Film Journal: Extra Credit - Donnie Darko

1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening 
Since this was not a film that we discussed in class, I will bring up the Noir standpoint. Throughout this entire film, in almost every scene, there is some type of noir lighting that represents either the foreshadowing of an event that will happen throughout the movie, or to add a feeling of despair into the viewers perception.

2) Find a related article (on the film, directed, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, ect.) You can use the library or the Internet. Cite the article or copy the url to your journal entry. Summarize in your own words the related article but do not plagiarize any content.
Article: http://americanrepertorytheater.org/events/show/donnie-darko
The related article I found is actually a summary/synopsis of what happens throughout the film. This specific article is about Donnie Darko being turned into play. I went over to YouTube and watched it in its entirety, and it's quite interesting how the concept of the film carries over into theater. 

3) Apply the article to the film screened in class. How did the article support or change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.
Well it was nice to see Donnie Darko from another perspective, and to see how it played out in theater. I think the whole synopsis behind the film that was stated within the article kind of left an open end for viewers of the film to want to come and see it, rather than telling them exactly what was going to happen. The article brought up the novel inside the film titled The Philosophy of Time Travel in which Donnie learns to manipulate time, therefore giving him the advantage of escape, which he was yearning for through the films entirety. This article kind of just pointed out things I already knew, but it was interesting to see the play compared to the movie.

4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including your personal opinion, formed as a result of 4 things: the screening, class discussions, text material, and the article.
Donnie Darko, being my favorite film, was something of a blissful mystery upon watching it the first time, the second time, and the hundreds of times I've seen it since then. Going through it, I can say that I learn something new about either it or life every time I sit down and analyze it. There are so many life lessons about depression and teenage living in this film that everyone going through a rough patch either in high school, college, or any point in their life really, should take the time out of their day to watch it. Most people won't understand it the first few times, but that tends to happen. 

CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM

1) (X) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class.

2) (X) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.

3) (X) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text.

4) (X) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.

5) (X) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.

6) (X) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography.

7) (X) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.

8) (X) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper. 

Film Journal: The Godfather

1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening 
In class last week we viewed the timeless film, The Godfather, and spoke a lot on Francis Ford Coppola. Coppola, who directed the film, was a graduate of UCLA. After creating seven films, The Godfather being the seventh, he had finally gained some recognition for all that he was striving for. We also spoke of some of the major themes behind the film, which are family values, bad guys being the good guys, and a lot of violence. Generally when it comes to family values, the whole family is often seen eating or at church for baptisms or weddings.

2) Find a related article (on the film, directed, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, ect.) You can use the library or the Internet. Cite the article or copy the url to your journal entry. Summarize in your own words the related article but do not plagiarize any content.
Article: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/godfather/
The article starts off by talking about The Godfather as what Rotten Tomatoes essentially calls one of the most well known movies of all time. Considering a lot of the quotes from the film are stated in plenty of other places, its almost impossible to not note The Godfather as a film that almost everyone has at least heard about. Popularity wise, it makes other gangster films not stand up as well to this film. 

3) Apply the article to the film screened in class. How did the article support or change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.
The article honestly made me like the film less. After seeing The Godfather probably about a good forty times, I focus specifically on the family values of the Corleone family. With that being said, some of my favorite scenes in the film revolve around the family sitting down for dinner, or the wedding that happens in the beginning of the film. I am not very fond of the violence and gang action seen over the course of the film, which is all that the article, and basically anyone talking about The Godfather happens to set their conversation on. 

4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including your personal opinion, formed as a result of 4 things: the screening, class discussions, text material, and the article.
The screening of the film was great. I really looked forward to watching it up on a big screen for the first time. There was a much better presentation factor with the large screen, especially seeing all the details put into the noir-esque hospital scene. The class discussion revolved around a lot of the family values seen in the film, which happens to be my favorite part of The Godfather. I love seeing old style families interacting when dealing with large issues such as being one of the mob families. The article caught me on a strange note though. Rotten Tomatoes is known for giving great movies awful scores, which makes me think that this was run off of favoritism for the film, but then upon reading the article, it bases a lot of the violence as the key perspectives of the movie. Overall, I love watching The Godfather, especially in class, because I was able to see it on the big screen for the first time. 

CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM

1) (X) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class.

2) (X) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.

3) (X) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text.

4) (X) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.

5) (X) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.

6) (X) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography.

7) (X) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.

8) (X) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper. 

Film Journal: The Graduate

1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening 
In class last week, we finished The Graduate, a film we had to watch in two parts because of time and technological issues. The Graduate is a film that holds a huge time stamp in the history of film. It won all of the major entertainment awards, which consist of the Emmy, the Oscar, etc., and was directed by Mike Nichols (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolfe, Silkwood, Postcards From The Edge.) Throughout the film, there are many cases of youth rebellion, where lead actor, Dustin Hoffman, plays the role of a recent college graduate who is lost with himself and decided to take life by the horns and start living. 

2) Find a related article (on the film, directed, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, ect.) You can use the library or the Internet. Cite the article or copy the url to your journal entry. Summarize in your own words the related article but do not plagiarize any content.
Article: http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-graduate-1967
The article I have chosen to compliment this film journal entry is an article from rogerebert.com. It is an article that surrounds the film from all aspects, complementing the fact that it was rated a five star film by film critic Roger Ebert. He mentions in the beginning of the article that it was a film meant to be a comedy, but not a comedy that has to do with gags, but comedy that has to do with one's point of view on the world when they are that age. In Ben's [played by Dustin Hoffman] life, he is seen as someone who is top notch in the world for graduating college, and is thought to move on to graduate school. The exact opposite happens, for he involves himself in many shenanigans including sleeping with his parents' friend, and then getting himself involved romantically with their daughter. The article also states that this film made Mike Nichols one of the "major new directors" although not many of his movies were ever as prominent as this one. 

3) Apply the article to the film screened in class. How did the article support or change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.
The article actually made me look at The Graduate in a completely different way. I have seen the film multiple times, but I never really saw it as a comical film. Now that the article pointed out that it was more of a point of view type of comedy, I can understand why the story is so relevant to scenarios today. Because Ben decided to be so rebellious and to live his own life instead of being told what to do by social norms, he was able to get what he wanted in the end. I also really enjoy the point of view aspect, seeing what it's like on the other side of college graduation. 

4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including your personal opinion, formed as a result of 4 things: the screening, class discussions, text material, and the article.
My personal opinion of the film has skyrocketed since originally seeing it, compared to watching it again in class as a college student. I now understand a lot of wheat Ben is actually going through in the film, and why he feels the way he does about the college experience, grad school, and just mixed up romance in general. The screening was great, because it was really nice to be able to see the film on a big screen. Like I said before, the screening helped me understand the film much more. In class, we talked mainly about the rebellion aspect and Dustin Hoffman being extremely young. We also talked about modern expressionism, which has to do a lot with the film making aspect. A lot of this was also seen in Citizen Kane, which includes overlapping action and long lens expression. The article also made me look at the rebellion ideology much more, because at that age, and in that scenario, ones mind is just all over the place with everything, so I can't imagine that Ben was able to keep a solid mindset through it all. In the end, he got what he wanted, and hopefully all who struggle with the same situation will as well.

CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM

1) (X) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class.

2) (X) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.

3) (X) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text.

4) (X) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.

5) (X) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.

6) (X) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography.

7) (X) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.

8) (X) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper.