...The Netflix original movie, What Happened to Monday, portrays a dystopian world where the government, to combat overpopulation, enacts a single child policy. The government supposedly freezes the children for a later age of prosperity, but Terrence Settman rebuts this and insead raises his seven identical granddaughters with a single identity. This Netflix original covers a wide variety of interesting ideas and topics, but what interested me the most was the portrayal of the European Federation and the Government structure imposed. In the movie’s first few minutes it explains how and why the one child policy, called the, “Child Allocation Act,” came into effect. It explains that Nicolette Cayman, a scientist, head of the Child Allocation Bureau (C.A.B.), and a candidate for parliament, created the...
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...What Aspects Of Your Chosen Horror Film Make It Horrific? In the following essay I will focus on the horror genre as well as horror aspects from the film, "An American Werewolf In London," (D. John Landis 1981). Whilst "An American Werewolf..." isn't one of the most horrific films made, and is at heart a black comedy, it still includes a lot of codes and conventions of the horror genre which makes it not only a horrific film, but one of the most memorable werewolf films in movie history. Using special effects and filled with bloody gore, "An American Werewolf" still looks as horrifyingly real as it did 27 years ago. Opening on the eerie Yorkshire moors, "An American Werewolf" centers around two American backpackers who are attacked by a werewolf after leaving a small village in the middle of nowhere. Having been warned by mysterious locals not to leave the road or go onto the moors, the two ignore the warnings and pay for it when one of them is killed and the other bitten by the wolf. In these opening fifteen minutes, the follows many codes and conventions used throughout the horror/monster genre. The first convention is the gothic setting of the opening that is the yorkshire moors. Typically of the horror genre, the setting is shown to be damp, cold, dark and full of mist. Preying on the audience's fears of being alone in the middle of the wilderness the film displays the truly horrific nature of isolation. Like any typical horror film, the setting for...
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...Coach carter has always left a ever lasting impression on me because of the hard work and dedication displayed by coach Ken Carter. In 1999, Carter became a coach in his old high school located in Richmond, CA. The high school is surrounded by poverty and violence from gangs in surrounding areas. Little did Carter know he became a coach for a basketball team that was very de-motivated, and lacking the grades required to get into College/University. Carter wanted the maximum commitment from his team, he decided to create a contract that states that the boys will have to do things that they were never used to. The contract entails that the boys will have to show respectful behavior, dress in a professional manner, and obtain sufficient grades in order to stay apart of the team. He realized that his team was failing to meet the requirements of the contract in regards to grades and takes immediate action and cancels all team activities and locks the court until the grades prove otherwise from all members of the team. Carter was determined to better the future of every single boy on that team as long as they showed dedication to improve. He wants the boys to not only be the best in basketball but also the best in their future by making sure they do everything he asks of them listed in the contract. The amount of passion and dedication Carter displayed, has made this movie the best sports...
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...Essay: What atmosphere does Kenneth Branagh create at the start of his film version of much ado about nothing and where in the play is the source of his ideas? In the act 1 of the scene 1 of much ado about nothing by William Shakespeare, a messenger arrives in the Italian town of Messina, with a letter that informs the kindly Leonato that he will welcome to Messina some soldier friends who are coming from a victorious battle. These friends are Don Pedro of Aragon, a nobleman, and Claudio, a warrior. Hero, Leonato’s daughter and Beatrice, her cousin, accompany him. Beatrice and another soldier of Don Pedro’s army, Signor Benedick, are in a “merry war” but they never saw each other. Beatrice cleverly mocks and insults Benedick. There are no stage directions so this leaves the stage director lot of freedom to achieve the adaptation. The opening of the film version isn’t the same as the book version; the film starts with a poem recited by Beatrice, but Shakespeare original version starts directly with the messenger that arrives. Firstly, in the film adaptation of much ado about nothing by William Shakespeare, at the beginning, Kenneth Branagh creates conviviality and a merry atmosphere that isn’t really described in the play thanks to: - The landscape and the climate, the bright light of the sun. They live in Messina, in Sicily, and Sicily is known for the hot climate. After the poem of Beatrice, at the beginning, we see a painting of Messina; it shows that Messina is picturesque...
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...300 Jonathan Hewitt ENG 225 Cicely Denean-Cobb October 2, 2012 The film I have chosen to do my critique on is Zack Snyder’s 300. 300 is a film about King Leonidas, the King of Sparta, and his 300 Spartan warriors who all stood up against the God-king Xerxes and his massive Persian army from annihilation. After watching the film very closely for my critique I believe there is a serious underlying theme that everyone has the right to be free and sometimes you have to stand up and make sacrifices to keep your freedom. Standing up for freedom is never an easy task as shown in 300 but, everyone deserves to be free. In discussing the storytelling, acting, cinematography, editing, sound, style and directing, the impact of society on the film, genre, a formalist approach to analysis, and the overall textual theme of 300 I will attempt to back up my belief. Storytelling 300’s narrative structure is the first-person point of view of Dilios, a Spartan solider under the command of King Leonidas. The film is presented in chronological order and takes place in Sparta and Thermopylae, Greece. The major conflict in the film is that the Persian army has come to Sparta and requests their submission or will kill them and enslave their women and children. King Leonidas makes the decision to stand up to the Persians but; is not allowed to go to war with the Xerxes, the Persian God-king, because the Ephors deny him the right. The Ephors are later found out to be traitors. Unfortunately,...
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... Avant Garde Film What Constitutes a Diary Film, and Why Might it be Considered a Form of Avant-Garde or ‘Critical’ Film? In order to answer this question there are a few areas that require specific definition. The term Avant-Garde itself is something that often can differ in its exact meaning due to interpretation. This makes it an almost undesiferrable term for both historians and critics alike. Critic, Ian Christie claims that the term is, ‘always open to dispute and redefinition.’[1] This claim has very strong foundations. The very nature of Avant-Garde film requires it to be at the forefront of experimentation. As new techniques are explored and boundaries are broken down, what may have been at the forefront of experimentation in the Fifties for example, may be one of the most used techniques in Hollywood by the Seventies or now. This gives the impression that to remain innovative, Avant-Garde directors must change style to fit what is required of them during their particular time period. The mention of Hollywood hints at the relationship it has with the Avant-Garde. Murray Smith describes Avant-Garde as a ‘personal mode’, and goes on to say the films are made by, ‘filmmakers alone or in combination with private patronage and grants from arts institutions.’[2] It seems easy to glean that Avant-Garde cinema works outside the Hollywood community. This ‘personal mode’ gives filmmakers a chance to make films for reasons beyond money. To test...
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...Film Viewer Opinion Cheryl A. Williams HUM150-Introduction to Film Studies January 7, 2013 Brian Krieger Film Viewer Opinion This summary will address how I determine which films to watch, what makes a film enjoyable, and what makes a film unenjoyable to watch. The opinions expressed in this summary are solely those of the author and not of University of Phoenix, its staff, or facilitators. Deciding which films to watch is not challenging for this writer. Romance, erotica, action, drama, adventure, mystery, musicals, documentaries, and animated or cartoon are preferred. The aforementioned types of films or movies are preferred because they usually contain an element of humor or provide some type of comedic relief. Enjoyable Characteristics For a film to be enjoyable for this writer, the film(s) should contain a variety of elements to make one laugh, cry, or both; keeps one on the edge of his or her seat, and keeps one’s eyes glued to the screen in anticipation of what is to happen next. Enjoyable films keep one intrigued, attentive, and wanting to see more. Whether a sequel or just watching the film time and time again and never experiencing boredom, even after the 175th time watching it, one is still excited by what the film offers. Movies or documentaries that teach a lesson, one can learn from the contents of the film, or something of significance can be taken away from it are things that make a film or movie enjoyable for this writer. Technical elements that...
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...Films are a collaboration of art forms. The plot of the film is easy and engaging to follow. The characters are meant to be relatable as we aspirational. Finally the art forms that are incorporated are able to tie the entire film together. This what makes a film artistic. Unfortunately Tom Tykwer’s Run Lola Run does not make the cut as a successful film due to the fact that it leaves the audience in confusion the characters are underdeveloped, the film is trying too hard to use different art forms that ultimately become a jumbled mess, and the plot doesn’t really make sense if it is just watched from beginning to end. Characters are very important in film, they are what make the movie. Characters t are memorable and enjoyable loathsome and...
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...Film chain: Production: What are the stages in producing a film? Film production consists of: Development: Where a story line is selected, getting inspiration from either books, magazines and newspapers, or getting ideas from true stories or dreams. A screen writer then writes a screen play over a period of months. This screen play may be edited throughout this stage in order to improve structure. The producer and screen writer prepare a film pitch. If the pitch is successful, it get a green light (meaning that someone offers financial backing) Pre-production: Where all the planning takes place. The script it written, locations, cast, costumes & makeup, special effects and visual effects are identified Production: Where the filming takes place. Each scene is filmed as many times as the director sees fit. If the pre-production was done well, the production stage will flow fluidly. Lots of care and attention is needed int he production stage, making sure that all the scenes are filmed. Post-production: Where editing takes place. The editor(s) first build a rough cut, which selects and orders the shots taken during the production stage. A fine cut is then made, getting all the shots to flow continuously (some shots may be trimmed). Music, graphics and menus are also added during the post-production stage. The fine cut is then approved by the director and producer. The picture is then locked, and no further changes could be made. Distribution: Where the film is...
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...Film i Engelsk Bilag 1a FILM ANALYSIS – an introduction (Source: http://www.filmeducation.org) – bearbejdet af Mi og LK, Favrskov Gymnasium Reading a film is just like reading a book, except that instead of looking at a written page we are looking at the cinema screen. Reading a film works in exactly the same way as a written text, or a picture, except that the tools that are used to create meaning are different. We call these tools film language. The opening sequence From the moment we first start watching a film, we begin to get involved. The first few minutes of a film (the opening sequence) are very important to us as they give us lots of clues about the film: 1) what will the film be about (conflicts/themes); 2) who are the most important characters (hero, villain, love interest); 3); what is the setting of the film (time and place); 4) the genre; and finally, 5) what sort of film language characterizes the film? We look at all these elements and begin to put them into context. Based on their environment, how they look, what they say and what we see them do, we make assumptions about the characters, their roles in the film and their relationship to each other. We also recognize so-called genre markers (things we associate with one particular genre) which tell us if we are watching a Western or a Sc-Fi film and, thus, form specific expectations about what is going to happen during the rest of the film. At the same time, we listen to the sounds and the music...
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...National Film Board of Canada has made revolutionary contributions to the world of cinema. Willing to push cinema into new territories, the NFB was created to bring together Canadian filmmakers and produce films that showed the world that Canada was a force to be reckoned with in the vast expanses of cinema. Particularly interesting was the NFB’s creation of a series of films that focused on the ‘Faces of Canada’, shedding light on the plethora of people from different walks of life that inhabited Canada between the 1950’s-1960. At the forefront of this series was Roman Kroitor’s 1953 documentary Paul Tomcowicz: Street-railway Switchman, which will be the focus of this essay. The film is a cinema verite style documentary that focuses on the unsung heroes that keep a community running, in this case the city of Winnipeg. Production of the film took place in 1953, a time where the power of Canadian cinema was beginning to blossom and become noticed across the world. As an NFB colleague, Roman Kroitor set out to make a film that painted an intimate portrait of a Polish-Canadian man and his job as a street-railway switchman in Winnipeg. Fully funded by the NFB, the film became a well recognized and important artifact among Canadian and International filmmakers, theorists, and scholars because of its honest portrayal of a man content with his life and the multiculturalism connotations present throughout the film. After the release of the film and the production of several more films for...
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...that the characters have? 2. In this film the characters sticks out the most, can you tell us how did you manage to depict women being portrayed as the “other woman”? 3. How do you endear the characters to the audience more so that they root for them especially to the mistress? 4. How do you think women portrayals in this film affect women in general? 5. What are the factors that you think lead to the changes in the audience perception on women being the other women? 6. What are your standpoint in creating the messages and behaviors of women in films? 7. What do you think is the effect of this film to the audience especially to the women? 8. Do you think that mistresses in this film resemble mistresses in real life? 9. How do you want to express the message of the film to the women? Focus Group Discussion 1. What can you say about the “Other Woman” being presented in the films? 2. What do you notice about the “Other Woman” from the 90’s films to films today? 3. What do you notice about the dialogues from the 90’s films to films today? 4. What do you think are the effects of these films to the audience especially to the women? 5. What can you say about the positioning of the character as the “Other Woman”? 6. Why do you think women were positioned differently as the “Other Woman” in 90s films compared to films today? 7. How can you compared “Other Woman” films in the...
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...FLM 100: INTRODUCTION TO FILM HISTORY FLM 100: INTRODUCTION TO FILM HISTORY Author Note This paper was prepared for FLM 100: INTRODUCTION TO FILM HISTORY, MODULE 1, taught by MARC THOMSON. Directions: Using word processing software to save and submit your work, please answer the following short answer questions. All responses to questions should be one to two paragraphs, composed of five to seven sentences, in length. Your responses should include examples from the reading assignments. 1. Explain the role of the Kinetoscope during the period of cinema's invention. How did the Kinetoscope modify the capabilities of earlier camera and projection systems? The Kinetoscope was designed to show moving photographs by Edison and his assistant Dickson, who did much of the work. Dickson used Eastman film that he sliced 1 inch wide. He spliced them from end to end, with four holes on either side of the frames in order for toothed gears to pull the film through. The Kinetoscope was activated by viewers putting a coin in the slot. The viewers viewed the short film through a peep hole. 2. What steps did France's Lumière brothers take to make cinema a commercially viable enterprise? What kinds of Lumière movies were the most popular? How did the Lumières' activities influence the development of world cinema? The Lumiere brothers invented a projection system which helped make cinema a commercially viable enterprise....
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...Film Theory and Approaches to Criticism, or, What did that movie mean? by Christopher P. Jacobs Movies are entertainment. Movies are documents of their time and place. Movies are artistic forms of self-expression. Movies we see at theatres, on television, or home video are typically narrative films. They tell stories about characters going through experiences. But what are they really about? What is the content of a film? DIGGING DEEPER: FOUR LEVELS OF MEANING Recounting the plot of a movie, telling what happens, is the simplest way to explain it to someone else. But this is neither a film review nor a film analysis. It’s merely a synopsis that anyone else who sees or has seen the movie will likely agree with. This level of content may be called the referential content, since it refers directly to things that happen in the plot and possibly to some aspects of the story that are merely implied by the plot. In John Boorman’s Deliverance (1972), four men from the city go on a weekend canoe trip that unexpectedly becomes a life or death struggle for survival of man against man and man against nature. Some characters survive, others don’t. Most films can be analyzed more thoroughly to reveal deeper levels of meaning. A review (perhaps 400-1200 words) typically includes personal impressions and evaluations of a movie’s content and techniques. A good review may be subjective, yet still touch superficially on topics that might be explored in more detail in a longer...
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...Material Film and Television Worksheet Name of the film or television show you viewed: Coming to America Respond to each question with a paragraph of at least 50 words. State your point of view and explain it thoroughly. What is the primary emphasis of the film or show? Examples: artistic expression, technological achievement, informative. Explain your answer. The personal freedom to choice how you live your life. The movie emphasizes breaking away from tradition and choosing one’s own path. The main character of the movie is a prince who is set to marry a woman he has never met, but he breaks away from his parents control and chooses his own bride. What cultural values is the film or show attempting to promote? Do you agree or disagree with those values? Explain your answer. What is the surface-level subject matter of the film? Describe the plot. What trends in this film or show are also commonly found in other films or shows? What is the subtext or underlying theme of the film? What issues or values are explored in the film or show? What cultural stereotypes or archetypes are present in the narrative? What is the purpose behind the stereotype or archetypal character? What is the source of conflict in the narrative of the film or show? How is the conflict resolved in the film or show? In what way is sound or music used to tell the story or to manipulate the viewer response? What ethical...
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