Cool Hand Luke

When we first started to watch this movie i didn't think i would like it as much as i did. This turned out to by one of the best movies i've watched in a really long time. I think what made me like this movie so much was the story behind it all. I think the way the producers made you like Luke so much was a very good way to make you root for him even when he's trying to escape from prison. I think that was the best part of the movie, that the whole time Luke is in prison and trying to escape, but someone you always cheer him on and want him to get free. I thought that this was also a pretty inspiring movie for anyone becasue it teaches you to never give up. I think my two favorite parts of the movie was when Luke got into the boxing match and no matter how many times he got hit he'd get right back up and try and swing again at him. This adds a lot of character to Luke and it's inspirtational to everyone who watches it. My second favorite part was when they were all outside working and they were told to tar the rode. This was also one of my favorite parts becasue the whole time Luke created hope for everyone and got everyone to smile and have everyone run through it really quick. I liked this movie so much becasue it was a really great movie that brought hope to all of the inmates that hadn't seen any of it up until luke came. The only part i wish was different about this movie was the mirror eyes guy, i wish at the end of the movie he'd create some type of friendship with luke instead of killing him.

Psycho

When the movie Psycho first started I thought it was going to be like the rest of the older movies we have watched which just turned out to be kind of cheesy just because of their time. However once the movie started to pick up and the storyline really began to unfold you I couldn’t help but be interested in it and start to actually like it. I thought that this was a very good horror movie for its time and even a good horror movie for our time. What was so good about this movie was the scenes where it kept you guessing. In most older movies like this you can always predict what is going to happen and nothing really that dramatic ever happens. However, in this movie it made you lead to think that the guys mother killed the woman in the shower, which is unheard of in movies of that time. It wasn’t just the murders and the disposal of the bodies that made this such a good movie, also the fact that the end gave you such a big twist that no one could ever have guessed it was going to happen. When he was talking to his mother in their old house with the door closed I was positive that his mother was a real woman. What made me confused was after he talked to his mother he carried her down the stairs and he actually had in his arms bringing her down to the first floor. Other than that I thought the way they made him have psychological issues to make him think he’s a male and his mother was extremely clever. Overall this was a very good movie for its time and I had no idea what was going to happen the entire movie. It definitely made me think differently about old fashion movies.

Casa Blanca

I’m not entirely sure about how I feel about the movie Casa Blanca. While I respect that it is a classic movie and one of the first well produced movies of its time, I definitely thought that it was kind of boring. One of the main reasons why I thought it was boring is because of the lack of action and excitement. The majority of the movie was talking back and forth between two people. There were really no scenes that kept you guessing and anxious to what was going to happen next. I also thought that the lack of settings made it kind of boring also. Almost the entire movie was shot in the restaurant or similar areas around it. Although I think that this was a very good setting for the movie, it gets really repetitive.
While I’m only mentioning parts I didn’t like in the movie, there were also some very good sections of it. The story line for its time was very appropriate with the war going on and the French and German armies in the restaurant at times. I thought Rick was a very good main character, in other movies he’s acted in like The Maltese Falcon, he was also a typical good guy – bad guy personality. This type of personality attracts the audience and no matter what actions he’s doing whether they be good or bad somehow you’re always rooting for him. Overall I don’t think I really enjoyed this movie, I’m looking forward to other movies to come just because they’re getting progressively newer.

King Kong 2005

The new King Kong (2005) in my opinion was the much better of the two Kong movies created. I think what made this movie much better than the original is the special effects used and the acting differences between that time and now. In 1933 films with more than just acting, but voices were relatively new. At this time there were really no guidelines for what makes a good actor so while the acting was good, it was kind of cheesy and made for a lot of one-liners. The acting in the 2005 version however, was so well scripted that it made you connect with the characters as if you were on Skull Island with them. Not only did they do a good job having the audience relate, but they also acted out being actors which must have been pretty hard to do. I give them a lot of credit for putting together such a good movie and transforming it from an all time classic, to a must view now.
Also the special effects that were used in the movie were some of the most amazing special effects I’ve ever seen. Although the original versions effects were really good for its time, seeing the newer versions makes it hard to even compare. In the new version you actually start to believe that Kong, the 30 foot gorilla is actually real and living. The designers even gave him breathing features and facial emotions throughout the entire story. Even though the producers in the 1933 version made you root for Kong, the way the producers in the newer version did it was so much more realistic. By creating a more realistic Kong, it makes you not only feel bad because you start to think it’s a real gorilla, but also because the emotions that go through Ann and Kong are so visible you begin to feel the same way.
Overall they were both very good movies; however the newer of the two is just more advanced in so many ways. If the producers of the first Kong were alive today and they also created a new one it would be a very tough decision.

King Kong, 1933

I thought that King Kong, the original was an extremely well put together piece of work. In this movie not only the story line but the visual effects are so ahead of their time it’s unbelievable. In this time when this movie was created, movies like this were unheard of. Most of the movies in this time were shorter films with not much of a plot or setting. In King Kong, the producers took the time to create many different scenes both small and large for every single part of the movie. They used many different screens to put images overlapping each other on the movie. Not only was the setting and the way they produced the setting so amazing for their time, the way they created Kong himself to move like a real gorilla and even give him emotions was also way ahead of their time. I’m also very impressed with the time they spent creating scenes for the movie using stop animation for Kong. Each minute of shooting took around an hour to use stop animation for Kong. I think that they did a great job creating the first visual effects in a movie, creating a whole new approach onto how to create movies.
If I were to compare this to movies now, I personally wouldn’t consider it very well produced. I think that the last line of this movie that was supposed to be a huge thinker, is kind of cheesy. However, if you take into consideration when this movie was actually made, there were no rules to go off of to create a successful movie. Looking at that perspective then I would have to say this was an extremely good movie. Just the fact that they spent years creating all of the behind the scenes work itself is a reason for this to be one of the best produced movies. In a time when special effects and animation like that was uheard of, the producers of the movie did a great job creating this piece of work. This movie opened doors for almost every other movie that is being produced today.

Reasons for Class

I hope to learn a lot from this film study class. I used to be really interested in filming my friends on our bikes and skateboards and all the angles and clips we used were realy important. I don’t do that anymore but it gaveme an idea ofhow hard it was to actually create a good movie or clip. I’m very interested in learning more about the different varieties of angles and closeups. I’m also excited to watch all of the movies that you have planned for us to watch. I generally like any movie that I see as long as it has a good plot and some of the movies on the list I’m already a fan of. For the rest of the movies that I havne’t seen yet, I’m excited to watch them and I hope they’re good.
What I’m not excited about is writing papers. Although I know it won’t be that bad, I’m still dreading to have to do it. I’m already sick of doing homework because it’s the end of the year however, I’m not just going to totally stop. I don’t mind writing essays that much, I’m usually pretty good at writing them. I’m jus t not very excited to have to write essays on nice sunny days.
After highschool I plan on going to Keene State in NH to study business and take all of my general courses. After the first year I want to transfer to another better school with more opportunities available for me. Once I graduate college I hope I can get into a big business and start working and starting a career. I’m not totally sure what I want to do with business but I was thinking about doing something with sales of even marketing.

First Post

I hope to learn a lot about the different ways movies are filmed. I also hope to watch a lot of movies in this class. What I'm not looking forward to this class is all of the paper writing. I'm sick of doing homework so it won't be fun. After highschool I'm going to college and studying business. Hopefully once I graduate I can get a good job for a big company.