In-Class for 10/27

Talk aboout what went well with your paper and what didn't go as well. What writing exercises helped? What didn't?
I don't think this paper came along as easily as the last one for a few reasons. With the space assignment, there was a lot of room for imagination and argument because I was the only one who experienced that space in the wat that I did at the time that I did. With the movie paper, the sources of information were definitely more concrete and the arguments had a be a little more solid. Also, I had a harder time finding a film in the first place. I went with one I enjoyed from the get-go because it was a very happy-go-lucky-feel-good documentary. It was a little more mindless than I would like for it to have been - but I suppose this is all about learning experiences anyway, right? Either way, I really appreciated  the quoteburger exercise. It wasn't a super new concept for me, but at that point I was really struggling with overall length and content of my paper. I felt like I had a few solid ideas, developed them, and had like 4 pages. The more thorough introduction and analysis of the quotes gave me a lottle more direction to give the quotes some body.

quoteburger

Benjamin Franklin satirized British policies toward America by writing a letter that argued, "A great empire, like a great cake, is most easily diminished at the edges." While Franklin jokingly suggested that Britain should rid itself of its outermost provinces first, he directly targeted how Americans should feel toward the monarchy that disenfranchised them.

I'm a big quoteburger fan. We got beaten around with "blending quotations" in high school, and I think they did a pretty effective job. I have a hard time looking at a stand-alone quote without wanting to fix it now. I think it takes a lot of the work out of reviewing and analyzing works because all you have to have is a good eye for words. If someone can just pick out a string of words in a really pretty order, and then understand the intent of the phrasing the author has, quoting isn't too tough. Quoteburgers are all about context. I think tabloid writers and newspaper editors are professionals at liberal quoteburgering. They can take almost anything a celebrity/official said, throw it in some new quotes with an artistic set-up, and say something completely new and different. I hope to get a little QB-ing in with reference to the NETSationals. The dancers have awesome little snippets in their 60+ years of conversational experience - so their quotes are priceless.

where to go from here

This workshopping experience was very productive - I had a lot more complete than I did the last time around with the space analysis essay (The page requirement certainly helped.) A lot of the changes were oversights in a grammatical sense, where I couldn't quite figure out the wording I was looking for to get through my thought process. All of teh comments were really helpful, and I intend to use all of them. The direction the paper is taking is where I want it to go, and I hope to bring in a few more characters for the sake of specifica and a few more outside sources with credible reviews since this film was a Tribeca Film Festival release, not a first-run theatrical. Also, there were comments about doing some more work on common stereotypes of elderly people and how the characters in Gotta Dance defy those stereotypes.

where to now?

          I should probably get going on that here pretty soon. The prewriting is really productive - I feel like I have a lot more things to write about than I did writing the space analysis. With a work that so many people have seen and reacted to there's a lot more in the public domain to reference as far as arguments. I would like to study up a little more on the team themselves and poke my head around for some outside reviews to see where the points of controversy hit with people who actually make a living by reviewing film. I might also explore the possibility of checking out one other film I haven't seen in a while and see if I get immediately inspired to start this process over again on a new topic. We'll see. I need to get my thesis for this film to take more of a stand than introducing the general themes of the film and collect some quotes from the interviews that support all of my claims. It might be nice also go go back through my favorite scenes (since I watched it on Netfilx) and screen-shot the still images of the most poignant settings to see if I can do a little visal analysis on camera work.

real reality?

          I'm not sure there's a such thing as a real reality TV show. Television is inherently not a production of actual life. Between editing, sequencing, and camera angles - it's nothing like experiencing something first-hand. I can't think of a reality TV show I have ever seen that is even remotely comparable in situational accuracy to what it would be like off-camera. Once people can realize that the only qualification to become a reality show is to have amateur actors who might or might not be wiling participants. I don't think there's cheating in Reality TV - those that participate only have a false sense of control over their role on the show and longevity of participation. The producers of a Reality TV show have everything to do with the outcomes of a competition or what film makes the final production.
          That being said, I LOVE REALITY TV. I can't stand it. I'm not as much into the game shows and survivor-style competitions, but I can't pretend like I don't care who got kicked off the Bachelor. I do. A lot. I like a lot more scripted TV shows, and I think of reality TV as more of just a more poorly written script. I love the lifestyle-geared shows...it all started with Trading Spaces way back in the day. Now I can't help myself but watch hours of Toddlers and Tiaras and Dance Moms. Reality TV is like a really loud car wreck. You can't look away, you have to slow down and watch what happens next because you know its going to be interesting, if nothing else.

marie and juno

  I can see a lot of similarities between the two young women featured in the films themselves. Juno and Marie Antoinette were both just teenagers when they both had more dumped on them than they could handle at once. Whether it be a country in turmoil or an unplanned pregnancy, both films are pretty counter to the usual pop movie about teen girls. They're not all glamorous, even without costumes and pomp, the films expose an uglier side to ruling a country or trying to coordinate an open adoption. Between the two readings, we see the films evaluated as packaged products; and a tool to evaluate a cultural group. The hipster Juno image of I-don't-care-what-you-think contrasted with the high French criticism of Antoinette make a soemtimes unwanted social message more known. Both authors were pretty successful sending this message by putting out some more concrete examples of the reception of the films, direct quotes from the script, and some statement about the authors' intentionality in writing them.

iTunes got it right with so many options in sorting criteria. I like sorting songs by play count, it's a good dose of nostalgia. I'm a little obsessive when I find a song I really like or is particularly awesome to sing in the car. Here's some I stumbled upon when I did my latest sort (in no particular order other than what I want to talk about.)

Won't Stop by OneRepulbic
I can't remember if it was my freshman or sophomore year that OneRepublic came to campus, but I felt an urge to study up on the latest discography and I ran across this one. I don't usually get emotionally attached to songs, but this one just had good timing in my life.

Sunday Best by Augustana
Just goes all too well with Won't Stop. Practically made for each other. I think it must have been freshman year that I loved these, I remember listening to these on repeat on the long haul up 35 back from College Station for the short time the boyfriend was an Aggie.  Even if I wasn't in a bleh mood before leaving, these are hope-nobody-is-watching singing down the highway tearjerkers.

1901 by Phoenix
I love this one because it reminds me of the early high school days where I would dress in neons, go to little hipster shows with local bands, and pretend I was reeeeeeeally cool. Still wish I knew most of the words to this song and 90% of what I listened to back then.

The Distance by Cake
 As an endurance athlete, Cake has got the best song to start a race with, ever. The lyrics of this sing ("fuel burning fast on an empty tank" and "reluctantly crouched at the starting line/engines bumping and thumping in time") are the kind of lines that you can't help but think about when you're on the starting line or in transition. 

Up on Cripple Creek by The Band
If anyone finishes a TCU education without taking "From Rock to Bach" with Dr. Robert Garwell, they have really been disserviced by this institution. It is the best class ever. Rock to Back introduced me to The Band and "The Last Waltz" about their farewell tour. Cripple Creek was the first thing we listened to on the first day there, and it really just stuck for me. I love The Band.

Flashing Lights by Kanye WestThis song was made for running. The cadence is perfect, and it became a classic for me after I stopped running for TCU and started trotting the Trinity on my own. Listening to Flashing Lights during my sunrise runs, watching the downtown lights go off one by one made every morning start right.

I Will Possess Your Heart by Death Cab for CutieI was really excited for this album, and I randomly landed on this one first. It was a little confusing without a track listing because this sing is almost nine minutes long, but it makes for a good essay-writing or homework-starting when you just need a mental warm-up.

Desperado by The Eagles
I decided years ago that this would be song I would dance with my Dad at my wedding. It's perfect. I went to the same summer camp for 10 years, and this was THE slow dance song that we would all sing/yell along to every word. My Dad was a camper and counselor at my camp too.

Handlebars by Flowbots
I'm proud to know every word to this song as an avid cyclist. It's not a good group bike ride if this anthem doesn't get belted out once or twice.

if you ain't first, you last.

I would definitely trust McKay's ideas about American society's idiosyncrasies after watching Borat and Talladega Nights. These films really illustrate so many things about what's right and wrong with America. These movies and others about the average and not-so-average American lifestyle pick out and make a show out of the silly and backward things we do that we never think about outside of our own perspective. I think American culture in movies is obsessed with our rampant commercialism, general themes of a sexual nature, and generally low emotional and moral aptitude. We pay for water in bottles, go out of our way to idolize the the Pamela Andersons of our generation, watch cars drive in ovals and call it a sport, and hate our day jobs. These are probably the most glorious of traits as a nation, but instead things that are undoubtedly American. We're proud of what makes us unique, not necessarily successful. Americans don't need any help feeling national pride, so the things that set us apart become the things that matter most (and the easiest things to make fun of.)

most buzzkill movie experience, ever.

          It was senior year of high school when I found out that there was a theater on Inwood in Dallas that had a room that had no reclining stadium seats - but only LoveSac chairs, ottomans, pillows, and all the fixings of a great relaxing movie watching-experience. I was erally excited to get down there and try it out. At the time I was pretty into the indie movie scene and limited releases, so when I saw they had Boy in the Striped Pajamas, I very vaguely knew what it was about but I bought two tickets. I dragged along my now-fiance and he was excited at the prospect of a good movie but moreso comfy seats. The disappointment started at entry. There was only one screening per night in the LoveSac theater, and it wasn't ours. We sighed, and moped over to the theater where our movie was going on.
          If you haven't seen Boy in the Striped Pajamas, don't. While it won a slew of awards, it was horrifyingly sad, comlpetely depressing, and the worst date movie in history. It's a Holocaust piece, the good people die, and the seats were not LoveSacs. Not cool.

preparation and changes

         For this last paper, my style of preparation to write, prewrite, and take notes was more unique. I don't think I have ever sat and observed a space alone, with my laptop, writing fragments, and coming up with a very very rough draft to start. I'm someone who usually takes a lot of time and effort for the first time I write a paper because I don't like looking at things that are going to require future closure. Taking notes of just a few words at a time was difficult, and going back later and attempting to add meaning to little blurts I thought were worth mentioning was difficult. I look forward to an assignment about moves because of the more concrete nature of the art. If I feel like I missed something, I can pause it, rewind it, fast forward it, and get to the part I need to far more expeditiously. I can watch what I observe over, and over again to catch the small details and nuances of characters that I might have missed while trying to rush through and catch plot changes. I am also pretty thrilled I will have a reason to hang on to my Netflix subscription for just one more month. With a wealth of documentaries and quite a few on my instant queue, I can have a chance to catch a new movie for a fresh perspective on things instead of drawing on my experiences seeing a movie when I was younger with the assumptions I held back then.