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Update on YSL.com reviewer
Eddie Szewczyk is now college
senior
Eddie
Szewczyk |
Eddie Szewczyk was 13 and doing movie reviews for
Radio Disney when he agreed to do a spot movie review
of the first Harry Potter movie for Young
Saint Louis.com.
The Belleville native turned 20 last month and
he's now a senior at Penn State University.
YSL.com and Eddie are continuing to follow
the phenomena that is Harry Potter.
Eddie's on semester break so he's available to
review the 6th Harry Potter movie, "Harry Potter
and the Half-Blood Prince." That movie opened to
the public on Wednesday, July 15. (To read the
current review, click
here.)
YSL.com and Eddie attended a critic's showing
of the movie on Monday, July 13, and then rushed
his review onto the website. Hopefully, you'll get
a chance to read the review even before you see
the movie.
Or you might like to check Eddie's take on the
movie after seeing it in person.
Eddie said, "I still love Harry Potter. J. K. Rowling
has created such an alternate world that everyone
wants to escape into it."
He said his fascination with Harry Potter has continued
unabated throughout his own development from an
early teenager into a college senior.
One of the reasons is that Eddie has continued
his pursuit of a career in acting all during that
time.
The
cast of "304" (Eddie is seated front
right) |
One of the recent developments has been his starring
role in a student-produced sitcom production at
Penn State. The show is titled "304" after the address
of a house where six young people are "living on
their own."
He said two episodes were filmed before he came
home for summer break. The cast is scheduled to
film more episodes in the fall.
Eddie said the sitcom is to be aired on the PSU
TV station next school year.
Eddie said his character is named Daniel Donovan,
who Eddie describes as "an arrogant, pompus, politician-type."
His character is a member of the college student
council but loses in his bid for re-election.
The cast of the show are evenly divided, three
men and three women.
His girlfriend in the show is also a council member,
but she gets re-elected. That leads to a breakup
between the two.
He said the show is supposed to be a "heightened
reality" production that probably would earn it
an X-rating, "as you'd imagine for a college production."
Two years ago, when Eddie was back in St. Louis,
he and a bunch of his high school friends took part
in a 48-hour Film Project. That involved writing,
acting in, producing and filming an original movie
in 48 hours.
(If you'd like to read that story,
click here. The story was a sidebar to Eddie's
review of the 5th Harry Potter film, "Harry Potter
and the Order of the Phoenix.")
Before the next Harry Potter movie is ready for
showing, Eddie will have graduated from college
and be trying to make his own mark in the film industry.
"I'll be heading for California," he said.
Eddie is realistic about his chances. "I know there
are few jobs in the industry and lots of other people
competing for them. I've certainly heard many of
the stories about the 'starving artists.'"
But, he said he's wanted to have a career in acting
for years and needs to find out if he can make it
happen.
In preparation, Eddie already has an agent in California.
That's a holdover from some of his early efforts
as a kid actor.
Also, in his studies at Penn State, Eddie has
included classes involving other facets of the theater
industry.
He said he will have a class in his senior year
titled "The Business of the Business." That class
will introduce the students to business side of
the film and theater industry, he said.
But, he admits he's going to be going into the
business world without a Plan B. That is, he hasn't
thought of alternatives if his acting dream doesn't
work out.
Eddie said he had a class last year where professional
actor Joe Pentiliano urged the kids not have a Plan
B. Pentiliano has appeared in such successful TV
series as The Sopranos.
The actor urged the students to devote all their
efforts to their primary goal. He said having a
Plan B can cause the actor not to devote the total
effort or to quit too soon.
Eddie said, "An acting career just seems so beneficial
to me even though the odds are so much against my
being successful. This career just seems so right
to me."
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(After viewing the latest Harry Potter film at a special
critics' showing Monday, July 14, our movie reviewer from
Belleville, IL, filed this report. Eddie has reviewed
all of the previous Harry Potter movies for YSL.com)
The
Half-Blood Prince, based upon the penultimate book
in the 7-book series, opens with a haunting montage of
photos depicting Harry posing with Professor Dumbledore
for the Daily Prophet paparazzi. Harry, now dubbed "The
Chosen One," has aroused serious speculation that he is
the only one that can successfully battle and defeat the
dark Lord Voldemort.
To
add more to the mystery, Harry stumbles upon a tattered,
old textbook that seems to offer insight and clues to
many questions in the defense of the dark arts. The book,
cryptically noted as belonging to the Half Blood Prince,
contained secret notes, spells and magic that was apparently
kept from the "good wizards" and only known to the "bad
wizards."
As
if all of this wasn't enough, the drama and intrigue of
teenage relationships has finally reared its ugly head
in the halls of Hogwarts, as we see Ron fall in love,
Hermoine run from love and, in the end, love runs them
toward each other.