Extra Credit- The Princess Bride

Princess Bride is a comedic take on classic fairy tale storyline.  Some action/ romance movies come off as cheesy when they are supposed to be taken seriously.  The film plays off of those typical scenarios, and over exaggerates the reactions.  The over-all feel is serious, but the content of the dialogue is not.  A person is expecting a heart-warming love tale, and is happily delivered a comedy.  My favorite character, though a small part, was the priest. I love when big name stars do cameos. This type of humor can be seen in a lot of 80’s comedy.  The 80’s sure did love their spoofs, and they did them well.

Ferris Beuller's Day Off

Ferris Bueller is a comedy film that delivers lines so perfectly that a person would be a fool not to fall in love at first site.  The humor is not pushed; the jokes are delivered in a casual conversation manner.  The relationship between Ferris and Cameron is relatable to everyone that has been a senior in high school.  They poke fun at each other one minute, and then are supporting each other the next. My favorite character is by far Cameron.  His humor is subtle because he is so paranoid most of the movie.  If you watch closely he does some random acts of genius.  He will spontaneously quote a line in a crazy voice that has nothing to do with the situation at hand.  It reminds me much of myself, I think that I why I laugh every time he does it.  The film is epic.

Dr. Strangelove

Dr. Strangelove is a humorous take on the American government and military.  The creators poked fun at the intelligence of our countries leaders.  The movie was created in the 60’s concerning the Cold War, but is comparable to some of the decisions made by our current government.  This idea of being able to be a fly on the wall during official political meetings intrigues every citizen.  Even though the disclaimer stated at the beginning of the movie that no actual person was depicted, it is much more entertaining to think that they were.  I was also surprised to find out that Peter Sellers played three very different characters in the movie.  The subtle humor from the quirky names to awkward situations gave this film its niche.

Reservoir Dogs

Reservoir Dogs is a dark comedy that portrays criminals with characteristics of working class men.  The setting is takes place in few locations, so the plot is depicted by the dialogue.  The language is harsh, but is beneficial to make the characters appear more realistic.  The entire cast is male, so it would be expected that the conversations would be R rated.  The overuse of foul language adds to the comedic effect.

The storyline is played out like a gloomy adaptation of the game Clue with the question being “Who done it?”  The characters are also named by colors, Mr. Pink and Mr. White, which is a feature of the game.  The music also has a light hearted feel which is a stark comparison to the gruesome storyline.

The roller coaster of emotions between laughter and fear leaves the viewer not knowing what to expect next.  Isn’t that always the case with Tarantino?

The Usual Suspects

The Usual Suspects is a drama where the story unfolds using formalistic narratives done by the main character Verbal, played by Kevin Spacey.  His character articulately guides the storyline, with a voice-over, through flashbacks describing the acts of a criminal gang.  The dialogue is the bulk of the movie.  A viewer must pay close attention, so they do not get lost in the storyline (Giannetti, 2011).

  The background, in the present day setting, is a stark police office that is irrelevant until the last scene in the movie.  The aspect of leaving everything to the end automatically makes the audience want to watch the movie again to see what they missed the first time.  The writers did an outstanding job of hinting at the secret ending without making it obvious to the viewer.  When watching it for a second time a person is able to pick up on the subtle cues.  This surprise ending is what sold the movie for me.  When Verbal walks out of the station, and corrects his walk is an unforgettable moment in cinema.

Giannetti, L. (2011). Understanding movies. Boston: Pearson Education.

The Incredibles

The film the Incredibles is made in animation, but contains a lot of adult material.  The first thought in my mind when viewing a cartoon is a light comedy; this film threw me for a loop.  There were messages about affairs in marriage, sexual innuendos, and death.  Those are not things usually seen in a movie directed at children.  I found the movie highly enjoyable, but I feel like children would be lost when trying to completely understand the plot.  The idea of displaying superheroes as actual human beings, with real life problems, was very refreshing.  The storybook characters can become kind of bland when seen over and over again.  They even aged the characters when they settled in to their homemaker lifestyle, a very small but awesome touch.   If I would have only read the script I would have never guessed that it was going to be a film of animation.

Snow White

The animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was created in 1937, and it led the way for all future movies of its genre.  In comparison to current movies of this variety a person can see how far animation has advanced. 

In Snow White, the color value and density is dim.  The background in the scenes appears to be water colored with earthy, dull hues. This makes the dominate character easy to focus on. The detail is only observed with items are being used by a character in a scene. This is viewed when the dwarfs first enter the cottage and the door is highlighted, and again when the cymbals is emphasized when the dwarfs are playing music. The characters are sketched with thick black outline, except Snow White.  She has a blurred filter around her; giving the ambiance of an innocent and humble girl.  The color red gives symbolism to significant items throughout the film that define the storyline.  The color appears on the heart box, the apple, Snow White’s lips, and the Prince’s cape. 

The movie’s first and last scene is the castle being the dominate item in the shot, this ties the beginning and end together.  Also, newer animated films give the viewers multiple angles.  Snow White is mostly drawn with the characters centered in the screen, and a straight on angle.  To be the first of its kind, Snow White has stood the test of time.