Long Live the B-Movie

I'm finally back on campus...back for another semester, another year of college life and all the challenges, stress and struggles that come with it. I find myself transitioning into the IC flow once again and with the first day of classes now over, the summer's relaxation seems distant. Last night offered a nice opportunity, though. It was a chance to become immersed in the atmosphere of a film favorite one last time without the bothersome reminders of deadlines and upcoming assignments hanging over my head. I had a 9am, but my materials were all together and I had nothing better to do, so I figured why not pick something fun and practice some cinematic meditation. Naturally, my choice was Sam Raimi's Evil Dead II.

Now, Evil Dead II was never a film I expected to love. It's a bloody, zany horror comedy with extensive practical effects work and a wild, untamed energy. The film is relentless in its commitment to the weird and outlandish, the demented dark humor and the gory kills. Prior to this summer, the world of 80's horror schlock was not one I was familiar with. Stubbornly holding onto my Criterion collection and the ponderous art house cinema I treasured, there was something about that era/genre mix that made me uneasy. The addiction to foreign art house film is overstated, as I am not one to shy away from the occasional blockbuster (Guardians of the Galaxy, anyone?) or hesitate to revel in some unabashedly comedic cheese (I'm looking at you, Coming to America). Still, 80's b-horror was an untapped area for me and I wanted to finally give it a shot.

The power of camp compels you!

Fright Night was the beginning of my little endeavor. Not a perfect film, but perfectly entertaining for what it is. Vampires, flamboyant hair styles, an 80's dance club and Roddy McDowall. All good fun, but I was only scraping the surface. Next came the gut-busting Re-Animator, the ridiculously unintelligent The Stuff and the comic book come to life, Creepshow. It all crescendoed in my first viewing of Evil Dead II. The film was mad. Limbs were flying. Cartoonish blood geysers everywhere. Bruce Campbell gets into a life-or-death scuffle with his freshly possessed right hand and a mounted deer head comes alive and laughs hysterically as all the other objects in the room follow suit. 

Taxidermy has never been so lifelike.

By the time the credits rolled, I knew I had just seen an instant favorite. The film didn't take itself too seriously and had the best balance of horror and comedy that I'd ever seen. The one-liners were goofy, the story was strung out and yet, there was something endearing about it. This wasn't the end of the horror-thon, though. Twenty films (including the dreadful Maximum Overdrive and Galaxy of Terror) would be viewed before my movie intake went back to normal, but none would reach the heights of Evil Dead II.

Don't worry, I'm getting there!

So, patient reader, why is it that I have gone to the trouble of sharing my adventures in the 80's campiness of ghosts and ghouls, monsters and slashers? It's because today we talked about passions. What do we want to do? What makes us happy? I've recently had my doubts about filmmaking. I question my abilities. Am I up to it? Is it genuinely enjoyable?

Peter Jackson, circa 1991

Perhaps I should pair Peter Jackson's Dead Alive (AKA Braindead) with Evil Dead II on this point. Here are two films that convey an excitement, a zest for filmmaking in every frame. With the energy, the tone and the sheer creativity of visual effects, scenario setups and comedy, they showcase a go-for-broke mentality and no matter how bizarre the subject matter is, one can't help but admire the spirit of these two directors. I'm not the only one that saw past the gore and bad taste, as Raimi was given the chance to direct the Spider-Man trilogy and Jackson went on to make Lord of the Rings. Noticeable passion kickstarting flourishing careers and more ambitious projects.

Not bad, Mr. Jackson.

Watching Evil Dead II again reminded me of the fervor that can come with filmmaking (even under extreme budget constraints). I won't necessarily be breaking into the realm of b-horror this semester, but I aim to recapture the same passion that was expressed in so many of the 80's horror flicks I viewed this summer. For all their indulgences and gross-out tactics, these movies represent a level of creative commitment and raw enthusiasm that is often missing from today's soulless studio tentpoles and pandering, end-of-the year Oscar bait.

Long live the B-movie!

Airline Safety Videos Takes Flight with New Trend

Over the past decade, airlines have decided to spice up their flights by producing safety videos with new twists. Now, instead of smiling stewardesses and boring diagrams, several airline companies have come up with creative ways to tell you how to correctly buckle your seatbelt.

This video, produced by Virgin America in 2007, began the steady trend of attempting to entertainment their audiences, rather than just preach safety to a crowd of sleeping or frustrated flyers. It's dry humor and doodle-like design are thanks to Anomoly, a branding firm and the video's animators, Gordon P. Clark, Nick Hewitt, and Mike Overbeck.

After the launch of this quirky animation, Delta Airlines and Air New Zealand joined in the fun. In 2011, Air New Zealand released a video featuring none other than Richard Simmons. Starting out as a normal safety video, we are pleasantly surprised when a fully decked out Simmons struts center stage with his jubilant crew not far behind. A good tactic by Air New Zealand, knowing it takes a special person to ignore Simmons' charisma.

My personal favorites are from this year, from Delta and Virgin America. Delta takes us back to the 80s with their retro take on airplane safety. Sporting mullets, neon and recognizable icons such as Alf and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Airplane! anyone?), the confused passengers demonstrate how to use modern safety technology on the plane.

Virgin America's latest video takes the cake for me. Starring youtube sensation Todrick Hall by director Jon M. Chu, this video is another turning point for safety videos around the world. The entire production is a music video, complete with clever lyrics and amazing dance moves from the cast without losing the educational purpose. After this, I'm excited to see what the following years of safety videos have to offer.

Last but not least, this ridiculous safety video from Air New Zealand has nerds everywhere booking flights to the country where Middle Earth was set. Using their connection with the film trilogy Lord of the Rings, Air New Zealand came out with a video in 2012 featuring our favorite characters from the movies struggling to follow safety instructions. There's even cameos from Sir Peter Jackson himself, and the ever loveable Gollum.

No matter how awesome or awful these safety videos are, anything's better than the dry, snooze worthy videos that came before. Keep up the good work guys.

Movies based off books

This past weekend I had the good fortune of being able to watch Laz Burhman's version of The Great Gatsby, based off the book by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I personally loved the film because of how over the top it was. I thought the audio was unbelievable and was so well done that I don't think people even caught everything they did unless you watched it twice intentionally listening for things. The one thing that I loved was how the high pitched noise you heard whenever you saw the green light from Daisy's dock was the same exact pitch and most likely derived from the ringing bell of Gatsby's phone. They fade it  together so well at the end that they really over emphasize that it's Daisy he's waiting for to call. It's obvious in the storyline but the sound was just over the top for me. That being said I really enjoyed the movie but my little brother's reaction was completely different. He recently just read the book for his English class and his main problem with it was that it didn't match the book enough for him. Of course I told him that they are two different mediums and it's like comparing a photo to painting and not being happy with the painting because it's not identical to what was really there. This made me think of movies that were based off books and did well and why they did well.









            VS








The first one was Perks Of Being A Wallflower originally a book by Stephen Chbosky who also directed it. That I think was key for it doing so well. The guy who wrote the book was able to be there step by step to make sure the movie did the book justice. I personally thought the book and the movie were pretty similar in quality but that being said it probably isn't fair when the director was the author of the book.

The next one I thought of was the Harry Potter series based of J.K. Rowling's books which had 3 or 4 different directors. To me these movies did not capture the books at all but they weren't bad either. I mean some of them were bad but come one they had 8 movies and for all them to be pretty decent is an accomplishment in itself. I think these movies did well because they focused on the characters and the biggest and most important story in the book, to end the everlasting threat of Lord Voldemort. They did have to cut a lot of minor story lines and scenes out but after experiencing the stress of producing a 16 page fiction one film, approaching a 600+ page book and turning it into a film is daunting.

Finally I thought of the opposite situation of the Harry Potter books and looked at The Hobbit directed by Peter Jackson and based off the book the Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien. In this movie they added completely new story lines and reasons for the treasure hunt that the book didn't have. After reading the book I completely understood why they did because to me the real reason they went after the dragon was because they wanted some gold. They weren't looking for their old home but they just wanted money and I guess that isn't a completely good moral reason for heroically fighting dragons in Hollywood. And also they added the white Orc which I thought gave a nice conflict through out the film but there was no such character in the book. If you stuck to the book, I personally don't think the story would have fit a movie screen as well because that story wasn't meant for that medium. Leading me back to my original statement in which you shouldn't think a movie is bad because it doesn't match the book it's based off of. The movie is an artistic expression inspired by the book not an identical recreation.

The Wilhelm Scream

Like many of us in this class I am a huge movie buff. I enjoy watching movies almost to a fault, and one thing that I am very good at is remembering lines and scenes. Mainly because I watch films again and again. This is why I wanted to clue some of you in on arguably the most famous sound effect in movie history. The Wilhelm Scream. This sound effect is a stock sound effect that has been used in over 200 films, usually to represent someone dying. Whether you've noticed it before or not, you have undoubtably heard it if you have seen films like Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Saving Private Ryan, and even animated films like Toy Story and Hercules.

The sound effect is credited as first being used in the 1953 films The Charge at Feather River, it gets it's name from the character, Wilhelm, who gets shot by an arrow. Since then it has become sort of a running gag among some movie directors. Most notably George Lucas, Quentin Tarantino, and Peter Jackson, who pretty much use it in every film.

The thing that I find so funny about it is that the director's are making a conscious choice to include this sound effect in their film. I originally thought it might just be a coincidence, but the sound effect is used in too many movies for nobody to know. Christ it has it's own Wikipedia post  for it.

However if you still don't believe me, here are two videos dedicated solely to the use of the Wilhelm scream.

... And the other one.

Hope you enjoyed it.

District 9

When my friends told me we were going to watch District 9 I just assumed it was some spin off of the Hunger Games series.  It was of course a different and unique science fiction action packed film that I was shocked I had never seen.  Nominated for 4 academy awards, District 9 is the story about an alternate Earth where a ship full of alien invaders land in South Africa and disturb the people.  The story follows the Wikus a bureaucrat who is appointed by his father-in-law to monitor the aliens and head a project of relocation so they are further away from the main city of Johanasberg disturbing the public.  He is later infected by an alien virus and action and drama occurs.

The movie was directed by Neill Blomkamp and uses fictional stock footage, mocumentary, fake interviews, and other documentary/news like tactic to tell parts of the story.  It was a very interesting way of telling this story. One of the producers behind the film is Peter Jackson who is most famous for his work on the Lord of the Rings series and The Hobbit.  Although the movie was a success, it was a surprise since it had a very unknown cast and relatively modest budget.

What I found very interesting about the film was it's political undertones.  It often referenced and brought up the subject of gun control, government and leadership in the Africa's, as well as immigration.  I think the aliens in this movie were directly a symbol of illegal aliens within our country, as well as other countries.  It was a large debate in the movie about kicking the aliens out of Earth because they are clearly invading our space and territory.  However it was brought up later in the film that the aliens - although not the most helpful to humans - had their reasons to leave their home planet and could not go back.  This obviously brings up illegal immigrants traveling to other countries to escape persecution, and crime filled nations.

The movie was good and did lose to Biggalow's The Hurt Locker, but I wouldn't have given Distric 9 the Oscar anyway.  It was enjoyable but I don't think I would watch it again.  It was a unique way to tell such a different thought provoking story and it was effective but it was a bit boring for my taste and I did not end up liking the main character.  Although my friends really enjoyed the movie.  Maybe I'm just more of a rom-com kinda guy.

Positive Posting

Version:1.0 StartHTML:0000000105 EndHTML:0000003660 StartFragment:0000001432 EndFragment:0000003624

While continuously pointing out the flaws in mediocre movies is enjoyable, being so negative all the time is depressing. Therefore this blog I shall attempt the impossible and write positively about an adaptation.

Last blog I gave my general opinion on adaptations, for the most part they’re not that good (especially the remakes of comic series (with very few exceptions)). This usually has to do with the story (basically the most important aspect of the movie) being utterly unfaithful to the original source material, or just not being creative enough to really bother seeing. However there is an exception to every rule and in my case I find “The Lord of The Rings (originally written by J. R. R. Tolkien)” movie series (directed by Peter Jackson) to be an exceptional example of what adaptations can be if they’re done right.

I have this opinion of this set of adaptations for several reasons. Firstly the cinematography is breath taking. The Shire is pretty much exactly what I pictured when I first read the books, Rivendell is beautiful (which is to be expected), Moria is an incredibly creepy underground labyrinth, ect. The design of the supernatural beings, the Ringwraiths, Orcs, Trolls, Ents, ect, is just plain good. The music is epic, the characters are great (Sam is my favorite) I could go on. But what I like most about these movies is the story.

Frankly it’s just done well. Partially because the right people were found to play the main characters. Also partially because redundant characters from the books (e.g. Tom Bombadil) have been removed. Lastly there is also the pro that the movie doesn’t take two chapters to describe something that could be said in a paragraph. Or in film terms, a few minutes and several good close ups, wide shots, tracking shots, panning shots, ect.

The Hobbit 3D: An Unexpected Journey

I like many other saw the Hobbit last night at midnight.  I thought it was very much worth it to go see it in 3D.  The visuals were stunning, and it played along well with the beautiful landscapes of New Zealand.

They did a great job creating the underworld caves of the goblins.  It looked just like I imagined it.  It went weaving through the mountain many layers deep and fo course there was the Goblin King.  In this great scene Gandalf slays the Goblin King in true epic fashion.

When Bilbo falls down to the bottom, everyone who read the books knows what was coming.  Probably my favorite scene in the book, the game of riddles between Gollum and Bilbo.  Gollum looks great and it was perfect to see a Gollum still with the ring briefly.

I thought The Hobbit was a great film, even keeping in the flaming pine cones, that I thought might be at risk.  It really is a must see and I would suggest seeing it in 3D.

Hobbit Production and Various Behind the Scenes

After class on Monday I spent one night this week going through all of the production blog posts for the Hobbit. There's 9 parts in all and I'd highly recommend going through and watching them all, even if you're not a fan of the Hobbit or Lord of the Rings. Especially for us, it's a valuable glimpse into what we're getting ourselves into.

One post in particular stood out to me though. The focus was on the technical aspects of the film. They talk about filming in 3D, and they do a great job at explaining how filming in 3D works. They also go over the logistics of shooting in 48p and how design had to change because of it. I wouldn't have thought filming in a higher frame rate would cause them to completely redesign some costumes with different fabrics, patterns, and colors as well as complete set pieces, but they did.

Definitely watch the video, and all of them if you have time (HA!) It's definitely a good project for over break. They're really interesting.

Also, if you're into the behind the scenes type videos, there's a girl on youtube who has chronicled the process of making her first short film out of college. I've been following her and the process of pre-production, production, and now post production since around October. It's interesting to watch someone who is in the same position we'll be in all too soon. Everything she makes is oddly captivating and I can't wait to see "The Water's Fine." Here's the first video in her playlist for the making of "The Water's Fine." Throughout the whole series she gives you a glimpse into her writing process, location scouting, casting, and more. Check it out.

Behind the Scenes of The Hobbit.

Judging just by this blog alone, there has been quite a lot of hype around the upcoming film adaptation of The Hobbit. As someone mentioned in an earlier post, the producers have been releasing short clips of how the film has been coming along. Released on youtube just a couple of weeks ago was a featurette that offered some insight into the post production process of the film. As many of us have begun to work on the footage we have shot for our final project, I thought that it would be of interest. 

It was really interesting to see all of the different jobs that are part of the post production team and what they do for the film. Considering the Peter Jackson's film adaptation of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy was widely known for its graphics, it is safe to say that The Hobbit has potential to be even better considering that technology has advanced since then. This clip shows the origins of what the animators receive (a title card just describing the scene) and all of the necessary steps they go through to get a finished product, including sound design and visuals.

The Hobbit

As we get closer and closer to december 16th, all i hear about these days is The Hobbit. It seems that the day this movie comes out Park is going to explode with excited film students ready for the next installment of JRR Tolkiens saga. All throughout production, the crew has been releasing progress video's, showing each step of the process in making this behemoth of a production. As someone who is extremely interested in this as a career path, these video's are like crack to me. In these video's they show a lot. They don't show to much of anything actually finished but they show almost every specific department working. This was incredible. I loved watching the entire crew work. It really made me appreciate all of the work that is going into this film. There are so many people working on this, it is incredible. However there is one thing that bother's me about these videos. A lot of the shots that they show being shot, are done on green screens or done with motion capture technology. I did not mind the fact that they have been using green screen's or mocap technology until i had seen some of the actual scenes. Granted i have not seen much yet because most of the scenes are being held until the actual film comes out but of the scenes i have seen so far, a lot of it looks fake. Now i know this is a fictional universe where there are lots of things that don't actually exist but there are still parts of it that i am not entirely sure about it. I am still planning on seeing the film and i am extremely excited for it but i am a bit worried that in this day and age of hyped up 3D technology and other weird gimmicks coming out with every new film, i am worried about what The Hobbit is going to look like. Hopefully i am not disappointed.

A Game of Thrones and The Hobbit

I recently just finished The Hobbit and started A Storm of Swords, the third book in A Song of Ice and Fire.  The Hobbit also recently had its worldwide premiere in New Zealand and is due out nationwide on December 14th and the third season of A Game of Thrones is set to air starting 3/31/13.  I like many other people are thrilled about both.

The trailer looks fantastic and I really like the songs the dwarves sing.   It gives me goosebumps.  Game of Thrones hasn't released a full trailer for the season yet, but they did release a teaser.

Since the Hobbit is now three movies I am very interested in how they are going to do it since it is not a very long book.  I have heard that they are going to follow Gandalf on some of his adventures and I would assume some time will be spent connecting it to Lord of the Rings.   The two things I am really excited to see are Gollum and the final battle.  In the book the Final battle consists of many different species and I can't wait to see how Peter Jackson brings the battle together.

When I started reading A Song of Ice and Fire last summer everyone told me that the third book or Storm of Swords was the best one in the series.  Now that I am finally there I am especially excited that I will finish reading it so close to the start of the third season.  As the war between the Stark's, Lannister's and Stannis start to heat up and Daenery's gets more powerful and Jon Snow learns more about the wildings I think this will be the perfect book and season.

Good-Good

Last week I posted about how good movies have lost reputation because they decide to make unnecessary sequels that bring low box office profit and draw viewers away from the movie itself. Well now I want to discuss a few movie sequels I thought WERE necessary to follow the story from the previous movie.

1. The Dark Knight & The Dark Knight Rises




















A 3 set series following the story of Batman, directer and writer Christopher Nolan stole Box Office records through these three amazing movies that have captured the attention of many fans around the world. A story that couldn't be told in one movie was told through three films about Bruce Wayne and his life saving the city of Gotham from criminals. Batman Begin's debut in the theaters made the film $48 million while the following two increasing dramatically ($158 million for the Dark Knight and $161 million for the Dark Knight Rises.

2. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

This amazing trilogy about a hobbit named Frodo who is on a journey with eight companions on a mission to destroy a ring on the fires of Mount Doom and the dark lord Sauron. These three movies were directed by the creative and masterminded Peter Jackson as his three movies were also able to bring in box office records and a large number of crowds to the big screen. In its debut, the Fellowship of the Ring made $47 million its opening weekend with The Two Towers earning more than 15 million more at $62 million and the Return of the King increasing eleven million to $73 million.

3. Spiderman 2 & Spiderman 3

With the new Amazing Spiderman movie that brought in good revenue in 2012, most fans turned away from the old set of Spiderman movies that brought in a number of box office profits. Directed by Sam Raimi, these stories follow Peter Parker who looks to save his city after acquiring special spider powers. While most thought the third was "corny shit," most were interested by the story and would agree that this series was a great series. Opening up in 2002, the first Spiderman brought in $115 million with Spiderman 2 at $89 million and Spiderman 3 at $151 million.

A Return to Middle Earth

3 months, or 13 weeks, or 91 days. However you want to look at it, December is fast approaching. No, I'm not counting down to what many believe will be the end of the world. Lord of the Rings fans will know exactly what I'm counting down to... the release date of The Hobbit (Part 1)! Exactly three months from today, there will be huge lines in the theaters, with popcorn exploding from the seams and soda slurped up huge, plastic straws. All will be waiting impatiently for the movie to start.

December 14, 2012. A young Bilbo Baggins will be begin his own journey down a dangerous and exciting road. A road that will eventually send fate hurling his own nephew, Frodo, into a perilous journey as well. This is a story that is very near and dear to my heart. The Hobbit by Tolkien was the first fantasy book I ever read. My dad, the source from which I draw my love of everything fantasy and sci-fi, handed Tolkien's book to me when I was eleven and told me that it was a story worth reading over and over again. So I read it, and I loved it. I continued the story by following up with the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. I was an avid reader since then. I read books that ranged from the Shannara Series by Terry Brooks to Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling. At this point in my short life, my refrain had commonly become, "The book is always better than the movie." When I saw The Lord of the Rings directed by Peter Jackson, my whole world was shaken.

Not only was the story preserved in the films, but it was done in such a way that the beloved characters I saw in my mind were there before my very eyes. It is hard to find another movie that can actually sit so close to their paper and ink counterpart. I am still an avid reader and believe me when I say that the only other movie that I have seen is The Hunger Games directed by Gary Ross. In The Lord of the Rings, the whole of Middle Earth was there; it was almost tangible to my imagination. This was such an amazing feat that required so much talent on the part of both the cast and the crew. The acting was so superb, the visuals were perfect, the story was intriguing, character development was fantastic, this movie was and is truly a classic.

I was so drawn into this film, that at the age of fourteen, I watched all of the Behind the Scenes footage that came with the extended versions of the films. Again, my life was utterly changed. I fell in love with everything that is FILM. From learning about the make-up to the intricate creation of the miniatures, to the development of the different cultures through costumes, to the creation of all the magical creatures, to how they actually built the sets, to location scouting, the list can go on and on with how much I absorbed. It opened my eyes to a way to make the worlds I read about in books "come alive" in our reality in some way. It was at this point that I found a dream that resides so strong in my heart that it feels as if my entire being is going to explode. This is how I became so passionate about acting, and from there, about what happens behind the camera too. For the discovery of my passion, I have to thank all who were involved in the making of these fabulous films.

Peter Jackson is and forever will be one of my favorite directors. So many of his films, including King Kong, have kept me sitting on the edge of my seat and allowed me to escape into worlds and times that I can only do through reading books most of the time. Such is the depth with which his films are created. Every detail must be and is as perfect as can be. My favorite book series is the Green Rider series written by Kristen Britain. If anyone ever tries to make these fabulous books into movies, I would  hope that it would be Peter Jackson, because they deserve the best.

I encourage any who have not seen The Lord of the Rings to borrow the film from someone. It is an experience that shouldn't be missed. I can't wait for The Hobbit! Someone said to me the other day, "Yes, but they have a lot to live up to after Lord of the Rings." I agree, but I trust that both the cast and crew will be able to pull it off. If you haven't seen the trailer yet, it is below:
~ posted by Amber Capogrossi

A Surprised Movie Addict

On my trip to Virginia Beach this summer, I was squished into the backseat of my mom's Buick with my two nieces. With their iPods an inch away from their faces and their headphones softly leaking music and dialogue, I watched as their eyes filled with wonder and disappeared into whatever world their movies were taking them. I can not even begin to tell you how many times I caught them watching  The Lorax or Puss In Boots. That is the funny thing about children. They can sit through an hour to an hour and a half long movie, turn around to their parents and say, "Can I watch it again?" At one point during our twelve hour car ride I whispered to my mom and my brother, "I can't believe they are watching that movie again!" My brother, who is twelve years older than me, just laughed. He continued to recount how when I was their age I did the same exact thing with my movies at home. Well. That put me in my place for certain. I recalled going through my old picture books and seeing some pictures of my four or five year old self, laying on the floor staring up at the moving pictures on the TV. 

I loved watching movies when I was young, and as the years flew by, that love never vanished. I eventually developed a passion for reading novels (I read fifteen or sixteen different ones this summer!), but I never get tired of movies. Even television shows, although I'm a little picky when it comes to this kind of entertainment. When I was little, and today as well, I was quite an oddity I think. Instead of waking up in the morning and putting on cartoons, I would put the channel to TVLand. I loved Get Smart, I Dream of Genie, I Love Lucy, The Andy Griffith Show, Bonanza, MacGyver, and the list goes on and on. 

By the time I was a senior in High School, I thought that I had a pretty good movie and TV show library in my head. I had even watched the Behind the Scenes footage from Lord of the Rings (my favorite movie) directed by Peter Jackson, and I think by then, even Behind the Scenes from Avatar directed by James Cameron, and many others. Then my world was completely changed by one thing. Netflix. Not only did Netflix have a billion movies and shows I hadn't seen (or heard of) that you could rent, it also allowed you to stream some of those movies right online! It was thanks to this discovery that by my freshman year in college I was a pro at browsing through Netflix in search of my new favorite movie. This is still my addiction today. Recently, I have gotten hooked on movies set in 19th century England, such as North and South directed by Brian Percival, Pride and Prejudice (the 1980 TV miniseries), Mansfield Park (1999) directed by Patricia Rozema, and again, the list could go on and on. I have also watched different TV shows on Netflix including Downton Abbey, Lost, and Robin Hood (2006 TV series). 

By this point in my life, I was again content with my new expanded range of movies and shows. I had even enjoyed Charlie Chaplin when I went with my friend to France. We stayed with her grandparents in Antibes, and her grandfather loved Charlie Chaplin. My friend translated later of course, but her grandfather said that Charlie Chaplin was the best because it didn't matter what language you speak, everyone can understand and laugh along. He was right. I also took a course called Bollywood while I was in college, and we watched films ranging from Jab We Met (which I recommend because it is amazing!) directed by Imtiaz Ali to I've Loved You So Long (another great movie!) directed by Philippe Claudel. 

Yet, I am continually shocked by how small my knowledge of movies is still. Even though I watch movies on Netflix all the time, (Seriously, sometimes I watch three movies in a row. Don't worry I still have a life.) somehow I am still in the dark when it comes to the classics. In class this week we were asked if we had seen several different films for examples. I don't think I raised my hand once. This was such an eye opener for me. 

So, since I am heading into a career where it is important to know and see other people's work, I have decided to watch as many movies on the list that Professor Sinclair provided for us on the blog page. Through all this I have learned that it doesn't matter how many movies or TV series you have watched, you will never have seen enough. The learning process never stops throughout life. Just like my nieces, I have to be prepared to watch, watch and watch some more. Not only for entertainment, but in order to learn and become more knowledgeable. 

~Amber Capogrossi

The Hobbit Behind the Scenes

OMG were not the only ones who blog! Apparently so does Peter Jackson the producer of this new little movie coming to theaters soon called THE HOBBIT!(you might know it) I personally am a huge fan of the Lord of the Rings trilogy and an even bigger fan of the book The Hobbit, so when I heard there was going to be a movie on it, I nearly died! It's like the universe decided to bless me with the best present possible combining two of my great loves film and this written masterpiece.
This video blog goes behind the scenes, where all the magic happens(literally) and it really is absolutely incredible what these guys are doing. The set is like a dreamworld here on our humble little planet earth. Seeing this blog really just made me even more excited for the actual movie to come out, if that was at all possible. I hope you guys enjoy it as well.

The Hobbit

everyone. the Hobbit shooting has finally begun! The video in the title shows you how much goes into the preproduction on this beautiful film. it should be done in about two years and everyone will be patiently waiting. Also, something that is interesting is that they are shooting it at 45 frames per second. check it out though. its so sweet. I can't wait. Peter Jackson is incredible.