The TakePart Top 10 Weekly Roundup is a compilation of the week’s most notable stories from our entertainment-meets-social-action blogging network. Check out our most popular articles of the week on a variety of subjects, as well as a few TakePart blogger favorites.

Katie:

Dean Karmen Shows Steven Colbert How To Filter Water

St Patricks Day Goes Green with Green Beer: Top 10 Eco Beers

* * *
Nicole:

East Meets West at Dubai Art Fair, But Shadow of Migrant Labor Remains

TakePart’s “I Am Voting For” Campaign Wants You To Vote the Issues

* * *
Giulia:

Simon Cowell Gives Big

Scarlett Johansson Dates For Charity

* * *
Gina:

Top 10 Easter Films

Top 10 Films That Have Helped to Frame the War in Iraq

* * *
Kerry:

Aqua Colbert Massage In a Bottle

Dakota the Mummified Duckbilled Dinosaur Gets Its Rocks Off

While there are tons of Christmas classics to tide us over cinematically in December, there are seemingly less films to keep us company during Easter weekend. However, below are ten films that either relate to Easter directly, happen around Easter time, feature an Easter scene or relate on a more philosophical level. No matter what mood you find yourself in this Easter weekend, one of the Top Ten Easter Films listed below is sure to please.

And in the spirit of Easter and learn how you and your family can spend Easter volunteering (before you watch a film of course).

1. The Passion of Joan of Arc : Carl Theodore Dreyer’s story of a young woman who sacrifices everything for her beliefs easily connects with the themes of forgiveness and sacrifice that define Easter:

With its stunning camerawork and striking compositions, Carl Th. Dreyer’s The Passion of Joan of Arc convinced the world that movies could be art. Renée Falconetti gives one of the greatest performances ever recorded on film, as the young maiden who died for God and France. Long thought to have been lost to fire, the original version was miraculously found in perfect condition in 1981″in a Norwegian mental institution. [Criterion]

Even the story of the films “rebirth” seems appropriate for the holiday.

Read the rest of this entry »

Our second installation of the TakePart Top 10 Weekly Roundup is here give you the very best of Katie, Nicole, Giulia, Gina and Kerry! More blogs means more to love this Valentine’s Day week, and more social action means a healthier and happier world for everyone. Check out our most popular posts of the week, as well as a few TakePart blogger favorites.

Katie:

5 Ways to Take Action and Get Action On Valentine’s Day

Top 10 Guilt-Free Valentine’s Day Jewelry Gifts: Show Your Valentine You Have a Heart

* * *
Nicole:

Kiva: Microlending to Change Lives

Top 10 New Releases to Inspire Social Change

* * *
Giulia:

Alicia Keys Uses Grammys to Help Keep a Child Alive

V-Day Celebrates Its 10 Year Anniversary!

* * *
Gina:

Top 10 Movie Characters That Make A Difference

Art As Politics In “The Silence Before Bach”

* * *
Kerry:

Tap Project Gets Donations Flowing For Safe Global Water

Levon Helms’ “Dirt Farmer” Wins Grammy Gold

Movies can do a lot of things, they can entertain us, they can educate us, they can take us somewhere new and now and then they can inspire us - they can tell stories about people who did what was right, who stood up and made a difference.

In that spirit, I give you a list of my Top 10 Movie Characters that Made a Difference. For this list I only used films made in the English language - I’ll work on a foreign film list soon. Some of the folks listed are based on real people, some are made up, some are successful in their ventures, some are not - either way, their efforts, their desire to set things right, is a difference in and of itself. Sometimes two characters in a movie worked together, so I listed both (but counted them as one) - this just goes to show how powerful working together can be.

So read on and let me know if I’ve missed one of your favorite inspirational characters - lucky for us movie-goers there are a lot out there.

______

1. Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird - I first saw this as a child, as many people do, and it changed the way I looked at the world, as I’m sure it does for many people. The story of a daughter recollecting her father’s defense of a black man who has been wrongly accused of rape is a true testament to doing what’s right. A clear example of standing up against injustice and prejudice, Atticus Finch is every little girl’s hero (and should be!)

to learn more about the rights defendants have, regardless of resources.

Read the rest of this entry »