Blog Post #5

Red-
    Title: North by Northwest     Director: Alfred Hitcock
     Music: Prelude
     composer/songwriter: Bernad Herrmann
     The clip shows the intro to north by northwest. It first starts off with a blank green screen left over from the lion logo. Then line begin to draw in skyscraper windows and it fades into a city background scene. Names are scrolling on the screen. Meanwhile this is happening the music is playing and it gives a anxious feeling. It has a lot of buildup and creates excitement as we transition into the beginning of the movie.
Yellow-
     Title: Punch Drunk Love      Director:Paul Thomas Anderson
     Music: Tabla
     composer/songwriter: John Bria
   
     Starts with the music playing and Barry Egan looking at a large stack of pudding. He then decides he needs more pudding and it switches to a store scene. The scene is well lit and the camera moves around Watching Lance and Barry shopping, running around, and dancing. Meanwhile we hear the music in the background slowly getting louder and more incense, but not too invasive. It kind of gives a iffy feeling to the viewer. It makes you feel like... what is going on.
Blue-
     Title: The Godfather     Director: Francis Ford Coppola
     Music: Waltz (sicilian)
     composer/songwriter: Nino Rota
     This scene starts as the camera slowly makes its way into mr woltz bedroom. He wakes up to the room is dimly lit and the camera moves around quite a bit. Meanwhile, we are hearing a gradually intensifying song in the background. Mr. Woltz wakes up to find his horses severed head in bed with him and blood everywhere. The music abruptly stops as he begins to scream. I think the music did a good job of giving the viewer a ominous feeling.
my favorite-
     Title: Goodfellas
     Director: Martin Scorsese     Music: Layla (piano ending)     composer/songwriter: Eric Claptop with Deric and the Dominos     This clip shows the part where the police and everyone are finding dead bodies. The song layla comes on, witch is usually a cheery song, and is used for a very gruesome scene. The song makes the brutality of the scene a little easier for the viewer to take in. 

Gary Ross Interviewed on The Treatment

The guest I chose to write about was Gary Ross. He is the director of the Hunger Games and other great movies like Sea Biscuit and Pleasantville. Before listening to him on The Treatment, I had not idea who he was or what films he had worked on. After listening to his interview I have to confess that I am a fan of his work. The interview took place on March 21, 2012.

One thing that I learned from this interview is that Gary Ross is a director who is trying to have his voice heard through his films. He uses them as a means for good, and to open the eyes of his viewers. He seems to direct films that all have a common theme. He shows you films with oppression and how a single person can spark the end of this oppression.

He says that "it takes one person to ignite a spark" and he shows this with Hunger games, Pleasantville, and Sea Biscuit. In each of these films, the main character is subject to oppression of some sort and they end up becoming the spark that ignites the beginning of the end of this oppression.

Another theme that he shows in the Hunger Games in particular is that "when your in a media based culture it is so easy to exploit that for political purposes". I think that this quote really speaks to Gary Ross's feelings about society and the power that the media holds. He talks about how Rome used the gladiators in much the same with pan em uses the Hunger Games as a means of political control through media. This shows how he feels about the exploitation of these powers by the ruling class.

"Social change comes from an individual understanding what they will and will not tolerate" is another thing I heard him say during the interview that really goes along with everything else he has been explaining and trying to get his fans and viewers to understand. He wants people to know that we cannot spark a change if we do not stand up for what we believe in and not tolerate injustices to us.

Everything thing said by Gary Ross was really well put and spoke to me. I now have a greater appreciation for his work and look at it with a different point of view. This interview with him has made it clearer to me the intent of his work and earned himself a new fan.

Screening Checklist

Overall Look:
     The film "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" has a very unique overall look than other films. Most of the movie is shot from the view of Jean, the paralyzed main actor. Many camera and lighting effects are used to try and give us a feeling of what the main character is actually going through, and what he sees.

Images:
     In the film, there are several cases were the picture will suddenly change to what appears to be memories of the main character. Some of them also seem to be nightmares. These images in the film help to paint a bigger picture for the viewer. They show you what is going on in the main characters mind. This is something that we cannot see otherwise.

Shot Lengths:
     The shot lengths vary in the movie. Most of the shots that are showing you the view of the main character are very long shots. They pan around the room and show you what he is seeing. Then there are the other shots that allow you to see what the main character looks like. These shots are a little shorter and give you a few more angles.

Shot Types:
     The film uses many ECU's. The use of extreme close-ups in this film are to show the viewer what the main character sees. The nurses and doctors usually get really close to Jean in order to try and communicate with him and we get to see what these other characters look like from his perspective.

Camera Angles:
     Camera Angles are used a lot in this film. As I have mentioned several times. The film is mainly shot from the view of Jean's left eye. The camera movies in various ways to try and mimic the movement of an eye. This camera movement gives a very unique feel to the movie.

Composition:
     I think that the composition of this film is a little less painterly simply because the film is trying to give you the view of the main character. The shots are arranged around what Jean would be seeing.

Camera Movement:
     Camera movement goes hand in hand with the camera angles in this movie. Both are used to accomplish the overall feel.

Cinematography Style:
     I think the film was really good at accomplishing what it was trying to do. The cinematography does not call too much attention to itself other than what was intended.

Film Noir

The quote I chose was by Kathlyn Bigelow. She said that film noir could be characterized by "a character who is on a downward spiral from which he can not immerse. The more he tries to eradicate the situation, the worse it gets." I feel that this quote describes "Double Indemnity" perfectly. Walter Neff got himself into a mess that he was going to have to ride out to the end. No matter what he thought of doing to either cover up his tracks or get himself out of the situation, it wasn't good enough. The murder he carried out with Phyllis was almost perfect, but as Barton Keyes put it, no murder is perfect. The loose ends and betrayal by Phyllis would eventually lead to Walters downfall.

I think that Joe Lewis' description of a "female fatale" describes Phyllis very well. He says that a "female fatale" is a "woman who is vicious and yet, she can charm you." Phyllis fits this description to the tee. She doesn't come off as the cold blooded murderer she is because of her charm. Even at the end of the movie when we know everything about her and what she has done, you still feel a bit of sadness over her death because of the charm she has given off.

Bellow is a photo of Phyllis looking as innocent and charming as possible:

The movie "Double Indemnity" had great use of scenery music and lighting in its creation of "film noir." There was constantly a feeling despair and anxiety given off by the film. The scenes appeared as being sort of dark and dangerous. Walters narration expressed his feeling of entrapment and remorse at the dark deeds he had committed. I especially liked the scene after Walter and Phyllis dumped the body of her late husband on the train tracks. The car that they were in would not start and it gave the viewers a feeling of urgency. I felt as though they were going to be caught and there was noting they could do about it, but just then Walter leans over and cranks the engine right over.



The film "Memento" is a perfect example of a "neo-noir" movie. The main character in "Memento" has been caught in this "noir" universe with no way out and without deserving it. He struggles to find the killer of his wife even though he must go through so much trouble to do so. Eventually he does end up finding out that he has already taken care of the murder of his wife. He decides that without constantly having something to search for or do everyday that his life would have no more meaning, so he erases the information and sets himself up to find a new target. This never ending circle he puts himself in is definitely a good example of "neo-noir."

Here is a photo of Leonard of Memento holding a photo of himself after killing his Wife's murderer:

Blog Post #1

In order for a movie to be considered noteworthy, the movie must be able to capture its audiences imagination. The movie has to become more than a movie. When the viewer is watching it, they need to feel immersed in the content as though they are in the fictional world that the film has created. The best movies leave their viewers wanting more and I believe that is what makes a movie deserving of an award. 

“A Trip to the Moon” was a really interesting movie. I can tell that a lot of effort went into the making of this movie. The movie sets for “A Trip to the Moon” are really well built and a lot of detail was used. After watching the movie I really wanted to see more. Given the time period of “A Trip to the Moon”, I really feel that the movie is advanced for its time. “A Trip to the Moon” would definitely pass my criteria for a movie deserving of an award. If a remake were made today, I would watch it without hesitation. 

“The Great Train Robbery” was another example of a film that had some pretty advanced effects for its age. The footage on top of the train seemed to be real live footage without any visual editing. The effort put into the making of the film was no doubt enormous. However, the overall story told by “The Great Train Robbery” did not capture my imagination. I feel that it was not as well thought out as “A Trip to the Moon” was. In this sense I would say that “The Great Train Robbery” did not pass my criteria for a movie deserving of an award. 

Two movies I would like to mention that meet my criteria and are from a recent time period are “Tron Legacy” and “The Shawshank Redemption”. First, “Tron Legacy” is a really visually appealing movie. The entire world that we are presented with is so colorful and different from our own. Here is a video clip from "Tron Legacy" that I think shows the visual appeal of the movie: 

 Aside from being captured by the visuals of “Tron”, you are also presented with a great story. The characters in the movie begin mean something to the viewer and the action coupled with the story and visuals make for some great movie watching. Next, “The Shawshank Redemption” is a movie with a deep story. Here is a photo that demonstrates the intense emotion felt in this film: 

 The viewer is made to care deeply about the main actors predicament. Every bad thing that happens to him leaves you wishing it didn’t and praying for revenge. The character progression for the movie gives the viewer a lot of strong feelings toward each character. Each good character lost is painful to the viewer and when justice is finally given to the main character it is very satisfying. Both of these movies have many reasons for passing my criteria for an award deserving movie, and they definitely leave me wanting more from each of them after watching. 

My Interest in Film

I wouldn't call myself an "avid film buff", but I do like movies. I like to watch movies for different reasons, and at different times. Sometimes i'm just in the mood for an action movie, and then other times it's comedy, or a love story. The one thing I like about most movies though, is that they usually tend to have an underlying theme that the director is trying to get across. I like to watch certain movies several times until I can find out what this hidden message or meaning is. I find it to be exciting to understand what it is the directory is trying to say.

Another reason I like to watch movies is to have a good time with people I like to be around. Comedies are usually the films that do this for me. I like to share laughs with friends and family, and create inside jokes that relate to a movie we have just watched. Many times me and my brother, girlfriend, or cousin will quote lines from movies that we have seen and it makes for a good laugh. Other people usually have a hard time understanding what it is we are talking about, but for us it is a nice way of recalling a memory of a fun time we had together watching whatever movie it is we are quoting. Overall, watching movies is a fun way to pass the time and, in some cases, get a little deep thought going while doing it.