Essay's missing page

There appears to be a missing page from Cynthia Fuchs's article in your coursepacket. I'll try to get a .pdf from Clark Graphics Wednesday morning for posting here and at D2L. If it's not here by 2pm go ahead and do your best to answer without that page. Sorry for this!

Reading responses due 9/26

Reading responses due Wed. 9/26 by 8pm

This week's readings, from the course reader:

Perez, “Toward a Rhetoric of Film: Identification and the Spectator” (7pp)
Fuchs, “’I Got Some Bad Ideas in My Head’” (15pp)
Johnson, review of Douglas Gordon’s “Through a Looking Glass” (1p)

Post your responses in the comments field by 8pm Wednesday night, Sept. 12. Don't forget to suggest a scene for viewing in class.

1) Sum up one key idea of Perez's and Fuchs's essays (not Johnson's).

2) Describe Perez's and Fuchs's method of analysis. (See below for details)

3) Every reading provides a critical tool we’ll try out on the film under discussion. So, suggest one scene from TAXI DRIVER for us to look at in class. What "research question" would you like to ask about that scene? Explain how and why ONE (1) of these readings might be helpful or interesting to use when analyzing the scene. Be very specific.

See the bottom of the first posted reading questions for "tips" on figuring out the answer to question 2, on method.

Taxi Driver: Dangerous Intersections

I'm not sure what to make of these coincidences, but just as we're discussing The Searchers and Taxi Driver, two things happen:

1) Jodie Foster's The Brave One (a vengeance-themed film centered on an interracial relationship) appears in theaters . . .

("You talkin' to me?" Why, yes, I think she is.)

2) and two taxi cabs mysteriously burst into flames in New York City

Re: The Brave One, the Alliance of Women Film Journalists asks "Are Women Taking Vengeance on Celluloid?" (provocative ambiguity in that sentence structure!) and points out that several of the recent female-avenger films were developed, if not directed, by women.

Useful links

For a tutorial on creating your own blog and posting to our blog, click Blogger's start page.

You'll need to be able to make screen captures from dvd's for your short visual essays and your final project. (Sound clips aren't required but can also be used if you're focusing on sound.) For technical advice re: making screen captures or sound clips, see the department's film forum, created for Film 116 but open for use by students in all film courses. Scroll down to "Film 114 Discussions" to find some posts about VLC player (for the PC) and Snap 'N Drag (for the Mac), the software recommended for screen captures. WireTap Pro is excellent for making sound clips.

VLC Player's page, for downloading that software.
Snap 'n Drag's page, for downloading that software.
Wire Tap Pro's page, for downloading that software (for sound clips)

For info about campus computer labs (locations, software, etc.), click here.

Reading response due 9/19

Reading questions due Wed. 9/19 by 8pm

This week's readings, from the course reader:

Bordwell, “Principles of Narration” (14pp)
Keathley, “Five Cinephiliac Anecdotes” (24pp)

Post your responses in the comments field by 8pm Wednesday night, Sept. 12. Don't forget to suggest a scene for viewing in class.

1) Sum up one key idea of EACH reading.

2) Describe EACH author’s method of analysis. (See below for details)

3) Every reading provides a critical tool we’ll try out on the film under discussion. So, suggest one scene from THE SEARCHERS for us to look at in class. Explain how and why ONE (1) of these readings might be helpful or interesting to use when analyzing that scene. What questions do you think it might help answer, or what discoveries did it help you make as you watched and read? Be very specific.

Question 2, on method, will take some thought. Consider the following:

* What aspects of the film experience is this author interested in, and why? Some examples might include: style (if so, what aspects of it?), the filmmaker’s personal biography or politics, the film’s social or historical context, intertextuality (a film’s connection with other films and images), character psychology, casting and the star system, viewers’ identification with characters, viewers’ physical experiences or psychological processes, viewers’ social background and/or identity, viewing context (films in theaters vs. dvds at home), and others.

* What kind of examples does this author use to support his or her argument? What counts as “evidence” for this author?

* What schools of thought or scholarly practice inform this author’s approach? (e.g., literary studies? psychology? filmmaking experience? history? autobiography? art history? Surrealist distraction?) The answer may not always be stated in the reading itself; in those cases, ask yourself, what other kind of writing does this sound like? What other types of writers might be interested in the same issues or examples this person uses? This also may require a quick “Google” search, to find out what this writer’s background is.

Welcome to Film 320-07

Howdy, Stranger. C'mon in.

This is the Film 320 blog, where you'll post (in the comments field) your responses to the weekly readings and screenings. You'll also use this to discuss group work later in the semester.

For the syllabus, see the D2L site.

For technical advice re: making screen captures or sound clips, see the department's film forum, created for Film 116 but open for use by students in all film courses. Scroll down to "Film 114 Discussions" to find some posts about VLC player (for the PC) and Snap 'N Drag (for the Mac), the software recommended for screen captures. WireTap Pro is excellent for making sound clips.

For a tutorial on creating and posting to a blog using Blogger, click Blogger's start page.

Reading questions due Wed. 9/12 by 8pm

This week's readings, from the course reader:

• Perez, “In the Study of Film, Theory Must Work Hand in Hand With Criticism” (2pp)
• Bordwell, “The Viewer’s Activity” (17pp)

Post your responses in this post's comments field (below) by 8pm Wednesday night, Sept. 12. Don't forget to suggest a scene for viewing in class.

1) Sum up one key idea of each reading.
2) Describe each author’s method of analysis. (See below for details)
3) Every reading provides a critical tool we’ll try out on the film under discussion. So, suggest one scene from this week’s film for us to look at as a group. Explain how and why ONE (1) of these readings might be helpful or interesting to use when analyzing that scene. What questions do you think it might help answer, or what discoveries did it help you make as you watched and read? Note: you may choose a scene discussed by the author, if you can also explain what’s especially interesting about the author’s approach to that scene.

Question 2, on method, will take some thought. Consider the following as you develop your answer, but you do not need to address every one of these questions in your response.

• What aspects of the film experience is this author interested in, and why? Some examples might include: style (if so, what aspects of it?), the filmmaker’s personal biography or politics, the film’s social or historical context, intertextuality (a film’s connection with other films and images), character psychology, casting and the star system, viewers’ identification with characters, viewers’ physical experiences or psychological processes, viewers’ social background and/or identity, viewing context (films in theaters vs. dvds at home), and others.
• What kind of examples does this author use to support his or her argument? What counts as “evidence” for this author?
• What schools of thought or scholarly practice inform this author’s approach? (e.g., literary studies? psychology? filmmaking experience? history? autobiography? art history? Surrealist distraction?) The answer may not always be stated in the reading itself; in those cases, ask yourself, what other kind of writing does this sound like? What other types of writers might be interested in the same issues or examples this person uses? This also may require a quick “Google” search, to find out what this writer’s background is.