Coen Brothers: Are they for REAL?

All throughout this unit I have examined all the films and realized that there hasn't been one that I liked. While this is rare and uncommon for me I do see the reasoning. I'm really into films that have the happy ending and everything turns out well. But what I realized while watching these films is that they really don't and that really makes the movie bad in my eyes. At the end of all them I realized how much of my life had been wasted watching movies that had no good endings and I that left me feeling down.

The most recent film that I can compare to these is The Wrestler. It as well as these had no good ending worth writing about. Randy's daughter never forgives him and he never gets with the stripper who he really likes and we are led to assume that he dies in the end. It was just a long and depressing film that had no good ending because the whole movie your rooting for him to be the guy he wants and time and time again we see that not come true and the film lets us down. It's one of those movies thats supposed to be like realistic, like fairy tales don't really exist and I just didn't like it.

Another element of the films that I didn't like was that they all took place in the middle of no where, this gave us the idea from the beginning that there was just no way out of the situations the characters might get into. I also didn't like how the movies not only are made cheaply but they actually looked cheaped the way that they were filmed. I'm sorry I like the movies that spend and make a lot of money. It makes it more worth my time knowing that this isn't just a film anyone could make with the clothes and special features they used. Overall I would say I'm not a fan of the Coen Brothers and I have yet to see any of their films that I like.

My hope is that this next unit will catch my eye and really keep me intrigued in the dialogue of a foreign film. My hope is that they will have happy endings and it won't be like a dead end movie where you know the endings not good and there is no changing it. Until next time...

Robert Altman

I loved all of the Altman films that we watched because they each had a unique style that is unseen by other movies. My favorite was The Long Goodbye. I usually don't go for movies from the 70s just because from what I've seen they weren't very good but I actually liked this one a lot. I would recommend this to anyone even if they aren't a fan of Altman I would have to say that they need to look at this film before they judge him completely. I'll admit that Nashville was not my favorite film of all the ones we have seen from him but it has potential to be different in a sense that it was really bare boned, ruff film. There was no perfection about this film which I think kind of gives it an edge if you will. Finally The Player was an interesting perspective on the Hollywood behind the scenes kind of movie. I liked it though and I hope that I can view some more of his films in the future. Hopefully he lives up to his name and his other films are as good as these ones.

What I liked about these films the most was that they were really realistic so they are pretty easy to compare to today. For instance some may say that Nashville or at least the killing at the end compares to the death of John Lennon. I would not agree with this just because the person who killed John Lennon at a reason where as the killer of Barbra Jean did not or at least they didn't show that. Then I think that everyone can compare to The Long Goodbye just because I know that everyone has been used by someone before whether it was for friendship or some other reason, I think we all can say that we've been there. But maybe we aren't all as big of push overs as Marlowe but we still can feel for the guy. Finally The Player of course can be compared to Hollywood today I'm sure that there people that get their stories turned down all of the time for whatever reason and I'm sure that these people receive hate mail and death threats all the time. They just don't kill the suspected stocker and then fall in love with his girlfriend. Whats weird is that while they are different they have a reoccurring theme.

In all of Altman's films that we watched the reoccuring theme is that not everything is as it seems. For instance in Nashville we never know what's going to happen because we getting pulled around from story to story never really stopping to look around at the surroundings in order to see the facts. Even in the end when we know whats going to happen its so unexpected that we almost convince ourselves that it wasn't the guy with the violin box who killed her it was the officer. Its weird how the brain works. But anyways then theres Marlowe in The Long Goodbye, we never really see that his friend really did the killings we are led as Marlowe is to believe that its the mofia like guy who killed her. Yet again a suprise ending, I think thats what makes his movies so good because in the end they leave you speechless like how did I miss that. Same with in The Player we follow the character of Griffin and the whole movie we are thinking like him and we as well as he fall for the same mistake. We all overlooked the real killer when in reality it should have been so obvious nothing is that easy and nothing disappears over night. This is a director that should be missed in future classes.

BUBBLE

This movie was a let down compared to other movies he has directed. For instance all the Ocean Movies, I thought they were all really well but I just couldn't follow this one. It was really boring and had an Ed Wood feel. Bubble was probably one of the worst movies I have ever seen before. Steven Soderbergh could have done so much more then he did with the film, while the plot was bad I thought he choose a good range of characters. It was good to see new faces among a well known director like himself. Anyways the plot starts out with these two lower class factory workers named Martha (Debbie Doebereiner) and Kyle (Dustin James Ashley). They are really good friends and all is well until someone new comes to work at the factory and Martha notices Kyle taking an interest. This upsets her because Kyle is her best friend and she doesn't want some dumb girl to take that away from her. So Martha befriends the girl, Rose (Misty Wilkins) in order to gain an upper hand and to show Kyle just how much she cares about him. But it just doesn't seem to be enough because Rose agrees to go on a date with Kyle. Martha can't believe it and finally breaks down and kills Rose in order to keep the friendship she and Kyle once had. But little does Martha know that she actually killed Rose because she blackedout after she did it, totally forgetting everything that had happened that night. But it's not really a shocker because the whole story line is pretty perdictable. I was not impressed one bit I totally would give this movie like one star it was so bad. But I liked that he picked no name actors and actresses because it made the parts seem more realistic, it helps that you can't visualize them in different parts that they have played in the past. This whole movie was very different then other movies he has directed in the past.

Everything about this movie screams Ed Wood. The scenes were poorly shot, known of the scenes really seemed to fit well together, and the story line was just terrible. This is not at all like previous movies that Soderbergh has directed. In his other movies they seem to have a meaning like the Ocean movies are about stealing from the rich and giving to the poor or unlucky and Erin Brockovich is about helping the unfortunate and poor people so that they will no longer be hurt by the big corporations. His narration is always changing so you could say that this movie was just another hanger in the closet of changes he seems to be experimenting with. His characters are different then most of his films because they are no name and for most this is the only movie they have ever been in. Most if not all of his previous works have famous people like Julia Roberts and Brad Pitt. But I don't think this is a bad thing because it adds to the plot line in making it more realistic almost like a documentary. All of his work is good and I think he isn't comparable to anyone because he is own unique person and therefore he shouldn't put in any catergories with other directors. This film however is in a catergory of it's own. It really should be put as one of Ed Woods pieces. It was the worst movie by far that I have ever seen in my lifetime. I would agree with Colin Covert when he said "Soderbergh set out to make a movie about shallow people, but wound up delivering a shallow movie". He's right this movie is one of the worst movies he has ever directed and put out therefore giving it the title of a shallow movie. It had no depth and no deeper meaning it was just kind of put out there and thats that nothing more to it. http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/movies/11524051.html. But I don't agree with Claudia Puig when she says "you have the desire to go back and see it again". This is totally not the case, lets just say if I could I would burn in and get it so no one else would have to go through the torture of watching it. http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/reviews/2006-01-26-bubble_x.htm. Overall I would not recommend this film to anyone because its simply a waste of time and energy. I give the film one out of ten. The only question I have is why on Earth Soderbergh continued it?

Twilight

Twilight is one of the best teen romance movies they have made in a long time. While I haven't read the books I thought it was an amazing movie and I'm glad that I finally got up the nerve to see it. This is the only movie that I have seen in theaters more then once. I thought it was good because it always had you wondering when are they going to kiss and you never know when things are going to happen. I thought this was a good movie because you didn't have to read the books to understand what is going on. Also it was nice that the movie wasn't overbearing with vampires and the whole Gothic idea. I think they would have had a smaller crowd if they would have made it that way. I really liked how they weren't afraid to change the idea of vampires. For instance making them not able to go into the sun because they would be all shiny instead of burning or how when you go to Edward's (Robert Pattinson) house how its so open and there aren't coffins. I thought it was a well written film and I can't wait to read the books.

I agree with Ty Burr when he said that at times it could get annoying with the girls screaming and those same girls reciting lines from the movie. I also thought that he was right when he said that the two main characters were well picked for the parts. I loved every minute of the movie. It's wierd every movie the director, Catherine Hardwicke has directed I have loved and I think she really blew this one out of the ball park. I really hope they make sequels to this movie. I believe that Burr explained Edward Cullen, he really knew what he was talking about when he was describing him. I also believe that Pattinson did a nice job with the acting. I mean he had to play so many different angles for his character and I think he did a really nice job. Overall I would recommend this movie to anyone and I would give this movie a 9 1/2 out of 10.

http://www.boston.com/movies/display?display=movie&id=11203

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

I loved this film I thought it did a nice job of keeping the viewer intrigued. I have never seen a film like this one. It goes from reality to being in the mind and memory of Joel (Jim Carrey). Usually I don't like movies that are science fiction because I like things that could actually be possible. As far as I'm concerned mind erasing isn't ever going to be used because it goes against most people's moral perspective. For instance its a form of brain damage and because you erase those memories you can't learn from your mistakes. Also the movie shows that while it can erase the events that ever occurred with that person or thing, you can't run from fate. If it was meant to be then it will happen just that way. An example of this would be Joel and Clementine (Kate Winslet) falling in love again or Mary (Kirsten Dunst) falling in love with the doctor she works for again. I loved the story line and how they set up the movie, I just didn't like how the movie ended. I wish they would have given us insight of what would come of their relationship, would it eventually end up the same in the end or would they live happily ever after. I just didn't like the ending.

I agree that this is a romantic comedy because love is always the center of all conversation. From Joel's idea of the perfect mate to Clementine finding somebody to get close with and share her uniqueness with. There is always love in the air except for when they are getting their minds erased but even then you see through all the good and bad Joel really did love Clem. Also in the end Joel takes the initiative to get Clem to give their relationship one more go, which is exactly how a romantic comedy is categorized. But I don't believe that it deserves the comedy asspect that the genre gives it. I thought it was funny at times but for the most part it was sad and it had more drama and romance then comedy. I felt like it was a serious movie and could have used a little more comedy. Andrew Sarris would agree with me that there was rarely any humor throughout the film. For the most part we agree with everything. From not liking science fictions to not thinking it was all that funny. He also said that he didn't like how the director (Michel Gondry) plays games on the audience. I would agree I like movies that are more forthcoming with what they are hitting at. http://www.observer.com/node/48997 Anyways for the most part I liked our romantic comedy and screwball unit. Overall I would rate it 4 out of 5.

I Am Legend

The movie I watched for this next blog was I Am Legend with Will Smith. I thought it was probably one of the saddest films I have ever seen. It ends terribly but I like the film because it allows you to feel what it would be like to be the last person on Earth at least that you know of. It was intense and had a lot of action. Basically the whole movie Will Smith has to try to survive and to save the world at the same time. It was crazy at times when the evil infected people came out of hiding at night and they tried to kill whatever came in their sight preferably human flesh. I have never been so captivated by a film before. Usually I might understand where the characters are coming from but I never actually feel apart of the movie or the life of the character this movie really did that for me. This movie never had a dry moment it was always on top of things and I really like that I never got bored with anything even if it was a slow moment. For instance when he is sleeping or when he is hunting for food/subjects to work on. Besides loving the movie as a whole there were also some really good details that made the movie what it is.

I thought that without the temporal relations in this film there would have been no drama and it would have been all action. The temporal relations give us a view of what happened to Will's character in his past life that made him the man he is today. It also had a lot of special effects for instance the superhuman people and the demented dogs etc. All these things helped to set up the overall movie but its not pulled off until Will Smith begins to act. He was definitely the best man for the job I couldn't have picked a better candidate. Will really knows how to present himself and he always finds a way to put himself into the shoes of the characters. He goes from one great role to another from Pursuit of Happiness to I Am Legend. He always seems to pull it all off. http://www.newsweek.com/id/77774

Personally I believe he is one of the better actors in Hollywood today. He doesn't do anything bad that gets him into the tabloids and he seems like a really cool family guy. In my eyes its not what you do that makes you famous its who you are inside that does. I don't know how many people would agree with this but I don't care cause I believe that he is a great actor and he has worked hard for his reputation unlike most young actors today. Like Lindsey Lohan and Paris Hilton.

The Language of Film Blog Entry

So far I have used the film notes for a lot of films while watching just to see if I can noticed any techniques. I really like knowing all the different techniques. Now I feel smart when I can say oh there doing crane work there and there they are doing deep focus. Personally I have liked learning all the techniques because it gives me a different perspective on films and it allows me to learn more about photography as well which I really like.

One example of crane is in Citizen Kane they do a crane shot in the beginning when they are going up the fence and when they are looking at the room of all the things he owned. Crane is a good technique because it gives a smooth view of a variety of things like a dance or a location.

My other favorite technique is spatial relations because it gives you a feel for the relationship the people in the scene have with each other whether they are good or bad. In not only Citizen Kane but also almost every movie we are shown almost every scene this way so we know the relationships and what each character is thinking. An example of this in Citizen Kane would be when he is with his first wife at the dinner table and each time we get a different time segment in their relationship we still see both of them and the things around them so that we get a feel for how they are acting towards each other. Like in the first segment she is in love with him and by the end they are far apart and her love for him is lost and we get a since that she is going to leave him.

Sound is another important aspect in a movie because it can other build or break a moment. For the most part music is used to build suspense for the watcher. Just recently I watched Pride and Prejudice and there is a scene where it seems like the music is nondiegetic but then we find out that she can also hear the music coming from the piano so it changes to diegetic. Another example of this would be in Jaws when we hear that dreadful music that tells us something bad is going to happen but its nondiegetic so the actor in the story has no idea what is about to happen.

So far these are the most noticeable techniques in films that I have seen so far. I look forward to learning techniques into finding these techniques easier when watching a film. I also think its very interesting when you learn the techniques that the director uses because some of them are so interesting and something you wouldn't think would fit with the film's setting but they do.