Talkin-Typewrita.
- Critique Talk
Edward Cullen
Saturday, October 18, 2008, 08:52
I'm sure most of you have heard of Twilight, the amazing book series written by Stephenie Meyer. To help you furthur understand what i'll be writing on, here is the blurb of the first book in the series; Twilight:
About three things I was absolutely positive:
First, Edward was a vampire.
Second, there was a part of him–and I didn’t know how dominant that part might be–that thirsted for my blood.
And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him.
When Isabella Swan moves to the gloomy town of Forks and meets the mysterious, alluring Edward Cullen, her life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. With his porcelain skin, golden eyes, mesmerizing voice, and supernatural gifts, Edward is both irresistible and impenetrable. Up until now, he has managed to keep his true identity hidden, but Bella is determined to uncover his dark secret.
What Bella doesn’t realize is that the closer she gets to him, the more she is putting herself and those around her at risk. And it might be too late to turn back……
Deeply seductive and irresistibly compelling, Twilight is an extraordinary love story that will stay with you long after you have turned the final page.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Twilight is one of the best books i have ever read. It was introduced to me by a friend of mine. My friend, Sandy who even has trouble staying awake to read a 3 page long essay. You'll never catch her reading. & yet there she was raving to me about how insanely good the book was. The dark love story between a vampire and human. Dangerous, exciting, unpredictable. Suits me well. The book has won numerous awards and is one of the New York Times bestseller books.
My favourite character in the book is none other than Edward Cullen. Bella describes him as being devastatingly, inhumanly beautiful. She likens him to the mythical Greed God Adonis. His skin is "like marble". Very pale, ice cold, and he sparkles in the sunlight. She describes his facial features as being perfect and angular with high cheekbones, a strong jawline, a straight nose, and beautiful, full lips. His hair is untidy with a deep bronze shade, and his eyes has the ability to switch between colours depending on his mood. His voice is musical.
Edward has an interesting character as well. He is charming, polite, determined and overly protective over Bella. He is a romantic at heart, often mesmerizing Bella with his words. What intrigues me most about Edward however, is his very special supernatural gift, his ability to read minds.
Have you ever met someone whom you just can't seem to understand no matter how hard you try? People that don't seem to express their emotions well, they don't seem to tell you how they truely feel. Don't you just wish you could simply read their thoughts to decipher whatever doubts you have?
Imagine if we all could read each other's minds, hear the thoughts of the people surrounding us, communication will never be a daunting task to us ever again. We need not worry about misinterpreting a person's message since we will be able to fully understand how he feels by simply reading off his thoughts. Our listening skills will improve to the point of perfection, non-verbal cues such as body language and facial expression will no longer play a part in our judgement.
Interpersonal relationships between couples, family and friends will improve tremendously because people are able to fully comprehend the feelings of another. Sounds good isn't it?
However, apart from all the good points, there are many problems that will occur if everyone were to have the ability to read minds. There will be no secrets between anyone on the planet. With that, trust will be non-existent. Also, wouldn't it be embarassing if were crushing on this guy and he knows every single thought and fantasy you were picturing in your head? Wouldn't it hurt to know the negative thoughts that everyone has about you?
Lastly, if everyone understands each other's thoughts, all the different modes of communication such as the symbolic spoken word and non-verbals will cease to exist. Communication will only occur in the mind. Nobody would have invented languages, schools wouldn't have even existed since all knowledge can be shared through the human mind. How would that affect our life as a whole? No school, no talking, no speeches or written messages, no books ( gosh i would die ). And of course, without language, the internet wouldn't exist as well. Wouldn't it be scary?
Still, if you were given the ability to read minds for a day, who's thoughts would you read first? (:
xoxoxo
Labels: melanie
Mr Bean - relationship guru?
Friday, October 17, 2008, 09:17
Recently, I went to youtube and caught some Mr Bean shows.Everyone knows Mr Bean, the more-action-less-words comedian which we all love and hate at the same time.
Somehow, after watching some videos. I feel like we can all learn from Mr Bean...
Like for relationships between people to say the very least.
This video proves everything that we should not do in a dyadic communication. Somehow after watching this video, I feel that Mr Bean lack in communication skills. It is obvious that the girlfriend need some space off. But he ignores it and keeps coming after her. This only leads to the autonomy-togetherness dialectic which is the start of the retreat from intimacy. From the looks of it, it looks like they are heading to the avoiding stage.
This only teaches you one thing, don't force yourself into something you want, yet what your partner does not want. It only makes things difficult. The things you do so hard to achieve to the bonding stage will just vanish in a swirl through all the retreat from intimacy stages.
And this brought up a question: Why is it that humans do that we retreat from intimacy so fast? When all this time, we spend it on building relationships? Hmmm...
Labels: Zaty
Oh, Bus Captains!
Thursday, October 16, 2008, 01:15
Alright, before I start elaborating more on what I have to say about bus captains, just a question to ask. How do you guys feel about the bus drivers in singapore? Be it their attitude or their service standards. Well, I do have "not so good" comments for them despite I have to depend on them to drive me to school everyday. =) I am not here to discriminate them or have any grudges against them, just want to talk about how I feel about them.That day I was coming back from the Singapore Zoo, and I took this bus that takes me back to Ang Mo Kio interchange. There was this family(I think they were not locals) who wanted to board the bus and asked the bus captain some questions(I did not really catch what they were asking). BUT I could hear the bus captain shouting at them, asking them to hurry up and don't waste her(bus captain) time. I could tell that the family was kinda shocked and embarassed when the bus captain shouted at them. But they did not say anything much and just went to sit down.
Now, my point is, Singapore Zoo is a place where there will be and there are alot alot of tourists. How would they think of Singapore when they hear bus drivers scolding passengers or even worse, when they are the ones being scolded? I think this is going to "throw our own face" in the eyes of tourists. Ok, I may be exaggerating, but put ourselves in the family's shoe. "I came to Singapore to spend money but I ended up getting scolded by someone." Is not because of this one incident that makes me think that bus captains have no good service standards and they are(not all but some) "attitude". Just think about very morning when you are feeling soo tired and boring to go to school, and when you are trying to squeeze up the bus, the bus is just so crowded at the front(but there are some spaces behind) that you can't even board. Did the bus captain say anything? (I think they are suppose to ask the people to shift to the back ya?). But surprisingly, some bus captians just kept quiet, do nothing, but wait for people to shift to the back themselves. Some even straight away closed the door and "FORCE" people to squeeze up somehow. When you did not flag the bus early (because you really can't see), the first thing you receive when you got up the bus was a stare by the bus captain, followed by a greeting, "NEXT TIME MUST FLAG EARLY!!!"
There was no smile, no other nice greetings, nothing.
Of course there are good and nice bus captians(with service standards) somewhere out there, but so far alot of the bus captains I met were the no greetings, no smile kind. I really wonder how the bus companies train their bus captians. Do they know that passengers were being scolded for nothing? Do they know that we are running late for work/class but the bus captains are not helping us to quickly get on the bus? I don't know if I remembered wrongly, if i don't, I think Singapore is trying to achieve quailty service standards ya? If this is the case, then we need to really look into how the bus captains "interact" with passengers and if necessary, teach them "communications skills".
Labels: Jocelyn
Amélie
Wednesday, October 15, 2008, 11:08
Film Review: Amélie
Amélie is a 2-hour long French film. It tells the story of a shy waitress who decides to change the lives of those around her for the better, while struggling with her own isolation. This film has won many acclaimed awards worldwide.
The film started out with Amélie's childhood, as she found herself with a pair of parents that are distant and without any friends. Left alone to amuse herself, Amélie developed an unusually active imagination.
Amélie is a 2-hour long French film. It tells the story of a shy waitress who decides to change the lives of those around her for the better, while struggling with her own isolation. This film has won many acclaimed awards worldwide.
The film started out with Amélie's childhood, as she found herself with a pair of parents that are distant and without any friends. Left alone to amuse herself, Amélie developed an unusually active imagination.
Her life changed on the day that Princess Diana died. After hearing the news of her death on television, Amelie dropped her perfume bottle cap, knocking loose a bathroom wall tile. Behind the loose tile she finds an old metal box of childhood memorabilia hidden by a boy who lived in her apartment decades ago. Fascinated by the find, she resolved to track down the now-grown man who put it there and return it
Later on, Amélie found out potential romance when she was met an attractive-looking stranger: a quirky young man who collects the discarded photographs of strangers from passport photo booths. One day, she found a photo album which he dropped it in the street. Being shy, she played a cat and mouse game with him around Paris before eventually anonymously returning his treasured album. However, romance was complicated and Amélie decided not to go about finding love in a simple manner.
I found the plot extremely hilarious. Right from the beginning, there was this part where Amélie “took revenge” on her neighbour by pulling in and out his television cables. Her neighbour was left tearing his hair out because the television image would blur at the critical parts of the programme. (He was watching a soccer match. Every time there was a goal, the image would blur. When it resumed, the goal had already been scored.) The plot was skillfully crafted—suspense built up, all tension released at the punch line. I laughed at every joke made in the film.
The camera techniques used by the director were skilful. When the camera was focused on the character, for example, Amélie, every detail of her was captured. From her facial expressions to her lip movements, everything was crystal-clear. I also caught a wicked glint in her eyes in some of her scenes.
The types of audio were not only well chosen and synchronized but, also consistent. I noticed that whenever Amélie was on-screen, a certain tune played by the accordion was always present. Even without looking sometimes, whenever I heard the tune, I could visualize Amélie in the scene.
Indeed, Amélie is one of the most enjoyable movies I’ve seen for a long time. I strongly recommendation to watch this movie– catch it at the cinema if you still can – a beautiful film that refrains from overstating its gleeful optimism.
Labels: Jerry
Glory
Monday, October 13, 2008, 23:56
Right, so it was over the weekend when a friend of mine handed me this movie. It’s nothing recent and in fact, it’s pretty old considering it was released in 1989.
Glory, a period war movie set in 19th century America during the peak of the Civil war, was directed by Edward Zwick and featured a talented cast comprising of Matthew Broderick, Morgan Freeman and Denzel Washington to name a few.
This 122 minute long movie is a true story based on the letters of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw. It recounts the exploits of “Colonel Shaw and the Massachusetts 54th Volunteer Regiment, the first regular army regiment of black soldiers commissioned during the Civil War.”
Despite the R rating for its violence and profanity, Glory is more than just an action packed movie. It’s also a source of enlightenment for what happened in certain aspects of the Civil War.
Often, history has portrayed the American Civil War to be one that was fought solely by the whites and perhaps a handful of Native Americans. Few movie depictions, if any, had accounts of blacks playing a pivotal role during the war. At the very most, they were individuals in a white regiment- such as in the movie, The Patriot.
However, what this movie aims to do is to not only entertain the public, but also to dispel any notion of the inadequate participations of the African Americans during the Civil War that public might have formed – especially those who aren’t well versed in American history, such as people from other countries.
It gives us a factual account of the formation of the Massachusetts 54th and how they had garnered respect and recognition for their race. Initially plagued with ridicule and skepticisms over their abilities due to the colour of their skin, the regiment soon overcame these prejudices and proved that they were equal if not better than other regiments. In fact, they considered to be the best coloured regiment in existence during that era.
During the period of the movie’s release, African Americans were rarely given significant positive coverage in the media – often they were stereotyped as drug peddling gangsters, abusive parents, etc… basically a nuisance to society.
If you were to ask me what values we could learn from this movie, I would reply with this – values that we as humans should strive for :
• Tolerance – racial unity, not hatred, allowed the regiment to achieve its status (Colonel Shaw was a white office in charge of a coloured regiment)
• Perseverance – despite being faced with racial prejudices, the regiment overcame this through their deeds and won respect and recognition as a result.
• Courage – faced with overwhelming odds at the climatic battle at Fort Wagner, the regiment fought on with zeal despite having lost their commanding officer. A soldier even braved bullets and was wounded seriously twice while rescuing the Union Flag.
• Patriotism- though their ancestors were first brought to America as slaves, these coloured men held no grudges to the country and even volunteered to serve in the army on their own free will.
Though I’m no American, I felt a fleeting sense of patriotism, reminding me National Service days (the mind has a way of romanticizing even the most unpleasant memories).
This is probably in no small part due to the creative language (cinematography) used in the movie. The music, which was composed by James Horner, did a superb work of rousing the spirit at apt occasions. Even the tagline used for the movie, “Their innocence. Their heritage. Their lives. Nothing would be spared in the fight for their freedom.” Inspires some sort untainted aggression born out of necessity to protect something you hold dear to your heart.
Perhaps the only problem with Glory is that they failed to include one message – the perspective of the coloured soldiers. The entire movie was narrated in the perspective of a white officer, which doesn’t give an accurate account of the how the coloured soldiers felt, since this movie was really about them. Rather, it gave an account of how Colonel Shaw thought they felt. But, in the truth, the creators probably didn’t have much of a choice in the decision to create the movie this way as most of the information regarding the Massachusetts 54th were from Colonel Shaw’s letters. To do otherwise might result in an inaccurate portrayal of the movie.
All in all, a good watch. If you’re at the video rental store and you’re looking for something to watch over the weekend, you might want to consider this movie.
Labels: Youjin
Paris Hilton's new BFF
Sunday, October 12, 2008, 12:37
Hold on world…hold on tight.
The infamous Paris Hilton has a new reality show broadcasting on MTV, “Paris Hilton’s my new BFF”. The title is pretty self proclaim, the winner of the show gets a chance to hang out with Miss Hilton and her socialites.
Before the show was aired, prospective contestants uploaded their best shots and a description for why they are the best candidates for the show. Online votes determine the final casts.
Of course, being a best friend is not easy, being Paris Hilton’s best friend is no easy feat. Contestants prove their loyalty, diplomatic skills and perseverance through a series of tasks to see if they have what it takes to become part of her circles.
http://www.mtv.com/ontv/dyn/parisbff/series.jhtml
I have finished episode one and two and, I must say the cast pool is pretty fascinating. Onch, a bisexual boy from Hacienda Heights, California looks every part like a girl. In fact, during the first challenge, Paris put them through a partying marathon to see who could last the longest. They club hopped all night and Onch seen was dancing provocatively with a hunk. The hunk was oblivion to the fact that he was dancing with a boy till he founds out and, freaks out. The flamboyant Onch did not took it well in his stride, he was cursing “You homophobia ******…..” Oh dear.
What can you expect from the show? Bimbo(s) and himbo(s) backstabbing and backlashing at each other in order to win the title. But isn’t that what the viewers desperately crave for?
And kudos to MTV for brainstorming such a brilliant show. Of course Paris Hilton needs more sidekicks! And these hungry “little kittens” are going to boost her fame even further. But how long can they keep her entertain? She controls their every move and they are at her commands with the click of her sidekick, a mobile phone only available on in the US actually.
Are best friends suppose to be like this? Well, definitely not for mine. I do not wish to take away my bestie’s individuality and personality just so we match. Then the world would be full of clones of everyone, not exactly a fun place to live in.
If you want to watch the rest of the series, click on http://www.mtv.com/ontv/dyn/parisbff/series.jhtml , it airs on every Tuesday.
Xoxo
Grace
Labels: Grace
Alien Song
01:17
This is a classic piece of animation created by Victor Navone, which eventually led him to become an animator in Pixar.http://www.strimoo.com/video/10723847/Alien-Song-Dailymotion.html
The most prominent principle of animation in "Alien Song" is Exaggeration (although all 12 were incorporated), which is needed for animation because perfect imitation of reality can look static and dull. In "Alien Song", the character is the centre of attraction, so much exaggeration is needed to convey the message across.
Non-verbals play a huge role in "Alien Song" mainly due to exaggeration. Victor employs much use of kinesics: hand gestures as emblems (the very first pose depicting despair and clenching of fists during "i grew strong") and illustrators (lifting hand to signify "back from outer space", palms out during "i learnt how to get along"). These gestures and body movements are used throughout the animation.
Even though the character has only one eye, it is able to convey emotion effectively. Squinting of the eye depicts cynicism. Closing the eye during "i was petrified" paints a vivid image of fear, and opening the eye wide during "I will survive" hints the climax of the animation. The facial expressions complement the eye's behavior using secondary animation (which is also one of the 12 principles of animation): for instance, the head tilting and the antenna wriggling. All these small movements are crucial; without them the animation would not be as impactful.
Though the character is clearly lip-synching, there is certain paralanguage in Alien Song. For instance when the tone gets cynical during "i spent so many nights thinking how you did me wrong", complemented by the kinesics and eye expressions gives the impression that the character is indeed feeling cynical, especially to viewers who are not familiar with the original song.
Proxemics also play a vital role. At the beginning of the animation, the camera slowly zooms in to focus on the character. First we get to see the full view of the character before the song starts. During the 2nd verse (with the disco beat) when the character starts walking, it gives the impression that the character is coming closer and getting more excited as the song progresses. At the end the camera zooms out to get a full view of the final view of the character...
All these non-verbal cues harmonize together to give maximum effect. At the end of the animation, the character gets floored by a giant disco ball. Perhaps somebody has got so affected by the character as the animation climaxes, and thus decided to put a stop to it. According to Victor, he is "not a big fan of disco, so this seemed like the perfect opportunity for a little comic irony".
Abrupt ending-wise aside, i think this is a very good piece to analyze non-verbal cues.
Labels: Jerry