Help with Film Studies

[ryanthehuman]

I've got my AS Level exams coming up pretty soon so I was hoping anyone could nudge me in the right direction of any reoccurring themes or similarities between Ewan McGregor's roles in the films Trainspotting, Blue Juice and Miss Potter.

Some themes I thought of were addiction (Trainspotting, Blue Juice), question of freewill (mostly Trainspotting and Miss Potter, but I suppose it could be applied to Blue Juice as well) and friendship (although each film portrays this in a different way - Trainspotting, for example, makes it seem as if it's a burden, something Mark Renton wants to cut loose, almost like an addiction). Redemption was another theme I thought of regarding all three films, as well as the attainment of dreams (most prominent in Miss Potter).

If anybody has any other ideas then please let me know as I've been really struggling with my AS Levels (I joined my sixth form half way through the year and it's been awful trying to catch up with all the work) so I would REALLY appreciate any help! Thank you.

[fortunesfool]

You might need to streamline your question. Those three movies are giving you too many variables. Focus on one theme (addiction) and work from there.
It occurs to me that he plays a lot of dreamers- guys who want more in life but feel trapped or held back by their circumstances (probably linked to growing up in a little Town in Scotland). Shallow Grave, Trainspotting, Young Adam, Brassed Off, Life Less Ordinary etc. Lots of stuff to play with if you wanted to follow that course.
Depends what your essay question is though.

Hope this helps.

[barrybatersby]

Hello Forum

Which movies can you think of that have the wittiest, funniest, most memorable, totally ballsy, classiest, most iconic scripts.

I'm writing an article on the Best 10 Film Scripts Ever Written - Any suggestions from the assembled wisdom would be hugely appreciated.

Thank you

[fortunesfool]

Some good stuff here -

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2...urrentPage=all

You could also try a book: 'Titanic and the making of James Cameron'

[jackms]

Essentially I just need these as secondary research. I'm not requiring spoon feeding, literally just need to know if there are any common themes within James Cameron's movies people have picked up on. Examiners love seeing extended research, so making a thread on here would be beneficial.

[fortunesfool]

He loves a swinging tube light. Probably no reason other than it looking cool, but you could make something up i'm sure. Look out for it in the elevator scene in T2, the Bud/Coffey fight in The Abyss and the scene where Lenny gets beaten up in Strange Days (proof that Cameron directed some second unit stuff for he ex).

He grew up near Niagra Falls too. Might explain his fascination with water.

[LToksvig]

Lynne Ramsay is definitely not what you would describe as a mainstream director and this is shown through her film work. What do you think of Lynne Ramsay as a director? Do you think she has a fascination with psychological issues (eg. grief, guilt and death) ?

[Cieza]

Hi,
I'm doing a project for my A level film class about the social and political issues in Hollywood musicals (when they're set)
anyone have any ideas about Gigi, Cabaret, West side story or Chicago?
Would be a huge help, thanks!

[brandonw92]

Hi all,
Doing some research for my university dissertation I am an advertising and digital communication student and I was wondering if you could give me your opinions. Firstly I am investigation issues in the film industry in relation to advertising that's the obvious part lol, but advertising more with the digital aspects such as:

What do you think production companies could do to engage you more using social media to make you interact with the brand or movie they are trying to promote?

Do you think that social media works as a movie promotion tool or is it effective?

Do you even think social media has a role in the industry and does it play a big part in the success of a movie?

Do you think the film industry could take a bigger share of an advertising budget e.g. can movie theatres get more money from advertising and if so how?

Is the there an issue with the business model in terms of is that advertising outdated for modern times or are is the creativity of adverts lacking?

Do websites dedicated solely for one movie serve any purpose in engaging the public and if so what is that purpose?

What do you think film production companies lack and how could they improve them or generate more revenue from online advertising?

If you have any other opinions on what you think are big issues in relation to my topic advertising in the film industry (digital methods) then please i'm open to hear them and they will be of much use to me.

Also what is your most memorable movie online advertising campaign and why was it?

Cheers guys

[Firedragon76]

Originally Posted by Cieza

Hi,
I'm doing a project for my A level film class about the social and political issues in Hollywood musicals (when they're set)
anyone have any ideas about Gigi, Cabaret, West side story or Chicago?
Would be a huge help, thanks!

Could you define 'ideas'?

Cabaret and Chicago are both Kander/Ebb musicals, so you might want to research why they were drawn to serious topics for their musicals and how turning them into movies stayed true to the topics. They also did one for 'Kiss of the Spider Woman' that was not turned into a movie, but the book it's based on was a few years prior (William Hurt, Raul Julia, Sonia Braga; nominated for 4 Oscars, one win for William Hurt) and that is pretty heavy stuff for a musical.

Gigi and West Side Story are classical musicals while Cabaret and Chicago are progressive musicals, so you could compare if the two 'branches' are treated differently when brought to the big screen. Also, West Side Story's literature background (Romeo and Juliet) might give you something to work with.

It's been more than 15 years, but I had to do some work on musicals in school (I majored in literature, music and history) and I've worked with movies for a decade now, so I might find something useful stuffed away in a braincell somewhere if you could narrow down what you need.