The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of...

Final Exam

Your take-home question is the following:

For better or for worse, violence and conflict have been two predominant themes in late 20th-early 21st century American cinema. What specific historical factors do you think may have impacted these themes, and why? How did the mise-en-scene of the films we examined change specifically as a result?

Like at the midterm, this is open book and open notes, and should be typed. Limit your writing to 2 hours (although your proofreading - so that you don't lose points - and correcting can go over this time limit, if you need to!) This essay will be due at the in-class portion of the final on Monday, May 7th at 6 pm.

The in-class will be on the question of adaptation and The Da Vinci Code.

BTW... another curious fact I forgot to mention last Wednesday...

"Another dubious and much-contested fact is Dan Brown’s description of the entrance to the Louvre itself. Brown claims that the controversial Louvre pyramid – completed in 1989– is made up of exactly 666 panes of glass. Various books deny this, although they themselves seem unable to agree on the exact number – just that it isn’t 666! The home page of the company who provide the lights for the pyramid states that there are 675 glass rhombus shapes and 118 triangles, but glassonweb – a website for all your glass needs – goes for 603 rhombus shapes and 70 triangular ones. So, no real help there – and we can only wonder just where Brown got his number from." (from The Fortean Times)

Da Vinci Code Links

Lecture links:

JUST FOR FUN...

Cold War Cinema

Extra Credit Opportunity THIS WEEKEND!

The epic mini-series "Band of Brothers" will be on the History Channel THIS WEEKEND!

It's an amazing series, and well worth every minute you watch. It came out not long after "Saving Private Ryan" and was another partnership between Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks which has much the same cinematic style and impact.

Saturday, April 21st: Parts 1-5, from 12:30PM to 7PM
Sunday, April 22nd: Parts 6-10, from 12:30PM to 7PM

(In addition, it's also available at Blockbuster!)

Because it is a TEN PART MINISERIES, I will give you until the end of the semester to complete viewing and writing-up this assignment. In addition, because I recommend so highly this series, I want to give you an incentive to watch as much of it as humanly possible. :-) As a result, for each episode that you see, evaluate it using at least two of our three major historical analyses, i.e., 1) its role in the history of film (or television); 2) as a primary source; and/or 3) as a secondary source.

For each write-up that you do (and do well), I'll give you 2 points of extra-credit to be applied where you need it most!

Enjoy the viewing!

FYI: listentoamovie.com!

(Including "Adaptation")

Last Installment of Syllabus!!

Wow, the end of the semester is already upon us!! There's so much that I'd still want to cover with ya'll... but here's what we've got time left to do!

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “History is written by the victors.” - Winston Churchill

April 11 - WAR & CINEMA, PART I
Reading Assignment - American Cinema, American Culture, Chap. 9; Propaganda (fyi...)

In-Class Viewing

Finish Hotel Rwanda

Sixth Media That Matters Film Festival: "In Transit" & "Eyes on the Fair Use of the Prize"

Introduction to Walt Disney: On the Front Lines

Der Fuehrer's Face (1942)

Introduction to Victory through Air Power (1943)

Victory through Air Power trailer

Duck Soup (1933)

Why We Fight: War Comes to America (1943-1945)

"This is Frank Capra's classic first installment from the seven film series entitled, 'Why We Fight.' It is a masterpiece of US propaganda, shown first to soldiers, later to the US public, and eventually to our allies (including the Soviet Union). With dramatic narration and musical score, it drives home the point that "Our World, the free world" must fight "That other world." Capra's idea was to use the film archives of Japanese, German, and Italian propagandists against them with, of course, careful editing and translating." (imdb)

"Walter Huston's grandfatherly voice is used effectively to narrate most of the film with a deftly written script. In the hands of a lesser film maker, the materials presented here would be nothing but propaganda on the level used by Hitler. But Capra stirs the spirit at the same time that he is making his point -- namely, freedom is not something that can be taken for granted. Capra skillfully makes his point that if free people don't stand up for themselves, they will likely be crushed by all the darker elements in human nature -- greed, lust for power, and tyranny." (imdb)

April 18 - WAR & CINEMA, PART II

Reading Assignment - American Cinema, American Culture, Chap. 13

Also, don't forget to bring your brief analysis of one of the films from 4/11 as 1) its role in the history of cinema; 2) as a primary source; and 3) as a secondary source.

In-Class Viewing -