Oscar Preview

Students comment on Oscar nominees

by Meara Cummings

Talon staff writer

James Franco and Anne Hathaway will host the 83rd Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 27 at 7 p.m. on ABC. This year, there are many different types of movies nominated for best picture. We’ve got action, comedy, drama, and even an animated kids film. Here are some opinions on the films from your very own Minnehaha peers. And the Oscar goes to…

The Fighter

“It was a very inspiring movie that proved that no matter where you come from and no matter what you do, you can rise to the top if you have hard work and determination.” — Senior Zach Nelson

The Kids are Alright

“It brought to light acceptance and talked about how just because your different doesn’t mean you’re not alright, and it’s important to remember who you are and what your stand for even if other people don’t agree with you.” — Junior Natalie Warren

True Grit

“It is a realistic adaptation of the novel, which I read and thoroughly enjoyed, and I felt that it followed quite closely to the story line and portrayed the inner meaning of the story.” — Junior Maggie Moran

Winter’s Bone

“One reason that I liked the movie so well is because it brought me in to a world completely foreign to me, even though it was set in the United States. That whole culture of the Appalachian region, the way people operate, the way people talk, the sort of code of ethics and how things are done there, was fascinating to me. I also liked it because the actors were new faces that I hadn’t seen before. I think it’s genius on the part of the director to know how far you can take your audience without pushing them over the edge, and this movie was a great example of that.” — English teacher Janet Johnson

Black Swan

“I thought it was a really good movie because it kept the viewer attentive at all times and I was on the edge of my seat. Also the plot was completely unexpected, all the twists at the end were total surprises. I was never really sure what was going to happen next, which is a really good quality to have in a motion picture.” — Sophomore Mackenzie O’Kane

Toy Story 3

“What made the movie great was how relatable the main character, Andy, is for us high school students. He’s grown up and now he’s off to college, which is the case for all the seniors this year. The movie itself brought up topics like loyalty, friendship and maturing in a really entertaining and cute way. I loved it!” — Sophomore Suzie Bexell

127 Hours

“The movie was actually really good, it didn’t focus all on the ending when the main character gets his arm stuck, it gave the audience background and developed the characters really well. It definitely pushed me to the edge of what I could take but the movie was really well done.” — Senior Mari Marcotte

The King’s Speech

“I thought the whole thing was genius. The premise is that the new king of the British Empire has a stutter and can’t speak very clearly. He realizes he’s not only king of England, but the king of the entire British Empire, and he has to compare himself with Adolf Hitler who was a great speech giver. The power of speech and the ability to be able to tell a story and get people to listen to you is tricky. For any normal person to give a speech to the entire British Empire would be scary, but to have to give that speech with a stutter and a stammer is 100 times worse. Finally, this king finds his voice and delivers a great speech to rally his people.” — History teacher Elizabeth Van Pilsum

Inception

“Inception is basically AP Calc 1. Neither of them make any sense at all but they’re both great.” — Sophomore Alec Chamberlain

The Social Network

“I thought it was very interesting learning all the facts behind Facebook and how it became such a huge thing for our generation. It was cool to see how it was created and all the deceitfulness that went on behind the scenes in the actual creating of Facebook.” — Sophomore Hannah Rikkers