When Sharks Emerge

Tonight's marathon is in honor of shark week. This marathon is a combination of some of the greatest shark movies ever made beginning with the 1975 classic that started it all titled Jaws. Jaws is a significant film because it began the summer blockbuster trend that's ran a grand total of 40 years, and launched the career of legendary filmmaker Steven Spielberg. It also spawned several different offsprings of films with similar plot themes for better or worse. Tonight's marathon is a celebration of some of the most iconic shark movies to grace the big screen regardless of their quality. For tonight's marathon, we have on the following menu:

 

 

 It is important to note that this marathon is self aware that not all of the films here are on the same quality of magnificence as Jaws, but that the whole thing is staged in a way where the situations get more exciting and outrageous as they go. Jaws was such a powerful and amazing film that it made people scared to go into the water for years. Just when they thought it was safe to go back in the sequel came out in 1978. Jaws is a film that symbolizes so much about pop culture and the way we look at films now. The summer of 1975 began a tradition that continues to dominate the box office to this day, the summer season. Jaws was also the film that put Spielberg on the map and began his incredible career of turning into one of the most influential filmmakers in movie history. Starring Roy Scheider,  Richard Dreyfuss, Robert Shaw, and Murray Hamilton, Jaws centers around a small town being terrorized by a great white shark on the beaches of Amity Island during the 4th of July weekend. It is up to a police chief named Martin Brody, a police chief, a marine scientist, and a grizzled scientist to capture and kill the great white shark. Jaws was nominated for a total of four academy awards including best picture, and won three including best music. It also became the first movie in box office history to make over 200 million domestically pulling in 260 million domestically. The second movie in the lineup is the strong follow up to the 1975 classic titled Jaws ll. Picking up a total of three years after the events of the first film, the sequel finds Roy Scheider reprising his role as police chief Martin Brody fighting to protect the citizens of Amity Island once again after a second shark appears on their shores terrorizing the citizens once again. Jaws ll is not the masterpiece that Jaws is known as in film history but it spawned one of the most iconic movie quotes in history. The tagline on the movies poster says "Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water." Jaws ll was not the huge blockbuster the first movie was but still made a huge splash on American audiences back in 1978 with 103 million domestic intake. Jaws ll is the only sequel that is worthy of being viewed with the first film because it follows a similar pattern and feels like a continuation of the events of the first movie. The third movie of the marathon is the 1999 thriller titled Deep Blue Sea. Starring Samuel Jackson, Ll Cool J, Stellan Skaragard, and Saffron Burrows, the film centers around a group of scientists searching for a cure to Alzheimers disease with them suddenly becoming the bait as a trio of intelligent sharks fight back. Made for a budget of 60 million and grossed 73 million domestically, this film presents the sharks as being more intelligent and menacing than the previous two films in the lineup. The fourth movie of the marathon is the controversial film titled Sharknado made in 2003. Generally considered a film that's so bad its really good, Sharknado centers around a freak hurricane impacting Los Angeles. The twist with this hurricane is that it unleashes deadly killer sharks from the sea onto the mainlands, attacking and harming thousands of people due to the powerful force of nature. The fifth and final movie of the lineup is the much anticipated follow up to Sharknado ll. The sequel to Sharknado centers the story in New York City with the same kind of weather pattern from the first movie striking the mainland and unleashing killer sharks within the population. It is up to the citizens of New York City to band together and fight back against the killer sharks emerging from the sky.

So what is this iconic and exciting marathon trying to say with all it's movies? It says that sometimes the one place you automatically assume would be a safe place would be one of the most dangerous. People need to understand the dangers of what's infront of them, organize and learn to fight back with teamwork. Never underestimate the power of human nature.

 



The Great Escapes

Tonight's marathon all revolves around one theme: The Great Escape. This theme consists of some of the greatest and most iconic escape missions ever put on film. Many of these iconic and great movies were influenced by the 1963 all time classic titled The Great Escape starring Steve McQueen and James Garner. The film was met with critical and box office acclaim upon it's release, making it a huge influential piece of filmmaking. The movies that come after it are directly inspired by this films story and it's ultimately badass theme. We have on this exciting and moving marathon for this evening:

The Great Escape 1963, Escape From New York 1981, Chicken Run 2000, 101 Dalmations 1996, and Toy Story 3 2010

 

 

      Now this feels like the ideal movie lineup dealing with the theme of escaping. The whole concept deals with a group of people or animals working together to overpower their antagonists in the fight for their freedom. The Great Escape created a new genre of movies with it's release and other great films that didn't make this lineup such as Stalag 17 and The Bridge Over River Kwai. The influence of The Great Escape's storyline can be seen within each of these filns. The Great Escape being the first movie of the evening centers around allied prisoners of war planning for 250 of them to escape from a German camp during World War ll. The film runs an all star cast among the likes of Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough, Donald Pleasance, and James Coburn as the group of allied prisoners secretly planning their Great Escape.

      The second movie of the lineup is the 1981 futuristic John Carpenter classic titled Escape From New York starring Kurt Russell, Charles Cyphers, Ernest Borgnine, Isaac Hays, Lee Van Cleef, Harry Dean Stanton, Adrienne Barbeau, and Tom Atkins. The story takes pace in the year 1997 in a post apocalyptic New York where the President of the United States gets kidnapped and held hostage in the city now turned maximum security prison. It is up to a convicted bank robber named Snake Pliskan played by Kurt Russell to fly into the center of the city and rescue the president who possesses a tape that could prevent the threat of nuclear war. Escape From New York is iconic because it takes the concept of The Great Escape and turns it on it's head.

      The third movie of the marathon is Harts War starring Bruce Willis, Colin Ferrall, and Terrence Howard. Feeling much like a modern day retelling of the 1963 classic, Harts War centers around a law student turned Lieutenant during World War ll becoming captured and asked to defend an African American soldier falsely accused of murder in a POW camp. While this trial is happening, the allied general played by Bruce Willis is secretly planning to carry out his mission and plan his troops escape. Harts War feels like a fitting follow up to the story arc of The Great Escape, and ends the era of great escapes occurring during World War ll.

      The fourth movie of the lineup is the 2000 animated film starring Mel Gibson titled Chicken Run. Generally considered the direct animated version of The Great Escape, Chicken Run centers around a Bird flying into a chicken farm allowing for the chickens to see him as an opportunity to flee the farm from their evil owners. The film received a golden globe nomination for Best Picture, as well as critical acclaim and box office success for it's charming and original plot that borrows from one of the greats.

      The fifth movie of the marathon is the live action adaptation of the timeless classic titled 101 Dalmations starring Glenn Close, Jeff Daniels, and Joely Richardson. Taking direct inspiration from both The Great Escape and Home Alone, the story centers around a woman named Cruella Deville played by Glenn Close who wants to kidnap the puppies and kill them for her own personal coats. She enlists two burglars to kidnap the puppies from one of her employees and holds them hostage in a barn waiting to be killed. The burglars are oblivious to the various other animals who gang up against her and get their revenge back in clever fashion. Glenn Close's perfect performance as the iconic animated villain got her a well deserved golden globe nomination for best actress and helped bring 101 Dalmations to critical and box office success.

      The sixth and final movie of the marathon is the grand finale to the epic Pixar trilogy titled Toy Story 3. Nominated for five academy awards and winner of two, this critically acclaimed finale to the popular Toy Story trilogy places the toys in a situation where they end up being delivered to a day-care center instead of the attic where Andy placed the toys before leaving for College. It is now up to Woody to convince the other toys that they weren't abandon and to make their great escape from the day-care center and to return home. Toy Story 3 is not only the most financially successful of the Toy Story movies but also is the most emotionally powerful and inspirational. It brings it's respective series to a proper close while paying tribute to the legendary film The Great Escape.

 

So what is the message behind this marathon ultimately? When all of these movies are placed together, the message says that if everyone works together and use each others special abilities or intelligence then they can overcome any obstacle or adversity. It is always best to put aside petty differences or issues with other people and work together as a team.

 

Our characters for this evening:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



When They Invade

Tonight's marathon is centered around the theme of alien invasion or the arrival of extraterrestrial life. The beginning of the marathon is structured to represent their first appearances on Earth whether in the ice of Antartica, Mexico or a farmers cornfield to their attack on society and the world's response in the case of we fight back. It is a marathon that's designed to build suspense as well as the anticipation that their coming to conquer and destroy everything in sight. For Friday and Saturday's glorious 4th of July marathon, we have on the following menu:


The Thing 2011, The Arrival 1996, Cowboys And Aliens 2011, Signs 2002, War of the Worlds 2005, Mars Attacks 1996, and Independence Day 1996

 

 

 

 

 

Now this feels like the ideal alien invasion lineup. These seven films were chosen to fulfill the story arc of an alien invasion with three main story arcs of that theme. The first being when they arrive, the second being when they attack, and the third being when the human race fights back. Some of the most iconic alien invasion films were chosen for this marathon as well as low key ones that most people in the new generation have never heard of, but work effectively in setting up important plot points with this marathon. The first movie of the marathon is the prequel to John Carpenter's 1982 classic titled The Thing. The remake/prequel centers around the discovery of an alien spacecraft at a research site in Antartica leading towards a confrontation between a graduate student played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead and a male scientist played by Joel Edgerton. The second movie in the lineup is the 1996 science fiction thriller titled The Arrival starring Charlie Sheen and Teri Polo. The story centers around an astronomer named Zane played by Charlie Sheen who stumbles onto a signal that indicates extraterrestrial life. Zane soon discovers that the aliens are keeping a deadly secret and are planning to keep him from discovering it. The Arrival and The Thing work as great preludes to the latter movies in the marathon with Arrival centering around aliens in Mexico which is referenced in Independence Day, and two intelligent scientists stumbling onto signals that indicate extraterrestrial life. The third movie of the lineup is Jon Favreau's entertaining but somewhat underwhelming Cowboys And Aliens. Starring Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford, the film centers around a spaceship arriving in Arizona in the year 1873 in hopes of taking over the Earth. It begins with conquering the wild west region forcing a group of cowboys and native americans to band together and fight back. The fourth movie in the marathon is M Night Shaymalan's last quality film titled Signs which centers around an ex priest played by Mel Gibson and his family on a farm suddenly discovering mysterious crop circles in their fields indicating an alien invasion is on the way. The scope of the alien invasion is shown through news bulletins throughout the film with the presence of the alien revealing itself. Signs is a significant film because it indicates the last great movies that both Mel Gibson and M Night Shaymalan starred in and directed. The fifth film of the lineup is the Steven Spielberg 2005 blockbuster titled War of the Worlds starring Tom Cruise, Dakota Fanning, and Tim Robins. The story centers around Earth suddenly being invaded and attacked by alien tripod machines, with a family of three fighting to survive. Nominated for three academy awards including best visual effects, War of the Worlds remains one of Spielberg's darkest films and one of Tom Cruise's biggest blockbusters. It is their second collaboration together after working on the critically acclaimed science fiction thrilled titled Minority Report. The sixth movie in the lineup is the box office failure yet cult classic directed by Tim Burton called Mars Attacks. Mars Attacks centers around Earth being invaded by Martians with their intent on conquering the world with unbeatable weapons, and a sneaky yet cruel sense of humor. Mars Attacks has a legendary cast among the likes of Jack Nicholson, Glenn Close, Annette Bening, Pierce Brosnan, Danny DeVito, Lukas Haas, Natalie Portman, Pam Grier, Joe Don Baker, Martin Short, and Michael J Fox. The film was not a commercial success but has achieved status as being a cult classic since it's release in December 1996. Due to being released the same year as Independence Day, it's highly speculated that it's failure at the box office attributed to Independence Day setting the bar for alien invasion films. The seventh and final movie in the lineup is the 1996 Roland Emmerich blockbuster that become one of the defining movies of the 1990's. Independence Day starring Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, and Bill Pullman centers around an alien invasion taking place over the fourth of July weekend with the intention of wiping out all of mankind by July 4th. The survivors of the destruction band together to combat the aliens through aircraft battles, and blocking their signals thanks to the combined efforts of Jeff Goldblum and Will Smith's characters. Independence Day remains one of the most successful movies of all time, and is getting a sequel that's set to hit theaters next 4th of July.

 

So what is the whole theme behind this marathon? With all of the alien invasion movies put together into one sitting, the message behind it is that the truth needs to be revealed to the rest of humanity so that we know whether we must prepare to fight back or remain optimistic or concerned. If aliens really do come in peace, they will not be trying to hide their identities within the population nor send signals communicating an attack. When the world is faced with a difficult task such as an alien invasion, the time has arrived for all nations to put aside petty differences and unite to save the world.

 

Our characters for this evening: