Longhorn Reviews

The Wild One

[Longhorn Review] The Wild One

Material Type: All, Books — Tags: frank rooney, hollister bike riot, marlon brando, the cyclists' raid, the wild one — Posted on May 4, 2011, 4:27 pm

By: Laslo Benedek

Computer-generated imagery, life-like green screen shots, and color cameras
present a new face to films created in the technology era. The Wild One’s seemingly
amateur use of green screen and grayscale color scheme allow the viewers of today to
look past the superfluous technology and to concentrate on the film’s artistic
message.

The director, Laslo Benedek, utilizes Marlon Brando’s captivating,
charismatic appearance on the screen to establish a commanding authority over the
Black Rebels Motorcycle Club. Loosely based on the Hollister Biker Riot that
occurred on the Fourth of July weekend in 1947, the film settles in Wrightsville
with an invading gang of bikers who ransack the town, disturb the locals, and cause
civil unrest. Johnny, the leader of BRMC and played by Marlon Brando, falls for the
sheriff’s daughter over the course of the film, ultimately culminating in the
handing over of his prized trophy to her.

Although the era in which the film was
created relied on lower forms of technology, the obvious visual flaw that the actors
did not actually ride motorcycle in the film created a “cheesy” feel and a negative
ethos appeal, especially towards Brando’s character who leads an entire bike gang.
Other reviews place criticism on Brando’s character being “too distant, just like
the rest of the film”; however, his distance creates an emotionless, simple
character whose rough edge creates an opposites-attract feel to his relationship
with the sheriff’s daughter (Fevang).

As much as actors and actresses make a movie,
the landscapes, costumes, and music provide the ambience in which the movie can
successfully emit its message. Opposite of the landscape of “The Cyclists’ Raid,”
the short story on which the film is based, The Wild One takes place in a small,
western, country town with little more than a gas station and a café. Even the
inhabitants of Wrightsville dress as one would assume that a town in that time, in
that location would.

Fevang, Fredrik Gunerius. "The Wild One (1953)." Rev. of The
Wild One, dir. Laslo Benedek. Film: Reviews. The FreshSite, 12 Apr. 2006. Web. 27
Apr. 2011. .

Reviewer: Stephen Bourne

Pretty Little Liars

[Longhorn Review] Pretty Little Liars

Material Type: All, Books — Tags: chick lit, Pretty Little Liars, Sara Shepard — Posted on May 4, 2011, 3:41 pm

By: Sara Shepard

Pretty Little Liars is a series of young adult novel written by an American
writer, Sara Shepard. After receiving an undergraduate degree at New York University
and an MFA at Brooklyn College, she published Pretty Little Liars series as her
first publication in 2006.

The novel has its background set in suburb of
Philadelphia. The novel develops around lives of five teenage girls bonded together
in an exclusive clique led by one of the girls, Ali D. Ali is the queen bee who
manipulates the other girls who feel inferior to Ali. The group falls apart
following Ali’s mysterious disappearance after the girls’ sleepover in the sixth
grade. The novel takes place three years after Ali’s disappearance and her dead body
is found. The girls start to get mysterious text messages from an anonymous person
with an initial A. She sends text messages threatening to reveal the girls’ darkest
secrets.

Hanna used to be a fat girl, but after Ali had gone, she lost weight and
recreated herself as a diva at Rosewood. She has a shoplifting habit and a fear of
losing newly gained popularity. Spencer is the smart one who excels in school,
sports, and everything else. Her sister Melisa is the only one she could never
overcome. Her family turns their back on her after she gets caught kissing her
sister’s boyfriend. Aria moves to Iceland and comes back after three years have
passed. The Rosewood considers her as a weirdo. She tries to keep her dad’s secret
of having an affair with his former student. Emily is a swimmer who had secret
feelings for Alison and after Alison is gone, she begins to have the same feelings
for a new girl named Maya. She struggles with her feelings and how the society will
view her.

Overall, the book is excellent for the way it is written. It is divided
into several small chapters. Each chapter covers a story of one of the four girls.
When a novel has so many main characters, it often gets confusing to follow and keep
track of the story and match characters to the story. However, Shepard does a good
job of keeping them in order by dedicating each chapter to one girl’s story. It
makes you want to keep reading to find out what is happening in the other girls’
life while one girl is going through one issue. Its target audience being teenage
girls, the language is easy to read. The author uses slangs and contractions yet it
is completely acceptable because that is part of teenagers’ vocabulary. Shepard
throws in popular culture so target readers can relate to the characters more
easily.

As far as the content of the book, I was slightly disappointed. The novel
pictures the girls engaged in inappropriate behaviors as teenagers, such as stealing
boyfriend’s dad’s car and wrecking it, shoplifting, desperately trying to have sex,
and finding a mom having sex with a police officer to drop charges. Just as how the
public criticizes TV and film for being gruesome, violent, and sexual and how they
promote such behaviors to especially young viewers, this novel is having the same
dilemma. The novel focuses on each girl’s problems that are very likely to occur in
every normal girl’s life in reality, such as breaking up with boyfriend, dealing
with parents’ divorce, being popular at school, trying to lose weight and stay
skinny. However, Shepard goes too far in her effort to create a tie between her
characters and teenage girls in reality. I advise the reader to be aware.

Reviewer: Yoomi Kim

Letras femeninas en el periodismo mexicano

[Longhorn Review] Letras femeninas en el periodismo mexicano

Material Type: All, Books — Tags: feminismo, Mexico, mujeres, periodismo — Posted on May 3, 2011, 7:21 am

By: López Hernández, Miriam

La inquietud de la autora al elaborar esta obra radica en examinar qué tipo de
periodismo se realiza en la actualidad en México: feminista o de género, tomando
como estudio de caso a la revista Fem, así como determinar las características de
ambos. Parte del supuesto de que en sus inicios, la revista realizaba periodismo
feminista, y en su evolución llegó a elaborar periodismo de género. La obra consta
de tres capítulos. En el primero se abordan aspectos generales del feminismo: lugar
de origen y precursoras, significado, acciones realizadas en Europa y Estados
Unidos, y específicamente se centra en el terreno mexicano. También se señalan las
diversas corrientes feministas y sus objetivos. En el segundo se desarrolla la
historia de las mujeres en el periodismo, partiendo del panorama mundial hasta
focalizarse en los antecedentes más tempranos de la escritura femenina en México,
incluyendo las publicaciones feministas más recientes. En este capítulo se exponen
los elementos que ayudan a definir al periodismo feminista y al de género. En el
tercer y último capítulo, se realiza un estudio de los 29 años de la revista Fem,
partiendo de su pensamiento, tipo de textos, aportes, sus colaboradoras(es), sus
lectoras(es) y etapas de su evolución. La autora distingue tres etapas, las cuales
están marcadas a partir de los tres momentos de dirección de la revista.

Reviewer: Longhorn Reviewer

Star Trek: The Movie (2009)

[Longhorn Review] Star Trek: The Movie (2009)

Material Type: All, Books — Tags: J. J. Abrams, Paramount Pictures, Star Trek — Posted on May 2, 2011, 3:51 pm

By: J. J. Abrams

Star Trek

Over the last half decade, there has not been a better-known franchise
than that of Star Trek. Beginning in 1966, the characters of the USS Enterprise have
transitioned from television to feature films almost a dozen times. In the latest
installment directed and produced by J. J. Abrams, the audience is given the history
and development of two of the most recognizable characters in the series, Captain
James T. Kirk and Spock. Using his unique view on the series and the need to appease
hardcore Star Trek fans (“Trekkies”), Abrams effectively fuses the two styles to
create an entertaining interpretation of what might have taken place. The film shows
how the two came to be in their current positions in the Starfleet as well as how
their friendship formed through mutual experiences.

After opening with the birth of
the heroic Captain Kirk, the film begins to show how both he and Spock mature over
the years. The backstory explains how James is a rebellious youth with no true
father figure (his father died saving the USS Kelvin’s crew including James and his
mother) to emulate. This leads to multiple fights including one in a bar where
Captain Pike plants the idea that James should strive to be a righteous captain in
the Starfleet like his father. Meanwhile on the planet Vulcan, Spock is torn between
what his true identity is between a Vulcan and human (his father is a Vulcan and his
mother is human). Eventually, both choose the path of joining the Starfleet until
their ensuing paths cross. When comparing this first portion of the film, it is
obvious that Abrams’ habitual trait is to give the audience some backstory into the
characters. For example in both the film Armageddon and the television series Lost,
the characters’ past is made prevalent in order to allow the viewers to understand
the thought processes more thoroughly. Indeed, these insights make the film more
relatable because the audience is able to see why the characters have certain
personality traits.

Following both characters’ enrollment in the Starfleet, Abrams
shifts the focus of the film from the individual characters’ personalities into the
emerging friendship. The two might despise each other at first, but the film uses
the common motif of a shared enemy to force them to put aside their differences in
order to rescue Captain Pike and stop the evil Romulan, Nero, from destroying Earth.
While pursuing their enemy, the film again begins to introduce us to many of the
series’ recurring characters (Bones, Sulu, Scotty, Chekov, etc.). With the plot
successfully set-up for the climactic battle between Nero and the USS Enterprise,
Abrams attempts to show the maturity of the two heroes when they are able to finally
agree that they would rescue Captain Pike and stop the terror of the Romulan vessel.
With the successful mission finally completed, the film begins to conclude with Kirk
being officially recognized in his rightful position as Captain of the USS
Enterprise and Spock requesting to be his first officer.

In conclusion, the new Star
Trek is an action-packed film that acted more as a prequel for the actual series.
Abrams attempted to give the audience an insight into the characters so that they
might better understand their history. However, he did not forget to include
portions of the film that would satisfy the hardcore Trekkie fans around the world.
Leonard Nimoy, the original Spock from the 1966 series makes several appearances in
the film and provides advice for the young versions of the characters. Additionally,
the film concludes with Nimoy stating the famous monologue, “Where no man has gone
before,” which was stated in the opening sequence of every episode of Star Trek
produced.

Star Trek. By Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, Dir. J. J. Abrams, Prod.
Damon Lindelof and J. J. Abrams. 2009. Paramount Pictures.

Reviewer: Geoffrey Feinberg

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

[Longhorn Review] The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Material Type: All, Books — Tags: Girl Dragon Tattoo Movie — Posted on May 2, 2011, 3:48 pm

By: Stieg Larsson

The movie adaptation of the book, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, is similar to
its paper counterpart but quite different at the same time. For one to understand a
critique of the movie, one must first understand the characters and the stories
behind the character. The director, Niels Arden Oplev, is successful in converting
Stieg Larsson’s story onto the big screen and thus does a sufficient job in filling
in the audience without taking up too much screen space.

A reoccurring theme that
can be found throughout Stieg Larsson’s writings is violence against women. The
original title to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was actually Men Who Hate Women, a
title for a film that is reflective of the author’s personal thoughts, but was too
racy for a big screen movie title. This brings us to another racy subject, the main
character of the movie, Lisbeth Salander (played by Noomi Rapace). Salander is
anything but a pushover in this movie, a girl who has an uncanny ability to hack
computers while donning dark black leather garb that is reminiscent of the character
Trinity of the Matrix. Her character must be approached in a delicate manner as it
takes a lot to peel the many layers of Lisbeth Salander. Her history adds to her
stereotypically unpleasant personality for a young woman, a personality that is
aggressive and definitely not pg-13.

Salander is paired up in the movie with Mikael
Blomkvist (played by Michael Nyqvist), a shunned journalist banned from the world of
journalism from writing one exposé too many. Their tale of connection begins by
getting raped by her probation officer, leading to her revolting back by essentially
raping him, leading him to give her control of her money, in which she buys a laptop
that she uses to hack into Blomkvist’s computer. Ironically, this act of deceit
actually brings the two even closer and eventually inspires him to adopt her as an
investigative partner. The story begins when the shunned journalist is hired by the
head of Vanger Enterprises, Henrik Vanger, to solve the forty-year old mystery of
his missing niece. The story of his missing niece ties into a whole web of lies and
mysteries that all seem to intertwine in some initially trivial way that sucks the
detective duo in to solve the mystery.

The movie itself is one of great length. The
running time for this film is officially capped off at a hundred and forty eight
minutes, but feels like a four-hour movie. Although the film itself can be
interesting to some, a few may find it difficult to sit through a gloomy film of
this sort for over two hours at a time.

Reviewer: KB24

Girl Dragon Tattoo Movie

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

[Longhorn Review] Twilight Saga: Eclipse

Material Type: All, Books — Tags: David Slade, Eclipse, Summit Entertainment, Twilight — Posted on May 2, 2011, 3:48 pm

By: David Slade

Twilight Saga: Eclipse is the third movie in the Twilight series, directed by
David Slade. Compared to the movies before this one, Eclipse is different in the
fact that the characters have finally discovered how to truly act out their parts.
As the movie opens, Victoria is seen turning a boy named Riley, into a newborn
vampire. Her point in doing this is to begin her plot in killing Bella. Having an
army of newborn vampires is Victoria’s idea of getting the job done quickly. This
dark opening scene starts the movie out with a sort of suspense, especially if a
viewer has not yet read the book. In the midst of all of this, Bella desires nothing
more than to become a vampire. Edward, on the other hand, refuses to let this happen
until they are perfectly married. Jacob is still in the mix of things and is
constantly seen confessing his love to Bella. There is one scene in particular where
Bella is mad at Edward for not telling her Victoria’s evil plan. Jacob is standing
in their circle, posted up against his motorcycle, listening to them argue. To evoke
some jealousy within Edward, Bella has no problem with getting on the back of
Jacob’s motorcycle to go have a private conversation. This is important because it
shows how this work is arguing to prove that a guy on a motorcycle has a different
kind of strength and power to take control.

Eclipse does a great job in proving that
there can be friendly relations between the werewolves and the Cullens. For example,
when Edward realized that an unknown newborn vampire had been sneaking around
Bella’s house, the werewolves were happy to guard the home while the Cullen’s went
to hunt. Although Edward and Jacob are still not considered to be friends, they will
do anything and everything in their power to protect Bella. Towards the end of the
movie Jacob tells Bella, “I’m going to fight for you.” This is another example as to
how the director is trying to prove what this work is arguing for. Slade constantly
alludes to everything in the movie as a constant battle; therefore, strength/power
is a must. Jacob tries to kiss her, but Bella is furious. After spraining her hand
from punching him, Jacob still, never stops fighting for her. Edward proposes to
Bella, but they must keep it a secret from Jacob until after the fight. When the
newborns finally come, the Cullens are prepared because of Jasper’s training.
Although Jacob finds out about the proposal, he still fights for Bella. Edward
finally kills Victoria and the movie ends with Edward and Bella talking about their
excitement to marry each other.

Overall, Eclipse manages to bring more action to the
series, while keeping a good balance between the violence and romance that takes
place throughout. Because of the constant switching between love scenes and fighting
scenes, the viewer never becomes disinterested. The music and sounds keeps the
audience engaged as well. Eclipse also does a great job in avoiding becoming a chick
flick. Although love is a huge part of this movie, the fighting scenes are sure to
keep guys on their toes too. Slade,

David, dir. Twilight Saga Eclipse. 2010. Summit Entertainment, 2010. DVD.

Reviewer: Macy Morris

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. The Movie (2010)

[Longhorn Review] The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. The Movie (2010)

Material Type: All, Books — Tags: David Slade, Eclipse, Twilight — Posted on May 2, 2011, 3:47 pm

By: Slade, David

“The Twilight Saga” that made people fall in love with it’s intriguing characters
and made teen (and grown women’s) hearts melt over the compelling love story between
a vampire and an ordinary girl is back with its latest edition, “Eclipse.” This is
the best movie of the series yet, packed with action and an interesting love
triangle that will keep you on your toes. Whether you are Team Edward, like me, or
Team Jacob you are sure to be satisfied or possibly even a little frustrated at
times.

Being that Vampires are now a genre all their own, “Twilight,” compared to TV
shows such as “The Vampire Diaries” and “True Blood,” is the most popular vampire
film out there right now, and I can see why. There is something about the
supernatural and realistic combination that has women drooling over this series,
especially in this third installment. The intriguing love triangle between Bella
(Kristen Stewart), Edward (Robert Pattinson), and Jacob (Taylor Lautner) really
begins to heat up. Bella has her mind made up on being turned into a vampire so she
can be eternally attached to Edward, but Jacob pleads that she “wouldn’t have to
change for him.” Jacob ditches the long locks and beefs up for his part in this
edition. Accompanied by his motorcycle, Jacob’s newfound ethos comes across as cocky
but has teen viewers gawking. However, his relentless and forceful pleading to Bella
gets to be annoying and frustrating after a while.

The introduction of a new vampire clan (newborns) adds some intensity to the movie and will keep you on the edge of
your seat. It is suspected that Victoria is the one who created the clan in order to
kill Bella to get revenge on Edward for killing her mate. The Cullen’s and the
werewolves must come together to battle the newborns in order to protect Bella. This
puts an unexpected twist in the plot since vampires and werewolves are natural born
enemies. The fight scene was a little weak and short considering how much the
Cullen’s and werewolves prepared for battle and how anticipated it was meant to be.
I found it to be somewhat disappointing. However the special effects were epic and
the camera angle made it seem as though you were caught in the middle of the battle.

Under the direction of David Slade, this film has had a tremendous growth from the
previous ones. The acting is better than the previous films and the actors have also
grown into their characters better. As a Twi-Hard, it’s hard to find a reason why
anyone would dislike this movie.

Slade, David, dir. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. Rosenberg Melissa. 2010. Film

Reviewer: Gianna SanGennaro

Flawless (2007)

[Longhorn Review] Flawless (2007)

Material Type: All, Books — Tags: Emily, Pretty Little Liars, Series, Teenage Drama, Toby — Posted on May 2, 2011, 3:47 pm

By: Sara Shepard

The second novel of the young adult series Pretty Little Liars proves that the
drama and mystery are no small matter. Flawless is full of teenage girl problems but
it also touches on the scandal surrounding their late friend, Alison’s, re-opened
murder case. Starting off with a premonition about a certain male character then
following with a flash back to middle school, this novel is full of turns and no
conclusion. Bulimia, a lesbian romance, and “The Jenna Thing” are all major issues
that threaten the girls’ reputations and friendship.

Alison, Spencer, Aria, Emily and Hanna are an inseparable group of teenage girls who have a few secrets that they
will never share. “The Jenna Thing” refers to a prank they played on Toby Cavanaugh,
their creepy neighbor. They threw a lit firework into his tree house one night when
they thought he was sitting in it alone, but when the paramedics came and lowered a
young girl from the destroyed tree house, they all agreed it was one more secret
they would take to the grave. Shortly after their pact was solidified, Alison went
missing and the girls became ex-best friends. The story picks up three years later
after Alison’s body is discovered in cement, the remaining girls are brought back
together at her funeral and the “A” contact begins. The girls know that this
mysterious person texting them can’t be Alison…or can it?

The secrets that Alison used to hold against them are on the verge of getting out. When it comes to female
teenage development, anything that makes them appear different can shake them at the
core, which causes these girls to do anything to keep them under wraps. Emily in
particular struggles with her sexuality and fears that her friends and family won’t
accept her if she is honest with them and herself. She at one time felt close to
Alison, but the “A” character knows of a kiss she shared with another girl and
threatens to tell. A past eating disorder is also a topic that “A” haunts Hanna
with, and the messages continue to leave the girls in the dark at figuring out who
they are. The argument the book presents is that betrayal and friendship are often
mixed when honesty is missing. The girls have been hiding and hurting others to
cover their own tracks, but when the lies start adding up things get messy.

Toby is the girl’s main suspect in this book as Alison’s murderer. They know that she had
dirt on him and they think he is seeking revenge on all of them as “A.” As Emily and
Toby begin to get closer, the others become suspicious of his motives. Toby has his
own concerns, and fears that the girls are going to frame him for his secret past.
The drama intensifies at the end when a biker comes to Emily’s porch asking for a
phone. He mentions that has been an emergency in the woods and things. The night
before, Toby had come to her door begging to speak with her but she told him “Go
Away! You heard me, I know. What. You. Did. To. Her” (Shepard 287). Little did Emily
know that this would be the last thing she says to him and that the girl’s fears
would be greater when Emily received “A’s” text message: “Poor confused Emily. I bet
you could use a big warm girl hug right now, huh? Don’t get too comfortable. It’s
not over until I say it is” (Shepard 330).

Shepard, Sara. Flawless. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, 2007. Print. Pretty Little Liars.

Reviewer: Kelli Scandrol