Citizen Kane (1941)

1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening.

Citizen Kane was not what I had expected. The movie was based off William Hearst. Orson Wells had directed the movie with full artistic control and in my opinion he did a fantastic job. Citizen Kane was Wells first movie where he was the director, but in the movie he was also the main character, Charles Foster Kane.  

2)  Find a related article and summarize the content.  (on the film, director, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, etc.) You can use the library or the internet.  Cite the article or copy the url to your journal entry. Summarize in your own words the related article but do not plagiarize any content.

http://www.filmsite.org/citi.html

Citizen Kane was voted the best American film of all time in 1998 and for good reasons. Its cinematic and narrative techniques were gold, almost every scene had the perfect camera angle and lighting. At the time of its released the movie was financially a bust, but after World War II the movie was rereleased in Europe and also on television and had a much better turn out.  The release had failed partly because of numerous efforts to stop the film from releasing at all due to parallels in the lives of Charles Foster Kane and William Hurst who was a powerful name in the newspaper business.

3) Apply the article to the film screened in class.   How did the article support or change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.?

Overall the article had some great information that I wasn’t aware of until now. The fact that the FBI had gotten involved in the delay of the release of the movie was a great tidbit of information behind this amazing film. I believe that if the film had been able to be released when RKO had expected it to it would have been a great success and not a financial flop. The documentary “The Battle Over Citizen Kane” which was released in 1996 seems like a great documentary depicting the controversies at the time of release.  

4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including  your personal opinion,  formed as a result of the screening, class discussions, text material and the article.  I am less interested in whether you liked or disliked a film, (although that can be part of this)  than I am in your understanding of its place in film history or the contributions of the director.

Orson wells, in my option, did a fantastic job with the movie. Bouncing between being the director and the main character must have been a very difficult task, but due to the fact that Kane was not in every scene it made sense that it could have been done. Overall AFI rated this as the greatest American film of all time. I would have to say it was an amazing film with some of the best cinematography that I have ever seen especially for being released in 1941.

CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM 
1) ( x  ) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class.

2) ( x  ) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.

3) ( x ) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text.

4) ( x ) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.

5) ( x ) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.

6) ( x ) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography.

7) ( x ) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.

8) ( x ) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper.

Name: ___Christian Hansen___________  Date: _____04/29/2013___________________

Gone With the Wind
1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening.
Overall "Gone With the Wind" is labeled one of the greatest movies of all time. The movie was based on the book written by Margret Michelle and was published in 1936.  The book was a great American novel and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1937. When the movie came out in 1939 it was an instant classic and went on to win the  8 of the 13 academy awards it was nominated for. 

2)  Find a related article and summarize the content.  (on the film, director, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, etc.) You can use the library or the internet.  Cite the article or copy the url to your journal entry. Summarize in your own words the related article but do not plagiarize any content.
http://classicfilm.about.com/od/epicswarmovies/fr/GoneWithWind.htm
Gone with the Wind is an America Epic, not only in novel form but in film form as well.  The movies is based on a spoiled Southern Belle named Scarlett who is looking for love in all the wrong places during the American Civil in Part 1 and the Reconstruction of the South in Part 2.  To this day Gone With the Wind holds the record for most theater tickets sold and rightfully so considering the film had an amazingly famous cast as well as a massive budget.

3) Apply the article to the film screened in class.   How did the article support or change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.?
Overall the article supported everything that we went over in class just in a little more depth.  Laurie Boeders summation of the film was clear and concise considering how long the film was.  It also gave a great overview of the director, cast and all the other people involved with the film. 

4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including  your personal opinion,  formed as a result of the screening, class discussions, text material and the article.  I am less interested in whether you liked or disliked a film, (although that can be part of this)  than I am in your understanding of its place in film history or the contributions of the director.
Gone with the Wind is considered one of the greatest films of all time and has topped charts since it came out in 1939.  To this day it still has the record for most theater tickets sold and sits at number four on AMC's greatest movies of all time. For me the film was okay, the story was good as well as the cinimatography(other then the death scene's). The only problem I had with the film was how incredibly long it was. The film ran for three hours and forty five minutes.. Other than the length the film was amazing, from the cover you always knew Scarlett would end up with Rhett but the film kept you guessing and wondering the whole way through. 

CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM 
1) ( x ) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class.

2) ( x ) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.

3) ( x ) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text.

4) ( x ) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.

5) ( x ) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.

6) ( x ) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography.

7) ( x ) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.

8) ( x ) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper.

Name: __Christian Hansen_____  Date: ____April 09, 2013_______

Stagecoach (1939)

1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening.

Westerns before Stagecoach were low budget b-movies at best. Stagecoach was a major leap for Western's in this time period. Westerns of this time period were more along the lines of the typical cowboy vs. Indian shoot-em-up. Although the Western genera was controversial  John Ford saw the potential to make an award winning film. To add to the controversy Ford hired John Wayne who was a mid grade b-movie actor. Unlike all of the other Westerns of its time Stagecoach had a spectacular plot that kept the viewer wondering where the movie was going until the last minute of the film.

2)  Find a related article and summarize the content.  (on the film, director, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, etc.) You can use the library or the internet.  Cite the article or copy the url to your journal entry. Summarize in your own words the related article but do not plagiarize any content.

http://www.decentfilms.com/reviews/stagecoach

Overall the article spoke more about the plot and characterization of Stagecoach. Stagecoach was the western that started it all, "but it has been called the first great western." All the other westerns of its time were filled with jokes, bad acting, and tons of gun battle.  Which is why Stagecoach was one of the best Westerns ever it had virtually no satire.  The movie was serious, it had a real plot that kept the views attention through its characterization. Aside from the storyline the cinematography was astounding. Having stagecoach filmed in the remote Monument Valley in Arizona made more of an impact than anything, the views were real it made the viewer think they were there. 

3) Apply the article to the film screened in class.   How did the article support or change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.?
The article supported almost everything that we talked about in class and also my feelings of the movie.  The author clearly has a great appreciation for film and the time period. Although the author stayed from Stagecoach a few times he always related it back to the original point which gave  me a better understanding of the movie and time period. 

4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including  your personal opinion,  formed as a result of the screening, class discussions, text material and the article.  I am less interested in whether you liked or disliked a film, (although that can be part of this)  than I am in your understanding of its place in film history or the contributions of the director. 

Overall the movie was good. When I heard we were seeing a Western I expected something completely different. I expected something with non-stop action and a few bar fights. I'm sure most people going to see the movie when it first came out expected the same thing because in 1939 that's all westerns were. I was pleasantly surprised after watching Stagecoach to find that it was not an action film at all, it was more of a drama with a great story and well though out characters. 

CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM 
1) ( x ) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class.

2) ( x ) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.

3) ( x ) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text.

4) ( x ) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.

5) ( x ) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.

6) (  x ) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography.

7) (  x ) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.

8) ( x ) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper.

Name: Christian Hansen Date:03/19/2013

It Happned One Night (1934)

1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening.

Compared to what we went over in class "It Happened One Night" was everything I had expected and more.  It had everything from the witty comedy that was forced onto the big screen by the various censorship groups, to romantic game of cat and mouse. The roles of men and women have changed drastically from the previous clips/films we have viewed in class. From the first ten minutes of the movie we as the viewers would know how it ends, the two fall in love and live happily ever after, but the road in which Riskin and Adams follow is what made this movie great it kept the viewer wondering what would happen next up until the credits. 

2)  Find a related article and summarize the content.  (on the film, director, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, etc.) You can use the library or the internet.  Cite the article or copy the url to your journal entry. Summarize in your own words the related article but do not plagiarize any content.
http://www.examiner.com/article/classic-films-focus-it-happened-one-night-1934
   

It happened one night is not the average Academy Award winning film. In most cases a comedy is not even considered but in this case it seemed like the only film considered as it won 5 awards. For the time it was a funny, sexy, and romantic film for the ages. The energy throughout the film makes it seem like your watching two people actually fall in love right in-front of your eyes. The two stars find themselves in an ongoing battle of love and eventually they both surrender.  Gable and Colbert set the bar for all slapstick and romantic comedies not only for the time period but even films today, which is why anyone who loves film needed to see this classic.

3) Apply the article to the film screened in class.   How did the article support or change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.?
The article just confirmed everything I had thought about the movie and made it that much better. I had not know that "It Happened One Night" won five Academy Awards or that it is very rare for a comedy to achieve this feat. The article also gave the reader a look into what was going on in the lives of Gable and Colbert such as Gable changing the fashion on men wearing undershirts. Overall the article gave me a greater understanding of the film in general. 

4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including  your personal opinion,  formed as a result of the screening, class discussions, text material and the article.  I am less interested in whether you liked or disliked a film, (although that can be part of this)  than I am in your understanding of its place in film history or the contributions of the director. 

Overall the film had sparked my attention for the entire duration.  This was the first full length film of it's era that i have ever seen and i feel it was a great place to start.  The combination of Gable and Colbert seemed perfect, it seemed like the connection between the two of the was real. The back and forth jokes and mild flirting was so lifelike. It was like something you would expect from your own grandparents.  With just under 10 years separating "It Happened One Night" from "Gold Rush" it is remarkable how far the industry had come with the implementation of sound and censorship. Obviously the two films were very different types of films, you can really see how sound and censorship molded the role of men and women into a realistic point of view. Women were no longer just barmaids they were confident and self-reliant women.