I’m having trouble even finding where to begin. I feel as if I have no right to talk about this film until I’ve seen it 10 more times. At least. Everything about this movie left me completely stunned: the themes, the message, the characters, the music, the gorgeous cinematography…
Ahhh! I’m far too dazzled to coherently discuss anything right now, though I feel I should. I may have to view it again in the film lab and take notes, then make a gigantic post with everything I can think of. For …

Normally I’d leap headlong into a philosophical debate, but I’m with Leighton on this one. I feel the same way about our debate over “truth” as I do about “good vs. I like it”. I personally think truth is important, but I’m not going to demand that everyone attach the same value, or even view it the same way. I think one of the things that makes life so interesting is the vast array of varying opinions on nearly every topic imaginable.
I’d like to remind you that the point of …

As I’m still recovering from my Friday night of amazing Milton-ness, I can’t guarantee coherence. But then, when do I ever?
I’ve noticed that–while meaning is often extracted from screenshots–nobody ever bothers to analyze movie posters. This could be because movie posters aren’t all that important, but I choose to believe it’s because nobody really takes them serious. Which is a shame, because design of movie posters is such an intentional thing. Just think–a poster, like a preview, must summarize the film in a way that will attract potential viewers while …

“Even the way you lie tells the truth about who you are.”
I’ve given this statement a lot of thought, and I think I can only partially agree with it. It depends entirely upon the who the person doing the lying is and who the observer is. Not everyone is equally transparent, just as not everyone is equally discerning. For the people in the movie, this statement works fine, but it doesn’t hold up universally. If you’re trying to convince yourself that a lie is true, then of course it’s fairly …

I wonder what the distinction is between a “documentary” and a “non-fiction feature film”. I think Leighton was on to something in her post (that is Leighton’s blog, isn’t it?), but rather than trying to classify a film by what occurs in it and its style, perhaps we should examine purpose. How does Gates of Heaven differ from, for example, a documentary about whales? I could make the argument that the primary purpose of the documentary about whales is to educate its audience, but isn’t that also what Gates of …

After all this extensive discussion on the “is it good” question, I feel as if one question needs to be asked: Is it really that important? Don’t get me wrong–this distinction is a very important one for me, but it seems that this is not a universal feeling. What if you don’t care whether a film you’re watching is ‘good’ or not, as long as you like it? And what if you’d rather not even make that distinction–you’re happier just accepting each film in terms of the enjoyment it brings …

I was trying to keep nice and quiet down in the front row today while the massive debate over ‘masculine’ films raged all around. Both sides had valid points (yes, that does sound like a cop-out, doesn’t it), but I was having a pretty hard time with them. While it is true that a film may appeal mainly to a certain gender, I completely disagree with the idea that this is due to the unwillingness of women to expose themselves to violence, gore, sex, etc.
This question is a tricky one …

In case anyone is still confused about how exactly to comment on other people’s blogs without it being completely screwed up, here is a [rather roundabout] way that works. As far as I can tell, this is the only way that works.
1. SIGN OUT of your own blog
2. Go back to blogs.elsweb.org and locate the blog you wanted to comment on
3. Leave your comment (you have to provide your name and e-mail address, I believe)
And that’s it :)
(Basically, you can’t be signed in to leave comments on other blogs. Yes, …

As promised, I will now explain the oh so cryptic Charlie Chaplin cookie comment in my previous post: “Charlie Chaplin is the chocolate chip cookie of movie stars.” However, I will do this in list form. Ponder this for a moment. If your favorite actor/actress were a desert, what would he/she be? I think this question is deeply relevant to our lives and deserves serious, intense thought.
Charlie Chaplin: chocolate chip cookie (Simple– a universal favorite. Satisfying and enjoyable but not overwhelming. Joy-inspiring. Easily accessible. Addictive. Cute.)

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And this can be continued. …

I’ve spent a while reflecting on the discussion of Valentino’s appeal–both in class and in Craig’s blog–and decided to make a list of the ten most iconic actors and actresses, in my opinion. I intentionally chose iconic rather than greatest, because I think there is a significant difference between the two. ‘Iconic’ is more about recognizability and enduring influence on popular culture rather than skill or importance to the evolution of the film industry in general. (For example, Veronica Lake was iconic, while Bette Davis was great.) So here they …