Of the contemporary directors listed in the textbook I chose Nancy Meyers and Steven Speilberg.
The films I chose to watch of Nancy Meyers were Father of the Bride (1991) and Father of the Bride 2 (1995).
I saw this movie a long time ago and enjoyed watching it again. This is one of Steve Martin’s best films. It’s funny, very warm hearted and definitely worth watching. Father of the Bride is a movie that people can really relate to. George Banks (Steve Martin) lives in a mini-mansion, runs his own company, drives an antique sports car, has a wife that’s employed and two wonderful children. When his daughter decides to get married, he complains about the costs of the wedding. He doesn’t like his daughter’s fiance but realizes just how much he loves her. The characters are endearing, the wit is classic and the humor is perfectly executed. Steve Martin is brilliant. This movie portrays what the typical father feels like when his little girl grows up and gets married.
Father of the Bride 2 recaptures the magic of the first movie. It has a good plot. If you just want to relax and watch two great movies, then get this one and the first. This is a wonderful sequel to the first one. It really makes you think about what is important in life. Just as funny as the first one. George Banks (Steve Martin) must accept the reality that his daughter is now going to be a mother. He realizes that a mid-life crisis is just around the corner.
The Steven Spielberg films I chose to view were The Terminal (2004) and War of the Worlds
The Terminal has an excellent cast and crew along with a great director and actor (Tom Hanks). This film was inspired by the real-life story of a man stuck for years at Paris’ De Gaulle airport. All of the characters have unique traits and the movie has a fantastic story line. It’s amazing that they were able to make a full length movie that takes place on virtually one set, the JFK airport. This is a very simple movie about a man stranded at the JFK airport. This movie is really good. Its about life, people and values. If your looking for a movie with an intriguing story line and great acting this is the movie for you.
War of the Worlds is about the world being invaded by aliens. Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise) is a working class dead beat dad living in New Jersey. He ends up traveling all over with his two children trying to get away from the aliens. Steven Spielberg did an excellent job at creating some mind blowing scenes of massive destruction. The action scenes are quite inventive. The movie ended abruptly with unanswered questions.
I am certainly learning a great deal about the film industry from the readings. For one, George Lucas has come a long way in directing films. I never before would have thought that television would pose a threat to cinema. I would’ve thought that films would have benefited from all of the advertising. I learned that if you were in the field of advertising you had a better chance at becoming a film director. It was nice to know that even though the majority of directors are male, there are still female directors out there that are capable of directing a great movie too.
So far this module has been the best. The movies keep getting better. I really enjoy getting feedback from my fellow classmates. I also like to view their blogs and read information that they were able to find or learn. I look forward to the next module.
I chose to report on Casting and Props. For casting, I found a website where you can find an agent to represent you in a specialized field or search for a casting director to send your headshot, resume or demo to. For props, I found a website for a company in London where you can purchase props that were used in movies.
http://www.backstage.com/bso/rossreports/directories.jsp
http://www.propstore.com/list/cat_id/_2/ob//view//num_display//movs/
For The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring I found a useful website that lists reviews, credits, trailers and insightful information regarding the film.
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/lord_of_the_rings_the_fellowship_of_the_ring/
For Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon I found a website that lists various reviews on the film.
http://decentfilms.com/sections/reviews/1712
During my reading I learned that the development of multiplexes was led by AMC. I have listed their website. It enables you to watch trailers, find showtimes, or find out what movies are coming out soon.
http://www.amctheatres.com/
The Lord of the Rings:The Fellowship of the Ring (2001, Peter Jackson) is the first Lord of the Rings movie that I have seen. I definitely felt out of my comfort zone, because this is not normally a movie that I would have chosen to view. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the storyline and the writers attention to detail throughout the film. Peter Jackson used a good combination of all out action and eerie suspense to keep the movie entertaining. This is a fictional movie that takes place in a world similar to ours. It is inhabitated with mythical creatures and races, which consist of a hobbit, dwarf, elves and a wizard. They are on a quest to destroy the ancient ring.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000, Ang Lee) was also a film I had never before viewed. It is a fine work of art that tells a deep story expressed through martial arts. The setting in China was beautiful. It’s amazing how they were able to fly and also run across the water and trees. There was a great combination of action, drama and visuals. This is a great foreign film with breathtaking sword fights.
I enjoyed reading about foreign relations. Before this chapter I never really took the time to see how different America is from other countries. For one, we view films in entirely different ways. They see them as works of art. America seems to control the way the film market goes. Movie theatres have come a long way. From being able to listen to the movie from the next room, to multiplexes with amazing sound systems. Instead of staying home and watching television it’s now fun to be able to go out for dinner and enjoy a show. I have a deep respect for actors like Antonio Banderas, Catherine Zeta Jones and Anthony Hopkins who were able to not only succeed in their own countries but in ours as well.
I definitely enjoyed this module better than the last. It was interesting to learn the various steps it takes in order to produce a movie and the cost that’s involved. Also, that there is only one American film company left. I look forward to future modules and appreciate all the feedback that I receive from fellow classmates.
I was amazed to learn the turnover of owners from major movie studios. Most of the major studios are mostly owned by non-Americans. The only all-American conglomerate is Time Warner. I had no idea that in 1984 Disney formed Touchstone Pictures to produce more adult movies. In 1987, Sony made their first major Japanese purchase of an American entertainment company when they acquired CBS records. I knew actors were paid extremely well but I was shocked to find out just how much. Tom Cruise took home $70 million for Mission:Impossible, which he also worked as a director and Bruce Willis who earned $50 million from The Sixth Sense. I also didn’t realize that actors are paid after a film has been viewed at the box office.
In the reading, I learned that in 1984 Disney formed Touchstone Pictures to produce more adult movies.
http://touchstone.movies.go.com/index.html
Protagonist - The central figure of a story and is often referred to as a story’s main character.
Examples: Kevin Costner in Waterworld and Leonardo DiCaprio in Titanic
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protagonist
Antagonist - The character (or group of characters) of a story who represents the opposition against which the heros and/or protagonists must contend.
Examples: Dennis Hopper in Waterworld and Billy Zane in Titanic
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antagonist
