February 5, 2018
Momo LaClair and Paige Stepanian
Staff Writers/Photographers
The wave of new movies released in 2018 have already brought in a wide variety of people to the theaters, including many students from Jamesville-DeWitt High School. Some popular movies both at J-D and for the public were: “The Greatest Showman,” “Pitch Perfect 3,” and Jumanji”.
“The Greatest Showman,” directed by Michael Gracey, brought in big crowds during the holiday break and beginning of 2018. Freshman Linda Shen saw the movie with a group of friends and loved it, even claiming it was her new favorite. “It was really good, a mix of music, drama, and good stuff made it a must see,” said Shen. Throughout “The Greatest Showman” many familiar faces make appearances. Award winning actor Hugh Jackman plays the lead role of P.T. Barnum. Zac Efron and Zendaya also have main roles in the film. “I absolutely loved watching Zac Efron and Zendaya act together. They have great chemistry,” said Shen. “The Greatest Showman” was nominated for three Golden Globes this year and won Best Original Song – Motion Picture.
Musical movies must have been a crowd pleaser, for “Pitch Perfect 3” was also very popular among the students at J-DHS. Senior Alice Woods saw the musical comedy and insisted, “if you’ve seen the other two movies, you have to go see this one.” Freshman Kailey McKenna also saw the film. “It wasn’t like the other movies when it comes to singing, but it definitely had more adventure,” said McKenna. McKenna rates the movie four out of five stars and recommends it to everyone. Although many have said that the third movie wasn’t as good as the previous two, it was still very successful. “Pitch Perfect 3” is now the second highest grossing musical comedy of all time, just underneath “Pitch Perfect 2,” which is the first.
“Jumanji: Welcome to The Jungle” also did very well. According to Rotten Tomatoes, 90 percent of audiences liked the movie. Though it has the same premise as the original film where a group of kids find a jungle themed game and get sucked into the world of Jumanji, it’s not a sequel. It is an action packed, fun-filled adventure that is enjoyable for all ages. Math teacher Diane Huyck saw the movie with her whole family on Christmas Eve. “It was awesome, it was much much better than I expected…the movie was super fun,” said Mrs.Huyck. Senior Lindsey Young also enjoyed the new “Jumanji.” “I recommend it for everyone, the comedy was really good and Jack Black was really funny,” said Young. She rates the movie five out of five stars. Some familiar faces that you may recognize during the movie are: Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson, Karen Gillan and Nick Jonas.
With all of these fun and family friendly movies coming out, the box offices have been very successful. “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” just recently passed the $800 million mark at the box office. “The Greatest Showman” also recently reached $126 million and doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon. Along with these already successful movies, there are many new films that have just come out or are coming out soon. Some highly anticipated releases include: “The Post,” “Maze Runner: The Death Cure,” “Forever My Girl,” “Paddington 2” and “Black Panther”. Be sure to check them out!