Book Review: The Fall of Five

The forth installment of the Lorien Legacies series by Pittacus Lore, was a fast paced roller coaster! This novel is packed full of training, superpowers, love, and betrayal, the foundation of a typical teen novel, what everyone wants to read about. Though most would expect a twilight love triangle from the novel, when in fact, the love story in the book is quite relatable and refreshing.

To tell the story from every angle, the characters of all the Garde including Sam narrate at different times, providing a panoramic of the entire situation that these heroes are in. Even though the novel is told primarily through the eyes of John Smith, a main character, the reader is immersed in the lives of everyone involved. Confronted by the leader of the Mogs, the Garde must find a way to trust and work together as a team if there is to be any hope of the surviving and reviving their home planet, which was savagely invaded and massacred.

Granted the members of the Garde have "legacies" or superpowers, not one of them had the legacy to smell a mole in the pack. One of the seven remaining Garde will prove to be dangerous to their own kind, shattering what little hope the gang had in their chances against the Mogs. The struggle to stop a rogue Garde could prove that fate, on any planet, is an unstoppable force. In light of the betrayal, other pieces of the playing board had shown just how useful they can be.

Characters that seemed to be secondary in the previous novels come into their own. Sarah Hart, the  human love interest of John, becomes a major savior along with Sam Goode, John's best friend and complicated love interest of six. Showing that the damsel in distress is not her cup of tea, where other people who are not magically gifted would let those who are do the heavy lifting, Sarah gets her hands dirty and does her part; not your typical love story, right. While Sam grows more mature as Sarah has, dealing with his own emotions towards six, discovers a long lost loved one, which could possibly be the Garde's secret weapon in winning this intergalactic war against the monstrous Mogadorians.

A major lesson to be learned from this book is that everyone can be their own hero. Many characters made the transition from a limited, defenseless, and malleable person to a strong, dependable, capable and vital member of a great team and family. Dis-banning any limitations that society tries to force, the characters of the Lorien Legacies break the mold and give everyone the opportunity to become who they are meant to be. 

While reading I could assimilate the female characters to that of Annabeth Chase of the Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus series. Also, the great women of our history, Rosa Parks, Harriet Tubman, Lucy Stone, Susan B. Anthony, Matilda Joslyn Gage, Abby Kelly Foster, Angelica and Sarah Grimke; all of whom were strong women who refused to be part of the background, to be "secondary" characters in history. These women became the heroes of girls, women and respectable men worldwide, but first they had to become their own heroes. 

The Fall of Five is a great read and an action filled installment of the Lorien Legacies series, I recommend this series to all who love a great story. A word of advice, these books are meant to be read in order. If you are interested in a tale that matures and develops into adulthood, this series is your golden ticket, but start the beginning (I am number four), you'll be glad you did!

Current Connection 3.2.

There is an ample amount of hesitation by production companies when it comes to hiring directors, especially female directors. Though, when it comes to male directors these companies seem to have no problem associating with those popular names. The article, "The 11 Most Commercially Successful Directors You've NEVER Heard Of" by "Pajiba's" Dustin Rowles, explains why the movies seen in recent times have the same reoccurring directors. Getting noticed in Hollywood is not just difficult for the women, but for those, male and female, who have not yet built a name for themselves.

First off, there have been a lot of movies churned out in the passed year. Most of these films feature the same well-known directors, also known as "commercial directors." Rowles mentions in his article how, "They are directors-for-hire. They show up. They organize the set. They don't get their sticky footprints on the film, and they go home." These are usually the guys that make films that are requested by production companies and fans of book series and comics, their minds on the money. It seems as if these directors only have the technical capabilities of being a director without the pride of a true movie-maker; this makes sense of all the crap movies that came out in the last year. These films aren't getting the attention they need to be masterpieces, films to remembered as a classic, instead the quality of the casting seems to be more emphasized than the emotion the film is supposed to transmit to its audience.

Indeed, these films may be enjoyable experience, an easy momentary escape, but far from being classics. Watching these movies for the first time, the viewer see the vivid pictures, but without an actual concept that the average person can relate to it's just something to do with the weekend. The article talks about films such as "Never Been Kissed" and "Ever After: A Cinderella Story," both of which should be considered classics, if not for the emotion that is pulled from the audience, but for the stories these movies tell. Those two movies have simple concepts that are easy to empathize with and pleasing to view, as compared to the multitudes of films made to satiate this current audiences' thirst for adrenaline. Personally, film needs a lighter touch, perhaps a woman's touch.

Sadly, companies have made this industry less of a pleasure sport than a shark tank, seeing how film-making has transitioned from "movie-making" to "money-making." In the article, Rowles explains that, "Profit is the top priority." The film industry hires men who know how to make a quick dollar, though even if a company wanted to hire a female director, that would result in a lot of deliberation. In this day in age, when the mindset is to gamble with an audience over profit, it's always smart to go with the safest bet. This study is shedding more light to why so many movies are made by many of the same male directors.

Moreover, the male gender has its influence in the government as well as in the director's chair. For example in the Presidential elections, how many women ran for office? One, that anyone may have considered? The only female to run for the presidency that had any chance, was Hillary Clinton. Though in a world that has always been run by men, women are going to have to keep trying. America, like a production company, is going to go with the safest bet, women can prove to be that safe bet. 

On the whole, production companies make the safest gamble to ensure that dollar, leaving men with more power and those with ambition to wait for their turn.

Current Connection 3.1

Hollywood is a place full of limelight, though it seems women have a hard time getting noticed. Female filmmakers have a supremely difficult time being approved for big budget films. Not to say that it has never happened before, but even so it's a rarity. An article, "Gender Inequality in Film: In Infographic Form"
by "IndieWire", a website dedicated to all things relative in the film industry, features eye popping info-graphics on the inequalities of the film industry.

To start, directing films is not the only place where there is an imbalance in the workplace for women. As shown in an info-graphic displaying information on "Percentages of women employed behind the scenes," on the intervals of 1998, 2006, 2011, and 2012; along with "Percentages of women and men employed behind the scenes" as a comparison. Reading the chart, off the bat, there is a notable difference. Eyes dropping to the near lone blue bar at the bottom of the graph, only "2%" of women in the film industry hold employment as cinematographers. There is incredible injustice in viewing just how little red appears on this in this info-graphic. From looking at the left side of the chart, the side depicting strictly women, shows growth in areas; though in comparison the data is a bit disappointing.

Of course, maintaining a highly respected position in this cut-throat business must be an uphill battle considering how women are displayed in film. The very first demographic used in the article states, "Roughly a third of female speaking characters are shown in sexually revealing attire or partially naked." Knowing when it comes to the professional world, presentation is very important. The game seems to be rigged; the traps sets to bring in crowds, only to send them home empty handed. No level of professionalism will make it any easier for women to obtain their desired job, when their preferred workforce generalizes the female gender in such an unprofessional manner.

Consequently, with all the bias and inappropriate depictions of women there is a dramatic salary gap. According to an info-graphic used in the article, "Angelina Jolie, made $33 Million, roughly the same amount as the two lowest-ranked men." Also, "Of the 16 biggest paychecks earned by actors per film, not a single one was earned by a female actor," making very little sense considering that many of the most recent popular films sport female main characters. Given this data, one could infer, The Hunger Games, Woody Harrelson who plays Haymitch Abernathy, made a larger salary that Jennifer Lawrence who was the main character, Katniss Everdeen. Look at who are at the two ends of the scale, Robert Downy Jr. with $75 million and Julia Roberts and Mila Kunis tied with $11 million, this is the gap in salary mentioned earlier. Does that look fair?

Now, inequality is not just a major issue in the film industry, but in areas such as the military as well. Women may find it more difficult to get promoted in the military because a majority of leadership positions are awarded to men. Also there are parts of the military that women have yet to venture because of rigid stereotypes and reprogrammed gender role expectations. The military is already difficult enough for some, but god forbid someone who's a homosexual, female or male, who wants to protect their home have to undergo even more stereotypes and misconceptions. Though, with the repeal of "Don't ask, Don't tell," the military is moving forward in some aspects, but are far from true equality.

In brief, the stereotypes of women affect many parts of the workforce, though in film women are beginning to make great names for themselves. Slowly but surely the film industry is making its way towards equality in the workplace.