So, it's New Year's Eve. I'm up at my brother and sister-in-law's new place ~40 miles out of Toronto setting up the ultimate low-budget HT system. I picked up an HK130 as a boxing day door-crasher and donated the old tower speakers I was using as surrounds. I picked up a $50 Quest center channel that matched the timbre and finish of the cheap towers, and another of their friends brought over THEIR old speakers from a now defunct Mitsubishi stereo. No sub.
Sounded surprisingly good, all things considered. OK, let's watch some movies :
1. They were part way through Return of the Jedi when I arrived, so we finished watching that and replayed some of the earlier scenes as well. All good.
2. I brought a few DVDs along, so we plugged in Army of Darkness. All the guys enjoyed it, sister in law went upstairs.
3. Brought out Bubba Ho-Tep (just arrived, still in the plastic wrap). Explained the movie, sister-in-law put her foot down and suggested we watch the movie SHE rented for us, "something with nuclear terrorists and guns and bombs and stuff, I just can't watch that guy with the chin any more".
So, we plug in the movie (called "Icebreaker"). New release. The movie is in 4:3 aspect but we're playing it on a 16:9 TV in "full" because everyone prefers it that way so everything is stretched wider than normal. I'm sitting in the middle so I get the most "stretch".
First 30 minutes of the movie is pretty confusing. There's one bald guy with a big mouth who seems to be the main nuclear terrorist. Plot seems to involve setting off a homemade "dirty bomb" in the Killington ski resort for some reason.
About 30 minutes in, brother in law says "I think that's the same guy from the last movie". Much debate (he's bald and stretched so hard to tell). I punch the "Aspect" button and shrink the image horizontally and damn if it ain't Bruce Campbell as the leading terrorist.
Sister in law walks out, figures she would rather wash dishes than watch "that guy with the chin" again. I talk her down, at least for part of the rest of the movie.
Who'da thought ? Of all the movies in the Blockbuster store she picked the New Release with Bruce in it. Priceless.
P.S. We watched the first SpiderMan afterwards. Kathy thought Bruce did a very good job as the NYWL ring announcer
