Mount Hood

Review: “A Monster Calls”

By: Kevan Maloney
Freelancer

“A Monster Calls” is a fantastic story that hooks you in from the first few minutes. It is a movie adaptation of the novel by Patrick Ness and directed by J.A. Bayona. This movie sports a great cast, featuring Felicity Jones, Sigourney Weaver and Liam Neeson.

The acting was almost perfect. Other than a few superfluous details that stuck to me, the acting was incredible. The cast brought everything together so well that, for most of the movie, I forgot I was watching a movie. I felt as though I was apart of the life of the protagonist, Conor, who was played by Lewis McDougall.

Something that caught me off guard was the theme of the film. I came in expecting a children’s movie, but got a story with heavy themes: bullying, depression and grief, to name a few. I can say without a doubt that this is a more mature movie and should be treated as such.

One of the best parts of the movie was the monster. The monster is a giant, living yew tree voiced by Liam Neeson, giving the effect of a wise old man while keeping the scary factor of a monster. The CGI look of the monster also looked amazing. It made sense that a tree monster would have his joints very clearly groan at even the slightest of movements. The monster is probably my favorite character in the movie because his actions felt important and helped to drive the plot along.

However, despite all the film’s great qualities, it does lack rewatch value. I didn’t get the desire to watch it a second or third time.

I think “A Monster Calls” is a great film. From the acting of the main casting, including Liam Neeson’s voice acting, to the hard hitting and very relevant themes of the movie, “A Monster Calls” provides an entertaining and compelling experience from start to finish. Overall, this movie is great but it is very dark and sad.

8.0/10
+ Fantastic Acting
+ Amazing Story
+ Great adult themes
– No Re-watchability

Contact the author at kmaloney15@wou.edu

Modern Holiday Songs

“Christmas Lights” by Coldplay will always be my favorite Christmas song. It isn’t cheerful, but it gives a feeling of hope that is unmatched in any Christmas song. “Christmas Lights” acknowledges that things aren’t always perfect and cheery in the holiday season, but there’s always hope.
-Ashton Newton

“The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You)” sung by Nat King Cole has alwayscoldplay-christmas-colorcoldplay-com been the quintessential holiday song for me. A tradition my mom and I have is that when we decorate our Christmas tree with ornaments and lights, we play Nat King Cole’s holiday album on the radio. Obviously, it’s a song that some people may consider to be overdone due to how many different artists have covered it, but the mellow tone and instrumental background of this particular version has always had a huge impact for me. Whenever I hear it, I always think of being at home with my mom in our living room and how happy that makes me.
-Elissa Sorenson

“Peppermint Winter” by Owl City isn’t a classic, by any means. However, it captures the childhood sweetness of the Christmas season while the melody leaves me slightly melancholy. Without a hint of romance, “Peppermint Winter” captures the levity and beauty of a white Christmas.
-Stephanie Blair

As a person with very little interest in stale Christmas classics, I was ecstatic when I heard that John Roderick (of The Long Winters fame) and Jonathan Coulton (of Jonathan Coulton fame) were collaborating on an album of original Christmas songs (and one Hanukkah song.)
One Christmas at a Time (2012) is a wonderfully original ten-track album for the holiday season. The songs inside are just as funny and as they are touching, and sometimes downright strange If you’re looking for a refreshing take on the season I cannot recommend these 9 Christmas songs (and one Hanukkah song) enough.
– Darien Campo

I’m a sucker for holiday music, so it’s difficult for me to just pick one song as my favorite. I enjoy most. But this year, I’ve been listening to Frank Sinatra’s, “I’ll Be Home For Christmas,” a lot. His voice is soft, but filled with longing and tenderness. His low, quiet extended notes to the final letter of the words,“dreams,” and, “gleams,” keeps you yearning for something you can’t quite put your finger on. Although this song can seem melancholy, it accurately performs the feeling of longing during the holidays.
-Paige Scofield

Review: “Moana”

By: Matthew Oldfield 
Freelancer

Disney might have entered another new age with its move from 2D into 3D animation. Like the ocean princess movie “The Little Mermaid” kicking off the titular Disney Renaissance, it’s next big steps come from its 3D art department separate from Pixar.

Nothing shows Disney’s biggest leap than with its new movie “Moana” about an Oceanian/Polynesian young girl who is “chosen” by the ocean to save hear island from a terrible curse cause by the demi-god and co-star Maui.moana-poster-colormovies-disney-com

A lot of what Disney got right with the story is help from Oceanic/Polynesian people who helped develop the core of the story along with some of the music, with additional help from Hamilton’s own Lin-Manuel Miranda. The rooted lore of the culture helps submerse the audience in the story and characters, making them relatable and likeable.

On the story outside the lore, the character focus of Moana and Maui made helped show off the more friendship bond of love and not needing a romantic sub-plot. I’m glad the two main characters didn’t end up together. This shows that Disney is starting to slowly go away from their usual formula and try and do something new. Even if “Frozen” might have been the first to do so, they did it in a way that still had a romantic sub-plot still in there that could lead to a potential sequel.

With “Moana” the story feels complete and fine just the way it is without the romantics and staying with its core. What Disney missed however was in some of its pacing seemed too fast at times that didn’t fully disrupt the flow of the movie but left an odd feeling while still watching as well as a few low brow humors that was a bit off putting as well.

Overall the movie was a joy to see and a breath of fresh air. I’ll give “Moana” an 8/10 for its use of lore, musical score, and re-inventiveness on the story. This is a fresh breath of air that is something the traditional Disney film genre needs and will help push it forward to a new age.

Editor’s Picks

By: Ashton Newton
Entertainment Editor

Editor’s Recommendation:

I recently bought “Stardew Valley” for PC and it quickly took over my life. The game is a farming simulator with pixel graphics and a calming soundtrack. Players take up a character who has inherited their grandfather’s farm. Players can farm crops, fish, expand their farm, raise animals and more. “Stardew Valley” is an extremely relaxing game to play, the perfect way to wind down after classes.

Editor’s Disparagement:

“The Walking Dead” has run its course. Currently on its seventh season with ratings dropping every episode, “The Walking Dead” just feels like it’s more of the same this season. The iconic characters are going through the same arcs and the show is having trouble with over-the-top action because they’ve already done it all. “The Walking Dead” doesn’t have many other places it can go, unless something big changes with the show’s core dynamic.

Contact the author at journalentertainment@wou.edu

Review: “Star Wars: Catalyst”

By: Ashton Newton
Entertainment Editor

“Star Wars: Catalyst” is a prequel novel to the upcoming spin off movie “Rogue One”. The novel centers around Galen Erso, who is father to “Rogue One” protagonist Jyn Erso, and Orson Krennic, the film’s antagonist. The novel is written by James Luceno, who also wrote “Tarkin” and “Darth Plagueis”. Luceno is known for bringing readers into the heads of “Star Wars” villains, and “Catalyst” is no different.

star-wars-catalyst-colorrandomhousebooks-comThe novel is not the most accessible for the average reader. The appeal of the book is that it’s a “Rogue One” prequel and “Star Wars” fans will find the locations and familiar characters fun to read about. However, the characters would just seem random without prior knowledge of the film.

At its core, “Catalyst” is a detailed history of how the Death Star came to be. The iconic space station’s history is muddled with confusing mentions in both “Episode II” and “Episode III”. The novel puts all of that confusion to rest: “Catalyst” is the origin story of the Death Star.

“Catalyst” is an interesting book that is weighed down heavily by its lack of direction. Characters float from situation to situation without really any strong reasoning behind it.

The “Star Wars” timeline can be confusing at times. Jumping between forms of government three times: The Republic, The Empire and, most recently, The New Republic/First Order. “Catalyst” deals with the Republic and Empire eras, but without prior knowledge of the political systems, the shift would seem weird.

The book shines in the character relationships. Erso and Krennic’s rich history is intriguing. The best part of “Catalyst” is getting immersed in the struggles that the characters face. They have all have relatable struggles and flaws.

“Catalyst” is not the best “Star Wars” novel that has come out, but it is not the worst either. The interesting history of the Death Star and the rich characters are brought down by the book’s lack of a strong overarching plot. The book is perfect for diehard Star Wars fans looking for something to keep them busy until “Rogue One” releases on Dec. 16.

Please contact the author at journalentertainment@wou.edu

7/10
+ Death Star History
+ Interesting characters
– Thin overarching plot

American Music Awards 2016

By: Blayde Biacan
Staff Writer

This has been a truly crazy year. An event that signifies the coming of the end, as well as a new year, is the 44th annual American Music Awards, which will take place on Nov. 20 in the Microsoft Theater.

The American Music Awards will also premiere live on ABC’s “Good Morning America”, which will be hosted by Gigi Hadid and Jay Pharoah. There are many well-known names included in the nominees for the many different music categories.

Drake currently leads with 13 nominations, the most in the event’s history. Previously, Michael Jackson’s 11 nominations held the top spot from the 1981 American Music Awards.

Drake’s album, “Views”, has kept the top spot on the Billboard 200 chart, and one of the songs, “One Dance” was given the title of Billboard’s “Song of the Summer 2016”. Following him is Rihanna with 7 nominations, and Adele and Justin Bieber who hold 5 nominations each.

This year, the American Music Awards is adding in new categories such as, Tour of the Year and Video of the Year, as well as adding in a favorite song category for the different genres of music.

The nominees for favorite album and favorite song in each genre aren’t the same, so don’t fret too much if we hear too much of the same names.

An anticipated category is the Artist of the Year, which features the nominees such as Adele, Beyoncé, Justin Bieber, Drake, Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande, Rihanna, Twenty-One Pilots, Carrie Underwood, and The Weeknd.

These are some highlights of the American Music Awards, however there is more information on the American Music Awards website itself with more information. If not you can always surprise yourself when it’s showtime on ABC.

Contact the author bbiacan16@wou.edu

Review: “Two Vines”

By: Ashton Newton
Entertainment Editor

Empire of the Sun is known for their upbeat electronic music and their quirky style. Members Luke Steele and Nick Littlemore wear elaborate costumes and are often accompanied by dancers. The spectacle and music are entirely original.empire-colorempireofthesun-com

Their latest album, “Two Vines”, doesn’t try to reinvent Empire of the Sun’s sound; instead, it expands their library and only adds to the sounds of their past albums. Their originality is expanded, rather than changed.

The highlight of the new album is the song “Friends”. One of the most upbeat songs that Empire of the Sun has ever produced, “Friends” blends slow poetic verses with an extremely upbeat chorus that sounds like electronic dance music. This song is made to be played loud.

“High and Low” is another fantastic fast-paced song. “High and Low” is currently the only song on the album with a music video, which features plenty of Empire of the Sun’s signature costumes and dancers.

“Two Vines” doesn’t only have fast-paced songs though. Songs like “There’s No Need” and “To Her Door” slow things down and put more focus on vocals.

The album also has some less memorable songs; “ZZZ” and “Way To Go” are both repetitive and don’t really add anything to the overall sound of the album. “ZZZ” especially is aptly named for how it makes me feel.

The deluxe edition of “Two Vines” was released at the same time as the normal version, and includes four additional songs. One of the songs included is “Walking on a Dream” from the band’s first album. It’s a little strange that they included it, but it’s a great song so I’m not complaining.

The inclusion of “Walking on a Dream” enforces the similarities between Empire of the Sun’s earlier work and “Two Vines”. Someone who’d never heard “Walking on a Dream” probably wouldn’t be able to tell that it was a song from two albums ago.

For the most part, “Two Vines” is a fantastic addition to Empire of the Sun’s library of music. It has both fast and slow songs, danceable music accompanied by meaningful lyrics and stays true to the band’s style. Although slightly brought down by some unmemorable songs, “Two Vines” takes its rightful place alongside the albums before it.

Contact the author at journalentertainment@wou.edu