Estes Park High School Mountaineer March 29, 2017

ESTES PARK TRAIL-GAZETTE • WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29, 2017 • PAGE 9

Estes Park High School

MOUNTAINEER BONJOUR ON THE SCREEN

Kong: How many times will we return to Skull Island?

One student’s journey through France

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By Max Wolter

Mountaineer

It’s not every day that a high school student is given the opportunity to study abroad. Between friends, commitments at workplaces, and the daunting task of learning a new language, some students might even shy away from the chance to attend school in a foreign country. One Estes Park High School student, however, has leapt at the opportunity.

EPHS senior Ted Dumont chose to spend his senior year of high school in the town of Nérac, France. Dumont is a participant in Rotary International Youth Exchange, which has been Ted Dumont visits Paris on a Rotary outing. responsible for sending a handful of EPHS students to study abroad in the past.

One thing Dumont has learned through the experience: School is school, no matter the place, it seems.

“What it entails is me going on exchange for basically a whole school year, going to school in the country of my choice. So, I’m attending French public high school, like any French student would,” said Dumont. “The high school I’m at is called ‘Lycée George Sand’, or George Sand High School.

With his enrollment in George Sand High School, Dumont has faced a number of challenges that he had never experienced at EPHS. The most pressing See FRANCE, pg. 10 Ted Dumont’s home away from home in Nerac, France.

Max Wolter / Mountaineer

Fist Fight a waste of potential in storytelling

By Scott Buck Mountaineer

Max Wolter / Mountaineer

Knowledge Bowl represents EPHS at state competition

By Phoebe Dillon

Mountaineer

Estes Park High School’s Knowledge Bowl Team qualified again this year for the Colorado Knowledge Bowl state competition.

Colorado Knowledge Bowl (CKB) is a contest and a celebration of knowledge and learning for teams of high school students. High schools compete against others of similar size, answering questions based on the high school curriculum.

Team members from EPHS included Will Peters, Phoebe Dillon, Will Thomas, Mary Ringgenberg, Casey Walsh, Sophie Greenway, and Zoe Hester.

This year the team placed 8th in the 3A divi-

Tom Hiddleston), and World War II pilot Hank Marlow (played by John C. he story of the giant Reilly), who have been ape, Kong, has been trapped on the island since told and retold eight the 1940s. The characters times since his first film in split into two camps, with Jackson’s crew favoring 1933. In the most recent killing Kong, and Hidinstallment, Kong: Skull dleston’s crew favoring Island, director Jordan Vogt-Roberts takes a differ- keeping him alive.

The cast was the best ent direction than previous part of this film, packing in films, turning Kong into a a powerhouse group of pro10-story monstrosity that fessionals capable of conrules over an island full of vincingly portraying the giant lizards who want to chaos of Skull Island. destroy anything that While the cast did a phemoves.

Kong: Skull Island is also nomenal job, the overall story falls short of the different in terms of its praise the film has received time period. In the 2005 from other critics.

King Kong adaptation by The film begins with a fantasy icon, Peter Jackson, foggy background of why Skull Island was discovered in the 1930s by a film the researchers are going crew, and Kong is brought to the island, and doesn’t reveal much beyond excusback to the United States and eventually killed. Vogt- es to make big monsters Roberts, however, has cre- fight on screen.

There was a lot of potenated a Vietnam War-era tial for Skull Island, but adaptation, featuring a group of United States sol- none of it was tapped into.

With the setting being at diers lead by Samuel L. the end of the Vietnam Jackson’s character, PresWar, the story could have ton Packard. delved into one of the most Eventually, a struggle ensues with the soldiers on controversial times in one side and photographer American history. Countless themes could have Mason Weaver (played by been explored, but I was Brie Larson), ex-soldier See KONG, pg. 10 James Conrad (played by

By Levi Carpman Mountaineer

Phoebe Dillon / Mountaineer

EPHS Knowledge Bowl Team from left are Zoe Hester, Sebastian Mohr, Kaci Walch, Phoebe Dillon, Sophie Greenway, Will Peters and Will Thomas.

sion. Overall, Estes Park’s team achieved a solid 26th out of 60. This accomplish-

ment helped Knowledge Bowl Team Members know that all their hard

work wasn’t for nothing.

Glen Case, the adviser of See KNOWLEDGE, pg. 10

F

ist Fight is bad. Really bad. Fist Fight, staring Charlie Day and Ice Cube, has the potential to be a truly funny satire of the American educational system, but falls flat in every single aspect. The story doesn’t build well, the main character is more unlikable than the antagonist and the comedy is unfunny and uninteresting.

Fist Fight stars Charlie Day as English teacher Andy Campbell. After a large confrontation between teacher Roy Strickland, played by Ice Cube, Campbell and one of his students, gets Strickland fired. This motivates Strickland to challenge Campbell to a fist fight after school. Faced with Strickland’s larger stature and strength, Campbell has to find a way out of the fight while juggling his other responsibilities. This is a funny concept that allows for some interesting interactions leading up to the fight, as well as an entertaining fight. But it doesn’t.

The problems begin with the setting. The school itself starts off as a ridiculous mad house, with horses on meth running

through the hallways and the principal’s car being destroyed. This would have worked if the school had started relatively normal and built up to this level of insanity, but with the setting being a static, unchanging place, it adds to how boring this movie is.

The plot also fails. Every “twist” is totally predictable, with the outcome of every scene being exactly what you expect it to be.

When Campbell tries to frame Strickland for drugs possession, he is caught instead. When Campbell bribes the student, it backfires. Nothing is new or interesting: everything either falls just short of being worth watching or funny.

The comedy is by far the worst of Fist Fight’s flaws.

Each joke lasts too long, turning the beginnings of a light chuckle into a bored sigh. The fight should have been a hilarious romp, with great visual gags and funny trash, but instead ends up as a well done action scene in an otherwise comedy-focused film.

The good aspects, while few and far between, are there. The fight is well choreographed and has a good sense of motion and impact. Two of the jokes See FIST FIGHT, pg. 10

PAGE 10 • WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29, 2017 • ESTES PARK TRAIL-GAZETTE

Golf balls vs. snow balls

Why Estes Park High girls’ golf should be in the fall

By Megan Miller

Mountaineer

When thinking of golf, warm weather and green grass would come to mind, but this is not the case for girls’ golf at EPHS. The girls on the golf team must bear through the chilling Estes Park winds and random snowstorms that haunt springtime. As well as that, playing in the spring is difficult on the players because the ground is as hard as cement and tournaments are often cancelled.

As a member of the girls’ golf team I feel like a change in our season would benefit the team tremendously. If girls’ golf was moved to the Fall, many advantages would come with it, including better scores from my teammates.

If the girls would play better, then they would be able to represent EPHS in the best way possible.

The spring is not the best time to have golf for multiple reasons. “Weather is constantly an issue,” said coach Austin Logan.

Practice has already been cancelled due to high winds and cold temperatures even though the season just started on February 27. To me, golfing in freezing temperatures and buffeting winds is miserable. Wearing gloves may keep our hands warm, but they get in the way of comfortably gripping the golf club. As well as that, it’s extremely difficult to putt a golf ball that turns into a snowball when it rolls across the grass.

These conditions prevent the girls’ golf team from performing their best. Out of all of the spring sports, golf should be moved to the fall because hitting a golf ball around for five hours in

Megan Miller / Mountaineer

Members of girl’s golf taking swings at the driving range.

Megan Miller / Mountaineer

The girl’s golf team from left are Megan Miller, Piper Lasota and Anna Rowedder.

50 mile per hour winds isn’t always fun.

While moving the girls’

golf season to the Fall would not be impossible, it would be difficult to try and

Knowledge from page 9 the Estes Park team, acknowledged the team’s preparation and accomplishments. “I am so proud to have worked with this group of students the last three years,” said Case.

Over the course of Monday, March 13, and Tuesday, March 14, Knowledge Bowl competitors at the top of their league from around the state went to Colorado State University to compete for the Governor’s Cup. Most of the competition is

and we end up waiting for a while in between them, we are able to make use of some of that time,” said oral, in a game show format, where teams compete junior Will Peters. against each other to Although CKB is a comanswer the questions quick- petition, it is also an opporly. Team members can tunity for students around rotate according to subjects the state to meet each othbeing presented, as well as er. “I have been able to their specialties. meet so many new people, Another part of the com- and you can’t really do that petition is written, but team in most school activities,” said junior Will Thomas. members can collaborate Because of substitution, on the answers. They have some team members are 45 minutes to answer 60 questions about diverse top- able to work on schoolwork during rounds, and others ics. “Even though rounds are kind of long sometimes, will work, eat or nap in

France from page 9

of in the same boat. We have all left our homes and have been submerged obey. It’s been weird, actu- in something completely of challenges is the obvially. The teachers are way different. It’s really easy to ous language barrier. make friends that way.” stricter than any teacher “Everything is in Besides working hard at French!,” he said. “It took I’ve ever had before.” school, and the occasional Teachers aside, me months and months to Rotary student gatherings, Dumont’s exchange to finally get to the point, Dumont has also France isn’t just focused now, where I understand immersed himself in most of what the teachers on schooling. He is there on behalf of Rotary, along French culture. Dumont are saying and I can try has done his best to inteand do the homework and with 50 other students in grate himself into the comhis district who are also assignments a bit,” said participating in the Youth munity of Nérac, where he Dumont. “The first few plays violin as part of a months were not like that Exchange. However, local band, and has done and I felt like I was lost the Dumont’s district is just some volunteer work in one of many throughout entire time.” the town.

Along with the language Europe that hosts stu“The band is an ensemdents on the exchange, so barrier, Dumont also notices a difference in the he is never without compa- ble of kids who play various instruments, from the ny. interactions between stuelectric bass to drums to “The real friends I’ve dents and teachers. Or violin, for me. Apart from made have actually been rather, the lack thereof. that, since it’s a Rotary other Rotary Exchange “In the United States, Exchange, I get to do now looking back, the stu- students from all around some volunteer work,” the world,” said Dumont. dents and teachers are said Dumont. “I worked very close, and there’s a “Every so often, all of the for a food bank once, colvery personal relationship students who have come lecting food donations, there. Almost a friendship, to France, in my district, even,” said Dumont. “You will get together and we’ll and I played my violin at a don’t have that same kind have a weekend together; blood drive. That was a litof friendship here [in go on a bus trip and travel tle bit weird, that one, because I didn’t know France]. The teachers are somewhere. We get to what kind of music to prevery separate. They are know each other pretty ‘high up’ and the students well because we’re all kind pare for that, so I played

get all of the schools across the state to agree on the change. Plus, playing in the between the oral rounds.

The period between rounds can be anywhere from 10-30 minutes depending on how quickly different rooms are completing the rounds.

Unlike many other team activities, Knowledge Bowl is highly individual competition where teammates have to know each other’s specialties. It is also the kind of competition where the teammates who have the more helpful specialties are in rounds more often, so team members are more than willing to sit out for their fellow team member some Bach.”

While Dumont has been enjoying his time in Nérac, that’s not to say he hasn’t been missing Estes Park. Dumont has a particular yearning for the food.

“I have mixed feelings about the food here in France. There are a lot of really, really good things. I really like the bread, I really like the cheese,” said Dumont. “Then there are lots of weird things like ‘foie gras’, which is fattened duck liver. But the thing I look forward to most when I get back home is Mexican food.

They don’t really have Mexican food here. The French palate is very unaccustomed to anything even slightly spicy,” he noted.

“I should probably also mention that I miss my family and classmates,” he added.

Luckily for his family, and local Mexican eateries, Dumont is returning to Estes Park on May 24 in order to walk with his classmates at graduation.

spring makes it easier on the golf courses since less damage can be done when the ground is frozen.

Changing the season would have its benefits, though. The grounds are softer, the grass is lusher and golfers don’t have to wear four layers every time they go to a golf tournament. “Course conditions [in the Fall] are the best they can be all year and weather is much more conducive to playing golf at a high level,” said Logan.

The school would receive better scores from the girls’ team because they wouldn’t have to play golf with frozen hands and toes. Also, boys’ golf season is in the Fall, so the two teams could correspond with each other just like girls and boys’ basketball did.

If basketball can have

boys and girls’ season at the same time, so can golf. Basketball is played indoors, but golf has to be outside, and there is no avoiding Colorado’s unpredictable spring weather.

Golf is one of the few sports that can’t be played during bad weather. Golf goes right along with mountain biking and baseball; they can’t be played successfully in bad weather.

Changing the girls’ golf season would be helpful to the girls because they would have more practices, better playing conditions, and the ability to represent their school in the best way they can. This is something that all Colorado schools should consider because the last thing high schools need are a group of girls playing golf in snowstorms and gusts of wind.

to have their turn.

Even though that may sound a little heartless, Knowledge Bowl is the academic version of any sport, so Mr. Case has to treat it as such.

“They have spent countless hours in practice and give their best efforts in all the meets, which reflects not only their intelligence, but also their good character and determination to work hard to achieve their goals,” said Case.

Another reason substitution is so important, is the fact that one’s brain only has so much stamina.

Knowledge Bowl may not be a physical activity, but it is a highly exhausting competition after sitting and answering test-like questions for hours on end.

While Knowledge Bowl is often overlooked as a group of kids answering random trivia, the season involves both hard work and practice. This kind of dedication shows in the team’s member’s lives in school, sports and lives as a whole. Being a member of Knowledge Bowl takes dedication, which was proved this year with the team’s progression to the State Competition.

Kong from page 9 not able to discern any substantial themes to make this movie anything other than a two-hour time killer.

Film is a powerful medium of art that can do incredible things, but the creators of Kong have not yet figured that out. While the story and themes were not things to marvel at, the acting and special effects were excellent, bringing an incredible and unique mise-en-scene to the film.

All in all, Kong: Skull Island is an entertaining

film, but it may not see people going back to rewatch it. It is more of a film that when you’ve seen it once, no more can be gained from viewing it a second time.

I give Kong: Skull Island a rating of *** for a powerhouse cast and stunning visual effects.

Kong: Skull Island is currently showing at Reel Mountain Theater in Estes Park. Call (970) 586-4227 for showtimes, or check them at reelmountain.com.

Fist Fight from page 9 are well timed and hit with just enough shock value to get a real laugh. But these in no way make up for the rest of the flat and boring scenes and jokes.

Fist Fight needs to be recut, rewritten, and reshot. The jokes don’t work, the film is slow and

boring, and features uninteresting character. The fight is entertaining and some jokes land, but the entire film is completely forgettable. A total disappointment.

The movie is no longer in theaters. Don’t bother to rent the video.