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Metropolis: Light Years Ahead Of Its Time Even Today

admin — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000

At first glance, a futuristic story of a great city split between the pampered rich and the struggling poor ruled over by a ruthless businessman might seem like the story of modern day Manhattan. Instead, this is the plot of Fritz Lang’s 1927 masterpiece “Metropolis,” whose cold and shadowy art deco style has influenced science fiction from “Brave New World” to “Twilight Zone” to “Blade Runner.” In this silent film, the imagery tells the story of Freder (Gustav Froehlich), the son of the dictator Joh Fredersen (Alfred Abel) of the above ground Metropolis. One day, Freder sights beautiful Maria (Brigitte Helm) with a group of workers’ children, and realizes for the first time that there is a subterranean world that supports his pleasure-filled lifestyle.Never heard of this before? Get up to speed here. Eventually, Freder descends into that other world and joins Maria in rallying the people in the depths to revolt. Meanwhile, his father finds the brilliant scientist Rotwang (Rudolf Klein-Rogge) to create a robot with Maria’s face. After they kidnap the real Maria, they use the robot in her place to mislead the workers. These classic characters will remind viewers of many movie moments: the heartless despot, the nave son, the mad scientist, the beautiful woman fighting for the oppressed. Every movie lover should take the opportunity to watch this elegant and influential film.

Why We Have To Love Scarlett O’Hara

admin — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000

There are so many reasons that we have to simply love Scarlett O’Hara. She was a very determined woman. No matter what the situation was, Scarlett always rose to the situation and handled it. She was inventive and when she needed a dress to impress the man of her dreams she simply tore down the curtain and threw something together. Her desire for love sometimes overpowered common sense, however she was passionate and that is to be admired. Another reason that she is to be loved is that even though she lost everything that she ever loved and cared about, she arose from the ashes and began to rebuild her life. She did not let the little things in life keep her down. She never took no for a anwser and kept perservering to get what she wanted out of life. She may not have been morally correct in some of the choosing of her suitors, however she did what she needed to do to get by as a single woman. She also did not care what others thought of her, she carried herself with a high self esteem. In a society where reputation was important she overlooked the negative reactions of others and did what she needed to do to be happy.

Young Adult Fiction: Hijacked By Vampires

admin — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Long before Stephanie Meyers made them glam, vampires had been present in young adult fiction. Both Christopher Pike and R.L. Stine, the two biggest names in twentieth century YA fiction, had used variations on the undead beast in coming of age tales of terror. Lesser known books, such as Carl Laymon’s “Nightmare Lake,” had found scary and innovative uses for vampires. Then came “Buffy: The Vampire Slayer.” Suddenly, vampires became cool. Young adult fiction discovered new love for the undead. The public ate up any vamp fiction it could find.

However, even the Buffy franchise’s success pales before Team Edward and Team Jacob’s rabid fan bases. Vampires are no longer simply cool; they have become glittery, rock star superheroes.

The Stephanie Meyers publishing phenomenon has brought about a whole new vampire invasion. New series stand alongside resurrected older books. All sport snazzy, cinematic covers and/or television shows. Among the welcome returns are L. J. Smith’s “Night World” and “The Vampire Diaries.” These romantic, dark adventures thrilled teens twenty years ago, and will continue to do so for the current generation. They deserve to see new readers. The slapdash Meyers pastiches, however, deserve to bake in sunlight until they are ash.Want to know more? Go ahead: Today’s Trend in Teen Fiction

Best Adaptations Out Now…

admin — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 00:00:00 +0000

You may have been reading on your Satellite Star Internet that there are tons of movie sequels out this summer but did you realize how many movies adapted from books there are out currently? Here are a few of our must-see out and upcoming films adapted from books…
Harry Potter: The final installment of the series closes many a chapter written by the infamous J.K. Rowling. Potter fans can expect lots of action and a nice, clean break from their favorite characters and we recommend re-reading the novel before you head out to the theater.
Winnie the Pooh: One of the summer’s first G-rated movies, Winnie the Pooh is an adorable blast from the past. It’s witty enough that adults will love it and just as charming as it was when you read the books decades ago.
The Help: Adapted from an outrageously popular novel, The Help stars Emma Stone and speaks volumes about the cultural changes at the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement. Take your mother and your daughter to catch this one.

James Bond: Better On Paper Or Onscreen?

admin — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 00:00:00 +0000

James Bond is a culturally significant personality in modern media. He was created by Ian Fleming in 1953. Fleming took aspects of Bond from himself, personalities surrounding himself, and his own experiences. Bond passed from paper to onscreen with minor changes.

It may be hard to spot the differences between onscreen and paper as Fleming took aspects of Bond’s actors, such as Sean Connery’s Scottish traits, and worked those into his character’s background and personality as he continued his writing of Bond stories. As time passed and different actors filled the roles as well as different writers continuing Fleming’s legacy, some of that characterization has been left behind from novel to film.

Other aspects of Bond heightened in the film but not as relevant to the stories in the novels are his interactions with M’s secretary Moneypenny, his dependence upon high tech gadgets, the watches he uses, the liqour he consumes, his cars and the spectacular car crashes, as well as his womanizing habits. This can be readily seen in product placement and audience appeal to draw upon the desire to escape into Bond’s exciting, dashing persona from mundane reality. Bond on paper or onscreen is very appealing to audiences.

The World Of Dr.Seuss Onscreen

admin — Tue, 24 May 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Dr. Seuss is a staple in the world of children’s authors. Depictions of his books have been around for ages and ages. In the past, his stories were simplistically portrayed through simple cartoons. It was like a direct copy of the book transferred to the screen. Now, we see his books played by real actors out on the big screen. Seeing his stories being brought to life is interesting. In regards to Cat in the Hat, the viewer is thrown into a world of weirdness and color that just screams, DR.You can find a quick rundown here SEUSS! However, the enjoyable subtlety of Seuss’s rhymes are lost within the plot driven wackiness of the movie. It is the same with How the Grinch Stole Christmas. All of the designs and characters are identifiable but the “Seuss-ness” that should be there, has been suppressed. Granted, both movies are enjoyable for kids and adults alike. The emphasis on character creation and set is obvious. One can imagine just how difficult it is to bring these characters to life. Watching the films definitely puts you into the physical world of Dr. Seuss. Nevertheless, the essence and fun of Seuss’s words and rhymes are not accurately displayed in the films.

Dracula: The Worlds Most Famous Vampire Story

admin — Sat, 21 May 2011 00:00:00 +0000

When Bram Stoker penned his story in 1897 it is unlikely that he realized the far reaching influence it would have. He was writing a scary story with romance and action that would entertain his friends and bring him some cash to live on, not creating a subculture such as has happened from his efforts. Movies about vampires have ranged from the ridiculous to the sublime with stops all through this huge arc of storylines. The scary and unattractive nosferatu of the early movies led to the more urbane Bela Lugosi’s portrayal of the Count and on to the present day vampires of the Twilight world.

The Stoker novel was based on the real life character Vlad II of Wallachia who took the family name of Dracul after being invested in the Order of the Dragon in 1431. It became part of the public domain in the U.S. as soon as it was published because Stoker failed to take the proper steps to copyright his creation, thus when movies started being made this popular story was one of the first to be put into the cinematic form. It has been a success from the beginning because Dracula is inherently charismatic and fascinating.