Paper Towns Movie Review

By Alyssa Weil
What would you do if your best friend went missing for over a week? Well that’s what Quentin experienced with his friend Margo in the mystery/ young romance movie Paper Towns. In Paper Towns, Margo plays an all-nighter revenge prank on her friends and asks Quentin to assist; the prank goes well but the next day, Margo goes missing. Quentin makes it his mission to locate Margo, so he and his friends journey up the east coast, led by clues Margo has left behind to find her. Overall, I thought it was an excellent, high spirited movie for lots of reasons.

Let’s start with the characters; the actors really get into their characters; Margo (Cara Delevingne) is a mysterious daredevil, but still has a certain charm about her that makes her one of the popular girls that every guy likes. “What’s the point of being alive if you don’t even try to do something remarkable?” Margo says to Q.  Margo also loves traveling and we can see from the movie that she does it unexpectedly, "I'm in love with places I’ve never been to and people I’ve never met.” On the other hand, Quentin (Nat Wolff) is nerdy and conservative (don’t worry, he comes around) since he is always questioning “Are you sure we should be doing this?” about Margo’s ideas. But, his nerdiness comes to good use when he’s deciphering Margo’s clues. Also, the rest of the characters are fully developed, especially Quentin’s comical and geeky friends, Radar and Ben, and Margo’s friend Lacey who assists Quentin in their search for Margo. Each character has their own personality, which is something I found entertaining.

Another reason why I enjoyed this movie is how the story follows the plot line really well. At the beginning of the movie Quentin and Margo are 11 years old when they meet. The two kids get along, but go along different ways and barely see each other for the next seven years. The movie then fast-forwards to when they're 18, and they meet up again for the prank. The rising action would be the intense search for Margo. During Quentin’s road trip throughout Florida with Radar, Ben, and Lacey, they find subtle clues and riddles Margo has left behind that they must unravel.

My final reason why I found Paper Towns entertaining is that it brings out your emotions. When Margo goes missing, it makes you wonder “What would happen if my sibling, friend, or child went missing?” Margo’s family didn’t think much of her disappearance, “It’s just her way of getting attention; she’ll come back eventually,” her mother assures the police. Quentin and Lacey are the only ones who are worried about Margo and make the effort to find her. Paper Towns will keep you laughing when Margo plays the prank on her friends, chewing your nails and you’ll be on the edge of your seat during some intense parts of this movie.

Overall, Paper Towns is a high quality, attention grabbing movie because the characters were well developed, the plot followed the plot line, and it brings out emotions. If you enjoy mystery/ romance movies, I would definitely recommend that you watch Paper Towns today!

Paper Towns

Would you ever leave your home to find your best friend? That’s what Quentin did with his friend Margo in the book Paper Towns.  In this book Margo Roth Spiegelman plans an all-nighter revenge plot and asks, old friend, Quentin to help.  The revenge plot goes well but the next day she goes missing, so Quentin goes on a mission to find Margo, following the mysterious clues she leaves behind.  Quentin and his friends travel up the east coast to find where Margo and her secrets might be hiding.  I thought this was an amazing and fun book for many reasons.

Let’s start with the characters.  The author John Green portrays the characters in a way that makes you think that they are real.  Their actions and dialogue make you forget that the author is obviously not a teenager.  Even though the story is not in any way cliche the two main characters slightly are.  Q (Quentin) is the nerdy, quiet, and quirky, guy; he hangs out with the band geeks and sometimes over thinks things, while on the other hand Margo is the high spirited, fun, and the popular, pretty girl who has all the guys lining up for her.  All Margo really wants though is an adventure.  

Next is the description in this book.  For example: I crawl into a room lined with clothing racks, the stainless-steel poles still bolted into walls wine-stained with water damage...there are several holes in the roof, tar paper hangs down, and I can see places where the roof sags against exposed steel girders.  Another example is: Beneath us I could see the flashing DON’T WALK signs at intersections, and the street lights running up and down the city in a perfect grid until downtown ended and the winding streets and cul-de-sacs of Orlando’s infinite suburb ended.  The imagery in this book makes you feel like you are there looking at the same thing.

The last reason is because of the dialogue.  John Green writes in the point of view of a teenager really well.  He adds so much emotion and meaning to the characters while only using dialogue.  What the characters say are also deep and inspirational.  For example:

“‘From here you can’t see the rust or the cracked paint or whatever, but you can tell what the place really is, you see how fake it all is. It’s not even hard enough to be made out of plastic.  It’s a paper town..., look at all the houses that were built to fall apart, those streets that turn in on themselves.  All those paper people living in their paper houses, burning the future to stay warm, and all of the paper kids...Everyone determined with the mania of owning things.  All the things paper-thin and paper-frail... I've lived here for eighteen years and I have never once in my life come across anyone who cares about anything that matters.’” -Margo.  

As you can see, John Green makes the characters have emotion and meaning using only dialogue.  

Overall Paper Towns was an exciting and fun book because the characters were well-developed, the description had lots of imagery in it, and the dialogue was funny, deep, inspirational, and had lots of emotion content.  Paper Towns is a great coming of age contemporary book that I think everyone should enjoy.  So go pick up this book sit down and read.

The Children of Willesden Lane

By, Lauren Burns

“The music will give you strength… It will be your best friend in life.” When the Nazis come to Vienna, Lisa Jura, the piano prodigy, is shipped to England on the Kindertransport. There she moves into Willesden Lane and meets many friends. This book was extremely well-written and I enjoyed it very much!

One of the best parts of this book was the characters. First Lisa. She is a determined Jewish girl who strives to be the best pianist she can be. “Her hands flew lightly into the trills and arpeggios, speeding up and down the keyboard.” (p. 208) The next character is Aaron. Aaron is a carefree, romantic, almost a troublemaker, and a charming person. He is always bringing Lisa to concerts, getting her little gifts, and being a great friend. “She heard a crashing from the stairs and, Aaron, breaking the rules…” (p.162) The last person is her piano teacher, Professor Isseles. He is the teacher behind Lisa’s phenomena. But was forced to stop when the Nazis forbade Jews from mingling with any other race. The characters in this book are amazing!

Next, the description. The description in this book is amazing! “The girls were even more intimidating; most wore simple but elegant black dresses, often accented by a single strand of pearls.” (p.205) “Soon the basement was almost toasty, and the walls and bottles became coated with condensation as the dampness was replaced by a pleasing warmth.” (p.196)  The description ties the whole book together and keeps you interested for a long time!

Mona Golabek, the author, writes everything in this book perfectly. This book is so nicely organized you’ll never be confused. The theme of this book is also very touching. While Lisa experiences love, a growing sense of music, and a fight to survive, you will not be able to put the book down. The last thing is the flow in this book. This book flows so nicely. You will never get bored and you will never find a choppy sentence.

The Children of Willesden Lane is a beautiful memoir, filled with love, music and survival.The authors Mona Golabek and Lee Cohen are both very accomplished people. Fun Fact: Mona Golabek is Lisa Jura’s daughter!   If memoirs interest you, you should definitely read The Children of Willesden Lane.                                                                                                                                                                         

Oz The Great And Powerful

By Jaden

                               Have you seen The Wizard Of Oz and loved it? Do you ever wonder how Oz became the   wonderful wizard of oz? Then Oz The Great And Powerful is the movie for you. I personally love this movie because,it has amazing actors ,  astounding animation, has a great plot, and grabs your emotions.  

        In Kansas, famous magician Oscar Diggs aka James Franco ends up in a cyclone that takes him over the rainbow into the world of Oz.  There he meets new friends who help him fight the two evil sisters of Oz. Will Oscar save the world and find love? In Oz  Oscar  meets a beautiful witch named Theodora ( Mila Kunis  another amazing actress ) who then falls in love with Oscar Diggs. Sadly Theodora is not good throughout the movie thanks to her evil sister Evanora who gives her an apple of envie. Theodora then turns into the evil, cackling, scary witch of the west.

     

      The best part of Oz The Great And Powerful is the acting. One of the amazing actors is James Franco who plays the main character Oscar Diggs who is a magician in the world wide travelling circus. James Franco really has you believe that all of this is really happening. James expressions are totally believable and carries them throughout the movie. Mila Kunis another amazing actor who plays Theodora who really grabs your emotions that are really genuine and strong. Even as she changes into the wicked witch of the west she is so believable. Mila never breaks character, not even for a second. As Theodora grabs the apple from Evanora she takes a bite desperate to have everything her way, then all of the sudden she feels pain starts screaming and then collapsed on the floor. This is one of the most intense scene in the whole movie thanks to Milas amazing acting.

 

     Another astounding part of this movie is the animation. For example, Evanora’s flying monkeys are so realistic, looking at them will send the shivers down your spine. Other great animations are, how the creators made the glass village  made out of teapots, the cyclone on how it looks like you are in a cyclone, and most important the emerald city.

     The main reason why  you should see Oz The Great And Powerful is because of the plot.  The plot is so intriguing and suspenseful that it keeps you at the edge of your seat. There are so many of these moments but one of the greatest moments is when Oscar Diggs is about to kill Glinda ( the good witch of the north who is played by Michelle Williams). The twist that includes a love triangle between Glinda, Theodora, and Oscar adds a shocking entertaining part in the movie.  Oz The Great And Powerful is so full of energy and action. There is not one single second that is dull throughout this movie.  When my mom watched the movie she was so overwhelmed by the energy that we had to go straight home so she could go to bed.

     This high intens energy film may not be right for some but, it has everything a amazing movie needs, which is the great actors, the plot, and the animation. So if you want the wildest ride of your life go see Oz The Great And Powerful !