By Isaac Mathewson
When I was on vacation in New York City last year, I saw a man walking around Times Square with a bucket of money and a sign strapped on to him saying “Legalize Weed.” I couldn’t help but notice that the bucket was about 2/3 full and counting and there were dollar bills as high as $10 and I might have even seen a $20. That had me thinking, “There must be a lot of people who support the legalization of marijuana.”
By Danielle Sheally
Having two hundred brothers and sisters is a lot but in reality it can happen.
Every year a new round of seniors come in, and every year hearts get broken. The reason we get so attached to the upperclassmen is because we look up to the individuals. We create a bond that can be everlasting because some of these students have been with us through a lot of ups and downs throughout high school. We admire them because they’re about ready to start their journey in the next part of their lives but, we have only begun. Every student wants to be in their position, about ready to graduate and leaving high school forever.
By Isaac Mathewson
I have sought a career in Hollywood as a screenwriter and director since childhood. However, seeing that I cannot go there for several more years until I finish college, I mostly stick to writing movie reviews or film related topics. I also spend time reading and watching reviews from other critics as a means of teaching myself how to write a good movie and to avoid previous mistakes of others. One of my favorite film critics is Doug Walker, creator and star of the hit web series The Nostalgia Critic.
The show is a comedy/review series about an angry film critic who reviews movies and T.V. shows from his childhood, the 1980s and 90s, and sulks over the ones whom he feels had not held up well. He often goes into great detail about problems he has with the movies and shows that he reviews and he sometimes goes into over-the-top tantrums whenever one of them proves to be too horrendous. Apart from reviews, he also has Top 11’s (because he likes to go one step beyond) on film and T.V. related topics and he also does “Old vs. New” in which he compares a “nostalgic classic” with a remake (i.e. The Ten Commandments vs. The Prince of Egypt). In almost every episode, he opens with his catchphrase: “Hello, I’m the Nostalgia Critic. I remember it so you don’t have to.”
The Nostalgia Critic is a satire and parody series. Apart from obvious parodies of other movies, there are many episodes which shows the Critic getting into bizarre situations that have something to do with the movie he is currently watching/reviewing. These situations include battles with famous film characters and even Hollywood’s “attempts” on world domination.
Walker’s philosophy of the show is that everyone needs a nostalgia critic, because we all are in some way. We all have seen movies and shows from our childhood that we either were excited about seeing and were disappointed by, or that we have liked as kids, but looking back, we wonder what we even saw in them. This philosophy is how he got his name.
Walker has reviewed many movies and shows and while not all of his reviews are negative, he always points out what upsets him the most and sometimes he goes on huge rants about the elements that are just too ridiculous to accept. Some of his most famous reviews are: Garbage Pail Kids, Batman and Robin, The Room, and Moulin Rouge. He is famous for his detailed descriptions, as well as bringing up points that haven’t been brought up before. Most importantly, he has come up with some of the most famous inside jokes on the Internet, among the most notable “Bat Credit Card” from his Batman and Robin review and “Bunny Boobies” from his Space Jam review.
The show has been on the web for about seven years, although at one point it was cancelled by Walker, but brought back. He posts a new video almost every week, which is quite impressive considering the short amount of time he comes up with these ideas. It can be found on YouTube, as well as on his website: That Guy with the Glasses. On the website, there are also other shows, hosted by his friends and partners, that deal with similar topics, including Nostalgia Chick, Cinema Snob, and Bum Reviews. While I enjoy most of them, I still believe that the Nostalgia Critic is the best. He has many fans inside the entertainment industry such as Christopher Lloyd, the creators of Animaniacs and Gargoyles, the late Roger Ebert, who called his tribute to Siskel and Ebert video the funniest review of the show he had ever seen, and former child actress Mara Wilson, who has made several guest appearances on his show and its sister shows.
While I do not agree with everything he says, I still believe that he writes great reviews that are both funny and informative. It is not a show for everyone, as some may be aggravated from his foul language and his tendency to raise his voice and get angry. However, if you were a kid who grew up during his time period who watched these shows and movies, or if you are a film buff and/or intend to go into the entertainment industry, this is a show that I highly recommend you to watch. It is simply one of the best web series in history.
By Isaac Mathewson
Whenever a film adaptation of a famous book is released, there is almost always someone who’s quick to say “It’s not as good as the book.” Others, especially younger people, will say “You can’t understand the film unless you read the book.”
This issue has been present since the beginning of cinema. There are people who defend either side, with some defending both as they are separate art forms that are equal in value, and others who say that there really is not much room for two, you have to pick one or the other. This has led to a rising conflict between the two biggest art forms in the world — film and literature.
The truth is that both of them have strengths and weaknesses and they should be looked at in different angles. Literature gives better descriptions as well as an opportunity to learn new things and create imagination, all while telling a good story. Film is more to be enjoyed for admiration for the actors as well as all the hard work that goes into the making and writing of them. Both are terrific art forms that stimulate the mind and help people think.
However, that is not what the general public takes issue with. Many people believe that film is solely for entertainment and that only literature has any educational or artistic value. I find that statement to be absolutely appalling, because film packs a great amount of artistic value and there are many great careers in the industry. Cinema is a very young form of art and many older people who grew up on folklore and literature often tend to dismiss it as overblown rubbish. Fortunately, there are many people who support film as they consider it a very important form of art and is a new look on classic stories brought to life in different ways.
Of course, as I mentioned earlier, there are many people who say that movies that are adaptations of classic works can never be seen as their own story. They believe that books are virtually entirely better than movies. Again, I cannot agree with that statement because many films based off of books have worked perfectly well on their own, such as The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Gone with the Wind. It all really comes down to which version was really better, the book or the movie, neither one is better simply because of their art form.
Another thing worth mentioning is whether it’s necessary for an audience member to see the book that the film is based on in order to understand it. I say this as an experienced critic and writer, it is not. I have seen many movies based off of books, and I haven’t read the books to most of them. These include some of my favorite movies such as The Silence of the Lambs, GoodFellas, A Clockwork Orange,and even the original Godfather, and I can still get through these films just fine. Maybe some movies nowadays are for people who read the books, such as The Hunger Games and Divergent, and if that were the case, I’d like these movies less. But in all honesty, sometimes that’s the fun of cinema, not knowing about what you are watching and where it came from and seeing it in a new and different way.
It really all goes down to opinion. In reality, no art form is better than the other, just the work that they depict. The main question shouldn’t be which is better; books or movies? The question should be: which version did it better; the book or the movie. There are people who prefer one form over the other and that is perfectly fine. However, no one should hate on either because they are entirely different.
By Delaney Smith.
Walking through the cemetery and noticing the different headstones, for me, is a surreal experience. As I read all the names and quotes on these cold stones of the people who are put to rest here for eternity, I start to wonder. I wonder what their lives could have been like, how their loved ones remember them, and what they did to make their lives important to the world.
One thing that really stands out to me are the years that are engraved just below the name. It has the person’s birth year and the year that he or she died, with only a little line in between. That little line represents everything that that person did with his or her life.
That line is their legacy and every memory that they left behind with the people they could not take with them. It’s every birthday, every broken heart, every little smile and tear drop that happened in their lives. This represents all of their time spent in this world. We only get to stay here for so long, so why waste a single second that we have been blessed with?
As teenagers we tend to focus only on ourselves and our futures, which can be good at times, but what about others who are not as fortunate as we are? We center our lives on petty problems such as a bad grade or a broken heart. Spending so much time and energy on these trivial issues that seem like such a catastrophe to us at the time, but on a larger scale are not of any real importance.
These moments are nothing that we are going to look back on at the end of our lives and give much worth to. However, just a few moments of our time spent on something with a greater meaning, such as community service or just giving a hand to someone who really needs it, can change someone’s life forever. This gives us self pride that we will give worth to in the long run. It also can give other people a better opportunity to change the world in anyway that they are able to.
Making this a better place for others can give our short life some real meaning in this world and we can be remembered for it long after our timeline ends. People are remembered and immortalized for their acts of kindness and bravery that they accomplished in their limited time on Earth.
People throughout history have earned and achieved the status of American heros for the things that they did with their lives to help others. These men and women also helped to change the future, making it into the society we have today. Everyone has the potential to make a real difference with their little line. What will you do with yours?