Date Viewed: 1/7/10
Director: Jamie Hewlett and Pete Candeland
An interesting music video that caught my attention is El Manana by Gorillaz. This video is presented in a cartoon/animated way as all the Gorillaz videos are. This video attracted my attention because it seems to have more meaning than most of the other Gorillaz videos.
In this video we are presented with a cartoon character of a girl, on a sunny floating island with a windmill on it. The girl is sitting relaxing on the island where all of a sudden 2 helicopters come out of nowhere and start attacking the girl. The girl runs back into the windmill and hides there until she thinks it is safe. The girl takes a peek out and instead of seeing the happy sunny place she was at before she is greeted with a dark, fiery and dead looking place. The helicopters keep attacking and then the island starts to lose altitude. The island falls into a canyon looking landscape and one of the helicopters drops a bomb on the island and the helicopters fly off.
Gorillaz say that the floating island is supposed to represent “mental freedom”. So I guess the helicopters are destroying this mental freedom. In my opinion the helicopters are representing war because they have turned something nice into a flaming wreck and a disaster, this relates to what goes on in the real world. Also the windmill spinning could represent being a clock, as in maybe the clock of life and this is being destroyed in war.
In my opinion this is a great music video that fits with the dull/gloomy music that it goes too. This music video is a simple and good looking video that also presents a strong message.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
EMINEM - "Recovery" Album Cover
Date Viewed: 30/6/10
Cultural Perspective: American
An album cover that attracted my attention is the cover of EMINEMS latest album “Recovery”. This album was just released after he got out of rehab; they portray this idea a lot in this image. In the image we see EMINEM walking down an empty road with the words “Recovery” written in the top right hand corner in a bold font. Eminem is moved to the left of the image so we get a good view of the road. As the road gets further away it starts to blur. This image doesn’t seem like much but it does actually have a strong message.
EMINEM walking down a road is almost him going down the road to recovery which makes a Visual/Verbal link. He’s just been in rehab so I guess that’s part of the road to recovery. Also EMINEM’s back is facing towards us which is almost him facing his back to the drugs and going down a different road. This relates to the first idea. This gives us a strong message that he’s trying to get away from the drugs. Also in the font saying “Recovery” we see the ‘o’ presented as a health cross. This relates to him getting out of rehab and him being in better health.
EMINEM is shown as the dominant image in this image. He is the boldest object in this image because the road starts to blur out. This draws our attention to him when we first look at this image. They did this because it’s his road to recovery so the focus should be on him. Also the image has a really good layout because the text is on the other side of the image from the Dominant image. This makes it look less clustered and makes it look more effective.
In my opinion this is a really effective album cover. It doesn’t look like much from a glance but when you start to think about it and realise the real message that it’s trying to portray it is a really effective image presented in a simple way.
Cultural Perspective: American
An album cover that attracted my attention is the cover of EMINEMS latest album “Recovery”. This album was just released after he got out of rehab; they portray this idea a lot in this image. In the image we see EMINEM walking down an empty road with the words “Recovery” written in the top right hand corner in a bold font. Eminem is moved to the left of the image so we get a good view of the road. As the road gets further away it starts to blur. This image doesn’t seem like much but it does actually have a strong message.
EMINEM walking down a road is almost him going down the road to recovery which makes a Visual/Verbal link. He’s just been in rehab so I guess that’s part of the road to recovery. Also EMINEM’s back is facing towards us which is almost him facing his back to the drugs and going down a different road. This relates to the first idea. This gives us a strong message that he’s trying to get away from the drugs. Also in the font saying “Recovery” we see the ‘o’ presented as a health cross. This relates to him getting out of rehab and him being in better health.
EMINEM is shown as the dominant image in this image. He is the boldest object in this image because the road starts to blur out. This draws our attention to him when we first look at this image. They did this because it’s his road to recovery so the focus should be on him. Also the image has a really good layout because the text is on the other side of the image from the Dominant image. This makes it look less clustered and makes it look more effective.
In my opinion this is a really effective album cover. It doesn’t look like much from a glance but when you start to think about it and realise the real message that it’s trying to portray it is a really effective image presented in a simple way.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Of Mice and Men
Date Viewed: 19/6/10
Director: Gary Sinise (male)
Cultural Perspective: American
Genre: Drama
Of Mice and Men is a good classic movie with a very interesting storyline. At the start of the movie we are presented with 2 runaway American travellers that are travelling the country to find a job. After we start to meet the 2 travellers we realise that one of the travellers, Lennie is actually mentally challenged. The 2 travellers have run away from their last town because of some trouble that Lennie got them into and now the 2 are looking for another job and heading towards some type of barn to work for a rich farmer.
When the 2 travellers’ arrive at the barn they are greeted with an old man called Candy that looks like he’s being living at the place his whole life. Candy sends them up to the owner of the farm and Lennie of course is told to let George do the talking. When they are talking to the boss we can tell that the boss has suspicions about Lennie but from what George says he can tell that he’s a strong worker. Time goes on at the barn; they meet new people and are working hard. But unfortunately the boss’s son takes certain disliking to Lennie and this gets them into a bit of trouble. At the end of the movie George has to make a decision which doesn’t seem right but really is the right decision.
If I was the director I wouldn’t have changed much. It’s a good classic film with a great storyline. It’s easy to understand and a great watch for all ages. It maybe would have been nice to see more of a background story, but I guess that’s part of why it’s so interesting because it’s out of the blue and a simple story.
In my opinion it’s a really good film that’s a good watch. Not only is it funny and happy at times but it also has a really deep storyline. It’s a good watch for most ages but maybe it would be a bit hard to understand for the kids. But in conclusion it’s a great film with a good story line.
Director: Gary Sinise (male)
Cultural Perspective: American
Genre: Drama
Of Mice and Men is a good classic movie with a very interesting storyline. At the start of the movie we are presented with 2 runaway American travellers that are travelling the country to find a job. After we start to meet the 2 travellers we realise that one of the travellers, Lennie is actually mentally challenged. The 2 travellers have run away from their last town because of some trouble that Lennie got them into and now the 2 are looking for another job and heading towards some type of barn to work for a rich farmer.
When the 2 travellers’ arrive at the barn they are greeted with an old man called Candy that looks like he’s being living at the place his whole life. Candy sends them up to the owner of the farm and Lennie of course is told to let George do the talking. When they are talking to the boss we can tell that the boss has suspicions about Lennie but from what George says he can tell that he’s a strong worker. Time goes on at the barn; they meet new people and are working hard. But unfortunately the boss’s son takes certain disliking to Lennie and this gets them into a bit of trouble. At the end of the movie George has to make a decision which doesn’t seem right but really is the right decision.
If I was the director I wouldn’t have changed much. It’s a good classic film with a great storyline. It’s easy to understand and a great watch for all ages. It maybe would have been nice to see more of a background story, but I guess that’s part of why it’s so interesting because it’s out of the blue and a simple story.
In my opinion it’s a really good film that’s a good watch. Not only is it funny and happy at times but it also has a really deep storyline. It’s a good watch for most ages but maybe it would be a bit hard to understand for the kids. But in conclusion it’s a great film with a good story line.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
The Shawshank Redemption
Date Viewed: 12/6/10 Director: Frank Darabont Cultural Perspective: American Genre: Drama
The movie The Shawshank Redemption is a great classic film with an interesting in-depth storyline. In the beginning of this movie we are confronted with an old-school American type of setting and we are presented with a white man in a court case that gets sentenced to life in jail. This man is Andy Dufrense a normal city banker, Andy had had an argument with his wife and had consumed a large amount of alcohol and apparently murdered his wife and her lover. Andy is charged with 2 life sentences at Shawshank prison. Almost as soon as the film begins we are presented with narration by another prison inmate named Red. The narration continues throughout the film and in my opinion it is a great way to see the story from another inmate’s position and gives the viewer a better perspective of the situation.
When Andy arrives at the prison we are greeted with a normal bunch of prison inmates and guards. Straight from the start Andy is trying to befriend the inmates and even the guards which later on in the film turned out to be a good decision. Andy is moved from his job in the laundry and is moved into an office to do everyone’s accountings and numbers. He even befriends the owner of the prison. This is a good way for the viewer to see what actually goes on because we see all the scams and dodgy deals going on. As the film progresses we start to learn everyone’s background stories and meet many new interesting people throughout the film. As the owner of the prison gets into more scams and dodgy deals Andy starts taking advantage of this and later on the film we see a big twist involving this part of the film.
If I was the director of this film I wouldn’t have changed much because it is such a well made movie with a great story line. I may of given a bit more of a background story for all the other inmates so we see a better understanding of what they have been through, but all in all the director has done a brilliant job.
In my opinion this is a great classic film that is defiantly worth a watch. This is a great film if you are looking for a meaningful movie and a brilliant storyline. I recommend this film for a more mature audience because there is quite a strong message and deep storyline being presented.
The movie The Shawshank Redemption is a great classic film with an interesting in-depth storyline. In the beginning of this movie we are confronted with an old-school American type of setting and we are presented with a white man in a court case that gets sentenced to life in jail. This man is Andy Dufrense a normal city banker, Andy had had an argument with his wife and had consumed a large amount of alcohol and apparently murdered his wife and her lover. Andy is charged with 2 life sentences at Shawshank prison. Almost as soon as the film begins we are presented with narration by another prison inmate named Red. The narration continues throughout the film and in my opinion it is a great way to see the story from another inmate’s position and gives the viewer a better perspective of the situation.
When Andy arrives at the prison we are greeted with a normal bunch of prison inmates and guards. Straight from the start Andy is trying to befriend the inmates and even the guards which later on in the film turned out to be a good decision. Andy is moved from his job in the laundry and is moved into an office to do everyone’s accountings and numbers. He even befriends the owner of the prison. This is a good way for the viewer to see what actually goes on because we see all the scams and dodgy deals going on. As the film progresses we start to learn everyone’s background stories and meet many new interesting people throughout the film. As the owner of the prison gets into more scams and dodgy deals Andy starts taking advantage of this and later on the film we see a big twist involving this part of the film.
If I was the director of this film I wouldn’t have changed much because it is such a well made movie with a great story line. I may of given a bit more of a background story for all the other inmates so we see a better understanding of what they have been through, but all in all the director has done a brilliant job.
In my opinion this is a great classic film that is defiantly worth a watch. This is a great film if you are looking for a meaningful movie and a brilliant storyline. I recommend this film for a more mature audience because there is quite a strong message and deep storyline being presented.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
Date Viewed: 14/1/10
Director: Mark Herman (male)
Cultural Perspective: German
Genre: Drama
The movie The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is quite an interesting movie and it intrigued me. It’s about a small boy called Bruno whose father is a Nazi commandant who’s just moved next to a concentration camp which Bruno refers to as the “Out-With”. To begin with, Bruno is a bit unsure about moving to the “Out-With” and leaving all his friends back in Berlin. His sister Gretel has also moved with the family and Bruno refers to her as “the hopeless case” and at the time isn’t very fond of her.
As the movie progress’s Bruno runs out of things to do and decides to start exploring. One day Bruno goes exploring and finds a big long fence going around the perimeter of the house. While he’s walking around it he spots a small boy on the other side of the fence. Bruno walks up and starts talking to him and despite their differences they actually get along well. But what Bruno doesn’t know is that the little boy, Shmuel is actually a prisoner of the concentration camp that Bruno’s father is the commandant of. Throughout the movie Bruno and Shmuel friendship grows until Shmuel’s dad goes missing. Bruno decides to dress up as a Jew and go into the concentration camp to help Shmuel find his dad. It doesn’t turn out well.
If I was the director of this movie I wouldn’t change much because I think it was a good depiction of the book and was a well made movie. I maybe would have showed more of Shmuel’s life to see how he lived instead of just seeing it from Bruno’s point of view.
In my opinion this is a good movie and is worth seeing if you are looking for a deep movie. I wouldn’t recommend this movie to younger viewers because it wouldn’t make complete sense but is a great one for a more mature audience
Director: Mark Herman (male)
Cultural Perspective: German
Genre: Drama
The movie The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is quite an interesting movie and it intrigued me. It’s about a small boy called Bruno whose father is a Nazi commandant who’s just moved next to a concentration camp which Bruno refers to as the “Out-With”. To begin with, Bruno is a bit unsure about moving to the “Out-With” and leaving all his friends back in Berlin. His sister Gretel has also moved with the family and Bruno refers to her as “the hopeless case” and at the time isn’t very fond of her.
As the movie progress’s Bruno runs out of things to do and decides to start exploring. One day Bruno goes exploring and finds a big long fence going around the perimeter of the house. While he’s walking around it he spots a small boy on the other side of the fence. Bruno walks up and starts talking to him and despite their differences they actually get along well. But what Bruno doesn’t know is that the little boy, Shmuel is actually a prisoner of the concentration camp that Bruno’s father is the commandant of. Throughout the movie Bruno and Shmuel friendship grows until Shmuel’s dad goes missing. Bruno decides to dress up as a Jew and go into the concentration camp to help Shmuel find his dad. It doesn’t turn out well.
If I was the director of this movie I wouldn’t change much because I think it was a good depiction of the book and was a well made movie. I maybe would have showed more of Shmuel’s life to see how he lived instead of just seeing it from Bruno’s point of view.
In my opinion this is a good movie and is worth seeing if you are looking for a deep movie. I wouldn’t recommend this movie to younger viewers because it wouldn’t make complete sense but is a great one for a more mature audience
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Where the Wild Things Are
Date Viewed: 15/12/09
Director: Spike Jonze (Male)
Cultural Perspective: American
Genre: Fantasy Drama
A movie that has just hit the big screen recently is Where the Wild Things Are. This old childhood classic picture book has been transformed into a mean, dark and scary movie. In the advertisement it showed a happy movie that looks suitable for kids. But actually throughout most of the movie it is quite angry and makes you feel almost uncomfortable. The movie may have followed the same main story line but some small important details make the movie different from the book. It’s basically just an exaggerated version of the book. The small boy in the book, Max who is the main character is an out of control small child who is a little bit messed up. His mum has started dating new people and Max isn’t happy about it.
Near the beginning of the film Max runs away after a fight with his mother. When he runs away from home he finds a small sail boat by the sea, and like any curious child he gets in the boat and sails away. Max ends up at an island and he finds the group of “Wild Things”. He spots the main “Wild Thing”, Carol reeking havoc and I think in a way it was his imagination showing a similar version of himself. Even in the first 10 minutes of the film is shows scary violence, with Max and Carol smashing up the small village that they just made. In this movie it has small parts of happiness but it never lasts and get interrupted by anger. This movie wouldn’t be suitable for a child at all. It is far too dark and scary. I wouldn’t suggest that big fans of the book go see this movie; the idea of the story is very different.
If I was the director of this movie I would have made it more like the book. If this was done it would have meant everyone would have enjoyed the film. But instead they targeted an older audience. The advertisement people didn’t do a good job in my opinion. They portrayed the movie in the advertisement differently to how the movie actually is. In the advertisement they showed all the happy parts and made it look suitable for kids and a happy movie. They didn’t show the movie how it actually is with its dark and angry scenes. I think they might of made it a bit angrier than the book just to please a wider audience, instead of just making it more of a childrens movie. In my opinion it didnt work out well.
This movie was an unusual one for me; I think you would have to have a particular taste to like this movie. So if you like dark angry movies go for this movie, but I wouldn’t recommend going to this movie with children expecting the old classic happy book.
Director: Spike Jonze (Male)
Cultural Perspective: American
Genre: Fantasy Drama
A movie that has just hit the big screen recently is Where the Wild Things Are. This old childhood classic picture book has been transformed into a mean, dark and scary movie. In the advertisement it showed a happy movie that looks suitable for kids. But actually throughout most of the movie it is quite angry and makes you feel almost uncomfortable. The movie may have followed the same main story line but some small important details make the movie different from the book. It’s basically just an exaggerated version of the book. The small boy in the book, Max who is the main character is an out of control small child who is a little bit messed up. His mum has started dating new people and Max isn’t happy about it.
Near the beginning of the film Max runs away after a fight with his mother. When he runs away from home he finds a small sail boat by the sea, and like any curious child he gets in the boat and sails away. Max ends up at an island and he finds the group of “Wild Things”. He spots the main “Wild Thing”, Carol reeking havoc and I think in a way it was his imagination showing a similar version of himself. Even in the first 10 minutes of the film is shows scary violence, with Max and Carol smashing up the small village that they just made. In this movie it has small parts of happiness but it never lasts and get interrupted by anger. This movie wouldn’t be suitable for a child at all. It is far too dark and scary. I wouldn’t suggest that big fans of the book go see this movie; the idea of the story is very different.
If I was the director of this movie I would have made it more like the book. If this was done it would have meant everyone would have enjoyed the film. But instead they targeted an older audience. The advertisement people didn’t do a good job in my opinion. They portrayed the movie in the advertisement differently to how the movie actually is. In the advertisement they showed all the happy parts and made it look suitable for kids and a happy movie. They didn’t show the movie how it actually is with its dark and angry scenes. I think they might of made it a bit angrier than the book just to please a wider audience, instead of just making it more of a childrens movie. In my opinion it didnt work out well.
This movie was an unusual one for me; I think you would have to have a particular taste to like this movie. So if you like dark angry movies go for this movie, but I wouldn’t recommend going to this movie with children expecting the old classic happy book.
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