Movie Ratings

I'm going to count down from my least favorite of the films that we watched to my favorite.

10. Freaks - The only reason that Freaks was my least favorite is that I completely missed that unit somehow. So I cannot fairly rank it. So, I guess now I can get onto my actual ranking.

9. Awara - While I did enjoy watching Awara, it was kind of hard to actually get through. Between the dream sequence and the super-cheesiness it just wasn't quite as good as the majority of things we watched.

8. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly - Okay, so I know this film is supposed to be the best one or whatever and all, but I didn't care too much for it. I know that its length was due to awesome camera-work and tons of detail, but it just got pretty boring after a while. I mean, it would break free from that for a bit, but then it went right back to being boring.

7. Sherlock Jr. - I thought Sherlock Jr. was fantastic and really clever and funny. The only reason it's not higher on my list is because I enjoyed the other films more. But this one was great.

6. Killer of Sheep - I put Killer of Sheep at number six, mostly because of its importance. I thought it was really new and refreshing, and although it was not filled filled with action/drama/what-have-you, it was fun to watch for other reasons.

5. The Vanishing - This film was terrifying and great. I'm still worried about every person that I love being abducted and buried alive. Maybe not the buried alive part, but you get my point.

4. My Own Private Idaho - This film, from its Shakespearean dialogue to its awesome visuals, was excellent. It was so much fun to watch and it was also an important film. Well, maybe not it specifically, but the movement was super important.

3. O Brother, Where Art Thou? - I kind of meant to put this film lower on my list, but it can get the number three spot, mostly due to my laziness. I thought it was great though, even after seeing it a few times before. It doesn't get old, and it's even more fun to watch when you get all of the references.

2. Wendy and Lucy - I loved this movie. I'm not really sure why, but I just couldn't stop watching it. I've made a few people watching it after doing that unit.

1. Moonrise Kingdom - Yeah, yeah, that was a pretty obvious pick. This film was one of the most fun movies to watch that I've ever seen. It had been a while since I was that into a movie and it was great. It made me go back and watch Anderson's films again.

Frances Ha

The camera cuts to this first shot right after Frances is seen smiling at Sophie. It is both a long shot and an establishing shot, establishing where the film is taking the viewer. It is a shot of was is presumably Frances' new apartment. Non-diegetic music is playing in the background of the shot and it is taken up by the apartment, with no people (or even cars) or anything to divert a viewer's attention.

Next, the camera cuts to a medium (or American) shot of Frances in her doorway, with her arms at her sides as if she is preparing to dance, or do something like that. She is looking down, and that mixed with the music gives the scene a sort of somber feel, I guess. I'm not sure what to call it. There are boxes in the background, clarifying that Frances has just moved in.

Frances steps out of the doorway and raises her arms, simultaneously smiling as she raises them. The camera does not move at all. The boxes are displayed more clearly in this shot, further clarifying what they had before, just in case the viewer hadn't noticed them. The film takes on a happy mood, as Frances finally has her own place and is content with her life. She is in the foreground of the shot, assuring that she has the viewer's attention, and her smile makes it clear that she is happy now.

The camera then cuts to a long shot of Frances writing something in front of the window. There are boxes and books piled up to her left and in front of her, respectively. The film does not make it clear what she is writing at this point. The camera is looking into this room from another room, giving a pretty clear shot of the room, in which the viewer can see most of it. The black-and-white makes it hard to tell what the weather is like outside, but that is not important. I just thought it was interesting.

The camera then cuts to a close-up of Frances' hand as she is writing her name on the bottom of a card. There are scissors in the background of the shot, but it is unclear, at this point, what they will be used for. The card with her name partially written take up the majority of the shot.

The camera cuts to a shot of Frances cutting her newly-written name off the card. At this point, it is still not clear why she wrote it, but the next shots show that it was for her new mailbox. The scissors in the background of the previous shot now come to the foreground and it is clear what they were for. The background of this close-up is blurry, so the important things in the shot (the cutting of the card) are made clear.

"I Hope the Roof Flies Off and I Get Sucked Up Into Space" (Moonrise Kingdom)

Here we have a very dark shot of Bill Murray's character in Moonrise Kingdom, Walt Bishop. We are not looking at the shot from anyone's point of view, but we are getting a medium shot of Murray, as he verbally announces his feelings. The shot is from a high angle, directly above Murray, allowing us to see him staring up at what we can assume is the ceiling, or maybe a window, as we saw shadows from outside in the previous shot. The lighting in the shot is minimal (actually, I'm pretty sure there is no lighting at all), obscuring pretty much everything except for the tiny bit of the floor the is visible in the bottom right. This gives all of the attention to Murray, who is lying with his pillow askew as he looks straight up into the camera. The lack of lighting also allows the dark rings around his eyes to be seen easily, giving more insight into his depression. Of course, he may just have dark rings surrounding his eyes in general, but it could be on purpose. This shot is incredibly minimal, prop-wise and lighting-wise, making sure that the full effect of Murray's quote is felt.