CHS Globe » Marc Ritter

A classic film gets modern treatment in ‘The Wolfman’

CHS Globe Staff — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 23:57:18 +0000

Directed by Joe Johnston, “The Wolfman” brings the classic horror film experience back to the cinemas. The film is a remake of the 1941 hit of the same name about a man who turns into a werewolf.
The film starts off with a man returning to England upon learning that his brother has gone missing, via a letter sent by his brother’s wife.
After arriving in his hometown of Blackmoor, Lawrence Talbot (Benicio Del Toro) is reunited with his estranged father, Sir John Talbot (Anthony Hopkins).
Lawrence soon learns of his brother’s brutal death through the discovery of his mutilated body near town.
Immediately, a funeral is held, where Lawrence meets his brother’s wife, Gwen (Emily Blunt). Lawrence vows that he will find her husband’s killer and not leave town until he completes his objective.
At first, Lawrence believes the suspect to be an insane serial killer. But after examining his brother’s body, he realizes no man could cause such damage on another human being. The gypsies in town claim that a creature that comes from the woods may have been the culprit.
Desperate for answers, Lawrence visits the Gypsies and is directed to an elderly woman. Inside her wagon, Lawrence asks what had happened to his brother.
Immediately after he asks, screams and shouts are heard outside the wagon.
Lawrence goes outside to see what’s happening and realizes the gypsy village is being attacked by the mysterious werewolf creature.
Lawrence then runs around helping the gypsies escape and then sees a boy run away into the wilderness. Lawrence runs after him to try and save him from the beast; however, he only gets so far when he encounters the monster himself.
He is then attacked and bitten on the neck and is lucky to survive such a horrific ordeal.
The people in town then begin to shun Lawrence, believing that “those bitten by the beast are cursed.”
He experiences visions and nausea, and discovers that his wounds from the previous night have miraculously disappeared.
Stunned by the speed of his recovery, Lawrence understands now that he has become a werewolf. He goes and tells Ben’s wife to leave town for her own safety, and then transforms and goes on a rampage of killings.
The film is a much gorier version of the classic, incorporating blood, decapitation, and guts in almost every minute. For those who are squeamish, I highly recommend that you do not see this film.
However, if you are the type that loves horror and enjoys watching blood and gore being splattered all over the screen, I say go ahead and see this movie.
The one thing that intrigued me about this film was the soundtrack. When you watch “The Wolfman”, you truly feel like you are watching an old horror film because of the eerie music that transports the audience back to eras past.
Overall, the film receives a three out of five for me because it wasn’t anything special, but still managed to deliver what it promised. 

Plastic water bottles may harm both environment and drinkers

CHS Globe Staff — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:38:37 +0000

We are all used to getting a drink when we’re thirsty from a nearby water source. How much of the time do you find yourself using a plastic water bottle? Probably more than once.

Recent studies have shown that many health issues such as cancer have been linked to the use of plastic water bottles. Many people have also been speculating over the chemicals that may come from plastic water bottles.

There is a known myth that a bottle of water left in the car should not be drunk. This is because the heat from the car’s interior and the plastic combine to make dioxin chemicals which are left in the water.

Water, soda, and juice are typically sold in bottles made from polyethylene terephthalate, also known as PET or PETE. These containers are meant to be single-time use and disposable. However, many people will re-use these bottles to hold drinking water.

One common claim is that freezing or re-using these bottles will create poisonous “dioxin” chemicals that are released into the liquid that the container is holding. However, many doctors will disagree with these claims.

“This is an urban legend. There are no dioxins in plastics. In addition, freezing actually works against the release of chemicals” says researcher Dr. Rolf Halden. “Chemicals do not diffuse as readily in cold temperatures, which would limit chemical release if there were dioxins in plastic, and we don’t think there are.”

So does that mean that it is completely safe to drink from plastic water bottles?

According to research, no harm is done from plastic bottles, but another major issue that may not relate necessarily to health is the pollution and damage caused to the environment by these plastic bottles.

Every year, more than 25 billion water bottles are used around the world. Of those 25 billion water bottles, 80 percent end up in landfills and aren’t recycled. In 2007, over 1.5 million barrels of oil were used to make plastic water bottles consumed by Americans.

It is surprising to many that such a common thing in everyday life can cause so much damage to the world.

Even when people do recycle the water bottles in an attempt to help, they do not realize that most of the bottles are down-cycled; meaning they are turned into other appliances which leads to the need of virgin plastic for new bottles.

There is a belief that every adult should drink 8 bottles of water a day, a myth most likely created by water retailers. There is no scientific evidence to prove this and while it is important to stay hydrated, this is akin to saying every adult should eat 8.2 pounds of food a day.

So what can be done to fight the environmental water bottle problem? The best solution is to just use a refillable water bottle instead of the plastic ones bought at the store. This would reduce the demand and also save tons of money for people, considering the average water bottle costs $2.50.

Many encourage the consumption of water from glasses, or just to not buy the water bottles at all. Surprisingly, many studies have shown that faucet water from the top eight cities for water ranked higher in quality than Dasani water.

Drinking from water bottles may not seem threatening, but the potential problems should make students stop to think.

‘Romancing the Stone’ still entertains despite lack of modern special effects

CHS Globe Staff — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 17:37:10 +0000

Most of us are used to the fast- paced action movies of the new era, and forget to remember classic action movies from past years. We are constantly bombarded with gory scenes in what many call “action” movies these days.
Many action films from the past are overlooked because they simply do not meet the new standards set by more modern high-tech films. However, there are some classic films from the past that simply cannot be forgotten.
Romancing the Stone, (1984), is one of those films that many will never forget. It was directed by Robert Zemeckis, and features famous actors like Michael Douglas and Danny DeVito.
Joan Wilder (Kathleen Turner) is a famous New-York based romance novelist who lives a boring life with her cat in their condo. Ironically, the romance novelist cannot seem to find any romance of her own in her own life.
One day, Wilder returns home to find her condo a complete mess. The scene is disastrous, and it seems that she had been the victim of a burglary, but she cannot seem to figure out what had been stolen. Right away she receives a frightening call; her sister Elaine (Mary Ellen Trainor) has been kidnapped in South America. She decides to go and save her, taking with her a valuable treasure map she received in the mail earlier.
When she arrives in Columbia, she must take a bus to Cartagena. She mistakenly takes a bus that is headed in a different direction, due to one of the bad guys intentionally giving her false information. While on the bus, she stands up and asks the bus driver what direction they are heading in. Because of the loud noise, and due to the lack of Spanish that plagues Wilder, the driver becomes distracted from the road and crashes into the rainforest.
The bus is demolished, and most of the passengers get out and walk away. Joan then meets adventurer Jack T. Colton (Michael Douglas) who is an American like her. However, he knows his way around Columbia and she doesn’t. He agrees to take her to Cartagena for a hefty sum of money, so he can buy his dream sailboat.
On their way there, they are followed by mysterious men and by soldiers led by corrupt policeman Zolo (Manuel Ojeda). Zolo happens to be the man who broke into Wilders apartment in the beginning looking for the precious treasure map. Ralph (Danny DeVito) organizes their capture from far away because he wants the treasure map as well.
Joan and Jack’s journey to Cartagena is an exciting one. The experience is filled with action, some comedic situations, and romance when eventually Jack and Joan fall in love with each other along the way there.
This romantic action-comedy is a must-see movie because it does not fail to keep viewers entertained every single minute of the film. One of the best 80’s films, Romancing the Stone is a movie that will never cease to entertain. Definitely worth digging out of the vault!

Small theater produces riveting war time play

Mary Blackwell — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:25:04 +0000

To many, it may to be hard to find the location of The Upstream Theater. It seems to be almost always disregarded since it lies right next to the Fox Theater which takes away all the attention with its bright lights and huge signs. Many theater fanatics will probably go through their lives without even hearing of this small theater. But do not let the popularity and size mislead you; it produces quality plays that many critics have never even heard of.
Many of us can remember the tragedies of the Second World War and how the Nazis terrorized millions of people. Their essential goal was the final solution, the extermination of the Jewish population. But it was not only Jews who were victims of the Nazis’ ruthless brutality. People who had mental and physical disabilities were targets of the Nazis as well.
In Upstream Theater’s latest play, Helver’s Night, a young, mentally challenged man with the mind of an adolescent faces the challenges of the Nazi regime during the time of World War II in a small European village.
Helver lives with his guardian Karla in their modest home which includes a small kitchen and a living area. One day, Helver comes home marching and wielding a flag. The symbol on the flag is not a swastika, but the meaning is eminent.
He tells Karla about his day and how he learns to march like a real soldier. He informs her of how he received the flag from the leader of a band of militants. He repeatedly shouts about how he must track down the “carcasses,” or, by the definition of the militants, someone who is something other than themselves.
As young Helver goes on describing the methods of training that were initiated that very day, Helver’s guardian Karla comes to the horrifying realization that Helver may be considered one of those “carcasses” by his new “friends”.
As the play goes on, it takes a dramatic turn for the worse. The tension climaxes until the ending scene where Karla makes a stunning decision that leaves the viewers speechless. But you will have to see the play to find out what happens.
The play was directed by Phillip Boehm. I am grateful that I have family connections with him or else I would have never gotten the chance to see this superb play.
Christopher Harris does an outstanding job portraying the innocent mind of a child trapped inside a mature man’s body. The producers and writers picked the right actor to display this character. Karla, the guardian of Helver, was played by Linda Kennedy. She succeeded as an actress in grabbing the viewer’s emotions with her superior performance in the play.
I am usually the type to go see movies rather than plays. But in this case, the play did not fail to keep my attention. What I enjoyed the most about the play was the emotional punch it delivered at the end. As the play went on the viewer could tell that things were not getting better as the tension accumulated.
Helver’s Night gets four and a half out of five stars in my book because of the riveting story line, outstanding acting and an overall great performance from the whole crew. This is an impressive play that you should consider taking time to see. 

Vikings vs. Packers

CHS Globe Staff — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 20:17:10 +0000

Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings beat Green Bay in a 30-23 victory on Oct. 5. Favre proved his skills by throwing 271 yards for three touchdowns against his former team, the Packers.

Brett Favre celebrates after a touchdown pass. The Vikings are 6-0 so far this season with Favre at the starting quarterback position. (MTC Campus)

Adrian Peterson was a little disappointing, only rushing for 55 yards and one touchdown. For a normal running back, this would be considered decent yardage, but fans have come to expect more out of an amazing player like Peterson.
Other key players for the Vikings were defensive end Jared Allen and wide receivers Bernard Berrian and Sydney Rice.
Allen proved to be the leader of the defense with four and a half sacks and one forced fumble. Berrian had six receptions for 75 yards and a touchdown, and Rice was targeted five times for 70 yards and a touchdown as well.
Although the Packers lost, Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw for over 384 yards – the most that any quarterback has achieved in all of week four. Rodgers did better overall in passing yards than Favre, but could still not pull off a win for his team.
Rodgers’s favorite target during the game was tight end Jermichael Finley, who had six receptions for over 128 yards and a touchdown.
Running back Ryan Grant had 11 attempts for 51 yards, but no touchdowns
“I was really disappointed because I wanted to see that the packers could still triumph, even without their old quarterback,” freshman David Ingram said. “I wanted the Packers to teach [Favre] a lesson for leaving us after that many years.”
The team might have lost as a whole, but Rodgers did seem to have beaten Favre in the Q.B. matchup. Rodgers had more passing yards than the heart and soul of the Green Bay Packers for more 16 years.
Vikings fans, on the other hand, went home with an “in your face!” feeling.
“I honestly think Favre is completely overrated,” Vikings fan Isaac Doyle said. “He cries about leaving his team and can never make up his mind. When he came to the Vikings nobody was really surprised or excited, because we were used to this type of stuff from him.”
Brett Favre is a man of many emotions and years, but this will not stop him from leading the Minnesota Vikings to a Super Bowl.