Film Analysis : The Passing Of Grandison

Based off Charles Webb’s 1963 novel by the same name, The Graduate is an American romantic comedy/drama released in the United States on December 21, 1967 starring Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft, Katharine Ross, and William Daniels. The film was directed by Mike Nichols, produced by Lawrence Turman and the screenplay written by Buck Henry and Calder Willingham. The film was produced by Lawrence Turman/Mike Nichols productions starting in March of 1967. Mike Nichols has also directed other well known films such as Catch-22 (1970), Working Girl (1988), and more recently Closer (2004). The film was distributed by AVCO Embassy Pictures nationally and United Artists internationally. AVCO Embassy Pictures studio, founded by Joseph E. Levine, the films executive producer, also claims production/distribution for other hit films such as Godzilla, King of Monsters! (1956), The Fog (1980), and Prom Night (1980). The movie was well received due to its $104 million dollar box office opening tab. The score was produced by Dave Grusin and the songs written by Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel.

What were Edwin S. Porter's significant contributions to the development of early narrative film? In what sense did Porter build upon the innovations of contemporaneous filmmakers, and for what purposes?

Although Grandison fools everyone into believing he loves his life as a slave, it becomes apparent at the end of the story that he had the desire and intention to escape from the start. Not wanting to reveal his true intention, Grandison acted like a model slave and showed no interest in escaping throughout his entire trip North with Dick. His almost over-the-top praises of slavery and criticisms of abolitionists and free life actually convince both Colonel Owens and Dick Owens that he enjoys his life as a slave. However, he ultimately “passes” from slavery to freedom, bringing his family with him. It may seem irrational that Grandison made the perilous journey all the way home just to escape again, but he did so to free his family too. This shows how much Grandison cared about his family and how blind Colonel Owens and Dick were to overlook that possibility.

A League of Their Own (Marshall, 1992) explicitly characterizes an American era when a woman’s place was in the home. Even our modern perspective implicitly follows suit. Although women have gained rights and freedoms since the 1930’s, sexism remains prevalent in America. This film offers an illustration when men went to war and big business men utilized women as temporary replacements in factories, sports, and so on. Here, course concepts, such as gender socialization, gender expressions, role stereotypes, emotion expressions, and language, correspond to the film’s characters and themes.

The film Pleasantville directed by Gary Ross is about two modern teenagers, David and his sister Jennifer, somehow being transported into the television, ending up in Pleasantville, a 1950s black and white sitcom. The two are trapped as Bud and Mary Sue in a radically different dimension and make some huge changes to the bland lives of the citizens of Pleasantville, with the use of the director’s cinematic techniques. Ross cleverly uses cinematic techniques such as colour, mise-en-scene, camera shots, costumes, music and dialogue to effectively tell the story.

The movie “John Q” narrates a story of the financially constrained character John Quincy Archibald who ensures that his nine year old son at the brink of death, secures a heart transplant by any means possible. Throughout the movie, there is a compelling display of the love shared by a family and this is seen in the great lengths John went to save his son, however unlawful. The main characters are John, Michael and Denise Archibald, Rebecca Payne, Doctor Turner and Lt. Grimes.

In the “Imitation of Life” and in Nella Larsen’s novellas, Quicksand and Passing, the issue of passing is presented and developed. In Passing, regarding Irene, “She wished to find out about this hazardous business of ‘passing,’ this breaking away from all that was familiar and friendly to take one’s chances in another environment, not entirely strange, perhaps, but certainly not entirely friendly” (Larsen 157). Both versions of the film and both novellas portray black women who come face to face with the act of passing. In the 1934 version of the “Imitation of Life,” the film deals with passing in terms of a lighter skinned girl named Peola while in the 1959 version, the lighter skinned girl’s name is Sarah Jane. The issue of passing in the film and literature remains relevant in the parallels and experiences found amongst Helga Crane in Quicksand, Irene and Clare in Passing, and Peola and Sarah Jane in the film adaptations. The black female characters struggle with the perks and acceptance allotted through passing in white society and the appreciation and understanding of their racial backgrounds.

Colonel Owens’ intentions were to select a slave his son could bring up north, who had proven to be resistant to abolitionist ideals and the prospect of running away. To Colonel Owens elation, Grandison’s answers not only confirmed his view of a mutually benefits of slavery but went above and beyond to demonstrate a conceivably genuine appreciation of the resources and lifestyle on the plantation. He went on questioned Grandison about the fairness of his treatment and the kindness of his master before promising him a bead necklace for his future wife and deeming him “abolitionist-proof.” Although the interaction described was only a brief portion of the story it proves to be a pivotal moment in the plot and leaves the audience to assume that Grandison is loyal slave with no intention of running away. But, as we later find out, Grandison was not at all ignorant to the ideals of abolitionism and actually aspired to be a free man. He eventually achieves his goal as we see in the very last chapter but not without an unexpected twist

The Frontline film Separate and Unequal discussed about creating a new school system; however, there are opposition by others who wants to maintain the current school system. If we look at the perspectives of the two groups, it is understandable in why there is support and opposition from the people of the city. The supporters of the new system wants a system that can provide better opportunities for their children without any violence. As the film claimed “the school was not teaching and were only babysitting the children”, which was likely a reason why there was a need for a new school system. With the chaotic and uncontrollable situation in the current system, many supporters have push forward the idea of a new system in a new city. From

According to Viktor Osinubi, slaves did not engage in a rebellion but rather became fugitives. The book begins with Dick Owens, the son of Colonel Owens, trying to help one of his father’s Negro man escape to Canada. In the early 1850s the Fugitive Slave law was passed. At times the freedom of runaway slaves was short lived. Some were caught and returned to their masters because of the Fugitive Slave Law that allowed masters to reclaim their runaway slaves (Osinubi, 2017). Dick Owens is described as a 22-year-old man who is intelligent, amiable, and indolent. “The Passing Grandison” begins with Dick Owens informing his sweetheart Charity Lomax about the story behind a slave reaching freedom through a man’s help who is now seeking trial. Charity is attracted to the man on trial and Dick questions her reasoning. Dick wants to please Charity and makes it his mission to win her love by engaging in something just as heroic (Stokes, 2011). This leads Dick to attempt to help one of his father’s slaves to freedom who happened to be Grandison. Colonel Owens assume Grandison was not smart, so he trusted him to go

Charles Chesnutt’s “The Passing of Grandison” is a story that uses irony and humor to show how an uneducated slave outsmarts a white slave holder. Southerners had many stereotypes associated with African American slaves and Chesnutt addresses these stereotypes in his story. White slave owners felt that they were superior to the slaves and they felt that the slaves were a sign of their wealth. The more slaves they owned the more power and control they had. The slave owners saw the slaves as uneducated, uncivilized property. Property that they had control over, some slave owners even convinced themselves that their slaves were happy to be slaves. Grandison’s master believed that Grandison would show the abolitionist’s that he was happy being a slave and that he lived a good satisfying life. Charles Chesnutt is using Grandison to refute the stereotypes that are associated with African American slaves.

The camera holds on Susan’s face in a look of despair while the audience hears the diegetic sound of a woman. Kane says that he is not sorry for what he has done. The camera holds again on Susan and at this same moment we hear the woman screaming. Sound is also crucial here. The diegetic sound helps to illustrate Susan’s inner voice and her position of oppression due to Kane’s overpowering character. This stands as another example of how Kane’s demand for power ruins his relationships and chases the people that love him away.

Since the beginning of the Industrial Age, Americans have idealized the journey towards economic success. One thing people do not realize, however, is that that journey is not the same for every individual. For Charles Foster Kane (Orson Welles), the main character of Citizen Kane, directed by Orson Welles, the path towards riches and a fulfilled life is being well liked. He serves to please others. He strives for that attention. This view cost him his happiness in the end. In this man’s rise and fall through prosperity, Welles shows the futility of striving solely for likeability.

The Great Gatsby is a movie set in the 1920’s. The main character Nick Carraway lives next to the mysterious Jay Gatsby. Throughout the movie you experience the roaring 20’s first hand. They take you to the lavish countryside, through the struggling “valley of ashes”, into the bustling cites, and down into the bootlegging speakeasies. Gatsby is a secretive man and no one knows the truth about him. By the end of the film you find out his past and his secrets are revealed to us by Nick. Nick was like Gatsby’s best friend through the film. Nick was like a middle man between Gatsby and Daisy. Daisy Buchanan was a woman who lived, with her husband Tom, across the bay from Gatsby. Tom had been sleeping around behind Daisy’s back and nick was the only one who knew who it was although everyone suspected he was. Although there are many characters to follow the main one was Gatsby his life was the main purpose of the film.

Part 1 - In American author's 2009 book, The Help, the primary thesis is the relationship between Black maids and white households in Jackson, Mississippi during the early 1960s. The story is really told from three perspectives, Aibileen and Minny are Black women, both maids, and Skeeter is the nickname of Eugenia Phelan, daughter of a prominent White family. Skeeter has just finished school and hopes to become a writer. In general, the relationship between the Black maids and the White employers is six sided: On one side we have the White employers who have three views: 1) Their personal and private beliefs that can range from extreme scorn and bias to kindness regarding race; 2) Their public persona that must have the "proper" attitude about Blacks and "the help," and 3) Their employer attitude, which is condescending and parental. The Black view also has three segments: 1) Their personal and private beliefs that usually range from understanding not all Whites are the same and an extreme love and empathy for the White children for whom they care; 2) The public persona that is deferential, polite, and stoic to their White bosses; and 3) Their attitude and view among the Black community, which usually separates the "poor and ignorant but rich" White souls from the Black view of family and common sense. All in all, the relationship is contentious, phony, and based on economic advantage.