Jumper
After several unsuccessful attempts, I finally managed to go see “Jumper” a few weeks ago. I wanted to see the film ever since I first stumbled upon the first trailer – one of my favourite books ever gets made into a movie, this I have to see! =) Because of the trailers and a few interviews with the author of the book, Steven Gould, I knew the film omitted parts of the story completely while including new ones as well (e.g. the paladins and Griffin). So I knew what to expect, and I liked it! =) I am feeling relieved, as I hate nothing more than being disappointed by a movie I’ve been looking forward to. But, no, luckily everything’s fine.
In one review I had read beforehand that Hayden Christensen acts stiff – I don’t agree with that. I think he has performed well, I was able to understand Davy’s feelings, thoughts and actions, and I also liked the way he portrayed Davy. Jamie Bell was great as well in playing Griffin – completely believable, a little crazy (understandable when you know his history from “Griffin’s Story”), yet still likable.
The weakness of the movie, for me, is its story. The producers should have kept to the story of the book – when Davy watches a report on a flood disaster where he would be able to help lots of people due to his abilities, ignores this completely and instead spends a nice evening with a girl he picks up for this purpose – sorry, that’s just not the Davy I’ve come to like in the books. And in contrast to the books, this Davy has no goal, he just lives from day to day after accumulating the necessary wealth through robbing a bank. Well, it is comprehensible, but not an acceptable behavior of a leading character (i.e. “hero”). And then he doesn’t understand why he is being pursued. Well.
Anyway, apart from that the movie is good. Nice effects, good actors, great idea for the end fight (could have been from Steven Gould ^^). The end is ok – open enough to produce a sequel (but hopefully with a Davy who has regained his conscience) but otherwise resolved well. The one big questionmark for me was – does Griffin get down from the power pole somehow? Or does he stay up there until he starves? Or maybe he is electrocuted some time? Hey, wait a moment, those cables were already grounded, weren’t they? Well, maybe I just have no understanding of phyiscs. 
Conclusion: if you like fast-paced action films full of special effects and it’s ok for you if some points are not explained logically, I think you will like the film. Everybody else maybe should be a little cautious with “Jumper”.
No matter which group you belong to, however, the BOOK “Jumper” is definitely worth your time! =)
“Cloak of Silence”
Please try for a short moment to imagine the following situation: it’s Saturday morning, you’re finally allowed to sleep for as long as you want to. However… at 8:30 a.m. the people living one floor below yours start doing their piano lessons. The noise wakes up the baby in the apartment next door and he begins at once to cry at the top of his voice. This in turn leads to the neighbours above pounding on the floor and finally turning up the volume of their TV to the highest setting. Through all this ruckus, you are tossing and turning in bed, desperately trying to find a way to make your ear plugs fit even tighter.
I admit, not even I in my noise-plagued little apartment have experienced such a situation (yet). However, as you might have read a few days ago, I sometimes long for a little more silence.
Now there is hope: scientists in Spain have discovered the theoretical basis for an invention that would make not just me very happy but also lots of other people suffering from city centre street noise, presumably. Apart from this, of course, there are countless other possible applicabilities. – These scientists have found, in theory at least, a way to shield an object from sound waves by covering it with so called “sonic crystals”. These crystals are expected to be able to deflect sound waves. Using such a material in the walls of my apartment would finally get me my much-desired haven of tranquillity. =)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7450321.stm
I am always delighted to hear of such SciFi-become-reality stories (there was also some talk about a functioning mechanical exoskeleton which can be used to lift heavy loads), as I am a huge fan of science fiction and the possibilities it describes. The article mentioned above also mentions the search for a way to break light waves – so some time in the not too distant future, there might be cloak of invisibility after the “cloak of silence”.
