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Must-See of the Week: Save “Hand aufs Herz” – The Virtual Flashmob

MeL — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 22:24:59 +0000

A few months ago, I told you about “Hand aufs Herz”, a German soap opera / telenovela that has quickly become one of my favourite TV shows, and not just because of a wonderful couple named Jemma or because I got to visit the set and meet some of the people involved in the making of the show. Unlike other soap operas or telenovelas, the storylines seem much more realistic, the acting and the writing is good, even excellent at times, and on top of that, there’s music!

After a performance of the school’s “glee club” STAG,
Emma and Jenny come out to their classmates – and the entire school

So you can imagine my disappointment when German TV channel Sat.1 announced that they cancelled the show after only season. But if you think that “HaHe” fans would just accept the media company’s decision, you’re wrong. Instead of whining and mourning, a lot of fans decided to fight. They wrote emails and letters, sent packages with oregano (loooong story), put together videos and much more. They even organized flashmobs, and not just in real life, but virtual!

Initiated by the ladies over at the Jemma fan website Jemma International and with contributions from all over the world, this virtual flashmob is witty and beautiful and moving and very impressive and thus does this wonderful show and the witty, beautiful and moving Jemma storyline credit.

So here it is. Enjoy!

Unfortunately, Sat.1 doesn’t seem impressed by all of the love and devotion the fans showed for their favourite show, and it looks like the episode scheduled for September 5th will actually be the last one.

Must-See of the Week: Hand aufs Herz – F**k You!

MeL — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 22:42:06 +0000

A TV show about a school choir? Sounds a lot like “Glee”. But German TV show “Hand aufs Herz” is very different from Glee, and they proved it again this week when the students performed a song that would probably give Mr. Schue (or the US TV censor, for that matter) a heart attack.

When the German daily soap opera “Hand aufs Herz” (HaHe) first started last October, people used to compare it to “Glee” because it also includes a school choir. But STAG, which is the name of the choir on HaHe, and the show itself couldn’t be more different. On HaHe, there is less singing, and the singing seems less professional than on “Glee”, which doesn’t mean that it’s not good – it’s just different.

This week, the members of STAG and their classmates went on strike and occupied the school to protest against reforms their headmaster has introduced that discriminate against less clever and less rich students. So on this Friday’s episode, in order to get their point across, STAG devoted a very special song to said headmaster.

And if you’re still looking for things that distinguish HaHe from Glee, here’s another one: THIS song would never be shown on US network TV.

(Click on the photo to get to the video.)

Hotte, Jenny, Emma, Luzi and Timo have a very special greeting for their headmaster

Poll: What are your favourite songs from “Grey’s Anatomy”?

MeL — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 22:32:15 +0000

The big musical episode of “Grey’s Anatomy” is coming up this March, and I’d like to know: Which ones are your favourite songs that were featured on the show?

In case you haven’t heard yet: Grey’s Anatomy is planning a musical episode that will show the cast members sing some of the songs made famous by the show. The episode will air on March 31, and I don’t know about you, but I can hardly wait!

Still, I have to admit that even though I usually like the songs they use, not a lot come to mind when I actually think about which ones are my favourites. So maybe you can help me out by letting me know: What are your favourite songs featured on Grey’s Anatomy?

Of course, there are some that I can think of, like this one:

Snow Patrol – Chasing Cars (Season 2)

Or this one, also one of my favourites:

Bryn Christopher – The Quest (Season 4)

Music Video! Song from Grey’s” wmode=”transparent” allowfullscreen=”true” />

So, which songs are your favourites? Please let me know in the comments.

Must-See of the Week: “The Force”

MeL — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 22:25:40 +0000

A mini Darth Vader finds out that The Force really is with him – even if you don’t like Star Wars or car commercials, you’re going to love this one.

A few weeks ago, it was Super Bowl Sunday in the U.S.

Apart from – you know – the actual match, what people usually talk about the next day are the commercials shown during the broadcast of the event. This year, one of the most talked about commercials was probably this one for (and I write this with some sense of nationality) a German automaker. Enjoy!

And here’s the Making of, which is as cute and hilarious as the final commercial:

Must-See of the Week: Filmography 2010

MeL — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 21:57:26 +0000

The year 2010 in movies, put together in two great video compilations

Inception, The Kids Are All Right, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, just to name a few – 2010 was another great year for movie lovers. Here’s a look back at the year 2010 in movies:

You can find lists of the films in order of appearance here: Filmography 2010 | Cinema 2010

Dec. 24: Der Geist der Weihnacht

MeL — Fri, 24 Dec 2010 08:58:06 +0000

Christmas Eve 2010 is here. I hope that you’re going to have happy holidays and a wonderful time with your loved ones, and don’t forget: “Wherever you find love, it feels like Christmas. – Dort wo du Liebe findest wirkt der Geist der Weihnacht.”

Last year, I kept my favourite song from “The Muppets Christmas Carol” for the final post of the Advent Calendar, and I did it this year again. But in 2010, it comes with a little twist – it’s the German version:

This is the final window of the Advent Calendar 2010. I hope that you enjoyed reading, watching and listening to all of the videos and texts as much as I enjoyed putting them together for you again.

Merry Christmas to all of my readers, thanks for all of your visits, comments and for all sorts of support I get from you. Have a great time with your loved ones, and don’t forget to come back after the holidays!

Dec. 23: One More Sleep ‘Til Christmas

MeL — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 21:01:22 +0000

Christmas is approaching fast, and today we open the second to last window of the Advent Calendar – and it’s only one more sleep ’til Christmas.

In Germany, the most important one of the Christmas holidays is Christmas Eve. That’s when the families come together, when the presents are handed out, and when – at least for me – Christmas actually begins.

So that’s why, even though technically Christmas doesn’t start until Saturday, for me, it’s only one more sleep til Christmas.

Dec. 22: Oh Holy Night

MeL — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 21:52:31 +0000

It’s time for another classic Christmas song, beautifully performed by Kelly Clarkson.

Something I wanted to do since I was a child – well, at least since watching Home Alone 2 ; ) – was to visit New York during the holiday season and see the big Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center.

A few years ago, I actually made that happen and had a fantastic time. When I found this clip of Kelly Clarkson performing “Oh Holy Night” at Rockefeller Center, I was reminded of that trip, which made it the perfect clip for this advent calendar. (Also, how amazing is Kelly Clarkson?)

Enjoy!

Dec. 21: One Special Night

MeL — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 22:05:02 +0000

In the movie “One Special Night”, Julie Andrews and James Garner prove that there’s no age limit when it comes to love.

When the late Blake Edwards brought together Julie Andrews and James Garner to play one of my favourite movie couples of all time in “Victor Victoria”, it wasn’t the first time the two actors worked together, and luckily, it also wasn’t the last time.

Almost 20 years later, in 1999, the two actors did another movie together called One Special Night, and again, they had so much chemistry and were so much fun to watch that it quickly became one of my must-see Christmas movies.

And thanks to the internet and YouTube, I can share it with you:

Dec. 20: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas… (Encore)

MeL — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 21:43:30 +0000

Same song, different singer

Much like “White Christmas”, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” is probably one of the most recorded Christmas songs out there. It seems like almost every musician has sung this song at least once in their career.

Here’ a version by the lovely Katie Melua: