Chicago

Whenever I heard of Chicago I always thought it was just a musical about something stupid in Chicago. I liked how Roxie and Velma were constantly fighting for fame and for them to get out of jail and out of the death row. Roxie is in there because she was sleeping with a man other than her husband in order to become a star, but once she realized he only said that to sleep with her she ended up killing him. Velma is in there because she killed her husband and sister when she walked in on them sleeping with each other. I liked how when all the women were saying what they did they were singing and showing what they did with the other dancers. It was crazy how they became so focused on being famous and having all the fame that they started to forget they were in a life or death situation. Since this is what Roxie always wanted she made any lie just to keep the fame. At one point in the movie she faked being pregnant because the press started noticing her less. This movie really kept my attention because it kept me wondering about if Roxie was going to get away with murder and of her husband was going to leave or stay after he found out the truth. Even though it was a musical it was an interesting movie.

John L - Chicago

The movie Chicago was confusing in some ways. One example of this is the way the females performed their sides of the story. Some of these scenes made sense but not all of them. For example the Hungarian chick [too  casual] was demonstrating an act, and it had nothing to do with her execution. 

I also didn't pay attention to the whole movie, but I noticed a lot of manipulations between the main actresses Velma (Catherine zeta-Jones) and Roxy Hart (Renee Zellwegger) towards the court and her husband to have more court time/fame in her name because of her fake pregnancy. The actress felt as if everyone should know her name to get some kind of fame in it. Not to mention when another more famous female (don't really know her name) gets thrown in the big house [Are you referring to Kitty Baxter (Lucy Liu of Charlie's Angels fame)? Here she plays the rich socialite who catches her husband in bed with two women, and everyone put there attention on to her instead of Velma. 

John, I would like to see a concluding paragraph. Maybe you could comment on how although crime does in fact pay (according to this play/film), adulterous husbands beware because in Chicago many a dame has a loaded gun.

MM

Even thought they could've added more attractive woman the acting was overall good. I think the manipulation had me worked over because how easy its was and how it can be related to real world stuff. lastly the choreography want all that good felt as if they were trying to hard  to have a good performance i wonder if they made a remake would it be better?

Beasts of the Southern Wild

This movie was a little bit weird. This little girl with tons of pets and stray animals surrounding her in this place of what looked like hurricane ruins. This place was called the bathtub. The mini lesson before viewing this movie was “Utopia.” The bathtub was their understanding of an Utopia. This is where people actually lived. They ate healthy and depended on what the waters brought them. This place was very makeshift and tarnished. It was weird to me because the people loved it so much. I don't see how you could love such a dump like they lived in. I have to live in the condition of public facilities, sewage, and definite places to get resources. What I learned from this movie is that not everyone has the same mind set and thinks the same. What I might think is normal others might think is crazy. The father absolutely despised the real world. I guess he just felt like the way he lived was the best way. People from outside their utopia tried to have them evacuated from their homes which caused stress and anxiety. All these people wanted was their piece of mind in their own free space. I felt bad for hush puppy because she already didn’t have her mother and her father was dying. I also felt bad because I feel like she didn't grow up in the right environment but at the same time it had its perks. I think living in the conditions she did made her strong and independent even at her young age. In all utopias there comes a point where you have to be strong. Life is not easy anywhere thats why people try to find their utopia and their nirvana. I don't think I would recommend this movie though because to some viewers it could be a little confusing but I don't think it was really a bad movie.

Winter's Bone #anthonyamici

Winter's Bone was a pretty good movie in my opinion. The movie is about a girl named Ree that sets out to find her father after their family home is in danger of being repossessed. This movie has a theme of perseverance. I noticed this theme because she never gave up looking for her father, and along the way she meets many obstacles. Her father having broke the code of the neighborhood only makes matters worse.

Another theme I found in this movie is gender roles. Gender roles play a big part because the gender roles in the community were traditional, where the men were more dominant and the females were more responsible of everything. Ree challenges this by being more dominant and going out to look for her father, with all the obstacles, she doesn't give up and the community doesn't really like the fact that she's doing that, so they try to see if she has any men that can do it.

Overall, I like the fact that this movie shows that it's not impossible for a woman to do what is traditionally thought of as a man's job. Back then [this is a little confusing; although the film takes place in the rural Ozarks, it takes place in contemporary times], it wasn't allowed for a woman to do a man's job. So I really like how this movie takes that idea and shows that a woman can do whatever a man can.

Great Gatsby -Elaine N.

The Great Gatsby is a film known well and the remake is where I feel The Great Gatsby caught most people's attention. There are many similarities and differences in both films. But in my opinion the 2013 version is more eye catching to myself and I prefer that film over the 1974 version.  The new version starring Leonardo DiCaprio is perfect because he actually does resemble Jay Gatsby in the other film. I think DiCaprio played the role of the mysterious Gatsby very well, he took the role very well as being a distant wealthy young man with not many people knowing the truth about his past and his business life.  

The 1974 version of the movie is very classic and more physically emphasis meaning they showed more physical action. An example would be Tom slapping his mistress at their get together where she started saying Daisy's name multiple times. While the 2013 version has more emphasis in the quality of the wealthy and love. It could be because in 2013 there is more technology and back then there was not advanced tech.  There a more intimacy scenes between Gatsby and Daisy then in 1974 where they barely shared a kiss.

The quality of the movie is also drastically different while the older version has the town look very ancient and setting looking like the roaring old ages. In the newer movie the mansion of Gatsby looks like a Disney castle especially the Disney in Paris, France with all the lights on and the party going on. The party is very alive with the bands playing the current tracks in 2013 and people really having a good time.

But the 2013 version is very more exaggerated than the 1974 version. There was a very dramatic moment when Gatsby was finally revealed. Also, his encounters are very much at his personal request by his own security guard or his assistance. Gatsby met Jordan at his party meanwhile in the 1974 version we did not see or know about their encounter until she confronted Nick at his job.

There are many compare and contrasting moments in both films, which I believe are because the improvement in the technology and what the directors could change and make better. I personally like the 2013 version of The Great Gatsby because the acting is better and it is more entertaining for me. I enjoy the sparkling outfits and the eye catching designs of the setting. I absolutely enjoy Leonardo Dicaprio and the other known actors in the film.

Having Our Say- (Play) Based on the Real Lives of the Delany Sisters

The play, Having Our Say, is based on the real lives of the Delany sisters who lived to be well over a hundred years old.

In the play, the sisters address the audience and welcome them into their home. They go on to share their life and family history with us, in doing so breaking the third wall.

This play featured strong ideals of family as well as female empowerment, I believe. The familial ties due to all the family history they shared and photos, it was just a family oriented play. However, the ideals of female empowerment I believe come from the two leads, the protagonists of the play: 103-year-old Sadie and 101-year-old Bessie Delany.

In the play they are in the midst of preparing dinner and dessert while embracing their father's birthday, while doing so sharing with us their lifetime and the lifetimes of their family members before them.

I believe that Sadie and Bessie embodied female empowerment because of all they accomplished, they were accomplished in a time where it was difficult for women to accomplish anything, let alone a woman of color and to add to the fact that they were unwed.

For each of them to have individually accomplished it was empowering to hear their story. They both had worked so hard to achieve all they had, and they did it.

I found this play, based on their real lives, to be an inspiring story.

This play was inspiring, heartfelt, and entertaining Bessie was just a hoot!

Overall I really enjoyed this play and would look into reading the book and seeing the film sometime in the future.

Bonnie and Clyde- Themes of Crime and Fame

The film, Bonnie and Clyde is a 1967 American biographical crime film that was directed by Arthur Penn. The film stars Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty as the two leads: Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow.

This film presents an interesting portrayal of the real life criminals. While watching this film, I couldn’t help but get drawn into the historical facts surrounding the two.

While researching Bonnie and Clyde on my own I came across my details that were not at all mentioned in the film, while the film does have an accurate portrayal and real historical pieces, it’s not entirely accurate in all things.

For one, Bonnie Parker was married and it wasn’t to Clyde Barrow. She was married young at the age of 15 just before her 16th birthday and it seems she may have had a type as her husband was shortly arrested afterwards for armed robbery. Her and her husband never divorced and she died wearing her wedding ring.

Another thing they left out of the film was that while Clyde was in prison he was sexually assaulted, repeatedly. This may have been why he had trouble being intimate with Bonnie.

Bonnie and Clyde in similar fashion to Chicago brings up the themes of fame and criminal activity. Bonnie and Clyde by robbing banks became famous for being in the papers and eluding the police. Also during this time (the depression) people were angry with the banks for foreclosing on their homes and taking their money. As a result, they were seen as “Robin Hood” type figures because even though they didn’t give to the poor, they still stole from the rich.

Bonnie and Clyde, like Chicago, focuses on the crime and fame of that era.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this film and would recommend it to other history buffs and people who are enamored with the themes of crime and fame.