I would have to say that my favorite in class screening was on the film DOUBLE INDEMNITY due to the fact that it opened me up to a genre of film that I had never really experienced and really left an impact. I loved everything about that film from the characters to the dialog to the fashion to the dark, bleak overall feel. I have watched it two more times since then and, because of that film, I was introduced to others similar to it, such as THE MALTESE FALCON, THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE, TOUCH OF EVIL, THE BIG HEAT, etc. I would probably have to say that Film Noir is my favorite genre of movie, despite the fact that I always hesitate to call it a genre, seeing as some critics and elitists will disagree with me. Oh well, they can stick their nose in a rubber hose.
My favorite lecture of the semester was "The Hollywood Blockbuster." This is not to say that DIE HARD was my favorite screening, because while it was good, it definitely was not my favorite film we watched. However, I very much enjoyed the lecture and reading that went along with this particular lesson.
The main reason I enjoyed this lecture was because I was familiar with many of the films discussed ahead of time and was therefore able to actively participate in this lecture and really relate to what was being discussed. I really enjoyed discussing films that I had seen, but learning ideas that made me think about them in a different light. A good example of this is BACK TO THE FUTURE. Before this lecture it had never really dawned on me that the sixties and seventies were completely skipped over for this movie. After this was brought up in class however, it made perfect sense to me and I felt much more enlightened about one of my favorite movies.
Besides the lecture itself, the selection in the book for this section was extremely interesting. It used a few examples of films and showed how they related to events happening in the current era. For example, it mentioned the Vietnam War (which I am writing about in my paper) and how it influenced films that I have seen many times like STAR WARS. This lecture opened my eyes to ideas I had not thought of before in relations to many films I have seen. Because of all these different factors, "The Hollywood Blockbuster" was definitely my favorite lecture. The popcorn and candy were a nice touch as well.
My favorite discussion in the class was over genre. It is interesting to try and define genres. As we discussed in class there are boundaries, but today we are mixing genres to create somewhat of a hybrid movie. An example of such a hybrid is "Saw". It is not only a thriller, but a mystery movie as well. With films transcending their genres we get new types of films, thus creating a huge region for creativity. I really enjoyed the conversation because it helped me realize that though many believe that they like one specific genre, they are also enjoying others as well. An example is "Crank 2" this new movie mixes comedy and action creating a hybrid film. Those that love action will love this movie, and those who love comedy will also love it. It seems that Hollywood is starting to create mixed films to become even more powerful, and as a result of the conversation in class, I have realized this. I enjoyed talking about genre, and it really helped open my eyes.
My favorite in class screening was definitely Die Hard. This is one of my favorite movies and I mentioned it specifically in a past blog. The lecture given that day as well as the next were my favorites as we neared the incarnation of Hollywood I'm most familiar with and that I like the most: the 80s and early to mid 90s. Learning how the current incarnation of Hollywood came to be made me feel a little patriotic. I love movies and America is the best place in the world at making them.
The components that combined to result in the creation of the Hollywood blockbuster surprised me (escapism, multiculturalism, victimized white male ... -ism). I didn't think the process would actually have contributing societal aspects, I figured that the process of making big expensive movies progressed slowly over the course of time until they got really big and expensive and called blockbusters.
Another thing I thought was interesting was how late the concept of the blockbuster was created. I previously would have thought, if ever asked, that the big Hollywood smash hit movie had existed for half a century. I found it almost bizarre that the idea is only possibly a decade older than myself. But I suppose the idea of creating a huge expensive movie to make a production company set for an entire year is only obvious in retrospect.
My favorite classes from this semester were when we talked about musicals. I just really loved that genre but I never really knew there was so much history behind it.
I loved it when we watched SINGING IN THE RAIN, it was my first time watching that movie and I must say it has become one of my favorites. I love how this movie shows the transition that happened in Hollywood when the silent period ended and sound was introduced to Hollywood.
One of my favorites lectures where when we talked about Nazi cinema. I never knew that this genre was so similar to Hollywood and how the Nazis worked with cinema to control Germany in a way so subliminal. I must say that I was shocked by the documentary TRIUMPH OF THE WILL, I’ve seen such thing. It was a really good movie cinematically but the content was very strong and shocking, because I never thought of Hitler in that way. I was surprised to find out that Nazi cinema wasn’t just about the hatred they had against “people that were different”, mostly Jews. I just found that lecture very interesting and I think it was one of the best topics I’ve ever learned about.
My favorite in class screening would have to be Double Indemnity. I really liked neo-film noir, but I had no idea when or where it's roots came from. Watching double indemnity and learning about the semantics and syntactics of the post world war two era made me respect some of my favorite neo-film noir movies even more. The weekend following that screening I even rewatched pulp fiction to decide whether Uma Thurman's character was a femme fatale or not, and wondering what made this genre so popular again. The fact that times of distrust for the government inspire criminal protagonists in films really interested me. I'm a history major and I not only appreciated watching the criminal protagonists, but I also appreciated learning the history on how society is able to root for these characters. It seems I can learn as much about a society watching a film made in that time period as the time period the film is set in.
I think my favorite screening was either Annie Hall or Persona. I had only seen one Woody Allen film before and this film made me want to see a lot more of them. I thought it was witty, intelligent, and different. I really enjoyed his self-depricating humor and introspection. The intellectual references to Catcher in the Rye and psychology also piqued my interest as intelligence and Hollywood don't always work well together. This will definitely get me to see more of his films.
What I liked about Persona was the ambiguity of the characters and their situation. Very early on, it is difficult to decide if it is two characters or just one. Are they making a bond? Is she going crazy? I really liked the psychological aspects of this film. It got my brain to think and to see things outside the box. I think I will look out for more of these films as well.
I really didn't have a favorite class or screening this semester. I thought that all the films we screened as a class were good selections for what we read in the book. I liked all the films we screened, but if I had to pick a lecture and film it would be "The Hollywood Blockbuster" and the film we screen afterward which would be "Die Hard". Die Hard has been one of my favorite films since I was little and I haven't seen it for a while and it was great seeing it in class, Although I would have liked to see Jurassic Park as well...
I would have to say "Rashomon" was one of my favorite screenings for this class. I was a big fan of Toshiro Mifune as the crazy bandit but the way the story’s events unfolded is what I liked the most. The revisiting of the same event but told in many characters point of view was kind of enlightening in terms of perspective. There have been plenty of times where I thought I was doing something that I thought looked amazing but turned out I was just looking like an idiot, pretty much like the end fight between the bandit and the husband.
I enjoyed SINGIN' IN THE RAIN the most for a few reasons. I had never seen it before, and was apprehensive at the thought of it, due to that I don't really fancy musicals, but I was pleasentley surprised by the film. Even all these years later, the colors displayed in the film just stand out significantly and the dance numbers by GENE KELLY are truly impressive. Also the biting satire of the studio system and the film industry as a whole was much more humorous than i would have predicted. This experience has made me more willing to give old, classic films an objective look.
I really enjoyed the screening of SHERLOCK JR. It was a part of the Silent Clowns section with Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. Those two started the comedy genre single handedly and paved the way for others. I would have to say I'd prefer Keaton over Chaplin. I didn't really think I could continue to laugh through a Silent comedy but I was proven wrong. Throughout that whole movie I was laughing or at least chuckling. I look back at the silent comedies and I tend to appriciate them more than today's comedies.
I liked watching all of the silent films from the beginning of Cinema History, such as THE LONEDALE OPERATOR and A TRIP TO THE MOON. I liked watching a new invention being used for the first time and what geniuses could come up with at the start. I liked watching the progression of filmmaking, especially the acting. In A TRIP TO THE MOON, I liked how it was very theatrical and was a simple story with one storyline throughout the short film. In THE LONEDALE OPERATOR, you can see the improvements in filming techniques, like cross-cutting, but also in the acting, as it is more serious than that of earlier cinema.
I would have to say that my favorite screening had to have been Woody Allen's ANNIE HALL. It was my first time watching it, and I absolutely loved it. To be completely honest, we screened some films that I could hardly wait to be over, but I enjoyed every second of ANNIE HALL.
Probably my favorite part of the film had to have been how Allen repeatedly broke the fourth wall. Even though he continually violated one of the major rules of cinema by talking directly to the audience, it works very well within the context of the film. This and other techniques such as incorporating animation and surreal sequences in which he literally watches his own memories as they are occuring made the entire experience of ANNIE HALL very interesting.
I also loved the rapid-fire dialouge and the subtle humor. While I enjoy a nice fart joke now and again, it was relieving to enjoy some high-brow humor.
I think that my favorite day in class was when we viewed the film DOUBLE INDEMNITY, it really openned my eyes to world of film noir. I am very much appreciative of this genre and have since then viewed other movies that I have loved like MALTISE FALCON, and SUNSET BOULEVARD. It has even opened me up to other genres other that before I honestly wouldn't have given a second glance at.
The symbolism and the subtle sexual undertones of the film really did a lot for me. I love trying to keep with the literary gymnastics and I can apprieciate the humor and inuendos. I liked it so that I bought a copy of it on ammazon.com. (I never buy any movies) Thanks for bringing and openning a wider view of film in my life.
I would actually have to say that my favrite in class screenig would have to be between Buster Keaton's Sherlock Jr. and Charlie Chaplin's City Lights. The reason I picked these two is because up until this point I only knew these names but had never really see any of their work. After seeing their films and being very entertained by them I feel I found a new respect for these artist. The simple fact alone that they did all of their own stunts is impressive but also that chaplin made some of the social commentaries he did at a time when noone else would. I actually enjoyed these films enough to go out and check out some more of chaplins films on my own.
Think back over the course of the semester. What was your favorite in-class screening and/or lecture? Why?
I would have to say that my favorite in class screening was on the film DOUBLE INDEMNITY due to the fact that it opened me up to a genre of film that I had never really experienced and really left an impact. I loved everything about that film from the characters to the dialog to the fashion to the dark, bleak overall feel. I have watched it two more times since then and, because of that film, I was introduced to others similar to it, such as THE MALTESE FALCON, THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE, TOUCH OF EVIL, THE BIG HEAT, etc. I would probably have to say that Film Noir is my favorite genre of movie, despite the fact that I always hesitate to call it a genre, seeing as some critics and elitists will disagree with me. Oh well, they can stick their nose in a rubber hose.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite lecture of the semester was "The Hollywood Blockbuster." This is not to say that DIE HARD was my favorite screening, because while it was good, it definitely was not my favorite film we watched. However, I very much enjoyed the lecture and reading that went along with this particular lesson.
ReplyDeleteThe main reason I enjoyed this lecture was because I was familiar with many of the films discussed ahead of time and was therefore able to actively participate in this lecture and really relate to what was being discussed. I really enjoyed discussing films that I had seen, but learning ideas that made me think about them in a different light. A good example of this is BACK TO THE FUTURE. Before this lecture it had never really dawned on me that the sixties and seventies were completely skipped over for this movie. After this was brought up in class however, it made perfect sense to me and I felt much more enlightened about one of my favorite movies.
Besides the lecture itself, the selection in the book for this section was extremely interesting. It used a few examples of films and showed how they related to events happening in the current era. For example, it mentioned the Vietnam War (which I am writing about in my paper) and how it influenced films that I have seen many times like STAR WARS. This lecture opened my eyes to ideas I had not thought of before in relations to many films I have seen. Because of all these different factors, "The Hollywood Blockbuster" was definitely my favorite lecture. The popcorn and candy were a nice touch as well.
My favorite discussion in the class was over genre. It is interesting to try and define genres. As we discussed in class there are boundaries, but today we are mixing genres to create somewhat of a hybrid movie. An example of such a hybrid is "Saw". It is not only a thriller, but a mystery movie as well. With films transcending their genres we get new types of films, thus creating a huge region for creativity. I really enjoyed the conversation because it helped me realize that though many believe that they like one specific genre, they are also enjoying others as well. An example is "Crank 2" this new movie mixes comedy and action creating a hybrid film. Those that love action will love this movie, and those who love comedy will also love it. It seems that Hollywood is starting to create mixed films to become even more powerful, and as a result of the conversation in class, I have realized this. I enjoyed talking about genre, and it really helped open my eyes.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite in class screening was definitely Die Hard. This is one of my favorite movies and I mentioned it specifically in a past blog. The lecture given that day as well as the next were my favorites as we neared the incarnation of Hollywood I'm most familiar with and that I like the most: the 80s and early to mid 90s. Learning how the current incarnation of Hollywood came to be made me feel a little patriotic. I love movies and America is the best place in the world at making them.
ReplyDeleteThe components that combined to result in the creation of the Hollywood blockbuster surprised me (escapism, multiculturalism, victimized white male ... -ism). I didn't think the process would actually have contributing societal aspects, I figured that the process of making big expensive movies progressed slowly over the course of time until they got really big and expensive and called blockbusters.
Another thing I thought was interesting was how late the concept of the blockbuster was created. I previously would have thought, if ever asked, that the big Hollywood smash hit movie had existed for half a century. I found it almost bizarre that the idea is only possibly a decade older than myself. But I suppose the idea of creating a huge expensive movie to make a production company set for an entire year is only obvious in retrospect.
My favorite classes from this semester were when we talked about musicals. I just really loved that genre but I never really knew there was so much history behind it.
ReplyDeleteI loved it when we watched SINGING IN THE RAIN, it was my first time watching that movie and I must say it has become one of my favorites. I love how this movie shows the transition that happened in Hollywood when the silent period ended and sound was introduced to Hollywood.
One of my favorites lectures where when we talked about Nazi cinema. I never knew that this genre was so similar to Hollywood and how the Nazis worked with cinema to control Germany in a way so subliminal. I must say that I was shocked by the documentary TRIUMPH OF THE WILL, I’ve seen such thing. It was a really good movie cinematically but the content was very strong and shocking, because I never thought of Hitler in that way. I was surprised to find out that Nazi cinema wasn’t just about the hatred they had against “people that were different”, mostly Jews. I just found that lecture very interesting and I think it was one of the best topics I’ve ever learned about.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite in class screening would have to be Double Indemnity. I really liked neo-film noir, but I had no idea when or where it's roots came from. Watching double indemnity and learning about the semantics and syntactics of the post world war two era made me respect some of my favorite neo-film noir movies even more. The weekend following that screening I even rewatched pulp fiction to decide whether Uma Thurman's character was a femme fatale or not, and wondering what made this genre so popular again.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that times of distrust for the government inspire criminal protagonists in films really interested me. I'm a history major and I not only appreciated watching the criminal protagonists, but I also appreciated learning the history on how society is able to root for these characters. It seems I can learn as much about a society watching a film made in that time period as the time period the film is set in.
I think my favorite screening was either Annie Hall or Persona. I had only seen one Woody Allen film before and this film made me want to see a lot more of them. I thought it was witty, intelligent, and different. I really enjoyed his self-depricating humor and introspection. The intellectual references to Catcher in the Rye and psychology also piqued my interest as intelligence and Hollywood don't always work well together. This will definitely get me to see more of his films.
ReplyDeleteWhat I liked about Persona was the ambiguity of the characters and their situation. Very early on, it is difficult to decide if it is two characters or just one. Are they making a bond? Is she going crazy? I really liked the psychological aspects of this film. It got my brain to think and to see things outside the box. I think I will look out for more of these films as well.
I really didn't have a favorite class or screening this semester. I thought that all the films we screened as a class were good selections for what we read in the book. I liked all the films we screened, but if I had to pick a lecture and film it would be "The Hollywood Blockbuster" and the film we screen afterward which would be "Die Hard". Die Hard has been one of my favorite films since I was little and I haven't seen it for a while and it was great seeing it in class, Although I would have liked to see Jurassic Park as well...
ReplyDeleteI would have to say "Rashomon" was one of my favorite screenings for this class. I was a big fan of Toshiro Mifune as the crazy bandit but the way the story’s events unfolded is what I liked the most. The revisiting of the same event but told in many characters point of view was kind of enlightening in terms of perspective. There have been plenty of times where I thought I was doing something that I thought looked amazing but turned out I was just looking like an idiot, pretty much like the end fight between the bandit and the husband.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed SINGIN' IN THE RAIN the most for a few reasons. I had never seen it before, and was apprehensive at the thought of it, due to that I don't really fancy musicals, but I was pleasentley surprised by the film. Even all these years later, the colors displayed in the film just stand out significantly and the dance numbers by GENE KELLY are truly impressive. Also the biting satire of the studio system and the film industry as a whole was much more humorous than i would have predicted. This experience has made me more willing to give old, classic films an objective look.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the screening of SHERLOCK JR. It was a part of the Silent Clowns section with Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. Those two started the comedy genre single handedly and paved the way for others. I would have to say I'd prefer Keaton over Chaplin. I didn't really think I could continue to laugh through a Silent comedy but I was proven wrong. Throughout that whole movie I was laughing or at least chuckling. I look back at the silent comedies and I tend to appriciate them more than today's comedies.
ReplyDeleteI liked watching all of the silent films from the beginning of Cinema History, such as THE LONEDALE OPERATOR and A TRIP TO THE MOON. I liked watching a new invention being used for the first time and what geniuses could come up with at the start. I liked watching the progression of filmmaking, especially the acting. In A TRIP TO THE MOON, I liked how it was very theatrical and was a simple story with one storyline throughout the short film. In THE LONEDALE OPERATOR, you can see the improvements in filming techniques, like cross-cutting, but also in the acting, as it is more serious than that of earlier cinema.
ReplyDeleteI would have to say that my favorite screening had to have been Woody Allen's ANNIE HALL. It was my first time watching it, and I absolutely loved it. To be completely honest, we screened some films that I could hardly wait to be over, but I enjoyed every second of ANNIE HALL.
ReplyDeleteProbably my favorite part of the film had to have been how Allen repeatedly broke the fourth wall. Even though he continually violated one of the major rules of cinema by talking directly to the audience, it works very well within the context of the film. This and other techniques such as incorporating animation and surreal sequences in which he literally watches his own memories as they are occuring made the entire experience of ANNIE HALL very interesting.
I also loved the rapid-fire dialouge and the subtle humor. While I enjoy a nice fart joke now and again, it was relieving to enjoy some high-brow humor.
I think that my favorite day in class was when we viewed the film DOUBLE INDEMNITY, it really openned my eyes to world of film noir. I am very much appreciative of this genre and have since then viewed other movies that I have loved like MALTISE FALCON, and SUNSET BOULEVARD. It has even opened me up to other genres other that before I honestly wouldn't have given a second glance at.
ReplyDeleteThe symbolism and the subtle sexual undertones of the film really did a lot for me. I love trying to keep with the literary gymnastics and I can apprieciate the humor and inuendos. I liked it so that I bought a copy of it on ammazon.com. (I never buy any movies) Thanks for bringing and openning a wider view of film in my life.
I would actually have to say that my favrite in class screenig would have to be between Buster Keaton's Sherlock Jr. and Charlie Chaplin's City Lights. The reason I picked these two is because up until this point I only knew these names but had never really see any of their work.
ReplyDeleteAfter seeing their films and being very entertained by them I feel I found a new respect for these artist. The simple fact alone that they did all of their own stunts is impressive but also that chaplin made some of the social commentaries he did at a time when noone else would.
I actually enjoyed these films enough to go out and check out some more of chaplins films on my own.