1990s+continued,+Paper+I,+Midterm+Overview

1990s Film Wrap-Up



A ticking-time-bomb insomniac and a slippery soap salesman channel primal male aggression into a shocking new form of therapy. Their concept catches on, with underground "fight clubs" forming in every town, until an eccentric gets in the way and ignites an out-of-control spiral toward oblivion.

//American Beauty// (U.S., Sam Mendes, 1999)  //Three Kings// (U.S., David O. Russell, 1999)

Lester (Kevin Spacey) and Carolyn Burnham (Annette Bening) are on the outside, a perfect husband and wife, in a perfect house, in a perfect neighborhood. But inside, Lester is slipping deeper and deeper into a hopeless depression. He finally snaps when he becomes infatuated with one of his daughter's friends. Meanwhile, his daughter Jane (Thora Birch) is developing a happy friendship with a shy boy-next-door named Ricky (Wes Bentley), who lives with a homophobic father (Chris Cooper). A small group of adventurous American soldiers in Iraq at the end of the Gulf War are determined to steal a huge cache of gold reputed to be hidden somewhere near their desert base. Finding a map they believe will take them to the gold, they embark on a journey that leads to unexpected discoveries, enabling them to rise to a heroic challenge that drastically changes their lives.

 //Central Station// (Brazil, 1998) Dora (Fernando Montenegro), a dour old woman, works at a Rio de Janeiro central station, writing letters for customers and mailing them. She hates customers and calls them 'trash'. Josue ( Vinicius de Oliviera) is a 9-year-old boy who never met his father. His mother is sending letters to his father through Dora. When she dies in a car accident, Dora takes Josue and takes a trip with him to find his father

 //Red Violin// (Canada, Francois Girard, 1998) In present day Montreal, a famous Nicolo Bussotti violin, known as "the red violin," is being auctioned off. During the auction, we flash back to the creation of the violin in 17th century Italy, and follow the violin as it makes its way through an 18th century Austrian monastery, a violinist in 19th century Oxford, China during the Cultural Revolution, and back to Montreal, where a collector tries to establish the identity and the secrets of "the red violin." //4 Little Girls// (U.S., Spike Lee, 1997)--Screening on Thursday. This film recounts the people and events leading up to the one of the most despicable hate-crimes during the height of the civil-rights movement, the bombing of the 16th Street Church in Birmingham, Alabama. In that attack, four little African-American girls lost their lives and a nation was simultaneously revolted, angered and galvanized to push the fight for equality and justice on.

 Paper I Draft Peer Review and Conference Midterm Overview Assignment: Revise Paper I (turn in draft, peer review, and final draft) and prepare for Midterm.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 20px;">Note: Film Log due after midterm.