Citizen Kane (1941)

In reality, money can buy so many things. Elaborate statues, huge properties, acres of land, paintings, businesses, and expensive clothes. The possibilities are almost endless, as long as your bankroll is equally endless. Despite the possibilities of money, some of the best things known to humans are free, and Charlie Kane from Orsen Welles’ Citizen Kane (1941) endures the pain of lacking the things that really matter in life, not the material things, but the things money just cannot provide.
Charlie Kane seemed to have it all, especially in regards to money. The film starts at the end of Charlie Kane’s life, and when an interested reporter decides to look deeper into Kane’s life, not only does he discover a lot about the famous Charlie Kane that almost was, but he uncovers powerful symbolism, and a moving story of having everything but your youthfulness and the guidance and love of your parents. Orsen Welles, 25 years old at the time, not only plays the lead role of Charlie Kane, but is also the director of the film, which is impressive to say the least. Through his artful cinematography, and groundbreaking camera techniques, like the wide-angle (102), he paved the way for the development of cinematography and camerawork.
The word “rosebud” rings throughout the audiences ears repetitively throughout the film. In fact, like the audience is lead to believe, the reporter that is looking into Kane’s life is completely misdirected by Kane’s dying words. While he was busy looking for someone by the name of Rosebud, that he thinks Kane may have lost in the past the truth was right under his nose the whole time. Rosebud never was a person, but instead represented the only things Kane did not have, and unfortunately could never get, his youthfulness. Being stripped away from his parents at the start of the film was not what he wanted to do, and Welles’ does a great job of portraying this when a young Charlie Kane lashes out in refusal to leave his mother and father, he was ignored, and was thrust into his painful life.
The mentioned first scene shows Charlie outside playing in the snow as his mother and father discuss his departure. In this initial scene you get a very wide variation of depth in field (105) as he plays in the background just outside the window. As the scene fades, and you get the first glimpse of the immaculate Xanado, you also get a glimpse of who Charlie Kane actually is. The mansion is dark and gloomy but luxurious just like Kane, despite the luxurious and happy outside appearance, the mansion and Kane both are lacking something.
I enjoyed watching this film, and was most impressed with Orsen Welles’ abilities at such a young age. Not only was he 25, but he made a great film that is layered with richness. His ideas, his message, and his film making, acting, and editorial skills have played a major role in what cinema has become today.

Works Cited
Timothy Corrigan and Patricia White “The Film Experience: An Introduction". Boston, Ma. Bedford/St. Martins Publishing. 2009 (text)
Citizen Kane. Dir. Orsen Welles. Perfs. Orsen Welles, and Joseph Cotton. Mercury Productions. 1941. (film)
Lucian Marin. “Charlie Playing”. 2008. Wordpress.com Accessed May 7, 2010. http://rackingfocus.wordpress.com/2009/11/24/the-10-best-dvd-audio-commentaries/

3:10 To Yuma (2007)

Director James Mangold changed my opinion completely about the Western film genre. 3:10 To Yuma, is not only a great movie in general, but despite the debates, in my opinion is the greatest western I have ever seen and possibly ever made. Although I would not consider myself a film critic, if nothing else, this course has taught me to appreciate movies in a whole new light, and has really enabled me to give credit where credit is due in regards to the efforts in creating a motion picture. Movies like 3:10 To Yuma are not only a pleasure to watch, but is also fun and interesting to write about.
Appreciating the mise-en-scene (Corrigan 62) of this film is extremely easy. Everything from the clothing Ben Wade, played by Russell Crowe, and Dan Evans, played by Christian Bale, wore, to the dirt roads and weathered wooden built towns they rode through on horseback as the outlaws of the era often did. After watching the film, and comparing it to photographs and paintings of people of the post civil war era, the director did an extraordinary job of mimicking these ensembles, the architecture, and even the mustaches and beards worn by the men. In addition to the already mentioned aspects of the mise-en-scene of this film, the horse and buggies, and weapons were also perfectly matched.
Throughout 3:10 To Yuma there are many conflicts that both Evans and Wade have to overcome. One of the most obvious and important conflicts that is introduced early in the film is the lack of respect Evans’ son has for him, in fact, he does not respect him at all, and instead idolizes Wade, a well-known violent outlaw who just robbed a large sum of money. While Wade was successfully taking the loot from his victims, Evans and his two sons just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and witnessed the whole robbery. Of course, like any good outlaw would do he confronted his witnesses, immobilized them by stealing there horses so they could not contact police, and go about their business. At this moment you get a very good visual of the way William does not have faith in his father, but almost immediately compliments the way Wade can shoot so fast, even if it is at innocent victims.
Throughout the film you can tell that Wade is the alpha male, even when he is in custody, cuffed and surrounded by police and paid escorts. Not only does he manipulate almost everyone involved in escorting him to Bisbee to catch the train to the Yuma jail, but he actually kills a few guys along the way. Mangold does a great job of portraying this dominance, not only through the textual conversations throughout the film, but also through his artful use of the camera and compilation of very suggestive angles. Throughout the film, Wade is almost always portrayed in a dominant way, mostly through the use of high angles (Corrigan 112) it seems the audience has the point of view that Wade symbolically has, that is looking down on those who surround him, including those who are considered his friends, or fellow outlaws.


Works Cited

Timothy Corrigan and Patricia White “The Film Experience: An Introduction". Boston, Ma. Bedford/St. Martins Publishing. 2009 (text)
3:10 To Yuma, “Bale and Crowe cover”, 2007. Wordpress.com Accessed March 1, 2010. Karana23.files.wordpress.com/Yuma (photo)
3:10 To Yuma. Dir. James Mangold. Perfs. Russell Crowe and Christian Bale. Lionsgate Films. 2007. (film)

The Piano (1993)

The art film The Piano is like no other film I have seen before. The director Jane Campion, known for her feminist approach to films, does a wonderful job of just that. Though the film was produced in 1993, the story takes place in early times, around 1850 and does a good job of defining masculinity and feminism of the earlier times through a unique portrayal of a mute woman who will do anything for love, love for her piano, and love for her unexpected partner.
Campion’s film would definitely be classified as a contemporary film (398) because of the present era it was made in. When Ada and her daughter Flora, arrive to their new home in New Zealand and move in with her husband who her father had arranged marriage with, things almost seemed to be going as planned. I think this particular instance in the movie portray two views of the earlier times male dominance. Not only was Ada sent away by her father to get married, no choice or say in the matter, but as soon as she arrives her new husband Alisdair also displays his “ownership” over his unknown wife. When she and her property arrives, Alisdair immediately makes a deal for some land and in exchange for the land he would trade Ada’s piano away, despite her love for it, and it not belonging to him and all.
When Ada finds out about her piano, despite her reluctant but open-minded approach to her new marriage, she is devastated and if nothing else, has lost her loyalty and any chance of loving Alisdair. Because of the realism (377) in this film it is easy to get lost in its plot, and as soon as you do Campion shocks you with literally a “smack in the face” twist that you never saw coming. Despite her unwillingness, Ada is forced by Alisdair to go teach the man he sold it to, George Baines, how to use the piano. The two could be considered exact opposites in many ways, she is a well dressed seemingly polite woman, and George is a native tribe member of New Zealand with a tattooed face.
Their piano lessons almost immediately turned into what I can only describe as blackmail. You can tell that George does not have very much interest in the piano, or how to play it, but was much more focused on Ada herself. George offered Ada to give her piano back to her if he was able to “do things to her as she played” and at first she was reluctant, but out of desperation for her piano she agrees to give one lesson for each black key on the piano, and during each lesson George could pretty much do what he wanted. The visits got increasingly sexual, and at this point you feel like George is doing something wrong, and despite Ada’s willingness to engage in these acts to get her piano back it just seemed morally wrong.
Eventually, Ada had finished her lessons with George and got her piano back. When she did, she returned to George’s house, and after she slaps him for doing that to her she leaps in his arms because she has fallen in love with him. With the unintentional help from Flora, Alasdair soon finds out of the affair, and prohibits both Flora and Ada from ever seeing George. When she disobeys him, through another portrayal of male dominance he severely punishes her by cutting her finger off, disabling her from playing the piano.
Although I never expected it, Alasdair and George seemed to change personas throughout the film. Because in the end, George was the hero and Alasdair was the bad guy. Luckily for Ada, she managed to get away from Alasdair and sailed off to a happy ending with Flora, George, and her piano. Ada originally insists on her piano coming on board of their small sailboat, despite the captain’s advice to leave it behind. Half way through her trip she seems to have a moment of realization, and because the piano symbolizes everything bad in her past, after the many obstacles she overcame to get it this far, she decides to throw it over board and start her life from scratch.

Works Cited
“The Piano.” Dir. Jane Campion. Perfs. Holly Hunter, Sam Neill, Harvey Keitel. Miramax Films.
1993. (film)
Armond White “The Piano.” Photo. Wordpress.com. Accessed April 26, 2010.
www.armondwhitebook.wordpress.com

The Best Years Of Our Lives (1947)

Ironically named The Best Years Of Our Lives explores a unique point-of-view regarding World War II. Whereas most films created during, or about this post-war era typically would portray the actual events of the war, actual battles, and actual losses suffered by the armed forces, This film focuses particularly on a crucial battle that every surviving veteran, in any war will face, the battle of “fitting in” when you return home.
Although it may seem simple for someone like me to act as a normal civilian in day to day activities. The simple may seem closer to impossible for someone who is returning from serving in a war, and who has faced horrors that seem unimaginable to me. With that being said, and the closest to these horrors that I have ever been is through a good movie, In my opinion it is safe to say that, once a man or woman is lucky enough to made it home from war, the battle has only just begun.
The Film starts out with three men returning home from the war, and the obstacles they are yet to face, despite already surviving the war. The three men: Homer, a navy man who had lost both his hands in an explosion on board his ship and is worried what his family and girlfriend will think about his prosthetics, Al Stevenson, a Sergeant in the army who has been married for twenty years with two children, and last but not least Fred Derry, an air force bombardier who was married just before leaving for duty. Although the three men lead normal lives before joining their branch of the service, they are all faced with some serious social re-adjustment issues and they all somewhat aware of the challenges that lie ahead, Sergeant Stephenson compares going home to storming a beach at war, just before he is dropped of at home by the taxi he says to Derry “I feel as though I am about to hit a beach”, an ironic way to start the best years of their lives.
The irony of that replayed over and over again in my head the whole time I was watching the film. I also could not help but admire Homer’s gratefulness to life, in my opinion he had it worst of all three men, though they all faced some serious issues, all but Homer, the once high school star quarterback, came back fully intact. All three men lost valuable time, endured changes they never thought possible. But Homer suffered the loss of his hands in addition to all the things Al and Fred also lost, yet he still stood optimistic, and even more impressive he was very grateful to the navy, not for the devastation, but for giving him the capability and training to still continue living. I think that even though he was dealt the worst hand he handled it best, and as a character with great strength, he portrayed a strong, courageous, and grateful person that we all should strive to be.
As I had hoped while I was watching The Best Years Of Our Lives there was a happy ending. Despite the war, the social re-adjustment, and the domestic difficulties all three men find away to go about their lives. In a sense, the title of the film seemed less ironic the more I thought about it, the best years of their lives refers to the years after the war, and it makes sense to me, because in reality the war really does not end until you make the necessary changes to become a normal civilian again, and because of this film, I truly appreciate just how hard making those changes can be.

Works Cited
The Best Years Of Our Lives. Dir. William Wyler. Perfs. Myrna Loy, Fredric March. Samuel Goldwyn Company, 1947. (film)
Kelly. “Best Years Cover.” Photo. www.utoronto.ca Accessed April 18, 2010 http://www.utoronto.ca/stmikes/kelly/movies/classicspre.html (photo)

The Seventh Seal (1958)

If there is anything that has been questioned more than whether or not God exists, I cannot think of it. Time after time people ask themselves and sometimes each other if there is a God, and if there actually is, why he would allow such tragedies throughout history, throughout the world to occur. If there is an all forgiving man upstairs, why is there war, why is there poverty, and in the case of The Seventh Seal why is there the black plague. Antonius Block, a Knight returning home to Sweden from the Crusades, has worn out faith because of the war and has a rare opportunity, to ask death himself the almighty question: “Is there truly a God”.
As I mentioned, Antonius was returning from The Crusades to Sweden where the Black Plague had swept the country and killed thousands of people. During his journey home Antonius and his squire Jon where visited by death. Although because of the black plague, Death is busier than ever making his rounds, he accepts Antonius’s challenge to a game of chess, after all Death admits he never loses at anything. Although Antonius’s challenge was accepted it did not give him a free-pass, and that was not what he was looking for. Antonius was certain he would lose, but only wished to buy enough time to answer the question that he, and so many others wonder, does god exist?
After being denied a direct answer from Death, although frustrated Antonius is determined to find out the answers he longs for and refuses to give up. He visits a priest and asks the same question, and after a fade-out (145), it is revealed that the priest is actually Death, who’s only response is to laugh at Antonius’s helplessness. Although outsmarted by Death in this particular case, which maybe representing the way the chess game is also going, Antonius again, refuses to leave this question unanswered and continues his quest.
I found it ironic, how throughout the film, Antonius see’s all the horrors of the black plague and his ravished country, and not only comes face to face with Death, but actually plays chess with him. But on the other hand Jof, the acrobatic performer has visions of the exact opposite, the Virgin Mary and child. In fact, Jof and Antonius seem to contrast each other throughout the whole film. Whereas Antonius has witnessed many horrors and no longer can think positively, Jof is optimistic throughout the whole movie, seemingly unaware of the plague that surrounds him.
Although it becomes clear throughout the film that Antonio only continues for himself out of selfishness, he has somewhat of a character development towards the end. He eventually met his inevitable defeat in chess and ultimately in life itself, and even though he never actually got the answers he was looking for, he found meaning in life in another way. In what I would consider a surprising, but happy ending, he enables the escape of Jof, Jof’s wife Mia, and his infant son Mikeal.

Works Cited

Timothy Corrigan and Patricia White"The Film Experience: An Introduction". Boston, Ma. Bedford/St. Martins Publishing. 2009 (text)

Salvad, Jay. "Chess Game."Photo. People.USC.edu Accessed April 10,2010.

The Seventh Seal. Dir. Ingmar Bergman. Svensk Filmindustri. oct. 13, 1958.

The General (1926)

As I have mentioned many times I am pretty shallow when it comes to films. I normally pre judge a movie long before I even see the cover, and a silent film was no exception. I was automatically thinking that I was not going to enjoy it, and once again Dr. Carreiro proved me wrong. The General, by Buster Keaton turned out to be pretty good. Although it is a silent film, what it lacks in audio is made up for with its powerful use of cinematography, music, and of course the occasional subtitle. This film gave me a better understanding and appreciation of silent films, especially considering that I could not help but to compare it to something of Maya Deren’s, who completely confuses me. To say the least, after watching it I can understand why people enjoyed it, and how it definitely stimulated your imagination.
The General as the text even points out is a restricted narration (258) because it gives the experiences and thoughts of the civil war, confined to the personal perceptions of the main character, Johnnie Grey. Just to clarify, I use the term civil war loosely. In fact, Grey was rejected from enlisting when he first got word of the attack on Fort Sumter, as the subtitles pointed out. He was considered more valuable to the south remaining as an engineer than joining the militia, this bothered him and as the point-of-view (396) was carefully pieced together throughout the film, it was easily visible that he felt small compared to those who were able to enlist. In addition to his damaged pride, when he told his girlfriend, the love of his life second to only his train The General, that he was not able to enlist, she called him a liar and told him to not speak to her again unless he was in military uniform for the south. This is where the real story begins.
As the camera angles and the cinematography suggest at the beginning of the silent film, he absolutely loves two things, his engine, and his girlfriend. When his engine was stolen, girlfriend on board, Grey knew, whether enlisted or not, whether alone or with the help of soldiers, he was going after the stolen train. During this low-speed pursuit it almost seems that Grey is faced with some impossible obstacles, the biggest of which being his own clumsiness. Aside from tripping over his own feet, and single-handedly blowing a couple of good opportunities, the thieves had a few tricks up their sleeves. I could not help but to laugh at the silly mistakes he continuously made making his mission that much more difficult. All these things helps easily classify this film as a good example of a slapstick comedy (344).
At the end of the film there is a medium close-up shot (111) of Johnnie Grey that emphasizes his sense of satisfaction with himself that was not evident at the beginning of the film. He managed to obtain all three things that he struggled to get throughout the movie: his girl, his engine, and being able to join the military. As the text puts it, and I consider an understatement, the 1920’s, the era this film was made is the years of “refinement of Cinematography” (99).

Works Cited
Davidson, David. “The General.” Photo Blogger.com 19 Jun. 2009. Accessed Mar. 31, 2010. www.blogger.com/davidson/general.
The General. Dir. Buster Keaton Perfs. Buster Keaton. Buster Keaton Productions, 1926.
Timothy Corrigan and Patricia White"The Film Experience: An Introduction". Boston, Ma. Bedford/St. Martins Publishing. 2009 (text)

A Streetcar Named Desire

I tend to dislike older films, I do not know why, I just always do, but I found A Streetcar Named Desire to be a personal exception. I think the film itself, and the works of the director Elia Kazan, and especially the performers, Marlon Brando and Vivien Leigh to be ahead of their times. The majority of films I have seen from this era present a different perspective of the lives of post WWII Americans. Despite the typical "happy days" portrayal I am used to, this film sheds a whole new light on the times.
Despite being a black and white motion picture, the lighting in the film contributes to the feelings and situations the actors are faced with. In combination with Marlon Brando's exceptional naturalistic acting (70), the film seems to engulf you in the flames of Stella, Stanley, and Blanche's issues. In my opinion, Brando grasped the concept and values of the character Stanley in such a unique and incomparable way. Brando did what all good actors attempt to do, to actually become their characters and make the audience develop feelings towards their role, and without a doubt, Brando nailed it.
The story begins when Blanche, due to her circumstances in Aureole, goes to New Orleans to stay with her younger sister and her husband, Stanley and Stella. Although their apartment is very small and cluttered Stella welcomes her sister with open arms, but Stanley is a little less welcoming and almost immediately tries to subdue Blanche with his controlling and brute personality, in which Stella has already become a victim to. This initial encounter between Stanley and Blanche paves the way for their argumentative relationship that is soon to develop. During this scene, the director uses key lighting (83) to intensify what is going on and brings focus to Blanche's mysteriousness.
As I mentioned, the lighting in this movie contributes to the feelings that surround it. In one scene with Blanche and Mitch, a friend of Stanley's, the importance of the lighting is highlighted. Mitch noticed that he has never met with Blanche during the day, and even when they meet in the evening they always go somewhere with dim lighting. Throughout the duration of the film, with the exception of this particular scene, Blanche's face was always shadowed and never visible under a strong light, again really contributing to the mysteriousness of her and her past.
In the end the truth comes out, and everyone finds out that Blanche left Aureole because of an affair she had with a 17 year old student of hers, and because of the loss of her job and her newly acquired reputation, she was forced to leave. She came to New Orleans in hopes of starting fresh, but not only does her past come to haunt her, but her welcoming wore off quickly.

Work's Cited
StreetCar Named Desire, Brando and Leigh, 2009. Art.com Accessed on March 28,2010. (photo)
"A Streetcar Named Desire". Dir. Elia Kazan Perf. Marlon Brando, Vivien Leigh. Charles K. Felmen Group Films, 1951. (Film)
Timothy Corrigan and Patricia White"The Film Experience: An Introduction". Boston, Ma. Bedford/St. Martins Publishing. 2009 (text)

Too Much Extra "Loose Change"

The documentary film Loose Change: Final cut, is a very effective piece of work. As the text mentions there is only a slight difference between interrogative and persuasive positions (285) and this particular film snugly fits both descriptions. Although I do not know if I fully believe everything the documentary puts forth, whether the information is factual or fiction, the director Dylan Avery makes a valid argument.
Loose Change uses many persuasive real-life interviews with seemingly credible people. I noticed that there was an interview with a New York Fireman, and some distraught survivors of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. I could not help but to wonder how much effort went into finding people to interview that fit the idea Avery was trying to convey. In addition, I wondered how many people were interviewed during the production of this documentary that were not shown or did not make the "final cut". In reality, the people interviewed sounded convincing and I would never downsize what they went through, because it was terrible, but they represent only the views and opinions of Avery and themselves.
I think many of the incidents that were put under the scope by the film were definitely a little fishy, but I do not think I am completely convinced that the Bush administration, although horrible, would collaborate in any conspiracy involving the loss of thousands of American lives. In defense of the documentary, the facts, people, real experiences, and actual events are all described from a first hand experience's and therefore are the presumed truth in their eyes. I personally can not explain the explosions that people heard hours after the planes actually hit, and I was not there, so I really have no position to argue with what they saw and heard.
Despite my personal opinions on the events of the 9//11 attacks, and my agreements and disagreements with what Avery is saying in his film, I must say he does a profound job of making a case. His interviews all are very persuasive and definitely successful in making the viewer reconsider what they already have heard and probably believe about 9/11. He does a near perfect job of compiling different media clips, interviews, and congressional testimonies that strengthen the credibility of his accusations. Even if I think many of his factual statements may have been presented out of context, and could be exaggerated documentary propaganda (275), I must admit Avery is a very convincing director.

Works Cited

Loose Change, 2006. Libertydiscs.com Accessed March 14, 2010. (photo)
Loose Change. Dir. Dylan Avery. Louder Than Words Films,2007. (film)
Timothy Corrigan and Patricia White"The Film Experience: An Introduction". Boston, Ma. Bedford/St. Martins Publishing. 2009 (text)

Gomorra

So far this semester, Gomorra has been my personal favorite film and genre we have viewed. I have always been a fan of the crime or mafia related films, and Gomorra portrays a side of crime families that I have never seen, and absolutely loved watching. It is action packed, and the low budget used, in my opinion, contributes to the film's strong sense of cinematic realism. While I was watching this movie I noticed that during this film, not only where there multiple narrations going on, but also a few different good examples of character development.
The character of Don Ciro, who was the soft-spoken middleman who worked for Comorra gangsters and delivered money to the families of imprisoned gang members. His character evolves throughout the film from being portrayed as a stiff Comorra gangster, to a traitor to the gang. He is approached by two rival gang members who threaten his life, and when they do so, in hopes of saving his own life, he tells them he will be an informant for them. At this point his character is fully developed, and with his mind made up he becomes the guy who turned his back on the Comorra. With Ciro's inside information the two rival gangsters rob a Comorra stash house, killing everyone but Ciro.
The second case of character development, is Toto. Toto is a young grocery delivery boy, who at first seems innocent and almost childish. Throughout the film, a couple things happen to Toto that develops his character from the original childish grocery boy, to a young member of the infamous Comorra . First he witnesses drug dealers throw their drugs and guns when police ambush them, and Toto sneaks over and recovers them, and then brought them back to the gangsters, who because of this take him under their wings. As a young boy, he was almost instantly lured to the lifestyle. The film gives a perfect visual example of character development in Toto's initiation into the gang scene, where he is willingly shot with a bullet-proof vest on as a test of honor and courage. He was at that moment transferred from the grocery boy to the gangster, and he seemed to be proud of himself for going through with it. In the following scenes, Toto lures a woman he delivers groceries to out of her house, where she is then gunned down by the Comorra.
These two examples of character development, and the many others I left out, all varied greatly, but ended at the same place. Gomorra did a wonderful job intertwining all the multiple narrations that were going on, and despite the way each one unfolded, the Comorra put pressure, as the film portrays, on every aspect of life in modern day Italy.

Works Cited

Metro, Gomorrah, 2010. Metroactive.com Accessed March 1,2010. (photo)
Gomorrah. Dir. Matteo Garrone. Perf. Toni Servillo, Gianfelice Imparato. Fandango Films 2008.

Meshes of the Afternoon

Maybe it is because I am fairly new to the dissecting of cinematography, but no matter how hard I try I just can not grasp the concept of Maya Deren's Meshes of The Afternoon, or the significance of experimental films in general. I recognize that the issue most likely lies with me, considering that Maya Deren and her experimental films have gained so much notability over time from her critics, so I suppose I am one of few who do not particularly like this film. To be honest, my favorite part was that it was only fourteen minutes long.
Although personally I found it grueling, I suppose I can appreciate the symbolism found in Meshes of The Afternoon. It was clear through the repetitive imagery in Deren's film that there was significance behind the many symbols displayed throughout. First, and in my opinion, probably the most important is the key. The film begins with a woman trying to unlock what is assumed to be her door, and this is where the key is first introduced, when it falls from her grasp and bounces down a flight of stairs. There are a couple different things I considered as a reasonable perception: this was showing her reluctance to go inside maybe fearing what is behind the door, or possibly it was symbolic of opening the door to opportunity and her inability to do so. There was a scene where Deren's character is sitting at a table with three other woman, who are in fact her. The woman seem to be taking turns grabbing the key off the table and then returning it. It almost looked like a game, and when one of the Deren's lost, the key turned into a knife, where she then walked across the room to a girl sitting in a chair and killed her. In my opinion, this scene may have been symbolizing the game of life.
Following the same idea of opportunity and life, and continuing with some of Meshes of The Afternoon's symbols brings forth the robe wearing, grim reaper like figure that seems to be just out of reach for Deren's character. Deren repetitively shows herself chasing this grim reaper who always just slips around the corner. In addition, The robed, hooded figure does not have a face, but instead it is a mirror reflecting the image of whomever looks at it. Lastly in regards to the grim reaper, I also considered the possibility that it may be symbolizing death, as the grim reaper normally does, and that it is always lurking.
Finally, I found it interesting that although the film was originally completely silent, 16 years after its creation music was added. The majority of the clarification attempts came through the symbols presented in the film, but the music to me, seemed as important as a character or symbol itself. The music gave an eerie feeling and provoked a sense of paranoia throughout the film. Meshes of the Afternoon is a very complex short film, seasoned with many symbolic images, and although I can not say I particularly enjoyed this experimental film, I can definitely appreciate a master in their trade.

Work's Cited
Paghat, Maya Deren, 1999. Weirdwildrealm.com Accesses Feb 28,2010. (photo)

Meshes Of the Afternoon. Dir. Maya Deren and Hammid Perfs. Maya Deren. NFR films, 1943. (film)

Der Untergang

I have seen many films about WWII, but never quite the way Der Untergang is presented. This is the first film about WWII through the eyes of another country I have ever seen, in this case through the eyes of the Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and Germany. The film, although completely in German with English subtitles, makes it's point soon after it starts. Within minutes from the start of the film, Hitler is advised that the Soviet troops are about twelve kilometers from the Berlin center, and have already opened fire.
The fury of Hitler at this moment, and it continues for the duration of Der Untergang, is extraordinarily portrayed and you can almost sense the fear of this loud, firm spoken Furer. At this point I was pretty much fully engaged in this foreign film. The battle scenes, although brief, were equally intense as Hitler himself. The Soviet soldiers were never actually introduced or seen in the film, and I think this was to give the viewer the same feeling of mysterious fear that the actors and actresses were feeling. From beginning to end Der Untergang follows a linear chronology (249) with great climax, and a suicide filled intense ending.
In the face of danger, and utter hopelessness Hitler remained persistent in his ruling and insists on further fighting. He insisted on either being dead, or continuing Hitler Germany. As horrible as his intentions were, his pride and patriotism was easily visible. I mention this because not only does the film portray great scenes and intensity, but it provides understanding of feelings and thoughts, which for me at least, is tough to do.
Another thing that I found particularly interesting was the scarce use of music. For the majority of the film there is no music, only the words and gestures of the cast. For me, this contributed to the intensity of the film. When music was used, it was often a light, smooth, climatic orchestra that was perfectly embedded in each chosen scene. I can not mention intensity enough when discussing this film, and also contributing to this mentioned intensity is not what you would typically call music, but in this case I think the sound effects and the realistic sounds ofartillery and tanks is safe in itself to call music. Perhaps that is why actual music was so scarcely used.
In the end of the film, high ranking soldiers began dropping like flies, most by way of escape, and the most loyal by way of suicide. Not only did five of Hitler's most loyal advisors and generals commit suicide out of pure fear, but Hitler himself, along with his wife, committed suicide in the face of hopelessness . Throughout the film Hitler should no compassion for anything, especially the German people. This cold-heartedness persists right up until the moment he commits suicide, and dies as he lived, with no emotion. I think Oliver Hirshbiegel stresses suicide so much towards the end of the film, not only to provide the understanding of the fear at the end of Hitler's reign, but also to symbolize the situation Hitler, through his persistence and fantasy, put Germany into.

Work's Cited (photo)

Scott Morris, Hitler, 2004. Oneliner.com Accessed Feb. 19, 2010

Mulholland Drive

After watching Lynch's Mulholland Drive, aside from feeling completely baffled, I was impressed by the continuous intensity and unexpected twists to the plot. As the story unfolded I became more and more confused, yet simultaneously more and more interested. Now the only thing left for me to figure out is, is Lynch a lunatic, or is there a method to his madness.
If the auteur theory (464) applied to Mulholland Drive, I think it would be safe to say that Lynch is legally insane, but possibly a savant. I enjoyed the way that hallucination and reality beared no clear difference between one another, and as far as the details go, ended up being closely related. Everything that you thought was going on, was never what it seemed, but reflected what was really going on. In order to fully understand what was happening you have to relate things that were going on, the book calls this intertextuality (471).
Aside from lurking behind Winkie's Restaurant, the dirty rugged man has been lurking in my mind. I still can not grasp the symbolism, if any, that was behind his character.What the hell was he doing there? I suppose it is left to the viewer to decide, but even the best of imaginations would have a run for their money trying to create Lynchian puzzle piece that fits the scrambled plot.
Because of my lack of understanding of this film, I decided to discuss the one scene I did fully understand, you guessed it, the Camilla and Diane sexual encounter. Not only was this my favorite scene of the movie, but to me it seemed like the whole film revolved around this one scene, or at least their relationship with each other. Diane was in love, maybe obsessed, with Camilla who was a fellow, but more successful actress. Her love was accompanied by jealousy and envy and throughout the film you get glimpses of this. Even when Camilla tried to break it off with Diane, she was almost seduced into, what would have been, my second favorite scene. I also found it interesting how the role Diane tried out for, was very similar to what actually happens when Camilla tries to break up with Diane, both start with " what are you doing here, you don't belong here", yet another example of intertextuality.
Although the film may lack clarity and realism (481), it is without a doubt a masterpiece. When I was walking out of class the day we watched this my first initial opinion was that I did not like Mulholland Drive. But after a day or two of marinating I realized that whether it is easily understood or just plain ludicrous, Lynch and his film do exactly what they are intended to do, grab your attention and keep it.

Flags of Our Fathers

Flags of Our Fathers boldly goes were many other war film makers have gone before, into the WWII era. Although there have been countless films about wars throughout time, Flags of Our Fathers does it like no other. Counting last weeks class, I have seen this film three times and enjoyed it the third time just as much as the first, if not more. The first time I watched it I was at the theater with my Grandfather, who is a WWII veteran, and although I enjoyed the film, I could not imagine the memories it stirred up for my grandfather, and any other veterans who watched it for that matter.

I remember my Grandfather as a strong, kind, and proud veteran. Our whole family knows he served in WWII, but with the exception of my grandmother, we have never heard the stories my Grandfather brought back from the war, that is until he watched this film. He was deeply moved by the portrayal of Pearl Harbor and talked about it for weeks after seeing it. As much as he liked it and as much as he talked about it, he never again watched the movie nor did he say why. It is my assumption that he was brought back to experiences he had tried to forget for the past few decades, and only found it necessary to do that once. The picture of the marines putting up the flag had been hanging in his room for years, and he often talked about how he had met Ira Hayes in the years following the war, so to him it had personally meaning that is unexplainable.

The film started with a flash back of the horrors of the war, and then transitions into context of WWII and how the marines were looked at as hero's. There were many instances where irony showed its face in the film. In the beginning of the film it shows Ryan Philippe, the medic, trying to save a dying soldier and ironically the soldier says "go help someone who is hurt". In addition, when the medic gets to another soldier and is busy working on him a Japanese soldier jumps out and tries to attack Philippe he gets stabbed and then asks for help, again, kind of ironic.

Eastwood must have understood the events of the landing in Iwo Jima the same way my Grandfather experienced it because, according to my Grandfather, " is the next worst thing to actually being there", he did a great job of portraying the seriousness of the violence that occurred on that day. I can not help but to admire the role played by Barry Pepper as the sergeant. He played the role of a man of courage, dignity, and pride. During the film he was offered a promotion that would get him off the battle grounds but he denied because he gave his word to his men, "I promised them I would bring them back to their mothers, I already lied to half of them", and he intended to keep his word to the others, however impossible that may have been.

I truly did enjoy watching this film and I think that veterans can appreciate it more than I could. I am not claiming to understand what the WWII vets went through, because to me it is unimaginable, but after watching Flags of Our Fathers I know I have a little better of an idea.

Star Trek

As far as experience with film goes, I would consider myself, at best, average. I enjoy a good movie but have never experienced or knew how to appreciate the work behind the scenes in a film as we will do in this course. I am looking forward to the upcoming semester and hope to see some good movies and hopefully learn to analyze them well enough so I can fully appreciate all aspects of any given movie.

There were three main reasons why I decided to take this course. First, I was hoping to learn more about the filming world because a career in that field has always appealed to me. Secondly, I have almost a “self-obligation” to try new things, and I have never taken a course even remotely close to this one. Lastly, as my fellow class-mates will soon see, Dr. Carreiro has a unique way of teaching and promoting class participation that to say the least, is very effective. As I said, aside from watching an occasional movie, I have minimal experience with films, but more importantly I enter the course with an open mind and plan to make the absolute best of it.

As I mentioned in class, my favorite movie is Running Scared with Paul Walker. Despite what the title may lead you to believe, this is not a horror film. Like most other Quentin Tarantino films it is a violent, bloody, action movie. If I had to make a decision on what my favorite genre of film is, I would have to say it is action movies.

Our First meeting we watched the film Star Trek. This first film really put my open-mindedness to the test. My least favorite genre of film, hands down, is sci-fi. So when we first were told we were watching Star Trek, I considered dropping the course, because I hated Star Trek and Star Wars and all those other intergalactic movies that much. To my own surprise, I loved the movie. Not only was it packed with action that literally kept me on the edge of my seat, but it had a good story line as well. It would be hard not to appreciate the special effects and fight scenes, as they were all done so well.

One thing that stands out to me is the irony in the two main characters lives. James T. Kirk was always expected to be an asset on the Star Fleet, because of his father’s prior success. With Spock it was the exact opposite, because he was half human, he was always expected to fail, and actually prevailed far more than he was expected to. Spock and James T. Kirk argued and fought throughout the whole film, and to me it was almost a foreshadow of what was to come because the two eventually relied on each other for their crews survival.

The second, and last thing I decided to discuss, as Dr. C mentioned in class, J.J. Abrams the director threw in a random element, destiny. James Kirk was thrown off the Star Fleet and landed on the same planet where Spock, or the future Spock, was also exiled to by Nero. After this was pointed out I came to the conclusion that this whole film was based on destiny, the destiny of Spock, of Kirk, and of the Star Fleet. Whether my assumption is wrong or right, it truly makes me appreciate the movie more when I look at it in this light. So since that is what makes this movie most entertaining for me, I chose to watch it a second time keeping destiny in mind, and it just kept jumping out at me.