A recent article on CNN shows the Iraqi ambassador to the United States asking the U.S that they still need our military support. He is also asking the next president of the United States, whoever it maybe (Barrack) to stay in Iraq a little while longer. If you ask me, he is asking a little too much. It's funny how he's asking the next president of the United States, when they have already pledged to withdraw from Iraq as soon as he/she takes office. The article can be found here:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/04/08/iraqi.ambassador/index.html#cnnSTCText
In contrasts to that, another CNN article shows the secretary of defense Robert Gates talking the media about troop reductions by the year 2009. It's funny how the announcement comes only three days after the Iraqi ambassador asks for the U.S military to stay longer. The article also mentions that President Bush does not want the troops levels to go below 140,000 once they reach that number this summer. The only question is how will the next president bring home 140,000 troops home so fast as they have promised? We will have to wait and find out.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/04/11/gates.mullen/index.html#cnnSTCText
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Blog 3: Movie Crash
The movie 'Crash' reminds all of us about the dirty truth that prejudice and racial hatred still exists in our society today. And that some people, whether their black or white still look down on upon others. The movie walks us through the lives of a few people who in the end experience a tragic event that turns their world upside down. Throughout the movie the viewer is simply connecting the dots from the movie to the real world today. Although this movie doesn't show anything graphic or gruesome compared to 'Saw,' it simply displays the truth that many Americans go through in many cities all across the United States. Shows us how minorities are looked down upon just because in most movies the colored character is usually the bad guy. It also shows how many many people pretend to see everyone as equals but when their dealing with someone of the opposite color, and there is a disagreement, it all goes back to suspicion and superiority.
21 vs. Iraq
Recently, I saw the movie 21 in theatres. It is about a very intelligent MIT student who gets involved with a group of card counters. That is, gamblers who know how to cheat the system in blackjack. Every weekend they go to Vegas. With a professor as their mentor, they create secret identities and use their techniques to win thousands of dollars gambling. After each night, they split the cut between the 5 members of the team.
The main character only gets involved to win enough money to pay for med school after he graduates MIT. Eventually, he makes all the money he needs, but still continues to play even after he said he would stop. His ego takes over, and he forgets about the rest of the team. His cockiness came from being the best one and knowing that he could make as much money as he wanted. This eventually led to his demise, though. He stops using the card counting techniques and strictly gambles his money, losing almost all of it. His team members are furious, and the professor steals back all the money he made to pay for how much was lost in that night. Again, he is stuck with no money for med school and now no way to regain his reputation at MIT.
I believe that this movie has a strong connection to the war in Iraq. Although I am not the most informed on our situation, I know it has something to do with oil, since the prices are getting out of hand in America. Just like the main character in the movie, we wanted to be in control. America became greedy for oil, just like he became greedy for the money. Should we have found another way to get cheap oil, this war may not have started; the same way that the guy should have found a more honest way to make money instead of gambling for it. Basically, we set ourselves up for failure since now we are fighting a war that only started to benefit us but didn’t turn out the way we planned.
The main character only gets involved to win enough money to pay for med school after he graduates MIT. Eventually, he makes all the money he needs, but still continues to play even after he said he would stop. His ego takes over, and he forgets about the rest of the team. His cockiness came from being the best one and knowing that he could make as much money as he wanted. This eventually led to his demise, though. He stops using the card counting techniques and strictly gambles his money, losing almost all of it. His team members are furious, and the professor steals back all the money he made to pay for how much was lost in that night. Again, he is stuck with no money for med school and now no way to regain his reputation at MIT.
I believe that this movie has a strong connection to the war in Iraq. Although I am not the most informed on our situation, I know it has something to do with oil, since the prices are getting out of hand in America. Just like the main character in the movie, we wanted to be in control. America became greedy for oil, just like he became greedy for the money. Should we have found another way to get cheap oil, this war may not have started; the same way that the guy should have found a more honest way to make money instead of gambling for it. Basically, we set ourselves up for failure since now we are fighting a war that only started to benefit us but didn’t turn out the way we planned.
BLOG 2: Did BUSH really beat Gore in 2000?
So who really won the presidential election back in 2000? Was it Bush or Gore? Gore and Bush were tied and the only state left was Florida. It was projected that Gore was to win Florida by media groups. But Bush won Florida by a 1000 votes, but since the election was so close the votes had to be recounted and it turned out that Bush had won by only 537 votes. But when Gore asked for a recount, he was denied. A few rumors about African American votes not being counted also began to appear. But was it true? We will never know since the recount was denied by the supreme court. But searching through a bunch of websites i found this interesting post which actually cleared any doubts about the election for me. http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=1006031602170
But it only proves the fact that Bush played dirty to win the election.
But it only proves the fact that Bush played dirty to win the election.
Blog 1: Iraq war and its impact
The Iraq war has paid a heavy toll on all of us; if you reside in the United States you are effected no matter what. Estimated costs are in the trillions of dollars and there is still no end in site. What are we still doing in Iraq? Our economy is on the verge of a recession, and the only thing our president is about worried is making Iraq a democratic and free country. It's either going to be us or them, there is no way our economy can survive if we stay in Iraq any longer. It's hard to believe we are still in Iraq when the reasons for going into Iraq were false and inaccurate, there were no weapons of mass destruction found, Iraq did not support Aqeada or Osama Bin Ladin in the September 11 attacks. We basically attacked an innocent country, destroyed it to pieces, executed their top government officials, and yet we are still in Iraq, for a reason I still do not know. Maybe its for the oil? But if it was why are gas prices averaged at $3.40 a gallon. The truth is we will never find out why we went into Iraq, at least not in next 50 years. The only thing we accomplished by going into Iraq is the hatred of the Islamic world and lost the faith and trust of the American people in their government.
The Nintendo Wii: Ultimate Solider Training
In the last year we have encountered a great new gaming system in the Nintendo Wii. It is such a great interactive system that allows gaming to become virtually realistic. It also allows many to get some sort of exercise that we didn't believe was possible. What we don't know is that it's a plan by the US military to "shape up" Americans in order for a possible draft.
Little do we pay attention to certain details, but consider some of these possibilities. It is a known issue that Americans have been getting less exercise and more overweight as technology has increased. The military also has been getting less applicants and unfit men and women for the job. In order to fix this problem, what does the military do? Well they pressure Nintendo into coming out with a gaming system that can put a little exercise and skill in the everyday life. Why else did you think the Wii was so affordable? Now we have a new generation of gaming where many are getting exercise and training for military purposes and we didn't even see it coming. With games like Call of Duty, the military is basically putting a rifle in the average Americans hands and getting him ready for what there is to come, a draft.
The popularity of the Wii is so great that the military has basically solved the unfit American problem. In the near future they are going to be reaping the benefits with soldiers that are fit and trained to go into battle a lot faster than what it is taking now. That is the type of influence the military is deeming on us now.
Little do we pay attention to certain details, but consider some of these possibilities. It is a known issue that Americans have been getting less exercise and more overweight as technology has increased. The military also has been getting less applicants and unfit men and women for the job. In order to fix this problem, what does the military do? Well they pressure Nintendo into coming out with a gaming system that can put a little exercise and skill in the everyday life. Why else did you think the Wii was so affordable? Now we have a new generation of gaming where many are getting exercise and training for military purposes and we didn't even see it coming. With games like Call of Duty, the military is basically putting a rifle in the average Americans hands and getting him ready for what there is to come, a draft.
The popularity of the Wii is so great that the military has basically solved the unfit American problem. In the near future they are going to be reaping the benefits with soldiers that are fit and trained to go into battle a lot faster than what it is taking now. That is the type of influence the military is deeming on us now.
Sexual Preference= Persecution
While I have not paid attention to the actual show itself, the show on MTV, Tila Tequila’s Shot at Love. This show is about an Internet star that is bisexual, and looking to find the woman or man of her dreams. This does not have a direct relation to the war in Iraq, being that the show is a reality dating show. But the topic definitely has a relation to political and military controversies.
Bottom line is that sexual preference is a huge issue in the military today. Homosexuals are very persecuted in America’s armed forces, whether you are a woman or a man. Homosexual men are not allowed to enter the military; they have named it “a mental disorder. “ (http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0621-06.htm).
I personally find this outrageous. I feel that anyone who wants to serve his or her country should be given the opportunity. When it comes down to it, they function just as anyone else would, sexual preference aside; they are able to fire a gun, work on a computer, and lead people just as any heterosexual would be able to.
Bottom line is that sexual preference is a huge issue in the military today. Homosexuals are very persecuted in America’s armed forces, whether you are a woman or a man. Homosexual men are not allowed to enter the military; they have named it “a mental disorder. “ (http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0621-06.htm).
I personally find this outrageous. I feel that anyone who wants to serve his or her country should be given the opportunity. When it comes down to it, they function just as anyone else would, sexual preference aside; they are able to fire a gun, work on a computer, and lead people just as any heterosexual would be able to.
I recently just watched a movie preview for "Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay". In the clip, Harold and Kumar are on a plane on the way to Amsterdam so Harold can finally woo Maria, the girl he is in love with. While on the plane, Kumar innocently smiles and waves to an old lady but the lady sees Kumar as a terrorist about to bomb the plane. As I watched this scene, I laughed hysterically and then I began to wonder if this might ever have in real life. I know that when I do fly overseas and I see someone that I think is from Afghanistan, I get a little bit paranoid, and my mind does get carried away. Don't get me wrong, I am not racist, at all. I respect all cultures and don't believe in discrimination. However, being only human, I am guilty of getting a little bit paranoid, all because of what happened on 9/11. The war in Afghanistan has affected us, without most of us even knowing. I did not have any friends or family who were murdered from 9/11 so when I first heard about it, I was confused, and didn't really think much about it. However, as time goes by, I realize how it has affected me because everything we do, watch, and talk about involves what happened in 9/11. Movie previews like the one I saw made me laugh for a second. It made me thinking, are we at the point where we can laugh about this now? Is pop culture like this affecting the way we view what happened on 9/11? It made me feel kind of guilty that I thought it was funny, because if this happened to someone in reality, I am sure that person would feel incredibly hurt.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Lost, the TV show
The ABC show Lost is extremely popular and has generated a large following. The premise of the show takes place on an island near the Indian Ocean. A plane crashes on an abandoned island with many survivors. The show is now in the middle of its 4th season and many other characters and plot developments have been discovered.
I am just going to examine a few new scenerios that have been brought up in the past season that could be related to the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.
First, the people who have found and made contact with the survivors of Oceanic 815 could represent other things. The people on the boar have other intentions than to rescure the survivors of flight 815. These people wanted to appear that they were only on the island for a rescue, but where found out to be lieing. In the current Iraq war the people on the boat could represent terrorists because they are following orders which they think to be the best desicion.
The people who initially inhabited the island where trying to take over and rule the plane crash survivors. These original inhabitors could represent American troops who are trying to inforce something without full consent or explaination to the plane crash survivors.
I am just going to examine a few new scenerios that have been brought up in the past season that could be related to the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.
First, the people who have found and made contact with the survivors of Oceanic 815 could represent other things. The people on the boar have other intentions than to rescure the survivors of flight 815. These people wanted to appear that they were only on the island for a rescue, but where found out to be lieing. In the current Iraq war the people on the boat could represent terrorists because they are following orders which they think to be the best desicion.
The people who initially inhabited the island where trying to take over and rule the plane crash survivors. These original inhabitors could represent American troops who are trying to inforce something without full consent or explaination to the plane crash survivors.
6 girls beat up Cheerleader
One thing that really caught my eye was the attack by six cheerleaders on one girl. They called her over to hang out they beat the leaving shit out of her. They wanted her to hit back but she wouldnt. In total eight people were involved because there were two male lookouts outside. This shit should not happen it is completely ludacris. This reminds me of all the bull shit fights in Iraq that should happen. I oppose the war in Iraq just as much as I oppose the fights that went down. I think that George Dubya and Dick Cheney should get the shit kicked out of them by six girls. But hey, thats just me.
A Happy Working Song
One movie that I have seen recently and really enjoyed was the movie Enchanted. Enchanted is about a fairytale princess who gets banished by an evil Queen to New York City so that she will not marry her son. It may seem like a bit of a stretch, but I believe that the making of Enchanted was motivated by the war in Iraq.
One scene in the movie includes the princess, Gisele, cleaning the apartment of a man living in New York. She recruits an “army” of little animals to help her. She sings to them and tells them orders and what needs to be cleaned. She acts as a sergeant or leader in the war, while the little animals play the roll of the other soldiers lower in command. In the end, they all work together in order to achieve the common goal which is cleaning the house. This part of the movie could mirror that of the ranks in a war.
There is also a scene in the movie where everyone marches through Central Park as a group singing a song. Although soldiers do not march together for the sole purpose of singing happy songs, they do march together and travel in groups while traveling and possibly even when in battle.
One scene in the movie includes the princess, Gisele, cleaning the apartment of a man living in New York. She recruits an “army” of little animals to help her. She sings to them and tells them orders and what needs to be cleaned. She acts as a sergeant or leader in the war, while the little animals play the roll of the other soldiers lower in command. In the end, they all work together in order to achieve the common goal which is cleaning the house. This part of the movie could mirror that of the ranks in a war.
There is also a scene in the movie where everyone marches through Central Park as a group singing a song. Although soldiers do not march together for the sole purpose of singing happy songs, they do march together and travel in groups while traveling and possibly even when in battle.
More Ovaltine Please.
Who wants mo
re Ovaltine?
re Ovaltine? Remember those commercials, with the cult-like mother and group of robotic, obedient children? Well, Ovaltine has always been a part of our pop culture, even though it isn’t exactly “modern”…the product still exists on the shelves of our supermarkets, and the commercials still air on television.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=kQ8QHGYqva0&feature=related
Although the children aren’t damned, as the picture depicts, the commercials often portray them to be that way. It is with this robotic obedience that I find a connection to the soldiers’ mentality throughout the war.
When a soldier is fighting in combat, he must block out all emotions in order to be able to kill the enemy. In order to act in such an inhumane way, that instinctual mind state must be the only mind state that exists within the soldiers. The cult-like mother can be related to the officers commanding the troops to fight, or in a more broader aspect, can be related to the government ordering the troops to fight. Even the commanding officers must transform their emotionally stable mind states into a completely inhumane one; therefore, all the soldiers can be compared to the robotic children.
When a soldier is fighting in combat, he must block out all emotions in order to be able to kill the enemy. In order to act in such an inhumane way, that instinctual mind state must be the only mind state that exists within the soldiers. The cult-like mother can be related to the officers commanding the troops to fight, or in a more broader aspect, can be related to the government ordering the troops to fight. Even the commanding officers must transform their emotionally stable mind states into a completely inhumane one; therefore, all the soldiers can be compared to the robotic children.
You don’t see too many soldiers crying on the sidelines because they don’t want to hurt the enemy (for “it isn’t nice”). Although some soldiers want to quit, miss their families, or simply feel as though they have had enough fighting…the overall mentality when they kill the enemy is comparable to the Ovaltine effect.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=kQ8QHGYqva0&feature=related
Thursday, April 17, 2008
The Real World?
Walking down the magazine aisle in a supermarket, one will easily find at least thirty different entertainment magazines pondering over how much weight Lindsey Lohan has lost, or over Britney Spear’s newest breakdown. On TV there are specialized channels that report celebrity news or “Entertainment” as they are called. However, it is quite interesting to note that lately the entertainment media has been incorporating the war in
While I think it is excellent that these frivolous shows are becoming a little more rounded, in terms of current world events, it makes me really mad that such events about the war need to be “sugar coated” and made more entertaining in order for people to gain interest in them. In reality the war is not exciting or interesting, which is why I think the public owes it to the soldiers, to at least keep up with the progression of the war through a reliable news source. Learning about the war from shows like “The Real World” sends a message of ignorance because these people are so busy with their lives that they can not tune into the news at least once a week to hear about the war in fear of missing the newest “Real World” episode. Therefore, I think it is great that the entertainment media is focusing on this issue, but it is horrible that this problem exists in the first place.
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The Mental Health of our Troops
I just saw this interesting article on the front page of MSN, so I thought I'd share it here for anyone interested. A new study came out recently on the mental health of US troops, the "first large-scale, private assessment of its kind." It found that approximately 300,000 US troops that served in Iraq and Afghanistan are suffering from depression or post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and only about half of them have sought treatment. About 320,000 have had brain injuries. There is also a panel next to the article that describes the symptoms of PTSD and those of traumatic brain injury.
Here is the link:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24183188>1=43001
Here is the link:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24183188>1=43001
Iraq's Effect on Pop Culture
I was reading an article today and it was saying how "there are more military shows being made in the next five years than were made in the past twenty." Iraq has worked its way into many existing shows. Iraq was the setting for "ER" during two episodes. One of the main characters of "Las Vegas" was called to serve in the war. In 2005, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" rebuilt the home of a family who lost a soldier in Operation Iraqi Freedom during the opening days of the war. Shows like "Arrested Development" and "Days of Our Lives" also featured war based plotlines. Lifetime television has a show moving on to its second season called "Armywives." The show is the most successful series the network has ever had. FX created a new show that follows a group of soldiers in Iraq called "Over There." Movies started to take on war themes as well. Between 2006 and now several movies have been released dealing with Iraq and the Middle East including "Home of the Brave", "Lions for Lambs", "Rendition", "The Kingdom", "Redacted", "In the Valley of Elah", and most recently "Stop-Loss." Though many of the movies were not as successful in the box office as anticipated, war continues to be a hot topic in its effect on pop culture and entertainment.
Magazines
Magazines and newspapers have always been a reliable source of information. People often read these pieces seeking news, quirky articles, and even advice. Travel magazines provide their target audience with tips on the best vacation spots and how to book the most luxurious trips. The majority of the context in these magazines usually focuses on destinations as well as information about trip planning.
However, there has been quite a shift in the themes that are featured in travel magazines since the war with Iraq. Rather than having articles about the best flights, the articles about air travel are concentrating on the most recent airline restrictions and mandatory security checks. Instead of featuring websites with discounted tickets, these articles are updating the readers on the volume of shampoo they can legally pack in their carry-on.
Clearly, the war in Iraq has impacted American culture in some obscure ways. It has influenced the type of information people are interested in hearing and reading about. Entertainment has evolved quite a bit since before the war. Furthermore, workers have needed to adapt to a difference kind of writing to satisfy their readers.
Bombs and Beautiful Lifestyles
My, and many other girls’ favorite addiction these days is the CW networks Gossip Girl. Watching uber-rich kids grow up and deal in Manhattan has plagued my life since the book first came out. As they are spending thousands on clothing, being shuttled by their drivers in large tinted Escalades and living in multi- million dollar townhouse apartments, us normal folk are being grilled about saving the environment before global warming sets in. How is it that the elite are able to get out of the normal problems of day-to-day life? At the same time, it is the poor, unskilled and undereducated that are sent to war (as we decided in class). What connects Gossip Girl and war is the fact that polar opposites create a strong dynamic that influences each other. I feel that if the wealthy weren’t able to get away with everything, there would be no greedy joy in watching these TV shows. Perhaps normal life would have nothing to look forward to and dream about.
Rarely do you hear that the high-class have children serving in the war. It is the middle and lower classes that take it upon themselves to fight for our country. At the same time, we are being constantly bombarded with scenarios on how to save the environment. Donating silly string to detect bombs in Iraq, hybrid cars are being produced to make up for the oil controversy, and the characters in Gossip Girl drive around in big fancy cars and live in expensive high-rise apartments with little care for the world. If these people have become the new role models for young teens, they should inform themselves of current world concerns. If anything, they can afford it.
Rarely do you hear that the high-class have children serving in the war. It is the middle and lower classes that take it upon themselves to fight for our country. At the same time, we are being constantly bombarded with scenarios on how to save the environment. Donating silly string to detect bombs in Iraq, hybrid cars are being produced to make up for the oil controversy, and the characters in Gossip Girl drive around in big fancy cars and live in expensive high-rise apartments with little care for the world. If these people have become the new role models for young teens, they should inform themselves of current world concerns. If anything, they can afford it.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Fear and Loathing
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas in its purest form is a journalist and his attorney going to Las Vegas to write on a motorcycle derby. While they are there all they do is use drugs, every kind of drug. The hotel they are staying at happens to be hosting a banquet to law enforcers around the country about the war against drugs. What the law enforcement people don’t realize is that right under their noses are two people who are always on some kind of drug.
I see a connection between Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and the war on terror. I make a connection comparing the two druggies in the midst of a convention against drugs to the terrorist who blend in with the people in the world. Boarding the plane that eventually went into the World Trade Center, the Arabs looked like normal people, just blending. Little did the people know that these were no ordinary people among them, but terrorists. In fear and loathing Hunter S. Thomson goes on describing how the law enforcers will crack down on the drug abusers. The only problem is that this is no ordinary fight. Just like the fight on terror, there is not a single source to go after. Instead, there is a large number of people to bring down that are dispersed among all people. Hear lies the problem.
Theresa Connors. "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream. "
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1380274541&sid=6&Fmt=3&clientId=18133&RQT=309&VName=PQD
I see a connection between Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and the war on terror. I make a connection comparing the two druggies in the midst of a convention against drugs to the terrorist who blend in with the people in the world. Boarding the plane that eventually went into the World Trade Center, the Arabs looked like normal people, just blending. Little did the people know that these were no ordinary people among them, but terrorists. In fear and loathing Hunter S. Thomson goes on describing how the law enforcers will crack down on the drug abusers. The only problem is that this is no ordinary fight. Just like the fight on terror, there is not a single source to go after. Instead, there is a large number of people to bring down that are dispersed among all people. Hear lies the problem.
Theresa Connors. "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream. "
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1380274541&sid=6&Fmt=3&clientId=18133&RQT=309&VName=PQD
Monday, April 14, 2008
New Drexel Major: War Engineers
Totally kidding about the title, but anyway, the military using engineers to figure out how to effectively kill the enemy without hurting civilians. Well, you can not compare todays war with the US bombing Japanese cities. Back then there was a clear cut line as to who the enemy was and where they lived. We were also involved in the war in Europe and to fight a full out war against Japan, it was estimated that it would consume a few hundred thousand more american lives so, we decided to bomb their cities (nukes). America did this not because they wanted to, but as a way to save american lives. Today, war is a personal thing for everyone because everyone knows everything that goes right and wrong everyday on the other side of the world. America knows how many civilians were killed and how many soldiers were killed every day, in what city, and how they died. Therefore, the american government and military has to be careful not to kill civilians when attacking the enemy. So, who better to help the military kill carefully then engineers. For example there are bullets that will explode in mid air inside of a room so it will only kill the occupants in that room and if there are civilians in the room next door, they will not be harmed.
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is a movie that dedicates a rather large amount of time to showing the japanese attack on an entire fleet of battleships. This attack was meant to get the U.S. to join World War 2, which they did. However, the rest of the movie focuses on the lives of the men and women who risk their lives to either fight for or help save our country. It's mainly about three certain people, but other families and friends are tied into it as well. I think this movie relates to people because they are busy worrying about people that they may know fighting over in Iraq, just as the people in the movie are worrying about those they care about who are fighting or in danger.
In Saw, the reason these people were being tortured was because they did not value their lives. This cannot be said of Pearl Harbor, but they still both consist of people who are in danger no matter what they do, and are just fighting for their lives. They do not know what is going to happen to them in either movie, and although most people don't, they are in more drastic situations.
In Saw, the reason these people were being tortured was because they did not value their lives. This cannot be said of Pearl Harbor, but they still both consist of people who are in danger no matter what they do, and are just fighting for their lives. They do not know what is going to happen to them in either movie, and although most people don't, they are in more drastic situations.
blog 3
Scream was mostly about how the world would have been if mothers were little bit more careful with their kids. There would have been less of the monsters like Osama in this world.
The movie Superman Returns was a big hit, it shows that how much our public needs a savior like Superman in this world. Superheroes movies have been pretty darn successful these days, it has really big good Vs. Evil. Just like in real world there is Terrorists(bad) Vs. good people who want peace. In superhero movies good ultimately wins, which was what people want. Thats why these days superhero movies are really successful.
The movie Superman Returns was a big hit, it shows that how much our public needs a savior like Superman in this world. Superheroes movies have been pretty darn successful these days, it has really big good Vs. Evil. Just like in real world there is Terrorists(bad) Vs. good people who want peace. In superhero movies good ultimately wins, which was what people want. Thats why these days superhero movies are really successful.
Misogyny in Fight Club
Immediately after reading the guidelines for this blog post, my mind directly went to Fight Club. This movie is one of my favorite movies and has many themes embedded deep within that one would not notice on face value. I quickly looked through the other blog posts and saw that a few people had already written about Fight Club. The other posts focused on Consumerism and the being apart of something greater than oneself aspects. However, I am going to go in a very different direction.
Fight Club is indeed about the aforementioned themes. However, one of the more prevalent themes in my eyes is the fear/hatred of women within the movie. Edward Norton's character has two different relationships with the same woman in the movie and neither of his "personalities" can seem to connect on any level with her. He seems to be numb to the feelings and thoughts of relationships, love and everything associated with it. Norton's character believes women to be the reason why men are not as, for lack of a better word, "manly" as they once were. Both Brad Pitt and Edward Norton's characters, albeit being the same person, were given the same advice from their father. Go to school, get a job and get married. Basically, they were supposed to follow the formula that every person leads their lives by. However, along the way, something clicked within Norton's character and told him this was wrong. It becomes blatantly obvious that women are targeted by the main character when these two quotes are spoken:
"A generation of men raised by women. I’m wondering if another woman is the answer we really need."
Women have softened men. That is how the two characters feel. After their "self-help" Fight Club has been started, the two men find what it means to be a man. After seeing a Calvin Klein ad, the two snicker and ask, "Is that what a man is supposed to look like?" Obviously, that is, in the perfect world, what many people would want a man to look like, especially most women. The two main characters eventually meld into one after Edward Norton realizes what he has been doing. Although he does reject a lot of what he has done, he does accept some of it. He does feel he has shaken off the "feminine" qualities of his life and personality, but he does realize that women are just as faulted as men. The two need to co-exist and let each other be themselves in order for everyone to survive.
Fight Club is indeed about the aforementioned themes. However, one of the more prevalent themes in my eyes is the fear/hatred of women within the movie. Edward Norton's character has two different relationships with the same woman in the movie and neither of his "personalities" can seem to connect on any level with her. He seems to be numb to the feelings and thoughts of relationships, love and everything associated with it. Norton's character believes women to be the reason why men are not as, for lack of a better word, "manly" as they once were. Both Brad Pitt and Edward Norton's characters, albeit being the same person, were given the same advice from their father. Go to school, get a job and get married. Basically, they were supposed to follow the formula that every person leads their lives by. However, along the way, something clicked within Norton's character and told him this was wrong. It becomes blatantly obvious that women are targeted by the main character when these two quotes are spoken:
"A generation of men raised by women. I’m wondering if another woman is the answer we really need."
Women have softened men. That is how the two characters feel. After their "self-help" Fight Club has been started, the two men find what it means to be a man. After seeing a Calvin Klein ad, the two snicker and ask, "Is that what a man is supposed to look like?" Obviously, that is, in the perfect world, what many people would want a man to look like, especially most women. The two main characters eventually meld into one after Edward Norton realizes what he has been doing. Although he does reject a lot of what he has done, he does accept some of it. He does feel he has shaken off the "feminine" qualities of his life and personality, but he does realize that women are just as faulted as men. The two need to co-exist and let each other be themselves in order for everyone to survive.
Hooligans
I saw this movie by chance while on vacation, and didnt think i was going to sit through all of it, because it was about soccer. To my surprise this movie goes far beyond two rivaling soccer teams; it is about a man's self discovery and understanding of the world, through the lives of others.
The main character Matt, is a Harvard student who was mistakely expelled (im not sure why, i started watching in the middle) and couldnt get over his pride to come back to school. He decides to go visit his sister in london, just to get away from it all. There he meets the leader of a local soccer team, Pete, who introduces him to the thrill of street fighting. Turns out theres more to these london soccer teams, than matt thought. The teams call themselves firms, and have leaders and an entire govenmental system about them. They play against each other, and the losing team would often try to beat the other team up after the game. They go so far as to kill family members to enact revenge or justification of a wrong doin by the other firm.
The final scenes of the film play out in like a war on the back streets of london, where Petes team, the GCE, fghts their top rival, Birmingham City. The back story is that, many years ago, during the first fight between the two teams, Birmingham City's leaders' son ran into the midst and got accidentally killed, so naturally th e leader blamed it on the GCE for his death.
In the present, now that they two teams have crosses paths again, the Birmingham City leader sees that matt has a sister, with a child, who comes in the middle of the "war fight" to get matt and Pete out of the action and drive them away. the Birmingham City leader sees her and starts to go after her and the kid in the backseat of the car. This scene is similar to the theme of the scream movies where the female is to blame for everything that went wrong in the movie. The sister is to blame for trying to be a hero in someone elses fight and getting in the firm's business. By showing her face, the Birmingham City leader sees the opportunity to get revenge. Similar to how enemies enact revenge against each other in war.
The main character Matt, is a Harvard student who was mistakely expelled (im not sure why, i started watching in the middle) and couldnt get over his pride to come back to school. He decides to go visit his sister in london, just to get away from it all. There he meets the leader of a local soccer team, Pete, who introduces him to the thrill of street fighting. Turns out theres more to these london soccer teams, than matt thought. The teams call themselves firms, and have leaders and an entire govenmental system about them. They play against each other, and the losing team would often try to beat the other team up after the game. They go so far as to kill family members to enact revenge or justification of a wrong doin by the other firm.
The final scenes of the film play out in like a war on the back streets of london, where Petes team, the GCE, fghts their top rival, Birmingham City. The back story is that, many years ago, during the first fight between the two teams, Birmingham City's leaders' son ran into the midst and got accidentally killed, so naturally th e leader blamed it on the GCE for his death.
In the present, now that they two teams have crosses paths again, the Birmingham City leader sees that matt has a sister, with a child, who comes in the middle of the "war fight" to get matt and Pete out of the action and drive them away. the Birmingham City leader sees her and starts to go after her and the kid in the backseat of the car. This scene is similar to the theme of the scream movies where the female is to blame for everything that went wrong in the movie. The sister is to blame for trying to be a hero in someone elses fight and getting in the firm's business. By showing her face, the Birmingham City leader sees the opportunity to get revenge. Similar to how enemies enact revenge against each other in war.
A Mighty Heart
“The Mighty Heart” came out in 2007, which was based on the true story of the murder of Daniel Pearl. Daniel Pearl was a American journalist, who was kidnapped and beheaded by Muslim extremists when he went to interview one extremist in Pakistan. According to critic, Benjamin Breich, from aish.com, he feels that a legit movie is to have to have a plot that has to be full of suprises and the audience shouldn’t be easily to figure out the ending. This movie was a flaw, since the movie repeated an incident that was a barbaric butchery and it was used as a way of entertainment.
In the Scream, the whole point of the series was really to say that history repeats itself in several ways. However, the Mighty Heart really didn’t have any point that taught movie viewers a lesson about society. It basically repeated the incident of Daniel Pearl’s death and showed how he was brutally killed. To be completely honest, it was a way for viewers to get the sympathy of the viewers. On the other hand, Scream taught viewers that sexuality and gender affect woman’s role in society.
In the Scream, the whole point of the series was really to say that history repeats itself in several ways. However, the Mighty Heart really didn’t have any point that taught movie viewers a lesson about society. It basically repeated the incident of Daniel Pearl’s death and showed how he was brutally killed. To be completely honest, it was a way for viewers to get the sympathy of the viewers. On the other hand, Scream taught viewers that sexuality and gender affect woman’s role in society.
Pursuit of Happiness
The movie ‘Pursuit of Happiness’ I feel was a work of art that deeply connected with the audience. It portrayed Will Smith as a sales man who struggles to make ends meet. Particularly with the slackening economy of the US, certainly a lot of people will be struggling to make ends meet too. The film talks about its protagonist, Chris Gardner (Will Smith) who has invested his meager fortunes in bone density scanners, where these provide denser images than the usual scanners that the hospitals usually employ. However, being a shade too expensive than the ordinary bone density scanners most doctors’ decline buying the equipment, which means that Gardner doesn’t have the money to bring home from selling his investment. This leads to unpaid rent and other utilities bills, which is similar to the problems that most average-income people are worried about. Unable to deal with the intense frustration and depression that this brings along, Gardner’s wife Linda leaves him and their son Christopher to pursue greener pastures in New York. Even Gardner’s home and car are snatched away from him because he didn’t pay his bills on time. Nevertheless, in the midst of this entire hullabaloo, Gardner always tells himself and his son Christopher to never lose hope and to always believe in oneself. His determination finally pays off when he lands the only trainee job at a brokerage firm.
It was the simple outlook of the movie I believe which people appreciated the most because they could relate easily to the stresses and the strains of everyday life that was portrayed on-screen rather than a glamorous life style. The film shows how determination can bring the best in people even in the face of supposedly insurmountable odds. It was a simple re-affirmation of the infinite potential of an individual; if he/she would only take the time and energy to believe in themselves, a message that the audiences were only too happy to take home from the film, back to the real world where their problems lay awaiting. The film was able to put the viewers directly into the shoes of the protagonist. This experience is what I believe separates the good horror movies from the great ones that are given the “Classic” status. An example befitting the Classic status would be the ‘Saw’ series. The protagonist ‘Jigsaw’ always believes in giving people second chances, even though the risk involves losing one’s life in the process. In the series, victims brave enough to endure excruciating pain for relatively small times are rewarded with freedom while those who were weak were left to die a slow painful death. Both revolve around the same idea essentially, of motivating oneself to attain the desired results, in two different formats.
It was the simple outlook of the movie I believe which people appreciated the most because they could relate easily to the stresses and the strains of everyday life that was portrayed on-screen rather than a glamorous life style. The film shows how determination can bring the best in people even in the face of supposedly insurmountable odds. It was a simple re-affirmation of the infinite potential of an individual; if he/she would only take the time and energy to believe in themselves, a message that the audiences were only too happy to take home from the film, back to the real world where their problems lay awaiting. The film was able to put the viewers directly into the shoes of the protagonist. This experience is what I believe separates the good horror movies from the great ones that are given the “Classic” status. An example befitting the Classic status would be the ‘Saw’ series. The protagonist ‘Jigsaw’ always believes in giving people second chances, even though the risk involves losing one’s life in the process. In the series, victims brave enough to endure excruciating pain for relatively small times are rewarded with freedom while those who were weak were left to die a slow painful death. Both revolve around the same idea essentially, of motivating oneself to attain the desired results, in two different formats.
Superhero Movies
I have noticed over the past few years that there have been an abundance of comic book heroes brought to the big screen. It's curious how superhero movies have suddenly become so popular, especially with older crowds, given that they were probably originally intended for small children. Superhero movies have existed for some time now, but not with the depth and variety they exhibit today. The oversimplified explanation for their sudden success is that today's audiences enjoy
As children, we look to superheroes as beacons of hope. They are supreme protectors who could save us from anything. They give us the courage to face our fears, show us that one person could make a difference, and enforce the idea that there is some benevolent force in the universe who ensured that the good side always won. Often they serve as role models, people who were good in every way and do only good things. However, as we age, we slowly begin to realize that things are not so black and white. Good is not always easily differentiable from bad, and sometimes bad things do happen. We begin to see the world for what it is, an unsure place where villains don't always wear costumes and say tacky punch lines. So we look to the heroes who protected us when we were younger to protect us again. This move from fantasy to reality can be seen in the movies with the increased realism in their problems and situations. Heroes with dark aspects to their past such Batman, Blade, and even Spiderman, have become characters we can relate to, because they have their imperfections just as we do. Movies today make sure to emphasize this darker side, to show that their heroes must go through personal trials and tribulations just like everyone else. They face every sort of problem that plagues the world today, from war and terrorists, to love and family, superheroes always fight for what's right, and give us the courage to do so to.
As children, we look to superheroes as beacons of hope. They are supreme protectors who could save us from anything. They give us the courage to face our fears, show us that one person could make a difference, and enforce the idea that there is some benevolent force in the universe who ensured that the good side always won. Often they serve as role models, people who were good in every way and do only good things. However, as we age, we slowly begin to realize that things are not so black and white. Good is not always easily differentiable from bad, and sometimes bad things do happen. We begin to see the world for what it is, an unsure place where villains don't always wear costumes and say tacky punch lines. So we look to the heroes who protected us when we were younger to protect us again. This move from fantasy to reality can be seen in the movies with the increased realism in their problems and situations. Heroes with dark aspects to their past such Batman, Blade, and even Spiderman, have become characters we can relate to, because they have their imperfections just as we do. Movies today make sure to emphasize this darker side, to show that their heroes must go through personal trials and tribulations just like everyone else. They face every sort of problem that plagues the world today, from war and terrorists, to love and family, superheroes always fight for what's right, and give us the courage to do so to.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy
Comedies and horror movies seem to compliment each other in many ways. Severed fingers, grossly amputated limbs, death, and ghosts with a vengeance are things most sane people do not want to see or have to experience. Comedies, on the other hand, poke fun at society and the measures people go through in order to achieve a goal or win someone or something over. This idea is heavily demonstrated in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy.
In the beginning of the movie, Ron Burgundy (played by Will Ferrell) and his news team seem to have a good relationship. The arrival of a new coworker, however, causes each member of the news team (all men) to attempt to woo the attractive and intelligent Veronica Corningstone (played by Christina Applegate) but their nonsensical strategies cause them to be rejected. Eventually, Ron Burgundy’s charm allows him to win over Veronica and leaves him with unwanted effects: competition against Veronica to be head anchor, the loss of his dog, and the loss of his friends.
Behind all the jokes and hilarious lines, comedies, such as Anchorman, remind people what can usually be realistically possible. Putting on cologne that is foul smelling, poorly named, and is marketed as working “60 percent of the time every time,” like Sex Panther, could cause a man to be rejected by an attractive woman. Using bad language in the workplace could also cause someone their job. Although all of these incidents are expressed in funny ways, they are realistic and demonstrate what someone could have experienced or might experience in the future. Horror movies, on the other hand, despite some being based on actual events, seem unrealistic because of their violent and bloody nature. Seeing a leg being amputated with a saw in a hotel without morphine on the big screen is not an event a person wants to experience in everyday life.
Fox vs CNN
After reading two different news articles surrounding the war in Iraq, finding differences between the two sources was a relatively easy job. The CNN article (which focused on an Iran mosque explosion that killed 12 people and wounded 200) was rather informative and relied heavily on facts as the basis for its content. One the other hand, the Fox article (which described an explosion that killed 15 people in Baghdad) contained a plethora of unnecessary fluff. For example, in the Fox article, much was described about other events that happened in Iraq and what the US military is doing to mend the situation. After being exposed to many media sources over the years, I can verify the general consensus that Fox news is typically biased in favor of the Republican view. The CNN article had very little fluff and was rather concise when compared to Fox's. Generally, CNN is considered a fairly good news source as they are known for being the most unbiased out of many other television news networks. After comparing reading through these two articles, I can verify this assumption.
Overall, I felt as if the main goal of the Fox Article was to establish the idea that chaos is occurring in Iraq. This may or may not be true, however, they are making it clear that violence is extremely rampant throughout the nation by rambling about other events in Iraq. It seemed as if CNN's purpose was to simply inform the reader of the particular event, and nothing else. I am rather confident that others will find this analysis to be true when they read through the articles. Overall, however, I am in a state of discomfort knowing that all news isn't necessarily 100% reputable. Completing this assignment reinforces the importance of being exposed to multiple news sources as it is important to develop your own opinion, and not anyone else's.
Links:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,331310,00.html?sPage=fnc/world/iraq
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/04/13/iran.explosion/index.html#cnnSTCText
Overall, I felt as if the main goal of the Fox Article was to establish the idea that chaos is occurring in Iraq. This may or may not be true, however, they are making it clear that violence is extremely rampant throughout the nation by rambling about other events in Iraq. It seemed as if CNN's purpose was to simply inform the reader of the particular event, and nothing else. I am rather confident that others will find this analysis to be true when they read through the articles. Overall, however, I am in a state of discomfort knowing that all news isn't necessarily 100% reputable. Completing this assignment reinforces the importance of being exposed to multiple news sources as it is important to develop your own opinion, and not anyone else's.
Links:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,331310,00.html?sPage=fnc/world/iraq
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/04/13/iran.explosion/index.html#cnnSTCText
Borat
This movie is about a man from Khazikstan who comes here to learn more about American culture. It's is acted and played as a documentary, and since the people around Boart don't know he's acting they behave as they are. This is a very popular movie for people our age and like hostel, did very well in theaters. There's a scene where Borat is picked up by students and drinks with them. They begin talking and go on to speak how minorities get an unfair advantage in this country. There's also another scene where Borat sings the national anthem at rodeo with clearly racist and prejudice people. The leader of the rodeo tells Borat about the problems gay in this country. This movie though extremely funny, did a great job of showing the problem of prejudice in this country. Though we've made significant progress in the acceptance of diversity, we're still far from where we should be. There is still so much unnecessary hatred in this country. You see in the papers with cases of hate crimes, racial profiling, ethnicity based attacks. And those are the issues that are published. Much of it isn't seen because people aren't open about how they feel or think. Instead, they hold it in, and pass their hatred through teaching it to their children. This ignorance will keep the prejudices passing through generations.
Superior Safety
Whenever a super hero movie comes out people run to the movies. Since the tragedy of 9/11 happened our society, I believe, clings to these super hero movies because they represent a higher power of safety. Since our government and safety workers couldn't successfully control the situation we feel a certain degree of fear. Not saying they did a bad job, I commemorate them for the fantastic job they did, but we do need more protection. And in movies like Superman Returns released in 2006 everyone got to see a safe city, a city protected not only by the government officials but of a powerful being or higher power if you will. Superman gave his life to protecting the lives of his fellow citizens. Granted that there are no real life super heros that have heat vision or who can fly. But to whiteness a movie that relates to everyone in the audience, without being blunt is satisfying and worth wild. I believe that since our country was in such a state of fear and confusion having a movie that lightened the situation made it all the more appealing. Thats why I think so many people were drawn to it and enjoyed the movie. The best part was it never forced the idea of it being a representation of our society it just implied the same circumstances and then left it to our interpretation.
A Walk To Remember & Disney
In A Walk To Remember, a typical love story with a sad ending is about a jock named Landon who falls in love with a what everyone sees as a geek, Jamie. In many stories it is always the jock going for the most popular girl in the movie or the geek with the geek. Rarly it is the popular kid seeking out the geek in the movie. Today it is still stereotypical that the not so popular girl can get the prince charming. Children are even led to believe this as a very young age with the many Disney films that are made. You always see the princess who is georgeous falling in love with the prince charming. Cinderella who was basically a maid even had to be changed into this wonderful princess like character to even be in contact with prince charming. This isnt even an image that girls are getting but what about the guys? By watching these movies as young children are guys growing up feeling that they have to be mr. prince charming just to even speak to a girl?
With the scary movies, they even seem to pick the popular kids to go after. Normally the scary movies start out with the popular kids going on a trip and get lost .. In the Saw series however the killer picks normal average people who live there lives like half of other america today. I am actually a big fan of the Saw series and I really hate scary movie. I dont go to watch it for the all the gore but for the real story behind it. That everyone deserves a second change. Though the Saw series throws a twists on it. The story of this old man who believes that everyone deserves a second chance to wake up and change there life even if that means you much go into a torture device first and might not make it out alive to even live out your second chance.
Dodgeball
In the movie Dodgeball a small, independent gym called Average Joe’s is about to be taken over by a large corporate gym called Globogym. The members of Average Joe’s have nowhere else to go and don’t want the gym to close. They need to raise $50,000 to keep the gym open but they don’t know where to raise the money. They decided to enter into a dodgeball tournament where the top prize was $50,000. Globogym gets news of this and also enters the tournament to make sure Average Joe’s doesn’t win. The final comes down to Globogym and Average Joe’s. Average Joe’s ends up winning and the gym is saved. This movie shows how so many small businesses that a lot of people count on end up being shut down by large corporations. A lot of these large companies do whatever it takes to get rid of these small businesses. Most are known for lowering their prices until the small business lose all of their customers and are forced to close. This is a large economic problem that will probably never be solved.
300=US vs Iran
300, in my opinion, the best movie in the whole world, has surprising connections involving issues with Iran. When I first went to go see the movie, I was amazed with its storyline involving the heroic, not to mention half naked and muscular, Spartans who fought for their land until the very end. They fought against the evil Persians, who are portrayed as the bad guys in the popular film, compared to the noble Greeks. So where is the connection with Iran? Well, the Persians happen to represent Iran, a fact that I am surprised to learn. The movie was actually promoted by the US government, stirring the pot and angering Iran for representing them as the bad guys. The movie also happened to come out at a time of global turmoil between the US and Iran over the Persian's nuclear program and the Iraq war. This shows how movies can secretly convey different meanings and messages to the audience.
Follow the Music
Music is more than a song with lyrics, it’s obvious by watching the movie “ August Rush”. Music can evoke a feeling, a deep felt feeling that can transport you to the past, the present or the future. What’s even more fascinating, the same rhythms or melodies can make one feel the same even though international cultural barriers. Ever so prevalent when August Rush could feel that music was all around him and he knew there was a deeper connection to the sounds of the drums, guitars and everyday noises. This talent was infused in him at birth. He knew his parents, although given up for adoption at, were a part of his ability to listen. Music can awaken the heart, make you believe that all is harmonious and even inspire you to find all that is good in the world. All around the world people feel the same way. Music is a big part of many cultures and has a deep social connection. It brings people together in the present and it also could take us back in time, vividly being able to feel certain emotions. Music has the ability to become our refuge. Like Sid’s flashbacks in the Scream series, music allows us to relive moments in time, whether good or bad. We are able to learn from our emotions to grow and move on. Music in horror films is predominant. Once that creepy music begins to pick up, I know something about to happen. Music has the power to foreshadow and ignite emotion. Music is everywhere, and the influence it has is overwhelming and awe-inspiring.
In Your Backyard
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1456679181&sid=2&Fmt=3&clientId=18133&RQT=309&VName=PQD
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1456679181&sid=2&Fmt=3&clientId=18133&RQT=309&VName=PQD
Articles about the war in Iraq are written from a variety of viewpoints ranging from those of American soldiers, Iraqi citizens, news personalities, and all other categories of people. The subjects of the articles I read could not be more different. One article focuses on a mother of an Iraqi soldier, while the other one centers on a citizen of Iraq.
“No mother ever sends an adult into battle,” states Newsweek’s article about the war. The Iraq war affects everyone, but no one is more affected than the family of a soldier. From a family member’s perspective, the cause for the war in Iraq is not worth loosing a loved one. I believe that most people in this country feel that way. According to polls within the last few years, most Americans do not approve of loosing their fellow citizens in this war.
TIME magazine focuses their article around a school-bus driver from Baghdad. This focuses more on the destruction that has taken over Iraq and it’s once beautiful cities. Hearing about the war from an Iraqi’s point of view really makes you realize how tragic the war has been. Americans are sending our families and friends away to go to war, but in Iraq the war is in everyone’s backyard. Just try and grasp how you would feel if this was the case in America.
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1456679181&sid=2&Fmt=3&clientId=18133&RQT=309&VName=PQD
Articles about the war in Iraq are written from a variety of viewpoints ranging from those of American soldiers, Iraqi citizens, news personalities, and all other categories of people. The subjects of the articles I read could not be more different. One article focuses on a mother of an Iraqi soldier, while the other one centers on a citizen of Iraq.
“No mother ever sends an adult into battle,” states Newsweek’s article about the war. The Iraq war affects everyone, but no one is more affected than the family of a soldier. From a family member’s perspective, the cause for the war in Iraq is not worth loosing a loved one. I believe that most people in this country feel that way. According to polls within the last few years, most Americans do not approve of loosing their fellow citizens in this war.
TIME magazine focuses their article around a school-bus driver from Baghdad. This focuses more on the destruction that has taken over Iraq and it’s once beautiful cities. Hearing about the war from an Iraqi’s point of view really makes you realize how tragic the war has been. Americans are sending our families and friends away to go to war, but in Iraq the war is in everyone’s backyard. Just try and grasp how you would feel if this was the case in America.
Fantasy Films and Escapism
Over the past ten years, American culture has been bombarded with fantasy films ranging from The Lord of the Rings to Harry Potter. There doesn't seem to be an end to this influx either; three Harry Potter movies are currently being planned. The genre of fantasy also extends to the superhero world as well. Even though the ever popular Spiderman franchise has come to an unsatisfying end, a new Batman film a of as well as an Iron Man film are planned for release this summer. When analyzing this issue, its rather difficult not to wonder why the American public has such a fancy for this farfetched genre.
One obvious (yet still completely valid) assumption is perhaps Americans are looking for a medium to escape the difficulties of reality. It is important to note that it is commonplace for superhero films and other fantasy flicks to saturate the list of top grossing films for their respective year. Personally, I feel as if this assumption is completely true. I am not afraid to admit that I look at fantasy films as a way to escape reality. I recently had the opportunity to watch the newest Harry Potter film. While watching this movie, I put myself in the shoes of Harry and truly felt as if I was in their own world. For those two or so hours, I almost forgot the hardships of reality and was whisked away into a fantasy world, almost as if I had just dreamt. I forgot about homework, pledging a fraternity, and even some family issues that I am currently having. I felt refreshed.
Specifically, looking at the success of the Harry Potter franchise (which consistently grosses a very large sum of money), perhaps the American public identifies with Harry. Harry Potter starts out in the franchise as a young British boy who finds out he is destined to become a wizard. After this epiphany, he is whisked away to a fantasy world where he learns how to fulfill his destiny and destroy his arch nemesis, Voldemort. Personally, I feel as if Harry represents the modern American dream. When watching, people want to be Harry and, like him, successfully destroy their enemy. Ties can be drawn to the situation with Iraq where people dream of ending terrorism and establishing peace in the middle east. Perhaps Voldemeort represent this idea of terrorism.
I could elaborate much further on many other popular fantasy franchises, but the key idea is that people use these films to forget about the hardships of reality. One can only wonder if that these movies are simply allowing people to turn a blind eye to the war in Iraq and become less aware of global events. Regardless, I see no end to the popularity of fantasy films in the near future and believe that the movie market will continue to become supersaturated with these films.
One obvious (yet still completely valid) assumption is perhaps Americans are looking for a medium to escape the difficulties of reality. It is important to note that it is commonplace for superhero films and other fantasy flicks to saturate the list of top grossing films for their respective year. Personally, I feel as if this assumption is completely true. I am not afraid to admit that I look at fantasy films as a way to escape reality. I recently had the opportunity to watch the newest Harry Potter film. While watching this movie, I put myself in the shoes of Harry and truly felt as if I was in their own world. For those two or so hours, I almost forgot the hardships of reality and was whisked away into a fantasy world, almost as if I had just dreamt. I forgot about homework, pledging a fraternity, and even some family issues that I am currently having. I felt refreshed.
Specifically, looking at the success of the Harry Potter franchise (which consistently grosses a very large sum of money), perhaps the American public identifies with Harry. Harry Potter starts out in the franchise as a young British boy who finds out he is destined to become a wizard. After this epiphany, he is whisked away to a fantasy world where he learns how to fulfill his destiny and destroy his arch nemesis, Voldemort. Personally, I feel as if Harry represents the modern American dream. When watching, people want to be Harry and, like him, successfully destroy their enemy. Ties can be drawn to the situation with Iraq where people dream of ending terrorism and establishing peace in the middle east. Perhaps Voldemeort represent this idea of terrorism.
I could elaborate much further on many other popular fantasy franchises, but the key idea is that people use these films to forget about the hardships of reality. One can only wonder if that these movies are simply allowing people to turn a blind eye to the war in Iraq and become less aware of global events. Regardless, I see no end to the popularity of fantasy films in the near future and believe that the movie market will continue to become supersaturated with these films.
Aequitas and Veritas
The Boondock Saints is a movie that takes place in Boston, MA. In the movie two twins become vigilantes after killing two members of the Russian mob in self-defense. The brothers receive a message from above, and set out to rid their home city of Boston of evil. All the while an FBI agent is after them for their arrests. In the end, during the credits, the people of Boston are asked by the media, “Are the saint’s, as the two brothers are called, good or evil?”
A deeper commentary on society is revealed during the ending credits. Are the saints good or evil? People are arguing at the end, some say good some say evil. I feel this represents much more than just this movie. In the war in Iraq we are doing the same thing. We are killing to prevent others from being killed or harmed in any way. This is no different than the movie. The brothers McManus were killing high profile mob members. President Bush is killing high profile Terrorists and dictators. Each are harming people and running operations that provide illegal funding.
People seem to find war and murder to be two different things. In reality they are extremely similar if not the same. Killing is killing. We are not killing in self defense when it comes to Iraq and the brothers were not killing in the movie in self defense with the exception of the initial murder. Personally I feel the killings are justified. The tattoos on the twin’s hands speak words. One says veritas the other says aequitas which mean truth and justice respectively.
A deeper commentary on society is revealed during the ending credits. Are the saints good or evil? People are arguing at the end, some say good some say evil. I feel this represents much more than just this movie. In the war in Iraq we are doing the same thing. We are killing to prevent others from being killed or harmed in any way. This is no different than the movie. The brothers McManus were killing high profile mob members. President Bush is killing high profile Terrorists and dictators. Each are harming people and running operations that provide illegal funding.
People seem to find war and murder to be two different things. In reality they are extremely similar if not the same. Killing is killing. We are not killing in self defense when it comes to Iraq and the brothers were not killing in the movie in self defense with the exception of the initial murder. Personally I feel the killings are justified. The tattoos on the twin’s hands speak words. One says veritas the other says aequitas which mean truth and justice respectively.
Spiderman... Deeper Meaning
Personally, I am a scary movie buff. I love watching new and old scary movies and seeing what is the new in. Obviously in the new movies gore is the new in, this was stated in the article about SAW. I believe that this is because there’s a mental wanting to see how much gore a person can take. This is also a reflection on news in our society. There is so much explicit material that is aired over the news stations that there is a need for more gore than usual in movies.
Where I see parallelism in other movies the most are the superhero movies. Spiderman is the prime example. It is a known fact that people like to see good triumph over evil all the time, especially when their country is in a war that has drained everyone and does not seem to have an end in sight. This is where people look in other spots such as Spiderman to have the underdog win the fight. Most people subconsciously correlate Spiderman with America and the Green Goblin Osama Bin Laden or Sadaam Hussein and like the fact that Spiderman (America) finally triumphs over the Green Goblin (Bin Laden or Hussein). This is where I see even children having a small understanding of politics and what is going on right now.
Where I see parallelism in other movies the most are the superhero movies. Spiderman is the prime example. It is a known fact that people like to see good triumph over evil all the time, especially when their country is in a war that has drained everyone and does not seem to have an end in sight. This is where people look in other spots such as Spiderman to have the underdog win the fight. Most people subconsciously correlate Spiderman with America and the Green Goblin Osama Bin Laden or Sadaam Hussein and like the fact that Spiderman (America) finally triumphs over the Green Goblin (Bin Laden or Hussein). This is where I see even children having a small understanding of politics and what is going on right now.
Happy Ever After?
I've noticed a trend in romance movies. They aren't all given the typical fairytale ending with the happily ever after. I think that this is important because girls are led to believe that there's a perfect guy out there for them and that when they find them, nothing can go wrong. They call it a fairytale for a reason. I think that it's a good thing that the movies are being more realistic by showing that they will face some struggles along the way but only true love will really make it. One movie in particular that I'm thinking of is Enchanted. In the movie the girl is looking for her happy ever after with her prince when she is thrown into the "real world." She only met this prince once and the next day they are to wed and be in love forever. She doesn't understand when she has to come to grips with reality because she's never been exposed to it. They do face some struggles, though unrealistic because the Prince's stepmother turns into a giant beastly thing. In the movie she kind-of does get her happy ever after because she is with her true love but it doesn't show them married immediately. I think they wanted it to give the impression that love takes time and if it's real it will wait. I also think that people have become so obsessed over finding their "soulmate" that they will go to extremes to find them. We have so many online dating sites and other ways to meet people. I find it interesting that people are willing to give out so much information over the internet when we talk about how many people stalk and harass others via internet. I think that it's risky even if the sites are "secure" or they are selective as to who is allowed to use it. I think people have become so desperate to find the one and to find them right away. What's the rush? Should we just let our soulmates come to us instead of constantly searching? Will we miss them if we are too busy looking to realize that they are right in front of us? Is this a huge issue or is this just people trying to belong and be happy like we always have?
David Lynch and the good kind of violence
Is it wrong to like films that contain things that most people consider to be disturbing? David Lynch is one of my favorite American directors and I believe that his work reflects a good amount social issues at the current time periods from which the emerged from. His films Eraserhead, Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart, Muholland Drive, and Inland Empire are all extremely unique works that all contain fairly disturbing material. But Lynch does not exploit his content for negative reactions without a cause, when someone sees something that provokes negative feelings they almost instantly feel uncomfortable. Lynch uses these images when he wants to the audience to know something is clearly bad. He will do this for certain characters and places in his films as to clearly label “good” and “bad”. I think this is a clever film technique of Lynch. He uses psychology to his advantage; it is an effort saving technique that many other filmmakers use aswell.
Many folks believe violence’s present in films to be a bad thing, but what they are missing is that not every director is putting it there for frivolous purposes. Many times violence is used to provoke a distinct emotion reaction that many directors take very seriously. Not every director is trying to pollute the minds of the youth, many are trying to just express their art and violence is necessary to the message.
Many folks believe violence’s present in films to be a bad thing, but what they are missing is that not every director is putting it there for frivolous purposes. Many times violence is used to provoke a distinct emotion reaction that many directors take very seriously. Not every director is trying to pollute the minds of the youth, many are trying to just express their art and violence is necessary to the message.
"Over the Hedge"
I'm not sure if "Over the Hedge," a Disney film would be considered immensely popular amongst the 18-24 year old audience, but I think overall it was a pretty popular movie, usually anything produced by Disney is. In the movie there was the obvious theme of deforestation and the buildup of suburban housing environment. The animals were all awoken from winter hibernation to find that there were houses built on what used to be there home. The animals were talking about how their food supply was already low and lacked variety as far as nuts and berries and such, they were chewing on bark from trees trying to make the best of what was available. Later on in the film, an animal comes along who intrigues all but one of the animals in the group, he tells them of the things that lie over the hedge in the community. After venturing over the hedge a few times, the animals begin to accept this outsider as a part of their close-knit family.
Later in the film, the animals find out that the outsider was simply using them to help him collect the things he needed to repay his debt to a predator bear. During a conversation with the predator bear, the bear makes a statement about using people in your life to get what you need and then continuing on with life as a family of one. There is an epiphany moment.
I think that in our society, living for self is the reason for the way society has developed. I wouldn't say that it is good or bad, but often times when someone if living for themselves, they over look the impact that they have on those around them. Being mindful of what one says and does and then sticking around to see the impact is the key to life. That is where I think a lot of the problem lies, people don't take the five minutes to see the impact of their actions on others. I believe that if people saw the big impact that something little can have, they would be more cautious of it. In this society using others as a stepping stool is often the chosen path to success. If people would put their greed aside for a split second they would realize that there is much more to be gained in a group than individually.
In relation to the "Scream" and "Saw" articles, the idea of the helpless, lost woman, seems more to be part of the horror film formula then it is a proof of societies view of woman. I do believe that films are generally depictions of the ideals of everyday life, but I also believe that at times there are certain things in movies that create the illusion that what is being depicted is real life. People then take this into the wrong context and because it becomes so familiar and is seen so much in the movies or on television it seems as if it actually is a depiction of life; when in all actuality it is just the formula for movie success.
Later in the film, the animals find out that the outsider was simply using them to help him collect the things he needed to repay his debt to a predator bear. During a conversation with the predator bear, the bear makes a statement about using people in your life to get what you need and then continuing on with life as a family of one. There is an epiphany moment.
I think that in our society, living for self is the reason for the way society has developed. I wouldn't say that it is good or bad, but often times when someone if living for themselves, they over look the impact that they have on those around them. Being mindful of what one says and does and then sticking around to see the impact is the key to life. That is where I think a lot of the problem lies, people don't take the five minutes to see the impact of their actions on others. I believe that if people saw the big impact that something little can have, they would be more cautious of it. In this society using others as a stepping stool is often the chosen path to success. If people would put their greed aside for a split second they would realize that there is much more to be gained in a group than individually.
In relation to the "Scream" and "Saw" articles, the idea of the helpless, lost woman, seems more to be part of the horror film formula then it is a proof of societies view of woman. I do believe that films are generally depictions of the ideals of everyday life, but I also believe that at times there are certain things in movies that create the illusion that what is being depicted is real life. People then take this into the wrong context and because it becomes so familiar and is seen so much in the movies or on television it seems as if it actually is a depiction of life; when in all actuality it is just the formula for movie success.
Winning hearts and minds
In Iraq, the US has been making a huge effort to bring stability and peace. The people responsible for the violence are the largely the Iraqis themselves, attacking their own people and our troops. These terrorists have a huge amount of resentment towards the US, and view us as their mortal enemy or even an enemy of God. What they have to realize is that the US is trying to bring peace, but they are blinded by their own hatred.
In war, yes, we are supposed to kill our enemy, but we are not fighting a conventional enemy. We have already broken the borders and occupied the country. In WWII, this would be a victory. But in Iraq, the populous in general is against us. We don’t have an enemy that we can drop 10,000 bombs on and call it a day. Beating this enemy can be done in two ways: killing every militiaman, or getting them to want peace. The killing is obviously very necessary, but we have to be careful not to kill civilians if we want any Iraqis to like us and the government we are creating. This is not just a war against a country; it’s a war against an idea. That idea is using terror, with weapons and radicalism, to gain power over others. We’re not just killing enemy troops, but also killing the terrorist ideology (or, trying, or, wishing we could). Now that we’re in Iraq, we have to be seen as peacekeepers and protectors who care for the Iraqi people; if we didn’t, we would’ve left years ago.
Planning our airstrikes, which are very lethal and effective, is important to showing that we’re acting for peace. If we pummel every target we want, many civilians will die, and there will be even more hatred toward us, which will cause more loyalty to terrorist organizations. Planning a bombing isn’t perfect, but it’s better than what’s happened in the past. Minimizing casualties will instill less bitterness in citizens nearby. But when it comes to desperate situations (US troops outnumbered and in danger of being pummeled), more brutal acts are permissible to save our soldiers. This war on terrorism is more complicated than other wars we’ve fought. No treaty or surrender from a leader can end it; we have to end it in the mind of every Iraqi and terrorist.
"21" The Movie
I recently watched the movie 21 and I know this movie really takes a look into our society today. Most moviegoers probably don't see how the film gives off some deep commentary, either because they are so used to what I am about to say, or because they are just some excited about what goes on. In the movie a boy who is trying to get into Harvard Med has some trouble because it costs 300,000 dollars for his schooling. He is so intelligent but just doesn't have the money. He makes close to minumum wage at his job selling and fitting clothing for people. He uses his intelligence which shows off in his calculus class to a group of kids and his teacher who are involved in blackjack that go to Las Vegas every weekend to cheat the system and win thousands of dollars. Their are only 52 cards in the deck, and they use a system of counting cards when they are flipped up to keep a count in their head so that they always come away on top, and know when to bid more money.
The idea of cheating the system is the whole idea behind the look at society as a whole. People are constantly looking for the easy way out more than they are in doing things the right way. This movie is directly related to this idea. Maybe the people in the audience are just so used to this way of our society that they don't even think about it anymore. Thats how our society does things these days. Whatever happened to hard work. It's easily covered up by the quick and easy way. Counting cards might not be illegal but it sure is the quick and easy way.
What about some of Will Ferrell's movies like Talledega Nights and Blades of Glory. In both movies he makes fun of the sport or does something that is normal. How many pair skaters are man and man? None. And being a nascar driver and trying to win everything in Talledega Nights is totally making fun of nascar drivers. It's easier to knock them down or make fun of them than to try and be them.
The idea of cheating the system is the whole idea behind the look at society as a whole. People are constantly looking for the easy way out more than they are in doing things the right way. This movie is directly related to this idea. Maybe the people in the audience are just so used to this way of our society that they don't even think about it anymore. Thats how our society does things these days. Whatever happened to hard work. It's easily covered up by the quick and easy way. Counting cards might not be illegal but it sure is the quick and easy way.
What about some of Will Ferrell's movies like Talledega Nights and Blades of Glory. In both movies he makes fun of the sport or does something that is normal. How many pair skaters are man and man? None. And being a nascar driver and trying to win everything in Talledega Nights is totally making fun of nascar drivers. It's easier to knock them down or make fun of them than to try and be them.
The Sandlot
The movie The Sandlot was about a kid who moves into a new town and meets a group of friends all of whom love the sport of baseball. They spend every day playing ball in a vacant field and simply enjoy life. Scotty Smalls, the main character is shy but learns to come out of his shell when the rest of the group makes him more comfortable with his move. There was only one problem with playing baseball where they did, and that was Hercules. Hercules was a massive dog that was chained up behind the fence that the boys hit balls over. Once the ball went over the fence it was never seen again. One day Smalls brings a ball to play with one day and they hit it over the fence. Little did he know he grabbed a signed baseball by Babe Ruth. When the boys find out he played ball with this infamous players signed ball, they give him an earful. The remainder of the movie they spend time trying to find ways to get the ball without getting mawed by the massive k-9. At the end of the movie they end up knocking on the door of the man's house who owned the dog. He told them he played with Babe Ruth and gave them a better ball signed by the entire team.
This story could possibly be saying more than just kids trying to recover an important baseball from a backyard. The dog represents an aggressive figure, for instance a terrorist. The group of friends represent the American army who tries to end terrorism. The baseball represents a common winner and whoever retrieves the ball wins the war on terrorism. The boys are very courageous to try and go over the fence and grab the ball. Similarly American troops are courageous in going to Iraq to try and fight a war against terrorists. Scotty Smalls is like a new soldier who just enters the army, shy and unknowing of what lies ahead for him. This movie just like the movies represented in the Scream movie review shows that certain things have an impact on people's reactions. The ball was very important to Smalls because it was his step father's ball. In the Scream movie review it showed how mothering had an effect on how their children grew up in horror movies. Smalls knew his step dad would be mad so he had to get the ball no matter what. Movies can tell a hidden story sometimes and if you look beyond the actual picture shown, you can learn a whole lot more.
This story could possibly be saying more than just kids trying to recover an important baseball from a backyard. The dog represents an aggressive figure, for instance a terrorist. The group of friends represent the American army who tries to end terrorism. The baseball represents a common winner and whoever retrieves the ball wins the war on terrorism. The boys are very courageous to try and go over the fence and grab the ball. Similarly American troops are courageous in going to Iraq to try and fight a war against terrorists. Scotty Smalls is like a new soldier who just enters the army, shy and unknowing of what lies ahead for him. This movie just like the movies represented in the Scream movie review shows that certain things have an impact on people's reactions. The ball was very important to Smalls because it was his step father's ball. In the Scream movie review it showed how mothering had an effect on how their children grew up in horror movies. Smalls knew his step dad would be mad so he had to get the ball no matter what. Movies can tell a hidden story sometimes and if you look beyond the actual picture shown, you can learn a whole lot more.
The Departed
For those that are familiar with The Departed there's a couple issues that could be looked into more thoroughly. For instance, does the corrupt nature of state police forces relate to any type of American Terrorism? In a more detailed thought about it, does America secretly train troops such as Billy Costigan (Leo DiCaprio) or Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon) for illegal affairs such as stealing, killing, or international terrorism?
There is a lot of talk about terrorism that is inflicted on the United States, but there's never talk about the United States terrorizing other nations. The Departed takes a deeper look at the corrupt forces that we as a nation may be involved in. The life of Billy Costigan in The Departed is a complete lie. Basically his role is to be a spy and to take a look at deeper affairs that Massachusetts State Police uses while trying to hunt drug lords.
Like the sadistic role that mothers play in movies such as scream, I would argue that the corrupt nature of police takes a hint into illegal affairs that the US may get into. Of course we have spies, and of course we have corrupt officials, but I think there might be a relation with US illegal activities through movies such as The Departed paralleled to the hidden meaning of mothers and horror films.
When we see thriller movies such as The Departed and take a look at what US forces can do to "spy" I certainly believe that it parallels some sort of US international terrorism. Does the US take the lives of lost individuals and train them to perform secret operations that would be unmoral for the government to approve? I think the answer is yes, and that connections can be made through films like The Departed.
There is a lot of talk about terrorism that is inflicted on the United States, but there's never talk about the United States terrorizing other nations. The Departed takes a deeper look at the corrupt forces that we as a nation may be involved in. The life of Billy Costigan in The Departed is a complete lie. Basically his role is to be a spy and to take a look at deeper affairs that Massachusetts State Police uses while trying to hunt drug lords.
Like the sadistic role that mothers play in movies such as scream, I would argue that the corrupt nature of police takes a hint into illegal affairs that the US may get into. Of course we have spies, and of course we have corrupt officials, but I think there might be a relation with US illegal activities through movies such as The Departed paralleled to the hidden meaning of mothers and horror films.
When we see thriller movies such as The Departed and take a look at what US forces can do to "spy" I certainly believe that it parallels some sort of US international terrorism. Does the US take the lives of lost individuals and train them to perform secret operations that would be unmoral for the government to approve? I think the answer is yes, and that connections can be made through films like The Departed.
Violence in GrindHouse
Violence, inarguably, is one of the easiest vehicles that the film industry has at its disposable to increase a movie's chances at being successful. Recently, I saw the movie GrindHouse. I won't even bother going into a plot explanation on this one, because there really wasn't one. It was basically an incredibly long movie that left you questioning the integrity of your own body. Granted, much of the special effects were cheesy and low-budget, as the film was a homage to the mass-produced shock films of the 70's and 80's that were screened in shoddy, run down theaters referred to as "grindhouses". This cultural reference was probably the only redeeming quality that the film possessed. However, I think that the fact that movies depicting such incessant violence and gore are in existence says something about our society in general, about the role that violence plays in our modern lives.
Media, as in photographs, pictures, blogs, movie, etc..., are really nothing more than abstractions from reality. They allow us to do indirectly experience events, emotions, and predicaments, without feeling the true consequences of the experience. The same argument could be made about our entire culture. The advancement of technology and society over the course of history, aside from making our lives much easier, has been a series of increasing developments upon abstractions from reality. Warfare is a perfect example of this. With each new weapon, the wrath inflicted upon humanity as a result of its use increases exponentially, while the actual physical interactions between the those who get fucked over and those who do the fucking over are diminished. I highly doubt that similar emotions are shared between someone who kills one person with a knife compared to a person who drops a bomb over a city in the Middle East. As our emotions exist only as a result of our senses, is it possible that the remorse felt by our actions are lessened if they are realized by fewer of our senses? Has this then been the aim of our weapons technology? Or has the main motivating factor been a desire to one-up the opponent? Either way, something's not right.
If Western Society has subconsciously driving at alienating ourselves from personal experience, than violence in our media says something about Human nature; we crave it. Our society today has an unusual exposure level to real, direct violence. At the very least the youth of our Society does. It seems to me that throughout the course of History, violence has been much more prevalent than it is in modern times. Perhaps not so much prevalent as universal. Our country seems to be divided between those who do and don't experience violence, whereas the norm throughout History, with obvious exceptions, has been that the population as a whole has been affected by violence in one way or another. So how do the masses of our country who live comfortably in suburbia with their mid-budget sedan, shopping mall addictions and semi-conscious outlooks on life get their fix of violence? They go to the box office, buy a movie ticket, and sit through a movie; getting the methadone that they need for our culture's addiction to violence.
Media, as in photographs, pictures, blogs, movie, etc..., are really nothing more than abstractions from reality. They allow us to do indirectly experience events, emotions, and predicaments, without feeling the true consequences of the experience. The same argument could be made about our entire culture. The advancement of technology and society over the course of history, aside from making our lives much easier, has been a series of increasing developments upon abstractions from reality. Warfare is a perfect example of this. With each new weapon, the wrath inflicted upon humanity as a result of its use increases exponentially, while the actual physical interactions between the those who get fucked over and those who do the fucking over are diminished. I highly doubt that similar emotions are shared between someone who kills one person with a knife compared to a person who drops a bomb over a city in the Middle East. As our emotions exist only as a result of our senses, is it possible that the remorse felt by our actions are lessened if they are realized by fewer of our senses? Has this then been the aim of our weapons technology? Or has the main motivating factor been a desire to one-up the opponent? Either way, something's not right.
If Western Society has subconsciously driving at alienating ourselves from personal experience, than violence in our media says something about Human nature; we crave it. Our society today has an unusual exposure level to real, direct violence. At the very least the youth of our Society does. It seems to me that throughout the course of History, violence has been much more prevalent than it is in modern times. Perhaps not so much prevalent as universal. Our country seems to be divided between those who do and don't experience violence, whereas the norm throughout History, with obvious exceptions, has been that the population as a whole has been affected by violence in one way or another. So how do the masses of our country who live comfortably in suburbia with their mid-budget sedan, shopping mall addictions and semi-conscious outlooks on life get their fix of violence? They go to the box office, buy a movie ticket, and sit through a movie; getting the methadone that they need for our culture's addiction to violence.
The Last King of Scotland
The 2006 Academy Award winning movie "The Last King of Scotland" directed by Kevin MacDonald was based upon a Giles Foden's novel that depicts the story of a young scottish doctor who travels to Uganda to escape from the "normal" life of Scotland and becomes the personal physician to the Ugandan dictator, only in the end realizing that he must escape from Uganda.
This movie appeals to the the aspirations of a young men but can also be appealing to those of the young adult who yearns for adventure, experience, and ultimately a lesson in life. Nicholas Garrigan, who has just graduate out of medical school, is eager to start something different. He blindly decides where he wants to go as he spins a globe and as he points a finger to stop it, finding that it has landed on Uganda.
In Uganda he initially works in a small clinic tending to the needed of the Ugandan people. By some rare occasion he encounters the General Idi Amin, and fixes his hand, impressed by his skill, his unflinching bravery to take his gun and shoot a wounded cow, and most importantly his nationality (Scottish), Amin offeres Nicholas to become his personal physician.
After a while Amin and Nicholas become very close friends. Amin showers him with gifts, women, and seemingly all that life has to offer. Nicholas in turn not only takes care of his personal help, but guides him in political affairs as Amin asks for advice on state matters. Nicholas does not realize that Amin is a violent, power hungry individual. Shielded by the materialistic gifts and sensual pleasures, Nicholas does not see the violence and oppression that engulfs Uganda. Soon enough, he notices what treachery Amin has commited, and feels guilty for he has unknowingly helped him commit such horrible crimes of murder and torture. Nicholas world seems to crash around him as he sees all the violence and evil around him.
Series of events that take place that solidify the fact that Amin is evil. Gruesome scenes are shown which involve massive mounds of dead bodies that Amins militia have killed that strike deep within the heart. Nicholas love, and ironically one of the wives of Amin, is disembodied as her legs, arms, and head is detatched from her body and her stomach is cut open, for she was pregnant with Nicholas baby. In a fury, Nicholas decides to kill Amin by poisoning him.
As this is taking place hundred upon hundreds of people are being murdered, and the hospital where Nicholas works is the only place where people can refuge and find safety. Unfortunately, Nicholas plan goes to shambles and he is unable to kill Amin. Nicholas is found out to be a traitor and is hung by skin and left to die. Luckily, one of his fellow doctors and friend risks his life to save him, as he cuts him down and sends him on one of the refugee planes back to civilization but most importantly away from Uganda.
This movie illustrates evil and torment as Scream does although on a different level that not only educated America on the horrors of genocide and the harmful effects of ignorance. It shows how adventure and thrill can be not what you expect as an exciting journey turns out for the worst.
Oceans 11
In the past 10 years there has been a few film's which almost young adult can say they have seen or heard of. One of the few is Oceans 11 starring actors and actresses such as George Clooney, Bernie Mac, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, and Julia Roberts. Won 3 awards and gained 17 nominations. The story surrounds Danny Ocean (George Clooney) getting together a gang of ten men including Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) and Linus Caldwell (Matt Damon) along with others to pull off the biggest heist ever known. They rob three casinos all owned by Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) and take $150 million dollars.
The movie was successful and is still well remembered. Throughout the whole movie one almost dreams to become one of the characters to be Danny Ocean. Getting revenge on one of the most powerful and wealthy men in the world. Having the ability to pull of a heist that was unheard of just with a group of 10 others. Going through the planning and discussions. His life is a never ending thriller and he has everything set for him. We all at one point wish we could do the same. Doing what we want and getting away with it.
One of the reasons this movie was so appealing was that some of the characters did apply to the common man. Being a go happy funny movie. It was the typical good guy against bad guy with the twist. This time the good guys were the actual criminals robbing a bank. But by the end of the movie, you think these guys aren't so bad at all and if I could I would have taken there position.
The movie was successful and is still well remembered. Throughout the whole movie one almost dreams to become one of the characters to be Danny Ocean. Getting revenge on one of the most powerful and wealthy men in the world. Having the ability to pull of a heist that was unheard of just with a group of 10 others. Going through the planning and discussions. His life is a never ending thriller and he has everything set for him. We all at one point wish we could do the same. Doing what we want and getting away with it.
One of the reasons this movie was so appealing was that some of the characters did apply to the common man. Being a go happy funny movie. It was the typical good guy against bad guy with the twist. This time the good guys were the actual criminals robbing a bank. But by the end of the movie, you think these guys aren't so bad at all and if I could I would have taken there position.
Letters from Iwo Jima
I recently watched the movie Letters from Iwo Jima directed by Clint Eastwood. When I rented this movie I just assumed it would be a good gory war movie like so many others I had seen. To my surprise this movie was anything but, and showed people dying less than most other war movie you can see. On the average you have the one army running headlong into machine guns and mortar fire suffering severe casualties to try and accomplish their goal. In this there was one scene that showed people grenadine themselves, but this was different, it showed a different part of war. The thing I found interesting about this movie is how it wasn’t biased in the least. In general most war movies represent one side as being inherently good and the other as inherently bad. This movie based mostly on the Japanese side of the battle on the small island of Iwo Jima showed both sides in the same light. Towards the beginning of the movie they show how the Japanese could both civil and in some cases nasty. Later on after continuous attacks by the American air force you see their spirits change and they show how their culture influences them, at this point in the movie they know they cannot win the battle and they decide to die in a respectful manner according to their culture. The hold grenades to their chests and kill themselves. At this point in the movie I had felt one way about the people on the island, these people representing the culture, after this I felt completely different about their actions. Later in the movie you see more from the American side of the battle. Normally you would think that they are going to be portrayed as the heroes in the movie they will do everything right but that’s not how Clint Eastwood decided to portray them. They shoot a Japanese soldier waving the white flag, and then later they do the right thing by helping Japanese soldiers who have been injured. All together this movie told a great story and told the full story not just from one sided point of view. This was different than most other movies of this kind and I found that very refreshing.
Letters from Iwo Jima
I recently watched the movie Letters from Iwo Jima directed by Clint Eastwood. When I rented this movie I just assumed it would be a good gory war movie like so many others I had seen. To my surprise this movie was anything but, and showed people dying less than most other war movie you can see. On the average you have the one army running headlong into machine guns and mortar fire suffering severe casualties to try and accomplish their goal. In this there was one scene that showed people grenadine themselves, but this was different, it showed a different part of war. The thing I found interesting about this movie is how it wasn’t biased in the least. In general most war movies represent one side as being inherently good and the other as inherently bad. This movie based mostly on the Japanese side of the battle on the small island of Iwo Jima showed both sides in the same light. Towards the beginning of the movie they show how the Japanese could both civil and in some cases nasty. Later on after continuous attacks by the American air force you see their spirits change and they show how their culture influences them, at this point in the movie they know they cannot win the battle and they decide to die in a respectful manner according to their culture. The hold grenades to their chests and kill themselves. At this point in the movie I had felt one way about the people on the island, these people representing the culture, after this I felt completely different about their actions. Later in the movie you see more from the American side of the battle. Normally you would think that they are going to be portrayed as the heroes in the movie they will do everything right but that’s not how Clint Eastwood decided to portray them. They shoot a Japanese soldier waving the white flag, and then later they do the right thing by helping Japanese soldiers who have been injured. All together this movie told a great story and told the full story not just from one sided point of view. This was different than most other movies of this kind and I found that very refreshing.
Good Media/Bad Media
It’s not really fair to criticize or applaud the media during different periods of time because the only way that audiences are able to know that a source is publishing something false or biased is because there was another source at that time providing them with more reliable information. For instance, America currently acknowledges fox news as a news source that presents facts with a republican bias. But the reason why we know that is because that there are other sources telling us this. I believe it is important for the media to have these various perspectives because that allows us check facts and make sure we know what we’re being told is true.
Traffic
The movie Traffic depicts many intertwining stories that are involved with drug trafficking. From the supplier to consumer and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) The main players of each of these parties has a closer connection to the other more so than they think. For instance the head commanding officer of the DEA is strict within his family. His daughter isn't happy with her life at home and something like this may have been her reason for trying drugs and eventually becoming addicted to it.
This movie shows the close and sometimes frighteningly surprising relationship between cause and effect. How one thing leads to another, and how one thing can directly effect another. In real life this happens all the time. When you think you're solving one problem but actually causing another. I remember a lot of speculations that went out about the War in Iraq being all about oil. I even remember hearing on the news "Operation Iraqi Liberation" and saying to my self, "doesn't that spell out O.I.L?" And too this day the prices of gas hasn't gone down.
This is true within media as well. Some people think that making horror movies more grotesque would scare away customers, but some daring (or disturbed) movie makers decide to try and push the envelope on gore. More times than none this invokes and even greater audience, It's funny, people enjoy being freaked out and grossed out. How this works, we may never know. Just shows that things often turn out differently than one would imagine.
This movie shows the close and sometimes frighteningly surprising relationship between cause and effect. How one thing leads to another, and how one thing can directly effect another. In real life this happens all the time. When you think you're solving one problem but actually causing another. I remember a lot of speculations that went out about the War in Iraq being all about oil. I even remember hearing on the news "Operation Iraqi Liberation" and saying to my self, "doesn't that spell out O.I.L?" And too this day the prices of gas hasn't gone down.
This is true within media as well. Some people think that making horror movies more grotesque would scare away customers, but some daring (or disturbed) movie makers decide to try and push the envelope on gore. More times than none this invokes and even greater audience, It's funny, people enjoy being freaked out and grossed out. How this works, we may never know. Just shows that things often turn out differently than one would imagine.
Blades of Glory
Blades of Glory is obviously a movie about skating however on a different level it is a movie where two extreme opposites, that completely despise each other can come together to work as one and live in harmony with the help of a middle man for a common goal: the Gold Medal. We can look at this on a political stand point by comparing the two extremes: Bill Clinton and George Bush Sr. In the end of 2005 an unlikely pair came together for a common goal: to ease the suffering of so many in the wake of Asia's devastating tsunami. The two have come a long way since running against each other in 1992, where Bush once called Clinton a Bozo while on the campaign trail. Bush said, "You can't go through life with a great deal of bitterness in our heart over something that happened 15 years ago." At Bush's request, the two visited the region and raised money for rebuilding homes and lives ravaged by the tsunami, which left more than 200,000 people dead or missing. They both raised more than $100 million for Hurricane Katrina relief in Louisiana and Mississippi. Clinton said "Where we can find common ground and do something for the future of the country and for the future of our children and grandchildren, I think we ought to do it." Even though they were once foes, they are now friends and really have learned a lot about each other and their shared interests. Blades of Glory so ironically relates to Bush and Clinton because Jon Heder and Will Ferrell were competing against each other and whenever they saw each other they weren't happy, however as time progressed they decided that they both wanted the same thing and decided to work together to make their goal happen. They decided to put their differences and ignorance behind them to work together for something they both felt so strongly toward. This can compare to the Saw and Scream readings by the deeper interpretation that I decided to do. I wanted to take it at a different angle and explain how it politically relates to former presidents, since the presidential elections right now are such a hot topic, even though those two won't be running.
http://abcnews.go.com/wnt/personofweek/story?id=1446477
Minimizing the Damage
When it comes to war, I believe that a nation has a responsibility to ensure that no innocent lives are lost. In the war in Iraq, there is no reason why civilian lives should be considered expendable or necessary, like in WWII, because we now have the technology and intelligence to make informed decisions on our airstrikes. In WWII, we were at were with a much stronger enemy, with technology close to our own, so we felt that we were at risk of losing more lives, whether it be military or innocent live due to another strike like Pearl Harbor. Now, we are fighting a war against people who have little means of technological, using weaponry leftover from battles many years ago. There is no organized military with the intelligence to inflict major damage to our armed forces or country, so there is no real need to take innocent life. I think that military should do all that it can to keep civilians safe, such as projecting the type of bomb, angle of the drop, and time of attack, to minimize the damage to innocent. For example, when bombing an area where major terrorist leader were suspected, the military did all that it could to make sure that the hospital across the street was not damaged. Even though some innocent people may die, they must take into account that it is necessary to take out terrorist leaders who could essentially cause more loss of life if they were left untouched. It is a very tough decision, but I feel that it is necessary as long as too many innocent lives aren’t lost. This is why I felt it was appropriate that there was a single digit number, that if estimated loss of civilian life was higher than, then the okay must be given by the president. Sure some would say no innocent people should be killed, but that is impossible. The terrorist must be taken out or else they would do more harm to American troops and Iraqi people. It is obvious that the U.S. is doing all that they can, such as creating low collateral weapons, and I believe they should be commended for their efforts to save human life. I absolutely agree about how difficult it is to make the decision about conducting an airstrike, like when a small group of Americans are outnumbered by a large enemy force and there is no time to gather intelligence on loss of innocent life. However, this is when it is necessary, like with WWII, to save the lives of our American soldiers, and as sad as it is to say, we must value their lives more than the lives of innocent Iraqi people. Still, I think that the American government is doing all that it can to minimize the damage.
Effective Bombing?
From my miniscule knowledge, I do believe that during a war bombs fall, and when bombs fall they explode, and when they explode, people in the neighboring area of explosion have a greater probability of death. However, just as in every case, there are exceptions to each ‘theory’. The war that rages the Middle East is quite a different from ones previous in the history of men. The art of war has changed with technology but the basic principle of one army vs. another still stands. This modern war in the Middle East proves otherwise. This war against terrorism is not between US troops and the enemy. This enemy is very complicated, ranging in all ages and genders, but most significantly no uniforms! How are US soldiers supposed to right an army that does not exists, how do people expect American soldiers to wage war against entire countries, if not regions of the world. I think it is crazy that this interview deals with talking about how bombs explode. How can we say that one building is a target, and the one less than five feet away not a target? This enemy of terrorist hide in one house to another and recruit entire towns to aid their cause. When Americans get the signal that one building is a target, they drop bombs. Yes the neighboring buildings might get destructed and the people in that area will get hurt. People may argue that these people might be innocent and they do not deserve to be hurt by these bombs. But from the prospective of American soldiers, how can they only destruct the target? These terrorist are unlimited in numbers, they have full support of their towns. I think that if a person is truly innocent, then they should pack up their home and take their family to another country where they do not have the risk of being killed by American bombs. War is a ugly thing, people die, it cannot be avoided.
Talking about horror film
Recently I haven't seen any movies, so I''l have to go along with the articles. In most movies the mother alway saves the day. Child in trouble, cops can't do anything leave it to the mother. She'll go in and do what it takes to save their child. These kind of things can happen in real life. You've heard the stories about how the mother lifted a car to save their child etc. The truth is a angry mother is the worst thing that can come chasing after you. This is more true it the wild. My cat is crazy. You touch her kitten you might lose a hand. Mothers are crazy beast if you try to take one on.
The other cliche in the horror movies as discussed in the "Scream" article is that the good girl is the one that lives. Maybe ther're just trying to stress the point in order to survive in everyday life you should try to be as good as possible. I've never heard of someone getting killed, because they act kindly to someone, the ones you always hear about getting shot are the ones who have attitudes about everything and everyone.
Concerning gore, I guess people will see what they want to see. Watching gore may put us back in our animalistic state. Just proving the point that we are not better than the other animals, ;ike we believe we are.
The other cliche in the horror movies as discussed in the "Scream" article is that the good girl is the one that lives. Maybe ther're just trying to stress the point in order to survive in everyday life you should try to be as good as possible. I've never heard of someone getting killed, because they act kindly to someone, the ones you always hear about getting shot are the ones who have attitudes about everything and everyone.
Concerning gore, I guess people will see what they want to see. Watching gore may put us back in our animalistic state. Just proving the point that we are not better than the other animals, ;ike we believe we are.
Fight Club
In the movie Fight Club, the narrator leads a very lackluster life. He is an insomniac who works for a car company in an office building. He is obsessed with furnishing his apartment and buying a nice wardrobe in hope of satisfaction in life. He attends support group meetings because he says the crying helps him get better sleep at night. One day, the narrator meets Tyler Durden, a soap salesman. Tyler is very chaotic and hates the consumer culture. One night, the narrator and Tyler came upon the idea of fighting as a hobby. If felt good to them, and others saw them fighting outside the local bar in the parking lot and became interested. "Fight Club" was the name they gave it, and its popularity grew rapidly. Fight Club was moved to the basement of the bar and was expanded to every night of the week. Ever since the narrator started the club with Tyler, he felt more alive than he had ever been. Others joined the club for the same reason; to feel alive. Fighting was something that let people express their evil side or be involved in something evil.
In Fight Club, the members want to be part of something evil. Just like in today's society, things that are evil get attention and really interests everyone. It seems like nowadays there is more bad news than good news in any newspaper or on any news channel. It is always the negative news stories that get the most attention and coverage. Even tabloids and sensation magazines would much rather have a story about something something controversial a celebrity did than a story about what celebrity is donating to a certain charity. For example, I think more magazines would sell with Paris Hilton getting a DUI on the front cover than a picture of George Clooney doing some community service. People are much more interested in reading about other people's problems than about how good their lives are.
I feel that we like what doesnt happen to us. Just like in Scream, people live the thrill through the movie. They dont want to die like in the story, but they want the excitement and drama that comes with it. Whether we realize it or not, we all want evil.
In Fight Club, the members want to be part of something evil. Just like in today's society, things that are evil get attention and really interests everyone. It seems like nowadays there is more bad news than good news in any newspaper or on any news channel. It is always the negative news stories that get the most attention and coverage. Even tabloids and sensation magazines would much rather have a story about something something controversial a celebrity did than a story about what celebrity is donating to a certain charity. For example, I think more magazines would sell with Paris Hilton getting a DUI on the front cover than a picture of George Clooney doing some community service. People are much more interested in reading about other people's problems than about how good their lives are.
I feel that we like what doesnt happen to us. Just like in Scream, people live the thrill through the movie. They dont want to die like in the story, but they want the excitement and drama that comes with it. Whether we realize it or not, we all want evil.
Cloverfield
Back in the day Japan released a little film called Godzilla. It had clear themes of the west dominating the east. Godzilla generally stomped all over Tokyo's couch much as we had during WWII. The use of the atomic bomb was not left out seeing as that was how Godzilla came to be, a nuclear test. So the east got dominated by the west and the east made a movie basically stating that the west was a bunch of douchebags for generally walking all over the east even though they provoked us into a war. So fifty years later when the east has started to catch up to us to the point where there is potential for them to reach us or even surpass us we come out with a movie about us getting stomped out. Cloverfield is basically a mediocre Godzilla style movie with a Blair Witch Project style filming. A giant monster stomps all over New York City's couch instead of Tokyo's. Everyone dies, they level the city and the end is ambiguous and not at the same time. The city gets bombed but there is a low volume clip after the credits roll that says "somebody help us" and "its still alive." There is no direct connection that the monster came from the east, but the back story from the movie (courtesy IMDB) says that it was disturbed from deep sea oil drilling platforms, so it is related to something that is very big in our economy and something that is going to change, but is still up in the air about what is actually going to happen. So it all ties back to America needing to change its economic policies if it wants to stay on top. Otherwise, China will linger on our block, give the finger to a cop, and set it up to get on top.
John Q
The movie I decided to analyze was John Q. Since one of the main points of the upcoming presidential elections is healthcare, I figured this would be the perfect movie that shows how dissatisfied America is with the private healthcare system. Along with the healthcare portrayal it shows a significant class division among society. The film begins with John Q watching television in bed. Bush is on talking about public spending, the camera then turns to Q's face and you can see it filled with hatred and we instantly understand that Q is not a fan of Bush. Reasons may be because he gives tax breaks to the rich which aids in class separation where the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. It is also known that healthcare companies paid Bush off to not do anything about the healthcare issues. The class differences that are shown in the film are the doctor patient class division between Q and the surgeon. The portrayal of the surgeon is that he is a good man, however he is corrupted by the system he works for. He basically has no sympathy for Q in any aspect while he is giving the diagnosis of his son. The class difference is shown later when the surgeon is talking to a wealthier patient who just had the surgery that Q seeks. The conversation he has with the wealthy patient is friendly whereas the conversation with Q is guarded and defensive. Another difference is when Q talks to the man in human resources about his healthcare plan and since he is not a full time employee he is only insured up to $20,000 and Q is completely shocked by this. The man can so easily separate himself from showing any sympathy because it shown that he looks that he's well off and doesn't have to deal with that issue.
Along the same lines of John Q, there was also a documentary by Michael Moore called "Sicko" which reflects how much our healthcare sucks. I remember seeing one man who sawed his ring and middle fingers off by accident and had no insurance because he cant afford it. He chose to have his ring finger reattached because that is $12,000 whereas the middle finger is worth $60,000. There was also a man in the high 80s that was working in the trash area of a grocery store because he gets a discount on medication, whereas most 80 year olds are retired he said that he'd probably be working until he dies because he cant afford medicine otherwise. There were also scenes where people wanted to get implants of some kind and couldn't because insurance said that it was purely experimental and there was another woman that wanted to get the lapband procedure to help her loose weight and insurance said they wouldn't help cover it because she was too overweight, however she wanted it so that she could lose weight so basically the insurance company are idiots. So many people have healthcare benefits subtracted from their paychecks and healthcare still has the nerve to deny coverage over different things, I think if you are paying for it on a weekly, monthly, however many times you should get full coverage. There are so many people that die due to healthcare's negligence on America or making it too expensive for those that need insurance. The part that made me so mad is that in Europe insurance is free! doctors even come to your house! when you go to the hospital you get reimbursed for travel! its just ridiculous how corrupted our world is and healthcare probably will never be free or cheaper here because healthcare is making so much money off of all of us that can afford it. I don't understand that if there is free healthcare (CHIP) for kids, why can't there be a CHIP for adults. Obviously it can be done, but our world is so greedy that they don't want to change it. Hopefully since so many people have seen John Q and how insurance can have such an affect on ones family and even let a family member die, hopefully it can mirror a coming change in American values and hopefully one day change can become possible.
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