Movie Review Monthly: April 2014
Hey movie fans! April was another great month for movie reviews. I tried to provide a wide breadth of films for you all to enjoy. Check them all out below!
Live long and prosper my friends!
Book Review: Nerds
One of the recent pinnacle texts exploring the anti-geek bias, Nerds: How Dorks, Dweebs, Techies, and Trekkies Can Save America, And Why They Might Be Our Last Hope (originally released in 2007 with a 2011 reprint) is written by David Anderegg, Ph.D who comes from a child therapy background and takes the focus of his book to what he knows best; childhood.
Much of our perceptions of the world, good or bad, are formed when we are children. If we are praised or bullied about certain things, especially in a recognizable pattern over time, we're going to develop an understanding of how the world works from these experiences. An unfortunately common occurrence in schools is kids being bullied for being "nerdy". This could take shape in any number of ways, and Anderegg goes in depth to explore where this comes from in a historical context as well as a cultural one for America specifically. It is a fascinating topic to explore, especially due to the fact that America is rather unique in its bias towards geeks and nerds or a certain anti-intellectualism, as it is formally referred to in the book.
A strong point that Anderegg makes is how dangerous this bias towards geeks and nerds is for our country in terms of our collective psyche as well as our economy if we create a culture where being interested in math, science, and/or technology is constantly discouraged by bullying in our schools and negative images in our media. While strides have been made in recent years, we still have a lot of work to do to break down these stereotypes and take back the mantle of geek pride.
I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the topic of geek culture. I read it on the recommendation of a mentor of mine in this space and was glad I took some time for it. It definitely adds some scholarly credibility to any discussion you have on the topic.
Movie Review Monday: Don Jon
Greetings!
This week, we're talking about the recent movie Don Jon (2013), which is the brainchild of Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who wrote, directs, and stars in this fresh, unique, and original romantic comedy. Starring alongside Levitt is Scarlett Johansson and Julianne Moore. All of the actors in this movie do a splendid job with the material, which showcases a more realistic love story for the main characters, which we have come to expect from JGL in such movies as 500 Days of Summer and 50/50 (both of which I highly recommend). Part of the unique aspect of this movie is the main character's obsession with pornography and how that affects his relationships with women, which I think is a very interesting avenue to explore for a romantic comedy.
The cinematography of this movie and the pacing is kinetic, keeping you engaged throughout. It ends in an unexpected fashion and defies all the typical rom-com stereotypes, which I enjoyed greatly. I admit that I was initially drawn to this movie for the creative influence of JGL (who I respect greatly), but I am happy to have seen it in theaters when it was released and am glad to see it streaming for more to enjoy.
*Fair warning, however, since much of the plot surrounds JGL's character's obsession with porn, you'll see a lot of flashes and sounds from him caving into his addiction. Just know this going in!
So, if you want an original romantic comedy to stream that will keep you engaged (and don't mind the aforementioned glimpses of porn) check this movie out and come back next week for another great movie available on Netflix!
Take care!
Steal These Innovative Ideas from Courtney O'Connell
I'm a big fan of Courtney's and I love these new, simple, innovative ideas she came up with. Check them out and use them to get out there to better engage students on your campus!
What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 05/02/14
Hey folks!
Check out this cinematically focused week in geek:
I was checking out an anticipated list of Summer 2014 movies recently, and it dawned on me (see what I did there?!) that this movie is coming out in a few months. It hasn't gotten a lot of press since X-Men and Spider-Man have been dominating lately, but I am really looking forward to this movie. The first film was a dark horse that surprised everyone and I was a huge fan. I am very eager to see where they take the story further.
Needless to say I am very excited for this movie. I'm a huge Spidey fan and all the stuff I've seen looks pretty great. I do worry that I have seen like all of the movie from all the promo images and trailers but I am sure there is still great stuff I haven't seen yet. I'm going to see it this weekend sometime so check out my tweets to get my immediate thoughts.
So the new cast was announced recently and as I reflected on the reveal, I am still maintaining my initial thoughts on the possibility of this new proposed trilogy; cautiously optimistic. The cast as it stands now had a severe lack of female actors in it and I was never committed to the need for the original trilogy cast to be involved. I'm happy to have them passing the torch but it still feels like they are shoehorned in somehow without knowing exactly the story they want to tell. There is so much potential here but there is also the chance for another prequel trilogy that is divisive and becomes just a cash grab. We'll see what comes from all this as the months go on.
Thanks for stopping by! Come back next week for more geeky awesomeness. Have a great weekend!
Should You Drink a Bottle of Wine a Day?
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzUYAQZnQyw] This is an awesome video from the folks over at Discovery News (DNews for short). I really enjoy all the cool, educational videos they put up on their YouTube channel, all in short little clips no longer than a couple of minutes. I feel better about spending time with these videos rather than some of the other fodder on the Internet. It does a brain good!
Movie Review Monday: The Kitchen
This week, I'm reviewing a hidden gem that has been lurking on my "recommended" swath of films from Netflix, The Kitchen (2012), which stars Laura Prepon (now of Orange is the New Black fame) and fine ensemble of actors who all help create a unique, originally crafted film that I very much enjoyed.
This unexpected cinematic joy centers around, you guessed it, a kitchen on the day of Prepon's 30th birthday. The movie takes place over the course of that single day but the viewpoint we take stands centered on the kitchen, never leaving this setting, while only peering out toward other rooms in the house. It's a neat way to shoot a movie and allows for us to see "private" conversations between characters about other characters, see people just passing through and there is just a feel like you're actually just hanging out in the kitchen all day, witnessing whatever happens to pass by. There is a kinetic feel as well that is well captured once the birthday party begins.
All the actors, while all unknown to me for the most part (I've seen Dreama Walker from Don't Trust the B**** in Apt. 23), all do a great job in their roles, showcasing three-dimensional characters, creating a cool group of people who are all hanging out for the day. This movie is great for the sole fact of it's originality. It's a simple story told in a unique fashion so I enjoyed it for this accomplishment; that it didn't try to do too much but seemed to do just enough.
Check out The Kitchen, streaming now on Netflix!
Come back next week for another great film to watch! Take care and thanks for stopping by!
What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 04/25/14
Good tidings to you all! Thanks for stopping by.
Here are some things that I've been geeking out on recently:
So my partner and I just watched a bunch of episodes of this new show after we had both been nudged by multiple people to check it out. We were definitely impressed. It's strongly narrative driven and has a nice dose of sci-fi to keep me hooked. All of the first season is available on Amazon Prime right now and the second season just premiered recently so jump in now since there isn't too much to catch up on.
I just started reading this book since I felt like I needed it. It had been sitting in my Amazon wishlist for some time after an offhand reference by someone peaked my interest. I'm about a third of the way in and it has some powerful advice as well as actionable takeaways to help you live a more zen life. I'm enjoying what it has to say since I'm always all about slowing down and reducing the noise in my life, now this book is helping me maximize to truly achieve that goal.
I'm a big fan of TOMS shoes. I've blogged about them before in varying capacities but just for the record, I own two pairs and their stickers are posted in a few different places around my apartment. They make good products and do good for the world. I couldn't really ask for too much more. I'm going to commit to doing the Day Without Shoes which is next Tuesday, April 29. Even if you can't participate on your own all day, just going for as long as you can as an awareness effort all helps the cause. Look forward to some posts and pictures from the day from me!
Check back every Friday for more awesome geek outs!
Take care and enjoy your weekend!
Thank You, Earth, For Letting Me Keep My Stuff Here!
I'm personally passionate about sustainability. It's something I work to embody in my daily routine and my overriding philosophy in life. I strive to do more with less, eliminate needless clutter & noise, as well as work to have the most positive impact on the world around me that I can. On a personal level, this takes shape in donating old clothes, recycling whenever I can, using reusable bags and bottles, and generally purchasing goods that are all-natural and sustainably made. On a more macro level, it takes shape for me as being a point of contention and a principle I hold onto in whatever context I'm in. A lot of my classmates and colleagues think of me if they're about to print out a bunch of paper now, which I appreciate since they're now at least aware of their habits due to my efforts. So I encourage you to go outside, enjoy the beauty of nature, and do something nice for this place we all call home. If we all work together on this issue, we can make a big impact for the future.
Happy Earth Day! And thank you Earth, for letting me keep my stuff here for a while!
Geek Hard: Reflecting Back On a Year of Blogging
I started this blog back in April of last year, not really knowing where it would go but I was inspired by a role model of mine, Chris Hardwick, to put myself out there as my unique self that is a mashup of higher education/ college student affairs and a proud, passionate geek. I feel like it is a brand I can be proud of so I dove right in with it.
Being someone is very reflective and pensive, I felt it was only proper to share my thoughts on how it has been going over the past year. I can say now, after a rocky first few months of blogging, I'm starting to find my rhythm now and a workflow that works for me. I struggled to write at first but it is starting to come more naturally now. I have also gotten some positive feedback from friends and colleagues on my efforts, which has definitely helped my motivation to keep with it. Within the past few months in 2014, I've started finding a consistency with my weekly geek outs and movie reviews, which have been awesome to do and steadily maintain for a couple of months now.
I feel as though with my putting more content out there, I've been reaching more people and getting more of an audience. I am doing this all for myself but also to get the word out to people who may feel like I do about geek pride on a micro level, and just on a macro level for a community in my profession that isn't afraid to be themselves. I feel like a black sheep a lot of the time in student affairs and I want to challenge the notions of who you have to or should be in our line of work. We all are always encouraged to "be yourself" but I feel like at times that this platitude isn't the case. If you are yourself, others blow back on that and make you feel guilty for it. I don't like that and think that's a pretty horrible thing to do. I hope to keep putting my authentic self out into the world and have people just get it.
So, a year is in the books, which is crazy to think about but I'm looking forward to many more to come. As I wrap up here, I just want to genuinely thank you for your support in getting me this far already. Even if this is your first time at my blog for this post or if you've read every single one, thank you for taking time out to check out my work. It means a lot to have every single one of you stop by.
Stay plugged in for more awesome stuff.
Have an amazing day!