Latest entries in MOVE Blog
The best in art, food, television and culture.
Sept. 1, 2010
Erotic film jumps into the third dimension
"Avatar" might have gone hard, but Hong Kong filmmaker Stephen Shiu promises his film goes harder. Shiu and director Christopher Sun, is touted as creating the world’s first 3D erotic film and hopes to create a new, lucrative, niche market to follow the success of James Cameron’s seed.
The film, “3-D Sex & Zen: Extreme Ecstasy”, boasts a $3 million budget and follows a man who befriends a royal duke and ensues on many royal orgies. The plot is based on 17th century erotic Chinese text “The Carnal Prayer Mat”. The story follows Scholar Vesperus, a striking orphaned student of Zen, as he embarks on a sexually deviant journey before devoting to monastic vows. The satirical text was banned in Beijing, but it's growing popular in Asia and Europe.
Low and behold, though, Shiu is not the only one in on the new dimensional bump and grind. In 1969, Al Silliman Jr. strung together unrelated soft-care 3-D video shorts into one feature called “The Stewardess”. The movie grossed $27 million, which was the highest engrossing 3-D movie until Cameron’s flick, which profited over $2 billion.
Even adult industry firm and magazine, Hustler, is remaking Cameron’s blue aliens to bone.
The Internet took the once-lucrative pornography market and made it limp. Will choking the chicken in the future be complete with rose and blue tinted glasses?
If this made-for-IMAX movie can spray splooge at the audience and see a full panorama of the twins and boys, it will be a real score. Shiu notes his film contains violent and explicit carnal scenes, which could provide strong footage to erect audiences. Pornography is one genre of visual entertainment that begs for hands-on interaction.
The major draw to 3-D is its ability to display vast and rich scenarios in depth. The adult industry films are typically shot on inside sets, which could make replicating the stereoscopic images that make 3-D films profitable and more difficult. Unless filmmakers will bask in the landscape of the human body for the entirety, this picture could be overwhelmingly long.
The legitimacy of a 3-D erotic film is flaccid, as the home entertainment equipment that supports the format is incredibly pricey for the average nymph. Bottom of the line models will cost you around $3,000. For that much, viewers can only choose from less than a dozen 3-D flicks or the newly launched ESPN network.
IMAX screens average 72 feet tall, nearly 70 feet too many to bring audiences to come without the imagery and special effects the profitable 3-D predecessors packed. Porn was made for the small screen -- leave the extra dimension for Disney.
Aug. 27, 2010
Karaoke for a cause
The first Superstar Columbia karaoke competition was hosted Aug. 23 at the hoppin’ Blue Note. Among the gathering of people were special guest judges Monica Senal, co-host of KPLA’s “Chris and Monica In The Morning,” Fred Parry, publisher of Inside Columbia magazine, and Neal Boyd, winner of the 2008 “America’s Got Talent.”
The trio looked like a copycat version of the original “American Idol” judges. Monica Seneal agreed and said Parry was the Simon Cowell of the group, Boyd the Randy Jackson and she was Paula Abdul.
The audience and esteemed guests were not there for the free food and entertainment alone. The proceeds from Superstar Columbia went to the Family Counseling Center of Missouri, a not-for-profit organization helping locals with any number of debilitating issues.
Susan Schopflin, director of quality improvement and marketing for the Family-Counseling Center, was impressed with the turnout.
“It was beyond my expectations,”. “The support from the community and the board of directors was amazing."
A total of $10,961.95 was raised for the Family Counseling Center, all of which will go to the Columbia Outpatient Clinic of Family Counseling Center.
"This was driven by the board of directors, couldn’t do it without them, and the community sponsorship," Schopflin said. "Together we can accomplish change and our community showed us that.”
Before Superstar Columbia began, a donation jar was labeled with the names of each contestant. One dollar placed in the jar of an audience member’s favorite performer equaled one vote.
The performer with the most money raised was awarded the People’s Choice Award before the top three were announced. The honor was given to Kylie Evans who raised more than $1000.
As for the judge’s decision, third place and the $100 prize went to Steven Thomas and the swagger he displayed on stage. Second place and the $200 prize went to Shannon Daugherty and, as Neal Boyd said, her “gorgeous” performance. First place, the $300 dollar prize money and the title of Columbia’s Superstar went to Adam McCall.
Aug. 26, 2010
Creativity salvages a dessert fail
This recipe came from an attempt to make meringues, a lovely, cloud-looking desserts. The meringues were an epic fail, so I decided to salvage the $5 recipe and make marshmallow cakes.
I used too much whipping cream, a substitute for cream of tartar, which my local, small town grocer doesn’t sell. I could have driven to a specialty shop, or tried a different grocery store, but I decided (against my better judgment) to test the recipe with whipping cream.
To make these delicious marshmallow cakes, start by mixing three egg whites until they’re foamy. It takes about two minutes and expands a lot, so use a large bowl. Now, here’s where the recipe leaves meringue territory and starts to look more like a marshmallow: Dump the entire amount of single serving whipping cream into the bowl and continue whipping. Slowly add two cups of sugar and keep going until it gets a somewhat whipped cream consistency. It still won’t be light and airy, but it will taste like whipped cream and expand quite a bit.
Then, put in a half teaspoon of vanilla and whip some more. Next, swirl in some melted chocolate. Be careful not to melt the chocolate. If you do this in small amounts it can make a really pretty design. If you do this with a lot of chocolate and use a spoon, it becomes a chocolate marshmallow cake. You decide.
Put the mixture onto a couple pans and bake for one hour at 200 degrees. I made a couple of very thin cakes by using cookie sheets.
Once they came out, I tried using a variety of toppings based on what I think should go on marshmallows. My favorite was chocolate chip and banana, but you could also try sprinkling color sugar, especially if you choose to make pretty chocolate swirls, whipped cream or a variety of other fruit.
Ingredients: Marshmallow Cake Recipe 3 egg whites 1 single serving milk carton of whipping cream 2 cups of sugar ½ teaspoon of vanilla Chocolate chips and other toppings as desired
May 6, 2010
Bryan Butler wins MOVE's 2010 Beard Off
If you see senior Bryan Butler on campus, salute him, because he is the winner of MOVE's 2010 Beard Off. It was a close race, but Butler's beard proved it was the most razor-repellent of all the entries.
Butler’s beard is passionate about Chinese food, smoking pipes and talking about beards. But, keep all vegetables away, his beard doesn’t like those. Butler, a graphic design and former cartoonist at The Maneater, and his beard make a rad team, but keep your hands off, ladies. The beard is taken.
Congratulations to the entire Beard Off entries, you are all winners if you have a beard. Remember, kids, stay away from that shaver. Grow a beard.
Jan. 29, 2010
Welcome to the new MOVE Web site
After many months of development, we're pleased to welcome you to the new MOVE Web site. We're still putting the finishing touches on it, so keep looking out for more new features to come.
There have been quite a few changes and improvements, so here are some things to look for.
Navigation Bar
As we began to retool MOVE's Web site, we quickly realized how ineffective our way of organizing articles was. Some sections had an overwhelming number of articles while others withered in disuse.
Our new sections offer a more balanced organization of MOVE's content and make browsing the site easier. Here's some brief descriptions of each of them to help find your way around the site.
Music
Music coverage is an integral part of the MOVE's content. We feel the topic warrants its own section because of the its importance to MOVE's overall identity.
Community
This section contains a look at the local arts and entertainment scene, including profiles of artists, interviews with downtown business owners and more. This type of coverage has been a key part of MOVE since its beginning; these stories are now brought together under one category.
Guide
Articles found in this section will show you the best of the best in a variety of categories, including movies, music, books, restaurants and more.
Angles
This section contains a variety of personal commentary, columns and reviews. This type of writing is another vital part of MOVE's content and will now rest together in one section.
Online Exclusives
MOVE's new site contains expanded exclusive online content, so check out the following.
Multimedia
The new site contains its own tab to direct visitors to MOVE multimedia, including photo slideshows, audio clips, video clips and more.
Blogs
Though blogging isn't new to MOVE, look for expanded content and regular postings to MOVE-specific blogs.
Arts Cal
MOVE will guide you to the best entertainment options in Columbia. Check out the Arts Cal for a comprehensive listing of what's coming up. Arts Cal now resides in the navigation bar for easier access.
Redesign
Along with its print edition, MOVE's Web site has been redesigned. The site has a new look to reflect MOVE's identity. As with any redesign, there will surely be some bugs during the transition period. If you see anything that needs attention, let us know and we'll look into the problem.
This site has been many months in the making and all of us here at The Maneater and MOVE are very excited to see it launch. Look for the launch of more new features in the coming weeks, and let us know if you have feedback on the new site.
In the meantime, we're going to get some sleep.
Dec. 11, 2009
2009: The year in review
Another year has almost past and it’s once again that time of year where people categorize things into “Best Of” lists. Normally, I think these lists mostly just stir up needless controversy, but with a job like MOVE Editor, I feel I’ve been exposed to quite a bit of entertainment. Maybe by making my own list, someone will discover something they might’ve missed this year. So enjoy this little list of mine knowing every single thing on here is Chase Koeneke approved.
1. Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix by Phoenix If it hadn’t been for this album, I would’ve called 2009 a pretty weak year for music. My two favorite bands – Modest Mouse and Weezer – released somewhat mediocre records, and with the exception of a few random songs, nothing else really showed up on my radar. Nothing, that is, save for Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, which might be up there in my favorite albums of all time. The French pop/rock band’s fourth studio album entranced me all year long, and songs “1901” and “Lisztomania” have had permanent slots on all of my recent car CD mixes.
2. The fragmentation of Electronic Gaming Monthly Yes, my favorite gaming magazine may have shuttered (though it appears to be on the verge of a comeback as of late,) but out of the ashes of EGM rose some of the best podcasts and Web sites of recent memory. A few examples that are worthy of your time:
-- “A Life Well Wasted,” an audio podcast about “games and the people who love them” focuses on gamer culture in a “This American Life” style. It has easily become my new obsession. -- The video producers for EGM’s Web site went on to make “Co-Op,” a weekly video podcast dedicated to discussing games rather than putting a score on them. -- We can’t forget “Bitmob.” The Web site has given amateur video game writers and reviewers an excellent forum to express their ideas to the world.
There are many more than the aforementioned three, which makes the death of EGM practically bearable.
3. Co-op gaming coming to the forefront “Borderlands,” “New Super Mario Bros. Wii,” “Beatles Rock Band,” “Halo 3: ODST.” I am loving this trend of stellar single-player campaigns that can easily become multi-player when your buddy comes a-knocking. So grab a controller and a friend and experience all these great games, together.
4. 'Community' A lot of people are talking about “Glee” and “Modern Family” when discussing the best new TV shows of the year. For me, it’s “Community” all the way. Joel McHale, Chevy Chase and the rest of the awesome cast has me clamoring for more week after week. I haven’t been this intrigued by a show since the first season of “The Office.”
5. 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' When things come out near the end of the year, it’s hard to determine whether you like them because they are truly good or because they are new and fresh in your mind. It may have been one of the easiest decisions of my life to add “Fantastic Mr. Fox” to my best of 2009 list. It charms from beginning to end and, to make a very bold statement, rivals even Pixar’s “Up” in terms of pure enjoyment.
6. Twitter becomes a phenomenon I joined Twitter almost exactly one year ago and although I won’t go so far as to say it’s the second coming, I will say it has changed the way I live. Whether it’s for gathering news, keeping up with friends, sharing fun things or discovering new music, movies, games and TV, Twitter has become an absolute staple of my Internet time. And I’m just fine with that.
7. Excellent comedies “The Hangover,” “Zombieland” and “The Men Who Stare at Goats.” Not only did these three movies make me laugh, they were perfectly spaced throughout the year for maximum enjoyment. Also, props to “Extract,” a hilarious comedy starring Jason Bateman and Mila Kunis. Sadly, it was mostly skipped over: seemingly par for the course for Bateman.
8. 'Assassin’s Creed II' I loved the original, but could understand the complaints people had with it. Developer Ubisoft understood too and took the criticism to heart, resulting in one of the best games of the year. The story is fascinating, the graphics are mesmerizing, but without a doubt, the best part is the freedom given to the given to the player at all times. It’s truly something to behold.
9. PlayStation Portable games getting good When the PSP launched, I was immediately skeptical. But now, in late 2009, I’ve broken down and purchased one. Why? Because with games like “Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines” and “LittleBigPlanet,” the PSP is finally becoming a viable gaming platform.
10. House’s reinvention House’s mix of thought provoking medical scenarios and smart dialogue has kept me intrigued for five seasons. But with House’s mental breakdown at the end of the last season, I began to become turned off. House’s time in the asylum at the beginning of season six has brought me right back into the fold though and has reinvigorated my love for the series.
That was 2009 in a nutshell for me. I hope the dawn of a new decade brings with it some equally amazing things. Chase out.
Best WTF moments of 2009: Levi Johnston’s Playgirl debut
As far as WTF celebrity skin-showings go, it doesn’t get much weirder than this: Sarah Palin’s almost-son-in-law and perennial d-bag Levi Johnston jumped ship from his waning public image as baby daddy to pursue a career in modeling. And by a career in modeling, I obviously mean posing sans skivvies for Playgirl.
2009 was already a WTF political scene without the help of little Levi, but apparently President Obama’s weigh-in on Kanyegate (“Yeah, he’s an asshole,”) and delirious dawn of Tea Party people just weren’t giving CNN enough to gab about.
The ensuing months were a game of will-he-or-won’t-he; speculations about the degree of nudity, the reason for the stunt and the opinions of Palin seemed to fly back and forth between cable news networks like a puck at a hockey game. The sly and creepily media-savvy Johnston soaked up the opportunity to talk about anything other than ditching Bristol once her mom didn’t win the White House.
Once photos began leaking everywhere on the Internet, it was announced that Levi would not be baring his full Johnston. Still, the steamy shower shoot ain’t too shabby, and now that ladies are saying, “Bristol who?”, Johnston has become a full-fledged sex symbol. He was even named one of the “Sexiest Living Men” by Salon.com.
Well played, Mr. Johnston.
Vices: Trip into stumbleupon.com
I dare you to resist reading an article titled "The World's Most Dangerous Airports." If the title doesn't grab you, the pictures of commuter planes inches from disaster should. Or how about catching up on the latest viral videos? Already seen "Surprised Kitty"? Just click the "Stumble!" button again.
Stumbleupon.com is the best way to find things you didn't even know you were looking for. The Web sites that surface with the click of a button are the results of things you wouldn't guess to Google and videos you would've never thought to YouTube. It gives an infinite stream of time-consuming Web sites that take the place of repeatedly checking e-mail, logging onto Facebook or constantly refreshing Twitter.
I can spend hours stumbling from one Web site to another, absorbing useless, but interesting facts, finding crazy YouTube videos and playing pointless games. For me, stumbleupon.com has opened a new door to procrastinating. Its simple, downloadable toolbar sits at the top of my browser, allowing for an easy escape from whatever I originally intended to do on the Web.
The transition from homework to stumbleupon.com is so subtle, I'm not really sure how it occurs, but it probably happens in a similar fashion to how Facebook keeps showing up on the screen. If I had to guess how stumbleupon.com brings my night's work to a standstill, I'd say it probably starts when the Web site surfaces in Safari during one of my infamous "study breaks" and from there the "Stumble!" button works its magic.
Yes, it is actually followed by an exclamation mark, which makes it come across as an exciting command I can never refuse. In a matter of seconds, I am torn away from my English homework and already blog-hopping the night away. Stumbleupon.com has proven to be an incredibly useful tool to increase site views for avid bloggers, but I prefer to be among the traffic, a "stumbler" if you will. It is considerably less work and it leaves some mystery behind the inner workings of that magic, time-stealing button.
Now that I am indulged in Web articles from "Ernest Hemingway: His Life and Works" to "McDonalds Menu Items From Around the World," the English essay is the last thing on my mind. Did you know there was such thing as a McSpaghetti? The brief food-oriented distraction was enough to make me hungry again. After the excursion to the kitchen, I decide it's time to get back to work.
Just before I am motivated enough to finish my assignment, I inevitably give in to that enticing "Stumble!" button and turn my screen from the half-finished English essay to pictures of drugged up spiders trying to make symmetrical webs. After being surprisingly satisfied with that stumble, I click it just one more time and find some National Geographic-worthy pictures of an underwater river off the coast of Mexico. Awesome! I click "I like this" to save it in my favorites and will now be more likely to stumble similar topics in the future, which is just the case in my next stumble where I find my future dream vacation destination: Huacachina, Peru. Who would've guessed? It's a picturesque oasis in the middle of a desert in southwestern Peru.
I click stumble again and come across "The 10 Greatest Apocalyptic Novels of All Time" and am reminded of the book "World War Z," which has been on my to-read list for quite some time. What other apocalyptic books am I missing out on? Wow, "I Am Legend" is a book too? With my thoughts back on literature, I am reminded of that English paper I initially opened my computer to write, after just this one last stumble.
Nov. 3, 2009
Dress your online avatar in black and gold
How true of a Mizzou fan are you? Did you stay to the very end of that disgusting Nebraska game? Have you actually incurred an injury to see if you indeed bleed black and gold? If you answered yes to these two questions then head over to your Xbox 360 and fire up the new Avatar Marketplace.
Xbox Live has rolled out a “University Collection” clothing line for your avatar and alongside big name colleges such as Florida, Ohio State and University of Southern California stands Mizzou. But they don’t come free; nothing ever does on Xbox Live.
For 240 points in Microsoft’s fake money system your avatar can rock a very retro Mizzou varsity jacket. Or for the low low price of 40 points you can sport the Mizzou wristband just like Zaire Taylor surely does.
If this sounds a little ridiculous, it is. Paying real money for Microsoft Points and using them to buy clothes for a virtual self is a little out there. I understand if you buy points for maps or downloads and have a few left over, but buying points for buying clothes in the virtual world? No thanks.
I’m much more excited for Avatar awards that will be unlocked (for free) when you do certain achievements in games. Left 4 Dead 2 is the first to announce this partnership and I cant wait for my zombie t-shirt. But until then, I’ll just rock the Frankenstein hat that I bought for my avatar last week.
Oct. 27, 2009
Twitter and the Hollywood set
Celebrities are often vapid creatures whose statements are little more than incoherent word vomit. So it makes sense that the Hollywood set has taken to Twitter like fat kids to cupcakes. Even celebrities can take a minute to type out 140 characters of superfluous drivel, which is what Twitter was made for.
More likely, it's their overpaid assistants who are cranking out these gems. Let's take a look at some of the more popular and braindead Tweeters.
Tila Tequila, who made her name as that chick on MySpace with little self-regard and even less clothing, has more than 265,000 followers on Twitter. She defines the category of famous people known as Internet celebrities (like that kid on YouTube who memorably brandished a light saber and clumsily reenacted Star Wars), so I'm surprised she doesn't have more followers.
She has recently taken to writing her autobiography on Twitter, 140 characters at a time. One item she tweeted, which screams of unnecessary exhibitionism [sic]: "Pervert Alert! @jamie_iovine1 !!! Boy I already told you...I DO NOT WANT TO BE YOUR GIRLFRIEND! STOP EMAILING ME PICS OF UR WEE WEE! LOL." Yes, jamie_iovine1, you really should stop doing that.
Kim Kardashian is exponentially more popular, but she clings to the lowest common denominator just as hard. Twitter is supposed to be a celebration of narcissism and self absorption, but Kardashian takes it to a level that even Britney Spears must be uncomfortable with. The signs of her self-absorption: her Twitter page has DOZENS of pictures of herself in different sexy positions modeling sexy outfits giving the camera sexy looks. Her bio even says she is an "Armenian Princess," so that's a bit of a giveaway too.
A more realistic (but less flattering bio) might read, "Self-obsessed pin-up who likes to drink excessively and sex it up in front of as many cameras as possible." That's even under 140 characters, so Kardashian is free to use its!
According to Twitterholic.com, of the top 100 Twitter pages, more than 60 of them are of celebrities like Katy Perry, Nick Cannon and Ryan Seacrest. I say "more than" 60 because in this day and age, I can't objectively say if people like George Stephanopoulos and Barack Obama are celebrities or not.
Ashton Kutcher is the single most popular Tweeter on all of Twitter. More popular than Britney Spears, CNN or Twitter itself. In a highly publicized battle with CNN earlier this year, Kutcher was the first to make it to one million followers. He now has almost four times as many. Our celebrity culture, it does astound me.
But at least Kutcher does not use it to only shamelessly self-promote. Rather, he has funny links to YouTube videos, news links with short commentaries and supports different charities for climate change and cancer awareness. That's how a celebrity should be using his or her power on Twitter.