mblase's New Writeups

Pan's Labyrinth (review)

2009-11-02T17:21:09Z

I'm an American, and a father. So I have two minor gripes about this film: it's not available dubbed into English, and it's too creepy-scary to watch with my family.

Aside from that, this is a fantastic fantasy film, one which pulls you convincingly into its world all the way from beginning to end.

Director Guillermo del Toro has set this film during the Spanish Civil War, following the girl Ofelia as she and her mother Carmen find themselves living in the heart the conflict between the military and the rebels. Ofelia's mother is pregnant with the child of Captain Vidal, but the pregnancy is making her extremely ill. Vidal is more interested in the survival of his son than the welfare of either Carmen or Ofelia, leaving Ofelia alone to find her way in this strange new world of soldiers and fear.

It is shortly after she discovers the labyrinth outside of the military headquarters that she meets a fairy, and right away we get a glimpse of how del Toro paints…

Shadow Puppets (thing)

2005-08-01T04:52:53Z

Shadow Puppets by Orson Scott Card
Published August 19, 2002

The story so far....

After a twelve-year-old Ender Wiggin and his fellow Battle School students destroyed the homeworld of the Buggers, he left the solar system and the rest of the students returned to their families on Earth. Two of those students, Bean and Petra Arkanian, have earned the special attention of a Battle School washout named Achilles. After selling his intellectual services to conquest-hungry Russia, Achilles kidnapped Petra and tried to assassinate Bean. Once Russia found out Achilles was a serial murderer, he left for India to offer his services there. What India didn't know was that he was double-crossing them to win the favor and employment of China. Bean--with the help of a fellow Battle School alumnus in Thailand--pursued Achilles into India and forced him to surrender Petra in exchange for his life in the service of China.

…

Shadow of the Hegemon (thing)

2005-07-31T18:23:16Z

Shadow of the Hegemon by Orson Scott Card
Published January 1, 2001

So you've just finished reading Ender's Shadow. Ender Wiggin, having defeated the Buggers--er, Formics--once and for all, has left our solar system with his sister Valentine for the first extrasolar colony. Their older brother, Peter, is still hiding his identity on the nets behind the personas of Locke and Demosthenes as he manipulates global politics. Ender's generals, including the superintelligent Bean, a.k.a. Julian Delphiki, have all gone back to their native countries to try and resume life as best they can.

Oh, and Russia has just tried and failed to take over the global government established to fight the Formics. They want to try again. Toward that end, they kidnap Bean's adversary, a brilliant and charismatic boy known as Achilles who just barely qualifies as a student of the…

Willow (thing)

2005-07-24T23:06:19Z

Willow (1988)

Val Kilmer as Madmartigan
Joanne Whalley as Sorsha
Warwick Davis as Willow Ufgood
Jean Marsh as Queen Bavmorda
Patricia Hayes as Fin Raziel

This movie was released in the US in 1988, written by George Lucas and directed by Ron Howard.

The ILM-produced special effects are what set this movie apart from any other sword-and-sorcery flick to date, which is pretty much what you'd expect from Lucas. In abundance are miniature brownies, magical zaps, a giant two-headed dragon, and a character being transformed from one animal into another via the then-new technology of digital morphing.

As for the story, though, there's nothing spectacular about it. (We are, of course, all quite glad that George Lucas wasn't directing this one as well.) The main characters are a kidnapped baby, an evil witch-queen, a hobbit--er, dwarf--rescuer, one…

Transformers Cybertron (thing)

2005-03-10T22:21:08Z

Starting in spring of 2005, Speed Planet (the year, incidentally, in which 1985's Transformers: The Movie was set), Cartoon Network, Hasbro and Takara continue the storyline begun in Transformers Armada and continued in Transformers Energon.

Transformers Cybertron, Speed Planet (Transformers Galaxy Force in Japan) begins on, you guessed it, the Transformers' home planet of Cybertron, which is in danger of impending destruction from an enormous black hole created by the destruction of Unicron in Transformers Energon. To save it, the Autobots launch an interplanetary search for four "Cyber Planet Keys", which of course the Decepticons are after as well. These Keys will unlock Cybertron's ability to transform itself, Unicron-style, and stop the black hole from destroying the entire universe.

Hey, it's something to do.

The Toys

The Transformers Cybertron toys are…

Maria Montessori (person)

2005-02-09T20:19:29Z

The Young Maria Montessori

Maria Montessori was born on August 31, 1870 into an educated middle-class family near Ancona, Italy. As she followed the normal track through elementary school, she discovered her own talent for academics and, in time, developed a passionate interest in mathematics. Unusually, she continued schooling after age twelve; even more unusual, she chose to enter a technical school. In the spring of 1886 she graduated with high marks and a final grade of 137 out of 150.

In a time when the traditional careers for women were limited to teaching, child rearing, and the nunnery, Maria--who for now refused to even consider teaching as a career---enrolled in the University of Rome in the fall of 1890. Possibly due to the suggestions of Pope Leo XIII himself, she was allowed to study physics, mathematics and natural sciences in order to become a medical doctor. Despite the expected prejudices from the male students, she…