If I am relaxing at home, more often then not, my brain will turn to try to find something useful to do, so I decided that I would waste a Thursday afternoon trying to contribute something to my digital log because my eyes hurt from reading. For today's review of "Tween Pop Culture" and in honor of something good to stemi Demi Lavoto's poor reputation for going to Rehab yet again, this time for a Cocaine Addiction, I decided to watch The Princess Protection Program starring Demi Lavoto and Selena Gomez. This was actually very well executed. It is a Disney Channel Original Movie that aired in 2009. Before Selena began dating Justin, and before Demi went to Rehab, this was about two best friends making a fun little movie. 
The Princess Protection Program focuses on a young princess, Rosalinda Montaya, who is about to become queen when a coup d'tat is staged within her imaginary island country. (Think Genovia, from Princess Diaries) With the help of an elite protection detail, entitled The Princess Protection Program, Colonel Joe helps deliver the Princess to safety, far away from her country and without her mother. The Princess, devastated by her forced removal and turmoil within her country, only trusts the colonel with her life. The head ambassadors in charge of the Princess Protection detail entrust Colonel Joe Mason with his life, so he takes her back to live with him and his normal sixteen year old daughter, Carter. "Rosie" is taken to Louisiana to embrace her life as an "American Teenager." However, a Princess does not easily fit in to the "everyday norms" of an American teenager, and is even more taken aback when forced to share a room with Carter. However, the girls overcome the obstacles and become best friends. Carter who is reluctant to help her dad at first helps her best friend and even almost sacrifices herself for the safety of her new best friend and her best friend's mother.  


    For a Disney Channel Original Movie, this movie was actually really done. Besides the themes of friendship, sacrifice, and love, it is also about self-actualization. This self-actualization is extremely prevalent when Rosie convinces Carter that the atypical boy that she is in love with is not at all the right boy for her. The boy Carter is convinced is absolutely perfect is spoiled, selfish, and only cares about himself. Rosie steers Carter to a path where she realizes a boy already truly cares about her. The Self-actualization occurs when Rosie tells Carter that just because Carter is not born royalty does not mean that she cannot help others and become someone where people can rely on and help "lead them" to a better life. The movie is also about first impressions and how that first impressions can really lead to a life that is not at all fulfilling. Carter cannot stand Rosie when she first comes to live with Carter and her Dad, however, she realizes that there is more to life then being petty. 

    While this life is classified as a "tween" movie, this movie actually embodies "Reading Up." Disregarding the fact that Rosie's Kingdom is not read, political turmoil is a real thing. A coup d'tat is extremely reflective of all the coup's going on within the world and the Occupy Wall Street Movement. The movie also focused on how important the media is and first impressions. I was obviously looking for these themes to write about, however, consciously or not, these tweens are being exposed to the adult themes that so many people think kid's should be shadowed from. Everyone describes teens today as being ignorant and apathetic, however, that is simply not true. Nobody is asking these tweens opinions and then, we are surprised when children actually understand difficult concepts to comprehend. Part of the reasons is from these seemingly silly things children are watching on television. 


   The genre that I would mostly classify this movie as "Fantasy" along with aspects of "Political Science" and "Drama." All these rolled into one is both fun and surprisingly educational. The other tween materials that I would find this movie similar to is Meg Cabot's The Princess Diaries and Shannon McHale's The Princess Academy. The viewing level that I would classify for this movie is definitely 9 and up with the aspects of High School thrown in and swords being thrown at poor Demi Lavoto. 


   Another thing regarding "Reading Up" or "Watching Up." While The Princess Protection Program may have a low viewing level, children are still understanding who Demi Lavoto is and what she represents. Demi Lavoto has been in and out of rehab over the last two years, first for cutting and now for Cocaine. It is slighlty scary to see that these role models that Disney produces (do not get me wrong, I am a HUGE Disney fan) such as Hannah Montana, The Jonas Brothers, and several other Disney Child Stars end up having major scandals. For instance Vanessa Hudgins had her entire scandel exposed for all of the internet, Miley Cyrus posed provocatively for Vanity Fair and was caught with a bong and drinking under-aged in Paris when she was 17, and know Demi Lavoto going in and out of Rehab. No matter how many people deny it, there is an undeniably level of celebrity impressions left upon us not matter what the age. These tweens are inspired by celebrities and it makes me fear for these children who embrace the mantra of "wanting to be exactly who the celebrities are" instead of themselves, which ruins the entire point of The Princess Protection Program.  


    

A Quick Rant: School Library Journal, what were they thinking?

        For the last few days after school has started, I decided to get a jump on reading "Tween" Lit and sticking to the "Independent Reader" category in the bookstore. However, since I absolutely loved the Percy Jackson series and have already read all the Harry Potter today, I decided that I would give the Heroes of Olympus a chance, which is absolutely fantastic, I am almost done. However, today, I went to the library for another class and was glancing at the "independent reader" section in the library. At the Newport Beach Library, most of the "independent reader" category is mixed in with the children's section, which is okay, reading up is always alright. However, Harry Potter was in the children's section of the library which was actually surprising. However, then, I decided to look for Riordan in the same section, however, there were no Percy Jackson, Kane Chronicles, or anything. Having a hunch, I checked on the computer. Harry Potter is categorized as children's books but Percy Jackson, Kane Chronicles, and Heroes of Olympus are not. This does not make any sense to me. Harry Potter is a wonderfully dark tale. However, I am talking about DARK. There is torture, death, abandonment, child abuse, plotting, wars brewing, and sacrifice, this has extremely adult themes. However, with Percy Jackson while good the writing is not at all as mature as Harry Potter. 

After my trip to the library I decided that I would look on Amazon and try to figure out the motivation. According to Amazon, the School Library Journal rates Harry Potter 3rd grade and up, while Percy Jackson is given a 5th grade reading and up. This to me makes no sense. There is death in Percy, do not get me wrong, however, the only thing that I could fathom would be is the slight more emphasis on teen romance and the theme "that gods were promiscuous with mortals and produced children." There is some more kissing in the Percy Jackson series and a lot more touchy-feely scenes in the Heroes of Olympus, however, I just don't get it. Thoughts? 

Wendy Wu, Surprisingly Good.

Inspired by my classes orientation Blackboard Collaborate meeting, I decided to watching something "Tweeny" to get the ball rolling. The first item I found that was interesting was Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior. 

The story begins at a sacred temple buried in the heart of China. One young Monk, Shen, is given a task to protect the warrior that will bring balance to the earth and defend it from an evil reincarnation of an emperor, Wo-Lin. The Monk is handed by his mentors a scroll with the face of Wendy Wu, a beautiful girl who has been incarnated over and over again to defend the world from this evil force. Then, the story switches over to Wendy, a shallow, superficial, Asian-American girl whose main goal in life is to become Homecoming Queen. Her family has made a conscious decision to separate themselves from their culture. She prides herself in being perfect and when she meets Shen, her entire world is turned upside down. Shen trains Wendy to realize her skill as a Kung-Fu warrior and embrace her purpose in life. 


This Disney Channel Original Movie was actually really well done. While it silly at parts, Wendy battles her desire to fit in and not be different, however, Shen makes Wendy realize that it is okay to accept your culture and embrace who she actually is. This movie was in vein of Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon in the way that the story focuses on a young girl who does not want to accept that she has a greater purpose in life, however, an event forces her to defeat the supernatural evil that threatens the safety of all mankind. The movie was very fun and I highly recommend it. The main themes that were in this movie were embracing of culture (Moon Cakes, the wearing of the HanFu, the traditional Monk and his clothing, the meditation) and self-actualization. There is some sweet romance in there as well, however, it was really fun to see Wendy progress throughout the movie and almost endure all of Joseph Campbell's Hero Journey. 


The bibliographic information is as follows: Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior. (2006) Disney Channel Original Movie. Directed by John Laing. Starring Brenda Strong (The Social Network), Shin Koyamada, and Susan Chuang. 


The interest level for this movie would be any individual who likes High School based movies, Chinese Culture, or fantasy/sci-fi movies. I think a similar television show is Samurai Girl which is very similar to this feature, however, focusing on Japanese Culture as well. This movie would be for ages 9 and up and gives "tweens" an impression of what High School is like through a fantastical viewpoint. 


The main characters are as follows: 
Wendy Wu-slightly superficial Wendy is campaigning for Homecoming Queen when the monk Shen enters her life and reveals to her that she is the reincarnated warrior and it is her destiny to protect the world. However, Wendy does not want to be a warrior at all. All she wants to do is make cupcakes, find the perfect dress, and go on and live her slightly fake life. However, with persuasion of her Grandmother and Shen, she does transform from a culturally ignorant girl of someone who is representative of her culture. 
Shen-a Chinese monk who is reincarnated over and over again to sacrifice himself for the warrior that is destined to take out Wo-Lin. 
Grandma-lives with her daughter and her family and is saddened to see that they have not embraced the cultural way of life. However, she loves her granddaughter and accepts her for who she is. However, when Shen comes into the house, Grandma  recognizes what the monk represents and helps the monk convince Wendy to embrace her culture and her destiny to become the next great warrior. 

Hugo, Both Movie and Film

Today, after work, I decided to break down and purchase the novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznik. I was really surprised with Hugo Cabret being a penultimate book that there is not a digital copy available for my brand new Kindle Fire. I recently saw the film version of The Invention of Hugo Cabret, the film version shortened to Hugo directed by Martin Scorsese. I actually saw the film first and was inspired at how well Martin Scorsese brought the book with all the vivid drawings come to life. The book was a wonderful tale in the likes of James and the Giant Peach and Harry Potter and gave a tragic story of a boy with no parents to allow him through pain and suffering to once again achieve happiness. Here is the breakdown of the book: 

Title: The Invention of Hugo Cabret

Author: Brian Selznick

ISBN: : 0439813786 

Published Year: 2007

Summary: The Invention of Hugo Cabret focuses on an unhappy orphan boy who lives in the Paris train station. Hugo is the "keeper of the clocks." However, Hugo Cabret was not always an orphan. He had a clockmaker father who loved and cherished Hugo and taught him everything he knew. One late night, Hugo's father stumbled upon a wonderful invention left abandoned at the museum in which he worked: An automaton. Together, Hugo and his father swore they would fix it. Then, tragedy struck. A fire occurred in the museum, and Hugo’s father perished. With no family left, Hugo was forced be his drunkard uncle’s apprentice. Without any way to survive, Hugo became a thief to eat and to fix his beloved automaton in which he was convinced held a message from his father. Through one blunder to another, Hugo transforms from a thief to realizing what his role in life actually is. 

Personal Review: My summary although short, left out a lot of key elements to keep the reader guessing. The book is really a great way to introduce a child to reading through illustrations to allow the reader to know exactly what the protagonist is thinking. The book was a great tribute to my love of films as well and also was almost like a love letter to George Melies and his contribution to make film what it is today. I feel that there really is nothing similar to Hugo and Brian Selznik has achieved a great "tween" novel that would inspire tons of children to allow their imagination to flow with them and enter a world that is unfamiliar yet exciting. 

Genre: Fantasy

Reading Level: 9+/Some complicated words 

Interest level: Films, Magic, Coming of Age Story, 

Similar items: What makes The Invention of Hugo Cabret so unique is that there really is nothing quite like it. It blends almost nonfiction historical aspects with references to the War and it blends a great coming of age story with mystery blended into it. I can see why it has achieved so much recognition. 

 Themes: Finding Oneself, Coming of Age, Intrigue, Historical Fiction, Importance of Family, Remember who you are, finding your place in the world

Awards: 

2008 Caldecott Medal 

National Book Award Finalist

#1 New York TimesBestseller

An American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults

USATodayBestseller

#1 BookSense Bestseller

A New York TimesBest Illustrated Book of 2007

A Publishers WeeklyBest Book of 2007

A KirkusBest Book of 2007

A New York Public Library Best Book for Reading and Sharing

An American Library Association Notable Children’s Book

A 2007 Quill Award Winner (Children’s Chapter/Middle Grade category)

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/awards-invention-hugo-cabret

Characters: 

Hugo Cabret- the young orphan boy that steals to keep himself alive and to fix his beloved automaton. Hugo also is a clock keeper, who ensures that all the clocks continue running in the Paris train station. However, Hugo accidentally steals from the wrong man, a toymaker who has all the parts that Hugo needs to fix his automaton that his dad swore he would fix together. Through his thefts, the boy's punishment is for the old man to take away his precious notebook, his only reminder of his deceased father. However, Hugo the thief uncovers a way to fix the bitter old man and allow him to find joy in life once more. 

Papa George- George Melies, a real famous filmmaker, was forced to sell all his great works with the outbreak of the war because the audiences no longer wanted to embrace his lovingly thought out fantasy films. Papa George, embittered by the war, sold his studio and destroyed all the evidence, declaring that his wife never speak of movies ever again. 

Isabelle- Papa George's goddaughter who sneaks away from the strict regiment of her Godparents and through logic and a very Hermione-esque logic, looks at the world as a puzzle and all the pieces have to fit. Isabelle is a girl who does not let anyone push her around and agrees to help Hugo in a wonderful adventure. 

Rene Tabard- the author of historical films by George Miles, the book is the clue that allows Hugo to remind George Melies about all the good he did in the world 

 Title: Hugo

Director: Martin Scorsese

Actors: Jude Law, Helen McCroy, Asa Butterfield, Chloe Grace Moretz, Ben Kingsley, Sasha Baron Cohen

Summary: I actually saw the Movie first before I read this great book. The movie is a beautiful film and I personally feel that the film gave Hugo much more heart. It allowed the viewer to embrace what it feels like to see the magic of the movies for the first time, and humanizing Chloe Grace Moretz's version of Isabelle, gave her a much more likable feel. Also, with the cutting of some characters, I think the film version did a great job of really focusing the center of attention to Hugo, Papa George, and Isabelle. The film version also allowed Helen McCroy (Narcissa Malfoy for you Harry Potter fanatics) to really shine and give heart to a women who was overlooked and was obviously a secondary character. The movie changes the tone of the book just slightly to allow the viewers to embrace a tale about finding love and acceptance and a place in life. Martin Scorsese did  also an amazing job of bring the visuals of such a vivid novel, the inside of the Clock Towers, the details of the automaton, the drawings that the automaton made in semblance to it's inventor, it's a great story of a transformation of a young, lost boy into a wonderful magician who is loved and accepted for who he is. 

Awards: AFI Film Award of 2011, Golden Globe Winner of Best Picture, Tons of More Awards that can be found at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0970179/awards