Wasted Talent

by Anonymous

One of my most favorite and beloved films is A Bronx Tale (1993). Its genres are crime and drama. It was the first movie directed by Robert De Niro and was written by Chazz Palminteri.

This story is about the Anello family, comprised of Lorenzo (the dad) Rosina (the mom), and Calogero (the 9 yr. old son). They live in the Bronx, NY in the 1960’s. Calogero and his friends are fascinated by the local mobsters that live in the neighborhood. Sonny is the leader of the crew and is Calogero’s idol. One day Calogero witnesses a murder committed by Sonny. When the police investigators question him about the murder he keeps quiet and does not rat. Sonny then takes a liking to Calogero, befriends him, and nicknames him “C”. When Lorenzo finds out that his son had been spending time with Sonny and the crew, he attempts to put a stop to it. Lorenzo warns the two to stay away from one another. Regardless of how Lorenzo felt, “C” didn’t care and still hung out with Sonny whenever he could.

Eight years pass. “C” is put in several situations where he has to decide what and who is right. To me the most inspiring thing about this film is its message. Lorenzo tells “C”, “The saddest thing in life is wasted talent.You could have all the talent in the world but if you don’t do the right thing then nothing happens, but when you do right good things happen." At 9 years old, “C” doesn't understand the true meaning of that message but as a young man he soon realizes its depth and chooses virtue.

The Iron Giant vs. The Iron Giant

We were recently assigned to read the book The Iron Giant by Ted Hughes, and then we watched the movie The Iron Giant in class.

Well, I'll admit...I didn't read the book before we watched the movie! Bad me! But I loved the movie, and I went and rented it that night and watched it again with my three year old son, and then we watched it again, and again, and again (as it tends to go with three year olds when they love a movie).

I then read the book. It's a relatively short, easy read and very different from the movie. In the movie, Hogarth, the young boy who befriends the Iron Giant is the main character, and the relationship that they have is so sweet and well formed, they become good friends and at one point Hogarth even expresses his love for the Giant, and the Iron Giant clearly loves the boy.

In the book, they hardly even have a relationship. In fact the story is completely different. The Iron Giant appears one day as a nuisance to the community, eating machinery and fences and other metal objects (okay, that part is similar to the movie) until the town's people capture and bury him (with Hogarth's help). The Giant eventually frees himself, and with Hogarth's help once again the town's people are able to find a solution by pacifying the Iron Giant at a junk yard, where he can eat all of the scrap metal he wants.

Then, unlike the movie (which is more of a parallel to the fears of the cold war) one day a giant “space-bat-angel-dragon” literally the size of Australia lands....well, on Australia, and terrifies the entire planet by demanding living things to eat. The people of Earth band together to try and destroy the “space-bat-angel-dragon” and when they are unsuccessful Hogarth goes to the Iron Giant and asks for help. Only when Hogarth explains that there will be nothing left for the Iron Giant to eat if he does not help, does he decide to help! In the movie, he helps Hogarth, because he loves him!

In both the book and the movie the Iron Giant is willing to sacrifice himself to save others, that is clear. Both stories are entertaining, I won't argue that. The book is definitely a classic and I would surely recommend it as a good, short read (as I mentioned before). However, the movie absolutely captured my heart. The relationship between the robot and the boy, and the realization that a machine could “love” is a theme that I have grown up with and I loved it, but the book and the movie were shockingly different, and I just haaad to blog about it.

This is my first blog, I don't know how to end it.

The End.

Sincerely,
Shadow Dove

The Hero's Journey in Stories

By Cortnie Gurno

I love movies. The movies I enjoy most are action and adventure. However I like historical movies as well. Movies that use action and adventure to bring a story to life is a great interpretation of that historical event. An example would be the Trojan War and Odysseus and his journey.

I was always intrigued by Greek mythology so studying Odysseus and his journey brought my back to that time. You could never go wrong with Ancient Greece. It is such a beautiful time full of beautiful architecture and stories of Gods, Goddesses and Monsters.

This class is perfect to explore the realms of books and movies. I found that some of my favorite movies were based on books. I am reading The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, which is a great movie but also a great children’s book, one that I never took the time to read. The character of Dorothy is one I feel young women can connect to. Digging deep into her story also lead me to another brave young girl named Alice. Alice in Wonderland is a story of pure imagination and creativity. Both of these stories are well known and popular movies that came from the pages of books. Both characters are heroes in their own journey to find themselves and who they are.

Exploring the model of the Hero’s Journey exposed how many classic stories and tales follow this model. After learning more about the Hero’s Journey I believe this is the key to a successful storyline