We All Know That The Sun Rises, But What Else Rises?

We all know the sun rises, but what else rises? What else rises? The "Dark Knight Rises" will be released on July 20, 2012! Now I am 99.99% positive that I can refrain form asking this next question, but for fairness sake, I will ask it anyways. Are you excited? Ahhhhhhh, I am so excited! I can barely hold it in! But, there may be some people out there who do not share my passion and anticipation. That is why I am writing this blog; Well really I am writing this blog for a two-fold reason. 1. To critique "Dark Knight" and share my opinion on "Dark Knight Rises" and 2. To hear your opinion about whether or not you think "Dark knight Rises will be a success.

So let me begin with my critique on "Dark Knight" (MINIMAL SPOILER ALERT HERE) I absolutely loved it, from the intelligent script, to the genius of a director, and to the elegant cast of actors. If you read my earlier blog on the movie "Inception", you will all ready be aware of my love for director Christopher Nolan. He is a genius when it comes to directing because he know how to relate to his audience. Nolan is aware of what his viewers want to see and how to convey that in his pieces of work. And the actors? Simply put, how can one go wrong with names such as Christian Bale and Heath Ledger. Bale is known for his role in the first two Batman movies and of course, will be performing the role in the new and upcoming "Dark knight Rises." But another movie he played an excellent role in was the movie "Prestige"(also directed by Christopher Nolan) But, that is a whole different story and will without a doubt be fully critiqued in one of my future blogs. And Heath Ledger....If you have not seen "Dark Knight", Ledger is enough reason to go see it. I am a huge fan of Christian Bale and his ability to relate to his character's emotion and feelings, but I have to honestly say that Heath Ledger is the aspect that changes this movie from amazing to outstandingly amazing. Ledger hit the nail perfectly as he played the role of the Joker. There was no convincing needing to take place in my mind. He played the role perfectly. If you are fan of this movie I am sure you will remember this quote of his which sends chills down my spine...

"The Joker: Come here. Hey! Look at me. So I had a wife. She was beautiful, like you. Who tells me I worry too much. Who tells me I ought to smile more. Who gambles and gets in deep with the sharks. One day, they carve her face. And we have no money for surgeries. She can't take it. I just want to see her smile again. I just want her to know that I don't care about the scars. So... I stick a razor in my mouth and do this...
[the Joker mimics slicing his mouth open with his tongue]
The Joker:...to myself. And you know what? She can't stand the sight of me! She leaves. Now I see the funny side. Now I'm always smiling!"

What a great moment in this film among several others. Before I ask some questions about the upcoming "Dark Knight Rises", I just wanted to share a short summary of "Dark Knight" for those of you that for some strange reason, have not been able to see it yet. "Dark Knight" portrays Batman as he teams up with Harvey Dent to bring down the opposing vigilante mob and bring peace to the disparaging city of Gotham, but in attempting to accomplish this, let the cat out of the cage so-to-speak. Joker, with his hell-bent passion to turn Gotham against itself, does everything in his power to stop Batman and bring his heroic qualities down to his level.

So questions for "Dark Knight Rises." 1. Do you think this movie will be the last movie in the Batman series? 2. Are you upset that the Joker will not be in it? 3. Do you think it has potential to be the movie out of the series? 4. Will this movie be a success? Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

The Rise To Fame of Classic Zombie Movies

When it comes to classic zombie movies, everyone has their own favorites, and most can still remember the first time they sat in front of the television, watching a black and white portrayal of the undead slowly, but determinedly, chasing down their bumbling prey. Classic zombie movies are still a favorite amongst diehard fans, because they lend an element of gritty morbidity that pop culture based movies seem to lack these days; while this shouldn't take away from the latest releases within this genre, it definitely adds to the authority of the films that preceded them.

The reason why classic zombie movies seem to come with the tag line this is what actual zombies are supposed to look like, is because the archetype for these creatures stemmed from the Voodoo religion, which is, in essence, Haitian. When William S. Seabrook returned from his voyage to Haiti and published his travelogue, The magic island, westerners found themselves enthralled with the concept of a creature that rises from the grave due to the powers of a sorcerer called a Brokor. This fascination led to some of the best classic films on the subject, and all within a matter of a few decades.

Bela Lugosi's 'White Zombie' is perhaps one of the most famous classic films on this subject. It follows the story of a prosperous businessman by the name of Murder Legendre, based in Haiti, who has the power to transform men into zombies. When a man falls in love with a woman who is to marry someone else, he approaches the voodoo master for assistance, who then turns his beloved into a zombie. The movie itself is said to closely follow the writings of Seabrook, even going as far as mentioning the potion that was supposed to turn corpses into the undead slaves of the voodoo priest.

George Romero's 'The Night of the Living Dead' was another classic which altered the face of this genre, and remakes of this film continue to be released up until today. The film was released in 1968 and its reception was marked by shock and outrage, although when this subsided, it quickly became one of the penultimate favorite films on the subject. One of the reasons for its initial negative reception was the fact that it was gory, contained nudity, and the protagonist of the film was ultimately killed in the end. Basically, this film was unlike any other that had been released in the past, and it remains one of the most popular films based on the undead to date.

'The Night of the Living Dead' did not only alter the horror genre; it also added to the lore and myth surrounding these supernatural creatures. In the past, zombies were the creation of dark voodoo priests, but in this feature, they could transfer their supernatural abilities to others through a bite. The film also references methods on how to kill these creatures - shoot them through the head- which has become the first method of defense against the undead in countless films and games to date.

While classic zombie movies might have changed slightly during the first few decades when they began making their debuts on big screens all over the world, one thing remains certain; they inspired a fascination with these creatures that continues to thrive today. Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

Snow White and the Huntsman Movie Review

If you're unfamiliar with my movie reviews, here's the way it works: I go check out the latest movie everyone is talking about, drink an astonishing amount of diet soda, and then report back to you, looking for as many things to make fun of as this space allows, while trying to strike a balance with the positive highlights. Welcome. Let's get started.

THE GOOD: What we have here is an attempt at taking the most mild-mannered and somewhat pathetic princess in history, and giving her a backbone. This is not your childhood fairy tale version, with whistling dwarves and a helpless girl in a dress, running around with her hand over her mouth, always looking surprised. It's a much darker and creepier scene playing out, which frankly adds to the appeal in my opinion.

Left motherless as a small child, Snow White (played by Kristin Stewart) has to adjust to life with her stepmother Raveena (Charlize Theron) who is the epitome of the word, "self absorbed". When it becomes clear that Mommy Dearest has nothing good in store for her, Snow White escapes into the forest where she encounters all sorts of creepy things brought on by hallucinogenic spores, and where she also first meets the Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth), who is somewhat a nice hallucination of sorts himself. Sent to kill her, the Huntsman is faced with the decision of serving the wicked Queen, or helping Snow White escape. And as the bad boy he is, you can imagine what he chooses to do.

There were a lot of positive's in this film for me - the visual effects were stunning, and Charlize Theron is so terrifying as the Queen that I found myself considering ways to make myself less attractive so I wouldn't risk encountering her soul sucking vanity. I even have to admit that Kristin Stewart, who I am not particularly impressed with as an actress, was perfect for the role - not only because it required very little facial expression, but because THIS Snow White isn't exactly "girly" - and let's face it, Ms. Stewart has never been known for acting ladylike. And to round things out, Chris Hemsworth with a Scottish accent is the stuff dreams are made of. Thank you.

THE BAD: I mentioned previously that there were no whistling dwarves in this version, but rest assured that dwarves ARE present and accounted for - they just aren't particularly cute and snuggly little buggers. I didn't mind the fact that they were all a little rough looking, but I found myself completely unable to understand what they were saying from time to time. I'm still not sure if it was the British accents or if they were all, in fact, a bunch of mumblers.

THE UGLY: There was certainly no shortage of icky things to see in this movie: Stabbings, internal organ removals, and the Queen eating the still warm heart of a dead animal to name a few. Still, when you are faced with the glaring possibility that the Queen and her weirdo brother seem to have some sort of incestuous thing going on, all else pales in comparison. I don't have a brother, but if I did, I'd like to think that he wouldn't feel the need to watch me take a bath, nor would I feel inclined to chat it up with him as I step into a giant pool of milk. But that's just how I roll.

Bottom line, if you like your fairy tales on the darker side, with the fair maiden being less "helpless" and more "ragged mess", then this is the version for you.

The Trophy Wife gives this movie 4 trophies.

Snow White and the Huntsman has a running time of 127 minutes and is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, and brief sensuality. (No F words used) Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

Is It Any Wonder That Movie Piracy Sites Are Thriving?

It was a rainy day today, so my wife and I decided that we should go and see a movie. We called up Grandma and asked if she would be willing to look after the kids for a few hours, and she was happy to spend some extra time with the little ones. So, after finally agreeing to go and see the new Men In Black 3 movie, we got into the car and headed to our local Cineplex theatre. When we arrived, we walked up to the ticket machine, requested 2 general admission tickets and then proceeded to pay. For the two tickets at this particular Cineplex, the grand total was $21.00, which seemed pretty reasonable. Next, we proceeded over to the concession stands to consider our options for a snack. We didn't want to get too elaborate, so we settled on a large popcorn, 2 regular sized drinks and a small bag of candy.

Fortunately, my wife has a 'SCENE' card (a promotional card that rewards purchases with points and lowers the cost of some goods when presented at time of purchase). However, even with the card, the snacks cost us another $21.00!! Now, we're not talking about pizza and fries, or hot dogs and energy drinks here....we're talking about one of the cheapest snacks known to mankind....due to the sheer abundance of raw materials available on this continent, popcorn costs mere pennies to produce, but apparently commands a GIANT price tag to consume when purchased at a movie theatre! As well, those large cups of soda are quite expensive as well (after they fill your cup with Ice, there might be the equivalent of one standard can of soda in that cup). The way I figure it, we probably got the equivalent of 1/4 a cup of popped corn kernels, 2 cans of pop and a bag of candy that could be purchased at a local grocery store for about $2. Based on some quick research that I have done, a pound of popcorn kernels is equal to about 4 cups of kernels, and a 1/4 cup of kernels will yield approximately 8 cups of popped popcorn.

So 4 cups of kernels will yield about 128 cups of popped popcorn! Oh and wait!, it's important to note that a pound of popcorn kernels costs about $2.00, so as you can see, you can produce approximately 128 cups of popcorn for about $2.00! Keeping these figures in mind, it cost the movie theatre approximately 13 cents for our large bag of popcorn, another couple of bucks for our soft drinks (calculated at a retail cost of $1 per can of soda), and about $2 or $3 for the bag of candy...for a grand total of about $5! In turn, they charged us $21.00 for those snacks!! That represents a mark-up of over 400%! As a result of this, it cost my wife and I just over $40.00 to see a movie today...and that was at a Cineplex where the price of the general admission tickets are much lower than those found at the same theatres in larger cities, where it's not uncommon to find admission prices ranging from $12 to $18 per person!

With pricing like this, it is little wonder why piracy has become such a large issue in today's society. After all, imagine if instead of Men In Black 3, my wife and I had decided to take our kids to the movies with us and take in a children's movie. Even with the cheaper kids ticket and concession costs factored in, the costs associated with such an endeavor would balloon to somewhere between $70 - $90! In the current economy, families are looking for affordable entertainment, and I do not believe that our local movie theatres are doing a very good job of providing that. Instead, families are more likely to download a newly released movie, pop up some popcorn on the stove and crack open some beverages found in the fridge... then curl up on the sofas and lazy boy chairs and have a family movie night. The costs associated with the stay at home movie night are likely under $10 bucks, and you don't have to worry about the obnoxious teenagers 3 rows behind tossing popcorn at you, while texting and speaking on their cellphones!

In the past 5 years alone I have witnessed the costs at the concession stands rise nearly 40%! I understand that some food industries have had to suffer through shortages due to issues related to weather and environment, but corn has remained very affordable throughout those 5 years. The costs associated with soda and candy has gone up slightly, but certainly not enough to justify a 40% hike at the movie concessions. So, is this just a matter of corporate and shareholder greed? Is the never ending appetite for ever increasing profits starting to get to a point that average families now face exorbitant costs just to take their loved ones to a show? Is it any surprise that movie theatres have to plaster large signs at the doors declaring "No Outside Food or Drink Beyond This Point"?

Obviously they are trying to protect their very large profit margins and thus their investors returns.....not to mention the fat salaries and bonuses awarded to their top executives! In 2010, the CEO of Cineplex received over $4.5 Million in total compensation - most of which was received in additional incentives beyond his base salary based on performance and profit targets! His base salary was just $803 Thousand dollars.....but he earned over 5 times this amount once all of the additional bonuses and incentives were paid....and you can bet your bottom dollar that those rising ticket prices and exorbitant concession prices factored largely into his compensation package....but hey, who can live on a paltry base salary of $803,000/year anyways right?

Here is an idea for Cineplex that would result in continued growth of profits and thus, investor delight. Why don't you drop your prices 40%, encouraging more families and individuals to visit your theatres and grow your business through expanded ticket and concession sales! As a result, you could positively affect the employment figures and employ more people to serve the influx of customers who can now afford to come to the movies, and more people could enjoy the magic of watching movies on the big screen, rather than downloading those movies to hard drives at home that are hooked up to their large screen televisions. I think you will find that people are more willing to pay a fair price for the entertainment you are providing, than stay at home and watch their free downloads because they cannot afford to pay your unfair and outlandishly exorbitant fees.

Furthermore, the movie industry going after the websites that provide free downloads of your movies will never yield any great blows to the infinite community of piracy sites that exist out there in the wild of the world wide web....but charging people affordable prices to visit your theatres will slowly start to win back customers who are tired of being overcharged to watch movies that rarely live up to their trailers! While the cost of your tickets and concessions have been steadily going up, the cost of large screen televisions and the technology used for downloading content has been steadily going down. If that trend continues, theatre companies like Cineplex will continue to see their viewership decline (Between the years 2000 - 2010, cinema attendance has dropped by over 22%, while during the same period, ticket prices have increased over 15%!), and large electronic retailers like Best Buy, Future Shop and Amazon will continue to benefit from the increased demand for new big screen TV's!

The bigger concern for companies like Cineplex should be...how long can they continue raising prices to offset the decline in ticket sales before they begin seeing massive drops in cinema attendance! Only time will tell, but if I were the CEO of Cineplex, I would be very concerned with the long term prospects of my job. Of course, the question remains whether the current CEO has enough foresight and courage to challenge the traditional business model that has over the past 10 years continued to show steady declines in attendance! Personally, I hope the industry turns itself around, and many more generations of people can continue to experience the magic of the big screen at an affordable price. Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

Jim Parsons: Stage, Screen and Television

Jim Parsons' role of Sheldon Cooper in The Big Bang Theory may be the only place you've ever seen him. But Parsons is a stage-trained actor who's been in plays since the age of six. Parsons has received two Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe, a Critics' Choice TV Award and a Television Critics Association award for playing Sheldon Cooper.

Growing up in Houston, Texas, he appeared in Noises Off in his junior year of high school. At the University of Houston he appeared in 17 plays in three years. After graduation he moved to New York, working on off-Broadway and in TV appearances.

While The Big Bang Theory was on hiatus in 2011, Parsons was on Broadway in The Normal Heart. From May until August of 2012, he's starring in Harvey. He's remarked that he has never seen Harvey on stage, nor has he seen the James Stewart movie. It's his 30th stage appearance.

He's also appeared in 11 films. Two were cameos. The Big Bang Theory is Parsons' 10th TV series. You can't really call them all his series, since he appeared in only one episode of six shows. He has said he auditioned for between 15 and 30 pilots. Sometimes when he was cast, the shows weren't picked up by networks. But that's how you work your way up.

The role of Sheldon Cooper changed everything. The character is a scientist and a genius, having completed college in his teens. He's surrounded by three nerdy friends whom he constantly criticizes. He is obsessive about routine, especially certain dinners on certain days of the week, and he's very upset with any change. The waitress who lives across the hall confuses him, since he's the only one in the group not attracted to her, and he never understands sarcasm from her or anyone else. Despite his narcissistic personality, he is devoid of social skills, and he intensely dislikes being touched. (He's virginal at 31.) He spouts arcane scientific details -- and his own opinions -- in rapid-fire speech. This is undoubtedly a big reason for his Emmys. The scripts must be incredibly challenging.

Fans are fascinated by the difference between Jim and Sheldon. Jim smiles a lot more than Sheldon does. Actually, Sheldon practically never does. He has an almost nonexistent sense of humor. Parsons was hilarious on a recent interview with Jon Stewart on the Daily Show. (Harvey will close in August..."get your tickets now!") His Emmy acceptance speeches were humble and grateful. And he smiled!

He loved school, and he loves his career now. He's worked hard for his success. Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

Watch Movies Online, How to Protect Yourself

Movies are the excellent stress busters that never let you fall prey to boredom. You can enjoy them wherever you want, in a cinema hall, at home on DVD player or online. Whereas these ways accompany varied benefits, they also have certain associated pitfalls. For example, visiting a theater and making all those expenditures on tickets, popcorn and soft drinks could take a heavy toll on your pocket. Likewise, the quality of DVD you play at home may or may not be up to the mark. Interestingly, the freedom to watch movies online without paying single penny sets you free from adopting the first two options. But whether this method is safe or not, let us find out.

Security concerns while watching flicks online:

Like all the other activities you perform online, enjoying online movies as well demands sedate security measures. Unfortunately if you lag behind at any step, you are likely to get trapped in the network of hackers and consequently your computer data could be at grave risk of being stolen. In addition, copyright owners could file lawsuits against you on the offense of copyright infringement. You would definitely not like the idea to get caught amid such hassles, would you?

Suitable protective measures:

With so many demerits of accessing movie websites, and downloading one to enjoy in your free time, you can easily decide to avoid this activity. But if you can bear a little bit patience and follow certain essential tips, protecting yourself from online hassles during your stint with online movies won't be that hard affair. Below are some important tips in this context:

• Keep distance from unsolicited links that ask you to download your preferred movie, they can trick you to open doors for the malware to enter into your system

• Utilizing a Virtual private network could let you add an additional security layer towards your endeavor of relishing a movie over the internet. It will hide your real IP address with a different IP and hence will keep you anonymous online.

• Browse through websites that allow you to watch or download movies legally. Prominently two types of films fall under this category, viz a viz, public domain flicks and movies that are licensed for online viewing.

Insight into safe film categories:

Public Domain Films: These types of motion pictures are copyrighted but have their links over the web for a very short span of time. You are free to enjoy them through live streaming or by downloading them, to watch later on. These films mostly belong to classic genre and hence could be of interest for a selected category of movie buffs. You may be asked to register with the concerned websites before moving ahead.

Licensed Films: This second category of legal films is duly licensed to be watched online. Compared to the first type, movies falling under this class are latest, laced with superseding sound feature and own high quality graphics. These flicks are often accompanied by short duration commercial ads, which could be termed as one the downsides to this film type. You would not be asked to register while accessing any such site, offering licensed films. Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

Jim Parsons: Stage, Screen and Television

Jim Parsons' role of Sheldon Cooper in The Big Bang Theory may be the only place you've ever seen him. But Parsons is a stage-trained actor who's been in plays since the age of six. Parsons has received two Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe, a Critics' Choice TV Award and a Television Critics Association award for playing Sheldon Cooper.

Growing up in Houston, Texas, he appeared in Noises Off in his junior year of high school. At the University of Houston he appeared in 17 plays in three years. After graduation he moved to New York, working on off-Broadway and in TV appearances.

While The Big Bang Theory was on hiatus in 2011, Parsons was on Broadway in The Normal Heart. From May until August of 2012, he's starring in Harvey. He's remarked that he has never seen Harvey on stage, nor has he seen the James Stewart movie. It's his 30th stage appearance.

He's also appeared in 11 films. Two were cameos. The Big Bang Theory is Parsons' 10th TV series. You can't really call them all his series, since he appeared in only one episode of six shows. He has said he auditioned for between 15 and 30 pilots. Sometimes when he was cast, the shows weren't picked up by networks. But that's how you work your way up.

The role of Sheldon Cooper changed everything. The character is a scientist and a genius, having completed college in his teens. He's surrounded by three nerdy friends whom he constantly criticizes. He is obsessive about routine, especially certain dinners on certain days of the week, and he's very upset with any change. The waitress who lives across the hall confuses him, since he's the only one in the group not attracted to her, and he never understands sarcasm from her or anyone else. Despite his narcissistic personality, he is devoid of social skills, and he intensely dislikes being touched. (He's virginal at 31.) He spouts arcane scientific details -- and his own opinions -- in rapid-fire speech. This is undoubtedly a big reason for his Emmys. The scripts must be incredibly challenging.

Fans are fascinated by the difference between Jim and Sheldon. Jim smiles a lot more than Sheldon does. Actually, Sheldon practically never does. He has an almost nonexistent sense of humor. Parsons was hilarious on a recent interview with Jon Stewart on the Daily Show. (Harvey will close in August..."get your tickets now!") His Emmy acceptance speeches were humble and grateful. And he smiled!

He loved school, and he loves his career now. He's worked hard for his success. Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

Is It Any Wonder That Movie Piracy Sites Are Thriving?

It was a rainy day today, so my wife and I decided that we should go and see a movie. We called up Grandma and asked if she would be willing to look after the kids for a few hours, and she was happy to spend some extra time with the little ones. So, after finally agreeing to go and see the new Men In Black 3 movie, we got into the car and headed to our local Cineplex theatre. When we arrived, we walked up to the ticket machine, requested 2 general admission tickets and then proceeded to pay. For the two tickets at this particular Cineplex, the grand total was $21.00, which seemed pretty reasonable. Next, we proceeded over to the concession stands to consider our options for a snack. We didn't want to get too elaborate, so we settled on a large popcorn, 2 regular sized drinks and a small bag of candy.

Fortunately, my wife has a 'SCENE' card (a promotional card that rewards purchases with points and lowers the cost of some goods when presented at time of purchase). However, even with the card, the snacks cost us another $21.00!! Now, we're not talking about pizza and fries, or hot dogs and energy drinks here....we're talking about one of the cheapest snacks known to mankind....due to the sheer abundance of raw materials available on this continent, popcorn costs mere pennies to produce, but apparently commands a GIANT price tag to consume when purchased at a movie theatre! As well, those large cups of soda are quite expensive as well (after they fill your cup with Ice, there might be the equivalent of one standard can of soda in that cup). The way I figure it, we probably got the equivalent of 1/4 a cup of popped corn kernels, 2 cans of pop and a bag of candy that could be purchased at a local grocery store for about $2. Based on some quick research that I have done, a pound of popcorn kernels is equal to about 4 cups of kernels, and a 1/4 cup of kernels will yield approximately 8 cups of popped popcorn.

So 4 cups of kernels will yield about 128 cups of popped popcorn! Oh and wait!, it's important to note that a pound of popcorn kernels costs about $2.00, so as you can see, you can produce approximately 128 cups of popcorn for about $2.00! Keeping these figures in mind, it cost the movie theatre approximately 13 cents for our large bag of popcorn, another couple of bucks for our soft drinks (calculated at a retail cost of $1 per can of soda), and about $2 or $3 for the bag of candy...for a grand total of about $5! In turn, they charged us $21.00 for those snacks!! That represents a mark-up of over 400%! As a result of this, it cost my wife and I just over $40.00 to see a movie today...and that was at a Cineplex where the price of the general admission tickets are much lower than those found at the same theatres in larger cities, where it's not uncommon to find admission prices ranging from $12 to $18 per person!

With pricing like this, it is little wonder why piracy has become such a large issue in today's society. After all, imagine if instead of Men In Black 3, my wife and I had decided to take our kids to the movies with us and take in a children's movie. Even with the cheaper kids ticket and concession costs factored in, the costs associated with such an endeavor would balloon to somewhere between $70 - $90! In the current economy, families are looking for affordable entertainment, and I do not believe that our local movie theatres are doing a very good job of providing that. Instead, families are more likely to download a newly released movie, pop up some popcorn on the stove and crack open some beverages found in the fridge... then curl up on the sofas and lazy boy chairs and have a family movie night. The costs associated with the stay at home movie night are likely under $10 bucks, and you don't have to worry about the obnoxious teenagers 3 rows behind tossing popcorn at you, while texting and speaking on their cellphones!

In the past 5 years alone I have witnessed the costs at the concession stands rise nearly 40%! I understand that some food industries have had to suffer through shortages due to issues related to weather and environment, but corn has remained very affordable throughout those 5 years. The costs associated with soda and candy has gone up slightly, but certainly not enough to justify a 40% hike at the movie concessions. So, is this just a matter of corporate and shareholder greed? Is the never ending appetite for ever increasing profits starting to get to a point that average families now face exorbitant costs just to take their loved ones to a show? Is it any surprise that movie theatres have to plaster large signs at the doors declaring "No Outside Food or Drink Beyond This Point"?

Obviously they are trying to protect their very large profit margins and thus their investors returns.....not to mention the fat salaries and bonuses awarded to their top executives! In 2010, the CEO of Cineplex received over $4.5 Million in total compensation - most of which was received in additional incentives beyond his base salary based on performance and profit targets! His base salary was just $803 Thousand dollars.....but he earned over 5 times this amount once all of the additional bonuses and incentives were paid....and you can bet your bottom dollar that those rising ticket prices and exorbitant concession prices factored largely into his compensation package....but hey, who can live on a paltry base salary of $803,000/year anyways right?

Here is an idea for Cineplex that would result in continued growth of profits and thus, investor delight. Why don't you drop your prices 40%, encouraging more families and individuals to visit your theatres and grow your business through expanded ticket and concession sales! As a result, you could positively affect the employment figures and employ more people to serve the influx of customers who can now afford to come to the movies, and more people could enjoy the magic of watching movies on the big screen, rather than downloading those movies to hard drives at home that are hooked up to their large screen televisions. I think you will find that people are more willing to pay a fair price for the entertainment you are providing, than stay at home and watch their free downloads because they cannot afford to pay your unfair and outlandishly exorbitant fees.

Furthermore, the movie industry going after the websites that provide free downloads of your movies will never yield any great blows to the infinite community of piracy sites that exist out there in the wild of the world wide web....but charging people affordable prices to visit your theatres will slowly start to win back customers who are tired of being overcharged to watch movies that rarely live up to their trailers! While the cost of your tickets and concessions have been steadily going up, the cost of large screen televisions and the technology used for downloading content has been steadily going down. If that trend continues, theatre companies like Cineplex will continue to see their viewership decline (Between the years 2000 - 2010, cinema attendance has dropped by over 22%, while during the same period, ticket prices have increased over 15%!), and large electronic retailers like Best Buy, Future Shop and Amazon will continue to benefit from the increased demand for new big screen TV's!

The bigger concern for companies like Cineplex should be...how long can they continue raising prices to offset the decline in ticket sales before they begin seeing massive drops in cinema attendance! Only time will tell, but if I were the CEO of Cineplex, I would be very concerned with the long term prospects of my job. Of course, the question remains whether the current CEO has enough foresight and courage to challenge the traditional business model that has over the past 10 years continued to show steady declines in attendance! Personally, I hope the industry turns itself around, and many more generations of people can continue to experience the magic of the big screen at an affordable price. Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

Watch Movies Online, How to Protect Yourself

Movies are the excellent stress busters that never let you fall prey to boredom. You can enjoy them wherever you want, in a cinema hall, at home on DVD player or online. Whereas these ways accompany varied benefits, they also have certain associated pitfalls. For example, visiting a theater and making all those expenditures on tickets, popcorn and soft drinks could take a heavy toll on your pocket. Likewise, the quality of DVD you play at home may or may not be up to the mark. Interestingly, the freedom to watch movies online without paying single penny sets you free from adopting the first two options. But whether this method is safe or not, let us find out.

Security concerns while watching flicks online:

Like all the other activities you perform online, enjoying online movies as well demands sedate security measures. Unfortunately if you lag behind at any step, you are likely to get trapped in the network of hackers and consequently your computer data could be at grave risk of being stolen. In addition, copyright owners could file lawsuits against you on the offense of copyright infringement. You would definitely not like the idea to get caught amid such hassles, would you?

Suitable protective measures:

With so many demerits of accessing movie websites, and downloading one to enjoy in your free time, you can easily decide to avoid this activity. But if you can bear a little bit patience and follow certain essential tips, protecting yourself from online hassles during your stint with online movies won't be that hard affair. Below are some important tips in this context:

• Keep distance from unsolicited links that ask you to download your preferred movie, they can trick you to open doors for the malware to enter into your system

• Utilizing a Virtual private network could let you add an additional security layer towards your endeavor of relishing a movie over the internet. It will hide your real IP address with a different IP and hence will keep you anonymous online.

• Browse through websites that allow you to watch or download movies legally. Prominently two types of films fall under this category, viz a viz, public domain flicks and movies that are licensed for online viewing.

Insight into safe film categories:

Public Domain Films: These types of motion pictures are copyrighted but have their links over the web for a very short span of time. You are free to enjoy them through live streaming or by downloading them, to watch later on. These films mostly belong to classic genre and hence could be of interest for a selected category of movie buffs. You may be asked to register with the concerned websites before moving ahead.

Licensed Films: This second category of legal films is duly licensed to be watched online. Compared to the first type, movies falling under this class are latest, laced with superseding sound feature and own high quality graphics. These flicks are often accompanied by short duration commercial ads, which could be termed as one the downsides to this film type. You would not be asked to register while accessing any such site, offering licensed films. Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

The Rise To Fame of Classic Zombie Movies

When it comes to classic zombie movies, everyone has their own favorites, and most can still remember the first time they sat in front of the television, watching a black and white portrayal of the undead slowly, but determinedly, chasing down their bumbling prey. Classic zombie movies are still a favorite amongst diehard fans, because they lend an element of gritty morbidity that pop culture based movies seem to lack these days; while this shouldn't take away from the latest releases within this genre, it definitely adds to the authority of the films that preceded them.

The reason why classic zombie movies seem to come with the tag line this is what actual zombies are supposed to look like, is because the archetype for these creatures stemmed from the Voodoo religion, which is, in essence, Haitian. When William S. Seabrook returned from his voyage to Haiti and published his travelogue, The magic island, westerners found themselves enthralled with the concept of a creature that rises from the grave due to the powers of a sorcerer called a Brokor. This fascination led to some of the best classic films on the subject, and all within a matter of a few decades.

Bela Lugosi's 'White Zombie' is perhaps one of the most famous classic films on this subject. It follows the story of a prosperous businessman by the name of Murder Legendre, based in Haiti, who has the power to transform men into zombies. When a man falls in love with a woman who is to marry someone else, he approaches the voodoo master for assistance, who then turns his beloved into a zombie. The movie itself is said to closely follow the writings of Seabrook, even going as far as mentioning the potion that was supposed to turn corpses into the undead slaves of the voodoo priest.

George Romero's 'The Night of the Living Dead' was another classic which altered the face of this genre, and remakes of this film continue to be released up until today. The film was released in 1968 and its reception was marked by shock and outrage, although when this subsided, it quickly became one of the penultimate favorite films on the subject. One of the reasons for its initial negative reception was the fact that it was gory, contained nudity, and the protagonist of the film was ultimately killed in the end. Basically, this film was unlike any other that had been released in the past, and it remains one of the most popular films based on the undead to date.

'The Night of the Living Dead' did not only alter the horror genre; it also added to the lore and myth surrounding these supernatural creatures. In the past, zombies were the creation of dark voodoo priests, but in this feature, they could transfer their supernatural abilities to others through a bite. The film also references methods on how to kill these creatures - shoot them through the head- which has become the first method of defense against the undead in countless films and games to date.

While classic zombie movies might have changed slightly during the first few decades when they began making their debuts on big screens all over the world, one thing remains certain; they inspired a fascination with these creatures that continues to thrive today. Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

We All Know That The Sun Rises, But What Else Rises?

We all know the sun rises, but what else rises? What else rises? The "Dark Knight Rises" will be released on July 20, 2012! Now I am 99.99% positive that I can refrain form asking this next question, but for fairness sake, I will ask it anyways. Are you excited? Ahhhhhhh, I am so excited! I can barely hold it in! But, there may be some people out there who do not share my passion and anticipation. That is why I am writing this blog; Well really I am writing this blog for a two-fold reason. 1. To critique "Dark Knight" and share my opinion on "Dark Knight Rises" and 2. To hear your opinion about whether or not you think "Dark knight Rises will be a success.

So let me begin with my critique on "Dark Knight" (MINIMAL SPOILER ALERT HERE) I absolutely loved it, from the intelligent script, to the genius of a director, and to the elegant cast of actors. If you read my earlier blog on the movie "Inception", you will all ready be aware of my love for director Christopher Nolan. He is a genius when it comes to directing because he know how to relate to his audience. Nolan is aware of what his viewers want to see and how to convey that in his pieces of work. And the actors? Simply put, how can one go wrong with names such as Christian Bale and Heath Ledger. Bale is known for his role in the first two Batman movies and of course, will be performing the role in the new and upcoming "Dark knight Rises." But another movie he played an excellent role in was the movie "Prestige"(also directed by Christopher Nolan) But, that is a whole different story and will without a doubt be fully critiqued in one of my future blogs. And Heath Ledger....If you have not seen "Dark Knight", Ledger is enough reason to go see it. I am a huge fan of Christian Bale and his ability to relate to his character's emotion and feelings, but I have to honestly say that Heath Ledger is the aspect that changes this movie from amazing to outstandingly amazing. Ledger hit the nail perfectly as he played the role of the Joker. There was no convincing needing to take place in my mind. He played the role perfectly. If you are fan of this movie I am sure you will remember this quote of his which sends chills down my spine...

"The Joker: Come here. Hey! Look at me. So I had a wife. She was beautiful, like you. Who tells me I worry too much. Who tells me I ought to smile more. Who gambles and gets in deep with the sharks. One day, they carve her face. And we have no money for surgeries. She can't take it. I just want to see her smile again. I just want her to know that I don't care about the scars. So... I stick a razor in my mouth and do this...
[the Joker mimics slicing his mouth open with his tongue]
The Joker:...to myself. And you know what? She can't stand the sight of me! She leaves. Now I see the funny side. Now I'm always smiling!"

What a great moment in this film among several others. Before I ask some questions about the upcoming "Dark Knight Rises", I just wanted to share a short summary of "Dark Knight" for those of you that for some strange reason, have not been able to see it yet. "Dark Knight" portrays Batman as he teams up with Harvey Dent to bring down the opposing vigilante mob and bring peace to the disparaging city of Gotham, but in attempting to accomplish this, let the cat out of the cage so-to-speak. Joker, with his hell-bent passion to turn Gotham against itself, does everything in his power to stop Batman and bring his heroic qualities down to his level.

So questions for "Dark Knight Rises." 1. Do you think this movie will be the last movie in the Batman series? 2. Are you upset that the Joker will not be in it? 3. Do you think it has potential to be the movie out of the series? 4. Will this movie be a success? Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

Snow White and the Huntsman Movie Review

If you're unfamiliar with my movie reviews, here's the way it works: I go check out the latest movie everyone is talking about, drink an astonishing amount of diet soda, and then report back to you, looking for as many things to make fun of as this space allows, while trying to strike a balance with the positive highlights. Welcome. Let's get started.

THE GOOD: What we have here is an attempt at taking the most mild-mannered and somewhat pathetic princess in history, and giving her a backbone. This is not your childhood fairy tale version, with whistling dwarves and a helpless girl in a dress, running around with her hand over her mouth, always looking surprised. It's a much darker and creepier scene playing out, which frankly adds to the appeal in my opinion.

Left motherless as a small child, Snow White (played by Kristin Stewart) has to adjust to life with her stepmother Raveena (Charlize Theron) who is the epitome of the word, "self absorbed". When it becomes clear that Mommy Dearest has nothing good in store for her, Snow White escapes into the forest where she encounters all sorts of creepy things brought on by hallucinogenic spores, and where she also first meets the Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth), who is somewhat a nice hallucination of sorts himself. Sent to kill her, the Huntsman is faced with the decision of serving the wicked Queen, or helping Snow White escape. And as the bad boy he is, you can imagine what he chooses to do.

There were a lot of positive's in this film for me - the visual effects were stunning, and Charlize Theron is so terrifying as the Queen that I found myself considering ways to make myself less attractive so I wouldn't risk encountering her soul sucking vanity. I even have to admit that Kristin Stewart, who I am not particularly impressed with as an actress, was perfect for the role - not only because it required very little facial expression, but because THIS Snow White isn't exactly "girly" - and let's face it, Ms. Stewart has never been known for acting ladylike. And to round things out, Chris Hemsworth with a Scottish accent is the stuff dreams are made of. Thank you.

THE BAD: I mentioned previously that there were no whistling dwarves in this version, but rest assured that dwarves ARE present and accounted for - they just aren't particularly cute and snuggly little buggers. I didn't mind the fact that they were all a little rough looking, but I found myself completely unable to understand what they were saying from time to time. I'm still not sure if it was the British accents or if they were all, in fact, a bunch of mumblers.

THE UGLY: There was certainly no shortage of icky things to see in this movie: Stabbings, internal organ removals, and the Queen eating the still warm heart of a dead animal to name a few. Still, when you are faced with the glaring possibility that the Queen and her weirdo brother seem to have some sort of incestuous thing going on, all else pales in comparison. I don't have a brother, but if I did, I'd like to think that he wouldn't feel the need to watch me take a bath, nor would I feel inclined to chat it up with him as I step into a giant pool of milk. But that's just how I roll.

Bottom line, if you like your fairy tales on the darker side, with the fair maiden being less "helpless" and more "ragged mess", then this is the version for you.

The Trophy Wife gives this movie 4 trophies.

Snow White and the Huntsman has a running time of 127 minutes and is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, and brief sensuality. (No F words used) Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.