ENGL 203, Section 523
Introduction to Literature
Instructor: Kim Wells

Film Critique and Oral Report Assignment

Due Date Varies Percentage of Final Grade: 20% (10% paper + 10% presentation). Minimum of 5 maximum of 10 pages. For this assignment, you are expected to have read A Short Guide to Writing About Film-- you will not be given specific dates to have the book read, but it IS considered a prerequisite for your film review and your grade will depend upon familiarity with terms in the text. I recommend that you pay close attention to the sample essays in the book as guides to your own work. You can branch out, of course, in topic and film and scope, but the essays in A Short Guide to Writing About Film are good examples of what I will be looking for on this assignment. To quote our syllabus: "The critique will need to be much, much more than mere plot synopsis (in fact, simple plot synopsis and/or summary will get you the lowest grade). You will choose the film that you will review and based on that film, you will have a different due date. You will give the class a maximum of five minutes oral report on the film's important critical issues". Assignment: Choose one of the following options to analyze your chosen video, carefully referring to A Short Guide to Writing About Film as well as basic analytic techniques we learn in class. Answering any and all of the questions included with the option might be helpful. Your paper should be typed, double spaced, on good white paper with a 12 point standard font (Times New Roman preferred).   Option One: Analyze the film's plot and conflict details has the film medium been used to advantage-- for example, in focusing attention through close-ups or reaction shots (shots showing not the speaker but a person reacting to the speaker)? Or do some of the details, technical shots, special effects (if any) seem "busywork" distracting from the urgency or the conflict or unity of the story? Are certain scenes, motifs, images, dialogue, effects, recurrent? If so, what significance do you attach to them? Are certain actions, scenes, events, foreshadowed? How? What clues do you get early on in the film that, had you been aware of what would happen, would have told you the outcome of those foreshadows? What kinds of conflicts are there in the film? Character against character? One group against another? Nature against Humanity? How is the conflict resolved? By an unambiguous triumph of one side or by a triumph that is in some degree also a loss? Do you find the resolution satisfying, or unsettling, or what? Why?   Option Two: Analyze the Film's Characters and Characterization Techniques Are the characters complex, or simple "type" characters (the bully, the hero, the princess, the geek).? What purpose does this kind of characterization serve? How are the characters defined? Through clothing? Action? Speech? What others say? How trustworthy are the characters' beliefs in themselves? Are they "good" or "bad" or opposite of what they think they are? Do any scenes or characters strike you as irrelevant? Why are they there? What could be gained with cutting them? If a character is tragic, or heroic, does the tragedy or heroism seem to proceed from a moral flaw or strength, an intellectual error or superiority, malice or goodwill of others, sheer chance? Or a combination of these elements? Analyze the Film's Setting/Staging Being aware that a film set is an artificial construct, created by a director and set designer for a specific goal and emphasis, what is the setting of the film? Sometimes setting can even seem to be a character in a film-- is your film particularly set-dependent? Do special effects make the film a completely different film that it would be on the weight of plot and characters alone? Why and how is this accomplished? How does the director shoot the scenes? Are there combinations of close ups, long shots, complex splicing and computer animation? Consider the director's purpose in the set up of each important scene-- quality of light, sound, costuming, etc. Analyze social issues in and surrounding the film Does the film deal with, critique, slander, upset any "isms" (feminism; racism; agism; genderism &/or sexuality; anti- or pro-violence issues; etc)? How does the critique or lack thereof, affect the film's overall message and the way you, in particular, feel about the film? For webpage help, resources, newsgroup links, and databases, check out: http://cinemaspace.berkeley.edu/Resources/cinmares.html