Last Friday, M-A Leadership hosted a movie night on the Green, screening Monsters, Inc.
Students, most of them freshmen and sophomores, formed a long line to buy tickets. Each ticket came with a free slice of pizza, while other refreshments, sweets, and drinks were for sale. Freshman Parker Guntren said “I was really happy that there were snacks and drinks because me and my friends got really thirsty mid-movie.”
Everyone settled down on the Green with blankets and snacks before the movie officially started at 8:00pm. Last year, due to a series of unfortunate events, Movie Night ended early after an unexpected sprinkler accident. Sophomore Steven Gomez said “last year was pretty bad, and Amoroso promised a refund to everyone if the sprinklers come on again this year.” Luckily, there were neither medical emergencies nor sprinklers at this year’s movie night, just lots of lying on the grass.
Leadership student Bridget McHugo said “Leadership chose Monsters, Inc. because they wanted to choose a movie everyone would like rather than a newer film that has a smaller audience.”
Sophomore Rowan Hanley said “Movie Night is a great idea, and I loved the setup, but I didn’t love the movie choice,” adding that, “given that we’re all 14 or older, we should be able to watch something a bit higher-rated than a G movie.”
Others, such as Photography teacher Sarah Frivold, disagreed. She stated “I loved that it’s age-appropriate for everyone.” Senior Mark McGuire also said “Monsters Inc. is a childhood favorite of mine. Although I don’t remember the plot, I’m looking forward to finding out.”
Freshman Henry Malacek said, “I just didn’t have any other plans and I thought it could be fun.” Many students also just huddled around in various areas of the Green, socializing more than actively watching the movie.
Many students said they’d love to come to school movie nights more often, depending on the movie selection. McGuire said, ““If there was a movie night, I would come every Friday.”
Freshman Parker Guntren said, “if we had a bit of a say in what we could watch, I’d come every other week.” McHugo said “Leadership is willing to do this a lot more often, if enough people are interested. The setup is relatively easy.” Leadership posts polls on their Instagram (@menloathertonleadership), giving students choice over what movies to screen, but most students do not see or respond to them.
Overall, Movie Night was smooth sailing this year. Junior Sophie Duda said “watching Monsters, Inc. with friends was a fun way to spend a Friday night.”
