Arts/Cultural Response: The Zac Brown Band Concert

            On Wednesday, October 10^th I went to see a famous country band, The Zac Brown Band, in concert. The concert started at 7pm and took place in the Bryce Jordan Center. I have been to numerous concerts before so this was not a new experience for me. In the past I have gone to concerts to see singers and performers such as Britney Spears, Kid Cudi, Kelly Clarkson, Avril Lavigne, The Jonas Brothers and more. This was even my second concert that I have been to just at Penn State! I was also lucky enough to attend a free concert not too long ago to see Jack Johnson here.

I went to the concert with a group of my friends and had an amazing time overall. We got lucky because once we got there we were upgraded to sit in Section 108 instead of our original seats in Section 208 that we had paid for. My absolute favorite part was when the band performed the song “Chicken Fried” because I listen to that song pretty much every single day. It was different to actually get to listen to it live and in person for a change! It was perfect because it was the final song that they played. As a result, everyone was even more excited when they finally heard the song start to begin. Along with “Chicken Fried” my other two favorite songs that they performed were “Toes” and “Knee Deep.”

Although there were a few songs that the band played that I did not recognize, they made time to fit in every song that I was hoping to hear so all of my friends and I were pleased. I would definitely pay to go to another concert to see The Zac Brown Band again. My expectations for the night were high, but The Zac Brown Band definitely lived up to them. If I could, I would do the night all over again!  

Blog Post #4: A Movie Review

“We lived on farms, then we lived in cities, and now we're going to live on the internet!” This quote is said by Sean Parker (Justin Timberlake) in the 2010 movie, “The Social Network.” Set in the notorious college Harvard, “The Social Network” shows the founding of the social networking website Facebook which people, especially college students now, tend to “live on” just as Sean Parker states.  

Actor Jessie Eisenberg plays Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, in this film. It is extraordinary to think that this now huge form of communication all started from this computer wizard of a college student being dumped by his girlfriend. This is exactly how the movie starts off. It is even more extraordinary to think that Mark Zuckerberg (Sean Parker) was criticized for this technological invention and had two lawsuits put against him for it, which are highlighted throughout the film. The film continuously portrays Sean’s growing and changing relationships as well with his girlfriend and business partners. We as viewers learn that the Facebook we visit today took time to get where it is and started off completely different. This film is directed toward anyone who currently has an account on or has heard of the social networking site, Facebook. This can include both men and women of all different ages. “The Social Network” has a large audience.

In order for a film to be a “good college movie” it needs to have well-known, experienced actors and actresses. “The Social Network” fulfills this requirement by starring Justin Timberlake as one of its main characters. Along with that a good college movie was most likely led by an excellent director. The director of “The Social Network,” David Fincher, is known for his dark and stylish thrillers. Another one of his more recent famous films was 2011’s “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” which can easily be accessed in various locations.

A movie needs to be the perfect length in order to be considered a “good college movie.” “The Social Network” is one hundred and twenty minutes, which I believe is the perfect amount of time. If a movie is too long the viewer may start to get bored by it and if it is too short the viewer may be itching for more and the movie may not be enough to therefore satisfy the viewer.

Lastly, a “good college movie” is relatable. I was easily able to connect to this movie because I have had a Facebook account of my own for years now. As the film illustrates, Mark Zuckerberg was inspired to make this website in order to rate the attractiveness of female students using photographs taken of girls from various universities. Although my intentions are not the same, I do use Facebook to look up pictures of people from all over whether it is people from home, my college, or strangers.

“The Social Network” was able to draw me in and keep me wanting to see what will happen next the entire movie. In order for me to fully comprehend it, however, I needed to watch it at least three times. That is one of the criticisms I had of this movie. Is it worth your time and do you care enough to do so? After being nominated for eight Academy Awards and winning three of them, I would say so!

Arts/Cultural Assignment #3: The Arboretum at Penn State

Although I am not a nature-lover, I really enjoyed our class trip to the Arboretum this past Monday. I find nature to be absolutely beautiful and inspiring however, I do not find myself spending a ton of time in and around it. One of the first things I saw when arriving at the Arboretum was this open floor with draping white curtains. I assumed that people paid good amount of money to have special ceremonies here such as a wedding and found it to be a gorgeous place for something like this. 

This was my first time to the Arboretum and I am glad that we had our English class there for the day because I do not think that I would have gone otherwise. I honestly did not even know it existed until I was told to meet there early that morning. Now that I have seen it once and experienced walking through all of the different scenery, I think that I will definitely go back at some point again. I would love to introduce my friends to it as well because I am pretty sure that they have not heard of it either and I find it to be one of the greatest spots at State College. This type of flower shown on the right was one of my favorites that I saw while walking around. The colors in it were what stood out to me.

As I was passing all of the benches and chairs within the Arboretum I kept telling myself that I should return to this gorgeous garden to get some peaceful time and clear my head. It is hard to find places like that in such a large and densely populated college like Penn State. I also thought about how I would not mind going back to get some schoolwork done at times before it starts getting too cold because I am used to being crammed in my small dorm room doing it.