Super Mario Bros Movie 3D
By: Mina
05/11/23
May Contain Spoilers.
Review:
3D was really cool.
In the movie rocks go flying a lot, and with the 3D glasses, they were flying at us.
The movie was very funny.
Overall I really enjoyed this movie.
Summary:
Mario and Luigi go to start a company but fail at their first job. Then the city starts flooding and they try to fix it, but instead they find a tunnel to the Mushroom Kingdom. They meet Princess Peach and set off to stop Bowser from taking over the world. Bowser’s only intention is to rule with Peach by his side as his wife. In the end Mario and Luigi Move to the Mushroom Kingdom, and they finally succeed at their job by being plumbers for the pipe tunnels in the Mushroom Kingdom.
My favorite parts:
When they fail their first customer by flooding their house.
When Mario beats Donkey Kong in a battle.
When they are making their carts for their journey.
When Peach eats the power up and she gets ice powers and looks like Elsa.
When Bowser sings his peaches song.
The Roller Coaster Lesson of the FMS Press Newspaper
By: Conor
02/01/23
See below for the previous article
Hello, I am Conor (a.k.a. Your Reporter on the Odd, The Strange, and The Obscure) and mark my words, by the end of this article, you will know the basics of the roller coaster enthusiasm. While it takes a while to really know exactly everything, the basics can be learned quickly.
First things first, what is a roller coaster? Or more accurately, what is a flat ride? There are quite a few differences between roller coasters and flat rides, but they all basically boil down to the fact that roller coasters (except for chain lifts, trim brakes, etc.) are run mostly by gravity. However, flat rides are mechanical. The biggest mistake new enthusiasts make when determining whether something is a roller coaster or not is looking at whether or not it is a tracked ride. While, yes, that strategy works most of the time, it is always better to do research on places like the manufacturer’s website. This is because flat rides are not just so-called “carnival rides,” but they can also extend to powered track rides, such as a monorail, or quite a few children’s rides.
So now that you know what a roller coaster is, I shall go over the basic history of it. In the late 1800s, it was common practice in the Russian mountains to load up a car with the freshly mined coal, and slide it down a giant slide in order to transport it to the bottom. This went on for a while until someone thought of the idea to replicate it at the mildly popular Coney Island. The result was the Switchback Railway. It was a small ride with a few hills that went back and forth. There was almost nothing mechanical, it was mostly manual.
Eventually, people began to crave more of a thrill, so others came up with a bigger design. This was the “loop de loop,” however, it was different from the vertical loops that we have today. The original loop was a perfect circle. That would exert too many Gs of force on the riders, so eventually people decided to remedy this by making the loop a teardrop shape, which is called a vertical loop. Original circular loops are now completely phased out. No company could even fathom making such an inversion without partly destroying their reputation.
Roller Coasters kept evolving quietly in the background until a very important event: the opening of Disneyland. After Disney’s success, people started realizing how profitable entertainment rides were, since before then they were just for small local parks and fairs, with some exceptions being possible, but rare. However, suddenly there was a renewed interest in such attractions, and manufacturers were happy to comply. There were new innovations like steel coasters, which allow for faster construction. This is because traditionally, wooden coasters were made at the site of the park. However, steel roller coasters could be built at the manufacturer, and quickly put together at the park. This resulted in a smoother ride and more uniform models. The ease of such attractions put the amusement park back in the mainstream!
However, there was a change. Not only were parks popular again, but television existed. This resulted in cross-state travel becoming normal for park visits. As well, roller coaster manufacturing became a more competitive market in the 80s and 90s with companies such as B&M and Intamin, however, we can’t possibly think of going over the second boom of roller coasters without mentioning the big boy of the 1970s: Arrow Dynamics. For the longest time, Arrow was the go-to for cheap steel roller coasters. It dominated the market with the corkscrew model, which I will cover in detail later, and you can even see their market influence today, as most big parks that were around back then had one. Hey also manufactured the first common inverted roller coaster, which I will once again cover in detail later in the article. Arrow was a huge powerhouse until the early 2000s, when they went bankrupt due to a flood of poor financial decisions. Then, Intamin and B&M became the go-tos for thrilling roller coasters. They make all types of rides since not every one is built the same.
There are many different types of roller coasters, but most can be defined by two categories, inverted and non-inverted. Non-inverted roller coasters are what most people think of when they hear the word. These are roller coasters where the track is below the train. Inverted roller coasters are the opposite. These include rides like Batman at various six flags parks, and also The Big Bad Wolf (now defunct) at Busch Gardens.
Other more specific categories can be separated based on whether or not a ride features a specific element like a launch or a top hat. However, a lot of more common elements could not be used to describe the type of ride, such as the aforementioned vertical loop or corkscrew*.
One final thing worth mentioning is the way people share how many rides they have been on, which is called credits. Let’s say someone goes on three different rides in their life. They would have three credits. However, rerides don’t count. For example, if that person rode two rides only once, but one ride 34 times, they would still have three credits.
That's about it for now. I have been Conor (your reporter on the Odd, the Strange, and the Obscure) and now you know a bit more about roller coasters.
*The corkscrew ride name was created and used only by Arrow, therefore it would officially be called a steel roller coaster.
Matilda the Musical
By: Annika
02/01/23
Possible Spoilers
Matilda the Musical is a new musical that came out on Netflix in December. It is full of interesting characters, catchy songs, and an exciting plot line. If you haven’t seen it already you should definitely watch it soon. This review will tell you everything that you want to know about this musical.
Matilda is a young girl with an incredible mind. Her parents completely ignore her and certainly don’t appreciate her. In fact her father hasn’t even come to terms with the fact that Matilda is a girl, not the boy that he wanted. She has creatively found ways to get back at her parents as she has found that “Nobody else is going to change my story, sometimes you have to be a little bit naughty.” She goes to school for the first time a few weeks after school started and is placed in the bottom class. Her teacher is the kind and gentle Miss Honey who immediately recognizes her extraordinary mind. Unfortunately, the headmistress of the school is the terrifying Miss Trunchbull who believes that “Children are Maggots.” When Miss Trunchbull doesn’t play fair Matilda tells her no, something nobody else has ever done before. She then discovered that her beloved Miss Honey has a terrible secret and Matilda is determined to help her with her newly found superpower.
All of the songs in this movie are so great so it was really difficult to rate them but here is what I have come up with. I also included links to the songs so you can listen to them yourself.
This song is one of Miss Trunchbull’s two solos but it isn’t catchy like her other solo, The Hammer or as exciting and inspirational as most of the other songs in the movie.
The goal of Miracle is to contrast Matilda’s parents, the Wormwoods, with the adoring parents of other children. The song itself is not a favorite of mine but the dance it includes is certainly awesome.
This song is pretty cool but it is so short that it isn’t as memorable as the others and it is quickly forgotten after the next song.
In this song the children cheer on Bruce who was forced by Miss Trunchbull to eat an enormous chocolate cake in one sitting. It is a very catchy song and will be stuck in your head for hours after you listen to it.
This song is really beautiful, powerful and yet sad. It involves characters from Matilda’s imagination, or so she thinks…
This is Miss Trunchbull’s best solo where she teaches you what to do if you want to throw the hammer for your country. The school children join in with some real Latin and some of Miss Trunchbull’s slightly questionable latin.
This song features solos from Matilda’s classmates who are dreaming of what they will be able to do when they’re grown up. The song ends with solos from Matilda and Miss Honey with a different tone.
This is a beautiful, gentle solo of Matilda’s as she recognizes her special powers. It provides quite a contrast to The Smell of Rebellion which comes right before it.
This song begins with a solo of one of Matilda’s classmates and then the entire school joins as they defeat Miss Trunchbull. It is super catchy, and an awesome dance number with the entire school singing it. Once you hear it you will be singing it for the rest of the day.
This is Miss Honey’s solo where she expresses her contentment with her house and life though it is hard. It is really beautiful and I’m Here returns as a background part.
This song was the only song in the movie that was not originally in the Broadway show. The original composer wrote it specifically for the end of this movie. It begins as a duet between Matilda and Miss Honey then goes to include all of the school children.
This song has everything. It is Matilda’s first solo. It has very inspirational lyrics and will definitely get stuck in your head. Just listen to it once and you will know what I mean.
Come see the play!
If you enjoyed the Netflix version of this story or you just like seeing live musicals, you should come and see Wheaton Park District’s performance. It is on Friday, March 11-13th in the Memorial Room in the Wheaton Community Center. Tickets are available on Wheaton Park District’s website under events, starting on February 10th. You should get tickets quickly though, because we are likely to sell out fast!
The Lesson
By: Conor
11/02/22
Hello, I am Conor (a.k.a. Your Reporter on the Odd, The Strange, and The Obscure) and mark my words, by the end of this series, you will know the basics of the roller coaster enthusiasm. While it takes a while to really know exactly everything, the basics can be learned quickly.
First things first, what is a roller coaster? Or more accurately, what is a flat ride? There are quite a few differences between roller coasters and flat rides, but they all basically boil down to the fact that roller coasters (except for chain lifts, trim brakes, etc.) are run mostly by gravity. However, flat rides are mechanical. The biggest mistake new enthusiasts make when determining whether something is a roller coaster or not is looking at whether or not it is a tracked ride. While, yes, that strategy works most of the time, it is always better to do research on places like the manufacturer’s website. This is because flat rides are not just so-called “carnival rides,” but they can also extend to powered track rides, such as a monorail, or quite a few children’s rides.
So now that you know what a roller coaster is, I shall go over the basic history of it. In the late 1800s, it was common practice in the Russian mountains to load up a car with the freshly mined coal, and slide it down a giant slide in order to transport it to the bottom. This went on for a while until someone thought of the idea to replicate it at the mildly popular Coney Island. The result was the Switchback Railway. It was a small ride with a few hills that went back and forth. There was almost nothing mechanical, it was mostly manual.
Eventually, people began to crave more of a thrill, so others came up with a bigger design. This was the “loop de loop,” however, it was different from the vertical loops that we have today. The original loop was a perfect circle. That would exert too many Gs of force on the riders, so eventually people decided to remedy this by making the loop a teardrop shape, which is called a vertical loop. Original circular loops are now completely phased out. No company could even fathom making such an inversion without partly destroying their reputation. Speaking of inversions and modern roller coasters, they will be covered in the next issue of the FMS Press! HA HA HA!
Mary Poppins Jr.
By: Annika
10/12/22
Do you like plays and musicals? Well, you should come and watch the Wheaton Park District performance of Mary Poppins Jr.! We have been working hard on this classic musical since August and it includes singing, dancing, and of course, acting. The cast includes ages 7-17 from many schools around Wheaton so you get to meet lots of different people whom you wouldn’t have known otherwise. Our performances are in November on the 11th at 7:00 pm and on the 12th and 13th at 2:00 pm right here in the Franklin auditorium?! Tickets are available online starting on October 10th. The play is about one hour long, and you don’t want to miss it!
Favorite Movies
By: Julia Troha
10/04/22
In this article, I interviewed some of my fellow reporters of the FMS Press about their favorite movies. I had four 8th graders, two 7th graders, and five 6th graders respond to my question, which was “what is your favorite movie?” I got varying degrees of answers, and no one seemed to like the same movies at all, but quite a lot of them fit into the fantasy genre. There were a few that fit the genre of history, and a few more that were leaning towards war or action, but here they are:
Despicable Me - Alice, 6th grade
Song of the Sea - Jahnavi, 6th grade
Ready Player One - Aida, 8th grade
Tomorrow War - Addison, 6th grade
The Hobbit - Matthew, 8th grade
1917 - Hussein, 6th grade
The Harry Potter Series - Beatrice, 7th grade
Star Wars: A New Hope - Henry, 8th grade
Enola Holmes - Gabriella, 8th grade
National Treasure 2 - Conor, 7th grade
Alice in Wonderland and Harry Potter - Mina, 6th grade
Red Notice - Adam, 6th grade
Avatar - Annika, 7th grade
Divergent - Ellie, 8th grade
Howl’s Moving Castle - Sadie, 6th grade
Those are some of the favorite movies from some of our own Franklin Bulldogs! If you’re ever wondering what you should watch, consider some of these movies!