Responding to Alfred Hitchcock's "Notorious"

Make one short comment on a film technique that you noticed was (look at your handout “Film Terms” for examples) used in Notorious. We will discuss the film further upon my return from Italy, including looking at key scenes that demonstrate Hitchcock’s mastery of film. 

The Great Dictator

Write a paragraph or two that discusses your personal reaction to seeing Charlie Chaplin’s film, The Great Dictator. Please post your response as a comment and bring a copy to class next week for us to discuss together.

My Favourite Silent Film

All the silent films we've watched, "The Kid" by Charlie Chaplin, "The General" by Buster Keaton, and "Nosferate" by F.M Murnaus, were quite remarkable. I picked "The Kid" for my favourite silent movie. It was released in 1921. "The kid" is described as a picture with a smile, and perhaps a tear. This film was one of Chaplin's best. It's very easy to follow and understand because Chaplin shows you exactly what you need to see and nothing else. The film would draw laughs from viewers of any age. It made me laugh where Chaplin and the boy go to work to gather. The boy breaks the windows and Chaplin changes them and never get paid for it. The other part that was quite entertaining was when Chaplin falls asleep and dreams of heaven. Even in his dream of heaven he was in trouble.

The story begins with a women who leaves her newborn baby in a limousine, and hopes that it will have a better future. Two men still the car and notice the baby in the back seat. They leave the baby beside a trash can, next to a house. Chaplin finds the baby and first he wants to get rid of the baby, but can't. He takes the baby home and raises the boy on his own.



The film was very interesting because it was action-packed and it had a climax where there were some happy and sad moments. The most interesting action-packed was where Chaplin is struggling about what to do with the baby, the climax was where he desides to take the baby and raises him, and the sad part was where he lost the boy and tries his best to find him but can't. The film was inspiring because it shows the struggle of a good hearted man whoo works hard and never gives up. Charlie Chaplin is one of the greatest actor of all the time there is no dout about that.

A Favourite Silent Film

Use this post to make a comment for this week's assignment, please. The assignment is to explain which of the three full length silent movies you preferred and why. We watched The Kid, The General and Nosferatu. Write no more than 250 words or so. Multiple paragraphs are fine. Be sure to be specific when you explain your choice.

The Magnificent Nature

This shot was taken in Burnaby Lake about three weeks ago. I used my Blackberry 97000 to capture this shot. What I love about this image is the manificent palette of the blue sky, could and brillient sun. Altough at that time I didn't have any Knowledge about composition, it's still a nice image. I picked a choice of the low and the central to ake this shot which made it interesting. First I wasn't sure if it is going to be a good but when I reviewed it on my laptop I couldn't believe I had taken this picture. It's an amazing how the combonations of colours are mached togather. The sun looks like a fire in the sky and the clouds are look like smoke coming out of the sun. It's up to the viewer to take time with this image and to find a deeper personal meaning. At least, I'm hoping that there is a deeper meaning that can be found in this photo. Now that I'm learnig about composition I think I'll do better next time and with more pactice will do even better.

Birds of a Feather

This picture was taken in a park downtown Vancouver. My family and I were walking along the water front on our way to Granville Island. We stopped in the park to take a look around and get some photos. I love nature and capturing it in photos. I loved how the birds were all there just hanging out together. I did center the Herion in the middle and tried to frame the rest of it as best as I could. This picture was taken over the summer. So I did not take this shot knowing about composition. As I was going through my shots I noticed this one seemed to have the birds lining up in a row like the grid. My eye is drawn right to the center at the Herion. With the trees and the water as the background, I thought it made a beautiful setting and with the way the birds are spread out, I think it does balance out the picture.

Scary and Terrifying World

This picture reminds me of a scary and terrifying moments of being hopeless and weak. This is a picture of a frightened honorable man who decided to step out of the darkness and fight for his rights. Fighting for your rights in a country that's been led for about 40 years by a dictator isn't an easy thing to do. He's looking hopelessly and worried at a faceless soldier pointing a gun at him. They are both in a tough position. Because the soldier has to do his job, the man has been put in a difficult frightening situation in which he can not defend himself.