Final Film Evaluations

This rating of the films we have watched this semester is based on personal preference. Starting with #12 - my least favorite, and ending with #1 - my favorite. Lets begin!

#12: Killer of Sheep - Ugh! Bland and strenuous attempt at Realism. Did absolutely nothing to hold my attention, even when I made an active effort to understand it. Showed no real value to me. I hated it.

#11: Wendy and Lucy - Once again, such a bland Realism film. Even if it was the director's style, the lack of a moving plot or dynamic characters made it terribly uninteresting. Not a fan of the acting either.

#10: Freaks - Although it told a good story with good acting (even though I don't view it as a horror film), its just such a weird film. The scene transitions were so rough and trying to follow each scene was a struggle. Seriously lacked fluidity in my opinion.

#9: Detour - The film did what it was meant to accomplish and that is the bear minimum. I found it to be highly unremarkable and unmemorable. I will give it props for solid acting and accurate portrayal of the Femme Fatale.

#8: The Vanishing - So many complexities and techniques that made it attention grabbing for viewer. Good filming and acting on the behalf of the villain. Decent film, but I wouldn't watch it again.

#7: Awara - Definitely would NOT watch this again. Great acting and a very well told story but so strenuous to watch (so long!). This being my first experience with Bollywood film, it was indeed eye-opening.

#6: Sherlock Jr. - Completely impressive and entertaining for its time. Keating is a genius! The capacity for greatness was strangely only increased by being a silent film in black and white, with great music too. Definitely not something I'd normally watch though.

#5: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly - Just wow. This classic film is the epitome of the Spaghetti Western and Eastwood fills that roll to a T. Not sure why it needed to be so painfully long though. I'm glad I watched it, but I wouldn't do it again.

#4: My Own Private Idaho - Every second of this movie just left me with questions, but in a good way I guess. It was extremely eye-opening and revolution in some standards. I loved the cinematographic techniques, particularly the quasi-stop motion.

#3: Fruitvale Station - Its such an humble and honest film that paid great respect for Oscar Grant. They didn't try to be overly dramatic in they're portrayal which made it more real. Awesome acting and cool filming techniques. I'm truly glad I watched this.

#2: Moonrise Kingdom - Such a close second! Oh man, this film is truly a rare treasure. It think its sole purpose is just to be weird. They took a typical story line and twisted it so far that it made it impossible to guess what would happen next. Although I oddly don't think that Bill Murray truly added anything to the film. Beautiful creativity and filming techniques. I love watching this movie again and again, laughing every time.

#1: Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? - My Winner! This film is a timeless classic of southern culture right up there with Forrest Gump! It includes such flawless acting and priceless scenarios. The politics and situational ironies of the setting was excellently portrayed. The diegetic music was so perfect and epitomizes the movie for me. I'll laugh when watching this film every time.

The Victor!

"Fruitvale Station" Sequence Scene Analysis

The full scene takes place at the fish section at the local grocery store. In the first shot of this sequence we are looking at this girl, Katie, who is trying to make a fish fry for her friend but doesn't know what to do. The shot is centered around Katie looking down at the fish on display in front of her. This is certainly a close up shot where everything in the background behind Katie is blurred, drawing focus more to her. In the background we hear the diegetic sounds one would normally hear in a grocery store.

Next shot in this sequence is another close up, this time looking at Oscar has he is calling his grandma to help Katie with her fish fry dilemma. Although you can see Katie's hair in the left corner, the eye is mostly drawn to the unique blue text box saying, "Calling... Grandma Bonnie". Which is a unique way of portraying cell phone use in this film. The background is once again blurred.

The third shot in this sequence is when the setting changes from the grocery store to Grandma Bonnie's home as she picks up the phone for Oscar's call. The shot is centered on the grandma and her activities. Unlike at the grocery store, the background here is vivid, particularly the flower arrangement she is working on.

This next shot in the sequence is of Oscar explaining that he is at work and wants her help, but he is cut off by his grandma who thinks that she is "playing on the phone". The shot is focused exclusively on Oscar and the entire background is blurred.

In the last shot of this sequence, Oscar explains the situation involving Katie and wants Grandma Bonnie to give Katie some advice on the fish fry. Katie is now re-mentioned in the conversation, and therefore the image of the back of her head is brought back into frame covering the left half. But the shot is still focused on Oscar.

"Moonrise Kingdom" Screenshot Analysis

This priceless and beautiful scene from the film, "Moonrise Kingdom" occurs precisely at the time of 1:17:11 and essentially depicts Scout Master Ward rescuing Commander Pierce from his inflamed tent in the middle of the great flood. From this camera angle, we are viewing the action in progress from the center of the stream/flood canal looking upstream. The camera is placed low just above the height of the rushing water, therefore giving us a very slight upward angled view of the two characters of focus in this shot. The mise en scene occupies the entirety of the shot and it includes very extensive layering. The first layer of this shot is composed of the two characters jumping over the water just left of center; Scout Master Ward impressively carrying Commander Pierce on his back. On the right side, layer numbers two and three are the Commander's tent post (viewed from its right wall) and the flames that burst out through the tents front entrance (a purposefully cheap yet effective pyrotechnic method). The fourth layer is essentially the rushing stream of water that occupies the whole bottom "horizon" of the shot, with the walls of the steam on both sides. The rest of the screenshot is essentially the background of the scene which consists of the camp gates, the surrounding wall, approximately nine yellow tents, and the forest of pine trees that extend beyond the camp walls. The dark stormy sky occupies the entire top "horizon" of the shot and literally overcasts the mise en scene in progress.