write a four-to-six page (must at least come as close to the bottom of the fourth page as you can get itcan be longer than four pages but no longer than eight), double-spaced response to the novel you read and the film you watched, as assigned to you. This means you must refer to the actual text itself as well and not just to the film. You will want to refer to chapter 7 (VII) in Literature Into Film (LIF) both while preparing to write and actually writing your essay. You must make at least one reference to or paraphrase from (but avoid quoting from) what you learned in the LIF text.
Once you have completed your Essay and have saved it in Word (or whatever program you use, saved as an .rtf file or .doc/.docx file), post your essay file under the Safe Assignment link corresponding to your assigned text and located under the Assignments link on BlackBoard. See the Course Calendar for due dates.
The questions below are great to use as jumping off points for thinking about this assignment. I recommend having the questions and a pen with you when watching the film. Do not write about one of the items belowthey are merely meant to give you an idea of some places you can start, if needed.
Questions to Consider About the Films
2. In what way is the theme relevant to the audience for which the film was intended? Is the message realistic or idealistic? Did the theme have a twist that gave it an unusual energy? Specifically, how was that brought out?
3. How did the theme of the film compare to what you felt was the theme of the novel? Did you feel the theme was the same or similar? How did the theme differ?
4. Was the introduction of the characters, setting, and time frame especially effective? Exactly how did the director choose to tell the audience the back story in the first few scenes of the film? Was this setup both credible and strong enough to carry us into the rest of the story?
5. The production design of a film establishes its look. Did this production design illuminate the intention of the film? In what way do the sets establish the style of the film? What does the interior design of the protagonists living arrangement say about the person?
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6. Color helps create mood. What basic color patterns were chosen for the film? What effect do the color choices have on our attitude toward the subject of key scenes?
7. The location of the camera gives us our physical relationship to the subject. Choose an important scene and describe the camera placement and movement. Were the choices made by the director and cinematographer effective?
8. Although the work of an editor is elusive, are there scenes in the film in which good editing clearly helped achieve its intended impact? Describe the scene shot by shot, explaining the particular effect of the editors choices.
9. Did the movie achieve what it set out to do? Define its intentions as closely as you can, and explain the particular ways by which the director and producers realized their goal.
