Abigail Kuhns
Happy Death Day 2U, the sequel to Happy Death Day, was released early last week and people everywhere are rushing out to see it. Both movies are spin-offs of the original film Groundhog day.
In 2017, the first Happy Death Day was released where the main character Tree must relive her murder over and over, not to mention it was on her birthday. Throughout the movie she dies 11 times and wakes up in the same place every time.
With the help of fellow college student, Carter, she discovers her killer in order to stop the continuous loop which leads into the sequel.
In the beginning, it is Carter’s roommate, Ryan, is the one who starts to live one day over and over; however, the tables quickly turn back to the main character Tree. She must discover the true source of loop while finding her second murderer with the help of science.
According to Rottentomatoes.com, 65% of viewers said they enjoyed the first Happy Death Day while 67% of viewers who have seen the second movie so far said they enjoyed it.
Despite what the majority stated, I liked the first movie a lot more than the sequel.
Creativity was a positive factor of the movie because of the ways she died and how she she had to make a choice of living in the past or moving on with the future.
The animations in the second movie were amazing and the attention to detail was spectacular, but other than that the movie was not really exciting.
Happy Death Day 2U was way too predictable because of the first one and the storyline needed more of twist to differ it from the first.
Both times the creators have tried to make the movie scary but not too horrific and I think they are doing a poor job. The movies are not fearful and just plain cheesy.
Overall, I would give Happy Death Day 2U a 5/10 rating based upon the animations, creativity, plot and horror factor.

Hannah Bartels
“On the Basis of Sex” is a film that many people are rushing to see, especially women. Everyone loves a good story of self fulfillment and finding happiness in working for justice. This movie is about a very famous and important women’s right activist that gave women nearly all of the rights that they have today: Ruth Ginsburg.

According to biography.com, Ruth was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1933. She earned a bachelor degree in government from Cornell University in 1954 and was first in her class. She married Martin Ginsburg the same year and had a daughter named Jane. Shortly after, Ruth and Martin enrolled into Harvard as a law students where Ruth faced the challenges of raising a child while working for her law degree.

In 1956 Martin was diagnosed with cancer and Ruth attended all of his classes for him, taking notes so he could continue his education from home. He recovered fairly quick and began working in a New York law firm. Ruth later transferred to Columbia Law School where she also graduated first in her class in 1959.

Despite Ruth’s incredible academic records and achievements, she still faced constant discrimination throughout her life as a lawyer. She brought six landmark cases on gender equality to the Supreme Court and was later appointed by Bill Clinton into the Supreme Court. “On the Basis of Sex” does an outstanding job of highlighting Ruth’s many achievements and her journey fighting to give women rights in a world of men.

In the movie, the discrimination Ruth faced as a woman in an almost all male law school is depicted and how she had to earn her name and place into society. She learns an important life lesson from her daughter that listening, is equally important as speaking. She also learns that it’s important to listen to the younger generation (i.e. her daughter) and opinions from other people.

The movie also shows the battle that Martin had to face with cancer and how hard Ruth worked as she filled in classes for her husband, attended her own, and raised a child. Eventually, Ruth picks up a case that upholds the possibility to change the game for all women and must fight harder than she has ever before.

In the end, there is a scene that shows the real Ruth Ginsburg walking up the Supreme Court house stairs and it left many people with joy. This movie is a beautiful story of how hard work pays off and that real happiness comes from the things you do to help others.

Despite all of the great aspects of this movie, it is somewhat challenging to follow due to the amount of political terms used. The movie also movies at a fairly fast pace and requires people to have the ability to catch on quickly. The movie can seem like it drags on for some time because it tries to show how much pressure Ruth had to face and how my barriers he had to break through to earn equality for women.

“On the Basis of Sex” is the kind of movie that leaves you thinking and inspired. It makes you see the world from a different perspective and makes you compare our world today with Ruth’s world then. It really makes you see how powerful and critical the constitutional right to speech is for all American citizens and how big of an impact you can create with it. Freedom of speech is a right that people must hold onto and cherish and “On the Basis of Sex” does an incredible way of showing why.

Emma Schultz
Folk is an often overlooked genre in modern day music. John Vincent III, with his unique but homey ambient folk sound, is one of those artists who should be better recognized by the public.
John, who is originally from Ohio, began with his album “Mountain Sounds” in 2015. His hit song from that album was, “Lost / Inside Our Minds,” a lighthearted tune about exploring the West. The song’s upbeat and inspiring narrative is what makes it continue to be a success among fans of John Vincent III.
A common theme among popular songs of his are the stories behind them involving leaving home or travelling. This easily relates to his demographic of teens and young adults.
For example, his newest song, “Slow Song,” which was released Jan. 17 includes the line, “Mother, how are you doing? I’m sorry that I left you. I’m trying to find my way I promise that I’ll be home soon.”
This could pertain to a young adult such as himself who has left home in search of finding new opportunities at the expense of his family missing him. This is a common predicament for young adults in general and for anyone who seeks a new way of life.
While “Slow Song” can be considered more sad compared to John Vincent’s other songs, it is still hopeful. The hope and promise for the future is shown in the lines, “And I put my faith in my own hands/ See where I go/ I threw my fears into the ocean hoping that they’d be washed away.”
Although the future is scary, having faith in oneself is always what will carry one through a difficult situation in the end.
Another single that came out recently in 2018 is “Next To You,” a song that captures the hopefulness of young love and the circumstances it can lead to. With impressive, expressive vocals and a talented band behind him, John Vincent conveys to a young audience the thrill of finding “the one.”
The restlessness of this song encapsulates the immediate and spontaneous aspects of being young and in love. The lines, “You said you loved me/ But what does that mean?” show how innocent and new this love is due to inexperience and even immaturity.
Later in the song, John lets his love know that he is not going anywhere: “‘Cause when I lay my head to rest/ I hope that it’s always next to you.” This reassures the listener by showing that although this love seems almost flighty at first, but they will be there for each other regardless of where they end up.
The audio for “Next To You” can be found on Youtube and Spotify, while the live performance of “Slow Song” can be found on Youtube and the audio on Spotify.
Although not as greatly recognized as other popular folk rock bands such as The Lumineers or The Head and the Heart, John Vincent III is a talented artist who should be recognized for his growth over the years. He has a lot to say for anyone who is willing to listen.

Cori Van Orman
IMDb review: 5.1/10
Personal review: 6/10
Serenity was a very strange movie. The main character, Baker Dill, played by Matthew McConaughey is a fisherman who lives an interesting life.
He is obsessed with finding a large sea animal and cannot focus on anything else. While in the middle of trying to figure out how to catch this fish, his ex girlfriend appears and informs him that her husband is abusive.
She is played by Anne Hathaway and she is a strong woman who cannot find a way out of a tough situation. She asks Baker to get her husband drunk and knock him off the boat in order to keep her and Baker’s son safe.
While all of this is happening, a man is seen chasing Baker but it is unknown who he is and what he wants. Eventually it is found that he is trying to help Baker and sell him a piece of equipment to catch the fish.
The man keeps telling Baker he knows his plans to kill the man and he tells him to follow the rules and just catch the fish. The man refers to himself as the rule keeper but he is not sure why.
Baker tells the woman, Karen, that he cannot kill her husband. He tells himself he is not going to and even tells his shipmate to protect him from temptation.
In the end, Baker decides to kill him. He kicks his shipmate off the boat and tells him he is going to do something he should not do. The shipmate uses the money he made to hire men to break Karen’s husbands hand so he cannot fish the next day.
As the mystery of Baker’s life is unfolding, Karen is telling her husband she needs a fish. She guilts him into wanting to fish even with a broken hand and he shows up on Baker’s boat ready to go.
In the end, Baker kills the husband and the real reality of Baker’s life comes out. In an unexpected twist, everything about the mysterious existence of Baker is exposed.
The movie was very entertaining and pretty enjoyable. Parts of the movie were very stressful and had the audience on edge. The characters were hard to relate to as they are all grown adults suffering from real life problems. The movie had a few confusing scenes that did not make sense until the movie was over.
The movie showed what it is like to be controlled, abused, and in a tough situation. The movie was very eye opening to the effects of abuse on parents, children, and people viewing the incident from the outside. The movie was overall very touching. The movie touched on important topics in a very delicate manor. While bringing light to a situation, the producers were careful with wording and expression of characters.
The ending was extremely unexpected and had the entire audience shocked. Overall this movie was enjoyable, but slightly stressful and confusing. In the end everything came together, but the progression of some scenes was slow and dragged on forever.