Laughter is Nature's Best Medicine

    When I think about all the movies I’ve seen throughout my life, I realize that the ones I like best are all comedies.  At the top of the list, not necessarily in any order, are Robin Hood: Men in Tights, Forrest Gump, Austin Powers, Mean Girls, and Old School.  

    If I had to pick a favorite, it would be between Robin Hood and Forrest Gump.  It’s hard to decide which I like better.  I have seen both so many times that I could practically recite them verbatim if I played them on mute.  Robin Hood: Men in Tights is supposed to be a spoof on the classic tale of Robin Hood, so if you know how the story goes you can predict what will happen in the movie.  Alternatively, you have to watch Forrest Gump as it unfolds and cannot predict the ending as easily.

    

    Old School is probably the most ridiculous out of the bunch.  It is also the only one rated R.  The rest are rated PG-13 because their content is for a less mature audience.  Austin Powers is, in my opinion, the cheesiest of them all, but I enjoy that type of humor.  Austin Powers is actually a trilogy.  I think the second one is better than the first, and the third is the worst.  Mean Girls delivers a valuable moral and is the most relatable to today’s youth.

VOCABULARY

Recite:  (v.)  say/speak from memory

Verbatim: (adj./adv.)  word for word

Mute: (adj.)  without sounds

Spoof: (n.)  joke version

Tale: (n.)  story

Predict: (v.)  guess

Alternatively: (adv.)  differently

Cheesy: (adj.)  silly

Trilogy:  (n.)  has 3 parts

VOCABULARY ACTIVITY

Write one ANTONYM (opposite) for each vocabulary word.

GRAMMAR POINT

When we write or speak about more than one thing, we use certain words to compare them to one another.  Comparatives compare two things.  (For example: I am taller than you. “Taller” is the comparative).  Superlatives compare 3 or more things. (For example: Jane is the tallest child in the class.  “Tallest” is the superlative).  

GRAMMAR ACTIVITY

List all the comparatives and superlatives that you can find in the text above.