The song Ice Ice Baby by Vanilla Ice can be a good example of many different topics we cover in the course. There was copy wright issue, Vanilla Ice and DJ Earthquake used a beat from Queen and David Bowie's track Under Pressure. This song is from the early hip hop genre. It didn't become popular until it was played by different DJs. But not, this mini review is not to talk about its relations to the course. Its to talk about Vanilla Ice's style, class and lifestyle clearly depicted in this music video.
Vanilla Ice. Real Name? Robert. Van. Winkle. He wrote the song when he was sixteen about his experiences and adventures.(To the extreme I rock a mic like a vandal /Light up a stage and wax a chump like a candle) Sounds like my childhood. Ha. Ha. Ha. Not. I think his name explains the masculinity issues he has and how he tries to make up for them with white, tight wife beaters and sick rhymes.
In the video it shows him being tough and dancing. Masculinity issues........................ I think the character Artie, from Glee, did a better job dancing on the show to this song. Hes in a wheelchair.
I think Vanilla Ice wishes he was a rapper. He will never ever be though. Any chance he had of redeeming himself was gone when he made a movie.(Performing in the Ninja Turtle Movie made him kinda cool). ANY small little hope was demolished when he started his home renovation show The Vanilla Ice Project. Maybe he will regain some masculinity.
Friday by Rebecca Black is sad. Black clearly isn't the best singer and the video has not been well received. But maybe Rebecca Black had the right idea.
Rebecca became famous for her YouTube music video, Friday. She did not write the song. ARK Music Factory did. I'm not sure whats worse... a company of label executives writing this song about an impatient 13 year old...or that the 13 year old did not write it. Her parents paid $4000.00 to have the video produced.
The video became an instant hit as one of the worst songs ever written. The number of views and haters on this video grew the longer it stayed up. The video is no longer posted due to copy wright issues, but its still available on some YouTube channels.
In this society today, its very easy to become an Internet sensation. Post a a video that's funny(cats), cruel (people getting hurt) or if you have actual talent, and you instantly gain notoriety. Maybe Rebecca really thinks she has a great voice! Who cares though? Her video would not have been as successful if she had a good voice, the humor of the video is the horrible vocals.
So perhaps she had the right idea! Post a low budget music video on YouTube and watch the views climb. There will obvious be haters but that won't matter. Since the video Rebecca has been interviewed by numerous media moguls such as Jay Leno. She was interviewed by The Sun, Teen Vogue(http://allcelebritiesallnews.wordpress.com/2011/03/26/rebecca-black-in-teen-vogue/) and many other magazines and newspapers. Her song has been performed on Glee, a show that reaches millions of teens and adults all over the world. Recently she appeared in Katy Perry's music video Last Friday Night.(http://www.sugarscape.com/main-topics/homepage/639421/katy-perry-gets-waxed-rebecca-black-last-friday-night?page=0%2C7) She just keeps getting famous! She didn't burn out after her fifteen minutes of fame, shes been around a lot longer then most Internet sensations (Where is light saber boy now?)
I think our society has became a lot more clever. Posting video of you singing a song with your amazing vocals are people will notice. (http://www.news1130.com/entertainment/article/185516--lady-gaga-goes-gaga-for-canadian-girl-s-rendition-of-born-this-way) Posting a video of you screeching along to a terrible song, people will DEFINITELY notice. Maybe we're all messed up and love seeing people fail, but Internet sensations know whats what. The way to instant fame is embarrassment and failure.
Antoine Dodson. Diana from Kansas. Both huge internet sensations. Both auto-tuned. Who really wins for the crazy on the street, desperately trying to alert the public?
In our society today, we're entertained pretty easily. It doesn't take much to keep us occupied. Sometimes we take it a little too far though. Two very popular videos on the internet, The Bed Intruder and Backin Up are two very upset people telling their story in a way that ends up being comical. I have definitely laughed at these videos, but maybe that isn't good! Diana could have been hurt in that robbery and Antoine's sister was almost raped. I think its the almost that allows it to be funny. There are rape and robberies everyday on the news but no one laughs at them. Its the failed attempts that were thankful for, and the comedic people who tell the stories.
Both of these videos do have their funny parts. The fact that Diana counted to two thousand twice in a 26 second robbery left me skeptical...perhaps shes needs an abacus. The fact that she kept on backing up because her daddy taught her good is also...interesting. Antoine is obviously upset and goes over the top explaining the situation, with many head bobs.
I think that both these videos are funny and they've both became huge internet sensations, but I do think that we need to draw a line on what is funny and what is cruel.
"These are three things I'm pretty sure I'm addicted to: boys, alcohol and bronzer"
" I don't eat friggin' lobster or anything like that. Because they're alive when you kill them"
"Every time I get excited I have to poop"
Jersey Shore is an extremely entertaining reality show following the lives of 8 young Italian adults on the Jersey Shore. It features all the shenanigans they get into and the problems they cause. The show has created a huge influence on young kids in North America. And not a good one.
J shore has very strong values and morals! GTL is their well known mantra; Gym, Tan and Laundry. These are seen continuously throughout the show, Ed Hardy clothing on everyone all the time, huge steroid muscles and enough skin cancer skin to go around. "I don't go tanning anymore because Obama put a 10% tax on tanning. I feel like he did that intentionally for us, like McCain would never put a 10% tax on tanning...because he is pale and he would probably wanna be tan."(Snooki).
Jersey Shore has created a stereotype of young Italian kids that is almost impossible to shake off. I think that Italy has all the right to be upset about them coming to film their next season there. They have given a bad rap to Italian people, creating the "guido" or guidette" stereotype. It shows them as drunk, sloppy partying Italian kids whose only priorities are sex and alcohol.
I think Jersey Shore is as bad as reality TV gets(not as bad as Bridal Plasty...). It has such a strong influence on young people, instilling terrible beliefs and morals. It can ruin a lot of people's self esteem and self image not living up to the standards created by the show. Not to mention all the skin cancer that could possibly be a result of GTL.
Bridalplasty is GROSS. The show seems like a bad, bad horror movie. Mutated women running around with syringes(which is very dangerous) while trying to make other women ugly by sending them home. Many of the aspects of the show mirror those of a horror movie. The gore for example, is featured.......A LOT. James Wan's SAW looks tame compared to watching fat sucked out of some lady's butt.
Lots of horror movies have different kind of monsters and villains. So does this show. Almost everyone on this show has some witch like qualities. They're talon like finger nails are werewolve esque. They all look like zombies or mummies in the Recovery Wing after their maiming.
The host of the show, in my opinion, puts Jigsaw to shame...What sick person takes part in a show where you destroy people's self esteem and wedding if they cant put a puzzle together to win a syringe? Not Jigsaw. He just kills them.
'Bridalplasty' host Shanna Moakler talks new E! reality show: 'We're not trying to Heidi Montag anybody'
oh....thank goodness...
In my opinion BridalPlasty is a waste of a tv time slot. It demeans the contestants. It ruins their self esteem and
bodies.
Because really... who wants to look like this?
Monday, June 6, 2011
I believe that summer blockbusters are legitimate entertainment. They do not get enough credit for the work put into them. The extreme and special effects are great!!! What is wrong with advanced film technology? It should be shown and appreciated and summer is a great time for that.
People believe that summer blockbusters are targeted for the "lowest common denominator" audience. The claim that they have no artistic merit is nuts. The effects in Inception, for example, are amazing. The way that they weave the effects into such a complex plot and still make it understandable is very admirable. I don’t think that people should claim summer blockbusters are not artistic. Not every summer blockbuster is going to be artistic, some will just be stupid! But, the work and creativity put into some these movies deserve artistic merit.
Summer blockbusters are made to make money. But what is wrong with that? The film industry creates films to make money. People shouldn’t put down a film if its making mad money. Perhaps they’re jealous.
There are three summer blockbusters I looked at from 2009 and 2010. Harry Potter and the half blood prince, Inception and Inglorious Basterds. These were all successful summer blockbusters. All three of these movies have fantastic effects and editing skills, which I classify as artistic. All were well received, receiving awards and large sums of money.
Inception, for example, has some of the best special effects I’ve seen. Like I said before, I think the way that they incorporated the effects into the plot, that is already hard to understand, is talent! To say that summer blockbusters are directed at the LCD audience is to say that an idiot can understand inception? I don’t think so.
Inglorious Basterds directed by Quentin Tarantino was extremely entertaining with an INSANELY talented cast!! (Christopher Waltz, Diane Kruger, Melanie Laurent...Brad Pitt). An alternate world war II ending is also pretty cool.
Harry Potter and The Half Blood Prince would have been successful with or without the special effects, because of the hype. The effects added to the movie.Without a doubt this movie was going to be successful in the box office, there were five other movies in the series to prove that.
I believe that summer blockbusters are overall, great movies. They should not receive prejudice about lacking artistic merit, they can be very creative and artistic. LCD audience is ridiculous and people will still go and see a movie, even if it is meant for "dumb" people. Which is going to mean money. That seems to me to be a pretty successful movie! I think that summer blockbusters are just going to become more advanced and well received films as time goes by and expectations of the film industry change.
The film genre I chose was Bromance. The three movie clips I chose, that best exemplify this genre,
are from the following movies; The Hangover,40 year old virgin and I love you, man. The genre has been around for the past couple decades, but movies showing a group of buddies trying to have a good time have been around for much longer than that. (1978, Animal House). Its popularity is huge presently, many movies now feature a Bromance relationship. How is Bromance evolving? A different kind of Bromance, one with a female mind set, has been in demand. The upcoming movie, Bridesmaids, seems to be the first of many.
There are quite a few important people who have contributed to the genre. The father of Bromance may just be Judd Apatow. This producer, director and screenwriter has a long past in comedy, stemming from The Cable Guy and Freaks and Geeks to more recent movies such as; Anchorman: The legend of Ron Burgundy, Talladega Knights, Knocked Up, Superbad, Pineapple Express, Get Him To The Greek… the list goes on and on. Apatow continues to produce comedy gold, many of his movies producing the most memorable Bromances.
Other influential people of the genre are many of the movies starring actors. Seth Rogen, Will Ferrel, Jason Segal, Paul Rudd, John C. Reilly, Jim Carrey, Andy Samberg, Adam Sandler, etc. Male leads aren’t the only comedic roles given, many female actors lend their humor. Mary Steenburgen, Kathryn Hahn, Rashida Jones, etc.
Movies under the film genre Bromance all have a similar thematic set up. They are usually light hearted, with a few touching moments. There is most commonly a male character, usually the lead, who is sad or run down. The goal of the character is usually determined within the first ten minutes. This creates the plot of the movie, how will he reach his goal? Most revolve around him proving himself as a man (getting the girl, finding a best friend, losing his virginity, Bros before hoes) or getting himself out of trouble (lost groom in Vegas). Drugs and alcohol are avidly used. Sex is also a big part. There will usually be an opposing male who is more tan, buff and egotistical then the main male lead.
All types of the usual camera angles and directions are seen in Bromances. They filming does not usually move away from the norm, there are not too many "artistic" shots. The music chosen for the soundtrack is catchy, top hit songs, usually popular around the time of release. The actors chosen for this film are often actors starring in this genre or comedy. There is usually the less manly main character, the "Macho" opposing male lead and the girl they fight to win over. The main character will have a close group of guy friends who help him with his conquests during the duration of the film, all while becoming more best of friends. There may be a situation that tests the Bromance, but it will always work out.
I think the filmmaker made this film because he’s passionate about the cause. Through out the movie you see his views and thoughts on copyright. He features artists that he admires for their talents and abilities(Girltalk, Dan O'neill, Disney cartoonist), even though they are technically “criminals”. I think he created this film so that people could see the real side of illegal downloading. He shows that people AREN'T downloading to spite the artist, or steal their creativity, people enjoy the music! They want to be able to listen to that artist, tell their friends about that band. They just don’t want to pay for it. There are artists out there who are creating great new music by using music from other artists, that isn't theirs. I agree with the filmmaker. I don’t think you should have to pay for online music downloads, if you use it respectively. (Crediting artists, don't re sell it).
Dan O'Neill
I think that it is extremely hard to create a documentary WITHOUT a bias. I think it is okay to have bias. To have one film that shows a topic with a strong bias, then another with the opposing bias, creates balance. I think you need to see both sides of the topic before you can fairly make your choices or decisions based on it. I think that this film did a good job showing the opposing bias. By talking to the woman at the copyright office, asking kids if they download and explaining what exactly they’re doing, the Metallica jerk…I think that they accurately showed both sides of the topic.
After seeing RIP! A Remix Manifesto, I agree with the filmmaker’s views on copyrights and downloading. I think that music and other types of media should be available to others, free of cost. There will always be the option of paying for it or downloading it for free, and I will almost always download it for free. I think that there is nothing wrong with taking an artist’s song and creating something new with it; as long as you credit them. By crediting them, you’re just building onto their creativity. That is how new music is created, by building onto past work! I would be okay if someone took my work and altered it, but I would want credit. I think that it would be incredibly unfair if Glee told vs.
everyone they wrote “Don’t Stop Believing”. They never took credit for writing that song, but some people believe they did. I think that that is just something that has to be dealt with when altering music.
I really enjoyed the documentary. I think that the argument was constructed extremely well. They showed their opinions strongly, with lots of explanations and examples. They we’re mature while showing the opposing view, giving them a chance to make their point. some people believe they did. I think that that is just something that has to be dealt with when altering music. I think that this is a huge battle, the artists aren't the only ones suffering. The documentary talked about Jammie Thomas, the single mom being charged $220 000 for illegal downloads.(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jammie_Thomas) I think that by educating people on this war, they are now more insightful when making decisions.
I enjoy silent films. I think that the films from that era require a great deal of creativity and effort. Since there was no speaking, the actors had to work a lot harder to get the plot of the story across. Their acting skills are more refined then actors these days, who can portray their actions, feelings or emotions through their words. The director has to find other ways to produce his vision without dialogue, whether its through camera angles and lighting, or costumes and sets.
I believe that films from this era can be considered good. Every time period has its horrible, horrible films and its pretty spectacular ones, but, I don’t think its fair to judge silent films in general, as bad. I think many have strong plot lines that are clearly seen and understood, something that movies these days are having a hard time accomplishing. Silent film actors have achieved a level of drama and emotion in the film that I believe is not seen as much in recent films.
An example of a silent film in which the plot of the movie is laid out in an easy to understand way, is A Trip to the Moon. The film has a script to be read with it, but I found it easier to understand WITHOUT the man talking, his pronunciation was very hard to understand. The plot builds on its own and is not too complex.
The emotion that is put into Birth of a Nation is huge. What the movie is promoting... is horrible, but nonetheless, the opinions expressed are impossible to ignore. They are shown so passionately, all with out dialect.
Even comedy can be effectively done in silent films! All comedies began with Baby's lunch or The Sprinkler Sprinkled.
Reality is not accurately portrayed in this video. An example, is the set, it looks like the game board for CandyLand. All the girls in the video have perfect hair, outfits and bodies. Everyone in the video knows all the steps to the dance routine and all the words to the song. At the end, Katy Perry can easily defeat Snoop Dogg's army of (vulgar)gummy bears with whip cream guns attached to her bra... I believe that reality is presented this way because it is much more entertaining to watch a video like this, then one where entire set ISN'T made entirely out of candy and baked goods.
This video uses codes and conventions that are typically seen in pop music videos. Choreographed dancing, girls dancing half naked around men, perfect hair and makeup... All of these are conventions usually used in pop music videos.
Almost all of the creeds in this video are presented explicitly. California girls are described as "Tone tanned, fit and ready" or "Fine, fresh, fierce, we got it on lock". They are described as the most admirable girls, as Snoop Dogg exclaims, "these are the girls I love the most!". Although most of the messages in this video are blatantly shown, the underlaying messages can be shown implicitly. Girls are portrayed poorly, dressed in small clothing, provocatively dancing. These values presented can be agreed with or not, depending on how you see these topics.
Katy Perry & Snoop Dogg
I think to many teenagers, this is an appealing music video. It features two popular, widely known and listened to artists. The song is upbeat and catchy, an easy song to like. The sets, outfits and dancers are all relevant to teenagers, creating an appealing video.
Overall, I believe this is a "like" video. It doesn't have any substance or qualities to make it an actually good video. There is no meaning(no positive meaning anyways...) and not very much creativity(CandyLand....)This doesn't mean that it won't do well. The feedback from the video is obviously good, with over 9 million views, people enjoy the song and video. I don't believe though, that that makes it a good music video, I think the quality and message does.
I believe that media is IMMENSELY important in my life. Almost everything I do is connected to the media in at least one way. Taking pictures, reading and listening to music is something I do on a regular basis and all three of those activities revolve around the media.
One of the most important types of media to me is books. I think that the range of literary information that is available to our society is amazing. I can rely on novels for entertainment, newspapers and magazines for information on almost anything I could ever want to know. Another type of media I love is music. I grew up listening to my parent's music that they listened to in high school, music that I'm now listening to in high school. I also like that I can go on the internet and hear music and bands I've never heard of before.
Another type of media I enjoy is film and TV. I appreciate the range of shows on TV...I like knowing that when i get bored of watching the discovery channel....I'll always have bridalplasty to watch...
I think that our modern culture has accomplished incredible feats. I think that our progressions in technology have improved so much, creating so many different ways to connect with people. Modern technology has made our world smaller then ever by connecting us in so many ways, but the opportunities it has created are huge. Something that I dislike in our culture is that we have no patience. Everything has to be done bigger, better and faster. Often things are done without thinking of the consequences. I think that if things were done a little bit more slowly, plans were thoroughly thought through, it could prevent us from dealing with a lot of unnecessary aftermath. And a lot less people would be embarrassed with what they post on the internet... I mostly use the media for entertainment. I watch TV, go to the movies, read books, listen to music. I also use it for school purposes, online shopping...creeping...
If I was stuck on a desert island, the three items I would bring with me are; the Harry Potter series, music and... access to peopleofwalmart.com. My favourite books I have ever read are the Harry Potter books by J.K. Rowling. I think that these books are so great, because they have every life lesson you could possibly need portrayed in them. The next would be music. I love many different artists, but specifically, my favourite artists are, Neil Young, The Who, Rolling Stones, Regina Spektor, Marina and the Diamonds..it goes on and on...The last type of media I would choose, is the internet. More specifically, the website peopleofwalmart.com, for the endless entertainment it provides. Because frankly, when you can't leave the house without your goat, you deserve to be on this website.
vs. 
