Remember Remember the 5th of November…is actually a British Holiday…

This is the one day of the year where every person who has seen V for Vendetta thinks they know about Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot…and most people I speak to..don’t.

So…let me explain.

The Gunpowder Plot took place in 1605 when a group of 13 Catholics led by a man by the name of Robert Catesby, decided that James I was treating the Catholic people of England no better than the previous monarch, Elizabeth I, who persecuted Catholics. So naturally these 13 men decided that an act of terrorism would definitely be the way to go to get their point across. They didn’t like being persecuted so…why not blow up Parliament and the King as well? Well…that escalated quickly…

To carry out their plan, the conspirators got their hands on 36 barrels of gunpowder…hence the name Gunpowder Plot. They stored it in a cellar just under the House of Lords and were planning to ignite it…blowing up the building as they did. However one way or another (some suggest that the King’s officials knew about the plot already and some others say that one of the conspirators sent a letter to a member of the House of Lords) Unfortunately for our friend Guy Fawkes, who was one of the conspirators, he was the one standing in the cellar with the gunpowder when the King’s officially stormed in and found him. He was captured, tortured to give up the names of the other traitors as well as his own confession and later killed by being hung, drawn and quartered in the Tower of London.

Despite the fact that the traitors’ attempt to blow Parliament sky high was foiled by the royal authorities…the reigning monarch in the Great Britain only enters Parliament once per year, during the opening ceremony, and when they do, the building is thoroughly searched before hand.

November 5 has since become known as Bonfire Night in the Great Britain. It is often asked with a tongue in cheek attitude, whether the people of the Great Britain are celebrating the failure of the plot or the attempt itself. The citizens of Great Britain have huge bonfires where they burn “Guys” meant to look like Guy Fawkes to celebrate the failure of the plot. Fireworks displays are also common.

So..as you can see, the connection to V for Vendetta (the loose comic book film adaptation) is loose if that. Basically V, the main character wear a Guy Fawkes mask in order to remain anonymous in his attempt to overthrow the fascist government that has over taken 2020s UK. He uses Guy Fawkes as a face to attach his idea to that the government must be overthrown…by violence. He explains his plot by saying “Remember Remember the 5th of November, the gunpowder, treason and plot, I can think of no reason why gunpowder treason should ever be forgot.” People tend to cling to the idea of the movie and of the holiday without remembering that the main character believes that blowing up buildings full of people is the way to get what you want. Following in the footsteps or brainwaves of V or of Guy Fawkes is very dangerous. While V may have been inspired by Guy, he hides behind the identity of a failed terrorist and allows his followers to do the same. The anonymous movement on the internet has also occasionally used the mask as their symbol. Don’t don the mask if you don’t know what it represents. I agree that V for Vendetta is an excellent and thought provoking film, even if its connection to the real historical event is a bit loose. The terrorists of 1605 weren’t anonymous and they were terribly punished for their treason. If you watch the film knowing the context of the mask, they are really quite different. One inspired the other but that’s really all. Enjoy the movie though! I will be celebrating Bonfire night with a Sparkler bath bomb from the originally British company Lush, the bath bomb was inspired by the bonfires that are set on 11/5. Happy Guy Fawkes day everyone! I’ve posted some informational links below!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V_for_Vendetta_(film)

http://www.bonfirenight.net/gunpowder.php

Movie Review: The Reluctant Dragon

Hey there Sifters! I thought I would write up another movie review! I’ve been stopping by my library and taking out old often forgotten Disney movies and documentaries. Last time it was The Boys: The Sherman Brothers Story. This time it’s the Reluctant Drago. This is a movie that was made entirely to explain the behind the scenes magic of how a Disney Animated film is made at the Disney Studios. Some parts of the movie are shot in black and white and others are in color. It’s a very witty film with a grand appearance by Walt Disney himself in the end of the film. In true Disney fashion, the behind the scenes magic is told through a story. The film begins with a man and his wife, who wants him to take the story The Reluctant Dragon to the Disney Studios and pitch it as a film. He is quite doubtful that it will work but his wife makes him go anyway. Hilarity and education occur simultaneously as the gentleman attempts to hide from his studio guide who is supposed to be walking him around the studio before taking him to meet Walt.

The gentleman goes through the sound effects department, the storyboarding department, the animation department, the sculpting department the ink and paint department and more. He keep accumulating souvenirs as he evades his overly eager guide. In the end, the audience does get to see the story of The Reluctant Dragon.

It’s an amazing film that I think everyone who loves Disney movies and the behind the scenes magic should see. It’s got great bonus footage if you get the right edition and it’s fantastically entertaining as well as educational. It has all the charm of the 40s, which is when it was made and getting to see Walt on screen is always a real gem. My favorite part was getting to see how the multi-plane camera worked. I knew the basic concept but had never really seen it in action. It was nice to get to see how massive they really were.

The film is unique in that it tells two stories, the story of the man on a mission from his wife to pitch The Reluctant Dragon and the actual story of The Reluctant Dragon, which is just darling! It’s an animated short about a Dragon who wants to write sonnets instead of fight against the knights of the kingdom. The cartoon itself is in full color even though some of the live action scenes are in black and white. The live action and animated characters are charming and reflective of their time, the story is wonderful and it’s an amazing look at the making of an animated film as done by the best of the best. I definitely highly recommend tracking down a copy and watching it, it’s Disney magic at it’s finest during an era right before animation fell apart for a bit because of WWII, which gives it an interesting context.

Thanks for reading and keep Sifting Through Shelves!

As Dreamers Do: Movie Review

I recently saw an amazing film made by a gentleman named Logan Sekulow, written by Wendy Ott and starring Olan Rogers and released by Vision Films. The film is a biopic about Walt Disney called As Dreamers Do. The film tells the story of Walt Disney from his early days moving to Marceline, MO until he first drew Mickey Mouse. It covers his often glanced over childhood and introduces the viewer to his family and friends. It tells the not always happy story of the genius before success strikes. His journey was definitely not easy, but the film is incredibly inspiring.

The movie does an excellent job with one foot on the side of documentary and one foot on the side of a period piece. The film is narrated by Travis Tritt and all of the music is original. It feels like someone who truly knew Walt when he was alive is sitting with you telling you the whole story. They did a lot of filming on site in Misosuri and there was clearly a lot of research done into both the characters and the story. The authenticity is fantastic!

I got to watch the movie early because I pre-ordered the digital download of the film and I also got the commentary. The director is clearly passionate about the project and put a lot of work into it. The writing is great, as is the acting from the whole cast. Young Walt just makes me want to hug him and take him to Disney World to show him what his dreams and his art become. Olan Rogers, who plays Walt as an adult has all the enthusiasm that we have grown to believe Walt possessed and his relationship with Roy in the film is nothing short of a real brotherly relationship. They but heads at times but when it really comes down to it, they care deeply for one another.

The film is having several premieres throughout the country and the pre-sale of the film has ended, however, the film is set to have a full release but there has been no set date as of yet. The official website for the movie is www.waltmovie.com. When you go to the site, the trailer automatically plays and I guarantee, you will immediately be sucked into the story. I am an avid fan of Walt and all things Disney history and this movie told a beautiful story of a man who changed the face of entertainment, but as of the end of the film, he just doesn’t know it yet. The movie also has a Facebook page that keeps fans updated on the premieres with photos from the viewings and is a great way to interact with the amazing people who made this film. This is by far the easiest and best way to keep up to date on the happenings of the film; when they decide on a release date for the movie, this will be the place it is posted first. If you don’t want to miss out on the movie, I highly suggest following them on Facebook and signing up for email alerts from the filmmakers on their website.

 

(Photo is from http://www.facebook.com/waltmovie)

The Boys: The Sherman Brothers’ Story Movie Review

I finally got to watch the definitive documentary on two of the most famous behind the scenes men at the Walt Disney animation Studios, the Sherman brothers. Even if you don’t know much about the brothers themselves, you know their music. They are responsible for a lot of the great Disney songs of the time before Walt’s passing and even a few afterwards. They are most famous for their music in Mary Poppins, the Jungle Book and the theme songs for the Carousel of Progress and It’s a Small World in the theme parks. Their songs get stuck in your head whether you want them to or not. (My apologies now for It’s a Small World being stuck in your head for the rest of the day). But one of my favorite parts of the film is where Dick is talking about It’s a Small World and how it’s a prayer for peace as opposed to a silly novelty. Listen to the lyrics in their entirety some time.

Like all true behind the scenes work done about Disney, it’s not all about the music and the pixie dust. The story of Bob and Dick Sherman or The Boys as they were called around the studio is rather tragic. As close as they seemed as a song writing dynamic duo for the ages, they are incredibly distant. In fact, after they stopped writing for the studio, they stopped speaking or really interacting outside of that required for polite society gatherings until the making of the documentary. Their sons barely knew each other until they sort of rediscovered each other while making this film. It’s a very true representation of what naturally happens when you put two very brilliant people in the same room for too long.

The movie tells of their struggles to succeed apart from one another in their respective fields of composition and writing. Dick wanted to be a composer for concert halls and Bob wanted to write the great American novel. Their father finally challenged them by saying that if they put their talents together he bet that they couldn’t come up with a good song. Well, we all know what happens when we are challenged…and so the dynamic musical duo of Disney was born.

It’s a beautiful story of how even if people don’t get along personally, they might still be brilliant business partners. It also does an amazing job of describing the phenomenon of the emotional artist. It’s well known that while all artists have art as their creative outlet, it’s occasionally hard for us to keep our emotions in check and sometimes artists lash out at those closest to them. You get the feeling that the results of artists are beautiful but the artists themselves can be hard to live with. 

It’s also unfortunately clear that Walt was one of the things that held the Sherman brothers together and when he passed away, it was too much for the boys to handle and that was definitely on of the things that drove them apart. They no longer had the magical glue that inspired them to create such beautiful music. It’s beautiful when they say that they believed they were writing songs that would not last. They believed that they would fade into history when in fact, they are so beautifully simple and singable that they have become timeless treasures. They are still surprised at how much their music is engrained in the hearts of people of all ages all over the world. Unfortunately we only have one of the great Sherman brothers alive with us today. Bob Sherman passed away in 2012, but he left a collection of paintings here as his legacy along with his music. He used painting as a way to cope with the intense pain of having fought in WWII and the results are breath taking.

I loved every part of this movie and it was truly an eye opening experience to learn about the difficult story of the legendary Sherman brothers, or the Boys. There are so many beautiful stories in the film and it’s a great companion to another Disney documentary, Waking Sleeping Beauty. Both tell the hard but true story of the great Disney heritage that we still enjoy today! I sifted through quite a few library shelves to find this one and I’m sure glad I did. “There’s a great big beautiful tomorrow shining at the end of every day”. Keep sifting through shelves!

Jersey Boys Movie Review

So…fairly shortly after it came out into the theaters, I saw the film Jersey Boys with my roommate. Now, I will admit, I don’t listen to Frankie Valli, or any of the old Four Season’s records often. I know the music, it’s just not in my iTunes repertoire. I also had never seen the Broadway show before seeing the film, so I was basically just going in totally blind. I had no idea what it would be about, who it was about (despite the Tony win…I know…I’m a bad Broadway nerd) or anything about it. I was only sort of excited about seeing it when I approached the theatre. However, with amazing music, incredible acting and a fantastic cinematography style and story, I’m SO glad I went to see it.

I will definitely be purchasing the soundtrack. The music was worth the price of admission. Given that I had never heard the Broadway show soundtrack, I don’t know what songs were missing or if they were in the right place or anything, I just know I loved the music and it really added to the film. I felt like I could very well have been sitting in a bar where they were playing that night. I really appreciate that the used the Broadway actor who played Frankie Valli, he’s incredibly talented and his voice is just flawless. You can tell he’s classically trained and knows how to use and protect his voice. They don’t make them like that anymore. That’s what my roommate and I kept saying on our way home from the movie. Music like that, where it was innocent (or at least it sounded it at first) and told a story in 4 minutes or less is incredibly rare these days and it makes me weep for the music industry.

The acting was superb. The roles called for scenes of intense conflict, thick accents, and chemistry of incredible camaraderie. All four actors were impressive but I was most impressed with Christopher Walken of all people and the actors who played Frankie, and Tommy DeVito. I don’t assume that anyone will get an Oscar nomination for this one, basically based on the time of year that it was released but I remain optimistic that they will be recognized somehow.

The writing and the story was gripping and engaging. I was never bored and I never felt like I didn’t know what was going on. It was nice to be able to follow the story without knowing a lot about the band and having never seen the show. The film tells the story of four boys from the wrong side of New Jersey who become the men who form the iconic group the Four Seasons. I never would have thought that the group would have had such a complicated and violent past. It tells of their struggles with money, trust and intense lies ad betrayal. I will definitely be looking for a book that tells the story in even greater detail, because now, I’m hooked.

If you haven’t seen the movie yet and it’s still playing at a theatre near you, do yourself a favor and go see it. It’s an incredible story with amazing acting and music. It’s a thoroughly enjoyable movie and I hope it gets recognized as such. I hope you enjoyed my review and keep Sifting Through Shelves!

Photo from http://www.impawards.com/2014/posters/jersey_boys_xlg.jpg

Things I’m Obsessed with This Month- June

So among the blogosphere I have found that people like to share (and people like it when they share) their monthly favorites. However, I don’t favorite things, I become obsessed with them. This month…I’m obsessed with the following

1. http://www.dailylook.com : Ok, you caught me…I’m obsessed with fashion, beauty, all things style, from me to my house. DailyLook is very popular among the YouTube and beauty blog crowd so I decided to take a look to see what it’s all about…and I’m hooked. I haven’t bought anything because I’m quite broke but still, it’s such a fun website to window shop on that I could spend all day on it…but I don’t, I swear! If you want to check it out, check it out (and if you find something purchase worthy, purchase away!) via this link because it helps me get look points to shop with and you can do the same with your friends. http://www.DailyLook.com/?refMemberID=87410568934919854&aaid=inviteGet15
2. New Girl- Clearly I’m behind the bandwagon on this one, but I just started watching it, literally tonite and I’m hooked. I don’t necessarily like the movie star hot shot that Zoey Deschanel has become as I knew her as an underrated actress and musician first but hey, the comedy is quite relatable to my life and it’s witty. (technically this is a July favorite but hey, I was excited)
3. Anthony Bourdain- I watched No Reservations all the time and went to look for it on Netflix and didn’t find it, sad day. What I did find was Unknown Parts! I watched everything that was on Netflix and fell back in love with the sense of humor I had forgotten about since giving up cable and Travel Channel with it. Now I have a serious travel bug! I have since found his old show A Cook’s Tour on Amazon Prime and I am working my way through that. I’m dying to read his books, starting with Kitchen Confidential, hopefully as I travel, because, you know, that would be epic.
4. Cucumber water- I know this is random and odd but stay with me. I went to the Grand Floridian Senses Spa for my birthday and since then…I’m hooked. They had spa cucumber water there and I am now obsessed with drinking it all the time. It’s so refreshing and calming, I don’t know what it is (besides having drunk it in the most calming place I have ever been) but it’s just wonderful.
5. Old Movies- I love old moves to begin with and I have always loved them. My Fair Lady legit changed my life. But more on that in another article. This month I have especially been drawn to old movies. I went on the Great Movie Ride in Disney’s Hollywood Studios one day and thought to myself “they don’t make em like this anymore” which is super depressing to thing about. But I watched Footlight Parade and fell in love with it, Manhattan, the Woody Allen Flick (no I’m not fond of his recently brought to light life choices) but the movie was charming, as his movies always are. Arsenic and Old Lace has been a favorite of mine since my roommate made my watch it in college, and I had forgotten just how horrified and hysterical Carey Grant’s face can really get. It was just a great movie month. I also had the pleasure of watching Song of the South, a rare treat!
6. Zoella, Marcus Butler, Thatcher Joe and Alfie on YouTube- Now, every year around Vidcon, I discover new YouTubers. These ones I discovered just before Vidcon and I love them all. I discovered Zoella through Tyler Oakley, and all of the others from Zoella, since everyone but Tyler is from around the same area (at least that’s what I gather) in the U.K. They all have amazing channels and I encourage you to check them out, along with my channel (link here). They really re-inspired me to become involved with the YouTube community and I think I’m going to keep at it, along with this blog. So, view, subscribe and share! Everyone helps!
7. Social Media in General- I have always loved social media, always used it, always loved how it connects people who are incredibly far away. But this month, I rediscovered how much I really do love it. How many amazing ideas you can find on pinterest, how many amazing YouTubers there are, how many creative people live in the wonderful world of Tumblr and how creative people can be in 140 characters on twitter.
8. The idea of old fashioned rail travel- I recently discovered that there is a real rail line that functions much like the old fashioned railways in the Golden Age of Rail Travel. I would majorly love to take one of these trips and see what it was like to really travel in style, old suitcases or trunks and all. I would love to take a 2-3 day rail trip just to see what it’s like. Everyone travels by plane now a days and while I love doing that as much as the next person, I would love to just ride the rails for a bit.
9. Decorating- I haven’t even moved into my new apartment yet and I am already dying to start decorating. Now, some of it will have to wait till I’m a bit more financially secure but I love the idea of settling into a place and making it my own, with my own little touches. My spaces may look a bit divided and strange at first as I find a balance between my Disney and artistic style but I think a balance can be reached and it will look mad cool. As soon as I’m settled in and decorated, I will be filming an apartment tour.
10. Style- Now, I’ve always been in love with style. It’s how you define what’s on the inside on the outside. I love jewelry, I love makeup and I love clothes, shoes and accessories. I just love how you can make your style all your own and since I don’t particularly care how people perceive my style, unless I am in a professional setting, I do just that. I have my own look, sometimes several different ones in a week, from preppy, to vintage to bohemian, I love it all. Since I wear a uniform to work, I don’t get to express my personal style particularly often but I do love it when I do!

Let me know the things you are obsessing over this month in the comments! I love learning about what people are loving at the moment! Follow me on Pinterest, Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook etc to see what I’m up to and get the most up to date posts. Follow the blog, subscribe to my channel and Keep Sifting Through Shelves.

What’s with the name of your blog?

A few people have asked me…what does the name of your blog mean? Honestly it doesn’t really mean anything. I consider myself a bit of a hipster (I will explain why in a later post) and I enjoy the pursuit of intellectualism and I wanted a title that could encompass many different topics, as I intend to bounce around a bit. It took my a bit to think of it but in the end I came up with Sifting through Shelves. It popped into my head while I was thinking of things that people like me tend to do. Others that I considered : Tea at the Table, the problem with that one was that I like very few types of tea, Coffee without a Care, well that didn’t work because I care about lots of things, I tend to think that’s what makes me a nerd, Nerd with the Word was taken. I often find myself doing exactly what my blog indicates when I go to stores or museums, specifically book stores, which are my favorite place to window shop. I stumble across lots of interesting books and ideas in book stores and libraries. Bookstores and libraries are two of my favorite places to be when I am alone. I like peruse the shelves of the stores looking at all of the knowledge they have to offer me. I often take the books I like off the shelves and sample them and inevitably make a very long wish list of books I want to read, some I get to and some I don’t. So, that’s why I call my blog Sifting Through Shelves, because whether it be books, music, stuffed animals at Disney, movies, historical artifacts, or the virtual shelves of the internet, Sifting Through Shelves is something I do often and I will continue to do forever. Also, bookshelves are some of the most beautiful sights in the world.

Photo from http://cdnimg.visualizeus.com/thumbs/1d/92/books,bookshelf,bookshelves,ladder,reading,umbrella-1d926cd7cacd6bda606498d71635552c_h.jpg