Blog Feed

Create a Post

Teron's Lit Long #2

Posted by Teron Ingram in Reel Reading · Giknis · B Band on

Flim: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Song #1: Ennio Morricone - The Good the Bad and the Ugly
I included this song because it fits so well in this movie. This song is legendary. You could probably hear this song in every cowboy theme movie ever. This song connects to events in the film because it is a classic western song that you would usually hear when two cowboys are having a staredown before a duel. I would have put this song right before the scene where Harvey said “Guns or Knives” challenging Butch to either a knife or gun fight for his leadership in the Hole-in-the-Wall gang and ended after Butch said “Well, thank you, Flatnose. That’s what sustained me in my time of trouble.”​​​​ after kicking Harvey in the groin and punching him in the face winning the duel. Overall this song could easily be put into anywhere in this movie at any given part without it feeling out of place.

Song #2: Johnny Cash - The Man Comes Around I include this song because it is a great song. This song would have fit perfectly to open the movie where they show the credits and scenes from the movie. I get western vibes from listening to this song with the guitar and lyrics. When I hear this song it makes me think of a rebel, a guy who runs the place, a guy who doesn’t care and it’s certain someone who is like that in the movie and that someone is Butch. This song connects to the event in the flim because in my opinion this song fits Butch character and personalliy really well. Butch is the guy. Everyone knows Butch. When he comes around just know it’s about to go down. He is a natural born leader. Women love him and it’s men that want to be him. He is an outlaw. He robs trains and runs from posses. He enjoys the fame and excitement.

Song #3: Johnny Cash - Hurt This chose this song because it would end the movie perfectly. Every great movie needs a good song to finish it and this song would do. It’s a nice catchy song. I would have put this song at the ending when Butch and Sundance Kid run out the building with guns in they hands getting ready to fight the posses and then have it transition over into the end credits. This song connects to events of the film because the song is called “Hurt.’’ Sundance Kid and Butch are clearly hurt. They are drawing blood, they have scars across their faces and they are tired but they are going to keep fighting until they can’t do it any more which means they are dead. Overall playing this song at the end of the movie would really show us how powerful Butch and Sundance Kid are.

Song #4: The Handsome Family- Far From Any Road I chose this song because it’s a very calming song that you can use for a lot of scenes in a lot of different movies. I would have use this song with the scene of Butch and Sundacnce Kid are being chased by the posses after they robbed the train. The chasing scene was great but my one problem was it didn’t have any music. This song connects the events to the film because this song is called “Far From Any Road” and Butch and the Sundace Kid were being chased by the posses for a long time. This total scene was 27 minutes long. I pretty sure Butch and Sundance Kid didn’t even know where they was going. They were just going straight trying to avoid themselves from getting caught by the posse.

Song #5: Short Change Hero - The Heavy I chose this song because it would go great with an action scene. I would have used this song for scene with the shootout with the Sundace Kid shooting back at the posses trying to save Butch. Playing this song with this scene would just mesh together so well. Just watching the Sundance kid using his phenomenal gun skills to take out the posse one by one was just very amusing to watch. This song connects to the events of the film even though it might not feel like it, the Sundace Kid is a hero. Out of everyone in the “Hole in the Wall Gang” he’s the most valuable. He has to do the dirty work in the gang. His challenge is to keep him and Butch from getting killed.

The Grand Budapest

Posted by Dayan Parker in Reel Reading · Giknis · C Band on

The Grand Budapest Hotel and Wes Anderson as an auteur revolve around the beauty, wonder, and imaginative potential contained with art.

The plot and structure of The Grand Budapest Hotel are defined by fast pace, adventure, and mystery stories. From the fast plot changes, shifts in perspective, and dramatic escalation of the film, the plot forms a winding maze. Within the first five minutes, we transition from the women paying respects at a graveyard to the deceased author to his self, story and finally to the story told within that by Mr. Mustapha. These elements don’t have a specific meaning or commentary, instead of cementing the surface-level structure of the movie by disorienting the reader. As the movie progresses, this theme is only amplified. The highly choreographed movement of the waiters, symmetrical perfection present in each set, and frequent shifts in time maintain the illusion of a storybook illusion.

As well as having a structure that supports a feeling of unreality, the characters are equally artificial. Mr. Gustave, for example, is full of extremes. He is a hyper-competent concierge who takes great pride in his work, charming and surrounded by admirers, extravagant yet profoundly lonely. Such a polarized character makes his flaws of overconfidence and surface interaction obvious and allows the story to flow more efficiently than if there were more neutral characters. Even more, Mr. Gustave is used as a commentary on Wes Anderson himself. By having an extravagant and obsessive character that mirrors Anderson’s attitude, he is poking fun at the frivolity of his movies but also embracing that fact and demonstrating its intentionality.

In The Grand Budapest Hotel, color and ornate sets give the movie a whimsical, storybook style highlighting the incredible but distinct from the reality of the visuals. In nearly every scene, there is a highly intricate set that makes use of ornate details and highlights symmetrical framing. There are frequent time skips throughout the movie. These are supported with different coloration and a changing of aspect ratio, with scenes further in the past becoming progressively narrow and scenes in the present winding. This creates a semi-conscious metal separation between the many threads of the story. Finally, we see the whimsicality peak through a stop motion chase scene, truly hammering in the imaginative nature of the film by completely switching styles without regard for inconsistencies. 

Another separation from reality occurs with the war happening in the background of the story. Instead of using the obvious connection to World War Two, Anderson creates a fake and much less terrible version of the war with an almost comical presentation. When Zero and Mr. Gustave train is stopped by soldiers instead of a bloody take over, there is a comical fight between Mr. Gustave and the soldiers before Henkel saves them. By limiting the severity and violence of the war within the world of The Grand Budapest Hotel, the attention is taken away from it and allowed to focus on the central narrative of Zero. Having the focus remain on the fanciful plot allows The Grand Budapest to stay story without the sharp edges ever-present in reality.

Ironically the lack of a greater message is a commentary in itself. Anderson seeks to show that the need for deeper meaning is frequently over-exaggerated, causing us to lose the ability for short-term, surface-level enjoyment of a marvelous story. The Grand Budapest Hotel is an art not to promote a narrative but is for the sake of art. It is the beauty inherent within the intricacy of the ridges and folds of a maple leaf or the motion of a fire blazing. Simply wonderful because of enjoyment derived from seeing something wonderful and amazing. A primary reason for human success is this ability to continuously search for meaning, a group who seeks to understand will naturally obtain greater understanding than one that stagnates, but this evolutionary urge can lead to circular over analyzation detracting from the joy present in the world at large. On the largest scale, happiness is not made happy because it comments on sadness, but for the simple fact that happiness is inherent; happy.

Blade Runner Revision: More than Human

Posted by Leo Cohen in Reel Reading · Giknis · C Band on

This is the updated poster and name I chose for Blade Runner (1982). I retitled the movie More than Human. This title takes direct inspiration from a famous quote in the movie, the motto for the Tyrell Corporation: “More Human Than Human”. I chose this quote to base the title off of because I feel that the replicants need more representation in the marketing of the movie. The original title of the film, Blade Runner, focuses on Rick Deckard, the protagonist of the story, and his role as a blade runner. Given that this is the primary focus of the movie, the original title fits well. However, in my opinion, the position of blade runner and that overall story arc was not what I found most captivating about the movie. I was much more fascinated by the replicants themselves. How were they created? Why do they act in the way that they do? What really makes them stand out from a genuine human being? This movie was not one of my favorites that we have watched so far this year. I think that if through the marketing of the film, the viewers were guided into examining the complexities of the replicants, it would appeal more broadly to viewers such as myself who aren’t as into violent action movies like this one.

To build off of my theme for this poster, focusing on the replicants instead of the blade runners, I decided to only include images of the replicants. In the pictures, the replicants look very still and robotic. However, there is something a little bit different about Rachel. For starters, she stands out within the poster. The color theme is white and blue with both Paris and Roy having bright white hair, blue clothing, and standing in a harsh blue light. Rachel has brown hair, brown clothing, and standing in an orange light. In addition, if you zoom in on Rachel’s face, you can see a teardrop streaming down from her right eye. The teardrop symbolizes human emotion, something that is discussed in the movie. Coupled with the title, the reader of this poster should begin to question whether these “people” are really people and what makes them more than human.

By leaving out images with guns, the reader does not immediately assume the type of movie that it is. This should help draw in a broader audience. The addition of a unicorn also adds a fantastical element to the film. This slightly changes the perceived tone of the film while also paying homage to the director’s symbolism about Deckard being a possible replicant as well.

Riley chobert

Posted by Riley Chobert in Reel Reading · Giknis · C Band on

Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho is undeniably one of the greatest horror films of all time. Hitchcock, the cast, the cinematographers, and everyone else involved in the making of this movie nailed their job. However, whoever created the cover for this movie did not produce the same level of work as their colleagues. I have created a cover that the feel and story of the movie far more than the completely unrepresentative original cover.

Firstly, my cover is suitable for a brooding psychological thriller a movie like Hitchcock’s Psycho is deserving of, and suitable renames the film. My cover displays the 2 primary characters in their most decisive moments in order to show the movie’s intensity. Marion during her murder, and Norman during his Hitchcock stare, which is the point in which he reaches peak insanity. Secondly, the new title Lunatic captures Norman’s character much better than Psycho ever could. Norman is absolutely insane, and the term Lunatic captures that. Norman has no grasp on reality, the term psychopath implies that he is merely unhinged, which is a huge understatement. Overall, my cover advertises the vehemence of Psycho and renames the film to encapsulate Norman’s character much better.

Additionally, Psycho’s cover looks more like one of an action movie than a great horror film. The cover is filled with color, and fonts resembling James Bond and Jason Bourne movies. The designer should have chosen a darker color palette to reflect the atmosphere of the movie. The cover should have also used either a more serious font or a more horror-themed font. These two details would let viewers know that the movie they are about to watch is a dark psychological thriller, with little to no cheer or happiness. Because of these poor decisions, new viewers are likely to go in thinking that the movie is beloved for the wrong reasons. If the designer made decisions in tune with mine viewers would go in knowing what to expect.

To conclude, my cover and name for Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho are far superior to the original, as it reflects the dark nature of the film and lets viewers know what they should expect going into the film far better than the original cover. The choice of imagery in my cover displays the dark intense spirit of the film through the climactic images of the characters. The color palette and fonts found in my coverlet viewers know what type of movie Psycho is, whereas the original cover may lead viewers to believe it is a less serious movie. Overall, my cover is a much greater representation of Psycho than the original.

New Project
New Project