Racism in Film

We've recently finished Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing, Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List, and  Edward Zwick's Glory.  If you remember, I asked you to pay attention to the story that was being told and also who was telling said story.  Lee depicts day in the life of a city block in Brooklyn that is dealing with racial tensions; Spielberg depicts the heroism of Oskar Schindler in saving nearly 1200 Jews in occupied Poland; Zwick tells the story of the 54th Massachusetts from the perspective of their commander in the Civil War.  I asked you to notice the story being told and also to notice the directorial choices based on this story: does the director's ethnicity and religious background affect the story?

In his article "How Hollywood Depicts Race," Jared Wright suggests that the director's background does influence the film.  As I think about authors such as John Grisham (a lawyer who writes legal thrillers), Kyle Mills (the son of an FBI agent who writes thrillers centered around FBI agent Mark Beamon), George Pelecanos (a Greek-American living in DC who sets his works in the city with a Greek-American protagonist), and Les Roberts (although born in Chicago has adopted Cleveland as his hometown and sets his most popular detective series here).  So if authors' backgrounds influence their work, why would directors' backgrounds not?

Your task is to utilize the films that we viewed (I also suggest referencing the three sports films: Glory Road, Remember the Titans,  and 42) and explain how the films would be different if the director was of a different race, ethnicity, or religious belief.  Would Do the Right Thing be a powerful and thought provoking if Lee was white (Juju Chang and Lauren Effron's 2014 article for ABC News discusses why the film still resonates twenty-five years after it's release)?  Would Schindler's List be as successful in it's depiction of the Nazi's oppression and elimination of the Jews if Spielberg was a German Catholic?  Would Glory focus on Robert Gould Shaw nearly as much - rather than the lives of those in the regiment - if Edward Zwick was black?

Race and Sports

We've recently finished three movies that deal with race and sports: 42, Glory Road, and Remember the Titans. Certainly, these films were dramatized versions of the actual events often to make the message more pungent. There also seems to be a resonance between sports and racism.

Sanford Jay Rosen explores the differences between 42 and The Jackie Robinson Story (1950) in "Jackie Robinson and Race in America, Then and Now: A Tale of Two Movies" while connecting these films to the present.  Frank Deford discusses "What We Talk About when We Talk About Race and Sports" and Travis Waldron attempts to make sense of The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports' grading of the four major sports in "50 Years After MLK’s ‘Dream,’ How Do Professional Sports Measure On Race?"  And while we celebrate Jackie Robinson as the first black player in Major League Baseball, Michael G. Long reminds us that we really should first look to Joe Louis in "Making Way for Jackie Robinson: The Quiet Fight of the Brown Bomber."

If you've read more than one of the above articles (or have paid attention to the news) it should be clear that racism still exists in society.  The question (and your prompt) is thus: What role do sports play in racism?  Do they help to eliminate racism?  Do sports - both professional and amateur - have a responsibility to establish a moral high ground?  You will want to reference each of the films and at least two of the above articles while discussing this.  Remember: opinions are stronger when they are supported by the thoughts of others.

Oh, and a final note: It will be very difficult to do this will in only three hundred words; I would expect responses will instead approach five hundred words. 

Heartfelt at the Holidays

It's a Wonderful Life is one of my favorite films (the American Film Institute agrees that it is a wonderful film, rating it routinely near the top of their 100 Years, 100 Films lists).  Every year, I watch George Bailey take on Mr. Potter in this holiday classic on Christmas Eve.

While It's a Wonderful Life is a classic, the themes of the film are contemporary.  The Family Man contains similar elements and is a nice comparison, as are the many versions of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol.  It's hard to miss the supernatural elements and Scrooges in all of the works.

Because of the similarities (and I'm always in a pleasant mood after Frank Capra's wonderful film - my wife has found it funny that I'm giddy that we are watching it in class) your task is to compare both films.  How are they similar?  How are they different?  What character elements are the same? Different?  Are the themes similar?  How do you know?  How do they compare to Dickens' work?

Remember, you need to write at least 300 words and utilize good writing conventions for your blog.

Intertwined Stories

In Love Actually, there are many intertwined stories that focus on different types of love.  Not all of the stories may resonate with you, but that doesn't lesson the theme of the film.  What is the theme of the film?  Which of the stories does resonate with you?  Which story seems to be the most far fetched?

Be sure to support your thoughts with specific examples for all of these questions and use at least three hundred words. 

Is He a Hero?

We've watched quite a few films by this point that would be considered hero films, but how well do they fit the archetype?  You've heard me babbling on about how Luke Skywalker is this, Princess Leia that, and R2-D2 (along with C3PO) the comic relief, but do you agree?  Your task is to pick one of the films that we've viewed on this topic (The Hunger Games, Star Wars: A New Hope, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Here Comes the Boom, The Natural) and determine if the film, in fact, fits the archetype. You do not want to simply write simple sentences and/or a list of how the characters and elements fit, but instead a well thought-out essay discussing a film within the archetype.

If you lost the handout on the archetype, you can find it here.

The Hero Archetype

Both George Lucas and J.K. Rowling obviously understand the hero archetype; simply look at their major works (Star Wars and Harry Potter respectively).  And because of this archetype - we can thank Odysseus for being the leading hero - all hero stories contain certain elements.  Your task is to compare both Star Wars: A New Hope and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in terms of the hero archetype.  If you lost the handout, you can find it here.  Remember to use good writing conventions and at least three hundred words.

Searching for Approval

In both Catch Me if You Can and October Sky we encountered a protagonist who was desperately searching for his father's approval and also was searching to carve out his place in society.  It is also worth noting that both of the films is based on a true story.  Your task is to discuss the motivating factors of both Frank Abignale Jr. and Homer Hickam and what these factors drove them to accomplish.  Did either earn their father's approval?  How do you know?  Make sure to use specific examples and good writing conventions in your response (and also three hundred words).