Skyfall

Skyfall is the latest entry in the James Bond franchise, directed by Sam Mendes. The film is unique in the respect that it is not a direct continuation of the story from Craig’s previous two Bond films, Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace.

The film's poster

The film notably brings back many “classic” elements to the franchise, with the inclusion of iconic Bond characters such as Moneypenny (played by Naomie Harris) and Q (played by Ben Whishaw). Being a departure from the previous films, Whishaw is the youngest actor to portray Q. Additionally, the end of the film shows MI6’s relocation to the classic Universal Exports building from previous films, with Ralph Fiennes succeeding Judi Dench as M.

Whishaw (left) as Q and Craig (right) as Bond

Ralph Fiennes as Gareth Mallory, the new M

Skyfall also includes the return of Bond’s spy gadgets. However, in keeping with the more realistic feel of Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace, Q’s gadgets are simpler and more practical; upon meeting Bond, Q presents him with a miniature radio to signal for backup as well as a Walther PPK/S with palm print activation designed specifically for Bond.

Bond's Walther PPK/S

The rear of the gun; the circles turn red when someone other than Bond attempts to fire it

The film was shot in a diverse set of locations, including London, Glencoe, Istanbul, Adana and Macau. The scenes in Macau were based on Hashima Island in Japan, while sets were designed to recreate skyscrapers for the scenes taking place in Shanghai. Two of the most memorable shots take place in Adana and Glencoe: the former, where Bond is shot off a train crossing the Varda railway bridge in Adana, and the latter, where Silva’s helicopter assaults the Skyfall Manor in Scotland. 

The Varda railway bridge

Skyfall is an excellent addition to the Bond franchise, with Bardem’s Silva being a memorable villain that brings true depth to the story and its characters. I believe that Skyfall will appeal not only to classic Bond fans, but to new fans as well. I enjoyed the film, and I’m already looking forward to the next Bond movie!

Bardem as Raoul Silva, the film's antagonist

For more Bond, here’s the Skyfall trailer:

GISHWHES!

What is GISHWHES, you ask? Well, it is the Greatest International Scavenger Hunt the World Has Ever Seen! Actually though.
Here is a link to a promotional video for GISHWHES 2012!
GISHWHES is an international scavenger hunt that was created by actor Misha Collins from the popular CW show Supernatural. Misha is not only known for being a great actor, he is actually known for just being an awesome person.
With this scavenger hunt, Misha encourages participants to step outside of their comfort zone. For 7 days, participants go on an adventure to try to capture certain 'items' with their camera. Some of the tasks this year include capturing picture or video of a storm trooper in full costume cleaning a pool, using a Zamboni to draw a giant frowny face on an ice-skating rink, knitting a scarf over 12 feet long, giving a puppet show at a children's hospital, going shopping for diamonds in a wig made of popcorn, making a kilt entirely out of cucumbers, creating a mock news show, and 145 more!
I am one of the lucky ones to be participating in this year's hunt and our team, I think, is actually doing really well! We might actually have a chance at the grand prize, which is staying in a private haunted castle in Scotland with none other than Misha Collins himself! Our team of 15 has people from all over the United States. My group consists of girls from Pennsylvania, Nevada, New York, Michigan, and Minnesota. Our team name is Hawkeye and the Awkettes loves crossstateepicness, but we're also known as crossstateavengers for short. Together we have been working hard since late Monday night to complete as many tasks as possible. I would post some of our work, but we're not allowed to yet until the scavenger hunt is over. Tonight we completed the mock news program, as mentioned above, in Studio B of Park and then next, us Ithaca girls, are going to create an 'erotically charged' scene with dialogue that only talks about grammar and font. This should be very fun to shoot!
A participant from last year's hunt, Savannah Comilla, said, "GISHWHES isn't just a scavenger hunt, it's like 10 days of pure thought, inspiration & creation."Although this year it's only 7 days, after 3 days alone, I have had some great experiences that have required me to think very creatively, artistically, and outside of the box. I hope this scavenger hunt becomes a definite annual thing because I am having so much fun!