The Double is not in Japan yet, but it stars Jesse Eisenberg playing a man whose face is copied. Mistaken identity appears to lead to him being arrested.
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Monday, May 19, 2014
The Double, Blue Jasmine, and other matters…
Today we watched two movie trailers, Blue Jasmine and The Double. Blue Jasmine is the most recent Woody Allen film to reach Japan, and it's playing now at Denkikan. It's about a woman called Jeanette, who changes her name to Jasmine and marries a rich man. Unfortunately for her, he becomes poor after being arrested, and she has to move away and live a more modest life. The movie examines the breakdown of her personality and life.
The Double is not in Japan yet, but it stars Jesse Eisenberg playing a man whose face is copied. Mistaken identity appears to lead to him being arrested.
The Double is not in Japan yet, but it stars Jesse Eisenberg playing a man whose face is copied. Mistaken identity appears to lead to him being arrested.
Monday, May 12, 2014
Golden Week
This year's Golden Week contained a surprise for me. Right until the beginning of Golden Week, it looked like we weren't going to do anything special, because my daughters tend to be rather busy with their studies. But when Golden Week began, they said that they had time to go camping and would very much like to go. They particularly wanted to go to a beach, so that they could play with our dog. We set off on Sunday and stayed one night at a camp site in Ushibuka. It rained during the night and the next morning, so we came back rather early, but we had a great time. Ushubuka's a good plce, but it's quite far!
118 words
118 words
Before Golden Week, I thought perhaps that we wouldn't do anything special, because my daughter usually studies very hard and doesn't have much free time. But to my surprise just after Golden Week had begun she said she wanted to go camping. It is rather difficult to find a camping spot at short notice in Golden Week, but luckily we were able to find a camping site in Ushibuka that was free, so we went there. We had a good time but it rained on the second day so we came home early.
93 words
93 words
My Golden Week
Before Golden Week, I thought perhaps that we wouldn't do anything special, because my daughter usually studies very hard and doesn't have much free time. But to my surprise just after Golden Week had begun she said she wanted to go camping. It is rather difficult to find a camping spot at short notice in Golden Week, but luckily we were able to find a camping site in Ushibuka that was free, so we went there. We had a good time but it rained on the second day so we came home early.
93 words
93 words
Monday, April 28, 2014
The Old Woman who Swallowed a Fly
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| UFR3: The Old Woman Who Swallowed a Fly |
Step into the surreal world of the old woman who swallowed a fly. A bizarre story perfectly matched with quirky illustrations, this traditional rhyme features a catchy rhythm and jaunty repetition… [back cover]
I learned this rhyme when I was a little child. I remember the song was popular on the radio, too. The book is about a woman who swallowed a fly by accident, and then swallowed a spider to catch the fly. She didn't know what to do about the spider, so next she swallowed a bird… and so on.
91 words
The Amazing Spider-man 2 (rewrite)
Today we watched the trailer for The Amazing Spider-man 2. The movie stars Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield. I think they suit the roles very well. The trailer we watched was trailer 3, which was very exciting but didn't tell us too much about the story. From what I could tell, Spider-Man
This movie is one of the Sony movies, made under licence. The Sony movies are rather different from the Marvel ones, such as Captain America. Incidentally, I saw Captain America: Winter Soldier recently. It was very exciting.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
Today we watched the trailer for The Amazing Spider-man 2. The movie stars Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield. I think they suit the roles very well. The trailer we watched was trailer 3, which was very exciting but didn't tell us too much about the story. From what I could tell, Spider-Man has to fight Electro, played by Jamie Foxx.
This movie is one of the Sony movies, made under licence. The Sony movies are rather different from the Marvel ones, such as Captain America.
85 words
This movie is one of the Sony movies, made under licence. The Sony movies are rather different from the Marvel ones, such as Captain America.
85 words
Brer Rabbit and the Blackberry Bush
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| Usborne First Reading Level 2 |
Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox are always up to mischief. Now Brer Fox thinks he has the perfect plan to stop Brer Rabbit once and for all.In this story, Brer Fox captures Brer Fox in a trap and he plans to eat him. But when he is trapped Brer Rabbit says: "Hurray!"
"Do you want to be eaten?" asked Brer Fox.
"Oh, yes," said Brer Rabbit. "Fry me…boil me…eat me in a pie!"This confuses Brer Fox, and Brer Rabbit finally gets away.
You can find out more about this book at the Usborne website. You can also download a worksheet.
Vocabulary
blackberry: 黒イチゴ108 words
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
Today we watched the trailer for Amazing Spider-man 2. The movie stars Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker, who is also Spider-man, and Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy. Spider-man's main enemy this time is Electro, played by Jamie Foxx, supported by Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan). The battle scenes look spectacular, so I'm looking forward to seeing this movie.
However, my feeling at the moment is that the Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst Spider-man movies were better!
75 words
However, my feeling at the moment is that the Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst Spider-man movies were better!
75 words
Monday, April 21, 2014
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:
Later, when he visits Drew's family, her children say: "She doesn't like you." But he says:
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
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
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
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
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| Henry & Mudge |
This is a quote
This is not a quote.
shabbiest: 最も粗末な, 卑しい
12 words
Monday, April 14, 2014
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
Sunday, April 13, 2014
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:
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
112 words
Monday, January 20, 2014
Blog stats: Juppun ha Juubun
1st semester
1st time: 133 wordsLast time: 95 words
2nd semester
1st time: 26 wordsLast 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
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
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
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:
- Check your wordcount. If you haven't posted a recent wordcount, do so today!
- Have you done your recordings? We have some mics available. Help yourself!
- Have you posted your typing homework to your blog? Go ahead today!
- 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!
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
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 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.
Monday, January 6, 2014
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.
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.
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.
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.
Monday, December 23, 2013
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)
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
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
Saturday, December 21, 2013
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!
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!
Monday, December 16, 2013
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.
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!!!)
Monday, December 9, 2013
Drive Into Danger
"Where's Gary?" says Mark. "He isn't usually late. The truck is ready. Everybody's waiting."
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.
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.
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.
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.
Monday, December 2, 2013
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!
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.
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.
Monday, November 25, 2013
Perseus
Hey, everyone, please check out my latest podcast episode. It's about the Oxford Dominoes book, Perseus.
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 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!
Monday, November 11, 2013
Seville
I've just been looking into the cathedral in Seville. Wikipedia says it is the largest in the world.
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.
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| Seville Cathedral |
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.
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| Court of the Oranges |
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.
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.
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