Boyhood: Blog Post

This is a very unique film that took a span of 12 years to make and some may say it is a one of a kind film. There were many interesting features about this film besides the fact it took so long to make. We are able to see a family grow right before our eyes and see all the ups and downs a family goes through. The cinematic aspects of this film are very interesting and well done, but the one that stuck out to me the most was the camera shots/angles. A scene where I thought this was displayed very well was when Mason and his father went to one of his fathers buddies shows. As they sat on the top level overlooking the ban, Mason's father friend notices how big Mason has gotten since the last time he had seen him. He looks above from the stage and tells him how big he's gotten and all of the wonderful things his father has told him about Mason. I found this to be interesting, almost as a turning point for Mason as he appears to be standing all high and mighty at the top as he over looks the band and his told all these positive things about him. I feel the director was trying to portray that things for Mason were finally looking up as he was getting ready to take off for college. That he was starting to figure out what he wanted to do with his life. Another scene that used this aspect well was the very last scene when Mason is off at college and is hiking with his new friends. He is sitting with a girl he met and they are having small conversation, nothing important, just getting to know you talk. But in the moment, it seems more than just small talk, Mason overlooks the mountains realizing this is were he starts his life. The open space symbolizes all the opportunities he has in life and it all starts here.

A moment in this film where I thought that this aspect wasn't used to its full potential was when Mason is getting ready to leave for college with his mom and his mom begins to cry and review her life as a waste. This is the first time we see Mason's mom really show a negative attitude and I thought was a key part to the film, but there was nothing special about the scene. I thought they could of had more interesting cinematic aspects to it, especially with the camera angles.

I felt that this cinematic aspect helped emphasize the importance of someone's childhood. The free and careless aspect of a childhood is important, to do whatever you want and be able to try new things out and see what you like and dislike. It also shows some of the traumatizing things some people have to go through like seeing your parents get a divorce or experiencing your first love slip through your fingers, thinking you'll never find anyone else like that again. This movie does a great job letting viewers observe this and maybe help us reflect on our own childhood or help people that are passed that stage in life to make sure that they will look at their own kids childhood differently.

I think that another movie that used this cinematic aspect well was The Dark Knight. This was a very high spoken movie and many peoples favorite, but what I felt made the movie so effective was the unique camera shots they had throughout the film. Christopher Nolan did a great job of making Batman look even more powerful than he already is with his camera angles. The scene that stands out to me the most is one of the very last scenes where Batman is faced with a decision on whether to try and save Harvey Dent and turn him good again, or eliminate him to save innocent lives. During this scene, the camera angles are shot at a low point when facing Batman to make him look more superior than Harvey Dent. This gives the viewers a sense on who might come put on top at the end of the scene.

MYST Post #2

Good Will Hunting:
This is a movie of opportunity and willingness to take a chance when no one else believed in you. Its a movie that shows that it doesn't matter what background someone comes from or "what kind of hand" they were dealt with at the start, but that anyone has true potential in life but sometimes it takes a certain individual to reveal that hidden talent. I felt that after watching this film, I found that the best cinematic aspect was the camera angles. One of the most powerful scenes was when Matt Damon meets Robin Williams for the second time and they sit at a park bench overlooking the pond. Robin can see that it is going to take some work to get through to Damon so he begins to try to relate to him through his hardships as a child. The camera focuses on Robin as he tells his troubled past and we no longer can see Damon as the film really wants us to focus on what Robin has to say. As he is almost done saying what he has to say, the camera slowly drifts back and allows us to see Damon's reaction. He sits there almost puzzled and afraid as this angle helps us go through Damon's realization of his own problems through Robins experience.

One of the most important scenes in this film was the very last one when Ben Affleck, Damon's best friend, slowly walks up to Damon's house, as he always does every morning, and knocks on his door to pick him up. But for the first time, Damon isn't there to answer the door. Affleck confused knocks again and looks through the window to see if his friend is inside but he seems to not be home. Affleck takes a step back and just gives a small smirk as he heads back to his car knowing that his dear friend took his advice to go make something of himself. He told him earlier in the movie that he has an opportunity that everyone around him would kill for. That he shouldn't accept the position he's at in life and take a chance to go do something. Throughout the movie he had people telling him to step up and do what his unique knowledge would allow him to do, but it took his best friend to finally give him that eye opening wake up call and pursue what he wanted in life and not let his past hold him back any longer.

If I had to compare this movie to another, I would choose The Internship. This is a classic Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson comedy but it has a positive message to it, one similar to Good Will Hunting. Its about these two best friends that just lost their jobs and are looking for a new career path to take, so they decide to get an internship with Google. They are both not familiar at all with all the demands that are asked of an employee of Google but work their way up the chain. They have many people who doubt them and try to discourage them throughout the movie, but these two friends push each other to be better and really believe that they can be better. Without the support from each other, they would both fail to achieve the goal they set out for themselves. So with that said, it just takes one person who truly believes in you and supports you for you to reach your goal in life and that anyone can do anything with the right mindset and surroundings.

Short Term 12: Blog Post

A young and very emotionally damaged teenager named Marcus is one of the main characters in the film Short Term 12 and as we learn during the film that he has been apart of the program for a while now. He is portrait as a very lonely kid that seems to block everyone out. In one of the scenes, he is sitting in his room when Marcus walks in and wants to hear the rap lyrics he's been working on. We get a unique close up camera shot focusing on Marcus while Mason is in the background, almost seeming irrelevant to the scene. Marcus begins to rap and his lyrics show his troubles in the past and how he really feels. Mason is in shock and has no words to express his sorrow towards him but as he talks, the camera is still focused on Marcus, waiting for a response from Mason. Another great example of the excellent camera angles in this film is when Grace and Mason are shaving Marcus's hair for his birthday. After they are done and tell Marcus to check out his hair, he just hangs his head low and refuses to look into the mirror. We get an interesting angle from the back of Marcus, only being able to see his face through the mirror he is sitting in front of. This angle really gives us a good feel about what Marcus is going through, as he is too ashamed or scared to even look to see his own reflection knowing it will only remind him of his dark past.

I thought that this was an incredible movie all the way around regarding cinematic aspects, but there was one scene where I felt that they lacked with the camera angles. In the very last scene of the movie when Mason is telling the rest of the staff about the very heart warming story about Marcus after he got out of their program, I felt that the camera shots weren't very productive for a scene that I felt was extremely important because it showed the impact they had on these poor kids lives and helped them be able to have a future.

Throughout this film, the director uses many close up scenes to really capture the emotion of the characters. As being a viewer, I really felt through these close up shots that I knew these kids and could really feel their pain. This is a very impactful movie and allows us viewers to peak behind some of the dark curtains that kids in real life have to go through. I was honestly really affected by this film and the close up shots helped me a lot to be able to jump into the movie.

While this movie did an excellent job with their camera angles, especially the close up shots, I think that A Place Beyond the Pines was another good example of this cinematic aspect. These movies have very different plots and overall settings as well, but both have the same emotional level. And this is achieved with the very good camera angles. Bradley Cooper and Ryan Gosling were the main characters in this film having Cooper playing the role as a cop and Gosling playing as a intense biker guy. The most significant scene from that film is when Cooper finally traps Gosling and finally has the chance to arrest him, but ends up wrongfully shooting him, ending his life. This scene really captured the suspense to it with the close up shots on Cooper and Gosling. When Cooper slowly draws his weapon thinking Gosling is as well, but is only expecting his own fate, he is mistakenly killed.

MYST Post #1

Short Term 12:
     I thought this was an outstanding movie from every way you look at it. It delivered a powerful message with constantly great acting throughout the film. I also thought that some of the cinematic aspects of the film were very good, like the camera angles. This film did a wonderful job in capturing some of the emotional scenes with certain camera angles. The angles that were shot really gave us a better view on these kids and what they were going through. When Jade was telling Grace her short story she made, you could begin to see a hidden message from hear story by the way she told it. The camera angles did a good job depicting that for the viewers.
     I can honestly say after watching this movie that it is one of my favorites now. The overall message that it brings is very emotional and ground breaking. It gives a peak behind the curtain of how some kids aren't as lucky as most and what they go through on a daily basis. When I really think of it, there isn't a movie I can compare it to, I have never felt as emotional as I did after watching this movie and I got me thinking about some of the advantages I have in my life that some kids don't, so therefor this movie made me very grateful for the things I do have.
     There were many tear jerking scenes in this film, but if I had to pick one scene it would be when Marcus is showing Mason his new rap lyrics in his room and he really opens up through his song. It leaves Mason pretty much speechless and for the first time was able to see how Marcus truly felt. There were many scenes in this movie that showed the kids not being able to just simply tell them what is going on inside their head, so they would use songs or stories they made to reveille their deep pain.

    

MYST Post #2

Inception:
       There are so many things about this movie that make it so great, the mind blowing concept, the intense actions scenes and unbelievable acting cast, but not many people really look into a movie like this and take a deeper look into things like the cinematic aspects. An example of this would be the editing. There are not many movies that can compare to this one when looking at the editing work. Christopher Nolan really out did himself on this film, especially in the scene where Joseph Gordon- Levitt was being chased down a hotel hallway and all of the sudden the room completely flips upside down as they are battling while trying to keep their balance with the constant atmosphere change. The scene continues to Joseph struggling to get into his room to reach the device that helps them transport from level to level, when all of the sudden in the real word, s friend is pushed into the water making his level lose control. The slow motion scene of his friend being pushed into the water was one of the most dramatic scenes throughout the entire movie. As he was falling, the viewers could tell that something wrong was about to happen.
       This is hands down one of the most interesting movies I have ever seen. The overall concept absolutely blew my mind to the point where I had to watch it multiple times to fully understand what was going on. This movie honestly doesn't compare to many, but if I had to pick one movie I would have to compare it to Momento. I pick this movie not because it exactly has the same concept, but the way the movie was portrayed can be relatable to Inception. Momento is another movie I had to get a second glance at because I didn't fully understand what the director was trying to do, but once again I viewed it another time, I understood and like inception, but very pleased and intrigued.
       There where many heart pounding scenes in this movie, but if I had to pick one, it would be the scene where Leonardo DiCaprio is face to face with his wife who is on the edge of a ledge about to jump. They exchange words but its no use, she jumps to her death as Leonardo can only watch helplessly. This scene though, was in another level, in other words not real time. So the interesting part is when she died, she just moved into a deeper more dangerous level that no on dared to go in.

      

 

Mometo Blog Post

This was hands down one of the most interesting films I have ever seen, and with that said, the cinematic aspects were very impressive to me. If I had to really focus on one of the aspects it would definitely be the unique way Christopher Nolan used the black and white scenes as a flash back. While watching this movie, I honestly didn't understand what he was trying to do with it while I was watching the movie, but once I really looked into it I realized what he was trying to piece together. As we all know, the movie wasn't exactly put together from start to finish and that itself made the movie very intriguing, but throughout the movie, it would cut back to a black and white scene usually with Lenard talking on the phone with an unknown person. This was meant to be a flash back and show us Lenard piecing together his thought process of this "story" that he was trying to understand himself, when in reality, it was him telling this person all about his own life without him evening knowing it. With his difficult condition, he isn't able to remember much of anything since his accident, so throughout the coarse of his life, he was able to train his brain to think that what he did actually happen to someone else, so he wanted to be able to relate to it and figure out how he dealt with this condition and help himself out. I also feel that the black and white scenes had a hidden message, telling the viewers that something wasn't exactly right with Lenard's story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Formal Film Study (Saving Private Ryan, Schindler's List, The Thin Red Line)

2.) Style: The three movies I watched are from a very impactful time period in the United states past, with that said, it was very important to capture every key moment in each movie. Steven Spielberg was the director for two of the movies that I watched(Saving Private Ryan, Schindler's List), and I personally thought that he did a wonderful job with the cinematic styles throughout both movies. In the first scene of Saving Private Ryan, the United States storm the enemy beach and take a heavy hit. I found the camera angles were very impressive in this scene. When a bomb went off by Tom Hanks, his vision began to become blurry and the angle they were filming at perfectly portrayed Hanks distress and also showed the faces of his men under his command in complete fear. In Schindler's List, I thought it was very creative to make the entire movie in black and white. I felt that this was a message to the people viewing this as showing them the horror during the Holocaust and really brought the movie to life without having it filmed in color. The third movie I watched was The Thin Red Line, I thought that the aesthetics were very key in this film. They really captured the beautiful atmosphere of the Guadalcanal when the soldiers would wait back for any signs of enemies up ahead. There were scenes that just overlooked the land and in a stressful and fearful scene, somehow was able to portrayed peace.
Politics/History: All three movies are about an extremely important period of time during World War Two. The Holocaust is looked at as one of the biggest tragedies to ever happen in man kinds existence. Millions of people did under the wraith of Adolf Hitler. Schindler's List did not hold back on the horrible things that took place and personally had an effect on me. I caught myself becoming very emotional throughout the film, can not even imaging what it was like to be those poor innocent people during that time. At the beginning of Saving Private Ryan, it started out on the very well known day during WWII known as D-Day. This was a key battle during the war for us and helped us gain further into enemy territory.
4.) My Biggest Discovery: After watching all three movies , I found that the changing of the tempo in all three movies was very interesting. What I mean by this is that in a war film, we expect much violence and saddening and depressing scenes, which was true for all three, but I thought that the more calming scenes in the movies were brilliant. In The Thin Red Line, they had so many scenes where everyone would be peacefully gazing over the field and a ray of sunshine would reflect off of the grass perfectly, then just like that, gun shots were fired and people were dropping left and right. For a second, it almost was like I wasn't even watching a movie about war, as if it was some kind of nature documentary and I was viewing the beautiful landmarks of an island. In Schindler's List there was a scene of a party with plenty of happy people having the times of their lives, looking as they don't have a care in the world. Then it would immediately jump into the next scene of the German Soldiers torturing the poor Jews.
5.) A smaller interesting detail about the films I watched were that all three very good soundtrack. I thought that they did a great job capturing an important scene with the right kind of music. In Schindler's List when the man with one arm is taken away by the Germans to be executed, they begin to play soft music that builds up as the poor man gets closer to his death. Also in Saving Private Ryan, when Tom Hanks is left wounded on the bridge and helplessly shots at the enemy tank, the music starts to set in indicating to us that he is inching towards his last moments.
6.) http://evanerichards.com/2009/55 (Saving Private Ryan camera angles/shots)

Citizen Kane: Blog Post

Riley Farra
There were many good cinematic aspects in this film, but I thought that the transitions from scene to scene was very well done and interesting. And when I say interesting, I mean they left me puzzled at times in a creative way. There were many scenes where they would jump from one scene to another completely different setting that made me really think about what was going on. My favorite transition was when Kane and his second wife just got done with a heated argument and the movie takes us to the balcony where we are awaited by a bird that lets out a loud screech and for some reason doesn't have any eyes, allowing us to see through it. It made me take a step back and really try to understand what the director was trying to say to us and I think that this hidden message was telling us that Kane towards the end of the movie was finally being reveled for who he truly was as a person and was no longer dominate in his own eyes. Throughout the movie, he had this ego where he could do whatever he wanted to and that he was untouchable, but after this scene of his vulnerability being reveled, we see that he is slowly being broken down. Movie critics call this movie one of the best films ever made, and I believe they were talking about unique things like this transition as being one of the main reasons why.

1935 Movie Project

Lunatic,
This 1935 film, featuring Barbara Stanwyck performing as Nicole Freeze, Jimmy Stewart performing as Dylan Freeze and James Cagney performing as Daniel Turner, is a thriller/horror, directed by the famous Robert Flaherty, film that in some scenes will chill you to the bone. 20th Century Fox is the new kid on the block but intends to have their viewers at the edge of their seats throughout this film. Nicole and Dylan are a newly wed couple that just moved into a small house located in Dallas Texas. Their new home is surrounded by nothing but open land and loneliness. One day they have an encounter with a strange man and he wont leave them alone until he gets what he wants. This film is something for the people that want to experience a thrilling story that will take their minds off of the war being fought over seas. This film is put in black and white because at the time color movies weren't as popular yet and also it gives an eerie vibe towards the movie that will create more of a suspenseful feeling for our viewers. This partly violent film will might have a difficult time dealing with the Hay's code not allowing certain things in a movie that might be beneficial to a movie like Lunatic. This happily married couple tries their best to stay alive while keeping each other safe from Daniel Turner, a local with a troubling past that losses his mind and is motivated to inflict his past pain on the new comers. Some of his actions in attempting to put this couple through absolute misery would go against the code so there will not be any gory scenes or gruesome stab wounds. Rather a more suspenseful or not as violent way in his actions. This film felt the need to hire a well experienced and respected cinematographer like James Wong Howe. His unique techniques with he way he used his camera to get the perfect shot or angle was brilliant and Robert Flaherty thought he would be the right man to capture this heart pounding film. At the end of the story, Dylan and Nicole freeze battle their way to safety and put Daniel Turner Behind bars for good. Nicole is crippled from an intense car chase that ended in her car crashing full speed into a tree but she is thankful for coming out alive. This movie would be a big hit with young couples that are looking for a gripping and intense movie that will have them covering one eye at all times. With the help of James Wong Howe capturing every powerful scene, there is no reason why this movie shouldn't take off and be nominated for many awards.

MYST Post #1

Pearl Harbor:
            There are so many great things I have to say about this film, but first I want to talk about some of the things that people might not appreciate as much or pay attention to. Some of the "cinema" components that Michael Bay used in this film I thought were very well done, like the soundtrack. In the most impactful scene of the movie when Japan surprises the United States and bombs Pearl Harbor, Bay does a wonderful job fully capturing the moment with the soundtrack. He really brings the viewer in and helps them be able to feel the pain of the fallen soldiers. The editing of that scene as well was spot on. When the planes are soaring from the sky, dropping bomb after bomb making enormous explosions and destruction while the poor American soldiers are running for their lives, these edits really grabbed my attention and brought me in. I also think another scene that had very well done editing was when Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett were battling enemy planes in the sky trying to defend what was left of the harbor.
             This movie does an excellent job telling the story of one of the biggest tragedies to strike the United States. I believe that this is one of Michael Bay's finest work, but if I had to compare this film to another great war film, I would have to put it up along side Saving Private Ryan. Both films do a very good job capturing the sense of what it would be like in war and two very important events in Americas past time. The cinema components are very similar, especially in the very first scene of Saving Private Ryan when the Americans are invading enemy territory. The editing had me stunned and really gave me a better sense of what goes on during war. I also thought the camera angles really brought the scene together nicely. When Tom Hanks was blown off his boat and trying to gather his thoughts together again, the low angles that were used to view Hanks really brought out his confusion to the audience.
             Their were many heart pounding scenes in this film, but if I had to pick the scene I thought really had an impact on me was when the hospital was caring for all of the soldiers and by standers of the attack from Japan. People were pouring in from the streets needing immediate care. Everyone who worked inside the hospital was running around in circles doing their best to treat each patient. One of the main characters just started her duty of being a nurse for the army and was extremely flustered doing her best to help out. She was handed one of the American generals with a blotted clot in his throat and was forced to place her fingers inside in order to prevent this man from bleeding out. The way she took control of the situation with the little experience she had on the job was a very inspiring aspect of the scene and movie. She ends up being able to save this man and he ends up being a big help to her towards the end of the movie.

Review of the Reviews

The movie I selected to talk about is The Town. This is personally one of my favorite movies of all time. I thought Ben Affleck did a wonderful job directing this movie and had a strong performance as well acting in his own movie. I looked up this movie on Rotten Tomatoes and for the most part it received incredible reviews. One of the reviews I thought complimented the movie the best was from Matthew Turner from View London. "This is a hugely enjoyable thriller that confirms Ben Affleck's talent as a director, thanks to a strong script, great set-pieces and terrific performances from a note-perfect cast". I feel that Turner summed up his opinion well about the movie and got straight to the point. His overall tone was very positive and really wanted to make the reader check out this movie. Turner brings up good topics about the movie and really focused on Ben Affleck's superb directing because this was a statement movie for Affleck, he wasn't exactly viewed as a successful director and this movie shut critics right up. He also talked about the very strong cast, Jeremy Renner did an excellent job as the supporting actor to Affleck. His bank robber role as a spontaneous rebel was played very well.

Despite all of the very positive reviews that The Town received, there will still some who disliked the movie. I found a bad review on Rotten Tomatoes from Eric Melin from scenestealers.com. Melin argued the predictability from a typical bank robbery movie. "Affleck is a little wooden... and most of what happens outside of the actual bank robberies themselves is pretty predictable". Melin has always questioned his directing ability and feels that The Town didn't help improve Affleck's status in his eyes. Melin thought the cast was talented, but Affleck himself lacked an emotional standpoint. The tone from Eric was very direct and aggressive. He wasn't afraid at all to put this movie down.

I most strongly agreed with one of Matthew Turner's quotes, "Affleck's direction is superb, firmly cementing his talent as a director after Gone Baby Gone." I felt that Ben Affleck couldn't have done a better job directing this movie. He picked a well thought out story and added the perfect cast for a movie like this. His acting himself only strengthen the movie as well for I am a very big fan of some of the movies he's been in as an actor. One of the quotes that I agreed with from Eric Melin was, "Even if you can see where this movie is going a mile away, though, “The Town” does look fantastic and the robbery and chase scenes are well done. It just feels so familiar—like a song you’ve heard a million times on the radio. When it’s on again, you sing along, but the moment it ends, you’ve forgotten it again". Even though I enjoyed this movie very much, Eric does have a point about the familiar sense the movie has. Most bank robber movies go along the same lines and this one seemed to follow that line in some ways. 

After looking at both of these reviews on The Town, I think that even if I didn't see the movie and was basing my first impressions on these reviews, I think the positive review from Matthew Turner would have the bigger impact on me. The way he went on and on about how well Affleck directed the movie and had many exciting scenes and so on, it just seems more compelling than Melin's review. I believe that the key factor on how a film critic wins a reader over to the critics argument is by being very passionate and direct with their facts.

If I were to write a one page film review on a movie, I would want to make sure I strongly embrace my opinion to the reader and give as many facts why about it. I think that talking in depth about the cast and plot of the story is very important to the reader. For some people, one actor/actress can be the sole reason why they see a movie, so its important to praise these things.

1. What is the first movie that really made a strong impression on you? The first movie that made a strong impression on me was Saving Private Ryan. I've always been very interested in war movies and when i saw this film, i thought it really captured what it was like to be in a war and some of the sacrifices that had to be made during battle.

2. What are 3-4 of your favorite genres? War, Mystery/Thriller, Comedy, Horror

3. What are 3-4 of your least favorite genres? Romance, Silent, Musical

4. What are your five favorite films? Moneyball, Saving Private Ryan, Inception, Dark Knight, The Fighter, The Town

5. List three characteristics of what you consider to be a good movie? A good plot, good actors/ actresses, and a interesting setting

6. What are some of your least favorite movies? Transformers, Fast n Furious, Captain Phillips

7. List three characteristics that you consider to be a bad movie? Bad actors, bad plot, bad special effects

8. If you have any favorite directors list them? Christopher Nolan, Steven Spielberg, David O. Russell

9. What are your favorite actors/actresses? Leonardo Dicaprio, Tom Hanks, Mark Wahlberg, Margot Robbie, Ben Affleck

10. List three films that you consider it important for people to see? JFK, Saving Private Ryan, Blood Diamond

11. What's your oldest favorite movie? Ferris Bueller's day off

12. What's the best movie you've seen that has been released in the past 2 years? Unbroken

13. What are the next five films on your "queue"? Interstellar, American Sniper, foxcather, focus, Gone Girl