Brandi Carlile and Bear Creek

Having heard bits and pieces and some full songs of Brandi Carlile's new CD I must say I'm excited to hear the whole thing. But, here goes one of the songs of the new CD sang live and it blew me away. As always. Enjoy.

Lupus World Day: Let the Awareness Commence

 My fellow readers, as you have the opportunity of noticing, I seldom take my blog to write about personal issues or feelings, simply because what I have to say here doesn’t mesh with my personal life. Having said this, it was impossible for me to ignore the necessity I felt to address lupus, which, ironically, breaches into the deepest part of me.

As some of you may know, the Lupus Organization of America has marked May as the Lupus Awareness Month and May the 10^th as the World Lupus Day. During the whole month, and with a combined effort from the organization, supporters and specialists, content is created with the specific purpose of making the disease known. It is a month dedicated to create awareness for people who don’t know about lupus and for family and friends who struggle understanding the whole meaning of the disease. This, I think, is pretty rad.

And you may ask yourselves, why does she care so much about this? There are a million other diseases that plague the world, why this? Well, the answer is simple: I was diagnosed with Systemic lupus erythematosus in October 29 of 2007 when I was 18 years old. I remember the date perfectly well, because it is a day that changed my life forever and opened my eyes to a whole new world. I didn’t even know what Lupus was before I was diagnosed and suddenly, in the blink of an eye, this new world had fallen on me. From one day to another I had to completely change my lifestyle and create new habits.

To be honest, it is hard for me to talk about this and I usually prefer not to. It is sad for me and people get uncomfortable or think you are throwing a pity party for yourself. “You seem fine, you are fine,” they seem to think.

So as a result, for many years I tried to block what was happening until I realized one thing: this illness does not define me as a person. Yes it is part of who I am, but just a part of me, not the whole package. I realized how liberating it was to tell someone what I was feeling and above all, I realized it became very important to me to create awareness. Damn people if they became uncomfortable or condescending, I was done with the silence.

That feeling brings me to write to you today. I finally got that if people don’t grasp what this means they never will be able to understand me. So for my sanity and the sanity of my friends, family and people I love I wanted to do this.

One of the first things I noticed when I was diagnosed is how little information I had of my own disease. I had to learn quickly, but as I ventured into the world, I also noticed that people were even more clueless than I was. I got all kinds of reactions that went from pitying pats in the back, to people being afraid they might catch the disease if they got close to me, to the truly supportive, to the wanna be doctors who disagreed with my rheumatologist and told you me to do things “right”.

But, facts are facts and they are important to understand lupus. Systemic lupus erythematosus is and systemic autoimmune chronic disease. This basically means that your body creates antibodies that it does not need and they attack your healthy organs: lungs, kidneys, thyroid or even the heart. This type of lupus is characterized by having periods of remission interrupted by flares that can happen randomly or by neglecting treatment. SLE is treatable using immunosuppression, mainly with cyclophosphamide, corticosteroids and other immunosuppressants, but as of today, there is no known cure for it.

Symptoms can vary and it is very difficult to diagnose, because many of them mimic symptoms of other conditions. For example, it presented in me with a drastic weight loss, vasculitis on my fingers, -which my dodgy dermatologist thought was an allergy- and fatigue, which is the symptom that I most struggle with today. Other common symptoms are joint pain, a butterfly shaped rash on the cheeks and fever. The disease is more common in women, but I can also affect some men.

Lupus is a very strange and mysterious animal. Not enough research or understanding has come to know why it happens and how we stop it. Sometimes it is genetic and sometimes it appears in a person with no genetic disposition for it. It is confusing and many times, misdiagnosed.

Even though I’ve been in remission for the last 4 years, it is scary to feel so out of control of your own body. Even following the treatment and the protocols to perfection a flare could occur. That is why awareness is so important, this needs to be known for it to be studied more and finally comprehended totally. Each year more people are diagnosed with lupus and a cure hasn’t been discovered. I believe any person who has this disease feels the same fear I do and this is why I’m putting this out there to try and help, even in a small way, to stop that fear.

So, I invite all of you to go and try to learn more about this disease. Today, May 10^th, we can open a new page and hope that more researchers will be interested in this and help by investigating in order to create better lifestyles for people with lupus.

Visit: http://www.lupus.org/ for more information and let the awareness commence. 

The Avengers: A New Kind of Superhero Movie

Title: The Avengers.

Director: Joss Whedon.

Cast: Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner.

Country: Unites States.

Year: 2012.

The lights dim, the crowd around me whispers excitedly, some kids in the front row won’t stop talking. This is the experience you get a Friday afternoon while waiting for the start of one of the biggest movies of the year. And then it happens: you become a 5 year old for a couple of hours and you know with certainty “The Avengers” will be a hit.

The story has a pretty basic premise: the world is being threatened by an outer space evil creatures led by Thor’s brother, Loki. Nick Fury, along with S.H.I.E.L.D, a government group that experiments with advanced technology, recruits the help of extraordinary people to bring down the evil force. This group comes together to try and save the Earth from a never-before seen menace.

Let’s start by talking about the thing most superhero movies take for granted: the script. Even though the story doesn’t take a serious tone [again, no such thing as a “deep tone”], it’s still smart enough to create relatable and human characters. It is a clash of egos, and that is were each hero’s flaws come out to play. This all ties up neatly with a very original narrative, very particular to the writer and director Joss Whedon. He manages to make you feel involved with every single character because we get enough time to get to know them and for them to have a storyline and relationships with every other character.

The main villain, Loki, is different to the Joker, Green Goblin and most villians. He is smart and cocky but above all, he is upfront all the time and doesn’t like to hide. This makes an interesting plot because you will always be more afraid of him. He is so sure of himself, it’s disconcerting. The script made him a much more interesting character than he was in “Thor” (2011) and it adds immensely to the narrative.

For me, one of the best characters was Black Widow. It is a type of character that could be boring or super predictable. But Johansson creates something more than a killing machine: a very round deep character. She is conniving and deceiving, but you root for her. She gets to shine and be awesome in really unexpected ways.

Other character that had me satisfied was Bruce “The Hulk” Banner. It is the first time we can actually see the duality with which he struggles. We get to see both of his sides and how he truly struggles with his anger. He is physically the least strong of the bunch, but as the essence of the character described, appearances can be deceiving.

It was truly impressive to see how with the size of the cast, every character got moments to shine. Even Maria Hill, Phil and Nick Fury become an attachment to the audience; that is very difficult to accomplish in a movie that spawns from other movies that focused on each character. You can see they believed in the project and the wholesomeness it would bring if they worked as a team. They have chemistry and they strengthen their own heroes.

To anyone who has seen anything by Joss Whedon, it is very clear this movie is his. He has a style and he is not afraid to use it. He is a masterful storyteller and this is obvious in the plot of “The Avengers”. Every single detail ties up neatly into the narrative and it relates directly to the characters. We don’t waste time and we don’t get bored.

Visually, the movie is astounding, merging visual effects with live action flawlessly (The Hulk and its design, or those outer space sequences). With really great and innovative shots—like the “battle” long tracking/sequence shot; you will know which I’m talking about—that made my eyes water. The cinematography is pretty clean and uses a lot of color, which really adds to the beauty of some of the images.

The acting is also flawless and we can thank Joss Whedon for it. As we have seen countless times, it is very easy to make a super hero movie that ends up sounding and looking cheesy –“The Fantastic Four” anyone?--. “The Avengers” avoids this because each actor knows their respective character, they have a witty script to help them through, and a director that understands human emotion like few in Hollywood do. We have all the cool visual stuff and all the cool emotional stuff without one suffocating another or turning the movie into a boring cheesefest.

So I’m a very glad to say that “The Avengers” is a great movie. I was very excited and scared because I’ve been a Joss Whedon fan since I watched “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (by the way see if you can find a couple of references or similes to the show) and I must say I wasn’t disappointed. “The Avengers” is a well-written, fun movie to watch with round characters without losing that human connection that we need to make a film transcend.

A Separation: The Human Side of our Heroes

Title: A Separation (in Persian: جدایی نادر از سیمین‎ Jodái-e Náder az Simin, "The Separation of Nader from Simin").

Director: Asghar Farhadi.

Cast: Leila Hatami, Peyman Moaadi, Shahab Hosseini.

Country: Iran.

Year: 2011

There is a moment when we are growing up, that the illusion of perfection falls off our parents and we realize that they are no more than human. To be honest, I went to watch “A Separation” as a result of the Oscar win and didn’t know what to expect. Needless to say, the movie surpassed my expectations and touched me profoundly.

“A Separation” tells the story of Nader, Simin and Termeh a family that is on the verge of collapse. When Simin decides to move out of her home and file for divorce, Nader has to hire a complete stranger to help him care for his father who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease. As a result, unexpected complications arise, in which the solutions happen to be a struggle between what is morally right and what is best for their family.

Asghar Farhdi is a director that has treated the theme of divorce in a complicated cultural situation before in his highly acclaimed movie “About Elly”. In “A Separation” he takes it again, but puts in a twist that makes that human connection even harder to achieve. He presents us the human dilemma between forgiveness and pride in which love doesn’t even enter the equation anymore.

It is a movie filled with human, less than perfect characters and the skeleton of the plot resides there. Without people making mistakes, lying to cover them and being afraid, human connections and family life would be easy. But universally it is not so; we are seemingly equipped to sabotage our most important relationships until there is no way of fixing them. And that is why the film resonates in any part of the world, because it is a universal reality.

One of the most interesting aspects of the movie is the many parallels we find between parents and their sons and daughters. Throughout the movie, we get to see all these relationships enter a state of crisis. In each step of life and in a very particular way, Temeh, Nader and Somayeh realize their parents are not perfect and they are forced to let go of their image of them to fully accept the reality of the new one they are aware of.

The script is brilliant, managing a game of who is telling the truth and who isn’t. It is not a particularly complicated plot, and yet, it keeps you interested with the complex rich narrative. The important things in the story are the emotions that the characters are dealing with, which are very skillfully portrayed by the talented cast Farhdi chose.

The photography is really good, because it’s fluid and sets a good pace that puts us inside the action. It is really simple and clean, but it achieves greatness in many scenes –the symbolism in the last shot being one. It doesn’t interrupt us so that we can really connect and feel this people are real without sacrificing the aesthetics of the film.

“A Separation” is a film that overcomes the cultural barriers we have by taking a universal theme and appealing to all who watch it. With amazing performances, an exceptional script and flawless direction, it achieves to make us see how complicated being part of a family and a society is. 

Summer's Here! Let's Welcome Summer Movies! Part 2

So, here it goes, the second part of what we can expect this summer when we go to the movies.

June:

Snow White and the Huntsman:

Opening: June 1, 2012

We had “I tried to copy Enchanted” Snow White and now we have progressive, serious Snow White. This is the classic tale with a twist in which Snow White is banned, and not only because she is beautiful, but also because she is supposed to take the Queen’s throne. Instead of being killed by the Huntsman, he helps her to become a warrior and defeat the evil ruler.

Many people are skeptical of this movie because of Kristen Stewart, but lets hope that it lets her prove the truly great actress she can be. The cast also includes Charlize Theron as the evil queen and Chris Hemsworth as the huntsman. The director is the newcomer Rupert Sanders.

Madagascar 3: Europe's most Wanted 3D: 

Opening: June 8, 2012

Dreamworks is betting on one of its most known franchises this year. The gang is back as the travel through Europe in hopes of returning to their home in New York.

The original cast returns to voice their characters and we can add Frances McDormand who is voicing the villain in the movie. An interesting thing about this one is the script, because it comes from the hands of Noah Baumbach better known for his indie work in “The Squid and the Whale”.

Prometheus:

Opening: June 8, 2012

This was announced as the sort of prequel from “Alien” with the added bonus of getting Ridley Scott to return and direct. This movie is creating a lot of hype and many hardcore fans are making it grow by constantly discussing rumors and possible connections to the original saga.

The story is about a group of people that wants to discover the beginnings of mankind, as they have to face the extraterrestrial race that threatens to wipe it all. It stars Noomi Rapace, Charlize Theron, Michael Fassbender, Guy Pearce and Idris Elba.

Rock of Ages: 

Opening: June 15, 2012

And here comes another attempt to make an original musical with classic rock songs. The story centers on a waitress that falls in love with a busby as they are surrounded by the 80`s rock movement. This movie is filled with big name stars that include Tom Cruise and Catherine Zeta-Jones. Let’s hope it breaks the curse of original movie musicals, well, sucking.

Apart from Cruise and Zeta-Jones, the movies star Diego Boneta –yay for México-, Julianne Hough and Alec Baldwin. Adam Shankman, a former choreographer turned director who is best known for directing the Hollywood adaptation of “Hairspray”, directed it.

That’s my Boy:

Opening: June 15, 2012

And Happy Maddison is back, this time Adam Sandler pairs up with one of the most promising comedians of our time: Andy Samberg. The story is about a guy named Donny (Sandler), who fathered a child (Samberg) in his teens and had to raise him as a single father –“Big Daddy” 2.0?- until the kid was 18 and decided to move out an ignore his father’s irresponsible ways. When Donny realizes his son failed to invite him to his wedding, he reaches out for him.

Even though Sandler’s golden era of comedic movies has ended, he still manages to make movies that make a lot of money. The expectations for this movie being good is pretty slim, but I could always be wrong. The movie also starts “Gossip Girl” alumn Leighton Meester, Susan Sarandon and James Caan and directed by Sean Anders.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter:

Opening: June 22, 2012

Based on a novel by the same name, “Vampire Hunter” follows the American hero who was killed by a supernatural creature. As such, he feels compelled to fight such forces. The movie was pushed seven months from its original release date, which isn’t a very positive sign.

The movie stars virtually newcomer Benjamin Walker and Mary Elizabeth Winstead, who you might remember as Ramona Flowers in “Scott Pilgrim vs the World”. Russian director Timur Bekmambetov was in charge of the movie, he also directed the action movie “Wanted”.

Brave:

Opening: June 22, 2012

Pixar enters the Princess territory with Merida, a Scottish heiress to the throne with a very unique ability with an bow and arrow –medieval Katniss, ya’ll-. Even though she is destined to become a Queen, Merida decides to shift the plans set for her and go down her own path. This movie marks a new milestone in the stories told by Pixar and, even though I’m not the biggest Pixar fan, I’m very excited to see this, because it truly looks awesome.

Merida is voiced by Kelly McDonald –OMG the Gray Lady!-, accompanying her are Julie Walters, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson and Kevin McKidd. The Pixar veteran, but newbie director Mark Andrews directed the film.

G.I. Joe: Retaliation:

Opening: June 29, 2012

With a crazy awesome and expensive promotion, comes the sequel to a movie that wasn’t very liked in the first place. “Retaliation” centers on a political plot in which all the G.I Joe commandos are charged of treason and destroyed. The few survivors seek to right this injustice and fight to destroy the ploy. The directory Jon Chu, also directed “Justin Bieber: Never Say Never” –Lol- and “Step Up”, so we can expect some awesome fight sequences.

The most interesting part about this movie is the writers Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick who were responsible to the –epic awesome- “Zombieland”. The movie stars Chaning Tatum, Dwayne Johnson and Bruce Willis.

So, that’s what we can expect to see in theaters this June. Hit the comment section and tell me which movies are you excited for and which movies will probably suck!

For part one click here: http://whateverumad.blogspot.mx/2012/04/summers-here-lets-welcome-summer-movies.html

Summer's Here! Let's Welcome Summer Movies! Part 1

Summer is fast approaching and with it, the long awaited summer blockbusters.

So, this is the first of three posts, which includes April and May openings.

April and May:

The Avengers:

Opening: April 27, 2012

Many geeks are expecting this movie with a mixture of excitement and fear. Directed by Joss Whedon –who is known to be a very big fan of the comics and all around awesome guy-, “The Avengers” promises to be the ultimate super-hero movie reuniting most of the original actors from their own franchises.

Now it is time to wait and see what the fans from the comic book think of this adaptation. The cat includes Robert Downey Jr., Samuel L. Jackson, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo and Scarlet Johansson.

Dark Shadows:

Opening: May 11, 2012

Tim Burton and Johnny Depp team up again for this new movie based on a 60’s gothic soap opera transmitted by ABC. The story centers around Barnabass, a vampire that is freed after years of being buried alive and returns to live with various of his weird and quirky descendants.

After “Alice in Wonderland”, lets hope that Burton has created a good enough story to support the expected quirky look that defines his movies. Apart from Depp, the movie also stars Michelle Pfeiffer, Helena Bonham Carter -aren’t we shocked? - and Eva Green.

The Dictator:

Opening: May 16, 2012

Sacha Baron Cohen returns, but this time he departs slightly from his mockumentary formula with a scripted movie. The story revolves around General Admiral Aladeen, a dictator in a Middle East country, which visits America and is stripped of his identity and forced to live as an immigrant in New York City.

As we know, Baron Cohen is always causing controversy with his stunts to promote the movie. The first one occurred at the red carpet of the Academy Awards when the “General Admiral” dropped on Ryan Seacrest the “ashes of Kim Jong-il”. The movie was directed by Larry Charles and also stars John C. Reilley, Ana Farris and Bobby Lee.

What to Expect When You’re Expecting:

Opening: May 18, 2012

This is a loose adaptation of a best selling book written by Heidi Murkoff & Sharon Mazel. The story follows five couples that are about to become parents and all the complications and drama that a pregnancy entails.

The movie has a ensemble approach with a cast filled with known names that include Jennifer Lopez, Cameron Diaz, Matthew Morrison, Elizabeth Banks, Anna Kendrick, Brooklyn Decker, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Rodrigo Santoro, Rob Huebel, Chace Crawford, Dennis Quaid, and Chris Rock. Let’s just be surprised if this ensemble makes something of a little more substance than what we are used to see. The film was directed by Kirk Jones who also directed “Nanny McPhee”.

Battleship:

Opening: May 18, 2012

This is what happens when you have a toy based franchise as big as “Transformers” was. This movie is inspired by the board game with the same name. The story is about an international naval fleet in Pearl Harbor that is attacked by alien forces and has to fight back to try and survive. The audience will get to see both fighting sides, so they know where the ships are positioned in each “board”.

The cast of the movie includes Liam Neeson, Alexander Skarsgård and Rhianna and it was directed by Peter Berg who is an actor turned director.

Men In Black 3

Opening: May 25, 2012

The franchise is back after ten years, this time around, Agent J has tor travel to the past to stop some sort of alien from destroying Earth and killing Agent K. For this, he will need the help of a young Agent K to try and eliminate the threat.

Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones are both back for the movie, but this time they will also have the company of Josh Brolin and Emma Thompson. The film was directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, who also was in charge of the previous movies.

Now you know what we are expecting in these couple of months. Stay tuned for me to tell you what is coming for the rest of the summer.


For part II of this post click here: http://whateverumad.blogspot.mx/2012/04/summers-here-lets-welcome-summer-movies_20.html

The Ultimate Top 5 TV Shows

The world of television has evolved and grown in the last 20 years. Throughout these two decades, we have had the privilege to see many shows that have defied and changed the expectations of the rest. So as an avid TV watched I thus present you with my top 5 all time favorite TV shows:

    Buffy the Vampire Slayer:

Say what they might, Buffy is the pioneer of modern television. If you are willing to give it a chance and wait until the second season, you will get hooked. Buffy taps to every human emotion possible and it does it with a unique and entertaining vision.

The series that stars Sarah Michelle Gellar, Alyson Hannigan and Anthony Stewart Head ran for 7 seasons and created a massive cult fan base that still adore it until this day -including yours truly-. It was created by Joss Whedon who also directed The Avengers, set to premiere later this month.   

 Alias:

Before there was “Lost” and “Star Trek” there was “Alias”. J.J Abrams created a show that sounded generic and managed to make it different, human and really smart. It also has that amazing touch of Sci-Fi that characterizes the creator. I dare to say that this is his masterpiece in television (hoping that “Lost” fans won’t egg my house tonight).

The series starring Jennifer Garner, Michael Vartan and Victor Garber ran for 5 seasons.

 Grey’s Anatomy:

“Grey’s Anatomy” started as a mid-season replacement show for ABC, no one expected for it to that big. Obviously they were wrong. Grey’s has managed to take the typical hospital drama and turned it into a relationship show with medicine as a parallel. With brilliantly crafted characters, it hooks people into its storyline and the diverse range of personalities in the cast. It also helps that the writing is fresh and well rounded with a really unique balance between humor and drama.

The series starring Ellen Pompeo, Patrick Dempsey and Sandra Oh has 8 seasons and it’s still in the air. It was created by writer Shonda Rhimes who also created the spin-off “Private Practice”. She also has a new show coming later this month called “Scandal”.

 Veronica Mars:

A teenage detective show that was praised by the critics and the small -but loyal- fan base it had. It was a very fun show that still dealt with the emotions that people have to go as teenagers. The heroine grows up through the seasons, feeding herself with human experiences and a lot of change in her environment.

The first two seasons manage to maintain the interest with a main mystery that weaves into the minor ones. The third season tried to change the formula and survive the merger between UPN and WB and it failed. Still, fans are very vocal about the possibility of a movie.

The series starring Kristen Bell, Jason Dohring and Enrico Colantoni ran for 3 seasons. It was created by Rob Thomas.

How I Met Your Mother:

This sitcom reveled against the typical formulas that their genre expects of it. How I Met defies the typical love storyline and it succeeds in being exceptionally funny without compromising the integrity and evolution of the main characters.

The show is in its seventh season, and although it is starting to show sings of its age, it has never ceased to be clever and fun. “How I Met Your Mother” stars Josh Radnor, Alyson Hannigan, Cobie Smulders, Jason Segal and Neil Patrick Harris and it has ran for 7 seasons and still counting. The show was created by Craig Thomas and Carter Bays.

As my list finishes I have a couple of new shows to add, because the have the potential to replace some of the shows in the list.

1)    Homeland:

Amongst a wave o amazing cable TV shows comes “Homeland”. Beautifully written and powerfully acted, “Homeland” is a perfect example how to combine the elements you have and create a very complex show.

It only has one season and that’s why it hasn’t gone into my top ten lost yet, but if they continue down the lines it has constructed, I’m sure it will be soon. The show stars Claire Danes, Claire Danes and Mandy Patinkin and it was created by Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa, based on an Israeli series called “Abducted”.  

2)    Game of Thrones:

This adaptation of a series of novels is praised by everyone that watches it. With an epic proportion and a plot filled with intrigue, “Game of Thrones” is a pioneer in modern television because the scale of it is cinematic. With grade A acting and likeable, but morally ambiguous, characters, “Game of Thrones” has become one of my favorites pretty quickly.

The show just started its second season this Sunday and it stars Emilia Clarke and Peter Dinklage. Thrones was adapted from a series of novels written by George R. R. Martin.

The Guilty pleasures:

Let's not pretend, we all have them:

- Pretty Little Liars.

-  Once Upon a Time.

-  Revenge.

So there it goes, now you know what I like to see and what I would recommend you to watch. So enjoy, endless hours of television await you my fellow readers.