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.