Filmex

"You Must Know Everything" by Isaac Babel Analysis

2007-11-29T16:29:00.000-08:00

When looking upon the work of a young writer there is a certain "feel" that is naturally attributed by knowledge of the authors age. Once a writer reaches a certain age, he can still write about childhood and it can still feel natural. But its impossible to really gain the perspective of a young writer, who has just become old enough to reflect upon himself, and his past; once you reach the age where Childhood becomes more of just a far off memory. The benefit that Isaac Babel had at the time of writing this story, is that these memories of a grandmother and her sad aspirations for her grandson to "know everything" are not some long lost memory. This is a recent event, being reflected upon immediately post-childhood. This story in its emotion, construction, and insight on the mind of a child, and the awkwardness we sometimes feel from our elders has helped me to realize the advantage a young writer has while all of these events are so close in his memory or even unfolding upon him currently. Everyone injects a bit of themselves into their writing, best to do it while you are at your peak.

Analysis of "The Gospel According to Mark" by Jorge Luis Borges

2007-11-27T17:53:00.000-08:00

When reading "The Gospel According to Mark" by Jorge Luis Borges the bible references are easily detected with allusions to "the great flood" and how the family begins to worship Espinoza (sp?) according to his teachings. But its how far Jorge takes it, to an ultimately completely unexpected level culminating in an implied crucifixion; this is where the real social commentary comes into play. We the reader sit here and notice the obvious allusions to the bible, but it is not until the end, where it is too late, that we find out how dangerous it all ends up being. It is almost like a kind of scary warning for society. We sit here aware of how many people just blindly follow whoever is in charge,in yet will it be too late before we realize how dangerous the situation is? It is very relevant in todays society where Christianity and the US government have seemingly mixed, the dangerous blind followers increase in numbers everyday, it could all culminate into a consequence more dangerous than any of us would expect.

Short Story Proposal

2007-10-26T07:22:00.000-07:00

This currently untitled story is about an 18 year old writer named Madison. Madison has never ever finished a project, but he is convinced his next idea, a sci-fi look at the Darfur crisis, will be his big breakthrough. His friend James attempts to write it with him but is too involved with school and his girlfriend Kelsey to really be of much help to Madison . The story focuses on the pressure put on Madison to write his great story when his generation is only known for getting low test scores and being less creative than any other generation preceding it. The story will follow Madison until the end of his production that he simply labels "Darfuture". Madison will learn whats really important about writing, once he stops trying to write his magnum opus and starts living his life away from characters he creates for his movies.

Noir Top Ten List

2007-10-09T08:43:00.000-07:00

10. Main focus is always on the "underbelly"
9. Murder is almost always involved
8. Excess of Alcohol
7. There is a lot of misinterpretations that fuel characters actions
6. Women commonly seduce the main character
5. There is never any "cut and dry" case
4. The hero of the story is usually deeper than you would see in most films
3. All the characters seem largely isolated before the story begins
2. If there is a woman, her past must be troubled.
1. It always takes place in the city(seriously, think about it)

Annotated Outline for Woody Allen Auteur Paper

2007-10-07T10:53:00.000-07:00

Personality On Display: Woody Allen

Introduction/Auteur Review/Thesis Statement(2-3 paragraphs but all encompass into similar subject):

When Woody Allen makes a film, you feel his personality in every frame. Woody Allen is not an auteur in the way that you can find several director signatures throughout his films (though there are a few) but in the way you can feel his persona almost like a spirit hanging over the film. This takes auteur theory into a much more thoughtful and deeper state than I had originally anticipated

Sleeper(the exception to the rule) (1 paragraph)

Sleeper is exceptionally different from most of the Woody Allen films I watched. It is more of a Mel Brooks/Benny Hill style comedy with jazz tribute to the silent film era. What is indeed present though is Woody Allen riffing on 70s popular culture in his usual neurotic demeanor. The film is largely a kind of strange social commentary on the 70s and kind of a fantasy world of Woody Allen. It is notable that in the most offbeat and unrealistic of all the Woody Allen movies I watched it is the only one where he ends up with the girl in the end.

Annie Hall (Perfection) (1 paragraph, possibly 2 if I get really excited)
Annie Hall is what I would consider the framework for Allen's best films. It seems that the movies relationship is fictional but the life and aspects of Alvy Singer who is played by Woody Allen, are very autobiographical. Several times throughout Annie Hall, Woody Allen breaks the fourth wall(where the audiences sits outside the films world and watches) and speaks directly to the audience about his problems. His personality is most evident here because he is talking to us directly.

Manhattan (1 paragraph)
The opening dialouge of Manhattan is reminiscent of Annie Hall as Woody Allen speaks of his love for a city that appears to be losing its luster. The film itself is presented in black and white as if to add a more old timey feel. It makes me think of old movies that take place in Manhattan and how people who had never seen the city itself back in the black and white era recognized it in that color. This is Woody's love note to Manhattan. It also has the possibility of foreshadowing some relationships in Woodys actual life. (Ending up with a 17 year old?)

Crimes and Misdemeanors (1 paragraph)
A look at the darker side of Woody Allen. Crimes and Misdemeanors is a mixture of two stories. One about a successful man who is brought to call upon murder of his mistress, and the other about a failing director who falls in love while working on a documentary about his brother in law. While the side about the failed director is the usual Woody Allen plot where nothing turns out right, its contrast to the dead serious story of murder and cheating. This would become another framework that is delved into further in Match Point.

Match Point (1 paragraph)
This was the only film I watched that didn't have Woody Allen himself in a starring role. His presence was still felt as we are exposed to relationships, betrayal, and murder. We still see it all come together based around an opening monologue and its continuing reference of luck (like in the game of tennis) throughout the movie. Here we have no common Woody story but his focus on the inner workings of the human mind and complicated relationships is unmistakable.

Conclusion (1-2 paragraphs)
Woody Allen is one of the most personal directors of our time. He brings his personality into his films so much that they become unmistakable. He may not have many signatures, but that is irrelevent. After watching several of his movies, you feel like you know him personally.

Match Point, it could go to either side.

2007-10-05T20:58:00.000-07:00

Match Point is a romantic drama(that becomes a thriller) and does not actually have Woody Allen appear at all in the film. But thats not to say his presence is completely lost, you still recognize the way Woody writes a story and constructs characters(plus the opening credits even use the same font...) Woody Allen has been quoted calling Match Point "his best film" and while I am not sure I agree with that statement, I do feel that it is his most tightly put together and consistent film. Everything feels perfectly constructed, The luck monologues are some of the best examples of his writing in my opinion. I also admire the acting skill of Jonathan-Rhys-Meyers who portrays tennis player Chris Wilton. After dropping out of the professional circuit Chris gets a job at a country club in London where through a series of events meets Chloe (Emily Mortimer) they fall deeply in love and begin a relationship, but things are not so simple, Chris also meets Nola (Scarlett Johanson) his brother in laws fiance who he shares great passion with. The movie focuses on several years as Chris's career rises as does his marriage to Chloe, although after a break up and trip home to america, Nola returns to London and continues her affair with Chris. Chris goes through a Crimes and Misdemeanors-like dilemna of walking the fine balance of lust and love he loses almost all rational though leading to a violent and chilling conclusion. The fact that Chris gets away with his crime is based on pure luck, a series of events that leaves him just like Judah in Crimes and Misdemeanors except for one big difference. Chris still retains the emotions of what he has done, the movie concludes with the birth of his son by Chloe, Chris should be happy but he just stares coldly and hurtfully into the nice view of London in his lofty apartment. The movie ends with Chris's brother in law speaking of his newborn son "Who cares if he is great, I just hope that he's lucky". Woody Allen also said that while Match Point was his best film, it was purely on accident. I guess in his mind, he just got lucky.

The Law of Allen: Crimes and Misdemeanors

2007-10-04T16:59:00.000-07:00

It seems as if Crimes and Misdemeanors stories at first don't really combine very well and just seem thrown together randomly. One story is about a very successful ophthalmologist named Judah(Martin Landau) who in trying to protect his career and marriage has his mistress killed after she threatens to reveal herself to his family, he lives with the guilt in his heart after committing this crime and it changes his life. The other story is about a small time filmmaker Cliff(Woody Allen) who's marriage is on the rocks, his brother in law is a producer and a pompous ass named Lester (Alan Alda) who wants Cliff to direct a documentary on him for a series. While shooting the documentary Cliff falls in love with producer Halley(Mia Farrow) and the usual Woody Allen likes girl, girl likes Woody Allen, girl makes sad but realistic choice leaving Woody sad and alone. Strangely enough watching this film, I felt it was the most mature work I have seen from Woody Allen as well as his funniest. While all the serious parts were wonderful (Landau was really amazing) I couldn't help but fall over laughing when Cliff's sister confides in him about her rather raunchy and embarrassing sexual escapades with a near stranger. This is the first Woody Allen film I have watched where the focus isn't entirely on him. But his presence is always felt. There is a scene where Judah visits his childhood home and experiences an Annie Hall - like flashback to a dinner table conversation about Judaism. Judah just as Alvy does several times in Annie Hall interacts with the flashback and receives advice from his relatives. This is all very evident of Woody's personality and style being in every scene of the film. The two stories and how they play off of each other show very well in the final scene where Judah has apparently gotten over his grief while Cliff still believes that they will be punished for there "Crimes and Misdemeanors" its a very good look on the opposite ends of the spectrum and how human nature forces us to act in these situations. Punished, unpunished we all commit a crime, but as the film states, we hope future generations never have to do what we do. Be it murder, or cheating on your wife. Crimes and Misdemeanors.

A Full View of Manhattan

2007-10-03T18:03:00.000-07:00

Everyone has a place they are in love with. Woody Allen clearly loves New York, you can tell in the opening shots and monologue of Manhattan when Woody playing Isaac Davis talks about his city changing for the worse. As in most Woody Allen films it feels as if Woody himself is simply expressing his own opinion through his dialouge. Once again Woody plays a neurotic and talkative character who is in confusing relationships. Manhattan is about Isaac Davis and two women; Tracy the 17 year old high school senior that Isaac is dating at the beginning of the movie and Mary, Isaac's best friend's mistress who is an intellectual writer who seems to overthink a lot. Isaac isn't really sure about what direction he should go with his love life and when he finally makes his decision to be with Mary, her sudden change of heart leaves him alone and unsure of what he should do. All the meanwhile Isaac's lesbian ex wife Jill (Meryl Streep) is writing a tell all book on their relationship that doesn't really do much to help his image. Manhattan is a good movie, visually its amazing. Shot entirely in black and white with several uses of silhouettes the film feels very much like a window into another world. The dialouge is similar to all of Woody Allens films, fast paced and smart. The main problem I have with Manhattan is that it brings up the storyline of the tell all book and barely goes into it, these scenes were some of my favorite in the movie, it could of been an entirely seperate movie I think, there just wasn't enough to satisfy me. It was kind of hard to watch the ending where Isaac goes back to Tracy. Knowing how Woody Allen will turn out its just generally unsettling to watch him end up with an 18 year old girl at the end of the movie. Although the ending is justified seeing as Isaac had really nowhere else to turn and just wanted to go somewhere where he felt raw happiness. I guess it was just about Woodys point of view on the situation, his paticular view was of Manhattan.

Possible Signatures:

Ending Credits the same as the other films I have watched

Characters often not in the center of the shot to portray a more realistic view

Use of certain theme throughout (Sleeper: Silent film comedy, Annie Hall: Fourth wall breakdown, Manhattan: Silhouttes)

Conversations with Woody by Eric Lax

2007-09-30T19:18:00.000-07:00

This is by far the most interesting article on Woody Allen I have read. Eric Lax talks about when he first met Woody Allen, he went to interview him about his new movie Bananas(1971) and Woody was very nervous and hardly answered any of his questions with more than a yes or a no. Eric Lax met with Woody Allen several more times visiting his sets occasionally. Eventually Woody loosened up around Eric and the two became good friends. They would continually have meetings where Eric Lax would tape record their conversations and instead of a simple "yes" Woody Allen would go on long and often hilarious monologues. Eric Lax never got a story run on Woody Allen but the two became good friends. What makes the article so interesting is that Eric Lax talks about and apparently Woody agrees with him that once he got to know him, Woody Allen wasn't as neurotic as his film counterparts. Simply because his life was more dull.

Lax, Eric. "Conversations with Woody" Woody Allen: A Casebook. Ed. Kimball King. New York, New York. Routledge. 2001.

Annie Hall a review by Robert Hatch

2007-09-30T19:05:00.000-07:00

The review is quick to point out how Alvy Singer is essentially Woody Allen playing himself, this is something that greatly attributes to the auteur presence in his movies. Robert Hatch praises Annie Hall for its wit and clever way of dealing with relationships along with its breaking of the fourth wall with Woody Allen addressing the audience directly. Although the breaking of the fourth wall is praised here Robert Hatch also is quick to point out that Allen sometimes goes too far or explains a joke too deeply. Specifically the scene at the movie theater with the loud talker in the line where Alvy Singer literally pulls the subject of the discussion into the scene to provide his own words, and the scene where subtitles explain what Alvy and Annie are really thinking during their discussion on the balcony. Robert Hatch thinks that these jokes would of been funnier if they had kept a more subtle nature. I personally disagree and those two scenes in paticular were my favorites in the film. Robert also makes the point that while the ending joke of the movie is funny, it really doesn't make any sense. I would agree with this but neither me nor Robert Hatch seem to be sure if that was the point all along.

Hatch, Robert. "Annie Hall(review)" Perspectives on Woody Allen. Ed. Renee R. Curry. New York, New York. G.K. Hall & Co. Prentice Hall International. 1996

Auteur cinema and the ‘film generation’ in 1970s Hollywood,” by David A. Cook

2007-09-30T18:26:00.000-07:00

The article begins with a brief explanation of Auteur theory and talks briefly about how Auteur theory was seemingly built around directors like Orson Welles and Alfred Hitchcock. It then goes into how films like Bonnie and Clyde (1967) and The Graduate (1968) and their inspiration from Cahiers du cinema along with box office success created a new era of film that focused on youth culture. Film changed forever when filmmakers were familiar with the concept of being the auteur and had grown up around film and television. The article also briefly talks about Orson Welle not writing his own films but never really goes into the subject. The article primarily focuses on how mainstream studios essentially tried to profit off of this revolution in cinema by copying formulas used in movies like The Graduate to appeal to the youth demographic. Then the article largely seems to forget about this point for several pages and focuses on several directors: Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorcese, Brian De Palma, John Milius, and Paul Schrader.

The article makes various points about each director, be it Coppola falling victim to mainstream Hollywood and largely losing his label as an auteur or George Lucas's status as an auteur even though he has only directed three films. Then all of the sudden the article takes a turn back to one of its original points about films becoming too commercial. How artistic vision is lost in trying to fit to MPAA standards and how thanks to films like Star Wars merchandising has become more important than the film itself to studios. The article even goes as far to say videos ruin artistic vision for a disjointed seemingly random, angry conclusion about how art and auterism is seemingly lost. The article is much too disjointed in mood and whatever point it seems to want to prove, it ultimately fails.

Cook, David. "The 'Film Generation' in 1970s Hollywood". The New American Cinema. Ed. Jon Lewis. Durham and London. Duke University Press. 1998

The first half of Manhattan or how I respect football as a sport but hate how lives revolve around it.

2007-09-22T20:56:00.000-07:00

I woke up this lovely saturday knowing there was not a chance in the world I was going to finish all 3 of my films before I left on sunday morning. But I didn't expect to not even finish one of my films. Packing and clothes hunting took up the majority of my morning, thought I was able to use part of that morning to watch the first 45 minutes of Woody Allen's film Manhattan. Right off the bat I noticed how good the score was and how the opening narration of the story was really cool. I didn't really enjoy all the pompous dialouge that seemed to know how full of crap it was. But the movie was so far enjoyable even though I couldn't take my mind off the irony of Woody dating a 17 year old in a film. After the first 45 minutes or so I had to take a break to do some more packing. Around Noon my Ipod died and this made me very angry. My grandmother came over to help me pack and after thinking of something to do about this I went out to get some extra clothes for the trip (can't get enough non-jean pants). While out I bought a cool little guitar simulator for my Nintendo DS entitled Jam sessions. Around 5:00 I went out to eat at Locos(love that grilled cajun shrimp). Now on my way home I am already packed, So I am expecting to get home, casually sit down and watch the rest of Manhattan. Errh, Wrong. This next part is my own fault, I had forgotten Smashing Pumpkins tickets went on sale today. SO I promply bought 4 (section NN :/. It could be worse) This takes about 30 minutes due to some computer trouble. By now my mother is home from my sisters wedding shower (which had a Georgia Bulldogs theme by the way). Just in time for the game! Wait...the game? I have to watch Manhattan! "Its Homework!" I cry. "watch it on the computer" she retorts. "But the computer is slow and I would really rather watch it in here, Football is the same quality anywhere, films are different." I whine. (In saddened tone) "Fine.." So now I go upstairs and ask Tina Jones some questions about what she is brining on the college trip. I come back, TV is still on, Georgia and Alabama are tied. I care enough about football to pay attention to UGA, it is of course our hometown staple. But damn if football doesn't interefere with a lot of my life. My sister and her fiance recieved a Bulldog Honey Moonpack for their shower by the way. Best wishes to them.

In conclusion, I now know why they don't play football in the streets of Manhattan.

Introduction to Theories of Authorship edited by John Caughie

2007-09-16T18:17:00.000-07:00

This introduction begins with a quote from Alexandre Astruc from 1948. He speaks of a director expressing his thought onto the film. He calls this "Camera-stylo". The introduction states that while camera-stylo didn't take off its idea of associating film as artistic self expression became an important part of auteur theory. The main point that the introduction makes is that Auterism in itself was not proposed as a theory and more of a policy. Usually when someone is looked at as an auteur its an intentional effect. The director takes on a certain attitude as an auteur. While the film critics recognize film as art at its level between reality and fiction. It takes more to recognize the director as an artist. This is why we need auteur theory, to express that the direcot is indeed an author and an artist.

Possible Signatures in Sleeper and Annie Hall

2007-09-16T15:14:00.000-07:00

- Both films use the same style title cards
- Woody Allen plays a neurotic fast talking character in both films
- Each film has several small rants on current culture
- *exclusive to Annie Hall* A shot with dialouge over it, but at first we can't see the characters. Eventually the characters walk into frame and once they catch up to the camera, it begins to follow them.

This is all I could find for now, but I am sure Manhattan will serve to find much more results. Because Sleeper and Annie Hall were actually very different in retrospect.

Falling In Love with Annie Hall

2007-09-16T14:21:00.000-07:00

On the back of the DVD case for Annie Hall it states that the film "Established Allen as the premier auteur filmmaker." I haven't seen enough of Allen's films to truly judge that quote. But I can say that Annie Hall is a masterful, innovative, and funny film. Woody Allen once again co-writes, directs, and stars in Annie Hall. In the film he plays Alvy Singer a kind of famous comedian who is in a continuing relationship with part time night club singer Annie Hall(Diane Keaton). The film isn't structured normally. It often jumps around in its timeframe and mainly consists of two or more scenes in different time frames mixed with eachother for comedic effect. The two biggest stylistic choices in the film that I loved and were very innovative for their time were:

1. Breaking the fourth wall: Several times Alvy looks directly into the camera and addresses the audience.

2. Incorporation of Flashbacks. When the film often flashbacks it has the characters from the present actually interact with the flashbacks directly and they have discussions with eachother as the flashback goes on

Many films use this technique and without Annie Hall we wouldn't see films like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind or Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Besides the technique in the film, we also get to see how well Woody writes dialouge. Everything sounds realistic and flows very well. Diane Keaton is excellent and has a great singing voice. Everything about Annie Hall was enjoyable, be its dialouge, acting, or distinctive style. It deserved every Oscar it won(Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Actress) and changed the film industry forever. I love Annie Hall

Scanning Sleeper

2007-09-16T13:38:00.000-07:00

Woody Allen co-writes, co-scores, directs, and stars in the 1973 science fiction comedy Sleeper. Sleeper is about a man named Miles Monroe(Woody Allen) a neurotic health food store owner who goes into a comatose state after a small ulcer surgery in 1973. He was then put into a cryogenic state for 200 years, he awakes in the year 2173 only to discover the world is run by an oppressive dictator and he has involuntarily become a fugitive associated with an anti-government group known only as "The underground". After a raid on some of the underground Miles barely escapes and ends up disguising himself as a helper robot. This is where he meets the dimwitted poet Luna Schlosser (Diane Keaton). They go on the run together and after Miles is captured by the security police its up to Luna to free him from their mind control so they can bring down the evil dictator for the underground.

I was surprised by the style of Sleeper. The only way I can describe the films style is...a mix between Woody Allen's neurotic rants on 70's culture and a jazz tribute to silent physical comedy films with a little bit of Buster Keaton influence mixed in. The mix of these elements provides for an entertaining film and showed off a side of Woody Allen I had never seen before with his physical comedy. The film mainly focuses on a lot of cultural references to the 70's and Woody going on long often uninteruped rants about about the reference usually relating it to his childhood. The best part about this is that all of his rants seemingly fall on deaf ears. Everyone in the future has no idea what he is talking about, they give him blank stares as he just goes on and on. He seems to only be doing it to amuse himself since no one of real intelligence seems to be around.

Sleeper is a very funny movie with a lot of clever ideas. I would probably enjoy it more if I had more than just general knowledge about 70's culture. There is a paticular scene where Miles is being shown "artifacts" people from the future have collected. Except for some obvious pictures I didn't really know a lot of the people or things he was ranting about, stuff like this is a focal point of the movie and there are many similar scenes to this one that left me in the dark. This was not a problem, because like I said ridiculous physical comedy is present throughout the film. All in all Woody Allen works with his low budget very well and presents a funny satirical work in an inevitable future full of idiots.

Woody Picks

2007-09-10T15:56:00.000-07:00

Sleeper (1973)
Annie Hall (1977)
Manhattan (1979)
Mighty Aphrodite (1995)
Match Point (2005)

I feel that this list encompasses what people consider the best work of Woody Allen and also has enough range to provide a wide(enough) spectrum for me to do apply Auteur theory to a really large and extensive body of work. Although the majority of the choices are from the same period, all of those choices are referred to as his best films. So I find it neccessary to focus on the peak of his career but also not completely leave out his more modern work.

drum roll

2007-09-09T14:31:00.000-07:00

Woody Allen

Woody Allen is one of the most respected directors of the 20th century. With a large array of films most starring the man himself, he has become a household name among the film industry. With 43 films under his belt Woody Allen's style and persona has become a golden standard among films. Although some controversy(marrying his adopted daughter) has caused a falter in his recent popularity. His impact on comedy and the film industry is undeniable.

I think Woody Allen would be a good example of an auteur in the way that his actualy personality comes to life on the screen. He is known for being a very nervous and neurotic guy, his films are played out this way(often with him as starring as the most neurotic character) and I want to see how this applies into auteur theory. The results should be interesting.

Wes Andersons Signatures

2007-08-22T10:11:00.000-07:00

Trivial Signatures
- Obsession with Haircuts (Max's dad being a barber and Dignan receiving a haircut) - Seahorses - Use of certain color patterns throughout his movies.

- Frequently uses a take/double take technique where he will show a character/action, quickly pan to another character/action, then pan back, usually with handheld camera.

- None of his movies have a real antagonist or villian.

- All of his movies contain a frantic scene towards the end

Meaningful Signatures

- The ending shot of all of his movies being in normal speed and gradually shift to slow motion.

- He commonly uses overhead camera angles to show tabletop visuals, such as books or documents, for added comedic payoff.

- Every movie contains an underwater shot with more people in the shot per movie.

- Futura Font used throughout all of his films

- All of his movies use the same drum solo atleast once

- There is always a single shot inwhich the entire cast is seen.

Character Types

- Commonly gets character names/bases characters off of people he knows in real life.

- Most of the main characters in the films often seem to be holding in some emotion that is let go in the end. Making the rather eccentric characters appear more relatable and human.

- Relating to the previous point. All of his main characters seem to have gone through a traumatic experience that happened before the movie takes place. (Anthony's breakdown in Bottle Rocket, Max's moms death/ The death of Edward Applebee in Rushmore, The rocky divorce/The death of Chaz's wife in The Royal Tenenbaums, and the death of Esteban du Plantier in The Life Aquatic)

Themes

- All of Wes Anderson's films have a central theme attached, Rushmore is presented like a play in parts, The Royal Tenenbaums presented like a book with chapters, and The Life Aquatic is presented in a documentary style. Bottle Rocket is probably the least attached to this theory but some could argue that Digan's 75 year plan is the theme the film works around.

- A common musical theme throughout his movies is 60s and 70s/ British Invasion music featured heavily throughout. Wes handpicks the music almost always before the movie is a shot and actually shoots the scene to accomadate to the music itself instead of the the other way around.

- An unusual/mispaired love story is a common plot in all of his films.

IMDb. 1990-2007. Internet Movie Database Inc. 22 Aug. 2007.

http://imdb.com/title/tt0362270/

http://imdb.com/name/nm0001025/

http://imdb.com/name/nm0027572/

Wes Anderson: Director

2007-08-21T17:16:00.000-07:00

Wesley Wales Anderson(tee-hee) was born on May 1st 1969 in his hometown of Houston, Texas. His mother and father are Texas Ann Burroughs and Melver Leonard Anderson. His mother is notable for being the inspiration for the character Etheline Tenenbaum in The Royal Tenenbaums. He attended St. Johns High School which is where some shots of Rushmore were shot and some students at the school had large speaking roles. He even named a lot of the characters in the film after his classmates.

It was at the University of Texas while studying Philosophy that Wes met friend Owen Wilson. They made a short film version of Bottle Rocket that garnered attention from James L. Brooks. This connection got the short film into Sundance which in turn got them enough attention to make a feature length version of Bottle Rocket. Owen went on to become a famous filmstar all the while co-writing Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums. Wilson also has a major role in all of Wes's films excluding Rushmore where he can be seen as the dead husband Edward Applebee.

Wes Anderson has gone on to become one of the most sought after directors of the 21st century and is extremely popular among the "hipster" crowd of youths. He has become close friends with filmmaker Noah Baumbach whom he co-wrote The Life Aquatic with. One of Wes Andersons most shining achievements was being nominated for an Oscar in 2001 for Best Original Screenplay (The Royal Tenenbaums). Considered a true auteur and visionary by directors such as Martin Scorcese. Wes Anderson is sure to be remembered as one of the great directors of our generation.

Filmography:
Bottle Rocket (short film) - 1994
Bottle Rocket - 1996
Rushmore - 1998
The Royal Tenenbaums - 2001
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou - 2004
The Darjeeling Limited - 2007

Upcoming:
The Fantastic Mr. Fox (pre production) - 2009

IMDb. 1990-2007. Internet Movie Database Inc. 21 Aug. 2007. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0027572/

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0128445/

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005562/

Wikipedia. 2007. Wikimedia Foundation Inc. 21 Aug. 2007.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wes_Anderson#Filmography

MLA Citation for Foucault/ Important Quotes

2007-08-20T19:02:00.000-07:00

Foucault, Michel "What is an Author?"The Author Function; translation Donald F. Bouchard and Sherry Simon, In Language, Counter-Memory, Practice. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 1977. pp.124-127.

"The author's name is a proper name and therefore it raises the problems common to all proper names. Obviously, one cannot turn a proper name into a pure and simple reference. It has other than indicative functions: more than an indication, a gesture, a finger pointed at someone, it is the equivalant of a descriptions. When one says 'Aristotle' one employs a word that is the equivalent of one, or a series, of definite descriptions" (p.105)

"...we could say that in a civilization like our own there are a certain number of discourses that are endowed with the 'author function', while others are deprived of it. A private lettermay well have a signer-it does not have an author; a contract may well have a guarantor-it does not have an author. An anonymous text posted on a wall probably has a writer-but not an author. The author function is therefore characterristic of the mode of existence, circulation, and functioning of certain discourses within a society." (p. 108)

Bottle Rocket + Auteur Theory

2007-08-19T10:43:00.000-07:00

Bottle Rocket is a 1996 film by the now prolific director Wes Anderson. It was written by Anderson himself along with friend Owen Wilson who also stars as the character Dignan in the film. The plot is as follows: Anthony Adams(Luke Wilson) gets released from a voluntary entry mental hospital after what we assume was a breakdown. Immediately upon release he joins longtime friend Dignan and a man named Bob Mapplethorpe(Robert Musgrave) on what appears to be Dignan's master life plan..of crime. Things start off fine enough until Dignan and Anthony end up stranded in a hotel in the middle of nowhere after Bob decides to go back home. Subsequently Anthony falls in love with a houskeeper named Inez(Lumi Cavazos) basically ruining Dignan's plans at a life of crime. Everything culminates into a dream heist at the end of the movie where seemingly everything goes wrong leading to entertaining results.

The main reason this film is interesting when you apply auteur theory to it is that you get to see how some of Wes Anderson's signatures come to life in their earliest form. I noticed the following use of "signatures" in Bottle Rocket that Wes Anderson would go on to use in all of his films:

- Use of Futura Font. In every one of Wes Anderson's films (most notably Royal Tenenbaums) there has been abundant use of this paticular font. While in Bottle Rocket it is used for the titles and closing credits only, it is still an early sign.

- (I can't credit this one to myself but my friend pointed it out to me and it was too good to not mention.) In everyone of Wes Anderson's film there has been a shot of someone underwater. The number of people in the shot increase with every subsequent film.

- There is always a frentic scene towards the end of his films inwhich someone is running or involved in some crazy action. In this movie it would be the heist, in Tenenbaums it would be the wedding chase scene, and in Life Aquatic it would be the Pirate(retaliation/rescue) scene.

- (another one I cannot credit to myself) Wes also uses the same drum solo for a lot of the faster scenes in his movies.

- So far all of Anderson's films have had a rather unconvential love story or atleast someone attracted to someone you wouldn't imagine them with by conventional standards. Be it the language barrier in Bottle Rocket or the age difference in Life Aquatic and of course the "I love my adopted sister" problem in The Royal Tenenbaums.

- The most notable similarity in all of Wes's films is the ending shot always starts in normal speed and gradually shifts into slow motion before the final credits role.

The film itself was very entertaining and had likeable characters (I found Kumar to be especially funny). I heard that Bottle Rocket was different from Wes's other films but in my opinion his style is still noticeably present even in its earliest stages. Maybe its the fact that the box doesn't say "criterion collection" (rumored for a 2008 realease) at the top or the fact that the movie just doesn't seem to get the attention it deserves. But its all very good filmmaking and a worthy edition to this directors catalouge.

Auteur Theory and its roots

2007-08-16T09:55:00.000-07:00

Post #1
Who coined the term auteur?

Francois Truffaut

In what essay was the term coined?

Une Certaine Tendance du Cinema Francais (A Certain Tendeny in French Cinema)
also possibly titled
La Politique Des Auteurs (The Policy of the Auteurs)

(I have seen both titles used for what I assume is the same article/essay)

Francois Truffaut was a french filmmaker that many consider the creator of a movement of film called "French New Wave" . Before he was a filmmaker he was in the French army but fled for two years until he got a job as a film critic for a budding film magazine Cahiers du cinema. He was known for his brutal reviews, so much so that in 1958 he was banned from the Cannes film festival. He would go on to direct several films (25 in total) including a film adaptation of Fahrenheit 451. His goal was to make 30 films and retire exclusively to write books. His goal was cut short by 5 films in 1984 when he died from complications of a brain tumor.

It was in 1954 when he worked for Cahiers du cinema when he wrote Une Certaine Tendance du Cinema Francais/La Politique Des Auteurs it was in this essay where he created the Auteur theory. The theory states that a film reflects a certain directors personal vision is displayed on the screen. It is in this way a film can be seen with a directors certain characteristics and quirks displayed labeling his as the creative "Auteur" (or author) of the film.