Quarter 4 Final

Billy Elliot   
Essay #1

    The film Billy Elliot takes place in England and is a charming story about a young boy who dreams of becoming a great dancer. We watch Billy take criticism for being a bout and wanting to dance, and from his father who is less than supportive. Billy tries and tries to become proficient and he does so, then getting an audition to a special ballet school. He ends up making it in, and fixing things with his family. The story wraps up nicely with an emotional ending that leaves the viewer pleased.
    As far as culture in this film goes, there is plenty of it. The English have more then an accent, they have a strong vocabulary that may not be accepted in America. The young boy swears and drinks a little too, which adds to the relaxed European vibe. Also, there is a scene where his father gets extremely angry and slaps him. This just represents the dysfunction of the family and that could happen in any county.
    Many kids today have trouble achieving what they need and have a passion for, due to parent disapproval. Billy proved everybody wrong and showed that even though he is a boy; he has every right to dance. Dancing in America is for men and women,  maybe unlike England. Billy learns he can achieve anything he wants if he works hard enough and that is a lesson we all can take.

The Kings Speech
Essay #2
   
    The Kings Speech is a film about King George VI of Britain. King George has a very unfortunate stutter and therefore cannot deliver speeches to his country. He knows it’s his responsibility to give speeches and talk in front of his people so he works to cure himself from the speech impediment. The support he gets from his wife is immense and he is able to become a great speaker by the end of the film.
    King George is true to himself and true to his culture by connecting back to himself and discovering why he had that problem. As for culture, he knows as a King it’s his duty to stand strong in front of his people. He lacks confidence in the beginning of the film and by the end he has found himself and I true to himself. The people trust his word and stand by him when he isn’t able to deliver speeches because they know he is a King and respect him.
    Same with Billy Elliot, King George worked hard enough and got what he wanted. He found himself on the way and his true personality came through and he was able to speak in front of his people. America doesn’t have royals but we have presidents and we want them to be able to deliver speeches so we can relate to the people in Britain.

Triplets Of Belleville

The triplets of belleville took place in france and was a story that was a little strange. These bikers were captured and forced to bike on a machine while people could et who was going to win. It was a cartoon but  the characters were made to look really weird. It was creepy and the bone structure in everyones faces and bodies looked scary. It was interesting to see these characters move but i thought overall it was a strange movie.

My Life In Pink Review

The movie we just watched was a french speaking film called my life in pink. The story took place in Belgium and was about a young boy who thinks he is a girl. His family at first is sort of accepting to this fact but as the movie continues and the family is discriminated against, they become less accepting and try to change his mind. The boy goes through a lot and at one point moves in with the grand mother. The ending of the film is sweet, and the parents conclude that he is their son and they should love him for who he is. In belgium, i think that it is more common for transgenders to be discriminated against. The families themselves behave in a way most americans do, with fighting and yelling. I think that the upper class families are more strict with who they accept. i liked this movie, i thought it was very clever and a good story.

The Fish Fall In Love Review

   


    The movie we just watched took place in Iran on the caspian coast. The story is about a young girl who uses their home to start a resturant. When Aziz returns home, he is convinced to close the resturant. The main character, Atieh, is determined to impress him by cooking him a new dish each day in hopes of preventing the close of the resturant. I found this film  to have an interesting story and it was cool to see the ladscape of Iran. It was confusing at times as to what is going on. The way people communicaed was also very unique and different from America. This movie i found to be a little boring, and slow moving but overall it was interesting. The main theme of the film is love and passion for food, with fish being mentioned quite often.

Billy Elliot Review

   


    We recently watched the film billy elliot, taking place in England. The film was adapted from a broadway musical into a feature film. The movie is about a young boy with a passion for ballet and no family support. His main mentor is the dance coach at the gym where they offer boxing and ballet. She trains him in secret along with th girls, in hope of helping him live his dream.
   His father is a very angry person and when he found out about billy's love for dancing he was outraged and thought no boy should be dancing. Determination and hard work paid off. As the film progresses, billy's dance teacher finds him an auditon for a very good dance academy in london. The father sees Billy dance and had a realization that he needs to support his son wit his goal. He agrees and goes to te audition, which he makes. He becomes closer to his dad and brother by the end of the film which he never was before.
   I think this film was a charming yet deep story that some people can connect to. Family is the main theme of the story and the message at the end is well put. The difference in cultures is present in the fact that for an example, the young boys of about 11 drink beer, and swear and do things that in america might not be as exceptable. Overall, good movie!

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

   

    The last film we watched was Crouching Tiger, Sleeping Tiger which tok place in China. The movie mainly consists of people fighting with swords to gain control over the Green Destiny. I found this movie to be quite pointless personally. The characters would walk on water and jump on trees and fly which did not look real and is ot possible.
   The movie does show china and it's martial arts which was sort of interesting to see. Also, just the overall way that the chinese communicated in the film and the way that they would refer to eachother as "masters". In America, that does not happen nor is martial arts so big.
   Overall, this movie was not my favorite. I thought it was okay for a fictional movie, but i found it to be more then rediculous. The actors and actresses did a nice job none the less.

Little Miss Sunsine Review

    


    Little Miss Sunshine is a film about a disfunctional family and their trip to california to fufill the youngest girl, Olive, dreams of becoming Little Miss Sunshine. This film takes place in New Mexico, America and shows a typical troubled family. The son has vowed a year of silence, grandpa is a drug addict, and uncle is suicidal. All of them come together on a road trip to California for Olive's beauty pagent. 
   The film is very funny and sweet. The family learns to deal with eachother and love eachother. When grandpa dies in the middle of their road trip, they are in a hurry and steal his body and put it in the trunk of the car. These comical events help support the story and it's serious theme. Each character has their own story that we learn about through out the movie and everyone has their own feelings and problems. 
   The family demonstrates an almost regular American family, and the common problems families have. The moral of the film is to love eachother regardless of the situations. I enjoyed this movie, i thought it was hilarious and very interesting!