Monday, July 26, 2010
Going crazy, going to work
Sunday, February 7, 2010
The Problem with Oz; or Why Dorothy Can Never Go Home Again
I feel fortunate enough to have grown up on this version of Oz as well as the well-known 1939 MGM version starring Judy Garland. While I enjoyed both versions, this darker version is the version I look most fondly at in my childhood. The documentary by Rodriguez helped me to feel better about my preference, but made me feel sad that the movie itself is not looked at as a classic by others, except as cult film.
One of the biggest reasons I believe it do not do well was because too many people try to compare it to the Judy Garland 1939 version.
1.) The 1939 version was happy, whereas Return to Oz was quite the opposite. However, I think the duality of the two movies should make them perfect companion pieces. First of all, Return to Oz re-introduced us to Dorothy as a girl longing for Oz. When you think about the end of the 1939 movie, Dorothy is excited to be home in Kansas with her family. However, between the settings of the two films, it is very accurate that she would miss the magical world of talking scarecrows and cities made of jewels. In Oz, she was a hero and treated as special. In Kansas, she’s just Dorothy Gale, farm girl #482. I like to compare this with what I dub the “Doctor Who Syndrome”.
In the SciFi Show, Doctor Who, the Doctor is a time traveler whom goes on adventures through time and space. He often has companions from Earth, who share in his adventures. In the new series, the Doctor meets up with an old companion (Sarah Jane, who traveled with his previous incarnations in the 1980s) in the 2000s. She explains to him that she never married because there would never be anyone like him. She also expressed anger towards him as adjusting to a normal life when you spent years traveling beyond human imagination is a difficult feat.
In thinking about what Dorothy’s life was like after her adventures in Oz before, it’s very possible that after the happiness of being home subsided she began to miss the adventure that living on a Kansas farm cannot afford young women.
2.) No song and dance numbers. This kind of goes back to #1. But when you’re in a depressive state, the sun doesn’t seem to shine as brightly, music doesn’t always seems so cheerful and your voice seems lost in the harsh air that surrounds you. I can’t see song and dance in a place where the Emerald City is devoid of their namesake, where the people who made it so happy are gone or have turned to stone.This is related to the cinematography in the 1939 film where when Dorothy lands in Oz, the picture goes from the more normal and mundane black-and-white to technicolor. While they don't repeat this in 'Return', you could argue that since being in Oz, Dorothy sees everything in color though it is not as bright and cheery as technicolor.
3.) There's no real happy ending, because it never time never ends. One of the appeals of this movie to me is the fact that Oz lives on after Dorothy leaves. It doesn't stop existing or is frozen in time, which is how things are in reality. Like in the Chronicles of Narnia books, after the four children who were the Sons of Adam and Daughters of Eve leaves, the world doesn't end. It lives on for thousands of years without them.
Sometimes, it seems people want the world revolve around the hero. The world stops for them, they are forever seen as a sort of deity for the world's inhabitants and if the hero comes back, things will always be the same. Even in fiction, this isn't true. Even if the hero is supernatural, "The One", or any variant on human/mythological creature - one can be a metaphorical or literal "God". It may stem from the idea that we want to be immortal, that we want to be remembered long after we are gone over somebody else. The idea that we are special. While I am not saying we are not special, it doesn't mean the world revolves around us.
4.) Return to Oz is not necessarily a child-friendly movie. Between the Wheelers (men whose feet and hands are wheels), Mombi (who keeps a collection of heads that she switches off on using, and comments that Dorothy's head would be wonderful in a few years), and the Gnome King - children can be easily frightened since the villains are more than just green face make-up and a pointy hat. At the same time, children don't necessarily enjoy movies that are dark. This isn't a flaw or a negative aspect of being a child, but children may not understand why the darkness of the movie makes it enjoyable. An example of something that can be construed as being as being for kids that kids may not necessarily be something they would enjoy is Jim Henson's short-lived "The Storyteller" series.In this series, European fairy tales (particularly ones that were either obscure or Disney-fied in Western culture), and for four episodes - Greek myths, were told using a mix of puppets and live-action actors. Like "Oz", there were no song and dance and often the unhappy or cynical endings were kept. Other examples of media that are mistaken for being for kids, but are not can be found on the website "TvTropes", under the tag "What Do You Mean It's Not For Kids?"
Return to Oz, I would say is one of my favorite childhood movies. It has heart, soul and a vision not often found in fantasy movies. And for that alone, I feel should be given a second chance at life - beyond cult status.
Related Links
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Back again, and more to do - to simply get this message through.
So, you may ask - what has been happening since you last updated?
We'll see if I can get anything going today. My day has been revamping my style, updating and re-establishing my network.
If you are there - leave me a message and let me know you're there!
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Your new Public Service Announcement
Instead of that bull, how about:
If a woman is drunk, don't rape her. If a woman is walking alone at night, don't rape her. If a women is drugged and unconscious, don't rape her. If a woman is wearing a short skirt, don't rape her. If a woman is jogging in a park at 5AM, don't rape her. If a woman looks like your ex-girlfriend you're still hung up on, don't rape her. If a woman is asleep in her bed, don't rape her. If a woman is asleep in your bed, don't rape her. If a woman is doing her laundry, don't rape her. If a woman is in a coma, don't rape her. If a woman changes her mind in the middle of or about a particular activity, don't rape her. If a woman has repeatedly refused a certain activity, don't rape her. If a woman is not yet a woman, but a child, don't rape her. If your girlfriend or wife is not in the mood, don't rape her. If your step-daughter is watching TV, don't rape her.
If you break into a house and find a woman there, don't rape her. If your friend thinks it's okay to rape someone, tell him it's not, and that he's not your friend. If your "friend" tells you he raped someone, report him to the police. If your frat-brother or another guy at the party tells you there's an unconscious woman upstairs and it's your turn, don't rape her, call the police and report him as a rapist.
Tell your sons, god-sons, nephews, grandsons, and sons of friends that it's not okay to rape someone.
Don't just tell your women friends how to be safe and avoid rape. Don't imply that she could have avoided it if she'd only done/not done x, y, or z. Don't imply that it's in any way her fault. Don't let silence imply agreement when someone tells you he "got some" with the drunk girl. Don't perpetuate a culture that tells you that you have no control over or responsibility for your actions. You can too help yourself. Rape is not about sex, it's about control and power, and what kind of power comes from taking advantage of others? No power anyone should ever desire.
If you agree, repost it. It's important.
(Gloria's note: the same goes in reverse - don't forget about women-on-men rape)
Sunday, November 30, 2008
World AIDS Day 2008
“AIDS was first reported in the
Since 1981, more than 980,000 cases of AIDS have been reported in the
Since 1981:
· 2.9 million people lost their lives in 2006 from AIDS.
· 4.3 million people were newly infected with HIV in 2006.
· 39.5 million people around the world are living with AIDS/HIV in 2006.
· Approximately 11 of every 1,000 adults (ages 15 to 49) are HIV infected.
· 25 million children will be orphans by 2010 because of AIDS
· Over 25 million people have died since the first AIDS case was identified in 1981.From AidsFactSheet.com
Ryan White would be 37.

Freddie Mercury would be 61.

Pedro Zamora would be 36.
Eliana MartÃnez would be 27.
AIDS does not discriminate. Young, old, gay, straight, trans, cis, Hispanic, Caucasian, Black, purple and blue. This needs to end. What are you doing to stop AIDS in 2008 and 2009?
Friday, July 11, 2008
I'm gonna need my own zip code

On one of the many blogs I read (Gawker), they recently had an article about the newest people to be offended by the movie "Wall-E".
Below is the letter that they posted summing up the feelings of said group:
I was at Columbus GLBTQ Pride today and I saw people of all shapes and sizes laughing and being in love.
Are they worthless too? Are they dirty and stupid and responsible for ruining the planet? Does their shape make them inherently bad?
What they are talking about is the portrayal in the film where 700 years in the future, hu
mans are fat. Caused by getting literally no physical activity (every one is on hover chairs 24 hours a day), drinking all food in liquid form and doing nothing but gossiping, getting hairdos, etc. If one person falls out of the hover chair, robots come by to put the person back there. The world is run by a retail corporation ("Buy'N'Large") that runs all almost aspect of society. Many people are interpreting this as "oh, so all fat people are lazy, huh?" Over a course of 700 years, without physical activity and with nothing but liquid processed food, people will get fat. Bone density will reduce greatly and body composition will change. The idea however is not that all fat people are lazy slobs, but perhaps more of a warning tht we should start taking care of ourselves better.I'm not sure that the writer of the complain letter really get the point of the movie, or even that aspect of the movie. Now, I am all about being "fat positive". Perhaps the better phrase is the thinking of health at every size.
That does not mean that being fat is bad. It does mean if you're not taking care of yourself, you need to start. For instance, in the article, the writer brings up a scenario I've seen several times myself:
Or parents driving their kids a block in their giant SUVs so precious doesn't have to wait in the cold for the school bus, instead, letting them sit inside with the car running. Or responding to teenagers building a wiffleball field on their own by calling the cops and lawyers.
Coming back around to the complaints, let me define what "Health at Every Size" means, at least to me. It means striving to be healthy by eating more vegetables and fruits, less processed foods and spending more time preparing food - and maybe even involving your family (be it your children, your parents, your partner or even your friends) in the process of cooking. It also means spending a little more time pursuing physical activity. By physical activity, I don't necessarily mean (a) buy gym membership (b) spend money on hiring a personal trainer (c) go to said gym five days a week until you are healthy enough to come in first place in a triathlon.
There are other ways to be physically fit. It can be spending 20 minutes each day walking around your block. It can be buying or renting a bicycle and riding through the park. I can even be dancing in your living room for a half hour. These are things you can do alone or with others, at any age, at any size.
Additionally, if you are not a size 8, that does not mean you are unhealthy. There are several people out there who constantly trash their body by eating processed foods, not getting the right nutrients as well as never exercising. Your body's ideal weight is not likely to be the ideal weight listed in Cosmopolitan magazine - a magazine that frequently makes the claim of accepting all body types, but rarely features women who are more than a size 4 or clothes made for people over a size 8 - at most.
By treating your body right, you can eliminate or reduce fatigue, gain flexibility (which can be especially useful as you age), and strengthen muscles through toning them. Concentration can increase as well as positive moods. Every size can be beautiful - looking good and subseqently, feeling good - can make anyone's outlook on life even more lovely.
Related links
Wall-E's Big, Fat, Offensive Problem
Association for Size Diversity and Health
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
When I grow up, I want to be plastic!

A new book has been published recently, and has reached a national level of attention. My Beautiful Mommy is a book written by Michael Salzhauer, MD, which introduces children to the idea of their parent (most likely mother) having plastic surgery. The mother in the book is a normal-looking woman seeking a tummy tuck and a nose job, with her young child learning that her mommy is going to be different…”but prettier!”
When I first read about the book in my local newspaper, I thought it might be a fluke that it was published – perhaps even a joke? A book portraying to children that cosmetic surgery is needed to become prettier sounds just as bad as children’s book that are called “Controlling the Playground: Respect through Fear" or “Daddy Drinks Because You Cry”.
Why? According to Discovery Health, over 326,00 teens (18 and under) had cosmetic surgery to correct something that made them self conscious in 2004. That same year, the American Association of Plastic Surgeons claimed that about 4,000 of those surgeries were breast augmentations. The rise of receiving this surgery as a sweet 16 or graduation gift is disturbing and not only because of the possible medical complications
, according to the FDA. Women’s breasts do not stop growing until they are 22 or 23, which can lead to extreme pain for many years and the large possibility of more surgeries – which is not covered by insurance most of the time.
The reason that almost every recipient of plastic surgery seeks improvement is because they are unsatisfied with their body. I wonder how someone could be unsatisfied body in this day and age – with
Perhaps it is no wonder that a children’s book about plastic surgery is being published and distributed. Different body types are no longer valued by schools because of their association with obesity. The media still propagates that having a body like Victoria Beckham is ideal, but at the same time chastises it for being too thin. Celebrity blogging sites like Perez Hilton or Livejournal’s “ohnotheydidnt” community often posts pictures of celebrities with some complaint of their looks.
I’m not against all forms of cosmetic surgery, of course. Reconstruction and other types of surgeries to cover up scars or burns can be helpful for someone who never asked to endure a traumatic event. However, there is something to be said about loving the skin you’re in regardless.
In conclusion, we can say that celebrities are fair game, and that we should strive to look our best. On the other hand, our children are seeing what we do to our bodies and our faces. They may hear “You’re beautiful no matter how you look”, but they are seeing “You will never be perfect enough.”
Related LinksThe Magic of Photoshop
Cosmetic Surgery Statistics
The Good Body by Eve Ensler


