BRAVEHEART (1995) won 5 Oscars including the Best Film and Best Director awards for Mel Gibson. It was also nominated for 5 more Oscars including the Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen, penned by Randall Wallace.

William Wallace, played by Mel Gibson, is a hero from 13th century Scotland in the classic mythological mold decribed by Joseph Campbell in his Hero With a Thousand faces. All Wallace wants to do is marry, become a farmer like his father and carry on in peace. He is a reluctant hero. But things change after his wife is slaughtered by the local men of King of England Edward the 1st — Edward the Longshanks.

His fate forces Wallace to take on both the King of England and the Scottish landed nobility who flip sides at the drop of a hat. His desire to take his wife’s revenge and set Scotland free sets him on a war path that leads to his eventual capture and public death under torture. (For trivia fans — the COMPASSION OF CHRIST is NOT the first movie in which Gibson is stretched across a crucifix.) Yet Wallace’s legacy survives his beheading and sets Scotland free in the 14th century.

Fantastic musical score with irrestible bagpipes, married to equally fantastic scenery and battle scenes jarring in their ferocity and realism, make it a good watch indeed. Wallace’s last word under torture is a long scream — “Freeeedom!” Who can remain impartial to that?

The gravel-voiced Patrick MacGoohan who plays Edward 1st is as good as Gibson since he makes a very credible foe to whip the dramatic tension nonstop throughout the film. Without a nemesis as amoral, tricky and dangerous as Edward Longshanks, Wallace’s goodness and integrity would not stand out in such high relief.

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Ugur Akinci, Ph.D. is a Creative Copywriter, Editor, an experienced and award-winning Technical Communicator specializing in fundraising packages, direct sales copy, web content, press releases and hi-tech documentation.

He has worked as a Technical Writer for Fortune 100 companies for the last 7 years.

You can reach him at writer111@gmail.com for a FREE consultation on all your copywriting needs.

Please visit his official web site http://www.writer111.com for customer testimonials and more information on his multidisciplinary background and career.

The last book he has edited: http://www.lulu.com/content/263630

It seems I am frequently caught up in discussions with people regarding the poor quality of TV shows in recent years. Sometimes it feels as if you are lucky because you found one night a week with some decent shows. While I still feel the overall quality of TV shows is mediocre at best I think there are two shows out there right now that are very good and epitomize what America is all about. Those shows are “American Idol” and “The Biggest Loser”.

I am not saying I like everything about these shows because I don’t. I do not like when American Idol puts people on the air that are clearly there only to try and get on the air. It takes away from the people with the real talent. What I like about this show is it gives people the chance to live a dream of theirs that they might never have had the chance to realize. Kelly Clarkson, Clay Aiken, and Carrie Underwood are probably the biggest stars to come from the show so far. Kelly Clarkson is a big star, she is selling out arenas for her current tour. She sells many CD’s and she is played all over the airwaves. Same goes for Clay Aiken, except he is not on tour right now. Carrie is more part of the country scene but still popular for that genre of music.

What I don’t like about The Biggest Loser is that they put these people in front of America and virtually no clothes when getting weighed. It seems to me that would be very embarrassing. However, the positives outweigh the negatives in my opinion. This show helps a group of people learn how to change their lifestyles so they can become, and remain, healthy people. It shows the audience how difficult it is to make the changes and what they go threw while trying to make the changes. It doesn’t just affect those 16 people on the show that season either. It has made an impact on many people across the country. Offices have “Biggest Loser” contests, families begin losing weight together, etc… The impact is on society in general.

Both of these shows, in their own ways, shows what is possible with some hard work and determination. Hard work and determination is what our country was built on. These shows help to give people hope and they provide people with motivation to help them achieve their dreams. If this is not the sign of a good television show than I do not know what would be.

Scott Bianchi operates http://www.best-internet-bargains.com He writes on a variety of topics. If you would like to be added to his distribution list for his new articles when they are published just send an email to articles@bestinternetbargains.com.

Have you ever started reading C.S. Lewis’ “The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe,” and lost interest after a couple of chapters? If so, push these objections aside like the children do to the fur coats in the closet. “Chronicles of Narnia” is about four kids discovering that their closet is a portal into a magical world. They step into a riveting world of talking beavers, fauns, goblins and other half man-half animal characters—all enslaved by a wicked witch—who makes life a perpetual winter. “Two sons of Adam, and two daughters of Eve,” who turn out to be the children themselves, must break the curse. They’re really just ordinary kids, but in Narnia’s mystical world, humans are like dinosaurs. They just don’t exist anymore. Yes, Narnia is a strange, enchanting place. The children are initially hesitant about getting involved, but step out in faith when they are equipped with supernatural armor and the support of mighty lion named Aslan. Overall, Narnia’s empowering message is fueled by a riveting plot, strong acting performances, incredible special effects, and surprising bursts of comic relief. A word of caution to parents with children under eight: Narnia’s kidnapping scenes and witch encounters may be too scary for little ones. Everyone else who can separate fact from fiction will delight in Narnia, and treasure this rare cinematic gem.

“Chicken Little” is a computer-animated comedy about a pint-sized chicken who claims… (you guessed it) “the sky is falling.” When the impending doom turns out to be nothing more than an falling acorn, Chicken Little’s father, Buck Cluck suggests that he keep a low profile and not expect too much out of life. Determined to turn things around, Chicken Little takes up baseball and works hard to improve himself. Just as things start to look up, the sky actually falls due to an alien invasion. Suspense, chaos, and plenty of laughs ensue as Chicken Little and his band of misfit friends discover a baby alien who desperately needs to be reunited with his parents. It turns out to be an obvious parallel, as Chicken Little and his Dad are worlds apart, and need to restore faith and trust in each other as well. Overall, “Chicken Little” is a fun movie that entertains with snappy music, zippy animation, compelling characters and clever insights. Children and adults alike will appreciate its rousing message of a father bonding with his son. It may be just a cartoon, but it’s downright cute.

Nicky Vanvalkenburgh is a film critic and motivational writer. Check out her stress reduction website at http://www.20minutestolessstress.com/

I’m in love with an ape. A twenty-five foot ape to be exact. Peter Jackson did the impossible: he managed to make a re-make of King Kong that didn’t suck and not only did it not suck it is arguably the best King Kong re-make ever and can rival the original as the best King Kong movie ever. This is more Kong then you ever thought you’d need but in the end Jackson keeps you wanting more.

King Kong takes place in depression era New York, we’re given a glimpse of slums that resemble refugee camps, forced evictions and protestors that are marching against the deplorable living conditions. . A young actress Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts) is employed, if you call performing in a low budget vaudeville show, in a theatre where the rent is due, where she hasn’t been paid in two weeks. Eventually the bottom falls out and Darrow is as unemployed as the rest of the populace.

As Ms. Darrow tries to figure out what she’s going to do about food Carl Denham (Jack Black) is underwhelming his producers with the footage of his latest film. Just as they let him no how they are not pleased, Denham informs them that not only is he in need of a ship to continuing filming but the ship will be taking the cast and crew to Singapore. The producers eighty-six the idea yet Denham hijacks the film, commandeers a ship only to find out his leading lady has pulled out of the project. Now he needs an actress who can wear a size four. You see where this is going.

Add to the cast a kidnapped writer (Adrien Brody), an egotistical actor (Kyle Chandler) and a skeptical, secretive crew and the stage is set for a lot of action and confrontation. While heavy on the exposition for the first hour King Kong turns into a wild rollercoaster ride of action and emotion and makes you feel like you’re a kid again, watching whatever cartoon or movie that made you lose all track of time and completely engulf you in whatever story was being told.

Some might argue that it’s all too much. As soon as you get over one heart stopping ride, Jackson cranks it all up again as the cast of characters finds themselves in yet another life threatening situation. Yes, it’s a bit over the top, but so is the idea of a twenty-five foot monkey falling in love with a blonde, blue eyed, willowy woman. Since the premise of the story is so over the top then the resulting film should be too and Jackson doesn’t disappoint. You get what you pay for and more. Yes it’s three hours long but I promise you there’s no better way to spend three hours.

T.S. Johnson is a Florida Based Freelance Writer for Hire, Providing Nation-Wide, Professional, Freelance Writing Services. For All of Your Writing Needs Visit http://prologuezine.com Today. Or Check out the blog http://tlkbck.blogspot.com

Food has become a cultural phenomenon in the United States and around the world. Food TV is bigger than ever, and chefs are now celebrities. Building on this new food culture is a surprising trend the fuses food with science. That is right; increasingly, both celebrity chefs and at home cooks are paying attention to the science that is involved in the preparation of food.

The trend seems to either have been started by or at least popularized by the idea that people can learn about a process better if they understand the why. For instance, in his show Good Eats on the Food Network, Alton Brown uses science to explain why foods are prepared the way they are. This deeper understanding through science has made its way deeper into the culture of food since cooking, essentially, is a series of scientific behaviors.

The fact is that food science is everywhere. When you go to the grocery store and see three kinds of flour, four difference chocolates, or even a few types of sausage, do you know what the differences are? They are all parts of understanding the science of food and the science of cooking that food.

It is not just Food TV, Emeril Lagasse or Alton Brown that have helped to popularize this trend, though. The general public, the internet, and the curiosity of the human mind are the real culprits. We grow up learning to ask, “why?” So it only makes sense that we would translate that question over to things like the preparation of food. In addition, knowing why food behaves the way it does titillates the mind while at the same time improves your ability to prepare it correctly.

The trend was actually started by a man named Harold McGee who published a book on cooking science. His book lifted the veil of mystery from gourmet food. That was in 1984, and in the two decades since, the science of cooking has become a national obsession as we try to understand why gourmet food looks and tastes the way it does.

Food has become more than just a sustaining fuel, it has become a part of the culture of our world. It only makes sense that we would eventually want to start looking for ways to make sense of that cultural piece. The science of food and cooking is a way of gaining a deeper understanding what has become a serious part of your culture.

Food TV experts such as Alton Brown have become a staple in the diet of many Americans who enjoy food and the science that goes along with it.

Today’s busy world we all are looking for saving time, rent movie on web can be huge time saver and not only time but rent movie also save money, so today only rent movies online and save yourself time and money if renting on a monthly basis.

Online site provides you everything from price, customer service, location, delivery times, and much more. Many people prefer to become a member of such sites and enjoy their favorite films.

People rent movies for many incomparable reasons. Mostly of us visit popular departments at your local video store is the new movie releases section to find the most recent films available. It’s a good way to catch up on all the flicks you missed in the theater. It’s also a best way to save money. Before watching a movie at the theaters, many people decide to wait for it to come out on DVD. Several films are ready for rent within months of their theatrical debut.

Some people rent titles to preview them for their DVD collections. While the cost of DVDs has declined in recent years, most people still don’t want to add a movie to their compilation until they know that they enjoy the movie and will watch it again. A DVD rental club is often the best choice for movie buffs. Normally these clubs offer incentives for people who rent DVDs several times a month.

Whether you’re a cinema buff, or just rent movie on occasions, there are many excellent video stores and websites devoted to serving you. The local store is an excellent choice for last minute rentals. The online services are also a great way of renting without the hassles of traveling. They also offer very competitive prices if you rent more than a few times a month. With a little bit of planning you’ll always have a reserve of quality DVDs.

Anna Josephs is a freelance journalist having experience of many years writing articles and news releases on various topics such as pet health, automobile and social issues. She also has great interest in poetry and paintings, hence she likes to write on these subjects as well. Currently writing for this website Rent Movie . For more details please contact at annajosephs@gmail.com

This article is written by Anna josephs, writer of the website Rent Movie .This article is published only for the educational and information purpose

Have you been pulling your hair out trying to put movies on your PSP? Many folks know it can be done but are confused on how to do it.

I am going to give you my quick and easy recipe for putting movies and video on your PSP. There are only a few steps and it is a cinch on you know how.

First like any recipe…You have your ingredients:

512 MB Pro Duo Stick (This is what holds your movie files (MP4)

DVD Player installed in your computer

DVD Ripper (This pulls the movie from the DVD to your computer)

PSP Video Converter (converts movie and video files to MP4 format that you watch on your PSP.)

(Note: There is software that has both the DVD Ripper and Converter combined)

USB Cable

1. Load your DVD and fire up your DVD ripper, select the movie or video you want to put on your PSP and hit the “extract” or “rip” button. Tell it where you want to save the file to.

2. If you already have movie and/or video files on your pc then all you need to do is hit “add” from your DVD ripper and tell it where you want to save the file to.

3. Select the file that you saved to your computer and hit the “extract and/or encode” button from your PSP video converter and save that file.

3. If you have DVD Ripper/PSP Video converter combo software…You can combine steps 1,2 and 3.

At this point you have the files on your PC…and they are in the correct format.

4. How to download or transfer your movies to PSP? Just connect your PSP with your PC with the USB cable, and create a folder on your Memory Stick called “MP_ROOT.” and create a sub-folder called “100MNV01.” under it. Copy your MP4 files to this location (no need to copy the .HTM files).

5. Now on your PSP go to video and memory stick and watch your movie!

That’s it. It is real simple to put movies on your PSP!

Travis Sago is a computer technician and PSP enthusiast and fanatic. Don’t have a good DVD ripper or psp video converter? You can learn more at http://www.the-psp-pimp.com/pspvideoconverter.html

Geena Davis Commander in Chief? No! Amelia Earhart? Yes!

The title is what turned me off.

I’ve not watched one episode of the in-troubled television series.

My problem is that George Bush II has always envisioned himself as Commander in Chief.

The President’s great role was when he landed a jet on a carrier and said, “Mission Accomplished!”

That reminds me of the Little Dictator.

Charlie Chaplain played such roles and Gilligan’s Island had a segment that showed where the exiled president of a revolution-torn country visited the island.

In her book, “Leap of Faith,” Queen Noor of Jordan quotes George Bush Sr. as saying to her husband, “I will not allow this little dictator [Saddam Hussein] to control 25 percent of the civilized world’s oil.” See http://www.coalition-of-the-willing.org/war/little_dictator.html

Now you know for sure why George II invaded Iraq, that and because Hussein sent a death squad to Kuwait to murder his parents.

I’d be angry too.

Anyway, I prefer Geena Davis in baseball garb playing “big sister” rather in a suit playing “big brother.”

The White House is a place I do not wish to visit, even if the beautiful Geena is there. George II might be creeping around.

I think a series starring Geena Davis as Amelia Earhart would have pleased me. See Amelia’s biography at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amelia_Earhart. Geena would have played the role perfectly. The script writers could even have her survive the crash into the Pacific Ocean and produced a serious sequel to Gilligan’s Island. What a smash hit that would be. Amelia growing up in the Midwest, taking up flying, falling in love, crashing into the Pacific, eating coconuts, starting her first fire on the deserted desert island, fighting cannibals, dying a lonely death, etc. she could even join with that drinking radioman of hers and have a couple of kids before he died,a boy and a girl. They could show up later at Harvard or Stanford. Can’t you just imagine it? I’d be anxiously waiting for every episode. I’m going to copyright this paragraph right now: copyright©2006 John T. Jones, Ph.D. Now, don’t any of you script writers try to steal this television special, series, movie idea. All rights reserved.

Maybe I should have given Geena a chance as Commander in Chief. I would be more inclined to watch the show if it were called Lady President.

Well, there was one other reason I didn’t want to watch the show. I was afraid that Hillary Rodham might be crawling around in there somewhere.

Worse still. What if late one night Geena heard a noise and caught Dick Cheney creeping around, looking through her bedroom door keyhole?

I hate horror stories.

The End

Clinton, Hillary, Geena, Davis, Earhart, Amelia, television, script idea, series, show, ratings, commander, chief, Rodham

copyright©2006 John T. Jones, Ph.D.

John T. Jones, Ph.D. (tjbooks@hotmail.com, a retired VP of R&D for Lenox China, is author of detective & western novels, nonfiction (business, scientific, engineering, humor), poetry, etc. Former editor of Ceramic Industry Magazine. He is Executive Representative of IWS sellers of Tyler Hicks wealth-success books and kits. He also sells TopFlight flagpoles. He calls himself “Taylor Jones, the hack writer.”

More info: http://www.tjbooks.com

Business web site: http://www.aaaflagpoles.com

Real-life husband and wife Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz play the fictional roles of Lucy and Ricky Ricardo on I Love Lucy, one of the most beloved and celebrated television series ever produced. Living in a New York City apartment, Lucy and her neighbor/best friend Ethel Mertz often engage in outrageous shennanigans while husbands Ricky and Fred try to foil their schemes. Lucille Ball is the obvious star of the show with her likeable onscreen persona and goofy antics. A true television classic, I Love Lucy is the real must-see TV…

The I Love Lucy (Season 4) DVD offers a number of hilarious episodes including the season premiere “Lucy Cries Wolf” in which Lucy becomes uncertain of Ricky’s dedication to her welfare and safety. Despite Ricky’s assurances that he will rush home in the middle of his act if she were in danger, Lucy decides to put Ricky’s promise to the test… Other notable episodes from Season 4 include “The Business Manager” in which Ricky hires a business manager to take control of the Ricardo household budget, and “Getting Ready” in which the Ricardo’s and the Mertz’s decide to drive to Hollywood in a 25-year-old used Cadillac purchased by Fred…

Below is a list of episodes included on the I Love Lucy (Season 4) DVD:

Episode 98 (Lucy Cries Wolf) Air Date: 10-18-1954
Episode 99 (The Matchmaker) Air Date: 10-25-1954
Episode 100 (The Business Manager) Air Date: 10-04-1954
Episode 101 (The Mr. and Mrs. TV Show) Air Date: 04-11-1955
Episode 102 (Mertz and Kurtz) Air Date: 10-11-1954
Episode 103 (Ricky’s Movie Offer) Air Date: 11-08-1954
Episode 104 (Ricky’s Screen Test) Air Date: 11-15-1954
Episode 105 (Lucy’s Mother-In-Law) Air Date: 11-22-1954
Episode 106 (Ethel’s Birthday) Air Date: 11-29-1954
Episode 107 (Ricky’s Contract) Air Date: 12-06-1954
Episode 108 (Getting Ready) Air Date: 12-13-1954
Episode 109 (Lucy Learns to Drive) Air Date: 01-03-1955
Episode 110 (California, Here We Come!) Air Date: 01-10-1955
Episode 111 (First Stop) Air Date: 01-17-1955
Episode 112 (Tennessee Bound) Air Date: 01-24-1955
Episode 113 (Ethel’s Home Town) Air Date: 01-31-1955
Episode 114 (L.A. at Last!) Air Date: 02-07-1955
Episode 115 (Don Juan and the Starlets) Air Date: 02-14-1955
Episode 116 (Lucy Gets in Pictures) Air Date: 02-21-1955
Episode 117 (The Fashion Show) Air Date: 02-28-1955
Episode 118 (The Hedda Hopper Story) Air Date: 03-14-1955
Episode 119 (Don Juan is Shelved) Air Date: 03-21-1955
Episode 120 (Bull Fight Dance) Air Date: 03-28-1955
Episode 121 (Hollywood Anniversary) Air Date: 04-04-1955
Episode 122 (The Star Upstairs) Air Date: 04-18-1955
Episode 123 (In Palm Springs) Air Date: 04-25-1955
Episode 124 (Lucy and Harpo Marx) Air Date: 05-09-1955
Episode 125 (The Dancing Star) Air Date: 05-02-1955
Episode 126 (Ricky Needs an Agent) Air Date: 05-16-1955
Episode 127 (The Tour) Air Date: 05-30-1955

Britt Gillette is author of The DVD Report, a blog where you can find more reviews like this one of the I Love Lucy (Season 4) DVD.

FILE FORMATS

There are several audio file formats in common use. There are fewer video file formats, but audio video file extensions can be confusing. This is just a brief description of what the more commonly used audio and video file formats and systems are.

AAC:Advanced Audio Coding This is the audio file format used by Apple for the iTunes Music Store, and it may appear with the M4A filename extension. It is better than MP3 for sound quality. It was developed as part of the MPEG4 group owned by Dolby (see below).

AU: This audio file format is the standard used by Java, Sun and Unix.

MPEG: Moving Pictures Expert Group There are a number of MPEG types now, described below.

MPEG-1: This is used in digital cameras and camcorders for small video clips. VHS quality playback can be expected from MPEG-1.

MPEG-2: Used for digital satellite TV, professional movie recording and recording of home DVD recordings. Provides provision for multi-channel surround sound recordings.

MPEG-3: MPEG-3 was propose as an entity, but eventually merged into MPEG-2.

MPEG-4: This is the newest MPEG system and is used for streaming internet content. It is also used in portable video recorders and for internet downloads. Required for DivX. It improves digital broadcasting and interactive graphics and multimedia.

MP3: Digital audio files, most commonly used to store and playback music. It compresses the files to about 10% of a normal audio file, and a normal music track will be about 5 -6 MB in size. MP3 stands for MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3, not MPEG-3 as many people think. A typical MP3 audio file is near CD quality.

OGG: An audio file format supporting a variety of codecs, the most popular of which is the audio codec Vorbis. However, MP3 files are much more broadly supported than Vorbis.

RA: Real Audio This format is designed for streaming audio over the Internet. It is a self-contained file format with all the audio information stored within the file itself.

WAV: The simplest of the audio file formats, developed by Microsoft and IBM, and built into Windows 95. It is an uncompressed audio file format with large file sizes (10 x MP3), and does not need further processing to play. The WAV file consists of three blocks of information: The RIFF block which identifies the file as a WAV file, The FORMAT block which identifies parameters such as sample rate and the DATA block which contains the actual data, or music sample.

WMA: Windows Media Audio A digital system invented by Microsoft, and is used in portable digital audio players. Using WMA, a file can be programmed so that it cannot be copied, and can be used to protect copyright.

WMF: Windows Media Format These are audio-video files comprising WMA and video codecs. They provide high quality and media security for streaming and download and play applications on computers.

WMV: Windows Media Video Used in the Windows media Player, this is used to stream and download and play audio and video content.

When dealing with audio and video file formats, you will sometimes notice the term ‘codec’. A codec is simply short for encoder-decoder (or compressor - decompressor). A main function of a codec is to compress audio or video data streams so that transmission of digital audio samples and video frames can be speeded up and storage space reduced.

The objective of all codecs is to reduce the file size to a minimum while maintaining audio and video quality. A quick indication of the codec’s place in the path of transmission and reception is:

Video device (e.g. camcorder) - video capture card - video digitized - codec (compresses digital info) - result (MPEG2, AVI, WMV etc) - codec (decompress) - video frames - display device.

Between the two codecs the compressed result is transferred to the display device transmitted, stored on file, etc). So to condense the flow even further, we could basically describe it as:

raw data - codec - transmit - codec - play

This is simplistic, but it shows where the codecs are used. Therefore, in order to play a movie, video or piece of music of a certain format, you need a codec in your computer to allow you to decompress the file and play it.

Here is some free software which checks what codec a video system uses, and what codec your system needs to play it:

Codec Tool.

The different video file formats are required to meet the requirements of various video devices. Similarly, audio file formats are designed to meet the needs of the specific delivery methods and storage and playback devices introduced by large corporations such as Microsoft, Sony and Apple. Thus, Sony invented the UMD (Universal Media Disk) for the PSP (Playstation Portable), and Apple introduced AAC (M4A) for its iPod.

Peter Nisbet is the author of many articles on audio and video file systems, their transmission, playback and conversion. More information is available on his websites http://www.legalandfree.com and http://www.online-free-movies.com