Secretariat Movie Analysis

“Steel Magnolias” is a story about the close-knit relationships between six eccentric Southern women living in a small town in Louisiana. The film has a home spun, unpretentious feel to it. The plot alternates between humorous, everyday events with good-natured quips and the seriousness and heartaches to life’s unexpected crises. Through the laughs and tears, the six women learn to endure hard times and emerge from the struggles with grace and dignity. The film is set in the 1980’s with a tight knit homespun atmosphere. The Southern belles who are goofy on the outside but strong enough inside to survive any challenge that life deals them. Friendships help with a

The movie Napoleon Dynamite directed by Jared Hess and released June 11, 2004 is a comedy about an awkward teen that has trouble fitting in. Napoleon (Jon Heder) the main character, lives with his grandma until she gets into an accident and his life is immediately made worse when his uncle Rico (Jon Gries) who is stuck in his high school football “superstar” days knocks on their door and is there to keep an eye on Napoleon while his grandma is getting hospitalized. Napoleon has a red afro, wears moon boots, and is constantly practicing his atrocious ninja moves. Napoleon has a best friend in high school names Pedro (Efren Ramirez) who decides to run for class president, and it is up to Napoleon to step out of his comfort zone to help Pedro win, and get his information out around school. Napoleon Dynamite was excellent because it met the criteria of humor, acting, and the profound message.

Steel Magnolias is a great movie of love, laughter, and tears. It features six strong-willed woman who "are the Steel Magnolias of the tittle…” as Roger Ebert says. The women dealt with many set backs in life, but no matter what they kept their southern grace and charm in tact at all times. In the film one of the main set backs is Shelby, one of the “Steel Magnolias” (Julia Roberts), fighting with diabetes. Shelby’s diabetes is so bad she’s not supposed to have children due to the strains it would put on her body. Although there is a risk and against her mother’s will Shelby is determined to go though with the pregnancy. In the movie Shelby must choose between having a baby, which is one of the greatest moments in a woman’s life, or

Fruitvale Station depicts the real-life case of Oscar Grant III, a young unarmed black man shot in the back by a white police officer on January 1, 2009 in Oakland. The movie begins with cell phone footage of Oscar Grant’s death recorded by bystanders. Grant’s life was tragically cut short due to a white man’s racism and stereotypical perception of a young black man. The BART police officer Johannes Mehserle abused his authority and shot Grant for no other reason but hatred and racism. At the time of the shooting, Grant was unarmed and pinned on the ground in handcuffs. The movie then walks you through the last twenty-four hours of Grant’s life. As you watch the movie and research the aftermath of Grant’s death you a forced to ask yourself a few questions; why does the media have the right to take away Oscar Grant’s humanity? Where do we draw the line between racism and holding others responsible and will the public’s perception of black men and women ever change? Lastly, we must focus on how this case and others impacts African American society and culture. We also must focus on the necessary changes African Americans must make in order to survive in a world that does not value black lives.

The movie Secretariat is based on the life of a racing stallion named, oddly enough, Secretariat. The movie shows the horse in it’s training and taking place in multiple races, where his owner, named Penny Chenery, really wanted him to win. Penny Chenery, a housewife to four children in Denver during the late 1960’s to early 1970’s, and wife to John Bayard Tweedy, was the woman who took care of her father, Christopher Chenery, got very ill and could not take care of his farm. This was soon after Christopher’s wife, Helen Bates, died.

The Movie steel of Magnolias is about six women that come together in this hilarious and heartwarming story of life, love and loss in a small Louisiana parish. At the center of the group is Shelby Eatenton, newly married and joyfully pregnant, despite the fact that her diabetes could make childbirth life-threatening. Terrified and angry at the possibility of losing her only daughter, M'Lynn Eatenton looks to her four closest friends for strength and laughter as she battles her deepest fear of death in order to join Shelby in celebrating the miracle of new life.

In “The Rocking-Horse Winner” the mother is quite obsessed with the fact that she does not have enough money, even though she spends lavishly on materialistic things. She whispers to herself constantly about not having enough money, thus giving Paul the impression that he needs to do something in order to make her happy. The story mysteriously unfolds with Paul riding a magical horse that gives him prophetic visions of which horse would win the Epsom Derby. At first it seems like an interesting idea, but eventually Paul obsesses over money exactly like his mother. In the very end of this story, Paul dies from convulsions. Paul chooses the winning horse in the race, but he ends up losing his

Accepting relationships have the ability to allow individuals in society to deal with their inner conflicts. This establishes the beginning of transformation a feeling of belonging. The film Glory, directed by Edward Zwick, allows the audience to discover the significant American Civil War that raged through America for four years. In 1860 black people were treated unfairly and inhumanely. This film explores this along with the long lasting effects of racism and bigotry on relationships with others and society. Black slaves are freed in america and join the army. In the confrontation scene, Trip and rawlins, two black men from the army, confront each other. Zwick utilises the alternating close ups of the two men to allow the audience to experience the tension between them that enables Trip, the protagonist, to finally deal with his inner conflicts. This tough relationship seen in the colloquial language “But you ain’t gonna be anything to him but a ugly-ass chimp in a blue suit.” elucidates the derogatory reference of a chimp. This allows Trip to realise he is not the only black person treated unfairly, therefore he shouldn't take his inner conflicts out on others. Having relationships like Trips and Rawlins often gives individuals the ability to reflect upon themselves. In the next lake scene, a mid shot of Trip and Robert, the colonel, is utilised by Zwick to display the characters and also the water behind Trip that represents tranquility and the cleansing of his internal

Ex Machina goes above and beyond when it comes to science fiction and philosophy, if anything the movie leaves us with more question than answers. In the movie we are introduced to Caleb, a person we think has won the lottery only to find out he was chosen to be a participant for a Turing Test against AI, Ava, to see if she can pass as human. We are also introduced to Nathan who is the AI’s father of some sorts, he is wild, crazy genius that throughout the movie we are never sure if he is trustable or not. Nathan represents humanity at its darkest state; he is a self-destructive drunk who seeks his own demise. When he talks about the future and how the robots he created will take over the world, he talks about with awe like he can’t wait for

New Year’s Day, 2009, a man is brutally shot by the BART Police of Oakland, California. Fruitvale Station, written and directed by Ryan Coogler, took audiences by surprise as it resonated with twenty-two year old Oscar Grant, a man who was shot down by the BART Police. This movie takes viewers on an emotional expedition as it takes a peek into the life and death of Oscar Grant and his family. The struggles of originating from an African-American background become apparent as Oscar Grant struggles with steering away from racial stereotypes and the misunderstandings of racial profiling.

Fruitvale station, is a story about the real life Oscar Grant, a black man who was shot and killed by a Bay Area Rapid Transit police officer in Oakland. This film follows Grant and his last days before the shooting on New Year’s Day. Written and directed by Ryan Coogler, Fruitvale station was his first feature film. Coogler expressed that he was interested in making this film because he wanted people to get to know Grant, get attached, so that when a situation like this occurs again, people will care more about that human life (Wikipedia). In addition, the cast includes Michael B. Jordan (Grant), Octavia Spencer (Wanda Johnson), and Melonie Diaz (Sophina Mesa), amongst a few others. However, there is an underlying concept in this film. This film relates back to Double Consciousness and the internal conflict and struggles within African American men.

The movie, Glory, tells a story of the 54th regiment of Massachusetts journey in the Civil War. The 54th regiment was the first group of freed African Americans who volunteered to fight in the Union army. The film describes the journey of these brave men as they face prejudice to fight in the Union army and how they sacrificed their lives to fight for the cause of freedom. The film captures the heroic acts of the 54th regiment of black soldiers and their leader Colonel Robert Shaw.

When it comes to the film industry, entertainment is the tool used to acquire what is desired, money. The main goal for filmmakers when they create a film is to attain money in addition to the money spent to make the movie. Therefore, in some films that they like to base off of true accounts, it is somewhat necessary to dramatize or embellish the story to really tug at the heartstrings of the films audience. They achieve this goal by the use of dramatic music, ambient lighting, and a small amount of tweaked diction. The Fighter is an excellent example of this dramatization in action because throughout the film the characters are faced with a multitude of decisions that must be made. The choices they make require the characters to choose

At the start of the film, Ashoke and Ashima leave India for America and their life together begins. The move from the big city of Calcutta to the big city of New York is much lonelier because they have no family nearby and the land is unfamiliar. The climate is also different, it is winter time and the weather is cold. Ashima is learning very quickly that the living conditions are different. Ashoke explains to her that they have gas twenty-four hours a day, and the difference between hot and cold water symbols. Also there was no need for her to boil the water for drinking; she could just drink straight from the tap. Life in America is different and at times lonely, however Ashoke believes it’s the land of opportunity.

Christopher Nolan is credited as being an illusionist in the way that he directs his films. Inception and The Prestige are two of his films that will keep you pausing and rewinding for the duration while you try to keep up with the complex story lines and mind bending conclusions. Both films share a dark and sinister vibe,putting them amongst the neo noir genre of films, and The Prestige being set in an ominous, turn of the century London, and Inception based around extracting thoughts from the depth of minds it is no wonder they follow such shadowy themes.