Christmas 2011
I'm finally getting around to playing The Witcher. A lack of time (and Dragon Age: Origins and Awakening) kept me from it for quite a while. When I saw the release of The Witcher 2, I realized I should probably play it before it became totally obsolete.
After an initial period spent getting used to the mechanics, I started to really enjoy the storyline and the attention to detail. The combat mechanics are pretty dull (lots of carefully-timed clicking), and the inventory and alchemy system is fairly involved, but the characters are mostly interesting and the story is engaging. And once I let myself sink into the details of alchemy and level progression, even that became enjoyable. Now, the writing itself is pretty rough, but some of that could be blamed on the translation from the original Polish. Overall, a very enjoyable game so far.
We've started fostering Petey, a German Shepherd/Border Collie mix. He'll be with us for the next four weeks.
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I admit up front I haven't read the novel or seen the John Wayne version, and I suspect I missed a few things because of that. As a newcomer to the story, though, I really enjoyed it. Jeff Bridges gives a great performance as Rooster Cogburn, at turns hilarious, frightening, cruel, foolish, wise, and selfless. The movie as a whole had more humor than I expected (though, given that it's from the Coen brothers, this shouldn't have been a surprise). The ending is a bit disappointing, and if this is Mattie's story, I was expecting more from her than "some wild times." Still, overall, it's a great film.
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Strong acting, smart use of images to provide context for the story, and enough of a mystery/quest plot to hold attention. The real draw, however, is the arresting glimpse into another world and the strength it takes to live there ... all without being pedantic.
