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  • Fun Apps To Cure Your Academic Boredom

    Fun Apps To Cure Your Academic Boredom

    As children of technology, we use our smartphones for just about everything. Be honest, every college student uses their phone to text or play games in class. The true art in this is knowing which classes to break out the mobile entertainment and which ones you should leave it in your bag (or dorm room, if you”re too tempted).

    There are some college courses that students barely survive. Hundreds of pages to read each week, hours of homework each night — yet we still just scrape by with a B- or C , after all that work. These are the classes you can”t miss a second of, or you fail the test that week. We hate these classes. They keep us up at night.

    Good thing there is another class everyone seems to have. The lecture hall half full of sleepy students, the other half still in bed or studying for another class. Why? This is that easy class where the professor gives you study guides with answers, oodles of extra credit and all your lecture notes are conveniently online. We love these classes. They give balance to our GPAs.

    One of the reasons smartphones make me smile is that they offer plenty of apps to entertain you during these easy classes. Next time you”re dosing off in Professor Monotone”s lecture on lectures, pass the time with . Just don”t forget to get the notes online later. Please, slack off responsibly.

    1. Candy Crush

    Candy Crush is an addictive game that involves matching combinations of candies to make the highest possible score and complete the level”s objective. In some levels, the objective may be to collect certain items, such as fruits, that fall into the candy grid. On other levels, the player may need to rid the board of jelly by crushing candies in certain squares.

    2. Fruit Ninja

    Fruit Ninja image by puzzlescript via Flickr.

    If you”re looking for a game that requires a little less strategy and a little more speed, Fruit Ninja can keep you occupied for hours. During this game, pieces of fruit fall from the top of your screen, and you must use your finger or stylus to “slash” each piece of fruit as it falls. To raise your score even higher, slash multiple pieces of fruit in a row without missing any. If you miss too many pieces, the game will end. The goal of the game is to earn as many points as possible on each level.

    3. Kindle

    Not everyone can focus on a book with a professor droning on in the background. However, if you can block out the noise, the Kindle app can be an excellent source of entertainment. It provides you with access to millions of newspapers, magazines and books to read on your smartphone. In addition to reading, you can use the Kindle app to sync your e-books with other mobile devices, borrow e-books from your local library and shop for new books to download. This app also includes access to Wikipedia and a built-in dictionary.

    4. WhatsApp Messenger

    If you have a classmate who is trying just as hard to stay awake during lectures, or if you simply want to send messages to friends and family, you can download the WhatsApp Messenger. This app allows you to engage other smartphone users in one-on-one chat conversations, as well as group chat sessions. You can also use WhatsApp Messenger to send videos and pictures to friends.

  • Nowhere: Review

    Nowhere: Review

    As the conclusion to his uber-bright, uber-gory Teen Destruction trilogy, Nowhere is a feast for the eyes. The highly stylized sets, trippy characters and theatrical gore are even more hyperbolised than the initial The Doom Generation and Totally F***ed Up. Think Rules of Attraction meets Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

    Although director Gregg Araki is apparent in his yearning to present damaged youth culture, choosing a group of bulimic, over-sexed, junkie, vacant and alienated teens, the inclusion of ten-foot aliens brings this film into a more entertaining light. Araki again draws some inspiration from screwball comedies, as the bi-sexual open relationship between main characters Dark Smith (James Duval) and Mel (Rachel True) is dominated by the female presence and a challenge to the male. And, although Araki does at times attempt some serious themes such as escapism, love and even rape, he interludes this with his love of the visual and downright silly. The sets are nothing short of dramaturgical and a triumph against his slightly modest budget. The finishing scene summarises the movie well, an intimate moment between Smith and love interest Montgomery (Nathan Bexton) that is destroyed by a talking alien submerging from Monty’s exploded corpse.

    The plot is actually not overcomplicated, as it surveys different groups of LA high schoolers for the day until the climatic scenes set at a local house party. Every now and again Araki drops in a short interlude of small but undeniably amusing sidetracks from some surprisingly significant stars, including Heather Graham, Ryan Phillipe, Mena Suvari, Denise Richards, and Rose McGowen. All their roles, although fleeting, contribute to the surreal and transitory world Araki paints.

    There is certainly never an overcast moment, although you might be left feeling nearly as confused as the characters themselves. Regardless, everything from the 20s inspirations, the b-movie violence and the ragged and juvenile dialogue, keep it true to Araki’s unique style.

  • Geek News

    Geek News

    By Gordon Foote.

    So, I’m going to go ahead and assume that, by now, everyone has heard that BAffleck has been cast as the new Batman in Zack Snyder’s follow up to the, less than stellar, Man of Steel?  Everyone? Yeah? Good.  How you feel about the decision depends on your love of the franchise and your opinion of BAffleck himself.

    My thoughts?  Well, it’s a difficult one… if you’d asked me five years ago if that mop-headed chap from A Knights Tale would make a good Joker you would have been in for quite the tirade, but that worked out pretty well (though admittedly, not for him).  BAffleck certainly has the acting chops for it, and could breathe new life into a stagnating formula.  Also, I quite like the idea of Snyder having to direct an Oscar winning director (movie not direction) in his next film – Oh, to be a fly on the wall! My concerns really lie in the handling of the script which will require a level of character interaction and development which wasn’t even hinted as in MoS, to make the interplay work. Without it, this film will be a) a wasted opportunity and b) a total mess.

    Many of you will now be saying, “Well, wait a minute! Snyder did compelling character interaction in Watchmen!”  to which I’d respond, correct. He did.  But that was a near panel-by-panel adaptation of one of the best written comics ever.  The equivalent (if the announcement at SDCC is to be believed) would be large chunks of the script being ripped from Frank Miller’s Dark Knight Returns which means I’ll have to endure a lot of Superman being set up as a flag-waving, republican, government stooge, while Batman gets to forget that he is the 1% and takes the side of the lefties….I’m not entirely sure I’m on board with that.

    We’ll see, but at present, I’m quietly optimistic.

     

    On the back of this report, several sites are now spouting a whole host of DC related rumours, many of which should probably be taken with more than your recommended daily allowance of salt at this stage.  Over at comicbooknews.com they’re stating that Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston is deep in talks to play Lex Luthor in multiple DC movies.  Seems possible, but is amongst the laziest casting I’ve seen in recent years.    Rather more bizarre, however, is the claim that BAffleck’s long-time collaborator, Matt Damon, is being wooed to play either Aquaman or Martian Manhunter…to me this seems less likely for a single reason: No one wants to be Aquaman, he’s the guy who shows up to make Flash look interesting.   (Entourage fans pipe down…)

    Finally on the DC side of the comic divide, it’s back to our new Batman.  Variety is claiming that Mr. Affleck, following his acceptance of the role of the Dark Knight, is also in talks to direct the Justice League adap.  I’m a huge fan of Affleck’s directorial works and REALLY want to see him succeed in this, but…wow…that a tall order! If it turns out to be true, it’s going to be a stressful time for the ex-Mr. Lopez as the full weight of fandom bears down on him, scrutinize every scrap of information leaked from his project. I’d imagine that fairly soon he’s going to know just how J.J. Abrams feels.

    Things are just as busy on the Marvel side of the big divide this week, with Vin Diesel’s months of twitter-teasing (I’ve dubbed it Tweasing and now hate myself) finally coming to something as he was announced as the voice of Groot in the Guardians of the Galaxy (set for release next year).  This leaves very few slots unfilled in the cast, which is looking more awesome by the week. Rocket Raccoon (clues in the name; he’s a talking raccoon with guns) being the noted exception, but Collider.com have you covered there, claiming that Bradley Cooper is rumoured to be in talks.  That, I could live with: since he’s now definitely not going to be in The Crow reboot, he is once again allowed to be in things without me swearing loudly.

    The site goes on to discuss the two mutants who aren’t mutants because Fox still own the rights to those, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch.  Marvel/Disney are apparently in talks with, Kick-Ass’s, Aaron Taylor-Johnson for the former and Elizabeth Olsen for the latter.

    So…exciting times all around!  Think Taylor-Johnson is all wrong for Quicksilver? Certain Affleck will ruin Batman forever?  Couldn’t care less and have no idea what is happening?  Why not share your love, hate, and respectful disagreements in the comments?

    GF

  • The Dyatlov Pass Incident

    The Dyatlov Pass Incident

    Premiering at Film4 FrightFest, “The Dyatlov Pass Incident” is based on the bizarre but true events surrounding the mysterious deaths of nine ski hikers who went missing in the Ural Mountains in 1959. This “The Blair Witch Project” meets “The Descent” by way of “The X Files” horror is the most unnerving supernatural shocker to come out in years!

    “The Dyatlov Pass Incident” takes the known facts of the tragedy and spins them into a truly chilling horror experience that brilliantly combines elements of contemporary history, conspiracy theory, sci-fi and the supernatural that all contribute to a knock-out twist and a breathtaking finale.

  • The Great Hip Hop Hoax

    The Great Hip Hop Hoax

    Vertigo Films and Kaleidoscope Home Entertainment are delighted to announce THE GREAT HIP HOP HOAX will be available on DVD in the UK on the 23rd September 2013.

    After causing a storm at the Edinburgh Film festival back in June and making a name for best friends Billy Boyd and Gavin Bain, the film is an intriguing story of two talented youngsters reflecting on their journey to con the music industry.

    The USA, the land of hip hop music and making it big, gave birth to the Californian duo Silibil n’ Brains, a partnership set to hit the big time and take the music industry by storm. However, what the hordes of fans, high-up execs and people from all over the world didn’t know was… it was all a hoax!

    A story of made-up identity, cover-ups and desperation tells us how two down to earth Scottish lads became the face of American hip hop, tearing their lives apart as they are thrust from the Highlands straight into the limelight.

    Showing us how to fake it with style, THE GREAT HIP HOP HOAX is the step by step of how to get rich, or how you have to try lying…