The Hobbit; Book vs. Movie

The Hobbit

Pop culture; zombie movies

Catching Fire

We all know about the Hunger Games series and have either seen the movie directed, by Garry Ross, or read the book by Suzanne Collins. Katniss Everdeen lives in district 12, in Panem; the new world after a major civil war. The government is angry about the civil war so they make 2 tributes from each district (12 districts in all) fight to the death in an annual Hunger Games. The hunger games is an all-out free for all fight with only one survivor. During the annual drawing to see who is picked to be tribute, Katniss’s sister ends up being picked as district 12’s tribute.  Katness then volunteers to be the first ever volunteer as tribute for district twelve, going in place of her sister. Then you have her whole dramatic showing before the games, her talking about her sister, preparing for the games, and the creation of the “star crossed lovers.”

            Then the real action starts and Katness is put into the games and as she runs into obstacles she finds a way through them and continues to go Rambo and win. Although she did not win alone, she and her fellow tribute or the other “star crossed lover”; Peeta Mellark where going to kill themselves so they would not have to kill each other. Before they could the games stopped and it was announced that they had both won. They were then taken back to the hospital and treated for anything they needed. The movie ended with president snow congratulating Katness and right before they were about to go on victors tour.

              Having The Hunger Games being a huge success the second movie Catching Fire was put into action immediately, one year later the next movie was starting to be shown in theaters. The film begins as Katniss Everdeen has returned home safe after winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games along with fellow tribute Peeta Mellark. Winning means that they must turn around and leave their family and close friends, embarking on a "Victor's Tour" of the districts. Along the way Katniss senses that a rebellion is simmering, but the Capitol is still very much in control as President Snow prepares the 75th Annual Hunger Games (The Quarter Quell) - a competition that could change Panem forever, for better or worse.

            I have not yet seen the movie, but I will soon be going to it. I will have a review to the new Hunger Games movie Catching Fire very soon.

Hunger Games transition

We all know about the Hunger Games series and have either seen the movie directed, by Garry Ross, or read the book by Suzanne Collins. Katniss Everdeen lives in district 12, in Panem; the new world after a major civil war. The government is angry about the civil war so they make 2 tributes from each district (12 districts in all) fight to the death in an annual Hunger Games. The hunger games is an all-out free for all fight with only one survivor. During the annual drawing to see who is picked to be tribute, Katniss’s sister ends up being picked as district 12’s tribute.  Katness then volunteers to be the first ever volunteer as tribute for district twelve, going in place of her sister. Then you have her whole dramatic showing before the games, her talking about her sister, preparing for the games, and the creation of the “star crossed lovers.”

            Then the real action starts and Katness is put into the games and as she runs into obstacles she finds a way through them and continues to go Rambo and win. Although she did not win alone, she and her fellow tribute or the other “star crossed lover”; Peeta Mellark where going to kill themselves so they would not have to kill each other. Before they could the games stopped and it was announced that they had both won. They were then taken back to the hospital and treated for anything they needed. The movie ended with president snow congratulating Katness and right before they were about to go on victors tour.

              Having The Hunger Games being a huge success the second movie Catching Fire was put into action immediately, one year later the next movie was starting to be shown in theaters. The film begins as Katniss Everdeen has returned home safe after winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games along with fellow tribute Peeta Mellark. Winning means that they must turn around and leave their family and close friends, embarking on a "Victor's Tour" of the districts. Along the way Katniss senses that a rebellion is simmering, but the Capitol is still very much in control as President Snow prepares the 75th Annual Hunger Games (The Quarter Quell) - a competition that could change Panem forever, for better or worse.

            I have not yet seen the movie, but I will soon be going to it. I will have a review to the new Hunger Games movie Catching Fire very soon.

How to sneak into Rated-R movies

Many of the greatest movies are rated R, and being someone like me you just have to go see them in theaters and get the full big screen experience. So if you have troubles getting your parents to let you go to such movies then here is an easy three step guide for you to sneak into any movie!  I just recently snuck into the movie “Bad Grandpa”, so Ill goes about how I did this and you just have to fill in the ‘blanks’ with your own situation.

Step one:  Do not go ask the ticket sales men if you can go see the movie no matter what you do! That would lead them to expect that you are going to sneak in. First you want to find what movies are next to or around your wanted Rated-R movie. Then purchase a ticket to a practical movie for someone your age to go to. Make sure its on the same side near the Rated-R movie of choice.

In my case (although it is very new) I chose “Enders Game” because it is a popular much anticipated movie that someone around my age would want to go see, and because to my desired Rate it was right next d-R movie (“Bad Grandpa”)

Step two: after you have found your movie that you are going to “see” you are on step two of sneaking in. After you purchase your ticket you will have to go show someone your ticket. Make sure you act cool and don’t act like you’re up to something. Just walk to and from the person with confidence in what you are doing. After you do this go to the door of the movie you’re going to “see” and check to see if any theater employees are around. I the coast is clear then proceed to walk to your Rated-R movie of choice. If there is an employee around then continue to stand out front of your movie until they leave. Make sure you are doing something or they will suspect you.

In my case I walked up to the ticket collector and started to talk to my friend about how good of a movie “Enders Game” was going to be. I then proceeded to go outside of its doors and look for employees. I saw no one so I walked to the door of “Bad Grandpa” like I was supposed to be there.

Step three: now you have gotten to the front door of your desired Rated-R movie and you are walking in. do not giggle and run in like children, continue to keep your cool (there is time to laugh about it later). When you go into the movie do not sit in just any seat. Try to find one that is not going to be easily spotted (in case someone comes looking for you). Then you should be home free. But make sure you are acting like adults while in the movie, no throwing candy or anything. Because for one you are in a Rated-R movie because you think your adult enough to do so, And second because the people may complain and have you removed anyway.

Thank you for reading and good luck in your mission to sneak into a Rated-R movie!

Bad Grandpa

86 year-old Irving Zisman is on a journey across America with the most unlikely companion, his 8 year-old Grandson Billy in "Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa." This October, the signature Jackass character Irving Zisman (Johnny Knoxville) and Billy (Jackson Nicoll) will take movie audiences along for the most insane hidden camera road trip ever captured on camera. Along the way Irving will introduce the young and impressionable Billy to people, places and situations that give new meaning to the term childrearing. The duo will encounter male strippers, disgruntled child beauty pageant contestants (and their equally disgruntled mothers), funeral home mourners, biker bar patrons and a whole lot of unsuspecting citizens.   http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/jackass_presents_bad_grandpa/

Unlike the "Jackass” movies or the TV show, "Bad Grandpa" combines both Knoxville's need for crazy stunts with a scripted story about a dirty old man and his precocious kid. The crews first big scripted film. Knoxville plays Irving Zisman, the randy 86-year old grandfather of Billy (Jackson Nicholl). Irving's wife of 46 years has died, and as "Bad Grandpa" opens, he reacts with a laugh and acts as excited and say he finally has freedom. But at the funeral of Mrs. Zisman, Billy's Mom pawns him off on his granddad. The kid will cramp Irving's  style, "I may be too old to stir the gravy," he tells one woman, "but I can still lick the spoon.", so a standard road trip type movie develops. Zisman will bring Billy to his father, and then resume his quest to find the next "piece of tail.”

While the gross-out jokes and stunts will put people in seats, the real reason you should see "Bad Grandpa" is because you can get your need for pranks and mayhem, while also seeing a heartwarming film (although it follows the same plot as other movies of its kind does). Also another reason to see this movie is because the fact that it follows the same plot of other movies which are always great, but it also has those crazy prank scenes.

If you like a raunchy movie then “Bad Grandpa” has a boat load both in its framework story and the stunts put within. Despite the trailer and commercials giving away practically every setup and/or payoff, I've tried to avoid saying too much about the money shots. I'd say they succeed about 65-70% of the time, and that, coupled with the performances of the two leads characters, push this up to the recommended status.

If you would like to watch the trailer to this video you can find it here. However beware of large spoilers!

http://www.wehrenberg.com/movieDetail.asp?MovieId=11028

is 'Gravity' a horror film?

A little about ‘Gravity’: A medical engineer and an astronaut work together to survive after an accident leaves them adrift in space. Stars: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney, Ed Harris.

 I think Gravity, when it comes down to it, is a horror movie. There are lots of similarities to Alien: The claustrophobic feeling of space, the looming, unseen dangers that could pop around at you at any second, right down to the some of the quotes. A note at the opening of the film tells us, “In space, you do not have the ability to speak,” a line that sounds very close to Alien’s, “In space, no one can hear you scream.”

But the alien in this movie is space itself, which Alfonso seems to realize is more frightening in real life than the most monstrous extraterrestrial our imaginations can come up with. Like the scariness of the monster is the laws of gravity them self. Think if you got a tiny nudge and had nothing to hold on to you would continue to go at that rate forever unless something stops you…that’s scary, the fact that you are out in the depth of unknown space drifting is more fearful then being eaten by a monster.

The horror of ‘Gravity’ relies upon putting yourself in the place of these characters. And here, we have to imagine ourselves in a state of absolute helplessness, a place where the two things that can usually get us out of a jam, our muscles or our speech, are equally useless. Alfonso does a good job of demonstrating the great range of ways to die in space, including, but not limited to, “burning alive, being impaled, and slowly suffocating while performing an infinite series of unintentional backflips”.

Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs 2

Inventor Flint Lockwood thought he saved the world when he destroyed his most infamous invention, a machine that turned water into food causing cheeseburger rain and spaghetti tornadoes, seen in the first movie ‘cloudy with a chance of meatballs.’ But Flint soon learns that his invention survived on a remote island and is now creating food animals “foodimals!" Flint and his friends set out on a dangerous mission to battle hungry tacodiles, shrimpanzees, hippotatomuses, cheespiders and other foodimals to save the world from the newly created world of food!

 

Who goes to a kid’s movie with one friend at 10 pm? This guy. This movie was not so surprisingly packed. Filling the theater with sold out tickets. Want to know if this movie is for you? Well ask yourself, do I like food? Do I like cute childish entertainment? Of course you do…

 

In the immediate aftermath of the dangerous food catastrophe at Swallow Falls, the technology firm Live Corp. led by orange-vested CEO Chester V swoops in to clean up the mess. First Chester tells everyone that they must evacuate the island and offers young inventor Flint Lockwood a job at his renowned company in "San Franjose," where Flint discovers what it means to be an overcaffeinated 9 to 5 inventor in a Live Corp. cubicle. Then Chester V reveals that Swallow Falls has been taken over by wild food-animal hybrids and sends Flint to retrieve his invention from the island. But instead of going alone, as directed by Chester V, Flint reluctantly brings along his fisherman father Tim, weather reporter girlfriend Sam, her cameraman, security guard Earl, chicken-loving Brent and, of course, pet monkey Steve.

 

Was it any good?

Cloudy with a chance of meatballs two is not like the first movie, in the first it is based off the children’s book which gives it a set up story line we have all seen before.    Since the original Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs made it clear that this cinematic story was only very loosely based on the beloved children's book, it was easy to step into the story again for the second without any preconceived expectations. To keep the food machine (" the FLDSMDFR") plot going, the writers devised a conceit in which the FLDSMDFR is able to create "living" food that looks and acts like a host of different real animal/food hybrids. Some of the frightening predators; like the cheespider, the taco-diles, and the apple pie-thons will momentarily scare younger viewers, whereas others like Barry the strawberry, the fruit cockatiel, and the mini marshmallows are sweet and huggable. In addition to "foodimals," the story introduces viewers to new characters who might seem friendly to kids, but adults will recognize them as evil right away like Chester V, a wall street like visionary with a thing for facial hair, turtlenecks, and grand announcements. His interest in Flint makes for an interesting conflict, and his talking ape assistant, Barb, is the kind of confused character who just wants to be considered a friend. The focus on the Live Corp. characters leaves less for Flint's friends to do, but they manage to add enough comic relief for fans of the first movie. As for the squishy Barry, the marshmallow family, and Mr. Lockwood's new fishing pals (they're like Despicable Me's Minions.

The Walking Dead S3 E4 'isolation'

You have seen or heard about the hit TV shows ‘The Walking Dead’ and as the series has progressed they have been getting closer and closer to setting up a civilization and learning to live in this zombie infested world these survivors call home.

 Life in a zombie apocalypse is tough. It’s all blood, sweat and fears battling walkers and people, and the characters hardly ever catch a break. And if being bitten by zombies isn’t enough now sickness is just another problem added to the list of dilemmas the survivors have to worry about.

 And while it’s exciting to see the hacking and slashing of decaying walkers or the facing off against human foes, struggling with a virus, it allows for a real look at characters. It’s a quieter way to expose certain truths like Tyreese’s anger, Carl’s responsibility or the big drop at the end of this episode, Carol willing to do whatever it takes to survive.

 It’s an interesting direction for the series, a positive one, and The Walking Dead Season 4 Episode 3 took full advantage. A Plague has started and so the isolation has begun. The isolation being that the group and their newly found Woodbury cohorts have to be separated into groups of infected, non-infected and dead.

 Isolation takes place immediately at the conclusion of last week's episode (read or watch a recap of last week's episode 'Infected' to catch up). A group of non-infected survivors with shovels led by Maggie and Glenn are digging graves for those who have already died from the disease.

 Tyreese loses it with Daryl and Rick after finding his girl Karen and David burned to death in last week's conclusion. When Rick tries to calm him, he starts punching Rick in the head. Daryl grabs Tyreese from behind and pins his arms to stop his beating, but after being momentarily being stunned by the attack, Rick gets his crazy on and cheap shots Tyreese. He then proceeds to start pummeling him into a pulp uncontrollably. He would have killed him if Daryl hadn't pull him off. Those long months of gardening hasn't quite cured his crazy tendencies. I can understand how distraught Tyreese is, though. In a world where zombies far outnumber humans, it's almost impossible to find a girl like Karen to help him make it through just one more night. I'd be salty too is my one thing connecting me to normal life died.  Unfortunately, Tyreese’s problems kept on going with his sister Sasha getting sick. It was enjoyable to witness the care and concern for her.

 Really, that’s all anyone can do at this point with the prison plague continuing to spread. It’s seemed to have infected most of the new survivors that we care little for since we don’t know them well, but also Glenn and Sasha. And I like that possibility that either of those two could meet their demise not in a blaze of glory bashing zombies until their demises is inevitable, but the writers saw fit to give them a quite glorified death.

 The council meeting has also started (Hershel, Michonne, Carol, Glenn and Daryl) and Hershel goes over the dire situation they are in and his conclusion is that they need antibiotics and fast. There's a veterinarian college about fifty miles away and it's their best chance to find some so Daryl and Michonne volunteer to go.

 Rick tells Carl to stay isolated with the other kids and to watch their backs. Carl patrols the halls and finds Hershel trying to leave the compound. Carl suddenly acts like the grown up again and cautions him about going out of the prison alone. During this virus crisis, Hershel is being made to feel old and unimportant and he's not liking it.

 Overall this episode has been about the ‘Isolation’ of all the survivors based off their health. Tensions are rising as people are going further and further to survive, causing fights, and future problems for the group.    

How do new and old horror movies differ?

Since the 1900 horror movies have been increasingly popular. America has come accustom to watching Freddy and Jason go murder innocent teens or watch demons torment people in their home. In the newer movies like Paranormal Activity we are use to seeing a lot of technology incorporated. For example in Paranormal Activity you are watching for doors shutting, objects moving, etc. even in there movie the family is using video cameras to record their experiences. There is a great use of technology in modern day films, but it is just part of our culture now.

 

Older horror films in the past such as Poltergeist tended to make the actual characters the scary part. Making a scary character with grotesque features or a creepy back round story go attack the characters. There was less focus on special effects and more on what horror the character added to the film. In Poltergeist the little girl's character is part of what made the movie scary. For example by using the little girl’s famous line “their here.” And then continuing to not tell her parents about it because she was to frightened made us all freak out a little bit wondering ‘what the hell is going on! Who’s here?’

 

Another thing about modern technology in movies is the way the character looks. In modern films we focus on how the character looks trying to make them as real as possible, although we can still tell it is fake because no one looks like that in real life. In older movies you would see almost no makeup or prosthetics added to a character because these older characters would be casted based of how scary they looked in real life creating more of a thought about how this situation could be real. Also newer movies have been made more graphic through editing blood and adding makeup on the character.

 

Special effects in horror films of today also use the camera by doing certain tricks like spinning or moving fast. The way the film is lighted is also a big part of horror films today. Lighting effects usually have the lights flickering on and off or flashing. Sound effects are used more too. You might hear lightning or the sound of a ghost or zombie.

 

If you compare what was scary about both movies you will see that the newer film made in 2007 has more technology used and special effects added to up the level of scariness, while the older film released in 1982 has barely any special effects. The little girl’s character was part of the actual scariness in Poltergeist because she would do all kinds of weird, freaky things in the movie. In modern films the scary parts are hearing a loud noise or seeing a person being pulled by something you cannot see.

'Prisoners'

How far would you go to protect your child? Keller Dover is facing every parent's worst nightmare. His six year old daughter Anna is missing, together with her friend Joy, and as minutes turns to hours, panic sets in. And the families run through the rain in search of the two little girls. The only lead is a old dilapidated RV that had earlier been parked on their street and the girls were said to be playing on it. Heading the investigation, Detective Loki arrests its driver, Alex Jones, but a lack of evidence forces the only suspect's release. Knowing his child's life is at stake, the frantic Dover decides he has no choice but to take matters into his own hands. He goes to an extent farther than any other father has before. But just how far will this desperate father go to protect his family?

This movie is a thought inducing mystery about memory and identification. ‘Prisoners’ is a white knuckle type movie with violence bloodshed and just a straightforward believable movie. Normally in movies there is a definite line between good and evil. But in this movie the roles are intertwined and even the good characters in the movie turn to be a little twisted, blurring the line between good and bad people.

Let’s face it, after seeing how the police chief acts here, more or less telling Detective Loki to “forget” the prime suspect because there’s no hard evidence against him, it’s no wonder the concurrent searches of his RV and his home are unsuccessful. Well, the vehicle does get a thorough once over, and nothing of significance is found, but that’s beside the point. We hear that the same happens at the home of his Aunt. And yet, there, right out in the middle of the property for all to see, is a weird looking shed and an old muscle car that clearly can still be driven. Are either of these potential crime scenes searched? No they are forgotten and if they would has simple continued to search they would have found the warped boards covering the hole filled with evidence under the old muscle car.

Although it is not my type of movie I found Prisoners to be mesmerizing. When the film ends you might be scratching your head and asking what certain people or events had to do with the plot. I know I have several unanswered questions. Still, this film was about 2 1/2 hours and I never looked at my phone. I thought the acting was superb across the board, and the pacing excellent. Good film to watch during Halloween time because it is creepy for sure.

how acurate is the new movie "Captain Phillips"?

In the “true” story of Captain Richard Phillips and the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the US-flagged MV Maersk Alabama, the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in two hundred years. The movie is made out to be a dramatic drama with a captain who is willing to give his life for his crew. But based off my research on the actual event that occurred in 2009 I am not sure the movie was accurate in depiction the type of man Phillips was.

 

Based off my research into the issue I have found that many of Phillip’s crewmembers, claim his account misrepresents the story. According to them, Phillips behaved irresponsibly; saying that they he ignored warnings about pirates in the area and sailed too close to the Somali coast. One of Phillip’s crewmembers, a man who goes by the name ATM, has also claimed that he warned Phillips that a pirate ship was approaching only to have Phillips dismiss him: “I told him, ‘Captain, I’m damn sure this is pirate boat,’ ATM has said. “He laughed at me. He told me it could be a fishing boat. He walked away from me.” Phillips denies this account ever happening.

 

 As in the movie, Phillips received messages warning him about recent hijackings in the surrounding waters but chose to keep his course. The Alabama (the name of the ship) sailed 300 to 400 miles from the Somali coast in order to maintain a faster and more direct route, even though at least one warning cautioned that “vessels should consider maintaining a distance of more than 600 miles from Somalia coastline.” Most of the warnings were directed at all the ships in the area, but one was sent directly to Phillips. Unlike in the movie, Phillips didn’t hide the surrounding hijackings from his wife, as he did in other accounts recorded.

 

The hijacker’s first failed attack plays out in Phillip’s account in the real situation as it did in the movie. The detail about Phillips faking a radio call with the U.S. military in order to scare off the pirates is also true to Phillip’s account. But the Alabama wasn’t in the middle of a pirate drill when they were attacked, they were in the middle of a fire and boat drill.  The crew members successfully fought off the pirates.

 

The crew’s efforts to take the ship back are also largely accurate, though some accounts where proven to be made up by the movie writers. For example the crew never made a field of broken glass to have the pirates step on as a booby trap.

 

Also another way to disprove that Phillips was a ‘great hero’ is that Phillips doesn’t call himself a hero for these actions. In the movie, Phillips says things like, “If you want to shoot someone, shoot me!” But Phillips says that he never meant to sacrifice himself for the crew. Not very heroic.

 

In the end as soon as the Navy SEAL snipers (members of SEAL Team Six, the same team that took out Osama bin Laden) were able to get clean shots on all three pirates at once, they killed them almost simultaneously, with one shot each to the head.

 

The end of the movie was also different from the account because Tom Hanks said that Phillips couldn’t remember what he first did after his encounter was finished, the movie writers added in themselves the parts of his shock where all made up to make it more interesting.

 

 

 

 

 

cloudy with a chance of meatballs two? who would kids react

Inventor Flint Lockwood thought he saved the world when he destroyed his most infamous invention, a machine that turned water into food causing cheeseburger rain and spaghetti tornadoes, seen in the first movie ‘cloudy with a chance of meatballs.’ But Flint soon learns that his invention survived on a remote island and is now creating food animals “foodimals!" Flint and his friends set out on a dangerous mission to battle hungry tacodiles, shrimpanzees, hippotatomuses, cheespiders and other foodimals to save the world from the newly created world of food!

 

Who goes to a kid’s movie with one friend at 10 pm? This guy. This movie was not so surprisingly packed. Filling the theater with sold out tickets. Want to know if this movie is for you? Well ask yourself, do I like food? Do I like cute childish entertainment? Of course you do…

 

In the immediate aftermath of the dangerous food catastrophe at Swallow Falls, the technology firm Live Corp. led by orange-vested CEO Chester V swoops in to clean up the mess. First Chester tells everyone that they must evacuate the island and offers young inventor Flint Lockwood a job at his renowned company in "San Franjose," where Flint discovers what it means to be an overcaffeinated 9 to 5 inventor in a Live Corp. cubicle. Then Chester V reveals that Swallow Falls has been taken over by wild food-animal hybrids and sends Flint to retrieve his invention from the island. But instead of going alone, as directed by Chester V, Flint reluctantly brings along his fisherman father Tim, weather reporter girlfriend Sam, her cameraman, security guard Earl, chicken-loving Brent and, of course, pet monkey Steve.

 

 

Cloudy with a chance of meatballs two is not like the first movie, in the first it is based off the children’s book which gives it a set up story line we have all seen before.    Since the original Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs made it clear that this cinematic story was only very loosely based on the beloved children's book, it was easy to step into the story again for the second without any preconceived expectations. To keep the food machine (" the FLDSMDFR") plot going, the writers devised a conceit in which the FLDSMDFR is able to create "living" food that looks and acts like a host of different real animal/food hybrids. Some of the frightening predators; like the cheespider, the taco-diles, and the apple pie-thons will momentarily scare younger viewers, whereas others like Barry the strawberry, the fruit cockatiel, and the mini marshmallows are sweet and huggable. In addition to "foodimals," the story introduces viewers to new characters who might seem friendly to kids, but adults will recognize them as evil right away like Chester V, a wall street like visionary with a thing for facial hair, turtlenecks, and grand announcements. His interest in Flint makes for an interesting conflict, and his talking ape assistant, Barb, is the kind of confused character who just wants to be considered a friend. The focus on the Live Corp. characters leaves less for Flint's friends to do, but they manage to add enough comic relief for fans of the first movie. As for the squishy Barry, the marshmallow family, and Mr. Lockwood's new fishing pals (hey're like Despicable Me's Minions.

breaking bad

Need a new action packed, heart throbbing, drama to keep you entertained? Then Breaking Bad is a perfect choice for you. Breaking Bad is about a high school chemistry teacher named Walter White who finds out he has a form of lung cancer. As he goes through the stages of his cancer he is realizing that he has left no money or valuables for his family after he passes. After remembering one of his druggy students he goes over to his house and that’s when he meets his partner Jesse Pinkman. They start to make meth, Walter, being a prominent chemist creates a batch of the best meth around and sends the DEA and other drug dealers crazy.  (I don’t want to give anything else away so…) the rest of the plot is about all the ups and downs, close calls, and family dramas that come out of  his and Jesse’s drug deals.

 

Breaking Bad has been on air since Jan. 20, 2008. After the first four seasons of the show was put onto Netflix it really blew up. The rating for it skyrocketed and breaking bad began to win awards for its performance to entertain. Over the course the show has gathered more and more followers, and the show has become so popular that even the lesser known characters are becoming a big deal.

 

Breaking Bad became so popular because the dialogue is always tight. Nobody acts out of character. You never get a sense that an episode is there just to fix a past continuity error. There’s never a moment that seems like the writers had run out of interesting things to say. No filler, no wasted space, and no show that I’ve ever seen has mastered the art of the cliff-hanger like breaking bad has. Partly this is because not every episode ends at the edge of a cliff, some just end. The endings change from a major event to a family memory being relived.

 

Acting is another reason it’s so popular because Bryan Cranston plays Walter White with great detail. He’s a perfect match to switch from a twitchy awkward husband to a mobster drug dealer as easily as changing a shirt. Bryan has also has to over time change his character because Walter is continually changing how he acts and throughout the series. Aaron Paul’s Jesse Pinkman is far more complicated than he lets on, he must play the part of acting like a druggy that is both sensitive and a gangster. Walt’s brother in law, Hank, Dean Norris plays a goofy, loud mouthed type of personality with hidden depth; His struggle with panic attacks after two violent encounters in his job as a DEA agent create a more vulnerable character.

 

Breaking Bad isn’t just about cooking meth. Science is used for all sorts of fun things. Like building homemade batteries or creating poison out of beans, or using mercury to make a meth look alike that’s actually a highly explosive material you can use to intimidate a psychotic drug dealer, so yeah its pretty badass.

 

Breaking Bad has redefined what is good on television. It has become the Meta for what we expect to be a good show, and every show from now on is now going to be put on the “breaking bad scale”. There’s a reason why Metacritic gave it a 99/100, the highest rating they have ever given a show. With its crisp and fresh dialogue, excellent character and actor portrayal, it almost feels like a documentary at times, not a fictional T.V show. So with the entire experience all together, you get one of the best shows on air.

 

ios7 new features and disadvantages

The iOS 7 is one of the the largest updates the iOS has ever been had, it’s not as big of a deal as the iPhone OS 2 and the App Store were, but it took a lot of effort. It not only brings some key features and a few cool system apps, but it also completely changes the user interface and tweaks the right things. While not all of the new features that were brought here by the update will be as memorable as the next, each one of them feels new and innovative with only a few downsides.

                                                          

New features

•Complete UI overhaul with adaptive colors and system-wide Back swipe gesture

•New system icons and folders, animated icons available

•System-wide parallax effect

•Dynamic wallpapers

•Control Center with toggles, multimedia controls and shortcuts

•Updated Notification Center with three tabs

•All apps multitasking with new card interface

•Updated Safari browser with unified search filed

•iTunes radio

•AirDrop file sharing

•Inclinometer within the Compass app

•Camera filters with live preview and new square mode

•New Photos app with better photo organization, picture editing

•Weather app with live weather animations

•Updated Maps with Night mode and Turn-by-Turn walking directions

•New Siri interface, new supported commands, new voices

•Contact Blacklist

•FaceTime audio

•Activation lock

•Automatic app update

•Cellular data usage breakdown

•Chinese-English, Italian, Korean and Dutch dictionaries

•iOS in the Car coming in 2014 in selected cars

 

Main disadvantages

•Very iTunes dependent for uploading files and multimedia

•No open file system means you often have to duplicate files

•Limited integration of 3rd party social networks and services

•No widgets

•Air Drop works only between selected iOS 7 or later running devices

•No lockscreen shortcuts (besides those in the Control Center)

•Very basic camera UI with limited features and settings

•Limited codecs support

•iTunes radio only works in the US

GTA V reveiw

Grand Theft Auto V? Where would I even begin? Maybe the vast detailed world, or with the innovative software that gives you three independent players you can switch between on the fly? Maybe you talk about the assortment of side activities you can engage in, or the tremendous number of ways in which you can go about making your own fun, stealing cars, homicide, etc. Or perhaps you dive right into the game’s main plot. GTA V is a complicated and fascinating game, one that fumbles here and there and has an unnecessary thought invoking missions and plot twists. But it also does amazing things no other open-world game has attempted before, using multiple perspectives to put you in the all positions of the heist.

 

Like GTA: San Andreas before it, GTA V will be set in and around the LA-inspired city of Los Santos. The location is based on Los Angeles, Southern California. The player drives, walks and interacts in a realistic way with the environment. Eating, running, climbing, jumping and engaging in combat with various weapons forms a major part of the gameplay.

 

 Grand theft auto is a violent game full of theft, murder, sex and prostitution. This trait was kept throughout the GTA series. You can still go on rampages and kill innocent bystanders and at one point you are forced to sit through a long torture scene, where you rack up bonus points for trying different techniques of torture. The scene is very intense and not for the faint of heart. This scene alone gives this game its M rating. I don’t recommend anybody under the age of 16 to consider buying this game, and even then you should be matured enough to handle GTA V’s graphic and sexual gameplay. 

 

As a gamer, I often feel like the kid who sits on Santa’s lap and pulls at Santa’s beard to show everyone that he’s a fake. But I do that because I want so badly to believe that Santa is real and that a game is capable of perfection. But neither one ever is. I also should point out that very rarely is a game criticized for not being perfect. Only a game with the stature of Grand Theft Auto V could ever be judged harshly for not being flawless. Even with its flaws, GTA V still shines above the rest.

 

But it isn’t only that GTA V isn’t perfect; it’s not even an incredibly in depth experience. But the shortcomings are far and few between. But even a great game like GTA V has its flaws. It’s got a sizeable number of graphical and gameplay issues. Ordinarily, I wouldn’t discuss a game’s flaws first, but everyone already knows this is a game worth playing and that you should run out and get it if you haven’t already. It’s an incredible game in many ways, but only because it’s standing on the shoulders of its predecessors.

 

However, there are many improvements. The vast majority of the changes you’ll discover won’t be immediately obvious. At first glance, GTA V looks very similar to past iterations. Similar car and character models, similar city layouts, similar play mechanics, similar storytelling structure, and so on.

 

What Rock star has given us is a gem among gaming. The newest installment of the GTA series has brought forth many new and improved changes to the long running series, with almost no downsides other than a few graphical errors and the lack of multiplayer as of now. If you are a fan of the GTA franchise I highly recommend that you pick this game up as soon as possible.

about me...koberto

`As a great man once said, “I wanna say something. I'm gonna put it out there; if you like it, you can take it, if you don't, send it right back. I want to be on you.” –Ron Burgundy

 

Media entertainment is the most watched and talked about all over the world. Media includes any tv show or movie, internet videos, and gaming. People including myself put thousands of hours into media entertainment. Honesty I have no lifed a game and played for at least 10 hours or more, in one day. Almost everyone has watched tv, seen some sort of video or watched a movie. Media is everywhere! They are in stores, hospitals, school, bathrooms, and just any general place you can think of.

 

 I have been interested in media since I was a little kid. I remember how I always had such great memories sitting with my family eating popcorn watching the newest show on television or a new released movie that we had just rented. Even memories of getting my butt kicked playing my brother on the Nintendo 64.

 

So you now know a little about me and what part of my childhood was like. Now I will let you all know my favorite movie and video game. Picking a favorite movie is always a hard question. There are so many good movies out there it’s hard to choose one. I would say just in general I like comedies but I enjoy all movie types.

 

My favorite video game has to go to Halo 3. Halo 3 was the first game I really got good at and began to actually be a good player. I mostly enjoy playing first person shooters but I have also played third person, free roam, and RPG’s.