Movies opening this week

1. Battle for Terra
2. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past
3. Home
4. Merry Gentlemen
5. The Limits of Color
6. The Skeptic

and

7. X-men Origins Wolverine

My Sister's Keeper trailer

Once in a while, a film comes along that moves you to the very core; My Sister's Keeper comes across as that type of film. If you consider yourself a sensitive soul then keep that kleenex box nearby because this film will make you weep. 

Foxx delivers Oscar-worthy performance

The following is a published article by me (Laura Aguirre) featured on the Daily 49er- the student newspaper at CSULB.

Nathaniel Ayers is a man with a riveting past. At the age of 19, he was one of the first few African-Americans accepted into Juilliard. Ayers played the cello and he had the potential to be one of the greatest musicians. However, during his third year at Juilliard, Ayers lost himself.

Joe Wright’s “The Soloist,” starring Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr., is based on the true life of Nathaniel Ayers. The film does an amazing job in portraying Ayers (Foxx) as a man who has lost his mind in music. Every time the orchestra begins to play, Ayers closes his eyes and his lips turn into a smile. What follows are images of birds flying free over the city, and flamboyant colors in the shapes of circles.
The film follows Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez (Downey), who has a deadline, but no story. In his desperate search for a story, he finds himself standing in front of the Walt Disney Concert Hall, heavy-hearted. Suddenly he begins to hear the sound of distant violins. In front of a bronze statue of Beethoven, he meets the subject of his next column, Ayers.
Soon, we discover that Ayers, besides being another homeless man in Los Angeles, is in fact, a man living with schizophrenia. After some research, Lopez discovers Ayers’ difficult past and writes about it. Several successful columns later, Lopez gets a cello from one of his readers as a gift for Ayers.
The highlight of the entire film lies in the moments when Ayers plays the cello for the first time in nearly three decades.
Throughout the film there is a power struggle between Lopez and Ayers, in which both defy each other in small instances.
Foxx does an amazing job as Nathaniel Ayers and will probably receive an Oscar nomination, but “The Soloist” spends more time in the newsroom, than in the slums of Los Angeles. At some point, I doubted who “the soloist” really was. Was it Ayers? Or was it Lopez? Instead of leaving the theater in deep admiration, I left feeling sorry for the 90,000 people living homeless in the streets of Los Angeles, but then again I feel that way about five times a week.
“The Soloist” is a film with great moments and good actors, but in the attempt to tell the tale of a man who loves music more than most people love anything their entire lives, it fails to deliver what I expected. Instead of portraying Lopez as a man with a short temper, he should have been remembered as a hero — or what Ayers’ saw him as — a god. A god that helped him reconnect with the musical soul that dwells inside of him.
3 out of 4 Stars
Summary: The film portrays the life of musical genius Nathaniel Ayers and his journey from the streets of Los Angeles to the Disney Concert Hall.
Our Take: Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr. both give excellent performances of Nathaniel Ayers and Steve Lopez.

source: Daily 49er, photo by dreamworks

Postgrad trailer starring Alexis Bledel

This one is for the college students; reality check. Postgrad is about a girl who finds herself with no job, and living back at home after graduating. She realizes that getting a job is more difficult than she thought and she questions why it turns out this way. I gotta hand it to who ever casted Bledel, because even just off of the trailer, I could see that she is going to deliver a great performance; she is also adorable. Postgrad is a comedy directed by Vicky Jenson, and it hits theaters August 21st.

Trailer:

Paul McCartney brings tears at Coachella

Beatcrave.com published an online article today about Sir Paul McCartney's performance at this years' Coachella. While I was there, standing next to his fans and critics, in the middle of the desert, i could not have said it better myself. Go and read it here.

Photo: from Chris Pizello/Associated Press.

Coachella

Not much reporting because I am completely bias on this past weekend; It was beyond Amazing. From Paul McCartney (Oh my, i am still stunned to know i saw him live), to sexy Devandra. Yes, the desert was hot. Yes, Paul came back for three encores, and he was too kind to Coachella on stage. Yes, the people at Coachella turned the power off on The Cure, and yes they kept going after that. That is so rock n' roll. 

Enjoy the pictures

The Cure- Day 3

Karen O, Yeah Yeah Yeahs- Day 3

Devandra- Day 3

Paul McCartney- Day 1

Lykke Li- Day 3

Morrissey- day 1

Franz Ferdinand-day 1

The Airborne Toxic Event-day 1

Lollapalooza announces Line Up

After months and months of frustrating anticipation, Chicago's infamous Lollapalooza lineup is here! The lineup was released at midnight, and Perry Farrell's lineup is packed with amazing headliners. Among the many are: Depeche Mode, Tool, The Killers, Jane's Addiction, Bestie Boys, Kings of Leon, and Lou Reed. Alongside these leading musicians are bands like Cold War Kids, Lykke Li, Of Montreal, Manchester Orchestra, The Gaslight Anthem, Ida Maria, and The Airborne Toxic Event. Exciting!

Tickets are on advance sale now for $190. Lollapalooza will start on its three-day extravaganza on the 7th of August.



Artist scheduled to appear

Depeche Mode
Tool
The Killers
Jane’s Addiction
Beastie Boys
Kings of Leon
Lou Reed
Ben Harper and Relentless 7
Thievery Corporation
Snoop Dogg
Rise Against
Andrew Bird
TV on the Radio
Vampire Weekend
The Decemberists
Neko Case
STS9 (Sound Tribe Sector 9)
Animal Collective
Band of Horses
Of Montreal
Arctic Monkeys
Coheed and Cambria
Ben Folds
Fleet Foxes
Silversun Pickups
Kaiser Chiefs
Crystal Castles
Bon Iver
Santigold
Atmosphere
Dan Auberbach
Cold War Kids
Deerhunter
Lykke Li
Robert Earl Keen
Peter Bjorn and John
Heartless Bastards
Gomez
Glasvegas
Federico Aubele
Dan Deacon
Passion Pit
The Raveonettes
The Gaslight Anthem
The Airborne Toxic Event
White Lies
Ra Ra Riot
No Age
Asher Roth
Los Campesinos!
Bat For Lashes
Chairlift
Gang Gang Dance
The Virgins
Amazing Baby
Portugal. The Man
The Knux
Ida Maria
Delta Spirit
Friendly Fires
Manchester Orchestra
Constantines
Ezra Furman & The Harpoons
Hockey
Miike Snow
Alberta Cross
Hey Champ
Sam Roberts Band
The Henry Clay People
Davy Knowles and Back Door Slam
Cage the Elephant
Living Things
The Low Anthem
Blind Pilot
Langhorne Slim
Other Lives
The Builders and The Butchers
Eric Church
Joe Pug
Kevin Devine
The Green Cards
Carney
Thenewno2

source: lollapalooza.com

the corridor

(Tip and toe) "My feet really hurt," she said.

It was midnight and she could hear the creeping of owls owning the night. The smell in the air was rich and fresh. The scent of trees and plants surrounded her. She looked up and a light, so dim, began to flicker. She placed her hand on her hip, and went for her back pocket. She took out the lighter and then got out a cigarette from her purse. She brought it near her mouth, and lit it.

"Ah," and just like that a cloud of smoke surrounded her.

a human's best friend

My uncle said a woman is never the same after giving birth- mostly because a woman's vagina has to stretch 10 centimeters. I am not a naturally born child; and while to some this may sound as if i am a clone of some sort- or a freak- i assure you, i am a love child. My mother had a Caesarean section- is a surgical procedure in which incisions are made through a mother's abdomen (laparotomy) and uterus (hysterotomy) to deliver one or more babies- because i sat down.
A friend recently told me that is was better for her to have a c-section because she did it that way the first time.
While i am not sure of my futuristic ways of giving birth, my friend's dog also gave birth. Her had two puppies, and she had a c-section.
I started to ask myself if there was a love difference between a mother who gives birth naturally versus one who has her kids, or in this puppies, through a c-section. As far as i know, there is-as least for puppies.
The owner of the puppies, and the mom, said that the mom didn't recognize the puppies as her own, and that she tried to bite them several times. I went over to the doghouse, and saw the dog sticking her head out her house, and the pub's were no where. Of course, i cannot say what the dog was thinking, but it looks unhappy. And while the owners want her to accept the puppies as her own mostly so they can feed off her milk- she doesn't seem to be cooperating.
The owner said she knew it would be hard for the mom to accept them as hers' due to the lack of pain she did not encounter while having the puppies. Now, the mom is guarded by three humans, who stand right outside her doghouse, all making sure this healthy pit bull doesn't eat her puppies alive.

for more information on c-sections