What I learned in Writing 150 w/ Sister Elliott

Well, I can definitely say that this class gave me a real perspective of college work.  It wasn't necessarily hard work, but it was the amount of work that an honors class should have.  I enjoyed how much our class got along. I learned so much about rhetoric.  I had no idea there was so much to it!  I had never even heard of logos, pathos, and ethos.  I also learned a lot about research.  In high school, I learned how to do research, but not much about how and when a source is useful.  It was good to learn about research because I applied it in all my other classes.  Overall, I enjoyed this class, and I'm glad that I was able to experience it this semester.

Dark Water Film Analysis

            This film was excellent example of the use of music and sound in films.  To begin with, I don’t like horror films.  They just aren’t my kind of film.  This film, however, intrigued me.  The theme was very interesting.  It was actually kind of neat to see another’s perspective of the afterlife.  The film was a horror film, meaning the purpose was to invoke fear.  The music and sound in this movie excellently contributed that purpose.

            The film used the sound of dripping water a great deal throughout the movie.  This sound was an obvious success.  The presence of water was the indicator that the little girl in the raincoat was near.  It came to the point where any sound of water was horrifying.  The sound of dripping water was always playing when it was otherwise silent.  It started subtly at the beginning of the movie, and as the film progressed, the water dripping became louder and faster to increase the intensity.  The water stains on the ceiling grew larger and larger and the water flowed more and more.  As it got closer to the end of the movie, there was less dripping and more sounds of rushing water.  These sounds wonderfully achieved the goal of giving fear to the viewers.

            The music also appealed to that fear really well.  The film used creepy music anytime the mom caught a glimpse of the little girl.  She appeared randomly throughout the apartment building and the school, and the music always helped to start that creepy feeling.  With all the build-up that the music and sounds created, by the time it actually showed the girl it was scary.  The music was used even subtly to push a scary feeling.  Sometimes it was loud and intense, but mostly it just played in the background to keep that creepy mood throughout the film.

            At the end of the movie, when the mom finally encounters the little girl, the girl says something in a weird scary voice.  This voice alone was a use of sound that, again, accomplished its task.  The short scream was just enough to trigger fear in the audience.  The face of the girl was scary, too, but in reality the noise was really what gave the needed affect.

            Music and sound are two major contributors of feelings in film.  This particular film was invoking fear, and it used sound and music successfully to do so.  The most obvious use of sound was the dripping water.  Whether or not water itself was in the frame, the sound was present.  Music was also a large factor in striking fear.  It was always there.  It was quiet, and it was loud, but regardless, it had the same affect.  The scream was one particular use of sound that worked well.  Again, this film was an obvious selection for exemplifying music and sound in film.

The General and His Wooden Wedding: A Great Works Response to two silent films

            When I sat down to watch these silent films, I was not looking forward to spending my evening watching an old film.  I underestimated how well done old films could be.  I also liked how simple Charlie Chaplin really is.  He is simple but effective.  In The General I specifically enjoyed the music and the simplicity of it.  I think that simplicity was easily a major lesson that I could learn from watching these old films.

            That’s the thing about the silent film.  It was simple.  It was full of funny notions to make people laugh, but it had the romance that people enjoy.  It was filled with full actions so viewers would understand the story without dialogue.  There were no major special effects.  It was merely simple but hilarious.  Charlie Chaplin and the main character in The General were both very funny to watch.  Their faces explained their feelings very well.  That means they would have had to be great actors to effectively explain their emotions on the screen.  Some films are way too much the opposite of a silent film.  If a film is all dialogue and no acting, then it is rendered ineffective and boring to the viewers.  There must always be good acting whether dialogue is there or not.

            Another effective addition to the film was the music that stretched throughout the length of the film.  The music kept the mood.  If it was fast and exciting music, it was a fast and exciting part.  If the music was slow and calm, then the story was slow and calm.  The guy in The General was sometimes sad.  Sometimes he was happy, or scared, or angry, or nervous.  The music never failed to match his mood.  When he was sad, the music was sad, when he was nervous, the music was nerve-racking, and so forth.

            I really enjoyed stretching out of my comfort zone to watch and analyze these two films.  The simple plots with simple acting and simple effects kept the entire thing entertaining.  It reminds us that a movie does not have to be stuffed with effects for it to be any good, but it simply needs to have the basics of a good film with a good story.