January Releases

I originally meant to title this 'Minzy's Monthly Mentions' but the more I thought about it, the more that seemed to belong in a blog, plus I'd then be stuck with the name Minzy indefinitely due to the difficulty of coming up with a new topic title, ya know? Anyway, with the separation of Culture & Media and Anime & Manga, I'd like to take this opportunity to start a new series that can highlight the niche of the mother forum in that I would like to take the time to highlight my own highly anticipated music, movie, comic, and television releases for the upcoming month as well as get others' thoughts on those mentioned and even their own hyped releases. There are also people around the community that have quite the ear for music and I'll also be throwing a little spotlight on them as to hopefully make more people aware of their great critique and comments regarding whatever music they're reviewing or suggesting. Remember, that means if you've discovered a blog here on PC (or have one of your own!) that you'd like to mention here for others to notice, you're welcomed and encouraged to do so.

Moving right along, I'll offer my own highlights for the month, then you guys are welcome to offer your opinions as well as whatever you're excited for this month.





I, Frankenstein is an adaptation based on a graphic novel and original screenplay of similar name starring Aaron Eckhart. The movie is set in a present day dystopia in which mythical creatures in gargoyls and demons wage war in order to achieve ultimate power. Adam, a creation of Victor Frankenstein's, has placed himself amidst the turmoil in a deadly race to uncover the secret to his apparent immortality. Stripped down, the movie reminds of just about every Paul Bettany movie ever, though Legion and less specifically Priest come to mind right now, in the mythical creatures fighting other mythical creatures (or just the typical "good vs. evil," it's all synonymous) to find some balance in the world. I, Frankenstein seems one of those movies that has an interesting (perhaps moderately overused) plot and, if the trailer is any example, has the potential to be heavy on the action sequences for the typical moviegoer; regardless, Eckhart promises deliverance on a well-written role. I, Frankenstein is set for release on January 24th, 2014.






Life of a King is a story about a man named Eugene Brown and his conviction to give a group of inner-city kids in Washington D.C. a chance for a future. 18 years prior, Brown was incarcerated for bank robbery and during this time he embarked upon an enlightening journey through many a life lesson through the game of chess. Upon release and reentry in the workforce, Eugene founded the Big Chair Chess Club, an organization that worked towards getting kids off the street and working towards futures they previously thought were unattainable due to circumstances. From audacious chess lessons to detention-bound high school students to the development of the club and competitions, the film reveals Brown's inspirational, life-changing journey. I don't have much to compare Life of a King to, though the 'inner-city kids spiraling toward a dim future' reminds me of movies like Breakfast Club though said example is held in lighter spirits than this movie. Life of a King is set to premiere on January 17th, 2014.






Laggies is a dark comedy drama film starring Keira Knightley, Chloë Grace Moretz, and Sam Rockwell. The film surrounds Knightley's character using a business retreat as a ruse to not accept her husband's wedding proposal. However, instead of business-related activities, Knightley instead hangs out with her 16-year-old friend. Laggies is a bit of a basket case, but black humor movies are some of my personal favorites since it's a light-hearted spin on an otherwise dreary topic nobody would go out of their way to see. It's very fun, and I expect the movie to follow the genre's suit. Laggies will premiere at the Sundance Film Festival January 16th - January 26th, 2014 with a tentative theatre release of May 9th, 2014.


Tsugi no Ashiato, which translates to "The Next Footsteps," is AKB48's fifth studio album. The album is a double album, the group's second to date, which features multiple discs with certain singles and tracks on each, some versions ("Type A," Type B," etc) contain a completely different full set of tracks. One of the singles from one of the discs from CD1, Koi Suru Fortune Cookie, is featured below. The album is set to be released in Japan on January 22nd, 2014.



bobandbill has had a recurring theme in his blogs in which he accepts user-submitted "challenges" that require him to find music (such as strings in video games!) and give it a quick personal review along with a plug to said music. The reviews he provides are simplistic and satisfying, as well as a nice little read if one finds themselves needing something enjoyable to pass the time. Here, you can find Marcin's most recent blog post in which he finishes up the aforementioned challenge with a tune from Bravely Default. And look at that creative title! ... it'll make sense once you read the blog, I promise. :P

January is infamously known as a dry month, because it's the start of the new year and the hustle and bustle of the holidays are just wrapping up so nothing too big is being released any time soon. Come February, I do hope that there's more interesting content for this series! Along with that, I'm hoping that people will show interest in wanting to write their own mini reviews. In any case, I hope you enjoyed the little tidbits I've offered here, and I hope these indeed last! \o/ Feel free to comment your thoughts on the movies/music I mentioned here and don't forget your own expectations for January, whether it be your favorite band dropping an album after ten years and they wanted to kick off 2014 with a bang or a movie you've been waiting for for awhile is finally being released today or yesterday or in two weeks!

The ones I'm excited to see this month are the following :)

Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones

Since this is a spin-off of the original series, I won't be expecting much from it but hey, it's still Paranormal Activity so that's why I'm going to see this one :)

Devil's Due

This seems like another found footage kinda like Paranormal Activity but I got a feeling this one will be better than The Marked Ones

Ride Along

This is probably my most anticipated film for January, Kevin Hart is hilarious and putting him with such a macho thug like Ice Cube is really going to be a wild ride :P