Friday, April 30, 2010

Persepolis Reflection




Persepolis was a film produced in France about the Iranian Revolution that was occuring at the same tim as the Cold War. The protagonist, a young girl, sees how her family suffers during the Iranian Cold War and is sent off to a boarding school in France to get a safer childhood and a better education.

This film was an accurate description of the Iranian Revolution and gave an excellent perspective on another culture in the Middle East. Before she escapes war torn Iran, more rules are put in place for all of the citizens of Iran. Women and girls are forced to wear their headscarfs and cover most of their bodies. The government strongly believes in absolute control over women and all citizens. They put in place a dictatorship where any opposition was murdered for their political beliefs against the government.


Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Run Lola Run


Run Lola Run is a German thriller produced in 1998. It is about a young women that must raise a large sum of money to give to a rober. If she does not raise enough money then he will break into a store and steal the money himself. Then she has to raise 100000DM in twenty minutes. Suspense and fate are two major components to the film that contribute to the intense structure of the film.

I would highly reccomend this film, because it does an excellent job of demonstrating the idea of fate in our lives. In the film it shoes three different conclusions of a difficult situation and how small things affected each situtation. It was interesting to see the significance of fate in our lives.

It was a thriller, because each ending to the film was drastically different and you see how handling a situation in a better fashion can entirely change the outcome. It caused me to be mroe aware of my everyday decisions and the consequences of everything. I appreciated the film.

The music was also and extremely important factor in the film. The music created an emotional connection to the characters as they panicked but in the end figured out a solution to their issue. The music was a constant techno beat and kept you on the edge of your seat as you waited for the ending of their critical situation.

Dark colors are also used to represent the dark attitude towards the film and the emotions of the characters. They both are in critical situations trying to save one another, it adds a hint of sadness and anger in the film and makes you just as anxious as the characters.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Maria Full of Grace Reflection



Maria Full of Grace was a film about a young pregnant Columbian girl who finds herself looking for money and becomes a drug mule. She travels to New York where she sees all of the opportunities her baby would have if she continued to live there. After facing several unexpected circumstances, she chooses to remain in New York.
This film reflects the cultural differences between the United States and Columbia. In Columbia, they lack the educational opportunities that children in the United States take for granted. While many children in the united states attend school daily, Maria is forced to work in a floral factory where she unfortunately is treated unfairly. Her future does not include college or time for explorationm but continuous working to support her family. She is paid minimum wage at her job, and the only opportunity she has to make more money is to become a drug mule. It is sad to see how people in Clumbia have so little opportunities and have to make such great sacrifices to support their families.
Their health care system is much different as well. While in New York she decides to go to the doctor to get an update about her baby. In comparison to Columbia, she did not have the resources to go to the doctor for a check up. Since Maria did not have the opportunity to continue with her education she is forced to work a low income job, only to later to have to give the money to her sister.

Monday, April 5, 2010

Persepolis Film Research


Persepolis was a recent film released in 2007 in France. The film takes place in 1970's Iran where the protagonist sees her country and family change after the Iran Revolution in 1979. The new Iranian representative is more repressive than ever. The Islamic Fundamentalists are drastically changing her country and culture. Through the eyes of a young Iranian girl, the audience sees her preception of a difficult transformation taking place in her home country. She eventually is sent away to Vienna to study and live a better life, however, when she returns she has come to the realization that she and Iran have changed too much and she feels uncomfortable in the country.

Maria Full of Grace Research

Maria Full of Grace was released in 2004 in Clumbia. It is about a film about a Columbian pregnant teen and works hard to support her family in the floriculture business. After being fired, she risks her life to smuggle cocaine into New York in roder to start a new life. However, unexpected events occur that the young seventeen year old is not prepared for.

The film introduces the audience to Columbian culture, and the rising drug issues within the country. Columbia has long been battling the war against drugs, the US has put ina significant amount of effort into the drug battle. However, as Columbia works with the US to develop the Columbian Plan, their efforts are disregarded as drug lords continue to fight against the governments.