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CINE 245: David Shukhin Blog Post #5 - Paris is Burning

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            April 6, 2024 Film name: Paris is Burning Release Date and Studio: 1990, Miramax Director: Jennie Livingston Main Cast: Pepper LaBeija, Kim Pendavis, Dorian Corey, Venus Xtravaganza, Willi Ninja, Freddie Pendavis Plot Summary: The documentary is structured using bits of interviews with various drag queens in the New York City underground scene. The interviews are edited together with scenes from “The Ball” a drag competition that draws in the gay community from all over New York City. We learn about the queens’ personal lives and what the scene and ball mean to them. The ball ends and a few years pass by and the underground scene starts getting media attention. A few of the interviewees, such as Willi Ninja end up receiving mainstream media attention and success, while many are left behind in an underground scene that starts feeling less like a tight knit community. Prompt:  In approximately 350-400 words, please reflect on the rela...
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CINE 245: David Shukhin Blog Post - Blade Runner 2049

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March 30, 2024 Film name: Blade Runner 2049 Release Date and Studio: 2017, Warner Bros. Director: Denis Villeneuve Main Cast: Ryan Gosling(Officer K), Harrison Ford (Rick Deckard), Ana de Armas (Joi), Jared Leto (Niander Wallace) Plot Summary: The film follows Officer K, a newer generation replicant who hunts down older models who have rebelled against their programming. This occupation grants him the title Blade Runner. On one of his missions, he discovers a mysterious crate on the property of a rebel replicant he has just killed. The crate contains the remains of a dead female replicant, and an autopsy reveals that she dies at childbirth, making her the first case of a replicant giving birth. This sets Officer K on a journey to discover what it means to be human and whether he is any less than a natural human being. Prompt: In approximately 350-400 words, please reflect on the relationship between the film's visual style - here thinking about special/digital effects as well a...
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CINE 245: David Shukhin Blog Post #2 - Memento

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Feb 9, 2024 Film name: Memento Release Date and Studio: 2000, Summit Entertainment Team Todd Director: Christopher Nolan Main Cast: Guy Pierce (Leonard Shelby), Carrie-Anne Moss (Natalie), Joe Pantoliano (Teddy Gammel), Jorja Fox (Leonard’s wife) Plot Summary:  Christopher Nolan's Memento is a neo-noir that focuses on Leonard Shelby and his quest to avenge his wife's death. Leonard is unable to create new memories and so lives fully by relying on handwritten notes, tattoos and polaroids to continue his quest. His story is slowly revealed through a backwards narrative that causes his lies to crumble and has us questioning the reality of each one of his memories. Prompt: In approximately 350-400 words, analyze the narrative and its relation to the ‘meaning’ of the film by comparing a scene or sequence of scenes to the larger whole - how does Nolan experiment with the relationship between the fabula and syuzhet? To what greater purpose? You may wish to focus on a single cha...
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CINE245: David Shukhin Blog Post #1 - Psycho

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Blog Post #1: Psycho Feb 2, 2024 Film name: Psycho Release Date and Studio: 1960, Paramount Pictures Director: Alfred Hitchcock Main Cast: List the 4 or 5 most important actors in the film and their characters: Anthony Perkins (Norman Bates), Janet Leigh (Marion Crane), Vera Miles (Lila Crane), John Gavin (Sam Loomis), Martin Balsam (Detective Arbogast) Plot Summary: Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho centers on Marion Crane, who attempts to escape her life by running away with $40,000 in cash that she stole from her boss. She winds up in a peculiar motel run by Norman Bates, who seems to live alone with his old mother in their mansion. Marion is stabbed to death in the shower by what seems to be Norman's mother and Norman is left to conceal the crime. Marion's disappearance incites an investigation by a private investigator, her sister and her lover. The puzzle pieces slowly start falling into place and the finale reveals that it was Norman, who suffering from a type of psychologic...
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