202: Unit 1 – Course Overview

202: Film as Literature I

In this introductory Film Studies course, we take an in-depth look at the art form of film. In this course we delve deeply into film aesthetics, adaptations, Oscar winners, and literary films. Students will view and evaluate movies in the way we address the written word — literature.

After all, this is Film as Literature! Students are taught to “read” films with an eye toward symbolism, themes, social and historical context, bias, points of view, plot development, and character development. All students keep a film journal in which they will take notes and write comprehensive literary analyses of the films.

We will look at a variety of feature films, short films and clips from additional films in our studies.

The American Film Institute’s top 100 films is considered to be one of the industry standards. Take a look at their top 25. Ask yourself the following questions:  How many of these have I seen? What stands out about each as a great movie? Do I agree with this list?

AFI’s Top 25 American Films:

1. Citizen Kane
2. The Godfather
3. Casablanca
4. Raging Bull
5. Singin’ in the Rain
6. Gone with the Wind
7. Lawrence of Arabia
8. Shindler’s List
9. Vertigo
10. The Wizard of Oz
11. City Lights
12. The Searchers
13. Star Wars
14. Psycho
15. 2001: A Space Odyssey
16. Sunset Blvd.
17. The Graduate
18. The General
19. On the Waterfront
20. It’s a Wonderful Life
21. Chinatown
22. Some Like it Hot
23. The Grapes of Wrath
24. E.T. The Extra Terrestrial
25. To Kill a Mockingbird

To achieve the full impact of this course, you will need to have access to the following movies: No Country for Old Men, The Silence of the Lambs, Inception, The Matrix, A Few Good Men, The Godfather, 2001: A Space Odyssey, There Will Be Blood.

We will provide Amazon links as a means to watch/order the movie, but we are unable to provide the movies for you via our website here.

Feel free to watch a few trailers to get ready for your movie watching!

We further recommend watching the following movies (as well as others): Argo, The Hurt Locker, Gladiator, Shakespeare in Love, Amadeus, Gone with the Wind, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Citizen Kane, The Untouchables, Stand by Me, Forrest Gump, Apocalypse Now, Dances with Wolves, The Shawshank Redemption, The Prestige, Chinatown, Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, Jaws, Pulp Fiction, The Movie Hero.

Here are a few trailers to enjoy:

Each unit and each film watched will have a variety of assignments. Some of the assignments are researched based and others are written responses with a culminating critical review for each unit.

Previously we took a look at the AFI Top 25 American Films. The AFI list consists of a panel of experts working in the entertainment industry.  Below is the list from the Internet Movie Database (IMDB). This list is compiled by the votes of users on their website (the public rather than the so called experts) and it is much more likely to change with new releases.

IMDB’s Top 25

1. The Shawshank Redemption
2. The Godfather
3. The Godfather Part II
4. The Dark Knight
5. Shindler’s List
6. 12 Angry Men
7. Pulp Fiction
8. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
9. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
10. Fight Club
11. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings
12. Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strike’s Back
13. Forrest Gump
14. Inception
15. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
16. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
17. Goodfellas
18. The Matrix
19. Seven Samurai
20. Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope
21. City of God
22. Se7en
23. The Silence of the Lambs
24. It’s a Wonderful Life
25. The Usual Suspects

Whether it be a hand written document or a digital journal, you will be keeping a notebook where you will have the opportunity to start a dialogue for each movie that you watch.  In this journal, you should note initial reactions to a movie, as well as character development, story development, genre elements, and the technical aspects.

• Journals are REQUIRED if you are taking this course for CERTIFICATION.

• Students will keep a digital journal for each unit.

• Journals will be turned in as a PDF or Microsoft Word Document.

• For CERTIFICATION, journals will be turned in at the conclusion of the course for review.

• If you are taking this course for personal enrichment only, journals are optional and will not be turned in.

Students will respond in the journal with specifics to the focus of each unit.

All coursework should be compiled within the journal unless otherwise specified.

FIRST JOURNAL ENTRY:

Your first entry should begin right here. You have now had the opportunity to peruse both the AFI and IMDB top 25 movie lists. In your journal, respond to the following:

1. How many movies have you seen on each list?
2. Which list is more appealing to you? Why do you think that is?
3. Make your own “Top 25” list.  By no means does your list have to reflect either of these other lists.
4. Review the three lists (AFI, IMDB, and yours) and briefly discuss the differences and similarities.

This course will have a variety of additional assignments students may wish to pursue, including making a “mock” movie trailer for one of the movies.

While these assignments do not have to be finished to complete the course, you are encouraged to work through them with a critical eye to help develop a deeper appreciation and understanding into the artistry of filmmaking.