Journal #3

Notorious was produced and directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It is about a woman named Alicia (Ingrid Bergman) who meets a man named Devlin (Gary Grant) and she must trap a nazi who because of how her father was one himself. The script was originally written by Ben Hecht. Ted Tetzlaff was responsible for cinematography, and he is most known for his work in this movie, especially how he focuses in on certain objects to show importance. The person responsible for creating the set was Claude Carpenter, who made the sets simple and to the point. Constantine Bakaleinikoff was in charge of the music, which was very elaborate and included an orchestra. The music helped to add to the suspense, although the suspense was very limited compared to what I was expecting. Hitchcock's trademark is how he creates suspense. Although I thought there was very limited suspense, the scene where Alicia gets poisoned best shows how he uses suspense. They focus in on her coffee cup and then you can see her sort of daze off. Gary Grant plays the U.S. agent in the movie, and he was chosen for the part probably because of his popularity. He's similar to George Clooney today, who gets many major roles obviously. Ingrid Bergman was chosen because of her good looks and the way that she carries herself. From watching the film, I can tell that these characters were chosen for the reasons I just stated, because Gary Grant is smooth like a George Clooney, and Ingrid Bergman is beautiful. When the movie was first released, the general public loved it, mostly because of the "suspense" that was so unbearable for the time it was released.

The Western

I think that Westerns should be a bigger part of film today, because of the moral themes that America appreciates so much. Movies today are all about entertainment and advanced technology, and not so much about the west and the big landscape. People today don't want to see a "boring western"; they'd rather see a movie that makes them jump in their seat or a movie that makes them laugh. Moral themes aren't as important today in movies as they were back then, making the only time that a western comes out is when there's a big name actor involved, as Richard Corliss sayed in the article. He also talks about how "there's the problem of tempo," and I definetely agree with him. People today are less patient and they want to see things blow up, or some fast car chase scene, rather than 2 cowboys have a slow gunfight that is just plain boring. Although it would be good for a lot of westerns to be out because of the good themes they demonstrate, people in today's society just wouldn't watch them, and the people who make the Western's wouldn't see no cash-money.

Journal #2

Goodfellas is definetely the best mob movie ever made. The city of New York takes center stage for this classic film that is based on a true story, starring Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta and Joe Pesci. These actors work perfectly together, but even without the acting the movie would still be great because of how well the other literary aspects of film were used by director and writer of screenplay, Martin Scorsese, producer Irwin Winkler, Michael Ballhaus- director of photography, as well as many others who contributed to the various literary aspects.

The movie starts out with Henry (Ray Liotta) having a flashback of when he was 11 years old in the 1950s and how he got introduced to Jimmy (Robert De Niro). Jimmy was considered to be one of the most respected men in the mob and Henry eventually becomes very good friends with him as well as Tommy (Joe Pesci). There is a montage used to show Henry grow up to when Tommy and him are in their thirties and Jimmy is a few years their senior. This is when most of the movie takes place and it's in the late 70s, early 80s. Most of the story is told from a narrative point of view, switching back and forth from Henry to his wife, Karen. She is acceptable of his mob ties and when the feds come to check up on their home, month after month, she denies everything. The police are on their tail throughout the movie, and the idea of never ratting on your friends is constantly brought up in the film. The story was very interesting, suspenseful and dramatic because of the constant twists and turns the plot has, and because it's always interesting to see how members of the mob live their lives, like in the HBO series The Sopranos. The suspense takes full force towards the end when you have no idea if Henry will get capped or not. It's always great to have Robert De Niro play a major role, because he makes the dialogue seem so realistic. He is so intimidating because of his the way he talks and they he way he stares into the camera. Joe Pesci also adds to the realism of the dailogue because he just seems like an extremely crazy, angry guy in real life, and that's exactly Tommy's character in the film. The way that they talk definetely reminds me of normal real-life people from New York except with not quite as harsh of language, although most people from New York do curse at least once every sentence. The biggest theme that sticks out to me is being loyal and not ratting out your friends. When Henry is 11 he gets pinched for selling cigarettes and everyone in the mob is so happy for him because he didn't rat them out. This idea is reocurring throughout the film, all the way until the conclusion when one of the characters is faced with a tough decision.

The acting was definetely believable, not just the dialogue but the way the characters moved, and a certain confidence that they had about them that seemed so realistic. Each actor fit the character they had to play flawlessly: Ray Liotta plays the a character that is the most moral out of the three main characters, Robert De Niro plays someone who is extremely intimidating, and Joe Pesci plays a guy who's just nuts. He plays a similar character in Home Alone, not quite as destructive though. They all wore very expensive suits, and this was supposed to make them seem powerful and wealthy, which they were. The wives and girlfriends of the mobsters were covered in makeup to make them seem important and high-class.

Martin Scorsese and Michael Ballhaus did a great job with cinematography. They used a lot of deep focus shots to emphasize a lot of things taking place in the background; Henry driving a car and viewer sees a police car behind him in sharp focus, before Henry sees it. There were a lot of cuts used, as well as mixing with the sound. For example, the mobsters are sitting listening to a comedian tell jokes, then it cuts to the next scene, and we are still able to hear the comedian's jokes being told as we watch the mobsters rob people. This shows a sense of normalcy that they feel; they're so used to doing these jobs that reminds them of joking around with one another. A lot of quick, close up shots were used to emphasize emotions and to switch back and forth between characters quickly to show how their expressions were changing.

Critique the Critic: 25th Hour

I chose 25th Hour because Spike Lee very realistically portrays a drug dealer (Edward Norton) in his last day before he has to go to jail for 7 years, and the film really makes you think about the choices you make. Forrest Hartman of the Reno Gazette-Journal expresses similar ideas in his review. Towards the end of review he addresses how the film makes you think and how Monty is ultimitely a good guy:

Mostly, however, “25th Hour” is a thought-provoking meditation on human beings, the choices they make and their ability to change. And it sticks with you. Long after the first viewing I found myself mentally revisiting this scene or that one. Lee shows us the world through Brogan’s eyes, explaining the desperation that pushed him in the wrong direction. Ultimately, it’s impossible not to like this man, which is troubling in its own.

Monty Brogan, played by Edward Nortan, will be selling drugs to high school students in one scene and saving a helpless dog's life in another. He is deep-down a good guy but some of the choices that he has made in life are causing him to go to jail for 7 years. The last day before he goes to jail includes him meeting with his father and going to a nightclub for his going away party. Monty is already a changed man before he goes to jail, as he saves Doyle, who later becomes his dog, and you can tell that Monty doesn't deserve to go to jail, regardless of what he did. Spike Lee really stresses the importance of making good decisions in life, and how you could end up like Monty with only a few hours left, regardless of how good of a person you are. One scene that really stuck with me is when Monty has his good friend Frank (Barry Pepper) literally make him look ugly. He is afraid of looking like a handsome young white man in jail for obvious reasons, so he has Frank beat him until he nearly dies. Frank has been claiming to the other minor characters Jakob (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) and Monty's girlfriend Naturelle (Rosario Dawson) that Monty deserves every day he is sentenced to in jail because of the fact that he made other people suffer by selling drugs. Frank doesn't want to beat up Monty at first because of their friendship, but Monty notices that Frank thinks he deserves his 7 years in jail and uses this to taunt Frank until Monty pushes him over the edge and he is nearly killed because of it. This is a good example of the realism of the movie, as stated by Hartman:

Too often, movie characters talk in perfectly fashioned sentences and ultra-hip lingo, but not here. These characters are believable, and even actors with bit roles deliver three-dimensional performances.

So many other movies make the hero seem to good to be true, but Monty certainly isn't your stereotyical hero. This is what makes it realistic, because you can apply it to everyday life. Human beings aren't perfect: Monty may be a good man but because of one bad choice he is screwed. All of the actors together make it more realistic, also. The group of people sitting at the nightclub together, including Monty, Frank, Naturelle, Jakob and one of Jakob's students are all exceptional actors and you can really tell that there's a lot of tension going on because of obvious reasons. Monty especially delivers an amazing performance, that reminds me of him in American History X because of his initial ignorance and his ability to change his attidudes drastically over a short amount of time. I would recommend watching 25th hour because you think about life in a much different perspective.

bloggin' it up

yeah, hi, what's happening. my favorite movie is Pulp Fiction because Quintin Terantino is genius and the cast is flawless.

Tired of being underappreciated and manipulated by powerful "others," you fight back. Though possesssing a cold, violent outside, you have a soft, scentimental inside. You love your partner, you cherish family heirlooms, and you want nothing more than to be geniunely happy -- but you don't mind having to kill a couple of nimrods who happen to clutter your path. Take the What Pulp Fiction Character Are You? quiz.