Paper Towns (Book vs. Movie)

6:51 PM Unknown 0 Comments



Margo Roth Speigelman. You can say her name over and over and over again but can never get tired of it. The movie adaptation of Paper Towns by John Green has been out lately. And from the books he wrote, Paper Towns has by far been my favorite. So I was pretty much waiting for this movie to come out since the day they announced it. And since it's my favorite book, I had high expectations for it. Of course, as expected from a movie adaptation of a book, there are scenes and events that are cut off or changed to make the story fit in to 2 hours. 

The story is not like your normal high school love story. It's about an extra ordinary girl who loves mystery and adventure. And a boy who would do anything to find her again. Margo Roth Speigelman is the very definition of a girl who can't plant her feet on the ground, she wanted to be free. 

The actors in the movie really did bring life into the characters. Cara Delevingne was a perfect actress for Margo, they both are very extra ordinary people and it was how I pretty much pictured out how Margo would be like. The movie was really good, and didn't fail my expectations. Changes were indeed inevitable, but they brought out a little surprise in some scenes that would probably make you laugh out of your seat.



So for those who hasn't read the book yet, here's what you missed : (Spoilers up ahead, read at your own risk!)


The movie and the book started the same. Quentin and Margo lived next to each other. Then one day they found a dead man as they were biking. Margo really wanted to solve the murder, so she did some investigation. Margo and Q were really close when they were kids. However as time passed by, they grew apart.





The book is split into 3 parts: The Strings, The Grass, and The Vessel. "The Strings" is about the adventure Margo pulled Q into on her last night. "The Grass" is about how Q and his friends tried to solve the mystery on how to find Margo Roth Spiegleman. And lastly, "The Vessel" is about their road trip trying to get to Margo.




When Margo surprises Q by showing up by his window, she was actually wearing black face paint all over her face (including her eyelids). I really wanted to see this part in the movie. I was quiet curious about how people would react as they were buying supplies. But then if they did do it, we wouldn't be able to see Cara Delevingne's stunning beauty and her legendary eyebrows.




As it turns out, Margo had 11 things to do that night:
1. Club Jase's stirring wheel.
2. Call Becca's dad and tell him about the "Becca and Jase thing" going on in their basement. However in the book, it was Q who call the dad.
3. Take Jase's picture as he runs out of the house naked.
4. Get Jase's clothes from the basement in case he tries to come back for them.
5. Leave catfish #1 for Becca.
6. Leave Tulips for Karin. Karin wasn't mentioned in the movie. She was actually the one who told Margo about Jase and Becca. And to Margo's surprise she happened to say a bunch of horrible things to Karin as a reaction for finding out about the truth. She felt bad about that so she left Tulips and a letter for her.
7. Leave catfish #2 for Jase. This part wasn't mentioned in the movie either. Margo broke a window in Jase's house, threw the fish, sprayed on a blue "M", and left a note saying "MS's love For you: it Sleeps With the Fishes".
8. Leave catfish #3 for Lacey. This prank however is quite different compared to the movie. They didn't use cling wrap. Instead, they stuck a fish under the seat of Lacey's black car and sprayed the blue "M" on the roof of the car.
9. The SunTrust Building.
10. Q's victim. This time, Margo convinced Q to pick a victim of his choice. And they went with shaving off Chuck Parson's right eyebrow.
11. Break into Sea World. This part was cut out in the movie (as expected, because it would've made the movie longer if they didn't). In this scene Margo wanted to break into Sea World because according to her, it was the only theme park she haven't broken into. They had to cross the waist-high moat. A garter snake bit Margo on the ankle as they got out of the moat. And they got caught by security after they climbed over the 6 foot fence. They would have gone to jail but Margo bribed the guard. As they were walking out, a song started playing. And that moment, Q and Margo danced.




When Margo had been missing for days, things in their school when chaotic. Practically, Margo was their queen and no one could be the new Margo.The bullies that Margo had control over started to jerk around. Q finally had use for the picture he took of Jase. He emailed him and blacked mailed him to make thing right again.




Ever since Q went over to the abandoned souvenir shop. He was troubled and kept worrying about Margo. He was scared to one day find her lifeless body. He wanted to find her so badly. What's good about reading the book is that you get to really know what Q is thinking and how he really feels. You get that thrill of wanting to find Margo too. And to unravel the mystery behind her. His friends tells him to give on the paper towns, and that she might actually be there at their graduation. However Q didn't lose hope. Till he found out about the entry on the Omnictionary about Agloe.

Anonymous wrote:
"fyi, whoever Edits this - the Population of Agloe Will actually be One until may 29th at Noon"
he knew imediately that it was Margo due to the random capitalization - which was usually how Margo writes.




The day after he found out about Margo's entry on the Omnictionary was their graduation. However they skipped out on graduation because they needed to rush over to Agloe and get to Margo before she takes off. It took them 21 hours to get to Agloe.




This part, the ending, is quite different compared to the movie. When they got to Agloe, they actually find Margo in the abandoned building. Sitting and writing. Her hair is much shorter with choppy bangs above her eyebrows. When Margo saw them, she was actually shocked. And she happened to get into a fight with Becca and Q. She never expected them to come to her at all. She left the clues in order to tell them she was fine. After that fight, they left Q and Margo alone. Margo told Q why she wanted to leave. She wanted to find herself. She knew that Orlando wasn't the place that she could find what she was looking for. In the movie, when Q saw Margo, she was holding a black notebook. In this note book, Margo wrote all her plans, and a story she wrote when she was in the fourth grade about her, Q, Robert Joyner(the dead man from earlier), and their adventure. The story ended with them kissing after they burried Margo's black notebook.






Book Facts:
-Radar's real name is Marcus. Howerver Ben and Q calls him Radar because they happen to think that he looked like a guy named "Radar" on an old TV show called M*A*S*H.

-Chuck Parson actually shaved off his left eyebrow to make it look even.

-Quentin's parents are both therapists.

-Angela never actually went with them on the road trip. So no, she and Radar never did "it". They actually planed to wait after graduation.

-For graduation, Q, Ben, and Radar agreed on not wearing anything at all under their toga. But since Q picked them up for the road trip, Q actually was dressed and they weren't. So they had to pick up some clothes at the gas station.



Exciting movie add-ons:
"Valar Morghulis" It's actually exciting to hear some Game of Thrones reference in movies. This phrase was really unexpected but quite appropriate and funny when they used it.

"The Pokemon Song" This wasn't in the book, but it sure made us sing along.

"Prom and Graduation (The alternate ending)"
They actually changed the events to make Prom and Graduation happen for the kids. Which to me was really good. The ending wasn't a cliff hanger at all. You actually see everyone happy and ready for the next chapter in life. It was a good way to end the movie after all those searching. There was peace.




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The Sky Under the Sea

6:49 AM Unknown 0 Comments



For this piece, I somehow wanted to connect the sea and galaxy. I was inspired by the last part of the movie "Lucy". I wanted put something that people don't normally see in the sea. So no fishes! I ended up putting jellyfishes instead. What is cool about them is their glow could be blend in with the galaxy which makes it perfect.

For the name, it's pretty much obvious. But I actually got the name from a title of a pierce the veil song. It is actually one of my favorites. There's a line in the lyrics that goes "...and I just want to fade into the sky under the sea". I've always been wondering what that would look like, so I painted the picture.










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Pyschedelia

2:08 AM Unknown 0 Comments



This piece is inspired by street art. I somehow wanted to capture graffiti art onto the canvas. I am specialized in vector art, so I thought it would be easy putting it into canvas. However I wasn't satisfied with my 1st attempt. It was cute but too simple and its as if anyone could just do it. So I just had to redo it. I saw an artwork with a lot of colors and patterns so I decided to use it as an inspiration for my painting. The bird is originally based on an eagle.

Due to the vibrant colors and patterns of my painting, I decided to call it "Psychedelia". The term is an effect you get when you take LSD drugs. You end up seeing vibrant colors and patterns.











This was my 1st attempt on this concept. I brushed over the whole painting and blended the whole thing. Giving the current painting that gradient background.



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Alaska

1:47 AM Unknown 0 Comments



It's been almost a year since I last painted. And this time, I wanted to go for something different from what I used to do. I was browsing some artworks on the net and found a couple of portraits with plain white backgrounds. It really caught my attention and I decided to work on one. I first thought of a monochrome painting. Then I decided to add my favorite color to give it more life. The painting features a warrior girl. But somehow it kinda reminds me of Enchantress(Cara Delevingne) from Suicide Squad.

This piece in entitled "Alaska". And of all the names, why Alaska? Well, the girl in the painting seems to be consumed by the icy ocean. And it reminded me of a band called "Oceans ate Alaska". Although I don't listen to the band, I really wanted the name so I didn't let it go. For me, it really suits the piece because of the cold ambiance.












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The Maze Runner (Book vs. Movie)

8:32 AM Unknown 0 Comments



Movie adaptations of novels are really common nowadays. We would usually say "Hey, let's just watch the movie, it would be way quicker." But did you ever wonder if there was a difference? Or is it exactly the same? Usually in movies, the timeline would be a lot shorter. Of course, they have to compress the whole book and cut some scenes out.  Sometimes there are only a few changes from the book to movie. And those changes usually doesn't really affect the story line. But  sometimes, some movies would make drastic changes from the story. There is case that the movie franchise wasn't allowed to be continued due to these changes.

While reading books, your mind would start picturing out images from the event you've just read. But a movie could actually bring those imaginations to life. You would then start to compare these images. If the movie has indeed met your expectations, or were they able to bring more that you had expected. You also get to see your favorite character come to life and judge if the actor playing the role has done a good job in portraying that role. However by reading a book, you can actually know the thoughts and feelings of the main character which is not normally reviled in the movies. Usually people would say the book is always better than the movie. But this time, I heard a rumor saying that the movie is actually better than the book. I wanted to find out about it myself, so I decided to read the book and compare.

The maze runner depicts a story that is out of the ordinary, deviating from your usual supernatural events (Vampires and werewolves ). It sets on a futuristic time where the world is in catastrophe, and people try to find means to survive it. However, like hunger games, the story is about survival of the fittest. A bunch of kids put to the test by adults, and they do all they can to survive these tests. The novel is comprised of 4 books. The movie adaptation of the maze runner was released last September 2014. And like I mentioned earlier, there are scenes from the book which were cut-out or altered. And if you only watched the movie, here's what you missed...




The Glade

 *In the book: They were stuck in the Glades for 2 years. They 1st sent up a big group of kids, then started sending up a greenie every month for the past 2 years. There wasn't a make-shift fortress (the one Teresa got on when she woke up). The glade was big and comprised of many sections and jobs for every gladder. They even have their own chef (wasn't really mentioned in the movie). And they could actually request supplies from the creators by dropping a note every time the box comes up. However they don't always get what they request. They also have a weapons room. But they don't have a miniature model of the maze like in the movie.

 *In the movie: It was 3 years. However, they never sent up a big group. Just one greenie at a time every month.

The Grieve Serum

*In the book: They actually have a supply of the serum. The creators would sent it them along with their weekly supply. A couple of the gladers had already been stung and undergone the "Changing". They would sometimes use the term "Bite", "Stung", or "Prick" but the needle isn't as big as in the movie. It was so small that you would only know that you have been stung when you feel a stinging sensation all over your body.

*In the movie: They gave an impression that once you're stung, there's was no cure. Not until Teresa came with two syringes filled with blue serum from WCKD.



Thomas & Theresa

*In the book: When Thomas went up the box, the only memory he had was his name. He and Theresa have telepathy, which they would usually use to communicate with each other. They didn't have visions or dreams about Wicked and what happened in the lab. Although Theresa may have some memories, but they were slowly fading away as she woke up from the coma she was in. When Thomas got stung and underwent the changing, he had some of his memories back. He then called for a gathering as soon as he woke up and explained to the keepers what had happened.

*In the movie: He had no memories at all and it took a fight with Gally to remember his name. He would usually have random visions and dreams of Wicked and Theresa. Dreams where they would say "Wicked is good" and "Everything is going to change."



Alby

*In the book: He was a lot grumpier, less approachable. After the "Changing" he actually lived a few more days. At one point he became a traitor and burned all their maps because he was too afraid of going back to the real world. However, when they were trying to escape the maze, he sacrificed himself for the gladers allowing a bunch of grievers to rip him apart.

*In the movie: Alby was the 1st glader. And he died after he saved chuck from a griever.



Newt

*In the book: He is quite strong, but he is limp. He was actually a runner till he had an accident in the maze causing injury to his leg. He was traumatized by the maze ever since.



Gally

*In the book: He got stung by a griever before because he wandered into the maze ( he wasn't a runner). He stormed out of the gathering of the keepers after making a scene when they talked about what to do to Thomas after saving Alby's life. He went missing ever since. He showed up when the grievers started attacking the glades only to be taken by them. He then showed up again at the lab with Ava Paige to meet the survivors. He then tells the survivors that he was being controlled somehow then throws a knife to Thomas, but Chuck got in the way.
*In the movie: Gally took control of the glades after grievers attacked. He tried to convince the gladers that it was best if they stayed behind, and that they shouldn't trust Thomas and Theresa. At the end, he did manage to catch up with the survivors, but he was stung by a griever. He tried to shoot Thomas with a gun, and was killed by Minho with a spear.



The Escape (based on the book)
There was a cliff within the maze where you can't see much but mist and illusion. But somewhere in the illusion was the griever  hole. Thomas never actually squashed a griever between a changing wall, so they weren't able to find the "key" which was in the griever. Instead they gathered the maps they made from their records of their day-to-day run. They then traced the map on some wax paper for each day and put the 8 sections of the traced out map on top of each other. By doing so, each day revealed a letter. And the letters combined revealed a code" FLOAT CATCH BLEED DEATH STIFF PUSH". Which was then entered into the computer in the griever hole.

Theresa did trigger the "ending" when she woke. However other events happened before they escaped the maze. The sun was gone and they were stuck in the twilight zone for days. The maze doors did open and the grievers did come and attack but there wasn't a massacre. The grievers took only one glader every night. Once Thomas got his memories back and formulated a plan. The gladers prepared themselves. They packed and equipped themselves for the maze. There were actually 41 of them. However due to the surprise attack from the grievers within the maze, only 21 gladers survived. When they got to the lab, the creators were still alive and observing them. It was only after chuck died when the military stormed in the lab and killed the other scientist to save the surviving gladers.

They then were taken to a facility by bus. They never actually saw the maze stucture. However, they saw the land and what the flare did to it and the people.

Others that weren't mentioned:

*There was another mechanical creature other than a griever-- a Beetle blade; small mechanical beetle with red glowing eyes with "WICKED" on its back. It was supposed to be the spy/ camera for the creators.
*They were orphans. Smart kids that were taken when they were young. Their names were nicknames that the creators made up like Alby for Albert Einstein, Newt for Isaac Newton, and Thomas for Thomas Edison, etc.
*WICKED is actually an acronym " World In Catastrophe: Killzone Experiment Department"



So if I were to compare the book and movie, I'd say its pretty good. Although alot of scenes were altered. The movie wasn't disappointing. They actually had good stuff in there. The way they made the maze did meet my expectation, however I would like to see the cliff. I somehow liked the book better because it explains a lot more.



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Beads of Turquoise

6:54 AM Unknown 1 Comments



For this look I'm wearing White Beaded Blouse, Abercrombie & Flitch Jeans, Mags Wedges, and Ray Bans Sunnies.











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Royal Blue

6:27 AM Unknown 0 Comments







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Jogger Pants

7:34 AM Unknown 0 Comments


Jogger Pants has become a trend for some time now, and I finally got to have a pair. It's supper comfy and stylish. But who says pants like these are only fit for sports and street wear? They actually rock in stilettos. You can stay comfortable and classy at the same time.

For this look I'm wearing a Black Bershka Blouse, Blue jogger pants with Black garter, Blue Necklace, Vans Sunnies, and Black Stilettos with silver heels from Syrup Los Angeles, USA.










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