Just got back from seeing Watchmen. I went into the movie not expecting much, due to both mixed reviews and to the fact that I hated V for Vendetta and was expecting more of the same. I was pleasantly surprised. Here’s my quick review:

• Pro: Fairly compelling plot with well developed characters, especially Rorschach and the Comedian. Most of the roles were well performed. Each character had a unique personality, many of which were well fleshed out. The movie’s gritty feel was also well conceived, like Justice League meets Sin City.
• Pro: After having read the graphic novel, I can say that the movie stays very close to the original text.
• Pro: Great special effects, nothing to complain about here. Nothing felt fake or out of place.
• Pro: Lots of sex and violence, none of which (I felt) took away from the plot. It had a lot of what you’d expect from an action movie, which was satisfying.  

• Con: The story was all over the place. Lots of characters, each of which had their own story to tell. The plot lines didn’t feel connected even though it seemed like they should have been. The plot wasn’t hard to follow, but at times it was hard to see how everything fit together.
• Con: At 2 hours 43 minutes long, the movie droned a bit. A few unimportant scenes could have easily been cut or shortened.
• Con: There was a lot of violence for violence’s sake. I didn’t mind it that much, but the people I saw the movie with were turned off by this. 
• Con: Dr. Manhattan was a bit of an unconvincing character. There was a major turning point in the movie during which a few of his lines were a bit unbelievable, leaving holes in the plot. Also, why we had to see his glowing blue dong every couple scenes is beyond me. 

Overall I’d give it a 1 on the binary scale. Worth seeing, don’t expect it to blow you away (although, like I said, I was pleasantly surprised).

Duke never seems to make it through February without a handful of upsetting losses. Having watched the Blue Devils blow it 4 out of the last 6 games - one against UNC after having waited in line for the game for 48 hours straight - it makes me wonder what keeps causing this annual mid-February slump.

I really believe this is the best team we’ve had since my freshman year. Before this string of upsets I thought we could have gone far in the tournament, maybe even been a national championship contender. But the repetition of this slump for the third year in a row is making me doubt it.

I think the cause of this slump is that there’s not enough rotation of players on and off the bench. Talented team members like Elliot Williams, Miles Plumlee and Marty Pocius are wasting away on the bench. The problem could have been rectified earlier this season by better player rotation on K’s part - by now, each of these players would have more in-game experience and would have stopped making the mistakes that makes K pull them off the court.

It’s pretty clear how K’s 7-player rotation scheme is exhausting the hell out of the starters. It’s that exhaustion that’s keeping us from challenging teams like Wake, UNC and Clemson. If it continues (which it probably will), it’s going to make our tournament hopes look dismal.

The DukeEngineer, Duke’s Engineering magazine, has published an article about our work at Carter Elementary School. Here’s the article. Thanks to Emily for this great write up!