Journal # 6 REVISED

Easy A: Brief Screening Report
 
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easy_A
 

The most important scene occurs in chapter 13 of the movie Easy A, when Olive’s mother enters and hands her a gift from Brandon, who she pretended to have sex with the night before at Melanie Bostix’s party. She had told him that if he pretended to be straight he would be accepted by their peers. Inside the gift box she finds a vibrator and a gift card to Target along with a card saying, “in case you don’t like Target you can go screw yourself.” Rhiannon, Olive’s best friend calls to verify the previous night’s events and tells Olive that “everyone and I mean everyone, thinks she is a skank.” Outraged Olive says, “If people thought I was a dirty skank, fine, I was going to be the dirtiest skank they’ve ever seen” and goes out to buy red fabric and skimpy clothing that are two sizes too small. She stays up in her room cutting out and sewing red A’s onto her entire wardrobe as reference to The Scarlet Letter, which is a book that Olive is reading in her English class.

I feel this is a very important seen because it’s after this scene that sets the audience up for the rest of the movie. Without this scene viewers would be lost. The rest of the movie unfolds with Olive receiving gift cards from several guys for sexual favors that are never actually performed. People really believe that she is a skank and is selling her body for money when in reality she is still a virgin. It shows how words can truly affect someone’s image and that person has to live with the consequences of events that haven’t occurred.

Journal #4 REVISED

Bridesmaids: Not your Average Chick Flick

 http://feministing.com/2012/02/28/guest-post-slate-writers-defense-of-bridesmaids-misses-the-mark/

 

 "I don't associate with people who blame the world for their problems. You are your problem. You are also your solution." This is a quote from my favorite movie, Bridesmaids, released in 2011. This is a hilarious movie with great female actresses including Kristin Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Maya Rudolf, Rose Byrne and Rebel Wilson. This diverse group of women is what makes this movie an unforgettable and unique film; this is not your average chick flick.  The film takes place in Milwaukee, WI where Annie, the maid of honor, strives to gain the approval from the other bridesmaids in the pre wedding activities. In my favorite scene, Annie plans the bachelorette party to be celebrated at Lillian’s parents’ cottage while Helen and the other bridesmaids had plans on a night in Las Vegas. On the plane ride to Vegas, Annie is stuck in coach while the other girls are in first class.  Helen gives Annie some alcohol and a pill that she says is supposed to help with anxiety, however Annie gets out of control saying there is a “colonial woman on the wing churning butter” resulting in the whole group kicked off the plane and back to Milwaukee. This is just one of many battles between Helen and Annie for the recognition from Lillian and the other bridesmaids.

Journal #1 REVISED

K'naan: An artist of Hope 

http://thebeatdfw.com/2039015/listen-to-knaans-new-album-country-god-or-the-girl/

K'naan is a cultural singer/rap artist who I was lucky enough to see perform live, in Minnesota. He is an inspirational singer putting his life experiences in song. Growing up in Somalia, he had a rough childhood, living on the streets. His song "Waving Flag" became the anthem for South Africa's World Cup in 2010. The song provides great optimism not only for K'naan and his fans but for the fans of soccer. The chorus states "When I get older, I will be stronger. They'll call me freedom, just like a waving flag." Many people can find comfort in the lyrics of this song and hope for the future.

His newest album entitled Country, God or the Girl shows a debate between loyalty to one's nation, faith and love. These are three components very close to the heart of K’naan. The last song on the album called The Wall sounds similar to a song that got him global attention with African pop melodies. His lyrics allow people to "expand boundaries by removing boundaries to foster togetherness and hope." His music unites people from various nations, showing that we all have a common thread that connects us, which is hope.

Brief Screen Report

In chapter 13 of the movie Easy A, Olive’s mother enters and hands her a gift from Brandon, who she pretended to have sex with the night before at Melanie Bostix’s party. She had told him that if he pretended to be straight he would be accepted by their peers. Inside the gift box she finds a vibrator and a gift card to Target along with a card saying, “in case you don’t like Target you can go screw yourself.” Rhiannon, Olive’s best friend calls to verify the previous night’s events and tells Olive that “everyone and I mean everyone, thinks she is a skank.” Outraged Olive says, “If people thought I was a dirty skank, fine, I was going to be the dirtiest skank they’ve ever seen” and goes out to buy red fabric and skimpy clothing that are two sizes too small. She stays up in her room cutting out and sewing red A’s onto her entire wardrobe as reference to The Scarlet Letter, which is a book that Olive is reading in her English class.

I feel this is a very important seen because this scene sets the audience up for the rest of the movie. The rest of the movie unfolds with Olive receiving gift cards from several guys for sexual favors that are never actually performed. People really believe that she is a skank and is selling her body for money when in reality she is still a virgin. It shows how words can truly affect someone’s image and that person has to live with the consequences of events that haven’t occurred.

Realism, Anti-Realism and Genre Setting

According to Barasm- Realism and Anti Realism, realism is complex and often times viewed as an illusion. It can be defined as viewing scenes of everyday life with common experiences. For example the setting in films can be considered realistic when taking place in a typical environment such as a small town or a high school. Anti-realism then is the opposite of realism and being abstract. So looking at setting again the movie Avatar may be considered anti realism because of the unique idea of creating Avatars in a virtual universe. Then we have verisimilitude, which can be described as the combination of realism and anti-realism. This technique convinces the viewer that what they are seeing on screen really can exist in the world the movie has created. The best example of this that I can think of is The Matrix.  The Matrix starts off with an ordinary man living in his normal everyday life but as the movie progresses reality starts to transform and we lose what is real and what is in the world of the Matrix. 

Typical settings for horror movies are dark and dreary. One element that is always reoccurring in horror films is storms. When there is a significant part about to happen there is rain pouring out of the sky, loud thunder and cracks of lightning. This sets an uncomfortable setting that lets the viewer know something is about to happen. In the movie When a Stranger Calls, the babysitter in the house believes somebody is outside the house watching her so she decides to go out and find out for herself. As she does this the wind and rain are blowing very hard making it hard for the character to see or hear what is really going on. The loud noises from the tress blowing in the wind and the rain pelting down don’t allow the babysitter to fully hear if someone is watching her from outside. She is also unable to see clearly with the rain as if she were going out to look on a clear night.

Journal #4

"I don't associate with people who blame the world for their problems. You are your problem. You are also your solution." This is a quote from my favorite movie, Bridesmaids, released in 2011. This is a hilarious movie with great female actresses including Kristin Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Maya Rudolf, Rose Byrne and Rebel Wilson. This diverse group of women is what makes this movie an unforgettable and unique film; this is not your average chick flick.  The film takes place in Milwaukee, WI where Annie, the maid of honor, strives to gain the approval from the other bridesmaids in the pre wedding activities. In my favorite scene, Annie plans the bachelorette party to be celebrated at Lillian’s parents’ cottage. Helen on the other hand plans a night in Las Vegas. All of the bridesmaids have their own reason as to why they would rather go to Las Vegas than spend it at Lillian’s parents ‘cottage. On the plane ride to Vegas, Annie is stuck in coach while the other girls are in first class.  Helen gives Annie some alcohol and a pill that she says is supposed to help with anxiety, however Annie gets out of control saying there is a “colonial woman on the wing churning butter” resulting in the whole group kicked off the plane and back to Milwaukee. This is just one of many battles between Helen and Annie for the recognition from Lillian and the other bridesmaids. 

Glitter Nail Design Co Author Amelia Olsen

Girls, do you want a salon quality manicure without the hassle and expense of going to a salon? Do you hate painting your nails and just a few days later they are already chipping? If you answered yes to either of these questions here are some helpful tips for you.  With these quick and easy steps we will teach you how to prep your nails successfully, apply smooth coats, and save money all at the same time.

Religion in Movies

Tonight I attended a thought provoking lecture about religion in movies. Upon arriving to the lecture, I was greeted by students dressed as ushers with popcorn, soda, and candy to make each person feel as if they were attending a movie. Shanny Luft, apart of the Philosophy Department, went over the evangelical attitudes about film during the 20th century. There are about 60 million Protestants who refer themselves to be Evangelicals. These people believe in the spirit of revivalism.  Fundamentalists are similar to Evangelicals in the sense that they too also believe in spirit of revivalism and being reborn again but they make themselves separate from society while Evangelicals are more involved. Fundamentalists were known to be "militant defenders. "
Many books in the early 1900's stated that Christians should not go to movies. Fundamentalists would see poeple lining up to get into the theater and not as many people going to the church. They were constantly competing for the audience. Also felt that the actors should not portray things that they are not. Actors were often in intimate scenes with people who were not their significant other. Is this a form of fidelity in real life. If an actor commits murder on screen, are they then a murder in real life? Fundamentalists were concerned with these aspects but what is ironic is they never discuss the content of the movies themselves. This is obviously because they never attended movies.

Evangelists ironically love media. They especially loved radio and thought it was a great way to communicate information. They were opposed with how Hollywood portrayed actors as living these luxurious lives. This can be somewhat connected to today's society. Luft added that he started writing his dissertation before having kids but after they were born he became worried about how media was going to affect his children growing up. Movies and video games often distort reality especially for young children.
Overall the lecture was very intriguing and made very interesting points that I had never thoroughly considered before. 

K'naan

 http://www.google.com/imgres/2012/09/10/knaan-country-god-or-the-girl-artwork/   
Pop matters article - K'naan: Country, God or the Girl by Ross Langager

K'nann is an cultural singer/rap  artist who I was lucky enough to see perform live in Minnesota. He is an inspirational singer putting his life experiences in song. Growing up in Somalia, he had a rough childhood, living on the streets. His song "Waving Flag" became the anthem for South Africa's World Cup in 2010. The song provides great optimism not only for K'naan and his fans but for the fans of soccer. The chorus states "When I get older, I will be stronger. They'll call me freedom, just like a waving flag." Many found comfort in the lyrics of this song.
His newest album entitled Country, God or the Girl shows a debate between loyalty to one's nation, faith and love. These are three components very close to his heart. The last song on the album called The Wall sounds similar to the song that got him global attention with African pop melodies. His lyrics allow people to "expand boundaries by removing boundaries to foster togetherness and hope." His music unites people from various nations, showing that we all have a common thread that connects us, hope.

How to transorm nails for Halloween!

Start off by painting your nails with a top coat to protect your natural nails. Allow this to dry for a few seconds. Then paint each nail with 1 coat of white polish, allow that to dry. Then take orange polish and paint half of the nail with that color. I usually free hand this but to make it easier take a piece of scotch tape placing it horizontally over half of your nail that way you are left with a clean line. Alow that to dry. Then with yellow polish paint the tips of your nail for the final part of the candy corn sequence. To ensure the polish is dry, place your nails in a small bowl of ice water for 30 seconds. The ice water freezes the polish making it completely dry. Lastly apply one layer of a top coat to prevent nails from chpping and a longer lasting manicure.

 

http://www.keepitahundred.com/

Maraniss: Winning Isn't Actually Winning

  In the Washington Post, Maraniss discusses his bitter attitude sparked by Sheldon Aldeson who quoted Vince Lombardi as saying "winning isn't everything, it's the only thing.  Lombardi was a coach who was very tough on his players and wanted them to be clean players. Then Monday's game came along and Maraniss was livid at the calls that were being made. His world, like all Packer fans was turned upside down and they were all left with disbelief. He then continues to say how he wasn't very upset with the replacement referees but more so with the coach of the Sea hawks because they felt they had won a close game.

To call myself a football fan would be an understatement. While I do support all Wisconsin sports, I only find myself watching the game if someone else puts it on and  when they do I have no idea what is going on. I did however hear about the horrible calls being made against the packers and how upset the state of Wisconsin became. After reading the article by Mariniss I agree that the Sea hawks should be ashamed of themselves for acting as if they have one a close game when that was not the case at all. I also agree that Vince Lombardi was a great coach and he wasn't known for saying Winning was the only thing.

Disconnected Response

I found the Disconnected video interesting and frustrating at the same time. I respect the students for their ambition to go 3 weeks without a computer however I wouldn’t be able to last that long without my computer because it is a necessity for school. (This assignment is being turned in via the internet.) The video did a great job showing the positive and negatives of using the computer. The students said that without the computer they felt bored so they would spend more time outside, going for a walk through the woods. This is something that most people don’t do because they are consumed in the use of their computer. It is the ultimate package; with movies, iTunes, YouTube, twitter, Facebook and games all in one. One professor said he was afraid people had an addiction to technology.

            Teachers and outside public saw this task as impossible because the world has been transformed by technology. There are no longer card catalogs at the library; it’s all done online now. Andrew’s Chinese professor told him to complete his assignments when he was able to use the internet and wouldn’t give him an alternative route. He reacted similar to what I would have by giving up and using the internet so he wouldn’t fall behind. He questioned his motives for going through with this task. He also said he blogs to get his emotions out and uses that as a stress reliever. I can see how that is a positive aspect for the internet.

Video: Casey Abrams

My First Post!

Cute Koala Bear



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