Summer Reading: 5 Things to Read Before Summer Ends

Photo credit: Heather Hoppe

This summer, I've listed my five favorite Poe pieces, but you didn't think that was the only thing I was reading, did you? Here is, in no particular order, a smattering of my favorites from reading this summer.

On Leaving: Seattle to NYC

A goodbye video I edited for the Washington Bus.

The time has come again for yet another one of my famous exits. The hours are counting down until my flight into hurricane-ready NYC and I am reflecting on every last moment of my summer in Seattle while simultaneously worrying about how my father and I are going to move me into the dorms in a city that is otherwise evacuating its residents. Since it has been quiet around the blog for the past month, those reflections are stored up in my mind, on my journal paper, and in photograph form awaiting upload. In the coming days, I will share all of these with you, dear readers, but for now I just want to give thanks.

When I returned from New York in mid-May, I had a month essentially to myself. I taught myself some marketing skills, spent some time with some amazing high school friends, and genuinely relaxed for the first time in months. It almost looked like I would have a typical Seattle summer - indulging myself in artsy learning opportunities and working through my bucket list of fun things on my own. That quickly changed when I started my job at the Bus.

As I've said in previous posts, my Fellowship with the Bus was honestly one of the best and most connective experiences that I've had in Seattle. For too long, I have felt that my hometown had nothing to do and little for me to get involved in; through the Bus, I have become more connected to this place than ever I could imagine. I have commuted to the city at all hours of the day and night, spent time with more amazing people than I thought possible, and explored enough events and locations to know the best and worst spots from here to Kirkland. In essence, I got exactly what I wanted: to connect back to the home that I thought I would never return to. And I am immensely grateful for it.

That feeling, that connection, makes this moment peculiar. I am sitting in a coffee shop on Capitol Hill contemplating my summer and all the new faith I have in Seattle in being a place I could spend a good deal of my life in. And yet I am leaving. Back to a city where I am a party of one, where I have had both my best and worst experiences, and where I can no longer communicate face to face with the people I have built strong ties to in the last two months. It is as surreal as it is exciting, as amazing as it is saddening.

I'm going to take over NYC this year. That is the energy that the Summer Fellows and my own new found strength has given me. This summer in Seattle has taught me that fun can be had even amidst tremendous amounts of work, and I am ready to take that philosophy back to Barnard. Tomorrow, I will touch down in the middle of this hurricane fearless and ready for the next big adventure. And this time, I won't forget to write about it.

Thank you again, Summer Fellows, for supporting me and giving me greater power than I already had invested in me. You have built for me a better home in the place I grew up, and I hope that you will keep in touch as we all move forward into the next year.

Wow, You Look Great! Did You Get Paler?

Summer is fast on the approach in the northern hemisphere, and though it may be a blessing to some, it can seem a curse to those who want to keep their skin as pale as possible. Today, I take a look into skin-lightening creams.

A Hike is Not Just a Hike

I'm back! Taking a week away has cleared my head a bit and allowed me to do some much-needed research and have some much-needed life experiences. Awesome posts to come, but let's begin with a story for now: last week, I went hiking at Wallace Falls, so today I present you with a few photographs and a free-writing exercise about it. Enjoy!

Ready for Vacation? You Bet I Am!

I am going to be heading out to Seattle tomorrow in the wee hours of the morning - I hope it's a good uneventful flight that I can sleep on! Hello spring break!

In the meantime, check out some of my creative projects to bridge the gap.

Outfits Photoshoot

So, after a period of intense quiet around the blog, I have decided to resurface in pictures. In the next three days, I am going to overhaul my life once again and move back to NYC for the school year. Over the summer, I have completed many an interesting project, but I have realized that I much rather having a schedule to my days. So, in preparation both for the new school year and for my return to necessitated organization, my friend and I undertook a speedy outfits photoshoot!

I got the idea from the blog Already Pretty where some users were discussing how to utilize their "closet orphans" and feel inspired by your clothes even when you're on a lean budget. This vastly appeals to me as a broke college student. So, when my style-conscious (and photographically inclined) friend visited me this past week, I decided that we had to do this. I tore up my closet just two days ago and, with all the fury of a passing hurricane, my bedroom became a whirlwind of forgotten jackets, worn-out skirts, and ignored jewelry items. As I sat amidst the tossed open drawers and empty hangers, I was forced then to think where to begin.

The final verdict was to go in series; working with one category (dresses, skirts, jackets...) and one piece of clothing, I would combine it with shirts, accessories, and shoes. I started out thinking I would put together two outfits for each item of clothing but, as I realized what a large undertaking my closet was, it became more and more simplified. In the finished product, there are photographs of one-item outfits with no accessories just waiting to be put together alongside multi-layered masterpieces. But the most interesting - and rewarding - part of this project was the ability to visualize what was in my closet. After going through the photographs (we got a little camera-happy and ended up with about 400+ pictures to sort through) and making an Excel inventory (which appealed to my slight OCD nature), I finally was aware of the volume of things I have. It scared me! After reading about people limiting their items to a small bundle, I saw both my own consumerism and selfishness. I felt really fortunate and humbled by the idea that I had this much of a stash, albeit collected over the years. I hope that this understanding will teach me not to get frustrated when I feel I "don't have anything to wear." Just seeing those options on a page is daunting!

This photoshoot was also therapeutic besides that initial shock. It was like making a Polyvore of my personal closet, rather than focusing on wishing. And it made my creative side come out because, when I have this amount of time to look over the outfits, it becomes easier to pair them up and make interesting choices (especially those pictured above!) And, the most important result of this mixing and matching, this inventory taking, was to make me feel really beautiful. Weaving through my closet, I got to know how my body looks in the clothes I put on it - it showed how versatile my form could be! I think that when I just threw on clothes to get through the day, I ignored the fact that they were there also to make me feel good. On occasion I would look fantastic, but many days it was just an average standard. Sometimes even boring. So this project let me explore my body through the wardrobe (and have a record for when I get stuck on outfit ideas!)

I suggest that, if you have a weekend of free time or just want to play with some little-used pieces in your closet, that you take some time to do your own outfits photoshoot. I used my friend and a tripod, but if you have a point-and-click camera and a secure place to seat it, you can do this project. It is a true creative experience!

Check out some more posts featuring my photography and guest photography.

Artistic Update: J's Extemporaneous Speaking Project

For the last month at my ZAPP internship, I have been working on a final project that took me to a different place than all my usual artistic routes.
So I decided to combine two things that I have little experience in: extemporaneous speaking and comic drawing! Each week of the month, I spoke into a microphone for 20 minutes and then made a comic mini-zine based on the results. My mini-zines were one page designs, folded up from an 11x17 piece of paper. In the last few days, I finally realized that I had to present my work in some way, so I frantically went to Kinkos (now FedEx) and copied many of the little booklets. I was cutting and folding for hours! And now, since I have finished my work at ZAPP for this summer, I have time to scan and put up my work online.
In retrospect, this project brought up a lot of my insecurities about public speaking - when I am speaking to an audience of my peers or friends, it's natural that I will make stories and speak casually, but when I am just talking aloud to a quiet room, I get nervous. But I was surprised at how creative I was in talking about certain subjects with no prior planning. It was therapeutic in some ways to let those opinions out so that I could work through them without being challenged.
And the drawing was excellent! I have always felt inadequate in my drawing abilities (though I found some amazing drawings in my closet from when I was in middle school - who knew?). Yet, since this was a completely personal project, I did not feel pressured to draw "well" or measure up to my clearly talented illustrating peers. It was exciting to explore this new avenue of art, and I expect to continue with it.
My mini-zine consists of a little booklet that is folded, so if you want to get your own copy, please shoot me an email at jordanalam@gmail.com! I think that it looks much better when you can flip the pages after listening to the segment.

There are going to be a lot of links below, first to my DeviantArt account for the mini-zine scans (which are cut off in some places, but definitely readable) and second to my SoundCloud account for the sound files.

In Transition (mini-zine)
http://thecowation.deviantart.com/art/In-Transition-173661576

On Dreams (mini-zine)
http://thecowation.deviantart.com/art/On-Dreams-173662785

Body/Self-Image (mini-zine)
http://thecowation.deviantart.com/art/Body-Self-Image-173663270

Memory (mini-zine)
http://thecowation.deviantart.com/art/Memory-173664163

Recordings (in accordance with each zine)
http://soundcloud.com/the-cowation

You can buy my zines on Etsy.
This zine series is one of many - check out The Bearniverse and RBW Zine for more zine fun!

So Many Heathers... Reviews of the Movie

LIBERTY:
Review of Heathers:
I can see why this movie is a cult classic, but I did find it kind of disturbing. I guess that that’s why it’s a cult classic—because it subverts the norms of teen movies and messes with your expectations. Christian Slater was actually really good in this movie, which made me briefly wonder why he isn’t in more things today. I thought about it and my (admittedly silly) hypothesis is that he is cutely creepy here—he’s still young—but grown up, he just looks creepy, which undermines his roles if the whole time you’re just thinking “He looks creepy! Creepy!” It works well in this movie, though. Winona Ryder was fine. The girl who played Martha was good and I’m sad that she only seems to have had two other roles. That’s a shame.
I liked the fact that each of the girls had a color, although I wish that it was better explained. Along with the “lunchtime question,” it’s not really explained for something that I thought was so important to the plot. Is the question for the school newspaper, as seems to be implied later on? Is it just to mess with people?
There is a moment where Winona Ryder’s character makes eye contact with the sister of the boy she killed, and she seems to briefly realize the pain that she’s causing people. This poignant moment is ignored and never mentioned again, which seems sort of a shame for a moment that I thought really grounded the movie. I suppose that you could argue that this moment makes her decide to stop killing people, who knows.
I didn’t love this movie whole-heartedly because it rubbed me the wrong way with all of the murders/attempted suicides and the way that neither of them are caught, but that is really just my tendency to like murderers brought to justice, even in a satire. I have a weirdly old-fashioned sense of morals a lot of the time, so that may be why I didn’t fall in love with the film; this is the sort of film that I would love and tell everyone to watch, but something about it made me uncomfortable. Overall, it was fine.

JORDAN:
Review of Heathers:
I think this movie was excellent in some ways and definitely screwball in others. First of all, why does every single character say such strange lines? "Fuck me gently with a chainsaw?" Really? But, after a while, I got used to the entire idea that this world was not so literal and some things would go unnoticed/unexplained. I felt like the movie had a really great storyline that came together in some shocking ways; I wanted to trust the cute Christian Slater as J.D., for example, but he turned out to be a nutcase. I liked the use of color throughout the movie from its beginning with croquet balls and further use of scenic design. I must admit, I love Winona Ryder and her roles - the smart girl who wants to be popular in this movie, the goth girl that befriends a pair of ghosts in Beetlejuice - and in Heathers I felt like her character really expressed the conflict of emotions needed in this satire. Overall, I believe that the main "theme" was the conflict between inner desires and polite society; while we all want the nerds to inherit the earth (or at least have everyone respect each other), polite society sets up all sorts of constraints against that. Thus, this satirical film appealed to my broader intellectual side as well.

Make sure to take a look at the other movie reviews Liberty and I wrote and our other collaborative work: comic alterna-history zine The Bearniverse.

Movie Reviews (Now With Lists!)

Here are the reviews for this week! Three in-theaters movies for me and a joint review of The Saint from Liberty and I. She has opted for a creative list review style, which is actually quite fetching because it brings new life to the older titles that we are watching. As always, if you don't like spoilers, you may not want to read on.

LIBERTY:
The Saint: Ways in Which This Movie is UTTERLY RIDICULOUS (A List Review):

1) He wears disguises, but is always recognizably Val Kilmer. Even when he is in his most effective disguise, the nerd one, he is still clearly Val Kilmer. However, his Russian maid outfit is just awesome. His accents are also pretty terrible. They slide all over the place and are ridiculous, especially his British one. And his Southern one. And his weird Swiss one…

2) The bad guy’s son carries a cane for no reason. He doesn’t even use it as a weapon, so why does he have it? Is that what the sons of Russian mobsters do to be cool? He is pretty clearly trying so hard to be cool, with his ponytail and his smarmy attitude.

3) Apparently Russian mobsters gather in fancy clubs and listen to traditional folk music while watching RAT RACES??? Seriously? I’d banned that from my mind, so it was a surprise when I re-watched it. They don’t have anything better to do with their time and money? I would think that they would play poker or something gangster-y, but no. Apparently I am not cut out to be a gangster, because I do not see the appeal of RAT RACES. (Well, I can see it a little…maybe.)

4) Sex scene: there is a weird song playing in the background that sounds like a Alanis Morrisete song, but extremely grating…then they play soft “ooh, this is a sex scene” music over it, which just makes an odd contrast that made it even more awkward.

5) Russia as our usual American enemy. Surely we could find another enemy? Although there are actually some good Russians in this, so that’s a decent change…

6) Whore with a heart of gold trope rears its head again.

7) One black character in the entire movie, but at least he doesn’t die!

8) Attacking someone with a chandelier: always a valid life choice.

9) And yet…I really do love this movie. It is terrible and ridiculous, but it is endearing. I mock it because I love it, even though I don’t know why. The weird mix of 90s action movie silliness combined with Val Kilmer being handsome and dressed in silly disguises makes something in my brain very happy. I hadn’t watched this movie in a long time, and its flaws are more apparent to me now, but I still thoroughly enjoyed it.

JORDAN:
Review of Despicable Me:
First of all, congratulations Illuminations Studios on your first film! Second, it was really good! While both my boyfriend and I agree that the ending was a little rushed, Despicable Me took me on another sophisticated romp in the land of animated films. It was reminiscent of the quirkiness of Up (which is my all-time favorite animated movie) and the kiddy jokes that attract kids in the first place. I also think that Steve Carrell really did not sound like himself, but was consistent enough to create a believable Gru character with his accent. I really loved this movie because it was an alternative tale about the competition between supervillains rather than heroes and also showed some complex relationships. Gru, a single man, adopts three orphan girls, which was interesting, and the bank teller (from the Bank of Evil: formerly Lehman Brothers, haha) has a derelict son that he tries to bring up as a strong supervillain. Overall, the little girls were also extremely interesting and had distinct personalities to satisfy my desire for movies not to stereotype women. I suggest, however, not to see this movie in 3D because I was already reeling from the graphics in a 2D theater.

Review of The Sorcerer's Apprentice:
This movie was strangely entertaining, but only because of the special effects and fighting scenes. There were a lot of pretty scenes and interesting characters, but I felt that the acting was phoned in and often terrible. I cringed at the "dramatic teacher voice" that Nicholas Cage put on whenever he wanted to say something. Although I am happy that he is paying his bills, this movie was not made better by his presence. And the student to Nicholas Cage's teacher was very annoying at moments; I wanted to get to know his girlfriend more, but she was made into an accent character. Basically all the sorcerers were made into accent characters as well - when I wanted to get to know someone, they were killed within 3 minutes. So, though the movie had an interesting premise and there were a lot of cool cinematic tricks tossed in, I felt like The Sorcerer's Apprentice was really just an excuse to throw together all of Hollywood's special effects and not pay any attention to the storyline or character acting.

Review of Inception:
This was such a complex movie. If you are in the mood for a sit-back movie where you don't have to think, this is not the one for you. But I found it amazing because it kept me involved the whole way through. There were layers of dreams and interesting plot twists and the director allowed you to choose your ending, almost as if you were in a really well-written book. Leonardo DiCaprio has been doing some stellar work with psychological dramas these days and I think that it suits him well; others said that he was phoning in this performance because it was typical of him to be the dramatic man in a tortured lifestyle, but this performance blew me away. I think that the support cast was also great - Ellen Page really came into her own in this movie, separating herself from lighter dramas such as Juno and Whip It. And Michael Caine was just a nice touch (I say this because I love him, even when he doesn't do too much). Anyway, the movie overall was full of great and believable special effects coupled with great action and an awesome concept. I felt that the complexity was great and that the movie was well-timed, so you had enough time to think through all the previous scenes as you were watching. However, I think I will watch this movie again just to see what my new interpretations are. If you like to re-watch movies, this is also one of those that you can see again and again with a new feeling.

Review of The Saint:
Wow, this movie was confusing at first! I didn't understand the relationship between Val Kilmer's orphanage past and his present con-man actions until mid-way through the movie. I think that there is a nice tie-in with the name thing, but those scenes seem to be questionable at best. Also, this movie had the MOST AWKWARD RELATIONSHIP EVER. When he was attracting the woman to con her, I felt like the movie was diving slowly into a soft-core porn. And, in the end, it seemed again like the smart woman was tempted by sex into going for the bad boy, as often Hollywood movies go. There were just some bizarre choices that were made in this movie - he falls in the river and gets hypothermia, the Russians are watching rat races, and everyone is freaking out about Americans. Weird... times... In the end, I didn't feel a particular draw to this movie or a particular dislike. It was just a movie, plain and simple, and so I think if you wanted to watch it when you are very bored, then it might be entertaining with its absurdity.

Make sure to take a look at the other movie reviews Liberty and I wrote and our other collaborative work: comic alterna-history zine The Bearniverse.

Blue Lagoon & Shutter Island Reviews

JORDAN:
Review of The Blue Lagoon:
Throwing it back to 1980, we watched The Blue Lagoon. I remember that the first time I encountered this film was on I Love the 80s, a VH1 special that led me to believe it was all about two teens having sex on an island. But this movie was so much more than that - although Brooke Shields definitely played a smokin' hot leading lady (and made me wonder whether how she still knew how to shave her legs having grown up on an island...), I really enjoyed the characters because it was both funny and thought-provoking to watch their progression from children to youth to parents. It left my imagination reeling about what it would be like with limited or no socialization from other people and society. Some parts of this film made me laugh at their absurdity; a lot of the scenes seemed to be B-roll from island shots, such as all the images of sea life. And, while watching the natives perform their sacrifice was life-altering for Richard (played by Christopher Atkins), it did not seem to be a necessary scene. Overall, I really enjoyed this movie as a creative spark and as a form of simple entertainment.

Review of Shutter Island:
This movie was a great psychological performance. I really enjoyed the twist at the end and I was thrilled that it recalled movies such as The Sixth Sense and The Matrix in its cleverness. I really didn't care for the soundtrack as much, but the storyline was engrossing and I found myself following the movie all the way to the end, always hoping that there would be yet another twist to satisfy my curious brain. I won't let too much of the movie go, but I think that it was a tight storyline and made sense in most of the applicable points. It does creep me out though, so this movie might be a good one to watch with other people - and to spend the night huddled close to them if you're a 'fraidy cat like me.

LIBERTY:
Review of The Blue Lagoon:
This wasn't my sort of movie. I can see why people like it, but there was something weird about the whole thing, especially all of the naked children (that could just be my natural prudence speaking, but there were way too many underwater shots of naked swimming). I think that I tend to like movies that move at a slightly faster pace, and there were long scenes where nothing really happens and there is no dialogue. I ended fast forwarding through most of the second half of the movie and watching the parts with dialogue. I also wished that Richard and Em would have just talked more to each other. It would have solved a lot of their problems. The scene where Em gets her first period was just confusing--first she calls to him for help and then she tells him to go away? Although I guess I can understand her stress over the whole issue--if I were in a similar situation, I would have freaked out as well. But it's odd to introduce that topic and then not talk about it for the rest of the movie. I thought that the movie would have ended perfectly when they were covered in mud and then walked back into the jungle. They clearly wanted to stay on the island--why suddenly have them found? I suppose that at least their son won't have to die alone. I just don't think that they're going to have a good life back in the real world--it will be like the reception that Tarzan had. I may be over thinking the whole thing, though. In any event, not my movie--too slow and an unsatisfying ending.

Make sure to take a look at the other movie reviews Liberty and I wrote and our other collaborative work: comic alterna-history zine The Bearniverse.

Writing in Strange Places Returns!

I spent last weekend traveling to Bellingham and Ruby Beach, and I must say that it was quite refreshing. I got to see places that I hadn't ever been to and sample food and experiences that were interesting and new (Ladyfest, Bellingham farmer's market, a beach in the late afternoon...). So, I decided to write in these places and keep up my Writing in Strange Places review - it was currently on hiatus for the summer and had been replaced solely by movie reviews. I hope you enjoy!

Ruby Beach
This is a non-traditional review, as it breaks the mold of sitting in restaurants and cafes and rating them, but I feel like this can also be applicable. Ruby Beach was a gorgeous location, if a little cold when we were there, on the Washington coast. If you have the chance to drive out to the Olympic National Park and you have an adventuring spirit, you definitely want to make the pilgrimage. I did not actually write while at the beach - I was too busy taking pictures of the crashing ocean, the beautiful myriad of rocks, and the treeline that surrounded us - but I was inspired to write a poem about it when we returned from the trip. I really think that you could sit on the fallen trees near the river and write for hours until the light went out of the sky or rain started to come down. The place was rugged and romantic and seemed farther away from civilization than it really was (the location was actually 20 miles away from Forks, of Twilight fame). The location provokes me to write poetry, which I rarely do these days, and I think that it was a legitimately wild experience to see all of those beautiful landscapes come together on this beach.

Pepper Sisters
This place was an excellent example of southwestern cooking. It did not claim to be a tex-mex place and thus the quality was much better than the run of the mill pseudo-Mexican food place. The food was spicy and the staff was kind, if a little inattentive, which made for a combination of enjoyment and clambering for water. Everything was fresh and, since they only open for dinner hours, we came right when the food was hot. The ambiance of the place was also nice; it was colorful and had a charming feel. I think that I would like to come back and spend more time just lounging and drinking drinks there.
For writers, I think that this place would be a great place to go if you had a little bit of extra cash and were either in Bellingham for a reason or live there already. I felt very relaxed as I was writing there and was not deterred in the least by any of the staff or my dining partners. I also felt that, due to the fact that it was not exceedingly full, no one would push me out the door too fast if I wanted to stay a little later.

Shrimp Shack
This place had a funky and fun appearance that, unfortunately, gave me false expectations of how the food would turn out. In the end, the food was average and sparing - unlike Ivars, they served a paltry amount of clam strips with an overwhelming amount of fries (and at a high price to boot!). I at least enjoyed the tables and their funny ketchup bottle holders - as pictured above - but I felt like the place was inattentive and just there to provide a bit of sustenance before pushing you out the door. I was writing away and that felt fine, but I don't think I would hang around there on a busy day (we were there on a Saturday evening and there were few people there). You pay at the counter and are generally treated with little interest, so I guess if you are ok with sitting in that kind of restaurant, then you would feel ok writing in this place.

The last place that I would have reviewed would the Anker cafe, but unfortunately we went for the open mic on it's last day in existance! It was a really great cafe and there was a lot of great art on the walls, but I guess since it is no longer around, that information is moot...

Read more of my writing in strange places reviews.
And check out some more posts featuring my photography.

Catching Up on Adventures

So, where have I been?
Well, recently my traveler's itch has been scratched with two trips in a three day span - first, ZAPP sent me to Bellingham with coworkers (and boyfriend) in tow to table at Ladyfest. Second, Josh and I drove to Ruby Beach for a daytime getaway; although, it was supposed to be partially a nighttime getaway, the sun sets so late in the day that we couldn't possibly get back at a reasonable hour and would have had to spend on a hotel.
Anyway, that basically means that I haven't been able to do a lot of blog-writing lately. But, instead, I took a lot of pictures of our journeys (dipping my feet in the old ponds, as you might say) and they are up on my DeviantArt account since they wouldn't all fit here.
Enjoy the shots from the trips below and make sure to check out the rest of them on DeviantArt!

Check out some more posts featuring my photography.

A Bunch of Reviews

This week has been a great source of media watching (at least for me, Jordan) and not much of it to my liking. I have also included a mini-series review in this one, so enjoy! Oh and, as always, spoilers are included below.

LIBERTY:
Review of Bronson:
I had the opposite problem with Bronson’s trailer than I had with Robin Hood’s. It was very well cut and made me want to see the movie, which turned out to be far less coherent and enjoyable. I actually didn’t finish watching it—I fast-forwarded through about the last 25 minutes. The cinematography was nice and Tom Hardy was excellent as Charles Bronson. His performance was riveting and there was one scene, where his face shifts from being drugged and vacant to suddenly present, that riveted me. He embodied his character and held each scene. The major issue that I had with this movie was that it didn’t have a good narrative; the story wasn’t clearly explained and jumped around with little explanation to the point that I wasn’t sure what was going on. I knew Bronson’s story from real life, so I was able to follow, but the movie was disjointed. The tone of the film was very dark and relentless in violence. Some people might enjoy this movie, I suppose—the first 20 minutes are okay—but it was not for me. It disturbed me and the story was not compelling enough for me to stick around through over an hour of endless violence and jail scenes.

JORDAN:
Review of Splice:
This movie was utterly disturbing. When I heard the early reviews, I did not believe them, thinking perhaps that it was a traditional horror movie and that it had rubbed some people the wrong way. My perception of this movie was that it was akin to Alien, where the actors and actresses would be running around trying to avoid death by monster (albeit, I presumed Splice had some extra "blame the meddling scientists" rhetoric thrown in). However, when we started watching, the storyline turned out to be quite different. For the first half of the movie, I was enthralled by the theme of reluctant parenthood; though the female scientist does not want children with her male partner, she goes to all lengths to create a human/animal spliced creation and keep it safe once it is born. Yet, around the time that the male scientist attempts to drown their creation (and discovers it has underwater breathing capabilities), this movie took a turn for the worst. Although there may be a subculture that fantasizes about having sex with monsters, I was profoundly disturbed by the scene where the male scientist cheats on his wife with their creation - I felt it was unnecessary and gross, mainly because it was near incest in my mind since he had created and nurtured this thing. As well, when the female scientist gets raped by the same monster, I was horrified! Talk about complex plot devices and extravagant insanity... I felt, in the end, that this movie had potential to be great and that the special effects were astounding, yet the final material freaked me out and soiled my positive outlook on sex for a while.

Review of Bronson:
Honestly, I wondered why this movie needed to be made. I liked the way they put together the scenes and explored the internal desire of this man to be famous through a metaphorical clown act in his head, but most of the movie I spent questioning what was going on. There appeared to be no plot other than to showcase his bloody fights and that resulted in boredom and repetitiveness after a while. I felt that the main actor was very talented, however, because he portrayed the madness that accompanies Charlie Bronson quite well. I just did not feel that this movie provided anything but a crack in the door of violent crime pictures. Many films have gone far and above this movie in portraying the hard life of criminals while preserving some cinematic cohesion.

Review of Women in Trouble:
Another movie that had little plot and echoed the stylistic choices of movies like Paris, Je T'aime and Crash but without the same skill. This movie took you through the lives of 10 women who were all tangentially connected though they led radically different lives. In the end, only three women graced the screen (the accidentally pregnant porn star, the mother of a 13 year old who had left her in the care of her sister, and the 13 year old daughter who believed herself a witch), and I honestly feel that these were the only women I wanted to learn about anyway. Less is more is the mantra I would apply to this film. The woman who was being cheated on and the other porn stars who were mixed up in a crazy love triangle just did not have the skill of those three actresses and were not interesting to watch after a while. Interestingly enough, another movie has been made about the pregnant porn star (a sequel to this movie) called Elektra Luxx. I am really interested to see if this movie benefits from the focus on one character and her juicy storyline or if it falls into the same pits as Women in Trouble.

Review of Black. White.:
This mini-series was perhaps the best thing that I watched this weekend. It was made four years ago and details the lives of two families as they participate in an experiment where they trade races (via extensive makeup). A black family and white family come to live together in California and go through experiencing the race of the other family to see if and where racism exists in our society. I found that they focused a lot on the white experience of being black for a few days more so than the black experience of being white, while the black family was shown in their relations to each other and towards race as a whole. This served to show that this black family, at least the parents, had an awareness of race that the white family just did not have and needed to discover. I also found it interesting that some were profoundly changed by the experience of living in the other person's skin while others found their beliefs to be staunchly correct. It is very hard to go into all the details about this intricate experiment, but I think that it was an enjoyable and thought-provoking mini-series that is a great discussion starter - even if it just gets you wondering about what it would be like to don that much makeup every day.

Make sure to take a look at the other movie reviews Liberty and I wrote and our other collaborative work: comic alterna-history zine The Bearniverse.

Movie Reviews Roundup

This roundup of reviews is mostly current movies with one throwback to the 90s. Oh, and they include spoilers, so don't read if you don't want to know!

LIBERTY:
Review of Just Wright:
I went and saw this movie with my mother and thought that it was a sweet romantic comedy and a good light movie to go and enjoy. It wasn’t perfect, but in the face of the terrible romantic comedies that have been coming out lately, this one stood out as decent and likeable. Queen Latifah is a good actor and does a nice job of portraying a strong woman who can stand on her own two feet. Common also did a good job and my mother didn’t know that he was a rapper until I told her. He might not have been totally believable as a basketball star, but the whole movie required you to put your more skeptical mind on hold, as most movies do. It was nice to see someone whose body type and skin color does not fit into Hollywood’s stereotype get the guy in the end, especially over a thinner girl. It made me very happy and I left the theater feeling as thought I had not wasted my time. It’s a romantic comedy, so it’s not the most serious of movies, but for what it was it was perfectly fine. I recommend it.

Review of Robin Hood:
I will admit that I didn’t even intend to see this movie and went into it with extremely low expectations. I was going to see Iron Man 2, but it took me a while to walk to 42nd street from 52nd or so. I could have made Iron Man 2, but barely, so on a whim I decided to go see Robin Hood. I had seen both of the trailers and they were so badly cut (at least to my eyes) that I could not tell what was going on or why I should go see it. I decided not to go see the movie on the basis of my dislike of the trailers. I will admit that I was very wrong—I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and want to go see it again. The action was very well done, the characters were engaging and compelling, and although not very historically accurate, the sets and cinematography were beautiful. All of the scenery was gorgeous and there were some shots that I wanted to pause and stare at for a bit. I don’t like Russell Crowe very much, but found him to be a decent Robin (although he spent a lot of the time unsmiling and frowning in situations that didn’t call for those facial expressions. Maybe he was trying to be serious). Cate Blanchett was very good as Marion—I liked that they made her more courageous and willing to put herself in danger for others. She wasn’t a maid in danger; she was a grown woman who could take care of herself. Mark Strong was amazing as usual as the villain, Godfrey. He has played three villains within the last year or so and will continue to do so, I hope. He plays a very fine villain and always gives a strong, menacing performance. There’s something in me that always roots for villains, but I find myself allying against his a bit. I still like him, but Godfrey was so evil that I turned against him and rooted for Marion instead. I think that that is a testament to his performance. Max Von Sydow was affecting as Sir Walter Loxely—a bit cryptic in his comments to Robin when he should have just come out and told him what he knew—but overall a nice fatherly figure. William Hurt (as William Marshall) kept looking like he was smirking during serous scenes. I decided that he was amused by everything. The characters that I wanted to see more of were Robin’s friends: Little John, Will Scarlett, Alan A’Dayle, and Friar Tuck. All of them were extremely likeable and I sort of want to see them in a buddy movie, roaming around England and helping people out. I would love to see a sequel to this movie and I highly recommend it.

JORDAN:
Review of Iron Man & Iron Man 2:
Prior to last weekend, I had seen none of the greatness that is Iron Man. I was skeptical of all the hype because every time someone tells me a movie is awesome, it disappoints me in some way (Napoleon Dynamite, anyone?). But I have to admit, the first Iron Man enthralled me. Maybe it was just the great special effects or the fact that the movie satisfied my inner nerd, but the storyline was strong and the acting was great. I think that Tony Stark is a quintessential bad boy – so much so that I sometimes didn’t believe him as the hero later on and continued to mutter to myself questions like “why did that journalist sleep with him?” Overall, however, the movie was really well done and I found myself wanting more adventure at the end.
Iron Man 2, in comparison, finds all its strength in the villains. The storyline is understandable, but it has definitely been done before. Whenever Ivan was on screen, he stole the show – it was a fantastic performance! In general, I feel like the flashiness of the fight scenes in the second movie were much less gripping as the first movie’s complex storyline; it felt more like a traditional action movie in terms of the unnecessary violence and big budget ideas. Yet the movie was still entertaining, even if it dropped a star or so in my rating scale from the first movie.

Review of Prince of Persia:
Prince of Persia: Sands of Time is an adaptation of the popular video game of the same name. The movie, however, does not stick to the game storyline very well and uses a much more contrived plot in order to fulfill its goals. Although I have not played the game myself, I know from anecdotal evidence that the movie uses a lot of the elements from the game (such as accurate background story, costumes, and scenery), but takes the storyline on a crazy journey. I think that the movie is entertaining – as many adaptations are – not for the plot but for the big budget adventure that happens in the 2 hour time frame. There were some scenes that were blatantly over the top in this movie and I felt my attention flagging when the predictable love scenes appeared, so I would not recommend this movie if you want something completely entertaining. But if you’re looking for a summer movie with all the bells and whistles from large glowing hourglass rocks and assassins powered by black magic, then go for it.
And, as for the Iraq war metaphors that some have mentioned are contained in this movie? I really don’t see it as anything more than a trashy action flick, sorry guys.

Review of Super Mario Bros:
Another video game adaptation, this film from 1993 is one of the weirdest I have seen. In an attempt to explain the back story of the two plumbers, this movie takes you on a romp through another dimension where the evolved species was dinosaurs rather than mammals. The villains of this dimension are King Koopa (Bowser) but as a human-looking man who has taken over the mainly barren expanse of their world. The Goombas are truly freaky since they are de-evolved dinosaurs with human bodies, and all of the elements of the Mario games are subtle and make you say “Oh!” when you realize what they are. The Mario brothers are plumbers in modern day Brooklyn and follow Princess Daisy back over to the other dimension as she realizes that she is not of that dimension (via a kidnapping by the Koopas, as usual) Overall, I enjoyed this movie in a perverse way; it took the elements of Mario and made them into a cohesive storyline. The graphics left much to be desired and it didn’t stick to the original game at all. I think, quite honestly, it would be a terrible movie even if you hadn’t heard of Mario at all beforehand. But there was a sense of ironic humor that really made me smile and I could always laugh at the absurdity presented throughout. Bonus points for having Dennis Hopper (recently deceased) and John Leguizamo – star quality in a strange B movie!

Make sure to take a look at the other movie reviews Liberty and I wrote and our other collaborative work: comic alterna-history zine The Bearniverse.

Rollin' Rollin'...

I have returned to Seattle! And so have my boxes (finally).
I feel as if I am still in transition from New York to Seattle; I wouldn't say that I had major jet lag, but I definitely woke up at 6:30am everyday since I touched ground and am only now getting on to a reasonable 8am. The greatest adjustments are getting back to living with my parents, obviously, and having to find a new job and means of entertainment. A lot of people are still in school, so I mostly have to make my own way around here - it's all good though because I am definitely having a blast trying out new things and finding my own routine.

New To My Life:
1. Roller skating!
I became infatuated with roller derby, so I decided I would jump right into it this summer. I bought all my first-timer gear and started to practice skating again (even going to a PFM New Skater practice and getting my butt kicked!). I haven't done it since elementary school so I obviously need a lot more work, but that is what the summer is for! I hope that I will become comfortable enough on skates before I go back to NYC that I can start trying out for practice teams there - I seriously think that this form of exercise beats walking by a mile!

2. Working at ZAPP!
Yesterday, I started work at the zine library at Richard Hugo House, and it is pretty awesome. I get to hang around the zines all day and the work is pretty chill - I get to do the same things that I had done at the Barnard library and also work on my own zine (which I was going to do anyway, but this is a happy motivator). It was a great reunion feeling when I came back to Hugo House for the first time; I am thinking about taking a summer class there too if I have the time. This time it will be for one about editing novels, since I want to get my NaNo 2009 novel up and running.

3. Driving!
This isn't really a new one, but when you've come back from a land of public transportation, it sure feels new. I am not worried about my skills, but I definitely feel more shaky on the road these days...

4. Health and fitness transformation!
No, not a crash diet and some other craziness, but I am going to start making an effort to take care of myself again. I feel like when I was in the dorms, I let myself go in favor of hitting the books or some other stupid reason, so I have decided to regularize my routine, get a few new products, and start exercising [biking, swimming] in between my skating.

The rest of the updates are my typical over-planning: read books, write blogs, watch movies, go places, be awesome. Everything that keeps me entertained is sticking around, including the writing reviews and other updates. Consider this an atypical post as I adjust to my surroundings - content to come!

P.S.
There are new links at the Cool Links section! I added a lot - does that say something about my summer internet use? Check it out!

Movie Reviews: Nightmare on Elm Street Comparison and Being John Malkovich

Introducing... MOVIE CLUB 2010!
My friend Liberty and I, since we are going to be on opposite coasts this summer, have decided to watch movies together and write reviews in order to keep in touch. Here are our first reviews - we are comparing the two versions of Nightmare on Elm Street and Being John Malkovich!

LIBERTY:
Nightmare on Elm Street:
In this review, I will compare the remake, which came out this year, to the original version by Wes Craven. We watched the remake first, so I might be biased in that direction, especially since I love Jackie Earle Haley and wanted to see the remake solely for him. I did like the remake, although I felt that it was in the same vein as new horror films: a lot of things happened in dark places and the overall feel of the movie was very grey. I did think that it had a more coherent plot and a better overall explanation of what was going on. I got more of a feel for the characters and I knew why the events were happening. In the original, the characters weren't introduced as well and there was never a definitive explanation for why Freddy was after the teenagers. He was described as a "child murderer," but no one ever said that he was trying to kill Nancy as revenge for his death or anything. I inferred that from my knowledge of the series, but it was very unclear. I did think that Nancy in the original had a much stronger voice and presence than she did in the remake. In the original, she was very forceful and had a strong voice. I liked her more in the original, because she knew what to do and she did it with very little support, as everyone in her life kept failing her. In the remake, Nancy keeps to herself and feels muted and subdued throughout. Although she has better ideas than her friends, she keeps them to herself and follows along. I feel that there's a cultural shift in there, maybe a backlash against feminism, but I don't know enough to really posit a thesis. What was really interesting to me was what was left unsaid in both films. In the original, they never say that Nancy's father and mother are divorced, although it seemed to me that they are--Nancy's mother is always drinking and her father is never seen in the house. She and her mother drive a separate car from him, and he is referred to as her mother as "your father." In the remake, they never say clearly that the children were molested, although the remake revolves around that information. Their parents say that "He hurt you" and never refer to what happened to them in any other terms that might help them process what happened to them. What our culture is willing to talk about is shown in these omissions. Even in the remake, I don't think that it's clearly stated where Nancy's father, whom we never see on screen, is. Are they divorced? Her mother is an air hostess and leaves her alone in the house when she has to go on a flight, so unless her father also has a job that requires travel, I would assume so. To me, it seemed that Wes Craven's scenes of horror were better shot and scared me more than the scenes in the remake. However, I laughed throughout the remake except during those scenes, so I would say that the remake, during which I hid behind my hands in fear, was a scarier, more coherent movie overall. I enjoyed both of them, though, and they both have their merits.

Being John Malkovich:
I enjoyed this movie; it has the kind of quirky humor that I like a lot. It also (obviously) has John Malkovich, whom I love. I was suprised to see Cameron Diaz, but I thought that she gave a very good, nuanced performance, and she was my favorite to watch on the screen. I don't want to spoil the movie for anyone who hasn't seen it, so I will try not to go into to much detail, but I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would (although I still liked it). I don't know if I would watch it again or tell anyone that they had to watch it. The moral issues raised by taking control of someone and making them do things that they do not want to do, and the blase way in which it was presented bothered me. I understand that it is a comedy, but it bothered me that they didn't seem to really consider or be disturbed by what they were doing or the consequences of their actions. I started out sympathizing with John Cusak's character, but I rapidly (within 20 minutes or so) lost my sympathy. The only likeable character was John Malkovich. The rest of them seemed vapid and morally bankrupt--interested only in themselves and what would make them happy at that moment. As a result, I have mixed feelings about the movie. John Malkovich is awesome, though, and this discomfort over the lack of morals displayed in the movie may be only my own bias or me taking the movie too seriously.

JORDAN:
Nightmare on Elm Street:
In watching both the remake and the old version of this movie, I must say that the campy bits of the original were much better for a silly slumber party horror flick than a seriously scary movie. The effects in both movies were astounding, however, and I felt myself really drawn into the horror scenes in both versions - the bed scene, for instance, was much more effective in the original film, while in the remake it seemed less chilling. Yet those parts do not a cohesive horror film make. I see the appeal of the Freddy of old because he is definitely a terrifying man and his use of the bodybagged first victim is effective, but in the second version it seems that he has a more well-developed character and back story. I enjoy the addition of confusing elements that coalesce into making the movie more of a thriller genre flick rather than a simple slasher film.
Switching gears, however, I feel like the female roles in the original movie were much more pronounced and carried much more gravity than in the remake. What's wrong with a strong female protagonist? Why did she have to be coaxed into drawing the killer out of her dreams in the second version whereas in the first she had the gumption that no one else did to confront him head on? Maybe the movie is not meant to act as a woman's empowerment ploy, but there are definitely overtones of the strong, smart woman in the first film that are genuinely lacking in the second.
Overall, I really enjoyed the remake for its heart-stopping scenes and its ability to make Freddy into a deeply complicated character. Though Robert Englund still remains the original Freddy, his predecessor Jackie Earle Haley makes his own man out of the character and definitely nails the creep factor. The first film is better used as a throwback at a party where no one wants to have bad dreams later that night.

Being John Malkovich:
This movie is a thought-provoking romp through the mind of some very specific characters. I felt that it was very effective in exploring the psyches of Lotti, Craig, and Maxine in a way that showed they were deeply flawed people that needed to find themselves through another consciousness (namely, John Malkovich). I grew to hate Craig as the movie progressed and found deep sympathy for Lotti, especially when she and Maxine began to express their love for one another. Maxine I liked from the beginning, as she was a strong female character that I really admire.
Overall, this movie is not for the faint of heart. As opposed to some of the more popular and straightforward storylines, in this movie the viewer is dropped into the middle of a strange world with low-ceilings and torrid love affairs using another person's body - the audience has to suspend their disbelief from the very beginning. Yet the movie lays out a plausible and realistic account of these characters as it studies their internal dilemmas through the strangeness of the situation they find themselves in.
I really enjoyed this movie, although at some moments I was fed up with the whining of Craig in his desperation for Maxine; it goes to show that the characters are really well-executed when I can go through a range of emotions towards them throughout the course of two hours.

Make sure to take a look at the other movie reviews Liberty and I wrote and our other collaborative work: comic alterna-history zine The Bearniverse.

Photographic Adventures: The Summer Broke Ope

These ones were total randomness - they come from every place and every day!

These were from Snoqualmie Falls - so beautiful...

Check out some more posts featuring my photography.

The Summer Broke Ope

So, it's been a crazy summer sojourn since I was last here - I have been out literally every day since school got out... it feels so strange that it was only two weeks ago, and yet every day has been so filled that it seems as if it were yesterday. Hmm.
I have put graduation itself into a Memoirian Highlight to incorporate the pictures (courtesy of Heathy!) and also one for Heathy's visit here - just so that each post isn't crazy long! Here are some other highlights though.

1. Finishing high school and meeting a cluster of bees outside my boyfriend's house the day we got out. Happy end of high school!
2. Picking up my family at the airport - Tiina, Uncle and Natalia have been here ever since the 18th.
3. Watching the pretty awesome Senior Highlights video at senior breakfast (and subsequently signing a silly number of yearbooks - everyone wanted a little piece before we all jumped off to the next lilypad; sadly, I don't think I put down very good yearbook entries, but just know that you will be remembered!)
4. Going to a bookmaking class: it was a 3 Saturday class and I made 3 pamphlet stitch books, 3 hardcover books (2 Coptic bound and 1 traditional hardcover book like you see in the bookstores). Since I found the awesome decorative paper that I bought during pre-college, it was great fun to actually use the stuff. I am totally going to get back into zines and bind a lot of stuff now - it's great fun! Also, I discovered that Seattlites hate Bellevue (something I already knew, but didn't intuit until we started talking about the jail and protesting, Gay Pride and other such things; it was pretty awesome to hear all the intriguing stories though - like crack being sold from an ice cream truck and traipsing about the best art supplies places in the area)
5. Picking up Heathy at the airport to complete our full set of house mayhem [7 people living in a house that usually houses 3 - fortunately, it's big enough that it wasn't too much of a burden, just "interesting" to have all those personalities conflicting in places like the shower and the kitchen...]
6. Meeting up with all of my good friends at Olive Garden for an explosive night of debauchery - Chels, Ka-chan, Heathy, Kita, Josh, Amanda, Natalia, and I sitting around a table laughing it up and then heading over to Sophia's house for a post-meal cooldown. The odd part of the evening was getting there and waiting for a table; we took two cars since there were so many of us (and Josh was jumping out of his seat to avoid my dad's glare...) and then there was an hour long wait, so we went to get fresh ice cream at the creamery nearby [so good - yet I did gain 1.8 pounds that week; I'm at 131 right now though, so it didn't dent me too much]. But once we were in, the food was good and filling and we all were compatible enough to not kill each other so I call it good. Ka-chan, Chels and I went to get makeup at Bartells following Sophia's house and had an interesting time deciding whether I said 'peachy' or 'PG' - ah... the joke never dies.
7. Picking up my diploma the day after graduation and talking to Madame for the last time - she gave me a book and it was a nice goodbye. I didn't get to see Goldstein, yet I know our paths will cross again. All is well; I can leave Interlake in peace.
8. Separation anxiety when Heathy left - that same day, everyone traveled to Eastern Washington except me and I went to my bookbinding class all depressed... it just felt like the summer would be empty without her and without constant motion. Though it took me a few days, I did raise myself out of that slump. People make me happy, you know?
9. Hanging out with Sophia and Amanda in Seattle. Amanda got her first Dick's burger (another addict has been created!) on Broadway and we went to Bailey/Coy Books and all over Broadway. Then we went to Volunteer Park and there was a random crane in a tree! It was totally awesome and it flew down and we chased it with cameras (and I hung up on Kita out of excitement to go follow it... ehe...) Overall, it was a really relaxing day and a nice goodbye celebration for 'Manda since she left for China on July 4th (and Sophia leaves for Vietnam on Wednesday!).
10. Hearing from Charlotte. In Rome. She called me and we talked a bunch of girl talk and figure out our lives... the phone cut out just as we were getting to the recent news of Michael Jackson's death (I am really sad about that actually... I didn't realize how sad I would be until I started hearing his songs again and realized that there would be no more King of Pop. Along with the other celebrity deaths last week, that was definitely the worst moment...) The next time Charlotte and I contacted was on Facebook with messages - she's moving to Israel! It was a quick decision because of some problems with Seattle and UW and all that good stuff, but I think the move will do her good and give her an exciting lifestyle (and me an excuse to go to the Middle East - yes!) She's the real light in my sky sometimes; she inspires me and helps me out with my problems at the same time. Love.
11. Having Ka-chan come back from California! Everyone had left, and then they returned. She had a great time from what I can tell, everything was exciting and interesting while things here were pretty chill as well [albeit, a lot of problems did arise with the relationship] When she came back, we hung out hardcore with Molly in Seattle, traveling once again to Broadway and sorting out our problems with retail therapy and talk. I bought a gold scarf from Red Light and need to learn how to wear it with flare, so to speak. Haha. I stayed over at Molly's place and watched Bridget Jones' Diary as she napped, then we went out for late night food in Beacon Hill and heard about crazy ladies crying "SATAN!" across the street... ah, Seattle.
12. Spending time with Sophia in her final days before leaving for Vietnam - she, Josh and I watched Public Enemies last night and it was really interesting (crazy confusing at times, but since I was reading Gunsmith Cats and have always been sort of a shooter fan, it was a lot of fun) We went into Barnes and Noble and now I totally want to buy Bonk by Mary Roach so I can learn about the neuroscience of sex - did I mention that I've been enticed almost entirely to the nonfiction section lately? It's so weird... Oh, and shrimp pizza is awesome. One of those things that you don't appreciate till you try it. Trading clothes with Sophia at her house and finding really cute tops to steal - ahaha. I got my first pair of leggings from her and I think they're pretty awesome; not yet sure how comfortable I'll feel walking around in them.
13. And that brings us to the final! The lucky 13! Or maybe unlucky, I don't know... But, other than all the actions that are going on right now in my life, there are some interesting intentions going on as well. As I type, I am hoping that my dad will let me go on vacation with Josh to the Grand Canyon (yes, he's actually considering it! I'm overjoyed). So here's to knocking on wood, making wishes on your birthday time, and crossing fingers because tomorrow will determine the fates.

And... that's what's going on! Whew... that was a lot. One of the first things that I didn't mention was that I saw Ka-chan graduate the Friday before I did; it was amazing and her speech was inspiring (she didn't stutter once and, even though we didn't work on our speeches together, our themes were pretty similar) I saw Chels for the first time in months too! And Waymon and I randomly traveled to Snoqualmie Falls! We've been hanging out a lot more together out of total and utter boredom... Oh! And I got my IB Diploma - yesterday actually - which is rad. I get my credits and am going to college with them! TAKE THAT!

Photographic Adventures: The Week of Heathy

I believe that all of these were taken on the walk between Idylwood and Marymoor. Yay!

Check out some more posts featuring my photography.