Georgia Gempler

Avid movie watchers will tell you picking their favorite movies of all time is impossible.
And I am no exception.
So the following nine movies are not by any means my “favorite.” Each work has elements that are both exquisite, and not.
These movies are, however, a sample of my most watched, most recommended and most loved.
• “Bagdad Café” (1987)
This is one of my favorite movies to watch alone. Its slow pace and subtle messages really require the viewer to pay full attention.
The film follows a German woman’s life and transformation while living in the American southwest. Jasmin Münchgstettner leaves her husband while on a road trip and is forced to make her way on her own. She finds lodging at the Bagdad Café, a desolate truck stop and motel, with equally desolate occupants.
As her stay wears on, she manages to bring magic to her hosts’ lives as well as her own. Starring Marianne Sägebrecht, CCH Pounder and Jack Palance, this movie is full of simple beauty.
• “The Birdcage” (1996)
This is perhaps one of the funniest movies of all time. It has created many happy moments with my family and is one of my most highly recommended films.
Armand Goldman, played by Robin Williams, is the owner of a gay night club called The Birdcage. When his son wants to get married to a girl whose family would never accept gay in-laws, Armand and his partner play it straight for the sake of their son’s happiness.
“The Birdcage” also stars Nathan Lane, Dan Futterman, Gene Hackman, Dianne Wiest, Hank Azaria and Christine Baranski.
• “Amélie” (2001)
A girl with eclectic tastes and a complex personality, Amélie, played by Audrey Tautou, is a French girl living alone in Paris.
She creates her own whimsical world in which she loves to help others. It is when she needs to help herself that she hesitates.
I love the fact that his movie celebrates the unexpected and highlights the simple joys of life. Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, “Amélie” is in French with English subtitles.
• “The Breakfast Club” (1985)
When a group of strangers are trapped together for hours on end, you never know what kind of relationships will result. This is even more true for a group of teenagers.
A classic movie chronicling the teenage experience, “The Breakfast Club” — written and directed by John Hughes — stars Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald and Ally Sheedy as five teens in detention.
“The Breakfast Club” is one of the few movies I have experienced that truly captures the mind of the teenager, and accurately chronicles the stereotypical personalities of various high school cliques.
• “Down With Love” (2003)
This film takes place in the 1960s, a time when the movies were all about having fun in bright colors with amazing hair-dos. This movie, staring Rene Zellweger and Ewan McGregor, was made in that style with cheesy pick-up lines, suave playboys and New York apartments the size of warehouses.
The movie chronicles the lives of its two main characters, Catcher Block and Barbara Novak, as they spin devious plans to make each other fall in love with them. It’s perhaps one of the funniest movies I have ever seen staring Zellweger or McGregor.
• “The Thin Man” (1934)
William Powell and Myrna Loy star in “The Thin Man,” the first movie in a popular and thrilling series.
Former detective Nick Charles and his wife Nora are visiting New York when Nick is swept up into a murder case involving family friends. Witty lines and the constant guzzling of cocktails perfectly complement the suspenseful plot.
I love the fact that this movie fully embodies the spirit of the time in which it was made, the 1930s.
• “The Science of Sleep” (2006)
After seeing this movie only once, it is already one of my favorites.
Gael Garcia Bernal stars in this sweet movie about a man who dreams as often as he is awake. He lives in an apartment in France and often confuses his dreams with his real life, especially when it comes to love, and his beautiful next-door neighbor.
“The Science of Sleep” is a slow-paced, whimsical film with inspiring stop-animation and tons of creativity, in English, Spanish and French (with English subtitles).
• “An Affair to Remember” (1957)
This is perhaps one of the most beloved old movies of all time.
The classic love story, made popular again by its integral inclusion in Nora Ephron’s “Sleepless In Seattle,” combines 1950s charm with the timeless “will they, won’t they” plot.
My favorite scene in this movie takes place in an Italian villa, where Nickie and Terry, played by Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr, visit Nickie’s grandmother. In my opinion, it is one of the most romantic scenes in this desperately romantic classic.
• “Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day” (2008)
This is a whimsical, flirtatious interpretation of London life just before the Second World War.
Miss Pettigrew is an unsuccessful governess living on the streets of London. Through determination and extraordinary common sense, she meets Delysia Lafosse, a bubbly show girl, and teaches her to follow her heart.
Starring Frances McDormand and Amy Adams, “Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day” is perfectly suited to cheer you up after a bad day.

— Georgia Gempler is a junior at Davis High School and a member of the Herald-Republic’s Unleashed journalism program for high school students.

Georgia Gempler

How do you know what you experience is real? How do you know who you are is really who you are? Do you really matter? Do you know you are right in thinking you do matter?
You don’t.
You don’t really know.
The movie “Inception” explores just that concept, that the capacity of the human mind for change and growth invites doubt, which can be the most dangerous idea of all.
Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen Page and Joseph Gordon-Levitt star in one of this summer’s biggest movies.
DiCaprio’s character is Cobb, a man who works to extract information from others’ dreams and has one last job. He must find a way to plant an idea in someone’s mind by creating inspiration.
To do so, he puts together a team of expert scientists and architects who can create and manipulate the perfect dream world. Little do they know Cobb’s personal ghosts will follow him into the dream, endangering their existence.
But how do they know each separate reality, or dream-world, is not the true plane of existence? They must simply take what they think to be true from their first reality and make it applicable in all other dream levels.
One of the main points “Inception” tries to make is the human brain cannot rid itself of a thought. Thoughts are always with you, but they are hidden away on different levels of consciousness. To retrieve them, you must connect with your unconscious mind, using tools in reality to bring them to the surface.
Cobb’s team exploits this knowledge of the mind by looking into the dreams of Fischer, in whose mind they aim to plant the idea. His mind creates people and places to express his unconscious thoughts.
In a way, the entire movie is a symbol for the movie’s message. The movie is based on a single, simple idea. That idea takes shape and gains body and depth, bringing itself up to the conscious level of the mind. It has time to stew, and eventually grows to occupy the forefront of many minds together, until it comes full circle to draw attention back to itself using the movie.
If there is one message to be taken from “Inception,” it is this: No one will ever really know what true reality is. You can pretend to know, but all you are really doing is rationalizing to mask that dangerous concept of doubt.
The only way to really live is to live in the reality in which you find yourself. Make the most of what is presented to you at each and every moment, because who can know if another reality will be better?

— Georgia Gempler is an incoming junior at Davis High School and a member of the Herald-Republic’s Unleashed journalism program for high school students.

Hannah Souers

There’s no pre-determined date at which the grieving process ends and the recovery and acceptance process begins.
In the romantic fantasy film “Charlie St. Cloud,” directed by Burr Steers and based on the book “The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud,” the main character for which the film is named after spends five years grieving his brother’s death.
Charlie St. Cloud (Zac Efron) graduated from high school with a full-ride, competitive sailing scholarship at Stanford University. These plans were shattered when Charlie and his 11-year-old brother, Samuel (Charlie Tahan) were both in a car wreck. Both St. Cloud brothers died in the accident, but a paramedic brought Charlie back to life on the way to the hospital; after he was claimed to be a lost cause.
It wasn’t until Samuel’s funeral that Charlie realized the side effect of his death and return to life: Charlie could see and interact with the ghosts of the dead before they “moved on.” Samuel hadn’t moved on. Charlie made a promise with his deceased younger brother that he would practice baseball with him everyday at sunset. This is where the movie starts and continues from.
For five years, Charlie has kept his vow to Samuel, throwing away the scholarship and any chance of a regular relationship. He most likely would have continued in the same rhythm had Tess Carroll (Amanda Crew) not stumbled into Charlie’s life. Now, he has to chose to remain with his dependent departed brother, or depart with the girl with whom he’s falling in love.
Zac Efron has come a long ways since his days in the “High School Musical” trilogy. In “Charlie St. Cloud,” the actor shows a mature side that the audience isn’t prepared for. This movie cannot be entered in the same category as his previous works, including “High School Musical,” “Hairspray” and “17 Again.”
I don’t have any desire to see romantic movies; I prefer action and adventure.
“Charlie St. Cloud,” however, kept my attention throughout the entire hour and 49 minutes. This is an exceptionally high-quality movie with commercial trailers that did not do it justice.
I would recommend this movie to anyone with a love for romance, a thick plot and an itching for adventure.

— Hannah Souers is an incoming junior at West Valley High School and a member of the Herald-Republic’s Unleashed journalism program for high school students.

Manny Rodriguez

Earlier this month, MTV premiered a new show called “If You Really Knew Me.”
It’s supposed to be this groundbreaking series, unlike any other show on MTV.
Considering MTV has a reputation for basically brainwashing adolescents in America with aimless shows such as “Beavis & Butt-Head,” “Laguna Beach,” “A Shot At Love With Tila Tequila” and, most recently, “Jersey Shore,” I decided to give this new show a try.
After all, I do give MTV props for its efforts in recent years to showcase the not-so-pretty, not-so-luxurious and not-so-simple sides of real life.
With shows like “Teen Mom,” a documentary series which chronicles the lives of teen moms as they navigate their first year of motherhood, “True Life,” another documentary series in which individuals let cameras in on their lifestyles, including drug use, money issues and sexual topics, and now, “If You Really Knew Me,” we’re finally being informed on those hard-hitting issues that millions of young people  — specifically high school students — face on a day-to-day basis.
“If You Really Knew Me” takes place at a different high school every episode and follows five students from different cliques as they go through the life-changing experience of “Challenge Day,” a one-day program that breaks down the walls between cliques and changes the way students view their school and each other.
I must say I have been moved and inspired by the realness of the people on “If You Really Knew Me.” As I sit through the episodes, I find myself drawing similarities between some of the exercises done on the show and exercises I’ve personally experienced at Power of Hope summer camp.
Exercises on the show and at camp tackle the real-life dilemmas that affect our society and hinder us from being our true selves as well as how we go about finding a solution and then sharing it with the world.
The whole “You See, I Be” message resonates with me because it serves as a reminder that no matter how put-together someone appears on the surface, deep inside he or she may be fighting a turbulent battle with anything from self-esteem issues and insecurity to grieving the loss of a loved one or his or her parents’ divorce.
We, as humans, naturally fight to conceal how and what we’re truly feeling, and we are fed these messages through media, society and even close family and friends who convince us being open about our own struggles is a sign of weakness.
“If You Really Knew Me” demonstrates vulnerability is the greatest strength a person can have and being vocal is the first step to healing.
I especially loved the iceberg analogy shown in the second episode. On that episode, Sela, one of the “Challenge Day” leaders, draws an iceberg with 90 percent of the enormous ice block submerged in water, and a mere 10 percent of the iceberg above water.
“Most people are a lot like icebergs,” she says, noting that 10 percent of what is visible represents your “image,” or the clothes you wear, the music you listen to, the people you hang out with. The 90 percent that’s submerged represents almost all of what most people really are or how they feel.
This analogy establishes we can’t see that 90 percent. It’s internal. It’s our deepest fear. It’s our anger and frustration. It’s our pride and joy.
By watching “If You Really Knew Me,” I have been challenged to continue stepping out of my own comfort zone, not only at my high school, but wherever I go.
I will be more understanding of why people act or behave the way they do. And, finally, I will listen with my eyes and with my heart.

— “If You Really Knew Me” airs Tuesdays at 11 p.m. on MTV.

— Manny Rodriguez is an incoming senior at Toppenish High School and a member of the Herald-Republic’s Unleashed journalism program for high school students.

Hannah Souers

The architecture of the mind is a place of marvel and exceptional landscapes.
However, if you change the dreamer’s design, the subconscious will attack the invading force: you.
“Inception” is a one-of-a-kind film about Dominic Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), a man who specializes in intuitive security and steals ideas from his clients. Though he appears cool and assembled, Cobb struggles with his inability to decipher whether or not he is in reality or the subconscious world containing his deceased wife.
The title refers to the placing of an idea in the mind, or the opposite of extraction, which is something more familiar with Cobb.
The first 25 minutes of the movie present a perplexing scene between Cobb and an aged Saito (Ken Watanabe). Cobb attempts to extract confidential information from Saito’s mind with the help of his associate Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), but they are unsuccessful because Saito is prepared for them.
The scene ends with a flash of water, where Cobb and Arthur wake up. Confusing the viewers, they wake up again, reveling the characters had entered through two levels of the subconscious.
Written, directed and produced by Christopher Nolan, known for his successful productions “Batman Begins” and “The Dark Knight,” “Inception” contains several well-known actors and actresses, including DiCaprio, Watanabe, Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page, Marion Cotillard and many more.
Though it may be difficult to describe and understand the multifaceted film in words, the movie itself is the new summer hit that everyone should see.

— Hannah Souers is an incoming junior at West Valley High School and a member of the Herald-Republic’s Unleashed journalism program for high school students.

Georgia Gempler

Even sublime pleasure has a place with the most extreme piety.
And, to the most secluded of places can come the most cultured of people. In fact, such opposites often attract, and in meeting, teach that moderation can supply the best of both worlds.
In the 1987 film, “Babette’s Feast,” directed by Gabriel Axel, Martina and Philippa are sisters in an isolated Danish village. Their father was the founder of a local church, and the villagers are devout to the extreme.
The sisters are beautiful, and in their youth had admirers who were desperately in love with their gentle natures.
The movie progresses from their early lives to much later, when the only significant characters still in the story are all over the age of 60.
One of the women’s long-lost admirers sends Babette to them. Babette is a French woman who needed a way to escape counter-revolutionary bloodshed in Paris. She came to work for the sisters as a maid and cook.
For 14 years, she spends her time learning the language and cooking for Martina and Philippa, as well as other members of the village to whom the sisters give aid.
For the upcoming celebration of their father’s 100th birthday (he had already died, but it was still a momentous occasion in the village) Babette asks permission to make her employers a real French dinner.
They agree, but they are not without their misgivings. Such pleasures may lead to sin, and so the entire invited congregation of villagers agrees not to comment on the dinner, which turns out to be a tremendous success.
An old lover of one of the sisters is invited, and — as he had lived in France and had made no pact of silence — is deeply pleased with the evening.
Now, quite frankly, when I read the description on the back of the movie cover, my first impression was that this would be a generic story of how a newcomer to a secluded and tradition-set village upsets order, but makes everyone happier in the long run.
It is much more subtle than that.
Babette’s dinner is one evening of enjoyment, one evening of her old life for her to relish and remember and to share with her friends. It is a gift.
Babette knows the villagers are traditional, pious people, and she respects that. But she also knows there are some things that just need to be experienced for the sake of being able to appreciate them.
The best scenes of this movie are the feast and the unrest. During the feast, the true natures of all the characters can be seen by the observant eye. It is amazing how much the actors added to their characters. Every person has a different way of enjoying the food. The general, the admirer, is open but wise in his praise.
One woman, in particular, simply sat with her head bent and eyes closed, slowly chewing the food with her hand up to her mouth.
Another woman sipped at some water, made a face, then quickly picked up a glass of very expensive wine, took a big gulp, licked her lips, and practically downed the rest of the glass.
Keep in mind the majority of these dinner guests are over 80.
During the scene of unrest, earlier in the movie, the ugly sides of the characters can be seen. They bicker and accuse, even though they know all about the other side of the argument, having lived with these people all of their lives.
The things they confess aren’t terrible, in the grand scheme of things, but in that village they could be considered capital offenses. The sisters, ever gentle, try to keep the peace and instill forgiveness in their neighbors.
But, people being people, arguing is sometimes necessary to validate yourself as a human being. I mean this in the sense that it allows you to feel emotions that are not felt if one is constantly peaceful and serene.
This movie’s gentle pace and simple images gives it an almost listless tone, which adds incredibly to the script itself. “Babette’s Feast” is an original work, and it will make you ponder your own existence.

— Georgia Gempler is an incoming junior at Davis High School and a member of the Herald-Republic’s Unleashed journalism program for high school students.

Colleen Fontana

If you love musicals and didn’t get the chance to see the recent production of “Into the Woods” at Davis High School, you missed a good one.
As a cast member of the Stephen Sodheim production — full of wit and adventure —  I know I’m biased.
But I still feel like I can confidently say that you would not have regretted the $8 you would have spent to get a ticket.
From the opening lines of “Once upon a time” to the familiar end of “happily ever after,” you would have been engaged within the thick of a fairytale world.
Agonizing with the princes, chasing Cinderella and humming along with Rapunzel, you would have left the show wanting to pull out your old fairytale books.
“Into the Woods” follows the Baker and his Wife — I was his Wife — on their attempts to lift a curse placed upon their family by a witch. The curse prevents them from having children.
During their adventure, they encounter familiar characters such as Jack — of “Jack and the Beanstalk” fame — and his mother as well as Cinderella and Rapunzel, who are all in the woods for their own purposes.
Once everyone gets what they wanted, however, the plot twists and turns in Act II to test what it really means to live “happily ever after.”
The cast and crew of “Into the Woods” worked hard to produce a spectacular show.
And if you missed it this time, you might want to make sure you don’t next time. After all, who knows what can happen when you go into the woods.

— Colleen Fontana is a senior at Davis High School and a member of the Herald-Republic’s Unleashed journalism program for high school students.

Hannah Souers

“How is a raven like a writing desk?”
This was the question the Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp) asked throughout Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland.”
Shown in digital 3-D, the movie offers a new adventure in the already famous Wonderland. Rather than twisting the original story, this plot takes place years later with a new Alice (Mia Wasikowska).
Wonderland has fallen into despair under the rule of the Red Queen (Helena Bonham Carter), and the creatures of Wonderland need Alice’s help in restoring peace as well as the White Queen’s (Anne Hathaway) throne.
The problem is The White Rabbit, sent by the Hatter to retrieve Alice, manages to return with wrong girl.
This is a new take on a well-known story. But there is darkness within the movie that tells the audience this isn’t the happy story of a girl finding her way home.
Though the tale is less gleeful, there is some humor as well. The Hatter provides many examples of why he is considered “mad.”
The majority of the characters have been digitally altered. The most obvious is the Red Queen, whom has a head three times larger than the rest of her body.
There are more subtle changes as well. For example, the Hatter’s appearance is mostly made up make-up and wigs, but movie-goers will also notice his right pupil is larger than his left one.
Over all, this is an excellent movie with unique ideas and scenery that’s unmatched.
It’s a must-see movie for almost all ages; it’s suggested small children avoid it due to several fight scenes.
Everyone else will just have to see it to learn how a raven is like a writing desk!

— Hannah Souers is a sophomore at West Valley High School and a member of the Herald-Republic’s Unleashed journalism program for high school students.

Georgia Gempler

Unlike the many other movies highlighting the difficult lives of the high and mighty stars and politicians of our time, Jeff Daniels’ and Lauren Graham’s movie, “The Answer Man,” recently released on DVD, explores the subject on a deeper and slightly more disturbing level.
Jeff Daniels plays Arlen Faber, the man who knows everything about God. After writing the biggest religious bestseller and cornering 10 percent of the religious book market, he’s one of the most beloved — and elusive — authors of modern times.
Bitter, frustrated and definitely not a people person, he hides from the world, fearful that if people somehow get close to him, they will find out it’s all a lie: he doesn’t really know everything.
Lauren Graham is Elizabeth Danson, a young chiropractor opening her own practice. As a single mom, she’s under tremendous pressure to succeed for the sake of her son. Understandably a worrier, she struggles to find a means of balance in her personal life as she provides kindness and stability for others.
One of the most interesting aspects of “The Answer Man” is the way all the supporting characters are included to show the personalities of Arlen and Elizabeth. One such character, a recovering alcoholic named Kris, brings out the best and the worst of the pair.
Kris (Lou Taylor Pucci) is the typical movie character interpretation of a guy with problems. When he first meets Arlen, the two clash, demonstrating the horrific extent of Arlen’s behavior. But, as they interact more and more, Arlen improves, realizing that he does appreciate others’ friendship.
With Elizabeth, Kris can open up. She possesses that certain quality that allows people to relax and to feel better, a natural mom’s gift.
Elizabeth also forces Arlen to take a good look at himself and how he treats other people by showing him that people can accept who you truly are.
Arlen, in turn, gives Elizabeth some assurance that what she is doing with her life is right and that she can relax. Through his terrific insight into others’ problems and answers that just make sense, his relationships with everyone he meets could be much better, if only he would let them.
“The Answer Man” is one of the few movies that I have seen in a long time that actually made me laugh and cringe with appreciation. Jeff Daniels plays his bitter, unfriendly character to a tee, managing to make Arlen Faber a likable mess.
For me, his performance was the best part of the movie, as his transformation was realistic, unlike so many movies today. Other similar films — such as “Notting Hill” with Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts — portray celebrities as troubled, but often create a dreamlike tone, as if falling in love with a superstar doesn’t also involve pain on some levels.
But “The Answer Man” does. The film highlights the struggles of Arlen and Elizabeth and makes them realistic. Despite a slightly overused plot line, “The Answer Man” is one of the most refreshing movies I have seen in a long time.

— Georgia Gempler is a sophomore at Davis High School and a member of the Herald-Republic’s Unleashed journalism program for students.

Alyssa Wickenhagen

When my friend Brooke said she wanted to go see “The Lovely Bones,” I said, “Are you serious?  I think that movie looks confusing and weird.”
My opinion turned out to be right. 
It sure wasn’t worth my half-hour trip down to town or the two movie tickets my grandma got me for Christmas.
When I walked into the theater I noticed it was one of the smaller ones. I knew that was a sign. They never put the good movies in the smaller theaters.
I have to admit the movie — based on the 2002 book by Alice Sebold and directed by Peter Jackson, who also directed the recent “Lord of the Rings” trilogy — didn’t start out bad.
Fourteen-year-old Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan) lives with her dad Jack Salmon (played by Mark Wahlberg), mother Abigail Salmon (Rachel Weiz) and sister Lindsey Salmon (Rose McIvey). They are a close-knit family who live in a small community surrounded by neighbors, who all look to be good people —  including Mr. Harvey.
Played by Stanley Tucci — from the recent films “The Devil Wears Prada” and “Julie and Julia” — Mr. Harvey is actually very creepy, and his squeaky tone and evil laugh give movie-goers the chills.
When he murders Susie, she becomes stuck in the middle, somewhere between Heaven and Earth. From this place, she tries to help her family members cope with her murder.
Wahlberg portrays her heartbroken father, giving up everything he has to investigate his daughter’s death.
The movie took for me a turn when Susie starts see the deaths of other girls Mr. Harvey murdered in the past. They are all young girls, who try to convince Susie to let go and enter Heaven. But Susie is still not ready. She has to fulfill a few more things before she can enter Heaven and be happy again.
This movie was confusing for me because it seemed like major plot points were left out. Susie dies, but the movie doesn’t make her death obvious. Through the beginning of the movie I found myself questioning whether she was dead or alive.
Then I found myself questioning why she wasn’t in Heaven, but some in-between place. It becomes clear as the movie goes on, but you must figure it out for yourself.
Somehow, Susie can see her father and people she loves even though she is dead. And they can somehow “feel” her in there presence as well.
I feel this movie was weird because it makes you question things. Is there really an in-between?

— Alyssa Wickenhagen is a freshman at Highland High School and a member of the Herald-Republic’s Unleashed journalism program for students.