The Great Gatsby 74'/ 2013 E.Luck

In Film Studies we viewed both versions of the Great Gatsby and I enjoyed the 2013 rendition directed by Baz Luhrman more than the 1974 directed by Jack Clayton for one reason and one reason only.  In the 74' version Gatsby is just a rich man, he has a big house with nice parties but that is it.  When reading the book by Scott F. Fitzgerald, Gatsby is this bigger than life character, someone that is unforgettable.  In the 2013 movie Gatsby is just that and I believe that if the creator of The Great Gatsby Scott F. Fitzgerald was still alive today he would want Gatsby to be portrayed just like how Baz Luhrman portrayed him.

When it came to the soundtrack and its selection, at first I did not believe that it was appropriate for the time, the movie was supposed to be taken place in the 30's where swing music was at its highest.  But after careful reconsideration I realized that the instrumental to the music had deep roots in Jazz, and Blues something very appropriate for the era.  When it came to the artist singing and rapping over the the track they were telling a story of the time while still pleasing its 21st Century audience.
Both versions of the film tell the same story, its just that the story tellers have to very distinct ways of telling the story.  

Overall I believe that the 2013 version of the Great Gatsby was the superior film and I would rate that film as a 9/10.  The big name artist, actors, detailed CGI created a larger than life film, something Scott F. Fitzgerald would be proud of.

Chicago E.Luck

Chicago is a musical based movie released in 2002.  The movie was directed by Rob Marshall.  The movie follows the protagonist Roxie played by Rene Zellweger who murders a man after she sleeps with him based on a false promise that he will make her famous.  This is the main premise of the movie.  Roxie will do anything to fulfill her childhood dream to become famous.  

Throughout the movie she cheats on her husband on several accounts, falsely states that she is pregnant, and uses her murder trail all as her way to rise to fame.  During one scene in the movie, she and her jail nemesis Velma Kelly played by Catherine Zeta-Jones compete for fame, by sabotaging each others trail.  While it is important to note that the fame of the women was critical to the success of the case, it is also important to note that both Roxie and Velma were trying to make their fame permanent.

The movie touches on the fact that everyone has a story, so it is not wise to judge someone prematurely based on their current situation.  Out of everything in the movie this alone had the greatest effect on me.  When the setting is first shown and it is a in a jail, people judge the prisoners prematurely but followed right after is a musical score where each prisoner tells her story and it allows the viewer to both feel compassion and a better understanding for each person in the jail.

In the end of the movie Roxie does win the case and is set free but much to her surprise she does not get the fame that she thought she would.  The fast paced city is on to its next thing and forgets about her.  Overall this movie is a 8.5/10 because of its encoded life lessons and well put together story line. 

Beast of a Southern Wild (E.Luck)

Beasts of a Southern Wild was written by Benh Zeitlin showcasing the life of Hushpuppy (Academy Award-nominee Quvenzhane Wallis) a girl who lives in a small town in  Louisiana bayou community nicknamed the Bathtub.  The movie uses thematic elements such as foreshadowing and symbolic references to develop the main idea. 

 SPOILER ALERT!!! The main idea of the movie is Hushpuppy knows both environments that she lives in like her family and community and the actual world are changing, and she can’t do anything about it.  Her natural world is changing due to global warming causing her town located on the edge water level to rise due to a strong storm that resulted in flooding. Her home environment is also changing because it her father is dying, and he is not going to be with her for much longer.

Throughout the movie Hushpuppy faces many challenges like being homeless and having to travel throughout her damaged community all while evading the police who want to take her out of her known environment.  She also has to deal with the slow death that her father is going through.  All the while having her own issues that she must deal with like the survival of her, and her father. 

Towards the end of the movie we realize that everything that was foreshadowed earlier in the movie did not come true.  Hushpuppy alone stopped the beast that were going to destroy the world by standing up to them, stopping them in their tracks.  Over all I think this movie used elements of a successful movie, having things like suspense, drama, action and a story line that reveals itself in the end of the film.  Overall I would rate this movie 7/10. 

Winter's Bone -E.Luck

Winters Bone is a 2010 independent drama directed by Debra Granik.  The movie follows the life of Ree, played by Jennifer Lawrence.  Ree, the protagonist lives in the rural mountains of Missouri where she must take care of her little brother and sister as her mother is ill and her father has been murdered.  As the head of the household she teaches her siblings skills that they one day will need like hunting for small game, or helping them with their schooling.

Most of this story takes place around the idea that Ree is in search of answers concerning her fathers death and the drug ring that her family is part of.  While she does not know the full extent of her father's connection, she knows someone knows.

This movie to me is the exploration of one's self through the exploration of something that does not fully connect with the individual.  While Ree was searching for answers she was cursed at, left in the middle of nowhere, and assaulted.  Each time she got denied she dug deeper into herself and found the motivation to continue.  This idea of a strong female protagonist can be found in movies like Beast of a Southern Wild where the female protagonist, Hushpuppy saved her hometown and the life of her father by sheer motivation and determination.  Both characters have qualities that the youth should strive to achieve.

To me this movie can not be watched in a loud, distracting environment as there are so many slight nuances that would be missed unless complete focus is given to the movie.  Overall I would rate this movie as a 8 because of the strong story line and strong development of characters. The movie was a good watch overall.

Jaws - Luz Avila

Jaws

This was the first time I have ever seen Jaws and I was excited to do so in the class. The movie was great. I will say I wasn’t that prepared for some of the scenes and walked out a few times.

[SPOILER] In case you didn’t know Jaws is a killer shark. He was in no way friendly but his species for the most part don’t like humans. It’s not in a way that they want to eat us but more like they don’t want to deal with us. Jaws was a great white shark and they don’t normally attack humans. For this to happen humans had to purposely upset the shark and even then the shark wouldn’t attack viciously.  As humans we enter their territory. We destroy their homes and take the food they eat.  We make life difficult for them. So who would be in the wrong? The shark for going with its instincts or the human trying to feed other humans?

This movie ties in with the recent event with Harambe, the western lowland gorilla, who was shot because he was danger to a 3 year old boy who climbed into his exhibit. Zoo officials say that tranquilizers wouldn't have stopped the gorilla because of his size and the amount they could have given him. Again, humans enter the “home” of the gorilla, disturb it, and blame the animal. He wasn’t hurting the child but only treating it as his own and most animals aren’t extremely gentle with their babies. Even so, the child who crawled into the exhibit ended up fine. In this case there was no actual harm but the officials assumed because of the background of gorillas. In Jaws there is no specific reason why the shark is attacking so it could be aggressive which is understandable why they went to kill him, but if the shark was protecting its territory it was wrong of them.

Elaine N. - A Winter's Bone

This movie is very different to the type of movie I would watch on own time. I would not have imagined to see Jennifer Lawrence play a role that is different to the Hunger Games and other popular films she has appeared in.  Winter's Bone, I actually never heard about this movie.  I feel like the film was all about having to find her father that way the house would not be taken away from her family.  It was also a harsh way to have Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence) find out her father was dead. Her father's side of the family were pretty rude to her, especially her uncle, he did not cooperate with her at all. He was sort of not trying to break her the news that her father was dead.  The movie was like a race to find the dad because if Ree did not find him before the court date then the house would  be taken away.  
I am use to Jennifer Lawrence having a very strong independent role. I am not saying that she was not strong nor independent its more of that she had to still be a care giver for the kids. One thing I did not like was when the neighbors said they would take the boy into their home but not the sister due to age. To me, that was terrible because splitting siblings up is hard especially in cases where they are close to age. Do not get me wrong it was a decent movie, it just would not go on my favorite movie list nor suit my type of movie. 

bonnie and clyde

This movie is one of my favorite movies, because it's so interesting the way things were back then. bonnie is the definition of a (ride or die) girl as they say know a days. i wish i had a girl like her thats down for watever and has her man back. To me it seemed like they didn't care like they were ruthless, maybe if one of them was the wise one they wouldn't have been wanted so much. One of them shoould have been the one to say "lets wait maybe its not the right time to do rob this bank. But i truly enjoyed this movie it was my first time fully watching it. 

Great Gatsby

Both of the Gatsby movies basically had almost the exact same plot and things that happened in them. Other than the movie feeling like it was extremely long I think that it was a good movie. It was a little confusing though at first that Gatsby was just using Daisy's cousin just to get close to her again. If they already knew each other and had a past why wouldn't he just go right up to her or ask to speak to her alone himself instead of making him like a messenger. I also think that her what was supposed to be husband treated her like shit. I think he should've had a little more consideration about her feelings and what she wanted to do instead of forcing her to do half of the things they actually did. My biggest issue with the movie was the ending. And the events that lead up to the ending. When Daisy and Gatsby left to drive away after the fight between Gatsby and what was Daisy's husband at the time. The fact that Daisy was the one who hit the woman and Gatsby took the blame for it and was hated drastically after it. I think that was a little stupid and it shouldn't have been the reason to end the whole movie like that. Meaning that was the reason why the husband of the woman who died came and killed Gatsby.

the great gastby

 This was a pretty interesting film i have never heard about it before. but it shows how love can make you do crazy things which can lead to even worse things. for example, Gatsby's obsession with Daisy at first glance seems romantic and charming and like every girls dream. But his possessiveness of Daisy puts her in a tough place that eventually leads to his tragic death. He wants to know that Daisy has only ever loved him and puts her up on a pedestal, almost not seeing her as a person. Gatsby's expectations of their love causes him to think she deserves the world, and is very protective of her to a fault. He was so stuck in the past that he couldn't see why their relationship just couldn't work. I enjoyed the film because it was funny and some action in it. 

Elaine N. - Jurassic Park

I had not seen this film in such a long time. I have always been a fan of the Jurassic Park movies, I like the dinosaurs.  My favorite character is Alan Grant (Sam Neil) and Tim Murphy (Joseph Mazzello). The doctor and the little boy bonded so well when talking about the dinosaurs and what type they are. It was ironic in the beginning when Alan told his wife he didn't want kids. But bonded really well with Tim and Lex. In the film, it was like they were a family because throughout the journey of trying to find safety he was responsible for them.

Steven Spielberg did a good job in the plot of the movie.  The dinosaurs looked really real and scary. The animation was done pretty well. The movie kept reminding me of my trip to Universal Studios; there is part of the park that is designated for this film, which is ironic because in the movie they wanted Jurassic park to be an attraction park. The theme of the dinosaurs being an attraction to others like if it was a zoo is definitely used in Universal Studios. Immediately as you walk into “Jurassic Park” you will come to a broke car and a T Rex right in front of it. The T Rex and the car go back to the scene of the movie when we first get to see a full dinosaur in front of the camera, and that's when the kids and the lawyer get attacked.

The Jurassic Park movies will never get old. This movie specifically caught people's attention by the plot. The fact that a mosquito saved the DNA of a dinosaur and from that moment scientists were able to bring them back to life is incredible, and it is a must see movie. My favorite scenes would be when Alan and Tim got to see the dinosaurs face to face and enjoy their time even though they were still in danger. It was good to see that they were able to enjoy the presence of the non meat eating dinosaurs. The director allowed the scenes of the dinosaurs to be very eye-opening. Credit should also be given to the incomparable John Williams’s score, the music in the background really added to film, and the cinematographer, especially how the camera focuses on the landscape with all kinds of dinosaurs on the field.

The Great Gatsby (Spoilers)

I've read the book and have seen the most recent adaptation of this movie before we watched both versions in class. I love this story and the symbolism behind it. It also helps that this movie takes place in the Roaring 20's which is an era that has always captivated me. I still like the newer movie better because I'm a sucker for Leonardo DiCaprio and it's much more vibrant than the older version. I also love the music in the 2013 adaptation so that contributes to my favoritism. Both movies stayed pretty true to the movie which I appreciate since I've read the book.  Gatsby's obsession with Daisy at first glance seems romantic and charming and like every girls dream. But his possessiveness of Daisy puts her in a tough place that eventually leads to his tragic death. He wants to know that Daisy has only ever loved him and puts her up on a pedestal, almost not seeing her as a person. Gatsby's expectations of their love causes him to think she deserves the world, and is very protective of her to a fault. He was so stuck in the past that he couldn't see why their relationship just couldn't work.

Jaws

This is a 1975 thriller revolving around the great white shark that is obviously the killer in the movie. The director of the movie is no one other than Steven Spielberg and its staring Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, and castle Richard Dreyfuss. The beginning  off the movie kicks off with a hot summer day at Amity Island, a very small community whose main attraction and business is its beaches. One day the new sheriff that works there came in encounter with someones remains of a shark attack that had occurred, he thought right away well I should close the beach then because if there is a shark in the water I don't want to put these people life at risk. The issue is then brought to the attention of the mayor. Mayor Larry Vaughn and other business people and they did not like hearing about this not one bit. As the days go on another incident happened were a little boy was killed by the same predator and the boys mother wanted something to be done right away because if not innocent people were going to keep getting killed.  So out come three men the a police officer, an oceanographer, and a guy who knows how to kill sharks. Once out in the ocean there was no turning back out on there medium sized boat it was only them, there tools, and the monster. There first encounter with him didn't go so well but they were able to shot it once and throw a barrel on it to keep an eye on him but he was so strong he took it to bottom of the water and he was no where to be seen. The great white shark then appeared again several more time but the most crazy scene is when they are all on the boat and the shark just catches them all off guard and bites the boat tipping it over and one of the guys slips and falls into his mouth. As much as he tries getting out the shark ate him to pieces and the other guy behind him seen the whole thing.[Talk about a gruesome scene!]

 

[Not going to show the other picture] 

But this is the scene where the guy get eaten so with one missing in the ocean his left alone to save himself and the shark tried attacking the guy who knows how to kill sharks so he threw a tank in his mouth. It eventually popped and the shark exploded into pieces and they had nothing to worry about and then out comes his buddy from the water and they swim together to shore. Me personally I would've been scared to death because knowing im swimming and at any giving moment a big shark can pop out of the water and bite me and or kill. I wouldn't be able to be one of the ones hunting him. You will catch me running away like all the people did in the begging of the movie cause I'm not trying to die.