United 93

This movie was great.  It showed all of the tragic events that happened that everyone knows about, but then it also showed you what happened behind the scenes.  I thought that this part was very cool to see because you saw how the people reacted whose job it was to react.  I thought they also did a good job of showing how the citizens on the plane heroically acted to overtake the plane back from the terrorists.  It was a great movie, and I would definitely recommend it to anybody who asked about it.

This movie filled me with hope because of how the people on the plane acted.  Once they realized what was going on, they took it upon themselves to save many more people.  They knew what they had to do and they did it.  They were truly heroes.

I think that we should never forget how bravely U.S. citizens acted on this day.  Everyone helped out everyone in trouble and tried to stay strong.  I think that everyone that helped should be extremely proud of themselves.  Although it was a horrible day in our history, we all came together as one and showed why we are the strongest country.

Lone Survivor

I really enjoyed this movie.  I thought that it was one of the best put together war films that I have seen.  The way that they displayed the actions scenes were phenomenal.  It kept people in suspense, and kept them hooked all movie.  I thought it was great.  Mark Wahlberg and the other main actors did a great job of showing how hard it really is over seas where they are fighting.  It's no easy task and men do crazy things to try and protect our country.

Well I think that if it's not being portrayed accurately, then average citizens will have no idea what is really going on over there.  We have such small media coverage on the situation, and don't actually get to see the secret missions that go on.  So really, people just rely on movies to fill their heads of what really happens.  It can just be bad because if it is portrayed as gruesome or not good, then citizens could easily turn on the military.

The Hurt Locker

I really enjoyed this movie.  Right from the beginning I was hooked when the squad was trying to disarm the bomb.  I thought it had a lot of good action scenes, along with the emotional part to keep you fully engaged.  I thought that the movie did a good job of showing you the emotions that go along with doing risky things like this, and how it affects all of the people who love you.  It also showed how hard it is to come back home and try and act normal.  It definitely taught me more about the subject of war.

This had the impact of showing me what really can go on during the war.  At times it was hard to imagine doing that on a daily basis.  It really puts things into perspective and makes you appreciate the people who are fighting for us.  My favorite scene was when Sanborn and James were talking and James was saying he didn't even know how he had the guts to do the things he did.  I thought it was a very powerful conversation.

I think the hurt locker is the locker all of the dead soldier's possession goes in.  I think this because at the beginning when the first guy died, Sanborn put all of his stuff in a locker.  So I think it's basically a dead man's locker.

Apollo 13

This movie was just okay for me.  I think that the space race is very interesting and I usually really love Tom Hanks, but I just wasn't really feeling this movie for some reason.  I thought the people playing the crew did well, and it was an interesting story, but for some reason I wasn't very connected to it.  It is a very crazy thing because I didn't know much about Apollo 13, so seeing the events that happened were pretty cool, and it's great that they made them back.

I would say that the main theme that I picked up on was teamwork.  Throughout the movie, all of the crew members had to rely on each other and the people back in the US to make it back home safely.  Even when one crew member couldn't go, they relied on the new one with teamwork and all made it.  This movie really showed that the power of teamwork can accomplish anything, especially if you can use it off of this earth.  I thought it was a pretty powerful message.

Parkland

I thought that this was a pretty decent movie.  I really enjoy the topic of the JFK assassination and I like the different ideas of what happened.  It is something that is overlooked what actually happened after, so it was kind of cool to gain a lot more insight.  I thought they directed it pretty well to keep everyone interested and keep the mood intense.  I thought the character of the Mrs. Oswald portrayed her character very well to show how crazy she really was.  I would really only recommend this movie to people interested in the whole situation with JFK.

Interviewing my grandma:
-She was at home.
-She had the house to herself at the moment, and when she found out her heart dropped.
-It just shocked her when it happened, she didn't know how to react.
-She doesn't believe that it was a conspiracy.  She believes Lee Harvey Oswald just did it because he was unhappy.  Simple as that.  No governement involvement.
-Just that a man got shot for trying to make positive change in the world and speaking his mind.  It's not right.

Bomb

I really liked this movie.  I'm pretty sad that the movies about the mob are ending because both films that we showed are great.  I really enjoyed this movie because my dad actually had connections to John Nardi and told me stories about this time.  So I felt like I had a connection to this time as well because of the insight I got from him.  It's also sweet because this all took place in Cleveland, so we are kind of just living in a place where a lot of history took place.  All this together makes you really enjoy a movie.  I really liked the character of Danny Green as well, obviously, so it was just a great film to watch altogether.

This is tough.  Danny Green is a man who is going to get what he wanted.  He grew up an orphan and was not privileged at all.  He worked his way up, and worked hard.  He got involved with the mob but then eventually broke off.  He tried to get away from that lifestyle and just live a family life, but got dragged back in after a bad deal.  This is how the Irishman nickname came about.  After he got dragged back in, he took business away from the mob and they tried to kill him, but were unsuccessful.  He claimed it was due to the luck of the Irish.

How did you get him to do that? "I made him an offer he couldn't refuse"

This movie is now one of my favorite movies of all time.  I had previously not seen it, but have heard a lot about it from family and just people in general.  My dad used to always joke with me saying that the Godfather teaches you everything you need to know about life, and now I know why.  Marlon Brando did a great job at portraying Vito, and I loved how the movie was told from an insider only viewpoint.  It made you feel connected to everything going on within the family, and have a lot of suspense what would happen next because there were no events that tipped you off to what was going to happen.  I love learning about this time period and about organized crime, so I was very excited to finally watch this movie, and it definitely didn't disappoint.  This movie really made me wonder how much organized crime still exists to this day.  Something cool to think about in my opinion.

Vito Corleone is the moral center to this film because everything runs through him.  Not even just the business side of the family, but the moral and happiness of the entire family.  When he got shot the whole family started going down because their leader and loved Don was down.  He was the perfect man to be leading the family.  I think when he died the world lost a giant.  This was a respectable man who was very good at what he did.  He thought rationally and provided for his family.

I love the fact that the film is told from an insider's perspective.  It makes the film different than many other films, due to the facts I stated earlier such as feeling connected to the family and not knowing what the outside families were doing.  It was very unique in that aspect and I believe it to be ahead of its time.  This movie without a doubt deserves to be called a classic.  The amount of people that know of and love the Godfather is unreal.  It's part of America's history and the fact that it resonates with so many people still today just shows how great of a story it was.  I believe the true definition of a classic is a a work of art that is relatable in any time period and one that is well known and loved.

42

This was my 4th or 5th time seeing this film and it was still enjoyable for me.  The first time I saw this movie I absolutely loved it and thought it was put together very well.  The fact that I can still watch and enjoy speaks very highly of how well it was put together I believe.  I thought that the cast of actors did an excellent job of portraying their characters, especially, of course, Jackie Robinson and Branch Ricky.  Chadwick Boseman did an incredible job of showing the audience the struggle that Jackie had to go through on a daily basis.  He let his emotions go and the audience felt everything that he did.  All of this racism stuff is definitely still relevant today, especially after the Oklahoma University SAE fraternity being caught on camera being extremely racist.  We live in a bubble here at Orange where pretty much everyone is very accepting of diversity, and you think that's how the world is.  It's very weird hearing about other places and realizing not everyone is as accepting as you.

I think Jackie Robinson helped this country a great deal, and a lot of other people think that too.  I know this because on opening day of every season, every player wears the number 42.  If that doesn't show impact, I don't know what does.  Robinson was the perfect man for this job as he controlled his temper, and knew that what he was doing would change everything.  He allowed African Americans into the sporting world, but not just that.  It gave all African Americans hope.  This was shown with the example of Wendall and hoping to someday not have to sit on the third base line and type, and sit in the booth with the other white writers.  He was an inspiration to all.  I definitely agree with the quote.  I believe that if you're not living each day to make another human life better, then you're not living.  That's how you judge ones life.  Not by how much money or fame they have, but by how they impact the people around them.

Determination is a key value I think.  Determination is key because life is hard.  Things aren't always going to go your way.  It will knock you down, and challenge you until you think you can't do it anymore.  That's when you have to fight through all that adversity that you think you feel, and get by.  You can't do that without determination.  It's one of the most important human qualities that we could possibly possess.  Without it, we would go no where.  Another important one in my opinion is excellence.  There's no point in doing something if you're only going to half ass it.  It's a waste of your time and a waste of everyone elses time.  If you're going to do something, do it to the best of your ability because you form habits.  You can't just make up your mind when you want to be great and when you want to slack off.  It doesn't work that way.  You work to be excellent in everything you do.  I feel like determination and excellence go hand and hand, so that's partly why I like both of them.

The Power of Hope

I absolutley loved this movie.  The storyline was phenomenal, and Russel Crow did an outstanding job portraying the hard working Jim Braddock.  The beginning was a little slow, but quickly picked up.  The overall struggle of the Braddock family and Jim's perseverence to overcome the adversity that was striking them was truly intruiging.  His hard work and dedication seemingly just kept you hooked throughout the movie.  You felt his emotions, and were pulling for him the whole time even without realizing you were at first.  The movie just made me feel good about myself.  I felt inspired like I could accomplish anything that I wanted to accomplish.  All you need is a reason to do something.  A reason that you are willing to risk all that you have to accomplish the goal that you have set out to do.  Anything is possible.

People felt with Braddock because of his story.  Here was a man who was on top, then the depression hit and he basically lost it all.  He and his family struggled through the tough, tough times, but they never lost hope.  He always found a way to support for his family whether it was begging for jobs, or swallowing his pride and getting help from the government.  In my eyes, swallowing the pride was one of the most brave things he could have done.  Anyways, people could relate to the position he was in because they were struggling too.  All of a sudden, this man seems to rise from nothing, living his dream and providing for his family, living a cinderella story.  People thought of themselves as him, hoping one day soon that they too could find a way to provide.  It's just like in todays world.  People all the time look to athletes to provide inspiration for their daily lives.  We for some reason cling to these people who have made a name for themselves.  It's just inspiring how hard they have worked to get to this point.  These kind of people simply just strike hope into an ordinary person.  Hope that they could keep providing for their family.  Hope that one day they can retire and have no worries.  Hope that they can be the best person that they can be.  Many and any types of hope that there are, these special people give that to us ordinary people.  It's just the power of hope that keeps people going, because without hope, no one would work for anything.

War Horse

Honestly, I really did not enjoy this film.  The plot did not keep me entertained throughout.  It was just following a horse's story while it paved its way through the battlefield of world war one.  The love story between the owner and horse was cute and all, but it was pretty expected and for some reason I just couldn't get into it.  I never really got emotional, or felt for the horse as it went through its struggle, or for the boy as he joined the war and reconnected with his horse.  I also don't feel like it taught me much about the war, other than the fact that a lot of horses died.  Overall, just not a movie I would recommend or want to watch again.  However, it does apply to things today because horses at that time were like dogs in todays day and age.  Horses used to be soldiers best friends, and now dogs are always with soldiers and the bonds that are formed are great.

Glory

I enjoyed this movie very much.  I thought the character selection was great, and that the actors portrayed their characters well and accurately for the time.  I'm always a fan of Denzel Washington so I enjoyed his part going from an ignorant kid, to becomming a man with honor.  The movie did a pretty good job of showing you initially how the african americans were treated, before they earned the respect of the white folks around.  I enjoyed watching the transition, and in the end, felt a very warm feeling seeing how Denzel Washington's character charged after Shaw.  I thought it really showed the bond that was formed, even though they were two different races.

People are willing to fight and die for our country so often because of how great of a nation we are.  We are truly one of a kind in terms of what we stand for, and the freedom we grant.  Everyone who fights for our great country knows not to take this for granted, and is willing to risk their lives to keep the great people of our nation safe.  It is truly a blessing to have so many people step forward and protect us.  I think that the people of the 54th Massachussetts are heroes.  They paved the way for future african americans, and showed how great our nation really was.  The fact that they were discriminated against but saw a more perfect picture that was America is truly inspiring.  They were fighting for so much, and they deserve to be called heroes.  I think Shaw is a hero too because he was the first to lead an african american squad.  This took a lot of guts and he led them with honor.

I think the significance of the 54th is massive.  It paved the way for future african american groups and showed how united our country could be.  Going from slaves to fighting in the war is just incredible.  Not only did they fight, but they made a name for themselves by fighting with honor and pride.

Not Every Man Lives

Part One:  Overall, I thought it was a very interesting movie.  The time period of when the Scotts were rebelling against England is not a time period that is regularly covered in history class.  In fact, I can't really remember ever learning about this time, so it was very eye opening.  I thought that the battle scenes throughout the movie were very intense and I could count on being entertained by them.  However, it just felt like the plot and entire movie for that matter just dragged on for an unnecessary amount of time.  With that being said, I still enjoyed the movie.  I thought Mel Gibson acting as William Wallace was great.  He was the ideal leader and motivator that the Scottish people needed at the time.  He knew what he wanted, and he was going to go get it by getting all of the other Scottish people to follow him.  I thought the whole situation that Scottland was in was very similar to the way America formed.  Both breaking away from England by leaders getting the population to fight back and gain the freedom they deserved.

Part Two:  I really enjoy this quote.  I think Wallace was saying that yeah everyone can live and go through life without meaning and then die.  However, if you really and truly want to live, then you need to live with the freedom that you deserve.  And that's how he was motivating people.  By showing them that they have so much more to live for, and that they needed to seize their freedom and start to truly live.  This applies to my life because you need to enjoy yourself and do the things that you love.  You can't just go through the motions and live a boring life.  Anyone can do that.  It takes you doing the things you love, and being with people that matter around you to truly live a good and fufilling life.  You can die at any moment.  Will you be happy with the life you will have lived up to that point when the time comes?  That's the real question.

Part One:  Overall, I really enjoyed this movie.  I think that is a great mixture of intense battle scenes, with all the other stuff that goes on.  I think it was put together very well.  Also thought that Russel Crowe did phenomenal in the movie at portraying a character who works his way up after having everything, and getting it taken from him.  Not many people could have pulled it off.  I really enjoyed the battle scenes, but also the struggle of Lucilla as she had to please Commodus while being in love with Maximus.  It always adds something to a movie when an event like this is taking place.  I also thought that the actor who portrayed Commodus did very well, after learning how weird Commodus actually was.  I've already seen this movie, but I never mind watching it again as I seem to always get attached, so I guess that's a good thing.

Part Two:  I think that the theme or moral to this story is that the good will always rise above the evil.  Maximus had everything, but it was all taken from him by Commodus.  Even when his situation looked very dark, he still found a way to fight his way back up.  He emerged as the most popular gladiator, and was inspiring many people.  In the end, he ends up killing Commodus who I think desrved to die, therefore ridding everyone of the evil.  Even though Maximus dies, I believe his dying shows that it's worth dying for the good of man kind.  He saw a vision that was Rome, that was shared by his Hero Marcus Aurelius, and he fought to the death to make that goodness happen.

Initial Thoughts

I took this class because history is one of my favorite topics in school.  Also, I enjoy watching good movies, so learning about one of my favorite topics through something I enjoy seems like a great reason to take this course.  I also remember watching movies in previous history courses like 9th grade honors world history, and liked the discussions we had after.  My expectations are to learn more about history through these films and in class discussions, and really enjoy doing it.