In sci-fi we’re used to highly intricate and dreamy spaceships taking us out of our real world and propelling us into a future defined by almost intangible technologies. And while that’s cool and all, the film that chooses to set its diegesis in the near future, emphasizing that reality is not so different than what’s seen on the screen, can be just as powerful, if not even more gripping than the alluring depiction of some 22nd century world. Just six…
Hello my wonderful readers. Here are two essays from my Film as Literature class from my senior year of high school. The first is one I’m quite proud of. My performance is really credit to well, first my amazing teacher Ms. King, and two, the fact that I did an extra credit assignment where I got to watch the documentary on this film by Eleanor Coppola called Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse. So yeah, the first (in class) essay…
A quick note… I’m back! This is the first review I’ve written since beginning my “Film as Literature” class at my high school! So consider this the beginning of a newer and much more sophisticated writing style in regard to my film reviews. Enjoy, and as always thanks for reading. Now a cult film and a science fiction classic, Blade Runner was a flop back in 1982–making approximately only $15 million in profit at the box office. Blade Runner takes…
It’s 1997 the United States’ biggest city encloses criminals with fifty foot walls around its perimeter. John Carpenter’s Escape from New York–a commonly regarded classic action sci-fi film–stars Kurt Russell as former special forces lieutenant turned bank robber criminal “Snake” Plissken. Requested by the commissioner of the U.S. Police Force, Huak (Lee Van Cleef), Snake’s job is simple–save the president of the United States from the rampant and dangerous prison grounds of NYC. In return for the successful rescue, Snake…
Yeah this movie was pretty weird. Also an odd one to watch with your girlfriend which is what I did. Midsommar is a 2019 Horror and Thriller directed by Ari Aster about an American couple and their friends who travel to Sweden for a once-in-every 90 years festival, Midsommar. Beginning in America, Midsommar begins with our main character Dani (Florence Pugh) frantically exchanging emails with her bipolar sister worried that she may harm herself. After receiving the call that her…
It came as a big surprise to me recently when I realized that this movie never crossed paths with me. First off, it’s a Tarantino movie, and secondly, one that features Margot Robbie, Brad Pitt, and Leonardo Dicaprio. What a world. Once Upon A Time In Hollywood is the most recent addition to his impressive filmography. This movie is pretty recent and definitely fools you as it takes place in late 60s Hollywood. The movie is centered around (but…
Music dominates our attention; Regardless of race, sexual orientation, ethnicity, cultural upbringing, gender identity, or any other diversifying factor, music makes its way to almost everyone’s ears. Some choose Taylor Swift and The Weeknd, while others dive into the past for The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. This spirit was captured when Tom Johnston, lead vocalist of The Doobie Brothers, put together the song “Listen to the music”. The chorus of the folky rock tune goes: “Woh-ho-oh, listen to the…
This piece was originally part of the piece “Universally Adored, Individually Unique”, but I prefer it (and believe it reads better) as its own thing. What came to mind while it was turning at 100 million miles per minute during the writing of that piece was to talk about three songs I really like right now. What follows below are the three songs and also dissection into each: lyrical meaning, historical context, and literary/artist context. While you may not care…
For those unfamiliar to Tyler, The Creator, he’s a rapper who’s seven albums stretching from 2009 to 2021 have solidified him as one of the most popular artists of American twenty-first century music and rap culture. His seven albums are also extremely different from each other. Early in his career with Bastard and especially Goblin—which flashed tracks like Yonkers and Tron Cat that had controversial lyrics—his music started off in a weird gray area that could be called Alternative Hip…
There’s so much to unpack in Micheal Mann’s crime thriller Heat. Coming in at a runtime of 2 hours and 55 minutes, Heat practically feels like two movies with how thorough it is. The film stars Al Pacino and Robert De Niro as two exact opposites. One of them, a determined robbery expert and the other a determined Lieutenant for the L.A.P.D.. Al Pacino plays good guy Lieutenant Vincent Hanna and De Niro, Neil McCauley. Our movie kicks off with…