Batman: The Dark Knight

Batman: The Dark Night, a trilogy converted from a comic book by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, has been adapted into several different 'Batman' movies. The Dark Night is without a doubt an incredible film, filled with not only amazing acting, props and emotion, but it deals with several logical and mental issues and decisions not only by Batman himself, but also from other characters like the joker. 

The storyline follows Batman/Bruce Wayne, Gordon and Harvey Dent as they launch an attack on the mob, in the process unleashing the Joker on Gotham city, whose only objective is to release havoc on the city, and bring any so called hero down to his bellowed level. 

The Dark Night contains several characters which can surprise the audience beyond belief and give them a total depth into the mind of different people. The audience is also introduced to the power of influence one can have not only over one person, but over a whole city. 

Batman, portrayed by Christian Bale, is looked at as this unbelievable hero to some, but still a nuisance to others who seek that attention. Harvey Dent played by Aaron Eckhart, the newly elected district attorney of Gotham, is in a relationship with Rachel Dawes portrayed by Maggie Gyllenhaal, who so happened to be an old childhood friend of Bruce Wayne. This relationship causes some strife between Harvey and Bruce because they are both in love with Rachel, and Rachel tends to be in love with both of them. 

While Batman disguises himself to protect the citizens, all, some people can think about are the few civilians killed during the acts. The Joker sends out a warning to the city over a broadcast, announcing that he will kill people everyday until Batman reveals who eh really is. This tends to set up the rest of the events that occur through the film.

One of the major film techniques that Christopher Nolan the directer and producer of the film uses is lighting. This is seen throughout the film and it really enhances the mood by creating dark and gloomy feelings. By having the different lighting it also changes the scene tempo from being a relaxed conversation in a bright room, to a dark and exhilarating car chase through an underground parking garage. 

The film also dealt a lot with decisions and how people make them. We see this several times throughout, but very adamantly when the two boats have bombs, and when the Joker 'converts' Harvey Dent to the dark side. 

On the boats we see how people are put against people at the hands of the Joker. He sends a message to the boats saying you each have remotes to set off the bomb on the other boat. If neither boat complies he will blow up both boats at 12am. This shows how the Batman is separating people from people, and intriguing those to make decisions regarding the lives of others.

The next we see is Harvey Dent, who has been burned quite bad on the one side of his body turning to the dark side through the luck of chance. A devastated Harvey caused by the death of Rachel, walks around now with a gun and a coin. If the coin falls on one side your dead, but if it falls on the other luck was on your side and you get to live.

Through this film we see how the actions of people can influence a city, and one can notice the intensity found through the decisions that everyday people have to make, and even some that will break them.

The film was definitely amazing and would be strongly recommended as it left the viewer at the edge of their chair and intrigued by the incredible acting and productions. 

From Hell

From Hell, a film about the Victorian Era in London troubled by the increasing murders by the notorious Jack the Ripper. Originally a graphic novel by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell, converted to a movie written by Terry Hayes and Rafael Yglesias and directed by Albert Hughes proved to be an overall success in the opinion of critics. 

The film created a very old feeling which tended to take away from the real intensity of these murders.

I personally did not like this movie, not only because I don't like gore, but it didn't seem to portray the entire events accurately. As well by giving an assumption of who Jack the Ripper is it took away from the mystery that is the unknown identity of the man or woman, only known as Jack the Ripper. 

I did find the acting to be standard, but there was definitely nothing beyond special in this movie. I did find the representation of the two classes was well played out, proving the insane difference between the poor class and the rich class. The movie portrays London very well in that time period, but i didn't like the movie as an overall film. 

Crash!

The film Crash, directed and written by Paul Haggis covers the daily lives of people in Los Angeles struggling with segregation because race, as well as the struggle of loss, and eventually redemption. The movie dealt with the extreme stories of everyday people who deal with segregation due to their race, as well as the loss and redemption that everyday people deal with. The movie stars many notable actors which enhance the overall performance and popularity of the film. Such actors included; Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Sean Cory, and Matt Dillon. The film certainly did include a great script and good use of film techniques, which evidently led to the high ratings a good reviews.

Although this movie had many great aspects, personally, I did not find this at all appealing, nor did it come across as sending a message strongly. It definitely had a good script, but there were way too many not needed scenes, and a couple unnecessary characters. I believe this movie would have been a lot better, and would have made the message stronger if it were a short 30-45 min film, but when it carried on to almost 2 hours, it became a bit over the top.

The film dealt with extremity in every manor, sometimes over exaggerating which eventually led to decrease in power of the overall story. Although exaggerated, the story definitely portrayed the necessary message, of the reality of how people stereotype one another. The movie as well did a good job introducing and enforcing the racial segregation in society.

Through the eyes of many characters the audience was also given the opportunity to deal with violence, sadness, death and eventually self realization. The movie created a very stereotypical view on certain ethnic group which if anything encouraged the way everyday people view these ethnicities. I found the film demonstrated this in a possible non-effective way because it encouraged these portrayal as opposed to discouraging it.

Overall I found this movie could have been a lot better if there were a little less of the un-necessary characters, and maybe sent the real message of anti-racial discrimination in a more forward fashion.

Apocalypse Now

Apocalypse Now, a film criticized for years, but definitely beat all odds through the incredible reviews and awards won. The film follows the story of Captain Benjamin Willard as he proceeds on a mission through Vietnam in the height of the war. His mission ends up taking him deep into Cambodia to assassinate Colonel Kurtz who has turned barbaric and slowly more and more ugly as war persisted. 

The movie incorporates many themes from madness as a result of war to the emptiness of human values. Throughout, we notice how the characters slowly become more and more crazy as a result to the intense surroundings that they live upon. We notice this mainly in Kurtz, who as the ugliness of war continuously surrounds him, he takes upon that role and becomes more ugly. As the  movie comes to an end we hear Kurtz say "the horror, the horror" which really depicts how he truly feels about the madness which he has seen, and how its shaped the people affected.

We also see how war results in the impression of the de-value of specifically American values. As we notice in this movie, the Vietnamese are fighting for their home and land, while American troops are more engaged by the playboy girls and the idea of going surfing. These so called values prove the absurdity of what the soldiers were living for. 

The movie also incorporated an amazing soundtrack, with incredible effects and sound. In the beginning the audience is captivated with an intense shock of fire along the tree line, out of no where. This leads to the introduction of war, and the corruption of Willard's mind as we see him drunk and drugged up. 

Specifically the movie did an incredible job with the use of lighting. The audience is initialized with a majority of dark lighting which surely assists with the mood and feeling expected in the film. The darkness also represents the emphasis on the absence of civilization. We also notice that the film becomes darker and darker as the boat slowly gets deeper up stream. This represents the mind filling up with darkness, and the lack of feelings. The lighting also represents the sense of confusion for the people as it strains from darkness to lightness not only physically but also in the emotions of all the people in the situation. 

Although I personally did not enjoy this film as much as most people, I definitely appreciate the art that went into it and made it so popular. I specifically found it confusing to follow and understand, but enjoyed the extremity of it. 

Forrest Gump

Forrest Gump, an incredible movie which takes the audience through an epic tale about a man named Forrest who may not be the most intelligent one out there, but he so happens to be at a variety of historical events through time. From a young child Forrest knew he was different, and the majority of people around him noticed too. This was until he meets Jenny who turns into Forrest's one true love, but she barely recognizes it until she they are both much older. 

This film, shares the important life lesson to its viewers that no matter who you are, or what obstacles are placed in front of you, one can always get past them through courage and determination. Forrest exquisitely exemplifies this through his running, and his determination to never give up on his dreams and 'his Jenny'. 

Forrest Gump not only is present during many historical events like the Vietnam War, the assassination of the American president, but he is also around during the discovery of Elvis Presley  and John Lennon. Through this exemplification of the events the audience is given a brief tour of history through the oblivious Forrest. 

This movie was incredibly directed and filmed, providing the audience with the much needed perception of a less intelligent man who runs through life quite oblivious of his surroundings. 

Credits go to Tom Hanks for his amazing performance in this film. He really proved to the audience his outstanding skills, and his great portrayal of the character. 

The film music was also beyond incredible throughout the entire movie. It consisted of music from many time periods and was incorporated very nicely into the story line. This was done through not only film music, but also real music, such as when Forrest was sitting in a room with the soon to be famous Elvis Presley singing and dancing with him.

Overal this was an incredible movie which encompassed romance, comedy and drama into a 2.5 hours. The film made the audience fall in love with the idea of Forrest and Jenny, and eventually made them fall in love with little Forrest, who Forrest proudly is the father of.

Ghosts of Rwanda

Ghosts of Rwanda, a documentary made 10 years after the initial genocide, encompasses some of the stories from survivors, as well as military personal who where in the country. Unlike the scripted and hollywood made movies; Hotel Rwanda and Shake Hands with the Devil, the documentary gave the audience a completely different perspective and a very real picture of what happened.

In Ghosts of Rwanda, the film has real footage from the actual massacre including shots of thousands of dead bodies, and people being butchered and killed in front of society. 

Personally I found the documentary to be a much better depiction of the event, due to the real aspect of it. This film, gave from the perspective of the people effected, whether physically, emotionally or psychologically. 

In this specific film the audience is given more insight onto the people effected, which gave off a real and raw emotion which strongly influenced the audience. Unlike Hotel Rwanda which tells mainly one story-regarding the Hotel Des Milles Collines, and Shake Hands with the Devil which surrounds mainly the military personal, this documentary gave all that perspective, plus more within one show. 

The film gave off the perception of how useless the world was when it came to the travesty of Rwanda, especially because you see the so call 'Peace-Keepers" wanting to take out their troops, as well as not being able to protect the citizens who seek help.

Overall, even if one would not say this was an excellent film, it still sent across the right message, and gave across the necessary information that the world was needing to see. 

Shake Hands with the Devil

Shake Hand with the Devil, a true Canadian film based off of the story of general Romeo Dallaire's persistence to help end the 1994 Genocide in Rwanda. The film premiered in 2007, but was based originally from the book of the same title. The film stars Roy Dupuis who played an excellent reenactment of Gen. Romeo Dallaire. 

Throughout the film, it held many elements which assisted in contributing to the power and message this movie was trying to send across. 

Personally I did enjoy this film, but definitely not as much as I enjoyed Hotel Rwanda. I found this specific film to base itself too much off of the government's point of view, as suppose to the people. Contrary to majority opinion I found this movie did not grab enough of the audiences emotions, and made it seem more as a biography on what the Canadians did to help the genocide from continuing.

Although, I have to admit this movie was definitely amazing, with strong actors, scripts and very real settings. The acting, and how the people portrayed the actual victims was very well done, and must receive credit for that. 

I without a dout do believe that this movie portrayed the overall genocide very real, and very raw. Specifically the scene where the woman slips, and only after realized she had slipped in blood does it become real that this horrendous event is taking place right in front of the worlds eyes. 

Shake Hands with the Devil did an excellent job in portraying the genocide, while still showing how the world looked, and took very little interest in what was truly going on.