Life at the Crossroads

By: Alex

Art by Alex  

There are three things I remember most vividly from the movie Castaway. One, Tom Hanks’ dramatic weight loss; two, the famous “WILSON!!!” scene, in which Tom Hanks professes his love for a friendly volleyball; and three, the ending that still has me thinking. Sorry for the spoiler, but this ending gives us no closure, as we see Tom Hanks return to his home after being rescued and left at a literal crossroads to decide where to move next with his life. He is essentially starting fresh—a new man with a new life ahead of him.

But what does he decide to do? We will never know, as the movie ends before we see him make his decision. So, what does this say about decisiveness? I want to know where Tom Hanks goes. I want to know if he made the right decision. I want some answers!

Of course, I’m getting fired up about this because the crossroads are not only reserved for men who return home after four years of being shipwrecked and now have to decide what to do with their lives after rejoining society. The crossroads are very real to us, too. As teens, we’re at an age where almost every moment in life puts us at a crossroads because there is still so much to figure out. Now, some crossroads are more important than others. Like the crossroads of post-grad life--- those are pretty important. It’s where we decide what we want to do with ‘the rest of our lives’ and ‘who we want to become.’ Lots of pressure, I know. But it’s unavoidable.

What I’m getting down to here is the idea we all fear--- the unknown. Like Tom Hanks, we will all eventually be left at the crossroads. Though our crossroads are a result of graduation and his were a result of being at sea for years, it’s the same deal. The crossroads represent several different options for us, each one being something uncertain because we never really know what lies at the end of the path until we venture down it.

So it becomes rather scary when we realize that we can’t sit at the crossroads forever—we have to choose where to go from there. We’re faced with so many questions… ‘what path do I choose?’ ‘What if I’m unhappy with the decision I make?’ ‘What do I do now??’ But here’s something to think about: what’s to stop us from turning back if we don’t like the path we choose?

Though I’m super scared of reaching the post-grad crossroads, I know that there’s a very slim chance that I’ll go down the wrong path when I get there, because there really is no wrong path to take. The beautiful thing about making choices is that we can try something that we think we like, realize we don’t like it, and then choose to move on. We can go down any path we want, as many times as we want.

I’m not saying this will be an easy feat. Decisions are big stuff reserved for the grown-up world that us teens don’t like to talk about. But we’ve got to start making them sometime. The movie ended before we saw it, but we know that Tom Hanks had to make some sort of decision toward his future. It’s the only way.

So when my time comes at the crossroads, I’ll boldly make a decision about where my life will lead. I may like it, and I may not. But I know I can always try another path if I can’t find happiness down the first. And, if all else fails, at least I’ll have a volleyball in the passenger’s seat to keep me company.

Detention: No Judgment Zone

By: Alex

Art by Alex

I’m proud to say I got through high school with a clean slate. No detentions, suspensions, not even a parking ticket for me. Working to keep my name off the lists outside the school office helped solidify the independent goody-goody personality I identified myself with in high school. What I did (or didn’t) do gave me my reputation, thus reputation became a means of segregation in an already confusing world of high school. If only I had the chance to know some of the kids who spent their Saturdays in detention. Of course, I would have had that opportunity if I had been at Shermer High School on March 24, 1984. Yes, that is the exact time and location of The Breakfast Club, of which I am begging to be a part of.

John Hughes’ coming-of-age piece, The Breakfast Club chronicles the lives of five different teenagers as they spend a day in detention and learn about themselves through the interactions they have with each other.  This film captures the inner turmoil of going through high school, whether you are an athlete, a princess, a geek, a criminal or a basket-case, everyone struggles to figure it all out in those four overwhelming years.

The Breakfast Club allows us to see a specimen of each of the strictly stratified social groupings of high school and how, though they may seem different, there is so much that one can have in common with the other. As we see these five teens start to get along and open up to each other during detention, the world doesn’t seem as scary. These kids share their deepest secrets, and though there is some teasing at first, there is never any judgment. They get along so well and just want to help each other figure it out as they each struggle with the same questions. If The Breakfast Club can find solace in one another, things seem less impossible for us.

By finding this solace, I can honestly say that I wouldn’t be who I am today if John Hughes hadn’t created such a piece of teen gold. While still being easy enough for kids to watch, Hughes gets down to the tough stuff about growing up, some of the taboo that we don’t really like to think about. But even though this movie examines some things that might not be comfortable to confront, I feel a lot better after watching it. The more real the movie, the more I can trust the characters. I totally relate to these anxious teens just trying to get by in a world they don’t understand. If they can find some peace by the end of the film, I think I can too.

The Breakfast Club will always speak to me as one of the most real accounts of teen angst out there. Through one day of detention and sharing their inner turmoil, they found something in themselves and found a savior in someone else, which is sometimes, all we need to know that things will be okay for a while. And when John Bender thrusts his fist in the air as Simples Minds plays over the freeze frame, Hughes gives us one final triumphant image, as if to say, he made it, we can too.

New York, I Love You

By: Alex

Art by Alex 

“Chapter one. She adored New York City. She idolized it all out of proportion.” As I write this column, I sit on the fourth floor of a residence hall in Brooklyn, beneath string lights, surrounded by posters of grunge films of the 90s, amateur photography developed by the photographer in her own dark room, and scented hippie candles, while the Velvet Underground plays. I. love. this. place. As I am so inspired by this city and its opportunity for people to be admired and respected for being different and ambitious, I am so inclined to share my favorite movies set in the NYC that explain its magical, inspiring lifestyle so well. 

Manhattan (1979)- I would classify most any Woody Allen film as the quintessential ‘New York movie,’ but Manhattan, being named after a burrow of the city, is certainly one of his best. His main character Ike (played by himself, of course) makes his way through day to day life in the city, confronting his ex-wife, dating a high school student, and falling in love with a pretentious middle-aged woman. Through the magic of the city, Woody battles with his inner turmoil and realizes that, even though life can get overwhelming, sometimes you have to have a little faith in people.

The Squid and the Whale (2005)- Using the intelligent community of Brooklyn as its backdrop, this movie centers around two authorial parents who break it to their teenage sons, Walt and Frank, that they are getting a divorce. Confused and overwhelmed, Walt and Frank must deal with the aftermath of their parents’ decision: how to deal with a broken family, whose sides to take, and how to move on. Forced to adjust to this new life, Walt and Frank try to both break from their parents and also become more like them, leading to their downward spiral of pathetic hopelessness and unrightful arrogance.

Taxi Driver (1976)- In a not so positive look at New York City, the troubled, sleepless Travis Bickle takes on a night shift as a taxi driver. Through his journal, we learn of Travis’ inner thoughts about his disgust with humanity, his fascination with the beautiful Betsy, and his desire to help a child prostitute, Iris. Travis doesn’t seem to care about much, with his apathetic attitude and rebellious nature, but with this shocking look at the underbelly of New York culture, we see that Travis does want to change the decay (physical and mental) of the city, wishing for someone ‘to clean this garbage off the street.’

When Harry Met Sally (1989)- When Harry carpools with Sally from Chicago to New York City the day of their college graduation, the two were destined to be together, though they barely knew each other at the beginning of the journey. Throughout the rest of the film, Harry and Sally have chance encounters, until they become good friends, each of them lamenting over the fact that they are still single in New York City. Eventually, Harry and Sally become more than friends, which is what we always wanted, and their dates in Central Park become an envious relationship for anyone. 

Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1964)- The gorgeous, glamorous Holly Golightly rules New York City with her style and poise. In one of Audrey Hepburn’s most well-known roles, this movie showcases the New York high life and the chance that everything great in the world is possible through the holy grail-esque promise of Tiffany’s. In a story of self-discovery, we get to know Holly’s surprising past as her relationship with Paul Varjack, or ‘Fred,’ as she so fondly refers to him, grows and helps teach her about life and love.

Best of Boston Movies

By: Emily

Graphic by Emily

Bostonians are proud people, and that is reflected in their movies. From Fenway to Harvard, Boston has a lot to offer. As a student in Boston, I feel a sense of pride for the city. As we get closer to going back to school, now is the time to remember some of the best movies that take place in Boston. Here is a list of the top films that tell us what Beantown is all about.

1. Good Will Hunting (1997), R
Written by two true Bostonians, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, Good Will Hunting follows Will, a janitor at MIT. Will, played by Damon, is a genius and yet he has no direction in life, completely content with sweeping floors all day and getting into bar fights with his buddies at night. When he has one too many run-ins with the law, he is forced to rely on a washed up therapist, played by Robin Williams, for guidance and direction. Nominated for nine Academy Awards, Good Will Hunting is a tough and tender story that is clearly proud to be set in Boston.
Fun Fact: Ben Affleck and Matt Damon knew they wanted to write a movie together, and after they were frustrated with the corruption in Hollywood, they chose to write about what they knew: growing up in Boston.

2. The Departed (2006), R
Martin Scorsese's Oscar-winning crime drama also stars Matt Damon. This time Damon plays a mole within the Massachusetts State Police. While everyone thinks he is working for the police, he is really working for Irish mob boss Frank Costello, played by Jack Nicholson. What some claim to be Scorsese's best work, it's Best Picture Oscar (among it's four other wins) seems to agree.
Fun Fact: Martin Scorsese viewed the film's dailies at Emerson!

3. The Social Network (2010), PG-13
The Social Network tells the story of one of Harvard's most famous alumni, Mark Zuckerberg's rise to fame when he created the infamous social media website, Facebook. With David Fincher, director of Fight Club and Se7en, at the helm, this film encompasses a cut-throat and intense academic, social, and professional life at the world's top Ivy League.
Fun Fact: Harvard graduate and Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman helped screenwriter Aaron Sorkin by giving him first-hand knowledge of the social scene at Harvard during the time of Facebook's creation.

4. Mystic River (2003), R
Another crime drama to make it on the list, Mystic River is probably Clint Eastwood's most overlooked film as a director. In the film, childhood best friends Jimmy, Dave, and Sean, played by Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, and Kevin Bacon respectively, are forced to reunite when Jimmy's daughter is murdered. Jimmy and Dave still live in Boston where they grew up while Sean is a detective for the Massachusetts State Police and is assigned to solve the murder. Sean Penn gives one of the best performances of his career in this resilient and sensitive film.
Fun Fact: The film was almost shot in Toronto, Canada because it was cheaper, but director Clint Eastwood pushed to have the shoot in Boston, where the film and novel take place.

5. The Boondock Saints (1999), R
After attending mass at a Catholic church, brothers Connor and Murphy McManus pledge to rid Boston of crime, all the while being tracked by the FBI. While this film did poorly at the box office upon its initial release, it has since gained a cult following from not only Bostonians, but fans around the world.
Fun Fact: The director, Troy Duffy, made a Boondock Saints II, a documentary about The Boondock Saints, and even named his band after the film.

6. The Fighter (2010), R
While The Fighter actually takes place in Lowell, Massachusetts, it is the brainchild of Mark Wahlberg, the proudest of Bostonians and therefore holds a place on this list. Micky Ward, played by Wahlberg, is a working-class boxer being trained by his washed up half brother Dicky, played by Christian Bale. The film was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
Fun Fact: Mark Wahlberg began training for the film in 2005 for his role as Micky and continued until 2009 when filming finally began.

7. Ted (2012), R
Mark Wahlberg stars in another Boston film on this list, Ted. Created by Family Guy's Seth McFarlane, Ted is a teddy bear that John Bennett, played by Wahlberg, wished to have a child. As he grew up, so did his best friend, Ted. Now as adults, they live, drink, and share crude jokes together--much to the misfortune of John's girlfriend, played by Mila Kunis, who wants Ted gone. From Ted's strong Boston accent to a trip to Fenway, everything about this movie screams Boston. And that's just how we'd want it.
Fun Fact: Shawn Thornton of the Boston Bruins makes a cameo in the film when he runs on stage after Norah Jones.

The Beauty of Starting Over

By: Alex

Art by Alex 

Everyone has fallen into a rut-- a moment in life when we feel so stuck that we don’t know where to go next. No matter what age, we all face uncertainty.  And with that feeling, it’s hard to be confident enough to take the next step and do something about it. With a recent rewatch of American Beauty, I found a new meaning of empowerment as I saw how the film’s main character, Lester Burnham, dealt with his midlife crisis. He shows us that it’s possible to put an unhappy past behind and start over. 

In the film, Lester reaches his middle age and realizes that he has nothing to live for. His family thinks he’s a loser, he hates his job, and he hides his emotions to get through his days with very little conflict. He has this feeling of sedation that’s followed him for many years. In his time of trying to build the perfect life, he lost sight of what really mattered to him.

In a brilliant fit of ‘YOLO,’ he decides to quit his high paying job to work at a low-responsibly fast food restaurant, buy his dream car without worrying about the price tag, and start working out so he can look the part of this new and improved, ‘awakened’ self.

Lester decides to do something about his struggle. No matter how old, we all have anxieties about the future. It’s very easy to sit around and fall into a routine and continue with life, doing something we are comfortable with to pass the time. But it takes a real passion for life to notice that sometimes the boring, stable stuff we do is actually doing nothing for us. Without a little spice in our lives, falling into a rut becomes inevitable.  

Though Lester’s move to change his life was very abrupt, drastic, and a much-exaggerated version of an empowered human, he was completely in the right. I admire his character so much because he turned a boring, emotionless life into one that he was happy to wake up to each day.

As a middle-aged guy, Lester’s struggle is no different than that of a teenager's struggle growing up. Because of the uncertainties we face of where to go in the future, how we can make ourselves and those around us proud, and what we have to show for a life of work thus far, teenagers, too, can easily fall into a motionless rut. But, we have seen that it’s possible to do something about it.

What I’ve learned from American Beauty is that it’s never too late to turn your life around. We may think we’ve passed the opportune moment to fulfill a dream or do something we’re passionate about—but we haven’t. There’s never a deadline for life. As long as we’re alive, we have the world at our disposal; it’s there as a mode to help our dreams come true. With all the beauty in the world, we just need to recognize how to harness our passions and turn them into a life that is both happy and fulfilling. That life is definitely possible, and it’s never too late to chase that dream.

A Midsummer Night's Movies

By: Alex

Graphic by Alex

From elementary school to high school, summer was a time to be free from responsibility and do, literally, whatever I felt like doing that day. As a college student, things are a little different now. I’m hanging onto summer for dear life because I know this is one of the few I have left to enjoy. With a summer job and an internship, I’m already getting a taste of what it’s like not having a summer vacation with complete freedom. But even when the day comes where I have to spend my summers working full time, I’ll always remember what it was like to be a teenager and enjoy the little in-between time I have before I have to face reality and responsibility again and move on with life. I’ve compiled a list of my favorite movies about summer, sun, and most importantly, no responsibility.

Gidget (1959)- Seventeen-year-old Frances Lawrence is on her last summer break before college. While her girlfriends use the summer to search for the perfect boyfriend, she picks up a surfboard and joins an all-male surfer gang, earning the nickname ‘Gidget’ (a mashup of ‘girl’ and ‘midget’). With true girl-power, Gidget uses this summer to ignore the impending threat of her future, forget responsibility and live her own life her way by being one of the boys.

The Graduate (1967)- I used this movie in my last countdown because it’s my favorite, but I promise it still fits. Faced with making a decision about his post-grad future that summer, Ben has an affair with the worn-out (but still foxy) cougar, Mrs. Robinson, while subsequently falling in love with her daughter, Elaine. Now Ben must decide how to get rid of his old lover and start a life with his new soulmate. As Ben figures it all out, we get plenty of footage, and montages with Simon & Garfunkel tunes, of a toned and tanned Dustin Hoffman drifting in the pool with blue water and a blazing sun.

Stand By Me (1986)- It’s the last week of summer and Gordie and his friends hear that the body of a missing boy lays somewhere in the woods of their town. With adolescence and the threat of middle school looming over them, the boys assert their independence and take an adventure through Castle Rock, Maine to find the body. In a weekend, Gordie, Chris, Teddy and Vern have adventures and classic late-night talks and storytelling with just the right mixture of innocence and wisdom.

The Sandlot (1993)- Scotty Smalls moves to a new town in the summer of 1962, and joins a gang of misfit ball players who meet everyday for the all-American, preteen-boy ritual of baseball at a small field they call ‘the sandlot.’ As the summer gets hotter and Scotty gets to know the kids he plays ball with, the boys start having adventures that go beyond the sandlot, learning more about each other, life, growing up, and girls (specifically Wendy Peffercorn).

Adventureland (2009)- Jesse Eisenberg plays James, a geeky but accomplished newly college graduate looking forward to a future at a prestigious grad school and a trip to Europe. That summer, James finds out that his parents can no longer pay for his endeavors, forcing him to take a job at a run down amusement park called Adventureland. There, James learns more about life, the people around him, and himself than he ever learned from his impressive college education, with advice and anecdotes from his coworkers (among them being Kristen Stewart and Martin Starr) in a tone of college-humor style cynicism and hilarity.