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Author: Paul Carroll
Posted on February 24, 2016 by Paul Carroll
Before Creed, I was a Rocky virgin. I know, shocking. Somehow, I managed to avoid the movie equivalent of a beat-em-up game. And every one of its subsequent sequels. I did not expect much. I never once considered Stalone a "good actor". That felt like reason enough to avoid the franchise. Well, before I get into a wee analysis of Creed, the latest instalment in the series – arguably a new franchise if they keep it up – let it just be said that my judgement of these films based on my opinion of Stalone* was misguided, and I've since set myself up to watch the previous five films. We'll call it film history. (*If Creed is anything to go by, he can act; unfortunately, I've also seen The Expendables, which seemed to come with a No Acting Required caveat, so long as you had the forearms for the job.)
Creed presents us with a new character: Adonis Creed, son of Apollo Creed. (Presumably from a previous movie.) The new Creed is smart, working in a professional environment, leading a good life. And he gives it up to box, looking to Rocky to be his coach. I was glad to see that every other character in the movie shared my sentiments on this career change – that it was stupid and arrogant. Rocky is old. Stallone slouches and carries himself slowly. As we begin to get to know Creed in his new life, we're given a few glimpses into Rocky's life, now – who's dead, what happened with his son, what he's been up to, the reputation he has in his town. Whether it was meant to tell new viewers some important info, or simply pander to the existing fans, it served to build the character of Rocky into something beyond a guy who seems to struggle talking in clear sentences, and who best communications with his fists. He's a man adapting to modern life, and struggles through a number of emotional scenes that life in the ring couldn't prepare him for. We're given the impression that this man was able to face anything in the ring. He had all the control there. But outside the ring, when people get sick or leave, he's powerless, and it shows on his face how difficult life can be when you're exactly like everyone else.
Sylvester Stalone as Rocky
Despite his frankly absurd decision to enter the ring, Adonis is a believable character. He repeats old mistakes out of the frustrations of a difficult childhood in the system, and must take on his journey towards being a Creed in the public eye.
At the same time, we're given some of the most engaging shots in cinema these past few months, within the ring. The lights go down. The camera doesn't break momentum. Creed shares blows with his opponents. We're in the ring with him, all that tension, all that focus, all that pain. The audience is drowned out. On-screen they shout mute in the dark; in the theatre, they sit on the edge of their seats, clutching their hands together, refusing to take their eyes off the screen.
Michael B Jordan as Adonis Creed, and Tessa Thompson as Bianca
And then we're thrust back into the life of Adonis and Rocky, with a small collection of other characters around them, each with their own challenges to face, difficulties to overcome, weaknesses and desires. Creed isn't just a boxing movie. It manages a host of characters in the same way any other drama would. It creates realism in this absurd world where people expect a man like Rocky to get back in the ring – even as a trainer – at a moment's notice. But he's old, and we're told that over and over again.
This is an old story, with new heroes, and it's told as gracefully as can be, while punches are thrown on-screen and blood splatters to the ground.
Posted in Criticism & AnalysisTagged blog, creed, entertainment, movies, oscars, writingLeave a comment
"It's a small world." It's a cliché made real in Room, in which Joy and Jack live in the smallest space imaginable for two people. Fit with just one bed, one wardrobe, a kitchen, a toilet and a bath, Room is their home and their world. Skylight gives them light. TV is full of imaginary people. There is only Joy, Jack, and Old Nick; there is only terror and innocence. (And, of course, spoilers.)
Room presents us with two ways of living in the world. One way is filled with terror, the other with innocence; terror is a post-innocence way of seeing things, when innocence has been stolen. For Joy, Room is a thing to survive. Food is supplied by Old Nick, when it suits him and what he can afford. Burning food means eating burnt food – nothing can be wasted. There is little space – though clever camera work makes Room look bigger – and twice as many people in Room than there was to begin with. Introducing Jack.
He's five. Joy has been locked up in Room for seven years. The maths is simple, and the conclusion obvious and horrible: he was born in Room, and Old Nick is the only person to ever "visit". But for Jack, Room is his whole world. Everything he knows is within the four walls and ceiling. His Ma's terror fills his head with lies and ignorance. He can only see the best in his situation. While Old Nick rapes Joy, he supplies Jack with birthday presents.
Brie Larson as Joy (Ma), and Joan Allen as Nancy (Grandma)
When we leave Room – when Joy and Jack escape – we can conceivably expect things to change. Joy remains afraid. She struggles with her sanity and her mental health. She needs her family, and she needs Jack to adapt; despite this, she pushes people away – a consequence of her difficulty to adapt to life outside of Room, of seeing how people she knew as a teenager changed as they grew up and went on with their lives, children, careers, marriages.
Jacob Tremblay as Jack
Jack on the other hand, faces fear for the first time. Jack has to find a way to understand the size of the world – up until his fifth birthday, Room was the entire size of his universe. As well as adjusting to bigger rooms, natural light, and the threat of infection from germs he'd never faced before (not that he worries about the germs), Jack needs to adjust to his grandparents (the only other people he knows aside from his Ma) and to the concept of there being more people in the world than he's ever met.
Room gives us a fresh look at the world from the perspectives of these two characters, and all the ways in which experiencing the world for the first time can lead to happiness and fulfilment against the odds.
Posted in Criticism & AnalysisTagged academy award, blog, entertainment, movies, room, writingLeave a comment
Posted on February 7, 2016 by Paul Carroll
Thematically, Princess Mononoke holds nothing back: it's all about the ecological troubles of the world. (Notably, in lands to the West. Thanks Japan.) The ecological theme runs throughout, sometimes literally on boars' legs and the paws of giant wolves. This is a movie about the world we live in, and the terrible strife towards balance.
Princess Mononoke Poster
We begin with the boar demon. Ashitaka's village is in danger from the boar, a mess of toxic worms spilling from its body and rotting the woods around it. It threatens to destroy everything in its path, rampaging uncontrollably towards the most amount of people it can find. Ashitaka's attempts to calm it down fail, and though he tries to keep his distance, he is infected with the demon's curse, even as he kills it. He is bound for death. His only hope is to head West, where the boar came from, to find answers, and maybe a cure. In this short opening, we're given an idea of the consequences of others' actions on the world, though we're yet to realise it. The boar, Nago, had been struck down by men in the West. An iron ball lodged in the beast was the eventual cause of its death, and as a god, the effects of this are more widely felt than the village can see.
Ashitaka riding Yakul
Another party of humans meet the other significant animal god tribe in the movie: the wolves, led by the wolf god Maro, and accompanied by the titular character: Princess Mononoke (the name itself means "Monster", and is not, in fact, her real name. Her family call her San.) The wolves attack humans and their oxen, humans armed with guns (albeit old-fashioned guns, given that this is an historical fantasy movie.) Immediately, we can see the issue: the weapons look like they might have been able to kill Nago.
San AKA Princess Mononoke
By the time Ashitaka reaches the Ironworks, where the human party were headed, we've been introduced to all manner of wonders, from the spirits of the forest – the kodama – to the god in the wood, the Deer God. No explanation is given for the kodama, nor can we ever expect one. Suffice to say, if you don't see them in the wood, then you should worry. They are a sign of life.
The story of the Ironworks further emphasises the ecological message of the movie; in order for the iron sand to be accessed, the woods and mountains had to be cleared. The boars were driven out. Nago was shot and killed by one of Lady Eboshi's weapons.
Eboshi is one of three significant human characters in the movie. On the grand scale of how much a person can care about the environment, her concern is as far weighted towards human success over environmental survival as can be. On the far side of things is San, the proverbial eco warrior out to destroy the Ironworks and save the forest. Then there is Ashitaka, the voice of reason who seeks balance in the world. It is small wonder, then, that the Deer God saves his life.
The Deer God
What the movie presents to us, in the Deer God, is a shapeshifting being representing two halves of the same coin; it is day and night, life and death. During the day, it walks the woods in its deer form, with an eerily human face smiling gently at every living creature. By night, it is the Nightwalker, towering over the woods. It is a translucent being, full of splendour and power. They come in cycles, life and death alternating as the sun rises and sets. The Deer God is balance in the world. Understanding that is central to appreciating the strength of the message.
The Nightwalker
In killing the Deer God – at least, in removing its head – humanity kills life itself. Without the balance, the forest dies – it becomes a death. Humans die as the unbound Nightwalker searches for its head. The Ironworks is destroyed by its mass, a muddy death pouring over the world, choking out life wherever it touches it. This is the curse of Nago, ten fold and spreading more violently. The death of a lesser god reached all the way to the East; the death of life itself would reach the whole of creation.
Ashitaka affirms the reality of the situation: the head of the Deer God must be returned by human hands. Only humans have the power to prevent the ecological disaster we have created. It's not a subtle message, or a subtle means of telling it – the Deer God, in both its forms, and Princess Mononoke, have become iconic figures in their own right – but it is memorable. The day can be saved, life can be returned to the forest, but the damage remains: in killing the Deer God and ridding the world of the gods, nature has lost its only means of protecting itself.
Princess Mononoke has a lot to say to us about the price we pay in our industries. Through luscious imagery and a fully formed mythology, we can see clearly the damage we have done on the earth. We have gone far enough, in our wars and in our industrial revolutions, to permanently damage the world we live in. While we have no Deer Gods to kill, the result is the same: the future of a sustained environment is up to us, and even the human face of the forest – San – cannot bear to be around people any longer after everything they did. No one could hold it against anyone if they agreed with her.
Posted in Criticism & AnalysisTagged ecology, entertainment, environment, japan, movies, mythologyLeave a comment
Posted on January 31, 2016 January 24, 2016 by Paul Carroll
The Big Short does not deal in subtly. The (mostly) true story is filled with jarring cuts, jarring personalities, loud music, and a whole bunch of people you'll grow to hate almost immediately. Before all that, we get a voice-over from Ryan Gosling. (Before I get into the whole discussion on The Big Short, let it just be said that in any of his non-rom-com roles, I don't think I've ever heard Ryan Gosling talk this much.) As always, spoilers. In this case, looking at the history of the economic collapse might also qualify as a spoiler for the movie. Or reading the book on which the movie is based. Anyway, I have my principles, so you've been warned.
The Big Short Poster
Gosling's character, Jared Vennett, introduces us to the banking climate: what used to be a boring job is now a high-stakes, money-making roller coaster. Everyone can get rich in the world of big banking, and the American economy grew as a result. While no one paid much attention to the finance sector, it became a dangerous sector. Vennett is but one of four different types of people who are responding to the idea that something terrible is bound to happen soon. He's the profiteer. He's also working in one of the big banks, and so cannot bet against them (which is, to put it simply, what a "short" is on a bond – a bet that it will fail, by means of unpaid mortgages.)
Ryan Gosling as Jared Vennett
Vennett got his info from Michael Burry (M.D.) played by Christian Bale – a doctor with an eye for detail (only one – the other is fake) who notices the bubble. He's read the bonds. He knows what's wrong, and too stubborn to consider that he might have made a mistaken (in gambling $1.3bn on shorts.)
Christian Bale as Michael Burry
Vennett, upon realising he can profit from this situation if he finds the right people to work with, stumbles upon Mark Baum – the man who wants to fix the world. He's the original social justice warrior. He despises injustice. He'll shout at someone in the middle of a store or in the middle of the street over it. He's constantly on the phone. He skips his therapy. Steve Carell plays him excellently. (And further proves to me that, when playing more serious roles than, say those in Evan Almighty or The 40-Year Old Virgin, he actually can act. He's fine in Comedy, but he stands out in Drama in an unexpected way.)
Steve Carell as Mark Baum
Finally, there's the unlikely duo of Charlie Geller (John Magaro) and Jamie Shipley (Finn Wittrock), who stumble upon notes left behind by Vennett. If Vennett wants pure profit, Burry wants to prove he's right, and Baum wants justice, Geller and Shipley want to prove that they can make it in the world of big finance. They're the underdogs. They aren't respected in the financial world. They recruit Ben Rickert (Brad Pitt) to help them. Presumably he's got money and a reputation.
Finn Wittrock as Jamie Shipley, and John Magaro as Charlie Geller
Four approaches, four groups of people, one big problem.
Baum's team expose us to the reality of the situation outside of the figures. They're the only ones who bother to investigate if the numbers Burry's looking at amount to anything. They show us a housing market struggling to stay in its feet, with people moving out of nice neighbourhoods because they can't afford the mortgage anymore after they become unemployed. They show us the bankers who'll give anyone a mortgage, whatever their income, because they can get rich off it. They show us a family man who's landlord isn't paying his mortgage, and a stripper with multiple mortgages on multiple houses. They show us the dirty reality of what the big banks did to America.
Throughout, we're presented with a combination of stylised footage – some of it aged to represent the time in which the scene is set – and stock footage. The stock footage tells us when we are in American history, and demonstrates the mood of the era. It's all about the money. Capitalism is at large. Everyone lives like the party will never end. Combined with our traditional narrative, this tells us an interesting story about banking – we've got the media mood, and the terrifying reality acted out for us. Banking terms are explained to us by famous models and scientists. The truth of every situation is explained by actors breaking the fourth wall. And all the time, there's noise.
Noise pounds from the speakers. When it's not Burry's outrageously loud heavy metal, it's the chatter of bankers, or the literal gambling of Vegas. There's a laugh track when the big banking joke is revealed to Baum – who looks ready to explode. When no one's talking, there's music. When people are talking, usually there's a lot of background noise present to drown them out. Anything important that could be said is covered up by the noise of the Big Bank America.
As our bankers and gamblers leave their Vegas hotel, anyone who would seek to do right leaves by cab. By now, they know that if they're right, if they win big, the economy collapses. The global economy. It's bigger than they realised. Geller and Shipley are the naive faces of young bankers, not realising the reality of the situation until Rickert points it out to them. Geller has to call his mother to deal with the anxiety. But while they leave in their cabs from Vegas, the bankers leave in expensive black cars, with private drivers. An SEC agent leaves by cab, after a long kiss with one of the big bankers – regulators and fraudsters are in bed together.
Brad Pitt as Ben Rickert
It's a harrowing movie, in its terrifying truth. By telling us what everything means in layman's terms, we can see more easily how much the big banks refused to care about the damage they were doing. The crumbling of the American Dream is seen too clearly, too painfully, in the faces of our more moral protagonists and the unfortunate people they encounter along the way. They come out rich, but miserable. There are no winners when there are big shorts, and the movie holds no punches in making that clear.
Posted in Criticism & AnalysisTagged banking, big short, blog, entertainment, movies, oscarsLeave a comment
Posted on January 24, 2016 by Paul Carroll
At the time of writing, the Academy Awards are in just over a month. By now, everyone's probably rooting for Leonardo DiCaprio to win. For once. Considering his performance in The Revenant, and the fact that he's already won a Golden Globe for the same role, it wouldn't surprise anybody if he was awarded it this year. As Hugh Glass, he dominates the screen, a singular force of survival in the wild pre-US-societal America. That's exactly what we'll be discussing here: the wild, and the drive to survive. As always, may contain spoilers.
Poster for The Revenant
The story we're presented with is relatively simple (especially when compared to previous DiCaprio movies, like Inception.) Hugh Glass (DiCaprio) is part of a company of men out to collect pelts. After a devastating attack by the natives – the Arikara – and a subsequent fight with a bear (no, really), the frontiersmen are at their wits end, and Hugh Glass is fighting for his life. His half-breed son, another young man from the group, and John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy) stay behind to see Glass through to his death, while the rest of the company press on. Glass is then left for dead, his son killed, and Fitzgerald on his way home to claim a reward to staying behind until the end. By that point, we're already a big chunk into the movie, but that's all in the trailer.
Tom Hardy as Fitzgerald
The frontiersmen, all of them, face two big challenges in their lives: the fight against the wild, be it the weather or the animals, and; the struggling to survive attacks by the Native American tribes, and the French. We're in pre-Independence America. There are no towns in the wilderness, only a base camp several days away from Glass's death bed.
The need to survive, the need for retribution, is all that keeps Glass alive. He dons the bearskin – his kill, and his alone – to fight back the winter, grunting and growling the whole time. In taking the beast's life, he became the beast. He's left with only his gnarling teeth, a knife, a canister, and the bear claws – a reminder that he's more capable than anyone had any right to be when the world was out to kill you. Even when he recovers his strength enough to walk, he's mostly without the use of his voice. He grunts, he points, he gestures. Communication for Glass is rare. The two people he encounters who don't immediately try to kill him aren't conversationalists. They're natives, and he's a white man. Glass keeps his bearskin over him, too. He's a wild beast with a man's face and a slashed throat. When the need comes to sleep inside his horse, Luke Skywalker style, he whinnies. He draws on the creature's strength. As needs must, Glass becomes the animals whose skin he wears.
Leonardo DiCaprio as Hugh Glass, in bear skin
The fight for survival is not just Glass's. The Arikana tribe fight to stay alive against the oncoming tide of white men from across the ocean. They fight lies and deception, using bows against guns. They know what they want from the world, they have their crusade. Their morals and strategy are questionable at best – kill whatever moves that isn't Arikana – but their intent is pure: survive. Glass may have a half-breed son – and formerly a Pawnee wife – but the racial divide, the struggle between two different types of people, is still a violent one. White men took everything from the Native Americans.
The Revenant gives us no breaks, just as the wild winter presses on against the frontiersmen. We must attempt to survive two hours of violence and bleeding, cringing at open wounds and holding our breaths when we think Glass might perish – or when it might be less cruel for him to die. Even when the walls are around Glass, when he has a roof over his head in the same way we do, there is no reprieve from the wild. His driving force for survival was retribution, and until then, even the walls of society cannot keep the wild out, nor can we look away. Until we know that Glass can survive wild – the outside world, and the wild within – we cannot let the movie end. If he can't survive it, no one can.
Posted in Criticism & AnalysisTagged blog, entertainment, movies, oscars, revenant, survival, theme, wildLeave a comment
Dogma: Stoners and Theology
When I was eight, a movie about angels came out: Dogma. I did not see in the cinema. Nor did I see it for the next sixteen years. It took until one of the movie's actors had passed away for me to finally see it (though it's been waiting in my recently purchased DVD pile since November.) I'll be focusing mainly on two areas of the movie: the "stoners", and the theology. Before I get into any of that, though: if you're yet to watch this one, or if you haven't seen it in a long time, pay attention to the beginning. I don't think a text-based beginning to a movie has ever been more enjoyable than in Dogma.
Dogma Poster
Let it be said that I draw a strange amount of joy from stoner films. Something about the unexpected wisdom of stoners draws me in every time. In this instance, the stoners were known to me long before I ever saw them on-screen: Jay and Silent Bob. After months and months of conversations about the recurring nature of these two characters, and repeated encouragement to watch Dogma, I finally caved. What we have are two halves of the stoner stereotype: the one who can't stop talking, and occasionally says something intelligent, and the one who rarely talks and usually comes up with the ideas in the first case. The voice and the wisdom of stoners across all of Hollywood, wrapped up in two extraordinary characters.
Alan Rickman as Metatron
We meet them as prophets, to travel with the protagonist of the movie: Bethany. Surrounding Bethany are the weird and wonderful pieces of Christian "mythology": the angels, the demons, the prophets. We're introduced, through Bethany, to Metatron, the Voice of God. Played by the late Alan Rickman, Metatron speaks with purpose and intent, and shared with Bethany the secrets of heaven, and a task which she must complete – or the whole of existence will suffer the consequences. All in all, Metatron is a pretty decent guy.
Adding to the angel party are Loki and Bartleby, played by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. The pair present to us two different types of angels: the warriors and the watchers. Bartleby was a watcher, there to observe the sins of man, while Loki served as the Angel of Death, present at a number of biblical catastrophes. They have one mission in the movie: return to Heaven, after their expulsion at the beginning of history.
While Loki and Bartleby make their way across the country on their mission, making a couple of hilarious stops along the way as only disgruntled angels can, Bethany is busy running into all number of strange phenomenon, from a Muse to a dead man, and a demon with a potty mouth. (The name of which is one of my favourite things I think I've ever heard in a movie, and so I don't want to spoil it for anyone.)
Throughout the film, we're given an awful lot to think about regarding religion and belief systems as a whole. Four years of theology in college has me wary of any attempt to speak about religion so candidly as Dogma does, but rather than simply attack Christianity (and Catholicism in particular), the movie deals with religion in a refreshingly inviting way. The truth is this: no religion is perfect. No religion has everything figured out. No single way of expressing belief in a higher power is perfect. There will always be an issue with it, one way or another, and the movie acknowledges this point in its argument. While it operates under the assumption that God is real, this approach to faith is the least insulting I've encountered in any conversation about religion since I started college. (Even when I graduated and didn't go on to use the theology aspect of my degree, I am still held to answer others regarding their criticisms of religion. No one, even those who've seen Dogma, ever thought to take this approach. But that's a conversation for a different website.)
All in all, Dogma addresses the strange mix of stoner film and theological debate perfectly within the confines of a fantasy comedy, including the weirdest nude scene of Alan Rickman you'll ever see, power-hungry versions of Damon and Affleck, and the coolest hetero-life-mates in recent cinema history. Consider me hooked on the View Askewniverse.
Posted in Criticism & AnalysisTagged alan rickman, askewniverse, blog, dogma, entertainment, moviesLeave a comment
Joy: Woman Power and Soap Operas
Picture this: actors not looking at each other, but delivering lines to one another; jarring dialogue; dramatic deliveries. This is the opening of Joy, and a recurring triad of features throughout the story. (And, warning: spoilers.) With a mother obsessed with soap operas, a grandmother away with the fairies, an ex-husband in the basement, two children upstairs, a father moving back in with her, and a half-sister with a bit of a lip, Joy's life is not easy, nor normal. We are drawn into her life like one of the shows her mother watches, told the details of her life by her grandmother, and forced to get used to this weird set-up that could only exist on television.
Except this is a biopic of sorts. This is the story of a real woman, with a really messed up family life, a reasonable job that turns awful, and a lack of faith in herself. The woman we're introduced to has been defeated by life, after a divorce between her parents, a divorce of her own, and the crumpling of her dreams. We're guided through this life by the unreliable narrator that is her granny, a woman whose absence from most of the key scenes in the plot should be noted, if we're to fully accept that the version of the story we're told, the version full of drama and heavy dialogue and the most brilliant, and the nastiest, elements of each and every person shining through and just the right time.
Joy's life is one under the dominance of the patriarchy: her father pays half her mortgage; her ex-husband still lives with her; men exert their power in the streets, at work, at the television studio; men are the best sellers; men cause a mess that women should clean up. Specifically, that Joy should clean up. She's a strong character, but crushed under the weight of how much she wants to do to right by everyone, and how much she's been told to listen to the men in her life.
Poster for Joy
The opening of the film, right up until the first critical moment in her life – the one that might put her back on track – presents us with people fulfilling roles; accompanying the crazy family are the Rich Mistress, the Supportive Best Friend, and the Sleazy TV Sales Man. How they're each introduced is integral to the storytelling mode of Joy. The mistress, Trudy, is introduced through a telephone call with Rudy in the middle of a discussion about business and finance – the relationship between Trudy and Rudy will always come in the middle of business, beginning as it means to go on. The best friend, Jackie, is introduced after a vivid soap opera dream that Joy has after passing out on her mother's bed; Jackie's knocking pulls Joy from the dream, a nightmare. She'll continue to be the person to pull Joy out of trouble, whenever she's able. Then we have Neil Walker, a man who's introduced with his head off-screen; he could be almost any man in Joy's life, making promises he doesn't know he can keep, and supposing to know more about business than her on the basis of her gender.
Everyone plays a role.
While Joy mingles with the soap-operatic archetypes of her life, her struggles against the patriarchy (though she doesn't call it as such) unfold. Her father accepts responsibility for the failure of her business – not because it was he and Trudy forcing her into a professional relationship with an unreliable lawyer, but because he let her get ideas of success and aspiration in her head. A man fails to sell her mop, or even understand its purpose. A man tries to steal her patent. A man steals her money.
Jennifer Lawrence, as Joy, looking severely annoyed at the world in which she lives
It takes some time, but eventually Joy refuses to accept that all of the failure of men should affect her the way it does.
Throughout this whole adventure, from poor beginnings and a falling-apart house (as broken on the outside as the family is on the inside) to a small victory over the people who attempted to tear her down, she's accompanied by only two supportive people: her ex-husband Tony, who's a better friend than husband, and Jackie. Her family are all embittered people, jealous of her success and her ingenuity, and she abandons them more and more as her troubles mount. If nothing else, Joy teaches us that family is more about the people we choose to keep with us, and less about the people we're surrounded by as a consequence of the circumstances of our birth.
While many people didn't enjoy this movie, I was gripped the entire way through by the stylised soap opera feel, the exaggeration, the heavy dialogue and narrative techniques that guide us through the horror of the late 80s. Catch it in the cinema while you still can.
Posted in Criticism & AnalysisTagged blog, david o russell, entertainment, jennifer lawrence, joy, life, moviesLeave a comment
Did We Need Star Wars: The Force Awakens?
Posted on December 20, 2015 by Paul Carroll
In 1977, no one could have predicted the success of the Star Wars franchise. No one could have imagined that, almost forty years later, they would be reviving the movies for the their seventh episode – and third trilogy – and that the original cast members would be making an appearance.
I've been to see The Force Awakens, and the question remains: did we need it?
Full disclosure: I really enjoyed the movie. I thought it was a lot of fun. I loved that the traditions of the original movies have remained in place, from the scrolling text to the screen wipes, to beginning with a camera pan to the first planet of interest. All of that was greatly appreciated.
It does not answer the question. When we left Luke, Leia and Han – and all the other assorted characters in the original trilogy – we were given a sense of closure. There was peace in the galaxy. Anakin Skywalker was at peace. Leia and Han could begin their relationship in earnest in the knowledge that Luke was Leia's brother – so that was a no-go area. Even if she did already kiss him to make Han jealous.
Closure.
It would have been the perfect happy ending, if not for a little thing called the Expanded Universe. Between the countless books, various comic books, games and follow up animated television shows, Star Wars did not end with Return of the Jedi. Far from it.
Daisy Ridley as Rey
With the first trailer of The Force Awakens, fans began putting together theories over the identities of the only-named characters we'd been introduced to – Rey, and Kylo Ren. I won't give anything away. While a great number of people have already seen the movie, it has only been out a few days at the time of writing. But the mention duo are important for this discussion. It was who they might be that made the story appeal to so many fans so much. People needed to know if their suspicions were true, and, if they were, what was going on with these two characters.
(If you're curious, and you've already seen the movie, USA Today kindly put together a list of fan theories that covers this issue. Otherwise, I'd leave it be for now. Some people have taken it upon themselves to ruin Google searches for the movie already.)
The simple fact is, simply by releasing a trailer, they've garnered the attention of the fans. In the removal of the canonical state of the Star Wars novels, Disney ensured that whatever story they chose to tell would not be directly influenced by the expanded universe, which filled in the gaps before, during and beyond the scope of the pre-existing movies. The end result is that, for the regular fan who doesn't have access to all of that information on the host of characters explored in the universe, there are new stories to be told.
It isn't certain that we really needed to have this movie exist, except that – now – it might offer younger cinema fans the opportunity to know and love the franchise in the same way people of generations before them did. The original trilogy might not have lived on for younger audiences the way it has done so far. Even the awful arrival of Jar Jar Binks into the franchise served the purpose of giving the story another episode, another opportunity to appear in the public sphere.
If, generally speaking, the third trilogy fails to capture and retain public interest, it can still serve the purpose of re-introducing Star Wars into the lives of so many people. We might not need the new story, but for the originals to survive, we do need the new fans. At least The Force Awakens achieved that much.
Posted in OpinionTagged blog, entertainment, movies, opinion, star wars4 Comments
Carol: Circular Narrative and Mirrored Characters
Posted on December 13, 2015 December 12, 2015 by Paul Carroll
2015 has been a big year for the LGBT movement – not least of all in Ireland, with the world's first passing of a bill legalising same-sex marriage by popular vote. In Hollywood, perhaps entirely by accident, we've been hit with two films that address homosexuality and transgenderism in a world not yet ready for such phenomena of social acceptance: Carol, and The Danish Girl.
Since 2007, I've made it a habit of going to the cinema at least once per week; most recently, I sat down to watch Carol, not sure what to expect before heading in. I don't read reviews before I watch a movie – my cinema has a membership card that allows me to see as many movies as I want for a monthly cost, so I don't need to be overly picky – so I missed all the positivity that Carol had already generated, and instead went in with the mind-set that, given it's December, we were looking at Oscar-bait. I'm of the opinion, now, that it deserves any and all nominations it receives. Be warned, while I've attempted to avoid specific details of the plot, there will be general spoilers in this article.
As the trailer suggests, Carol is a circular narrative. This is a fact clearly stated and barely understood until it has been seen; the film does not seek to explain itself, much in the same way that Cate Blanchett's Carol Aird denies any explanation about herself to the people she meets throughout the events of the film. Set in the 1950s, she's a closeted lesbian in a failed marriage, spending more time with her female friends than her husband. She's figure of mystery and adversity, seemingly unconcerned with the consequences of her actions.
Therese Belivet, played by Rooney Mara, is her opposite. Unassuming, petite, and plainly dressed, she is everything Carol is not. Where Carol is presented as a wealthy socialite, Therese is a working girl living the daylight of New York, an aspiring photographer unwilling to accept the bonds of social pressure in the same way Carol did in her youth.
Cate Blanchett as Carol Aird
Their lives are mirrored throughout the movie, from their simple beginnings and through their transformations. For Therese, her appearances in the park echo the changes in her life; her working life and the photographs on the way in her kitchen tell different types of stories, challenging her dreams and managing her expectations. Carol's transformation is reflected in her lawyer's office, in her restaurants, and in the appearances of her best friend, Abby Gerhard (Sarah Paulson). There is a role reversal in the relationship between these women from opposing worlds.
In a pair of scenes, the women look for the other in their worlds – Therese looks for Carol in the night, and Carol for Therese in the day – from the point of view of a cab, bookending the ways in which the women and their relationship changed them as people. In the beginning, they fulfil a need in the other. Therese needed direction in life, Carol needed love. As they drive through New York looking for one another at different points in the movie, we're given the impression that what they need in someone else has changed – and neither woman feels fitting for the role, anymore.
Rooney Mara as Therese Belivet
Alongside an incredibly powerful narrative, we're given lingering shots of the women throughout their relationship. When they talk, when they drive, when they kiss, we are given an insight into the lives and their emotions, looking long enough at them as they listen to the other to more fully understand the weight of the words as they are spoken. The camera directs us to what is most important: how Carol and Therese make each other feel. It does not matter how one or the other looks as they speak. As their relationship is less conventional than we as an audience as used to, so too is the cinematography.
Powerful performances from Blanchett and Mara, with support from Paulson, Kyle Chandler and a host of others from Therese's life guide us through a story that cinema needed, the normalisation of same-sex relationships on the big screen. This is a tale of love and transformation, and the effects of other people on our lives; while it seeks to challenge the romantic and sexual expectations of the women involved, such relationships are not uncommon in heterosexual circles. As Therese asks of her courter, Richard, "How many times have you been in love?", we can be expected not to view Carol as a story of forbidden sexuality, but on the demands of love and romance on a life, and how it can bring out the best and worst in someone, regardless of gender or sexuality.
Carol has been nominated for several Golden Globes, including Best Motion Picture and Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion-Picture – Drama (both Blanchett and Mara). Have any thoughts on the film, or anything to contribute – comment away!
Posted in Criticism & Analysis, Project 87Tagged academy awards, carol, christmas, entertainment, golden globes, love, moviesLeave a comment
Chinatown: Love, Lies, and Conspiracies | Project 87
Posted on December 10, 2015 December 9, 2015 by Paul Carroll
Chinatown hit the big screen in 1974, giving audiences a look at one of cinema's greatest treasures in storytelling. We meet Jake Gittes (Jack Nicholson) at his office, a private investigator with a private collection of alcohol in his cupboards, and a distraught customer tearing at the blinds. He deals in break-ups, getting the dirt when the dirt in sought. This is the only thing we need to know about Gittes for a little while, before we enter a world beyond his control. (You should also note, there'll be a few spoilers beyond this point. Consider yourself warned, if you care about that sort of thing.)
He deals in secrets and lies, and all the dangers they can cause. When Mrs Mulwray arrives at his office, we should be suspicious. She suspects her husband of cheating. When we meet Hollis Mulwray, questions begin to crop up. He's a gentle looking man, thin and unassuming. He's also the Chief Engineer of the LA Department of Water and Power, while the city's gone into drought and he refuses to build a dam that might resolve the situation. There are so many triggers here that Gittes ignores, so many things that would make anyone else roll their eyes in disbelief that Hollis could be a cheater, and that anyone could even think he could manage it. He's too public, and too decent, and still Gittes's men find him with a woman that isn't his wife.
Then, of course, the woman who hired Gittes to track Hollis wasn't his wife, either. Her name is Ida Sessions, a woman whose significance remains in the dark for a large portion of the movie, beyond getting the photos from Gittes and into the paper. Enter Evelyn Mulwray, the real wife of our Chief Engineer – a man who subsequently proves incredibly difficult to get a hold of.
Jack Nicholson as Jake Gittes
When we finally get to see his face again, we're also introduced to Luo Escobar- Gittes former partner in Chinatown. It's alluded that Chinatown was a bad time in the PI's life, a time he'd like to forget. Escobar's moved up in the force, just enough that when Gittes sneaks onto private property – a freshwater reservoir – to see the body of Mulwray dragged into view, he's able to allow Gittes to stay.
With Mulwray dead, and Gittes still considering himself a client of Evelyn's, the threads of the story finally tie themselves together: Gittes's new life digging up dirt meets the water crisis of LA, and his old life in Chinatown tags along for the ride. Three stories, two happening concurrently. This is why we study Chinatown, why Syd Field writes about it in such detail in Screenplay, and presumably why it made Spike Lee's list. A complicated set of tales wove into a single movie.
Faye Dunaway as Evelyn Mulwray
Under contract with Evelyn Mulwray – and faux-Mulwray – Gittes uncovers a lot about the water conspiracy of LA. From dried up relationships to dried up water reserves, his work keeps him tangled up in the biggest political issue the movie can muster: keep the desert off the streets. LA is focused on the water – where it is, and where it isn't. Hollis uncovered the truth before his death – it led to his death, and subsequently to the reunion of Gittes and Escobar. It was an obsession for Hollis Mulwray – always looking for water. From the beach, Echo Park, and his own back yard, and let us not forget his position in the Department, water is Hollis Mulwray's life, right from the beginnings of his fortune, when he and Noah Cross owned the city's water.
Cross is important. He's a vile man, with a wicked temper, a sense of greed greater than the devil's, and a daughter in Evelyn Mulwray. He was critical in the construction of the Alto Vallejo, which later burst – an event that resulted in Hollis's refusal to build another reservoir for LA. He knows what will happen – or at least suspects it – and when the water is dumped from the city's supplies during the drought, Cross enters Gittes's sights. Cross who owned the water, and whose fishing club is revealed to support a group of elderly men and women whose names come up on Gittes's radar.
Remember Ida Sessions? Her involvement in the case, in getting Gittes involved, resulted in her murder. Gittes receives a last note from her, to look at the obituary column. He also runs into Escobar again. Old lives cross in new stories.
Between the obituaries and the public records for land purchases in LA, the puzzle begins to fall into place. The men and women Cross supports own the desert, where the land is cheap, and none of them even know it. With Cross intending for the land to receive LA's new reserves of water – and with Mulwray out of the picture – the plot turns towards keeping Evelyn safe. Evelyn, and the woman we once suspected of being Hollis's girlfriend.
John Huston as Noah Cross
Her name is Katherine Cross; she's one more reason to hate Noah, and one more reason to keep Evelyn safe. Hollis's death was no accident, his lung's flooded with saltwater, and Noah Cross the number one suspect. With Noah on the lookout for her, after a dirty affair years before, and both Evelyn and Katherine sent to Chinatown for protection, the threads of individual stories that tied together at Hollis's deathbed meet the point where they'll become untangled.
In a flurry of activity that sees Evelyn dead and Katherine leaving with Cross, Gittes's past has finally caught up with him.
This is what we're dealing with as an audience of Chinatown, a mish-mash of stories that somehow manage to work. Looked at together, it takes some attention to put it all into a cohesive plot. Separately, we've got a PI who can't get away from the trouble he left the police force over entangled with a woman whose past relationship with her father has led to the complete downfall of her life. The history of Chinatown, and the history of the Cross family, meet in a bloody end, with Gittes dragged back into one to mingle with the other.
Chinatown is as much the story of the water crisis of LA, and the supposedly failing marriage of an engineer, as it is the story of a PI who never conquered his demons, who instead took up showing others everything wrong with their lives.
Mulwray's death is a message no one received, but for the audience, and for readers of the script, it marks a significant turning point in the story. It's the point at which everything comes together almost entirely by accident, and sparks the events that won't end until the death of the second Mulwray.
We study Chinatown for the way in which these stories are told, stories of life and death, love and abuse, and the politics of need and greed. We remember it for its closing line: "Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown."
Posted in Criticism & Analysis, Project 87Tagged blog, chinatown, cinema, entertainment, film, movies, project 87Leave a comment


Pascale Theron was born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa, but recently graduated from the Design Academy Eindhoven in the Netherlands.
Pascale Theron's designs draw from her own cultural background and are inspired by her own memories, knowledge and experiences from living in South Africa.She delves deeply into her research and enjoys connecting with people from different backgrounds, attempting to create a bridge between cultures.
She also enjoys working with soon-to-be-lost handmade crafts. She believes it is of utmost importance to design meaningful products that not only use intuition, but are also sensitive and genuine. She creates cultural products that fall somewhere between art and design.
She hopes to mobilise awareness, raise consciousness and focus attention through work that relates to concrete historical and social situations. The objects she designs are didactic. Theron uses them gives one access to a certain lessons (ethics, history, culture, nature).
She creates projects that give people the opportunity to learn something from them, giving the object a bigger life than it had before. She makes controversial conversational pieces that acknowledge the past, confront the present, and imagine a brighter future.


How to get from where you are to where you want to be... 2014 will be your best year ever!
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text:
TRAVEL GUIDESExpand
Lombok & Gili Islands
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Papua & Maluku Islands
Top 5 Things to Do in Canggu, Bali
Bali · Highlights · South Bali
While backpackers looking to party flock to Kuta to spend a hazy night gouging themselves at Sky Garden, and yogis looking to eat, pray, love may find themselves physically and spiritually in Ubud, I found myself instead in a next upcoming hotspot of Bali – Canggu.
Full of cute cafes, fun bars, trendy shops, and decent surfing waves, Canggu is attracting a beautiful crowd looking to escape the cluster of neighboring Seminyak and Kuta. The town is much more mellow, dotted with lush, green rice patties, along cobblestone roads filled with surfers on scooters. It has a small-town feel with all the luxurious amenities.
Scooters through the "famous shortcut" in Canngu, Bali
Here are our top 5 things to do in Canggu during your visit in Bali:
Eating healthy and local around Canggu
Good coffee and beautiful, bright nalu bowls (Bali's answer to acai bowls!) is reason enough to make your way to Canggu. Like other places in Bali, there are plenty of affordable healthy eats – it's probably one of the easiest places to be vegan throughout all of Asia. Some of my favorite haunts include Crate for nalu bowls, quinoa salads and peanut butter shakes from Peloton, a matcha green tea latte and sweet potato toast from Avocado Cafe, and poke bowls with large chunks of freshly caught tuna at Poke Poke. If you're looking for something more local, there are plenty of Warungs (local food stalls) including my personal favorite, Warung Heboh where it's buffet style and you pay by the item rather than weight which means you can pile heaps on for a cheap and filling meal!
From left: Coffee and desserts and avocado toast at Crate; Smoothies, juices and salad at Peloton in Canggu, Bali.
Party, drink and live band in Canggu
While Canggu's nightlife may be a bit more subdued than in other parts of Bali, you can still have a great out and get up early to surf, depending on how many Bintang beers you've had the night before. One of my favorite places to drink has to be Pretty Poison in Canggu. Open Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, there's an emptied out the swimming pool in the back where skaters show off their tricks to an adoring and attractive crowd sipping on their beers and cocktails. Other must-visits include Old Mans, which turns into a party after dark, live rock band included on Friday nights, and Deus, a restaurant/bar/motorcycle shop with a big backyard that gets filled to the brim on Sundays as visitors sway to the live reggae band. There's also free tacos and tattoos on Tuesday. For a fun day party, Finn's Beach Club is a trendy and affordable alternative to the more popular Potato Head Beach Club, while the Lawn by Old Man's Beach is a cheap and great place to curl up on a beanbag. and buy a beer while chatting with the friendly staff who occasionally break out their guitars to serenade lucky guests.
Live Band on Friday nights at Old Man's in Canggu, Bali
Chill with spa and massages at Canggu
If you're still feeling stressed or just simply looking to pamper yourself, there are a few good places for massages, facials, and other spa treatments in Canggu. While prices may vary, Goldust is a popular spot that comes highly recommended. While it's a bit pricier than other places in Canggu, the bit of extra cash you spend goes a long way in terms of luxury. Always #TreatYoSelf, especially when on holiday.
Goldust, best spa and massage in Canggu, Bali
Shopping at markets in Canggu
If you're looking to take home something unique and fashionable from Bali, Canggu has a decent amount of boutiques and markets filled with trendy goodies. Old Man's Market which occurs on the last Saturday of every month is a top hit with fashionistas. There's also a Sunday market by People's Café with clothes and jewelry made by local artists. And nothing is better than bringing home a bathing suit, the perfect souvenir to remember your wonderful time in Bali.
Jewelry shopping at Sunday's Market in Canggu, Bali
Surf at the trendiest spot in Canggu
Of course, no trip to Canggu would be complete without surfing. While Canggu is becoming a trendy spot amongst beautiful sun-seekers, it's first and foremost a town for surfers. You can take a cheap lesson or rent boards in various sizes right by the beach. The best surf spot for beginners would be Old Man's beach, while Echo Beach and Berawa are also nice for more seasoned riders. While it's not exactly empty, the water isn't as crowded as other neighboring areas.
Surfing and new friends at Canggu, Bali – what else do we need?
With its burgeoning popularity, new hot spots for eating, partying, drinking, shopping and massaging are likely to pop-up in this little slice of paradise. What are your favorite places and things to do in Canggu? Do share it with us!
Where to stay in Canggu *
The Theana Eco Villa and Spa is quite popular in Canggu with its stylish villas for couples to families. Most of the places to stay in Canggu are private luxury hotels like Hotel Tugu Bali, which can be expensive for some visitors. For more affordable places to stay is the Uma Guesthouse.
-> Find the best hotel deals in Canggu *
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Native New Yorker turned world traveler. As a first-generation Indonesian-Chinese-American (gado-gado, as the locals call her), Andrea has been practicing her Bahasa Indonesian and eating her way through the beautiful archipelago. After 16 months on the road, Andrea has finally settled in Australia… for now.
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Is it possible that it was only February that we announced that our newest addition, The Back Room, was on the way? In a way, if feels much longer, but as if it's flown by all at the same time.
When we look back, the past few months are a blur. A flurry of late nights, long hours, and careful planning paved the way to April 28th, 2016...and it's with such pride and thankfulness that we can say at last, "The Back Room is open". To you, our friends and customers both old and new, we offer our sincerest gratitude for your continual support, excitement, and friendship. It's because of you that we're able to keep dreaming, creating, and bringing you the very best of the beautiful life.
The showroom, all set up and ready to go the night before.
Finishing touches, just in time for guests to begin arriving.
Stephanie, all smiles on the morning of the big day!
Sampling tasty treats, mingling, and of course...a little shopping.
Sweet Suzanne and her dear husband celebrated with us until the very end of the evening, and were so delighted to learn that their contribution to the The Regional One Health Foundation had won them this beautiful Sarah Robertson!
A celebratory hug between Stephanie and her friend/design partner, Becca Gaines.
Marking a milestone in Bella Vita's history with necessary team photo. What a night!


Have all your desk side recycling. Needs come together with the desk side Plastic Recycling Receptacle Easily latch two of these recycling. Receptacles together for two separate recycling. Compartments, or one for recycling. And one for waste! Use individually for waste or recycling. Too! Comes in Black and Blue.


Artwerker-Artwork & Architectural Designs by Robert L. Martin. Ceramics,pottery,sculpture,vases.
Play Sound: Quote from the movie "Beatle Juice"
"Containment No. 33" ceramic with cerdic stain, glazes, and "silver leaf"
"Vessel No. 17"- Raku with cerdic stains and glaze.
"Vessel No. 18"- Raku with cerdic stains, bronze, and glaze.
"House of Clay"- Earthenware with cerdic stains, and glaze.
© copyright 1995-2004 Artwerker Designs. All Rights Reserved.


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Silver BookCrude stroke mortality rates among older US adults (aged ≥65 years), 2005 to 2015
Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics—2018 Update: A Report From the American Heart Association
Benjamin E, Virani S, Callaway C, et al
Cost of Disease
Prevalence & Incidence
Age - A Major Risk Factor
Human Burden
Future Human Burden
Silver Book Fact
Crude stroke mortality rates among older US adults (aged ≥65 years), 2005 to 2015
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Benjamin E, Virani S, Callaway C, et al. Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics—2018 Update: A Report From the American Heart Association. Circulation. 2018; 137. http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/137/12/e67
Connected Facts
Total of physician office visits for first-listed stroke patients in 2014
There were a total of 1,950,000 physician office visits in 2014 for patients first-listed for a stroke diagnosis.
Female Stroke Inpatients Outnumber Males in 85+ population
In 2014, females ≥85 years constituted 66.0% of all inpatient hospital stays for stroke patients.
Human Burden, Economic Burden
Average Length of Hospital Stay for Stroke Patients
The average length of stay for hospitalized stroke patients was 4.7 days in 2014.
2015 Female Stroke Deaths
In 2015, females accounted for 58% of stroke-related deaths in the US.
Prevalence & Incidence, Human Burden
Highest and Lowest Stroke Prevalence by State in U.S. Adults
2.7% of U.S. adults suffer from stroke, with the highest prevalence in Alabama (4.3%) and the lowest prevalence in Minnesota (1.9%).
Related Facts
Average out-of-pocket health care spending tends to increase with age. Medicare beneficiaries age 65-74 spent $2,920 out-of-pocket in 2003, while beneficiaries age 85 and older spent $4,615. [ Get More Details ]
The number of Medicare beneficiaries newly diagnosed with wet age-related macular degeneratino (AMD) more than doubled between 1994 and 2006. [ Get More Details ]
An estimated 40% to 50% of people with persistent pain also have mood disorders. [ Get More Details ]
In 2000, 29% of Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and older with Alzheimer's disease or other dementias were also Medicaid beneficiaries. [ Get More Details ]
In 2003, $12.2 billion was paid to Medicare beneficiaries for in-hospital costs when cardiovascular disease was the principal diagnosis ($12,321 per discharge for acute myocardial infarction, $11,783 per discharge for…	[ Get More Details ]


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VELUX: Drama Heights
Creative Campaign & Content Development
Quick Version
Wray Ward found new ways to excite and inspire homeowners with an inventive campaign that demonstrated the dramatic difference VELUX skylights could make in any room.
To highlight the drama a skylight can add to a room, our team created Drama Heights, a campaign featuring three fictitious characters in a series of print ads and a reality-style video series on a dedicated microsite. In the first of three seasons, the campaign chronicled a romantic triangle among the characters whose homes were made all the more dramatic due to natural light from above provided by skylights. To evolve the program, VELUX invited fans to submit their ideas for a character to be added to the series. Wray Ward created a music video to showcase the winner, a Miami-based artist, who was chosen to play the new character in the series.
Since the launch of the campaign, traffic to the corporate website has more than doubled. In fact, the site has garnered more than 3.28 million visitors since the campaign began. Furthermore, nearly 900,000 have visited the campaign's microsite. The year after its launch, the campaign received a gold award in the Hanley Wood Brand Builder Awards for Best Integrated Consumer Campaign.
Corporate website visits
Microsite visits
We captured the imagination of homeowners through engaging ads, driving them to the microsite, where the print ads came to life. Prospects could see how a VELUX skylight can transform rooms in 3D via augmented reality by using AR codes on ads.
A custom microsite allowed users to further explore our Drama Heights campaign and interact through social channels. In addition, we developed a customized mobile app that lets users upload pictures of their own rooms, "place" a variety of skylight options in their own space, share the resulting pictures via Facebook and email, locate a VELUX installer and more.
Serialized video webisodes brought consumers back for multiple visits to the site. For the trade audience, we produced videos focused on installation, features and product benefits.
We created quarterly newsletters, ongoing blog posts and emails to educate the trade on topics including product information, selling techniques, economic forecasts, home design trends and more. Since the dealer and installer network also plays an essential role in the success of the brand, we keep them armed with strategies to make sales.
Explore more work
from Wray Ward.
View related work
Next: Sunbrella: Design + Performance


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Transgender post surgery
What is post operative transgender?
Post-op (post-operative): A term used to describe transgender, transsexual or gender-nonconforming individuals who have completed gender reassignment surgery, and/or other surgeries to change their bodies to more closely match their gender identity.
What is the recovery time for transgender surgery?
How long does it take to recover from surgery? On average, it can take 6-8 weeks to recover. Every patient's recovery is different, but emphasis on home hygiene and post-operative care will help to speed up your recovery.
Is transgender surgery painful?
For the patient, severe pain, bruising and general discomfort for days after the male-to-female procedure are common. And the female-to-male gender-reassignment surgery is even more difficult surgically, with a longer recovery period.
What happens when you get a transgender surgery?
When changing anatomical sex from male to female, the testicles are removed (castration), and the skin of foreskin and penis is usually inverted, as a flap preserving blood and nerve supplies (a technique pioneered by Sir Harold Gillies in 1951), to form a fully sensitive vagina (vaginoplasty).
What is Post op and pre op?
Post-op may refer to: Short for postoperative; after a surgical operation. The opposite of post-op is pre-op. With reference to a transgender person: having had sex reassignment surgery.
Can FTM get hard after surgery?
It has a shorter recovery time and can become erect on its own. However, the penis is small after a metoidioplasty, explained Keith. "It allows some patients to stand to urinate but they'll never be able to achieve penetrative intercourse with it," which is a goal for many patients.
You might be interested: How much does it cost for transgender surgery
How painful is a surgery?
All surgeries involve a degree of discomfort and, in many cases, pain. Some surgeries, though, are more painful than others. There are surgeries that may leave you feeling extremely uncomfortable only immediately after the surgery. In other cases, the discomfort lasts for several weeks or longer as you recover.
Which gender reassignment surgery is easier?
Male to female genital surgery is easier, less expensive and generally more successful than female to male surgery. That's one reason why fewer women choose to have surgery on their genitals, Bowers said.
How long do you have to dilate after gender reassignment surgery?
You should use the next size for three months. Dilation frequency: 0-3 months after surgery 3 times/day for 10 minutes each time, 3-6 months after surgery 1/day for 10 minutes each time, more than 6 months after surgery 2-3/week for 10 minutes each time, more than 9 months 1-2x/week.
How does a woman turn into a man?
A metoidioplasty is a method of constructing a new penis, or neopenis. It involves changing the clitoris into a penis. A person will receive hormone therapy before the surgery to enlarge the clitoris for this purpose. During the procedure, the surgeon also removes the vagina, in a vaginectomy.
Posted In: Transgender


Phyllodes tumours (PT) of the male urogenital tract are rare; to date, fewer than one hundred cases have been described in the prostate, and under fifteen in the seminal vesicle.(1) They display histologic features and clinical behaviour similar to PTs of the female breast; the lesions may be cured by surgical resection, but a large proportion exhibit local recurrence, and cases of direct invasion into adjacent organs and widespread metastasis have been reported.(2) Although no single morphologic feature is reliably predictive of prognosis, a combined assessment may be used for grading and prognostication, as in the breast.(2) We encountered a primary urinary bladder PT which, to our knowledge, is the first such case described in a human. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Phyllodes tumor of the prostate: a rare condition requiring careful surveillance.
Malignant phyllodes tumor of the prostate.
A phyllodes tumor of the urinary bladder in a rat.
Local recurrence of a phyllodes tumour of the breast presenting with widespread differentiation to a telangiectatic osteosarcoma.
Malignant phyllodes tumour: report of two cases.


At what exact point should one resist?
That is a very hard question to answer. I can tell you from personal experience (with one of Texas' finest Fish Cops) that it must be before the cuffs go on. I can also tell you from reason that you should be prepared to die–no matter what "exact point" you choose.
The Betrayed: On Warriors, Cowboys and Other Misfits. by Dr Jimmy T (Gunny) LaBaume. Click here to buy the paperback version from the FlyoverPress aStore.
This entry was posted in Government Corruption, Government Failures, Government Propaganda, Jack Booted Government Thug Watch, Police State, Right to resist unlawful arrest and tagged Amazon Kindle, Amazon.com, Gunnery Sergeant, Kendall Version, LaBaume, Misfits (band), Right to resist unlawful arrest, Texas, Warriors. Bookmark the permalink.


The project investigates repair and maintenance of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems which, although an important facet of infrastructural transformation and social change, has received little attention so far.
The project aims to document and describe technical routine and emergency interventions of service technicians, and the interactions with users, dwellers, property owners, work colleagues, specialists and superiors that characterize this domain of work. How do workers of selected facility management service providers and HVAC-specialised SMEs address requirements of indoor climate, comfort, and quality of life they are confronted with in their daily work? How are problems dealt with, which technical adjustments are made? Furthermore, to what extent does repair and maintenance contribute to a sustainable cohesion of urban landscapes?
This project is funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF).


INDIANAPOLIS -- Reserved seat tickets for the 2015 NCAA® Men's College World Series (CWS) will be available for sale Saturday, April 18, at 10 a.m. Central Time. The sale will be open to the general public at NCAA.com/CWSTickets or by calling 866/208-0048. Tickets for fans requiring Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible seating also will be available using these same options.
The number of available tickets is limited and some games are expected to sell out quickly, especially Games 1-4 and Finals games 1 and 2. Fans will have the opportunity to purchase up to six tickets for all games. Only those games that are guaranteed to be played will be sold. Tickets for "if necessary" games will be sold on their respective game days at the TD Ameritrade Park Omaha box office.
In order to purchase tickets for the CWS, which runs from June 13-23/24, a valid credit card will be required. Once purchased, all tickets will be delivered electronically and registered to the buyer's credit card. To redeem your seat(s) on game day, simply present the credit card used to make the purchase at any gate at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha. After the card is scanned, a seat locator will be printed and fans will be admitted to the stadium.
The same digital ticket entry process is used for any ticket purchased or transferred through the NCAA Ticket Exchange™, a fan-to-fan marketplace. The digital tickets are fully transferrable and can be listed on the NCAA Ticket Exchange.
Ticket prices for reserved seat tickets at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha are tiered according to their location and by games. Reserved seat ticket prices for seating in sections 107-117 between first and third bases will be $38 each for Games 1-4 and the Finals games; $33 each for Games 5, 7, 11, Bracket1-If Necessary and Bracket 2-If Necessary; and $36 for Games 6, 8, 9, 10 and 12.
Ticket prices for seating in sections 100-106 and 118-124, which are located down the first and third base lines, will be $37 each for Games 1-4 and the Finals games; $32 each for Games 5, 7, 11, Bracket1-If Necessary and Bracket 2-If Necessary; and $35 for Games 6, 8, 9, 10 and 12.
Ticket prices for reserved seating in the upper level and grandstand (200 and 300 levels) will be $36 each for Games 1-4 and the Finals games; $31 each for Games 5, 7, 11, Bracket1-If Necessary and Bracket 2-If Necessary; and $34 each for Games 6, 8, 9, 10 and 12.
Group tickets will be available to purchase beginning Monday, April 27 at 10 a.m. Central time by calling College World Series of Omaha, Inc. at 404/554-4422 and requesting Group Ticket Sales. Orders will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis, pending ticket availability. Individual groups may order up to 50 tickets, based on availability.
Group tickets will be located in the 300-level of TD Ameritrade Park Omaha. For those fans unable to purchase all the reserved seat tickets they need through the advance sale, other available options include the NCAA Ticket Exchange, The NCAA Experience® ticket and hospitality packages through PrimeSport, box office sales available on game day only and general admission tickets. Information on all ticket options, the full schedule of events and game times are available at NCAA.com/CWS.


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Q: How to disable password reset by users on mysql Is there a way to disable the password reset done by users on MySQL, except the root user? Any help or suggestions are highly appreciated.
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Custom «Goodfellas» Essay Paper
Custom «Goodfellas» Essay Paper essay
Martin Scorsese tried to depict the violent revisions of a mobster in New York who cooperated with federal law enforcement authorities. The film revolves around there significant personalities during the 1960s and 1970s. The movie features Robert de Niro as a leading mobster in New York. Martin Scorsese tried to show the violent side of New York City. This paper analyses Goodfellas as brought out by martin Scorsese.
Buy Goodfellas essay paper online
Martin Scorsese based the Goodfellas movie on the book wise guy by Nicholas pillage. Scorsese and Pileggi came together and worked on the screenplay of the movie. Martin Scorsese dealt with the movie episode by episode moving away from the traditional narrative, movie structure. Scorsese wanted the movie to have a flash-forward and flashback structure, which meant that the movie would start in the middle, reflect what had happened in the past and move towards the future (Nyce).
The narratives in the movie have a concern with the usual intrigues and violent acts that happen in most gangster films but retain an interesting development. It has a captivating visual style that has been created competently. Scorsese uses both a narrative and visual effect to give the movie a high quality. He creates characters that make the viewer aware of their world of reason and perspective that makes them think of the mafia as their only way of life (Robbe 63).
The opening in the movie has been put in mediasres where the film begins after the story has already progressed. This adds some effect to the story. The start of the story follows after the movie has progressed and explains the opening part of the movie. Martin Scorsese as the director of Goodfellas used this technique to engage the audience and make them watch the movie. Scorsese uses this technique to capture the attention of the audience. At first, one wonders where the movie started but as it progresses the audience gets to know what happened. This technique makes the movie captivating and makes the audience want to watch what happens next.
Scorsese based the beginning of the movie in his Hollywood starts killing a man in the boot of a car. He brought up this scene so that the audience could watch to understand the reason that made them kill that person. Martin Scorsese used a sequence to establish the characters, settings, the genre and the theme in the movie. When an audience watches the characters as they engage one another and go about their business, the audience gets to understand the setting that the characters have been placed and the themes that come out from their actions.
In the opening sequence of the movie, Goodfellas has used a tracking shot of a car that moves fast in an extremely dark lighting. This informs the audience that the opening of the movie happens at night. A plain text then shows informing the audience that the movie takes place in New York, in 1970. After this, Scorsese uses a medium shot taken at an angle where the audience can see the three main actors and their profiles, as displayed. When Scorsese used the medium shot, he developed the film in a way that the audience could view the facial expression of the characters and analyze the mise and scene critically. For example, the audience can see clearly that the three characters have worn suits, which connote their importance in the society, and the higher status that they occupy in the society.
When the audience looks at the faces of the three characters, they notice that they have a relaxed appearance, which changes to confusion as they hear a banging sound that leaves the actors and the audience perplexed. The audience can also notice that the actors have no facial tattoos, hair or make-up. Their hair has been combed backwards, and all of them have a smart appearance. Together with the suits that they have worn, they have jewelry, which depicts them as rich, businesspersons or respectable men in the society. However, the shovel that Joe Pesci held at the back seat makes the audience think twice about all the status they give the three characters based on their dressing and appearance (LoBrutto 386).
The movie then cuts into a long shot that shows the three actors reassuring each other and standing behind the car in a place that appears like woodland. The audience can now see the full profile of the characters. It then cuts to a medium close in the car boot, which shows the importance towards it. The red lights bought out by the brake lights depict danger and violence. The scene has no sound track. It has diegetic and non-diegetic sounds, for instance, the sound of cars passing and the banging noise.
Throughout the scenes in the movie, zooming and panning occur constantly. For instance in the opening scene, the audience notice that the banging sound in the boot of the car comes from a person. A high angle has been used to show that those standing outside the car have a high and superior status. At this point, the audience does not understand what has happened to the person in the boot, but later they understand from the explanation later (LoBrutto 385).
In the opening scene, the director has identified Pesci as a merciless and aggressive character. The audience also learns that Robert de Niro has a merciless character as his partner when he reaches his back pocket as Pesci shouts insults. The scene informs the audience that the three characters are gangsters.
Goodfellas brings in a rich form of cinematography and editing. The movie consists of many fast moving camera shots. Many straight cuts used all through the movie confirm this. The lightning in the movie consists of dim lights that make the scenery dark. The lighting consists of artificial lighting. In certain scenes, it becomes obvious that the movie made use of red filters.
Technically, Goodfellas presents a tour de force exhilarating cinematography that has a dynamic editing and a soundtrack of classic pop tunes hat blend the story in the movie over the hearty year arc. Michael Ballhaus supervised the camera use in the Goodfellas movie. Ballhaus ensured that the camera captured al the significant moments in the film that helped bring out the themes, setting and the character roles of the participants in the play. The cameras captured all the sequences in the play including the famous four-minute shot that followed hill and Karen as they moved to the prime seats in Copacabana nightclub, in New York, through the service entrance and a series of corridors.
The camera shots ensured that they gave the correct lighting to scenes. Therefore, the audience could differentiate days from nights and when the characters operated inside buildings or in the open air. Scorsese maintained a static camera that kept the canvas fluid. For instance, the audience gets to view the disorienting shot involving Henry and jimmy facing each other at dinner, across the table. They appear to remain static as the background moves (Nyce 22).
The editing came out perfectly because at no point do the audience notice merging of two different scenes or settings. The movie glides smoothly from one scene to the next and from one setting to the other.
Scorsese presented the Goodfellas movie with a clear sound use and management. The audience gets to hear the conversation between characters in the play and any other sounds, such as the sound of cars passing, banging sounds and screams. These sounds became helpful by helping the audience understand the flow of the movie. It helped bring emotions and mod variations in the movie. Being a gangster type of movie, the audience would expect that it would depict different moods. Scorsese achieved these using sound effects. The classical, pop songs that Scorsese used helped to create relevant moods in the movie.
Martin Scorsese applied many techniques that helped create a rich effect in the movie. In the beginning of the movie, Scorsese decided to use at the beginning of the movie Scorsese decided to open the movie in the middle of the story to attract the attention of the audience. He later explains what happens at the beginning of the movie that captivates the audience. The still shots, long and medium shots that he used in cinematography gave the movie a rich taste. The sound tracks in the movie, the lighting and editing, ensured that Goodfellas offers an enjoyable experience for the audience. Scorsese also used a narrative play technique to explain all that went on in the play (Robbe 60).
Goodfellas offered the audience a rich movie experience that a gangster type of movie could. Scorsese used his experience with a variety of techniques to create a world class rated movie. The use of different camera angles and techniques that martin Scorsese used on the film proved him as a talented movie director. Scorsese brought out a reality of the New York City crime zone. He made Goodfellas appear a real experience. The creation of the scenes flowing into the other, with setting and characters that fit in the movie, Scorsese bought out the themes in the movie clear for the audience to see.
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Tate Mid Sleeper Bed Set, Ivory | Great Little Trading Co.
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Self assembly: If you plan to assemble this bed yourself you must follow all assembly instructions to the letter so that it complies with British Safety Standard regulations. We recommend in situ assembly by two competent adults; any attempt to move it once assembled may cause damage to the bed and to you. Please also note that we do not recommend the use of power tools on any MDF panels.
We've teamed up the Tate Midsleeper Bed with matching desk and storage to help you make the most of space in children's bedrooms; the Tate Mid Sleeper Bed Frame features an ambidextrous ladder and a clip-on bedside table; the Tate Cupboard, Tate Chest of Drawers, and the Tate Pull-out Desk can be used separately or under the bed frame to save space. It's painted in an Ivory finish; team it up with the Ivory Nelson Chair to complete the look.
All our children's beds are covered by our Five Year Warranty and rigorously safety tested for use by children. The Tate range is made from solid pine and MDF panels; the bed is tested to BS EN: 747, and features deep, easy to climb ladder steps. Assembly service available (£100).
You need a longer, European Single mattress for this bed; we recommend our Luxury, All Rounder Mattress (Euro Single); it's pocket sprung for a superior level of comfort but is the required shallower depth for use on a raised bed. For more information please see our Mattress Buying Guide.


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(Disney). Walt Disney. Magic Moments. Photo available. Milan. Walt Disney Productions. Arnoldo Mondadori Editions. 1973. 192 pps. Folio. Decorated hard cover. Stated first edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(Dixon Schwabl). Horses on Parade. A Community Art Project of the High Falls Brewing Company. Photo available. New York. Horses on Parade Foundation. 2002. 168 pps. Octavo. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in color and black & white. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(Eagles). Eagles. The Very Best. Sheet Music. Guitar Tab. Photo available. New York. Warner. 2004. Folio. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy. As new.
(Editors of American Fabric Magazine). Encyclopedia of Textiles. First edition, in dust jacket. Photo available. Englewood Cliffs. Prentice-Hall. 1960. 702 pps. Folio. Gilt decorated hard cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy in edge worn dust jacket (n mylar).
(Editors of American Fabrics Magazine). AF Encyclopedia of Textiles. Photo available. Englewood Cliffs. Prentice-Hall. Editors of American Fabrics Magazine. 1972. 635 pps. 4to. Decorated hard cover. Second edition. Illustrated. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(Emanuel von Baeyer). Illuminated Prints. 1480-1600. Including Three Extraordinary Manuscripts. 1593-1597. Photo available. London. Emanuel von Baeyer. 2019. 164 pps. Octavo. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Allan, William. Transient Poet. William Allan Retrospective. Photo available. Sacramento. Crocker Art Museum. 1993. Octavo. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Auld, Alastair A. Scottish Painting. 1880-1930. Glasgow. np. c. 1974. 31 pps. + plates. 4to. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in color and black & white. Exhibition catalogue. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Barnes, Melvyn. An Exhibition of High Victorian Art. In Conjunction with the Tate Gallery, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the York Art Gallery. Leighton House. London. Kensington & Chelsea Public Library. 1976. 30 pps. 4to. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Beckmann, Max. Max Beckmann. Gemalde. 1905-1950. Photo available. Leipzig. Museum der Bilenden Kunste. 1990. 4to. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Borasch, Moshe, et al. Artists of Israel: 1920-1980. Photo available. New York. The Jewish Museum / New York. February 19 - May 17, 1981. 4to. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Near fine copy (very light shelf wear).
(exhibition catalogue) Brady, Robert, Garver, Thomas, et al. Robert Brady: A Survey Exhibition. Photo available. Sacramento. Crocker Art Museum. 1989. Octavo. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Brown, Jonathan. El Greco of Toledo. Photo available. Boston. Little, Brown Co. 1982. 4to. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Cagman, Dr. Filiz. Architecture. Traditional Turkish Arts. Prepared on the Occasion of "The Age of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent" Exhibition. Photo available. Istanbul. Turkish Republic, Ministry of Culture and Tourism. nd. 4to. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Cagman, Dr. Filiz. Calligraphy, Manuscript, Illumination and Bookbinding. Traditional Turkish Arts. Prepared on the Occasion of "The Age of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent" Exhibition. Photo available. Istanbul. Turkish Republic, Ministry of Culture and Tourism. nd. 4to. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Cagman, Dr. Filiz. Miniature. Traditional Turkish Arts. Prepared on the Occasion of "The Age of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent" Exhibition. Photo available. Istanbul. Turkish Republic, Ministry of Culture and Tourism. nd. 4to. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Campbell, Robin. British Sporting Painting. 1650-1850. London. Hayward Gallery. 1975. 160 pps. 4to. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in color and black & white. Exhibition catalog. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Cartier-Bresson, Henri. Henri Cartier-Bresson. The Early Work. Photo available. New York. Museum of Modern Art. 1993. 4to. Gilt decorated hard cover. First edition. Illustrated. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy in fine dust jacket (in mylar).
(exhibition catalogue) Clark, H. Nichols B. Francis W. Edmonds. American Master in the Dutch Tradition. Photo available. Washington. Amon Carter Museum. Smithsonian Institution. 1988. 4to. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. q Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Colnaghi. English Drawings & Watercolours. Colnaghi. Photo available. London. P. & D. Colnachi & Co. 20th May, 1987. Octavo. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Colnaghi. English Drawings & Watercolours. Colnaghi. Photo available. London. P. & D. Colnachi & Co. 8th May, 1985. Octavo. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Coppel, Stephen. Picasso and Printmaking in Paris. Photo available. London. SBC. 1999. 4to. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in black, white and color. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Near fine copy (interior like new, front panel lightly soiled.
(exhibition catalogue) Curry, Larry. John Marin. 1870-1953. A Centennial Exhibition. Photo available. Los Angeles. Los Angeles County Museum of Art. 1970. 100 pps. Octavo. Soft cover. First edition. Illustrated in color and black & white. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Dalkey, Fred & Peter Flagg et al. Fred Dalkey: Retrospective. Photo available. Sacramento. Crocker Art Museum. 2002. 4to. Soft cover. First edition thus. Illustrated in black, white and color. Important reference work. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.
(exhibition catalogue) Dawe, Donovan. The City of London. A Select Book List. London. Guildhall. 1972. Octavo. Soft cover. First edition. Very scarce in this condition. Fine copy.


I have tried so many products since I first went natural in 2009, so you can say that I am a product junkie at heart. It's always hard for me to find products that would keep my hair fresh during my protective style, and most importantly finding products that don't leave residue in my hair with too much buildup. When Dark and Lovely released their new Au Naturale Length Retention products for protective styles this year, I knew I had to try this line.
Maintaining healthy hair starts with the scalp and Dark and Lovely has just the products to help keep your scalp healthy. The Length Retention for protective styles line was created to help nourish the scalp while your hair is being protected. This line is also chock-full with jojoba oil and peppermint oil to help refresh and soothe the scalp without no sulfates, no mineral oil, no parabens, and no petrolatum.
I always have major issues with my scalp and this product helped keep my scalp feeling very fresh and clean. This cleanser was created to help keep your protective style and scalp feeling clean and fresh between wash days. The refreshing scalp cleanser brings scalp comfort and care on the journey to length retention. I barely had any dandruff once I removed my protective style and that's huge for me. I sprayed this product on my scalp, let it sit for a minute or two, and removed the excess using a cotton ball or paper towel.
The S.O.S Nourishing Scalp Elixir is a nourishing treatment that really saves lives. The key ingredients in this product are arginine and ceramide, which helps to maintain a healthy-looking hairline and scalp when wearing protective styles. This product prevented my scalp from getting dry.
The Protective Styles Nice and Neat Braiding Custard helps keep your hair moisturized, soft, and conditioned while keeping your style looking new. I am very happy that I applied this to my hair before installing my protective style, because I noticed that my hair remained moisturized throughout the duration of my protective style.
The Protective Styles Tame and Strengthen Edge Saver definitely helped save my edges while sculpting my protective style. Your edges are the first part of your protective style that will begin to get a little fuzzy over time, but this product helped control my frizz and also helped slick down my fly-aways. This is definitely needed with any protective style and should be kept on hand at all times.
Overall this line really helped me keep my protective style looking fresh and maintained!
We haven't seen many reviews for this line yet, and we'd love to know what you think.
If you've tried it, share your thoughts in the comments below. And if you haven't yet tried it - would you try a product that's specifically formulated for protective styles?


To celebrate the January 6th release of The Tudors: The Complete Second Season, The Zoo is giving away THREE copies of the DVD, courtesy of CBS and Paramount Home Entertainment, to THREE lucky winners.
Jonathan Rhys Meyers (Match Point, TV's Elvis) returns to his "boisterously, enjoyably inappropriate" (USA Today) Golden Globe-nominated** role as Henry VIII, whose promiscuous ways change the course of history as he moves to divorce Queen Katherine (Maria Doyle Kennedy) and marry Anne Boleyn (Natalie Dormer), prompting Pope Paul III (eight-time Academy Award® nominee Peter O'Toole) to have him excommunicated. Anne's failure to provide Henry with a male heir sets the wheels in motion for her eventual beheading and sends the King into the arms of Jane Seymour (Anita Briem).
In the tradition of Showtime's brilliant original programming, THE TUDORS continues to garner record viewership for the network, and also picked up 2008 Golden Globe nominations for Best Television Series – Drama and Best Actor (Rhys Meyers), following its 2007 Emmy® wins for the series' costuming and theme music. THE TUDORS returns to Showtime for a third season in the spring of 2009, with Grammy Award® winner Joss Stone joining the cast as Henry's fourth wife, Anne of Cleves.
THE TUDORS: THE COMPLETE SECOND SEASON is packaged on four DVDs featuring all 10 episodes, plus two featurettes: Tower of London and Descendants of Henry, and the season two premieres of Showtime's Golden Globe nominated series CALIFORNICATION and Emmy nominated series THIS AMERICAN LIFE®. Viewers will also have access via EBridge Technology to unlock and view the first two season three episodes from Showtime's Golden Globe nominated series DEXTER and the second episode from CALIFORNICATION's second season.
For some more great Tudors fun, check out "Who the Tudor are you?", to discover what your life would have been like had you lived during Tudor times.
This contest is open to all residents of the United States, and will close on January 14, 2009 at 11:59 pm EST.


Improve and restore your appearance with non-surgical treatments such as Botox® Anti-wrinkle injections and Dermal Fillers at the Renew Aesthetic Clinic now open at the Firs Wellbeing Centre.
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The Bridges News will be published at least once a semester, possibly more often. It is a publication highlighting events, successes, athletic news, and any other information that might be of interest to parents and students.
Read the latest Bridges News issue below or see archived issues on the right.