Superhero contest to inspire children

I saw this article on Twitter and thought it was the coolest thing ever, so I decided to share it.

If you’re interested in writing fictional short stories, Eli Wilde is hosting a writing contest where the main character is a superhero with a disability. The winner will receive $100 and will be featured in Issue One of the print version of Revolt Daily. Second and Third place winners receive $25 and $10, respectively, will be featured in the online magazine. There is also a$25 prize for the wackiest story that brought a smile to everyone’s face, and Eli will include any other stories that deserve to be read in the online edition of Revolt Daily.

What really made me want to participate, besides the fact that I enjoy writing superhero stories, is that the inspiration to run this contest came from his son, Mikey, who has hereditary spastic paraparesis and is reliant on a wheelchair to get around. A fan of superheros, zombies, and cyborgs, Mikey asked if there were any superheroes who had a disability like him. When they came up with very few names, Eli decided to host a workshop with Whizz Kidz, a charity that provides mobility equipment for disabled children and encourages them to look past their disability, to create their own superhero.

The focus of the project is to show that people with disabilities can do anything, the same as people without a disability.

The deadline for submissions is May 31. For more information, read the article, view the submission guidelines, and check out the Whizz Kidz website.

2013
04/09
CATEGORY
Blog
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Oz The Great and Powerful: A Movie Review

Oh, hey, a new review! Sorry for the lack of them in the past few weeks. I’ve been pretty busy and haven’t been reading or watching movies. Which is totally lame, I know.

Anyway, I finally was able to see Oz The Great and Powerful over the weekend, which made me extremely happy because there were several fairy tale movies that came out in the past few months, none of which I had time to see (but will definitely watch a soon as they come out on DVD).

I’ve heard mixed reviews about this movie. I’ve heard that it was well done and I’ve heard that there have been complaints about Hollywood taking a story with a strong leading lady and making it more about the man. Those people obviously don’t realize that this is a prequel to the Wizard of Oz story.

Oz the Great and Powerful follows a carnival magician named Oz (James Franco) who, while on the run in a hot air balloon from a crowd displeased with his lady killer ways, flies into a tornado and is transported to the magical land of Oz. Immediately found by Theodora the good (Mila Kunis), he is brought to the Emerald City being hailed as the great wizard they have been waiting for and introduced to Evanora (Rachel Weisz). Learning about a gold reward involved and a kingdom to rule, Oz plays along, keeping secret that he’s just a carnival magician and not really a wizard.

When sent to kill the wicked witch, Glinda (Michelle Williams), Oz finds out the truth about the prophecy and whose side he should really be on, creating a few enemies and breaking a few hearts in the process.

I thought it was a really interesting take on how the wizard of Oz came to Oz. The ending left it where The Wizard of Oz would pick up, so I imagine there may be another Wizard of Oz movie possibly in the works.

If you haven’t had the chance to go see this movie yet and enjoy 3D films, you should probably consider seeing it in 3D. I don’t like 3D movies that much so I saw it in regular 2D, but even while watching it I could see where there would be advantages to seeing it in 3D. It’s also a great family movie. While it is generated for kids, there are jokes and instances that will go over the kids heads, but that older viewers will understand.

The only problem I had with the movie overall was some parts looked very CGI and I thought it was a bit fast paced, but at the same time it would probably lose the viewers’ attentions if it was drawn out.

Grade: A

2013
04/08
CATEGORY
Movie Review
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Matilda by Roald Dahl

This is another one of those books that I’ve always wanted to read, but never had the chance to as a child (although I did watch the movie religiously).

Since she was born, Matilda was always an exceptionally bright child. By the age of 2, she was already walking and talking like an adult, and by time she reached the age of 5 she was already reading high school and college level books (even if she didn’t quite understand all of the meanings behind the words).

Unfortunately, no one in her family noticed. Her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Wormwood, didn’t like her very much and her brother chose to ignore her as well. This all changed when she finally went to school and her teacher, Miss Honey, recognized her talent and insisted she be moved up into an older class. However, Matilda would need to convince not only her parents, but the headmistress, Miss Trunchbull, as well, that she wasn’t just a snot nosed kid before she could fully succeed.

Roald Dahl definitely knows how to craft a world that drags the reader in, which can sometimes be especially tough when writing for children. In particular, I really enjoyed the opening chapter of this book, which describes children in all different ways: as noisy, as lazy, as dimwitted, before finally going into the introduction of Matilda.

What made me the most excited, though, is how close the movie was to the book. There were some bits added into the movie to make it longer, and some bits that were in the book but not in the movie, but overall the two were almost word for word exact. The casting director of the movie also did a very good job, choosing actors that portrayed the characters (except Mr. and Mrs. Wormwood were a little switched around, but that can be forgiven).

Matilda is definitely a great read for everyone in the family to enjoy and a must read for children of all ages. It shows that anyone, no matter their size, can truly make a difference in the world.

Grade: A

2013
03/04
CATEGORY
Book Reviews
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The Godfather: A Movie Review

This was my second time watching this movie, and it has become clear why it is one of the most popular movies. With a great script and a great cast of characters, The Godfather portrays life living in the Italian mob.

Don Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando) is one of five mob bosses in New York. However, as he grows older, his sons Sonny (James Caan) and Michael (Al Pacino) begin to slowly take over the family business.

Although The Godfather is almost 3 hours long, I could definitely watch it over and over again. It tells of loyalty to the family, and how family is everything. I really enjoyed the story and the characters, who were played by a great cast.

However, my only complaint is that I found some parts a little confusing, but I think if I watch it again I might be able to catch something I might have missed.

Grade: A-

2013
02/22
CATEGORY
Movie Review
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Slumdog Millionaire: A Movie Review

The cover of Slumdog Millionaire lists it as the “feel good movie of the year”. And after watching it, I guess it could be call that. It has a happy ending, anyway.

Slumdog Millionaire tells about the arrest and interrogation of Jamal, a young man who grew up in the slums of India and is now just one question away from winning a million dollars on India’s version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. While the police are waiting for him to tell them how he cheated his way to winning, what they learn is how he knows the answers through the hardships of growing up in the slums.

Being shown how even someone from the slums can know all the right answers made for an interesting story. However, there’s more to this tale than just the happy ending. It portrays how there are two different sides of the coin and how even two brothers who spend their entire lives trying to survive together can grow up into two completely different people.

Grade: A

2013
02/21
CATEGORY
Movie Review
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New Publication: Payback

I have a new short story published online by Siren’s Call Publications. Go check it out!!

2013
02/11
CATEGORY
Blog
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Warm Bodies: A Movie Review

Zombie movie lovers beware: this isn’t your average zombie gore fest.

R is a zombie. He doesn’t remember anything about his past (not even his name), and his new interests include eating other people’s brains to enjoy their memories and to feel more human. That is until he meets Julie and, somehow, falls in love with her. But it would never work out. Not only because he’s a zombie and she isn’t, but because he just gorged on her now ex-boyfriend’s brains.

But he tries anyway, and Julie begins to see that not all zombies are the monsters that they are led to believe.

Based off a novel of the same title by Isaac Marion, Warm Bodies is really a retelling of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet but with zombies. I didn’t even know it was a book until I saw the movie, but it did kind of remind me of a short story in the collection Zombies vs. Unicorns, although that one was not a Romeo and Juliet retelling. Just a similar: boy is zombie, falls in love with girl, dad is mad, etc.

While the movie did have it’s comedic parts, I wouldn’t say it was laugh out loud hilarious (although I’m sure the guy sitting behind me in the theater would easily contest that). There were parts that I chuckled, but I feel like the parts that were supposed to be the most comedic were overplayed in the trailers I saw on TV. A few parts of the movie also seemed pushed and at one point it felt like it was going on a bit too long.

However, I still thought it was an interested take on zombies and of a cure for the outbreak. Warm Bodies is definitely a zombie movie you don’t see if you want gore, but that you see if you want a view of zombies from a zombie point of view.

Grade: A-

2013
02/04
CATEGORY
Movie Review
4 comments
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