Issue II - East Meadow School District

A & E 7Mischeif Managedby Soha SalmonThe Best of 2010by Akash ShetyePhoto courtesty of clothesonfilm.comThe first part of the final installment ofthe beloved Harry Potter movies hit theatersNovember 19, 2010 at midnight. Fans eagerlywaited to see what Warner Bros. wouldbring to the screen this time as Harry Potterand his two best friends, Ron Weasley andHermione Granger, began their search for theHorcruxes. The three had hopes of destroyingthe evil Lord Voldemort forever yet didnot estimate the magnitude of danger that accompaniedtheir journey.Fans of the book series always have thesame concern for the movies; will it coincidewith the books? Director David Yatesrelieved many fans by dividing the movieinto two parts, therefore not being forced tocondense a 759 page book into two and a halfhours. This action faced some criticism fromfans of just the movies, because the first partended on a cliff hanger for them.Yates captured and conveyed Harry,Ron, and Hermione’s journey wonderfully.He did not hesitate in fully portraying the lossof comforts the trio had to endure as they setout alone, living in a tent and moving fromcampsite to campsite. The emotions thatauthor J.K. Rowling’s characters possessedthroughout this novel were not lost either.Harry’s confusion, Ron’s frustrations, andHermione’s gloom were developed throughoutthe movie, giving audiences a look intohow their new lives were affecting the trioemotionally.While capturing the horror and dangerthat Harry and his friends face, the moviealso had humorous scenes. A laugh or twohere and there were what the younger audienceneeded because this movie was farmore gloomy than previous films. While thetrio did not return to Hogwarts this year, allromance was not lost from the film. Ron andHermione’s feelings for one another continuedto grow more pronounced, as they havefor the past six movies. Ron’s underlyingjealousy of Harry and Hermione’s relationshipalso came to the surface, resulting ina heart breaking turn of events which left ascar on Harry’s friendship with Ron.While I was interested throughout theentire movie, some fans lost interest in themiddle, which focused on Harry and hisfriends traveling around in search of theHorcruxes. They did not find much throughoutthe middle, and these scenes seemed tobore some, especially those who aren’t familiarwith the books. While it may havebeen a bit boring, it was exactly what it wassupposed to be. During that interval, Harry,Hermione, and especially Ron grew desperateand lost much of their hope because ofthe lack of success their journey was having.However, the action packed sceneswere fast paced keeping movie goers onthe edge of their seats, waiting to see whatwould happen next. These scenes includedthe Malfoy Manor scene, in which the brilliantHelena Bonham Carter, who plays BellatrixLestrange, returned and gave the audiencechills with her twistedmind. Tom Felton, anotherfavorite of the movies wasalso there playing the muchless proud Draco Malfoy.The animation of DeathlyHallows also receivedgreat praise from reviewsall around. It portrayed thehouse-elves Kreacher andDobby realistically, causingthe audience to form abond with them. Animationwas also used to tell thestory of the Three Brothers,a classic folktale of theWizarding world.Harry Potterand the Deathly HallowsPart 1 is a movie that continuesto receive the praisethat the previous six havereceived. Audiences leftthe theatre enchanted, excitedfor the release of Part2 and the final installmentof the series. It’s planned tobe released in July 2011.For film fanatics, this past year was one toforget. 2010 was filled with sequels and 3D filmsthat were looking for money rather than recognition.However, one film this year did break thetrend. That movie is Christopher Nolan’s Sci-Fithriller Inception. In his masterpiece, Nolan carefullyblends story, acting, action, effects, anddirecting. The result is that a person is mentallycaptivated and emotionally heartbroken whilewatching the film unfold.Inception follows Dom Cobb, played byLeonardo DiCaprio. Cobb is on the run from thelaw, and cannot return home to his children. Healso is a skilled extractor, meaning that he canenter people’s dreams and steal their ideas. Now,Cobb is given one last job. If he is successful, hewill be permitted to go back home. Instead ofstealing an idea, Cobb has to plant an idea intosomeone’s mind.On the surface, the plot of Inception seemssimple. However, Christopher Nolan takes his audienceinto a script that twists and turns at everyscene. The result is that Nolan creates a layeredstoryline that leaves the audience at the edge of itsseat for a full two and a half hours.The script of Inception is amazing; however,it is the ensemble cast that turns this good movieinto a great one. Ellen Page is stunning as Ariadne,and Joseph Gordon Levitt and Tom Hardyadd an amazing amount of humor in their roles asArthur and Eames. Ken Watanabe is surprisinglygood as the mysterious Saito. However, the bestperformance is Leonardo DiCaprio’s. An actorwho has built his reputation over the years withprojects such as Titanic and The Departed, Di-G R A N D O P E N I N GC OM E I N A ND T ASTE W H AT E VERYO NE I S T A L K IN G A BOUT !10 % O FFSTUDENT DISCOUNT!2106 H E M P STE A D T PKE . ‚ E AST M EAD OW(516) 307-1180Caprio delivers the best performance of his careeras Dom Cobb. The performance should merit himan Oscar, though it will be difficult to top JesseEisenberg’s performance in The Social Network.Other standouts include Marion Cotillard who ischilling as Cobb’s wife, Mal, and Cillian Murphy,who provides the emotional touch in the middleof the film.At its core, Inception is meant to be a philosophicaldrama. However, Christopher Nolan hasturned what would be a movie that was isolated toone particular audience into a mainstream movie.He has done this by adding some of the best actionscenes in cinematic history. The car chase inLos Angeles is breathtaking, and is followed by ascene that defies the laws of gravity. Joseph Gordon-Levittjumps from wall to wall and ceiling tofloor in a scene that made acclaimed critic PeterTravers describe Inception as “James Bond meetsThe Matrix.” That scene is then overshadowedby a brilliant snow fort sequence in which TomHardy steals the show.The visual effects for Inception were justas pleasing as the action in the movie. DoubleNegative (the effects company on the film) did abrilliant job meeting Nolan’s vision. Most surprisinglywas the fact that Inception had less visualeffects than The Dark Knight, which was Nolan’slast movie. That is Christopher Nolan’s philosophy:never do something on the computer that youcan do with a handheld camera. In a day and agewhere filmmakers are rushing to convert films to3D and create amazing CGI-infested worlds, thatis a true testament to the hard work of ChristopherNolan.W e A ccept FR EED ELIVERYP rinted and distributed by A ll Island M ed ia Inc., TOWN CRIER & PENNYSAVER (631) 698-8400 o r (516) 942-840000329066B045Ja n u a r y 2011