Film Review: 11 am

11 a.m. South Korea 2013 CJ entertainment. Written by Lee Seung-hwan. Directed by Kim Hyun-Seok.

It’s no secret that I am a lover of time travel movies. After dwindling down the choices from the many time travel flicks I’ve seen this month, the remaining contenders were Time Lapse and 11 a.m. So, the first: 11 a.m. because I like Korean (and non-US) speculative fiction.

The story is pretty basic. Our hero Woo-seok is leading a time travel research project called Trotsky -- so named because it concerns the past and alternate timelines and because Trotsky would’ve been the great Soviet leader instead of Stalin had if time had turned out differently. I need not tell you that Team Leader  Woo-seok has a past he wants to change, do I? We pretty much know that all Mad Scientists have some horrible event that happened in the past from which their passion came. So, yes, this passion for time travel originated in the death of our hero’s beloved wife. Ah, if he could only go back in time and fix things.

But her death happened waaaaaaaay back when. And so far the Trotsky team have only been able to (theoretically) go back in time for 24 hours. Not a bad start! But apparently not good enough for the Russians who have been backing this project and who now are on the verge of shutting it down.

Disappointed but valiant --and (as I’ve already stated) led by a somewhat obsessed Team Leader, our scientists decide to try to send Trotsky into the future. “For real, this time.” No more theories or transporting non-humans into the future. Woo-seok and Young-eun are sent a day ahead. At exactly 11: a.m. But when they arrive there, they find much amiss. The station’s ablaze, some crazy guy is attempting to murder Woo-seok folks have died, the CCTV tapes are scrambled and the walls are crumbling.  Dear me! What do these things mean? How did matters come to this pass? Have the Russians been doing shady things? Or has knowing the future caused this bad future to happen?

This is a fun flick. It’s fast-paced and it comes together well. I didn’t find any plot holes -- which is what one looks for in time travel flicks-- but it’s possible I was so caught up in the story I missed them. This film is streaming on the web.

Time Lapse 104 minutes  USA 2014  Written by Bradley D King and BP Cooper. Veritas Production

Time Lapse is not exactly a time travel pic. It’s more of a fortune-telling advanced infomation pic. And it turns out to be the perfect complement to our Korean time travel piece, 11 a.m. We have three best buds -- consisting of Callie, Finn, and Jasper. Finn and Callie are dating and Jasper is well, hovering around them as best friends who are in love with their friend’s girl often do.

A neighbor goes missing. In their search for him, they discover a camera that takes pictures of coming events. Exactly 24 hours in the future. Dear me! What a difference a day makes! Well, for one, it can make a difference between winning a lot of money on gambling and winning a little. It can prevent -- or cause?-- murders. And if one or two of the main characters are obsessed with greed or lust or passion, well, who knows what will happen?

The funny thing about the course of events is that yet again knowing the future creates the future. In 11 a.m., the characters try to fight against what seems inevitable. In Time Lapse, the hipster ever-so-sure-of-themselves friends believe that since a future scene appears in a photograph, they are obligated to recreate what they see in the picture. But like the scrambled CCTV tapes in 11 a.m., these folks are working with incomplete information. I definitely recommend this movie. This film is available on DVD and is streaming online and on Netflix.

Review: Art Students League of New York on Painting

 Art Students League of New York on Painting
Lessons and Meditations on Mediums, Styles, and Methods
James L. McElhinney and the Instructors of The Art Students League of New York.

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Watson-Guptill (November 10, 2015)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385345437
• ISBN-13: 978-0385345439

Back in the day, I used to paint. And play the violin. And play the piano. And do calligraphy. But I've kinda let those arts and crafts fall to the side as I focused on my writing and my fabric designs. But this book is seriously inspiring.

If you've seen art books, they tend to fall into the following categories: art how to's, art history, art culture, memoirs by art professionals. This book is a little of all those categories. First of all, it's a book with really great paintings. In this day of photoshop and illustrator, one generally doesn't see acrylic, oil, etc paintings unless one visits galleries and museums. And realistic paintings are often done by cameras. This book reminds the reader of the craft of painting. Simply speaking, it's not a book that one has to read. But I would recommend reading it.

Cause these artists have some important stuff they want to say.

I've run into this before where people have been resentful because of the way critics and teachers of modern art have derided realism as passe and unimportant. So yeah, there is a whole lot of that. But hey, they're telling the truth and they're speaking their art. With the advent of people like Lucien Freud and Philip Pearlstein and others, realism with an emphasis on figure realism has come back into vogue in many quarters of critical opinion.

The commentary and personal histories of the artists will definitely help many modern artists understand the paths and pitfalls of the art life and will also give information on the state of contemporary realistic painting to future artists. This is a great book to give to any artist interested in realistic painting. I will add though that there are a lot of nude paintings. I don't really mind it. (I was a model for painters in college but I was one of those models who never removed her clothing. Imagine then me being dressed and my partner being fully nude! Ah, those days!) But some folks who have a problem with seeing the nude human body --even in a painting-- might be perturbed.

Founded in 1875, the venerable Art Students League of New York still instructs some 2500 students each month. In this copiously illustrated  book on painting, we get an in-depth look into the methods and inspirations of contemporary artists teaching at the League. The book is divided into three parts: Lessons and Demos, Advice and Philosophies, and Interviews. Some of the artists  in Part One include Henry Finkelstein (On Painting, with a Critique); Thomas Torak (A Contemporary Approach to Classical Painting); Naomi Campbell (Working Large in Watercolor); and Costa Vavagiakis (The Evolution of a Concept).

 

    Part Two features, among others, William Scharf (Knowing that Miracles Happen), Peter Homitzky (inventing from Observation), and Deborah Winiarski (Painting and Encaustic).

    Part Three features three interviews: Frank O'Cain (Abstraction from Nature); Ronnie Landfield (On Learning and Teaching); Knox Martin (Learning From Old  and Modern Masters).

 

    Most of the art is representational, with emphasis on the human figure. After every chapter there is a student gallery which reproduces recent paintings from the students.

    There are lots of good tips in the illustrated demos that would profit an  experienced artist as well as the beginner. I received this book free of charge in exchange for a honest review.

   

 

 

Review: Money-Making Mom by Crystal Paine

Money-Making Mom How Every Woman Can Earn More and Make a Difference

By Crystal Paine

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (November 3, 2015)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1400206480
• ISBN-13: 978-1400206483

Okay, I'll admit it. I was prepared to hate this book. I assumed it was a get-rich-quick kind of book written by some happy peppy mom which promised happiness and wealth for anyone prepared to work hard. It's kinda like that but not really.

As a writer I read a lot of blogs and books about how to make a living as a writer. Because... let's face it, the internet has opened up and anyone can use his or her talents to make a little cash. And writers aim to make more than a little cash: writing is a bit like a mom-and-pop store nowadays. It is a lifestyle, a commitment, a vocation to bring goods to others, and a means of helping to make ends meet.

Like other books that promise advice on success, it must be read and applied. There is no real good to reading a book like this -- a book crammed with insights such as finding your talents, marketing yourself, building your business, budgeting one's time, money, and affections-- without actually committing to act on the advice.

And this is where the book excels. Crystal Paine gives solid advice. It's not hype and it's not superior. It's like a good friend sitting you down and telling you what she has had to do in order to make her own life successful. She's spiritual too and believes in giving back, which isn't a bad thing.

Now, the reader of this book (writer, artist, typist, butcher, musician, baker, candlestick-maker) might not become as successful as Crystal Paine is but I suspect that any woman (or man) who reads and diligently applies the suggestions in this book could definitely find a way to create extra bucks for their family's income.

I received this book free of charge in exchange for a fair and honest review.