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Category: A&E
Words: Natalie Keane
The year is finally coming to a close, and it’s been hectic, shocking, and beautiful in the world of entertainment. From late-2017 to mid-2018, these are some of the cinematic highlights of the season.
Coco – November 22, 2017
Winning Best Animated Feature Film at the 2018 Oscars, Coco, directed by Lee Unkrich, tells the story of young Miguel, an aspiring musician, who enters the Land of the Dead to find his great-great grandfather and lift a curse on music from his family tree. While highlighting beautiful Mexican traditions, this movie tells a story of discovery, family, and courage through stunning Pixar animation.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi – December 15, 2017
Directed by Rian Johnson, the iconic Star Wars saga continues with The Last Jedi. The well-known heroes from The Force Awakens take part in an adventure to fight for the prosperity of the galaxy, while unlocking age-old secrets of the past and shocking revelations from the original Star Wars trilogy.
Lady Bird – February 15, 2018
Directed and written by Greta Gerwig, high-school senior Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson clashes with her similarly strong-willed and opinionated mother, who is working as a nurse to hold her family together as she is now the only source of income for the family. Lady Bird is told that she is ungrateful for what she has, and through her personal journey of self-reflection, this movie touches upon the struggles of leaving adolescence behind and what we truly define as home.
Black Panther – February 16, 2018
This influential black-led major motion picture, directed by Ryan Coogler, dominated in the first quarter of 2018. In total exceeding $1.34 billion at the global box office, in four weeks this movie became the highest grossing Marvel Cinematic Universe movie domestically, second to only The Avengers. This action film, set in the fictional land of Wakanda, still has the power to change the film industry permanently with its diverse cast and powerful storyline.
Love, Simon – March 26, 2018
Based on the 2015 novel Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, this romantic comedy surrounds the life of high-school senior Simon Spier who wants nothing more than for people to understand him. This movie, directed by Greg Berlanti, marks the first ever major motion picture in history to feature a gay teen protagonist.
A Quiet Place – April 6, 2018
Directed by and featuring John Krasinski, the suspenseful thriller A Quiet Place depicts a family of four as they’re forced to live their lives in complete silence after strange creatures threaten to ruin their lives. This fast-paced and packed movie holds the audience on edge at each moment as you’re taken through this post-apocalyptic world.
Avengers: Infinity War – April 27, 2018
The Avengers series, ten years in the making and an iconic part of Marvel Cinematic Universe, has its most intense and thrilling installment of all with Avengers: Infinity War, directed by siblings Anthony and Joe Russo. To defeat Thanos, the Avengers and their team must sacrifice everything they’ve ever known to protect the well-being of the universe. As of May 27, Infinity War has topped $1.9 billion at the global box office in a span of just over four weeks, making this hit one of the biggest domestic earners in American cinematic history.
For more breaking news and photos, follow The Wingspan on Instagram and Twitter @CHSWingspan.
Words: Lawren Mickenberg
Photos: Laila Abu-Ghaida
On Friday, May 4, Centennial celebrated College Sweater Day, where seniors wore a shirt that symbolized which college they will be attending next year, but all students were welcomed to participate.
There were a variety of different colleges chosen by the students from all around the country. There were shirts from colleges like Princeton, Michigan State, UMBC, Maryland, and more.
For more breaking news and photos, follow The Wingspan on Instagram and Twitter @CHSWingspan.
Words: Julia Stitely
After going strong for ten years, Marvel has released their most anticipated movie yet. Avengers: Infinity War broke the record as the highest box office opening in movie history. The film brings at least 80 characters together to beat the optimum villain. Now, do they make it work?
The story of Infinity War gives us the ultimate battle of heroes coming together. What the movie strives is bringing characters that haven’t been together and pairs them up. Stephen Strange (Doctor Strange) and Tony Stark (Iron Man) are the leaders of one group, where their egos make for great dialogue and chemistry. Another group is the Guardians with Thor, which also creates great scenes. The ending of the film will leave you breathless.
The movie has a star studded cast and shows the best of their abilities. The most notable is Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord, who usually is comedic, but in this film, is given even more emotional scenes. One emotional scene even displays the young talent of Tom Holland as Spider-Man. Josh Brolin as Thanos, is the best villain in Marvel history. Not only is he the most powerful, but he has emotions. His facial expressions show that even though he might be a Titan, he has human emotions.
Besides the characters, the action scenes in this movie are absolutely amazing. Infinity War uses the camera to their advantage and provide us a full view of the climactic battles.
Infinity War won’t be the last of the Marvel films, but it will be one of the best. With the new added emotion and the same Marvel flair, it will keep the audience on the edge of their seats even after the credits and after walking out of the theater. So, bring your tissues and grab a seat at the next screening of Avengers: Infinity War.
For more breaking news and photos, follow The Wingspan on Instagram and Twitter @CHSWingspan.
Words: Natalie Knight-Griffin
On April 4, 2018, Centennial’s band director, David Matchim, announced to Centennial’s Wind Ensemble members that they made it into The Midwest Clinic. The Midwest Clinic is an annual conference taking place from December 19 to 22, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. It is a highly selective and prestigious music conference in which only five high schools from across the nation are selected to compete. Centennial is the first Howard County school to have ever made it into the clinic, as well as the fourth school in Maryland since 1973.
“The Midwest Clinic is the largest instrumental music education conference of its kind and we will be performing for an audience of the best musicians and educators in the world,” said Matchim. “It’s a sign that a lot of things are going right.”
At the December conference, Wind Ensemble will be performing a piece titled “Harrison’s Dream” by Peter Graham, which they having been practicing since the beginning of the school year and played at their adjudication in March. The piece won the band a series of ones from the judges, the highest score a band can achieve, meaning “exemplary.” Harrison’s dream is a dramatic, 15 minute long musical depiction of the sea, both at a calming and rigid state.
“It’s incredibly challenging both technically and artistically,” detailed Matchim. “It’s definitely the most challenging piece that we have ever performed.”
When the news of the band’s acceptance was announced to Matchim’s third period class, the room erupted into screaming, tears, and laughter. Matchim videotaped the reactions and posted the video to Twitter, describing the feeling as overwhelming pride and gratitude. The students will be practicing for the next several months in preparation for their performance at the conference, their acceptance made possible by the hard-working students, supportive community members, and director David Matchim.
For more breaking news and photos, follow The Wingspan on Instagram and Twitter @CHSWingspan.
Words: Shawn Kruhm
Photos: Zach Grable
On Wednesday, May 2, students and staff wore their wackiest apparel to celebrate another successful day of prom spirit week. Students enjoyed wearing anything but their normal attire.
Many showed their school spirit by rocking their craziest hats, funniest shirts, and wildest socks.
Students can look forward to participating in two more spirit days: Class Color Day on Thursday, and College Sweatshirt Day on Friday.
For more breaking news and photos, follow The Wingspan on Instagram and Twitter @CHSWingspan.
Words: Delanie Tucker
Photos: Zach Grable
On Tuesday, May 1, Centennial students dressed up for the second day of prom spirit week; Maryland Day, which also served as Zaching Against Cancer Day.
Many Centennial students chose to honor Zach Lederer, a former Centennial student who died of cancer, with t-shirts and hoodies with the Zaching Against Cancer Foundation logo on it.
For more breaking news and photos, follow The Wingspan on Instagram and Twitter @CHSWingspan.
