Week seven of college: Everyone around me is sick. We have eight midterms, but we're only taking six classes. It's impossible to book a study room in the library. My friends and I communicate with each other through a series of stressful sighs. I am getting back assignments that I have no recollection of even doing. Sleep is but a dream.

I decided to treat myself and ignore my responsibilities earlier in the week to watch a movie. I can justify doing that by saying I'm a screenwriting major, so watching movies is my version of studying. There was a specific scene in the movie I was watching that perfectly describes how I feel at this point in my semester. After thinking about it that way, I realized I can do that with pretty much any movie, as this moment in a film is often referred to the "all-hope-is-lost moment." I can only hope that Act Three will play out in my favor sometime soon, but here are some iconic films that perfectly sum up how my semester is going:

" Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back"

Imagine getting you hand chopped off by your dad! That's comparable to your favorite teacher giving you the hardest midterm. Utter betrayal. I mean, sure, Luke didn't know it was his dad until after his hand was chopped off, but it's betrayal all the same.

"The Wizard of Oz"

I just want to go home too, Dorothy. I feel you, girl. All the fun of a magical place, such as Oz or college, wears off after a while when you realize you actually have tasks to accomplish.

"Jaws"

This movie made history because Steven Spielberg waited until the very end to reveal the monster. While watching the movie, you know it's there. You know it's coming. But somehow it still surprises you every time. That's how it is with finals. I know that as bad as it is right now, finals are going to come and it'll still hit me by surprise.

"Titanic"

You know that scene where Jack and Rose are trying to unlock the gate at the top of the stairs and they just can't and the water keeps rising and they drop the key? Well eventually they make it, but just barely. That's how I feel. I'm treading water here.

Fun fact: this is the movie I watched that inspired this article.

"Forrest Gump"

There's a scene near the end of the film where Forrest is talking to talking to a woman on the bench and he tells her which bus he has to take to get to Jenny's and she informs him that it's only a few blocks away. He realizes he just wasted this whole time talking to different people on the bench when he could've been at Jenny's much sooner. The other day I spent a substantial amount of time doing the wrong assignment for a class. Maybe I learned something from it, just like how Forrest was able to share his story with others, but I would rather not have wasted all that time.

"Legally Blonde"

As tough as it is, I'm always trying my best to keep my grades up. Elle Woods is the ultimate role model.

"The Princess Bride"

We all know the famous line "My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die." Well, the scene where he says that over and over again is pretty much my teachers, specifically my German teacher, repeating the same thing to me over and over again because I just don't get it.

"Shrek"

I saved the best for last: "We can stay up late, swapping manly stories, and in the morning, I'm making waffles." That is my roommates and me, despite doing more productive things like homework or sleeping.