The Cinephiliac Approach

For this film, I decided that I needed to watch it twice, to see if something stuck out to me. The first time watching it, I will be honest not much captured my attention. During the second time around I notice a lamp on a desk, during a scene where George is talking to his maid, about the bread and pen leaking onto his bed.  Automatically the lamp shape reminded me of a Tarot card I once saw. I have a love for astrology and tarot, but the color of the lamp (brass shade), gave me a dark, eerie feeling. So I automatically thought about Tarot cards.  The lamp was shaped as such: it had two brass stems that are stuck together, then as you go up the lamp it branches out into two lamps heads, which curve over. Since I did not remember the name of the card I had to look it up. The card is called the Two of Cups. Now I am not saying the film, lends ideas from astrology or tarot, I am just saying this is what spoke to me.

In the card there is a glyph that hovers over a man and women. The glyph represents the merging of masculine and feminine nature into one. Now this definition reminds me of George’s sexuality and the bond he had with Jim his lover. There are three positions this card can be presented, that are past, present and future. Since I did not see this lamp in any of George’s past visions of Jim and I saw it in George’s present I will give you what the tarot suggest. The present tarot says: " In the present position, the Two of Cups confirm that a union is being born or reconciliation is occurring" ( Keen Tarot Reader). Now this goes foreshadows the moment when we meet the student, Kenny who befriended him. Also pointing to the acceptance George finally has of Jim's death at the end.

Melancholia of Cinema

Melancholia by Lars Von Trier was very captivating. It brought many questions to mind about cinema and how it is presented. It was in a way a bit different to other Hollywood films; in the speed presented in the beginning of the film and effects. But there was a moment or moments in the film where you see Claire and Justine, go ridding before the sun rises. They do this every day in the film, a sort of ritual, when Justine comes to stay with Claire. It leads me to think about the death of cinema. Some critics say that it is dying because we have other means to see and experience a film. I believe that there is decay in cinema, but because of ritual. For many years we have gone to the cinema and are place in that one setting, and many have become for lack of better words, bored with the same routine. We buy our tickets, sit down in our seats, eat our popcorn or candy, the lights dim and we are transcended in another universe. But lately the films being produced are not as captivating as it once was. So people text and talk to their friends during the film, because maybe the universes are not exciting or fun anymore to go into.

The cinema should start to change a bit; someone should come up with something new to help the audience experience the cinema in a different way. In life some of us look for new and different experiences. So why not incorporate that urge and fire to cinema? For years cinema has been successful in presenting movies in one way, but the saying “if it’s not broken, don’t fix it”, does not apply anymore. It is broken and it is time to fix it. We need to embrace the change, or else we will lose something that has been around for decades. 

Face of Boredom and Depression

Outline: Essay 1

Main argument: There is no right or wrong to what approach to use, formalist or ideological, when analyzing film. But the critic will pick the best way to express their opinion about the film. For me the formalist approach would be my best pick to analyze a film.

Claim 1#:  The difference between the two approaches.

Claim support: scholarly article by Carl Planting,(  quote from there).

Claim 2#: Formalist approach being the best for my preference.

Claim support: an article on formalist approach, a quote from there & examples.

Claim 3#: The film I choose to analyze is Masculine, Feminine

Claim support: A scene, or scenes from the film to analyze.

Midnight In Paris : "Wonderful But Forgettable"

As I watched the film, all I could think about was that I am watching a Woody Allen film. Automatically in my head I know there will be ironies and sarcasm. I don’t believe Allen would create a film without some deeper meaning to it. So yes I do believe that critics are looking at the film to simply.

 The moment that stuck out to me was the iconic moment of the film. Gil is sitting on the stairs, next thing you know he is being beckoned to come with the people in the car to come along, and then he gets into the car. The moment is him really stepping into the car. Allen uses movement as a mode to switch from reality to fantasy.  This is shown a majority of the film with Gil walking in Paris every night. Allen does want us to question the subversive illusions.

Allen does this moment so close to reality, that many people would not question why or how is he Gil leaving reality and entering a new period in history. We all get in cars and it takes us from one destination to the next. When we go to see a film as Braudy would say we immerse ourselves into films that are the closest to reality, even if we never figure out what editing and setting the director has done.

 It is not normal how Gil transfer from one moment to the next, but some people really go to the movies to get away from real life for a while. So we take what we get when go and see films, because it is a release for some. Critics have looked at Allen’s film on the surface too much because it looks like a traditional Hollywood film. But I Believe with a Woody Allen film there is always more than the eyes and mind sees.