Gattaca’s gift is its unity of vision. Seldom do films combine music, art, and character with such exquisite resonance. When you think of Gattaca, you recall the score by Michael Nyman, because it embodies the longing the film conveys. Combined with memorable art direction, Gattaca becomes a powerful film that gracefully imprints the memories of those who see it.

Set in a not-so-distant future where the genetically enhanced are offered every social advantage, Gattaca follows the dreams of one un-enhanced man, Vincent Freeman (flamboyantly played by Ethan Hawke). In addition to his inferior genes, Vincent is also hindered by a heart disorder which makes his dream of space travel impossible in the eyes of potential employers. Desperate, he illegally poses as Jerome Morrow (Jude Law), and covertly passes security checks by using Jerome’s superior DNA.

The film is an eloquent parable on the pursuit of happiness. Jerome is born with every advantage but lives in crippled misery asserting, “he wouldn’t have it any other way.” Vincent desperately wants to leave his world; every morning he violently brushes his skin, trying to abolish as much of himself as possible. Yet he tackles his dream with ferocity – something few of us dare do.

Ultimately the film echoes our innermost desires – to love, to hope, and reach for dreams that reside at the extremity of our reach, just beyond the stars.

Otra película de vampiros? Bah! Pero con Ethan Hawke y Willem Dafoe en el cast la cosa no es tan detestable.

En 2019, un virus convierte la mayoría de la población en vampiros, quienes para alimentarse y sobrevivir crean una especie de granjas donde “ordeñan” la sangre de los pocos humanos vivos. Obviamente esto no va a ser Let the right one in o Blade 2, pero tampoco se ve tan mala como Crepúsculo no? Habrá que esperar como trata la taquilla a estos seres con orejas puntiagudas.

El guión y dirección está a cargo de los desconocidos hermanos Spierig, quienes hicieron la película de bajo presupuesto Undead, que aunque desconocida, tuvo buena aceptación en los festivales de Sitges, Fantasporto y Melbourne.

Visiten la página oficial

Le Royaume-Uni dispose du plus important fichier de fichage génétique au monde, qui contient les profils de 5,9 millions de personnes. Pour l’alimenter, la police procèderait régulièrement à des arrestations dans le but unique d’ajouter des profils, accuse une commission gouvernementale britannique ce mardi.

Ainsi, près des trois-quarts des jeunes hommes noirs âgés de 18 à 35 ans figurent désormais dans ce fichier au nombre d’entrées en hausse de 40% en deux ans, selon la commission pour la génétique humaine.

Près d’un million de personnes innocentes de tout crime dans ce fichier

Cette commission, qui dépend du gouvernement, déplore l’absence de règles claires entourant l’existence de cette base de données créée en 1995. Près d’un million de personnes innocentes de tout crime figurent ainsi dans ce fichier, selon la commission.

Un ancien commissaire de police a écrit à la commission pour l’assurer que la «norme» était désormais d’arrêter des gens simplement pour obtenir leur ADN, dans l’hypothèse où ils pourraient tôt ou tard être impliqués dans des crimes.

Le président de la commission, le professeur Jonathan Montgomery, a regretté l’absence de «débat public» sur le fichier et estimé qu’il convenait d’établir un «équilibre correct entre nos intérêts privés à la confidentialité et l’intérêt public à enquêter sur les crimes». La commission a également conclu qu’il y avait «très peu de preuves concrètes» au fait que le fichier contribue de manière efficace aux enquêtes policières. Au contraire, il peut éloigner la police de la bonne piste en créant des «pré-suspects», a-t-elle remarqué.

Un nouveau projet de loi récemment rendu public propose de réviser la législation actuelle pour que les profils génétiques de personnes arrêtées mais non condamnées soient conservés pendant six ans dans le fichier. La loi actuelle prévoit que les données puissent être retenues indéfiniment. Mais elle a été jugée illégale par une décision de justice européenne, qui a contraint le gouvernement à revoir sa copie.

Et en France?

En France, un tel fichier existe (Fnaeg), mais son ampleur est moindre. Selon la Cnil, au 1er octobre 2008, 806.356 personnes étaient référencées dessus, que ce soit des personnes condamnées ou mises en cause dans une affaire ou bien des personnes disparues. Concrètement, on peut rentrer dans le ficher uniquement «dans le cadre d’une enquête pour crime ou délit, d’une enquête préliminaire, d’une commission rogatoire ou de l’exécution d’un ordre de recherche délivré par une autorité judiciaire». Les données sont conservées pendant 40 ans pour les personnes condamnées ou décédées et 25 ans pour les personnes mises en causes dans une affaire.
20 minutes

Fascisme, racisme, surveillance et oppression seront le lot quotidien des arabes et des noirs en europe dans les années à venir.
Vous vous rendez compte du délire, ces abrutis de britanniques ont réussi à ficher génétiquement quasiment toute une classe d’âge, c’est hallucinant.Et ce qui est encore plus hallucinant c’est la manière dont ont été obtenue ces échantillons d’adn :
” Un ancien commissaire de police a écrit à la commission pour l’assurer que la «norme» était désormais d’arrêter des gens simplement pour obtenir leur ADN, dans l’hypothèse où ils pourraient tôt ou tard être impliqués dans des crimes.”
Rien que ça ! Une sorte de pré crime à l’échelle de toute une population donnée.Rien de mieux pour criminaliser et stigmatiser encore plus ces jeunes.
Regarder ce documentaire, surtout les deux dernières parties, vous verrez tout ce qui est possibe de faire avec l’adn.Il est par exemple possible d’avoir une ébauche de visage !!!

Parceque en plus de l’identification, le décryptage de l’adn permettra à l’autorité une intrusion totale dans notre vie, les assurances vont se gaver, l’eugénisme va faire son grand retour, je crois que nous n’avons pas réellement compris la menace de l’utilisation par les entreprises et le Pouvoir de notre identité génétique.
Ne donnez jamais votre ADN, je crois qu’il y a un délit de refus de donner son adn, mais je ne sais pas si pendant la courte peine de prison(quelques jours) l’adn est prélevé de force.
J’en viens à penser que les survivants du génocide planétaire à venir vont se retrouver dans un monde totalement controllé, un mix de” bienvenue à Gattaca “, de ” minority report”, de ” I robot “, de ” les fils de l’homme ” et encore on est loin du compte !!!!!

Bref, l’angleterre est en avance sur le reste de l’europe dans les domaines de la surveillance, de la délation et du communautarisme.Regardez ce petit reportage diffusé sur france 24, c’est fou !!!! Mettre dos à dos des extrémistes de droite dont le leader porte fierement le drapeau d’israel !!!!! à des extrémistes musulmans manipulés par les services secrets occidentaux, pakistanais et saoudiens. Et la mayonnaise prend très bien, c’est super grave.

Diviser pour mieux régner… Et les gogos vont s’agiter

Do you know what happened on 11/21/2009?

Nearly 47 years earlier everyone remembered what happened that day, 11/22/1963, the day JFK was assassinated. 11/21/2009 is a day of great importance, but this day went unnoticed by the vast majority of the United States.

Why was this date so important? One word – GINA.

On a day when mammogram testing and health care legislation dominated the news GINA went unnoticed. GINA, though having little impact on our current day to day lives, may have an even larger impact on society than the topics that dominated the news. Who is GINA? GINA is not actually a person, but rather an acronym for the “Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act” of 2008, which took affect on 11/21/2009. Employees are now protected against genetic discrimination as part of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, joining categories such as race and age.

The idea that a company could test employees genetic information may sound like science fiction, especially for those who have seen the movie GATTACA, but like some other science fiction ideas given technological advances and time fiction can become non-fiction. On 10/09/2005 IBM became the first company to initiate a policy against discrimination based on genetic information. In 2007 IBM lobbied congress to pass the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act. On 10/06/2009, nearly four years from when IBM announced its discrimination policy, IBM releases a press release on their technological advances in DNA transistors. The DNA transistors could lower the cost of human DNA testing from $2.7 billion (Human Genome Project) to a range of $100 to $1,000.

At the $1,000 price point DNA testing can become affordable for millions of people, resulting in ‘personalized medicine‘ and increased awareness of genetic cancer risks. Mammograms are the best current technology have to detect breast cancer, but by no means is it the best possible technology as there are concerns on false positives. DNA testing could be the technology that replaces (or at worst supplements) mammograms, changing the way society thinks, acts and lives.

In order for most nonprofits to bring about systemic change they need to form coalitions or have an advocacy component. Private charities (foundations) aside, nonprofits are allowed to lobby within certain limits. In 1995 the first proposal to protect against genetic discrimination was made in the house. In 1997 the Coalition for Genetic Fairness was formed, consisting originally of civil rights, disease-specific and health care organizations. In 2005 the coalition expanded to include industry groups and employers. On May 21, 2008 GINA was passed, the coalition having united more than 500 organizations and thousands of individuals.

Change does not happen over night. There are many important factors such as patience, stakeholder management, communication, burning platforms, luck and leadership. Currently nonprofits are working to protect employers from discrimination based on sexual preference and gender identify. According to the ACLU

“Firing or refusing to hire someone because they are gay or lesbian is legal in 29 states. And job discrimination against people based on gender identity is legal in 38 states.”

While the passing and effective dating of the GINA legislation should be remembered and celebrated, there is still a lot of work to do make shaping our government to be of the people, by the people and for the people.

Do you know what happened on 11/21/2009?

Nearly 47 years earlier everyone remembered what happened that day, 11/22/1963, the day JFK was assassinated. 11/21/2009 is a day of great importance, but this day went unnoticed by the vast majority of the United States.

Why was this date so important? One word – GINA.

On a day when mammogram testing and health care legislation dominated the news GINA went unnoticed. GINA, though having little impact on our current day to day lives, may have an even larger impact on society than the topics that dominated the news. Who is GINA? GINA is not actually a person, but rather an acronym for the “Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act” of 2008, which took affect on 11/21/2009. Employees are now protected against genetic discrimination as part of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, joining categories such as race and age.

The idea that a company could test employees genetic information may sound like science fiction, especially for those who have seen the movie GATTACA, but like some other science fiction ideas given technological advances and time fiction can become non-fiction. On 10/09/2005 IBM became the first company to initiate a policy against discrimination based on genetic information. In 2007 IBM lobbied congress to pass the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act. On 10/06/2009, nearly four years from when IBM announced its discrimination policy, IBM releases a press release on their technological advances in DNA transistors. The DNA transistors could lower the cost of human DNA testing from $2.7 billion (Human Genome Project) to a range of $100 to $1,000.

At the $1,000 price point DNA testing can become affordable for millions of people, resulting in ‘personalized medicine‘ and increased awareness of genetic cancer risks. Mammograms are the best current technology have to detect breast cancer, but by no means is it the best possible technology as there are concerns on false positives. DNA testing could be the technology that replaces (or at worst supplements) mammograms, changing the way society thinks, acts and lives.

In order for most nonprofits to bring about systemic change they need to form coalitions or have an advocacy component. Private charities (foundations) aside, nonprofits are allowed to lobby within certain limits. In 1995 the first proposal to protect against genetic discrimination was made in the house. In 1997 the Coalition for Genetic Fairness was formed, consisting originally of civil rights, disease-specific and health care organizations. In 2005 the coalition expanded to include industry groups and employers. On May 21, 2008 GINA was passed, the coalition having united more than 500 organizations and thousands of individuals.

Change does not happen over night. There are many important factors such as patience, stakeholder management, communication, burning platforms, luck and leadership. Currently nonprofits are working to protect employers from discrimination based on sexual preference and gender identify. According to the ACLU

“Firing or refusing to hire someone because they are gay or lesbian is legal in 29 states. And job discrimination against people based on gender identity is legal in 38 states.”

While the passing and effective dating of the GINA legislation should be remembered and celebrated, there is still a lot of work to do make shaping our government to be of the people, by the people and for the people.

I was thinking about film today, as I do pretty often, wondering what I’d pick if I tried to come up with a combo list of slightly strange sci-fi movies including some post apocalyptic stuff.  Films I liked.  Films that had an impact on me… couldn’t forget scenes from them, made me think a bit… that sort of thing.  This is what I came up with…. in no particular order.

2001: A Space Odyssey (68)

2010 (84)

A Boy and his Dog (75)

A Scanner Darkly (06)

Bicentennial Man (99)

Blade Runner (82)

Brave New World (80)

Capricorn One (77)

Cherry 2000 (87)

Damnation Alley (77)

Dark City (98)

Demolition Man (93)

Dreamscape (84)

Escape from New York (81)

Gattaca (97)

Handmaid’s Tale (90)

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (78)

Jacob’s Ladder (90)

Liquid Sky (82)

Logan’s Run (76)

Mad Max Movies (79-85)

Matrix Trilogy (99-03)

Metropolis (27)

Minority Report (02)

Mission to Mars (00)

Omega Man (71)

On The Beach (59)

Planet of the Apes Films (68-73)

Quatermass and the Pit (68)

Scanners (81)

Red Planet (00)

Silent Running (72)

Soylent Green (73)

Stargate (94)

Tank Girl (95)

The Running Man (87)

The Day The Earth Stood Still (51)

The Island (05)

The Island of Dr. Moreau (77)

The Andromeda Strain (71)

The Time Machine (60)

They Live (88)

The Thing (82)

V for Vendetta (05)

Total Recall (90)

Videodrome (83)

The Warriors (79)

Waterworld (95)

Westworld (73)

Zardoz (74)

Four videos in a series of Philip Glass video resource dumping…

1. “Metamorphosis One,” from Solo Piano, and used in that episode of Battlestar Galactica. It was used quite effectively and also, in that one episode in the last episode where Starbuck jams with the piano player, if you didn’t think that guy was supposed to be her dad after having seen this episode, well…

…then again, with the butchering of “All Along The Watchtower” that was so heavily incorporated in the final cycle of that show, I think I have to remain incredibly happy that Glass was used at all. It gave this show a certain touch of class that so many people mistakenly thought it retained it’s entire four seasons (and well into straight-to-DVD money grabs). But I digress. See a little of how “Metamorphosis One” was used here and here.

2. The trailer for Glass: A Portrait Of Phillip In Twelve Parts, the documentary on the composer who is a master of “existential dread” and “repetitive structures” by director Scott Hicks.

3. Einstein On The Beach, the approximately five or so hour long opera composed by Glass.

…of which there is an excerpt above. The opera is where the Counting Crows got the title for their song, “Einstein On The Beach (For An Eggman)” from. I don’t really like the Counting Crows except for just a handful of songs, but there’s just something infectiously wonderful about that one.

Though, musical side note: When I think of their song, with that subtitle in parentheses, I can’t help but think of, of course, the Beatles’ “I Am The Walrus,” a lovely bit of juvenile Lewis Carrolling about and complaining abotu capitalism, and the eternal debate that followed over who exactly the Walrus was and who was the fucking Eggman. In “Glass Onion” on The White Album, it’s suggested that the Walrus was Paul, though in John Lennon’s solo song, “God,” naturally, he suggests that it was himself. But the Eggman was actually Eric Burdon.

4. How to play piano like Philip Glass.

Just fascinating. If I had ever taught myself how to play piano, well… now I’d be playing like Glass, wouldn’t I? Well, more soon, I imagine, but for now, enjoy the Phillip Glass. And… suck it, Michael Nyman, ha ha.

Sucesso

‘A hospedeira’ entra na lista dos livros mais vendidos no Brasil e mostra domínio da autora de ‘Crepúsculo’ na ficção

Publicada em 21/10/2009 às 08h44m

O Globo

RIO – Mesmo sem o casal pop Bella Swan e Edward Cullen – a dupla de “Crepúsculo” que lhe valeu a fama e 77 milhões de livros vendidos mundo afora -, Stephenie Meyer conseguiu emplacar seu novo livro entre as dez obras de ficção mais vendidas no Brasil. “A hospedeira”, lançado pela editora Intrínseca semana passada, é o primeiro voltado para o público adulto e sem os personagens da saga vampiresca, que ganha agora seu segundo filme, “Lua nova” . Com isso, a escritora ocupa seis das dez posições do ranking de vendas no país.

Em pouco mais de uma semana, “A hospedeira” já vendeu 60 mil exemplares no Brasil. No novo romance, vampiros e lobisomens dão lugar a elementos de ficção científica. A hospedeira em questão é Melanie Stryder, uma das poucas sobreviventes em um planeta dominado por invasores invisíveis, que se instalam nos corpos de humanos que tiveram suas mentes extraídas. Atacada por um destes estranhos seres, Melanie se recusa a desistir da posse da própria mente e vive em conflito com a sua “Peregrina”.

Apesar de querer fugir das comparações com “Crepúsculo”, “Eclipse”, “Lua nova” e “Amanhecer”, o ingrediente que deixou adolescentes do mundo todo viciados em suas histórias também se faz presente em “A hospedeira”. Toda a complicada trama sci-fi abre caminho para uma história de amor mais complicada ainda. Um “triângulo amoroso com apenas dois corpos”, como a própria Stephenie explica na contracapa da edição nacional.

Além de “A hospedeira”, os outros títulos na lista dos mais vendidos aparecem bem colocados, firmes e fortes no ranking há semanas: “Amanhecer” está em segundo lugar, “Lua nova”, em terceiro, seguidos de “Eclipse” e “Crepúsculo”. A publicação que completa o domínio Meyeriano sobre a lista é a edição especial de “Crepúsculo”, que saiu com um pôster do filme encartado e capa estrelada por Robert Pattinson e Kristen Stewart, Edward e Bella dos cinemas. É o nono livro mais vendido do Brasil.

Recentemente, “Crepúsculo” valeu a Stephenie uma polêmica com L. J. Smith, autora do concorrente “Diários do vampiro”, cuja adaptação para TV estreia nesta quinta no Brasil. L.J. acusou Stephenie de plagiar várias das caracteristícas que ela deu aos seus personagens sobrenaturais . Stephenie não deu ouvido às insinuações e continua investindo alto nos seus personagens.

Não é para menos: reforçando seu talento para conquistar leitores, arrebatar plateias e faturar alto, Stephenie já garantiu a adaptação cinematográfica de “A hospedeira”. Em 2011, a história chega às telas grandes pelas mão de Andrew Niccol, diretor de “O show de Truman” e “Gattaca”.

http://oglobo.globo.com/cultura/mat/2009/10/20/hospedeira-entra-na-lista-dos-livros-mais-vendidos-no-brasil-mostra-dominio-da-autora-de-crepusculo-na-ficcao-768784570.asp

by Russ Fischer – SlashFilm.com

We don’t know a lot about this project yet, but buried in a trade break about Denis Leary’s production shingle Apostle Films, which is developing a bunch of new shows to prepare for Rescue Me’s scheduled 2011 end point, there’s an interesting piece of detail. The company has bought the rights to Gattaca, Andrew Niccol’s 1997 sci-fi film, and will develop it as a television series.

Variety specifically says this: The company has secured the rights to the feature film Gattica [sic], which they plan to develop as a one-hour police procedural set in the future. The Gattica smallscreen adaptation will be written by Gil Grant and is being developed through Sony TV’s international division.

OK, setting aside the misspelling, that’s a weird bit of news. Gattaca, which created a society in which DNA determines a person’s place in society,  was a film about human determination and ability, class and discrimination. The police are involved in the film, yes, but the fact that Ethan Hawke’s character breaks the law in order to impersonate a genetically superior individual is only part of the point.

What will the throughline of the show be, then? Cops investigating similar crimes, pursing and looking into the lives of  in-valids, or possibly investigating situations in which genetic discrimination, which is technically illegal in the film’s storyline, is used against lower classes? Given the film’s content about discrimination I can see where one might think there’s a TV show to be extrapolated, and maybe a police procedural seems like the best way to go about it. But the angle still doesn’t seem like something strong enough to generate more than a season or two.

I also don’t know a lot about Gil Grant, the writer currently tasked with adapting. IMDB says he’s been on shows from Eight is Enough to 24, but aside from his work on 24 and the short-lived series The Cape, not a lot stands out. And if you’re wondering whether Leary might be cast in the show, so are we. Apostle is looking for another starring series for him, but there’s no suggestion that this would be it.

Amazon Specials!

Está el rumor de que la película de 1997 podría tener un remake en la televisión según nos lo dice el Variety.

Todo comienza con el detallde que la empresa de Denis Leary (Apostle Films) ha comprado los derechos de la película de “Gattaca” para hacer su versión en la pantalla chica.

El detalle es que en los papeles, el film está mal escrito (le pusieron Gattica) y pues ya checaron la gente del internet y no hay una película llamada así, pero la trama la describen como una política dramática que se está haciendo en el futuro, la cual corresponde a los delineamientos que tiene la cinta de “Gattaca”.

Entre que son peras o son manzanas, sabemos que Gil Grant está escribiendo el piloto, y que fue designado por Sony Television.

Estamos seguros de que en la semana las cosas se van a aclarar.

From digitalspy:

‘Denis Leary’s Apostle Films recently acquired the rights to 1997 sci-fi film Gattaca for a TV adaptation.

The company plans to develop the property as an hour-long crime series set in the future, reports Variety. NCIS writer/producer Gil Grant has been tapped to pen the project, which is being developed through Sony TV’s international division.’

What. What. Whaaaaaaat?

Minor freakout aside, let’s look at this objectively. Gattaca is a really good movie with a pretty excellent sci fi premise (genetic engineering creating an underclass of people). This could work…I think. There are so many ways to explore the valid/invalid concept that could make for a riveting show.

On the other hand, I’m not sure I like the sound of a crime series. Gattaca does have a vague murder mystery but it’s fairly secondary to the main plot and really just serves to up the tension for the main character.  Is there really scope for a different crime mystery every week? Or would it be a series long arc like True Blood? I prefer that idea, as it would allow them to look at the world in more depth, rather than just having ‘invalid criminal of the week’.

Hello,

today was a good day

Well and I’m tired and the weather’s perfect for sleeping so I’m sorry if I don’t complete this post haha.

Hmm anyway morning, there was Bio Lecture, finished up Gattaca Eeh they skipped the part where they were testing the physique of the elites! The “Jerome, Jerome, a metronome” part hahah.

But anyway I really love the show. Like how Cai Tong and I “discussed”, there’re really quite a few symbolic stuff in that movie. Even the words they say, like when Jerome (Vincent) wanted to throw away the packs of blood Eugene had prepared for him, and the latter shouting “it’s mine!”. Just had some impact, I don’t know how to elaborate.

And so many other things, really. I wonder why Eugene did all that. What did he mean by Jerome (Vincent) lending him his dream? I probably won’t do that if I were Eugene. I probably’d be too selfish to do that; to lend someone my identity to do something. Even though Eugene didn’t really like being in Gattaca right..? But anyway, if I were Eugene, I’d perhaps think about what I’d gain, and honestly I think there’s more to lose (blood, and all) than to gain. Eugene’s pretty cool for that; for helping Vincent even though he’s but a stranger who’s taken on his identity without paying a thing. But a stranger, who, in Eugene’s words, lent him his dreams. I wonder how that’s possible, but it’s cool anyway.

I think she likes us.

Hahaha so cute.

I: “I had a crazy idea that you were more interested in the murder case than in me.”
V: “You’re right.”
(Pause)
V: “It’s a crazy idea.”

Yeppp and after Bio there was that SMS quiz again lol, and then there was PW lesson, more presentation, and ohhh Mdm Chen brought a cake! From Chocz, it’s really pretty and really nice (as in taste) too. Today’s Zhi Chao’s birthday haha, Happy Birthday! Oh and Cheng Siang set his hair on fire hahaha. Okay fine I didn’t witness it, but his reaction was funny enough. Thank you Mdm Chen!

It’s sad to think that Mdm Chen won’t be teaching me anymore next year. I don’t know if she’s still teaching our class Physics, but the fact is I don’t take Physics gah and unless I do PW again (ha ha ha), yeaah. But oh Mr Loo said he’s teaching us again next year Yay.

Hm after PW there was break, went to the library after lunch, printed out my OP script, watched a movie in the archives room. Or rather, Jomain, CT and KY watched and I slept lol. Comfortable

I’ve been responding to a new (Japanese) name recently hahaha, there’s an Uzumaki family in class now.

After break was PW, more presentation, and then Math Tutorial was brought forward, during which we were released after we completed a survey =.=

So we had from around 1310hrs to 1430hrs to stone, because at 1430hrs there was supposed to be PW again. Went to the music room (seems like most people in our class gravitate towards that room (even though it’s so high up and against gravity anyway) during their free time) and they KBoxed again (by plugging a handphone such that music goes out of the speakers of the music room, and by using the microphone) and I just stoned around/played Sudoku/stoned more/talked.

And then 1430 came and we presented after Jia Hua did his part (which was rather entertaining) and I was really nervous and I keep stuttering and I keep speaking too quickly and stumbling over my own words.

After PW it was 1540hrs already, walked to SALT, Bandddd was good, I like. And then there was thunder and it started to rain, I love the rain I love the rain I love the rain.

Ended at 7, waited for my parents, enjoyed the rain while waiting for them. We headed to Thomson Plaza. It’s been years since I’ve been there; I remember going there quite frequently when I was young because I had a Phonics class somewhere near there. It’s been so long, the place seems rather old now. Went to Popular for a bit and was tempted to get book(s) but I haven’t even started The Time Traveler’s Wife (I think my brother’s reading it? I’m not sure.) and well I didn’t finish Pride and Prejudice! Returned it to the school library today. Gah I cannot even finish just One book. D:

And then it was home, it’s cooling and cold and nice and I’m going to sleep, goodnight! I think this post is rather messy/incoherent/whatever. S:

For someone who was never meant for this world, I must confess I’m suddenly having a hard time leaving it. Of course, they say every atom in our bodies was once part of a star. Maybe I’m not leaving. Maybe I’m going home.

(edit)
Click to read about tmr, about reflections.

Ohh right how could I forget, haha there’s band tmr and after band we’re going for lunch and after that I’m supposed to have SNYS Prac but I’ve agreed with Tian Hui to go down to CCAB to…

Submit our letters of resignation!

Okay I make it sound like it’s a good thing.

Honestly, I don’t know.

I remember the day I had my first practice with SNYS. It was November/December last year, I was slightly late, the brass ensemble was under the baton of Mr Leonard Tan. In the horns section there were Cleon, Benjamin, Austin and Syarita. There was hardly any social interaction during the practices, before them, after them, in between them. But I thought it’s just a matter of time, and well I thought I could do without social interaction anyway, since at that point of time I did enjoy the music I played with them even if I didn’t know the people well.

Well months passed. My first event with them was Principal’s Investiture a few practices after my first practice. It was held at Shangri-La Hotel on 30 December 2008, and it was cool. Subsequently there were other events, like concerts at VCH, Esplanade, Suntec Convention Centre…

So tmr I’m going to resign from SNYS because there’s been little/no interaction, I don’t enjoy practices anymore (I kinda dread them actually), and it’s taking too much of my time. Okay maybe I’ll probably slack off the extra hours anyway but yeah I guess I should quit if I’ve been dreading pracs anyway. I may regret, because I didn’t promote to SNYO during my one year there. I’m to blame really, for not daring to go for assessments, for not wanting to be assessed. And well even if I went for the assessments I mightn’t have promoted anyway, so I don’t know. I may regret, because I think SNYS looks good as a CCA on the portfolio and all but now I’m left with just one CCA. But I guess this has to be done; I cannot go on every Saturday thinking whether or not I should go for pracs.

So… Yeah. Time to focus more on studies, more on band, as Tian Hui said. Okay I’ll probably not focus on the former as yetttt, but NOEL is coming Yay.

Una de mis películas favoritas es GATTACA. En ella se narra una sociedad futura dividida en válidos y no válidos. Los válidos son mujeres y hombres, que gracias a la manipulación genética, han nacido provistos de inteligencias superdotadas, físicos perfecto y exentos de toda enfermedad hereditaria. Mientras que los no válidos, son aquellos cuya configuración biológica aún ha dependido del azar, pues fueron concebidos antes de la implantación de la selección genética.

El tema central de la película es la lucha de Vincent (Ethan Hawke) para demostrar que puede ser tan bueno como un válido y entrar a trabajar en Gattaca y, así, cumplir con su sueño: volar al espacio.

Y aquí acaba la ficción.

BeautifulPeople.com es una red social que tiene por objeto crear una comunidad mundial perfecta de belleza. Los candidatos envían una foto y un breve perfil. En 48 horas, los miembros del sexo opuesto votan si admitirle o no y el voto mayoritario es definitivo. Las personas que no consiguen impresionar son rechazadas.

En palabras de su fundador, el danés Robert Hintze, (ver foto) “BeautifulPeople está gobernada por el principio de que cada uno de los seres humanos desea estar con alguien que encuentre atractivo, es algo que pertenece a la naturaleza humana. Sólo al permitir la entrada de las personas guapas podemos eliminar este primer obstáculo.”

¿Y tú? ¿formas parte del grupo de los válidos o de los no válidos?. En BeautifulPeople.com, lo sabrás.

© oídococina.com

Sugerencia del Chef: Seguir buscando.

So in the past two years shit’s gone down. Things have seriously happened and it’s great, I mean for me personally it’s been a real whirlwind of stuff just happening, personal life- and personal reflection-wise. A big part of this has had something to do with the coming together of my body and my thinking and churning over aesthetics, sort of this intercourse of my flesh and blood with personal and cultural histories, macro and micro cultures, economics, preferences, etc. It’s really great!

A big part of this was finishing a pretty absurdly rigorous program of physical education at the Tisch School of the Arts, a really wonderful opportunity to just be in the body all day, sometimes thirteen hours at a time just sitting there with the body while it stretched and strained and flopped. Really you have to look at these ballet classes to really believe what we were doing it was outrageous! Summer of 2007 and pretty much through the end of that year I was really psyched, really happy to be with the body, really thinking a lot about effort and relaxation and the emotional and intellectual connections to the body. I was having a great time. I think I must have gotten tired though, I was in three repertory pieces, other student work, class and rehearsals everyday, and trying to make my own work and money and to have time to just sit and read sometimes besides. So I was exhausted and meanwhile really getting into some very different artistic work, some new kinds of dance like Beth Gill and Charlotte Vanden Eynde and Kurt Vandendriessche and Trajal Harrell, but also performance and video work. I read the memoirs of Karen Finley (which are a TREAT let me tell you and as cheap as $3.38 plus shipping on Amazon.com). And though of course I had known for years that there was a lot of dance that wasn’t dancing, and while I was mostly really excited about all the other stuff happening in these performances, still I was really absorbing the point that I didn’t have to move if I didn’t want to. I should also tell you that meanwhile I was figure modeling, which also hurt my body like hell but introduced me to classical Academic painting and this whole new way of thinking about the commodification of the body. So I made this solo, “Study for Seven Activities,” which you may or may not have seen:

It takes some patience to watch so maybe you’d like to do so later and that’s fine, but you should keep reading because what’s coming up next is something of a dramatic turn.

With all this thinking I started to conflate the virtuosic dancing body with the body itself and started getting into some tough, really necessary but really difficult territory of discrediting the body as an instrument of expression or anything else. To do so I think made a lot of sense personal history wise. My dance training had come ready made with the notion that any body could dance, that the dancing body was not restricted by size or shape or training, and for that I was really lucky. So from that there was already this idea that dance art came from somewhere else, separate from or in addition to the physical body. Then there was Unitarian Universalism, which started exposing me to Eastern thought at a very young age, so add to the mix this idea of a spirit that is above and ultimately wishes to transcend and abandon the physical, and add as well the liberal politics I was soaking up. Some really shit stuff has been done to people with bodies and because of their bodies: human trafficking, slavery, teasing, fat phobic discrimination, commodification of all kinds within the realm of visual culture and image obsession, etc. So all of this got me to this point where the body didn’t really matter, it was the mind that mattered or something else, but not the body. So I didn’t move that much for a while, really only when I had to for other people, some really great choreographers working in movement.

Well at some point I got dumped and spent a few months having beer and ice cream for dinner, not every night but maybe something like 30% or 35% of nights, and I started to feel a little chunky to I decided to start going to the gym. I went to New York Sports Club on their two week trial membership (they still have it, such a good deal!). I had always had a lot of judgements about gyms for many of the reasons referred to above, but if it could help me feel a little sexy then why not, and it did and much more. Gyms are kind of gross, there were indeed some body dysmorphic people there (one bigorexic guy was actually sucking on a lollipop for energy while lifting huge-o weights, it was such a delight to see), and many people do have the sort of typical New Yorker no-intellectual-interaction blinders on as a result of the architecture and planning of the room – all the machines are facing the same way, there are TV screens on each machine, etc. But there were also some very sweet people there, people who looked around and smiled at me, people who just want to get in shape or recover from an injury, people charmingly befuddled by the machines, etc. Gyms are also really funny; the unity of body and machine and the nature of these machines that are so ergonomic (the TVs, the little fans that blow on your face while you run, the messages on the display) make the whole image kind of sci-fi. I kept thinking about Gattaca. 

During those two weeks I not only resurrected my killer pecs but felt all the things they tell you you’re supposed to feel with regular exercise: happier, healthier, more rested, more energized, and with a more positive and nourishing feeling toward food and nutrition. I also got back in touch with music – Remy Ma, my favorite heinously violent rapper, makes for an excellent work out, while Devendra Banhart gives a great cool down. 

After my two week membership ran out I visited my friend and fellow dancer Megan Flynn for a private Pilates session. I had taken mat classes before, mostly from Kathy Grant, a New York legend of sorts who was a student of Joe Pilates himself. While this provided an excellent base, studying with Megan was like entering the next dimension. Megan’s teaching practice is fed by a real curiosity and hunger for information, and she has developed a very clear method of imparting information and a philosophy for regarding the body that is, in my opinion, exceptionally sound. She’s also a complete hardass (in the best of ways) when it comes to the subtleties and finer points – she would NOT let me work in poor alignment or release my Kegel muscles. This wasn’t just physical exercise, this was brain exercise, demanding the kind of wild blend of mathematical logical thinking and sensory association that learning a language requires. At one moment I nearly cried, perhaps from frustration or from contact with some untouched/unrecognized part of myself (the core body stores A LOT of shit). From her keen observations I learned more in one hour about the idiosyncracies of how I use my core than I think I ever had. 

Megan is a fantastic resource and a total sweetheart. You can learn more about her teaching and performing by visiting her website. You can also contact her directly at meganflynn@mac.com. If you’re in a financial place to do so and have wanted to study Pilates, I give her my highest recommendation – private study with an exceptional teacher like Megan is the best way to learn the technique. She’s also a fantastic resource of information on how you can study Pilates and other body techniques at a range of cost and commitment.

These days, my body practice includes regular study of Ashtanga yoga and Feldenkrais (with legend of the form Claude Espinassier), as well as daily bike rides. It’s all a bit softer than the gym, which has its drawbacks but also it’s definite advantages – I am really excited by the connections I am making between body and imagination in these slower practices, and I can feel myself developing a more personal mental map of my body.

I am having a bit of trouble finding a note to end this post on, I think largely because the reality of what I am writing about is not tied up neatly – these things are in no way finished. I guess I’m just glad to be doing things with my body and thinking about them.

I was going to say that the implications on halacha regarding paternally-linked membership to the Jewish nation as accepted by non-traditional sects of Judaism are important. However, within a week, I believe, another team with some clever individuals showed how you could effectively tamper-proof your DNA. Which also has Gattaca-esque implications, from the other perspective. Nonetheless, here’s the article from a couple of months ago.

Research shows criminals can fake DNA

The possibility that clever criminals could fake DNA from blood and saliva samples to incriminate or exonerate suspects has been demonstrated by scientists at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot and the Israel Police’s Identification and Forensic Science Division.

Dr. Dan Frumkin, Dr. Adam Wasserstrom, Ariane Davidson and Arnon Grafit just published their eyebrow-raising article in FSI Genetics (Forensic Science International, part of Elsevier’s prestigious family of journals, Genetics).

The news that the “gold standard” of proof in criminal cases could be fabricated has aroused much interest after being published worldwide in The New York Times and broadcast on CBS TV.

According to the journal article, Frumkin and colleagues were able to fabricate biological samples containing DNA and – using their access to a DNA profile in a genetic database – build a DNA sample to correspond to that unique profile even without receiving any biological material from the person to whom the profile belongs.

The authors claimed that one would not need to be a forensic expert to do this, but only to have studied a few years of college-level biology.

As a result of this technique, lawyers and courts could conceivably be unable to pin rape, murder or other crimes on a suspect whose DNA samples were left at the crime scene or on victims.

However, DNA sample testing need not be eliminated as a method of identifying criminals, the Israeli researchers wrote. They developed a test to authenticate results by distinguishing between natural and artificial DNA, based on “methylation analysis” of certain points in natural DNA, and successfully used it on natural and artificial samples of blood, saliva and touched surfaces.

They concluded that it was necessary for crimebusters to adopt an authentication assay for biological samples at crime scenes or on victims to maintain the high credibility of DNA evidence in the judicial system.

Prof. Ephrat Levy-Lahad, head of the medical genetics institute at Jerusalem’s Shaare Zedek Medical Center, told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday night that criminals with such intentions could do this with existing technology and some knowledge of genetics.

“They would need access to devices that perform polymerase chain reactions (PCR) to magnify DNA. Since the development of the whole genome amplification (WGA) technique several years ago instead of examining just one specific section of an individual’s genome, this is possible, but I haven’t heard of PCR crimes being committed with it,” said Levy-Lahad.

“Maybe nobody bothered to do so, but the principle is clear. WGA produces a large amount of DNA that represents a person’s whole genome, and this technique is constantly getting cheaper.”

Frumkin, who was not available for comment, wrote in the journal article that “over the past 20 years, DNA analysis has revolutionized forensic science and has become a dominant tool in law enforcement. Today, DNA evidence is key to the conviction or exoneration of suspects of various types of crime, from theft to rape and murder. However, the disturbing possibility that DNA evidence can be faked has been overlooked.”

The authors wrote that “it turns out that standard molecular biology techniques such as PCR, molecular cloning and recently developed whole genome amplification (WGA), enable anyone with basic equipment and know-how to produce practically unlimited amounts of in vitro synthesized (artificial) DNA with any desired genetic profile.”

They added that when both artificial and natural samples were genotyped, full profiles with no errors were created.

“This artificial DNA can then be applied to surfaces of objects or incorporated into genuine human tissues and planted in crime scenes,” they wrote. “Here we show that the current forensic procedure fails to distinguish between such samples of blood, saliva and touched surfaces with artificial DNA, and corresponding samples with in vivo generated (natural) DNA.”

Prof. Yosef Almog, a Hebrew University applied chemistry expert and former Identification and Forensic Science Division director, told the Post that the ability to cheat was “certainly a nuisance. To fabricate DNA in the described way, the forgers will need a good knowledge of forensic DNA technology, as well as access to specific reagents and instrumentation.

“However, fabrication can be achieved also by simpler means such as ‘planting’ somebody else’s blood, saliva, hairs or even semen at the scene. DNA analysis of the exhibits will obviously lead to the wrong person.”•

Por Quique Sanchís

Continuemos con nuestro viaje fantástico sobre la ciencia ficción de hace algunas semanas, que os recuerdo, concluyó con la presentación en el final de la década de los 80 de dos robots tan dispares como exitosos: Robocop (“ejem”) y el gran Terminator.

La década de los 90 significó el renacer de los efectos especiales de gran calidad y el bombazo de las empresas dedicadas a ellos, lo que supuso la gran comercialidad y espectacularidad de algunos de los filmes que se generaron.

A pesar de que pequeñas joyas nada comerciales se colaron en nuestros cines, como el caso de Gattaca (1997), un thriller sobre la manipulación genética sin apenas efectos que tristemente no despertó mucho fervor en taquilla pero que debería ser repasado por los amantes del género y resituarla en el lugar que se merece, las mas recordadas de esta década son aquellas que generaron mas “dinerito” en taquilla. Tal es el caso de Jurassic Park (1993), buena adaptación de la novela de Michael Crichton, mucho más técnica que la propia película, y que generó otras dos secuelas de “más de lo mismo” absolutamente olvidables; o la irrisoria “americanada” (pero con la que un servidor se lo pasó genial) llamada Independence Day (1998), que supuso la confirmación del estrellato de un tal Will Smith.

Mención especial en esta época merecen dos películas, tan taquilleras como diferentes.

Tener como protagonista a Bruce Willis por aquel entonces significaba un éxito casi seguro, pero si además se incluye una belleza como Milla Jovovich y se añade un personaje absolutamente tronchante interpretado por un tal Chris Tucker (lástima que luego nos diéramos cuenta que a todos sus personajes los interpretaba igual) dieron como resultado en la cabeza de Luc Besson una película tan comercial como simple, pero francamente entretenida y cargada de imaginación que fue El quinto elemento, que arrasó en las taquillas de todo el mundo.

La otra era mucho más compleja, con una trama de realidad virtual, guerra humano-máquinas y unos efectos especiales espectaculares e innovadores que surgió de la retorcida mente de unos hermanos llamados Wachowski. The Matrix (1999), con Keanu Reeves a la cabeza, hizo que todo el planeta reconsiderase la posibilidad de estar viviendo una existencia que no era la “real” y, sobre todo, intentar emular  el efecto “bullet time” con el que Neo evitaba las balas de los agentes de Matrix. Ni lo uno ni lo otro acabó bien, je je. Desgraciadamente, la película no tenía un final cerrado y eso degeneró en otras dos películas que, personalmente, acabaron por hundir hasta el subsuelo el gran efecto que generó la primera.

La entrada en el siglo XXI ha supuesto la consolidación de los efectos especiales como esencia obligada para que una película de ciencia ficción triunfe en taquilla, pero también el nacimiento de un abanico inacabable de posibilidades para el género: desde la fantasía maravillosa de Tolkien hecha imagen por Peter Jackson en su trilogía de El señor de los anillos (gracias, gracias, gracias), hasta la explotación con irregulares consecuencias de los superhéroes Marvel y DC, pasando por los intentos de Spielberg de hacer historia con Minority Report o Inteligencia Artificial, tan fallidos como vacíos. También se ha demostrado la falta de ideas que sigue viviendo Hollywood empeñado en el renacer de éxitos pasados: Star Wars, Star Trek, Transformers… aunque su buen resultado en taquilla parece darles la razón.

Y luego, por fin, llegamos a esas pequeñas joyas que siguen haciendo del cine de ciencia ficción un género que sorprende y atrapa, sin tanta necesidad de que los efectos sean los protagonistas, si no basados en una buena historia que contar, y además, bien contada. Aquí entrarían maravillas como la misma Wall-E (vale, sí, es una película por ordenador, es un efecto toda ella, pero es tan increíble que merece una mención especial), Distrito 9, que daba pie a este viaje, y la reciente ganadora del Festival de Sitges, Moon.

Como se ve, el género sigue vivo y creando expectación y controversia, regalándonos grandes joyas en forma de pequeños filmes o grandes truños en forma de grandes superproducciones… Y este año aún nos falta el Avatar de Cameron… ¿en qué lugar la situaremos? La respuesta,  el  18 de diciembre en los cines de todo el mundo.

Gracias por la compañía y hasta la próxima.

The over-arching fact:
Your blood aint’ yours.

The cold stew inside:
A gift from above.

The footnote truth:
Your flesh is doors.

The real structure:
Dots made of strings.

The hope to be seen:
Threads rearranged.

The un-plastic path:
Just sex and move on.

The human excellence:
Their blood aint’ theirs.

The help of this future:
A science untook down.

The quick-came end:
Cheat and get your dream.

The hope done gained:
Alone, great views, and no oxygen at all.

1) Wouldn’t every parent want to ensure that their child was perfect and had the attributes of physical attractiveness, intelligence and athletic prowess to be able to do whatever she or he wanted in life? If so, then why is the society in the film so devoid of happiness, vitality and fun?

In the film, Gattaca, almost all parents wanted to ensure that their child was perfect and had the specific attributes that they wanted in their children. Because of this, the society created a depressed and very formal atmosphere. The children are born with their goals laid out for them and have no choice in what they really want to be. Their talents and their strengths are laid out for them therefore planning out the rest of their lives with nothing for them to discover. These children who were born “perfect” were not really perfect at all. They lacked the heart and drive that is needed to accomplish something that is thought to be impossible.

When these perfect specimens like cannot live up to the expectations that are laid out for them, they do not know what to do with their life and therefore give up. Jerome was a perfect example of this. Jerome’s purpose (or what all his traits laid out for him to be) was an Olympic swimmer, Jerome took place in a swim meet and received second place. Jerome felt that second place was not good enough for himself and that is when he tries to commit suicide. However Jerome failed at committing suicide and became paralyzed from the waist down.

Another example of imperfection within perfection is Irene. Irene is a “valid” in the society and is constantly looking for flaws in her peers. By always looking for, and finding these flaws in her peers, she has become very distant with everyone. She has become distant due to the fact that she tries not to associate with those who she feels are lower than herself.

Not only is this society hard on itself as well as others but it also lacks true love. When someone becomes romantically interested in another person they take their DNA and have it tested to find out more about the person through their genes rather than actually talking and getting to know the person. Children are also conceived through test tubes rather than the natural way that Mother Nature intended for children to be made.

If I had the opportunity to genetically select my child I would not be able to. I believe that the child’s life should be decided by itself. Of course the child would have influences on its life but its life should not be set out in stone for it. I would want my child to be able to discover and develop its own strengths and weaknesses rather than them be given to him/her.

The human race is meant for imperfection. Nobody is perfect and no one ever will be perfect. There will always be someone who does not like you or something that you do not succeed at. The human race’s base emotional need is love. Without love humans are neither happy nor satisfied with their lives. Humans need to feel excitement and devastation in order to grow emotionally and spiritually. Without devastation you will never fully understand what excitement or love is. Just as you cannot explain good without evil.

2) In one scene, Vincent states that, “There is no gene for fate.” What does this phrase mean? Much of the film deals with the human desire to control face, versus willingness to let fate run its course. Explain some examples of moments in the film where characters try to control their destiny, and moments when they accept fate.

When Vincent says that, “There is no gene for fate,” he is referring to that success can never be guaranteed. When saying this he is stating that even though people, who are “perfect” to the standards of society, cannot always accomplish what is being asked of them. An example of this is when Vincent beats his brother in the swimming contest to see who could swim further than the other. Vincent, the “imperfect/invalid” brother, beats his “perfect/valid” brother even though Vincent is suppose to have a heart condition which would prevent him from doing so and his brother is suppose to be athletically superior to Vincent.

Examples of situations where the characters contorted their fate are when Vincent’s parents had a selective birth for Anton, Vincent saving Anton’s life, Vincent agrees to fake Jerome’s identity, Irene has Vincent/Jerome screened, Jerome attempting and finally succeeding in his suicide and Vincent constantly working towards his perfect image of himself as an astronaut. These are all examples of when the characters are trying to control their fate because they grab a hold of the situation that is present and try to bend it to better themselves.

Examples of situations where the characters accept their fate are when Vincent’s parents give birth to Vincent naturally, Vincent applying for a custodial job at Gattaca, and Vincent telling Irene that he is not Jerome but is really Vincent the invalid. These are examples of the characters accepting their fate because they took the situation and dealt with the situation as they could without trying to change it.

I believe that humans should accept their fate while being willing to change it but not to have their life planned out fully. As stated before humans need excitement and spontaneity in their life to be happy. If my life was planned and I knew exactly where I was supposed to be going I would be bored of my life before I got to live any of it.

Últimas películas que he visto:
Gattaca, Distrito 9, A Ciegas, Jennifer’s Body.

Gattaca

Me da penica ver, una vez más, como somos los humanos. La literatura y el cine nos lo recuerdan, pero no con la asiduidad que sería necesaria, ya que no cambiamos lo más mínimo. Gattaca es una película de ciencia ficción… O no.

Distrito 9

A Ciegas

Jennifer's Body

Knowing 2009

Director: Alex Proyas

Writers: Ryan Douglas Pearson, Juliet Snowden and Stiles White

Starring Nicolas Cage, Chandler Canterbury, Rose Byrne, Lara Robinson, D.G. Maloney, Nadia Townsend and Alan Hopgood

    When I first saw the trailers to this film, I thought it looked like another botched abortion like Next.  But, then I saw it was directed by Alex Proyas, a director who I have always enjoyed.  So, when it hit DVD I thought I would give it a chance.  And, I am glad I did this was a smart, end of the world type of science fiction film.  Cage is very good in this and doesn’t go into his hammy overacting he tends to do in some cases (and yes Wicker Man I am talking about you).  He is anchored by a solid cast and a great story that keeps you enthralled to the ending.  The ending too is not a copout like the horrendous ending of Next was.  It is both hopeful and bleak and it is one of those that makes you think about the film for a while after you watch it.  A nice difference compared to the usual explosion driven science fiction of Roland Emmerich and Michael Bay.

    The plot basics are this, it is the fall of 1959 and a school is getting ready to bury a time capsule for 50 years, but there is this girl in the school who is having strange visions.  Before it is dropped into the ground the teacher of this little girls class wants all the children to draw a picture of what they think the earth will be like then and the little girl just seems to be writing down numbers frantically.  They entomb the capsule but the girl is missing and the teacher finds her hidden in the cellar writing numbers on the wall in blood soaked fingers.  We flash forward 50 years and the capsule is being unearthed.  We meet John Koestler (Cage) a teacher who is a widower with his son Caleb (Canterbury).  When the capsule is unearthed Caleb gets the paper that the little girl is writing and now he begins to hear thins and see strange people.  His father takes a look at the page and figures out that all the numbers relate to disasters that have happened in the last 50 years and sees that it is predicting future imminent disasters and now John is trying to warn people of these while trying to ensure the safety of his son.

    This was a really good film.  Proyas direction as always is great, he really sets up the tension during the disaster scenes and the way he tells the story you never know what will be happening next.  The script is very smart, one of the smartest science fiction stories I have seen since Gattaca.  The ideas in the film is brought forth soundly and really challenge your thought processes as you experience the film.  The ending of the film is at the same time both bleak and hopeful.  Never an easy thing  to pull off.  The cast is great, Cage does a great job as a struggling single father and a distraught widower.  Byrne is also very good as the potential love interest.  I also thought Canterbury was great as Cage’s son, he was never annoying and pulled off what he needed too very well.  The SFX were great in the film, I especially loved the plane crash that really made me jump when that happened/  This is a film that challenges your brains while still entertaining you like a good science fiction film should.

This one gets 4 out of 5

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The Host

O blog de Rubens Ewald Filho no portal R7 fala sobre a compra de “The Host”, romance da mesma autora da série Crepúsculo, Stephenie Meyer, que vai ser adaptado para o cinema por outra produtora (no caso de Twilight, era a Summit, agora será o grupo formado por Nick Wehsler, Steve Schwartz e Paula Mae Schwartz), com roteiro e direção de Andrew Niccol (de Gattaca):

Novamente é uma história de amor, só que em vez de vampiros, temos bem intencionados parasitas extraterrestres chamados Souls (Almas) e um deles chamado The Wanderer! Enquanto isso, já estão sendo exibidos nas salas os avant-trailers de Lua Nova, The Twilight Saga: New Moon, que vem credenciado pela direção de Chris Weitz que é um roteirista e diretor importante (que se revelou com American Pie, fez o talentoso Um Grande Garoto, mas fez besteira com a Bússola de Ouro).

Tenho simpatia por ele porque ele é filho de uma ex-estrela Susan Kohner (Imitação da Vida) e neto de outra (a mexicana Lupita Tovar, que fez o Drácula original). E o avô foi dos maiores agentes de Hollywood. Ou seja, ele é do ramo. Não dá para avaliar muito pelo trailer, a não ser que a garota Kristen Stewart continua incapaz de fechar a boca (será que já ouviu falar em ortodontia? ) e como se sabe o galã Robert Pattinson (que me pareceu talentoso) sumir a maior parte do filme (será que por causa da ridícula maquiagem do primeiro filme? Foi tanta a vergonha assim?).

E quem vai assumir a frente será o lobisomen, Taylor Lautner (como Jacob Black) que parece ter certo charme. Só torço para que tenham dado ao filme um melhor orçamento para terem, ao menos, efeitos especiais de qualidade e uma melhor maquiagem. Deve estrear 20 de novembro aqui no Brasil.

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Vamos a ponernos en situación, esta es la primera película de el director Glasgow Phillips, personaje que en 2002 escribió once episodios para South Park, y para un par de series más. En esta película también ha escrito el guión, junto a Scott Pourroy, que se estrena como guionista, anteriormente ha hecho efectos con miniaturas para Gattaca, una de las pelis de Star Trek, y algunas más.

La historia empieza con el indio Gerónimo (interpretado por Lew Alexander, actor que por suerte no había visto antes) al que persigue el ejercito de los EEUU en tiempos de exterminio de los indios, antes de morir Gerónimo echa una maldición a los hombres blancos en general y por suerte unos años más tarde aparece un hombre blanco, que no sabemos de dónde sale ni dónde se “infecta”, afectado por esta extraña maldición que convierte a la gente en zombies (cómo duele llamarles así), lo divertido de la maldición es que se contagia con el típico mordisco o con un…. arañazo? Por DIOS quién pollas puede escribir esta mierda. Los “zombies” caminan, montan a caballo, hablan, piensan, no mueren con un tiro en la cabeza, sólo mueren al cortarles el pescuezo.

Nuestros protagonistas se conocen en un bar, uno es Elmer, interpretado por James Denton, que lleva unos años haciendo de Mike Delfino en Mujeres desesperadas, y el otro es Luke, interpretado por Chris Kattan, al que hemos podido ver en House on haunted hill, Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters, y en unas cuántas películas y series más. A lo que íbamos, Elmer y Luke acaban juntos en el calabozo del pueblo, dónde le encierran al lado de la primera víctima de la maldición, escapan del calabozo y hacen enfadar al sheriff Claypool que junto a su fiel ayudante Cletus les perseguirán durante toda la película en modo zombie.

Por el camino conocen a nuestra protagonista femenina, se llama Sue, interpretada por Navi Rawat, nuestra heroína en Feast. Sue es la sobrina de Gerónimo, ha estado en un internado en la gran manzana, esta bastante de buen ver, y ahora quiere vengar a su tío. Empiezan su andadura en busca de los hombres que provocaron la muerte de su tío, durante el camino irán encontrandose con “zombies” malosos y fin.

Es una película floja, cuyo guión no se puede coger por ninguna parte, los efectos dejan mucho que desear, algunas de las escenas de la película parecen homenajes a Feast entre otras películas del género. Ni las bromas de la película hacen gracia, seguramente no recordaré esta película durante demasiados días, al menos eso espero.

Tak jak bestsellerowy cykl „Zmierzch”, również pierwsza powieść amerykańskiej pisarki – skierowany do dorosłych czytelników „Intruz – zostanie zekranizowana. Jego scenarzystą i reżyserem ma być Andrew Niccol, twórca filmu „Gattaca”.

„Chcemy, by była zaangażowana w proces powstawania filmu, chcemy mieć jej aprobatę i chcemy, by aktywnie wyrażała swoje zdanie. Sukces „Zmierzchu” udowodnił, że ona wie co jest warte uwagi – mówi Nick Wechsler, jeden z producentów planowanego obrazu.

Ekranizacja pierwszej części cyklu „Zmierzch”, o tym samym tytule zarobiła 382 mln dolarów.

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Me voy a tomar la licencia de planearle el fin de semana a aquél que me lea y no sepa muy bien que hacer. A los que se han quedado solos en casa y ni siquiera les apetece salir. Llueve, va a hacer algo de frío y la calle es peligrosa (como diría mi abuela) así que para el que haya previsto un finde de sofá y calzón largo le invito a que lo acompañé con palomitas y con algo de género artístico. Aquí van mis recomendaciones….con algunas escenas en vídeo…

Viernes tarde-noche : Es buen momento de peli. El reviente semanal no te permite salir pero igual si abrir un poco los ojos. Para esta tarde noche te recomiendo Gattaca. Soy un tipo al que no le gusta demasiado la ciencia ficción pero este, es un gran film. De estética futurista nos muestra que la vida nos coloca barreras pero que , éstas, nunca son insalvables. Sólo nosotros tenemos la llave de nuestra vida y la capacidad para superar todas las adverisdades. El tema de la discriminación por genes es la que traduce esta idea en realidad en un mundo futuro en el que al nacer ya conoces la fecha y el motivo de tu muerte. Además, yo la vi en la mejor compañía que nadie puede imaginar…así que comprendereis que mi cariño por esta pelicula sobrepase lo puramente cinéfilo…

Si no os va demasiado… ¿porque no volveis a recordar The Matrix?

¿Y el Padrino?

Para el sábado y el domingo (quitando ambas noches que las reservamos a alguna de las pelis que os he dicho, o a la que os recomendaré al final, os voy a empujar a  un marantón de series. Podéis elegir.

No podía ser otra. Los Soprano. Sumérgete en el mundo de Tony, en su vida, en su cabeza…es una serie que te engancha de una manera tan increible que si no tienes cuidado acabarás andando por las calles con la superioridad que da el ser el Padrino de New Jersey. Mucho ojito.

Si os apetece otro tipo de serie: How I Met Your Mother..otra serie de culto que te invita al día a día de Ted Mosby y sus colegas. Humor finísimo que, además, mejora con los capitulos.

Vamos a acabar: La Ola. Una pelicula alemana: “o estas con nosotros o contra nosotros”. Un analisis real de las posibilidades de que triunfe un nuevo régimen autoritario en Alemania. increíble y altamente recomendable. Die Welle.