Homework (due next class):
50 Comments
Turese Anderson
10/25/2018 03:21:56 pm
This week I watched Green Room, and, the first thing to note about this movie is that it's dark. In tone, yes, but mostly in the fact that the vast majority of the scenes take place in a room with little to no lighting. The characters at the beginning of the movie were set up as a bunch of punks in a band together, sure, but they didn't have much individual personality to make them stand out, and in the low light, where they're reduced to a batch of facial features floating in shadow, it really makes it hard to tell who's who, who's doing what, etc.
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Gordon Hu
10/26/2018 10:49:34 pm
I loved the fact that most of the movie took place in the room. While initially the room is foreign and threatening to our survivors, as time passes and shit hits the fan, it is viewed more as a refuge and safe space, by both the characters and the audience (in my opinion). When the survivors retreat to the room after an unsuccessful attempt to break out/losing another member of the band, the audience gets a brief cathartic break from all of the chaos outside. We can take a breather and enjoy the silly tale of Rick Silva.
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Stephanie Machuca
10/27/2018 10:29:06 pm
Due to the slow pacing in the beginning of the movie, I completely forgot the title of the movie. Now that you bring it to my attention, I realize or at least remembering now, the movie does take place mostly in this room. The room becomes a place to gain some clarity in terms of what is going on, for they always leave and return to the room to rethink their actions. One room I also questioned was the room below the main room, what exactly was its significance?
Oreste Turchetti
10/30/2018 01:09:44 pm
I had the same problem. The main characters in the band all blend in together and I can't tell who is who or connect names to faces. All I remember is there was a guy with green hair and another guy who I think was named tiger. Overall though I didn't think the movie was bad, I just didn't really care for the characters much because I felt like I didn't know much about them, and that made the deaths not as impactful as they could've been.
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Stacy Fernandes
10/26/2018 12:45:46 am
Film: The Green Room
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Russell Lee
10/29/2018 11:04:05 pm
I respect your opinion. I'd have to say some of the details did bother me too, like the illogic in some of the survivor's decision-making. The villains were not too memorable for their individualistic character but by their ruthlessness and capacity to kill, heightened by the bloody intense visuals of bodies eaten, stabbed, and shot at.
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10/26/2018 10:39:00 pm
Holy fuck. You guys have great taste in movies. I watched the Green Room expecting it to be a thriller, but goddamn, to this extent? Maybe I just didn't pay enough attention to the part in the description that read NEO-NAZIS.
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Eric Hernandez
10/28/2018 09:13:22 pm
I actually think the stupidity of the characters made the plot more real. We were still able to understand their motives, or why they made stupid decisions and in this extremely high stress environment logic goes out the door partially explaining for their stupidity. I think this made the movie naturally progress as actions and decisions weren't always perfect.
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Stephanie Machuca
10/27/2018 10:00:48 pm
The movie that I watched was Green Room. *SPOILERS AHEAD*
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Stacy Fernandes
10/27/2018 11:30:21 pm
I also thought the beginning of the film was slow. I thought some of the shots were cool, but in my opinion, the majority of the movie was awful from the characters to the plot. I was also irritated about the way the characters handled the situation. I feel like the characters and were not fully developed.
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Jesse Ou
10/29/2018 07:06:36 pm
Yes that's an interesting way to view the movie. I never took notice of the little details this movie presented while I watched it, but after seeing you point out them out, I whole heartedly agree.
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Turese Anderson
10/30/2018 02:51:23 pm
Yeah, I agree that the beginning was paced a bit too slow for my liking. I think that contributed to my trouble focusing on the plot and later confusion over who was who and what was happening.
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Eric Hernandez
10/28/2018 09:10:11 pm
Green Room
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Monse Lopez
10/29/2018 12:12:55 am
Film: Green Room
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10/30/2018 08:15:51 am
I do agree how vivid the images were. The movie was getting the viewers attention. It then followed by killing each of the main characters in graphic ways. This is a good thing give how characters reacted in a given situation felt real.
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Javier Arias-Romero
10/30/2018 04:43:48 pm
The acting really was amazing. The great acting in conjunction with the gruesome scenes, is what drew me in to the same extent as you. At times it also felt very hopeless for the band especially when the first few were killed. I began to imagine myself in that situation, and even that exercise invoked a degree of emotion, which is impressive that the narrative was able to do that.
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Abigail Magat
10/29/2018 11:33:19 am
I chose Moulin Rouge because for someone who enjoys musicals, I have never watched this particular one and I enjoyed it. The scenery of the whole thing felt fake but in a dreamlike way. It felt like you were in a hallucination the whole time, especially during the scenes that had music in it. The way the characters moved and how the scene was captured, it was all cheesy but very dreamlike. I also very much enjoyed the modern, 60s vibe it was giving off especially with the costume choices. The storyline itself was interesting. At times I felt like there was too much going on and was super cheesy, but I feel like films like this are like that, where characters and their lines are very emphasized.
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Michelle Nguyen
10/30/2018 02:07:38 am
Hey Abi,
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Sean Tseng
10/30/2018 03:47:25 pm
I definitely second the idea of exploring the complex relationships surrounded Satine! That, I think, would have made her feel less like a prop for romance to me and more like her own character in the film. Of course, I loved her in the movie, and Nicole Kidman did a wonderful job of imbuing life into the archetypal role, but I couldn't help feeling like the depiction of her was very restrained and limited to the romance of the plot when there was so much more about her to explore. I would have loved to see more of her development, especially since any possibility of imagining her growth beyond the film went out the window when her storyline was cut short by the end. Great thoughts!
Judith Kim
10/30/2018 03:13:46 pm
Yes! I agree that the film focused a little too much on Christian. I think that is part of the reason why I was confused during certain parts of the film as well, because I wasn't sure what the point of some of the scenes were. With all the chaotic and fast-paced movements in some of the musical scenes, some order from the narrator would have helped, but with Christian being the narrator, it wasn't a possibility.
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Mariam Zagub
10/30/2018 05:56:53 pm
I agree Abigail. I don't usually like musicals but this one wasn't too bad. I did find it a bit corny, which I did expect given that it's made in 2001 and is a romantic musical. I didn't enjoy the fact that it was somewhat misogynistic. The story and romance between the two were cute, but it the focus on characterization of any characters was removed from Satine. Christian was given more room to develop as a character, and that was a little boring to watch.
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Jesse Ou
10/29/2018 07:04:50 pm
Movie: Green Room
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Monse Lopez
10/29/2018 09:50:51 pm
Hey Jesse,
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Russell Lee
10/29/2018 11:14:09 pm
I watched Green Room for this week's movie and I was impressed by the realism of a horror movie in its visuals, dialogue, and characters. The visuals felt real enough to touch when zoom-ins of maimed youngsters filled the screen. The dialogue wasn't too interesting on its own; which makes it believable. Characters in horror movies always have at least some sensibility in their actions; but in reality, most people are not prepped for a do-or-die situation. The only way the two characters at the end survived is by treating their situation like a paint-ball game, not a do-or-die situation. Because in real-life dire situations, the only way to overcome inexperience and fear is to treat it like a game: with tactics and an earnest sense you play until you lose.
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Joshua K Mouledoux
10/30/2018 02:00:57 am
I had the same thought about the realism of the dialogue. At the beginning when the mohawk guy was texting them and he had a typo and corrected it, that stood out to me because it felt real. This stood out to me again when they were tearing up the ceiling, and you can hear two characters in the background debating if its safe to touch a wire or not. Simple things like that in the dialogue of the show made it seem much more believable and realistic to me.
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Joshua Mouledoux
10/30/2018 01:58:46 am
I watched Green Room as my homework this week. Watching it alone at 1am was probably not the best idea. Typically I hate horror movies, and while I did not enjoy the horror elements of the show I would say I did like the movie overall.
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Luc Pogue
10/30/2018 01:50:04 pm
I liked the ending too-- especially when the main character told Patrick Stewart that he "looked so scary at night." It definitely felt satisfying to catch the big bad villains at their weakest point. I also agree that the woman gutting the guard's stomach was a bit jarring, but that kind of set the tone for the rest of the movie, letting us know things were about to get bloody...
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Michelle Nguyen
10/30/2018 02:02:26 am
I watched Moulin Rouge mainly because I liked the song "Lady Marmalade" and the accompanying music video, so I was very excited to watch the movie. The first half was a hodgepodge of utterly nonsensical pandemonium, which I honestly grew to love. I enjoyed the campiness of the characters, but what became annoying to watch were the sudden cuts. It really threw me off throughout the whole movie, which I felt like was intentional in setting the tone, but it really was tough to watch through. I enjoyed the second half when the movie shifts to a somewhat more serious tone and where the plot really comes through to add depth to the movie. I was surprised to watch what would become a tragedy, especially since the ending was not a happy one.
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Tiffany
10/30/2018 05:44:50 am
I agree that the leading actors redeemed a lot of the movie's faults, through bringing depth to their characters as well as being musically flawless -- and what's funny is that one of the reasons I chose to watch Moulin Rouge is that I really REALLY love the song Sparkling Diamonds (and pretty much all the other musical soundtracks) so I'm glad someone else likes the soundtrack enough to make that a deciding factor in choosing a movie for hw!
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Tiffany
10/30/2018 05:35:53 am
Moulin Rouge
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Abigail Magat
10/30/2018 12:19:57 pm
I also think the over-the-top vibe was super distracting and it kind of made me confused at some parts. I really enjoyed the film, especially because the music was great, but there's definitely only a certain amount of cheesiness one person can handle. I thought I was the only one that felt that way but I'm glad someone else felt that it was kind of a little too dramatic.
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10/30/2018 08:02:32 am
The movie I had watched is Green Room.
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Oreste Turchetti
10/30/2018 01:20:10 pm
I watched The Green Room.
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Ryan Askew
10/30/2018 03:11:30 pm
Yeah, I definitely agree with you. These characters made smart decisions most of the way through the film, with one glaring exception, in my opinion. Once they escaped the room, someone actually said, "We should split up." And then they do. Classic mistake in survival horror stories. They even knew it was most likely a trap, and this mistake led directly to the other band members getting killed off so the main character could ultimately team up with the woman who lost her friend to take them all on together and walk away alive. I still enjoyed it and thought it was fresh in a lot of ways, but there are definitely some recognizably convenient narrative things happening here.
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Luc Pogue
10/30/2018 01:46:48 pm
For this week I watched Green Room-- I actually had never heard of this film, but am definitely glad I gave it a watch. Overall, I liked the movie, though these kind of slasher/thrilling horror movies are usually not my favorite films. The whole movie certainly kept me in suspense, and it definitely made me fear the heck out of Neo-Nazis. The pacing, effects, and cinematography were all good, and the acting performances were nice as well. There were a couple times where I couldn't quite tell what the 'bad guys' were doing-- it seemed like their plan was unnecessarily complicated at points, or perhaps I didn't catch their whole strategy. I like seeing Patrick Stewart in pretty much anything, and it was cool to see him as the villain this time around.
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Ryan Askew
10/30/2018 03:00:53 pm
I watched Green Room this week.
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Rawan Mohsen
11/24/2018 10:14:42 am
Hey Ryan,
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Judith Kim
10/30/2018 03:09:05 pm
I watched Moulin Rouge. I thought the way the film was edited was very strange, but effective. The effects made the whole film seem dreamlike, especially the scenes when the characters took absinthe and the scenes of the cancan performance. The camera’s shifts and the fast-paced movements of the dancers/actors. The vibrant costumes and set design created an immersive experience for viewers. The enhancement of the voices when someone sang also added to this.
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Jonathan Truong
11/20/2018 07:30:23 pm
Hey Judith,
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Sean Tseng
10/30/2018 03:40:32 pm
I watched Moulin Rouge this week because all I knew about it was that it was a classic that I'd never seen, and I figured it was about time for me to watch it. Going into it so blind was definitely an interesting experience. The style was very jarring and intriguing. It felt like the scenes would make good visuals for a rollercoaster whenever the surroundings were sped through. I agree with other people's comments about some of the cuts jumping too choppily around and disrupting the flow of the movie, but beyond that, I didn't really mind the strange cinematography. I think despite the atmosphere of surreality and fiction it gave the film, as well as the potential it lent to the movie feeling frivolous or ridiculous at times, the actors' compelling performances grounded the plot and gave it the stakes necessary to keep the audience engaged. I honestly found myself surprisingly emotionally attached to the protagonists and their relationship even with its cliched tropes. Again, I find much of the credit for that effect in their acting skills, as others have mentioned as well. The music was also definitely lovely and well-threaded through the film, though I know those who aren't a sucker for musicals like I am may be put off by the transitions into the music during serious scenes. I think my only dissatisfaction with the film overall is how tragic Satine's story was, yet how much more emphasis there was on Christian. He's not an unlikeable character, but to see everything Satine was put through and still finish the movie feeling like she didn't get the attention and focus in the movie that her complicated character deserved felt a bit disappointing. I personally wouldn't need any happy ending, as heartbreak is as great a reaction in the audience as any, but it felt like the enchanted one in the opening song was not so much Christian, but Satine, and that she deserved so much more room to develop and explore her difficult situation herself rather than be pushed and pulled into things by everyone else around her. She was definitely the more fascinating character, with a lot of potential for depth and range within all of her experiences and difficult choices, compared to Christian's sheltered, protected naivety and easy answers. This frustration of lacking even poetic justice within the tragedy made me really like and appreciate the side character, Le Chocolat, for the little bit of justice he gave Satine from the peripheral, knocking the Duke out after that terrible scene in the tower. That aside, my heart broke for the characters by the end of the film, so I'd consider it successful.
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Sean Tseng
10/30/2018 03:53:13 pm
Also, extra note: A while back, I fell in love with the ice skating performance by Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir to a medley of Moulin Rouge songs. I'd completely forgotten about it, but I was so excited when I recognized parts of the songs in the movie (:
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Ma. Rebeca Escamilla
10/30/2018 03:51:11 pm
Moulin Rogue
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Atlas
10/30/2018 05:52:32 pm
I like how you drew a comparison from how Satine looks at the mirror to symbolize self reflection. I didn't watch this film this week, but it seems like the movie was quite different from the Green Room. It also seems like this movie had more room for character development (most the people in the Green Room died and I felt didn't have very much growth) and visuals to show what impacted what character in what way (for example, as you said, whether or not Satine wears make-up to represent her security/comfortability with the situation)
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riley robinson
10/30/2018 06:03:14 pm
That is an interesting point of symbolism that I didn't pick up on myself, but in hindsight appears very prominent. There is definitely a pressure on Satine throughout to present herself in a certain vanity, but with Christian we see a difference. My response reflected briefly on the min en scene on the film, and I think if we take this into account, we can see that there is a certain emphasis on this symbol.
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Javier Arias-Romero
10/30/2018 04:38:34 pm
I just watched the Green Room (had a wave of midterms). It was so suspenseful and much darker than I thought it would be. The characters in the band looked dead inside and angsty before anything even happened. The troubled band performs at a facility filled with dangerous people and when the show is over they find a dead girl, making them witnesses. They are not allowed to leave and are held up in a Green Room, getting picked off one by one as the group desperately tries to escape. The visuals throughout the movie were pretty grim, devoid of any vibrant colors. The gore was made as realistic as it can be, adding to the disturbing nature. I really enjoyed the movie, and was pleasantly surprised.
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Atlas
10/30/2018 05:48:02 pm
This week I watched the Green Room because the cover picture looked like it was going to be something like a superhero movie. Boy was I wrong. Maybe I should have read the summary or noted that the genre was still thriller... but then again maybe not. To start the entire vibe I got from the movie was pretty dark and grim; there weren't very many colors. The actors were pretty good, though the characters weren't really allowed to develop (in my opinion); they just kept getting picked off by the neo-Nazis/ the dog. The audio in the film also created a triller-like environment; muffled voices and audio really went a long way in creating a claustrophobic feeling. The green room seemed to symbolize somewhat of a safe spot in the hell that was the club, as the band mostly came out on top there. The bad guys, however, I felt could have done a better job at creating a solid plan for how they were going to cover up their crimes; I felt as though they were just winging it with unnecessarily complicated ideas, while bringing more people into the movie. Overall, I really enjoyed this thriller– it kept me thoroughly entertained.
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riley robinson
10/30/2018 05:58:50 pm
This week I chose to watch Moulin Rouge. Even though I haven't been a fan of musical movies in the past (I saw Le Miserables in high school, and hated it), I thought it was a well-executed film, and it was at least something I could appreciate. I particularly think that the set and costume design were well done, and that the min en scene was well executed. I am reminded of the scene in which the duke attempts to kill Christian. In this scene, not only do we see a magnificent set in terms of not just what's on the stage, but the entire theater itself. We also see that the arrangement of objects as well as the framing/cinematography and the coloring/lighting tell the story in a way that is effortless to watch. Overall, I wouldn't place this among my favorite films, but I would say it does the genre justice, and maybe better than some other movies in it.
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Mariam Zagub
10/30/2018 06:03:02 pm
I watched Moulin Rouge, and it was an okay film. It was a romantic musical so I expected a lot of corny lines and directing. However, it was still pretty fun to watch and quite entertaining. There were a lot of close ups in the film which made it more affective and emotional, which they probably were going for, but it also made it more corny and less aesthetically pleasing. The actors were great, but the writing was cheesy so it brought down a lot of their skill. I also didn't enjoy the fact that the Satine was given much less characterization than Christian was. It was also expected, but, along with some of the corny writing, made the film all the more boring to watch.
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Jonathan Truong
11/20/2018 07:28:26 pm
I watched Moulin Rouge, and I gotta admit that this is one of the first musicals I've ever seen. I can't really describe it well, but almost the entire movie felt like I was walking through like thick cheese. That probably doesn't make a lot of sense, but I think it's because of the exaggerated drama. I also just think that I don't like musicals because it can make great actors turn into machines that break into song every now and again. I guess it's just the unnaturality of people that sing so much in what's supposed to be a realistic world. I'm probably being a narc about it but if I had to watch it again I probably wouldn't. This one issue that I have ruins the entire movie for me, even though I'd agree that the plot wasn't disappointing.
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Rawan Mohsen
11/23/2018 09:08:38 am
I watched the film Green Room. I really enjoyed the fill, however it did raise my anxiety through the roof while watching it. Throughout the majority of the film, they are stuck in the green room trying to find an escape from the Neo-Nazis. I really enjoyed how the punk rock band were the heroes and who we stuck with throughout the film. Punk bands have a bad reputation and not really depicted as good people but in the movie they were not the bad ones but they were just kids who were stuck in the wrong place at the wrong time. I also showed this film to my sisters who really enjoyed it as well.
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