In 1938, Jed Buell was a movie producer who was well known for his black and white musical westerns, but all of his movies took on an odd twist. Jed Buell was known for his westerns with singing cowboys and he produced about twelve within a four year period. He was known to produce some unique and obscure movies, but he may be best known for his comical musical cult western; The Terror of Tiny Town (O 'Connor and Rollins 65). This movie is the world’s first and only know movie to feature an all dwarf cast. Every cast member, except for the man who is the announcer in the first scene of the film, is under four feet tall. The 62 minute movie has been appropriately nicknamed, “the best-worst movie ever made”, because of its’ tacky scenes and subtle jokes about the actors’ height. Despite being both an obscure and controversial film, The Terror of Tiny Town has become a classic among the small group of people who know about the movie.
As the emcee said at the beginning of the film, “I 'm told that it has everything, that is everything that a western should have” (Myton and Marks). The Terror of Tiny Town
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Many people would say that the actors were never treated with dignity and that many of the jokes in the movie were made at the actors’ expense (Crouse 213). The film is entirely politically incorrect, but that is what has made the movie ironically interesting and so popular. When the amateur cast took the job they knew what the movie would be like. The actors took their job seriously, and many of the actor went on to play roles in other movies (Simpson 208). Billy Curtis, however, generally avoided roles that undermined midgets. He was upset to see the movie posters advertising “Half-Pints in 10-Gallon Hats!” Later in his life Billy worked as an advocate for equal rights for little people. He worked against the Screen Actors Guild to allow little people full membership and full voting privileges
The reading “The Terror” by Junot Diaz is a story I can relate to because of the emotional and physical bullying I experienced in high school which I was able to curb after informing my parents who took immediate actions to put a stop to it. Junot Diaz was narrating his experiences with fear after getting beat-up as an adolescent.
Shane' focuses on the Starret family, the father in the film, is defiant throughout, insisting the Rykers will not drive him out. The western themes evident in Shane' are obviously the typical western setting. There is the dusty border town inhabited by the Rykers. It is not your usual western town, compared to Tonto in Stagecoach'. The town in Shane' is in comparison desolate and not many buildings have been erected, whereas in Stagecoach' they have. The emptiness represents an eerie and unsafe location. Even though the town is so deserted it still has the main wooden buildings visual in most western films. There is the saloon, mostly occupied by Ryker and his men, The Grayston general store which is bordered off only by the saloon doors, the blacksmiths, where Tory is visiting (before he gets murdered by gun-slinging Wilson) and finally a hotel.
In every society, throughout all of time fear is present. It is a an evolutionary instinct thought to have kept us alive, throughout the darkest moments in human history. However as time has progressed fear has had an unintended consequences on society, including the suffusion of incomprehension. During the Salem Witch Trials and Cold War a large sense of fear overcame these societies causing tragedy and misinformation to become commonplace. It is in these societies that it is clear that fear is needed to continue a trend of ignorance. Although bias is thought to be essential to injustice, fear is crucial to the perpetuation of ignorance because it blinds reason, suppresses the truth and creates injustice.
In The Village, I have found that all six of the common patterns of dystopian literature are present. For clarification, dystopia is an imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or degraded society. It is the opposite of utopia which is an ideal place or state. The characteristics and patterns of dystopian literature are all shown in this movie. The movie shows, with help from the themes and characters in The Village, a town attempting to appear innocent to nature and humankind but failing. Or an attempt at a utopian society that turns to dystopia. The six themes of dystopian literature are as follows: First, an attempt at perfection. Second, rules and boundaries established to maintain the society’s
The essence of community life was prevalent, so I agree with on of the town’s people who said, “You have to live in a small town to know how it is to live in a small town.” Doc pulls you in and makes you one of the community members within Centralia with his atmosphere exposure through not zooming.
A more modern outlook on the film recognizes the film's flaws but gives it, it’s credit as the last fully realized work of one of the most important directors in American cinema history. Ford understood that an audience's recollections of older, less complex Westerns would add a layer of expressiveness to the viewing experience. The black-and-white structure helps him achieve this. Ford’s decision to shoot the film in black and white in 1962 produced a dark, anachronistic look, while the unconcealed soundstage effects of the film’s opening scene reinforced Ford’s vision of a wilderness, interiored Western frontier. Just as Ford intended, many of the flashback scenes are masked in darkness, whereas the frame tale is immersed in light. This con...
The movie The Quiet Man directed by John Ford is a far cry from the Westerns his most noted for directing however for John The Quiet Man “was the most personal film he ever made (it was also one of his favorites” (Berardinelli). In The Quiet Man John Ford brings together one of his most favorite Western actors, John Wayne, who is undeniably the central character, and the ever stunning Maureen O’Hara to brings to life a warmhearted, down-to-earth romantic comedy. He created a movie that is primarily focuses on characters and atmosphere, than on its plot, and is able to bring romance to life, not through the use of powerful dialogue, but through the use of glances and on screen tension. Having filmed most of this movie against the natural backdrop of Ireland in 1952, John was able to capture and bring to life the spectacular Ireland landscape by filming in Technicolor. Today The Quiet Man is truly considered a classic romantic because of the amazing chemistry between its actors, it’s cinematography that captures the truly magical landscape of Ireland, and by ending this movie with one of the longest nonviolent fight scenes in movie history.
The story is an Eastern take on the Hollywood western with a dash of satire,
A cinematic experience offers a false projection of the world that people have the desire to indulge in. In Guy Vanderhaeghe’s novel, The Englishman’s Boy, the portrayal of the film as a whole is consistent with Chance’s vision to rewrite the story of the Cypress Hills Massacre of 1873 as a mythic history of the settling of the American west. Film has the power to access an aspect of reality somehow absent in other media. One could argue that film brainwashes people and alters reality when it is both projected and screened. Vanderhaeghe’s narrative oscillation and use of common literary techniques often foreshadow his film (Besieged) in many ways.
Warren Beatty was the main character in this film. Virginia Hill was Bugsy’s love interest. These two actors did a wonderful job of acting in a manner congruent with the times of the 40’s. The cast was sprinkled with tremendous talent such as Harvey Keitel, Ben Kingsley, and Elliot Gould. As a whole I think the cast did a magnificent job taking the viewers to an era of America, which is not easily forgotten by those who lived through it. A time when the world was being destroyed by the Nazi Germans was over shadowed by America’s self-involvement. A time when Americans were beginning to be proud of their little world power was accented by the world war.
A typical Western would usually be set in the late 19th century in the mid-west of America in a remote town. The town is usually small, lonely and unwelcoming. Typically a western set looks like it is in the middle of a desert with sand, cacti and tumbleweed which gives a desert look, there are usually never any lakes or rivers around these features make the place look really hot and deserted. The buildings are generally timber board houses with swinging doors and outside the buildings are places to keep their horses, there is also always a General Store and a Saloon. Horses and carriages and cattle are used to give a western feel. The cowboys are typically dressed in western style clothing for example they wear simple shirts and jeans they may also wear ponchos, waist coats, hats, boots with spurs, guns and a belt to hold the gun and bullets, Hero's tend to wear lighter clothing and the villain’s tend to wear darker clothing.
Few Hollywood film makers have captured America’s Wild West history as depicted in the movies, Rio Bravo and El Dorado. Most Western movies had fairly simple but very similar plots, including personal conflicts, land rights, crimes and of course, failed romances that typically led to drinking more alcoholic beverages than could respectfully be consumed by any one person, as they attempted to drown their sorrows away. The 1958 Rio Bravo and 1967 El Dorado Western movies directed by Howard Hawks, and starring John Wayne have a similar theme and plot. They tell the story of a sheriff and three of his deputies, as they stand alone against adversity in the name of the law. Western movies like these two have forever left a memorable and lasting impressions in the memory of every viewer, with its gunfighters, action filled saloons and sardonic showdowns all in the name of masculinity, revenge and unlawful aggressive behavior. Featuring some of the most famous backdrops in the world ranging from the rustic Red Rock Mountains of Monument Valley in Utah, to the jagged snow capped Mountain tops of the Teton Range in Wyoming, gun-slinging cowboys out in search of mischief and most often at their own misfortune traveled far and wide, seeking one dangerous encounter after another, and unfortunately, ending in their own demise.
“All the Pretty Horses”, a novel written by Cormac McCarthy tells the tale about a man and his friend travelling the plains of Mexico after leaving their homes in Texas. As the novel’s name alludes to, horses are a central theme in the story as they represent manhood and freedom when John Grady, the protagonist, and his friend Rawlins get thrown in jail. McCarthy’s novel became critically-acclaimed which gained him more recognition, as well as a movie adaptation directed by Billy Bob Thornton. Even though Thornton’s adaption has the basics of the novel’s story it does not appropriately grasps its depth. While Thornton’s version stays faithful to the dialogue from the book’s included scenes it does fall short by having an erratic pace, having
An ironic ending is also foretold by the town’s setting being described as one of normalcy. The town square is described as being “between the post office and the bank;” every normal town has these buildings, which are essential for day-to-day functioning. The townspeople also establish a normal, comfortable setting for the story. The children are doing what all typical kids do, playing boisterously and gathering rocks. The woman of the town are doing what all stereotypical females do, “exchang[ing] bits of gossip.” The men are being average males by chatting about boring day-to-day tasks like “planting and rain, tractors and taxes.”
In today’s society there is a high fear of crime by society. Society actions show that there is anxiety and fear about crime. Therefore, anxiety and fear about crime has placid our cities and communities. Society express fear of being victimized by crimes, criminal activities, and behaviors. Therefore, according to, (Crime, 1999) states that “ the level of fear that a person holds depends on many factors, including but, not limited to: “ gender, age, any past experiences with crime that a person may have, where one lives, and one’s ethnicity.” All of those factors have a huge impact on one’s fear level.