Japenese Remake=New American Film?

For decades now, American moviegoers have enjoyed hit new movies by famous directors. But wait-just how 'new' are these movies anyway? Surely great minds can't still be churning out classic hits?

Nope. Well, not for the most part, anyway. Japenese film director Takashi Shimizu, who has directed such movies as "Ju-On" (what we know as Sarah Michelle Gellar starring in "The Grudge") says that, "Hollywood is short of good ideas — across all the genres — and also reluctant to take a chance on a film because if it's a flop, then they lose a lot of money and are hit hard by the critics."

It seems sad to me that Hollywood would rather take a chance on what's out there, then risk making something new. Or at least giving major props to these other countries with the original ideas-maybe it would give the "stupid American" title a little less of an edge.

As a sequel is coming to "Ju-On", so is "The Grudge Two," both set to come out some time next year.

Add a comment April 25, 2006

Czech Impact in Food

My Czech interest has always been a great interest to me. I've had both a friend and a co-worker visit Prague for long stays, and have told me about the vast levels of poverty in the country-side, as well as the beauty of the cities.

This article discusses the new plus in the column for pros on the Czech Republic. Apparently, French-chic is the new cuisine of Prague, giving tourists a multi-cultural experience at a greatly reduced price (for example, a vegetable stir-fry is $4.50 American). Asian food has also made an impact on Prague cuisine.

Basically, the Czech Republic is getting ahead by an emphasis in continental cuisine, for much less money than one would pay in their homeland. Mcdonald's anyone? No? It's kind of sad how a country that can afford cheap food with the surplus of farmers and lack of adequate payment can be such a new tourist attraction. Hopefully, the more visitors that come in to Prague and surrounding cities will bring money in to all areas of the land.

2 comments April 25, 2006

Holocaust Surviviors still making an impact

With the number of years between now and then increasing fast, it's good to know that Holocaust survivors are still alive, and willing to get their story out while they can.

This article details Holocaust survivior Jack Ratz's visit to the South Glens Falls high school. He spoke about the yellow star sewed onto his jacket and the number 281 tatooed on his chest. The article unfortunately does not say what camp Ratz worked at, nor where he was from. It did however get into the feedback of the students, who felt that Ratz's stories taught them to stay positive to make it through difficult life situations. The story also mentioned Ratz's new book, Endless Miracles, which does get into his past.

I am currently taking a class entitled Holocaust: Legends and Legacies, as I have always had an interest in this topic. However, to actually read more than people's stories, to combine them with facts about the lack of help from the world, about the startup of the Nazi regime, and pictures makes everything that much more drab and horrible. Of course, live stories can be the best information. I hope that Ratz didn't spare students of the atrocities he went through-sometimes we need to hear the hard things in order to prevent them from happening again.

3 comments April 5, 2006