Calling All Heroes

With today's current stagnant economy, high unemployment, political unrest, and slew of recent natural disasters, it's no wonder that the populace still seeks to escape from harsh realities by watching movies. And what better way than watching a movie about heroes?

This summer's fare of films will not disappoint. New heroes to the scene will be "Green Lantern" (Ryan Reynolds), "Captain America" (Chris Evans), and "Thor" (Chris Hemsworth). Returning heroes Jack Sparrow of "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides", Sam Witwicky of "Transformers: Dark of the Moon", and "Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Part 2".

These movies don't just represent an escape to the fantasy world on our part. They symbolize the hope that the inner heroes in all of us can relate to these characters who live a life of doing the right thing, and when called upon, can emerge super.

The Next Generation...

In contemplating the future of movies, there are a few young actors on the horizon that have shown signs of becoming one of the great ones. I've picked two that I believe that,if they can stay true to their art, and not let the distractions of Hollywood consume them (yes, Lindsay Lohan, this means you), they can are great role models for prospective young actors and actresses still yet to be discovered

Abigail Breslin's first role in the movie thriller "Signs" earned her much praise from both audiences and fellow actors, for her serious focus on her role. Her film,"Little Miss Sunshine", a comedy drama, garnered her a nomination for an Academy Award. Even though she did not win the Oscar, her talent shows that it will be only a matter of when she will win it, not if she will win it.

Shia LeBouf first entered the scene as a cast member on the Disney Channel sitcom "Even Stevens", where he played the typical mischievous, pain-in-the-neck younger brother Louis Stevens. His talent was soon to be recognized on a rollercoaster of popular movies, the "Transformers" movies, "Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull", "Wall Street 2", "Disturbia", and "Eagle Eye".  His ability to play diverse roles in the many genres of movies - comedies, action, drama, science fiction - have established him as a very talented artist.

The Expendables 2?

Expendables, starring Sylvester Stallone and many others, was a box office hit. Could we see a sequel in the future? According to Stallone, one is in the works and he will not direct or write it, as he did for the first one.

A planned August 17, 2012 release, it will reportedly feature Vin Diesel, Chuck Norris, and many other actions stars. I am excited for this sequel, the first one was really good, it reminded me of the 80's action films. So hopefully we hear more about the plot details and the definite actors.

Here's a fan made poster i found online, it shows the actors that might be in the film.

More Movie Theaters types?

We are all used to going to a first run movie theaters and used to the smell of popcorn and expenisve tickets. But could the movie theater idea be re worked into specialty theaters? For example, one of the theaters in your area could be theater that shows just black and white films or kids movies. Maybe a couple theaters in your area could also serve you food and beverages right to your chair.

These are a couple of ideas brought up on the internet to further the life of an movie theater. One idea was to have theaters that either show one kind of movie or format. For example go to a theater to see all black and white films, either old ones or new ones. Another example is the theater will be a kid friendly theater, complete with a kid friendly snack bar, bathrooms and theatre. Maybe bathrooms inside the theater, so adults dont miss the show and its convenient. Also the kid friendly theater would also not have cranky adults who are there on dates and get mad for kids distrubting the show. It would be a kid friendly theater.

A new theater that has been out the last few years but will see if it last in the future and maybe this will be the way theaters go. The concept is a theater crew member will bring you food and drinks. You can sit in your seat in the theater and order a steak dinner with a beer, all from the comfort in you chair. No more long lines, and missing your show. There are already a couple locations throughout the country, but time will tell this will catch on and make movie theaters very upscale.

Another idea to change the movie theater landscape, well my idea for the future, is to bring back drive in theaters. This would be a great way to go green and save money on building huge 20 theater buildings. I never been to one, but there are not too many left currently, but i feel if they brought them back and they had the old rate of a set price for a car load, i know they would be popular. The drive in theater model, only uses a set amount of acres and the use of speakers are not needed, just need your car stereo. I think this would be awesome, sit in your car and watch a movie.

In the future, movie theaters will be changing alot, hopefully they wont go the drain, because i like getting away and spending time with my girlfriend and see a movie at the local theater.

Smurfs, time to relive your childhood

What color does a smurf to turn and when you squeeze them? I do not know, but i do know that coming to a movie theatre near you, the smurfs will appear and be a 3D and cgi film. Heres the plot right from Wikipedia:

"Set in the Middle Ages, the evil wizard Gargamel (Hank Azaria) discovers the Smurfs' village and chases them into a wooded area. The Smurfs get scattered and Clumsy Smurf (voiced by Anton Yelchin) wanders into a "forbidden" grotto and some of the other Smurfs follow. Since it's also a blue moon, a magical portal within the grotto transports them into present-day Central Park in New York.^[4] They take shelter with married couple Patrick and Grace Winslow (Neil Patrick Harris and Jayma Mays) and try to find a way back to their village before Gargamel finds them"

Although, i did not grow up watching smurfs, i do remember seeing reruns on cartoon network and on tv, so im pretty excited for this. The is a rumor there will be a sequel or two to follow. So look forward it to be released this summer, either late July or August.

Reboots and Remakes Coming?

Finding the next original movie idea is harder than finding a needle in a hay stack. Since, its alot easier to take a movie previously created and remake with some different elements, could we see a rise in remakes and reboots. For example, The Batman Series, The next installment of the Batman, directed by Christopher Nolan, but after its release in 2012, Warner Brothers plans on rebooting the series shortly after.

I understand that Batman is high grossing franchise, but do it so quick??? Literally the last 20 years, have been 6 total films. But then again the Batman character will be reprised for the Justice League film, so althought its being rebooted, its getting reboot for a good reason.

Another example, The upcoming release of spiderman, it was original titled spiderman 4 but with delays and money problems, they decided to reboot it with a new director and cast

Im worried Hollywood will not come up with anymore ideas, and rely on past ones. So hopefully new ideas will be appearing on screen in the future.

BD-Live

There are radical changes on the horizon of how an audience watches a movie. There is a new technology called BD-Live that establishes a connection to the Internet to enhance your movie viewing experience by allowing viewer participation. The BD-Live works with a Blue Ray player or PS3. It allows viewers to save and share video clips of movies, participate in games and converse with other viewers while watching a movie.

The future of BD-Live is promising. It has the ability to establish a community base following for all movies, allowing the viewers to share knowledge or comments on the scenes as they are taking place. It also gives viewers the ability to converse with each other about other movies.

Walt Disney Studios figures prominently with the emergence of BD-Live. Many of the Disney films are available to the BD-Live community. This serves to enhance family bonding since family members across the country to view the movies together or play the games. Below is a link showing the many options BD-Live has for the consumer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5F5uRBN03hA&feature=player_embedded

In the Near Future Will Animated Actors Replace Living Actors?

The future of computer animation will make it possible for the film industry to portray characters in movies without the need to employ human beings. The main challenge computer animators will face is the ability to match the animated character with human behavior, emotions and facial expressions.

Currently the film industry pays millions of dollars to actors and actresses to appear in their movies. The computer would simulate someone like Bruce Willis to portray a character and would pay Willis to license his face as a trademark. The executives would sit back and then let the computer do its magic. This technology would give animators the freedom to bring back deceased actors, such as Marlon Brando, to depict new characters. This would drastically reduce the overhead cost of the film makers and producers of paying out huge salaries to actors which could trickle down to movie-goers as a reduce cost to see the movie. Software development is the key to such an undertaking. This technology would give movie studios more flexibility and less dependence on high priced actors/actresses.

A risk this technology could encounter is if the movie industry can create such life-like animation, what would stop it from falling into the wrong hands and used as a way to manipulate the world. Suppose someone were able to reproduce a world leader to appear so life-like and have him/her give a speech that could have a negative impact on the world. It could be disastrous.

Smell-O-Vision

Imagine you are sitting in a dark movie theater and on the big screen the cast is sitting in a pizzeria enjoying a pepperoni pizza - suddenly the smell of pizza is wafting throughout the theater - this scenario is being considered by the movie industry.

Special machines will be placed underneath the theater sets and will be digitally controlled to emit smells during pivotal moments of the film. A floral scent will be released during a love scene, or a mixture of peppermint and rosemary will be used during an emotionally charged scene. Joy and happiness will be interpreted by a citrus mix of orange and grapefruit, while anger is depicted by the scent of eucalyptus and tree tea. The smell of gun smoke will saturate the air during an intense shoot-out. The use of these familiar scents is aimed at enhancing the audience's movie going experience.

Some problems with smell-o-vision is that the odors may not dissipate fast enough to keep up with the action on the screen, or the person sitting next to you is snacking down on a huge bucket of buttery popcorn or is wearing too much perfume clashing with the smells from the movie. What if people have severe allergies which are aggravated by the overpowering smells coursing throughout the theater? These problems would need to be addressed by the industry before such an endeavor can take place.

Having the access and ability to create smell-o-vision is just one part of the equation - there would be a need for it. There is a strong possibility the audience would grow tiresome of the constant barrage of smells. Smell-O-Vision is just a novelty at this time and whether is will bring people to the theater remains to be seen.

Are 3-D Movies making people sick?

Movie executives are predicting that 3-D movies are the wave of the future. But there is one little problem, people are getting sick from watching the special effects. Many viewers complain of feeling dizzy, nauseous, suffer from eyestrain and headaches.

AMC Entertainment is just one of several businesses that are currently upgrading theaters to accommodate this latest technology. The movie industry is moving forward in producing 3-D films regardless of the effects it has on the audience. The public has shown its lack of excitement over this latest trend. With 3-D movies costing on average $3 more per ticket, the box office is feeling the snub.

Berkeley's Visual Space Perception Laboratory is designing specialized 3-D glasses. The lens of these glasses are designed to accommodate the eye's natural inclination to focus on objects at various distances. The goal of these glasses is to reduce eyestrain. University of Arizona is working on a wearable helmet-like device whose purpose is to also reduce eyestrain. Is an audience willing to purchase these unique devices just to watch a movie? Time will tell. For now, sufferers can either close one eye while watching a 3-D flick or avoid going to see the movie.

Adapting Books into Movies

Many ideas for movie plots come from bestselling books. Gone with the Wind, To Kill a Mocking Bird and The Color Purple became movie blockbusters, winning numerous awards and breaking box office records. The main problem with turning a wonderful book into a movie is that it usually strays from the original storyline.

Turning a book into a movie is quite difficult to do. Books rely on written descriptions and movies rely on imagery. Books inspire the reader's imagination. They dig in-depth into conversations, motivations and scenery. The book delves into the character's thoughts and emotions. The reader begins to envision what the character looks like and imagines the settings of the storyline. Each reader has their own individual vision of the story. A movie presents the characters, story and settings from one point of view - the director's. This can be disappointing to the reading public. Often the movie does not stick to the original plot. One dilemma screenwriters face when converting a book into a movie is taking the narrative and changing it into dialogue.

A book I recently read and thoroughly enjoyed was Water for Elephants. It is set during the depression and follows the story of a young man who dreams of being a veterinarian. His parents are killed forcing him to abandon college. To survive he joins a traveling circus. The movie version of this book opens April 22. It will be interesting to see how one person's vision of this story translates onto the big screen. The following link is the movie trailer of Water for Elephants.

http://www.chasingthefrog.com/catalog/video.php?vid=5261

Sequels Coming Soon?

Earlier in our blog, we did a post about sequels. Well now i will highlight a couple notable ones in production or being talk about to be made.

Men in Black 3:
Yes i know your all wondering, "really? they should have stopped after one" But its currently being filmed and thanks gosh Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones have reprised their roles in the 3rd film. The premise of the film they must go back to stop and alien from ruining the world. Actually Will Smith, Agent J, must go back in and see a young Agent K in order to save the word.
Planned Release date: May 2012 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men_in_Black_3

Monster University:
Sounds like a live action horror movie, but its actually the sequel to Monsters Inc, staring Billy Crystal and John Goodman. This is actually a prequel, documenting Sulley and Mike as they go to college and become best friends. This was obviolusly put into production after the success of Toy Story 3 and the great groundwork of the Monsters Inc. story created. When this comes out, i will be reliving my childhood again, just like TS3
Planned release date, Summer of 2013 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsters_University#Prequel

CHiPs:
I know this is an older television series based on the day to day lives of two California Highway Patrolmen. This has been in development for many years and hopefully it will finally get made. I remember watching this show on reruns in late 90s on TNT and instantly go addicted. This was a tv series classic and would be a perfect one to make. One actor rumor to play Ponch is Wilmer Vederrama. He looks just like Erik Estrada and he fits the part.
Estimated released date, 2013 http://www.movieinsider.com/m3210/chips/
Chi

The Future: Cinema Dying?

With Netflex and Redbox taking over, and the time movies are released to Dvd and those companies, will we see the Cinema die? With big companies such as Fox and Warner Bros. planning to started a movie rental service that allows people to watch first run movies 2 months after they released. For about 30$ a movie, you can rent them HD and watch them in the comfort of your own home. Save money on gas, tickets, and food at the theater. So will movie theatres die if everyone rents them at home?
Movie Theaters make their money on a percentage of ticket sales and most of it on concession sales. So if 50% of there of loyal customers decide to stay home and watch a movie, then your neighborhood theater will go under.

This is one thing happening in the future:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2011-04-04/home-premiere-service-could-kill-the-movie-theater-experience/

Actors and Actress today

Moviegoers will always know who Robert De Niro,Nicole Kidman, Meryl Streep or Nicklas Cage is. But a handful of younger actors are taking over the spotlight and becoming the new A-List Actors. Some include James Franco, Anne Hathaway, Michael Cera, Emma Stone, Abgial Breslin..and many more. These are the actors/actresses of the future and they are already winning the hearts of moviegoers. They force us to pay 11 dollar for ticket to see their movies, because they are talented. James Franco has done some great movies in the last 10 years, Pineapple Express, 127 hours, Flyboys, Spiderman 1-3. Emma Stone has done movies such as Superbad,Easy A, Zombieland( along side Breslin) and the new Spiderman coming out next year.( which will be feature in a coming blog post) So support these younger thesbians.

Spoofs

With genres like action, comedy, drama, musicals in mainstream movies, could we include spoofs as a genre? Spoofs are movies that either poke fun or exaggerate a certain aspect of another. For example last year, Vampires Suck spoofed the Twilight Saga. Along with Vampires Suck, there has been 38 spoofs created. Plots range from poking fun at the many superhero movies to appear to even one about the various horror movies. Usually spoofs are basically comedies but include another aspect. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parody_film#2000s -list of movies

check out an example of a spoof- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xo2aUmj1_o

Star Trek - The PREQUEL? Absolutely, positively not acceptable...

I freely admit it, I'm a Trekkie. A Spock-loving, phaser-toting, Borg-hating, die-hard Trekkie. The one who is sitting in a traffic jam on I-95 and wishes she had a transporter. The one who believes Tribbles are real; they're just waiting somewhere in Tibet to be discovered.  From the original series to The Next Generation, to all ten Star Trek movies, I have been a follower since childhood. So when the news came out that there would be a movie that would depict the original crew, but from the beginnings of the story of the Enterprise, I flatly refused to believe it would be a success. How could they come up with a better story that would be successful and not just a re-hashing?

Well, they did. With the release of Star Trek in 2009, they came up with a script that not only is novel and extremely entertaining, but opened up the possibility of many more sequels to come. With an unexpected twist to the tale, coupled with an excellent cast and unbelievable special effects, JJ Abrams was able to make a movie irresistible to even the nit-pickiest Trekkie. Check out the trailers and feel free to tell me what you think...whether you're a fellow Trekkie or not.

The Power of LOTR

The significance of the trilogy, the Lord of The Rings, never gets old for me. Because I was such a huge fan of the books, which I have read and re-read, I was not sure I wanted to see the movies, as I believe in the saying "the movie is never as good as the book". Still, I went to see the first film, "The Fellowship of The Ring" and found the scenery magnificent, the acting excellent, and the special effects astounding. But what was most impressive was that the movie was still able to depict the timeless messages of a book written over sixty years ago: the constant struggle of man over the seduction of power, the heavy responsibility of doing the right thing, and, finally, the importance of faith.The second and third movies, "The Two Towers" and "The Return of The King", respectively, lived up to the expectations even better than the first movie.

The Ring is a symbol of great power, but a power of absolute evil. Frodo, who is one of the representatives of all that is "good", is fated to be the Ring-bearer, and only he can destroy it. The story follows his quest to bring the Ring to Mordor with the purpose of casting it into the symbolic fires ; with him are eight companions, the Fellowship, who are sworn to protect and help him with this quest.

The chronicle is known for its great battle scenes between the armies of men and the beasts of Mordor, but the heart of the tale, I think, are the personal inner battles of many of the characters. The first example, of course, would be Frodo, who has actual possession of the ring, and must physically and mentally fight the effect that it has on him throughout the whole journey. Aragon, who until the quest begins, is a man who is destined to be a king, but constantly fighting the self-doubt that he is deserving of that title. Boromir, a mighty warrior, the son of a proud father, but is desperate to be worthy of his father's high expectations and his desire to keep his people from falling from grace, and is willing to do anything to achieve that goal. There are many more characters whose fates that are entwined in this struggle; the fascination is witnessing the triumphs and failures to overcome the lure of the Ring, and the age-old struggle of good vs. evil. 

Effects Behind the Dark Knight

Dark Knight is one of my all time favorite batman movie. One reason mostly is becuase of all effects they did in the movie. One effect that was awesome was how they transform Aaron Eckhart's face. Framestore created 120 computer-generated shots of two-face's scarred and gruesome face. The director Christopher Nolan thought make-up would look unrealistic. For each shot they used three 720-pixel HD cameras shooting from different perspectives and angles to capture the shot. Echart wore markers on his face and a prospsetic skull cap to really pull off the look of Two-Face.
Also the Director Christopher Nolan uses alot sets rather than relying on a lot green screen, which shows on the realsitic feeling in the film.This movie is favorite of everyone thanks to the Special effects and the stronger cast including Christian Bale and Heath Ledger. The Dark Knight rises will be a great movie, which will be talked about in the future section coming up soon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqZhkxZbWcI

Pans Labyrinth

Released in 2006, Pans Labyrinth relates a dark and artistic tone to its audience. The story follows a young girl as she moves in with her step-father and her pregnant mother. By the house is a maze and werid creatures come and talk to the young girl. Her step father is high ranking official and his very stubborn and aggressive. Its a very dark and mysterious movie. The movie won best art direction and make up in 2006 Oscar. So its worth picking it up and seeing, only thing is, its subtitles thorough the whole movie.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5d4f1nyLgg&feature=player_detailpage

The Rise of Digital Film

Those unrelaible 35mm traditional films are the way out the door. Make way Digtial Film Age. Since 2005, some of the movies hollywood produces are projected on digital project. Your problably wondering what exactly are they. Well they use files instead of film. Film companies instead transfer their movies into a format for the projectors and send them on external hard drives to your local cinema to be shown. They can be normal or 3D. Theaters across the country are slowly throwing the 35mm projectors and now installing the new Digital ones. These allow theaters to employ less man power because it takes less to start, as long as the file is in the project, they just gotta hit start.

In the picture below, you can see the difference in size, the one on the left is the 35mm, you can see the giant platters where the film goes. Compare to the right, which is the Digital one.

The Black Swan

A ballet dancer struggles with her mental and physical being. From her alter-ego to her mother, The Black tells a story of a talented ballet dance in NYC who earns the lead roll in her companies rendition of Swan Lake. Starring Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis are dancers in the movie and Portman as the lead ballet dance. Throughout the film, Portman struggles to grasp reality.

The movies showcases, the art form and how each and everyday, ballet dancers struggle. They must go throught the long hours of practice and fight the ongoing battle with their weight.

The director Darren Aronofsky, who used many cinematic and art elements that relayed a message of a artistic movie, that overall conveys a dark and moody drama.
Black Swan won an award for Best Actress by Natalie Portman. Overall a great movie, just a little gruesome, but check it out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHTfDcP0APw

Sequels

Hollywood relies on sequels to earn them money and hope they are blockbuster winners. There are many different kinds of sequels.

For examples one they are preplanned or being adapt from a book. They have the title of the book followed by the current installment.e.g. The Chronicles of Naria:The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. As long as this is movie is sucessful, their will be another one, because its a series of books.

Another Example is sequels with numbers, they not necessary give any hint to what will the plot be. Toy Story 2, the title doesnt give away anything, just the audience will be going on another adventure with Woody and Buzz.

Sequels could very well share the same name as its predessors, just plouralize, for example Aliens, sequel to Alien.


Getting back to sequels, in 2010, the top grossing movie domestically was Toy Story 3( Sequel) At of the top ten of highest grossing, 5 of them were sequels. http://boxofficemojo.com/yearly/chart/?yr=2010&p=.htm This link shows the list, go see how many of them are sequels.

Monster Inc.

Monster Inc. is about monsters who go through doors and scare little children as there job. Two particuar monsters didn't have it so easy. When the one monster goes through one particular door the child escapes and they do all they can to get her back through the door without someone getting hurt and getting caught.

For the monsters to scare the little kids they have to go through doors. Theres certain monsters that work the machines to bring the "scaring monsters" a door so they can walk through it and scare the little children to collect screams for their company. To get a certain door they have a file for a certain child and then they swipe a card and the conveyor belt of doors continue through till the door comes to their station and a big claw rises up and grabs the door.

Animation Voice Overs

The Shrek and Toy Story films have entertained and delighted audiences for several years. These animated characters have captured the hearts of children and adults through out the world. But these movies would not have been as memorable if it were not for the efforts of the animators and the actors who supplied the voices for these endearing characters.

In traditional animation, the preliminary soundtrack of an actor performing the character's voice is completed first. It was easier for the animators to match the character's simulated movements to the voice. In computer animation, the same process is sometimes utilized. However, since this type of animation is easier to adjust, it is now more common to change the voice over to match the action on the screen. The actors are then required to re-do some scenes or provide the voice for newly created animated action.

The actor supplying the cartoon character's voice is required to have a unique sound, imagination and versatility. The voice needs to be believable. The actor must have the stamina to maintain the character tone for extended periods of time. Some mistakenly believe that if you can do a funny voice, you can make it in this industry. This is not true. Acting ability is required. When the actor is speaking their lines, they are sitting in a recording booth alone. They are not playing off another actor. They need to understand the character on all levels and be able to convey it to the audience.

Watch the clip below and notice how both the voices and the body movements match the animated character's personality.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZnztwiWZo4&feature=related

Music in Movies

Have you ever been so totally engrossed in watching an intensely frightening movie scene that the menacing music scared you more than what was actually taking place on the screen? The use of music in movies can intensify the outcome of a scene or bring it into sharper focus.

There are various ways music is utilized to promote the cinematic experience. It can be used to express the character's emotion - if the scene is tense, dramatic, happy or emotional the background music will match the mood. Music is an effective way to heighten drama and advance the story. It can be used to misdirect the audience in a scene. Picture a woman alone in the house, a crescendo of loud ominous music emanating from the screen - this sets the mood for what is about to befall the victim - whether it's a killer hiding in the closet or a cat jumping off the dresser. The anticipation builds and emotions take over resulting in a heart pounding thrill to the viewer.

The following link is a trailer for the enchanting and popular film, Mary Poppins, but through the use of sinister and eerie music the movie is transformed into a suspenseful and terrifying adventure.

http://mbgortiz.wordpress.com/2009/05/27/the-importance-of-music-in-films-nowadays/

M. Night Shyamalan - writer/director/actor

M. Night Shyamalan was born in India but was raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Most of his films have been shot in Philly and the surrounding communities. His films deal with supernatural story lines that climax with unexpected surprising endings. His most famous is "The Sixth Sense" which he both wrote and directed. This film tells the story of a young boy who speaks with the dead and the child psychologist who consuls him. "I see dead people" is just one infamous line from the film.

"Signs" was another film written and directed by Shyamalan that was shot in Bucks County. Mel Gibson starred in the flick that told the tale of mysterious crop circles appearing around the world and the subsequent invasion of extraterrestrials. Delaware Valley College leased 40 acres to the production company where they built the house and shot the cornfield scenes. The bookstore and pizza shop scenes were filmed in Newtown, and the pharmacy scene was shot in Morrisville.

One of his most recent film's "Lady in the Water," was shot entirely in Levittown at the site of the old 3-M property. Here they built a 5 story apartment complex complete with a swimming pool and filmed the entire movie at this location. The film was about a building maintenance man who saves a young woman from the pool. She turns out to be a story book sea nymph that he tries to help back to her home before others succeed in keeping her in the present world. The film did not do well at the box office due to the rambling storyline.

M. Night Shyamalan is a gifted writer and a talented director. We can look forward to more spine-tingling films from this gifted writer/director.

The following link is the trailer for The Sixth Sense.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlkwIPLP_EE

Labor Laws for Child Actors

Jackie Coogan was a successful child actor of the 1920's. By the time he reached 21 years old, his career was over. At that time, he discovered that his parents had spent the millions of dollars he had earned. Coogan Law was instituted in 1939 to protect the earnings of child actors. California updated this law in 2000 stating that all money earned by the child is solely theirs. 15% of the earnings must be held in a trust fund called a Coogan account.

All working child actors must have a working permit (issued for six months of work) and a social security number. Babies may only be filmed 20 minutes a day - resulting in the employment of twins and triplets to play one character. Children over the age of seven can be on set for up to 8 hours - 3 of which must be dedicated to their education.

Many of today's child stars find the fame and fortune difficult to navigate. Sadly, these children grow up to be disfunctional adults with addicition issues, legal problems or file for bankruptcy. Corey Haim, Michael Jackson and River Phoenix have tradgedically met early deaths due in part to their celebrity.

Visual Effects

Visual effects are an important aspect to many action/adventure flicks. These effects are usually done post-production and must be meticulously planned and choreographed before and during filming. Through the use of graphic design, animation and other software programs, the special effects are planned and edited to enhance their authenticity. Usually explosions, car chases and stunts are done on the set and filmed from different angles to get the best possible outcome.

Visual effects are divided into four categories: Models - designing the set in miniature. Stills - the use of background plates from paintings or photographs. Live action effects - actors filmed in front of a blue-screen or green-screen. And digital animation - computer generated 3-D characters.

The movie, 2012, depicts the catastrophic end of the earth due to a chain of natural disasters. The link below is a trailer about how they filmed the powerful tidal waves that drowned the earth.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24-Z80_I9cU

Momento

Momento is about a man who has anterograde amnesia. Anterigrade Amnesia is a loss to create new memories, which can lead to partial or complete inability to recall the past memories. As they explain in the movie his amnesia is a result from a hit to the head from two men who attack him in his house. It starts out in black and white and it turns to color towards the end of the movie. What makes this movie different then any other movie is that the ending starts out the movie.

Cast Away with Wilson!

Released in 2000, Cast Away is drama centered around Fedex employee stranded on a island with nothing but the packages. Along the journey, Tom Hanks' character finds friend in a volleyball named Wilson. Wilson is the name of the company who produces the sports equipment. With a budget of 90 million dollars, it became a blockbuster hit when released it earned 400 million dollars.

Wilson the volleyball can be purchased, so anyone could have their own buddy to talk to. http://www.wilson.com/wilson/volleyball/all_volleyballs.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198674001899&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302759592

From an art standpoint, it took a great mind to come up with a creative way to make the movie interesting. Without wilson, Tom Hanks could have been talking to no one, but the writers of the movie created someone for Tom to connect to and have a conversation with.

Suave Tech

 Nothing brings to mind the concept of ultimate cool more than the legend of James Bond, the debonair international spy who lived a jet-setting, dangerous life, amidst exotic settings. What was most exciting about these movies were the GADGETS, the secret agent toys that were mostly pieces of fictional technology. What could be better than the watch on the right, for example, that could capture pictures of villains everywhere; or the jet pack below that jettisoned James to adventures galore. Finally...the Aston Martin that pretty much could do everything from shooting bullets from the trunk, or laser beams from its side mirrors, to converting to a submarine, just in case James needed to get where he needed to go via the ocean.

The technology in these movies may have been mere props, but they managed to inspire the imaginations of techies everywhere, and have kept the appeal for 007 alive for many, many years.

Back to the Future

Back to the Future is a 1985 American Sci-fi comedy film. It was the most successful film of the year earning $380 million dollars world-wide and recieved many different awards. The car used in the movie was a DeLorean. They turned the car into a time machine in the movie. Once everyone saw the movie people wanted to get their hands on that car. I personnally like the effects of this movie and how they traveled in time.

Old Yeller

Old Yeller was a 1975 cult classic and was an important cultural film for baby boomers. Old yellers death will always be particualy remembered as the most tearful scence in movie history. It's not only the most important cultural but it was also the most rememberable movie of all times.

My Fair Pictures

Cinematography is the art of capturing photographic images from a film with the best use of lighting and camera. In the movie, "My Fair Lady", the scenery, costumes, along with cinematographic elements, expertly helped portray a rags-to-riches story. For example, the photo on the left shows the "commoness" of Audrey Hepburn's Eliza Doolittle, from the stark black and white, to the unkempt hair and bedraggled clothes. But you can also see the beauty peeking out from under the grime in the expression on Eliza's face.

In the picture on the right of the scene at Ascot, you feel the overwhelming task of Eliza in trying to fit into this upper class society. First and foremost with the enormity of her hat, and then the tightly uncomfortable fit of her dress. Although it cannot be totally seen in this photo, most of the members are all dressed in expensive and outlandish gowns, hats and suits in shades of white, black and grey, showing a sense of conformity that one must adhere to at all costs. But then you see Professor Higgins marching to his own drum in his brown suit, which is exactly the type of character he is portraying.

Just those two photos were able to depict so much of the tone of the movie, and shows exactly the importance and significance of good cinematography in a classic film

In Awe of The Ten Commandments

I can remember watching "The Ten Commandments" as a child, and believing that I was actually witnessing the miraculous works that Moses (Charlton Heston) was performing on the screen. From the Nile turning into blood with just a touch of his staff, to the hail raining down on Ramses and his guards, and finally the monumental parting of the Red Sea, I believed with my childlike mind and heart that I was watching God at work, and on the television screen, no less!
But now, as an adult, I know that the spectacle of "The Ten Commandments" was largely due to the imagination and artistry of special effects, a part of filmmaking that is fascinating to me because of what is being achieved, and that is the talent of making an audience believe in what is being portrayed on the screen. Even back in 1956, Cecil B. DeMille was able to create a film that was destined to be a classic because of the grandeur and splendor of the special effects in this what I feel is still one of the most awesome movies of all time.

The Rise of Colored Animated Film of 1930s

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was the first full-lengthed colored animated film. It's based on the German fairy tale Snow White by the Brothers Grimm. To create the characters for the movies they had to first draw them out an color them in by hand. When people first saw this movie everyone was in awe to see a colored film. The worldwide gross of this film was $8.5 million dollars.

Watch how they drew the seven dwarfs:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_CoNZEXP7k

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner

The Civil Rights movement was gaining momentum in the 1960's. During this time of Jim Crow laws and southern racial segregation, a film premiered in 1967 titled 'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner.' The groundbreaking theme of the movie was the topic of interracial marriage. Sidney Poitier portrayed a black doctor who met and fell in love with a young white woman played by Katharine Houghton. This film showcased the discomfort felt by family members of the young couple as they came to terms with the upcoming marriage.

This film premiered at a time in the United States where interracial marriage was illegal in fifteen states. Guess Who's Coming to Dinner won two Academy Awards - one for original screenplay and the other award for best actress given to Katharine Hepburn. Upon the film's release, it was criticized for being too controversial in it's subject matter and also for being too lightweight for lack of seriousness. But years later this film is now well regarded for tackling the divisive topic of racism.

Drive-in Movies

The drive-in theater was created in the early 1930's by Richard Hollingshead of Camden, New Jersey. He experimented with this idea by nailing a screen to the trees in his yard. He used a 1928 Kodak projector mounted to the hood of his car and placed a radio behind the screen to test the sound.

The drive-in was most popular during the 1950's and 60's. Admission cost per person in the car included the showing of two or three movies. The typical American family would pile into the station wagon and head to the drive-in for an inexpensive night of entertainment. This was ideal for families with babies and young children, it eliminated the stress of keeping the kids quiet. The drive-in was also very popular with the teenage crowd, it became a place to hang out, meet up with friends or have a romantic date.

Sadly the decline of the drive-in began in the late 1990's when the large plots of land which accommodated the theaters became to expensive for the owners to afford. There are still a few theaters around - so before they are all gone, make plans to head to the drive-in - it's a nostalgic experience under the stars you don't want to miss!

Rise of Genres/Hayes Code: 60's

Film in the 1960's, were home to new genres. Such as James Bond series. Also Comedy took a big role in films, with Pink Panther and Breakfast At Tiffany's.

This decade also elimated the Hays Code. Hays Code was general outline put forth by early 1930's filmmakers. The code entailed that filmamkers would not include any crude language or scenes. So Hollywood was getting censored and had to film according to the churchs' rules.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qn3dCIJ91Nw&feature=player_detailpage

Rise of Color Film: 1940's

Movies in the 1940's were mostly filmed in black and white. But some where filmed in color, such titles as The Wizard of Oz and Gone With the Wind, both classics. You would think that with rise of color film, they would dominate the academy awards. Actually, only one or two color films won.

One of the big names in the industry who helped phase out the black and white process was Technicolor. The are still a big name today! So its the content not the look that wins!!

Teen Movies of the 1950's

The post-war 1950's produced the next movie craze - teen rebellion. These films covered such topics as juvenile delinquency and rock-n-roll. Teens in these films sported leather jackets, rode motorcycles and attended lavish beach parties. James Dean in "Rebel Without a Cause" and Marlon Brando in the "The Wild One" epitomized the 'bad boys' image, while Sandra Dee in "Gidget" was viewed as America's girl next door. Another newcomer to emerge at this time was Elvis Pressley. His music was showcased in many of his films enhancing his reputation and appeal.


One reason for the popularity of these films was the 1950's teen lived in a world that was completely different from the one in which their parents were raised. Their parents were reared during the Great Depression and World War II. This time period encompassed hardship and many sacrifices. The 50's brought a time of prosperity to many families resulting in teens having spending money, independence and freedoms.

World War II Movies

From 1941 to 1945, our country was heavily involved in World War II. Hollywood began producing films to encourage the spirit of patriotism, support our military effort and at the same time entertain the viewing public. Americans, facing the difficulties and uncertainty of war, escaped to the movies. Some films to come out of this era were "Flying Tigers", "Wake Island" and the memorable "Casablanca." Casablanca won numerous Academy Awards and made celebrities of Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman and is today a cult favorite. This film depicted a love triangle set among the backdrop of war and inspired such iconic sayings such as "Play it again, Sam", "I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship" and "Here's looking at you, kid."

Black and White, the backbone of Film

The Great Train Robbery, an early example of how film was really different from today. From the use of single shots to having ragtime music play in the background. Alot has changed. Artistically, film was a big thing for Americans to flock to their local cinema to see it. America in the 1900's was alot different than today. TGTR had no blood and language issues as do film today. If we showed movies from today in the 1900's, they would have a heartattack. Scienctifically, it was a harder to make movies, with not being able to see what you filmed until after it was processed. So if messed the scene you had to reshoot it. So it was very time consuming.


Overall, The Great Train Robbery is an great example of early film, go take a look for yourself -----------------------------> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bc7wWOmEGGY

The wizardry of the Wizard of Oz

I loved how through technology, the people involved with the production of the movie were able to depict the tremendous difference of Kansas and Oz; accentuating the grey vista of Kansas through the use of sepia tones, as portrayed in the novel, then bringing to life - through the Technicolor process - the vivid colors of the land of Oz