Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Annie Hall Review


Annie Hall, directed by Woody Allen, is a film that illustrates the relationship between a New York comedian and a peculiar, out of the ordinary kind of girl. The film follows them through the ups and downs of their lives and relationships. Woody Allen notoriously and repeatedly breaks the fourth wall throughout, one time even pulling in, director, Marshall McLuhan in order to prove his point. This is a primary point in describing Allen’s character in the film, a too smart for his own good kind of guy who has to be right about everything. Diane Keaton plays his on and off girlfriend who would rather enjoy not delving into the technical side of everything. The combination provides for wonderful dialogue and endless amount of witty scenarios.

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

The Silent Era

The Silent Era


The Silent Era featured films between 1913 and 1932 that remain to be influential today. This Era can be characterized by its over acting facial and body expressions, close ups, strong scores, and primarily its lack of voiced dialogue.

Nosferatu is an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula. After a lawsuit between Stoker’s heirs and the producers, a court ruling ordered that all copies of the film be destroyed. All except one were. This single copy has been acclaimed as extremely influential in the film business.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-DrKgjit4I

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer Review


            Aileen: Life and Death of Serial killer is a riveting look into the life of Aileen Wuornos, murderer of seven in Florida. Directed by Nick Broomfield, this documentary takes you into the court room and into one on one interviews to have a first person look at Aileen. He tells the story of her life from many angles, sometimes frightened of her and sometimes emphasizing with her. Broomfield is able to reveal Aileen's story without relying on shock factor and still manging to please a culture addicted to violence and death.

Monday, September 8, 2014

Review: The Pervert's Guide to Ideaology

The Pervert’s Guide to Ideology is a unique and thought provoking documentary about the many hidden messages and connections to real life we can find in modern cinema.  Slavoj Zizek, Slovenian Marxist philosopher and main character of the film, has put together many thoughts and ideas and communicates them flawlessly throughout. Throughout the documentary, Zizek is presented in a way that makes him appear to be in the environment of whatever film he is discussing. He transitions flawlessly from set to set, one minute being in Robert De Niro’s apartment in Taxi Driver, to the record store in A Clockwork Orange, to even holding Rose’s hand, swimming in the icy waters of The Titanic. Zizek always brings his thoughts full circle while also filling the stories with plenty of comical relief, as to never giving the audience an opportunity to be bored.