The widely acclaimed director Ken Burns teamed up with Sarah Burns and David McMahon to film a documentary that would be considered controversial and borderline taboo.
The story
In 1989 a Caucasian female was jogging in Central Park when she was raped and left for dead. With the inability to confirm or even understand what had been done to her and by who, the police force was left with the task of finding the perpetrator. Coincidentally, on the same night, five young men had been hauled down to the police station for assaults in the park. The young men were about to be released for the misconduct when the police found the woman and were told to detain the boys. From that point on the lives of Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Antron McCray, Kharey Wise, and Raymond Santana, were forever changed. [click to continue….]
Tagged as:
Central Park 5,
Central Park Jogger,
documentary,
Ken Burns
High 5 teens were invited to a special screening of The Way Way Back, a new film starring Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Allison Janney, Sam Rockwell, and more, to be released in select theaters this July. Freelancer Sidney Marie shares her thoughts.
Coming to theaters this July, The Way Way Back is a family comedy about a teen named Duncan, who goes on an unwanted vacation and ends up finding unexpected friends and a sense of purpose in the world. Amongst the many stars in the cast are, Steve Carrell, as the callous stepdad Trent, comedian Maya Rudolf as Caitlyn, and rising stars Liam James and AnnaSophia Robb as Duncan and Susanna, respectively. The cast helps to make the film funny yet highly relatable. [click to continue….]
Tagged as:
Liam James,
Sam Rockwell,
special screening,
Steve Carell,
The Way Way Back,
Toni Collette
High 5 teens were invited to a special screening of The Way Way Back, a new film starring Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Allison Janney, Sam Rockwell, and more, to be released in select theaters this July. Teen Advisory Council’s Adonys shares his thoughts on the film below.
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Tagged as:
Liam James,
Sam Rockwell,
special screening,
Steve Carell,
Teen Advisory Council (TAC),
The Way Way Back,
Toni Collette
The movie 42 is an excellent retelling of the historical breakthrough of the first African- American to integrate American pro-baseball. Jackie Robinson’s story was immaculately displayed in this movie. I’ve always learned about Robinson contributions in the Civil Rights unit of textbooks; but seeing this story on the screen allowed me to understand the reality of our history and the struggle of our ancestors. [click to continue….]
Tagged as:
42,
baseball,
Civil Rights,
Jackie Robinson
Ed Koch was one of New York City’s most influential mayors. He was known for his cheeky, charismatic personality and his no-nonsense approach when it came to getting things done. Unfazed by public opinion, rumors about his sexuality, and protest, Koch was a strong leader who did what he had to in order to pull the city out of tough times. The new documentary Koch presents a comprehensive portrait of the late former mayor’s life and career. The film documents both Koch’s many achievements and also his most notorious failures. An entertaining character sketch and an interesting glimpse at the city’s past, Koch is a must-see for New Yorkers of all ages. [click to continue….]
Tagged as:
documentary,
Ed Koch,
mayor,
NYC
Les Miserables director Tom Hooper’s first choice for the role of Jean Valjean was Hugh Jackman. His second choice? “Refer to number one.” Jackman is a rare find: a tenor who looks like he could lift very heavy things, as well as an actor who prefers the heightened medium of song to normal speech. Jackman flings himself into Valjean’s skin, becoming emaciated for the sake of Valjean’s first few scenes. His performance is raw and emotional. He carries the film, as he carries an enormous flagpole in the opening number, with vigor and determination. But by no means does he carry it alone; he has a flock of magnificent actors surrounding him. [click to continue….]
Tagged as:
Amanda Seyfried,
Anne Hathaway,
France,
Hugh Jackman,
Les Miserables,
musical,
Samantha Banks,
Tom Hooper
by Diane Exavier, High 5 Review Editor on January 8, 2013
in Dance,Feature Articles,Film,Music,Performance Art,Teen Reviews,Theater,TRaC,Visual Arts
At the Fall Kick-Off event with the NY Neo-futurists in October
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This fall, High 5′s TRaC program went to see some pretty awesome performances all around NYC from MoMA, to Harlem Stage, to Playwrights Horizons, and so much more! We’ve compiled a running list of their reviews right here! Take some time to peruse through a few as we look ahead to the spring.
If you’re interested in the TRaC program, this is definitely the place to start. We have an open house coming up at our headquarters on Thursday, January 31 and applications for the spring semester will be due Friday, February 8. More info, including the application, will be online soon!
[click to continue….]
Tagged as:
Fall 2012,
TRaC
The movie Airplane is a comedy in which a contagious illness strikes during a plane ride, and knocks out the pilots. It is a very funny movie; and it is a great movie. It was written by David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker. It is a very quick movie with a rapid fire of jokes. It stars Robert Hays, as a taxi driver. It is a very well known movie; and many of the jokes in the movie are famous and often referenced in other media.
The movie is about the ex cab driver Ted Striker. His ex-girlfriend breaks up with him and is now a stewardess. He wants to get back with her. He plans to do this by going on the flight she’s working on. The movie starts out in the airport, with someone announcing a plane leaving for a certain location. However, another announcer cuts in and says the plane goes to a different location. The two announcers get into an argument and eventually start swearing at each other. This is the beginning scene of the movie.
The movie has very fast slapstick comedy. There are many jokes; and they come very quickly. Most of the jokes are very in your face; but some of the jokes are more subtle. Most of the humor is very light and silly. For example, there is a famous line where a character says “Can you fly this plane and land it?” And the response is “Surely you can’t be serious.” And the other character responds “I am serious. And don’t call me Shirley.” The joke is obviously that “surely” sounds like the name “Shirley.” While the joke seems very childish and stupid, it is very popular. A Google search of “don’t call me Shirley” produces 3,040,000 results. The TV series “Suburgatory” has an episode called “Don’t call me Shirley”. It is a timeless gag.
The film has aged quite well, but not perfectly. There is one joke that involves two jive speaking black men. They are only able to speak jive, and cannot speak regular English. When one of them strikes ill, the stewardess come to ask what is wrong. Being that they can’t speak English, she is unable to understand. An old lady says she can speak Jive, and can communicate with the two men. She speaks Jive with them, and much of the humor from this scene actually comes from the very formal translations of the Jive in the subtitles. Much of the Jive has English words, and they are translated in a more formal manner. While this is certainly not terribly offensive, this can offend some people as some comedies do rely on racist humor, even today.
The story of the movie is very simple, and obviously just a bridge to the jokes. The character interactions, while not deep, are very cleverly written and humorous. The acting is top notch. While every character does play an established archetype, it is obviously intentional and does not come off as stereotypical.
Image source: IMDB
Tagged as:
Airplane,
comedy,
Film TRaC
