The Student News Site of The American School in Japan Fri, 08 Mar 2024 12:27:31 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.3 /arts-entertainment/why-dog-movies-make-us-cry-so-much/ /arts-entertainment/why-dog-movies-make-us-cry-so-much/#respond Fri, 08 Mar 2024 12:27:31 +0000 /?p=4768 Reading Time: 3 minutes Marley and Me, Hachi: A Dog’s Tale, A Dog’s Purpose, A Dog’s Journey, and just when you thought there couldn’t be any more iterations of titles starting with  “A Dog’s,” there is A Dog’s Way Home to top it off. These are contemporary examples of dog movies that have pulled at audiences’ heartstrings worldwide. And...]]> /arts-entertainment/why-dog-movies-make-us-cry-so-much/feed/ 0 /arts-entertainment/avatar-the-way-of-water-cultural-appropriation-or-appreciation/ /arts-entertainment/avatar-the-way-of-water-cultural-appropriation-or-appreciation/#respond Fri, 26 Jan 2024 03:45:42 +0000 /?p=4622 Reading Time: 2 minutes Nearly 15 years after its release, Avatar (2009) remains the highest-grossing feature film of all time. Its sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water (2022) proved to be another massive hit, ranking as the third highest-grossing movie ever. The films have collected a total of $5.2 billion at the box office, making their director, James Cameron,...]]> /arts-entertainment/avatar-the-way-of-water-cultural-appropriation-or-appreciation/feed/ 0 /arts-entertainment/an-oscar-joke-reveals-a-hollywood-weight-loss-drug-craze/ /arts-entertainment/an-oscar-joke-reveals-a-hollywood-weight-loss-drug-craze/#respond Tue, 04 Apr 2023 00:37:00 +0000 /?p=4183 Reading Time: 2 minutes During his opening monologue at the recent 95th annual Academy Awards, host Jimmy Kimmel sparked amusement from viewers with a joke about the rumored widespread use of the diabetes drug Ozempic among Hollywood A-listers. “Everybody looks so great. When I look around this room, I can’t help but wonder, ‘Is Ozempic right for me?’” he...]]> /arts-entertainment/an-oscar-joke-reveals-a-hollywood-weight-loss-drug-craze/feed/ 0 /arts-entertainment/black-history-in-media/ /arts-entertainment/black-history-in-media/#respond Fri, 10 Mar 2023 05:53:39 +0000 /?p=4160 Reading Time: 3 minutes Although Black History Month has ended, a look back on recent events can be enlightening. The Black Lives Matter movement, ignited by the unjust murder of George Floyd in 2020 and similar instances of racial violence, remains on the minds of many worldwide. Although less visible in the last years, activism for the cause lives...]]> /arts-entertainment/black-history-in-media/feed/ 0 /arts-entertainment/confronting-mortality-in-a-childrens-movie/ /arts-entertainment/confronting-mortality-in-a-childrens-movie/#comments Tue, 07 Mar 2023 23:57:11 +0000 /?p=4155 Reading Time: 3 minutes Puss in Boots appears to be an utterly playful character. The boot-wearing, rapier-touting, Spanish-speaking anthropomorphic orange tabby was initially a side character in Shrek 2 (2004). He would seem to make for a colorful adventure, a simple entertainment that would be a hit with kids, but lack the substance of meaningful cinema. Yet the movie...]]> /arts-entertainment/confronting-mortality-in-a-childrens-movie/feed/ 1 /arts-entertainment/a-disney-princess-for-black-history-month/ /arts-entertainment/a-disney-princess-for-black-history-month/#respond Fri, 24 Feb 2023 00:06:00 +0000 /?p=4124 Reading Time: 2 minutes A Disney Princess for Black History Month During Black History Month, we recognize what African-Americans have gone through throughout history. We learn and talk about the most famous Black people who played major roles in history and in striving for racial equality. But there are many that go unrecognized for their contributions. One, strangely enough,...]]> /arts-entertainment/a-disney-princess-for-black-history-month/feed/ 0 /arts-entertainment/rrr-an-overlooked-blockbuster/ /arts-entertainment/rrr-an-overlooked-blockbuster/#respond Wed, 15 Feb 2023 00:56:29 +0000 /?p=4111 Reading Time: 3 minutes RRR (2022), directed by S.S. Rajamouli, has created a worldwide sensation, breaking box office records and receiving positive reviews. It is set in British-ruled India in the 1920s and features fictionalized versions of two real-life Indian revolutionaries: Komaram Bheem, played by N.T. Rama Rao Jr., and A. Rama Raju, played by Ram Charan. Bheem is...]]> /arts-entertainment/rrr-an-overlooked-blockbuster/feed/ 0 /arts-entertainment/the-case-against-kevin-mccallister-from-home-alone/ /arts-entertainment/the-case-against-kevin-mccallister-from-home-alone/#comments Mon, 13 Feb 2023 02:12:28 +0000 /?p=4094 Reading Time: 3 minutes This article contains spoilers for the 1992 film Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. Every year, around the holiday season, I pop a Home Alone DVD into my dusty DVD player and enjoy Kevin McCallister’s humorous adventures. Over the past few years, though, I’ve grown appalled with his actions in the sequel, Home Alone...]]> /arts-entertainment/the-case-against-kevin-mccallister-from-home-alone/feed/ 1 /arts-entertainment/film/the-morality-of-the-dark-knight/ /arts-entertainment/film/the-morality-of-the-dark-knight/#respond Wed, 08 Jun 2022 03:13:02 +0000 /?p=3876 Reading Time: 3 minutes Disclaimer: The following article contains spoilers for the movie The Dark Knight Directed by Christopher Nolan, the second installment of his Batman series was released on August 2, 2008. In The Dark Knight,  Batman faces a new villain, the Joker, whose one purpose is to bring Batman and society to their knees.  Throughout the film,...]]> /arts-entertainment/film/the-morality-of-the-dark-knight/feed/ 0 /arts-entertainment/generation-z-go-watch-a-ghost-story/ /arts-entertainment/generation-z-go-watch-a-ghost-story/#respond Thu, 07 Oct 2021 23:26:06 +0000 /?p=3139 Reading Time: 3 minutes Famous directors are often predictable. With Martin Scorsese, we expect macho posturing films or sweet coming-of-age movies about a lanky boy. Turn to Quentin Tarantino for the nonlinear storylines, quick-paced action sequences, and violent depictions of American pop culture. In the case of David Lowery, you don’t know what to expect. However, one thing is...]]> /arts-entertainment/generation-z-go-watch-a-ghost-story/feed/ 0