Speak (2004)

Actors: Kristen Stewart (actress), Elizabeth Perkins (actress), Steve Zahn (actor), D.B. Sweeney (actor), Michael Angarano (actor), Robert John Burke (actor), Derek Rimelspach (miscellaneous crew), Leslie Lyles (actress), Hallee Hirsh (actress), David Kneeream (miscellaneous crew), Matthew Myers (producer), Arron Kinser (actor), Jason Block (miscellaneous crew), Christopher Libertino (composer), Jessica Sharzer (producer),

Plot: The young adolescent Melinda Sordino arrives at high school feeling confused, depressed and alone. Her school peers call her "squealer", because she alerted the police during a summer party after she was sexually assaulted by Andy Evans. She refuses to tell anyone the events that took place. Her depression and distance from people is made worse by the increasingly large gap between her and her parents. She finds great support with her art teacher Mr. Freeman and her school friend David Petrakis. Her feelings threaten to engulf her but Melinda learns to grow from her experiences instead of repressing the past emotions that have scarred her for the rest of her life.

Keywords: apple, art, art-class, art-teacher, bad-grades, based-on-novel, bones, bullying, bus, calling-the-police
Genres: Drama,
Taglines: The Truth Will Change Everything.

Quotes:

Melinda Sordino: It's my first day of high school. I have seven new notebooks, a skirt I hate, and a stomach ache.

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] The school board decided that Trojans didn't send a strong message of abstinence. So we'll now be the home of the Merryweather Hornets.::random cheerleader: What are we supposed to cheer? We are the hornets, the horny horny hornets?

Melinda Sordino: My English teacher has no face. I call her Hairwoman.

Mr. Freeman: Hi everybody! Welcome to Art. *The* only class that will teach you how to survive. This is where you can find your soul, if you dare. Don't ask me to show you how to draw a face. Ask me to help you find the wind.

Mr. Freeman: Can anybody tell me what this is?::[holds up a smashed globe]::Ivy: A globe?::Mr. Freeman: A Globe? Gosh... What're you guys? 13? 14? You already let them beat the creativity outta you?... It's ok. I used to let my daughters kick this around my studio when it was too wet too play outside. And one day Jenny put her foot right through Texas and the entire United States crumbled into the sea. I mean, you could, you could *paint* a wet muzzled dog... chewing Alaska! The possibilities are endless. It's almost too much but you all are important enough to give it too.

Mr. Freeman: In here is a piece of paper and on that piece of paper is a word. You are gonna spend the rest of the year turning that object into art.::Ivy: Uh, Mr Freeman? When I was little I was really scared of clowns and I don't wanna relapse and have to go back into therapy.::Mr. Freeman: Oh yeah, well, fear is a great place to begin art.::[Melinda picks a piece of paper that says "tree" and tries to put it back]::Mr. Freeman: Hey! Whoa. You just chose your destiny. You can't change that.::Melinda Sordino: I learned how to draw a tree in like the 2nd grade.::Mr. Freeman: Oh really? Um. Well, do you wanna show me? It's OK. I won't grade you.::[he hands her the chalk and she sulks up to the blackboard and very hesitantly draws a really pathetic tree]::Mr. Freeman: That's a pretty good start. Yeah, let's see what it looks like at the end of the year.

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] All that crap you hear on TV about communication and expressing feelings is a lie. No one really cares what you have to say.::Heather: So here's the plan. We join 5 clubs. One for every day of the week. Not like Latin club, but cool stuff. What do you wanna join? Hey, maybe we can tutor kids at the elementary school. What about your friends from last year? Don't you know Nicole?::Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] I wonder how long it would take for anyone to notice if I just stopped talking.

Joyce Sordino: You don't have to talk about it, you know, if you don't want to.::Melinda Sordino: No, I wanna tell you about it. [pauses] Last year, I went to this party at the end of the year...

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] We're studying American history for the ninth time in nine years. Every year they say we're gonna get right up to the present but we always get stuck in the industrial revolution.::Mr. Neck: My family has been in this country for over 200 years. We built this place. We fought in every war, from the first one to the last one, paid our taxes and voted. So tell me *why* my son can't get a job?::[a number of students raise their hand but he ignores them]::Mr. Neck: Reverse discrimination. He wanted to be a firefighter. Went up for the job but he didn't get it. What I'm suggesting here is maybe if we had closed our boarders in 1900 then real americans would get the jobs they deserved.::[the Native American student raises his hand but the teacher points to Heather]::Mr. Neck: Young lady.::Heather: Um, I think that we're all foreigners and should just give the country back to the native americans.::Mr. Neck: Now we have a debate, don't we? "Native Americans"?::black student: Maybe your son didn't get the job because he wasn't good enough. Or maybe he's lazy. Or maybe the other guy was just better than him.::Mr. Neck: Watch your mouth, mister. That's my son you're talking about. You know what? That's enough debate. Everybody take out your book.::[Dave stands up to speak]::Mr. Neck: Mr. Petrakis, please take your seat.::David Petrakis: If the class is debating then each student has the right to say what's on his mind.::Mr. Neck: I decide who talks in here, Mr. Petrakis.::David Petrakis: You opened a debate, you can't close it just because it's not going your way.::Mr. Neck: Watch me! Take your seat, Mr. Petrakis!::David Petrakis: The constitution does not recognize different levels of citizenship based upon the time spent in the country. As a citizen and a student I'm protesting the tone of this lesson as racist, intolerant, and zenophobic.::Mr. Neck: Sit your butt in that chair, Mr Petrakis, and watch your mouth! I try to get this debate going and you people turn it into a "race" thing. Sit down, Mr. Petrakis, or you're gonna go down to the principal's office.::[Dave walks out of the room]::Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] Dave Petrakis is my new hero.

Melinda Sordino: Ivy's being nice. Say something. My throat is dry. It hurts.

The Courage of Kavik, the Wolf Dog (1980)

Actors: Chris Wiggins (actor), Ronny Cox (actor), John Ireland (actor), Cec Linder (actor), John Candy (actor), Linda Sorensen (actress), Murray Westgate (actor), Steve Martin (miscellaneous crew), Jon Slan (producer), Alvin Mears (miscellaneous crew), Gabriel Katzka (producer), Stanley Chase (producer), Harry Freedman (composer), Peter Carter (director), George Malko (writer),

Plot: The story of a champion Eskimo sled dog, named Kavik, who survives a plane crash in the wilds of Alaska and is found and cared for by a young boy, named Andy Evans, who brings Kavik back to his small hometown. But the dog's owner, George Hunter, takes Kavik back to his home in Colorado where the dog escapes and embarks on a 2,000-mile odyssey in search of Andy.

Keywords: based-on-novel, dog, dog-actor
Genres: Drama,