Movie Crash Essays (Examples)

Because Officer Tom never arrested Mr. Thayer who was hiding the real criminal Anthony in the car with him, Anthony then got the opportunity to sell some Asian immigrants that were in a van that he stole. However, instead of getting the money in return for these people, he let them go. He was truly a savior, a guardian angel for these people who were destined for a life of slavery and misery, and instead of going along with what was bound to happen to them anyway, he chose a different path and gave them a second chance at life.

The "Guardian Angel" concept was truly valued by the character Farhad who was about to commit a crime that he did not truly want to commit, but was just fed up with the way he was treated and the way things were going. He purchased a gun and bullets that…

If this is true, than how is institutionalized white racism blameworthy at all, if all groups feel hatred of what is foreign or different? The constant ironic juxtaposition of different racist scenes of different ethnic groups further undercuts the film's condemnation of police violence, given that Ryan's anger seems to be an expression of something that is bubbling within the hearts of everyone -- black, white, brown, and 'other.'

Furthermore, it is Officer Hanson, Ryan's partner, is the 'white knight' of the film, not his black supervisor, and even he reacts with culturally ingrained racism and shoots an African-American man, as a result of his training. If Hansen cannot be trusted, one might ask, who can? The most forceful critiques of racist society are those articulated by young black men, who at first seem quite articulate, but then are shown to validate the prejudices they condemn. This seems like a…

lack gangsters can be kind hearted and cowards, timid black film directors can face a whole legion of police officers, pro-white police officers can risk their lives with the purpose of saving black women, and righteous white police officers can coldly murder black individuals. The previous sentence basically describes most climaxes in the film.

People discriminate all the time and no one can claim that he or she did not employ prejudice concerning a particular individual at a certain moment in his or her life. However, one needs to know when it is essential for him or her to abandon prejudice in favor of trying to understand and even help an individual. Living in an environment dominated by a single racial group made it possible for me to develop particular thinking concerning people belonging to other racial groups. However, I gradually learnt that one needs to judge people on account…

Interestingly, this is a stereotype that she herself promotes, rather than having it imposed on her by others or by external prejudices.

In the film, most prejudice seems to be externally imposed rather than being perpetuated by the persons themselves. One exception to this might be the Iranian family, where Farhad and his daughter apparently deliberately speak their native language in the gun shop despite the irritation of the shop owner. When Daniel installs the lock, Farhad does not understand him sufficiently to have his door fixed, with disastrous consequences. One might wonder why his daughter or some other mediator was not there to help them communicate more clearly.

Farhad, also seems to be subject to a very specific cultural pride, which precludes him from either seeking help to understand Daniel, or at least learning English properly. The dismay of the family at the perpetrators of the vandalism not realizing…

Crash

Paul Haggis's 2005 drama Crash is a vehicle for exploring social tensions in the United States. Although a huge portion of the film is devoted to race relations, prejudices, and stereotypes, an important meta-narrative also permeates Crash. That is, the film subverts the traditional Hollywood norm to "present working people not only as unlettered and uncouth but also as less desirable and less moral than other people," as Parenti puts it (1). Instead of depicting the members of the middle, upper-middle, and upper classes as being morally, intellectually, and socially superior to those of lower classes, Haggis presents a world in which all people are equally as culpable of creating a dystopian society in America. Each of the characters in Crash is besieged by stereotypes and prejudices that prevent a genuine encounter with others in the multicultural landscape of Los Angeles. Moreover, race is a tag for underclass, and…

The old man is involved in a bad accident with his white van, and his wife has an accident on her way to the hospital. We see her being angry and mean at the accident and with the nurse in the hospital, but our feelings are reversed when we understand the pressure and strain she is under having thought that her husband was dead. Then comes the ultimate reversal -- it is revealed that the old man's van had contained human slaves, and the first thing he asks of his wife is to cash the check that he received as payment for transporting them. Crash shows us that all people are capable of eliciting responses of admiration and disgust. The final scene of the movie shows Ludacris setting the would-be slaves free (another reversal of character), followed by another minor car crash that seems to suggest the whole thing will…

It is about person-to-person interactions, and though many -- most, even -- of the interactions in Crash are racially charged, race itself is not actually the focus. Haggis takes a far more narrow and specific view of the issue, according to UC Davis' Hsuan L. Hsu writing in Film Criticism. He points out that it is not actually any racial factor that leads to the stereotyped views helped by many of the characters of themselves and others, "but historically specific practices of racism" (Hsu 2006). In many ways, Crash presents a microcosm of Los Angeles and United States history of racial views; it is a condensed explanation of the creation and maintenance of racist policies at the institutional level through the widespread and generally unplanned collective racism of individuals. This is what makes the film so engaging to critics and movie goers alike: it is honest about racism and the…

The author writes "since the disruption of the colonized/colonizer mind-set is necessary for border crossings to not simply reinscribe old patterns, we need strategies for decolonization that aim to change the minds and habits of everyone involved in cultural criticism," so that black women are not, like the author says she was in her twenties, "inwardly homeless." (5; 9) This state of inward homelessness, or lacking a coherent identity is something, hooks acknowledges, that can be experienced by all marginalized peoples and ethnic groups in contemporary society -- and only by acknowledging the fact that we are all potentially, inwardly homeless, can the pain of past prejudice be assuaged.

The flexibility and instability of perceptions in "Crash," is not simply stressed in the script's continual, structured contrast between media representations and 'the real.' Even within the context of "Crash's" 'real life,' individuals who are non-white are continually misread in the…

' Anthony, an actual resident of the street, sneers at white perceptions of how blacks talk in the media: "You think whites go around callin' each other honky all day?" hile Anthony's theft of the SUV is clearly shown to be destructive, socially as well as morally, the film also shows how black inner city views of law and order have evolved in such a negative and polarized fashion: the presence of the black officer Detective Graham aters is undercut by the racism and racial profiling of other members of the force.

Racism is circular in nature, and this is revealed in Anthony's lapses in logic: "That waitress sized us up in two seconds. e're black and black people don't tip. So she wasn't gonna waste her time. Now somebody like that? Nothing you can do to change their mind. You expect me to pay for that kind of service?"…

The scene where Ryan touches Cameron's wife shows us that there is this distorted belief white authority posses: that they can do whatever it is they want because they have been given the authority of the law and the authority of society as a superior race. The white authority uses this to its own advantage, to pursue its own desires and interests, all the while denying others the respect that they deserve as human beings.

The problem with the depiction of law enforcement in the movie is that everything seems to be smoothed out by personal acts of kindness -- and tolerance. Officer Jack Ryan saves Christine at the end of the movie -- even though she initially doesn't accept his help -- and we are meant to believe that years of intolerance has been washed away because he decides to act like a good human being (or not even…

Crash

Race, Ethnicity, and Gender in Crash

Crash is a 2004 film that analyzes racial and social tensions that are rampant in society. Crash is divided into a series of vignettes that converge through a series of automobile accidents. The film features an all-star cast that includes Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Jennifer Esposito, Michael Pena, Chris Bridges, Sandra Bullock, Brendan Frasier, Terence Howard, Ryan Phillippe, Larenz Tate, and Thandie Newton. Issues of race and ethnicity, in addition to gender, can be seen in the storyline that involves Dillon, Phillipe, Howard, and Newton.

In the film, Matt Dillon plays racist LAPD Officer John Ryan and Ryan Phillipe is his more tolerant partner, Tom Hansen. In the film, Ryan and Hansen pull over TV director Cameron Thayer and his wife, Christine, because the vehicle that they are driving matches the description of a vehicle that was recently stolen. In the first encounter…

Jean believes that because the locksmith is Hispanic, tattooed, and has a shaved head, he is a gang member and will immediately sell a copy of the Cabot house key to one of his associates thereby putting the Cabot's in jeopardy once again even though he is not a menace.

While the "menace to society" archetype influences perceptions of minorities, the "manipulator" prototype influences behavior. For instance, Officer Ryan is able to influence his partner, Tom Hansen, to help him pull over the Thayers because he is senior to him. At the same time, Officer Hansen, forces himself to change his behavior to satisfy the demands of his partner. Officer Ryan's influence on his partner is not limited to the interaction with the Thayers. At the end of the film, Haggis demonstrates how Hansen's perception of minorities has been irrevocably altered when he shoots and kills Peter, whom he had…

persuade classmates film effective social critique. Using Toulmin system, make a claim film's effectiveness ineffectiveness, provide reasons support claim, supply grounds film support reasons.

Crash

The cinematography industry generates numerous motion pictures directed at dealing with contemporary problems and while most of them are Hollywodian and thus commercial in character, they nonetheless manage to put across a thorough account of the topic that they discuss. Paul Haggis' 2004 film Crash is obviously meant to deal with racism and with the fact that it poses a threat to society's well-being. Although the script is filled with marketable elements and most events in it are unlikely to happen in real life (at least not in successive order), the movie express racism exactly as it is, emphasizing that society should indeed be alarmed because of the discriminating character people display on a daily basis.

Considering that Los Angeles is a city overwhelmed with…

It also says a lot about our society that so many people went to see the film and endorsed the film. It is not because this film is about heroes or heroism. It is because the film's ultimate message is to never forget the people who died in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. It was a time when the people of the country came together in support and grief, and a time that made the country and its people just a bit closer to one another. It was an epic time in history and this film makes everyone remember, ultimately so they will never forget.

In conclusion, this is an important and emotional film. It is certainly not easy to watch, and it is easy to demonize the terrorists and fault the military because of their scrambled messages and inaction. However, the director does not demonize the terrorists or…

Film Required for the Class With a Non-Required Film of Your Choice

oyz n the Hood and Menace II Society

John Singleton's motion picture oyz n the Hood, and the Hughes rothers' film Menace II Society both address the idea of the Los Angeles 'hood' as being a particularly dangerous place for young people trying to find their personal identity. oth films have central characters who are somewhat different from their friends and who actually seem to be 'better' than the people that generally inhabit dubious neighborhoods in L.A. The producers obviously wanted viewers to get a more complex understanding of the 'hood' environment. Many viewers are certainly likely to acknowledge that many of the apparently ruthless criminals in these locations are really the product of the world they are living in, taking into account that very little actually have a say in their lives.

Race is one of the…

United 93 directed by Paul Greengrass [...] problems with communication documented in the film, and how those problems need to change to keep the country safe. United 93 tells the story of ordinary citizens who find themselves on one of the planes involved in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington D.C. As they attempt to fight back, the film documents efforts on the ground to thwart the attack, and the problems in communication that were keeping the various government agencies from an effective pursuit of the highjackers.

The film switches between FAA flight controllers in New York, Boston, and Virginia, and it is a graphic illustration of the problems in communication between government agencies, and how those problems waste valuable time. The flight controller in Boston believes he has a highjacking on his hands, but his supervisors do not think it is likely, and…

This, as mentioned, should be done fairly gently, but still with enough pressure to make sure all the dry parts are mixed together. If you don't do this, you will end up with dry chunks of flour in your pancakes. All of these cooking shots were done in a medium close-up.

For the actual cooking part of the video, I started with a close-up on the pan with the melted butter. I moved to extreme close-up as my friend turned the heat to a medium low flame for cooking. She used a spatula to move the butter around the pan a bit more. Using a ladle, my friend put the pancake batter into the pan. Then, in a medium close-up shot I showed the pancake cooking to a golden brown. This takes about two minutes. When it is not runny on the top, the pancake can be flipped. As mentioned,…

Movie: The Karate Kid (2010)

Targeted Age Group: PG rated, 10+ (The Karate Kid-Family Movie Review, 2015)

'The Karate Kid' is appropriately PG-rated; there is, however, some content that adults might wish to know of, especially because this drama has a few themes aimed at older viewers. The beginning of the movie shows a climbing scene of a child's height chart. Typical milestones, like beginning kindergarten and losing the first tooth are included; however, the last 2 entries are daddy's death and the child's 9th birthday. While at this juncture, the background music is jolly and light, the death of his dad when Dre was just 8 years of age has a mildly shocking impact, and may upset younger children (Andlor, 2013).

Analyze the chosen media content for its appropriateness for the cognitive development level of this target audience. In doing so, make sure to explain what characterizes the cognitive…

In a mirror of the earlier scene where the police officer kicked the dead triad, the elevator doors attempt to close on his body, symbolizing the complete destruction of Chan's identity and humanity, as nothing is left but a piece of meat slumped on the floor. This scene effectively concludes the point made earlier by Wong's death, namely, that action films, and subsequently, the action film audience, simultaneously seek to find meaning in death while remaining dependent on the lack of meaning inherent in the deaths of most characters in action films. Infernal Affairs confronts the audience with this contradiction by melding these two disparate tendencies into the single scene of Chan's death.

Violence and death are integral Infernal Affairs' storytelling, and the film's use of violence continues a trend that began with the Hong Kong action films of the 1980s. However, rather than aestheticize violence along the lines of…

Postman Always Rings Twice" Film Adaptations

James M. Cain wrote a book called The Postman Always Rings Twice in 1934 that has been regarded as one of the first novels of its genre. It can be seen as true crime because there were similar cases around the same time, or it might be one of the first in the noire category. However, people categorize the novel, it spawned several movie version of which the 1946 and 1981 takes are the most famous. Cain wrote a piece of literature that was singular for its time, but the films can be said to have had elements that were regarded in the same way. However, the two films, being from different times, were very different. This paper looks at how the characters and the film's beginnings and endings differed from version to version.

Films made during the period of the first adaptation in…

Through the characters of Bonnie and Clyde, the filmmakers present and critique the social values of 1930s merica. Issues related to anti-trust legislation and monopolies were important at this time, especially as they related to the stock market crash and the Great Depression. It is against this bleak economic and social backdrop that Bonnie and Clyde commit their crimes. The anti-establishment worldview of the title characters also corresponds with 1930s ideologies. Communism and socialism were becoming viable alternatives to capitalism. lthough robbing banks is not the hallmark of communism, Bonnie and Clyde do share the ethical viewpoint that would cause them to view banks as faceless, impersonal institutions. Finally, the film Bonnie and Clyde pays homage to the burgeoning business of organized crime that flourished during the early 20th century in…

Chaplin's role in the movie is a cog on the assembly line where he fixes nuts to moving machinery parts. Indeed, one of the funniest moments is the sheer panic when his work is out of sequence and he attempts to hide the nuts that he has to assemble but cannot keep up with the speed of the factory process.

Chaplin is also making another important, perhaps a prescient point. This is reminiscent of George Orwell's caution against the ever-increasing role of "Big Brother" that was the primary theme of several of his novels. In Modern Times, the factory boss uses two video cameras to monitor his workers and even something as natural as a smoke break is met by a severe reprimand.

In conclusion therefore, Modern Times is a comedy classic; but it also carries some very…

Director John McTiernan's 1999 film, The 13th arrior, is a competent movie, made entertaining by its tight storyline, moody tone, masterful cinematography, realistic and often graphic fight scenes, and the strength of its supporting cast. A great deal of the movie's success comes from the cinematography of Peter Menzies, who creates an almost supernatural mood through his shooting of well-choreographed battle scenes in a dark, silent mist. Overall, the movie could never be described as Oscar-worthy material, yet its many strengths make it a watchable and enjoyable film.

The movie's main storyline is tightly plotted and concise. This is not a movie with a preponderance of plot twists and turns, and the storyline is largely self-evident and linear. There are a couple of exceptions, as in a short love interest between Banderas' character and a Norse princess, but they are short and do not distract from the main plot. As…

Margin Call

The movie Margin Call recounts a fictionalized version of the fall of Lehman Brothers in the autumn of 2008. The story centers around the trading floor, the company's exposure to toxic mortgage-backed securities and its responses to these challenges. The movie discusses and provides a framework for analyzing a number of financial concepts. This report will use Margin Call to discuss a number of different microeconomic concepts that are seen in the movie.

Market Failure

Lehman Brothers is ultimately a story of market failure, so this is a natural starting point for this analysis. Marker failure occurs when the "quantity of a product demanded by consumers does not equate to the quantity supplied by suppliers" (Investopedia, 2013). Market failure is evident in a number of ways, based on the story of the movie. For example, the traders are instructed to unload their positions in the toxic assets, but…

Cast Away: A Portrait of the Human Condition under Extreme Stress

Human beings under extreme amounts of stress will engage in some of the most fascinating behavior, though behavior that exudes a certain commonality emerging within the human condition. Scholars of human behavior manifesting within extreme circumstances have looked at survivors of the Holocaust, refugees, war prisoners and others in comparable situations and examined how common patterns of behavior will emerge when a human being is under extreme stress. This paper will discuss some of the major themes of the human experience as demonstrated in the film Cast Away by Robert Zemeckis (2000).

Synopsis

The film Cast Away revolves around a work-obsessed executive at FedEx named Chuck Noland (Tom Hanks) whose plane crashes over the Pacific Ocean when he is on his way to Malaysia for work (Zemeckis & Zemeckis, 2000). Noland ends up being the only person who lives…

Environment

The 11th Hour (film):

Global warning/climate change impacts all of humanity, and therefore it is not a local but a global concern that requires multidisciplinary intervention (general point made throughout film).

Weather and climate issues have been in the mainstream media, and events are happening more frequently (beginning of film).

Climate change can be framed as a matter of national security, and there may be "environmental refugees," (middle of film).

The rate of decline and tragedy is accelerating at a rapid pace, making immediate intervention necessary (throughout the film).

Existing and emerging technologies provide the solution (toward the end of the film)

Essence of Permaculture

Permaculture is an extension of "systems thinking" (3)

Permaculture is not just about land use but about a whole method of living and sustaining human communities that goes beyond food and energy and toward lifestyle (3)

The Permaculture Design Course " has been the…

Films and Filmmaking

As Spike Lee noted in the 25th Anniversary celebration of his film Do the Right Thing, "the only reason why my generation went to film school was we couldn't get our hands on the equipment" (Macfarlane). Do the Right Thing had an independent feel to it, largely because of Lee's hands-on oversight of production, direction, writing and editing -- but it was ultimately a Universal picture. Since its inception, the film industry had been by and for the dominant culture in society. As the technology developed (from silent shorts to silent epics to sound film and the first talkies on up to the world of independent cinema, where taboos and cultural cues were challenged and explored), so too did the face of cinema. This paper will discuss how the history of technological innovations in the filmmaking industry favored the dominant culture of the era, how social and…

Black Panther: Cinematic Review
Black Panther, directed by Ryan Coogler, is a lightening rod of a film, and one that successfully creates and maintains stunning visuals, heroic characters, and a timely message, which challenges the superhero genre as a whole. Black Panther, however, is not a perfect film, and it often struggles in terms of story-telling and character development. However, the visuals and imagination of the film, along with its social significance, mean that the film can be forgiven for its weaknesses in plot and script.
Black Panther immediately distinguishes itself from all other superhero movies in that it discards all the tired clichés and derivative concepts that so closely define most superhero films. Most superhero films created by major studios force you to watch through unoriginal storylines and predictable endings. Black Panther creates an intricate mythology around its characters and builds an entirely new imagined nation called Wakanda, an…

1939, John Steinbeck published his novel The Grapes of rath, and that same year the film version of the story was released. The film was directed by John Ford and was very popular, and the book and the film together reached millions of people. In writing this novel, Steinbeck reflected many of the social, economic, and political currents of the time. The story is set in the Great Depression era, and the Depression was still have its effect in 1939. hat would bring about the end of the Great Depression was already starting in Europe, meaning orld ar II, which does not impinge directly on the story of the Joad family but which we can see from our standpoint today was about to bring about massive changes in American society. The very nature of the story of the Joads, however, links that story to the Depression and its effect on…

Idiots" (n Indian Movie)

"3 Idiots" is an Indian movie with a strong message for its viewers. Two friends (immersed in their own career of choosing, that a third had helped them pursue) go on a quest to find their long lost close friend, from whom they have not heard since completing their education. They are reminded of a long forgotten bet, along with a wedding that they crashed and a funeral. lso, they are loaded with their memories of the friend, Rancho, on their way to find him. They remember him as free-thinker and special in his own way. He was unique, passionate, and touched their lives, changing their destiny forever.

What Happens in the Passage?

The passage selected for the purpose of this paper is about an approximately 4-minute scene when Raju is summoned to the college principal's (a strict authoritarian) office for transgression of rules, and following…

films will be compared. One film that will be discussed is City of God (2002) and Boyz in the Hood (1991). City of God was made in and based in Brazil, specifically in the favellas of Rio de Janiero -- the equivalent of what Americans would call "the projects" in urban areas with severe crimes. Boyz n the Hood was made and based in an African-American ghetto of Los Angeles, California. City of God and Boyz n the Hood are films that seem to be littered with differences, yet upon closer examination, there are greater, thematic similarities. The paper focuses on themes such as family, violence, power, and poverty.

Both films are about what happens when the violence and injustice of a corrupt social and political system invite, urge, or even force youth, specifically male youths of color, into careers in crime. Both films center around youths that are a…

Lord of Flies

The film Lord of the Flies is entertaining, and also illustrates core concepts related to sociology, social psychology, politics, and human behavior. Few films address group formation, group structures, group identity, and group dynamics as overtly as Lord of the Flies. The film is about a group of military cadets whose plane crashes, and who find themselves fighting for their survival. Yet the boys are inexperienced with leadership and unable to successfully create group cohesion. What could have been a group committed to shared goals becomes a fragmented, chaotic, and loose network of alliances with deadly outcomes.

Lord of the Flies demonstrates the most fundamental and early stages of group formation. Because the boys already knew each other from school, they had already formed a group identity. As a group, the boys are loosely connected with one another based on their shared backgrounds. Soon it becomes apparent…

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hat Mrs. Pell says to agent Anderson is both poignant and ironic: "Hatred isn't something you're born with. At school, they said segregation what's said in the Bible...Genesis 9, Verse 27. At 7 years of age, you get told it enough times, you believe it. You believe the hatred. You live it...you breathe it. You marry it" (Pell, (www.imdb.com).This movie was not a documentary albeit it did follow the plot of a real life civil rights tragedy. But the lines in the film reflect the reality of life in segregated, Jim Crow-dominated Southern towns during that time in our history.

In "Dances ith olves" the protagonist, John Dunbar, who has been banished to a wilderness post because he tried to commit suicide, has a newfound appreciation for Native Americans. In his life and his army career he has been given the propaganda that all native peoples are criminals and…

Criminal justice is about the laws which are related to criminal behaviour. Criminal justice includes the area where judiciary is involved for e.g., police and lawyers. Lawyers are directly associated with the crime because they can defend or prosecute the criminals. As a professional field of study criminal justice involves studying the behaviour. The aim of the study is to gain knowledge and awareness of rules, laws and rights of victims and suspect both.

In Criminal Justice ethics, diversity and conflict plays a major role. As a student of Criminal Justice I have learned that ethics is important in making moral judgments which demonstrates clearly that what is right and what is wrong. An ethical framework of justice is required to make fair decisions. When we talk about ethics in criminal justice here, we are suppose to forget about the emotions, personal values and instincts that can create or raise…

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Moreover, population groups "…pull up roots and seemingly go out of their way to avoid one another…" throughout Southern California, Worster writes (242). An example of the concept of "pulling up roots" is the community of Watts, which in the 1960s, Worster continues, was "an almost entirely black populace" but by the mid-1990s is "predominately Mexican-American" (p. 243). And Little Tokyo, positioned just south of Los Angeles' City Hall, is now home to a "dwindling population of Japanese-Americans" who have scant interaction with the colonies of artists "who began reclaiming and inhabiting factory and loft buildings" in Little Tokyo. Armenians that once dominated the eastern fringes of Hollywood have "relocated to suburban Glendale" and South Koreans have "settled in the Mid-Wilshire district" which has caused the "displacement of a sizable community of Central Americans," Worster explains. This movement of cultures and ethnicities around the sprawling great Los Angeles region…

Yarbrough quotes Ihab Hassan, who describes postmodernism as the "literature of silence" in that it "communicates only with itself," a reference that initially astounds the rational mind. Then, reading further in Yarbrough, Hassan is quoted as saying the term postmodernism applies to "a world caught between fragments and wholes, terror and totalitarianism of every kind."

In Vonnegut's novel, characters reflect the deconstruction of American society in the 1950s, during the period of paranoia dominated by U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy's fascist-like search for "communist sympathizers," which created terror and loathing and reflected how morally shallow yet potent the hammer of temporary totalitarian authority can be.

On page 96, Chapter 44, it is revealed that Horlick Minton had once been fired by the State Department for allegedly being "soft on communism" - but the only "real evidence" used to justify his dismissal, his wife announced, was a letter she wrote to the…

Experimental/African Films

Touki Bouki & Black Girl are experimental films from the late 20th century. The paper aims to offer a comparative analysis of the films in regards to many aspects, including the politics within each film and the aesthetics of each film. The films were released within ten years of each other and illustrate two distinct yet related styles of filmmaking and narrative structure. Both films pursue issues of freedom and bondage; the urban vs. The rural; and differences among gender roles. The paper describes and explores the content of the narratives as well as filmmaking aspects such as editing, cinematography, soundtrack, and message(s) to the viewer.

There exists a primary dichotomy in both films where Africa is on one end of a spectrum and France, specifically Paris, is on the opposite end of the spectrum, serving as a dreamland or wonderland. Both films explore the dreams of young…

Most viewers are likely to feel that it is important for them to adopt defensive personalities in order to avoid being drawn in a group that seems to act in disagreement with society's values. While this is not necessarily bad, the sincerity in these films induces intense feelings in viewers, making individuals consider that the whole world is damaged and that all that one can do is to try and cope with the miserable conditions that people sometimes come across. Whip and Charlie both initially seem determined to let go and stop fighting for their personal well-being. Similarly, Kate has a tendency to party regardless of the effects that her attitude has on herself and on people around her. This makes it possible for viewers to understand that it is not at all easy to overcome a serious trauma and that individuals are even likely to suffer throughout their lives…

Interpersonal Conflict in Film

American Beauty (Spacey, Bening and Birch) is a 1999 Film with many interpersonal conflicts that are never resolved. Basically a comedy and drama about Lester Burnham's mid-life crisis but also showing the personal crisis of every other major character, the movie shows a father-daughter conflict between Lester and Jane Burnham that could have been resolved. Communication, time and their common characteristics are three factors that could have resolved Lester's and Jane's interpersonal conflict, if Lester had lived longer.

Everybody in Lester Burnham's life, including Lester and his daughter, Jane, think that he is a "loser." The conflict between them is shown early in the movie, at dinner. Lester, Carolyn and Jane Burnham are having their family dinner at home, Lester asks about Jane's school day and she eventually says sarcastically, "It was spectacular." Then, when Lester discusses his job problem and Jane does not seem interested,…

Critical Path

The author of this response is asked to look at a project management scenario. There are two questions posed with that scenario that the author of this response is expected to answer. The first question is what the critical path is for RockFest and how long the project will take given the paths involved. The second question asks the author what activities the author of crash if step B ends up taking five weeks instead of the currently projected three weeks.

Questions Answered

The critical path of the project is A-B-D-E-F-G-O. The duration of the project under that critical path would be 34 weeks. There are other project arcs that are fairly close to the critical path in terms of length, but the one listed above is at least four weeks longer than all of the others. The second closest project arc is A-B-P, which comes to 30…

Vanilla Sky -- It's All in His Head

From first moment to last, the movie Vanilla Sky, produced by Paramount Pictures and written and directed by Cameron Crowe, offers a confusing physical landscape based on a confusing mental landscape. The viewer is never certain if he is viewing a dream or a waking reality or a warped psychological construct that might be a combination of waking and dreaming or conscious and unconscious realities.

The film opens with a voice saying "Abre los ojos." Abre Los Ojos is the name of the 1997 Spanish film of which Vanilla Sky is a remake. The voice which speaks these words, recorded on David Aames, played by Tom Cruise, alarm clock, is that of Sophia, played by Penelope Cruz. Thus, the movie begins with the hero awakening from sleep, possibly a dream, into what seems to be reality. But is it? The first voice,…

James Dean, both his real life, and how it related to his role in the movie "Rebel without a Cause." It will relate the themes of youth violence, and parent/youth relationships between James Dean and his personal life and the movie and real life in the 1950's.

JAMES DEAN AND THE MOVIES got it and I know if I better myself that there will be no match. A fellow must have confidence. - James Dean

James Dean was one of the most popular stars of the 1950s. Ironically, he only made three films before he died, but they were all popular at the box office, and increased his popularity with his fans. The film he is most remembered for is "Rebel without a Cause," released in 1955, after he was killed in a car accident. Dean has always embodied the "bad boy," and "Rebel without a Cause" did nothing to…

O rother, Where Art Thou?

Homer in Hollywood: The Coen rothers' O rother, Where Art Thou?

Could a Hollywood filmmaker adapt Homer's Odyssey for the screen in the same way that James Joyce did for the Modernist novel? The idea of a high-art film adaptation of the Odyssey is actually at the center of the plot of Jean-Luc Godard's 1963 film Contempt, and the Alberto Moravia novel on which Godard's film is based. In Contempt, Prokosch, a rich American dilettante film producer played by Jack Palance, hires Fritz Lang to film a version of Homer's Odyssey, then hires a screenwriter to write it and promptly ruins his marriage to rigitte ardot. Fritz Lang gamely plays himself -- joining the ranks of fellow "arty" German-born directors who had earlier deigned to act before the camera (like Erich von Stroheim in Wilder's Sunset oulevard, playing a former director not unlike himself, or…

This section has incredible sound editing with the camera bobbing up and down out of the water and the sound going from muffled to vibrant. Spielberg then gets to the beach and goes back and forth between individual shots of one or two men, and then wider shots of the full scope of the battle. This gives the view the sense of the personal and the large-scale event. Hanks' character finally gets to shelter on the beach and the sound goes quiet as he is shell shocked; this technique of low sound and slow motion creates the feeling of disorientation for the audience. Moving up the beach, the camera is hand-held so the shots are tight and shaky with the people cut off at the sides of the frame. This technique makes the action seem more intimate and gives a real sense of what the action was like on the…

Colors directed by Dennis Hopper. Specifically it will analyze how the film portrays the 1980s in Los Angeles, California. This film represents the side of California, Hollywood, or Los Angeles that most people do not think about or see. It portrays the world of gangs in South Central Los Angeles, seen from the LAPD point-of-view. The film portrays the 1980s world of gang warfare that is now so prevalent throughout America, and it shows a side of California that most residents would like to ignore.

The stereotypical Californian is beautiful, tanned, blonde, and successful. They lunch in Beverly Hills, work in the film or television industry, own fantastic cars and homes, and live a life of luxury. This film is not about the stereotypical Californian. Instead, it tackles the real world of poverty and violence in the barrios and ghettos of Los Angeles, and it shows the seedier side of…

It is a humorous take on the time of unrest between the two World Wars, when Germany smarting from the ignominious defeat after the First World War allowed Hitler to take charge. This led to the large scale extermination of the Jewish people. This film is about what might have been if Hitler had a change of heart. This film also underhandedly mentions the Great Depression. In the last speech of the movie, the Charlie Chaplin character, the barber, who is mistaken for Adenoid Hynkel, bemoans greed and the loss of democarcy. This Jewish barber also calls for peace and for soldiers to drop their weapons and fight against those who would enslave them and force them to resort to untold instances of violence. The fact that this film was made in 1940 is remarkable and shows great courage on the part of Chaplin. The war was still five years…

Other studios relied on a few stars, but nevertheless did very well: Fox made an estimated $20 million on Shirley Temple, while Universal had WC Fields and Abbott and Costello. David O. Selznick split off in the mid-30's from MGM and started his own studio, relying on top-quality movies to break into the studio system's hold on the business (Dinks).

Conclusion: The reakdown of the Star System

One could argue that the star system has never left us. Even today, the drawing power of an Angelina Jolie or a rad Pitt can make the difference between mediocre and strong box-office results. "Star Power" exists as long as stars have the ability to bring a positive impact on the results of a picture. What is different from the "star system" of the 1930's is that the stars, directors and independent producers have much more power than they did at that time.…

Mulholland Drive directed by David Lynch. Specifically it will discuss symbolism in the film, character development and conflict among the characters, some of the storytelling techniques used, and how lighting is used and how it affects the mood of the film. David Lynch has become famous in Hollywood for his unusual, even strange films, and Mulholland Drive is no exception. The film is extremely symbolic of Hollywood and the dreams that people carry inside them. The film symbolizes dreams, but also sin, death, love, and the need for fame that guides so many in Hollywood.

The film's symbolism is often buried in the way Lynch creates a film. The lighting, the twisted plots, and the dreamlike sequences all blend to create another world, and that leads to another symbol in the film -- Hollywood. The characters all want to succeed in Hollywood, because they want fame and fortune, which Hollywood…

Production: Gaumont-British; Producer: Michael Balcon; Screenplay and Adaptation: Charles Bennett and Alma Reville from the novel by John Buchan; Principal Actors: Madeleine Carroll, Robert Donat, Lucie Mannheim and Godfrey Tearle

The 39 Steps was based on the John Buchan novel, written in 1915. Hitchcock freely adapted and changed the premise of the novel that very little of the original plot remained. Buchan, who was also the British Governor General in Canada at that time, was initially upset; but, after he saw the final product, he admitted that the film was much better than his novel.

This was the first time that Hitchcock used the now often-repeated theme of sympathy for the man unjustly framed and on the run, all the while attempting to clear his besmirched name and find the real culprit. Hitchcock also used the techniques of combining two scenes unrelated visually but by sound. The director relied more…

Shorty directed by Barry Sonnenfeld. Specifically it will discuss how the film fits into the rubric for a detective story. "Get Shorty" seems more like an adventure or action film at first, but it is really a finely woven detective story that leaves the viewer second-guessing the characters up until the very last minute of the film. It fits the rubric of a detective-mystery story quite well, and is entertaining and funny, too.

There are several crimes rolled into one in this film. At first, the crime seems to be Lou the dry cleaner's crime of running off with Mr. Bones money, but that is only the beginning in a string of crimes that include Harry Zimm's owing the Vegas casino, Bo, the limo company owner's money that Harry lost, and finally the South American drug lord whose nephew and $500,000 are missing. So there are several crimes that the…

The camera offers a wide and high angle view of the event each time it occurs. Tykwer varies camera angles throughout the movie, offering different perspectives of reality.

The camera follows Lola running through the streets of Berlin, frequently showing her clearly in focus while the background becomes a blur. Many of the running shots are at a straight angle, eye level with Lola. Occasionally, Tykwer takes the viewer from ground level to bird's eye in a few seconds, panning the camera in one shot from the street to the tops of buildings. The rapid panning signifies motion and therefore corresponds to the movie's main theme. Moreover, the effect of camera tracking is like a train and trains are another recurring motif in Run Lola Run. Manni loses the bag of money on the train; each time Lola runs toward the bank she passes a train.

Diagonal, angular, or oblique…

Boyz in the Hood to Gangs of New York

John Singleton's directorial debut Boyz n the Hood was released to critical acclaim in 1991, depicting with gritty realism the violence awaiting an entire generation of young men living in sprawling cities that were struggling under the weight of endemic urban decay. Starring Cuba Gooding Jr., Laurence Fishburne, Morris Chestnut and Angela Basset, Boyz n the Hood managed to capture the visceral reality of gang-related violence from a truly modern perspective, portraying the story of a vulnerable young man named Tre Styles. The concept of youthful abandonment preceding a life of gang affiliation, criminality and violence is integral to the thematic structure of Boyz n the Hood, as Tre's positive decisions throughout the film are largely influenced by his patient father Furious Styles -- while his friends from the neighborhood lack such steady parental guidance and are increasingly drawn toward the…

Dark Knight rises has had a very strong fan following ever since the release of Batman Begins (2005) and the Dark Knight (2008). Therefore, it was not surprising to find the excited and anxious crowd in a very huge number. The crowd had already set the mood of the film as they cheered and roared with excitement to watch the film, thanks to the trailers that had filled the crowd with a lot of hope for this film.

Usually the best seat to have in a theatre is in the middle of the theatre and in the centre. So that it is not much elevated or has a side perspective of the film. All this said, I was not very lucky to get the seat in the extreme centre, but I did manage to get four seats away from the centre (middle row). The view was not bad so I…

In 21 Grams, the narrative darkens and is localized. Inarritu deepens his exploration of class differences, but this time on the U.S. side of the New orld Order that has been brought about by the North American Free Trade Agreement. According to Ohchi, 21 Grams consists of three narratives whose protagonists differ from each other, but are interconnected (ibid. 3-4)

Babel is just really Amores Perros and 21 Grams written on an international canvas and echoes much of the social commentary in Inarritu's 2000 maiden film. According to Soelistyo and Setiawan, another term for this type of film is hyperlink cinema. hile in many films, this methodology can result in a film where the interlocking stories spin out of control, in Babel Inarritu is fully in command and retains full control of the stories and plot lines (Soelistyo and Setiawan 176). As the name implies, seemingly disparate story lines are…

Black Hawk Down, directed by idley Scott. Specifically, it will look at a summary of the film, what part of the film was accurate, what impact it had on the period; what impact it had on future periods; and what impact, if any, it may have on you. "Caring about someone's life, rather than your own," is a very powerful and brave belief to breathe under, as declared by producer, Jerry Bruckheimer. "Black Hawk Down" brings out the "heroism under fire" by which every brotherly soldier of the U.S. angers and Delta Force reside.

HISTOY AND BLACK HAWK DOWN

Somalia - 1993. Two sides were fighting against each other to gain control of Somalia. One was led by "a member of the Abgal (Hawiye) subclan, and the other by General Mohamed Farad Aidid, a member of the Habr Gidir (Hawiye) subclan" (Lefebvre 49). By November 1991, thousands of Mogadishu residents…

Terminator and Matrix evolutions

When a Californian speaks of the "terminator," almost anyone listening will wonder briefly if the emerging dialogue is to be about the actor/governor of California (Arnold Schwarzenegger) or the film, The Terminator. And if the discussion is to be about the movie The Terminator then which "Terminator" will be in focus - one, two, or three? For purposes of this paper, the focus will be on The Terminator (1984) and Terminator 3: ise of the Machines (2003), and, also, on The Matrix evolutions.

The Terminator: The big career break for Arnold Schwarzenegger was not when he became a well-known body-builder. His huge break was playing the lead role in The Terminator, the first of three science-fiction films that were also action-thrillers.

The plot: It is the "Year of Darkness," 2029, and a powerful and intelligent computer named Skynet continues to battle human resistance on Earth, after…

Some of the best military leaders of the time ignored him, and that is a pretty sad statement about our country's military. Mitchell was a war hero, but he was a real hero too, because of the way he stood up to the military and made matters public.

This film is based on the true story of Billy Mitchell, and it is well acted and very dramatic at times. I found myself hoping that he would be found innocent, but cynical enough to believe in the power of the military leaders. Again, this film finds fault with the people at the top, and it shows just how poorly run the military really is. Of course, this took place in the 1920s and 1930s, but there is no reason it could not (and does not) happen today. One very real example is the body armor and truck armor issue in Iraq…

A Hero’s Journey: Steamboat Bill, Jr.
The Initiation stages of the hero’s journey are evident in the 1928 silent comedy classic Steamboat Bill, Jr. starring Buster Keaton as the titular hero. In the film, the young college grad Willie Canfield returns back home to River Town Junction to rejoin his father, Steamboat Bill, a big tall burly man who wears blue collar river boat clothes and owns and operates the steamer Stonewall Jackson. There is new competition on the river in the form of the new steamer King, owned by the wealthiest man in town J. J. King. The film opens with King’s steamer paddling up to a grand reception at the pier while Bill in his dilapidated steamer looks on and expresses his disdain. It is then that a letter arrives telling Bill that his son is heading home. Bill tells his partner excitedly that he has not seen…

Now a man and woman have joined the group. They are a bit younger looking than my parents are. They look distressed. They both look sad. But it's more than sadness.

My arm is aching again. I wish the bunny with the giant eye dropper would come back. Whatever it was that he sprayed on me, was so cool and refreshing, and most importantly it made the pain stop. It made me not care if there was a storm outside or not. Actually, it made me forget about the storm. The storm. I'd almost forgotten. Is that how this whole thing started? The storm, and the trees thrashing, and the lights. Oh yeah! I had forgotten about the lights. Not the lightning. Some other kind of lights.

Blinding lights. Like the snow blizzard.

Why won't someone come in here and help me. I don't understand. I can see them outside…

teacher, understanding the importance of supporting and encouraging constructive children's play, both indoors and outdoors was key. Through hands on experience, I got the chance to get involve with children's play with first graders. What caught my attention the most, was the role indoor played in the children's cognitive development. For example, when I took a closer look at children's play, I was able to see that it did more than just stimulate physical, social-emotional, and creative growth. I also discovered that Play is the primary way by which children are able to discover the world, investigate its properties, and construct an accepting in regards to how the world functions. One example was when I witnessed a small group of children that were playing in the block part, constructing with plastic unit blocks.

They start by endeavoring to put various shapes and sizes of unit blocks on top of each…