Rocky (Dean Artusa 09-04-14)

I really like this movie, I feel that the movie has some irony in it because usually a fighting movie would be more serious but this movie has a good mix of funny stuff and serious parts. One of the things that is funny is the way Rocky talks to people.

Rocky

I haven't seen any rocky movies. But from what I got from the first few minutes of it is that he is independent about himself. Like no matter what he goes through he doesn't take anything from anyone. He doesn't care what he heard from everyone, all he cares about is goal of being the best that he can be.

Rocky Balboa: "The Enigma"

Although our class has only began to watch the movie, "Rocky", I am extremely interested in it and ready to see more. I find the character, "Rocky" extremely fascinating. On the outside, Rocky appears to be this big, tough Italian boxer and loan shark, but he is a much deeper person. As we discussed in class, in the scene where Rocky goes back to his apartment after the boxing match, you get to see a glimpse of his softer, more vulnerable side. A powerful moment in the apartment scene was when Rocky was looking in the mirror at himself, and the picture of himself as a young boy. In this scene, I think that Rocky is really evaluating his life, goals, and dreams. Another aspect of the movie that really highlights the sort of "contradiction" in Rocky's personality is his relationship with Adrian, who works at the local pet store. He puts a lot of effort and time into trying to impress Adrian and defends her when her brother speaks negatively of her. Rocky is an enigma in the sense that he lives this very hard-life, earning little to no money getting beat up and dealing with people calling him names such, as "loser" and "bum", but still has the ability to care for other people and give out powerful advice about life.

A scene that stuck out to me from the movie was when the young girl was hanging out on the street corner, cursing and behaving inappropriately with a group of guys. Rocky pulled her away from the situation and talked to her about "self-respect" and "reputation.  I think it was powerful how he wasn't shaming her for cursing or putting her down, but he was rather advising to be true to herself and not behave in a certain way to impress others. It was interesting how he talked  to her about people's perceptions,and encouraged her to show how good she is, instead of creating a "reputation" for herself. I feel that Rocky was not only giving advice to the young girl, but speaking to himself as well. Sometimes when we are trying to lift other individuals up, we are subconsciously trying to life ourselves up.

I am really looking forward to watching the movie in class next Friday. I would like to know more about Rocky's background and how his life has evolved to this point. I am also curious about how Rocky and Adrian's relationship will grow as the movie progresses.

Humans v. Apes: Black and White? Or Somewhere In Between?

Undoubtedly, Matt Reeves' "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" was the best movie I saw this summer. In all honesty, the movie's prequel, "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" didn't leave a major impression on me, so I didn't have super high expectations going to the movie theater. To my pleasant surprise, "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" was an action-packed, thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat, while compelling me to reevaluate my conceptions of good and evil, and love and hate. I enjoyed the movie so much that I saw it a second time with a group of my friends.

"Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" takes place ten years after "Rise of the Planet of the Apes", in which a significant percentage of the world has been wiped out by the "Simian Flu", a side-effect of a drug created to cure Alzheimer's disease. Under the leadership of Caesar, the apes that escaped in the previous movie are now living in a complex village outside of San Francisco. The apes have not been in contact with humans for years and believe that they are completely gone. Caesar, an ape that had lived comfortably with a kind-hearted man in the previous movie,  still has some compassion for humans and worries about them, to an extent. The movie picks up pace when Caesar's son, Blue Eyes and his friend, Ash go hunting in the woods and encounter a group of humans, who end up shooting Ash. From that point on, things will never be the same for humans or apes. I will stop right there and not spoil the rest of the movie for the individuals who want to see it.

Looking at the movie from an analytical standpoint, there a plethora of recurring themes throughout the movie.. In the movie, there is not only tension between humans and apes, as that is obvious, but there is also conflict within the individual groups themselves. Like most people, I went into the movie thinking that it would be a full on war between the apes and humans, but that is not what the movie is about all. From my perspective, the movie is about love and hate, and how it impacts all species, not just humans. In the movie, there are apes like Caesar who do not hate humans, while there are others who are out for revenge, like Koba. There are compassionate humans, such as Malcolm and Ellie, who want to maintain peaceful relations with the apes, while there are those who will kill the apes in a second, if it means they can get access to their resources.Suffice it to say, human or ape, we choose whether we will forgive and love one another, or carry hate in our hearts and destroy each other.

Good movies don't draw clear lines between good and bad; they blur them. For example, the ape, Koba, who in short betrayed Caesar and lit the match that started the violence between the apes and humans, has a story, too. Often times in movies and books, we are not told what the antagonist has experienced or given any background information about them. Prior to "Dawn", Koba was a lab ape who was severely abused and left emotionally and physically scarred. A powerful moment in the movie was when Caesar remarked, "Let them do their human work," in reference to the humans trying to fix the dam for power, Koba pointed to the scars on his body and angrily replied, "Human work. Human work!" Although Koba ultimately chose the path of hate and betrayed Caesar as well as his fellow apes, you can't help but feel bad about what happened to him.

I left the theater wondering: Can we truly choose our path in our lives? Or are we products of our experiences, despite our best efforts? Maybe it's a mix of both. I will never know.

Shawn Luzzi Rocky thoughts (So far, atleast...SPOILER WARNING!!)

Shawn Luzzi

Intro to Film Studies 9/3/14

Rocky initial thoughts so far... (SPOILER WARNING!!)

I'll be honest, I have never watched a Rocky movie in my life, though I have heard of its popularity and pop culture references as I lived my life. Being able to watch this film, I began to just get a bit suspicious as Sylvester Stallone, whom was the actor for Rocky, was the writer for this film himself. I was afraid he'd make Rocky more of a "Gary Stu", as in a really overpowered character with no problems and get's all the ladies. However, that wasn't really the case as the movie opened up with Rocky getting repeatedly jabs in the face by his enemy boxer in the ring. The camera and the motions, as well as the run-down setting of what seemed like a church being used for a boxing arena instead is what made Rocky seem very small, even after he was able to triumph over his opponent by savagely beating him down. 

Another point I had notice as well was Rocky's reaction towards insults and such. At first, with the crowd calling him a bum and a loser, he seemed to shrug it off in the ring. But after collecting money for a boss of his and getting called a meat-head, he seemed to snap. Perhaps this is an example of holding it in, I'd have to watch the rest of the film to assure that. Also, the Camera angles also do a nice job in the beginning to make Rocky seem very small compared to the rest of the world, making the boxer seem like a minuscule ant instead of a famous and powerful boxer. 

Into the Storm

Ever since I was a young kid, I have been interested in weather. Whenever there was heavy rain or thunderstorms, I would often race to the window, open the curtains and blinds, and watch mother nature in action. Several summers ago, my mom dug out an old VCR tape from a container in my basement. It was the classic tornado movie, Twister. I loved that movie. But when I watched it again earlier this year, I realized how old the special effects were. What had once amazed me was no longer impressive. The tornadoes didn't look real at all, and I had wished that a modern version of Twister was created, considering how life-like today's special effects are. About six months later, I saw an advertisement on tv for this exciting movie, called Into the Storm. My dreams had come true!

About a month later, on my birthday, my mom, sister, and I went to the theater to go see it. The theater was quiet, and I had arrived early just in time to view all of the previews. They had always annoyed me. While some movies looked interesting, I was always so eager to see the film that I came to the theater for in the first place. Finally, after about fifteen minutes, the previews had stopped, and the film had started. I hoped I wouldn't be disappointed.

As it turned out, I wasn't. I loved the movie from start to finish. It was like riding a rollercoaster: there are some calm points, and just when you think everything is over, another huge hill to climb and race down comes into view. The special effects were fantastic, and the storyline was very well developed. Like most disaster movies, the beginning starts off calm; everything is normal. Life carries on as usual. But then, everything changes, and for the characters, life will never be the same. In the aftermath of the cataclysmic disaster, just about every single structure that had stood tall in the town had been flattened like a pancake. Lives were lost, precious irreplaceable items had been demolished forever. But it was truly amazing to see a change in the characters. The father, who was the principal of the school (knocked down by the tornado) was no longer so uptight, so rigid. Students from the school who had previously, in my opinion, acted like jerks changed completely. Forgetting all of the hostilities and insecurities, everyone was just thankful to be alive.

The Silence was Very Loud

Just a few weeks ago was my birthday, on August 18th. A few weeks prior to my birthday, I had seen the trailer for a new movie, called Into the Storm. Knowing that my birthday was only a few weeks away, I definitely wanted to go see the movie; judging from the trailer (which sometimes can be deceptive) it was going to be a great, action-packed movie. 

On August 18, my mom, sister, and I headed to the Regal Cinemas in Branford. It was a Monday, and the parking lot looked just about empty. As I entered the theater, I noticed how empty it was. There was literally no one else there except for us, along with the employees. It was so quiet; all you could hear was the sound of the popcorn machines. We bought our tickets, and headed to the theater. Usually there is a person standing at the podium who checks to see if you have purchased your tickets, and points directs you to the theater where your movie is being shown. This time, there was no one standing there. So we headed down the empty hallways, into an empty theater. It was early, it had been several years since I actually arrived to a movie on time. A few minutes passed by, and a few other people entered the room and sat down, quietly. After that, no one else came in. Never before had I been in a theater that had so few people. It felt so strange, but at the same time, it was really nice. It was like a day at the beach, a hike in the mountains: relaxing. The silence was very loud. It was almost as if I had the theater all to myself.