Movie Review Homework

Disney’s new take on The Jungle Book is gorgeous but under-conceived

1. The AV Club

2. Ignatiy Vishnevetsky

3. I'd rate the movie review an 8/10.

4. The review really stresses how good the filming and screenplay is, from the realism of the animals to the talent of the scenes.

5. Although this movie is very good, the review criticizes how the film doesn't contain any of its own elements. The movie is simply a remake of the old film, making it less original.

6. "...there are no moments of weightless perspective; perhaps what makes The Jungle Book so convincing—so effective as simulation—is that the camera never defies an audience’s expectations of how a real camera moves, even though it’s not always a real camera, or how real animals look, and even though there are no real animals."

The Huntsman: Winter’s War is more fun than its wan predecessor

1. The AV club

2. Jesse Hassenger

3. I'd say the movie was rated a 6 or 7 out of 10.

4. The author of this article claims, as I haven't personally seen the movie, that it had better pacing, livelier characters, and special effects than its previous films.

5. Some low points that the author expresses are that the movie feels old-fashioned, and that the actors could have been better.

6. "It’s inarguably a waste of time; both its stars and its audience probably deserve better. But sometimes wasting time can be fun in the right company."

Movie Review Prep

1. The main character's I'd expect to see are Richard (Captain) Phillips, Mike Perry, the four main Somali pirates.
2.    I predict that this movie will be action packed and at sea. Captain Phillips' ship was warned to keep  their ships away from the coast, but when the ship was too close to a port, four Somali pirates boarded the ship. As the pirates made their way around the boat, the ship crew took shelter in different rooms and attempted to get the pirates off of their boat.
       Eventually, the pirates were captured  and sent to be released, but after the boat refused to start, Captain Phillips was taken with the pirates.As Phillips continued to be held hostage, the Navy SEAL and other services attempted to rescue their Captain, as his life was in danger. Eventually, the pirates were killed, and one was sentenced to 30+ years in prison, and Captain Phillips was rescued.
3. This story is important because it shows that the unexpected can happen at any time, and a person needs to be prepared for it. Captain Phillips even reflected how "in that area of the world, any blip on your radar is of concern. I always told my crew it was a matter of when, not if."
4. The pirates tried to take the ship because there was an immense load of cargo boarded on the ship (5,000 metric tons of relief supplies to be exact).

1. The most important actors in the film are Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi, Michael Chernus, David Warshofsky, and Yul Vasquez.
2. This movie has an average rating of 8.3 out of 10.
3. Paul Greengrass directed this movie.
4. This movie was produced by Scott Rudin,  Dana Brunetti and Michael De Luca.
5. This movie won Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Barkhad Abdi), Best Edited Feature Film - Dramatic, Top Ten Films of the Year, Outstanding Supporting Actor (Barkhad Abdi), Outstanding Breakthrough Performance - Male (Barkhad Abdi), Supporting Actor of the Year (Barkhad Abdi), Best Sound Editing, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
6. This movie cost $55 million.
7. ??
8. Rotten Tomatoes said that the movie was "smart, powerfully acted, and incredibly intense, Captain Phillips offers filmgoers a Hollywood biopic done right—and offers Tom Hanks a showcase for yet another brilliant performance", as well as "fresh" and rated an 83/100 on the Metacritic site.

iMovie Project Questions

1.  On the websites I viewed, I learned about the basic functions of iMovie ranging from simply importing video footage to adding cool effects and titles. As explained, these functions will serve as the baseline to creating any unique video I come up with. There are different sections in the iMovie program. These include the timeline, clipboard, and video screen.
    There are also many different buttons and controls on the iMovie software that can change the view options. These can change how you view the timeline or edit modes. When publishing, you are taught how to change the format of the video to make it accessible on many players.
2. I already knew how to import and add videos to the timeline in order to edit.
3. One thing that I didn't know before but know now is that there's a button to change the way you view clips. I didn't know that you could change the timeline from entire clips to how long they are.
4. With this final project, I'm mostly concerned with finding a topic that will work for me. Also with the topic, I think a struggle could be finding time to shoot. Once I get the base idea and coverage, the editing should come very easy.
5. I am confident that I can complete the editing in good time. I am familiar with the iMovie software, and I feel I can get plentiful coverage to use.
6. I might do a project revolving around paining or adventurous things, but I need to think about it a lot.

CE 6.1

1. Harriet Tubman is replacing Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill.
2. The Texas teachers union is suing the head of the state education agency over a new evaluation system tying teachers' scores to the students' scores on specialized tests.
3. 8 people have died in the Houston floods.
4. The subject matter is algae.
5. 4 of the 6 ways to change the look of your room is to change the layout, paint your room a different color, get window treatments, and get new rugs that work well with your room.

Short Answers:

When I heard about this story, I was appalled. How could people know about this lead contamination,  and instead of fixing the issue with some expenses, simply cover it up? Who does that? I heard about this incident in my geography class earlier this year when we watched a video regarding it, so I already know about it. The video showed a new aspect of the situation by helping me see the water after it was affected, which made the problem seem worse. I think that the people who knew about the contamination should definitely be fined, or punished of some sort. They shouldn't be able to poison people, knowing that they're doing so, and get away without punishment. I think that's just wrong on so many levels. Since children were affected, I think the consequence should be stronger as well. In my opinion, everyone involved in the incident should be punished, title or not. If the governor or other high-title people knew about the situation, that's almost worse, because they have the power to change the situation for the better. For them not to do that definitely deserves a consequence.

Free Write

Prompt 17 - 

I thought today was going to be like any other. Man, was I wrong.

I trudged home from a long day of work, my shift ending only a few minutes ago. My backpack grew heavy on my shoulders and my eyes stung from staring at a computer screen all day. I couldn't wait until I was able to quit my job and move to a new city, away from the people and the stress. As I neared my ever so welcoming home, my eye was caught on a shadow across the street. The human-like shadow darted to the left, deeper into the alley. I know I should have just gone inside, but my curiosity got the best of me. Making my way across the barren street, I peered into the midst of the alley, looking for any sign of movement. Nothing. Shrugging, I turned as to head back to my house. All of the sudden, a cool breeze came from behind me that sent shivers down my spine. Something was behind me.

Then everything went black.

 -- Beep! Beep! Beep! --

I woke to the familiar sound of my alarm clock. Throwing my arm over to where my clock stood, I went through my usual routine; snoozing until my mother pounded on the door and insisted I get up, or be late for school. However, when I cast my arm toward my nightstand, I found only air. That's weird. With sleep still lingering, I opened my eyes. Instantly, I sat up, my mind suddenly alert. This wasn't my room. This wasn't my furniture, or even my alarm clock. Sh*t, where is that thing? After searching for what seemed like hours trying to find that piercing noise, I spotted it perched on a dresser. Figures. With the new silence that filled the room, my mind tried to process what the hell was going on. I made my way to the door, and opening it, I found myself in a house - my house - but with new furniture. I raced to the front door, eager to find something, anything, familiar. Nothing. As I made my way outside, I darted to my neighbor's house where I had spent countless hours with my best friend. Impatiently ringing the doorbell, the door finally opened and my friend stood, still in her pajamas and eating an apple.

"Oh my god, Frankie, it's you! I thought everything was gone, but you're here and where the hell is my family?" I rambled on, but my best friend stared at my with wide eyes.

"Um, I feel bad for asking, but um, who are you?" Frankie asked.

What? "Frankie, it's me, Riley Jackson... Your best friend? I live right next door.."

"No one with the last name Jackson has ever lived next to me, I'm sorry. Are you new to the neighborhood?"

"What? No, Frankie, I live there... I always have. I live with my parents and two sisters. We've gone to school together for the past nine years?.." Frankie continued to stare, confusion present on her face. 

What the hell happened last night?

Photoshop Woman

my original picture said that it needed to be "rasterized", so I tried to work around it.

Lone Star Dispatch Issue #5

Front Page - PALS mentor elementary students

Students at Bowie High School are part of the PALS organization that assists elementary school students. The PALS work on encouraging, mentoring, and motivating their PALees. This organization has taught PAL members the idea of leadership and being a role model to others.

Who - PAL members
What - help students at local elementary schools
Where - elementary schools
When - this school year
Why - to become close with their "PALees" and help them
How - the PALS listen and work on understanding their PALees current situation as well as motivating and encouraging them

Quoted: Amy Cox
Alejandro Garcia
Macy Hartman

Strongest Quote: (from Hartman) "Being a PAL this year has really caused me to be very grateful for the things and opportunities I have, as well as changed my perspective on life. Talking to my PALees about their situations make the things I stress over seem very insignificant, which has caused me to worry less about the small things."

Yes, the lead sentence makes me want to read more.

Quote

Student Life - Freshman Andrea Findley's family travels to Uganda and Rwanda to study war and help the disadvantaged

This past summer, freshman Andrea Findley traveled to Uganda and Rwanda to help people with struggles they were experiencing. The family's eyes were opened by the conditions of these Ugandan and Rwandan people, and got a taste of the conditions of the people. This experience made the family, especially Mike Findley, want to help more disadvantaged people and encourage other Americans to do the same.

Who - Andrea Findley & family
What - went to Uganda and Rwanda
When - This past summer from June-July
Where - Uganda and Rwanda
Why - to study the war and help the disadvantaged
How - they donated money, visited schools, houses, etc.

Quoted - Mike Findley
Andrea Findley

Strongest Quote: (from Mike Findley) "I learn and grow as much or more as they do. It's very difficult to see so much poverty and suffering, but I always come back with hope that things will improve and people's' lives will get better. But we need everyone here in the U.S. to be more thoughtful and active in trying to help others."

Yes, the lead was very interesting and made me want to read more.

Quote

News - Seniors receive nostalgia with four-year-old letters

Students at Bowie High School were recently given back their future senior letters that their past selves wrote in freshman year. This time capsule of a letter brought back memories, and also helped some students realize how much they've grown and how mature they have gotten. English teacher Shari Blevins thinks this is a valuable lesson to students that need to realize how prepared for the world they are.

Who - Seniors
What - got back future senior letters
When - this school year, distributed during english classes
Where - James Bowie High School
Why - to see how much has changed and grown and to take stress off of the seniors.
How - the english teachers stored the letters in bins in their rooms where they redistributed the letters in the seniors' english classes.

Quoted:Shari Blevins
Kandice Cox
Angelica Saenz

Strongest Quote: (by Cox) "The letter showed me that I can do something to change my life and make it better. When I was in freshman year I would have never thought that my high school years would have gone by so fast, and these four years were just so much fun. I made amazing friends, had influential teachers, and a great group of people to help guide me towards college."

No, the sentence structure was very confusing. The only thing making me want to keep reading was the topic itself.

Statement

Sports - Coach Ingram leads team to victory

The Bowie basketball team has been very successful this school year, but it wasn't without the help of coach Stephen Ingram. Ingram has been coaching basketball for 27 years, and also teaches math at Bowie. The team has gained valuable strategies from their coach, and they see a positive future for Ingram with whatever he chooses to do.

Who - Coach Stephen Ingram
What - coaches basketball and has been very successful
when - this year, but has been coaching for the past 27 years
where - JBHS
why - to help the basketball team in their season
how - he coaches the team during fourth and eighth period with valuable strategies

Quoted: Stephen Ingram
Howard Thompson

Strongest Quote: (by Howard) "Ingram has a personality of doing what is needed and necessary and not be a problem."

No, the topic sentence didn't make me want to keep reading.

Quote

Entertainment - Band director set to move to a new school at year's end

At the end of this school year, band director Kim Shuttlesworth has decided to move to a new high school. This decision has saddened some students, but overall, Shuttlesworth has received tremendous support from the band members. The members will continue to remember her lessons and methods as the years progress.

who - Kim Shuttlesworth
what - will be moving to a new school
when - the end of the school year
where - JBHS, moving to outskirts of north Austin
why - to start a program at a new high school
how - by quitting and moving to the new school

quoted: Kim Shuttlesworth
Gianna Nuckols
Lauren Anderson
Danny Cruz

Strongest Quote: (by Anderson) "Ms. Shuttlesworth has not only pushed me to improve my music skills everyday, but she has taught me how to work for something bigger than myself. I will always be grateful for the lessons she provided us, and I know her dedication to the band program will continue to resonate within the students in the years to come."

Yes, I wanted to read more after the lead.

Quote

Commentary - Social media, back at it again

A social media trend going around has been the ever so famous "Damn Daniel" videos. These videos have created such a buzz, that the two fourteen year olds became famous, going on the ellen show and receiving a lifetime supply of vans. However, the two boys decided to put their fame to use and donate the shoes to a children's hospital in California.

Who - Josh and Daniel
what - made a video about "Damn Daniel" and became famous
when - a few weeks ago
where - on social media/snapchat
why - Josh started the videos as a joke, and became famous
how - the videos became very popular online

No quotes

No, the lead wasn't super interesting.

Statement

In-Depth - A shift in political apathy?

This opinions story is about politics and the upcoming election. It's regarding the younger generation's contribution to voting, and how many don't pay much attention to the elections. This year, however, because of the candidates, even the younger generations are paying attention.

who - millennials
what - are taking part in the elections/changing contribution in politics
when - this election
where - in america
why - the candidates and controversy grabs the attention of the millennials
how - social media spread the news of the election

no quotes

Yes, the lead was interesting.

Statement with a reference to a quote.

Photos -

Favorite photo: Baseball plays it safe photo, because it shows a great deal of action and is relevant to the story. In a way, leading lines are present in this photo with the fences and direction of the player.

My least favorite photo is the PALS photo because the angle isn't pleasing to the eye. It has a lot of background noise in the photo that distracts me from the subjects.

If I were a photographer, I would have liked to take photos of either baseball, basketball, or the Findley Rwanda/Uganda trip.

Overall, the photography in this newspaper is very strong. The pictures are clear for most of the photos and they aren't posed, which makes the image flow more and captivate me as a viewer more.

Ilustrations

Infographic

Top 10 Country Average IQs
Create column charts

CE 5.3

1. AISD and the City of Austin are working together to keep more money in the Austin community for schools by swapping the taxes, which would save the district from having to pay $11 million to the state.
2. It will take about 6 years, until 2022, to raise the minimum wage to $15 in California and New York.
3. The North Carolina Wildcats won the NCAA Men's basketball tournament last night with a score of 77-74.
4. I want to go to New Zealand because of the scenery, and I have always wanted to walk on a black sand beach, and New Zealand has one.
5. Personally, I don't like the videos expanding from 15 seconds to one minute. I think Instagram should stick to pictures, with small inserts of videos when it's really necessary. There are other apps that will support longer videos... Most times, the videos slow down my phone and the app while scrolling, so for the videos to get longer, the lag will get longer as well.

Short Answer:

The major candidates left in the races are: for the Republicans, Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, and for the Democrats, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. Overall, I would choose to vote for Bernie Sanders. Even though everyone is turned off by the taxes - which isn't a good thing- , but all of the other candidates have much worse flaws. I really don't want either of the Republicans to win because Cruz, in my opinion, is worse than Trump. He is basically a religious extremist, and that would not go over well with any of our country's beliefs. Trump is awful too; he's sexist, wants to build walls around the country, and banish muslims. Who does that? And as for Hillary, I wouldn't mind if she were president, but to be honest, I don't trust her. I do feel that she would keep the country stable though. Throughout this election, I feel that the country is definitely becoming more divided. These candidates have such different beliefs, and the supporters with them feel so strongly toward what these candidates are saying. There is definitely a separation between the Trump supporters and those who hate Trump... there's no in between. What concerns me most about this election is definitely the Republican party. I don't know what I would do if either of them won the election... I don't feel safe having a sexist, racist, and super rude president. The major topics in this election that are driving the candidates to say what they are saying is taxes, abortion, immigration, the environment, specifically oil, and terrorism policies. To me, the most important topics are terrorism policies and immigration. Trump was saying how he wanted to build a wall around our country to keep illegal immigrants out, which, honestly, is appalling to me. What country, especially the Land of the Free, has a massive WAll around it? None. Also, immigration has been such a big part of our country, and for someone to completely shut it off would be an outrage to many americans. Also, the terrorism situations are very sensitive and a delicate topic, so for candidates (esp Trump and Cruz) not to take them seriously, would risk our entire country.

Sports Current Event

1.http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/ODE/AustinAmericanStatesmanNIE/LandingPage/LandingPage.aspx?href=QUFTLzIwMTYvMDQvMDE.&pageno=MzA.&entity=QXIwMzAwMg..&view=ZW50aXR5
2. Elgin's Wright adds to family's legacy
3. Senior Selena Wright follows in her family's footsteps as she competes in track hurdling. Wright has competed in many relays, and uses her family's records as a motivational goals.
4. Sports jargon: hurdling, relays, 100m, 300m hurdles.
5. "A beast on the track", "great leader", "had determination"
6. Feature story because it goes in depth about Selena Wright's hurdling experience and talks about how she came to be such an amazing track hurdler.
7. This talks about the names of players involved by talking and asking about each family members' experience and track hurdling records, history, etc.

Sports Exploration Activity

1. Sport: Soccer
2. Team: Arsenal

the Arsenal mascot, the Gunnersaurus Rex

3. Top 5 teams in bracket:

- 1. Leicester City

- 2. Tottenham Hotspur

- 3. Arsenal

- 4. Manchester City

- 5. West Ham United

4. The Arsenal team has won 16 games, lost 7 games, and tied 7 games. The team is competing in the UEFA Champions League, and as the season is still going on, they haven't participated in any others. In the 2015 UEFA Champions League, Barcelona took home the first place trophy with a win of 3-1 against Juventus. Three important rules of soccer are that there cannot exceed 11 players on the field at one time, the goalie cannot touch the ball with his/her hands if they are outside of the 18-yd box, and when a foul is committed, a free kick can take place that can either be direct or indirect. Three examples of jargon in soccer are offsides, penalty kicks, and a hat trick. Offsides is a foul where a player of one team is past the last defender on another team when the ball is kicked. Penalty kicks are when a player of one team gets to shoot directly at the goal at a specific location and the goalie of the opposite team gets to stand in goal. This occurs when a foul is made inside the 18-yd box or if the two teams are tied when the game ends. A hat trick is when a single player scores three goals in one game. A soccer cliché is "he worked his socks off", and that means a player worked really hard and gave it their all. 

An outstanding player on the Arsenal team is Aaron Ramsey, who scored 13 goals in 27 matches. He was born in Caerphilly, South Wales. He attended Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni college. Aaron James Ramsey has played for the Arsenal FC since July 2008. Ramsey hasn't set any specific records (besides a guiness world record), but he was nominated as Arsenal's toughest teammate.