Faithcorp

George Clooney played as Ryan Bingham in Up in The Air movie. Ryan is a charm and free life oriented man. His employer owns a company which provides service in downsizing employee. Some bosses are just too coward to fire the employee by themself so they hire the service of the company.

Ryan then being sent to the company around United states to do his job, firing people. He spends 322 days of his year in travel. It makes him never exist to his family.  His free life philosophy makes him avoiding any relationships and commitments. He never dream of settling down and building a family. During his travel, Ryan meets an attractive woman. Her name is Alex from Chicago. They seem to like each other and continue to match the schedule to have fun together.

One day, the company hired a new employee called Natalie Keener. A bright university graduate who applied job in firing people just to follow his boyfriend in Omaha. Natalie is an ambitious co-worker who convinced her boss to cut the cost of sending employee firing people. Means, the employee will stay at the office and do his job in front of webcam. Ryan disagree about her suggestion. He said that Natalie didn’t know anything about the process of firing people. Having argue, the boss then decided to send Natalie along with Ryan to show her what it’s like firing people.

As the two travel together, they get to know each other better.  Somehow, Natalie knocked Ryan’s heart. Suddenly, Ryan thinks that he’s been on his own for too long. So, he catches  a plane to attend his sister wedding and invites Alex to accompany him. He’s so in love with Alex. But, that’s not last for a long time when Ryan finally find out that Alex already have a family.

It’s a really interesting story though. The job which Ryan experting at is the most eye-catchy part on the story. It’s quite amusing to watch how Ryan doing his capability in firing people. What we can learn of this movie is that living up in the air is exciting but you’re just a lonely man when you’re back down here. Having free life philosophy is fun but It’s no longer fun until you feel that you’re so lonely.

This movie is directed by Kathryn Bigelow, the ex-wife of James Cameron whose movie  got the same nomination for Best Picture. The movie set was in Iraq. It tells the story of US Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team during the early stages of the post-invation in Iraq in 2004. Sergeant William James was sent as the team leader of EOD unit with the Bravo Company squad in Camp Victory.

He replaced  Sergeant William Thompson who was killed by by a remote-detonated improvised explosive device (IED) in Baghdad. He joined  Sergeant J.T. Sanborn and Specialist Owen Eldridge, whose jobs are to communicate with him and provide cover and back up while he examines IEDs.

James was pictured as having no fear soldier. Instead of using robot to examine the bomb, he prefer to do it by himself. It’s really risky and dangerous task.  He’s really brave and expert in disposing bomb. And he enjoys to do the job as he has disposed 873 bombs already. For him, disposing bomb is a drug which makes him addicted. It’s a toy to be collected after being paralyzed.

Like others festival kind of movie, The Hurt Locker tend to have flat and long plot. The ending of the movie is the art of the entire story. That’s the key of festival kind of movie. Even the plot is tend to be flat and long (and perhaps boring), The Hurt Locker is a great movie with very strong story.  I prefer this one as the best picture on this year Oscar to the competitive counterpart. Avatar is an awesome movie but nothing special from the story line except the expensive technology which makes the movie incredible.

Anna Fitzgerald, a 13 years old girl sues her parents for the own of her body. Anna was born in purpose. She was made to save her sister Kate who suffered from cancer. If Kate needs blood, It will be taken from Anna. So does for the other organ or tissues. Anna was like a spare part for Kate. And finally come a situation when Kate needs one of Anna’s kidney. At that time Anna is not a baby child anymore. She is 13 years old and doesn’t want to do that.  She definitely knows that Kate will be die If she doesn’t donor her kidney. But, she thinks that herself is important also and deserves to live with her complete kidneys. So, she doesn’t donor her kidney.

It’s quite heart-breaking watching the conflict between Anna (played by Abigail Breslin) and her mother Sara (played by Cameron Diaz). It must be hurt to know her mother considered Kate as more important. And what about Anna? Doesn’t she have any right to live happily with her full body parts. Not only Kate who is suffering, Anna also feels painful during the operation to transplant her cells or tissues for Kate.  Anna suffered from complication once that made her had to be hospitalized for about a week.

This movie is an adaptation from a novel book by Jodi Picoult published in 2004 with the same title, My Sister’s Keeper. But, the story line between the novel and the movie is quite different. Some parts of the novel do not pictured at all in the movie. The ending version is not the same also. The novel version ending is more heart breaking  than the movie one.

I suggest you to watch the movie first then read the book. Because in some cases adaptation movie is disappointing. Both the book or the movie made my cry after the ending. This is definitely must watch movie for the girl and mother.

Flash of Genius is a biographical film released in 2008. The story based on 1993 New Yorker Article by John Seabrook. Robert Kearns was an inventor of intermittent windshield wiper. The invention idea came from when he was  driving his Ford Galaxie through a light rain.  The constant movement of the wiper blades irritated his troubled vision. A champagne cork accidentaly tossed aside to his left eye during his wedding night and caused the trouble for his left eye. The incident inspired him to create a wiper blade mechanism modeled on the human eye, which blinks every few seconds rather than continuously.

With the help of Gil Privick, Kearns carried out his idea and made the prototype. He then patented his invention and demonstrated it to Ford researchers who had been working on a similar project without success. As Kearns wouldn’t explain how it worked until he got a deal with the corporation, the Ford  executive Macklin Tyler asked him to prepare a business plan.

Kearns prepared his business plan by himself while he was waiting for the Ford response. Time passed by and there was no response at all. He became frustrated when he finally found out the latest model of Mustang using his intermittent windshield wiper without giving him credit or payment for it.

Being in a deep frustation, Kearns then treated for a nervous breakdown in a mental hospital. After several months, Kearns then being released by the doctor. He finally went home and started a legal battle to suit Ford Motor Company. Nobody supported him at all because It seems impossible to defeat a powerful giant company. Even Gil Privick who knew the idea from the start didn’t want to give his testimony in the court. Kearns’ wife, Phyllis then decided to separate with him. She brought their six children with her. But, during his difficult times, Robert Kearns never gave up. He tried years to get support from her children. The company offered him some money to shut down the case, many times, but Kearns rejected. For him, claimed to be the inventor is everything. He just want to be recognized as the inventor of intermittent winshield wiper which used in thousand cars produced by Ford.

The story of this movie is very similar with The Pursuit of Happiness. After the difficult times there’s always be a hope and finally come happiness, as long as we  make every endeavor for it. Flash of Genius is a happy ending movie which has slow and long plot. It makes us who aren’t used to watch a movie like this become bored somehow. But for me, It’s a worth watched movie. This movie told us not to give up in everything we believe It’s right. Like Kearns who never give up to fight his right even seems to be impossible. All the good things we worked will eventually led us to victory.

Sometimes wishing does make It so
But be sure you’re wishing for something worth wishing for

That’s just a quote from the ending of the movie titled “Shorts : The Adventure of Wishing Rock”
It’s definitely a kid movie which contain adventure and imaginary thing. The story begin when pack of children of Black Falls town discovered a colorful rock. Apparently, It’s not just an ordinary rock because the rock is wish granting.

As they’re just kid, they wish for something imaginative such as the never ending supply of chocolate bars, the castle with the canyon and the crocodiles for the guardian. And then, there were a fight competing whose the rock belong to. Unfortunately, the rock was tossed aside then landed to the crocodile’s mouth. Guess what then crocodile wished then. It’s totally funny when the kids found out what the crocodile’s wish. The kids -actually they’re brothers- were running away because the crocodiles chased them. And guess what the crocodiles did? Yes, they chased the kids by running, with two legs, like human being.

Loogie, the youngest then had an ide to get the rock back by put himself in to the crocodile’s stomach. He got the rock back and wished for something to take them up. Finally came a flying pterodactyl taking them to the top of their wished castle. It was really full of adventure. Realized the powerful things that the rock can do, the three brothers then decided to throw away the rock.

The rock then being found out by Toby in a situation while he was being bullied by Cole Black, the son of Mr.Black the owner of BLACK BOX Unlimited Worldwide Industries Incorporated. This where was the story really begin.

Like just another kid fantasy movie, some scenes didn’t make any sense at all. Like the wishing rock itself seems to be very impossible. And the plot wasn’t designed to be as flat as the highway road. Toby was the person who tell the story actually. He brought the story forward and backward. So, we have to put it on the right order by ourself. But, It’s not a difficult task since the story was light and fun.

It was a nice movie. It’s suitable to watch when you have much of spare time but you don’t really want to think something complicated. Just relax with this movie and get smile in the end.

This movie try to remind us not to so greedy. The wishing rock itself tried to tell us that If we have a chance to make something really happen, be sure that It is something good. Because If It is not, It’s just make anything worse. That’s why we have to be sure we’re wishing for something worth wishing for. So, what’s your good wishes today?