Titanic

October 25, 2009

This blog post is due Thursday October 29th by midnight.

Titanic (1997) is the most financially successful film of all time. It grossed over 600 million dollars in the United States alone. No other film has done this.

Here is the recipe for Titanic's success (made by me):
1. Extremely well-executed action scenes in its final hour
2. Tender and intelligent love story holding everything together
3. Great young actors giving solid performances
4. A lead that turned into one of the biggest teen heartthrobs of all time (DiCaprio)
5. Amazing special effects that never drew attention to themselves
6. Attention and respect to historical details
7. Tender, heartbreaking moments showing victims who chose to go down with the ship

Your assignment:
Come up with a film that you think will make more money than Titanic.

Give it a name.
Give a 1-2 sentence description of its plot.
Finally, give a list of at least seven details about the film which will help make it such a box-office draw (similar to what I did above)

Please e-mail me at dunnb@bishopireton.org if you do not understand or if you have any questions.

NOTE: Please have fun with this, but keep in mind that R-rated films don't make as much money as G, PG and PG-13 rated films so your film can't be rated R. Don't include R-rated details.

Don't forget to include your first name and your last initial in your comment.

Once/Paranoid Park

Thursday October 15, 2009

Once/Paranoid Park

Note: This blog post is due by Thursday October 22nd, which is my birthday! :)

Don't forget to include your first name and last initial on the comment. Each question should be answered in 1-2 paragraphs each and paragraphs must be AT LEAST 4 sentences.

DIRECTIONS: ANSWER ANY FOUR NUMBERED QUESTIONS.

1. What did you think of Once? Did you like it? Why or why not?
2. What did you think of Paranoid Park? Did you like it? Why or why not?
3. What are some of your favorite "buried treasure" films? In other words, are there films that you love that most other people your age have never even heard of? Describe what they are about.
4. Why do you think the main characters in Once didn't have names other than He or She? What about the film can be considered universal to all people? In other words, what is the film saying about everyone's life, not just the lives of the characters in the film?
5. Be creative. What happens to the characters in Once after the film ends? Please keep everything congruous to what we know about the characters from the film?
6. What were some of the extreme circumstances that Alex had to deal with? I argue that the experimental style of film making was appropriate for Alex's situation. Why do you think this argument makes sense?
7. Describe some of the experimental elements within Paranoid Park. (things you don't normally see in a straightforward narrative in a film)
8. Be creative. What happens to Alex after the film ends? Please keep everything congruous to what we know about the characters from the film.

Note: If you missed either film in class, please get a copy of the film and watch it as soon as possible. You will be allowed an extra week to turn in the blog assignment.