Howl comes out September 24th, and it's probably going to be awesome. James Franco, David Straithairn, and Jeff Daniels in a movie about Allen Ginsberg? Yes please.
Showing posts with label movies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label movies. Show all posts
04 August 2010
04 June 2009
IFF-y Movies
There used to be a small independent theater in McMinnville, a short half-hour drive from my house. This is where I went to see movies like Miyazaki's "Howl's Moving Castle" on the big screen because the multi-cine-whatever-plex down the street didn't show movies like that. Then, right before "Science of Sleep" was released, they closed. I can remember being rather unhappy about this because I had really wanted to see that movie, but would have had to somehow get up to Portland to do so. (Funny story - I still haven't seen that movie. I guess I should probably do that at some point.) Eventually, I learned that going up to Portland was the only option for seeing independent or limited release films that no one in my hometown cared about. I forget just how many movies I saw up there or which ones, but I know that "Smart People" was among them.
When I moved to Boston, I realized that my movie-watching horizons were suddenly ridiculously open. AMC Lowes and Regal own a lot of theaters in the Boston area, and there are at least three that are accessible by the T from MIT (Harvard Square, Boston Common and Fenway). There are also a number of smaller, independent theaters (though the large corporate ones do a good job of showing a wide variety of movies most of the time) in the Cambridge area (Kendall Square, Somerville Theater in Davis Square, and the Brattle Theater in Harvard Square).
By April, all the movies I had seen (that weren't put on by LSC) had been at the AMC theater at Boston Common. Thanks to the wonderful properties of Twitter, however, I soon discovered that Boston has a film festival, meaning more opportunities to see good movies! The Independent Film Festival (IFF) of Boston was primarily located at the Somerville Theater, with a few films at the Institute for Contemporary Art. After figuring out my schedule, I promptly bought tickets online for three films: "500 Days of Summer", "Upstream Battle" and "Art & Copy". I wish that I could have fit "The Brothers Bloom" in, but I had p-sets due, so I guess I'll see it sometime this summer.
(500) Days of Summer
One of my favorite movies of all time is "Brick", a modern-day film noir set in a California high school, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt. When I heard that he was in "(500) Days of Summer" I instantly knew that I'd be seeing it at some point. It was featured at IFF, but it's official release date is July 17th (yep, the same weekend as Harry Potter 6). To be perfectly honest, I can't recommend this movie enough.
Zooey Deschanel costars, and the acting is superb. It's definitely a quirky movie, which I suppose means that some people won't like it. It chronicles a break-up, and bounces around between different days of the 500 days Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is in love with Summer (Zooey Deschanel). While I felt that the concept of the film not progressing chronologically was annoying, it actually proved to be fantastic in practice. By switching the date between the early days of their relationship and the later dates, the overall emotion of the film would change instantly, but rather than be obnoxious it created comedy. Despite the fact that this was a break-up movie, I was laughing the entire time. I thought it was hilarious.
Basically, you should go see this movie. Oh, and don't be late; right before the movie began, there was a short disclaimer similar to an "author's note" that was worth seeing because it's hilarious.
Upstream Battle
Focusing on the Native American tribes living in the Klamath Basin of southern Oregon/northern California, Ben Kempas's documentary follows their battle with the local power corporation. They're not complaining about prices, they're complaining about fish. The PacifiCorp power company operates four dams on the river, generating electricity for Oregon and California. Unfortunately, the dams are responsible for massive die-offs in the local salmon population. The tribes along the river rely on the salmon, that return to the river to spawn, for food. The ecology of the dams and the salmon population can get fairly complex, but the documentary did an amazing job of presenting it in an understandable way. The film is an eye-opening glimpse into the cultures of the tribes, as well as how large corporations respond to whistle-blowing. Also, we learn that Warren Buffett apparently doesn't care about salmon.
I'm not sure about release dates; the film seems to be hitting the festival circuit. Check out the website for screening information.
Art & Copy
In high school I was involved in several FFA contests that involved advertisement design and marketing, so I thought that a documentary focusing on some of the most well-known ad campaigns would be incredibly interesting. I was right in my assumption that it would be interesting, but I can't say that it was my favorite of the three films I saw at IFF. They covered the history of notable ads (e.g. Apple's 1984 ad, Nike's "Just Do It" campaign), and they also followed a man who posts billboards for a living, and the launching of communications sattelites. To be perfectly honest, I think they should have left out the latter two story lines. The film seemed to jump around a lot, and histories were fragmented in such a way that it was a little difficult to follow at a couple of points. No details were given about the sattelites, and all that was shown was a series of shots of a shuttle slowly creeping toward the launch pad. In the end, I think it's worth seeing, mostly because the history of such recognizable advertisements and icons in our society is fascinating.
When I moved to Boston, I realized that my movie-watching horizons were suddenly ridiculously open. AMC Lowes and Regal own a lot of theaters in the Boston area, and there are at least three that are accessible by the T from MIT (Harvard Square, Boston Common and Fenway). There are also a number of smaller, independent theaters (though the large corporate ones do a good job of showing a wide variety of movies most of the time) in the Cambridge area (Kendall Square, Somerville Theater in Davis Square, and the Brattle Theater in Harvard Square).
By April, all the movies I had seen (that weren't put on by LSC) had been at the AMC theater at Boston Common. Thanks to the wonderful properties of Twitter, however, I soon discovered that Boston has a film festival, meaning more opportunities to see good movies! The Independent Film Festival (IFF) of Boston was primarily located at the Somerville Theater, with a few films at the Institute for Contemporary Art. After figuring out my schedule, I promptly bought tickets online for three films: "500 Days of Summer", "Upstream Battle" and "Art & Copy". I wish that I could have fit "The Brothers Bloom" in, but I had p-sets due, so I guess I'll see it sometime this summer.
(500) Days of Summer
One of my favorite movies of all time is "Brick", a modern-day film noir set in a California high school, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt. When I heard that he was in "(500) Days of Summer" I instantly knew that I'd be seeing it at some point. It was featured at IFF, but it's official release date is July 17th (yep, the same weekend as Harry Potter 6). To be perfectly honest, I can't recommend this movie enough.
Zooey Deschanel costars, and the acting is superb. It's definitely a quirky movie, which I suppose means that some people won't like it. It chronicles a break-up, and bounces around between different days of the 500 days Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is in love with Summer (Zooey Deschanel). While I felt that the concept of the film not progressing chronologically was annoying, it actually proved to be fantastic in practice. By switching the date between the early days of their relationship and the later dates, the overall emotion of the film would change instantly, but rather than be obnoxious it created comedy. Despite the fact that this was a break-up movie, I was laughing the entire time. I thought it was hilarious.
Basically, you should go see this movie. Oh, and don't be late; right before the movie began, there was a short disclaimer similar to an "author's note" that was worth seeing because it's hilarious.
Upstream Battle
Focusing on the Native American tribes living in the Klamath Basin of southern Oregon/northern California, Ben Kempas's documentary follows their battle with the local power corporation. They're not complaining about prices, they're complaining about fish. The PacifiCorp power company operates four dams on the river, generating electricity for Oregon and California. Unfortunately, the dams are responsible for massive die-offs in the local salmon population. The tribes along the river rely on the salmon, that return to the river to spawn, for food. The ecology of the dams and the salmon population can get fairly complex, but the documentary did an amazing job of presenting it in an understandable way. The film is an eye-opening glimpse into the cultures of the tribes, as well as how large corporations respond to whistle-blowing. Also, we learn that Warren Buffett apparently doesn't care about salmon.
I'm not sure about release dates; the film seems to be hitting the festival circuit. Check out the website for screening information.
Art & Copy
In high school I was involved in several FFA contests that involved advertisement design and marketing, so I thought that a documentary focusing on some of the most well-known ad campaigns would be incredibly interesting. I was right in my assumption that it would be interesting, but I can't say that it was my favorite of the three films I saw at IFF. They covered the history of notable ads (e.g. Apple's 1984 ad, Nike's "Just Do It" campaign), and they also followed a man who posts billboards for a living, and the launching of communications sattelites. To be perfectly honest, I think they should have left out the latter two story lines. The film seemed to jump around a lot, and histories were fragmented in such a way that it was a little difficult to follow at a couple of points. No details were given about the sattelites, and all that was shown was a series of shots of a shuttle slowly creeping toward the launch pad. In the end, I think it's worth seeing, mostly because the history of such recognizable advertisements and icons in our society is fascinating.
24 April 2009
Donuts, Fish, and Maple Syrup
It sounds vaguely like something you'd find at Dunkin' Donuts.
(Okay, I'll stop making fun of Dunkin' Donuts now. I still don't understand why people like them, though. I really just miss Dutch Brothers...)
Something actually ate donuts, fish, and maple syrup, though. But it was a bear. I don't know why, but I found this story to be kind of comical. Maybe it's because of that disgusting food combination...
Wily black bear succumbs to donuts, fish in trap
Coming soon: a blog (with pictures!) about the Of Montreal show I went to (AMAZING!!!), Spring Weekend, and the Independent Film Festival Boston 2009. Sorry I've been a little lax about blogging lately - the term has been a little busy. It's going better than last term, though, and it's almost summer!!!
One last thing: The police definitely called in the bomb squad for this this morning. Clearly, it's not ACTUALLY a bomb, but I think it was probably a good call just to investigate. Better safe than sorry? Sort of like the bomb threats we had in high school (ahhh, public schools...) - it's a pain in the ass to have to deal with bomb squads and whatnot, but it's better than potentially dealing with a bunch of injured bystanders...
(Okay, I'll stop making fun of Dunkin' Donuts now. I still don't understand why people like them, though. I really just miss Dutch Brothers...)
Something actually ate donuts, fish, and maple syrup, though. But it was a bear. I don't know why, but I found this story to be kind of comical. Maybe it's because of that disgusting food combination...
Wily black bear succumbs to donuts, fish in trap
Coming soon: a blog (with pictures!) about the Of Montreal show I went to (AMAZING!!!), Spring Weekend, and the Independent Film Festival Boston 2009. Sorry I've been a little lax about blogging lately - the term has been a little busy. It's going better than last term, though, and it's almost summer!!!
One last thing: The police definitely called in the bomb squad for this this morning. Clearly, it's not ACTUALLY a bomb, but I think it was probably a good call just to investigate. Better safe than sorry? Sort of like the bomb threats we had in high school (ahhh, public schools...) - it's a pain in the ass to have to deal with bomb squads and whatnot, but it's better than potentially dealing with a bunch of injured bystanders...
26 March 2009
WOLVERINES!
Fear not, my dear and faithful readers! I am, in fact, alive. MIT and the usual things that just come up in life have kept me from blogging. Exams, papers, p-sets, resumes and applications for government jobs that probably don't actually exist because of budget cuts (thanks a lot, NRCS), helping run MIT's debate tournament, and Spring Break have basically made life incredibly busy. Well, saying that Spring Break is making my life busy is kind of a lie - I'm spending Spring Break here in Boston, with very little to actually do. I guess I've been exploring the city, using my camera, and reading, instead of blogging. On the upside, I finally saw Watchmen.
(Funny story - I went and saw it by myself in the afternoon a couple of days ago at the AMC Loews (a.k.a. professional wallet rapists - $8.75 for a matinee? REALLY? and $8.50 for a small popcorn and a small soda? REALLY?) in Boston Commons, and looking around the theater, I noticed something. Everyone there was there by themselves. Yep, I saw Watchmen with all of the other single, loser comic book (... I mean, "graphic novel") fans, most of whom were probably seeing it for the fifty bajillionth time. Needless to say, I walked out of that theater with a little less dignity than I walked in there with. Oh, and my verdict on the movie: it was awesome! I don't care that the ending was different, I was completely happy with the movie all the way through.)
I was also pretty excited to get my hands on a copy of the new Decemberists album, The Hazards of Love. Reason #1340974519384 why I love being a member of WMBR: I was listening to The Hazards of Love last Saturday. It came out this past Tuesday. I didn't have to pay for a thing. Promotional copies are fantastic. This new album is the first of their full-lengths to not get a score of at least 8 from Pitchfork, and for once I agree (Pitchfork and I are usually not the best of pals - Pitchfork doesn't know this of course, but I tend to disagree with most of their scores, and their reviewers... but what do I know, right?). While this album clearly has the usual hallmarks of a Decemberists album, it lacks a few elements that make a Decemberists album truly great. This album is much darker than their previous works (yes, it is possible - gone are the days of songs of vindictive sea-faring orphans - they've moved on to talk of killing babies), and the songs are clearly intended to be listened to in order. The single, "The Rake's Song" can only be truly appreciated in context with the other songs on the album, which present the listener with a very detailed and intricate plot line that can occasionally be difficult to follow without the liner notes (which they've generously provided on their website). I once told a friend of mine that of all the musical groups I listen to and love, the only two that I feel can do no wrong are Spoon and the Decemberists. I still feel this way, and will continue to unconditionally love the Decemberists despite The Hazards of Love. I mean, I like it, but I think I'm going to go back to listening to The Crane Wife and Castaways and Cutouts.
There's no rest for MIT students, though. Well, I suppose I could have not done any work over break, but I would have payed dearly for it next week. So interspersed between all the exploring of Boston and photography and literature binges, I've been working on my 14-page museum exhibit design proposal for my writing class. Surprisingly, it hasn't been that bad. Maybe it's because I love writing, or maybe it's because there's not really any pressure right now. No clue. Regardless, I'm certainly not complaining. We also had a requirement to critique a speech or presentation for my writing class, which I'm knocking out tonight by going to a forum on food locavorism, which should be interesting. I'm interested to see how they portray agriculture and family farms.
And finally, the reason behind the blog title: wolverines are BACK! Those things are vicious, and I hope I never come across one while camping or hiking. I think I'd probably hyperventilate. Or have an asthma attack while running away. Actually, the asthma attack is probably more likely.
[Congrats to the MIT Class of 2013! Can't wait to meet you all at CPW and in the fall!]
(Funny story - I went and saw it by myself in the afternoon a couple of days ago at the AMC Loews (a.k.a. professional wallet rapists - $8.75 for a matinee? REALLY? and $8.50 for a small popcorn and a small soda? REALLY?) in Boston Commons, and looking around the theater, I noticed something. Everyone there was there by themselves. Yep, I saw Watchmen with all of the other single, loser comic book (... I mean, "graphic novel") fans, most of whom were probably seeing it for the fifty bajillionth time. Needless to say, I walked out of that theater with a little less dignity than I walked in there with. Oh, and my verdict on the movie: it was awesome! I don't care that the ending was different, I was completely happy with the movie all the way through.)
I was also pretty excited to get my hands on a copy of the new Decemberists album, The Hazards of Love. Reason #1340974519384 why I love being a member of WMBR: I was listening to The Hazards of Love last Saturday. It came out this past Tuesday. I didn't have to pay for a thing. Promotional copies are fantastic. This new album is the first of their full-lengths to not get a score of at least 8 from Pitchfork, and for once I agree (Pitchfork and I are usually not the best of pals - Pitchfork doesn't know this of course, but I tend to disagree with most of their scores, and their reviewers... but what do I know, right?). While this album clearly has the usual hallmarks of a Decemberists album, it lacks a few elements that make a Decemberists album truly great. This album is much darker than their previous works (yes, it is possible - gone are the days of songs of vindictive sea-faring orphans - they've moved on to talk of killing babies), and the songs are clearly intended to be listened to in order. The single, "The Rake's Song" can only be truly appreciated in context with the other songs on the album, which present the listener with a very detailed and intricate plot line that can occasionally be difficult to follow without the liner notes (which they've generously provided on their website). I once told a friend of mine that of all the musical groups I listen to and love, the only two that I feel can do no wrong are Spoon and the Decemberists. I still feel this way, and will continue to unconditionally love the Decemberists despite The Hazards of Love. I mean, I like it, but I think I'm going to go back to listening to The Crane Wife and Castaways and Cutouts.
There's no rest for MIT students, though. Well, I suppose I could have not done any work over break, but I would have payed dearly for it next week. So interspersed between all the exploring of Boston and photography and literature binges, I've been working on my 14-page museum exhibit design proposal for my writing class. Surprisingly, it hasn't been that bad. Maybe it's because I love writing, or maybe it's because there's not really any pressure right now. No clue. Regardless, I'm certainly not complaining. We also had a requirement to critique a speech or presentation for my writing class, which I'm knocking out tonight by going to a forum on food locavorism, which should be interesting. I'm interested to see how they portray agriculture and family farms.
And finally, the reason behind the blog title: wolverines are BACK! Those things are vicious, and I hope I never come across one while camping or hiking. I think I'd probably hyperventilate. Or have an asthma attack while running away. Actually, the asthma attack is probably more likely.
[Congrats to the MIT Class of 2013! Can't wait to meet you all at CPW and in the fall!]
15 November 2008
Update on Life
So, I realize it's been a while since I've blogged about the amazingness that is MIT... Or anything else going on in my life. Which is kind of pathetic, I will agree. I guess I'll just do a massive update, and have it over with. Sorry if this gets really long and verbose...
Classes
Ehhhhh... Yeah. Classes. Well, they're going all right I suppose. I'm actually understanding calculus right now, and could see myself doing really well on the final. Which is a fabulous feeling. What's not looking good is this next week: two exams, a paper, and a presentation. Obviously, I'm not too worried about the presentation or paper (I'm actually incredibly excited for them), but those two exams are going to kill me. I realize that this probably isn't a bad week in the cases of most MIT students, but oh well. I'm just happy that everything isn't quite as overwhelming as it was earlier in the semester.
National Convention
So, I realized I never blogged about Nationals, other than to say what result we got. I apologize for that. Basically, Nationals was a fun time, though a bit stressful. It was nice/strange to see people from home, and nice/strange to be off campus for a week. By the end of the week, I found myself missing MIT, so that was a good sign. Because pictures are worth a thousand words, I'm going to save some space and just post some pictures from the trip instead.
We found these in Chicago. AMAZING.
Chicago was pretty, but cold.
We visited a grain elevator in Indiana, where they had ridiculous amounts of corn and fertilizer.
They took us up on the catwalk above their fertilizer storage, where they have a conveyor belt set up. The stairs and catwalk itself were rather rickety, and it was a terrifying experience...
The current US Secretary of Agriculture, Ed Schafer, spoke at one of the convention sessions. He gave a great speech, which included the line, "I felt the excitement in the halls all night long." The entire crowd exploded with laughter when he said that, and he definitely had to wait a few moments before he could speak again. I love it when politicians provide you with "That's what she said" moments (e.g. Sarah Palin's "Drill baby, drill!" line during the vice-presidential debate).
Our team walked away with this! It's kind of sad it doesn't say that we got third on it...
Our super-happy team in Monument Circle in Indianapolis. We were on our way to get ice cream right after the awards banquet.
So, for some reason, I was the only Ag Communications participant to show up to the final session to be recognized on the national stage (I even changed my flight back to MIT to be able to do so) so I was the only one up there with the national officers. It was totally worth it. Oh, and they messed up the plaque they gave me (it had the name of the girl who was third high individual in Ag Sales... oddly enough, her name is Kelsey as well...) so they're sending me another one...
Classes
Ehhhhh... Yeah. Classes. Well, they're going all right I suppose. I'm actually understanding calculus right now, and could see myself doing really well on the final. Which is a fabulous feeling. What's not looking good is this next week: two exams, a paper, and a presentation. Obviously, I'm not too worried about the presentation or paper (I'm actually incredibly excited for them), but those two exams are going to kill me. I realize that this probably isn't a bad week in the cases of most MIT students, but oh well. I'm just happy that everything isn't quite as overwhelming as it was earlier in the semester.
National Convention
So, I realized I never blogged about Nationals, other than to say what result we got. I apologize for that. Basically, Nationals was a fun time, though a bit stressful. It was nice/strange to see people from home, and nice/strange to be off campus for a week. By the end of the week, I found myself missing MIT, so that was a good sign. Because pictures are worth a thousand words, I'm going to save some space and just post some pictures from the trip instead.
We found these in Chicago. AMAZING.
Chicago was pretty, but cold.
We visited a grain elevator in Indiana, where they had ridiculous amounts of corn and fertilizer.
They took us up on the catwalk above their fertilizer storage, where they have a conveyor belt set up. The stairs and catwalk itself were rather rickety, and it was a terrifying experience...
The current US Secretary of Agriculture, Ed Schafer, spoke at one of the convention sessions. He gave a great speech, which included the line, "I felt the excitement in the halls all night long." The entire crowd exploded with laughter when he said that, and he definitely had to wait a few moments before he could speak again. I love it when politicians provide you with "That's what she said" moments (e.g. Sarah Palin's "Drill baby, drill!" line during the vice-presidential debate).
Our team walked away with this! It's kind of sad it doesn't say that we got third on it...
Our super-happy team in Monument Circle in Indianapolis. We were on our way to get ice cream right after the awards banquet.
So, for some reason, I was the only Ag Communications participant to show up to the final session to be recognized on the national stage (I even changed my flight back to MIT to be able to do so) so I was the only one up there with the national officers. It was totally worth it. Oh, and they messed up the plaque they gave me (it had the name of the girl who was third high individual in Ag Sales... oddly enough, her name is Kelsey as well...) so they're sending me another one...Movies
I've watched a ridiculous number of movies lately. All on the weekends, but still. A ridiculous number of them.
Including...
Yes, you're reading that correctly. Quantum of Solace... at midnight. Awesome, I know. It was a pretty good movie, and I recommend seeing it for the action (certainly not the plot). That, and James Bond is just plain awesome. I also finally saw The Dark Knight last night, thanks to LSC! I thought the movie was just a lot of hype over the summer, but it lived up to its reputation. It was amazingly good. And I can now see why some people saw it multiple times...
Politics
Gordon Smith lost. The school bond failed. Okay, we're all on the same page now...
Life in General
Overall, things are going quite well. This weekend will be spent doing fun things with friends (and studying for those two tests), and there's a chance I'll be in New York next weekend. Thanksgiving is quickly approaching, which means that my friend Joanna will be coming down from her school in Vermont to visit me! I am ridiculously excited. Anyway. After Thanksgiving will be finals, and then I CAN GO HOME. Fortunately, my finals are on the Tuesday and Wednesday of Finals Week, so I am on the first flight home on Thursday. Thank you Dad for scoring those tickets.
HELP WMBR REACH THEIR FUNDRAISING GOAL!!! (Pledge before next Wednesday! Get awesome premiums! Feel good about yourself! Support independent, non-commercial radio!)
I've watched a ridiculous number of movies lately. All on the weekends, but still. A ridiculous number of them.
Including...
Yes, you're reading that correctly. Quantum of Solace... at midnight. Awesome, I know. It was a pretty good movie, and I recommend seeing it for the action (certainly not the plot). That, and James Bond is just plain awesome. I also finally saw The Dark Knight last night, thanks to LSC! I thought the movie was just a lot of hype over the summer, but it lived up to its reputation. It was amazingly good. And I can now see why some people saw it multiple times...Politics
Gordon Smith lost. The school bond failed. Okay, we're all on the same page now...
Life in General
Overall, things are going quite well. This weekend will be spent doing fun things with friends (and studying for those two tests), and there's a chance I'll be in New York next weekend. Thanksgiving is quickly approaching, which means that my friend Joanna will be coming down from her school in Vermont to visit me! I am ridiculously excited. Anyway. After Thanksgiving will be finals, and then I CAN GO HOME. Fortunately, my finals are on the Tuesday and Wednesday of Finals Week, so I am on the first flight home on Thursday. Thank you Dad for scoring those tickets.
HELP WMBR REACH THEIR FUNDRAISING GOAL!!! (Pledge before next Wednesday! Get awesome premiums! Feel good about yourself! Support independent, non-commercial radio!)
11 September 2008
I'm still alive, I promise.
Okay, so I realize that I haven't updated in nearly a week.
But this isn't going to be all that exciting of a post. Basically, I'm still alive (though my marathon p-setting session that I'm about to start may change that) and not insane just yet. I won't be able to post an actual blog that's all that interesting until maybe Sunday, but here's what you can expect in the future:
What I will say now, however, is that I'm really happy I was able to get into the Film Experience HASS-D class. It's beyond amazing. Seriously. In recitation today, we just critiqued Buster Keaton and D.W. Griffith silent movies like they were the latest modern blockbusters. As a complete and total film geek, it made me happy.
Okay kids, I'm off to finish three p-sets in one sitting. Hopefully, I'll come out of this okay - otherwise I'm just going to be a blob of jello.
But this isn't going to be all that exciting of a post. Basically, I'm still alive (though my marathon p-setting session that I'm about to start may change that) and not insane just yet. I won't be able to post an actual blog that's all that interesting until maybe Sunday, but here's what you can expect in the future:
- An overly-detailed description of how much I hate p-sets. And Mastering Physics. And how I forgot how to do basic algebra and how severely that's screwing me over.
- An article I wrote was published in The Tech!
- Tales from the Wombats concert I went to last night with Tess at T.T. the Bear's Place in Cambridge. Let's just say that I'm a little bruised.
- All about my trip to Johns Hopkins with the Parliamentary Debate team! (YEA!)
What I will say now, however, is that I'm really happy I was able to get into the Film Experience HASS-D class. It's beyond amazing. Seriously. In recitation today, we just critiqued Buster Keaton and D.W. Griffith silent movies like they were the latest modern blockbusters. As a complete and total film geek, it made me happy.
Okay kids, I'm off to finish three p-sets in one sitting. Hopefully, I'll come out of this okay - otherwise I'm just going to be a blob of jello.
25 August 2008
There's Going To Be A Throw-Down...
I was flipping through the You Ain't No Picasso archives, catching up on everything I'd missed over the summer, when I found this.
Seriously, MTV, I will fight you. I may be a stick-thin girl that breaks easily, but I will take you down if you mess with Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Watch your back.
Seriously, MTV, I will fight you. I may be a stick-thin girl that breaks easily, but I will take you down if you mess with Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Watch your back.
18 August 2008
Film Commentary
[Spoilers may be in this entry. Do not read if you don't want "Wall-E" ruined for you!]
So, I have this really bad habit of making really snide comments during movies. Well, not as bad as my friend Ashlee, but still pretty bad. So I'm really quite proud of myself right now, because I avoided making an entire room of people angry! I kept my mouth shut the entire time, and instead of sarcastically commenting on the special effects, or how something goes against the laws of physics, I wrote everything down. Good idea, eh?
As part of the DME FPOP (Oh yeah, throwin' some MIT acronyms at ya there... DME = Discover Mechanical Engineering, and FPOP = Freshman Pre-Orientation Program), we watched Wall-E after dinner.
Now, I had never seen Wall-E before tonight. I can distinctly remember sitting in a theater and seeing the trailer but refusing to see the movie because they used the theme song from this movie. This is also why I will never use a Visa Check Card at a garden center, or see Michael Moore's Sicko.
Using the theme song from Brazil says a few things to me. First, it reminds me of the final scene of that movie (Those of you that have seen it know what I'm talking about... Well, you do if you haven't seen the Love Conquers All version) and kind of makes me freak out because that final scene will haunt you for life. Second, it makes me think of the message of Brazil, and that whoever is using it is trying to make a point, but can't find a better, more creative way to do it (Think about the check card commercial and the movie. Really, if you've seen the movie, compare them. Commentary on society in a 29 second commercial? Oh yes. Ripping off Brazil? Oh yes.).
But I was a good sport and watched the movie tonight. And wrote down my thoughts.
(On a good note, I did like the beginning of DME. The people are nice, and it looks like it's going to be amazing amounts of fun. I just make snarky comments about movies all the time, so this was going to happen regardless.)
So, I have this really bad habit of making really snide comments during movies. Well, not as bad as my friend Ashlee, but still pretty bad. So I'm really quite proud of myself right now, because I avoided making an entire room of people angry! I kept my mouth shut the entire time, and instead of sarcastically commenting on the special effects, or how something goes against the laws of physics, I wrote everything down. Good idea, eh?
As part of the DME FPOP (Oh yeah, throwin' some MIT acronyms at ya there... DME = Discover Mechanical Engineering, and FPOP = Freshman Pre-Orientation Program), we watched Wall-E after dinner.
Now, I had never seen Wall-E before tonight. I can distinctly remember sitting in a theater and seeing the trailer but refusing to see the movie because they used the theme song from this movie. This is also why I will never use a Visa Check Card at a garden center, or see Michael Moore's Sicko.
Using the theme song from Brazil says a few things to me. First, it reminds me of the final scene of that movie (Those of you that have seen it know what I'm talking about... Well, you do if you haven't seen the Love Conquers All version) and kind of makes me freak out because that final scene will haunt you for life. Second, it makes me think of the message of Brazil, and that whoever is using it is trying to make a point, but can't find a better, more creative way to do it (Think about the check card commercial and the movie. Really, if you've seen the movie, compare them. Commentary on society in a 29 second commercial? Oh yes. Ripping off Brazil? Oh yes.).
But I was a good sport and watched the movie tonight. And wrote down my thoughts.
- First off, the little Wall-E guy is fooled by lasers. Something tells me this little guy would be amusing at a laser light show. Or a planetarium. Basically, let's take him to OMSI and just sit and watch.
- Louis Armstrong. Really? Hm. I don't know if I'm okay with that.
- Okay, if I were a young child, I would be terrified of this movie. Then again, I hated/was scared of E.T., so I'm probably not a good indicator considering how popular that movie was/is.
- The post-apocalypse jokes are a tad bit old. Just like the cockroach and the Twinkie in that movie.
- How are there crickets in space? Did they just decide that they needed something sound-wise there? Or did I miss something?
- "Stay the course." Good one, Pixar. Because no one's been making fun of that one for a while. I get enough of that on the Daily Show, thanks. Oh, and Jon Stewart's much better on the delivery of that one.
- Fire extinguishers in space. Really, that's all I have to say on that one. I'm kind of at a loss for words.
(On a good note, I did like the beginning of DME. The people are nice, and it looks like it's going to be amazing amounts of fun. I just make snarky comments about movies all the time, so this was going to happen regardless.)
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