From Wikipedia: "The Sundance Film Festival, a program of the Sundance Institute, is an American film festival that takes place annually in Utah. With 46,731 attendees in 2012, it is one of the largest independent film festivals in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new work from American and international independent filmmakers."
Your task is to watch at least two of the following films and post a response in the "comment section" below. Be sure to include your name to get credit for your contribution. What are we looking for in our online discussions? Observations, questions, opinions, interpretations, etc. The more specific, the better. This means you should respond to SPECIFIC moments of the films as well as to the films overall. Feel free to respond to your peers. Remember, our goal here is to have robust, thoughtful, challenging discussions. Also keep in mind that this online component is part of the CLASS EXPECTATIONS. That means that everything you enter on this blog needs to be CLASS APPROPRIATE. The more you contribute, the better your grade. The more thoughtful and curious your contributions, the better your grade.
We're probably not going to have as much formal homework as some of your other classes, so your online participation will certainly impact your grade. Plus, it's fun and interesting and it's about movies. And that's why we're all in the class, right?
Okay. Have at it...
I'll start us off. Regarding Movies Made from Home, we never discussed the color pallet. It's sort of washed out, dull, old. It has a, for a lack of a better word, 'vintage' feel to it. What do you think? Was this color pallet intentional? What effect does it create for the viewer? How would the film change if it was crisp and hi-def - bright? And is the color de-saturation too obvious? Does it distract? Ideas?
ReplyDeleteThe color pallet in Movies Made from Home was very dull, and I believe that it was intentional. The colors at first made the film seem more realistic, as if it was actually a home video. When we learned about the abduction, the color seemed like it was showing a darker side of the story.
DeleteI agree with Trace where I think that the film makers intentionally made it look dull or have a vintage feel. It definitely gives off a homemade feel that makes the viewer (at least me) feel as if I was watching something my parents were in when they were children. If it were to be changed into something that was crisp and hi-def then I feel as if it wouldn't be as something that can happen to anyone, to any family. It was definitely a good choice on the film makers part
DeleteI agree with Trace also. I think that if the video was in hi-def it wouldn't have the same effect on the viewer. Because it is duller and less polished, it makes it more like a home movie and pulls the viewer in more. If it was in hi-def, I don't think people would take it as serious because it would feel like there isn't as much of a purpose and it's more of a video that was randomly made.
DeleteI saw "Broken Night", and while I thought the suspense as the vampire-like guy pulled the daughter out of the car was effective, the decision the mother made to inexplicably LEAVE herself and her daughter dangling upside-down until nightfall was preposterous. If I were her I would have gotten out of the car, gotten back on the road, and maybe call somebody for help! She was pretty incompetent, and in a way got what she deserved when her daughter was taken.
ReplyDeleteAgree. Preposterous is a good word for it.
DeleteI watched "CatNip: Egress to Oblivion", I thought it was very interesting how cats can get addicted to a plant called catnip and I only thought that works with humans but cats wow. I thought the effects of the drug is very odd an example being once the cats eat this plant within a few minutes they start to keep rolling around constantly from 5-15minutes. Which I did not know that was a thing cats can do for that long. I would think they would be too tired to keep rolling for that amount of time.
ReplyDeleteI watched "When The Zombies Come", I found it quite amusing. I mean is a zombie apocalypse ever going to happen one in a million chance. Is it even realistic that someone can have a whole Ace Hardware building for their safe haven for a so called zombie attack when the whole world is going on with it's daily tasks and I mean people need tools which is at a hardware store so it doesn't seem to work in my opinion. But I have to say it was pretty cool how they had all their plans set and they knew what they had to do if this does happen. Little odd. I would never of thought of the ideas that they said would be happening if the event ever occurs.
ReplyDeleteI watched both "When the Zombies Come" and "CatNip: Egress to Oblivion" and they seemed very interesting. The tone of "Zombies" was kind of silly and it dealt with a topic that, in my mind, is kind of frightening and "CatNip" had a very serious tone for a topic that no one really thinks about. I think the directors did this intentionally so you could see the obscure subject matter in a different light-- frightening can be silly and obscure can be serious. "CatNip" also looked professional, like a real informational film about drugs. Maybe the director wanted the audience to think that catnip addiction was real.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI watched "Catnip: Egress to Oblivion," and in my opinion I found it humorous. The irony of making such a random and, frankly, insignificant topic sound and look so serious and scientifically observed made this short film seem kind of like it was meant to be a joke. At least that's the feeling I got from it.
ReplyDeleteI watched "Broken Nights", and holy crap that was the scariest thing ever! At the beginning, I knew something bad was going to happen, but I didn't suspect it to happened that soon. I had a mini heart attack when the car flipped. It didn't make much sense to me that the mother would just chill hanging upside in the car all night, she found he way out in the end, why didn't she try earlier? Also, the scary kidnapping guys were terrifying, and I think that them not speaking made them soooo much creepier. I'm curious what they did to the girl because I had a weird feeling that they ate her, but I don't know. Overall, I thought the acting was really good, very believable and the story line was very suspenseful and kept me at the edge of my seat. WOOHOO!
ReplyDeleteI watched "When the zombies come" and I found it funny in a way, but I cant really tell if they really thought that zombies would come. I am a religious person and I know what will happen in the end of the world according to what the bible says. I guess people can look at me and say I'm crazy for what I believe and that's okay because every body has their own opinion. In my opinion, I think it's ridiculous that people believe that zombies will attack. I found this clip entertaining and I liked how they planned out everything not just one plan. Overall, I thought it was funny, the actors seemed believable.
ReplyDeletei watched "Catnip: Egress to Oblivion," i really liked the idea and have seen the effects described with my own cats. However i think the joke ran too long. There was not enough variety in the film to keep it interesting, around the four minuet mark it started to get stagnant. i feel that the directer should of used the cats meowing with subtitles only once and had a only one doctor interview that was a little bit longer. I know that he film was a mockumentery but i don't think it took itself seriously enough. for a film like that to really work there should be no obvious jokes like the fake mustache on an interview. The narrator could of had a more serious tone. they could of also used the staple shots from other drug documentaries like interviewing a dealer in shadow using a voice scrambler. in summery i liked it but i feel it needed more improvement before being sent to Sundance.
ReplyDeletei agree with Chris. The catnip documentary was drawn out a little too long. Too many cat interviews and it seemed like i was hearing the same information about the effects on cats over and over again. If the acting was more believable, it might have kept my attention a little longer. I liked the film in the sense that it seemed like a real drug documentary like you see on the history channel by using the fake doctors and users talking about their individual experiences. My favorite part of the film was when the description for one of the doctors said he was from "Shishigan, Michigan"
ReplyDeleteI watched the catnip and zombie film. They were both, in my opinion, rather odd mockumentaries. The catnip one was strange because of how the narrator presented the issue, and talked about the fake substance in the catnip that makes the cats go crazy. The zombie film was fun to watch because even the idea of preparing for zombies seems ridiculous and I was frightened by the serious attitudes of the characters.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Danielle. I think I jumped out of my skin a little when she hit the deer because I wasn't expecting it at all. When the guys showed up, they gave the impression that they were there to kill them or something so I expected it, but instead they just took the girl. I also got the feeling that they ate the little girl and I hope that's not the case. Overall, I felt awful for this woman because so much happened to her in such a short amount of time. Very believable acting; I liked that video very much.
ReplyDeleteI watched Broken Night and Catnip: Egress to Oblivion. Although I thought Broken Night was well made and overall the better film, Catnip was more creative. I feel the idea of "a mother and child are driving in the middle over no where, when all of a sudden, they get in a car reck and something awful happens" is so over and done with. I did like how it kept you on edge. I thought the director went above and beyond with the way he filmed it. I mean it's only a film festival he made a car flip, that's pretty rad.
ReplyDeleteI typed in Candace's name, she's not a freak.
Delete(The first one I watched was "Broken Nights.") The second one I watched was "When the Zombies Come" and I actually was not surprised to hear that they are preparing for a zombie apocalypse. My brother, my sister and I have talked about it before because my brother works at Ace Hardware. He prepares and tells me what weapons are useful, where to go, and what towns will be best to be in. "You never know what could happen" as my brother would say.
ReplyDeleteI watched all of the shorts, but I felt that the second 2 were better than the first. I liked the premise, color, and style of Movies from Home, but I felt the lack of any onscreen plot or dialogue kind of took away from it. It was a good concept, but I sort of wish an actual story had played out instead of just text on the screen. I also liked the start of Catnip, but I thought it went on way too long and wasn’t really funny or interesting all the way through.
ReplyDeleteOverall, Broken Night was probably the best quality out of all of them, and the mood and set-up were pretty unique and interesting. The ambiguity of the 2 men and what actually happens after the movie’s end adds even more to the creepiness and fear. It was pretty surprising, with the car crash and the creepy men at the car. Finally, I thought the zombie one was actually really funny. The concept and the way the main actor delivered his ideas was very blunt and humorous, as well as the notion that this is what people at hardware stores do with their free time. Coming up with comical yet reliable solutions for a zombie apocalypse is a funny idea, and I thought the dialogue was well-written and the tone really fit for a concept like this.
ReplyDeleteI saw When The Zombies Come, and i thought it was pretty impressive. I say this because i feel like the guy spent a really long time trying to unfold his plan. The other thing about the "acting" was that you dont know if it is a joke, or if he is really serious about this. my guess is that it is a joke. I think this because you would have to be pretty crazy to spend all this time preparing for something thatll probally never happen. It kind of reminds me of those people who prepared for 2012. And that totally worked out great for them!(sarcasm). i thought it was a good film and be it fake or not, if there is really a zombie apocolapse, i am definetly going to this guy for protection.
ReplyDeleteI watched Broken Nights and When the Zombies Come. I thought that When the Zombies Come was an okay movie. I couldn't really take it serious though and it left me wanting more. I understand that its about the guy and his crazy plan to stay alive during a zombie apocalypse, but it could have had more to keep the story going instead of just him listing places and what he would do there. The other movie i watched was Broken Nights. I really enjoyed this movie. It was very interesting to say the least. I like the way that it kept me guessing throughout. I liked how it was easy to follow in the sense that you could understand the story, but i did not like the ending. I didn't like how it kept me guessing. I wanted the ending to have more closure instead of just ending with the creepy psycho kid walking away.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what you are talking Jacqueline I thought When the Zombies Come was a great movie. Maybe that is because like the guys in the movie I like the Walking Dead too.
DeleteAfter watching all three movies, I came to my own conclusion that Broken Nights and Catnip were much more engaging than When the Zombies Come out. Catnip had a lot of interesting visuals and unique music, and within the first 10-15 seconds, I was interested enough to keep watching. I liked how Broken Nights opened with a traumatic event, which made me want to keep watching. When The Zombies come out's biggest flaw in my mind was that it was dull from the audiences perspective, and I was waiting for something exciting to happen. But i do think it had an interesting idea and the way it was made was excellent. I did enjoy all three clips, and each one was good in its own unique way
ReplyDeleteI watched "When the zombies come". I thought it was very funny and clever. I thought it was funny because it was at an Ace Hardware. Ace is a well known store so it makes it funnier because you can relate. If they did it at any random store, it wouldn't be as funny. I find it even funnier because I have a friend who works at Ace. I liked how they used their surroundings when interviewing each other. It made you get an idea for the setting of the story. I will for sure be showing my friend that works at Ace.
ReplyDeletei feel the color scheme gave a very mysterious vibe to the home movie. the lighting of the day also made it seem surreal and almost haunting. i watched both the catnip movie and the broken night. i really enjoyed the cat nip movie because it was so ridiculous, it almost seemed like a real documentary but it was so silly it was obviously fake. it made me curious as to if those symptoms really occur to cats. the broken night was somewhat disturbing to watch. the little girl gave me a weird kind of feeling from the start, she seemed almost hypnotized or in a trans. the boys as well were very odd, when they took the girl it was almost like she was totally willing to go with them, she didn't even care that her mother was still stuck in the car. the mother was completely helpless and it was so absurd that none of the children tried to help her. this movie left the audience with a lot to think about. we have no idea what happened to any of the characters but i have a feeling it was not good...
ReplyDelete