Film
By Charles E.
The value of film study lay in knowing what has been done before and how. Isaac Newton said that he was only able to advance science by standing on the shoulders of the “giants” that came before him. Any good business person is aware of and has studied other businesses. Scientists study other scientist’s research, and film students need to be educated in the conventions of other filmmakers’ work.
The elements that I most admire and I think are demonstrated in each of these movies are interesting characters and strong emphasis on plot. Without characters that are engaging, either by realism or uniqueness, and a plot that is engaging by putting the characters in unique situations and with lots of twists, movies are flat and dull.
I have left off more serious movies that have more moral or artistic value. I may enjoy watching these kinds of movies once to learn something about myself or to learn about someone else, but I won’t watch them over and over again like the movies I have chosen.
Favorite Films
There is an important difference between good movies and favorite movies. Good movies are the ones that challenge us, inspire us, correct us, and point out our faults. I like to watch good movies, and I like to recommend them to my friends, but when someone asks me what my favorite movies are, I don’t usually name a really hard hitting, challenging movie.
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My Analysis
The Matrix: This film has become the first in a trilogy of films about the same characters, but considered alone it is one of my favorite movies. The main character, Neo, is searching for truth about his existence, he is looking for his role in something bigger than himself, and at the end he realizes that the only limits to his abilities are found within. I think that I like this story because I identify in many ways with Neo. Another reason that I like this movie is because it is the Star Wars of the new millennium; its technical advancements have set the standard for this generation’s films. To an admirer of visual effects this movie takes every effect up a notch. The directors invented a new effect called ‘bullet time’, and it will forever be imitated. More »
The Sandlot: Again the main character is why I love this movie. Scotty Smalls is a nerdy new kid in the neighborhood and he is just the picture of how I felt as a kid when I moved to a new school. This movie also captures the air of adventure that I remember when I spent summers playing with my friends. More »
The Princess Bride is absolutely one of the funniest movies ever made in English. The sarcasm and wit are what make this movie a favorite for me. It also has a great love story filled with very unusual characters. All though it lacks some technical refinements, it also demonstrates that it doesn’t take a huge budget to make a great movie. More »
Golden Eye: I have to include one of the many James Bond movies in my list. I don’t know how any character can have so many movies and still sell tickets. I like Golden Eye the most of any of the series because it seems to be the most realistic. I realize how silly it is to say that a James Bond movie is realistic, but I really like this one for its creative plot twists and, of course, the explosions. More »
Amelie: Or more properly translated from its French title; “The Fabulous Destiny of Amelie Poulain.” A French film, this movie is tremendous in its perfect presentation of visual design. The cinematographer and director also demonstrate great use of their talents in bringing this love story to life. The title character’s story is also very interesting, the plot is continually twisting and there is a great surprise ending. More »
Links
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to explain some of the expanded material.
Read some of my reviews on Netflix.com.
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Academy Foundation
Academy Awards Database - Oscar winners.
See what other people have to say about movies.
"The national critical consensus revealed."
