DVD Review - The Help (2011)

Continuing with the theme of Black History Month comes a triumphant film about one young girls efforts to combat racism in Jackson, Mississippi in the 1960’s – The Help.

The era in which this film is set played favour to the Civil Rights movement, during which a young African-American Activist called Medgar Evers was assassinated by a member of the White Citizens Council, Byron De La Beckwith, in 1963. Evers’ activism was focussed around equality in civil rights for white and black people, and shortly after President Kennedy made his address in favour of this cause, Evers was shot by the future Klu Klux Klan member. It was a time of change for America, but it was difficult making this a reality. The Help revolves around a young, aspiring writer called Eugenia ‘Skeeter’ Phelan, who wanted to expose the racism and abuse that occured from white home owners to their black hired Help in her home town of Jackson.

Upon returning home from University, Skeeter learns that her families Help, Constantine, suddenly quit her post with the family and returned to Chicago. Sceptical Skeeter finds it hard to believe she would have done this voluntarily, without saying her goodbyes. In the 60’s, the Help were mostly responsible for raising the children of the families they lived with as well as performing other maids duties. Young girls of this time, like Skeeter, often had a deep admiration and bond to their Help as they were closer to them than they were to their own Mothers.

As an aspiring journalist, Skeeter has her own newspaper column called ‘Homemaker Hints’ and seeks the knowledge of her friend Elizabeth’s Help, Aibeleen. Skeeter grows increasingly concerned when she sees the way in which her friends treat their maids, especially the acts of Hilly Holbrook, whose maid Minny is Aibeleen’s best friend.  Hilly introduces the ‘Home Help Sanitation Initiative’ whereby she proposes a law for a separate toilet to be given to the Help as she believes they carry diseases.  Desperate to put an end to this appalling treatment of such devoted women, Skeeter asks Minny and Aibeleen to tell her about the racism they endure on a daily basis to be part of a book she wants to write. They reluctantly agree for fear of getting in to trouble, but as Hilly’s scheme becomes closer to being a reality they start talking. Skeeter writes a draft of her book and a publisher takes interest, she tells Skeeter to get more maids to testify as it will make a stronger case.

Upon learning of the assassination of Medgar Evers, the other maids soon come forward and Skeeter fills her book with various stories from maids all over Jackson, including one that Minny calls ‘The terrible awful’ – I shall say no more and let that one be a surprise! As more terrible things happened to the maids in the neighbourhood, the more they came forward with their stories and so Skeeter’s book was finished, printed and published.  After sharing her earnings with the Help who testified and basking in the glory of Skeeter’s success, we return to Aibeleen, whose final moments on screen are emotional, uplifting and full of hope, as she leaves her household to start a brand new life.

Adapted for the screen by Tate Taylor and based on the 2009 novel by Kathryn Stockett, The Help offers an original insight to a world that had a blind eye turned to it for so many years. The themes of racism and discrimination are strong in this film, although perhaps sometimes slightly washed over, nevertheless it certainly invites a heavy emotional investment to its characters, lead strongly by Viola Davies who plays Aibeleen. It was very well received and addresses issues faced by the Black community without allowing the politics to envelop the storyline, the only way the Help learn about what is happening during the Civil Rights era is by catching snippets of television or radio and from word of mouth. If the politics and events of the Civil Rights Movement had been a heavy plot point, it could have potentially detracted from the small town vibe that Tate Taylor was trying to create.

The Help is a really great film with a strong message and acts as homage to the women it portrays,

The Help is an excellent Black History Month film, and perhaps you might even like to give the book a try too!

 

You can find The Help DVD in the DVD ZONE - Shelfmark 791.43 and the book in the BOOK ZONE - Shelfmark 823.91 STO. Ask someone at the issue desk if you have trouble finding them!

 

Further Reading in the Information Store:

 

To Kill a Mockingbird - BOOK ZONE - 823.91 LEE

Independence and Equality (1940 - 1968) - BOOK ZONE - 323.4

Making Their Mark - BOOK ZONE - 323.4

 

Holidays!!

This time next week - it's half term!

If your half term is going to consist more of catching up on assignments than catching up on sleep then don't worry, the Information Store will be here to help.

We're open next week from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.

What are your plans for half term?

UEA cards - update

COMING TO THE INFORMATION STORE SOON……………….

The UEA cards for HE students are due to arrive at the Information Store at the end of October 2012.  They will be ready for collection on Monday 5th November 2012 from the Information Store issue desk.  You will need to bring your CCN college badge with you when collecting your card.

These cards will be for first year students who are doing a Foundation Degree Course or a full 3year Honours Degree course.  Students who have completed a Foundation Degree and have now moved onto an Honours Top-Up course will also receive new UEA cards.  Unfortunately, UEA cards are not available for students taking Access courses.

HE students who are in their 2^nd and 3^rd year (not Top-Up’s) who have not previously collected their UEA cards can still collect them from the issue desk.

Library at St Andrews House

To all HE students!

To help you with your studies and to make our information resources more accessible we have a small library collection at the St Andrews House (SAH) in room SA103.

 

Also, did you know that you have an option to request the library items to be delivered from the main campus to SAH? All you need to do to request our information resources is to e-mail tis@ccn.ac.uk and give us item details and  when would you like to collect them (otherwise, your items will be posted the same day/following morning).

 

Our SAH library is staffed Monday to Friday 9–12.30am by an Information Store Adviser.

 

The Information Store

Felix Baumgartner's Magnificent Jump!

Yesterday Felix Baumgartner, an Austrian daredevil, broke 3 world records when he jumped out of a small pod 128’000 feet up teetering on the edge of space. He has unofficially broken the world record for smashing through the sound barrier without the aid of a vehicle, meaning that he travelled faster than the speed of sound during his free fall. He even had to wear a full spacesuit to protect him from the conditions at such an altitude!

 

Image Courtesy of the BBC

The original record was set by Joe Kittenger back in 1960, and he was the voice at mission control who guided Felix through his magnificent jump.

We have a few books in the library that Felix may have found useful to read before taking his massive leap, perhaps you might be the one breaking Felix's record in 20 years time!

Extreme Skydiving

Why do some people want to go faster? What gives them that adrenaline rush? How do they push for that optimum speed? This book reveals all!


Shelved at 428.64

Extreme Sports

From snowboarding to mountain climbing, this book will give you a rundown on all the different kinds of extreme sports that are out there!

Shelved at 796.5

Surviving Stunts and Other Amazing Feats

Learn about the training and techniques that professional stuntmen use to keep themselves from getting seriously injured! Don't try this at home!!

Shelved at 613.69



Or, perhaps you'd like to brush up on your knowledge of Earth, the atmosphere and beyond!

Atmosphere, Weather and Climate

A book i'm sure Felix would have found very useful before taking his jump, all you need to know about our atmosphere, why it's important and what it does!

Shelved at 551.5

The Space Tourist's Handbook

Ever wondered what space travel is like? Wonder no more and read this great book!

Shelved at 338.479119




Perhaps you might also like to check out our back catalogue of Guinness World Record books? You can find them in the book zone at 796.48.

If you need any help finding these books or ones similar, ask someone at the Information Store Issue Desk and they will happily help you learn more about sky diving and the science behind Felix's incredible jump!

 

DVD Review: The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

October is Black History Month in which we celebrate high achieving, historical figures of the Black community for a whole month. So it seemed only appropriate to celebrate one of America’s finest actors, Morgan Freeman, and review his one of his greatest films; The Shawshank Redemption.

In 1947, Banker Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins) is incarcerated in the Shawshank State Prison for two life sentences for murdering his wife. Soon after his arrival he befriends Ellis Boyd Redding, also known as ‘Red’ (Morgan Freeman), also imprisoned for murder. Red landed in Shawshank over 20 years previous to Andy, and in that time has received a reputation for smuggling goods in and out of the prison and often supplies Andy with posters of desirable women of the time, he can also offer him a certain amount of protection as a new prisoner, so Andy sticks close to him and his friends.

Andy acquires a position working in the laundry room and it’s here that he is repeatedly, brutally attacked by a gang known as ‘The Sisters’ and one such attack is so horrific, he is almost killed. Thankfully he is then relocated to the library where he meets Brooks Hatlen, an elderly inmate who’s been in Shawshank for over 50 years. Soon enough, his banking skills come into good use and he manages to create a name for himself as a dab hand with the books. Cue an onslaught of money laundering and plenty of gruelling hours in solitary confinement. After his final spell in solitary confinement for trying to prove the innocence of a fellow inmate, Andy tells Red of his dreams to live in a small beach town in Mexico, and instructs him, if he ever gets out, to go to a specific hayfield in the town of Buxton to receive a package…

The Shawshank Redemption is an uplifting film with some interesting messages and it deals with so many issues that currently circulate modern day penitentiaries, for example; gang culture, drug smuggling, inmates killing inmates, inmates killing themselves and the difficulties faced when released back into the big wide world. Arguably, it raises the question of how much has American state penitentiaries changed in the last 80 years? The answer would be barely at all, the justice system seems to remain traditional, while the crimes being committed are becoming increasingly variable. Shawshank also conveys a very strong message about freedom and the idea that just because you are imprisoned in a cell, in a building, with a whole load of criminals, it doesn’t mean you can’t be free and Andy and Red demonstrate how to make your own freedom.

Even though the main narrative follows the story of Andy Dufresne, it was Morgan Freeman as Red who was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor that year. His character may not be as prominent in the narrative as that of Andy, but what he says and does is so much more important, right up until his last moments on screen where you will honestly find yourself reaching for the tissues, an ending I personally favour as the best I’ve seen so far.

Frank Darabont, the films writer and director, seems to have a penchant for emotional prison films as shortly after making The Shawshank Redemption, he made The Green Mile, another exceptional insight to the mysterious and brutal world of prison. Shawshank is beautifully written, impeccably acted and is still holding its place as #1 on IMDB’s top 250 films of all time, it is a film for everyone, and definitely worth borrowing.

 Further Reading in The Information Store:

• The Shawshank Redemption (1994) – 791.43 in the DVD Zone
• BFI Classics – The Shawshank Redemption by Mark Kermode – 791.4372 in the Book Zone
• Please check out our display of books for Black History Month near the Issue Desk in The Information Store for lots more information!

European Day of Languages!

26^th September is celebrated every year as European Day of Languages (EDL).  Therefore, 800 million Europeans from 47 countries are encouraged to learn more languages, at any age, in or out of school to enhance communication and achieving greater intercultural understanding and a key element in the rich cultural heritage of our continent.

Few interesting facts:

• There are about 225 indigenous languages in Europe and at least half of the world’s population are bilingual or plurilingual
• Bilingualism brings many advantages: it makes the learning of additional languages easier, enhances the thinking process and fosters contacts with other people and their cultures
• Languages are related to each other like the members of a family. Most European languages belong to the large Indo-European family.
• Most European languages belong to three broad groups: Germanic, Romance and Slavic.

The Information Store has a wide range of information resources on Languages (Dewey class number 400, with further divisions and sections for more detailed categories.  Please come to visit us and ask for more information about our dictionaries, and the sections with different language subdivision we have available.

Please see more information, events, facts and activities on the Council of Europe (EDL) web site: http://edl.ecml.at/Home/tabid/1455/language/en-GB/Default.aspx

 

Study helpsheets / videos on Blackboard

The Information Store have added some handy helpsheets, videos and tutorials onto Blackboard. Subjects include finding resources, setting up an Athens account, how to reference, and much, much more.

To access these, start at the Blackboard homepage > select Information Store under Useful links (on the left) > select the yellow Study Support button > Scroll down for links to helpsheets etc.

Please let us know if there are helpsheets that you would like to see on here, and we will endeavour to create them!

And the winner is....

...Miss Peacock.

Seriously, we couldn't have picked a better name to win our Cluedo-style murder mystery if we'd tried!

Congratulations Sarah Peacock, your name was pulled out of a hat this afternoon, and we will be in touch with you about how to collect your Waterstones voucher. Well done!

DVD Review - The Fifth Element (1997)

 

It’s a busy year for Bruce Willis, Gary Oldman and Milla Jovavich with each having a film out in September, Willis stars as the time travelling Joe in Looper, Oldman plays the ruthless Floyd Banner in Lawless and Jovavich will be returning as the apocalypse preventing Alice in Resident Evil: Retribution. However, fifteen years before these block busting celebrities were travelling through time, shooting people in the face or killing zombies they all starred together in a quirky little science fiction film called The Fifth Element.

Luc Besson’s bizarre insight to the twenty third century follows the story of Leeloo (Jovavich), a ‘supreme being’ who is sent to earth as a part of the four elements (earth, fire, water and air) to protect the planet from an impending attack. While the fifth element was being brought back to earth, the ship it was travelling on was destroyed leaving just a small part of it left. Scientists on earth then rebuild the element using the DNA from the recovered part and the result is a red haired, green eyed woman, Leeloo. She then escapes in fear from the laboratory she has just awoken in and ends up falling through the roof of taxi driver Korben Dallas (Willis). She asks him to help her and he takes her to see Father Vito Cornelius who is more than excited to see her as he was aware of her arrival to Earth. Meanwhile, someone else is aware of the power these elements hold and his reasons for acquiring them are purely for evil. Jean-Baptiste Emmanuel Zorg is a powerful, strangely dressed individual who wants nothing more than to kill everything and be in control of the Universe. His shape-shifting alien army undergo various disguises in order to intercept Dallas, Leeloo and Vito as they travel through space on board ‘Fhloston Paradise’ a holiday makers space craft, in order to reach their destination and save the world by converging with the other four stones in a spectacular finale.

Alongside Willis, Jovavich and Oldman is quite an impressive ensemble case, including Chris Tucker, Ian Holm, Luke Perry and Lee Evans. The film also has a very small, perfectly formed cameo from La Haine (1995) director Mathieu Kassovitz. Despite this great cast and imaginative storyline, it was still nominated for two Razzies during awards season, one for Worst Supporting Actress (Jovovich) and one for Worst New Actor (Tucker). In general though, the film was very well received, winning a BAFTA for special effects and nominated for an Oscar. It also trebled its budget by grossing $263 million.

Arguably, the dominant feature that makes The Fifth Element so memorable is the stylised futuristic world that it is set in. Luc Besson’s exceedingly French style is exceptionally brilliant at allowing the film to completely stand out from the crowd. The brightly coloured costumes, courtesy of Jean-Paul Gautier, and the wacky, futuristic hair styles aid its uniqueness. This highly stylised mise en scene is only further exaggerated in the over the top mannerisms of the people that surround Korben Dallas, especially talk show host Ruby Rhod (Tucker), an unforgettable character to say the least. This over-stylisation gives the film an almost comic book feel, something that has become a common feature in films of the last few years; Kick Ass (2010), Scott Pilgrim Vs The World (2010) and so on. This is the futuristic world Besson is aiming to create, and his dedication to this idea is only further demonstrated in the ‘Divine Language’ which starts cascading out of Leeloo’s mouth when she first awakes. Vito understands the Divine Language but cannot speak it, thus he finds a way for her to learn English. This language was created by Besson and Jovovich and in order for them to fully understand their creation they would communicate by using it in letters to each other.

The cast of The Fifth Element are nothing short of brilliant and are massively responsible for its success. Bruce Willis as the former Special Forces soldier is witty, charming and over-confident as the male lead Korben Dallas, he is instantly charmed by Leeloo and makes his move on her quite early on, only to be greeted by a gun to the head as she is very displeased at his advances. However it is very difficult to ignore the blatant fact that Korben Dallas is just a futuristic version of John McClane. Die Hard fans beware! The gem of the movie for me though comes in the form of Jean-Baptiste Emmanuel Zorg, played villainously by Gary Oldman. Everything from his voice to his haircut is perfect. The juxtaposition of a camp, girly voice on a man who ruthlessly will kill members of his own elite makes him very non-threatening, which is perfectly demonstrated when he chokes and almost dies, on a cherry pip.

Overall, The Fifth Element is a great film for any science fiction fanatic. It draws on so many elements of 80’s science fiction films like Ridley Scotts Blade Runner (1982), especially the epic cityscapes, and it has provided influence for many science fiction films after its release in 1997. Even the newly released Dredd 3D has slight Fifth Element inflections, more so Blade Runner, but they all seem to roll together and work off each other creating an epic sci-fi nostalgia snowball that just keeps on growing the more it snows.

Further Reading in The Information Store:

·         Science Fiction Cinema: Between Fantasy and Reality by Christine Cornea

Location: Book Zone 791.436 COR

·         The Blade Runner Experience: The Legacy of a Science Fiction Classic by Will Brooker

Location: Book Zone 791.4372 BRO

·         Blade Runner (1982)

Location: The DVD Zone 791.43

·         The Fifth Element (1997)

Location: The DVD Zone 791.43