Knitting and Crochet Club
The Knitting and Crochet Club meets on Tuesday, February 17 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Everyone is welcome.
Las Tierras Neighborhood Association
The Las Tierras Neighborhood Association will meet at EAM Library at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, February 10, 2009.
Join the ranks of your neighborhood association!
For more information, please visit their website below:
>> http://www.lastierrasneighborhoodassociation.com/ <<
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
Rick's Movie Review
Oscar's Golden Movies
I can't write about 2009's Best Picture nominees since I haven't seen them all (though I'm working on it). Instead, I'll write about which are the best Best Picture winners of the ones I've seen. Out of 79 winners (1928's Wings and 1933's Cavalcade are not available on DVD), I've seen 61. And out of those, my Top Ten are...
10.) The Silence of the Lambs (1991). Proof positive that what is terrifying isn't what you actually see but what you imagine.
09.) West Side Story (1961). Only 9 musicals have won, and out of all of them (from 1929's The Broadway Melody to 2002's Chicago), this one is the one I'd say is the best.
08.) All About Eve (1950). The cleverest, wittiest, smartest film written about what fools we mortals are.
07.) Ben-Hur (1959). Still the standard by which all epics are measured. It's worth watching for the famous chariot race alone.
06.) Lawrence of Arabia (1962). For all the battle scenes and great performances by Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif, this really is an epic film about one man's soul.
05.) Rocky (1976). The perfect movie for its time. After Vietnam, after Watergate, Americans were reminded of how we see ourselves: perhaps not the smartest or most cultured of people, but one with determination and a willingness to go the distance no matter what the odds.
04.) All Quiet on the Western Front (1930). The greatest case against war ever filmed. Try not to cry when the main character begs forgiveness from the man he's had to kill.
03.) The Godfather, Part II (1974). While the first one is brilliant, it is in watching how the rise of Vito Corleone brings about the moral fall of his son Michael that makes this a truly great experience.
02.) Schindler's List (1993). No film has come close to showing us the evil that men do, or the goodness that man can achieve. Neither should be forgotten.
01.) Casablanca (1943). This is as close to perfection as one can get. Quibble over plot points if you must, but in this film, everything just comes together to create an unforgettable masterpiece.
If Citizen Kane hadn't lost to How Green Was My Valley (which in any other year would have been a good choice) you bet that would be on my list. Just goes to show the Oscars are one way to judge a film. That's why you should see them yourself and make your own decision. All these titles are available from the El Paso Public Library.
DECISION: ALL VOTED UP
I can't write about 2009's Best Picture nominees since I haven't seen them all (though I'm working on it). Instead, I'll write about which are the best Best Picture winners of the ones I've seen. Out of 79 winners (1928's Wings and 1933's Cavalcade are not available on DVD), I've seen 61. And out of those, my Top Ten are...
10.) The Silence of the Lambs (1991). Proof positive that what is terrifying isn't what you actually see but what you imagine.
09.) West Side Story (1961). Only 9 musicals have won, and out of all of them (from 1929's The Broadway Melody to 2002's Chicago), this one is the one I'd say is the best.
08.) All About Eve (1950). The cleverest, wittiest, smartest film written about what fools we mortals are.
07.) Ben-Hur (1959). Still the standard by which all epics are measured. It's worth watching for the famous chariot race alone.
06.) Lawrence of Arabia (1962). For all the battle scenes and great performances by Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif, this really is an epic film about one man's soul.
05.) Rocky (1976). The perfect movie for its time. After Vietnam, after Watergate, Americans were reminded of how we see ourselves: perhaps not the smartest or most cultured of people, but one with determination and a willingness to go the distance no matter what the odds.
04.) All Quiet on the Western Front (1930). The greatest case against war ever filmed. Try not to cry when the main character begs forgiveness from the man he's had to kill.
03.) The Godfather, Part II (1974). While the first one is brilliant, it is in watching how the rise of Vito Corleone brings about the moral fall of his son Michael that makes this a truly great experience.
02.) Schindler's List (1993). No film has come close to showing us the evil that men do, or the goodness that man can achieve. Neither should be forgotten.
01.) Casablanca (1943). This is as close to perfection as one can get. Quibble over plot points if you must, but in this film, everything just comes together to create an unforgettable masterpiece.
If Citizen Kane hadn't lost to How Green Was My Valley (which in any other year would have been a good choice) you bet that would be on my list. Just goes to show the Oscars are one way to judge a film. That's why you should see them yourself and make your own decision. All these titles are available from the El Paso Public Library.
DECISION: ALL VOTED UP
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Book Review
Your Heart Belongs to Me
By: Dean Koontz
Review By: Priscilla Simpson
For those of you who are Dean Koontz fans, this new book that he came out with is pretty good. If you like all the other books he writes you will like this one.
For the most part the story has a good plot and I will summarize the book in short so as not to tell all that happens in the book. There is this guy, Ryan he has a good life, a girlfriend and he is pretty much enjoying it. But he ends up having to get a heart transplant and that changes his life all the way. At first it is a good thing for him to get but then there is someone out there who sends him a note saying “Your heart belongs to me” and the heart surgery video, along with a box of Valentine candy hears, and a heart pendant. Ryan is being stalked by a mysterious woman who looks exactly like the person who donated her heart to him and she wants it back.
This book is pretty good, the ending is a bit surprising but good and you will like how it is written. I sure enjoyed it and also another person that I asked said that they enjoyed it.
By: Dean Koontz
Review By: Priscilla Simpson
For those of you who are Dean Koontz fans, this new book that he came out with is pretty good. If you like all the other books he writes you will like this one.
For the most part the story has a good plot and I will summarize the book in short so as not to tell all that happens in the book. There is this guy, Ryan he has a good life, a girlfriend and he is pretty much enjoying it. But he ends up having to get a heart transplant and that changes his life all the way. At first it is a good thing for him to get but then there is someone out there who sends him a note saying “Your heart belongs to me” and the heart surgery video, along with a box of Valentine candy hears, and a heart pendant. Ryan is being stalked by a mysterious woman who looks exactly like the person who donated her heart to him and she wants it back.
This book is pretty good, the ending is a bit surprising but good and you will like how it is written. I sure enjoyed it and also another person that I asked said that they enjoyed it.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Conversational English
The Conversational English course is starting on Saturday, January 10 from 10:00am-11:30 a.m. If you are interested or have any questions please call 921-700.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Children's Programs/Programas para Niños
Come join us for Para los Niños, a themed parenting storytime, and crafts on Thursdays and Saturdays.
Family Communication is this month's theme.
Come join us for bilingual storytime and crafts.
Thursdays/jueves at 10:30 a.m.
Jan. 1 All Libraries Closed New Year's Day
Jan. 8 Over, Under, Around, and Through Storytime
Jan. 15 Individualism and Rules
Jan. 22 Friendship, Feelings, and Writings
Jan. 29 Leadership
Saturdays/sábados at 3:00 p.m.
Jan. 3 Coloring Storytime
Jan. 10 Over, Under, Around, and Through Storytime
Jan. 17 Individualism and Rules
Jan. 24 Friendship, Feelings and Writings
Jan. 31 Leadership
Family Communication is this month's theme.
Come join us for bilingual storytime and crafts.
Thursdays/jueves at 10:30 a.m.
Jan. 1 All Libraries Closed New Year's Day
Jan. 8 Over, Under, Around, and Through Storytime
Jan. 15 Individualism and Rules
Jan. 22 Friendship, Feelings, and Writings
Jan. 29 Leadership
Saturdays/sábados at 3:00 p.m.
Jan. 3 Coloring Storytime
Jan. 10 Over, Under, Around, and Through Storytime
Jan. 17 Individualism and Rules
Jan. 24 Friendship, Feelings and Writings
Jan. 31 Leadership
Monday, January 5, 2009
Clubs & Associations/Clubes y Asociaciones
Knitting and Crochet Group
The EAM Knitting and Crochet Group will meet on Tuesday, January 20, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Everyone is invited.
Las Tierras Neighborhood Association
The Las Tierras Neighborhood Association will meet at EAM Library at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, January 13.
Join the ranks of your neighborhood association!
For more information, please visit their website below:
>> http://www.lastierrasneighborhoodassociation.com/ <<
The EAM Knitting and Crochet Group will meet on Tuesday, January 20, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Everyone is invited.
Las Tierras Neighborhood Association
The Las Tierras Neighborhood Association will meet at EAM Library at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, January 13.
Join the ranks of your neighborhood association!
For more information, please visit their website below:
>> http://www.lastierrasneighborhoodassociation.com/ <<
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Rick's Movie Review
Valkyrie: Tom Cruise Does Things Reich
Valkyrie has been plagued by controversy from the offset. The picture's release was delayed many times--not a good sign. Tom Cruise's generally loony behavior did not help. However, were people judging a film based on the star's off-screen antics rather than his on-screen performance? I have always been of the mind that what one should judge is what is on the screen itself. Now we can decide whether Valkyrie, the film, is worth watching. My view is yes.
This is based on the true story of a conspiracy to assassinate Adolph Hitler by a group of army officers a year before Germany's defeat. This plot was headed by Col. Claus von Stauffenberg, played by Cruise, who plants a bomb next to Hitler in The Wolf's Lair, his Eastern Front headquarters. The film goes through all the planning and execution (no pun intended) of the plot, and of what happens after the attempt was made.
Since people know HOW it ends (at least one hopes people know) the real drama comes from A.) seeing how the plot was built up, and B.) how it went wrong. My brother Gabe (history major) found it fascinating. I found it...competent: neither a disaster or a masterpiece. The directing was adequate, the story remarkably historically accurate, the look evocative of Nazi Germany, and the acting acceptable (only David Bamber, playing Hitler, was weak to me. The actor playing Hitler for a second in Citizen Kane was more believable).
As for Tom Cruise, I did not find his lack of a German accent to be an issue. It's called Suspension of Disbelief: if we accept he's playing a German, we don't HAVE to hear an accent. It would have been distracting if he HAD an accent.
It isn't perfect (much like the real-life events). The first third is a bit slow, and in spite of its two-hour length you get only a vague idea of who the conspirators are and what motivates them. I got no insight into von Stauffenberg's beliefs, character or exactly how he joined the plot. Still, it told its story well enough, though not brilliantly. In short, the film will never be a great film, but it is a good one. It's an interesting story that will hopefully lead people to want to learn more about World War II. However, it will be a second-tier WWII film, never ranking with real-event war film masterpieces like The Great Escape, Downfall, or Bridge on the River Kwai.
DECISION: VOTED UP
Valkyrie has been plagued by controversy from the offset. The picture's release was delayed many times--not a good sign. Tom Cruise's generally loony behavior did not help. However, were people judging a film based on the star's off-screen antics rather than his on-screen performance? I have always been of the mind that what one should judge is what is on the screen itself. Now we can decide whether Valkyrie, the film, is worth watching. My view is yes.
This is based on the true story of a conspiracy to assassinate Adolph Hitler by a group of army officers a year before Germany's defeat. This plot was headed by Col. Claus von Stauffenberg, played by Cruise, who plants a bomb next to Hitler in The Wolf's Lair, his Eastern Front headquarters. The film goes through all the planning and execution (no pun intended) of the plot, and of what happens after the attempt was made.
Since people know HOW it ends (at least one hopes people know) the real drama comes from A.) seeing how the plot was built up, and B.) how it went wrong. My brother Gabe (history major) found it fascinating. I found it...competent: neither a disaster or a masterpiece. The directing was adequate, the story remarkably historically accurate, the look evocative of Nazi Germany, and the acting acceptable (only David Bamber, playing Hitler, was weak to me. The actor playing Hitler for a second in Citizen Kane was more believable).
As for Tom Cruise, I did not find his lack of a German accent to be an issue. It's called Suspension of Disbelief: if we accept he's playing a German, we don't HAVE to hear an accent. It would have been distracting if he HAD an accent.
It isn't perfect (much like the real-life events). The first third is a bit slow, and in spite of its two-hour length you get only a vague idea of who the conspirators are and what motivates them. I got no insight into von Stauffenberg's beliefs, character or exactly how he joined the plot. Still, it told its story well enough, though not brilliantly. In short, the film will never be a great film, but it is a good one. It's an interesting story that will hopefully lead people to want to learn more about World War II. However, it will be a second-tier WWII film, never ranking with real-event war film masterpieces like The Great Escape, Downfall, or Bridge on the River Kwai.
DECISION: VOTED UP
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)