Page 2 July 15, 2021
Film Review
Visual Poetry Lights up
Los Angeles in Summertime
By Morgan Rojas for Cinemacy
When Amanda Gorman took the stage in
January at the 2021 Presidential Inauguration,
two things happened. One, she sparked
a meteoric rise of her own accord, landing
nationwide notoriety, book deals, and an IMG
modeling contract. She also–maybe more importantly–
normalized and encouraged younger
generations to explore spoken word poetry for
themselves, proving that age is not a factor
when it comes to self-expression.
In his latest film, director Carlos López
Estrada (Blindspotting, Raya and the Last
Dragon) shows how the streets of Los Angeles
are filled with inspirational youth who are
ready to speak their truth in the spoken-word
musical, Summertime. Like an indie version
of In the Heights for millennials (complete
with mixed races and various skin tones!),
Summertime is a feel-good film full of literal
Summertime, courtesy of Good Deed Entertainment.
visual poetry and promising artists of tomorrow.
The story of how Summertime came to be is
just as impressive as the film itself. Together
with López Estrada and Executive Producer
Kelly Marie Tran, twenty seven youth poets
workshopped their material over the course
of one Summer in Los Angeles. The result is
this feature film, a loose narrative structure
comprised of intersecting stories from the poets
themselves, all of whom make their feature
film debut as co-writers and stars.
Depending on the scene (and therefore the
dialogue), Summertime is a mix of emotional,
comedic, and nostalgic instances that reflect the
authenticity of the poets. One scene humorously
calls out the prices at trendy Los Angeles
eateries, and how a piece of avocado toast
costs the same as basic livelihood necessities
for lower income communities. Another scene
shows an empowered queer woman giving a
fierce monologue as she stands up for another
same sex couple on a metro bus. Perhaps the
most heart-wrenching scene comes in the form
of a formally insecure woman finally standing
up for herself to a manipulative ex-boyfriend.
I believe the success of Summertime comes
from untraditional factors. The overall narrative
and acting is fairly good, not outstanding,
but what makes this film unforgettable is the
outpouring of pure visual poetry (which outweighs
any nitpicky criticism). Dave Harris,
Mila Cuda, Olympia Miccio, Tyris Winter,
Amaya Blankenship, Bene’t Benton, Hanna
Harris, Marco Bizio, Raul Herrera, Bryce
Banks, Marquesha Babers, Walter Finnie Jr.,
Anna Osuna, Zach Perlmutter, Jason Alvarez,
Austin Antoine, Maia Mayor, Madyson Park,
Xochitl Morales, Paolina Acuña-González,
Marcus James, Gordon IP, Cyrus Roberts,
Pathum Madigapola, Nia Lewis, Daniel
McKinley, Khamal Iwuanyanwu, and Lukas
Lane: job well done. Thank you for sharing
your stories with us.
Distributed by Good Deed Entertainment.
Now playing in select theaters in Los Angeles
and New York. Expanding nationwide Friday,
July 16. •
Morgan Rojas
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Check It Out
Stillness is the Key
by Ryan Holiday
By Desiree De La Cruz-Miller,
Library Assistant
Ryan Holiday is one of my favorite present
day thinkers. He is the author of bestsellers The
Obstacle is the Way and Ego is the Enemy, each
pulling from the writings of stoic philosophers
Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus, and others.
Now with his latest, Stillness is the Key, he once
again presents a variety of stoic philosopher’s
notions and connects the wisdom of these
philosopher’s, through the pursuit of reason,
to today’s times. Ryan Holiday suggests that
when we are able to live in stillness and find
inner peace, then we can find happiness and
be our best selves.
Ryan separates the book into three parts;
Mind, Spirit and Body. For mind, Ryan makes
suggestions such as “Limiting our Inputs.” He
suggests asking ourselves if the information
we are taking in is necessary. At times our
brains get overloaded with so much information
coming at us on a daily basis, that we
may feel as if we are drowning, which brings
unneeded stress. By limiting the information
we take in it can help reduce brain overload.
Next, the Spirit, he suggests getting to the
point of “Enough.” He feels that to experience
stillness it is important to feel that you are good
with where you are in life and with what you
have. As individuals we tend to want more and
are never satisfied. He feels that when we
reach the point of being content and feeling
that it is enough we will have peace and feel
secure in ourselves.
Lastly, the Body, he suggests we “Take a
Walk.” He finds that walking is cleansing.
We tend to think when we walk, and some of
the greatest thinkers came up with their greatest
insights and ideas when they went for a
stroll. Men like Martin Luther King Jr., Ernest
Hemingway and Ulysses S. Grant all walked
to think; they experienced clarity when they
walked. Ryan suggests that when we walk we
do so in a “repetitive, ritualized motion”; we
walk for exercise and often meditate during,
which brings a stillness within.
Ryan Holiday offers many more ideas to
achieve stillness which are a good guide if you
are looking to find peace in your life. You will
find this book in the philosophy section in of
our library. For help finding this title or more
titles on philosophy, please visit our Adult
Reference Desk and ask one of our friendly
librarians to point you in the right direction. •
Stillness is the Key by Ryan Holiday
Desiree De La Cruz-Miller
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