It Happened One Night Screening Report

1)    Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening.

            As the film industry grew so did criticisms over the type of content most of these movies had.  Audiences wanted to go the movie and be able to bring their families to come and spend the time together and they wanted a movie that could be family approved.  Aspects in movies that were frowned upon were any type of nudity or sexual language.   Also language was very censored they did not want much cursing in these movies since going to the theater was becoming a family affair.  Although being released before the Production Code was strictly enforced, you can still the see the effects just the thought or idea of it in the film.  The way Claudette Colbert was dressed in the film was very conservative with a collared dress that was very lengthy. And although Colbert had mainly one dress throughout most of the movie, she did wear another dress, her wedding dress was still very long and covered up most of her body.  However, the movie was still considered racy because of Gables shirtless scene, in today’s aspects that would be considered very minimal. 

            Another aspect that one can see the change in way movies were changing was how even though there was chemistry between the two characters there was no talk of sex because as Gable’s character would say, she was a “married woman”. According to the ideals of that time marriage should be take seriously.

            Although released a decade after The Gold Rush, the American audience were going through another era of hard times.  With the breakout of World War II in Europe and the looming idea of war was all in the American’s heads, so they just wanted escape.  Also the depression was still hitting the United States hard and movies were a great escape.

 

2) Find a related article (on the film, director, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, etc.) and summarize the content.  You may use the library or the internet.  

            Even though the movie was released in 1934, it is still relevant in today’s news since in 2013 the movie was revamped for a DVD release.  In the article “'It Happened One Night' overcame tough odds to become a classic” that appears in the LA Times in November of 2013, discusses the way that the movie was able to beat out the negative vibes in the beginning to become a comedy classic.   The article explains that in the beginning stages of production not a lot of actors wanted to take part of the film because of Columbia Studio’s “low budget, low-grade films” (King, LA TIMES, 2013).  The article went on to describe the projection path of success of the film. 

            It Happened One Night at first was not an instant success.  It only showed in New York for one week.  It wasn’t until it “went down to the neighborhood theaters” (King, LA TIMES, 2013) that the movie became a huge hit. The following year at the Oscar ceremony “It Happened One Night” swept the award ceremony. It won Best Director, Actor, Actress, and Screenplay it also won the coveted Best Picture award. It was the first time that any movie had ever won all five awards in one night. 

3) Apply the article to the film screened in class.   How did the article support or change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.?

I can totally understand and see the appeal of the movie.  It’s a funny movie with a simple story that can sound cheesy and formulaic but it was the first movie of its kind.  It was a movie that just made you laugh over the little things.  It is a movie that you kind of get attached to and begin to feel bad for the poor girl and for him to.  It’s one of those movies that you know what is going to happen but you still just want to watch it.

Compared to the movies that have won the Oscar for Best Picture in recent years I don’t think It Happened One Night fits in.  The movie is different from Charlie Chaplin’s The Gold Rush, while his was pure comedy; this one was a romantic comedy.  With a love story. And even though it was the underdog, it made itself a film classic.

4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including your personal opinion, formed as a result of the screening, class discussions, text material and the article.  I am less interested in whether you liked or disliked a film, (although that can be part of this) than I am in your understanding of its place in film history or the contributions of the director.

            The film overall was a good watch. It is a film that stands alone in history.  This was the final film that was released before the MPAA began to strictly enforce the Production Code.  The Production Code, would in the following years rule how movies would be made.  Movies during that era were much more conservative, but in It Happened One Night you can already being to see the effects the ideals of a culture.

            Being the first movie to sweep at the Oscars and the first to win all of the five major film awards, it is a historic movie.  It would be another 40 years before another movie was able to achieve the same feat. So It Happened One Night deserves a place in history.

            Personally I liked the movie, but it’s a type of movie that I would just watch once.  Colbert and Gable did have great chemistry with one another, they would become a comedy power duo, and they were funny but the movie did not have a strong plot.  You knew in the end that the two would end up together. But being one of the first films of its kind, it was something new during that time and people were not afraid to try new things and were open to change.  And screwball comedy was funny to them as was It Happened One Night.

References:

King , Susan. "'It Happened One Night' overcame tough odds to become a classic." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 14 Nov. 2013. Web. 24 Feb. 2014. <http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/moviesnow/la-et-mn-en-oscar-archives-it-happened-one-night-20131114,0,3386909.story#axzz2uHeSElBX

CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM 

1) (x  ) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class. 

2) ( x ) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper. 

3) (x  ) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text. 

4) ( x ) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper. 

5) ( x ) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read. 

6) ( x ) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography. 

7) (  x) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality. 

8) (x  ) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper. 



Name: _________Juan Ortiz______________________  Date: ______2/24/14________

The Gold Rush: Screening Report

1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening

            Charlie Chaplin was a true testament of an era that has been called by many as the “Golden era” of film.  In a time where American culture was changing everyday, where the way movies were seen was changing.  Many were going to movie theaters to watch these comedy movies as an escape from their daily life, a life of stress and money problems because of the hard times in the depression.  Chaplin’s films were the American publics way to laugh at their own issues.   In the early stages of film there was no color, no dialogue, and sometimes not even a script, just the action and a story.   

In the beginning of film, comedies were the popular genre of films.  So it would explain why most of the movies, actors and film companies during that time liked to focus mainly on comedies.  Comedy film stars made a lot of money because a lot of people loved coming to see comedies to distract them from their daily stresses.  Charlie Chaplin stood out among other stars and was the most beloved of the early film stars of the 1900s.  Within a couple of years Chaplin was the best paid film star in the world as well as being the most famous movie star in the world.  The Gold Rush was a comedic movie that not only made you laugh but also brought light to some issues that many Americans were dealing with at home, as well teach you a history lesson of the actual Gold Rush.  Most of the films during that era were meant to entertain but most of Chaplin’s films had a message, sometimes a crucial social message that he wanted the American public to understand.  The film dealt with issues like that related to hard-working middle to lower class of America.  Opening to critical acclaim The Gold Rush went on to make millions in a time where America was going through a tough economic stage. 

The Gold Rush was a movie that was perfect for its time.  A comedy movie that at times was driven by emotion, the same emotion that most of the American people were feeling at the time.  It was a movie made for its time and it had lived past that age and has become a classic, a comedic classic.  

2) Find a related article (on the film, director, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, etc.) and summarize the content.  You may use the library or the Internet.  

            The legacy of Chaplin is prevalent in any course of film history that any student can take.  In the article SuperTramp: The Enduring Legacy of Charlie Chaplin by Nicole Gagne, she states “Chaplin has become an icon not of silent comedy but of all comedy; not of Hollywood but of all filmmaking.” (Gagne, 2011)  The article talks about much of the films released in the early history of American film and how each of the giants of that era are looked at today.  And compares them to the legacy of Chaplin and how he has become one of the most recognizable figures in film of all time.

            The article takes a look at Chaplin as a symbol for the silent era of film, “Chaplin’s funniest, most touching, and most profound achievements in silent comedy” (Gagne, 2011) and again saying “Chaplin stands alone is in the unprecedented impact of his work, which remains without equal in the history of cinema”(Gagne, 2011).

For most of the article Gagne states the importance of the Chaplin legacy with the character he created of the “Little Tramp”.  The character of the little tramp was seen everywhere.  IN every movie the little tramp was the underdog who as much as he tried could not win, until of course in the end.   Even if one does not know who the Charlie Chaplin is they know the little tramp.  A photograph of the Little Tramp is still recognizable virtually everywhere in the world, almost 100 years after Chaplin first stepped in front of a camera. Gagne’s point in the article, “Chaplin’s films remain the flat-out funniest and most universal body of work in cinema” (Gagne, 2011). With his many films and his critical acclaim as being one of the funniest filmmakers in history of film garner Charles Chaplin the title of  “greatest comedian — and actor and filmmaker — of them all.” (Gagne, 2011)

3) Apply the article to the film screened in class.   How did the article support or change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.?

            The article only supported my feeling on Charlie Chaplin.  I had not seen The Gold Rush prior to the screening in class but I did have very favorable opinions of Charlie Chaplin.  I thought that his way of creating a message through humor was superb.  At times you didn’t know there was a message because you are too busy laughing but somehow you understand what he is trying to say.  The Gold Rush was released during Chaplin’s peak of world fame.  And is also considered by critics and himself one of his bests works. 

            The comedic gags didn’t need dialogue, there was no thought process behind it, they were just simple comedic gags.  Gags that made you laugh but overall the entire message of the movie does make you think.  The Gold Rush deals with poverty and what many miners had to deal with when they went to mine for gold.  The article kind of put Chaplin’s legacy in perspective with the film, I have heard a lot of Chaplin and had watched a couple of scenes and he was funny, but after watching the film it shows.  And some scenes like the chasing scene between Big Jim and the Little Tramp is just a classic scene and its just funny.  And completely agree with calling Chaplin one of the greatest comedians and filmmakers of all time.

4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including your personal opinion, formed as a result of the screening, class discussions, text material and the article.  I am less interested in whether you liked or disliked a film, (although that can be part of this) than I am in your understanding of its place in film history or the contributions of the director.

            Overall I think the film was phenomenal.  In today’s era of film there are so many special effects and sometimes you have to play so close attention if not you won’t understand the movie that watching a simple film with simple comedic gags is so refreshing.  During the time that this film was released was at a time where the film industry was still growing and the economic situation was not ideal for America.  Many were going to the movie theaters just to escape the harshness of they daily lives.  They would go to laugh and enjoy the movie.

            The movie also deals with an actual historical topic, the Gold Rush that happened in the late 19^th century where many men in a way to make more money would go to the top of mountains in the west to mine for gold.  Many men died in their journey to the top of the mountains and Chaplin referred to that in the film.

            The film is also a reference to the way film was growing during that time.  The black and white silent films of that era began to create plots and started to get longer.  In the beginning of film these films would be very short and would just show small or minor activities but as Chaplin and other filmmakers began to study film more they began to include film as a form of storytelling.  So they began telling stories through moving pictures and without sound or dialogue they were able to create and ambiance and understanding of the film was trying to tell.

            In my opinion The Gold Rush is an amazing classic film.  It is funny. While watching it you forget where you are and you are trapped in the movie and you are just in it.  It is funny because it is simple. The simplicity of Chaplin’s films are what makes them such great films, and makes him such a great filmmaker.

Works Cited:

Gagne, Nicole. "Super Tramp: The Enduring Legacy of Charlie Chaplin."Keyframe Explore the world of film. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. <http://www.fandor.com/keyframe/chaplins-legacy-why-the-super-tramp-is-superior-to-keaton-and-lloyd>.

CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM 

1) ( x ) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class. 

2) ( x ) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper. 

3) ( x ) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text. 

4) ( x ) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper. 

5) (x  ) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read. 

6) ( x ) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography. 

7) (  x) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality. 

8) ( x ) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper. 



Name: _________________Juan Ortiz_____________________  Date: ______2/17/14____________