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Music and narrative in film
Analysis of my girl movie
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Introduction
The Dream Girls film is a wonderful musical drama, yet merely watching the movie does not deliver the impact that ‘seeing’ the movie can. Evaluating elements of their construction and bringing together an effective message. While watching a movie is good, being able to critique film assists you to not just watch but to ‘see’ the movie; because it makes messages clearer, it inhibits social interaction, and it brings deeper understanding of a movie. In this critical analysis I will show the reasons that the elements of film making are critical in receiving the story or message being conveyed.
Storytelling
Dreamgirls a musical drama which unfolds in the Irony of three young African American women’s dreams of having singing careers desired, and then reached, attained, although at the loss of true friend, yet still not recognized by others just as important; the story signifies true elation throughout the movie. This screenplay portrays a youthful female trio (The Dreamettes) singing out of Chicago, in the early 6o’s who get their first big break at an amateur contest and commence singing backup lyrics for James "Thunder" Early. As the movie portrays a very high point and slowly they find that things begin to whirl out of control as their agent, Curtis Taylor, Jr., makes Deena the star, and not Effie, who in the beginning was the star; although by the end of the movie will become known as "The Dreams." There is an air of suaveness with Deena (Beyonce Knowles) along with sophistication. Although Effie is his (Curtis) lover; he replaces her, not only as his lover but also as lead singer, with her gracefulness, porcelain doll looks, backup singer Deena Jones (Beyoncé Knowles). This interruption of change is as much o...
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...nveyed. Condon has dramatically portrayed Dream girls, as a solitary, smooth wave of storytelling power. The elements of all production roles, actors, cinematography, sound and style give a connection in this era of time to society. This musical drama displays the sound of radical new buoyancy — of a need to deliver talent and the desire to share the joy.
References
Dreamgirls (2006) Goofs Retrieved from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0443489/goofs
Dreamgirls (2006) Movie-- Starring Jamie Foxx and Beyonce Knowles Official Site
Retrieved from http://www.dreamgirlsmovie.com
Gleiberman, O. (2006, December 31). Dreamgirls. Entertainment Weekly,
Retrieved from http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1569392,00.html
Goodykoontz, B., & Jacobs, C. P. (2011). Film: From Watching to Seeing. San Diego, CA:
Bridgepoint Education, Inc. https://content.ashford.edu
November 1998, written for FILM 220: Aspects of Criticism. This is a 24-week course for second-year students, examining methods of critical analysis, interpretation and evaluation. The final assignment was simply to write a 1000-word critical essay on a film seen in class during the final six-weeks of the course. Students were expected to draw on concepts they had studied over the length of the course.
Petrie, Dennis and Boggs, Joseph. The Art of Watching Films. New York: McGraw Hill, 2012.
In this musical, it uses several types of narratives, for example, after the fight between the Jets and Puerto Ricans, after the police leave, they enter the ally and the girl is begging to join the gang saying how much she wants to fight is a part of narrative sexuality (B 34). The girl is more of a tom boy who wants to be like one of the guys.
In this essay, I have chose to talk about the movies, American Beauty and Thirteen from group #1. The two topics discussed in this essay from group #2 are identity and difference along with sexuality. The cinematic elements from group #3 that will be discussed are cinematography and costume use. In many ways, both these films portray similar content in terms of characters fighting battles with themselves and society in order to fit in. In American Beauty, Lester Burnham tries to free himself from his boring life and depression. On the other hand, Thirteen shows the struggles of Tracy Freeland, who tries to fit in at school. This results in her to go on a self-inflicting rampage with her supposedly best friend Evie. Identity and differences are displayed through sexuality with Lester and Evie in different types of way. Lester lusts over his daughters best friend Angela, while Tracy tries to experience sexuality in different types of ways following Evie’s footsteps.
In her essay “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema”, Laura Mulvey discusses the subject of how female characters, through various methods, are subjected to erotic objectification, by both the characters on screen as well as the spectators within the auditorium. While Mulvey makes an excellent point in acknowledging female’s exposure in cinema, she fails to realize that male characters are just as likely to be subjected to the same kind of objectification, depending on what type of audience the motion picture is directed at. Mulveys claim depends on a generalization of a homogenous audience and characters that only consists of heterosexual men. When transferring Mulveys claim onto homosexual male characters starring in a production that is in first-hand directed towards a gay audience, the erotic objectification of male characters share several similarities with those Mulvey describe women to be exposed to in her essay. Consequently, erotic objectification is governed by different circumstances, in which the audience plays a large role.
Lehman, Peter and Luhr, William. Thinking About Movies: Watching, Questioning, Enjoying. 2nd ed. Oxford: Blackwell, 2003.
Perhaps an even stronger testament to the deepness of cinema is Darren Aronofsky’s stark, somber Requiem for a Dream. Centering on the drug-induced debasement of four individuals searching for the abstract concept known as happiness, Requiem for a Dream brims with verisimilitude and intensity. The picture’s harrowing depiction of the characters’ precipitous fall into the abyss has, in turn, fascinated and appalled, yet its frank, uncompromising approach leaves an indelible imprint in the minds of young and old alike.
This powerful film takes us on a journey through the eyes and hearts of four young girls from the Yorta Yorta community. Cynthia, Julie, Gail and Kay shared a love of singing, before Kay was taken away by the government and placed in an institution to learn the ‘the white ways’. The four girls reunited as adults to embark on their own journey through Vietnam, singing as an all Aboriginal girl group
In Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, Mulvey states that, “Traditionally, the woman displayed has functioned on two levels: as erotic object for the characters within the screen story, and as erotic object for the spectator within the auditorium, with a shifting tension between the looks on either side of the screen.” (Mulvey 40). A woman’s role in the narrative is bound to her sexuality or the way she
Before the civil rights movement could begin, a few courageous individuals had to guide the way. Dr. Vernon Johns was one of those individuals. Dr. Vernon Johns was a pastor and civil rights activist in the 1920s. Johns became the pastor of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama in the late 1940s. During his time as a pastor, Johns preached many sermons on how African American people were being treated not only in the community but in society. Johns on multiple occasions upset his community through his ideas on social change. Through a sociologist perspective, many sociological concepts were displayed in The Vernon Johns Story. Some of those concepts included: ascribed status, conflict theory, deviant behavior, alienation, and
Ebert, Roger. Rev. of Almost Famous, dir. Cameron Crowe. Rogerebert.com. Chicago Sun-Times, 15 Sept. 2000. Web. 29 March 2011.
Barsam, R. M., Monahan, D., & Gocsik, K. M. (2012). Looking at movies: an introduction to film (4th ed.). New York: W.W. Norton & Co..
Spring Awakening: A New Musical. By Steven Sater and Duncan Sheik. Perf. Lea Michele, Jonathan Groff and John Gallagher Jr. Eugene O'Neil Theatre, New York. 2 February 2007. Video.
Actress Audrey Reid does just that as the character Marcia in the Jamaican film “Dancehall Queen.” Reid plays a street vendor and single mother of two daughters struggling to give her family a better life. Poverty stricken, Marcia is forced to rely on her sugar daddy “Larry,” to feed her family and put her daughters through school. Unfortunately the price to pay is her fifteen-year-old daughter’s virginity. Appalled at how low they must stoop just to get by, Marcia decides to transform herself into a seductive dancehall girl in hopes of finding an alternative way to provide for her family. The new Marcia makes quite an impression on the men of the Kingston nightclub. When she is disguised in her dancehall costume Larry falls in love with her and showers her with expensive gifts. She is also invited to compete in a profitable dance-off against the reigning Dancehall Queen. The film ends with Marcia’s triumph, and she is awarded a large sum of money.
The film industry has become a large part of part of human culture for over a millennium. Since the development of the motion picture camera in the 1890s, shortly followed by the establishment of production companies, film has vastly gained popularity. While there are many different reasons of the existence of films, one of the main purposes is to convey a message to the viewer. Climate change and the environment is a frequently discussed topic in films. This essay will discuss three common facts and fallacies found in popular movie culture by comparison of peer reviewed journals.