Actors

I would remind the actor and his agent that I am in charge of the creative vision of the film, and that he/ she is no different than anyone else on the set. I would also remind the actor that it is a privilege to be working in this profession. I would deal with each incident directly with the actor on a case, by case basis. If the behavior continued and it was counterproductive to the production, then I would take further action, possibly even legal action, to resolve the matter.

Sequels and Adaptations

I would like to see the story, The Mouse and the Motorcycle, made into a movie, because it captured my imagination as a child. I really liked the story because I could visualize what the mouse was physically doing because of the great descriptions. I cannot remember the exact plot of the movie, however I do remember the impact that it had on my imagination as a storyteller, when I was young. I just did a web search, and I now realized that there has already been a movie made out of this story. I’m going to have to check it out to see how similar it is to my vision of the story.

The worst sequel… the story that should not be made into a movie was… Alien vs. Predator. I haven’t even seen the entire movie, because I was not impressed. This film was very “gimmicky,” in that it pushed the story too far in my opinion. It is an interesting idea, in wondering what would happen should the two faceoff, but it’s a bit of a stretch, to say the least.

Web of Risks

Although I have not personally experienced a situation similar to that of the Newsweek article, I have recently heard of a student in this class being involved in one. I am not going to mention this person by name, because it is their business whether they share that information with others, or not. The person is said to have started a rumor about the actor, Zach Braff, who portrays the character “JD“ on the hit TV series Scrubs. He is said to have rumored that the actor was dead, possibly committing suicide. I believe the rumor was posted on a certain website (posted as a fake CNN news report) that was created for the specific purpose of spreading this rumor. Months later, after forgetting about this webpage, the person who created it began getting contacted by news reporters regarding its contents. Eventually Zach Braff responded to these allegations with a YouTube video denouncing the claim and called this person a “douche bag,” and having a fellow actor on the show sing him a song to poke fun at him. I’m not sure what other consequences there may have been, but I feel like the issue was resolved in a manner that was more or less harmless to both parties involved.

Action Hero Types

Action hero types:

The Destroyer- The Terminator

The Creator- Neo, The Matrix

The Fighter- Rocky Balboa, Rambo, Jackie Chan in just about every movie, Will Smith’s character in Independence Day

The Wanderer- Mad Max

The Enforcer- Judge Dredd

Edge of Your Seat

The movie that left me “on the edge of my seat” when I watched it the first time, was Memento. This movie was so successful in creating suspense with the main character, because you are seeing things as they are happening, from the character’s point of view. Instantly immersing you in the plot. I like how the movie creates the feeling of unrest because the character never knows quite who to trust. The use of flashbacks is very effective because we are seeing the character making sense out of things at the same time he is recalling them. This movie left me questioning, “What the heck just happened?” prompting me to instantly re-watch the film, to see it from a different perspective.

Song

The movie O Brother, Where Art Thou? featured the song “Man of Constant Sorrow”, by The Soggy Bottom Boys. This song fits the film in several ways. The song’s theme coincides with the plot of the movie as George Clooney’s character is always being immersed in difficult situations, leaving him in the state of constant sorrow. The song, written in an early American folk style fits the time period in the movie well. Even the name of the band, Soggy Bottom Boys, fits the movie and was used in the film as the name of the band that the three main characters were in. The film successfully cemented the song within the plot of the movie as a reoccurring theme, making the film and the song synonymous to each other. I believe this song actually helped promote the movie, as all great theme songs can. This song received a lot of radio play, in the past and each time it is played people instantly identify it with the movie, many times referring to it as that “O, Brother Where Art Thou” song.

Riddles

I believe that The Joker may have been telling the truth when he gave the first reason for the scars on his face. His father was apparently abusive and could have quite possibly cut him as he suggested. The remainder of times in the story when he tells a different version, I believe that he is speaking metaphorically, referring to the times when he has been wounded and scarred emotionally, from others in his past. I didn’t get the impression that this literally happened any of the other times. He could have told these fabrications so many times that he is beginning to blur the lines between fantasy and reality, not quite knowing himself what actually occurred.