The free Winter Drumline Percussion Ensemble Concert was held on April 18 in Hoag Recital Hall and featured 10 songs performed by the Colorado State University-Pueblo Drumline and Percussion Ensemble. File photo

The free Winter Drumline Percussion Ensemble Concert was held on April 18 in Hoag Recital Hall and featured 10 songs performed by the Colorado State University-Pueblo Drumline and Percussion Ensemble.

The CSU-Pueblo Drumline is a class that is opened to anyone as long as they have at least a year of Drumline or marching band experience, whether it is through high school, drum corps or college, said Eddie Dowdle, the Drumline director, in an email.

Dowdle said that the spring Drumline class supports the ThunderWolves Marching Band drumline at football games and events around Colorado.

Dowdle is a private percussion instructor, drumline coach and concert band percussion section coach, who has taught and written music for many Colorado high school drumlines.

At the concert, the Drumline played four pieces: “My Independence,” “Low Five,” “Stool Pigeon” and “Rocket.”

Each section of the Drumline: the tenor drumline, bass drumline and snare drumline performed a song separately with the fifth piece performed by the entire drumline, Dowdle said.

“My independence” emphasized the tenor drumline by using five to six single headed drums, which permitted the melodies to be achieved in the music and cadence of the Drumline, according to the concert’s program. The tenor drum was first seen in European military marching bands in the early 1800’s.

The bass drumline performed the song “Low Five” using five or more bass drums of various sizes, which provided a foundation for the Drumline’s music and grooves. The bass drums also help military marching bands to keep troops in step for ceremonies, according to the concert’s program.

“Stool Pigeon,” the brand new piece, which the snare drumline performed, was a unique performance originally intended for around eight players performing on bar stools. The CSU-Pueblo Drumline used snare drums with one performer using a wooden stool.

All sections of the drumline performed in the song “Rocket,” which is a piece that is used to keep athletes and fans’ spirits up while ensuring that the band stays in step during their parades, according to the program.

Aaron Turner directed the CSU-Pueblo Ensemble. Turner is also concert percussionist, a drum set artist, a music educator and a composer, according to the program.

The CSU-Pueblo Ensemble performed six songs: “Fanga,” “No Woman No Cry,” “Conga,” “Gending Bali,” “Edge of the World” and “Mas Fuerte.”

“Fanga” is a Liberian piece that was popularized due to Babatunde Olatunji, an internationally renowned percussion teacher from Nigeria. Other West African Drumming features music from countries such as Guinea, Burkina Faso, Mali and Sierra Leone and contained cross rhythms, polyrhythms, and improvisation, according to the program.

The concert featured two very popular songs, the first being “No Woman, No Cry,” by Bob Marley and The Wailers. This Jamaican styled reggae song is a representation of life in the slums and is an attempt to persuade a woman not to cry since there is hope for a better life.

“No Woman, No Cry” is ranked as number 37 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

The second popular song that was performed at the concert was “Conga,” by Gloria Estefan and The Miami Sound Machine. The title of this piece referenced both to the rhythm and dance from Cuba. In Reuters, Estefan claimed that this song was not only talking “about a specific rhythm of [her] homeland but it talked about being Latino and the celebratory nature of dance.”

“Gending Bali” took the music of the concert to the country of Indonesia, featuring instruments such as the percussion gender, drums, or kendang as they are called, marimba and the haunting sound of the gong.

“The Edge of the World” was initially a wedding gift for Michael and Sara Wood, inspiring the poem/ watercolor print “True Things” by Brian Andreas. The song represented the bond between two people looking towards their future together, according to the program.

“Mas Fuerte” which translated to “more loudness or more force” was written for Percunits A2 for their 1992 American and Spanish tour. The song featured non-pitched loudness and strong Afro-Caribbean influence.

The Colorado State University-Pueblo Percussion Ensemble and Drumline will be holding their semester Percussion Extravaganza Concert on April 18 in the Hoag Hall at 7:30 p.m. File photo

The Colorado State University-Pueblo Percussion Ensemble and Drumline will be holding their semester Percussion Extravaganza Concert on April 18 in the Hoag Hall at 7:30 p.m.

The Percussion Extravaganza Concert will be a free one-night performance that features music from regions such as West Africa, Bali, Jamaica and the United States, according to an email from Eddie Dowdle, director of the Drumline.

The Percussion Ensemble songs will be played on instruments such as steel drums, tenor drums, bass drums, snare drums, African drums, keyboard percussion instruments and hand percussion, Dowdle said.

The CSU-Pueblo Drumline will perform pieces that spotlight the different sections of the Drumline: bass drums, snare drums and tenor drums. The last performance will be a full Drumline cadence, according to Dowdle.

The Drumline will be performing four songs; “My Independence,” “Low Five”, “Stool Pigeon” and “Rocket,” according to the Percussion Extravaganza Concert’s program.

The Percussion Ensemble will be performing six songs: “Fanga,” “No Woman No Cry,” “Conga,” “Gending Bali,” “Edge of the World” and “Mas Fuerte,” according to the program.

The keynote speaker for the Tribute to Women awards dinner is Joan Rivers. Photo courtesy of https://twitter.com

Colorado State University-Pueblo students are eligible to be recognized at the YWCA 12^th Annual Tribute to Women awards dinner, being held on May 14^th at the Pueblo Convention Center.

Tickets for the dinner are $95 each and can be purchased at the YWCA. Information on sponsorship opportunities, including a chance to meet Rivers, is listed on the Pueblo’s YWCA website.

The Spirit Rock and the concrete base were put on campus during spring break. Photo courtesy of http://www.zinch.com/colorado-state-university-pueblo.

The Spirit Rock, a canvas dedicated for students and organizations to advertise their announcements or art on, was set up over spring break near the Administration Building.

The purpose of the Spirit Rock is to create a new tradition on campus while also increasing student involvement, school spirit, leadership and positive messages, according to the Spirit Rock’s project initiation form.

Individual students and organizations will be able to paint announcements or their own art on the rock, as long as an official request is filled out and the material is not profane or obscene, said Lynnea Phillips, speaker of the senate for the Associated Students’ Government.

Already the Spirit Rock has been utilized in order to advertise that voting for the Associated Students’ Government Spring Election will be open through April 9, 10 and 11.

The Spirit Rock has been a project two years in the making, and has been invested in by many different people. Students who attended the 2011 Student Leadership Experience came up with the idea of having a spirit rock on campus, Phillips said.

Nicky Damania, former director of Student Activities, researched the spirit rocks at other colleges such as the University of Texas at Dallas and Bowling Green State University; in which he put together a project initiation form.

Due to multiple personnel changes, the project came to a standstill, Phillips said.

“We wanted to see what new people would think about it,” Phillips said. “We didn’t really want to usher it through and then be like deal with this huge rock.”

The project found its footing after Phillips started the paperwork again as the original project initiation form completed by Damania was revisited and edited, Phillips said.

”I know that Nicky and the previous ASG administration were really interested in it,” Phillips said. “It was something that had a lot of support; I didn’t want to see it die off so I kind of took on the project”

The Spirit Rock is located on the south side of the Administration Building near the 15-minute parking lot. It is 6-by-4 feet tall and weighs about 3.6 tons, said Debbie Proctor, the project planner for Facilities Management at CSU-Pueblo,

The location is accessible and visible to pedestrian traffic walking by, but is not in the middle of campus, where some might consider it to be an eyesore, according to Phillips.

The Spirit Rock was bought at Rocky Mountain Landscape and is a granite boulder from the Broadmoor area near Pikes Peak.  Proctor chose this specific boulder because it had a lighter color and flat bottom and sides, all traits favorable for painting on.

The boulder and the concrete base were put on campus during spring break.

The Spirit Rock was so heavy that the university’s equipment was not able to support the weight, so special equipment was rented in order to complete the job.

Though many people were very excited to see the project completed after two years of working on it, others have exhibited a negative reaction to the Spirit Rock.

After photos of the Spirit Rock were displayed on the CSU-Pueblo Facebook page, many negative comments were posted about the rock. Some people were concerned with tuition rates being raised on account of the rock.

The funds for the Spirit Rock came partly from the Student Facility Fee and partly from the Student Activities budget. The money for the project was pulled from the Student Activities account and moved immediately to the construction fund in 2011, when the project was started, Proctor said.

This means that there will be no effects on current students.

Some students were also unconcerned with the Spirit Rock and felt it may be a waste, but Phillips had a response to this.

“I kind of think this initiative might be lost on some people, some people might not understand it, but I think it’s a good way to get students involved,” Phillips said. “Of course, if you’re not super involved on campus, you’re not going to care about (this rock).”

Phillips added, “I think that once people start to embrace the rock, understand what it is for, and realize that it can be a cool thing, then (they) will be okay with it.”

For Proctor, this rock will provide students with an activity to do, even if it is to just take a few minutes out of the day to walk by and see what is painted on the rock. Phillips wants this rock to become a new tradition.

“I would like to see more traditions and I think this, if embraced by the student body and people on campus, could turn into another tradition,” Phillips said.

M. Talha Qureshi and three other CSU-Pueblo international students will represent the United States in the New York Global Young Leaders Summit International Model United Nations held in New York. Photo courtesy of the Today.

M. Talha Qureshi will act as liaison officer for the team of Colorado State University-Pueblo students representing the United States of America in the New York Global Young Leaders Summit International Model United Nations held in New York this spring break.

The NY-GYLS Int’l MUN Summit will last from March 26–29, and will be held in New York according to a NY-GYLS Int’l MUN appointment letter.

The Summit is taking place at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan, N.Y. According to Qureshi, he is paying for the trip with money from fundraising and donations from the community of Canon City, Colo.

Qureshi, along with three other CSU-Pueblo international students will represent the United States in the NY-GYLS Int’l MUN. According to Qureshi, Damilola Ogunbayode from Nigeria, Ahmet Cobanoglu from Turkey and Mengjie Ma from China, will be attending the Summit.

According to the appointment letter, the Summit is a unique opportunity to unite students from different cultures to discuss and debate global issues and their solutions. Students from the most prestigious universities of the world will simulate the responsibilities of Ambassadors and UN representatives.

According to Qureshi, each delegate is assigned a country to represent and a committee to sit on during the Summit. Qureshi, Ogunbayod and Ma are representing the country of Iraq, while Conbanoglu was assigned Afghanistan.

Qureshi and Conbanoglu are assigned the Millennium Development Goals, while Ogunbayode and Ma are assigned to the committees of General Assembly 2 and General Assembly 3, according to Qureshi.

The delegates are required to intensely research their countries and to write a paper that they will present March 26 at the UN headquarters.

“I’m taking the name of the United States of America on my shoulders,” Qureshi said. “[Its] definitely putting a lot of burden [on me].”

With Qureshi’s background of coming to the United States from Pakistan when he was 15, he wants to represent the United States to the best of his ability.

“I just want to thank this country, I want to thank the United States of America for everything it has done for me,” Qureshi said.

Qureshi wanted to also thank all the people and organizations that have welcomed him “so whole-heartedly to this country.”

Qureshi is no stranger to global projects, since he has been involved with international activism for around six years. His five-page resume and his position as president of the International Students’ Association resulted in Qureshi being elected as the liaison officer for the Summit.

As liaison officer, he was given the ability of finding international students from CSU-Pueblo that would qualify for his team of delegates. Qureshi found four students that were interested and who the Summit decided were qualified to be become his team.

Qureshi, if his career in news broadcasting does not work out, hopes that this Summit will provide him with experience that will aid him as an international newscaster.

“This will serve as my debut to the United Nations, this is a big thing,” Qureshi said. “I hope I don’t put the name of this country down.”

Temple Grandin spoke at Colorado State University-Pueblo on March 13 at 7 p.m. as part of the Distinguished Speaker Series. Photo courtesy of www.biography.com.

The OUC Ballroom featured a full house on March 13 at 7 p.m. for the Distinguished Speaker Series introducing Temple Grandin, as the honorary speaker.

The Mark E. Johnston Professor of Entrepreneurship at Manchester University, Jim Falkiner, introduced Grandin and explained why Grandin received a unique accomplishment.

Grandin was the recipient of the Manchester University Innovator of the Year Award for 2012-13.

“This annual award recognizes innovators who successfully implement highly creative solutions to either recognized or previously unrecognized problems of significance,” Falkiner said in an email.

Grandin is a professor of animal sciences at Colorado State University, an author, a lecturer and an animal and autism advocate. Grandin’s own diagnosis of autism gave her the knowledge and experience to improve both the handling of livestock and to help those with autism and their families.

Throughout her presentation, Grandin stressed the importance of realizing that each person thinks in different ways.

“What I want to get you thinking about tonight is the different ways that people think, not everybody thinks the same way,” Grandin said.

Grandin admitted that she thought in visual pictures, which aided in her understanding of animals. Grandin explained that animals’ thinking is very sensory based. When there are unfamiliar sensory experiences, an animal can become very frightened.

Grandin is very adept at recognizing minor details, such as a flapping flag, which would scare animals when introduced into new environments.

“Sometimes the most obvious is the least obvious,” Grandin said.

These minor details aided in Grandin’s designs to make industrial buildings friendlier for the livestock and more effective.

“Details are important. If you are building a bridge there are important details that you better have or it just might fall down,” Grandin said.

Grandin is also intuitive on how to handle young children that are diagnosis with autism.

“If you work on these little kids really, really early its going to really improve them,” Grandin said. “You cannot let a little 3-year-old that’s not talking just sit around and do nothing.”

Grandin’s main advice for parents with children who have autism is to get them involved in work that is a shared interest with other students their age, instead of having them sit around the house playing video games for hours on end.

“I am seeing too many of these kids, kids a lot less severe than me, they’re kind of over protected,” Grandin said. “Now you cannot do surprises, no surprises, they might just panic, but you got to stretch them.”

Grandin’s family and her mentors provided many opportunities to stretch her, and this resulted in the wonderful work that she has provided, not just for the livestock industry, but also for children with autism.

One of Grandin’s many accomplishments is creating a machine that allows hypersensitive individuals the chance to calm down by squeezing.

Grandin is also the author of several books, including such titles as “Different … Not Less,” “The Way I See It” and “Animals Make Us Human: Creating the Best Life for Animals.”

Media outlets, such as “The Today Show,” “Larry King Live,” Time magazine, People magazine and the New York Times have mentioned Grandin, according to a Colorado State University-Pueblo event release.

“Temple Grandin,” an HBO biopic film about Grandin’s life, starring Claire Danes, was the recipient of seven Emmys and a Golden Globe, according to the CSU website about Grandin.

Grandin said that the representation of herself in the movie, the visual thinking, her projects, the sensory problems and the main characters, were all accurate.

“Mick Jackson, the director, he’s a visual thinker and he just got it,” Grandin said. “They showed how I think visually.”

The event had a turnout of around 1,200 people according to sources in the Student Activities office.

Temple Grandin will be speaking, in the Occhiato University Center Ballroom, at Colorado State University-Pueblo, at a part of the Distinguished Speaker Series, on March 13 at 7 p.m. Photo courtesy of http://www.colostate-pueblo.edu

Temple Grandin has been named speaker for the Distinguished Speaker Series.

The event will take place on March 13 in the Occhiato University Center Ballroom, at Colorado State University-Pueblo, from 7-10 p.m.

Grandin is a doctor of animal science, a Colorado State University professor, a best-selling author, a consultant of animal behavior for the livestock industry and a philosophical leader for the movements of animal welfare and autism advocacy, according to Executive Director of External Affairs, Cora Zaletel.

Grandin’s high-functioning autism has inspired her to work as an advocate for autism. She invented a squeezing machine used to calm hypersensitive people.

“She knows the anxiety of feeling threatened by everything in her surroundings, and of being dismissed and feared, which motivates her work in humane livestock handling processes,” Zaletel said, in a campus event release.

Grandin has appeared on programs such as “Lisa Davis’s It’s Your Health,” “ABC’s Primetime Live,” “The Today Show,” “Larry King Live” and “Fresh Air with Terry Gross.” Grandin was also written about in Time magazine, People magazine, Discover magazine, Forbes and the New York Times, according to Zaletel.

She is played by Claire Danes in a semi-biographical HBO television movie, titled “Temple Grandin,” which was released in 2010. The film has been nominated 15 times for an Emmy and won five awards, two of which were Outstanding Made for Television Movie and Best Actress in a Drama, according to Zaletel.

Many of Grandin’s books, such as “Different … Not Less,” “The Way I See It,” “Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior” and “Animals Make Us Human: Creating the Best Life for Animals,” are listed on her website.

Grandin’s book, “The Way I See It” and “Different, Not Less,” may be a topic of discussion during her presentation on March 13.

The event is free and open to the public.

Weigh and Win provides incentives for healthy living. Photo courtesy of http://www.theblaze.com

During the week of Feb. 25, a Weigh and Win kiosk was featured in the lobby of the Library and Research Center of the Colorado State University-Pueblo campus.

Weigh and Win is a free program funded by Kaiser Permanente and is available for Colorado residents over the age of 18. Weigh and Win promotes healthy eating and active living, Vicki Becker, an accountant for CSU-Pueblo’s Payroll, explained.

Some of the services provided by Weigh and Win includes daily personal coaching, online interactive support, progress tracking, cash rewards, prizes and team competitions according to Weigh and Win pamphlets.

Participants are given personalized daily coaching through email or text messages based on their preference. Emails provide daily meal plans, weekly grocery lists, active living tips and exercise plans, according to the Weigh and Win website.

Participants can also utilize online interactive features such as health journals, health guides, and access to certified trainers, according to the Weigh and Win pamphlets.

Participants can track their progression by weighing in at Weigh and Win kiosks every three months, but participants are encouraged to weigh in as often as they desire. The weigh-ins includes taking a photograph in the privacy of the barriers of the kiosks.

Weigh and Win kiosks are located at the YMCA and the American Furniture Warehouse in Pueblo. Anyone interested in joining can sign up using the kiosks or can go online to www.WeighandWin.com.

Cash rewards are received based on how much weight is lost each quarter and if the healthy weight level is maintained.

If a participant’s weight improvement was 5 percent the cash reward would be $15, 10 percent equals $30, 15 percent equal $45, 20 percent equal $75, 25 percent equal $105 and 30 percent equal $150.

If participants are struggling with improving their weight, their efforts will not go in vain. Participants will be given chances to win prizes just for partaking in the Weigh and Win program.

The program also allows groups of 4-10 people to compete with other teams across Colorado. The teams compete to have the most cumulative weight improvement. The winning teams will receive prizes and a donation given to the charity of their choice, according to the Weigh and Win website.

According to the Weigh and Win website there have been 32,897 people who have enrolled in the program and 72,944 pounds lost.

Although Becker did not have the statistics of how many CSU-Pueblo students, staff and faculty signed up using the kiosk located on campus, she assumed the kiosk was a success based on the reactions from those on campus.

“I do know that people were calling and telling me that they weighed in and they asked some questions,” Becker said. “So I know there are some people that signed up, I just don’t know how many right now.”

Becker confirmed that she was one of the staff who signed up for the Weigh and Win program using the kiosk, and thought it would be good to join the program since she helped set up the kiosk located on campus during last week.

“I feel that you, inside, have to make the decision that (you) want to become healthy and try to work towards it,” Becker said.

The former OUC Underground, from Auxiliary Services. Photo courtesy of auxiliaryservices.colostate-pueblo.edu

The Underground of the Occhiato University Center is currently being renovated into a lounge area more suited for students to relax and meet in groups.

In the past the, Underground of the OUC housed the university’s books while the library was under construction. Currently, the Underground serves as a large area rented out for meetings or conferences, according to Chris Fendrich, interim director of Auxiliary Services.

The new lounge will serve as a friendly destination for groups of students who want to meet with each other; comprised of a dining area, a game room and a social gathering area.

The estimated date for the opening of the lounge is March 15, according to Logan Gogarty, president of Associated Students’ Government.

La Cantina, located right next door, is connected to the Underground lounge. This will allow students the ability to buy their meals in La Cantina and eat in the lounge, Fendrich said.

In the future, the lounge may even have a snack bar or concession.

The Underground will feature leather couches, dining tables and flat screens televisions. There will be three flats screens televisions, some of which will be set up to an Xbox.

Students may be able to bring the games of their choice to play on the Xbox, Fendrich said.

Some of the flat screen televisions may also be linked to a Netflix account, allowing students to catch up on shows or watch movies. The lounge will also have games that a group of people can play.

Four pool tables, a Ping-Pong table and a foosball table will be spread throughout the lounge. Fendrich was hoping that students could even have pool tournaments.

With the university currently facing a budget deficit, many students and staff may be concerned with how this new project will affect the university.

Fendrich said the money that Auxiliary Services collected from their own conference services is funding the lounge.

Fendrich said that he was also able to cut costs by buying many of the items for sale on Black Friday.

Freddy Correamanrique, a senator in Associated Students’ Government, has been working with Fendrich and others in an advisory board concerned with this project.

Correamanrique wrote a letter to American Furniture Warehouse, in Pueblo, asking if the company would give the university a discount on the furniture that will be set up in the lounge.

The goal of this lounge is to bring students together, especially students that do not usually participate on campus. Students who commute to campus or students, who spend all of their time in the residence halls, are welcome to hang out in the lounge, Fendrich said.

“Instead of just coming to campus and then just leaving, it might keep people on campus more,” Fendrich said. “Hopefully it will help the retention rate in the residence halls because they know there is a place they can go.”

The lounge will strengthen the university’s sense of community. The chance for a stronger community is why Gogarty advocated this new lounge.

“I advocated for the new student center because it is a much needed amenity that will help create a closer knit campus community,” Gogarty said, in an email.

The potential of this lounge for the university is exciting for the people who are working hard to make this goal a reality.

“There are so many things we can utilize and introduce every so often,” Correamanrique said, in an email. “Whether it is playing pool with administrators during off hours, open mic nights on weekends, karaoke or even just tournaments, we can make it whatever we want it to be.”

R, played by Nicholas Hoult and Julie, played by Teresa Palmer, play a modern version of Romeo and Juliet in the movie “Warm Bodies.” Photo courtesy of laineygossip.com

When aspects of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” clashed with a new adaptation of the zombie apocalypse, the ensuing result was the romantic comedy “Warm Bodies.”

The film was based on the novel “Warm Bodies” written by Isaac Marion, and followed the narration of a zombie called R, played by Nicholas Hoult. Throughout the movie, R expressed his remorse about eating humans and his desire to experience more out of his stumbling afterlife.

When R encountered a group of human survivors searching for pharmaceutical supplies, he became fascinated with a human named Julie, played by Teresa Palmer. Instead of eating Julie, he disguised her as a zombie and brought her to his home in an abandoned airplane.

After spending time with each other, Julie and R fell in love. This abnormal relationship began to restore humanity, not just to R, but also to the other zombies that witnessed it. However, this love faced many obstacles during the course of the movie.

After R confessed to eating Julie’s boyfriend Perry, played by Dave Franco, Julie returned to the walled city where the remaining human survivors resided. When R discovered the zombies who gained their humanity back, he traveled to the city to tell Julie.

Julie’s father, played by John Malkovich, is the leader of the remaining humans, and therefore, when it came to zombies, his only policy was to shoot them in the head. So, when Julie brought R to her father to show that the zombies were coming back to life, he was not very receptive.

However, after seeing zombies and humans joined together to fight the Boneys, a skeleton-like zombie, her father started to see that the zombies could regain their humanity.

For viewers of the film, some scenes and characteristics of “Warm Bodies” were recognizable from “Romeo and Juliet.” R and Julie were the star-crossed lovers. Instead of a family feud keeping them apart, it was R’s lack of a heartbeat that caused the two lovers hearts to be separated.

There was even a balcony scene in which Julie saw R for the first time after she left him to return home. Thankfully, “Warm Bodies” ended on a much happier note than “Romeo and Juliet.”

“Warm Bodies” not only put a twist on “Romeo and Juliet”, but it modified the classic zombie film. Although there were scenes showing zombies eating organs such as stomachs and brains, this film does not have the traditional gory scenes that can be expected from most zombie movies.

“Warm Bodies” also differed from traditional zombie movies since the narration was from a zombie instead of a human trying to survive in a world overrun by mindless corpses. The film also gave a very ingenious explanation for why zombies need to eat human flesh.

According to R, if a zombie ate the brain of their victim, they were able to experience the memories of this human. If they do not eat the brains, then the victim would be a walking corpse. For R, eating the brains of the humans was a twisted way to feel human memories and emotions.

Oddly enough, the zombies did exhibit human behaviors that survived the epidemic, such as an airplane attendant who still scanned anyone who passed him, or the zombie who raised his hand for a check before leaving a bar.

It was this concentration on humanity that made “Warm Bodies” so different from other zombie films. Most traditional films showed zombies as mindless creatures far beyond any hope of returning to their former selves.

“Warm Bodies” seemed to hold out hope that if human beings connected with each other and formed strong bonds, they would be able to survive anything. And when humans lost this link to each other, they turned into walking corpses.

Thankfully, due to R and Julie’s love, the zombies in “Warm Bodies” were able to cure themselves with the help of humans who gave them a reason to live again.

“Warm Bodies” was a humorous movie targeting a younger audience. R’s narration was very typical of how a teenage boy would talk about his experience as a zombie.

Despite the humor being for a younger audience, it still struck the funny bone of audiences from all ages. An example of this humor was R’s comment on how slow zombies really were, and his suggestion that the audience catch back up with the zombies later on.

Although the movie was a romantic comedy for a younger audience, “Warm Bodies” was an ingenious adaptation of the classic genre.