King Recaged!

The supposed awakening of the new reformed T.I turns out to be just another chapter of mischief. T.I's latest album release entitled No Mercy took a very different turn than what was previously expected. T.I whose real name is Clifford Harris was arrested on October 13, 2007 four hours before the BET Hip-Hop Awards in Atlanta. He was charged with two felonies — possession of three unregistered machine guns and two silencers, and possession of firearms by a convicted felon. In February 2008 T.I plead guilty to U.S. federal weapons charges. On May 26, 2009, T.I. began serving his one year one day sentence in Forrest City, Arkansas. In December 2009 T.I was released from prison. After getting out he released a mix-tape, a single for the motion picture Takers, and started hyping up his comeback album appropriately titled King Uncaged.
In September 2010 T.I and his wife Tiny were arrested in Los Angele's for drug possession. In October T.I was sentenced to 11 months less than a year after being released from prison. The album King Uncaged was then changed to No Mercy. The album is has somewhat of a strange flow to it because some of it was written before T.I's latest sentencing and some after it. The overall theme of the album is simply "I'm human and I make mistakes so stop judging me". T.I's lyrical style on No Mercy is arrogantly apologetic, blunt, and passionate. In the song "Get Back Up" strategically featuring R&B singer Chris Brown who has clearly had his own set of troubles with the law and moral integrity T.I comments sums his fillings up quite eloquently.
He says:
"apologies to my fans and my closest friends, (I'm sorry)
for letting you down, I wont take you down this road again
most of you now saying whatever, here we go again
blogs, radio, and television all going in
I laugh to keep from crying through all of the embarrassment
I gotta say you f-cking haters is hilarious
how dare you sit right there and act as if you holier than thou
point your finger now with me looking down
same clown that was twitpic'ing at my wedding
on the same twitter page disrespecting ."
T.I also has songs like "Amazing" featuring Pharell Williams of the superstar production team The Neptunes in which the chorus simply repeats "so amazing make your face fall off." T.I and Pharrell basically vulgarly talks about the things they do to women and how rich and talented they are. On another extreme T.I also has a song entitled "Castle Walls" which will undoubtedly be a single soon that features Christina Aguilara. "Castle Walls" is T.I's heartfelt anthem of the troubles that none of us will ever understand. He tells us that just because he has millions of dollars, Ferraris in the driveway, and fame heartache still lurks behind the gates of his mansion. The intention is honorable as he explains that through all his accomplishments he has failed as a man if his kids and family aren't happy and don't succeed. It's easy to start to sympathizing with him until you snap out of it and realize he's brought all his issues to his own drawbridge. His heart is in the right place with his concern for his family and his responsibility to the community but how bad can you feel for a man with millions of dollars that is having legal trouble due to self admitted and inflicted stupidity. In the song "How Life Has Changed" he reminsices about how he used to drug deal and buy shoes and now he's looking at stocks.
The question one must pose listening to a song like this is when will this man learn from his mistakes? He's clearly came a long way from his drug dealing and hustling background but when we will he learn to truly go down the right path. No Mercy is undoubtedly a good hip hop album with the best music production money can buy. The lyrics are strong and he showcases why he's certainly considered one of the hip hop greats but it's very difficult to listen some of the songs with him speaking like his criminal days are over. He makes it very clear that he is only human and makes mistakes but implies the world should wait and see how much he's matured. T.I has lived a life that seems like it was written for VH1's Behind the Music. No Mercy is absolutely a must have album for T.I fans but it is not the triumph redemption we hope we will have one day soon. We'll try again in about 10 months.

Cee Lo Green has had a long career in which he has been part of a dirty south rap group, experimented with two solo albums that had low sales, and become part of a Grammy award winning duo known as Gnarls Barkley. Approaching in the end of 2010 Cee Lo Green has released his third solo album entitled “Lady Killer”. It seems that Cee Lo Green has found his true voice as an artist. His latest album blends elements of soul, hip hop, rock, pop, swing, and so many other genres together to create a cluster of auditory ecstasy.

movie review 2

Have you ever bought a How to for dummies book or a survival guide to something? Are you afraid of a zombie apocalypse? Did you like Cheers? If you answered yes to these questions then you’ll probably love Zombie land. It’s a clever comedy about a very eccentric group of people trying to survive. The main character is a neurotic loner named Columbus ( played by Jesse Eisenberg) and meets Tallahassee (played by Woody Harrelson) that any other situation he would runaway screaming due to his reckless nature. If you don’t find this funny look at the bright side you learned something.

Movie Review 1

As if teenage love movies aren’t annoying enough someone decided we should make some werewolves and some vampires. In the latest addition to the Twilight series Eclipse Bella is being hunted by Victoria an old and powerful vampire bent on revenge after her love was killed by Edward. The series isn’t as awful as some people make it but it definitely isn’t good either. The vampires are all model looking types with perfect hair and skin that quite literally glistens in the sun because of a crème they wear to protect them from disintegrating. In the end it’s a mediocre love story with a cheesy monster twist.

Did you know Harry Potter is a real person and Daniel Radcliffe is just character? Did you know the Ghostbusters are real assholes? Did you know star of the film Easy A Emma Stone is the spokesperson for the iphone murder app? If you didn’t you haven’t been privileged enough to check out Funnyordie.com. It’s a comedy website created founded by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay’s production company, Gary Sanchez Productions. It has a simple layout and it’s easy to navigate. FOD is filled with exclusive content for the web featuring a huge array of celebrities. The site has worked with some big names such as James Franco, Natalie Portman, Sean Penn, Bruce Willis, and Ben Stiller to name a few.

FOD has a user video section where fans can not only upload their own content but can also vote on whether or not something is funny and it’s not just thumbs up or down. The way you rate videos is either with a funny or a die. If you select die you will be redirected to a clip of someone being terminated! If you don’t like the clip of the grown man pretending to be an angry dog click the die button and maybe you’ll see a clip of Gene Wilder in Willy Wonka pressing a button followed by a giant mushroom cloud. If the video receives an 80% or greater "Funny" rating after 100,000 views, it gets an "Immortal" ranking. If the video receives a 20% or less "Funny" rating after 1,000 views it is put in the crypt section. You can also find a section on the site called FOD exclusives. This is where you’ll find celebrities taking part in short sketches and viral marketing.

The site isn’t limited to just video either. The site also has a section called Pictures and Words which has funny checklist to daily caption contest where users can win prizes. Funny or Die is a great website that has enough content to keep you thoroughly entertained for a long time. Its aims to do one thing which is make you laugh and it does just that. If you don’t think it’s funny you can… well you know the alternative.

Everyone lies. Everyone has their own agenda. Is it possible to base a show off of an idea that simple and make work? Simply put yes. Fox’s series House M.D isn’t your typical doctor show. It’s a show created by Howard Shore that’s center around a doctor named Greg house. He is the Chief of Diagnostic Medicine .To be frank Greg House is a prejudice, pessimistic, bitter, immoral scenic. So why does he have job as Chief of Diagnostic Medicine and a show for that matter, well because he’s a genius. House is literally viewed as one of the best doctors in the world. He has a team of three to have him solve his medical cases. House is so elite that he gets to choose which cases he takes on. He only picks the ones that interest him that have some sort of strange twists.

The series debuted in 2004 and is currently in its seventh season. His current team is actually made up of four people now. House is currently dating the dean of the hospital Elizabeth Cuddy and his best friend is the director of oncology James Wilson. There have been many ups and down with the characters of the show but house has always remained a complete asshole and genius which is why it’s hard to get rid of him. Only in the last two seasons has the show really started to take a slightly different turn with the character of Greg House that is played by British actor Hugh Laurie. Laurie’s character had a leg injury that originated from a paintball incident. Through complications it became so severe he lost part of the use of his leg, was left to walk with a cane, and endure severe pain. Because of this he became addicted to vicodin. House after much ducking and dodging of his coworkers, friends, and authorities was made to go to rehab. In rehab House not only managed to wean himself off vicodin but started to analyze the choices he made and consider the people he hurt with his cold, morbid, and sarcastic indifference to the world.

Now that you have a brief idea of who Greg House is the most current episode entitled Small Sacrifices. In this episode we deal with the one thing House believe to be true, everyone lies. The episode starts off with a man reenacting the Jesus being hung on the crucifix. The man then starts bleeding from the mouth and his associates pull him down. We later find out that this man believes he has made a deal with God to save his daughter’s life if he sacrifices himself which House of course finds ridiculous. House struggles with finding his own inner peace but ultimately believes Religion is for idiots who accept a ridiculous answer for when there isn’t a rational one. In this episode Taub suspects his wife of cheating and she just took him back because of all the cheating he’s done to her. Cuddy is still mad at House for the lie he recently told to her because she thought in their newfound relationship he was trying to change. His best friend Wilson is planning on proposing to his ex-wife who he recently has started dating again. It seems pretty much the entire cast dynamic in this latest episode is based on some sort of lie or deception. Some of these situations are resolved and some are not. I will say one of the lies is resolved with another lie.

House is a show that is very structured. It has new extreme, over the top wacky cases and characters dramas but ultimately has the same recipe. House lives his dramatic life until he all of a sudden gets an epiphany how to solve a case. Greg House says a lot of things people want to say but we realize if we say them we’d probably be assaulted. House M.D can be slightly ludicrous at times but its fun and the characters are interesting. Hey, does structuring stop you from watching Law and Order: SVU?

Aqua apartments at 225 N. Columbus drive standout in an already magnificent backdrop. Aqua instantly catches your attention not just because it’s an 82 story skyscraper but because of it unique structure. It’s located in the Lakeshore East area. The name itself was chosen by the Magellan Development Group LLC partly because it fits into the nautical theme of the buildings in the Lakeshore East development. Aqua condominiums is in a location with many different recreational activities such as lakefront path, playgrounds, Dog Park, theater district, and tons of other things the downtown Chicago has to offer. The residents don't even have to leave the complex to have a wonderful experience. They have exclusive access to Aqua’s Shore Club. There are 115,000 square feet of amenities on two full-floors including Chicago’s largest outdoor recreation deck. The building has 3 pools, a running track, a fitness center, spa, media, business and game rooms, lounges ,and party suites.

Aqua took about fours years to complete. During construction the form work for the curving edges was guided by a global positioning system.The building is is a mix of glass and beautiful wave like structures that are reminiscent of a design you would see in a Tim Burton movie. The design is by acclaimed architect Jeanne Gang. This is the world's third-tallest building designed by a female architect.

Jeanne said "Aqua was shaped by an organic design process. This building is highly sculptural and transforms as one moves further away. We achieved this by creating a series of contours defined by outdoor terraces that extend away from the face of the structure to capture views that would otherwise be unattainable. These terraces are further defined around the facades to produce a sculptural form that responds to site and use. Its three dimensional qualities result in an exciting new addition to Chicago's skyline."
The building is indeed a wonderful addition to the already impressive Chicago skyline. Aqua has undulating terraces which gives the illusion that the glass is a beautiful stream of water running down the building.The architect team extended the terrace extensions to maximize solar shading. They extend as much as twelve feet from the tower itself and were strategically put in living rooms so bedrooms would have more of an open view. The building has a rainwater collection system and is said to have the biggest green roof in the windy city. The facade is designed to prevent bird collisions, utilizing the irregular curves of the balconies along with special glass that is opaque to birds.

In 2009, Aqua was proclaimed the international skyscraper of the year and when you see it you can certainly understand why. It's beauty differs from all that surround it. It's wave like structure and blue green tinted reflective windows makes looking at this building as calm as the bodies of water that surround it.

A Starry Mess

A Starry Night is the famous painting by Vincent Van Gogh. It is basically an 1889 version of Avatar. Anyone could have created it and it’s overrated! Vincent Van Gogh suffered from anxiety and mental health issues, he wasn’t an artist he was a mess. It is said this painting was done when he was in the sanitarium after cutting off his ear because of a fight with his BFF. The painting is essentially a series of childlike swirling brush strokes to create a very simple image of a small town on a dark night. Van Gogh did another painting called Starry Night over the Rhone which looks painfully similar except in that one his inspiration was at the bank of a river which was about year before he revisited the Looney bin.

What’s even more upsetting than the unimaginative painting itself is the fact that it is very similar to a sketch of the whirlpool galaxy which was done by Williams Parsons about 44 years prior. Parsons was an English astronomer not a painter. He drew up a quick sketch that looks like what Van Gogh the Great did almost 50 years later. Does that raise your eyebrows? Was Van Gogh really that influential of an artist or did he just make a semi visually appealing painting that people just got a little carried away with. Vincent van Gogh isn’t an impressionist just an illusionist.

Starry Night:The Magnum Opus of Vincent Van Gogh

When Vincent van Gogh painted Starry Night he said he was in need for religion and as a viewer it certainly takes you some place spiritual. This piece has a tranquility to it that couldn't have been easy to capture. Van Gogh painted to candlelight at night and was inspired by the view from his sanitarium window. He was put there after having a fight with his best friend the year before and this led to him cutting off his ear. After that he was committed. The fight made Van Gogh into a very dark place. The painting showcases him wanting to escape into the night. In 1889 when Starry Night was painted the streets were poorly lit by gaslight. His vivid color and his crazy swirling brush strokes showcases him wanting to escape into the night even though its dark there is light and hope to be found.

The contrast is part of what makes the piece so beautiful. In Starry Night and some other paintings of Van Gogh, the elements are connected so that winding lines are transformed into stars in the dark sky, energetic strokes in the ends of the cypress, curved surfaces created mountain crests, and geometric forms reflected the architecture of the place. This is a great example of an impressionist work. Van Gogh also created Starry Night over the Rhone which had a lot of similarities. He also created Café Terrace at Night but in that the stars didn’t have such a powerful glow nor does the painting make you follow it all around like his other two famous works. The focal point is on a bright yellow wall in the foreground. Nonetheless all the pieces are powerful and have influenced artists for over a century and will continue to do so.

Buried Review

You wake up completely disoriented. It's dark. It's hot. You suddenly realize you are confined to a very small space. You don't know where you are or how you got there. What do you do? This is Ryan Reynolds dilemma in his latest movie "Buried." The premise of the movie is that simple and that powerful. Most viewers went into this movie knowing nothing more than this and that's the way it should be.

As the film progresses you find out the details of how Reynolds gets in his current predicament. The film is shot all in one location, the box. Ryan Reynolds does an amazing job of truly capturing the emotion of a man seemingly helpless. It takes a very strong actor to carry himself throughout a feature with no real supporting cast. Buried has been compared to movies like Castaway and Phone Booth which were for the most part shot in a single location with focus on one leading man. Tom Hanks and Colin Ferrell had amazing performances but where Reynolds performance differs is he is the only person physically seen on the silver screen. Hanks had a tropical island and Ferrell had New York as their backdrops, Reynolds had just a box.

Reynolds is an actor who started out mostly with comedic roles. In recent years he has been mixing it up with some rather serious roles. In 2005 he starred in the 1979 remake of The Amityville Horror which was definitely a serious role for Reynolds but was just another subpar horror remake. Reynolds steps out of his comfort zone with this part and deserves at least an Oscar nod for his performance. Reynolds showcases true acting at its best in Buried. Through his facial expressions in low lighting, raw emotion and frustration he makes you feel empathy for this man who at first can’t even fathom how something like this could happen to him. Reynolds has said it was a challenging role for him because he believes everyone has some form of claustrophobia. The sound crew would hear Reynolds have small panic attacks through the microphone in his chest. The entire movie was filmed in seventeen days and it took quite a toll on Reynolds body. He didn’t think it would be such a physical role when he first signed up to do the project. Reynolds has said he slept very little while shooting this movie. Reynolds said he used the pain and discomfort and credits his adrenaline for getting him through.

The director Rodrigo Cortes does a brilliant job using long shots to give the audience an atypical view of someone being trapped in the box. These shots give the illusion of more space but they still don’t comfort you. Cortes also uses very theatrical vivid lighting in these shots to set mood. You feel as if you trapped in a long, narrow, endless tunnel. You don’t have to be claustrophobic to feel the anger, frustration, fear, regret, and sorrow Reynolds character displays. Buried is a thrilling experience that will leave you having to crack a window.

Sam Sparro: A New Age Mess!

Sam Sparro is a Australian born singer who got a start in music at a very young age. His questionable musical talents were discovered at the age of 10 when his family moved to Los Angeles. His father was a gospel minister and soul recording artist, this seems to be the main cause for the cluttered and confused self titled album Sparro released in 2008. The album sounds like Chaka Khan formed a band with daft punk. Solo two very amazing artists,together they just don't mesh well. Admittedly Sam Sparro has an amazing and strong soulful voice but maybe he needs to find a new direction to showcase his vocal talents . The most recognizable song off the album is called "black and gold." The song is an upbeat electro dance track that is a metaphor for a man's relationship with god and questions about spirituality. Another big song off of the album is called "21st century life." This song is also an upbeat dance track but this sounds like it's something directly out of the 80s. He seems to get a little to excited about this song because it feels as if he is just wailing along with the track with little vocal control. The majority of the songs on the album feel like they came out of the 80s and were remixed by DJ Armin van Buuren. Sam Sparro has lots of potential but needs to have more of a focus for the direction of his music. Hopefully his sophomore album he will mature as an artist, stop bouncing all over the genres, and set his deLorean to the present.

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Review of Hans Zimmer's Inception

Oscar award winning composer Hans Zimmer makes another masterpiece with his latest project Inception. Zimmer has composed some very epic pieces for big blockbuster movies and Inception is no different. He has revealed that the entire Inception score came from Édith Piaf's 'Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien. This is the song that is played when the characters of the film must awake and break out of the dream state. Zimmer said "All the music in the score is subdivisions and multiplications of the tempo of the Édith Piaf track. So I could slip into half-time; I could slip into a third of a time. Anything could go anywhere. At any moment I could drop into a different level of time."
The score has a very heroic feel. It definitely makes you feel that you are involved in something larger than life. Inception being the kind of complex movie it is the score does a good job of keeping pace with the film. You can imagine the buildings collapsing and the uncertainty of reality. The most powerful track would have to be time. This track starts off very slow and as the track progresses the music begins to crescendo and captures you. It feels as if you are struggling towards a goal trying your hardest to reach your destination but it seems out of reach. Zimmer does an amazing job of balancing the tone between ominous and hopeful. After a huge build up towards the end of the piece the music hits a fortissimo piano. The last few seconds are made up of only single keystrokes. Time is very appropriately played during the very last scene of the film. It leaves you questioning what you've seen and/or what you felt but is also gives you a sense of certainty and hope for what you've seen and/or felt.