would it be tied to his being alive?

As the only remnant of Spielberg's aborted Bullit remake, the car chase will be left unscored.

Everybody has a whisky commercial these days.

If they're not (or at least Brainstorm), they're just messing with us now.