None's well that ends Noir

I felt that film noir was a very far-reaching genre that has had a huge impact on film. While the official time of the film noir is over, I feel that the genre is still alive. In many recent movies, there is at least a component of film noir. In the movie I am Legend with Will Smith, the overall tone and stark lighting give me the same feeling as a noir. In the movie, the mystery that must be solved by the protagonist is, rather than a gangster filled plot, is a scientific one. While this is not a traditional noir “case” it is a puzzle nonetheless.  The protagonist is flawed, but we are compelled to be on his side, and root for him to win.

Despite several similarities with film noir, most modern films are missing one classic component… The femme fatal. I have not seen a single modern film with a character that was as slimy and easy to loathe as the femmes fatal in “Out of the Past” or “Kiss Me Deadly”. That isn’t to say that the genre is extinct. In my opinion, it merely implies that it has changed. It has evolved to fit the times. Women in the fifties were often cut to fit a mold, and so the femme fatal was a way for film to challenge that mold. In current times, this is no longer required. The target of the noir is to call into question our fears and unvoiced concern of our surroundings.  There is no longer as immediate a concern for the outcome of the cold war, or over nuclear proliferation, but instead we fear things of our own creation. There are many elements of “Neo-Noir” in films like “The Matrix”, “I, Robot”, ”I am Legend”, and even, (arguably) “Batman Begins”. These elements are not identical to those of classic noir, but some, such as having the majority of scenes be at night, having the protagonist in a  no win situation. In two of these movies the protagonist dies, and in true noir style, they die doing what they feel is right. All of these movies use low key lighting, and while they do have more of an action component than traditional noirs, I feel that this is largely due to the demands of current viewers as well as the significant increase in the abilities of the special effects department.

Screwball/ romantic comedey entry

I really didn't care for this unit. It isn't very well thought out or anything... just a gut reaction. The movies that we saw in class seemed pointless and shallow. While I know that they were never intended to be very heavy or serios films, the could at least have been funny. They tried too hard, and the humor was always either too subtle, or not subtle enough. His girl friday seemed too convoluted and too weird to even be funny.

2008: A Film Review

As much as I hate it when critics condense a whole movie into a simple number rating, to start off this review that's what I am going to do. 8.5/10 is what I would give 2001: A Space Odyssey. I particularly enjoyed the subtlety of the dialogue, and how important each and every shot is (with the exception of the final scene(s)(I'll get to it in a minute.)) I saw some very interesting

parallels between the beginning with the early humans, and the first monolith, and behavior of the modern humans with the finding of the second monolith. In the earlier one, the "apes" used what they gained from the monolith to win a dispute over a water hole, while in the present, the  quarreling parties are, instead of rival tribes of chimps, the USA and the Soviet Union, and instead of a simple water hole, is the whole world. the movie as a whole was very good. the last 15 minutes or so made NO sense what so ever. I've tried looking up exactly what is suposed to have happened, but it still is really confusing. it has been said that sci-fi speaks not to what things will be, but to what they were when the piece was made. for example, as forward thinking as much of the movie was, there was nothing even close to cell phones, and noone thoughtg that the ussr could possibly crumble. there was no question that the us would hide almost everything from them, and there was no question that they would hide every bit as much. the idea of the consumer spaceflight was a shoo in, as it OBVIOUSLY would be in the future, yet in the breifing room, full of government officials, there were only middle aged white men. as time has moved on, the truth of the sixties have become more and more obvious.

"I ain't got time to blog"

The movie that I chose to critically critique the critic's criticism was "I am Legend" with Will Smith. The review that I chose was written by Roger Ebert. I agree with parts of Mr. Ebert's review, although my interpretation of the movie was bathed in a significantly more favorable light, as a result of my love of watching gun fights, zombie fights, cars being driven faster than they probably should be, and most of all, of things blowing up. Mr. Ebert's tone gives me the sense that he feels that it is not true "art". Though I find his analysis of the movie's plot holes and gaps in logic entertaining, I feel that he has missed the point of the film. Quoting the end of the review, "The movie works well while it's running, although it raises questions that later only mutate in our minds." I feel that this sums up Mr. Ebert's misinterpretation of the movie in a tidy sentence. He is looking at it as a film that should be enjoyed for what it is, not a deep commentary on humanity, or a symbolic representation of the angst of society as a whole, but an action packed, deeply thrilling movie, to be enjoyed with your friends late at night, with a little too much sugar and caffeine. He wants to treat the movie like a fine Chardonnay, to be sipped, swished, and savored. He wants to analyze it's flavor, and then write a review about the subtle fruity notes, or the slight hints of oak and cherry wood. I feel that the movie is intended to be more like a two liter bottle of Mountain Dew. Guzzled, forcefully, at room temperature straight from the bottle it came in when it arrived with the pizza. Though the soda is consumed without a thought to flavor, or the origin of it's creation, I would argue that the one consuming the soda enjoys it just as much as Mr. Ebert enjoys his Chardonnay. An oenophile will be disapointed when he drinks Mountain Dew, expecting A fine wine. Likewise, Mr. Ebert assumed that the film was trying to be,and failed at being, an art masterpiece, when in fact it was very intentionally, just... Mountain Dew.

Here is the * Awesome * trailer for the movie (courtesy of Rotten Tomatoes)

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/i_am_legend/trailers_player.php?IGNMediaID=2171782&playerType=playlist

Here is Ebert's Review

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071213/REVIEWS/712130305