Nebiu Samuel, Author at The Orbital

7Feb

By Nebiu SamuelNo Comments

Turn Off Your Phone

Nebiu Samuel discusses the possibility of a theatre mode for iPhones and his take on cinema etiquette. We’ve all been there sitting in a darkly lit room, waiting to lose ourselves in a film when suddenly a light appears a few feet away shining someone’s face so brightly you’d almost think they’d seen the face of God. But sadly, no it’s someone using their phone while in a cinema. Considering how long mobile phones have existed you would have thought that this would have stopped but people still do it. However, it has recently been leaked that Apple may have a solution to this problem. Among some of the rumoured new features in the next iPhone update set for January 10th is a theatre mode which would disable sounds, block calls, messages, and reduce screen brightness. Now, as appeali...

17Jun

By Nebiu SamuelNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Music

Krept and Konan, A Night to Remember

Krept and Konan are one of the biggest names in rap at the moment since the success of their mixtape 'Young Kingz' in 2013. They have worked tirelessly, producing hit songs known across the country. On April 1st, the pair promised a night to remember with the first performance of their spring tour at the O2 Academy Brixton and they certainly delivered. After Ty Dollar Sign had warmed up the crowd, the lights went out, phones were out with Snapchat and Instagram ready, the anticipation of the Duo’s grand entrance grew among the crowd. The screen covering the stage fell to reveal a London underground tube carriage across the stage, followed by the sound of the very familiar underground voice-over which was used throughout the show to introduce special guests. Then the vocals from Konan’s tra...

19Jan

By Nebiu SamuelNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Film & TV

The Revenant

Leonardo DiCaprio goes all out in The Revenant giving his most physical and raw performance of his career, which is highly likely to win him Oscar gold, something he’s been hunting for a while now. The Revenant, tells the story of real life frontiersman, Hugh glass who must survive the harsh wilderness of the American West to get revenge on those who wronged him. DiCaprio’s performance as Hugh Glass is largely characterized by his physical commitment to the role which he displays many times in the film such as through sleeping in a dead horse’s carcass, eating a raw bison liver, acting in well below freezing temperatures and getting mauled by a bear. However, DiCaprio never over acts in these moments, but keeps his performance subtle and as much as I always see DiCaprio as the good looking...

18Jan

By Nebiu SamuelNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Film & TV

Beasts of No Nation

Rise of streaming service have become a concern for cinema chains in recent years as smarter cinema goers realise they can wait for certain films and TV series to become available on streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime rather than giving the film a chance in the cinema, unless it’s a film that warrants to be seen on a big screen like a summer blockbuster. Cinemas have become worried that people will become lazier and less driven to see films in the cinema, if they have the option to watch films at home instead and to an extent they are right. (more…)

24Nov

By Nebiu SamuelNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Film & TV, Music

‘Amy’ Documentary Review

Many documentaries struggle to find a cinematic style and voice which warrants it to be released in cinemas however in the case of ‘Amy’, it delivers on giving you an emotional, cinematic and musical experience. The documentary focuses on the rise of Amy Winehouse, through her time in the National Youth Jazz Orchestra and singing in blue clubs in North London to her international success, her problematic personal life and her tragic death. The main feature of ‘Amy’ is how director Asif Kapadia (Senna) and editor Chris King uses Winehouse’s poetic and autobiographic lyrics from songs like ‘Stronger than Me’, ‘I Heard Love is Blind’, ‘What is it About Men’, ‘Rehab’ or ‘Back in Black’ to build the narrative around and is able to make it seem Amy has a voice in the film. Through the documenta...

23Nov

By Nebiu SamuelNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Film & TV

Steve Jobs Review

Steve Jobs, a man who placed a key role in defining modern technology through products such as the iMac, I pod and the I phone gets his own biopic in Steve Jobs, directed by Danny Boyle, written by Aaron Sorkin and staring Michael Fassbinder in the title role. Ironically the defining feature of this film is that it doesn’t resemblance a biopic at all. Structured in the few moments before three product launches (Apple Mactintosh, NeXT Computer, and the iMac), much of the dialogue although inspired by real conflicts Jobs had with his co-workers Steve Wozniak and John Sculley and his daughter, is invented by Sorkin and weren't spoken in real life. However the script’s wit and intensity makes up for this. Sorkin’s dialogue has a reputation as being difficult to manoeuvre for actors, but Micha...