Hot Shots part Deux by Kevin Fisk

Satire is a powerful art form, which helps points out deficiencies in human behaviors and the issues which result from them in such a way that they become absurd, even hilarious.  In effect, satire ends up being entertaining to a broader audience. Satire also has the ability to protect its creator from criticism, because it is implied rather than overtly stated.  In the over the top comedy “Hot Shots part Deux”, director Jim Abrahams’ objective was simple:  to cram as much satire as he could into an hour and a half.  Amidst the silliness, the foundation for the film is laid in the mold of a “going in to get the guys” type picture a la the overly macho Rambo III.   Although Sheen plays the Rambo character as best he can, he is clearly less built than Sylvester Stallone, so it is truly hilarious when he walks through every scene flexing his arms.  “Why me?” says Harley.  He is met with the reply “because “you’re the best of what’s left.” Analyzing a film like this from an academic perspective is almost impossible.  Jim Abrahams leaves no stone unturned when deciding whom to take shots at in the film.  Political figures, the enemy, even the protagonist Topper Harley, played by Charlie Sheen is mocked from the start of the film.  The film even picks on itself, and other movies in the war genre when the characters start referring to their world as a movie.  “Why are you here?  Of all the jungles you could be in, this one.”  Says Topper.  “It’s the sequel Topper.  I had to come.”  Replies Ramada

The sheer randomness of the humor is what makes this movie so great.  The biggest laugh came when Topper is on a fishing boat, making his way through a jungle river.  As he passes another boat, his real life father is on the boat, re-creating a scene out of apocalypse now, but with a twist, they each yell to each other “I loved you in wall street”.  The random humor keeps the movie fresh.  Taking a short cut through the jungle leads the team through a Beverly Hills backyard barbecue, or a cutaway in a fight scene for a quick promo: “War, it’s fantastic!”

The best satire in the film comes from instances in conversation and every-day life.  “You have to be joking.”  Says Topper.  “Look, if I was joking, I would say, a horse walks into a bar, the bartender says why the long face?”  Replies Ramada, Topper’s love interest in the film.  Another example is when a radio dispatcher is trying to get the soldiers attention. “The eagle has landed.  The Crips are raiding the liquor store” “you yanking my chain?”

Although the film desensitizes those who watch it to mediocre jokes (Which the movie is full of), I did appreciate the way the script uses all-purpose bad jokes in place of a common go-to crutch for most spoof comedy: gross out humor.  Other than a scene with the president throwing up sushi in the Japanese Prime ministers lap, the movie was clean, which made for a more enjoyable viewing experience.  The movie rarely made me laugh out loud, but I had a smile on my face for the entire hour and a half.  The movie ended with an ending, which was intentionally as cliché as possible:  A long kiss followed by a chopper headed off into the sunset.  The ending was fitting, given the movie’s to have as shallow a plot as possible while making fun of other films.

The Power of Ridicule: An Analysis of Satire- Megan LeBoeuf

The best humor is satire, and there's a reason we have so little of it today-

Ian Hunter

Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) by Noelle Henderson

I can't say I have exactly figured out Beasts of the Southern Wild, if there is anything to actually figure out.  I enjoyed the movie overall, but didn't quite understand the giant boar like creature storyline.  I actually think the movie could have done without the beast idea, which I guess would defeat the purpose of the title.  However I very much enjoyed the storyline involving Hushpuppy at The Bathtub.

I thought there were a lot of beautiful shots, although I didn't enjoy the handheld parts following her running around.  Personally, I would have shot that differently and not had it be so jerky.  I was in the front of the theater up close, so perhaps I would feel differently about it if I was farther away and didn't feel quite as dizzy.

I think there is definitely something metaphorical going on with the beasts.  There were shots going from the four beasts running to the four girls running, so I got the impression that the girls were being related to the beasts.  I think I will have to see it again to get a better understanding of the beast plot.  I did really like seeing Hushpuppy's character evolve throughout the film, and become a leader like her dad was.  I didn't enjoy the way her dad treated her and how aggressive he was towards her, but I don't think she would have evolved into the strong character she did if he wasn't that way toward her.

Overall I enjoyed seeing it, I liked that it was a unique idea and I couldn't predict where the story was going.  And I thought the girl who played Hushpuppy was amazing.  

Tropic Thunder (2008) by Noelle Henderson

Tropic Thunder uses satire to highlight it’s most crude and controversial parts, topics including the Vietnam War, veterans, race, the mentally handicapped, homosexuality, Hollywood, and drug addiction.  It is definitely a film that can be seen as completely offensive and idiotic, however if the viewer understands the stereotypes the movie is poking fun at, it is hilarious.  Many people are outraged by this film because they don’t understand that it is satirical, and that the writers aren’t making fun of the topics themselves, but rather the cultural stereotypes that exist pertaining to them.     

The opening scene is a ridiculous battle being shot for a movie within the movie, instead of this scene being a parody about the Vietnam War itself, it is about typical war movies.  There is nothing funny about war as we know it in the real world, however through the use of grotesque visuals in this scene that are so overdone, it makes battle look comedic.  The scene makes extreme violence look funny not only with it’s overflowing intestines and blood fountains, but also with it’s use of slow motion and dramatic musical score.  Through these techniques the horror of war and death is forgotten, unlike in typical war films where there is just as much graphic death seen, but there is nothing funny about it.  

The characters and the dialogue in the movie are also crucial for the battle scenes to stay light hearted.  The group of guys are a pack full of stereotypical masculine roles, that could exist in a real war movie.  There is Four Leaf (Ben Stiller) who is an egotistical testosterone filled hero, Sargent Osiris (Robert Downey Jr.) is the older father figure leader in charge of the unit, Motown (Brandon T. Jackson) is the badass young black guy, Fats (Jack Black) is the clumsy white fat guy, and Brooklyn (Jay Baruchel) is the young, smart, and inexperienced kid.  Just the names alone add a comedic effect, without their strong personalities to go along with them.  They all use crude profanity and witty war slang that is so absurd, it is hard not to laugh because they use combinations of words that don’t even make sense.  Then comes the stylistic and highly improbable situations, similar to Rambo.  At one point, Sargent Osiris runs in the middle of open fire and shoots Vietnamese soldiers to the side from behind his back.  Once he has saved Four Leaf and picks him up, Four Leaf prevents a bomb from hitting the helicopter by hitting it up in the air with his hands while still on Sargent Osiris’ back.  Such situations would not happen in Saving Private Ryan, for example. 

The horrors of war and use of satire is primarily simplified through the use of melodrama.  Similar to older movies like The Birth of a Nation and The Little American, those movies were comedic because they were so overdone and melodramatic.  Whether or not they were supposed to be funny for their time, they are now because acting has evolved over the decades into a different style.  Tropic Thunder uses a similar melodramatic style which is funny, because it doesn’t meet today’s acting standards and comes off as cheesy.  

Outside of the war theme, the movie also uses strong satire when referring to Hollywood.  Everyone in the industry; the actors, agents, studio executives, directors, etc. are portrayed as pompous and greedy.  The best example is Les Grossman (Tom Cruise), the studio executive producing the movie.  He is the most extreme portrayal with his crude, angry, egotistical, and power hungry personality.  The characters that are shown back in LA, reveal the truths about the culture of Hollywood and the corrupt things that go on there.  When Ben Stiller’s real life character (Tugg Speedman) is taken hostage by Vietnamese drug lords, Grossman decides to not pay the ransom and use his death as a publicity stunt and make money off of him.  He then offers Speedman’s agent Rick Peck (Matthew McConaugey) a G5 jet and money to not say anything about it.  This shows just how much Hollywood is about money, and is the primary focus in the industry.  

The article, The Best Humour is Satire, and There’s a Reason Why We Have So Little of it Today (Hunter) says, “Satire, in turn, depends upon the pricking of pretensions, showing up the high and mighty for the buffoons they truly are.”  Tropic Thunder does a great job of doing just that, poking fun at both Hollywood and war movies themselves.  The film also successfully mocks stereotypes we have in our culture about different groups of people.  Although it does so in a less than politically correct fashion and has offended many people, that’s what makes it so comedic.  

Sources:

Dargis, Manohla. "War May Be Hell, but Hollywood Is Even Worse." The New York Times 12 Aug. 2008: n. pag. NYTimes.com. The New York Times, 12 Aug. 2008. Web. 4 Sept. 2012. <http://movies.nytimes.com/2008/08/13/movies/13trop.html>.

Ebert, Roger. "Tropic Thunder." Chicago Sun Times 12 Aug. 2008: n. pag. Tropic Thunder. Chicago Sun Times, 12 Aug. 2008. Web. 04 Sept. 2012. 

<http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080811/REVIEWS/593221592>.

Hunter, Ian. "The Best Humour Is Satire, and There's a Reason Why We Have So Little of It Today." The Report News Magazine 29.21 (2002): n. pag. United Western Communications, 4 Nov. 2002. Web. 22 Aug. 2012. 

<http://search.proquest.com/docview /202959233?accountid=130772>.

Smith, Lynn. "The Joke Is On You." Los Angeles Times 15 Aug. 2008: n. pag. Latimes.com. Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2008. Web. 04 Sept. 2012. 

<http://articles.latimes.com/2008/aug/15/entertainment/et-etan15>.

Catch-22(1970) by Kerry Kutzer (option D)

           Catch 22 is a film directed by Mike Nichols, adapted from the Joseph Heller novel of the same name.  We follow a WWII bombardier, Captain Yossarian as he struggles to come to grips with his crippling fear of death every time he climbs into a plane.  Having never read the book, I cannot personally comment on it but the film is hefty combination of both satire and shock.  Usually setting you up with the comedy and then dropping you down with pure shock.  It is a fairly funny film, but if you haven’t read the book, like me, it can be somewhat difficult to follow.  When this film lies on the satire, it lays it on thick, typically in the depictions of the characters surrounding our lead, Yossarian.

            Col. Cathcartt the man in charge of the airbase is a man out for glory and recognition at any cost.  He continues to raise the amount of missions his men have to fly before being rotated out in the hopes of having the squadron with the most amount of missions and a medals.  In one scene in particular, Cathcartt whines to the base chaplain that he didn’t make the Saturday Morning Post.  We are seeing the idea of a man so obsessed with notoriety that he seems to almost forget that he is fighting a war.  Another example of satire through character is the character Major Major.  Yes his first and last name is Major.  When the base loses its squadron commander, Col. Cathcartt promotes Major Major to, well, to a Major.  Yes, Major Major Major.  Even though Major has never led a squadron before let alone even fly a plane, Cathcartt decides that he is the only Major on base and thus the only one qualified for the job.  Major Major spends the rest of the film attempting to dodge people who attempt to come to him with problems.   Here we see a man frightened by the prospect of having so much responsibility lumped on him when he has no idea what he is doing.  We see it in an overtly comical way but still a very realistic and relatable.

            One of my favorite examples of satire in the film is the least satirical in my mind because I can truly see it actually happening.  At one point, Yossarian and his squadron are ordered to bomb a small town on the coast.  When Yossarian figures out that bombing the town would have no military importance and would end up killing innocents for no reason, he drops his bombs in the ocean.  The rest of the squadron follows suit.  When the higher ups learn of this, they panic.  Rather than deal with the PR fiasco that would go with such a failed mission, they concoct a story of bravery and award the entire squadron medals.  This situation stands out to me because of how it simply reeks of the truth and at its heart, that’s what true satire is.  True satire presents you with the horrifying truth and then makes you laugh at it.

            At the heart of the film is our protagonist Yossarian.  He is a sane man coping with an insane situation and is surrounded by insane people.  He spends the entirety of the film attempting to convince people he’s crazy so he doesn’t have to fly anymore but it is to no avail.  The catch is that he is seemingly the only sane man surrounded by insane people making him the odd man out and by default, making him the crazy one.  There are almost too many examples of amazing satire in this film to be discussed here but I strongly advise everyone to watch it.  Films like Catch 22 and M*A*S*H* have really opened my eyes to just how effective satire can be when dealing with rough issues.  It hands us very deep, emotional, meaningful and sometimes disturbing messages but in a light and hilarious wrapper.  I agree with Ian Hunter when he says the best humor is satire and I believe, especially in times like these, we need more of it.

Sources

  Ebert, Roger. "Catch-22 :: Rogerebert.com :: Reviews." Catch-22 :: Rogerebert.com :: Reviews. Sun Times, n.d. Web. 04 Sept. 2012. <http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19700101/REVIEWS/1010305/1023>.

Hunter, Ian. "The Best Humor Is Satire and There's a Reason We Have So Little of It Today." Citizens Centre Report 4 Nov. 2004: n. pag. Web. 04 Sept. 2012. <http://search.proquest.com.ai.libproxy.edmc.edu/docview/219299221?accountid=130772>.

Canby, Vincent. "Catch 22." New York Times 25 June 1970: n. pag. Print.

http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=EE05E7DF1738E760BC4D51DFB066838B669EDE

Catch 22-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ln81Y87DHQA

Major Major Major-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LFujE3Y-ZI&feature=related

Beasts of the Southern Wild(2012) by Kerry Kutzer

Beasts of the Southern Wild was a fantastic film.  It was beautifully shot, the C.G. elements were pulled off very nicely and overall the film was touching.  I found it interesting to see this entirely different slice of life in the United States.  The stories of the those living in “The Bathtub” are something that I’ve never really been exposed to before and I don’t believe enough attention has been paid to that lifestyle.  That being said, the film did touch on quite a few themes that we’ve discussed in our deconstruction of war cinema.  The film presents the viewer with a true “us vs. them” theme when it comes to those in the Bathtub and the people behind the wall.  These people are willing to do whatever it takes to protect their way of life.  When outsiders do come to help,  they are presented as invaders and our heroes feel like prisoners of war.    

Auteur Theory (Option G) David Lean’s The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) by Andrew Barrick

Title/Year: The Bridge on the River Kwai / 1957

Director/Birth Place /Year Born: David Lean/England/1908

Budget: $3 Million Approx.

Gross: $33 Million Approx.

Synopsis: Set during WWII, A British colonel after defying a Japanese POW camp commander helps oversee the construction of a bridge that will span the Kwai River. Meanwhile an escaped American officer with the help of Allies attempts to return to the camp and destroy the bridge.

Narrative/Visual Keywords: WWII, Prisoner of War, British, Japanese, Escape, Morale, Bridge, Sabotage.

Characterization/Dialogue: The film stars William Holden, Jack Hawkins, and Alec Guinness, with them all playing lead commanding roles, even the secondary characters in the film developed and have personally identifiable traits. Dialogue is delivered is classic Lean style, with significant relationships built between the characters. The film is based loosely on true events during the construction of the Kwai Bridge on the Burma-Siam railway during WWII.

Camera/Lighting/Editing Technique: Panavision format, Wide Angles, Long Takes, Tracking and Dolly Shots, Natural outdoor lighting, Epic grand sense of scope and vision throughout the film.

Political/Social Commentary: Director David Lean based the film on the novel of the same name by Pierre Boulle. He was a secret agent with the Free French, and based some of his imprisonment and forced labor experiences on the Death Railway where over 200,000 perished. Boulle would also go on to write the novel The Planet of the Apes, another work ripe with social and political commentary.

Notable Collaborations: This was the third of six films that Lean and actor Sir Alec Guinness worked on together. The film was produced by Sam Spiegel who would go on to collaborate with Lean on Lawrence of Arabia and A Passage to India. Spiegel was known for producing The African Queen and On the Waterfront.

Random fact: The Bridge on the River Kwai was nominated for 8 Academy Awards and won sever Oscars including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Writing, Best Music, Best Film Editing, and Best Cinematography.

In the case of director David Lean and his works, I would argue for the case that he as filmmaker could be considered an auteur. As pointed out in The Auteur Theory of Film essay, “The older auteurs didn’t dream about camera movement, they dreamed about characters, whom they followed with their cameras.” With a filmography spanning five decades, Lean has left lasting influence on what I would consider other visionary auteurs, including the Martin Scorsese, Stanley Kubrick, Sergio Leone, Steven Spielberg and countless other contemporary filmmakers.  Following Lean’s style, these other director’s will often follow their complex characters with the camera's lens.

Originating from influential French filmmakers and critics during the 50’s, the Auteur Theory explores the notion of creative control and vision in cinema. Auteur theory implies that the director is in complete control of the film and is the film’s sole “author”, disassociated from film studio constraints. The collective creative process of filmmaking is also ignored by this theory. While Columbia Pictures and the producer of The Bridge on the River Kwai, Sam Spiegel, would certainly have had some thoughts or changes that they would have suggested that Lean, the film clearly is a hallmark of his directing technique. “Auteur Theory, in its heyday, concentrated attention exclusively on the fingerprints, thematic or stylistic, of the individual artist” (Wood) And Leans thematic and stylistic fingerprints are all over his films.

In the Lean’s Passion Was on the Screen article from the New York Times Caryn James states “Though his facility seems to suggest the anonymity of the old Hollywood studio days, Mr. Lean was not a director for hire. He never resorted to making quick films for easy money. Instead he made relatively few films and often spent years making painstaking preparations and shooting in exotic locations.” Lean certainly was a man of passion and vision when it came to his creative output. A film like Bridge on the River Kwai is the collimation of Lean’s creative process and vision as an auteur filmmaker. The film was shot in Ceylon, now Sri Lanka, a remote island, with a cast and crew of hundreds. The placement and movement of the camera is specifically positioned to emphasize the characters emotions and the large-scale scope of the film. The actor’s eyes in Lean film as consistently focused on to heighten the sense of human drama.

From his version of Great Expectations to his final film A Passage to India; which he also wrote the screenplay and edited, David Lean throughout his filmography “captured what films are all about.” (James) During his film career he was nominated for nine Academy Awards, seven of which were for best director. David Lean’s epic scope and foresight made him an innovator in film and a true auteur of the motion picture industry.

David Lean Accepts the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1990

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLAj6Sbrh6k

Sources:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050212/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bridge_on_the_River_Kwai

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Lean

Ideology, Genre, Auteur

http://search.proquest.com.ai.libproxy.edmc.edu/pqcentral/docview/210263746/fulltext/138FD1C1A92735595B7/2?accountid=130772

Wood, Robin. Film Comment 13.1 (Jan/Feb 1977): 46-51

FILM; Lean's Passion Was on the Screen

http://search.proquest.com.ai.libproxy.edmc.edu/pqcentral/docview/428038096/fulltext/138FD2427982690F1A4/2?accountid=130772

James, Caryn, New York Times [New York, N.Y.] 21 Apr 1991: A.13.

The Auteur Theory of Film: Holy or Just Full of Holes?

http://search.proquest.com/docview/428908266?accountit=130772

Grimes, W. New York Times [New York, N.Y.] (1993, Feb 20) pp. 1-1.9

Galaxy Quest- by Carol Ostling

 

 

Galaxy Quest is a sci-fi parody about actors of a T.V shoe who end up defending a group of aliens against an alien bully. Beyond the comedy is comments to the audience intended to make one think. The movie is a parody of star trek; however, I believe that the simplification of violence helps show human nature.

In this movie we often see the unit dynamic versus the lone individual. Sometimes the lone individual( commander Taggart) is able to get this accomplished one his own.  Sure the commander can fight a little beast one his own but he cannot fight the bully of the galaxy on his own. This is often highlighted throughout the movie that it is the unit coming together that is able to overcome all. The idea of the unit coming together is also emphasized through the aliens learning to come together and defend themselves.  It becomes never just one person’s lone success but everyone’s own specific strengths.

When violence is simplified to the extent of this movie it seems like the irony of life is more evident than if it was true blue violence. Such as a clip that is in the movie where the actors are trying to explain acting to the aliens. The aliens do not understand this concept of lies but they end up seeing film a historical document. This reminds me of how we have a cultural imagination and memory of what war is. Whether it is someone acting or a documentary these ideas become ingrained in our cultural and thus become a part of us.

There is also a great example of why people go to war. Some are just happened to be there, some are thrown into leadership. Other people start fighting because the enemy killed someone that they were connected to, as with the case of Alexander (aka Dr. Lazarus). Throughout most of the movie he is portrayed an unwilling participant and kind of pacifist.  It’s not until he sees one of the aliens die is he willing to fight. It is a funny scene but the innocents of the scene and of the comedy made me feel the death of this nice little alien even more.

Galaxy Quest maybe a parody of star trek but at the heart of the story is comments one violence and group dynamics. Real violence can and is terrifying but sometimes you’ve got to suit up and defend yourself.

 

 

Sources :

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19991224/REVIEWS/912240303/1023

Title The best humour is satire, and there's a

reason we have so little of it today

Author Hunter, Ian

Title American Dark Comedy: Beyond Satire

Author Mintz, Lawrence