Category: Blog 10/7

The article goes over how one of the biggest themes in the film Snowpiercer is the idea of lass divisions and how differently the poor on the train live from the rich. The critic brings up interesting points on how the “In contrast, the elite in the front of the train live as if perpetually on a decadently luxurious vacation, feasting on expertly prepared sushi and steak, pampered with pedicures, and dancing nights away in discotheques.” I had never thought of it this way, but it does seem like the front of the train were on a life long vacation on the train, with the frozen over world benefiting them, while the poor were in the back of the train, as the frozen world ruined their lives. Another interesting point brought up by the critic was how the director of the movie made it in a way that Curtis explored every part of the train like it was brand new, because it was for him as well as the audience. I agree with the critic, on all of this, as well as how the poor were so focused on getting out of the situation rather than falling in love which is a common theme in movies.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2014/06/26/snowpiercer-review/11258029/

 

 

 

The track “LAND OF THE FREE” by Joey has a thoughtful meaning to the racism and inequality that exists in America. Joey uses his platform to inform people about the corrupt government in which the American people live. Throughout the music video, there’s police brutality, white supremacists, and race division. In the article, it talks about how Obama’s presidency didn’t change how Americans judge the people of color. It actually shows the hate many people have against black people.

People have to realize and wake up and notice that the country is not here to benefit everyone that’s living in it. 

Joey uses his platform to create awareness that this is something that needs to be talked about. He faced these insecurities throughout his life, meaning other people of color did too. It’s not a feeling which younger kids of color should undergo. The little kids in the music video symbolize the need to build an environment that doesn’t harm future generations.

I believe Joey did an excellent job of using issues nowadays in his songs. It’s creative and thoughtful to do because of how big the music industry is. Getting a message across is easier than putting it on a poster that people only pass by.

Link: https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/21/politics/joey-badass-land-of-the-free-all-amerikkkan-badass/index.html

The Pursuit of Happyness portrays prejudice and racism

The author of this post argues that the movie exemplifies the hegemonic practises of racism and prejudice in our society. She sees racism in this movie’s context on a micro scale, by the actions taken by groups and individuals, while prejudice is seen on a macro scale, such that assumptions are made based on historical beliefs and stereotypes towards another group.

The example the author used to support her claims about racism is when the main character, Chris Gardner, a black man is always the one being asked to do favors around the office. He is the only one who is asked to get his superior coffee everyday, even though that is not part of his job description, and his needs are put below his superior, Mr. Frakesh’s needs when they both had important meetings. Even though Chris made it clear to Mr. Frakesh that he has probably one of the most important client meetings, Mr. Frakesh dismisses this and is adamant that Chris help him move his car.

On prejudice, the author uses a quote from the movie to explain. Chris is naturally gifted in logic and numbers. However, his employer, Jay Twistle is having trouble solving a Rubik’s cube. When Chris says “I’m pretty sure I can [solve the cube],” Jay immediately shuts him down, saying “No you can’t,” without giving him a chance, or knowing what he is capable of.  The author argues that this is because Whites are historically seen as superior in terms of intelligence, while Blacks are seen as physically superior, such as in sports and hard labor (slavery).  These are stereotypes believed perhaps by Jay, a rich white man.

This rhetorical analysis of the movie is interesting, because I have never though to look at this topic on a micro and macro scale. To me, I have always grouped racism and prejudice together because they go hand in hand. Thinking back, I can’t exactly categorize Mr. Frakesh’s actions as entirely racist, even though there are discriminatory undertones to his actions. Why does he only make Chris do his chores, when there are other people in the office? Chris is the only black person. Before Chris, did he make anybody else do his errands? Possibly, and the person he chose could have been white. With Jay, I can see where the author is coming from, given the historical context and beliefs, however looking through Jay’s perspective, if a random stranger told you that they can do something you’ve been trying days to solve, I’d be pretty hesitant too. Perhaps it was his choice of words “NO, you CAN’T,” that made the connection that no, your intellectually inferior race can’t solve something that the successful white man can’t do.

Given the theme of the movie and some of the arguments made above, I’d use these pieces of information to argue that race and prejudice is actually an obstacle to those on the pursuit of happiness, that even though it is a constitutional right, the access to this pursuit is not the same for everyone.

 

https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/bad-bunny-yhlqmdlg/

YHLQMDLG stands for Yo hago lo que me da la gana which in english means I do whatever I want, This album is what brought Bad Bunny to where he is now he became a global super star. In the Album he speaks about many different things and he made music for all his fans whether they want trap or just plain sad music he made it. Reporter Mathew Ruiz from pitchfork said “the album is almost flawless” which one hundred percent agree with, Bad bunny even said that this album is not his best one that he has a lot more coming and that just shows how much and how good he is. To me the album is the best album of 2020 hands down. The album came out in billboards top 200 in the world and for the latin billboards it remains number one after 8 months of its release.

Race matters in “Black Panther” and it matters deeply, not in terms of Manichaean good guys and bad but as a means to explore larger human concerns about the past, the present and the uses and abuses of power. That alone makes it more thoughtful about how the world works than a lot of mainstream movies, even if those ideas are interspersed with plenty of comic-book posturing. It wouldn’t be a Marvel production without manly skirmishes and digital avatars. Yet in its emphasis on black imagination, creation and liberation, the movie becomes an emblem of a past that was denied and a future that feels very present. And in doing so opens up its world, and yours, beautifully.

The writer of this article analyzes and summarizes the movie Black Panther. As the writer recaps the story they talk about certain details of it all. The writer mentions how the writers of blank panther mad a point out of adding Black empowerment. They also added a touch of women empowerment as well. They wanted to make Black panther different from typical marvel movies. The writer even states that “Most big studio fantasies take you out for a joy ride only to hit the same exhausted story and franchise-expanding beats. Not this one.” They mention this which adds an emphasis on the uniqueness of this movie.

I agree with the closing paragraph which I quoted above. Race was a huge factor in Black Panther. It breaks stereotypes and it paints a positive image for black people. Which made this movie an inspiration to the community for its representation. It also makes viewers think about the problems in society regarding the black community because they display them in the film.

https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/shutter-island-15-1920058.html

“Instead he’s gone and made one of the most hysterical films of his career, a B-movie schlocker that hurries through dungeons and dark chambers like some hapless innocent in a Gothic novel.” – Anthony Quinn

I believe this critique of the film does it no justice whatsoever. The film goes into such depth about mental health and the decline of one’s perception of true reality. All the dungeons and dark chambers are representative of all the issues plaguing our main character on his quest to sanity. This film isn’t hysterical at all and it makes you question the plot as much as the characters within it. It most definitely isn’t a B-movie as there is so much in depth connections made and it’s truly a masterpiece in how it portrays the clever doctors in constructing a fictional realm where our main character faces his insanity.

LINK: https://medium.com/@MattyJay/snowpiercer-film-analysis-f32ec16240ac

James compares the train in Snowpiercer to the capitalistic society. He believes that the working class receives the scraps the of the upper class and nobility. Additionally, he believes that the upper class only looks forward to the future represented by the conductor section of the train, and that the upper class is oblivious to the tribulations of the working class due to their lavish lifestyle. Thus, the upper class is ignorant of the working class’ condition. However, he compares the middle class to the mixture of the two where they analyze their surroundings  to promote change but have the benefits of the high quality of life of the upper class. Furthermore, James specifically compares the location of one to their class. The upper class have clubs, salons and steak, the working class have bed sheets, ripped clothing, and “protein” bars, and the middle class have education, gardens, and fish bar.

I agree with James’ argument because the color and other dialogues support’s his belief. The differences between the upper class and the working class are distinct. When Wilford’s wife comes to take children, the color variations are apparent. Moreover, the wife is wearing a fancy yellow dress and has blond hair in a sea of grey and black. Every individual in the tail section has colorless outfits and the setting was colorless. Consequently, the color difference reveals the wealth gap between the 2 classes since the tail section does not have the ability to acquire such fancy colorful clothing. Also Wilford controls the population, fear, and anxiety of the tail section which is similar to how upper classes usually and have controlled the working class.

After watching the movie, I felt as though the message was pretty clear: become vegetarian. That’s putting it pretty bluntly, but the movie was all about how horrible the industrial food corporations are, so my first assumption was that the movie’s goal was to push me to taking meat entirely out of my diet. I like barbecues, so while I thought it was a good message, and perhaps a good source of food for thought, I never really considered vegetarianism as a legitimate option. Reading this article didn’t change my mind on what the message was, but it did change my mind on what I can do to make a difference. The article agreed with my general understanding of the movie’s message: industrial meat corporations are pretty horrible, but their takeaway was completely different, and much more manageable. Their solution was not to stop eating meat, but eating less, because in general, corporations have to look at the diets of their consumers. If their consumer’s diets change to be less meat based, then less meat will be produced. While that seems like it wouldn’t change the way that they produce, but rather simply change the quantity; the impact is much larger than it may at first seem. Meat companies have had one issue for a very long time: keeping up with demand. To do this, they have begun using chemicals and attempting things like genetic engineering to increase the size and fat content of their animals. If producers begin to see from their consumers that they want less meat, and that they want it to be more natural or organic, then they will change their production to do this. In all, the article didn’t necessarily change my understanding of the film, but added new knowledge, and enhanced my understanding of the situation.