Some of my favorite movies

My first feature film is Pan's Labyrinth, to me was by far a great movie and had some awesome computer generated graphics. This movie kept me entertained the entire time. It was a puzzle that I was solving as the movie went on. Pan's Labyrinth was my favorite movie. Second best was I'd say memento. I like movies that are also not so easy to solve and are just mysterious. You really don't know if he was just pretending about his memory disorder. Third best movie I would say Out of the Past. I have never seen this film  but I must admit this movie kept me entertained as well. It had really good action and great acting. An old classic film with drama and action is always a thriller. Three films that I believe any film student should watch is The Way Back (2010), it's a good action movie and the movie has a message behind it. The main character is determined to escape from this prison and walk thousands of miles across land into a free land and soon reunite with his wife. Second movie I would say The Boy in Stripped Pajamas (2008), this little boy grew up while World War II was going on. Doesn't have any friends to play until he meets this kid that is in the concentration camps. He then is wrongfully killed because he goes into the camps to play with the kid and accidentally goes into the gas chamber. Last film that I would recommend a film student to watch is a play by Tyler Perry, Madea Goes to Jail. His plays and movies are great for the family and also what I like about his films and the message that he gives to the audience. There should be more people like Madea.

Shot List: Camera Work

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Stranger than Paradise

 1)The film still here from Stranger than Paradise is using a symmetrical balance. An example of symmetrical balance I'd say because both characters are in the center of the screen and everything seems to be balanced with respect to the characters on screen.

 2)The film still seen here is from Stranger than Paradise and is using the rule of thirds: top, center, bottom. An example of this framing device is shown here. The way the framing device shows the character is seems as though something significant is being talked about over the phone as though planning a scheme.

 3)The film still seen here is from Stranger than Paradise and uses the compositional stress framing device. Perfect example of the framing device I believe because the character in the background seems to be in a pensive mood about a certain situation or outcome.

 4)The film still seen here is also from Stranger than Paradise and uses the deep space composition. Another good example using this framing device. It looks as though the lady in the background is uneasy of the way things turned out.

 5)The film still seen here is from Stranger than Paradise and is using the rule of thirds: foreground, middle ground and background. Good example from the three characters with this framing device. In this framing device it shows the characters with some sort of sorrow in their eyes as though a death of a friend occurred.

 6)The film still here is seen in the movie Stranger than Paradise and is using the eye room (or lead room) framing device. This is a perfect example of eye room because the character is looking out into the distance and something or someone.

7)This film still is from the movie, Stranger than Paradise, is based on the rule of thirds: Left, Center and Right. this is a good example because the individuals are evenly distributed across the screen from left to right.

Out of the Past

One of the quotes that caught my attention in the documentary, Film Noir was said by Errol Morris--For me the great Noir Films are films about fall guys. A  person who finds himself caught in a net, the more he struggles, the deeper and deeper he becomes entwined in nightmare. The reason being is because Jeff Bailey was digging himself into a hole he couldn't escape; he got pinned for the murder of Eels. From there on it just got ugly for Bailey and he died trying to find himself out of the mess. There is a saying that kind of relates to Baileys' life which is, "your past will always haunt you," and this is exactly what ended up happening to him. He had a past that haunted him and eventually grew tired of it and decided to face reality.
Kathie uses her seductiveness to get what she wants or what's best for her. She is only looking out for herself and no one else. Yes, Kathie's character of being Femme Fatale is typical because it is realistic, meaning there are  women who lie to get what they want. It seems as though being femme fatale is also common in Noir Films because it relates to the whole purpose of Noir Films.

Action movies with suspense

A movie worthy of an award should, for one, not be predictable. I have seen some movies were I can predict what happens next and sure enough it does. A movie should have its own ingenuity and originality and keep me wanting more of it, not to mention contain some suspense. Nowadays it is rare to find a movie with these qualities There are some movies that are about the same thing. For example, in 2008 the movie Taken came out, the storyline is about this girl that gets kidnapped and winds up a victim of human trafficking. In 2004 the movie Man on Fire came out with a similar storyline with a young girl getting kidnapped and held for ransom. Taken was great but Man on Fire was, in my opinion, a better movie. Taken seemed to lack originality and personally that is what I dislike of movies. The movies I saw for week one were both interesting and had humor to them. I do appreciate the art in these two films for what they are. On the other hand, being born to a more advanced civilization where movies are very different, I wasn't as entertained as I would have been if I were to watch a more modern film of today. One of the movies that meets my criteria is The Rock (1996) with Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage. The other movie would be Law Abiding Citizen (2009) with Jamie Foxx and Gerard Butler. As stated earlier, I like movies that contain originality and suspense and The Rock and Law Abiding Citizen both contain these qualities.