ATTENTION, IF YOU ARE INTENDING TO WATCH THIS MOVIE DO NOT READ THIS ENTRY, IT MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS.

Prom Night, directed by Nelson McCormick, is a horror/thriller film, and let me say that the actual movie lives up to is description. Starring Brittany Snow as Donna, this movie takes you on a terrifying ride that leaves you gripping onto your seat for support.

I love scary movies. I watch them all the time. In fact, I think I love them too much because I usually end up staying awake the entire night after watching one. Of all the many scary movies I have ever seen, this has to be among the top three. Meant to thrill the viewer, any high school student watching this is even more effeted than the average watcher because the subject hits so close to home. The plot is undoubtedly plausable. Obviously it is not entirely believable, but the director's purpose in filming a horror film is to make you believe while watching the movie that THIS COULD HAPPEN TO YOU. And McCormick most certainly achieved his goal.

Brittany Snow displayed an excelent portrayal of a senior in high school dealing with trauma in her past. The premiseof this movie is a high school teacher who falls madly in love with one of his students. He becomes obsessed with her, and ultimately kills her family looking for her. Donna actually had to watch him kill her mother while she was hiding under the bed (the scariest most powerful point of the movie in my opinion.) He gets arrested, and Donna is finally able to live her life without fear, although the memories of her past haunt her. The night of their senior prom approaches, and happens to coincide directly with her stalkers' escape from prison. He shaves his face so no one recognizes him, and arrives at the hotel where the prom is taking place.

The fact that most of the terror scenes occur inside a hotel is a tribute to the psychological fear associated with hotels. The most famous terrifying films have taken place in hotels, such as The Shining, and 1408. I applaud the director with his filming strategies, because a long dimly lit hallway with a killer on the loose while Donna walks slowly towards her hotel room is the epitome of how McCormick tried to evoke fear. Inside a hotel room there are numerous places where one could be hiding, and or jump out at you.

The most amazing night of Donna's life soon turns into a fight for her life, as friend after friend, boyfriend after teacher is murdered in the pursuit of Donna herself. Actually, I believe one of the most suspenseful aspects of the film is we do not know who is going to be killed next; in fact we don't even know where the dead bodies are hidden until an actor stumbles upon one by accident.

The most psychologically disturbing aspect of this movie is that all of these people are dying because of Donna. The audience sits in horror as people give their life away to save anothers, starting with her mother, and ending with her boyfriend who is her support throughout the entire movie. It evokes the feeling of helplessness and claustrophia; this killer is so cunning and devious that no one can escape him. If you love scary movies, I highly recommend this one. If you do not like scary movies, stay as far away from this film as possible.

Today in school the people representing Invisible Children came to speak to us. This organization raises awareness for the millions of people fighting for their lives in the Uganda genocide that is happening this very instant. They explained how the war in North Uganda started, and how children are being captured, killed, or forced to fight in an army killing not only strangers, but family members whom they love. This is a tragedy of which no one is paying much attention to, however, I believe that we all must recognize the catastrophy that is taking place before our very eyes.
They showed us a video today of a brother and sister who visited Uganda, met with the 'invisible' children who live there, and experienced first-hand how horrible the lives of those who suffer in Africa are. This video, to me, is the epitome of an effective video. It started out by introducing the sister who is a hair stylist in L.A. They had montages of photos contianing her and her husband, and what her job entails. This allows the viewer to make a personal connection with the documenter, and we as High School students can reflect on how she is an average person just like us.
When they arrived in Uganda, the film quickly flashed through the state of the country, and how dilapitated everything appeared. We then met a child who's life has been ruined by the Uganda genocide, but still fights onward in the hopes of pursuing her dreams. This young girl, Roseline,
captured my heart, as well as those who sat around me. Her mother was killed during the war, and she is unfortunately HIV possitive which was genetically passed onto her through her mother. She lives in terror that she will be kidnapped, and in constantly worries that she will be unable to obtain the next batch of medicine for her treatment. One in five HIV possitive patients are being treated in Africa; Roseline's life is dependent upon a pill that is uncertain to be within her grasp the following month.
However, Roseline was singing in the video. She was laughing, playing, and sharing her ambition to become a doctor should she live that long. It amazes me how her outlook on life can still be so incredibly possitive and how much strength she demonstrates.
The close-ups on Roseline's face, the music that played in the background, the sometimes shaky picture due to te fact that it was a documentary, and the montages of different images put together created an unbelievable short film. It was captivating, and really portrayed the message that there are people who are desperately in need of our help. They are experience an inordinately large amount of pain, more than any of us will ever experience in a life time. The film was effective in showing the pain that these kids go through, and the fear that haunts every day.
As the video ended, I looked around the room. There were seldom dry eyes in the entire auditorium. I knew that the video had done what it intended to do; make us care about people who we have never met.

North By Northwest 1

Today in class we watched the first section of North by Northwest, a film directed by the famous Alfred Hitchcock. Hitchcock is known for his ability to 'thrill' the audience, creating scenario's that are not only suspenseful, but chill you down to your bone. With a reputation like his, I would have imagined the films to far surpass my expectaion of a 'good ' film.
As of right now, I cannot comment on my feelings towards the film because it is still too early to fully understand the genius that could have been part of the directing. I can, however, describe why I think the intro, so far, is definitely effective.
As my English teacher likes to say, "Films can be read as books." Until this point I honestly did not fully understand why he thought so. Yes, film is a form of literature, but are they not purely for our entertainment purposes? No. I can already see how North by Northwest can be read like a book. The beggining of the movie before we even see any actors, the crossing lines in the background portray a sense of structure, fitting, and importance. The next images that flit through the screen are the bustling streets of city life, showing people moving with purpose and conviction. It creates a sense of order within chaos. Everyone had somewhere to go or someone to see, and there was no room for disruption.
I though that these scenes were a great way to open the entire movie. Even though I have only seen the first 20 minutes, I can already understand that the initial montage depicted the way Roger Thornhill, main character, used to live his life. Hitchcock has so far lived up to my expectations of him.