The Book of Mormon: The Book, The Musical, The Movie.

Sure to be a hot debate and issue in Utah in the coming years is the media frenzy from "The Book Of Mormon: The Musical". The smash broadway show is a parody written by the creators of South Park and is supposed to be offensive, filthy, hilarious, fun, and even somewhat pro-Mormon. The show has been such a hit that producers are already planning to adapt it into a movie in the next year or so.

Unlike the actual Book of Mormon, the show--and possible movie--is about two Mormon missionaries in Africa. It's a pointed parody that not only pokes fun at the oddities of Mormon belief and culture--and faith in general--but has also been said to be a love letter to Mormon's sweet nature and the lives they live.

A prominent Mormon writer wrote in the Washington Post, ""I'm not willing to spend $200 for a ticket to be sold the idea that religion moves along oblivious to real-world problems in a kind of blissful naiveté."

Many church members share a distaste for anything from the South Park producers. Yet, many Mormons recognize the Mormon parodies as depicting the religion fairly and even in a positive light.

The Mormon church put out an official statement about the musical, "The production may attempt to entertain audiences for an evening, but the Book of Mormon as a volume of scripture will change people's lives forever by bringing them closer to Christ."

Often confused as ex-Mormons (they are not), the show's creators have indicated that the show is not anti-Mormon. Whether they parody the Joseph Smith story in South Park or in their broadway endeavors, they have nothing but good things to say about Mormons in general. In a recent interview they discussed the issue at length:

"Parker: Didn’t the Mormon Church just issue a thing that’s like, 'This show might actually be designed to try to entertain people for an evening, but the Book of Mormon will change your life and bring you closer to Christ'? [Laughs.] Which is funny because that’s actually what we say in the show, too.

Stone: It’s so funny, that’s our statement!

Parker: We should put it out!

Stone: 'We agree … '

Parker: ' … that book might change your life, but this show will entertain you for an evening.”

Stone: We obviously all have fun at the expense of religion and — the Book of Mormon, it’s just silly; it’s silly and there’s a lot of good comedy there. And the story of Joseph Smith, the way it’s told, is silly too. But we were looking at this thing and realized we all kind of like Mormons as people, painting with a broad brush. Every Mormon we’ve met is a nice person. And even when they know who Trey and I are from our work — work that some Mormons don’t really like — they’re totally nice to us. So we’d sit there and go, “How do we do a show where we both have fun at the expense of religion, almost to a New York crowd, and at the end of the day ask, 'Is there truth to these stories?' Can we come up with a pro-faith show, that’s pro-faith broadly, and in the details have fun with all the silliness of all these particular arguments about who dug up the golden plates?"

The LDS church has also reported that searches online pertaining to Mormon beliefs have reached levels only seen when Mitt Romney was running for president. So is The Book Of Mormon Musical a good or bad thing for those inside the faith itself? I'd say I guess we have to see it ourselves, but Im sure it's not what you'd call, "Mormon Appropriate"

BYU Mobile App: Update!

Back in November The Report told you that BYU will release a web app version of their website that is compatible with mobile devices.

We followed up with BYU about the mobile site and this time we have a concrete date for the site's release. The beta mobile testing begins May 3.

If you want to see what it looks like right now visit: http://byudesigndev.byu.edu/home/

Still following up about the Blackboard application. We'll let you know.

Portal 2 Review

The original Portal was an unexpected hit, with it's mind-bending logic games and surprisingly dark plot twists. People fell in love with the monotone computer GlaDOS and her increasingly odd and witty burns on the main character. They fell in love with a gun that twisted the laws of gravity and physics. Could people fall in love with these things all over again?

Portal 2 reprises your role as a female test subject in the Aperture Science facility. But this time, you go through three different kind of worlds as you complete the puzzles the game presents. One is the overrun and broken down facility you awake in, the pristine and futuristic testing center you advance to, and the abandoned 1960's warehouse where you explore Aperture's troubled history. The game is beautiful and the story the landscapes tell is stark.

The gameplay is just as fun and challenging as ever, with new obstacles and ways of overcoming them. The game is a bit short, but its so engrossing its barely noticeable, and you'll probably play straight through. But the true strength of Portal 2 is the hilarious and witty characters.

First, is a little robot played by british phenomenon Steven Merchant, who adds a whole new level of humor to the game--really, one of the funniest performances I've experienced in a video game. GlaDOS also makes a return and is as creepy and witty as ever. A new character--the deceased CEO of Aperture--is played by J.K. Simmons. The man is pure comedy gold in this game and it reminds heavily of his role as the Newspaper Editor in the Spider-Man series.

Portal 2 sticks with what made Portal great, with enough changes in plot and gameplay to keep it fresh and worth it. But the game is definitely worth it's price in story and character performances.

The Return of The Report

Now that finals are over: the Report is back. (For real this time). The site has a little cosmetic lift, and if you have any suggestions for stories you'd like to see done, let me know in the comments.

Why iOS 5 is a bigger deal than the iPad 2

Lets make this short and sweet. Look at the following equation:

iPhone 3G>iPhone 3GS>iPhone 4=iPad>iPad 2>iPad3

It's the same apple equation. The new iPad being released tomorrow is the iPad 1.5, it'll will have minimal aesthetic changes, beefed up processing, and one new feature (speaker grille or facetime camera).

It's the iPhone 3GS of tablets. It'll be better, but only just to keep a year ahead of everything else out there.

iOS 5, on the other hand is a big deal. Possibly free MobileMe (think Dropbox on steroids), a better notification system, and an new look UI. This will beef up everybody's iOS device--unless you own a 3G, or older ipod--and really make using iDevices easier and more awesome. So I suggest holding out on the iPad 3, which is rumored for a fall 2011 release, and enjoy the spoils of iOS 5.

Apple Looking to Ruin Everything

Apple Inc., the makers of some moderately successful phones, tablets, and music players, has had a rough couple of years when it comes to not being...well a little evil. Recently they tried to make jailbreaking your iDevice illegal (if you need a definition of jailbreaking, check this out), and the supreme court put them in their place. They have a awful reputation of kicking anyone out of the app store they don't like, and now this.

Apple now requires apps that require subscriptions (netflix, book apps, and newspapers), do it from within the app and give 30 precent of the subscription to apple. They also require that the price they charge in the app be the exact or higher price than outside the app for the same content.

The reason this sucks is because now app developers will lose 30 percent on any content they put up on their apps and will have to charge the same for it everywhere if they want their app to be approved. look for this to make cool apps less cool and current apps to take a look at whether they will continue to provide new content. Nice job apple. Way to cripple your own mobile platform apple.

This Video is Real

Thanks to the miracles of HDR recording--in which two camera record an over-exposed shot and an under-exposed shot simultaneously--we get this miracle of a video. Yes this is all real.



This is another HDR recording showing the real shots versus the double one. I seriously want a movie filmed in this camera style. Preferably a Natalie Portman movie.

The Report is Back!

The Bemorte Report is back on. And I promise the Jimmer coverage will be minimal.

Slow to No News

The plan was that the Bemorte Report would be back up and running after finals and Christmas. But as it turns out, interesting events cease from happening between the 24th and the first. I mean most news outlets are doing stories about how they have no stories. So, just like major businesses and primetime television, the Report will be back from break in the beginning of January. So for our three readers, hang in there!


- Bemorte

The Great Compromise of Barack Obama: Selling Out or Moving Forward?

Well isn't it just an odd day on Washington? That's right, Obama has comrpomised with Congressional Republicans on tax cuts. The Bush tax cuts have been extended for pretty much everyone in exchange for Obama's demand that unemployment benefits be extended as well, among other things. Congressional Democrats are...well pretty unhappy about the whole thing, viewing it as a kind of defeat of their agenda and power. And, it kinda is.



Obama just can't catch a break these days. Some days he's a evil muslim socialist and other days he's too conservative with a weak backbone. Do you think there will ever be a day when anyone likes Obama's actions? Remember the days when people just hated him because he gave great speeches. Those were the days....

Airlines Making an Obscene Amount of Money on Fees

Airline fees aren't really the most popular thing airlines have come up with in the recent past. But these fees may be saving the airline industry as we know it. Airlines have raked in more than $2.5 billion so far this year on baggage fees alone which accounts for a little more than 10 percent of all airline profits, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

And fees will continue to climb as long as the market--meaning the average Joe--doesn't ask questions. People are paying it and people aren't revolting, and so the fees will stick around at least until people are willing to boycott flying--or do the unthinkable: fly Southwest.

The possibility that fees will decrease once the recession lessens in intensity is nice to think about, but when was the last time you felt like the airline industry really was looking out for your interests? I mean in order to fly right now you basically have to book a flight 4 months in advance, strip naked to get through security, through away any food/water you have (just like a movie theater), get on a overbooked plane, and forgo a meal in-flight because they don't serve them anymore. But hey, at least we have wi-fi and free drinks.

P.S. For those who want to fight the man, visit this site for a pair of these:

Facebook's Beautiful Friendmap of the World

Some dude at Facebook put together a map made entirely out of the friends connectons that we all have across the world. It looks pretty cool and reminds one of the light pictures taken from space.

If anyone ever thought that Facebook isn't taking over the world, this picture is pretty convincing.

Facebook Outages Literally put this World in the Dark

Someone Impersonating Elizabeth Smart on Twitter

Someone is sending out "tweets" in Elizabeth Smart's name, but in reality, it is probably some creepy guy or an overzealous "Most Wanted" host. But as of right now, no one knows who is tweeting as Elizabeth.


One thing we know for sure: It wasn't Brian David Mitchell.

Finals

If the Bemorte Report had a huge staff with a bunch of collaborators, then finals wouldn't trip us up. Since we have a staff of one and 3 collaborators....well needless to stay, we'll see you all after finals are over!

MythBusters, The President, and a Death Ray.

Plummeting approval ratings, one real war and another fake one, a new Republican wave of popularity, and a Wikileaks fiasco. President Obama's problems dictate direct and meaningful action. So tonight he appeared on the hit Discovery Channel show, Mythbusters, to challenge Adam and Jamie to tackle a new myth.

The President, in a effort to advance an initiative to promote math and science programs, challenged the show's hosts to recreate Archimedes 'Solar Death Ray'. The myth that using only mirrors to burn ships off the shore has been busted in a previous show, but when the commander in chief asks you to do something again, you go along with it.

Note to Obama: With the talents of a group of experts who debunk myths, here is a list of things He should have challenged the gang to get together on. His citizenship, effects of Obamacare, how many times it's scientifically possible for someone to say hope, green energies, etc. But yeah, Republicans will love the death ray idea. Mr. President, the Darth Vader comparisons are gaining validity.

Pete's Perspective: Twitter and why the Champions Don't Need it.

Kobe Bryant seems to be the last super-star NBA player not to give into the twitter fad. And can you blame him? The man is sitting atop a mountain peak that none of his other 'super-star' rivals are even close to, while all the other top players are worried about how many followers they have. Is it any coincidence that Kobe is also the biggest star in any sport with the most rings? I argue it is not, my friends.

Some people say it's a pride thing, that he is so good he doesn't have to talk up a storm. I say it's about focus and ignoring distractions.

When Bryant was relaxed in an informal viewing area and watched a World Cup match in Africa over the summer, he talked about his trip to Africa. He talked about a safari he has been on the first time he visited Africa. Reportedly, he excitedly described how the truck he was in had come upon a clan of hyenas that had identified its prey. What stood out for Bryant was how the hyenas were so focused on the task at hand that they didn’t even glance at the truck of spectators. That’s what impressed Bryant: the pack was locked in, singularly focused on that moment, on that prey. It was as if the truck did not exist.

That's the difference between a lot of these Tweeters and Kobe. Kobe is hungry for one thing: championships. It's as if Twitter, and the rest of the hype machine down in Miami doesn't exist. He just wants his next ring.

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(Austin Peterson is an avid fan of anything sports. You can follow him on Twitter, just find him on our sidebar.)

BYU to be Metntioned on Psych? Quick, Someone Spin a Top, I Think I'm Dreaming.

Psych is possibly one of the best T.V. shows ever. It features Shawn Spencer as a hyper attentive detective pretending to be psychic, and his partner and his best friend Gus who basically does all the busy work. Together they solve murders, give an enormous amount of hilarious popular culture references, and soon they may be doing just about the coolest thing ever done on the T.V. show: giving a shout out to Brigham Young University.

The show's website has an interactive feature where users earn points based on the more activities they do within the site. The more points they earn, the more points they can attribute to their favorite college. Right now, fans and students of BYU are blowing away the competition with 1.48 million points — nearly triple the score of second-place Long Beach State — while the University of Utah lags behind in 30th place with 67,000 points. If this keeps up until December 22nd, then BYU will get a mention on a 'future episode of Psych'.

So you are telling me that there is a show about a fake psychic, obsessed with popular culture, who uses an iPhone, drives a motorcycle, plays X-Box, uses a Mac, dates his awesome co-star Juliet in real life, and who will give a shout out to BYU? The only way this show could get any more cool is if Hugh Laurie guest-starred.

What's the Trippiest Part of these Videos?

The Third & The Seventh from Alex Roman on Vimeo.


Silestone -- 'Above Everything Else' from Alex Roman on Vimeo.

Both of these videos were made entirely on a computer. That's right. No live action whatsoever. All CGI. It makes you think that The Matrix and Inception can be real.

P.S. (For Anna James)

Facebook Cartoons: Child Abuse or Free Advertising for Cartoon Network?

Within the past week, millions of facebook users have been encouraged to put their favorite cartoon as their profile picture supposedly to "support and raise awareness" about child abuse. This facebook page encourages users to change their profile picture to a cartoon and links to the official site of the NSPCC children’s charity, urging visitors to donate to organizations battling child abuse. The problem? The NSPCC did not support such a campaign.

It turns out the campaign originated from an annual Cartoon Network marketing campaign that encourages Facebook users to change their profile photo to an animated character during the fourth week of November. The conspiracy theories get pretty thick from pedophiles behind the push so that younger children will accept friend requests to a bad taste marketing campaign by cartoon network.

Either way, the movement is doing absolutely nothing to help the victims of abuse or to raise awareness. Lets all change our profile pictures in order to raise awareness about blindness; it'd be about as effective. This is kind of blind and unuseful support for a cause we don't know much about is reminiscent of a classic Office episode. The motivations for such campaigns are suspect, and it's a nice gesture and all, but also a very empty. 

The Reason For Bemorte Report

After the premiere week of The Bemorte Report, we want to focus on the rationale of why the Report is useful and why you should read it.

In most conversations with friends, there is usually one to two things that are discussed that have to do with something new (hence news). With some friends it's a conversation about sports. With others it's about cool gadgets. Music, T.V., and politics; these topics we all have conversations about are fun, important, outrageous, and relevant. And the best topical conversations are almost always about something that is fun to make fun of and relatively short.

The Bemorte Report wants to bring you the best and most interesting of the topics that you'll later turn into those good conversations you have with your friends. Every weekday the Report will give you two to three stories that are short, relevant, and a little bit funny. On the weekend, the Report will bring you one to three features, where we will examine a particular topic in more depth.

In a world where most news sources are way too long or way too dry or just not very interesting, we at the Bemorte Report will strive to be short, to the point, down to earth, funny, and relevant to those little conversations you have with your friends.



(P.S. If you like our blog, one of those conversations with your friends should be about how awesome our blog is and how everyone should check it out.)