The Brotherhood of the Military

1. (Seven Pounds) In the movie Seven Pounds Ben Thomas sacrifices his body so that others may live. Just like the Air Force's elite unit, Pararescue, there motto is That Others May Life and they risk there lives everyday to save fallen soldiers behind enemy lines. "It is my duty as a Pararescueman to save lives and to aid the injured. I will be prepared at all times to perform my assigned duties quickly and efficiently, placing these duties before personal desires and comforts. These things I do, that others may live" (Pararescue Creed). These special kind of airmen would do anything for anybody, even give there own life. This relates to Seven Pounds because Ben gave his own life for seven other people, including his newly found love Emily. "Because your a good man... Even when you don't know people are watching you" (Seven Pounds). Ben would only save the people that he knew were good but the pararescue or any other hostage rescue team would save anybody with any kind of background just because they live in the same country. "I lied to you, I think about dying every day" (Seven Pounds). Ben thinks about dying because he knows that he will have to sacrifices himself for something sometime, but the elite units who save people for a living, they also know that at anytime they could die and they have to except that. 
2. (PTSD) In the book Ceremony when Tayo's brother gets killed in the middle of a battle and Tayo is premaritally damaged emotionally and gets severe PTSD and needs lots of help. Just like Tayo many military personnel from all the wars we have had over the years come back with PTSD. "People who suffer from PTSD often suffer from nightmares, flashbacks, difficulty sleeping, and feeling emotionally numb. These symptoms can significantly impair a person's daily life" (Military.com). In any person, military or not, PTSD can make someones life a living hell especially if your a soldier deployed in Afghanistan and all you want to do go home. There are many problems when it comes to PTSD and it is hard to coup with them in everyday life. "PTSD is marked by clear physical and psychological symptoms. It often has symptoms like depression, substance abuse, problems of memory and cognition, and other physical and mental health problems. The disorder is also associated with difficulties in social or family life, including occupational instability, marital problems, family discord, and difficulties in parenting" (Military.com). With all these problems its clearly a critical issue in someones life and they need to seek help immediately. "Today, there are good treatments available for PTSD. When you have PTSD, dealing with the past can be hard. Instead of telling others how you feel, you may keep your feelings bottled up. But talking with a therapist can help you get better" (US Department of Veterans Affairs). When Tayo looked for help and found that by an indian tradition, a ceremony, he could be cured of his PTSD. And just like the military personnel who have it and seek help, there ceremony is talking there problems to a therapist.
3. (Craigslist Joe) For 30 days, a man by the name of Joseph Garner, set out on a journey to live off of just craigslist and the people around him. Just like Joe, Soldiers rely off of there battle buddies and there fellow soldiers around them. "We can take care of each other" (Joseph Garner). Joe went out into the world with nothing and people found on a website gave him food, shelter, and friendship, and soldiers provide that for each other and fight for that everyday. Joseph found that there is still a sense community in the technology advanced world we live in today. "Some say we have lost the sense of community that used to carry us through tough times" (Joseph Garner). In tough times or not, soldiers have something special when it comes to community or a brotherhood per say. Joe figured out that there are always people waiting and wanting to help others at any cost. "Yeah, we're kinda like the hot shots of the 101st. We save people's asses and... you can't understand a word I'm saying, can you" (Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway). People in the military, hostage rescue especially, are here to help people and in Craigslist Joe, Joseph figures out that there are tons of people in this world ready to help.
4. (Smoke Signals) In Smoke Signals, Thomas is a nerd on there indians reservation and his parents died in a fire in 1976. Victor, Thomas' friend, his dad Arnold saved saved Thomas in that very same fire that his parents were in. However Victor hasn't seen his dad in over 10 years and finally they go looking for him to try to find out what happened that night at Thomas' house. "Grandma 'You saved Thomas. You did a good thing.' Arnold 'I didn't mean to.'" (Smoke Signals). The truth is that Arnold was drunk and accidentally set Thomas' house on fire and could only save Thomas. He could only do what he was capable of and that was saving Thomas. Hostage rescue teams in the military have this hard especially, when they go on a mission to kill the bad guys and save the hostages, sometimes they have to make hard decisions and they have to make the right choices quickly and efficiently. “There is no greater mission we have than to save somebody’s life,”  (Kevin Cornelius). As a part of the FBI's Hostage Rescue Team Kevin's job is to save people from the bad guys, and just like Arnold who may have not known that at the time, but Arnold save a life in danger and that is in direct relation to what the HRT does everyday. "Geez, Victor... I guess the warrior look doesn't work every time," (Smoke Signals). Trying to talk the enemy down doesn't always work. Sometimes the HRT just has to but in there and do there job. People just can't stand around and make faces and see if that works. If people want to rescue someone they had better do it right away and not sit down and think about it.
5. Technology is always evolving on all subjects like computers, medical, and warfare, and it is always changing for better or worse. In the documentary PressPausePlay a question is asked that in this digital age, is it becoming out of hand? Well out of all these kids making there own music and film in minutes or hours which took months to do, yes its becoming out of hand  however, with all the technology growing in this world it is helping a lot. "There have been numerous advancements that were seen on the battlefield in the form of arms, transportation, and air power. In this section we will trace the origins of technological inventions that have direct impacts not only on the battlefield, but for those who may be operating on a remote computer thousands of miles away from a combat arena. These technologies are increasingly impersonal, as countries are waging war via proxies and remote controlled weaponry," (Globalization 101). Technology is becoming a huge part of our warfare and how we fight. With all the guided missiles and rockets you could destroy a country thousands of miles away with just a computer. This relates to PressPausePlay because even though technology might be going the wrong direction for media and art it has been growing and evolving for the military every year. "It used to be, you didn't become an artist just to become rich, you became an artist because you had an idea or emotion to share, and that's where we're heading again," (Seth Godin). Its the same thing for technology in the military. People try to make weapons to destroy the enemy not to become rich and famous. Military technology can also be used for civilian life to. Some of these technologies help people everyday, for example a mechanical leg was originally for men in Iraq who had there legs blow off by an IED, but now doctors are using them for civilians in everyday life. "There are a significant number of military inventions whose technologies were originally developed and designed for military purposes, and which are now used by civilians with sometimes minor or no modifications at all," (Military Technology-Wiki). People want to help people and this world is like a huge brotherhood. We all look out for each other and would do anything for each other. With technology specifically, people are always striving for a better killing machine or new piece of medical technology and to keep the giant brotherhood that we have going strong.

7 lbs.

      There are billions and billions of people on this earth, some of them are bad at heart but others are good and have the right mine-set toward life. One of those good people is Ben Thomas in the movie Seven Pounds. He has it all, with a good wife, maybe kids on the way, he's rich and has a great NASA job but then, he crashes his car with his wife in it and hits a bus and kills seven people which includes his wife. "In seven days, God created the world. And in seven seconds, I shattered mine" (Seven Pounds). People have whats called choice and Ben chose to use his phone in the car even when his wife said to put it any and be done with work. After all of this happens Ben is at his beach house alone and wants help other people that are having trouble in life because he feels its necessary to, in a way, avenge his wife and the six other people he killed. On another subject, throughout the movie you see been at his house or in the motel room he rents with a box jellyfish. Its the only thing that stayed constant with Ben throughout the whole movie. This could mean that the jellyfish represents Ben in a way. He had a beautiful life and then death was in the essence. The jellyfish is both life and death because it is so majestic but at the same time very deadly.

      Its interesting that anyone in the life we live would ever want a jellyfish to keep as a pet. Ben had always wanted a jellyfish even when he was a little boy. "The first time I ever saw a box jellyfish, I was twelve. Our father took us to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. I never forgot what he said... That it was the most deadly creature on earth. To me it was just the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen" (Seven Pounds). Ben had no idea that that very same kind jellyfish would end his life. Jellyfish are so unique in many ways. They are so cool to watch just because of the way they move but at the same time your glad that its behind glass because it could kill anyone in a matter of minutes. "Their venom is considered to be among the most deadly in the world, containing toxins that attack the heart, nervous system, and skin cells. It is so overpoweringly painful, human victims have been known to go into shock and drown or die of heart failure before even reaching shore" (National Geographic). After the death of his wife Ben knew the only thing he wanted to comfort him would be a box jellyfish. Ben wanted such a deadly pet because it represented himself. Death is a big part in a jellyfish's life because it can kill so much but look like a friendly or good character at the same time. Ben is just like this in every way possible. "I lied to you, I thing about dying everyday" (Seven Pounds). Death is only a part of life and ever living thing has to go through it. It doesn't matter if your a good or bad person its going to happen to everyone at some point in time and Ben knows that he will kill himself with that jellyfish because its all in the master plan that he has.

      There is good and bad in everyone and everything. Things are always changing and no one can predict them. The box jellyfish is also a symbol of good and not just death and destruction. Its beauty can never be questioned and it is one of the most majestic creatures on this planet. "I'm actually starting to feel pretty bad for you, Ezra. Because I look at my life, and it is surrounded by so much beauty...and you can't see sh*t" (Seven Pounds). As Ben is talking to Ezra (who is blind), Ben and the jellyfish are in that whole scene together and Ben is right, He has one the most beautiful creatures on earth right next to him and I bet he wouldn't trade it for the world. Jellyfish is the meaning of majestic and spectacular. They are creatures that is not understood by humans and have a rare quality to them. "Box jellies are highly advanced among jellyfish. They have developed the ability to move rather than just drift, jetting at up to four knots through the water" (National Geographic). It has taken years to get information like this and people in todays highly advanced technical world still don't know a lot about these creatures. All the scientists know is that they are cool to look and and very deadly. But all Ben thinks is that they are the most beautiful creatures on earth and he could watch them all day long. This can lead back to when Ben and the hockey coach are talking and Ben asks if he is a good person and he actually is because he's paying for some of those kids college payments (Seven Pounds). Ben is always on the lookout for good people and this can relate to the jellyfish because the jellyfish in every scene is the only light source and is the source of life. The jellyfish is a life and Ben is looking for people with life in them.

      Peoples lives are based on life and death and we sometimes choose wether to keep it or throw it away. Ben killed seven people and to make up for it helped seven good people with life in them who were having a hard time. This ca relate to the beauty in life and how jellyfish are life and good people are life. However the jellyfish is also death which ends up killing Ben at the end of the movie. The "life" in this movie was the list of things that Ben did for other people. This includes; He gives a lung to his brother, Holly gets part of his liver, the kidney is given to a hockey coach, the bone marrow is given to a little boy, the house is given to a family who needed a place to rebuild their lives, the eyes are given to Ezra in order for him to be able to see, and the heart is given to Emily. All these things bring life into the world and that is a beautiful thing, just like how a jellyfish is beautiful and has life flowing through it. However the "death" in this movie was Ben killing six people and his own wife and eventually at the end he kills himself. But this is actually a good deed because Emily (Ben's Love entrust) needed a heart and Ben knew without his heart she wasn't going to live much longer. So by bringing death there was life and this all comes back to how the jellyfish is a representation of life and death and people make different and interesting choices everyday to save other people and to keep life going. There will always be life but along with that comes death and that is what everything on earth revolves around.

Communication, Media, and Technology

      Since the beginning of time and people, communication and media has always been around us and has always been constantly been changing. Technology has impacted our world and changed it forever. Social media has been a big part of this and connects people in many ways, it has shaped the popular culture that we live in to this day. However Mass media and communication has distracted our lives and it is becoming harder to educate the people and it has become almost ineffective. This has to change along with mass media and communication.
      Mass media and communication is evolving and there has been a massive increase in global awareness. People are learning how to communicate better and are becoming wiser on how to do it. For example, when the rectors burnt down in Japan people from other countries found out almost immediately because of the news and mass media. There were also several posts on Twitter and tons of videos posted on YouTube. However without these technologies, information like this would not have gotten out so quickly. This means in big natural disasters, information can get out quickly which means people can come help out quicker. This is good and bad news because ten years ago to get information people had to get a news paper but now a days you can get information about anything instantly with the news on the TV or on the computer by using the internet. "Communication can be defined simply as the process by which individuals share information, ideas, and attitudes" (Wilson and Wilson). This definition can be taking in a lot of ways. To me this means that people can do anything they want with there own information. It would be better in todays society if people wouldn't share ever bit of info they have. Back 50 years ago it would have been very hard to spread information then now. In PressPausePlay some artists and film makers who were interviewed talked about how back in the day not many people knew how film worked or how to work with it and musicians talked about how not everyone knew how to make music. Now everyone knows how to make music and film because its so easy. You can go on an application like Logic and make a song in five minutes which back 20 years ago took six months to do. In the film Moby talked about how the Mass media, communication, and technology have almost ruined the music and film industries. He talks about how now every song made has a perfect back beat but what made music great was back in the day before perfect computer drum beats there were actually drummers who would play a not perfect song and it would sound great because everyone knew that that drummer could drum and do it well. "I don't make music for money or fame, I do it because I love music" (Olafur Arnalds). Olafur talks about how he knows whats happening to the music industry and how its hard to find good music. Now, people want to just make music for fame or so they can be known in the world or to become rich, but what people should care about is that the music that they're making should matter and they should care about it. They shouldn't just make some crap music they should pour there hearts into it and make something truly wonderful. This does not help Mass media or communication because if everyone is posting or submitting there music or film on random websites that only increases the amount of activity on the web, which could be taken in both ways. This means that people are actively communicating and trying to put a message out for the world. Or this could just mean they want to be famous and be rich like everyone else. The only reason why most people even try to make music now is for the fame and money. They don't care about their music, they just want that new Lamborghini or big house. If people truly cared you would think that they should deserve to be famous.
      There is a hope, especially from Jeremy Rifkin, that with all this new technology and communication that there is a way to spread empathy throughout the world. In his book The Empathic Civilization, Rifkin talks about how there was huge empathy for Haiti after the earthquake that they had a few years ago. It was said that in hour one of the earthquake there was tweets on twitter about it, hour two there were phone videos posted on YouTube, and by hour three everyone in the world knew about it and sent aid immediately. In the aftermath a lot of people had thought that if there wasn't massive media and communication about the earthquake Haiti wouldn't have gotten aid so quickly. People had started paying more attention to the world because of mass media and people were trying to help. "They try to solve the problem of poverty, for instance, by keeping the poor alive" (Slavoj Zizek, First as Tragedy, then as Farce). Zizek's point of view is that even though people send money or try to help, it doesn't help the poor as a society. Cause even if you tried saving one poor person even if they got better they would still be poor and just get sick again. A few more examples of that are, theres a company called Toms and for any pair of shoes you buy they will send a pair to children in Africa. Also StarBucks buys the largest amount of coffee beans then any other company and insures that the farmers get a fair price. Apples which cost double, the good oath, genetically modified apples that they are really any better?" (Zizek, First as Tragedy, Then as Farce). Slavoj is talking about how, do you really think your doing any good in your life by buying organic apples instead of regular apples? And how you think your doing something good for the planet which just comes back around to how is donating shoes gonna help anything? This is an interesting way of looking at the earth and how people are trying to help poor countries with the help of mass media and communication.
      As time goes on technology advances and communication becomes more excusable and more efficient. This can greatly impact peoples lives and either form bonds or destroy them. This goes into sports and how media has affected them. In Culture and Mass Communication the book talks about how as TV was created sports was a big part of television. "As television developed network executives eventually decided that baseball - the national pastime - was not as "visual" as football, so they turned professional football into TV's number-one electronic sports entertainment" (Culture and Communication). Its interesting how this quote out of the book talks about how "They" the media somehow controlled football to become the number one instead of baseball. Its like somehow the media made everyone watch football instead of baseball to make it number one because all they wanted to see were high numbers and lots of money. "In 1990, the NFL signed a record-breaking $3.6 billion, four-year contract with five broadcast and cable networks, including Turner Broadcasting System and ESPN" (Culture and Communication). It seems like it was just a battle between the NFL, AFL, and USFL until 1990 when the NFL hit the big time. If you think about it it doesn't even seem like it was about sports at all. It was just about who could make the most money with the TV companies as possible. "People come together for Super Bowl parties or Monday night football cocktail hours and share a common interest" (Culture and Communication). However one of the best things about having football on TV was that people would come together and have parties and talk sports because they love it. People had shared something great together and that would only be possible with TV.
      Mass media and communication has been changing ever since we have been on this planet. However if it keeps growing and gets out of hand then there might be a serious problem, but to be frank about it, people can do whatever they want with technology and if its gonna help the planet then why stop them. This goes back to Rifkin and his ideas about how technology can lead to empathy. People have always tried to be kind to one and other and I think that if technology keeps evolving then maybe one day everyone can be friends and the whole world will be at peace and there will be no poor people or starving children. But until then technology will keep growing wether we like it or not and we shall keep evolving as a society and culture.

Mise-en-scene and Cinematography

In this first photo of the Walt's in their car, it shows Rear Projection which refers to the car not actually being there and a green screen behind the car so that they can put anything behind the car so that the actors and crew don't have to travel around everywhere but instead can stay in one place.

This shoot in breaking bad shows that the big pile of money looks to be a serious problem for Walt and Skyler. This object shows that they are very rich but have a lot of problems considering the looks on there faces.

This close up of Walt shows a classic use of three-point lighting. You can see him very clearly and the shot of his face has very balanced lighting.

This picture shows a low-key lighting shoot. the room itself is fairly dark but there is strong contrasts between the dark and the light. The windows are very easy to see but the people in the shoot are not very easy to see.

This last shoot of mise-en-scene is a shoot of the prison in walking dead's season 3. This photo represents Deep Space, it has trees in focus in the front but also there is a lot happening beyond the trees by the prison. This reflects that there is a battle going on on the prison grounds and that it is a lot safer to be up near the trees instead of being near the prison

This is the first picture of Cinematography and represents a low contrast shoot. Jesse is in the higher and closer position but is a little darker than Hank who is brighter but is also in a lower position.

 This Shoot from Breaking Bad is a great Depth of field shoot because it shows Walt clearly but at the same time you can see the crystals he's messing with but they are out of focus.

This is a low-level camera shoot from the show Almost Human. The camera is in a lower position but it seems at eye level because the actors are crouching to the ground.

This is a Point-of-view shoot from Almost Human. An officer sitting at his desk can see the three actors through the glass.

This shoot from The Walking Dead is a long shot. This features two characters in the front as well as making most of the height of the screen and there is also characters in the background and movement.

Music Videos

      After watching everyones music videos, I can honestly say that I had no idea that there was so many interesting things in every bands video. There was so many little things that were hard to catch but it was really cool to see how the video had related to the band and things happening around them. One of those things was the diegesis. The diegesis is basically the meaning behind the video that is not inferred but is shown. For example, in Demons by imagine Dragons the basic diegesis was that everyone has their own stories and have all been through different things. However the one I had trouble understanding was Monster by Eminem because there was lots of flashbacks from his life but i didn't understand till the end of the video when he went to a monsters cage and inside was Eminem.
     It was so cool seeing all these videos each telling stories or trying to tell the people watching something like the Mis-en-scene. Mis-en-scene is an expression that means that there is a hole story or theme in just a frame of a hole video. A good example of this is in Citizen Soldier by Three Doors Down theres a scene or a shot that shows the destruction of a whole city and people hurt or crying but theres army hummers in the background coming to help. This is a symbol hope, that when we are down and hurt there will always be someone to help pick us up. I learned that there is so much more to film then I knew and i learned that its all the little details that counts.

Blog Post #12

Dance with Wolves is an interesting film on the civil war and relationships between white people and indians. In the beginning of the film the main character Lt. John Dunbar learns that his leg has to be amputated. After he sees the other amputated legs he freaks out and tries to commit suicide by running into the front lines of the battle between the union and the confederates. He runs up and down the front lines like 6 times and instead of getting shot he actually rallies his troops and they attack the distracted confederates and win the battle. His commanding officer names him hero and give him his horse and let him pick a post to stay at.
      The Lieutenant was excited to see the western front and when he gets there and sets up camp he encounters the indians and tries to talk to them. He eventually becomes friends with them and they talk of hunting buffalo. After talking to Kicking Bird, John goes with the tribe to their camp and talks to a white woman who talks about her past and how she was captured by the indians. They eventually find buffalo and try to hunt them.