The Man with the Hat

So I know to most people this will sound strange but I have never seen the Indiana Jones movies. I KNOW apparently that’s a crime against humanity, or at least it is according to some people I know. J But tonight I am correcting this error and am watching the second movie (I know it’s out of order but really who cares), at this very moment I am on the search for the Holy Grail. . . Now while I haven’t seen the originals I did see the newer movie and wasn’t all that amazing but I’ve been told these are much better so I decided to give it a try. The reason I wanted to blog about it was because it is amazing to me how movies can have such a following after so many years. I though t about it and I can see it happening to movies and books all over take Harry Potter or the Twilight series people feel the need to grab hold of something and create a mini-culture around them. (Not that I’m completely innocent of this but I thought it was an interesting observation)

Listening

So recently my sister purchased some audiobooks and sent them to me. Now she loves to listen to books even more than reading them but I actually prefer the other way. I love the feel of reading from an actual book, the fell of the paper, the smell, everything. But recently I have come to really enjoy some particular books on "tape" so I decided to post about it. One of the reasons why it is fun to listen to some books on tape is because to me it is like watching a movie. You get some of the nuances that can be missed while reading the words for yourself; such as accents and personality of the characters that a good reader will bring to life. Some readers are amazing at creating voices for character that are perfect and bring the world of the book to life. One such example is The Chronicles of Nick set in New Orleans. The way the reader can bring you to New Orleans is amazing. The reader, Holter Graham, is particularly great at this in this series. There is such a wide arrays of voices I really do feel like the characters are speaking and it is a fun experience.  Sometimes I have gone to do something else and caught myself wondering what show, or movie, I was watching before I remember that I was lisening to a book. If you haven't tried out audiobooks I would recommend it, especially for times when you’re walking to or from school, working out, or other things that need your hands but not necessarily your whole mind.

Crying Movies

To the movies that can make you cry and laugh at the same time. Today I saw the movie Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close at the dollar theater. Wow. . . it was a really good movie but definitely one that made me cry quite a few times. It was a very moving movie about a boy whose father died in the 9/11 attack and his journey to figure out what a key he found in his dad’s closet opens, so that he can feel close to him again. Along the journey he meets so many people and learns their stories and expands himself while facing his fears. You see him and his mother trying to learn to live again together without him. I thought that this movie was put together really well and the actor did a wonderful job. I would definitely recommend this movie as long as you don’t mind some good crying moments alongside some moments of laughter.

Priorities

Priorities. . . . *Sigh* The trouble with being an adult is that we are responsible for ourselves. Now don’t get me wrong it’s also nice but sometimes I let my priorities get away from me because there is no one to say otherwise. What does this have to do with the media you might ask; well it is an amazing conduit for getting distracted. We have access to so much through the media, TV, internet (hulu, youtube, Netflix, facebook, etc.) radio, book, audiobooks, the list could go on in on. My problem is that I can get really into whatever I’m doing whether it is reading a book or watching a new series online and because of this I get sucked into the world of whatever it is and everything else seems less important somehow. L Luckily this doesn’t happen to often I just thought of it now because it happened last night when I found a new show on Netflix because I had a free hour, well that hour turned into many more until suddenly it was four thirty in the morning.  Do any of you have a similar predicament?

Grandparents

So today I wanted to blog about how media can help to bridge the gap between the generations.  So before I moved to Utah for school I had not really had the chance to get to know my grandparents all that well because I saw them probably once a year for a week to ten days with forty other people there as well. One of the ways I have been able to spend more time with them, getting to know them is through the classics and other similar shows and movies. We watch shows such as musicals from the 40s and 50s, other shows and movies from that time and shows from masterpiece classics on PBS (the show we were watching until it ended a couple of weeks ago was Downton Abbey which I thought was awesome J). It gives us something in common to talk about and has led to many long conversations about their lives, which are infinitely more interesting then I was led to believe previously. I have learned more about my grandparent in the last year then the nineteen before and I have to say that very happy that I have had this opportunity and I hope to continue to enjoy like shows and movies with them for many years.

Fifth Element

So I am sitting here watching Fifth Element and I thought it was really interesting to see what the people who made the movie thought fashion would be like in the future as well as their perception of what urban life would be like. The outfits range from completely drab to outrageous concoctions of plastic. The city is sky high with traffic on all levels and a layer of smog so thick at the bottom you can’t see through it. Then you see the scene where lelou types in war on the computer trying to learn about human nature and she becomes so depressed and can’t see why she should protect the world when we just destroy it. And Corbin explains that there are good reasons to save it and the reason given is love. I love this movie for lots of reasons but that is one of them. Even though mankind does all kinds of stupid and hateful things that is not all of who we are and we are capable of so much more. Which I thought was a great message for a Friday night. J

Holiday Madness

So today I was going to take my two younger cousins (two girls three and five) to see the newer movie The Secret World of Arietty about the borrowers (the tiny people who live in the wall). So I had two options one at 1:30 at Thanksgiving point and one at 1:55 at a cinemark but an hour before both were sold out, at two different theaters, it was crazy. I felt bad becuse then I had two sad little girls with me. So now I know on a holiday buy the tickets ahead of time.