Granada becomes classroom for Montcalm students

Mar. 11—BLUEFIELD — A program to incorporate critically praised films into teachers' lesson plans proved to be rewarding for Montcalm High School 11th-graders at the Granada Theater earlier this week.

Stacy Canterbury's social studies class has been studying the Vietnam War and, thanks to an initiative through Brian Tracey, executive director of the Bluefield Arts Revitalization Corp. (BARC), students came to the Granada and saw "Platoon," a 1986 film considered to be the most realistic depiction of what American soldiers experienced in that war.

Called Lessons in Film Education (LIFE), the program, Tracey said, uses movies as "an innovative educational tool to enhance current curriculum in the public schools, including movies relevant to learning objectives inart, language, mathematics, science, and social studies."

According to Tracey, the purpose of the program is to "provide an arts-enriched educational experience for students while providing teachers with a creative curriculum with which to better engage students."

Judging by the reaction of the students and Canterbury, the purpose was fulfilled.

Before the screening, Tracey talked with students about the history of the film, which is based, in most part, on the real-life experiences of director Oliver Stone who served in Vietnam in 1967 and 1968.

He also reviewed the different titles people who make movies have and exactly what their jobs are.

Tracey told the students that the content of "Platoon," which won an Oscar for Best Motion Picture, "is the way it was," creating the reality of Vietnam and what is was like to be there.

Tracey also challenged the students to pay attention to the soldiers, how they changed, the inner turmoil and moral dilemmas they often faced.

The difference between plot and story was also covered, and students were asked to compare reading about it and the impact of actually seeing it realistically portrayed on film.

Before the screening, three students said they had never seen the movie, and only started learning about the Vietnam War in their social studies class.

"I hope it is good," student Jayden Price said. "I think it will be a good experience for us to know what war is like from a first-hand experience."

Fellow student John Hall said they had studied only up to World War II in their history classes, so their knowledge about Vietnam had been limited.

"I think it is always beneficial anytime you can learn outside the classroom," he said.

Mary Graham, also an 11th-grader, said she was looking forward to seeing the movie and, like her classmates, had known little about the war.

Canterbury, who had seen the movie before, said her class had just covered the war and seeing the movie should enhance what they know.

"I think it's important for them to see something that we can teach and cover in the books, but seeing a depiction of it is very different," she said.

After the film, Tracey gave students the opportunity to react and talk about some of the things they took away from the experience, with topics like revenge (soldiers turning against each other), how war changes people and the overall impact of seeing a realistic depiction of war discussed.

The three students interviewed before the movie gave their reactions.

"It gave us a realistic perspective," Price said. "It brought everything to life, and everything is not always cupcakes and rainbows. Things can be difficult and people change over time."

"I knew it was probably gory and graphic," Hall said. "But I didn't think it would be emotional."

Hall said the movie really put into perspective how war can change people.

"I really never thought about the corruption of soldiers, and I guess that goes in any war," he said, referring to the violence and retribution that results in being in a situation where so many friends die.

The evolvement of the main character in the movie, played by Charlie Sheen, shows someone who is initially scared and meek transform into a good soldier, but one who retains a sense of morality.

Others react to the experience in a more violent manner.

"I always kind of thought it was us versus the enemy, sides versus sides," Hall said. "But I had never really thought about the internal conflict (soldiers can experience)."

Hall said that conflict resulted in moral dilemmas, and often in negative ways for some soldiers.

But Hall also said the movie was shown from the perspective of American soldiers, and it was in a situation where the enemy was seen almost entirely as "ruthless killers," which is the way the soldiers see, and react, to them because they kill their friends.

Graham said watching the movie was far different from reading about the war.

"You can portray images in your head (when reading) of what the war might be but you don't get to see the actual soldiers and what it might be like," she said, and that includes the bugs and dealing with the outside, often hostile, natural environment in a jungle.

"There is so much work put on veterans you don't get to see when you just read about it," she said.

Graham said it gave her a better appreciation of what soldiers do and experience.

"I know that I would never be able to do that," she said of war. "Some people think that you want to go to war because you want to be like your father ... but they never realize how tough it actually is being out there. You get to see it (in the movie)."

Graham said she would recommend seeing a film to accompany reading material.

"I think they should definitely watch any move that can portray what they are reading about," she said. "Some people are visual learners and that takes on a much bigger appreciation for all of it than just reading about it in the history books."

Canterbury was pleased with the experience.

"I think it is a great thing, and if any other students and teachers have the opportunity (to participate in the program), they should take it so students can see a realistic depiction of how war changes people," she said. "I thought it was a great opportunity for the kids, especially with the Granada Theater. It is such a beautiful place and they had never seen it."

She said since the movie is realistic with violence and language, she obtained permission slips from parents for the students to see it.

Students were also treated to a drink and popcorn, and some students volunteered to clean up around the seats before they left.

Tracey said that since the program's inception in the fall of 2021, more than 2,500 students from Mercer County schools have participated in the program.

BARC developed the LIFE program in conjunction with the Mercer County school system.

Tracey said that BARC hopes to eventually reach students not only in Mercer County but also in McDowell County and Tazewell County, Va.

— Contact Charles Boothe at cboothe@bdtonline.com

Contact Charles Boothe at cboothe@bdtonline.com