Eminem Recovery Album-Review

 Recovery is Eminem's seventh studio album, released on June 18, 2010, by Shady Records, Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records. Recovery is said to be the best album that Eminem ever made. As where a few his previous albums were rather a disappointment to his fans, Recovery is Eminem's way of saying sorry.

   Recovery is meant to be all about Eminem's troubles in life. The lyrics talk about how he got out of depression and drug addiction. It's about him recovering, hence the album name, Recovery. Almost all of Eminem's songs in this album talk about his depression and drug addiction. 
   "Not Afraid," and "Talkin' 2 Myself," are two particular songs that I think represent the whole meaning of the album. In these songs, he talks about how he wants to become a new and better person. He regrets all the mistakes he made in his life, and tries to move on, knowing that his past will still follow him. A quote from Not Afraid: "This f***ing black cloud still follows me around but its time to exercise these demons these mother******s are doing jumping jacks now!" 
In "Talkin' 2 Myself," he wants to prove to his fans that he's the best he can ever be. He's telling them to not give up on him yet, because he's got something great coming up.
  
  What I like about Eminem so much, is that he sings from his soul. He talks about his past and emotions. Unlike many other rappers' lyrics, Eminem's are so meaningful and true. I think other rappers are jerks. They just talk about getting money and girls. 
Many people may not like Eminem because of the fact that he swears a lot in his songs. However, Eminem uses swearing for emphasis.
He can't help always swearing. He had a terrible childhood, growing up in the Detroit ghetto. People around him would always swear, so he caught on to that, and now it's embedded in his vocabulary. 
If you pay close attention to Eminem's lyrics, you'll realise how clever he is. The way he puts words together is mind-boggling. An example from Not Afraid: 

"No if ands or buts don't try to ask him why or how can he
From Infinite down to the last Relapse album he's still s**ttin'
Whether he's on salary, paid hourly
Until he bows out or he s**t's his bowels out of him"

Although these particular lyrics are rather inappropriate, it's amazing how he's able to put all that together, and rhyme it so fast. As a child, Eminem was very good in English. I was reading about Eminem on the Internet, and it said that he would read the dictionary as a kid!

   
  Originally, Eminem planned for Recovery to be a continuation of his previous album, Relapse (2009), however, the music on Recovery came out very different from Relapse.  Recovery finds the real Eminem, as this is his best work yet. Unlike all his other albums, Recovery takes a more serious turn. Eminem finally declares that he wants to concentrate just on himself, his family and his music.
When I listen to Eminem's songs in Recovery, I feel inspired and motivated by the lyrics. Also, the sound of the music gets me into a great mood. It makes me feel like I can do anything. I feel stronger, and I only focus on myself. However, other songs express more of a sad mood. At times, the songs are depressing when you hear the types of things Eminem raps about.

   Eminem does not only talk about his drug addiction and depression in this album. He also talks about his troubles in his relationships with women. "Love the Way You lie," "25 to Life," and "Space Bound" are three songs that are all about Eminem's past love life. 
-(Space Bound by Eminem)

  I think that "Not Afraid" is the best song of the album. He talks about his past with drug abuse, depression, and family problems. In this song, Eminem goes on to admit to some mistakes he made in his previous album: “And to the fans, I’ll never let you down again, I’m back/I promise to never go back on that promise, in fact/Let’s be honest, that last Relapse CD was eh/Perhaps I ran them accents into the ground/Relax, I ain’t going back to that now." "Not Afraid" is the most popular song of the whole album.

Eminem tries to portray an important message in Not Afraid, and I think it really gets across to people. His message is saying, for everyone who's been through the same things he went through, to follow him, and he'll lead them to a better place. The chorus of the song portrays the message:

" I’m not afraid to take a stand
 Everybody come take my hand
 Well walk this road together, through the storm
 Whatever weather, cold or warm
 Just let you know that, you’re not alone
 Hola if you feel that you’ve been down the same road"                            

                                            (Not Afraid by Eminem)-

In "Not Afraid" Eminem also talks about how he's trying  to move on and become a better person. He regrets all the decisions he made in the past, and now realises what he should do. He willingly wants to change and become a new and improved person. "Not Afraid" portrays a lot of willpower and courage. I love this song because it gets me into a great mood, and makes me feel a lot more powerful. It helps me find great willpower and courage within, making me more focused on the things that I want to succeed in.

  I think the worst part, or most unnecessary part of the album I should say, is the song "W.T.P" (White Trash Party). There's not much to say about this song, only that it doesn't really fit the mood of the album, and it doesn't have much meaning behind it. Now, I'm not saying I don't like this song, I just feel it shouldn't be a part of the album. "Recovery" is a serious album for the most part, but this type of song ruins the mood. Perhaps Eminem didn't know what to do with this song, so he just made it a part of Recovery. However, I don't think that was a good choice. 

  Overall, I really like Eminem's album Recovery.  I think it is definitely his best work, and it is his most popular album. Recovery is all about Eminem's past history, his emotions, and how he resolved his problems. Before this album came out, I wasn't a huge fan of Eminem. I thought he was just one of the rappers. However, now I realise that Eminem is very unique and he is a great rapper. Eminem stands out from the other rappers, and not just because he's white. Obviously, Eminem wanted to come up with the best album ever, so he put a lot of hard work into it. Almost every single song in this album is perfect. This album really changed the way I felt about Eminem before and I hope he will come up with another great album.

  Recovery shows a lot of improvement in Eminem's career as a rapper and song writer. I think he is the best rapper alive, and maybe even the best rapper of all time. 
I rate this album a 9/10.

Jack Reacher-Movie Review

    Jack Reacher is a fantastic crime thriller film with a great performance by Tom Cruise. The movie is based on Lee Childs' ninth Jack Reacher book "One Shot." This movie always keeps you on the edge of your seat, and can even make you laugh.

 

James Barr (accused killer)

   This film takes place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The plot is about the killing of five innocent people by an expert sniper that has thrown the city into a state of terror. However, in no time the police have the case wrapped up. All the evidence the investigators found lead to a former American military soldier, James Barr. The police quickly catch the culprit and arrest him. However, the case might not be over yet. The police take the man into custody and Emerson, the head detective, starts questioning him. Barr claims he is innocent, saying, "you've got the wrong guy." He takes a pad of paper, and writes, "Get Jack Reacher." 

Emerson (head detective)

   Reacher is a man with no known address and no criminal record, so therefore it makes him impossible to find. Luckily for James Barr, Reacher suddenly shows up at the police department because he saw the news on television. Jack Reacher knows this skilled sniper from when he served in the military police. James Barr was a bit mentally unstable, and he would always have the urge to snipe someone down. However, Reacher believes Barr was framed, and suddenly the whole case had turned around.  Reacher was teamed with defence lawyer, Helen Rodin, as they moved closer to finding out who's behind all this. Later on, Reacher and Helen find out who the killer is; a man by the name of Charlie. Charlie, who is a very wise and tactical man, takes the defence lawyer as hostage, to lure Reacher.

Helen Rodin (defence lawyer)

  Charlie calls Reacher, telling him to come to where Helen is, but to come alone. Obviously, Reacher isn't stupid to come alone, so he comes along with a shooting range owner, Cash. Although Cash is old, he is a very skillful sniper. Reacher and Cash arrive to rescue Helen. Cash snipes down a few of Charlie's men from on top of a hill, as Reacher takes down the rest using a handgun. Finally, he reaches Charlie. They have a short stare down and small talk, then they throw away their weapons. Reacher and Charlie fight, and finally, Reacher takes him down. He then finds Helen and rescues her. Reacher starts walking away, but Helen stops him and says, "Wait, what if I need you again?" Reacher responds, "You know how to find me."

Reacher and Cash
ready to go after Charlie and
save Helen

Characters

-Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher
-Rosamund Pike as Helen Rodin (defence lawyer)
-Robert Duvall as Cash ( shooting range owner, helps Reacher)
-Joseph Sikora as James Barr (the accused man) 
-Jai Courtney as Charlie (the real murderer)
-David Oyelowo as Emerson (the head detective)
-Richard Jenkins as Alex Rodin (father of Helen Rodin, detective)
-Werner Herzog as The Zec (A.K.A The Prisoner, in Russian)

Reacher getting out of his car

   I think the best and most funniest part was the car chase scene. In the car chase, Emerson, the detective, believes Reacher could be a suspect. During the night, Reacher is cruising around in a nice, stolen SS Camaro, and all of a sudden, Emerson sees him. He orders all the police officers to go after him. Emerson hops into his car and starts chasing after Reacher. This is the part that got me really excited. As the chase was going on, Charlie, who was in a 
silver Audi, sees Reacher. Jack doesn't notice Charlie until he gets   closer to the Audi.
   
  Charlie rams into the side of the SS Camaro, making it even harder for Jack to get away from the cops. That made Jack pretty angry, so he went after the silver Audi. After pursuing Charlie for a while, the police were getting on to Reacher. So, he walks out of the car, and quickly blends in with a group of bystanders. A man standing beside Jack, gives him his baseball cap so the cops won't notice him. This was my favourite part, and preferably the best part of the film because it was very action-packed and at the end of the scene it was very funny! (Part of this scene is in the trailer above). 

Charlie

 In this movie, I believe there are no bad parts and there is no worst part. I think all parts were important because the movie is kind of like a puzzle. All parts are like pieces or clues, all connecting the story, and leading to the hidden killer. Obviously, the producers of this film devoted a lot of effort and attention to detail. Every part of the movie connects, and flows very well, and enables you to enjoy watching it.
You are always waiting to see what happens next, and that constantly keeps you on your toes.


    I think that Jack Reacher is a fantastic, action-packed film, and the bit of comedy at the right moments is the icing on the cake.  It's a great family movie as well; I went to see this movie with my younger brother and my parents.  My parents said Tom Cruise is better than ever and his performance in this role was outstanding.  My brother is only nine years old, and the movie captured his interest from the moment it started and all the way to the end.  I was actually surprised because he usually cannot sit for ten minutes during a movie.  Obviously this movie is full of suspense and keeps you on the edge of your seat for the full 130 minutes.

  I would rate this movie a 9/10.