Across the Universe Podcast, Eps 16: Jingle Bell Rock (A Christmas Special)

Only four days - or five, depending on your location - until you can finally unwrap your presents and see the (hopepfully) happy looks on your family's and friends' faces. For the impatient among you, here's a snowflake-fresh episode brought to you by Nik, Sofia and my own humble self. 

There will be no further episodes (or blog posts for that matter) until New Year, since I'm on vacation in Michigan and everyone including my fellow two chicks with accents will be busy with the holiday preparations and exams. So have a very merry christmas everyone - frohe Weihnachten and god jul!

Content:

0:14 - Chick-chatter
2:34 - Trailer
3:08 - Interesting Movie of the Fortnight
25:21 - The chicks discuss Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)
39:18 - The chicks discuss The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
50:49 - The chicks discuss The Shop Around the Corner (1940)

1:05:12 - Plugs and Goodbyes

Soundtrack:

Kanye West - Bound 2

Mean Girls - Jingle Bell Rock

Fiona Apple - Across The Universe

Please give us your feedback on our facebook page, write us an email at acrossthenuniversepodcast@gmail.com or follow us and write a review on iTunes or Podomatic.

Leaving Hogwarts and the Sorcerer's Stone

HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S/ PHILOSOPHER'S STONE
book 1997 movie 2001 first read in 2003? first seen in 2003? 

Sometimes, the most unlikely things turn out to take the most important places in your life, don't they? 
Today, Harry Potter is a synonym for childhood to me - but for a long part of same childhood, it was just 'That boring-looking boys' movie'. It took someone's unsuspecting goodwill to get the book anywhere near me and an intense feeling of boredom for me to wipe the dust off its cover one or two years later. The rest is history. 

When other people turn up James Brown's "I Feel Good", I'll be listening to "Hedwig's Theme". Instead of the Tower Bridge, the highlight of my sightseeing tour in London was Platform 9 3/4. My visit of the Harry Potter Studio Tour in the UK will make out a whole chapter in my self-biography. Basically, I think this is all some kind of mistake and my invitation letter for Hogwarts got lost in the mail. This is why an afresh revisitation of the series seemed like the perfect way to both celebrate and grieve for my leaving/ finishing high school. So the next 8 months, right until my graduation prom in July, I'm going to take a look back at the 7 books and 8 films that make out such a huge part of my girlhood. The title of the series, obviously borrowed from my favourite theme from the soundtrack(s), is not supposed to symbolize any sort of abandon or moving-on from the Harry Potter universe. On the contrary, it signifies the parallels between the world of Harry, Ron and Hermione and my own life. As I'm on my way to end a very important chapter of my life, I once more look to them for inspiration.

Across the Universe Podcast, Ep 15: Catching Fire

Man of Steel has been gone for a few months now, so we thought it's time for another new release episode. Find out whether non-Tribute Sofia was more pleased about the sequel than the original movie and whether Niks and my expectations were fulfilled. We also give you a little foretaste for a future episode as we answer a little book-to-movie questionnaire.

Content:

0:19 - Chick-chatter
1:50 - Trailer
2:32 - Interesting Movie of the Fortnight
18:46 - The Chicks talk about The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
40:43 - Mini questionnaire on book-to-movie adaptations
57:20 - Plugs and Goodbyes

Soundtrack:

Of Monsters and Men - Silhouettes

Sia (Feat. The Weeknd and Diplo) - Elastic Heart

Jim Sturgess - Across The Universe

Please give us your feedback on our facebook page, write us an email at acrossthenuniversepodcast@gmail.com or follow us and write a review on iTunes or Podomatic.

Making the Case for Spring Breakers

Spring Breakers is my favourite film of 2013. I would rob a diner wearing a pink ski mask if I had to, just to watch it again. Or to get my hands on a copy of it. 

Let's begin where it all began with a teaser trailer than in itself is award-worthy. Most teaser trailers are. But there was someone about this one that intrigued me more than most of what I watch on a day-to-day base. Opinions on the movie have been very split. Festival-goers thought it was fine, teenage boys were disappointed by its seriousness, film enthusiasts didn't know what to make of it and the average moviegoer didn't even see it. It became known as "the movie with the two Disney princesses going wild". But it is just so much more than that. It's a film that bends genres, combines them anew and creates something that I've never seen on a screen before. It doesn't work neither as a satire, a full-on drama, a comedy, a music video or a wet-dream, but it's the mixture of all these elements that elevate it to another level of film-making. I won't go so far as saying that Harmony Korine knew what he was doing. Maybe he was. More likely, he wasn't completely. He didn't create an art house film, I think, but neither does his movie appeal to a large group of people. Cult movie might be the right term - or rather: future cult movie. 

Spring Breakers is an experience. Remember all the people mocking Gravity for being too long and having too little actual story? I for one think that both of these movies have some of the best screenplays of the year. And just as furious as I am about the people not 'getting' Gravity, I am about the people not even trying to get Spring Breakers. Of course, one may dislike or not love the movie once they've tried to work out what it was trying to say. Even if you don't arrive at a result, I wouldn't argue with you. But to completely disregard some of the things I love most about this movie, is a sin to me. Its content and ideas go from depicting the hedonic excesses of spring break to exploring friendship between young women to a re-interpretation of the American Dream. Confused? I wouldn't say I'm not. I don't completely 'get' Spring Breakers? But I like it that way. A movie doesn't need to write its intention out. A hint can be enough. And if the hint is as poetically executed as in Spring Breakers, a hint can be equal to perfection. 

Thank you for considering Spring Breakers, Ladies and Gentlemen, here are the categories I'd like to see it nominated in:

Best original screenplay - The dialogue is kept to a minimum and very powerful and the whole story evolved very organically. Also, the whole Britney Spears montage is enough reason for me to make this movie win. In case Gravity doesn't.

Best sound mixing - The voice-over fits beautifully into the rest of the movie and I think the technicians managed to make spring break feel real sound-wise without keeping the attention away from what was important to the story. 

Best make-up and hairstyling - Because pink hair. And seriously, the person that deformed James Franco that way must've really done an effort.

Best film editing - Some found the scenes of the actual spring break to be a tad too long and music-video-esque but I found that they worked very well. I loved the slow pace that was somehow underlined by some very fast-cut scenes. How is that even possible?

Best costume design - Duh.

Best cinematography - Everything looked either absolutely delicious or absolutely disgusting in a delicious way. My favourite thing about the cinematography is probably the lighting though. We don't see enough neon in movies these days. 

Best ensemble - Each of the three ladies was giving her very best and all of their performances felt very natural and honest. Rachel Korine was my least favourite, but even she depicted her character in an interesting, layered way. Selena Gomez was very sweet and her fear came across wonderfully, while Ashley Benson and Vanessa Hudgens blew me away in two very raunchy and sexy performances. And then there's James Franco.

Best supporting actor - Again, I want to say duh. He's completely different from his usual self, not only look-wise, but also in the way he walks, talks, acts and whatever people do. The pistol scene alone should gain him a nomination.

I also would like Spring Breakers to create and to win these fictional categories: Best Poster, Best Use of Pop Music, Best Arrest, Best Nail Polish and Best Asses.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

(MOVIES I THOUGHT ABOUT CHOOSING for various reasons)

This is the End • The Conjuring • The Bling Ring • How I Live Now • Michael Kohlhaas

I'm a Blind Young Lady

The one and only Ryan McNeil is hosting his famous Blind Spot blogathon again next year, and this time, I'm all in. I'm going to watch 12 movies that I've never seen before, but feel very inclined to do. They may have won Best Picture, they may have been major Box-Office successes or they may simply be quite acclaimed. So here are my 12 movies and the months I'm going to (hopefully) watch them in:

January

Apocalypse Now

February

Memento

March

American History X

April

Léon (The Professional)

May

Rear Window

June

12 Angry Men

July 

Once Upon a Time in the West

August

Se7en

September

City of God

October

Goodfellas

November

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

December

It's a Wonderful Life

I can't wait to start!

Breaking Hate and Breaking Love

With these two last emotions, the Breaking Emotions Blogathon comes to an end - and sadly so. Mettel saved the best for the ending and we're going to go full on with the simple feels of Hate and Love. It would've been easy to just write a post on Love, but I decided to look for the devil in me and find those scenes that I despise as well. And then the very best also comes last for me with three scenes I love from three movies I love. Thank you for hosting this epic blogathon, Mettel!

HAPPY NEW MONTH!

Wrapping up November 2013.

Since I'm ridiculously hungover and have just finished recording two podcast episodes at a time - and hey, exams start tomorrow! - let's just get started real quickly. I have the feeling that November has been one of the longest months of the year - the things I did at the beginning of the month feel very far away already. I've been working out things for my gap year and buying christmas presents mostly, just generally cleaning up my life. And then of course the best thing in 50 years happened which sort of distorted my memory of whatever happened before or after that. Except for this.

Saving the Day

On November 23rd 1963, when I was minus 32 years old, history was written. A science-fiction tv show with a plot that is hard to explain without sounding like a lunatic*, premiered on BBC1, laying the foundation for a universe that would go on to enthrall audiences 50 years later. I only started watching the show - the newest part of it, that is - this year, yet I must've been traveling with the Doctor in his TARDIS in another life, because I feel like I've been a part of this for as long as I can think. For people who know next to nothing about the show and its universe; I strongly advise you to have a look at this rather introductory post I wrote a while back and maybe dip your toes in some of the episodes. For Whovians; you have certainly come to the right place (working them quotes right there), for the 50th anniversary party goes on. Today and forever. Because we don't want to go either.

My feeling about the event of the year is 904% of satisfaction: I really have nothing whatsoever to complain about. I feel like each and every existing and non-existing desire of my Whovian heart has been fulfilled to the most ridiculous extent. In fact, you could show me any random bit of The Day of the Doctor and I'd be able to explain to you how much and why I'm in love with it. But of course, none of that will happen. No, no: my list of 50 things I love about the 50th is not at all random. It was calculated by a very complicated formula which would take hundreds of years to explain - it goes something like "$∨fa∞ + ⌘n⏎⇒Λgi x2 = rlΩΦgen♫ius℠ - ✗− ⅗¥≥ + 2: en⅕€¥ergy℠™⏎ + bra⌃⌥ins se⅙⌘ = ⏏xin✪ess✚∨÷°¶℗ + tumblr". Let's see how it worked...

* Thank you for that lovely quote, Mr. Tennant.

Seriesly: 9 Reasons to Watch The Escape Artist

IT'S THE DAY PEOPLE!!! By the time you read this, I'll be in Insane Fangirl Mode, which is why I'm writing it on beforehand. I can't promise to prevent Insane Fangirl from misbehaving at least a bit in this post though, but bear with us...

So the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who aka The Real Reason Why Television Exists is happening today and we're all slightly exited (ALLONS-Y!!!). We are going to see the above person (David TEN-INCH) returning to his role as the 10th Doctor when we'd just finally accepted the fact that he was gone for good after three seasons (He walked those 500 Miles for good, didn't he?). So excitement aside, the 50th Anniversary is worse than christmas itself - we've waited for it (not it, him!) for so long, but it (HE) is never going to come back again. And as if that's not enough, Matt Smith will be leaving the show in the upcoming Christmas Special. Time to buy a storage of tissues then. As for long-term consolation, there is but one option: find a Plan B. No chance of seeing David Tennant as the Doctor again (re-watches and the possibility of Mad Moffat finding some way to revisit Tenth aside)? Well, there's plenty of other high quality material to choose from.

Well, I don't know about you, but Nativity 2: Danger in the Manger is currently 2nd on my new-holiday-movies-to-watch-this-holiday-season-list. Since, despite what supermarkets are telling us, christmas time hasn't started yet though, I will recommend a watch that is well-suited for any season of the year. Except for summer of course (anybody knows that watching David Tennant movies or shows in summer is highly dangerous and may result in a considerable raise of blood-pressure and body temperature). Here are my...

The duration. 9 seasons of Supernatural? Sounds frightening. Not because you're in danger of making it through all of those episodes, but because it is going to ruin your life to some extend. You'll be slipping into that addiction everyone who's ever watched a whole show knows so very well, characters holding you in a comfortable yet grim headlock and not letting you go until you've finished what you've begun. Something like Sherlock can be even worse, driving audiences crazy with insanely long periods of silence and incomparable cliffhangers that will haunt you for months following. I think this has exterminated (yeeeee-haaaa) all doubts on whether one should bother to sit down for 3 hours and watch a definite mini-series.

The BBC argument. Ever since TV was invented, British television has marked the ideal way to go for European television. While America has gone the commercial way, the UK believed in national quality entertainment. Right now, I can't say which one is better, I only know that German television sucks at both ways. But the BBC has never produced anything I've disliked. On the contrary, their output of the last few years has been amazing and thus they've managed to spellbind audiences from all over the world with shows like Sherlock, new Doctor Who, Downtown Abbey and many others.

 The intelligence. The Escape Artist doesn't try to gloss its ruthless material up in any way. From the title sequence to the editing, everything is kept on a calm, quiet level which is going to detract people looking for CSI-ish sensation but is ever the more rewarding for an audience interested in story and psychology. 

Two hot dudes. Another kind of reward, but you'll only get it if you can stand the rest. Also, one of the dudes is sort of sick - actually very much so - which makes this even more interesting. It raises questions like "How pretty are a psychopaths teeth allowed to be?" and "Why isn't the good-girls-only-fall-for-bad-guys working?".

The cruelty. The Romans watched people fighting lions, we watch actors pretending to commit cruel actions and fight each other in ways that we'd never want to fight ourselves. We think it's entertaining, don't we? Problems are entertaining, action is entertaining - cruelty is, to some extent, entertaining. And The Escape Artist is very cruel. Which is, oh well, you see where I'm going.

David Tennant wears suits. Like a famous poet once said, "nothing suits the undisputed/ oft-saluted/ suitor of repute/ like aaaaaaaa" and so on. 

Law. Boring? Unimportant? Dry? I personally think that law is very interesting. And why do so many people watch Judge Judy anyway? Or CSI? Because it matters! Sure, there are boring law films and boring law shows - but The Escape Artist isn't one of them. It's not The Escape Lawyer for a reason, folks.

 The twist. Spoilers *winkface*. Not that you're going to get any here. No, no. I'm the last person to spoil anything to anyone (apart from Torchwood and some bits of Doctor Who - but my sister can take it). Seriously, I hate spoilers. And I love twists. But they're hard to avoid once you've become a part of that crazy thing called Fandom and joined tumblr as well as liked several of those weird pages on facebook. Luckily, as I can't stress enough, The Escape Artist is a rather small show (so far) with a rather small following. So you're not in danger of spoilers - yet. But if you want to find out what happens in the end, hurry up and watch it, because one can never be safe enough.

David Tennant talks Scottish. Any further questions? 

And now, let's just appreciate that this exists:

Happy 50th Anniversary everyone!

Breaking Smiles and Breaking Thrills

We're mid-way through the Breaking Emotions Blogathon and I can already announce that this is my favorite blogathon of the year so far. Dropping out of the 5 Obstructions sort of disqualified that one from the first spot. This week, participants are asked to show off their dimples (I wish I had really cute ones, but sadly their rather unincisive) while sitting on the edges of their chairs/ sofas/ bathtubs/ beds/ wherever else you like to watch a movie. *

* As always, my choices are in no particular order. 

Smiles

American Psycho • Business Cards

Yes, everyone, I finally caught up with American Psycho just yesterday. And it is brilliant. It's a great slasher film, a great psychological drama and a great satire all at the same time. The awkwardness of it all kept me from laughing but I basically smiled my way through this movie. I knew about the business card scene before but had never seen it - it marked the peak of my smiling curve. Well, apart from the scene where a blood-smeared, naked Christian Bale runs around with a chainsaw.

Aiyyaa • Dreamum Wakeupum

This movie is so brave and colourful, I couldn't help but love it. The only thing I disliked were a certain female side character and, to some extend, the ending. Otherwise, the creativity that went into this is amazing. Showing a woman obsessing about someone in an Indian movie is quite unusual, showing attraction towards dark skin perhaps even more and having a character dream about these absolutely wonderful, cheesy phantasies was the cherry on top. 

Shopaholic • The Google Scene

By now, everyone who visits my blog from now and then probably knows about my undying love for this movie. Rebecca Bloomwood always manages to make me smile. And come on, we've all been in that situation, haven't we?

Thrills

The Deep (2012)

Not to be confused with a certain 70s flick, The Deep is an Icelandic movie from last year that is bound to keep you on the edge of your seat (with one exception - I'm looking at you, Nik). Even the trailer is full of suspense and had both me and my family go "We have to see this". It's the sort of film that'll make you shut up and not complain about a fly for at least a month. Since it's a rather unknown movie there are no specific scenes out there on the internet but that's fine since, actually, the whole movie is one big thrill.

The Hunger Games • Countdown

The Hunger Games has a rather sick premise for a movie (or a book for that matter); you're disgusted by the society it portrays and the way they watch people fight each other and die as entertainment. Like the Romans who watched Gladiators fight each other. However, you're watching these people fight each other and die, and you root for them, you're thrilled - you're entertained.

Talaash • Aamir and Kareena

There's so much to be thrilled about in this movie. Be it the style, the quality of the story, the fact that Aamir and Kareena have great chemistry - anything. What thrilled me most about it are two things: its intelligence and its self-awareness. The scene I chose is not necessarily the best but it's one I keep getting back to. I love the poetry in the dialogue and the unbelievable perfection of Kareena Kapoor portraying a prostitute. No offense; she's one of my favorite actresses. I'm just saying she's perfect in that role. (Sorry for the lack of subtitles).

Learn more about the blogathon by clicking on the banner below.

Previous posts

Fear and Awkward • Tears and Surprise

Across the Universe Podcast, Eps 14: Noirvember

Find out about the stuff that dreams are made of, our new favorite perfume and the diminishment of cinema in this latest episode of the Across the Universe Podcast. Instead of growing mustaches, we decided to take part in the celebration of Noirvember, a tradition that was started by Marya Gates. Please note that there was no lack of enthusiasm or traces of sleepiness from any of the parties involved - we were just trying to imitate Humphrey Bogarts cool way of speaking.

Brought to you by my fellow Chicks With Accents; Sofia and Nik and my own humble self.

Content:

0:19 - Chick-chatter

2:57 - Trailer

3:19 - Interesting Movie of the Fortnight

22:05 - The Chicks discuss The Maltese Falcon (1941)

35:53 - The Chicks discuss Sweet Smell of Success (1957) 

48:07 - The Chicks discuss Sunset Blvd. (1950)

1:16:28 - Plugs and Goodbyes

Soundtrack:

Artie Shaw - Nightmare

The Velvet Underground - Femme Fatale

Jim Sturgess - Across The Universe

Please give us your feedback on our facebook page, write us an email at acrossthenuniversepodcast@gmail.com or follow us and write a review on iTunes or Podomatic.

Breaking Tears and Breaking Surprise

The Breaking Emotions Blogathon continues with the sound of both tears and jaws dropping to the ground. This week, participants are requested to search out two (sadly) rather seldom cinematic feelings, the first being tears (as in super-sad-Leonardo-di-Caprio-how-am-I-supposed-to-live-tears-feeling*), the second being surprise (as in oh-my-gosh-who-thought-of-this-I-am-utterly-speechless-feeling*). **

* These are my own interpretations of the feelings and do not necessarily express the views of mettelray.

** My choices are in no particular order

In real life, a simple mistake or tiny argument with someone is (sometimes) enough for my eyes to turn damp - an irritating abnormality which makes life unnecessarily complicated. However, I rarely cry in a movie theater, and even more seldom in front of a tv/ laptop screen. Which is irritating too, because I'll sometimes seem like a coldhearted freak. Anyways, when I do start crying, it's not easy to stop.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower • the last 20 minutes

Literally, I started crying the moment Charlie tells Sam how they're both alike and how he thinks she's beautiful each of the two times I saw this movie. Even now, rewatching just that scene, I'm a nanometer away from tears. I also never really stop crying at the end of this one. Every time I think it's getting better, something very sad (Charlie's breakdown) or very philosophical (the ending) happens.

Broken Circle Breakdown • almost the entire movie

This movie is just one big, sad hole. I have never been as big a mess in public as when I watched this Belgian tragedy in theaters. I don't even remember when I started crying but again, after I had started, I never really stopped. This song is very much at the end of the movie and it's sort of a culmination of a lot of sad feelings. So if you need something that fits the weather before christmas movie season starts, do check out Broken Circle Breakdown. 'Cause it'll break you down, guaranteed.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button • the ending

What really got under my skin when I watched this movie as a moody teenager that hadn't seen many great films yet and didn't like showing her feelings to other people, isn't in this video; it's the old Daisy holding the baby Benjamin. I don't know what exactly about this scene touched my so much but it only got worse when I saw what you can see in the above video. I didn't only leave my tears in the theatre, but I got something in exchange although until this day, nobody knows what it was. Something among the lines of joie de vivre but with a dash of melancholy. 

Fight Club

Somehow, I managed to maintain a life completely unaware of Fight Club. Even as a blogger, it took a long time until it was in my movie title vocabulary, meaning that I had heard about it and knew who was starring in it. Otherwise, I didn't have a clue. And honestly, I'm very proud and very happy about the fact that I experienced Fight Club without knowing a thing about it's plot and twist. And neither should YOU, person who hasn't seen this, so don't you dare watching that clip.

Atonement

This one would fit just as well into the tears category but to me, it's the surprising factor that makes it all the more worthwhile and is part of what makes it stand out from other dramatic love stories. That whole backstory, the development of the various storylines and then that tragic ending make Atonement one of my favorite films of all time. And don't tell me you saw that revelation coming when you first saw this one.

Magnolia

This is probably the most WTF kind of surprise of the three movies I've chosen. People had told me that something weird was going to happen but this? I didn't expect this by any means. 

Learn more about the blogathon by clicking on the banner below.

Previous posts

Fear and Awkward

Breaking Emotions Blogathon: Fear and Awkward

Finally, the first post the Breaking Emotions blogathon has arrived! Well, the emotions arrived on Monday, but you know, time zones and stuff. So let's dive right into this - if you want to read more about the fabulous blogathon, click here. 

* My choices are in no particular order.

28 Days Later • Empty London

I'm generally not scared of anything that has to do with makeup or other practical effects, although I find it very interesting to see how they do things like that. What scares me in movies is always an emotion or an idea, something that happens in my head when I see what happens on the screen. At the beginning of 28 Days Later, Cilian Murphy's character wakes up in a hospital in London to find that there's not a soul there. He walks outside and even there, the city is empty. I've often walked around town on Sundays, when there wasn't a soul outside and imagined being the only person left on earth, which is a thoroughly scary thought. I mean, just being there and seeing the remains of people and signs of what has happened must be horrible.

The Conjuring • Trying to Sleep

This is the only "genuine" horror film per se in this little list, and one of the best I've ever seen. Haters, go away, The Conjuring is scary in a super effective, subtle, old-school way. Now the scene I think I found scariest is when one of the sisters wakes up by her blanket being drawn away, which at the beginning, she ignores - assuming that it's her sister doing this. First of all, the little girl reminded me a lot of my own sister when she was younger, and second of all, the scene reminded me a lot of the horror scenarios that would sometimes mix my head up when I was a child. Again; just that idea of someone playing with your fears, only showing itself to you and no one else, scares me a lot. Plus, the little girl was so convincingly horrified that her terror emerged through the screen.

2001: A Space Odyssey • The Pod Doors

2001 is a very scary film, and without it, I don't think we'd ever have seen an Alien or a Gravity, which were very evidently inspired by this sci-fi classic. HAL, the artificially intelligent computer on the spacecraft, is one of my favorite villains of all time - few real-life performances manage to send a shiver down my spine like Douglas Rain's voice does. Although we suspect HAL of becoming the source of future problems, it is in the famous pod door scene that we realize how big of a threat he actually is. His cold, emotionless way of speaking to the main character Dave, is enough to scare the sh** out of me. Add to that the thought that someone way smarter and way more capable than you, nearly immortal as well, is in control of your life and you've got one of the most frightening scenes in cinematic history.

Spider Man 3 • Peter Parker Goes Emo

It's not like I was ever a big fan of the Spider Man series and would like to pretend that Spider Man 3 doesn't exist. Part one and two both had their problems, and they just got a little bigger and more evident in the third part of the installment. However, the makers managed to put things in there that were completely unnecessary, had nothing to do with the style of the first two movies, and were so bad that the franchise was killed off. One of these things, one might say the thing, is Peter Parker going emo. As in full-on emo. As in embarrassing and awkward in every thinkable way. 

Borat • The Dinner Scene

Nope, I didn't go the easy route and just selected the whole (glorious) movie, I actually did dig for a particular scene that I think made me feel the most awkward (apart from the obvious naked wrestling one). Borat learns about the etiquettes of dinner parties and goes on to use his new knowledge in real life. Mayhem ensues and that's all I have to say.

About a Boy • Killing Me Softly

This is probably my favorite choice in this list, as it proves the point of an 'awkward scene' (or my definition of the same) very well. It's a cute scene in a way; Marcus, the little boy, sings Killing Me Softly in front of the whole school, however, he's not much of a musical talent. He is then 'saved' by Will, who joins in and acts like a cool rockstar, which convinces the audience. So Marcus sort of learns the lesson that in life, attitude is one of the most important things, and Will learns that sometimes, you need to stand by someone, no matter how 'weird' they are. But despite the cuteness and our determination to not laugh or find Marcus awkward - we still do. He is awkward. And so is Will's joining in, until he manages to somehow turn things around through his cool attitude. 

I hope you had as much fun with this blogathon as I've had so far. 
To be continued next week!

Across the Universe Podcast, Eps 13: Give Life Back to Music

In our latest episode, we welcome our first guest on the show, the awesome Ryan McNeil from thematinee.ca and the Matineecast. We'd like to establish a few traditions linked to the guest episodes, such as the guest choosing the opening song and us selecting a general discussion suited to the guest. Ryan was a true patriot and showed support for his home country Canada at various times in the show, as we made him list his three favorite music-related non-musicals. You also have the possibility to get to know Ryan a bit more in our questionnaire.

Please excuse all technical mishappenings.

Content:

0:26 - Chick (and guy) Chatter
2:53 - Trailer
3:52 - The Guest Questionnaire
15:15 - The chicks and Ryan list each of their Top 3 Music-related Movies
1:06:10 - Feedback on the Topic

1:10:11 - Plugs and Goodbyes

Songs:

Metric - Black Sheep

Daft Punk - Give Life Back To Music

Music from our #1 Music-related Movies

Jim Sturgess - Across The Universe

Please give us your feedback on our facebook page, write us an email at acrossthenuniversepodcast@gmail.com or follow us and write a review on iTunes or Podomatic.

HAPPY NEW MONTH!

Wrapping up October 2013.

Everybody had a nice Halloween? Watched some scary movies, drank loads of Pumpkin Spice Latte? Reread Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone just for that Halloween chapter?

I personally have been in a very Halloween-y mood this year and in fact did watch a lot of new-to-me horror movies aside from a probably badly timed viewing of Groundhog Day - which I loved nevertheless. Other than that I've done each one of the things I mentioned. Well, I only drank PSL once. But since I had been dying to do so - and nobody question that totally mature goal - since the last time I was in a big city in autumn, it felt as good as drinking loads of it, I'm sure. 

Oh, I almost forgot: I changed my plans of studying film because I see absolutely no purpose in it and I think if at some point I'll feel like making movies, I should just make them. It's what most directors did at any rate. And I'm not even sure that's what I want to do, at least it's not what I want to do right now in my life. So I made some new plans to study computer science after my gap year. But since there's still about 1,5 years until I have to decide, let's talk about something more light..

My Heroes: Ellen "Get-away-from-her-you-bitch" Ripley

A Bechdel test rating for movies has just been approved by the Swedish government, I finally have the chance the catch a screening of the hyped sci-fi epos Gravity tonight and Halloween is just around the corner - what better to write about these days than one of the coolest female characters that has ever kicked cinematic asses, first appearing in 1979s groundbreaking sci-fi/ horror flick Alien?

Across the Universe Podcast, Eps 12: Awkward Movie Viewing Moments

It's getting darker outside, but before you fall in to an early winter depression (which - admittedly - is an easy thing to do, especially now that news about Sherlock releasing in January is out), you might want to listen to this latest episode of the Across the Universe Podcast. I'm sure our embarrassing and/or funny stories of movie viewings will put a smile on your face, and who knows - perhaps they'll even make you laugh and forget about the dropping temperatures and the fact that supermarkets are stuffed with chocolate Santas already.

Content:

00:20 - Chick-Chatter

02:53 - Trailers

03:43 - Interesting Movie of the Fortnight

32:37 - The Chicks discuss their top 3 Awkward Movie Viewing Moments

1:07:18 - Plugs and Goodbyes

Music:

Lord Kitchener - London Is the Place for Me

Josh Houde - The Awkward Song

Jim Sturgess - Across the Universe

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

Please give us your feedback on our facebook page, write us an email at acrossthenuniversepodcast@gmail.com or follow us and write a review on iTunes or Podomatic.

The Sunshine Award

Summer has been over for a long time, which also means that I'm very late responding to Chris' awesome gesture of passing over the Sunshine Award to me. Anyhow, I hope it'll bring a little sunshine back here.

The Rules

1. Include the award’s logo in a post or on your blog.

2. Link to the person who nominated you.

3. Answer 10 questions about yourself (use these or come up with your own).

4. Nominate 10 bloggers.

5. Link your nominees to the post and comment on their blogs, letting them know they have been nominated.

1. Favorite actor/actress (who's not a household name yet)? 

I feel like Abbie Cornish doesn't get the recognition/ the roles she deserves yet. She was even good in Sucker Punch, which I don't think any actress would've been able to pull off. I've also been a fan of Kat Dennings ever since I first saw her in Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. It seems like 2 Broke Girls is going well but I've never dared watching it since the premise sounds sort of stupid. Lizzy Caplan should've been a star after Mean Girls - but it also looks like she's on her way now. It's weird that I can't think of any men... it would be great to see Michael Pitt in more movies though and I'm a big fan of Eddie Redmayne for some reason.

2. Favorite animal?

I love cats but we've had to so far and it never went well. Dogs are lovely too though. And of course - thank you, J. K. Rowling - I would love to have an owl for a pet.

3. Favourite non-alcoholic drink?

This may sounds weird, but I really enjoy drinking water. Otherwise, I like Vanilla Coke, Ginger Ale, Club Mate and all kinds of juice.

4. Favorite music?

I listen to all kinds of music, really. Mainly I like a few songs from each artist. Right now I listen to Blink-182 a lot, as well as Cocteau Twins' Pearly Dewdrop's Drop.

5. Favorite tv-show?

My all time favorite is a German show called Türkisch für Anfänger (Turkish for Beginners). It's so perfect it hurts and I've seen it about 394 times. Haven't been able to convince any other people in the blogosphere to watch it though. Another undying love of mine is of course the new Doctor Who. And Sherlock is great.

6. Favorite sport?

Any kind of dance, but most of all ballet, which is what I do myself. I like how much effort it takes to make everything look effortless, and how the goal is aesthetic perfection - not running after some ball.

7. Movie most people love that I dislike?

Trois Couleurs: Bleu. Watched it twice for French class and still hate it. It's just so f***ing depressing.

8. Favorite short film?

L'homme qui plantait des arbres and La Jetée. Jess Archer vs. the Ex is a great recent one. And anything Pixar ever made.

9. My passion?

Stories.

10. Favorite soundtrack from 2013?

This Is the End.

Winners

It's been such a long time since this award was around, so I have no idea who has already received this award. These are 10 great blogs at any rate:

Sofia from Film Flare

Nikhat from Being Norma Jeane

Niels from The Blog of Big Ideas

Josh from The Cinematic Spectacle

Bondo from The Movie Review Warehouse

Vern from The Vern's Videovangaurd

Bubbawheat from Flights, Tights and Movie Nights

SDG from U, Me and Films

Veracious from ..so they dance!

Dolce Namak from Dolce Namak

But really, I could've chosen anyone from my blog roll because you are all amazing!

How I Learned to Stop Worrying

a HOW I LIVE NOW review

Growing up 21st century's Europe has its perks - technology redefines the limits of communication, consumerism and culture, we can travel without having to do little more than showing our passports and politicians seem busy sustaining peace in our own little world as well as the Middle East. It becomes difficult to differentiate between documentations of the World Wars and movies like Independence Day, both depicting horrible, life-threatening situations and ending on a happy note (more or less). I for one find it incredibly hard to believe that my own grandmother fled (mainly by horse waggon) from what was once Pommern (the eastern part of Germany) to the north, and had to work under more or less slavery-like conditions for the Russians. Hell, I can't even fathom there was once a great wall separating Eastern and Western Germany - that fell only 6 years before I was born! However, once in a while, I am reminded of the actual danger that still surrounds every living creature in this world; the animal-esque war of survival that is hidden beneath health care, unemployment benefits and supermarkets. Watching How I Live Now was one of those experiences that made me realize there is a threat of war in my life and the lives of the people surrounding me, and that our little bubble of peace, equality and freedom of the mind could burst any day. 

Across the Universe Podcast, Eps 11: Ground Control to Major Tom

Better late than never - here's the latest episode of the Across the Universe Podcast that released more than a week ago. Since then, you've probably already 2001 positive reviews of Gravity but I hope you'll still have fun listening to the three of us discussing three of our favorite Sci-Fi classics - if you haven't already. 

Furthermore, we have detected two small errors: Of course, Neil Armstrong was the first man on the moon - not Louis. And the book that served as inspiration for Blade Runner was called Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. 

Content: 

0:33 - Chick-chatter

3:37 - Trailers

4:13 - Interesting Movies of the Fortnight

24:43 - The chicks discuss Blade Runner (1982)

40:23 - The chicks discuss Sleeper (1973)

47:26 - The chicks discuss 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

1:06:17 - Plugs and Goodbyes

Songs: 

David Bowie - Space Oddity

Richard O'Brien - Science Fiction/Double Feature

Jim Sturgess - Across The Universe

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

Please give us your feedback on our facebook page, write us an email at acrossthenuniversepodcast@gmail.com or follow us and write a review on iTunes or Podomatic.

There's No Place Like London

School holidays have just started and instead of spending my time the way I should - learning - I'm going to revisit a city that has grown very dear to my during my last (and first) stay. The fact that I had no clue as to all the various great British television shows etc. last time leaves a great number of unexplored activities for this time - plus we have enough monetas to finally visit the Warner Bros Harry Potter Studio Tour!

I might be able to put up one or two posts a week later... but rather don't expect anything. A new episode of the podcast will be online next week though, you'll be able to check it out on Nik's and Sofia's blogs and as always on iTunes and Podomatic.

In case anyone has some you-must-do-this-in-London or a great movie to watch that doesn't release in Germany for the next few months, please tell me. And remember...

Because it's going to be cold in London.

HAPPY NEW MONTH!

Wrapping up September 2013.

I still didn't write an instant cult classic novel, didn't learn Japanese or gained world supremacy last month - but it wasn't a complete waste either. I wrote a few poems and appeared on two episodes of the LAMBcast as well as of course our very own Across the Universe podcast. In case you haven't noticed yet, I put up a little note on the sidebar announcing a little half-hiatus that is going to be going on here for the following months - I feel a lot better now that these news are out. This way I don't feel the pressure to blog more despite my lack of time and energy, at least not as much as before. After all, school is what counts right now. And coming of age in general. And the fact that I'll be in my favorite part of the world on Sunday.

WATCHED FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME

Across the Universe Podcast, Eps 10: I Want Candy (A Sofia Coppola Retrospective)

It's our 10th episode already - can you believe it? This little project has grown very dear to me though, so perhaps it isn't so weird that we're celebrating our first jubilee this week. Another thanks to my podcasting companions Nik and Sofia - we did it!

We tried something slightly new for this episode and talked about one of our favorite directors of all time, Sofia Coppola. From Lick the Star to The Bling Ring to her Miss Dior ad, we've tried to cover as much as possible and hope you'll have as much fun listening as we had recording.

Content: 

00:27 - Chick Chatter

02:45 - Trailer

03:19 - Movie of the Fortnight

21:37 - Coppola Time

1:16:27 - Plus and Goodbyes

Music: 

Bow Wow Wow - I Want Candy

Azealia Banks feat. Lazy Jay - 212

Cilla Black - Across the Universe

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

Please give us your feedback on our facebook page, write us an email at acrossthenuniversepodcast@gmail.com or follow us and write a review on iTunes or Podomatic.

- The Bling Ring

Across the Universe Podcast, Eps 9: Crushcrushcrush

The chicks are trying to hold on to the last straws of summer by honoring some of the biggest heartthrobs film history ever saw, as we list our top 5 greatest crushes on movie characters. Giggles were frequent this time and we tried to keep this an easy-listening episode. As always, we talked about the "Movies" of the Fortnight, which were a surprise tv show for Sofia, Shaun of the Dead for Nik (which I have finally seen by now) and This is the End for me.

For those tuning in for the first time, please notice that we have run out of storage on our host Podomatic and have had to delete the first episodes from the site, so they also won't show up on iTunes. We've decided to do this since it seems common practice with many movie podcasters, and we're working on realizing a way for you to download archived episodes. For news, check our facebook page frequently.

Content:

0:23- Chick-chatter

4:07- Trailer

4:48- Interesting Movie of the Fortnight

25:11- The chicks discuss each of their Top 5 Cinematic Crushes

1:20:29- Plugs and Goodbyes

Music:

Paramore - Crushcrushcrush

The Cardigans - Lovefool

Cilla Black - Across the Universe

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

Please give us your feedback on our facebook page, write us an email at acrossthenuniversepodcast@gmail.com or follow us and write a review on iTunes or Podomatic.

HAPPY NEW MONTH!

What I've been watching, re-watching, reading and listening to in July 2013.

New month resolution: watch more movies. Seriously, I have about 9 DVDs I borrowed from one of the ISHQ editors in July left to watch and another bunch I bought myself. ... August has been pretty movie-less since I'm working a lot. Like, a lot lot. But what I did see was good and I also managed to prop in some tv shows - they're much more practical when you're home very late.

Oh, and did I mention I'm going to London again in October?

Yeah. I'm pretty excited.

WATCHED FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME