On the previous episodes of The Voice Season 2, we witnessed the grueling and exciting of auditions of hopeful singers and artists that were eventually highlighted on the battle rounds. Twenty-four out of more or less fifty contestants will move on for the Live Performances after the famous coaches -- namely Adam Levine, Blake Shelton, Christina Aguilera and Cee Lo Green -- chose who are best suitable for their teams.
During the Live Performance the vocalists from two teams compete against each other. And out of these duet competitions only one will be chosen from each set until only twelve vocalists plus four second-chance takers remain. So without dragging you on, here are the list of hopeful contestants that will move on the Live Performance of The Voice Season 2:
Team Adam
Tony Lucca
Kim Yarbrough
Pip
Katrina Parker
Mathai
Karla Davis
Team Blake
RaeLynn
Jordis Unga
Charlotte Sometimes
Jermaine Paul
Erin Willett
Naia Kete
The Christina
Chris Mann
Jesse Campbell
Sera Hill
Lindsey Pavao
Ashley De La Rosa
Moses Stone
Team Cee Lo
Cheesa Laureta
Juliet Simms
Jamar Rogers
Erin Martin
James Massone
Tony Vincent
Who do you think will win on the live performances. Make sure not to miss their performances on April 3, 2012.
Dubbed as the Girl on Fire, Katniss Everdeen or Jennifer Lawrence on real life sets the thermometer on all time high. She doesn't have to prove to us that she really is indeed on fire, because her Esquire photo shoot simply proved it well for her. See how this innocent-looking woman will surely melt your candles.
I am warning you that the following series of pictures and video are not suitable for the conservative and the faint-hearted:
I am not sure, this just feels so wrong for the fact that she is marketing a movie for children and the children at heart and she already graced us with her fiery side. If you really wanna see more you could watch her photo shoot here:
Updated: (1) Added Proud Mary, (Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher and You Are So Beautiful. (2) Added Jessica Sanchez's Bohemian Rhapsody and Dance with My Father performances. (3) Added Jessica Sanchez's Fallin' and Try a Little Tenderness performances. (4) Added Jessica Sanchez's Nobody's Supposed to be Here performance for her last chance save. (5) Added Jessica Sanchez's Stuttering and Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You) performances. (6) Added Jessica Sanchez's How Will I Know and I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me) performances. (7) Added Jessica Sanchez's Like A Prayer on Trio performance.
This half Mexican, half Filipina power ball has definitely captured the attention of millions of people. Who would have thought that this 16 year old Diva would have made it again in the big scene after being accepted in American Idol Season 11. Jessica Sanchez, short for Jessica Elizabeth Sanchez, was once a contender also for first season of the America's Got Talent. Lucky she didn't win, for she may have not the chance of being accepted on the running season of the American Idol.
So far she has made it through the top seven and I believe there is no stopping her. We have seen her in highs and lows (but I can say there are more highs than lows), and last week she has awed the judges and the viewers alike once again.
So for your delight and satisfaction let us have a recap of her previous performances that brought her to where she is now:
Songs from the 1950sGroup Performance - It Doesn't Matter Anymore
Final Solo - The Prayer
Personal Choice - Love You I Do
Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You
Year They Were Born - Turn the Beat Around
Billy Joel - Everybody Has a Dream
Their Personal Idols - Sweet Dreams
Trio - Like a Prayer / Borderline / Express Yourself
Songs from the 1980s (Solo) - How Will I Know
Songs from the 1980s (Duet) - I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)
Songs from the 2010s (Solo) - Stuttering
Songs from the 2010s (Trio) - Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)
Save - Nobody's Supposed to be Here
Songs from Now & Then (Now) - Fallin'
Songs from Now & Then (Then) - Try a Little Tenderness
Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody
Contestant's Choice - Dance with My Father
Songs from the 1960s (solo) - Proud Mary
Songs from the 1960s (trio) - (Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher
British Pop - You Are So Beautiful
Whew that was a mouthful of performances. John certainly can't wait for the next performances. Don't forget to vote for her in their coming performance this week.
And may the odds be ever in your favor! We have seen a lot of books that were turned to movies. John, being an avid reader and book collector, knows most of them and he can surely say that there are misses and hits. Lucky for this year we had a full serving of The Hunger Games and it's surely a certified hit.
Let's digest what made this movie a great one and worthy of our attention:
The Adaptation From Book
It is always hard to adapt a book into a movie, most especially if it has a legion of die hard followers who wanted to hear every line of dialogue incorporated into the movie. This is not possible, of course. But with The Hunger Games it has made ways to be faithful to the book despite a few alteration. It would have been very dragging should Katniss's monologue on the book were translated as is in the movie, but by doing how it was done exactly in the movie: it was amazing artistically and very effective at that.
A viewer would certainly be bored, even if he is an avid fan if each and every thought that the main character had will be blurted out in the screen. Instead it was done in a sport commentary kind of way that Stanley Tucci, playing the your-friend-your-enemy host Caesar, effectively conveyed. All in all, even the most avid fan would agree that the book was best adapted as we see it in the movie. I dare say there could be no better way to do it.
The Cast of Actors and Their Acting
The cast of actors, having been involved in some adaptations before, are familiar and more likely relatable. After seeing how sincere Jennifer Lawrence's acting was I can't imagine should the role have landed to other actors that were considered for the role. Josh Hutcherson's Peeta Mellark is as supposed as he should be, portraying a very strong guy that still emanates a complexity of vulnerability and weakness. Elizabeth Banks's Effie Trinket was also a bonus.
We don't get the usual cheesy combination of actors who can't barely act the way I wanted them to, but these actor being fans of the book themselves surely put there passion on every acting they did in order to give as a unique and very convincing portrayal of each characters. Except one, Woody Harrelson's Haymitch could have been better, I believe.
The Special and Physical Effects, and Production
Who would have not felt the dread of seeing District 12's dilapidated condition as opposed to the majestic living of the Capitol? There, we can already see the contrast of living between two opposing locations. One would surely sympathize on the conditions of the district people: how they suffer, how they have barely something to eat and how those devil may care Capitol people seem not to notice all these.
We see the big difference even in the color palette. The Capitol enjoys the colorful and extravagant collection of fizz and dills on their garments and make up showing how they can spend dearly on ornaments that they could live without, while the extreme districts, slurp the crumbs on the mud and have barely nothing to protect them from the harsh weather. It's as if I could almost say that this is not a movie, but a "documentary on poverty."
The movie has an effective way of rendering physical effects, but I can say that they could still improve on the special one. I mean I was expecting the girl on fire to be truly on fire. And after seeing the fiery attire the District 12 champions wore during the parade I was like, "Is that it?" On the other hand, the futuristic architecture was certainly CGI and I commend the movie for that convincing and creative feel on it,.
The Creatures and the Mythology
In the book, we see creatures and other beings that only reside on this story. They are unique and have the right of their own to express their existence. But in the movie we barely even know of their backgrounds and the mythology behind their existence. We have a very fast glimpses of mockingjays and tracker jackers and they were not really given a hundred percent justice.
And the genetically modified wolves? What happened to them? In the book they were even given the spirit and characters of the victims that died during the game. Why did they have to be showcased like some automaton and brutish creatures without showing the hatred and the feeling of revenge of the victims that should have been there.
Only a few areas of the book has not been given much emphasis and this is one of them.
The Relationship and The Love Affairs
Everyone in the cinema was crying over the fate that Rue has to go through. One annoying viewer even has the guts to wail and let the whole viewers know she is really affected. This is a manifest that the relationship between Katniss and Rue, played by Amandla Stenberg, was really at its best portrayal. And this goes back to the cast's good acting. I can clearly state that there is a chemistry between the two characters: one remembering her younger sister with the other and another needing a mature guidance showing how vulnerable she is during the entire competition.
But who would forget Katniss's and Peeta's love affair? We may have not heard Katniss say each and every thought to feel that she really is confused about the matter, but we still have the feel of it by how the two star crossed lover interacted all the time. It was awkward at the moment since Katniss is undecided by then, but when the time they have to show they are intimate they did there best, and how lovely and convincing it was on screen. And the best part of all this is the remorse that Gale Hawthorne (played by Liam Hemsworth) has to feel seeing his most loved girl being caressed by another man.
The Overall Impact of the Movie
I say, after having lost fate on books turned to movies, I have disappointed my self again on this negative expectation, because simply this one is very good. From the technicalities of movie making up to the visual area of it I can say the the movie has made a very good job. It may not have been very perfect, but who cares there is no perfect movie out there (and if there is it's not many, I guess). What matters most is for the two hours and 20 minutes that I spent watching the movie is a an equivalent amount of time that I feel I have been transported to a world which is very different from what we have now. It was a convincing movie that I felt I was almost trapped into that distant dystopia.
I praise the director and the cast and all the people behind this movie, because they have given us something good, something worthwhile. All these were achieved, because of their passion and dedication in satisfying this not-so-die-hard fan among many others.
Rating: 4.5 / 5, Still have more room for improvement.
It's almost a month since my last post. My tiny head was kind of busy processing gigantic realities that a corn kernel could even handle. Once in a while though some realities are so good that I have to share them to John and his whimsical mood. Just these past days he has been to a lot of adventures: leaving me lying alone on my tiny nook and hoping that I would not rot to death and boredom.
So once in a while, to spare me the boredom, I surf around the net to look for something that would spark my interest and here are some of the ones that never got away my mind:
The One That Got Away With Numerous Awards
Adele at the 2012 Grammy Awards
During the 2012 Grammy Awards, Adele owned the night by garnering six awards which included Best Album, Record and Song of the Year. I am sick of Adele with all those heart wrenching songs, but John couldn't say the same cause he adores her and drinks every word of her songs.
The One That Got Away With So-So Box Office Sales
John Carter Movie Poster
John always thought that this movie will reach No.1 Box office hit on its peak, but I guess it would never really come to light. As much I would like to pray to boost this movie's sales I wouldn't dare to cause I am not just built for this kind of things.
The One That Got Away With Most Votes
Jessica Sanchez of American Idol 12
After wowing the Judges last week, Jessica has somehow lost the top spot to a fellow contestant. The judges wasn't quite amazed with her recent performance singing the song Turn the Beat Around by Vicki Sue Robinson. But despite all that Jessica is still reining in polls gaining 28% out of total votes.
So that's for today folks. See you next time should there be a chance I could escape John and this well guarded prison cell.
"The world is changed. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the earth. I smell it in the air. Much that once was is lost, for none now live who remember it."
Such was Galadriel's strong opening line on one of the world's greatest movie: The Lord of the Rings. Same words that reverberate and echo within the confines of John's being. He can feel that something is about to change: it is even evident now since the thrill and joys of the past has become a tunnel effect of uncertainty.
I can't share the moroseness as John has felt it since these months are the season where my fellow corn kernels will be harvested. And that means I will have a lot of companions and friends on this dreary thing called life. But being a heartless being, a cold and inanimate being, I can't do nothing else other than to console him. All I can offer is my undivided presence.
But life is an arena of change. Let me show you how:
Seasons change
The world's slight slanting angle triggers a difference on temperature on all of its regions. Thus creating a stirring effect on the world's winds. Nature has to cope up and go along with these changes so we experience seasons.
Life Cycles
In order for growth to manifest the being must undergo not only physical changes, but also a lot of things that has to do with moods, behavior and psychology. A butterfly's life best epitomizes the change. It is a wonder how life can deliver an egg into a full grown beauty and eventually repeat the cycle again.
Physical and Chemical Changes
Science has taught us that matter changes in sizes and forms. Same is true with its compositions. A simple act of tearing a paper manifests change. Burning a charcoal for heat and comfort is another. As a matter of fact everything we do creates a change on matter.
Gadget Models
Who says only natural phenomena could change: man made items also can. Gadgets change from one model to another. From one era to the next, from one design to yet other designs. Technology could not rest and remain as it is today. It needs to change to cope with its inventor's demands.
Change is not only limited to these. There are a lot more. Could you tell some other forms?
For some, the world is just a span of disappointments since they have magnified their efforts and expectations. It is like as if the world will simply conform with whatever they wanted or whatever suits their needs. Even in the short span of my imaginary existence, it is obvious that the world does not play this kind of game, but the world simply revolves around its axis and follow its preference whether we like it or not.
So after going through A Series of Unfortunate Events, John has shared me two of the things he has gone trough the week. And borrowing Lemony Snicket's voice: "It is my sad duty to write down these unpleasant tales, but there is nothing stopping you from [leaving this blog] at once and reading something happy, if you prefer that sort of thing."
The World's Greatest Excuse For A Sequel:
Having been disappointed by the third movie, Rise of the Lycans, John has expected that the mythology of the series will be incorporated with Underworld: Awakening. But after watching the movie my friend's hope for a very good sequel was shattered to pieces. It was really disappointing that the mythology was barely touched in this one. John would have wanted to know what happened to the third Vampire elder having a slumber under a vault. Instead we see Selene battling over survival against humans. Pity: now John is not sure if he's going to wait for the next movie in the arc or not.
The World's Greatest Excuse For Waiting Too Long:
There is no doubt that the Game of Thrones series is a spectacular one. John was once a skeptic of the books when the first one got out years ago. He was having doubts to buy them as evidenced by the fact that he has no copies of these books in his own library. He thought he had already found it in Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time, but after watching the whole first season of the TV series he was sold: The Song of Ice and Fire is much better. Itching to buy the books, he was saddened to wait before he could do so since it is not yet in the priority list of expenses. Add up to this the fact that he has to wait many more months to watch for the TV series' second season, it felt like December 21, 2012 apocalypse has come earlier.
Whew... all the negative auras. When will they go away. I was hoping to see my friend focus on the bright side, but I just can't force him if he doesn't want to.
