Final Blog Post: Ratings

In chronological order, not order of preference:
1. Sherlock Jr. - 8/10 - Great example of innocent comedy of the silent film era
2. Freaks - 6/10 - Not the usual horror film, brings up societal differences, unamused by the characters
3. Detour - 7/10 - Film noir drama filled with some great camera work
4. Awara - 6/10 - Bollywood musical, not my cup of tea.
5. The Good, The Bad and the Ugly - 6/10 - Classic spaghetti western filled with action, got bored with the characters
6. Killer of Sheep - 4/10 - Odd documentary style narrative over African American culture, lost my interest halfway through, unimpressed by the camera work
7. The Vanishing - 7/10 - Charming love story with a twist that makes viewers question their morals, really interesting narrative
8. My Own Private Idaho - 6/10 - Interesting story about self-objectification and homosexuals
9. O Brother, Where Art Thou? - 8/10 - Current era rendition of Homer's Odyssey, with some comedy and great music
10. Wendy & Lucy - 6/10 - A woman is pressed to make difficult decisions
11. Moonrise Kingdom - 9/10 - Cute love story about two awkward kids who run away from home, really great exhibit of Wes Anderson's cinematic genius
12. End of Watch - 7/10 - Documentary style film using first person camera shots displaying the police-in-action genre in a new light, with a terrible ending

End of Watch

In this scene we see the criminal's vehicle through the point of view of the cruiser's on-board camera. This is a very unique view as it places the viewer directly in the action. The hood of the police car takes up the bottom of the screen with the arbitrary labels superimposed at the top of the screen. The van is scene in medium-close range and there are no other subjects in the field of view.

 Right after the shot above, a man gets out of the vehicle and runs inside this apartment complex, there is a short chase scene through the stairwells and hallways. Then there is a cut to this scene of the Mexican gang members prepared for an ambush in a courtyard of the apartment complex. This is another point of view shot that shows a lot of depth and also gives the viewer foreshadowing that this is no ordinary chase.

Next is a cut back to the officers chasing the perpetrator through the hallways to an opening showing multiple levels and open spaces. Again, this is a point of view shot of the officers chasing behind the man driving the vehicle.

Lastly is a cut to a tracking shot of the two officers running across the courtyard while being shot at from above. The different style of shot (tracking rather than PoV) helps show the transition of the tone of the film. This is a turning point in the movie as it truly leaves the officers in immediate danger. They have gotten lucky on multiple jobs where they haven't been in too much danger, but now they have been ambushed and are in serious danger.

"Moonrise Kingdom" directed by my new favorite director, Wes Anderson

The scene above is the second to last one the viewer sees before the ending credits. It is an all-encompassing scene that fits right into my personal preference. It brings the story full circle and includes elements from the entire film.

In the forefront is Sam's painting of Mile 3.25 Tidal Inlet, where Suzy and him made camp after fleeing their families and the Khaki Scouts. This is where their connection was finalized and the viewer was completely aware of their love and devotion to each other. On the left of the painting in the middle-ground are Suzy's belongings that they had to trek everywhere with them; the suitcase full of books, picnic basket with the cat inside, and the other basket that she brought along. The painting on the right wall in the middle-ground is a painting of a schooner tackling white caps. This could be a reference to the legendary storm that dominated the ending of the film. On the broad scale, the room is very symmetrical and the Sam's painting is exactly centered, a trait of Anderson that is very easily recognizable in all of his films. This technique is very unique and is one of those "love it or hate it" elements in cinematography.

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Towards the beginning of the film there is a scene of Delmar, Pete and Everett near a river being surrounded by a robed congregation who is singing and migrating towards the river for baptism. This scene is fairly comical considering the immediate entrancement set upon the trio by the hymn and swaying. They end up following the group and As Everett starts ridiculing the congregation for "looking for answers," Delmar runs in to be baptized and buys into the idea of being rid of all of his lying and sins right off the bat. This is done through a long shot showing the congregation and pastor. The next shot is a crane shot medium shot showing Delmar's entire body being dunked under water by the pastor. Then there is a slight pan/tracking downwards and to the left as Delmar retreats. While he explains his case after returning to Everett and Pete there is a medium shot in which he has his arms up in a pleading fashion towards the sky. During the dialogue there are trading medium shots between Delmar and Pete with Everett.

The best part about that scene is how it ties in with the next scene in the car. Everett puts down Delmar and Pete for following the superstition of "being freed of sins." After a short dialogue they notice Tommy Johnson, an African American musician on the side of the road whose reason for being there was to sell his soul to the devil. The juxtaposition is hilarious and ironic. Everett makes sure to recognize his lack of affiliation.

My Own Private Idaho, a look into New Queer cinema

Watching this film was a little bit of a shock for me personally considering that I just watched Matrix for the first time this past weekend. Seeing Keanu Reeves go from a dimension traveling bad ass to a homosexual prostitute/model with no transition is quite the change. Anyways, moving on. The scene I found particularly entertaining is the scene where the boys are on the roofs of the buildings overlooking the streets of Portland, while Bob and Budd are walking through the city.

First is a medium shot of Mike waking up in a makeshift tent on top of a building, followed by the sound of a police siren and similar medium shots of the other boys waking up, also on nearby rooftops. There is also medieval, baroque styled music playing in the background giving the over all scene a novelty feel. Next is a time lapse extreme long shot of the sky with clouds passing by. This serves as a transition between the morning and afternoon and is an effective way to quickly go through the day without wasting too much time. This is followed by a long shot of Bob and Budd walking through some brush with the highway behind them. The two are discussing and reminiscing on their experiences in traveling. Bob has a deep, raspy voice with a slight Irish accent, feeding into the medieval theme that is set by the music. We then see the two walking along the sidewalk with a close up shot of one of the guys on top of the building, who seems to be looking over the side of the building, symbolizing looking through the ramparts of a castle.

The entire scene has a comical feel to it that takes a step back from all of the controversy and agenda that motivates the film genre. It effectively gives the film an artistic sidetracking that is achieved through subtle costume changes and shots, as well as the dialogue taking place between the two "weary travelers."

The Vanishing (Spoorloos); George Sluizer (1988)

The film Spoorloos (considering we watched the original, I will refer to it's original title) is a film of psychological thrill and confusion. The plot of the film is interesting and woven together from the point of view of Lemorne and his family, as well as the point of view of the couple, Rex and Saskia. I would definitely call it a horror film because of the usage of many techniques that are shown in typical horror films. On the other hand, it approaches horror in a much more realistic and feasible sense. The opening scene is the first suspenseful moment, when they enter the tunnel and run out of gas. The shot is mostly dark but some light is shown at times. As soon as the audience is given a relief of light their eyes attach to that light until the next shot where they may readjust their focus. This is very useful in drawing the audience towards the sounds and music setting the tone for the scene but also the film as a whole. The entire film draws on the audiences psyche and social experiences while playing on their morals and deepest fears. Lemorne mentions attempting to break destiny and "jumping when you are predestined not to." This concept is very relatable for viewers because no one wants to conform to society but it happens anyways, and where we can change our "predestined actions," we will.

Killer of Sheep; Burnett (1979)

"Killer of Sheep" is much different than films we are used to today. It is also unlike any we have touched upon in this class. There are many effects that make this film odd yet compelling; however it is the oddities that make it difficult to watch. First of all, the camera is often un-stabilized and has the "Blair Witch Project" feel to it. But there are also scenes where the camera is stabilized and no panning or tracking effects are used whatsoever. This variety shows a lot of contrast in technique utilized by the director, Charles Burnett. There are also scenes that seem...unnecessary as they don't contribute or detract anything from the film. This is especially annoying to me because I am in an English composition class where everything MUST be necessary to the point of the paper and no insignificant points may be made. Another annoyance is the fact that some camera shots are just not focused on subjects in certain scenes, or the camera is just focused on the wrong part of someone's body. I've tried understanding why the director might do this but the reasons elude me.

This film could be considered difficult to watch and analyze due to its differences with modern film and the techniques used. Despite our unfamiliarity with films like "Killer of Sheep" it is still seen as a masterpiece of its time.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly; Directed by Sergio Leone

This being my first encounter with Clint Eastwood, after hearing so much about his talent and legacy, I am completely impressed. His confidence and prowess through facial expressions and is undeniable and vexatious. He is clearly an audacious actor and this shows through in all of his characters. Eastwood has the ability to make an audience wiggle uncomfortably in their seats just by using an expressionless stare. You can tell through his eyebrow movements paired with his evil grimace that this is a man that gets what he wants (as a character). Another thing of note is his stature and walking pace. He is very slow and methodical with his movements, yet, when he must be quick and reactive, he can move at breakneck speed.
Once again this is my first time personally watching Clint Eastwood act, despite multiple prodding from my grandfather who swears by the quality of westerns. Now I can finally say I have watched one of his favorites and actually appreciate the brilliant acting in the film.

Ulmer's Film Noir: "Detour"

Women of the mid-20th century are assumed to be the more polite of the two genders. Film noir brings a new light to the personality traits of women, allowing them to be more...expressive in their emotions. This new style of the 40s gives women the ability to project their attitudes and natural sass towards men who disrespect them. Before this, you would expect to see women being polite as well as men being polite to them with their common undertones of bigotry. Vera (Ann Savage) is shown getting drunk and acting obnoxiously towards Tom Neal, as Al Roberts. There is constant disagreement between the two, which also portray the film noir ideals, as explained in the readings.

In general, film noir is something I've always been interested in due to the outright cynicism and pessimism that is exemplified through plot and dialogue. The style caters a little more to my personality which certainly raised my interest in the film Detour.

Freaks (1932) directed by Tod Browning

What is the common definition of a horror film? There is the "classic" female victim screaming her head off while running down a dark alley horror film, there is the suspenseful jump-scare style horror film, or just another gory horror film with stabbings and shootings as far as the eye can see. The film Freaks is a horror film that is horrific in context. As a viewer of the 1930s, seeing a film that spotlighted the acts of a circus that were simply used for entertainment, being viewed as real socialites who experience the same intrinsic feelings that "normal people" do, would be quite unnerving and uncomfortable. In scene where the "freaks" are avenging Hans from being poisoned by Cleopatra and Hercules, they are crawling through the mud making themselves seem like the creatures that the audience is comfortable characterizing them as, rendering them as horrific as they have initially believed before empathizing with their feelings during the first half of the film.

Although the film was very...unusual and hard to understand at some points I enjoyed the variety and difference in the nature of the horror that was portrayed. Profoundly unusual.

Buster Keaton's "Sherlock Jr."

Sherlock Jr. by Buster Keaton is the first silent film that I've seen, and after getting past the fact that I was only going to be listening to music accompaniment and reading the dialogue I really began to enjoy the piece.

One of the first examples of a "gag" scene is the part with the dollar bills and the trash pile. The young projectionist finds something in the window of the shop next door, it seems to be a box that he would like to buy. To his dismay the he only has $2 while the box costs $3. Despite trying to barter with the clerk he leaves the store in disappointment. The first significant thing I notice is the fact that he tried to barter at all, sort of reflecting the times as it is an uncommon practice nowadays. When returning to his trash pile in front of the cinema the Keaton finds a paper stuck to his foot, and after many attempts at displacing the paper, he ends up passing it off to a man walking out of the building. This is an example of a gag being used for comedic purpose, and as one of the first comedic elements in the film, it is quite effective. There is also irony due to his qualm with money while the man walking out happens to flipping through cash in his wallet. This kind of comedy seems bizarre and silly to my eyes but I can imagine it’s simplicity and sheer parody was appreciated at the time.

What am I doing here.

Hello, I am Andy Schamma. I am a freshman in Electronic Media in CCM. It seems there are a lot of us roaming around this class. Anyways, my interests lie with performing arts and anything I can do with recording live performances or enhancing them in any way is my goal. As far as movies go I am always looking for recommendations as I will watch almost anything. I tend to stray away from comedies that are funny for the sake of being funny (includes Rom-Coms).  I particularly like psychological thrillers and most documentaries. I look forward to analyzing some new films as well as learning some techniques used in the film industry.