Weekend Movie Experiences

I went to see Coffee and Cigarettes and Lost Boys of Sudan this weekend. What films did you see? What did you notice about the films you watched? How did the mise-en-scene or cinematography function within the film?

Here's a free entry if you haven't been commenting lately (or even if you have).

Midterm News

Just a quick note to let you know that I'll be posting the midterm questions here on Sunday afternoon for students who are interested.

I will not be providing you with the full midterm study guide until class on Tuesday, but I do want to alert you to the fact that you should know the names of the directors of all teh films and their dates of production. You should also know the names of key figures associated with each of the films, as well as prominent cultural, social, and political factors that may have informed the production of each of the films we have watched.

Stay tuned for more information on the midterm.

Finally, I'm still finding that students are falling behind on contributing comments to the blog. If you do not participate in the comments section, it will negatively affect your class participation grade. The entries below are still open for further comments on the films we've seen.

Cindy Sherman

Several articles we've discussed have mentioned Cindy Sherman's project, "Untitled Film Stills." Sherman is major contemporary photographer, and this project has often been mentioned because of the way it calls atention to the ways in which gender identity is constructed in film.

Here's a short post about Sherman from Feministing.

Vertigo Comments

Comment here on Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo.

Some Maya Deren Notes

I've done a little digging, and it turns out that one of the music videos that uses visual elements based on Meshes of the Afternoon is Milla Jovovich's "Men Who Fell." Here's the story. For one very insightful interpretation of Deren's film, take a look at Wendy Halsem's essay from "Senses of Cinema."

I'll refresh your memory on Deren's film in class, but we'll spend most of our discussion talking about elements of mise-en-scene.

Marlene Dietrich Images

Here are a few sites with film stills, promotional pictures, and posters of Marlene Dietrich. Blonde Venus must be understood in part through the star system that constructed Dietrich's image (as well as MD's own ability to manipulate her image within that system).

• Lynn's Classic Movie Favorites
• IMDB Photo Gallery
• War Photos of Dietrich

Weekend Viewing Experiences

I went to see Morgan Spurlock's documentary, Super Size Me, this weekend. What movies did you see? What did you think? How did the promotional or advertising materials affect your viewing experience? Did anyone else see Super Size?

What other film topics (Cannes Film Festival, Michael Moore's new film) have you been following this weekend?

Note: For comments you can use basic HTML (italics, hyperlinks, bold, etc.).

Peidmont Film Series

Crit Bennett left a comment mentioning the Peidmont Film Series. Just thought I'd put it up front. Comments on these films/the film series are welcome.

Hey, I wanted to let the class know about the summer film screenings at Peidmont this summer. No, they're not doing 'Dark Side of the Rainbow', but Turner Classic Movies is showing free screenings in the park. Starting June 3 and continuing every Thursday at sunset.

June 3 - Young Frankenstein

June 10 - Barefoot in the Park (with Robert Redford and Jane Fonda on-hand to introduce the film)

June 17 - The Sound of Music

June 24 - Psycho

July 1 - The Wizard of Oz (I'm gonna bring 'Dark Side of the Moon' on CD and listen to it during the film)

If anyone wants to come on out, bring a cooler with your favorite beverage(s) and a blanket.

Info at http://www.piedmontpark.org/do/SOG_EVENT.html

Blonde Venus Comments

Open discussion on Blonde Venus. Observations, questions, and comments all welcome.

Also a quick reminder for students who didn't attend the class screening: there are several versions of Blonde Venus, and the opening sequence, with the women swimming in the lake was not on the film as it appeared in Hollywood.

Meshes Discussion Forum

Offer your comments, questions, or observations about Meshes of the Afternoon here.

Blonde Venus and Meshes

Just a reminder that we will be viewing Blonde Venus and Meshes of the Afternoon this week in film class. These films may be harder to find, especially at chain video stores. I'll try to make a copy of each film available on reserve in the library, but I may have to wait until Thursday to do that.

I will also place on electronic reserve the Peter Baxter essay on Blonde Venus as well as a short collection of materials on Meshes. This material isn't required, but it might help you to negotiate a somewhat challenging experimental film. You should also be prepared to discuss the chapter on mise-en-scene on Thursday.

From now on, you are encouraged to include any observations about the films in the comments below each entry.

Open Discussion

Here's an open thread where you can discuss any movies that you might have seen this weekend.

Also note that I've fixed the comments section so that you don't have to register to use them.

Film Screenings

Just a quick note to mention that Deborah Stoner has offered to host alternate screenings of the films for class. The screenings will usually be held on Tuesday or Wednesday night. You can contact her at gtg320r[at]mail[dot]gatech[dot]edu for more information.

Readings for Tuesday

If you haven't read this week's reading assignments, you should do so by Tuesday of next week. On Tuesday, we will be discussing Chapter 1 of Timothy Corrigan and Patricia White's The Film Experience: An Introduction (FE, from now on) and Jon Lewis's essay, "Those Who Disagree Can Kiss Jack Valenti's Ass."

As you read both texts, try to keep track of some of the key terms from the chapters. Corrigan and White are especially valuable in introducing the effects of distribution, advertising, and publicity in shaping our interpretation of a film. One of the concepts to consider while you read: Think about films that you have seen recently (or plan to see). How was that film promoted? How did you become aware of it? What information did you get from the trailers? How was the film publicized in magazines? On television? When you're ready, respond to some of these questions (or to previous comments) in the comments section below.

Responding in the comments is considered to be a component of your class participation. Comments can be relatively brief (100 words or so), and you should plan to comment approximately once a week.

First Post

This is the first post in my course weblog for LCC 2500, Introduction to Film. In this blog I will make announcements about the course, refer to local film festivals and events, and mention articles relevant to English 2500. Students and visitors are encouraged to comment. Actually students will be required to comment occasionally, but that's another story.

This week's movie is Robert Altman's 1992 film, The Player, starring Tim Robbins, Greta Scacchi, and Peter Gallagher. Keep coming back for more updates and a complete set of links to the films we'll be watching this semester, as well as links to prominent film and media websites.