Night of the Living Dead

In 1968, George Remero created the zombie movie genre by releasing the film The Night of the Living Dead.  On one hand, I'd like to give Remero major props for his creativity which was brilliant enough to inspire countless movies and TV shows involving apocalyptic zombie attacks. On the other hand though, this is a genre I could live without. Remero was lucky in the fact that since no one had done a film quite like this before, he could give the zombies the characteristics he desired, such as their never-ending quest for human flesh, distaste for fire and their painfully slow speed. This however, allowed for a 96 minute film with a main character that you never grow attached to due to the fact that she does nothing but watch a stranger try and save her life while she throws selfish tantrums, a family with a crazy dad and a soon-to-be zombie daughter, a
poorly portrayed female, her lover and one heroic man stuck in a house. They are trapped there for hours because their attackers move slower than my grandmother when she got hip surgery and their escape plan was, of course, wrecked by a woman. Sexist people those days... Sure this sounds comedic, but by the time the climax hit, it wasn't suspenseful because I didn't really mind if they all got eaten. Honestly, the only good part was when the main character gets slapped in the face and the audience gets a well deserved break from her whining. The man who did it was the bravest, most level headed and most likeable character in this movie. He was also black, and especially considering the time that this film was made, I will say that I was pleased with how the African-American character was portrayed in this film. Another thing I will admit that I liked about this movie was the ending. It was going very predictably at first, but the twist at the end was fantastic! The situational and dramatic irony made up for a bit of the fact that the rest of the movie had gone by so painfully slow. All in all, this film wasn't for me, but I would recommend it to zombie movie lovers as it was interesting to see where the genre started and how the portrayal of zombies has changed.

Stand By Me- Dramatic Aspects

Stand By Be is a 1986 drama, directed by Rob Reiner. It was based on the story The Body by Stephen King and was nominated for an Academy Award for the screen play. I doubt theres anyone who disagrees that this is a superb story, but I believe that the dramatic aspects of this film, such as the acting, sets, makeup and costumes, deserved some recognition as well!

Like The Goonies, the cast of this movie is made up, primarily, of child stars and they were quite talented ones. The difference though, is that while comic relief is sprinkled into the script, the rolls of the children were a lot more serious. This allowed the actors to showcase their abilities to perform extremely emotional scenes. Not all child stars are able to believably act out serious, deep or sad scenes, but the film had been phenomenally casted and this was not an issue. Wil Wheaton claims that the children's real personalities matched those of their characters which helped them successfully portray their roles.  The main characters Gordie, Chris, Vern and Teddy are played by Wil Wheaton, River Pheonix, Corey Feldman and Jerry O'Connell.

Most of this movie was shot on location, therefore the sets are extremely realistic. The boys supposedly live in the town of "Castle Rock", but this town is fictional so the town scenes were shot in Brownsville, Oregon. Most of the other scenes were also shot in Oregon, including the junk yard which is still in operation today. The scene where the boys outrun a train was shot in California on the McCloud River railroad. Having the movie shot on location as opposed to on sets made the movie that much more realistic.

The costumes and makeup in this film were intentionally extremely simple. Anything other than minimal makeup and slightly worn out clothes would have looked out of place. Even though the wardrobe was not extravagant or complex by any means, each character still had a subtly unique style. Gordie's simple t-shirt showed off his scrawny arms and his torn up jeans showed his rugged side and a hint of neglect. Chris' attire was similar. The jeans were almost the same but Chris wore a white shirt which, symbolically, could have showed how he wanted to be distinguished from his family of alcoholics and criminals. Vern's collared shirt tucked into beige pants with a belt around his waste reflected his timid and not-quite-considered-cool personality. Teddy stood out with his big black glasses and the darkest outfit of the group. He also had the makeup necessary to make his ear look like it had been held to a stove.

This movie is crazy strong when it comes to the Dramatic Aspects! These aspects were all covered very solidly and they all strongly contributed to making this movie such an impressive project.

The Goonies- Litterary Elements

The Goonies is a 1985 Adventure-Comedy directed by Richard Donnor and produced by Steven Spielberg.  Even though Steven Spielberg also thought of the story for this film, Chris Colombus (the director of the first two Harry Potter films) wrote the screenplay. Instead of reviewing this film, I'm going to discuss the literary aspects of it. These are the elements that films share with literature, like the plot, setting and characters, themes and symbols.

The story consists of a group of kids who are facing their last weekend together before a couple of them must move away. After a surprising discovery in their attic though, they find themselves on a treasure hunt in pursuit of "One-Eyed Willie"'s lost ship and the valuable items on board. Some may say that the plot line isn't important in 80's movies and none of them are very strong. I'd say this film had a decent storyline that followed the story writing structure that you are taught in school. It defiantly wasn't too complex or unpredicatble, but the film revolved more around the dynamic of the characters than the actual story. The script it's self was incredible! It was witty and successful in matching appropriate dialogue to each character and also making audiences laugh.

The story is set in Astoria, Oregon. More specifically, in the "Goon Docks" neighbourhood, thus the reason behind the name the boys gave themselves and the movie's title. The small coastal town setting allowed the weather to impact the mood of the film. To accompany the sad moods of the children at the strart of the film, the dreary weather had a logical place in the story. Once the mood changed at the end of the film, the sunshine after the rain helped create the intended releaved and happy feelings. A good part of the film is set inside a cave. It is filled with unexpected obstacles which gives the characters a chance to show thier personalities when faced with these challenges. It also inevitably creates an entertaining environment for the audience, who has most likely never been in a situation like the kids in the movie.

Each of the characters in this film possess very different characteristics which creates a very entertaining atmosphere in the film. The five main characters, Mikey Walsh, Lawrence "Chunk" Cohen, Richard "Data" Wang, Clark "Mouth" Devereaux are played by successful child actors of that time. The character developement is decent in this film. We never discover too much about the character's past, but we know enough about their personalities to identify unique qualities in each of them and recognize how they handle certain situations. Mikey is a athsma suffering kid who doesn't like getting in trouble from his mom and is constatly annoyed by his brother, but has a curious, brave and determined side. Chunk is the chubbiest kid in the group who is constantly dealing with his addiction to eating and has to take the periodic citisism and ridicule from his group of friends. Data is my favourite character. He is a little asian boy who is following in the footsteps of his dad by creating numerous tiny inventions which seem crazy but prove useful in the end. Mouth is the smartass of the group. He finds him self hilarious, hes a lady's man and he uses his ability to speak spanish to not only help the goonies. but also to convince an old lady that Mikey's family posseses a large amout of drugs. He brought comic releif to the group was also the biggest leader out of the five.

There is a lot more symbolism in this movie than one may think. There are many theories about what the movie symbolizes as a whole. Some think that this is a story about "the pursuit of sex and happiness." This is backed up by the fact that the group of boys are looking in a hole for "One-Eyed Willie" (clever ), a myth that has been told for generations and will solve their problems. They are joined by two girls, (one of which is suggestively confused about her sexuality, but decides that she does like boys by the end) and the flirting and kissing ensues. The whole time they are also being followed by "Mamma Fratelli". My favourite and the most convincing part of this theory is the fact that one of the girls "plays the bones" and following that, the kids slide down tube-like slides. It's also not until they find out that they still have a bag of jewels that the boy gets the girl.
Another theory is that the forces against the children, like the Fratelli's and the men who want to take thier home, represent god and "One-Eyed Willie" represents Satan ( who has been seen as good and bad, depending on the religion). The thinking behind this is that the children were disobeying the wishes of their opposing forces and in effect, found themselves in hell (the cave with Willi'e ship in it).

Although the story wasn't the strongest, the more I looked into the littereary aspects of this film, the more respect I had for the film makers and actors. Having a good story was not the intent of the film, it was to use symbolism, unique characterisation and the ressources that the set presented to create an entertaining and enjoyable film.

http://kingpin1613.blogspot.ca/2005/12/goonies-innocent-i-think-not.html

Super 8- The Cinematic Elements

Super 8 is a sci-fi  thriller what was directed by J.J. Abrams and produced by Steven Spielberg. Following it's release in 2011, it was honoured with with numerous award nominations, most of which were for the acting. Instead of critically watching this film for the purpose of writing a review, I looked for the cinematic aspects it had to offer. The cinematic aspects are the features of the movie that can only be achieved by film making, for example, editing, C.G. effects and camera angles.

The most obvious cinematic quality of this film is the lens flares. They were used a lot in the scenes that were set at night. A specific example would be the train crash scene. Due to the fact that lens flares are like "breaking the forth wall" because they cause the audience to remember that they are watching a film and are not part of it, lens flares are rarely used. J. J Abrams though, is not at all afraid to incorporate them in his films. He is famous for his use of this technique and therefore it is no surprise that this movie is full of them!

                           

The cinematography was very well done in this movie. Lots of different camera techniques were used but I can only talk about a couple of them. Close-up shots were often used to show case the superb acting of the young child stars. This especially occurred when Alice and Joe were together, like the scene where he "turns Alice into a zombie". The children in the movie also road around on bikes (which the actors say they actually got to keep after filming) quite a bit, so dollying was done to effectively and smoothly film them. 

As for sound, there was tense music throughout the film that would set the mood and create suspense. That was the only nondiegetic sound that I noticed. The rest of it was diegetic and lots would have had to be added on during post production, like the explosions and sound that the mystery cube made.  

Some may argue that the computer generated effects in this film were nothing special or new, but I didn't have a problem with them at all. There were some pretty big scenes in which computer generation was heavily used and it did the job! I thought that the train crash was extremely realistic and I felt like I was a part of the action. I personally wasn't a big fan of the ending, but regardless of the story, the C.G. effects made the unlikely event seem real! 

From a cinematic point of view, this was a very strong movie. It was very enjoyable to watch! 

True Grit

The film True Grit, a western that was written and directed by the Coen brothers, is a remake of the 1969 adaptation of the 1968 novel of the same name. The Coen brother's version was released in 2010 and was nominated for ten Academy Awards.

Fourteen year old, Maddie Ross, hires Rooster Cogburn, the "toughest" marshal working on the Indian Territory, to help her to avenge her father's death by finding his killer, Tom Chaney. Meanwhile, Texas Ranger LeBeouf is also searching for the same man because there is a bounty on him for killing a Texas state senator. The two men want to team up together and help each other but Maddie is unhappy with this due to the fact that she wants Chaney to be killed in Arkansas for the murder of her father, not in Texas for the death of the senator. Despite her discontent and the fact that the two men tried to leave he behind, the three of them set off on their quest. After a couple fall outs between the two men and a few gun fights, Ross finally comes face to face with Chaney.

The film defiantly has traditional western genre characteristics, like the characters' desire for justice and the setting of the wilderness of the American west. I found the plot line to be very ordinary and nothing special, the rising action was slightly dull with small spurs of excitement and humour and (spoiler alert, highlight to read) the killing of Tom Chaney did not come with the victorious feeling I was expecting to experience. That in mind, I personally do not find westerns to be my favourite genre of movie because the brutal killings and the story line (usually) does not excite me. What made up for a bit of my boredom though, was the ending. Endings are really important to me because when I'm happy with the ending, I find that the movie was much more worth while. Some may argue that the ending was uninteresting, but I thought that it was extremely appropriate and realistic and wrapped up the story in a satisfying way.

I would also like to recognize Hailee Steinfeld for her Academy Award nominated performance in this film. I completely understand why she was nominated because her portrayal of Maddie Ross was phenomenal and some of the best child acting I've seen. Her role defiantly improved this film, along with that of her more experienced co-stars Matt Damon and Jeff Bridges.

I definitely recommend this film to people who enjoy westerns! Others, who may not be so fond of this genre can still find impressive aspects in this film, but like me, will most likely find themselves completely uninterested in some parts.

North by Northwest

North by Northwest is a 1959 film directed by the "master of suspense", himself, Alfred Hitchcock. Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint  star in the fairly suspenseful, action packed thriller.

Madison Avenue advertising executive, Roger Thornhill is accidentally mistaken for another man and kidnapped. No matter how many times he insists that they have the wrong man, the kidnappers don't believe him. Since he is unable to give them the information they are seeking from him, they force him to drink bourbon and try to stage a drunk driving accident resulting in his death. Despite their efforts and whilst under the influence, Thornhill manages to steer the car, although wildly, away from most life threatening situations and survives the night. Unfortunatly, not even his mother believes the story and he is charged for drunk driving. To make matters worse, the kidnappers are still hungry for his recapture and death and the plot unfolds into a series of action packet and suspenseful scenes as he is chased across the country. To add a bit more excitement to his adventure he meets a very attractive yet suspicious female, Eve Kendall, along the way.

I found the beginning to be quite fast compared to other Hitchcok films, but the first scene gives away a substantial amount of information about Cary Grant's character so I didn't feel that I needed to know him better by the initial incident. As the movie progressed there were some scenes that really caught my attention (like the Mr. Townsend's death and the airplane attack scene), but by the end, I felt that the story was beginning to drag on and I was ready for the movie to be over. Despite the fact that I felt that way, when it finally came to the final scene I felt that it stopped too suddenly. Although abrupt endings seem to be a signature of Hitchcock's and the story had resolved, I found it too predictable and hasty, and because of this it was not quite satisfying.

What I really appreciated about this movie was the use of sets and the interesting characters. Although I didn't quite notice it at first, Hichcock used a forest set to create symbolism. The trees framed and divided the camera shots in certain ways to symbolize the relationship between Grant and Saint's characters. In one shot the two of them were divided and it looked as though they were very far apart. As they continued talking and walking closer together, they broke barriers in their relationship, which is represented as they pass trees. What I also really liked were the characters that were portrayed in the film. Roger Thornhill, introduced as a rich, somewhat rude man who wants things his way, put together with the smart, beautiful and manipulative character of Eve Kendall, proved to be an interesting mix. One of my favourite scenes is when Roger visits Eve in her hotel room. I enjoyed how the two characters talked to each other because, as the audience, it's hard to tell who's side Eve is on, how much Roger trusts her and who is one step ahead of who.  The mixture of romantic, yet untrustworthy feelings brought an interesting dynamic to the scene and untimely the entire film.

Although I was left slightly unsatisfied, I still appreciate the clever techniques that were used, the characters and the interesting plot line of this film. I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for a suspenseful thriller that will, for the most part, keep them on the edge of their seat!

Singin' in the Rain

Singin' in the Rain is a 1952 musical comedy, directed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen. Gene Kelly also stars in the movie, alongside Donald O'Connor and Debby Reynolds. From everybody in my class who had already seen the film, there was unanimous agreement that it was fantastic. This lead me to have high expectations going in and it defiantly lived up to them.

The film is based around the time of the introduction of the "talkies", or movies with sound. Don Lockwood and his co-actress Lina Lamont are Holloywood, silent film stars. Once Warner Brother's Studios start putting sound with their movies, Don and Lina's studio decides that it needs to do the same thing. This proves to be a difficult transition, mainly due to the fact that Lina, although considered quite beautiful, has a horrible voice that the studio does not want audiences to discover. After a bad reception from the preview audience of the first attempt at making a "talkie", Don is ready to accept that his fame and career are over. With a brilliant idea from his life-long friend, Cosmo Brown, and love interest, Kathy Seldon, though, things start touring around! They have decided do use Don's amazing dancing and singing skills, from his former days of busking and performing for small crowds with Cosmo, to make the film into a musical. The only problem is Lina, who's singing voice is even harder to tolerate than her regular talking voice. The story is accompanied by mostly up-beat musical performances and although, at times I found the music to be repetitive and drag on, the energetic stunts and comic relief during the songs made up for it.

What I liked the most about this film was the mix of characters that they put together. There was an actress with an un attractive quality, two talented, upbeat guys who played off each other very well and a strong willed woman with a big role in the film, which wasn't every common at that time. All four of the actors portrayed their character very successfully and once they were all put together in the film it added a more dynamic element, rather than, say, a protagonist and his side kick.

I would recommend this film to anyone who is looking for a solid feel-good musical comedy. It's a great movie that would appeal to audiences of every age!

The General

         As a student who groaned when my Film Studies teacher revealed that we would be watching another silent movie,  I was pleasantly surprised by The General. The Buster Keaton and Clyde Bruckman film was released and distributed in 1926 by United artistes. Although it wasn't too popular following it's immediate release, it is now considered to be a major classic of the silent era. 

          The protagonist, Johnnie Grey, a train engineer, has come to visit the love of his life, Annabelle Lee. He arrives just in time to hear of the news that the American Civil War has started. To please Annabelle, he hurries off to enlist in the army, but when the men at the registration counter find out that he is a train engineer, they think that he is far more useful doing that job. Annabelle doesn't believe this story and vows never to speak to him until he is in uniform. Johnnie then continues to work with the other love of his life, his engine. Its when the union spies steal Johnnie's train that the plot gets exciting. Coincidentally, Annabelle happens to be on the train, on her way to visit her injured father. Unaware that she is aboard the stolen train, Johnnie peruses the thieves on his own. After an eventful and entertaining train chase Johnnie is left with the challenge of returning Annabelle safely and warning the army about information he happened to overhear.

             Compared to some modern day story lines it was not the most complex yet, but it was a good thing for, it is very difficult to follow a story with too many elements, especially without the aid of sound. The slight use of foreshadowing and the comic, suspenseful and exciting moods of the story made it an entertaining production. Though it was not the most realistic plot line, Buster Keaton's character made it more believable in that once Jonnie was introduced I agreed that his crazy, inventive and spur-of-the-moment actions matched his personality. 

The Mr. Bean/Inspecter Clouseau-esque comedy that Buster Keaton brought to this movie defiantly added a lot to the story. It would not have been half as entertaining without his unusual character and his effective portrayal. He proved that the lack of facial expression can be as, if not more, effective in making an audience laugh. Not only did he use his body and facial language, he was also very resourceful when it came to using the props or location to create comedy. Being that it was the best acting that I had seen in a silent film so far it was quite refreshing.

  

Obviously, being used to the technology of the twenty first century, I can say that I've seen better, but all in all I was still impressed. The effects, like fire, gun shots and rain themselves were realistic enough, the costumes were appropriate and although the music became bit repetitive, especially during the long train chase, it no doubt went with the story line.  The technical elements went together nicely, especially since Buster Keaton used so many of the props and surroundings to create comic situations.

I would recommend this movie to all viewers, even if they don't have much interest in silent films. Although it may not be a film I'd watch over and over again, its defiantly worth a look. People of all ages can take something different away from this movie, whether its the comedy, Buster Keaton's movie making style or just the story!