The Student News Site of Menlo School

The Coat of Arms

The Student News Site of Menlo School

The Coat of Arms

The Student News Site of Menlo School

The Coat of Arms

Students release third movie in ‘La Zesta’ series

Students+release+third+movie+in+La+Zesta+series

Seniors Silas Stewart, Cooper Stewart, Ty Corley, and Nick Barrett have created a four-part movie series known as La Zesta. The first two movies were made for Spanish projects four years ago and one year ago, respectively, and the third and fourth were made for Moviemaking this year. In this piece, CoA reviews the third installment. Photo courtesy of Silas Stewart.

By Sam Fortenbaugh

La Zesta 3 is part of a Menlo student affiliated movie franchise. The first two La Zesta movies were created for a Menlo Middle School Spanish class. The third is the first to be made in English. La Zesta 3 has an extensive plot that keeps the viewers alert.

If you are not familiar with the first two La Zesta movies, then the third might be a little confusing because it recalls the plot from the first two movies. The movie features many intense gun shootouts as the protagonists chase the evil zesta dealers. The weapons mainly consist of assault rifles and even a blue smoke grenade. The actors consist of senior boys who play a variety of classic drug bust roles. Zestas, a classic saltine cracker, are portrayed as a drug in the movies that has taken over the streets.

Seniors Cooper Stewart, Ty Corley and David Schmaier, who are ZEA (Zesta Enforcement Agency) agents, try to take down Nick Barrett and the zestas to keep the streets safe. They encounter many obstacles on their chase, but I will not spoil the plot. In addition, the actors’ costumes are similar to those of any classic drug bust movie. The variety of shots and dramatic music keeps the viewers intrigued.

My one criticism is that the plot is complicated for those who have not watched the first two movies, but then what movie franchise is easy to understand if you do not watch the first two movies. The movie looks very pristine except for the gunshot effects which looked a little cheesy.

“While the plot is complicated and many outsiders may complain about it, many fans of the series are able to acknowledge that the script and storyline takes time and effort to create,” senior lead-actor Cooper Stewart said.

Editor’s Note 1: The original post of this article included a cover picture of senior Silas Stewart holding an Airsoft gun. This photo was removed on March 16 and replaced with the current cover picture. 

Editor’s Note 2: Two comments written by Menlo teachers were removed per their request on March 26. Some of the current comments were written in response to those teacher comments.

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The Coat of Arms encourages dialogue with our audience. We welcome constructive comments that avoid slander, hate, profanity and misinformation. In an effort to give voice to a variety of perspectives, anonymous comments will be considered, but signed comments are preferred. If you would like to submit an anonymous comment, please write "Anonymous" in the "Name" field below. While a valid email address is required, The Coat of Arms will not publish your email address. The Editorial Board will review comments and decide whether they will be put online; the editors reserve the right to edit for concision.
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  • C

    Cathy RettbergMar 26, 2018 at 8:33 pm

    I’m surprised by the tone of the anonymous comments here, though I think it’s pretty typical of anonymous comments in general. So, two thoughts. First, I too take issue with the original photo, not because I am “triggered” (I’ve gone target shooting) but because I think the photo was chosen to provoke instead of to simply inform, which is not good journalism. At a minimum it was tone deaf. The current photo is a vast improvement. Second, allowing anonymous posts encourages bad behavior online. Responsible conversation happens between people who are willing to be transparent and stand up for their opinions. So, anonymous posters, come to the library and let’s talk!

    Reply
  • P

    Protect the 2nd AmendmentMar 16, 2018 at 11:10 am

    The Coat of Arms as a free student press organization has the right to publish articles they find interesting and informative to students, regardless of who will be triggered by said articles. It clearly says “MOVIE” in the title so I find the fact that you immediately jump to “campus security (potentially) threatened” extremely troubling and downright preposterous. If you are taken aback by the sight or ownership of a firearm, a constitutional right in this country then maybe America, the country with the largest number of gun owners by quite a wide margin isn’t the best place for you. If you would prefer a gun free country might I suggest Singapore? There owning a gun is punishable by death.

    Reply
  • D

    Dont Tread on MeMar 16, 2018 at 11:09 am

    Ms. Jensen, this is not the school website. This is the Coat of Arms website. You are clearly triggered by the sight of guns, so it is going to be hard to reason with you. The title of the article clearly says that this page is about a movie made by Menlo students which has nothing to do with recent school shootings. You might want to brush up on your reading comprehension skills, and consider that not everyone who owns a gun (or even just a gun replica in this case!) is in support of killing innocent children like your comment suggests. You cannot censor student journalism just because your partisan liberal ideology demands it. The suggestion that we should get rid of all pictures of guns from our media just because the sight of guns makes you feel uncomfortable is a completely ludicrous argument.

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