Luke Dunphy---Genius!

Those who watch the hit TV show Modern Family are familiar with odd ball Luke Dunphy and his somewhat "dumb" persona.

But I bet many didn't know that the actor who portrays him is anything but stupid. 

In fact Nolan Gould (Luke Dunphy), 13, has already graduated high school and is going on to pursue college courses. He is also a member of Mensa, with an IQ of 150 and plays an array of very different instruments; including the banjo, didgeridoo and is now learning how to play the sitar.  

This may not be new news, but its new to me.

I was completely shocked and every time I look at him now I don't see "dumb" Luke Dunphy. 

Its a charade now. I almost wish I never found out he was a genius.

I'm also quite a bit jealous and wish I had the focus he has, but instead I feel as though I identify more with Luke Dunphy.

What a conundrum.

Taken 2

Last night I was invited out to go see "Taken 2", but am unfamiliar with the first installment of the film "Taken", so I 'IMDB'ed it.
Immediately as I started watching the "Taken" trailer I bursted out laughing! I had practically already seen it.
How so, you may ask: Family Guy!
"Family Guy" had done a parody of the film in a 30 minute slot, one of many I have seen and loved.
Aside from that I decided to go see "Taken 2"; though I feared that I would only see "Family Guy" while watching the film.
Luckily that wasn't the case.
I really enjoyed the movie.
It was fast paced. Action packed. and had not just myself, but others in the theater visibly on the edge of their seats.
I recommend that people who enjoy action cinema to go and see this thrill based sequel  that has Liam Neeson go from "old guy" to action packed hunk.

Americans = anti subtitles

Are Americans too lazy to read subtitles? Yes! The first time I realized this was when I took a Mad Men and Monsters class at the University of Northern Colorado. We had to watch a select film each week and one of those films was Let the Right One In; which came out in 2008 by Swedish director Tomas Alfredson. The film was phenomenal! It had everything, mystery, suspense, gore and horror. All the makings of a good vampire flick. The only thing that was different was that it was foreign, and therefore had subtitles. Then just two years later Let Me In (2010) by Matt Reeves was released in America. Now the same thing is happening again! Just last week I watched a great movie, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2009), another film out of Sweden, go figure. To my surprise, today I went on the Internet Movie Database and saw a trailer for the upcoming film, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, featuring Daniel Craig. This remake is due out December 2011, again, just two years after the first was released. Soon the other two films in the trilogy will follow just as this one has. This appalls me! Especially when these remakes, are for the most part, shot-by-shot the same as its foreign counterparts. Dare I ask again; are Americans too lazy to read subtitles?

The Red Shoes

              In the upcoming week the International Film Series at UNC will be showing The Red Shoes. For those who don’t know what The Red Shoes is about, it is the original Black Swan. Black Swan recently received several Academy Award nominations, one in which was won by Natalie Portman who got best performance by an actress in a leading role.

              The Red Shoes is about an up-and-coming ballerina who is torn between love and her dream of being a prima ballerina. Black Swan is about a prima ballerina who is set to play the white swan in the Swan Lake production. She is torn between what she is perceived as, the white swan, and the black swan that people say she can’t portray.

              With both films reality and the stories that they are thrown into with dance merge within the prima ballerinas, and reality loses in the end. There have been a lot of people who say they can be lost in dance, lost in a story. With these two characters it becomes reality.
              For any audience who dares to watch either of these two films should be in for a reality altering experience.

Tron: Legacy Update

I finally went and saw Tron: Legacy, and I enjoyed it immensely. It had action, special effects and a plot to follow it through. I can see why Roger Ebert says in his review of the film that the plot is “a catastrophe, short-changing the characters and befuddling the audience.” Though to contrast that statement in Tron: Leacy’s defense, the audience is supposed to be confused, because the main character, Sam Flynn, is confused. Sam struggles to find out where he is, and where his father is; not to mention he needs to find a way out amongst it all. I kept trying to find other reviews that side with mine, and “came up short.” USA Today's Claudia Puig says, “the cutting-edge visuals and an exciting motorcycle chase compensate somewhat for TRON's listless man-vs.-machine story line.” I guess in most cases people find Tron: Legacy to be nothing but glitz and glamour.

Tron: Legacy

Tron: Legacy is a film I have been wanting to see since I first saw the trailer in theaters. Tron is a classic plot that leaves a son orphaned and a secret to be discovered. Though while reading Roger Ebert’s review of the film, my attention got “side tracked.” Ebert says on his site that, “its appeal is too one-dimensional for an audience much beyond immediate responders.” That statement makes me quiver to think what elements have been lost in the story telling process of this film. When looking at a review titled The most visually appealing film of 2010, a viewer’s take on Tron: Legacy, they stated that the audience doesn’t go to see movies like Tron: Legacy for a great story; they see it for its special effects. I myself am one not to go see a movie based on bad reviews, or good reviews for that matter. I plan on seeing Tron: Legacy later this week, and will make my own assessment of the film as I see fit.  

"Tangled" in the Box Office

Tangled  the new princess film by Disney “broke box office” by making 21.5 million dollars its’ first weekend when released in November. The film surpassed Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I, which came out the previous weekend, and also beat box office records when compared to The Princess and the Frog, which came out the same time last year. Tangled, the Rapunzel-based film captures the audiences’ imagination with a lost princess and the hopes for a dream come true. Rapunzel and her new-found friends have to overcome obstacles that come in the way of their dreams, be it seeing floating lanterns, wealth or to be forever young. Tangled is still captivating audiences around the nation, as it still is on the box office charts at number five making 8.7 million dollars. I think it is safe to say that Tangled is one that will be here to stay.