"The End Is The Beginning Is The End"

Smashing Pumpkins

The sewers belch me up

The heavens spit me out

From ethers tragic I am born again

And now I'm with you now

Inside your world of wow

To move in desires made of deadly pretends

Till the end times begin

Is it bright where you are?
Have the people changed?

Does it make you happy you're so strange?

And in your darkest hour, I hold secrets flame

You can watch the world devoured in it's pain

Strange

Climb my ribcage to

The replays run for you

Unhook my lights to peek behind the flash

For I am crystal chrome I am shatter dome

I am kremlin king of angels avenged

To destroy the end

The zeppelins rain upon us

The guns of love disastrous

A shadow lies amongst you

To defy the future cast

I don’t really like the vibe of this song, since the lyrics are just so tragic and cynical. I am not exactly strong when it comes to decoding songs like these. But once again, I chose it because of its title, “The End is the Beginning is the End”. Now, if you remember my introduction which featured the song which is called “The Beginning is the End is the Beginning”, which is a remix of the song I found out now. This song was the one featured on the Batman and Robin soundtrack. Since this will be my last entry in my media log, I feel a bit nostalgic here. But then, I really just chose this song for its lyrics without any relation to my nostalgia. Even if that’s the case I still have to give my run through on all of the things I’ve learned for the past quarter. One thing is advertisements are very powerful. Now I actually think of getting a course in college related to advertising… They really have a big effect on the mass especially like how the Chuck Taylors made it big. Second, I’ve realized that audios and visuals are better for me if they are put together; a sight for the eyes and the ears. They come in animated poetries, music videos, etc. Third, I realized how movies are movies. Usually when movies are non-fiction, they readily put a disclaimer of how it is a true story, or if it won’t catch the audience’s attention they put, “Based on a true story…” or “Inspired by…” which makes devalue the truth of what movies really portray. Sometimes, in movies there are events that are least likely to happen in real life but movies, being movies, make them happen. I guess that’s why they’re called movies.

All in all, I’ve really enjoyed pouring my heart and soul into this media log. I got to express myself and point out the things that I like and dislike. But it wasn’t an easy job. Now I know why critics are so well-off. It’s not that easy to criticize or praise something knowing that people will depend on what you think. That’s why most of the time I often start with “In my opinion…” since I am not a critic and I am not all-knowing. Also, to pan others’ works isn’t exactly a good thing. After all their hard work some know-it-all bashes it and here comes the water works. To think about it, my media log is a form of media. And you, Ms. Platon will be the critic of my media log. So, please be gentle.

Lyrics: AzLyrics

They say that the best form of flattery is imitation. Well, then I am amazed at the dedication of whoever made this. They made it almost exactly like the real thing, or rather, the animated one. It had the usual Bart scene where he’s kept after classes for detention. Although what the real one wrote wasn’t that as funny as the animated one but the scene was reenacted. At the end though, there was no couch gag, but I really can’t expect much since producing a video like that isn’t that easy. Anyways, I was just really interested in this since I like the Simpsons, but who doesn’t?

Sixteen Candles

I don’t really know what the big deal about being 16 is, but right now whenever I see my friends turning 16, I tell them that they’re already pretty old. I mean, when you’re 15, you still seem young, but right after you turn 16 you seem to get a bit older (Even though yesterday you were just 15). In a few months I’ll turn 16, and maybe, just maybe, I’ll see what it is all about being 16 years old.

To keep up with my ramblings, I decided to watch a film, titled “Sixteen Candles”, a 1984 film starring Molly Ringwald. It’s the usual teen film where the girl is in love with a boy who doesn’t even know she exists. But there’s a twist here, a boy who first seems as intrusion actually helps them get together in the end and he is quaintly called “The Geek” (Anthony Michael Hall). Since this is a teen romantic comedy, in the end, Samantha Baker (Molly Ringwald) and Jake Ryan (Michael Schoeffling), the boy of her dreams, finally get together and end up sharing that uncomfortable kiss with a birthday cake.

I wasn’t really in awe of this movie, but I liked the characters of this movie. I especially like “The Geek”, he was very entertaining and you’ll be touched at his sincerity. Samantha was like every other teen that worried about peer pressure and the like. Jake was the usual jock who women often swooned over. You can’t help but cheer for the happy ending they had. Although I was a bit curious at how the kissing scene was filmed. In my opinion, it looked more uncomfortable for the actors rather than being romantic. But I enjoyed this movie none the less and I guess it helped me see some parts of being a sixteen year old.


Searched on google for the image.

The Dead

Billy Collins

The dead are always looking down on us, they say.

While we are putting on our shoes or eating a steak,

they are looking down through the glass bottom boats of heaven

as they row themselves slowly through eternity.

They watch the tops of our heads moving below on earth,

and when we lie down in a field or on a couch,

drugged perhaps by the hum of a long afternoon,

they think we are looking back at them,

which makes them lift their oars and fall silent

and wait, like parents, for us to close our eyes.

This poem is creepy and thanks to it I feel as if someone dead is watching me. (I hope not.) Anyways, I never actually heard of Billy Collins up to now. I did a little research about him and found out that he had been called a poet laureate, a poet who is honored for his work, which means he is an esteemed poet. Watching the animated video made me feel that the subject of his poem wasn’t that serious, but then I was wrong. After all, it was about the dead, who would make fun of the dead?

As I’ve typed before, this poem is creepy. It makes me feel that the dead are waiting for us to come and join them. It really just gives me an eerie feeling. Well, if that was Billy Collins’ prime reason in making this poem, I should tell you that he succeeded in doing so.

(Got this from YouTube)

“Everybody loves Chucks.” According to the Converse ad, that is. But I agree, since I am an avid fan of Chucks, always sporting my black high cuts whenever I can. Chuck Taylors or Chucks as we lovingly name it has been a staple in our everyday attire. Believe me, if my black high cuts were considered as “black shoes” in our school uniform, I’d wear them. I don’t know why I think highly of Chucks but they have this charm that works on me and pretty much a lot of other people who endorse them. But in reality, Chucks weren’t that well-loved back in the day as it is now. My father told me that in the 60s, farmers were the only ones who wore them. If you get his logic, it wasn’t that popular during my father’s days. Fast forward to the 80s where Chucks were popularized thanks to rock icons, but that was in the foreign countries. Moving on to the year 2000 where it was once again neglected in the Philippines. Mailmen and delivery boys were the only ones that wore them with pride. Nobody else wanted to, according to the speaker during our Career Talk. But thanks to advertising finally, they made it big. People were finally wearing it! They were patronizing it! But that didn’t stop there. Innovation came. Shoelaces of different colors, shoes of varied designs, and other customizations occurred. Wearing it made people of different aspects of life express themselves. This is all thanks to the power of advertisements, or media. One good example is above.

Parental Control is a TV series produced by MTV, which actually airs in Channel V and is a dating show. This is a dating show with a twist. The parents who are unhappy with the relationship of either their son or daughter would go to measures to find another person for their son/daughter, a person that they would like. They interview five candidates who seem suitable for their son/daughter and then narrow them down to two, the father’s choice and the mother’s choice. Then their son/daughter will go out with a date with their two choices while the son’s/daughter’s significant other is watching from the son’s/daughter’s home together with their parents. (Which is a bit awkward and intimidating, if you ask me.)Then in the end the son/daughter will have to choose from either her current lover or whoever from the father’s or mother’s choice.

All I have to say is that this show is for people who have nothing to do. I don’t really like this show and sources say this show is scripted. I’ll enumerate the reasons why I disliked this show. First, I know that parents know what’s best for their children but do they have to go and do measures like these? Let the world know that they are not approved of their son’s/daughter’s significant other? That’s harsh. Second, you date with complete strangers that your parents set-up for you. Once again, even though parents know best, they’re not the ones who are going to date that guy/girl. Third, you let your significant other or ex, see you date with other people and even choose another guy/girl over him. That really takes the cake. Relationships are being ruined and it’s being made public. You didn’t even warn your boyfriend/girlfriend that you’re choosing him/her over another guy/girl.

Well, if you really want to watch this, I’d advise you to watch it when you can’t fall asleep or if you’re tired from studying and your brain wants to rest.

Picture taken from wikipedia.

“Five hundred twenty five thousand six hundred minutes. Five hundred twenty-five thousand moments so dear. Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes. How do you measure, measure a year? In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee. In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife. In five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes - how do you measure a year in the life? How about love? How about love? How about love? Measure in love... seasons of love.”

The song “Seasons of Love” just seems so mushy, in a good way. I’ve heard it countless of times with different singers but whoever sings it doesn’t really matter because I always end up singing along with it. The version that I am really enticed with is the version that I heard last night from the movie Rent. Rent is a movie that tackles the lives of bohemians in the 80s. Seeing that it is another play turned into a movie, I instantly became interested about it. This movie featured a lot of issues, AIDS, drug addiction, arts, bisexuality, etc. This movie seemed so hopeful, since no matter how much was thrown in their way, the protagonists seemed so happy. Although I was bothered that almost half of the main characters were all HIV-positive. That was a bit disturbing for me but that played a big part in the movie, especially when one of the characters passed away due to it. That’s the reality in which some of our brothers and sisters are experiencing at this very moment.

This movie showcased the musical ability of the actors who were present in it and I’d have to be thankful for the innovation of subtitles. I was singing along in the comfort of my room, alone. The songs were amazing and I love it when Roger and Mimi sing together. I know it’s cheesy to say but I think they make a good couple. But in the middle of the movie, I was wondering why “Rent” is the title. Is it about the money? Is it because of how hard they fought for their apartment space? That even made Mark work for Buzzline? From what I got in the movie, the title “Rent”, for me, is how we just rent our lives from God. In the circumstances in the movie, they kept on mentioning, “No day but today.” We might not have time to do everything we want to for who knows, tomorrow God might call us.

Picture from: moviecitynews.com

Okay, first of all, how did they photograph this? We all know that Lindsay Lohan has no twin. But this is what Parent Trap was all about, Lindsay changing character and costumes almost every time. When I was younger I actually thought that Lindsay Lohan had a twin! Anyways, Parent Trap is a movie about identical (supposedly) twins, Hallie and Annie, who were separated at birth when Elizabeth James (Natasha Richardson) and Nick Parker (Dennis Quaid) divorced and live at the other ends of the world. The twins reunite again after eleven years unbeknownst to them that they were related and are identical twins. They just assumed that they dead ringers of each other. They meet each other in camp and become mortal enemies until one day they were forced to spend in a cabin until the end of camp just by themselves. Thanks to the cabin, they got to know that they were twins with the help of the casually ripped picture of their mother and father’s. Seeing that as so they then decided to switch places so that they could feel what it was like to live with their mother and vice versa and to bring them back together. An ingenious plan yet ruined by the sudden appearance of Meredith Blake (Elaine Hendrix), a woman who only wanted Nick for his money. But in the end, they had a good ending with their parents finding the love they had for each other once again.

Parent Trap is one of the Disney movies that I keep on watching and never get tired of. Sometimes I’d even recite the lines together with the twins, I was that addicted. It is a movie that will make you laugh, especially in the earlier parts of it where the twins were still at odds with each other, especially when Annie went skinny dipping and got her ears pierced, Annie seemed to always have the short end of the stick. There were also some scenes that would make you smile like when the twins finally found out that they were twins! These eleven year olds sure know how to spice things up by pulling pranks on Meredith, communicating but still hiding their identity, finding sneaky ways to make their parents meet and acting like each other.

All in this entire movie has a great story, if it wasn’t for that I wouldn’t have watched it for a thousand times. This movie had believable actors, in my opinion, there were no bad actors. The musical scoring was great, too, since they included works of Nat King Cole and Natalie Cole. At the end of the day, I’d have to say Parent Trap is a movie that suits all our tastes; it has comedy, drama, family and romance. After almost 9 years of watching it, I would want to watch it again and relive the moment.

Picture taken from ratings.7ya.ru

O'hana means family. Family means nobody gets left behind...
or forgotten.

Who could ever forget these lines in the year 2002 when we were caught off guard with a movie that involved an extraterrestrial being? Little did we know that this movie would stay in the deep corners of our hearts.

Lilo & Stitch is a movie which I prejudiced to be belonging in the sci-fi genre. But I was wrong. Sure, it might have involved a few scientific terms like experiments, spaceships, planets, etc. but these were words that I was able to fathom. Moving on, this movie started out in Hawaii where Lilo was a girl who desperately tried to make friends but no one really made an effort to know her better. She was orphaned, she was lonely and you can’t help but want to reach out and hug her (which is impossible). In a way the perfect word for her would be “alienated”, which brings me to our alien friend, Stitch. In the movie, Stitch or fondly called by Jumba as Experiment 626 was banished to an asteroid but being that he is cleverly evil, Stitch took over the ship and ended up crashing in Hawaii and finally in the dog pound where it was found by Lilo. Stitch’s heart softened up because of the realization of his being alone and the need for love and acceptance, which is the same situation at where Lilo is in. Both characters were considered to be “alienated” (no pun intended) but still they found the love and acceptance they needed from each other. With this I say, Disney never and will never lose its touch.

I know I can proudly say that I am not too old to watch Disney movies. Disney always finds its way to get to me. They can make you tear up over a scene you usually imagined you wouldn’t cry at, that’s their power. They have a way of telling a story that makes you think and feel hard about it. Lilo & Stitch isn’t just a movie about aliens and Elvis Presley. Despite the fact that it included some sci-fi themes, it carried the reality of a lonely person, of how hard it is to be alone and to be not loved. With a great theme and a plot that will keep you chewing on your popcorn without noticing, Lilo & Stitch is a success. Great sounds from Elvis which is a treat for the ears and great cinematography, which I expected from Disney, you’ll love this movie whether you’re young or old.

Picture taken from

www.if.com.au

Grease is a well-known movie/musical that is being revived up to now. I still remember reading pocket books about the usual teenage life having auditions for the musical, Grease. It was really popular and to think a person who was born in the year 1991 knew about this movie which was introduced in the late 70s, or precisely 1978. The time when it was made was the time when my parents were teenagers, and, guess what; my mom watched this movie in theaters together with her girl friends and raved about John Travolta like any normal female would do during that time. But I’d have to say John Travolta was very pleasing to the eyes.

To tell you the truth, I didn’t really see myself watching this movie. I’d have to blame it on High School Musical. No offense to the fans, but its plot was very predictable and I think the reason why it received attention was because of its musical content. In my opinion, Grease soars higher than High School Musical, way higher. When you look at High School Musical, it was no surprise that it was inspired by Grease. Gabriella was based on Sandy’s (Olivia Newton-John) character, the goody-goody person, while Troy was copied off from Danny’s (John Travolta) character, the popular guy. This just shows how great Grease is that up to the present time people are still reviving it.

The movie wasn’t boring; it didn’t have any parts that would’ve forced me to fast forward it. I love the musical scoring; especially the song “Summer Nights”; this film also showcased the musicality of Olivia Newton-John. The development of the characters was seen in the film, even though Sandy and Danny were the main characters, the others were still given significant parts that completed the all-out effect of the film. Even though the plot of the film might be a bit cliché in the end it proved me wrong. Danny, who genuinely tried to change himself for the better, so that Sandy would take him back, joined the Track team at Rydell High while Sandy dressed up as a “greaser”. It gave me a message that in a relationship, the both of you have to make an effort to adjust and to change for the better.

Grease is the word!

That image above seems quite familiar, right? Like something we did during an English period a few days ago when Char shouted, “Gaya gaya!” I’m sorry, I just couldn’t resist. Dead Poets Society, a movie which all teenagers can relate to. (I’m sure you already know about this, Ms. Platon, but I’d still type the synopsis, or rather copy it from a site, which I will credit.)

Painfully shy Todd Anderson has been sent to the school where his popular older brother was valedictorian. His room-mate, Neil, although exceedingly bright and popular, is very much under the thumb of his overbearing father. The two, along with their other friends, meet Professor Keating, their new English teacher, who tells them of the Dead Poets Society, and encourages them to go against the status quo. Each, in their own way, does this, and is changed for life. (Taken from IMDb.)

In my opinion, this movie is powerful. It tackles the tangible setbacks of teenagers and how with the right guidance, teenagers can outlast them. Like Todd Anderson who finally found his voice through literature, specifically poetry; Charlie Dalton a troublemaker but a true friend; Neil Perry, a person who in our standards is perfect, but his father has him wrapped around his finger and in the end commits suicide since his father wouldn’t allow him to do something he really wants.

What I learned from this movie is, “Carpe Diem” or to seize the day. Those words might sound so simple, but most of the time we don’t really live out these words. We limit ourselves to what has been offered to us instead of looking for what we really want and need. This movie gave me a sudden burst of courage and it made me feel that I have the responsibility to make things happen for me. Even though I am so young, it made me think about how I should live my life and how I should enjoy it to the very last. This movie is probably one the best I’ve seen with an intense plot, great actors and morals to boot.

Carpe Diem!

The Beginning is the End is the Beginning
Smashing Pumpkins

Send a heartbeat to the void that cries through you

Relive the pictures that have come to pass

For now we stand alone

The world is lost and blown

And we are flesh and blood disintegrate

With no more to hate

Is it bright where you are?

And have the people changed?

Does it make you happy you're so strange?

And in your darkest hour, I hold secrets flame

We can watch the world devoured in its pain

Strange

Delivered from the blast

The last of a line of lasts

The pale princess of a palace cracked

And now the kingdom comes

Crashing down undone

And I am a master of a nothing place

Of recoil and grace

Time has stopped before us

The sky cannot ignore us

No one can separate us

For we are all that is left

The echo bounces off me

The shadow lost beside me

There's no more need to pretend

Cause now I can begin again

I am now currently typing another new beginning for my media log’s last flight. I found a fitting song to aptly start the last chapter of my media log. This song is quaintly titled “The Beginning is the End is the Beginning” by Smashing Pumpkins. I was actually enticed by its title, which is a bit weird, ambiguous and confusing. I read it out loud lots of times and I wondered whether there were missing words in order for us listeners to truly understand the song. But I heard that there is another song which is very similar to this which is heard on the soundtrack of the Batman and Robin movie. In all honesty, I really just chose this song because of its title, seeing that I will type my last introduction. But when I glanced at the lyrics, I was in a big surprise about how cryptic it was. It just gives me a vibe of a broken person finding love. Well, that’s my take on it.