1975 FILM

         My group and I created a movie called Mischief in Manhattan.  The movie is about three brothers (Dustin Hoffman, Christopher Walken, Robert De Niro) who are all very close friends as well.  The youngest brother (Dustin Hoffman) has some bad ties with the mob, and it got the sister (Lynda Carter) killed.  As a result, Christopher Walken and Robert De Neiro help Dustin Hoffman retaliate the mob.       

         The rating we gave this movie was rated R.  We thought this was appropriate because there is some nudity, and curse words.  We tried suiting it for an R rating, because an X rating would attract a smaller audience. 

         Gordon Willis was the cinematographer we chose for Mischief in Manhattan.  The reason why we chose Gordon Willis was because of the fact that he did  The Godfather a few years earlier, and we wanted to use a similar style as The Godfather. 

         The reason we chose Martin Scorsese for this film was because he was one of the biggest directors of the 1970's, and also had good work with Mean Street along with Robert Di Nero.  Mischief in Manhattan is very similar to Mean Street due to plot and style.  Christopher Walken and Dustin Hoffman were big actors at the time that fit thier roles perfectly.  As for Lynda Carter, she was very unkown, but we wanted her to give us a more down to earth appeal. 

         This is a great moviue to watch for people who are in their teens and up. 

Movie In Your Spare Time

Lincoln

4.7 Stars     

           Over Thanksgiving break, I went with my family to watch Lincoln.  I found it all very interesting, despite little action or drama in the beiginning. History has always been one of my strong suites in school mainly because I have always found it interesting.  I feel that you need to have an interest in history to enjoy this film, and it is for more of a mature audiemce.  I wouldn't recommend seeing this film if you are in 8th grade or younger.  

         The movie was about Abraham Lincoln and how much of a challenge it was for him to pass the 13th amendment.  Even the people working for him were very doubtful and didn't seem too supportive of Lincoln.   

         Eventually Lincoln got people to realize how important equality is for our nation, even with many personal issues going on in Lincoln's life.  The amendment would eventually pass.      

          Steven Spielberg did an extremely good job directing this film.  I thought he did a great job getting the message across of how much different times were back then.  Spielberg did a good job portraying his characters, especially with Mrs. Lincoln.  She is historically known as crazy, and Spielberg did a great job making a little crazy, but at the same time not over doing her crazy.  I also thought he did a good job portraying the battles back then.  When Lincoln would go visit the battle sites, there would aways be a far shot of all the dead bodies, and the whether was always gloomy.  

         The biggest shock to me was how well Daniel Day-Lewis played Abraham Lincoln.  Daniel Day-Lewis had some pretty funny scenes playing Lincoln, but also a few very intense scenes that gave me goose bumps.  My mother and I both agree that he deserved an Oscar for that performance.   

Movies in Your Spare Time #3

Friends with Benefits

4.5 Stars

         Friends with Benefits is a great romantic comedy for any age group with star actor Justin Timberlake, and star actress Mila Kunis.  When I first saw previews for this film I thought it was just copying "No Strings Attatched", with actor Ashton Kutcher.  That film came out a couple years before Friends with Benefits.  In my opinion, I thought Friends with Benefits was done much better.  The acting from Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis was better, and although similar endings, the plot seemed to be much more creative in Friends with Benefits, particulalry the ending.   

         I thought the technique used in this film was very well done.  The transitions between scenes really popped out at me with long range shots of New York City and Los Angeles from above.  I thought the dialogue was very fast paced.  When the dialogue is up beat like that it shows the viewer that the boy and girl do have a connection with each other. 

         I thought this film was enjoyable from start to finish.  A 4.5 out of 5 is a huge honnor to the film, especially coming from myself.  I would reccomend seeing this film.  The intended audience is mainly teens but I could really see anyone watching this film, including my mom who seems to be watching it everytime I enter the room. 

Movies in Your Spare Time #2

That's My Boy

4.3 Stars

         That's My Boy is in my opinion the funniest comedy of the year.  This screwball comedy had a star cast featuring Adam Sandler, Andy Sandburg, and directed by Sean Anders.  Sean Anders is famous for his comedy movies such as "Sex Drive".  The small plot in this movie was Adam Sandler trying to make ammends with his distant son. 

         The techniques used with the camera angles varied a lot.  For all of the conversations between Adam and Andy that were funny, there were many quick close in camera angles between the characters and the style was very upbeat.  The conversations seemed to be rapid with several subtle funny remarks.  I thought that the director didn't have too much of a mesage as there was no real closure in the end of the movie to anything.  But throughout the movie there were some serious moments about their relationship and how it changed over time.  So a small message I took from this film was don't take anything for granite, especially friends and family.
          

As you can see I found this film hilarious.  This is the first film Andy Sandburg and Adam Sandler have been in together and I thought they were a great duo.  I gave this movie a 4.3 out of 5 stars because of the originality.  I felt like this movie was different with plot than any other comedy before.  Sean Anders also brought in New York Jet head football coach Rex Ryan for a couple scenes which adds another element of comedy. 

Trading Bases

         For our 1935 Movie my group created a movie called Trading Bases.  The plot of our movie starts with our main character (Tyrone Power), proposing to his girlfriend, (Janet Gaynor).  But in the next couple days after, Tyrone is drafted to the war as a pilot.
         He leaves without telling Janet because he is scared to tell her.  When Janet finds out she realizes she can't live without Tyrone, and heads off to France to go see him.  Meanwhile Tyrone realizes he also can't live without Janet.  So Tyrone fakes his own death and flies back home to see her.  This is where the title Trading Places comes from.
         Janet heads to France and is then under the impression Tyrone is dead.  But when she comes home she is in for a pleasant surprise as Tyrone and Janet are reunited.
         This war drama is good for a 1935 audience, so the audience can feflect back on World War I and realize how many families the war effected.  The reason it is a war drama is because it is about war and the drama caused by war particularly with romance.  There is not much of a message in Trading Bases because it is a big time Hollywood film, and we were just trying to entertain an audience.   
         The reason we picked these characters is because they were all employed by 20th Century Fox in 1935.  20th Century Fox was a good studio choice because they had a lot of money.  They also had no real war movies before this and 20th Century Fox wants to keep up with RKO.  We also had a supporting actor, (Raymond Griffith).  He plays Tyrone's general at war, and he is very hard on his solders.
         One of the biggest factors on why we picked this cast was because of age.  Tyrone Power was around 20 in 1935, which makes him perfect for being drafted to World War I.  Janet Gaynor was also around the same age which makes the film more credible.  As or Raymond Griffith, he was in his late 30's.  Typically in leadership roles, age and experience is vital, so that is why we thought Raymond Griffith would be perfect for the role of a general.
          Our directer is John Ford, who was a very famous director in the 1930's for 20th Century Fox.  John Ford is most famous for western movies, so we all figured that a war movie could be right up John Ford's ally.  We chose cinametographer James Howe.  He was a great choice because of his expertise in long focus.  James Howe was also very sought out by nearly every company.
         Theres not much I would do differently from what my group and I decided on.  I probably would have choosen a different company just because 20th Century Fox did not have the top actors and actresses.  Plus the were very unfamiliar with war movies. 

Formal Film Study Project

         For my formal film studies project, I watched three boxing movies.  I watched Cinderella Man, Rocky, and Raging Bull.  These films mainly had a lot in common, but there were a few differences I noticed with the themes.  I thought as far as plot went that Rocky, and Cinderella Man had the most in common.  The reason being is because James Braddock, and Rocky Balboa both seemed to be hometown favorites, and underdogs.  They were fighting for not just themselves but in James Braddock's case, his family and country.  As Rocky was fighting for his girlfriend and hometown.  Meanwhile Jake Lamotta, who is the man character in Raging Bull, seems to be a big time boxer, who causes most of his problems on himself.
             James Braddock's adversity throughout the movie was not caused by himself, it was caused by the American economy.  Rocky's problems are tough read how they were inflicted.  Part of me feels he is a little slow mentally, but I also feel that he chose bad paths as they show in many scenes he plays the role of a bounty for one of his bosses.  He also didn't seem like he chose good friends, such as Adrian's brother, who was a bad influence on him.  Meanwhile, in Raging Bull I felt that most of Jake's problems where self inflicted.  He was involved deeply with the mob, and cheated on his wife in many occasions.
           All three movies did have a women present as one of the main characters.  Rocky had his girlfriend, Adrian, who was his only real family throughout the film.  James had a wife who he was fighting for, along with 3 kids.  Family was present the most throughout Cinderella Man, as James Braddock had to fight for his family and his lively hood.  And Jake had many wives in which he was never really concerned about.
         The main difference between Raging Bull, and Cinderella Man and Rocky was the ending.  In Rocky and Cinderella man, both men came from almost nothing to achieving there goals.  James Braddock's story was about how he rose then fell horribly, and then rose again.  As for Jake's story, it was how he rose then fell horribly, which turns the film into somewhat of a tragedy.
                                                                                  All three of these boxing films are very well respected and are a top of the boxing movies.  These movies have taught our society.  They have showed us that no man is perfect, and people make mistakes.  But there are always opportunities to fight and keep fighting after mistakes and adversity has been present.
       
           

Movies in Your Spare Time #1

                                                   The Fighter-  3.5 Stars

         Overall I really liked the idea and plot of this movie.  The reason why I only give it three stars is because I felt like Mark Walburg's family problems dragged on way to much throughout the movie.  Over half the movie was about his girlfriend, and his brother and mother's drug issues.  I understand why they implement this theme into the movie.  The director wants to show some adversity in the plot.  But after a while it got annoying and just made the movie go by slower.  I still found this movie to tell a very touching story, and having knowledge that it is a true story makes it even better.  If you are into drama and being inspired I recommend watching "The Fighter". 

         The technique used in this video was very typical.  In the scene where Micky tells his brother he can no longer work with him the director zooms into each others faces closer and closer as the conversation goes on.  I also notice their choice off music during different scenes.  During the final fight, the background music is soft and intense.  And then when Micky wins the fight the music gets loud and much more up beat.  

         The film reminded me much of the movie "Cinderella Man".  Both movies deal with adversity, and boxing.  I feel their was much more at stake during Cinderella Man,  as Russel Crowe is trying to keep a roof over his family during the great depression.  

Review of the Reviews

         I thought the vocabulary used for the positive review made it seem more convincing.  Some of the words used, such as thrilling and inspirational, really draw my attention and make it easy for people to consider seeing the movie.  I think these words were selected by the critic because they pertain to movies and they seem to stick out to a reader's eye.  

         As for the negative review, terms like "squeeze the life out" and "boring" were used.  These words were used because of their negativity.  I think for the readers theses words tend to stick out as well and may change a viewers mind about seeing a film.             

         For both the positive and negative reviews, history and culture were discussed.  The positive review felt that Remember the Titans portrayed civil rights very well and everyone could learn a lesson from this film.    
As for the negative review, they felt that the film was an inaccurate portrayal for civil rights and in ways found the film racist.  I think both critics bring out these points because it may very well be the biggest deciding factor for someone to go out and spend 10 dollars on a film.  

          "Has the outer form of a brave statement about the races in America, but the soul of a sports".  I agree with this quote supporting the movie because Remember the Titans seems like just a sports movie but after watching it you realize how much more of a deeper meaning there is.  "A feel-good movie only in the sense that it wants to reassure today's white people about our own enlightenment and how far we've come in the evolution of our attitudes about race".  I can see where the Washington post is coming from on this quote because it does reassure me that racism is coming to an end, but I don't think the film was about that.  I think the film wanted to prove that blacks and whites can come together as one.  

         I believe the positive review is more convincing because of the way it is described.  They describe the movie as a popcorn movie, and lively and inspirational.  They also sell it well when they say "Only a very stony heart could resist its pull".  The negative review just sounds bias and stubborn. 

         If I were to write a one page review on Remember the Titans, I would include the fact that this film can be seen by anyone roughly 10 years of age and up.  This is important for viewers to know because you can know who you can see it with, and if it's okay for your household.  I would also add that this film touches me every time I watch it, and can make a lasting impact on you.  

http://www.metacritic.com/movie/remember-the-titans/critic-reviews
http://www.metacritic.com/user/superpwnman

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