The Great Debaters

Podcast--

http://sharing.theflip.com/session/94ae97c4e9a8229f24d45d5eba45f11b/video/91074321

Rating Scale!

1-Best
11-Worst

1. V for Vendetta
2. Shawshank Redemption
3. Rumor Has It
4. The Simpsons
5. The Graduate
6. The Great Debaters
7. Psycho
8. Cinema Paradiso
9. Ben Hur
10. Gone With The Wind
11. Citizen Cane

Shawshank Redemption

“Shawshank Redemption” is a movie filled with adventure and many underlying messages. This was one of my favorite films because of all the symbolism and hope that fills this movie. This movie was about a guy named Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins) who was convicted for murdering his wife and her so called lover, but he was always pleading his innocence. Unfortunately, no one listened or believed him. He is then sentenced to a life term at the Shawshank State Prison.

Another main character in this film is Red (Morgan Freeman), who also has to serve a life term in prison. Red acts as someone to look up to in the film. It seems as though everything looks at him for advice and he seems very knowledgeable. Red and Andy become exceptionally great friends and Andy seeks for advice in him and vice versa.

As Andy discovers the horrible life at prison he realizes that he is going to need to stand up for himself and not just be a pushover. It also seems that prisoners at that time really had look and listen for ways to impress the guards. Andy finally got his chance. He had the opportunity to tell the guard that he knew a lot about banking and documents and everything so he would be able to help him out. After that the guards treated Andy a little better. As time went on, Andy seemed to become more of a slave than a prisoner. The Warden always made him do the records for the prison and even clean his shoes. Finally, Andy had enough of that.

Throughout this film, there is a variety of symbolism that takes place. For example, the rain in this movie was a big symbol of cleansing and freedom. Also there is was an underlying message of hope. This movie was kind of like an allegory because this movie wasn’t really about just prison and what happens within those walls, it’s much more than that. I think that the underlying message was based on hope, and that if you lose hope in yourself, you are basically giving up on yourself and everything in life. You always need to keep hope because without hope, you have nothing. Throughout this film, Andy and Red always show hope and seem to never give up no matter what. Even though they are in prison, they have so much determination to someday get out of that awful place.  

I would rate this movie a 4.5 out of 5.

V for Vendetta

“Remember remember the fifth of November gunpowder, treason and plot. I see no reason why gunpowder, treason should ever be forgot.” In London, this rhythm has much more meaning to it than what you think. On the fifth of November in 1605, Guy Fawkes was caught in the cellars of the Houses of Parliament with several dozen barrels of gunpowder. He was tried as a traitor against his country and for plotting a terroristic attack against his government. Guy was sentenced to death and the form of the execution was one of the most horrendous that has ever been done. The movie V for Vendetta is based off of that tragedy. I thought this film was simply amazing. With all the symbols and fascism, it really does put more meaning to the movie.

From the very beginning of this movie, you are hooked. It is filled with so much action and mystery that you won’t want to look away. The main actors in this movie are V (Hugo Weaving) and Evey (Natalie Portman). The government in London is basically going crazy. They thought that their country would be better off with a curfew, so they had guys called “fingermen” out on the streets watching for people who were out past curfew. Natalie was one of those people who got caught and the figermen were going to do some awful things to her, if it wasn’t for “V” it would have happened. That is how V and Natalie meet and after that, they become very close, even though, they don’t know anything about each other. He helps her and she helps him in many different ways throughout the movie.

In this movie, there are many different symbols and different forms of fascism. The number 5 plays a huge role. It seems as though everything is based off that number. When the government people are talking to the Chancellor, there are 5 of them. When V is at his house, and is going to play this music player, there are over 200 songs he could have picked, and he picks number 5. Also, when they show the statue, there are 5 people that are on it. A very creative and interesting symbol was when Natalie is at V’s house eating breakfast, he serves her this piece of toast with an egg in the middle, and when she is at Gordon’s house, and he serves her the same thing. What this symbolizes, is when Natalie is in the jail cell, she has to wear this orange shirt, and she is laying in the middle of the floor in the fetal position and when the camera angle is facing down, it looks just like the breakfast that V and Gordon made her.

This movie was one of the best movies I had ever seen. It has a great underlying message and is filled with many symbols and shows a lot of fascism. I would definitely recommend this movie to people who are older because it is rated R, and there are some violent scenes. Knowing the background to this movie, made the movie even better and really put more meaning to it. I would rate this movie 4.5 out of 5.

The Simpsons Movie

5 Examples of Irony: 1.“The book doesn’t have any answers”--Homer
2. “If you can’t believe in me, believe in America”—Homer (all the Mexican restaurant signs and Chinese signs are around when he said
that)
3. “Don’t look where I’m pointing”—Random lady
4. Bart is drinking and says, “I’m troubled, I’ll
stop tomorrow”.
5. There is a sign that says “God Bless this house”;
meanwhile it is being destroyed into the sinkhole.

5 Examples of Puns:
1. Dome Depot
2. Dome Sweet Dome
3.Grand Theft Walrus
4. We are domed!
5.Trapaccinio

Top 5 quotes:
1.  “Maybe we should kiss to break the tension” –
Homer
2. “ The government actually found someone they
were looking for”—Some guy on the computer
3. “We have a great life here in Alaska, and we're
never going back to America again”—Homer
4. “If you can find a greasier sandwich, you're in
Mexico”—Krusty the Clown
5. [after the Simpsons' house collapses into the
sink hole] They're China's problem now “—Chief Wiggum

6 Examples of Parody:
1.The Green Day stage was sinking, like the Titanic.
2. The monkey off of the Phantom of Opera.
3. Snow white—when all the deer, squirrels, chipmunks
undressed Homer and Marg
4.How the Grinch Stole Christmas—When Homer was
running up the hill mushing the dogs in Alaska
5. When Bart put a bra on his head, which imitated
Mickey Mouse.
6.Harry Plopper—as in Harry Potter
7. Spider Pig—Spider Man

6 Examples of Satire:1. “The government actually found someone they were
looking for”
2. Stuck between a rock and a hard place
3. The president is blindly choosing what to do
4. “I was elected to read, not lead”
5. They guys says “Code Black! That’s the worst color!” Then he turns to the black guy next to him and says “sorry Carl”. Then Carl says, “it's ok I get that a lot”.
6. When Marg says to her daughter who is angry, “You’re
a woman, you can hold onto it forever”

PHS PARADISO

 "Once a Yellowjacket, always a Yellowjacket"

This quote and picture show that we are who we are, and where we come from stays with us forever.

Trying our best will make us go far in life, and will help us to succeed in our future endeavors.



Wheather we are coming or going, we will always have PHS memories in our hearts.

Opening and closing these lockers in Senior Hall signify the effort and struggles it takes to reach what we  strive for; graduation.

As we grow up, we ascend like the levels of "The Box"; empowering ourselves to become mature adults in life.



No matter where you are in life, you will be faced with tradegy and tears, only to make you stronger.

We entrust others to help us go forward in life in order to bring us to where we need to be.

Leaders. They are what it takes to achieve and believe!

The Graduate

The 1967 film, The Graduate asks the generation, “Are you going to be like your parents?”  This film often shows how before 1967, parents had a big influence on the way their children acted and thought. This movie marked the period of time when children started to make their own decisions and stand up for their own beliefs and values, instead of parroting their parents. I really enjoyed watching this movie because it was very funny and I never quite knew what was going to happen next.

Ben Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) is the main character of this film. He is what one would call socially awkward. Hoffman’s great acting makes the movie a hilarious film. Ben has just finished college and is coming back home for awhile to “think” about his future. His parents are planning on him attending graduate school. The first scene in the movie emphasizes how back in 1967, parents tried their hardest to tell their children what to do and how to run their lives. Ben’s parents throw him this huge college graduation party.  One might assume that since it is a party for Ben, Ben’s friends would be there. Well, not in this case. The guests include Ben’s parent’s friends and they wouldn’t leave Ben alone. One will often see Ben making up excuses to leave the party to go and do something. He did whatever it took to get himself out of the room.

At the party, another main character comes into play, Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft). She is one of Ben’s parents dear friend and her husband is Ben’s father’s business partner. She comes into the movie when Ben goes upstairs to his room to get away from the party for awhile. She is a very scandalous woman who was looking for some attention from Ben. While she is up in Ben’s room, she asks Ben if he would give her a ride home because she has a little bit of a drinking problem. However, once they arrive at Mrs. Robinson’s home, she keeps making up excuses for Ben to have to come in the house. Once she gets him in the house she offers him a drink. Ben knew that she was seducing him, but for some reason he just couldn’t say NO!

As the movie goes along, there are many hysterical scenes of Ben and Mrs. Robinson together. Their relationship has been going on for 2 months now, mostly taking place in the Taft Hotel, and that is when Mrs. Robinson’s daughter, Elaine ( Katharine Rose) comes into the movie. Elaine is a young, beautiful girl who is surprisingly single. I feel that Mrs. Robinson thought her daughter was a threat because she made Ben promise her that he wouldn’t ever see her daughter Elaine, let alone take her out on a date. But as many of you would guess, Ben can’t resist Elaine once his father made him take her out on a date. At first he was very upset about the whole idea of taking his lover’s daughter out on a date, but after awhile, he got use to it. As the end of the movie arrives, there are some very great scenes with a lot of symbolism. Try to figure out what the directors are trying to prove with the underlying symbols that are involved with this film. 


As this movie twists and turns to the finish line, it really shows how times have changed. Today parents have little control over their children and their children and their children’s future once he or she graduates from high school. It’s interesting how much times have really changed. This movie is a great example of that. I very much enjoyed this movie because of the great acting and hilarious scenes. I think that even though this is an older movie, it is one that everyone should watch because it is a great comedy and most people would probably enjoy it.

Psycho

Thriller, mystery, and suspense are the three words that sum up this movie. “Psycho” is a true story based on Ed Gein from Plainville Wisconsin. It was is the number one movie in horror and is directed and written by Alfred Hitchcock. Alfred Hitchcock has a variety of movies, but most of his movies are in the genre, horror. I would definitely recommend this movie because it keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout the entire movie. It is a 1960 horror, so don’t expect the graphics and special effects you are use to in the horrors nowadays.

The main character in this movie is Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) and she is unhappy with how her life is treating her. She has a boyfriend, Sam, who is paying off his divorce and doesn’t want to marry her because he doesn’t want her to live in the back of a hardware store for the rest of their life. This leads to some dishonest actions she does at work, and mysteriously takes off. On her way to see Sam, she goes through some pretty interesting experiences.

One late, rainy night she pulls into a motel to stay and expects to leave right in the morning. This is when Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) makes his first appearance. The reaction that one might get from Norman Bates might be friendly and cheery, but later on one’s reaction will definitely change. Norman Bates has some serious issues and needs some help from a psychologist. When Marion arrives at the motel, Norman welcomes her and offers to make her some supper. While she is eating, Norman reveals some curious stories about his mother. Marion is alarmed by these stories and tells Norman that she needs to go to her room and go to sleep. I think one knows how the story goes from there.  

I would definitely recommend this movie because you keep you on the edge of your chair throughout the entire film.  Also in this movie, the director Alfred Hitchcock, is deathly afraid of birds, so as your watch this film look for birds in the background at some parts. It is really unique and interesting how he put his biggest fear in a movie. From the suspenseful music to the creepy setting, this is the number one horror movie. So one should watch it and see how times have changed in the genre, horror.

I would rate the movie “Psycho” 4 out of 5.

Ben-Hur

As one follows the twists and the turns of the life of the Jewish prince, Ben-Hur, one will embark on a journey of adventure, drama, and action. Ben Hur is not only the number one Academy Award Winning film, but it also involves the original ship scene and original chase scene that you have watched in a variety of other movies. I would most definitely recommend this movie, but probably not until you are a young adult. This movie will keep you questioning what is going to happen next from start to finish.
The main character is Jedah Ben-Hur (Charlton Heston), who lives as a rich Jewish prince and merchant in Jerusalem at the beginning of first century. All is fine and dandy until his old friend, Messala (Stephen Boyd) comes back to Jerusalem. This is the point when everything goes bad. Messala and Ben have very different political views, and this is what leads Messala to say, “You are either for me or against me”.  Ben Hur would never choose anything over his people, not even his best friend. Ben Hur said that he would rather be a fool than a trader. Ben is a character that shows love and commitment for his people no matter what he is offered. He went through many sufferings and torture throughout the movie because of his decision to be against Messala.
Ben Hur, being the Jewish prince of his people, resembles the characteristics that Jesus has. Jesus mysteriously shows up periodically throughout the movie, helping and sometimes even saving Ben’s life. However, it is interesting because you never once see Jesus’s face.  Throughout the movie, I think they were trying to show that Ben and Jesus have some very strong similarities.  Like Jesus, Ben is all for his people. He cares more about other people’s lives than his own; no matter if he is risking his entire life for that person. As the movie progresses, one sees more and more similarities between Jesus and Ben Hur.
Even though this movie is older, and it doesn’t have the greatest special effects or color, I would definitely recommend this movie. For 1959, with such a limited technology, it is an outstanding movie; with a great plot filled with many memorable scenes. There are scenes in this movie where one might think they have had to use special effects, but in reality they didn’t. It must have taken them a very long time to put this movie together. It is unbelievable that they built the stadium for the chariot scene just for this movie. They put a lot of hard work into this movie, and did a fantastic job. “Ben-Hur” is not only the number one Academy Award winner, but it also has won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Supporting Actor.
My rating for “Ben Hur” is a 4 out of 5.
***Thank you to http://www.starpulse.com/Movies/Ben-Hur/Summary/, for you information.

Gone with the Wind

“After all tomorrow is another day”, is a popular quote recited by Scarlet from the movie "Gone with the Wind,” the number one box office film of all time. I firmly believe that this film should be viewed by everyone, not only because of its phenomenal historical story line, but because it is a classic. For me, living in the twenty-first century, it is a very slow moving movie, however, I really enjoyed watching the story unfold throughout the turbulent Civil War time. With the movies that we all are accustomed to viewing in this day and age, the camera angle switches every five to seven seconds, but in this 1939 film, the camera angle switches on average about every 30 seconds. Also, present-day movie watchers are used to more action and better special effects. I would have to say that the fire scene was quite impressive at the time the movie was made.

This movie was basically based on Scarlet O’ Harra, who had essentially everything she needed and more. Scarlet and her family were considered one of the wealthiest families in Atlanta, Georgia-before the Civil war, that is. Scarlet was the girl who had all the boys wrapped around her finger, but none of them were what she wanted. She wanted Ashley Wilkes. He was married and living a blissful life.  She settled for Rhett Butler. Some may say she was just settling for him because of his money. After the Civil War her family had practically nothing. Scarlet had no idea how to live a poor life. As time went on she struggled with the fact that their family had no money. This made Scarlet do some desperate things to get what she wanted.  After all, ‘desperate times, call for desperate measures!’

Even though Rhett knew that Scarlet was in love with Ashley, he did all he could to get Scarlet to love him. Scarlet had no intentions of falling in love with Rhett until after she was desperate and poor after the war. That was when Scarlet finally decided if she was ever going to have money again, she was going to have to marry Rhett. So, finally Rhett got what he wanted; Scarlet. And Scarlet got what she wanted; money. Now that Rhett had what he wanted, he was finally satisfied, but Scarlet shows throughout the film how she is never going to be content. Rhett will give her many gifts and treat her with respect, but all Scarlet does is push him away. She's one of the lucky ones; She has money and a husband who adores her, and yet she is still NOT content! It was very frustrating to watch some scenes during the movie because of how Scarlet acted and treated people who loved her.

I definitely would recommend this movie to everyone because of the fantastic story line. It is a timeless classic that shows how things were in the past, and how things have changed. It was very interesting to compare this movie to the movies we are used to watching now. This movie was the first to appear with color-with only the colors red and green though. It is unbelievable how complex and advanced our technology has come within the last 50 years. We went from silent films to movies with audio, black and white films to colored film,  from VHS to DVD to blu ray, and now we are moving to 3D viewing. It really makes me appreciate how much time and work it must have taken to make "Gone with the Wind" and to know how easy we have things now, especially when it comes to special effects.

My ratings for "Gone with the Wind" is a three out of five stars.