Showing posts with label Safety. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Safety. Show all posts

Thursday, 2 July 2015

My Problem with Jurassic World


Again, I am going to preface this post by saying that I did enjoy Jurassic World a lot, so much so that I have seen it twice. It has already grossed more than the original movie has since it first came out in 1993 (that's a staggering $1.26 billion for Jurassic World as of June 30 2015, less than a month after its release). Yes, I did just Wikipedia that, I put a lot of work into this obviously. While I admire all the acting, especially Bryce Dallas Howard's portrayal of Claire, the female heroine (as in female hero, not the drug, that is spelt differently [not that I would know of course]) of the story who saves her nephews and the park all the while in heels. I can't even walk in heels [again, not that I've tried] and yet she runs from dinosaurs, walks through mud and dirt, treks the forest, runs from pterodactyls all the while looking like hell on high heels (literally on heels). However, my gripe is not with those heels but we will come back to Claire in a little while. Michael Giacchino's score again adds to the spectacle of Jurassic World (a score completely at odds with his work on Inside Out also released last month). All in all it is an amazing film that definitely stands up to the original and makes up for its two rather disappointing predecessors. However, despite all this and Bryce Dallas Howard's performance I do have one bone to pick with the character of Claire Dearing.


As you can see there is just so much wrong with this scene right now. First of all, HANG UP THAT DAMN PHONE CLAIRE! Seriously, she is not even driving on a normal road yet here she is speeding and on her phone. To top it all off, Claire is also full of adrenaline at this moment because of the fear of discovering that the Indominus Rex may have escaped its enclosure. As Claire puts it: "We have an asset out of containment!" Below you can view the trailer where this scene is shown (yes, I did pause the video and take a screenshot to get the picture above). It starts at 1:02 and only goes for a few seconds.


First of all, Claire, slow down. Wipe off five and save lives. I know you are in a rush to tell the control center that there is, and I quote, "an asset out of containment" but you are already talking to them on the phone. You getting there quicker will not change anything other than perhaps slowing them down if you interfere. In fact, when you do finally arrive they all just stop and stare at you after they have witnessed the Indominus Rex kill a few people (as one of Michael Giacchino's songs from the soundtrack is titled; the "Indominus Wrecks"). So yeah, speed all you like Claire but no matter how fast you go, you are powerless. Secondly, hang up the damn phone or at least put it on speaker. Before, when your sister called to check on her sons (your nephews) you were able to answer the phone using the hands free system that most modern cars now have, especially the modern cars that Masrani Global would provide to one of their highest employees. Yet here you found that you had to hold the phone while driving with one hand on the wheel at high speeds. I realise that Isla Nublar probably does not have a speed limit or any explicit road rules but you are setting a very bad example for all the viewers of this movie. Finally, Claire, why is that window down? I know Owen (played by Chris Pratt) was just in the car with you and that he stunk but still, it would probably be more effective to put your window down so that you would get the fresh air first. But no, the only window open is the one opposite for you. Spielberg, I know this made it easier to get this shot since her car windows are tinted but seriously, where is the sense in that? Not to mention the fact that Claire is on an island with prehistoric DINOSAURS. I kind of feel like having a window down may not be the smartest thing to do anywhere on that island, particularly not when you are driving alone in the middle of nowhere. Claire does seem to have a bad track record with windows though because when she is driving the truck later she has the window down and a velociraptor tries to jump inside. Granted, only its head made it through but still, the dinosaur was trying to eat you. I feel like that was a message to you so that you would learn to WIND UP YOUR BLOODY WINDOW WHEN YOU ARE ON AN ISLAND FULL OF DINOSAURS. However, here is a picture of Claire being the Claire that we come to love in this movie, and not the Claire that has no sense when it comes to driving vehicles on an island full of dinosaurs out to kill you.


Just look at that face, Claire, you go girl (I feel like I have regressed a few decades). See you soon (as in the readers, not Claire, she's fictional).

Thursday, 25 April 2013

Dumb Ways To Die

So today I just wanted to talk about the best Public Safety Message of all time, Dumb Ways to Die, by our very own Metro Melbourne! I know this is old news but I just wanted to share the results of the most shared  public safety announcement ever. If you don't know what it is click on the link on the words Dumb Ways to Die anywhere it is found in this post.



Dumb Ways to Die is a public service announcement for Metro Trains Melbourne to promote rail safety. It has become viral due to social media and video sharing. The campaign was devised by Melbourne Advertising Agency McCann. It appeared in Newspapers, Radio, outdoor advertising, on social media sites (such as Tumblr [that is spelt correctly] and Instagram) and throughout the Metro Trains system. It was estimated by McCann that within two weeks it had generated at least $50 million worth of global media value and had appeared in over 700 media stories around the World for a fraction of the cost of one TV ad. Metro had estimated it had resulted in a decrease of 30% in near-miss incidents on the Metro train network.


An animated music video for Dumb Ways to Die was uploaded to YouTube on the 14th November 2012 and was made Public two days later. It features a cast of interesting characters killing themselves in ways that get funnier over the course of the video. Three characters are killed by trains in the video and within 2 days it had received 2.1 million viewers and within two weeks it had reached over 28 million views. Currently it sits on just over 40 million views. It has spawned numerous covers and parodies and has been received well around the globe.

When Dumb Ways to Die was released on iTunes 50% of the cost of making the song was covered by iTunes downloads in just three weeks! Dumb Ways to Die SoundCloud free downloads (advertised by the campaign website) has reached over 155, 000 downloads! On iTunes the song reached top ten in many countries and the song was played for free on Radio due to its popularity. This song was also played on radio stations around the globe where Dumb Ways to Die was popular.


Dumb Ways to Die has become the most viewed Public Safety Announcement and remember, be safe around trains!

May the odds be ever in your favour around trains, see you tomorrow!