The Lone Survivor

The Lone Survivor was a very intense movie about a recon mission in Afghanistan. I really liked seeing the main characters train and go on their mission. I couldn't imagine throwing myself off of a cliff and smack my head on a bunch of boulders just in order to survive. The characters in this movie seemed like real guys and yet they seemed like crazy killing machines at the same time. I really like how they worked in the characters personal lives. It seems insane that even one person survived the mission that occurred.

I really think the biggest pitfall is not showing it exactly how it happened. The events that happen in the military are crazy as they are, and don't need to be changed from how they were originally. It should just be shown exactly how it happens.

United 93

This movie was a very sad and emotional movie, while also feeling a little hopeful at the end. The movie really made me feel good that there are people in the world that would be heroes at a time of need. I really like how the story was depicted, it was intense and kept me watching, and it also showed how the people were feeling at many different places at a lot of times. It showed air traffic controllers, the people on the plane, and real video footage from 9/11. This movie does a great job of showing United 93 and the heroes on that plane.

United 93 fills me with both hope and despair. The people on that plane were able to face death and be brave enough to take down the terrorists that took the plane, even if it meant that they were going to get hurt or worse. It fills me with hope that they wanted to save other people. It fills me with despair that people had to die for no reason just because of terrorists.

We should never forget all the people that lost their lives on that day and all the fear and sadness the people felt on that day.

The Hurt Locker

This movie was pretty insane. The Hurt Locker was about a bomb squad in the war in the Middle East. I thought the main guy who disarmed all the bombs was an absolute legend. I really liked how cocky he was in this movie and also how badass he was when disarming the bombs. This movie reminded me a little bit of American Sniper, and I loved both of the movies. I have a lot of respect for veterans from the middle east after watching this movie because it just showed how dangerous it was. I would be very scared to be in war. Disarming IEDs would be scary and is a very dangerous job, needless to say.

This film really made me realize how scary fighting in the Middle East would be. The IEDs and deaths of all the people in this movie were very moving. The most memorable scene of the movie is when he finds the dead boy's body who was selling him movies. That was sad when he took the bomb out of him and carried him.

I think a hurt locker is a period of time when someone is really struggling with a lot of pain, physical or emotional.

Apollo 13

Apollo 13 is a great film about the NASA spacecraft Apollo 13 and its voyage. The things I really liked about this movie were the actors in the shuttle, specifically Tom Hanks. He is a great actor and I liked his performance a lot in this movie. I found it very interesting that they did not let the original guy on the space shuttle, when he clearly was not sick. I wonder if the mission would have gone differently if the original guy had been on it. This movie was really cool, and it was awesome to see how they survived in those crazy conditions in the middle of space. It truly was a miracle that they made it home safely.

If I were to put a theme with this movie, I would make it determination. At all moments, the astronauts were determined to train hard, and in the shuttle, they were determined to survive.

Kill The Irishman

This movie was very good. I had high expectations for this movie and I was very excited to see it since it happened in our own backyard, and it did not disappoint. I really liked Danny Greene after seeing this movie, and I wish they had never killed him. I think he was a good man and he was even trying to stop committing crimes. I think Danny got in a little over his head, and that's why he died. It would be crazy if people still did this much crime in the city of Cleveland. I'm glad there aren't car bombs everywhere.

Danny Greene is a great guy who really tries to help people out. He is a funny guy with a lot of friends. Sure, he's a criminal and people want to kill him, but he's cool. He has a kind heart and it is shown.

The Godfather

The Godfather was one of my favorite movies ever, and every time I see it, I like it more. The plotline is very well done, very suspenseful, and very eventful while not being too much. The characters in this movie are badass, cool, and each have their own personalities. I really hated when Sonny died, but that was the only part of the movie I didn't like. The movie honestly made me wish I could be in a gang. This movie shows gangs in a light in which they are usually not seen, where they are the protagonists and there are others that are the enemy. I can see how people in families would want to be close with the gang.

Vito Corleone is the moral center of this movie because he is a very good man, despite what his profession would say about him. It creates a debate within the watcher's head because Vito is a good man, but he kills people, and runs a crime business. When Vito died, a good man died and I do not think the world became a better place. I think the world was better with Vito in it. He was the best of the 5 families most likely.


THIS MOVIE IS A CLASSIC I SHOULDNT EVEN HAVE TO EXPLAIN IT TO ANY OF YOU!!!!!!

42

42 was a great film that was honestly very inspiring to me. The image of Jackie Robinson was such an image of a hero, and they showed him as such a great man in this movie. There were so many people doubting him, and such a mindset to stop him, but he still succeeded. He was good, too! I really liked the way they showed the owner of the Dodgers. He was probably my favorite character in the movie although Jackie was a close second. The racism showed in this film was very shocking to me and weird to think that at one point, baseball was actually like that. This movie was very inspiring and interesting, one of my favorites from the class.

I do think that Jackie Robinson helped this country a lot. He humbled a lot of people and brought a more tolerant mindset to baseball. He also helped America by being a role model for behavior and showed that he wouldn't fight even if someone provoked him. He taught lessons like being brave and knowing how to beat someone without fighting back. I agree with Jackie's quote. I think that a lot of human life has to do with the impact and interaction you have with other humans, and if you give everyone you meet a positive thing to take with them in life, then you lived a good life.

I could use all of Jackie's values in my life. I could use courage, determination, and commitment to get the things I want in life. When working with others, I can always use teamwork and integrity. All of Jackie's values can do countless things for you in life.

Cinderella Man

I really enjoyed the film Cinderella Man. It was a great story and it really struck me emotionally, The way James Braddock was depicted made him seem like a complete badass, while still being the nicest guy ever. He worked hard for his family even when he barely could. As far as antagonists go, I think the main antagonist was the Great Depression itself. Sure, Jimmy Braddock had a lot of opponents in the ring, but nothing compared to the fight with the depression. It got really emotional in the movie a few times when he would be low on money, and it was especially bad when the kids had to leave. I really liked this movie and how hard Jimmy Braddock worked for his family and himself. He made it back up to the top and was a hero to a lot of people.

Warhorse

This movie was not very entertaining to me. I never really was grasped by the plot, and I felt like it was just tragedy after tragedy. It was rough to see the treatment of the horses, and just how many of them died during the war. I liked the connection between the horse and the many people in the movie. My favorite part was when the horse was with the girl and her grandfather. It is interesting to see how the horses were treated in this movie because nothing like that could ever happen to animals nowadays. Overall, this movie was not good in my opinion because the plot was lacking.

Glory

The movie Glory really shocked me because I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. I liked nearly every character in the movie and felt for each of them at different times. I felt for Denzel Washington's character when he was being whipped, I felt for Thomas when he was humiliated, and I especially connected with Colonel Shaw. It was very easy to tell his actions were good and my favorite part of the movie was when he ripped up his paycheck along with everyone else. This film was very moving to me and I really liked it.

Many people are willing to die for their country because there is a lot of pride that comes from a person's country. That pride of being from a certain area of the world and sharing it with millions of good people drives people to fight in war. The want to defend the country's accomplishments is another part of why people fight. I think both the men of the 54th and Shaw are heroes. They were all brave people and took the initiative to do something that was both unsupported by a lot of people and very dangerous. Shaw chose to be their leader, which makes him a hero of his own, but I think the 54th as a whole should be recognized for their actions as heroes because of their bravery.

The significance of this story has to do completely with the courage of the 54th. At Ft. Wagner they proved their courage by charging the fort even though they were aware there were going to be heavy casualties. The soldiers in this regiment were looked down upon because of their race, even though they were fighting for the same country and the same cause. The actions of this regiment need to be told and glorified because these were all great men who really fought for something they believed in.

Braveheart

The film Braveheart was very unique and unlike any other movie I had ever seen before. As we were warned before, it did drag on a lot at the beginning. Other than that, I have only positive things to say about the film. I really liked the battle scenes and very much enjoyed the passion I could see in William Wallace. He captured me emotionally and I could feel why people would fight for him. I felt the comradery between all the people and grew to hate the English throughout the film. I also thought the Prince was a very interesting character, but did not really understand his role in the film. The king was my least favorite character by far. The ending of the film was very moving to me. I did not like the punishment of William Wallace, but it really got the point across of his heroism and passion for his cause.

Wallace was implying that the men were not really living if they were under English control. He thought the people should all share his desire to be free from the English. He thought the Scottish should have their own freedom and own country. Their lives meant nothing if they were not free, and William Wallace urged them to live by changing it. This could be applied to my own life by saying that I need to make the most of life every day otherwise I am not truly living. I need to be creating happiness for myself and others every day before my final hour comes.

Gladiator

The film Gladiator is overall one of my favorite movies. The emotions captured in the film are intense, and Maximus is one of my favorite characters of any movie. The entire storyline following Maximus makes me feel for him and I was constantly cheering for him to win and kill Commodus. Commodus in this movie is a complete creep and was easily my least favorite character. The only thing he did during the movie was make me feel really uncomfortable. This movie made me want to be Maximus and made me want Commodus punished. I think after seeing this, I have a very exaggerated view of how gladiators lived, and this period of Rome seems very cool.

I think a theme of this movie is family. At first, all Maximus wants to do is get to his family, but he cannot since Marcus Aurelius asked him to bring the rule back to the people. Once his family is killed, he has no choice but to do everything he can to try to be with them, including prayer. Eventually, he returns to them, leaving behind a legend to the Roman people.

Initial Thoughts

I took this class for a few very good reasons. The first reason is that I have heard excellent reviews of the class and wanted to take it. I also have a great interest in movies and wanted to see some new movies that I may have never discovered on my own. My expectations for this class are that I will be watching some quality movies and examining them in a unique way. Maybe I will learn a few things and find some movies I really enjoy.