In America, the commonly known 'American Dream' ideal exists where if you put in hard work and with a little "bit o' luck" you can accomplish anything. Discuss the socio-economic and political barriers to this ideal. Examine social issues such as racism, sexism, and white-privilege, noting how their effects promote or dampen the possibility of this ideal becoming a reality. Use examples from media, books and film in order to argue your point.
Book Suggestions: Of Mice and Men, McTeague, The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man, Passing (Nella Larsen).
Movie Suggestions: Citizen Kane, Pretty Woman, La La Land, Good Will Hunting
This is actually too big a topic, especially considering the breadth of time frames that you are suggesting in the texts. I think this is actually a very interesting discussion, but it needs to be reduced down into a more narrow aspect - perhaps even something more niche, such as the concept of the American Dream perceived through an African American lens, or through a feminist lens. Or even pick a particular time frame, such as the 1970s or now and look at how the AD has been depicted then. – SaraiMW7 years ago
So the suggestions we're just as they are suggestions, I would never expect anyone to use all of them or even any of them it was just ideas. With that in mind do you still believe the topic to be too much? – alexpaulsen7 years ago
I would also use recent modern examples of film or political issues to help tell this article.
– BMartin437 years ago
I agree with SaraiMW. If you'd like to do a feminist lens some excellent novels from the start of the 20th c. (when the frontier myth started shaping the American Dream) are: My Antonia, American Indian Stories, and Sister Carrie – Mela7 years ago
Or just debunk the whole idea (as it has already been done). – T. Palomino2 years ago
What Tree of Life by Terrence Malick and Melancholia by Lars Von Trier have in common is that they are two films that are poetic in their imagery and dialogue. With nuanced characters, each film seeks to explore the human experience and provide its own answer to question of life's ultimate meaning. Analyze each film in depth. Discuss differences and similarities between the characters of each film, and how each affirms the films central themes. Also examine the differences and the possible similarities in the messages of both films.
This is a very interesting subject when it comes to two entirely different filmmakers. I would be very interested in approaching it from the angle you propose. – caryleiter7 years ago
Discuss the roll toxic masculinity (the psychological term describing traditional male behavior norms that cause harm to society) plays in the 2017 film Phantom Thread. How do the relationships in the film display toxic masculinity, how do the relationships break down this problem? How do themes or tropes in the film distort or alter this. Discuss how this affects the film as a piece.
A fanfiction is defined as a fiction written by a fan of, and featuring particular characters of, a particular TV series, film etc. When a novel series graduates to the big screen or a popular franchise gets rebooted, the series is arguably getting a re-work by someone who is presumably a fan of the original work. A contemporary example could include David Benioff and D. B. Weiss adapting "A Song of Ice and Fire" as a TV series, eventually pursuing beyond the source material. Another might be Christopher Nolan's re-envisioning of the classic Batman character through the Dark Knight trilogy. Taking into account the degree of deviation from the original work, could these series' be considered fanfiction? At what point can a professionally produced piece of film be considered a simple interpretation of fiction by a fan?
An interesting thought process. Now that I think about it, adaptations and reboots can definitely be considered as a form of fanfiction. After all, who amongst us hasn't pictured a book or a movie or any form of art in our own way in our heads? When book to movie adaptations play out differently from what we imagined, we react with shock and sometimes anger. Reboots and adaptations can be the personal perception of a piece of art, which may differ from the original content. This makes me wonder if fan made films should be taken more seriously. Yes, they may not have the resources to produce a film of the same quality as a professional film, but essentially the creators of fan-made films and professional films come from the same place-a love for a piece of work and a desire to see it played out the way they want it to. – SheWhoMustNotBeNamed7 years ago
With the rise of remake films with all female casts being on an upward trajectory, what are some of the pros and cons for doing this? Does this have an effect on how the viewer rates and discusses the movie? If so, how, why? If not, why not?
I love this question! I don't know the answer. But, here is an an example of how ( I believe) it has been a change for the worst: the recent re-make of the Ghostbusters film. Compared to the 1980's all male ( main character) cast, the women actors seemed overly directed and controlled. They are funny women. They are intelligent and they have have gobs of talent, yet, it seemed they were not allowed to fully flesh out their characters, interact and riff off of each other, nor flex their comedic muscles as freely and fully as their male counterparts ( Murry, Akroid, etc.) did in the original. – Joslyn Robinson7 years ago
This is a good question, especially with the controversy around recent franchises like Star Wars and Ghostbusters. It seems like a double edged sword. On the one hand, having more female representation is better than nothing. On the other hand it could be viewed as being superficial, just a name change at best, or blatantly sexist at worst. Most of the "stick to the text" fundamentalism seems pretty stupid to me, given that there have been far more egregious changes to text (like Spiderman's powers in the Raimi movies, or the revisionist ending to Jurassic Park) without the controversy. In general, it seems better to have more female characters, but it would be better if there were just more roles for women in general from the start. – tedytak7 years ago
A discussion of how a character's perspective on time influences their identity.
Some films to consider: Mr. Nobody (time and memory woven and re-runable), The Time Traveler's Wife (time as uncontrollable), Kate and Leopold (does ones place in time impact their identity?), Age of Adeline (the effect of aging differently), About Time (how does taking control of time impact the Characters?), and In time (Time as a limited commodity). For fun a whimsical look at the new Alice Through the Looking Glass could also be interesting.
Analyse Wes Anderson's ability to maintain empathy in a highly constructed world of systems and artifice. Investigate the success or lack thereof of film school graduates who mimic Anderson's style: are they able to replicate his empathy as well as his visual technique? See Simon Baron-Cohen's E-S theories.
1. Define "empathy in a highly constructed world of systems and artifice." – T. Palomino2 years ago
2. Give yourself a summary of BC ES theories and explain why they are relevant. – T. Palomino2 years ago
Also known as "whip zoom" or "crash zoom", this is a cinematic technique where the camera rapidly zooms in on an object for dramatic effect. In modern cinema it can be seen in the works of both Edgar Wright and Quentin Tarantino – the former using it as a form of comedic irony, and the latter using it as part of his homages to older cinema. That being said, the snap zoom can also be seen as a classic trope in westerns and kung fu films as well as horror movies. This article would be a historical overview of the snap zoom; its origin, its place in different genres (i.e. the potential difference between a "western" snap zoom and a "kung fu" or a "horror" one), and perhaps how it has evolved from a simple camera technique to such a stylistic stamp.
A fascinating suggestion, even if somewhat specialised. Nice one! You have my vote. – Amyus7 years ago
