Captain Phillips

This was an excellent movie.  Very interesting.  Although I wasn't sure whether or not I was going to like the movie in the beginning, as it was semi difficult for me to understand, I ended up loving it. This was definitely different from the other kinds of movies we've been watching, seeing as this event is very modern.  It embarrasses me to say that I never heard of the pirates attacks of Somalia on ships, and I never heard of this event when it was happening or after.  But knowing about it now amazes me.  This story is fascinating, and it amazes me that this whole ordeal took place in the middle of the ocean.  In the movie, I really liked Captain Phillips, and I did think he was a hero, until I learned that the movie falsely portrayed him. Although the movie was amazing, I feel like it was wrong to portray such an event like this in any way other than what it was.  All of the characters should have been portrayed as they actually were.  That being said, it was a fabulous movie, and very intense, and very educational about this event. I would definitely recommend this movie to anyone and everyone.

United 93

I enjoyed this film, as much as one can enjoy a film about the terrorist attacks on the United States of 9/11 and watching hundreds of people die a horrible death.  But I thought that it seemed accurate to me, the portrayal of events seemed accurate.  I liked how the film switched back and forth between the plane and the control center and showed the reactions of people as they found out about the planes crashing.  I think that everyone in that movie must be truly gifted actors to be able to portray that.  That is a scary film to be in, and I was impressed with everyone in it.  I thought that it was a very impactful movie, since most people only think of the two planes that hit the twin towers on 9/11.  Most people don't think about the heroics of the people on this plane, and how they sacrificed themselves for the good of thousands of others.  This was a very impactful film, and I am glad that we watched it.  I woul definitely recommend it to others to learn more about our country's history and this horrific time for America (although I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who's planning on flying in the near future).

Apollo 13

I enjoyed the film Apollo 13.  I wasn't aware of this story before watching the movie, and I thought that it was made in a way that was very easy to understand and follow what was happening throughout the whole film.  I especially liked how the movie switched back and forth between the space shuttle and the command center on Earth so that you could get both views of the situation. I didn't know that the shuttle wasn't going to make it to the moon before watching this film because I hadn't known the story, so when they had the malfunction on the shuttle I was shocked and horrified.  I also didn't know if they were going to make it back to Earth alive or not.  So I was very engrossed in this story.  It was very interesting to watch this amazing time in history for America.  I would definitely recommend this movie to others.

I think that this is a reasonable budget for NASA.  That may sound absolutely ridiculous because almost 10 billion dollars is absurd to think about.  That kind of money is unfathomable.  But when you think about what it's for, how it's for NASA, and sending astronauts into space and to explore the amazing vast universe that we are such a tiny part of, it seems worth it to me.

I feel that the retirement of the space program was a bad thing for the United States. Going to space and exploring the universe leads to many advances for our country in science and astronomy.  If we are no longer going out and learning more, how are we expected to continue advancing as a country? We can't learn everything there is to know by staying on Earth.  We have the technology to do amazing things, it is a waste not to use it in the most incredible ways that we can.

Parkland

I thought that this was a good movie.  It seemed like it accurately portrayed what happened surrounding this event.  Obviously this was a horrific tragedy for the American people.  I can't imagine what it must've been like.  Everyone must've been so shocked and scared.  I imagine it compares somewhat to the terror and shock people felt after 9/11.  I think that this was an interesting movie, and I thought it was cool how the studio got many big actors to be in the film.  The event itself is very interesting.  I wouldn't watch this movie on my own just for a good time, but I thought that it was informative and well made and well casted and good for getting across the historical significance of this event.

The Pianist

I would say that overall I enjoyed this movie.  I found it a little confusing and hard to follow at times, especially during the beginning.  I was confused by the characters, who was who, and how everyone in the family was related.  I didn't know any of the character's names.  But I thought that the story was incredible.  I always find stories about the holocaust and surviving amazing.  They are so inspiring to me.  They are filled with so much horror and despair, but yet, throughout it all, there's always that glimmer of hope, that will to live, to make it to the end, to make it through all the horror that is going on around you.  To be strong enough to make it through, and come out on the other side a new person.  For the millions and millions of people that died in the holocaust, there are also so many incredible and beautiful stories to be told about people who survived it.  This was definitely one of those stories.  This movie greatly impacted me and my thinking.

I imagine that, or at least I have to imagine that, not all of the Nazis were horribly awful people.  Yes, most of them did horrific things, but some of them did not; some of them did not want to be like that.  Some of them still had a heart and a soul, and a conscience, such as Hosenfeld.  He was still another human, just like Szpilman.  Another man.  He wasn't totally and completely corrupted by the Nazi mindset.  He could still see Jews for the people that they were truly, like a pianist, instead of defining them and stereotyping them by their religion.  Hosenfeld was one of the few good ones that still existed during this time period.  He saw the desperation in Szpilman, and he saw how magical his piano playing was, and for a moment while Szpilman was playing, he was in control.  Hosenfeld sat listening, transformed by this Jew, and for a few minutes the world that they lived in around them didn't matter.

I don't think that Szpilman had a choice in trusting Hosenfeld.  He had been found out, and if Hosenfeld had really wanted to kill him, he would have done it right away.  There was no point in waiting.  But Hosenfeld asked him to play the piano, and sat there looking at him just as a normal man. Not as a Nazi looking at a Jew, but as an amazed spectator in the presence of a great musician.  I think that after Szpilman got to play the piano after so long again, he was content.  If he was going to die, at least he'd got it in one last time.  If Hosenfeld wanted to kill him, he would have.  Szpilman had no choice but to trust him, and just hope, as it turned out to be, that Hosenfeld truly was one of the good ones.