Week 7

What each must seek in his life never was on land or sea. It is something out of his own unique potentiality for experience, something that never has been and never could have been experienced by anyone else. –Joseph Campbell
 

Good day to you all. I hope you had a nice weekend. Today I will pass back the many essays I collected last week.  We will review handouts given last week, with grammar and punctuation practice.  Lastly, we will watch all or part of a film for the purposes of writing to describe character, action, setting, theme, or some combination of the story elements.

A Film Review requires the reviewer put across a clear sense of the story being told or dramatized.  The reviewer summarizes  the action

 that drives the story forward, and the conflict at the heart of the plot events; the characters whose circumstances and actions we follow throughout;  the setting elements generally and as highlighted by specific scenes; and the play of ideas the film puts in motion. 

   A review is unified by the reviewer's opinion of the film's merit, including high notes and low notes, the best and the worst, the strengths and the weaknesses.  The introductory paragraph introduces the film by title and director, and year of release.  

For example:  Adventureland (2009), written and directed by Greg Mottola, is a lyrical, funny, romantic comedy set among a group of eighteen to twentyish suburban kids who work the summer at a down-scale local amusement park and make the best of the opportunity it allows them for love and adventure. 

The names of important characters should be introduced, and, if desired, the name of the particular actor playing the role.  A brief summary of the kind of characters and the action they are caught up in in the film is appropriate.  In a short essay, your focus may be limited to one or two characters, with mere mention of others.  The thesis or central idea of the review/essay should be hinted at if not stated outright in the opening lines.  The body paragraphs should illustrate by means of description of key scenes or events, and the ideas and emotions the film encourages one to take from these scenes and events.

The conclusion should underscore the reviewer's central idea in a fresh way.  Often this emphasis is created by focusing on the climax and conclusion of the film; however, you may focus on a particular or key image of character, setting, or action to make your thesis clear and convincing. Say you find a film beautiful and romantic in its depiction of the saving nature of love; your conclusion would provide reference to some aspect of the the film's actions, characters, or images overall, to convey the impression you felt most strongly.

Essay #6:  Write 350-500 words describing one or more scenes in the film you watch today, The Social Network (2010), directed by David Fincher, and starring Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg, the creator of Facebook.  Or you may choose from one you may feel more inclined to write about.  Include the title of the film in italic letters, the director and release date, and a summary of the plot and one of the central themes of the film.  The scene you choose to describe should illustrate some point you wish to make about the film story, a character within, representation of setting or place, the nature of the conflict and its dramatic or comedic force, etcetera.  The film is