Movie Remakes

 

Usually, I think that remakes of classic movies are a weak and desperate attempt to generate profit from what was once a box office hit. Film studios seem to be trying to recreate the success of original movies by putting a new twist on an old tale. I am normally opposed to remakes but sometimes the advances in technology actually help make the movie more realistic than the original. Superhero movies that keep on being recreated like Superman or Batman have, in my opinion, certainly held their own due to the improved graphics and special effects. Some movies, though, should never be redone because anything else would fall in the shadow of the classic like the Wizard of Oz or Titanic. I think that movie studios should stop trying to remake movies because  if they continue to remake old movies then there will not be any more movies to recreate in the future. Movie studios should be working on new screenplays to soon be cult classics instead of slapping their name on a poorly recreated farce of an old movie.

One movie I would like to see remade would be Avatar the Last Airbender. The live action movie based on the successful animated television series was anticipated by eager fans. Unfortunately, the movie adaptation fell way short of expectations, making it one of the worst movies of all time. The plot did not follow the original, the casting was off, important characters were omitted, and the special effects looked fake and cheesy. Just thinking about the movie makes any Avatar fan furious. Therefore, any remake of this movie would be far better than M. Night Shyamalan’s version.

Bucket List

Life is short, and I want to live life to the fullest. Therefore, I have created a bucket list of things I must do before I die. If not, I will look back on my life and realize that I have not accomplished anything. As depressing  a notion as that may be, I use it as motivation to do something meaningful in my life. In no particular order, I begin my bucket list.

1. Travel the world

2. Become fluent in another language

3. Build my dream house

4. Be Princess Jasmine at Disneyworld

5. Own a Galapagos tortoise

6. Learn to sew

7. Swim with dolphins

8. Dance in a burlesque show

9. Have an extravagant wedding

10. Be successful

This list is not exhaustive in the slightest. It is just the beginning. I know that some of the things on my list are vague but I do not want to limit myself by being too specific. I do not know what is to come in the future. I do know that many of the things I want to do involve going other places and experiencing something new. I love traveling, and when I begin my adventure, I know that I will find more things I will add to my bucket list. I want to die knowing that I did all that I could and that I took advantage of all the opportunities presented to me. I want to live a long, fun life, and following this bucket list will help me do just that. In all actuality, it may take most, if not all, of my life to complete, but once I do, I can know that my life was not wasted.

 

 

Final Thoughts

Dear Introduction to Public Relations,

As the semester comes to a close, I reflect on my past adventures in public relations. We have had some good times, but you must admit, we have also had our share of differences. I quite enjoyed your company, for you always had something new to teach me. You never tried to deceive me; you were honest and transparent. The guest speakers were inspiring and gave a glimpse of what the future has in store. You were a wealth of knowledge and I am honored to have learned from such a great teacher. As interesting and intriguing as you were, you had a few minor character flaws that I would suggest you work on for the next students that come your way. Perhaps press releases should have been stressed a bit more and earlier in the semester. I understand that you are an introduction course, but I feel as though press releases are an important topic that you grazed over. To improve, I recommend that you hold a mock press conference as an interactive way for students to be more accustomed to public speaking and thinking on their feet. Other than that, I think you are doing a splendid job.

Unfortunately, I must move on. It’s not you, it’s me. I must continue my education to greater heights, and I am sorry to say this but I feel I have learned all that I can from you. Don’t get me wrong; you have been great and you have so much to offer. I will look back on our memories fondly. I will never forget you and everything you’ve taught me.

To you, dear Introduction to Public Relations, with a heavy heart, I bid you farewell.

Time Management

Are you stressing over all the end-of-semester work? Is everything getting to be too much? Is Netflix consuming all your free time? If you answered yes to any of those questions, then you may be suffering from poor time management skills.

Let me share some clichés with you. Time is of the essence. This needed to be done yesterday. Time is money.

If those phrases hold true to you, then you should consider changing your habits and being more productive with your time. With my help and the proper tools, YOU can accomplish anything.

1. Use a Calendar
   • A planner, agenda, or anything that lets you see the bigger picture can work too. Write out assignment due dates, tests and quizzes, work schedule, events, study time, etc. You can even add time to just relax. By laying everything out in front of you, you can see when your busy weeks are and manage your time accordingly.
2. Make Lists
   • Now that you have a calendar of what you have going on, make a daily and weekly list of things to do. Start with the most important and time-conscious thing and continue from there. Sometimes when you think about all the stuff you need to finish, it can be very overwhelming. Making lists de-clutters your mind and helps you focus on the one thing to get done. Cross it off your list when you’ve completed the task and go on to the next one. It may sound simple and obvious, but trust me, it helps.
3. Stick to your Schedule
   • As fun as it is to not do work, it is a necessary evil. Don’t blow off your precious time because you don’t feel like doing anything. If you do, work will pile up and add unnecessary stress to your already hectic life. DON’T PROCRASTINATE. You will feel so much better if you just get your work done.
4. Reward Yourself
   • After you’ve completed everything, you deserve a reward. It can be anything like a nap, a meal, or a party. Let yourself have fun and enjoy your down time because soon enough, you will have more to do.

These tips can be used by students, working professionals, or anyone. If you follow these few, simple steps, I can guarantee you won’t be late for a very important date ever again.

Switching Places

You know what? I don’t think I’ve ever really given this topic much thought. I assume most people would say that they would want to trade places with a celebrity, a family member, or their idol. Personally, I would not want to switch places with anyone because I am very content being who I am now, but for the sake of this prompt, it forces me to dig deep inside myself and ponder this question.

I guess the person I would want to switch places with depends on how I am feeling at that moment. When I am feeling stressed and overwhelmed with school, work, and the difficulties that come with being an adult (like these last few weeks of the semester), I would want to trade places with not a person, but my dog. He has it so easy. All he does is sleep his days away without a care in the world while I must endure a different obstacle every day. He does not have to worry about the future. He lives in the present, a way of life more people should adopt. He enjoys the simple pleasures of life like basking in the sun and meeting a new person. It would also be interesting to see the world in the eyes of a dog. Are they really colorblind? Can dogs understand humans?  Are they smarter than we think? These are just some questions that I would want to discover as a dog.

I’m not sure if anyone would want to switch places with me. I do not live too interesting of a life right now. All I do is go to school, work, and watch Netflix. If someone did want to live my life, they would be quite disappointed with its uneventfulness.

My dog Cosmo

Movie Review

The Wolf of Wall Street is provocative, dynamic, and definitely not fun for the whole family. The movie delves into the unconventional, fast-paced world of Jordan Belfort whose rags to riches story is intertwined with an excessive amount of sex, drugs, and F bombs. Maybe it is the Hollywood take on the true story, but all of the promiscuous antics of Belfort and his colleagues overshadow the already eventful plot. Although I assume that prostitutes, cocaine, and swearing played a major role in Belfort’s daily routine, the movie emphasized those aspects, making the film three hours long. Another thing that added to the extended running time is the many long-winded yet passionate speeches orated by Leonardo DiCaprio’s character Belfort. One inspiring speech is enough but to have any more loses its power and effectiveness which make those other inspiring speeches tedious and mundane.

Despite the things that some people may think ruins the film, the acting from everyone was superb. Leonardo DiCaprio was excellent as always. He really embodies the character and makes the audience believe that he is that person. I guess some would say that his acting was over-the-top in this role but perhaps that is how the real Jordan Belfort behaves…or maybe not. Nevertheless, DiCaprio pulled it off and made it enticing. Jonah Hill also did a phenomenal job playing business partner Donnie Azoff.

I would give this movie 4 ½ out of 5 stars. This is definitely a movie I would watch again. It is raunchy, funny, and keeps you on the edge of your seat. I would not recommend this movie to everyone, but if you want to see Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill at their best and you can get past all the graphic scenes, this is the movie for you.

Cell Phone Etiquette

I am at dinner with my friends and family. Do I

• a. Engage in conversation with them and ignore my cell phone if/when it beeps
• b. Try a little of both – talking and texting
• c. Ignore others at the table and become completely engrossed in  my phone

I would have to say…

• d. All of the above

It is common courtesy to disregard your phone and interact with the people around you. At the same time, it is possible to talk and text without being rude if your texting does not interfere with the conversation, exclude you from the group, or if the person you are texting is relevant to what is currently happening at the table. If you must take a phone call, respectfully excuse yourself from the table and continue your conversation in a more secluded area. When you come back to the table, apologize for any inconvenience you may have caused and carry on with the events of the night.

Mind you, these practices of cell phone etiquette are only customary if you are in a casual setting with your friends and family. Cell phones are a huge faux pas if you are at a formal dinner, interview, banquet, meeting, ceremony, etc., and should only be used in extreme circumstances.

I have noticed how many people do not know or do not implement cell phone etiquette in their daily lives. More people are engrossed in their phones than the people around them. Even when someone is surrounded by the people they care about, they still find someone to text. This new age of technology has stripped people of the social skills that really matter, and because all they know is cell phones, texting, and social media, they do not realize when the real thing (that is, face-to-face dialogue) is actually happening. Sadly, this is what our world has come to. We need to teach people proper ways of using cell phones and foster speech and social skills so that this dying art will continue thrive.

Dream Job

Anyone who knows me knows that my dream job has always been to be Princess Jasmine at Disney World. Princess Jasmine has always been my favorite Disney princess. She is beautiful, adventurous, independent, clever, poised, and feisty. She was the kind of person I wanted to emulate. Of course, I cannot make a career out of this since you can only be so old until they force you out of retirement, and Disney cast members make about $12 an hour. Nevertheless, I want to do this at some point in my life so that I can live out my not-so-unreachable dream.

Disney princesses must be between a certain height. Because I am short, I do not meet the height requirement. I plan to shine among the thousands of people wanting the same dream job with my personality and performance ability (I was a competitive dancer for eight years and I have taken many drama classes so I understand what is expected of me when I am performing). Hopefully, the casting directors would be so impressed by my potential that they would overlook the minor height difference. All I can do now to achieve my dream job is to audition and hope that I am what the casting directors are looking for. There is really nothing else I can do. I just have to cross my fingers and hope for the best.

Career-wise, I guess my dream job is to be an important figure at a big company or PR firm. Like I have said in a previous blog, I do not know what I am going to do with this degree. I will see where it takes me.

Spring Break

Spring break is finally here! After stressing over tests and projects, we are rewarded with a well-deserved week of nothing and relaxation. I hear so many people talk about how excited they are to go on their vacation to Hilton Head, Panama City Beach, Cancun, on a cruise, etc. Sadly for me, I do not get to enjoy the luxury of laying out in the sun, playing on the beach, or waking up at noon. Instead, I am spending my well-deserved week of relaxation at home in Augusta working. I guess it’s not a bad thing. At least I will be making money. But for what? It’s not like I am going anywhere interesting to blow off all my cash. And speaking of money, how do all of these supposedly poor college students get the funds to even go on a fancy vacation? Shouldn’t they be working too? I don’t know about you, but my parents don’t just throw wads of money at me to travel and goof off with my friends. Also, I do not understand why so many college kids go to big spring break destinations like Panama City Beach. Personally, all I think of is crowded hotel rooms, loud music, screaming, dirty foam, red solo cups, and people falling off balconies. I don’t really have anything against people who enjoy their time there, but I would rather go to a more private beach with a few of my close friends.

I apologize for my rant.

                                                             

On a lighter note, if money were not an object, I would definitely go the happiest place on earth, Disney World! I absolutely love Disney. I would go on rides, taste cuisines from different countries at Epcot, go character hunting, watch shows, and bask in the magic that is Disney.

Time Travel

I often ponder the idea of time travel and how I would take advantage of it if it were possible. I feel like most people would want to go to a specific era in time, may it be the Renaissance, the 80’s, or perhaps even the future. For me, I would want to go back to certain moments in my life that I would want to relive or simply just reminisce. As time goes on, our memories get a little foggy no matter how significant the occasion. I would like to keep my memories fresh by going back in time to see how everything pans out from a third person perspective. Sometimes we are too close to the situation to understand what is happening around us at the time. If I were to visit moments from my past, I could probably acquire a new understanding or point of view of the situation. I would want to go back and watch silly moments from my childhood or relive my big 18^th birthday party or see how my current boyfriend watched me from afar and finally got the nerve to talk to me.

My friends dancing for me at my 18th birthday party. I’m in the purple dress wishing I could dance with them.

I would not want to interfere with the past because the consequences could be detrimental to my current existence. No one knows how things will turn out if even the slightest thing was changed. It could cause a terrible snowball effect that could completely alter the course of not just my life but many others as well. Even if my small change had good intentions, it is far too risky to gamble on fate. Sometimes I imagine what it would be like if older me gave advice to younger me. I have absolutely no idea how that would turn out, but at least I don’t have the temptation of knowing I could do that since time travel isn’t possible…yet.