Week 4 - The Imitation Game, Alan Turing

'The Imitation Game' review: Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightley are brilliant, outshine the film's script

Director: Morten Tyldum

Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Beard, Charles Dance, Mark Strong, Matthew Goode, Rory Kinnear, Allen Leech

There is certainly something intriguing and fascinating about the past, which is precisely why the filmmakers and the actors have always taken interest in biographical films or biopics, as they are popularly referred to. And since it is the curiosity and need to know more that drives our desire to watch biopics, the cine-goers have been lucky enough to watch some really interesting biographical films in the recent past. What's even more impressive is the fact that there are a string of films, nominated for Oscars 2015, that allow us to celebrate the past and rediscover popular physicists, authors, snipers,etc. So if 'The Theory of Everything' featured Eddie Redmayne as a physicist Stephen Hawking, 'Wild,' had Reese Witherspoon play author Cheryl Strayed and 'American Sniper,' featured Bradley Cooper as sniper Chris Kyle.

'The Imitation Game' happens to be another Hollywood project that allows many to delve into the past and also face it. Directed by Morten Tyldum, the film revolves around the life, complexities, relationships and achievements of mathematician Alan Turing. During World War II, Turing undertook the mission to break the code of Enigma machine which was used by the Wehrmacht. And the excerpt from Graham Moore's script, "Sometimes it is the people whom no one imagines anything of who do the things that no one can imagine" explains the Turing's extraordinary achievements in the most convincing way.

Alan, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, is most unwillingly hired by Commander Alastair Denniston to work with the country's mental giants in 1939 to crack the Germans' Enigma code which changes on a regular basis. If the movie buffs flock to the cinema hall for 'The Imitation Games' trust us it is only for Cumberbatch. He is absolutely convincing as Turing. And going by the performance that he has given, it is clear no other actor could have done justice to the role. Even though it appears a tad Sherlockian, his mannerisms, and the way he inhabits the mind of his character Turing, are powerful. He might be undiplomatic, upfront, and a lot different from his colleagues, but because his intentions are right, his arrogance doesn't annoy anyone except his commanding officer (Charles Dance). And the manner he revolutionizes the modern world and save many during World War II demands applause.

Even though the film moves back and forth in three different time periods, not even once will the viewers feel lost or confused. So whether it is Turing's good old school days, or his success at cracking the code when he was in the 40s or his detention, it all happens smoothly.

The script has taken liberties with the life of the protagonist. And if the film doesn't win the Oscar this year, it would solely be because of its script.

At a time (late 30s-early 40s) when a woman wasn't expected to perform men's work, witty math wizard Joan Clarke (Keira Knightley) surprises her male counterparts with the ease with which she solves the crossword puzzle to join Alan, and become a crucial team member. While Alan's schooldays shows him as an awkward boy, and later a workaholic, his scenes with Knightley are pleasant and memorable. It is interesting to see the way they interact. While Cumberbatch is a recluse, doesn't know much about social skills, Knightley is completely the opposite. Without her amiable disposition, Turing couldn't have been as effective.

The supporting cast - Matthew Goode, Mark Strong, Charles Dance, Rory Kinnear is equally good. Special mention for child actor Alex Lawther who deserves to be lauded for his efforts and ability to make the viewers get familiar with Turing as a schoolboy.

Director Tyldum ought to be appreciated for using World War II as the backdrop and employing codes, crossword puzzles, homosexuality, a bit of romance and an interest blend of a thriller and a biopic to make it more convincing. He succeeds at bringing a historical episode back to life.

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/the-imitation-game-review-benedict-cumberbatch-and-keira-knightley-are-brilliant-outshine-the-films-script/523325-8-67.html

Structure of the Lead：

WHO- Director: Morten Tyldum  Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Beard, Charles Dance, Mark Strong, Matthew Goode, Rory Kinnear, Allen Leech

WHEN- not given

WHAT- There is certainly something intriguing and fascinating about the past

WHERE - not given

HOW- not given

WHY- the filmmakers and the actors have always taken interest in biographical films or biopics, as they are popularly referred to

Key Words:

1. intriguing 引起好奇心的; 令人感興趣的

2. biographical 傳記的；傳記體的

3. biopics 傳記電影

4. snipers 狙擊兵

5. buffs 【美】【口】迷，愛好者

6. mannerisms 固守獨特的格調

7. undiplomatic 無機智的；笨拙的

8. upfront 【口】直率的；坦白的

9. protagonist 主演；主角；主唱者 :主要人物；倡導者

10.recluse 隱居者；遁世者

11.disposition 性格；性情

12.lauded 讚美

13.backdrop 背景

Week 3 - Shanghi, new year, stampede

Shanghai New Year's stampede kills dozens

At least 36 people killed and dozens injured in a stampede during New Year's celebrations in China's largest city.

01 Jan 2015 23:38 GMT | Environment, Humanitarian crises, Asia Pacific, China

At least 36 people have been killed and dozens injured after a stampede broke out during New Year's celebrations in the Chinese city of Shanghai, state-run media has said.

Citing Sina News, CCTV America said the the cause of the stampede on the Bund, the financial hub of Shanghai's popular waterfront area, was unclear.

At least 48 people were also injured, reports said.

Jenny Chan, 24, visiting from Hong Kong for New Year at Chenyi Square on the Bund, told Al Jazeera: "I was heading up to the viewing platform in order to see the light show.

"But there were so many people, I couldn't put my feet down on the steps. People behind me kept pushing.

"I could hardly move and I felt as though I was dangling in mid air.

"It was very crowded. I almost couldn't breathe and I heard someone behind me call for her help, and someone scream.

"It was a total mess. Someone pulled my hair. I think they were trying not to fall down.

"Someone brought out a loudspeaker and tried to maintain the order. On the ground I could see blood and bodies, and some people's faces were covered in bruises.

"I've never felt so near death."

Speculation

US national Andrew Shainker said that "it was impossible for emergency services to get in there given the people and chaos".

"We saw people on the opposite side of the street pushing - people trying to go up and people trying to go down. We heard screams of panic," Shainker, who teaches English in the city, told AFP news agency.

Pictures posted on social media showed huge crowds surrounding people lying on the ground in the middle of the street.

Local media say witnesses reported earlier seeing coupons, which at first glance looked like dollar bills, being thrown into the crowd which triggered the stampede.

Pictures of the coupons have appeared on social media and a news portal.

However, police dismissed speculation that the coupons had triggered the stampede, saying they were thrown after
the crush.

Authorities had earlier cancelled a New Year's countdown with a 3D laser display at the Bund due to crowd concerns, the Shanghai Daily reported last week.

The event had been growing in popularity for three years, but last year's turnout of some 300,000 people far exceeded authorities' expectations, the report said.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2014/12/dozens-killed-new-year-stampede-china-2014123122916907836.html

Structure of the Lead：

WHO- At least 36 people and dozens injured

WHEN- during New Year's celebrations

WHAT-  a stampede broke out

WHERE - in the Chinese city of Shanghai

HOW- not given

WHY- people trying to go up and people trying to go down

Key Words:

1.state-run 國營的

2.hub（興趣、活動的）中心

3.waterfront 水邊，灘；（城市中的）濱水區

4.dangle 懸擺，懸蕩；吊，掛

5.Speculation 思索；沉思；推測

Week 2 - Sydney cafe. hostage

Hostage situation erupts in Sydney cafe

SYDNEY — Three people ran out a fire exit of a Sydney cafe where a gunman took an unknown number of people hostage at the height of Monday morning rush hour. Two people inside the cafe were seen holding up a flag containing an Islamic declaration of faith.

New South Wales Police Deputy Commissioner Catherine Burn confirmed that the three people "have now emerged from the location" where the hostage crisis had been unfolding for more than six hours.

"The first thing that we are doing is making sure that they are OK. We will then establish who they are and then we will continue to work with them," Burn said.

"We do not have any information that suggests that anybody is harmed at this stage," she added.

The three people were seen on live video footage bolting out of the door past heavily armed police and then disappearing around a corner.

The development came six hours after a gunman entered the Lindt Chocolat Cafe in Martin Place, a plaza in the heart of the city's financial and shopping district that is packed with holiday shoppers this time of year. Many of those inside the cafe would have been taken hostage as they stopped in for their morning coffees.

New South Wales state Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione said police did not know the gunman's motivation and were not sure how many people were being held inside.

"We have not yet confirmed it is a terrorism-related event," Scipione said. "We're dealing with a hostage situation with an armed offender and we are dealing with it accordingly."

Burn said that police negotiators have made contact with the gunman.

Hundreds of police flooded into the area, streets were closed and offices evacuated. The public was told to stay away from Martin Place, home to the state premier's office, the Reserve Bank of Australia, and the headquarters of two of the nation's largest banks. The state parliament house is a few blocks away.

Television footage shot through the cafe's windows showed several people with their arms in the air and hands pressed against the glass, and two people holding up a black flag with the Shahada, or Islamic declaration of faith, written on it.

The Shahada translates as ""There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is His messenger." It is considered the first of Islam's five pillars of faith, and is similar to the Lord's Prayer in Christianity. It is pervasive throughout Islamic culture, including the green flag of Saudi Arabia. Jihadis have expropriated the Shahada in their own black flag.

"We don't know whether this is politically motivated, although obviously there are some indications that it could be," Prime Minister Tony Abbott told reporters in the nation's capital, Canberra. "We have to appreciate that even in a society such as ours, there are people who would wish to do us harm."

Heavily armed officers were lined up outside the cafe, and a man with a backpack inside the cafe could be seen walking back and forth in front of the glass doors.

"Police have been in attendance and have controlled the situation from very early this morning," said Scipione, the police commissioner. "We are at this stage continuing to secure and make sure that we are doing all we can to bring this to a peaceful outcome."

Abbott said the National Security Committee of Cabinet met to be briefed on the situation.

"The whole point of politically motivated violence is to scare people out of being themselves," Abbott said. "Australia is a peaceful, open and generous society — nothing should ever change that. And that's why I would urge all Australians today to go about their business as usual."

http://english.sina.com/world/2014/1214/764181.html

Structure of the Lead：

WHO- a gunman; hostage

WHEN- at the height of Monday morning rush hour

WHAT-  the hostage crisis

WHERE - SYDNEY

HOW- not given

WHY- not given

Key Words:

1. height 頂點；極致

2. confirm 證實；確定

3. establish 確定；證實；表明

4. footage（影片的）連續鏡頭

5. bolt 衝出；逃走；快速移動

6. plaza 廣場

7. premier 首相，總理

8. pervasive 普遍的

9. expropriated 徵用，沒收; 剝奪……的所有權

Week 1-Ting Hsin, Wei Ying-chung, cooking oil, tainted oil scandal

Ting Hsin food firm boss charged over tainted cooking oil

The head of a lard supplier in Taiwan was formally charged yesterday with deliberately selling adulterated cooking oil.

The indictment of Wei Ying-chun, one of four brothers who run the Ting Hsin International Group, was delivered by the Taipei District Prosecutors Office. Charges include fraud and forgery.

Wei was already in custody in Chunghua county in the centre of the island on a charge linked to a cooking oil scandal implicating another subsidiary of the group.

It has been accused of using oil meant for animal feed in its products.

Another subsidiary of the firm, Wei Chuan Foods Corp, Taiwan's second-largest food manufacturer, was found to have sold food products made with gutter oil, a potentially harmful mixture of waste oil recycled from restaurant fryers and slaughterhouse byproducts.

Bowing to public pressure, Wei had resigned from his positions as chairman of three of the group's subsidiaries.

Ting Hsin has said it will shut down its oil manufacturing business in Taiwan.

It will also donate NT$3 billion (HK$765 million) to the government or government-designated foundations to help restore the reputation of Taiwan's food industry.

Critics described the move as a token gesture aimed at propping up its business across the strait.

Its oil manufacturing operations in Taiwan generated only US$65 million last year, about 0.08 per cent of the group's revenues. The firm's food business on the mainland generated US$10 billion.

President Ma Ying-jeou, who has declared the contaminated cooking oil scandal a national security issue, said the food industry might lose NT$16 billion following a series of food safety fiascos.

Lard supplier Chang Guann was fined NT$50 million last month for selling a product containing gutter oil as cooking oil. Several firms were also found last year to have illegally added colouring agents to cooking oil, or blended olive oil with cheaper products such as cottonseed oil and sold it as pure olive oil.

http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1621238/billionaire-chief-lard-firm-charged-fraud-over-taiwan-tainted-oil-scandal

Structure of the Lead：

WHO- The head of a lard supplier 

WHEN-  yesterday

WHAT- was formally charged

WHERE - in Taiwan

HOW- not given

WHY- deliberately selling adulterated cooking oil

Key Words:

1. lard 豬油

2. deliberately 故意地，蓄意地

3. adulterated 攙雜的，攙假的

4. indictment 控告，告發；起訴

5. Prosecutors 檢察官，公訴人

6. forgery 偽造

7. custody 照管；保管；監護

8. implicating 牽連；連累

9. subsidiary 輔助的，附帶的；次要的

10. slaughterhouse 屠殺場

11. byproducts 副產品

12. revenue （國家的）歲入；稅收

13. contaminated 弄髒的；受汙染的

14. fiascos 完全失敗；可恥的失敗

15. gutter （道路旁的）排水溝，街溝

16. colouring 食物色素

17. cottonseed 棉子

Week 7-Canadian Parliament. Ottawa. shooting. gunman

Canadian Parliament Shooting: Gunman Identified As Michael Zehaf-Bibeau

Nathan Cirillo, a soldier standing guard at Parliament Hill in Ottawa was tragically shot and killed on the morning of Oct. 22. The shooter, who was killed by police, has been identified as Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, according to USA Today.

The morning of Oct. 22 was a horrific day for the residents of Ottawa when Parliament Hill came under attack. Nathan Cirillo, 24, a soldier guarding at the Canada’s war memorial, was gunned down by lone gunman, Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, 32. After numerous reports that there were several gunmen, Canadian police confirmed that Michael was acting alone in the shooting before he was killed by police, USA Today reports.

Canadian Parliament Hill Ottawa Shooting — Gunman Identified

Two soldiers were standing guard at the Canada’s war memorial in Ottawa when Michael opened fire on one of them, a witness told CNN. Gunshots were also heard inside the halls of Parliament.

The fallen soldier was later identified as Nathan Cirillo, a 24-year-old Canadian army reservist.

“I heard this pop, pop, pop and thought it was dynamite for construction rather than something else,” John McKay, a member of Parliament, told CTV.

A “lone gunman is deceased” a member of the nation’s Parliament, Bob Zimmer, tweeted after shots were fired. Michael was a recent convert to Islam, a government official told Associated Press. He also had a drug problem before he converted, a source told CNN. “In the days to come we will learn about the terrorist and any accomplices he may have had,” Prime Minster Stephen Harper said.

Michael’s passport was confiscated by Canadian authorities when they learned he planned to go fight overseas, a U.S. law enforcement official told CNN.

Ottawa police confirmed shots were fired at three locations: the war memorial, inside Centre Block and at the Rideau Centre shopping mall east of Parliament Hill. On Oct. 22, the Prime Minister’s Office reassured the public that Stephen Harper is safe and was not on Parliament Hill during the shooting. Opposition Leader Tom Mulcair and Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau were also safe from harm.

“This week’s events are a grim reminder that Canada is not immune to the types of terrorist attacks we have seen elsewhere around the world,” Stephen said on Oct. 22. “Let there be no misunderstanding: We will not be intimidated. Canada will never be intimidated.”

Reason For Shooting

The motive for the attack is still unclear, but it came days after Canada raised its domestic terrorism threat level. Canadian authorities feared knife and gun attacks.

Earlier this week, a man who Canadian authorities said was “radicalized” was shot to death after killing a Canadian soldier.

Our thoughts go out to Nathan’s family and friends and the entire country of Canada during this difficult time.

– Shira Benozilio 

http://hollywoodlife.com/2014/10/22/canadian-parliament-hill-ottawa-shooting-gunmen-loose/

Structure of the Lead：

WHO- Nathan Cirillo

WHEN- The morning of Oct. 22 

WHAT- was shot and killed

WHERE -Canadian Parliament

HOW-tragically 

WHY- not given

Key Words:

1. confirm 證實；確定

2.reservist 後備役軍人

3.dynamite 炸藥

4.deceased 已故的

5.accomplice 共犯，同謀，幫兇

6.confiscate 沒收

7.intimidated 害怕的；受到恐嚇的

8.radicalize 使激進；使偏激

Week 6 - ISIS-Iraq. IS(Islamic State)

Jimmy Carter: Obama dropped the ball on ISIS threat

Former president Jimmy Carter has criticized the Obama administration’s handling of the crisis in the Middle East and the growing threat of the Islamic State, joining a growing list of the president’s allies who are scrutinizing his strategy in Syria and Iraq.

In an interview with the Fort Worth, Texas Star-Telegram published on Oct. 7, Carter said the US had waited too long to respond to the growing power of the Islamic State in Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) extremist group, which also goes by the name Islamic State.

“We let the Islamic State build up its money, capability and strength and weapons while it was still in Syria,” Carter said. “Then when [ISIS] moved into Iraq, the Sunni Muslims didn’t object to their being there and about a third of the territory in Iraq was abandoned.”

Carter added that the use of ground troops in addition to the current air campaign could ensure the US succeeds in Iraq. “If we keep on working in Iraq and have some ground troops to follow up when we do our bombing, there is a possibility of success,” he said.

President Barack Obama acknowledged last month that US intelligence did not anticipate the threat that ISIS posed in Iraq but has maintained that arming Syrian rebels would have been untenable, and might have led to militants obtaining arms.

(Courtesy of Liberty Times)

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2014/11/11/2003604122

Structure of the Lead：

WHO- Former president Jimmy Carter

WHEN- not given

WHAT- criticized the Obama administration

WHERE- not given

HOW-not given

WHY- the US had waited too long to respond to the growing power of the Islamic State in Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS)

Key Words:

1.dropped the ball:搞砸了

2.allies:（第一次世界大戰時的）協約國

3.scrutinizing:詳細檢查；細看
4.extremist:極端主義者；過激分子
5.goes by :以...為名
6.rebels:造反者；反抗者；反叛者
7.untenable:難以防守的，不能防守的
8.militants:好戰的；富於戰鬥性的；激進的

Week 5 - Ferguson, Michael Brown, Darren Wilson, Missouri

Ferguson policeman resigns as shooting protests continue

Officials in Ferguson, Missouri, yesterday planned to address the resignation of police officer Darren Wilson, who fatally shot 18-year-old Michael Brown.

A grand jury decision on Monday last week not to charge Wilson in connection with the Aug. 9 shooting touched off days racially charged violence across the US.

Wilson, who had been on administrative leave since the shooting, resigned on Saturday, effective immediately, according to his lawyer, Neil Bruntrager, who declined further comment.

An attorney for Brown’s family did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

Wilson, who had been with the Ferguson Police Department for less than three years, told the St Louis Post-Dispatch he decided to step down after the department told him it had received threats of violence if he remained on the force.

“I’m not willing to let someone else get hurt because of me,” Wilson told the newspaper.

Wilson wrote in the letter that “it is my hope that my resignation will allow the community to heal.”

“It was my hope to continue in police work, but the safety of other police officers and the community are of paramount importance to me,” the letter from the 28-year-old Wilson said.

Ferguson officials planned to make a statement on Wilson’s resignation yesterday, city attorney for Ferguson Stephanie Karr said.

Karr earlier this week said Wilson had been on paid leave pending the outcome of an internal police investigation.

Following news of the resignation, more than 100 protesters gathered near police headquarters, where they were outnumbers by officers. At least one person was arrested after a brief standoff with officers.

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2014/12/01/2003605694

Structure of the Lead：

WHEN - yesterday
WHO - Officials

WHAT - planned to address the resignation of police officer Darren Wilson.

WHY - police officer Darren Wilson, who fatally shot 18-year-old Michael Brown.

WHERE - Ferguson, Missouri

Keyword:

1.  resign  辭職

2.  address 向…講話

3.  touched off 引起; 觸發

4.  racially 按人種地；人種上

5.  charge 控告，指控；指責

6.  administrative 行政的

7.  leave 准假；休假；休假期

8.  attorney【美】律師

9.  paramount 至高無上的；最重要的；主要的

10.pend 等候判定或決定

11.outnumber 數量上超過

12.standoff 【美】僵持