Feature Friday: gMichael Nicolosi

 

Meet gMichael Nicolosi!

He voices the roles of the narrator and Officer Jack Manion in

The Angry Angels of Chinatown trailer. Here is a little more about him -

 

1) Why did you choose to be a part of the Angry Angels trailer?

 

I won the roles as part of a package bet in a very lengthy Texas

Hold 'Em tournament in Rio. I thought it was a timeshare, so I called. 

Turns out, it was a voiceover job. I figured, “why not.”

 

2) What do you love about your characters?

 

The two characters I ended up voicing were quite a bit of fun. 

They were both better fishermen than me, but I didn't have to provide the boat or fuel, so ... Win-Win.

 

3) What do you love about what you do?

 

I have absolutely loved working as a voiceover artist.  I've been

told I have the perfect face for it.

 

4) Fun Fact: I've been a drummer for almost as many years as I've been alive.

NEW Epic Fantasy TV Series: "The Wheel of Time"

Amazon Studios is partnering with Sony Pictures Television to shoot its first season of their new epic fantasy TV series “The Wheel of Time.” Furthermore, Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD screenwriter Rafe Judkins is the leading producer for this new series! 

 

“Set in a sprawling, epic world where magic exists and only certain women are allowed to access it, the story follows Moiraine (Rosamund Pike), a member of the incredibly powerful all-female organization called the Aes Sedai, as she arrives in the small prophesied to be the Dragon Reborn, who will either save or destroy humanity.”

Recently, Sophie Okonedo, an Academy Award nominee, and Kae Alexander, a former Game of Thrones star, have joined the cast of “The Wheel of Time.”

The new TV series is based off of the 14 Wheel of Time novels by "Robert Jordan", a.k.a, James Oliver Rigney, Jr. This upcoming new TV show could be the next big fantasy show. What are your thoughts?

Frozen, Starring Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel, Turns Stereotypes on Their Heads

 

I love how this Disney princess movie turns stereotypes on their heads. Anna, second princess of Arendelle, falls in love with a handsome prince and plans to marry him. But Elsa, first princess of Arendelle, forbids their sudden marriage, unleashes her frozen power on the kingdom, then flees. Anna leaves Arendelle to find her sister with the help of Kristoff, an ice seller, who falls in love with Anna.

When Elsa accidentally strikes Anna in the heart with her frozen power, the only way Anna can be saved from death is by an act of true love. Thinking she must be kissed by her handsome prince, Anna pleads for him to kiss her. But he refuses, and turns out (spoiler alert) to be evil, bent on taking over the kingdom. He charges her sister Elsa with treason for Anna's impending death.

Then Anna realizes Kristoff truly loves her. She sets off across a fjord to find him. At the same time, Hans chases Elsa onto the same fjord, intent on killing her. Anna reaches Kristoff, but sees Hans is about to kill Elsa. She throws herself between the two and freezes solid, blocking the blow. As Elsa grieves the loss of her sister, Anna begins to thaw. Her sacrifice for her sister constitutes an act of true love.

It surprised me how the handsome prince turned out to be evil, breaking a stereotype. The screenwriters thought of a great twist in making sisterly love the key to saving Anna and subsequently Elsa instead of the love of a man, as it usually is in Disney princess movies. Frozen is my favorite movie of 2014 so far.

Noah, Starring Russell Crowe, directed by Darren Aronofsky

I saw this movie with a group of Christian and non-Christian friends. All agreed that Noah was entertaining.  From a screenwriter’s point of view, the writers had to expand the traditional Biblical story to fit three-act structure and give Noah and other cast members character arcs. Conflicts had to arise on the ark or else it would be a boring trip. While some ridicule the use of “rock people,” I thought they made the story more realistic. How else could Noah and two grown sons have built the huge ark in such a short time? (In the Biblical account, it took about twenty years for four grown men to do it, but screenplays usually condense timelines).

As a Christian, I have no problem with the writers adding or changing elements of the original story to elucidate the meaning of the story. How many times have preachers implored their listeners to “use their imaginations” to fill in what Bible characters could have been thinking or saying during their conflicts? Hopefully, viewers will be drawn to look into the original source of the story in Genesis chapters 5-10 and spiritual conversations can be started.

While the story carries an environmental message, it also conveys one of hope and restoration. Mankind was given a second chance to “do things right.” Wouldn’t most of us take advantage of a second chance to avoid mistakes of the past?

http://www.noahmovie.com/

Dream High, Starring Suzy Bae and Kim Soo Hyun

I really loved this show. The music was awesome, the characters well-rounded, the plot well-told. It didn't end the way I thought it would, which is good, because I like to be surprised. I even enjoyed the adults' stories.

I liked the fact that the main character was a girl jerk and the two boys nice guys, different from the usual nice girl falls for the jerk guy. So you don't know who she's going to end up with.

The joy and passion these young people have for their music is inspiring. Dream High is not only for young people, but for old people with dreams too.

Creating Destiny, Starring Yoo-Jin and Tae-young Ki

This drama was hard to get into. It seemed to move slow and some parts were hard to understand the logic. Why would the protagonist agree to travel to Korea to become betrothed when she already had a boyfriend? The bloodline excuse the mom gave was not fully explained. Was she afraid of hereditary diseases, unwanted character traits passed down the family line, inherited debt? And Sang Eun's biological mother's name was never mentioned. Nobody in either family bothered to ask her it or what she or her family did for a living.

I did enjoy seeing the romance grow between the two main characters. The second storyline with Yeo Joon's sister was interesting, yet in the end, we still don't know if she was really in love with the father of her child. The other romances were kind of unbelievable. And why was Yeo Joon's uncle even in the drama? He didn't really contribute much.

Maybe some things were lost in the translation. In fact, whole lines were missing from some scenes. Maybe because the drama was translated by volunteers.

I really wanted to like this drama more. I like the actors and actresses. I wish more of the scenes could have been shot outdoors or in places other than restaurants and coffee shops.

Shining Inheritance, Starring Han Hyo Joo and Lee Seung Ki

After the first episode, I had decided not to finish it because when they introduced all the characters at once, it was very confusing. I finally took it up again after watching several more other dramas. The first half went by slowly and I wasn't that excited. But after about halfway, the plot sped up and I began really enjoying it. The characters were well-developed. The jerk gradually changed his attitude in a natural way. The heroine had her faults and wasn't all goody-two-shoes. The antagonist was definitely shrewd and calculating and really made it difficult for the heroine. But she was motivated by love for her daughter as well as her love of money and was a complex character. The heroine had many helpers including the nice guy, whom I felt sorry for because (spoiler alert) the heroine rejected him. Even the secondary characters had complete arcs that resolved in the last episode.

All in all, I really liked this drama, despite it's confusing and slow beginning. I felt for the characters and really wanted the good guys to win.

The Great Queen Seondeok, Starring Yo Won Lee, Ko Hyeon-jeong, Park Ye-Jin, Uhm Tae Woong, and Nam-kil Kang

This very long, intricate story is worth seeing to the end. At first, they introduced so many characters, it was confusing. And when some of the characters aged, others didn't, which also led to confusion. But don't let that stop you. I really enjoyed the setting, costumes and pageantry of the begin...read morening. The character arcs and plot were so interesting, one weekend, I watched ten episodes! The last third of the series I didn't enjoy as much as the first two-thirds, but it was still engrossing. This makes me want to find out the real story of Queen Seondeok.

Spring Waltz, Starring Do Young Suh, So-yeon Lee, Daniel Henney, and Bo-ra Geum

I liked this series, but thought it spent too much time on the backstory as children. If you only saw Episodes 2 and 3, you'd think the story was about the kids. However, I got back into it when the adults arrived full force. Phillip was so handsome and nice, of course I would have liked to see him and Eun-Young get together, but it's always the jerk who gets the girl. Even though I have these criticisms, I give it 4 stars for the emotional rollercoaster it puts you on. The last episode was kind of anti-climactic. SPOILER ALERT! It would have been better to see Song Ina let go of Jae Ha instead of her telling Eun-Young about it. All in all, I thought it was a great k-drama and would recommend it.

My Girlfriend is a Gumiho, Starring Lee Seung Ki and Min-a Shin

I really really really really like this kdrama. Mi Ho was so pretty and adorable. At first I thought Dae-Woong looked goofy, but as the series moved on, I realized he really has a nice smile. The fact that they both were willing to give up their lives for each other was so touching. I'm not sure if ...read moresomething got lost in the translation, but I didn't understand where Park what's-his-name came from. I also thought he had ulterior motives and wanted Mi Ho for himself. This drama made me laugh and cry, especially the last two episodes. The grandma showing up in the last episode was kind of deus ex machina to make everything all right, but I would have been disappointed if Mi Ho didn't come back. Did anyone besides me catch Go Mi Nyu and Jeremy from You Are Beautiful? Even some of the music was familiar from either that drama or Heartstrings. I would highly recommend this show, especially if you liked Secret Garden or 49 days.

You Are Beautiful Starring Jang Keun Suk and Shin-Hye Park

I have watched three kdramas and they all had musical settings: Heartstrings, You are Beautiful, and The Musical. You are Beautiful was my favorite. I liked how the mean character changed by the end. It was the only one in which I felt physically sick before the last two episodes wanting to know wha...read moret happens, but not wanting the series to end. Yikes, does that mean I'm addicted?

GCB: Hell Hath No Fury

On March 11th, I watched the second episode of GCB. In the first episode, the protagonist, Amanda Vaughn, played by Leslie Bibb, seemed to be the only positive major character in the show set in a mainly Christian community in Texas. I was hoping the second episode would introduce more positive Christian characters. I missed the first five minutes, but viewers did get to see some of the major characters change for the better.

Heather the realtor, played by Marisol Nichols, finally accepts Amanda's apologies and befriends her, even openly defying Carlene. Cricket the businesswoman advises her daughter Alexandra, played by Alix Gitter, to be nice to Amanda's daughter Laura, played by Lauran Irion, and not throw mud on her in a mean girl ritual.

The strained relationship between Amanda and her mother Gigi, played by Annie Potts, is explored. Gigi is portrayed as a prudish, self-righteous Christian and Dallas socialite whom Amanda had vowed she would never be like. But Amanda finds herself in the same situation with her daughter, when Laura vows never to be a mean girl like her mother was in high school.

The wacky characters introduced in the first episode seem to be getting rounded out. Hopefully, as the show progresses, all the characters will become more developed and show both good and bad characteristics.

GCB: Soap Opera or Real Life?

On March 4th, I watched the first episode of GCB, a new soap opera on ABC. Surprised? I don't normally watch soaps, but I was curious to see how network television would portray Christians. Leslie Bibb, as Amanda Vaughn, a former mean girl, returns home to a suburb of Dallas, Texas, after her husband dies in a car crash. Kristin Chenoweth's character, Carlene Cockburn, now the queen bee in her town and at her local church, who had been mistreated by Amanda in high school, plots revenge, all in the name of God.

To say the least, my gut reaction to the characters and situations was that I was highly offended. I don't know any adult Christians who would act the way Carlene and her gang would act or say the things they said ("Cleavage makes your cross hang straighter"). The characters seemed to be no different from the exaggerated negative stereotypes that are portrayed in the majority of mainstream television and movies, if Christians are seen at all.

Nonetheless, I asked myself, "Instead of bashing the show, what good can come out of it?" I thought about how African-Americans were first portrayed on television as maids, butlers, and negative stereotypes. But now they play important roles and star in shows (although lately the number of them has waned, but that's another topic). Perhaps for Christians, this is a start. There have been other shows in which Christians were portrayed as "the good guys," such as Touched by an Angel and Father Dowling Mysteries, but not in a while. Hopefully, GCB will open the door for more shows and movies with positive Christian characters (and not more stereotypes.)

Another thought: Soap operas are not real life, but lend themselves to over-the-top characters. To have drama, you need conflict, hence, the highly exaggerated Carlene. The pilot introduced Carlene's friends, Jennifer Aspen, as Sharon Peacham, a former beauty queen who is now overweight, Marisol Nichols as Heather Cruz, a successful real estate agent, Miriam Shor as Cricket Caruth-Reilly, a strong-willed businesswoman, and Annie Potts, as Amanda's mother Gigi Stopper. Each of these women has her own problems.

It will be interesting to see if some of these negative characters will change and exhibit good characteristics.

The Karate Kid Is Kicking

When I first heard they were remaking The Karate Kid starring Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan, I thought, how can they call it Karate Kid when Jackie Chan does kung fu? I wasn't planning to see it, but got to view it for free when my nephew's kung fu academy performed before a showing.

I thought the opening scene was a good way to show backstory without telling it. Young Dre (Jaden Smith) stares at a growth chart marked on the wall. Milestones in his life and the dates are penciled in. In 2007, his daddy died. He measures himself and writes "Moved to China." That's all you need to know at the beginning.

Jaden's Dre is a very likeable character. At twelve years old, he is still a very sweet-looking boy. Dre is bullied by bigger boys who know kung fu. He persuades Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) to teach him kung fu so he won't be afraid of them. I had no problem with the bullies being Chinese, after all, they are in China.

If you've seen the original Karate Kid, you might remember catching flies with chopsticks, "wax on, wax off," and the crane position. The new version pays homage to these scenes in humorous ways.

I thought the movie was good. I wasn't sure if my teenage daughter would like it since she's not into martial arts movies, but she really enjoyed it, partly because there were lots of Chinese people in it.

I can understand from a marketing viewpoint that the name Karate Kid was kept to reboot the franchise and draw people in. There was one line in the movie drawing attention to the fact that karate and kung fu are not the same. But hopefully, the majority of viewers will be made aware there's a difference.

All in all, The Karate Kid is a good family movie. There's not a lot of blood, but some of the violence may be too much for younger viewers. My husband wants to buy the DVD when it comes out.

If You Listen to Only Won CD, Listen to Glory

Only Won brings out the best of three cultures. On his American side, he's a rapper and actor, on the Chinese side, an engineer and martial artist. Overarching these two sides is his Christian faith.

Glory, his second CD, is a unique collection of rap songs glorifying God using English and Cantonese phrases and western and Chinese instrumentation. For instance, on the song "Glory," he says, "NAY HO YEE CHERNG SUW GOH WHAT JEH WAN HA blues, but look what my God can do." Accompanying the words is a lion dance drum, small gong and a synthesizer.

Only's acting credits include parts in The Pursuit of Happyness, The Hulk, and The Matrix 2 & 3 among others. He is a mechanical engineer and has earned a black sash in kung fu.

Some of you may have seen a parody on YouTube that Only performed with Larissa Lam of Kayne West's "American Boy," called "Cantonese Boy." In case you missed it, here it is again:



If you like rap, check out Only Won, and see what an Asian American Christian rapper can do.

Prayer Life, Produced by Nitin Adsul of EastWest Films

Nitin Adsul was born in India, but now resides in the Washington DC area. Before forming EastWest Films with a partner, he acted in movies and television shows such as "The Wire," on HBO and "As the World Turns," on CBS.

"Prayer Life" is the first film he has produced with EastWest Films. It won the Jury Award at the WYSIWYG Film Festival and the Best Storyteller Award at the Redemptive Film Festival, both in 2007.

The plot revolves around a corporate cover-up in which an attorney, with the help of his religiously grounded wife, his no-nonsense computer hacker brother-in-law, and a corporate executive struggling with his conscience, tries to prove his client's innocence of an accounting fraud charge that other company executives try to pin on her.

I thought the movie did a good job of making the viewer sympathetic toward the protagonist attorney and his client. The story presented people with real problems. I look forward to seeing more of EastWest's films.