Title: Forrest Gump
By: Jordan Evans
"Forrest Gump" is one of those movies that you either really like, or really hate. It involves Forrest Gump, played by Tom Hanks, as a simple man with a low I.Q. but has good intentions. Throughout the movie, Forrest Gump discusses his relative level of intelligence with a stranger while waiting for a bus. Despite his sub-normal IQ, Gump lives life with a ringside seat for many of the most memorable events of the second half of the 20th century.
This movie had many good actor's, and actresses such as Tom Hanks, Sally Field, Robin Wright, Mykelti Williamson, and Gary Sinise. All of these people played special roles throughout the film that added a spice to the film. "Forrest Gump" is a drama romance movie with a lot of historical events added in the movie.
"Forrest Gump" added a lot of twists to late 20th century historic events. It included events such as the Vietnam War, the Black Panther Party, the Hippie Movement, the Watergate Scandal, the Klu Klux Klan, and many more events. The twist that they added to this film is that they found a way to add Forrest into every event, as if he was there when they all happened. Throughout the film, Forrest is telling people his life story, and giving the audience an experience that you could never imagine.
In every film there is a reality and Hollywood display. Sometimes in a Hollywood aspect of things, they have to make events seem less harsh than what they actually were. The government wants to hide the true reality of events to make everything seem all fine. One event that "Forrest Gump" made too weak was the whole Vietnam War piece of the movie. They should have made it more gruesome to really effect the audience, and not make it seem so weak. I did like that the Hollywood aspect of the film was way less noticeable than other films.
In the entirety, I really enjoyed "Forrest Gump". I always hear people calling this one of the best movies they have ever seen, and it really was one of the best movies I have ever seen. This movie flowed with emotions, and had me feeling some type of way that I can't explain. It still wasn't my favorite movie of all time, but it is a favorite. This film was very enjoyable, and I recommend it to anyone.
Thursday, June 11, 2015
"Final Exam"
Title:"Final Exam"
By:Jordan Evans
"Does Hollywood, and "The Media" in general, define our society and remake our history? When asked to answer this question, I knew exactly what to say. Our society now a days is determined by what we watch and hear on the TV, video games, and even on the newest social media apps. In films, Hollywood likes to downplay events to make it seem like nothing that U.S. is doing is wrong. there is never a movie where the U.S. is the villain. There are many war movies that inaccurately depict events that happened in this world today, and the worst part about it all is that the viewers belive what is being put out in the world because a "professional" created the film. Nobody likes to rely on the historical text books or the old documents anymore. They want the information at a demand, and even if the information is wrong they still believe it just because it's on the media. Hollywood has a knack for recreating our history. They add events or downplay events to make it seem like everything will be all fine or that events that happened are not so gruesome as they really were.
In the present day, anybody can search on the internet and type in "The American Revolutionary War". They see the first link, click on it, and start taking notes on whatever the website tells them happened. The good thing about all of it is that you can obtain information at a very fast pace, the bad thing is that you could be receiving the wrong information and not even know. The past has most definitely been changed by the media in ways that we can't even imagine. The past has been lost through the governments eyes.
In the movie "Plattoon" the filmmakers made it seem like Vietnam was hell, and I praise them for that. They showed the audience the gruesomeness of the Vietnam war, and what the soldiers had to go through to survive, and make it out alive. I remember reading an article about two little girls, and how one of the girls stabbed her friend 25 times because the video games that they were playing showed stabbing and violence. The media has such an impact on children these days that it is unbelievable. The fact that a girl believed it is right to stab her friend because a video game showed it is beyond disgusting. The world really needs to revaluate the role that "the media" has on us.
By:Jordan Evans
"Does Hollywood, and "The Media" in general, define our society and remake our history? When asked to answer this question, I knew exactly what to say. Our society now a days is determined by what we watch and hear on the TV, video games, and even on the newest social media apps. In films, Hollywood likes to downplay events to make it seem like nothing that U.S. is doing is wrong. there is never a movie where the U.S. is the villain. There are many war movies that inaccurately depict events that happened in this world today, and the worst part about it all is that the viewers belive what is being put out in the world because a "professional" created the film. Nobody likes to rely on the historical text books or the old documents anymore. They want the information at a demand, and even if the information is wrong they still believe it just because it's on the media. Hollywood has a knack for recreating our history. They add events or downplay events to make it seem like everything will be all fine or that events that happened are not so gruesome as they really were.
In the present day, anybody can search on the internet and type in "The American Revolutionary War". They see the first link, click on it, and start taking notes on whatever the website tells them happened. The good thing about all of it is that you can obtain information at a very fast pace, the bad thing is that you could be receiving the wrong information and not even know. The past has most definitely been changed by the media in ways that we can't even imagine. The past has been lost through the governments eyes.
In the movie "Plattoon" the filmmakers made it seem like Vietnam was hell, and I praise them for that. They showed the audience the gruesomeness of the Vietnam war, and what the soldiers had to go through to survive, and make it out alive. I remember reading an article about two little girls, and how one of the girls stabbed her friend 25 times because the video games that they were playing showed stabbing and violence. The media has such an impact on children these days that it is unbelievable. The fact that a girl believed it is right to stab her friend because a video game showed it is beyond disgusting. The world really needs to revaluate the role that "the media" has on us.
"The Help"
Title: "The Help"
By: Jordan Evans
"The Help" by Tate Taylor was one movie that I really enjoyed. It had my emotions in a bunch and I even found myself tearing up at one point. The whole concept of the movie was delivered really well. It really opened my eyes to the way that African American women were treated in the South, especially in Mississippi.
"The Help" involves actresses such as Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Octavia Spencer. Every actress in this movie played an important role in the film. Each actress complimented one another and the movie ended up really well. I really enjoyed the role that Emma Stone played as the character Skeeter. She played a character who is willing to risk anything to show people what they are doing isn't right.
This movie includes an aspiring author(Skeeter) during the civil rights movement of the 1960s. She decides to write a book detailing the African-American maids' point of view on the white families for which they work, and the hardships they go through on a daily.
"The Help" really shows the the hardships that African American maids' went through during the 1960s. This movie opens the eyes of the audience to show that the families that the maids worked for, treated the maids like animals. They couldn't use the same bathrooms as them, they couldn't speak unless spoken to, they were considered unclean just because they had a dark skin tone. It also shows how different the South was compared to the North. The South was more agricultural while the North was more industrial. It really showed me how hard it was to be an African American.
In the entirety, I really enjoyed "The Help". This movie flowed with emotions, and had me feeling some type of way. It wasn't my favorite movie of all time, but it is a favorite. This film was very enjoyable, and I recommend it to anyone. It is a film that just shows the reality and hardship of life.
By: Jordan Evans
"The Help" by Tate Taylor was one movie that I really enjoyed. It had my emotions in a bunch and I even found myself tearing up at one point. The whole concept of the movie was delivered really well. It really opened my eyes to the way that African American women were treated in the South, especially in Mississippi.
"The Help" involves actresses such as Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Octavia Spencer. Every actress in this movie played an important role in the film. Each actress complimented one another and the movie ended up really well. I really enjoyed the role that Emma Stone played as the character Skeeter. She played a character who is willing to risk anything to show people what they are doing isn't right.
This movie includes an aspiring author(Skeeter) during the civil rights movement of the 1960s. She decides to write a book detailing the African-American maids' point of view on the white families for which they work, and the hardships they go through on a daily.
"The Help" really shows the the hardships that African American maids' went through during the 1960s. This movie opens the eyes of the audience to show that the families that the maids worked for, treated the maids like animals. They couldn't use the same bathrooms as them, they couldn't speak unless spoken to, they were considered unclean just because they had a dark skin tone. It also shows how different the South was compared to the North. The South was more agricultural while the North was more industrial. It really showed me how hard it was to be an African American.
In the entirety, I really enjoyed "The Help". This movie flowed with emotions, and had me feeling some type of way. It wasn't my favorite movie of all time, but it is a favorite. This film was very enjoyable, and I recommend it to anyone. It is a film that just shows the reality and hardship of life.
"Apollo 13"
Title: "Apollo 13"
By: Jordan Evans
I did not enjoy the film "Apollo 13" by Ron Howard. It is based off of the true event of Apollo 13. NASA must devise a strategy to return Apollo 13 to Earth safely after the spacecraft undergoes massive internal damage putting the lives of the three astronauts on board in jeopardy. It was very boring, and predictable if you already knew the truth about the Apollo 13 event.
This movie included actor's, Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, Kevin Bacon, and Gary Sinise. Tom Hanks and Gary Sinise also starred in "Forrest Gump", and they did a really good job in both films. Tom Hanks always does well in his movies in my opinion no matter what type of film is, even if it was as boring as this one.
"Apollo 13" is a film reenacting the preparation and rescue mission of the spaceship, Apollo 13. Astronauts Lovell, Haise and Swigert were scheduled to fly Apollo 14, but are moved up to 13. It's 1970, and America have already achieved their lunar landing goal, so there's little interest in this "routine" flight, until everything seems to go wrong.
This film did a really good job reenacting the whole space mission of Apollo 13. Almost every event in the film occurred in real life, but the events that were not true were used to lengthen the film. "Houston, we have a problem" is a famous quote that many may know, and I believe that this film used the actual audio recording of the astronaut saying that which I found very interesting. The special effects in the film such as the frost in the spaceship, and the cold breathe to express the coldness of the environment was also very impressive. This film also used the power of foreshadow which is always a good modifier to add into the film.
I didn't like this movie at all to be completely honest. It dragged on and on, and it was so predictable. I know that filmmaker's think they can recreate any historic event, and turn it into a movie, but this movie was garbage. There really was not anything interesting about the film except for the explosions. This was easily one of the worst films I have ever watched. I do not recommend this to anyone, unless you are trying to find a way to fall asleep.
By: Jordan Evans
I did not enjoy the film "Apollo 13" by Ron Howard. It is based off of the true event of Apollo 13. NASA must devise a strategy to return Apollo 13 to Earth safely after the spacecraft undergoes massive internal damage putting the lives of the three astronauts on board in jeopardy. It was very boring, and predictable if you already knew the truth about the Apollo 13 event.
This movie included actor's, Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, Kevin Bacon, and Gary Sinise. Tom Hanks and Gary Sinise also starred in "Forrest Gump", and they did a really good job in both films. Tom Hanks always does well in his movies in my opinion no matter what type of film is, even if it was as boring as this one.
"Apollo 13" is a film reenacting the preparation and rescue mission of the spaceship, Apollo 13. Astronauts Lovell, Haise and Swigert were scheduled to fly Apollo 14, but are moved up to 13. It's 1970, and America have already achieved their lunar landing goal, so there's little interest in this "routine" flight, until everything seems to go wrong.
This film did a really good job reenacting the whole space mission of Apollo 13. Almost every event in the film occurred in real life, but the events that were not true were used to lengthen the film. "Houston, we have a problem" is a famous quote that many may know, and I believe that this film used the actual audio recording of the astronaut saying that which I found very interesting. The special effects in the film such as the frost in the spaceship, and the cold breathe to express the coldness of the environment was also very impressive. This film also used the power of foreshadow which is always a good modifier to add into the film.
I didn't like this movie at all to be completely honest. It dragged on and on, and it was so predictable. I know that filmmaker's think they can recreate any historic event, and turn it into a movie, but this movie was garbage. There really was not anything interesting about the film except for the explosions. This was easily one of the worst films I have ever watched. I do not recommend this to anyone, unless you are trying to find a way to fall asleep.
"Top Gun"
Title: "Top Gun"
By: Jordan Evans
"Top Gun" by Tony Scott may be the cheesiest movie I have ever watched. It's a typical 1980s romance drama action movie. It involves actors such as Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, and actress Kelly McGillis. Everything about this movie was bad.
"Top Gun" is one of those every day typical 1980s movie. It involved a cheesy romance and a little bit of action. Tom Cruise, who plays Maverick played a bad boy aircraft pilot, who never completely followed the rules and took many risks. He and his co pilot Goose were enrolled into Top Gun, and rivalved to become the best pilots in all of Top Gun. They rivaled against Iceman who was played by Val Kilmer and Hollywood who was played by Whip Hubley. There was also a cheesy love romance between Maverick and Charlie.
The whole historic aspect of "Top Gun" is that there is actually an academy for The United States Navy Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor program (SFTI program), more popularly known as Topgun. It teaches fighter and strike tactics and techniques to selected Naval Aviator and Naval Flight Officer's, who return to their operating units as instructors. The movie was based off of a true reality, but you know with any Hollywood film, they have to add cheesy romance and some type of rivalry.
With any Hollywood film there is always historical inaccuracies and accuracy's involved. An accuracy in "Top Gun" is that Topgun is an actual real life program. There are also inaccuracies such as there was no man on man combat in real Topgun. A F-14 would never out class an A-4 aircraft. These are little things, but they are Hollywood screw ups.
I would rate "TopGun" as a .5 out of 5. I did not like anything about this movie. Tom Cruise is overrated, and his character was a punk. I can't believe that this movie was considered to be a good movie. All the actors, and actress were terrible at acting, and they wasted there time with this film. They also played the same three songs throughout the whole movie. I got tired after they played the same song in every dog fight. "Highway through the danger zone' was soooooooo overplayed, and that song killed this movie even more than the acting did.
By: Jordan Evans
"Top Gun" by Tony Scott may be the cheesiest movie I have ever watched. It's a typical 1980s romance drama action movie. It involves actors such as Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, and actress Kelly McGillis. Everything about this movie was bad.
"Top Gun" is one of those every day typical 1980s movie. It involved a cheesy romance and a little bit of action. Tom Cruise, who plays Maverick played a bad boy aircraft pilot, who never completely followed the rules and took many risks. He and his co pilot Goose were enrolled into Top Gun, and rivalved to become the best pilots in all of Top Gun. They rivaled against Iceman who was played by Val Kilmer and Hollywood who was played by Whip Hubley. There was also a cheesy love romance between Maverick and Charlie.
The whole historic aspect of "Top Gun" is that there is actually an academy for The United States Navy Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor program (SFTI program), more popularly known as Topgun. It teaches fighter and strike tactics and techniques to selected Naval Aviator and Naval Flight Officer's, who return to their operating units as instructors. The movie was based off of a true reality, but you know with any Hollywood film, they have to add cheesy romance and some type of rivalry.
With any Hollywood film there is always historical inaccuracies and accuracy's involved. An accuracy in "Top Gun" is that Topgun is an actual real life program. There are also inaccuracies such as there was no man on man combat in real Topgun. A F-14 would never out class an A-4 aircraft. These are little things, but they are Hollywood screw ups.
I would rate "TopGun" as a .5 out of 5. I did not like anything about this movie. Tom Cruise is overrated, and his character was a punk. I can't believe that this movie was considered to be a good movie. All the actors, and actress were terrible at acting, and they wasted there time with this film. They also played the same three songs throughout the whole movie. I got tired after they played the same song in every dog fight. "Highway through the danger zone' was soooooooo overplayed, and that song killed this movie even more than the acting did.
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Forrest Gump Activity 1
Title: Forrest Gump Activity 1
By: Jordan Evans
In Forrest Gump there are many historical events presented throughout the film. Each event is depicted differently. In one of the scenes, the film depicts Elvis Presley performing on TV, and all these girls fainting form him. As Forrest watches, his mother believes that children shouldn't be watching Elvis perform because it's too inappropriate. They depict Elvis as a rockstar that every woman loved. In another scene, the film depicts Bear Bryant and the Alabama Football team. It shows Bear recruiting Forrest just because he could run really fast. it depicts that coaches didn't care if you were smart or not, just if you were good at the sport. It also showed that Alamba was the dominant college football team. Another scene, the film depicts JFK's Assassination and how Forrest believed he didn't deserve it. It depicts that it was a sad event that happened during the time. Each historical event like Elvis, Alabama football, and JFK's Assassination proved important during the 1960s.
By: Jordan Evans
In Forrest Gump there are many historical events presented throughout the film. Each event is depicted differently. In one of the scenes, the film depicts Elvis Presley performing on TV, and all these girls fainting form him. As Forrest watches, his mother believes that children shouldn't be watching Elvis perform because it's too inappropriate. They depict Elvis as a rockstar that every woman loved. In another scene, the film depicts Bear Bryant and the Alabama Football team. It shows Bear recruiting Forrest just because he could run really fast. it depicts that coaches didn't care if you were smart or not, just if you were good at the sport. It also showed that Alamba was the dominant college football team. Another scene, the film depicts JFK's Assassination and how Forrest believed he didn't deserve it. It depicts that it was a sad event that happened during the time. Each historical event like Elvis, Alabama football, and JFK's Assassination proved important during the 1960s.
Thursday, May 21, 2015
"Platoon" An Approach to the Vietnam War
Title: "Platoon" An Approach to the Vietnam War
By: Jordan Evans
Recently in one of my history classes we analyzed and watched the movie, "Platoon" by Oliver Stone. This movie has interested me in many ways from a historical point of view that I would like to give a review on it. You may be wondering what this movie is all about. "Platoon" is a drama war type movie with multiple twists and turns. It deals with the hardships of the Vietnam War.
Chris Taylor is a young, American who gives up college and volunteers for combat in Vietnam. He discovers that his presence is nonessential, and is considered insignificant to the other soldiers, as he has not fought for as long as the rest of them and felt the effects of combat. Chris has two non-commissioned officers, the ill-tempered and indestructible Staff Sergeant Robert Barnes and the more pleasant and cooperative Sergeant Elias Grodin. A line is drawn between the two NCOs and a number of men in the platoon when an illegal killing occurs during a village raid. As the war continues, Chris himself draws towards psychological meltdown. And as he struggles for survival, he soon realizes he is fighting two battles, the conflict with the enemy and the conflict between the men within his platoon.
Three characters stood out to me throughout the movie. Actor Tom Berenger, who plays Sergeant Barnes, actor Willem Dafoe, who plays Sergeant Elias, and actor Charlie Sheen, who plays Chris Taylor. All three of these characters played an important role throughout the movie. Barnes represented the evil side of a platoon, Elias represented the good of the platoon, and Taylor represented the mutual character who grows throughout the movie. Each character showed a side of a platoon that many people wouldn't consider. Barnes is the man veteran of the war and doesn't die. The man who doesn't follow the rules of conduct and just gets the job done at all costs. Elias is the man who follows the conduct, and leads his part of the platoon the professional way. He would always sacrifice his life for another, and carry the weight of his squad on his back. Taylor is the innocent, young man who is irrelevant to all the soldiers. He has to earn his way to gain respect and has an inner battle between what is the right thing to do or not.
Many things occurred in this movie that opened my eyes to the realism of war. First of all, there was a lot of cursing in this movie. The "F Bomb" was dropped multiple times, but it just shows the vulgar of the men, and the stress that they were going through. In one part of the movie, the platoon raided a village in Cambodia, and brought terror to the village. They rounded up the village people like animals, and illegally killed an innocent villager to try to get answers from the leader of the village. Soldiers also raped a woman, and felt like there was nothing wrong with what they were doing. After that scene, I became thoroughly disgusted with the fact that soldiers treated other people so inhumanely. This movie really opens up the eyes to all about war.
Overall, this movie really opened my eyes to not just the Vietnam War, but wars in general. It displays the harsh conditions of Vietnam, and what the soldiers had to go through. It shows the division between the African American soldier's and white soldier's. It shows the reality of village raids, and how difficult it was during battles because everyone looked so much alike.
The MPAA rating of this movie is R. I would score this movie as a 5 out of 5. 5 stars compliments the entirety of the film. This movie was very interesting, and anybody who runs across this film should definitely grab a bag of popcorn and enjoy it. This movie is very enjoyable and I advise this movie to all.
One main lesson that "Platoon" taught me is that war is no joke. It showed me reality, and how if you are not mentally strong enough you could easily crack upon the pressure, and go insane. Another lesson it taught me is that war is a conflict with the enemy and the conflict between you and your mental.
Jordan Evans is a junior who attends Sterling High school. He works in a movie theater at Cinemark 16 as an usher. He plays year round soccer and is interested in going to college for soccer. He keeps himself entertained with his blog spot, working out, playing soccer, and hanging out with his friends. He enjoys his life, and just loves everyone.
By: Jordan Evans
Recently in one of my history classes we analyzed and watched the movie, "Platoon" by Oliver Stone. This movie has interested me in many ways from a historical point of view that I would like to give a review on it. You may be wondering what this movie is all about. "Platoon" is a drama war type movie with multiple twists and turns. It deals with the hardships of the Vietnam War.
Chris Taylor is a young, American who gives up college and volunteers for combat in Vietnam. He discovers that his presence is nonessential, and is considered insignificant to the other soldiers, as he has not fought for as long as the rest of them and felt the effects of combat. Chris has two non-commissioned officers, the ill-tempered and indestructible Staff Sergeant Robert Barnes and the more pleasant and cooperative Sergeant Elias Grodin. A line is drawn between the two NCOs and a number of men in the platoon when an illegal killing occurs during a village raid. As the war continues, Chris himself draws towards psychological meltdown. And as he struggles for survival, he soon realizes he is fighting two battles, the conflict with the enemy and the conflict between the men within his platoon.
Three characters stood out to me throughout the movie. Actor Tom Berenger, who plays Sergeant Barnes, actor Willem Dafoe, who plays Sergeant Elias, and actor Charlie Sheen, who plays Chris Taylor. All three of these characters played an important role throughout the movie. Barnes represented the evil side of a platoon, Elias represented the good of the platoon, and Taylor represented the mutual character who grows throughout the movie. Each character showed a side of a platoon that many people wouldn't consider. Barnes is the man veteran of the war and doesn't die. The man who doesn't follow the rules of conduct and just gets the job done at all costs. Elias is the man who follows the conduct, and leads his part of the platoon the professional way. He would always sacrifice his life for another, and carry the weight of his squad on his back. Taylor is the innocent, young man who is irrelevant to all the soldiers. He has to earn his way to gain respect and has an inner battle between what is the right thing to do or not.
Many things occurred in this movie that opened my eyes to the realism of war. First of all, there was a lot of cursing in this movie. The "F Bomb" was dropped multiple times, but it just shows the vulgar of the men, and the stress that they were going through. In one part of the movie, the platoon raided a village in Cambodia, and brought terror to the village. They rounded up the village people like animals, and illegally killed an innocent villager to try to get answers from the leader of the village. Soldiers also raped a woman, and felt like there was nothing wrong with what they were doing. After that scene, I became thoroughly disgusted with the fact that soldiers treated other people so inhumanely. This movie really opens up the eyes to all about war.
Overall, this movie really opened my eyes to not just the Vietnam War, but wars in general. It displays the harsh conditions of Vietnam, and what the soldiers had to go through. It shows the division between the African American soldier's and white soldier's. It shows the reality of village raids, and how difficult it was during battles because everyone looked so much alike.
The MPAA rating of this movie is R. I would score this movie as a 5 out of 5. 5 stars compliments the entirety of the film. This movie was very interesting, and anybody who runs across this film should definitely grab a bag of popcorn and enjoy it. This movie is very enjoyable and I advise this movie to all.
One main lesson that "Platoon" taught me is that war is no joke. It showed me reality, and how if you are not mentally strong enough you could easily crack upon the pressure, and go insane. Another lesson it taught me is that war is a conflict with the enemy and the conflict between you and your mental.
Jordan Evans is a junior who attends Sterling High school. He works in a movie theater at Cinemark 16 as an usher. He plays year round soccer and is interested in going to college for soccer. He keeps himself entertained with his blog spot, working out, playing soccer, and hanging out with his friends. He enjoys his life, and just loves everyone.
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