Awesome Videos

As part of a Chinese celebration, organizers set off an unfathomable number of firecrackers with a single fuse. And here we thought the kids playing with them in our alley made too much noise. Skip to 1:20.

“I am tormented by an everlasting itch for things remote.” Erik Wernquist’s short film imagines a future where mankind is able to explore the Solar System. The CGI in the film is based on photos, maps and other real life references.

If you ever find yourself needing to climb up a slender and branch-less tree, just remember this old man’s technique. All you need is a plant to use as a foot strap, and gigantic balls for when you have to go back down.

(NSFW) Two bikers get in a no-holds-barred race down the hills of Moab, Utah. No rules, no roads, no fear. A hell of a stunt film from Camp 4 Collective.  The song is Behind the Crooked Cross by Slayer.

The final portion of the game show Golden Balls is Split or Steal, a test of wit and morals similar to the Prisoner’s Dilemma. So how do you reduce the risk of deception? Faith in your fellow man’s goodness? Not exactly.

(NSFW: Language) Plinkett – the creepy film critic behind the hilarious and on point Star Wars prequels reviews – weighs in on the teaser for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, reminding us of its ultimate purpose: marketing.

While some model railroads can be incredibly complicated, this one is constructed from nothing more than a copper wire, tiny magnets and a dry cell battery. We wonder how big a track you could make using this method.

Mario Wienerroither turns Grinch and spoils a childhood memory, removing the music from Bing Crosby & David Bowie’s unexpectedly classic live duet of The Little Drummer Boy / Peace on Earth. Best enjoyed if you’ve got no holiday spirit.

A creepy old psychiatric hospital in New York serves as the backdrop for JENKEM’s skateboarding video. We were waiting for them to bump into the crew from one of those ghost hunters’ TV shows. Some great still photos here.

(NSFW: Language) For all of the time and money poured into today’s video games, you’d think the physics models would be damn-near perfect, but this compilation demonstrates just how much wonky stuff still slips past development teams.

(SPOILERS) Visual effects studio Rising Sun Pictures helped create the scene in X-Men: Days of Future Past where Quicksilver bamboozled the Pentagon’s guards. Check out how the scene was made in this brief behind-the-scenes video.

LEGO builders in Sydney, Australia have erected an enormous christmas tree made from LEGO and Duplo bricks. The fake plastic tree measures 32.8 feet tall and weighs over 3.5 tons. It’s on display at the Pitt Street Mall through 12/26/14.

9to5 Mac compared Google and Apple’s dashboard interfaces for their mobile devices. CarPlay (4:45) seems less elegant than Android Auto. Regardless, both seem to be just as distracting as using your phone while driving.

YouTuber timtimfed imagines what Star Wars: The Force Awakens would be like if George Lucas was still at the helm, especially in light of the awful second trilogy. Prepare for visual effects overload (and trade negotiations.)

Shrimp doesn’t really take that long to cook, but this commercial for Japanese mobile carrier Docomo shows how you can fry shrimp in less than three seconds – with the right equipment – and the appropriate death metal track.

Snooperking made this shot-for-shot LEGO remake of the Star Wars: The Force Awakens teaser. It could use a bit of polish here and there – note the strings on the TIE fighters – but damn that was quick. Oh, and not to be outdone…

Daredevil Flaviu Cernescu had the balls to do a free solo climb to the top of Romania’s second-tallest structure, an old chimney at CET Pitesti SUD, measuring over 918 feet in height. We got out of breath just watching this.

Danny Cooke went to Pripyat, Ukraine for a 60 Minutes feature on the Chernobyl Power Plant, the site of the world’s worst nuclear power plant accident. Here’s some of his incredible footage, set to Hannah Miller’s Promise Land.

Enjoyed the Star Wars: The Force Awakens teaser? Tom Barker thought it didn’t have enough of J.J. Abrams’ trademark lens flare, so he enhanced the footage for us. We can already imagine the lights floating off the screen in 3D.

Breaking Bad may be over, and we still have to wait for Better Call Saul. For now, Matthijs Vlot’s angry rap track, compiled from clips from the show will have to tide us over. And if you’re feeling like something a bit more upbeat…

Here’s slingshot expert Joerg Sprave’s workout plan: a rowing machine slingshot. The hand-powered artillery may be stationary, but it makes up for it with its 30mm steel ball projectiles. Now this is a fun exercise.

These guys played ping pong at the London Underground without any of the necessary equipment. Not even a ball. All they needed was to make that crisp sound of hollow plastic bouncing on wood reverberate in the subway.

While trying out Double Robotics’ Segway-like telepresence robots, YouTuber Robot Liberation Front was bummed out that the robots were confined to a small conference room. Challenge accepted.