East Los Angeles

Before the 1940s, Hollywood and the Studio System, was one that carried the American Film Industry to new heights and brought on different visions from aspiring filmmakers and film companies. What was once just a convenient place to escape the grasp and control of The Trust, became the place to be during the 1920s. Hollywood was thriving with the system it created. The Big Five film companies created movies that made those years the Golden Age of Hollywood. But of course a system that gave the…

Film Adaptations: Romeo and Juliet (1968) and West Side Story (1961) Many films have been created based on novels and play scripts. Plays have transitioned from performances on stage to the big cinema screens. Since many legendary play scripts were created before our century, American film directors had to ask themselves, “How can an older piece of work interest the audience of today?”. Directors found it challenging to express an original piece of work while attempting to interest the minds…

Personal Connections with Chicano Films Chicano films tell stories that explore many topics and issues that mainly pertain to the experience of being a Mexican- American in the United States. However, many Americans of Hispanic descent, whether they are first generation Hispanic- American or even third generation, can identify with many of the themes, topics, and issues seen in these films. Throughout this course, I have watched a number of films that deal with serious, shocking, saddening,…

Sin Nombre followed the stories of Sayra and Willy. Sayra, a young woman travelling with her father and uncle from Honduras to the United States, met Willy along the way, a member of the Mara in Mexico who was in distress because of his relationship with the gang and its youngest protégé, Smiley. As Sayra traveled from Honduras to the United States, the audience discovered the pervasive gang violence in Mexico and the important connection between territory and autonomy. A closer look at the…

Kung Fury starts off with two guys playing in a 1985 Miami arcade. When they get the game over, they insult the machine causing it to spring to life in anger resulting in blowing the two guy’s heads off. The arcade continues to cause mayhem in the city until one police officer calls one man that can get the job done; Kung Fury, a lone wolf kung Fu cop. After Kung Fury deals with the arcade he returns to base his police chief says he needs to get a new partner, TriceriCop. Kung fury refuses and…

and community is also a great way of combating graffiti as it conveys a message that this is a nice community and the people of this community will pursue legal action for vandalism. This can be seen if we compare Beverly Hills to South Central Los Angeles. One community is littered with graffiti, trash, and gang violence, however in contrast, the other community is extremely well taken care of and has virtually no graffiti. There are countless more solutions to combating and preventing graffiti…

their efforts to distinguish themselves from the Crips, they mirrored their rivals during this period of time, forming alliances with Mexican Cartels and spreading throughout the United States. Before long, the Bloods had a significant presence in the east, due mostly to a large population in New York City, where they actually outnumbered Crips. Today, their numbers are very similar to that of the Crips, with around 20,000 members (The Editors of Encyclopædia…

Chicago Violence: Gangster Disciples vs Black Disciples Chicago , also nicknamed " Chiraq" is the most dangerous state in America today . The murder and homicide rates are through the roof compared to any other state , in 2012 the number of murders was more in Chicago than in Iraq . This violence sparks on many occasions for many reasons , but a guaranteed majority of this is due to the wars between two rival gang affiliations , this is why my report is on the history , lifestyle , and battles…

BOOM! Everywhere on the street buildings are exploding. The bright flames and shattering glass terrify ongoing civilians. People in odd make-up and costumes use various weapons to create chaos on the once calm street. The gang of people robs stores and drag the owners away. That is, until Batman comes. In his suit as dark as night, he grabs two of the evildoers by their eccentric clothes and bashes their heads together. They fall down immediately. This startles the gang and a few of the members…

‘’In fashion there are so many gangs, if you identify too much with one, you get caught and lose your freedom’’ – Daphne Guiness. Gangs can make you relate. There are too many things that make bad a gang. The idea of this essay is to discuss and have the correct information about the impact on the teenagers, why does people join into a gang, and how to avoid to belong in one. There are many types of gangs but first of all. What is a gang? A gang is a group of people who share common identity.…