Friday, November 21, 2008

Harry Potter's Not Opening, and They're Not Over It


Thu Nov 20, 2008, 5:52 pm EST

Trailers click it.

Friday was supposed to be the day Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince opened. Instead, over the summer, Warner Bros. rescheduled the franchise's latest adventure for next July, a move that caused a fan upset that hasn't entirely settled.

"I think most fans are disappointed more than angry, and definitely skeptical of the real motive behind the delay," said Sara Greer, editor of the Harry Potter fan site MuggleNet.

A fan identifying herself as Jen Stewart said in an email she felt the studio was "pandering" when it pointed out the reschedule, attributed, in part, to fallout from the writers' strike, meant a shorter wait between Half-Blood Prince and the first part of the two-part finale, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

"I don't know about everyone but I am still just as upset as I was over the summer," Stewart said.

Interestingly, the recent release of the new Half-Blood Prince trailer doesn't seem to have appeased the most seriously aggrieved. Dozens and dozens of new names are still being added to one popular online petition that's more sounding board, than call to action.

"Ahhh. I can't wait until next year! I want it this year," one signer wrote Thursday.

The post's emoticon tag—:(—left no doubt as to how bad the signer wanted it.

Greer even compared the new trailer to a "bit of torture."

"The new trailer was a treat, sure, it just made a lot of us more impatient to see the film," she said in an email. "Especially since all the Twilight fans will get their fangirl on instead!"

Ah, yes, Twilight…

In one more painful twist, the Half-Blood Prince trailer is attached to prints of Twilight, the based-on-a-best-seller movie that is opening Friday because Half-Blood Prince isn't. (Originally, Twilight was going to hit theaters in December.)

"A former MuggleNet editor commented she was probably going to see Twilight just for the new trailer in all its big screen glory," Greer said. "I think I'll just reread the books and wait for summer."

At least her emoticon tag—;)—was upbeat.

··· THEY SAID WHAT? Get today's most commented stories now at www.eonline.comHarry Potter and the Unexpected Summer PremiereRowling Rules: Judge Halts Harry Potter LexiconWarners' Puttar-Potter Suit Peters OutRate-a-Trailer: Harry Potter. Remember Him?

Twilight Playing Now!

Twilight Fans of the Stephenie Meyer's best-seller have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of this film. The story focuses on a high-school girl (Kristen Stewart) who relocates from Arizona to the Pacific Northwest during her junior year. And wouldn't you know it, she falls in love with one of the town's incognito vampires, the most mysterious and beautiful boy in school. Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson do have some genuine chemistry as a couple, but of the vampire action sequences in the film Genevieve Koski of The Onion writes, "these setpieces are hindered by cheesy CGI effects and unfortunate styling that makes the vampires look not like impossibly beautiful killing machines, but like a bunch of dorks who fell into a vat of pancake makeup." And though the special effects and makeup aren't the strong points of this production, Richard Corliss of Time Magazine says, "So Twilight isn't a masterpiece -- no matter. It rekindles the warmth of great Hollywood romances." Edward Douglas on ShockTillYouDrop.com is less kind, breaking it down like this: "Essentially, a CW take on Anne Rice, catering to the gooey-eyed fans of Meyer's novels and their unrealistic romantic expectations." So if you are checking it out this weekend, be prepared for sold-out shows, long lines and, apparently, fans with gooey eyes.

Movie Info * Trailers & Clips * Showtimes & Tickets * User Reviews

SNL: Kissing Family


Description: There is such a thing as being too close to your family.
This is making me so hard laugh, but I cannot understand what they said to each others about a kiss thing is good close to family something. That's so disgusted! I like three men they are so cute and hot too, but I don't think the dad is... Ew! (Chuckling) - Braz

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Decoding the 'Star Trek' Trailer

Freida Pinto

by Matt McDaniel * November 17, 2008

If you were one of the millions of moviegoers who saw "Quantum of Solace" in theaters this weekend, you may have also seen the trailer for director J.J. Abrams' new film version of "Star Trek." It's the first look we've had at Chris Pine in the role of the young Captain Kirk and Zachary Quinto as Mr. Spock. But the preview is edited so quickly even if you saw it on the big screen you might not have deciphered all the information packed into the 2-minute trailer. So we've broken it down to uncover the biggest revelations it contains, plus we have the video so you can watch it yourself.  Watch it now >>

Kirk was always a troublemaker.

Star Trek Trailer Capture

James T. Kirk has always had a reputation for bending the rules and living on the edge. Apparently, he started early. The trailer begins with an 11-year-old Kirk fleeing from a robotic police officer in a classic Corvette and leaping away right before the car sails off a cliff. It also appears that in this version the Enterprise was built in rural Iowa where Kirk was raised, and not constructed in space as stated by the late series creator Gene Roddenberry.

Spock's home world is falling apart.

Star Trek Trailer Capture

After getting a glimpse of Spock as a pointy-eared child, we see him as an adult beaming onto the planet Vulcan as rocks are crumbling around him. Later, there is a shot of him helping his human mother Amanda (played by Winona Ryder) down a hill as the ground quakes. In subsequent scenes, it looks like a giant laser is blasting into the surface of Vulcan from a spaceship above.

It's a long way down.

Star Trek Trailer Capture

We see three figures in helmets and jumpsuits plummeting past a spire down towards the surface of a planet. They deploy parachutes as they fly past the camera. Reports from a preview screening say the away team is made up of Kirk, Sulu and Chief Engineer Olsen, a crewman in a "red shirt." Ironically, the original Kirk, William Shatner, was originally going to skydive from space in the beginning of "Star Trek: Generations," but that scene was cut.

Scotty is having fun, but Bones isn't.

Star Trek Trailer Capture

We get brief glimpses of the rest of the ship's crew. Chekov (Anton Yelchin) is seen at the helm on the updated bridge. A dripping wet Scotty (Simon Pegg) happily announced "I like this ship; it's exciting!" Dr. McCoy (Karl Urban), on the other hand, tells Kirk that, "Space is disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence." We also see the original captain of the Enterprise, Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood) still in command. Sulu (John Cho) shows off his fencing skills, and Uhura (Zoe Saldana) just shows off.

Kirk and Spock aren't friends yet.

Star Trek Trailer Capture

In "Star Trek II," Spock tells Kirk, "I have been and always shall be your friend." But it doesn't look like they're quite that chummy yet in this film. They face off in the bridge, and when Kirk pushes Spock too far he responds with a seemingly illogical beatdown. Plus, there is a brief shot of Spock choking Kirk against a consol. Still, there is a moment where Kirk pats Spock on the shoulder and tells him to "Buckle up," so they may well be pals by the end of the movie.

It boldly goes where no 'Trek' has gone before.

Star Trek Trailer Capture

If there's one message this trailer is trying to convey, it's that this is the biggest and most dynamic "Star Trek" film yet. We see phasers blasting, fists flying, monsters roaring, and spaceships exploding. The trailer ends with the Romulan villain Nero (Eric Bana) announcing, "The wait is over." Unfortunately, that's not true yet. "Star Trek" doesn't beam down into theaters until May 9th.




Thursday, November 13, 2008

Ninety Nine Point Nine Percent

Photographer by RedupReda

Back to the world, against a tree as the sun bakes my face
So entwined in amongst life’s great sugar, and silver lace
Digging deeper to open this up, afraid to get so entangled
And there’s a pressure that feels like, I am being strangled

Now is it so hard to acknowledge the ideals, of similarities?
Or is it the one tenth of one percent, of all the differences?
You don’t have to climb a mountain, to swing your arm
Slight step to the side, and soon realise that there’s no harm

Fading it down and reinvent you, but it’s the same beneath
I enjoy the sunset as I know the night, begins its wreath
So turn the cheek and noticed, the skin is cooler out here
Free to dance as you are, and be yourself without a fear

Strum on my guitar like the clock, ticking the seconds away
So to counterfeit yet another and seemingly, endless today
But all in the paces of the personal perspective, of illusion
Let’s stray off the path and so bath myself, in this confusion

Lit up a first cigar after I quit now, about four long years ago
Failed to inhale as I just saw it, just burning away so slow
And figured now; if that lasts this long then I can be forever
Doesn’t it actually make a difference? But never say never

Saw the cloud sailing the sky, and wondered where they go
Are clouds emotional as they are sometimes storms, and blow?
Or a greater power at work in partnership, of fate and fortune
Where’s the fun in always trying to deny, some kind of emotion

Just better be yourself, because then only the genuine fit closer
And regard each and everyone, as the daily four leaved clover
Can’t think now of being any other way, but what I want to be
Because I am so sick of changing, it’s high time I was to be free

So close this final verse, of passive and perceptive conjuring
Isn’t a wonder we have time to be able, to fathom us slowing
To consider the considerations, we seem to forget to consider
Take it from me that you can only be anything, so much better

More here:
Poems by Vision Ghost

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Eight Dream Symbols That Point to Stress

by ~taykut


Author By: Dayna Davis (View Profile)

When I was a senior in high school, I had a recurring dream of my teeth falling out. I dreamt about my teeth just about every night for at least three weeks. Sometimes they’d fall out one at a time, sometimes all at once, but the worst was when they’d just start decaying in my mouth and crumble away. In one dream, I was walking around my house, toothless and crying, and nobody would help me when I showed them the collection of my own teeth I held in my hands.

I became terrified that my dreams meant I would actually lose my teeth—my perfectly straight, took-years-of-orthodontics-and-thousands-of-dollars-to-get, pearly whites.

Nine years later and about a million trips to the dreams section of Barnes & Noble, I still have a full set of teeth, but I’ve learned that when we’re experiencing stress in our lives, it tends to show up in our dreams as well, many times cloaked in these symbols.

Nudity
You’re walking down the street, going to work, or just standing in a crowd … naked. You’re mortified that you forgot your clothes, but nobody seems to notice. Sound familiar?

According to Gustavus Hindman Miller’s 10,000 Dreams Interpreted, dreaming that you’re nude in public foretells scandal and unwise engagements.

Dream Moods, a popular dream interpretation Web site, says dreaming about being naked shows you’re feeling vulnerable or shameful. You could be feeling inferior at work, or feel unguarded or exposed in a situation.

Storms
My storm of choice in dreams is always a tornado. I look outside, see a funnel cloud forming, and for some reason, I run right to it. For other people, it can be hurricanes, avalanches, or rain storms.

This one’s pretty simple to crack—dreaming of a storm symbolizes an internal storm in your life.

Dream Moods says storms signify “overwhelming struggle, shock, devastating loss, and catastrophe in your personal affairs.”

Miller says storms in dreams mean continued sickness, unfavorable business, and separation from friends—all things that will cause great distress. The good news is if the storm passes before you wake up, the stress won’t be as bad.

Crashes
Dreams of crashes—airplane, car, train, or otherwise—represent deep anxieties and fears. Many people fear these dreams are premonitions, but most likely they aren’t. Crashes can represent a feeling that your life is headed for disaster. Are you pushing yourself too hard? Are you feeling out of control? That out of control feeling may manifest itself in your dreams.

Dream Moods goes even further to break down crashes in dreams. If you dream of an airplane crash, you may have set high and unrealistic goals for yourself. Car crashes represent a shocking situation or a painful experience.

Hell
Ever dreamt about the fiery abyss of hell? Dream Moods says dreaming of hell shows that you’re suffering from an inescapable situation. You may have many inner fears and repressed guilty feelings. On the other hand, if you dream of fire, but not necessarily in hell, it symbolizes destruction, passion, desire, illumination, transformation, enlightenment, or anger.

Death
I once dreamt that my dad died, and I woke up crying and in a cold sweat. It was probably one of the worst dreams I’ve ever had. Luckily, dream experts say dreaming of death is merely symbolic and there’s no need to be afraid it’s a sign of things to come.

Miller says death dreams often mean the beginning of suspense or trials in your life.

They can also show forthcoming finalities, like the end of a marriage or a career.

Bugs
Bugs in our dreams—ants, spiders, moths, gnats, flies—could mean a number of things.

Miller says bugs are an indication that a “disgustingly revolting complication” will arise in your daily life.

Dream Moods takes bugs more literally, as in something is bugging you. To dream of bugs suggests you are worried about something and are filled with anxieties and fears.

A third interpretation is the bugs may represent your sexual thoughts.

Cats
Most experts agree on this one; dreaming of a cat foretells misfortune and bad luck.

Unless of course you’re a devout cat lover, and then it represents creativity, independence, and power.

Miller says if you’re able to kill the cat or drive it from your sight in your dream, your luck will turn around; you’ll overcome great obstacles and your fortunes will rise. But if you dream of a cat or a snake being friendly, watch out—an angry struggle is around the corner.

Losing Teeth
Ahh … the dream that’s haunted me for years, losing my teeth.

Miller says losing teeth signifies burdens that crush your pride. If your teeth are knocked out, you’ll have sudden misfortune. Decayed or snaggled teeth mean business or health struggles.

Other interpretations for dreams about lost teeth are that the dreamer is feeling powerless in life and may be in a transitional period from one phase of life to another.

Some experts say losing our teeth in a dream parallels the time in our lives when we lost our milk teeth and childhood innocence; these experts believe that dreams of losing teeth today show we’re just as insecure and uncertain as we were in infanthood.

When I dreamt about my teeth back in high school, I was trying to choose a college—definitely a stressful decision. The dreams resurfaced when college graduation rolled around four years later and I’m sure they’ll start again at the end of grad school.

A little bit of stress in our everyday lives is normal. But sometimes it becomes such a regular occurrence in our lives that it influences our dreams and causes us to lose valuable sleep. Understanding our dreams is key to identifying and ending stress in our waking hours and restoring peace and restfulness to our nighttime hours.

Related Story: Seven Common Dreams and What They Mean

First published November 2008