The Sixth Sense is just so good!

I stumbled across  "The Sixth Sense" the other night, and with that being about the fifth time seeing it, it still managed to blow my mind. In case you haven't seen this thriller, (which I HIGHLY recommend you should) here is the plot in a nutshell...    A children's psychologist played by Bruce Willis, becomes heavily attached to one child's problem when the boy, (Haley Joel Osment) begins to claim that he sees "dead people" walking around his presence. During his case, the doctor's marriage begins to crumble, as he focuses too heavily on the child's issue.      

To begin the review, all I have to say is "woah," what an incredible ending. Every time the ending concludes, I just say to myself that it may very well be the best conclusion of any thriller to this day. It is simply moving and powerful, but words do not do it enough justice. I am obviously not going to spoil anything from the film, but the end of this film allows the viewer to see the plot from a completely different point of view, which is simply an incredible achievement by writer/director M. Night Shyamalan After the fifth viewing of this film, and also taking a lot of film classes I began to notice more aspects of plot development that really interest me. Something else that stood out to me was the fact that unlike its trailer, (that I watched after the movie) it portrays the film as a chilling thriller. BUT this movie is sort of a supernatural drama with a ton of emotional and heart-stopping scenes to support it. But I still refer to it as a great "thriller".       

I noticed that the film is also purposely very slow paced, which allows for plenty of time for the characters to mold and shape the subtle but important material at hand. Haley Joel Osment does a phenomenal job as the troubled child who is going through mysterious mishaps that no child should ever have to go through. Tough-guy, Bruce Willis even pulls off a fantastically solid performance, with an emotional side that we, the viewers, rarely see. But, the "twist ending" of the film raised it to a new level. My friends and I could not help but discuss the various intricacies of the plot which were The alterations of the plot through the captivating ending could not help but further my absolute appreciation for the film. With incredible acting, incredible film style, and an incredible score, The Sixth Sense is most-definitely one of my favorite thrillers of all time. Even though it may not be an all-out thriller, please believe me, you will definitely be startled in a lot of scenes, and sincerely moved in others. It is without a doubt, an impressive movie.      

Go watch it now, before someone ruins the ending!

HBO does it again

In the recent light of my external hard-drive crashing, my complete indecisiveness to pick something on Netflix, and seeing a clip of Jeff Daniels as Will McAvoy  I was finally motivated to watch the HBO series The Newsroom.  

This show has shattered all of my expectations. The quick talking and even more quick witted dialog written by Aaron Sorkin coupled with a high a tension news broadcast team is incredibly entertaining to watch. Aaron Sorkin's writing is clearly noticeable when watching, everyone is as fast paced and witty as Jesse Eisenberg was in The Social Network. If you stop paying attention for even a few seconds you'd look back and be completely lost. The actors do a great job portraying their characters, and Jeff Daniels performance is   almost enough to make you forget this priceless moment.

The story line is fantastic, and the characters interact great with each other. Were this an actual show, I would be e-mailing them my resume three times a day to get them to hire me. I recommend this show to anyone, whether you are a fan of Aaron Sorkin's writing or just liked the classic film Network. Seeing everything that goes in to putting a news broadcast together is extremely interesting and is giving me second thoughts about where i might go with my career in the future.  

Parks and Recreation=Undervalued

Today I started my Friday the same way I usually do. I wake up and make myself breakfast with coffee while enjoying the newest episode of one of my favorite shows of all-time, Parks and Recreation. Although I consider the show to be very consistent, I really think they have outdone themselves this week.

 The show consists of several main characters who make up this mockumentary-styled sitcom based in the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana. The show stars Amy Poehler, Rashida Jones, Nick Offerman, Aziz Ansari, and many more. The show capitalizes on the small-town setting of show, which provides the audience with real genuine characters that they can relate to.

This week's episode successfully portrayed each of the character's attributes through several comedic elements for the viewers to enjoy. I really enjoy the energy of the show because the characters are very authentic and believable. It is shocking to me that it once struggled with poor ratings because I cannot refer to one episode that wasn't at least decent.

I recommend the series to all because I believe it takes advantage many different comedic methods to satisfy all senses of humor.

Does Anyone Even Watch This Show?

After recently getting a Showtime account, I was able to explore all of the wonderful TV shows and movies offered online and on the channel.  I have already watched all of Homeland so it was time for me to start another Showtime series that I could become addicted to.  That's when I decided to start watching Episodes.  Episodes stars one of my favorite comedic actors Matt LeBlanc of Friends fame.  The show even won him a Golden Globe last year for best actor in a comedy.  But after watching a few episodes, I realized....I think I might be the only person in the world who watches this show.  I have never heard anyone talk about it, nor have I seen any advertisements for it on other sites like Hulu, or TV Guide.  Could this be a diamond in the rough or is there a reason for its lack of viewership?

Frankly, I love the show.  It's a smart comedy about two British TV writers who move to L.A. and are forced to "Americanize" their show.  Episodes is unique in the fact that it is an American and British comedy, premiering on Showtime as well as on BBC 2.  The show was created by Jeffry Klarik (co-producer of Mad About You, and The Class) and his business and life partner (how cute!!) David Crane (co-creator of Friends).  I think the two have created an extremely witty show with a funny ensemble.  To be frank I probably would not have started watching this show if Matt LeBlanc and David Crane were not involved, because Friends is my all time favorite show.

Episodes follows around a married couple who have won yet another BAFTA award for their TV show about a headmaster at a boys boarding school.  A snobby, pompous LA producer has them come out to LA to produce the show, much to their dismay.  After casting Matt LeBlanc (who plays himself) as the headmaster things go downhill after everyone starts changing their show.  They change the plot of the show, and the cast and characters and chaos ensues.  Episodes has been renewed for a 3rd season, and I can't wait to continue watching the rest of the series on Showtime, hoping that someone else in the world will watch it with me and enjoy the quirky characters and silly plots just as much as I do.  I think one of the reasons I enjoy it so much is because it reminds me of what it's like to produce my own sitcom (Boys of 213 on ICTV check it out!) and I can relate to the producers in many ways.

House of Cards Kills

After listening to Arturo's such positive comments about the brand new Netflix series "House of Cards", I decided I'd give the first episode a try and see if they held true. 12 episodes later... I concurred that Arturo was right.

House of Cards proved to be a very intelligently written political drama that kept you on the edge of your seat throughout. It was extremely difficult to stop watching once I got started, with the ending of each episode leaving you on even more of a cliffhanger than the last. In addition to the excellent storytelling, the acting was absolutely superb. Kevin Spacey delivers an immaculate performance as Francis Underwood, the ruthless Majority Whip whose hellbent on scheming his way to the Presidency, and not letting anyone get in his way. However he still doesn't outshine his co-stars, with Robin Wright, Kate Mara, and Corey Stoll bringing their A game as well.

This is the second original series Netflix has put out, and this one really knocked it out of the park. Whether or not the show is a success hinges on how many of Netflix's subscribers decided to watch the show and keep watching once they got started. Netflix hasn't released any numbers yet, but the hope is that releasing an entire season all at once will keep viewers hooked given the accessibility of the next episode, as opposed to releasing each one weekly. Essentially, Netflix hopes their original series inspires the "binge watching" in which many customers end up using the service for (especially college students). After my experience, I have no doubt that it will.

Season 4, more like Season SNORE! AYOO!

When I am asked what my favorite TV show is, I, with a stroke of pride, reply "Community". Well, until tonight that is. Now, I am preemptively appending that response to "Community Seasons 1-3".

I do not envy the position that the Community writers faced entering this season. With cult-worshipped and studio-hated showrunner Dan Harmon gone, those in charge of the show were left with the predicament of satisfying the studio's demands while also emulating the unique voice of the show's creator.

The first episode without Harmon was funny, don't get me wrong. But it was missing something.

To be honest, it felt like the show was tied up to a chair, and the writers kept beating it to death with rulers while yelling "CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT! MAKE IT META! THESE ARE THINGS PEOPLE LIKE!". In short, characters became caricatures, as did the show.

Community worked for three amazing seasons building up these complex, funny, multi-faceted characters, the shining example being Abed, a fan favorite. This first episode turned his entire personality and made it a meta gimmick (a decision that old Abed would have look down upon as well).

The first three seasons of Community taught me something as a writer. Character development doesn't equal change; sometimes it is about how characters don't change. In Season 3's "Virtual System Analysis", Annie spends an entire episode exploring Abed's mind in a very literal way. At the end of the episode, we are left with a better understanding of Abed, and the knowledge that he understands himself better as well (he never uses empathy). This helps explain his actions throughout the rest of the series.

In this first episode of Season 4, we also journey into Abed's mind. He is upset about everybody leaving Greendale (a conflict introduced this episode) and learns that everybody will grow up eventually (a resolution reached in the same episode).

It is hard to pinpoint exactly what the problem I had with the episode was, but I imagine it resonates with "change". Abed's drastic change in character over the episode more or less represented the drastic change the show has undergone.

Before I found myself wishing for "Six Seasons and a Movie!". Now I found myself begging for "Three Seasons and Nothing Else".

Too critical?

I have always been a fan of Disney movies.  Always.  I still go to see Disney and Pixar movies in theaters, and still feel the same amount of joy I did when I was a little girl.  I contribute this feeling to two things - 1) me being such a child at heart and 2) because Disney is doing something right.  I came across a blog that brought up a lot of points that I didn't necessarily agree with, but at the same time sort of understood.

"I want my children to be able to experience the same movies, however, as an informed adult I am not sure I want to support a company that produces racism, sexism, violence and many other politically incorrect issues."

*Sigh* Alright... first of all, we need to consider the time that most of these movies were created.  Most classic Disney movies came out decades ago, where these issues of racism, sexism, and violence were relevant to the time.  Not to mention, the "offensive" characters are usually the villains.  A huge controversy began over the line "Where they cut off your ears if they don't like your face" from Aladdin.  I have seen Aladdin many times on VHS (aka BEFORE the line was changed to "where it's flat and immense and the heat is intense") and never did I find that line offensive until I actually read about it and became and informed adult.  Five year old Courtney didn't even notice this line, she was more concerned on the music and the color and the animation.  

"Perhaps the most offensive and ignorant part of any movie is simply the size and body image of Ariel in "The Little Mermaid". Her figure is completely unrealistic and the it also gives the message that if a girl is beautiful, skinny, and has large breasts and long flowing hair she can date any man no matter what her personality may be."

Sure, Disney favors the attractive.  I have never watched a Disney film with an ugly princess or where the prince wasn't chiseled to perfection.  But let's open our eyes- that's media.  Media favors the "attractive".  The focus in these films is never about how the characters look, but what they achieve.  It's their attitude and their perseverance that takes them far, not their good looks. 

"Even though I loved Disney movies as a child and would not give up watching them even because of all the politically incorrect and inappropriate messages I still think they are valuable to children's imagination and fantasies. I will have to grapple with the idea of showing them to my children, and it will be a difficult decision"

Alright.  Take a deep breath.  They're not that bad.  Most children don't comprehend the more "adult" based content in these movies.  I know I didn't.  None of my opinons on races, politics, or sex stem from Disney films.  Not to mention, Disney is improving their variety.  Example: "The Princess and the Frog" features an African American princess... see?  They're making strides.

Media is media.  It's always going to be skewed.  

     The Sci-Fi television and movie series Star Trek is releasing a new movie in May.  This series first began in 1966 and has since grown into a world of its own.  With 6 different television series' and 12 different movies the Star Trek franchise may soon be hitting the end of its run.  The latest movie is the sequel to a new series of movies that has predated everything we have seen before.  The characters take up the rolls of the original cast of Captain Kirk traveling the galaxy with his crew and starship, but the crew is much younger.  The series shows a lot of the back story of the characters in what was developed 40 years ago in the original series.  The latest series is action packed and emphasizing the special effects that was not there 40 years ago.

     Since its beginning Star Trek has had loyal fans who enjoy the development of new ideas and new series'.  The creativity of the episodes where we meet new species with different abilities and freak looking faces inspired the development of many other Sci-Fi series'.  The franchise has participated in the creative ability to develop other life forms with social issues and emotions similar to our own.  The character development of the relationships between the different species is one of the fine points in the Star Trek series, main point being Kirks relationship with Spock.

I hope that the producers at CBS and director, JJ Abrams, continue to keep the story line as one of the main parts in the Star Trek series.  Many loyal fans are excited about the new movie and latest series but fear for what might happen to the timeline and history that the Star trek series has developed.

The Happening

Watching movies during the day is supposedly a risky decision. I say this because the only movie on the just above basic cable package was "The Happening" with Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel. This horror movie has a weird genetic mutation in plants reaping havoc in the north east. Nobody can explain what exactly"it" is but it is killing entire populations in the northeastern part of the country. The story has a struggling married couple (Wahlberg and Deschenel) rediscovering their love through this dramatic experience. Basically the most cliche plot to a horror movie possible.

It wasn't the terrible plot that turned me off from this movie. Instead it was the terrible special effects that they used to simulate "the happening". Due to the fact that this air poison was supposedly transmitted through plants, every time another area would be infected this howling wind would sweep through the area and love everything dead in its trail. That was the best simulation you could come up with? A big breeze like the one that happens right before a rain storm starts? For a movie with two big name actors as leads and a proven director, you would have thought they could come up with something that wasn't so cheesy. It was just a terrible attempt to sell the mutation that really took away from the scariness of the movie.

The one thing this movie has going for it was the added layer to the plot that comes into play at the end. The movie ends up being a metaphor for what we are doing to our environment as scientist chalk up "the happening" to the plants reacting to the pollution in the air. So in the end the movie had a good message which made it a little bit more than just another cliche thriller. It saved what was a terrible performance by Mark Wahlberg and just a cheesy all around horror movie.

I got it! I got it! I don't got it.

Tonight I've been able to knock another off another from my list-

All I have to say is that I love Mel Brooks even more than I already did (and that's a lot of love). 

This movie is a parody of about 10 Alfred Hitchock films- and each done so well that Hitchock himself loved it. Seriously- Brooks dedicated the movie to him at the beginning of the film. He also had a private screening for Hitchock and after the movie, he left without a word! Brooks thought that the film icon had hated it- but actually the complete opposite! Hitchock sent Brooks wine congratulating him on a job well done. Pretty sure that's one of the highest compliments anyone could ever get- ever.

High Anxiety is about Dr. Richard H. Thorndyke, a highly regarded Psychiatrist from the East coast and comes over to the West coast to run the:  

                                      

PsychoNeurotic Institute for the Very, Very Nervous. Here in the institute you meet Cloris Leachman as the very manly, pointy-breasted nurse and Harvey Korman as another doctor who was going to run the institute before Thorndyke arrived. Having been a HUGE Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein fan for years, it did my heart good seeing Frau Blucher and Hedley Lamarr get um... *ahem* kinky? Also, anytime I see Madeline Kahn in anything- I know it's going to be good.

So many direct spoofs from his movies are so well done that you had to know that Brooks watched Hitchocks films on repeat- like for example...

The shower scene from Psycho. We all know how it goes down in Psycho, but in High Anxiety, Brook's character has been asking the bellhop to get him a copy of the newspaper since he got to the hotel. The bellhop, not being the nicest/sane guy in town, rolls up the newspaper and stabs Brooks's with it and leaves. Instead of the usual blood we would have seen, instead we see the ink go down the drain and Brooks looks like he's dead but then blurts out "He's not getting a tip". If it wasn't for the fact my room mate has been asleep for almost two hours, I would have laughed so hard out loud. 

(Even the opening scene where Thorndyke goes through the airport seemed so hilarious once you put it in context- just watching everyone's face as the plane goes for the landing and then you see Brooks- Lordy that's the exact look my mom gets whenever we're on a plane...)

Due to this movie, I know understand why my parents always joke about the drapes (seeing as my dad is a psychologist) and when ever I say I'm getting anxious, my dad will always sing "Hiiiigh Anggggg-sietyyyy". And I got that it was from the movie but I thought he was just being a dad but nope. Mel Brooks takes a jab at Frank Sinatra while he's at it... Ahhh... Mel Brooks...

If you are either an Alfred Hitchcock fan, Mel Brooks fan, thriller fanatic, or a comedy enthusiast, High Anxiety is probably one of the best films you could see. So if you want to hear Mel Brooks sing or just get a brief idea of the movie, watch the video I have at the bottom- It's of the movie's theme.

                                       

Jeff, Who Lives At Home

This week I watched the film Jeff, Who Lives at Home starring Jason Segel, Ed Helms, and Susan Sarandon. Jeff (Segel) is a 30-year old stoner currently living in the basement of his mother's (Sarandon) house. With his life lacking direction, Jeff receives an angry phone call from a man asking for a someone by the name of "Kevin". Rather than ignoring the phone call, Jeff decides to spend that day chasing all things related to the name "Kevin".

Pat, (Helms) Jeff's older brother, is a overzealous businessman who is having a troublesome relationship with his wife. Jeff coincidentally runs into Pat and decides that destiny brought them together in order to solve each others life problems. Pat however is much more skeptical to his brother's mindset and insists that he is just high and not thinking correctly. 

The film does a very good job at viewing life in a different sort of perspectives. The opposition between Jeff, who views life in a mystical perspective and his brother Pat, who treats life much more seriously creates a great parallel for the audience. 

I think it's important to always stop and live in the moment and I believe this film did a great job conveying that message. I would recommend the film to all.

Thoughts on OZ The Great And The Powerful

"Oz The Great And The Powerful" is a prequel film to "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz". The star of the film James Franco is a magician who ends up in the this mystical land, complicating the lives of several witches, Evanora, Glinda, and Theodora, played by Rachel Weisz, Michelle Williams and Mila Kunis. As the troubled magician tries to cope with his struggles with the women, he soon finds himself heading down a path that exposes him to his prominent destiny.

Director, Sam Raimi seems to have created a colorful and vibrant style of the land of Oz for all types of audiences to experience with a great sense of familiarity and new astonishment. The colors are so beautiful and practically pop out of the big screen. Disney used this similar approach of bright colors and outstanding effects for their fantastic film, "Alice In Wonderland". I think anyone could be excited about the release of this film.


For me, the most outstanding part of the HD trailer is the clearly the opening. We (the audience) are brought back to a Kansas in a dilapidated state, in all black and white footage. Those scenes immediately bring back direct memories of the original Oz movie, which was created by King Vidor. With the drastic difference between the black and white scenes and then the magnificent rainbow, and then the vibrant colors of the main plot, creates even more drastic contrast.When it comes to the for three leading female actresses, Weisz is certainly not the most evil of witches we’ve ever seen but has the potential, and Mila Kunis seems to be a little out of place. But, Michelle Williams seems to have effortlessly slipped into her role as Glinda the “good” witch who would go on to, as we all know, give a girl named Dorothy some very important ruby slippers.

I really think everyone should go out and see this film. I doubt Raimi is going to upset anyone.







Enjoy!

Super Bowl Commercial

Seeing that the Super Bowl is this evening, I thought that I would write about a commercial. Some of the Super Bowl commercials are usually the best commercials of the year. I think they are sort of expected to seeing that the average cost of a 30-second ad during the 2013 Super Bowl costs approximately $3.8 million.

One of the best commercials that I have ever seen made its debut during the 2011 Super Bowl. It was titled "The Force" and it was a Volkswagen commercial for the new 2012 Volkswagen Passat. The commercial shows a little boy, dressed in a Darth Vader costume, pretending to use the force. The boy attempts to use the force on a stair master, a dog, a washing machine and a baby doll. The boy's father then pulls into the driveway with his 2012 Passat. The little boy rushes out and tries to use the force on the new car. All of a sudden the car turns on and the boy seems shocked. The commercial then shows that the father turned the engine on remotely using his keys. Even though the little boy was wearing a Darth Vader mask, you could still see how stunned and surprised he was.

The reason why I love this commercial is because it is a Star Wars parody. There are no words and it is a very simple commercial but it advertises the product very well. I also really enjoy how throughout the entire commercial, the Star Wars music is playing in the background. "The Force" is a great commercial that I can watch over and over and still laugh at the end.

Homeland: The Showtime Series

Homeland is a Showtime series starring Carrie Mathison, a bipolar CIA Agent who attempts to keep her mental sickness hidden from the CIA. She works with others to stop terrorist attacks on America, all formulated by the terrorist leader Abu Nazir. During her undercover work, she hears that an American prisoner of war has been turned. This causes much suspicion in her when Sergeant Nicholas Brody is uncovered and returned to America after eight years as a prisoner. None of her other colleagues believe her suspicions, so she pursues this question with the help of a freelance operative, Virgil. As the viewer, you find our she is correct early in the series, but she cannot find the information to prove it. With dramatic twists and a breakdown that leads Carrie to using shock therapy treatment, this show keeps you on the edge of your seat.   

In my opinion, this show is phenomenal and one of the best shows on television. Claire Daines, who plays Carrie Mathison, plays an incredible character because she acts like she is actually bipolar. Her character is so convincing, that it makes the show that much better. In addition, Damian Lewis’s character Nicholas Brody, the turned POW, pushes the plot along so well because of all the questions his family and the CIA ask. He thickens the plot even more when Abu Nazir pushes him into running for Congressman. The combination of these two characters creates a thrilling show, and combined with the underlying methods of characters, such as David Estes and Abu Nazir, this show is a must see. 

Movies Viewed Through the Nostalgia Goggles and Younger Siblings That Make You Watch Them

For the most part the Disney Company has the childhoods of those who grew up anywhere between the 1940's through the early 2000's by the short hairs. Hand drawn animation was big back then, and Disney presented some of it's best movies (The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, The Lion King, and Beauty and the Beast ) to the world. These movies combined songs reminiscent of Broadway song and dance numbers, with remixed fairy tales (Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid),  stories from The Arabian Nights (Aladdin), and works of The Bard (The Lion King (a loose, remixed rendition of Hamlet)). However by 2002 what became known as the Disney Rennisance had long since ended, but the company was still pushing out animated movies at a rate of at least one a year. One of these later Disney movies is Treasure Planet.

Produced by Disney, Ron Clements and John Musker (both of whom directed the film), Treasure Planet was released into theaters Nov, 27th, 2002. The story is pretty much Treasure Island meets science fiction, with ships that literally sail the skies (e.g. outer space), aliens, futuristic weapons, the whole nine yards. The animation of the movie is a mix of mostly traditionally drawn sets and characters and computer animation (done with a animating program known as Deep Canvas).

I saw this movie with my Dad when it first came out in 2002, and we both loved it. As far as I was concerned, the critics who did bad reviews of this movie, had no clue what they were talking about. The story is a classic (one of which I've read), and the adaptions they made to it were wonderful in my eyes. The character design was interesting, and certain scenes were utterly beautiful (when the R.L.S. Legacy launches, the comet scene, the shots of space, ect), not to mention the music (which continues to pop into my head whenever I'm on a boat). This is essentially what I thought of the flick when I first saw it when I was eleven.

Currently I'm 21, with two little brothers who have inherited my VHS copy of the movie. Recently on one of my trips home, they asked me and my dad to watch it with them. Looking back at this piece of my childhood, through the eyes of my little brothers, I still don't find fault with it. The only complaint that I can think of, is that the song "I'm Still Here" (written and preformed by The Goo Goo Dolls lead singer, John Rzeznik), would probably have been a better fit in the movie's credits instead of in the middle of it. Aside from the song in the ending credits, this is the only lyrical song in the whole feature, the rest of the music consists of musical scores. To me this is a slight continuity issue, in what is otherwise one of the great Disney flicks.

The Brilliance of Nolan

Last night seemed to be a quiet evening, so what better way to spend it than enjoying a film with my closest friends.  We settled on The Dark Knight Rises, the epic third part of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy.  The movie, which came out this past summer, smashed its way into the box office and immediately became a huge success in the eyes of movie goers, and super hero fans.  Christopher Nolan's brilliance was really proven with the release of the 2nd movie from the trilogy The Dark Knight.  

Personally I see such creative, and impressive filmmaking and I can't help but wonder why this movie was snubbed at the Academy Awards as well as the Golden Globes.  The race for the Oscars this year is obviously a very close one however I can't see how such visual storytelling did not emerge it's self into the race.  The Dark Knight was nominated for 8 Academy Awards, winning two: sound editing, and best supporting actor.  In such an impressive movie trilogy, I don't understand how this one falls so short for the critics.  Nolan has produced a series of incredible movies, only receiving 3 nominations total even if he receives praise everywhere else you look.  His 3 nominations were for original screenplay for Memento and Inception, also scoring a best picture nom for Inception.  

I find Nola's work to be incredibly deep, and ascetically imaginative with his directing.  I can never quite understand why the Academy always seems to not recognize Nolan's directing after his phenomenal work in all of his movies.  I think he reinvented the comic book character, and brought an entirely new spin on such a classic story, really bringing it into the modern day world and not a fantasy land of Gotham City.  I can't wait to see what he does with the new Superman flick Man of Steel.  I hope that Man of Steel, much like The Dark Knight Trilogy, and even this years hit Bond flick Skyfall, brings a new generation of movie goers into the stories that are simply outdated, and reinvents them in the way that keep the characters and plots updated with the times, and relevant in today's society.  

Based Off a True Story

This week, as usual, I was scrolling through my Netflix to try to find something to keep me entertained.  I clicked on the film The Freedom Writers directed by Richard LaGravenese.  I had heard things about The Freedom Writers through my mom, who loves this movie.  So, I decided to watch it.

The story told in The Freedom Writers is not a light one.  There is power in the words of this story, and the crazy part is that it is based off of a true story.  I always feel like there is pressure from recreating a true story, especially if it is as emotional as this one.  

Two things that really stood out to me were the writing and the acting.  The story was eloquently written.  The writing was based off of the diaries of student's emotional lives and battles.  But what is a story without actors to tell it?  The acting in this film was incredible as well.  Hilary Swank played the role of the ambitious Erin Gruwell, and nailed it.  But it was the chemistry between her and the many actors that played her group of gang ridden students that made this movie so powerful.

Aesthetically, this film was not outstanding, but at the same time not poorly done.   Applying what we learned in class, I saw many shots where the frame was based around the Golden Ratio.  See? Here's just one example right here.

Another thing I noticed was that the camera would be filming handheld in times of high intensity or high emotions.  In times where there was less action or emotion, the camera was filming on a steady surface, whether that be a dolly or a tripod.  Nothing about this films aesthetics was poor, but nothing stood out, either.  I can understand that though, since The Freedom Writers is a movie that is highly dependent on the story and the way the actors tell it.