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Race To Nowhere Film Analysis

Decent Essays

Race to Nowhere is a documentary film that captures stress placed on students due to demanding workloads. This film gives us an inside look on the education system: how it works, and its effect on those connected to it. Ables uses a variety of methods to suck the viewer in. The creators aim for our hearts with personal anecdotes and their soundtrack, followed by a string of families and psychologists who deal with the problem firsthand. By attempting this juggling act of impacting the viewer, maintaining credibility, and providing factual information, Ables’ film begins to lose substance. Throughout the film we are introduced to a variety of families from different age groups and backgrounds. The creators manage to grab ahold of our hearts …show more content…

This was one of the best strategies used by Ables in the film. Depending on the setting of the scene, the mood of the music in the background changed. During sad portions, the music would become slow and mellow, and during informational scenes , we would witness a more bouncy, energetic mood. When things got a bit more serious, the music would fade out and the hush causedt the viewer to focus in on what was being said. This approach was highly effective in appealing to the emotions of the viewers.
Lastly, Ables successfully maintained credibility throughout the film. She introduced a string of teachers, families, and psychologists. All of these people, experiencing conflicts from school pressures firsthand, prevented anyone watching from questioning anything that was being said. This was a move the strengthened Race to Nowhere’s impact on the people watching.
Overall, Race to Nowhere was an interesting film to watch. It was especially engaging for audiences who could relate. However, Ables did not manage to effectively portray her message Her use of soundtrack, rhetorical appeals, and personal anecdotes were all great strategies in swaying the viewer. However, she focused more on getting people to agree with her rather than arguing her side and introducing approaches for change. If Ables wants the change suggested in the film, she’s going to want to take on more than a few sob

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