Henry and Mudge in the Green Time

…when he saw Henry hooking up the water hose, he tried to hide under the steps. But it never worked.

There are three stories in this book. I will talk about The Bath. Mudge hates taking a bath, but he cannot escape. But he always gets his revenge on Henry!

Check out the Henry & Mudge site!

Vocabulary

droop: 垂れる、垂れ下がる、下垂する

73 words

Blended again!

Today we watched a trailer for Blended, a movie starring Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler. At the beginning of the movie, Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore go on their first date.

Unfortunately, the date is humiliating for Drew Barrymore, because they eat shrimps with very hot sauce and she spits them out. She wants to drink beer to cool down, but Adam Sandler has drunk her beer! She drinks soup instead, but gets her dress messy.

They decide they never want to meet each other again. But they mixed up their credit cards so Adam goes to see her. And, through some strange circumstances, they go on holiday together to Africa. They have many strange and funny experiences there.

I enjoyed the part where Adam Sandler was bored and got a phone call from his family:

An avalanche? In our back yard?

Later, when he visits Drew's family, her children say: "She doesn't like you." But he says:

Believe me, bro, I don't like her either.

I checked out the movie on allcinema.net but it appears that the movie's release in Japan has not yet been decided. I hope it comes soon. The movie was directed by Frank Coraci, who also directed The Wedding Singer. Check out the official site!

203 words

Blended

Today we watched a trailer for Blended, a movie starring Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler. At the beginning of the movie, Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore go on their first date.

Unfortunately, the date is humiliating for Drew Barrymore, because they eat shrimps with very hot sauce and she spits it out. She wants to drink beer to cool down, but Adam Sandler has drunk her beer.

They decide they never want to meet each other again. But they mixed up their credit cards so Adam goes to see her. And they go on holiday together.

94 words

Blended (rewrite)

Today, we watched the trailer for a movie with Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler. I think it was called Memorial Day Weekend. It starts with a date between Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler. The date is humiliating for Drew Barrymore, because she eats some food that is too hot. She wants to drink some beer to soothe her mouth, but Adam Sandler has drunk her beer. They decide not to meet each other again.

However, they get their credit cards mixed up, and Adam Sandler has to go and see Drew Barrymore. Through some strange set of circumstances, they both go to Africa with their families, and have some interesting and funny experiences together.

113 words

Blended

Today, we watched the trailer for a movie with Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler. I think it was called Memorial Day Weekend. It starts with a date between Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler. The date is humiliating for Drew Barrymore, because she eats some food that is too hot. She wants to drink some beer to soothe her mouth, but Adam Sandler has drunk her beer. They decide not to meet each other again.

However, they get their credit cards mixed up, and Adam Sandler has to go and see Drew Barrymore. Through some strange set of circumstances, they both go to Africa with their families, and have some interesting and funny experiences together.

114 words

Henry and Mudge Take the Big Test

"Mr. Papp is your teacher," Henry told Mudge.
Mudge wagged.
He jumped up to lick Jack Papp's face.
"No, Mudge!" said Henry.

Henry is walking with Mudge one day, when he sees a man walking with a collie. Whenever the man gives the collie an instruction (such as "Stay" or "Down"), the dog follows it instantly. Henry and his mother start thinking that Mudge should be like the collie, so they take him to school, to be taught by Jack Papp. But will Mudge be able to learn like the other dogs?

Vocabulary

dog treats: 犬のおやつ
wag: 振る

103 words

Henry and Mudge and the Long Weekend

Henry & Mudge

This is a quote

This is not a quote.


shabbiest: 最も粗末な, 卑しい

12 words

Henry and Mudge and the Long Weekend

Henry and Mudge are stuck inside on a yucky winter day.

This book is very nice.

keep on sleeping: 寝続ける
yucky:　不快な

27 words

Self-intro

Hello, everyone. I'm Rick L. I'm from the southwest of the UK and now I live in Kumamoto City. I work at Kendai and I come to KGU once a week for writing classes. In my free time, I like reading, watching movies, playing tennis, and playing the koto. Unfortunately, these days I don't really have much free time. I like drinking tea. I have many kinds of tea in my office. Please come and join me sometime!

81 words

Henry and Mudge and the Bedtime Thumps

…if Mudge slept outside, Henry would be alone, trying to sleep in an empty room in a strange house in a dark yard…

As the title suggests, Henry and Mudge and the Bedtime Thumps is one of the books in the Henry and Mudge series. Henry and Mudge go to visit Henry's grandmother in the countryside. Because they are visitors, Mudge has to sleep outside. But he is worried about Henry, who will have to sleep alone inside.

moth: 蛾
porch: 屋根付き玄関
bobcat: ボブキャット

94 words

Self-intro

Hi, I'm Rick. I'm from the southwest of England. Now I live in Kumamoto City. I teach Writing classes at KGU. I'm a professor at Kendai so that's where I usually am. In my free time, I like watching movies, playing the koto, and playing table tennis. Unfortunately, I don't have so much free time these days. I like drinking tea very much, and I have many kinds of tea at my office in Kendai. Please come and see me.

86 words

Welcome to Writing III

Hello, everyone. Welcome to Writing III. Nice to meet you!

In these classes, we'll be doing various activities to help you write better. Similarly to speaking, it's important to be able to write fluently, too, so in Writing III we'll be focusing on raising your confidence and speed.

Some of the things we'll do:

• book reviews
• Gofun ha Juubun (timed writing)
• Juppun ha Juubun (timed writing)
• Essays
• typing practice

Basically, we'll do all these things on blogs. Putting all the activities together, I'd like you to write 8,000 words this semester. That might sound like a lot, but, if you come to all the classes and also write a little outside of class most days, it will be quite easy!

112 words

Blog stats: Juppun ha Juubun

1st semester

1st time: 133 words
Last time: 95 words

2nd semester

1st time: 26 words
Last time: 197 words

My word count over the year increased from 133 words to 197 words. But, for some reason, I had a major dip in the middle (at the end of the 1st semester and the beginning of the 2nd semester).

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, Life of a King, and other matters…

Today we watched two movie trailers. They were Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit and Life of a King. I will talk about Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit first. This movie is based on a Tom Clancy book. There are several books about Jack Ryan, and some of them have been made into movies. Actors who have played Jack Ryan are Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, and Ben Affleck. This time, it's Chris Pine.

You may know Chris Pine. He's the actor from the movie that's called Black and White in Japan. It stars Chris Pine alongside Tom Hardy. They are rivals for the love of Reese Witherspoon. I think he's a good Jack Ryan, but it seems as if the series is changing into pure action rather than suspense.

The other movie, Life of a King, stars Cuba Gooding Junior. He is released from prison and ends up teaching in a high school. The students are very tough but he teaches them some new things through chess. He tells the students to focus on the "endgame" and to "think before you move". For him, chess is a metaphor for life.

Both of these movies look pretty interesting. Shadow Recruit begins on February 15th!



Keira Knightley
Kenneth Branagh
Chris Pine


Cuba Gooding Junior

Juppun ha Juubun figures

1st semester

1st time:
last time:

2nd semester

1st time:

last time:

Life of a King, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, and other matters…

Today, we watched two movie trailers again. The first one was Life of a King. When I saw the title, I thought it was about a foreign country's royal family, but actually it was about a man who gets out of prison and then gets a job in a school, where he teaches chess. One of his mentors in prison used to tell him to pay attention to the endgame, and that's the lesson he teaches his students. He thinks of chess as a metaphor for life, and he seems to be successful in teaching his students that. The movie stars Cuba Gooding Junior.

The second movie trailer was Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. Previous actors playing Jack Ryan have been Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, and Ben Affleck. This time, it's Chris Pine. I think with him it will be more of a pure action movie, which is not necessarily a good thing, but I do like him as an actor so I'm looking forward to this film. Other actors starring in the movie are Keira Knightley and Kenneth Branagh. Keira Knightley plays Chris Pine's wife and Branagh plays the Russian villain.


190 words


Kenneth Branagh
Keira Knightley
Chris Pine

Cuba Gooding Junior

January 20th, 2014: last class

The academic year is coming to an end! Some things to do in today's class:

1. Check your wordcount. If you haven't posted a recent wordcount, do so today! 
2. Have you done your recordings? We have some mics available. Help yourself!
3. Have you posted your typing homework to your blog? Go ahead today!
4. Have you posted your essays to your blog? You can post your original essay, and your edited version. At the bottom of your edited version, try posting something about any grammar or other points you have learned or made progress with.

This is your last easy opportunity to ask questions, so please don't waste your chance!

Before Midnight, The Nut Job, and other matters…

Today, we watched two movie trailers. Let me tell you a bit about them.

The first one was Before Midnight. It's a movie starring Ethan Hawke and Judie Delpy, directed by Richard Linklater. People who like romance probably have been looking forward to this for some time. You may have heard that it is the third movie in a very unusual series of movies. The first movie in the series was Before Sunrise, made 18 years ago. In that movie, the characters played by Ethan Hawke and Judie Delpy met for the first time. The second movie, made 9 years ago, was Before Sunset. And now Before Midnight is the third one, featuring the same two actors playing the same characters. The first two movies were great so I am looking forward to the new one very much. It starts at Denkikan this coming Saturday!!!!!

The Nut Job is an animated feature. I'd never heard of it before, but the trailer was hilarious. I don't know when it's coming to Japan, but I certainly want to see it.

The Outsider, The Invisible Woman, and other matters…

Today we watched two trailers at the beginning of class. The first one was about Charles Dickens and a young woman whom he loved but kept secret from the world. It stars Ralph Fiennes, Felicity Jones, and Kristin Scott Thomas. It looks very interesting, but I'm not sure when it's scheduled to appear in Japan.

The second one was called The Outsider. It stars a couple of actors who I haven't seen for a long time, Jason Patric and James Caan. Jason Patric was never a big star, but James Caan starred in The Godfather. It is difficult to see from the trailer what it's about, but it looks kind of exciting.

This month looks like it's going to be a good one for movies. The Great Escape is starting next weekend, and Behind the Cadelabra has already begun at Denkikan.

Reminder!

Final Movie Essay Deadline: January 10th!!!

Journey to the West, The Monuments Men, and other matters…

Today we watched two trailers at the beginning of class. The first one was Journey to the West, which is Xi You Ji in Chinese and Saiyuuki in Japanese. It looks like a comedy fantasy action movie. It looks a bit crazy but I want to see it! The other one was The Monuments Men. It stars Matt Damon, John Goodman, Bill Murray, George Clooney, and Cate Blanchette. It is based on a true story about a group of soldiers who go to Germany in the Second World War to save paintings that are due to be burned. With John Goodman and Bill Murray it looks almost certain to be funny!

The New Year holiday is now over, and it already seems far away! I didn't do anything special, but I had a good time relaxing. I went to Kengun Shrine on January 2nd and got a big bag of French fries on the way back. During the holiday, I also read a book called The Dying Light, by Henry Porter. But January looks like being a super-busy month, and it's super-cold.

Academy Awards 2014

The 86th Academy Awards are due to be held on March 2nd, 2014. It's always fun to watch the show or read the critics' opinions, but unfortunately most of the movies have not yet been released in Japan, so we cannot really take part in the debate. At least we can watch the trailers, and today we watched three trailers of movies that are expected to be nominated for one or more awards. (Actual nominations will be announced on January 16th.) We watched one movie by an old hand, Martin Scorcese (Wolf of Wall Street, featuring Leonardo DiCaprio), and two movies by younger directors, John Wells and Alfonso Cuaron. The John Wells movie is August: Osage County and the Alfonso Cuaron movie is of course Gravity.

Wolf of Wall Street (Martin Scorcese)
August: Osage County (John Wells)
Gravity (Alfonso Cuaron)

Academy Awards 2014

The Academy Awards are lots of fun, but the fun is diluted in Japan because most of the nominated movies still haven't been shown here. Two exceptions this time around are Captain Phillips and Gravity. Although it's no substitute for seeing the actual movies, of course, today we watched trailers for four of the movies: the aforementioned Gravity (directed by Alfonso Cuaron), Nebraska (directed by Alexander Payne), August: Osage County (directed by John Wells), and 12 Years a Slave (directed by Steve McQueen).



Gravity: Alfonso Cuaron (George Clooney, Sandra Bullock)
Nebraska: Alexander Payne (Bruce Dern)
August: Osage County: John Wells (Meryl Streep
12 Years a Slave: Steve McQueen

Mandela, Maleficent, and other matters

Today we watched two movie trailers. They were Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom and Maleficent. Maleficent is the name of the witch in Sleeping Beauty, and the movie is a retelling of that tale.

The FIFA Club World Cup is coming to an end. The final, between Raja Casablanca and Bayern Munchen, will be held tonight. Bayern is a very powerful team, so nearly everyone expects them to win. I'm looking forward to the match very much!

Mandela, Maleficent, and other matters…

Today, we saw no fewer than two movie trailers. The first one was Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, starring Idris Elba, and Naomie Harris as Winnie Mandela. The second was Maleficent, starring Angelina Jolie. As you can probably imagine, Mandela is about the life of Nelson Mandela, and Maleficent is related to Sleeping Beauty, focusing on the villain. Beside Angelina Jolie in the title role, the movie also stars Imelda Staunton and Elle Fanning. 

The FIFA Club World Cup final is scheduled to be held early tomorrow morning, I believe. I'm looking forward to seeing Bayern play!

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and…

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a Level 2 book in the Penguin Kids series of graded readers. As a level 2 book, it contains only 235 words, and is super-easy to read.
Snow White is very popular these days, with 2 movie versions having been released recently. I enjoyed Snow White and the Huntsman, with Kristen Stewart. You can watch an interactive trailer for the movie.

Edge of Tomorrow, The Legend of Hercules, and other matters…

Today we saw two movie trailers. They were Edge of Tomorrow, and The Legend of Hercules. Edge of Tomorrow is a science fiction movie starring Emily Blunt (of Salmon Fishing in the Yemen fame) and Tom Cruise. The Legend of Hercules tells the Hercules (Heracles) story in a modern way. Both look pretty exciting. The Legend of Hercules is starting in January in the US, while Edge of Tomorrow is scheduled to start playing in June. In Japan, that probably means summer and autumn starts, respectively.

Edge of Tomorrow, The Legend of Hercules, and other matters…

Today we watched no fewer than two trailers. The first one was Edge of Tomorrow, starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt. Most recently, I've seen Emily Blunt in Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, in which she costarred with Ewan McGregor. She was great in that film, so I'm looking forward to seeing her again. The film is due to come out in the States in June next year, so probably it will be a late summer feature in Japan. Its tagline is "Live. Die. Repeat."

The other trailer was The Legend of Hercules, starring lots of actors that I've never heard of before. It starts in Hercules' youth when he is still just a human, and gives us a look at how he gets special powers. It looks pretty exciting. It's beginning in January in the States, so I'm guessing it will come to Japan in spring.

Reminders

3rd & 4th movie essay deadlines

• December 20th
• January 10th!!

Make-up class

• Saturday, December 21st (usual time)
• Tuesday, January 14th (C class only!!!)

Drive Into Danger

"Where's Gary?" says Mark. "He isn't usually late. The truck is ready. Everybody's waiting."

Drive into Danger is a book in the Oxford Bookworms series. It is at Starter level, so it is very easy to read. But the story is quite exciting! Gary Slater, the driver, has a mysterious injury one day, so Kim (who has a truck driver's licence) and Andy (who speaks French) offer to take some tables to France in his place. But what they don't know is what other kind of cargo the truck is carrying!

Divergent, and other matters

Today we watched the trailer for Divergent, a movie due to begin next year. It's a science fiction movie set in the near future, when everyone undertakes a psychological test when they are teenagers, and are divided into five types of personalities. The heroine of the movie, played by Shailene Woodley, takes the test and is told she doesn't belong to any of the five types. In other words, she is "divergent". That appears to be a problem for the society and she has to run away in order to survive, and she joins a resistance movement.
I don't know much about the movie, or the original story (written by Veronica Roth), but I was attracted by the presence of Kate Winslet in the movie.

Dead Man's Money and Bonnie & Clyde

Dead Man's Money is a very entertaining but easy book in the Oxford Bookworms series, Starter level. It focuses on a gang of bank robbers in the 1930s, when the Great Depression hit America, and many people were very poor and turned to crime. You may have heard of the reallife gang Bonnie & Clyde. Anyway, please check out Dead Man's Money!

Dead Man's Money

"We want the money, Cal. Eddie's money."
"What? Who's Eddie?

Dead Man's Money is an Oxford Bookworms Starter, written for learners who know only about 250 words. It's written as a cartoon and is very easy to understand, but also very entertaining. It's about 3 bank robbers in the 1930s, one of whom dies. The other two want to recover his share of the money, but some other people are also interested in the money.

As you may know, the 1930s in America is famous for the Great Depression. Poverty meant that there were many people who turned to crime. The bank robbers in the story were some of those people. Others were Bonny & Clyde, whom you can see in a Hollywood movie.

listen to ‘Dead Man's Money’ on Audioboo

Island of Lemurs: Madagascar, and other matters…

Today we watched the trailer for Island of Lemurs: Madagascar. To tell you the truth, before I watched it, I thought it was going to be an animated movie in the Madagascar series. In fact, it is a documentary about lemurs, a kind of primate that lives only on Madagascar, and which is said to be close to extinction.
These days haven't been very enjoyable, because I have had a bad cold and cough. I went to see the doctor last Wednesday, but the medicine hasn't been so effective, so I'm planning to go again this afternoon. I hope to get better soon, so that I can finish off all my work before the winter holiday, and also go and see some interesting movies, e.g., Red 2, and Hunger Games: Catching Fire.

Captain Phillips, and other matters…

Captain Phillips is a movie directed by Paul Greengrass, who also directed the second and third Bourne movies and United 93. To tell you the truth, although I like all the Bourne movies, I think Greengrass's style wasn't so good in those movies: it made me feel tense as I watched the movie, but my memory of the movies was not as good as that of the original Bourne movie. However, in Captain Phillips and United 93, he is a little more restrained, with the result that the movie is tense but also satisfying.

Another movie coming soon is the 47 Ronin. It looks like it's pretty exciting!

Captain Phillips, and other matters…

We just saw a trailer for Captain Phillips, the new movie starring Tom Hanks. It is based on a true story, which is told by Captain Phillips himself in his book, A Captain's Duty. In the story, the captain's ship is boarded by four pirates, and the captain nearly loses his life.

Captain Phillips is playing now. Another movie that is coming soon is 47 Ronin. That movie stars Keanu Reeves, Hiroyuki Sanada, Ko Shibasaki, and Rinko Kikuchi. It looks like a very fantastical interpretation of the well-known story.

Perseus

Hey, everyone, please check out my latest podcast episode. It's about the Oxford Dominoes book, Perseus.

listen to ‘Perseus (Oxford Dominoes Quick Starter)’ on Audioboo

Perseus (Dominoes Quick Starter)

Perseus is the son of Danae, Princess of Argos, and the god Zeus. He is sent by Polydectes to bring back the head of Medusa, a she-monster with snakes for hair.

Can Perseus find and kill Medusa? And what happens after he goes back to Seriphos?

I like Greek myths, and there are so many of them that I don't know well. I recommend this book to all of you!

Weather, and other matters…

The weather is not so good today, and there was a major traffic jam on the way to school. But maybe it's stopped now? (We cannot see outside, so I'm not sure.) The weather forecast is rain for the next few days.

Movies coming up soon include Captain Phillips (based on a true story) and Yip Man: the last fight (I'm not sure of the title, but this is about the Kung Fu master and it's loosely based on a true story). The second Red movie is also approaching. I hear it's not as good as the first one, but I'm still hoping to see it.

Movies

Just a reminder on the movie essay deadlines. The second one is coming up!

• November 8th
• November 29th
• December 20th
• January 10th

Also, please make sure that you have an up-to-date word count on your blog for next week's class!

Rain, and other matters…

It's raining today. I found it very difficult to get up this morning, and then the traffic was terrible on the way to school. It is so different from the weather last week in Spain, where it was a little cold in the early morning and evening, but very pleasant during the day and generally sunny. I was at the conference most of the time, but I had a half day free at the end of the conference and before my trip back, so I had a look around the city. It was very beautiful, so let me show you some of the photos!

Seville

I've just been looking into the cathedral in Seville. Wikipedia says it is the largest in the world.

Seville Cathedral

I haven't yet checked where the cathedral is in Seville, so I don't know whether I will have time to visit there.

I found some interesting information about the weather in November. I haven't digested all the information yet, but it looks like it will be cool but not cold most of the time.

Court of the Oranges

I like this poem:

A B C
A B C D
A B C

What do you think? It's by William Shakespeare.

Seville

Next week, I will be in Spain, to speak at a conference and chair a session there. The conference is in Seville. I arrive the day before the conference and leave the day after, so I won't have much free time. But hopefully I'll be able to visit one sightseeing spot while I'm there. I'm also looking forward to eating Spanish food, which is my favourite cuisine in the world.

It seems that the Alcazar palace is the most famous spot there. I hope it's near the hotel, which is also the conference site. Luckily, it looks like the weather will be quite pleasant, although a little cold at night and in the early morning.

Some details of Police Academy

Police Academy, a 1994 comedy directed by Hugh Wilson, stars Steve Guttenberg as Carey Mahoney, a police cadet. His fellow cadets are Karen Thompson (Kim Cattrall) and Moses Hightower (Bubba Smith).
At the beginning of the movie, the mayor decides that there aren't enough police officers to stop the crimes in the city, so the Police Academy doors are opened to everyone.

Language for movies

Cast and Staff

1. Much Ado About Nothing was directed by Kenneth Branagh.
2. Much Ado About Nothing is a 1993 movie.
3. The 1993 movie Much Ado About Nothing was directed by Kenneth Branagh. (1 + 2)
4. Kenneth Branagh's 1993 movie Much Ado About Nothing is based on Shakespeare's play of the same name.
5. The movie stars Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Denzel Washington, Robert Sean Leonard, and Kate Beckinsale.
6. The movie is passionate and exciting.
7. The movie, which stars Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Denzel Washington, Robert Sean Leonard, and Kate Beckinsale, is passionate and exciting. (5 + 6)
8. (3 + 5) The 1993 movie Much Ado About Nothing was directed by Kenneth Branagh, who also stars, along with Emma Thompson, Denzel Washington, Robert Sean Leonard, and Kate Beckinsale.
9. (3 + 5) In the 1993 movie Much Ado About Nothing, director Kenneth Branagh stars alongside Emma Thompson, Denzel Washington, Robert Sean Leonard, and Kate Beckinsale.

Story

1. The movie begins with the arrival of a messenger announcing the imminent arrival at Leonato's estate in Messina of Don Pedro (played by Denzel Washington) of Aragon. Leonato (British TV and movie star Richard Briers) and Don Pedro clearly have affection for each other, and Leonato welcomes Don Pedro and his army to stay for "at least a month".

November

November is coming soon, and it looks like we're going to get some real autumn-like weather at last!

Now you see me, and other matters

Now You See Me is a movie starring Woody Harrelson and Jessie Eisenberg. It's called "Grand Illusion" in Japanese. It's about four magicians who, at the beginning of the movie, don't know each other, but they are called together by another, secret magician to do a very large-scale series of tricks, which includes robbing a bank. The police are at a loss to understand how they are doing these tricks. The magicians' final show is very entertaining.

2C movies

• Much Ado About Nothing
• Edward Scissorhands
• Spiderman
• Police Academy

DEADLINES FOR COMPLETING MOVIES

• November 8th
• November 29th
• December 20th
• January 10th

Please write the essays in the order you watch the movies.

Send the essays as Microsoft Word documents to rick dot kgu @

DO NOT USE THE CENTURY FONT!

You should write as much about each movie as possible on your blog before writing/assembling the essay.

2A movies

E.T.
The Shawshank Redemption
The French Connection or Midnight Run
Much Ado About Nothing

DEADLINES FOR COMPLETING MOVIES

• November 8th
• November 29th
• December 20th
• January 10th

Please write the essays in the order you watch the movies.

Send the essays as Microsoft Word documents to rick dot kgu @
DON'T USE THE CENTURY FONT IN YOUR ESSAY!

You should write as much about each movie as possible on your blog before writing/assembling the essay.

Movie language

Basic information

• The main character in this movie is Popeye, played by Gene Hackman.
• This movie stars Gene Hackman as Popeye.
• This movie features Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider.
• Much Ado About Nothing was directed by Kenneth Branagh.
• Much Ado About Nothing, directed by Kenneth Branagh, is a 1993 adaptation of the William Shakespeare play of the same name.
• The Spielberg-directed 1982 masterpiece E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial stars Henry Thomas and Drew Barrymore.
• French Connection is a 1971 film/movie starring Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider.
• French Connection is a 1971 Academy Award-winning movie, directed by William Friedkin and starring Gene Hackman, about New York City police detectives trying to track down the source of heroin shipments.

Plot, Story

• In this movie, Popeye hunts down the source of heroin shipments coming into the US from Europe.
• This movie features Gene Hackman as Popeye hunting down the source of heroin shipments coming into the US from Europe.
• This movie concerns the hunt by Popeye, a New York City detective, for the source of heroin shipments.
• This movie involves two sets of lovers: Benedick and Beatrice (played by Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson) and Claudio and Hero (played by Robert Sean Leonard and Kate Beckinsale).

Setting

• The movie is set in Sicily, at a time when it was ruled by the kingdom of Aragon.

Setting and Plot

• The movie, set in Sicily at a time when it was ruled by Aragon, involves two sets of lovers.

My weekend

At the weekend, there was a workshop by Keiko Abe in Kumamoto about teaching English to children. I was unable to attend the actual workshop so I joined in the dinner the night before the workshop. Keiko Abe is the president of CALA, an organization that does many activities connected to teaching children. She is based in Atlanta, so she rarely gets to Kumamoto. In fact, the last time she came was about 16 years ago, when I attended her workshop.

Kyuukou & Hokou (2C only)

Sorry, but I will be away in the 2nd period next week (21st). I hope to do a make-up class on January 14th.

Kyuukou & Hokou (2A & 2C)

I will be away on November 18th, and I would like to do a make-up class on December 21st.

Midnight Run

Midnight Run is an American action comedy made in 1988. In the movie, a bounty hunter named Jack Walsh has to get an embezzler named Jonathan Mardukas to Los Angeles from New York in just a few days.

A Class: 2nd semester movies

• Much Ado About Nothing
• The Shawshank Redemption
• E.T.
• Midnight Run

Movies (2C)

1970's

• Huckleberry Finn
• Pygmalion
• Star Wars
• Jaws

1980's

• Little Mermaid
• Police Academy
• E.T.
• Midnight Run

1990's

• Much Ado About Nothing
• Ghost
• Titanic
• Jurassic Park
• Home Alone
• The Shawshank Redemption

21st century

• P.S., I Love You
• Spiderman
• Burlesque
• I Am Sam 愛編む修
• Mamma Mia!
• Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Animation

• Toy Story
• Aladdin
• Monsters Inc.

Romance/Drama

• 24 (????)
• You Got Mail
• Edward Scissorhands

Adventure/Action

• The Rock
• Leon

Movies

The autumn is usually a great time to watch movies, because the summer blockbusters come to an end, and there is more variety. One movie that is coming soon is Runaway, starring Robert Redford.

Movie Candidates

1970's

• The French Connection (1971) (98%)
• Jaws (1975) (98%)
• Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970) (59%)
• Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) (95%)
• The Great Gatsby (1974) (37%)
• Moonraker (1979) (62%)

1980's

• Midnight Run (1988) (95%)
• Back to the Future (1985) (96%)
• Stand by Me (1986) (91%)
• E.T. (1982) (98%)
• Dead Poets Society (1989) (85%)

1990's

• Much Ado About Nothing (1993) (91%)
• Bodyguard (1992) (32%)
• The Truman Show (1998) (94%)
• The Shawshank Redemption (1994) (90%)
• Babe (1995) (97%)

21st  century

• Remember the Titans (2000) (73%)
• Perfume (2006) (58%)

Animation

• Up (2009) (98%)
• The Lion King (1994) (90%)

Adventure/Action

• Gladiator (2000) (77%)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (87%) (2005)
• Neverending Story (1984) (81%)
• Mission: Impossible (1996) (61%)

Romance/Drama

• Titanic (1997) (88%)
• Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) (88%)
• Larry Crowne (2011) (35%)

Today and tomorrow and…

Tomorrow morning, I am going to attend a seminar in Fukuoka, then I have to rush back to Kumamoto for a meeting. I also need to get my Mac's battery checked, so I'm going to go to Fukuoka today to visit the Apple Store. If I can get it seen to quickly, maybe I'll go to the library of Kyushu University as well. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my AppleCare paper, so maybe I can't get it seen to today without paying!

This weekend is international weekend in soccer. England will play two qualifiers for next year's World Cup in Brazil. I believe Japan is playing Serbia this Friday. Will there be a match next week?