Performance (Read/Write) of the SSD Boot Drive:

Performance (Read/Write) of the 3TB Raid0:

As a matter of fact, after these improvements the Mac Pro now scores almost as high as my brand new 27″ Core i5 iMac on XBench tests!

Red: 2010 iMac, Blue: 2006 Mac Pro with SSD boot drive

1. Eat healthier
2. Establish a morning routine
3. Explore San Francisco more
4. Take up a fun/fulfilling outdoor hobby
5. Consolidate finances and save/invest more
6. Get a smaller car / Sell my old car
7. Start a new podcast
8. Read more books/novels
9. Be more organized
10. Be more outgoing

1. How To Train Your Dragon

This film took me by complete surprise this year. Memorable characters, a heartwarming story, amazing visuals, and an unforgettable score by John Powell all mixed together to make one of the most enjoyable movie experiences I’ve had in years. The film also exploited its flying scenes very well to showcase some absolutely breathtaking 3D visuals (if you saw the film in 3D), and Toothless is easily the most memorable non-speaking animated character in CG movies to come along since Wall-E.

2. Inception

Christopher Nolan never disappoints, and he certainly did not here. Inception is a masterpiece of a film from start to finish. The most significant thing about it, to me, is that it’s an original idea; not a sequel, not a remake, and not based on a book or graphic novel. It was an original idea that was fully realized on screen.

3. True Grit

The Coen brothers prove once again that they are an unstoppable force, and while this film was brilliantly directed by the brothers Coen, it’s their screenplay that stands out the most. Scenes that were mostly dialogue were just as exciting as the scenes with gunfights.

4. The Social Network

Another surprise this year. I think a lot of people were ready to pass this off as a movie capitalizing on the popularity of Facebook. And while I’m sure that was part of it, instead we were treated to a movie with rock-solid writing, directing, a fantastic score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, and fantastic performances by Justin Timberlake, Jesse Eisenberg and Andrew Garfield.

5. Toy Story 3

For the franchise that kickstarted the CGI movie revolution and rocketed Pixar into the spotlight, the third film in the series was pretty much universally praised by everyone. I really enjoyed the way Pixar handled this film, and though I rank it lower than How To Train Your Dragon in my list, it still deserves all that praise. This year’s Oscar for Best Animated Picture will be a tough one for me.

6. Easy A

I wrote this movie off completely at first, and I wish I hadn’t. This film is easily one of the best teen films to come along since the John Hughes era. This is a movie with a huge heart, nearly every character is memorable and even the smaller scenes are packed with really great dialogue. I haven’t laughed as hard at any film this year as I did at some of the more genuine moments in Easy A.

7. TRON: Legacy

This sequel to the 1982 cult-classic was a thrill ride that hit all of the right buttons with me. It was visually spectacular, had incredible sound design, and a score courtesy of one of my favorite artists: Daft Punk. I did not understand the nerd rage that cropped up around this movie. It had everything that I wanted it to have.

8. Despicable Me

This is a fun and zany movie that turns into a very poignant film about being a father. I really found myself enjoying the latter half of the film when it grows a huge heart and starts to become something on it’s own, not just another good vs. evil story.

9. Kick-Ass

I originally didn’t include this movie on the list, but after some thought I put it back in. I really liked Kick-Ass. The story’s a bit predictable, but I really loved the action scenes. The last act of the film is pure comic-book/action movie goodness. The shootout in total darkness that blended muzzle flashes & strobe lights totally blew me away.

10. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole

Ok, even I feel that this movie doesn’t deserve to be on my top 10 list. I placed so much hope on this film that it would be amazing and it didn’t deliver. I got excited about the film and read the book series it was based on. What was so disappointing was that the movie took a completely different turn from the books. It wasn’t really ‘based’ on the books at all. It was more ‘inspired by’ them if you ask me. But even though I was disappointed, I couldn’t ignore how beautiful the film was overall. The visuals in this movie still proved to be something incredible to watch and I still enjoyed the film despite being so disappointed by it.

Visit the Geeks of Doom website and check out more episodes of Flix of Doom also!

Jumped in on a discussion of The Social Network with my pals Justin Vactor, William Goodman, and Frank Emanuele Had a great discussion about the movie’s merits and faults as well as some of the overall themes of the movie and its chances for Oscar success. Press play below to listen!

Visit Entertainment Overload’s page on Fused Film

I went on the Entertainment Overload podcast this week with Justin Vactor and William Goodman to talk about my thoughts on Legend of the Guardians, a movie that I’ve been looking forward to most of this year. We had a great discussion about the film. Check it out, press play below!