Sunday, May 27, 2012
The Events that have Shaped Canada today
I am aware that this is not a review, but I have created a time line of my version of the top ten events that have shaped Canada today. I hope you enjoy it!
Sunday, April 22, 2012
The Hunger Games (Movie)
About the Movie
The Hunger Games is a "science fiction action drama" film based on the best selling novel by Suzanne Collins. It internationally came out on the twenty third of March 2012. The book was released in September of 2008. Since the Hunger Games is the first of three books, hopefully more movies will be coming. The book has been translated into 26 languages, and is available for purchase in 38 countries.
The movie is set in the post apocalyptic ruins of North America, a region known as Panem. "The Hunger Games" are "games" that are held every year by the evil Capitol. During the"games", the twelve districts of Panem are forced to provide two teenage "tributes" to fight amongst each other in a fight to the death on national television. The one person left, is given wealth, safety and support for their family and fame.
The movie is set in the eyes of 16 year old Katniss Everdeen, who lives with her mother and little sister in the very poor District Twelve. Her father died in a mining accident while she was young. But even through all her families setbacks, she is a very tough teen. One who never fails to put supper on the table. Katniss is a hunter, she sneaks (with her friend Gale) out of the boundaries that the capitol have made, and fetch food for their families to eat. At the reaping (where they choose the contestants for the Games), Peeta Mellark, and Katniss' younger sister Primrose are chosen to participate in the games. Where upon Katniss volunteer's herself as tribute instead of her younger sibling. Against highly trained tributes who have trained for the games their entire lives, Katniss will have to use her sharp instincts and her outstanding hunting ability to give her any chance. With the help of her mentor, former winner Haymitch Abernathy, Katniss is definitely in for the ride of her life. Along with all of the action, suspense, romance, and thrills that come with it, whether she likes it or not.
Cast/ Characters:
Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen, The lead role of the film.
Josh Hutcherson as Peeta Mellark, The boy who gets chosen with Katniss to go in The Hunger Games.
Woody Harrelson as Haymitch Abernathy, The alcoholic mentor of Katniss and Peeta
Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket, The "spokeswoman" of the contestants from district twelve.
Lenny Kravitz as Cinna, The stylist for Katniss and Peeta at the games.
Amandla Stenberg as Rue, The 12 year old girl from district 11 who has an alliance with Katniss in the games.
Alexander Ludwig as Cato, The "bad guy" of the games. Out to kill Katniss throughout the duration of the games.
Donald Sutherland as President Snow, The main antagonist of the series, The ruler of all Panem and The Hunger Games.
Wes Bentley as Seneca Crane, The man who specifically runs the hunger games.
Stanley Tucci as Caesar Flickerman, The man who interviews all the tributes and talks about The Hunger Games on tv.
Willow Shields as Primrose Everdeen, Katniss' younger sister.
Paula Malcomson as Mrs. Everdeen, Katniss' mother.
Movie Credits:
Gary Ross - Director and Co-Screenwriter
Suzanne Collins - Author, Co-Screenwriter and Executive Producer
Billy Ray - Co-Screenwriter
Nina Jacobson - Producer
Jon Kilik - Producer
What I Thought of It
Coming from a guy who has read the books, I would say that The Hunger Games is a great movie. However, I'm giving it 4 out of 5 stars. Firstly, I think it would be difficult to make a bad movie considering how great the original books were. On the other hand, I think it could of been even better. I think it hid emotion from parts that the book emphasized so well. The issue, I think, is the MPAA rating of PG-13. The need to tone down the movie, caused much of the loss of feeling and emotion. A higher rating like 14A, would have allowed the intensity of the book to be kept. But by setting box office records, I doubt the Producers feel they have anything to apologize for. I'm REALLY excited for the next movies. PG13 or not, they are still going to be excellent. I definitely recommend you read The Hunger Games series first. Then after that, WATCH THE HUNGER GAMES. You are not going to regret it. If you don't like reading, that's fine too, just watch the movie. You'll never know what you missed but you probably won't care. Hundreds of millions of dollars in ticket sales suggests a lot of people love this series and you probably will too.
P.S. I think I am going to do reviews for a while, hence the name "New World Reviews".
The Hunger Games is a "science fiction action drama" film based on the best selling novel by Suzanne Collins. It internationally came out on the twenty third of March 2012. The book was released in September of 2008. Since the Hunger Games is the first of three books, hopefully more movies will be coming. The book has been translated into 26 languages, and is available for purchase in 38 countries.
The movie is set in the post apocalyptic ruins of North America, a region known as Panem. "The Hunger Games" are "games" that are held every year by the evil Capitol. During the"games", the twelve districts of Panem are forced to provide two teenage "tributes" to fight amongst each other in a fight to the death on national television. The one person left, is given wealth, safety and support for their family and fame.
The movie is set in the eyes of 16 year old Katniss Everdeen, who lives with her mother and little sister in the very poor District Twelve. Her father died in a mining accident while she was young. But even through all her families setbacks, she is a very tough teen. One who never fails to put supper on the table. Katniss is a hunter, she sneaks (with her friend Gale) out of the boundaries that the capitol have made, and fetch food for their families to eat. At the reaping (where they choose the contestants for the Games), Peeta Mellark, and Katniss' younger sister Primrose are chosen to participate in the games. Where upon Katniss volunteer's herself as tribute instead of her younger sibling. Against highly trained tributes who have trained for the games their entire lives, Katniss will have to use her sharp instincts and her outstanding hunting ability to give her any chance. With the help of her mentor, former winner Haymitch Abernathy, Katniss is definitely in for the ride of her life. Along with all of the action, suspense, romance, and thrills that come with it, whether she likes it or not.
Cast/ Characters:
Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen, The lead role of the film.
Josh Hutcherson as Peeta Mellark, The boy who gets chosen with Katniss to go in The Hunger Games.
Woody Harrelson as Haymitch Abernathy, The alcoholic mentor of Katniss and Peeta
Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket, The "spokeswoman" of the contestants from district twelve.
Lenny Kravitz as Cinna, The stylist for Katniss and Peeta at the games.
Amandla Stenberg as Rue, The 12 year old girl from district 11 who has an alliance with Katniss in the games.
Alexander Ludwig as Cato, The "bad guy" of the games. Out to kill Katniss throughout the duration of the games.
Donald Sutherland as President Snow, The main antagonist of the series, The ruler of all Panem and The Hunger Games.
Wes Bentley as Seneca Crane, The man who specifically runs the hunger games.
Stanley Tucci as Caesar Flickerman, The man who interviews all the tributes and talks about The Hunger Games on tv.
Willow Shields as Primrose Everdeen, Katniss' younger sister.
Paula Malcomson as Mrs. Everdeen, Katniss' mother.
Movie Credits:
Gary Ross - Director and Co-Screenwriter
Suzanne Collins - Author, Co-Screenwriter and Executive Producer
Billy Ray - Co-Screenwriter
Nina Jacobson - Producer
Jon Kilik - Producer
What I Thought of It
Coming from a guy who has read the books, I would say that The Hunger Games is a great movie. However, I'm giving it 4 out of 5 stars. Firstly, I think it would be difficult to make a bad movie considering how great the original books were. On the other hand, I think it could of been even better. I think it hid emotion from parts that the book emphasized so well. The issue, I think, is the MPAA rating of PG-13. The need to tone down the movie, caused much of the loss of feeling and emotion. A higher rating like 14A, would have allowed the intensity of the book to be kept. But by setting box office records, I doubt the Producers feel they have anything to apologize for. I'm REALLY excited for the next movies. PG13 or not, they are still going to be excellent. I definitely recommend you read The Hunger Games series first. Then after that, WATCH THE HUNGER GAMES. You are not going to regret it. If you don't like reading, that's fine too, just watch the movie. You'll never know what you missed but you probably won't care. Hundreds of millions of dollars in ticket sales suggests a lot of people love this series and you probably will too.
"May the odds be ever in your favor."
-Matt
Source(s)
- The Hunger Games Books
- Scholastic.com/thehungergames
- thehungergamesmovie.com
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_hunger_games
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hunger_Games_%28film%29
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzanne_Collins
P.S. I think I am going to do reviews for a while, hence the name "New World Reviews".
Sunday, March 25, 2012
The Fault in Our Stars
The Fault in Our Stars is the fourth book by John Green. Mr. Green is a New York times bestselling author. He has many awards including the Edgar Award, a Printz Honour, the Printz Medal and many more. Twice, he has been a finalist for the LA Times Book Prize. John is half of the Vlogbrothers, with his brother Hank. They are one of the most popular projects in the online world.
John Green has said that "the title is inspired by a famous line from Shakespeare's play, Julius Caesar. The nobleman Cassius says to Brutus, 'The fault, dear Brutus is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings.'"
The main characters are as follows:
“Green writes books for young adults, but his voice is so compulsively readable that it defies categorization. The Fault in Our Stars proves that the hype surrounding Green is not overblown.” -National Public Radio. I liked this review because I have read "Will Grayson, Will Grayson" also by John Green and I agree with the statement. He really does write in a way that makes it very easy for me to understand and feel the story. The Fault in Our Stars makes you think, and puts you on the same roller coaster of emotions that the characters face. It's an easy 5/5 stars and I recommend that everyone read it as soon as possible.
I went into the book not knowing anything about it. The only reason I decided to read it was because of the author's association with the Vlogbrothers, and that I had enjoyed "Will Grayson, Will Grayson" (which I definitely recommend). I am very glad I decided to give it a try. The Fault in Our Stars gave me an opportunity to see things that are completely out of my typical day to day life, yet emotions I could very much relate to. It's definitely changed how I look at many things, and it really impacted me. TFiOS is an inspiring book. I recommend this book not just because I liked it. I recommend it because I want others to feel it's power and to learn some of what I have learned. Everyone should read this book, I honestly can say, "You wont regret it."
My regards,
-Matt
You can get The Fault in Our Stars at http://www.amazon.ca/Fault-Our-Stars-John-Green /dp/0525478817 or http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/books/The-Fault-In-Our-Stars-John-Green/9780525478812-item.html?cookieCheck=1
Check out Vlogbrothers (John makes videos every Tuesday, his brother hank makes them on Friday):http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_FzrUXOZEc&list=UUGaVdbSav8xWuFWTadK6loA&index=20&feature=plcp
Source(s): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fault_in_Our_Stars
http://johngreenbooks.com/the-fault-in-our-stars/
John Green has said that "the title is inspired by a famous line from Shakespeare's play, Julius Caesar. The nobleman Cassius says to Brutus, 'The fault, dear Brutus is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings.'"
The Fault in our Stars is presented in current day Indianapolis Indiana. It is about a sixteen year old girl with lung cancer, named Hazel Grace Lancaster. She tells the story in first person. Hazel barely ever interacts with other people besides her two parents, and spends most of her time alone. She is put in a support group for people with cancer after being diagnosed with clinical depression. This is where she meets Augustus Waters, and eventually falls in love with him.
The main characters are as follows:
- Hazel Grace Lancaster, When she was 13 years old, she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Now at sixteen years old, she likes to be called Hazel. Augustus Waters, and sometimes her dad, call her Hazel Grace. She loves the book "An Imperial Affliction" by Peter Van Houten.
- Augustus Waters is seventeen years old and lost his leg to Osteosarcoma. He loves the video game "The Price of Dawn". He has even read all the book versions.
- Isaac is Augustus' best friend. He eventually becomes blind due to eye cancer. He gets dumped by his girlfriend, Monica, early on in the book. After this, and gets comforted by Hazel and Augustus.
- Peter Van Houten. The alcoholic author of "An Imperial Affliction". He lives in Amsterdam with his maid, Lidewij Vliegenthart.
- Lidewij Vliegenthart. Has worked for Van Houten for some time. It is her that is responsible for getting Hazel and Augustus invited to Amsterdam.
- Mrs Lancaster, Hazel's mother. She is very protective of Hazel but in a good way.
- Mr Lancaster, Hazel's father. He loves Hazel very much and helps her all he can.
- Mrs Waters, Augustus' mother. A good mom and loves Augustus a lot.
- Mr Waters, Augustus' father. A loving dad and supportive of his son.
- Patrick used to have testicular cancer. He is now a social worker who runs the support group where Hazel and Augustus meet.
- Kaitlyn. Hazel's only friend left from high school. Hazel describes Kaitlyn this way, "extremely sophisticated twenty-five-year-old British socialite stuck inside a sixteen-year-old body in Indianapolis".
“Green writes books for young adults, but his voice is so compulsively readable that it defies categorization. The Fault in Our Stars proves that the hype surrounding Green is not overblown.” -National Public Radio. I liked this review because I have read "Will Grayson, Will Grayson" also by John Green and I agree with the statement. He really does write in a way that makes it very easy for me to understand and feel the story. The Fault in Our Stars makes you think, and puts you on the same roller coaster of emotions that the characters face. It's an easy 5/5 stars and I recommend that everyone read it as soon as possible.
I went into the book not knowing anything about it. The only reason I decided to read it was because of the author's association with the Vlogbrothers, and that I had enjoyed "Will Grayson, Will Grayson" (which I definitely recommend). I am very glad I decided to give it a try. The Fault in Our Stars gave me an opportunity to see things that are completely out of my typical day to day life, yet emotions I could very much relate to. It's definitely changed how I look at many things, and it really impacted me. TFiOS is an inspiring book. I recommend this book not just because I liked it. I recommend it because I want others to feel it's power and to learn some of what I have learned. Everyone should read this book, I honestly can say, "You wont regret it."
My regards,
-Matt
You can get The Fault in Our Stars at http://www.amazon.ca/Fault-Our-Stars-John-Green /dp/0525478817 or http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/books/The-Fault-In-Our-Stars-John-Green/9780525478812-item.html?cookieCheck=1
Check out Vlogbrothers (John makes videos every Tuesday, his brother hank makes them on Friday):http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_FzrUXOZEc&list=UUGaVdbSav8xWuFWTadK6loA&index=20&feature=plcp
Source(s): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fault_in_Our_Stars
http://johngreenbooks.com/the-fault-in-our-stars/
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
What is SOPA/PIPA?
PIPA is an acronym for the Protect IP Act, and was first introduced to the U.S. Senate on May 12, 2011. It is also good to take note that PIPA is a re-written legislation; the original which failed to pass, Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act (COICA) of 2010.
PIPA, if passed, will give U.S. corporations and the government the right to seek affirmative legal action with any website that they see as enabling copyright infringement whether of U.S. origin or not. Here is a breakdown of all that they will have the power to do:
SOPA, if passed, will work together with PIPA. Here is a description of the power given to the government and private corporations:
Some of the differences of the two bills are as follows:
(Photo found at http://socialmediacollective.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/pipavsopa.jpg)
As stated prior in what PIPA and SOPA are and what will they enable U.S. government agencies and private companies to do, the internet will become a hunt for any little bit of possible copyright violation. Of course the government loves blogs and bloggers, so it is only natural to think that they will receive a lot of special attention. These acts make the blog owners responsible for everything that is displayed on their site, including the comments of visitors.
For example, an article is published one day featuring a logo, or trademark of a corporation and that corporation doesn’t like that it is being put on display on the site. Now the author of this article could have used it as a teaching method, critique, praising good design, or anything you can think of, it doesn’t matter. With these acts being only direct enough to give an area for attack, and vague enough to manipulate and twist seemingly any possible way, any type of accusation can be made and found true. It is quite oblivious that none of the people on sites like YouTube have been given permission from record label executives to sing songs, and then proceed to post it on a video sharing site. The site the child will have posted the video on will be put under pressure to resolve this issue, or face their site being put on the list. This child, and his/her family, could also very well face legal action with either the site or the record label the song that was sung has copyrighted. I have only begun to scratch the surface with how these bills will affect our known internet. I could make a whole blog post on it alone.
Source(s):
http://www.1stwebdesigner.com/design/how-sopa-pipa-can-affect-you/
PIPA, if passed, will give U.S. corporations and the government the right to seek affirmative legal action with any website that they see as enabling copyright infringement whether of U.S. origin or not. Here is a breakdown of all that they will have the power to do:
- Force U.S. internet providers to block access to websites deemed as enablers of copyright infringement
- Seek legal action by suing search engines, blog sites, directories, or any site in general to have the black listed sites removed from their website
- Will be able to force advertising services on infringing websites, and those supporting of them, to remove them from their advertising accounts
- Companies will also have the power to sue any new websites that get started after this bill is passed, if they believe that they are not doing a good job of preventing infringement on your website
SOPA, if passed, will work together with PIPA. Here is a description of the power given to the government and private corporations:
- The U.S. Attorney General can now seek a court order that would force search engines, advertisers, DNS providers, servers, and payment processors from having any contact with allegedly infringing websites
- It will allow private corporations to create their own personal hit lists composed of websites they feel are breaking their copyright policies, ironically this doesn’t have any odd feelings of a legal mafia at all. These companies will be able to directly contact a website’s payment processors a notice to cut all off payment involvement with the targeted website. This payment processors and website of question will then have five days to act before it is simply taken down.
- Payment processors will have the power to cut off any website they work with, as long as they can provide a strong reason of why they believe this site is violating copyrights
Some of the differences of the two bills are as follows:
#1: SOPA is a House bill, PIPA is a Senate bill.
The Senate tends to be older and more conservative than the House, meaning that it’s more likely to be completely clueless about the internet. That’s not good.
#2: PIPA has a greater chance of passing.
SOPA has gotten so much greif that it is temporarily off the table. PIPA, on the other hand, has been relatively ignored and is much farther along in the process.
#3: They are essentially the same “anti-piracy” bill, but with a few different provisions.
Both PIPA and SOPA focus on “foreign rogue websites” (e.g. the Pirate Bay, Wikileaks) that facilitate piracy. They both also establish systems for removing websites that the Department of Justice decides are “dedicated to infringing activities.”
PIPA does NOT have a provision that requires search engines to remove these “foreign infringing site(s)” from their websites. SOPA does and it is been highly criticized.
PIPA requires more court intervention to take down a site, that’s good, right? But it doesn’t have any provision that penalizes a copyright holder for making a false claim of infringement. In other words, a Big IP company can claim that a site is infringing, drag it through expensive litigation, be proven wrong, and the site can do nothing about its costs incurred in the process. On the other hand, SOPA does include a provision that penalizes copyright holders who do this “knowingly,” including making them liable for damages and legal costs.
Here is a chart on some more differences between the two bills:
As stated prior in what PIPA and SOPA are and what will they enable U.S. government agencies and private companies to do, the internet will become a hunt for any little bit of possible copyright violation. Of course the government loves blogs and bloggers, so it is only natural to think that they will receive a lot of special attention. These acts make the blog owners responsible for everything that is displayed on their site, including the comments of visitors.
For example, an article is published one day featuring a logo, or trademark of a corporation and that corporation doesn’t like that it is being put on display on the site. Now the author of this article could have used it as a teaching method, critique, praising good design, or anything you can think of, it doesn’t matter. With these acts being only direct enough to give an area for attack, and vague enough to manipulate and twist seemingly any possible way, any type of accusation can be made and found true. It is quite oblivious that none of the people on sites like YouTube have been given permission from record label executives to sing songs, and then proceed to post it on a video sharing site. The site the child will have posted the video on will be put under pressure to resolve this issue, or face their site being put on the list. This child, and his/her family, could also very well face legal action with either the site or the record label the song that was sung has copyrighted. I have only begun to scratch the surface with how these bills will affect our known internet. I could make a whole blog post on it alone.
Source(s):
http://www.1stwebdesigner.com/design/how-sopa-pipa-can-affect-you/
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Canadian Immigration Timeline
For the past few days I have been working on a timeline about Immigration in Canada in the 1900's. I hope you enjoy it!
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
7,000,000,000
Recently the seven billionth person was born. Many people believe this is a bad thing, and now i want to share my thoughts about it. I find it funny how the thing that is making overpopulation possible is our better and better resources. Better medicines and better agriculture are some of the biggest reasons some of us are still on this planet. Also, did you know that a seven billionth person could of been born, someone died, then a new seven billionth person was born.
Having so many people alive is not good, but it is not bad either. We have more of in my opinion best resources in the world, people. It's hard to say that overpopulation is a problem, because people would have to die in order to reduce it, and we can't do that. We can't do that because every person is a person, a person with abilities and potential. If you think we should kill people to reduce the population, then go away because I don't want you reading this, evil person.
In the past two hundred years, the world population has spiked, but I believe that it will stop. I think this for a few reasons. First, the UN says so, and unless the UN is secretly trying to ruin the world, I'd say their right. Second, a professor named Hans Rosling said in a video that in a nutshell, we will have a steady population growth between nine and ten billion people. I believe that we have many challenges to face in the future about overpopulation, but we also have many resources to face them with.
Here is the video about Hans Rosling:
Information found Here:
Dan Brown,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gw_kG2wWopI&feature=channel_video_title
Vlog Brothers,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsQf7Mg95c0&feature=channel_video_title
Having so many people alive is not good, but it is not bad either. We have more of in my opinion best resources in the world, people. It's hard to say that overpopulation is a problem, because people would have to die in order to reduce it, and we can't do that. We can't do that because every person is a person, a person with abilities and potential. If you think we should kill people to reduce the population, then go away because I don't want you reading this, evil person.
In the past two hundred years, the world population has spiked, but I believe that it will stop. I think this for a few reasons. First, the UN says so, and unless the UN is secretly trying to ruin the world, I'd say their right. Second, a professor named Hans Rosling said in a video that in a nutshell, we will have a steady population growth between nine and ten billion people. I believe that we have many challenges to face in the future about overpopulation, but we also have many resources to face them with.
Here is the video about Hans Rosling:
Information found Here:
Dan Brown,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gw_kG2wWopI&feature=channel_video_title
Vlog Brothers,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsQf7Mg95c0&feature=channel_video_title
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
What I want to do with my blog
Hi, my name is Matthew and this is my blog. There are a few things I want to do with it. First, is learn. To be a good blogger you have to know a lot about what you're writing about, and since I am not a genius, I don't know everything. I want to learn about the world so I can be a better person.
Next, I want to communicate. I want to use different tools to connect with my audience; if it's making a youtube video, making a podcast or by even meeting with my readers in the real world! I want to write regular blog posts too, but using multi-media is very interesting to me!
Also, I would like to think. I don't want to copy and paste information from wikipedia. I would like to think about what I write about and say what I feel about things. I want my audience to think too. I want them to think about what I say and then tell me what they feel about the stuff that I say.
I want to connect with others. I want to read and comment on other blogs and have others comment on mine. I think it would be cool to have people respond to my blogs and say what they think, if they're agreeing or disagreeing with my thoughts. The whole point of my blog is to share my thoughts with the world, if it's on politics the latest terrorist attack. I want people to know how I think and I want to know how other people think too.
Lastly, I want to change the world. I want to change the rules, debate, teach others and make the world a better place with what I write. I want people to follow me and share what I say with their friends. I want people to be proud to read my blog because I'm going to be proud of what I write.
Next, I want to communicate. I want to use different tools to connect with my audience; if it's making a youtube video, making a podcast or by even meeting with my readers in the real world! I want to write regular blog posts too, but using multi-media is very interesting to me!
Also, I would like to think. I don't want to copy and paste information from wikipedia. I would like to think about what I write about and say what I feel about things. I want my audience to think too. I want them to think about what I say and then tell me what they feel about the stuff that I say.
I want to connect with others. I want to read and comment on other blogs and have others comment on mine. I think it would be cool to have people respond to my blogs and say what they think, if they're agreeing or disagreeing with my thoughts. The whole point of my blog is to share my thoughts with the world, if it's on politics the latest terrorist attack. I want people to know how I think and I want to know how other people think too.
Lastly, I want to change the world. I want to change the rules, debate, teach others and make the world a better place with what I write. I want people to follow me and share what I say with their friends. I want people to be proud to read my blog because I'm going to be proud of what I write.
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