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It’s been an exciting week for Hunger Games movie news. New images are appearing, and merchandising, most of which makes my skin crawl, is really going wild. But for me, the big news revolves around music. From Grammy shout-outs to the release of the first official video and two more songs from the soundtrack (as well as the complete official soundtrack list), this week may not make the mockingjays fall silent, but it has provided some very interesting food (er, music?) for thought. Join me after the jump for some thoughts on these very intriguing musical developments and what the The Hunger Games has to do with the loss of one very beautiful voice.

There is no denying that The Hunger Games is a remarkably musical story. Despite Katniss’s protests that she little values music (placing it somewhere between hair ribbons and rainbows), she is a singer like her father, and songs like Rue’s Meadow “lullaby” and “The Hanging Tree” are resonant aspects of the trilogy. When I first heard that T. Bone Burnett was going to be producing the film’s soundtrack,I was ecstatic. I knew he would beautifully capture the Appalachian Culture undertones while bringing in amazing, edgy, traditional musicians.

When the first soundtrack single was released, the haunting “Safe and Sound” by Taylor Swift featuring The Civil Wars, the odds seemed very much in favor of a fantastic musical backdrop for the film. The new video for the song does not disappoint. Filmed in the bleak winter in Nashville with rain (and some digital fire), the video ideally captures the novel’s tone. Swift, barefoot and in a ragged white gown, wears little make-up as she croons the song she calls “a death lullaby”; interestingly, with her blond hair and white dress, she strongly resembles Madge Undersee, a character who appears to have been cut from the film (I tweeted a question to MTV about this touch, but the after-preview interviewer instead chose really important questions like whether or not Swift likes cheese; she tried to turn it back to Prim’s goat cheese, but it was pretty useless).

The video cuts from dark, indoor, fireside shots of the Civil Wars, ( this emerging duo also has another song on the soundtrack as well) to Swift, wandering aimlessly across the sodden, bleak landscape, lying on the ground, clutching dead flowers (maybe Rue. I couldn’t identify it), or even sitting huddled on crumbling gravestones. Toward the end of the video, she enters a burned-out house that looks much like the one used for the Everdeen family (but the video was shot in Nashville, not North Carolina). Here she picks up a scorched Mockingjay pin, only one of the wonderful, subtle symbols woven throughout the whole video: the stopped clock in the burned house foreshadowing the arena of Catching Fire, the rain-sodden berry bushes and thorn trees, a deer that turns to ash, and, of course, all those flames. In her post-premier interview, Swift noted that the graves were from 1853 (they certainly look like ones I see in Civil War-era cemeteries) and that she was deeply moved by filming there.

Swift also stated in her post-video interview that this is her favorite video ever, and that’s quite a statement considering some of the ones she’s produced. The after-interview was super, despite the absolutely clueless host who had not bothered to read the novel (honestly, MTV, couldn’t you find someone on your staff who at least understood a third of what made Swift so happy about the way the video turned out? Caesar Flickerman, where are you?), was very revealing. Swift herself is extremely familiar with the novel, which she read after many friends suggested it and there was the possibility of her doing a song. I particularly like how she described how the novel changed her. Like me, she has become a “tree-watcher”–always sizing up trees to evaluate their potential if there is a need to climb one. She also quickly revised her initial ideas about the song she would write and perform. When she first heard about the possibility, she thought she would be writing a “we’re gonna win” kind of song for an action film, but once she read the book, she realized she would be doing something very different. The sparse, eerie song, accentuated by the gorgeous but understated tones of The Civil Wars (they do unbelievable murder ballads), may not completely clue non-readers in to the true nature of the novel, but it certainly shows that at least some of the musicians know what they are about.

I also have high hopes for some of the other songs on the soundtrack. Two others have already emerged for purchase on iTunes: The Decemberists doing “One Engine” and the spine-tingling “Tomorrow will be Kinder” by The Secret Sisters. “One Engine” is a folksy yet industrial-sounding piece that made me think of some of the more tech-oriented/factory districts, like 3 and 8. “Tomorrow will be Kinder” is a phenomenal song that perfectly embodies the Appalachian mindset: our way of saying “don’t worry, be happy” is more along the lines of “God willing, we’ll still be alive tomorrow, perhaps even with food and a warm place to sleep.” Fatalism is what we do best, and our brand of optimism is usually pretty bleak. The song also evokes early country music recordings, like Hank Williams’s definitive “I’m so Lonesome I Could Cry,” taking us to the Depression-era look the filmmakers have given District 12.
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No other songs have emerged yet, but the official soundtrack list is exceptionally promising, inlcuding additional songs from both The Civil Wars and Swift. I actually jumped into the air at the sight of the Carolina Chocolate Drops on the list. This amazing group beautifully preserves traditional African-American musical and performance styles. I hoped in an earlier post that we might be able to have a song from this amazing group on the soundtrack (I often hear them in my head as I read). What a treat to know they will, indeed, be included. Alas, no Gillian Welch doing her little bird song that I always have in the back of my head as I’m working with the novel, but you can’t have everything, I guess.

Of course, this album is being marketed as a different product than the actual score, which will likely include Jennifer Lawrence singing the Meadow Song as well as all the orchestral arrangements for the film.

Speaking of marketing, it was nice to see the Hunger Games spot during the Grammys, and the appropriate positioning of the Civil Wars and Taylor Swift (with her show-stopping number in Depression-era garb, like the video, yes, but also like District 12; don’t get too excited, folks, she’s had that 13 on her banjo/guitar for some time.).

At the same time, I could not help thinking, as presenter after musician paused to acknowledge the just-announced death of Whitney Houston, how this world, with its uber-glam singers, its special effects, and its goal to keep audiences glued to their seats, reflects the Games. It is a world in which these gorgeous young talents must produce ever more glorious performances, or they are tossed to the wolves. Many of them, with a huge prep team in tow, work to create increasingly shocking, surprising, or just plain weird looks for themselves–No one had cat whiskers like Tigris yet; I give Lady Gaga three years before she tries it, if that. There are those who survive this world, even seeming, like Bruce Springsteen, remarkably balanced, though his declaration that we “take care of our own” seemed a bit hollow in light of another lost star. Others, though, like the District 6 morphlings, try to numb their misery with drugs and alcohol, all the while painting on a happy face for the crowds (remember, they love camouflage). While commentators kept asking “what killed” Ms. Houston, I noticed no one had the right answer: She was a Victor who was eventually overcome by the Games, like so many of the others. It always amazes me when people express surprise over these dreadful deaths. I am surprised they don’t all have such tragic fates. Only time can tell which of the darlings of the music, movie, and television industries will be embittered like Johanna Mason, chemically dependent like Haymitch, victimized by their own allure like Finnick Odair, level-headed but cold-blooded like BT, or like Katniss and Peeta, wondering for the rest of their lives what is real, and what is not real.

Complete Soundtrack list
1. Safe & Sound (feat. The Civil Wars) – Taylor Swift
2. Eyes Open – Taylor Swift
3. Abraham’s Daughter – Arcade Fire
4. Come Away (feat. Rozzi Crane) – Maroon 5
5. The Ruler and The Killer – Kid Cudi
6. Run Daddy Run (feat. Pistol Annies) – Miranda Lambert
7. Kingdom Come – Neko Case
8. One Engine – The Decemberists
9. Take The Heartland – Glen Hansard
10. Lover Is Childlike – The Low Anthem
11. Dark Days – Punch Brothers
12. Tomorrow Will Be Kinder – The Secret Sisters
13. The Daughter’s Lament – The Carolina Chocolate Drops
14. Nothing to Remember – Neko Case
15. Just a Game – Birdy
16. Rules – Jayme Dee

Hogwarts Professor

Read all about it at The Sounds of District 12 (and the Capitol, too)!

Hogwarts Professor

I will be extremely glad to enjoy Emma Watson in the new film and I love the fact she is talking with director Guillermo del Toro to take the lead in Beast.

Yeah, you’ve got me right, Harry Potter star Emma Watson is rumoured to be starring in a new Beauty and the Beast film. Emma is about to sign the contract that will let her play a leading role in a new version of the Disney classic. To my mind, Emma will be perfect Belle.

They say that the film is thought to be just entitled Beast and is currently pending to release sometime in 2014.

Good luck, Emma!

ReadingHarry

Who doesn’t love the White Stag? Majestic, noble, and pure, it is the traditional, powerful symbol of Christ, the Peace and Power of the Father. We meet it (him?) not only in Western tapestry and iconographic tradition — alongside, notably, St. Godric — but in popular fantasy as well. Readers of this site are familiar enough with the appearance of the White Stag at the end of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe as well as in the Harry Potter stories, especially in the climax of Prisoner of Azkaban and, his mate, the cervus fugitivus, in the pivotal Forest of Dean scene of Deathly Hallows, that I don’t need to explain his importance in great story telling.

What I learned recently, though, is that the stag is known in the Orthodox Church at least as the great enemy of serpents. The stag likes to lunch on the low-crawlers. This was revealed to me in that most unexpected of places, a sermon, at the Feast of Theophany. With the Deacon’s permission, I share that exploration of the meaning of Theophany (represented, I think, in the Ron the Baptist scene alluded to above) in which the stag symbolism is explained. Enjoy!

Saturday Vespers, January 7, 2012 – Isaiah 35:1-10 – St. George the Chozebite

Fr. Deacon Theophan Warren, All Saints Orthodox Church, Chicago, Illinois

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

As we continue our celebration of the glorious feast of Christ’s baptism in the Jordan, and the revelation of the worship of the Holy Trinity this evening, my brothers and sisters in Christ, I thought it fitting to preach on this passage from the thirty-fifth chapter of the Prophet Isaiah.  I would contend that in this one single chapter of Holy Scripture, the whole of salvation history is contained, along with the prophetic vision of the eschatological end of this world, and the beginning of the next.  Of course, I do not mean to say that every detail of the history of salvation is contained herein, but let us briefly examine this passage tonight under three headings:

1. The Church as desert
2. The Church as Living Water
3. The Highway of the Lord

Let us then speak about the Church as desert.  There are several senses in which the Church could be related to the image of the desert.  Tonight, we will only examine just a few.  In light of my previous comment about the history of salvation, I would point out two ways that the Church could be referred to as desert in relation to history.  The first image that likely comes to mind when we mention the word “desert” in reference to Holy Scripture, is the epic adventure narrative that we find in the book of Exodus.  Here we have an enslaved people, who have been trodden upon for centuries by tyrant rulers, who are suddenly noticed by God.  They are not only noticed in their travail, but through the process of divine revelation, they come to find out that they have actually been chosen by God.  Out of the midst of both the Egyptian and Hebrew people God chose to show a man how he was going to change the history of not only these two peoples, but of all peoples who had or ever would be born on earth.

And where did God choose to reveal to the man Moses, His intention of saving the people of Israel?  After many centuries of relative silence from the time of that important revelation that Abraham had received from God about a promise, it was in the desert that God chose to reveal Himself to the world as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; the God who referred to Himself as I AM.  Thus, it was fitting that after Moses had received this revelation from God in the desert, and gone on and accomplished His will in Egypt, that he lead the people of God, the ancient Church, back out into the desert to seek Him and His promises.

Although the Israelites were accompanied by the power of God in His might against the forces of Pharaoh and all spiritual darkness, having crossed through the midst of the Red Sea in triumph and having undergone a second birth as a people, they soon began to find that they were not suited to the life of the desert.  In grumblings, and murmurings, they began to rebel against the God of their salvation, and one by one began to die in the desert wilderness.  They found themselves unequipped for the journey, both in material, and in spiritual necessities.  And through the course of a forty year journey, an entire generation of the ancient Church would find that while they had been delivered from a physical enslavement, they were still bound and chained by sin and death.  This then is an example of one sense in which the ancient Church can be viewed as desert.

If the people of the ancient Church of God could be seen as desert, with all the helps and promises that they had been given, what then could be said about those who out in the larger world consisted of the Gentile Nations, the “ethnoi”, those who sat in a much greater darkness, but would be called in time just the same?  Holy Scripture often refers to the lands of the Nations as desert.  Although the geographical sense would apply in some cases, we must read these references in the spiritual sense, of a land of bleakness, spiritual dryness, a land overrun and ruled by dragons, beasts, and demons, a land devoid of nourishing water, where every element seems bent upon the destruction of the lives of men.  In this kind of darkness, and under these conditions, men will turn to images of wood and stone for help, not knowing their left hand from their right.  It is in this sense then that we who are not descended in blood from Abraham, were found to also be children of the desert, along with the ancient Hebrews.  Although it would not be wholly accurate, still in light of these reflections, it would not be entirely wrong to describe all of human history before the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ as desert time.  And yet, God heard the earth, and all the souls of all the peoples of the earth, crying out to him from “a dry and weary land where no water is” (Psalm 62:1), and He answered them.

Secondly, let us now turn to the image of the Church as Living Water.  If we know that the Ancient Church was in a sorrowful sense, a “bride unwedded”, then we can assume that with the coming of Her Groom and Messiah (He being both God and Man), that both the material and spiritual cosmological landscape would be gloriously changed forever.  How fitting it was, that at the beginning of His ministry, our Lord Jesus Christ should bless all the waters of the earth by His mere presence in it.  By this blessing, through His voluntary baptism by the hand of St. John, His own servant and creature, He turned the desert of history, and the hearts of men into lush pastures and verdant gardens, which would be ready to receive His Word.  Thus, the Prophet says to us tonight “Be glad, you thirsty desert, and rejoice exceedingly, and let the desert blossom as a lily.  The desert places of the Jordan shall blossom abundantly and rejoice exceedingly (vs. 1-2)…For water shall burst forth in the desert, and a valley in the thirsty land.  The waterless desert shall become meadows, and the thirsty land springs of water.  There will be gladness of birds, a habitation of reeds and marshes.” (vs. 6-7)  The great Gardener had appeared on the scene, and was able finally to provide the Living Water that was needed to let Life thrive in men.

At the perfect time, a baptism surpassing that of John the Baptist had been introduced, which would initiate men into the Life of God forever.  Just as Moses lead the people out into the desert to seek God, so too did John lead men into the wilderness to seek repentance.  But it was only through the humble act of the Son of God, the Son of Man; that the worship of the Trinity was made manifest.  Thus, the Living Water Himself was able to give power to His Body, the Church, to pour out this gift upon all men who thirst for truth and life.  At the perfect time, both the Hebrew people, and the “ethnoi” of the Nations, were granted a Divine washing, which was to fulfill the commandment which God had given to the Prophet Isaiah, which could not be fulfilled by their own efforts:  “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean.  Put away the evils from your souls before My eyes.  Cease from your evils.  Learn to do good.  Seek judgment and redeem the wronged.  Defend the orphan and justify the widow.  Come now, and let us reason together”, says the Lord, “although your sins are like crimson, I shall make them white like snow, and although they are as scarlet, I shall make them white like wool.  If you are obedient, you shall eat the good things of the land.” (Isaiah 1:16-19)

Christ not only becomes the Great Gardener, but also the Judge according to Isaiah.  He says “My people shall see the glory of the Lord and the majesty of our God (vs. 35:2)…Behold, our God renders judgment and will render it (35:4).”  To whom is God rendering judgment?  He comes to judge the Prince of the power of this world, who in the time of the desert of history ruled over men.  He is judged and battle ensues in the waters of the Jordan.  Just as Pharaoh was overthrown in the waters of the Red Sea, Satan is beaten and warned of his final defeat in the waters of a quiet river in the wilderness of the Jordan.

Lastly, let us examine this phrase, the “way of the Lord”.  Certain translations render this phrase “the highway of the Lord”.  The translation I read for you tonight from the Orthodox Study Bible says “A pure way shall be there, and it shall be called a holy way”.  Christ descends into the waters of Jordan, to initiate and bless the Life in Christ for all men.  This Life is the true High Way for all men, and blessed are we to be born under such a blessing, we who have been granted to be born and raised in the verdant gardens of the Church, who no longer have to wander aimlessly and hopelessly in the desert.

What signs were the people of earth told to expect to see when this came to pass?  Isaiah had encouraged them eight centuries earlier to “Be strong, you weak hands and feeble knees.  Be comforted, you fainthearted.  Be strong, do not fear (vs. 3-4)…He will come and save us.  Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall hear.  Then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb shall speak clearly (vs. 4-6).  When St. John the Baptist sends his disciples to Jesus, to ask Him if He is the One, or if they should look for another, Jesus tells them to bear witness to John that these very signs are occurring by His hand.

St. Cyril of Alexandria (5^th century) makes a peculiar comment regarding those who hear these words, and will “leap like a deer”.  He says “those who formerly did not keep to the straight and narrow, but had a limited mentality, will bound like deer, meaning that they will be agile and nimble (in a spiritual sense, that is), and furthermore become snake killers, and fluent speakers.  What does he mean by the term “snake killers”?  In the ancient world, deer were known for two peculiar things.  Firstly, it was believed that they ate snakes.  And partially because of this diet, they were also known for having an insatiable thirst for springs of water.  Just one example of this from antiquity is seen in another of St. Cyril’s comments on Isaiah, where he likens the disciples of God to deer saying “Now they are very rightly compared to deer, an animal that kills snakes and is habitually fond of springs of water; this is the way with everyone devoted to God and appropriately equipped to do away with the spiritual dragon, by overthrowing his eminence, and rendering powerless and ineffectual the venom of his innate malice (pg. 269 vol. 2).”

For this reason, it is fascinating to find that there are numerous ancient baptismal fonts from the early centuries of the Church still in existence that contain images of deer with snakes in their mouths.

Many of you, who have read the Harry Potter books, will recall what animal Harry shows forth in his Patronus, an image which has the power to disperse the evil demon-like creatures, the Dementors.  As was the case with his father before him, his Patronus figure is a stag, a male deer.  The stag was used as a symbol for Christ in much of ancient and medieval literature.  If you have read the seventh book of the Harry Potter series, perhaps you will recall how when all hope and direction seems lost, Harry is led one night by a doe, a female deer, to a frozen pond.  In the bottom of the pond, in the moonlight that is shining through the ice, Harry can just make out the image of a silver cross.  In homage to C. S. Lewis, and the baptism of Eustace Scrubb by Aslan, in the Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Rowling has Harry break through the ice, and descend into the freezing water to seek the cross (which is actually a very special sword, which is used by someone else later in the book to cut off the head of a very large snake!).  Harry does battle in the waters with an evil burden that he carries, and dies a figurative death.  He is pulled from the waters by a friend he thought he’d lost, and upon his emergence from the water, everything has suddenly changed, and he now has direction.  His purification through each of the seven books leads him to this moment, where he now knows that he can go forth and defeat the evil Lord Voldemort, who is more snake than man.

Upon the highway of the Lord, no ravenous beast or wicked man may tread.  This is the path that we are to follow, which is the Life in Christ.  If we follow obediently upon this highway, we will rejoice with the Psalmist and say

“How precious is Thy steadfast love, O God!  The children of men take refuge in the shadow of Thy wings.  They feast on the abundance of Thy house, and Thou givest them drink from the river of Thy delights.  For with Thee is the fountain of life; in Thy light shall we see light. (Psalm 36:7-9)”

In the waters of the Jordan, the deserts burst forth with water, and history is changed forever.  The highway of the Lord is revealed, and Isaiah proclaims forever that “the redeemed shall walk in it, and those gathered by the Lord shall return and come to Zion with gladness, and with everlasting gladness over their head.  For praise and exceeding joy will be on their head, and gladness shall possess them.  Pain, sorrow, and sighing have fled away. (vs. 9-10).”

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Hogwarts Professor

Daniel Radcliffe who played the role of Harry Potter in the self-titled film franchise is completely disappointed about the Academy not properly honoring the final Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.

Let me remind you that the franchise received 12 nominations for an Oscar, but has never won. What is more, the films have also never been recognized in any of the big categories.

Radcliffe believes that judges are not fair because the film was not directed by Martin Scorsese.

By the way, Martin Scorsese’s children film Hugo received 11 nominations. Despite the lack of recognition, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 made more than .3 billion worldwide.

What do you think?

ReadingHarry

Back in December, John Granger and I had the opportunity to chat on Middle Earth Network Radio with delightful host Dave Kale on the subject of the DVD extras offered with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. Though we really enjoyed (and discussed at great length) the segment on both female characters and the actresses who portray them, I bemoaned the lack of a really wonderful documentary sequence featuring Alan Rickman, as I have been delighted, amazed, and ultimately deeply moved by his riveting performance as the prickly and profoundly complex Potions master. This article from The LA Times, does something to alleviate that gap, including some nice thoughts on Rickman’s decade of playing one of the most misunderstood guys in black since Johnny Cash and even ponders Rickman’s Oscar prospects.

When I went to see Part 1 of Deathly Hallows, it was patently obvious which audience members had not read the books: they were the ones booing at Snape on the screen, while those of us who had read the books were profoundly struck by Rickman’s wonderfully understated performance. In the Malfoy Manor sequence with the hapless Charity Burbage, Rickman beautifully brings across Snape’s controlled but conflicted role with subtle, riveting expressions (only Jason Isaacs is as compelling in that scene). I found myself chanting as I watched : “The bravest man I ever knew…”

After all, as the article points out, Rickman was the only actor in whom Rowling confided, the only one who really knew the ending point for the winding road of his story. Rowling, the sometimes Machivellian, always controlling, Dumbledore-figure in the novels’ composition process, thus made Rickman even more like Snape by giving him the missing, magic information she withheld from the charming young actors playing the leads.

But, of course, Rickman’s work is not all type-casting. Though sometimes aloof, the actor is known as a delightful person (one of my colleagues, our drama instructor, once met him at a dinner party and found him to be a great fellow), a warmth which comes through nicely in the article.

Now that the series has reached its cinematic conclusion (a milestone we covered on our most recent Pubcast), talk is circulating that Rickman (and perhaps the phenomenal Maggie Smith as well) may be eligible for Oscar consideration, just as the Academy held out those high honors for the Lord of the Rings films until their finale. So far, of course, the only honors the Potter films have garnered have been technical ones, but there is speculation that now Rickman, at least, may be acknowledged for his role.

Despite a few glaring grammatical concerns (I am an English professor, after, and though I do gaffe here from time to time in my haste to post, I should like to think the LA Times might show a bit more effort), the article is intriguing (and there is a nice link to an interview with Helen McCroy, who plays Narcissa Malfoy and confirms Rowling’s statements that the good in Draco comes from his mother, who, in her own way, behaves just like Lily Potter: sacrificing everything for her only child.)

So what do you think? When the Oscar nominations are announced next week, do you expect to see acting honors (as well as technical ones) offered to the Potter films? Or will Rickman be as misunderstood and underappreciated for his work in these movies as Snape himself?

Hogwarts Professor

The idea that the Three Brothers in Deathly Hallows are story pointers to the Dark Lord, Severus Snape, and Harry Potter was discussed here in the weeks after the book’s publication in 2007. Alan Jacobs, however, I think was the first to publish the idea (if only as a hint) in his Christianity Today review of the series finale, ‘The Youngest Brother’s Tale.’

Many readers have already exclaimed that Harry’s final quest marks him as a clear Christ figure. This is wrong, seriously wrong, and I think J. K. Rowling goes out of her way to tell us so. People (characters in the books as well as readers) think that Harry is a unique person of unique power, but at a dozen points in the series we are clearly shown that he is not: he is called the Chosen One, but he is chosen by Voldemort, and Dumbledore emphasizes to Harry the sheer contingency of this choice. The work of the Cross is done by Christ alone; Harry always has help. (It’s worth emphasizing that while each of the Horcruxes is destroyed, each is destroyed by a different person.) At his moment of agony Christ was abandoned; at the end of his quest Harry is supported and comforted.

As my friend Jay Wood has noted, if Harry resembles a biblical figure it is not Christ but rather Stephen the Protomartyr. But the comparisons with Stephen are limited too: for a more precise analogue, I encourage you to rummage through your children’s books until you find an old copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard. Surely you have one. Read the story of the Three Brothers, and pay particular attention to the youngest. You’d be surprised what you could learn.

I have quite a few problems with Prof. Jacobs’ patronizing review of Deathly Hallows (read that here) but I hope he was pointing to this internal connection of Harry and the youngest brother by his condescending allusion above.

Your thoughts, please! Are the three brothers of the Beedle Bard’s tale the story-within-the-story telling the story’s heart before we get to that end in the proper story order? And what do you think of the Riley montage above? The floor is all yours –

Hat tip to Nadja for the foto link. See the Facebook page here.

Hogwarts Professor

How reading Harry Potter makes you a better reader of Dickens:

http://news.blogs.wlu.edu/2012/02/01/wl-english-professor-thanks-rowling-for-students-appreciation-of-dickens/

Story transparencies, transfiguration, literary alchemy, politically correct indoctrination (Christian charity?), etc.

www.nea.gov/research/readingonrise.pdf

Hogwarts Professor

The new trailer can only be seen on the Film’s site (see here) but they allow us to embed the following sneak peek episode of Katniss on the run in the forest. Apologies in advance for the advertisement that follows!

Read the full story behind the filming from The Hollywood Reporter or the ’9 Secrets’ short course at Geek Tyrant. Hat tip to James for all the links!

Hogwarts Professor

For more on this, see the Reuters story here.

Hogwarts Professor