It is clear that Drive will be one of the best movies ever by just watching the first 10 minutes of the film. Immediately the audience is greated by a dark Los Angeles skyline as the camera soars over the city, a shot that frequently appears, and by a man in a scorpion jacket. As more about his character is revealed it becomes clearer that the scorpion represents how he will never really let anyone through his hard shell and is always defensive and protective of his true identity. He also never carries a gun on him and only uses what is readily available to him (much like a scorpion because they only use their tail sting). He turned out to be a very compelling and intense character to follow and watch as he moved with such swagger and hardly talked, as he met the girl (Irene) he became even more interesting because there was now a romance to be invested in. One of the cutest scenes was where her son came in with a mask on, Driver just said very flatly, "Scary. Want a toothpick?" This opened him up in a new way and as a result made him more involved in that family which lead to different choices that character happened to make. 

It may be because I have a soft spot for romances, but the best story happening was the one with Irene and Driver because she caused him to move out of his comfort zone in a few ways, but also gave him someone to protect. That said, the most important relationship in the movie was that between Driver and the little kid because all of a sudden everything that Driver was doing was for the safety of the kid. A scene where there was obviously a lot of character growth was where Driver and the kid where sitting on the couch together right after the incident with Standard in the parking garage. The kid was traumatized about what he had seen and was also given a small gold bullet, at that moment Driver knew that the kid's safety was one of the most important things to him because it would protect the family. It was where Drive really shifted gears to more of a gangster movie than a love story because Driver had a new purpose and decided to interject into the family's issues and help Standard out. 

This scene also brought a new theme to the table: the lengths someone would go to to protect what they love. This was incredibly apparent in the elevator scene (without a doubt the best scene in the entire film) where Driver knew what he had to do to protect Irene and the kid. He first went in for what seemed like a two-minute-long good-bye kiss with holy music playing in the background followed by a brutal head smashing of the bad guy with a piece. It was completely nuts, and after that, Irene definitely didn't talk to him anymore, so their entire relationship was down the drain, yet there was a full sense of closure. After that, Driver was probably a bit freer to do all of his work because he could still use his passion for completing the deed of finding where the money went to, but I honestly was a little confused about the mafia the whole time and didn't really understand the whole role they played because it seemed like all they really wanted was for Standard to bring them their million bucks and to kill some people. That was definitely they only aspect of the movie that I was entirely detached from. 

The kill scenes were all super epic because each time Driver had to kill someone we saw him from an extremely low angle which made him look so empowered over these people who would usually have the power over him. For example in the elevator scene, in the scene with the hammer in the strip club and where he kills the final gangster who stabs him. He also managed to stay somewhat anonymous in his work by never giving away his real name which meant that people looking for him could only find him through where he worked or where he lived, which he also kept very private. Every shot he was in was planned so that something new was revealed about his character even though he hardly talked, there was something that brought to life in his actions and the few words he did say. Another aspect of the film that brought his character to life was the bizarrely fitting 80's female vocal pop songs as a soundtrack to his actions. The words were so reflective of what he was doing, thinking and saying that it was almost difficult to consentrate on what he was really doing at times. It was definitely not the soundtrack I would have picked for the film, yet it seemed to work so beautifully as a contrast that it didn't really matter that it didn't fit the crazy murderous theme that was so prevalent. 

I have not stopped talking about this film since we first started watching it and I don't think I'll be able to stop for a while either. Everything about this film was just about perfect, from the soundtrack and the score, to the romance and his personal relationships, from the intense kill scenes to the car chases. The title Drive acts not only as a motif where Driver is actually driving, but also as a theme of what drives certain people to do certain things. 

Emma Hersh

Though the title might suggest some movement of characters throughout the film that makes them stronger, there isn't much of that in Closer. The lighting is generally dark or gloomy, there is never much light let in even in a well lit room. Each character is so set in his or her way that there is not much room for movement, room for love but not movement. The film begins with two main characters Dan (played by Jude Law) who is very ordinary looking and Alice (played by Natalie Portman) who has bright red hair, walking down a street in slow motion looking only at each other with a song playing saying basically over and over "I can't take my eyes off of you" (which is also the only piece of the score in the whole film with words). From the beginning there was no question that these two would be attracted to each other. 

Shot through a steady camera and a series of slow pans, medium, close, and over-the-shoulder shots this film is very slow moving and has no solid character trajectory. With that said, each character is very moved by every other in the film, particularly when they aren't yet acquainted and are merely strangers to each other. Very early on in the film we find that Dan is not only in love with Alice, but also with Anna (played by Julia Roberts) who is an emotionless photographer who hides behind her work to get closer to other people, but will never open up because she is too nervous about actually getting something (or someone) that she wants. Then she meets Larry (played by Clive Owen) who she supposedly loves but there is never evidence of their love except for them saying to each other "I love you." This makes for an interesting dynamic between characters who were supposedly moving closer towards each other. Instead it appears that each of them are moving closer to who they truly are. 

When asked the question "What do you do," Alice answers "I'm a stripper" and while the audience makes assumptions about her character to be sleazy or a failure, it turns out that when she is hiding underneath almost no clothes and a wig she is the most honest. Alice's natural hair is only seen when she already knows someone, something or some place, if she is somewhere familiar. When she sees Dan for the first time and when she is stripping she has altered the appearance of her hair in some way and she finds that confronting because she is already hiding, this is when she is most honest and vulnerable. She speaks very blatantly throughout the film because she wants to be more honest and open with people, but she is so tied to herself that there isn't much room for growth. 

Then there is Larry who is obviously horny most of the time because that influences where he goes and who he meets. He is the only character who is always himself and never lies. He is a dermatologist with an attitude and many opinions who seems so kind at first, but as the film progresses it becomes clear that he has a relatively short fuse. He is violent, aggressive, and crude in the way he talks to Dan, Alice and Anna, yet he is very sterile. In one of the last scenes he is descriptively telling Dan that he slept with Alice, much like Anna told him she was sleeping with Dan, and while there was a sense of his burning on the inside of his body, the room they were in was completely white and very sterile. Throughout the film, most colors followed a very basic color scheme, they were mostly whites and blues, only Alice was ever in more colors. Anna took photos through a black and white film camera which represented the way she viewed her life and the world, in a neutral and gray way. Throughout the whole film she was unhappy with her life and her relationships. 

The idea of who is a stranger plays out in many ways in this film because none of the relationships were established beforehand. The viewer makes discoveries along with each character about the others in the film. As each person begins as a stranger, they also end as a stranger. The film is almost entirely confrontation as each person cheats on their partner with another main character. They all want to be honest and good people so they tell their partners about it at some point and each character turns out to be basically images of the same person. In the end no one is completely happy because they all feel cheated and it is clear as a viewer that none of them will go back to normal. There was never a sense of normal in this film, though, because each relationship twists, turns, backtracks and mirrors the other relationships. One of the ending scenes is Dan and Alice fighting, she makes him so mad that he threatens to hit her, so she challenges that and he hits her. A slap across the face in slow motion with the song from the beginning playing. As they met in slow motion they also separated in slow motion. 

For this project Maxime Damis and I worked together to bake Biscotti. HERE is the link to our recipe, recipe analysis, and photos of our creation.

The easiest and most efficient way to make a didgeridoo is by using PVC pipes and finding the appropriate size and design and then making it look pretty. :) 

En completando este proyecto conocí mucho de sexismo en sociedad y cada vez una cosa es tan sexismo dije, “ESTO ES SEXISMO” entonces tuve un impresión en mi opiniones de sociedad y personas sexismos en nuestro culturo. También los todos ejemplos de sexismo en cultura de pop. Pienso que contribuí buenos opiniones del guión y presenta los características de hombres en el culturo latinoamericano en un forma controvertido.

Si completar este proyecto otra ves voy a escribir un guión menos complicado y hacer mas tiempo con el video y menos con el guión. 

Pienso que los dos generos tomar accion en situaciones diferentes. Entonces en telenovelas y programas diferentes los hombres toman accion, pero en este pelicula las mujeres toman accion. En mi experiencia los dos generos son tan tanquillo en situaciones problematicas.

En la telenovela hombres fueron los dictadores, y toman accion todos los tiempos, pero en este pelicula las mujeres fueron las dictadores. En telenovelas, mujeres son bonitas y estupidas. Pero en este pelicula mujeres son tan bonitas pero son rationales y inteligentes tambien. 

I'm really interested in women's rights, and I always have been. When I was young my mom would bring me to some of her Women's Way meetings. So I thought it would be interesting to find out some more information about a topic that I've always been interested in. I started by talking about earning the right to vote, and came together with Marina and we combined the right to vote with other women's rights topics as well. 

I chose the format of a documentary because it's a format in which I feel comfortable creating a product that I will be proud of. I feel that people connect with visuals more than they do with simply reading something and our final movie is definitely something that I can connect with, so I think others will be able to as well. That makes the documentary more real and more interesting to the viewer. 

The parts of this project that were challenging were coming up with a specific timeline and story line to follow as well as finding primary sources that would look good in a documentary. Because both Marina and I had primary source docs from when we wrote our paper we used those, but then still had to find more to go along with our new thesis. On the other hand, some things that went well were coming up with a script and piecing everything together with smooth transitions and relatable topics.

If I were to do it again I would probably find more of a specific story, then look for documents that related to that story so viewers could follow along more intently, by following a story.  

In the process of doing this project, I learned both sides of the story of women's rights and why it's important that we have rights for women in this country, and that there are rights for women all over the world. I learned about the different movements and the stages of women's suffrage, and I think that now I have a proper understanding for what women's suffrage really means to the women in this country and how it relates to me. 

fantasia

no hay ahora, todo es de los Dursleys y una persona esta muerto. 

pienso que en el proximo capitulo Harry Potter como un bebe va a vivir con los Dursleys

Los Dursleys 

si es muy descriptivo 

       En español, estudiamos la cultura americana y sus valores. Después de eso, estudiamos los anuncios y los valores de las empresas grandes. Miramos a una sita con anuncios originales criticando a otros anuncios. Estos se llaman contrapublicidades. Fueron hechas para criticar los anuncios originales. Necesitamos tener dos anuncios y escribir una contrapublicidad. Usé un anuncio de Nordstrom y uno de Polo porque son marcas populares para los estudiantes. El anuncio de Nordstrom es para zapatos y muestra una escala para los zapatos. Me gusta este anuncio porque representa el cantidad de dinero que gastan los ciudadanos Americanos en cosas innecesarias. El anuncio tiene colores felices y es muy atractivo. El publico principal para este anuncio son mujeres. Los valores de esa empresa son el dinero y la importancia de los ciudadanos de media clase o de clase alta.

       Nordstrom tiene mucha ropa cara y muchos marcas caras. Pero, este anuncio es dirigido también a las personas de bajo recursos porque está anunciando una escala grande.En muchas situaciones, estudiantes no tienen mucho dinero para gastar en cosas innecesarias. Si miran el anuncio de la escala, van a querer comprar las cosas en escala. En la escuela superior, la apariencia es muy importante, entonces quieren modas de ropa diferentes y nuevas para ser aceptados por sus amigos. Pero, no dice en el anuncio el primer precio de los zapatos.   

Aquí es el anuncio original.    

En mi contrapublicidad para los zapatos de Nordstrom, uso la palabra “CLEARANCE” afectivamente. Pienso que cuando hay un “clearance” todas la cosas en la tienda necesitan ir a otras personas. También, es como todas las personas que le encantan los zapatos necesitan gastar todo su dinero en zapatos. Esas personas compran zapatos incluso cuando no necesitan. Los valores en mi contrapublicidad son de consumismo y incluso cuando cosas escalas. También la mentalidad de que necesitas comprar todas las cosas que vez en las tiendas. Entonces, no cambié mi anuncio mucho de como se veía originalmente porque ya coge la atención de la audiencia.

Aquí es mi contrapublicidad.     

       Para el otro anuncio, usé un anuncio de Polo de Ralph Lauren. Me gusta este artículo porque representa muchachos; ellos quieren chicas entonces llevan colonia. También representa los ciudadanos americanos que quieren gastar mucho dinero en cosas muy baratas, y la demanda para una buena apariencia.

       Pienso que los valores cuentan con la clase de la persona, y sus relaciones con otros. Cuando personas quieren pasar tiempo en su presencia, son mas que probable van a comprar cosas mas caras. Entonces consumismo y presencia son valores de Ralph Lauren y Polo. Información este anuncio necesita representar es el precio de la colonia y donde se venden.

Aquí es el anuncio original.

       Mi contrapublicidad es en relación con “Bros.” “Bros” son hombres o chicos sin respeto a la mujer y son misoginias. También son hombremente y beben cervezas y juegan lacrosse. No son hombres atractivos y pienso que la audiencia para Polo son Bros. Entonces, llamé mi contrapublicidad BROLO, para representar las personas que compran esos. El hombre en el anuncio es como uno guapo y serio. Tambien es tan rico entonces no es para hombres en una clase media. Eso promove una división con personas.    

       Pienso que mi contrapublicidad va a presentar una problema muchas personas no piensan que es una problema normalmente. En una escuela estudiantes quieren aprenden mas para el problema y va a comprender el problema con misoginia.

Aquí es mi contrapublicidad.

Here is the link to our Annotated Bibliography

https://docs.google.com/a/scienceleadership.org/document/d/1RkTy7mlh2yWrjWBmdjmXlsv_M9I6V0jD_e0Kz-b30m0/edit?hl=en&pli=1#