Tsotsi

Tsoti is a crime leader and gang member in Johannesburg. He steals the car of a woman and when helooks in the back seat he realizes that there is a baby. The baby forms a quick bond to the killer and the audience sees the change in the protagonist.

I would highly reccomend this film, while it is a dark film, it is interesting to see the culture of South Africa. It is a unique country that continues to deal with the seperation between the rich and the poor or the black and the white.

Tsotsi lives in slums in a small part of Johannesburg. Unfortunately they live a difficult life which leads to an increased risk in crime . When he feels seperated from his family he turns to the gang as his family.

In the US we live much easier and simpler lives than the characters of Tsosti and I think we need to make more of an effort to help other countries that are working to become more developed. It is sad to see the living conditions of other countries and how in the US we waste the most basic resources that people all over the world would die to have. I reccomend this film to anyone, it is important to be aware of other countries and their difficulties and work to try to help them.

Nuovo cinema Paradiso

This film was produced in 1990 and takes place in Italy. The film features a young boy who is in love with films and appreciates every aspect of the film industry. The person in charge of running the cinema takes him on as a student and teaches him everything about films. It is an excellent film that shows the culture of a remote Italian village.

The film was exceptional and I enjoyed the light heartedness of the film. The small boy is easy to make a cultural connection with because of his passion for films. I have an extreme passion for running and I could connect with the protagonist about a strong passion for something and the appreciation of it.

In Italy the Roman Catholic Church is the ruler of the land and makes the laws in the city. The laws are created around religion and respecting the Catholic traditions are very important. In the beginning of the film we see how viewing kissing in films is not tolerated and it is cut out. It was interesting to see how a religion can control so much of a society.

In the US we claim that there is a seperration between church and state, however, religion plays a critical role in our government system as well. When morals are discussed while developing laws, the politicans always refer to the Bible when they question their decisions. It is was interesting to see how the Italian community was far mroe reserved than our society. In modern times, televsion shows have become a lot more inappropriate than they used to be. It was interesting to see how films have revolved over the years and the role of religion in a society.

The Host

The Host is a thriller/horror film that takes place in South Korea. In the film a monster is created in the Hahn River and begins to kill people. When a young girl is sperated from her father by the beast, the family works to get her back. However, at the end of the film they discover that she had been killed by the beast itself. But the family takes in an orphan and begins to repiece itself back together.

This film was based off of the idea of the Us dropping a toix chemical into the river where it poisoned many people. When the US no longer can deal with the situation they release the toxic chemical agent yellow to get rid of the growing opposition. The film was based off the United State's involvement in South Korean affairs.

The film was interesting to see how the history between the US and South Korea has affected their current relationship. There was a strong cultural connection made during the film. In their culture family is very important and appreciating the elders of the household is also imporant. In our society, the youth is worshiped instead of the elders.

This film taught me to respect my elders and it taught me more about the Asian culture. I did not know a lot about the culture before watching this film.

Napolean Dynamite

"Just follow your heart. That's what I do."
-Napolean Dynamite


The film Napolean Dynamite was a comical film about a boy in the suburbs of the United States who does not fit in with his classmates until Pedro arrives. The two become instantly good friends and develop a strong connection and Napolean encourages Pedro to run for president. Throughout the film, we see the characters develop and build a strong bond amongst one another.

I thought that the film was extremely funny, because the sense of humor represented in the film was similar to my sense of humor.

There was a major difference in the lifestyle of Napolean's and that of the Twin Cities. We live in a city with stores, and the famous Mississippi River. Napolean lives in a small remote town where everyone dresses the same and their is not a variety of culture or activites. While I could not make a strong connection with the main character, I enjoyed the humor of the film and I appreciated Napoleans efforts to befriend the "new kid" in school.

Les Triplettes de Bellevilles

Les Triplettes de Belleville is about a young boy who develops a passion for bicycle racing and his grandmother becomes his trainer. During the Tour de France, he is kidnapped and the grandmother goes on a hunt for he young cyclist. The grandmother soon discovers that he has been captured by the French Mafia and goes to extensive lengths to free him.

This movie was an interesting representation of the French culture. It is a silent film and it was interesting to see how important the Tour de France is to the people of France. The producers use dull colors to reflect the emotions of the young boy who was abandoned by his parents and taken in by his grandmother. It shows how difficult his life has been before he found his passion for bicycling.

The French Mafia are an important factor in the film, while me may only have believed that the mafia existed in Italy, it continued into France. We just had presentations in History class about gang violence and how gang violence had been increasing recently. Watching this movie made a strong cultural connection between France and the United States. While we believe the French to be to some degree rude, after watching this film it changed my opinion. I could relate to the character who has a passion for a sport like myself.

Fargo

Fargo is a film that was released in 1996 and was produced by the Coen brothers. The film is about a man living in Minnesota named Jerry who is facing financial difficulties and goes to extreme measures to make some extra money. As he works with a couple of criminals to give them a stolen vehicle, his family is put in danger at the expense of his dangerous decisions.

The Coen brothers created a comical thriller and make jokes about the Minnesota culture. They exaggerate the Minnesota accent and the idea of Minnesota nice.

The end of the film was sad, because many innocent people were murdered in the plot, but it was interesting to see how people perceive the "typical" Minnesotan.

The characters live simple lives, but it was interesting to see the Northern area of Minnesota and the difference in their accents and personalities.

The Son's Room

This is a film that takes place in Italy. It shows a family and their greivences after the death of their son. The film primarily focused on the family and not so much the culture of Italy, but it was a touching film to watch. The family was easy to connect with.

In the introduction of the film, we see the life of a psychologist who spends a lot of his time with his patients and his family. However, one afternoon when he chooses to go help one of his patients instead of spending time with his son, the son tragically dies while scuba diving.

The film has beautiful landscape scenes and uses simplistic music to reflect the emotions of the characters who have just lost a member of the family. In the end, the family connects with a friend of their son's and they start to feel less sad about the loss of their son. It was an emotional film that was set in Italy.