week 4
entry 1
I recently saw the movie Intocables or Intouchables, a French production. It was about a poor black man called Driss and a very rich, fully paralyzed man called Phillipe. In the movie, Driss comes to work as Phillipe's care giver. At first he does it because he needs a government benefit but as time progresses, the two men become friends. This is a great movie because it shows you a very real and unique interaction between two people. I really enjoyed that aspect of the movie as well as the hilarity of their interactions and all of the jokes in it. This movie is so much better, and more... real than other movies that deal with people from two different worlds interacting. For example, a movie that dealt with a poor black man and a rich white woman called Blindside was the complete opposite of Intocables. Blindside was preach, unrealistic and made to please a rich white audience by making the white lady the hero in the movie. Intocables touched me because it showed this unique relationship without a fake, preachy attitude while still being a hilarious movie and thought provoking movie.
entry 1
I recently saw the movie Intocables or Intouchables, a French production. It was about a poor black man called Driss and a very rich, fully paralyzed man called Phillipe. In the movie, Driss comes to work as Phillipe's care giver. At first he does it because he needs a government benefit but as time progresses, the two men become friends. This is a great movie because it shows you a very real and unique interaction between two people. I really enjoyed that aspect of the movie as well as the hilarity of their interactions and all of the jokes in it. This movie is so much better, and more... real than other movies that deal with people from two different worlds interacting. For example, a movie that dealt with a poor black man and a rich white woman called Blindside was the complete opposite of Intocables. Blindside was preach, unrealistic and made to please a rich white audience by making the white lady the hero in the movie. Intocables touched me because it showed this unique relationship without a fake, preachy attitude while still being a hilarious movie and thought provoking movie.
week 4
entry 2
Another movie that I saw recently was a Matt Damon movie called Promised Land. It was a movie about fracking but more about the power of natural gas companies. The plot is that a guy who works for an oil company called Global (Matt Damon) and tries to get rural farmers to lease their land is trying to do his job in a small town in rural Pennsylvania. Matt's character really believes he is doing the right thing too. It all works out in the beginning, he is getting most of the town to lease and everyone welcomes him, then a meeting comes up where the town was supposed to give the oil company the go-ahead but instead people think the town should vote on weather to allow fracking or not. Around this time, an environmentalist guy from a company called Athena shows up and starts convincing people not to allow fracking. The movie progresses until, Matt Damon's company sends him a blown up picture of the environmentalists poster, it has a flaw, it was by the ocean, not in the Midwest. Matt Damon knows he has won the town but then, in an interaction near the end of the movie you realize that the environmentalist is actually a guy who works for Global, he was sent by the company to fabricate this entire story and put a flaw in his slogan to ensure that Global could win. Matt's character is stunned, as was I.
This movie seemed to be sympathetic to oil companies at first, until that moment. You realize how incredibly powerful these companies are. Instead of trying to win people over lagitimently, they can stage a fake struggle between the company and environmentalists that makes the environmentalists liars and makes people trust the oil company. The natural gas or oil company can make people believe anything when they control all the variables, their cause, their opposition, both arguments. This movie touched me because it made me understand the for Natural Gas argument and the full power of multi billion dollar companies.
entry 2
Another movie that I saw recently was a Matt Damon movie called Promised Land. It was a movie about fracking but more about the power of natural gas companies. The plot is that a guy who works for an oil company called Global (Matt Damon) and tries to get rural farmers to lease their land is trying to do his job in a small town in rural Pennsylvania. Matt's character really believes he is doing the right thing too. It all works out in the beginning, he is getting most of the town to lease and everyone welcomes him, then a meeting comes up where the town was supposed to give the oil company the go-ahead but instead people think the town should vote on weather to allow fracking or not. Around this time, an environmentalist guy from a company called Athena shows up and starts convincing people not to allow fracking. The movie progresses until, Matt Damon's company sends him a blown up picture of the environmentalists poster, it has a flaw, it was by the ocean, not in the Midwest. Matt Damon knows he has won the town but then, in an interaction near the end of the movie you realize that the environmentalist is actually a guy who works for Global, he was sent by the company to fabricate this entire story and put a flaw in his slogan to ensure that Global could win. Matt's character is stunned, as was I.
This movie seemed to be sympathetic to oil companies at first, until that moment. You realize how incredibly powerful these companies are. Instead of trying to win people over lagitimently, they can stage a fake struggle between the company and environmentalists that makes the environmentalists liars and makes people trust the oil company. The natural gas or oil company can make people believe anything when they control all the variables, their cause, their opposition, both arguments. This movie touched me because it made me understand the for Natural Gas argument and the full power of multi billion dollar companies.
week 4
entry 3
This week and last week, we have been studying the real court case that inspired To Kill a Mockingbird. I was wondering what it would be like to be sentenced to death and then being defended by Leibowitz. It must be such a horrible feeling to be so close to being killed and that there is only one person who stands between you and death. I was also thinking about how hopeless a Black person living in the Jim Crow south must have felt if he/she did something to intimidate, offend or hurt a white person. Basically, If a Black person was convicted of something, he/she would get a hard punishment. On the other hand, a white person would feel quite free to do whatever he/she (but more he because the women's right movement did not happen until the 70's) wanted toward a black person and get away with it. It is strange how recently we had all of this inequality in the US. I have to say that even though we are so much more technologically advanced than we were in the 60's, we still have a long ways to go with civil rights and fair court practices.
entry 3
This week and last week, we have been studying the real court case that inspired To Kill a Mockingbird. I was wondering what it would be like to be sentenced to death and then being defended by Leibowitz. It must be such a horrible feeling to be so close to being killed and that there is only one person who stands between you and death. I was also thinking about how hopeless a Black person living in the Jim Crow south must have felt if he/she did something to intimidate, offend or hurt a white person. Basically, If a Black person was convicted of something, he/she would get a hard punishment. On the other hand, a white person would feel quite free to do whatever he/she (but more he because the women's right movement did not happen until the 70's) wanted toward a black person and get away with it. It is strange how recently we had all of this inequality in the US. I have to say that even though we are so much more technologically advanced than we were in the 60's, we still have a long ways to go with civil rights and fair court practices.
Week 4
Entry 4
Recently, I returned to Lux art institute to see who was their new artist in residence. I was surprised to find that is was Matthew Cusick. Matthew Cusick is an Artist/musician. He creates very unique art using pieces of maps and atlases pasted together in a collage to create images. I love that when you first look at his art you see a painting of a wave bus when you look more closely you see that he actually cut up pieces of many different atlases and maps to create his image. Another thing that is really cool about his artwork, is that he is conscious about what pieces of maps he cuts up to create his image. For example, for the wave he uses cut outs of mostly the pacific ocean and Antartica to create his wave and the surf. Another example of his conscious collages is a portrait of an old Native American man. He used old maps and atlases with maps from mostly the middle of the United States to make the collage.
I think that I like Matthew Cusick's art for various reasons. First, I love looking at maps and creating maps and think that using bits of different maps as a medium is really cool and ingenious. Secondly, for the most part, I like the art pieces he makes. I like examining all of his paintings of waves and how every piece of a map adds something to the art piece, be it the surf, different shades of colors or a 3D look, it all comes together to make an awesome art piece.
Entry 4
Recently, I returned to Lux art institute to see who was their new artist in residence. I was surprised to find that is was Matthew Cusick. Matthew Cusick is an Artist/musician. He creates very unique art using pieces of maps and atlases pasted together in a collage to create images. I love that when you first look at his art you see a painting of a wave bus when you look more closely you see that he actually cut up pieces of many different atlases and maps to create his image. Another thing that is really cool about his artwork, is that he is conscious about what pieces of maps he cuts up to create his image. For example, for the wave he uses cut outs of mostly the pacific ocean and Antartica to create his wave and the surf. Another example of his conscious collages is a portrait of an old Native American man. He used old maps and atlases with maps from mostly the middle of the United States to make the collage.
I think that I like Matthew Cusick's art for various reasons. First, I love looking at maps and creating maps and think that using bits of different maps as a medium is really cool and ingenious. Secondly, for the most part, I like the art pieces he makes. I like examining all of his paintings of waves and how every piece of a map adds something to the art piece, be it the surf, different shades of colors or a 3D look, it all comes together to make an awesome art piece.
Week 4
Entry 5
One of my
favorite book series' is the Artemis Fowl series. This is a great series for
various reasons but I have to say that for me, the characters are what makes the
story great. My favorite character is one of the main characters, Artemis fowl
himself. I love how he is a child criminal mastermind, capable of taking on the
extremely advanced Fairy race living deep beneath the earth's surface.
Hovvever, I think thatI like him as a character because he is charismatic and
witty. I love the interactions between him and the rest of the heroes and
villains in the novel's. He touches me because I too try to be debonair as he is
and I strive to be witty.
Entry 5
One of my
favorite book series' is the Artemis Fowl series. This is a great series for
various reasons but I have to say that for me, the characters are what makes the
story great. My favorite character is one of the main characters, Artemis fowl
himself. I love how he is a child criminal mastermind, capable of taking on the
extremely advanced Fairy race living deep beneath the earth's surface.
Hovvever, I think thatI like him as a character because he is charismatic and
witty. I love the interactions between him and the rest of the heroes and
villains in the novel's. He touches me because I too try to be debonair as he is
and I strive to be witty.