Week 11: HU121 Film In Society (Paranormal Activity)

Paranormal Activity (2007)

After moving into a suburban home, a couple becomes increasingly disturbed by a nightly demonic presence.

Watching via NetFlix.

Information available on IMDb and Wikipedia.

Discussion Question:

What's your favorite scary movie of all time? Using your knowledge of film and the vocabulary from this class, tell us what makes it so scary. It would help to describe the sound, the shots, the acting, the lighting, and so on. Make us believe it really is the scariest movie out there!

Discussion Answer:

In general, I am not a fan of horror films but I do have a few favorite movie of the genre. The Shining is one of those few films. Throughout the film, many different types of shots are used to build the suspense and fear. 

Many creepy close up shots, especially of Jack Nicholson, raising his signature eyebrows illustrate the insanity going on inside his head. When the family journeys up to the hotel, there is a high-angle shot done from a helicopter, following them giving the sense they are being watched. Another type of shot that is used quite frequently in the film are jump shots. The shot that comes to mind is when Danny is riding his three wheel around and sees the twin girls and the shot is jumping from a full-body shot to a close-up shot to create tension.

Jack Nicholson, one of my favorite actors, is extremely creepy in this film. He really makes you think that he is completely out of his mind. The way he speaks the lines. The way he expressed with his face. Amazing work!

Assignment Question A:

1. Both of these films had relatively small production budgets - Paranormal Activity was made for roughly $15,000, but it made over $100 million. Cloverfield made over $180 million worldwide. In either case, how did the filmmakers make the tiny budget work for them? Would the film that you watched have worked if they had another $10 million to make it? In other words, what are some ways these small budgets affected the films?
2. Pretend you were asked to remake the film you viewed. Who would you cast to play the leads? What would you do differently?

Assignment Answer A:

1. Paranormal Activity made the budget work for them by only using one location, having a small cast, and using "home video" footage for a majority of the film. I don't think the film would have worked if they had an additional $10 million to make it because what wouldn't add anything else to it and special effects would have taken the audience out of that reality. The small budgets made the film makers do things in innovative ways like using a more practical way to drag Katie down the hall as opposed to special effects. 
2. If I were to remake Paranormal Activity, I would cast much like the film makers here did with unknown actors to give the film a real world feeling. THe only thing that I would have done different as the director with my version of this film to tighten up the pace, in this version some (in my opinion) run long.

Assignment Question B:

Compare and contrast two films by the same director (two Spielberg films or two Hitchcock films or two Kubrick films or Coppola films).

Assignment Answer B:

For this assignment I chosen to do two films by Steven Spielberg, that both star Tom Hanks. Firstly, Catch Me If You Can (2002) is the true story of Frank Abagnale, Jr. who conned millions of dollars worth of checks as a pilot, doctor and legal prosecutor. Then, The Terminal (2004) is about an eastern immigrant, Victor Navorski who finds himself stranded in the JFK airport and takes temporary resident there.

Both of the film's cinematography was done by Janusz Kaminski. Janusz Kaminski has done the majority of Spielberg's films. Both films were filmed in a similar style. Catch Me If You Can used a lot of epic long shots to show the Scope of Frank's adventures. The Terminal used medium and close up shots to give the sense of closeness to Victor.

Like the cinematography on these films the editing was done by the person, Michael Kahn. The editing on Catch Me If You can was fast pace to create the feel of the chase between Frank and Carl. The editing has a much slower pace with The Terminal because they wanted us to feel along with Victor, with time going by much slower. Steven Spielberg, one the worlds best directors, I feel approached these two films in a similar ways. Both films have strong comedic moments as do most if not all of his films do. Both films create compassion for the main character. Through Spielberg direction, he gets just what the films needs from the actors.

Week 7: HU121 Film In Society (Catch Me If You Can)

Discussion Question:

Do films like The Godfather, Goodfellas, Casino, and Donny Brasco glorify the lives of those involved in organized crime? What about HBO's award-winning series The Sopranos? Why do so many people find Tony Soprano to be a sympathetic character? In Catch Me If You Can, Frank Abagnale, Jr. steals millions of dollars and lies his way through the world, yet somehow he remains relatable. Are these characters glorifying crime?

Discussion Answer:

I feel that films like The Godfather, Goodfellas, Casino and Donnie Brasco do glorify the lives of those involved in organized crime because they show that it is exciting, without consequence and can be quite profitable. This is also the case with the HBO's award-winning series The Sopranos. Tony Soprano is found to be a sympathetic character by many people because he is essentially a family man just trying to provide for them. Yes, these characters glorify crime, like I stated before because they show that it is exciting, without consequence and can be quite profitable.

Assignment Question:

1. Compare and contrast Ethan Edwards (the protagonist in The Searchers) and Michael Corleone. If you watched Catch Me If You Can, contrast Ethan Edwards with Frank Abagnale, Jr. In what ways are they similar?  In what ways are they different? 
2. Discuss the intercutting of the baptism scenes with the murders of the rival families.  What point is Coppola making about Michael? What point is he making about the sanctity of life? For those of you who watched Catch Me If You Can: Evaluate Leonardo DiCaprio's acting in this film and in general. The book describes him as a very versatile actor. Why?
3. Don Corleone tells Michael that he had hoped he would be able to lead a different life than the one he chose, a life outside of the criminal world.  Do you think this would have been possible for Michael even if he had not? For those of you who watched, Catch Me If You Can: Compare and contrast Frank Abagnale, Jr. and Carl Hanratty. Who is the hero? Who is the villain? What motivates these men?

Assignment Answer:

1. Ethan Edwards & Frank Abagnale, Jr. aren't necessarily evil people but they did live outside of the law. Ethan was outside of the law because he was seeking revenge for the tragedy that occurred to his family. Frank initially began being deceptive to meet girls and then into then excitement to see what he could actually get away with.
2. Leonardo DiCaprio's acting in this film is one of his best, in my opinion.  It show how he can be a troubled son in one scene and a sauve airplane pilot in the next. Being able to do this is very important in this film because he is portraying someone who was able to deceive people for years on end. In general, Leonardo DiCaprio could do almost any role. From his start as a runaway on Growing Pains to a hopeless romantic in Titanic to a mentally handicapped boy in What's Eating Gilbert Grape? (or which he received he first Oscar nomination).
3. Frank Abagnale, Jr. and Carl Hanratty both had damage family lives, which caused them to devote themselves entirely into their work. Their work just happened to be on different sides of the law. Frank is clearly the villain, but only because he is breaking the law. Carl is the hero because his job is to catch people breaking the law but can be deceptive in order to get what he needs. Ultimately though, Carl general does come clean to clear his conscience. 

Links:

Avagnale & Associates

Catch Me - The Musical