BLACKFISH

   If you know me, you know I absolutely cannot stand places like SeaWorlds, Marine Lands, and other aquariums that hold dolphins and whales captive. They disgust me and it is completely cruel. I recently saw a film called "Blackfish" and it is wonderful, and something that I believe everyone MUST SEE. It's something thats really dear to my heart and I wrote a blog post about it for my Writing Pop Culture class. HERE IT IS PLEASE READ IT AND WATCH THE TRAILER.

  If you want to join me in helping this cause you should follow Free the Whales on twitter or like them on facebook. But really, I think the least you can do is to watch the movie. You may think I am crazy for being so avid about this cause, but once you watch the movie you will understand why It's so important to me.

  We need to make a change, and we need people who are willing to help make that change.
 

The Ghost Sonata Excitement

   So last week was the week where all the clubs/activities/organizations were out on the main street of campus for everyone to sign up and become a part of. I signed up for countless activities including swing dancing, study abroad, film club, and countless others. The one I really wasn't sure if I was going to do or not was theatre (due to my previous horrid theatre experiences). I was extremely hesitant to even audition for those reasons alone. As much as I do love theatre, the past few years have not been the best to say the least. But I decided I might as well audition just to see what happens.

   The funniest part to me was that I was only planning on auditioning for one of the two plays that were going on but ended up auditioning for both, and got a lead in the one I wasn't even planning on going to. "Ghost Sonata" is the show I was cast in, its much too complicated for me to explain fully at this point in time, but I will make another post once I figure it all out. 

   It was through the auditioning process that I really fell in love with the complexity of the story, even though I am still confused about a lot of things right now, even after doing a full read through of the script. I think that's because a lot of the story is left up to the reader's interpretation and we are all going to have to, as actors, figure out the direction we want to take. I think it's all so exciting. 

This is a different kind of theatre experience than i've ever encountered. It is such a collaborative effort, and everyone is constantly asking questions, but the director has told us she wants us to discover certain aspects of our characters as we go along. Because, as we've realized today, not all questions can be answered by simply reading the script, we really have to interpret it ourselves.

Another really cool thing about our production is that its not all set on stage, the audience will move to about 5 different places to watch scenes unfold throughout our performing arts building. This will give it a creepier/eerier effect almost like a haunted house, but not meant to scare. I'm thoroughly excited to see the end result, and I really hope the audiences enjoy the set up as much as I know we will.

This is the playwright, August Strindberg AKA the 

women-hater.... oh well...

The College Life... So far...

    I've officially been in college for two weeks, and my absolute favorite class so far has been my film class. Not only have I met people with the same interest as me, but it has given me a place where I can sort of indulge in my passions and not feel too nerdy or crazy or insane. We are currently talking about the "Classical Hollywood Style", we've viewed many clips from the likes of Citizen Kane, Goodfellas, Driving Miss Daisy and just about every Alfred Hitchcock movie ever. We discuss the significance of the scene beforehand and then analyze it afterwards. Its a very interactive learning style without being too one-on-one. Its a fairly large class and we are in the theater which gives the class an even more authentic feel to me for some reason.

   I've made one friend in particular who shares the same passion for film as me, and we can relate to each other based solely on that fact alone. She and I are similar in so many ways its scary, but we've found that we both love film so tremendously much that its probably 95% of our daily conversations. She is a wonderful person and we have already made tentative plans to study abroad together next year (hopefully if all goes as planned!). I've found it a bit hard to find the people I want to surround myself with through my college career so far, so its definitely nice to have at least one go to person here. 

  College has been a really great experience so far, It just definitely takes some getting used to.

 

I've been a bit antisocial and watching too many movies so here are my newly watched favorites lately:

Atonement

Blue Valentine 

Ferris Beuller's Day Off 

Here's a picture of Alfred Hitchcock and his more than fifty films for your enjoyment.

Road to Perdition

Ok, so the other night I watched "Road to Perdition" and I feel like I cried throughout the entire movie. I was really excited to watch it
1. Because my favorite interviewer (Jake Hamilton of JakesTakes) has said repeatedly that this was his favorite movie, and he thinks its super underrated. (JUDE LAW AGREED WITH HIM THAT IT WAS OVERRATED TOO!)
2. Because this was Paul Newman's last performance in a film, and I ABSOLUTELY ADORE PAUL NEWMAN. I mean I couldn't help but be mesmerized by those bright blue eyes in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" but thats a discussion topic for a different time.

I cannot express to anyone just how much I love this movie. I'd say it is definitely one of my top 3 favorite movies of all time. Its such a beautiful film that is so unique and the story is the most beautiful part.

Here is the IMDB plot summary:
Mike Sullivan works as a hit man for crime boss John Rooney. Sullivan views Rooney as a father figure. However after his son is witness to a killing he has done Mike Sullivan finds himself on the run trying to save the life of his son and at the same time looking for revenge on those who wronged him. Jude Law co stars as a hit man hired to kill Sullivan.

Tom Hanks stars as Mike Sullivan, and in my humble opinion this is Tom Hanks' best performance ever. I know, thats a bold statement, but I hold this one so high above Forrest Gump, Catch Me If You Can, Castaway, Saving Private Ryan, or any other Hanks movie i've seen for that matter. Now, most people probably will call me crazy for saying that, but then again, most people haven't seen Road to Perdition.

Everyone in this cast gave an incredible performance. I've never hated Jude Law so much in any movie ever, he is ugly, rude, and has a sick mind... ITS SO PERFECT! I think if you end up hating an actor you'd usually love, they've done their job well! Paul Newman was perfect as John Rooney, the father figure for Mike Sullivan, and the father of Connor Rooney (played by Daniel Craig). Newman's character captivates you from the first time you see him as he shows his soft side to Mike's two sons, he gives them gifts and plays games with them. Throughout the movie you learn that Rooney knows he is in deep with the wrong people, and he is most likely going to hell for it, but he attends church every sunday so he can live with himself, and his choices. Daniel Craig plays Connor Rooney, the son of a very powerful man. Craig plays him as a whiney, impulsive almost childish man who knows his fathers power and makes decisions that put him in danger.

Although all of these primed and professional actors' performances were nothing short of amazing, my favorite performance of the film was Tyler Hoechlin as Tom Hanks' son Michael Sullivan Jr. This young boy is constantly confused about what his father does for a living, and when he hides in the car one day as his father goes to work, he witnesses something that most young boys wouldn't dream of experiencing in their lives. He then loses everything he's ever known and has to run away from it all with his father. You can feel the hurt through the screen, you can see it in his eyes, and that it was tugged on my heartstrings throughout the entire film.

Sam Mendes directs this fabulous cast in a wild chase with a crazy good score by Thomas Newman, and wonderful cinematography throughout. You find yourself getting lost in the story and the events because every second either keeps you on your feet or makes you think deeply about the gift of family and love. I'M MAKING THIS POST SO DEEP, I KNOW!

I truly love finding film gems that maybe not many people are aware of, but can be greatly appreciated. This is a deeply sentimental film with a lot of action and I believe everyone should watch it once in their lives. You don't have to love it as much as I do, but I really believe this film can give you a different perspective on life.

Alright I'll stop being so deep and sappy. Thats all for now, I just really wanted to share my thoughts on this wonderful film.

Take Two.

Alright, so I've definitely had a try at this blogging thing a few years ago. I really don't recommend those three, dreadful, juvenile posts in which I called things awkward every other sentence. So that is why I am going to try again and just try to be as honest and real as I possibly can. This summer I am preparing for my first year at COLLEGE. (I feel like a lot of people pick up blogging in college.) Yes, I am very excited and nervous but that's beside the point. 

One reason I decided to pick up blogging again was because I felt like I was being an obnoxious tweeter, as I would tweet tons of film-themed/movie-related tweets all the time. I also want to make my opinions on different film aspects to people who actually care, and understand. I took a film class during my senior year of high school, and I'm kicking my college career off with a film and culture class, so film has become a big part of my life. I feel like nowadays there aren't that many people (at least in my world) that appreciate film as much as me, or don't see the significance of film in the world as whole. I'm here to share my thoughts, ideas, opinions, and dreams as best I can.

The reason I named this blog Rosebud is because I watched 'Citizen Kane' this year and found the whole plot rather fascinating. The investigators spend the entire film trying to figure out who Kane was based on his last word, Rosebud. "Maybe Rosebud was something he couldn't get, or something he lost. Anyway, it wouldn't have explained anything... I don't think any word can explain a man's life. No, I guess Rosebud is just a... piece in a jigsaw puzzle... a missing piece."This blog is just a piece of my life, as weird as it may be, and I just want to share it.

Whether it be for someone else who is just as addicted to film as I am, or just for my own selfish indulgences, I am really looking forward to keeping up with this blog. (: