Hour 21: A Film and Interactive Media Blog

        I have recently seen the full-length trailer for Zack Snyder's and Christopher Nolan's Man of Steel , and believe it  warrants some thoughts. First off  I should  note that I have never read a single Superman comic, though I have watched all of the Richard Donner films and Bryan Singer's Superman Returns . Secondly, I would like to thank Nolan and Snyder for going back to the roots of the character, not in the origin sense, but in the being sense of the word. With this trailer both Snyder and Nolan ask the question, who is Superman?             The answer, a god, more precisely God in the  Christian understanding. Superman is one individual with two distinct sides, mortal Clark Kent, and divine Superman it is this duality that defines who Superman is. Both Snyder and Nolan fully embrace the divine aspects of the character without any reserve or trepidation. As with the Donner origi...

   Benny's Video   offers two quandaries first, what is reality? Second, why is society so enthralled with the idea of the image to the extent where they negate the powerful effect it has on the human psyche? The film answers these questions in rather an alarming and unsettling way. It in fact does not so much answer these questions as it does illustrate how powerful the image can be.   The film  offers a portrait of an average family (father, mother son,) albeit one where the father and mother  are distant and unaware of their son's struggles. As a result Benny (the son) tries to find acceptance and understanding in the realities of television and film. His gravitation towards these realities however, makes him forget what is real and what is not.  Benny's  separation from his parents also makes him seek out a relationship with a young girl. This relationship  shows Benny’s need for connection, a connection that is real and not ...

In today's religious climate it would be near impossible to suggest that religion is not, for the most part a communal endeavor, but a personal one. Religions are seen as institutions and not personal systems this idea is emphasized in the American cinema by documentary such as Marjoe , A Time for Burning and the more recent Jesus Camp . These films, continually reinforce the stereotypes, not only with Christianity but all religious systems.             That is not to suggest that these films do not have merit, far from it. What I mean to suggest is that these films are examinations of a segment of the religious community, and not the community at large. Audiences, more often than not generalize what they see on screen, and apply it to entire populations. In some cases this approach is beneficial because it allows the audience to more fully understand the ideas and messages that the filmmakers wish to convey. Though, for the ...

The Force Unleashed 2 on its release received at best middling reviews  and criticisms for its lackluster narrative, a narrative that some say falls far below the quality achieved by its predecessor. Though who is to say that the story The Force Unleashed 2 is the story that it is really trying to tell. It is true that at its surface The Force Unleashed 2 tells a rather bare-bones tale of a man trying to reunite with the woman he loves. As a result this sequel adds very little to the overall Star Wars mythos and seems to add even less to Starkiller's  story, but what if Starkiller is not the protagonist of The Force Unleashed 2? What if Vader is?               Darth Vader is not only the central character in the entire Star Wars film saga, but also The Force Unleashed series. Though in regards to The Force Unleashed series the character of Darth Vader is portrayed through the motivations and actions of his appre...

There are countless examples of the coming of age story throughout cinema history, from Star Wars to Forrest Gump. Films that try to reach the realm of human experience, films whose heroes and heroines go through a journey of exploration to come out on the other side a transformed individual. In other words the coming-of-age tale represents a journey from ignorance into understanding.             This certain story structure is so innately part of the human experience that audiences are almost unaware of its existence. It pervades  unconscious thought so regularly that audiences seemingly except this storytelling device as a central part of the movie going experience. Films such as The Matrix and Star Wars  expertly explore and define this idea of the coming-of-age story. In both of these films the heroes grow as it were, from an ignorant child to an enlightened adult. In both  cases the heroes are already grow...

 The Prince of Persia the Sands of Time trilogy is not only a view into effective game storytelling and design, but  also is a another example of how immersion is not always reliant on player choice. These games instead show that narrative can be just as immersive an avenue of game design as that of the open world . Though what makes these game experiences so unique is not their reliance on narrative, but instead their ability to tell the story through both game design and their focus on player immersion through emotional investment in the games characters.             Throughout the trilogy the Prince is referred to as just that, the Prince of Persia, yet this Prince with no past or name to speak of will emerge as a character who is as emotionally engaging and interesting as any of his contemporaries. Some though may argue that the Prince's story is not really his. As with most video game characters the Prince was gi...

Over the years religion has been a prime topic of conversation in  cinema. One of the most common discourses deals with the differences between the Muslim and Christian faiths. These discussions, though prevalent mostly try to maintain a neutral viewpoint when it comes to the moral correctness of either religion. Though these attempts to remain unbiased are admirable I will offer a different solution granted by the themes and motifs present in Ridley Scott's Director's Cut of Kingdom of Heaven  .                         At first glance the film seems to be the obvious choice for such an exploration. Though, as the analysis continues one discovers that film has far more to say about religion in cinema than just being a call for religious neutrality. In fact, it is one of Kingdom of Heaven's greatest strength that it remains steadfast on its positions, and does not ...

Thor Heyerdahl's Kon Tiki represents a turning point in the history of the documentary film. This particular piece of cinema, not only brings a sense of adventure and excitement to a segment of filmmaking that is infamous for its methodical and fact-based structure, but it also conveys interesting and informative through an almost narrative like conceit, that of an expedition from the Asiatic fringe to the Polynesian islands on a raft called Kon Tiki. This idea of expedition represents a more active approach to documentary filmmaking which in turn allows for the audience to actively participate in the expedition, thus they more easily accept the information given.             Kon Tiki is an intriguing film that not only presents documentary as an active filmmaking endeavor, but  also suggests that the modern documentary is in some cases far removed from the film that birthed it. The idea of the modern documentary derives f...

Nicholas Ray's Bigger Than Life is an intriguing examination of both gender roles and the family structure in 1950s America. One of the most interesting aspects of the film is that this examination does not take place within characters of the separate sexes, but instead it occurs within a singular character. Not only that, this singular character is male and not female who are the usual vehicles for such an  exploration into domestic and gender difficulties. Though this may be the case, Rays focus on the male and not the female is perhaps more effective in this instance.             The film revolves around the character of Ed Avery, a family man and schoolteacher who discovers that he has a terminal illness that can only be cured by a new “miracle” drug. Though this drug is effective at keeping the disease at bay it also gives Ed mood swings that constantly affect his reasoning and emotions. It is here that Ray begins to ...

Star Wars: The Creation of Visual Rhetorical Myth  The Star Wars saga is one of the most impressive stories in recent history.  The canon includes six live-action feature films, three seasons of an animated TV show on the Cartoon Network and over three thousand years of narrative history chronicled throughout hundreds of books, video games and comics, [1]   A New Hope also marked the rise of a true blockbuster with audience members seeing the film twice or three times in a row on the same day. [2] The subsequent five films have a combined gross of over $4.5 billion dollars, making it the highest grossing series in history. [3]             Clearly, The mythology of Star Wars encapsulates ideals and themes far greater than the simple battle between the forces of good and evil, and yet this galactic tale enthralls people the world over. What makes the Star Wars mythology the immensely popular story of good an...