It’s a pirates life for me

As we were talking about movie sequels in my film class last Tuesday I got to thinking about some of my favorite movies that had sequels. Sequels can be good or bad, but either way it is a film company’s way of trying to bring in the big bucks at the box office. When I think of a sequel that did not impress me was Home Alone 2, but one group of movies immediately came to mind when I was thinking about successful sequels. The Pirates of the Caribbean movies I believe were well made. Throughout these movies the viewer follows the adventures that Captain Jack Sparrow encounters to stay alive. Johnny Depp, who plays Captain Jack, makes it look almost fun to be a pirate. Also while thinking how can someone get away from just about anything. I think that this makes him easy to relate to because we all know someone in our lives that can get away with doing just about anything. Not only does the first one offer romance, thrill, and humor. All three of the ones following do in new and fun ways also. The first movie Curse of the Black Pearl introduces Captain Jack’s struggle as he attempts to regain his ship the Black Pearl. The second movie is Dead Man’s Chest which is more of a love story than the first, but still offers thrill and humor. The third movie is On Strange Tides, which pulls everything from the first two movies together. Then the last one At World’s End finishes out the movies by giving an ending to the first three. These movie are not all exactly alike but they play off each other enough to everything understandable and to keep you entertained. 

Money Makes the World Go Round

                When I opened my English 111 and saw an article entitled The Shadow of Depression immediately thought about the world around me. My parents always trying to save all the money that they can, and I realized that they act this way because of their parents. My grandparents we in their early 20’s at the start of the great depression. My grandma did not make it through high school because he had to work and help the family. Even though things are not that extreme now a day they are still in the back of all our minds. Robert Samuelson, the author of this article explains the relationship between the current economic and the one during the great depression. Samuelson uses facts to back up how these two are in direct correlation; things such as the unemployment rate, and the contrast between the budget deficits. Another problem with today’s economic crisis is that people hoard cash. This is not just the consumers but also the companies. We all know that Money makes the world go around so if there is no cash flow then how is the world supposed to keep working? Samuelson ended his article by stating, “When people stop worrying about depression, when the shadow lifts, the crisis will be over.” I agree with this article because as much as it is good to save your money you need to spend to help your economy. I also think about local business. Next time you go out to a store try and look for ones that are not branches. Look for stores that are special to your area and help your local economy. Here is a song that makes me think about this article.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rechCN3FAk

Don't you forget about me

When I think about a movie that is timeless I think of The Breakfast Club. When something is timeless it means that it is not affected by the passage of time or change in fashion. Even though The Breakfast Club was released in 1985 I believe that it still relates to high school students of today. There will always be clicks in high school and depending on which one you belong to can define what stereo type that you will fall under. This movie shows five completely opposite high school students coming together after having to serve a Saturday detention. Everyone that has been through high school knows that there are stereo types. The five that are represented in this movie are criminal, brain, basket case, athlete, and princess. As the movie plays out you will see all the character begin to fall out of their stereo types, and by the end of the movie they leave with a better understand of their fellow classmates. Even though throughout the beginning of the movie they attack each other’s ways of life based on who they hangout with.   They then realize that they all have their own personal problems, and that you cannot “judge a book by its cover”. Having teenagers in high school watch this movie would hopeful make them see that everyone has a story and it is not fair to judge someone by who they are in school. I know for me after watching this movie I viewed the students around me in a different way. Just because someone looks a certain way does not mean they are a bad person, or that they are above you.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfhIcgGpWhs

iWorld

While searching through my English 111 textbook I came across an article written by Andrew Sullivan. IT was entitled Society Is Dead: We Have Retreated into the iWorld. Throughout the article Sullivan explains how iPods and new devices have changed the social world. He explains how waking down a New York street is quiet and everyone is in their own world thanks to their iPods. Sullivan admits to being one himself. I believe that this article can apply to almost any situation. Maybe not a New York street, but even here at Illinois Central College, students plug into their iPods and do not communicate with those around them. I think that this is an article that many people today should read. It made me stop and think about the social world around me, and how much interaction I get with others. My favorite thing that Sullivan said was, “we put the I in me.” He also talks about how we have mastered the art of narrowing our lives. We are able to only read, listen, or talk to people we like. More and more people are getting iPods each day. The need for social interaction has gotten smaller and smaller. This is sad to think that music use to bring people together. IT was a common ground that was a social event. Now if someone does not like the same music as you it can cause a problem. Instead of being open people think only their kind of music is good. At the end of this article Sullivan tells us to try and listen to the world around us and the people. I believe that we should try and focus on the real world and not blaring our iPods into our ears.