Mega Blog: The Blog of all Blogs

Hello there again everyone! I am sad to announce that this is indeed our last blog of the semester. Don’t you worry though. Mega blog has twice the amount of fun stuff for you to read! Now, let’s begin shall we?

Run Lola Run, directed by Tom Tykwer in 1998, is a movie about a boy in trouble, a girl trying to help her boyfriend, and a race against time. So much happens within Run Lola Run it’s slightly hard to keep track of. First off, the movie replays itself twice which allows us to watch three different scenario’s. I was thoroughly confused when the movie had started to replay and go through everything all over again because they don’t really tell you how she’s able to do that and it more so just kind of happens. The changes for the three scenarios are not very drastic but allow each of the scenarios to end up with completely different endings. The first being Lola getting shot, the second being Manni getting run over, and the third being Manni getting his money back (happy ending). When watching this film I thought of two things: the butterfly effect and the film Hush.

Manni and Lola: Alive and now 100,000 marks richer

The butterfly effect is a well known theory that basically states that the flap of a butterfly’s wings in one place can eventually cause a hurricane/big event somewhere else. Lola, is essentially the “butterfly” in the film. Within the last two scenario’s she changes something small, usually starting with the way that she is running down the stairs. This can be Lola’s “flap” or “flutter” that changes the way the events happen. Let’s switch gears and talk about Hush. In the film Hush, a girl who is deaf ends up fighting for her life when a random guy decides that he just wants to murder her. The reason that I thought of Hush when watching Run Lola Run is because of the replaying of scenes. In Hush, the main character plays out her options in her head very vividly. Of course, the first time it happens you don’t know that it’s just in her head so you’re very relieved to see her still in the house afterwards. I couldn’t find a clip of these scenes in Hush so hopefully most of you have seen it before and/or know what I’m talking about. Anyways, I believe that Lola uses a similar tactic the the main character in Hush. Because we know this movie is not about time traveling we can assume that Lola did not actually go back in time to change the outcome of the movie. It is more likely that Lola thought these situations through in her head and the chose the best one. However, we will never truly know how Lola managed to do what she did. There is not an explanation for it in the movie so we just kind of have to wonder if Lola is a time traveler or just a very vivid thinker.

As a senior, this semester has been nothing but chaos to get what I need to get done. I have definitely shed tears and had many crisis. However, this class did not contribute to the bad times. Through this class I have learned so much about film and a lot of the history behind certain time periods. From Sunrise, to The Bride of Frankenstein, to Bonnie and Clyde, and many others. This class has been nothing short of an exciting trip through the years.

When we first started this semester, we would look at the earliest films, like The Great Train Robbery, and how they were really short, skipped from scene to scene, had very still shots. There was no panning like we know it to be today. As we progressed through the years, we got to see how film was changing. How instead of sets they worked outside, or instead of still shots they learned to pan the camera so that it as if we are turning our heads to keeps the characters in our sights.

How cameras are able to track the scene

We also started to see more transitions happening. When watching Sunrise by Murnau, as I mentioned in my very first blog, I was very impressed to see that the picture of the train in the very beginning of the movie turned into the actual train in the movie. We had just looked at the early films and it was a treat to see that they were already progressing that much.

One thing that has been made prominent from the very beginning of the class all the way up until now is that sound, or the lack of it, is detrimental to films. When silent films were around the actors had to act not with words but all through expression. You know that saying “a picture is worth a thousand words”? Well, a silent film is worth a million words. The non-existent voices in the films did not mean that the films were bad or “flops”. It just made the movie that much better. instead of hearing of a characters sadness you truly got to feel it through their expressions.

Sunrise: a depressed man and his wife

Let’s not forget about my favorite part of sound. The part of sound that has been there since the beginning. Whether a silent film or a talkie. You know what it is. MUSIC! Music absolutely pushes films over the edge and back again. I believe that music is one of the biggest components to making a successful film. In the blog previous to this one I probably spent half of my time writing about how beautiful and important the music was for the film Diva which was directed by Beineix in 1981. *Inserts same clip from last blog because we need to appreciate this beauty at all times*

Absolutely my favorite thing in the world

Music does so much for films. It helps to guide the viewers emotions. It can make you feel happy, sad, nervous, excited, pretty much everything under the stars. With each week I looked forward to all of the films music and what it had to offer me.

Another big thing for me was how I could relate the films we were watching to other films, shows, or directors. Before taking this class, I had little to no knowledge about just how impactful earlier films were on the media today. I loved finding clips of a show recreate or mention something about the movie we had just seen (shout out the my Jaws blog cause that Bob’s Burgers episode was genius).

You know I had to insert the clip

I know I am not alone in this either because I had great joy in reading my fellow peers’ blogs and seeing them also link the movies to things from their life.

Overall, I have been taken on a journey through time through films and I could not be more grateful. I really do have a new found appreciation for films and the work that goes into them. Thank you to Schlegel for being an awesome professor and to everyone else as well. Those blogs are awesome and never fail to give me a chuckle. This is Mayline signing out *plays AOL logging out sound*

“I’m a, I’m a Diva” – Beyoncé

What’s up everyone! Hope these last few weeks of school are treating you all well. I’m not going to lie, I just got back from Honors Convocation and rushing to make sure that I get this in on time so if it seems a little all over the place I apologize. Any who, DIVA! What a movie!

Diva, directed by Jean-Jacques Beineix in 1981, really puts you through it fairly quickly in the film. I went through a whirlwind of emotions while watching it, most of the time fearing for young Jules life. I loved how the film starts off with characters who don’t really have anything to do with each other. But, as the film progresses you start to see the characters lives and stories intertwining and, eventually, all come together for a wild ride.

He’s a runner he’s a track star

The plot, the action, the unjust murders, the murders that absolutely needed to happen, and the kid who just loves opera made this film absolutely great. However, there is one thing that really brings this film to it’s perfection is, yes, you guessed it, the music. The music was undeniably the thing that brought this film together for me. While being showed a clip of the movie during class, I will admit that I had not yet seen the film but, I was immediately entranced with the music that played within the scene. It was my favorite song in the film and was happy when it was not included in just that scene but a few others afterwards.

BEAUTIFUL

Another really big scene for me was when Jules brought Alba to his place and explained what the singer was saying and then listened to the song. Unfortunately, they don’t translate the lyrics of the songs in the film so this moment was extra special and I felt just like Alba (although much less…. sensual). Embracing the singers voice and just the song overall. FUN FACT: We all know how music plays while the credits are rolling at the end of a film. Well, in Diva, the music continues for 1 minute and 5 seconds after the credits end. If that doesn’t tell you how important and impactful the music is for this film, I don’t know what will.

Alba do be enjoying the song

In 1982, Vladimir Cosma won a Cesar Award for best music for the film Diva (rightfully so). The beauty of the music makes you forget that the film you’re watching is actually insane and people are getting murdered by two not very nice guys. The scene in which one of these men fall down the elevator shaft was probably the most shocking to me because they zoom in on his earphone and what do we hear? MUSIC! Hey, even bad guys have to get down once in a while. What was great about this is throughout the film you can see him pressing his earphone into his ear to listen to it as if he’s getting orders from his boss. But in reality, he’s just listening to music. Probably one of the only things, if not the only thing, that he likes.

The guy who doesn’t really like anything

This film will go down as one of my favorites that we have watched for this class and would obviously recommend for everyone to watch it. Until next time everyone. Au revoir!

P.S. turns out I did not need to rush at all. I was super excited to write this blog and ended up finishing fairly quickly because well…. DIVA!

Works Cited:

Class Discussion

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082269/

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082269/awards

The Man, the Fly, the Pod

The Fly, directed by David Cronenberg in in 1986, was a movie about a man named Seth Brundle who creates telepods that allow him to teleport objects between the pods. Unfortunately, when Seth finally tries to teleport himself he ends up fusing with a fly that was also in the pod. The movie goes on to show you Seth’s fast and alarming transformation from man to “Brundlefly”.

Let me just start by saying that this was a GREAT movie! As the movie progressed it just got more and more uncomfortable to look at but I think that that’s what made the movie so enjoyable. The uncomfortableness makes the movie memorable and whether you like it or not, you will definitely be talking about it. I think that part of the reason why it is so uncomfortable to watch is because we see and know Seth as this hopeful, dorky looking, nice guy but then as he starts to change he becomes this buff, sex god and completely does a 180. It’s hard to except when the character completely changes and it isn’t for the better. A natural disgust for the person starts to brew but we are also witnessing this person go through something so extreme it’s almost unbearable to look at.

Que lindo (how cute)

Looking past the extremely gross things that happen in the movie, the main thing that catches your eye is Seth’s physical transformation into Brundlefly. Chris Walas, the special effects worker and makeup artist for the film actually won an Oscar in 1987 as well as a Saturn Award for best makeup for his work in The Fly. According to Jeff Goldblum (Seth Brundle), it took about five hours to apply the rubbery suit, prosthetics, and makeup and another hour to remove it all.

Chris Walas, Jeff Goldblum, and David Cronenberg

During our class discussion, we talk about how the 80s was the start of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and how The Fly is telling of a whole other story if you look at it as Seth has HIV/AIDS. Seth’s transformation mirrors some of the effects that HIV/AIDS have on a person. For example, in the beginning stages of Seth’s transformation, you can see that his skin is starting to get bumpy and continues to worsen as the movie goes on. People who have HIV/AIDS can have bumpy and irritated skin due to skin infections. As Seth continues to change we know that he problems eating and found out the hard way that he needed to throw up onto his food so that it liquified and he could then eat it. People with HIV/AIDS can develop ulcers in the mouth as well as tongue lesions which make it hard for the individual to consume food. Throwing up is also a common symptom of HIV. Lastly, Seth’s body is clearly just going against him and changing him drastically which is something I am sure a person with HIV/AIDS could definitely relate to.

The skin of someone who has HIV

Seth’s bumpy skin

All in all, this movie was one of the best movies I have ever seen and I am more than glad that I watched it and also got my roommates to watch the end of the movie (they were not too thrilled about it. One of them just kept saying “eeeeeeewwwww”). I would recommend that everyone watch this movie and learn to love it haha.

Works Cited:

imdb.com/name/nm0906901/awards?ref_=nm_awd

bloody-disgusting.com/movie/3488430/jeff-goldblum-reflects-makeup-effects-sexuality-fly/

https://www.healthline.com/health/hiv-aids/effects-on-body#Immune-system

Class Discussion

Bruce, Bruce, and Bruce

killer shark doodoodoodoodoodoo

Hey hey heyyyy everyone! We’re back and better than ever. This week was a very exciting week because *drum role* the class got to choose the movie that we watched. If you couldn’t tell by the picture, the class chose to watch Jaws which was directed by Steven Spielberg and was released in 1975. Jaws was a gory movie with plenty of action to keep you well entertained. Let’s talk about the main character, the man, the myth, the legend, the shark, Bruce. Although we are made to believe that we are watching one shark wreak havoc in Amity, there were actually three 25-foot animatronic sharks (all named Bruce after Spielberg’s lawyer) along with real-life shark footage that was shot off of the coast of Australia. Bruce #1 could move from left-to-right, Bruce #2 could move from right-to-left, and Bruce #3 was a shark sled. Bruce #3 was attached to an underwater rail that was mounted to the seafloor by a big arm which allowed Bruce #3 to move back and forth.

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Bruce was a powerhouse in the freshwater. However, Bruce did not like being in saltwater at all. Once placed in the saltwater, one of the Bruce brothers sank and was damaged. These animatronics costed $500,000 to make but they barely worked and constantly had malfunctions. Because of this, Spielberg had to make a movie about a killer shark without really showing the shark. It’s crazy to think that a movie about a shark never really shows the shark until the very big climax of the movie, which is at the end, and yet the movie was still a HUGE success. To compensate for Bruce having tantrums, Spielberg, instead of showing us the shark from the people’s point of view, we saw the people from the shark’s point of view. This gave me a more eerie feeling while watching the movie because I was just constantly waiting for Bruce to attack and trying to figure out who he would attack first. While it wasn’t Spielberg’s original plan, he still managed to make one of the most iconic movies ever.

Chrissy Vs. The Invisible Bruce

After reading about Bruce and the stress he caused not only in the movie but on set, I couldn’t help but think that I had heard this before. And then, it clicked. BOB’S BURGERS. In an episode of of Bob’s Burgers, “The Deepening”, the amusement park owner buys a mechanical shark, that was used for a movie, to have as an attraction at his park. Unfortunately, the shark starts to go crazy and terrorize the people in the town and one of the characters ends up in the sharks mouth much like Quint does in Jaws. In the end, they end up “killing” the shark by plugging in a malfunctioned ice cream machine which had fallen into the sharks mouth filling the shark up with ice cream.

Jaws or an episode of Bob’s Burgers? We’ll never know

Jaws, as mentioned in “Structure of The Industry”, was truly the first film that brought New Hollywood to life. Not only was Jaws the first movie to gross $200 million in the box office, but it also returned over $100 million in rental receipts to the distributor. Games, toys, and even rides at theme parks added to the impressive success of Jaws.

I find it amazing how these classic movies are always depicted in other films or shows and I have no knowledge about it until I actually watch the movie they’re talking about. Our lives are based on classics and we don’t even know it. While my adult self was not scared while watching this film, like many others were when it first came out, I am 80% positive that if my younger self saw Bruce chomping off some guys leg I would have most definitely peed my pants. Overall, Jaws is a 10/10 (both the original and the Bob’s Burgers remake haha)

Works Cited:

Spielberg, S. Jaws. 1975

https://boldentrance.com/remembering-bruce-the-malfunctioning-animatronic-shark-that-made-jaws-a-horror-classic/#:~:text=The%20crew%20shot%20the%20real,to%20full%2025%2Dfoot%20scale.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0lzRac5oOk

Structure of The Industry (New Hollywood)

Antonioni’s L’Avventura

L’Avventura, a film made by Michelangelo Antonioni in 1960, is a movie that really leaves you questioning and wanting more.

“When Michelangelo Antonioni’s L’Avventura arrived in 1960 – amidst a tumultuous reception in Cannes that saw some disturbed audience members wanting to throw something at the screen”, a quote by Robert Koehler that very much describes how I felt while watching this film. Unfortunately, L’Avventura really did not cut it for me. Within the first 10 minutes of the film I was already extremely annoyed with Anna who then goes missing (I was honestly okay with that) and is never found. Although I was not much a fan of the film, after reading “What makes Antonionis’s L’Avventura great” I do now understand part of the reason why I was so dissatisfied with the film. Movies were structured to have a beginning, a peak of drama, and a happy ending. Because Antonioni broke away from this structure and really only gave a broken hearted story, many people, including me, had trouble viewing it. I do, however, think that it was a brilliant move on his part because you get to see just how much films actually impact us. Once I realized that the movie had ended and that Anna was still nowhere to be found I was super annoyed and had many questions that I know will never be answered. But was I really supposed to be giving my attention to Anna who was absent for most of the movie? *Hint* Probably not. By the end of the movie Anna is clearly not a thought in the characters heads but is also, for the people who actually followed along with the characters and their growth, no longer a thought in the viewers head.

– The last scene in which we see Anna

Some people may argue that the plot of the movie is what matters and some argue that it’s the character development that matters. I would argue that there would be no character development without the plot and there would be no plot without the characters. L’Avventura asks you to acknowledge the plot but to also have a deeper look at the characters in which you are seeing. I was so focused on them finding Anna that I didn’t really care about the other characters and what they were doing unless it pertained to trying to find Anna. I was not realizing that Anna was becoming a thing of the past because the slight mention of her name from time to time would give me hope that they would find her. The movie really isn’t about Anna at all and yet at the same time it’s all about Anna.

Sandro: “I miss Anna” Claudia: “Who’s Anna?”

Just as Scott Beggs says in his article, “Seek Out the Truth in L’Avventura”, this is a film that you really should watch a second time to fully understand it. Instead of only looking at or caring for the plot, we need to dive into the characters to find the greater meaning (something I wish I did from the beginning). A second viewing of this movie is quite necessary and I’m sure that at some point I will be giving this movie another chance. See you all next time on “Will Mayline like or hate this film?”.

P.S. Was anyone else uncomfortable watching the scene in which Claudia was just rubbing her face on Sandro? I felt like I was watching a video of my cats haha!

Cat or Claudia? We’ll never know

Works Cited

Antonioni, M. L’Avventura. 1960

https://filmschoolrejects.com/seek-out-the-truth-in-lavventura/

https://www2.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/features/greatest-films-all-time/great-wide-open-l-avventura

Neorealism and Wild Strawberries

Another week has rolled around and you know what that means my friends. Oh yes, blog time. This week we watched Wild Strawberries directed by Ingmar Berman in 1959. However, before we can dive into this movie, we need to understand the time in which this movie was made. Welcome to history class with Mayline!

Italian Neorealism was brought about in the 1940s and focused on the lives of Italians after World War II. During World War II Mussolini created cinema city which is where all films were to be made. Most of the films created in cinema city were called white telephone comedies. These films revolved around conservative values and usually featured characters who obeyed authority figures. When Italy was defeated by the Allied forces, cinema city was damaged and deemed unusable by the Italian Filmmakers. Because they had nowhere to film, they brought their cameras outside and filmed in the open using the natural lighting. These filmmakers did not create more white telephone comedies but instead took interest in the poetic realism films made in France and were also influenced by the documentary style of films that can be seen in the works of Dziga Vertov and Sergei Eisenstein. These films documented “real people” in their everyday lives and allow the viewer to see that certain events may change our way of how we view our “human destiny”. This has been history class with Mayline. I hope you enjoyed! Now onto Wild Strawberries.

Wild Strawberries is a film about a retired doctor named Isak Borg (did anyone else just want to hug this old man or was that just me?). In the movie, Isak travels from his home in Stockholm to Lund to receive an award from his old university. During his trip, he can be seen daydreaming about the life he once lived. After learning about neorealism, it is very clear that Wild Strawberries is nothing less than a neorealist film. Shall I walk you through it? In the beginning of the movie Isak has a bad dream in which he sees a faceless person who, once Isak touches them, drops dead, a clock without hands which may symbolize that he has run out of time, and even sees himself in a casket and has a little tug-o-war moment. This is very clearly a representation that he is not comfortable with the idea of his near coming death and would very much like to stay alive.

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As I mentioned before, neorealist films documented “real people” going about their days which is another thing you can see in Wild Strawberries. You’re just along for the ride that is Isak’s trip to Lund. While on this journey with Isak we watch him reminisce his past through day dreaming and though real life events. For example, Isak stops by his old summer home and thinks of his first love and how she ended up being with Isaks brother. Coincidentally, Sara comes along which is pretty much a split image of the first love that he was just daydreaming about. We continue the journey with Isak up ’til the end in which he finally accepts his fate and is okay with dying.

My guy Isak being super photogenic might I say

Wild Strawberries is the absolute textbook definition of a neorealist film and I very much enjoyed watching it and applying what I read to what I saw in the film. Until next time friends! *waves goodbye*

Works Cited

Bergman, I. Wild Strawberries. (1957)

Gazetas, A. An Introduction to World Cinema

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFT5n88A7Sc

Film Noir, Bringing Darkness to Light, and a Movie About a Pretty Man

Pretty man that I had hope for

“The noir hero is doomed before the story begins” a quote from Roger Ebert that really solidifies what this weeks screening was all about. After watching Out of the Past, a movie directed by Jacques Tourneur in 1947, I would have to say that the film noir style is probably one of the best things ever. There were many twists and turns and even though everything pointed toward the main characters demise I still hoped for the best. I can tell you now that “the best” ***spoiler*** did not happen. While watching Bringing Darkness to Light, directed by Gary Leva in 2006, I could pretty much relate everything they had talked about to Out of the Past. One thing that was talked about was how in film noir there was sexuality in the movie from start to finish. The seduction never failed but it wasn’t just plain old seduction. There was always something more to it but you never really know what. The movie starts with my pretty man Jeff with his love interest Ann. But, throughout the beginning of the movie he tells of his past with a woman named Kathie and we see his present relationship with her as well. We see how Kathie seduces him and only realize about halfway that she really was just using her sex appeal to manipulate Jeff. We never really understand Kathie’s motives until a few scenes after which, admittingly, was slightly annoying but it did kept me intrigued.

Kathie and Jeff sharing a smooch

Another thing that was mentioned was that in these films you never really know who did what to whom which is completely true. Let me be the first to say that I was confused out of my mind at some points while watching Out of the Past because it seems as if everyone just doubled back on their words. It isn’t really until the very end where you get some clarity and even then my mind was boggled. This leads me into my next point, you don’t really know who the good guy was and who the bad guy was. I thought Jeff was this guy just trying to escape the life he once lived until Ann pops that question in the end to “the kid”. Ann asks if Jeff had actually planned to leave with Kathie to which the kid responds with a nod. That nod, as I stated before, boggled my noggin. After sweet talking Ann and saying he didn’t love Kathie and me thinking that he really was just trying to frame her, even though he had to “play by her rules”, he really just planned to run away with her.

“The Kid” who said nothing but everything at the same time

The main point that really stuck with me from Bringing Darkness to Light was that because everyone really got to see how ugly and cruel the world could be, due to World War II, filmmakers decided to show that in these films. The world wasn’t all handy dandy and there were not always happy endings. Bad people existed and bad things happened to good people.

“A photo of a young girl bent over her sister’s lifeless body taken in Warsaw in 1939 changed how the world saw the war”

Although the film noir period was created because of dark times it is truly a magnificent style of film that I will now always have appreciation for.

Works Cited:

https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-out-of-the-past-1947

https://indianexpress.com/article/world/world-war-2-the-photo-that-shocked-the-world-6909473/

Tourneur, J. Out of the Past (1947)

Leva, G. Bringing Darkness to Light (2006)

Life at the Grand Hotel

This week we watched Grand Hotel directed by Edmund Goulding in 1932. This movie very heavily revolves around life and death.

Grand Hotel

When watching the movie you quickly realize that it very much relies on the concept of living through dark times. This is clearly a reflection of the era that the movie was made in: the Great Depression. The Great depression started in October of 1929 which was when the stock market had crashed terribly and led to a wildly huge decrease in the economy as well as leaving many investors with little to nothing. The lowest point of the Great Depression was in 1933 where almost half of the country’s banks failed and about 15 million Americans were left unemployed. I couldn’t imagine living through the Great Depression and how many of those Americans felt like giving up.

A mother and her children during the Great Depression

Otto Kringelein, a terminally ill man from Grand Hotel, is shown begging to spend his last days at one of the most expensive hotels. Kringelein only wants to live out the rest of his days as best as he can knowing that he will soon cease to exist. On the other hand, we are shown Grusinskaya. Grusinskaya is a Russian ballerina who can be seen longing for the fame and appraisal that she once received from her audience. Grusinskaya is pretty much the opposite of Kringelein. Although going through a rough time, Kringelein’s mission is to live the rest of his life as best as he can while Grusinskaya is ready to end her life because she cannot handle the fact that her fame is slowly coming to an end.

Kringelein living his best life at the grand hotel

Grusinskaya grieving the applauses she once had

Although in the beginning their views differ, Kringelein and Grusinskaya both decide to live their life as wonderfully as they can when the Baron, Grusinskaya’s “love interest” is killed. Even though this movie was made way before Covid times, I feel as though this concept of “live your life before you die” can be heavily related to today. People are scared for themselves as well as their family members and now realize to not take life for granted and to do the things you want to do before it’s too late.

Along with Grand Hotel, we got to watch a clip about filmmaker Oscar Micheaux who was born in 1884. Micheaux was an African American filmmaker who started off by writing novels that, unfortunately, no one wanted to produce. This, however, did not stop Micheaux as he decided to produce his own novels despite only having $5,000 – $10,000 to produce them. Micheaux was in fact criticized for this reason although given the circumstance you honestly have to give the man some credit. He had a dream and went for it when no one else would help him. He would release his own films and even went from state to state selling his films out of the trunk of his car. If that doesn’t say dedication I don’t know what does. Micheaux along with another African American filmmaker Spencer Williams allowed the voices of African Americans to be heard in the film making industry because they were quite over looked.

African American filmmaker Spencer Williams

African American filmmaker Oscar Micheaux

In light of Black History Month, I am very thankful to have learned about Micheaux as well as Williams. I am sure that both of these gentlemen are proud of how far African Americans have come within the film industry and also just in general. They did their part and left a huge mark in the film industry that has grown exponentially and will only continue to get bigger.

Works Cited:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwfDPc3a2PI

Goulding, Edmund.  Grand Hotel (1932)

https://www.history.com/topics/great-depression/great-depression-history

The Beginning of Horror

If you asked my 10 year old self to watch a horror movie I would probably cry at just the thought of it. I didn’t start getting into horror movie until I got much older which means that I missed some really great films. Films that shaped my childhood like Frankenstein. Coincidentally, one of the films that we watched this week was The Bride of Frankenstein by James Whale (1935).

The Bride and the Monster

The Bride of Frankenstein was, unexpectedly, a real tear jerker for me. Maybe I’m just sensitive but I could not help but feel so bad for the monster. Everyone wanted him dead but all he wanted was a friend and then when he finally had someone just like him, she was fearful of him too. The only true friend he had was the blind old man. I feel like the saying “don’t judge a book by it’s cover” has been around for so long and that scene really just confirmed that. It was nice to see that there was no judgement on either part of that short lived friendship. Along with the sadness came laughter as the film also had some humor when they created the character Minnie. I think she was probably my favorite part of the film and that will forever stay that way. Her constant repetition of names, her power screams, and her runs took off some of the heaviness that the film gives off.

Minnie from The Bride of Frankenstein

Along with The Bride of Frankenstein, we also watched Universal Horror by Kevin Brownlow. Watching this was so insightful and interesting. The one thing that I found extremely interesting, especially since we had just seen Sunrise last week, was when they mentioned that the man who played the husband in Sunrise had lead in his shoes and likely influenced how the monster walked in Frankenstein and The Bride of Frankenstein. Watching Sunrise and seeing how the husband walked and then seeing how the monster from Frankenstein walked you can very much see the resemblance.

Frankenstein’s monster walking as if he too had lead in his shoes

Another interesting thing that was brought up in Universal Horror was how the Spanish version of Dracula was better than the original. One of the examples they used was the comparing of the scene in which Dracula is on the stairs and says ” I am Dracula”. The original version Was slightly simple and just showed Dracula on the stairs for the scene. But, in the Spanish version you can see that a bat is flying towards and then past a man, and then, out of nowhere, Dracula appears at the top of the steps. I very much agree that the Spanish version had much more of a wow factor, especially in that scene.

The greeting scene from Dracula

The last thing that I absolutely cannot leave out was how they they were able to film Dr. Jekyll’s transformation into Mr. Hyde in one take in the Paramount version (1931). Ultimately, they managed to pull this off by using a red and a blue filter. The red makeup on the actor was first filmed through the red filter so that he looked as if everything was fine. They then gradually switched to the blue filter to that the red makeup would begin to show on the actors face allowing everyone to watch the “transformation” right before their eyes.

The transformation scene that went down in history

All in all, I really enjoyed how everything we watched this week has connected with each other as well as our previous screening, Sunrise. I cannot wait to see what next week has in store for me.

Works Cited:

Brownlow, K. Universal Horrors (1998)

Whale, J. Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= LP7RyURZAa0

Sunrise: A Film that Changed my View on Silence

A man and his wife happily in love

Our first screening, brought to us by Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau in 1927, was a movie called Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans. I cannot be more honest in saying that I wrote this film off from the very beginning. However, after watching it, I found a new appreciation for the silent film. Sunrise is a movie that involves a love, lust, murder, and so much more.

The train station picture that turns into the opening scene in Sunrise

Comparing our viewings from our first week of class to Sunrise is very much like night and day (no pun intended). Sunrise included several special affects that really brought the movie together and that we did not see in previous clips shown such as A Trip to The Moon by Geo Melies (1902), and The Great Train Robbery by Edwin S. Porter (1903). For Example, In the very beginning of Sunrise you are shown a picture of a train station and only a few moment later that picture becomes an actual scene within the movie. Transitions like and/or similar to this can be seen in nearly every film that you may see today.

How tracking shots look behind the scene today

Sunrise didn’t just stop at transitions. The film also included panning which was not seen in films like The Great Train Robbery. Although cameras were light, it was quite “problematic”, as mentioned by Robert Ebert in his review of Sunrise, because the cameras were attached to the cameraman who would be cranking them in order to catch the scene. But then came tracking shots which was possible when a camera was placed on mounted rails. The camera was now able to move with any activity taking place within the scene. Therefore, when an actor in Sunrise moved, so did the camera. Included in the movie review of Sunrise by Ebert was a quote from Todd Ludy which stated “The motion picture camera — for so long tethered by sheer bulk and naiveté — had with ‘Sunrise’ finally learned to fly.” This quote really showcases what a masterpiece Sunrise is on and off the screen.

Sunrise managed to capture a numerous amount of emotions and drama simply by being silent and letting the actors expressions and the music do the story justice.

Character in The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

During our class on Wednesday, we watched a clip from The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari by Wiene (1919). While watching this, I immediately thought of Tim Burton and how the characters in Burton’s films looked very similar to one of the characters in the clip of Wiene’s film. This is because Wiene’s film took on the German Expressionism style which can be seen in pretty much all of Burton’s films. Some of the notable things within the German Expressionism style are the big and dark eyed, tall, thin, and very pale characters which is very easily spotted in both Wiene’s and Burton’s films.

Characters from Corpse Bride by Tim Burton (2005)

Although German Expressionism started as a movement of modern art, you can see all of it’s impact in the cinematography that Burton has produced over the years. Films that everyone has seen and that many individuals love (including me).

Works Cited:

Murnau, F.W. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zf9kbnwYMDo

https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-sunrise-1928

https://www.vox.com/culture/2019/4/17/18285309/tim-burton-films-visual-style-aesthetic-disney-explained