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Movies for Citizenship in the Community


CA_Scouter

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  • 8 months later...
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What about Good Night and Good Luck. I have not reviewed the movie but has anyone else seen it? Here is a review:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0433383/plotsummary

I will check it out this weekend and post my own observations. Another would be Meet John Doe, another classic. The review is here:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0033891/plotsummary

The problem with both is that normally dramtic, black and white films, do not hold their attention. Btw, I second Star Wars: A New Hope.

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What about Good Night and Good Luck. I have not reviewed the movie but has anyone else seen it? Here is a review:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0433383/plotsummary

I will check it out this weekend and post my own observations. Another would be Meet John Doe, another classic. The review is here:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0033891/plotsummary

The problem with both is that normally dramtic, black and white films, do not hold their attention. Btw, I second Star Wars: A New Hope.

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I am new to being a Cit in Comm MBC and I had a troop in our area ask for a list of movies I would approve. I replied that each patrol in the troop should recommend two movies which they thought would be good to fulfill the requirement and I would approve one. I have not heard back yet but I think it will be interesting to see what the Scouts think are good. Then again I may end up having to watch 6 movies to figure it out. :)

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  • 3 months later...

I am just finishing up this merit badge with a small group of Scouts. We watched "Remember the Titans" for our movie. I think it was the perfect choice too - It is a super movie with a positive message. It is about teenaged boys. Denzel Washington is the star. What more can you ask for?

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Yup, a lot of boys I work with choose that movie. Just out of curiosity, how many of you try to push boys toward a movie they have not seen before? I find that nearly all have seen Remember the Titans, either in school or in sports (and some, in scouting). I do try to get them to watch something new, but I don't require it. I can see an argument both ways. Watching a new movie means they need to pay a little closer attention. Watching an old favorite maybe allows them to focus in more on the role of an individual character, rather than the story line.

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Lisabob, I have tried it both ways with mixed results. Re-viewing it often allows them to notice things they missed before, especially if we've just finished a discussion based on their first viewing. And like you say, a new experience puts them on level ground.

I note that I just got around to watching 'Dark Knight' and as far as movies for Citizenship go, that ain't it. But I really did like those clown masks.

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Ditto on Pale Rider. I'd add Unforgiven and The Outlaw Josey Wales (love Eastwood flicks)

 

Did someone say All the President's Men?

 

Add Citizen Kane, Stand By Me, Tora! Tora! Tora! Public Enemy Number One and Gettysburg. The scene when Lee chews out Stewart for failing to stay in contact with him and then picks him back up after Stewart offers to resign is a classic lesson in leadership. Except for the blood and guts and the fact that it's 11 hours, Band of Brothers is great. Even if you only show the first episode I think it gives some good examples of leadership and people making a difference.

 

Last summer at our post TLT movie night the one movie the adults got to pick was Cool Hand Luke. Probably half the boys went outside to play flashlight tag even before they got to the boiled egg scene. Many kid's don't have the patience anymore for anything but action movies. I'm not big into action movies, so I'm not one to make suggestions, so maybe someone can offer a few suggestions along those lines. I caught the last 30 minutes of Terminator III the other day. My feeling is that it's 80 minutes of blowing stuff up and 3 minutes of the citizenship stuff we're looking for. Thinking about it, Red Dawn, with Patrick Swazey would be a good one.

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"...how an individual... can have a positive effect on a community."

 

I think that many times, the young Scout may not have seen (or heard about)enough appropriate movies to meet this requirement.

When my kids would say "ah, why do I have to watchTHAT old movie" or "why can't I listen to MY music?" I always told them (and they came to expect it!) it's part of my duties as a parent to make sure they have a COMPLETE cultural education. How will they know how the music/movie/anime/novel/comic of today came to be without what came before? Scout son now that wants to know more about the good ole days. I have a grown stepson who wants to be a computer graphic artist/game designer. Part of that came from my insistance that they watch, with me and MTSO, old movies, important movies, and THEN Scout son could choose a movie to use for the CiC MB: Twelve Angry Men.

 

Give them choices, watch with them, let them ask questions and answer as you can.

 

Try The 49th Parrallel,British movie produced while the US was still nuetral, before entering WW2.

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Just an aside, if you haven't seen a movie that may have been mentioned and you'd like to know how appropriate it may be for the age scout you are counseling, I like to use:

 

http://www.kids-in-mind.com/

 

Bear in mind, it practically spoils some movie plots, but I've found it helpful when I'm picking out movies to bring to youth group overnighters, or when choosing movies just for my family to watch from the rental place.

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these are all excellent movies. for older boys who may soon go into the military, I would like to suggest

Renaissance Man (community is of unmotivated recruits)

Last Castle (community of military convicts)

Glory (black soldiers in the Civil War)

Rough Riders (how Teddy Roosevelt formed the RR)

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  • 2 weeks later...

If I may venture my personal opinion, I think we need to keep in mind that this movie is being used for the "Citizenship in the Community" merit badge, and should be used to reinforce the specific principles of making the community better. Additionally, I think the movie should show a direct correlation between the character's actions and the improvement in the community, without requiring extrapolation or an understanding of a metaphor.

 

So, while there are countless movies about someone doing something "good", I don't think science fiction, western or sports movies should be used for this requirement. If possible, it should be a movie where the character exists in a real community, and does something that is realistically relevant to the communities in which the scouts live. Something "based on a true story" would be even better. (I know there are arguments that "sports" does provide a real improvement in people's lives and their communities, and I love a good sports movie, but I still think a more direct movie should be used for this requirement.)

 

That being said, I would suggest the following movies that give concrete, realistic examples of people making sacrifices for the benefit of their "communities" in such a way that it applies to Scouts living in America, circa 2009:

 

 

Mr. Holland's Opus (composer sacrifices personal career and priorities for the benefit of his students, who go on to great success in the world because of his inspiration)

 

Stand and Deliver

 

Lean on Me

 

Follow Me Boys- (musician moves to small town and sacrifices personal ambition to be a lawyer and benefits the community through supporting a Boy Scout troop among other things).

 

(and any movie about the American civil rights movement is probably very relevant, since that movement was full of "normal" people taking heroic risks for the betterment of their communities)

 

Selma, Lord, Selma - good movie about the civil rights era

 

The Long Walk Home

 

(This message has been edited by cineburk)

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