And the Oscar Goes to...

I think they should give Oscars to those who present, perform, and create what is the event of the Academy Awards, because the show can either be extremely boring or very entertaining and it depends on the people taking part in it. This years show was the latter, which in case you forgot... means it was entertaining. Anne Hathaway and James Franco did an amazing job hosting, which is the first and overall main thing that kept the show interesting,

but my absolute favorite part of the show was this auto-tuned mashup someone created to make up for the lack of "musicals" offered this year.

My dad and I laughed hysterically at this...and if you don't find it funny, then we can't be friends anymore. Sorry!

So this is at least the third consecutive awards show I've watched now, if not more. In 2009 I watched the show at school with my roommates. We were all very excited for that show because one of our many heroes, Hugh Jackman was hosting. Last year Evan and I watched the show together, and who better to watch it with than a fellow movie lover like Evan. This year it was just my dad and I, and occasionally my mom.

I was going to post my second favorite part of the show, but a youtube video hasn't been posted for it yet so I can't. But once I find one then I will offer an update. Let's just say it has to do with Anne Hathaway singing a song about Hugh Jackman, which if you watched 2009s show, you would know that that means something :)

Sidenote

Something I learned this year: The indication that you have a good actor on your hands is when you forget where the person is from because they so easily slip in to different accents. Example. Christian Bale. Recently I've seen him mostly in American films, meaning films in which he speaks American English, but when he got up to offer his acceptance speech for The Fighter he was speaking with a British accent and using British slang. I asked my dad why the heck he was speaking like an Englishman and then he reminded me that he's from England. I argued with him forever until he finally looked it up. During that process I started to second guess myself as it slowly started to register that he was in fact from England, so when my dad mentioned that he was right and I was wrong, I wasn't too surprised. Although in all actuality we were both wrong seeing as he's actually from Wales, but I was more wrong than he was. Another example of such a person, not seen at the awards show, but such a person nonetheless, is Johnny Depp. I always thought he was British when in fact he's from Kentucky. Quite a big difference there.

Alice Cooper on Anne of Avonlea

Have any of my fellow Anne of Green Gables lovers ever noticed that in the second movie, (whether you call it Anne of Avonlea, or Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel) there's a part near the beginning where the camera pans over a field heading to the schoolhouse and you see some children running through a field and they're singing/chanting this song. They say, "No more teachers, no more books, no more teachers dirty looks." I noticed some time ago how similar that is to Alice Cooper's song "School's Out" in which it says, "No more pencils, no more books, no more teachers dirty looks." Quite similar, eh? I wonder if the director or producer of the Anne movies is a big Alice Cooper fan and threw it in there just for the heck of it. Or maybe there's some history behind it that I don't know about, and it's actually something children from the early 1900s legitimately said on their last day of school. Or maybe it's a complete coincidence. Either way, I decided to blog about it today.

Bieber Fever...?

"Oh my gosh JUSTIN BIEBER. I LOVE HIM!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!" That's all I heard at work today seeing as the new Justin Bieber movie just graced us with its presence.

I've never really understood the whole Justin Bieber madness. Of course, I understand madness in general, because I have things, superficial things though they may be, but I still have things that I'm passionate about, just how all these preteens are "passionate" about the Biebs. So I really have no place to harp on the Bieber fever stricken people because I'm the same way with, I dunno, let's just say 30 Seconds to Mars. The only difference is, if I saw Jared or Shannon walking down the street, I wouldn't scream and chase after them. But I believe that's just something that comes with age. So I DO understand the madness, I just don't understand why so much MADNESS has been focused on this one kid by the name of Justin.

So where am I going with this? Well, with all the hype surrounding the movie, I became curious as to what it is about this kid that has all the girls going crazy. I've been somewhat anti-Bieber just BECAUSE everyone's so gaga over him and because I haven't really heard any music of his that's blown me away (granted I'd only heard bits and pieces of his songs on the radio, I don't think I'd even heard one of his songs all the way through) but I realized today as all these kids were overcome with excitement at the movie, that I hadn't really given the Biebs a chance to prove his chops to me. And then that made me realize how extremely hypocritical I was being, because I hate it when people dislike an artist just because they're popular, just how I hate it when people dislike an artist just because they're NOT popular. I like to give everyone a shot. So I came home and I did a little research...on Justin Bieber. I watched a few Youtube vids, listened to some of his music...and that's about it. But I think it was enough to offer a fair assessment.

Here is my conclusion. Justin Bieber is adorable. He's cute in that little kid sort of way, and I can see why all the teen girls go crazy over him. He also seems extremely kind, funny, and personable. Those are the things I learned from watching some videos and interviews of him. However, after listening to his music, I still just can't get into it, with the exception of a couple songs. Never Say Never has a little bit more "substance" to it, though not much, and I think Justin's voice got a little deeper before he recorded it, so it makes it easier to listen to. That factor combined with the prepubescent voice of guest rapper Jaden Smith (Will Smith's son) makes the song adorable if not catchy. I also discovered a song he did called "Pray," which is a cute song, and actually has some meaning behind it. Then there's his song "Somebody to Love," which is the only one of his extremely poppy, superficial songs that I own, and that's only because BYU-I did a lip sync/flash mob to it and so now I associate it with that video, which I love. Other than that I found most of his songs to be...blah. My main problem with Justin Bieber's music, even with his couple catchy tunes, that I'll admit to liking, is that I find it hard to take his music seriously when he's singing about "love" and girls and experiences, and yet he sounds like he's 12 years old. Does that mean I might like his music more once he goes through puberty? Possibly, though it'd be more likely if he wrote something of substance in his lyrics. Something other than, "baby, baby, baby oh...." Although, I suppose that's why the majority of his fanbase is comprised of the preteen age bracket. Because they find his music relatable. Am I saying that all the music I listen to is nothing but meaningful? Of course not. I love Britney Spears for goodness sake. But Justin's sappy, puppy love lyrics, combined with his little boy voice, makes it hard for me to listen to the majority of his music.

That being said, what does this conclusion mean? I suppose it means that I'll cease being such an anti-Bieberist. Though his music isn't for me, I can see why all the teens go crazy for the whole package of what is Justin Bieber. I probably would too if I were 12. And if someday, Justin's voice changes, and he learns how to write some decent and compelling lyrics, and maybe if he realizes he can sing without having his voice autotuned like crazy, (which I do actually believe he has a good voice, though it's hard to tell with all the electronic alteration) then maybe I'll actually start listening to his music. But I suppose he's off to a good start, he has a decent voice, and he seems like a pretty decent person, which I suppose is the most important thing. I only hope that part will last. Who knows, if he remains a good person, and learns how to write good music, I might even come down with a case of Bieber fever, though perhaps only a mild case. He's a little young for me :)

Anyway. In honor of Justin Bieber's movie release...here are a couple videos I discovered on Youtube while researching.

"Pray (Acoustic)" Music Video-I think this is cute, though I wouldn't consider the song acoustic, even though that's what the producers seem to think it is.

"Never Say Never" Music Video from the film. This is alright in this condensed amount of time, but if this is what the whole movie is like then I pity the parents who had to sit through it with their children.