It is my opinion that anthology films as a whole have been pretty uniformly unwatchable. For every exception to this rule (Bunuel’s later works, Dekalog, Monty Python’s feature films, Coffee and Cigarettes, etc.), you’ll find ten films that use the structure as an excuse to tell stories that could never hold your attention to feature length, and can barely do so at a shorter one. It’s not that good anthology films can’t be made, it’s that most turn out to be schlocky horror flicks, strung together with little consideration for how each section will fit together.
The Coen brothers have managed to make their mark on the genre by neatly tying together six separate tales of old west legend, each with enough in it to expand to feature length. I think that’s the key to what makes each short work so well: you’d be willing to see any one of them last an extra hour or so to tell its story. If anything, the only complaint I’d have would be that some of the stories were given too short a time to reach their full potential, and if expanded could say more than what they got the chance to.
To go in depth into each tale would make this article about six or seven pages long, so I’ll stick to the basics. In the film you’ll find familiar faces like Liam Neeson, Brendan Gleeson, Tom Waits, Zoe Kazan, Tim Blake Nelson and James Franco. The cast is packed with the typical Coen mix of masterful performers and unknown actors whose immediate appearance says everything you need to know about their character. The performances are excellent all around, with Tom Waits turning in what might be his best performance since Down by Law over thirty years ago.
Speaking of excellence, the Coen brothers have managed to write some of their most entertaining pieces yet, with the final section being quite possibly the best on screen conversation in their thirty plus year careers.
I’ll briefly rank the stories in order of favorite to least favorite, but should state that none of these were “bad,” but that there are some varying levels of quality among them.
All Gold Canyon
The Mortal Remains
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
The Gal Who Got Rattled
Meal Ticket
Near Algodones
Each section holds a unique charm that the others don’t, but an overarching theme of existentialism holds up throughout. The characters actions all seem to be ultimately pointless, with missed opportunities, unfortunate misunderstandings and unnecessary violence dragging every last one of them down to a dark place. The only thing to be done, it seems, is trudge forward to the next stop on the trail, not knowing where you’ll end up. Some characters take it with an infectious smile (Buster), the rest brood on what they have done to the West, and what it has done to them.
9/10
Note: I was lucky enough to catch a screening of this film at the Cleveland Cinematheque, but should mention that this is a Netflix film, and that it can be readily viewed by anyone with a subscription.
I hope you enjoyed the long weekend. Here’s the sports section with an update from Model United Nations.
Baseball: The baseball team has a scrimmage on Thursday against Shaker Heights. They also leave Saturday morning for Tampa, Florida where they’ll play 4 games.
Volleyball: The volleyball team is continuing to prepare for this upcoming weekend where they head to Columbus to face off against three of the top ten teams in the state: St. Charles, Elder (Cincinnati), and Mt. Vernon.
Tennis: The tennis team have started practice and are preparing for their first match against Westlake on April 1.
Rugby: The rugby team shutout all four opponents this weekend. 45-0 against DCC; 45-0 against Brunswick; 28-0 against Perrysburg; and 27-0 against Saint Joseph’s Prep. Overall a dominant weekend for the team who are getting ready to leave for Ireland on Thursday.
Lacrosse: The lacrosse team has their first game on Tuesday against University School at 5pm at US, and on Saturday they will travel to play Brother Rice in Michigan.
Model UN: 43 strong delegates traveled to East Lansing to attend MSUMUN this past weekend along with over 850+ of the best delegates in the Midwest and beyond. This was the club’s final conference of the year, making it the final conference of their high school career for the nine seniors who attended. While the competition was fierce, our experienced Diplocats pulled through and finished the year strong, every single one. Here are the delegates who won awards:
Verbal Commendations: Sophomore Kenny Li (Sierra Leone); Senior Patrick Condon (Henry Sykes); Senior Michael Donnelly (Qahhor Mahkamov)
Book Award: Sophomore Andrew Martin (Romy Cote); Junior Stephen Woytek (Ali Soheili)
Best Delegate: Junior Anthony Chalhoub (Turkmenistan); Juniors Colton Basar and Daniel Vrablic (UnitedHealth Group)
Senior Quote:“Okay, ‘Mr. Metabolism.’ I wish I had one.” – Grant Gottschalk
Preview of the Preview of the Week: We have a three day week this week.
Tuesday: Jesuit Excellence Tour College Fair (Atrium 10:15am-1:15pm)
Wednesday: Career Speaker Series (Counseling Conference Room, 6th-7th)
Thursday: Early Dismissal (Parent-Teacher Conferences)
Misc. Announcements: – *IF we achieve a perfect dress code Tuesday (tomorrow) and Wednesday, then we can have a $3.00 dress down day on Thursday for a special mission collection* The details of the mission collection can be found in the Preview of the Week email.
Seniors can wear their senior shirts tomorrow in place of a shirt and tie, but the rest of the dress code remains in effect.That’s all I’ve got for this week, St. Ignatius. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to let me know.
The Rugby Cats enter their upcoming
season looking for a third straight state
title. In speaking with Coach Dan Arbeznik
‘00 about the strengths of this year’s team,
he responded,”We’ll be relying on a very
strong senior class to shepherd us through
the season. We return 2 starters in our
pack (John Stuhldreher and Carl Felder)
along with 3 in our backline (Anthony
Labate, Michael Mangan, Declan Boldy).
While we’ll be relatively raw as a unit,
there are about 12 guys who have been in
our system and who know our standards.”
The Rugby Cats were tested early when they travel to Washington D.C. to take on the reigning single school national champion, Gonzaga. The Cats fell in a tough match, 34-12.
During spring break, the Cats will head
across the pond to Ireland for matches
against local teams and Somerset College,
a school touring from South Africa.
Highlights on the home schedule include an April 12 match against St. Edward and a visit from Archbishop Moeller on May 4. The Cats will travel to Ohio State in late April to take on Cathedral (IN) and to Cincinnati on May 11 to face St. Xavier.
This year’s team is on track to carry on
the proud tradition of Wildcats rugby and
bring home a third straight state title.
Support the Cats this weekend on Wasmer Field! The team hosts Detroit Catholic Central on Friday (7pm); Brunswick (11am) and Perrysburg (3:50pm) on Saturday; and St. Joe’s Prep on Sunday at 11am.
The Saint Ignatius High School swimming and diving Team officially made history at the Lakewood sectional meet by qualifying all 20 swimmers and divers into the district meet. This accomplishment is definitely not easy, and has never been done here at Ignatius ever before.
All the hard work and dedication that the team has put in throughout the year now showing even more, and it is when it matters most. The Wildcats began their stellar performance by qualifying both divers at the diving portion of the Lakewood Sectional Meet. Will Claus finished second with a score of 468.40, while Noah Keim came in sixth with a score of 340.65.
Moving forward into Saturday’s events, the Wildcats’ 200 medley relay took second place. John Libertin, Nicky Hong, Joe Richmond, and John Soeder combined for a mark of 1:39.41 for silver. Later in the day, Richmond sailed to first in the event with a time of 1:47.82. Thomas Metz trailed him in sixth at 1:52.96. Michael Bednar came close with an eighth-place time of 1:53.17, and Cameron Marcie came in at 12th place at 1:55.15.
Fast Forward to the last event, the Wildcats
finished with the 400 free relay.Haywood,
Richmond, Murtha, and Soeder combined for
a time of 3:13.64.
Coach Lehto and the Wildcats kept the
momentum rolling into Districts. The squad
qualified 8 men for the State Meet, finishing
2nd at Districts. The State Meet went well,
too, with the Aqua Cats finishing 8th. Tyler
Hong starred by earning medals in several
events. With a young squad, the Cats are
stacked for next year.
With the 43rd Cleveland International Film Festival coming up, dedicated moviegoers are about to be treated to a diverse, inventive selection of films from artists both new and old. Festival attendees will be able to catch new films from masters like Werner Herzog or Jean-Luc Godard, as well as directors who have gained some momentum like Christian Petzold, Tonia Mishiali or Matteo Garrone. All in all there is a lot to see and a lot to look forward to with this year’s festival, and more to write about than I could ever fit in this article.
In the interest of keeping things to a manageable size, I’ll talk about the films I’m looking forward to the most at this year’s festival, and plan to see when I attend.
The Image Book
Jean-Luc Godard, 84 minutes
Godard is probably the most widely appreciated “experimental” filmmaker stateside, standing somewhere in the same pantheon as Bergman and Kurosawa for film-buffs. On the forefront of the French New Wave in the 1960s, his films have always focused on politics and human relationships with a medium defying and redefining aesthetic. Everyday filmgoers can thank Godard for such inventive techniques as the jump cut and for inspiring pretty much any filmmaker to ever see a piece of his work.
While I have a much greater appreciation for Godard’s earlier films between Breathless and Week End, with Band A Parte being my absolute favorite, his newer films have never ceased to interest and confound. The Image Book looks to be as politically and cinematically motivated as any of his later works, with reviewers pointing at connections to everything from political atrocities to digital filmmaking in its short runtime. As with any of his essay films, Godard’s latest has been very divisive, with critics leaning more favorably than they have with much of his recent work. This is the film I’m most excited for at the festival, and the one I expect to leave me with the most to think over.
Meeting Gorbachev
Werner Herzog, 90 minutes
In both his narratives and documentaries, Werner Herzog has a style totally his own when it comes to telling stories. His films tend to zero in on the larger, more transcendent aspects of his given subject, telling the viewer more about life in general than the confines of his material. Whether it’s the tragicomic amusement of Stroszek or the awe inspiring spectacle of Fitzcarraldo, his movies always have a certain, indefinable something that bleeds through the film and leaves the viewer speechless.
I’m most excited to see how he manages to work this feeling into Meeting Gorbachev. Consisting of a series of interviews with the former President of the Soviet Union, Herzog’s film summarizes and reflects upon the man’s rise from farm boy to politician in typical Herzog fashion. I expect to be treated to a gripping series of interviews that will hopefully stand up to the likes of Cave of Forgotten Dreams and Land of Silence and Darkness for their inventive use of the documentary form to tell a story that goes beyond any preconceived expectations.
Pause
Tonia Mishiali, 96 minutes
I’m a big fan of the Greek weird wave. With the works of Yorgos Lanthimos, Babis Makridis, Efthymis Filippou and Athina Rachel Tsangari, we are getting the opportunity to see a new cinematic style: one that is blunt, fearless and forcefully strange. Consequently, I’m up to watch anything coming from Greece these days that falls in line with this new aesthetic.
I hadn’t heard of Tonia Mishiali and her film Pause before researching the festival selections, but after reading the description and watching the trailer I can’t wait to see what secrets this film holds. Following a housewife in contemporary Greece, Pause depicts the rupture of Elpida’s oppressive reality as it blends in with the violent fantasies in her mind. What I’ve learned from watching other films from this movement is that nothing is ever exactly what you expect it will be, and I cannot wait to be shocked in the way that only films of this kind can.
Transit
Christian Petzold, 101 minutes
In my attempts to seek out a wide variety of modern, foreign language directors, Christian Petzold’s name has come up multiple times. Despite this awareness, I have not yet had the chance to check out any of his films. Movies like Phoenix, Jerichow, and Barbara have been recommended to me from multiple sources, all of which make them out to be right up my alley. From my research, Petzold seems to primarily be working in relationship dramas with some sort of twist. The majority of his films have received very positive reviews, and Transit is no different. I’ll have more to say when I get the chance to see the film, but am eagerly awaiting the chance to dive into Petzold’s filmography.
Dogman
Matteo Garrone, 103 minutes
Matteo Garrone has a wide, varied filmography, but the film that stands out most amongst his work is the 2008 film Gomorrah: a gritty, crime drama following the lives of the many residents in an Italian compartment complex. Gomorrah blew me away upon my first watch, and stands out as one of the most widely praised foreign language films of the late 2000’s.
While not receiving the same amount of critical acclaim, Dogman has certainly gotten its fair share of positive reviews. Portraying the upending of the life of a cocaine dealing dog-groomer, Dogman seems to hold enough of Gomorrah’s violent criminality to shock the viewer while bringing an unexpectedly surreal sense of humor to the table. This influence could easily come from Garrone’s last directorial effort Tale of Tales, which embraced the fantastic elements of traditional fairy tales along with their often overlooked darkness. I don’t expect Dogman to overtake Gomorrah’s position amongst my favorite films of the 2000’s, but I am confident enough that it will leave me shocked in the best way possible.
One Cut of the Dead
Shin’ichirô Ueda, 96 minutes
I have a soft spot in my heart for movies that let you in on the fact that they’re movies: films like Adaptation or Monty Python and the Holy Grail, which bring the viewer a little bit behind the curtain, just enough to laugh along with the filmmakers at what we’ve all decided to take part in. On the other hand, I have a pretty unanimous distaste for “found footage” films (The Blair Witch Project and The Dirties being the two most notable exceptions). With this in mind, I’m eagerly awaiting the fun of a “meta” movie with the tropes of found footage horror in Shin’ichirô Ueda’s One Cut of The Dead.
The film is seen through the lens of a group of filmmakers working on a zombie film in an abandoned water treatment facility. To everyone’s surprise, a real zombie outbreak cuts in on their filming, and the director insists that the cameras keep rolling during the aftermath. With a premise like that, I can’t help but be excited for the film that critics have almost unanimously said “reanimates” the dying zombie genre.
Late last year, a survey constructed by the
Student Senate and initiated by the current
Student Senate president, Dillion Gallagher
‘19, was completed by about 330 (or 24%) of
the students at St. Ignatius High School. The
intent behind the survey was to reveal the
degree to which the student body was civically
engaged. The information that was collected
showed some fascinating trends and brought
the topic of civic participation to the table.
Results of the Civic Participation Survey
One of the first questions on the survey, which asked about how informed students are, showed that Ignatius students tend to think that they are fairly well informed on political issues. The following question revealed that students attempt to foster views with some independence from their parents’ influence and pointed to a strong trend in responses saying students have strong care for the voting system and for the many issues facing our world.
How much students care about voting (scale of 1 to 5)
Parental influence on students’ political beliefs (scale of 1 to 5)
How informed students feel (scale of 1 to 5)
In addition to those pieces of information, the
survey also posed questions regarding how
students choose to stay informed, whether or
not Catholic Social Justice teachings influence
students opinions, and whether or not they
saw Student Senate as a form of participation
in the school community. The top two ways
that students said they stay informed were
news articles/print media and discussions
with people who have different opinions than
them. However, in third and fourth place were
social media and discussions with like-minded
people. The results to the question on the
effects of Catholic Social Justice teachings
implied that while some students have views
closely aligning with teachings, many are only
somewhat aligned and a few are not aligned
at all.
Lastly, the results of the question asking, “Do you see student government as a form of participation in your community?” received a variety of answers revealing no consensus on this topic. One student wrote, “Right now I don’t see student government as a major factor in my community. I think that there should be more awareness around the important issues and knowledge about how the government works as a whole.” Another response contradicted this stating, “It gives students an opportunity to have civil discussion[s] and form unique ideas. The students can build off of one another, giving everybody an opportunity to speak and exchange ideas.”
Why be civically involved, and how?
Reflecting on the survey, Gallagher ‘19 wrote in his update for the Board of Regents, “All in all, this survey has sparked a fascinating discussion about the roles that politics and civics play in students’ lives… It will be my job going forward to ensure that my peers and I are given the resources, skills, and ethics needed to leave these halls and go into the world an informed, well-educated citizenry capable of and equally skilled in both compassion and critical thinking.”
Seeing that the students attending St. Ignatius with a wide array of backgrounds are constantly developing their opinions and views as they grow and learn, and noticing the fact that in our country today we have the gift to be able to participate in the governmental system, it makes sense that more and more students are going to rallies, keeping up on the news, and being an advocates for the positions that matter to them.
Despite this, there are still some students who
are uninterested or don’t care enough to be
civically involved citizens, and yet others don’t
know how or where to start. However, the
good news for them is that Saint Ignatius High
School has quite a few easy ways for its young
men to get informed, get involved, and start
participating in their community.
The most obvious example of these ways are
some of the organizations and extracurriculars
that the school has. Here are a few groups any
inactive student could consider joining:
The two “Informed Ignatian” clubs (the Conservative Caucus and the Democratic Ignatians on Politics) and the Current Events Club all offer regular meetings to discuss politics and get involved in politics.
Student Senate offers its service projects and other initiatives for action.
Model United Nations, another great way to get informed about issues, is a student-run forum for researching and discussing national and international affairs, which includes preparing for and participating in several regional and national MUN conferences.
Another way to participate is to share your opinions with the school by writing a letter to the EYE.
Perhaps one of the best ways to get involved in the community is through service with CAT, which meets every Thursday at 3:00 in Loyola Hall room 227.
To learn more about these easy opportunities and all of the other ways St. Ignatius offers to become a more participatory citizen, listen to or read the announcements or go to www.ignatius.edu/students/extracurriculars and never forget: the future of the world depends on people who participate in the affairs of their local, national, and international communities.
Our brains can only take so much of the pythagorean theorem and classical literature. Some students are even bold enough to complain that the skills they learn at school are not helpful to everyday life. A new event dubbed ‘seniors teaching seniors’ should satiate any desires to learn more practical skills. However, it is exclusively catered to seniors, by now grizzled from 4 years of routine classwork and selling scholarship drive tickets. So, underclassmen will have to wait their turn to receive this penultimate privilege of high school.
During this 45-minute long activity, a group of seniors will pass down their unique arsenal of skills to their classmates. Scheduled for a common period during April 3, it consists of 11 ‘classes’, each with their own unique appeal. The classes include Cooking, Advocacy, Car Maintenance, Plumbing, Financial Basics, Storytelling, Firewood, Archery, Boxing, Building Basics, and Jam Session. The classes, taught either by a senior or a faculty member, will provide a casual environment for seniors to learn the basics of everyday tasks or find a new hobby.
I spoke with student representative Charles Farrington ‘19 to get more details about the special day. At its core, Charles informed me, the event is meant to “break up the monotony of senior year.” The 2nd semester usually marks a time when seniors lack the motivation to finish the school year strong. This affliction is known to everyone as ‘senioritis,’ an aptly titled trope that Ignatius is trying to fix. Seniors teaching seniors day is the first step in creating more specialized activities to promote engagement for seniors. While there is an emphasis on participation, seniors are also given the option to use the common period as free time if they wish to do so.
As for the future of seniors teaching seniors, it is not certain whether it will continue as a reoccurring school tradition. I was told that the whole day is a ‘test run’ of sorts, meant to gauge how successful these types of events might be. Whatever the future may hold, seniors teaching seniors day is sure to bring something new to the table and inspire future seniors to be more involved in student life.
Columbus, Ohio. Saturday. 11:00am. The Ice Cats enter Nationwide Arena ice rink, the same place where the Columbus Blue Jackets will play later that same day. Helmets on, jerseys on, puck down. Looking at Dublin Jerome High School, they were ready. It’s time.
Swish, the puck goes by. Slash, their sticks
hit the ice. Set, the win settles in. Game
over.
Screams from the stands and chants from
our school’s student section find their way
to those young men’s ears – those twenty+
guys who worked hard for that moment
who were standing on a sheet of ice. So surreal, it hasn’t even soaked in. That is the story, but what an experience.
This past Saturday was not only a long term goal for the Saint Ignatius Ice Cats, but a dream that became a reality, winning their fourth straight OHSAA hockey state title. They are the first team to ever win that many consecutive championships in all of Ohio. Additionally, Coach O’Rourke tied with Gilmour at #1 in the Coaches’ Poll this year. With a record of 27-9-1, they were going into the past Frozen Four strong and with stride. The team got off with a fast start, already scoring 1 goal a little over a minute into the game. That same energy was held throughout the rest of the 3 periods. The team never let up.
The Ice Cats took a 2-0 lead at 8:07 of the first period, a good lead to have in hockey, and a warning sign to Dublin Jerome. Just 20 seconds into the second period, Joey Trobenter scored a goal for Saint Ignatius to take a 3-0 lead on the game-winning goal. At the end of the day, the Cats held their own throughout the game, ending with a 7-2 score.
Seven goals are the most scored by Saint Ignatius in a state championship game. When I talked to Coach O’Rourke before states, he said, “We finished up our regular season at 21-9-1, with our Jesuit Cup championship in Chicago being a major highlight. We also finished #1 in the MyHockeyRankings figures. Now, we are just gearing up for States.” The team stayed on top and they sure did prepare for a monumental game in the history of the OHSAA.
To the players, Coach O’Rourke thanks you. “They work hard every day, they put the time in, they make all the passes, score all the goals, block all the shots, deliver all the hits, and prevent all the goals. This feat belongs to them and to those who came before them; they are all part of a nice tradition and a true family. It’s been my pleasure to watch them grow this year and to take this journey with them.”
