Film Reviews.

                                                                      TAKEN 
                                                 

Taken is a French - action thriller. It is based on a former CIA agent Bryan Mills whose teenage daughter Kim goes away on a trip to Paris with an older friend. Bryan doesn't agree with her and her friend Amanda travelling by themselves, since he knows the danger they can get into out there on their own. However he agrees with her mum to let her go, before she leaves he gives her a mobile phone that can work internationally.
As the girls arrive at the airport they meey a guy, who offers to share a cab with them due to that decision he finds out where the girls are staying; Kim then finds out that Amanda's cousins who were meant to be keeping an eye on them are actually in Spain. Whilst Kim is on the phone to her father, she sees Amanda being kidnapped by intruders.
Bryna instructs Kim to go the nearest room and hide underneath a bed, he also explains to her that the men are going to take her, and gets her to quickly describe them; she's then pulled from under the bed. Bryan had recorded the conversation between him and Kim, he goes to a former colleague who tells him that based on the recording she's been taken by an Albanian human trafficking ring. Bryan then travels to Paris in order to find Kim and Amanda...futheron in the film he finds Amanda dead and finds Kim at a large party for an auction of girls, Kim is the last offer and he manages to save her.

NAPOLEON DYNAMITE 

Click here to view Napoleon Dynamite Trailer. 

Napoleon Dynamite is a comedy film, it's about a teenage boy Napoleon Dynamite a high school student who lives with his older brother Kip and their grandmother. His grandmother lives a a secret life  involving riding quad-bikes in the desert, and having mysterious boyfriends; Napoleon's older brother whose 32 is unemployed and also boasts and teases Napoleon that he gets to stay home all day and meet girls on the internet, and training to be come a cage fighter.

Napoleon isn't the most popular in his high school, throughout school he daydreams all day about fantasy creature and spends his time drawing them; he also has to deal with bullies daily. He usually makes up stories about himself to make himself seem more interesting, also to make himself appear dangerous he responds to being questioned with unprovoked anger. 

Napoleon and Kip's uncle Rico comes to look after them after their grandmother injures herself guad-biking and doesn't trust them to look after themselves. Uncle Rico is a middle-aged former athlete, him and Kip decide to come up with a scheme to make money quickly, by selling different items door-to-door. Kip wants to use the money in order to meet his internet girlfriend, whereas Rico wants to use the money to help him get over failing his dreams and to win his ex girlfriend back. 

Criminal Minds: Case Study

Throughout the Christmas Holidays Criminal Minds is one of the main TV shows I've been engaged in. Its an  American crime drama, which premiered on the network CBS September 22nd 2005. One of the main reasons why I enjoy this show is because it differs from other crime dramas, by focusing on profiling the criminal (psychologically), rather than the crime itself. The series follows a team of profilers from the Behavioral Analysis Unit which is part of the FBI. The show was created by Jeff Davis and produced by The Mark Gordon Company in association with CBS Television Studios.
Criminal minds is shown here in  the UK on t 'Skyliving,' channel. The programme is aired at different times during the day which could be from 1pm- onwards where they play back-to-back episodes, or at night usually from 10pm.
Criminal Minds

Criminal minds did have a spin off; Criminal minds: suspect behaviour which debuted February 16th 2011, but due to low ratings the spin off was then cancelled after 13 episodes. However on March 14, 2012  CBS renewed the original Criminal Mind for an eighth season, which premiered September 26th, 2012.
Criminal Minds: Suspect Behaviour

CAMERA SHOTS, EDITING, SOUND & MIS EN SCENE
Common shots used in Criminal Minds include, high angle, birds eye or mid shots these shots are usually used to introduce the location/setting. Even though the main set is based in Virginia USA, being a crime drama locations vary throughout each episode, from country to country. The movement of the camera over looks the location, as it does the opening credit which states the name of the location appears at the bottom of the screen, this usually takes place within the first 2mins of the show.

Here are some examples watch from 0:00-1:00
1st example
2nd example
3rd example

Non diegetic sound is used with the opening credits/title, the soundtrack used embodies the tension which reflects how the audience would feel watching this programme.

Sound is an important part of the narrative, as it helps tell the story; the use of non diegetic sound helps maintain the pace of the show it also helps the audience identify what's going on, for example when a crime is taking place, the pace & rhythm of the music may increase. However the diegetic/ambient sound used helps the audience understand the narrative and location, e.g city, (street sounds), as well as the dialogue. The dialogue and communication between the characters is vital as it's the key way for the viewer to get an understanding of what's going on and the relationship with characters within the team. 

The camera shots and editing used also helps the establish the relationship with others, and the intensity of certain situations that take place. Fast cutting, jump cuts and cross cutting are used to portray tension/danger or to create suspicion. A lot of continuity is used to help the flow of the show, the audience get a clear understanding of what's happening. Medium shots and Close ups are used usually with long shots which is done to show the emotion and actions of a particular character. To build apprehension and to position the audience into feeling uncomfortable steadicam is used a lot in Criminal Minds especially when a crime is taking place, this is done to avoid having to cut to another scene. However hand held cams is also used to maintain the realism within the show, which makes it's it more entertaining.

The lighting in Criminal Minds is used creatively colours such as, black, blue and brown are used to represent the police work force, also both high key and low key lighting are used. High key lighting is usually appears when a crime has been solved, whereas low key lighting is often used to encode suspense. Smart/casual clothing is usually worn by the BAU, usually the clothes are plain dark colours to emphasise the specialist nature of their work. Each of the characters carry around a F.B.I badge and gun; occasionally they'll wear F.B.I vest when going to catch a criminal. The props used in the show are considered important, as they represent the genre and gives the audience a clear understanding. Throughout the series of Criminal Minds there'll be objects/props such as; guns, badges, crime scene tape, police cars, flash lights, jail cell, computer technology which is mainly used to help profile suspects.

The filming takes place in Los Angeles, California. Production companies behind it are, The Mark Gordon Company, ABC Studios and CBS Television studios. So far Criminal Minds has lasted 8 seasons and has 173 episodes.

American Ratings

Season	Episodes	Timeslot (EST)	Original Airing			Rank	Viewers (in millions)
			Season premiere	Season finale	TV season
1	22	Wednesday 9:00 pm	September 22, 2005	May 10, 2006	2005–06	No. 28	12.63[39]
2	23		September 20, 2006	May 16, 2007	2006–07	No. 24	14.05[40]
3	20		September 26, 2007	May 21, 2008	2007–08	No. 24	12.78[41]
4	26		September 24, 2008	May 20, 2009	2008–09	No. 11	14.95[42]
5	23		September 23, 2009	May 26, 2010	2009–10	No. 16	13.70[43]
6	24		September 22, 2010	May 18, 2011	2010–11	No. 10	14.11[44]
7	24		September 21, 2011	May 16, 2012	2011–12	No. 15	13.20[45]
8	24		September 26, 2012	TBA 2013	2012–13	No. 12	13.18 (to date)[46]

Teenagers in the media