Author: Carlos Hernandez

Aquaman (2018) Review

I saw Aquaman tonight. It seems to be doing well internationally so I thought I’d give it a shot, plus I’m an AMC A-List subscriber so there was no real risk going to see it. Lately the Rotten Tomatoes score for the movie seems to be falling though and now I can see why.

Aquaman suffers from many of the same problems that other D.C. films have suffered from. Mainly – bad screenwriting and bad editing/directing. The pacing of Aquaman is awful. The movie seems to be ending almost 8 times in just 2 hours.

Maybe the writers are trying to pack a ton in, but they need a more organized effort to make it all connect. Some plots could easily be deleted out of the movie and make the movie better for it. Sometimes less is more.

The transitions are laughable between scenes. The screenwriting is also incredibly cheesy and exposes some bad acting as well.

The worst is Manta played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. This villain reminds me so much of a Power Rangers villain both in looks and acting that I cringed in my seat.

Also the “DUN DUN DUN” music with King Orm scenes is silly.. It seems to be an attempt to get a Kylo Ren reaction, but falls completely flat. These villains could easily be on Super Friends. Speaking of music – the soundtrack of this movie is all over the place to the point that it is confusing.

Jason Momoa (Aquaman)’s serious lines are just plain bad and not memorable at all. It feels like something you’ve seen in almost any other coming of age or hero story and it doesn’t match his character or attitude at all.

The best scenes are Aquaman’s humorous scenes with Amber Heard as Mera. They have a good dynamic in earlier scenes and that is the better part of the movie. However, just when you start to care, the movie changes direction.

In the later part of the movie, the romance between Aquaman and Mera feels way too forced on the audience. It is almost like Hollywood is just checking a box so we can proceed to the end of the movie.

The worst part about Mera is that D.C. made her a sidekick to Aquaman instead of letting her stand on her own, although she at least can fight throughout the movie.

You don’t find yourself admiring Mera the way Marvel has learned to make their female stars stand on their own. Every female character in Black Panther is far more complex and enjoyable to watch when compared to Mera. Mera is written in a way that only makes her relevant to Aquaman.

Aquaman also does a bad job at making the audience feel urgency. It never feels like Aquaman is seriously in danger or going to lose any battle and that makes the story less interesting. I understand that Aquaman is a superhuman and should be powerful, but for plot purposes it is important for a character to struggle and overcome that struggle.

The CGI is beautiful, but not impressive in the 21st century when CGI is everywhere and it begins to feel tired by the end of the movie when it is most important.

Overall, D.C. still has nothing on Marvel movies and they don’t seem to have a grasp yet of how to make their movies flow correctly, which is a letdown because Aquaman has plenty of potential, but this movie is best watched at home or skipped completely.

Score: 4/10

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Dear Florida Democrats: Stop taking Latinos for granted

Election Day has come and gone and in the GOP mostly prevailed in Florida with just two exceptions in the U.S. House of Representatives. Governor Rick Scott edged out U.S. Senator Bill Nelson by just over 10,000 votes after the recount fiasco came to an end with a bitter concession from Nelson.

One glaring number I am looking at after this defeat is Nelson’s Exit Poll with Latinos compared to Scott.

Nelson won 54% of Latinos, but Scott was still able to pull 45% of them in an environment where the President of the United States is highly unpopular with the demographic.

To compare: Hillary Clinton won 62% of Latinos in 2016 compared to 35% for Donald Trump and even Marco Rubio failed to win the Latino vote by a slim margin that year against a fairly weak opponent (and he is Latino himself).

Nelson also underperformed the national Democrats numbers with Latinos which was 69-29.

Cuban-Americans who are mostly Republican can be counted for part of this. However, warning sirens have been up since at least June 2018 that Bill Nelson needed to connect more with Latinos.

Rick Scott took care to include messaging in Spanish, hire specialists, and to try and chip away from Nelson however he could. He had a Spanish website up and running before Nelson and Spanish ads running ahead of him. He ran to setup help centers for Puerto Ricans arriving in the state from Hurricane Maria. Why wouldn’t a Democrat try and do this first?

It should have been a cakewalk with this demographic.

It is true that Scott had a huge fundraising advantage initially against Nelson, but there were plenty of ways Nelson could have changed that by more active in the communities around him.

Nelson did improve incredibly with Latinos compared to his numbers June (most likely because of the President’s unpopularity with the group and some attack ads), but it was not enough. Scott was up in polls as recently as August of this year.

When will Democrats learn that Latinos are a community that needs to be engaged with every year and not just when you need their votes?  Bill Nelson was in office for 18 years, but still didn’t have a connection to these communities until this year. Huge mistake.

Those 10,000 votes were probably sitting inside of that missed opportunity.

Hopefully the next candidate to run in Florida will think about connecting with Latinos before they need their vote instead of when they notice they are in trouble and need our vote.

We live here every year not just during election year.

WTF: Welcome to Florida – Election Boondoggle

I was thinking about using Vote-By-Mail this year to vote in Florida…

However, I started to get apprehensive and changed my mind when I read an ACLU report that Vote-By-Mail ballots have a higher rejection rate than votes cast at precincts on Election Day and through Early Voting. To make matters worse, younger people and minorities seem to be statistically more likely to be rejected.

After seeing the disaster that is the current Florida election recount, I am very happy that I shredded my Vote-By-Mail ballot and decided to Early Vote in person at the polls.

The amount of time it simply took the Supervisor of Elections to mail my ballot to my house would have made it likely that my ballot would have ended up trapped in one of those mail facilities as reported by Miami New Times, never to be counted.

This happens every year to thousands of ballots because Florida does not count the postmark date, but all ballots must arrive to the Supervisor of Elections by Election Day unless you are active military or overseas.

With margins as tight as they are this year (currently Rick Scott leads Bill Nelson by around 12,000 ballots for U.S. Senator and Nikki Fried leads for Commissioner of Agriculture by around 3,000 votes) – one would think the state would prioritize actually counting ballots and think about the voices of the voters.

That isn’t what is happening here though. Lawyers and politicians (including Governor Rick Scott) from the Republican Party are screaming that there is “voter fraud” with no evidence while groups sue each other like crazy in a panic.

This has once again made Florida the laughing stock of the rest of the United States. We might not have a clear winner until December after all the lawsuits are done.

Where is the leadership?

Arizona calmly counted their votes and aimed to have a transparent process as written above by Arizona Republican Governor Doug Ducey, but can anyone say that has occurred here in Florida?

Florida should make it easier for people to vote and it is now clear that there are numerous problems that make voting both difficult and hard to track in our counties. Watching the recount machines break is not too inspiring. Not to mention some colorful bending of the law.

If the system actually cared about hearing out the voters, maybe we wouldn’t be in this mess in the first place. Do better Florida.

Amazon Product Review: LARMA Cowhide Leather Laptop Bag

I was looking for a laptop bag, but trying to stay on a budget.

I tend to rip apart backpacks pretty easily and wanted a messenger bag. The last one I bought had a mesh material that easily soaked up materials and just was not that nice. I would find myself constantly needing to clean the fabric. Searching around on Amazon I found this laptop bag from LARMA for $29.99 and decided to order it.

The bag will fit laptops up to 14″ and has pockets and zippers to hold additional items inside.

The cowhide leather seems to keep it from picking up the dirt and lint around it. The handles are nice and it also comes with a strap for those lugging items around. It looks professional, but comes at an affordable price.

The bag also comes in black for those looking for another color.

I am happy with my purchase and would recommend this bag to people looking for an affordable bag fro their laptops.

You can buy it online here: http://a.co/d/eSktkJW

Howl-O-Scream 2018 begins September 21st

Are you ready to scream? Howl-O-Scream 2018 launches on Friday, September 21st, 2018 at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. The event will last 19 nights and have new scare zones and haunted houses.

Hours run from 7:30PM to 1AM. Tickets cost $39.99 plus tax. Busch Gardens passholders will get exclusive offers to the event.

You’ll also find the monsters haunting popular rides at the theme park such as Cobra’s Curse, Falcon’s Fury, Montu, Cheetah Hunt, Kumba, and more. There is no escape from these guys.

New for 2018:

  • Insomnia: Your worst nightmares will come to life in a twisted new way at Howl-O-Scream 2018.
  • Simon’s Slaughterhouse: Cannibals will flock this haunted house and feast on humans…sounds scary. This mature section is recommended for ages 17 years or older

NO costumers are allowed at Howl-O-Scream.

More information available at HowlOScream.com

Travel Tip: Use HART 275LX to travel between Tampa International Airport and City of Tampa

If you are visiting or leaving Tampa and want to save some money on a taxi or Uber consider using HART’s new 275LX bus route.

The limited-stop service route connects Tampa International Airport to Downtown Tampa, University Area (near USF), New Tampa, and Wesley Chapel. If these are your destinations you can get much closer to them like this or grab a ride-share after you get closer to your final destination.

The limited-service should help to get you quicker to your destination and where you’re trying to visit. Downtown Tampa and The Shoppes at Wiregrass also have plenty of restaurants and things to keep you occupied.

Fares are only $2.00 each way and $4.00 a day and $65.00 for 31 days. An Uber or Lyft from Downtown Tampa to TIA would likely run you at least $20. FREE Wi-Fi is available on-board and also at bus stops.

The service operates 7 days a week and connects Hillsborough County and Pasco County.

More info: http://gohart.org/pages/275lx.aspx

Once in Downtown Tampa you also can catch the Pirate Water Taxi to get access to stops along the Hillsborough River and to Seminole Heights which has some of Tampa’s best restaurants and the Lowry Park Zoo.

There is also the TECO Line Streetcar System which connects to Tampa’s Historic Ybor City. The TECO Streetcar will be free to all riders after October 7th. Also don’t miss the Christmas shows at The Shoppes at Wiregrass. Those are great.

Tampa’s Epicurean Hotel hosts Hurricane Florence relief fundraiser September 20th & September 21st

There will be a Hurricane Florence fundraiser on September 20th and September 21st at Elevage inside the Epicurean Hotel in South Tampa. The proceeds will go to the American Red Cross with funds earmarked for Hurricane Florence relief.

Elevage Executive Chef Chad Johnson says, “It may only be a drop in the bucket, but we hope that our friends in Tampa can come share a meal that will help provide a small measure of relief for our friends in the Carolinas.”

The damage from the storm is estimated to be between $17 billion and $22 billion dollars. It is among the 10 costliest hurricanes ever. 32 people have died so far from the storm, many due to flooding and falling trees.

The 3-course Prix-Fixe menu fundraiser will cost $35. Complimentary Valet is available until 7PM. The menu is available Thursday and Friday from 5PM-10PM.

Their sister restaurant Haven will also donate all happy hour sales on Thursday and Friday to the cause.

Menu + Details: http://epicureanhotel.com/events/carolina-cuisine-for-a-cause/

 

 

Red Tide. The cost of ignoring our environment.

Thinking about what to write for my first post, the current red tide problem immediately comes to mind. What is Florida without beaches? It isn’t Florida at all.

This is where we find ourselves now with fish dying all over the western coast and tourists staying away from our ocean shores.

The environment first became a part of the public debate when current Florida Governor Rick Scott passed a law that controls who can access beaches. It emboldened private property owners to claim ownership of our beach sand.

He then repealed enforcement of the law after a massive backlash from Florida residents and tourists as viral videos showed police removing tourists from beaches where they once vacationed.

Unfortunately, this did nothing to stop the controversy that beaches are no longer open to the public.

To make matters worse the beach is now flooded with red tide that is killing fish and making the air difficult to breathe. Businesses are also losing millions of dollars in the hospitality and food business.

Once again Rick Scott is at the center of this after cutting $700 million during his tenure from the state’s water management districts and cutting regulations that protected the waterways from pollutants and contaminants. There are consequences to ignoring our environment.

According to UF:

This year, after heavy spring rains and because of discharges of water from Lake Okeechobee, river runoff in southwest Florida brought a large amount of nutrients into near-shore waters of the Gulf of Mexico, which fueled the large red tide.

Just look at this devastation:

Rick Scott may not believe in climate change, but science is clear here that we have a serious environmental problem in Florida and that there needs to be accountability and action taken to save Florida from this epidemic.

Our dolphins, manatees, and fish are dying and the ecosystem and community that depends on it is also being impacted by this negligence.

Cleaning it up is a first step, but more needs to be done and Rick Scott’s leadership has been to react and not to prevent. Take some responsibility instead of blaming others. People are angry and rightfully so.

Change needs to happen. Now.

My name is Carlos.

It has been years since I’ve had a personal blog, but I feel like personal blogs are a great tool for growth and want to return to this format as I head into the last few years of my 20s.

I operate one of Tampa’s most successful food blogs called CarlosEats.com, but sometimes feel the inclination to write about other things besides food including life itself.

Carlos Eats has been a big part of my life for the last 8 years. I spent many of those years in college and the latter half working on a career.

The city I live in has grown with it from a humble suburban town to an ambitious city with many big projects in development such as Water Street Tampa in what is now Channelside. Billions of dollars are flooding investment projects.

There have been many challenges and also many things I have learned as I’ve tried to make this leap forward and prepare for my future. More than anything I am looking forward to just communicating some of my thoughts about all things with no barriers.