This film is one of the more emotional ones that I have ever seen. The story of Cyril from the start of the movie is a heart-warming one, wherein the tone of the movie is set. To truly analyze the movie as a whole, the audience must be thinking critically to a point where they can trace the origin of Cyril’s actions; which is from him being abandoned by his father. In the film, Samantha functions as a safe haven for Cyril, and is the “voice of reason” throughout the movie. Also, throughout the movie Cyril is torn between making the decision of staying within the safe route (Samantha), and going down the route in which he thinks he will make his father proud (The Dealer).
The main themes touched upon in the movie are the, father-son bonds, and making the right decisions. Cyril’s innocence and young nature is made apparent to the audience not only through his appearance, but the camera angles and way that he is shown. He is seen as almost “untouched” yet, and still pure. Another thing to note about Cyril is that most of the time there is a lot of light shined on him. This aids in creating his pure, innocent nature, as opposed to being shown as a dark or gloomy character. Lastly, Samantha’s influence overcomes Cyril at the end, showing that he truly did make the right decision.
Though the film did have some great acting by the protagonist, I think that the clear focus and purpose of the movie was not established. The film did have some underlying principles such as experiencing life for the first time, and how one needs others to interact with. Still, I think the events and the way that the writers went about accomplishing this goal was in an unsuccessful manner. As I said before, the acting of Ariane Labed impressed me, as she aptly portrayed a woman who was very naïve and still searching through life for a purpose.
In the film Marina’s father Spyros did serve a purpose as an example of what Marina thought that she was destined to. Spyros has no hope, he is terminally ill, and is basically counting the days down on his calendar until his death. This lack of a goal or a future is passed on to Marina, and she embraces this same outlook on life as her father. This outlook changes when she has her sexual experience, and it does make her realize that there is more to life than the way that she is currently living. This one change in her character can be seen as an interesting point in the plot of the movie, but I still think that it could have been achieved through a more creative means.
The Kid with a Bike was a great movie that evoked plenty of emotion. Mostly for me, I tried to feel hopeful that Cyril would be able to straighten everything out in his young but difficult life. I found a major theme of relationships in the film as well. His father, a person he should be very close to, abandoned his son leaving him lonely and desperate. And Samantha, a stranger, helps Cyril to make the right decisions. She helps him make choices, like which routes to take, but ultimately it is up to Cyril what he will do. When Cyril is on his bike he is always riding towards or away from something but either way, the only time he feels free is when he is on his bike. I didn't love this film, but for some reason I felt emotionally attached to it which made me enjoy watching it.
Attenberg was a film that I didn't expect to like before I saw it, and I was somewhat correct. I found the acting to be surprisingly good, especially by the main character, but the plot didn't really catch my attention. The whole movie was about self-recognition and being who you are. Marina experienced a few moments of sexual discovery as well as mental development. Her relationship with her father is poor because of her dislike and lack of interest in human relationships. Her father's lack of hope rubbed off on Marina and she ends up living a life without a will to achieve anything. While she experiences his death and other life defining moments she really starts to turn into the woman she was destined to be. While her self realizations were somewhat interesting, the plot was too dry and strung out for me to truly enjoy.
Although “The Kid With a Bike” seemed like one of the more simple films I’ve seen, it had a very powerful message and meaning. It was a portrayal of a poor young boy named “Cyril” that was completely ignored by his biological father. The relevance of the Bike within the story had symbolism of being the only connection with his dad, since it was the only material possession he had remaining that his father gave him. Throughout the film, the young boy was constantly very stubborn to everyone in his life, and clearly didn’t care about anything else besides living with his father again. However, their was another important relationship between him and Samantha who constantly showed affection and care for the boy but he never accepted it as a replacement to his father’s. He always went back to his Dad to gain his approval, but even when he came back from money that he stole, the boy was rejected. In this perspective, the film did an exceptional job with adding to the atmosphere of the disappointment in Cyril by adding very heartbreaking music and including obvious-looking sad gestures. Cyril also comes off as being very calm and relaxed whenever he rides his bike most likely because it reminds him when he was with his father. His father simply didn’t want him back because he was afraid of commitment and responsibility to raise a child.
If someone has ever seen before, he or she would find very familiar. I believe it is not only me who has noticed how deeply the directors are fearful about advanced technologies and modern society. Like the parents in Dogtooth who “imprisoned” their kids, the farther in Attenberg did not let his daughter know anything about the modern society common rules. In the movie, Marina tried to reject the truth that she is a human being. She likes animals and animal related documentaries rather than socializing with other human beings. The director seems trying to demonstrate the idea that mankind does not need technologies; even with advanced technologies, mankind does not appeal to be superior to animals that human share the same social attributes as animals do. All these was resulted from unusual but not necessarily impropriate educational systems—just like that kind of education Marina’s dad gave her. Marina, her dad and Bella imitated lots of different animals in the movie, which seemed like they were trying to find ways out to snort their feelings while repositioning them. The movie was trying to promote the idea that without dogmatic strains, human being can present a lot more different behavior patterns and even different personality patterns.
Right from the start, I knew that Attenburg was going to be one of the strangest movies I have ever seen. The first scene opens up with two women kissing each other and one of them is trying to teach the other to French kiss. I had no idea after the first scene what to expect from the movie. As it turns out, and the plot unfolds, I began to like the movie a little more. The plot make me think a lot about certain things. This movie allowed me to get a sense of what it was like to be a person who had a hard time fitting in and didn’t have many people to talk to or to rely on. The movie’s Main character was a woman named Marina, who is very socially awkward and is trying to learn how people make friends, interact, and adjust to other people in society. The only person she understands and who understands her is her best friend Bella and her father. All Bella has is these two people along with her animals. Throughout the movie, Marina is being exposed to new things and it is really confusing because I wanted to know why she turned out to be so strange in the first place. It is almost seems as if she was hidden away her whole life because he characteristics reminded me of a very young child. She develops a relationship with a guy and has no idea of what to do. The movie made me very uncomfortable at times but at the same time it was very interesting. I would only recommend this movie to anyone that prefers independent films over blockbusters.
Going into watching The Kid With the Bike, I didn't know what to expect. The movie started out slow and I had no idea what was happening. I started to feel extremely terrible for the boy, Cyril, because his father abandoned him without word and left him all by himself. After the boy was sort of re-adopted by Samantha, I figured the movie would show how their lives work out together. Instead of this simple happy ending, the movie twists into Cyril meeting a bunch of nasty children that have formed their own sort of gang and end up absolving him into it and committing a crime. In Cyril's given situation, I would understand why the kid would be upset but the way he acted towards Samantha and how he treated her evoked a strong emotion from me. I felt myself become extremely angry at the boy and wanting him to get in trouble for what he did. Also the ending left the audience hanging and it didn't come to an absolute ending and it ends with the new family having a happy dinner party. Overall, it was an interesting movie that developed from a slow start and proved to be more exciting than I expected. I enjoyed watching it and would recommend it to my friends. Alexandra Ball C07809270
Kid with a Bike first struck me as a movie that was trying to be realistic, but I just couldn’t get myself to believe what was going on as the movie dragged on. A conventional American plot would have been Cyril acting out in the beginning, he gets taken in, gets in some trouble, and eventually becomes better. The movie follows that pattern to some extent, but I feel like Cyril never really learned anything at the end and the finish to the movie was very anti-climatic. Cyril constantly brought pain to the woman taking care of him. I just couldn’t bring myself to believe after all he did to her, she would just take him back and not care about anything that happened. With all that being said, I think the movie does do a good job of making the viewer feel good at the end of the film. This is because of the Cyril’s dad that is a typical deadbeat that doesn’t want to take responsibility for his son. Cyril’s dad is supposed to be a bad guy and not care about his son, but again the character just came off as unbelievable. I don’t think the actors themselves were bad, I just feel like they didn’t fulfill their roles well. I feel the director could have done a better job making the actors become their characters. The only actor that truly became his role was Cyril, but he didn’t seem to change by the end of the movie. Overall I’d say the movie was worth seeing but I came away disappointed by what it could have been.
ROMEO AND JULIET BALLET
Romeo and Juliet is the oldest of most known love story the world knows. However, the ballet was a waste on me. I don’t want to say I hate ballet, but I just don’t think I am old enough to appreciate the art form, especially in a movie theatre. I feel like ballet is a lot opera or plays, being present for the production helps you feed off the energy of the performers. Sitting in a movie theatre for three hours watching the ballet seemed like I was just watching a dance video. I have seen and read almost every single adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, but was lost trying to figure what was going on in the ballet. I was constantly thinking I knew what scene was going on, only to find out minutes later I was mistaken. The costumes were extremely well put together, but I was still confused as to who was doing what. I could tell what scenes were supposed to be exciting or sad because of the tremendously talented symphony that was playing for the ballet. I could say my first experience seeing a ballet would have been much better if I had seen the performance in person because I would have really enjoyed the music. I cannot say that the dancers were not talented or the set or costumes were poor because they were all exceptional. However, I am just not at a point to appreciate the intricacies of ballet yet and did not enjoy it.
Attenberg was a very different and strange movie but I actually found it enjoyable. I think the strangeness of the movie related to Marina’s extreme awkwardness for her age. I didn’t understand the significance of the scene that shows her shoulder blades sticking out or why that was the cover of the movie. That cover made me think the movie was very different from what it was actually about. Marina and Bella had a very strange relationship. The first scene in which Bella tries to teach Marina how to kiss is very weird and awkward. Then when Marina has enough they begin to squat and hiss at each other like animals. Although Marina is more immature and socially awkward than Bella, they shared the same strangeness. This was also apparent in the scenes where they are dressed similarly and walk strangely along the path outside. Even though Marina went to Bella for advice and seemed to get along with her, she clearly didn’t trust her. When her dad asked her why she hadn’t told Bella about the guy she was seeing, she said she didn’t because Bella would flirt with him. Also, since Marina was so close to her dad, it must have been very awkward for her to think that Bella had a secret crush on her dad. I think Marina was friends with Bella because she didn’t have any other options, not because she particularly liked her or trusted her.
I really enjoyed Attenberg. I think the story is somewhat relatable to almost everyone – whether it is going through one’s first sexual relationship, feeling like an outcast, or coping with a parent who is on the brink of death.
The production designer did a great job matching the mood of the film with the scenery and setting. The seaside town Marina, Spyros, and Bella live in is grey and gloomy, all the buildings look similar, and all the colors of walls and clothing are dark or earthy. This relates to how Marina feels about her life – the loneliness and the coping and processing. The only exception to this color scheme seems to be when Bella and Marina are having fun walking strangely down a street or when they are singing that French song.
I found Marina imitating the animals she sees in the documentaries she watches with her father an interesting coping mechanism. I think because Marina finds herself unable or unwilling to relate to humans, she takes comfort in acting like animals; something she wishes she could be or something she can more easily relate to. I think this shows viewers that the definition of fitting in varies from person to person and that should be accepted.
Kid With A Bike The Kid with a Bike is the emotional journey of Cyril trying to decide what path he must follow. The main theme of the movie was all about relationships, with one of the main one being the father son relationship. Cyril father abandoning him had a huge impact on him and would any innocent child. All he wanted to do was make the man who left him proud of him. Samantha, a stranger tried to do the best she could and lead Cyril in the right direction although most of the time he didn’t always directly take the advice. In the movie, he always seemed to be going towards something or tyring to get away, something that a young child should not have to worry about. He seems most comfortable on the bike, but not in a way that the average child feels comfortable on a bike. I loved riding my back for fun and to play, not deliver stolen money. This was not my favorite plot ever but I feel that the film was delivered in the emotional way it was meant to and I enjoyed it.
In every man's heart, lived a youngth. The young may steal things, may be behind the first cigarette smoke, may fall from the tree, and may also run like a gale. The bicycle young ", Cyril, will make many men thought of his boyhood, rather, from childhood to young the transition period, the days of those rainy day, the sensitive ignorant, recklessly anxiety. Cyril father was away, and meet the business salon with a kind of samantha him, and sent him see father, with him for the weekend. Cyril but natural disposition is agitated, and samantha can't get along with peace. And in small rascal abetted the assault passers-by, steal the money. But in the end MiTuZhiFan, farewell misguided growth short paragraphs. Narrative style from it, the film not too theatricalize plot, basic just life scenes of retelling. And not up to turn story bearing, give all things causal relationship, but dull or tile draw some comics, indifferent to like water. Watchers drink tasteless, experience of the sweet taste. One of the young men running again and again, is so natural associate to "four hundred". The same age, children, different annoyance and life, but close some emotional. Finally went in the growth and with a smile, or a drop of tears. Maybe two directors also interested in Florida, lu to close to, or gratitude. For show at the age of 12 children the exuberant vitality and unsolicited rebellious period, not only with the director has been closely with photography trace Cyril movements, more in the lens is crazy to dispatch the internal small actor, and down, road hog forced. Of the above mentioned is running is the top priority, Cyril heart halcyon down before, he almost never a moment is quiet, forever in the fast to run toward the depth of place, or go upstairs, in short, is set to run the periphery of the emotional Cyril performance. In various form, and be in various forms of expression. When Cyril fell from the tree, coma and get up and clap ride away soil. Bad experience is like those dirt, clap and off but quickly forgotten, and the new life without stopping to take up office. Suddenly discovered that the movie another possibility: not only is the Cyrillic present, also may be a male audience every memories of the body. Only look back, when the fighting cuts hurt yourself event, just appear so indifferent, light wind, and caresses surface is fleeting. Two heavy-hitters include the brother of shoulder carried within, the subject matter and the choice of story than the previous relatively simple. Just like two people with you after the meal gossip, and not like a prize for the passion for language, such as "the Pope was born" that one. So the hope that should not, as a day up, and recite a poem!
I went into Attenberg with an open mind because I knew it was going to be somewhat strange and this was proven from the very first scene where the two women were kissing. Throughout the movie, I began to feel a connection to Marina because I empathized for her. Her socially awkward-ness was really felt throughout the film. The film allows you to feel a great deal of emotion and an equal amount of loneliness, displayed through the main character. At first, I felt that the movie's strangeness would effect my overall view on the film itself, but as time went on, I began to enjoy it more.
Attenberg was without question the weirdest film I saw this semester, perhaps even in my lifetime, but that is not to say that it wasn’t one of my favorites. Sometimes it can be refreshing to see a unique film that you don’t fully understand. Attenberg confuses me more than any other film I saw this semester and I am still questioning aspects of it to this very day. I think the main purpose of the film was to examine the development of a seemingly “normal” girl with bizarre antisocial habits. Although she is definitely immature, Marina doesn’t appear to have any blatant disabilities or conditions that contribute to her socially awkward nature. It is almost as if Marina has chosen to live life at her own pace rather than the one set by society. The most bizarre scenes in the film were the ones where Marina and her only friend Bella would walk in choreographed synchronized steps for no apparent reason. These scenes were scattered throughout the film and I believe the purpose of them is to confuse the viewer and add to Marina’s childish image. Bella is a character that lies on the polar opposite spectrum of social interaction. Bella has slept with countless men and does not posses the childlike innocence of Marina. Not only is Marina a virgin, but she also hasn’t even kissed a man before. She has many awkward conversations about a man’s penis with her father and at one point she even mentions to her father that she wishes she could just sleep with him. Her interest in sex and adult relationships doesn’t seem to be based off of any physical attraction or desire at all which is not normal in society. Both Bella and Marina’s dying father try to urge Marina to come out of her shell and she finally does when she meets the engineer. Her relationship with the engineer is anything but orthodox but is a big step in Marina’s introduction to adult relationships and society
The film I am most impressed by the period of play is the relationship between daughter and father, father and daughter feeling better, and even play animal in bed together, having all the fun! Fragments of their conversation is always sitting in a white room in a strange chair, giving the feeling of cold. Later, father's illness, the face of death, lay dying across the masks we forced breathing, the kind of tacit understanding there are still also a kind of emotional exchange.
Few movie characters, they are like sitting in the dead city, the people have not seen more, perhaps because the heroine was to be a friend to teach road! With the death of his father, the female lead car to leave the scene of the site, perhaps on behalf of her out of the concrete dead city!
The Kid with a Bike was one of the movies that I have enjoyed the most so far throughout this class, although I will admit I was not expecting to initially, as I find many movies centered around a child actor to miss their mark, as often the actor cannot pull of the role. This was not the case in this film, as the main character, Cyril, was excellently acted. The film centers around Cyril and a relationship he builds with a woman. He is a foster child who is forced to live in a home, but a kind woman he meets one day starts taking him in on the weekends and spending time with him. Cyril begins to transition from a sad and angry child to a much brighter and livelier one. However, things take a turn when Cyril is basically recruited into a gang and talked into robbing two people. He badly wants the acceptance of a father figure and hurts the people, which is out of his character, to steal the money from them. At the end of the film, Cyril’s victims see him riding his bike and chase him up into a tree. A boy throws a rock at Cyril and he falls, getting knocked unconscious. It looked as if the movie was taking a very dark turn as Cyril didn’t move for a long time, but he eventually just gets up and rides his bike away. Overall, the movie showed the power and strength, both positively and negatively, that relationships can have on a child.
Attenberg This was a very strange movie but with that came some very good acting from Marina. This was really hard to just follow and understand sometimes just because of how weird it was. The relationships between Marina and her father whether it be before the movie in her childhood or dealing with her fathers death has a huge impact on her life. Marina is definitely not a normal person and you question what’s either wrong with her or what her plan is. Bella’s influence on her tries to break her out of her shell, as does her father. She needed to go meet someone and did in the engineer.
Attenberg was definitely the weirdest movie I have seen in a while. There was definitely a shock value to it, as when I saw the movie, I had gone to see Kid with a Bike beforehand, and during that screening, they accidentally showed the first scene of Attenberg and half of the audience walked out. The first scene, in which two girls sloppily make out for about a minute, sets up what is to be a very strange movie and strange relationship between the girls. The whole movie centers around the main character, Marina, coping with the coming death of her father, who is terminally ill. As a way to cope with this, she acts out wildlife documentaries and pretends that she is in them. She also goes through a lot of awkward sexual discovery with her best friend and then later her first boyfriend. The film even ends with Marina asking her friend to sleep with her dying father, which she does, and it puts a fairly shocking end on a very odd movie. Even though the movie was very odd, it was still fairly enjoyable as I thought it was well acted and while the main character was very strange, in the end she was really just trying to fit in to a degree.
I wasn't exactly sure what to expect when I went to see Attenberg, but I did expect to see something really weird. I wasn't wrong. Attenberg was an incredibly strange and awkward film. I guess that is a fitting way for a film about a girl in a very awkward situation should to make its audience members feel. Marina is a naive girl who is discovering her sexuality at a rather late age. The film opens up with her making out with her best friend Bella. This immediately sets the mood for the rest of the movie. Bella is teaching Marina how to kiss, and Marina is not enjoying it. As the film progresses, Marina slowly discovers who she is and what she likes. Until she gets with a man, she never realized she liked men. While Marina is very naive, Bella is the complete opposite. There is a stark contrast between these two girls, highlighted by the differences in their sexual experiences. As Marina says, Bella is a "big slut." It is interesting to note that Bella and Marina are very similar in appearance, only different in personality. They dress the same, and enjoy each other's company. Bella, who is slightly shorter than Marina, always wears shoes that make them about level on height, giving them the appearance of being doubles. While Marina is still growing into life, her father is slowly fading out of it. I believe this film is about contrasts- naive and tainted, young and old. Marina's father has lived his whole life, and he shares his outlooks with Marina. The two have forged a strong relationship, and it is sad to see her father pass away. Before her father passes, Marina wishes to give him one last gift- a night with Bella. It is interesting that she decides to gift such a strange thing to her dying father, especially since Marina has so little knowledge on sex. After his passing, he is shipped off to be cremated and his ashes are scattered out on the open ocean. While at times depressing, this movie is not only about withering but also about coming of age. There are a lot of things to be said about this film, but one thing I can not say is that I'd recommend this film to everyone.
Since this ticket counts for two I thought I would talk a little bit about the short film I saw before Attenberg. It was a weird flick about an Italian and his evil beans. I did not understand it and I did not enjoy it. This death bean debacle was the perfect setup for Attenberg.
Two girls going at it in the beginning of the film is usually good sign. However this is definitely not the case. This movie is really really strange. From what I gathered, Marina the taller girl, started to respond in outbreaks as her father grows closer to death. Bella, her "partner", has always been a little crazy and simply fiends off Marina's delicateness. As weird as this movie was I should commend the actresses for their talent.
The Kid with a Bike was a pretty sad movie. Cyril is a boy who is left at a children's home, his father having dug out of town in search of a new life. Cyril is taken home by Samantha, and she becomes his caretaker. Cyril's life without a father-figure leads him down a dark road. A couple of things really stood out to me in this film. Cyril's red shirt was one of those details. Cyril never wears a different colored shirt. I think this can be representative of a few things. It could represent his inability to let go of his father or the idea that he has of his father. I also think it represents how alone and different Cyril feels, not wanting to be accepted by anyone other than his father. Another thing worth noting is that all of the men in this movie have crooked morals. Cyril's father abandons his sons and sells his bike to jumpstart his new lifestyle. Samantha's boyfriend makes her choose between him and Cyril. All of the neighborhood kids pick on Cyril and steal his bike. The Dealer makes quick cash by stealing from others. The business man and his son attempt to cover up Cyril's fall. Cyril himself is seen acting out several times throughout the movie, evidence of the absence of a father figure in his life. While I enjoyed this movie for the most part, I thought there was very little development throughout the movie. To put it simply, nothing really happened. Cyril didn't get back with his father, and he didn't really show any signs of redeeming his early acts of mischief. The movie just ends with him getting up out of his state of unconsciousness and walking away. It was an anti-climactic ending, but the movie as a whole was a pretty good watch.
The Kid With a Bike is a film that really evokes emotion; essentially, it's about a young boy who turns to a woman for comfort after his father has abandon him.From the very beginning, major emotions are brought out in the audience. It is heartbreaking to see the boy searching for his father and his bike. It is a lot to take in initially because not only does the main character go through something tragic, but the main character is a child and it is always more heartbreaking to see a child suffer. Despite the emotional aspects of the film like the frustration felt towards Cyril's father, there is a refreshing sense of hope and determination that is present in Cyril, and that is very comforting. Overall, I enjoyed this film because it was tragic yet pure and left me feeling a strong sense of hope.
The Kid with a Bike was a real personal movie. It resonated with me more than any of the others. It is a heart-wrenching film that deals with a relationship between a son and a father who wants nothing to do with him and that boy and a kind woman who takes him under her wing. Troubled boys have been seen before in cinema, but what makes this film special is the significance of the bike. The bike represents the one true constant in Cyril’s life. It is something that Cyril can hold on to. Also, unlike his father, or his classmates, the bike will not reject Cyril or treat him poorly. Cyril represents numerous different things: determination and passion. The entire movie runs on the energy of Cyril. The tone and the mood were all set by Cyril. It seems that he is always moving, whether he is running, fighting with other kids, or riding his bike. Overall, The Kid with a Bike is a film that elicits many emotions about how some times, life just is not fair, but even during the worst of times, there is always hope.
The Kid With A Bike was a lovely film. It was slow and boring at times but it had a good message. At first I was very impressed that Samantha would agree to foster the kid on weekends because she barely knew him. Her love for and patience with Cyril was very admirable. Not any person would agree to take care of a kid and put up with his trouble if the kid is not the person’s son or daughter. Also, I liked the change in Cyril throughout the film. At first I thought he was very annoying and intense. After seeing how his father wanted to get rid of him I understood his pain and his need for a father figure in his life. However, I was still annoyed at his ungrateful and troublesome behavior. At the end Cyril becomes nice and grateful and I was glad he changed for good. I think this film showed how much a person can influence someone else whether it is for good or for bad. Even though the film was entertaining, I would not watch it again. The plot of the film is very repetitive and progresses slowly making it very tiresome to watch. It is fine to only watch it once.
Live-action, documentary shorts and animated are three categories during the Oscar program that people knew nothing about. Pentecost (Ireland) is about a dream of an Irish- Peter McDonald, who wants to become a footballer. The sport soccer is a part of everyday life in Ireland. In the starting of the movie, Damien (Scott Graham) is on a suspension at church and grounded at home because he had hit the priest of the church with an incense burner. He is pardoned by the parish when they get to know that the bishop will be visiting. In addition, his father allows him to watch football on TV. Hence, the young lead performs really well throughout the movie. Raju, on the other hand is about a German couple who adopts an Indian boy. The movie is shot in Calcutta. The movie revolves around the quest to find Raju, when he disappears on an outing. Time Freak is a groove of movies on time-travel. A time machine is used by Stillman to travel back to recent events. The Shore (Northern Island) is a story of reconciliation, which is set against past historical events. Tuba, is a clever dark comedy. The star of which is ‘death angel’. It revolves around the track of events of the ‘death angel’, which are lined up when he learns that he has six days to live.
The Muppets The Muppets is something which really needs to be reviewed. I can remind of a number of elements that keeps it from being a remarkable movie. From a large crew of the loveable fuzzy characters created by puppet master Jim Henson, Kermit the Frog and Fozzie Bear have embarked on a quest for stardom. Riding in or on a wide range of vehicles, they take a ride to the Hollywood. Their journey is begins with Kermit, who pedals a bicycle. The journey is met with a lot of other friends, to accommodate whom, vehicles are changed. Doc Hopper (Charles Durning) plays a heartless character. This is realized when he requests Kermit to create and advertisement which promotes fried frog legs. Thus, this remains a challenge for Kermit and his friends because every time they preferred resisting the request. Kermit, at the same time have to cope with the passionate feelings for Miss Foggy. There is a lot of homage done to classical films through this appealing children’s adventure. It features casts of Hollywood greats such as Edgar Bergen and Orson Welles. This movie was a great box office success. The song ‘The Rainbow Connection’ of the movie was nominated for the Oscar.
The Descendants (I couldn't find this movie here but it was on 4/15 so I attached it here) This movie looks like an easy family comedy, however, there is actually something big hidden inside. Speaking of Hawaii we would firstly think of beach, ocean and sunshine, but this positive impression was taken from me by this movie. The movie is trying to show the audiences the real Hawaii, which is to get away from the beautiful beach and deal with family. The movie is too real for me that the reality is making the whole scene looks so narrow. It may be inappropriate to label this movie as family comedy. Though it appears to be a Hawaii landlord descendant found out about his wife’s affair at the time she was dying, and how he eventually come peace and went through this painful period of time with his two daughters. Apparently this affair is only the appearance and faith is what the movie is actually talking about. The insisted love in family and lover is just like the faith in the land where he was raised and the tradition he was passed on. After been through betrayal, will he be able to forgive, to understand what is it he really wants?
Having never really heard anything about Attenberg and having just watched a bizarre opening short film about beans I really didn’t know what to expect. The opening scene with the two girls awkwardly making out couldn’t even prepare me for what was to come. Marina is a confused girl who is trying to cope with the approaching death of her father. She is going through very sexual experiences as she tries new things with her friend, Bella and later on her boyfriend. Bella was really a million miles apart from Marina. Whilst Marina was just maturing Bella had slept with multiple people and she possessed an experienced look on the world. When watching a film like this I can usually manage to get the general direction in which the film is heading. However with this film I had no clue as to what was going to happen in the end. The fact that Marina got her friend to sleep with her dying father really left me shocked at the end of the film. The one silver lining to the end of the film was when after constant pushing from her father and Bella she finally meets the engineer. Not that there relationship is anything but unusual it gave a glimmer of hope to Marina becoming a regular woman.
The Kid with a Bike This movie is pretty straightforward at the beginning part. We can see from the first few scenes that the 11 years old teenage boy was abandoned by his farther, however, he refuses to accept this fact and continues searching for him. My feelings can be complicated while watching the film. The farther was irresponsible, the boy was rude to others, which is annoying, and however, it is forgivable since he was in a tough situation. I can see the madness in the boy when he running so fast trying to escape in order to find his dad, or when he was riding the bike searching for his dad everywhere. I can see the urge and the desire in his face, which shows how well the boy acted in this film. I felt pissed when the boy found his dad, and his dad was so cold to him and showed no feelings at any point. Samantha is a nice lady, and it is the right thing for her to ask the boy’s farther to tell Cyril himself that he cannot see Cyril again. It’s better to tell him the truth than to let him keep hoping, even though the truth can be so painful for a 11 year old teenage boy.
The kid with a bike was the most plain but deep-going movie I have ever seen. The kid was just a shadow of each of us in the early time. We are silent. We deserve the love and time from our parents. However, the kid has nothing. He has to stay in a school with his favorite bike as his true love. His father refuse to take care of him and tries to run away from the responsibility. His poor experience moved me from the bottom of my heart. He shouldn't be treated that way.
However, the appearance of Samantha is another sunrise of Cyril's life. She passionately gets his bike back and is willing to give him a home in the weekend. He becomes active again and try to live like a normal child.
Some street punk called Wes was trying to use him to achieve a robbery by hiring him. Cyril accepted Wes as a friend in his heart. He even cut Samantha as a cost to get out and to achieve the plan of robbery. However, when the moment that Wes finds out he was seen by the victim, Wes ditched Cyril. That was the climax of the whole movie.
The ending is pretty normal. Samantha faced the situation with Cyril. And they became really really close.
The kid with the bike is a movie filmed in 2011. It’s a drama about a twelve-year-old kid who is abandoned by his father and a woman takes care of him. It is a strong movie, I cried. It takes a lot for me to cry, but I believe this movie has a very strong message. It is very emotional. Cyril is really young but he realizes how much he misses his father and he needs him. It is heartbreaking to see how his father rejects him so many times. The movie is an exact case of what usually happens where I come from, Colombia. And in life there are always two ways to live life; the correct one and the wrong one its all about decision making. In this case the correct one was for Cyril to stay with Samantha and not become the dealer his friends were tempting him to become. But I’m glad with the decision he ended up taking, staying with the person who took care of him. I don’t understand how a father can reject his child that way, don’t the have a heart? I felt attached to Cyril and I wish I could take care of him.
This was a very emotional and touching movie of a little boy that deals with a very strong emotional issue, full of frustration and anger. This movie was made in 2011 by the director Luc Dardenne. What caught my attention the most was the constant feeling of frustration that is depicted and makes the audience feel what the kid is actually feeling. I think the reason this might occur is due to music that is being used which helps getting involved in the scene. Cyril (Thomas Doret) wants desperately to escape from am orphanage and go look for his father which repeatedly rejects him. He then meets a women (Cécile de France) who help him and offers him comfort. Through out the movie I couldn’t kept thinking on how desperate this little boy might be facing so much rejection from his own father. Everything in the movie gives a sense of reality and sometimes it was hard to believe I was watching it, I felt it really real. There was one scene that was stuck in my head because of how raw it was, it’s when the boy expresses physically his profound anger and frustration. I liked this movie and it made me feel a lot of emotions.
“Attenberg” is a film written and directed by Athina Rachel Tsangari, has been one of the weirdest movies I’ve ever seen. I was clearly expecting to see a movie full of awkward moments from what I saw in the trailers. When I actually saw it I didn’t quite like it and the plot didn’t call much of my attention. It is a story of a girl called Marina that is starting to discover herself sexually. This 23 year-old woman lives with her father which suffers of a terminally illness in a Greek town by the sea. Marina has a very close friend called Bella, she is very outrageous and crazy; which sometimes leads Marina to do things out of the ordinary. Through out the movie the story gets more strange and absurd like when Marina asks her friend Bella to sleep with her father as a favor for a dying man. I must highlight the fact that apart from the eccentric plot the movie is immerged in, the images are a bit revealing and impacting. Even though it is a fact that the movie is definitely unique, the cast has very good performances, especially when doing some of the strong scenes displayed in it.
The movie Attenberg is written and directed by Athina Rachel Tsangari. It is a Greek drama film I have never seen before. Marina, a 23-year-old girl who lives with her terminal ill father did a great job as an actress. Seeing your father die everyday slowly and just waiting is not easy. As time passed by and some goals already set in her life she started to view life the same way her father did. This had a huge impact in her life, starting with the sexual experience. Bella also plays an important role in this movie, her best friend. I could not believe and I still can’t the favor that Marina asks Bella to do. I have mixed feelings about this movie. Even though I have never seen anything like it, I felt strange, maybe because Marina was so strange. The sexual scenes were awkward. I don’t think I would see this movie again but I enjoyed it.
Attenberg When a film tries to be abstract and interesting, it typically helps if the film is shorter. When you have a film that is an hour and a half long it is necessary to have a certain plot that is interesting enough for the viewer to be thoroughly engaged throughout the movie so the power of the movie can be fully experienced. Attenberg had the benefit of having great acting, an interesting premise, and also interesting film making to go along with it had a great chance of being an enjoyable movie. But it’s shortcoming made it a little hard to watch and not entirely enjoyable at most points. It’s downfall lied in the fact, that you are never truly engaged in the movie, you understand what’s going on but you don’t feel that you care enough for the characters and they’re just a series of events that are happening in front of you, but not events that you truly care for what their outcome is. Also the topic of finding sexuality for women is pretty extensive and I think some of the other movies that we saw in class did a much better job of showing this theme, like teeth and swimming pool.
Kid with a Bike There are certain emotions that child actors can hit that actors that are adults can not. Although some child actors aren’t maybe as experienced or developed, as their older counterparts they are still able to tell certain things in a story that other actors can’t. In a kid with a bike, you can feel Cyril’s pain and it brings back to you to something we all had in common which is childhood. With stories about love or death, not everyone has experienced these emotions, maybe you have never fell in love or never have lost anyone that is extremely close to you, but everyone has childhood in common so it is a very relatable subject matter. Also when you see someone younger than you going through hardship or pain you feel a sense of wanting to protect and try to avert them from harm’s way because you feel you can influence them. And all of these emotions arise in this film, from Cyril’s hard upbringing. One criticism I feel is that Cyril’s father’s complete abandonment in the beginning part of the movie is slightly unrealistic, I don’t believe there are many people who are willing to do such a thing at this day and age, maybe in earlier years. But other than that it was a very interesting and good movie.
Kid with a bike was a very entertaining and emotional film to me. Through the film the boy really captures the emotional struggle that would come along with such a tragic situation. I feel the child actor did an amazing job capturing such a complex situation that involves many different emotions and being able to convey that to the audience. Throughout the film it was hard not to root for the young boy to make it through all of the turmoil and to succeed but you couldn't help but get a feeling that maybe it wasn't going to work out. Throughout the film I was nervous it would not work out in his favor with all of the mistakes and emotional reactions and wrong people who found their way into his life, but was very happy to be able to see the triumph of his character in the end. I feel that with all of the emotions already in the film that anything but this triumphant ending would be too much for the audience to accept and deal with.
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ReplyDeleteThe Kid with a Bike
ReplyDeleteThis film is one of the more emotional ones that I have ever seen. The story of Cyril from the start of the movie is a heart-warming one, wherein the tone of the movie is set. To truly analyze the movie as a whole, the audience must be thinking critically to a point where they can trace the origin of Cyril’s actions; which is from him being abandoned by his father. In the film, Samantha functions as a safe haven for Cyril, and is the “voice of reason” throughout the movie. Also, throughout the movie Cyril is torn between making the decision of staying within the safe route (Samantha), and going down the route in which he thinks he will make his father proud (The Dealer).
The main themes touched upon in the movie are the, father-son bonds, and making the right decisions. Cyril’s innocence and young nature is made apparent to the audience not only through his appearance, but the camera angles and way that he is shown. He is seen as almost “untouched” yet, and still pure. Another thing to note about Cyril is that most of the time there is a lot of light shined on him. This aids in creating his pure, innocent nature, as opposed to being shown as a dark or gloomy character. Lastly, Samantha’s influence overcomes Cyril at the end, showing that he truly did make the right decision.
Attenberg
ReplyDeleteThough the film did have some great acting by the protagonist, I think that the clear focus and purpose of the movie was not established. The film did have some underlying principles such as experiencing life for the first time, and how one needs others to interact with. Still, I think the events and the way that the writers went about accomplishing this goal was in an unsuccessful manner. As I said before, the acting of Ariane Labed impressed me, as she aptly portrayed a woman who was very naïve and still searching through life for a purpose.
In the film Marina’s father Spyros did serve a purpose as an example of what Marina thought that she was destined to. Spyros has no hope, he is terminally ill, and is basically counting the days down on his calendar until his death. This lack of a goal or a future is passed on to Marina, and she embraces this same outlook on life as her father. This outlook changes when she has her sexual experience, and it does make her realize that there is more to life than the way that she is currently living. This one change in her character can be seen as an interesting point in the plot of the movie, but I still think that it could have been achieved through a more creative means.
The Kid with a Bike was a great movie that evoked plenty of emotion. Mostly for me, I tried to feel hopeful that Cyril would be able to straighten everything out in his young but difficult life. I found a major theme of relationships in the film as well. His father, a person he should be very close to, abandoned his son leaving him lonely and desperate. And Samantha, a stranger, helps Cyril to make the right decisions. She helps him make choices, like which routes to take, but ultimately it is up to Cyril what he will do. When Cyril is on his bike he is always riding towards or away from something but either way, the only time he feels free is when he is on his bike. I didn't love this film, but for some reason I felt emotionally attached to it which made me enjoy watching it.
ReplyDeleteAttenberg
ReplyDeleteAttenberg was a film that I didn't expect to like before I saw it, and I was somewhat correct. I found the acting to be surprisingly good, especially by the main character, but the plot didn't really catch my attention. The whole movie was about self-recognition and being who you are. Marina experienced a few moments of sexual discovery as well as mental development. Her relationship with her father is poor because of her dislike and lack of interest in human relationships. Her father's lack of hope rubbed off on Marina and she ends up living a life without a will to achieve anything. While she experiences his death and other life defining moments she really starts to turn into the woman she was destined to be. While her self realizations were somewhat interesting, the plot was too dry and strung out for me to truly enjoy.
The Kid with a Bike
ReplyDeleteNate Jennings
Although “The Kid With a Bike” seemed like one of the more simple films I’ve seen, it had a very powerful message and meaning. It was a portrayal of a poor young boy named “Cyril” that was completely ignored by his biological father. The relevance of the Bike within the story had symbolism of being the only connection with his dad, since it was the only material possession he had remaining that his father gave him. Throughout the film, the young boy was constantly very stubborn to everyone in his life, and clearly didn’t care about anything else besides living with his father again. However, their was another important relationship between him and Samantha who constantly showed affection and care for the boy but he never accepted it as a replacement to his father’s. He always went back to his Dad to gain his approval, but even when he came back from money that he stole, the boy was rejected. In this perspective, the film did an exceptional job with adding to the atmosphere of the disappointment in Cyril by adding very heartbreaking music and including obvious-looking sad gestures. Cyril also comes off as being very calm and relaxed whenever he rides his bike most likely because it reminds him when he was with his father. His father simply didn’t want him back because he was afraid of commitment and responsibility to raise a child.
Feng Yang
ReplyDeleteAttenberg
If someone has ever seen before, he or she would find very familiar. I believe it is not only me who has noticed how deeply the directors are fearful about advanced technologies and modern society. Like the parents in Dogtooth who “imprisoned” their kids, the farther in Attenberg did not let his daughter know anything about the modern society common rules. In the movie, Marina tried to reject the truth that she is a human being. She likes animals and animal related documentaries rather than socializing with other human beings. The director seems trying to demonstrate the idea that mankind does not need technologies; even with advanced technologies, mankind does not appeal to be superior to animals that human share the same social attributes as animals do. All these was resulted from unusual but not necessarily impropriate educational systems—just like that kind of education Marina’s dad gave her. Marina, her dad and Bella imitated lots of different animals in the movie, which seemed like they were trying to find ways out to snort their feelings while repositioning them. The movie was trying to promote the idea that without dogmatic strains, human being can present a lot more different behavior patterns and even different personality patterns.
Right from the start, I knew that Attenburg was going to be one of the strangest movies I have ever seen. The first scene opens up with two women kissing each other and one of them is trying to teach the other to French kiss. I had no idea after the first scene what to expect from the movie. As it turns out, and the plot unfolds, I began to like the movie a little more. The plot make me think a lot about certain things. This movie allowed me to get a sense of what it was like to be a person who had a hard time fitting in and didn’t have many people to talk to or to rely on. The movie’s Main character was a woman named Marina, who is very socially awkward and is trying to learn how people make friends, interact, and adjust to other people in society. The only person she understands and who understands her is her best friend Bella and her father. All Bella has is these two people along with her animals. Throughout the movie, Marina is being exposed to new things and it is really confusing because I wanted to know why she turned out to be so strange in the first place. It is almost seems as if she was hidden away her whole life because he characteristics reminded me of a very young child. She develops a relationship with a guy and has no idea of what to do. The movie made me very uncomfortable at times but at the same time it was very interesting. I would only recommend this movie to anyone that prefers independent films over blockbusters.
ReplyDeleteGoing into watching The Kid With the Bike, I didn't know what to expect. The movie started out slow and I had no idea what was happening. I started to feel extremely terrible for the boy, Cyril, because his father abandoned him without word and left him all by himself. After the boy was sort of re-adopted by Samantha, I figured the movie would show how their lives work out together. Instead of this simple happy ending, the movie twists into Cyril meeting a bunch of nasty children that have formed their own sort of gang and end up absolving him into it and committing a crime. In Cyril's given situation, I would understand why the kid would be upset but the way he acted towards Samantha and how he treated her evoked a strong emotion from me. I felt myself become extremely angry at the boy and wanting him to get in trouble for what he did. Also the ending left the audience hanging and it didn't come to an absolute ending and it ends with the new family having a happy dinner party. Overall, it was an interesting movie that developed from a slow start and proved to be more exciting than I expected. I enjoyed watching it and would recommend it to my friends.
ReplyDeleteAlexandra Ball
C07809270
KID WITH A BIKE
ReplyDeleteKid with a Bike first struck me as a movie that was trying to be realistic, but I just couldn’t get myself to believe what was going on as the movie dragged on. A conventional American plot would have been Cyril acting out in the beginning, he gets taken in, gets in some trouble, and eventually becomes better. The movie follows that pattern to some extent, but I feel like Cyril never really learned anything at the end and the finish to the movie was very anti-climatic. Cyril constantly brought pain to the woman taking care of him. I just couldn’t bring myself to believe after all he did to her, she would just take him back and not care about anything that happened. With all that being said, I think the movie does do a good job of making the viewer feel good at the end of the film. This is because of the Cyril’s dad that is a typical deadbeat that doesn’t want to take responsibility for his son. Cyril’s dad is supposed to be a bad guy and not care about his son, but again the character just came off as unbelievable. I don’t think the actors themselves were bad, I just feel like they didn’t fulfill their roles well. I feel the director could have done a better job making the actors become their characters. The only actor that truly became his role was Cyril, but he didn’t seem to change by the end of the movie. Overall I’d say the movie was worth seeing but I came away disappointed by what it could have been.
ROMEO AND JULIET BALLET
Romeo and Juliet is the oldest of most known love story the world knows. However, the ballet was a waste on me. I don’t want to say I hate ballet, but I just don’t think I am old enough to appreciate the art form, especially in a movie theatre. I feel like ballet is a lot opera or plays, being present for the production helps you feed off the energy of the performers. Sitting in a movie theatre for three hours watching the ballet seemed like I was just watching a dance video. I have seen and read almost every single adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, but was lost trying to figure what was going on in the ballet. I was constantly thinking I knew what scene was going on, only to find out minutes later I was mistaken. The costumes were extremely well put together, but I was still confused as to who was doing what. I could tell what scenes were supposed to be exciting or sad because of the tremendously talented symphony that was playing for the ballet. I could say my first experience seeing a ballet would have been much better if I had seen the performance in person because I would have really enjoyed the music. I cannot say that the dancers were not talented or the set or costumes were poor because they were all exceptional. However, I am just not at a point to appreciate the intricacies of ballet yet and did not enjoy it.
Attenberg was a very different and strange movie but I actually found it enjoyable. I think the strangeness of the movie related to Marina’s extreme awkwardness for her age. I didn’t understand the significance of the scene that shows her shoulder blades sticking out or why that was the cover of the movie. That cover made me think the movie was very different from what it was actually about.
ReplyDeleteMarina and Bella had a very strange relationship. The first scene in which Bella tries to teach Marina how to kiss is very weird and awkward. Then when Marina has enough they begin to squat and hiss at each other like animals. Although Marina is more immature and socially awkward than Bella, they shared the same strangeness. This was also apparent in the scenes where they are dressed similarly and walk strangely along the path outside. Even though Marina went to Bella for advice and seemed to get along with her, she clearly didn’t trust her. When her dad asked her why she hadn’t told Bella about the guy she was seeing, she said she didn’t because Bella would flirt with him. Also, since Marina was so close to her dad, it must have been very awkward for her to think that Bella had a secret crush on her dad. I think Marina was friends with Bella because she didn’t have any other options, not because she particularly liked her or trusted her.
Holly Bensur
ReplyDeleteC09668372
I really enjoyed Attenberg. I think the story is somewhat relatable to almost everyone – whether it is going through one’s first sexual relationship, feeling like an outcast, or coping with a parent who is on the brink of death.
The production designer did a great job matching the mood of the film with the scenery and setting. The seaside town Marina, Spyros, and Bella live in is grey and gloomy, all the buildings look similar, and all the colors of walls and clothing are dark or earthy. This relates to how Marina feels about her life – the loneliness and the coping and processing. The only exception to this color scheme seems to be when Bella and Marina are having fun walking strangely down a street or when they are singing that French song.
I found Marina imitating the animals she sees in the documentaries she watches with her father an interesting coping mechanism. I think because Marina finds herself unable or unwilling to relate to humans, she takes comfort in acting like animals; something she wishes she could be or something she can more easily relate to. I think this shows viewers that the definition of fitting in varies from person to person and that should be accepted.
Kid With A Bike
ReplyDeleteThe Kid with a Bike is the emotional journey of Cyril trying to decide what path he must follow. The main theme of the movie was all about relationships, with one of the main one being the father son relationship. Cyril father abandoning him had a huge impact on him and would any innocent child. All he wanted to do was make the man who left him proud of him. Samantha, a stranger tried to do the best she could and lead Cyril in the right direction although most of the time he didn’t always directly take the advice. In the movie, he always seemed to be going towards something or tyring to get away, something that a young child should not have to worry about. He seems most comfortable on the bike, but not in a way that the average child feels comfortable on a bike. I loved riding my back for fun and to play, not deliver stolen money. This was not my favorite plot ever but I feel that the film was delivered in the emotional way it was meant to and I enjoyed it.
The Kid with Bike
ReplyDeleteIn every man's heart, lived a youngth. The young may steal things, may be behind the first cigarette smoke, may fall from the tree, and may also run like a gale. The bicycle young ", Cyril, will make many men thought of his boyhood, rather, from childhood to young the transition period, the days of those rainy day, the sensitive ignorant, recklessly anxiety. Cyril father was away, and meet the business salon with a kind of samantha him, and sent him see father, with him for the weekend. Cyril but natural disposition is agitated, and samantha can't get along with peace. And in small rascal abetted the assault passers-by, steal the money. But in the end MiTuZhiFan, farewell misguided growth short paragraphs. Narrative style from it, the film not too theatricalize plot, basic just life scenes of retelling. And not up to turn story bearing, give all things causal relationship, but dull or tile draw some comics, indifferent to like water. Watchers drink tasteless, experience of the sweet taste. One of the young men running again and again, is so natural associate to "four hundred". The same age, children, different annoyance and life, but close some emotional. Finally went in the growth and with a smile, or a drop of tears. Maybe two directors also interested in Florida, lu to close to, or gratitude. For show at the age of 12 children the exuberant vitality and unsolicited rebellious period, not only with the director has been closely with photography trace Cyril movements, more in the lens is crazy to dispatch the internal small actor, and down, road hog forced. Of the above mentioned is running is the top priority, Cyril heart halcyon down before, he almost never a moment is quiet, forever in the fast to run toward the depth of place, or go upstairs, in short, is set to run the periphery of the emotional Cyril performance. In various form, and be in various forms of expression. When Cyril fell from the tree, coma and get up and clap ride away soil. Bad experience is like those dirt, clap and off but quickly forgotten, and the new life without stopping to take up office. Suddenly discovered that the movie another possibility: not only is the Cyrillic present, also may be a male audience every memories of the body. Only look back, when the fighting cuts hurt yourself event, just appear so indifferent, light wind, and caresses surface is fleeting. Two heavy-hitters include the brother of shoulder carried within, the subject matter and the choice of story than the previous relatively simple. Just like two people with you after the meal gossip, and not like a prize for the passion for language, such as "the Pope was born" that one. So the hope that should not, as a day up, and recite a poem!
I went into Attenberg with an open mind because I knew it was going to be somewhat strange and this was proven from the very first scene where the two women were kissing. Throughout the movie, I began to feel a connection to Marina because I empathized for her. Her socially awkward-ness was really felt throughout the film. The film allows you to feel a great deal of emotion and an equal amount of loneliness, displayed through the main character. At first, I felt that the movie's strangeness would effect my overall view on the film itself, but as time went on, I began to enjoy it more.
ReplyDeleteAttenberg was without question the weirdest film I saw this semester, perhaps even in my lifetime, but that is not to say that it wasn’t one of my favorites. Sometimes it can be refreshing to see a unique film that you don’t fully understand. Attenberg confuses me more than any other film I saw this semester and I am still questioning aspects of it to this very day. I think the main purpose of the film was to examine the development of a seemingly “normal” girl with bizarre antisocial habits. Although she is definitely immature, Marina doesn’t appear to have any blatant disabilities or conditions that contribute to her socially awkward nature. It is almost as if Marina has chosen to live life at her own pace rather than the one set by society. The most bizarre scenes in the film were the ones where Marina and her only friend Bella would walk in choreographed synchronized steps for no apparent reason. These scenes were scattered throughout the film and I believe the purpose of them is to confuse the viewer and add to Marina’s childish image. Bella is a character that lies on the polar opposite spectrum of social interaction. Bella has slept with countless men and does not posses the childlike innocence of Marina. Not only is Marina a virgin, but she also hasn’t even kissed a man before. She has many awkward conversations about a man’s penis with her father and at one point she even mentions to her father that she wishes she could just sleep with him. Her interest in sex and adult relationships doesn’t seem to be based off of any physical attraction or desire at all which is not normal in society. Both Bella and Marina’s dying father try to urge Marina to come out of her shell and she finally does when she meets the engineer. Her relationship with the engineer is anything but orthodox but is a big step in Marina’s introduction to adult relationships and society
ReplyDeleteThe film I am most impressed by the period of play is the relationship between daughter and father, father and daughter feeling better, and even play animal in bed together, having all the fun! Fragments of their conversation is always sitting in a white room in a strange chair, giving the feeling of cold. Later, father's illness, the face of death, lay dying across the masks we forced breathing, the kind of tacit understanding there are still also a kind of emotional exchange.
ReplyDeleteFew movie characters, they are like sitting in the dead city, the people have not seen more, perhaps because the heroine was to be a friend to teach road! With the death of his father, the female lead car to leave the scene of the site, perhaps on behalf of her out of the concrete dead city!
The Kid with a Bike was one of the movies that I have enjoyed the most so far throughout this class, although I will admit I was not expecting to initially, as I find many movies centered around a child actor to miss their mark, as often the actor cannot pull of the role. This was not the case in this film, as the main character, Cyril, was excellently acted. The film centers around Cyril and a relationship he builds with a woman. He is a foster child who is forced to live in a home, but a kind woman he meets one day starts taking him in on the weekends and spending time with him. Cyril begins to transition from a sad and angry child to a much brighter and livelier one. However, things take a turn when Cyril is basically recruited into a gang and talked into robbing two people. He badly wants the acceptance of a father figure and hurts the people, which is out of his character, to steal the money from them. At the end of the film, Cyril’s victims see him riding his bike and chase him up into a tree. A boy throws a rock at Cyril and he falls, getting knocked unconscious. It looked as if the movie was taking a very dark turn as Cyril didn’t move for a long time, but he eventually just gets up and rides his bike away. Overall, the movie showed the power and strength, both positively and negatively, that relationships can have on a child.
ReplyDeleteAttenberg
ReplyDeleteThis was a very strange movie but with that came some very good acting from Marina. This was really hard to just follow and understand sometimes just because of how weird it was. The relationships between Marina and her father whether it be before the movie in her childhood or dealing with her fathers death has a huge impact on her life. Marina is definitely not a normal person and you question what’s either wrong with her or what her plan is. Bella’s influence on her tries to break her out of her shell, as does her father. She needed to go meet someone and did in the engineer.
Attenberg was definitely the weirdest movie I have seen in a while. There was definitely a shock value to it, as when I saw the movie, I had gone to see Kid with a Bike beforehand, and during that screening, they accidentally showed the first scene of Attenberg and half of the audience walked out. The first scene, in which two girls sloppily make out for about a minute, sets up what is to be a very strange movie and strange relationship between the girls. The whole movie centers around the main character, Marina, coping with the coming death of her father, who is terminally ill. As a way to cope with this, she acts out wildlife documentaries and pretends that she is in them. She also goes through a lot of awkward sexual discovery with her best friend and then later her first boyfriend. The film even ends with Marina asking her friend to sleep with her dying father, which she does, and it puts a fairly shocking end on a very odd movie. Even though the movie was very odd, it was still fairly enjoyable as I thought it was well acted and while the main character was very strange, in the end she was really just trying to fit in to a degree.
ReplyDeleteAttenberg
ReplyDeleteI wasn't exactly sure what to expect when I went to see Attenberg, but I did expect to see something really weird. I wasn't wrong. Attenberg was an incredibly strange and awkward film. I guess that is a fitting way for a film about a girl in a very awkward situation should to make its audience members feel. Marina is a naive girl who is discovering her sexuality at a rather late age. The film opens up with her making out with her best friend Bella. This immediately sets the mood for the rest of the movie. Bella is teaching Marina how to kiss, and Marina is not enjoying it. As the film progresses, Marina slowly discovers who she is and what she likes. Until she gets with a man, she never realized she liked men. While Marina is very naive, Bella is the complete opposite. There is a stark contrast between these two girls, highlighted by the differences in their sexual experiences. As Marina says, Bella is a "big slut." It is interesting to note that Bella and Marina are very similar in appearance, only different in personality. They dress the same, and enjoy each other's company. Bella, who is slightly shorter than Marina, always wears shoes that make them about level on height, giving them the appearance of being doubles. While Marina is still growing into life, her father is slowly fading out of it. I believe this film is about contrasts- naive and tainted, young and old. Marina's father has lived his whole life, and he shares his outlooks with Marina. The two have forged a strong relationship, and it is sad to see her father pass away. Before her father passes, Marina wishes to give him one last gift- a night with Bella. It is interesting that she decides to gift such a strange thing to her dying father, especially since Marina has so little knowledge on sex. After his passing, he is shipped off to be cremated and his ashes are scattered out on the open ocean. While at times depressing, this movie is not only about withering but also about coming of age. There are a lot of things to be said about this film, but one thing I can not say is that I'd recommend this film to everyone.
Since this ticket counts for two I thought I would talk a little bit about the short film I saw before Attenberg. It was a weird flick about an Italian and his evil beans. I did not understand it and I did not enjoy it. This death bean debacle was the perfect setup for Attenberg.
ReplyDeleteTwo girls going at it in the beginning of the film is usually good sign. However this is definitely not the case. This movie is really really strange. From what I gathered, Marina the taller girl, started to respond in outbreaks as her father grows closer to death. Bella, her "partner", has always been a little crazy and simply fiends off Marina's delicateness. As weird as this movie was I should commend the actresses for their talent.
The Kid With a Bike
ReplyDeleteThe Kid with a Bike was a pretty sad movie. Cyril is a boy who is left at a children's home, his father having dug out of town in search of a new life. Cyril is taken home by Samantha, and she becomes his caretaker. Cyril's life without a father-figure leads him down a dark road. A couple of things really stood out to me in this film. Cyril's red shirt was one of those details. Cyril never wears a different colored shirt. I think this can be representative of a few things. It could represent his inability to let go of his father or the idea that he has of his father. I also think it represents how alone and different Cyril feels, not wanting to be accepted by anyone other than his father. Another thing worth noting is that all of the men in this movie have crooked morals. Cyril's father abandons his sons and sells his bike to jumpstart his new lifestyle. Samantha's boyfriend makes her choose between him and Cyril. All of the neighborhood kids pick on Cyril and steal his bike. The Dealer makes quick cash by stealing from others. The business man and his son attempt to cover up Cyril's fall. Cyril himself is seen acting out several times throughout the movie, evidence of the absence of a father figure in his life. While I enjoyed this movie for the most part, I thought there was very little development throughout the movie. To put it simply, nothing really happened. Cyril didn't get back with his father, and he didn't really show any signs of redeeming his early acts of mischief. The movie just ends with him getting up out of his state of unconsciousness and walking away. It was an anti-climactic ending, but the movie as a whole was a pretty good watch.
The Kid With a Bike is a film that really evokes emotion; essentially, it's about a young boy who turns to a woman for comfort after his father has abandon him.From the very beginning, major emotions are brought out in the audience. It is heartbreaking to see the boy searching for his father and his bike. It is a lot to take in initially because not only does the main character go through something tragic, but the main character is a child and it is always more heartbreaking to see a child suffer. Despite the emotional aspects of the film like the frustration felt towards Cyril's father, there is a refreshing sense of hope and determination that is present in Cyril, and that is very comforting. Overall, I enjoyed this film because it was tragic yet pure and left me feeling a strong sense of hope.
ReplyDeleteThe Kid with a Bike:
ReplyDeleteThe Kid with a Bike was a real personal movie. It resonated with me more than any of the others. It is a heart-wrenching film that deals with a relationship between a son and a father who wants nothing to do with him and that boy and a kind woman who takes him under her wing. Troubled boys have been seen before in cinema, but what makes this film special is the significance of the bike. The bike represents the one true constant in Cyril’s life. It is something that Cyril can hold on to. Also, unlike his father, or his classmates, the bike will not reject Cyril or treat him poorly. Cyril represents numerous different things: determination and passion. The entire movie runs on the energy of Cyril. The tone and the mood were all set by Cyril. It seems that he is always moving, whether he is running, fighting with other kids, or riding his bike. Overall, The Kid with a Bike is a film that elicits many emotions about how some times, life just is not fair, but even during the worst of times, there is always hope.
The Kid With A Bike was a lovely film. It was slow and boring at times but it had a good message. At first I was very impressed that Samantha would agree to foster the kid on weekends because she barely knew him. Her love for and patience with Cyril was very admirable. Not any person would agree to take care of a kid and put up with his trouble if the kid is not the person’s son or daughter. Also, I liked the change in Cyril throughout the film. At first I thought he was very annoying and intense. After seeing how his father wanted to get rid of him I understood his pain and his need for a father figure in his life. However, I was still annoyed at his ungrateful and troublesome behavior. At the end Cyril becomes nice and grateful and I was glad he changed for good. I think this film showed how much a person can influence someone else whether it is for good or for bad. Even though the film was entertaining, I would not watch it again. The plot of the film is very repetitive and progresses slowly making it very tiresome to watch. It is fine to only watch it once.
ReplyDeleteLive-action, documentary shorts and animated are three categories during the Oscar program that people knew nothing about. Pentecost (Ireland) is about a dream of an Irish- Peter McDonald, who wants to become a footballer. The sport soccer is a part of everyday life in Ireland. In the starting of the movie, Damien (Scott Graham) is on a suspension at church and grounded at home because he had hit the priest of the church with an incense burner. He is pardoned by the parish when they get to know that the bishop will be visiting. In addition, his father allows him to watch football on TV. Hence, the young lead performs really well throughout the movie. Raju, on the other hand is about a German couple who adopts an Indian boy. The movie is shot in Calcutta. The movie revolves around the quest to find Raju, when he disappears on an outing. Time Freak is a groove of movies on time-travel. A time machine is used by Stillman to travel back to recent events. The Shore (Northern Island) is a story of reconciliation, which is set against past historical events. Tuba, is a clever dark comedy. The star of which is ‘death angel’. It revolves around the track of events of the ‘death angel’, which are lined up when he learns that he has six days to live.
ReplyDeleteThe Muppets
ReplyDeleteThe Muppets is something which really needs to be reviewed. I can remind of a number of elements that keeps it from being a remarkable movie. From a large crew of the loveable fuzzy characters created by puppet master Jim Henson, Kermit the Frog and Fozzie Bear have embarked on a quest for stardom. Riding in or on a wide range of vehicles, they take a ride to the Hollywood. Their journey is begins with Kermit, who pedals a bicycle. The journey is met with a lot of other friends, to accommodate whom, vehicles are changed. Doc Hopper (Charles Durning) plays a heartless character. This is realized when he requests Kermit to create and advertisement which promotes fried frog legs. Thus, this remains a challenge for Kermit and his friends because every time they preferred resisting the request. Kermit, at the same time have to cope with the passionate feelings for Miss Foggy. There is a lot of homage done to classical films through this appealing children’s adventure. It features casts of Hollywood greats such as Edgar Bergen and Orson Welles. This movie was a great box office success. The song ‘The Rainbow Connection’ of the movie was nominated for the Oscar.
The Descendants
ReplyDelete(I couldn't find this movie here but it was on 4/15 so I attached it here)
This movie looks like an easy family comedy, however, there is actually something big hidden inside. Speaking of Hawaii we would firstly think of beach, ocean and sunshine, but this positive impression was taken from me by this movie. The movie is trying to show the audiences the real Hawaii, which is to get away from the beautiful beach and deal with family. The movie is too real for me that the reality is making the whole scene looks so narrow. It may be inappropriate to label this movie as family comedy. Though it appears to be a Hawaii landlord descendant found out about his wife’s affair at the time she was dying, and how he eventually come peace and went through this painful period of time with his two daughters. Apparently this affair is only the appearance and faith is what the movie is actually talking about. The insisted love in family and lover is just like the faith in the land where he was raised and the tradition he was passed on. After been through betrayal, will he be able to forgive, to understand what is it he really wants?
Having never really heard anything about Attenberg and having just watched a bizarre opening short film about beans I really didn’t know what to expect. The opening scene with the two girls awkwardly making out couldn’t even prepare me for what was to come. Marina is a confused girl who is trying to cope with the approaching death of her father. She is going through very sexual experiences as she tries new things with her friend, Bella and later on her boyfriend. Bella was really a million miles apart from Marina. Whilst Marina was just maturing Bella had slept with multiple people and she possessed an experienced look on the world. When watching a film like this I can usually manage to get the general direction in which the film is heading. However with this film I had no clue as to what was going to happen in the end. The fact that Marina got her friend to sleep with her dying father really left me shocked at the end of the film. The one silver lining to the end of the film was when after constant pushing from her father and Bella she finally meets the engineer. Not that there relationship is anything but unusual it gave a glimmer of hope to Marina becoming a regular woman.
ReplyDeleteNicholas Sando
C10186082
The Kid with a Bike
ReplyDeleteThis movie is pretty straightforward at the beginning part. We can see from the first few scenes that the 11 years old teenage boy was abandoned by his farther, however, he refuses to accept this fact and continues searching for him. My feelings can be complicated while watching the film. The farther was irresponsible, the boy was rude to others, which is annoying, and however, it is forgivable since he was in a tough situation. I can see the madness in the boy when he running so fast trying to escape in order to find his dad, or when he was riding the bike searching for his dad everywhere. I can see the urge and the desire in his face, which shows how well the boy acted in this film. I felt pissed when the boy found his dad, and his dad was so cold to him and showed no feelings at any point. Samantha is a nice lady, and it is the right thing for her to ask the boy’s farther to tell Cyril himself that he cannot see Cyril again. It’s better to tell him the truth than to let him keep hoping, even though the truth can be so painful for a 11 year old teenage boy.
The kid with a bike was the most plain but deep-going movie I have ever seen. The kid was just a shadow of each of us in the early time. We are silent. We deserve the love and time from our parents. However, the kid has nothing. He has to stay in a school with his favorite bike as his true love. His father refuse to take care of him and tries to run away from the responsibility. His poor experience moved me from the bottom of my heart. He shouldn't be treated that way.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the appearance of Samantha is another sunrise of Cyril's life. She passionately gets his bike back and is willing to give him a home in the weekend. He becomes active again and try to live like a normal child.
Some street punk called Wes was trying to use him to achieve a robbery by hiring him. Cyril accepted Wes as a friend in his heart. He even cut Samantha as a cost to get out and to achieve the plan of robbery. However, when the moment that Wes finds out he was seen by the victim, Wes ditched Cyril. That was the climax of the whole movie.
The ending is pretty normal. Samantha faced the situation with Cyril. And they became really really close.
The kid with the bike
ReplyDeleteThe kid with the bike is a movie filmed in 2011. It’s a drama about a twelve-year-old kid who is abandoned by his father and a woman takes care of him. It is a strong movie, I cried. It takes a lot for me to cry, but I believe this movie has a very strong message. It is very emotional. Cyril is really young but he realizes how much he misses his father and he needs him. It is heartbreaking to see how his father rejects him so many times. The movie is an exact case of what usually happens where I come from, Colombia. And in life there are always two ways to live life; the correct one and the wrong one its all about decision making. In this case the correct one was for Cyril to stay with Samantha and not become the dealer his friends were tempting him to become. But I’m glad with the decision he ended up taking, staying with the person who took care of him. I don’t understand how a father can reject his child that way, don’t the have a heart? I felt attached to Cyril and I wish I could take care of him.
Michelle Yidios
THE KID WITH THE BIKE
ReplyDeleteThis was a very emotional and touching movie of a little boy that deals with a very strong emotional issue, full of frustration and anger. This movie was made in 2011 by the director Luc Dardenne. What caught my attention the most was the constant feeling of frustration that is depicted and makes the audience feel what the kid is actually feeling. I think the reason this might occur is due to music that is being used which helps getting involved in the scene. Cyril (Thomas Doret) wants desperately to escape from am orphanage and go look for his father which repeatedly rejects him. He then meets a women (Cécile de France) who help him and offers him comfort. Through out the movie I couldn’t kept thinking on how desperate this little boy might be facing so much rejection from his own father. Everything in the movie gives a sense of reality and sometimes it was hard to believe I was watching it, I felt it really real. There was one scene that was stuck in my head because of how raw it was, it’s when the boy expresses physically his profound anger and frustration. I liked this movie and it made me feel a lot of emotions.
Ximena Manrique
Attenberg
ReplyDelete“Attenberg” is a film written and directed by Athina Rachel Tsangari, has been one of the weirdest movies I’ve ever seen. I was clearly expecting to see a movie full of awkward moments from what I saw in the trailers. When I actually saw it I didn’t quite like it and the plot didn’t call much of my attention. It is a story of a girl called Marina that is starting to discover herself sexually. This 23 year-old woman lives with her father which suffers of a terminally illness in a Greek town by the sea. Marina has a very close friend called Bella, she is very outrageous and crazy; which sometimes leads Marina to do things out of the ordinary. Through out the movie the story gets more strange and absurd like when Marina asks her friend Bella to sleep with her father as a favor for a dying man. I must highlight the fact that apart from the eccentric plot the movie is immerged in, the images are a bit revealing and impacting. Even though it is a fact that the movie is definitely unique, the cast has very good performances, especially when doing some of the strong scenes displayed in it.
Ximena Manrique
Attenberg
ReplyDeleteThe movie Attenberg is written and directed by Athina Rachel Tsangari. It is a Greek drama film I have never seen before. Marina, a 23-year-old girl who lives with her terminal ill father did a great job as an actress. Seeing your father die everyday slowly and just waiting is not easy. As time passed by and some goals already set in her life she started to view life the same way her father did. This had a huge impact in her life, starting with the sexual experience. Bella also plays an important role in this movie, her best friend. I could not believe and I still can’t the favor that Marina asks Bella to do. I have mixed feelings about this movie. Even though I have never seen anything like it, I felt strange, maybe because Marina was so strange. The sexual scenes were awkward. I don’t think I would see this movie again but I enjoyed it.
Michelle Yidios
Attenberg
ReplyDeleteWhen a film tries to be abstract and interesting, it typically helps if the film is shorter. When you have a film that is an hour and a half long it is necessary to have a certain plot that is interesting enough for the viewer to be thoroughly engaged throughout the movie so the power of the movie can be fully experienced. Attenberg had the benefit of having great acting, an interesting premise, and also interesting film making to go along with it had a great chance of being an enjoyable movie. But it’s shortcoming made it a little hard to watch and not entirely enjoyable at most points.
It’s downfall lied in the fact, that you are never truly engaged in the movie, you understand what’s going on but you don’t feel that you care enough for the characters and they’re just a series of events that are happening in front of you, but not events that you truly care for what their outcome is. Also the topic of finding sexuality for women is pretty extensive and I think some of the other movies that we saw in class did a much better job of showing this theme, like teeth and swimming pool.
Kid with a Bike
ReplyDeleteThere are certain emotions that child actors can hit that actors that are adults can not. Although some child actors aren’t maybe as experienced or developed, as their older counterparts they are still able to tell certain things in a story that other actors can’t. In a kid with a bike, you can feel Cyril’s pain and it brings back to you to something we all had in common which is childhood. With stories about love or death, not everyone has experienced these emotions, maybe you have never fell in love or never have lost anyone that is extremely close to you, but everyone has childhood in common so it is a very relatable subject matter. Also when you see someone younger than you going through hardship or pain you feel a sense of wanting to protect and try to avert them from harm’s way because you feel you can influence them. And all of these emotions arise in this film, from Cyril’s hard upbringing. One criticism I feel is that Cyril’s father’s complete abandonment in the beginning part of the movie is slightly unrealistic, I don’t believe there are many people who are willing to do such a thing at this day and age, maybe in earlier years. But other than that it was a very interesting and good movie.
Kid With a Bike
ReplyDeleteKid with a bike was a very entertaining and emotional film to me. Through the film the boy really captures the emotional struggle that would come along with such a tragic situation. I feel the child actor did an amazing job capturing such a complex situation that involves many different emotions and being able to convey that to the audience. Throughout the film it was hard not to root for the young boy to make it through all of the turmoil and to succeed but you couldn't help but get a feeling that maybe it wasn't going to work out. Throughout the film I was nervous it would not work out in his favor with all of the mistakes and emotional reactions and wrong people who found their way into his life, but was very happy to be able to see the triumph of his character in the end. I feel that with all of the emotions already in the film that anything but this triumphant ending would be too much for the audience to accept and deal with.