The Stagecoach

1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening.

In class, we began to discuss the popular western genre and how it came about and effected the film industry.  The grittiness and themes that came with this genre were unfamiliar to most audiences until watched.  With the western genre, came a name that no one had heard of before.  This name would become synonymous with the entire genre and would even spark the popularity of the western further. This name was, of course, John Wayne. 

The Stagecoach gave John Wayne his break-out role, pushed him into the Hollywood limelight, and transformed him from a B-List actor, to a A-List actor.  However, John Wayne would not have been able to accomplish this if it was not for the director, John Ford.  John Ford insisted that Wayne play the part of Ringo after being advised that it was a bad move.  This movie is said to have revitalized the western genre.

 

2) Find a related article and summarize the content. (on the film, director, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, etc.) You can use the library or the internet. Cite the article or copy the url to your journal entry. Summarize in your own words the related article but do not plagiarize any content.

http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/91227/Stagecoach/articles.html

In the above link, James Steffan from Turner Classic Movies writes an indepth article about The Stagecoach. He gives a synopsis of the main plot of the movie as well as a description of the main characters.  Steffan also talks about the making of the film and gives unique insights and quotes.

3) Apply the article to the film screened in class. How did the article support or change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.?

One of the reasons why I am always so eager to read articles on movies that we watch in class, is that I get to learn about what went into making the film, both the positives and the negatives.  For example, Steffan gives insight about Ford and his pain-in-the-ass work ethic.  It's said that he was very hard to work with and impress.  He often critizied his actors harshly like calling Andy Devine a "fat tub of lard".  Although being a difficult person to work with, John Ford worked magic with his actors and on his sets.  I still think negatively about Ford, but he is definitely a great director.

4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including your personal opinion, formed as a result of the screening, class discussions, text material and the article. I am less interested in whether you liked or disliked a film, (although that can be part of this) than I am in your understanding of its place in film history or the contributions of the director.

After being told how wonderful this film was and reading up on how it won seven academy awards over big blockbusters that y;ea, I had my expectations up quite a bit.  Unfortunately, The Stagecoach never quite lived up to those expectations, however I feel that it may be due to how dated this particular movie is.  I did not find it completely uninteresting though.  Usually, my interests do not tend to be drawn to the lighting aspects of a movie, but with this film, that certainly became the case.  Although, most of the fill uses low contrast shots, I felt that there were some truly stunning high contrast shots.  From Ringo standing in a village house hallway to the final showdown involving Ringo, some of these shots were quite interesting to watch and learn from.  Also, this movie covers quite a range of themes and personifies them in the form of our main characters. 

I would also like to mention that the stunts in this movie are phenomenal.  In today's world, most stuntmen would never try some of the stunts that were pulled in this 1939 movie.  Yakima Canutt's outstanding stunts helps deliver some of the high intensity I felt it was missing.

 

Throughout it all, I understand why this movie was so well received and jsut from the one to two hours I spent watching it, I have learned so much about what it really means to make a movie.

It Happened One Night

1.       Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening.

In It Happened One Night, we follow a story of two people coming from two different places in life and despite each having their own agendas, fall in love with one another.  This film is one of the screwball type films we have discussed in class.  It is a love story that is delivered through comedic elements or otherwise known today as a Romantic Comedy.  When we portray the concept of love in storytelling, in all of its mediums, we find that it can incorporate a lot of different emotions and tones.  It can have a dark subject matter involving horror or murder, or it can have lighter tones such as what a screwball comedy presents.  The majority of the lighter tone, screwball comedies leave the audiences with a “feel good” sense of satisfaction from the movie and It Happened One Night is a prime example.  This movie is also the first movie that we’ve seen and talked about with talking actors and working audio within the scenes.

2.       In an article published by TCM (Turner Classic Movies), Margarita Landazuri wrote a synopsis of the movie as well as giving us tidbits about the making and production of the movie.  Landazuri talks about how initially, the collaboration between Claudette Colbert, Clark Gable, and the director, Frank Capra was strenuous at best.  The first initial exchanges were rocky at best with Colbert and Gable’s overt hostility toward Capra.  In some instances, while shooting Colbert was said to be uncooperative with some of Capra’s directing regarding the hitchhiking scene. 

 

3.       It is very interesting to read that article and then think about what I witnessed on screen while watching that movie.  I would not have dreamed that the production of that movie would have been as much of a nightmare for those involved as it actually was.  It is very surprising to see that none of the hostility that was present in production can be detected on screen.  The movie is lighthearted, quirky at times, and undoubtedly humourous.

 

4.       It Happened One Night is said to be the first movie in the screwball/romantic comedy genre and I couldn’t agree more.  Although I, personally, do not tend to watch romantic comedies (repetitive plots and themes), it is impossible for me not to respect this film for what it does for the film industry.  The directing of this movie is superb for its time and the comedic timing of some of the lines does not tend to fall flat like some modern movies do now. 

 

The one scene that I am most impressed with and fortunately have had the opportunity to watch a few times is the famous “Wall of Jericho” scene.  Here we have two polar opposite strangers sharing one room together and feeling uncomfortable.  As both Peter and Ellie disrobe on their respective sides, it is not hard to grasp the concept of these two strangers also beginning to shed their tensions and anxiety.  The scene ends with the formal exchanging of names which also can be a bit ironic in the sense that they have just disrobed in the presence of each other. It Happened One Night deserved all of the accolades it received.  Whether you liked this movie or not, it is truly a one-of-a-kind film.

The Gold Rush

1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening. In class we have discussed many different highlights of the popular movie star, Charlie Chaplin. After going over some of his material, I was anxious to watch some of his work. It was interesting to see many of the things we had discussed in class on the screen. It was hard, at first, for me to adjust to the fact that the only audio in movies from this era came from edited background music. However, once the movie begins to take off, you forget about words and start to understand the expression that is used in movies like Gold Rush. Due to the lack of audio technology around the time this movie was made, words, actions, and emotions had to be portrayed in a different way for the audience. Sometimes the mannerisms could be a bit much, but I understood why they were that way and it is respected more. Even with these differences to modern-day movies, you have to respect the fact that the themes and emotions are understood just as clearly as if they were spoken today. Using camera tricks like blacking out all surrounding visuals in the frame except for one area, helps the audience focus on a particular point as much as zooming in would today.

 2) Find a related article and summarize the content. http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/5779/The-Gold-Rush/articles.html In this article, TCM (Turner Classic Movies) wrote a very accurate review of Charlie Chaplin's classic, The Gold Rush. In this review, Felicia Feaster discusses the plot and various scenes in the movie. Even more interesting about this article are the factual and informative tid-bits that are dropped about the movie and it's making. One tid-bit I found interesting was the fact that they had initially planned to use the little girl from Chaplin's previous film "The Kid" as the lovely ball room girl, Georgia. However, Chaplin got the 16-year-old girl pregnant and had to go with other plans.

 3) Apply the article to the film screened in class. After watching the film and then reading this article, it helps me get a better feel for the movie, hearing a different take on the movie other than my own. Knowing what transpired through the course of making this film in 1925 makes me appreciate and respect this work of art a bit more.

 4) Write a critical analysis of the film In the film The Gold Rush, Chaplin gives us story about a nonsensical tramp in Nevada trying to win over a woman's affection. From the moment the movie started, eyes were glued to the screen and laughter ensued. Chaplin delivers us comedy gold for all ages. Not only did this film set the bar for all other comedies, the film was very well shot. When I stop and think about all of the media we take in on a day-to-day basis and all the advanced technology involved in films today, you cannot help, but to respect Chaplin's ability to convey such emotion, humor, and even deep themes in this movie. The themes in The Gold Rush range from rejection; to cannibalism; to even humiliation. Even the ending has a bit of a twist, where we know that although the Tramp has all the money in the world now, he still had not found love. As the audience, we can understand what he is going through and when he and Georgia finally unite, we are so emotionally invested in this story, that can't help but feel a profound sense of satisfaction. Chaplin's The Gold Rush offers all of these different elements and it only came out in 1925! Regardless of whether one likes or dislikes this movie, I feel that it is impossible for anyone to not to have respect for Charlie Chaplin and the impact his films, such as The Gold Rush, had and will always have on the film industry.