My three favourite words

If I had to choose my three absolute favourite words would have to be 

Squash 

meaning veggie a sport or an action 

I really like how the word starts with an sq which is a very pleasurable thing to say and anything that ends with an sh is a fun to say

croquet

meaning a game and sometimes confused with croques and fried potato ball  

I really like this word because it's a fun word to say! The croq sound in both the words may be onomatopoeia. When you hit a croquet ball it makes a croq! sound. Likewise when you bite into a crispy piece of croque it make a croq! sound.

brouhaha 

meaning a noisy and overexcited reaction or response to something

this is a great word because it sounds like you're turing to your friend and going "bro, HAHA" which is something I frequently do

My three favourite words:

The first of my three favourite words is Zucchini I like the amount of high tones in the vowels u i and the second i. It sounds much more like a italian word than an english one, because of it's exotic sound, and use of double consonants, but then it refers to such a mundane and bland vegetable

My second favourite word is bombardment, I like how with different accents the word sounds very different. In an american accent the first a in bar is elongated, yet in the second phrase, ment, the e is changed into an a and is quick and concise. I like the way the word starts off long and ends with a quick finish.

My third favourite word is brood, I like this word because it sounds like brew. With the meaning of the word, it's kind of like you're thinking alone and letting your thoughts brew, which I thought was pretty cute.

Enrique - My Three Favorite Words

Choosing three favorite words is definitely not an easy task for me. But if I were to choose, the first three that come to my head are:

1. Aloof

2. Saccharine

3. Psychedelic

1. Aloof

Not friendly or forthcoming; cool and distant.

I personally like this word because of the way it sounds. Starting from a brighter "a" sound, before dropping to a lower, but more pronounced "loof" sound, just evokes the image of something flopping down in a tired manner. The only thing about the funny pronunciation of the word is that it contrasts with the usually serious nature of the people associated with this word. Describing an aloof person as aloof just makes the person seem less serious.

2. Saccharine

Excessively sweet or sentimental.

Saccharine is another word that I like to use. I can be excessively sentimental, especially about people or past experiences, and I feel that this word is the best word to use in those situations. I also feel that saccharine is a nice word to use when someone is being fake, especially when writing about fictional characters, as it evokes this sense of uneasiness due to the excessive nature of their sentiment or sweetness.

3. Psychedelic

Relating to or denoting drugs (especially LSD) that produce hallucinations and apparent expansion of consciousness.

Originally, I was not aware that this word was related to hallucinatory substances, and upon finding out this morning, I was quite surprised. Now, I cringe at all of those Year 5 essays and poems I used this word in. Ignoring the drug connotation, I feel this word is a very nice word to describe something very colorful, as something about the word just evokes this feeling of bright colors that daze you and overwhelm you. I feel this is a nice word for sunsets, bright lights in the city, and other colorful lights.

3 Favorite Words- Jennifer Chan

My 3 favorite English words are:

1) Mirror
This was one of the first words that intrigued me in the way that when I was little, I saw the word mirror, and I said to myself there are only 6 letters and half of them are 'r'.

2) Cooperation
This word is divided up with syllables, where the first one is co, and then it follows along operation. It is a word that I like and also it also has a good meaning behind it.

3) Youniverse
This word is to indicate that the world only revolves around yourself. It is a play on universe and yourself that when combined, it gives another definition.

Movie Review

The Lion King has always been on the top of my list and will always be. Throughout the 15 years of my lifetime, I have repeatedly watched the movie no less than 30 times (excluding the countless times that I've watched the musical live on broadway). The plot basically tells the story of how the young lion Simba fights Scar (his uncle and brother of King Mufasa) years later when he returns to the kingdom as an adult, to reclaim his throne after scar usurped it by killing his father, Mufasa. Simba encounters two very odd characters while being away from the kingdom. He spent most of his adolescent life with his two odd sidekicks Timon and Pumbaa in the jungle and they are the ones to help and advise him when he returns to claim his throne as he is the rightful heir.

The directors of the movie are Rob Minkoff and Roger Allers. The main characters are Simba (the heir to the throne), Mufasa (the king), Scar (the usurper) and Timon and Pumbaa (the two sidekicks). The movie has been my favorite ever since the first time I watched it and it still is, the most interesting about this movie is that the antagonist isn't Scar but its really Timon and Pumbaa, the characters in the story are very well developed as well as complex which is so much more thought provocative and makes it a lot more profound. It also has one of the darkest, most twisted plots compared to the rest of the Disney movies which allows not only children, even adults to feel entertained while watching the movie because it is a lot more than just a princess fairy tale.

Favorite piece of Chinglish

a) when and where you saw this sign (the reasons we enjoy and remember something as being particularly funny are often down to the circumstances of what we were doing - and who we were with - at the time).

I found sign in JiuZaiGou, a nature reserve in Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture of China, that says "Ditch stop sign, virgin forest, thus go." I was on a family vacation and when I came across it I was rather confused about the location and the directions of the places mentioned on the sign. 

b) why you find the sign particularly funny.

I found the sign interesting because I had no idea what it meant (or I wouldn't have known what it meant if I couldn't read chinese) and it makes no sense at all. The purpose of the sign was to provide the tourists with directions regarding the sight they want to visit, however the sign only shows the supposed 'names' of the tourist attractions yet it does not tell us where it is located due to the mistranslation. 

3 Favorite Words

My three favorite words are:  (All three of them are from foreign languages, however they have all been adapted in English and frequently used)

1.Hiraeth (originates from Welsh)

It means to long for a place that you have never been to or isn't a place you officially call 'home'. It can be translated as homesickness except the Welsh word is much more evocative. 

I like this word because it is very relatable and it applies in my case with Kuala Lumpur. Only having lived there for 3 years, I have become very attached to the city and often yearn for it even though I don't consider KL my real 'home'.

2. Embargo

Embargo is an injunction filed to prohibit a shipment or of commerce. 

I like this word because even though I always knew the word originated from the Spanish verb to seize, Embargar, I never understood why the cohesive device 'sin embargo' (however) was used until recently because it literally translates into 'without seize'. 

3. Fainéant 

Fainéant is an ineffective person or idle. 

I like this word because it's basically who I am. The word derives from the french words 'fait'(does) and 'néant' (nothing) which adds up to be fainéant, who is a person that doesn't do anything. 

3 Favorite Words

Epiphany
a moment of sudden realization
I really like saying this word, because the emphasis is placed on the "pi" in the middle of the word. It's a perfect representation of its meaning, as it displays how sudden, "light-bringing" moments in our lives happen when we least expect it--in the midst of everything.

Ineffable
too great to be expressed in words
The fact that there is a word to describe this feeling of speechlessness when facing something impressive, and that it is such a round, "bubble-like" word that rolls off your tongue, makes it such a satisfying word to pronounce.

Hullabaloo
a commotion; a fuss
I believe that the first time I saw this word was in a Dr Seuss story, and it really stuck with me because it, in itself, sounds like a mumble jumble of letters, which accurately represents the meaning behind this word. It is also a fun term to say as well, especially because of all the flow-y "l's".

Three favorite English words

The English language contains so many interesting words, with each word a little story behind. In my short 12 years of being immersed in the English language, I have some words that I particularly like. 

Kakorrhaphiophobia
This word means the fear of failure. I have come across this word in a funny children's book which talks about a boy entering a spelling bee, meeting new friends and encountering eccentric words. I find this funny because when someone with Kakorrhaphiophobia fails to spell 'Kakorrhaphiophobia' successfully, he will break down due to failing to spell his own phobia. Also, I have always wondered how this word was formed, since it can't even be separated into parts of a word that I know.

Bubble
The word bubble is another word that interests me. Bubble was formed probably due to the sound bubbles make when they pop, with the 'bub, bub' sound. The word is just really fun to say, and you sound like a baby when he first learns to speak. 

Winklepicker
This word refers to a type or style of shoe with a long and sharp pointed toe in the 1950s. This word is probably the most mis-leading word I have ever come across, and I had to double check in the dictionary to make sure that it is a real word. At first glance, I thought that winklepicker meant someone whose job is to pick up something called a winkle, which I have no idea what it is either. As the 2 words above, this word is also very eccentric and peculiar, and very fun to say.

3 Favourite Words

1. Olive
The reason as to why I like this word is the simple pronunciation of it. A nice "O" is formed at the start, only to end sweetly with a flick of the tongue of "- live".  It's quite fun to say.

2. Snarl
This word is what it is. When the word is being said, the action is being done at the same time due to the pronunciation of the word - to say it, one must do it.

3. Dire
Again, this is a fun word to pronounce. The sound of the "Di" makes the word seem regal and eloquent, yet it finishes quite quickly with a "-re". Short and sweet.

3 Favorite Words

My favorite 3 english words are harbinger, snicker and frolicsome. When the word harbinger is used, it sounds like a strong and fearful word. I really like the power that the word shows and expresses. Whereas the word snicker seems more playful and not serious. It seems like it is a word used on children who are being naughty. I like the pronunciation of frolicsome. It is different and weird. It also sounds really strange.

Furious 7 - Movie Review

Furious 7 is the newest Fast and Furious movie. The brother of the enemy in Fast and Furious 6 Deckard Shaw is back for revenge, and Dominic Toretto and his gang is in danger. Their main goal is to save a hacker who was kidnapped by Shaw, because the hacker made a program that can hack into any digital device in the world. This will help them find Shaw and take him down. However, things weren't as easy as they expected. After they rescued the hacker, they realised that she sent it to somewhere in Saudi Arabia. After they found the hacking device called "God's Eye", Shaw's crew took it back and so on. This movie is directed by James Wan and features Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Tyrese Gibson, Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges, Kurt Russell and Jason Statham. I really liked this movie, because it was full of action and has an interesting storyline. Even though I haven't watched any of the other Fast and Furious movies, I picked up the storyline really quickly. It is overall an amazing movie, and I loved it. An interesting thing to note is that one of the actors, Paul Walker, died a while ago. Furious 7 was released 1 year and 5 months after his death.

Almost Famous - Movie Review

Movie Poster

 Almost Famous is a comedy-drama film that came out quite a while ago. I came across this movie the night before the Oscars, which was on alongside other Oscars winning movies. The story is set in 1973, and follows a few months in the life of William Miller, a 15 year old Rock journalist working for the Rolling Stone magazine. William was given a chance to interview the band Stillwater, and followed them on their tour around around the States, during which he met Penny, the ex-girlfriend/ groupie of one of the band members Russell. The two of them were really into each other.

 At the end of the tour William parted with the band and Penny. In his article for the Rolling Stone, William wrote about the true story that was going on in the band: the conflicts going on within the band, to a point where the band almost back up. However the stories were denied by Russell and did not manage to go on the magazine. William's dream of becoming famous was crushed, and so did his friendship with Russell. However there is a rather sweet twist to the ending. 

Penny and William

 I particularly enjoyed this movie as unlike what audiences might have expected, the movie has a sad and gloomy ending to it, which I thought would be much more interesting compared to a pure happy ending. Throughout the movie it seems as if there is a sort of atmosphere being built up, until everything was crushed and fell at one point, which I thought was really dramatic twist. To me the movie pretty much sums up life itself, the crazy moments, the emotional struggles, friends, desires, passion and disappointment that comes when reality steps in. From the time that he fell in first love, became friends with rock stars to the time that he lost his virginity, audience can easily notice the changes that William had gone through. He will never be the same person when he walked out of the experience, realising that there is no turning back. As a 15 year old myself, I would really want to have a similar experience. On top of that, I particularly enjoyed the rock music involved in the song. 

 In terms of scenes where film-making is strongest, I think it would be the scene where William parts with Penny at the airport. Penny was on the plane, which was at first slowly moving forward, while William was chasing the plane and waving back at Penny, until the moment where the plane takes off. That was the moment where their short relationship ends. The scene really stood out to me, and together with the music it appeared really sad and powerful. 

One Day In The Life of Ivan Denisovich Review

 The book One Day In The Life of Ivan Denisovich Review depicts the story of the prisoners in the Soviet prison camp during 1960s, where Ivan Denisovich was held as a POW, accused of being a spy. The book is centred around gang 104, the gang where Shukhov is in, where harsh conditions in the camp are revealed to the readers through the immense amount of work and the little food that the prisoners receive for all the work. Other topics such as camp hierarchy and methods of survival are also discussed in the book. Survival skills, in particular, is a crucial to the prisoners. For example, Ivan Denisovich would hide some of his bread ration in his mattress to save it for later, however he did not hide it in his boots as it would be more likely to get stolen. Thus how such cruel conditions change people's behaviours can be seen throughout the book, and I found it quite impressive to see how prisoners would still have a plan for the things that come later despite not being able to meet their present needs.

 This book is quite different from the other stories that I have read about prison camps or Nazis concentration camps, where it focuses more on the cruel treatment that the prisoners received on one hand and their struggle and survival on the other. As a result relatively less cases of deaths are involved in the book. It allows me to gain more insight of one of the darkest period in the history of the Soviet Union that I did not have much knowledge of, where humanity was at its lowest. I liked how the story ends with saying that the one particular day described in the story is just another one of the 3653 days of Shukkhov's sentence in the camp, yet the day itself was mostly happy, showing a strong sense of desperation and helplessness of life in the prison camp. I found it surprising how he would still find optimism under such harsh treatment. Overall I think this is a pretty interesting book.

One Day In The Life of Ivan Denisovich - Review

Curiously, this book, One Day in The Life of Ivan Denisovich, written by Alexksandr Solzhenitsyn, took me quite a while to finish. The story follows Ivan Denisovich and his day in his camp. It isn't hard to picture the scenes throughout the book, as they are described through a first-person point of view and quite descriptive language. The story captures the hardships and frigidness of Denisovich's life at the camp, yet at the same time highlights his relationship with his bunk mates. As the story occurs within a day, the writer successfully captures the important parts of the day with detail yet at the same time allowing the story to flow without too much elaboration on insignificant parts. Even though the story is only a day, the book is still able to create good characterisation. For me, the more interesting parts of the story were when they had to work, as to see Denisovich's attitude in the work was quite encouraging - even after eight years, he was still able to keep a determined attitude in work. According to Denisovich, a day as gruelling as this was considered a good day, making it hard to imagine what a normal day would be like.

A short review of Ivan Denisovich

In the book, it describes Ivan Denisovich Shukov being sentenced to a Soviet camp in the gulag system. After being captured as a prisoner of war during the First World War, he was accused of being a spy and sentenced to 10 years in a labor camp. The novel mainly describes Ivan's squad, which is the 104th with 24 members, of their loyalty and allegiance to the leader of the squad, the work that the prisoners are forced to do like working at a construction site where the conditions are brutal as the mortar that is used for laying bricks is frozen solid by the cold if it isn't applied quickly enough. The ways of the prisoners' way to survive are described in detail and the whole camp is based on the survival of the fittest. A man named Tiurin is the foreman of the 104th squad, and the men like him more and more as the book continues. He is quite popular despite being 'morose' because he understands the inmates and gives help to them as well as talking to them. Ivan workes really hard and is quite respected in the squad. Ivan always conserves the rations that he receives and always watches for any items that he can keep and trade for food later on. To dehumanize the prisoners, they are given numbers to be identified easily. The leader of the squad receives the day's work and the rest of the squad are fed according to how they finish their assignment. The inmates of each squad are forced to collaborate and work with each other to get their assignments done. The whole squad is punished if any of the squad's member is slacking. In gang 104, there are a surprising loyalty that is shown when the gang members work together, and Ivan steals felt and extra soup when teamed up with the members of 104. Ivan and the prisoners do more than surviving each day through such solidarity. 

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich (Shukhov???)

"One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich" is a very short book that talks about one particular day of a Soviet prisoner who is in a Soviet prison camp, Ivan Denisovich (a.k.a Shukhov). This book highlights his daily schedule, his prison camp environment, and some of the labour that he and other fellow prisoners must do every day.

What I like about this book is that it is very descriptive when it comes to describing the environnment of the Soviet camp or any other place that this book is set in. It makes you imagine the cold, snowy Russia and therefore you can kind of empathise with how hard the prisoners must work every day in these hostile conditions.

Another thing that I like about this book is that the author has done a good job in portraying different personalities in different characters of the book. There is an example where Ivan's friend is a very humourous wherever he goes and that the book quotes "He can't go anywhere without bringing any humour". As a result, the entire book's humour increases, making it more fun to read than the book title may suggest.

One thing I dislike about this book is that it lacks describing the pain and the extremely difficult time the prisoners encounter while they are in labour. Yes, a bit of humour is appreciated, but I think the amount of humour the author used in the book may have overshadowed and hidden the pain and the hard work and life it is being a Soviet prisoner in a Soviet camp and that it has not actually made you feel like "I would never wanna be there." or "Aw, that's so harsh!"

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich

This book is simply what the title is, a day in the 3,653 days of Ivan Denisovich Shukhov's life in a Soviet Union prison camp. Poor Shukhov didn't do anything wrong, but he was sentenced to stay in a prison camp for around ten years. This shows the cruelty of the government back then, how they don't really care about about their citizens and sentence them without even understanding the situation. Many important things happened during this day, but it was all quite normal, making the readers understand more about how the WW2 Soviet prison camps worked. This book is short yet insightful, I learned a lot about the Soviet Union back then, for example their lack of food.

From the view of Shukhov, the prison camp doesn't sound that bad. Even he himself said that there were some good days, but that doesn't mean that there are no bad days. He has to work really hard for no real reward other than food. Even if he worked extra hard, he only receives extra food. Most importantly, he lost his freedom, one of the most important thing as a human being. This made me realise how lucky I am, having so much freedom in my life.

To be honest, this book wasn't super interesting. Books usually include really bizarre things to make it more interesting to the readers. Yet this book was realistic and honest, giving the readers an accurate feel of the Soviet Union prison camp during World War II.

"One Day in a Life of Ivan Denisovich" Review

This book describes what life is like in the Soviet Labour Camp's back in the 1950s. It tells the conditions of Ivan Denisovich Shukhov and how "amazing the day was". It tells about when he wakes up till when he falls asleep.

After reading the book, I think that a day in there is harsh and cruel due to the consequences of these men if done something wrong. However there are some "good days" in there such as the way that Ivan got to have some bread from Tsezar. He is allowed to take if it he stands in line for him. I think that it comes to show that men inside the camp are willing to do anything to get a little bit more food and survive for themselves, but it also shows what these kind innocent men are like inside the camp. Looking at the harsh conditions that the workers had to face such as the squad is only exempt from the outdoor labours if the temperature reaches -41 ºC, if it is above this temperature, the leaders consider that it is bearable and possible to work outside, despite the cold. If any of the prisoners were slacking off, then the whole squad would be punished. However, the squad is like a united family, sticking together such as when Shukhov teamed up with other prisoners to steal felt and have some extra bowls of soup. However despite all that, they would still be fighting to survive on their own because of the conditions they are living in.

Even though it is a short book, I would have liked it if it was a little bit of a more enthusiastic day. This seemed like any other day that would have happened in the camp. If it was a more interesting day of something happened, it would have been a little bit more entertaining to read.

"The Theory of Everything" movie review

The Theory of Everything directed by James Marsh tells a story of a young man named Stephen Hawking (Eddie Redmayne) and Jane Hawking's (Felicity Jones) marriage and the obstacles along the way as well as the successes in their lives. It is based on the novel "Travelling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen" by Jane Hawking.

It starts off with Stephen and Jane meeting up with each other and fall in love, typically described as love at first sight. As the days go by, Stephen notices that he is losing the power to write and to walk until one day he trips and hit his head. The doctors tell him that motor neuron disease and has approximately 2 years to live. Stephen continues with his research work, and Jane tells his father that even if his condition worsens, she still wants to be with him no matter what. They then marry and have a son. Jane finds Jonathan and Jonathan helps take care of the family. Stephen gets invited to a concert and tells Jane to take the children camping with Jonathan. Stephen develops phenomena and the doctors have to operate on him, but he will never speak again. After that, he receives a computer with a built in voice synthesiser which allows him to type what he wants to say. Stephen writes a book using the computer and he becomes famous. Jane and Stephen divorces because of the hardship in their life, but still maintain good friends.

This probably is one of my favorite films because it talks about someone that was only suppose to survive for 2 years, instead he survived for more than that and is still going. The wedding scene really makes it feel as though it was from a video clip because of the black and white features. The two main characters (Eddie and Felicity) really grasp for what the original two's (Stephen and Jane) marriage and hardship they had. Eddie's performance was really amazing as he was able to go through the different transitions of Stephen's life and embody it very well. The overall feeling of the movie was a romantic movie and focused on the relationship between Stephen and Jane. I feel as though it would have been nicer to focus on Stephen's success rather than just portraying the love between the two. Overall, this was a really great movie and I would recommend for people to watch it.

Cinderella - Movie Review

Cinderella Movie Poster

Released March 13th of 2015, this movie is a disney live-action film of the classic fairytale Cinderella. Once again, the audience watches Cinderella's rise from a servant to a princess but this time, with mesmerising dresses and pretty scenes. Set in a Victorian-esque land, Cinderella, played by Lily James, has to bear with her step-mother and step-sisters who treat her terribly after the death of her father (and earlier on, her mother). When it is announced that the prince is hosting a ball available for all un-wed ladies to attend as he is in search for a wife, the step-mother forbids Cinderella to go. With her hopes of going to the palace and seeing an "apprentice" (whom she discovers to be the Prince later on) Cinderella had met before in the forest crushed, Cinderella then gets surprised by a visit from someone quite magical who helps her. The moral of the story, first said by Cinderella's ill mother to her, is "be brave and kind", and the story follows Cinderella's growth with that moral in mind.

Cinderella and the Step-Mother from Cinderella

Directed by Kenneth Branagh, the movie includes details that are not originally in the classic fairytale, but fit in smoothly as if they were always been there. In the fairytale, the characters all seem to have an apparent good or evil characteristic set upon them. However, this time, a depth is included for the characters such as the step-mother and the Prince. The audience gets a peek on how the step-mother's life and backstory, and with Cate Blanchett's enthralling acting, a different view on the step-mother is provided - she is not purely evil, but is just bitter from her own loss of her loved one and ambitious for a better life for her daughters. While for the prince, who is played by Richard Madden, is no longer just the handsome young man who goes around trying to fit women's feet into a shoe, but becomes a devoted son to a deceased father (the audience also gets a peek at the deep bonds the King and the Prince share) who wishes the best for his father and his people. Along with all the emotional stories and characters, a fun and loveable character is thrown in - the fairy godmother, who is fittingly played by Helena Bonham Carter. The fairy godmother is not elaborated on too much - as it would be quite a fuss to explain magic, after all - but is still a very delightful character that was well-received by the audience.

Ball Scene of Cinderella

For me, the main parts of the movie I particularly enjoyed apart from the added depth and detail, would be the absolutely stunning costume designs. Cinderella's dress for the ball is quite the fantasy dress; it is elegant, vivid and seems to be a spectrum of stunning shades and tints of blue. While at the ball, Cinderella's beautiful dress is accompanied by fantastic dresses of all kinds worn by the other ladies (apart from the step-sister's dresses, as to be honest, they look very much like candy wrappers). Additionally, even the step-mother's dresses are elegant and alluring, at the same time successfully creating an "evil" characteristic for the step-mother through the design and colour palettes. Though designed to showcase evil, the step-mother's dresses are quite admirable and beautiful.

To sum it up, the movie was like a dream - from the pretty dresses, to the vivid character and the happy ending.

Whiplash [Move Review]

  Whiplash tells the story of an obsessive, arrogant Jazz student who bleeds for his art, and his intense teacher whom constantly hurls abuse and curses at him, as he attempts to find incredible music. Winning 3 out of 5 Oscar Nominations, Whiplash has been praised heavily by Critics everywhere. No one expected Miles Teller to be able to play anything but a laid-back teen in a romantic-comedy film, see examples Footloose and The Spectacular Now. However he's come through to portray such a crazily obsessive character such as Andrew in Whiplash, winning the movie the opening film role at the 2014 Sundance Festival. 

   Although the two main characters are heavily disliked throughout the film, their passion for their art and inconsistent, attritional relation between the two, draws in viewers to respect, as well as fear, the both of them. The movie is said to be as much of a thriller than a dramatic musical film, as we witness the destructive relationship between student and master, and basically everyone else in the film is excluded. Only the names of a handful of other actors appear. Such strong emphasis revolving around only the pair, allows us to thoroughly understand Andrew, the painfully arrogant student who puts drumming in front of everything, including his meek attempts at romance. As well as Terence Fletcher, the conductor who abuses his students to ruins in hopes of finding someone as intense as Charlie Parker, the ideal saxophone player. 

  Apart from the lack of Character quantity, Whiplash is also found to exclude the stereotypical Jazz Band normals, such as romance, sex, narcotics and heavy drinking. With a sole focus on intense musical passion, the finale was crafted to become one of the best endings of recent-cinema. With a sudden turn of events and only five minutes left in the movie, Andrew seems plundered into an unhappy fate. However similarly to Charlie Parker, he manages to reinvent himself into what we see as the final electrified performance that satisfies viewers to the point of awe. The amount of meticulous cuts and pans, merged together with the vigorous close ups of  sticks hammering skin and sweat, it's impossible to believe this entire film was shot over the course of 19 days. 

"One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich" Review

The happenings of one day in the life of Ivan Denisovich are vivid depictions of the harsh, icy conditions that many innocent men had to endure in the Soviet Union's post-WWII prisoner camps. What really struck me was the men's unrelenting will to survive under these brutal circumstances; their raw desperation to fend for themselves is especially evident in the way that they are always thinking about ways to satisfy their fundamental needs for food. 
For example, when Shukhov (Denisovich) decides to hide a chunk of his stale bread inside his sawdust mattress for future cases of emergency, I was surprised that he would bother with sewing rip he made in his mattress back together, since it would seem highly unlikely that others would search his bed for food--but, such appears to be the case, and, the dire situation these prisoners are in is once again reflected in this narrative. The lengths people would go to so that they could secure a better future in the camps for themselves is also awe-inspiring. One instance that really stuck out to me was the time when Denisovich found a piece of scrap metal and brought it back to his barracks, even at the risk of being discovered and locked up in the dreaded "cooler", so that he'd be able to make a small, shoe-mending knife with it. The knife would benefit him as it was always possible that someone would require the use of his service, and have to give him some portion of their meal (or, if they are lucky enough to receive one at all, a portion of their package) in return. 
However, it is evident that if one is not as quick-witted or as observant as Shukhov, one will struggle with surviving in this "one-man-for-himself" environment. One clear example would be Fetyukov, who is known for his habit of scavenging for food in the mess hall, and begging others for a drag on their cigarette--he is obviously not capable of coming up with alternative methods to obtain his wants (like saving up his rations, or performing various jobs to get money to buy tobacco).
In a way, this type of lifestyle heavily follows the concept of “survival of the fittest", and it applies to both the mind and body. In terms of the former, a sharp mind can help one avoid trouble (e.g. when Ivan hid his piece of metal in one of his mittens, then held the pair of mittens in one hand to stall the time taken for his inspection); in terms of the latter, a strong, enduring body can help one conserve much needed energy throughout the day.
The realistic examples of the incidents that happened in the USSR's prisoner camps in the 1960's is quite baffling, and although the book becomes slightly tedious as the characters are so focused on the same aspects of their life throughout the book--how to gain warmth in the most efficient way possible, and how to fill his belly--it is a worthwhile read because it allows readers to understand what an incredicble feat it is for the survivors of this harsh treatment to come out of the camps alive.