Character Development
I rewatched Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 2
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 (2012) serves as the conclusion to the massively popular franchise based on Stephenie Meyer's novels. Directed by Bill Condon, the film attempts to provide closure to the supernatural romance while delivering the spectacle audiences expected from a franchise finale. However, its execution reveals both the strengths and significant weaknesses that defined the series.
By Parsley Rose about a year ago in Critique
Truth Demands Proof
I saw a post on Facebook where a man shared a letter he had sent to his elected officials calling for the impeachment of the sitting president. He claimed that the offenses were “so obvious” and “so well documented” that he did not even need to include them. That single assumption captured everything wrong with modern political thinking. When someone says “the reasons are obvious,” what they often mean is that they cannot defend them. Emotional conviction replaces evidence. The appearance of certainty replaces truth itself.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcastabout a year ago in Critique
Thunderbolts Movie Review
Let’s be honest... When I first heard about Thunderbolts, I didn’t think much of it. The marketing was practically nonexistent, the trailer didn’t shake the internet, and the cast didn’t seem to scream blockbuster. In fact, the characters themselves didn’t fit the usual Marvel mold, no overly polished, Hollywood handsome superheroes. Just gritty, damaged people. It felt… average.
By Louise Noel about a year ago in Critique
Indigenous Voices in the Age of AI
🌍 Introduction: A New Digital Frontier In the twenty-first century, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become the new frontier of human innovation. From self-driving cars to predictive healthcare, from facial recognition to generative art, AI has redefined how societies operate and how knowledge is stored, processed, and shared. Yet, while the promise of AI feels universal, its impact is not evenly distributed.
By Esther Sunabout a year ago in Critique
Finally Sat Down to Watch Midsommar (2019)
Ari Aster's 2019 film Midsommar represents an ambitious and polarizing entry in contemporary horror cinema. Following his acclaimed debut *Hereditary*, Aster crafts a folk horror experience that deliberately inverts the genre's visual conventions while exploring the dissolution of a toxic relationship against the backdrop of a Swedish pagan festival. The result is a film that is simultaneously beautiful and disturbing, meditative and visceral, earning both ardent admirers and vocal detractors.
By Parsley Rose about a year ago in Critique
Mobile Phones: The Double-Edged Tool of Modern Life
In today’s fast-paced world, mobile phones have become an inseparable part of our lives. What once started as a simple device for making calls and sending text messages has now evolved into a powerful tool that touches almost every aspect of human activity. From communication and education to business and entertainment, mobile phones have transformed the way people connect and function. However, like every tool, they come with both advantages and disadvantages.
By Zeeshan Aliabout a year ago in Critique
The Criousity of The Finch App
An intro When I needed something to help me count and credit the days during the worst depression episodes of my life (so roughly my late twenties early thirties); Finch App was that daily boost of care. I found real succeess monitoring my Mental Health.
By Parsley Rose about a year ago in Critique
The Quiet Revolution of Abbott Elementary
In an era where television comedy often relies on cynicism and cringe humor, ABC's "Abbott Elementary" stands as a refreshing anomaly—a workplace mockumentary that chooses hope over despair, community over competition, and genuine heart over manufactured sentiment. Created by and starring Quinta Brunson, the series has quietly revolutionized how we think about both educational television and the mockumentary format itself.
By Parsley Rose about a year ago in Critique
Returning to Vocal and Writing
Wow. It's been a wild ride the past five years. From telemarketing in 2021, to a failed craft business in 2022, to Vanlifing in 2023, to wasting tons of money in 2024, to hiding in my four walls in 2025. Bizarre, absolutely bizarre. I have horror stories and comical stories. I have romantic stories and tragic stories. But most of all, I have my own emotional journey story and that begins with coming back to the world wide web to continue my writing career. And that begins with the two websites that have prompted me to call myself a professional writer: Vocal.media and allpoetry.com.
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Critique
If Great Dead Writers Were on Facebook - 5
When we think of great dead writers, we cannot of course leave out the great classical poets. I am not a poet myself and always struggle with writing poetry even in free verse. Well, I did get the haiku down, and there's a lot of various haiku on my profile here. Sometimes, I also get washed over by true inspiration or grief to churn out something reminiscent of poetry and even rhymed. But again, I am not a poet.
By Lana V Lynxabout a year ago in Critique
8 Mile: The Sorrow of a Raunchy Dream and a Daily Battle
This 2002 film is not just a foray into the realm of rap ut a reflection of a man's battle within himself with his own personal demons. It is a raw and unflinching story that lingers long after the end credits. The weight of beginnings The opening scene of the film, where the street runs alongside 8 Mile Road, is symbolic of Detroit's richer and poorer residential areas. It is not merely a geographical divide but a cultural, social d economic one. Jimmy, who is played by Eminem, lives in Detroit, where dreams are shattered before they can even take shape. The film offers this reality untransformed and unadorned. Behind every rhyme that he spits in battles, he tells a part of his story. It is the weight of his origin, this idea of life in which opportunities are often determined by where you're born. Jimmy is not just a rapper who desires to be famous – he is a human, a son of the city, a creation of circumstances. He must fight day in and day out, not just to remain relevant in rap, but also to survive in this life in which everything seems to be denied him. Rap as catharsis One of the most powerful aspects of 8 Mile is how rap is used as catharsis. Rap is not a pastime for B-Rabbit. It is a release, a lifeline, a way of expressing what words sometimes cannot. The rap battles, the focal point of the film, are actually far more than arguments. They are a way for Jimmy to process his anger, desperation and frustrations into something tangible. Each battle, he lets off steam, frees himself and most crucially, finds his voice. The thing most amazing about 8 Mile is that the film does not glamorize rap as a shortcut to fame or riches. No, music in this film is a daily struggle, a way to prove we exist, that we matter, even if the rest of the world is opposed to us. The lyrics, often harsh, are knives thrust into the something society does not want to look at: the shattered hopes, the lives intertwined in the services of the system. The final scene: the lion's awakening The final scene, the final battle, is maybe one of the most thrilling experiences of cinema today. Not only is it a victory for Jimmy, but also a redemptive one. In his speech, he no longer battles his foes. He battles his demons, his frailties. By turning his frailties against him, he takes charge of his life, his destiny. It is this self-confrontation, in which he accuses his mistakes, his frailties, which is of a rare vigor. It is a movement towards liberty, a cry of victory over a world that has always considered him a loser. The anthem "Lose Yourself" accompanying this scene is merely the icing on the cake. The lyrics are a rallying cry to take your moment, to not let the moment get away from you, even if it feels minute. This song, now an anthem to an entire generation, rings out like a battle cry against surrender. An era, a culture 8 Mile is more than a rap movie. It is a symbol of an era. The early 2000s were the height of the rap era but also the beginning of a wild youth culture that could not be vanquished. Detroit, its abandoned factories and vacated streets, is a character in the film. It is symbolic of an era where everything seemed to be falling apart, yet where children, despite it all, fought for their dreams. It is not merely the story of an artist's ascension to greatness. It is a tapestry of struggle. It is a study of small, small wins. And while the ultimate win appears to be a triumph, the message of the film is that victory does not always rest with external triumph, but with triumph over the self. The concept that, no matter where you begin, one can retool oneself, struggle and occasionally, emerge victorious. Nostalgia for a lost dream? Throughout the length of 8 Mile, we have an overarching feeling of nostalgia. It is one of dreams, of hope, of youth fighting for something more than themselves. And it's also one for a lost time, for a time when we still believed that anything was possible. The years go by and we realize that 8 Mile is more than just a rap movie. It is one about life itself. Life as it exists, with its victories and its losses, its highs and its lows. But it is also a film about hope, of the sort that never dies, not even in the worst of times. When you watch 8 Mile, you do not merely see Eminem. You see a generation, a struggle, a search for meaning in a world that too frequently casts aside the voiceless. This film, as with the music that comes before it, is a testament to what it is to fight for your dreams, even when hope is gone. It is this that makes this film both universal and timeless.
By Baptiste Monnetabout a year ago in Critique
