Crash is one of those movies that keeps the viewers wondering what is next. The theme focuses on the emotional effects or moods. The characters in this movie go through several ups and downs but the moods play off each other. The movie also shows the struggle for human dignity. Several characters in this movie potray a basic conflict between two opposing sides of human nature, good versus evil. The characters of the movie make everyday decisions that ultimately impact the lives of other characters in the movie.
There is a significance in meaning of the title Crash. The characters go through several struggles and events that are so different from each other, but ultimately end up deciding the outcome, crashing into each other. The director uses a variety of points of views when filming. He gets up close and personal in the character's lives, so the viewers feel and emotional tie. The film doesn't include any animations. The movie is based on real life situations that people deal with everyday. It's a story that could happen with any viewer.
Crash fits under the humanistic approach because the film is built around a statement that teaches us something and helps us get a clear understanding of human nature, the aspect of life, and human condition. As humans it's our nature to judge other people based on their outwardly appearance, but it's a person's inward being that we should be focusing on. The movie shows black versus white, American versus foreign, good cop versus bad cop, and other moral struggles, but if they would take the time to get to know each other or trust other people the ending would be different. People wouldn't end up dying.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Harry Potter is probably meant to be seen in at least a widescreen format because of all the scenery they use in the background. The standard screen is probably a little too small especially for the battling or games scene. Standard screen is going to cut off part of the image that may add a more dramatic effect to the scene. I think they use a lot of the lighting to set the mood in Harry Potter. The Goblet of Fire is the first film to portray the dark side to the Harry Potter Series. This movie had more gloomy and darker lighting.
The setting of the Harry Potter series, especially the Goblet of Fire is an essential ingredient in any story and makes an important contribution to the theme or total effect of a film. In the Goblet of Fire there are games being played and without the setting of the school, they wouldn't of been able to have other magical school come and compete.
Building a fantasy world is one of the most serious challenge that a production designer faces. Harry Potter's magical fantasy world requires a creative imagination and skillful special effects. Costume and makeup also play a huge roll in the making of Harry Potter. They have very midevil costumes and all the wizards are very cleverly dressed according to status. Because the Harry Potter series does such a wonderful job at these effects, I think that the films budget plays a huge roll in the quality. Unlike many low budget films, Harry Potter seems to have numerous resources that might be due to its popularity.
Throughout the film, the camera takes various point of views. It takes an objective point of view when they are scoping the crowd and showing the scene of the games through the audiences' eyes. A subjective view point is taken when Harry Potter is faced with different senerios that he has to battle his way through, particularly during the end scene when Harry is battling with Valdimort.
Almost all of the elements of cinematic composition are used in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. These include size and closeness of the object, sharpness of focus, lighting and color, ect. Several camera angles and illusions are also seen in the film. An extremely high camera angle is used when Harry battles the dragons. The scene leads to show Harry, the dragon, and the environment they are in. One of the most used visual effect of the film would be computer generated or blue screen prosessing. These allow lightning bolts to come out of the clouds, Harry to fly on his broom stick during Quidditch matches, and growing gills and swimming in the lake.
I like the Harry Potter series and can't wait until the next movie comes out. The author always makes the endings so intense and leaves the audience guessing about what is going to happen in the next film.
The setting of the Harry Potter series, especially the Goblet of Fire is an essential ingredient in any story and makes an important contribution to the theme or total effect of a film. In the Goblet of Fire there are games being played and without the setting of the school, they wouldn't of been able to have other magical school come and compete.
Building a fantasy world is one of the most serious challenge that a production designer faces. Harry Potter's magical fantasy world requires a creative imagination and skillful special effects. Costume and makeup also play a huge roll in the making of Harry Potter. They have very midevil costumes and all the wizards are very cleverly dressed according to status. Because the Harry Potter series does such a wonderful job at these effects, I think that the films budget plays a huge roll in the quality. Unlike many low budget films, Harry Potter seems to have numerous resources that might be due to its popularity.
Throughout the film, the camera takes various point of views. It takes an objective point of view when they are scoping the crowd and showing the scene of the games through the audiences' eyes. A subjective view point is taken when Harry Potter is faced with different senerios that he has to battle his way through, particularly during the end scene when Harry is battling with Valdimort.
Almost all of the elements of cinematic composition are used in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. These include size and closeness of the object, sharpness of focus, lighting and color, ect. Several camera angles and illusions are also seen in the film. An extremely high camera angle is used when Harry battles the dragons. The scene leads to show Harry, the dragon, and the environment they are in. One of the most used visual effect of the film would be computer generated or blue screen prosessing. These allow lightning bolts to come out of the clouds, Harry to fly on his broom stick during Quidditch matches, and growing gills and swimming in the lake.
I like the Harry Potter series and can't wait until the next movie comes out. The author always makes the endings so intense and leaves the audience guessing about what is going to happen in the next film.
Slumdog Millionaire
When I got to the part in the article Wagging the slumdog, that states "there were fears that the film would dent the city’s image as a successful center of trade, finance, and modern industry, where the wealthy live in splendid apartments overlooking the sea," it stuck in my head because when I was watching the movie I thought to myself is that really what India slums are like. The scenery of garbage piles with houses on top of them and kids running around barefoot in the trash was disturbing. The movie never did show the nice part of the town.
The director of the film has created several other movies depicting slums of various countries. It is known in India that orphaned children are often taken in by gangsters and exploited in ways such as selling yourself, disabling for begging purposes, ect. The article also states that after the mayor of Bumbay watched the video she swore to clean up the slums after ten years which is a pretty hard thing to make happen because of how bad certain slum areas are.
According to the article the director said he would rather have the hero be a Nobel prize winner, but everyone knows that the American Dream always sells movies. By using a widely known game show for the main character to make his million, the director produces a commonality between viewers and the film. The audience begins to associate Jamal's hard quest as a child with their own experiences (the film plays on the emotional aspect of the audience).
The film was very disturbing to me. I didn't like the fact that the gangsters were exploiting little children. The film also had its good points. It had a lot of karma, what goes around comes around. Jamal always tried doing the right thing instead of wrong, but he always got put into bad situations where all the cards were against him. In the end he won the money and the girl.
The director of the film has created several other movies depicting slums of various countries. It is known in India that orphaned children are often taken in by gangsters and exploited in ways such as selling yourself, disabling for begging purposes, ect. The article also states that after the mayor of Bumbay watched the video she swore to clean up the slums after ten years which is a pretty hard thing to make happen because of how bad certain slum areas are.
According to the article the director said he would rather have the hero be a Nobel prize winner, but everyone knows that the American Dream always sells movies. By using a widely known game show for the main character to make his million, the director produces a commonality between viewers and the film. The audience begins to associate Jamal's hard quest as a child with their own experiences (the film plays on the emotional aspect of the audience).
The film was very disturbing to me. I didn't like the fact that the gangsters were exploiting little children. The film also had its good points. It had a lot of karma, what goes around comes around. Jamal always tried doing the right thing instead of wrong, but he always got put into bad situations where all the cards were against him. In the end he won the money and the girl.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Walk the Line
The film Walk the Line contains many "elements of a good story." A good story is unified in plot, it is credible, interesting, simple and complex, and it handles emotional material with restraint. Walk the Line is a good story because it is unified in plot. A unified plot focuses on a single thread of continuous action, where one event leads up to another. The film is directed to show the audience the life of Johnny Cash. The audience saw how Cash became famous and how drugs effected his career and relationships.
The importance of a suitable title is not overlooked by writers. The title Walk the Line has significance. The film is about Johnny Cash, so the witer gave the film the title of one of Cash's songs.
If someone isn't interested in the characters of the film, there is little chance they will be interested in watching the film at all. Walk the Line has characterization through reactions of other characters. In the film Reese Witherspoon plays June, the friend and singing partner of Johnny Cash. She is a very good partner for Johnny by making him show his fun and relaxed side. She is there for him while he is going through a bad time when he stopped the drugs. A good relationship between the characters makes the film more enjoyable to watch.
Walk the Line is a good documentary of Johnny Cash's life by showing what his life was like before the fame and how it changed during his time of fame. It didn't just show the happy times of Cash's life. It also included all the struggles and bad spots he went through in his life (drug use and his wife leaving him).
The importance of a suitable title is not overlooked by writers. The title Walk the Line has significance. The film is about Johnny Cash, so the witer gave the film the title of one of Cash's songs.
If someone isn't interested in the characters of the film, there is little chance they will be interested in watching the film at all. Walk the Line has characterization through reactions of other characters. In the film Reese Witherspoon plays June, the friend and singing partner of Johnny Cash. She is a very good partner for Johnny by making him show his fun and relaxed side. She is there for him while he is going through a bad time when he stopped the drugs. A good relationship between the characters makes the film more enjoyable to watch.
Walk the Line is a good documentary of Johnny Cash's life by showing what his life was like before the fame and how it changed during his time of fame. It didn't just show the happy times of Cash's life. It also included all the struggles and bad spots he went through in his life (drug use and his wife leaving him).
Good Will Hunting
The article "Holden Caulfield, Alex Portnoy, and Good Will Hunting: Coming of Age in American Films and Novels," states that American youth want to enter adulthood but are fearful of doing so from their childhood and adolecence negative experiences that indicate that the adult world isn't all it is cooked up to be. This statement is true for Will Hunting in the film Good Will Hunting. The film is all about Will, a foster home orphan in South Boston, trying to discover how to enter into the adult world and put his intellectual talent to use. From his dark experiences as a orphan child, Will never wants to get out of his comfort zone and set out on a new path of life as an adult.
There are many relationships in the film that are very much accurate with real life. One relationship is the relationship between Will and his best friend Chuckie. Chuckie is constantly encouraging Will to put his talents to use. In one scene in the film, Chuckie tells Will how all of his friends would love the gift he had. This is an example of how Will doesn't want to enter adulthood as the article "Holden Caulfield, Alex Portnoy, and Good Will Hunting: Cominig of Age in American Films and Novels," stated.
Another relationship is with Will and Skylar, a Harvard college student. A critc in the article previously cited, stated how the relationship was useful and helped drive the movie. Their relationship was less sexual and more dynamic of humor and compatible personalitlies.
Good Will Hunting is one of the better movies I have watched in a very long time. It made me interested in what was going to happen throughout the whole movie. Was Will going to take one of the many offers he got? If so, which one would he take? Or would Will leave his home and start a new life with Skylar in California?
Personally, I think the film was lacking some things. When it came to the relationship with Will and Skylar, it should of had more of Will and Skylar hanging out together to show how close they came over time. It also never showed anything about Will when he was an orphan, it just mentioned how he was an orphan. With being an orphan being such a major part of his life, I think the film should of had some sort of flashback of Will in the foster home to give the audience a glympse of what his life was like as a child.
There are many relationships in the film that are very much accurate with real life. One relationship is the relationship between Will and his best friend Chuckie. Chuckie is constantly encouraging Will to put his talents to use. In one scene in the film, Chuckie tells Will how all of his friends would love the gift he had. This is an example of how Will doesn't want to enter adulthood as the article "Holden Caulfield, Alex Portnoy, and Good Will Hunting: Cominig of Age in American Films and Novels," stated.
Another relationship is with Will and Skylar, a Harvard college student. A critc in the article previously cited, stated how the relationship was useful and helped drive the movie. Their relationship was less sexual and more dynamic of humor and compatible personalitlies.
Good Will Hunting is one of the better movies I have watched in a very long time. It made me interested in what was going to happen throughout the whole movie. Was Will going to take one of the many offers he got? If so, which one would he take? Or would Will leave his home and start a new life with Skylar in California?
Personally, I think the film was lacking some things. When it came to the relationship with Will and Skylar, it should of had more of Will and Skylar hanging out together to show how close they came over time. It also never showed anything about Will when he was an orphan, it just mentioned how he was an orphan. With being an orphan being such a major part of his life, I think the film should of had some sort of flashback of Will in the foster home to give the audience a glympse of what his life was like as a child.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Schindler's List
Schindler's List fits under the thematic element of "Focus on Ideas." The focus on idea element contains several categories: moral implications, the truth of human nature, social problems, the struggle for human dignity, the complexity of human relationships, the coming of age/loss of innocence/growing awareness, and a moral or philosophical riddle. Schindler's List fits into the struggle of human dignity category because the film portrays a basic conflict between two opposing sides of human nature. Oskmar Schindler (the film's main character) struggles to surrender to his animal instincts of human weakness and brutality versus standing erect to display courage, a moral sense, and sensitivity.
Oskmar Schindler is placed at a disadvantage because he's part of the Nazi Party. As part of the Nazi Army he has to obey the rules and orders of Hilter without question. If he goes against these orders, his life and the life of the ones he loves are in danger. Schindler sees first hand the devistation, disturbing experiments, and immoral treatment of the Jews in the concentration camps. Schindler has to decide whether he stays faithful to the Nazi Party or risks his life to save a life of another.
In movies of "Struggle for Human Dignity," a triumphant victory is sometimes, but certainly not always, achieved. In the film Schindler's List, a small victory is won, Schindler saves thousands of Jews by having them work in his factory producing goods for the Nazi Army. The struggle itself is what gives the audience some respect for the character. Who does Schindler save? Who does Schindler leave off the list knowing their fate?
Schindler's List is said to be one of the most honored films of all time. I have watched several films on World War II, but Schindler's List really makes an impression. It is difficult for me to see all the horrific experiences the Jews had to go through, and the inner struggle that Schindler had to deal with. I can't imagine why people let those mortifying events take place and not do anything about it, why things went on for as long as they did, and were there more people like Oskmar Schindler?
Oskmar Schindler is placed at a disadvantage because he's part of the Nazi Party. As part of the Nazi Army he has to obey the rules and orders of Hilter without question. If he goes against these orders, his life and the life of the ones he loves are in danger. Schindler sees first hand the devistation, disturbing experiments, and immoral treatment of the Jews in the concentration camps. Schindler has to decide whether he stays faithful to the Nazi Party or risks his life to save a life of another.
In movies of "Struggle for Human Dignity," a triumphant victory is sometimes, but certainly not always, achieved. In the film Schindler's List, a small victory is won, Schindler saves thousands of Jews by having them work in his factory producing goods for the Nazi Army. The struggle itself is what gives the audience some respect for the character. Who does Schindler save? Who does Schindler leave off the list knowing their fate?
Schindler's List is said to be one of the most honored films of all time. I have watched several films on World War II, but Schindler's List really makes an impression. It is difficult for me to see all the horrific experiences the Jews had to go through, and the inner struggle that Schindler had to deal with. I can't imagine why people let those mortifying events take place and not do anything about it, why things went on for as long as they did, and were there more people like Oskmar Schindler?
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Casablanca
According to the article "Play it Again and Again," the movie Casablanca captured imagination that no other movie ever has. This is evident because the theme of Casablanca is very contriversal. The movie was based around World War II politics and was released to the public only a year after the United States entered the war. Movies are made for more than just entertainment, Casablanca was produced to increase Allies support and American involvement in World War II. By watching this movie I saw the efforts of support in several ways. One that sticks out most in my mind is when Victor gets away from the Natzis and the Gestopo captain remains on Rick's side.
Most movies are based on novels, but Casablanca derives from a play. In the article "Casablanca," Ray Merlock researches the origins of the play. Merlock finds that Murray Burnett (original playright) has a personal connection with the story line of Casablanca. Burnett and his wife spent some time in Vienna and saw disturbing events while there. When they arrived back in the United States, they created a play called Everybody Comes to Rick's. This play is what the movie Casablanca is based on.
Reading these two articles before I watched the movie gave me some insight into the backround of Casablanca. Knowing that a lot of the scenes and actions are based around true life events gave the movie more meaning and significance. The love triangle in the movie took some darkness out of the World War II situation and gives viewers something to hold onto and hope for, that true love lives forever. Even though Rick and Victor usually fought on the losing end of the fight, there was always something that came around and gave them hope to gain ground and get ahead.
Most movies are based on novels, but Casablanca derives from a play. In the article "Casablanca," Ray Merlock researches the origins of the play. Merlock finds that Murray Burnett (original playright) has a personal connection with the story line of Casablanca. Burnett and his wife spent some time in Vienna and saw disturbing events while there. When they arrived back in the United States, they created a play called Everybody Comes to Rick's. This play is what the movie Casablanca is based on.
Reading these two articles before I watched the movie gave me some insight into the backround of Casablanca. Knowing that a lot of the scenes and actions are based around true life events gave the movie more meaning and significance. The love triangle in the movie took some darkness out of the World War II situation and gives viewers something to hold onto and hope for, that true love lives forever. Even though Rick and Victor usually fought on the losing end of the fight, there was always something that came around and gave them hope to gain ground and get ahead.
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