Citizen Kane

The movie “Gone with the Wind”, released in 1939, is considered one of the greatest love stories and even one of the best movies of all time. The story adapted from the novel written by Margaret Mitchell won ten academy awards, became the highest earning film and is still technically the greatest grossing film in the cinema history. Hattie McDaniel even became the first african american oscar winner thanks to this classic of the romantic genre. In a way, “Gone with the Wind” seems like one of…

It is not often that I find myself cheering for the liars and thieves of the world in the same way that I would a superhero. Nevertheless, director Steven Soderbergh’s hit film, “Ocean’s Eleven” accomplishes this feat in a 2001 remake of the original 1960's film which starred Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack. The modern take stays true to suave Hollywood glamour in using today’s brightest stars; a list that includes George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, and Julia Roberts in the leading roles. The…

The movie, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, directed by John Ford seems to greatly stand out from other movies released during this era. Many elements were compiled to make this movie unique. The backbone of the film stems from camera elements. John Ford used the camera elements of camera work as well as costumes and make-up to accurately portray his vision of the film, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. The movie, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, incorporates several different varieties of…

Isaiah Isaacson During the early 1900’s, the relatively new concept of film was emerging as one of the most popular forms of entertainment. As more and more improvements were made to the motion picture camera filmmakers were able to begin exploring the realm of creative possibilities they could achieve. Two notable films that that did this are Dziga Vertov’s Man with a Movie Camera, and Sergei Eisenstein's Strike. Both films are known for their groundbreaking use of montage and the powerful…

The Artist was filmed in a stunning black and white. It took me back in time when men wore suits, women wore hats and when a simple dance could lead to love. It was uplifting, heart-warming, and hilarious. I loved this film from the beginning to the end, and I fell in love with every character. Charming performances from Berenice Bejo and Jean Dujardin, who provide all the charm and moving moments in the film. The Artist is different from other silent films I have seen because it contains more…

Essay 1 The use of color and photography in Hero The thorough analysis of the use of color and photography in the film Hero It is fact that the film Hero was a box office smash, and won several different types of awards around the world. The director , and producer was Zhang Yimou, and the cinematographer Christopher Doyle which worked together for the first time on Hero and resulted in the film's unique style of layout and design concerning the use of color and photography.…

Although a flop during commercial release in the US in its day, Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West is now generally acknowledged as a masterpiece and one of the greatest films ever made, regardless of genre. What made me select it for this assignment is the haunting sound of the harmonica in one of its key scenes, sheer brilliance in blending the visual and the auditory into one of the most poignant moments in movie history. Once Upon a Time in the West is a 1968 spaghetti western film.…

With Dunkirk Christopher Nolan has reached new heights of filmmaking and he seems to have employed a whole new set of techniques. Gone is the dialogue and one-liners that we associate with Hollywood. No famous Hollywood stars (with a couple of exceptions) are present either. Speaking of stars, the director focuses on the anonymity of a few people, without revealing their names most of the time. And if you expect to watch a war film like Saving Private Ryan you will be disappointed. According to…

On December 18, 2015, Star Wars:The Force Awakens, the seventh installment in the main Star Wars movie series, was released into theaters all over the United States. Starring Harrison Ford as Han Solo, Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker, Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia from the original trilogy, and dozens of other actors, this epic Star Wars movie was a major hit. After the defeat of the Galactic Empire thirty years ago, the galaxy faces a new danger from the evil Kylo Ren and the First Order. When…

Special Effects have been evolving for years it all started in 1895 when Alfred Clarke created what is considered the first-ever special effect. While filming a reenactment of the beheading of Mary, Queen of Scots, Clarke instructed an actor to step up to the block in Mary's costume. As the executioner brought the axe above his head, Clarke stopped the camera, had all the actors freeze, and had the person playing Mary step off the set. He placed a Mary dummy in the actor's place, restarted…