There are so many people out there in the world! So many people (or people you thought existed) could be in contact with you and you may never know that they’re in contact with you or never know whether or not they actually exist. Someone could be creeping on you right now; looking at your facebook, chatting with you but pretending to be someone else or even sending mail. In this movie, it’s all about not knowing who you’re talking to online, texting or even talking to them on the phone. What would you do if someone contacted you from the other side of the country and they didn’t stop talking to you? Would you be creeped out? Would you tell them to stop? Or would you keep talking to them, to try to find some deeper information on where they came from and why they picked you out of all people to contact? This movie will take you on a thrill that you would have never saw coming. Twists and turns are everywhere in this movie and it will take you on a roller coaster of emotions. It leaves you feeling like this whole story is a mystery, waiting to be unraveled. The biggest mystery in this movie is who is Nev really seeing? The suspense will always keep you hanging, wanting more in details every second!
The movie Catfish directed by Ariel Schulman and Henry Joost and was produced by Andrew Jarecki, Marc Smerling, Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman. The film was released on September 17th, 2010 at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. The main star/actor in this movie is Yaniv (Nev) Schulman. He plays himself in this documentary that is one hundred percent real. Another character who ends up playing a bigger role then you would have thought is Angela Wesselman-Pierce. The character you would have thought would be in more of the movie is the 8 year girl; Abby Pierce (Angela’s daughter).This movie was filmed in 2007 where it took place mostly in Michigan, where Angela’s home is located. Catfish is based around Nev building a relationship on facebook with a girl named Megan (who was said to be Angela’s 19 year old daughter). During this time Megan’s younger sister Abby, was sending Nev her paintings of photographs he has taken. But this family has some major issues that they need to work out.
Nev is a 24 year old photographer based out of New York. He enjoys taking pictures, especially of dancing. Nev got a connection with this creepy family through one of his photographs that was in a New York newspaper. “Abby” painted a picture of Nev’s photograph, which she sent to Nev. This is where it all began. Nev began a relationship with Abby’s “half-sister” Megan. The relationship starts to seem too good to be true for someone you’ve met online. They continued this relationship for about 9 months before Nev thought that it was time to finally try to meet up in person. When Nev and company went to Michigan to find out more about Angela, Megan and family, he found out that a lot of what this family has told him was a big fake lie. Supposedly Abby, Angela’s daughter, is some prodigy young artist that is making a ton of money by selling her paintings to local fans. Whether this is true is something that you don’t get to find out till the end of the movie.
So many interesting things happened in this movie. So many things that you would have never expected to happen, did. Angela Wesselman-Pierce was in my opinion, the most interesting character out of the whole movie. The women is basically psychotic, I have this opinion only because all of the things she did to Nev and how stupid she was for thinking that he would never find out all of her secrets she was hiding. I think Angela honestly has something mentally wrong with her, possibly some sort of Multi-Personality Disorder. When you have twenty different facebook accounts and you end up having pretend conversations with them, something is wrong with you. I still can’t believe she had Nev believing this for as long as she did. It’s amazing that the guys filming were able to catch this entire thing on camera and make it into a documentary. The idea for this movie was nearly an accident to Nev, it was all coincidence that all this happened while the cameras were rolling.
As much as I thought the movie was full out creepy, I think it is still a good movie to see. It can keep social network users educated on what can really go on behind the screen of a computer. You never know who you are actually talking to and you should never talk to anybody you don’t personally know. I would only recommend this movie to teens and adults though for two reasons. First of all the language and conversations between some of the characters can get inappropriate. Second of all, most facebook or any other social network users are not younger children. I found this movie interesting because it always kept you wanting to watch more of it because you never knew when a twist of turn was going to happen in the story. I also liked this movie because the characters were unpredictable. Their lives are very unique and I don’t think I’ve ever personally met anyone quite like them before.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
Catfish final reaction!
I actually found the end of this movie very disappointing. I thought it was kind of pointless to watch in this class because it really didn't have much to do with anything we learned. I think we would have been a lot better off watching Social Network instead. I kinda thought that halfway through the movie it ended kinda predictable. Once one lie came out of her, you just kind of knew that the rest of the things she has been saying have also been lies. There's no doubt that she is the creepiest, most insane women I've ever heard come from a facebook. I feel kind of bad for Nev but at the same time I don't. I do feel bad because nobody deserves to be "played" for that long and then find out that the whole time it was just one big lie. But I also don't feel bad for him because you should never start a relationship of any kind with someone that you met online. It could just turn into a creepy situation like this one did. But I guess lesson learned for him and everybody else is, be careful who you talk to on facebook or anything online. Because you never know who is really on the other side talking back to you. I also think it is wrong that when Angela was telling Nev what is and isn't real, she still lied and said that Megan is her real daughter and is at some rehab thing. And then later on Nev did finally find out that Megan was fake all along, just like I predicted! Definitely the most messed up/creepiest movie I have ever seen!
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Catfish 2
Weirdest movie ever. How on earth could this all be real? I really thought it was funny how they actually went out to Michigan because Angela was not expecting it at all. I also cannot believe that Angela was the one talking and texting to Nev like she was Megan. Angela is actually psycho! No one with the right mind would do this to a young man. Especially since she is an old married man. I feel really bad for Nev because he is probably disgusted that he has wasted 9 months of his life on a "fake" (for a lack of a better word) relationship. I honestly think that everyone on facebook that friended Nev was created by Angela. All of the messages and comments from everyone was just this one crazy women talking to herself. Finishing the movie tomorrow will be interesting!
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Catfish!
This movie is creepy! Right off the bat when it was an 8 year old on facebook I knew it was a red flag. First of all, starting a relationship on facebook or any social network is just not how it's supposed to work. You can't start any type of relationship over the computer, or any other way besides face to face. But that's just what I believe. I feel that at the end of the movie the mom and the sister will end up being the biggest liars ever. I think that the sister is real but I'm definitely with Nev on this, that's not really her or her mom singing or playing the piano. Especially when it was that easy to find on youtube. The relationship between Megan and Nev is FAKE! This whole thing is just creepy and is going to end up back firing for both sides. Although, I do like that Nev and his friends are looking into where this family lives and what they really do. This way they can protect any evidence they can eat. It's going to get really interesting when Nev and company get to Michigan!
Friday, January 7, 2011
Monday, December 20, 2010
Friday, December 17, 2010
Mobile Technology
Mobile technology has changed our society in many ways. From changing how we communicate to the laws that get made and the privacy problems that occur. Mobile technology is a completely different game then it was even just a few years ago. You are now able to do so many things in the palm of your hand. With the way the mobile technology is growing, it’s not even near the end of coming up with new ideas and gadgets.
Our culture has become so obsessed with mobile technology. I don’t think half the people in America would be able to go a day without having their cell phone. It’s how we stay connected with others and it’s an easy way to access our email and get the current news instantly. According to bloghub.com “It has made getting a hold of each other easier because people always have their phones, day and night.” Bloghub.com also states that “a major con to the advance in mobile technology is that this generation is becoming severely introverted. “ Texting is a great way for fast communication, but it is taking away the personal part of a conversation. There is no way to show emotion and it makes it hard to share your thoughts and feelings.
The mobile technology industry is good for the suffering hurt economy. The market on mobile devices is very competitive. According to ezinearticles.com/cell-phones, “cell phones are an important contributor to the economy in third world developing countries.” On articlesbase.com/cell-phone-articles it states, “because of the struggling economy, people are no longer buying the new gadgets with just any price tag. The new gadgets may come with advance technology, but they still need to have a reasonable price for them to be able to sell.” On the other hand according to USA Today, “45% of American teens ages 12-19 have a cell phone, and 37% of those teens use text messaging.” This can’t be hurting the economy too badly. So all in all, cell phones have both a positive and negative impact on the economy.
You may think that having a cell phone and your own number is a safe thing, but in reality it’s really not. USA today says, “with today’s advancements in technology, it’s extremely easy for someone to tap in on your cell phone conversations and eavesdrop. It only takes 2 minutes for someone to install the software, which can then record your calls and monitor your text messages.” What’s more creepy is people being able to locate you and your phone all the time. Anyone can log onto the website that tracks your phone like a GPS and all the victim has to do is respond and confirm to one simple text message. From then on, the person locating you can track your every move, step-by-step. Another form of cell phone privacy invasion is the personal information that was left on your old portable phone. Privacyrights.org says that, “if you ever decide to donate, sell or even just trash your phone, you need to be aware that even if you deleted your information, it may not be permanently deleted. You should always make sure personal contacts, notes or pictures are deleted and the SIM card is removed.” Infrmit.com reminds us that, “most people forget that a mobile phone is a mini computer and getting a virus on your mobile device is possible and is more common then you think.”
Next mobile technology and the law. The most common cell phone law that comes to mind is the driving while talking on the phone and while texting. According to ghsa.org, “the MN highway traffic safety laws prohibit anyone under the age of 18 to talk on cell phones while their driving and everyone is prohibited to text while driving.” Quoted on drivinglaws.org, “ a violation cost of texting while driving can be all the up to three hundred dollars and is a primary offense law.” Everyone claims they can multi-task, but who can really be composing a text while keeping their focus on the road. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety reported that between the years 2005 and 2007, 15% of all fatalities were caused by technology distractions while driving. That was 240 deaths and 1,163 serious life-altering injuries.
Mobile technology has changed so much throughout the years. So many great advancements have been made and there is no clear sign of when such advancements will slow down. The cons of mobile technology have been shown through culture, by being able to stay connected with the ones you love and care about, to what it has done for developing third world countries. Even though most people wouldn’t be able to go through a normal day without their mobile devices, there are still some cons to this type of technology. For example, how much of a distraction it is in everyday life and especially while driving. Another part of this technology that could be looked negatively upon is the privacy aspect. You never know who will be able to tap into your phone and who is listening to your conversations or reading your texts. Even with all the pros and cons, there is no doubt that new and advanced technology will keep coming and give us more to explore!
Our culture has become so obsessed with mobile technology. I don’t think half the people in America would be able to go a day without having their cell phone. It’s how we stay connected with others and it’s an easy way to access our email and get the current news instantly. According to bloghub.com “It has made getting a hold of each other easier because people always have their phones, day and night.” Bloghub.com also states that “a major con to the advance in mobile technology is that this generation is becoming severely introverted. “ Texting is a great way for fast communication, but it is taking away the personal part of a conversation. There is no way to show emotion and it makes it hard to share your thoughts and feelings.
The mobile technology industry is good for the suffering hurt economy. The market on mobile devices is very competitive. According to ezinearticles.com/cell-phones, “cell phones are an important contributor to the economy in third world developing countries.” On articlesbase.com/cell-phone-articles it states, “because of the struggling economy, people are no longer buying the new gadgets with just any price tag. The new gadgets may come with advance technology, but they still need to have a reasonable price for them to be able to sell.” On the other hand according to USA Today, “45% of American teens ages 12-19 have a cell phone, and 37% of those teens use text messaging.” This can’t be hurting the economy too badly. So all in all, cell phones have both a positive and negative impact on the economy.
You may think that having a cell phone and your own number is a safe thing, but in reality it’s really not. USA today says, “with today’s advancements in technology, it’s extremely easy for someone to tap in on your cell phone conversations and eavesdrop. It only takes 2 minutes for someone to install the software, which can then record your calls and monitor your text messages.” What’s more creepy is people being able to locate you and your phone all the time. Anyone can log onto the website that tracks your phone like a GPS and all the victim has to do is respond and confirm to one simple text message. From then on, the person locating you can track your every move, step-by-step. Another form of cell phone privacy invasion is the personal information that was left on your old portable phone. Privacyrights.org says that, “if you ever decide to donate, sell or even just trash your phone, you need to be aware that even if you deleted your information, it may not be permanently deleted. You should always make sure personal contacts, notes or pictures are deleted and the SIM card is removed.” Infrmit.com reminds us that, “most people forget that a mobile phone is a mini computer and getting a virus on your mobile device is possible and is more common then you think.”
Next mobile technology and the law. The most common cell phone law that comes to mind is the driving while talking on the phone and while texting. According to ghsa.org, “the MN highway traffic safety laws prohibit anyone under the age of 18 to talk on cell phones while their driving and everyone is prohibited to text while driving.” Quoted on drivinglaws.org, “ a violation cost of texting while driving can be all the up to three hundred dollars and is a primary offense law.” Everyone claims they can multi-task, but who can really be composing a text while keeping their focus on the road. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety reported that between the years 2005 and 2007, 15% of all fatalities were caused by technology distractions while driving. That was 240 deaths and 1,163 serious life-altering injuries.
Mobile technology has changed so much throughout the years. So many great advancements have been made and there is no clear sign of when such advancements will slow down. The cons of mobile technology have been shown through culture, by being able to stay connected with the ones you love and care about, to what it has done for developing third world countries. Even though most people wouldn’t be able to go through a normal day without their mobile devices, there are still some cons to this type of technology. For example, how much of a distraction it is in everyday life and especially while driving. Another part of this technology that could be looked negatively upon is the privacy aspect. You never know who will be able to tap into your phone and who is listening to your conversations or reading your texts. Even with all the pros and cons, there is no doubt that new and advanced technology will keep coming and give us more to explore!
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